Helena Beat

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“Excrement. I’ve gotta say, that’s a new one…”

Adrien Cochrane is not standing but seated in a sea of emerald grass. The vibrant colors of the sun setting behind him paint the sky in diverse shades of blue, purple, and orange. Towards the corner of the screen is the coast below the cliffs. He wasn’t far from Dunluce Castle in Northern Island, exploring the coastline for one of the most breathtaking views the Dropkick King has ever seen.

Well, second-most.

“I’ve been in this business over a decade, and I still find myself surprised at how many times I see something for the first time. And let me tell you, sheep feces definitely got an eyebrow raise from me. And Matthew Shields was right about one thing: I was waiting for it to come back and become some sort of reference made towards me and Jessica Sears.

“I’m not completely incapable of saying he’s right about something if he is right about it.”

The New Orleans native slightly tilts his head. His blue eyes look not at the camera, but towards the ocean. His blonde hair gently moves with the wind, the grass next to him in waving in unison.

“Really and truthfully, Matthew Shields is saying the same things he always says about me. His speech about me is almost a paraphrase from what he said about me leading up to our cage match. Repeating the same nonsense he always does. So in an effort to not be anywhere near as redundant as he is, let’s talk about something else.

“Jack Tillman, probably the first time you and I have ever exchanged words despite the lengthy feud between our two factions. Quite surprising, honestly. You’re quite a confident individual, and for good reason. It would take a moron to dispute that you are a talented competitor, and I’m no moron, Jack.

“But you ‘believe’ yourself to be an expert on me despite the lack of interaction between you and I. Surely you can be an independent thinker and not just following along everything Chris Constantine and Matthew Shields puts into your head, yes? Even former member of the Destroyers Coda took the time to really understand who Adrien Cochrane is after her first opinion was formed, and it changed.

“But the fear tactics? The attempt to try to break down the word that my shirt bears? The continued attempts to try to discount the ability I have displayed repeatedly over the course of my entire career?”

A soft smile comes across the face of the Dropkick King. The smile was of confidence and resilience.

“It’s been something I’ve dealt with since day one of my career. Telling me I’m not good enough. Telling me that I can’t accomplish my goals. You think anyone took me seriously in PCW? Yoshiro Long and Sickboy literally said that I was a joke and would never accomplish anything…

“...until I was World Champion there.

“I was literally the man everyone ignored during the EXODUS Pro Seikigun versus LEGION war, being laughed off as someone who didn’t matter in the grand scheme of things, treated like I was just some nobody they picked up.

“... until I helped end LEGION and was World Champion a few months after.

“I was hounded RELENTLESSLY about how I didn’t stand a chance to win the #FSociety Champion, more than ten people getting in my mentions constantly to remind me that I should give up and go home.

“...until I won the title anyway.

“You might dismiss my past accomplishments. But to me, they are as important to me as your CWC US Championship is to you. What you can do in several companies is a testament to one’s skill and ability, doing it against different levels of competition. It’s why I won’t dare to say anything berating your ability. I wouldn’t dare say you are anything other than capable. And it will be your mistake that you think I’m anything other than a top-tier competitor in this company. But don’t worry, I’ll just stand here and let my victories do my talking.

“And that was one of my favorite things about what you said. ‘You and Shields don’t need to say how great you are, you just do it. HAVE YOU LITERALLY HEARD ONE WORD OF ANYTHING HE HAS SAID IN THE HISTORY OF FOREVER? Or are you just someone who lives in a cave, pretending like you know absolutely everything that’s going on without having to pay one ounce of attention? Perhaps the strain of jumping from company to company has put a strain on your attention span. For two guys who like to let their abilities do the talking, his speech referred to the two of you as the greatest tag team the company has ever seen, without even changing a word in that title, and then you dedicated an entire paragraph on how you don’t tell people you’re going to do things, you just do them. You told me you don’t say things...you do things… Granted, most of the time, it is Chris Constantine that does that talking so, I’ll give you some leeway there.

“You also mentioned how I’m constantly seeking approval. Really now? So tell me, what’s the reason someone joins more than one company any once? Is part of more than one team at once? You come down to NGW, get all the praise showered upon you from the other Destroyers then you turn around, fly out to your next CWC match where the Dogs of War do the same thing. I only wrestle in one company. I like to focus on doing everything I can to be the best within one ring at a time. And personally, I’m always trying to put the spotlight on the other three members of my team. Once again, Jack Tillman knows very little about Adrien Cochrane.

“BUT HAVE NO FEAR, we meet in the ring for the first time, Jack Tillman. You will begin to see what kind of man I am, what kind of wrestler I am. And maybe then, you will understand perhaps a little bit about how your words were inaccurate and misguided. Like I said, we had little interaction and you’re being pulled in ten thousand directions, it’s to be expected. Perhaps one day, I will actually break down what #Believe really stands for.

“I try not to ever guarantee victories. I just BELIEVE...and notice the context I use the word...that anytime I step into that ring, victory is within the range of outcomes, no matter the obstacles. I’m capable of losing, but I’m also capable of winning. You, despite saying you only do things without telling people, say you’re going to win the match. Quite possible. Jessica and I might win it too. But people tend to not like that because it’s not quite a bold statement to say that. Think it isn’t ballsy enough. So I’ll do you one better, Jack Tillman. I’m going to make a bolder statement than anything you could have expected me to say.”

Adrien gives a wider grin as he gives his bold statement.

“You currently hold two NGW Championships. You have the Tag Team Championship and the Five Lakes Championship. And in a month from now, you will have neither. Zero. Because what you can BELIEVE is that the end of the Destroyers is nigh. And you can talk about ‘talking and doing’ then. Good luck, Tillman. May the best team...or in Shields’s opinion, the greatest team the company has ever seen, right?!...win.”

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