"Changing of the Guard"

[OrochiGeese]

*We fade into the office of Sir Arthur Wingate. He is sitting at his desk wearing a suit along with the most stern and humble expression we have ever seen from him.*

[Arthur:] "Unplanned hiatuses are not uncommon here, but our silence over the past eight months has been quite intentional. It was imperative to ensure that the vast majority of those injured in "the incident" last year received a clean bill of health before we publicly re-emerged. We also needed time to reflect on the situation: one that can be most accurately described as a nightmare. I sit here before you to tell you the truth: I am no closer to coming to terms with what happened than I was the day after I was "released" from it.  However, I realize that it is time to move forward.

There is so much to be said and I can only cover a fraction of the issues that face us.  Not only is it impossible to cover every aspect in one sitting, but there is a more practical consideration as well.  I am no longer...."

*Arthur's voice cracks and he pauses, attempting to regain his poise. It takes him a few seconds but he takes a deep breath and continues.*

[Arthur:] "Effective as of last week, I am no longer the owner of the Universal Battle League.

Therefore, I am not in charge of the efforts to restore morale and stability. More importantly, I no longer have the credibility to reliably assure our staff and fans that any strategies I craft will be effective in avoiding another incident in the future. The actions of Cosmic K*I*D and, ultimately, "Emperor' Geese occurred on my watch. I take full responsibility for not being able to prevent them. The UBL has had multiple targets on its back from the day Geese Walker brought it over to the United States in 2007. Four years later, we thought that my stewardship would allow it to break free from the shadows in Geese's past that haunted it. Not only was I mistaken, but the damage was staggeringly preventable.

Toward the close of 2011, Mr. Clyde informed Drake that Cosmic K*I*D intended on acquiring the UBL and was scheming to disrupt my recent purchase of it.  Drake immediately passed this information to me but I did not take these concerns seriously at the time: a decision that was initially vindicated by K*I*D;s disappearance soon afterward.  In the years that followed, I fully dismissed the threat. If I was making excuses, I would claim that the constant state of war that Destiny and Gauntlet plunged us into consumed all of my attention.  This made it difficult to spot the subtle and slow burn approach that K*I*D took. However, those wars ended at least two years before K*I*D executed his plan. Therefore, the truth is that I let my guard down: an admission that, as a knight, brings absolute shame to my station.

Posing as a delusional fool, K*I*D expertly manipulated me. It was difficult to square the accusations I heard from Drake with the behavior that K*I*D displayed in the matches he put on for us when he re-emerged in public. While his behavior was at times bizarre, it did not seem to pose an existential threat. However, I now realize that he had been patiently lying in wait for me to let my guard down. With that tactic, Drake's assertion was proven that K*I*D was a silent partner in the Jinchuu plan with his own motivations. K*I*D arrived in my UBL seeking to have a consistent presence. He found it in 2020 with his role in the Infinite Continuum Championship League. When he heard that I was planning on introducing a new unified Championship, it was his idea for me to bolster it's credibility by using the Space-Time Continuum Title. I even allowed him to hold onto the title belt, one that he was legitimately proud of, until the league was completed. The question of whether he planned on using the nerve gas from the start, or adopted it as his tool once he assessed our weaknesses, is of no real importance. Since he is one of the few who have been irreparably injured, we may never get that answer from him anyway. The reality is that I failed to see his intentions coming to fruition and we all paid for it as a result. 

My responsibility for the incident aside, I had considered stepping down even before last year. I often wondered whether the UBL had grown stagnant under my leadership. When I took over, I was hopeful to not repeat the mistakes of previous owners. However, the slow and uneven pace of the Collider Tour has been a disappointment and embarrassment. The UBL needs someone who can design a plan that itself ensures the momentum continues. A professional wrestling promotion must be a perpetual motion machine whose gears do not come to a screeching halt upon facing a new obstacle.

I will not be leaving this great promotion for good.  I will stay on in a temporary administrative role to help the transition process for the new owner.  Once that is done, I plan to end my career as a wrestler.  It is through that role in which I truly hope I can redeem myself and add value to this promotion that I squandered the potential of.

However, I will not bore you any further with my ruminations.

It is time to introduce the person who will push the UBL into a new era of greatness.

*Arthur Wingate stands up, takes a bow with a tear in his eye, and walks off camera.*


*Next part coming soon!*

[OrochiGeese]

*A few seconds later, Ruby Moreno walks on camera and sits down in Arthur's her new chair.

Wearing an off-white blazer with a dark blue blouse, she greets us with a smile brimming from confidence.*

[Ruby:] "Let's dispense with the obvious. For over fifteen years, many of you have feared this exact moment as much as I craved it. However, my motivations for accepting this office now make this occasion fundamentally different than my past desire to burn it down.  I come to you now not as the thief of the OG-Joshi World Championship, not as the adversary of the Walkers, and not as the guiding light of Destiny.  From here on out, I am not the face of the invading hoard.

Rather, I come to you as a successful promoter who knows how to motivate its roster.  For years I have been the co-owner of the wildly popular Los Angeles Women's Lucha.  I also come to you as one of the best wrestlers that the world has ever seen.  Therefore, I can recognize top tier talent and foster a culture of elite competition.

Most of all, I come to you as Ruby Moreno: dedicated defender of the UBL. Yes, it's true that I've been the equivalent of a 'black hat hacker' of this promotion. It's that very experience which puts me in the prime position to effectively patch our vulnerabilities.  The question you all have now is why would I want to?

Empathy is not a word you are accustomed to hearing from me but it rings true here.

That is because I also come to you as a victim of everything that happened last year. I was gassed by K*I*D, I was forced to don a bizarre and humiliating alter ego persona, I was vulnerable to injury while wrestling without my consciousness or consent. I have as much conviction as anyone else to prevent a situation like that from occurring again here.

But I recognize my position: I come to you as an unreliable narrator due to my past. You all have legitimate reasons to doubt whether my intentions are truly good. You all have legitimate reasons to even assess my capacity for good. And you all have a responsibility to yourselves to ask these questions so you don't get duped into the same false sense of security, as many have in this promotion, when dealing with wolves in sheep's clothing.

I am not a wolf. When a wolf pretends to be a sheep, he lulls his targets to sleep with superficial lies. What I have to offer now is cogent arguments that a wolf is not inclined to offer. Before you cast doubt on me, consider these three incontrovertible pieces of evidence as to why you can trust me.

First, Mr. Clyde can confirm that I risked my life last year to inform him of the incident. I was already in the clear, having been suddenly released from the arena by an unknown person. I could have sat back and done nothing, content in my safety.  Of course, that was unlikely due to my vested interest in the safety of my friends who were still captive.  To rescue them specifically, I could have reached out to previous allies of mine which could have escalated the situation. However, I knew the right strategy to protect everyone was to bring in Mr. Clyde and that instinct was proven correct.

Secondly, once Arthur agreed to sell the UBL to me, I immediately gifted my half of the ownership rights of L.A.W.L. to the Reyes family. I did not want to present a conflict of interest by holding stakes in both promotions. Furthermore, I plan to devote my full attention to UBL. As a token of my respect and apologies for previous actions, I made sure to acquire the same broadcast contract for L.A.W.L. as we had when I co-owned it.  After I hit rock bottom, my love for L.A.W.L. was one of the positive things in my life.  Holding onto that allowed me to begin my reformation: advice that Robin Walker gave me, passed onto her at a low point by Celes.  Allowing the Reyes to fully own L.A.W.L. without my shares is best for it, and best for UBL. I will not commit to retiring from the ring but will not leverage my UBL ownership into OG-Joshi activity.

Thirdly, speaking of OG-Joshi, I would not accept my new position in UBL until both Jean Carter and Luke Kisiera personally approved the deal.  We had a long conversation where I allowed them access to my innermost thoughts. Even though OG-Joshi and UBL have different owners, they need to work closely for security and business purposes under the same roof owned by Luke. Their judgement is profoundly trusted by all who are worth trusting. Given my relationship with Jean in the past, I could think of no one better to vouch for my good intentions now. As one condition of gaining my trust, Jean has helped me to rebuild my relationship with my sister Rose. For that alone, I am truly indebted to Jean. And not only has she approved of my ownership of UBL, but Luke has given me the same deal with his arena as Arthur had."

*Ruby smiles to herself in a way that appears more genuine than ever before.*

[Ruby:] "Having the support of UBL's heart of a hero and the soul of OG-Joshi means more than I can possibly express because it allows me to trust myself more too."

*She looks at the camera with a sterner expression.*

[Ruby:] "However, I am not automatically entitled to the trust and confidence of the wrestlers and fans. Successfully managing and defending this place is the only way I know how to earn that. The era of UBL being targeted is far from over so it needs someone who offers the right type of leadership. That means putting the UBL above myself, avoiding favoritism, providing the right incentives, making difficult decisions, and embracing accountability and transparency.

Let me tell you about some of my plans to do all that."


*Next part coming soon!*

[OrochiGeese]

[Ruby:] "I can only earn your trust and confidence if I don't lord the power of my station over you.

Therefore, I will be forming an independent panel with binding decision power that resolves conflicts between myself and those I have had issues with in the past.  You can think of them as ubble ombudsmen.  "Ombubblesmen" is the delightful term that Jean used to describe them.  *Ruby smiles.* 

We're going to officially call them the Battle Panel. 

Arthur Wingate has agreed to stay on as a member of this panel while also helping my smooth transition to owner. Barton Miller and Drake Yoshida will be the other two members of the panel.  I doubt that there are individuals more loyal to and protective of the UBL than those two men.  I recognize that there are some members of the roster who may walk out of UBL before they work for a version of it that I own. I hope that you will consult with this panel first before you do so.

Drake Yoshida is a pillar of this promotion and will stay on in his role as UBL Sergeant. Despite our past disagreements, we have recently found it easy to work together toward the future. As part of his expanded role, he will become the head booker. This will be a further check on my power to assuage the concerns of those who have had tension with me.  I am less interested in who holds our Championships and more concerned about the safety and integrity of their pursuits. 

Barton will also remain in charge of the Basic Training program and the entire Front Lines division. I confess a sense of amazement at the strength and success of his program in light of the inconsistent pacing that UBL has had. The students have not had frequent enough opportunities to wrestle in front of a live audience and yet their progress is substantial. I commend Barton and his team of trainers for their success. I pledge to give their students every opportunity to succeed and grow, and I sincerely apologize for the role that Destiny and I played in disturbing their momentum."

*Ruby's expression is tinged by her own personal embarrassment. This emotion continues into her next words.*

[Ruby:] "We need a new security team.  Thunder Strike simply does not trust me.  Therefore, he will not allow J.U.S.T.I.C.E. to formally protect UBL since that would mean sharing intelligence with me.  Despite our differences, I do not doubt his devotion to this promotion. However, we have hit an impasse and his team has formally resigned.  While I do not wish to exacerbate the situation, please understand that I do not see this as a significant loss. Thunder did not have the same humility in admitting his failure to protect UBL as Arthur did.  Thunder's obsession with his enemies over the years blinded him to other adversaries like K*I*D. He was also unable to detect my surveillance throughout the arena. Of course, all of the members of J.U.S.T.I.C.E. are encouraged to continue wrestling in UBL: especially Alicia Gordon. But J.U.S.T.I.C.E. will no longer be allowed to intervene in situations that do not directly involve their members.

Goro Yamashita has offered to be interim head of security and I accepted. He has had success in the past in that role and demonstrated great bravery in the war against Jinchuu. I am allowing him to choose his officers while I consider a more permanent arrangement. I promise not to hire anyone who used to work for Destiny or Gauntlet. Luke has wisely given Mr. Clyde, Mr. Figaro, and Celes free reign as roving arena security given their contributions and sacrifices to OG-FPD.  You all saw the role that they played in putting a stop to Emperor Geese's rampage.  It would be foolish to challenge them.

One way that we can strengthen our security mindset is to reduce confrontations. For example, impromptu promos during events almost always lead to melees. If you have something to say, clear it with me first. This is not to police the content of your message but, rather, allow security to protect you from anyone who takes offense. If you do take offense, the solution is not to run out with angry blood and a sack of weapons, but to talk to me so you can address your concerns at another time.  I will also be hiring more interviewers and reporters to make it easier for wrestlers to use their words.

Quite frankly, it's time for UBL to mature. We do not need thirty people and five factions rushing out to the ring every time someone is angry. Not only does that lead to a donnybrook, it distracts security from noticing a bad actor using the distraction to cause a worse fracas. I'm not trying to extinguish the competitive fires of our roster.  Quite the opposite, I want everyone focusing their energies into the right channels: our stipulated matches.  UBL has been infamous for the disarray and injuries that occurs during events. Those injuries can end careers, slow maturation of our talent, hurt the credibility of our titles, and prevent us from putting on our best product.  We need to shed these old habits to evolve.

My final comment on this topic is stern for obvious reasons. If you are not an employee of this promotion, you do not have the right to interrupt our shows or take over our arena to publicly air your grievances. I am unforgiving of anyone who used to act like myself from ten years ago. Buy a ticket to our show and responsibly watch, or scream at the television in your own home. Don't march down the ramp like a conqueror cause I assure you this: I've seen much better than you fall to the defenders of this promotion."

*Ruby smirks but her expression hardens.*

[Ruby:] "I know people have a lot of questions about what happened last year with Cosmic K*I*D.  I won't address every issue that has been raised, but here are the ones that have come up the most on OG-Joshifanforums.net. Thank you to Dissmastah Droid for combing through and curating the posts - I can't spend five seconds on that wretched site."


*Next part coming soon!*

[OrochiGeese]

[Ruby:] "The gas used was a psychotropic nerve agent that rendered everyone highly suggestible and emotionally volatile. It also caused debilitating hallucinations. The government would not tell me the specific name of it nor are they sharing that information with the public. It seems as if the gas was engineered by an expert chemist and neurobiologist. This casts further doubt on who the actual perpetrator was in this situation.

Cosmic K*I*D does not have any known experience in these fields and he's not exactly the brilliant cosmologist he presented himself as. Pushing further on what Arthur suggested, we do not know for certain if K*I*D was even aware of the gas. He seemed entirely fixated on the gem which he stole from Jean Carter's necklace then bizarrely placed on the Space-Time Continuum Title belt. Therefore, it's suspected that K*I*D was either consciously working with someone else or was unknowingly aided by them.  In either case, we do not know right now who came up with the original plan or who the accomplice was. But it is certain that K*I*D's own 'strategic contributions' yielded no actual benefits.

We know that because the gem was temporarily handed over to the authorities by Jean. It was then heavily studied by scientists and dismissed as the cause of anything that occurred. For the record, it was identified as an inert sapphire. The study of the additional gems 'used' by Celes and Mr. Figaro yielded the same results. Afterwards, all of the gems were given back to their owners. The conclusion of the scientists was that the ceremony which took place in the middle of the ring to 'vanquish' the Emperor was either consciously intended to stall a drugged Geese until the nerve agent gas was out of his system or was itself performed under the influence of the gas. The scientists also concluded that OG-FPD is a profoundly strange place, but that finding has not yet been peer reviewed.  L.A.W.L. was not a control in their study."

*Ruby shrugs her shoulders.*

[Ruby:] "The working theory on why the nerve gas leaked outside the arena in early January was that K*I*D could not prevent it. That is due to the debilitating injuries he suffered at the hands of Emperor Geese. There is no evidence that anyone intentionally leaked the gas: especially since the gas lost efficacy as it got further away from the source.

On that note, let's turn to the status of some of the victims. I have video footage proving that James Ward was not a willing accomplice to K*I*D's plan this time around.   What we saw from Ward in the footage with Geese was a character foisted upon him by the gas. I do believe that Ward initially came to the arena willingly when K*I*D invited him after taking power, but Ward tried to leave when he heard what K*I*D had done. He was not interested in reviving the dated Centurion character as K*I*D's chosen champion. Rather, he was put under the influence of the gas by K*I*D's carelessness and selfishness. Unfortunately, both K*I*D and Centurion have sustained career ending injuries. It is questionable if either of them will ever be able to walk again.  Despite their pasts, this is not a fact to be celebrated.

And while I do not wish to place insult upon injury, I have a job to do. Cosmic K*I*D has been terminated from our roster. The UBL bylaws have been modified to prevent him from having any formal interaction with the UBL in the future. I don't believe that history can be erased, but there's little reason to acknowledge him ever again after my comments today.

Therefore, K*I*D has lost his spot in Block B of the Continuum League. He amassed 4 points so far due to earning a victory by disqualification over Wonderland. K*I*D will be replaced with Jasper Woodruff, who strikes me as an underutilized talent with a genuine incentive for winning championship gold.

The Space-Time Continuum belt so treasured by K*I*D was also turned over to the authorities. It was declared inert, and dumb, then returned to the UBL. It will continue to play it's limited and final role in its conceptual merging with the NEXUS Championship, World Heavyweight Championship, and Universal Championship to form the Infinite Continuum Championship. Then we will not speak of the Space-Time Continuum title again. Tear it from your memories."

*Ruby makes a tearing motion and smirks.*

[Ruby:] "Some of you will recall that K*I*D's scheme curiously took effect a few months after his match with Wonderland. During that encounter, the two foolishly attempted to break the space-time continuum by running and jumping really fast.  However, we can't say this was surprising behavior from Wonderland. To the contrary, given his avid susceptibility to K*I*D's suggestions and his known public endorsement of hallucinogens, Wonderland was an immediate suspect in what occurred last year.  Fortunately, he was cleared of all charges and will be allowed to continue competing here.  I think this works to our benefit. Fifteen years ago the man defeated Geese Walker to become FPCPP World Champion. Therefore, we hope he has some remaining vigor to make the remainder of Block B much more interesting.

That brings me to the topic I've debated the most: what to do about Geese."


*Next part coming soon!*

[OrochiGeese]

[Ruby:] "That brings me to the topic I've debated the most: what to do about Geese."

I have seen him unfairly maligned by the media and some of his peers over the past few months, so it is important to set the record straight. Despite the magnitude and consequences of his actions under the influence of the gas, he is no more responsible for what he did than any other prisoner of K*I*D was. I am certain that he was not a co-conspirator in the plan nor did he consciously aid it. Geese was a victim before and during his rampage.

However, the behavior that we saw from him was horrifying. To provide some context, fifteen years ago I had a front row seat when Geese brutalized my understudy Jeff Monroe and ended his career. Everyone was shocked and thought it was the worst thing Geese would ever do. I was numb for a week. However, since that behavior was under the influence of a drug which Dr. Schassberg created, Geese had plausible deniability about how dangerous he could be when making conscious decisions. Nonetheless, he intentionally took that drug and his behavior had been alarming even without it.

A similar issue is presented to us now after witnessing his unprecedented body count and megalomania due to the nerve agent. However, it's not the relatively higher level of violence this time around that stands out to me.  Rather, what he did when drugged this time was the exception to his recent behavior in comparison to the exclamation point that it was back in 2010.  That Geese embodied chaos and propaganda to such an extent that his friends stood up to him.  Contrast that with the Geese of our modern era who made a clear commitment to controlling his violence through his 'threshold' approach. You can't count what he did as 'Emperor Geese' against his genuine intentions to improve himself. Still, I can not imagine the regret he has experienced over the past six months as he reflects upon what happened. 'Emperor Geese' crippled four men with ease, enslaved two rosters, and displayed absolutely no remorse. He held designs in conquering the world.

Although Geese Walker volunteered to turn himself in to state and federal authorities to answer for those actions, they declined the gesture. They believe that he committed these actions in a fundamentally altered state of mind and without agency. They are also operating under the theory that he received a larger dose of the gas than others which led to his heightened aggression. That theory seems plausible since K*I*D seemed to revel most in targeting the Walkers.

This is all to say that I fully support Geese's innocence in this situation."

*Ruby sighs with a resigned look on her face.*

[Ruby:] However, I also recognize that others have legitimate reason to be wary: especially our roster members. I do not wish to punish Geese for something he did not choose to do, but I must protect everyone else. Geese needs more time to cope with what that version of him did. He needs to make sure that the violence he has tried so hard to bury deeply never rises to the surface again under any circumstances. Therefore, I am removing him from the active roster until he is cleared by Dr. Gabriel Holt. In the past, Dr. Holt helped Geese break free of his amnesiac state and cope with the aftermath, so I believe their partnership will be effective this time as well. Geese will not lose his spot in the Continuum league as long as he can be cleared before his next match. I have been told by Drake that I have Geese's full cooperation for this plan.

Geese is not the only Walker to have elicited strong reaction from our fans and roster. Robin Walker is understandably shaken for many reasons, but she is physically unharmed by the events of the past year. People have had legitimate concerns regarding her health and privacy due to the "succubus" character foisted on her by K*I*D and the questionable intentions of "Emperor Geese. Mercifully, her behavior off camera did not actually reflect that vile character aside from some night time sleep deprivation. Even more fortunately, she found temporary safety on her own before being fully protected by Mr. Clyde. I have not attempted to approach her or Geese yet, but I hope to have a constructive conversation with them given my new role. I also hope to discuss Kyle Walker's motivations in UBL as they are vague at best."

*Ruby takes a deep breath.*

[Ruby:] "Now it is time to turn to the future. I will do my best to guide the UBL into a brighter era that we can all be proud of. 'Summer School' from the Basic Training roster will be the first event under my watch. It will be followed by Continuum VI. Jean Carter will have her own announcement soon on behalf of OG-Joshi, but fans should take solace knowing you will not have to wait long to see their roster in action. On that note, my final announcement is that Jean and I will be working closely to ensure a strong OG-FPD Anniversary event this year. We could all benefit from a harmonious one that does not end in a debilitating injury, diabolical invasion, or dimensional incursion."

*Ruby smiles and the broadcast turns off.*