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X-treme Wrestling Federation » Shove-It! Boards » Shove-It! RP Board
Art vs. Nature
Author Message
Raion Kido Offline
The Lion


WWW

XWF FanBase:
Families & Kids, casual fans

(fighting the odds; helps others; disliked by most adult male fans)


#1
05-04-2023, 05:40 PM

*SCRATCH!*

*SCRATCH!*

*SCRATCH!*

A pencil rubs into paper, leaving its mark - faint traces at first, steadier lines later, as a hand moves it across the sheet - by the look of the motions and the lines left on the paper, the beginning of a work of art.

“Publicity gimmicks? Donkeys and diapers? What in Athena’s name is Bourbon doing?”

Raion Kido did not exactly know what to make of the recent appearance of his challenger. Perhaps he needed the time off. Perhaps he would come in force.

“He can get whatever image he wants - when he comes to face me, he shall be brought back to reality!”

*SCRATCH!*

*SCRATCH!*

*SCRATCH!*

The pencil went back and forth as the double Champion sketched in the sheet of paper that he had in front of him, standing on an easel - completely self-absorbed in his labor before the convention guide led a group of fans to where he was working. The new Saint Seiya live-action movie would soon be available in theaters, and what better way to promote it than having the man that brought the legendary Anime franchise to the wrestling ring in a convention?

“And here we are, folks! The Saint of Athena himself, the golden Lion… Raion Kido!”

Back to reality the Lion is brought, as the fans begin to ask for selfies and autographs.

“Thank you, thank you very much. I’m glad to see you’re as excited as I am for the movie!”

“Dude, it’s amazing! They should have cast you in some role in there!”

The Lion chuckles.

“Somehow I don’t think they want to go that far yet, but hopefully some time!”

“Raion here will try to do a Saint Seiya illustration to promote the movie, since he’s a huge manga fan! And in the duration of his work, he has agreed to do an Q&A session for you!”

“Doesn’t mean I’m a talented artist, though! But I hope it will at least be of your liking.”

*SCRATCH!*

*SCRATCH!*

*SCRATCH!*

One more time Raion goes to drawing at the easel, and as the fans watch him work, they start peppering him with questions.

“So what does it feel holding two belts at the same time?”

“Were you in the comics club back when you were a kid?”

“What made you want to draw?”

“Hang on - be with you after finishing this!”

The Lion takes a few more seconds to draw some more lines, and finally starts addressing the crowd.

“Alright - two belts at the same time, it’s amazing. Even holding one of them in so short a time was much more than I ever had expected, and now two of them - especially after all through which I’ve gone for them. I still owe you the King of the XWF crown, but so did Bobby Bourbon until 2022 despite having won every other title, so I’m sure I can be forgiven for that.

As for what made me want to draw, well… just like Bobby Bourbon, I too am trying to work on my image. Bobby Bourbon called me a fraud, and since he’s going to seek his own simple man at heart thing with publicists, I might as well demonstrate everything about me is just the real thing. So here I am, doing something I enjoy doing - drawing my favorite manga!

And yes, I was a part of the comics club at school, but sadly, I wasn’t born to be an artist. I think I can do a decent job, but you’ll be the judges of that!”

*SCRATCH!*

*SCRATCH!*

*SCRATCH!*

The pencil goes to the paper one more time, and the Lion begins putting the finishing touches on what he thinks is a well done job.

“You shouldn’t take Bobby Bourbon’s remarks personally - it’s not your fault if the referee made a mistake!”

“Yeah, I thought someone like him would rather do something than scream excuses to the four winds.”

“And if all else fails, he’ll always have March Madness!”

“Whether that mistake happened or not is irrelevant - I didn’t have that excuse when Peter Vaughn pinned me. Bourbon may be allowed it, but I hold myself to a higher standard. And when he beat me, when Charlie Nickles beat me, when Mark Flynn beat me, I didn’t have the excuse of cheating either.

If I were to bring it up, I’d get called a whiner - and rightly so.

But since it’s Bobby Bourbon doing it, I suppose it’s fine for him, because at the end of it all, Bobby Bourbon settles for what he can grab. When I was Universal Champion the first time, he was quite content to stay Television Champion and beat up on Jenny Myst.

And I cashed in, right after having won the Tag Titles, because I had no choice but to do so before my time expired - and I got one of the hardest matches of my entire life. Just as it was with Leap of Faith. Just as it was when I won against Nickles, Dolly and ALIAS.

Because, unlike Bourbon, I don’t settle in what makes me comfortable - I seek the greater challenge, to obtain the greater prize. And I don’t make excuses when I lose - as I think I’ve already proven, I dig in, grit my teeth, and fight back harder!”

“At least he remembered not to complain when Sidney Grey beat him after he’d just won!”

“His image would have been hurt much worse than it was, friend. He called her out in the first place after all!”

*SCRATCH!*

*SCRATCH!*

*SCRATCH!*

And after some more arduous work, the Lion’s illustration is done.

“Aaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnnnnnnnnd done. Here we are!”

The Lion finally turns the easel where the paper was sitting to the crowd, to reveal a picture that could have very well been made by an 8-year-old - the picture of the character which he cosplays, at a very generous guess, though a great effort is required to distinguish it by the headpiece.

“PFFFFFFFFFT-!”

“Hahahahahaha!”

“Oh, man, I love it! This is great!”

Predictably, the crowd begins to laugh, and the Lion’s cheeks begin to flush a certain red. When they look at him again, he’s pouting like a child - a reaction almost as comical as the masterpiece he has just drawn.

“HEY! I said I wasn’t born to be an artist, folks!”

“Aw, don’t worry, Raion, it’s the thought that counts! You’ve been awesome like always, and I’m sure someone will want your picture anyway. It’ll make for a nice meme!”

The beleaguered hero now looks abashed as the fans come forward and pat him on the back.

“Well there’s always that, but we’re losing track of what’s important here anyway.”

“And what is that?”

The XWF Universal Champion now smiles again - his smile being the traditional leonine grin that spells doom to whatever stands in front of it.

“As pretty as an image is, it’s only just an image. It’s the old question of art vs. nature. Art will generally be more beautiful, more eye-pleasing, because it relies on things that may not always be in nature - it’s the very reason for its existence after all - otherwise the world would be bleaker than it already is.

However, the most successful artists have mastered their craft in order to bring art to reality. That’s what matters most, and that’s where my talent really lies.”

And with that, the Lion sets the heavy box of his Golden Cloth on the ground.

“For when it comes to making something real is involved, there’s no one better at it than I!”

—---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


“A new image - a desired image. That’s what Bourbon seeks.”

The easel now forgotten at his side, the Lion starts by rolling his eyes in exasperation. When he turns towards the camera one more, he raises a hand apologetically.

After all, the XWF Universal Title was on the line. It was all he could do to do right by his station as Champion.

“Ladies and gentlemen, bear with me for a moment. This is not any edition of Weekend Warfare, but a very unique show organized by Dolly Waters. This show has what may very well be the biggest match in the entirety of the wrestling world at present! Bobby Bourbon, bonafide XWF household name, vs. Raion Kido - the XWF sensation of 2022, in the climax of what has been a rivalry for the ages! The former Champion whose reign died at birth before the man that fixed the mistake he did. The former King that won it all vs. the man that captured both singles and tag gold at the very same time.

A match of legend - an opportunity of a lifetime!

And yet, when faced with these odds, It would seem that Bobby Bourbon is much too concerned for his new image, rather than the actual Universal Title! The man that last time stated to me he hates what the XWF Universe hates is now too self-absorbed doing some inane antics with donkeys and celebrities instead of even raising the pretense to get back the title that should never have left his shoulder!

Is that why you could not be bothered to pay any mind to the man standing in front of you? Is the two-time XWF Universal double Champion, the man that did something you never could do, the man that put right what you set wrong, too unworthy a foe!?”


The Lion bellows these words with a furious roar that makes the fans startled. The Lion closes his eyes, raising both hands one more time, before composing himself and addressing the camera again.

Bobby Bourbon could do whatever he pleased - but the Lion would make certain the staple of the XWF knew that he was no longer facing the man he knew.

For the Raion Kido that stood before him was, quite simply, one of the best wrestlers the company had ever seen.

“I would have thought, after you made a spectacle of yourself crying on the airwaves about how the referee screwed you over and how Raion Kido is a fraud - not that it was in any way true, but let’s not get that in the way of a good story - that you’d at least have some more motivation, Bourbon.

Was that not what you said to Dolly Waters, after all? Did you not say that you were helpless, and on your belly? Where are the rhymes that you so deftly use to skewer an opponent before it’s Bobby Bomb time? Where’s the man that practices justice when he feels he has been deprived of what he thought was his right? This is the show hosted by the woman with whom you partnered with to defeat Team HSU, the woman to whom you’ve opened your heart, and here you are wasting the place you were given on the very Main Event of her unique event!

I’ll tell you what, Bourbon - I cannot help but notice when someone uses the word ‘justice’, so I made sure to pay attention, and I must say, at least on that score you had a point. Swift justice comes, and, at Dolly Waters’ own show, it shall be delivered by my hand. For I need to claim I’m a hero no more than I need to show it, because that’s the kind of thing a Saint of Athena is meant to do, but the Bobby Bourbon that played demagogue the last time we faced, but the man that stands before me now has forsaken the XWF Universe - and himself - for the sake of his own publicity gimmick.”


The Lion’s deadpan expression is betrayed by the hardened glint in his eyes. It was a demagogue’s part to sway the audience from the truth.

It was Raion Kido’s part to bring it to light.

“Bobby Bourbon is a simple man at heart, except when the time comes to punch down - that is where you excel, after all. It’s easy enough to make fun of people that can’t, or shouldn’t, stand up to your stature, that’s where the Bobby we all know and love comes out.

But when the time comes that Bobby Bourbon must look up, that’s when the cold sweat starts to run down your pores, when all pretense of the Bastardly Bro goes away, and the staple of the XWF Universe becomes just a simple man.

Could it be that, after all, what you really are is just afraid?”


The leonine grin creeps into the Lion’s lips once more. The former King had, after all, come to blows with the Lion three times - and two of those times, the Lion had won.

Now there came the third time - and the most important of all - the one with wrestling’s biggest prize on the line.

The Lion knew this - and he would drive the point like a fist to Bobby Bourbon’s heart.

“Deep down, at the end of it all, what lies behind Bobby Bourbon is fear. It’s why you contented yourself to languish in the background while I held the Universal Title. It’s the reason for this whole change from the Brotherhood of Bastards, the very reason you so choose to call me out after our last match. Maybe if we question Raion Kido’s victory, we’ll have doubts about him if he won the cash-in. Well, here I am - and all pretense of doubts gone. Two Kings beaten and two titles captured in the span of a month. What’s left there to doubt? What could you possibly bring against me now, Bourbon, that would make me flinch?

Because here’s the thing, Bourbon - I’ve proven, more than once now, that I am one of the best in the world to ever step into a ring. Geez, I’ve done a thing only Robert Main was able to do before, and in the road up to that point, I’ve punched up, I’ve punched down, but I have treated everyone the same, for I don’t need to be anything else than what I am. From Mastermind to ALIAS, what I do is put people to the test, and only a precious few get to pass.

I know you like to bring past March Madness up, you’re just itching to do that, and you’ll always have that memory, but the history books shall also say that Raion Kido won the Leap of Faith match the following month. A year later, they shall say that Raion Kido beat Bobby Bourbon after March Madness 2023.

And when MayDay 2 is done, they shall also say that Raion Kido retained the Universal Title against Bobby Bourbon. When you and I are done, the world shall speak of the man that has done it all having been taught a lesson in class from one of the best wrestlers to have ever graced the XWF.

Because speaking of class, Mr. Former Grand High PoohBAH, here comes my next point. When I said it was an honor to have faced you, I really did mean it, because that’s what I do with everyone! It doesn’t matter whether they’re good people or the dregs of the wrestling universe, I give them the same chance to prove themselves before me - and even when I beat them, I never fail to acknowledge whatever valor they have shown. But this, apparently, wasn’t good enough for Bobby Bourbon. You chose to spit on my face and throw a fit like you were Jenny Myst, and now shall you reap the consequences.”


The XWF Universal Champion now throws a punch into the camera. As ludicrous, and as ineffective, as Bobby Bourbon’s doubts might cast on him would be, there was something that the young Saint of Athena could not allow.

Bobby Bourbon had questioned his integrity, and for that, he would pay.

It was, in the end, what the XWF Title demanded.

“For this, Bourbon, is not just going to end in one fall. I’m going to face you until you can no longer stand, and then I’m going to put your sorry backside to rest so the Brotherhood of Bros will commend your soul to the Bastardly Father. Maybe they’ll pour one out for you, perhaps they’ll carry your casket like the Internet meme, I’m sure you’d even like that too.

But whatever they do, the fact of the matter remains: When this match is over, there shall be nothing left for you to blame. No referees, no mind games, not any kind of excuses. Just your own foolish self and your own stupidity in having crossed the Lion.

Because all of this, Bourbon, comes from a very simple thing. You come into this match looking for a desired image, I come into it looking to build my legacy. I like pretty pictures, that’s why I like manga after all, but whatever Athena gave me in the form of skills, she hasn’t given me in producing images. Rather, she has given me skills for building, for making things into reality  - and in this struggle of art vs. nature, I’m going to bring them together - by delivering you to a defeat not even the greatest work of art could ever fully illustrate.

And come MayDay 2, I’m going to build a legacy. Something that shall live in the annals of the XWF forever - and you have been given the honor of being its foundation.”


*STOMP!*

The Lion stomps on the ground, the impact of his golden boot producing an audible quake, and he throws his white cape back, before swiftly pointing forward, a challenge written all over his face.

“Take solace in that, Bourbon, for that’s the image you shall get, after having had the temerity of underestimating the Lion…”

The Lion clenches his fist, and throws one final punch at the camera.

“... for the last time.”

Fade to black.

3000 words (wordcounter.net)

[Image: yfesfA4.jpg]

Signature courtesy of Atara Themis!
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