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Don’t be a Dick
London, England
2 MAY 2023
OFF-Camera

A couple of months had become more than a year and a half a little too quickly. The worst part though? Sticking around was never part of the plan. I was supposed to be well paid and long gone by now. The Blast from the Past tournament was the last step of the plan. It was the lure to bring in Jaycee for the second time. Once he showed up, all I had to do was make one phone call. After that, I could fade back into the background. I wouldn’t have to work nights anymore if I didn’t want to. I had designs of living it up for the next few decades, and none of it involved seas of screaming, faceless idiots in arenas week-after-week.

It was fun, but I played my part. A year and a half ago, I got my foot in the door of their gym as just a pair of eyes. Once they came for Jaycee, I just needed to stick around long enough to not be suspicious, and then drive off into the sunset. That got sideways when bullets started flying around. A guy got shot. That meant I couldn’t leave, no matter what I wanted. I came in too quickly before it all went down. If I disappeared immediately afterwards, I would have just been painting a big target on my back. I had to stick it out at Jet City, and of course, that ended up working to their benefit anyways. Jaycee gave everyone the slip. Suddenly I wasn’t just lingering without a purpose. Instead, I was right back to square one. The only difference was, I couldn’t fly under the radar anymore. I needed Jaycee’s attention.I acted as their billboard week-after-week.

I can’t even say that he caught me off guard in Scotland. I knew that he was coming. That was the whole point. Maybe I could have even put up a slightly better fight. Maybe I didn’t want to. The guy never did anything sideways to me. Years ago, I might have even considered him a friend. It wasn’t that I wanted him to suffer any kind of grim fate, I was just stuck in a hard place myself. He was supposed to be my ticket out, not a nearly two-year nightmare. Sure, he had smashed my phone, but I hadn’t taken any step towards getting the thing replaced. He took that as a sign that I didn’t really want to make that call. I knew better. I still wasn’t sure making that phone call was a way out. They already fooled me with that once. I’ve never needed to learn the same lesson twice.

Luckily for me, Jaycee lost interest looking over my shoulder every minute of everyday about a week in. I think he realized that if I really wanted to get away from him and make that call, there was nothing that he could really do to stop me. Short of locking me up, there would always be an opening for me to try and slither away, and he couldn’t really do that while I was scheduled to show up to Sin City shows and fan events. Hence, being involved in Into the Void. Yet another thing to do that was never part of the plan. I guess it is a good thing that I am adaptable.

OZ: That should do it….

I wasn’t quite sure how much of which currency I had laid on the bar, but I was certain it would cover the tab. Onlookers might have accused me of being lost inside heavy thoughts. That couldn’t have been further from the truth. I was relishing in being lost in the crowd. There was nobody from Jet City trying to get me to take things seriously. There was no Jaycee trying to convince me of the morality of his situation. There were none of Eiley’s flirtatious mind games. Nobody knew where I was, and I had no way to reach out to them to tell them. It was like the bar was a blindspot in reality. None of the other shit existed until the place closed.

Last call had already come and gone and the place was basically empty. I knew that the bartender was only a few minutes away from running out of patience with me and tossing me out onto the curb. The floor shifted under my feet when I got up from the stool. My hands went out from my sides to catch balance. I stumbled a single step, but didn’t fall. The world stopped spinning, and I managed to keep my feet under me as I made my way through the door and out into the alley. I was just glad that it wasn’t raining anymore. I scouted the bar before booking a room just down the street, but that didn’t make the walk back any less creepy, just shorter. Most everyone else in Sin City was busy trying to uncover some kind of Jack the Ripper mystery with their time here, but not me. That seemed a little too much like asking for trouble. The forest had been more than enough for me. I turned off of the sidewalk and went through the rotating glass doors of the hotel into the lobby. It was only sparsely populated with others getting back from their night of fun, but I wasn’t trying to be noticed. I slipped into an elevator that was already closing, hoping to find it empty.

I didn’t see the guy at first. I was already two-thirds of the way through sliding between the doors before I caught his outline out of the corner of my eye. He had dark sunglasses on, and a hat pulled down overtop of them. He was looking the opposite direction, down at the panel of numbers for each floor.

KRIS: Seven, right?

He illuminated the number on the panel with one hand before stepping back against the back wall of the elevator. I reached up and pushed the bill of the cap up out of his face before taking off his glasses and hooking them on the front of his shirt. I knew who he was immediately. His face had been all over Jet City South like a ghost that haunted me for the last year. Except, in the last few weeks, I had learned that while he wasn’t a ghost, he definitely had been watching me. He and Jaycee both had. I sent up the signal for Jaycee to come running into a trap, without realizing that I was stepping into theirs. I should have been relieved that I hadn’t actually gotten the guy killed, but it someone made everything worse.

OZ: I was wondering when you were going to show up.

He shrugged. I had expected anger. When Jaycee showed up he had taken several of his best shots at me before deciding that it wasn’t going to make him feel any better. When Court had learned the truth she came after me as well. I got a pass that night in Romania because she passed out the moment that Kris stepped through the door. Maybe Court was actually important enough that my presence didn’t even register to him that night, but I had a hard time believing that. I think he wanted to spook me, and let it simmer. He wanted me to think about how I was going to explain myself the next time he showed up; this time.

KRIS: I figured we have put it off long enough. The cat is already out of the bag. Before too long the whole world is going to know that the rumors of my demise were greatly exaggerated.

Those last few words came out in a grandiose movie trailer announcer’s voice, but it wasn’t enough to stop me from rolling my eyes.

OZ: You’re really going to make a comeback from all of this? I’m surprised.

He wasn’t bothered by the question, and I still couldn’t see any sign of anger on his face. It would have made the whole situation somehow less tense if he looked like he wanted to kill me. I would have understood that feeling. The ambivalence of his whole being made my stomach uneasy.

KRIS: A real comeback? No. I have come to enjoy the new life that you gave me.

The elevator chimed at the two of us and the doors opened. The hallway in front of us was empty, but neither of us made any move to take our back off the elevator wall.

OZ: Well then I guess I did you a favor.

It was the first time that he actually turned his head to make eye contact with me. I had been wrong before. His body language may not have seemed hostile, but the hostility in his eyes made all of the color drain from my face. I could feel the hair on the back of my neck stand up, so I sprung forward from the wall of the elevator and forward, into the hallway. He followed with his hands in the front pocket of his hoodie.

KRIS: Unfortunately, I can’t hope to stay hidden forever. One way or another I would have eventually been found out. I shouldn’t surprise you that I would want to control the way that information comes out

I tried not to look at him at all. Instead, I became hyper-focused on finding the keycard to unlock my room before we made it to the end of the hall. The last thing that I wanted was to be stuck out here with him any longer than I needed to be. I was still holding out hope that he wasn’t specifically stalking me, but staying on the same floor.

OZ: Well your former co-workers are sure to spot you walking around London if you aren’t careful….

He didn’t seem interested in having that conversation at all because he shut it down quickly.

KRIS: I’m not an idiot. Nobody knew that I was alive until I wanted them to know that I was alive. For fuck’s sake, my brother was minutes from stepping into a Sin City ring in my memory before I told him. Some of my closest friends still don’t know. I was in the elevator because you were going to be in the elevator, and you would have noticed me heading that way if you weren’t barely on your feet.

From the moment he had taken off the glasses, I had forgotten where I had been coming from. The brilliant numbing effect created by the alcohol had faded the moment my nervous system picked up the potential ass kicking I was about to receive. The adrenaline that pulsed through my veins had cleared everything up quickly.

OZ: ...and here I was thinking that I was pulling it off.

He didn’t even attempt to hide his contempt for my state of being.

KRIS: You aren’t. You smell like you were bathing in it. It’s literally burning my eyes just to stand next to you, which makes me doubt that you are going to remember having this conversation at all tomorrow.

Then clearly he didn’t know everything about me. I tapped my temple on the right side of my head with a smile.

OZ: This thing’s like a steel trap. Nothing gets out, so don’t worry about me….

It shouldn’t have been, but for some reason that was funny for him.

KRIS: That thought hadn’t come close to crossing my mind. You’re a walking disaster. No matter what I say or do, you’re only headed one direction. Unfortunately, before all that happens, I need something from you.

I stopped in the center of the hallway. First Jaycee. Then Court. Then Kris. I had already been given this speech several times. Maybe it was the alcohol talking for me, but I wasn’t in need of a repeat lecture.

OZ: Let me stop you right the--

He was fast; way faster than I expected. I didn’t get the whole sentence out before he spun around to be face-to-face with me in the middle of the hallway. The stupid half-smile that had been on his face was gone. He wasn’t laughing anymore.

KRIS: You aren’t capable of stopping me anytime, anywhere, understood?

He had a couple of inches on me, but I probably had a few pounds on him. If we were to square up in the best of circumstances I would be curious to see what would happen. In the middle of a hotel hallway was not the time though. Clearly my tone had overstepped the boundaries he had set for the conversation.

OZ: My bad….

He seemed done trying to make any effort to be pleasant.

KRIS: You’re right. It is your bad.

Only, he hadn’t screamed the words like Jaycee or Court. They came out direct, and intense, but he didn’t raise his voice at all. The restraint that he had was impressive.

OZ: I--

He shook his head, and my mouth slammed shut instinctively.

KRIS: It’s your fault, for only looking out for yourself. It’s my brother’s fault because he’s the one that told me to start a fucking gym. It’s Jaycee’s fault for running to my gym to hide. It’s my fault for not listening to him, and trying to throw him out. It’s the guy that shot me’s fault because he pulled the fucking trigger….

It should have helped that he wasn’t heaping the entirety of the blame on me, but it didn’t. When Court and Jaycee freaked out on me, it had been easy to disregard them. They were so quick to dump it all on my lap and absolve those that they cared about. I was an easy scapegoat. The fact that Kris placed the blame on several of us may not have buried me under the full weight of it, but it definitely made it feel more real.

OZ: An---

He raised a hand to cut me off. Apparently he would let me know when I was allowed to speak again.

KRIS: It doesn’t matter what happened. We can’t change it. I can’t get any of that time back. I can’t have my career back.

He was right. That’s what made all of these conversations so hard to have. There was nothing that I could do to change a decision that I made over a year ago. I never thought any of this was going to happen. I never wanted any of it to happen. I just wanted to be able to comfortably bail on this life. I wanted the existence that Eiley had hyped up so much. I wanted out. I thought that phone call was the only way that I could make that happen.

OZ: If I could go bac--

He wasn’t having that either.

KRIS: You’d do it all exactly the fucking same. We are who we are. Don’t second guess the decision that you made just because you don’t like the place that it got you. You made that choice. You fucking own it.

Now it was my turn to shrug. He clearly hadn’t come for an apology, but he didn’t want to hear any excuses either.

OZ: I don’t know what you want from me then.

That was apparently the right answer, because the scowl on his face became slightly less intense. He softened a little bit, potentially a little impressed that he had gotten me to his point despite all the alcohol in my system.

KRIS: You can’t change any of the shit that got you here, and it wouldn’t be fair for me to ask you to try. You just aren’t capable of it. You’re just another idiot kid in over his head. So I don’t care about the role that you played last year. Put it behind you.

I didn’t even try to respond, except for a nod of understanding.

KRIS: I honestly doubt that guilt is a thing that you are capable of feeling for a total stranger. And I know that there is no way to force you to do what we are asking you to do. If you wanted to turn this whole thing on its head, you probably could. I’m not naive, and I know that we can’t trust you.

He seemed to study my reaction to see if any of those words caused any anger to bubble up to the surface. It was much harder than that to get a rise out of me though.

OZ: If you can’t trust me, why show up at all?

He shrugged again, this time with that cocky smirk on his face that Court was always talking about hating. I could see her point. There was something immeasurably condescending about it.

KRIS: All that I can do is ask you to do the right thing this time around. I mean, it doesn’t cost you anything. They probably already gave you all your money last year. That’s the only reason they could have kept you on their hook this long. There’s nothing in it for you if you give Jaycee and I up… and they’ll never stop calling you for just one last thing.

I had to give it to the guy, he wasn’t as dumb as everyone said that he was. Instead of projecting all of his feelings about the situation onto me, he was trying to understand it on my level.

OZ: Maybe you’re right.

There was a long pause while he weighed that answer. He looked me over, and then shook his head, probably still uncertain. Either way, it appeared that his point had been made.

KRIS: Give it some thought… and sober up before you go out and embarrass my gym this weekend.

He pushed past me, and headed back down the hallway towards the elevator that we came from. We were just a few doors away from mine when we stopped, so I quickly moved to it without looking back at him. With one swipe, I was inside. In another second, the door was locked and braced by all four of the mechanisms on the inside of the door. I put my back to it and took a deep breath. He had told me to give it some thought, but every cell in my body was screaming at me that there had only ever been one answer to this problem.



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>Fight a Ghost

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”What the fuck am I supposed to say?”

“I mean that literally, not sarcastically. I know that I am supposed to flip the camera on and say a little bit about my opponent each and every show…”

“...I get the schtick and all that. It’s actually one of the better parts of the job. If you take this away, it seems like this job is a whole lot about who can punch the other person in the face the best.”

“Maybe that is an oversimplification, but I don’t think that it will matter in the least. See, back when I was still in the Blast from the Past tournament, I knew that my opponents were real. Because of the prize that we had on the line, I knew that whoever I stepped into the ring with was going to be coming to maim me. I knew that once the bell rang, whoever stood across from me was going to want to tear me apart for the opportunity to challenge one of Sin City’s top champions. See, those matches had purpose. They gave the competitors direction, and a goal to strive for.”

“Every person in Blast from the Past had to sign up for the damn thing directly. They had to specifically declare their interest. There was even some kind of screening process to make sure that everyone was legit. When the brackets went live, you basically had any and all information that you needed on your opponents. It made it really simple to look back at their careers and see what you were getting yourself into. I mean, even in my case, people knew that I was coming out of the Jet City system. They could see the contract that I signed with Sin City. They had a little bit of something to go on before stepping into the ring blind.”

“That is not something that I can relate to heading towards Into the Void.”

“I am fighting a ghost.”

“... and I don’t mean Jack the Ripper. Although, it is not like that guy would have been any kind of big deal. The guy is a horror story because of all of the unknowns about him, but he is a whole lot less scary if you think about the shit that we do know. I mean, the guy only made his moves at night. He likely ambushed his victims, who never really had a chance to defend themselves. Even worse, it was likely a guy that targeted women. A guy who had to surprise attack smaller victims in the dark isn’t someone that inspires a whole lot of genuine fear. It’s like he picked off the easiest targets under the best possible cover. I guess it was smart since we still don’t know who the guy was, but it all seems too fucking cowardly to inspire some real fear.”

“... which brings me to my actual opponent. No, he is not Jack the Ripper. No, he is not even a real ghost unfortunately. Maybe his name is Saul like the card for Into the Void says. Maybe his name is actually Sal like the limited info I got about him says. But if the place paying you to step into the ring can’t even get your name right, that doesn’t speak much about the impression you made on them, does it? Maybe he has the impressive credentials that Sin City alleges that he does, maybe he has exactly what he has shown us so far: nothing.”

“I guess it doesn’t matter much. Come this Sunday, I will be stepping in the ring with whoever the hell decides to show up. I don’t care if it is Saul. I don’t care if it is Sal. I don’t care if it is a ghost, or one of Jack the Ripper’s descendants. I am going to do the same thing that I do every single time that I step into that ring. I am going to do the same shit that allowed me to rise to the top of Jet City South’s graduating class this year. I am going to do the same thing that allowed me to be successful in Blast from the Past….”

“...and make no mistake, I was successful. Nobody gave my team a chance to make it out of the first round. Nobody thought that I could stand in the ring and square off with J2H without getting embarrassed. Nobody saw me coming, and I have raised the bar each and every time that I have come down the aisle. The greatest competitor in the history of this company couldn’t put me down, and needed his partner to get the job done for him. I didn’t get eliminated from the tournament. I didn’t lose. I was never pinned. I never gave up. I was never beaten.”

“The fact remains that you people haven’t even really gotten to brush the surface of what I am capable of inside a Sin City ring. For the tournament I was saddled with a partner that got to share the spotlight with me. Any success that we shared was split in half. Each victory was something that we were going to have to share. At Into the Void, I won’t have to share. There’s not going to be anyone able to take credit for the things that I do in route to picking up this win.”

“....and there’s no way anyone will be able to underestimate what I am capable of after you see what’s left of Saul or Sal or whomever the fuck when I am done with him.”

"Trust."

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Old Friends
Jet City South - SAN DIEGO
20 JANUARY 2022
OFF-Camera



My path to Sin City Wrestling was a long one. One that I never really planned on making either. It kind of all fell into my lap. One thing led to another, led to another, and then another, so forth and so on. Before I ended up competing in Blast from the Past, it was me showing up on the doorstep of Jet City. Before that, things were actually a lot more fun. I got to go where I wanted. I mean, the first leg of this tour was in Canada of all fucking places. I prefer somewhere warm. Somewhere with beaches, sand, and people trying to show off the vacation bodies they worked hard to sculpt. That’s where I belong. Technically, that’s where the long and winding road to Sin City actually started.

Hawaii was a fun time, I can’t lie. It’s full of opportunities for anyone smart enough to reach out and grab them. I mean, there’s people falling asleep on beaches. There’s people wandering around lost. There’s huge celebrations that draw massive crowds of tourists. Everything that someone like me needed to fit in, and all made possible by the smartest money that I had ever made. I was riding pretty high at the time, but that wasn’t why that particular night stands out in my memory. I had charmed my way through a couple of pockets at bars earlier in the night. When I turned into that alley, the three guys I was with were pretty much tapped out. More of their money was in my pocket than any of theirs, and they weren’t handling the alcohol near as well as I was. I was already looking for a way to ditch them when they spotted the bartender just trying to take a break in silence. Drunkenly, they redirected towards her, already starting with the catcalls. That wasn’t going to be good for me, or my night.

Oz: "Nah guys don't be building that one up. Whistling at a soft 6  like that is going to make her feel like a hard 8 or something."

Now I strongly believe that there are three kinds of people in the world. There are the people that are going to soften up, tuck tail, and run back inside. There are those that are going to just take it, or maybe even try to shame guys for the attempt. Then there were people that were just ready to square up on sight. I could only read the girl’s body language through the dim light, but she definitely fell in that third group. After a whole night dealing with drunks behind the bar where she couldn’t say anything off-color, she seemed ready to swing at any asshole with the audacity. The problem was, from the moment our eyes locked on one another, we knew something the other three didn’t.

Oz: "Oh shit! Fuck a soft six… This one ain’t nothing but a straight 4. Street folk don't get to climb the ladder just because they fill out nicely and end up in Hawaii…. isn’t that right, E?"

The other three may well have been invisible from that point on. She walked right past them like they weren’t the original intended victims of whatever hatred she was about to open her mouth and spew at me. They wouldn’t have been equipped to deal with it either. They wouldn’t have known what they had gotten themselves into until she had finished laying them out in the middle of the street. I knew it, because I had seen it before. Lived it.

Oz: "How does a soup kitchen kid like you end up in a place like this anyway? Finally work your way off the corner and down to a more tropical climate?"

The three bums did exactly what I expected them to do: kept it moving. See, they were part of that first category of people I mentioned, the ones that flee the scene. Suddenly, they weren’t so worried about where the rest of my night was going to take me. They weren’t worried about winning any of their money back, or finding the missing watch that was definitely in my back pocket. They saw this chick about to flip her lid, and bailed like the cowards that they were.

Oz: "Aight chumps. I see how it is… you gonna let a girl scare you off? Don't nobody be trying to get on my tab later!"

I watched as she balled up her fists on her way towards me. Her mouth fell open a few times and slammed shut wordlessly. By the time she got to me, her jaw was clenched, and I could tell she was trying not to let me back under her skin like I had been when we were kids. She wasn’t going to give me the satisfaction of blowing up. I wasn’t a stranger.

Eiley: “I doubt I scared them off…”

Her voice is devoid of any emotion, and I knew what a struggle that had to be. There didn’t even sound like anything brewing under the surface, even though rage was all over her face. She didn’t have that kind of control the last time that I had seen her. Although, it had been a couple of years at that point. In the past she would have swung at me then and there. She had even chased me through alleys in San Diego for the same reason on more than one occasion. This time, it was like she was determined to not let me win. I had to commend her for the attempt.

Eiley: “I see that you haven’t changed in the least. Still hanging out with the worst of the worst as long as they have an open tab?”

I could see the anger fade from her face as she spoke. The control she had was pretty impressive. Instead of exploding at me, she tried to play my game for once. I could have sworn that her eyes seemed to say they were enjoying it too.

Eiley: “I’m surprised they let scum like you on this island. I’m sure you’re not even making your own money to stay here but swiping it off of others.”

She had me pegged from the start, but to be fair, she had the advantage. We had been part of the same circle of friends for a long time. We all kind of aged out of the system, and came up together. Several of us learned handy little survival trades that worked no matter where we found ourselves. It was almost comical to hear her sound so above it all though.

Eiley: “Why don’t you go back to kicking over trash cans or harassing the homeless? Or whatever it is you do. I have to get back to my job.”

She turned, but I wasn’t going down like that. Even if her best shot had been weak, I wasn’t going to let her just walk off feeling like she had done something to be proud of. Sure, she hadn’t completely lost her cool, but since when is that worth giving someone a medal for? She had her chance, just like I had to return fire.

Oz: "Ha!  …a fucking job… that does suck."

Not that I was surprised. She was always the one of us that was most likely to try and play society’s game the way that it was supposed to be played. She wasn’t going to be afraid of the back-breaking labor in a going-nowhere job. She had always been determined to rise above by only bending the rules that most of us pretended weren’t there at all. That didn’t mean that she wasn’t still wrong about me though.

Oz: "...and I'll have you know, little-miss-full-of-herself, I am here on my own dime. Paid for a ticket and everything….. but…. since touching down have I seen some people get loose with their billfolds and maybe lose some here and there? Maybe. Can I be blamed for what they misplaced though?"

I paused, but only long enough to get her to spin around back towards me. The goal was to keep her from escaping back inside thinking that she had won, and I had succeeded. However, as soon as she tried to answer, I cut her off.

Oz: "Nah. Don't answer that. I know what you'll say. As much as you're one of us, you also have that holier than thou shit going. But… look at the two of us! All this time passed and here we are. Someone still in the same place, at the same time. Only you're working, and I'm out partying."

I could see that anger starting to boil back up even though she didn’t want to show it. She gritted her teeth, and tried to choke it back.

Eiley: “At least I don’t have to lie and steal to make money. Everything I have, I earned. I didn’t have to prey on a flock of hapless drunks every night just to be able to skate by on the bare minimum. You think you’re some kind of success story because you’re here? We see trash wash up all the time.”

It was good. Better than I would have given her credit for before tonight. If I would have gotten to put money down on the argument, I would have put it on her blowing up before managing a single word that was able to cut me more than superficially. Unfortunately, she was a couple of weeks behind the times.

Oz: “Nah, see it’s not like that anymore. If you find the right people you don’t have those kinds of problems anymore.”

Her eyes rolled hard. I knew there was no way that she was going to believe that I wasn’t in the exact same position I was in the last time our paths crossed. Me being better off meant that all of her work was for nothing. She was convinced that the only way out was real work. I was about to shatter that world view.

Eiley: “That’s all pretty pointlessly vague.”

It was intentional. I wanted her to ask, because if she didn’t, then she really wasn’t interested. It would have shown me that she really wasn’t second-guessing the path that she took. Questions meant curiosity. Curiosity meant uncertainty, and that meant that no matter how hard she tried, I would win.

Oz: “Some people are going to pay me to go work out. You know, really bust my ass and go through some kind of combat school. But see, they don’t even care if I am any good. They don’t even care if I ever even actually fight. All I gotta do is keep my eyes peeled for the right guy to walk in the door, and let them know when or if he does. Nothing more. Nothing less. All expenses paid, for as long as it takes.”

She gritted her teeth, and tried to turn away, but I was ready for it. I beat her to the door and put my back to it, bringing the two of us face-to-face.

Oz: "What’s the matter? Upset that you have fought so hard, just to fail to reach the middle all while someone as terrible as me skipped right over you with a smile on my face?"

She reached for the handle of the door, and yanked back. To my surprise, she actually managed to pull me off balance a little, but it wasn’t enough to get me out of the way.

Eiley: "You’re a shit person. You’ve always been a shit person. You’ll likely always be a shit person. You know what the sad thing is though? Nobody has ever expected anything better from you. Sure, you may have started at the bottom and the occasional score might catapult you up a few steps, but make no mistake, you’ll end up right where you belong."

She was probably right, but that seemed like a problem for a future version of me to deal with. I was too busy making sure that I got there without any regrets.

Oz: "I couldn’t help being born in the gutter, but I am only interested in moving upward and onward. If you're too stuck in the past to see that, maybe a job is what you really needed."

She yanked back on the door again, but my foot was firmly planted against it, so there was no movement like there was on the first attempt. Unable to flee, her face twisted up and she made no attempt to hide her anger anymore.

Eiley: “I believe it is you that is stuck in the past. You’re the one that is still doing the same stupid shit that I was doing six or seven years ago but I’ve moved on from that. I don’t need to resort to the shortcuts that you do. I think it gets to you that I grew up. You should think about doing the same.”

She went to pull the door again, and this time I moved so that it swung open. It crashed against the bricks of the back wall of the building hard enough to be heard overtop of the music inside. I knew that it was only a matter of seconds before someone was going to come check that everything was okay, but that display of anger was all I needed to chalk up yet another victory.

Eiley: “Go home Olly. Wherever it is that home is these days…”

She sounded defeated, although she could have just been trying to shoo me along before anybody with the power to fire her came along.

Eiley: “I have to go back to work. Real work.”

I didn’t stop her. I probably could have. I could have made a scene and I definitely could have convinced someone that she accosted me in the alley and deserved to be fired. To be honest though, that wasn’t something that I wanted. I just wanted to get that rise out of her. From the moment that I realized it was her, I just wanted to play the game, because we always had. Getting under her skin started out as a way to pass the time. Years later, it was a way to deal with other feelings. Then in Hawaii, I am not even sure if I knew why I was doing it. I don’t even know why I gave her all of the information that I did. I just know that conversation eventually led us both to the place we ended up: Sin City.



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I am sure that people are wondering exactly who I am…

That’s kind of the million dollar question of the first round, isn’t it? I mean, all of these fresh new faces come in for the Blast from the Past tournament because the prize is something that nobody can pass up. Anybody can go from a basic nobody to the face of the whole company if they get a good partner and can go the distance. It’s an offer that is too good to refuse.

...but there is a limit. I mean, of all of the competitors in the world, only sixteen men and sixteen women get to enter. There are more people than that on the roster in this company, and yet the tournament is open to the world. Sometimes you have to know the right people to get a foot in the door. Sometimes, you just need to be positioned in the right gym, for when they get the call. I mean, that is how I ended up here. I’ll be honest with you guys, I had never even heard of this place a year ago. I was just looking for a place to stay in beach shape. How was I supposed to know that Jet City South would eventually funnel me here? How could I have guessed that I would be handed one of these spots and told to go run with the opportunity?

The short answer is that I couldn’t have guessed that any of this would happen. I am one of a handful of people in the tournament representing Jet City, and all of you saw what Court Pierce did in the opener last week. I walked into that gym last year, and I have taken on the best that they have had to offer every single day since. I have pushed people that have been doing this a lot longer than me to their limit and then some. I have risen above people that have been around for years. I have ascended the ranks of a gym that produced what I hear is one of the best this company has ever seen. Yet, they pointed the finger at me when it came to signing up for this tournament. They wanted me to be the one coming down the aisle to represent them. They trusted me to do that, all while having a legacy of a gym that typically does really well in Blast from the Past. They have trained a winner, and several others that got very close.

Who can really say who belongs and who doesn’t before they ever actually step inside the six sides of the Sin City ring?

...but that is what a lot of people in this tournament are going to say. People were already doing it this week, and I am sure that this Sunday’s Climax Control will be no different. People are going to say that rookies don’t stand a chance. People are going to say that a lot of the new faces don’t realize what they are getting themselves into. Everyone is expecting the newbies to be tossed out in the first round, because they aren’t ready. So let me ask this, who ever is? Nobody is ever the very best that they will ever be from the first day on the job.

I mean look at the legends of this company. Everyone lost their shit when J2H signed up for Blast from the Past, but from what I hear, that dude was a joke for a long time before becoming the superstar he is now. If he had listened to any of the detractors early on, you people would have never seen what he was capable of growing into. Now it is all you people talk about. It is all that I have heard since the very moment that I signed up. You know what that tells me? It tells me that you people don’t have a fucking clue what will work, and what won’t. You can’t see the future stars coming before they slap you in the mouth. You don’t believe, until you see it for yourselves.

Everyone is quick to write-off the people that haven’t done anything yet, and equally as fast to jump on the bandwagon after new superstars start to take off. And that isn’t just the fans. After being at the show last week, I can tell you that the same conversations are happening in the back, and they are damn sure happening in the gyms. People started picking the winners of this tournament before the teams were even announced. That really helped open my eyes to how all of this actually worked.

Coming out of Jet City South was already bad enough. I mean, the shadow of Kris Ryans is going to be a rough one to break out of. Being around that place, the stories are unavoidable. Nobody took Coby seriously because as good as he was, he wasn’t the ‘The Miracle’. Court heard the same thing, and is still dealing with that to this day. It basically crippled her. Ruby showed up, and people literally hated her from the jump. Kate has been successful, but people don’t even relate her to Jet City the way that all of us students do. Even the kid that showed up in the tournament last year apparently heard the chatter. He flamed out so spectacularly that nobody ever saw the dude again. And I had to deal with all of that every time I stepped into that building. I had to deal with the naysayers and the ones that already believed that the bar had been raised as high as it ever could.

...and that is exactly why I passed them all up. That is why it is me standing here, and not them. That is why I am in this tournament while everyone else with a more important resume couldn’t be bothered. Too many people are paralyzed by the fear of coming out and falling short. Too many people don’t try, because they don’t feel like they could get to the top. Too many of them don’t want to waste their effort on something everyone knows they are going to fail at.

Not me. Why? Because like I said, you people don’t know shit. Nobody in that locker room has seen me actually step foot in the ring. The majority of the people in the arena aren’t going to give me a chance all because they don’t recognize my name. The people in this tournament are going to tell me that I don’t know what it takes, and that I have no idea what someone can put me through in that ring. They’ll say I haven’t learned enough.

...and nobody actually knows a damn thing at all.

I mean fuck, the guy that the majority of you hold up as the guy with the best shot of winning this tournament is a guy that all of you have wrote off as a punchline before you gave him a chance. Even worse, everyone is on Kris’ bandwagon now that he is dead and gone, but that dude’s rise to the top was literally called miraculous around this company. They dubbed him “The Miracle” like he was doing anything as a champion that he hadn’t done the first night on the job. I am new around here, but it seems like there is a trend starting there. Seems like everyone makes up their mind about what newcomers can do before everyone lays an eye on them. That doesn’t sound like there’s a glass ceiling anymore. It sounds awful fucking concrete to me.

So I can’t care about what any of you think. I can’t care about what my opponents are going to say about me. I can’t care what the people in the locker room think of me. If I do, I already lost because they don’t think I can do what I am setting out to do in the Blast from the Past tournament. Nobody thinks I can win. Nobody thinks that I stand a chance. Nobody outside of Jet City thinks that I even deserve to be here. So I say fuck’em. I say, I’mma just do my own thing. I say, me and my partner shut out all the white noise and just go out there to do what we thought we could from the moment we signed up for this thing. Before the teams were picked, before even all the names were announced, we signed up for this thing because we thought there was a chance we could win it. We wouldn’t be here if we didn’t feel that way. This would be a waste of time otherwise. I say let’s cling to that, and you people can keep the rest, because at the end of the day, none of you are going to be in that ring with me.

...I only need one person in my corner, and that’s Ariana Angelos. She probably understands better than most people in this tournament what it is like to be counted out, and rise above it anyways. I mean, she came into this year as the Bombshell Roulette Champion. Who thought that was possible before she did it? Who thought that her jump from the Underground to SCW would crash and burn? She is yet another in a long line of people exceeding the expectations placed on them, but she doesn’t seem bitter about it at all. I doubt she would disagree with anything I’ve said, even if she wouldn’t have said it herself. She graduated out of the Go Gym, and has carried a championship in Sin City, and even she can’t get the recognition that she deserves. What makes her any different than any of the other greats that came out of that gym? What makes her less than any other former champion in Sin City? Not a damn thing. I don’t think I could have gotten paired with anyone better. I got a partner that can understand where I am coming from, and what I want to get done in that ring. That’s not a bad foundation for two strangers to start from.

However, I will say that the one thing that bothers me the most about her is the one thing that bothers me the most about our first round opponents. It’s the fact that in the face of all of the negativity, she is still cherry, and gives a shit what people think about her. Granted, she isn’t as bad about the nauseatingly sweet Sam Marlowe, or the human punchline Teddy Warren.

...and I get it. Not only has Sam made it to the finals of this tournament before, but there apparently used to be a whole mixed tag division inspired by this tournament, and she won that championship as well. And it’s hard to hype up Ariana holding that Bombshell Roulette Championship when Sam has had that thing on several occasions. My problem is, there isn’t a single person that has a negative thing to say about her. I’ve asked. Every time her name is brought up, it seems to light up whomever I am talking to. People rave about her, despite the fact that in all her years she has never managed to rise up past the middle. No matter how many chances she has been handed and failed to cash in on, people love her. People love watching her compete. People are always cheering her on. It’s the exact opposite treatment that most of the rest of us get, and for the worst possible reason. She isn’t respected as one of the best to ever come through this company. She isn’t elite in the ring, or even in a promo. Everything is cookie-cutter safe when it comes to Sam. Everyone shrugs off her mediocrity because the only thing she is really good at is kissing ass. She is the queen of pandering. I have watched countless clips online trying to figure out why I should feel threatened by her being across the ring from me, and every one of them made me sick to my stomach. She lets people walk all over her with a smile on her face and everyone loves a good doormat.

...the problem with being a doormat though, is that they don’t end up winning a whole lot of wrestling matches. When you smile in the face of someone pointing out your shortcomings, it means those shortcomings don’t bother you. That come-whatever-may attitude means that there is no fire burning inside of her to actually reach out and do something worth remembering. She would rather be everyone’s friend than the face of the Bombshell division, and that’s fine. That’s clearly worked for her. She has been collecting a paycheck for a long while without having to ever actually work on her craft. That’s as far as the dream goes for some people. They are just happy to be included.

And that goes double for her partner and the “man” that I have to actually lock up with on Climax Control, Teddy Warren. I couldn’t find a whole lot about the guy, because apparently there is not a whole lot about him worth knowing. He also apparently got his hands on that mixed tag championship that doesn’t exist anymore, but from what I can tell, not even he thought that he deserved it. Apparently the only thing that he is actually good for, is getting J2H to show up and make fun of him. What’s even more sad is that back when he signed up for this tournament he was talking about how he hadn’t been competing full time in nearly two years because of a gnarly divorce. So I am stepping into the ring against a guy who hasn’t even really been thinking about competing, let alone stepping inside a ring for two years; a guy that wasn’t even all that great back when he was working on his craft day-after-day. And I could sit here and point out all the same shortcomings in his game that everyone else did years before I was paying attention, but what’s the point? We have seen his best, and it doesn’t even rise to the mediocrity of his partner.

Yet these are the two individuals that people have given the edge to send Ariana and I home in the first round. These are the two that the fans are undoubtedly going to be behind when the bell rings. They are the favorites, and Ari and I are the incapable ones. Is anyone still wondering why I can’t take any of you seriously? Every single person in the crowd, and the locker room are hypocrites. When given the choice between young talent or proven failures apparently the only thing that matters is how long someone has been around. It’s not right. And now it is my mission to show every single person in that arena how very, very wong they all are.

...and afterwards they’ll probably call it something stupid like “miraculous” even though it was all so fucking clear from the start.

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Almost Human
Jet City South - SAN DIEGO
1 March 2022
OFF-Camera


Willie Mac’s visit spooked me. I hadn’t been willing to let him see that in the moment but it had stuck with me afterwards. I couldn’t see a way out. Somehow I pulled myself together enough to get the job done in the second round of Blast from the Past. The assist we got wasn’t exactly needed, but I am not going to complain about it.  The entire night I was haunted by how I was supposed to be wrapping this up, but I couldn’t just hang Levana out to dry like that. I wasn’t just going to stand on the apron even though I knew that was probably the smartest play. There was no part of me that was going to be able to stomach that. But, I felt just as sick when we won as I would have felt if we lost. By advancing, I was risking my own ass, and apparently dragging down Willie with me. It felt selfish, but somehow I knew that feeling wouldn’t be as bad as the regret I would have looking back at it years from now. Keeping my head down and staying out of sight is no way to live a life. Being in the ring was the exact opposite of that. I couldn’t give that up yet. I wasn’t ready to go back. My only real option was to split the difference. As soon as I saw that I wasn’t booked for the last Climax Control, I took off. I let Levana know that I was taking some time, and bolted. If there were questions that the media needed answered about our team, she could do that. If there were social media scuffles, she could handle that. Being in the spotlight was part of the allure of it all for her. That made her the perfect partner, even though if I said that to her face she would likely be offended.

For the first week, that went as well as it could have. Coby had gotten the word out that everyone needed to stay out of my way. I wasn’t interested in talking about the tournament, promoting the gym, or making friends. I was there to work. Success, even as limited as it has been, apparently has its perks.I thought today was going to be another one of those days. I got up early. I beat my time on my morning run to the gym. Things were shaping up to be perfect. I should have known that was too good to be true. The front doors didn’t automatically separate as I approached. I checked my phone to make sure I wasn’t too early before deciding that nobody had made it to the front door yet. All the familiar cars for the trainers were in their respective parking spaces, so I didn’t think anything was out of the ordinary. I darted through the alley, and tried the back door nearest to the locker rooms, and it pulled open without problems. However, as I stepped through, I was greeted by the least friendly face at Jet City South.

Kris: Oh, check it out. This year’s tournament rookie.

I really can’t understand why more people don’t hate this guy. It is like he goes out of his way to be unpleasant just for the fun of it. Mark and Christian may think that makes him bold, but in my eyes, it really just makes him an asshole.

Jaycee: Oh look, SCW’s absentee tag team champion….

I knew that I shouldn’t let him get to me, because it was exactly what he wanted. He was just chomping at the bit to compare me to Courtney Pierce. Everyone that found out where I trained made that comparison, and I didn’t find it flattering. Nobody wants to be compared to a spectacular flame out while they are still on the rise. With everything else going on, I wasn’t trying to dwell on becoming a failure.

Kris: Easy there buddy, I wasn’t trying to rile you up. You’ve done well for yourself, even though you aren’t willing to give us any credit for that.

What credit did any of them deserve? Sure I had hit up a few of their structured classes. I had audited a whole lot more while doing my own thing and just keeping an eye on what they were working through. For the most part, I developed my own style. I didn’t come out of one of their molds. I wasn’t going to let anyone else take credit for my gifts.

Jaycee: I give you what you’re owed. I just don’t want to be saddled with your name. You can understand that, I’m sure.

Strangely, it didn’t feel like he wanted to argue like we had a few months back. Going off of that interaction, and everything that I had seen on social media and Sin City programming, it caught me off guard. Everything about his body language seemed chill. His hands were up, and he took a step back from me which was typical deescalation.

Kris: Nah, I get it. My name is shit everywhere but Sin City, and they think I am some kind of God most of the time. I don’t always understand it. In a lot of ways, I am just along for the ride. You’re only a couple matches in, but if you stick to it you’ll get it eventually.

Little did he know I was already feeling the pull of that. Despite the fact that it would have been in my best interest to throw the last match, I couldn’t. No matter how many times I talked myself out of giving it my all, I had to. I wanted to give up, but my body wouldn’t let me. It drove me to keep competing until it went our way. Looking back, it felt almost like an out-of-body experience.

Jaycee: The ring brings the best out of people…

I could be wrong, but I felt like I earned a little bit of respect with those words.

Kris: It just allows people to show you who they really are. People don’t hold back when they are out there. The moment won’t let you. You get all those people screaming around you, and things just happen. You’re moving on instinct. When you’re down in the ring you can almost feel the way that things are going to go before they happen. I have met some truly terrible people in that six sided ring, but I got through it because I could feel it was my night.

I shouldn’t have expected anything less from him. Kris was a notorious under-preparer. He didn’t have any real technique to speak of. The fact that he owned a gym was laughable, because there was nothing about what he does that he could really teach people. The guy was a wrecking ball that goads people into playing his game. If we ever came across each other in the ring, I would take him out one limb at a time. His chaotic style relied on who had the momentum in the match, whereas for me everything was more textbook.

Jaycee: If you’re paying attention, it can always be your night.

That was where I lost him. Just when we were starting to get on the same page too…

Kris: No. Sometimes it’s just not. Sometimes there is nothing you can do. It’s a lot like drowning actually.

His eyes trailed away like he was remembering something, but I didn’t have time to take that stroll down memory lane with him. This conversation had already erased my excellent time getting here. Somehow even though I got here earlier than ever, I was still going to end up starting late.

Jaycee: I’ll keep my eye out for it.

The words were just meant to appease him. It was the most courteous brush off that I could come up with at the moment. I tried to push my way past him, but he took a step backwards at an angle to stay in front of me.

Kris: I’m not sure that it works like that. It’s one of those things that you’ll just know as soon as the bell rings.

I could tell that he was studying my reaction to see if I was allowing any of his words to get into my head. The whole charming and disarming act was really just a work around to rope me into another one of his word games.

Jaycee: Look man, I’m not going to dwell on any of the negatives. Why would I? If I really wanted to pick things apart, I could…. but why? It’s a waste of my energy. I’d rather bust my ass to make sure that I did everything that I could to make it happen. Focusing on the white noise is just readying an excuse for when it goes bad. I don’t prepare for what I’m gonna do after losing, because I don’t intend to lose. None of the little things matter if you win, so why put any thought into them…. ever?

I thought that some of it would take him by surprise, but he took every word in stride. He even cracked a smile at me like I had passed his test.

Kris: Maybe the moment won’t be too big for you.

I couldn’t help but take a shot at him since this whole thing had been a game at my expense.

Jaycee: You mean like it was too big for you when you tried to win it? You weren’t even a rookie like me…

I thought that I would at least provoke him into being more direct about what the point of all of this was, but the words didn’t register much of a response at first. After a second, he turned away from me and motioned for me to follow him down the hallway towards the main space of the gym.

Kris: That doesn’t mean that we don’t have things in common…

As we came to the end of the hallway, he stopped and nodded out in the direction of a group of people. It took me a few seconds of scanning faces to see that not only was it all of the trainers, but people that I had never seen before. Two children. A boy that couldn’t be ten yet, and a girl that looked roughly half that. A few current and former Sin City faces whether they were trainers or recent students. Ruby and Court were in the ring squaring up with the children like they were actually going to spar.

Jaycee: Did I interrupt some kind of party or something?

He nodded, but I didn’t get the feeling that he was offended that I had stumbled across their gathering.

Kris: We all travel a lot, so there is never a good time for all of us to get together all in the same place. Those are both of my kids. KJ… that kid is going to be a monster in the ring in another ten years. It’s all he talks about. And then Lindsay. It’s her birthday, and she wanted to see everyone so we shut it down just for her.

It was starting to make sense why they wouldn’t just rip Kris’ face off of all the walls around here. I had always thought of the gym as a business that he was failing to manage. In reality, they were all more of an extended family. I am sure the connections between them would be interesting to learn if I had the time, or gave more of a shit. It was nice and all, but I didn’t see how it related to me.

Jaycee: I don’t get it…

He laughed. I was starting to get the idea that it was his favorite part of these little condescending lessons. The more time I spent with him, the more I could understand why his students lacked confidence in themselves and always fell apart.

Kris: I had some success early on, just like you are. But I was always destined to take a whole lot of steps backwards. If you don’t know the history, go watch it. I used to suck. So when you mention that I did poorly in the tournament, it doesn’t matter. I hadn’t learned anything yet.

He was watching the group more than he was paying attention to me, but he had my attention.

Kris: At first I was using Sin City as a way to run away from life. I was there just to have something to do, and because of that I kept falling on my face. It didn’t matter how much I wanted things to go right, I just couldn’t get to where I wanted to go. It never really clicked or felt right.

Clearly that changed, because the guy was just inducted into the Hall of Fame, so I assumed he was approaching something that resembled a point to all of this.

Kris: Those two changed that for me. Instead of running away, I was running to build everything that I could for them. I wanted to be the best, so that they would want that for themselves. I found the motivation that I needed. I stopped working against myself, and leaned into it. I made the decision that being inside that ring was the way to fix things for myself, and didn’t take no for an answer.

I couldn’t see what he was trying to get at and attempted to cut him off.

Jaycee: That’s motivat---

He turned back to me and suddenly got serious.

Kris: Sooner or later people are going to find out that you have spent years here training in my gym. You are part of my legacy whether you want to be or not. That means that I have to take somewhat of an interest in you, even though I think you’re probably just another hack that doesn’t have a chance.

The way that his tone and body language turned on a dime was unnerving. If I didn’t know better, I would have assumed I was talking to an entirely different person.

Jaycee: Thanks for the vote of confidence…

He didn’t even acknowledge the attempt to cut the tension.

Kris: You were hesitating in that last match. I could tell. If you didn’t know whether or not you wanted to be a competitor, you shouldn’t have signed up. If your heart isn’t in it, you should let your partner know before you get her hurt. Either way, if you go out in this next round and pull that same shit, I will go out in front of that crowd and embarrass you so badly that you won’t ever want to come back, got it?

The way that the threat rolled off his tongue so effortlessly let me know that he had absolutely no second thoughts about it, and absolute confidence in his ability to bring it to fruition. This wasn’t how I saw today going. Everyone was talking about how impressive we were. How did he even catch that my mind was elsewhere?

Jaycee: There are just som--

I wasn’t even sure where the sentence was going. There was no way that I could let him in on everything, but that might have been what my mouth was prepared to do before my brain caught up to it. Luckily, he had already cut me off.

Kris: There’s always ‘something’, and I know your ‘something’ means a whole lot to you. I don’t care though. What I care about is what happens down there in the ring. You don’t have time to be running away from whatever outside shit you have going on while you are in that moment, or it will swallow you. You’re either all the way in, or don’t even bother showing up…

I finally gave up trying to cut him off and just dropped my shoulders. Once he was done, he stormed off, but before he had hit his group of family and friends, he had managed to erase all of the hostility from his body language. At least he hadn’t thrown me out. I could still get to work, and he had given me plenty to think about.

Jaycee: Good talk…


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>I tried to tell all of you that this was going to happen.

Here we are, one match away from the finals, and everyone is still trying to figure out exactly how Levana and I are still hanging around while all these so-called favorites keep dropping like flies. The Hall of Famer Amy Santino was supposed to do us in, but that never really materialized. Then Amber Ryans was supposed to send up packing because she was allegedly unbeatable. I told all of you about the Mixed Tag loophole, and then everyone watched it happen like a self-fulfilling prophecy. At the end of each unwinnable slaughter, it was the rookies getting our hands raised in victory. Not Amy. Not Amber. Not their lackluster partners. We went through two of the hardest matches in the opening rounds, and we are still standing. The last one wasn’t without controversies, but I’m not going to concern myself with the particulars. Simply put: It was our night. We seized the moment when it was required of us. Nothing more. Nothing less. Levana and I know that the only thing that matters is getting to the next round.

...and so we advance to the semi-finals of Blast from the Past just two matches into our Sin City Wrestling careers. While that isn’t something that hasn’t happened before, it’s certainly been the most unlikely path through the tournament historically. Two strangers working together is going to be combustible by itself and inexperience rarely helps. You have to be in sync with one another to overcome that, and Levana and I have been able to do that since the first round. For some reason, we mesh well. We both have the same goal, and we are willing to put aside anything that is going to get in the way of achieving it. Some teams try to fake or force chemistry, but as it plays out, we see the cracks. We see through the lie. We watch teams fall apart as the pressure ratchets up in this tournament. Far too often, we see the favorites get stopped in their tracks by that pressure. This round is going to be no different.

...because this week the man standing across the ring from me is Max Burke. Undoubtedly, this tournament has gone as well as he could have hoped for until now. He managed to draw the two softest teams that signed up, and his wins actually made him look like a contender for the first time in years. I get that this tournament is supposed to bring back faces from the past, but this guy’s claim to fame is a Roulette Championship reign from a decade ago. He had the audacity to refer to his reign as a blood war, but it was hardly long enough to be called a skirmish. And he’s going to do the same thing when he tries to hype his victories in the first two rounds as if they are something to be proud of. Any team could have made it here if their path had included two Russows, Miles Kasey, and Todd Williams. Two of those people are cursed to never win anything worthwhile in this company, Todd is a joke, and Milo oozes mediocrity. Mark and Christian basically handed Myra and Max a pass through the first two rounds while the rest of us had to battle our way through. Myra herself admitted as much during the second round.

...and as if Max Burke being a ghost from Sin City’s past wasn’t bad enough, the guy is a big enough fool to go out in front of a camera and paint a target on himself. The guy got eliminated from last year’s tournament, hobbled around for a little bit, but then got shelved because he had a bum knee. It was so bad that it took six months from him last year alone. Now he is trying to work it back into ring shape while competing in the tournament? I guess I should thank him for making my job a little easier. Usually I have to watch a lot more tape on people in order to come up with a strategy to break them down. Max was dumb enough to do all the work for anyone that was able to stay awake long enough for him to get to his point.

Myra shouldn’t be surprised that her partner was small-minded enough to give up the game either. Myra got a perfect view of that from ringside as Mac took him apart last year. Sure, he managed to carry her through the first couple of rounds this year, but that was against some of the easiest competition that signed up. What is going to happen when he steps into the ring with someone that knows how to take him apart? What is going to happen when he steps into the ring with someone much more focused than he experienced in either of the first two rounds? I am not Todd Williams. I am not Milo Kasey. I am Jaycee MacDonald, and the only reason I walk down to that ring is to have my hand raised at the end of matches. Nothing more. Nothing less. There is nothing that matters more to me than that, and the skills that I employ to reach those goals are the types of things that should scare Max. I don’t jump around. I’m not going to try and hit-and-run. I’m coming right after him, and I will break him down piece-by-fucking-piece while Myra watches from the apron. Why? Because Max Burke is in the way, and I have to remove him. It’s that simple.

...but don’t think that I don’t realize that Myra will undoubtedly get her opportunity to shine in this match. No matter what I do, there is no way that I can keep her isolated on the apron the entire time. If anything, that would only cause a rift between Levana and I. The Bombshells are going to get to participate, but it’s not going to matter. I have faith that no matter which of us puts our opponent down for the actual count, we are walking out of this match with a win.

”But Myra Rivers is unbeatable!”

Is she? I mean, is she really? It might look like that on the surface, but I see the dark truth lurking underneath. I see the long history of not being quite good enough. I see a pattern of always being the runner-up. She’s never been good enough to stand on top of the mountain, but isn’t that supposed to be the endgame for all of us? Isn’t that supposed to be the place that we are all trying to get? Time after time Myra Rivers failed to take that top spot despite all of the opportunities she has had to get there. She always falls flat in the big moments. The first round? That’s a cakewalk. The second? Even easier. The semi-finals? That is where the pressure is really on. This is where we always see Myra start to crumble.

”...but her win streak!”

Yeah. I’ve seen her go on much longer rolls than she is on now, and still manage to fall short of her lofty aspirations. Momentum exists in this business, but any team that has made it this far has built up a little. Did a win streak help her out either of the times that Amber Ryan embarrassed her in front of the world? No. Yet Levana was able to step into the ring with Amber during the second round of this tournament and she never flinched, not even once. She even stopped Amber from being able to save the match for her team. That’s arguably just as important as me being the one putting Hitamashii’s shoulders to the mat for the three count. What has Myra done in the first two rounds other than let Max handle business against teams without a real chance of making it to the end?

...and that is exactly her problem. That is why Myra always fails when the going gets tough. Amber’s hubris turned into complacency, and Levana was able to capitalize on that. Myra is the flipside of that. Her wins over lackluster competition has inflated her self-worth. The easy wins she is able to chain together make her feel like she can compete at the top level with the best bombshells. The fact is, she can’t. She’s proven that countless times. That is why Mac Bane called Mikah an upgrade over Myra as a partner. That is why, even though Myra says it doesn’t bother her, she has brought it up in her promo work in both of the previous rounds. Mac’s words really stuck in her mind, and the only way that happens is if, deep down, Myra knows that they are true. People hate the truth. Especially when it shatters the delusions that they have about themselves.

What Myra should be thinking about right now is last year…

Last year she was in the same position she is in right now. She had a partner that was kicking ass. She had a rookie standing in the ring across from her and a date with destiny. She had the opportunity in the palm of her hand, and all that she had to do was rise up and take it…but she didn’t. She couldn’t. Not last year against Ruby, and not this year against Levana. History is going to repeat itself, this time on Climax Control, and Myra is helpless to stop it at this point. By Myra’s own words, the moment was too big for her. I have never once gotten the vibe that anything that Sin City has to offer is too big for Levana. That chick is 100% motivated, and I don’t know if anyone in this company has the ability to get into her head. All she wants to do is win, and anything less than having her hand raised in victory is unacceptable. Even if that hand is mine….

I honestly couldn’t have created a partner better for me than the one that got drawn out of a hat randomly.

Levana wants the spotlight to be on her? Awesome. I never had much use for it anyways. I like letting my actions do the talking for me, and that has gotten me this far. There’s no reason to switch that up now. It doesn’t matter to me how it happens, or who gets the win, as long as we advance to the tournament finals. Like I said back in the first round, this tournament is my one shot to make a first impression in this company. There would be nothing quite like stepping into the company and then immediately going on to win the biggest tournament of the year. That is the ending to the first chapter of my career that I have been planning since before I even signed my name on a contract. I have come this far. I won’t be denied at this point.

As far as Max Burke goes, he should be glad that he got to play in the tournament for this long this year. He could have been out a couple of rounds ago if he had to square up with anyone legit. Maybe after this he will stick to keeping himself to the junior leagues with Underground and GRIME. After all, he can be the top champion there, despite never being good enough to do it in Sin City Wrestling. But Myra I almost feel bad for. She’s like a less nauseatingly nice Sam Marlowe. She doesn’t deserve the fight that we are going to bring her. Honestly, I am sorry that this couldn’t be in the finals. I am sorry that her quest has to come to a close a full round short of the finish line, but such is life. I am sure there will be other opportunities in her future. After all, Mercedes is still getting shots despite failing in the clutch so many times before. Myra could make a Hall of Fame career out of following that path apparently. That will have to be good enough for her, because Blast from the Past 2022 Champion will not be an accomplishment on her resume, and she will have to wait for her next big opportunity to lose to Amber, because the prize for this tournament is not hers to claim.

For Levana and I, this is our time. Our rise. Our moment to seize.

The rest of you should be thrilled that you get to watch it happen.

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This Is My Story
Jet City South - SAN DIEGO
5 FEBRUARY 2022
OFF-Camera



I knew from the moment that my name got pulled out of the hat for Blast from the Past that I was going to start getting more attention around Jet City South. The problem was, that wasn't something I was interested in. I have seen countless people pay the price of being associated with this controlled chaos, and none of it seemed appealing. I am more the type to keep my head down, put the work in, and keep to myself. People only create distractions. Distractions keep you from your goals. Skipping out on goals is the shortest route to stagnation, and I can't stomach sitting still. Moving forward, and not looking back, has been the theme of my adult life and I am not changing that for these people no matter what. Once you start trading on your principles, you roll down the slippery slope to becoming a "never was" and that isn't going to be my story. It doesn't matter who is offended. Nobody has the right to my time or attention and I don't need any help I don't ask for. Somehow, I knew that wasn't going to be what the people around here want to hear though.

Coby: Hey, it’s Jaycee right…?

Shit kind of felt like it was on cue or something. He played his approach right though. If you're cornered on a leg press machine, and holding up twice your bodyweight, you don't really have anywhere to go. There is one way out and Coby is occupying that space. I am his conversational hostage, but it's not like I have to participate willingly.

Jaycee: Wow. I’m actually impressed. That’s four more words than you’ve ever spoken to me directly, and you actually know my name.

I bet he wasn't expecting that. He doesn't seem like the type to blow up about it either though. My only hope is to convince him that it's not worth his effort to try.

Coby: That can’t be true. I’m sure that we’ve talked before. I try to talk to all the students at Jet City.

I am not the type to forget a conversation, so I know I am right, but I get it. The guy is trying to build a friendly bridge no matter how troubled the waters are underneath, but that doesn't change history.

Jaycee: Yeah…. Not me. In classes? Sure. But that’s you talking to a group. Not that I take it personally. I don’t want to give you that idea at all. I’m not that petty. Also, I kind of like being on my own. It’s a win-win.

For some reason, me pushing back didn't ward him off at all. He actually looks emboldened to try harder.

Coby: You’ve been here for years. I know. I looked. You were here before Jason closed it down and moved everything up to Seattle. You were registered and showed up to classes all the way up there, and then when Kris opened this one you came back here. We have to have crossed paths before now.

The guy had done a little homework on me apparently. I imagine that is the kind of attention that his sociopath boss gets off on. I don't have any use for it. It makes him a fan. The first of many. None of which will ever deserve my focus during a workout. Time to take off the kid gloves.

Jaycee: It’s not at all weird that you use company records to stalk people you don’t know.

He still doesn't seemed dissuaded by my overt lack of interest in the conversation.

Coby: It’s only because I saw your name pop up in--

Time to take a shortcut.

Jaycee: Yeah. I figured. There were really only two reasons that you would be standing here right now after casually ignoring me for years. And again… not bitter about it. But the way I see it, either the Jet City Ghost sent you, or you saw that I entered Blast from the Past. Either way, I’m not really interested.

Some people need rejection spoonfed to them. They are among the group of people I dislike most in the world. As an adult you should be able to read "fuck off" plastered all over someone's body language. The people that needed it spelled out were spectacular at being a waste of my time. Blunt force is my only way out of this conversation.

Coby: What do you mean not interested?

Somehow I need to be more clear? Alright.

Jaycee: In your pitch... The reason that I didn’t bring up Jet City to Sin City, and the reason why I didn’t ask any of you to help get my foot in the door is that I don’t need it. Don’t take it personally, but I don’t exactly come here for the leadership and guidance. I come here to do my own thing, and get out. Every other gym I’ve ever been in was more hands-on. Just lots of trainers molding students into what they think is best. I don’t want that. I came here to be ignored. You have succeeded for a handful of years. Don’t falter now.

I drop the weight and sit up a little because clearly no real work will be getting done right now. This man was determined to go down swinging.

Coby: I wasn’t trying to come over and---

No backing out now Golden Boy. You want the truth, so I will give it to you straight. At the very least, it will save me another one of these conversations in the future.

Jaycee: Nah, but you were. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but it will happen eventually. Now that I am in the door, I am someone that can help get the name out. The problem with that is, there are names that I’d rather not be associated with, even if it will help me in some places.

Without even looking I point to the giant portrait of Ryans on the wall. It is difficult enough to get centered with that smirking idiot looking down at you. I didnt need to be associated with him any closer than that. Our last/first meeting was proof enough of that.

Coby: Well as I am sure you’ve noticed, he doesn’t take a real active role around here. I am trying to go in a new direction.

That is the first intelligent thing he has said all day.

Jaycee: ...and I fully support that, as long as that direction also leads away from me. I wasn’t exactly looking to have a board meeting right now, you know? Trying to focus on what I need to do to be ready for this match. You only get to make one first impression.

Of course, he rode Kris' coattails into Sin City, so he probably wouldn't know anything about trying to impress others based on your talent. For some it was enough just to know people, I guess.

Coby: Arguably there is no better first impression than winning a championship your first night on the job, and that is something that I did in Sin City. At the very least, I can give you advice. Let you know what you’re walking into….

I wonder if that version of the truth actually worked on people. It didn't fly with me.

Jaycee: Imma pass. For real though, it’s not you. It’s me.

To be honest, it was them, but that was not going to end my hostage crisis.

Coby: You know, for someone that would rather not be associated with Kris, you are nearly exactly as dismissive of others as he is.

Maybe we did have something in common after all.

Jaycee: That’s literally the only quality of his that I like. And since you are determined to do this, let’s…

He backs up when I move to stand up from the machine. It was a good move. At least he isn't bold enough to think he can physically bully me into accepting his help.

Jaycee: You didn’t win a championship on your first night, you got handed one. That guy…

This time just a head tilt that direction.

Jaycee: ...is basically everything that I don’t want to be in this business. Is he good? Sure. But it’s more luck than skill. That’s not my game. I’m not some wrecking ball that is going to stand in a ring and make fun of myself and others.

Hopefully some part of that computes for him. I don't think I can be more clear.

Coby: ...he is kind of an asshole.

Progress.

Jaycee: And so are you. All of you. How long have all of you enabled this asshat to do whatever he wants without any kind of repercussions? How many students has he ruined by not being able to actually teach anyone without it being some sick backhanded trick? And you want me to invite that into my life? Again, pass.

He is retreating now. I can read it all over him before he even opens his mouth.

Coby: I can’t say that I blame you for feeling that way. All I am saying is that there are others here that could legitimately help you work towards the goals you set for yourself. You want to earn your way through the ranks at SCW? Several people here have already done that. You could hear them out.

I could waste my time a lot of ways, but that doesn't sound like a particularly pleasant one.

Jaycee: Except, I’m not really interested in the things others have done, or the paths that they took to the top. I want to do it my way, and that doesn’t really involve anything other than the equipment you guys have in this building and the amount of air space I am given to do my thing. If that’s not on the table anymore, I can find another place to go. It’s not that big of a deal to me.

It is a bluff. I like this place. You cannot put a price on a comfort level. Hopefully the threat is enough to get him to back off though.

Coby: Don’t be ridiculous. I have asked around. People like you. You’re quiet, but you’re also the only person that nobody around here seems to hate. Plus, you’ve followed Jet City around. I would hate to lose you.

Flattery won't work either, and feels disingenuous.

Jaycee: That’s funny, a couple of days ago, you wouldn’t have noticed. I was just a face and a monthly fee. Today you know my name and care about my goals. Yet you can’t see how I would view that as you finally seeing someone worth capitalizing on.

Maybe spelling out my perspective could help him see it, but it looks more and more like my words are falling of deaf ears.

Coby: I am just offering help.

Broken record much?

Jaycee: I got all the help that I’m gonna need randomly drawn out of a hat. In the few minutes that I have spent talking to her, she’s already way easier to stomach than dealing with any of the baggage that this place carries.

it is almost like I led him to some other sales pitch though.

Coby: Two rookies leaping into a tournament isn’t as easy as this gym made it look at few years ago….

I wasn't going to dignify that with consideration.

Jaycee: Yeah, and remind me what Courtney Pierce has been up to lately…

It only took a second to scan the gym, find her, and point her out in all of her mediocrity.

Jaycee: Right… being here. The same place that I already am. I’m not exactly looking to be back at square one five years from now. Also, not the best pitch either. You never want to lean on someone that has flamed out so spectacularly.

I would say it to her face, and had in class before so I had no shame about it here.

Coby: Everyone’s path is a little different.

No shit. Let me make mine!

Jaycee: I couldn’t agree more. That is why I keep shooting down the pre-walked ones that you keep tossing at me. I don’t mind making my own path. Really. Focusing on the work is what I do best. Everything else is an unnecessary distraction.

He was a shining example of that right now.

Coby: Kind of a harsh way to look at life. Isolation isn’t good for anyone, let alone someone trying to accomplish something like winning Blast from the Past.

I doubt it.

Jaycee: Yeah well… Only time will tell. You might be right. That doesn’t mean that I am wrong. It just means that I’m not going to take your word for it. I’ve seen where that leads.

Can we not just agree to disagree?

Coby: Pride often comes before a fall.

It was almost too cheesy to believe it came out of his mouth. I laugh in his face without hesitation.

Jaycee: ...either that or you're tripping.

It was clear he wasn't going to stand down. My only play here was to flee and try to make up the time later. The more I spent here now, the more I was wasting. I didn't have any more to lose if I was going to clear the first round of Blast from the Past.


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>Being the new guy isn’t exactly easy….

I mean we are battling the learning curve. Nobody in the crowd is going to cheer or boo some newcomer right off the bat. You have to earn that. You can’t earn that until people see what you are made of. That’s the problem with building up moments like this in your head though. You make it bigger than it is ever going to actually be. Is walking down to that six-sided ring for the first time going to be great? Of course. Is it going to be everything that my dreams have built it up to be? No, of course not. I am walking in as an unknown. Those movie scenes of the newbie underdog walking into a big fight to massive ovations aren’t real. Nobody that buys a ticket for this show knows what to expect from me in this ring. To be honest, I doubt anyone even expects me to impress.

That’s a lot to be floating around in a guy’s head when he’s trying to prepare for the first match of what he hopes to be a career in this company, and it doesn’t even take my competition into consideration.

Amy Santino has been in the Hall of Fame of this company for longer than I’ve known that this company existed. Just think about that. If there is something to be done in that ring, she’s done it. If there was something to win, she won it. Not even that, she was the first to ever do it. Think about that legacy. She comes and goes now, but her place is forever held in this company. Come to think of it, it kind of seems like she is a mainstay in this tournament as well. I can’t remember her winning it though…

Is it better to have a history of failure with a task, or no history at all?

I guess we will find out. I won’t actually be in the ring with her if I understand the rules of this thing right. Levana Cade will have to prove if she can stand toe-to-toe with one of the best in the history of this company. That’s a tall order for a newcomer in their first match, but the chick doesn’t seem to lack confidence. I don’t know much more about her than any of you, and am awaiting whatever promotional material that she puts out just as the rest of you are, but I have faith. I have to. We are bound together for as long as we can keep ourselves in this tournament. If that works out, who knows? Word is that there is a whole division dedicated to this style without a lot of competition.

...but I’d say that’s probably a longshot no matter how well this goes. Blast from the Past was the perfect opportunity for me to shoot my shot, but I’m not exactly looking forward to a future full of team-ups. The goal is to win this whole damn thing, and then run the steps to the very top of the mountain in a way that nobody has really been able to pull off in the past. Imagine the two of us rookies running through this tournament and then going on to claim the biggest prizes just a few short weeks after. Hypothetically we could go on to break records, set new standards, and raise a bar that a lot of people don’t think can be raised. I mean, that’s what we all sign up for the tournament hoping for, right? Those that don’t think that they have a real shot to get there shouldn’t have bothered signing up at all. I didn’t join this thing for the experience. I joined to win it all.

If I wasn’t willing to bet on myself, then I could have tried to get my foot in the door at any other time than now. I could have showed up on a regular show. I could have gone to Underground. I could have joined quietly, and built myself up for the type of spotlight this tournament shines on people, but I didn’t. I didn’t even consider it. Right around this time last year, I made the promise to myself that 2022 was going to be the year that I finally took my big step forward. I couldn’t do that without a big stage to step up onto. Blast from the Past is that stage. That time I was waiting for, is now. This is the moment that I have been manifesting on my whiteboard, and I am ready for everything that this challenge entails, because I have to be.

In this tournament, tomorrow isn’t guaranteed. If you go out and have an off night, you’re done. Even worse for someone like me, my spot isn’t exactly set in stone if I don’t impress early and often. It’s not like I am some homegrown talent that they are just showing off. It’s not like I have an established name here. I am an outsider that is just coming in to try and make my case. If I fail, I could end up back on the couch at home. I don’t have the job security of someone that has shown themselves to be a… what did they call it… “proven commodity”.

Matthew Know was right about one thing, three consecutive wins to start your tenure in a new company certainly is… something. Obviously the higher-ups have taken notice, as evidenced by the “proven commodity” line in the build-up for this match. So what if one of those wins came at the expense of someone who has never known what winning in this company feels like. So what if another one of those was a gimmicky Christmas-themed joke. The guy has proven that he can post a few cryptic words, show up, and beat all expectations put on him. Then again, he has also proven that what he really cares about is getting his hands on Mac Bane, and this tournament is just the first step on the path that gets him to that goal. Assuming of course that Knox goes all the way and Mac is able to hang onto his championship for long enough for that plan to come to fruition, it isn’t a bad one. Sometimes you can’t get the match you want unless you put the work in. For his last three matches, Knox has definitely put the work in, even if it wasn’t serious work or against capable opponents. I can’t take away from the wins that the guy has in this company, because I am sitting on zero.

...but maybe I’m not totally off base here. The guy talks a big game, but literally chased opposition to this company. He begs for the attention of Amber and Mac on a near weekly basis, all while talking about how big of a piece of shit he has been both professionally and otherwise in other companies. Sure, maybe he was successful, but he sounds like a headache. More importantly, he sounds like a guy with tunnel-vision. He is so hyper focused on the prize that may await at the end of this tournament and the people that he actually wants to get his hands on, that he is going to miss seeing the forest for the trees. He is so worried about the fight that could be months in front of him that he isn’t going to see the mauling coming for him this weekend. Knox’s focus has been split since he first arrived on the scene here, but the competition has been so lackluster that it hasn’t mattered. He’s spent more time pining over the fight he can’t have than he has paying attention to the ones that he does. That hasn’t bitten him in the ass yet, but come Climax Control it is going to. Big time.

...because that is what happens in this business when you lack focus. That is what happens when you aren’t using your energy for the fight in front of you, but preserving it for the one you might not ever get. Every moment of success in that ring might feel like one step closer to his ultimate goal, but keeping Mac at the forefront of his mind is only going to blind him to the person standing right in front of him. This week, across that six-sided ring, it is going to be me, and unfortunately, I have something to prove to every single person in attendance. I have thousands of people to impress in the stands, and an entire roster that I need to put on notice. Like I said, everyone only gets one chance to make a first impression, and I’m not going to fall flat for mine. Especially not to someone like Matthew Knox. He is everything that I’m not, which seems to be a trend in this company.

...but this is the way it has to be. This was the luck of the draw. None of the teams are perfectly balanced. None of these matches are going to look totally even on both sides. Somebody is going to be favored in every fight, and one team has to lose. On paper, Amy looks like a sure thing. In reality, if she is able to hold her own against a legend of this company, I should at least be able to hold off someone roughly in the same boat that I am. I can’t be the one to let this team down, especially when my partner is going to be faced with a much more difficult task.

Although, I could be wrong. This match could go any of a thousand different ways. There is a world where neither team comes out of this unscathed, and the fans of this company would be the first to say that stranger things have happened before. I think I heard that the guy that won it last year also lost it last year. I don’t exactly know how that works, but it just goes to show that anything that can happen almost certainly will happen in a tournament this big with this many eyes on it. The only thing that I can do is be ready for when I am tagged into this contest. I have to be ready to go whenever my number is called, and I wouldn’t have thrown my name into the mix if I didn’t think that I was ready to step up to that challenge. I am confident, but who wouldn’t be in my shoes?

I wish that I could say that two relative unknowns coming out of nowhere to win this tournament would be mind-blowing, but I have been assured that it has happened here before. Part of me was let down when I heard that. There would be nothing better than doing something that nobody thought was possible. However, the vast majority of me was empowered by the thought that this is actually attainable. It has been done before. Rookies have defied the odds, worked together, and steamrolled through all the people that the experts picked to make it to the end. There is no reason that Levana and I can’t be that team. We may not know each other, and for all I know we may not end up even being able to tolerate each other, but I get the distinct feeling that we can make this work in order to get to the end of this thing. We have a similar goal, and neither of us seem like the type to throw away an opportunity like this.

A lot of people would probably be turned off by having to open up the show, but I couldn’t be happier about it. I haven’t earned my way up the card yet, and when I get there I don’t want it to feel like anything was handed to me. I’m also not the most patient guy in the world, so showing up to Climax Control just to sit around for a couple hours stewing sounded like a nightmare. I get to show up, see the show get started, and then attempt to go out and set the bar so high that the first match of the night is the only one worth remembering tomorrow. Is that likely? Nah. Could it happen? Absolutely! And I don’t mind being the guy reaching for the things that people tell me are impossible. In fact, it only makes me want to reach that much further.

I’m the type of person that is going to thrive in this company if I’m underestimated, and I’m going to prove that to every set of eyes on this company starting Sunday.

I dare Amy Santino, Matthew Knox, and anyone else in this tournament to try and stop me.

More Important Things
Jet City South - San Diego
OFF-Camera


Coby was swamped. In just under a month he had gone from feeling like he was on top of the world, to feeling like he was being crushed by the weight of it. Kris had basically checked out as a partner in the gym from the moment he lost his championship to Jack Washington. That laid all of the work on Coby’s shoulders, on top of currently competing in multiple companies. The Mixed Tag Team Champion couldn’t help but feel like his balancing act was about to reach its catastrophic conclusion. He was exhausted mentally. His in ring work had been slipping, and he could see things starting to fall through the cracks. Instead of enjoying where he was in life, he was busy constantly running from one problem to the next without time for the adrenaline to wear off in between. He had only tried to escape to his office to close his eyes and be able to take a deep breath for what felt like the first time in months. However, just as soon as his back hit his chair, the door to the office burst open without warning. At this point, Coby was too worn down to even react to it.

Court: We need to talk!

She was starting to be as demanding as Ruby was around the gym. There was more to that story going on than Coby had time to try and wrap his head around, but so far he didn’t like the impact they were having on each other.

Coby: As long as it doesn’t involve me moving from this spot… fine.

She had probably expected more of a fight. The way she burst through the door made it seem like she didn’t expect her voice to be heard. Coby was hoping that responding in a level-headed way would bring her back down closer to his level.

Court: Okay…. I know that you have a lot on your plate now with Kris back in Seattle...

Coby’s expression changes and he sits up slightly in his chair.

Coby: He’s not back in Seattle. What gave you that idea?

Now it is Court’s turn to be confused. She struggles to find the words, first pointing at Coby with the rage she showed in her entrance to his office starting to boil back up.

Court: You said he wasn’t available.

Coby nods.

Coby: So you just assumed that he was gone?

If this was some kind of game, Court didn’t look like she was enjoying playing along with it.

Court: What else would unavailable mean? He promised the girls he would go back after he lost the championship. I haven’t seen him.

Coby smiles, and gives her a shrug.

Coby: You’re not looking hard enough.

He opens his eyes and looks past her to the corner of the room behind her. She tracks his eyeline and turns. The side of the room was blocked from her view on the way in by the door that she had thrown open. However as she turned she could see why Coby was poking fun at her. Laying back in a crescent shaped chair was the former SCW World Heavyweight Champion, Kristopher Ryans. He had been missing in action for weeks, but apparently hadn’t ever left. There was a pair of noise cancelling headphones on his ears, and sunglasses dark enough to be completely opaque and large enough to cover a third of his face over his eyes. She couldn’t tell if he was awake or sleeping, but there was a hotel “do not disturb” sign hanging around his neck.

Court: What the fuck…?

Coby laughs, but it sounds like it comes from a place of frustration. It had been the same question he had been asking himself for weeks. Kris hadn’t said much. He had gone back and forth to Seattle a couple of times, but most recently had been posted up exactly as he was now. There was no point in bothering him. Coby learned that the hard way, but that wasn’t information that he was going to give Court.  Kris had only said one thing to him in weeks.

Coby: He said he was going on a vision quest.

Court shakes her head and takes a step towards the Grand Slam Champion.

Court: I don’t know or care what that is supposed to mean.

As fun as it would have been to watch Court learn the same hard lesson that he did by trying to bother Kris, Coby didn’t have the energy for it.

Coby: I wouldn’t do that. Only because it’s not going to be helpful at all to mess with him. He’s just going to make you regret it, and he’s not going to help. That’s why I’ve been going it alone. I’m starting to think that I can’t do it anymore.

Court stops in her tracks, but doesn’t take her eyes off of Kris.

Court: That sounds like something that he should be helping with. Or maybe even trying to help me like he said he was going to. He’s supposed to be the leader of The Black Sheep, right? He’s supposed to run this gym. He can’t just check out.

Coby disagreed.

Coby: Oh he can, and he has. Unfortunately that means all of the gym stuff falls on me. If that is what you are mad about, I get it. I’ve been stretching myself too thin. If it’s Black Sheep stuff, it looks like we are on our own. I haven’t seen Mikah lately…

Court shrugs.

Court: I gave up on her helping me. She is busy playing her own games. Kris said he had my back this time though. I don’t have time to wait on him to figure out the secret of being or whatever the fuck this is….

She points back at Kris, but turns her attention to Coby instead. He was right. There was no point in bothering Kris. If he didn’t want to help, he was just going to be a nuisance. She didn’t have time for that. She needed to get to work now, and Coby needed help too.

Coby: Look, we got into this together. Both of us knew that there was a chance that it was going to fall apart. It did last time around too. That doesn’t mean we can’t still help each other out. You want to figure out what is going wrong in the ring, I can help you with that, or at least I can try. It’ll give me an excuse to put some extra time in.

Court couldn’t help but take the opening that he gave her for a joke at his expense.

Court: Yeah, you’re record’s going to look more like mine soon enough.

Coby sits up a little and politely disagrees with her.

Coby: In SCW it’s just one bad outing so far. I think I have time to get things turned around.

Court shrugs, not willing to let him off the hook.

Court: You're in the opener! I'm on a losing streak, and still halfway up the card! And I won Blast from the Past the first time I tried. You didn’t. I think that cancels out you being a champion.

Coby doesn’t back down so easily though.

Coby: Yeah well, I have successfully defended a championship for SCW, and you haven’t pulled that one off yet. So I guess we both have some room for improvement.

Court moves back across the room back towards Coby’s desk.

Court: Well, you need to get better working in the ring with your partner and she’s not around. Who better to stand-in for her than the person she trained? I help you. You help me figure out what I’m doing wrong.

Every molecule in his body begs him to just rest in the chair, but Coby fights that feeling. Court was right. There wasn’t any time to rest. They were on their own, but that didn’t mean they had to start giving up.

Coby: I’ll meet you down there in five minutes. Find a few of the students willing to step in the ring with us.

Having come through the gym already, Court knew that the best team they could put together wouldn’t help Coby prepare for what was ahead of him in his next championship defense.

Court: Of the ones that are here? Are you thinking like five or six of them? Because finding a pair isn’t going to make us break a sweat.

Coby didn’t seem threatened at all.

Coby: As many as want the chance...


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


>Dominant.

It’s the one word that describes The Black Sheep since we made our return to the ring last year. We have outclassed every team they have put in front of us. And yeah, the elephant in the room is still that Kris Ryans was the one originally holding this belt, but nothing changed when he handed it to me. Mikah and I were able to retain our championships, and The Black Sheep put down another challenge.

...but there’s something that I don’t quite understand….

The Black Sheep have broken records with these championships. We have held them for more consecutive days than any other team. We even passed up London Underground’s combined days. We have done it without losing a single match as a team, no matter which configuration of us are sharing a ring. This team is undefeated. As champions, we have rarely even been adequately challenged by the duos thrown at us. We have defended in a match involving Swamp Thing. We have beaten lethal lottery teams, as well as anyone that has called us out. There is no other way to look at it other than absolute domination of this division, and I’m not trying to say that to be discouraging to the rest of the roster. I am not saying it to brag.

I’m saying it because it feels like nobody else is seeing it. People will complain about the fact that Mikah throws herself at Mark on a weekly basis. They will be snarky about the fact that Kris Ryans handed me this championship when he won the World Heavyweight Championship. They will even talk about how dominant Wolfslair was for most of last year. What they don’t mention is The Black Sheep. What they don’t mention is the fact that Mikah, Kris and I have only lost a handful of matches COMBINED since returning over a year ago. Mikah and I got knocked out of our Blast from the Past teams, and Kris lost his championship to Jack. Other than those setbacks, the three of us have been unstoppable. We have done nothing but win since the moment that we came to Sin City, and yet we are all afterthoughts.

We show up, do our jobs, and somehow none of it is good enough. Somehow we are never quite rated in the same league as the teams who came before us, even after we shattered their records. No matter what we do, it doesn’t matter. For some reason, this team gets relentlessly overlooked, even while people run from this division instead of taking us on. Our last challengers didn’t even understand the rules to the division, and had never teamed together before. That is the quality of competition willing to step up against us. At least this time Teddy and Kate might actually be on the same page.

...but the cycle continues. Nobody actually in this company wants a shot at the Mixed Tag Team Champions. Instead we have to bring people in from the outside, and this time one of those people is Kate Steele. She’s someone that gets to see what Mikah and I can do firsthand while she is around Jet City South. They weren’t a team that worked their way through the ranks of the division to challenge us though. Mostly because there are no ranks to work through anymore. Instead, they just show up on the scene and ask for a shot. That seems to be how things work around here these days. And since there is nobody else left in this division, Mark and Christian gave them their opportunity….

...as the opener of a Supercard.

...the afterthought position….

Because this is what they think about us. They think a match involving a troll is worth more than the Mixed Tag Team Championships. Every Underground championship made it further up the card. The fans must have been clamoring for a match between Lincoln Daniels and Bill Barnhart, because that managed to slide almost to the middle of the card. Yet, the undefeated, record breaking Mixed Tag Team Champions aren’t even in one of the top 20 matches on this card. Twenty other matches are considered more important than this one. That is how you treat champions that have held onto the titles for nearly 200 days? That’s how you treat a duo that is undefeated? Am I wrong to feel insulted? I am not usually the guy to complain, but I feel like Mikah and I are far removed from the place that we deserve to be in. If that’s how it’s gonna be, then what’s the point? This isn’t what either of us came back to do.

...and I’m not taking shots at Todd and Kate. I know that people like J2H have made Todd out to be a joke, but the guy isn’t awful in the ring. He is a former champion, and has done more as a competitor in this company than a lot of people get the chance to do. He didn’t become moderately successful by accident. It wasn’t a fluke. And Kate is amazing. Everyone knows that. She works with us at Jet City, and has always been a dangerous in-ring talent. If she wasn’t, Jet City never would have hired her to work with the new students. The fact that we have a partnership with her speaks for itself. I won’t sit here and run either of them down for the sake of ratings for a fight that clearly nobody cares about.

What I will do is show up, carry my Mixed Tag Team Championship down to the ring, and defend it to the best of my ability. I won’t waste my time with the rest, because it doesn’t seem like anyone is investing any time in us. 

That’s What’s Up!

>Coby Quik looks a lot more annoyed than he had during his previous recording. The new Mixed Tag Team Champion had his title hanging over his shoulder, and was pacing back and forth down the alley behind Jet City South. The street lights gave the whole area around him an orange glow.

Well, I can honestly say that I got exactly what I was expecting out of Miles and Maki.

He had chosen his words carefully. Even though he had been right about them, there was no way that he got any joy out of it. His body language told the audience that before he had even opened his mouth. He sounded disappointed to be right, like his opponents had let him down.

On one hand, it’s kind of nice. I put a lot of thought into what I thought these two were going to say all week. I kind of braced for impact, you know? I wasn’t going to let them get in my head before such an important debut for me. I mean, the first time I am getting into a Sin City ring, I’m defending a championship. Has that ever even happened before? This is history in the making, so I didn’t want to let myself get blindsided by my opponents before I even got to the ring. The fact that they hit all the talking points that I thought they would was kind of a relief. It’s easy to shrug off something that you’ve prepared yourself for.

There was something else though. Normal people probably would have been thrilled about their opponents selling them short. That just meant that come time for the match to start, Coby already had an advantage. If they viewed him as a weak link, it would only work in his favor. It’s hard to win a match when you underestimate your opponent. Still he couldn’t help but feel insulted by the letdown more than the specifics.

On the other hand, it is kind of disappointing. I mean, as both of my opponents were fast to point out, I’m new here. The fact that I saw what they had to say coming means that the two of them should have tried a lot harder. Maybe I was over-prepared for them to blow me away, but I feel like they could have done better. These are the Mixed Tag Team Championships that we are fighting over here. This is an opportunity to stand atop of an entire division in this company. A little bit of effort goes a long way. Trust me.

He tries to walk back some of his criticism; willing to take some part of the blame himself.

...but maybe it’s my own fault. I mean, these two don’t even know each other, but both came to the same conclusion about me. They hit the high notes. I didn’t win the championship that I carry, Kris handed it to me. I haven’t paid any dues in this company, I was given the opportunity because Kris won the World Heavyweight Championship. It’s not a secret. We did it on Climax Control in front of the world. It’s not exactly a fact that I was trying to hide. If I wasn’t prepared to deal with the criticism that came from taking this championship from Kris, I wouldn’t have taken it. It wasn’t something that I stepped into thoughtlessly. It wasn’t some snap decision. I had to weigh my options, and in the end, it was too good of an opportunity to pass up.

He shrugs. There was no shame in admitting it. It is not like they knew that this was going to happen when he joined The Black Sheep months ago. It was a right place, right time type of situation that just made too much sense to ignore. The strangest and rarity of the situation wasn’t lost on Coby though.

Like I said, we’re probably making history in this match. There isn’t anyone on the roster that would have turned down this opportunity. There were always going to be people just waiting to tell me that I don’t deserve to be champion, and I invite them to come and take it from me if they want it. If anyone thinks that they can do better, they are welcome to find a partner and step up. I don’t know how many times I am going to have to defend this championship before people recognize me as the rightful champion, but I DO know that we’re all gonna find out together. This championship reign isn’t going to be short. Mikah and I aren’t going to be beaten easily.

He stops pacing, and shakes his head. He couldn’t really blame people for thinking that he and Mikah weren’t going to work as a team. All of the members of The Black Sheep put on a good show for those only paying casual attention.

People think social media tells the whole story. They think Mikah and I are at each other’s throats over having to team together. Maki and Miles see Mikah being her usual difficult self on Twitter and see some kind of cause for concern. I thought I was supposed to be the new guy around here. Shouldn’t they understand how she is by now? She and Kris appeared to be at each other’s throats on a daily basis, and went undefeated as a team. If any of you think that I would be in this match right now if Kris had the option of holding both championships, you’re crazy. He didn’t abandon this team for a better option. He was forced out, and if that’s how it’s gotta be, why not hand the championship to your best friend and let him run with it?

Another shrug, but this time he doesn’t cut himself off there. It was about time that someone set the roster right. If this was going to be the kind of thing that gets repeated week after week, he had to at least try to set the story straight for everyone. Then he could say that he gave them a fair chance.

I mean, Mikah and I have been training the students of Jet City Sports Lab, and now Jet City South, side-by-side for years. Courtney Pierce’s run through the Blast from the Past tournament a couple of years ago? That was all of us that helped her do that. The Go Gym might get all the acclaim around here, but we aren’t so terrible ourselves. As trainers we have put people in a situation to succeed in this company. As friends, we have traveled together, and lived under the same roof. We may look at the world in entirely different ways, but there is no question that we have each other’s backs 100%. There’s no dissension in the ranks of The Black Sheep. There is no animosity between the four of us. We’re always going to do what’s best for the team, because the four of us are what is important. I owe Kris and Mikah a lot. Kris helped bring me to Sin City, and introduced me to my wife. Mikah was the maid of honor at my wedding to a former Bombshell Roulette Champion. We may have been thrown together by circumstances out of our hands, but The Black Sheep are just as good today as they were when Kris and Mikah won the titles. Nothing has changed. Not really.

Again, it seems as if Coby is willing to accept partial responsibility for any miscommunication.

...and that’s why I think maybe it’s my fault that my opponents were mistaken. Maybe I haven’t done enough to make sure that people understand the current state of The Black Sheep. We haven’t gotten weaker. If anything, this team has only become more dangerous. Kris is uncontrolled chaos in the ring. I’m more of a technician with a plan. This version of The Black Sheep actually has focus, and we were dominant back when we were just winging it. It shouldn’t be a hard concept to comprehend. Then again, how could I expect them to get all of that when Maki doesn’t even seem to understand how all of this works. I’m not surprised. Someone that speaks in insults and threats can’t really be expected to pay attention to all the details. She’s sitting around wasting her time thinking about what she’s going to do to me in the ring without realizing that we won’t be in the ring together. She’s trying to get in my head when I’m not even really her opponent. When she’s in the ring, I get ejected in exchange for Mikah, and vice-versa. You’d expect the people in this company to at least understand the way that things work. Especially since Blast from the Past has the same rules.This is my first match in the company, let alone the division, and at least I knew that much.

Of course, it was possible that this would just be the first time that Coby and Maki would cross paths in this style of match. They had both entered Blast from the Past, and depending on how the bracket shaped up, might end up back in the ring with one another sooner rather than later. That was a thought for a later time though.

Maki should be looking at this as a singles match against Mikah with a championship on the line. Better yet, a championship match where if she makes a mistake, or loses the advantage, she can tag out and try again once she catches her breath. She gets to take on the best Bombshell ever to grace an SCW ring and walk away with a championship if she gets the job done. Yet, she says she is absolutely dead set against taking part in this match. It doesn’t make any sense. Then again, not much about her does.

Coby didn’t suffer under the delusion that any of it really mattered though.

Not that it has an effect on her in-ring ability. She can be as confused as she wants, and still dissect people in the ring. Nobody said you had to be smart or quick-witted to get ahead in this business. I know that when the bell rings, Maki is dangerous. I also have all the faith in the world that Mikah can, and will, take her down. Why? Because that is just what Mikah does. It’s what she has done since she first arrived in this company. It is the reason why nobody has come close to holding the Bombshell championship for as many total days as she has. It is the reason that every rookie bombshell that wants to be anything in this company calls her out. Mikah is the gold standard. It doesn’t matter how she acts. It doesn’t matter how scary Maki thinks she is. Mikah has proven that she is better than every bombshell that has stepped up to her. What makes anyone think that after all these years, Maki is about to change that? What makes anyone think that a random team of strangers that don’t understand the rules to this match have a chance to win this?

He sighs, knowing how his opponents would probably take his words. It was his fault for not taking more time to let his annoyance pass before doing more promotional work. Maybe he would have cooled off in a day or two. It was too late to find out now though.

...and I don’t mean to sound hateful, because that’s absolutely not who I am. It is just frustrating to see two people get an opportunity like this and spend more time complaining about it then celebrating the chance that they are being given. These two are quick to point out that I am in a spot that I shouldn’t, but they didn’t exactly earn their way into this either. The only one of us that really earned their place in this match is Mikah. Yet they want to point the finger at me, and call me the weakest link. At the very least they’re misguided, but it feels like disrespect. That’s not something that I’m just willing to sit back and take in stride.

He was hoping that the fans would understand where he was coming from, because that is what really mattered to him. This match had the opportunity to be a surprise high point of the show, and his opponents were taking it for granted. You hate to see it.

These two should be happy that someone thinks highly enough of their abilities to put them in a match like this instead of leaving them off the card all together. We sign contracts to compete in this company expecting to at least be on the biggest stages when the time comes. It’s like neither of these two realize that they could be sitting at home like Courtney Pierce is right now. Miles wants to talk about being a career screw up that has thrown away every chance he was given, like he doesn’t know anything about the guy that gave me this championship in the first place. To me, it felt like he was describing Kris’ career here. Dammit, he actually said that it would be a ‘miracle’ if it happened without noticing the irony of that statement. Maybe that is just because I actually got to watch it take place as a fan. He was another guy that Mark and Christian just kept giving opportunities to in the hopes that one day he would put it together and take his game to some whole other level. Look at the guy now. He’s where all of us aspire to be.

Depending on how Blast from the Past shakes out, Coby could theoretically end up giving Kris his Mixed Tag Team Championship back to him after taking the World Heavyweight Championship for himself. He wasn’t going to dwell on possibilities that were months away from being a reality though. What was more important, was how Kris got to where he is in the company.

...but instead of seeing the path that Kris cut and realizing that he could do the same, Miles just wants to question it to death. He wants all of the answers before he is willing to put in any of the effort. That’s why he is going to walk into this match confused, while Mikah and I walk in knowing exactly what it is that we are there to do. At the end of the day, we signed to this company to get into the ring and beat whoever is put across from us. That’s the extent of it. We don’t always get to pick who is standing across from us. We don’t always get to pick who is standing next to us. Our job never changes though. That’s why someone like me doesn’t waste time with all of the questions that Miles wants answered. It’s not my job to ask those questions. It’s my job to defend the Mixed Tag Team Championship to the best of my ability. When Kris handed it to me he said not to let anyone take it from me. That’s what I promised to do.

He takes a deep breath, still wanting to choose his words carefully.

I keep my promises.

He nods, and reaches for the door leading back into the gym. He gives one final look back to the camera.

...and that’s what’s up!

Coby enters the building, and when the door closes shut behind him, the camera cuts to black.



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


Homecoming
JET CITY SOUTH - San Diego
24 January 2021
OFF-Camera


As she shuts off the recording, Court follows Coby inside Jet City South. She didn’t particularly enjoy helping Coby with his promotional work, and it didn’t help when he threw her under the bus for good measure.

Court: Look… I already locked up everything up front. Last people left about an hour ago….

He was just inside the door, placing the Mixed Tag Championship into his gym bag.

Court: ....and you know, you didn’t have to say anything about me. Could have just left me out of it.

He nods, and takes a deep breath.

Coby: Yeah… I thought about it after it came out. I’m sorry. I know that you wanted to be on the show. We’re going to figure this out and get things turned around for you. You know that right?

Court didn’t want to talk about it though. She had lost to Maki. It was becoming a recurring theme in her career. She had started her career 5-1, and somehow flipped it to be 1-5 since. She was lost, but Coby wasn’t the person that she wanted to talk to about it. Then again, Mikah was supposed to be her lifeline for problems like these and she was nowhere to be found. Kris had promised to be more active as a coach, and promptly run away to Seattle. Jet City South wasn’t something she was putting any faith into, and she wasn’t above taking out her frustration on Coby. What would he do about it if she did? He was too perfect to let it get under his skin.

Court: ...and why do you even need help doing this? Why not just use the drones? Or do you just like being able to order me around while we’re in the building?

Coby knew there was no way that she was this upset with him about having to hold a camera for a few minutes. It couldn’t even just be mentioning her name. There was a lot more to it, and she was just as difficult as Kris was to talk to about her problems. The only thing he could do was apologize and change the subject.

Coby: I don’t know how to use those things. That’s something you and Kris get into. I am a lot more low tech.

Court shrugs.

Court: You can reprogram a path. Then you just have to keep yourself in front of the camera. It takes a little practice. I’ll show you next time I do one of mine… if you want… That way you won’t have to waste my time.

He thought he was out of the woods for a brief moment, but she was just determined to stay angry.

Coby: I’ll do that. If you don’t mind.

She rolls her eyes and tosses the camera to him.

Court: Well, assuming they book me again. I’m out though.

She turns away from him and heads out the door they had both entered through. He is too focused on settling the camera safely in his bag to look back to her before the door is closing behind her.

Coby: ...bye… I guess...

He looks back at the empty gym, and then moves towards the door, pushing the latch up on the lock before flipping a switch that activates a magnet that holds it closed. He grabs his bag and makes his way through the gym, flipping off multiple different sets of lights as he goes. As he makes his way past the front desk, he notices that one of the automatic doors at the front of the gym was stuck open. He looks around,

Voice: Oh no, the door’s open….

The voice wasn’t coming from any specific place, but from all around Coby. Somehow the sound was being pumped through the PA system for the gym that usually only used to play music while the gym was open. The distortion of the voice was familiar to Coby though. He had heard it several times in the last months.

Coby: You know, this isn’t GRIME. There’s not any cameras here. This isn’t part of the show.

Coby could have run. Coby SHOULD have run. He knew it was a bad idea, but he dropped the gym bag off of his shoulder and placed it down on the front desk. As he did, he heard footsteps scrambling through equipment to his left. He turned to face that direction, only for more footsteps to echo through the gym behind him. He raised his fists to defend himself from whichever direction they eventually came from, but each time he shifted towards the sounds, they came from another location.

Cyan: The problem is, you think that this is about the show for me. It’s not. It’s so much more than that. I think you know that though, don’t you Sam.

Coby shakes his head. It was all an obvious trap, but he was too deep into it to avoid what he knew was going to happen. His fears had been right. He had told Chelsea that he thought one of the masks was one of their own. He knew someone under the mask was family. It wasn’t until losing his Television Championship match that he had narrowed down the list. Now he knew for sure.

Coby: We trusted you, and you’re going to bring these GRIME people into our house? This is Jet City. Jet City made you. It made all of us… and you’re just going to come in here an----

The footsteps stop, and the gym falls as silent as it is dark. Coby recognizes the calm before the storm, but one-by-one masks light up in the darkness around him. Instead of the assortment of colors he was usually attacked by, each mask lit up cyan. He was surrounded by the man that had plagued him for the last few months. The Jet City traitor.

Cyan: You were saying something, Sam… Something about we were all going to come in here and do something… Please, do go on. We weren’t trying to cut you off. We just wanted to make sure that you could see your audience.

The voice was still coming from overhead. Whichever one of them was the real Cyan was a total mystery to Coby. They were all roughly the same size, and any of them could be the booming voice from the PA system. There was no way that he was going to win this. The new Mixed Tag Team Champion bounces on his heels slightly, trying to make sure that he had momentum going for whenever they finally made their move.

Coby: It doesn’t matter.

Coby wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of showing just how livid he was to have a friend turn on him like this.

Cyan: You were asking what we were here to do. I would hope that seems obvious by now. It certainly looks like you already know. There is more than that though. I mean aside from what we want as a group, there’s what I want personally.

Coby shrugs, but doesn’t lower his guard.

Coby: ...and what’s that?

All of the Cyan’s raise their right hand and shake and index finger at Coby. The coordination of the group was actually impressive.

Cyan: The group comes first, and what the group wants is to send a message. Nobody gets leave to greener pastures and just leave us behind. If you’re on our radar, we can get to you anywhere, anytime. Your ass belonged to GRIME. You were supposed to stay in SCU. Who said you could just leave? We had plans for you.

The lights on the masks all go off. Footsteps echo all around him, and Coby closes his eyes to try and focus on them. His eyes couldn’t help him right now anyways. Whichever one of Cyan’s squared up with Coby got dropped with a straight right hand as soon as Coby heard him get within distance. That was the only clean shot that he got off before one from his left swept his legs out from under him. After that it was a hard smack on a cold concrete floor and countless stomps to every inch of his body below his neck. It was like they wanted to make sure that he was conscious to suffer through the whole beating. Coby did his best to cover up, but it was useless. After a few moments, he didn’t even have it in him to do that. His whole body was screaming at him. It felt like he had been set on fire. As suddenly as the beating started, it ended. Coby tried to roll onto his side, but no part of his body wanted to be responsive to his demands. He could hear a fleet of footsteps head quickly for the front door. The job of all of the decoys was over. It didn’t take long for a single cyan mask to flick back on just a few inches from Coby’s face. It didn’t matter. Coby couldn’t convince his arms to raise and defend himself. He was at his attacker’s mercy at his point. The mob and made sure of it.

Cyan: ...but me… what do I want? Isn’t that what you really want to know?

Struggling just to get his lungs to fill with air, Coby wasn’t going to waste any effort on a strained attempt to answer a rhetorical question. The real Cyan had stayed for a reason. No matter what he said in front of the group, this was the real reason for the attack and Coby knew it.

Cyan: What I want is to tear it all down. You. Kris. Jet City Sports Lab. Jet City South. All of the students, and all of its legacy. I want to watch it all crumble, because it’s all bullshit. That’s what I want. Can you blame me?

Coby tries to respond, but Cyan doesn’t give him the chance. One solid forearm strike to Coby’s cheekbone bounced the Mixed Tag Team Champion’s head off of the concrete floor and knocked him unconscious.

Cyan: Because we’re friends, Sam… I’ll let you sleep on it….

Cyan leaves him there on the floor of the gym. Either he would wake up in the darkness, or they would find him in the morning. Neither scenario bothered the GRIME Television Champion. His messages were sent and received.

 [~]-CONTACT INFORMATION-[~]

Handlers Name: J
Years Active: 12




[~]-CONTRACT INFORMATION-[~]


You will be booked at least 2-3 times a month. In order for this to happen, you will be booked in singles as well as tag team matches. Since tag team matches take place in an intergender division, please let Tad Ezra know if you wish to only wrestle your gender. We will still book you in tag team matches under Mixed tag team rules but keep in mind, tag team titles will be intergender so if you wish not to wrestle the opposite gender, you limit yourself to only singles gold when you do get a title shot. ***Be sure to fill out a Tag Team application***


[~]-WRESTLER INFORMATION-[~]

Picture Base: Keiynan Lonsdale
Wrestlers Twitter: @CobyQuik
Wrestlers Name: Coby Quik
Age: 24
Height:  5'10"
Weight: 168
Hometown: Atlanta, Georgia

Personality: Honest to a fault. Blunt. Coby has always felt like he has a lot to prove. He feels like he has so much more left to do. He wants to have the crowd behind him and put on a show out in the ring.

Strengths: Speed. Submissions.
Weaknesses: Small Frame. Lack of power without momentum.
Alignment: Face

[~]-ENTRANCE DESCRIPTION-[~]

Entrance Theme Music: ”Welcome To The World - Instrumental” -- TI

Entrance Description:
The first bit of "Welcome to the World" plays through the PA. With each beat, gold lights flash from the top of the stage, bouncing around the arena before finally focusing on the area of the stage between the curtains. Coby steps out onto the stage in his black boxing trunks. His hands are taped and down at his sides. The gold trim on his trunks shine extra bright when the lights hit them. Cheers fill the arena. The camera focuses in on Coby and catches a wide smile grow on his face as he starts to move down the ramp.

Darlyn:  Introducing first, from Atlanta, GA standing at 5’10” and weighing in at 168lb, he is… Coby Quik!!! @@

Coby doesn't stick to the middle of the ramp, slapping the outstretched hands of fans as he moves down the ramp to the ring. He gets to the end of the ramp and hops up on the apron of the ring. Coby turns his back to the ring before wrapping his arms around the top rope and bouncing his feet on the bottom rope, flipping backwards over the top rope and into the ring. He takes a few steps towards the center of the ring and waits for his opponent to come down the ramp.


[~]-WRESTLING MOVES-[~]

Everyone gets one finisher and 3 signature moves as well as a move set package. Please pick one package for your wrestler. Any moves you really want your wrestler to have please add it to the the signature moves section.

Wrestling Move Packages *Remember you can only pick one*
-Submission Specialist


Signature Moves
1.) "ThatsWhatsUp" -- Running Busaiku Knee Kick
2.) Bridging Fujiwara Arm Bar
3.) Death Star Pentagram Choke


Finishing Move
1.) "Quik2Sleep" - Flying Triangle: Leg triangle choke while hanging from a standing opponent.


[~]-MISC INFORMATION-[~]

Weapon Of Choice: Brass Knuckles in situations where they are legal.
Match Of Choice: Submission

[~]-BIOGRAPHY-[~]
Superstar Bio: Coby started his career on a near flawless roll that led him to his first and only championship to date. Following a bad facial injury he took an extended period of time away before coming back in 2017 to find moderate success. After getting married and having a child, Coby disappeared from the wrestling world for almost two years before making his return in April 2020.

Past Accomplishments: KCW Valiant Champion

 “The Pitch”
Wednesday
27 June 2018
2:00pm
[OFF-Camera]

Kris pushes open the double front doors of the bar and steps out into the daylight of the early afternoon. The sun is high in the air, and forces him to bring a hand up in front of his face to shield his eyes from being completely blinded. He does not stop walking through, heading directly to his rental car.

Kristopher Ryans: I don’t know how or why you came looking for me, but I really don’t have any interest in helping you.

From behind him, barely able to stop the double doors from closing on him is SCW newcomer and former champion Kyle Kavanagh. He does not appear nearly as bothered by the sun as Kris was, and there is a smile on his face that says he knows more than Kris was willing to admit to. The fact that the champion was trying to blow him off did not look like it bothered him at all. He followed Kris out to the car, not relenting.

Kyle Kavanagh: Oh come on! We both know that’s not true. We’ve had so much fun every time we have gotten together to make someone else’s life miserable.

Kris presses a button on the remote in his hand to unlock the doors of the car, and moves around to the driver’s side to open his. He shakes his head, not even bringing his eyes up to meet Kyle’s.

Kristopher Ryans: First of all, the first time we met, the advice you gave me led me to losing a match, so I wouldn’t call that fun.

Kyle pulls open the passenger side door before Kris can even sit down in his seat. The current SCW World Heavyweight Champion looked surprised at how forward Kyle was being about helping him. Kris was unsure exactly how he always got roped into these situations, but after the blow up with Court had already decided that his days of trying to steer the careers of the next generation of wrestlers was over. There was too much stress for too little reward. Kyle was not ever going to accept that answer though.

Kyle Kavanagh: Nah, you went into a match like a scared little bitch and lost. When you finally got your shit together like I told you to do, you went out there and won. Twice.

Kris shakes his head, refusing to give Kyle any of the credit for his cleaning up his act recently. It was a choice that he made on his own, and nobody was going to take that away from him. It was the reason that he was doing things alone. It was the reason that he had been pushing Mikah away from him, even though that was not working. Kris sits down into the driver’s seat without responding, but Kyle simply plops down next to him to prevent Kris from being able to speed off and cut their negotiation short.

Kyle Kavanagh: Look, you have to be out there anyways. This guy is coming after your title in a few weeks. All I am asking is that you show me what you have put together so far. Think of it like a test run. You have a plan. I get to be the guinea pig for you to see it that plan comes together like you think it does. Worst case scenario, I get my ass kicked and you go back to the drawing board.

Kris’ eyes are locked on him the whole time he is talking, but instead of indulging him, once Kyle finished, Kris’ eyes narrow.

Kristopher Ryans: Get out of my car.

Kyle cracks a wider smile and looks around the car. There are markings for the rental company on the windshield, and the center of the dashboard. He points to them without missing a beat.

Kyle Kavanagh: Not exactly your car...

Kris rolls his eyes, and starts the car, knowing better than to try and actively argue with Kyle. They were too alike. Both of them wanted to debate the other one into caving to what they wanted, and both were too stubborn to let the other win if the conversation kept going. The only way to win, was to not play the game. The only way to not play, was to drive away. Kris weighed his options, and then did the only thing that he could do.

Kristopher Ryans: Fine. Stay in the car...

Kris turns the key in the ignition, and then puts it quickly into gear, pulling out onto the street before Kyle can even get his leg off of the ground and close the door. The rookie nearly falls out of the car, but reaches out and grabs the center console for balance. As Kris pulls onto the road, Kyle gets his foot planted on the floorboard, and allows the door to slam shut just before it would have hit a car parked along the side of the road.

Kyle Kavanagh: I’m glad I got a Lyft instead of driving or this would be awfully inconvenient….

Kris rolled his eyes, and continued to accelerate down the road, completely disregarding any posted speed limit, but also knowing there was a slim chance of getting caught by any police officer knowing the neighborhood.

Kristopher Ryans: I have places to go. I don’t really care how you got there, or where you have to go back to. I don’t want to help you. If you want to take out Fenris, go put the legwork in. I’m not giving you a free shortcut.

Kyle laughs, not having expected to hear someone like Kris take the high road. Maybe this new miracle persona was not just something made up for the cameras. Kyle had seen Kris at his worst, and always just expected that was what was under it. He never thought that maybe the hostility was the mask, and what was under it was who Kris really was.

Kyle Kavanagh: Taking this face of the company thing seriously, huh? I can remember not too long ago when you had more in common with Jon Dough’s recent behavior.

Kris nodded, but did not let the attempt at an insult get under his skin.

Kristopher Ryans: Everyone fucks up. The smart ones get their shit together. I did it, so absolutely anyone else is capable of it.

Kyle shrugged, trying to twist Kris’ words into working in his favor.

Kyle Kavanagh: Well here I am, asking you to help me do things the right way, and you’re shooting me down.

This time Kris could not agree with him. He shakes his head as the car whips around a corner, throwing Kyle off center in his seat and causing him to have to look away from the champion to make sure that they were still on some kind of road. With the way that Kris was driving, he was starting to regret his decision to get into the car, but that was probably the point that Kris was trying to make.

Kristopher Ryans: Nah, the right way is doing it yourself. You don’t need my help, you want it. Anything I put together from watching him, you can put together too. This is not fucking rocket science. Break him down. Find your opening. Exploit his flaws. Play to your strengths. I don’t owe you any favors though, so I’m not doing it for you.

Kyle had already put together his response for if the conversation flipped this way, and did not hesitate to throw what he knew into Kris’ face.

Kyle Kavanagh: Word is you helped Court. What favor did you owe her, huh?

It actually makes Kris laugh, and for a second, he caves into the game just to prove Kyle wrong.

Kristopher Ryans: None. Mikah asked me to look out for her.

It only works to peak Kyle’s interest in the situation even more.

Kyle Kavanagh: Well what favor did Mikah owe you? She putting in some back of the limo service, if you know what I--

Kris turns the wheel quickly to the left, and slams hard on the breaks. His hand even moves up from the shift knob to the emergency brake, pulling it up quickly as the car slid to a halt. Kyle braced himself, and the world seemed to move in slow motion for a few moments. As he looked towards the road, he saw a man running down the sidewalk with another one chasing him down from behind on a bicycle The first of the two cut hard across the road just as Kris was coming alongside them. Kris’ quick thinking and movements slowed the car so that the man on foot could leap, slide across the front, and land back on his feet on the other side. The second of the two men was not as lucky. He turned the bike to follow, and slammed into the front tire on the passenger side. The bike flipped forward, depositing the young man riding it flat onto the hood on his back. The first of the two men did not look back, disappearing down the alley at a full sprint while the man on the hood writhed in pain from the impact.

Kyle Kavanagh: What the fuck?!

The kid on the hood could not even be in his twenties yet by the look of it, but rolled off the hood, taking the landing like someone who was no stranger to a beating. As he got to his feet, he shot a look down the alley, but knew that there was no way that he was going to catch up. His eyes drifted back to the two men in the car, but widened when they focused on Kris.

Kristopher Ryans: You!

The kid’s mouth fell open as Kris violently pushed open the door of the car. He backed away from the front of the car, and then looked down to the damage that the bike had down to the side of the car. There was a huge dent in the hood from where he had landed as well, which was only going to make things worse for him.

: Shit...


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”Foot Chase City”
Wednesday
27 June 2018
2:18pm
[OFF-Camera]

The teenager that crashed onto the hood backs away from the car as Kris gets out of the driver’s seat. He puts his hands up in front of his chest, and starts shaking his head. This day was going downhill fast, and he knew that this was not a physical fight that he could win if it really came down to it.

: Okay, so last time we got off on the wrong foot. We should totally just call that a misunderstanding.

He was trying to figure out how he was going to talk his way out of it, but he could see from the look in Kris’ eyes that it was not going to happen. The kid shoots a glance at Kyle as he gets out of the passenger seat, but Kyle can tell that the kid does not recognize him from anywhere. That fact that both he and Kris knew each other did seem interesting though.

Kyle Kavanagh: This another one of those kids you’re doing mystery favors for then?

Kris shakes his head, and the irritation on his face finally makes sense. The mystery man looks back and forth between them, putting together that whoever the guy with Kris was, they were not friends. If the champion was going to explode because of whatever game Kyle was playing, there was no way that he wanted to get caught in the crossfire.

: Look, I don’t know what you’re talking about, but that guy...

Kris cuts him off, not even caring about whatever their problem with one another was. It did not matter. It was not his problem.

Kristopher Ryans: That other guy had the decency to not fuck up my car.

Kyle corrects him for the second time.

Kyle Kavanagh: Well, rental car.

Kris shoots him a glare that would have caused most others to shut their mouth and watch the situation play out. The fact that he was getting under Kris’ skin just seemed to bring Kyle some kind of weird enjoyment though. Kyle turned from Kris to the kid just in time to see the kid backing away.

: I’m really sorry about your car...

He took a few more small steps backwards while Kris was still focused on Kyle.

Kristopher Ryans: Yeah well you should be...

Kris turned back to his acquaintance just in time to see him start to turn.

Kyle Kavanagh: Please don’t run...

Kyle’s words were much too quiet to be addressed to anyone other than himself. The mystery guy was already pivoting on his right foot and shifting his weight to take off as soon as his left foot hit the ground. Kris was not going to let him get away though, not for a second time. As soon as he starts to sprint in the direction he originally came from, Kris takes off around the back of the car in pursuit of him. Kyle watches as the two of them go, and shakes his head.

Kyle Kavanagh: Of course he did…

Kyle ducks back into the car and slides across to the driver’s seat, taking off in the opposite direction of Kris and Kyle. Just as Kris gets close enough to reach out though, the guy cuts to his left and down an alley. A gate blocks his path, or so Kris thinks as he rounds the corner behind him, but he steps up onto a trash can, then up onto the top of the dumpster next to before going up and over the fence and into a pile of boxes on the other side.

: Look, I am sorry about your car, but I gotta--

He pushes himself back up to his feet, expecting to turn to see Kris stopped at the fence. However, the Kris jumps up onto the same trash can, but instead of stepping up, kicks off the wall of the building before landing across the top of the fence. The kid cuts himself off and immediately turns around to start running.

Kristopher Ryans: You’re gonna stop is what you’re gonna do.

Kris lands on his feet on the other side of the fence just as the mystery guy starts to sprint away.

: Not a chance, and you’re not fast enough to catch me.

He yells the words back over his shoulder as he spins a few trash cans to the ground behind him. Pushing the cans over does not even seem to slow him down, which Kris would find impressive under other circumstances, but was making it difficult to keep up with him. Instead of running the obstacle course though, Kris jumps up off a stack of rotting wooden pallets, using it as a launchpad to leap over the cans and put a hand on the guy’s shoulder to spin him around and stop his sprint.

Kristopher Ryans: You’re not as fast as you think….

To Kris’ surprise, the guy does not lose his balance, although Kris does not quite stick the landing the way that he wanted to. He falls forward, staying on his feet only because he slams hard against the front of a dumpster. It was a lot less forgiving that the ropes of the rings he normally competed in, but it at least kept him from eating concrete. He was able to put some distance between the two of them while Kris found his balance, and knew that there was no way Kris was following him after hitting that hard.

: Not as slow as you were hoping, champ.

He turns around with a smile on his face, looking to turn out of the opposite end of the alley than they had started on. As he moves around the corner though, he is cut in half by a hard kick to the ribs from none other than Kyle Kavanagh.

Kyle Kavanagh: It’s a lot faster to just drive around the block and cut people off. Running is so overrated.

Kyle pushes the runner’s shoulders back as he doubles over, and he falls onto his backside. Kris gets up to his feet, and joins the two of them just as Kyle looks up to the champion with a proud look on his face.

Kyle Kavanagh: I think you were looking for this...

Kyle kicks a leg out from under the mystery guy as he tries to get up and run away again. He hits the ground hard enough the second time to stop him from having those kinds of thoughts pop up again.

Kristopher Ryans: Yeah… thanks.

Kyle taps the kid on the shoulder with the tip of his shoe.

Kyle Kavanagh: Please tell me that you are at least eighteen so that I don’t have to feel bad about hurting you.

The guy on the ground nods, and forces an answer out.

: Nineteen.

Kyle gives him another tap, this one a little harder. He did not necessarily need to do so to get his attention, but it amused either way.

Kyle Kavanagh: You got a name?

He nods again, still working on breathing normally.

: Adam Wilson.

Kyle shrugs, apparently convinced that Adam was not just throwing him a fake name by either the tone of his voice or the look on his face.

Kyle Kavanagh: I’m Kyle. You obviously know the asshat already… speaking of..

Kris tries to cut him off before he can say it, but Kyle does not let Kris get a word in edgewise.

Kyle Kavanagh: ...I’m pretty sure you owe me a favor now.


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”Favors”
Wednesday
27 June 2018
3:30pm
[OFF-Camera]

Kyle did his best to watch the rest of the exchange between Kris and Adam from the passenger seat of the car. Kris was not exactly keen on the idea of him listening in, and had insisted that he go back to the car. He had not counted on Kyle being able to read their lips out of the side mirror of the car. The two talked for much longer than Kyle thought that they were going to, but eventually Kris made his way back to the car, sitting in the driver’s seat without raising the keys up to start the car. It was like he knew that Kyle was going to have something to say about the ordeal and was not going to take him any further until he got it out of his system. Not one to leave people hanging, or filter himself, Kyle was happy to oblige.

Kyle Kavanagh: So the kid runs into your car--

Kris corrects him perfectly, flipping his point from earlier.

Kristopher Ryans: It is a rental car, remember? You reminded me that.

Kyle sighs, but stops himself from getting annoyed by him. He knew that Kris was going to try and push him in order to get out of doing him a favor, but Kyle was not going to let the opportunity slip through his fingers.

Kyle Kavanagh: He damages the car, leads you on a chase, and you not only let him go, but you gave him money too?

Kris shrugs his shoulders, putting together how much of it Kyle had seen.

Kristopher Ryans: Things aren’t always what they seem. Some things you have to just be there to understand. You can’t put a puzzle together with half of the pieces.

Kyle was quickly losing interest in the conversation. It was obvious that Kris was not going to fill in any of the blanks that he had where Adam was concerned. Instead of letting him continue to deflect, Kyle cut straight to the point.

Kyle Kavanagh: Fenris. I want everything you have. Then we can call it even.

Kris sighs and looks over at Kyle. The rookie got the distinct impression that Kris did not like being put in the position that he was in, but it only worked to make Kyle more proud of himself. Kris was not ready to give in just yet though.

Kristopher Ryans: You want me to tell you how to beat a guy that can literally kicked a guy unconscious in the middle of the ring. Here’s my advice: duck.

Kyle shakes his head, not buying it.

Kyle Kavanagh: No, fuck you. I know you. I know you take this shit seriously now. You have a plan. Other people might not see any kind of method in the chaos, but you’re not all that hard to figure out. After all, Crimson did it.

The mention of the name of Kris’ rival gets a strange response. Kris’ first instinct was to grind his teeth together, but there was almost a begrudging respect in his eyes that made the anger seem forced, or more out of reflex than anything.

Kristopher Ryans: You know that I could take you, right?

Kyle backpedals off of it to disarm Kris instead of engaging in his deflection.

Kyle Kavanagh: Probably, but I’m really just thinking about Fenris, and you should be too. You already get a front row seat. Instead of throwing away the chance, stop being a little bitch, and just let me see what you have.

Kris sighs and reaches behind the passenger seat in the floorboard of the car. He unzips a gym bag there, and pulls out a few folders from it. He starts to go through them all as Kyle tries to twist around to see what he is doing.

Kristopher Ryans: No more cashing in favors after this. We are even.

He tosses most of his stack back into the bag and yanks the zipper closed before handing Kyle one of the folders. The rookie former champion looks down at it with a smile on his face, but motions back to the bag. He did not get a chance to see much of anything in it, but from the sounds of it, there was a lot more in that bag than he was originally giving Kris credit for.

Kyle Kavanagh: You have one of these for everyone, don’t you?

Kyle looked for any indication of an answer on Kris’ face, knowing that he was never going to answer the question directly. The best that he could hope for was getting some kind of hint by how Kris reacted to the question. Unfortunately, Kris simply shook his head, offered his signature fake smirk, and had two words for him.

Kristopher Ryans: Goodbye Kyle.

Getting the message, Kyle popped the handle on his door, and pushed it open. As he got to his feet, he leaned back in towards the car so that Kris could hear him.

Kyle Kavanagh: Thanks for all of your--

Kris did not even wait for him to finish, putting the car in gear and speeding off before Kyle could finish the sentence.


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The camera opens on Kyle sitting with his back to the camera, on a small stool in the middle of a room the size of a walk in closet. There is a light hanging over his head, illuminating the entirety of the small space.

”I’m the kind of person that likes to get all of the details before I walk into any situation. Call it self-preservation. I mean, I can obviously take care of myself, but there is no substitute for preparation time. Even a weakling can take down someone much better than they are if they have enough time to get ready for the fight, and the right tools at their dispense.”

The viewers start to let their eyes linger around the walls in front of Kyle, since they cannot see his face to watch him speak. It is probably all part of his plan though, as the audience can see why he wants their attention on the walls. Every piece of information that Kyle could put together about Fenris has been crudely taped up. Every story that SCW had posted during the Blast From The Past tournament, still frames of the way he moves around in the ring, spots to scout, and everything with notes written on them that were too small for the viewers to really be able to read. It did not help that Kyle’s writing appeared to be atrocious.

”Did I do all of this work myself?”

Kyle gestures out to the wall in front of him, extending both arms out to make reference to the entirety of his notes.

”Nah, I got to call in a favor from the one person in this company that might actually be better than everyone else at what he does. He gave me a platform to start from, and I ran with the knowledge from there. In the last few days, I have come to one conclusion: I can beat Fenris.”

Kyle spins around on the chair to face the audience, and unveils a wide smile that most find totally unsettling. Not only was he talking about being able to beat the number one contender, but from the look of confidence on his face, it was not some random assumption. Kyle did not look like he thought he could win. He looked as if he already had.

”Like that match with Cross. You know, you’re debut...”

He winks at the camera, abandoning the rest of the viewers and talking exclusively to his opponent.

”Oh yeah, like I said, I know everything.”

He seems to get more and more excited about the prospect as he goes, and his words start to run closer together as he struggles to contain himself.

”See you had every answer for that tub of shit, even from the start. Go back and give it another look. It is one of those debuts that you can be proud of. Mine? Not so much, but I’m sure you’ll point that out.”

Kyle shrugs his shoulders, clearly not going to allow it to bother him.

”...but Cross. You had his number until he started bending rules. In a straight up fight, you would have beaten his ass just like you did for most of that night. You know what he taught me though? He taught me that you don’t have an answer for someone that is willing to step outside the rules for an advantage. He did it with a fingerpoke, and he is a fucking idiot. What do you suppose someone like me is going to cook up for you buddy? Remember, there is no substitute for prep time.”

He definitely finds himself amusing, even if nobody watching did.

”Then you had Storms, who nobody has ever thought of as intimidating, especially when all he does is cry about the titles he either can’t win or can’t hang onto. He’s another person you physically dominated through parts of that match, but I learned something from him too. You always run in blind. Someone that can move faster, or is more agile, is going to get the drop on you every single time, and here is the kicker: it gets worse when you get pissed off. How long you think you are going to keep your cool against someone that can run circles around you? What is going to be your answer for getting countered and berated at every turn?”

Kyle does not even give any kind of pause for an answer, giving it himself.

”You don’t have one.”

It was simple enough, and better than that, Kyle definitely believed it, and that was what was going to matter once the match started.

”Even worse for you, that match with Equinox showed me exactly what you are capable of, and took the guesswork out of the equation. He gave you the smallest opening, and your obliterated him for the rest of the match. You exploited that knee without any kind of remorse, and even got close to getting yourself disqualified and your team kicked out of the tournament. That is the person that you are when you snap. What happened to Equinox is what happens to me if I give you that opening. You aren’t afraid to get booed if it means you are going to win the war. Equinox fell victim to it because he never saw it coming. You won’t get that opportunity with me. Don’t expect it.”

He glares at the camera, but after a second or two, his eyes soften, and his expression turns into a smile. The tone of his voice even becomes much lighter.

”I don’t think I need to tell you how the fact that you struggled with the midget helps my cause, right? Like, that was a legitimate midget… and you had issues. What? The few feet of advantage you had weren’t enough? The extra foot or so of reach on your legs and arms wasn’t enough to subdue the troll in the early going? For real?”

He waves at the camera, trying to cover the smile on his face with the other hand. His eyebrows come together over his eyes and he attempts to shake his head in a nonchalant manner.

”So we won’t talk about that one..”

He uses an obviously fake cough to erase the smile from his face and cover a light laugh before striking a more serious tone.

”You couldn’t even pin Ty West. You couldn’t get him to tap out. He passed out rather than allow you to beat him in any kind of meaningful way. You didn’t beat him. His body gave out on him and you outlasted him. It says a whole lot about Ty West, but that guy has never held a championship before. He has never really proven himself anywhere, let alone here. He pushed you as far as you could go, and he survived you unpinned.”

Kyle shrugs his shoulders, and stands up off of the stool.

”I know my strengths. I know your weaknesses. I know what to look out for. I know what you’re capable of. I know how to beat you. Someone like me, who has done nothing in this company, knows how to beat the so-called number one contender to the grandest prize in the entire company. Not bad for a second match, huh? Look at me go.”

He gives the camera another smile, and the light over his head cuts out. The screen stays black for a few moments before the feed cuts off completely.