OOC: This is what happens when I don't have word limits, lol. Just a reading note, readers on a black background will have some hidden text during the car ride scene....






Light was a relentless assault on Lux's vision as she opened her eyes. With a grimace, she snapped them shut, and soon tried again, opening them more slowly this time. The ceiling was a generic plane of porous tile. She was surrounded in a partition of beige cloth and....

Damn it!

The chill of the handcuff bit into her wrist. She pulled against it futilely, sitting up to see that she has been affixed to a hospital bed. Equal parts frustration and fear waged war within her, and she gave the cuff a few more pulls for good measure before resigning herself to the fact that brute force wasn't going to cut it. Think. Think. Think. She set upon the rail of the bed, analyzing it for weakness, shatterpoints. Absolutely anything she could use to diminish it's structural integrity. But she didn't get far. A shadow appeared on the other side of the beige curtain. Lux positioned herself on the bed so that she might be able to snap off a quick kick to this person's face. What then? Think. Think. Think. Pull them in to you, use them as a hostage of sorts. They'll probably know how quickly and capably I can kill someone so they'll know I'm not bluffing.

Lux took in a breath and held it The curtain swung open wide, and the figure was just close enough that with some propulsion, Lux's foot connected with the side of his face. Unfortunately, she noted a fraction of a second too late that she was kicking Vincent Lane.

FUCK! DUDE! Vinnie stumbled, hand grasping his cheek bone as he fell against the wall, tumbling into a small table beside her bed where he was able to catch himself before falling. Lux's attention went to the door, where a police officer entered, hand already moving to withdraw a tazer from his belt. Lane waved him off. It's okay....it's okay! Don't go all Tamir Rice on his ass! The cop shot Lux a suspicious look, but withdrew from the room with a degree of reluctance.

Lux looked at Lane, shaking her head. Christ, Lane! What the hell is going on?!

Vinnie righted himself, rubbing his jaw. “Oh, sorry for just almost unprettying your face, boss! It'll never happen again!” He pulled his hand away from the developing bruise. Would have been a good place to start is what I'm saying.

Fine. Lux sighed. I'm sorry. She rattled the handcuff for emphasis. But a girl wakes up handcuffed to a bed and she can't help but feel some kinda way, you know?

Yeah....uhhhh.... Lane avoided her gaze for a moment before rallying again. Look, we gotta talk.

A tingle of recognition sounded in the back of Lux's mind at those words, but she quickly cast it aside. Yeah, we do. Like, why am I handcuffed? And in a hospital?

You were found on the floor in your hotel room bathroom. The mirror was all broken and your hand was busted up. Lux looked down and confirmed that the hand that wasn't handcuffed was indeed bandaged. With attention paid, her knuckles started to throb in sympathetic response.

None of that explains my present situation.

It does actually.

My hand's not broken. This is a bit of an overreaction.

It's not your hand. Lane itched the back of his scalp, a nervous gesture.

Spit it out.

The Loverboy canted his head and grimaced. Look dude, I'm sorry, but it's over. Okay? It's over. He took a step back to ensure he was out of kicking range and Lux rolled her eyes in reply.

What are you talking about?!

I gotta let you go. You're fired.

Shock rippled through Lux's body. What....? WHY?! I'll pay for the fucking mirror!

It's not the damn mirror! Look....placing his hands on his hips, he mutters something under his breath. I really, really shouldn't be the one telling you this, but we all kind of agreed that maybe it would go a little better from a familiar face.

WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?! Lux's shout bit the air, and once again the officer hovered in the door way.

You're sick, man. Lane threw his hands out, a resigned gesture that looked like dropping a physical burden. Ok? You're sick. And you've become a liability.

She snorted with derision. I'm a liability? Me?! Have you peeped your Universal Champion lately? Or any of the other assorted lunatics you cut checks to every week?!

This is different. He briefly looks back towards the door. Your parents are here to pick you up. You're a minor and they told me they don't want you working for me anymore. My hands are tied. I take you on tour and shit against their wishes and it's like kidnapping....

Hold on, hold on! Shut up! Lux squeezed her eyes shut, trying to process the sheer insanity of what he was saying. None of this makes sense! NONE OF IT!

Yeah...they said you'd say that. I hope you get the help you need, kid. I really do. But I can't have you working for me anymore, okay? I'm sorry. I'm sorry it had to go down like this.

Lane abruptly turns away from Lux's bedside and starts heading for the door. Lux pulls against the handcuff again, as though trying in vain to pursue him. Lane? LANE?! Get back here! LANE!

Vinnie can barely be heard muttering “it's your turn” as he passes through the threshold. And then, as though summoned, a middle aged couple take his place. The man has dark balding hair, with a slightly ruddy complexion bearing a hint of rosacea. His middle section is untoned, but not inherently overweight. The woman is almost as tall as him, with a slim build and sandy light brown hair smattered with strands of gray. Her green eyes are piercing, and set upon Lux with a sort of deep mournfulness. But the man speaks first.

Do you remember us?

Lux gawps at them stupidly, trying to place them. But she cannot. I have no idea who you are. She answers honestly, trying not to inflame the situation, all the while sneaking a glance back at her bindings to try to suss out weak points again.

The man takes a tentative step forward. The woman wraps her arm about his forearm in a protective gesture. Your name is Ethan Dzielski. Do you remember that?

No. Another honest answer, but Lux could feel her frustration mounting again. She busied herself with searching.

You are our son. We've been looking for you for months. He looks at the woman, and then back at Lux. Too bad we never thought to check out wrestling programs. Heh. He makes a weak stab at a joke, but it just sounds exhausted. What that man, Mr. Lane, said about you being sick? It's true. You have schizophrenia Ethan. And you've been without your medication for a very long time. The doctor's think that might be why you passed out in the bathroom.

Who put you up to this? Lux battered them with the question, and they both looked taken aback. Huh? Madison Dyson? Is this Madison? Screw off. It's not funny. And you can run back and tell her that you're not going to break me with this shit, okay? So....screw off.... Lux wrenched at the cuffs again, more savagely this time. Cutting into the flesh and bringing forth a thin bead of blood that rolled down her wrist. This brought the woman to the fore.

Please, don't hurt yourself. The woman drew even closer than her husband,leaving him behind. He grabbed at her, but she looked back at him and shook her head “no”. She drew herself all the way up to her bedside, and Lux was shocked into immobility by her bravery. You won't hurt me.

Lux watched her resolutely, watched as a thin tear broke the corner of her eye and tripped down her cheek. All of these people inside of you, Ethan. Lux. Corey. Pavel. HELPER. Orlu. We've heard you tell their stories for years. It's almost like we raised them too. She smiled thinly. I was always partial to Corey. A tiny gasp that Lux didn't initially register as a sad sort of laughter escaped the woman. But now, we want Ethan to get better. We want Ethan to come home. Okay?

Lux found herself ensorcelled by the absolute lunacy of it all. I'm not Ethan. My name is Lux.

The woman nodded in a sad but unsurprised way. Yes, hon. Yes. Her gaze flicked back to her husband for a moment. And then, she leaned into Lux, speaking in a low conspiratorial tone. The police and the hospital want to keep you here. They think you're dangerous. But me and your father just want you to come home. I know you think we're full of shit. But if you don't fight us and just come with us I promise we'll get you out of here and keep you safe.

Lux pinched her mouth shut, biting back a reply. Shooting a look at the man behind the woman, she saw him nodding in silent agreement with his wife's words. Lux eyed the woman warily now, and she responded in a low tone in kind. I will come with you. But you know I can hurt you both very badly if you do something to me, right?

We know. The woman said the words in a stolid measured fashion, like she wasn't just paying Lux lip service. We've seen what you could do to all those people on TV. We don't understand it, but we've seen it. A pause. You need to promise me you'll leave with us without issue and get in the car. This is important. The police will shoot you if you fight. Real fear marred her expression.

Lux's considered the cop standing in the door frame, and then looked to the woman. Fine.

One Hour Later....

The urban landscape of Miami gave way to sparser domains, and then to the highway. Reaching the on-ramp instilled in Lux a “point of no return” like sense of anxiety. Removing herself from the vehicle, if needed, would now be significantly more challenging. But something kept her rooted to this place, a curiosity perhaps. Or maybe something deeper and more elusive.

Their names were Patrick and Sharon Dzielski, and they were a perfectly well rounded suburban couple comfortably into their 40's. And she couldn't deny that now, with the benefit of exposure, something was starting to seem unnervingly familiar about them. Lux looked down at the photo in her lap that Sharon had given her. In it, twin boys stood side by side, one arm clapped around each others sinewy shoulder as Niagara Falls roared in the background. The boys looked like younger versions of Corey...of Ethan....of whoever. Each boy bore a wide smile, mercifully innocent of what the years would bring.

Susan was half turned about in her seat, talking to Lux. She was subtly underscored by the car radio turned down low but not turned completely off, so that there was a barely discernible rabble undercutting the conversation.

Truth. Truth. Truth. Truth.

You guys were 8 then. Canadian side of the Falls. Corey liked it better on that side.

Lux eyed Sharon. Corey....?

Your brother. Sharon's lips formed a terse line after she spoke his name. You really don't remember?

Lux stared harder at the photo. I.....no.....

Sharon nodded. It'll come back to you. Once we get you back on your medication. Get you thinking straight again.

Maybe a med change. Patrick interjected. Sharon shook her head slightly.

We'll have plenty of time to discuss that.

Where is Corey? Why isn't he here?

Lux caught sight of Patrick shooting Sharon a nervous side glance. Maybe we shouldn't....

No. We have to. Sharon's eyes started to gloss over with moisture. Corey's dead, Ethan.

He's....dead....? Lux winced, and something about looking at this bright, smiling boy and hearing this proclamation that his body was decaying somewhere underground was almost too much to bear. And then, she immediately questioned why this bothered her so.

Corey died two years ago of a drug overdose, honey. It's what we think set off these....issues, you've been having. You took it very hard. Your doctor said that sometimes people who are predisposed to mental health problems can have them triggered by a traumatic event.

Lux thumbed the photograph, and was shocked to find herself blinking away tears. In the background, the radio continued its perpetual hiss, voices murmuring in the background.

Believe them. Believe them. Believe them.

Is it starting to come together? Are you remembering?

I don't know. Lux spoke the words, but found her confidence lacking. She could almost feel Corey's arm around her, the mist from the falls tickling their backs under the summer sun. She wasn't sure if it was true, but then why did it feel so RIGHT? It still doesn't make sense though. If this is all some kind of delusion, then why is Madison Dyson after me? Why did she have her people attack me?

This Madison Dyson woman isn't after you, Ethan. It's because you're sick, baby. Your brain is making it all up, making you think things that aren't real.

The radio thrummed.

Yes. Yes. Yes.

But....I....?

Susan smiled sadly. You loved Corey so much that when he was gone you couldn't handle it. You sunk inside yourself, inside this fantasy world of time traveling warriors, and demons and global plots. Because you couldn't accept that Corey was gone.

Lux's heart hammered against her chest, and it was as if with each passing thud, a barrier was being broken down. An iota of acceptance seeped through a crack in the dam she had erected against this awful, incomprehensible loss. Her finger tip went to Corey's face, because somehow she knew exactly which one of these boys was him. The dam was breaking down, splitting asunder in her mind's eye. Her heart pounding it's rhythm ever faster, singing an aria inside her of panic and terror and loss. Her stomach bucked, and her mouth grew flush with saliva. The radio continued its merciless drone.

Truth. Truth. Truth. TRUTH.

The bough was nearly broken, the dam now a wrecked bulwark barely standing against a sea of pure unfettered TRUTH. A tear fell from Lux's eye onto the photo as the dread within her persisted its awful ascent. She looked up and the car swam, it was underwater and outside the windows the highway was a foreign place, a formless streak of above-ground ocean. I can't breathe! Lux gasped.

The radio.

ACCEPT! ACCEPT! ACCEPT!

Patrick, pull over! I think he's going to be sick!

Drowning. Drowning. Drowning. The water was rushing into the car.

Radio. Radio. Radio.

ACCEPT! ACCEPT! ACCEPT!

Lux's attention snapped to the radio, but the rising tide of panic made her second guess her own senses. But she could have sworn she just heard the radio clearly just then.

I cant pull over right now Susan! Is there a bag or something?

Lux drew in a deep breath, trying to tamp down the panic attack. Her breaths hitched quite a few times before they mellowed. And then, she heard the radio again.

IT'S ALL TRUE!

Eyes narrowed, she leaned in closer to the speaker in the back seat.

LUX! IT'S COREY! YOU HAVE TO SNAP-

She gasped, head pulling away from the speaker as though struck by it. She couldn't stop herself from speaking his name. COREY?!

But his voice was choked out by static, snuffed out and replaced with that incessant drone again. But this time, Lux could make out the form and function lurking beneath the white noise even more clearly than before.

BELIEVE THEM! BELIEVE THEM! BELIEVE THEM! LUX! LUX CAN YOU-.......! BELIEVE THEM BELIEVE THEM BELIEVE THEM

There it was again, Corey's voice set amidst the monotone onslaught of commands. Lux turned towards Susan and Patrick just in time to see Patrick's hand jump to the power button on the radio, shutting it off. Lux's stomach sank, a jolt of fire arced its way up her spine. She looked back down at the photo and saw now that it was blank. Her lips parted in surprise, and she jerked her attention back to the people sitting in the front. Neither of them was looking at her now. Why did you turn the radio off?

It was getting kind of annoying, sport. Truth be told, I didn't even realize it was on!

Silence reigned again, until Lux ran it through. Patrick, I'm going to ask you again. Why did you turn off the radio?

Patrick and Susan's eyes remained locked on the road ahead, their expressions suddenly stolid and artificial. Well, I guess....

Lux undid her seat belt and threw herself towards the steering wheel in one smooth motion. Her fingers locked around the top of the wheel, and she jerked it hard to the right. Patrick tried to reassert control, but it was too late. The car careened across the lanes, and had made it as far as the rightmost lane before getting t-boned by a box truck. She forced her body to go limp, a last ditch effort to try to salvage as much of her physical well being as she could. Lux's world was suddenly rendered unto a swirling wash of spiraling color, glass, and chaos.

She awoke with a gasp on the street, wincing in expectation of the pain that was surely coming as awareness washed throughout her body. But there was no pain. Lux sat up and saw the ruination of cars on the highway, and then looked down at her body. No injury whatsoever. Impossible.....

Well now this IS frustrating!

Lux's attention was redrawn back to the wreckage of vehicles and she was shocked to discover that the remaining traffic on the highway was simply passing by as though nothing was amiss. Nor was there the characteristic whine of emergency vehicles in the distance. But more than that was Pavel. He sat on the overturned shell of Patrick and Susan's car, umbrella open above his head. Hopping down like some off kilter Mary Poppins, he casually sauntered over to Lux and held the umbrella aloft over both of them. Let me help. You seem like you've had a rough day.

What is this?! WHO ARE YOU?! Lux shot to her feet, backing away from the boy.

I'm Pavel!

BULLSHIT! She looked about frantically, appreciating just how wrong it all seemed now. Pavel couldn't even speak English! What the fuck is happening?!

The boy looked at her askance and sighed sarcastically. Okay, honestly? He lowered his umbrella and snapped it closed, freezing the entire scene about them. This might have not been real.

Oh, really? Lux spat bitterly.

I wouldn't gloat if I were you. You threw away a primo opportunity here. You had a chance to live a peaceful existence with a real family.

Yeah, sure, all I had to do was swallow the blue pill and continue on as a happy idiot. Lux rushed the boy and grabbed him by his lapels. But, no sooner had she made contact did he appear behind her. Lux wheeled on him, fists balled into white knots. END THIS GAME NOW!

Not until I, as one aggrieved party of many, have spoken my peace.

The assassin's eyes narrowed. “Aggrieved party?” I don't know what the hell you are, but you're not Pavel. And I will find a way to burn you to ASHES for daring to wear his face.

“Pavel” smirked and pointed a finger at her, finger gun style. He mimicked firing it. Bingo-bango. At least you've got some insight into what you do best. You're a destroyer, Lux. And you're so good at your job you do it even when you don't mean to! Like, can you imagine an officer worker who writes TPS reports by accident? Holy shit, give that guy ALL the raises!

Lux wears a bitter smile. Save it. I can see where this is going. She snaps her fingers at the imposter. So what story are you going with, huh? Are you my conscience? Mental illness? My insecurity? I mean, it's all the rage now, right? She shakes her head. Save it! I know who and what I am. You are NOT a part of me.

So what am I?

Something outside of myself. An invader. A sickness.

You're that confident I'm not a part of your psyche?

Very. She spoke the word so harshly it damn near cut. I don't have time for this self doubt bullshit.

The boy started to circle around her, stepping in front of the wrecked Sedan again. Smoke from it hung it midair, forever paused. I'm sorry, but weren't you the one telling DeVille how haunted you were not too long ago?

Lux grimaced. I'm aware of my mistakes. I don't let them devour me.

Oh, you're AWARE! Well thank God YOU'RE AWARE! He splayed his arms out to his sides melodramatically. Unfortunately you being AWARE doesn't make me any less DEAD. And it doesn't stop with me, does it? In fact, you've been fucking up people's lives from the moment you set foot in the XWF too haven't you?

What are you talking about?

He sucks his teeth. Seriously?! Lux, you are a nexus of RUIN. All you do is destroy! Think about it. You damn near destroyed Centurion's relationship with his friends. They're probably never going to look at him the same way again. Doubly so because Apex started crashing and burning that same night he was forced to fight them.

Centurion made a choice. I didn't force him into anything.

Oh, ok. Naturally, he looks unconvinced. Well, it gets worse from there. Let's talk about Thad Duke and Dolly Waters and Vita Valenteen. Lux looks like she's gonna protest but “Pavel” cuts her off. Eh, eh, eh! Just because this one didn't make it to the cameras doesn't make it any less relevant. Although Corey and Thad do seem awfully cozy for no good goddamn reason, right? But there is a reason, isn't there Lux? Yeah. You tried to get your own little group together behind the scenes. You wanted some normalcy for Corey, some people he could relate to. Some friends, right? But where did that go, huh? Dolly lost her smile, Duke did too for a time. And VV? HOOOO BOY! Let's talk about VV and Corey! Poor innocent little VV getting her bad girl cherry popped by some Aussie muppet now. I mean, that one kinda worked out in your favor, but still. Girl lost her damn mind as soon as she was sucked into the perpetual train wreck that is being in proximity to YOU.

Lux stabbed a finger at Pavel. I'm not responsible for any of that! They ALL made their own choices! They all had their own problems!

Oh would you take some accountability, Lux?! The boy sneers, and then waves his hands dismissively. Okay, fine. Let's talk lover boys then. Let's talk Joachim and Corey. Where do we start? Pick.

Fuck off.

That one strikes a nerve, doesn't it? Fine. Joachim. That little lovelorn puppy that you let follow you around and lap at your ankles. The one you give a little scruff behind the ear and a pity fuck to when killing people and getting rejected by Corey starts getting the best of you. He's a little different though, isn't he? Yeah, you haven't quite gotten around to destroying him, have you? But it's coming. You don't feel the same way about him that he feels about you. And you never will. And whyyyyyyyy?

Corey.

“Pavel” speaks Corey's name like it's an end in it of itself. Lux looks down at the pavement briefly before returning a feral gaze to the imposter standing before her.

Adorable, charismatic, cocksure, broken, confused little Corey. The boy playfully taps the side of his nose. Recently developed a taste for candy, it looks like. Wonder why that is. I mean, an addict's an addict, right? Corey himself has said addicts stay fuck ups for life. But can you honestly stand there and absolve yourself of any responsibility for his actions? The pressure you put him under day in and day out as both an international performer for a major professional sports promotion and one half of the world's strangest kill team. “Pavel” shakes his head incredulously. He's 17, Lux. SEVENTEEN. And on top of all of that insanity, you tried to force your love on him. An assassin, from the future, who lives in his brain, has developed some kind of creepy May December obsession with him. What the hell are you thinking? Harder men would break under that kind of pressure. You're OBLITERATING this boy. He pauses, lowering his tone. You will be the death of him, Lux. Like you were for me.

Lux's face is downcast again. She remains silent.

Do you have anything to say for yourself at all?

I do. She states softly, but her expression when she picks her head up is laden with hate. Are you about done with this shitty Doc DeVille impression or can we move on to the part where I'm fucking disemboweling you?

“Pavel's” head cants. There's that stone cold bitch.

You're goddamn right. Lux breathes heat. Yeah, I'm haunted by the people I've left behind. I may even feel responsible for some of them. And yes, I have made my fair share of mistakes. Let people get too close. But I want to make one thing crystal fucking clear. She approaches the boy menacingly. Nobody punishes me but me. And you..... her hand lashes out and she takes "Pavel" by the throat. This time, he doesn't move fast enough.

…..ARE NOT ME!

She cranes her other arm behind his head, almost lovingly, but pulls him in close like a Black Widow spider toying with a desperate fly. With a brief, brutal movement, she twists his head unnaturally, snapping the neck with a crack that splits the air.

Putting her ghost to rest.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lux awoke with a gasp on the bathroom floor, and was immediately aware she wasn't alone. Two male voices trickled in from the next room.

Did you hear that?

Lux clamped her eyes shut again, doing her best to reposition her body as it was. A second later, someone was in the bathroom with her. She felt a hand on her shoulder, rolling her onto her back.

Be careful in th-.....

But the man in the adjoining room didn't even get to voice his warning before Lux snapped into action. She rolled onto her upper back, grappling the invader in the bathroom about the waist with her legs and dragging him to the floor. He fell on top of her knee, causing a thin stab of pain there. Nevertheless, Lux used the surprise to her advantage, landing an open palm strike to the man's nose that pushed cartilage up into his brain. With a wet throaty gurgle, he began to convulse. Leaving him, she leapt to the doorway and heard the distinctive click of a firearm.

I'm armed. The moment you step out from there you're dead. Let's have a chat.

She opted to go to the sink instead, seeing that her assailants had foolishly left the glass shards in there. Scooping a couple of the larger ones up, she returned to the threshold and sent one shard flying in the general direction of the second man's voice. Banking on the distraction, she lunged and rolled into the room, following up on her projectile quickly. Before the second man could fire off a shot, Lux landed the second shard deep in his abdomen. A shot went off from the gun now, wide right and into the wall. He stumbled back against a decorative end table. Lux kipped up to her feet and got in close to him, slamming the shard further into his stomach with a kick, followed by another well placed roundhouse to the side of his head, dropping him. Stripping the firearm from his hand, she wheeled at the sound of another noise, and breathed a sigh of relief to see that it was only HELPER.

HELPER, what the hell happened? Where did they come from?

The robot remained silent, and then dipped back and away from her.

HELPER? Lux eyed the robot as it hung suspended in mid air, and an acute feeling of wrongness took hold. It occurred to her then that he was undamaged. Not even restrained. He was programmed to defend her at all costs. In fact, he hadn't uttered a word about the second attacker outside the bathroom. HELPER..... Lux's finger tensed on the trigger.

I'M SORRY LUX! I COULDN'T HELP IT! I COULDN'TTTTTTTTTTTTTTXHBGVFCX..... his voice modulator abruptly started to stutter, and then shriek incoherently. Suddenly, a lick of flame burst forth from one of his eyes, before his entire tiny body was engulfed. Running to the bed, Lux grabbed the sheets of it and threw them on HELPER as he dropped to the floor, trying to smother the flames. But the fire was intense and started to burn right through the sheets. She was forced to grab the comforter as well. Finally, the burn was under control. But, when she pulled away the mass of scorched blankets, it was clear that it was too late. HELPER had burned hot and fast, like an incendiary grenade had gone off inside him.

Jesus, HELPER.... a mournful voice whispered beside her. Corey.

What the fuck happened here?

I don't know. I mean, I was still aware after you went down. I could see everything happen, but we were incapacitated. I tried to call for you.

I heard you. Lux replied, remembering his voice on the radio. It helped.

He didn't even try to stop them. Corey gestured at the burnt out shell of their friend. It's like he was cooperating with them. Lux, why did he do that?!

I don't know. Casting a glance back at the body on the other side of the bed, she set her teeth. It's Madison, taking another run at me. Has to be. And then, returning to HELPER. Gonna wait for him to cool and then take him apart. Something went wrong.

Lux... Corey shook his head reproachfully. How can you be so detached about this?

You really want to moralize with me right now? Then, with a withering stare. I know what you were up to last night. We've got a lot of ground to cover, you and I.

Corey's expression melted into something inscrutable. He avoided her accusatory glare and disappeared.

TWO DAYS LATER.....

Lux sat cross legged on the roof of The Citadel, drinking in the night time expanse yawning open before her. It was beautiful, the sky had cleared just in time to pull back the curtain on a pastiche of glittering stars. The evening air was just starting to carry the chill that heralded the end of summer. But Lux couldn't appreciate any of it. Her head swam, bathing in grief and anxiety. The loss of HELPER. Corey's drug use. This, whatever the hell it was, that had gotten deep inside in her head, wearing Pavel's face like a mask and attempting to drown her in possibilities. Possibilities, and when that failed, guilt.

And on top of all of that?

DeVille.

This has not been a good week for me. She speaks the words aloud to the stars. You know, a friend of mine downstairs told me that given everything I've been through lately, an easy go of things would probably be in my best interest. And logically, he was 100% right. But I respectfully disagreed anyway.

I don't feel alive when it's easy. Cue “I'm Only Happy When It Rains”. Lux smirks. I realize that now. Easy is apathy. It's rote. And when I'm brutally honest with myself, “easy” was much of my TV title reign.

Lux finally looks dead ahead at the viewer. What? Surprised? I mean, sure, I'm supposed to crow about how amazing it was. That's what we do. But was it? I spent most of my matches rolling the likes of Boston Bruiser and collecting accolades for doing it. And yeah, that can feel good for a little while. But it's basically junk food. A rush of endorphins before the crash. She nods. I've been eating junk food, Doctor. Which is why I was so pumped to be getting a hit of Filet Mignon. And I did. I stepped in the ring with James Raven. Say nothing of Robert Main. Heh. And I mean that literally, we're saying nothing about him because apparently he's so fragile all it takes is losing a championship to get him spinning Adam's Song and vague posting until somebody makes a welfare call. I was right about him.

She sucks her teeth disdainfully.

But Raven? Now that was a pleasure. And maybe I shouldn't be so hard on Corey. Maybe this is just my own form of addiction. Killing myself with an endless succession of challenges until I inevitably break down. Over dose by over-doing it, I suppose. But you were gonna be my next score, Doctor.

And you broke my heart.

You broke my heart. Because I wanted to BUILD something with you here. I've been saying it all along. I literally fed you my suffering in an attempt to bring you to the fore. I gave the Devil himself a BLOOD OFFERING. And what do I get for my efforts? Silence. Well, not COMPLETE silence. We did get to see you extricate yourself from Gilly's asshole, so bully for that I suppose. She rolls her eyes out her damn skull. But silence where it counts. Silence when it comes to your opponent, ie ME!

You know, I think that's something that's oft neglected in the XWF. That notion of building something with the object of your aggression. It's an art form. So often we're in a mad dash to slip in the canniest insult, our crow about how amazing we are. Most people see this, what we do, as destruction. The complete dissolution of an opponent's spirit. But there's a form of strange beauty in these wars we have, right? It's almost literary. Exposition, climax, and denouement. That exploration of who someone is as a person on an almost existential level. It doesn't ALWAYS have to be cheeky graphics, catchy lingo, and insults. It can be more than that.

But being more than that takes two to tango, and Doctor....you left me hanging.

Lux picks up a pebble and tosses it towards the roof's edge.

Now, I'm not going to sit here and say that takes anything away from what you've done. You're held in high esteem for a reason. I think you deserve a spot in Raven's Hall and I'm hoping the only reason you didn't get in this year was because your exploits need a couple more years to percolate until they rise to the level of legend. That being said, you need to make a decision. You need to decide how you want your legend to end. Because right now, it's teetering on the edge of the fence, perilously undecided between ending with your legacy in tact, or crawling crippled and broken towards an ignominious finishing line.

Doctor, if you want to come back and show us how it's done then DO IT. One thing that truly stuck in my craw this last month, with all these guys bantering about for Raven's show, was hearing this notion over and over of “if I were here, so and so would be out on their ass. If I were here, so and so would have never reached the heights they did.” And I cannot help but think what a cowardly statement that is to make. Because if you had truly wanted that, YOU WOULD HAVE BEEN HERE. You would have been stepping in that ring with the new class instead of offering up some ex-post-facto condemnation of how everything supposedly turned to shit just because you stopped gracing the XWF with your presence.

Louis, you haven't fallen into that camp. So you've distinguished yourself in that regard. Unfortunately, it's the only way you've distinguished yourself of late. Don't even try to refute that. You know it's true. But! Despite how critically you have underwhelmed me....some idiot part of me still sees some potential here. Don't get me wrong, I don't like you. Or even particularly TRUST you. But I still think you have the gravitas to be the kind of dramatic foil that gets my blood pumping. Once you decide to give a damn that is. So I'm willing to make you an offer. When you are ready....and I mean TRULY ready. Mind, body, and soul. Or whatever passes for your soul. I want you to take another run at me. I might even be Universal Champion by that point. And I'm not even going to front and say this is me doing you a solid. It's totally selfish. Because I want the honor of putting down a Doctor Louis DeVille that MATTERED. That CARED. I want that feather in my cap.

It's clear I'm not getting what I want out of you at Relentless. C'est La Vie. Maybe someday though.

Do you want that?

In the space between pauses, Lux became aware of another presence on the roof, the Citadel's resident tech guru Wylie Sinclair. You free?

Yeah, I'm good. Lux turned to face him. What did you find?

As you can imagine, HELPER was damaged severely. Whoever altered him wanted to make damn sure they covered their tracks.

So it was some kind of destruct mechanism?

Yes. And incidentally, I'm sorry about what happened to him.

Lux grimaced. Yeah, me too. But did you manage to find anything else?

By sheer luck...yes. Wylie smiled a bit for having some good news to share. I was able to identify some hardware that was added after the fact at some point.

Jesus, when?

Impossible to tell. And I was able to track down the hardware's source. The more chipper expression from earlier seemed to fade a bit.

I bet it's one of Madison Dyson's subsidiaries.

You'd lose that bet.

What?! Lux bit back, shocked.

I'm afraid things are a bit stranger than that. Lux, have you ever heard of a company called D-R-W?

No. Who are they? Why is this strange?

D-R-W has a history in the XWF, and in geopolitical maneuverings going back centuries. Wylie stopped, looking a little flustered. They make KILLERS, Lux. High profile assassins.

Yeah, well takes one to know one. Just point me in the direction of who I have to take out to make this go away.

That's just it....you're already coworkers. Wylie rubbed his arm awkwardly. It's Shane 's company.


To Be Continued.....