Post by thegoldenidol on Dec 21, 2021 19:57:04 GMT -6
"Popi, will you be a champion one day?"
Izzy's eyes stare up at me and I melt instantly, feeling all her little hope run through me.
"Heh, that's always the dream, mija… One day, your popi will venture off into the States like mi Padre and I will do what he never did… I will show those gringos what a true Golden Idolo is made of…"
"I believe in you, popi…"
A smile flashes across my lips.
"Thank you, mija…"
Fast forward to now, I'm sitting in a cheap ran down hotel room in Cambodia just before Christmas and the only present I want is mi familia… Mija standing before me, telling me she believes I'll be a champion… I'd trade this title opportunity and this Golden pendant… Whatever it takes to have everything back that's been ripped away…
"Mija, I'm going to continue to battle for you… Dukes hasn't any idea of what I'm truly capable of and he will not hold me back from my destiny… Neither will Blackwater..."
I set up my phone on the metal desk in front of me, my golden pendant sitting next to it, my left index finger tracing its outline before I turn my gaze to the phone.
"El Dorado, the lost city of Gold, right? But in this story… My story, it is about MY own path to the gold and the recognition my familia rightfully deserves… I've ventured to a land unfamiliar to me like the conquistadors of old, in search of this opportunity and I have proven that I am not the kind of man to throw it all away. Every time something bigger than myself has been placed before me, I have surpassed all expectations. Be it the battle of a fallen Las Vegas, a ship filled with carnage for the sake of a rich magician, or an over grown bearded idioto who wants to rip my throat out because my star's shining brighter than his Jack Daniels saturated one… Every battle and every challenge, I have taken BPW one step higher than Church and Blackwater combined… All of it brings me to here…
Blackwater and his title stands before me… He looks upon me as if I'm some El stupido meat puppet who is being controlled by Dukes and groomed for this moment… But what would he do if his Familia was being held against their will? What would he do if his saving grace, the woman who gave him a purpose other than being a weapon for hire, was grabbed up in the middle of the night, dragged to the middle of nowhere, and forced to stay in the dark not having any idea what her loved one was being put through to keep her captures at bay? Just as his amigo, Church did before me… We play ball because that is the game Dukes is the best at… He knows what drives all of his so-called talent and he is the one holding the reins… He wants every person to rip each other's throats out for the enjoyment of the rich and the elite on a boat in the middle of the ocean? We all comply… Blackwater himself has learned what it means to get caught up in his games…
He color coated it as a mission to save Church by ridding him of the BPW title… Perro, my cousin once spray painted a rusty hatchback, but it was still a rusty piece of shit hatchback… Blackwater believes himself to be a savior of the Black Pyramid, but I'm not one to bow to a man who won't show his cards. I've made no doubts about my intentions when I ventured to Black Pyramid and even after everything my familia has been put through… I'm still on this path to my El Dorado… Blackwater may be a soldier of fortune, but he's never crossed swords, mono y mono, with a true Mayan legacy… Just as chief El Dorado before me, I will bathe myself in gold as I stand amongst mi familia and mi people as their guerrero campeón… A warrior… A Golden Idolo chosen to take the Pyramid and to fulfill my destiny.
My mija as I said before… My Izzy, she's the driving force for me and this journey that I am on… I can hear her tell me she believes in me, every time I step between the ropes… Her faith and hope gives me the rush to propel me to the next level of my very being… Just when my opponents think I'm done, I push beyond my very own limits."
Mija's voice returns to me and I'm swept away again.
"Popi, what was Grand popi like?"
"Mi popi was strong and stubborn…"
Mija rubs her eyes, sweeping away the sleep.
"Why was he stubborn?"
I shrug instinctively, not sure how to say he was a stubborn perro who worked for pennies in the States and allowed our family legacy to be buried beneath years of curtain jerking.
"He was set in his ways, mija, and he stayed when he should've just come home… His stubbornness kept him in the States clawing his way to nothing but a grave… That's the sad truth, mija and I can't spin that any other way."
I watch as either confusion who realization hits Izzy.
"Oh… Is that what you're going to do?"
A dagger right in my gut…
"Mija, I'm strong, but I'm not as stubborn as mi popi… I set my mind to it and I don't stop until I make it a reality, right?"
Izzy slowly nods, a few tears building in the corners of her eyes.
"I promise little one, your popi is going to be a champion and he's going to revive our family name while doing it."
Izzy looks up at me, her puppy dog eyes pulling at my heart strings.
"You promise, popi?"
"Am I the Golden Idolo, mija?"
Izzy nods excitedly.
"Then I promise whole heartedly."
Back in my hotel, the promise hangs over me as I stare dazed at my phone.
"This promise cannot be broken and I will do everything in my power to keep that from happening… Do you understand that, Blackwater? There's a huge difference between desperation and determination… My familia… My legacy… and my promise to my Izzy is what drives me…"
I tap on the screen of the phone as if poking at Blackwater himself.
"We know what drives you, Blackwater… You wanted to save your friend, Church from Dukes's evil hands… You wanted to 'save' him by ripping the Black Pyramid title off of him… You wanted your gringa to know how much she truly means to you… Now what? You want to stop a hard working father from keeping a promise to his daughter?"
I chuckle softly.
"Is that the kind of hombre you are, Blackwater?"
I shrug.
"I suppose that's the difference between us… My calling is higher than myself and with my familia pulling for me, you're going to find yourself in a losing situation… Your excuse is going to instantly point fingers to Dukes, I'm afraid, because you see me as a pet project of his… But my road to El Dorado is not linked to THAT man… I am DESTINED to become a guerrero campeón… A warrior champion who will be bathed in gold like my ancestors…"
I nod to the phone, a cocky smile resting on my face.
"We will do battle, Blackwater and the strongest of us will walk away the true champion of Black Pyramid Wrestling… Bring your best, because that is all I have left to give…"
I tighten my right fist and I hold it to the phone.
"My promise to mija will NOT BE BROKEN, gringo! My destiny WILL BE FULFILLED ON MI ROAD TO EL DORADO!"
I slowly nod, that cocky smile still shining true.
"Viva la Golden Idolo… Viva la Guerrero Campeón…"
Izzy's eyes stare up at me and I melt instantly, feeling all her little hope run through me.
"Heh, that's always the dream, mija… One day, your popi will venture off into the States like mi Padre and I will do what he never did… I will show those gringos what a true Golden Idolo is made of…"
"I believe in you, popi…"
A smile flashes across my lips.
"Thank you, mija…"
Fast forward to now, I'm sitting in a cheap ran down hotel room in Cambodia just before Christmas and the only present I want is mi familia… Mija standing before me, telling me she believes I'll be a champion… I'd trade this title opportunity and this Golden pendant… Whatever it takes to have everything back that's been ripped away…
"Mija, I'm going to continue to battle for you… Dukes hasn't any idea of what I'm truly capable of and he will not hold me back from my destiny… Neither will Blackwater..."
I set up my phone on the metal desk in front of me, my golden pendant sitting next to it, my left index finger tracing its outline before I turn my gaze to the phone.
"El Dorado, the lost city of Gold, right? But in this story… My story, it is about MY own path to the gold and the recognition my familia rightfully deserves… I've ventured to a land unfamiliar to me like the conquistadors of old, in search of this opportunity and I have proven that I am not the kind of man to throw it all away. Every time something bigger than myself has been placed before me, I have surpassed all expectations. Be it the battle of a fallen Las Vegas, a ship filled with carnage for the sake of a rich magician, or an over grown bearded idioto who wants to rip my throat out because my star's shining brighter than his Jack Daniels saturated one… Every battle and every challenge, I have taken BPW one step higher than Church and Blackwater combined… All of it brings me to here…
Blackwater and his title stands before me… He looks upon me as if I'm some El stupido meat puppet who is being controlled by Dukes and groomed for this moment… But what would he do if his Familia was being held against their will? What would he do if his saving grace, the woman who gave him a purpose other than being a weapon for hire, was grabbed up in the middle of the night, dragged to the middle of nowhere, and forced to stay in the dark not having any idea what her loved one was being put through to keep her captures at bay? Just as his amigo, Church did before me… We play ball because that is the game Dukes is the best at… He knows what drives all of his so-called talent and he is the one holding the reins… He wants every person to rip each other's throats out for the enjoyment of the rich and the elite on a boat in the middle of the ocean? We all comply… Blackwater himself has learned what it means to get caught up in his games…
He color coated it as a mission to save Church by ridding him of the BPW title… Perro, my cousin once spray painted a rusty hatchback, but it was still a rusty piece of shit hatchback… Blackwater believes himself to be a savior of the Black Pyramid, but I'm not one to bow to a man who won't show his cards. I've made no doubts about my intentions when I ventured to Black Pyramid and even after everything my familia has been put through… I'm still on this path to my El Dorado… Blackwater may be a soldier of fortune, but he's never crossed swords, mono y mono, with a true Mayan legacy… Just as chief El Dorado before me, I will bathe myself in gold as I stand amongst mi familia and mi people as their guerrero campeón… A warrior… A Golden Idolo chosen to take the Pyramid and to fulfill my destiny.
My mija as I said before… My Izzy, she's the driving force for me and this journey that I am on… I can hear her tell me she believes in me, every time I step between the ropes… Her faith and hope gives me the rush to propel me to the next level of my very being… Just when my opponents think I'm done, I push beyond my very own limits."
Mija's voice returns to me and I'm swept away again.
"Popi, what was Grand popi like?"
"Mi popi was strong and stubborn…"
Mija rubs her eyes, sweeping away the sleep.
"Why was he stubborn?"
I shrug instinctively, not sure how to say he was a stubborn perro who worked for pennies in the States and allowed our family legacy to be buried beneath years of curtain jerking.
"He was set in his ways, mija, and he stayed when he should've just come home… His stubbornness kept him in the States clawing his way to nothing but a grave… That's the sad truth, mija and I can't spin that any other way."
I watch as either confusion who realization hits Izzy.
"Oh… Is that what you're going to do?"
A dagger right in my gut…
"Mija, I'm strong, but I'm not as stubborn as mi popi… I set my mind to it and I don't stop until I make it a reality, right?"
Izzy slowly nods, a few tears building in the corners of her eyes.
"I promise little one, your popi is going to be a champion and he's going to revive our family name while doing it."
Izzy looks up at me, her puppy dog eyes pulling at my heart strings.
"You promise, popi?"
"Am I the Golden Idolo, mija?"
Izzy nods excitedly.
"Then I promise whole heartedly."
Back in my hotel, the promise hangs over me as I stare dazed at my phone.
"This promise cannot be broken and I will do everything in my power to keep that from happening… Do you understand that, Blackwater? There's a huge difference between desperation and determination… My familia… My legacy… and my promise to my Izzy is what drives me…"
I tap on the screen of the phone as if poking at Blackwater himself.
"We know what drives you, Blackwater… You wanted to save your friend, Church from Dukes's evil hands… You wanted to 'save' him by ripping the Black Pyramid title off of him… You wanted your gringa to know how much she truly means to you… Now what? You want to stop a hard working father from keeping a promise to his daughter?"
I chuckle softly.
"Is that the kind of hombre you are, Blackwater?"
I shrug.
"I suppose that's the difference between us… My calling is higher than myself and with my familia pulling for me, you're going to find yourself in a losing situation… Your excuse is going to instantly point fingers to Dukes, I'm afraid, because you see me as a pet project of his… But my road to El Dorado is not linked to THAT man… I am DESTINED to become a guerrero campeón… A warrior champion who will be bathed in gold like my ancestors…"
I nod to the phone, a cocky smile resting on my face.
"We will do battle, Blackwater and the strongest of us will walk away the true champion of Black Pyramid Wrestling… Bring your best, because that is all I have left to give…"
I tighten my right fist and I hold it to the phone.
"My promise to mija will NOT BE BROKEN, gringo! My destiny WILL BE FULFILLED ON MI ROAD TO EL DORADO!"
I slowly nod, that cocky smile still shining true.
"Viva la Golden Idolo… Viva la Guerrero Campeón…"