A/N: Hello everyone, this is my very first AEW story. I've been following them since Double or Nothing PPV, so still pretty new to the company; but everything I've seen so far has been great. This idea has been forming for a little while now, so I decided that it was time to put it out to the world. I hope you all enjoy, R&R.

Chapter 1:

Butterflies

Karina

Sitting on the edge of an equipment case, I fumbled with my fingers trying to get feeling back into them. Nerves were settling in and you would think that being a former pro-wrestler that those butterflies wouldn't have an effect on me; but they sure as hell still did. This was my first show in front of a large crowd, showcasing my other talents. My voice.

Every now and then I got the itch to step back into the ring; however, those have gotten few are far between anymore. My focus was on my new career and opening up for the band Bad Wolves was a good boost to my confidence.

"Karina, we go on in ten." The sound tech guy announced.

"Thanks." I replied with a wave of my hand.

Jumping down from the case, I walked towards the stage. My long aquamarine colored hair swayed across the middle of my back as I walked. My blue eyes met those of my band mates. Jayson, Nick, Hayley and of course my co-singer Landon. They were stoked to have this opportunity to show the world exactly what we were capable of doing on a larger stage.

The lights dimmed down, Nick and Jayson stepped through the curtain first with their guitar and bass. The first strum against the strings got the crowd alert and waiting. Hayley was next with drum sticks in hand. The spotlight hit her directly and within seconds the trio started to create the music needed to bring life to our opening song.

"What's up, Tampa!" I yelled into the microphone.

Landon tightened his grip on his own microphone before bellowing the words to the first verse in deep grows and screams. It was my turn, we walked passed each other across the large stage. I crept down low, touching the hands of the fans in the front. My voice echoed outward. A smile appeared on my face as I got into my groove.

"Rise above the pain

Rise above the sorrow

Stand firm

Never let go of the light

Rise

Rise!"

I held the last word in a scream that I don't use often, strictly because I know it's terrible on the vocal cords. The fans cheered loudly, which was a good indication that they enjoyed the song and it just got better from there. Every song we did after the first just created more buzz. I watched the people as closely as I could, soaking in the feeling of their admiration.

Sitting the next song out, letting Landon take complete control of the vocal duties I took a long drink from my bottle of water. Looking up at the V.I.P section, I could see people talking and pointing down at us. Squinting my eyes a little, I could see Cody Rhodes and his wife Brandi watching with three other guys I couldn't make out.

It wasn't uncommon for people of their stature to go to shows like this; but AEW's forerunner was like a one in a million shot and yet, here they were. I knew they were quickly rising in the wrestling world. The one company that could give WWE a run for their money and somehow I got a sudden satisfaction out of it considering how I ended my career in wrestling.

Landon signaled for me to come back onto the stage for our last song. I looked back up at them one more time only for another set of eyes to capture mine. I still couldn't make out who he was; but I felt like his gaze was purely out of curiosity.

Kenny

"We should try and book them for Fyter Fest." I said with a bit of humor in my voice.

"If they are within the budget, be my guest." Cody replied sitting back down in his chair next to Brandi.

"How are you gonna get backstage?" Nick, the youngest of the two Jackson brothers, asked.

That was a good question. I'm sure Cody could through his weight around a little bit to get us back there. Turning my head, from them I could see aquamarine locks swirling around her head as she got the crowd more enthusiastic about their music. From what I could see up here, she was probably around 5'5 or 5'6 in height. She wore low rise jeans with tears across the thighs and a black tank with angel wings curled around her ribs.

After their final song was over, Cody and I walked out of V.I.P area and made our way backstage. There was security all over the place and of course we were stopped. "Do you have a pass?" One guard asked.

"No; but we are from AEW and were looking to speak with Celestial about a possible booking." Cody explained, holding up his business card.

"Wait here."

Cody nodded and gave my ribs a little nudge with his elbow. Ignoring his gesture, I ran a hand over the top of my head moving my hair back in the process. This was such a spur of the moment decision and I honestly had no idea why I even suggested it; but seeing the way she poured her heart out to the crowd just made me think of all the reasons we created AEW in the first place.

The sound of heels clicking against the tiled floor alerted us. I looked up to meet the gaze of the woman herself. To be honest, I fully expected a manager to greet us not one of the singers.

"I heard you wanted to speak about a possible booking, so my question to you is...why does AEW want to book Celestial?" She said softly.

Now that was surprising, she knew what company we were from. I supposed our names were out there now and what we were trying to create. Her blue eyes searched mine for an answer; but all it did was suck the words right out of my mouth. She was beautiful and not an extreme kind of way. It was a natural beautiful that didn't need any extras. "So you know who we are then?" Cody asked taking control of the situation.

"I'm very familiar with you and your family. You're father helped develop my character in NXT."

"So you were a wrestler? What's your name?" I asked, finally getting my words back.

"I was, yes. My name is Karina Dawson."

Dawson. Dawson. Why did that name sound familiar? Thinking back on every article I've ever read on the WWE and that's when it hit me. She was the woman the company royally screwed over. They released her after coming back from an injury and after spending months revamping her character at the performance center with Cody's father Dusty. "You're the one they fucked over after spending months of wasted time repackaging your character only for them to release you a week later." I said, allowing the solemn nature to take over.

"The one in the same." She replied, tucking a chunk of her hair behind her ear.

"If you ever get the need to get back in the ring, we could give you a try out." Cody offered.

"I'm fine; but you'd be the first to know if I ever decide that. Now, about the booking…"

Cody and I filled her in with what we were looking for when it came to Fyter Fest. As we talked, I could see the light in her eyes get brighter. Her passion for wrestling was coming back, though I doubt she wanted anyone to know that. She leaned back on the wall behind her, placing the heel of her right shoe against the place where the floor meets the wall.

Karina

Butterflies fluttered in my stomach as they spoke about the event they wanted to book us for. It had been a long time since I got the itch to wrestle again. I could hear everything Cody was saying; but my eyes were locked with the other guy next to him. Knowing exactly who he was made them flutter even more intensely. Kenny Omega was standing right in front of me. He was a wrestling legend in Japan and any aspiring wrestler would know who he was.

Of course, the fact that he was pleasing to the eye just added to my desire to see what this company was all about.

"Alright, you've convinced me. We will play at Fyter Fest." I said with a smile.

"Awesome!" Kenny said pressing both his hands together, gripping them tightly.

I let out a soft giggle at his enthusiasm. It was actually quite adorable. Cody simply rolled his eyes and proceeded to exchange contact information with me. Landon turned the corner and approached me. He was curious as to what was taking me so long. "Got us another booking." I said with excitement.

"Really? Where?" Landon asked, looking to meet the two men from AEW.

"The Ocean Center in Daytona Beach, Florida." I replied handing him the card Cody had given me.

Landon scanned it for a second before he realized just what we were doing and then his excitement vanished. He stared directly at me with a harshness that I hadn't expected. Kenny and Cody remained silent. They simply watched as Landon just walked away without another word. I excused myself from their company and followed after him. "Wait!" I called after.

"What the hell was that about?" He snapped.

"I got us another gig. I didn't see the harm." I replied taken aback by his tone of voice.

"With a wrestling company! We all know your history, Karina! We just got our feet off the ground and now you want to go back to your old life."

"That's not what I'm doing! Why would it matter if I wrestled again anyway?"

"I'm not even going to answer that…"

Landon continued on towards the dressing room we shared. I was left alone in the hallway, holding the AEW business card. Brushing my thumb across the plastic coating, my eyes closed forcing myself to stay calm. Everything would work exactly how it was meant to and I had to believe that or I'd go crazy otherwise.

Slowly making my way to the dressing room, the tension was thick and everyone could tell that there was something wrong. "What is going on?" Hayley asked pulling her chestnut brown hair up into a ponytail.

"Miss former wrestler booked us at a AEW PPV, which if you guys didn't know, is a wrestling company." Landon announced, stuffing his clothes into his bag.

"They are probably going to pay us pretty nicely, what's the issue Lan?" Jayson asked, buttoning up his shirt.

"Don't you see what's going on? If Karina gets a taste for wrestling again, she will leave us hanging just when we finally got our feet off the ground."

I clenched my hands at my sides into tight fists. If there was one thing I hated, it was people assuming things about me without actual facts. Jayson, Nick and Hayley looked at me. They were looking for some kind of confirmation, and I just couldn't guarantee that I wouldn't want to wrestle again after seeing this company for myself.

"Even if I did decide to wrestle again, music is important to me too. I'm not saying that I will go back to my old life; but if I did, I could do both."

Landon let his arms fly up in the air as if that was a confirmation of my departure. Jayson placed a hand on his shoulder and all he did was shrug it off. He stormed off, leaving us high and dry. "I'm sorry, I was just trying to get us more attention." I apologized.

"Don't worry about it. We will follow you with or without Landon." Nick stated, pulling me into a tight hug.

"Thank you."