“All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered; the point is to discover them.”

Galileo Galilei

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[div align="center"]The foreword [/div]

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I had knowingly and intentionally set something in motion not too long ago. It all started with a philosophical question on social media. I had already had a plan, the question in and of itself was rhetorical. What would happen if a man who had always been the “Paladin” of wrestling, threw that all away. The results were amusing and expected. The thought of me doing that was collective fear. I became what I had preached against for the last decade.

Hypocritical?

Maybe.

Proving a point?

Absolutely.

People had forgotten who I was and what I was capable of. So, it was time to remind them of exactly who I am. Who I’ve always been. Receipts were getting paid, the disrespect was heavy on my mind when I executed my plan. I’ve always told people to be careful of what they say to me, there are consequences to be paid for that. People like the Ramsey’s didn’t believe that I guess. In order to make sure they knew how much they had fucked up, I did the unthinkable.

I threw away the playbook I had used for years and went back to being that asshole that this industry once feared. If they won’t show me respect, fear is just as good. Discarding my own personal code. My own personal philosophy has protected people for the last decade. It prevented me from doing things that I wouldn’t have hesitated doing in my youth. Doing the right thing because it was the right thing to do had been my mantra, and now everything was fair game. I had no qualms about doing things that others consider beneath them. “Going too far” doesn't exist in my vocabulary now. What I did to Toddy? Only the beginning, a warm up if you will.

She’s simply the appetizer in this feast that's beginning.

We took away her precious tag team titles to prove a point. A woman who has prided herself on being the heart and soul of any company she’s a part of. A standard bearer for the tag team division. And it was all taken away by a team who had no matches together as a team. We came in and shocked the world and forever changed the landscape of that division. She knows it and hates me for it. She won’t put it that way of course, she’ll talk about how disappointed she is in my actions. The usual “momma” type crap that no one cares about. She wanted this match, this platform, and this big fight feel. Who am I to grant someone's final request? Who am I to deny someone a trial by combat to either prove their innocence or admit to their own duplicity?


Fade

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[div align="center"]A different kind of awakening. [/div]

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The Oblivion Ranch - Las Vegas, NV - 8 PM Friday Night

I looked into the fire pit burning brightly, cooler weather had come to the desert and so I appreciated its warmth. Not sure if it was the warmth or the destructive potential that I appreciated more. The similarity between myself and the fire pit was not lost on me. I smirked as I returned to my seat, an old fold out camping chair and sat down heavily. I picked up my tumbler and looked at it, sadly it was empty and I sat it back down.

Mac: Glass is defective. Seems to have a hole in it.

Instead of going back in, I lit a cigarette and took a long drag, exhaling forcibly straight up, creating somewhat of a halo around me. The acrid smell of burning tobacco filled my senses. I chuckled softly at the thought of my having a halo. Soon the smell dissipated, to be replaced by a more comforting smell. I heard the door open behind me, the smell of cinnamon preceded her. One hand on my right shoulder and I felt something cold on my left. I looked up to see her and a  fresh drink for me.

Mac: Thanks, darlin’.

She kissed me on the side of my neck as I took the glass. Goosebumps ran across my spine and showed on my arms as they always did. She ran her finger tips down my arm and winked at me.

Amber: Welcome

She took the chair not far from mine, folding her legs up underneath her as she always did. Amber had recently returned to competition and it was a good look on her. Making the finals of the PWV world title match, and now with a rematch against Jason Cash. She was proud of what she’d done and so was I. I took a sip of my fresh drink, and set it down. Another drag from my cigarette.

Amber: Don’t overthink it, Mac.

I chuckled softly at her words.

Mac: Not this time darlin’, I’m still basking in the glow of it all. Funny thing about all of this and what I did. I warned them all it was coming. I telegraphed this more than Knox trying to use southpaw strategies.

She wrinkled her nose at that statement, and smirked because she’d seen him try to do that.

Amber: Yes you did, but in the past you questioned your motives for this type of action.

I nodded as she continued.

Amber: Regretting your actions, whether it was a friend, acquaintance or rival.

I smiled an evil smile as I crushed out my cigarette.

Mac: All true, this time I didn’t feel a thing, other than satisfaction.

She returned my smile and extended her pinky, I returned the gesture, sealing my pinky promise to my wife. If you are unaware, the most binding promise you can ever make with a woman, outside of wedding vows, is the pinky promise.

Amber: Only one thing left then.

Mac: Yep, to finish her.

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[div align="center"]You were warned. [/div]

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The home of Bert Mcelroy - 7PM Saturday

The stiff warm breeze ruffled my hair lightly as I stared at the front door of Bert. It’s one thing to start some shit with me, but when it comes to my family. Enough is enough, I thought to myself after the interaction with Bert on social media. I had warned this kid a thousand times not to run his mouth about me or my family. He’s like Knox in that way, never knows when to shut the hell up. I thought about knocking first, but my instincts took over and I simply kicked the door in. It reverberated throughout the home as the door connected with the sheetrock wall. I stormed in and slammed it behind me.

Mac: Hey Bert! Room service, bitch!

I heard him cuss as he clamored to his feet from another room. I barked a laugh as he came limping around the corner and I unloaded on him with a stiff right hand that connected with his jaw. He went down without much of a sound. He looked up at me, slightly dazed and confused. I allowed him to shake the cobwebs free, I wanted him to hit me, to fight back. It’s way more fun to destroy someone for talking shit if they do that. His eyes set into a glare, I could see the hatred there and it amused me. He talked a good game about being cripled but I knew that wasn’t true. He shouldn’t wrestle or get into fights, that much was true. He wasn’t nearly as incapacitated as he let on.

Bert: What the fuck old man!? I’ll kill you!

He scrambled to his feet, but didn’t try to back away, instead he threw a wicked right cross of his own. It connected, snapping my head to the side, causing me to stumble a few steps. I felt the trickle of blood run down from the corner of my mouth.

Bert: You barge into my home and attack me!? You’re dumber than you look cowpoke!

I snapped my head back around and smiled, I saw him gulp as he tried to take a step back. I could taste the copper in my mouth, and wiped the tickle away. I looked at my fingers and rubbed the blood between them.

Mac: You gonna talk or fight, dumbass?!

He started to say something in response when I came in on him, using elbow strikes to his face and a knee to his gut, doubling him over. I took half a step back and rushed in with a knee strike to his left temple. Bert slumped to the ground, and I took out my phone, and snapped a picture of him on the floor with blood trickling out of the side of his mouth. I sent the picture to Knox in a text message with the message:

I thought you taught him better than this.

Mac: Next time Robert, I won’t leave you with the ability to breathe on your own.

I looked at him, crumpled on the floor and smiled.

Mac: You really need to be a smarter kid.

I spat on him and then turned to the door.

Fade

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[div align="center"] Finish Her! [/div]

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What happened? How did we come to this? That’s what everyone is talking about right now. Why did a guy like me attack Toddy? That’s what everyone wants to know. That answer is not a simple one, but I’ll explain how we got here.

I was once friends with the Ramsey’s, that’s a fact not an opinion. What broke that friendship were things like arrogance and manipulation. It was just another notch that pushed me to where I am today. Another slight nudge by a source that I wouldn’t have expected duplicity from. Everyone believes that it’s Austin that’s the problem and he never was. Misguided, sure, all due to his wife. See, she’s not all sunshine and rainbows like she’d have the public believe. She’s manipulated Austin and their adopted son, neither of which is capable of seeing it. A case of being unable to see the forest for the trees?

Perhaps.

It could also be a case of willing ignorance on the part of the family. You see, without Toddy, Austin and Daniel can’t function. It’s far too much distraction when she’s away, and they simply don’t know how to handle it. Leading up to our tag team match, which myself and Bam Miller were challenging for the tag team titles in WGWF, she was constantly in his ear about how she was the only one he could trust. So, I took that lie and made it reality. That’s the reason I made sure it was Toddy that took that spike and not Austin. It made me angry that someone would go to those lengths to make their husband hate me before the match even started. Especially when I was trying to help him. I didn’t want to see a one sided tag team match, but that’s what it was. The constant badgering of his wife led to his distraction in the ring. I warned him to not take his eye off the ball.

He did though.

What did we do? We took advantage of that opportunity and dropped her on her head. The satisfying sound of her skull bouncing off the canvas still rings in my ears. It was truly one part justice and one part karma. That’s not where it ends, Toddy, the karma bus is still rolling and it’s coming for you again. All that talk about the wars you’ve been through. None of them were with me, chile. None of them were against someone who doesn’t care about your well being or the fact that you have children at home. Most people walk on eggshells around you and your family. Not me, I don’t think you're special, not one single bit. You’ve talked for so long about how you are the standard that others are judged by. That shit couldn’t be farther from the truth. You’ve won some tag team gold a time or two but was it because of you? Are you disregarding the work that your husband put in by your side? I think you are, he can’t see it but I’m about to open his eyes to some things.

A lot of people will call this a classic match up of good versus evil. David versus Goliath is another popular commonality that they’ll use. What if I told you it was evil versus worse? Would you believe me? No, probably not. You see Toddy has a reputation in this industry for being one of the sweetest of people. She’s always kind to others and so polite and respectful. It’s all a sham but that’s what people believe. That's because people refuse to see what’s been in front of their face for years. The constant manipulation of Austin and Daniel is out there for the world to see. Telling them that they can’t trust anyone but her, when it's known that is not true. Such a con artist, and hey you’re good at it too.

So, like any good little tyrant, she did her thing. She isolated him from his friends, which of course I know she will vehemently deny. It’s all very visible to anyone who cares to look. I mean, we used to call those cuck husbands back in the day and maybe that’s who Toddy has turned him into. A more sound theory would be that she took advantage of his mental health, and took control of her household without him even realizing that he had been taken advantage of. I mean she was drugging him to keep from having to deal with him when he was having bad moments. Does that really sound like anyone's hero? For some, who still can’t see what I’m talking about I’m sure you are. I’ve never shied away from being that guy, the rotten, no good bastard. I’m telling you now, I’m fully embracing it. You won’t like it, I can guarantee that.

Funny ain’t it? But I’m a bastard for dropping her on her head. That’s cool, I’m good with that. Make no mistakes about it, I’m a bastard for sure. I’ve done a lot of evil shit in my history. I’ve manipulated people, beat people until they quit moving and a wide variety of other things. One thing I’ve never done is to do that to a member of my own family. So, after getting dropped on her head, what does she do? She abandons her family to go into isolation in order to go to a dark place. How did that turn out? She got beat, she couldn’t handle the darkness and make use of it. Meanwhile, she leaves dumb and dumber at home to take care of toddlers. Good thing Sam was available to help them, otherwise who knows how that would have turned out. Your house really is in need of cleaning up, Toddy. You’ve let it become a mess. The lies and manipulation have kept your boys close to you but at the end of the day, you created a bigger problem than you had. What’s next? You gonna move Cholo in? I mean, there’s a lot of chemistry there and no one has missed your connection.

That would make me sad if you dumped Austin for Cholo. Not because of the hurt it would cause to Austin but you’d ruin Cholo’s life as well. He’s one of the good ones in this business, not that you’d know anything about that. So, now as we approach the Grand Awakening, you’ll definitely receive that. This will also serve as your wake up call. There’s some people in this business you shouldn’t trifle with. I’m some people, Toddy. This match will not be over quickly, it will be a slow moving painful thing. You’ll be able to tell everyone how it was like a knife that had been slowly thrust into your chest, and how it had been slowly twisted until you no longer wanted anything to do with the match. That’s the reason you’ll quit, just like you did after losing the WGWF tag team titles. You quit and left your family for a month to try and go to a place you’ve never known. I know it well, and I’ll make sure you have a proper education on what it’s like.

I was born to the darkness, I didn’t try to adapt it to achieve a goal. You won’t be able to tag out, he won’t be there, just as he often is not there for you when you really need him. It’s a pity that it all has to come to an end.

By yourself.

So lonely.

So bitter.

Left in isolation with no hope of a rescue.

Welcome to your grand awakening.

Fade.

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