[SSXII] TEAM Invitational Finals

[CuseTroy]

One fall, 60-minute time limit match to determine the 2009 Merritt Trophy Winner

DAN RYAN vs. NOVA

RP DEADLINE: Monday, October 19 at 11:59:59 p.m. EST

 

[Nova]

A Sublime Opportunity

<o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com<img src=" images="" smilies="" redface.gif="" border="0" alt="" title="Embarrassment" smilieid="3" class="inlineimg"></o:smarttagtype><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <wunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <wontGrowAutofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" LatentStyleCount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id=ieooui></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]-->“I KNOW Ryan will rag on me if I open with some sappy cheese-d*ck quote.” – Nova
<o></o>
(FADEIN: Thick smoke wafts slowly under lamplight. The camera zooms out to reveal NOVA sitting on a bench in a changing room, slouched against a set of lockers. He’s smoking a cigarette, still in gear: high black boots, pads, and long trunks depicting the Milky Way galaxy across the front. The exodus of almost a hundred thousand fans out of an arena in <st1><st1:city w:st="on">Dallas</st1:city>, <st1:state w:st="on">TX</st1:state></st1>, is audible in the background.)
<o></o>
NOVA: (Shakes his head, chuckling) “Oh, man.”
<o></o>
(He wipes his face with a towel.)
<o></o>
NOVA: “It was a night tonight, boy. A real challenge from a match is a thing of beauty. It doesn’t happen every day – especially when you’re periodically unemployed – but when you have to open it up and air out some elements of your game that don’t see much daylight or spotlight, the therapeutic benefits are unquantifiable.”
<o></o>
(He takes a drag of his smoke, then pokes a finger into his chest.)
<o></o>
NOVA: “I know this better than most after the f*ckin’ DEARTH of competitive excitement in my professional life over the last…hell, I honestly have lost track of time. Picture for me…the driest, most arid environs imaginable. Now bury that in a mountain of salty sand a mile high, and picture on top of that mountain a birthday cake and two empty chairs. It’s a lonely, desolate place.”
<o></o>
(The EAGLEstar coughs twice and spits on the tile floor.)
<o></o>
NOVA: “And that was the South Bracket in this year’s Invitational Tournament. Three rounds of uninspired training-grade mat-work…but in fairness I threatened everybody, and that was unprofessional, for realsies. So you can imagine how my endorphins must be peakin’ out right now after a semi-final showdown like the one I just had against Impulse. There’s a cleansing effect in it, I dunno, in the purity of a great match. Kind of gave me a little perspective on things…”
<o></o>
(He puts his face in his hands and then looks up into the camera.)
<o></o>
NOVA: “…like whether or not to go into the finals, the last round of this thing with my head still wrapped around this idea of a revenge mission against TEAM? Like maybe I got a lot to be happy about, going into top billing of the year’s biggest singles tournament against a long-time rival, mere taps of the hand away from becoming the first wrestler to capture TEAM’s Triple Crown?”
<o></o>
(He nods thoughtfully, then his eyes harden and a sneer curls his lip.)
<o></o>
NOVA: “Then the body high wore off, I remembered where I was…” (Pointing away from the camera, at the wall) “…and I said F*CK EM!”
<o></o>
(Taking a drag) “F*ck the assholes in the crowd, f*ck the f*cking Triple Crown, and F*CK the Chad Merritt Trophy! I cannot WAIT to break that sh*t! I cannot WAIT!”
<o></o>
(NOVA leans back against the set of lockers, taking a few deep breaths.)
<o></o>
NOVA: (Coughing) “You know…what’s crazy, Dan Ryan? Before, I was all like ‘I don’t want to destroy TEAM, I just want to hurt it really bad,’ and I meant that, really. But now I’m thinking something a little different. Now…” (Camera zooms in on his bust) “I think I actually can destroy TEAM.”
<o></o>
(Zoom out, NOVA holding out his arms.)
<o></o>
NOVA: “And dude, why…the f*ck…NOT? Doesn’t everybody here have some place better to be, except me of all people? How many shows do we have in a year? F*ck, how many matches are on this f*ckin’ card? Three? Pffft. ‘SuperShow.’ HA~!!”
<o></o>
(Taking a drag) “Nah, Dan…I can do more than wound TEAM. I can kill it. I’m gonna kill it. And I don’t have to do anything different from what I was already gonna do. I just figured before that this place could handle it. Now I understand that it’s sick enough that one…” (Pantomimes a right fist) “…serious blow will probably do the trick. And in the eyes of our peers and the relevant public it will be a largely victimless crime. What, Jess Chapel, Tom Holzerman, the Iron f*ckin’ Duke take a corporate loss? Methinks I’ll not see any crocodile tears bubblin’ out from your shades over there, Ryan. I’m obviously not blubbering at the prospect…and you know what? The rest of the wrestling world will share in our apathy. Just a couple of suits, bounced out of the neighborhood after their erstwhile engaging product tanked as the result of poor ratings, management, and extreme embarrassment at the hands of their most decorated champion!”
<o></o>
(He mock-swings a baseball bat slowly.)
<o></o>
NOVA: “This promotion is on its deathbed. And every swing of my bat that chips a detail off the Chad Merritt Trophy will be like another nail coming down around the edges of TEAM’s coffin. My quest to exorcise my demons by creating a blemish on the face of this place has become a sublime opportunity for total collapse.”
<o></o>
(He springs off the bench and turns, slamming a fist into one of the lockers.
<o></o>
NOVA: “THIS IS MORE EXCITING THAN I COULD HAVE POSSIBLY IMAGINED! SH*T!”
<o></o>
(Plopping back down on the bench) “Whew…all this, just a few ring bells away from becoming a horrifying, beautiful reality. All this, just a victory over Dan Ryan away from coming true. And I know you’re all smiles to be standing in the way, Dan. You and I squaring off is like the mongoose and the snake, the lion and the tiger…the f*ckin’ scorpion and tarantula, whatever. We’re natural opponents. We’ve got history. But if you listen, Dan…that history tells a story of me wanting those wins more than you. That’s how I got one, then two, then three over on ya. I wanted it more then, and I want it more now.
<o></o>
“You’re programmed like the most effective wrestling computer in the world, Ryan. You show up like clockwork, your sole driving purpose is to win, and you produce nearly uniform results. You want another Invitational Tournament championship the way a gifted multimillionaire investor wants to diversify his holdings in <st1>Southeast Asia</st1>. It’s on principle more than practicality. On show more than effect. And that’s enough to push you past Big Wreck. Turns out that’s enough to push you past Doc Silver.
<o></o>
“But me? What drives me is the kind of anger that gets a man a lesser charge in court. The kind that knows no equal, not here right now, anyway.”
<o></o>
(He lights another cigarette.)
<o></o>
NOVA: “I think about Impulse…here was a kid who fought tooth and nail, ‘Match of the Night’ matches every round against the toughest string of opponents in the whole tournament, all in the name of a taste of that fame…that hunger that borders on starvation for the best, the most powerful people to turn their heads and NOTICE you. Do you remember that feeling, Dan?” (Laughs) “Hell f*ckin’ no you don’t, you old bastard. I do. I was already a World Champion a few times over when I arrived in this neck of the woods, but I still had that feeling in my gut like I would do ANYTHING for people to see me as I wanted to be seen, ANYTHING to prove that there was another name people needed to pay attention to besides Troy Windham, Eddie Mayfield…Dan Ryan.”
<o></o>
“Impulse has that feeling now, and it’s making him better and better…but still I looked him in the face and told him my rage was stronger than his will to win. His dream was gonna take a backseat to my revenge plot. I told him I would do anything to win, if it meant stabbing his eyes out or…sh*t, I don’t remember what I said. It was a baseless claim, not because I wasn’t in the frame of mind to do something terrible, but because I was confident enough that it wouldn’t come to that. I just had to wrap my leg around his arm, roll over, and tug at that sh*t until Impulse did what any young, talented athlete would do…”
<o></o>
(He takes a drag.)
<o></o>
NOVA: “…choose his career.
<o></o>
“Now I don’t have a slice of all that bullsh*t to serve up to you, Dan. All I have for you is the guarantee that if you stop me, if you end my clandestine mission with the aptly-named Humility Bomb, then this promotion and these fans will lift you up as their hero once more time.”
<o></o>
(Another drag) “But if you don’t…then you’re gonna wanna get away from Dallas Cowboys Arena as fast as you possibly can.”
<o></o>
(FADETOBLACK.)

 

[DBrunkGXW]

Music fades in........

The 80s piano power balladry that is "Faithfully" by Journey plays.....

Standing in front of a mirror at home is Dan Ryan, looking in at his reflection. Half of his face is covered in shaving cream, half shaven. As he looks at the lines in his face, mulling over his life and how the road ain't no place to start a family.... Lindsay Troy's face peeks around a corner... and the music fades, just a tad...

Troy: "You're shaving... while the camera's in here?"

Ryan: Yeah. This is the 'what I do when the cameras are off' portion of the promo - only the camera's not off. It's very confusing and possibly a paradox that will kill us all, but were anyone to actually hear this when the promo airs, I would suggest everyone just ignore it and enjoy the music"

Troy: "This is something Melton would do"

Ryan: "Melton prefers Winger."

Troy: "How do you know? Were you married to him before me?"

Ryan: "His unnatural defense of Stuart when Beavis and Butthead made fun of him for one. His perfect memory of the lyrics to 'She's Only Seventeen' for another"

Ryan's daughter Cecilia wanders into the shot and she looks at her father quizically...

CeCe: "What's daddy doing, Aunt Lindsay?"

Troy: "Making an analogy, honey."

CeCe: "What's a 'nallagy?"

Troy: "I'll tell you when you're older."

Cecilia shrugs and saunters out of the room singing under her breath.... "sheeee's only seventeeeeeeeeen...."

Troy's eyes go wide and Ryan looks on in disgust.

Troy: "How does a 4 year old know that song...unless someone plays it when they think she's not listening??"

Ryan: "See?? I only let him watch her once or twice while you two were married and she was just a baby. You see how that s**t sticks with a kid??"

Troy: "Nova sent out a promo for the TEAM finals, you know."

Ryan: "Did it have a snazzy quote at the outset??"

Troy: "Actually, it had a snazzy quote about you making fun of his snazzy quotes at the outset."

Ryan: "He's catching on."

Troy: "It's been two months since the last round. He's had time to reflect."

Ryan: "I suppose that makes it my turn - better finish shaving."

Troy: "Do us a favor and leave the 80s music at home, too."

Ryan smiles and looks back in the mirror, pulling the razor across the unshaven side of his face as Steve Perry's vocals soar..... 'I'm still YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-OH-OH-OOOOOOOOOOOOOOURS!!!!"...

~~~~~~~~~~~

FADE BACK IN...

Still at home...

Ryan: "God bless you, Nova. God bless you and your love for the tradition of reminding the viewing audience what your motivation is. God bless you because hell, I sure as s**t forgot. It had completely slipped my mind that you were so pissed off at this place. I let myself slip into a foggy haze of thinking this was just gonna be a good old fashioned wrasslin' contest between two old rivals... one more time on a big stage."

"Nope."

"We gotta have our drama."

"Maybe I just thought your anger transformed into apathy by now. Isn't the threat of tearing TEAM down and destroying it or spitting on it's carcass or f**kin' it's wife or not getting it a Christmas present or... whatever... kinda like going hunting at a taxidermist's office?"

"For whatever this place originally was built into, it has been fairly efficiently torn down to it's core all on it's own, without the help of either of us. Hell, I was just looking forward to competing again when I signed up. I left this neighborhood a good while back. I've been wrestling up in Canada for over a year, and since I completed my run up there - two more World Titles and two Tag Team Titles later - I thought I'd come back home and see how the old crowd was doing."

"I get that you're angry, Nova."

"I know that after I passed the torch, after you took up the cross of the NFW World Title... some serious s**t went down. Is that really very unexpected?? I know... that you know... that I was on my way out of that place long before I actually was out. It was personal professional pride that kept me going. I gave my all against you and it was quite the show, wasn't it? That loss was disappointing but provided a release at the same time. Some said that when I offered up that I would quit if I lost to you that it was a gimmick, a way to sell tickets."

"I guess it could've looked that way."

"Part of it was that I wanted the stakes raised. The match was so big already. The way I've always thought though, if a match is huge... let's send it into overdrive. Make it talked about for years. I put my NFW career on the line and I did it with not only the feeling that it would firmly plant every single fan on the edge of their seat, but also perhaps with a hint of escape. It provided that should I lose, I wouldn't have to keep dancing that dance for them. It provided a way out, a pathway that I could walk with my head held high. I fought my ass off, and you won fair and square - and I walked away on my own terms. Perhaps not the conquering hero - but fighting to be their form of a hero lost it's charm long before our match."

"So is that where it began? I need to brush up on your history in my absence. How did it spill over to TEAM? Jess Chapel. Of course. More sh**ting on Nova."

"It's too bad."

"I always respected your place in all of this. The ying to my yang in many ways. The showman. You replaced as my nemesis what Troy Windham used to be, but with more success against me than he showed in the end. I overcame him eventually, but I haven't overcome you yet have I?"

"I'll ignore your assertion that I'm going through the motions, Nova - because we both know that isn't true. I don't know why you even said it. Maybe you have nothing else to say. Maybe the months of inactivity while we wait here for this event to come about have drained you of the drive to keep to what you really know of me. Everything we've been through, you've never known me to go through the motions - so I'll chalk it up as a slip of the tongue."

"Truth is, no matter where I've ever been or where I go from here - the thrill of competition, the rush of challenging yourself daily to be the best at what you do, the drive and motivation to overcome an obstacle you've yet to overcome - nothing could push me more, Nova. Truth be told, this situation is the most dangerous it could be for you. The case could be made that of all the men I've faced in the ring, after all of the titles, all of the accolades, after years of having my ass kissed, years of knocking down every challenge put in front of me, fed after fed after fed.... one man has damn near dominated me. One man and one man only."

"You."

"Did you expect me to say that?"

"Three times you've put my shoulders to the mat. No one else can say that. NO ONE."

"That's all the motivation I need, Nova. That's all."

"I know you're angry. I know you want this pretty badly. I know that just like everyone else lately, you're taking the fact that I've focused more on my family life instead of wrestling every week somewhere and calling it a new weakness. I know you think I've lost a step. I don't know why. I guess after all the hype of how amazing I've been over the years, you might as well buy into a little of it the other way too, eh? I don't wrestle as much, so I must not wrestle as well. Only in this sport does such nonsensical bulls**t logic get used... and accepted."

"The hunger lasts forever for those of us who dare to be great though, Nova. You couldn't extract that from me no matter what you do. Not now, not ever. I ply my trade on my own terms, I fight... on my own terms. But don't ever question my drive. Don't ever question what pushes me."

"Beating you... that's all the motivation I need."

"If I beat you, I'll have that satisfaction - and that's all I need for now, until I move on to the next thing. I'll find something else to satiate me. If I lose?? Hey, I'll get out of dodge for ya. I don't give a damn what you do to TEAM."

"Believe it or not - win or lose... I've got some future plans of my own..."

FADE OUT...