the pain can never be erased
remain and turn it into strength
from our failures we are refined
replacing frailty
allowing us to be
redefined
Scene One: New Champion….
Off Camera
Dublin Ireland.
31st of March 2018
ONE!
TWO!
THREE
Three seconds is all it took. Three seconds for everything Austin had said and done to become legitimate. All he’d said, all he’d done. It was all justified at this moment. From the second the referee’s hand hit the mat for the three count it had been a blur and silence. His theme music, the surprise of the crowd. His own breathing. None of it was registering. All he could feel was relief.The referee put the title around Austin's waist, he walked up the ramp to the back. He shook hands, he smiled. But the shock of it all was still there.
But now the silence was all too real. It hadn’t been out there in the world, the atmosphere was that of surprise and jubilance. But also sadness.
It was unexpected.
It was different.
Fenris had fallen. Austin was the champion. And now Austin and the company had to deal with the uncertainty that came with that. He looked down next to him, laying across the bench was the SCW heavyweight title. He smiled as the light above moved and danced along the ornate ridges of the decoration.
At the bottom of the main plate, it still said “Fenris”, this caused Austin to chuckle. It had seemed like an eternity since he had been in the ring. Of course, it had only been a few minutes. He was still drenched with sweat. Still, in his wrestling gear, a towel over his shoulder and his wrists still taped up.
He reached over grabbing his phone, taking a quick picture of the title and sending it to his wife Lisa back home in New York. It would have been in the early evening there with the time difference. He smiled and took a few deep breaths trying to calm himself down as the door slowly opened. Austin looked over with a grin as Alex Jones appeared through it, closing it behind him and folding his arms over his chest with a grin. ”Never gets old, does it? Austin laughed with a small nod before pushing off his knees to his feet picking up the championship and studying it. He had won titles before. Even world titles, hell even a world title in an SCW ring. But this one. This was different.
The WWH Hellsgate title was a brand title, not quite on the same level as the main world title. And it was for a company that many saw as the watered down wannabe version of what wrestling should be. It was a parody. And the Honor championship, while meaning so much to him was representing a dead company. A company that had in many ways sold it’s soul to SCW. But the SCW world heavyweight title. It was current, storied, had meaning, and most importantly was held by a real champion.
Alex moved further into the room giving Austin a pat on the shoulder. ”Savor it Austin. You earned it.
Austin took a deep breath and smiled as his phone buzzed, he looked down seeing a message from Lisa, it was filled with exclamation points and an exciting feeling. He laughed to himself as Alex started to pack his bag, Austin looked at the title again as he moved over to his bag. ”You know you can’t shower with that thing right brother?” He laughed and shook his head, Austin gave a slow nod and set the title down on his bag moving into the showers closing the door. It was becoming all too real…
He was the top dog now….
The hot water ran over his body, the pot match had started to settle in. His muscles felt stiff and sore, his joints cracked and popped as he started to settle down. His breathing even returned to normal as his heart stopped beating a million miles a minute and settled down to a normal rate. He dried himself off, putting on a grey suit, his hair tied back away from his face as he stared in the mirror with another deep breath. He picked up his phone noticing he was alone again.
Alex had gone back to the hotel, Alicia too. He smiled and called home, hearing Lisa’s voice made his heart swell. ”Hey, yeah...it happened…” She was excited to the point of almost crying, she was seven months pregnant with their second child back home in New York. She had been spending time at former champion Elena DeDraca’s home. Austin’s mind was at ease knowing she was being looked after.
”Don’t worry, I’ll be home soon. I’ll be bringing the title home with me. You can hold it. I love you Lisa. He smiled wide. Out of all the congratulations he’d received. From Fans walking up the ramp to co-workers to texts the one that meant most was Lisa. She had been there through the hard times, the worst times. The death of his father and mother so close together, his drinking problem, watching his career almost die when he sat around for 6 months doing nothing. She had been there. They took this road together and in his heart, he knew. The SCW championship wasn’t just his accomplishment. It was hers too.
Scene Two: Challengers
On Camera
Manchester, England.
Present Day.
”I don’t want to say it, but in this situation, I feel like I have to.”
Austin smirks and folds his arms over his chest.
”I told you so….”
He said it with pride and power. A certain amount of bass in his voice.
”I told you all that there was one man on this roster that could beat Fenris. One man who could put him to that limit and take him into deep waters. And that was me. Fenris was a great champion. And he will still be around the top of SCW. I’d be glad to go toe to toe with him again once he’s done with Caleb Storms. But...apparently, I have someone else in my way...Ty West”
“My tag team partner this week.”
“You know, I like Ty. He’s a loyal, hardworking former Roulette champion who, well, let’s face it. If he had faced anyone in that final aside from Fenris he could have been the SCW champion. So, I know that facing Ty will be a challenge. I know he will bring it and I also know that having him as a tag team partner is a huge advantage in this main event. See I know that Ty won’t be looking for a soft spot in my back to stick a knife. I know he’ll hold up his end of the bargain. In fact, I feel bad for Fenris….”
“He kinda...got screwed…”
Austin shrugs and sighs unfolding his arms.
”See Ty is all about being the best in that ring. Like Fenris. And myself. In fact, the three of us have those same goals and want to prove it through actions, not words. We don’t complain, we don’t whine, we don't make excuses. Fenris, as I said, was a dominant champion and what this title needed to stay relevant and I intend on doing everything possible to keep that standard up. It’ll be great to get in the ring with Fenris again. But someone who doesn’t belong in this is is Celab Storms…”
“Caleb has done nothing but whine and complain, he has made excuses as to why he’s not champion and talked about Fenris becoming stale.”
“You know, Ty threw out a challenge to me and I needed time to think about it but I was always going to accept. He came at me the right way, he has earned his right to have a shot but Caleb?. You shouldn’t be in the main event. You shouldn’t be tagging with Fenris and you shouldn’t be facing me or Ty. And it’s not just because you’re a whiny hypocrite who tries to put himself across as an honorable wrestler when really he’s just overcompensating for his lack of drive and talent….”
“It’s because you have a chance to get hurt, really, really bad. You aren’t good enough to be in this ring with us. Ty will destroy you, I will destroy you, then when the match is over...Fenris will probably destroy you to…”
Austin scoffs and shakes his head.
”This tag match is about showing where the future of SCW lies. It’s the former champion, the future contender, the current champion as well as a loud mouth who needs a kick in the face. And I’ll be ready to give it to him….”
