The Many Faces

[Cory]

OOC: Had an absolute blast collaborating on this feud with Jayme. Legit the most fun I've had writing Natalya in years. Thanks so much!

EBWF.net Exclusive
Backstage at Warfare...

The crowd had just witnessed the Number One Contender to the Women's Championship, Liv Morgan, successfully goad Natalya into a match at WrestleMania 16. As the ring got set up for the main event of the show, Natalya was just leaving the ring. The camera followed the Women's Champion as she stormed up the ramp and threw the curtain aside, walking past gorilla. Natalya was weaving past people at a respectable clip, her Women's Championship belt slung over her shoulder. She stopped and grabbed a fistful of a backstage technician's shirt, who went wide eyed with terror.

Natalya: Where is he?!

Tech: Um, who are you looking--

Natalya: WHERE. IS. WES?

A shaking hand raised and pointed down the ways towards the production area.

Tech: I think he went--

Nattie let go of the frightened stagehand and stormed off in the direction that he suggested. The camera followed just behind her, keeping up with her speed. After traversing down towards the production table where the show was being directed. Wes looked up and saw her just in time to get an earful from the fiery blonde.

Natalya: Did you see what happened? Did you?!

Wes Ikeda: I did. I said camera three when I wanted a close up of your face. Yes.

She narrowed her eyes.

Natalya: Where were you?! 2Pawz was assaulted!

Wes Ikeda: Honey, I’ve told you 100 times not to travel with the cats. Listen...

He started to stand up.

Natalya: You know I can't help it. 2Pawz likes to meet the wrestlers! I didn't know you would be nowhere to be found! He was vulnerable and his daddy wasn't around to stop that terrorist from threatening me!

Wes Ikeda: First of all, I think I’ve been pretty clear about my passive role in living with cats. Second of all, you did a great job. Nothing happened. Liv wasn’t ever really going to hurt 2Pawz. He’s purr-fectly fine.

He groaned.

Wes Ikeda: No pun intended.

Natalya: Fine. Okay. Well, you're right. 2Pawz is alive and unharmed. So all you need to do is make sure this match doesn't happen, and we'll be fine.

He peered down at her for a moment.

Wes Ikeda: I’m...sorry? We’ll be...fine? Why would I do that?

Natalya: Because I CLEARLY was under duress! I agreed to that match because that filthy street urchin was threatening to turn my cat into an orange mess! I wasn't of sound mind!

Wes Ikeda: The woman who routinely takes cats on airplanes wasn’t of sound mind.

He lovingly reached out to put a hand on each bicep, holding her at arm’s length. She seemed to relax a little.

Wes Ikeda: You’re having. The match.

She looked up at him and growled under her breath.

Natalya: ...Fine. But when your gorgeous, 22 year old up-and-coming star has to retire due to what I do to her, remember I gave you a chance.

She wriggled out of his grasp and stormed off in the opposite direction.

Wes Ikeda: You’re the only girl for me, Nattie!

He laughed.

Wes Ikeda: Next time don’t promise the EBWF Universe a match. Go get ‘em tiger.

Wes chuckled to himself, and took his seat, putting his headset back on.  

The camera went back to following Nattie back to her locker room. Her furious foot falls reverberated through the hallway. She mumbled "unbelievable" as she headed down to her personal locker room. Opening the door, she stepped into her locker room and slammed the door shut. A cautious Renee Young appeared from off the screen and looked at the camera briefly before light rapping on the locker room door of the Women's Champion. The door opened and Natalya was coddling her precious feline, cooing and softly bobbing him up and down as if he were an infant. She shot Renee a look.

Natalya: What. Do you. Want?

Renee Young: Natalya, moments ago we watched as you finally agreed to face Liv Morgan at Wrestlemania for the EBWF Women's Championship. Not only did you agree to the match, you also acquiesced to a street fight. Now that you've had a few minutes to process, how are you feeling about this match?

Natalya rolled her eyes.

Natalya: I agreed to nothing. I was forced, under duress, to allow Liv Morgan to have her match. It's a travesty, Renee. I have never felt so embarrassed in my entire life.

Renee Young: I noticed you were speaking with Mr. Ikeda just moments ago. Can you tell us a little about what that conversation involved?

Natalya: That's none of your business, tiny. Suffice it to say, tragically this match is still happening, despite the illegal and shady tactics used for force my agreement. May I remind you that Liv Morgan not only destroyed a $48,000 car that I paid for with my hard earned money, but she KIDNAPPED my beautiful cat 2Pawz here?!

Nattie turned and gingerly placed 2Pawz on the ground and closed the door behind her, leaving 2Pawz in her locker room while she addressed Renee.

Natalya: Do you have any idea how stressed out 2Pawz gets when strangers handle him? Especially one as filthy as a girl from a trash state like New Jersey. Now he's going to need a bath, Renee. A BATH. 2Pawz HATES baths. Have you even given a cat a bath, Renee? Ever get through one from start to finish without a single scratch? Of course you haven't. For every scratch that I wind up with, I'm going to punch Liv Morgan in the face. It's the bare minimum of what she deserves for traumatizing my precious baby.

Renee blinked incredulously. She decided to change the subject quickly.

Renee Young: Are you concerned about the fact that the match is a street fight? Your wrestling skills are well documented, but it seems like this match type is a little out of your element.

Natalya: What kind of stupid question is that? Of course this match is out of my element. It's a street fight, Renee. I am wrestling royalty, I don't do "street fights". It's a crude, thuggish way to engage in a match with an opponent, so of COURSE that's the match that Liv Morgan wants. She doesn't want a one on one wrestling match with me, because she knows as well as I do that I would tap her out in five minutes. Inside those ropes, she doesn't have a chance against me; no one does. I am THE best wrestler in this entire company, male or female. Not a single person on the roster can touch me in the ring. So along comes this 22 year old, perky little blonde thing who thinks she can just skip down to the ring, throw her snapback at a fan, and coast her way to the EBWF Women's Championship. But no, I am not going to let that child get the satisfaction. If I have to demean myself to a lowly street fight in order to keep my EBWF Women's Championship, then that's what I'm going to have to do. Every dirty trick, every blunt object, every piece of furniture that crosses my path will have a Liv Morgan shaped face print in it when I'm done with the Camping World Stadium in Orlando. For a woman who is guilty of cat abuse, the punishment I dole out to her will be a slap on the wrist compared to what she deserves.

Renee Young: With all due respect Natalya, EBWF has a long standing tradition of the Royal Rumble winner going on to face the Champion at WrestleMania. This is something that has always been an understood fact.

Natalya: Don't you lecture me on tradition. Let me tell you a little about tradition. I am a member of the Hart wrestling dynasty, Renee. If anyone knows about tradition, it's me. I know that the Royal Rumble winner becomes the Number One Contender for WrestleMania. That's why I managed to get my contract amended with a clause that allows me to ensure flexibility in my title defenses. I did it to protect myself, in the long run. The tradition of Royal Rumble winners being able to get a shot at the championship at WrestleMania does not concern me. I'd sooner see wrestling "tradition" burned to the ground around me than allow it to be used to justify a match between myself and someone as unworthy as Liv Morgan.

Renee Young: You've said several times that Liv Morgan does not deserve a title match, or that she's unworthy. Can you really say that since she did defeat all other women on the roster to become the Royal Rumble winner? Isn't that the textbook definition of a Number One Contender?

Nattie turned and looked at Renee incredulously.

Natalya: That's your idea of worthy? Because she beat such mega stars as Brooke Tessmacher and Daizee Haze? Give me a break! If you win a game of chess but your opponent was a corpse, what did you really prove there? There wasn't any REAL competition in that Rumble, Renee. For pete's sake - Trish Stratus was the final entrant. What did they do, roll her carcass out to the ring and throw her underneath the bottom rope? No, no. Liv Morgan's victory at the Royal Rumble proved nothing. All it did was give that disrespectful little punk an ego boost that she can't back up in the ring. Now she thinks that she can galavant around here and disrespect the people that paved the way for her. I trained that girl, Renee. I gave her the framework to become a respectable Women's wrestler. What did she do with it? She STEPPED ON IT. She traded in wrestling skills for a fun little gimmick. Sure, she managed to win over a nice little section of the fanbase that eats it up whenever she opens her mouth and spews out that nonsense that she calls English. But guess what, Renee. The talking is done. No more Warfares to hide behind. No more sneaking into my locker room. No more vandalising my $60,000 Camaro.

Renee Young: I thought you said it cost--

Natalya: No more showmanship! All that's left is the match. All of that favor she has curried with the EBWF fans is going to blow up in her little face when she gets into the ring with the Queen. Is Liv Morgan worthy of being in the ring with me? No, Renee. She is not. This Sunday when she finally gets the match she's been scratching and clawing so hard to get, she's going to realize just how unworthy she is when the Queen of Harts beats her up all around the stadium and then breaks her, once and for all.

Renee Young: Nattie, you seem supremely confident about your chances in this match. Your contest with Liv Morgan will take place just before the main event at WrestleMania 16, and it will be for the--

Nattie put a hand up, slowly reaching out and taking the microphone from Renee Young.

Natalya: You can go.

Renee nodded and exited to the left, leaving the camera to center on Natalya. The supremely irritated women's champion managed to eke out a smile.

Natalya: Liv, I want you to listen to your Queen. For once, you need to pay attention to what your better has to say. You asked for this match. You pleaded for this match. You poked me, and you poked me, and you poked me. You threatened my beautiful baby 2Pawz, and you destroyed my $75,000 Camaro. After all this time, you finally got what you wanted. I hope you're happy. I hope you're really proud of yourself. I hope you're able to look at this day in ten years and smile at the accomplishment of getting me to agree to a street fight at WrestleMania 16. I'm sure that you'll be able to use that to get bookings at Wrestlecon for the next three or four years. That's where your resume stops, I'm afraid. This may not be the match that I want, but I'm damn sure going to make absolutely certain that I hold on to my women's championship. This is as much an opportunity for me as it is for you. This is my shot to shut the mouths of you and all of the vapid, idiotic girls that take up roster space in this company. It's MY time now. I will hold this championship as long as I want, and I'll be damned if I let you walk out with it. As a matter of fact, the only thing that you walk out with on Sunday is an oxygen mask and a neck brace.

She snarled and opened the door to her locker room, walking in and slamming the door behind her.

~~~~~

WrestleMania weekend in EBWF was a weekend with no parallel in the company. The long list of obligations that the average EBWF superstar had to attend was a crazy sight to behold. It was doubly so for a champion. As the Women's Champion, Nattie's entire week was booked solid with appearances, dinner events, philanthropy commitments, interviews, and autograph signings. From the moment she had arrived in Orlando on Wednesday, it was as if a giant hook appeared out of the sky and yanked her off the plane, pulling her into the litany of events that she needed to attend. Some of them as a "Diva", others as a Champion, some as a wife. Truth be told, her favorites were the ones that she attended as a Champion. Today was one of those days. It was Saturday, and after a few days of eating dinner with Wes in front of cameras, schmoozing network execs, and spending time with dancers, she was finally able to be amongst her fans at EBWF Access at the Orange County Convention Center. She had enjoyed a pleasant time signing autographs with her best friend, Trish Stratus. Despite their status as on-air rivals, she had no problem with a little fourth wall breaking as she and Trish took photos together with the fans who had waited hours upon hours to see them. She had signed what seemed to be thousands of pictures, title belts, and posters. After watching a few matches going on in the distance in the ring that was set up in the center of the convention center, she had an idea. Wish Trish's blessing, she left the autograph table for a brief period. Sneaking over towards the ring, she waited for two BCW developmental prospects to complete their match, and then snagged a microphone from the technicians managing the show. In a widely unexpected turn of events, "Closer" by Lacuna Coil blasted out of the speakers by the ring. A sea of people wandering the convention center descended on the ring the moment they heard the music. Nattie stepped into the ring, holding her EBWF Women's Championship over her shoulder.

Natalya: Cut. My. Music.

She looked out over the crowd in disgust as a wave of boos hit her, mixed in with a respectable amount of cheers from the hardcore fans in attendance.

Natalya: I've been sitting over there, signing autographs, putting my name on every action figure, title belt, t-shirt, and any other overpriced item that you people shell out your hard earned money for, when I came to what alcoholics call a moment of clarity.

She smirked almost imperceptibly. She had promised Edge she would get at least one Pulp Fiction reference in over the weekend.

Natalya: I realized the truth. Every single one of you out there, whether you're cheering for me or you want me to fail believe that without a shadow of a doubt, Liv Morgan is going to walk out as EBWF Women's Champion. I guess I've been delusional enough to think that any of you have had a single lick of sense in your head, but today it hit me clear as day.

She pointed towards the autograph table she previously occupied, where Trish was still striking up conversations with fans.

Natalya: I've had to sit there in that chair, next to Trish Stratus, and smile through my teeth as people tell me they're big fans, and they've enjoyed my run as champ. They talk as if I've only got 48 hours to hold this.

She raised up the Women's Championship belt, which garnered some cheers from the crowd. She nodded a little at the response.

Natalya: Oh yeah, cheer! Pay me the respect you think I want. But when you go back home and talk on Facebook, or discuss wrestling with your friends, or talk on Twitter, you all talk about me as a "transitional champion." Because Liv Morgan is 22 years old. She's cute, and perky, and talented. She's part of the youth movement in EBWF, and I'm part of the old guard that tells the young girls to get off my lawn. That's what you all think, right?

She sneered, ignoring the mixed response from the Access fans in attendance.

Natalya: Or maybe, you think because I'm married to Wes Ikeda that it's my job to ensure that an up-and-comer like Liv Morgan gets her shot to run with the ball. At the end of the day, the understanding is that at this stage in my career, it's my job to make sure that girls like Liv Morgan get over, right? I mean, let's face it: In ten years, I'm probably going to be retired from wrestling, and Liv Morgan will still be skipping down to the ring like an idiot and throwing her hat into the crowd.

Natalya started pointing at random fans that were ringside.

Natalya: You underestimate me. And YOU, you underestimate me. And you, the dork with the Jimmy Havoc t-shirt, you definitely underestimate me. ALL of you underestimate me. None of you have any idea what I have contributed to this company, even when I'm not out in front with this championship. Allow me to give you all a history lesson on the many faces of Natalya. For the last seven years, whether I have carried this championship, the Sky High Championship, or one of my many runs as a tag team champion, I have also had the weight of the EBWF Women's Division on my shoulders. I have spent my entire time here in EBWF making sure that the Women's Division remains respectable, and doesn't descend into a humiliating mess of pillow fights and bra and panties matches. It has been a constant struggle because the steady stream of talentless broads with more boobs than brains keeps flowing into the company, and I've been here to stamp them out by locking them into a Sharpshooter and showing them FIRST HAND just how painful it is to be an EBWF superstar.

A brief chant of "Thank you, Nattie!" started to gain steam. She snarled and spoke over it.

Natalya: You shouldn't just be thanking me. You should be getting on your knees and BOWING to me for all the things I have had to do for this company. Whether it was making sure that scummy has-been Lita didn't make it out of Wrestlemania 10 with the Women's Championship that I held, or propping up Trish Stratus so she could have her fun little nostalgia tour with the Women's Tag Team titles. I have selflessly, altruistically, and sometimes shamelessly stood up for the best parts of Women's Wrestling, only to have to lower myself to wrestling the best of a bad situation like Liv Morgan.

She got some boos from the crowd in attendance.

Natalya: Well, NOT. ANY. MORE. I'm done with it, do you hear me?! I'm done with ALL of it. You see this EBWF Women's Championship, y'all? Get a good look at it. Commit this belt to memory. The next time you see this Championship belt leave my hands is the day it is retired. I am done sacrificing my career to allow other women to step over me in line. I am done propping other people up. This is MY time. If Liv Morgan thinks I am going to sit here and allow her to earn her spotlight at my expense, she's got a painful, bloody, VERY violent awakening ahead of her at WrestleMania 16. I am going to go into that street fight with that bag of New Jersey trash and I am going to break her over, and over, and over again. I am going to make sure that any time she thinks of me, she shudders and can't sleep for hours. And when she finally does get to sleep, her nightmares will be all about me.

Her voice had escalated to an angry growl.

Natalya: For 7 years I have called myself the Iron Maiden of EBWF. For 7 years I have disgraced that name by showing mercy, and allowing other women to rise up. This Sunday night, I will EARN that name. I will earn the right to be called the true Iron Maiden, and the Queen of the EBWF Women's Division. And Liv, I know you're somewhere out there. The only way you're getting this championship is if you pry it from my cold. Dead. Hands.

Natalya slammed the microphone down which made an audible popping noise through the speakers that startled several people. Her music played and she stormed out of the ring to a loud applause from the audience that was able to witness her fiery promo. It was clear that the fans in attendance had bought into Natalya's new self-serving attitude. As she made her way back to the autograph table, she suppressed a smirk at a thought that popped into her head.

"Just wait, people. You ain't seen nothing yet."

[Jayme]

I loved reading this. The Wes Ikeda part with Nattie about the 22 year old up and coming star thing and Nattie being the only one for him, loved it haha. I cracked up every time the price of Natalya's car went up lmao. Anyways thanks for the fun man! You always write such a great Natalya!