Months. It had been months. Sixteen long-ass months since Alexis Rose suffered a separated shoulder and a torn rotator cuff at the hands of Briar and Lilliana Blackthorne at Art of War 2023. The impact and severity of the injuries had completely derailed her. After all, she had arrived in HWA with a lot of fanfare and expectations. Admittedly she’d come in and rubbed a lot of people the wrong way, especially the ladies on the roster. However, it had taken Fallen’s heinous attack on Michelle along with arrival of the Blackthorne Twins to make her realise that her initial approach had been skewed.

And just when things were finally starting to look up; from forging a close friendship with Sarah Callahan, reigniting her relationship with her on-again, off-again girlfriend, Brooke, the injury had happened. Three surgeries and a shit-ton of rehab later, Alexis was finally in a place where she felt good, not just physically but mentally too. Whilst she had been grateful for Butch and Wisdom Parker’s support through her rehabilitation and for allowing her to put her experience to good use by assisting Red Dragon in the Academy; she wasn’t ready to down tools and sit on the sidelines forever.

But this was a much different HWA than the one Alexis had been used to before her injury. The landscape had well and truly changed along with the status quo. Some new faces filled the roster whilst others had disappeared into obscurity.

She paced back and forth in the media suite of the Academy, like a caged lion, full of nervous energy, her fingers flexing in and out.

Alexis: Well, well, well, ladies and gentlemen. I bet I’m the last person you all that some of you are probably expected to see. I dare say maybe some more than others. Some of you are probably even wondering “who is she”. Well, allow me to fill you in and bring you up to speed. I am the Black Rose, Alexis Rose and almost a year-and-a-half ago, I was just starting to hit my stride as one of the brightest stars in all of women’s wrestling, let alone HWA.

Alexis paused, her eyes narrowing as she leaned closer to the camera, her voice steady yet laced with intensity.

Alexis: But you see, in this business, momentum can be a fickle friend. Just as I was ascending, I was brought crashing back down to earth, forced to confront the cold, hard truth. That all of the courage, heart and determination can only do so much when your rotator cuff tears…

Alexis’ gaze involuntarily shifts, her eyes peering down to her surgically-repaired shoulder and she jerks it, almost like a reflex, as if the scars from the surgery were still fresh.

Alexis: Sixteen months of surgeries, rehab, and watching from the sidelines as other people’s stock rose and my name slowly but surely started to drift from everyone’s memory.

She straightened, a determined glint in her eyes.

Alexis: But that’s just not something I can let slide, I’m afraid. See, when I left Apex Wrestling in 2023 to come to HWA, I had a dream, I had a vision of where my career as a professional wrestler was to go and regardless of gender, I was determined to make it to the top.

And over the last year or so, I’ve had ample time to reflect, to reassess my approach, and to understand what I need to do. And that’s reasserting myself as one of the top competitors in the entire company! And what better time to start making good on that than the Sadie Hawkins Havoc!

Alexis began pacing again, the camera tracking her movements.

Alexis: See, I’m no stranger to getting in the ring and mixing it up with the guys! And if there’s one adage in this business that rings true more than most it’s the bigger they are, the harder they fall and on my first match back, I do not intend on falling! So what’s it gonna be, boys? Hmm? You can either hum and haw, stare at your shoes like a shy prom prospect orrrrr… you can step up and make the easy choice. So I say again…. What’s it going to be? Who’s going to put on their big boy pants and dare put his hand into the thicket and pluck the black rose?

And to the new faces in HWA, guys and girls, consider this your introduction. To those who remember me, know that the Alexis Rose standing before you is not the same woman you once knew. I’ve been broken, but in that breaking, I’ve forged a stronger, more relentless version of myself. These petals don’t wilt so easily anymore and these thorns are sharper than ever!

With that, Alexis turned and exited the frame, leaving the room in a charged silence as the scene faded out.