Post by Mandii Rider on Jun 29, 2023 16:40:26 GMT -5
OOC: Continued off outcastchampwrestlin.proboards.com/thread/68/family-secrets-repost-ocw?page=1&scrollTo=90
September 29th, 1985
Unknown location
Blood curdling screams echoed down the hall of the maternity ward. Encouragement was only met with the words "I can't". A scared teen laid in the bed pushing with all her might, primal growls escaping her lips like caged lions finally able to leave their confinements. Tears streamed down her face, she was scared, she was alone. She had once been the light of the family, the golden child to her parents, the youngest sibling of three with the brightest future ahead. However, in an unknown chain of events she lost her light and her family turned their backs on that poor unfortunate sixteen year old girl. Now, she was bringing a daughter of her own into this dimmed world.
A baby's cries allowed the mother to fall back into the white sheets now stained with blood, an exhaled sigh leaving the smile on her lips. She looked up at the ceiling, relief finally washing over her, it was over. As her child was placed on her chest she felt a wave of emotion. How could she care for this small child when she had nowhere to go and no one to help her? She wasn't a fit mother, she knew that, it's why her plan was to use the safe haven law and leave her baby there at the hospital. Another family would take care of her, have the ability to give her more, but she couldn't bring herself to surrender that small baby. She couldn't abandon her. So, she didn't. She looked down at her baby girl with a smile as the nurse who just aided her in this life changing event asked one simple question, "What will you name her?"
"Mandii, her name is Mandii Karcea Rider."
"Did your mother tell you about your birth?"
"No, in fact, this isn't about my birth. It's hers."
"Shhhhh"
They were both discharged a few days later, perfectly healthy. The sixteen year old did everything she could in order to provide for her daughter. She worked two jobs until she could afford housing. She saved what little she could and managed a car. She made friends who helped her with baby items as Mandii grew up. For all intents and purposes, she was the picture perfect single mother. However, even the best of mothers make mistakes.
Mandii grew older and her mother tried everything she could to make her life one worth living. She hid the struggles, the pain, and replaced both with loving memories. She took Mandii to school, extracurricular activities, she did everything right. However, their lives changed when Mandii met a boy in her class, Jason Rider. She told her mother about the boy and how they shared a last name. Like kids do, she came up with an innocent story on how they were married because they had the same last name, a story that made her mothers blood run cold.
"So Mandii, this other Mandii, she knew your brother?"
“Yes. Though, I don’t think he remembered her.
If he did he probably would have questioned why- never mind.”
If he did he probably would have questioned why- never mind.”
“No, continue. I’m struggling to-”
"How any of this matters, I know,
but if you're going to help me you need to know who
she was because without her I probably wouldn't be here."
but if you're going to help me you need to know who
she was because without her I probably wouldn't be here."
Mandii's mother knew the boy, the last name, the family he came from because it was her family. Something about Mandii's stories from school caused something to click in the woman's brain and she knew what she needed to do. She knew the family secrets because she watched them unfold. She knew the abuse of her parents as well as that of her older sister. She knew the lies they told...And now they knew their dirtiest little secret was still out there in the world. He would know his youngest daughter and their abomination of a child was still out there.
"You know how they say that girls will date and marry men who remind them of their father?
I did that and so did my mother.
I found out my uncle, Jeremy's dad, watched what was happening when he lived with his family
and decided to be nothing like his father. Sadly, the woman in my family seem to slip through the cracks."
"But you didn't. You broke that cycle by not falling victim to the same mentality as the other women in your family."
"But I did. I did when I married Marcus."
"No different..."
The two vanished without a trace. She left no notice at work that she would be leaving and the school would send social services to their last residence to no avail. Mandii and her mother were gone but not before leaving behind something for insurance. She left a large orange envelope with her brother, in it were important documents, Mandii's documents.
"You see, I can't tell you my story because it really isn't mine...
It's hers. My story ended when they found those bodies in my home."
"Are you saying that your name isn't Mandii Rider?"
"I'm saying there is a lot of power in a name, especially when you take someone else's.
That's why woman change their last names when they marry,
it's a transfer of power from father to husband."
"Is that why you chose not to take Marcus's name when you married him? You didn't want to give him the power?"
"Power...Weakness"
"I think I'm done talking for today..."
What do you do when you realize you've never known the person you are? When the world you've created isn't even yours. I've been living a lie all for a ghost. I needed documents, real ones, in order to make the lie that I died seem real. I had to rewire the person I was becoming into the person I had to become to keep the family lie buried. Mandii Rider was my cousin, she was my savior without even knowing it and her mother, my aunt, she was my protector. The last thirty years of my life have been me pretending to be Mandii and now I'm not sure who I actually am.
I sat on my hotel bed, the room around me dark and the only light streaming from the bathroom. I'd fallen apart before, many times in fact, but each time I had Jason there to catch me. Now that he's gone I could feel myself spirling. I was always Jason's conscious even if he didn't always listen to me and to the outside world he was the problem, he was the one with the issues. Behind the scenes he was actually keeping me together, protecting me the same way he had when we were kids. Without him here I wanted to crack, I wanted to know what was underneath the exterior armor I wore to keep the world out. I'm tired of being her, I want to see who I could've been...Who would I have been if I didn't have to be strong...If I didn't always have to be right...If I didn't have to be good...
I glanced down at my phone, a warmness spreading over my body. I can't live my life for a ghost anymore. I can't always do what I know is right. I'm tired. "Room 236." My phone screen lit up my face as I let out a sigh.
I need a release.
I slid off the bed and made my way to the bathroom. After a quick shower I stepped out in nothing but a robe, my hair hanging over my face in wet strains. Before I could walk back to the bed a knock at the door echoed from across the room. I made my way to the door and unlocked it, opening it slowly. On the other side stood Chris Chaos, dressed down in jeans and a t-shirt. I took him by the hand leading him into the room and closing the door behind us. After practically pushing him into a seated position on the bed I let the robe drop.
I leaned on the railing of my hotel balcony as the wind blew the white curtains covering the door and large window looking into my room. The over saturated lighting from my phone camera casted a shadow on half of my body showing only a sheet covering me and a partial of my face.
"I used to love ladder matches. The rush of being so high in the air and the possibility of falling at any moment looming over your head was intoxicating. Adrenaline runs these types of matches and while some people thrive in an environment that causes their heart to race others don't. I'm not going to pretend I know Axis well enough to know how he'll hold up against that adrenaline or even how he holds up against the pressure of a high intensity match, what I will speak on is my own experiences."
"Matches that cause your blood to pump and the air in your lungs to get caught are my type of matches. High risk matches like ring of fire or even ladder matches are what I started my career on years ago. Speaking of experiences and years, I have both of those on you. I know the argument of "you're too old, time to retire before you hurt yourself and blah blah blah" like the back of my hand. I've even used the cliché that once you've reached a certain age you offer nothing to wrestling. However, what I've learned after years of being in this business is that as long as you take care of yourself, know your limits, and realize that instead of working harder you should work smarter you can have a long career."
"You know what else aids in a long career in this business? Focus. If you really want to make something of your career in the ring you have to focus on the desire and not let other things get in your way. For example, my feud, well more like one sided feud, with Jenny Myst has held me back for a few years. Unable to win on her own we were pitted against each other every chance possible because the underdog story was what drew people in. I won a championship off her that was, in the end, useless and ended up being an overall joke. Although I did enjoy the banter between us and watching Jenny get better each week trying to beat me it was also a boring patch in my career. I had no other championship opportunities, the blood pumping matches weren't coming my way, and in the end Jenny did what she set out to do; hold me back. So, instead of playing on the merry go around again with her I decided to team up with her."
Sarcastically I smirk and laugh under my breath.
"Story has it you had something hold you back in the past, a horse. Look, I don't usually judge but for someone who's whole goal was to win a world championship it's pretty sad that a horse deterred you from that dream. You can fight as hard as possible in the ring but if your head is elsewhere, like on the health of a horse, you're going to have a hard time winning anything. Word of advice, leave your problems outside of the ring because inside of the ring they become hindrances, distractions. Besides, busting your ass in the ring doesn't seem to be good enough anymore. You can bring your A game every week and still end up at the bottom of the barrel for one reason or another. In fact, you can fight as hard as humanly possible and still come out the loser in a match if you don't watch your opponent closely enough. My advice Axis, instead of being the try hard guy do whatever you have to in order to reach your goal because if you don't play dirty sometimes or focus solely on fighting as hard as you can you aren't going to go anywhere in this business."
"At Revival one person is walking out with a championship that could be the golden tick to any other championship. Seeing the other possible competitors I have to say I like my chances of winning the Wonka Factory. But first, I have to lead Bucky the horse boy into the light."
