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Gabriel Baal · (02-21-2022)

It had been a difficult week for Gabriel and Eden - having lost their UGWC Cooperative Championships, Gabriel had regressed to his office for hours at a time. He blamed himself for the loss - having taken the fall, it was understandable. But the reality was that he couldn’t help but feel he was continuing to fail his wife over and over.

Their cooperative loss was symbolic of everything - the two of them, working together, side by side, and each providing what the other needed in order to ensure that they had everything they could desire. But the reality was that they didn’t have everything they desired - and that was never more evident than when Scarlett and Katie came to visit.

The twins daughters of one Donovan Hastings had become such a huge part of their lives. Gabriel and Eden loved them both dearly and more than either of them could have ever imagined they would. And yet that love was pain. That love was a nod to what they’d lost six months before Gabriel had returned to UGWC.

And so, during their most recent visit, Gabriel had locked himself away in his office. He would move quietly through their home, trying to avoid the places that Eden and the twins would be, his stubble longer by the day. The reality was that Eden saw, everytime he wandered through the shadows - she always knew exactly where he was.

“Can we say good night to uncle Gabriel?” Scarlett had asked as they walked from the lounge towards the stairs. Eden looked up just in time to see his darkened face slipping from view and the door to his office closing quietly.

“Tomorrow, sweetie.” Said Eden gripping her hand, for her own strength as much as Scarlett’s. “I’ll make sure you see him tomorrow.”

The three of them padded through the Scarsdale Mansion that Gabriel and Eden had called home for almost two years now. They slipped into one of the guest bedrooms that Eden had set aside specifically for her favourite little guests. She looked around and mused at how much the room had changed - once decorated for purely aesthetic purposes, now had decidedly child-like qualities. The boxes of games and toys that she and Gabriel had bought for their visits. The huge vanity filled with make-up purely for their own entertainment. The projector that covered the ceiling in stars.

It was nothing compared to what Eden would make it. And less still compared to what she would do for her own child.

“Do you have a stomach ache, Aunt Edie?” Asked Katie.

“Hmm?” She asked, before looking down and noticing her hand rested carefully on her stomach. “Oh, yeah… Little too much ice cream.”

“Oh no! Here!” Said Scarlett rushing over and trying her best to rub Eden’s stomach better.

“Ohhhh thank you, sweetie!” Eden said beaming. “That feels so much better already.”

“You’re welcome.” Said Scarlett with pride.

“Come on… Hop into bed.” Eden said, pulling back the sheets. Katie hopped up first and then Scarlett, before Eden pulled back the covers. “Do you want the stars?”

“Yes please!” The twins said together, in that adorable way they did.

“Alright.” Said Eden, flicking the switch and turning the dark ceiling into the night sky. “You know where I am if you need me, okay? Right down the hall.”

“Auntie Eden?” Asked Katie.

“Mmhmm?” Eden said as she straightened the sheets.

“Could you read us a bedtime story?” Scarlett asked, taking over.

“It’s pretty late…” Eden said, glancing at her watch and resting her hand on it for a second. “But… Alright… Not a long one.”

Eden hopped up onto the bed and settled herself in between the girls.

“You didn’t bring a book, silly.” Said Scarlett,

“Oh I don’t need one.” Said Eden. “This is one of my favourite tales.”

“Ohhhhhhhh.” Said Katie, before they both leaned in to rest their head on Eden.

“Once upon a time there was a girl who never knew she needed saving.” Eden began. “She thought that she had everything worked out and under control. Though, she did have a certain talent for trouble.”

Eden allowed herself a little chuckle.

“Over the years, the girl had been pursued by many handsome suitors - all of them promised her a life that no-one else could offer. Everytime they tried, the girl rolled her eyes and did her best to try and destroy it. Time after time, these men would grow to love her only to find themselves wanting to kill her for what she did to them.” Eden added.

“That sounds like you, Aunt Edie.” Kate said. “Or at least, that’s how daddy describes it.”

“Well your daddy is very rude.” Said Eden, not just a little put out.

“Anyway, my point is that all of these handsome and successful men thought they knew what was best for the girl. They thought she needed fame, they thought she needed fortune, they thought she needed power. But the reality was that none of them could give her the one thing that she didn’t think she ever truly deserved.” Eden said.

“And what was that?” Scarlett asked.

“Love.” Said Eden with a smile. “You see, the girl’s mother was very mean. And no matter what the girl did, it was never good enough. Her father was a wonderful man and did what he could to make the girl feel safe and secure, but her evil mother was poisonous and drove any thoughts that the girl deserved to be happy out of her mind.”

“That’s so mean!” Said Scarlett.”

“I know, right?” Said Eden. “What a bi… g part she played in moulding the girl…”

The girls looked up, almost knowingly in Eden’s direction.

“Anyway - the girl had a way of attracting monsters. It could have been her unmatched beauty, it could have been her sapphire coloured eyes, it could have been her fantastic tit..” Eden paused and looked at the girls who looked up at her innocently. “... ular part in the story I’m telling. But the reality was that the girl couldn’t help but attract trouble. One particular monster, though, took a much deeper interest.”

“Oh no! Not a monster!” Said Katie.

“This monster was different though.” Said Eden with a lingering smile. She even bit her lip. “You see, this monster was a monster to everyone but the girl. Oh at first she saw the same as everyone else - she saw the dark, tormented soul and the red behind his eyes. She fought him - over and over she fought him. Sometimes she won, and sometimes she lost but everytime she saw something new in him. Something that wasn’t as terrifying as everyone else thought it was.”

“Like The Beast?” Asked Scarlett.

“Yeah, I guess it is a little like The Beast.” Eden said.

“I like The Beast.” Said Katie.

“Me too.” Said Eden with a smile. “Anyway, as time grew on, the girl and the monster grew tired of fighting. And instead of standing opposite one another, they stood side by side. And the girl realised that, for the first time, there was someone in her life that wasn’t trying to make her be something that she didn’t want to be. He enjoyed her chaos and her darkness. He saw to the very core of her being and merely bathed in it without trying to alter it. He allowed her to chart her own course.”

“He doesn’t sound like a monster.” Said Katie.

“He doesn’t, does he?” Smiled Eden. “But that’s how he’s always been seen - and in his company, that’s how the girl would be seen too. She would be ridiculed and hated for her choice to stop fighting him. There were those who would give the monster a chance for a time, but in the end his chaos was too much for them to endure. His darkness, like hers, made the regular people nauseous.”

“They sound like they were perfect for each other. If not a little scary…” Said Scarlett.

“And that’s exactly how they were. In the monster, the girl found love and in the girl the monster found family. The two things neither of them could ever have imagined that they deserved. They found home. And to those who stood on the outside, it was horror and fear. It was sneering and disdain. But to those who took the chance to stand within their chaos, they couldn’t fail to see the reality of their bond. Those who they loved would be protected with a kind of ferocity that would be terrifying to those who stood in their way. And those who stood in their way would be destroyed should they need to be.” Said Eden.

“This doesn’t sound like a very happy story, Aunt Edie.” Said Scarlett.

“Oh but it is, sweetie.” Said Eden with a smile. “Because in this story there were two little girls, sisters…”

“Twins?!” Said Katie excitedly.

“That’s right. Twins.” Said Eden with a smile. “And they had the most caring and dutiful father that any children had ever known. And he befriended the girl and her monster, because he could see the truth of them. And in doing so, they became a family unlike any other - they joined a family of misfits and orphans that shared more love than any traditional family could ever imagine.”

“And how did it end?” Asked Katie.

“What makes you think the story ended?” Eden said with a smile, casting a look towards the door. She could see the small crack where it had been opened slightly. “It’s still being written.”

“Ohhhhhh…” Said Scarlett in wonder. Eden pushed herself down the bed and then off it.

“Alright girls, it’s time for you to get some sleep.” She said leaning over to kiss each of them on the forehead.

“Aunt Edie?” Asked Katie.

“Yeah, sweetie?” Eden asked as she tucked them back in again.

“If the twins are us, are you the girl?” Katie followed.

“I might be.” Eden said with a smile.

“Does that mean Uncle Gabriel is supposed to be the monster?” Asked Scarlett. “Because I don’t think he’s a monster.”

“I know you don’t.” Said Eden with a smile as she leaned forward and booped each of their noses. “And that’s because you’re inside the chaos.”

The girls giggled and then sank into their pillows.

“Good night, Aunt Edie.” The girls said together.

“Good night, girls.” Eden said as she slowly backed towards the door. She pushed it open and for a second, the light illuminated the hallway. Gabriel stood leaning with the side of his head against the wall, watching Eden as she closed the door.

“Nice story.” He said with a slight smile. Eden held her finger over her lips and took his hand, leading him down the hall towards the bedroom. They slipped inside and the door closed. Eden clicked on the light and turned to face Gabriel, and for the first time she took in how bad he looked.

“You look like shit.” She said, reaching up and running a hand through unkempt hair and down across his stubbled face. “Have you slept at all since Infinity?”

“Can we not talk about Infinity?” He asked as he sunk down into his seat.

“This isn’t about Infinity and you know it.” Eden said with her hands on her hips. “This is your yearly descent into ‘Woe is me’.”

“Lovely. Well on that note…” Said Gabriel moving to stand up, but Eden stopped him and pushed him back down into his seat.

“No, you’re going to listen to me, Gabriel, because I am sick to death of this.” Eden said. “Every setback and every obstacle drops you into this shame spiral. You did the same after you lost the World Title. And I wouldn’t mind if it was doubt about your place in the business or whether you’re getting to the end of your career… But it’s always about me!”

“Eden…” Gabriel said, lifting a hand, but she swatted it out of the way.

“Save it.” She said, her hands going back to her hips. “Let me be clear, Gabriel Baal, I don’t give a fuck if you think you deserve me or not. I don’t care if that little voice in your head tells you that I deserve better or different or whatever else.”

She moved towards him and dropped to her knees in front of him. Not like that. Minds out of the gutter. She placed her hands on his legs and made him look her in the eye.

“You didn’t choose me. I chose you. And yes, I know how arrogant that sounds, Gabriel, but I don’t care. You didn’t wander into my life, point at me and say “that’s the one”. You walked into my life and showed me a world where I could be whatever I wanted to be and you’d love me anyway. I chose you. And no losses, or setbacks or personal dramas are going to change the fact that I chose you, you fucking moron.”

She punctuated the final words with a slap to both of his legs.

“Ouch.” He said, still watching her.

“Yeah, well, keep going and I’ll make it hurt more.” She said.

“Promise?” He replied with the hint of a smile.

“Maybe.” She said, before her eyes darkened. “Now tell me who the fuck you are.”

“I’m Gabriel Baal.” He replied.

“Tell me… Who the fuck you are…” Eden said.

“I am The Chimera. The Mechanism of Order. The Seventh Circle. The Engine of Cruelty. The Serpent King. I am Gabriel… Fucking… Baal.” He said, seeming to swell with pride.

“That’s fucking right. You’re my husband. You’re one of the best in the world.” Eden said, climbing to her feet. “And you have a job left to do.”

“And where do you think you’re going?” Gabriel asked, gripping Eden’s hand as she turned. He pulled her towards him and into his lap.

“No-where, apparently.” She replied with a wicked smile, as she kissed him deeply.

Hello Mr. King - it’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance. Allow me to start this address in a way that, once upon a time, I would end my promos. So sit back, and take a moment to bask in the knowledge that I’ve brought this back specifically for you. It’s an honour, and it should be treated as such.

Please allow me to introduce myself.

My name is Gabriel Baal - two time World Champion and UGWC Gland Slam winner. There are more accolades and many of them, but once you get the most important ones out of the way the rest become redundant. Suffice to say, I have held an awful lot of gold in the past six years.That is, you see, how long I have been doing what we do. Six years - and yet my Grand Slam came in just the first eighteen months of my career. Every Championship in UGWC won in a single calendar year. The fastest ever Grand Slam from first Championship to last.

I’m a winner.

Please don’t make the mistake of assuming that my loss at Infinity negates the many victories that came before. It doesn’t - it merely creates a focus upon you, my opponent at the Denzel Porter Invitational. You and I aren’t in the same circles - that is true enough. But there are obvious parallels. For the past six years we have both stayed true to our home. Both won everything there is to offer. Both coming out of the best year of our careers.

Both winners.

I have no reason to dislike you, Ace - though our mantras may differ, we are merely two gladiators looking for victory in a place unfamiliar to both ourselves and one another. We are little more than two men looking to fight to the bitter end. And yet, that is where our similarities end - because I am willing to go further than you are to win. You know this already, because you’ve done your homework. You know what I’m willing to do in order to have my hand raised, whilst you will always stop short of giving everything for victory.

Never willing to go further.

I pity that in you, Ace. Because the reality is that I know my losses are unavoidable. I know that those contests in which I have failed to live up to my own expectations came on the back of me giving everything I had. But there are so many times that you’ve failed and been unable to look yourself in the eye and say that you tried everything. How many times have you consoled yourself that you did the right thing whilst your opponent stands tall with their hand raised, recognised as your better?

Honour, as they say, is for the fallen.

Never have I ever believed that I stopped short of doing what had to be done. Never have I stayed my hand when offered the hard choice. Never have I paused to consider whether the choice I make is immoral or not. I have looked down upon fallen competitors to whom I owe my undying respect and I have smirked knowing that I didn’t hold back. And so imagine, if I’m willing to go that far against people I love and respect, imagine how willing I am to fell you.

At any cost.

This could be my end, Ace. At least for now. This match with you could be the last thing I ever do in this ring. As of right now you are the one last box that I have to tick. To defeat the man that stands before me at the Denzel Porter Invitational before I return home and start a family. If this is to be my end, then I shall make it such an end. I will leave with my hand raised and you fallen at my feet. For I am Gabriel Baal.

Please allow me to Introduce myself.

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