Bruce Irwin has been down on his luck the last two rounds. After suffering an early round exit in the Gold Rush tournament, he failed to put away Chris K.O. the round after. Now, he is coming head to head with the mysterious Eternal Question. The Eternal Question wowed in his debut match last week when he bested two other WZCW rookies. These two will also have to contend with Alhazred, one half of Hard Metal Penetration who is on a warpath to recapture the Tag Team championships from his enemies, Cerberus. Is it time for Bruce to turn the page in his luck, or will The Eternal Question continue his impressive display? Or will it be Alhazred's unpredictability that gets him the win?
Deadline is Tuesday, March 31, 2015 at 11:59 PM (Central Time). Extensions are available upon request.
Cobb County, Georgia. The exterior is of the Police precinct and it's a gloriously sunny day. The shot changes to inside and is focused on Captain Harrison Love.
Cpt. Love:Better.
The camera switches to a rather brimming Bruce Irwin.
Bruce:Cracking showing by the mighty crocodile mate!
Cpt. Love:Like I said, you performed better.
Love pauses.
Cpt. Love:I saw pride. I saw power. I saw a badass mother who don't take no crap off nobody.
Bruce:It's true!
Cpt. Love:Tell me what your feelings were?
Bruce:I once heard legends of a man who thought he saw through the facade but there's no facade. K.O. is who he is, I like him. That's what the hand shake was about.
Love nods his head as though he's listening but his face is not impressed.
Bruce:I thought I'd break him down, quick scoop slam but that didn't work. The crowd were getting into it but I lost my cool and nearly was pinned.
Cpt. Love:Exactly and that's...
Bruce:BUT! I was able to do the swing, a cover and almost.
Cpt. Love:You didn't though, that's the thing. You were suplexed. A German Suplex. You're 6 foot 6! This should not be happening. You lost. Get your head back in the game!
Bruce gives a look that a child gives his father when the child knows he's in the wrong.
Bruce:Crikey Captain! I can put up a humdinger of a fight. This week I've got the question.
Cpt. Love:What is that?
Bruce:Well the Eternal question! Get it? Everyone's going to make that joke, aren't they?
Captain Love does not look impressed.
Cpt. Love:He looks awfully familiar, live I've seen him before.
Bruce:Like that Harvey Jefferson fella? Cpt. Love:No, not quite.
Bruce:I've got it! He looks like the former tag champion Phoenix. The guy who was with and against and with and against Garth Black.
Cpt. Love:That is an uncanny resemblance. You do know your match is now a three-way, right?
Bruce:No. Who do I have?
Cpt. Love:Returning to the ring is five time Oscar winner, double world champion, Elite X and hall of famer mayor of Keystone City. Titus Avison.
Bruce Irwin loses his shit with happiness. He starts flipping tables, punching the walls and just jumping up and down with joy. Then he notices Love laughing.
Benny stumbled into the packed nightclub, nearly blinded by the illuminating lights around him. Much like Pat O'Brien's, the room was filled with happy, excited people, blowing off steam from a very long Tuesday in the office. It seemed the MO of everyone in New Orleans; agonize over every second, waiting for some mythical bell to toll, and the workday to be done. Then, drown out the frustrations of the day in a cascading wave of alcohol, loud music, and body parts. But the merriment of this establishment was different from the fun at Pat O'Brien's...Something that was offputting to Benny. At Pat O'Brien's, there was the same obnoxious music, the very pounding of the room pulsating through every man and woman. But Pat O'Brien's still had some sort of structure to it, a sort of unspoken decorum. There was no unspoken of decorum in this place; Benny felt that anything and everything could happen at Masquerade. Couples that surely had met only hours ago were throwing themselves at one another; Benny shuffled across the bar, only to bump into two people, roughly his age, making out. They were pressed against the column that kept the building up, passionately forcing themselves on one another. To Benny, the passion was almost accompanied by a subtle hint of violence; it was a battle between the two, to see who could love the other one harder. Who could bite the lip of their partner harder; who could assert their dominance, and who would submit to the other. There was a faint scent of hedonism in the room; a feeling that there were no rules, at Masquerade.
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Benny could feel the sweat already dripping from the top of his forehead, though he had not been in the bar for more than five minutes. His head started to spin, at all the dizzying lights around him. The heat stuck to him, coating his entire body and making him all the more aware how uncomfortable he was. His mouth dried, as he watched the eyes of those around him. When his eyes locked on another person's, he could tell a stark difference from the eyes of those at Pat O'Brien's. Last week, he noted a cold detachment at those who looked at him. And to be sure, Benny looked no different; he worse a simple button down shirt, a nice pair of jeans. The only thing different about Benny was the black blazer he wore, which to be sure, was high on his list of regrets. But when he locked eyes with someone at Masquerade, Benny felt something different; he could see that little twinge of violence in their eyes. A subtle little trace of venom, that seemed to tell their most honest desires. There was no indifference, to the looks Benny received at Masquerade; in fact, there was a deep love, or a deep malice. There was either a passion, or a violence. Possibly both. Benny saddled up to the bar, shaken by the eyes of those around him. To his right, Ace lounged in a sofa, seemingly unfazed by the massive swell madness around him. He sat, focused as a laser, on just one person; Benny. He eased out of his seat, and sauntered over to the bar.
"Glad you called." Ace patted Benny on the back, as he saddled up next to him. Benny offered his hand to shake, but watched as it withered, and Ace merely ordered a drink. Benny pulled back his hand, feeling a little ashamed.
"Seemed like the right thing to do," he meekly offered, trying to make small conversation. Benny reached into his pocket, and took out $200. He then offered this money to Ace, who took it without even looking at Benny. He gave a half smile, and tried to look into Ace's eyes. He wanted to know if he found that same glimmer of violence in his eyes...He had to know if his mind was playing tricks on him. Ace looked down at his drink for some time, and refused to make eye contact. His eyes were already scouring the bar scene. They were darting from area, to be sure; Ace never kept his attention too long somewhere. After just a few seconds, he turned back around, and took a swig of his scotch.
"You're going to introduce me to the two girls on our right; the blondes at the table, drinking martinis."
A sinking feeling in Benny's gut emerged, as Benny took a sip of his drink. His eyes darted right to Ace in disbelief. It was then that Benny could finally see Ace's eyes, and found no violence. There was no intent to maim, to rip from the flesh and chew to the marrow of the bone. There was only the assuring look of trusting blue eyes, which told Benny that Ace was the only man he could trust tonight. He sighed, and trusted that Ace knew what he was doing.
Ace followed behind, as Benny tried to muster as much false bravado as possible. He swaggered his way towards the two strawberry blondes, sure that this was his moment. This was where he could prove himself to Ace... Which, he surprisingly wished he could, right now. He breathed deep, as he tried to stick out his chest and stride over confidently to the two beautiful women. He couldn't help but notice their colorful tops, leaving little to the imagination, and their perfect, sun glistened skin. But he also couldn't help but notice the eyes; those eyes seemed to have the very same violence as everyone else at the bar, save for Ace. Benny started to feel unsure of himself, and stumbled to think of some way to impress these women. Some way to make a lasting first impression.
Benny finally crept up to one of them, Ace in tow, and tapped one of them on the shoulder. She turned around, mild annoyance in her eyes, but that same sense of violence held deep. Benny froze, and could barely muster, "....have you met my friend Ted?"
The two women snickered, as Benny began to feel his cheeks glow a bright red. Before he could walk away, Ace pulled him by the shoulder, putting his arm around him. Ace faked a sarcastic, sneering laugh, as the two women looked at each other, sharing a laugh with one another. "Yes, Ben, great reference. Right ladies? It reminds you of how funny it was when Neal Patrick Harris did it." Benny stayed there, almost frozen, sure that this was all a set up, and that he'd just lost $200. But Ace still had his arm around Benny, determined to keep him there. When Benny looked to Ace, he saw that Ace was planning something. Ace shot a look back at him...and again, Benny felt assured.
"I dared him, ladies."As Ace looked at the ladies, he reached down into his pocket. He slowly, but very consciously, pulled out the $200 that Benny had just given him. He opened up the wad of money, sure to count it out as methodically as possible, in front of the women.Ace then gave the money back to Benny, with a wink. "I'm sure my friend Benny would agree that a show like that is for the dregs of society."
One of these women was sipping her drink, but pointed repeatedly at Ace in excitement. "Yes! Yes, I've been saying that forever!"
"Hey, I like that show!"
The girl on the right gave her friend a condescending look, and then looked over towards Ace. Ace nodded knowingly, and looked at the other girl.
"Pretty sure your friend just called you the dregs of society. I have to say though," he added, taking his attention to the other woman."Those are a lovely pair of earrings!"
This made the girl on the right instinctually touch her ears, with a smile. "Thanks, they're my favorite!"
"They seem...vintage. I bet your grandmother passed them down to you." The woman immediately stopped touching her ears, and made sure to hide her earrings in her hair. She looked down at her drink, as Ace took a hand to their drinks. "Allow me to freshen up your drinks, m'ladies?" The women looked to one another, still a little perplexed. They nodded, and Ace told his friend Benny to come with him. Benny was absolutely puzzled, as he walked towards the bar with Ace, glasses in hand.
"Ace, why did you give me-"
Ace smiled. "Had to do some damage control...sometimes, you have to flaunt what you have." There was a long pause, as Benny tried to fill the air with conversation. "Next lesson, Benny: how do you keep two girls' attention at the same time?"
"Uh...if I knew, you wouldn't be teaching me."
"Divide and conquer, Benny. You see, we're going to freshen these drinks, and we just sowed the seeds of dissension. We just pitted those girls against one another, whether they realize it or not. All we have to do is let them bicker amongst themselves." Ace placed down the glasses to be refilled.
"Are they really going to fight over How I Met Your Mother?"
"No, Benny... They're going to fight to be the queen bee. It's never about the jewelry, the pop culture, who's smarter...it's all about who's the dominant one. So, they'll bicker, if we let them. Ace picked up the glasses of filled drinks, and looked to his pupil, again. "Then...we swoop in, to collect the pieces. We let them fight each other. Pit one against the other, let them neg each other down. Then...then, we attack."
Benny was bewildered, stunned at this concept. Even through his uncertainty, Benny went along with this plan. After all...it was much better to trust Ace, than anyone else at Masquerade. Benny knew he had much to learn, from this man.
Backstage, after Ascension 90, Leon Kensworth rushes to get a word with The Eternal Question, after his debut match. Question looks euphoric, entranced by the damage done to his opponents. And yet...Question still looks as though he wants more. He looks to the chair, the very one he used in his matchup with Charlie and Oleg. He finally stops walking, and stands still, marveling at the chair. Delighting in the pain it has caused...and still, hopeful that it can cause more.
"Question! Question, we were hoping we could get a word about your debut, tonight!"
Question still stares longingly into his chair, caressing the dent caused by Oleg's head. He keeps staring at the dented chair, beginning to speak.
"O fearful meditation! where, alack,
Shall time’s best jewel from time’s chest lie hid?
Or what strong hand can hold his swift foot back?
Or who his spoil of beauty can forbid?
O, none, unless this miracle have might,
That in black ink my love may still shine bright!"
Leon looked at Question with an odd expression, unsure of what to make of this.
"You see, tonight, my love did shine brighter than any star in the vast night! The beauty I present to you all, the beauty of pain...it is the most primal of instincts, to embrace pain. To enjoy suffering. And I'm nothing, if not unselfish." Question finally looked up from his chair, to the curtain he just passed from. "And yet... I wasn't alone, in expressing my deepest desires. Or did you not see that wonderful brute attempt to hurl that little street urchin through table?"
"Things...certainly got violent out there, tonight. That much can't be denied. But next week, you face two more WZCW superstars, in yet another triple threat match. And this time, it's Bruce Irwin, and Alhazred!"
Question grits his teeth at this knowledge...before giving a coy grin. His eyes light up, at the knowledge of this news.
"Perfect. You see, these triple threats? They're nothing more than a clear case of divide and conquer. Let these supposed alpha males try to assert their dominance. Let them rack their bodies in pain, let them torture each other. Take one, and make sure that he knows pain like no other man before him. Hell...let them join in the fun. Let them feel the rush of another's blood on them. Let's see how far these men are willing to go. Half the fun will be in making these men shut down...in making them quit." Question gets a massive grin, as he looks to Kensworth. "And speaking of quit...Tell me, Leon, at Revolution, which man was the first to quit, in the tag team championship match?"
Leon seems angered by this, as he purses his lips. "Alhazred, but not of any pain! The man quit to save his partner's life!"
"You don't understand, little beta. Alhazred has limits...he has weaknesses. Alhazred can stop...and I don't. No, I refuse to stop, for anything. Alhazred's greatest love is his greatest weakness. And my greatest love...why my greatest love is pain. Alhazred knows mercy...and I will grant him none."
"Even then, you have to deal with the massive Bruce Irwin!"
"Exactly...A man who is withheld by man made law. In fact, he's now charged with upholding that law. I'm bound by no such law, no rules, in a triple threat match. In fact, you could say that the law holds nothing to me. Pardon the cliche, but frankly... All is fair in love and war." Question holds the chair high, for Leon to see it. "And love and war? Those just happen to be one and the same for me. Make no mistake of it, I intend to wage war...I intend to wage Mayhem." Question hovers over Leon, looking him dead in the eyes. "Curious?"
Alhazred stared at the chess pieces on the table in front of him. The TV in the corner of the room showed Theron fending off Cerberus. He thought about helping him. Thought about finding S.H.I.T., grabbing a chainsaw or a chair and sprinting full speed to the ring ready to take on his enemies with his new ally. If he was good he would have done that. But over the last few days Alhazred had pondered whether or not it was good to be good. He tried to be a good guy, help out in the community, giving school children pets, blow up abandoned buildings to cleanse his soul. Every time he was good a little tick went off in his brain telling him to punch the homeless man, shout curse words over and over at the school children, and put someone in the abandoned building he blew up.
It's a funny thing being friends and partners with a machine. As the relationship grew he tried to be more human, tried to make the machine more human while the whole time he was slowly becoming a machine. His humanity dragged him down. Every time he tried to do something good it would fail and remove a little brick from the wall surrounding his true conscience. He tried to give Constantine a good time but he failed and Constantine turned on him. He tried to give his friend a romantic companion but he was nearly killed when he did. He tried to stop the evil three headed beast, he stood up to them, fought them tooth and nail. He bled fighting them, he was tortured, his friend was tortured and he tortured them. It was all for nothing. Night after night, week after week, every time he had a match or an interview, there was Cerberus to beat him down. Theron helped him against Cerberus, defended him against the attacks. Did he do it out of the kindness of his heart to help someone in need? Or was it because he had his own selfish goals and vendettas to achieve with Eve Taylor? Was being saved an act of heroism or an act of revenge? Theron is as good as good gets but still has questionable motives. If the goodest of the good still does bad, how could Alhazred truly be good if he only wanted to do bad? Maybe he's over thinking things like always does. Maybe he should just go out there and give the guy a hand. Maybe he'll go get a taco.
He got out of his chair and left the room and down the hallway and down the stairs and through the doors into the parking lot. Across the street was a Taco Bell. He through his hood on and walked across the busy street to the restaurant. While he waited for his food he saw a sign that said Live Mas. He grabbed a marker and scribbled is gay onto it. He got his bag of tacos and walked outside. He watched the cars go by while eating his tacos. A young boy wearing a WZCW shirt walks by him with his mother. The boy smiles at Alhazred, Alhazred smiles back. Alhazred throws the kid a taco as a souvenir but he's a terrible arm and it hits the woman in the back of the head. Before she turns around, Alhazred runs away behind the building. He's panting, trying to catch his breath while taking bites of his taco. Suddenly a hand grabs his throat and another goes over his mouth. A man with long white hair and a white beard is owner of the hands. Alhazred looks down at the hands and notices they have Cheetoh fingers.
Old Guy: Do not speak, do not be afraid. I am not here to hurt you, I'm here because I need your help. I'm going to remove my hands now, please do not scream.
He removes his hands and raises them over his head. He's wearing a dark green coat, black carpenter pants and no shoes.
Old Guy: I'm sure you have many questions. Who am I? Why am I here? Where are my shoes?
Alhazred: Do you have any more Cheetohs?
Old Guy: Those are my god damn Cheetohs, you don't touch them!
Alhazred shrugs.
Old Guy: I come from the future. I come from twenty years from now from this point now from the from from from.
Alhazred: I'm gonna look like that in twenty years? I'm not that old.
Old Guy: Well, you go through a space time vortex that ages you significantly...wait you know I'm you? But how?
Alhazred: Your deathly love of Cheetohs, that birthmark on your right foot, your shirt says Alhazred on it right above the pocket and you look exactly like me.
Old Guy: Well...there's goes the mystery. Anyway you have to beat Cerberus. You have to.
Alhazred: Okay.
Old (New?) Alhazred: In my timeline you lose to Cerberus, the events after are devestating. Wars are fought, cities are destroyed, lives are lost. Thrash becomes WZCW World Champion.
Alhazred pukes tacos all over the ground.
New (Old?) Alhazred: I know it's pretty terrible. But we can fix it, we can fix it.
Alhazred wiping the puke from his mouth: How?
Future Alhazred: I need the Power Glove.
Alhazred: What? No way, man. I need it to beat Cerberus, remember?
Future Alhazred: Yeah, sure, cool. But I need it to beat Cerberus in the future and fix my timeline. So you give it to me, I beat Cerberus in the future, come back and give it to you right before your match with them. Cool beans?
Alhazred goes to grab Alhazred's Power Glove, but Alhazred moves his hand away from Alhazred.
Future Alhazred: Come on, just give it to me.
Alhazred grabs a bag of Cheetohs from his back pocket and offers some to Alhazred. Alhazred love for Cheetohs is too strong, he goes to reach for one but Alhazred grabs Alhazred's hand and rips off the Power Glove. He throws it on and sprints off into the bushes. Alhazred chases after him, through the bushes is a run down church. He runs towards it, as he draws closer a loud bang is heard from the inside. He opens the door and sees a blue sphere surrounding Alhazred. He runs towards it, catching the outer rim of the sphere.
Bright flashes of light. Various colors mix in with the flashes of white. The colors form together into a circular storm like movement. It spins and spins faster and faster, it explodes into a million colorful pieces and darkens into a deep, dark black. A small red spot pulsates in the center, the sound of a beating heart begins. The spots pulsating increases and the volume of the heart beat increases until the pulse is violent and the beat is louder than any noise conceivable. Under the sound of the heart is a layer of voices. Talking and cheering and booing and the sound of bodies hitting a mat.
Alhazred opens his eyes and finds himself sitting on a toilet in the bathroom. He wipes and flushes the toilet. He looks at the mirror and sees his beard is shaggy, his hair is a mess and he's wearing the same clothes. He checks his pocket and pulls out one of his emergency tacos he stashed. He eats and leaves the bathroom without washing his hands.
He looks around and finds he's in a hallway in the backstage area of WZCW show. A producer runs up to Alhazred.
Producer: Where have you been? We've been looking for you for days. Come on, your match is on now.
Alhazred: Who am I fighting?
Producer: Bruce Irwin and the Eternal Question in a triple threat. Are you ready?
Alhazred stuffs the rest of the taco in his mouth, swallows it in one bite and licks his fingers.
Alhazred: That taco is a metaphor for me sticking my hand so far down their throats that it messes with their internal organs and they get diarrhea. The Eternal Question has an answer, it comes from a little place out west called Compton, it is Fuck the Police!
He runs towards the entrance area as the scene fades to black.
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