AGGRESSION 49: John Doe vs. Aran Dishon
- Thread starter DBrunkGXW
- Start date
BoEd
Member
(In)
(His heart pounded in his chest so hard he thought it was going to crack one of his ribs. His name is Aran Dishon, and apparently he is one of the newest members of the Empire Pro Wrestling roster. At least that is what he figures from seeing his name on the line-up for the upcoming Aggression card.)
(Of course, he has a battle royal match – which he plans on getting crushed in by the way – for World’s Finest Wrestling: New Era coming up, and he wants to make sure he looks halfway decent. Though, with the talent he saw signed up for the match, he isn’t so sure this is going to turn out as well as he thought. That is where the extra training came into play, because no matter how silly he looks competing against guys as large as Jin Gang Xiao, or as known as Rocko Daymon, he wants to be prepared for when it matters…When he has his first match in EPW.)
Aran: Hey, Vern, what time is it?
(The camera pans back to take in the whole scene for the first time, and the scene couldn’t be any more disappointing. The unfinished garage conversion was nowhere near completion. The walls were nothing more than sheetrock with putty spots, where the nails had been driven into the vertical four by twos that make up the framing of what would soon become Aran’s home gym. It wasn’t like he needed to park the seventeen year old Honda Civic hatchback – that left a puddle of oil beneath it wherever he parked – inside the garage.)
(We find Vernon Schuman, the guy Aran called Vern, sitting down on a video game rocker seat with a Playstation 3 controller in his hand. The floating sniper rifle on the screen that sneaks out of the brush is all that you can see on the screen, before Vernon turns to glance over his shoulder toward Aran with a frown on his silly looking mug.)
Vern: Dude, I’m on a freaking roll here…Twelve kills and I haven’t been taken out once.
(Silly looking is not just a loose description either. Vern takes great pride in the handlebar mustache he has groomed to twirl up and curl into a spiral on the ends. He thinks it makes him look rather dapper with the fedora that normally covers his bald head.)
Aran: Just tell me the time Soldier Boy.
Vern: It’s time to buy a clock for the wall, man.
Aran: Maybe I’d have the money if I didn’t have to keep paying your half of the rent.
(Vernon quickly lifts his arm so he can check the time on the watch he has on his wrist.)
Vern: It’s a quarter to four.
Aran: Damn, I have to be at work by six.
Vern: You going to quit now that you have this cushy gig with Empire Pro?
Aran: Maybe if you got a job, instead of staying here playing video games all day.
(Vern’s eyes narrow as he stretches his arms out.)
Vern: What are you talking about…Do you know how much I make off of these lazy rich kids that want me to level up their paladins?
Aran: And you call that a job…
Vern: Money is money, bro.
Aran: Whatever. Look, I’m gonna go get ready for work. You think you can clean up the living room a bit?
Vern: Yeah, Moose and Jake should be coming over later, so I’ll get them to help me.
(Aran stood up from the weight bench he was sitting on and grabbed a towel off of the bar with around sixty pounds on each side. It’s not a lot of weight, but he isn’t trying to look like he should be on the cover of Muscle and Fitness magazine so it shouldn’t matter.)
Aran: Two more people that need to get off their butts and find a job.
(Aran starts to pat himself dry.)
Vern: Actually, Jake found a job already. He’s going to be an overnight stocker at Wal-Mart.
Aran: That’s like a whole step up from flipping burgers at Mickey D’s.
(Vern’s eyebrow arches slightly.)
Vern: What crawled up your butt?
(Aran shakes his head.)
Aran: Sorry, man, this match just has me all worked up is all.
Vern: Well, it’s not like you’re debuting against someone else that’s new. John Doe is actually pretty good.
(Aran chuckles softly.)
Aran: Now that makes me feel a whole hell of a lot better.
Vern: Okay, maybe that didn’t come out right.
Aran: Don’t worry about it, I know what you meant.
(Aran tosses the towel back onto the bar and squats down to pick up a tee shirt that was balled up on the floor a couple of feet from the bench. He shakes it out and tosses it over his shoulder, the toning of his body pretty evident even though he’s just standing there.)
Aran: I’m gonna go take a shower.
Vern: Alright, I’m gonna go back and kill some people.
(Vern turns back and realizes someone has been sniping him, as he now has been killed five times.)
Vern: Crap!
(Out)
(His heart pounded in his chest so hard he thought it was going to crack one of his ribs. His name is Aran Dishon, and apparently he is one of the newest members of the Empire Pro Wrestling roster. At least that is what he figures from seeing his name on the line-up for the upcoming Aggression card.)
(Of course, he has a battle royal match – which he plans on getting crushed in by the way – for World’s Finest Wrestling: New Era coming up, and he wants to make sure he looks halfway decent. Though, with the talent he saw signed up for the match, he isn’t so sure this is going to turn out as well as he thought. That is where the extra training came into play, because no matter how silly he looks competing against guys as large as Jin Gang Xiao, or as known as Rocko Daymon, he wants to be prepared for when it matters…When he has his first match in EPW.)
Aran: Hey, Vern, what time is it?
(The camera pans back to take in the whole scene for the first time, and the scene couldn’t be any more disappointing. The unfinished garage conversion was nowhere near completion. The walls were nothing more than sheetrock with putty spots, where the nails had been driven into the vertical four by twos that make up the framing of what would soon become Aran’s home gym. It wasn’t like he needed to park the seventeen year old Honda Civic hatchback – that left a puddle of oil beneath it wherever he parked – inside the garage.)
(We find Vernon Schuman, the guy Aran called Vern, sitting down on a video game rocker seat with a Playstation 3 controller in his hand. The floating sniper rifle on the screen that sneaks out of the brush is all that you can see on the screen, before Vernon turns to glance over his shoulder toward Aran with a frown on his silly looking mug.)
Vern: Dude, I’m on a freaking roll here…Twelve kills and I haven’t been taken out once.
(Silly looking is not just a loose description either. Vern takes great pride in the handlebar mustache he has groomed to twirl up and curl into a spiral on the ends. He thinks it makes him look rather dapper with the fedora that normally covers his bald head.)
Aran: Just tell me the time Soldier Boy.
Vern: It’s time to buy a clock for the wall, man.
Aran: Maybe I’d have the money if I didn’t have to keep paying your half of the rent.
(Vernon quickly lifts his arm so he can check the time on the watch he has on his wrist.)
Vern: It’s a quarter to four.
Aran: Damn, I have to be at work by six.
Vern: You going to quit now that you have this cushy gig with Empire Pro?
Aran: Maybe if you got a job, instead of staying here playing video games all day.
(Vern’s eyes narrow as he stretches his arms out.)
Vern: What are you talking about…Do you know how much I make off of these lazy rich kids that want me to level up their paladins?
Aran: And you call that a job…
Vern: Money is money, bro.
Aran: Whatever. Look, I’m gonna go get ready for work. You think you can clean up the living room a bit?
Vern: Yeah, Moose and Jake should be coming over later, so I’ll get them to help me.
(Aran stood up from the weight bench he was sitting on and grabbed a towel off of the bar with around sixty pounds on each side. It’s not a lot of weight, but he isn’t trying to look like he should be on the cover of Muscle and Fitness magazine so it shouldn’t matter.)
Aran: Two more people that need to get off their butts and find a job.
(Aran starts to pat himself dry.)
Vern: Actually, Jake found a job already. He’s going to be an overnight stocker at Wal-Mart.
Aran: That’s like a whole step up from flipping burgers at Mickey D’s.
(Vern’s eyebrow arches slightly.)
Vern: What crawled up your butt?
(Aran shakes his head.)
Aran: Sorry, man, this match just has me all worked up is all.
Vern: Well, it’s not like you’re debuting against someone else that’s new. John Doe is actually pretty good.
(Aran chuckles softly.)
Aran: Now that makes me feel a whole hell of a lot better.
Vern: Okay, maybe that didn’t come out right.
Aran: Don’t worry about it, I know what you meant.
(Aran tosses the towel back onto the bar and squats down to pick up a tee shirt that was balled up on the floor a couple of feet from the bench. He shakes it out and tosses it over his shoulder, the toning of his body pretty evident even though he’s just standing there.)
Aran: I’m gonna go take a shower.
Vern: Alright, I’m gonna go back and kill some people.
(Vern turns back and realizes someone has been sniping him, as he now has been killed five times.)
Vern: Crap!
(Out)
John Doe
The Anorexic Ethiopian
FADEIN….
An Empire Pro background as the sound of boots thud against the ground, a known face looking at the camera with a small smile. It’s John Doe, an old Empire Pro familiar that left years back, his cocky smirk and spiked hair all to reassuring that he is back for a purpose. He stands in front of the backdrop arms crossed leaning back just slightly as he begins to speak.
DOE: “Years, it has been years since I have walked out and fought in an Empire Pro ring. I never regretted it though, the days I had in that ring, the battles, the wins and losses. But here I am again fighting in this very ring, fighting for a chance to regain what I once lost.”
John briefly pauses
DOE: “The fans.”
DOE: “I lost them when I left this ring, I lost their trust, their desire to have a figure they could root behind. It was all lost, yet after that, after I couldn’t settle a contract with EPW figureheads I still wanted to prove that I had it, that I didn’t’ leave because I didn’t care but because it wasn’t right.”
DOE: “But here I am, fighting again, wrestling again, finally after the years of back and forth conversations of a possible comeback I searched deep within myself for one question, the fans or money. I think we all know the answer; I am defiantly not driving a Porsche. The point is, I have seen them all, I have wrestled them all, and I have beaten so many of them. I am not just excited to be able to do it all again, to press the issue again, to bring entertainment back again, yet, to get back into the spirit of competition in EPW is more than enough for me.”
John smiles just a bit
DOE: “So who exactly do I have the honor to wrestle? Who do I have the pleasure to dance in the ring with and make the fans recognize that John Doe is here and here to stay?”
The question lurks for a moment
DOE: “None other than a man named Aran Dishon, a new comer to Empire Pro, not a seasoned veteran of the ring like me, well not yet anyways. There is a difference my friends between what I do and what Aran does, a large, unmistakable difference.”
DOE: “While you Aran are busy working holding two jobs one here at the Empire and another doing whatever it is you do, I have the luxury of spending my time training, my life is not focused on another priority such as another job, my life is focused around that ring.”
DOE: “It’s a particular difference, may not seem like a lot but in your eight hour shift while you do whatever you do I am in a ring training, I am in the weight room training, I am out in subzero weather conditioning as a part of training.”
He shrugs just slightly as if asking what do you do?
DOE: “Do you see the difference my friend? Now, this is not to say that you, Aran, do not train, it’s just a case of showing exactly where your priorities are at. It just shows where in your career you are currently at. You’ll get to a level where the ring is life, not your friend who is too busy power leveling Paladins, or your job. You’ll get there; hell I was once where you are at now, made a lot of mistakes like not focusing on what is the greater risk.”
DOE: “But Aran, this is your job, your real job. This is your life, this ring will either make you successful or it will break you, and believe me friend, it will break you. Careers have been ended, lives ended, people’s ability to walk destroyed.”
DOE: “Why?”
DOE: “Because they were too worried about their mortgage or their car insurance than what is happening in that very ring and if that fist is going to cave that pretty face in or not, too worried about if their wife is cheating on them or not to be ring aware of the man ripping them off a steel cage to their neck. Fact is Aran, quit your job, and quit all things that will not put your mind at 100% wrestling.”
DOE: “It’s advice, the sooner you learn from it, the more successful you will be, the more the fans will praise you and the paychecks will reflect that.”
DOE: “But until that day, which is not today or the day you walk in that ring with me, you are just the man that will launch my career to a jump start again. People will say your name Aran, but it will be in context to me defeating you.”
DOE: “I can see it now on Empire Pro’s publications ‘Veteran John Doe returns in an exciting win over rising new comer Aran Dishon’“
DOE: “May sound delusional, but 85 percent of the time most people think what I say is merely delusional, until they suffer from my very thoughts. This is just another case of that, and when you become nothing more than another case of it Aran don’t be saddened by it, learn from it.”
DOE: “Because this lesson is free and you can’t beat free…”
DOE: “Unless there is a price you really…want…to…pay, that can be arranged. And trust me, it will be devastating.”
FADEOUT
An Empire Pro background as the sound of boots thud against the ground, a known face looking at the camera with a small smile. It’s John Doe, an old Empire Pro familiar that left years back, his cocky smirk and spiked hair all to reassuring that he is back for a purpose. He stands in front of the backdrop arms crossed leaning back just slightly as he begins to speak.
DOE: “Years, it has been years since I have walked out and fought in an Empire Pro ring. I never regretted it though, the days I had in that ring, the battles, the wins and losses. But here I am again fighting in this very ring, fighting for a chance to regain what I once lost.”
John briefly pauses
DOE: “The fans.”
DOE: “I lost them when I left this ring, I lost their trust, their desire to have a figure they could root behind. It was all lost, yet after that, after I couldn’t settle a contract with EPW figureheads I still wanted to prove that I had it, that I didn’t’ leave because I didn’t care but because it wasn’t right.”
DOE: “But here I am, fighting again, wrestling again, finally after the years of back and forth conversations of a possible comeback I searched deep within myself for one question, the fans or money. I think we all know the answer; I am defiantly not driving a Porsche. The point is, I have seen them all, I have wrestled them all, and I have beaten so many of them. I am not just excited to be able to do it all again, to press the issue again, to bring entertainment back again, yet, to get back into the spirit of competition in EPW is more than enough for me.”
John smiles just a bit
DOE: “So who exactly do I have the honor to wrestle? Who do I have the pleasure to dance in the ring with and make the fans recognize that John Doe is here and here to stay?”
The question lurks for a moment
DOE: “None other than a man named Aran Dishon, a new comer to Empire Pro, not a seasoned veteran of the ring like me, well not yet anyways. There is a difference my friends between what I do and what Aran does, a large, unmistakable difference.”
DOE: “While you Aran are busy working holding two jobs one here at the Empire and another doing whatever it is you do, I have the luxury of spending my time training, my life is not focused on another priority such as another job, my life is focused around that ring.”
DOE: “It’s a particular difference, may not seem like a lot but in your eight hour shift while you do whatever you do I am in a ring training, I am in the weight room training, I am out in subzero weather conditioning as a part of training.”
He shrugs just slightly as if asking what do you do?
DOE: “Do you see the difference my friend? Now, this is not to say that you, Aran, do not train, it’s just a case of showing exactly where your priorities are at. It just shows where in your career you are currently at. You’ll get to a level where the ring is life, not your friend who is too busy power leveling Paladins, or your job. You’ll get there; hell I was once where you are at now, made a lot of mistakes like not focusing on what is the greater risk.”
DOE: “But Aran, this is your job, your real job. This is your life, this ring will either make you successful or it will break you, and believe me friend, it will break you. Careers have been ended, lives ended, people’s ability to walk destroyed.”
DOE: “Why?”
DOE: “Because they were too worried about their mortgage or their car insurance than what is happening in that very ring and if that fist is going to cave that pretty face in or not, too worried about if their wife is cheating on them or not to be ring aware of the man ripping them off a steel cage to their neck. Fact is Aran, quit your job, and quit all things that will not put your mind at 100% wrestling.”
DOE: “It’s advice, the sooner you learn from it, the more successful you will be, the more the fans will praise you and the paychecks will reflect that.”
DOE: “But until that day, which is not today or the day you walk in that ring with me, you are just the man that will launch my career to a jump start again. People will say your name Aran, but it will be in context to me defeating you.”
DOE: “I can see it now on Empire Pro’s publications ‘Veteran John Doe returns in an exciting win over rising new comer Aran Dishon’“
DOE: “May sound delusional, but 85 percent of the time most people think what I say is merely delusional, until they suffer from my very thoughts. This is just another case of that, and when you become nothing more than another case of it Aran don’t be saddened by it, learn from it.”
DOE: “Because this lesson is free and you can’t beat free…”
DOE: “Unless there is a price you really…want…to…pay, that can be arranged. And trust me, it will be devastating.”
FADEOUT
Last edited:
BoEd
Member
(In)
"Now that was one hell of a pep talk, John."
(The voice echoed out of the darkness. Not pitch black to make the scene seem portentous, but an ash gray black that looks a bit faded from wear.)
(The camera zooms out steadily enough to see that it was focused on the tee shirt of Empire Pro’s newest debutante, Aran Dishon. The faded black shirt has a Thundercats logo on the chest. He has his hands on his thighs as he sits on what appears to be a set of wooden steps. The booming sound of bass echoes from within the house behind him, another house party that will more than likely continue until the wee hours of the night.)
Aran: I seriously sat in front of the television and thought about walking up to my boss tomorrow, and telling him that I was done with the place.
(He reaches up with his left hand and scratches at the two days worth of stubble that was growing out on his chin.)
Aran: Then I realized how silly that would be. I mean, just because you couldn’t handle doing more than one thing at a time doesn’t mean I’d have trouble doing it. Maybe that is the real difference between you and I, John. While you see yourself at an advantage because you don’t have the burden of having any actual responsibilities, I see it as your hindrance.
Aran: You’re so obsessed with the ring - with trying to climb that ladder toward your past success - that you automatically assume that I could care less. Oh, you didn’t come right out and say it, but I can hear it in your voice when you tell me how I have too much to focus on.
(He stands up, brushing off the seat of his pants with his hands before taking a few steps down the stairs.)
Aran: I wish I could stand here and stare down my nose at the camera, full of false bravado, and tell you that I’m so good I could go without training and still beat you from pillar to post when we step into the ring…But I’d be lying. I honestly don’t know how I’m going to fare against someone with as much experience as you, but I can guarantee you that I know exactly what I’m getting myself into.
(He sticks his hands in his pockets, then crosses his legs at the ankles as he leans back against the rail.)
Aran: Do you?
(He pauses slightly, his eyes focused on the camera recording his every move.)
Aran: I mean, I’m sure you’re living out a Rocky movie montage when you’re not sitting in front of the camera telling me how focused you are, but do you really think that doing that is going to guarantee you a victory over me? Because I can tell you right here and right now that my life outside the ring really has nothing to do with my ability inside that ring. And while I do have a job that I need to go to four days a week; sitting in front of a computer telling people their bills are in collection really isn't that stressful.
(He uncrosses his legs and takes a few steps forward.)
Aran: But you didn't know what my job was, you just knew there was something there you can try to use to your advantage. Because that's what you do. You look for what you think is a weakness and you try to exploit it, hoping no one will pay any attention to the fact that yours are out there like an open book.
Aran: Let's not bring up the fact that you left here a couple of years ago running your mouth like you were owed something, only to have Karl Brown stick a fist in your mouth for like the hundredth time to send you packing with your tail tucked between your legs. Let's not bring up the fact that you were a changed man - your true self - when you left, only to return as a retread of a previously failed attempt at success.
(Aran shakes his head.)
Aran: No, let's not bring that up. Because when we step into that ring at Aggression, and the crowd stands to their feet at the arrival of another familiar face, none of that is going to matter. What you did back then has nothing to do with what's going to happen that night. What I did the week prior isn't going to have any bearing on what I do to you that night. But you go ahead and keep telling yourself that it does, tell yourself over and over again that you are the veteran and I'm just some wet behind the ears rookie trying to get his feet wet.
Aran: I want that to settle into your mind, to be what motivates you until the bell rings. Not because I believe it, but because I want you to understand just what is at stake here. And that is, that you are the one who has something to prove here, because you have the most to lose. Me...
(Aran places his left hand on his chest.)
Aran: I'm the new guy, the one that's supposed to lose this match. That's why this match was booked isn't it? To give you that easy win on your road back to mediocrity, to see if you can get there and prove that the potential to be a star here in Empire Pro wasn't just some idealistic dream that wakes you up in the middle of the night.
Aran: Well sorry to break it to you, but I didn't come here to be a footnote. I have no intention of being that first step back to a life you think you had. I came here to make my own mark...To start a journey down my own path - my own future.
(Aran smiles, but the malintent seems to drip from the corners.)
Aran: Okay, maybe I'm not all that sorry.
(Out)
"Now that was one hell of a pep talk, John."
(The voice echoed out of the darkness. Not pitch black to make the scene seem portentous, but an ash gray black that looks a bit faded from wear.)
(The camera zooms out steadily enough to see that it was focused on the tee shirt of Empire Pro’s newest debutante, Aran Dishon. The faded black shirt has a Thundercats logo on the chest. He has his hands on his thighs as he sits on what appears to be a set of wooden steps. The booming sound of bass echoes from within the house behind him, another house party that will more than likely continue until the wee hours of the night.)
Aran: I seriously sat in front of the television and thought about walking up to my boss tomorrow, and telling him that I was done with the place.
(He reaches up with his left hand and scratches at the two days worth of stubble that was growing out on his chin.)
Aran: Then I realized how silly that would be. I mean, just because you couldn’t handle doing more than one thing at a time doesn’t mean I’d have trouble doing it. Maybe that is the real difference between you and I, John. While you see yourself at an advantage because you don’t have the burden of having any actual responsibilities, I see it as your hindrance.
Aran: You’re so obsessed with the ring - with trying to climb that ladder toward your past success - that you automatically assume that I could care less. Oh, you didn’t come right out and say it, but I can hear it in your voice when you tell me how I have too much to focus on.
(He stands up, brushing off the seat of his pants with his hands before taking a few steps down the stairs.)
Aran: I wish I could stand here and stare down my nose at the camera, full of false bravado, and tell you that I’m so good I could go without training and still beat you from pillar to post when we step into the ring…But I’d be lying. I honestly don’t know how I’m going to fare against someone with as much experience as you, but I can guarantee you that I know exactly what I’m getting myself into.
(He sticks his hands in his pockets, then crosses his legs at the ankles as he leans back against the rail.)
Aran: Do you?
(He pauses slightly, his eyes focused on the camera recording his every move.)
Aran: I mean, I’m sure you’re living out a Rocky movie montage when you’re not sitting in front of the camera telling me how focused you are, but do you really think that doing that is going to guarantee you a victory over me? Because I can tell you right here and right now that my life outside the ring really has nothing to do with my ability inside that ring. And while I do have a job that I need to go to four days a week; sitting in front of a computer telling people their bills are in collection really isn't that stressful.
(He uncrosses his legs and takes a few steps forward.)
Aran: But you didn't know what my job was, you just knew there was something there you can try to use to your advantage. Because that's what you do. You look for what you think is a weakness and you try to exploit it, hoping no one will pay any attention to the fact that yours are out there like an open book.
Aran: Let's not bring up the fact that you left here a couple of years ago running your mouth like you were owed something, only to have Karl Brown stick a fist in your mouth for like the hundredth time to send you packing with your tail tucked between your legs. Let's not bring up the fact that you were a changed man - your true self - when you left, only to return as a retread of a previously failed attempt at success.
(Aran shakes his head.)
Aran: No, let's not bring that up. Because when we step into that ring at Aggression, and the crowd stands to their feet at the arrival of another familiar face, none of that is going to matter. What you did back then has nothing to do with what's going to happen that night. What I did the week prior isn't going to have any bearing on what I do to you that night. But you go ahead and keep telling yourself that it does, tell yourself over and over again that you are the veteran and I'm just some wet behind the ears rookie trying to get his feet wet.
Aran: I want that to settle into your mind, to be what motivates you until the bell rings. Not because I believe it, but because I want you to understand just what is at stake here. And that is, that you are the one who has something to prove here, because you have the most to lose. Me...
(Aran places his left hand on his chest.)
Aran: I'm the new guy, the one that's supposed to lose this match. That's why this match was booked isn't it? To give you that easy win on your road back to mediocrity, to see if you can get there and prove that the potential to be a star here in Empire Pro wasn't just some idealistic dream that wakes you up in the middle of the night.
Aran: Well sorry to break it to you, but I didn't come here to be a footnote. I have no intention of being that first step back to a life you think you had. I came here to make my own mark...To start a journey down my own path - my own future.
(Aran smiles, but the malintent seems to drip from the corners.)
Aran: Okay, maybe I'm not all that sorry.
(Out)
John Doe
The Anorexic Ethiopian
FADEIN…
*
John Doe is sitting on a bench near a scenic water front, his hand with small crumbs as he feeds a few pigeons that are scattered about. He sees the camera that is over his left shoulder about five feet back as he lets out a small yawn and begins to speak.
*
DOE: “Maybe, I am misunderstood; maybe the words I say are hitting a brick wall rather than settling in your mind. I hate when that occurs, when a young mind goes to waste because it rather see some other end of the spectrum than the actually truth, the actual facts.”
*
DOE: “It’s humorous actually, how you want to find a reason to turn words to your advantage, how you want to focus in on the smallest of irrelevant issues and bring some sort of defense. You would make a spectacular defense attorney, Aran.”
*
John gives out a small chuckle
*
DOE: “Unfortunately, this is wrestling not a court room. Let me pose this upon you, Aran, since you seemly missed the point. Do you think I can’t handle two things at one time? Is that your entire argument, or maybe it’s just the tip of your iceberg. I can handle many things at a time, hell, I am terrific at multitasking, but this is not toot my own horn time, this is make my point time.”
*
DOE: “And the point is as much as I can multitask I’d rather have one hundred percent of my time dedicated, BY MY OWN WILL, to that very ring. Do you know why, sir? Because it makes me stronger, hell look at any person that has dedicated their lives to a single action, Michael Jackson, Michael Jordan, I would say Tiger Woods, but he was focused on two actions golf and sex.”
*
DOE: “Regardless, those slim examples are of men who trained day in and out on what made them the best, they didn’t go out and collect bills on a person, no, they went out and gave it one hundred percent every day and night.”
*
The camera pans left to move to John’s left center at just the right angle to catch all of him
*
DOE: “Am I obsessed? Yes, with success Aran. It’s called victory, and victory is one obsession I wouldn’t give up. I love the taste of victory and when I am victorious I don’t just stop there, I move forward and continue to try and gain more victories, more momentum.”
*
DOE: “It’s like a train, starts off slow, picks up steam, then turns into an express train, but it started somewhere. I don’t know you Aran, hell, I have wrestled many people in my time in Empire, my stint in CSWA, New Era, WFW, pre-merger, but even though I wrestled almost everyone every new opponent is a creditable threat, even you.”
*
DOE: “As much credit as I like to give you for trying to combat the obvious, for trying to make what I say nothing more than a downward sh-t pile in your direction, don’t take it that way. Take it as advice, like I said, I use to be a rookie, working two jobs. Guess what? I got exactly what you said I got, Karl Brown’s fist down my throat.”
*
His hand comes up just slightly as a sign of disappointment
*
DOE: “Past is the past, I told that to Chaos in WFW: NEW, he was another that pounded my face in, why, because I didn’t put the ring first, but look what happened to him, defeated. Why? Because I finally put all my focus in that ring. This isn’t just a stint of ‘look there’s John Doe coming back again, let’s rejoice’. It’s a fact of me climbing the ol’ EPW ladder to conquer what I never conquered.”
*
DOE: “Am I going to loose my momentum if I lose to you? Nope, not one bit that’s not to say I am going to end up lying on my back for you Aran, I am going to make sure you realize how serious this industry is. If I was to lose it’s just proof I have been out the game for far too long and need to train more to get beyond where I was.”
DOE: “We hear this every day, but I am in the best shape of my life. The funny part about it all is, as much as I would love for my life to be a Rocky movie, minus number five, Rocky five was god awful, it never has been one, no wins over Sugar Lips, or Apollo Creed, or some indestructible Russian. No, the ring, the place where I handle business, there is one thing guaranteed and that’s a fight my friend.”
*
He makes a fist pounding it just slightly into an open palm nodding his head as he does so.
*
DOE: “A fight. That’s what I bring to the ring every time I get in it. You asked a question, that if my focus will guarantee a win for me despite your talents. You know, there was a man an Olympic wrestler, by the name of Dan Gable, my wording may be off it’s hard to remember exactly what it was. He said, about wrestling, first period goes to the kid with the most technique, second period the kid with most conditioning, and third to the kid with the biggest heart.”
*
DOE: “Oddly enough this isn’t freestyle wrestling, we take roots from it, but we can add that same philosophy to ANYTHING we do, the more focused, bigger hearted fighter over coming the odds to gain victory. So do I believe my focus, my heart, my desires out weight your ability in that ring? Yes, I do.”
*
John smiles a bit dropping the rest of the crumbs to the floor his eyes meeting with the camera a seriousness lurks
DOE: “Fact is Aran, my mind is settled, and it has been for many years now. But it’s settled around the concept of winning. Winning is what motivates me, winning always motivated me, but now, more than ever as I begin to rebuild a career winning is even more important. I have every bit to want to be the best, and as much as you don’t want to be a foot note, you don’t want to be a place card or a chalk on the wall…”
*
He shrugs as he starts to stand up
*
DOE: “…You are going to be.”
*
DOE: “It’s a sad turn; it breaks the heart knowing that when you step in that ring a more equipped wrestler with more drive to get the ‘W’ will secure that ‘W’ that wrestler being me. The life I had Aran, and the life I want are forks in the road. I don’t need the past to be an anchor to where I am going now. I have forgotten the past; I seem to do that quite often.”
*
John begins to walk away slowly
*
DOE: “And as much as you want to make your own path Aran, you will, you will make your mark, and you have started your journey, the minute you accepted a match with me your journey took its first step.”
*
DOE: “But every journey takes its bad turn and hardship, unfortunately for you, that comes now.”
FADEOUT
*
John Doe is sitting on a bench near a scenic water front, his hand with small crumbs as he feeds a few pigeons that are scattered about. He sees the camera that is over his left shoulder about five feet back as he lets out a small yawn and begins to speak.
*
DOE: “Maybe, I am misunderstood; maybe the words I say are hitting a brick wall rather than settling in your mind. I hate when that occurs, when a young mind goes to waste because it rather see some other end of the spectrum than the actually truth, the actual facts.”
*
DOE: “It’s humorous actually, how you want to find a reason to turn words to your advantage, how you want to focus in on the smallest of irrelevant issues and bring some sort of defense. You would make a spectacular defense attorney, Aran.”
*
John gives out a small chuckle
*
DOE: “Unfortunately, this is wrestling not a court room. Let me pose this upon you, Aran, since you seemly missed the point. Do you think I can’t handle two things at one time? Is that your entire argument, or maybe it’s just the tip of your iceberg. I can handle many things at a time, hell, I am terrific at multitasking, but this is not toot my own horn time, this is make my point time.”
*
DOE: “And the point is as much as I can multitask I’d rather have one hundred percent of my time dedicated, BY MY OWN WILL, to that very ring. Do you know why, sir? Because it makes me stronger, hell look at any person that has dedicated their lives to a single action, Michael Jackson, Michael Jordan, I would say Tiger Woods, but he was focused on two actions golf and sex.”
*
DOE: “Regardless, those slim examples are of men who trained day in and out on what made them the best, they didn’t go out and collect bills on a person, no, they went out and gave it one hundred percent every day and night.”
*
The camera pans left to move to John’s left center at just the right angle to catch all of him
*
DOE: “Am I obsessed? Yes, with success Aran. It’s called victory, and victory is one obsession I wouldn’t give up. I love the taste of victory and when I am victorious I don’t just stop there, I move forward and continue to try and gain more victories, more momentum.”
*
DOE: “It’s like a train, starts off slow, picks up steam, then turns into an express train, but it started somewhere. I don’t know you Aran, hell, I have wrestled many people in my time in Empire, my stint in CSWA, New Era, WFW, pre-merger, but even though I wrestled almost everyone every new opponent is a creditable threat, even you.”
*
DOE: “As much credit as I like to give you for trying to combat the obvious, for trying to make what I say nothing more than a downward sh-t pile in your direction, don’t take it that way. Take it as advice, like I said, I use to be a rookie, working two jobs. Guess what? I got exactly what you said I got, Karl Brown’s fist down my throat.”
*
His hand comes up just slightly as a sign of disappointment
*
DOE: “Past is the past, I told that to Chaos in WFW: NEW, he was another that pounded my face in, why, because I didn’t put the ring first, but look what happened to him, defeated. Why? Because I finally put all my focus in that ring. This isn’t just a stint of ‘look there’s John Doe coming back again, let’s rejoice’. It’s a fact of me climbing the ol’ EPW ladder to conquer what I never conquered.”
*
DOE: “Am I going to loose my momentum if I lose to you? Nope, not one bit that’s not to say I am going to end up lying on my back for you Aran, I am going to make sure you realize how serious this industry is. If I was to lose it’s just proof I have been out the game for far too long and need to train more to get beyond where I was.”
DOE: “We hear this every day, but I am in the best shape of my life. The funny part about it all is, as much as I would love for my life to be a Rocky movie, minus number five, Rocky five was god awful, it never has been one, no wins over Sugar Lips, or Apollo Creed, or some indestructible Russian. No, the ring, the place where I handle business, there is one thing guaranteed and that’s a fight my friend.”
*
He makes a fist pounding it just slightly into an open palm nodding his head as he does so.
*
DOE: “A fight. That’s what I bring to the ring every time I get in it. You asked a question, that if my focus will guarantee a win for me despite your talents. You know, there was a man an Olympic wrestler, by the name of Dan Gable, my wording may be off it’s hard to remember exactly what it was. He said, about wrestling, first period goes to the kid with the most technique, second period the kid with most conditioning, and third to the kid with the biggest heart.”
*
DOE: “Oddly enough this isn’t freestyle wrestling, we take roots from it, but we can add that same philosophy to ANYTHING we do, the more focused, bigger hearted fighter over coming the odds to gain victory. So do I believe my focus, my heart, my desires out weight your ability in that ring? Yes, I do.”
*
John smiles a bit dropping the rest of the crumbs to the floor his eyes meeting with the camera a seriousness lurks
DOE: “Fact is Aran, my mind is settled, and it has been for many years now. But it’s settled around the concept of winning. Winning is what motivates me, winning always motivated me, but now, more than ever as I begin to rebuild a career winning is even more important. I have every bit to want to be the best, and as much as you don’t want to be a foot note, you don’t want to be a place card or a chalk on the wall…”
*
He shrugs as he starts to stand up
*
DOE: “…You are going to be.”
*
DOE: “It’s a sad turn; it breaks the heart knowing that when you step in that ring a more equipped wrestler with more drive to get the ‘W’ will secure that ‘W’ that wrestler being me. The life I had Aran, and the life I want are forks in the road. I don’t need the past to be an anchor to where I am going now. I have forgotten the past; I seem to do that quite often.”
*
John begins to walk away slowly
*
DOE: “And as much as you want to make your own path Aran, you will, you will make your mark, and you have started your journey, the minute you accepted a match with me your journey took its first step.”
*
DOE: “But every journey takes its bad turn and hardship, unfortunately for you, that comes now.”
FADEOUT
BoEd
Member
(In)
(Aran Dishon is standing in front of a space heater, rubbing his hands together to keep them warm. His black jeans are baggy, his navy blue jacket has the Dallas Cowboys star over the left breast, and his face is wearing a smile.)
Aran: A defense attorney...Really?
(He smacks his tongue against the back of his teeth, making that little *tisk* sound.)
Aran: A Defensive Coordinator for the Texas Longhorns, maybe even call me Ndamukong Suh, but a defense attorney...Wow, really scraping the bottom of the barrel with that one, huh. Then again, maybe I'm just expecting too much from you. Seeing as how you seem to be so sure of yourself, I'm guessing I wouldn't be the only one.
Aran: As far as missing your point goes...Yeah, I guess you would think that. Considering your second attempt made me picture a man slamming his forehead into a wall, you might even say I missed it again. Thing is, I understood you the first time. I just don't see where you come off thinking that just because there are other things going on in my life that I can't walk into the arena, slide into the ring, and give one hundred percent of my effort to proving you wrong.
Aran: It's like you're throwing a handful of crap against the wall and hoping something sticks, because you really haven't said anything that has any bearing on the outcome of this match. That's my point.
(He shakes his head, a bit of a frown on his face.)
Aran: As far as you being obsessed with victory...Who's on the defensive now, John?
(He raises his eyebrows like he's expecting an answer, and he's sure he'll get one soon enough.)
Aran: Of course, you still managed to find a way to beat that dead horse about the job again. To your credit, at least you're trying to make it look like you're just trying to help me out. Thing is, you're going about it all wrong. You're comparing where I'm at now, to where you were when you first got into the business - making it seem like I'm going to struggle because you did. Are you saying that because you believe it, or because you want to believe it? I'm going with 'because you want to', because I really don't think you do.
Aran: I tell you what, stand in front of a mirror and say it fifteen times, then spin around in a circle ten times. When you're done with that, click your heels together and repeat the words "I'm going to win." five times. Now, that really isn't going to help you, but it will be far more amusing than what you've done so far. And, seriously, if you're going to harp on me for my job, I should be able to harp on you for being bland and uninteresting.
Aran: You know, since we're just making up reasons as to why we're going to lose and all.
(Aran lifts his arms out to his sides just below shoulder level and shrugs.)
Aran: I'm sure if I had a couple more matches under my belt, losses to be exact, you'd find a way to tell me that I lost to so and so and you beat them, so you're going to win. But I don't, and you don't know what to expect from me, so I get to hear you compare yourself to Michael Jackson...Yeah, really don't want to go down that road Bubbles.
(He shakes his head.)
Aran: Instead, let's talk about my lack of heart and determination, because I don't remember pouring it in a cup for you to measure it. I will say that it's like...
(He moves his hands around, as if taking measurement.)
Aran: Let's go with ten times more than yours, because it would be stupid of me to claim to have less.
(Yeah, that deserves a head shake and a roll of the eyes.)
Aran: Assumptions, John. That and a dollar won't get you very far, but at least you're trying, right? Sadly, I'm going to have to say no to that too.
(He mouths the word sorry.)
Aran: You see, John, if you were trying you wouldn't be making a fool out of yourself right now. Yes, John, you look like a fool, because only a fool would try to pass his opinion off as fact. And sadly, that's all you've been doing since the first time you opened your mouth. It would be nice to be able to say "I'm going to win" and it just magically happens, but we don't live in Narnia or Never Never Land, John. No, we live in a place called reality, where you don't always get what you want.
Aran: If it was that easy, I'd say "I'm rich."
(Aran's eyes go wide and he reaches into his pocket, pulling out a wad of bills.)
Aran: Oh my...It does work!
(Aran fans the stack out and reveals it to be nothing more than one dollar and a stack of regular paper.)
Aran: Hey, you can always dream, right.
(Out)
(Aran Dishon is standing in front of a space heater, rubbing his hands together to keep them warm. His black jeans are baggy, his navy blue jacket has the Dallas Cowboys star over the left breast, and his face is wearing a smile.)
Aran: A defense attorney...Really?
(He smacks his tongue against the back of his teeth, making that little *tisk* sound.)
Aran: A Defensive Coordinator for the Texas Longhorns, maybe even call me Ndamukong Suh, but a defense attorney...Wow, really scraping the bottom of the barrel with that one, huh. Then again, maybe I'm just expecting too much from you. Seeing as how you seem to be so sure of yourself, I'm guessing I wouldn't be the only one.
Aran: As far as missing your point goes...Yeah, I guess you would think that. Considering your second attempt made me picture a man slamming his forehead into a wall, you might even say I missed it again. Thing is, I understood you the first time. I just don't see where you come off thinking that just because there are other things going on in my life that I can't walk into the arena, slide into the ring, and give one hundred percent of my effort to proving you wrong.
Aran: It's like you're throwing a handful of crap against the wall and hoping something sticks, because you really haven't said anything that has any bearing on the outcome of this match. That's my point.
(He shakes his head, a bit of a frown on his face.)
Aran: As far as you being obsessed with victory...Who's on the defensive now, John?
(He raises his eyebrows like he's expecting an answer, and he's sure he'll get one soon enough.)
Aran: Of course, you still managed to find a way to beat that dead horse about the job again. To your credit, at least you're trying to make it look like you're just trying to help me out. Thing is, you're going about it all wrong. You're comparing where I'm at now, to where you were when you first got into the business - making it seem like I'm going to struggle because you did. Are you saying that because you believe it, or because you want to believe it? I'm going with 'because you want to', because I really don't think you do.
Aran: I tell you what, stand in front of a mirror and say it fifteen times, then spin around in a circle ten times. When you're done with that, click your heels together and repeat the words "I'm going to win." five times. Now, that really isn't going to help you, but it will be far more amusing than what you've done so far. And, seriously, if you're going to harp on me for my job, I should be able to harp on you for being bland and uninteresting.
Aran: You know, since we're just making up reasons as to why we're going to lose and all.
(Aran lifts his arms out to his sides just below shoulder level and shrugs.)
Aran: I'm sure if I had a couple more matches under my belt, losses to be exact, you'd find a way to tell me that I lost to so and so and you beat them, so you're going to win. But I don't, and you don't know what to expect from me, so I get to hear you compare yourself to Michael Jackson...Yeah, really don't want to go down that road Bubbles.
(He shakes his head.)
Aran: Instead, let's talk about my lack of heart and determination, because I don't remember pouring it in a cup for you to measure it. I will say that it's like...
(He moves his hands around, as if taking measurement.)
Aran: Let's go with ten times more than yours, because it would be stupid of me to claim to have less.
(Yeah, that deserves a head shake and a roll of the eyes.)
Aran: Assumptions, John. That and a dollar won't get you very far, but at least you're trying, right? Sadly, I'm going to have to say no to that too.
(He mouths the word sorry.)
Aran: You see, John, if you were trying you wouldn't be making a fool out of yourself right now. Yes, John, you look like a fool, because only a fool would try to pass his opinion off as fact. And sadly, that's all you've been doing since the first time you opened your mouth. It would be nice to be able to say "I'm going to win" and it just magically happens, but we don't live in Narnia or Never Never Land, John. No, we live in a place called reality, where you don't always get what you want.
Aran: If it was that easy, I'd say "I'm rich."
(Aran's eyes go wide and he reaches into his pocket, pulling out a wad of bills.)
Aran: Oh my...It does work!
(Aran fans the stack out and reveals it to be nothing more than one dollar and a stack of regular paper.)
Aran: Hey, you can always dream, right.
(Out)