Post by Kai Stevens on Jan 21, 2019 17:03:33 GMT
THE BOOK OF
KAI STEVENS
CHAPTER FOUR:
the finisher
“They will sing to a world reborn;
they will sing as I cut off your horns.
I’ll cut off your horns.”
Oh, Sleeper
“If you’ll just indulge me briefly,” a voice offers from the darkness. His tone speaks to a respect that he, in reality, does not harbor towards you or anyone else who might be listening, though with the curling of the corner of his mouth into a devious smirk it is clear that Brian Church means no respect. The World’s Final Prophet dons far more than his imperious grin, as he sports a sleek black suit with an arterial red shirt beneath his black tie and gunmetal gray tie clip. His hair is groomed quite well, and for all intents and purposes the Restless Soul seems a picture of class. That being said, the scathing vitriol he speaks into existence carries with it as much class as the middle of the summer. “I’d like to tell you all a story...” Brian’s voice trails off ever-so-slightly as he glares into the lens of the camera in our shadowy locale. “Allow me to begin by taking you back,” he continues. “Back more than a couple of millennia… Y’see, the Greeks held many beliefs about the way of the world. Their Gods offered up explanations for the wonders of the human condition, the human experience in the context of our existence… Now, in the eleventh book of the Odyssey, called Nekyia, the eponymous Odysseus was advised by the Goddess Circe, who instructed the weathered traveler to consult the soul of Tiresias in the Land of the Dead. As such, Odysseus made his pilgrimage to the Underworld-- his Katabasis.”
As Church hisses the name of his protégé’s finishing maneuver that serves as aerial arson, a sadistic smile spreads across his lightly bearded visage. He narrows his eyes slightly and wets his lips before continuing. “As he ventured along his descent into Hell,” continues the New Age Answer. “Odysseus encountered many souls. First, the soul of a crewmember who perished under his watch, Elpenor. Elpenor begged Odysseus to give him a proper burial so that his soul might find rest, and the guilt proved too much for the pathfinder. As such, he promised Elpenor he would give him what he asks… Once he appeased Elpenor, he moved on and made countenance with his own mother, Anticlea. Now, Odysseus’s travels included having been away from his home for twenty years, fighting valiantly in the great Trojan War, and as such he knew not of his mother’s demise. Her incorporeal visage haunted the worn Odysseus, but nonetheless he pushed further down into the Underworld. Finally, he reached Tireasias, who warned Odysseus of the vengeful wrath of the Gods, many of whom hoped to see Odysseus fall before it all was said and done.” Brian shakes his head with a light chuckle before swallowing and wetting his lips once more.
“Further,” he supplies. “Tiresias educated Odysseus on his nostos-- his homecoming and the life he would live thereafter. Odysseus takes this information and continues along his path, encountering the souls of names like Antiope, Alcmene, Megara, Leda, Phaedra, Ariadne, and great warriors and leaders in King Agamemnon, Achilles, and Heracles... These souls haunted Odysseus to the point that he tucked his tail between his legs and ran for the hills. Now, I’m sure you’re all wondering what exactly the fuck this has to do with It’s War... Y’see, on the coming installment of Saturday Night Saga, my protégé competes in the first round of this Scramble against none other than the Hardcore Champion himself, Mr. Katz.” The disgust in Church’s tone as he gives utterance to Kai’s opponent’s name for the first name is tangible. “If the stark and utterly laughable surprise at Mr. Katz’s Championship victory is any indication,” he elaborates. “Then Mr. Katz is much like the Greeks’ Odysseus, is he not? A journeyman who defies the odds, a weathered traveler who finds success later on? So tell, Mr. Katz… On your descent into Hell, what demons will you see?”
A sinister sneer shifts across Church’s face, prompting him to reach up and scratch at his beard softly before furrowing his brows and glaring heatedly towards the camera. “Will it be how profoundly you fell short against Brother Taylor in your debut?” he inquires imperiously. “Or the demons of your own creation, the voices in your head? Or maybe the demons of knowing that you will NEVER have what it takes to wear that strap with dignity-- you tarnish it. You taint that Championship by wearing it as the false idol you truly are, Mr. Katz. Then again, it could be the demons of knowing that-- despite being the Hardcore Champion? My protégé has more hardcore in his little finger than you do in your ENTIRE BODY... And he will be more than happy to show you personally so you can understand firsthand what hardcore really means… And you, you poor man’s Odysseus, Mr. Katz? The Gods are just as vengeful as Tiresias warned… And we are going to inflict our vindictive wrath upon you with a smile on our faces.”
Brian smiles for a moment for emphasis before running his hand through his hair. His smile suddenly snaps into a scowl as he leans forward and stares contemptuously into the lens of the camera before him. “Y’see, ladies and gentlemen… Two months ago, my protégé in Kai Stevens successfully defended his ALPHA World Heavyweight Championship in a Hardcore Match against one Mister Arkham,” he explains further. “Mister Arkham, for a rotting rung in the ladder, gave Brother Stevens everything he had in this match. He gave every ounce of talent, hard work, and commitment from every fiber of his being into this match and he still lost. For every Trauma Trigger he threw at Brother Stevens, my protégé answered with a Spinebuster through a table. For broken shard of table used to rip open the Pure Champion’s face, he retaliated in kind with a Slam Poetry into a sea of tacks. For every Zero Day the Chaos Contingent had, we retorted with a Cancer of Creation. Every single thing Mister Arkham was able to throw Brother Stevens’s way, he had a far graver response each… And every… Time. Mister Arkham no longer can compete because of what Brother Stevens did to him, Mr. Katz. Much like you saw him do to Mister Maddox-- twice? He is going to show you the true meaning of Hardcore... And while he’s at it? He’s gonna’ show you the true meaning of Champion.”
Church inches closer to the camera, making sure every microexpression, every twitch is caught in the frame. The corner of his mouth does its best to maintain a cocky grin while his upper lip twitches in abhorrent resent, and he wets his lips so as to continue. “Now that you’ve indulged my story and allowed me to illustrate its relevance,” stabs the Dismembered Soul. “I feel free to express to you, Mr. Katz, that you failed to defeat Brother Taylor and a man who is somehow able to call himself Rock and Roll God with a straight face... And you barely-- narrowly escaped with that Hardcore Championship... I know this, you know this, Brother Stevens knows this… So tell me, Mr. Katz… How exactly is it that you expect to defeat the Envoy of the End?” Brian cocks his right eyebrow skyward before snickering maniacally and continuing. “Your delusions of grandeur have come back to bite you in your ass, Mr. Katz,” he adds scathingly. “It is our duty, men like Brother Taylor, Brother Stevens, and myself… To purge this industry of the rot, the dilapidation, and the filth of men -- if you can call them that -- like you, like Mister Maddox, like Mister so-called God. Brother Stevens has already taken care of the one, and Brother Taylor the other, which means… Mr. Katz? Unfortunately for you and perfect for the sport and any proponent of it? You’re next. Brother Stevens will raze the fields that have grown rank to provide for new growth as we travel the Path to Purity towards our Utopia... And you, Mr. Katz? You have grown rank… It’s War shall be your Katabasis... Which means that when the bell next tolls?”
“IT TOLLS FOR YOU!”
fin.
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