- Messages
- 749
- Points
- 93
It's really no secret by now the intentions this Elitist has had coming into this new season. He's spoken a whole lot about a standard he's trying to reach after raising the bar higher from where it was toward the end of last season. Losing at Midsummer Massacre was a noted setback that provided an answer. At least at this point it does. I'm not quite there yet. But a positive response to that in the ring was much needed, and one was provided a few weeks back when the promising youngster Diego Montana was put down for the count a week later. Diego deserves his props for stepping up to the plate and bringing the fight. Even when someone like him wishes to talk bigger than what they actually are, this Elitist will give them the benefit of the doubt. Even with what went down at Midsummer Massacre involving Father Vlad’s inclusion into the fold it was never intended to be personal with Diego, Circe, and whoever else decided to step into this chaotic world. Now, many may think that's foolish, or a misstep on all fronts when Diego and Circe's intentions are about anything but taking this brand to another level. But watching on backstage as Father Vlad spewed words that have only been repeated a few thousand times through the course of history here in EAW about becoming synonymous with this place, this Elitist assessed the situation for what it was and ultimately came to the conclusion that there is plenty of time to repay Circe, Diego, and Father Vlad’s actions in the oh so near future. It's not about stopping one or a few individuals because of a post match attack. He's been beat down after matches plenty of times before and one way or another he always finds a way to bring the truth to their doorstep. What's more important is keeping those individuals from shaping what this brand becomes. After all, timing is everything. Especially in our line of work where reality has a funny way of catching up to you in the center of that ring, and when that time comes I plan on being the one holding the gavel when it does. Because as you might’ve noticed lately, the first tri-brand show of the season is quickly coming upon us. The one that establishes early going brand bragging rights. The type of bragging rights that earns higher stake opportunities later on down the line in the heart of the season. Whether we're speaking of brand War Games, Warfare, Divide & Conquer. Winning at Territorial Invasion typically establishes a tone and positions each of the victors in a spot that allows them to announce themselves. And I would be lying to myself if I said I didn't want to do what I could to better position myself in the upper thick of it all. Last season was able to do just that. Last season Raven and I were able to Co-Captain Dynasty's brand warfare team that ultimately took to the winner's circle to announce ourselves. We just didn't quite cash in on them the way we would've liked to. Well, it looks like we are getting that opportunity once more this season. Even when it means that we're looking to do so on opposite teams. None of that is going to stop us from throwing everything plus the kitchen sink at each other. Which is why I wholeheartedly look forward to the challenge as Territorial Invasion draws closer.
When Halsey Neel and Mia Santoro initially approached me about the prospects of being a part of their brand warfare squad I'll admit I was intrigued. In fact, I was already very much leaning toward agreeing right then and there. But I first wanted to see just how serious they were about walking away from this year's battle with something to show for over the brand's warfare teams. When I saw their recruiting pitch later on the same night to bring aboard the current National Elite Champion, and the Heartbeat of Showdown himself, Akari Kiyoko. Well, that quickly answered any lingering thoughts I may have had at first. After all, as I've said. The standard I'm seeking to reach actually becomes more out of reach than anything else if I choose to stray away from it. Preparing for brand warfare for the second straight season, and being on the winning side of it for a second straight season is only going to help me get there sooner rather than later. With the exception of the huge Texan built like a locomotive who's going to be at our side come brand warfare time, I'm very much familiar and in tune with the ranks I've decided to stand in this year. Halsey, Mia, and Akari are all names with established reputations in EAW whose stock are rising all the time. All of whom I've stood across in big match situations to decide which direction our careers were taking next. It's through those battles that forge our way toward achieving what we set out to do that ultimately establishes who we become. If anything, that's probably a big reason why they recruited me in the first place. So there's not much acquainting needed in all this to get everybody on the same page. If the objective is to continue to uphold the standard by which our respective reputations are much noted for then that's all that's really needed at the end of the day. Last season's brand warfare I had the privilege to be a part of, they had that mindset. Limmy Monaghan didn't necessarily need to like the fact that Raven and I were appointed as Co-Captains for Dynasty to succeed right by our side. Effy McAvoy may have felt somewhat out of place standing beside names already engraved into this company's history, but she saw a reason to stand at our side that could elevate her own. Milli Banks may not have been as ready to throw herself back into as chaotic of a scene that comes with Territorial Invasion, but she didn't know how ready she already was at rediscovering herself until she put it altogether in one magical night that propelled team Dynasty's victory in brand warfare. All Showdown’s brand warfare unit needs to do is follow the same format Dynasty's did from last year, and I've no doubts that we'll be just fine. As long as we have each other's backs for the next few weeks until after Territorial Invasion there's no reason Showdown should succumb to the same problems that plagued it last year going into the match where all chemistry was thrown out the door. It led to a poor showing from everyone not named Akari Kiyoko back then. And I suppose the first real proof of concept could take place here in Tulsa for this week's Voltage. We'll just have to see how it all plays out.
Winning and losing always comes with a price, though. Winning demands everything you have. Sacrificing time, comfort, and safety only to discover that holding the prize requires just as much endurance as the fight to get it. Losing, on the other hand, charges an entirely different toll, paid in the heavy currency of doubt, missed potential, and the exhausting labor of rebuilding from the wreckage. Yet, the true cost isn't found in the tally marks or the plethora of achievements, but in how the outcome rewrites who you are. Every victory chisels away a piece of your humility or isolation, while every defeat leaves either a scar of resilience or a fracture of resignation. Ultimately, the price isn't something you pay at the end; it is the transformation you undergo while earning the lesson. What kind of price feels heavier to carry right now? The burden of what it takes to stay on top, or the weight of recovering from getting knocked down? You know, I'd imagine you feel quite validated after coming away with your hand raised and your head held high to momentarily quiet the constant criticism that seems to follow your career these days regarding your on-again and off-again motivation. Classic big match Chris showed up and made sure everyone hadn't forgotten why you're one of the names synonymous with Elite Answers Wrestling. You stood on business. But as you well know, being Hall of Famers, we don't exactly have the luxury of just coasting off our previous body of work to reach that apex we all dream about once again. Which is why I know winning Brand Warfare is just as important to you as it will be for me and Raven. You want to keep your momentum going just as much as we want to put our stamp on that match, captaincy or not. This one as well. I mean, you do have quite a team over there on your side that's expecting you to do some really good things this time around, even if they don't all respect your veteran savvy in the way you wished they would. You're expected to be that presence who's more than willing to put his individual ego to the side for the better good of the team goal, Chris. Something that sometimes seems to escape you in that type setting. Last year is a perfect example of this. You believed all Team Voltage needed was for you to show up and it was a surefire victory. Are you gonna act just as arrogant this time around? I guess that's still to be seen. Either way you slice it, Tyrone Montgomery expects you, Daryl, Effy, KASAI, and Brianna Hill to bring home the victory for the second straight season. This week, though, coming into Voltage what I care about the most is garnering momentum as a Showdown representative. It doesn't make one bit of difference to me what your motivations are this week, or at Territorial Invasion, because you know that if I have it my way you will give me the absolute best version of Chris Elite and leave all the bs out of it. I've already given you your flowers in the past for being the calculating and dangerous individual that you are, and really the one thing that's never been lost in me in this second go around over the last three and a half years is to not take any opportunity for granted because tomorrow is not promised to anyone. That's why winning this week is important to me. That's why winning is everything to me at Territorial Invasion, period.
A lot of people, even to this day, still don't understand how much stock I put into never letting these abilities and the opportunities gifted upon me go to waste. There are a lot more out there who don't understand why I can compete to my fullest even when there is nothing really up for grabs and still celebrate the triumphs as much as I languish in heartbreak through every big setback. They don't know where the inspiration and motivation keeps coming from. Or who anchors and keeps everything grounded around me outside myself. I know it's lost on many of my peers in this era, because they want the Rex that was vying deep in contention for or was the world champion on three different occasions. Hell, Impact of people questioned my approach more than once going into our number one contender's match. He openly questioned whether who I was in yesteryear was a greater elitist than who I am now. But why? Because he wanted the version that was easy to pick apart as he saw fit. He owns a victory over me in 2026, but he hasn't seen the last of me. Others may question in the future just as he did because they see something that works, but regardless of whether there's a shift in attitude and regardless of what they want to believe, I'm ever evolving. It's like you said, Ray. You know me better than anyone else in this company ever could. You know where said inspiration and motivation comes from. It's you who's the true anchor of the life we share, Ray. It's always been you. That's why we're one regardless of what rival brand we're on. Before you, every milestone was just a notch on a post, an empty arena echoing with my own ambition. But the moment you stepped into my world, everything changed. You didn't just share my life; you elevated the standard of what it means to strive. You became the heartbeat behind every late-night sacrifice, every grueling session, and every unyielding push to reach higher. Every chance I get with you means the world to me. You deserve nothing less than the absolute best of everything I have to give, I refuse to coast. I look at you, at the grace and strength you bring to us every single day, and it spoils me for anything ordinary. Settling has never been an option, you're right about that too. It's become an outright impossibility. I chase greatness not because I'm unsatisfied with who I am, but because loving you demands that I keep evolving, keep conquering, and keep proving that the man you chose is worthy of the extraordinary woman standing beside him. So you know that if it wasn't me it was gonna be Impact at Midsummer Massacre. That's just the nature of the beast. You yourself want to make up for Bloodsport not going the way you wanted and I know you will. Make no mistake about it, Ray. I do want to bounce back myself, and do it in a big way. I may not be a captain of brand warfare this year but I will operate like one in that ring against you and Chris just to show that for a certified ring general like myself to not lead goes against what I stand for and is non-negotiable. Halsey Neel, Mia Santoro, and Akari Kiyoko already know my credentials and know I'm as good as my word without this week's booking being necessary. No, see what this week is going to validate is that there are no certainties or carryover to Territorial Invasion no matter who comes out of this steel cage warfare looking like a world beater.
No exceptions.
Not because I expect Chris or Ravenl to give me anything less than everything they have. Quite the opposite. I expect them to push me to a place where every lesson I've learned this season has to become instinct. I expect Chris to remind everybody why he's Chris Elite. I expect Raven to remind everybody why she's Raven Roberts. And I expect myself to walk into that cage and remind everybody that Rex McAllister isn't standing here because of what he accomplished yesterday. I'm here because of what I'm still capable of accomplishing tomorrow. That's what this season has become for me. Not chasing yesterday. Not running from it, either. Taking everything it taught me and carrying it forward. Midsummer Massacre taught me I still have another level to reach. Diego Montana taught me that level has to exist regardless of who stands across from me. And now this match is going to tell me whether I can take that same standard into a fight against two people who know exactly what it means to operate at this level. So when that cage door closes, don't expect the husband to hold back against his wife. Don't expect the Hall of Famer to give another Hall of Famer a courtesy. Don't expect the veteran to make room for the younger generation. And don't expect the man who has spent this entire season talking about standards to suddenly lower his because there's nothing tangible being handed to the winner. There is something tangible being fought for.
Momentum.
Reputation.
Brand supremacy.
And most importantly, another opportunity to prove that the man I am today is still capable of becoming something greater tomorrow. Voltage can have its home-field advantage. Chris can have his history. Raven can have every ounce of familiarity that comes from knowing me better than anyone ever could. I'll have the cage. I'll have the lessons. I'll have the standard. And when that door shuts, none of the rest of it matters. Because for the first time this season, I don't need another answer. I already know exactly what I'm looking for.
Now it's time to show it.
When Halsey Neel and Mia Santoro initially approached me about the prospects of being a part of their brand warfare squad I'll admit I was intrigued. In fact, I was already very much leaning toward agreeing right then and there. But I first wanted to see just how serious they were about walking away from this year's battle with something to show for over the brand's warfare teams. When I saw their recruiting pitch later on the same night to bring aboard the current National Elite Champion, and the Heartbeat of Showdown himself, Akari Kiyoko. Well, that quickly answered any lingering thoughts I may have had at first. After all, as I've said. The standard I'm seeking to reach actually becomes more out of reach than anything else if I choose to stray away from it. Preparing for brand warfare for the second straight season, and being on the winning side of it for a second straight season is only going to help me get there sooner rather than later. With the exception of the huge Texan built like a locomotive who's going to be at our side come brand warfare time, I'm very much familiar and in tune with the ranks I've decided to stand in this year. Halsey, Mia, and Akari are all names with established reputations in EAW whose stock are rising all the time. All of whom I've stood across in big match situations to decide which direction our careers were taking next. It's through those battles that forge our way toward achieving what we set out to do that ultimately establishes who we become. If anything, that's probably a big reason why they recruited me in the first place. So there's not much acquainting needed in all this to get everybody on the same page. If the objective is to continue to uphold the standard by which our respective reputations are much noted for then that's all that's really needed at the end of the day. Last season's brand warfare I had the privilege to be a part of, they had that mindset. Limmy Monaghan didn't necessarily need to like the fact that Raven and I were appointed as Co-Captains for Dynasty to succeed right by our side. Effy McAvoy may have felt somewhat out of place standing beside names already engraved into this company's history, but she saw a reason to stand at our side that could elevate her own. Milli Banks may not have been as ready to throw herself back into as chaotic of a scene that comes with Territorial Invasion, but she didn't know how ready she already was at rediscovering herself until she put it altogether in one magical night that propelled team Dynasty's victory in brand warfare. All Showdown’s brand warfare unit needs to do is follow the same format Dynasty's did from last year, and I've no doubts that we'll be just fine. As long as we have each other's backs for the next few weeks until after Territorial Invasion there's no reason Showdown should succumb to the same problems that plagued it last year going into the match where all chemistry was thrown out the door. It led to a poor showing from everyone not named Akari Kiyoko back then. And I suppose the first real proof of concept could take place here in Tulsa for this week's Voltage. We'll just have to see how it all plays out.
Winning and losing always comes with a price, though. Winning demands everything you have. Sacrificing time, comfort, and safety only to discover that holding the prize requires just as much endurance as the fight to get it. Losing, on the other hand, charges an entirely different toll, paid in the heavy currency of doubt, missed potential, and the exhausting labor of rebuilding from the wreckage. Yet, the true cost isn't found in the tally marks or the plethora of achievements, but in how the outcome rewrites who you are. Every victory chisels away a piece of your humility or isolation, while every defeat leaves either a scar of resilience or a fracture of resignation. Ultimately, the price isn't something you pay at the end; it is the transformation you undergo while earning the lesson. What kind of price feels heavier to carry right now? The burden of what it takes to stay on top, or the weight of recovering from getting knocked down? You know, I'd imagine you feel quite validated after coming away with your hand raised and your head held high to momentarily quiet the constant criticism that seems to follow your career these days regarding your on-again and off-again motivation. Classic big match Chris showed up and made sure everyone hadn't forgotten why you're one of the names synonymous with Elite Answers Wrestling. You stood on business. But as you well know, being Hall of Famers, we don't exactly have the luxury of just coasting off our previous body of work to reach that apex we all dream about once again. Which is why I know winning Brand Warfare is just as important to you as it will be for me and Raven. You want to keep your momentum going just as much as we want to put our stamp on that match, captaincy or not. This one as well. I mean, you do have quite a team over there on your side that's expecting you to do some really good things this time around, even if they don't all respect your veteran savvy in the way you wished they would. You're expected to be that presence who's more than willing to put his individual ego to the side for the better good of the team goal, Chris. Something that sometimes seems to escape you in that type setting. Last year is a perfect example of this. You believed all Team Voltage needed was for you to show up and it was a surefire victory. Are you gonna act just as arrogant this time around? I guess that's still to be seen. Either way you slice it, Tyrone Montgomery expects you, Daryl, Effy, KASAI, and Brianna Hill to bring home the victory for the second straight season. This week, though, coming into Voltage what I care about the most is garnering momentum as a Showdown representative. It doesn't make one bit of difference to me what your motivations are this week, or at Territorial Invasion, because you know that if I have it my way you will give me the absolute best version of Chris Elite and leave all the bs out of it. I've already given you your flowers in the past for being the calculating and dangerous individual that you are, and really the one thing that's never been lost in me in this second go around over the last three and a half years is to not take any opportunity for granted because tomorrow is not promised to anyone. That's why winning this week is important to me. That's why winning is everything to me at Territorial Invasion, period.
A lot of people, even to this day, still don't understand how much stock I put into never letting these abilities and the opportunities gifted upon me go to waste. There are a lot more out there who don't understand why I can compete to my fullest even when there is nothing really up for grabs and still celebrate the triumphs as much as I languish in heartbreak through every big setback. They don't know where the inspiration and motivation keeps coming from. Or who anchors and keeps everything grounded around me outside myself. I know it's lost on many of my peers in this era, because they want the Rex that was vying deep in contention for or was the world champion on three different occasions. Hell, Impact of people questioned my approach more than once going into our number one contender's match. He openly questioned whether who I was in yesteryear was a greater elitist than who I am now. But why? Because he wanted the version that was easy to pick apart as he saw fit. He owns a victory over me in 2026, but he hasn't seen the last of me. Others may question in the future just as he did because they see something that works, but regardless of whether there's a shift in attitude and regardless of what they want to believe, I'm ever evolving. It's like you said, Ray. You know me better than anyone else in this company ever could. You know where said inspiration and motivation comes from. It's you who's the true anchor of the life we share, Ray. It's always been you. That's why we're one regardless of what rival brand we're on. Before you, every milestone was just a notch on a post, an empty arena echoing with my own ambition. But the moment you stepped into my world, everything changed. You didn't just share my life; you elevated the standard of what it means to strive. You became the heartbeat behind every late-night sacrifice, every grueling session, and every unyielding push to reach higher. Every chance I get with you means the world to me. You deserve nothing less than the absolute best of everything I have to give, I refuse to coast. I look at you, at the grace and strength you bring to us every single day, and it spoils me for anything ordinary. Settling has never been an option, you're right about that too. It's become an outright impossibility. I chase greatness not because I'm unsatisfied with who I am, but because loving you demands that I keep evolving, keep conquering, and keep proving that the man you chose is worthy of the extraordinary woman standing beside him. So you know that if it wasn't me it was gonna be Impact at Midsummer Massacre. That's just the nature of the beast. You yourself want to make up for Bloodsport not going the way you wanted and I know you will. Make no mistake about it, Ray. I do want to bounce back myself, and do it in a big way. I may not be a captain of brand warfare this year but I will operate like one in that ring against you and Chris just to show that for a certified ring general like myself to not lead goes against what I stand for and is non-negotiable. Halsey Neel, Mia Santoro, and Akari Kiyoko already know my credentials and know I'm as good as my word without this week's booking being necessary. No, see what this week is going to validate is that there are no certainties or carryover to Territorial Invasion no matter who comes out of this steel cage warfare looking like a world beater.
No exceptions.
Not because I expect Chris or Ravenl to give me anything less than everything they have. Quite the opposite. I expect them to push me to a place where every lesson I've learned this season has to become instinct. I expect Chris to remind everybody why he's Chris Elite. I expect Raven to remind everybody why she's Raven Roberts. And I expect myself to walk into that cage and remind everybody that Rex McAllister isn't standing here because of what he accomplished yesterday. I'm here because of what I'm still capable of accomplishing tomorrow. That's what this season has become for me. Not chasing yesterday. Not running from it, either. Taking everything it taught me and carrying it forward. Midsummer Massacre taught me I still have another level to reach. Diego Montana taught me that level has to exist regardless of who stands across from me. And now this match is going to tell me whether I can take that same standard into a fight against two people who know exactly what it means to operate at this level. So when that cage door closes, don't expect the husband to hold back against his wife. Don't expect the Hall of Famer to give another Hall of Famer a courtesy. Don't expect the veteran to make room for the younger generation. And don't expect the man who has spent this entire season talking about standards to suddenly lower his because there's nothing tangible being handed to the winner. There is something tangible being fought for.
Momentum.
Reputation.
Brand supremacy.
And most importantly, another opportunity to prove that the man I am today is still capable of becoming something greater tomorrow. Voltage can have its home-field advantage. Chris can have his history. Raven can have every ounce of familiarity that comes from knowing me better than anyone ever could. I'll have the cage. I'll have the lessons. I'll have the standard. And when that door shuts, none of the rest of it matters. Because for the first time this season, I don't need another answer. I already know exactly what I'm looking for.
Now it's time to show it.
