Abbigail Dresden; Looking for a Change in Fortunes:
Team Valora Hotel room, Fort Worth, Texas
Valora sits on her bed, taking a drink of tequila. Abbigail watches her and shakes her head. “You sure you should be drinking?” Valora smirks. “Helps me heal.” Abbigail sighed and shook her head, standing up and pacing around the room. “Yeah.. and if you could trust me to do something other than find a new way to lose, you might still be healthy.”
Valora raised an eyebrow as did Samantha, also in the room. Samantha opened her mouth to reply but Valora cut her off. “What are you implying?” Abbigail stopped in mid-pace and spun on her heel, looking right at Valora. “I’m saying you stayed out there too long! You didn’t tag me in because you don’t trust me and it cost us the fucking match and now you’re injured, which might even affect your chances of holding that title and now I am expected to team with the man who will be trying to get your title!”
Valora stared at her protege for a long time. At times it looked like an angry retort or worse would be coming from the hotblooded latina but after a bit, she smirked and nodded her head. “Bout fuckin’ time.” Both Abbigail and Samantha blinked in confusion as they looked at Valora who shifted her position on the bed, grunting in pain. “You’re trying to analyze and breakdown a match and you want in. I don’t think I was out there too long.. But the last time we took those two on, Abishag nearly broke your back. Let’s be honest here kiddo.. I am..closer to the end of my career than you are. Abishag had his marching orders.. Injure one of us. Better me than you. I’m used to injuries and pain. You. You need to be in the ring, fighting. As far as tagging with Sato goes. You can trust him. The title fight is between him and me. Don’t worry about that. He won’t attack you or use you as a way to get to me.”
Abbigail sighs. “How do you know that?” Valora smirks. “Because, kid. I’ve fought in Japan more than once. Spent a lot of time there. I know Sato’s mindset. Honor is important. More important than anything else. There’s no honor in cheating to win. If Sato cheats and wins the title, it won’t mean anything to him… besides. He wants to beat me fair and square. Prove to everyone and himself that he was better than me on that night. One more thing.. Rule #1 about being champ, you’re gonna lose the belt eventually. Even my hero Ali lost the belt. Granted he lost it because it was taken from him due to political BS but he still lost it. I’ve got my niche. No one, not Mudcock, not any of them can take this from me. I’m the first ever Champ here. I’ve held the belt for a good long run. I’ve got a number of title defenses.. if Sato beats me for the belt, I’ll get it back. Or maybe Kronin will get a turn or maybe you’ll get a belt.”
Abbigail sighs. “I’d have to win a damn match first…”
Valora laughs. And Abbigail turns to face her. “What the fuck? You think my losing is funny?!” Valora takes a drink and nods. “Kid… when I started.. I couldn’t buy a win either. I think it was.. First 5 or 6 matches, maybe more that I lost. If you were expecting to walk into a ring and just start beating everyone bloody, than you haven’t been paying attention to my lessons and teaching and I’ve been wasting my fuckin’ time! You need in-ring time. You’ll learn, you’ll adjust. It’ll come. Settle the fuck down and focus. Now… you’re due to meet up with Sato.. do it. You two need to get on the same page.. Watch him, pay attention, learn what you can. Also. We’re in Texas.. We’re gonna get a much different welcome here than we have been. I got a friend here.. Well friend is a bit of a stretch.. She used to be a fighter.. Samatha was supposed to meet up with her, but she has a unexpected meeting with another ally of mine, Ravenmoon. I need you to meet up with her. Who knows? Maybe she can help you out too.”
Abbigail nods. “Alright… her name and what does she look like?” Valora smirks. “Dixie. Dixie Clement. I’m surprised Mudcock hasn’t heard about her, she’s his fuckin’ wet dream. She’ll be dressed much like the other rednecks in this fuckin’ piece of shit area. Cowboy hat.. Cowboy boots.. In her case, she wears a long brown duster.” Abbigail nods. “And.. what am I meeting her about?” Samantha chimes in here. “Officially, we’re looking to add her to the team.. Unofficially, she’s had a few jobs. Before she got into professional fighting, she was in law enforcement. We’re hoping she has some information for us on someone who has been an ally to Val and a big pain in her ass.”
Valora nods. “Dasha, is her name. If the Russians helped our Fascist in chief get into power.. She was one of the people who helped. I wanna talk to her and if we need to go up against Abishag again.. Well hopefully Dasha still has Boris with her.. Not that I think I can get either of those two in the ring again but.. I want information from that puta and I’m hopin’ Dixie will have a lead on her.”
Abbigail nodded and checked her watch. “Hopefully, our little meeting won’t be too long. I’m due to meet up with Sato soon.” She said before wrapping up her chat with her mentor and heading out. As she walked out of the hotel, she sighed. To say morale was low with her was an understatement. There was no other way to say it. Abbigail was a liability. She blamed herself for Valora’s injury. She had lost once before to Abishag’s team. She had lost to a fucking porn star for fuck’s sake! A woman who couldn’t talk about her opponents, just threw out a short porn video to get the horny men happy and thought that was good enough to advance her career! And she had beaten Abbigail! Valora had accepted some responsibility for that, saying she and Abbigail had underestimated their opponent. Abbigail didn’t think so. She was what she was. Abbigail took a risk and missed and that let Gabrielle take the momentum.. Momentum that allowed the woman who made a mockery out of what Valora and Abbigail were trying to accomplish win. And with that win, serious women fighters took a blow as the sex sells message won again. Abbigail had been kidnapped in one of the opening events of the fed, costing Valora a match as she tried to find her.
Anyway you looked at it, the conclusion was simple. Abbigail was a liability and she needed to go before she ended Valora’s career. The decision was made. She would fight this fight, but when her contract ran down.. She would go back home to Chicago and.. Go back to what she was doing before she met Valora. She sighed again and finished the walk around the block. She needed to clear her head and kill some time. Dixie would be in the hotel’s bar, she was told. She walked back into the hotel and made her way to the bar. Sure enough, there was Dixie. Blonde hair flowing out of a big cowboy hat. The brown duster that made her look like she was right out of either a episode of ‘Firefly’ or a Western movie. The woman was drinking bourbon, a somewhat odd choice, Abbigail thought, then again, the woman was born and raised in Texas so maybe not so odd. She walked up and looked at her. “Dixie Clement?”
The woman took a drink of her bourbon and glanced at Abbigail. “Sorry, hon.. I ain’t signin’ autographs at the moment.” Abbigail bristled a bit at that and cleared her throat. “You were supposed to have a meeting. Valora sent me.” Dixie turned and looked Abbigail up and down. “That a fact? Well sorry sugah but you can’t jus’ be expectin’ me to take your word for that, right?” Abbigail drummed her fingers on the bar and shrugged. “Well, let’s talk. If I wasn’t sent by Valora, I won’t know what the topic is which will be fairly obvious and you can shoot me for wasting your time. This is Texas, after all.. I assume you have at least 5 guns.”
Dixie smirked. “10 actually, sugah.. Girl can never have enough in this day and age.. But on me.. I only need my two trusty ones. But I accept your terms. You waste my time.. Imma shoot you.” Abbigail and Dixie went to one of the booths and sat down. Abbigail ordered herself a drink, just beer for the moment. Once they settled in, Dixie looked at her. “Well? I hope you ain’t plannin’ on wastin’ my time.. Would hate to have to put a bullet in you..” Abbigail nodded. “I’m sure I’d hate it too. Valora was hoping you’d be willing to work with her.” Dixie laughed and shook her head. “Two words for her, darlin’ Fuck. Off. I want nothin’ to do with her.” Abbigail sighed. “You agree with what’s going on? What McStrump and his ilk are doing? What they’re tryin’ to do?” Dixie took a long drink of her bourbon and shrugged. “Maybe I do. But even if I don’t, you’re missin’ the picture darlin’... There is a right way and a wrong to do things. Valora ain’t never cared about the right way… and there ain’t only two sides to this. No.. I don’t agree with McStrump. Yes, I see what he’s steerin’ us towards. But vigilante justice ain’t the way to go about changin’ things. When Valora gets up there and runs her mouth and beats an old man up, she does nothin’ but prove Mox news right.. Plus I dun work with assassins.” Abbigail narrows her eyes. “Valora used to be in law enforcement too.. Mexican Federal Police.” Dixie rolls her eyes. “They ain’t cops, sugah. They’re practically a military unit, whose sole purpose ain’t law enforcements.. It’s killin’ whoever the government tells them to kill.. And when they fuck up and kill innocent people, the government shrugs and says the dead people musta been helpin’ the cartels. There ain’t no part of the Mexican government that ain’t corrupt. Federales included. So that part of Valora’s resume just don’t impress me much. Try again, sugah.”
Abbigail sighs. “What makes you think she’s an assassin?” Dixie smirks. “I’ve worked in feds with her before.. When she wasn’t the lil’ angel she wants people to think she is now.. She’s a merc.. Plain and simple. Put enough money on the table and she’ll do whatever you want.. Also, I happen to know of a few bodies she’s created. I’m doin’ her enough favors by not arresting her right here and now.” Abbigail nods. “So… is that also a no on the info you were supposed to have for her?” Dixie raises an eyebrow. “Well there she lucks out. I happen to dislike them Russian bastards more than I dislike Valora. I did some diggin’... Russian consulate has some interesting additions.. New security personnel and a couple people added on in new roles.. I dunno what role they’re thinkin’ of havin’ Dasha play but Boris was added on as part of security.”
Abbigail raised an eyebrow. “Sorry. I’m new to the cloak and dagger stuff. How do you know it’s the same guy?” Dixie laughed out loud, shaking her head. “Ohh darlin’.. Val ain’t told you much about them has she? Answer me this.. How many men you know come from Russia?” Abbigail blinks. “Umm I’d guess about half of Russia’s population. Give or take.” Dixie smirks. “How many of those work for the government?” Abbigail shrugs. “About the same.. Military service is mandatory. Those that make it a living? I’d guess the number gets smaller, but still a good deal.” Dixie nods. “Now, how many of that pool do you think would be around 7 feet tall if not taller than 7 feet?” Abbigail thought for a moment and nodded. “Umm.. I’m guessing that detail shrinks our pool quite a bit.” Dixie nods. “Yeap.. I reckon it does at that.”
Abbigail pauses a moment and thinks.. Then decides to take a risk. “So.. you have problems with the person Valora used to be. Don’t you think people can change? She wanted me to talk to you.. I...I have a fight coming up here.. She was hoping you might have some tips for me.”
Dixie frowns. “And we was finally startin’ to have a good lil’ chat..” She leans back in the booth seat and drains the rest of her bourbon. “You didn’t look surprised at what I said about Valora.” Abbigail nodded. “She told me.” Dixie scoffed and rolled her eyes. “What? She tell you she’s sorry or some bullshit like that?” Abbigail smirked and shrugged. “Nope. She said she’d do it all again. That her life. Her past. Everything had led her to this point. She makes no apologies for who she is and what she’s done.. But she really wants to do right now. She runs this shit ass gym that looks like it’s straight outta the first Rocky movie. She keeps it running out of her own pocket.. Because the man that ran it gave her a place. He taught her how to defend herself. Gave her an option to being a criminal or gangbanger and she keeps it running so that kids in the barrios have an option other than gangs. She charges nothing Like her or not.. A fighter with her rep.. Could charge a fucking fortune…”
Dixie considers this a moment and sighs. “You sound jus’ like Eric… you and he seemed to be the only two people that thought she was worth a damn. Alright. Tell that foul mouthed pain in the God Damned Ass I’ll sit and have a chat in her. Her. Not one of her pupils or allies. Her. And I ain’t gonna promise that I won’t put a bullet in her. But I’ll talk to her. As for reducin’ the heat you’ll get.. Forget it. Maybe if you had more time I could help ya.. But MOX news is paintin’ Valora and everyone associated with her as terrorists. Anarchists. With Valora’s past.. It ain’t hard to smear her up. If you wanna have a chance to impress Texans.. Be who you are. Walk in there. Show you respect the business of wrestling.. That you take what you do seriously. That you ain’t afraid. The crowd prolly won’t like you much.. But with luck, by the end of the fight they’ll respect ya. That’s about as good as I can promise with the time you got. Unless of course you do somethin’ like screw Valora over and throw in your lot with the Establishment of UOW. I dun think you’d consider that.” Abbigail smirked. “Screw over a trained assassin, a living legend in professional fighting.. A woman that tracked down the people who kidnapped me and killed people to save me? No thanks. I’m not feeling suicidal today.”
Dixie raised an eyebrow. “Huh… never heard about Valora risking her ass for someone else before.. Reckon she must like you or somethin’.” After a few moments she stood up and nodded, tipping her hat to Abbigail. “Also, I got other stuff to do. If I find anything else out about them Russian bastards, I’ll pass it along to Valora when I talk to her.” Abbigail stands up and nods. “Thank you. And now I guess I should meet my partner and see if we can work together.” Dixie smirks. “Some advice.. Val can brawl a bit. You’ve learned the flashy stuff. The big moves. Real nice stuff, lot of talent.. But sometimes.. The simplest solution is the best one. Sometimes you just need to punch someone in the face.. I ain’t sayin’ to not use the other stuff, but dun be afraid to just knock someone on their ass.”
Abbigail nods, considering that for a second. “That’s a good point. I’ll try to mix in the basic stuff with the bigger stuff.” Dixie nods. “You’re goin’ for the knockout with every hit. Focus on winnin’ the fight.. Listen to that lil’ voice in your head.. That’s your instincts.. In the beginnin’ it might be wrong. But it’ll get better with experience.. You’re doin’ fine, rookie.” She said before heading off. Abbigail smiled a bit and continued on her way.
About an hour later, Abbigail walked into the gym where she and Sato had agreed to meet up. He was in the ring going through his martial arts routine, and glanced at her as she walked in. “I wasn’t sure you would show up.” Abbigail nods. “I...thought it might be a bad idea. You’re set to try and take my mentor’s belt after all.” Sato nods. “Loyal to your teacher. That speaks well for your character and your honor.” Abbigail climbed into the ring. “Thanks? I’m just.. I’ve had one lone fight and I lost to a damn porn star who thinks she can sleep her way to the top. I’ve been in two tag team matches and both losses were my fault. I’m surprised you want to team with me.”
Sato smirks. “I wasn’t given a choice. Valora can’t fight. Elitistos put you in.. likely he and Mudcock are hoping I get beat up. Let’s prove them wrong.” Abbigail blinks a bit. “I think that sounds good but I don’t know how we’re going to do it. You and I don’t know each other.. We can’t work as a team can we?” Sato shrugged. “That is up to us. I’ve seen you fight. You are typical of a new fighter.. A trained opponent can see what you’re going to do. I can teach you to read a opponent’s body language. With training you can see what your opponent is going to do before they do it. Then all you need to do is act first to counter them.”
Abbigail smiles. “That would be great.. But maybe it’s just the fact that I grew up in Chicago talking but I’ve never seen something given for free. So what do you want from me in exachange for you helping me?” She asked. She was eager to learn more and improve as a fighter, but she wasn’t going to just run off and trust blindly.
To be continued by Sato