Post by Deleted on Dec 20, 2020 6:08:49 GMT -5
Insight into the monster(offcam)
*Sometime in early November*
A woman walks in a dark hallway, lit only by a flickering, pale yellow lightbulb. She’s dressed in what can only be described as “business casual”, with high heels clicking on the concrete floor as she makes her way down. She stops infront of a metal door that has seen better days.
“Okay Jenny, it’s been a while but it’s still him. Why so nervous?” The woman mumbles to herself and flicks a rogue strand of deep brown hair back behind her ear. She opens the door which gives a mighty creak and slips inside.
She finds herself in what seems to be a boiler room of sorts. An abandoned one as the building had gotten electric heating years ago, but still a flame can be seen flickering in a furnace on the back. She takes a few steps inside, her eyes darting from corner to corner as if looking for someone.
“Brave…” A deep voice can be heard from the far corner, causing Jenny to almost jump out of her skin. She knew the voice and now that she knew where to look, she quickly found what she had been looking for. A large figure hunched over in a corner.
“It’s me. You scared me Tom.” She spoke in measured tones. The large figure that she was looking for is her brother. Was her brother. Is partly her brother. After all these years she still wasn’t exactly sure what to make of the situation. Not helped by the fact that she never knew which one would be the one to greet her. Tom. or the beast within.
“Yes… we know. Nobody else knows this place. Nobody else would dare to enter… Nobody but you. What do you want from us?” The figure spoke with a voice filled with barely contained anger. Jenny suddenly felt chills going down her spine as the figure stood up to its whole 6’9’’ glory. With 2 quick steps he closed the distance between them, staring down to her face from under a mane of messy black hair. The dancing shadows cast by the flames reflected from his bare torso that was marked with an intricate web of scars.
“I know I haven’t been here in a long time Tom… But you told me to not come here unless it was important. You told me to leave you alone and I did what you wanted. Please just calm down. I got something you’ll want to hear. Both of you.” She struggled to keep her voice steady. Even after years of coming to terms with the transformation her brother had gone through, his presence unnerved her.
“Stop calling us Tom. That man hasn’t existed in YEARS… and you KNOW it. You also know we could just snap you in half like a twig… and nobody would know. We’ve been forgotten. Not just by you but by everyone. Nobody knows us anymore. Nobody thinks of us. So why disturb our slumber? Why come here… Speak.” All the while he spoke, the man stared at her, cocking his head from side to side. No other muscle in his body moved but that simple movement of the head filled the woman with dread.
“That… That is why I am here. There is a place for you. Somewhere you can go and do what you do best. And I’ll be there with you. You don’t need to be alone this time. I am still your sister and I don’t want to see you waste away in… in here.” She managed to calm her voice down. It was for the best. Bringing him there was the best course of action. To let him take out his anger and his rage. To let him be who he’s become. To let him be The Supreme Machine.
She quickly pulled a few documents from her bag and gave them to SuMa. She then took a few quick steps back and spoke softly. “Check them out. It’ll do you good. It’ll do us both good. You have so much to give. This is your chance. Our chance. Read it over. I’ll be back tomorrow...”
SuMa watched as Jenny quickly made her exit from the room before turning his gaze down to the stack of paper he was handed. On the top of the document in big letters read “Uprising talent contract”. He walked back to the corner and sat down, perusing the files before tossing them aside.
“She still cares you know. After all this time she still looks out after us. Whether you like it or not.” There was nobody else in the room, yet he spoke in a somewhat gentle voice. And got a response… from himself. In a voice that was more akin to what had spoken to Jenny. Harsh, gruff and low.
“Of course she does… she has nobody else. Nothing else. She needs us to be relevant. To be remembered. So that she’ll be remembered as herself and not as the wife of a man who owned the promotion she and we worked for. And she knows you’ll go along with her weakling… you always have. And always will.”
“Is it really so bad? You read the same text as I did. Back to wrestling. I get to be there for her. You get to do what you love to others. It’s a win/win. I know you hate it down here just as much as I do. You want to be out there just as much as I do. So why not do it?”
The man reached over to the stack of papers and read through them once more. Letting out a small growl before nodding.
“Why not indeed…”
*Between Revolution 1 and Revolution 2*
Jenny was pacing nervously. The first videopackage she had commissioned had aired on Revolution and the second one was being worked on. She had coaxed SuMa to depart from his lair and take up residence in the cellar of a house she had bought in Reno. She had hoped that her brother could leave that part of himself behind, but years of familiarity had left the beast unwilling to let go of the darkness. That was where he was most comfortable. And still. Jenny kept glancing at the door that lead down to him. It wasn’t easy, knowing that you lived and went about your day to day life with an unpredictable, brutal beast residing only a doorway and a staircase away. But she kept telling herself that it was for the better. For herself and for him.
She steeled herself and began making her way down. Despite the understanding she had reached with the beast that inhabited the body of her brother and the trust she had on the other half of the man, the one that she grew up with… She felt uneasy in his presence. SuMa took pleasure in watching others squirm and wince at the slightest movement of his frame. But Jenny never knew when the desire to achieve a greater pleasure, one derived from the sound of crunching bones and screams of agony, would supersede the one he drew from merely watching.
“We can hear your Jenny…” A low growl emanated from the depths of the cellar. She stopped almost instinctively. She knew that despite being unable to actually spot SuMa in the dim lighting, he saw her. Watched her every move. She felt like a snake handler, fully aware that at any point or after the slightest mistake the snake would strike and leave her fatally wounded. Yet even a snake can be laid down and walked away from safely. That did not work with SuMa.
She conjured up a mask of confidence. Strength was the only thing the beast respected. A sign of weakness or doubt would merely feed his twisted ego. She could not show any signs of fear. Not infront of him. “I know. I am not trying to sneak around you. We need to get ready to leave. The vignette for Revolution 2 needs you in person. Needs the both of us in person.” She kept her voice steady. Which was surprisingly easy. Was she starting to get used to his presence again, after all these years? Hopefully so. If everything went how she planned, she’d have a major role in SuMa’s re-emergence and career. Wherever he went, she would go aswell.
“Why are we wasting time with these… videos? We should be there… destroying the chaff that has congregated there… We should be there making everyone in this city speak our name in fear… You told us that we would be done with hiding Jenny. That we would be doing what we are meant to do… Yet here we are… Not even our name has been spoken.” SuMa’s voice was rough with an unsettling edge to it. Not quite anger, but the kind of tranquil fury that gives you the creeps. Jenny still hadn’t located exactly where SuMa was. The cellar wasn’t big. But it was big enough for someone used to blending in the shadows to hide himself.
“Please… just trust me. This all has a purpose. Like the thrill of the hunt before striking. Make the fans and the rest of the roster question. To wonder. And once the time is right. To strike.” She had mapped it all out. In reality, more than just partly, she had planned it like this not just to create intrigue. But to buy herself time to assert herself in the partnership with the beast. She knew that ultimately SuMa needed someone to handle the day to day affairs and the responsibilities of promoting in a landscape that had changed radically since the last time he had emerged. And it was working. Or so she hoped.
“Tread carefully Jenny… we know your true intentions... “ Jenny suddenly heard SuMa’s voice right behind her and a massive hand grasped her by the shoulder. She froze. He hadn’t laid his hand on her in over 20 years. Not since they had been children. Not since he began his descent into madness. “We know you’re not doing this from the goodness of your heart Jenny… or out of the love you still have for your brother… but to make yourself relevant again… To be seen as more than just Jennifer… Stryfe.”
That name. It struck Jenny like a bolt of lightning. The mocking tone in the voice of the beast standing behind her hitting her right where it hurt the most. The great shame of her life. A bad decision that led down a path of misery for her. So many years ago and still it haunted her. She felt anger welling up inside her. He had no right to mock her. It was her dalliance with Stryfe that had allowed SuMa to arise in earnest for the first time. It was her connections that had allowed SuMa to make his name feared for the first time. And she had paid a great price. In her reputation and in her self-respect. “Don’t mention that name to me. EVER.” She spat the words to SuMa. Terrified or not, there were limits to the abuse she would take. She grabbed the beasts hand and flung it from her shoulder, turning to face the man. Staring up Jenny realized she felt no fear. Only anger. “Without me you would have ended up chained and sedated in a padded cell. Without me you would have never been able to find an outlet to your desires. Without me you would be nothing more than a statistic. I paid a price for that. But you. You will NEVER mock me for what I have done for you.”
After the outburst Jenny felt like a deflating balloon. She had poked the bear. Taken a lit match and shoved it right up to a barrel of gunpowder. But she knew the die had been cast. Staring into the cold eyes that once belonged to her brother, Jenny knew she couldn’t back down anymore. And to her relief… she heard laughter. Manic, shrill laughter emanated from under the veil of messy hair. And she saw him smile. A twisted smile that only served to emphasis the scars that had broken him. The Glasgow grin that broke him. SuMa leaned down right up to Jenny, his breath warm on her skin and spoke. “And finally you admit it. Honesty. Was it really… that hard? We knew… from the moment you came back to us… We knew what your endgame was Jenny… But don’t worry… We will help you. We will play your game… As long as it is to our benefit…”
Jenny held her breath as SuMa withdrew. She watched him walk to a corner and slump down and knew this was her cue to leave. And she took it. Swiftly moving to scale the staircase back into the house proper. Once she had closed the door that led to the cellar, she stopped, realizing that her pulse was racing and that she was winded. But for now… all was well.
*After Revolution 3*
Supreme Machine had made his first appearance in person infront of the Uprising crowd. He had come in and left Enigma destroyed in the ring. And now he was back in his natural habitat. The cold, damp cellar that he had moved into. Jenny was nowhere to be seen, she had told him that she needed to finalize some official business regarding his employment at Uprising. He didn’t care. Infact he was somewhat pleased that she was handling all that. But it left him with plenty of time to be with himself.
“That rush… I have missed it. It had no chance to react or retaliate. It was but a lamb to the slaughter... “ SuMa spoke in a low, gruff voice. He was referring to Enigma. The way he spoke of him as *it* betrayed the complete disregard he held for the man who had suffered his wrath.
“It? He has a name you know.” a softer voice responded. But from within the man.
“It might have a name. But that is irrelevant. None of those who scamper around the hallways of the arena, the streets of the city or the ring are worthy of my interest. They are nothing more than insects to be squashed… I am not you weakling… I am more. I am better.” The gruff voice responded. It was obvious that SuMa was literally talking to himself. The two sides of his personality having an all out dialogue with each other. Had someone been listening in, they would have been unsettled by the scene. But SuMa never revealed this side of himself to anyone. Well anyone except Jenny. The beast as she called the other personality had almost complete control of the mans actions. But the weakling. Or Tom. The man who SuMa used to be, before this all began, was still there. On the background. Influencing indirectly. Not able to take direct action against the beast. But able to talk it down. Hold it back. Even if only momentarily. The years spent in solitude and exile had created a rapport between the two sides of the coin. SuMa took joy from the disgust Tom felt at his actions. And Tom did all he could to prevent SuMa from crossing lines that could not be uncrossed. Especially towards Jenny.
“Be as it may, You are getting your way. You are getting opportunities to sate your desires. I told you this was a good idea. I told you that Jenny knew what she was doing.” the softer voice was insistent. He knew that whenever he had an advantage, he needed to push it. It didnt happen often.
“Yes… she came through in the end. But if she thinks she can act like she is our master she is wrong… And if she crosses a line… she will pay. Do not think for a second that I won’t crush her just like any other insect the moment she ceases to be useful…”
“I know. But she won’t cross us. Well. She won’t cross me. I just know it.”
“We’ll see weakling… never… say never.”
SuMa began laughing in that shrill, manic laughter that was one of his trademarks. It echoed eerily from the bare walls of the windowless cellar as the man rocked back and forth seated in the corner. And just like that, like cutting with a knife the laughter ended and the gruff voice spoke once more.
“This is just the beginning…”
*Sometime in early November*
A woman walks in a dark hallway, lit only by a flickering, pale yellow lightbulb. She’s dressed in what can only be described as “business casual”, with high heels clicking on the concrete floor as she makes her way down. She stops infront of a metal door that has seen better days.
“Okay Jenny, it’s been a while but it’s still him. Why so nervous?” The woman mumbles to herself and flicks a rogue strand of deep brown hair back behind her ear. She opens the door which gives a mighty creak and slips inside.
She finds herself in what seems to be a boiler room of sorts. An abandoned one as the building had gotten electric heating years ago, but still a flame can be seen flickering in a furnace on the back. She takes a few steps inside, her eyes darting from corner to corner as if looking for someone.
“Brave…” A deep voice can be heard from the far corner, causing Jenny to almost jump out of her skin. She knew the voice and now that she knew where to look, she quickly found what she had been looking for. A large figure hunched over in a corner.
“It’s me. You scared me Tom.” She spoke in measured tones. The large figure that she was looking for is her brother. Was her brother. Is partly her brother. After all these years she still wasn’t exactly sure what to make of the situation. Not helped by the fact that she never knew which one would be the one to greet her. Tom. or the beast within.
“Yes… we know. Nobody else knows this place. Nobody else would dare to enter… Nobody but you. What do you want from us?” The figure spoke with a voice filled with barely contained anger. Jenny suddenly felt chills going down her spine as the figure stood up to its whole 6’9’’ glory. With 2 quick steps he closed the distance between them, staring down to her face from under a mane of messy black hair. The dancing shadows cast by the flames reflected from his bare torso that was marked with an intricate web of scars.
“I know I haven’t been here in a long time Tom… But you told me to not come here unless it was important. You told me to leave you alone and I did what you wanted. Please just calm down. I got something you’ll want to hear. Both of you.” She struggled to keep her voice steady. Even after years of coming to terms with the transformation her brother had gone through, his presence unnerved her.
“Stop calling us Tom. That man hasn’t existed in YEARS… and you KNOW it. You also know we could just snap you in half like a twig… and nobody would know. We’ve been forgotten. Not just by you but by everyone. Nobody knows us anymore. Nobody thinks of us. So why disturb our slumber? Why come here… Speak.” All the while he spoke, the man stared at her, cocking his head from side to side. No other muscle in his body moved but that simple movement of the head filled the woman with dread.
“That… That is why I am here. There is a place for you. Somewhere you can go and do what you do best. And I’ll be there with you. You don’t need to be alone this time. I am still your sister and I don’t want to see you waste away in… in here.” She managed to calm her voice down. It was for the best. Bringing him there was the best course of action. To let him take out his anger and his rage. To let him be who he’s become. To let him be The Supreme Machine.
She quickly pulled a few documents from her bag and gave them to SuMa. She then took a few quick steps back and spoke softly. “Check them out. It’ll do you good. It’ll do us both good. You have so much to give. This is your chance. Our chance. Read it over. I’ll be back tomorrow...”
SuMa watched as Jenny quickly made her exit from the room before turning his gaze down to the stack of paper he was handed. On the top of the document in big letters read “Uprising talent contract”. He walked back to the corner and sat down, perusing the files before tossing them aside.
“She still cares you know. After all this time she still looks out after us. Whether you like it or not.” There was nobody else in the room, yet he spoke in a somewhat gentle voice. And got a response… from himself. In a voice that was more akin to what had spoken to Jenny. Harsh, gruff and low.
“Of course she does… she has nobody else. Nothing else. She needs us to be relevant. To be remembered. So that she’ll be remembered as herself and not as the wife of a man who owned the promotion she and we worked for. And she knows you’ll go along with her weakling… you always have. And always will.”
“Is it really so bad? You read the same text as I did. Back to wrestling. I get to be there for her. You get to do what you love to others. It’s a win/win. I know you hate it down here just as much as I do. You want to be out there just as much as I do. So why not do it?”
The man reached over to the stack of papers and read through them once more. Letting out a small growl before nodding.
“Why not indeed…”
*Between Revolution 1 and Revolution 2*
Jenny was pacing nervously. The first videopackage she had commissioned had aired on Revolution and the second one was being worked on. She had coaxed SuMa to depart from his lair and take up residence in the cellar of a house she had bought in Reno. She had hoped that her brother could leave that part of himself behind, but years of familiarity had left the beast unwilling to let go of the darkness. That was where he was most comfortable. And still. Jenny kept glancing at the door that lead down to him. It wasn’t easy, knowing that you lived and went about your day to day life with an unpredictable, brutal beast residing only a doorway and a staircase away. But she kept telling herself that it was for the better. For herself and for him.
She steeled herself and began making her way down. Despite the understanding she had reached with the beast that inhabited the body of her brother and the trust she had on the other half of the man, the one that she grew up with… She felt uneasy in his presence. SuMa took pleasure in watching others squirm and wince at the slightest movement of his frame. But Jenny never knew when the desire to achieve a greater pleasure, one derived from the sound of crunching bones and screams of agony, would supersede the one he drew from merely watching.
“We can hear your Jenny…” A low growl emanated from the depths of the cellar. She stopped almost instinctively. She knew that despite being unable to actually spot SuMa in the dim lighting, he saw her. Watched her every move. She felt like a snake handler, fully aware that at any point or after the slightest mistake the snake would strike and leave her fatally wounded. Yet even a snake can be laid down and walked away from safely. That did not work with SuMa.
She conjured up a mask of confidence. Strength was the only thing the beast respected. A sign of weakness or doubt would merely feed his twisted ego. She could not show any signs of fear. Not infront of him. “I know. I am not trying to sneak around you. We need to get ready to leave. The vignette for Revolution 2 needs you in person. Needs the both of us in person.” She kept her voice steady. Which was surprisingly easy. Was she starting to get used to his presence again, after all these years? Hopefully so. If everything went how she planned, she’d have a major role in SuMa’s re-emergence and career. Wherever he went, she would go aswell.
“Why are we wasting time with these… videos? We should be there… destroying the chaff that has congregated there… We should be there making everyone in this city speak our name in fear… You told us that we would be done with hiding Jenny. That we would be doing what we are meant to do… Yet here we are… Not even our name has been spoken.” SuMa’s voice was rough with an unsettling edge to it. Not quite anger, but the kind of tranquil fury that gives you the creeps. Jenny still hadn’t located exactly where SuMa was. The cellar wasn’t big. But it was big enough for someone used to blending in the shadows to hide himself.
“Please… just trust me. This all has a purpose. Like the thrill of the hunt before striking. Make the fans and the rest of the roster question. To wonder. And once the time is right. To strike.” She had mapped it all out. In reality, more than just partly, she had planned it like this not just to create intrigue. But to buy herself time to assert herself in the partnership with the beast. She knew that ultimately SuMa needed someone to handle the day to day affairs and the responsibilities of promoting in a landscape that had changed radically since the last time he had emerged. And it was working. Or so she hoped.
“Tread carefully Jenny… we know your true intentions... “ Jenny suddenly heard SuMa’s voice right behind her and a massive hand grasped her by the shoulder. She froze. He hadn’t laid his hand on her in over 20 years. Not since they had been children. Not since he began his descent into madness. “We know you’re not doing this from the goodness of your heart Jenny… or out of the love you still have for your brother… but to make yourself relevant again… To be seen as more than just Jennifer… Stryfe.”
That name. It struck Jenny like a bolt of lightning. The mocking tone in the voice of the beast standing behind her hitting her right where it hurt the most. The great shame of her life. A bad decision that led down a path of misery for her. So many years ago and still it haunted her. She felt anger welling up inside her. He had no right to mock her. It was her dalliance with Stryfe that had allowed SuMa to arise in earnest for the first time. It was her connections that had allowed SuMa to make his name feared for the first time. And she had paid a great price. In her reputation and in her self-respect. “Don’t mention that name to me. EVER.” She spat the words to SuMa. Terrified or not, there were limits to the abuse she would take. She grabbed the beasts hand and flung it from her shoulder, turning to face the man. Staring up Jenny realized she felt no fear. Only anger. “Without me you would have ended up chained and sedated in a padded cell. Without me you would have never been able to find an outlet to your desires. Without me you would be nothing more than a statistic. I paid a price for that. But you. You will NEVER mock me for what I have done for you.”
After the outburst Jenny felt like a deflating balloon. She had poked the bear. Taken a lit match and shoved it right up to a barrel of gunpowder. But she knew the die had been cast. Staring into the cold eyes that once belonged to her brother, Jenny knew she couldn’t back down anymore. And to her relief… she heard laughter. Manic, shrill laughter emanated from under the veil of messy hair. And she saw him smile. A twisted smile that only served to emphasis the scars that had broken him. The Glasgow grin that broke him. SuMa leaned down right up to Jenny, his breath warm on her skin and spoke. “And finally you admit it. Honesty. Was it really… that hard? We knew… from the moment you came back to us… We knew what your endgame was Jenny… But don’t worry… We will help you. We will play your game… As long as it is to our benefit…”
Jenny held her breath as SuMa withdrew. She watched him walk to a corner and slump down and knew this was her cue to leave. And she took it. Swiftly moving to scale the staircase back into the house proper. Once she had closed the door that led to the cellar, she stopped, realizing that her pulse was racing and that she was winded. But for now… all was well.
*After Revolution 3*
Supreme Machine had made his first appearance in person infront of the Uprising crowd. He had come in and left Enigma destroyed in the ring. And now he was back in his natural habitat. The cold, damp cellar that he had moved into. Jenny was nowhere to be seen, she had told him that she needed to finalize some official business regarding his employment at Uprising. He didn’t care. Infact he was somewhat pleased that she was handling all that. But it left him with plenty of time to be with himself.
“That rush… I have missed it. It had no chance to react or retaliate. It was but a lamb to the slaughter... “ SuMa spoke in a low, gruff voice. He was referring to Enigma. The way he spoke of him as *it* betrayed the complete disregard he held for the man who had suffered his wrath.
“It? He has a name you know.” a softer voice responded. But from within the man.
“It might have a name. But that is irrelevant. None of those who scamper around the hallways of the arena, the streets of the city or the ring are worthy of my interest. They are nothing more than insects to be squashed… I am not you weakling… I am more. I am better.” The gruff voice responded. It was obvious that SuMa was literally talking to himself. The two sides of his personality having an all out dialogue with each other. Had someone been listening in, they would have been unsettled by the scene. But SuMa never revealed this side of himself to anyone. Well anyone except Jenny. The beast as she called the other personality had almost complete control of the mans actions. But the weakling. Or Tom. The man who SuMa used to be, before this all began, was still there. On the background. Influencing indirectly. Not able to take direct action against the beast. But able to talk it down. Hold it back. Even if only momentarily. The years spent in solitude and exile had created a rapport between the two sides of the coin. SuMa took joy from the disgust Tom felt at his actions. And Tom did all he could to prevent SuMa from crossing lines that could not be uncrossed. Especially towards Jenny.
“Be as it may, You are getting your way. You are getting opportunities to sate your desires. I told you this was a good idea. I told you that Jenny knew what she was doing.” the softer voice was insistent. He knew that whenever he had an advantage, he needed to push it. It didnt happen often.
“Yes… she came through in the end. But if she thinks she can act like she is our master she is wrong… And if she crosses a line… she will pay. Do not think for a second that I won’t crush her just like any other insect the moment she ceases to be useful…”
“I know. But she won’t cross us. Well. She won’t cross me. I just know it.”
“We’ll see weakling… never… say never.”
SuMa began laughing in that shrill, manic laughter that was one of his trademarks. It echoed eerily from the bare walls of the windowless cellar as the man rocked back and forth seated in the corner. And just like that, like cutting with a knife the laughter ended and the gruff voice spoke once more.
“This is just the beginning…”