MD50: Constantine vs. Brad Bomb - Lethal Lottery Qualifier

[Phoenix]

John Constantine finds himself backed into a corner as he has one last shot at getting into the Lethal Lottery, taking on Brad Bomb who was away last week doing some promotional work overseas. Which of these two competitors will be going to their first Lottery?

Deadline is Tuesday 14th December 23:59 EST

 

[newc868]

BACKSTAGE at the arena for the upcoming WZCW Meltdown show.
We see Brad Bomb get out of a car that's just pulled up in car park. He's wearing a black suit and tie with a white shirt, he's smiling and looks happy. However, as he catches a look at himself in reflection and sees the stitches on his head - a reminder of the chair attack Big Dave gave him two weeks ago, his smile drops for a moment as he scans his fingers over the stitches, he remembers where he's at - what he likes doing best. He grabs his gear bag from the boot of the car, he auto-locks the car as he walks off and heads through the backstage area of the arena.
As he's walking through the arena he sees Tucker Graham, his one-time tag partner at All Or Nothing Gives. He smiles as he sees him and gives a greeting as they clasped hands and hug each other briefly.

Graham: "Hey man! How you doing? How was the Middle East?"

Bomb: "Hey. I'm doing alright. Middle East was great fun. Abu Dhabi is surprsingly hot this time of year. Even did a bit of work on my tan." *laughs*

*laughs* "Yeah I can see that. So you up for a little sparring session sometime soon?"

"Yeah why not man. I enjoyed hanging out last time, it was good fun, despite the fine for breaking that arcade game."

"Na, it's cool bro. Anyways, I got to catch my ride to Ascension, see ya around."

"See ya."

Bomb continues walking through the backstage of the arena, passing the drinks table, a few WZCW members of staff - giving up a nod and smiling at most of those he passes.
He stops and asks two people where the locker room, sharing a joke and a handshake with them. He then gets into the locker room. He throws his bag down and then takes a seat.
He lays his head in his hands, then he looks at up the ceiling and lets out a deep breath.
He gets up and goes over to the sink where he splashes himself in the face with some water.

"Come on Bomb. You gotta break out of this. You gotta break out of this funk."

He looks up in the mirror and a smile breaks out across his face.

That's what I want to see! Come on!

Then he acknowledges the stitches on his head. He rubs his fingers over the stitches. His smile soon disappears from his face. His head lowers once more, in parallel to the running water of the tap.
He lets out another deep breath as he grips the edge of the basin.

---------------------

The scene cuts in on Brad Bomb as he is just putting on his Boom! elbow pads. As he finishes up tightening them, someone knocks on the locker room door.

"Come on in!" - Becky Serra opens the door and Bomb beckons her in -"What you want Becky?"

Becky enters - "I was Wondering if I could uh..." she nervously steps over, and around, shards of broken porcelain that litter the locker room floor - "get an interview with you." Bombs laughs as she stumbles in her heels but clears the rest of the way for her.

"Yeah sure, that's fine. Fire away".

"Ok. So Brad Bomb how do you feel your first couple of months have gone in WZCW?"

"Well they haven't been bad. I'm still learning and I'm trying to find my feet, ya know? I mean sure I haven't had the starts like Barbosa, Ferbian and Winters have had but I can get there."

"Why do you think you haven't rised through the ranks like they have?"
Bombs head dips and he takes a couple of breaths before continuing on.

"A couple reasons, like the Crashin Movement and also the last time I was on the WZCW stage - I got smashed round the head by Big Dave, which took away my chance of getting a win!"Bomb is exhaling quite loudly as Becky looks a little bit intimadated by the shouting. Bomb quickly apologises and asks Becky to carry on the interview.

"Oh yeah, how is your head?"

"My head's doing ok. Obviously it's still a little sore" He points to the stitches "but I've been cleared to return and management have given me the chance to make Lethal Lottery 3 tonight."

"I read the report on WZCW.com it said you'd be out for a month but you're back for a match tonight, as you mentioned, how?" She gives Bomb a puzzled look as he grins at her question.

"I wouldn't believe everything you read on the Internet, Becky." Bomb smiles at her and Becky seems more confused if anything

"I know my opponent, Constantine likes to rant and rave and post rubbish like

Sooner or later, we (Ty Burna and Constantine) are going to collide for that Championship belt

I mean nobody is believing that. The guy is getting beat left, right and centre in the ring at the moment."

"Well in fairness your win-loss record is more of a loss record at the moment, so you're in the same boat don't you think?"

*Bomb is nervously smiling as he clenches and unclenches his fists. You can hear him taking deep breaths as he seems to be struggling to contain himself*

"Yes, I currently haven't registered a win in WZCW yet, well noted." Bomb takes a deep breath "However, I am looking to take advantage of someone else whose on a bad streak tonight. A guy who called himself the 'Power Trip' but all he was 'tripping' on wasn't power, it was his large, self-inflated ego and also the leash that Showtime Cougar was placing on him".The veins on Bomb's head appear to be throbbing as he awaits Becky's next question. She looks like a rabbit in the headlights at the moment, taken aback by the anger that Bomb is showing. His earlier, happy and welcoming self replaced by this man fuelled almost entirely on anger.

"So, um... you-u think you can register your first win-n-n tonight?"

Why yes Becky, I think I can. Actually, you know what *he grabs the microphone from her and then stares at the camera* "tonight I will beat Constantine. I will make sure he rues his loses in the previous two matches because I'm coming in like a fastball, strike three and I'm striking him out of Lethal Lottery. 'Cause tonight, I'm wiping the smile off my face and I'm not holding back! I'm going to the Church Of Constantine and I'm going to give a sermon on rage, wrath and kickassery - which proved oh so effective last week didn't it, John."

Bomb looks at Becky one more time before thrusting the microphone in her direction as her storms off out of the locker room. Becky is left standing there - her face a mixture of fear and relief - as the camera fades to black

 

[Dave]

The roaring of the live crowd circulates the arena as John Constantine rolls out of the ring. Baez is already some way up the ramp before him. Constantine falls to one knee and looks around at the faces that surround him. He allows his head to fall for a second as his chin rests on his chest. For a moment, the surprise of the moment gets to the crowd as Constantine's other leg buckles from under him. On his knees and his head dipped, the crowd hushes for a second. Constantine looks up for a moment as the crowd begin to boo some more. His spirit looks depleted and there is a sadness in his eyes as he gets to his feet.

Slowly, he begins to tentatively make his way up the ramp as some of the technicians of WZCW make sure that the ring is set for the next match. As Constantine reaches the top of the ramp, he turns around to look deep into the vast crowd. He closes his eyes for a moment and allows the emotion of the moment to wash over him. Constantine raises a hand to the audience but seems unsure of himself.

Constantine: …

He opens his mouth to speak but no words flow. He closes his mouth and lets his hand drop to his side. He takes one step back towards the ring but seems to have a change of heart. Turning around, he makes his way towards the curtain, briefly turning back for a second as the hatred that flows from the crowd brings a solitary tear to his eye. Defeated in many respects, he lifts the curtain and walks through the opening silently.

As he ventures into the back of the arena, he steadies himself and walks through the production office. The staff brace themselves for the vengeance of Constantine as is the normal fashion. Cups have been emptied in advance, so that they are not emptied onto the poor production worker who is supposedly responsible for his latest defeat. Sharp objects have been hidden from sight and the workers wait for his wrath. As we walks amongst them, he remains silent, not even giving a second look to one of the lighting riggers who had accidentally met Constantine's gaze with his own.

They wait, on tenterhooks, for the fiery vengeance that should arrive. But nothing...

Constantine stops for a moment and looks around at the faces whom he would usually terrorise. Tonight though, things are different. Things have changed and all of those who bare witness to this moment feel it in the air. Without saying a word, Constantine begins to walk again. He grabs a towel from a stage-hand as he exits the production office and into the brightly-lit hallway. He wraps it around his shoulders and continues down the stone corridor. There is no rapier wit and there is no rant directed towards the people who make the federation run. There is something different about the man who went down to Baez only moments earlier.

“Three consecutive loses is going to take it's toll on any competitor who fancies himself as the greatest icon in the company. A man who would have had his way with Baez only a couple of months ago. Where did all of that momentum go? Where are the actions that have caused such a stir in the company over the last couple of months? Where is the fighting spirit that has taken me to the top of many industries and offices? Could it be that we are witnessing the destruction of a star that burned too brightly?” Constantine thinks to himself as he stops for a moment and raises one hand to touch the cold, stone wall.

Constantine shakes his head for a second, as though trying to erase the ideas that rush through his head away. He grimaces as a sharp pain shoots into his shoulder. He places his hand on the injured shoulder and rotates it as a look of intolerable pain spreads itself across his features. Constantine lets out a hearty sigh as he uses the towel to wipe some sweat from his brow before he continues down the corridor again.

As he rounds the corner at the end of the hallway, Showtime stands before him. An angry look is etched upon his face as he looks deep into the eyes of a man who knows he has been beaten. Showtime approaches Constantine and tilts his head to the left a little. Constantine cannot meet his gaze and allows his chin to drop to his chest again. Showtime's expression softens a little as he raises his left hand and puts it on the right shoulder of his partner in the Showtime Power Trip. Constantine looks up and into the eyes of Showtime again. Showtime gives him a nod as Constantine uses his left hand to pat him on the arm.

“He knows! He knows that I am a sham. When I arrived here I was put in the ring against the very best! I was the hottest new commodity in WZCW and people were clamouring to broker deals with me. Now what am I? I am a man who has just lost his spot in the Lethal Lottery to someone that is no better than a Mayhem talent. Showtime knows that I have lost the spark... He knows that no one fears me like they did. The Showtime Power Trip will diminish and all of the ties that bind me to relevancy will be cut” The manic thoughts of Constantine are becoming more and more active. Constantine moves inside the locker room and closes the door behind him.

“YOU'RE A HACK!”

“YOU'RE WASHED UP!”

“YOU'VE NEVER BELONGED IN THIS BUSINESS!”

As these thoughts continue to arrive within the mind of Constantine, he asks himself, “Could these thoughts be true? Could it be that I was never meant to be in WZCW? Sure, I have done enough to warrant a place on the roster of this company but am I a liar? Have I been preaching a message that I could not follow through on? Yes, I have beaten Austin Reynolds but what I have I did since then? Nothing... The EurAsian 5 go unpunished for their treacherous actions and here I am, questioning my position within this company.”

Constantine gets dressed and walks over to a board that is hanging on the wall of the locker room. Upon closer inspection, it seems to be the expected card for next week. Constantine scans it for a moment, his heart sinks as he seems to be have left off of the Ascension card. Whilst he ha snot been an exclusive Ascension talent recently, he always felt that he had created a home on that brand.

“Oh no! They have cut me! That's it, I'm done! Three loses and no spot in the Lethal Lottery... Why would they keep someone like me around? I'm not worth the money they pay me and no one wants to watch a washed-up hack like me try and win Championships. You gave it your all, John... It just wasn't enough.” Another tear flashes onto Constantine's face and rolls down his cheek before falling to the floor as more dangerous thoughts spring to his mind.

Constantine walks back over to his bench. He sits down and places his head into his hands. He swallows as his pride goes over the lump in his throat. No place on the next card means no place for the Power Trip to ply his trade. Constantine looks around the locker room.

“I'm going to miss this place. For the first time, I felt as though I was at home here. Sure, there may be more drama than a Shakespeare production but it is the closest to acceptance I have had since the Senate run.” Constantine cuts his thoughts off for a second as he looks back up towards the notice board. Meltdown is the flagship show but there was always a chance that he could be on there... One last chance...

Constantine gets to his feet and walks back over to the notice board. Raising his hand to the sheets of paper that have been pinned to the wall, he feels his heart race as he flips over the page to reveal the Meltdown logo and the proposed card for the evening. He scans the paper for a second before seeing it. His name, placed against that of Brad Bomb, in a Lethal Lottery qualification match.

“Yes! This is it! It is one of the last matches listed but there it is! My name is still on the cards of WZCW. Not only that but I have a chance to make amends for the mistakes I have made over the last couple of weeks. Brad Bomb may be a new guy in WZCW but I have seen him perform a couple of times. He is not going to be easy by any stretch of the imagination but I can beat him!

This is it! This is my chance to make the people fear me again. This is my chance to make the fans sit up and take some notice of me and me message. This is the last chance for me... Showtime simply cannot see me fail to reach the Lethal Lottery. He can't see the cracks in my armour that only reside in my thoughts... This is my chance to book my place in the Lethal Lottery and then show the world that I have what it takes to be a dominant force in this company. Brad Bomb will be a challenge but this is everything to me!

No one can know the thoughts that have rushed through my head tonight. When I go out there next Saturday night, I will bring all of that emotion and vengeance to the ring with me. I will not be stopped by someone that has been on the bench for the last few weeks. I do not get injured! I get what I want and I want to go to the Lethal Lottery! Even more than that, I want to win it!”

The thoughts of Constantine begin to formulate a plan as a wry smile appears in the corner of his mouth. He allows the paper to fall out his hand as his renewed confidence seems to have taken hold.

“I cannot lose again! I WILL NOT lose again! Brad Bomb better be ready for me because I am coming and I have nothing to lose.”

Constantine grabs his things and leaves the room. His confidence restored somewhat and the goal clear within his mind. Brad Bomb may be new to the company but he should expect no mercy from a man who is on the verge. Constantine will be dangerous at Meltdown and everyone will know that...