From Ruby’s Go-Pro…

The banana-lime blur jumps, FROM OUT OF NOWHERE, into the frame. The backdrop is simple. An Ottawan rooftop, with the city’s skyline in the background, the hustle and bustle clearly audible despite sunset having set in a while ago. Ruby rolls towards her camera and snatches it off its presumed tripod before pointing it towards the city down below. Off-screen, her voice narrates.

Ruby: ”Hey there, buds. Would you look at that? Isn’t it a thing of beauty? Of course the detractors will instantaneously claim it isn’t, but it’s not so much about aesthetic beauty as about what it represents to so many others. Freedom, yes we have that in Canada, love, life, work,… All contained in this urban jungle, and I’m trying to keep it safe for as many people as possible. But there are some dangers even I can’t fight. Some forces even I can only undergo.”

Ruby turns the camera back towards herself and sits down on the roof’s edge, sighing deeply.

Ruby: ”I am, of course, talking about the destructive force of man’s red fire. One need only look at what’s happening in Australia, the Amazon, Africa,… The very notion that we can tame Mother Nature is ridonculous, and yet Vinnie Lane wants Barney Green and myself to face that danger head on. Now, I’m not one to shy away from a challenge, especially if it’s for the betterment of mankind, but this situation we’ve been thrust in is almost uncharacteristically cruel, Mister Lane. Maybe I upset you because I wanted you to set a bright example for millions of other men? But I honestly fail to see the entertainment value in forcing two people to throw their adversary to the mercy of Mother Nature’s most destructive force. Of course, it will draw. A main event that could potentially lead to a career ending injury, with the Anarchy title on the line, no less? Of course, people will tune in. But are ratings more important than preserving some shred of decency and humanity?”

Again, Ruby sighs and she gets up from the edge of the roof, shaking her head.

Ruby: ”I honestly wish your answer to that question wasn’t so ridiculously predictable.”

She looks down at the city below, crouching down to get a better look at two people about to cross the road without looking. Her eyes turn to slits before they suddenly look both ways and cross the street. Satisfied, she nods and turns her gaze further.

Ruby: ”Rome burnt. London burnt. Fire consumes everything in its path, and I hold no illusions. I know it can, and will, consume me. Have you ever visited a burn ward? It’s a hellscape. I wouldn’t wish it upon my worst enemy. And yet, I am being forced to do it to someone I don’t even have that much of a problem with. I have no desire to light Barney Green on fire. No desire to use his life and limbs as a prop in a show that could just as easily choose to be wholesome entertainment for the whole family.”

She shakes her head before closing her eyes. She takes a deep breath and looks into the camera.

Ruby: ”But I will. Barney, you’re a tough flippin’ dude, my guy. And I know you won’t hold back. And I know you would find it insulting if I didn’t do my best to win. You’ve got a chance to win a title and solidify your place on the top of the Anarchy mountain. You will grab it with both hands, and I know you won’t feel even a tinge of remorse while standing over my third-degree burned body, as long as you feel the leather embrace of the Anarchy title around your waist. I know you must be tired of losing. Of not being taken seriously. I get that. But when I got my title, I set out to do one thing: Bring Order to Anarchy. And this chaotic match is just an attempt by Vinnie to make it a bit harder. How can you, after all, bring order over something, when flames are dancing at will and licking at your boots? This match happened because someone is trying to put me in my place. Because they fear my mission and know that I can succeed. This match, as cruel and pointless as it is, is proof that I’m doing good work. Barney, I will honestly try and go easy on you, but I won’t let you stand in the way of the ultimate goal. If I can win this match and minimize the risk, then I shall. But if there’s no other choice than to light you on fire, I will. Because if I have to choose between enveloping you in flame, or watching Anarchy burn to the ground as it’s overtaken by the vile, the explicit, the unnecessarily profane? Then I choose the former. Ten out of ten. The life of a hero is hard, and with that comes hard choices. In this, I have no choice but to compromise for the greater good. And while one hero once said: ‘No compromise, not even in the face of Armageddon’, another hero was lauded for being the hero they deserved, but not the one it needed right now. Well, right now I need to put this match in my rear view mirror, and take this brand to the next level. I won’t like it. And you, Barney, will hate it. But from what I understand, you’ve been lit on fire before, and here you still are. I just hope, for your sake, you can defy Mother Nature a second time.”

And with a heavy heart, but a determined look in the eyes behind the mask, Ruby presses the record button one final time.