It really felt, to Raion Kido, that he was living in a dream. Not only had he been undefeated for the entirety of August, and not only had he retained the XWF Universal Title.

He was now facing Atara Themis.

“The Grecian Goddess herself!”

The former three-time Champion in the XWF was making her return, and the task of receiving her in the ring fell to none other than him.

“And that is exactly why I must make this a match to remember. For the XWF Universe and for myself… but more than anything else, for her.”

In the near solitude of the amphitheater where the Lion was located - the Epstein Family Amphitheater in UC San Diego -, under the bright blue midday sky, the Lion sat in silence, as the thoughts ran through his head. Was he perhaps presuming too much? Atara Themis was, after all,  his opponent. Not only that - she was also a veteran of the XWF, and one of its most celebrated names. Would the Grecian Goddess not laugh at his words before dismissing him?

“Maybe, or maybe not. The only thing I know is that everything I have done was just for this one moment in time. And now that it is here, I shall see it through to the end!”

“What do we have here? Stage fright? From the Lion himself?”

“Give him a break, would ya? He’s a fighter, not an actor!”

“Eh? Oh - sorry, just lost in thought.”

The students of the theater and dance group of UC San Diego gathered for their rehearsal look at the Lion, not without a certain degree of amusement. He rises at their arrival, giving them a silly, apologetic smile.

“It’s not just anyone I’m facing this week, you know. Atara Themis is… special.”

“I don’t blame you, that girl is hot!”

“What? No! Nononono, that’s not what I meant!”

Visibly caught off guard, the Lion shakes his head wildly, his wild hair now fluttering all around him. The would-be actors around him start a general laughter - without any ill intention. But the Lion remains as adamant as if he were facing a deadly foe in the ring.

“Got ’em! Ha! Our shining golden hero is brave enough to go into a Last Man Standing match without thinking twice, but can’t tell a girl she’s hot.”

“I said that’s not it! No, this is something more… philosophical, if you will. You have to understand that I am the Lion because of Saint Seiya - an Anime based on Greek mythology - and I don’t mean to be disrespectful to her, or to her culture. That is, after all, why I am here with you today.”

“Raion, don’t you think you’re pushing yourself too hard? You’ve had a meteoric rise. You’ve already proven all there was to prove. Now you should just do like us. We represent our roles as actors because it’s fun - just as the Ancient Greeks did!”

The young Saint of Athena draws a sigh, nodding almost as if conceding.

“Yes, but even you who represent your roles for fun are thorough in your job, are you not?”

“We do, but that doesn’t mean you have to live the part of the tragic hero. Look at Atara herself. Does she care what everyone thinks of her? She lives and breathes sexuality and attraction, but that’s not solely what she is.”

“She does what she does for the adoration of the people - and judging by what we’re seeing right now, it worked with you. And hey - we’re right there with you! But jokes aside, if you are constantly troubled by every minute little detail that transpires around you, where is your enjoyment? And if you don’t enjoy what you’re doing, how do you expect the audience to believe your words?”

The young Saint of Athena draws a sigh, nodding almost as if conceding.

“Yes, a valid point. This is a dream match for me after all - I might as well enjoy it!”

“It’s simple and yet complex, but that’s the secret of the performance arts - if you want the crowd to eat every single thing you say and do, you have to put every fiber of your being into it! Let go of your worries, stop caring what they will say, and say the things you feel. It’s a cathartic thing, and that’s how performances are remembered after they’re done. Because the spectators went home happy.”

The female lead actress - dressed appropriately in a tunic, as she is to represent Antigone - gives the Lion a big smile, and the lead actor beside her - the golden circlet in his head denoting him as Creon - takes the opportunity to speak next.

“And we have seen you take on literal beasts and giants like the heroes of Ancient Greece, and come out on top. We’ve seen you be the hero you cosplay and the entire world knows that’s what you believe, and therefore, that’s what you are. For once, let your heart go free. Be the Lion you were born to be. Be the hero you were meant to be. Don’t mope about like your entire life is hanging by a thread, and give that gorgeous woman the show she deserves.”

“And give everyone the catharsis they seek - Atara, the fans… and you. You’ve worked all this time just for the hope that this moment would come, and it finally has.

And you’re the one that needs to be the happiest, and the most proud.”

Closing his eyes, the Lion takes in the words of the students, and as he does, the heart that beats within his chest seems to race, and swell until the very point of bursting. Just as it would in the Leap of Faith match, or at the Cannabis Cup.

Just like the Big Bang that made the universe within him.

“Everyone to their positions, the curtain lifts in two minutes!”

This time, the Lion is brought back to Earth by the murmur of the audience behind the curtain, and the quiet commotion around him, as everyone scrambles to their positions. Antigone and Creon are the last to go, but before that, sharing a complicit gesture…

“Now go and do your mighty speech! Chicks dig that!”

“It’s cute, though, when you look like a kid that can’t confess his love. Some of us like that too!”

… they grab the Lion by each arm, and shove him towards the stage, in front of the audience, just as the curtain has lifted. The corypheus of the play points at him, and raises his voice.

“And now, ladies and gentlemen, we have with us a special guest to introduce our play. A lover of Greek mythology and a hero worthy of his own legend, please welcome the XWF Universal Champion…

RAIOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNNNN… KIIIIIIIIIIIIIIDOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

And as the crowd begins to clap, the Lion has no time to look embarrassed, or do anything but to put on his bravest face, and begin his speech…


“The best stories, those that endure the test of time, are those where the spectators win, whether in the greatest of triumphs, or in the saddest of tragedies.

So have the Greeks taught us in ancient times. Catharsis, they called it, to awaken pleasure from pain. This is how we came to enjoy theatre, and movies later down the line, from the art that they discovered and passed on to us.

Of course, not every story has to end in tragedy. Sometimes the audience goes home with a happy ending. Sometimes the hero saves the day, sometimes the lovers live happily ever after, sometimes it’s all a ridiculous farce that ends in laughter for everyone. And, ladies and gentlemen, that too is cathartic.”

Thus he says first, staring at the audience in deep concentration - his armor gleaming in the midday sun, and the snow-white cape floating behind him.

“But it isn’t just the XWF Universe that will get their catharsis this Savage Saturday Night. Sometimes, things are cathartic for the very performers in the ring. Sometimes it isn’t only about competition, it is also about joy.

Sometimes, dream matches come true, and this is exactly that for me.

Because, ladies and gentlemen, I must once again go back to Fire & Ice. I was nobody, only a replacement in the first match of the night. The first thing you would see, yes, and the standard you’d come to expect for the rest of the show, but also the least important among them all.

But then, right above me, was Atara Themis, the Grecian Goddess herself. Former Shooting Star Champion, Internet Champion, and Xtreme Champion. One of the several names for which I had chosen to sign with the XWF. Unfortunately, that was the first and the last time I saw her in the ring before she became a wife and a mother.

Until now.”

The Lion’s stern expression now turns into a valiant smile as he clenches his fist. The Grecian Goddess expected this, and he would do right by her.

And that, of course, meant the cosmos had to burn.


“Ever since then I have dreamed of this moment, of meeting her in person in an XWF ring. But never, in my wildest dreams, did I imagine that when we did face each other, I would be XWF Universal Champion!

But now we’re here, and it is my honor and privilege to be the first to welcome you back in the ring. What else have I waited for but this very moment? The Saint of Athena, the Japanese kid that grew up watching a Greek-themed show, now facing the incarnation of Greek mythology herself!

Of course, Ms. Atara, there is always a price. The counterpart to this event that I’ve anticipated for so long is that, with it, there also comes my responsibility as XWF Universal Champion, to be the symbol that the XWF Universe and the wrestling world as a whole expects me to be after this vertiginous road that I have walked, and after having started to defend the ultimate prize that I still hold.

And that means that everything I have so far shown to everyone that has faced me previously, I shall now show to you.

Because you are worthy, and because you deserve it.”

Almost as if in prayer, the Lion clashes his right fist against his left palm, closing his eyes, and bowing his head as he does. Nothing but the truth has left his lips, but he was aware that he still was the XWF Universal Champion - and that, as always, there was an example to set.

“I know you deserve it, because you’re as perfect as the goddess after which you fashion yourself. If we take away the image that you portray on social media for marketing - and I must confess, a very attractive one - the in-ring talent is there. The ability to make the people interested and invested is there as well. Behind the trappings of the Grecian Goddess exists a bonafide superstar, and more than anything else, it is exactly that what I saw when I looked at you for the first time, and how I continue to look at you now.

For Aphrodite incarnate you might be, the goddess of love and passion, and rightly so. Alas, you’ve once admitted to the same faults she has. Like her, you’re solely after the adoration of the masses, and you do your things whenever you want, wherever you want, how you want to do them, which is admirable in its own way, but wanton and fickle, and ultimately lacks the overarching goal.

For while Aphrodite is the fairest of all gods, my dear Goddess, and anyone would die for both her and you, my golden apple has gone to someone else. For I am a Saint of Athena, the goddess of war that was born wearing a helmet on her head and a spear in her hand.

And while I would like to admit that I love you, the above fact means that I am here to fight. That has been my calling since I was a child, and while I too do things my own way, I don’t lose sight of where I want to go, and most importantly, who I want to be. For just as you were born to be Aphrodite, I was born to be the Lion - the bringer of hope, the warrior of justice, and it is my calling on this world to be the symbol for the people that there is always a way to triumph - that the light hope must never die.

That, Ms. Atara, is the mindset in which I come to face you on Savage Saturday Night. I mean for this to be a dream match for me and the show that will have those tuning in or attending Savage Saturday Night talking about it for the rest of the weekend, but when it comes to the ring I come to give a battle, and that is what the audience, and you, shall have.”

The Lion points towards the audience and the camera, letting his last words fall into the ears of the crowd.

There could now be no doubt about his own feelings. Atara Themis deserved his best.

And that was exactly what he meant to bring.

“That is why, Ms. Themis, this match is yet one more test for me. Because you’re another of the 50 top names in the entirety of this company’s history, and I did not come all this way just to not measure up! In the span of seven months I have been against the best of the XWF and, even though some may have resisted me initially, in the end, I have taken their measure! Once you said that everyone’s maximum may be your minimum, but you’re now going against someone who can not only match you, but will try to go that extra mile to exceed you.

You know that of which I speak, Ms. Atara, because you too had the greatest challenge of your life, and while the Grecian Goddess could not pry the Universal Title off ALIAS… this Saint of Athena did. And that shall serve as proof of my words. It’s not enough to be the total package, the best at promotion, the best in the ring, if there is no drive or ambition to be the best one can be, and that is why I drive myself to do the things I do. That is what I mean when I speak about making the cosmos burn.

Now imagine, my dear goddess, what goes through my mind when I see you standing across me. All of this time I have spent here, all these things that I have done, and now I have you, of all people, in front of me? For me, this is not an exhibition match right before Savage’s main event. This is not even a title defense. This, to me, is everything!

That’s why I want this occasion, your return, to be worthy of the goddess you are. That’s why, after you and I are done, I want the XWF Universe speaking about this like one of the epic tales of Homer, Hesiod, or any of the greatest storytellers from your land. Regardless of the outcome, I want this to be the experience of a lifetime - the match that sends the fans home happy, as well as those that tune in to see Savage Saturday Night.

And I want this, above everything else, to be an experience that you shall never, ever forget!”

The Lion gives the best roar he can muster, and so does the light in his eyes. There had been enough worries before, there would be more than enough worries when Relentless came.

This was an opportunity that he long desired.

And before the time to battle came once more, he would let his heart be free.

“Because that, Ms. Atara, will be my own catharsis - born from that fateful day in which you and I were together in the same event, brought to a close on the Pechanga Arena, in the City in Motion, on September 10th, 2022. This may not be the Main Event, but it will be the greatest spectacle the XWF Universe shall enjoy - the return of the Grecian Goddess and the Saint that comes to meet her. An honored performance worthy of the poets and playwrights of yore, and ultimately, the test for the Lion that all he has done, was worthy of you.

I hope, then, that when your heart is struck by the Lightning Bolt, it carries ever after the feeling, and the passion, that I have tried to convey.

And I hope that you too reach a catharsis of your own.”

The Lion now throws a swift straight punch towards the camera, the golden gauntleted fist gleaming in the sun.

“And when that happens, Ms. Atara, I want you to sing, just as Homer pleaded. Sing, O Goddess, the valor of Raion Kido. Sing of him that came from nowhere, saw you on the stage, and dedicated his life and deeds to one day coming before you. Sing of the Lion that came to rule, sing of the Saint of Athena that made it his will to follow her charge to fight for justice.

Sing also that he came against Aphrodite, and brought to her the Lightning Bolt with which he overcame her…”

Raion now closes his eyes once more, taking a bow as an actor would at curtain call. His heart was now unleashed, and he had said his peace.

Atara Themis would take it as she would.

But he was the Lion, and he was free.

“... but above all else, O Goddess, sing that in doing so, he honored you.”

Fade to black.