Post by C.J. Gates on May 16, 2012 0:07:30 GMT -4
"This is what it all comes down to.
"Everything that the past month has built, this is where it all comes to a conclusion. All of the trash talk, all of the desertion, all of the cold stares, the back stabbing, it will all come to an end after Mayhem comes to a close.
"But there will still be questions. There will always be questions. Even after the bell has rung people will be wondering just what happened between Kurt and I. They will be trying to figure out what exactly occurred to set us into this downward spiral, one that allows us to throw away our friendships and partnership over one thing.
"The Undisputed Title.
"But that isn't what I am in this match for. That isn't what I am focused on. Because behind that belt, there stands a man who doesn't believe in me. There stands a man who doesn't think I truly belong, a man who sees me as a placeholder until he was ready to get a crack at the title. The one man I thought would have had my back when everyone was saying I took the easy way out in not defending the title at Survive and Conquer, well, now I can't be so sure.
"I am sure, however, that this won't be an easy match. I know that Kurt Noble is going to try and bring everything he has. I've seen it happened. Each and every time it happened, I knew it was coming. I knew that Kurt Noble had what it took to reach the top. I just thought it would have come about a different way. Not at my expense, mind you, but with he and I still seeing eye to eye.
"Unfortunately, we can't always be that lucky.
"He has the skills, I know that. He thinks I didn't earn my title, I know that, too. In his mind, he is already the best in APW, he just wants to make sure that everyone else can see it by beating me. He wants to make sure that there are no doubts in his mind or anyone else's.
"And if I can be honest? He has what it will take to get that done. I always knew he did.
"I always believed in Kurt Noble.
"The fact that he never believed in me will make me work that much harder to prove him wrong. To show him that this North Dakota Cowboy isn't going to be intimidated by the leader of the Nobledrive Nation.
"It's time to go big or go home."
For nearly a decade the lands and the people of the kingdom of APW were led with an iron fist. Tradition said that the man or woman that held the grandest prize in all the lands would be looked at as a form of leader, as a man who could lead armies into battle and who could calm the masses just by raising his arms into the air. That person was given the title of King and all eyes would be on him or her. But even though that person was standing at the top, looking over everything below, it never stopped others from trying to take their spot. It never stopped people from trying to usurp them from their spot in the eye of the people.
At this moment in time, the current leader of the masses found himself in a precarious position. The current King, King Noble, found himself in a bit of a predicament, having recently cast a black shadow on himself with his recent actions. However, King Noble knew that everyone was simply looking out for themselves, and King Noble knew that everyone would be gunning for him to take him down. Even the group of men that had collected themselves around him, sitting at his table, even they were out for his head.
And that is where King Noble currently finds himself. King Noble sits at the far end of the round table, wearing a large red robe, with the grandest prize in all the lands, the large gold belt, sitting on the table in front of him. Around the table sit the knights that he have surrounded him, the ones that he must lead into battle if the time calls for it. Not all of them were out for his head, but from his seat, King Noble could pick out quite a few who would do anything to sit in his seat. Sir Terry, Sir Keaton the Saint, Sir Lester of Only, Sir Michael, Sir Callahan, Sir Anthony, Sir Johnny, Sir Johnathan and the one knight that King Noble had his eyes on the most, Sir Gates.
The history between Sir Gates and King Noble is a storied one, and one that many of the kingdom knows. Before Noble was the King, the man that stood in his place and spoke the words that he spoke, was none other than Sir Gates himself. Having lost the grandest prize in the land to King Noble just over a month back, Sir Gates was relegated back to his seat as a knight of the table. But many people questioned whether or not King Noble deserved his honor. Many people questioned whether or not King Noble deserved to silence crowds with his arms and to make women swoon with his presence.
King Noble needed to find out the truth.
In an unprecedented move, King Noble challenged Sir Gates to a duel with the grandest prize at stake. The winner would take the seat at the table and the loser would be forced to remain a knight until the next opportunity arose. None of the other knights liked the decision, since it meant that all of them were forced to wait even longer to get their chance at leading the kingdom into battle.
"It's not fair," Sir Johnny pipes in as he smashes a closed fist on the table. "I've put in just as much time as Sir Gates, I should get the next look."
"Why should we go back to someone who's already had a chance to prove themselves," Sir Terry chimes in while wearing a smug look on his face. "We should give someone new a chance. Someone like me."
An uproar commences from the rest of the knights around the table. A few moments pass as King Noble can only shake his head before finally standing and raising his arms, bringing the table to silence.
"Eventually, everyone will get a chance," King Noble says to a vast amount of approval. "However, to get that chance, you must earn it. Sir Gates has earned it."
"I'd say many of us have earned it," Sir Callahan shouts across the table. Another clamor rings up from the knights around the table, while Sir Gates remains silent. King Noble raises his arms once more and silence slowly falls to the other knights before they are finally dismissed. Disgruntled, the knights stand and disappear through the main doorway, leaving King Noble sitting at the table, staring at the belt in front of him.
"They're right, you know." Noble turns his head slightly to see his two-headed adviser, the wizard Medea Monkwood. "They have all earned it."
"I know," King Noble says. "But I need to prove that I can best Sir Gates. I need to remove all their doubt about my ability. I need to show them that I have earned this honor." Noble picks the belt up off the table. "Guinevere here has helped me become a better man, a better King. I can't lose my hold on her."
"Even though you know that she brought better fortune to Sir Gates?" Medea Monkwood says. "You can claim her as your own, but you and us both know that she was one the property of another man. She was once around the waist of another." King Noble nods silently as he looks down at the belt in his hands.
Meanwhile, Sir Gates sits in his quarters by the window, looking out at the lands of the kingdom. Across the room from him stands his brother, B.J. the Jester, juggling four balls nonchalantly as he leans against the stone wall.
"Do you miss her?" B.J. asks as he continues to juggle. "Do you miss the golden wench?"
"It's not a wench," Sir Gates offers from the window. "And it's not a 'her'."
"No, mayhaps it's not. But rumor has it that King Noble has gone to naming the piece of tin. Word is that the golden wench's name is Guinevere."
"Guinevere?"
"Guinevere," the fool repeats. "They say that he speaks to her and keeps her with him at all times, lest she falls into the arms of another man. A man that was once a trusted soldier. A man that was one seated to the right of the King."
"You mean me, don't you?" Sir Gates asks with a sigh. "I still couldn't say what happened."
"Mayhaps I could be of some assistance," the fool says, ceasing his juggling and letting all the balls fall to the ground. He steps forward and removes his hat of motley. "Is it possible that the King see's you as a threat? That the two of you were grand friends until this Guinevere came between you? A lady that you once had falls into his lap and he no longer sees her as the pristine being she once was. And all because you held her in your arms last."
"But so have so many others," Sir Gates tries to reason.
"True, true, that is nothing but the truth," the Jester says with a nod of his head, his hat jingling in his hands. "But none of them were a friend. None of them were the King's closest companion during the rough times. None of them were as trusted and helped the King to victory as much as you. Methinks the King is jealous of what you and his Lady Guinevere once shared."
"I told you before, she is not named Guinevere!"
"But you admit it's a she?" B.J. cackles as Sir Gates reaches to the nearest table, grabs an apple, and hurls it at the Jester. B.J. does the splits and the apple sails right over his head, smacking against the far wall, leaving an apple sized stain on the brick. "Oh, the folly, the fair. The way a man looks when the truth comes out. You saw the golden prize as a woman as well, did you not? As a lady fair held in your arms? And now your lady is in the arms of another and the green eyed monster of jealousy has reared it's ugly head."
"This isn't about envy to me," Sir Gates explains as he rises from his window seat and heads across the room. "It wasn't I who started this battle. It wasn't me who began this little war. But now that it's begun, I can't back down. If King Noble wants to prove himself to me, if he wants to prove that he is better then me without a shadow of a doubt, then I will be more then happy to oblige."
"And the honor? Is she just an added bonus?"
"More or less, yes," Sir Gates admits. "The fact that I have a chance to regain the seat I once sat in, the crown I once wore, the golden belt I once held close, that is just icing on the cake. The real point to this bitter battle is to prove to King Noble that he might not be better than me, but he is damn close to being so."
"Even though he's already beaten you once?"
"But I beat him as well."
"Oh ho, so you did!" the Jester exclaims as he steps over to one of his juggling balls and uses his foot to kick it into the air and catches it in his hand. "But when it all comes down to it, Sir, you are going to have to choose friendship or the golden egg."
"I'm sure that no matter what happens in the duel, the King and I will be able to bury the hatchet and move on. This battle will make us better people in the long run."
"Oh, are you sure?" B.J. says with a maniacal laugh. "I've heard some things, dear Sir, things that might not sit so well for your future."
Sir Gates turns to look at his brother, the Jester, and leans against the table behind him. "Some things?"
"Oh wouldn't the brave knight like to know."
"I would."
"And what's in it for me?" the Jester asks, but doesn't wait for a response and snaps his fingers. "Freedom. For my answers, you must grant me my freedom."
"That's it?" Sir Gates says. "All you wish is your freedom? Fine. It is yours. However, your freedom will only come if you information helps me in my battle. If it doesn't, then you will find yourself once again donning the motley you loath so much."
The Jester scrunches his hat in his hands, before nodding softly. "Word has it that the King loathes you as much as I loath my motley. They say that he is not going to be so forgetful, and will hate you even more after the duel then he does now. Oh yes, it does not look good for you, not when the King hates you so. You will never be chosen for the battles and you will never be chosen to play a game of cards under the half moon at midnight." B.J. hoots and does a cartwheel across the room, landing near the window. "But that's not all!"
Sir Gates takes a seat by the table as the Jester continues. "They say that he might do whatever it takes, that he has thought about stooping low enough that he might cheat!" The Jester holds his head in his hands and shakes it. "The horror! The thought of how you have driven our once proud King mad is on everyone's mind. He was once a man who stood up for his peoples rights, and now, now he's thinking about setting them all back a few years just so he can prove a point. The horror!"
"Bollocks," Sir Gates retorts. "Bollocks, bollocks, bollocks. In no way would the King cheat. That is not his style, that is not how he handles things."
"When he's on good terms with his dueling partners, yes. But when he hates them as he does with you." B.J. holds up a finger and wags it back and forth. "You never know what you're going to get but what we do know is that nothing that happens will be good."
"No," Sir Gates says immediately as he stands up from his chair. "I refuse to believe it."
"Believe it you must," B.J. says as he walks across the room and picks up the broken apple that Sir Gates threw at him earlier and takes a bite. "The King's wise wizard never lies. Medea Monkwood is a smart being with two heads. Two. That's two brains, the better for providing knowledge for their person to win."
"I thought they were staying clear?"
"Oh, they were!" B.J. hoots. "They were! Up until you besmirched the King's name with a punch, they were going to let him battle it out with you one on one. But no longer. They are in his head, giving him tips on how to beat you with everything that is at his disposal."
"He wouldn't," Sir Gates tells himself. "He wouldn't stoop to such levels just to win his pride."
"But he's not just wanting to win his pride, Sir," B.J. adds in as he takes a second bite. "He wants to win so he can keep the fair hand of Lady Guinevere!" B.J. laughs, spraying bits of apple out of his mouth. "The King wants to win the hand of an inanimate object to fulfill his own personal desire!"
"Stop with the name, that is not what it's called."
B.J. holds up his hands. "Lest you not think I did it, but that is what I have heard. People have overheard him talking to the belt and calling it by name. How many people do that do you think? Is it healthy? Has he lost his marbles?" B.J. laughs. "Who knows? The only thing that matters to you is that he doesn't cheat you out of a rightful victory if one comes toward you!"
"He's not insane," C.J. says with a shake of his head.
"Continue to tell yourself that," B.J. says as he places his hat back on his head. "Continue to say it until you're blue in the face. It won't change anything."
"If he's insane, what does that make me?" Sir Gates adds, looking at the Jester for answers. "What does that mean for someone like me who has been told that he is simply seeing people who are dead."
"But that is just what you are told, yes?" the Jester says. "King Noble has been seen by the commoners speaking to that belt as if it were his life. That woman has taken him over. It's all he sees. All I think he will ever see."
"Blinded by gold?"
"Aye," B.J. says. "The King is caught up with the gold lust. The King only has eyes for Guinevere, and will do whatever it takes to keep it. Mark my words, he will bend the rules."
Sir Gates shakes his head softly from side to side. "I still don't know if I can believe you."
"Come now, there's no need for all of this," the Jester begins. "Why can't you accept the--"
"Because, that is not the King Noble I know. That is not that man who bested me for the honor to sit in the high chair. The man who beat me is a man of honor. The man who beat me is a man I can look to--"
"Ah, yes," the Jester says. "But that was the man who beat you. Now, he is the man with the belt. A man with an ego growing out of his ears."
"But.."
"Wasn't he jealous when you laid eyes upon Guinevere?"
"Yes, but..."
"And wasn't he angry when you tried to stand up for yourself?"
Sir Gates looks at the Jester and nods slightly. He doesn't speak, but his mouth opens and closes as if he were about to. The Jester nods his own head, the hat jingling once more. "Now do you see what I am saying?"
"I guess," Sir Gates finally says. "But I still don't want to believe it. I don't want to believe that the one man I used to look to for support. But now...If what you say is true, then I am going to have to make sure that when our duel happens, I always have to have one eye on him."
"That's the idea," the Jester says.
"I was actually looking forward to the duel, though, because I had though of it as a chance for he and I to put on a great showing," Sir Gates explains. "A duel for the ages. One that the kingdom would talk about for months, years, decades."
"And it could still happen, don't think it impossible," the Jester explains. "However, if he doesn't and decides to turn a blind eye to the rules, just remember that I warned you!"
And with that B.J. the Jester disappears through the door leaving Sir Gates' head swimming with thought. Was King Noble crazy? Had the power of the top prize, the big gold belt, had it taken over his mind and created some sort of evil being? Sir Gates didn't know. What Sir Gates did know was that there was going to be a fight. Whether or not the fight actually solves anything will only be seen once the Mayhem has been left in the past.
"Friends.
"That's what we used to be, Kurt. Friends. We had each others backs and would go into battle side by side. Even when we were gearing up for Rasslemania, the only time that we didn't see eye to eye was when you stole the Undisputed title. You say you borrowed it for the time being, but after what has happened recently, I can't say I'm convinced. I can't say that you were doing it out of the goodness of your heart to keep it from the clutches of evil.
"Just like I can't say that you and I are still friends. Sure, it sounds like a trivial matter in this world, but it's still a big item, especially when you have a group forming in the midst of it that is trying to tear APW down from the inside. Regardless, Kurt, it's hard for me to say wheter or not I can still trust you. Whether or not I could count on you in a time of need.
"And it's all thanks to the Undisputed title.
"And contrary to what you may have said earlier, I can assure you that I am not as blinded by gold lust as you are. I can say that everything that has happened is not because of me, but because of you. Because you have decided that by winning the title, you are unbeatable. Everything that has happened to you over the past year, all of that has caused your head to grow three sizes too big.
"Coming in second at the Extreme Tournament, you're showing at Survive and Conquer, nearly beating Azrael Goeren for the CWC World title, winning the title at Rasslemania and then, of course, your most recent string of wins at the Ascension tournament. Sure, you can deny it, but it's plain for everyone to see. It's plain for even the most moderate fan to see that you have begun to turn for the worse. You have begun to get full of yourself, and all because of a few near misses and one win.
"Notice how I didn't say it was a lucky win?
"Because it's not. All of those accomplishments, they are all thanks to your hard work, your dedication, your amazing skill inside of the ring. I'd be hardpressed to find a flaw in what you've done, if I couldn't pick on your age or your physical well being. When you are on the top of your game, you are near perfect, you are one of the best that has ever graced this ring, that ring, or any other ring around.
"So what's the point? Why would I list your most recent accomplishments if only to praise you for all that you have done and all that I know you will do along the rode? Just to prove that you that with every bit of success that comes your way, you get closer and closer to becoming that kind of man that everyone loathes.
"To becoming closer to the likes of Johnny Rebel, Level One, Terry Marvin. Harsh comparisons, maybe, but the facts are there. You've become more and more intolerable ever since you won that title.
"Whereas I did not. Even though I had my own successes, I never became the ego-driven sort of man who felt slighted at every corner. I never thought that I was doing anything but good, and when it came down to it, the title was never at the forefront of my mind. Go back and look, even during my rise to Ascension last year, I was never focused solely on winning the CWC title. During the Extreme Tournament, I was fine just succeeding at what I was doing. Test for the Best? Winning a tournament for the fans. And when I finally won the Undisputed title, well, Kurt, I was just elated to have been given the chance.
"Never once did the sort of person that I am waiver. Never once did I look solely at the Undisputed title as my reason for being. Which is the sense that I get from you. After all, everything happened after I glanced at the title in your hands. Everything happened after you shoved me to the ground because you thought I was going to repay the favor you paid me before Rasslemania.
"All of this started because of you, Kurt.
"People will twist this all around for you and blame me, that's one thing I can guarantee you. Medea and Monkwood? Those two are probably the most likely to do that to you. But you can't turn away from the fact that all the signs point to you. And from there, I just knew that I had to look out for my own skin. I knew that with the way you were acting, you were only a step away from turning your back on me and leaving me high and dry.
"But really, should we be worried about what happened? Should we be bragging and boasting about how things went in the lead-up to Mayhem? No, because none of that matters now, does it? None of that really pertains to what is at hand.
"A match for the Undisputed title.
"A match that you have made for the Undisputed title.
"A match that I will be using to prove just what sort of man you have started to become.
"Because, for me, that is what is on the line in this match. Not the Undisputed title. It's never really been about the Undisputed title, but proving that I belong amongst some of the best. Proving that I am not just a pint sized wimp that has no place in this business. And if I have to prove that to you, the one man that I never thought I would have to prove it to, then so be it, that is what I will do.
"Which works out, since you want to prove that you are the best by beating me while still holding onto your Undisputed title. You want to prove that you aren't just getting lucky, just like I want to prove that I was never getting lucky. Which normally would have made for a great match-up, except you had to go twist it around into something else. You had to turn it into a bitter feud over the past months events.
"And to think I used to believe in Kurt Noble.
"Lately, however, I don't know who you are. I see flashes of Doug E. Fresh in you, Kurt. I see you acting a bit like Johnny Rebel one moment, and Keaton Saint the next. I see you jawing with some of the newcomers to APW, and then you turn around and try and help others. I guess it's all relative to who you're dealing with, but being that volatile can only make you more and more unstable as the days tick by.
"So I need a plan.
"I need to figure out how to handle you, no matter which Kurt Noble comes to the ring. After all, there are two versions that might appear on Sunday. On one hand, you could come out as the Kurt Noble I knew toward the end of 2011, the man who wouldn't have ever thought twice about joining the Sindicate and making them your back-up. On the other hand, however, there is the Kurt Noble that has been showing his face recently, the one that hasn't had a care for anything that hasn't been dipped in gold and engrave with your name.
"If that means I have to zero in on your bum leg or your damaged arm, then that is what I am going to do. If this means that I have to injure you with my own momentum so that you can't use your technical prowess on me, then that is what I do. Because believe me, Kurt, in this match, I am bringing everything I have. In this match, I am going to make sure that I leave it all in the ring, because believe me Kurt, you've definitely managed to bring it all out in me.
"If I have to be at my best to beat you, then that is what I will do.
"Ever since we agreed to this match, I've been looking forward to it. And now, after all that has happened, I am looking forward to it even more. I am seething at the opportunity to prove my worth to you, Kurt.
"I'm ready for this match, Kurt, but the question is, are you?
"Are you ready for what the North Dakota Cowboy is going to throw your way?
"Are you ready for the fans to leave you in the dust as they cheer me on, the man who never turned a black eye to them?
"Are you ready to go big?
"Or are you just going to be going home?"
"Everything that the past month has built, this is where it all comes to a conclusion. All of the trash talk, all of the desertion, all of the cold stares, the back stabbing, it will all come to an end after Mayhem comes to a close.
"But there will still be questions. There will always be questions. Even after the bell has rung people will be wondering just what happened between Kurt and I. They will be trying to figure out what exactly occurred to set us into this downward spiral, one that allows us to throw away our friendships and partnership over one thing.
"The Undisputed Title.
"But that isn't what I am in this match for. That isn't what I am focused on. Because behind that belt, there stands a man who doesn't believe in me. There stands a man who doesn't think I truly belong, a man who sees me as a placeholder until he was ready to get a crack at the title. The one man I thought would have had my back when everyone was saying I took the easy way out in not defending the title at Survive and Conquer, well, now I can't be so sure.
"I am sure, however, that this won't be an easy match. I know that Kurt Noble is going to try and bring everything he has. I've seen it happened. Each and every time it happened, I knew it was coming. I knew that Kurt Noble had what it took to reach the top. I just thought it would have come about a different way. Not at my expense, mind you, but with he and I still seeing eye to eye.
"Unfortunately, we can't always be that lucky.
"He has the skills, I know that. He thinks I didn't earn my title, I know that, too. In his mind, he is already the best in APW, he just wants to make sure that everyone else can see it by beating me. He wants to make sure that there are no doubts in his mind or anyone else's.
"And if I can be honest? He has what it will take to get that done. I always knew he did.
"I always believed in Kurt Noble.
"The fact that he never believed in me will make me work that much harder to prove him wrong. To show him that this North Dakota Cowboy isn't going to be intimidated by the leader of the Nobledrive Nation.
"It's time to go big or go home."
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For nearly a decade the lands and the people of the kingdom of APW were led with an iron fist. Tradition said that the man or woman that held the grandest prize in all the lands would be looked at as a form of leader, as a man who could lead armies into battle and who could calm the masses just by raising his arms into the air. That person was given the title of King and all eyes would be on him or her. But even though that person was standing at the top, looking over everything below, it never stopped others from trying to take their spot. It never stopped people from trying to usurp them from their spot in the eye of the people.
At this moment in time, the current leader of the masses found himself in a precarious position. The current King, King Noble, found himself in a bit of a predicament, having recently cast a black shadow on himself with his recent actions. However, King Noble knew that everyone was simply looking out for themselves, and King Noble knew that everyone would be gunning for him to take him down. Even the group of men that had collected themselves around him, sitting at his table, even they were out for his head.
And that is where King Noble currently finds himself. King Noble sits at the far end of the round table, wearing a large red robe, with the grandest prize in all the lands, the large gold belt, sitting on the table in front of him. Around the table sit the knights that he have surrounded him, the ones that he must lead into battle if the time calls for it. Not all of them were out for his head, but from his seat, King Noble could pick out quite a few who would do anything to sit in his seat. Sir Terry, Sir Keaton the Saint, Sir Lester of Only, Sir Michael, Sir Callahan, Sir Anthony, Sir Johnny, Sir Johnathan and the one knight that King Noble had his eyes on the most, Sir Gates.
The history between Sir Gates and King Noble is a storied one, and one that many of the kingdom knows. Before Noble was the King, the man that stood in his place and spoke the words that he spoke, was none other than Sir Gates himself. Having lost the grandest prize in the land to King Noble just over a month back, Sir Gates was relegated back to his seat as a knight of the table. But many people questioned whether or not King Noble deserved his honor. Many people questioned whether or not King Noble deserved to silence crowds with his arms and to make women swoon with his presence.
King Noble needed to find out the truth.
In an unprecedented move, King Noble challenged Sir Gates to a duel with the grandest prize at stake. The winner would take the seat at the table and the loser would be forced to remain a knight until the next opportunity arose. None of the other knights liked the decision, since it meant that all of them were forced to wait even longer to get their chance at leading the kingdom into battle.
"It's not fair," Sir Johnny pipes in as he smashes a closed fist on the table. "I've put in just as much time as Sir Gates, I should get the next look."
"Why should we go back to someone who's already had a chance to prove themselves," Sir Terry chimes in while wearing a smug look on his face. "We should give someone new a chance. Someone like me."
An uproar commences from the rest of the knights around the table. A few moments pass as King Noble can only shake his head before finally standing and raising his arms, bringing the table to silence.
"Eventually, everyone will get a chance," King Noble says to a vast amount of approval. "However, to get that chance, you must earn it. Sir Gates has earned it."
"I'd say many of us have earned it," Sir Callahan shouts across the table. Another clamor rings up from the knights around the table, while Sir Gates remains silent. King Noble raises his arms once more and silence slowly falls to the other knights before they are finally dismissed. Disgruntled, the knights stand and disappear through the main doorway, leaving King Noble sitting at the table, staring at the belt in front of him.
"They're right, you know." Noble turns his head slightly to see his two-headed adviser, the wizard Medea Monkwood. "They have all earned it."
"I know," King Noble says. "But I need to prove that I can best Sir Gates. I need to remove all their doubt about my ability. I need to show them that I have earned this honor." Noble picks the belt up off the table. "Guinevere here has helped me become a better man, a better King. I can't lose my hold on her."
"Even though you know that she brought better fortune to Sir Gates?" Medea Monkwood says. "You can claim her as your own, but you and us both know that she was one the property of another man. She was once around the waist of another." King Noble nods silently as he looks down at the belt in his hands.
Meanwhile, Sir Gates sits in his quarters by the window, looking out at the lands of the kingdom. Across the room from him stands his brother, B.J. the Jester, juggling four balls nonchalantly as he leans against the stone wall.
"Do you miss her?" B.J. asks as he continues to juggle. "Do you miss the golden wench?"
"It's not a wench," Sir Gates offers from the window. "And it's not a 'her'."
"No, mayhaps it's not. But rumor has it that King Noble has gone to naming the piece of tin. Word is that the golden wench's name is Guinevere."
"Guinevere?"
"Guinevere," the fool repeats. "They say that he speaks to her and keeps her with him at all times, lest she falls into the arms of another man. A man that was once a trusted soldier. A man that was one seated to the right of the King."
"You mean me, don't you?" Sir Gates asks with a sigh. "I still couldn't say what happened."
"Mayhaps I could be of some assistance," the fool says, ceasing his juggling and letting all the balls fall to the ground. He steps forward and removes his hat of motley. "Is it possible that the King see's you as a threat? That the two of you were grand friends until this Guinevere came between you? A lady that you once had falls into his lap and he no longer sees her as the pristine being she once was. And all because you held her in your arms last."
"But so have so many others," Sir Gates tries to reason.
"True, true, that is nothing but the truth," the Jester says with a nod of his head, his hat jingling in his hands. "But none of them were a friend. None of them were the King's closest companion during the rough times. None of them were as trusted and helped the King to victory as much as you. Methinks the King is jealous of what you and his Lady Guinevere once shared."
"I told you before, she is not named Guinevere!"
"But you admit it's a she?" B.J. cackles as Sir Gates reaches to the nearest table, grabs an apple, and hurls it at the Jester. B.J. does the splits and the apple sails right over his head, smacking against the far wall, leaving an apple sized stain on the brick. "Oh, the folly, the fair. The way a man looks when the truth comes out. You saw the golden prize as a woman as well, did you not? As a lady fair held in your arms? And now your lady is in the arms of another and the green eyed monster of jealousy has reared it's ugly head."
"This isn't about envy to me," Sir Gates explains as he rises from his window seat and heads across the room. "It wasn't I who started this battle. It wasn't me who began this little war. But now that it's begun, I can't back down. If King Noble wants to prove himself to me, if he wants to prove that he is better then me without a shadow of a doubt, then I will be more then happy to oblige."
"And the honor? Is she just an added bonus?"
"More or less, yes," Sir Gates admits. "The fact that I have a chance to regain the seat I once sat in, the crown I once wore, the golden belt I once held close, that is just icing on the cake. The real point to this bitter battle is to prove to King Noble that he might not be better than me, but he is damn close to being so."
"Even though he's already beaten you once?"
"But I beat him as well."
"Oh ho, so you did!" the Jester exclaims as he steps over to one of his juggling balls and uses his foot to kick it into the air and catches it in his hand. "But when it all comes down to it, Sir, you are going to have to choose friendship or the golden egg."
"I'm sure that no matter what happens in the duel, the King and I will be able to bury the hatchet and move on. This battle will make us better people in the long run."
"Oh, are you sure?" B.J. says with a maniacal laugh. "I've heard some things, dear Sir, things that might not sit so well for your future."
Sir Gates turns to look at his brother, the Jester, and leans against the table behind him. "Some things?"
"Oh wouldn't the brave knight like to know."
"I would."
"And what's in it for me?" the Jester asks, but doesn't wait for a response and snaps his fingers. "Freedom. For my answers, you must grant me my freedom."
"That's it?" Sir Gates says. "All you wish is your freedom? Fine. It is yours. However, your freedom will only come if you information helps me in my battle. If it doesn't, then you will find yourself once again donning the motley you loath so much."
The Jester scrunches his hat in his hands, before nodding softly. "Word has it that the King loathes you as much as I loath my motley. They say that he is not going to be so forgetful, and will hate you even more after the duel then he does now. Oh yes, it does not look good for you, not when the King hates you so. You will never be chosen for the battles and you will never be chosen to play a game of cards under the half moon at midnight." B.J. hoots and does a cartwheel across the room, landing near the window. "But that's not all!"
Sir Gates takes a seat by the table as the Jester continues. "They say that he might do whatever it takes, that he has thought about stooping low enough that he might cheat!" The Jester holds his head in his hands and shakes it. "The horror! The thought of how you have driven our once proud King mad is on everyone's mind. He was once a man who stood up for his peoples rights, and now, now he's thinking about setting them all back a few years just so he can prove a point. The horror!"
"Bollocks," Sir Gates retorts. "Bollocks, bollocks, bollocks. In no way would the King cheat. That is not his style, that is not how he handles things."
"When he's on good terms with his dueling partners, yes. But when he hates them as he does with you." B.J. holds up a finger and wags it back and forth. "You never know what you're going to get but what we do know is that nothing that happens will be good."
"No," Sir Gates says immediately as he stands up from his chair. "I refuse to believe it."
"Believe it you must," B.J. says as he walks across the room and picks up the broken apple that Sir Gates threw at him earlier and takes a bite. "The King's wise wizard never lies. Medea Monkwood is a smart being with two heads. Two. That's two brains, the better for providing knowledge for their person to win."
"I thought they were staying clear?"
"Oh, they were!" B.J. hoots. "They were! Up until you besmirched the King's name with a punch, they were going to let him battle it out with you one on one. But no longer. They are in his head, giving him tips on how to beat you with everything that is at his disposal."
"He wouldn't," Sir Gates tells himself. "He wouldn't stoop to such levels just to win his pride."
"But he's not just wanting to win his pride, Sir," B.J. adds in as he takes a second bite. "He wants to win so he can keep the fair hand of Lady Guinevere!" B.J. laughs, spraying bits of apple out of his mouth. "The King wants to win the hand of an inanimate object to fulfill his own personal desire!"
"Stop with the name, that is not what it's called."
B.J. holds up his hands. "Lest you not think I did it, but that is what I have heard. People have overheard him talking to the belt and calling it by name. How many people do that do you think? Is it healthy? Has he lost his marbles?" B.J. laughs. "Who knows? The only thing that matters to you is that he doesn't cheat you out of a rightful victory if one comes toward you!"
"He's not insane," C.J. says with a shake of his head.
"Continue to tell yourself that," B.J. says as he places his hat back on his head. "Continue to say it until you're blue in the face. It won't change anything."
"If he's insane, what does that make me?" Sir Gates adds, looking at the Jester for answers. "What does that mean for someone like me who has been told that he is simply seeing people who are dead."
"But that is just what you are told, yes?" the Jester says. "King Noble has been seen by the commoners speaking to that belt as if it were his life. That woman has taken him over. It's all he sees. All I think he will ever see."
"Blinded by gold?"
"Aye," B.J. says. "The King is caught up with the gold lust. The King only has eyes for Guinevere, and will do whatever it takes to keep it. Mark my words, he will bend the rules."
Sir Gates shakes his head softly from side to side. "I still don't know if I can believe you."
"Come now, there's no need for all of this," the Jester begins. "Why can't you accept the--"
"Because, that is not the King Noble I know. That is not that man who bested me for the honor to sit in the high chair. The man who beat me is a man of honor. The man who beat me is a man I can look to--"
"Ah, yes," the Jester says. "But that was the man who beat you. Now, he is the man with the belt. A man with an ego growing out of his ears."
"But.."
"Wasn't he jealous when you laid eyes upon Guinevere?"
"Yes, but..."
"And wasn't he angry when you tried to stand up for yourself?"
Sir Gates looks at the Jester and nods slightly. He doesn't speak, but his mouth opens and closes as if he were about to. The Jester nods his own head, the hat jingling once more. "Now do you see what I am saying?"
"I guess," Sir Gates finally says. "But I still don't want to believe it. I don't want to believe that the one man I used to look to for support. But now...If what you say is true, then I am going to have to make sure that when our duel happens, I always have to have one eye on him."
"That's the idea," the Jester says.
"I was actually looking forward to the duel, though, because I had though of it as a chance for he and I to put on a great showing," Sir Gates explains. "A duel for the ages. One that the kingdom would talk about for months, years, decades."
"And it could still happen, don't think it impossible," the Jester explains. "However, if he doesn't and decides to turn a blind eye to the rules, just remember that I warned you!"
And with that B.J. the Jester disappears through the door leaving Sir Gates' head swimming with thought. Was King Noble crazy? Had the power of the top prize, the big gold belt, had it taken over his mind and created some sort of evil being? Sir Gates didn't know. What Sir Gates did know was that there was going to be a fight. Whether or not the fight actually solves anything will only be seen once the Mayhem has been left in the past.
-----------------------------------------------------
"Friends.
"That's what we used to be, Kurt. Friends. We had each others backs and would go into battle side by side. Even when we were gearing up for Rasslemania, the only time that we didn't see eye to eye was when you stole the Undisputed title. You say you borrowed it for the time being, but after what has happened recently, I can't say I'm convinced. I can't say that you were doing it out of the goodness of your heart to keep it from the clutches of evil.
"Just like I can't say that you and I are still friends. Sure, it sounds like a trivial matter in this world, but it's still a big item, especially when you have a group forming in the midst of it that is trying to tear APW down from the inside. Regardless, Kurt, it's hard for me to say wheter or not I can still trust you. Whether or not I could count on you in a time of need.
"And it's all thanks to the Undisputed title.
"And contrary to what you may have said earlier, I can assure you that I am not as blinded by gold lust as you are. I can say that everything that has happened is not because of me, but because of you. Because you have decided that by winning the title, you are unbeatable. Everything that has happened to you over the past year, all of that has caused your head to grow three sizes too big.
"Coming in second at the Extreme Tournament, you're showing at Survive and Conquer, nearly beating Azrael Goeren for the CWC World title, winning the title at Rasslemania and then, of course, your most recent string of wins at the Ascension tournament. Sure, you can deny it, but it's plain for everyone to see. It's plain for even the most moderate fan to see that you have begun to turn for the worse. You have begun to get full of yourself, and all because of a few near misses and one win.
"Notice how I didn't say it was a lucky win?
"Because it's not. All of those accomplishments, they are all thanks to your hard work, your dedication, your amazing skill inside of the ring. I'd be hardpressed to find a flaw in what you've done, if I couldn't pick on your age or your physical well being. When you are on the top of your game, you are near perfect, you are one of the best that has ever graced this ring, that ring, or any other ring around.
"So what's the point? Why would I list your most recent accomplishments if only to praise you for all that you have done and all that I know you will do along the rode? Just to prove that you that with every bit of success that comes your way, you get closer and closer to becoming that kind of man that everyone loathes.
"To becoming closer to the likes of Johnny Rebel, Level One, Terry Marvin. Harsh comparisons, maybe, but the facts are there. You've become more and more intolerable ever since you won that title.
"Whereas I did not. Even though I had my own successes, I never became the ego-driven sort of man who felt slighted at every corner. I never thought that I was doing anything but good, and when it came down to it, the title was never at the forefront of my mind. Go back and look, even during my rise to Ascension last year, I was never focused solely on winning the CWC title. During the Extreme Tournament, I was fine just succeeding at what I was doing. Test for the Best? Winning a tournament for the fans. And when I finally won the Undisputed title, well, Kurt, I was just elated to have been given the chance.
"Never once did the sort of person that I am waiver. Never once did I look solely at the Undisputed title as my reason for being. Which is the sense that I get from you. After all, everything happened after I glanced at the title in your hands. Everything happened after you shoved me to the ground because you thought I was going to repay the favor you paid me before Rasslemania.
"All of this started because of you, Kurt.
"People will twist this all around for you and blame me, that's one thing I can guarantee you. Medea and Monkwood? Those two are probably the most likely to do that to you. But you can't turn away from the fact that all the signs point to you. And from there, I just knew that I had to look out for my own skin. I knew that with the way you were acting, you were only a step away from turning your back on me and leaving me high and dry.
"But really, should we be worried about what happened? Should we be bragging and boasting about how things went in the lead-up to Mayhem? No, because none of that matters now, does it? None of that really pertains to what is at hand.
"A match for the Undisputed title.
"A match that you have made for the Undisputed title.
"A match that I will be using to prove just what sort of man you have started to become.
"Because, for me, that is what is on the line in this match. Not the Undisputed title. It's never really been about the Undisputed title, but proving that I belong amongst some of the best. Proving that I am not just a pint sized wimp that has no place in this business. And if I have to prove that to you, the one man that I never thought I would have to prove it to, then so be it, that is what I will do.
"Which works out, since you want to prove that you are the best by beating me while still holding onto your Undisputed title. You want to prove that you aren't just getting lucky, just like I want to prove that I was never getting lucky. Which normally would have made for a great match-up, except you had to go twist it around into something else. You had to turn it into a bitter feud over the past months events.
"And to think I used to believe in Kurt Noble.
"Lately, however, I don't know who you are. I see flashes of Doug E. Fresh in you, Kurt. I see you acting a bit like Johnny Rebel one moment, and Keaton Saint the next. I see you jawing with some of the newcomers to APW, and then you turn around and try and help others. I guess it's all relative to who you're dealing with, but being that volatile can only make you more and more unstable as the days tick by.
"So I need a plan.
"I need to figure out how to handle you, no matter which Kurt Noble comes to the ring. After all, there are two versions that might appear on Sunday. On one hand, you could come out as the Kurt Noble I knew toward the end of 2011, the man who wouldn't have ever thought twice about joining the Sindicate and making them your back-up. On the other hand, however, there is the Kurt Noble that has been showing his face recently, the one that hasn't had a care for anything that hasn't been dipped in gold and engrave with your name.
"If that means I have to zero in on your bum leg or your damaged arm, then that is what I am going to do. If this means that I have to injure you with my own momentum so that you can't use your technical prowess on me, then that is what I do. Because believe me, Kurt, in this match, I am bringing everything I have. In this match, I am going to make sure that I leave it all in the ring, because believe me Kurt, you've definitely managed to bring it all out in me.
"If I have to be at my best to beat you, then that is what I will do.
"Ever since we agreed to this match, I've been looking forward to it. And now, after all that has happened, I am looking forward to it even more. I am seething at the opportunity to prove my worth to you, Kurt.
"I'm ready for this match, Kurt, but the question is, are you?
"Are you ready for what the North Dakota Cowboy is going to throw your way?
"Are you ready for the fans to leave you in the dust as they cheer me on, the man who never turned a black eye to them?
"Are you ready to go big?
"Or are you just going to be going home?"
