Once More Unto the Breach
FADE IN...
Open on the backstage area of Stage 33 near Los Angeles, a.k.a. the MCW Arena. Sitting on a grey metal folding chair in front of white backdrop with MCW and "Center Stage" logos printed across it is Bryan Storms. Storms is impeccably dressed, navy slacks, a royal blue shirt with the collar unbuttoned, and a navy suit jacket. A pair of blue-tinted sunglasses peek out of his lapel pocket. In terms of his clothes, it's the old Bryan Storms, but the look in his eyes belies the fact that he's not that man anymore.
"Well, John, it's good to see that, out of all the things that changed while I was gone, you remained completely and utterly the same. Still speaking in inane, nonsensical jabber, making lousy excuses for lackluster performance and claiming, without any merit, to be the unquestioned best that MCW has to order.
"Yeah, John. I'm buying all of it. I'm so scared, I may not even show up at Center Stage. In fact, if you want to sell me the Brooklyn Bridge or a timeshare in the Yukon, just sign me right on up.
"Or...not.
"Yes, we met once before, John. Almost two years ago, wasn't it? And, as you pointed out, it was an "I Quit" match and I did force you to cower in fear as I brought that shard of glass closer and closer to your eyeball. You were a damn good opponent that night, John. You and I, we went to places no decent people should venture to. We bled, burned and broke each other all over that arena. But, in the end, you just didn't have it in you to go as far as you needed to so you could close the deal. I did.
"I was willing to go to any length to get you to say those two words that night. I would've gone to the absolute limit of my being to make you squeal, even if it meant bringing that broken glass down those finally few inches and raking your eyes from your skull. That was two years ago, and I've changed alot since then. So much, that according to a certain MCW broadcaster, I've become nothing but a 'simpering hippie'. I'm not the same man I was when we last fought, John.
"But, guess what? If the circumstances came down to it, I'd do it again. I may not be that same arrogant child I was that night, but winning is still more important to me than anything. Those ten points on the line at Center Stage, and that MCW World Title that's waiting down the road, that's my life, John, and I'm not going to let you get in my way, no matter what the fan forums you've been reading might say. When it comes down to it, I'll do whatever I'm capable of doing to take down you and McMillan, get those ten points, and keep climbing the ladder.
"Luckily for you, John, that's probably not going to involve a piece of glass and your precious retinas. But that's no reason for you to put this one in your win column, let alone to call yourself the face and foundation of Major Championship Wrestling.
"Win over Maxwell go to your head just a wee bit, Johnny?
"Yeah, we're in a completely different environment now then we were two years ago, Doe. That night, I used that glass to make you say "I Quit". At Center Stage, I won't need to hear you beg for mercy. I'll just need to put you down for three seconds, and I could care less what you do after that. I don't need weapons to pin you, John. You talk of your own technical prowess, but I promise that move for move, hold for hold, counter for counter, there'll be know problem for me in keeping up to the technical wizardry that surely is John Doe.
"There may not be any weapons this time, and there may be a third man thrown into this equation, but that doesn't mean I'll take any less pleasure in taking you down and grabbing those points.
"Now, Chris McMillan. We've never squared off, but I've watched your career. I know that in that ring, your as good as they come. Since we've got no history, I'll hold off on you for now, give you a chance to weigh in before I say my part about you. But, don't take this to mean I'm in any way taking you lightly. I expect a brutal fight, Chris, and you should know that I'll go tooth and nail with you for those points, because I guarantee they mean as much, if not more to me than they do to anyone else in this company.
"The MCW World Title isn't just a professional accolade for me, a stepping stone to fame and money, like it may be to some COUGHjohndoeCOUGH. Getting to that championship match, strapping those 17 pounds of gold around my waist, those will be signs that I've turned the corner in my life, that I've reinvented myself. That may sound cliched and preachy, but it's my life, and I put it on the line every time I go out there.
"I've got two men to go through at Center Stage. Sounds like a challenge. But, then again, I expect no less. Life's nothing but one long, ongoing series of tests. This is the next one. It's tough, but not the toughest. I'll be prepared for it. See you two in the ring."
...FADE TO BLACK