Post by Atlas Adams on Oct 9, 2013 20:24:50 GMT -4
“One… Two… Three. The referee’s hand hits the mat for that final time and I stare up at the lights, dazed at what has happened. What went wrong? Why does my head feel like it’s going to explode? I don’t know the answers to these questions; everything is just spiraling out of control. I could blame it on outside forces; Alexandria Petrov for one, but the fact is I got beat. I lost in the middle of the ring. I was utterly defeated.”
“It sucks; it really does because while I knew APW was a top class wrestling company with incredible athletes, I thought I would make my mark in a big way. Some may say ‘what’s the big deal? You lost in your second match, you’ll rebound.’ That’s just it though, I don’t know if I will. I left wrestling for a time because I wasn’t focused on doing my best. I am now and my best so far is one win and one loss.”
“I feel like I failed my objective. I came to APW for a fresh start professionally and personally. I’ve been focused on giving my all to APW, won my first match in convincing fashion and maybe I thought this time would be different. You see, when you fail at what I used to do, the end result was death. I could cope with that because afterward, you can’t feel anything. When you fail in the ring, you disappoint yourself, your fans and everyone that gives a crap about you.”
"I have to look at this as a learning experience. Remind myself that there will be peaks and valleys in my career. The problem is I’ve already experienced failure. My tenure in APW must not be remembered as a failure."
“I will solider on. I may lose many more matches, but I must learn from them to get better, instead of wallowing in self-pity. That is not who I am.”
Hands in pockets to keep warm from the cooling fall weather, Atlas watched with a keen eye the wrestlers in the ring training. He knew that Brian valued attention to detail. Making sure your footwork was right was the key to being successful inside the ring. Atlas watched the feet of the trainees and was impressed. It wasn’t easy to learn to be smooth in the ring while trying to beat your opponent. It took Atlas a few years to perfect the skill.
“I see the old man has some good students finally.” Atlas muttered, bemused.
“Who you calling old, kid?” Startled, Atlas turned around and looked down to see the glare from his mentor, Brian Smalls. Atlas held up his hands as Brian punched him in the stomach.
The midget with gray, shaggy hair continued as Atlas tried to catch his breath, “I’m a seventy year old man who has never felt better. Defied the odds of my abnormality! Don’t you dare call me old again. I can still kick your ass from here to Belfast.”
Nodding his apologies, Atlas cleared his throat, smiling at Brian. “Good to see you too, Brian. Who pissed in your cheerios this morning?”
Brian waddled slowly over to the heavy bag and Atlas followed. After a few short jabs, Brian looked over at his once pupil and said bluntly, “You did, kid.”
Atlas eye twitched in annoyance. “What the frack did I do?”
“What did you do? You lost to that Leon fool! Then you didn’t bother to show up here or give me a call until you had to leave for Japan!”
Hanging his head, Atlas muttered sheepishly. “I’m sorry. I failed you and your training... I’ve just had a lot of things going on lately.”
Brian stopped the heavy bag and pushed it towards Atlas, who sidestepped the bag without looking up. “Your bullshit is tiring, kid. I don’t care about the loss. Shit happens. I care that you lost and didn’t even ask for my advice. In fact, I haven’t heard from you since you signed with APW. That is unacceptable.”
Atlas looked up, reaching for an explanation. “I thought I had things handled Brian. After the divorce, my focus was clear on getting a fresh start in APW. Things were going well until Russia when outside forces…”
Brian stopped Atlas with a pointed stubby finger. “Who is she?” He asked with a dangerous glint in his eyes.
Rubbing a hand through his hair nervously, Atlas lied. “It’s not like that. I came here to get back on track.”
“You’re a terrible liar, kid.”
Atlas sighed and sat down on the bench against the wall. “Please drop it, Brian. Do you have anything on this Fev guy I’ll be facing in Japan?”
Brian paused for a moment, clearly not liking being brushed off. “Yeah, I got something. Let me go get the file.”
Ten minutes later, Brian handed Atlas a thin manila folder with a knowing smile. “You can beat this guy, kid. He’s big so use your speed and I heard through the grapevine that he has a gimpy neck. That plays towards your targeted offense on the head.”
Atlas looked through the file, than glanced up at his mentor, an appreciative smile appearing. “Thanks Brian. This is what I needed. I’m not sure how you do it, but thanks.”
Brian waved off the compliment. “It’s nothing. Your father trusted me to take care of you when you’re in the ring, that’s all I’m doing. Just go to Japan and beat this guy.”
Atlas stood and shook his mentor’s hand firmly. “I’ll do my best. I’m sorry I didn’t look for your guidance earlier. I’ll call you when I land.”
Brian nodded and watched Atlas leave the gym. A moment later, Brian’s cell phone rang. He looked down, sighed and picked up the call on the second ring.
“He’s on his way to Japan now... No, he doesn’t have a clue…Will do… Keep me updated on your end… bye.”
****
‘The boxer’ by Mumford & Son filled Atlas’ ears as he wrapped his hands. Not exactly the inspiring type of music when preparing for battle, but it was his favorite band and a ritual of sorts. He didn’t need to get pumped for a fight, he was always ready.
Would tonight provide the result he was hoping for? He wasn’t sure. It could go either way. He didn’t know much about Fev, but he did know what it was like to debut for APW. The nerves you feel, the way the crowd is momentarily non pulsed by some new guy that hasn’t proved anything. Then that moment when the atmosphere shifts as they watch the new guy show he belongs.
Atlas tugged on his boots with kick pads and thought what it felt like when his hand was raised that night a few weeks ago in Finland. The rush of the crowd getting up and cheering after he hit the fall from grace was overwhelming. A feeling that he made the right choice, that he would be accepted into this new world.
He couldn’t give that feeling to Fev. He refused to be the stepping stone to some new guy’s success. This was Atlas’ time to shine. There would be no distractions, no outside forces pulling away his focus. Atlas had his game plan and he would execute it to perfection.
If he somehow lost, Fev was the better man that night plain and simple no excuses.
Standing up slowly, Atlas looked over at the mirror, sizing up everything. Satisfied with his appearance, Atlas pulled on his hooded sweatshirt, grinned and headed for the stands to make his entrance.
That was when his cell phone started ringing.
Normally, Atlas would let it go to voice mail and listen to the message after the match, but he thought it might be from Brian to give some last minute advice. Without checking the number, he opened his phone. Before he could say hello a women’s cool voice stopped him cold.
“Hi Atlas, I’m sure you didn’t expect to hear from me right before your big match, but I just had to tell you something.” Atlas slumped down to the bench, gripping the phone tightly.
“What do you want, Alexandria?” Atlas quietly asked; nervous sweat dripping down onto his sweatshirt.
“Hmm what do I want? That’s a difficult question, Atlas. I want a lot of things. I want you to suffer. At the same time, I want you to win your match tonight. I guess what I want most is for you to see your daughter again.”
Atlas almost dropped the phone. His words laced with venom, he spoke slowly and succinctly. “If you touch one hair on my daughter’s head, I will…”
“You’ll what? Kill me?” Atlas can hear laughter on the other end. “Listen, Athena is lovely young girl; you have nothing to worry about. I’m not a killer like you.”
“What do you want?” Atlas repeated, well aware his music had started playing.
“Simple. I want you to get out here and see your daughter. If you don’t, then you may never see her again.” All Atlas could hear was his music playing on the other end and fans screaming.
Then a dial tone as the other end went dead.
Alexandria was in the arena with Atlas’ daughter. The realization stunned Atlas to the core. He wanted to scream. He wanted to find his daughter and get her away from that crazy woman.
He did the only thing he could do. He ran to the stands for his entrance, his phone clattering to the floor.
“It sucks; it really does because while I knew APW was a top class wrestling company with incredible athletes, I thought I would make my mark in a big way. Some may say ‘what’s the big deal? You lost in your second match, you’ll rebound.’ That’s just it though, I don’t know if I will. I left wrestling for a time because I wasn’t focused on doing my best. I am now and my best so far is one win and one loss.”
“I feel like I failed my objective. I came to APW for a fresh start professionally and personally. I’ve been focused on giving my all to APW, won my first match in convincing fashion and maybe I thought this time would be different. You see, when you fail at what I used to do, the end result was death. I could cope with that because afterward, you can’t feel anything. When you fail in the ring, you disappoint yourself, your fans and everyone that gives a crap about you.”
"I have to look at this as a learning experience. Remind myself that there will be peaks and valleys in my career. The problem is I’ve already experienced failure. My tenure in APW must not be remembered as a failure."
“I will solider on. I may lose many more matches, but I must learn from them to get better, instead of wallowing in self-pity. That is not who I am.”
Three days ago
Ant’s Gym
Boston
Ant’s Gym
Boston
Hands in pockets to keep warm from the cooling fall weather, Atlas watched with a keen eye the wrestlers in the ring training. He knew that Brian valued attention to detail. Making sure your footwork was right was the key to being successful inside the ring. Atlas watched the feet of the trainees and was impressed. It wasn’t easy to learn to be smooth in the ring while trying to beat your opponent. It took Atlas a few years to perfect the skill.
“I see the old man has some good students finally.” Atlas muttered, bemused.
“Who you calling old, kid?” Startled, Atlas turned around and looked down to see the glare from his mentor, Brian Smalls. Atlas held up his hands as Brian punched him in the stomach.
The midget with gray, shaggy hair continued as Atlas tried to catch his breath, “I’m a seventy year old man who has never felt better. Defied the odds of my abnormality! Don’t you dare call me old again. I can still kick your ass from here to Belfast.”
Nodding his apologies, Atlas cleared his throat, smiling at Brian. “Good to see you too, Brian. Who pissed in your cheerios this morning?”
Brian waddled slowly over to the heavy bag and Atlas followed. After a few short jabs, Brian looked over at his once pupil and said bluntly, “You did, kid.”
Atlas eye twitched in annoyance. “What the frack did I do?”
“What did you do? You lost to that Leon fool! Then you didn’t bother to show up here or give me a call until you had to leave for Japan!”
Hanging his head, Atlas muttered sheepishly. “I’m sorry. I failed you and your training... I’ve just had a lot of things going on lately.”
Brian stopped the heavy bag and pushed it towards Atlas, who sidestepped the bag without looking up. “Your bullshit is tiring, kid. I don’t care about the loss. Shit happens. I care that you lost and didn’t even ask for my advice. In fact, I haven’t heard from you since you signed with APW. That is unacceptable.”
Atlas looked up, reaching for an explanation. “I thought I had things handled Brian. After the divorce, my focus was clear on getting a fresh start in APW. Things were going well until Russia when outside forces…”
Brian stopped Atlas with a pointed stubby finger. “Who is she?” He asked with a dangerous glint in his eyes.
Rubbing a hand through his hair nervously, Atlas lied. “It’s not like that. I came here to get back on track.”
“You’re a terrible liar, kid.”
Atlas sighed and sat down on the bench against the wall. “Please drop it, Brian. Do you have anything on this Fev guy I’ll be facing in Japan?”
Brian paused for a moment, clearly not liking being brushed off. “Yeah, I got something. Let me go get the file.”
Ten minutes later, Brian handed Atlas a thin manila folder with a knowing smile. “You can beat this guy, kid. He’s big so use your speed and I heard through the grapevine that he has a gimpy neck. That plays towards your targeted offense on the head.”
Atlas looked through the file, than glanced up at his mentor, an appreciative smile appearing. “Thanks Brian. This is what I needed. I’m not sure how you do it, but thanks.”
Brian waved off the compliment. “It’s nothing. Your father trusted me to take care of you when you’re in the ring, that’s all I’m doing. Just go to Japan and beat this guy.”
Atlas stood and shook his mentor’s hand firmly. “I’ll do my best. I’m sorry I didn’t look for your guidance earlier. I’ll call you when I land.”
Brian nodded and watched Atlas leave the gym. A moment later, Brian’s cell phone rang. He looked down, sighed and picked up the call on the second ring.
“He’s on his way to Japan now... No, he doesn’t have a clue…Will do… Keep me updated on your end… bye.”
****
Present Day
Overdrive locker room
Japan
Overdrive locker room
Japan
‘The boxer’ by Mumford & Son filled Atlas’ ears as he wrapped his hands. Not exactly the inspiring type of music when preparing for battle, but it was his favorite band and a ritual of sorts. He didn’t need to get pumped for a fight, he was always ready.
Would tonight provide the result he was hoping for? He wasn’t sure. It could go either way. He didn’t know much about Fev, but he did know what it was like to debut for APW. The nerves you feel, the way the crowd is momentarily non pulsed by some new guy that hasn’t proved anything. Then that moment when the atmosphere shifts as they watch the new guy show he belongs.
Atlas tugged on his boots with kick pads and thought what it felt like when his hand was raised that night a few weeks ago in Finland. The rush of the crowd getting up and cheering after he hit the fall from grace was overwhelming. A feeling that he made the right choice, that he would be accepted into this new world.
He couldn’t give that feeling to Fev. He refused to be the stepping stone to some new guy’s success. This was Atlas’ time to shine. There would be no distractions, no outside forces pulling away his focus. Atlas had his game plan and he would execute it to perfection.
If he somehow lost, Fev was the better man that night plain and simple no excuses.
Standing up slowly, Atlas looked over at the mirror, sizing up everything. Satisfied with his appearance, Atlas pulled on his hooded sweatshirt, grinned and headed for the stands to make his entrance.
That was when his cell phone started ringing.
Normally, Atlas would let it go to voice mail and listen to the message after the match, but he thought it might be from Brian to give some last minute advice. Without checking the number, he opened his phone. Before he could say hello a women’s cool voice stopped him cold.
“Hi Atlas, I’m sure you didn’t expect to hear from me right before your big match, but I just had to tell you something.” Atlas slumped down to the bench, gripping the phone tightly.
“What do you want, Alexandria?” Atlas quietly asked; nervous sweat dripping down onto his sweatshirt.
“Hmm what do I want? That’s a difficult question, Atlas. I want a lot of things. I want you to suffer. At the same time, I want you to win your match tonight. I guess what I want most is for you to see your daughter again.”
Atlas almost dropped the phone. His words laced with venom, he spoke slowly and succinctly. “If you touch one hair on my daughter’s head, I will…”
“You’ll what? Kill me?” Atlas can hear laughter on the other end. “Listen, Athena is lovely young girl; you have nothing to worry about. I’m not a killer like you.”
“What do you want?” Atlas repeated, well aware his music had started playing.
“Simple. I want you to get out here and see your daughter. If you don’t, then you may never see her again.” All Atlas could hear was his music playing on the other end and fans screaming.
Then a dial tone as the other end went dead.
Alexandria was in the arena with Atlas’ daughter. The realization stunned Atlas to the core. He wanted to scream. He wanted to find his daughter and get her away from that crazy woman.
He did the only thing he could do. He ran to the stands for his entrance, his phone clattering to the floor.
