MD 131 - Austin Reynolds versus Justin Cooper
- Thread starter Dave
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Da Prophet
Mid-Card Championship Winner
“I told you we’d be in this room soon enough. Tag Champions, baby!”
Mark Keaton hobbled past Justin Cooper as they made their way into the championship locker room backstage at Meltdown. Still suffering the injuries sustained at Gold Rush made it difficult for Mark to walk; his right leg dragging along the carpet behind him. Even in his injured state Mark’s spirits were high. He had gotten good news from the doctor that he should be able to compete at Unscripted if he continued to do his therapy. Of course, Mark forgot about doing therapy on more than one occasion. He was still young and nearly a decade younger than his fellow champion. Therapy and keeping the body well rested were not at the top of Mark’s to do list as it were. Late nights out partying, fame and women were far more important to Mark than sitting at home getting the right kind of fluids. They had a discussion about Mark’s recent behaviour and his lazy attitude towards getting himself healthy. Mark had a favourite excuse which irritated Justin; I’m young. Youth was on the side of Mark but Justin had seen what happens when you don’t take care of an injury.
To this day Justin still couldn’t perform moves off the top rope because of his knee injury. It had been five years since he fought Alex Bowen at Kingdom Come 3 but the scars of the match still appeared fresh. Chronic pain in his knee every morning was the reason for Justin’s first retirement and played a major role in the following two after that. He was young at the time and thought nothing of the sharp pain the morning after Kingdom Come. He thought nothing of the swelling a week later or the dark shade of purple it began turning. Night life was much more interesting than sitting at a doctor’s office like he had been told to do. It a was only when he was running, preparing for a match with that would see him get back into the Mayhem Championship picture that Justin started to care. His knee buckled and Justin collapsed on the cement; it was the worst pain he had ever felt. Nothing inside the ring had even come close to the pain of Justin’s knee when it finally reached its breaking point.
For weeks Justin had been telling Mark to make sure he does his therapy. Justin was frustrated because he knew Mark wasn’t doing it correctly. That’s why Justin made him come to the show today. Mark had been absent from the shows since Gold Rush due to the injury and the company not clearing him to compete. For the first time in nearly a month Mark Keaton had walked through the doors of WZCW and it felt great. He was over the top just the same as when he left. Even on crutches it didn’t stop Mark from parading around the hallways showing off his championship belt and telling anybody who would listen that he and Justin had beaten the greatest to ever live.
So here they sat together at Meltdown for the first time since before Gold Rush. They had been crowned champions and cleaned out the entire division. Mark took a seat on one of several couches, its black leather freshly cleaned and surrounded by tables with the finest food platters. A bowl of grapes sat closest to Mark, his hand soon reached over and began plucking away before throwing them up into the air and catching them with his mouth. He was the happiest injured athlete you’d ever seen and why wouldn’t he be? Mark had the title, the fame, the women and all the exclusive parties he could ever dream of and now he sat in the most exclusive locker room in all of professional wrestling. He was happy but Justin was not.
“I’m telling you it’s happening again.” Justin muttered softly.
Justin had not taken a seat like his partner. He was far too worried to take a seat. Anxiety left him unable to sit still and instead he paced around the room which for the moment remained empty.
“I don’t see what you’re worrying yourself over. So what if a bunch of old guys joined up together? We’ve beaten everyone in the division. We’ll just add ‘em to the list and be done with it.”
Mark threw another grape into his mouth and put his feet up onto the table. His shoes kicked off and had scattered onto the floor below.
“We can’t just beat these guys. They’re part of the wheel.”
“Wheel? What wheel?”
Justin turned his back to Mark and began examining some of the memorabilia on the walls. Photographs of some of the greatest moments in the history of the company; Titus’ Lethal Lottery victory, David Cougar’s World Championship victory at Kingdom Come and Eve Taylor’s record breaking title defence all stood proudly on the wall. Justin turned his head back towards Mark.
“This room is built for those who hold championships. It’s for those who are the very best of their divisions and here we are standing in it. You and I, the champions of all the tag teams in the world and now we get to stand here. You think they’d put our picture up.”
“That’s right! Mark Keaton is gonna be on this wall soon enough. Somebody get the camera, I’ll take my picture right now!”
“No.” Justin said sharply. “You won’t. Look. Really look at these photographs and you’ll see that it’s the same people over and over again. Sure you get a few new faces amongst once in a while but my face isn’t on this wall. Nothing of mine is even in this room which is supposed to celebrate all the past champions.”
The room fell quiet for a moment. Justin continued to walk around the room and pointed to each piece of memorabilia. He has to understand this isn’t just a match anymore. Cougar, Burna, Titus, Tastic, Reynolds, Holmes, Constantine and Stormrage all appeared over and over again on the wall. Their names carved into golden plates and championship belts hanging from the roof. Moments of glory immortalized both in photographs and elegant paintings. Rinse and repeat. It’s the same guys just like it was before. Justin turned around and faced his protégé, their eyes met and Mark had been around Justin long enough now to know when their talks were serious. He sat up and placed the grapes down on the wooden table beside him.
“For years I fought out there in the ring and the people booed me. They called me every name under the sun and degraded me like I was nothing. I worked just as hard as anyone else. The fans tossed me aside while this company branded me a lunatic and my peers wanted nothing to do with me. I was a trouble maker they said. I stirred up conversations that they didn’t want to be had. I was a part of the machine that just didn’t fit in and when I held titles they did everything they could to rip it from me as quickly as possible.”
“They haven’t been able to take our titles from us.”
Justin cleared his throat.
“Have they tried yet?”
“Well no but...”
“You saw what happened last week. Four of them marched upon me and soon enough they’ll come for us. Vis Imperium is just another name for the same old group. It’s the same guys who rule this company and they control everything. Oh sure, you might get a few breakout stars but at the end of the day just look around here. It’s the same people and you can’t just beat them. It’s not that easy. We don’t just get to walk into Unscripted and have a fair fight because we’re not supposed to win. Nobody wants us to win because we don’t belong on this wall. We aren’t even supposed to have these damn titles!”
“But we have them. We can take any of the four.” Mark leaned forward as Justin approached him. “Constantine, Abel, Holmes or Reynolds; it doesn’t matter who they send because you and I have already proven we can take anybody.”
“They want you to think that! That’s the beauty of this entire company is that they want you to believe that you have a chance. Just look at the Gold Rush tournament.” A chance to break out, what a load of shit that was. “This tournament was supposed to be a chance for new guys to have a shot at the World Championship but soon enough the poison enters the field and Matt Tastic wins. Unpredictable? Come on. It’s written in stone already that these titles are leaving us. The tournament just shows that no matter how hard you believe that it is your destiny, just like Garth did, reality will slap you right back down to size.”
Mark shook his head and shouted. “Let ‘em try take it from me. I’ll send them all right back with a black eye or two. I’m not afraid of any of them.”
“Let me explain to you how things work around here. People like to pretend like this company is a clock and that everyone is a part of the clock and we all have a place within the greater structure.” Justin took a deep breath in. “This isn’t a clock; it’s a wheel. A wheel that only has a few spots on it and those have already been claimed. The guys you see at the top of the card belong to the wheel. Constantine is right there in the wheel and so is Tastic. Sure they don’t like each other but deep down both of them know that they can just keep on fighting each other over and over again because they’re stars.”
“What about the rest of us?”
“We don’t have a place in the wheel. This is why it’s much more fitting than the stupid clock analogy. In a clock every little piece matters but if you look at this company like a wheel then all the rest of us are nothing more than little pebbles on the road.”
Justin took a seat opposite Mark and leaned forward. He looked to the door and began to whisper. Can’t let them hear. Who knows what would happen if somebody overheard this.
“Pebbles on the road that the wheel can just drive on over. Never changing course or feeling the pebble. Sometimes the wheel comes across a rock, slightly bigger than a pebble and it may actually cause a problem when the wheel tries to run over it.”
Mark interrupted. “So that’s what we need to be. We need to be a rock and make sure they can’t run over us.”
“I’ve seen them crush boulders. Hunter Kravinoff was a guy they couldn't control so the system broke him down. They couldn't win a fair fight so they did everything they could to chip away at the man until he just couldn't stay in the toxic environment any longer. They’ll just drive on over us until we breakdown and then they dust you to the side, leaving you to just go away and the wheel continues to crush any talent that appears as a threat. It’s what they do. Some guys embrace it like Constantine. They enjoy seeing the same people at the top and that’s what Vis Imperium is all about. Its guys who have been at the top that want to keep everybody else down the card and they’re coming for us because we pose a threat. We took down Ty Burna and by doing so we set the wheel off course. This group is here to correct it.”
Justin placed his hand on Mark’s knee. His eyes lowered to the floor. “It’s not going to be easy. We’re not just fighting two men or even a group. We’re fighting the system. A system which for years has kept the same guys at the top of this company and now we’re standing directly in its way as a threat. I can’t do this alone. I need you.”
“You don’t have to. I’ll be with you and it doesn’t matter if we’re facing one man, two men, three, four or the entire bloody roster! Mark Keaton does not run from a fight!”
“I need you but you’re no good to me injured. Do as the doctor says and get yourself healthy before Unscripted. If I have to I will go it alone rather than have you go out there injured and get ripped apart by a bunch of wolves like Reynolds and Abel. This system wasn’t made for change and those who have gained fame and power don’t want to see us break it.”
Justin pointed to a large painting hanging above the fireplace. It was new and stood proudly as the first thing you saw when entering the room. It was a large portrait of the World Heavyweight Champion which captured his greatest triumph in full glory.
“We all thought Garth was getting the next shot but look what happened. Friend vs. Friend for the World Heavyweight Championship. I’m sure they really hate each other as the money rolls into their bank accounts. It’s all lies. These guys at the top don’t hate each other. They understand that so long as the wheel spins and crushes everyone else then they’ll be fine. Garth is hardly someone I’ll be sharing dinner with but he wanted change. He was on the doorstep of fighting for the title and the system made sure he didn’t make it. A system which now offers him a chance to fight for the title anyway but it’s 2 vs. 1 instead of being a fair fight. He stands alone against the system and against two people who, while celebrated by the fans, are just as bad as Constantine and Vis Imperium.”
“Just as bad? I don’t know. I kind of like the fat one.” Mark exclaimed.
“Stormrage put together a team to fight for his cause at Apocalypse and he called for aid. I didn’t go anywhere near that because I saw it for what it was; the wheel spinning to crush multiple pebbles all at once. Every member of both teams was eliminated except for two; Constantine and Stormrage. They remained unbeaten while the guys they had dragged into the battle lost. It’s an easy way to keep people down when they all lose. Then when M needs help where was Stormrage? M answered the call for help but Stormrage was nowhere to be found when the favour should have been returned. Just like last week when Vee had to compete in a handicap match. Where the hell was Stormrage, if he this great noble warrior, to help out somebody who stood by his side so he could get the chance to fight for the World Heavyweight Championship which he now holds? They use these young guys and then throw them to the side for their personal gain. I’m sick of it!”
Justin stood up and pounded the table in front of him. The bowl of grapes that Mark had been eating went flying across the room.
“Every single time a young guy shows a sign of potential they have to crush it. Reynolds comes back and he’s given the red carpet treatment before he takes out M. Now he’s back and his ‘I don’t care attitude’ gets to be front and centre while young guys are fighting to get a segment on the damn show.” Justin paused for a moment. “I’m not saying we have to start throwing conspiracy theories around like Garth. A system is in place which rewards the rich and leaves those who work hard going without. You can build yourself up all you want but the wheel just comes on by and crushes you and your dreams. Now that system wants to take away what I've worked six years to achieve. It wants to take what you and I proved we deserved. I will not stand by it any longer.”
Mark slowly stood up, struggling to do so as his crutches wobbled momentarily. He approached Justin and placed a hand on the shoulder of his friend.
“You stood by me when I was a rookie and now look at me. I wouldn’t be here without you. I’m ready to go into battle with you but what do we have to do to keep our tag titles?”
“We can't just beat Vis Imperium. It will not be enough. They just keep coming after us so long as we have the titles. It's no longer a fight between tag teams. It's a fight against the system. We have to take down an entire system.”
Justin questioned whether this was worth the fight. Four on two, it’s not going to work in our favour. Doubt entered his eyes and Mark saw it.
“Hey. I understand that this match is going to be difficult. I get it. We’re fighting a match that we are supposed to lose but it wouldn’t be the first time and I doubt it’ll be the last. For now you have to focus on Austin. Focus on the guy standing in front of you now and if you beat him, maybe it knocks the wheel off course just a little further.”
Justin wanted to smile but the thought of the near future for the duo was hardly something he found funny.
“Austin Reynolds knows the system better than most. You could say at one point he was as much a victim of it as anyone. That’s what they do. They break you down until you give into the system and join them. Guys like Chris K.O. who stood for something more than just winning the same thing over and over again while fighting the same guys. They all turn against their values and Reynolds is the worst. Sure, I’ve been branded a lot of things in my time but I’ve never betrayed myself. I’ve never sold myself to the system so I could fit in.”
“If you beat him this week it’ll send a message that we’re not going to just hand the titles over. We can really let them know just what the hell they’re dealing with.”
“I’m sure this week they’ll all come after me and try to send a message of their own for Unscripted. Take me out and with you still injured they might just want expect us to literally hand the gold over.”
“Hand it over? Oh they can kiss my ass if those four snobs think I’m letting them take what’s mine. I’m fight ‘em on a bummed leg if I have to.”
Justin wrapped his arm around Mark.
“I know you would. Leave this to me this week. Just rest up for Unscripted. They’re coming to reset everything back to how it’s supposed to be and nobody is going to stand by our side. Don’t expect people to want to fight with us against these four. The only person who sees it the same as us is Garth and he’s so selfish I doubt he can see the bigger picture.”
“What bigger picture would that be?”
“We’re not just fighting for us. If I can beat Reynolds that lets the wheel know they can’t just drive over us. They’ll have to send everything they’ve got. This system will target us and at Unscripted we’ll be in for the fight of our lives. At Unscripted we fight for every person on this roster that has never been given a chance. We fight for those who have fallen because guys like Reynolds have crushed them over and over again. Together, you and I are going to stand at the door with closed fists as a system built years ago tries to take what we earned!”
“Together!”
“Together.”
They stood united. Unscripted was fast approaching and the reigning champions knew they’d be the underdogs. They were going into a fight that was supposed to set the company back on track. Remove the trouble makers and give the titles back to the same old people. Not this time. This time the trouble makers were prepared and in just a few weeks they’d greet the system that fought against them. The very system built to keep the rich at the top and push down upon those who dare speak out. Mark and Justin were alone but that was their best chance. Together they could stop the wheel from going over them. They could be the roadblock that the company needed.
Mark Keaton hobbled past Justin Cooper as they made their way into the championship locker room backstage at Meltdown. Still suffering the injuries sustained at Gold Rush made it difficult for Mark to walk; his right leg dragging along the carpet behind him. Even in his injured state Mark’s spirits were high. He had gotten good news from the doctor that he should be able to compete at Unscripted if he continued to do his therapy. Of course, Mark forgot about doing therapy on more than one occasion. He was still young and nearly a decade younger than his fellow champion. Therapy and keeping the body well rested were not at the top of Mark’s to do list as it were. Late nights out partying, fame and women were far more important to Mark than sitting at home getting the right kind of fluids. They had a discussion about Mark’s recent behaviour and his lazy attitude towards getting himself healthy. Mark had a favourite excuse which irritated Justin; I’m young. Youth was on the side of Mark but Justin had seen what happens when you don’t take care of an injury.
To this day Justin still couldn’t perform moves off the top rope because of his knee injury. It had been five years since he fought Alex Bowen at Kingdom Come 3 but the scars of the match still appeared fresh. Chronic pain in his knee every morning was the reason for Justin’s first retirement and played a major role in the following two after that. He was young at the time and thought nothing of the sharp pain the morning after Kingdom Come. He thought nothing of the swelling a week later or the dark shade of purple it began turning. Night life was much more interesting than sitting at a doctor’s office like he had been told to do. It a was only when he was running, preparing for a match with that would see him get back into the Mayhem Championship picture that Justin started to care. His knee buckled and Justin collapsed on the cement; it was the worst pain he had ever felt. Nothing inside the ring had even come close to the pain of Justin’s knee when it finally reached its breaking point.
For weeks Justin had been telling Mark to make sure he does his therapy. Justin was frustrated because he knew Mark wasn’t doing it correctly. That’s why Justin made him come to the show today. Mark had been absent from the shows since Gold Rush due to the injury and the company not clearing him to compete. For the first time in nearly a month Mark Keaton had walked through the doors of WZCW and it felt great. He was over the top just the same as when he left. Even on crutches it didn’t stop Mark from parading around the hallways showing off his championship belt and telling anybody who would listen that he and Justin had beaten the greatest to ever live.
So here they sat together at Meltdown for the first time since before Gold Rush. They had been crowned champions and cleaned out the entire division. Mark took a seat on one of several couches, its black leather freshly cleaned and surrounded by tables with the finest food platters. A bowl of grapes sat closest to Mark, his hand soon reached over and began plucking away before throwing them up into the air and catching them with his mouth. He was the happiest injured athlete you’d ever seen and why wouldn’t he be? Mark had the title, the fame, the women and all the exclusive parties he could ever dream of and now he sat in the most exclusive locker room in all of professional wrestling. He was happy but Justin was not.
“I’m telling you it’s happening again.” Justin muttered softly.
Justin had not taken a seat like his partner. He was far too worried to take a seat. Anxiety left him unable to sit still and instead he paced around the room which for the moment remained empty.
“I don’t see what you’re worrying yourself over. So what if a bunch of old guys joined up together? We’ve beaten everyone in the division. We’ll just add ‘em to the list and be done with it.”
Mark threw another grape into his mouth and put his feet up onto the table. His shoes kicked off and had scattered onto the floor below.
“We can’t just beat these guys. They’re part of the wheel.”
“Wheel? What wheel?”
Justin turned his back to Mark and began examining some of the memorabilia on the walls. Photographs of some of the greatest moments in the history of the company; Titus’ Lethal Lottery victory, David Cougar’s World Championship victory at Kingdom Come and Eve Taylor’s record breaking title defence all stood proudly on the wall. Justin turned his head back towards Mark.
“This room is built for those who hold championships. It’s for those who are the very best of their divisions and here we are standing in it. You and I, the champions of all the tag teams in the world and now we get to stand here. You think they’d put our picture up.”
“That’s right! Mark Keaton is gonna be on this wall soon enough. Somebody get the camera, I’ll take my picture right now!”
“No.” Justin said sharply. “You won’t. Look. Really look at these photographs and you’ll see that it’s the same people over and over again. Sure you get a few new faces amongst once in a while but my face isn’t on this wall. Nothing of mine is even in this room which is supposed to celebrate all the past champions.”
The room fell quiet for a moment. Justin continued to walk around the room and pointed to each piece of memorabilia. He has to understand this isn’t just a match anymore. Cougar, Burna, Titus, Tastic, Reynolds, Holmes, Constantine and Stormrage all appeared over and over again on the wall. Their names carved into golden plates and championship belts hanging from the roof. Moments of glory immortalized both in photographs and elegant paintings. Rinse and repeat. It’s the same guys just like it was before. Justin turned around and faced his protégé, their eyes met and Mark had been around Justin long enough now to know when their talks were serious. He sat up and placed the grapes down on the wooden table beside him.
“For years I fought out there in the ring and the people booed me. They called me every name under the sun and degraded me like I was nothing. I worked just as hard as anyone else. The fans tossed me aside while this company branded me a lunatic and my peers wanted nothing to do with me. I was a trouble maker they said. I stirred up conversations that they didn’t want to be had. I was a part of the machine that just didn’t fit in and when I held titles they did everything they could to rip it from me as quickly as possible.”
“They haven’t been able to take our titles from us.”
Justin cleared his throat.
“Have they tried yet?”
“Well no but...”
“You saw what happened last week. Four of them marched upon me and soon enough they’ll come for us. Vis Imperium is just another name for the same old group. It’s the same guys who rule this company and they control everything. Oh sure, you might get a few breakout stars but at the end of the day just look around here. It’s the same people and you can’t just beat them. It’s not that easy. We don’t just get to walk into Unscripted and have a fair fight because we’re not supposed to win. Nobody wants us to win because we don’t belong on this wall. We aren’t even supposed to have these damn titles!”
“But we have them. We can take any of the four.” Mark leaned forward as Justin approached him. “Constantine, Abel, Holmes or Reynolds; it doesn’t matter who they send because you and I have already proven we can take anybody.”
“They want you to think that! That’s the beauty of this entire company is that they want you to believe that you have a chance. Just look at the Gold Rush tournament.” A chance to break out, what a load of shit that was. “This tournament was supposed to be a chance for new guys to have a shot at the World Championship but soon enough the poison enters the field and Matt Tastic wins. Unpredictable? Come on. It’s written in stone already that these titles are leaving us. The tournament just shows that no matter how hard you believe that it is your destiny, just like Garth did, reality will slap you right back down to size.”
Mark shook his head and shouted. “Let ‘em try take it from me. I’ll send them all right back with a black eye or two. I’m not afraid of any of them.”
“Let me explain to you how things work around here. People like to pretend like this company is a clock and that everyone is a part of the clock and we all have a place within the greater structure.” Justin took a deep breath in. “This isn’t a clock; it’s a wheel. A wheel that only has a few spots on it and those have already been claimed. The guys you see at the top of the card belong to the wheel. Constantine is right there in the wheel and so is Tastic. Sure they don’t like each other but deep down both of them know that they can just keep on fighting each other over and over again because they’re stars.”
“What about the rest of us?”
“We don’t have a place in the wheel. This is why it’s much more fitting than the stupid clock analogy. In a clock every little piece matters but if you look at this company like a wheel then all the rest of us are nothing more than little pebbles on the road.”
Justin took a seat opposite Mark and leaned forward. He looked to the door and began to whisper. Can’t let them hear. Who knows what would happen if somebody overheard this.
“Pebbles on the road that the wheel can just drive on over. Never changing course or feeling the pebble. Sometimes the wheel comes across a rock, slightly bigger than a pebble and it may actually cause a problem when the wheel tries to run over it.”
Mark interrupted. “So that’s what we need to be. We need to be a rock and make sure they can’t run over us.”
“I’ve seen them crush boulders. Hunter Kravinoff was a guy they couldn't control so the system broke him down. They couldn't win a fair fight so they did everything they could to chip away at the man until he just couldn't stay in the toxic environment any longer. They’ll just drive on over us until we breakdown and then they dust you to the side, leaving you to just go away and the wheel continues to crush any talent that appears as a threat. It’s what they do. Some guys embrace it like Constantine. They enjoy seeing the same people at the top and that’s what Vis Imperium is all about. Its guys who have been at the top that want to keep everybody else down the card and they’re coming for us because we pose a threat. We took down Ty Burna and by doing so we set the wheel off course. This group is here to correct it.”
Justin placed his hand on Mark’s knee. His eyes lowered to the floor. “It’s not going to be easy. We’re not just fighting two men or even a group. We’re fighting the system. A system which for years has kept the same guys at the top of this company and now we’re standing directly in its way as a threat. I can’t do this alone. I need you.”
“You don’t have to. I’ll be with you and it doesn’t matter if we’re facing one man, two men, three, four or the entire bloody roster! Mark Keaton does not run from a fight!”
“I need you but you’re no good to me injured. Do as the doctor says and get yourself healthy before Unscripted. If I have to I will go it alone rather than have you go out there injured and get ripped apart by a bunch of wolves like Reynolds and Abel. This system wasn’t made for change and those who have gained fame and power don’t want to see us break it.”
Justin pointed to a large painting hanging above the fireplace. It was new and stood proudly as the first thing you saw when entering the room. It was a large portrait of the World Heavyweight Champion which captured his greatest triumph in full glory.
“We all thought Garth was getting the next shot but look what happened. Friend vs. Friend for the World Heavyweight Championship. I’m sure they really hate each other as the money rolls into their bank accounts. It’s all lies. These guys at the top don’t hate each other. They understand that so long as the wheel spins and crushes everyone else then they’ll be fine. Garth is hardly someone I’ll be sharing dinner with but he wanted change. He was on the doorstep of fighting for the title and the system made sure he didn’t make it. A system which now offers him a chance to fight for the title anyway but it’s 2 vs. 1 instead of being a fair fight. He stands alone against the system and against two people who, while celebrated by the fans, are just as bad as Constantine and Vis Imperium.”
“Just as bad? I don’t know. I kind of like the fat one.” Mark exclaimed.
“Stormrage put together a team to fight for his cause at Apocalypse and he called for aid. I didn’t go anywhere near that because I saw it for what it was; the wheel spinning to crush multiple pebbles all at once. Every member of both teams was eliminated except for two; Constantine and Stormrage. They remained unbeaten while the guys they had dragged into the battle lost. It’s an easy way to keep people down when they all lose. Then when M needs help where was Stormrage? M answered the call for help but Stormrage was nowhere to be found when the favour should have been returned. Just like last week when Vee had to compete in a handicap match. Where the hell was Stormrage, if he this great noble warrior, to help out somebody who stood by his side so he could get the chance to fight for the World Heavyweight Championship which he now holds? They use these young guys and then throw them to the side for their personal gain. I’m sick of it!”
Justin stood up and pounded the table in front of him. The bowl of grapes that Mark had been eating went flying across the room.
“Every single time a young guy shows a sign of potential they have to crush it. Reynolds comes back and he’s given the red carpet treatment before he takes out M. Now he’s back and his ‘I don’t care attitude’ gets to be front and centre while young guys are fighting to get a segment on the damn show.” Justin paused for a moment. “I’m not saying we have to start throwing conspiracy theories around like Garth. A system is in place which rewards the rich and leaves those who work hard going without. You can build yourself up all you want but the wheel just comes on by and crushes you and your dreams. Now that system wants to take away what I've worked six years to achieve. It wants to take what you and I proved we deserved. I will not stand by it any longer.”
Mark slowly stood up, struggling to do so as his crutches wobbled momentarily. He approached Justin and placed a hand on the shoulder of his friend.
“You stood by me when I was a rookie and now look at me. I wouldn’t be here without you. I’m ready to go into battle with you but what do we have to do to keep our tag titles?”
“We can't just beat Vis Imperium. It will not be enough. They just keep coming after us so long as we have the titles. It's no longer a fight between tag teams. It's a fight against the system. We have to take down an entire system.”
Justin questioned whether this was worth the fight. Four on two, it’s not going to work in our favour. Doubt entered his eyes and Mark saw it.
“Hey. I understand that this match is going to be difficult. I get it. We’re fighting a match that we are supposed to lose but it wouldn’t be the first time and I doubt it’ll be the last. For now you have to focus on Austin. Focus on the guy standing in front of you now and if you beat him, maybe it knocks the wheel off course just a little further.”
Justin wanted to smile but the thought of the near future for the duo was hardly something he found funny.
“Austin Reynolds knows the system better than most. You could say at one point he was as much a victim of it as anyone. That’s what they do. They break you down until you give into the system and join them. Guys like Chris K.O. who stood for something more than just winning the same thing over and over again while fighting the same guys. They all turn against their values and Reynolds is the worst. Sure, I’ve been branded a lot of things in my time but I’ve never betrayed myself. I’ve never sold myself to the system so I could fit in.”
“If you beat him this week it’ll send a message that we’re not going to just hand the titles over. We can really let them know just what the hell they’re dealing with.”
“I’m sure this week they’ll all come after me and try to send a message of their own for Unscripted. Take me out and with you still injured they might just want expect us to literally hand the gold over.”
“Hand it over? Oh they can kiss my ass if those four snobs think I’m letting them take what’s mine. I’m fight ‘em on a bummed leg if I have to.”
Justin wrapped his arm around Mark.
“I know you would. Leave this to me this week. Just rest up for Unscripted. They’re coming to reset everything back to how it’s supposed to be and nobody is going to stand by our side. Don’t expect people to want to fight with us against these four. The only person who sees it the same as us is Garth and he’s so selfish I doubt he can see the bigger picture.”
“What bigger picture would that be?”
“We’re not just fighting for us. If I can beat Reynolds that lets the wheel know they can’t just drive over us. They’ll have to send everything they’ve got. This system will target us and at Unscripted we’ll be in for the fight of our lives. At Unscripted we fight for every person on this roster that has never been given a chance. We fight for those who have fallen because guys like Reynolds have crushed them over and over again. Together, you and I are going to stand at the door with closed fists as a system built years ago tries to take what we earned!”
“Together!”
“Together.”
They stood united. Unscripted was fast approaching and the reigning champions knew they’d be the underdogs. They were going into a fight that was supposed to set the company back on track. Remove the trouble makers and give the titles back to the same old people. Not this time. This time the trouble makers were prepared and in just a few weeks they’d greet the system that fought against them. The very system built to keep the rich at the top and push down upon those who dare speak out. Mark and Justin were alone but that was their best chance. Together they could stop the wheel from going over them. They could be the roadblock that the company needed.
======
VB: “It’s a fine piece Becky. You’re overreacting.”
BS: “That is nothing more than a puff piece that thinks about possibly asking the tough questions but shies away from it. I’ve done his job Vance & if I had written that sh-”
Vance Bateman is sat in Becky Serra’s office when they are interrupted by a knock at the door.
VB: “Come in Leon.”
Becky glares at her opposite number; Leon gives sideways glances to them both as he picks up on the tense atmosphere as he enters the room but Vance is typically chilled.
VB: “Leon, we saw the piece on Austin Reynolds & Justin Cooper that you wrote for the website, very good stuff & I certainly agree with your thoughts.”
Leon revels in the praise but Becky is quick to follow up.
BS: “But we want more, we want much more.”
VB: “What we’re thinking is that you could dig deeper into the Austin Reynolds story. He’s a more complicated guy; he’s got more depth now than ever before. We think you can put something together ahead of Unscripted to celebrate a great talent returning to a WZCW PPV event.”
LK: “Well I had something like that in mind already but it was going to be about Justin Cooper.”
BS: “What?!”
Becky’s face is full of indignation but Leon carries out enthusiastically.
LK: “Yeah I’ve got it all planned out. I was going to fly after the shows then head to Sydney via Auckland. I had plenty of time to get all information I need, do the piece & get back well before Unscripted.”
VB: “Well you know, that sounds pretty decent.”
BS: “You know Leon I think that the better piece is going to be about Reynolds. There’s more room for mystery there you know. He’s the perfect onion.”
Leon & Banks looks at Becky at the weird reference.
BS: “Onion? You know what I mean? In-depth pieces like this need a good onion.”
LK: “You want me to make our readers….cry?”
VB: “Becky that’s not good for our buy rate you know.”
BS: “Layers, guys! I’m talking about layers! Austin has got that whole silent man of mystery thing going on, which is so totally not like the Austin I remember. Find out what’s going on, with him, with Holmes & Abel & definitely with Constantine. I’m pretty sure that I am not the only one who finds that particular part of this dynamic more than a little disturbing.”
LK: “OK, Becky not that I don’t agree with you about Austin but he blanked me the other night & we heard from all of them apart from Austin. I’m sure I could get some great stuff from Austin but getting to him will be a problem.”
VB: “I’ve had the same issue, everything we do for him goes through Holmes.”
LK: “Besides I think the piece on Cooper is a better shout. The guy is hot right now, there’s barely anyone more popular especially as he seems to embrace that now. It would go down a storm & dare I say it, it would be more interesting than potentially going down a dead end with Reynolds.”
VB: Face It Becky, everyone loves a story about bad-guy turned loveable rogue.”
BS: “Cooper’s a waste of space Leon. Look, don’t get me wrong; it’s the fun-to-write, feel good story right now but he’s not going to last. It’s so obvious that if Abel or Constantine get their hands on Cooper or Keaton, they’re gonna be popped like a zit & there’ll be new tag champs.”
There is a stony, uncompromising silence until Leon perks up.
LK: “I’ll do both then”
BS: “Leon, you’re going to be much too busy for that, you can’t afford to be jet-lagged ahead of Unscripted. I’ve done that trip before, it’s a killer. I don’t know how Cooper pulls it off so often.”
LK: “Maybe that’s the key to everything for Justin; he’s constantly going back & forth. He must have just found a way to accept being liked & embrace it.”
BS: “Why is this even a discussion? Austin is the bigger star.”
VB: “I’ve got two words for you – Ty Burna. Austin never beat him. Cooper did, for a title.”
BS: “Ugh fine! Do the thing on Austin & if you have time, you can do the Cooper piece. In the meantime we can see who comes out on top at Meltdown but it’s cut & dry. If you don’t stop Austin’s new buddies from appearing at ringside -”
VB: “Which I will not.”
BS: “Then the match will end with Cooper flat on his back. They’re just too dominant. Now excuse me gents, I’ve got the pleasure of welcoming Messrs Hunnicutt & Constantine to Ascension but I need to ensure that we don’t have a repeat of the chaos from Meltdown last week.”
Becky gestures them away with a flick of her hand as she turns towards her computer.
- Status
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