[Mark Ward]

 Post all roleplays here.
Limit: 1 per week

Good luck!

[Andrew]

 THIS WILL BE ANOTHER SUCCESSFUL INTO THE VOID FOR JAMES TUSCINI

Narrator: This is shaping up to be another successful Into The Void for James Tuscini. As a reminder of what happened last year at Into The Void V, on June 5, 2016, James successfully defended the Roulette Championship against Steve Ramone, Ryan Keys, and Matt Spears. You know the saying “killing two birds with one stone” right? At Into The Void V James Tuscini figuratively “killed three birds with one stone” so there is no reason for anyone to doubt that James will repeat his “killing three birds with one stone” by defeating Ryan Keys, Kris Halc, and Steve Ramone, to regain the Roulette Title Belt at Into The Void VI.

We are taken to an undisclosed location. When the scene comes into focus we can see there is a wrestling ring set up along with workout equipment so we make the assumption we are in a Gym probably located somewhere in New York. The cameraman pans around until he stops on James Tuscini. James is working on the weights and he stops to talk to the viewers. We notice James is wearing black shorts, black athletic shoes, and a plain white crew neck tee shirt.

James:  As we head for Into The Void VI everyone needs to know that I’ll be successful at Into The Void VI as I was in 2016 at Into The Void V. At last year’s Into The Void I went into the match as Sin City Wrestling Roulette Champion and I successfully defended the Roulette Title Belt against Matt Spears, Ryan Keys, and Steve Ramone. It was a sweet victory and it proved to the world I’m Champion quality material and a fighting Champion. With that success, and many more, which lead me to become the 3rd longest-reigning Roulette Champion in Sin City Wrestling history, there’s nobody who can doubt that I’ll be successful on the evening of Sunday, May 14, 2017. At this event Ryan Keys defends the Roulette Championship in a four-wrestler match that includes Steve Ramone, Kris Halc, and me. Although we will not know what the rules and stipulations of the match will be until the Roulette Wheel spins I assure you that I’ll walk into this match as Challenger for the Roulette Championship and I’ll walk out of the match as a three-time Roulette Champion. It doesn’t matter what match type and stipulations the Roulette Wheel lands on. It can land on anything from Standard Rules to No Disqualification to Extreme Hardcore to Pinfalls Count Anywhere to F*ck a Camel until his hump melts, or anything else you can imagine, and I’m in this match to win. I will out-wrestle, out-fight, out-smart, and out vicious, Keys, Halc, and Ramone. I wouldn’t be sitting here with a win-loss record of 4-0 against Keys and 3-1-1 against Ramone, and hold the distinction of being a two-time Roulette Champion, if I couldn’t back up my claims. As I mentioned previously if you don’t believe me then please bet money on my opponents from here until the end of 2017. I promise if you bet on me to win you’ll have more money from betting on me than you will if you waste your money betting on my opponents.

Pinky del Ferrando enters the Gym. He walks over to where James is talking into the camera.

Pinky:  I finally made it James. Traffic was awful. Are you ready for me to jump into the conversation?

James:  Of course but I want to towel off and drink some water first. If you  get set up at the announcers table by the wrestling ring I’ll be there in a moment.

While James gets a towel to dry off, and a drink of water, Pinky walks over to the announcers table near the wrestling ring. Pinky takes a seat in one of the two chairs available. James arrives shortly after Pinky takes his seat and he sits in the vacant chair.

ENIGMA, THORN IN YOUR SIDE, PAIN IN YOUR ASS, UP SHIT CREEK WITHOUT A PADDLE

When the cameraman informs James and Pinky he is ready to air their comments they look into the camera and begin.

James:  Before I go into specifics on my match at Into The Void VI please allow me to comment on the recent official announcement of the Stable named Blood Legion. This Stable consists of two sub-Stables. We have The Fallen consisting of Gothika, Diamond, Darknyss, and Raynin. We have R.O.A.R. Consisting of Dark Tiger, Big Tiger Jeremiah Hardin, Dmitri, Pinky del Ferrando, and of course me.

Pinky:  If the Mean Girls think they are the “IT” thing in Sin City Wrestling they are sadly mistaken. The new dominate female force in the Federation is The Fallen faction of the Blood Legion Stable. And the Bad Boys think their shit don’t stink but those of us in the R.O.A.R. faction of Blood Legion are here to tell you that your shit stinks, you guys need to change your diapers, and we are here to kick the shit out of you and anyone else who gets in our way or thinks they want a piece of us.

James:  Yeah they thought that interfering in the our Tag Team match with The Elders was amusing but what they did was whack the Hornets’ nest and the Hornets are out in force to sting them out of existence.

Pinky:  I plan on being at Dmitri’s match to ensure the Bad Boys don’t decide to show up and screw around with his match again. Some people feel they can do whatever they want just because they want to do it. You keep up with that nonsense and you’re gonna find out that the shit is getting real. We will dish it back to you double what you dish out to us.

James:  Uncle I’m gonna have the Network run a short clip of something that happened when Gothika was introducing the members of Blood Legion at Climax Control 179.

The Network runs the clip where Gothika is talking to Sin City Wrestling Interviewer, Pussy Willow, when she notices Dmitri and love was in the air.

At that moment, Gothika stops and sniffs the air turning away from Pussy Willow and looking down the hallway. A grin breaks onto her face and she whispers a single word.

Gothika: Dmitri!

The camera turns to follow her gaze and Dmitri walks around the corner at the end of the hall with James Tuscini and his Uncle Pinky. They have a serious look on their faces but Dmitri sniffs the air and a smile hits his face as he looks over to where Gothika is standing. He picks up the pace and after only a few moments he grabs her, kissing her as he lifts her off of her feet. Pussy Willow watches and starts to fan herself off as she feels the heat of their passion.

Pussy Willow:  DAMN!! I wish someone would kiss me like that!

Pinky clears his throat and steps forward with his arms open but Pussy makes a disgusted face and steps back, holding her hand up in his face.

Pussy Willow: Eww!! Not you!!

The clip from Climax Control 179 is over and the Network returns the feed to the cameraman who is with James Tuscini and Pinky del Ferrando.

James:  HAR HAR HAR!!! You’re a dirty old man Uncle! You snagged onto Pussy Willow’s statement and went in for the kill. Her reaction made your winky wilt! HAR HAR HAR!

Pinky:  Everyone can laugh about that incident if they want. The fact remains that Pussy Willow lost out on a fantastic experience!

James:  Glad you were able to make me laugh. Now to get into the real reason we are before the camera and that is to discuss my upcoming match at Into The Void VI. My opponents need to know what’s going on and we are here to explain that to them.  I would describe myself as an enigma. At least I’m sure that’s what my opponents must think. An enigma is something that is difficult to understand and explain. Steve Ramone and Ryan Keys are the two wrestlers in Sin City Wrestling who, even combined, have only ONE win over me. Against Ryan Keys I’m 4-0 and against Steve Ramone I’m 3-1-1. Think hard about that. I’m the wrestler who Ramone and Keys, and others in Sin City Wrestling, claim is washed up, over the hill, and can’t win wrestling matches. But here I am with a combined win-loss record against Ryan Keys and Steve Ramone of 7-1-1. Oh golly gee for a wrestler who everyone claims cannot win matches I’m damn sure doing a fantastic job winning matches. That’s what being an enigma is about. Are you listening Kris? You’ll find out on May 14, 2017, that this Enigma will confound and confuse you as I win the match, and the Roulette Championship, while you go home as an empty-handed loser.

Pinky:  Both myself and James are also what you call a “thorn in your side.” The definition of a thorn in your side is something or someone that causes you trouble or makes it difficult for you. James is the thorn in the side for Ryan Keys and Steve Ramone as he has made it extremely difficult for them to defeat him. I’m the thorn in the side of others, such as Managers, valets, and goon bodyguards, as they’re finding out that I’ll kick their sorry asses in a flash if they try to attack us or interfere in James’ matches. Kris although you lay claim to defeating James Tuscini two times the facts tell the truth and they betray and debunk your claims. You never had a Singles match with James. Both matches were Tag Team events. In the first one you and Jason forced a double disqualification as you were losing to James and Dmitri. In the second Tag Team match Jason had to pin James by cheating and grabbing his wrestling trunks. Yeah that should make you feel so proud of yourself. Get ready to feel the pain of the thorn in your side called James Tuscini when he defeats you in this upcoming match.

James:  The next term that describes us to others is we are a “pain in your ass.” The dictionary definition of pain in the ass is a person or thing that is annoying or inconvenient. That description fits me and Pinky nicely. We’re annoying in that you cannot defeat me and you cannot interfere in my matches or attack us before, during, or after a match, because Pinky will beat you down so hard you will need the Hubble Space Telescope just to see up to ground level. Are we also an inconvenience to you three? Hell yeah! It is inconvenient to Keys and Ramone that they cannot defeat me. It will be inconvenient when Kris Halc realizes he cannot defeat me. And yes, it is inconvenient to the three of them that they are not able to get away with cheating and interference in an attempt to screw me out of a legal win because Pinky will destroy them if they try.

Pinky:  The description we give you now, and this is one of my favorites, is that James’ opponents Ryan Keys, Kris Halc, and Steve Ramone, are “UP SHIT CREEK WITHOUT A PADDLE.”  What this means is that you are in dire circumstances with no hope of help and no easy way out. You three are literally “Up Shit Creek Without A Paddle.” Think of the mental image. You are lost in a rowboat in a remote area of Shit Creek. Your paddles are gone. There are no people around for miles. You’re literally in dire circumstances with no hope of help and no easy way to get out of the situation. What are your choices? You can sit there and do nothing until you die of exposure and starvation. You can reach down into the water with your hands to use them like paddles but all you accomplish by doing that is to move the boat very slowly and you get shit covered hands. The last resort is to abandon the  rowboat by diving into the shit and swimming for help. I couldn’t begin to imagine someone so damn desperate that they would do that. They probably wouldn’t get far before drowning in the shit. But that is how you three must feel. Keys cannot defeat James as he has proven four times. Ramone has defeated James one time but that was out of five matches. Kris Halc seems to think he’s Superman and he’s invincible. Superman thought that too but when exposed to Kryptonite he became helpless. Kris please allow me to introduce to you James “Kryptonite” Tuscini who will render you helpless in this match.

James and Pinky stand up from the announcers table. They walk to the ringside area and stand about 10 feet apart facing each other. They cheer the fact that James is about to become a three-time Roulette Champion at Into The Void VI, then they stare at each other, both let out a grunt, then they charge each other and smack their chests together. James and Pink rebound from the chest bump and both start pounding their chests and whooping it up. The cameraman informs James and Pinky that the Network is going to run a few minutes of commercials before they come back to the live broadcast. When we return they are sitting on a bench on the side of the Gym.

James:  Gentlemen...no wait that’s not a proper term to use against Ryan Keys, Steve Ramone, and Kris Halc. Guys...uh, no, that’s still too mature a term for my weak opponents. Boys...yeah that’s  more appropriate to address them. I want the three of you to realize that although you make bold claims of being able to defeat me only Steve Ramone has a valid Singles win over me. A Tag Team win, as what Kris Halc laid claim to, doesn’t enter into the equation since it wasn’t Kris who put the illegal pin on me it was Jason. That would be like me making a comment to the Tag Team opponent that Dmitri pinned and me claiming a personal Singles victory over them. Nah it don’t work that way Kris. I’m going to have the Network run a short video clip to give you a visual on how pathetic Keys and Ramone have been in trying to defeat me. And, Kris, when I defeat all three of you at Into The Void VI you will be included as one of those who failed to get the job done against me. The video needs no introduction because the three of you already know the story being told in the video. Just as this self-proclaimed “genius” promised to get the job done he failed over and over and over again to where his name is synonymous with failure. Could you run the video clip please?

Epic Fails

The video clip runs and we see a collage of epic failures of Wile E. Coyote in his attempt to defeat the Roadrunner. Time after time after time he claims to be a genius, and he claims time after time after time that he will surely be successful this time, and yet he fails again and again and again. The video clip ends and we return to James and Pinky at the Gym.

Pinky:  I never get tired of watching the so-called genius, Wile E. Coyote, attempt 1,001 things to try to defeat the Roadrunner and he fails every time. Ryan, Kris, Steve, you have seen in the cartoons where the Coyote shows you his business card and it reads ”Wile E. Coyote – Genius” so I thought I’d present to you business cards I’m gonna make for each of you. Here’s my concepts on those business cards. Ryan Keys – Four-time failure trying to defeat James Tuscini.”  And you Steve? Steve Ramone – Claims James Tuscini cannot defeat him but he lost to James Tuscini three times in five matches with only one win and one draw.”  And then we come to Kris Halc the person who lays claim to personally defeating James Tuscini two times even though both were Tag Team matches. Before I show you the business card information I came up with for you, Kris, remember that you only had two Tag Team matches involving James Tuscini. In one match you forced a double disqualification draw and in the other Jason pinned James but only by cheating. Sure boggles my mind that you can lay claim to two personal Singles wins over a wrestler you’ve never faced in Singles competition. Your business card should read: ”Kris Halc – Professional braggart making claims of defeating someone he never did and he will not be able to back it up against James Tuscini.”

James:  I’ve mentioned numerous times, only because it’s fun to be able to brag about actual accomplishments, instead of hallucinations like Kris Halc does, that I’m 4-0-0 against Ryan Keys and 3-1-1 against Steve Ramone. That’s a whopping 7-1-1 win-loss record and that is forever in the history books as my accomplishments. When I defeat Keys, Ramone, and Halc, at Into The Void VI, I will improve my win-loss record to 8-1-1. Sure sucks to be you three as you three only drive your win-loss record, against me, to depths so low that sunlight cannot reach your location.

Pinky:  If you three are breathing a sigh of relief in hopes that we are done telling everyone the facts, the truths, and humiliating you in the process, you are wrong, dead wrong. We’re not done humiliating you yet.

James:  As you’ve seen in my numerous matches against Keys and Ramone that even though there is often interference in the match, a bribe to the Referee to call the match against me, attacks on me and Pinky before, during, and after the match, I’m still 7-1-1 combined against Ramone and Keys. What in the hell does that tell you? It tells you I know how far you can go before you crap out. I know your limits. I know how close to the line I can go with you to where you are so damn pissed off you want to kill me and yet you are helpless to move an inch over the line to try to get the job done.

Pinky: So, as we did with the Coyote versus the Roadrunner video clip, we will now present you with another video clip showing how we have you on a limit on how far we will let you go until you are helpless to cross the line to cause damage to James. This video also needs no introduction as the three of you are very familiar with the characters in this video clip. Could you run the video clip please?

Know Your Limits

The video clip begins and we see the loud obnoxious Rooster named Foghorn Leghorn. We see him walk across the ROPE LINE to where the dog guarding the property resides in his dog house. In typical Foghorn Leghorn style he walks up to the dog, who is sleeping in his doghouse, and he grabs him by the tail lifting his ass into the air. Foghorn Leghorn then whacks the dog in the ass with a board, drops the dog, and runs until he crosses a few inches over the ROPE LINE. The dog is so pissed off, and also so stupid, that he forgot he has a rope attached to his collar. When the dog runs full-speed toward Foghorn Leghorn, with every intention of destroying him and having chicken dinner tonight, the rope becomes taut and the dog comes to an abrupt halt. Although the video cuts off at that point what usually happens in this situation is that the dog gets up after nearly breaking his neck and he continue barking. That’s usually when Foghorn Leghorn tells the dog to SHUT UP! and then he slaps the dog across the face. The dog, still not understanding he’s tied to a rope that keeps him in check, continues to bark and claw at Foghorn Leghorn to no avail as he has reached his rope limit. We return to Pinky and James in the Gym.

Pinky:  Har har har! You three are like that dumb ass dog! You have a rope limit as that dog does. James, who is represented by Foghorn Leghorn, knows your limits and he will make you pay for thinking you can go beyond those limits. Maybe the three of you are hoping that having the other wrestlers involved in the match will make it easier for you to obtain the win. Since we don’t know yet if this match will be an elimination type of Four Way match or if it will be one of those Four Way matches where the wrestler who gets the first pinfall or submission is the winner and Roulette Champion we have to wait and see. However, as previously mentioned, James is going to win no matter what the type of match and stipulations are. Even if the Roulette Wheel landed on a match type and stipulations that you three are free to do whatever you want, and James had to wrestle with one arm tied behind his back, with shackles on his legs, and wearing a blindfold, he would still kick your ass like Foghorn Leghorn does to that stupid dog and prevent you from defeating him as the Roadrunner always prevents the Coyote from becoming successful in that endeavor.

James:  In the case of Ryan Keys and Steve Ramone you have no room to complain and whine about anything. You have no room to brag how great you are against me as my 7-1-1 record over you two speaks for itself. As for Kris Halc I can understand your bragging. Apparently being under the thumb of your brother, and having him bitch you out, demean you, and blame you for everything wrong that happened with your Tag Team and your lives, is enough to drive someone to want to be a braggart and make false claims. The fact remains that this is the first time you have to face me in a non-Tag Team match. I already know that since this is not a one-on-one Singles match, as it is a Four Way match, that when I win you will whine, bitch, moan, complain, and tell the world how unfair it was to have other wrestlers involved in the match. You will also then make another false claim that had it been just you and me you would have won. Kris I understand how you must feel with you being the reason you and your brother were not more successful in Tag Team competition. So here’s my promise to you. When I defeat you three at Into The Void VI, and I become a three-time Roulette Champion, I will ask Management to allow me to defend the Roulette Championship against you, one-one-one, in a Singles match. Why would I offer that to you Kris? Because when I win at Into The Void VI then I will have the valid claim of having defeated Ryan Keys FIVE times, and since Ryan Keys lost to me five times I don’t feel Keys should be rewarded with a re-match against me. Same with Ramone. With my win at Into The Void VI I can lay claim to a record of 4-1-1 against Ramone so why in the hell should he get another shot when he failed again? But you? I want to humor you. I want to help you get out from under your brother’s shadow. I’m willing to give you a one-on-one shot at me and the Roulette Title Belt as soon after I win it, for the third time, as possible for Management to arrange. Then, Kris, when I beat your ass and defeat you in a one-on-one Singles match, I can lay claim to have defeated you two times. That sure will boost my ego but it will flush your ego down the toilet.

Pinky:  We can’t inform and warn everyone more than we have. Whatever happens to you from this point forward is your fault. See you at Into The Void VI.

The two stand up from the bench and walk toward the exit door. Just as the reach for the handle to open and door and exit the Gym the cameraman cuts his feed and our screen goes black.

[Steve Ramone]

 RP Title: “Justice in my home city!”

Steve’s terrible month continued at Climax Control where he lost the match to Kris Halc but the outcome of that match didn’t affect the men’s Roulette Title Match at Into the Void as the match would be made official later that night as Ryan’s first defense of the Roulette Title was set to take place in a Fatal Four Way Roulette Rules Match pitting him against Steve, Kris and James Tuscini, after the month he’s had Steve could use another title reign to turn things around but can he win?

The home of Corey Steele, Queens, New York
Saturday the 6th of May 2017, 11:00am

What? Did you expect me to stay in a hotel during my return to my home city?

Granted the house I had during my GWA days is no longer under my ownership, I sold it to afford the house in Vegas that is currently owned by my ex-wife back when I was signed to SCW in 2013, but I still have relatives in Queens, like my brother in law Corey  and my pregnant sister Sara, they had moved to a larger house because of the fact that they were expecting a baby but since they had yet to start work on their baby’s room they have enough room for the five of us.

No, me and Kaylee aren’t sharing the room that will inevitably be occupied by my niece/nephew, we agreed that, even though the baby won’t be born until next April, it would be creepy for me to make out with my porn star of a fiancé in a room that will be home to their kid, instead that room is being occupied by Cyrus.

Off course, there is a catch to this as Corey only agreed to let me stay with them if I let him train me for my match against James Tuscini, Ryan Keys and Kris Halc at Into the Void VI and since I need all the help I can get for this match I agreed and have been spending the past week or so training at Corey’s wrestling school and whilst it hasn’t made him as much money as it did when he was wrestling twelve years ago it still allowed him to afford this house.

Okay, Sara having a quote unquote “real job” these days helps too but you get my meaning!

“Anything good on TV?” I looked up and saw my brother-in law standing by the doorway with a can of coke in his hands, me, Kaylee, Cyrus and Andreas were sitting on the couch watching TV but we were channel surfing at the moment.

“Law & Order reruns from all three series, old episodes of MasterChef, the news and SCW reruns.” I responded as I turned to him and Corey sat down next to Andreas. “In other words, more evidence as to why I prefer the internet to TV.”

“Yeah, I here you but we have to use Cable TV sometime since Sara’s job is paying for it.” Corey responded with a shrug and we nodded in response. “Speaking of which, she called me a couple of minutes ago and suggested that we get Chinese Takeout for tonight’s dinner.”

“Are you sure that’s not her cravings talking?” Kaylee joked getting a laugh out of Corey. “Seriously though, the last time we ordered Chinese back in Vegas we got enough food to feed a small African village.”

“That place is notorious for its portion sizes to be fair.” Cyrus commented and Corey shook his head. “And Steve didn’t exactly help by basically saying “order everything on the menu and charge it to Mark Ward’s credit card”.”

“You didn’t actually do that, right?” Corey asked with a bemused look on his face and I shook my head.

“I was joking and if I did do that I’m pretty sure that I would’ve been fired the moment he found out.” I responded as I shook my head. “Seriously though, I’d rather have a pizza in all honesty.”

“Small problem with that, there aren’t any pizza places on the way back from her workplace.” Corey responded with a frown on his face. “Meaning that if you want to get pizza you’ll have to order Dominos or some other chain place.”

“There aren’t any pizza places near here?” Andreas asked as he turned to Corey. “I thought New York was famous for that.”

“Among many other things, yeah, problem is that the nearest non-chain pizza place costs an arm and a leg and I remember you saying that your next payday isn’t until after Into the Void VI.” Corey commented and I frowned in response. “Don’t worry, the portion sizes from this Chinese Food Place aren’t enough to feed an African Village.”

“Fine, Chinese it is.” I conceded defeat and Corey nodded before standing up and walking off, I noticed him getting his phone out and realized that he was probably calling up Sara to let her know about our decision. “Can’t believe we’re having a discussion like this during the lead-up to my big homecoming match in two weeks!”

“Steve, you’ve been training with Corey all week and you’re only getting weekends off because Into the Void VI is happening on a weekend.” Kaylee pointed out as she folded her arms. “This was kind of inevitable, that’s all I’m saying.”

“I know but I want to be completely focused on this match.” I responded with a frown before taking a sip from the drink I had sitting on the tea table. “The debate between Chinese or Pizza for dinner should be the last thing on my mind!”

“You could’ve just said “yes” to getting Dominos.” Cyrus pointed out and I glared at him.

“I refuse to get chain restaurant pizza in a city full to the brim with independent pizza parlors.” I responded simply and Cyrus nodded in admission. “And I swear, before the Supercard period is up I’m taking you guys to me and Corey’s favorite pizza place back when we were training.”

“I might have to join you for that.” Corey chimed in and I grinned in response.

“That does sound good.” Cyrus commented before getting his phone out. “Well, since there’s nothing else to do, anyone up for a Pokehunt?”

“Wasn’t there something about an influx of Grass Type Pokemon happening this weekend? Because if that’s the case I’ll finally be able to evolve my Bulbasaur and Chicorita.” Kaylee responded with a grin on her face before they turned to me. “Are you coming Steve?”

“I’ll catch up with you guys, I’ve got a promo to do.” I responded and they nodded in response before they left the house, as I stood up to go out back for my promo Corey cleared his throat.

“Steve, don’t you think it’s time you retired?” Corey asked and I turned to him. “I’ve watched your recent matches and to put it kindly, you’re not moving the way you used to.”

“Corey, I’m 29 years old, AP Feight was even older than I am when he retired from active competition back in the GWA.” I responded with a frown as I folded my arms. “I’ll retire when I’m good and ready, I still have a few years left in me.”

“Yeah but the guy who held the GWA Airborne Championship for a long time is long gone.” Corey pointed out with a frown on his face. “Me and Sara had to retire early due to injuries and she has a real job nowadays, one that pays the bills without the possibility that she’ll cripple herself doing something that she’s done a million times before.”

“You mean the What Fear.” I realized and Corey nodded. “Nothing has gone wrong with that move since I made my debut, why would it start now?”

“I thought the same thing when I went for the move that cost me my career and look at me now.” Corey pointed out with a frown on his face. “I got lucky, I only injured my knee but what the What Fear there’s always a chance that you’ll land on your head, do you want your kids to grow up with a crippled dad?”

“If Charlotte has her way I won’t be in their lives one way or the other, her lawyers keep delaying my attempts to get custody.” I responded with an annoyed look on my face. “Look, nothing will go wrong and when I do retire it’ll be on my own terms with enough money to send my kids to college if they don’t want to take up wrestling.” I added and Corey frowned in response.

“If you say so man, go ahead and do your promo and give me a shout if you want a drink or something.” Corey responded before stepping aside to let me past, I wasn’t sure if I had won that argument but regardless I went out to the back garden to do my promo.

“Last week I was robbed yet again by biased officiating, I had the match won but the ref allowed that cheapshot to be inflicted on me and as a result what should be my one on one title opportunity against Ryan Keys has been turned into a Fatal Four Way Match with two undeserving challengers for the second Supercard in a row, only difference is that the title didn’t change hands more times than a joint in Colorado during the lead up to the show but other than that one other piece of history will repeat, namely me winning the Roulette Title again!”

You get no prizes for guessing who I’m starting with.

“Ryan, you never should’ve gotten another chance at my title in the first place, I beat you fair and square last month at Blaze of Glory but because your Christian’s boy-toy you had to have another undeserved title shot and to add to the injustice I suffered all those weeks ago I was placed in a tuxedo match against you and don’t even think about suggesting that Christian didn’t have a hand in making sure that that stipulation was stopped on! Well the injustice stops here!”

Among other things.

“Next Sunday Ryan I will defeat you again to win the Roulette Title and when I do maybe, just maybe, Christian will realize that you have no place in any title scene and should be joining the likes of Alex Rush, The Surf Boys, the Job Squad and the other SCW comedy characters that never do anything significant with their SCW careers! My only regret is that there’s two other morons in this match because otherwise I’d take great pleasure in beating Christian’s boy-toy black and blue.”

Next up is James.

“We meet again James and once again it’s for the Roulette Title, will it end the same way as when me, Ryan and some other guy challenged you at last year’s Into the Void? No, because I’ll be winning back my title and there’s nothing that you can do about it! What’s that? Pinky’s got connections to the mafia? I hope he gets whacked! What’s that? You have allies in the Hell Legion? First off that is the worst stable name I have ever heard in my wrestling career and I’ve been wrestling for ten years! Second, if they value their SCW careers they won’t interfere!”

Might be a moot point depending on what the wheel stops on!

“What I’m getting at James is that there’s no way in hell you’ll take back the Roulette Title because you’ve had too many reigns with that thing, what about me? I haven’t had enough reigns with that thing and I haven’t had a chance to have a decent reign with that thing because the bosses keep booking title defenses against underserving challengers with a lucky streak as long as the list of people Kaylee has fucked on camera and trust me, you won’t be among the lucky challengers next week James!”

Finally, is Kris.

“Why did I save Kris for last and not someone I have more history with? Because Kris is the latest in a long line of underserving challengers but in his case, he’s getting a shot because of one long tag team title reign! If I knew that it was that damn easy to get a title shot I would’ve found myself a competent partner long ago and went after the tag team titles a long time ago but since the last time I held those belts was with Joshua Acquin I’m not in a hurry to try that!”

I really hope that new Samoan Guy that Christian’s drooling over kicks Josh’s ass!

“But enough dwelling on the past, I’m looking to the future and that future features me as the first four time SCW Roulette Champion in the history of this company and from that point on that title won’t leave my grasp for a very long time, the only way I’m going to lose the SCW Roulette Championship is if I am forced to vacate it due to a sudden injury but I’m feeling fit as a fiddle which means that I won’t be losing that title any time soon once I win it and Kris, you’re just a speed bump on my road to that title!”

And with that I decided to wrap things up.

“Ryan never deserved another shot but got one anyway because Christian has the hots for him! James and Kris don’t belong in this match and frankly this should be a one on one match between me and Ryan but no, because the bosses are morons my rightful title shot is in jeopardy but don’t worry, I’ll win my title back at Into the Void and there will be justice in my home city! This message has been paid for and delivered by “The Fearless Champion” Steve Ramone, the champion the fans deserve who keeps getting screwed over by incompetent management!”

I went back in the house as the scene fades.

[Kristopher Ryans]

 

The seen opens with Kris sitting inside of the practice ring at the Jet City Sports Lab. It is no surprise that he has chosen the six-sided ring to stage his video, instead of the traditional one on the opposite end of the building.

”Steve “Half-Staff” Ramone.”

Those are the only words Kris can get out before he bursts into laughter that cuts him off. He holds up a finger to the camera, asking the viewers to just give him a second. Once composed, he tries to blow off his reaction.

”I don’t mean to laugh at you Steve, but you make it so easy. Look at how mad you were before Climax Control. You were all kinds of bent out of shape that I got added to the title picture. You even took it out on one of the backstage sluts. I mean, that part I can understand at least. I hate pretty much everyone back there other than Stoner because I’m not sure that dude even knows where he is most of the time, let alone what he is doing. Not the point though. You came in on fire. Where was that during our match?”

He pauses, and leans back in his chair as if he expects a response to come from the camera. When it does not happen after a few moments, he pushes it further.

”I told you what happened the first time we were in the ring together. It might have been a tag match a long time ago, but I walked away winning after not having even broken a sweat. Your former championship team walked away broken losers. You weren’t better than me then, and you just proved to the whole world that you aren’t better than me now. Into The Void is just two weeks removed from you tapping out like a bitch the last time we were in the ring together. What could you possibly have to say about your chances of winning the Roulette Championship? What do you think your chances are of anyone buying into anything you say? Everyone in this match has beaten you, even where the Roulette Championship is concerned. You can’t get it done with a partner. You can’t get it done by yourself. You have held this championship before, and know what it is like to prepare for whatever the wheel is going to throw at you, and you got beaten by me, the person with the least Roulette experience of all of us.”

Kris folds his arms in front of his chest, shaking his head in disappointment.

”I feel bad that they put you in this match, because even if you weren’t nursing a dick injury, you would be in over your head. You belong way down the card with your former tag buddy and the new guy. Think about where that puts you as far as Sin City Wrestling is concerned. You had been part of this company for almost a full year before I even arrived on the scene, and you are still struggling to get into the Roulette Championship picture. Do you realize how bad that looks? On the poster for this match, the veteran is the one that people are unsure even deserves a shot. Standing next to Ryan Keys and James Tuscini you look out of place. Not because you should have moved on to bigger and better things, but because people are starting to wonder how many times they have to see them beat you. Since you dropped the title to keys you have skirted a match with James, become an embarrassment to referees around the world, and gotten your ass kicked by me.”

He shrugs.

”Can you really say you did anything in the last month worth being here? Your claim to this match is a two-week title reign where SCW was on break for the first week. Even worse than that, you have lost this title to Ryan Keys twice, and another time to James Tuscini. It appears that when the people you share the ring with at Into The Void are in the mix, the Roulette Wheel is just not in your favor. However, every time I step into the ring with any of you, I can’t seem to lose.”

He uncrosses his arms and leans forward towards the camera. His voice is almost a whisper, like he is telling a secret instead of talking to the whole audience.

”You might want to tell that D-list porn star to just bite off the rest of your junk. Honestly, having to tell the world that you’re dickless would be less embarrassing than what is going to happen to you when you show up and lose this match. Just some free advice.”

He smiles widely, and winks at the camera, the feed dying just as he does.



=====================================================================
=====================================================================
=====================================================================


Off-Camera
Jet City, WA
6 May 2017
9:58 AM PDT

He is not entirely sure what shakes him from his sleep, but Kris sits up in bed panicked. Over the last couple weeks, to say that he was not sleeping well would be an understatement. The same nightmares of his life’s mistakes have not gone away, but gotten worse. The face of his adult son seemed to stalk him, even while he was awake. Heather is not at his side, and Lindsay was not in her crib, but the door to their bedroom was open. He listened carefully, to the sounds outside the room, but nearly jumps out of the bed when the man next to him starts to speak instead.

”Smells like they are making breakfast...”

Kris pushes himself off the bed on the opposite side from the man. He recognizes him immediately from his dreams. The same blonde hair peeking out from underneath the red hoodie that marked his father’s “Nobody” days. This was KJ standing in front of him, as real as anything else in the room. He was leaning against Heather’s dresser, his hands in the front pocket of the hoodie. Kris blinks a few times, shaking his head. His son was a year old, not the man in his twenties standing in front of him. However, there was no doubt in Kris’ mind who the man was. It could mean only one thing.

”I’m still asleep. You are not real. You are a baby.”

KJ thinks it over for a second before responding, since all three statements come out in a single rapid, panicked breath.

”No. Not even a little. And technically I am a toddler.”

Kris moves through the bedroom, taking a wide angle around the imaginary KJ and stepping into the bathroom of the master bedroom. He turns on the water, and cups his hands under it, splashing his face.

”You are a figment of my imagination and you will go away if I really want you to.”

Again, Kris is startled by his son’s adult voice, but this time because when he speaks, he is sitting on the bathroom counter next to the sink.

”The question is, do you really want me to...”

Kris pulls away quickly and shoots a glance back to the room where KJ was just standing. He had not seen or heard him move from that spot.

”I have no interest in talking to ghost people. You’re not real. I have more important things to do.”

KJ hops down from the counter and follows Kris back into the bedroom. Kris pulls open the doors to his closet and looks for a shirt to throw on so that he can join the rest of his real family for the breakfast that he could now smell cooking.

”Yet, I’m not the one imagining you just so that I have someone to talk to.”

He is not sure why, but that cuts right through his defenses. Kris yanks a shirt from its hanger, breaking it when he does, and then slams the door closed. He turns to his son, but before he speaks shoots a glance at the door. If Heather were to walk in and see him talking to air, there is no way she would believe that he was not back on drugs.

”I am not choosing to imagine you. I don’t even know why you are here. I have no interest in talking to you, so if you would kindly fuck off back to whatever ghost hell you are from so that I can go about my day, I would appreciate it.”

KJ gasps sarcastically and takes a step back, holding his chest like he is wounded.

”How could you say something like that to your own son?”

This is where Kris loses it, finally raising his voice.

”You’re not actually here!”

KJ’s mouth drops open, and Kris hears Heather starting to move through the house to investigate whatever it is that had her husband so riled up first thing in the morning.

”Now you’ve gone and done it...”

Kris rolls his eyes and grabs his phone off his side table just as he hears Heather coming down the hallway. He looks across the room at KJ.

”Go away….”

His son shrugs.

”You worried about her seeing me? I’m in your head dumbass. Plus, she’s not my real mom. I’m not afraid of her.”

Kris’ attention is pulled away from his son when his wife steps into the doorway. She opens her mouth to ask Kris what is wrong, but he taps his phone and shakes his head.

”Fucking people that are supposed to be building all of the storage racks at Jet City haven’t even made it in yet and they were supposed to be there two hours ago...”

Heather nods, tilting her head back towards the kitchen.

”Worry about that later. Come downstairs, the food is done, there is someone here to see you.”

Kris nods, but is not really listening. It is only after Heather turns around to head back down to the kitchen that her words register.

”Someone here to see me….?”

Heather is already out of earshot. Kris spins on his heel to search the room for any sign of the adult KJ, but is nowhere to be seen. Clearly rattled, he smacks his left cheek a couple of times for reassurance that he is awake and then heads out of the room, unsure what was waiting for him.




=====================================================================
=====================================================================
=====================================================================



”James Tuscini...”

Kris’ voice is much more flat than it was when he addressed Steve Ramone. His surroundings are different too. He has his feet up on the chair in front of him, and rows of chairs extend behind him and must be at least one fifty wide. The desk arms that raise of the side of the chairs make it easy to pick out that Kris is sitting in a college auditorium.

”Welcome to class!”

He gestures to the empty room around him.

”You know, not a particularly interesting class. Look at the size of this room. This is clearly where they bring the underclassmen to take classes that crush their soul and creative spirit. Hundreds of students. One professor that nobody gives a shit about. If you notice, I’m not the one standing up behind the podium.”

The camera turns, a cardboard cutout of James Tuscini standing behind the podium at the front of the room. Slowly, the camera rotates back to Kris.

”See, for weeks now you have taken us to the James Tuscini School of Faulty Logic. Complete with math that we never cared about or wanted to know, and a big ass scoop of self-importance. According to you, we all need to pay attention to your wins. Over the last couple of Climax Controls, you have drilled us with your record, whether it be as a tag team or in your matches against Ramone and Keys. If there is a single person that hasn’t known for at least a few weeks that your record against the other two people in this match is impressive for, I would be surprised. It is like you have one talking point that makes you look good so you have spent weeks hammering it into everyone’s head. Go watch your promo against Keys and see how many times you said it. Look back at Climax Control a few weeks ago and listen to yourself hammer that point a half dozen times.”

Kris shakes his head and does his best to stifle the laugh that tries to cut him off.

”At the same time, you want to try and discredit my place in this match. As I think I have already made clear, the only person that doesn’t deserve to be in this match is Steve. When people look at me they see that you have failed to beat me in your two chances to do so. They see a guy that has made Steve Ramone his bitch. They see a guy that beat Ryan Keys with a year of ring to deal with. You want to talk about records? I have been in a combined seven matches against the three of you. There has not been a single time where any of you have come out on top. I haven’t lost a singles match since I showed up in October. I have not been pinned. I have not tapped out. You still sure you want to push the idea that I sucked dick to get this match? I would think with a record like I have since coming back, if I were sucking dick, I would have gotten a little further up than the Roulette Championship.”

This time he cannot suppress the laugh. It takes him a couple seconds to get it together, and even when he starts speaking again, it is through the wide smile that remains on his face afterwards.

”You could fill an entire semester full of classes with just the faulty logic you have tried to sell to the fans in the time since Jet City dropped the tag team championships. The Roulette division is far from the same beast as tag team wrestling, but as far as all those opportunities you had, you failed 100% of the time. A former or current SCW Tag Team Champion, you are not. In fact, you couldn’t even follow through on your promise to be one of the final three teams in the match where Jet City lost the titles. You set the bar lower than any other team going into that match, and you still didn’t even accomplish that goal. It must disappointing to watch yourself come up short in the big situations time, after time, after time. After all, before you beat Ryan Keys a few weeks ago, you didn’t even have a claim to be in this match. You lost that to the pathetic excuse of a human being known as Xander Bishop, a man just as talentless as he was stupid. Yet, you won your match against the champion, and earned your place at Into The Void. I cannot take that away from you. What I can, and will, take away from you is any chance you have of holding the Roulette Championship until after I am done with it.”

He takes his feet off the chair in front of him and stands up, brushing at the front of his shirt so that it does not stay wrinkled from how he was sitting. Kris pushes himself from his chair, and steps into the aisle between the rows.

”Now I’m going to do the same thing to your class that you should do come time for Into The Void. Listening to you is just as much of a waste of my time as showing up for this match would be a waste of yours. Just walk away James. Walk away.”

Kris winks, turning his back to the camera and walking up the row. The camera stays focused on him until he pushes open the double doors to exit the room. As they swing closed the video cuts.


=====================================================================
=====================================================================
=====================================================================



Off-Camera
Jet City, WA
6 May 2017
10:15 AM PDT


Kris collects himself and makes his way through the hallway of his house and down the steps into the living room. He was curious as to who would show up so early to talk to him, but he knew who he really wanted it to be. At the same time, he knew that there was a slim chance that it was going to be his brother, and he should not get his hopes up just for them to be crushed. The voice that he hears as he gets to the bottom of the stairs does not belong to his brother, and is enough to raise his blood pressure.

”Everything but that hair you clearly got from your father. I almost feel bad for you kid….”

Kris’ eyes dart to his son playing with blocks in the corner of the room. It was not the adult version that was stalking him, but the one year old in the flesh. The sight would have normally warmed his heart, but the man sitting in the chair near to where he was playing was not someone that knew him well enough to show up unannounced at his house. Kris sized him up almost instantly, paying attention to the clothes that he was wearing to tell him apart from his identical counterpart.

”What makes you think that you can just show up at my house?”

Kris’ voice is low as not to startle his son, but he crosses the room with purpose. Porter stands from the chair, but barely gets up to his feet before Kris grabs him by the front of his shirt and pushes him back against the wall. Porter raises his hands, grabbing both of Kris’ wrists but not fighting back.

”Someone seems excitable this morning. Wake up on the wrong side of the bed?”

Kris freezes for a second, curious what Porter thinks that he knows. It was likely just a coincidental phrase, but the question causes Kris to look from Porter to his son. It was the opening that the relative stranger needed. He applies pressure to the sides of both of Kris’ wrists in just the right spot, and turns them, hyperextending Kris’ elbows. Kris is forced to let go of Porter’s shirt but as soon as he does, the slightly larger man releases his grip as well. Kris immediately shoves the man back against the wall.

”Why are you in my house? This is my family. You don’t know me. This is not okay.”

Porter looks down, brushing at his shirt to smooth away the wrinkles and then shooting a glance over at the door separating the living room from the kitchen.

”When your wife comes back in and sees us standing here all hostile, she is going to blame herself for letting me in, you know that right? I think it would be best for everyone if you calm down. I didn’t come here to start a problem.”

Kris looks at the door, and then back to Porter before taking a step away. Porter tries to follow him by taking a step away from the wall, but gets shoved a second time. Kris points a finger at his face as a warning, but then moves away from him and to the center of the room. Porter raises his hands, holding them up to plead his innocence and comes away from the wall when Kris is a safe distance away.

”I assume there is a reason you are here.”

Porter nods.

”Three weeks.”

Kris nods, but is not any less confused about the visit.

”Yeah. I heard. You and your brother are making your debut on Climax Control. I fail to see what that has to do with me.”

Porter reaches into his pocket and pulls out a white business card. He takes a few steps closer to Kris, his hands still raised in the air as to not spook the former drug addict. Porter holds the card between his index and middle fingers, and when he is within range, he extends the card out to Kris.

”Three weeks. That time. Be where it says. Be ready.”

Kris hesitantly takes the card from Porter’s hand and looks at it.

”What is th---”

Heather pushing through the door from the kitchen cuts off Kris’ sentence. He turns, sliding the card into his back pocket as discreetly as he can.

”Are you going to be joining us?”

Heather looks between the two of them, undoubtedly picking up on the tension in the room. Porter tries his best to break it by smiling.

”Unfortunately I have a plane to catch. I just needed to borrow him for a minute. Thank you for letting me in. You have such a lovely house.”

Heather does not quite buy the act, and shoots a curious look to Kris who shakes his head.

”It’s fine. Just work stuff.”

She nods reluctantly, and back into the kitchen, shooting Kris a look that let him know they were going to be discussing whatever this was later, and not nicely. As soon as she is back through the door, Porter smiles at Kris.

”She’s a smart one. Says a lot without saying anything at all. Why did she settle for an idiot like you?”

Kris does not even turn back to him.

”I trust you know your way out?”

Porter laughs, clapping Kris on the shoulder before heading towards the door. As he passes KJ he leans down and ruffles his hair.

”Let’s hope the smart one rubs off on you.”

Kris turns, but Porter is already back to his feet and reaching for the doorknob. He steps through it, and offers Kris another smile before pulling it closed. Kris’ gaze lingers on the door until he is sure that Porter is not coming back, and then his eyes fall to his son.

”Strange morning buddy…. Beyond strange really.”

He crosses the room and scoops up the one year old, tickling him to stop him from crying about removing him from whatever he was building with his blocks. The two head into the kitchen where the other half of their family was already waiting for them.



=====================================================================
=====================================================================
=====================================================================




”Last, but certainly not least, the man with the one thing that all of us want, Ryan Keys.”

Kris claps slowly, but it seems more genuine than sarcastic. If anything, he is just not enthused about having to say something nice about an opponent. He is leaning against the inside of a doorway. The camera is positioned in the hallway, so that the room behind him is mostly hidden by where he stands. The only thing we can see behind Kris is a window facing out towards a tall privacy fence.

”It’s been a while. It has been kind of a wild ride for the both of us, hasn’t it? I mean shortly after our match; Jet City was holding the SCW Tag Team Championships. Beating you provided the tune up I needed for that to happen. For that, first and foremost, I wanted to thank you. Your path has been interesting to say the least. In the same timeframe, you have beaten sorry ass Steve Ramone for the Roulette Championship not once, but twice. Granted, you also lost to James Tuscini which gave him a spot in this match, so you’re breaking even in my book. If I am honest, you are the only person in this match that I respect as a competitor. Six months ago, almost to the day, I told you that you were just a first step on my road to professional recovery. Back then you had lost more than you had won and were one pun about keys away from getting shit-canned. Now you are a multi-time Roulette Champion, and someone that it is still hard to say something bad about.”

This is where his demeanor changes a little. The smirk that has marked his face just before every cruel joke he has ever uttered in Sin City makes its first appearance of the night.

”But you know I’m going to, right? I can’t very well build you up and make you think that you have a chance of winning this match. Doing that might cause me to have to break a sweat at Into The Void. However, unlike Steve the reason that you’re going to lose is not because you do not belong. Unlike James, the reason you are going to lose is not because you’re not talented. No, the reason that you are going to lose is because you know that you are not the best.”

He backs up into the room, motioning for the camera to follow him. As it does, two racks of shoes covering two of the four walls of the room come into the picture.

”Even worse, you’re going to lose because you seem like a person more worried about what is in here than you are worried about what is going to happen in the ring.... ”

Kris looks up at the wall. The camera tracks his eyes, each viewer’s eyes drawn to different shoes in the display. The camera cuts back to Kris as he starts talking.

”It is a verifiable fact that I have a problem when it comes to shoes. Other than substances that I no longer care to talk about, it was where 100% of the money I made went to for a long time. Yet, you do not catch backstage clips of me debating what shoes I am going to wear. You do not see me agonizing over which ones I think Christian will like the most. That is what the SCW audience gets from you Ryan. We get a weekly dose of what is Ryan wearing. If we are really unlucky, we also get to waste our time trying to convince fans to remember Dax’s name in the process while you politely tell him and his boy band to go fuck themselves. I guess I should not say that anymore, being that they seem to have started taking my advice as of late.”

He gets off track quickly, and shakes the thought away before refocusing.

”You don’t see me talking about this kind of thing in promos, or backstage because this is the kind of thing that does not matter to SCW. What matters is wins and losses. Wins that I have. Losses that you have racked up. I win and I brag about that fact. I make sure that people know how good I am. I show them every time that I step into that ring, and then remind them of it every time they tune into see what I have to say about my next match. But like I said, you don’t concern yourself with that kind of thing. You would rather talk about what you are going to wear, as opposed to what you can do in that ring, and I already told you why that is. You know that you’re not the best that this company has to offer.”

He shrugs, not seeming remorseful at all that he has to be the one to say it.

”We had a match, and after you lost, you shrugged it off. It wasn’t your night. It was just one match. I was the better man. Those are all good things to say in the name of sportsmanship, but I get the feeling that you actually believe them. I get the idea that it does not matter to you whether you win or lose as long as people enjoyed the show. That is great, to a point. That point comes when you don’t get beat up about losing. That point comes when you don’t have that same fire to win that people see when they look at me. People know that I want to win every match that I participate in. People see me get rocked to my foundation when things do not go my way. Jet City dropped the titles, my brother left, and every fan in this company watched me have mini identity crisis because of it. On the other hand, you lose, put on a smile, and say you will get them next time. Losing doesn’t bother you because you’re okay not being the better man. Next week, just before Into The Void, you might take offense to me saying so, but your actions after losing to me have spoken louder than your words can now.”

Kris looks down at the floor, trying to recall the exact words he had used before their previous match. It was fitting then, and even more so now. It takes him a couple seconds, but he looks up with a smile.

”I will leave you with the same words that I left you with last time we were set to compete with each other, because it still seems relevant enough: No amount of being the crowd favorite, or even whipping it out and helicoptering it in front of me and everyone in attendance is going to stop me from winning this match.”

He looks away from the camera and up at the wall of shoes.

”Nothing is going to stop me from taking your title, Ryan….”

He points at the wall.

”I could use your help picking out the shoes that I am going to be wearing when I do it though. That might be a subject you’re more equipped to handle. Get back to me.”

He winks to the camera, and just like the previous two times, the feed cuts off.

[Ryan Keys]

 "Down time"
Off Camera

It has been a while since the last time James and Ryan had a chance to hang out together; both of them have been pretty busy with different things lately, Ryan being around the States for work, James focused on his studies attempting to finish this year in the best way he could. So, they could both use some time together to take a break from everything, ‘cause, honestly: who would say no to a weekend of pure fun and wild things with your best dudes? Of course Ryan wouldn’t. And neither would James. Therefore, when James got the news that Ryan was about to travel to the Big Apple for one of his pretty important matches, he immediately called him, making sure to book the first flight to New York to join one of his best friends and spend some good time with him. Also, James wouldn’t miss the match, not this one. Honestly, that made Ryan feel a little bit more relaxed. Knowing that he could see another friendly and familiar face in the crowd was a positive and reassuring thing.

Having everything ready for the next couple of days, the only thing left to do for the champion was literally jumping on board and get ready. Well, mentally ready at least; he’s been already spending half of his time at the gym, so his sculptured and sexy body was ready for the match. The flight to New York wasn’t really long, but it was kinda boring. There was no way of doing anything Ryan liked, so he was basically forced to sit down and either listen to a few repetitive songs or watch some old movies. He ended up staring out of the small window more than he thought.

When he finally landed, able to stretch his long legs and walk around again, he picked up his bags and headed for the arrivals hall of the big, chaotic and crowded airport. Once he could turn on his phone again, a few messages showed up, included James’s, which were more like a sentence for each one of them. ‘delayed flight’ ‘ill be there in 2’ ‘landed before ya man’ ‘im waiting for u’. Indeed, the guy was already there, sitting down waiting for Ryan, checking the screens to see if the plane had already landed or not. When Ryan got closer, waving his hand to James, the Blondie got up and pulled the man in a hug, patting his shoulder blades.

James: Man, it’s so great to see you! How have you been? You got bigger huh?!

Ryan: I thought my jeans weren’t showing that too much?

A laugh coming from them both followed Ryan’s sentence. He always knew what to say to bring joy and silly things to the conversation, and that’s what James loved the most about hanging out with Ryan; you had fun, no matter what.

James: Asshole. We gotta take a taxi and get rid of all this stuff. Didn’t know you needed an entire bag to keep your panties.[/color]

Elbowing his side, James soon headed for the exit of the airport, where a lot of taxis were parked, waiting for their clients. Ryan caught the attention of one of the drivers, who got out of the car and opened the back door for them. Once in there, James told the old man the address of the hotel he had previously booked, checking it from his phone, and for the next twenty minutes the two guys just chatted about anything. The hotel was nice, even if it wasn’t one of the best around, but knowing that they would probably use their rooms just to have some dirty fun with strangers, the appearance wasn’t that important.
It took them almost half an hour to empty their bags, take a shower and be ready to go out. Luckily, they weren’t suffering from jetlag, yet. This meant that they could stay out more.

Ryan: I know that there should be a club around here. Mind see if I’m right?

James: You must be! We are in the bloody New York, there has to be at least a million clubs around!

And they were right, of course. The hotel was located in a central area, as Ryan requested. He needed to be able to reach the place of the match quickly, and with any possible way of transport. Knowing him, he would probably end up calling a taxi for the event. Since then, though, he liked walking around showing off his bare upper body, since he was only wearing a jacket, unbuttoned of course, and his belt, over a pair of tight jeans. It was still warm, but not that much to walk through the city at night wearing just his shorts. Even if he would love to.

Using the maps on James’s phone, they reached a small - or at least it looked small from the outside - club, where two bodyguards were standing at the door checking documents and letting people in. Useless to say that they didn’t even bother to ask for Ryan’s ID, they simply stepped aside, made a compliment about the belt, of course, and let them in.

James: That’s why I love going out with you.

Ryan: Life can get easier if you’re me, bud.

The young champion immediately caught the attention, maybe because he was the only person half naked, maybe because someone recognized him, however he got many eyes on him; not that he really minded it.

After a quick walk around the place, they ascertained that there was a big room at the end of the building which had a big pool table right in the middle, another long counter similar to the one of the main room, behind which a couple of young guys were serving drinks to people who were already clearly drunk, and some slot machines on the corner. There was no space to dance in there, but, if they wanted to, the first room was basically only a large dance floor, so they had all the space they needed and wanted, eventually.

Ryan: Let’s play pool, bud. I’ll show you how we big guys win.

James: Shut the fuck up, I’m gonna beat your ass.

Ryan scoffed at that and waited for the two boys who were already playing to be finished, which happened pretty quickly, being them almost laying on the table instead of playing.

Ryan: Enough, enough, my turn now.

The game went on for a while, Ryan was in the lead, James quite annoyed by that, and two nice, yet hot girls kept on staring at them, until James stopped playing to go and buy a drink for him and Ryan. Of course his friend took the chance to approach the girls, and by the time James was back, one of them already had her hands placed on Ryan’s abdomen. To look closer at the belt, naturally. Why else?

James: Ladies, fancy a drink? Another belt to touch? Just ask for it.

Of course James was kidding as he sat on the board of the pool table, sipping from his glass, not really surprised when one of the girls moved to place her hands on James’s thighs.

Ryan: Guess someone will take a look at our hotel room later?

James: Whenever, man.

Ryan was deeply grateful that James had joined him. Not only because of the naked girl leaving his bed the following morning, not even for his head still hurting from all the drinks he had that night. But mostly because he knew that the blonde was someone he could count on. Yes, they had passed a pretty crazy night, drinking and dancing with different girls, bodies crashing on each other on the dance floor, then in the hotel room; something he hadn’t been doing for a while. He needed it. He needed to take a break from the feeling of the upcoming fight. That wasn’t going to be an easy one. And having his mind off of it for a while was really helpful. He didn’t know if he would win the match or not, but a part of him, probably the drunkest one, wasn’t really worrying about it. Since he knew that he could make it, if he wanted to. And, Gosh, what else could he possibly want now?

"Defensive approach"
On Camera

”Guess this is my curse.”

Ryan is leaning against the wall in his apartment over at Vegas. A familiar feeling as Ryan opens up the doors to his home, looking so naturally calm. Picking at something over the SCW Roulette title belt Ryan smiles once he looks over at the camera. Icy blue eyes stare deeply into it as he slowly pushes away from the wall to walk around slowly. Even if he's calm there is something that’s bugging him.

“I say my curse because it’s the second time that I’ve captured the Roulette title, it’s the second time I’ve defended it almost immediately after getting it. I get it. SCW keeps growing, new opportunities come up, people get pushed and the champions have to survive through it. Management could at least throw us a bone and save the defence for bigger nights like Into the Void, but I get the feeling that after I claw my way out of this match with the title and the week off passes that I’ll have to defend again for no good reason. Most of the contenders for my title are guys whose rematch clause seem to never expire. That might have to change soon.”

He walks over to his artistic corner in his home, almost tripping at a discarded hoodie that he’ll have to deal with later. His eyes fall onto a blank easel which he’s tried to fill, but instead his head seem to be getting filled.

”I’m going to get my respect, and prove that I’m to be respected.”

Ryan says while raising the title belt a bit to take a closer look at it in his hands. Nodding his head he smirks at a thought.

“More importantly I have a few choice people that I want to earn their respect by what I’ll do at Into the Void. Not only will I break my curse, but I’ll finally get rid of all these rematch clause that still seem to be around. I say this talking directly about James Tuscini. When was the last time he was even in the SCW Roulette title run? Months ago while he was doing his tag team stuff. But that somehow puts him as a contender anyway. Don’t get me wrong, I want to beat the guy once and for all, but it’s still messes with my head how long a rematch clause can last. Almost makes me wonder how long I can have one if I even lose.I’ll have to ask Tuscini about it. Or just wait backstage for him to come out of nowhere.”

He seems a bit annoyed by what has happened. Taking the piece of paper in his hands he tries to imagine what it is that he could paint, that usually calmed his mind. But nothing comes up.

”Or maybe I’ll ask Steve Ramone. This man has had more opportunities than he’s won, probably because he’ll stay for hours barking at Mark or Christian to give him another shot. And they have, almost 6 or more of them. But each time he gets one he’s nowhere near capable or deserving of going for my title. But here we have him. Why? Rematch clause. Makes me think of how many rematch clauses do you need against the same guy for Steve to get that he can’t beat me. Not with what he does. There isn’t a moment where I let my eyes slip away from Steve. The moment that I do something goes wrong and ends up in his favor. Uncertainty is his strength since I never know if I’m  going up against him alone, or with his bodyguards. Sometimes Steve isn’t actually there and things still go wrong by his doing. But I want to earn this man's respect, maybe then I’ll finally have a serious match against him, and him alone. That might be some wishful thinking, but I can happen. Respect goes a long way, probably why Dax keeps messing with me by saying people don’t have any for me. Everyday I put my body through harsh conditions, endless hours of training,and use extra time to make sure I’m not hurting. All of that plus my skills on the mic makes me very respectable. The crowds cheers don't lie. With each pop I get everytime I come out to the ring is proof enough at how much respect I get.”

He holds onto the title tight, and looks back at the camera.

”I spent way too much time and effort getting to where I am, and I won’t let no one take away the symbol of that achievement. Not Steve, not James, not even Kris. Surprisingly He’s the only one that has actually fought his way up like I did and not is in this match. James, Steve, take notes. That is the way you earn a title shot. Not through any bullshit clause or demands. I’m looking forward to get into the ring with Kris again. I let him get one over on me once, and I won’t let that happen again. But it wouldn’t be me without having some fun while at work. And a match against him will be fun, it’s where I can actually feel all his hate at once. For a guy his size he really has some issues, but he makes up for it in being entertaining. Against Kris I’ll gladly defend my title. Against Steve and James… things change. I’ll be keeping a close eyes on them and wait...My curse will end.. Soon. Very soon.”

The scene slowly fades away as Ryan sits down and stares into the blank canvas.

[Steve Ramone]

 RP Title: “Taking back MY title in MY home city!”

Into the Void VI was this weekend and Steve had a lot on his mind going into this year’s event as he wanted to become the first four-time Champion in SCW history but standing in his way of that goal was the current Roulette Champion Ryan Keys, James Tuscini and Kris Halc but Steve faced similar odds at Blaze of Glory and came out on top so there was no reason why history couldn’t repeat itself at Into the Void especially with the event emanating from his home city of New York but can he win?

Corey’s wrestling school, New York City, New York
Wednesday the 10th of May 2017, 11:00am

You’d think I’d be sightseeing, wouldn’t you? News flash: I’m from New York, any sights worth seeing have already been seen by me about a dozen times over!

No, instead I’m I’ve been training in Corey’s wrestling school in New York, well technically it was our old trainer’s wrestling school but after he passed away last year Corey purchased the wrestling school and took it over with the family’s consent and since then he’s been doing everything possible to modernize it because when he brought the place it was so old and broken down you’d think that it was a wrestling legend on the verge of retirement instead of a wrestling school.

Though to be fair he was running it out of an old warehouse.

It’s not totally up to date, the renovations started last year after Corey brought the place but there’s still a long way to go and Corey hasn’t taken any students as a result of that fact but he hasn’t made any money off of it yet, still he has told that when he is finished with the renovation work he’ll have students lining up around the block wanting to learn how to wrestle so there’s that.

In the meantime? The school still has it’s in the middle of the building and he’s training me.

“Keep it up Steve!” Corey yelled out as I continued to wrestle a practice match with Cyrus, obviously, there was a noticeable size difference between us but since it wasn’t a real match it was a friendly affair. “I realize that none of your opponents are as big as Cyrus but James Tuscini is close enough to his weight so if you can keep up with Cyrus you can keep up with James.”

“That’s ignoring the fact that I’m thirty pounds heavier than James off course.” Cyrus responded before we continued our practice match, Kaylee and Andreas were also watching from the ringside area and it would be Andreas’s turn after I’m done with Cyrus. “Besides, you are closer to the other opponent’s weights so shouldn’t you go next?”

“I know that, that’s why I’m going in last.” Corey responded as we finished our match and Cyrus left the ring to let Andreas take over. “I know that the last time he competed in a Fatal Four Way Match for the Roulette Title he competed against the smallest guy in the match so I’m trying to recreate the feel.”

“If you wanted to be authentic you could’ve brought in the SCW Roulette Wheel.” I pointed out and Corey laughed in response.

“If I knew where SCW stored that thing in between shows I would’ve!” Corey responded as he shook his head, off course none of us noticed the doors to the gym opening as we figured that it was the workmen getting ready to start their shift. “Besides, we all know you really want to do some naked wrestling with Kaylee.”

“Really? Doesn’t she do enough of that on camera?” We looked up and saw my little sister and Corey’s wife Sara, she hasn’t changed much since her one-time appearance on SCW programming but given that she’s pregnant and all that will change in a couple of months.

“Hey sis.” I greeted her with a grin which she returned. “And if I had a dollar for each time a joke had been made about Kaylee’s day job since she made her SCW debut last year I’d be able to pay for this place’s renovations myself.”

“What do you expect when you dump Charlotte for a Porn Star?” Sara asked as she approached the ring with her arms crossed. “Don’t mind me, continue your match.”

“We hadn’t even gotten started by the time you interrupted.” I responded before starting the practice match against Andreas, I didn’t see it until after I was done with Andreas but Sara was giving Kaylee a dirty look and Kaylee had seen it. “Corey, you mind if I chat with Sara for a bit before we start on our match? I have a promo to do anyway.”

“Yeah, sure.” Corey shrugged his shoulders and I left the ring followed by Andreas a few seconds later, once I was out of the ring I turned my attention to the only women in the building.

“Okay Sara, I know you have something on your mind regarding Kaylee so why don’t you just spill it?” I asked and my sister turned to me. “Don’t act like you haven’t been giving my fiancé dirty looks since you got here, why are you here anyway? I thought you had a soul sucking job nowadays.”

“I think you mean real job.” Sara responded and I rolled my eyes.

“Same thing.” I responded and Sara shook her head.

“I work the afternoon shift, I’m not starting for another two hours.” Sara responded before checking the time on her IPhone. “Okay, it’s more like one and a half hours but the fact remains that I have time to check on my brother.” Sara responded before glancing at Kaylee. “And making it clear that I won’t let him see his niece/nephew as long as he dates a camgirl.”

“We never discussed that.” Corey responded and Sara shook her head.

“My baby, my rules.” Sara responded and Corey shook his head. “I don’t care how good she is with kids, I don’t want a bad influence like her around my kids.”

“I’m successful at my job, even if it does mean me getting fucked on camera, and when Charlotte kicked out your brother I took him in rather than let him be homeless, something that you, his little sister, never did.” Kaylee pointed out as she got in Sara’s face. “So, tell me again how I’m the bad influence?”

“Did you suddenly forget that me and Steve live in states that are hundreds of miles apart?” Sara responded as she folded her arms. “Steve’s made a lot of money over the years as a wrestler but not even that is enough for him to make weekly cross country trips to compete in SCW and if it wasn’t for my own career I would’ve moved to Vegas to help him out.” Sara added before smirking. “Anything else you want to add?”

“Maybe the fact that it isn’t just your baby.” Kaylee said as she motioned to Corey. “Unless you got pregnant through other means or are cheating on him with another man and he got you pregnant it’s Corey’s kid as well and he just said that you never discussed that with him.”

“How dare…….” Sara trailed off before Corey intervened.

“I don’t agree with her choice of words but Kaylee’s right and to be frank I think Steve should see our kid when you give birth to him/her.” Corey responded and Sara turned to him. “Besides, just because she works in the porn industry doesn’t mean that she isn’t a decent person.”

“Wasn’t Steve forced to miss a match last month because she accidentally bit down on his dick?” Sara asked and I winced at the memory.

“Yeah, key word there being accidental.” Kaylee responded and Sara went to respond but couldn’t find the words. “Besides, do you know how many blowjobs I’ve given? Do you really think someone with my experience would bite down on purpose?”

“I can’t believe I’m losing an argument to a woman whose main arguments are “I’ve blown a lot of guys on camera for money”.” Sara responded with an annoyed sigh before turning to Corey. “We’ll discuss this later when I’m off shift, good luck training the washed up Fearless One who, if he had any sense, would’ve stayed retired.”

“First Corey gives me that shit and now you?” I responded as I rolled my eyes. “Your acting like I haven’t had any success since I made my SCW debut! Besides you were the one who encouraged me to get into the business and the only reason you’re not wrestling these days is because of injuries!”

“Yeah and these days I have a real job, you may call it soul sucking all you want but it pays the bills and allows me to have a roof over my baby’s head.” Sara responded as she went to leave. “You may be a year older than me Steve but it’s about time that you grew up.” Sara added before leaving the wrestling school.

“So, do you still want to train?” Corey asked me and I shook my head.

“Later, I’ve got a promo to do like I said.” I responded before getting back in the ring and the others took that as their cue to leave the area and give me a few minutes to cut my promo which I did.

“Ten years ago, I made my wrestling debut, before then I was training in an old run down warehouse turned wrestling school ran by an old wrestler than none of the trainees had ever heard off alongside my future brother in law and my sister.” I said before leaning on the ropes. “Ten years later and my brother in law runs the school he trained in, my sister has a soul sucking real job and more importantly I’m here training for my latest shot at the SCW Roulette Championship this Sunday at Into the Void VI against Ryan Keys and two men who have no business being in this match, James Tuscini and Kris Halc!”

In my home city to boot.

“The only way that this could be better is if I was competing for the World Heavyweight Championship instead but that’s water under the bridge for now! In the meantime, I have my sights set on one goal, winning the SCW Roulette Championship back from Ryan Keys and unless Christian finds yet another excuse to give him another undeserving shot at the title he’ll be going to the back of the line where he belongs and as for James and Kris, they never should’ve been in this match in the first place!”

It’s that simple and I’m starting with Ryan.

“If Christian had any sense you’d be competing in a random filler match on the card Ryan and not holding the SCW Roulette Championship but I guess Christian still has a hard on for you, doesn’t he Ryan? How else do you explain the fact that you got a shot at me at the first Climax Control since this year’s Blaze of Glory? Well hopefully my epic ass kicking will stop him from thinking with his dick and start putting up worthy challengers for the Roulette Title after I become the first four-time champion in SCW history!”

Next up is James.

“James, we have fought several times and the last time we fought was when I avenged your robbery of the Roulette Championship during the lead-up to last year’s Into the Void VI event which is still the worst thing to have ever happened in the city of Hiroshima, Japan! Now, one year later we are competing for the Roulette Title against each other at Into the Void again and this time there will be no highway robbery because I will win what I never should’ve lost in the first place!”

Finally, is Kris!

“I know I asked this last week but it bears repeating, why is Kris Halc in this match? He’s done absolutely nothing to earn it and at least me and James are former Roulette Champions but Kris? He doesn’t even have the excuse of being one of Christian’s many boy toys! Anyway Kris, I’m going to show the world why just because you are a former Tag Team Champion doesn’t mean that you should get added to a match that should be between me and Ryan when I kick your ass back to the tag team division!”

And with that I decided to wrap things up.

“This Sunday night is about one thing, me taking back MY title in MY home city and if I have to defeat a punk who never should’ve gotten another shot against me, a man who still hasn’t been prosecuted for highway robbery despite it being broadcast on TV as part of a wrestling show one year later and a former tag team champion to do it then I will! This message has been paid for and delivered by “The Fearless Champion” Steve Ramone, the champion the fans and my home city of New York City deserves!”

I left the ring to find Corey and the others as the scene fades.

[Andrew]

 TIME TO KICK ASS AND WALK AWAY AS A THREE-TIME ROULETTE CHAMPION

Narrator:  James Tuscini and Pinky del Ferrando have so much to talk about for Into The Void VI. I could give you all the information but that usually spoils the surprise of what James and Pinky want to tell you. So I will leave my introduction to what I’ve already said and I will turn it over to James and Pinky at the Carnesecca Arena.

The scene switches to a shot of the inside of the dressing room of James Tuscini and Pinky del Ferrando. Both are casually dressed in blue jeans, pullover shirts, and black athletic shoes. They are sitting at the dining room table enjoying a meal of pepperoni pizza and Classic Coke, and they have a cheesecake for dessert. The cameraman lets James and Pinky know they are live broadcasting so the two look up and comment to the camera.

KRIS HALC DEBUNKED

James:  Good day and welcome to our dressing room at the Carnesecca Arena where Sin City Wrestling will be holding Into the Void VI. My first order of business is for us to address recent comments by Kris Halc. I’m always disappointed when I have to step up and correct the mis-statements made by others. Kris recently made the claim that he is due a shot at the Roulette Title Belt. He also claimed that he personally defeated James Tuscini two times. Shall we evaluate those claims?

Pinky:  Kris you make the claim that you are the one and only person qualified to challenge for the Roulette Championship. For someone who has never held the Roulette Title Belt I’m not getting the reason why you feel you are so damned deserving of a shot at the Roulette Title Championship.

James:  You claimed that I’m not worthy to be challenging for the Roulette Championship and your justification is that I’ve lost several matches during the end of 2016 and early into 2017. You also made a false claim, which I hereby debunk, that I’m not able to hold onto the Roulette Title Belt except for a short time before losing it. First of all I’m the wrestler who has the 3rd longest reign as Roulette Champion so your claim that I cannot hold the Roulette Title Belt for very long has been debunked. Next is your claim that I’m not deserving to challenge for the Roulette Championship. Kris when you can lay claim to holding the Roulette Championship for the 3rd longest time in Sin City Wrestling, and you can claim that you are a two-time Roulette Champion, then you can come back and tell me how qualified you are to get a shot at the Title Belt. Until then shut the f*ck up!

Pinky:  As the Manager for James Tuscini let me lay it out for you Kris. You did not personally defeat James two times. Both matches you talk about were Tag Team matches. You’ve never faced James one-on-one in a Singles match. In the first Tag Team match James and Dmitri were kicking your ass to Hell and back and your only option was to continue to throw them out of the ring and attack them at ringside. This caused Mark Ward to step in, call the match a double Disqualification DRAW, and force you to face Unholy Alliance again where there is no Disqualification. In that second match Jason did get a “pinfall” on James but it was when he rolled him up, and had to grab the wrestling trunks of James for extra leverage, and the Referee was distracted and didn’t see the cheating and didn’t see the hand of James grabbing the ropes. So, yeah, if you want to call a weak performance where you cheated to obtain a double Disqualification Draw, and cheated to obtain a win in the second match, as being deserving of a shot at the Roulette Championship then you are seriously in need of psychiatric help. When you start winning Singles matches, against Main Event wrestlers, instead of jobbers and low-card wrestlers, then you come back to see me and maybe, just maybe, we might entertain you claiming you are qualified to in the same ring with James going after the Roulette Championship. Honestly Kris you do not belong in this match and you will realize that when James walks away as a three time Roulette Champion.

James:  Kris, Kris, Kris, do you know what a hypocrite is? It is a person who condemns someone for doing or saying something and then that person does or says the exact same thing they condemned the other person for doing or saying. Now that you have been educated into what being a hypocrite is about let me explain how you proved to the world that you are the hypocrite.

Pinky:  Kris you manage to talk a lot of shit. In the end it is nothing but shitty talk and about as smelly and useless as a diaper full of shit. The only thing left to do it throw it into the trash because it stinks, it is full of shit, and you can’t stand the stench any longer.

James:  Here’s what happened Kris. When you aired your segment recently and decided to talk about me the only thing you were able to talk about is the fact that I enjoy talking about my 4-0 record against Ryan Keys and my 3-1-1 record against Steve Ramone. You insulted me, disrespected me, and told me that it was wrong for me to keep bringing up my successful winning record against Keys and Ramone. Really? You flat out stated it was wrong for me to keep bringing up how successful I’ve been against others in the Roulette Division and then here is what you said when commenting to Ryan Keys. You stated that what matters is your wins and losses. You stated all that mattres is the wins you have and losses that Keys has obtained. Then you want on to claim that when you win you brag about your wins to make sure people know how good you are. Tsk tsk tsk. Shame on you for condemning me for doing something then you do the exact same thing. I guess being a moron hypocrite takes a lot of work because for damn sure you are working hard at being that moron hypocrite.

Pinky:  Then, Kris, since you are unable to adequately address James concerning the Four Way Roulette Championship match at Into The Void VI, you decided to bring up that James made a comment that Unholy Alliance was attempting to become the World Tag Team Champions and came up short. You also came up short and you were defeated in the Battle Royal for the Tag Team Championship and now Team BJ are the Tag Champs. Seriously? What the hell does the Tag Team Battle Royal have to do with the Roulette Championship match? Not a damn thing! Let me ask you something Kris. Have you won every Singles and Tag Team match you’ve been involved in? Nope. Have you always obtained every objective you claimed you will? Nope. You see, Kris, your comments about James reminds me of what kids do in Elementary School. You know what I’m talking about because you were the kid who did this every time another kid told the truth about you. You know the drill Kris. Another kid at school tells something about you that is true. He knows it is true. Other students know it is true. And most of all you know it is true. So your only response is to try to insult the person telling the truth about you. You stand there huffing and puffing and sweating while holding back your tears of shame and then you yell out something stupid like YOUR MOTHER WEARS ARMY BOOTS or some other idiotic comment like you did when you addressed James in your segment recently. All the other kids in school laugh at you for your dumb ass comments because they know that the kid who told the truth about you is not hurt, insulted, or humiliated, by your stupid comments. You want to know why? Because everyone knew that his mother serves on Active Duty in the United States Army so, of course, she wears Army Boots. You need to understand that hurling stupid comments in retaliation for someone telling the truth is dumb, stupid, moronic, idiotic, and a hundred and one other descriptions. Thanks for showing the world who you really are Kris.

James:  When I win the match at Into The Void VI, and become a three-time Roulette Champion, Ryan Keys will be the number one contender for the Roulette Championship. He is likely to be sent as my first challenger only due to him being the former Roulette Champion. That decision is up to Management but in my opinion if Keys loses to me for the fifth time then I don’t feel he should get another shot at the Roulette Title Belt until he earns his way back into contention. I previously discussed the fact, and my promise, that I would gladly grant you a one-on-one Singles match so you can have your shot at my Roulette Championship.

James and Pinky dive into their pepperoni pizza and Classic Coke.

Pinky:  All that talking to straighten out Kris Halc to remind him that he should be relegated to low and mid-card matches until he can prove himself, rather than being handed a spot in the Roulette Championship match,  really caused my appetite to peak. This pizza and Classic Coke sure tastes good.

James:  You got that right Uncle. I wanted to ask you about something you mentioned the other day. You said the Atlanta Italian Mafia told you when we come to New York for Into the Void VI that they will have you meet with a member of the New York Italian Mafia and they will have an assignment for you to complete. What’s up with that?

Pinky:  I have a two year assignment with the Atlanta Italian Mafia. They asked me to do this favor for the members of the New York Italian Mafia. Before I met with the person who gave me the assignment I made sure to get it into my head that I wouldn’t be able to murder someone or do something else classified as a Felony. I went into the meeting with my decision already made that if their assignment crosses over the line I have to say NO even if it means getting kicked out of the Italian Mafia.

James:  Are you willing to tell me and our viewers what that assignment was?

Pinky:  Rather than sit here and tell you and the viewers what went down I will show the video of what happened. It is important that I always have a cameraman with me to record everything so nobody can make claims against me that are not true. This video shows what happened on Friday, May 5, 2017.

James:  Please show us the video.

Pinky:  Okay, James, but I issue the warning that the contents are extremely disturbing and disgusting and those watching could be subject to horrible nightmares. Could you at the Network please run the video of my meeting with the member from the New York Italian Mafia and of me carrying out the assignment? Thanks.

THE ASSIGNMENT BY THE NEW YORK ITALIA N MAFIA MAY 5, 2017

The video begins and we see Pinky del Ferrando in a small cafe having a discussion with a man. We cannot see the face of the man Pinky is talking with as he is the member of the New York Italian Mafia and he asked that his face not be shown so the Network blurs his face. Although he gives his name as Lucci we believe it is a “stage” name and not his real name to protect his identity. Pinky is dressed in blue jeans and a red pullover shirt.

Pinky:  Let’s get to the point. What is the assignment you want me to do for you at the request of the Atlanta Italian Mafia? I have to inform you straight up I have values I have to abide by.

Lucci:  I like a member who is straight with me. Surprised to get that level of honesty from a newbie. The assignment is you need to TAKE OUT Hillary Clinton tonight.

Pinky’s eyes widen and the look on his face represents shock as what he just heard.

Pinky:  Whoa! What the f*ck? Let’s stop right there! I told you I have values to stand by. You mean you want me to “take out” Hillary Clinton as in putting a “hit” on her, putting her “six feet under,” or something like that? If so there’s no way I’ll do that! I would rather lose my position in the Atlanta Italian Mafia than to kill someone!

Lucci:  Ha ha ha! Oh, Pinky, you’re hilarious!

Pinky:  What the hell is so funny?

Lucci:  We don’t want you to “TAKE OUT” Hillary Clinton in that manner. We simply want you to take her out on a dinner date to the Club A Steakhouse in New York. It will be tonight and only for about one hour. Once you complete the dinner date with Hillary you are considered to have completed the assignment and we are done.

Pinky:  That disgusts me! I hate Hillary and she’s uglier than a Baboon’s ass! I can’t ruin my reputation by being seen in public with her! Why in the hell doesn’t she go to dinner with her womanizing female-abusing pervert husband Bill Clinton?

Lucci:  Bill Clinton is a liability. With Bill as her husband, and with her losing the Presidential Election in November 2016, and during the campaign she insulted nearly every group out there, she needs to improve her image by being seen in public with a real person who is not related to her and not part of her campaign or political party.

Pinky:  And if I refuse to do this assignment?

Lucci:  Then the Atlanta Italian Mafia will be told you refused to do the assignment they asked you to do and you will be kicked out of the Italian Mafia. Your decision?

Pinky:  I don’t want to get kicked out of the Italian Mafia. I hate this assignment and I wish you could just give me a dull rusty knife and let me castrate myself. For sure castrating myself with a dull rusty knife is less painful, less disgusting, less degrading, and way humiliating, than having to take Hillary Clinton on a dinner date and be seen in public with her. I mean, come on, right now I’m so sick to my stomach over this assignment I feel as if I’m gonna puke up meals I haven’t even eaten yet! Since this assignment is so humiliating and disgusting will there be extra pay for completing the assignment?

Lucci:  The payment you get from completing this assignment is that you retain your position in the Italian Mafia. That’s payment enough. Thanks for accepting the assignment. Pissing people off and spinning them up is what we do in the Italian Mafia. Glad to know I haven’t lost my touch. By the way you don’t have time to change as your dinner date is in one hour. Grab a taxi and get over to the Club A Steakhouse. Hillary wouldn’t like it if you were late for her date.

Lucci stands up and walks out of the cafe. The Network ensures that his face is blurred so nobody can identify him. Pinky grudgingly gets up and walks out into the street to hail a taxi. Pinky gets into the taxi and they head off to the Club A Steakhouse.

PINKY’S DINNER DATE WITH HILLARY CLINTON, FRIDAY MAY 5, 2017

The taxi pulls up in front of the Club A Steakhouse. Pinky’s dinner date with Hillary Clinton begins in five minutes so he arrived just in time. Thankfully Hillary is not outside the restaurant so Pinky is hoping the lighting inside the restaurant is dark enough that maybe people won’t recognize him. He thanks the taxi driver by paying him the fare with a very generous tip. Pinky, of course still dressed in blue jeans and his red pullover shirt, enters the restaurant. He informs the Head Waiter of his business there and he escorts him to a table near the back of the restaurant so that Pinky and Hillary won’t be bothered by other customers. Pinky notices that the restrooms are close to the table and he’s happy about that since he is getting sick to his stomach knowing he has to face Hillary Clinton who is one of the people he detests more than castrating himself with a dull rusty knife. Pinky is escorted to the table by the Head Waiter and when Pinky sees Hillary Clinton his gag reflexes to kick in.



Pinky:  Hi. I’m *gag* Pinky del Ferrando and *gag* I will be your *gag* date for this *gag* dinner engagement.

Pinky takes a seat at the table.

Hillary:  Are you ill? I don’t want you to stay for dinner if you need to see a doctor.

Pinky:  Nothing more than my immune system reacting to the change in weather conditions from Atlanta to New York. I should be okay.

Hillary:  Okay. Thanks for being on time. If there’s one thing I can stand it is someone who is late for something.

Pinky:  (mumbling softly) You mean like coming up a day late and a Dollar short in the Presidential Election in November 2016?

Hillary looks up and asks what he said.

Hillary:  I didn’t catch what you said.

Pinky:  Oh! I said it was an interesting Presidential Election in November 2016 and I’m sorry that the race was close and you didn’t win.

Hillary laughs her normal chicken cackle laugh which causes Pinky to launch into more gagging.

Hillary:  Pinky are you okay? You seem a bit pale and you seem to be ill. Do you think you need to go to the doctor?

Pinky states that he will endure and not leave to go to the doctor. The waiter comes to the table to take their order. Pinky orders a steak well done and Hillary orders a steak rare. A short time later their meals are delivered and both dive into their steaks. After a few bites, and having to look at the face of Hillary Clinton, Pinky is about to hurl big time so he excuses himself from the table.

Pinky:  I’m sorry Mrs. Clinton, I mean Hillary, but I must have eaten something earlier in the day that is causing my stomach to be upset. I need to use the restroom and hopefully I’ll be back shortly.

Pinky del Ferrando runs into the restroom and he dives toward the nearest toilet where he sticks his face into the bowl and starts to hurl. Pinky’s vomiting noises are loud enough for other diners to hear out in the restaurant. Pinky’s cameraman runs into the restroom and what he sees surprises him.



Pinky glances up between pukes and he tells the cameraman to inform the Head Waiter that he’s not able to continue with the dinner date and could he inform Hillary Clinton of the medical emergency. The cameraman returns to the restaurant and he informs the Head Water who informs Hillary. She accepts the information and she is satisfied that she has been seen in public interacting with real people instead of her campaign staff so she gets up and leaves the restaurant. The cameraman returns to the restroom to find Pinky del Ferrando done with his puking and he’s washing his face in the sink with cold water. Pinky looks into the camera to comment.

Pinky:  I knew I shouldn’t have accepted this assignment but I didn’t want to get fired from the Atlanta Italian Mafia. At least I spent enough time with Hillary Clinton to be considered that I completed my part of the assignment so I won’t get fired from the Italian Mafia. But still I would have rather been required to castrate myself with a dull rusty knife. Damn glad this dinner date is over! Shit! I believe I’ve puked up meals I plan on eating in 2018 having to have a dinner date with Hillary Clinton.

The scene returns to the dressing room of James Tuscini and Pinky del Ferrando at the Carnesecca Arena. James is seen laughing so hard he about falls out of his chair.

DO THE MATH

James:  HAR HAR HAR! Oh my gawd that was hilarious!

Pinky:  Nothing hilarious about having to look at Hillary Clinton while trying to eat dinner and then running to the restroom to puke my guts out. So how was your day teaching with the kids over at Queens School for the Sciences in Jamaica?

James:  I asked if I could do a guest teaching assignment at Queens High School for the Sciences in Jamaica, New York, and they said yes. I also had a cameraman in attendance so I will have the Network run this short video to see how my day went.

The video takes us into the Math class at Queens High School for the Sciences in Jamaica. James Tuscini is standing in front of the class giving a math demonstration.

James:  Good day students. I’m James Tuscini, a wrestler in Sin City Wrestling, and two-time Roulette Champion. Sin City Wrestling is in New York at the Carnesecca Arena. I have some math questions for you to give me the answers to. I know you’re all intelligent kids so I’m sure you will have an easy time coming up with the answers. Are you ready?

Students:  YES!

James:  Remember the rules that you can only do the math in your head. You cannot use a calculator or a paper to write out your answers. I currently hold a win-loss record over Steve Ramone of 3-1-1 which means I have a winning percentage over Ramone of...?

Students:  60 PERCENT!

James:  Correct! Now my next question is a bit easier. I am currently carrying a win-loss record against Ryan Keys, who is the current Roulette Champion of  4-0 and that gives me a winning percentage over Ryan Keys of...?

Students:  100 PERCENT!

James:  Again well done. Combined against Steve Ramone and Ryan Keys my win-loss record is 7-1-1. What is my overall winning percentage of both Ryan Keys and Steve Ramone?

Students:  77 PERCENT!

James: Final question. When I defeat Ryan Keys, Kris Halc, and Steve Ramone, at Into The Void VI, and my win-loss record will go to 8-1-1 combined against those three, that would make my winning percentage?

Students:  80 PERCENT!

James:  Great job kids! Thanks for having me as your guest teacher today. As a token of my appreciation each student will receive two free tickets to Into the Void VI. Hope to see you there.

James Tuscini turns and walks out of the classroom and the students give him a standing ovation. After James exits into the hallway the scene ends and we return to James and Pinky in their dressing room Both have finished off the pepperoni pizza and now they are diving into the cheesecake.

James:  This cheesecake is a great way to finish off a pepperoni pizza meal.

Pinky:  So James are you ready for us to GO FOUR on your opponents for Into The Void VI?

James:  You confused me with that comment. What does that term mean?

Pinky:  Since there are four of your involved in the Roulette Championship match, and you’ve defeated Ryan Keys four times, and with a win in this match you will have increased the number of wins you have over Steve Ramone to Four, and Kris Halc has a first and last name each with four letters, I figured we could “GO FOUR” on them. Since you’re not familiar with that term, since I just made it up, it means presenting to the viewers, and your opponents, some of our favorite four-word phrases.

James:  I have a feeling this is going to be odd but funny. Why don’t you start with some of your favorite four-word phrases and then I’ll see which ones I can bring up that are appropriate for my upcoming match.

Pinky:  For the information and education of our opponents, their associates and friends, and fans and viewers, here are some of my favorite four-word phrases:  Because I said so...Shut the f*ck up...Truth hurts don’t it...Very well, f*ck you...You are an asshole.  Not some of my best phrases over my years but that gives everyone an idea of what I’m about. What about you James. Have you given thought to some of your favorite four-word phrases?

James:  Well I’ll do the best I can. I have to think for a bit to try to remember some of the things I’ve said over the years. Okay here are a few that popped into my head:  Best in the business...Fight or die trying...Multiple time Roulette Champion...Nobody is my equal.  That’s all that popped into my head right now Uncle.

Pinky:  You sure you don’t have a few more?

James thinks for a moment.

James:  Actually a few additional four-word phrases just came into my mind. For Ryan, Kris, and Steve:  I’ll win you’ll lose...Deal with your loss...Have a nice day!

Pinky:  Good way to close up the four-word phrases segment. Let this be a warning and a learning experience for everyone watching and most importantly to the three victims James is facing at Into The Void VI. The goon bodyguards for Steve Ramone found out that I may be old but I still got enough WHUP ASS left in me to beat the shit out of anyone who gets in our way. I told you before, and I will tell you again, if you f*ck with me I will f*ck with you and I can f*ck you up more than can ever wish you could do to me.

James:  For Ryan Keys I wish to apologize. I apologize that I’ve defeated you four times in four matches. I also apologize that you don’t have what it takes to defeat me. Must suck to be you. For Steve Ramone I mention this again. I’ve defeated Ryan Keys who has defeated you several times. Nothing about me kicking your ass has changed except for the date the ass kicking is administered upon you. To Kris Halc I want to tell you I don’t feel you should be in this match. I guess doing “special favors” in the Management offices might be the reason there are surveillance videos of you leaving their offices wearing knee pads and wiping off your face and mouth. Okay so you managed to suck your way to a spot in the Roulette Championship match. Whoop dee f*cking doo! That’s like a Chihuahua demanding to be placed in a dog fighting match against raging Pitt Bulls. It may be something the Chihuahua strongly yearns to do but all it results in is him getting his tiny ass kicked by his opponents. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I can already hear you claim, using the tired and worn out statement, that >It isn’t the size of the dog in the fight...it’s the size of the fight in the dog.  Want me to let you in on a little secret Kris? I could care less if I was assigned to a no rules, no disqualification, extreme hardcore match, against King Kong. I’m still bigger and badder than that stupid gorilla and I’d not only kick his ass but after I subdued him I'd tie a leash around his neck, purchase a crank organ, and make King Kong my organ grinder’s dancing ape. If you want to be the Chihuahua with small balls and a big ego then when you come running into the ring I want you to make sure you come running directly at me. I will castrate your Chihuahua ass and send you running for your dressing room with your coward’s tail tucked between your legs.

Pinky:  My warnings for all the participants in the match are as follows. Steve you already know what I did to your goons during James’ match against Ryan Keys at Climax Control 178. I had fun kicking ass and I will tell Cyrus and Andreas if they didn’t get enough of my kicking their ass they can come see me and I will dish out some leftovers for them. Kris I’m sure your brother Jason hates you enough that if you were drowning he would throw you an anchor. If you were on fire he would throw gasoline on you. If you were about to be run over by a bus he would make sure you trip and stay in front of the bus. Therefore I’m sure that Jason isn’t stupid enough to show up to ringside to try to save your sorry ass from James defeating you. First off why would he save you when he blames you for everything that has gone wrong in your Tag Team matches with him? Why would he risk coming to ringside to bail you out when I’m there to knock him into the next State? Then we come to Ryan Keys. Young man you tried, tried, tried, and tried, to defeat James and you failed, failed, failed, failed, all four times. Into The Void VI is the same result but a different day.

James: You three are like the Cleveland Browns of the NFL. You continually lose, especially to me, and then you point the finger at me and tell me I have no right to be in the Roulette Championship match. Shall we take a look at the non-logic of your statement?  Who went to the Super Bowl last season? The New England Patriots and Atlanta Falcons. Did the Cleveland Browns go into the Super Bowl? No! They didn’t deserve to go because they are losers. They had a 1-15-0 win-loss record with the only win being against the San Diego Chargers. How do you think the rest of the NFL, and the fans, would have reacted if Cleveland demanded to be in the Super Bowl? Can you see the scene? Cleveland tries to tell the Patriots and Falcons that they are worthless, pathetic, and shouldn’t be in the Super Bowl. Then they make the claim that the Browns should be in the Super Bowl as they play every week, they score points, and occasionally win a game. What the f*ck??? They would be laughed out of the NFL. Who has held the Roulette Championship two times? Me! Who has defeated Ryan Keys four times? Me! Who has never defeated me? Ryan Keys. Who has defeated Steve Ramone three times? Me! How many times has Steve Ramone defeated me? Once. How many times has Kris Halc faced me in a Singles match and defeated me? None! I’m the New England Patriots of Wrestling and you three are the Cleveland Browns of Wrestling. The Cleveland Browns were founded in 1945. That means they have played 71 seasons without ever getting into the Super Bowl and when the 2017 season is over they will have played 72 seasons without getting into the Super Bowl. Just as the Cleveland Browns have no right to call Super Bowl-bound teams worthless, washed up, and not deserving of being in the Super Bowl, so you three have no right to call me worthless, washed up, and not deserving of being in the Roulette Championship match.

Pinky:  Tune in on Sunday, May 14, 2017, for Into The Void VI and watch James Tuscini make history as a three-time Roulette Champion.

James:  Everyone needs to get used to my face. When I win the Roulette Championship, for the third time, at Into The Void VI, I plan on successfully defending the Roulette Title Belt for a very long time. Do you three think I’m joking? You won’t be laughing after our match.

Pinky:  Thanks for spending time with us today. Now that you have been educated on how things will go at Into The Void VI, and you’ve had the pleasure of being in our presence for an extended period of time, go see your Bookie and place you money on James Tuscini for the win.

The cameraman takes note that James and Pinky are done with their discussion for today so he places his camera into a slow fade to black. As the scene slowly fades out we can see James and Pinky enjoying their cheesecake dessert and laughing it up. The scene then shifts to a quick commercial where a fast-talking commercial spokesperson is commenting before the Network cuts the feed.

Fast-Talking Commercial Spokesperson:  Are you tired of having James Tuscini as your Sin City Wrestling Roulette Champion? Are you upset that James Tuscini is about to become a three-time Roulette Champion? We have the answer for you. To register your concerns please call 1-800-F*CKOFF, that’s 1-800-382-5633. If that number happens to be busy we have an alternate number for you to call and that is 1-800-F*CKYOU or 1-800-382-5968. If you feel you have the right to complain about the success of James Tuscini as Sin City Wrestling’s Roulette Champion you can F*CK OFF and F*CK YOU. Have a wonderful day and see you at Into The Void VI.

The commercial is over and our television goes black when the Network cuts the feed.

[Kristopher Ryans]

 The scene opens with Kris standing in an alleyway. The sounds of the cars on the backside of the camera are more than enough to give the impression of a busy city. Kris stands dead center in the middle of the path, a dumpster to his left, and what looks like piles of old newspapers waist-high on his right. Next to the dumpster, is a beaten up garage door that had to be fifty years old. For a second, he quietly takes in his surroundings, letting the viewers do the same without his words distracting them.

”I hate New York City….”
>It is a bold statement considering that Into The Void is now just days away, and will be taking place just eighteen blocks from where he currently stands. Something seems different about him. This place has him on edge.

”That shouldn't bother any of you. A lot of people hate this place, and for all kinds of different reasons. Maybe they like driving, and you cannot really do that here. Maybe it is too crowded, or too unsafe to raise a family. This city never sleeps, but most people actually enjoy the downtime so they find that NYC is not for them. People might hate that this place is always changing. You go to a nice restaurant on a Monday, only for it to be turned into a coffee shop by Wednesday. For every person that says they hate it here, there is the possibility of a totally unique reason for it. There are millions of reasons to hate any given place. I trust that none of you will think less of me for giving you my honest opinion.”

He shrugs, clearly still trying to warm up to the place.

”I guess it is worth explaining that my reason for hating this place has nothing to do with any of those things, or really anything outside of this alley.”

He holds his arms out to his sides.

”To the surprise of no one, for six months, I called this place home.”

The camera follows Kris as he crosses over to the beaten garage door. He reaches down to the ground to lift it, however the door gets stuck three-quarters of the way up. It was far enough to make his point though. Right at eye-level, the door was tagged with five letters.

K-Halc

The inside of the garage is dark, but the light that manages to sneak under the door shows that it is empty except for a mattress on the floor. There was no door to access the building that it was attached to. The whole space gave off the feeling of a long-forgotten-about storage room. Kris takes his hand off of the door, and though it strains, it manages to stay up. Looking at his hands, he smacks his palms together a few times and moves away from the door to the stack of newspapers. He picks one of them off of the top, and starts wiping off his hands.

”The only person that knew about this place before now was Clarissa Ashford. I’m not sure how many of you will even remember her, but she was my manager back in the day when I was carrying around the SCW Internet Championship. We were on the world tour then, but one of our flights had us staying over in the city for almost an entire day while we were waiting on the plane. I dipped out, headed right down there….”

The camera turns to follow the way he is pointing. At the end of the alleyway, across the street, is a Starbucks, directly facing the alley. The camera does not linger on it for very long before returning to Kris. As it does, he is tossing the newspaper he used to wipe his hands into the dumpster.

”... I got some coffee and I sat in the window, staring at this place, but I didn’t know why. In fact, I didn’t know why until just recently. At this point, most all of you know the big details of my past. SCW has not laid off how sketchy I was before coming back in October. The facts about my random coming and going in the company, and my lack of effort through it all is well documented. So, there is absolutely no big secret regarding how I came to live here. I got sent to rehab. I got kicked out of rehab. If my brother found me, I was going back, and I had no interest in that. What else could I do but find a place to lay low? This was it. Nobody bothered me, and I did not bother anyone else. I did what I wanted to do, and nobody even knew I was here. I’m not going to lie and say I didn’t enjoy myself. There was only one thing in the world that I needed back then, and I had it. It didn’t matter that nights got cold. It didn’t matter that at any point, whoever owns this building could have come down and randomly checked out the storage space and I would have definitely been arrested….”

He leans back against the dumpster.

”What I couldn’t understand years ago, while sitting in that coffee shop, is that I was still the same person that I was when I lived here. As far as I had gone in my life, even while holding the SCW Internet Championship, I was still the person that would have been happiest being homeless in an alley with my most favorite thing in the world. I didn’t understand it then because I was still on the hook. However, when I got here today, it was different. Last time I was looking across the street, at an alley that felt like home still. I felt like I could come over here, open up the door, and happily fall back into this life. When I got here today, it was the opposite. It is difficult to be here. It is difficult to imagine the person that I used to be. I know now that I can’t go back to that. Not because I wouldn't enjoy it, but because I have an entirely different set of priorities these days. What this place represents is not what I want most in the world anymore, and that is why it makes sense for me to be talking to all of you from right here.”

He pushes away from the dumpster, kicking an empty can on the ground and sending it flying past the camera and out of his path. He starts to pace back and forth across the alley, despite the fact that it could not be more than ten feet wide.

”Last week I went all over the place, cutting promos from places that made sense for all of my opponemts. I had just beaten Steve inside the six-sided ring, so I talked to him from there. Since James has been doing his best impression of a shitty professor, I went to a classroom and sat down. Since the most compelling this about Ryan Keys is what he is, or is not wearing, I cut a promo from a closet. This week, is about me. Just like this match is about me. As far as viewers are concerned, the other three people in this match are just around so that someone can take the fall at the end. There’s not a single thing that is compelling about the game of hot-potato that they have been playing with a title that Equinox and Goth made prestigious. Nobody cares about their nine or tenth match against one another. Nobody cares about their various rematch clauses, or motivations. The only thing in this match that has not been seen, or done before, is me walking away with the Roulette Championship.”

He stops pacing to motion to his surroundings once more. He holds his arms up to his sides, and turns to face the camera.

”I mean look at this place! The person that lived here is the same one that Equinox buried on back to back shows when the Roulette Championship was on the line; the same homeless junkie that Alex Kaelin threw in a dumpster under Roulette Rules. But what have I been telling all of you, every time that I have been in front of a camera for the last seven months? I am not back to hide from those facts, or explain them away. I am back to erase all of this shit. I came back to this company, where I do not have the best reputation, to fix what I did wrong. Since the moment I signed a new contract I have been talking about mending fences, righting wrongs, and succeeding where I have previously come up short. The problem is, nobody seems to be listening to those things.”

He drops his arms, letting out a defeated sigh.

”People are wondering why I am even in this match. For instance, the idiots are asking what qualifies me to be here. However, Steve Ramone has been an embarrassment for, at least, the last month and James Tuscini will hammer his record into your head more than a dozen times in a five minute window, but always stops short of remembering that he lost his rematch clause to a talentless hack. On the other side of the equation, management has asked me over and over again why I would want to be in this match. I just held the tag titles for months without losing any steam. Jet City takes one loss, and we take a break. To someone not paying attention, that would seem sudden. My wanting a shot at the Roulette Championship would kind of come as a shock, but to those paying attention, like all of you at home, it makes total sense. You have been watching me talk about this exact thing since the end of last year. The only thing that should be surprising about it is that it took me this long to get to this point.”

He shakes his head, putting his hands in the front pockets of his dark blue jeans. Kris shifts a little on his feet, looking at the ground in front of him.

”I can be absolutely honest with all of you. I don’t want this the same way that James, Steve and Ryan want this. They all have their motivations. Steve thinks he is entitled to more reigns with the Roulette Championship, and made a point to mention that last week. He blames management for his losses because they made him defend the title against lucky and undeserving people. James wants to assert some kind of dominance. He has this impressive record against everyone in this match except me, and nothing to show for it. Last Climax Control he became the least impressive person in a giant group. It makes sense that he would want to carry a championship into Climax Control, so that he doesn’t get lost in the shuffle. Then you have Ryan. This is a super talented kid, that is really just getting started. He wants to earn respect, but not from any of the fans, or people sitting at home, because they already adore him. He wants to hold one of the most difficult and unpredictable championships in this entire industry, so that the people in the locker room will respect him as a competitor. What he doesn't realize, is that respect won't come from those people because of this title. It is the kind of thing that takes years, not championships.”

He looks up from the ground, and into the camera.

”Unlike James and Steve, I'm not going to stand in front of a camera and shout baseless claims while failing to understand the other people in the match. They have told you that they think I have no place here. Even though I beat Steve in a Roulette Rules match on the last Climax Control, I am not deserving of being in this match. Likewise, my tag team win over James doesn't count because of my brother “cheating” while making the pin during the no-DQ tag match we had. He will even double down on the baseless bullshit by saying my brother carried me through Jet City. Apparently he missed the Climax Control where I beat Jay, in the middle of the ring, with no help at all. The last time I lost a singles match, or was even pinned in the SCW ring was more than a year ago. Can any of you say that? Can any of you say that you have had the success that I have had in the time that I have been here? You can point the finger at my brother and say that I had a talented tag team partner, but James has Dmitri at his side and still hasn't gotten the job done.”

He pauses, awaiting some kind of explanation that nobody is there to give to him.

”James likes to try and act like Jet City cheated to beat him, or wanted the double count out finish, but clearly he is the only one that hasn’t watched those matches. His team benefitted from that count out, not mine. They did it because they knew they couldn’t beat us, and would never jump to the front of the line to the tag team championships if they lost. They pulled their little stunt and then they got a No Disqualifications match that they didn’t deserve. What did they do with it? They came up short and then he wants to talk all kinds of shit about us using the rules to our advantage? Did you not know what kind of match you were walking into? Were you not paying attention?”

He pulls his left hand from his pocket, and holds it palm-out to the camera.

”No. Stop. Don't even answer that. Of course you weren’t, but that’s your problem, not mine, and I’m not going to stand here and repeat it seventeen more times so you can get it. Both of the other ‘challengers’ in this match…”

Kris raises both of his hands to put literal air quotes around the word ‘challengers’ before dropping them back into his pockets.

” …will tell you that I don’t belong, but as we have established, neither of them earned places in this match. They have both lost major matches that should have kept them out of competing for the Roulette Championship. Yet, they seem to want me to prove that I belong. I have given you people my opinion about how deserving I am, but that’s kind of a biased answer. Obviously, I think I deserve to be here, but you know who else does? The man bringing the Roulette Championship to the ring, Ryan Keys. Ryan has already told all of you that he thinks I earned this match. He admits that I fought to get here, and has said that he was glad that there was someone in this match that was not simply gifted a title match. He was happy that someone, anyone, didn’t whine, bitch, or complain their way into the title picture. He was ecstatic to compete against someone that has beaten the other challengers, and got their spot the right way. But let me ask you this, what does he have to gain from saying as much?”

Again Kris waits like the camera is going to answer his question. He looks down again, but this time with a smile on his face.

”The short answer is, nothing at all.”

He laughs out loud after the statement, and then looks back up into the camera.

”It doesn’t benefit Ryan Keys to say nice things about me. He’s not naïve enough to think that he is going to get me to take it easy on him by being nice. He’s not trying to trick me into cutting him a break. He said it for one reason, and one reason alone: it’s true. Ryan knows I have more than earned my place, and he wants nothing more than to be respected. Put those two things together and you can see that he is giving respect in the hopes of getting a little back. What he doesn't know, is that he doesn't have to earn any of it with me. I know what kind of person he is, and how talented he is. I already respect him more than both of the others combined. However, that's not going to stop me from ending his title reign almost embarrassingly short. That's not personal though. That's just how things work in this world, and in a world where even the champion knows I deserve to be here, what do I need to prove to the idiots that lucked their way? I can answer that one too: not a damn thing.”

Kris turns from the camera starting to pace once again, but stopping at the dumpster, shaking his head and laughing.

”I can say one other thing to Ryan’s benefit; that guy knows how far to push lines. He knows how far to carry his own hype before drawing a line in the sand. Ryan Keys might still be green, but he already learned something that Steve hasn’t learned in his decade long career of disappointment. He learned something that James hasn’t learned despite all his humiliating losses. How do I know this? Because you don’t hear Ryan making claims that he is going to win this match, and hang onto the title until he gets injured and has to vacate it like Steve promised he would do. You don’t hear him saying that he is going to walk in and kick everyone’s ass, and could do so blindfolded, with an arm tied behind his back, like James said in his promo last week.”

He shrugs without pulling his hands from his pockets, turning to put his back against the dumpster.

”If Steve wins this match, how is he going to backtrack off of that statement when he loses? If the wheel spins and forces James to wrestle blindfolded and one-armed, how could he even bitch about it being unfair? That’s not to say that he wouldn’t, the guy complains about cheating in a No DQ match, and I would I have to explain that flawed logic seventeen more times before he could grasp the problem with it.”

Kris starts moving towards the camera, albeit slowly. He raises his left hand to his face, tapping the middle of his lips with his index finger. He does not share the thought until he closes in on the camera, and hunches down in front of it to be eye-level.

”The only thing that I have to figure out, is if I really want to win at Into The Void. Despite the fact James and Steve have both said I don’t deserve to be in the match, they’ve at least hinted that they would be more than happy to beat me one-on-one with the title on the line. Likewise, both Ryan Keys and I have said on social media that regardless of which one of us walks out with that title, we would be happy to go one more time come Climax Control.”

He chews on the inside of his mouth, turning slightly away from the camera, thinking over all of the scenarios.

”It seems like even if I were to lose, I win. ”

He turns back to the camera, and tries, but fails, to keep the smile off of his face.

”The old me would have been okay with losing this match and waiting another couple weeks for a real one-on-one shot. The guy that lived in this alleyway would have accepted that without question, but I’ve already told you that I’m not that guy anymore. I am a newer, PURE version of myself and a good friend recently gave me some advice about this very topic. He taught me that the only match we can count on having, is the one right in front of us. I can’t guarantee that I get another shot in the near-future, or that I’m not going to get injured before I get back to the front of the line. This could be my one chance to be better than the person that called this alley his home. Therefore, I’m going to be the guy that wins this championship at Into The Void and goes on to break Equinox and Goth’s record with it. No more hot potato. No more waiting for an easier opportunity. I’ve been telling all of you that I was going to make things right, and it's about time that I follow through on that. I owe that to you. I owe that to SCW. I owe that to my friend, who had to watch his opportunity fade away while he sat on the couch broken. Most of all… I owe it to myself. On Sunday, I’m going to prove to the world that I’m not the guy that was okay with all of this.”

He takes one last look around the alley, disappointed in the person he was. When his eyes return to the viewers, he winks.

”And That’s What’s Up!”

Kris stands up, straightens his shirt, and then walks past the camera, out of the frame. The camera holds on the alley for a few seconds before fading to black and cutting off.