February 4, 2014 – The Compound – Old Saybrook, Connecticut


Some might call being confined to one building, to one compound tantamount to being held captive. And yet I would define it as the most liberating two months of my life. The first month was filled with learning how to become a part of my brother’s team. How to work as a part of a process whose ultimate goals reach far beyond what anyone could have imagined. I am fairly confident that if you were to ask Matthew how I have done he would have glowing remarks, my brother, while he might agree with Matthew he is much too reserved to say it aloud.

A month ago Sebastian approached me about joining the XWF. Doing so involved weeks of intense physical as well as mental training. There are several types of different fighting and wrestling styles. After much debate between my brother and I we settled on me implanting a more technical style, one that involves a lot of submission holds, grapples and throws. It seems to be a bit of a lost art form as now a day’s most new professional wrestler’s break onto the scene using forms such as power based, brawler or to a lesser degree high flying. While high flyers are certainly the most exciting from an entertainment perspective there is something romantic about revitalizing something that seems to have gotten lost as the sport has evolved and the competitors have gotten bigger, faster and stronger.

Unfortunately my training has taken a bit of a back seat over the course of the last week. From what I can gather, something happened in the XWF, something unexpected and something big, the end result of which has seen Sebastian a bit unhinged. Now keep in mind his version of unhinged is unnoticeable to the untrained eye. But having spent the majority of my days for the last two months with him you learn to pick up on a few things.

After I finished getting ready I headed over to the kitchen where I made quick work of the meal that was prepared for me. Two egg whites, two pieces of bacon, crisp but not too crisp, one piece of toast with a little bit of butter, a cup of fresh fruit and a glass of orange juice. The same breakfast I have had every morning that I have been here. I could eat something different, no one has restricted my diet as far as I understand it but the meal is so good that I figure, why ruin a good thing. Before I could even finish my morning cup of coffee Jacob, the Messenger comes by to inform me that Sebastian has returned from last night’s XWF event and would like to speak with me at my earliest convenience.

Remember a little bit ago when I said that the more time you spend with someone the more you are able to pick up on their little quirks and nuances? Well one of the things I picked up on was that when Sebastian says at your earliest convenience what he really means is right now. So, to Sebastian’s private office I go.

The door is already open so rather than knocking I just walk in, shut it behind me and approach Sebastian, who is sitting in the chair at his desk. It appears as though he is looking directly at me but based on his lack of a reaction when I walked into the room it’s clear that he is really staring off into space. Physically he is here, mentally, he is somewhere else.



ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “Sebastian.”



No response.



ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “Sebastian, you there?”



A second or two pass and Sebastian makes a sudden movement as if he had just awoken from a daze.



SEBASTIAN DUKE: “Good to see you Eric. Have a seat we have a lot to discuss and not a whole lot of time to do it.”



This should be good.



ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “So what is going on brother? I have not seen you much these last few weeks. Is everything ok?”

SEBASTIAN DUKE: “Yes and no. Things are a bit chaotic.”

“Previously I had mentioned to you the dispute that was going on between the Shane and The Administrator, well a few nights ago it came to a head. Literally.”

ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “What happened?”

SEBASTIAN DUKE: “There was a match between Shane and The Administrator, the loser was to be beheaded, thus ending the conflict.”

ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “Except that’s not what happened?”

SEBASTIAN DUKE: “No, that’s not what happened. What happened was so much worse and to be honest, unexpected.”

ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “Are you going to fill me in or leave me to guess?”

SEBASTIAN DUKE: “Two months and we have not corrected that issue you have with sarcasm. How unfortunate.”

ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “Perhaps there is nothing to fix.”



The truth is, I do not actually need to be sarcastic, in fact, I do not enjoy it nearly as much as I used to, but with Sebastian, I do it just because I know it pushes his buttons. I am surprised he has not picked up on that yet.



SEBASTIAN DUKE: “Perhaps.”

“Instead of the conflict ending, it morphed into something far worse. Both The Administrator and Shane lost their heads at the hands of Eli James IV, leader of the Congregation and now apparently, the new Owner of the XWF.”

ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “Mr. is dead?”

SEBASTIAN DUKE: “Yes he is.”

ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “What are you going to do?”

“What is the Black Circle going to do?

“Now no one in the group will know you were working for Shane. “

“What do we do now?”

SEBASTIAN DUKE: “Calm down Eric. Everything will be ok.”

“Before Shane’s head was unceremoniously separated from the rest of his body he showed the world his true colors by turning his back on the very group he helped to create over a decade ago.”

ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “He turned on the Black Circle?”

SEBASTIAN DUKE: “Yes he did.”

“And to make matters worse two of its members, the lying, backstabbing, coward of a King Theo Pryce, and that homosexual spaceman Mr.Supernova decided to follow in Shane’s footsteps and leave the Black Circle for dead.”

“Opting to form their own group called “The Company”.”

ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “The Company? You are not joking? They actually thought that was a good name for a group? The Company? Wow.”


SEBASTIAN DUKE: “Yes, well awful names aside, The Company has taken it upon themselves, with the Administrative Network’s backing to take on Eli James and his Congregation, which is actually a good thing as far as I am concerned.”

ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “Why is that?”

SEBASTIAN DUKE: “Because it takes the focus away from the Black Circle while it rebuilds its ranks, which brings me to why I wanted to speak with you this morning.”

ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “You have my attention.”

SEBASTIAN DUKE: “Last night I officially rejoined the Black Circle which means we need to bump your debut up by a few weeks. I told you from the beginning that I want you by my side, and I mean that.”

ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “You have been the one responsible for training me, do you think I am ready?”

SEBASTIAN DUKE: “I do. I think you have learned all you can without having faced live competition. The rest will be up to you.”

ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “Ok. Well when do I begin?”

SEBASTIAN DUKE: “Soon, very soon. One of the last things Shane did before being killed was sign your new contract. You are officially a member of the XWF.”

“I have a friend within the Administration that has agreed to schedule you in a match within the next two weeks. If you do well with that you will get another match.”

ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “Understood.”

SEBASTIAN DUKE: “However, before you can make your debut there are a few things we need to take care of.”

ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “And they are?”

SEBASTIAN DUKE: “Well, to be blunt, your name, and your face.”

ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “What? What the hell is wrong with them?”

SEBASTIAN DUKE: “Nothing, and everything.”

ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “What does that even mean?”

SEBASTIAN DUKE: “Well the bigger issue is your face. It’s the reason I have asked you to stay here at the Compound and not leave.”

“Matthew has been keeping tabs on the investigation into Thomas Martin’s murder, the police still have no suspects, which means anyone is fair game.”

“It’s entirely possible that someone saw your face that day and decided to give a description of it to the police.”

“You showing up on National Television completely expose’s you and undoes everything we have worked so hard for these last few months.”


ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “I understand. So how do we get around that?”

SEBASTIAN DUKE: “Well, first we would have you wear a mask to conceal your face, and then a name to conceal your identity. There are already a few such folks in the XWF who do that so you will fit right in.”

ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “I see. And do you have any suggestions?”

SEBASTIAN DUKE: “In fact I do. How do you feel about the name Enigma?”

ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “Interesting. How did you come up with that?”

SEBASTIAN DUKE: “I didn’t. Jacob did. He said it came from playing around with the letters of your name, the E from Eric, the NIG from Nigel and the MA from Martin. Additionally, he felt that the name would fit the mystery surrounding your unknown appearance.”

ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “Well you have my buy in.”



Enigma…I like it. It…fits.



SEBASTIAN DUKE: “Now as for your face, I took the liberty of having a few prototypes created by a friend of mine. Would you like to go check them out?”

ERIC NIGEL MARTIN: “Very much so.”

SEBASTIAN DUKE: “Very well. Follow me, Enigma.”



As I get up to follow Sebastian out of his office it finally hits me, Eric Nigel Martin no longer exists. There is only…Enigma…



ENIGMA: "Yes, Master."



Fade To Darkness.