Same Team
Jet City South - San Diego
17 August 2020
OFF-Camera
The gym was not open yet, but at this point that was not Kris’ biggest worry. It had been announced that The Black Sheep were getting a non-title shot at the new Mixed Tag Team Champions, and that had been Kris’ primary focus. It didn’t matter that the gym was scheduled to start bringing in students tomorrow now that they were not being forced to quarantine. It didn’t matter that Coby Quik, who was supposed to be his partner in this business venture, was still missing in action. He had one thing on his mind, and he had been trying to catch up with her all morning. He had narrowly missed catching her before her first run of the day. It almost made him feel like she had been avoiding him. However, looking down from his office window across the entirety of the gym below, he spotted her. Not wanting to miss his opportunity, he made his way down to the main floor before approaching his tag team partner.
Kris: So can we just apologize to each other and move past this petty bullshit that has been slowing us down over the last month or so. I am kind of tired of the games and bullshit. It’s not fun anymore.
It probably came off like a bit of an ambush, but Kris didn’t care. As she spun around to face him, he had expected the worst. Neither of them were the type to want to actually vent their frustrations with someone whose opinion they actually gave a shit about. Both were always quick to point out their opponent’s flaws, but when it came to addressing their own, they would both rather kick the can down the road than speak openly. They always eventually got past these little spats, but this time Kris didn’t think that they had the time to let things blow over before it started to hurt them as a team. He was hoping that she was going to look at it the same way. After three weeks he was exhausted from walking around on eggshells. He just wanted the conversation to be over so that they could get back to normal.
Mikah: ...What?
A confused look had crossed her face as she looked at him. She frowns, her eyebrows furrowed together as she looks at him. She wasn't trying to be difficult, she just had a lot on her mind and his statement had surprised her and brought her out of her thoughts.Kris points back and forth between the two of them and shakes his head.
Kris: Whatever the problem is here, we need to fix it. Usually we just blow it off and eventually we get over it. We don’t have time to do that now, and I don’t want whatever it is to come back and bite us in the ass while we are in the ring. I get it. For some reason you are pissed off at me. You just have to let me know what the problem is, because I don’t get it.
Her eyes look him over and she is quick to fold her arms over her chest. She knew that the action made her seem unapproachable but she didn't seem to think twice about it. She looks at him before looking around the room they were in.
Mikah: Are you saying that I can't put my own personal crap to the side to function in a match? Because I can. But sure, I guess. I haven't even seen you for three weeks or even been in the same state as you since that stupid boat show. I don't have the time to be pissed at you.
She hadn't had the time to process her own emotions toward her partner in the past three weeks. But maybe she was starting to remember why she had been so upset with him.
Kris: I'm not saying that at all. I know you can. You're good at it, and you're a professional. It didn't slow us down at Summer XXXtreme and I know being on that boat was its own personal hell for you. I'm not saying you aren't capable of putting shit to the side, I'm saying I don't want us to just brush shit to the side. That is how teams implode down the line. I want to fix it now and move forward on the same page, and I don't care what it takes to make that happen.
He still wasn't sure that his honesty was going to get him anywhere but at least he can say that he tried. It was more than any of his previous partners had gotten from him. It was a start. She shifts her weight in front of him as she feels that usual fight or flight kick in but she does her best to push it away.
Mikah: ...Okay. That sounds reasonable I suppose. But first, you're telling me basically that you haven't even noticed that me and the kids haven't been here for basically three weeks? And I know that they're not your kids but a missing one year old would be kind of obvious.
She raises an eyebrow at him, wondering what his response was going to be. Of course, she hadn't told him she was going to be gone or that she had plans to go anywhere. She had thought he might have noticed her absence, but now she can tell that it had completely slipped past him even before he opened his mouth. He gestures to the space around them in an attempt to deflect a little, but gives up on making an excuse.
Kris: Well, I mean… I was trying to give you some space, and working on making things ready to open. I really just thought that you were avoiding being around me. I keep weird hours, so I thought you were planning around that.
He pauses, realizing that it does not really help his cause that he didn’t even notice that she was gone. It didn’t matter what his reasoning was going to be. It was inexcusable.
Kris: I get it that you were pissed about me doubting you being serious about coming back, and questioning how much you were working at it. I was a dick. I’m sorry. I should have had your back. Then after how the match went at Summer XXXtreme, I was pissed off. It was like you were trying to prove that you didn’t need me. That’s not how a team is supposed to work. I know that it isn’t going to matter most of the time, but eventually it will matter. I don’t want to start losing down the road because we are busier taking shots at each other instead of our opponents. If I pushed you towards acting like that, that’s my fault. Like I said, I’m sorry. And I’m sorry I didn’t realize you were gone. I guess I have just been in my own head.
Once it started coming out of his mouth he knew if he tried to stop he wouldn’t end up getting through it. Kris was not the type to take responsibility for any of his actions. She could see in his eyes that it was painful to be this honest. The fact that he wasn’t attempting to deflect or turn the situation into a joke showed how serious he was about clearing the air between the two of them. He had hoped that the effort would reassure her that he wasn’t here just to keep playing stupid games.She is quiet for a moment or two before she looks at him. She knew that admitting this was hard for him. But speaking about feelings and emotions wasn't her strong suit either.
Mikah: You know you treated me just like everybody else does, right? That doubt that almost everybody has when it comes to me competing in the ring. And that view that everybody has that loves to say I'm unreliable. But I've never not shown up when I was booked. It was almost as if you were a carbon copy of them. Another Crystal-Christina or Mercedes Vargas or Petty Polly. Another person who likes to throw me under the bus. And I was the one that had your back no matter what the others said. And I assumed that maybe you'd have had the same sentiment that I did. After everything that we have done together.
The words came out of her mouth quickly. She takes a deep breath and averts her eyes. This was the time that she'd normally walk away. The words cut into him, but instead of trying to shrug off the blame, he nods in agreement with her.
Kris: I get it. I got obsessed with this idea that you were going to do the same thing that I did. I came out there confident and then fell on my face. I didn’t want to see that happen to you, or to us as a team. I just wanted us to look like the team that everyone was afraid of, and yeah… I went too far. My head was in the right place, but I messed up how I went about it. I should have trusted you. After all, you trusted me enough to come back in the first place. That’s my fault. I’m working on it.
Usually everything that came out of his mouth was some sort of praise for himself, but not today. If he had any hope of the two of them pushing through his he realized that he was going to have to be as painfully honest about his own actions as he was about how he viewed his opponents. There was no time left for tip-toeing around the truth, and he could already feel the weight started to be raised off of his chest.She just shrugs her shoulders at him, a habit that she never seems to correct.
Mikah: There's not much else we can do about it now. It happened. And we can't change it.
She was always quick to brush things off. And this time was definitely no different. Kris shakes his head, but it didn’t seem like the fact bothered him all that much.
Kris: No. It’s a learning experience. Shit happens, but it doesn’t have to keep happening. We don’t have to make the same mistakes twice. That’s why I didn’t want to avoid it. I wanted to get it over with, so that we can get back to being a team instead of competing against each other. We’re supposed to be on the same side. I know that is a new feeling for the both of us. I mean, I know I don’t necessarily like sharing the spotlight with someone all the time. I like the attention. It is a big reason that I am back. But if we are going to be a team we need to actually be a team. I don’t want my ego to be the thing that gets in the way of that. So yeah, I messed up, but I’m going to do better moving forward. Promise.
She nods, and softens a little bit. The conversation was tense, and she had taken just about as much of it as she could handle. Mikah offers him a smirk that she only kind of has to force, and her voice comes out much more carefree.
Mikah: Good… because I didn’t come back for a project. I came back to be a champion. You gotta get it together.
It actually forces him to break, and he laughs.
Kris: Oh, it’s like that?
It was a good sign, even if it was just a deflection away from the serious conversation that neither of them actually wanted to have.
Mikah: ...and we have a gym opening tomorrow, and the new temporary champions to deal with on Sunday so you better get it together quickly. I don’t want you going into this match unprepared and costing us the win.
His mouth falls open and the audacity she has to make fun of him so quickly.. Kris raises a hand to his chest and feigns actual pain from the verbal jab as the two laugh.
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>I guess the first thing that I have to say about Bitch n Moan, is that they are welcome….
”The Miracle” stands with his back to the camera. He is looking out a large window that looks out from his office and down into Jet City South. The gym was now open for business since the SCW quarantine was lifted. New students had come running once they heard that the gym was operational, as well as some old familiar faces. Kris would have to deal with some of them once Underground came around, but that was a story for another time. Despite dealing with his gym opening, he was more focused on the match he had coming up at Climax Control. It wasn’t going to be for the Mixed Tag Team Championships, but at least he and Mikah were getting a crack at the champions in their third match back together as a team. There wasn’t a whole lot that he could complain about given his situation. It seemed to Kris that he was holding all the cards, which was probably why he sounded so smug when he started to explain himself.
They’re welcome for their championship match at Summer XXXtreme that The Black Sheep gifted to them. They’re welcome for the solo shot that they cried so hard about getting. They’re welcome for us stepping out of the way so that they could take on a Wolfslair team that was clearly done leading the division. They’re welcome that they can put beating the most dominant mixed tag team of the last year on their resume.
He turns from the glass and towards the camera, rolling his eyes at the accomplishment. It was clear that Kris wasn’t all that impressed with their victory aboard the Sun Princess.
Rest assured that they are going to say that they earned their shot, and that they earned a hard fought victory at Summer XXXtreme. However, we all know that isn’t true. You don’t have to look any further than Alex Jones’ words before their match to know that he wasn’t really in it anymore. He said that the plan was to launch his partner’s career and then refocus himself on the World Heavyweight Championship that he deserves to be carrying around. What happened at Summer XXXtreme? Alex dropped the championship he didn’t care about anymore and immediately went to work chasing the one that Griffin Hawkins managed to swipe away from Ben Jordan.
The Grand Slam Champion shrugs his shoulders, trying not to look like the thought hadn’t also crossed his mind. He had beaten Griffin in back-to-back matches recently which may have cost him his friendship with the now SCW World Heavyweight Champion. If he wasn’t invested in The Black Sheep, it would have been a no-brainer to cash in his chance at Griffin and assume his rightful spot back at the top. He wasn’t going to allow the thought to get him off track though. As far as he was concerned, Griffin did him a favor by beating Ben. After all, it got Alex Jones to put the mixed tag division on hold, and moved a dangerous team out of The Black Sheep’s path.
They beat a champion that didn’t want the title anymore, and want to celebrate like they slayed a giant. Then again, maybe they wouldn’t have even been able to accomplish that had I chosen to insert The Black Sheep into the match via my guaranteed championship opportunity. I control my own destiny, and I could have used that to squash their moment at the snap of my fingers.
He snaps his thumb and middle fingers of his left hand in the direction of the camera with his signature condescending smirk on his face.
...but they wanted their solo shot. They wanted to prove that without any other teams in the mix they had what it took to dethrone the champions. Well congratulations are due I suppose, because they managed to barely pull it off. Now they want to say that they have earned everything that they have been given, but they both know that The Black Sheep gave them the best opportunity that they were ever going to get by keeping ourselves out of that match. Wolfslair is not even going to bother challenging them to a rematch, because what would be the point? They already know the same thing that the rest of us do. If Wolfslair wanted to be the mixed tag team champions right now, they would be. Even better, if The Black Sheep had been involved at Summer XXXtreme, Bitch n Moan would still be crying about how unfair life is while Mikah and I were bragging about how awesome it is to be both Mixed Tag AND Grand Slam Champions.
The smile on his face showed the fans that Kris expected to make that hypothetical situation a reality sooner rather than later. This match was just the stepping stone to taking their titles away from the temporary champions; nothing more than a formality. He wasn’t going to give the new champions very much credit for winning something that they would never successfully defend.
Malachi and Bella walked into a perfect situation and were still surprised when it ended up going their way. That alone should demonstrate to the world that they weren’t ready to be the champions, and deep down they didn’t think it was possible. They have been celebrating for two weeks because they realize that this is the peak of the mountain for them. They might say that The Black Sheep came out of the woodwork to try and rise to the top of the division, but we don’t need to “rise” to shit. The moment we threw our hats into the ring we were at the top of the list. Why? Because nobody is going to be surprised when we take those mixed tag team championships away from Bitch n Moan and put them where they have always belonged.
He looks down to his waist, likely picturing the way that the championship would look strapped around it.
This division was created for a team like me and Mikah. Unlike Wolfslair, we don’t need to team up to help the other get recognized. Unlike The Barnharts we don’t need to team together in order to find any kind of success. We aren’t a couple like Sass n Bash that think it would be cute to do things together. We are two people that have made it our mission in life to rise to the top of this company. This is just another division for us to dominate. We have gone through all of the others. We have beaten everyone that this company has thrown at us. Nothing has been able to stop us as individuals and none of the current teams on this roster have any hope of putting up a fight against us as a team.
Now that Wolfslair was gone, there wasn’t a team on the roster that made “The Miracle” even slightly nervous. Maybe Ben Jordan and Evie would cause his blood pressure to rise a little, but Evie would have to lose her championship to make that possible and Kris didn’t see that happening any time soon. London Underground hadn’t been heard from lately, and the teams that did show up on the shows managed to lose just about every high leverage match they were put in. The lack of competition made The Black Sheep not only the best choice for a #! Contender, but the only real choice that there was.
I mean think about it! Mikah and I are main event talents. The only reason that this match is so low on the card is because everyone knows how it is going to end. Hell, even the intern that they got to write up our hype blurb for the card release knows that much. When we win this match, our shots at the mixed tag team titles are guaranteed. When we go out and embarrass the new champions after they have been celebrating their meaningless victory, I won’t have to cash in my opportunity to take their championships. The Black Sheep may have gifted them their opportunity at Wolfslair, but the charity ends there. These two are placeholders, and everyone that buys a ticket to witness the beating they are going to receive on Climax Control already knows that.
It was harsh, but Kris didn’t care. In recent weeks he had leaned hard into being the villain that everyone was painting him as. He realized that it didn’t bother him what the people he shared the locker room with thought of him. When he walked out to the ring, the reaction from the fans was the same as it had always been. That is all the validation that he required.
We didn’t come to this division in order to be cute, or be comedic relief in the backstage area. We didn’t come to help a friend get over with the crowd. We are here to win, plain and simple. Since we teamed up, the Trenton Tigers and The Barnharts learned not to mess with us. We didn’t need to trade victories with other teams to work out way up the ranks. We didn’t need to complain our way to a one-on-one match against the champions. We showed up. We won. Three matches later here we are, taking on the champs. You don’t have to bitch and moan your way to the top if you just go out and win every time a team is put in front of you. That seems to be the fact that is lost on our champions. If they were so goddamn deserving, they would have found themselves in the same position that Mikah and I are in. They wouldn’t have had to demand anything. They wouldn’t have had to call their shot, or prove that they belong. People would just know. Like people just know that The Black Sheep are destined to end Bitch n Moan’s pathetic reign before it can even get started.
With how confident he was, it sounded like the Grand Slam Champion should have gone ahead and cashed in his opportunity for a championship match on this show after all. It wasn’t out of malice though. Sometimes the truth hurts.
People might hear this and think that I have something against the two of them, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. I would have to care enough about them to form an opinion in order to hate them. I don’t. They are just the ones that happen to be in the way of an ascension that everyone in the arena can already see happening. It wouldn’t have mattered if it were Bill and Bea, or even Ben Jordan and Evie. Mikah and I set our sights on something that we wanted, and now we are going to get it just like we have everything else in our lives. It is not personal in the least.
He knew that there was no way that they were going to believe that it wasn’t personal, but it didn’t really bother him. They were his opponents. They were an obstacle to be obliterated for even thinking about getting in his way. He hadn’t made a name for himself by taking it easy on anyone, and he wasn’t going to try and fix a system that wasn’t broken.
That’s why I’m not worried about the things that I say or how they will be perceived. I don’t need a “sportsmanship translator” to come out and make everything I saw more palatable. There is no bullshit spin here. There is no sugarcoating. They have something that I want, and I don’t think that Bella or Malachi are good enough to stop The Black Sheep from taking those championships. I think that the Vegas betting lines would probably agree with me on that one.
He holds up his hands in front of his chest and shakes his head before backpedaling a little bit. He knew that he was in danger of sounding petty or over-confident unless he explained himself.
...and that’s not me trying to take anything away from Malachi as a competitor either. I kind of liked the guy back before I came back to Sin City. I mean, he is an arrogant asshole with an older brother that he used to tag with that he eventually had to put in his place. It’s almost like looking in a mirror, but with one major difference. He made the statement when he signed here that he is not going to get into the habit of suffering fools. He takes this whole thing seriously. When the bells ring, he is all business, and has no time for whimsy. But what is my entire offensive strategy if not whimsy? Has anyone ever accused me of taking all of this too seriously? Maybe I am a fool like people say, but that is what makes this an impossible match for Malachi. He has no answer for someone who’s offense has no rhyme or reason. He can’t handle someone that has no strategy, and instead is just waiting to punish people once they make a mistake. He is angry, aggressive, and otherwise emotional. That is going to be his downfall against someone who has built a career out of goading professionals into making a misstep and then capitalizing when the time is right. The only way he can get the upper hand against me is to stay out of the ring where I can’t get under his skin….but it’s not like Bella could get the job done on her own.
The idea that someone who struggled to beat Bea Barnhart and both of the female Trenton Tigers being a threat to the most successful bombshell in SCW history was laughable at best and insulting at worst.
That’s not to say that Bella is not good in her own right, but she’s no Mikah. Then again, there is nobody quite like Mikah. She is at the top of the totem pole in SCW, and everyone aspires to build the resume that she has in this company. She is recognized as the single greatest Bombshell to walk in the doors of this company and the only reason she has never held a tag championship before is because she had no interest in doing so. She didn’t have a partner that she could trust enough to pair herself with. There was nobody that was on her level that she wouldn’t view as a liability. That was, until I came back.
Kris leans back against the glass window that he had been looking out to start the recording, and folds his arms across his chest. The cocky smirk returns to his face as he thinks back through his accomplishments with the company.
That’s because despite being a fool, I am every bit as talented as my resume says I am. I dominated the Roulette Division that Malachi wouldn’t have been able to hang in. I shocked the world as Internet Champion, and I won Man of the Year for my reign as SCW World Heavyweight Champion. I mean the results speak for themselves. Who has the guy beaten? Alex Rush and Caleb Storms right? One of them isn’t good enough to be on the actual SCW roster, and the other has never really been successful. Every time that his team wins it seems like it is Bella picking up the victory for the two of them. She was the one to get the submission against the Reject Tigers, The Barnharts, and Wolfslair so clearly Malachi isn’t doing the heavy lifting there. What about his record says that he should be at the front of any line? What makes him feel like anything he has done should put him on top? The guy can talk a big game, I will give him that, but he has done nothing of note in this company without his girl doing the work for him. On the other hand, I have dominated most of the talent that has come through this company. I have been the face SCW. I have held every championship that there is to hold except for the ones that Mikah and I let Malachi and Bella shine up for us.
When Mikah and I go out to the ring, we win. Period. End of story. It doesn’t matter if we are bickering with each other out of boredom. It doesn’t matter what you see on social media. We don’t need to stand next to each other during these little promos or speak for one another so people know what we really mean. Our music hits. We walk to the ring. We beat whoever it is that is standing across from us. It is that simple. There is no reason for us to bitch about getting one on one shots. We don’t lose to joke teams like the Trenton Tigers. We leave things like that for the lesser teams like Bella and Malachi who think being a couple makes them special. Mikah and I are dominant separately, and an unstoppable force together. That’s something special. That’s something that this division hasn’t seen before The Black Sheep arrived on the scene. These two don’t stand a chance.
He chuckles lightly to himself before throwing the thought that tickled him out to the audience.
It’s going to be laughable to watch them try and say that they do….
With another cocky smile and a wink, the camera feed fades out and cuts off.
