Post by Vinny (Too Sweet) on Mar 1, 2022 2:25:47 GMT
A young man who some know as Jake Parnell is staring into a mirror. He's applying his eye makeup, one of the final pieces of his transformation to his wrestling alter-ego "Warhorse". The last few weeks have not been good for Jake. He's not been featured on television regularly, he's not won any matches. His WLCW run was in jeopardy and he could be among the first cut from the company. And that was disregarding the biggest issue.
WARHORSE: khoff khak khak
Warhorse pulls his arm up to cough into his arm. After he finishes, he takes a look and sees more of that blackened saliva on his arm. He quickly washes it off and wipes his face. "What was happening to me?" he couldn't help but wonder. The man behind the Warhorse couldn't help but fear what was happening to him internally. And while he wasn't sure what the effect would be... he knew the cause.
Wednesday February 2nd. Warhorse accepted a match against Malakai Black. Malakai had "asked for a sacrifice" and ever since that day Warhorse understood what the leader of the House of Black had meant. When Malakai spit that black toxin into Warhorse's face, Jake could feel his skin absorbing it. Into his pores, his eyes, his mouth, he could still taste whatever the fuck that was. The thoughts of it was making Warhorse shake. What had happened to him? And what would continue to happen to him? He didn't know. And he hated that lack of information. He had never heard a word from Malakai since that date. The crypticness had continued and the only signs he'd received that he was even remembered was a sickening laugh he'd hear every now and then when trying to sleep. He could hear the House of Black leader cackling at random times in the night only for nowhere to be there when he would search. Or maybe it was his own sick mind playing tricks on him.
That was why Warhorse wanted this match. The WLCW Champion Cody Rhodes... he had even less chance than on February 2nd. But it didn't matter. He needed answers. And taking this match would get him right in the way of Malakai's business again. He'd interject himself in Malakai's life. Whatever it took to get the answers he needed. And he was right. That very night after Vengeance he'd had a message left for him. It'd been a dark and gothic book left burning on his desk. The next day he found a snake in his gym bag. The occult world was starting to spiral around him.
Despite it all, Jake kept to what he was doing. Jake continued to look in the mirror, practically in disbelief at the torture he'd been put through just for having accepted a match a few weeks ago. He stayed determined. He put on the facepaint to feel like Warhorse. Warhorse wouldn't be suffering. Warhorse would rule ass. Jake wanted to feel like that again. So with his arm washed off, he kept applying his paint. After a few more strokes... a noise could be heard outside the door.
MALAKAI BLACK: You been waiting for me?
Jake's blood immediately ran cold. He knew whose voice that was, he was certain. With no time or forethought given Warhorse threw the door open. And yes, standing in front of him for the first time since their match was Malakai Black.
WARHORSE: Yyyy... you!
The tinge of fear couldn't help but make the evil Malakai smile.
MALAKAI BLACK: Me. In the flesh. Let's talk.
Malakai gestured to the couch for them to each take a seat. It wasn't his home to make that gesture but Warhorse knew that he had lost all control to Black and that the setting was merely a formality. Still, his anger took over.
WARHORSE: No, I'm not sitting! I want answers!
Malakai ignored Warhorse and made his way to the worn down couch. He took a seat and awaited for Warhorse to do the same. And despite the objections, that was exactly what happened. And almost immediately Warhorse's tough resolve disappeared.
WARHORSE: Malakai... what's happening to me? Am I dying?
Another moment that couldn't help but put a smirk on Malakai's face.
MALAKAI BLACK: Living and dying, what a naïve sense of this world you have. You sacrificed yourself to a greater good the moment you decided to take that match against me. I told you, I warned you before you stepped in what was going to happen and yet you came to the ring anyway. You chose this path.
WARHORSE: I didn't choose this!
MALAKAI BLACK: You did. Yes you did. Do not deny it now because it did not turn out the way you wanted it to. To answer your question though, no you are not dying. In fact you are more alive now than you have ever been since the moment you were born. Do you know why?
WARHORSE: No. I don't. I don't know, I don't understand any of this. I don't feel "more alive than ever", I feel awful.
MALAKAI BLACK: You feel authentic. You feel genuine. Instead of hiding your fears and emotion and concern behind that stupid facepaint, now you can not hide from anything. Your emotion is immediately visible. Your secrets immediately revealed. You do not get to deceive, all you get is the knowledge that everyone will always know exactly who you are.
WARHORSE: Then who am I?
MALAKAI BLACK: I do not know and I do not care. I ain't your mentor. I am not your best friend or your training partner or anything like that. I have a mission of my own. You are merely my example to this world. And one day, some day, when a real snake gets to taste the toxin they will know who to turn to.
WARHORSE: That is my role in all of this? That's all I am? I suffer day in and day out in excruciating pain all so that I can give a "word of wisdom" to some other person a year from now? You got to fix me, I don't want this in my system. I can't live like this.
MALAKAI BLACK: If you want out, I will make an offer to you. Give me your soul, abandon it. Let me feed it to the demon who I am indebted to. If you give me that, I can undo this and take the toxin out of your life. Understand this deal though because I am not offering you any sort of redemption by doing this. You will lose what makes you you. You will not have a wrestling spirit, you will never lace up your boots again. You will surrender and leave forever. And in turn, I will remove the toxin and you will be able to deceive and be inauthentic and pretend you are something that you are not all over again.
Malakai pauses and holds his hand out for a handshake.
MALAKAI BLACK: Is that what you want? An escape? Or do you want to be something bigger than yourself? Shake my hand and cower like a dog. Or choose not to and maybe you can learn that there is value to who you have become. The toxin in your system is a blessing.
Warhorse looks at Malakai's hand. He shakes his head.
WARHORSE: I'm not shaking your hand, I'm not giving you my soul. This toxin isn't "good" but I can't trust for a damn thing. I'm not giving you my freakin soul, you stay the hell away from me.
MALAKAI BLACK: Were you not the one begging me for weeks to pay a visit? And now after a few minutes you are already cursing my name and ignoring my advice.
WARHORSE: What advice? Surrender?
MALAKAI BLACK: No. Embrace your destiny. Stop playing a "warhorse" and actually become one. Become a deathbringer worthy of the apocalypse.
Warhorse looks down, defeated. He is stuck between a rock and a hard place here. There's no good options but ultimately he knew which one he had to choose.
WARHORSE: I'm not giving up my soul. Which means I guess I uh am going to become that deathbringer like you said. How do I begin?
MALAKAI BLACK: Figure it out. I got bigger issues to worry about.
And with that Malakai Black walks off. And Warhorse couldn't help but feel that he had even more questions and even less answers than before. He'd soon have a match with Cody Rhodes. A match he was not prepared for. He'd be representing Malakai Black. A man he did not like. And he would need to be at his very best despite feeling his very worst. Was this rock bottom? Or just the beginning of the fall?
WARHORSE: khoff khak khak
Warhorse pulls his arm up to cough into his arm. After he finishes, he takes a look and sees more of that blackened saliva on his arm. He quickly washes it off and wipes his face. "What was happening to me?" he couldn't help but wonder. The man behind the Warhorse couldn't help but fear what was happening to him internally. And while he wasn't sure what the effect would be... he knew the cause.
Wednesday February 2nd. Warhorse accepted a match against Malakai Black. Malakai had "asked for a sacrifice" and ever since that day Warhorse understood what the leader of the House of Black had meant. When Malakai spit that black toxin into Warhorse's face, Jake could feel his skin absorbing it. Into his pores, his eyes, his mouth, he could still taste whatever the fuck that was. The thoughts of it was making Warhorse shake. What had happened to him? And what would continue to happen to him? He didn't know. And he hated that lack of information. He had never heard a word from Malakai since that date. The crypticness had continued and the only signs he'd received that he was even remembered was a sickening laugh he'd hear every now and then when trying to sleep. He could hear the House of Black leader cackling at random times in the night only for nowhere to be there when he would search. Or maybe it was his own sick mind playing tricks on him.
That was why Warhorse wanted this match. The WLCW Champion Cody Rhodes... he had even less chance than on February 2nd. But it didn't matter. He needed answers. And taking this match would get him right in the way of Malakai's business again. He'd interject himself in Malakai's life. Whatever it took to get the answers he needed. And he was right. That very night after Vengeance he'd had a message left for him. It'd been a dark and gothic book left burning on his desk. The next day he found a snake in his gym bag. The occult world was starting to spiral around him.
Despite it all, Jake kept to what he was doing. Jake continued to look in the mirror, practically in disbelief at the torture he'd been put through just for having accepted a match a few weeks ago. He stayed determined. He put on the facepaint to feel like Warhorse. Warhorse wouldn't be suffering. Warhorse would rule ass. Jake wanted to feel like that again. So with his arm washed off, he kept applying his paint. After a few more strokes... a noise could be heard outside the door.
MALAKAI BLACK: You been waiting for me?
Jake's blood immediately ran cold. He knew whose voice that was, he was certain. With no time or forethought given Warhorse threw the door open. And yes, standing in front of him for the first time since their match was Malakai Black.
WARHORSE: Yyyy... you!
The tinge of fear couldn't help but make the evil Malakai smile.
MALAKAI BLACK: Me. In the flesh. Let's talk.
Malakai gestured to the couch for them to each take a seat. It wasn't his home to make that gesture but Warhorse knew that he had lost all control to Black and that the setting was merely a formality. Still, his anger took over.
WARHORSE: No, I'm not sitting! I want answers!
Malakai ignored Warhorse and made his way to the worn down couch. He took a seat and awaited for Warhorse to do the same. And despite the objections, that was exactly what happened. And almost immediately Warhorse's tough resolve disappeared.
WARHORSE: Malakai... what's happening to me? Am I dying?
Another moment that couldn't help but put a smirk on Malakai's face.
MALAKAI BLACK: Living and dying, what a naïve sense of this world you have. You sacrificed yourself to a greater good the moment you decided to take that match against me. I told you, I warned you before you stepped in what was going to happen and yet you came to the ring anyway. You chose this path.
WARHORSE: I didn't choose this!
MALAKAI BLACK: You did. Yes you did. Do not deny it now because it did not turn out the way you wanted it to. To answer your question though, no you are not dying. In fact you are more alive now than you have ever been since the moment you were born. Do you know why?
WARHORSE: No. I don't. I don't know, I don't understand any of this. I don't feel "more alive than ever", I feel awful.
MALAKAI BLACK: You feel authentic. You feel genuine. Instead of hiding your fears and emotion and concern behind that stupid facepaint, now you can not hide from anything. Your emotion is immediately visible. Your secrets immediately revealed. You do not get to deceive, all you get is the knowledge that everyone will always know exactly who you are.
WARHORSE: Then who am I?
MALAKAI BLACK: I do not know and I do not care. I ain't your mentor. I am not your best friend or your training partner or anything like that. I have a mission of my own. You are merely my example to this world. And one day, some day, when a real snake gets to taste the toxin they will know who to turn to.
WARHORSE: That is my role in all of this? That's all I am? I suffer day in and day out in excruciating pain all so that I can give a "word of wisdom" to some other person a year from now? You got to fix me, I don't want this in my system. I can't live like this.
MALAKAI BLACK: If you want out, I will make an offer to you. Give me your soul, abandon it. Let me feed it to the demon who I am indebted to. If you give me that, I can undo this and take the toxin out of your life. Understand this deal though because I am not offering you any sort of redemption by doing this. You will lose what makes you you. You will not have a wrestling spirit, you will never lace up your boots again. You will surrender and leave forever. And in turn, I will remove the toxin and you will be able to deceive and be inauthentic and pretend you are something that you are not all over again.
Malakai pauses and holds his hand out for a handshake.
MALAKAI BLACK: Is that what you want? An escape? Or do you want to be something bigger than yourself? Shake my hand and cower like a dog. Or choose not to and maybe you can learn that there is value to who you have become. The toxin in your system is a blessing.
Warhorse looks at Malakai's hand. He shakes his head.
WARHORSE: I'm not shaking your hand, I'm not giving you my soul. This toxin isn't "good" but I can't trust for a damn thing. I'm not giving you my freakin soul, you stay the hell away from me.
MALAKAI BLACK: Were you not the one begging me for weeks to pay a visit? And now after a few minutes you are already cursing my name and ignoring my advice.
WARHORSE: What advice? Surrender?
MALAKAI BLACK: No. Embrace your destiny. Stop playing a "warhorse" and actually become one. Become a deathbringer worthy of the apocalypse.
Warhorse looks down, defeated. He is stuck between a rock and a hard place here. There's no good options but ultimately he knew which one he had to choose.
WARHORSE: I'm not giving up my soul. Which means I guess I uh am going to become that deathbringer like you said. How do I begin?
MALAKAI BLACK: Figure it out. I got bigger issues to worry about.
And with that Malakai Black walks off. And Warhorse couldn't help but feel that he had even more questions and even less answers than before. He'd soon have a match with Cody Rhodes. A match he was not prepared for. He'd be representing Malakai Black. A man he did not like. And he would need to be at his very best despite feeling his very worst. Was this rock bottom? Or just the beginning of the fall?