[●REC]
-/-DEC.13.2024-/-
"The sight of a stadium is beautiful."
The Commonwealth Stadium, in Edmonton Canada. The host venue of Elite Answers Wrestling’s 18th Road To Redemption. Limmy Monaghan stood in the very center of it. Where, in just a matter of days, the lights shall shine down on him, the Extreme Elimination Chamber shall be built, and the war shall be on. Though tonight… this stadium serves a different purpose. Empty, almost in its entirety, the walls of this stadium are lonely. The night sky shining the moonlight down into the stadium, very few people within those walls. Limmy Monaghan just happened to be one of the few. This was routine for him. Each and every marquee, he would sit in the arenas, in the stadiums, and he would continue to get his mind in the game. He never focused on family, he never focused on anything else but his workplace. This was his way to do so. This was the easiest way for him to find himself getting into the zone. This was how Limmy Monaghan found himself easing into his role as an Elitist. It wasn’t a lie, he lived, breathed and sweated Elite Answers Wrestling. Not a single vacation day in his locker, not a single break on his table. He never cleared his mind at the gym nor with his meals. At all times, he had one sole focus. Elite Answers Wrestling. The Voltage brand. The EAW World Championship. Having previously described Elite Answers Wrestling as his “addiction” - something he needed his fix of - his life outside of this world was non-existent, lonely. He wouldn’t have it any other way. In truth, this current view. Limmy Monaghan stood in the Commonwealth Stadium. No fans in sight, no employees in sight. Merely him, and the stadium being rigged up for the very show he was set to compete on, symbolised Limmy Monaghan’s life very well. It was just as lonely here as it was back home in Florida. Just as many people around him, just as many people in his life. It was only him, and those who shared this passion. Men such as Bronson Daniels. A name he had recently reunited with, mere minutes prior. His eyes traced the architecture of the stadium. The wide, wing-spread stands, the lack of the roof. He was simply stood out there in the cold, his Chelsea FC hoodie crisping in the snow. Visible breath, icing up, much like his clothes. Yet… he felt at peace. He wouldn’t have had it any other way.
Stadiums like these hold history to Limmy. He has competed in countless main events, won in countless main events, made countless memories in these very stadiums. His goal this week was to make one more. He rubbed his gloved hands together, warming himself up, as he began to stop admiring his surroundings. He could allow those memories to replay over and over in his head if he truly wanted them to. Now was not the time. Those memories, they didn’t matter in this moment. All he could focus on… was the ones he was set to make. “There’s nothing *more* beautiful. The stands, the vibes, the size. Stadiums are the modern day coliseums. Just as spartans would head into battle for the mere entertainment of an audience, Elitists do the very same thing. We march down the ramp, we slide into that ring, the spotlight fixated on us, and we brutalize one another on live television. We are greater than the Spartans. Thus, I sit here. I reminisce. I think about the memories I have created, the moments I have created. I think back to my World Heavyweight Championship reign. I think back to my multiple Pain For Pride bouts. I think back to everything in my career, the ups, the downs. I’m not sentimental, in spite of what it may seem like. I aim to gather one simple thing…” He wasn’t clung to the memories. His sentimentality was not something he could allow himself to have, not quite yet. It wasn’t his time to be sentimental, not at this stage in his career. No… what he wanted was… “The feeling. The atmosphere. To remind myself what it is like to compete on a stage like this. The stakes are higher than they ever will be. My ambition for victory is higher than it ever has been. I stand here, and I remember all of the times I have stood somewhere like this. Stood in front of millions, poured buckets of blood, sweat, and tears, all in order to accomplish one single goal. For we all know, that very goal is worth more than those buckets of blood, the sweat, and the tears. The moment you raise that Championship up high, it means far more than any of your sacrifices. Potentially, the sacrifices only make them greater. There is no serotonin in the world that can touch winning a World Championship. The greatest high of our lives, and yet…” He shook his head.
“This weekend, my ambition is at its highest.”
Limmy didn’t view this week as just another World Championship opportunity. He didn’t view this match in the same light as he did Bloodsport, nor any other World Championship match. He is in his habitat, his fortress, his domain. The world's eyes focused on him. This is his opportunity to remind the critics of their place. To remind the world who he truly is. To pick up the EAW World Championship, and to live out each and every goal he has set for that Championship from the moment this season began. To live out his Utopia.
“On a stage like this, the stakes could never be low. Not for me. I am not solely competing to be the best. I am not solely competing to be the Champion. I could never settle for what the average Elitist settles for, otherwise, I will not be satisfied. I place my pride and my value in one simple thing. Where I can take this industry. The status of which I can elevate it to. The new heights it can reach, under my tutelage. My legacy is going to mean far more than the amount of Championships I have won, the amount of wins I have seen. These are nothing more than the ways I shall achieve my goals. The ways I shall build my legacy.” He paused. “My legacy shall be nothing short of rich. My legacy intertwined with the legacies of others, the legacies that my peers too will spend years upon years building up, sacrificing almost as much as I do, in order to reach newer planes of existence. I know, deep down… I can make those new fields, those new heavens, a possibility.”
Limmy Monaghan continued to look around the arena. The moonlight, the snow, the cold. “I know that I can open up far more branches for those around me. Thus, when it’s their turn, they can do the very same thing. I intend to show Elitists that this industry has no ceiling. That even when we believe we have peaked, we may always accomplish more. We shall always take this industry further, we may always find new heavens to kick our feet up in. I shall influence others to take this very same path. Men like Joso are already making me proud, much like Myles, much like Bronson. They are showing the world that we are not limited to anything this world wants us to believe we are limited by. We are branching out into new horizons, showing the world that we are, in fact, this company’s greatest generation. They all, much like me, understand the importance of it all. Understand the importance of preserving the future of this industry.”
He began to walk. Through the stands, past the chairs. His hand brushed the cold steel. He is standing where many more fans, audience members, will sit. The view he has now, is their view. Not his. They will be watching him compete.
“To focus on ourselves, solely ourselves, means that one day, the wrong call results in none of this mattering. If we do not pave the way for the future, if we allow them to struggle, if we do not welcome them with loving arms, our accolades? Our accomplishments? Our goals? Our dreams? They mean nothing. With every passing second, we are aging. We all get closer to retirement. Every single second. Whereas, the youth get closer and closer to their debut. We must set the standard for them to live up to. We must show them how it is done, to show them our playbook, to show them what it means to be an Elitist. To define OUR meaning of Elitist. To make this generation’s “Elitist” mean much more than the last. For one sole reason.”
“There will always be a new generation. Our fresh faces will, one day, play our roles. They will usher in new talent, looking to surpass them, to usurp them. Do we truly believe stagnation is the key to all of this? Do we truly believe, if we were to stay in this very spot, it would be to our aid? To our benefit? To theirs? We all have a role to play in history.”
Limmy sat down one one of the chairs. Just as he did following Road To Redemption. Just as he did following Grand Rampage. The cold now existing because of the snow. Though, in a matter of hours, the sun soon to rise. On a brand new day. A brand new era. A brand new Utopia. A brand new Ace, coming into his own, once and for all. He has walked through stadiums having tasted victory, and defeat. After all this time, after all of this soul searching, after all of this adversity.
This is his moment.
This is his chance to become Champion.
“I know my role. I intend to influence others, to make the same decisions I make now. To hold my values, my ideals, to reach my level of competition. To surpass my level of competition. To continue rising the standard, making it higher, and higher. The day I dream of… is the day where a generations bare minimum… is our greatest feats. Their average wrestler, I dream that he, she, or anybody in between the binary, is on the level of our upper echelon.”
“This industry’s progression is all I value. I aim to play an important role in the development of this industry. In however many years in the future, the students of the game shall research. They will look back to our era. They will look along our list of talent. They will see one name, and smile.” “Him. He’s who I want to be.”
“I want to follow in Limmy Monaghan’s footsteps.” Limmy grinned.
“Immortality.”
"I have seen each and every high & low of this company.
I have seen this place thrive. I have seen this place at its peak, this company generating numbers and stars at rates that had been previously unfathomable. Memories being made that shall stick with us forever. Moments being created that redefine what this business means. I have seen children and adults alike crying tears of joy, of sadness, of sorrow, of thankfulness, as they watch our greatest talents put their bodies on the line for whatever cause they believe in. Championships, opportunities, their very careers perhaps. Blood has been shed, tears have been drawn. I have seen these highs for almost five years. Ranging from my days as a student of the game, to becoming the very Elitist setting those standards for rookies and my peers to learn from. Five years within this company. Five years of my life dedicated to this flag. Dedicated to Elite Answers Wrestling. From the age of 24, soon to be 25; all the way up to today, the age of 29, soon to be 30. I have seen it all. All of those highs… and all of those lows. I have watched as Elitists have hijacked this show. Gained political power, and became dictators. I have watched Elitists crash weddings, I have watched Elitists attempt to end careers. I have been part of those lows. Perhaps not the ratings. Perhaps not the revenue. Each and every one of those “lows” generated controversy, attention, and thus, money; however they all set a precedent that I find disagreeable. Whether it be my friends or my enemies, it is a low I have seen. I understand, however, it is all part of this game. Perhaps there is no changing the brutality and maliciousness of man. We may all strive to play a role in those highs, whereas those rare few are drawn to the lows. I can accept this may never change. Most of it, anyway. Elitists will never stop brutalizing one another. Elitists will never stop injuring one another. Elitists will never stop attempting to ruin one another’s life, this has become a piece of this puzzle that I have grown to accept. What I cannot accept, however, is weakness. Cowardice. Men who abuse the very Championship that is keeping them afloat. Men such as Jake Smith, and those who preceded him. I cannot change the savagery of man, nor can I change the cowardice of man. I do not intend to change these Elitists, I intend to subdue them. I intend to create a battlefield, a culture of war. A culture that rewards the strongest, a culture that rejects the weakest. Only the greatest may survive, only the greatest may thrive. Gone are the days where Elitists who stand atop this mountain can feel comfortable being content and complacent, gone are the days where they are rewarded for refusing to do their jobs, for attempting to run from their responsibilities instead of upholding them. Gone are the days where they can treat the EAW World Championship as if it were nothing more than materialistic.
That is the culture I wish to create. This place will forever have its cowards, this place will forever have Elitists who are fearful of committing wholly to their responsibilities, to their duties, yet under my rule, under my Utopia, they will never reach the pinnacle of this industry. No longer do we accept the concept of a “line.” Allowing men like Jake Smith, men like Charlie Marr, to fight their way to the front while everyone merely accepts it happening, to take this Championship hostage, as everybody else WAITS in line. The culture of today allows for Charlie Marr to cut to the front, to take the Championship, to hold it up high, only a handful of names truly finding issue with this, while the rest shrug and accept the fact that we have a brand new World Champion, a World Champion who will find new ways to escape with that Championship each and every event. Whether it be roll-ups, whether it be losing yet abusing Champion’s advantage, quite literally running from his duties and refusing to uphold the prestige that Championship once upon a time had. The Championship that men bled for, killed for, went to lengths far greater than their own bodies would allow themselves too; now reduced to a Championship that, if its holder feels as if their limits are reaching them? They back out of the match, and call it quits. For Charlie Marr, getting himself counted out. For Jake Smith, getting himself disqualified. Results that, even though it was not deserved, sends their opponents to the back of the line even if they were the objective superior Elitists. Rex McAllister and Adam Lucas stand above Jake Smith and Charlie Marr, however the latter were able to remain Champions, while the former could do absolutely nothing about it. We had to watch as they were declared the rightful winners, yet the Championship remained around the Champion’s waist; Rex and Adam both had to sit on the sidelines and watch as somebody else took the throne they had earned far more. In Rex’s case it was Jake’s, in Adam’s case, it shall be me. This story comes to an end. A story of complacency. A story of cowardice. A story of weakness. Charlie Marr and Jake Smith were both complacent, both cowards, both weak. The two abused their status as World Champions to get away with their lack of desires to compete. The two attempted to avoid competition until it was forced upon them; rather than proving their own worth, they wormed their way toward the finish line, thus their opponents were sent to the back of the line. This shall all change with Limmy Monaghan. Much akin to what happened with Andre Walker, I will pry that Championship out of Jake Smith’s hands. Before he may even react, my sprint begins. Every Elitist who was once familiar with waiting in line, will watch as the distance between us closes in. Gone are the days where they wait to be allowed access, watching as the Champion grows fat and happy with his luxurious life, standing up off the throne, as he bullshits his way into remaining on it. This “line” becomes a race, this “line” becomes a battlefield. It doesn’t matter who is at the front of it so long as there is always an Elitist aiming to overtake them. They will all fight among one another, to determine which one of them are TRULY the strongest. The strongest amongst them will catch up to me, they will brawl, and the TRUE strongest shall prevail.
I will knock down each and every single one of Voltage’s best. The best this brand has to offer will not be comparable to me. Voltage’s Number One will be incomparable to EAW’s Number One. Only then, when Voltage’s very best transforms into EAW’s best, shall I be dethroned.
Until that day… they will all watch as I reign supreme, above them all, GREATER and STRONGER than them all.
Every Elitist shows potential, however their environment will not allow for their fullest potential to be reached. Their environment has to change, has to be far more hellacious, has to be far more punishing. Nobody becomes superior by waiting in line, they become superior by sharpening their steel among one another. Iron sharpens iron, pressure creates diamonds. We may very well watch the frontrunners for the Championship be passed by, by Elitists who we weren’t even sure would make it to the finish line. We may very well watch as Elitists who were once favourites for the crown, stumble, and fall, due to the fact that they were only “favourites” under Jake Smith’s stagnation. The fact that we have now had two back to back Champions, with the same ideals, with the same ideologies, with the same lack of care and passion for this Championship proves my point enough. Gone is the desperation and the everlasting fight for number one contendership, the weak Elitists have been rewarded, while the rest suffer. Starving the breadwinners, feeding those who do not contribute. Charlie Marr watched as Elitists such as Drake King, such as TLA, such as Rex McAllister fought and bled for the EAW World Championship, they built their season into something special, they built up an empire that was near unparalleled; they had to compete with the Dynasty that myself, Bronson Daniels and Myles had all crafted, they all knew that Voltage needed to keep up otherwise it would be left in the dust. With a snap of his fingers, Charlie Marr crushed those foundations to dust. King of Elite? Dynasty. Grand Rampage? Dynasty. War Games? Showdown. Our Elitists left without a fire lit underneath them, complacency had latched onto them too, they knew that so long as they may punch their shot one day, they can become Champion, the “standard” they followed was one of cutting lines, cutting corners, coasting all the way to the top of the mountain, and lying your way to remaining atop that mountain. That’s the precedent they set, that’s who our Elitists are expected to follow, that is the job they have accomplished as leaders. Contrast that to what myself, what Bronson, what Myles were all doing over on Dynasty. Night and day. Joso learned from the best to become King of Elite. Our Brand Warfare team fed out of our playbook. Myself, Myles and Kassidy conquered War Games. For an entire year, the brand in which I ruled conquered this company, while Voltage starved under the hands of Charlie Marr’s. Jake Smith has carried on his will. I put an end to it. No longer are we focused on mere possession of the Championship, reducing it to an accessory, reducing it to being no more than a scapegoat. This Championship moves with me; onward. My peers shall follow, they shall chase me; onward. This brand, as we shift our weight, moves it; onward. My Utopia. The Voltage of tomorrow. The Voltage of the future.
That has always been my goal. Jake Smith nor Charlie Marr motivated anybody else to surpass them, to carry on their legacy. I have done so before. Men like Jake claim my career is that of hypotheticals, yet let me introduce you all to reality. No need to bend my declarations of “when” to “if” to prove any point, I’ll remind you all of my impact on this industry. Current World Champions, declaring they wouldn’t be here without me. Champions that reached their goals after testing themselves against me, and feeding from my playbook. Elitists claiming they wish to surpass me, that they respect me, that they all look up to me. I was “THE” Champion on Dynasty, and that will not be my peak. Every accolade, every accomplishment, every shred of influence and power? That was only the beginning. Let men like Jake Smith, Michael Machina, Daryl Kinkade and the rest believe that we’re never reliving those days, they don’t have a say in the matter. As this weekend comes to a close, they will be just another Andre Walker, just another PJ Hendrx, just another Jay Jerry Johnson. Men who all believed that I would fall, men who all believed that I was not worthy, men who all believed their aspirations were held in a much higher regard than my own. I’m not unfamiliar with this scenario, I’m not unfamiliar with my surroundings, I’m used to Elitists doubting me for the sole reason that there is no Championship around my waist, yet by the end of the year, my perception on this brand shall change. “The Ace” once and for all. “The Ace” doubted by none. “The Ace” recognized by Elite Answers Wrestling. Jake can run with the Noah Reigner comparisons just as he always has. He can spend as long as he wants talking about Elitists who are not me, that fell before me, he is only writing himself off. If Noah Reigner 2.0 defeats him, what does that say about Jake Smith? What does it say about you all? You are all lucky. I am The Ace, well and truly. I have made my mark on this company, now it is my job to make sure that mark not only remains, but enhanced, it doubles. I do not compete in this match to surpass anybody but myself. I will surpass The Czar. The Leader. The Monarch. The Elitist I was two years ago shall be incomparable to the Elitist I am today. That is the present. We have talked about the past, we have done so in full. We have touched on the present, just as we have this entire week. Allow me to close this week, ending on the future. Ending on what is to come. Ending on what my legacy will be. Never another “failed Ace” left to rot within the walls of this company. My future will be vastly superior to you all. My legacy will stand far above you all. It begins with my utopia.
My desire to have my name surpass my accomplishments. My desire to have my name no longer in need of them. For my name to speak for itself. A year from now, we shall feel the effects of my Championship reign. Two years from now, as my accolades continue to build up, as my influences continues to reach deeper and darker corners of this company, providing them all light, my name value shall increase. Two becomes five, five becomes ten. My longevity shall begin to slow down, many question how long I have left, the true twilight of my career… and yet it will not matter. I will always have this itch. Competition shall always be in my veins. Professional wrestling, Elite Answers Wrestling, shall always be my one true love. I will never need anything else. However, we are all aware; our bodies do not last forever. Our age and our injuries shall catch up to us one day, though that day is a very long time from now. One day, I will sit back on my chair. Barely able to feel my body, barely able to move without a constant pain, a constant thorn in my side, though I will not regret it. That pain shall remind me of my glory days, of days such as this weekend, where I conquered the World once more, to become Champion. I will rest in satisfaction. My hand reaches for the television remote, or whatever it may be as technology progresses, as I begin to watch Elite Answers Wrestling. Perhaps one day, we will all make it to Pain For Pride 30. Perhaps even 40. I will watch, knowing that those combatants, those warriors of tomorrow - perhaps names that have yet to even enter this Earth, yet to even be born - operate out of my playbook. My fingertips still felt, just as our previous generation’s fingertips felt today. I will be satisfied. Contrary to popular belief, my selfishness does not exist to pull myself out of a hole. I am not doing this for a lack of care, if anything, I care too much. I value nothing more than this industry, I have bled for it, and will bleed again. I would kill, or be killed, for this industry. Once I hang up my boots, I expect to see a reality where my ideals of progression are upheld. Just as I would like to imagine our society would do the same. We all fight for the greater good, we all fight to see our communities represented, to see our communities loved. I fight for an age where professional wrestling eclipses our era. I fight for an age where our contributions are miniscule in comparison to theirs, knowing that their era would not exist if not for ours. That is the legacy I intend to achieve. That is the goal I intend to end up at. In ten, fifteen years, that is my life. That is my ideal reality. That is my career. Influence.
My influence is what will make this brand rise. My influence, my power, is what will pull us out of this stagnation, and send us further into the future, to reach new heavens, new skies. To make Voltage bigger and better, rather than being attached to the anchor that is Jake Smith, that is Charlie Marr, and anybody else that wishes to compete just like them. My influence spread all across the Voltage brand, each and every single Elitist with one goal in mind, to surpass me. Just as Bronson Daniels once aimed to surpass me. Just as Myles once aimed to surpass me. Just as Joso aimed to surpass me. Just as Drake Armstrong aimed to surpass me. Just as Hans Grayson aimed to surpass me. PJ Hendrx. Jay Jerry Johnson. Ryan Wilson. Xander Payne. SOSA Henderson. Among many, many more. My status, my standard, the ceiling I had left for them, it was all in their crosshairs. Not a single soul intends to “surpass” Jake Smith. Not a single soul cares about surpassing men such as him. Many of you already have done so. His calamity of a Championship reign exists to be extinguished by my boot, by my blade, as I conquer this fortress, I conquer this Extreme Elimination Chamber, and once more become World Champion within the walls of this company. While Jake Smith has sat on his high horse, becoming fat and happy, loving life as the EAW World Champion, my grind has not stopped, nor will it stop the moment I dethrone him. I am going to stand atop this industry, with the EAW World Championship over my shoulder. You will all adhere to me. This is my Voltage. I will walk down that ramp, and see my cameras. I will enter that ring, my ring. Those ropes, the turnbuckles, my ropes, my turnbuckles. This era of Voltage shall be defined by Limmy Monaghan. My greatness, my work ethic, my ideals. In the years to come, we will look back, and I shall be the standout star. I shall be the name that sits above all. I shall be the name of this era. Not Jake Smith. Not Charlie Marr. Not Michael Machina. Not Methuselah. Not Daryl Kinkade. Not Xander Payne. Not Adam Lucas. Not Dr. Bethany Blue. The name of this era is Limmy Monaghan. The Ace’s era. The Ace’s Utopia. Line up my opponents. Rally up the troops. Attempt to conquer me, and fall. One by one. Name after name after name. Come for my head. Come for my crown. This is not a story of Champion and Challenger. This is not a story about dethroning the king. This is a story about surpassing the very best of EAW. Then, and only then, will any of you defeat me. Then, and only then, once I am surpassed, once I find an Elitist stronger, greater than I, will my Championship reign come to an end. Though now? We focus on the beginnings.
My fortress.
The Icebox.
The Extreme Elimination Chamber.
The EAW World Championship.
Limmy Monaghan’s crowning.
My Utopia."
