Chapter Eight – Shadows Multiply
"Every victory bleeds into the next battle."
Backstage – Before the Bell
The locker room smelled like sweat and tape, heavy with silence.
Titan sat hunched forward, his knee wrapped in fresh gauze, beads of sweat already trailing down his temple before the night even began. He clenched his fists again and again, knuckles whitening.
Lilith leaned against the lockers, her crimson lips curling into a smirk. "Five matches. Twice the war. Twice the pain. I do hope you're all prepared to bleed beautifully."
Jingles tried to juggle three cracked water bottles, failing miserably. His painted grin was smeared, his eyes darting nervously to the curtain. Blob burbled beside him, anxious vibrations rippling through its gooey frame.
Revenant Knight stood apart, helm tilted, unmoving. A shadow within the shadows. I couldn't tell if he was brooding or calculating. Maybe both.
The System flickered before my eyes:
[Faction Wars Escalation Activated]
Tonight: 5 Matches Scheduled]
Warning: Eternal Wrestling Reinforcements Detected]
Victory Condition: 3 Wins]
Penalty for Failure: Severe Fan Loss / Loyalty Breaks]
I pulled my mask into place. My heart thumped so loud I wondered if the whole roster could hear it.
We survived last week. But survival tonight… that's another war entirely.
Opening Promo – Lady Rose
The Garden roared as crimson smoke rose around me. My boots hit the ramp heavy, each step carrying the weight of a thousand doubts. My mask hid the crack across my cheekbone from last week's brawl, but I still felt it, throbbing.
"Last week," I said, raising the mic, "we bled, but we bloomed. Tonight, Eternal Wrestling sends more shadows. Let them come. Every thorn draws blood—and this Garden has plenty."
The crowd erupted into chants.
"ROSE! ROSE! ROSE!"
Then static consumed the titantron. The Shadow Leader's masked face stared out. "Roses wilt. Shadows consume. Tonight, we don't fight—we take."
The lights snapped out.
When they returned, three masked Envoys circled me in the ring.
The bell rang.
Match One – Lady Rose vs. Triple Envoys
The first kick caught me in the ribs, folding me like paper. The second Envoy slammed me back-first into the turnbuckle. The third cracked a steel chair across my spine.
The air left my lungs in a hiss. My vision blurred.
I staggered forward, sweat dripping down my temple, mingling with blood from a split lip. One Envoy sneered beneath his mask, eyes cold, merciless.
I lashed out—spinning cutter! One Envoy's head snapped against the canvas. The crowd erupted.
But pain clawed at me. My arms trembled as I tried to rise. The other two swarmed me, fists pounding, boots crushing.
The crowd screamed for me to rise, voices crashing like waves.
"ROSE! ROSE! ROSE!"
I bit down hard on my lip. Blood filled my mouth. With a gasp, I staggered to my feet, kissing my fingertips before striking with Kiss of Thorns.
One Envoy down.
But the third was faster. He hooked my arms, lifted, and slammed me into the mat so hard the world went black for half a second.
One. Two. Three.
The bell clanged.
The Garden gasped.
Winners: Shadow Envoys (Eternal leads 1–0)
Fan Rating: A (Shock Value)
I rolled out, clutching my ribs, sweat dripping like rain. Titan caught me at ringside, jaw tight. "They're not here for wins—they're here to break us."
Match Two – Titan vs. Shadow Brute
Titan limped to the ring, knee heavily taped, sweat already matting his hair. The fans chanted his name like a prayer.
The Brute was massive, veins bulging across his arms, eyes wild under the mask. His breath steamed in the cold arena air.
The bell rang.
Titan roared, fists hammering, sweat flying from his brow with every strike. The Brute absorbed it, chest heaving, then slammed a forearm into Titan's jaw. Spit and sweat flew as Titan staggered.
His knee buckled on the next step. The Brute smelled blood, grinning, eyes narrowing.
Titan's face twisted with pain but he lifted the giant onto his shoulders anyway, veins in his neck bulging, sweat dripping down his temple. For one glorious moment the crowd believed—
Then his leg gave out.
The Brute crashed down on top of him.
One! Two! Three!
The crowd groaned as if stabbed themselves.
Winner: Shadow Brute (Eternal leads 2–0)
Fan Rating: B+ (Sympathy Heat)
Titan clutched his knee, sweat and tears mixing on his face. He didn't need to speak. His expression said it all: rage, shame, pain.
Match Three – Lilith vs. Shadow Siren
Lilith's entrance bathed the arena in crimson. Her smile was sharp as glass, but I saw the flicker in her eyes—a hunger.
The Siren was her mirror: dark feathers, voice echoing like a ghost's hymn.
They circled, eyes locked. The crowd hushed.
Every strike between them was intimate. Lilith whispered as she wrenched the Siren's arm, lips grazing her ear. The Siren clawed back, leaving red streaks across Lilith's pale skin.
Blood welled on Lilith's shoulder. She licked it with a smirk, eyes burning. "Mine now."
The Siren hissed, wrapping her throat with talon-like fingers. Lilith's face flushed, sweat glistening across her collarbone. She twisted free, rolled, and locked in Thorn's Kiss.
The Siren screamed, nails raking Lilith's flesh, but the smile never left her lips. The tap finally came.
Winner: Lilith (Garden trails 2–1)
Fan Rating: A (Dark Drama)
Lilith sauntered backstage, blood streaking her arm, sweat shining on her brow. She leaned close to me, breath hot. "You see? I bleed for you, Rose. Not for them."
Her eyes were fire. My stomach twisted.
Main Event – Lady Rose & Revenant Knight vs. Envoy Leader & Assassin
The Knight entered first, armor glistening with sweat already under the lights. His eyes behind the visor burned into me. "Prove yourself—or I leave." His voice was cold, emotionless.
The Envoy Leader strode in, movements deliberate, while the Assassin slithered beside him.
The bell.
Sweat flew instantly—every punch, every slam echoing through the arena. My ribs screamed with each strike, sweat dripping down my jaw, mat stained with blood.
The Knight clashed steel-on-steel with the Leader, their strikes ringing like thunder. His breath rasped in his helm, fists tightening. The Leader sneered, blood dripping from his nose, but his eyes stayed cold.
The Assassin caught me in a choke, his masked face inches from mine. His eyes burned with cruelty. My own sweat dripped onto his glove. My vision blurred.
The crowd screamed.
I summoned every ounce of fire left, kissed his cheek mid-choke, twisted—Kiss of Thorns.
Cover. My sweat dripped onto his chest as the ref's hand slammed.
One! Two! Three!
The Garden exploded.
Winners: Lady Rose & Revenant Knight (Series tied 2–2)
Fan Rating: A+ (High Drama)
I collapsed to my knees, sweat pooling beneath me, breath ragged. The Knight loomed over me, helm dripping red. "Not enough. Next week, the shadows take more."
The crowd chanted louder—"WE ARE THE GARDEN!"—but my heart was a storm.
Closing Segment
The System screamed into my skull:
[Faction Wars Result: Draw]
[Fan Count: +4,000]
[New Feature: Rival Recruitment – Eternal Wrestling may attempt to steal unstable allies]
The titantron lit again. The Envoy Leader's bloodied face grinned. "Next week, we don't just fight—we take."
The screen cut to black.
My fists tightened. Sweat dripped down into the cracks of my mask.
Then let them try.