Post by LAVA on Jun 8, 2017 7:37:23 GMT -5
The following blog post appeared on LAVA's personal Facebook page on June 8th, 2017.
It was also cross-posted to the Redemption Wrestling website.
06.08.17.002
I choose this.
Redemption Wrestling's 2017 All-Female Invitational.
I choose this exact moment, specifically, for my return.
Here and now, my journey back begins.
This time I'm standing alone.
The tournament itself seemed like such an automatic choice.
All the best female fighters in pro-wrestling.
All gathered together in one place.
The perfect challenge, the perfect opportunity.
But unexpectedly, almost instantly, the stakes were raised.
For I am not the only true lioness upon these plains.
'The Event Horizon' Gaia Galanos.
A Greek Amazon who's name is not foreign to me in the slightest.
I have watched her career. There are parallels between us.
We both finish opponents with our knees or by tapping them out.
We both have a similar view of this sport.
She was trained by the Gordons.
I was encouraged to try pro-wrestling by the Cross family.
So when she saw a fellow warrior, she issued a challenge.
Should we meet in the tournament, we will fight in MMA rules.
She's no Atomweight, I'm no women's Heavyweight.
Nut that's not what she saw, not why she issued the challenge.
Gaia sees a fellow warrior.
She sees an obstacle to be overcome.
She could not resist me and more than I can resist her.
We are meant to meet in this tournament.
Even Redemption has said now that,
should her and I meet,
this Lion's Den Match will happen.
Gaia.
I wonder if she remembers me.
She was friends with Delphi when her and I were together.
I respect her.
I wonder if she respects me now?
She will soon enough, I'll make sure of that.
But I cannot get too far ahead of myself.
I cannot look past Round One of this tournament yet,
I cannot look past the challenge of Danni LeBlanc.
Danni is a skilled pro-wrestler,
and like myself is a woman who has known deep, painful loss.
Some might think that because I am making my way directly
to the main Redemption roster,
That I might overlook or underestimate someone from their developmental system.
This could not be further from the truth.
But despite the respect that I have for the skill of Danni LeBlanc,
I cannot any shadows of doubt.
I will defeat her because I must defeat her.
That was always going to be the case,
From the moment I signed up for this tournament.
I have the skills and the tools to beat her.
Her strength, which springs from her educated feet,
is a skillset I have encountered and countered before in the world of MMA.
I know how to defend the strongest aspect of her offense.
So I can win and I must win.
Because this tournament has become more than the beginning of my rebirth,
More than the first chapter of my soon-to-be rewritten history.
It has become an opportunity to give the Redemption fans something truly magical,
thanks to the challenge issued by Gaia Galanos.
That match, the possibility of it happening, has so much to offer.
It's an opportunity that motivates in and of itself.
I must win my way to Gaia, and Gaia her way to me.
The pressure created by the promise of our meeting,
it is far too great for either of us to fail.
That, Danni, is the added challenge you face.
We all want to win this tournament.
We all possess the required skills to do so.
But I have the opportunity to create a truly unforgettable match.
The blueprint has been laid, the challenge accepted.
But to get there, to get that opportunity, I must go through you.
It's a powerful motivation, and a fire has been lit within me.
The fans want it.
Redemption wants it.
Gaia and I both want it.
And you're standing in the way of it happening.
I can't allow that, Danni.
The stakes are just far too high.
I've come back to America.
Back to finish what I started two years ago.
I've come here with a specific mission.
This opportunity with Gaia fits into all of that.
I respect you and your ability, Danni.
I know you're going to try to play the spoiler to my dreams,
spoiler to the dreams this match with Gaia has ignited in the fans.
It's my job not to let that happen.
It's my job to stop you from stopping me in my journey.
I've worked my ass off to get back here.
I've overcome injury and a shattered heart.
I know that you can understand both.
It's going to come down to which of us wants it more, Danni.
My turn to play spoiler: It's me.