We see a dark room, barely lit up by the small amount of light coming in from outside. The shadows barely reveal a figure sitting in an armchair.
In sport, you have to play to the buzzer and give everything in between. Why should this business be any different?
A small light turns on from above him. Austin is revealed. He is wearing a smart suit as always. The chair he is sitting is large and comfortable and he is sat deeply into it.
Winners give 1000%. Blood, sweat, tears; all left out there for the world to see. The crowd loves to be entertained but they enjoy great athletes going all out, bell to bell.
There should be no excuses and no whining when nothing goes right.
Austin winces; clearly he doesnt want to speak of what happened at Meltdown but he refuses to back away from it. He now stands up and the small beacon of light above him follows.
I lost to John Constantine on Meltdown but I will not offer any excuses. On the night he was just better and wanted it more. He deserved his moment in the limelight.
But the fact that Showtime was even in the vicinity tells me his ego cant allow us to co-exist. We should be allies, we are so similar or at least we were. I thought he cared about putting on a great show for the fans, no matter the outcome.
Austins disgust is clear. He hates how Showtime has imposed himself on his life recently. He has only succeeded in pissing off the Elite X Champion.
But recent events have proved me wrong. He never changed. He is still the egotistical ass that dominated the Eurasian Division but couldnt make the step up to the main event. When he had the World title within his reach he failed. Just like when he was Eurasian champ, he couldnt defend it and truly make his name on our biggest stage. That was his time and he fell short. He did it against me on Ascension and he has made a habit of it on pay-per-view recently.
That is what Showtime does. He fails on the big stage. Redemption, Apocalypse & Unscripted all saw him fail. How many chances does a guy need?
He shrugs his shoulders out of pure frustration. The stress of the past couple of weeks has turned Austin into a tightly coiled spring, unable to relax and be his normal, good-humoured self. The blank, dark background is a perfect contrast to the anxious picture that his face betrays.
And the good doctor had you found out last week. You dont care about anyone but yourself, you would end the careers of others if it would progress yours and you are leeching off of my successes. You are jealous because you see that I have seen what you did, then improved on it and created my own successes through hard work and dedicated graft.
And you just wont be told but just in case you didnt hear it, losing is bad for ratings!
We should be allies, we should be on the same page but you know, some people dont deserve another chance. At All Or Nothing I am going to be the host for the last episode of The Show.
He smiles a little as he hints at his self-confidence.
And this episode will be a lie just like the rest. He constantly betrays himself about his successes but the facts dont lie. On the big stage I am the man. Where Showtime loses, I win. Where you fail, I emerge dominant. I said that losing is bad for ratings. Now if you didnt get the press release, maybe you should get your agent to clue you in on the true facts. But our ratings are through the roof. Your failures in the main event have not affected your ability to be carried through a feud to great acclaim. It will be my pleasure to carry you through what should be a classic match.
His tone changes to fierce and determined. He knows Showtime has forced him onto the defensive and for their match to be a true classic, he will need to go all-out.
To be a great champion you need to have heart. I see you and you are scared Showtime. It doesnt pay to be scared of anyone or anything. You dont have the courage that you need to be a champion.
You have not sacrificed a drop of your being for this company. You have not defied any odds. You expect it all be put on a plate for you. But I will not lie down and let you take everything I have worked so hard for.
Your criticism of me is baffling. You think I am egotistical and insecure? Go have a look in the mirror. I am sure a narcissist like you has plenty. I can imagine them of every wall of your house while you scramble about aimlessly, mumbling about conspiracies.
He chuckles to himself. He is so focussed on Showtime that he takes any & all opportunity to relieve the stress of being the Elite X Champion going into a hugely difficult match-up.
You have all the momentum now but I promise you that for half an hour, 30 minutes, 1800 seconds that I am going to make fight and claw for everything. I believe, I know that I am better than you in the ring and I will bring a bucketload of blood, sweat and tears to prove it!
It wasnt the potential physical torture that this match was going to present - he was well prepared for that - but the mental ones that were at the forefront of his mind.
Ive beaten countless men who have coveted this title. Chris Beckford, Scott Hammond, guys who are twice the wrestler you are and ten times the man. They are both humble and hard-working and deserving of all their successes.
His emotions are clearly close to boiling over. As champion he has seen challengers come and go but the desperate manner that Showtime has approached the Elite X championship in recent weeks concerned him. No one else had focussed their efforts on him like David Cougar had.
You may pin me once but you will not end me. You may even submit me but you will not break me. There is no one with more desire to go that one step further in the name of entertainment.
Im going to beat you and end your career on a high. Because when your ass is on the floor at All or Nothing, having lost your career live on pay-per-view, its going to be put my ratings through the roof.
The light above Austins head expired slowly, fading his surrounding into black depths. However the mind of The Ratings Winner had never been clearer. Win and his passage to being the best, longest-reigning and highest drawing Elite X Champion would be almost complete.