jediPREZ
Shadowboss
(FADEIN: 'COCKY' CRAIG MILES standing in front of the orange/blue Battle of the Belts backdrop. He's sporting an 'EDDIE for PREZ' tank top, O'Neill board shorts, no shoes and both UNIFIED Tag Team Titles slung over his shoulder. A cigarette is precariously dangling from his lips, smoked almost down to the filter.)
MILES: "Imagine you're sitting on a cracked, weathered run-down porch in some stinky swamphole in Louisiana. Three years before...you were one of the hottest young wrestlers in America. PEE W I had you slated as a breakout superstar. A regional favorite just on the cusp of national exposure. Then the injury came...it all just ended like THAT.
(MILES snaps his fingers. He takes out his cigarette and flicks it to the floor)
MILES: "Imagine that in your heart you believed you wouldn't ever make it back. Your knee a tattered, broken down, pile of junk that you had no faith in. A torn, worn down heart you no longer thought people could believe in. Life was over, life was miserable - your time had come...and PASSED. Then imagine that you were given a second CHANCE. That someone came along and brought you out of the swampland you were festering, rotting and self-loathing in. That someone still saw the light you could kindle. Someone had faith in you. Someone believed. And you came back strong, you achieved more glory than ever before. PEE W I didn't call you a star in the making, they started hailing you as the NEXT best thing."
(MILES pulls out a cigarette from his pocket and lights it. He inhales deeply, lost in thought for a moment - his eyes slit for a moment...)
MILES: "And the person that rekindled your spirit, gave you the means to make it to the BIG-TIME asks for ONE favor. An offer you couldn't refuse, a chance to become THE best thing."
(MILES inhales deeply once more, blowing out a smoke ring towards the ceiling.)
MILES: "Shane Southern refused that offer. He turned his back on someone that trusted him enough to be there when HE needed him. This is how you repay me, Shane? This is how you respect the man that brought your from the darkness into the light? This is how you DISHONOR me? Shane, you just don't see the forest for the trees do you? There are lines being drawn all around you, pal. And as each line is drawn, the more YOU become enclosed, you become surrounded. The more you choose NOT to cross a line, Shane (MILES pauses, shakes his head disparangly) the less time you have. I now accept the choice you've made and now you must accept MINE. Shane Southern, you will NOT walk out of Battle of the Belts with the United States title OR possibly on your own willpower."
(MILES takes a couple of steps closer to the camera)
MILES: "I've seen the man you've become. Telling Eli Flair to not cash a check his body can't cash. (MILES laughs) Southern, do you know what your mouth leads your mind to believe? Southern, here's the reality - you're not there yet. You think you have a prayer at anything beyond where you are right now? WRONG. That United States title is the top of the mountain for YOU, Shane. You're no Hornet. You're no Guns. You're no Randalls. You're neither Windhams. Hell, you're not even close to Ay-ho's level night after night. You want to know why? Because you think you can do it on your own. NO WAY. Adler had the <> Exchange, Guns had the Armed Forces, Hornet had Windham, Randalls...well, Mikey just had his other personalities and obsessions if you will. Shane, you need to be pushed. Shane, when I offered a hand to the Intruders I wasn't telling you to sell your soul. If you didn't want to play 24-7, that was your thing. Do the Pros play the same way as Guns? Hell no. Hell, Eddie plays by a different set of rules than all of us. But we ARE the best, Shane. We know what we're doing. Guns didn't want the World Title, he's been there. That was your slot, Shane. You didn't even know it."
(MILES inhales deeply, once again pausing for a moment of thought...)
"We would've trained you like a PRO, Shane. Given you the backup when you needed it as long as you returned that favor. You didn't have to sell your soul, just cross the right line. And for what? The fans? They dig us, Shane. Don't hate the playa, hate the game. The CSWA? Chad Merritt? Good choice, there. That man has a scarier closet than Simply Stunning. The old walls of the CSWA will come down, Shane. They're coming down no matter what ANYONE does. Too many people want it to come down, Shane. We're not alone. The Old War is over. You'll see that sooner or later. Everyone has the Intruders pegged on the run, on the lam, hiding in bunkers - when we've seen the finish line way before everyone else. Two months ago, I started strategizing for this night Shane. The day you DISHONORED me, DISRESPECTED me, I started planning for your utter and complete loss. While everyone thinks we're the ones trapped, you're all about to find out that it's time to REVERSE the trap. And when its REVERSED the carnage that ensues and envelopes you, Adler and Windham will let this locker room know where to stand and what to fear. Wherever you roam, my eyes will follow. You better have eyes in the back of your head and out of your ears 'cause I'm coming at you from EVERY side and EVERY angle. The lines are getting closer, you don't even see where they're coming from. You're a hunted man, Southern. A walking bullseye marked for elimination. You will no longer be a champion, Shane. Not for me, not for ANYONE.
(MILES inhales and blows out a smoke ring)
"You stand alone, Southern. You're too arrogant. You think you can talk the smack you do and last night IN and night OUT in this jungle. You're calling out everyone, lately - screaming for someone to take the opportunity and cost you everything. Inviting them to snuff you out when you're not looking. Who's your ally, Shane? Is it Adler? You only face him one match later. Is it Guns? Yeah, I don't think so either. Is it Troy Windham? A man who sells out his own family and best friends for his own selfish ego. It can't be Lawrence Stanley or Deacon, their eyes are fixed on the World Title and they want you to lose. They've been smart enough to remain mum and let the PROFESSIONALS do their job. No Shane, you have NOBODY. Beware the ides of March, eh? It's all a matter of who gets to you first, Shane. And PROFESSIONALLY speaking, I can already see who it is MILES ahead. You're a dead man, Shane. A walking dead man."
(MILES flicks his cig at the camera. CUTTO: STATIC)
MILES: "Imagine you're sitting on a cracked, weathered run-down porch in some stinky swamphole in Louisiana. Three years before...you were one of the hottest young wrestlers in America. PEE W I had you slated as a breakout superstar. A regional favorite just on the cusp of national exposure. Then the injury came...it all just ended like THAT.
(MILES snaps his fingers. He takes out his cigarette and flicks it to the floor)
MILES: "Imagine that in your heart you believed you wouldn't ever make it back. Your knee a tattered, broken down, pile of junk that you had no faith in. A torn, worn down heart you no longer thought people could believe in. Life was over, life was miserable - your time had come...and PASSED. Then imagine that you were given a second CHANCE. That someone came along and brought you out of the swampland you were festering, rotting and self-loathing in. That someone still saw the light you could kindle. Someone had faith in you. Someone believed. And you came back strong, you achieved more glory than ever before. PEE W I didn't call you a star in the making, they started hailing you as the NEXT best thing."
(MILES pulls out a cigarette from his pocket and lights it. He inhales deeply, lost in thought for a moment - his eyes slit for a moment...)
MILES: "And the person that rekindled your spirit, gave you the means to make it to the BIG-TIME asks for ONE favor. An offer you couldn't refuse, a chance to become THE best thing."
(MILES inhales deeply once more, blowing out a smoke ring towards the ceiling.)
MILES: "Shane Southern refused that offer. He turned his back on someone that trusted him enough to be there when HE needed him. This is how you repay me, Shane? This is how you respect the man that brought your from the darkness into the light? This is how you DISHONOR me? Shane, you just don't see the forest for the trees do you? There are lines being drawn all around you, pal. And as each line is drawn, the more YOU become enclosed, you become surrounded. The more you choose NOT to cross a line, Shane (MILES pauses, shakes his head disparangly) the less time you have. I now accept the choice you've made and now you must accept MINE. Shane Southern, you will NOT walk out of Battle of the Belts with the United States title OR possibly on your own willpower."
(MILES takes a couple of steps closer to the camera)
MILES: "I've seen the man you've become. Telling Eli Flair to not cash a check his body can't cash. (MILES laughs) Southern, do you know what your mouth leads your mind to believe? Southern, here's the reality - you're not there yet. You think you have a prayer at anything beyond where you are right now? WRONG. That United States title is the top of the mountain for YOU, Shane. You're no Hornet. You're no Guns. You're no Randalls. You're neither Windhams. Hell, you're not even close to Ay-ho's level night after night. You want to know why? Because you think you can do it on your own. NO WAY. Adler had the <> Exchange, Guns had the Armed Forces, Hornet had Windham, Randalls...well, Mikey just had his other personalities and obsessions if you will. Shane, you need to be pushed. Shane, when I offered a hand to the Intruders I wasn't telling you to sell your soul. If you didn't want to play 24-7, that was your thing. Do the Pros play the same way as Guns? Hell no. Hell, Eddie plays by a different set of rules than all of us. But we ARE the best, Shane. We know what we're doing. Guns didn't want the World Title, he's been there. That was your slot, Shane. You didn't even know it."
(MILES inhales deeply, once again pausing for a moment of thought...)
"We would've trained you like a PRO, Shane. Given you the backup when you needed it as long as you returned that favor. You didn't have to sell your soul, just cross the right line. And for what? The fans? They dig us, Shane. Don't hate the playa, hate the game. The CSWA? Chad Merritt? Good choice, there. That man has a scarier closet than Simply Stunning. The old walls of the CSWA will come down, Shane. They're coming down no matter what ANYONE does. Too many people want it to come down, Shane. We're not alone. The Old War is over. You'll see that sooner or later. Everyone has the Intruders pegged on the run, on the lam, hiding in bunkers - when we've seen the finish line way before everyone else. Two months ago, I started strategizing for this night Shane. The day you DISHONORED me, DISRESPECTED me, I started planning for your utter and complete loss. While everyone thinks we're the ones trapped, you're all about to find out that it's time to REVERSE the trap. And when its REVERSED the carnage that ensues and envelopes you, Adler and Windham will let this locker room know where to stand and what to fear. Wherever you roam, my eyes will follow. You better have eyes in the back of your head and out of your ears 'cause I'm coming at you from EVERY side and EVERY angle. The lines are getting closer, you don't even see where they're coming from. You're a hunted man, Southern. A walking bullseye marked for elimination. You will no longer be a champion, Shane. Not for me, not for ANYONE.
(MILES inhales and blows out a smoke ring)
"You stand alone, Southern. You're too arrogant. You think you can talk the smack you do and last night IN and night OUT in this jungle. You're calling out everyone, lately - screaming for someone to take the opportunity and cost you everything. Inviting them to snuff you out when you're not looking. Who's your ally, Shane? Is it Adler? You only face him one match later. Is it Guns? Yeah, I don't think so either. Is it Troy Windham? A man who sells out his own family and best friends for his own selfish ego. It can't be Lawrence Stanley or Deacon, their eyes are fixed on the World Title and they want you to lose. They've been smart enough to remain mum and let the PROFESSIONALS do their job. No Shane, you have NOBODY. Beware the ides of March, eh? It's all a matter of who gets to you first, Shane. And PROFESSIONALLY speaking, I can already see who it is MILES ahead. You're a dead man, Shane. A walking dead man."
(MILES flicks his cig at the camera. CUTTO: STATIC)