"Second Chances." — Clash For The Cup.

“You gotta ask yourself if this is really worth the hassle, Sky.”

There she was, standing at the top of the world, with nothing to worry about.

“I don’t want you to be rushing into something that you clearly aren’t ready for, you know?”

Though the times were clearly different for Skylar, having finally moved to the states after her recent wrestling excursion from Japan and finding a home within the proclaimed ‘city that never sleeps’, and knowing that the open opportunities were clearly endless for her. There were companies jumping at the opportunity to sign someone like Skylar Ramsey, seeing that she’s a trained professional for seven long years with zero experience within a major promotion inside of any continent, and hoping to be the first that could grasp onto the young hopeful. It was that simple, she had all of the options within her grasp, but the decision on the perfect first choice needed to be made.

“Are you even listening, Sky?”

That’s when it hit her.

“Skylar…”

She wasn’t ready for the big leagues.

“Huh?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. Like I said, I was just soaking in the view from here.”

Her response sounded quite casual but soon she found herself becoming lost within the view again, looking down at the streets of New York City and seeing all of the bright lights within the major city. A large smile began to grow along her face as she continued to look down from the view of her apartment window.

“This is just how I would have imagined it as a child, Cass.”

She wasn’t prepared to make that next step into her career, spending seven years going off of sparring contests and excelling classes within various dojos around the world, she was a true natural born killer at sight. Transitioning from sparring contests into true fights would have been tough, but with the upbringing that Skylar had gone through to get to where she is? She’s been preparing for fights like these, she’s been preparing to brawl with another ‘competitor’ whether it’ll be a man or even a woman. But even then? That’s when she’s in the zone, when she’s preparing to snap the neck off of anyone she greets to be humbled, right now however? It’s very much different. This was her moment to let everything rain down onto her, the childhood dreams of living within the heart of New York City was allowing Skylar to become a child again, letting her past dreams become present memories.

“This wasn’t how I dreamt it to be but now? I’m glad this was the road I took to being here, I really wouldn’t change it for the world either, not having to be stuck in some shit hole town near Essex and actually having to live a dream within New York City. Life has been pretty amazing, don’t you think?”

A sigh soon came from Skylar, soon turning her head to look towards Cass.

“It’s not going to be the same as before, Cass. Gotta have faith, remember?”

“Yet faith kept biting you on the ass for seven years, Sky.”

Skylar shook her head, trying to ignore Cass’ comment, but it didn't work out in the end.

“...protective?”

She shakes her head in confusion before hearing a deep breath from Cass.

“Sky, how long have I known you for? Since pre-school? I’ve watched you get absolutely beaten the fuck up for nothing by some of those girls because of how you looked, I watched you run down a dark path of insecurity until you decided you wanted to put up a fight and learn how to defend yourself. It took you seven years and we’re about… seven years too late to fight those who rammed your head into the lockers of college for months on end.”

“But I want to make sure that what you’re doing is the right thing. I've been there for you when you finally decided to do all of this, and I paid for most of your flights from country to country. I’m going to continue to be there for you wherever you sign the contract. No matter what, I promise.”

The kind words from Cass brought a warm feeling into the heart of Skylar, it’s a feeling she’s not felt in a very long time, not since she left home over five years ago and had to leave everything behind. Skylar couldn’t help but to bring her right arm around the head of Cass to bring her in closer to her own chest, giving her best friend a large emotional hug.

It hurted to look at herself in the mirror some nights.

It was bad enough to have a rough showing in your first match, leaving a bad first impression on arrival, but to be on the wrong side of history once again and come out feeling in a worse state than the first match? That hurted Skylar--and it was a deep feeling of emotion. As the night passed and the sun rose within the city of Dallas, all she could feel was a weak stomach, still feeling nauseated from the fact that she let herself - and others - down the previous night. As she sat up in her bed and looked out the window to see the skyline of what was Dallas, she couldn’t help but to take notice of her phone vibrating on the bedroom dresser.

In her mind, she didn’t feel like picking up the phone - no matter who it would’ve been on the other end of the phone - and all she could ever think about was just keeping herself confined to the four walls of the hotel room she was in. The phone continued to vibrate, in her head it seemed like every second made the vibrations become more violent -- and then, it stopped.

She waited.

And she waited.

And she waited some more.

But a gut instinct in her made her reach for the phone, picking it up and looking down onto the screen, seeing the seven missed calls that came from Cassidy. The question soon was asked in her mind, what could she have wanted and what was that important? To see that many missed calls on her phone, it must have been something alarming. It must have been something that was concerning her. But all there was? It was just a broken down Skylar Ramsey. A beaten and bruised - both mentally and physically - Skylar Ramsey that has lost her hope. Lost her chances. Feels that all of the time and effort that was put into becoming who she was today?

Gone, in a flash.

Those losses hurt. The feeling of being a failure hurted. And walking into any other match afterward as a failure seemed like too much pressure. The seven years that she put so much time and effort into becoming one of the best wrestlers in the world to have ever graced the ring seemed like it had gone down the drain with a click of someone’s fingers.

How much more could she take?

How much more could she handle?

How much more could she keep on wondering?

Waiting for an answer to just appear out of thin air-

That’s when the phone rang. One more time. Of course, there was nobody else it could have been but Cassidy. It was just like how it was beforehand, she watched as the call looked to just end without even answering. But- she kept her eye on it. Skylar seemed hesitant. Her thumb hovering over the answer button on her screen. In her mind, she expected Cassidy to be screaming down the phone’s speaker and complaining about whatever she might have been calling her for. It left her constantly on edge. It made her hesitant. But she broke, swiping up and answering the call before it could end again.

There was silence.

Skylar gulped her emotions back down.

And then, her first bit of speech was spoken.

“Jesus Christ, Sky. I don’t think you understand how happy I am to hear your voice.”

Skylar was left in a moment of silence, but she soon chuckled to herself.

That’s when she interrupted.

And the words that came from Cassidy’s lips were the most heartbreaking words that Skylar has ever had to experience in the almost twenty-seven years that she has been living and breathing on this earth.

“Skylar… your mother passed away last night. It was a sudden heart attack, you need to come home as soon as you can. I’m so sorry.”

All of those bottled up emotions were slowly beginning to break her from the inside. Tears began to fall down her face as she soon curled up into a ball, as the conversation continued between her and Cassidy - the latter trying her best to soothe her friend in such a horrible time whilst being thousands of miles apart - and it was in that moment that Skylar seemed to have lost everything.

At that moment, those string of losses were a distant memory. All of those years of putting in the work seemed to have been forgotten. All of the hope that she once had to become one of the best of the best that there ever has been was soon a faded reality.

Everything became a blur to Skylar Ramsey.

And this might have been her sudden curtain call.

I always believed in a second chance for anyone.

I always believed that anyone who can stand back up after taking a few early knocks is able to be given a second chance to redeem themselves, they are given the chance to rebuild themselves back up and find something in themselves that can help them down the road. After all, we’ve all been given a second chance at some point in our lives, haven’t we? We’ve all been given a second chance to redeem ourselves and to rebuild ourselves to become something more. To become something different. To make sure that we come in with a different approach than before and to make sure that what happens when that next approach is made? We do not make the same mistakes as before. That - in itself - is a priority.

As I am sure you are all aware - judging by the fact that you are (hopefully) reading the website that you are on right now and reading the name of who the author of this post is - I am Skylar Ramsey.

Now, I won’t bore you with the dark and deep background that some of you - or mainly all of you - are very much accustomed to giving out at first and hoping that people can understand your story and give their heartfelt reaction to your sob stories and give you sympathy. I’m nothing like that, I’ve never been graced with the horrible backstory or the troubled youthful past. I don’t have the inexperiences of my past becoming my motivation to thrive, to live, and to survive in this sport. When I first realised my potential to become a fighter? It was when I began to fight for my own battles and I began to bare knuckle box anyone when I was seventeen or eighteen. And always having that thriving passion for the sport of professional wrestling - much like anyone else has had in their time - it made me quickly realise what kind of power I could easily possess.

I spent seven years of my life, between then and now, to put myself in the position that I am in right now. And at first, I thought I had it all together, I thought I had that potential still seeping through my veins - through my body, from head to fucking toe - but look where that got me and look at me now. I ‘wrestled’ someone like Quid to a draw. I fought for Team Caden two weeks later and couldn’t help my team out in securing the victory. And since then, I struggled with my own demons. I felt like I let myself go a little -- and in a time like this, and in an industry like this -- we cannot allow that to happen at any point, we cannot allow that to be seen.

Which is why I took the time to sit back and to reconsider. I didn’t sit back and recollect the losses that I have taken, because in my own right, I still did what I was meant to be doing and that was to fight. I fought to the very end of what I could accomplish on those nights. But still, I took the time to reconsider. Some would have pushed on like nothing had ever happened. Some would have continued to fail over and over again, and that is what I see in someone like Kayla. In this constant state of affairs that always seems to end up on the wrong side of things, always seemingly put on the wrong side of anything really, and considering how much I have been able to watch you, Kayla?

You - quite clearly - pose no threat to me.

You might take that as a knock upon yourself but you take a very long, hard look in the mirror and you can tell me exactly what I see - and what everyone else sees in that mirror - and that is just a next DIANA, a next Rapture, a next John Blade, or maybe even Latoya Hixx. Much like those names I have listed off, all you are here to do is just stand there and take the beating. Take the losses and let someone shine for a bit as they begin their climb up the ranks. And that’s all you will ever be in this company and in this industry, a shell of what you hoped to have really been and the puppet for everyone to beat down and abuse like a child’s first toy.

Wouldn’t you say that I am somewhat right, Kayla? Wouldn’t you be able to tell me that I could be on the right track in what I might be bringing up? Wouldn’t you be able to tell me what I might have wrong and what I might be correct in because, I am all ears in what needs to be spoken and worded so everyone else can understand what I see with my own eyes.

Whether it’s by means of striking you down with a deadly kick, dropping you right down onto your neck with pinpoint precision on landing, or even by forcing you through intense pain and torture with a submission? The results are going to end the same as they have been foretold by yours truly. A win in the column. A second chance at what it takes.

A revival of what it means to be Skylar Ramsey.