The video begins and we find ourselves looking out over the Detroit River, looking south down to Windsor, Ontario, from what seems to be the top of the tour bus owned by the two founding members of Dark Fantasy. Ravyn sits not far from where Syren is standing, a Detroit Red Wings baseball cap on her head in almost mocking style and the SCW United States Championship on her lap, while Zoe stands in an LA Kings jersey and a smirk on her face. “So, we’re on the road again, we’re standing somewhere I always like being – the only place in the United States you can look South and see Canada – and we just happen to be in the hometown of a certain someone today. Welcome to the road to Rise to Greatness, welcome to Detroit,” she says with a grin before looking at Ravyn who cheers sarcastically. “Oh c’mon, could you at least try and look happy to be here? I know you’re not exactly the ‘yay, hometown’ kind of girl but… at least you’re wearing the baseball cap, I guess. I probably shouldn’t expect too much more from you tomorrow, huh? I know what you’re like.”

“Do you want to know what you can expect from me? You can expect me to have a little fun tomorrow, you can expect me to deal with the dirty lies that a paranoid ‘perfectionist’ is trying to spread about me, and you can expect me to continue in my role as an American hero,” the brunette says, with added humour on the final statement as she pats the United States Championship jokingly. “Other than that, things will be as they always are. I may have grown up in this city but I don’t exactly consider it home. I’m sorry if that conflicts with your hopes for this video.”

“No, it doesn’t, I’m not planning on making a huge deal out of being here, I just thought it was relevant to point out that it’s your hometown, and that it’s possible that tomorrow night you’ll actually have fans. I know, that’s wild and crazy considering you’re you, but you already know in the few hours we’ve been in Detroit already that people here actually like you,” the blonde tells her wife before laughing and turning back to the camera. “Seriously though, we are in Detroit and we are on the road to the biggest show of the year, and stuff is beginning to shape up accordingly. Take, for example, what happened last week. What happened last week is that a challenge was made, a challenge that I’m fully willing to accept, but a challenge made for all the wrong reasons! Now I’ve got no problem getting in the ring against David Helms. We have so much history, we know each other inside and out, we’ve been partners in that ring, we’ve been partners outside of it, and in case anyone has forgotten I definitely still owe him for the last time we were in that ring together and he was the one with his hand raised on his path to getting the shot that I wanted and the knowledge forevermore that in 2015 he was the ‘Best of the Best’. I wasn’t. I was a semi-finalist. I was close, but not close enough. And that has been the story of the second part of the year for me.”

She seems frustrated in saying the final line. “It seems just recently that every time I get in that ring I’m close to what I want but not close enough. As a result I’m getting a little tension building up in me, but while I was looking for a way to release that tension the last few weeks I’ll admit that I didn’t expect it to be against David. You see as much as it pained me to say it before Taking Hold of the Flame, David earned his opportunity and if he’d won the match and won the title and left Columbus as a two-time World Champion he’d have been a deserving one. You guys know how hard that is for me to say as well considering our history and the fact that David broke my heart, and then kind of rubbed it in my face, but I was mature enough to congratulate him, I was mature enough to wish him luck, and I was mature enough to let him go on this impassioned quest he’s been on lately because I thought he genuinely meant everything he said,” she says before letting out a long sigh and rolling her eyes. “I guess when it comes to David I’m just a sucker for all his bullshit, aren’t I? I used to believe him when he whispered sweet nothings in my ear, and I believed him as well when he said that he cared about doing what was right and fighting for the right reasons. But last week he showed me that he doesn’t care about what’s right, because if he did he’d be standing alongside me, not in front of me blocking my path!”

“So this week I’m fully expecting a confrontation. I’m coming to the Palace of Auburn Hills tomorrow fully anticipating backlash from last week, but I’m also coming to the Palace of Auburn Hills tomorrow night with a point to prove to the world. The last time I was in that ring I tried to do that, as I’m sure everyone in Atlanta will remember. Unfortunately if you weren’t in Atlanta then you won’t remember it, it was a little treat for the live crowd of me dropping another ex-boyfriend on his face and another guy that I put faith in recently to do the right thing, only to watch him prove he’s a conceited jackass. Boy, I sure can pick ‘em, am I right?” she asks before rolling her eyes again. Ravyn laughs and when Zoe looks over toward her she makes a zipping motion over her mouth, obviously holding back whatever it was she was going to say. Zoe turns back to the camera and shakes her head. “That’s the story of my life though. I put faith in the wrong people. I put faith in people who prove how small they can really be. First there was Lucas and this whole ‘Monarchy’ bullshit, where one moment he’s screwing with Chris Cannon and the next they’re best friends or whatever, but that’s a whole different issue. The more pressing issue was me trying to stand up for what was right, and David deciding that if I wanted to do that I’d have to go through him.”

She shakes her head in obvious disappointment. “Don’t worry guys, you guys should know by now that all I’ve been doing the last few years is what I believe is right, whether that’s fighting for this company against the forces of douche-baggery that were New Eden or giving opportunity after opportunity to anyone and everyone as the SCW World Heavyweight Champion. I genuinely believe in doing the right thing, and that’s exactly what I’m going to do no matter who’s standing in my way,” she says with passion. “But, like I said, I also have a point to prove, because guys I’m getting really frustrated with being ‘close but no cigar’. Hell, a few months ago I was seconds away from reclaiming the championship until I was screwed out of that opportunity, and right now it feels like I’m fighting a never ending uphill battle to prove that I deserve another one, despite the proclamation I continue to make that the line starts right here! So if the gauntlet is being thrown down, if the only thing I can do is fight every challenge to the best of my ability, then you guys know that that’s exactly what I’m going to do. I don’t need managers bullshitting my way into title opportunities, I don’t need to backstab my friends or betray my values to get what I want, I’m going to continue to prove that this company isn’t about claiming to be ‘flawless’ or ‘perfect’ and actually being a lying hypocrite, it’s about STANDING TALL in that ring in spite of your flaws and proving what you can do.”

“That’s exactly what I’m planning to do when I meet David Helms at Rise to Greatness, and that’s what I intend to do this week in front of a sold-out Detroit crowd when I meet Shaya Blackley in the middle of the ring. And for me this is kind of exciting because in all the time that I’ve been a part of SCW this is the very first time that Shaya and me are meeting in the ring, and yet she’s a woman I’ve watched for a long time, a woman I have a huge amount of respect for considering everything she’s overcome just to be here this week, and a woman that I like to think – although obviously I’ve been so wrong before – has a few of the same values that I have,” she says more in hope than anything else. “Now I’m not going to stand here and pretend to be an expert on all things Shaya. I’m not going to stand here and pretend I know all her motivations, or all her history, because the truth is I’ve just been an observer from afar for most of it, but I will tell you right now that everything I’ve seen from her, everything I’ve seen her capable of doing, shows me that Shaya has been in a situation that I know all too well. Now maybe she feels differently about this, maybe you guys feel differently about this I don’t know, but the woman I see as the challenge in front of me this week is a woman who’s finally stepping out of the shadows that have been cast on her for so very long, and that she’s doing that because she has to.”

“Now I think every SCW fan in Detroit and around the world, along with so many in the locker room, will agree that they all felt betrayed by the recent actions of Kelcey Wallace. I don’t think there’s a single SCW fan who didn’t at some stage will her on, who didn’t want to see her succeed, who didn’t believe that she was the kind of woman – the kind of champion – who stood for something. And Kelcey and I have had our problems over the years, I won’t deny that for a second, and maybe we’ve never exactly been friends, but you can look through every second of video where I’ve ever mentioned her and you’ll see I’ve always had respect for her. Now personally that led me to feeling betrayed when she tried to jump me from behind not too long ago, only for the world to brush off the whole incident as no big deal even after she knocked Mr D out cold in the ring when she missed. But that level of betrayal was nothing next to the level of betrayal that Shaya had to feel just recently,” she says before shaking her head slowly. “The truth is that I don’t even know how to begin to address that. I mean I’ve been there. I’ve been stabbed in the back by someone I thought was my friend. I’ve been betrayed and saw everything I thought I believed about them torn down before my eyes. I know how difficult that can be. I know how painful it can be. And I know what it does to you.”

“I know the paranoia that it leaves in you. I know the anger that it leaves in you. But I also know the driving force it puts behind you to get back on your feet and to do something about that betrayal, so right now I have a good idea how Shaya has to be feeling. The person that stabbed me in the back, the person that betrayed me, did so for reasons I can’t help but feel were less petty and small than the reasons that Kelcey Wallace stabbed Shaya in the back as well. I mean what kind of person betrays everything they claim to be just for a match? It’s sad really, especially when that betrayal hurts the people they’re supposed to care about,” she says before letting out another sigh. “But that’s not the only way I feel for Shaya, because as I said already right now she’s stepping out of the shadows that have been cast over her, she’s getting an opportunity to stand alone and no longer be seen as the follower. I know a little something about that. I’ve been in that position. And trust me Shaya, right now you have in front of you the biggest opportunity of your career. Now I don’t know how you felt before, I don’t know if you felt as frustrated as I used to feel always having the shadow cast over me, always being the one in the background, but I know that that’s the way so many have seen you before, and now is your chance to grab the ball and run with it and show the world that you’re not just another face in the ‘Perfect World’.”

“This is your opportunity to become something more. This is your opportunity to prove yourself to the world and show them what you’re really capable of, and the girl I’ve seen from afar I have absolutely no doubt is capable of some incredible things,” she says respectfully. “You know, sitting in the back and watching you fighting Kelcey, watching you give her everything you had, watching you push her to the limit and watching her make every excuse that she could make for not being able to take you out like she thought she would, was inspirational. I love seeing that from people. I love seeing them shatter the preconceived perceptions that other people have. I love seeing them grabbing hold of an opportunity with both hands and making the absolute best of it. And that’s what you did a few weeks ago, girl. You stood up and you told the world that you were going to take it to your friend and prove to her what she was doing was wrong and you did exactly that, and you earned the respect of EVERYONE who saw that match. You’re on a whole new playing field now, and after everything you’ve been through it’s fantastic to see you here. You’ve earned your way here, and I can’t wait to see where else you’re going to go because when I think about the future of Shaya Blackley I can’t help but see excitement. I can’t help but see the challenge you’re going to bring to everyone! But that’s where you and I have a little too much in common…”

She pauses for a moment before laughing a little apologetically. “You see I hope that I’m right about you. I hope that we share the values I think we do. I hope that you’re the kind of person that I’ve seen, and that you’re not like so many others who’ll take whatever shortcut they can for an easy road. I hope that you’re a warrior and a fighter. I don’t think there’s any doubt however that you’re looking to build on what happened two weeks ago. I don’t think there’s any doubt that you’re hoping to build momentum, that you’re hoping to find a new path, that you’re hoping to head toward Rise to Greatness with so much momentum behind you, but like I said that’s where we have a little too much in common because right now I want all of that as well. You’ve got a point to prove to the world. So do I. And right now sweetie you’re another obstacle in my way, you’re another challenge I have to rise to this week, and if I’m going to get to where I want to be then I’m not going to let anything stop me, I hope you understand that,” she says respectfully and again apologetically. “The fact is that heading into this week I need this win, I need the momentum, and I have to prove that even after all the setbacks, even after all the frustration, I can still get in that ring with anyone and succeed! So as much as I respect you, as much as I remember being where I imagine you are today and as excited as I am for your future, right now the more important thing to me is my own.”

“This week what I see in front of me is the woman who took it to ‘perfection’ and walked out the other side with her head held high. This week what I see in front of me is a star on the rise. And that means what I have in front of me in Detroit is a challenge to overcome, and that’s exactly what I’m planning to do,” she says with a nod and another smile. “Time after time just recently I’ve pushed myself as hard as I could only to come up short, and only to find myself disappointed, and I may have fallen but if there’s one thing you can guarantee about me it’s that I don’t stay down for long. At Taking Hold of the Flame I came within seconds of getting what I wanted for the second time in two months and I won’t let that happen to me again! So this week I’m going to get into that ring and you and me, Shaya, are going to go to war. We’re going to give each other everything we have. We’re going to put on a show for the world to see. And what I hope we’re going to prove to everyone watching is that passion, commitment and pride is what brings warriors like us to that ring, but when it’s all over with there’s only one result I can settle for and that’s me standing in that ring with my hand raised. I need it. I know you need it to. I know you’ve had years of frustration. And I honestly believe everything I said about your future, but what I believe in even more is my present.”

“This week there’s going to be action. This week there’s going to be excitement. And I have no doubt at all that this week there’s going to be controversy, because there always is. There are always going to be people who try and take the easy road. There are always going to be people who think the ends justify the means. There’s always going to be people who’d rather drag others down than rise up themselves. And the path to Rise to Greatness brings out more of those people than at any other time. Now this year I won’t be in the main event, this year I won’t be fighting for a championship, but you better believe I’ll be giving my all then, I’ll giving my all tomorrow, and I’ll be giving my all every other damn day that I’m in that ring,” she says with determination and pride. “Some of you guys don’t like me. Some of you want to bring me down. But you should know by now that there’s nothing you can say that will hurt me and there’s nothing you can do that will stop me trying to get back to where I was. I meant it when I said it before; I mean it when I say it now. The line starts here and if you want to test that I’m never hard to find. This week it’s Syren vs. Shaya Blackley and we may have some things in common or we may be very different people but there’s one thing of which you can guarantee: come Breakdown I’m going to stand in front of a sold out Palace of Auburn Hills, I’m going to STAND TALL, and I’m going to fight to prove myself again, and if you’ve got something to say about that then step up and say it, or BE TOTALLY JEALOUS!”

She kisses the tips of her fingers and blows the kiss at the camera before the scene fades out and the video ends with the replay button flashing up on the screen.