AS56: Alex Bowen vs. Barbosa

[Viola Moonlight]

Barbosa has been on a tear, trying to decimate SHIT at every chance he can get and being generally dangerous to the entire roster, especially after taking multiple men to eliminate him at the Supershow's Battle Royale. One of those men who eliminated him and another dangerous competitor in Alex Bowen will be set to face the man of multiple personalities, a great warm-up for the eventual encounter between himself and the mysterious GM.

Deadline is 11:59pm Central Time, Wednesday 28th November. Extensions as per thread.​

 

[Барбоса]

*He had once again tasted the euphoria of dismantling the indestructible automaton. In mere moments he had taken SHIT to the point of oblivion. It had been magnificient. He had not felt as good since he had been battling Ty Burna inside the Hell in a Cell.

Of course, with hindsight, it had been too easy. Barbosa should have realised that the thing that had survived his assaults at Apocalypse and on the 80th edition of Meltdown would not crumble so quickly.

It had been a ruse, a flimflam, a deception.

Cheated out of his euphoric succour once more, Barbosa had then taken it out on all those who happened to be still present in the ring for the Battle Royale and his anger had once against driven him to prove that he was a cut above everyone else. He knew it; the crowd knew it and most importantly those in the ring knew it. That was why they had ganged up on him.

Eight men it had needed to eliminate him but that was furthest from his mind at this present moment. His lack of interest in the Battle Royale and its prize was not just for show. Titus could revel in his victory and march on to do battle with Holmes, Drake and Callahan. Barbosa truly did not care about regaining the WZCW title at this present moment.

Even the added attraction of a return to the Cell was not enough to distract him from his aim.

Others enjoyed the defiance of authority of breaking bad. Barbosa was fixated on breaking SHIT. It was not only his mantra, it was like his drug. He had had a taster of it and now he was hooked. Now, he craved that one big score.

And someone had dangled that robotic carrot in front of him only to snatch the satisfaction of destruction from him. Unfortunately for them, Barbosa had found out who. Doug Crashin had been unable to speak following their encounter but a cursory chat with Chuck Myles had revealed that he had seen "SHIT" leaving Bateman's office earlier in the night.

And that was why Barbosa now found himself chanting his mantra as he re-entered the anteroom of Vance Bateman's office.*

Barbosa: "Break SHIT!

Smash SHIT!

DESTROY SHIT!"

*The upward inflexing secretary whose name he did not remember hearing tried to stop his approach but a brief, rage-laden stare had put here back in her place. Clearly, the combination of his previous office "visits" and what had transpired at the Supershow had gotten people prepared for him.

Bursting through the door of Bateman's office, Barbosa finds the Ascension GM in a conversation with a lawyer type - probably looking to stave off any law suit from his wealthy, Supershow victim.

The few seconds that the seething Barbosa stared at him must have felt like hours for that lawyer but he soon took the hint and scurried out of the office, although through the open doorway Barbosa could hear him pluck up the courage to tell the secretary to call security. Ignoring the potentially impending interruption, Barbosa turns his attention to the other occupant of the room.*

Barbosa: Doug Crashin…

*Taken aback by the unannounced and unceremonious entrance of Barbosa and realising straight away why the barely hinged superstar is there, Vance Bateman does not acknowledge the accusatory nature of his vistor's outburst.*

Barbosa: DOUG CRASHIN?!?

I do not take kindly to being manipulated, Mister Bateman, not least into tangling with a SHIT-covered Doug Crashin…

*Barbosa was so incensed that it escaped his notice how simply he now referred to himself in the singular. Perhaps that part of his past had been firmly consigned to the dustbin of history. However, having gathered himself from the initial shock of the interruption and having clearly done some research for this inevitable confrontation, Bateman meets Barbosa's angry stare with something approaching calm.*

Bateman: I did warn you that I do not respond well to threats, Mister Barbosa… While I have no real need to explain my actions, I will indulge you seeing as how you came all the way down here to ask so politely.

At the Supershow, I was confronted with business problem as I knew that SHIT was not going to appear in the Battle Royale and given your ultimatum I could not very well have a former WZCW champion walk out of a match that would have given him a shot at regaining that title. It would have looked incredibly bad for the company and for those running it.

*Bateman continues to explain his reasons, not giving Barbosa an opportunity to repeat his lack of interest in the WZCW title.*

Bateman: However, at the height of this trouble, I was presented with an opportunity to keep a top level talent involved in the match while providing the audience with some added entertainment when Mr Crashin entered my office. And I jumped at it.

Crashin impersonates the Scaled Humanoid; you enter the Battle Royale and the audience gets to see the latest chapter in the "Doug Crashin gets massacred" chronicles. It is almost a tradition around here and you were the perfect candidate to keep it alive.

And might I add that you may have provided the best chapter yet.

*Barbosa's eyes narrow at the beginnings of a play to his ego but that does not deter Bateman.*

Bateman: Besides, I could not allow you to ruin a mounting reputation in over the top rope matches.

Barbosa: What reputation?

*Fully prepared, Bateman reaches for a piece of paper on his desk and begins to read from it.*

Bateman:

• Meltdown 45 - Contract Battle Royale: eliminated by Hays
• Lethal Lottery III: eliminated by former WZCW champion Everest and himself
• Lethal Lottery IV: eliminated by former WZCW champion, Ty Burna, current WZCW championship contender, Steven Holmes and former EurAsian champion, Blade
• Supershow Battle Royale: eliminated by former WZCW tag team champions James Howard and Mikey Stormrage, the disciples of the New Church, Mason Westhoff and Derek Jacobs, the "The Next-Generation Superstar" Connor Reese, former WZCW Mayhem champions, Alex Bowen and Matt Tastic, and the former WZCW cham… errr… I mean the mysterious, El Califa Dragon.

*Bateman looks up from the page.*

Bateman: Barbosa, at this rate of growth, it will take the entire roster to eliminate you from next year's Lethal Lottery. If you stay out of trouble, you stand a very good chance of headlining Kingdom Come V.

*This playing to his ego seems to have distracted Barbosa from his SHIT-infused rantings. However, he is not thinking about what Bateman thinks he is, as evidenced by his next utterance.*

Barbosa: Who is El Califa Dragon?

*Taken slightly aback by the change of subject and the unexplained sensitivity of the question, a somewhat flustered Bateman just shrugs.*

Bateman: Errr… I have no idea.

*Barbosa's eyes narrow, clearly suspicious, recalling the last time that Bateman had utter that phrase with regard to SHIT's participation in the Battle Royale.*

Barbosa: That seems to be your default answer to many of my questions.

Bateman: I'm sorry, Barbosa but my hands are Tyed with the identity of El Califa Dragon, much like they were with regard to the man behind Black Dragon.

Barbosa: Johnny Scumm?

Bateman: No, he was the fake Black Dragon.

Barbosa: And where has the real Black Dragon gone?

Bateman: I have no… The climes of wintery Russia for all I know. He was not even employed here. He has not left a forwarding address for his fan mail.

But this is getting away from the subject at hand. Your match with Bowen on Ascension is…

Barbosa: I will not do it.

Bateman: Might I ask why not?

Barbosa: He is not SHIT.

Bateman: No, Mr Bowen is certainly a worthy opponent given his successes in the Mayhem division and his recent climbing of the ladder. But I would not have thought that you would be one to back down from such a challenge.

*Barbosa's exasperation at Bateman's misunderstandings continues to build.*

Barbosa: He is not the Scaled Humanoid Industrial Technology.

Bateman: Ah yes. Right. I understand that you are desperate for a match with the Scaled Humanoid Industrial Technology but the WZCW booking committees has reservations about whether you two can actually have a match that can be confined by the parameters of a professional wrestling event.

If your previous encounters and your actions towards Doug Crashin are anything to go by, then Chuck Myles, Big Dave and myself are correct to take the safety of not just you and the Scaled Humanoid but the audience and other WZCW employees into consideration before deciding when, where and even if such a match should take place.

*Needless to say, this potential roadblock does not please Barbosa.*

Barbosa: Who says we need a match sanctioned by WZCW?

Bateman: I would imagine that the law would have something to say about someone with a past history of mental illness and a man in a box knocking seven bells out of each other in a public setting… You need WZCW to ensure that you do not end up back behind bars or even worse, in a padded cell.

*Clearly, that thought had not occurred to Barbosa and the idea of being forced back to some asylum goes a long way to restraining his obvious exasperation as he leans back away from Bateman.*

Barbosa: What will I have to do to obtain a match with SHIT?

Bateman: You can start by accepting that while you remain an employee of WZCW, you will be placed in matches that may not immediately or obviously sync up with your own long term plans.

Barbosa: Alex Bowen…

Bateman: Amongst others. And I fail to see why you would be so eager to brush aside Bowen as a challenge.

Barbosa: He is not the Scaled Humanoid...

Bateman: Yes, yes. He is not the Scaled Humanoid Industrial Technology but while you have not competed in the Mayhem division but you must recognise the carnage that goes on within its ranks and the skills, ingenuity and toughness required to achieve long-standing dominance over it.

So squaring off against its undisputed King of Mayhem should be enough of a test for you all the while keeping you in prime shape for your inevitable confrontation with Scale Humanoid Industrial Technology.

There is also the added personal motive of Bowen being one of the Supershow Eight who eliminated you from the Battle Royale.

*While it had not been important to him earlier, the manipulative words of Bateman had aroused and redirected some of the anger Barbosa felt towards SHIT and the GM himself towards those that had ganged up on him and the chance he had to repay one of the offenders.*

Barbosa: They are scared of me. Of what I can do.

Bateman: And what better time to prove it than on Ascension against Bowen?

*After thinking for a few seconds, Barbosa slams his clenched fist down on Bateman's table.*

Barbosa: Bowen's trials and tribulations in the Mayhem division will feel like a picnic compared to what I am going to do with him!

*With that, Barbosa stomps out of the office. However, before Bateman can relax, the same thought that had bubbled to the surface outside Big Dave's office resurfaces and Barbosa about-faces and marches back into Bateman's office. Locking eyes with the Ascension GM, he utters the same single word as to Dave.*

Barbosa: Unscripted.

*After a few tense seconds, Bateman responds with a curt nod. Barbosa's eyes narrow before he breaks off the stare and leaves the room again, echoing the mantra that had announced his impromptu arrival.*

Barbosa: "Break SHIT!

Smash SHIT!

DESTROY SHIT!"

*With Barbosa now gone and and his mantra-spouting fading into the ether of the building, Bateman lets out a sigh of relief. The meeting had gone better than he had hoped. Vance Bateman reaches for his intercom.*

Bateman: Brittany, could you cancel the security alert - for whatever use they were - as well as the meetings with my psychiatrist and my chiropractor?

Of course, Mr Bateman???

*Recognising that he had only managed to redirect some of the Bedlamite's fury away from him to another target rather than dissipate it, Bateman reaches for the intercom again.*

Bateman: And Brittany, could you set up a brief meeting with Alex Bowen, please? I think he might like to know that Barbosa is on the war path. Oh, and another with the head of security for Ascension. I have a feeling that that match is going to get messy…

 

[Uncle Phatso]

After a meeting with Justin Cooper last week, Alex Bowen has spent the whole week searching for someone, someone smart. Cooper has offered a meeting next week with Bowen. But he is bringing the ever crafty Iris with him, Bowen is a smart man, but Iris is built to outsmart most. David Bowen is smart, spending most of his life inside, with his nose planted in books, but not on the level of Iris. James Takai is one of the smartest wrestling men in the whole world, but Iris would eat him alive.

Bowen has had to reach out to one last person, Lilith. But after barely graduating high school, she declines. Bowen is at a loss for words, he might just have to wing this, and take a shot in the dark. But over the last few months something has been growing, feelings blooming again or not, Lilith, is here for one purpose. To plant the ideas of one man into Bowen's head.

She works with a dark man, the man is in business for himself. Clearly this is her chance to introduce him to Bowen. If he is looking for someone smart, than he has to look no more. She lies and tells him she knows an attorney who could help, and they both agree to meet Saturday, at his office. She texts his details, along with the time and place.

Driving up Bowen is nervous, it's been quite some time since he's trusted anyone outside of his small group of people. The Age of Chaos was the last straw, even trusting Lilith has been hard for him. But she broke the former Mayhem champions shell. He's driving up in a beat up old pick up truck, not really befitting someone who makes the money Bowen does each year. But it's his style, metal is blaring in the speakers as Bowen tries to kill his nerves. Mastodon is his choice today, as he makes his way into a small strip mall. A WallMart, and game stop are in the center, along with a few other non important stores. But Bowen sees his target, A pretty woman standing outside an old beat up Dodge neon, she waves him in among the other cars in the area. Bowen parks, and gets out, looking up he see's an old black sign. Desmond Twist, attorney at law, is stenciled in white across the black front. Bowen smiles and hugs the woman.

Alex- Thank you, are you sure this guy is the real deal?

Lilith- He's helped me out more times than not. He's one of the best Alex, always growing. The man is in his fifty’s and still takes online college classes. He has four different degrees and is working on one more. That's just what he does in his spare time. Mr. Twist is the man you want to see, and to be honest he is rather cheap.

Alex- Alright, lets take a swing at this, come on.

Bowen puts his arm around Lilith's waist. The both walk to the front door, Bowen opens it for his lady friend. Walking in the room it is well lit and with red walls, they are adorned with pictures and a few cases. Bowen walks up to one, and it is lined with certificates of all kinds. Pictures are next to them, one shows a smaller balding man in a chefs outfit holding the certificate, and shaking another man's hand. Another shows him in a business suit shaking another hand, this Twist man seems to be a jack of all trades. Lilith walks forward and walks behind a wall, a secretary sitting at the front desk doesn’t even try to stop her. A few minutes later she walks back out with a man shorter than her. Presumably Mr. Twist, Bowen walks to the much shorter man and nods.

Alex- Twist?

Mr. Twist- Yes?

Alex- Lilith tells me a lot about you, can we talk?

Mr. Twist actually blushes a bit.

Mr. Twist- I know this is out of the ordinary, you're coming to me for something... but may I ask for something in return?

Alex- Sure?

Mr. Twist- Great! Can I have a picture with you, I know this might sound silly, but I am actually a large fan of you. I don't mean to gush, but it's not every day that I meet someone like you. Will you take one with me? For my wall of course?

Twist points to the cabinet that Bowen visited earlier, and reaches in his other pocket, pulling out a small digital camera. He hands it to Lilith. Alex looks surprised, and doesn’t really know what to say, he puts up his hands and shrugs it off.

Alex- What the hell, get over here.

Mr. Twist walks over to Bowen’s side, and stands with a grin from ear to ear. Bowen puts his arm around him, and cuts a cheeky grin. A flash and the picture is over, Lilith hands it to the still smiling Twist. He pockets it, and turns to Bowen

Mr. Twist- If you will follow me Alex, we can get to business. I'm not trying to rush you, but I just looked at the clock. I have a scheduled appointment with a restaurant I do legal business with, it seems like they've failed their health inspection again. So lets move back to my office.

The small group makes their way down a hall and into Twist's small office. It's a mess, a small laptop computer is packed in by papers and manila folders. Twist sits down across two chairs, Lilith and Bowen follow suit.

Mr. Twist- Well this is nice, It seems like I’ve neglected to clean once again. Sorry for the clutter.

Alex- It's fine, I'm no maid. What I'm looking for is someone who can go toe to toe with someone. I normally do that in the ring, but this is different. I've outsmarted general mangers, psychiatrists, and diabolical leaders, but, Twist, I need someone like you. Lilith tells me you are a public defender, how is that?

Mr. Twist- Quite bothersome at times, but I always try to win my case.

Alex- Great, I have a job for you. I need you to come with me, last week a plan was put in front of me. Well by someone who most declare crazier than me, but I know he didn't come up with it. For the last year I've watched this man, and he's just a puppet to be honest. His man Iris does all the work, Cooper can just talk. I know I can handle Cooper, but I need someone like you to take care of Iris, and keep my best interests at hand. That would be for the foreseeable future, you understand?

Mr. Twist nods his head.

Mr. Twist- So something like a mangier?

Alex- Basically, that's what I'm saying. I don't trust many people. But to be honest, if you prove yourself. I think we can work together inside, and outside the ring. If all goes well you will get more than one client out of this, but I'm still not totally sure of Cooper. That's why I really need you on the outside, we will work on you going to the ring and being in with me. But for the moment I need help, and you say you're a fan, right?

Mr. Twist- Very much

Alex- That makes this pretty easy, Twist. You know me, and you know what I'm about, right?

Mr. Twist- The King of Mayhem, for sure. I can work with money, legal problems, do taxes. Whatever you need!

Alex- That sounds very nice, but for right now I'm going to need you to go head to head with Iris, see if this plan is going to screw me. I have enough on my plate, Grand Mistique messing with me, and I just got a call from the office. The boss wants to see me about my next match. They said it was urgent.

Mr. Twist- Is that my first test?

Alex- No I can handle him, really what I want you to do is use your brain. Figure out Cooper and Iris, that is what I need you for. I will give you a call.

Almost out of thin air, with a flick Mr. Twist has a card in his fingers. It's pointing at Bowen. He looks down, and takes it.

Alex- Thank you, see that didn't take much. Here I was all worried, you seem like a good man to me, Twist. I think this will work out, but for the moment I need to get along with some buisness of my own.

Bowen stands up and extends his hand. Twist gladly accepts while standing up.

Lilith- I'm going to stay here for a moment and talk about payments, Alex. Is that ok?

Alex- Yeah, I'm going to see the brass anyways. I'll shoot you a text when I am on my way back home.

Lilith- OK!

Bowen nods and Twist, and shoots a quick wink at Lilith. He walks out of the room, no sooner than the door closes, does Twist get a huge smile across his face, and laughs.

Mr. Twist- Good! This will work...
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


The next day

A car ride, and an unpleasant visit to his local airport for a ride in a small Cessna, Bowen has made it to see Vance Bateman. Tired and mostly grouchy, Bowen walks like a zombie. He's dreading what Bateman could want, but this is his first visit to the proverbial principals office in months. He helped run the show for a while, while in with Ty Burna. But Bowen has been on his best behavior in years, well if that's what you want to call it. But he is still confused by why Bateman would want to see him. He slowly makes his way past doors, to a hall he was down a number of times in the past. He makes it to a large wooden door. Giving it a quick rap, he opens it, poking his head in.

Alex- Boss man?

Bateman is looking over papers with a grimace on his face

Bateman- Good, you're here... Come have a seat.

Bowen opens up the door, slowly walking in. He puts up his hands before getting to the chair in front of Bateman's desk.

Alex- Look, if you're here to give me crap about what happened at Kingdom come... I'm sorry. But the past is the past.

Bateman- Britney didn't tell you?

Bowen looks confused, but takes his seat. Vance drops his papers, leaning back in his seat he rubs his eyes.

Bateman- That woman will never learn... I told her to talk to you about, Barbosa.

Alex- Yeah, big deal. I got the notice about my match, I'll sign the papers, it's cool.

Bateman- I'm not worried about that, I know you are good for that. But I need to know we are on the same page, you have asked to stay out of the Mayhem division, fine. But i'm sure you've noticed to mood that Mr. Barbosa has been in as of late.

Alex- Big deal, a pissed off lunatic!

Bateman shakes his head as Bowen tries to shrug off what is at hand.

Alex- I have GM to worry about, he's just another log jam. How about you just give him that match with S.H.I.T?

Bateman- That will come in due time, but the reason we put you in this match is a tester. We honestly want to see with the two most volatile men in the company will do. There is nothing on the line Bowen, but I've saw what you can do. It's scary to be quite frank, if I didn't think that one of you would end up sidelined for the rest of the year, I would have passed the idea of a Mayhem match in front of you.

Alex- Are you doubting me? I don't need weapons anymore, Vance. I'm sick of you and your trained monkeys trying to get me back in that division to sell more merch. It's not my fault Ace Stevens couldn't swing a stick. I'm done with Mayhem, get it through your head, Vance!

Bateman is starting to get red faced

Bateman- I'm sick of you throwing that in my face, your fans buy what they want. I could give a damn less if we even had a Bowen t-shirt on the line right now. What I'm looking for is for you to actually listen to me. Something that you've never done. Maybe I should have just thrown you to the lions, and let Barbosa rip you apart.

Alex- Rip me apart? I hung a man like he was Jesus Christ, I ripped up S.H.I.T with a chainsaw, I impaled Steamboat Ricky into the ring, with a 25 foot tall brain buster. I put people into the un employment line, is that what you're trying to get me to do? Do you want Barbosa stopped? Quit beating around the bush, because you're just pissing me off.

Bateman- No, I just want to see what you two can do. If anyone in this company is like Barbosa, it is you. He's mentally unstable, and you're something, hell, I don't even know how you do it. I can't even tell you how many times we've sat back and said you needed to be stopped. You were dangerous, not only to yourself, but we even had trouble signing matches for you. People coming in were more than happy to get a match with a champion. But did you ever look back and wonder why you stayed in the Mayhem division?

Alex- Because I was damn good at it.

Bateman- Yes, that's true. But Bowen, no one was going to sign anything other than a singles match with you. Now that you're out, you are getting matches. But only people that had things to prove would take matches with you. You helped take Barbosa out of the battle royal, that was the main focus point. You didn't have to stand here inches away from a guy, trying to push a match he didn't want... did you?

Alex- Like I said give him what he wants.

Bateman- Well then he is your problem now, because he wants you. I finally pounded it through his head, he took the match with you.

Bateman has a grim look on his face, expecting Bowen to explode. Another call to the security team crosses his mind. But Bowen sniffs a bit, and blankly looks at the boss.

Alex- Cool, Ascension it is then.

Bateman- That's it!? Are you kidding me?!

Batemen puts a hand up and claws through his remaining hair.

Alex- Like I said last week before the battle royal, I back down from no one. Man, woman, or machine, I don't care. Crazy people don't bother me, big behemoth masked men don't scare me, and quite frankly I'm sick of you people doubting me. Calling me in here like this, I know what this is. I thought you wanted me to stop Barbosa, calling this a tester. No, Bateman, you were calling me in here to make sure I wouldn’t back out. You chicken shit, you know that's true. I can sit here and show you scars, you can go over my past matches, see the destruction I left in my path. But I don't give a damn if some lunatic has his panties in a bunch over Doug Crashin, or that robot. Because I all see is anger, and that scares people.

Bateman- Trust me, it's not just anger...

Still with a blank face Bowen stares at Bateman.

Alex- You just have to deal with people coming in here bitching about losing matches. I don't bitch, I don't care, he wants to destroy shit.

Bowen puts out his arms, as if he is welcoming the coming carnage.

Alex- I will bathe in Barbosa's blood come Ascension, and I won't need a mayhem rules match to do it. I'm sick of Alex Bowen being defined by that. I'm much more than a tough sob swinging a two by four, win or lose this will be a message to Grand Mystique, and your whole company. Alex Bowen is back in the hunt for gold, I'll let you wait and see what I want after the pay per view.

Bateman- You have to make it to the pay per view first, Bowen. With that attitude you might not.

Bowen stands up, but Bateman's last statement doesn’t set well with the King of Mayhem. He leans over and puts both arms on his desk. Looking into the general manger's eyes.

Alex- I'm not one of your pretty boys, I don't need a massage, or a team of doctors to pull my hang nail. Anything that lunatic can throw at me will be fine. When he wears himself out, he will see the End of Days just like so many have seen before. After that whoever can come pick his bones. Good bye, boss man. Thanks for basically calling me a pussy.

Bowen turns around and puts up one arm, flipping off his boss, he walks to the door and opens it up. Walking out he slams it shut, and Vance smiles a wicked smile. The whole talk went the way he wanted it to. He didn't want the match to end quickly, he wanted to see what both men could do, and gauge the coming destruction of a match between man and machine. He has calls to make, because he now has two pissed off wrestlers waiting to tear each other apart. Bowen isn't a nice thing, but throw him in with bad blood like Barbosa, and it will never end well.