Post by livewire on Jul 20, 2014 6:41:44 GMT -5
Centereach, Long Island
Grayson Pierce sat in his own bed at his house in Centereach, Long Island with his Uncle Egg and father while his doctor Anish Patel pulled out the last of his stitches out of his now healed forehead.
“With this new cream I’ve created the healing process is complete in 24 hours… and there we are.”
He holds up the long strand and waves it in front of Gray.
“You wanna keep it? Your dad used to love to keep his war wounds.”
Gray just chuckled and pointed to the garbage can. The chuckle was a courtesy laugh. It was a disgusting habit that his father had, and this particular wound was not one that Gray wanted to cherish. When he broke his arm in a ladder match, he was proud of it; when he got a concussion in a Death Cell Match, he was proud of it. But when he got busted open in that cowardly attack by Hyena he was ashamed.
He was ashamed of himself for not being more aware. The bell rang and his guard went down just long enough for Hyena to come out of nowhere and knock him out cold. But he was also ashamed of Hyena. This man claimed to be a beast, and a true warrior. Attacking a man from behind with a weapon is a cowardly act by a man who lacks conviction.
“Thanks for all your help, doc. I feel a hundred percent.”
“Well you’re only about 90%. I suggest that you take the rest of the day off and rest and get back to work tomorrow.”
“I’ll take your notes into consideration.”
Dr. Patel shakes the hands of the Pierce family and goes off. It’s only now that the tautness in the room builds. Egg and Damien rarely spend time in the same room with each other and the tension was palpable.
“Well, maybe it’s time for you to go, Damien. Since Gray can’t exercise now would be a good time for him to get his studies in.”
Egg started. Egg was a genius, he knew everything about everything it seemed, and Gray wanted to keep his mind sharp and, considering he never got a true college education since his music career skyrocketed like he never expected, Egg offered to help in this matter. But he knew that it wasn’t a completely altruistic act on Egg’s part. This was a show of dominance of Gray’s affection over his father. And Damien did what men do when confronted in a situation like this.
“Why don’t you shut your fat mouth and let me take care of my own son?”
Shots fired.
“You stopped being the boy’s father when you chose wrestling over him.”
“And now he’s choosing wrestling over you, isn’t that ironic?”
*Ring Ring*
Saved by the bell.
Conspicuous by her absence is Katrina Ruiz. She has been a bit reserved as of late, and her tepidness hasn’t gone unnoticed by Gray. But she was still perfect at her job, and her timing was as always impeccable. She had the news for next weeks match.
“The New Confederacy? Wow, that’s awesome.
…
Ha, so I get to wrap my hands around that filthy animal’s neck.
…
He’s got some talented partners.
…
Pantheon.
…
…
…
NO FUCKING WAY! I knew it! I knew we made an impact. That’s great news. Thanks so much, babe… Kat.
…
Yep. Friday you travel, I’ll be at that house Show Thursday. Thanks again. Talk to ya soon.”
The argument continued between the fraternal twin brothers.
“I’ll shove that book RIGHT UP YOUR ASS!”
Damien yelled.
“You wouldn’t even be able to locate the correct orifice.”
“I would just bend you over and look for the…”
“LERCH NAMED MY MATCH THE MATCH OF THE WEEK!”
The two men stopped and stared at Gray. He continued.
“At the end of the day, my performance along with the impressive performances of Easton and Omega earned us the Match of the week honors.”
“Atta boy, son. See, even in defeat a Pierce stands tall.”
Egg said nothing… Gray appreciated it. Gray continued.
“Those two fools get another shot at each other. What I wouldn’t give to get some redemption from last week. But I do get another type of redemption. The guy, I think you can call him that, the guy who cracked me across the head and busted me open is one of my opponents this week.”
“One of your opponents? You’re in another multi-wrestler match?”
Egg asked worriedly.
“Yea, well… well just yes. I’m teaming up with The New Confederacy in a 9 man tag team match. We’re facing Hyena, NVL, and Chelsea Armstrong on one side and 3 Pantheon members on the other.”
“That’s main even status, boy.”
Damien said, but Gray shrugged it off. Fact was that he was stoked to be in the ring with some of the most talented wrestlers in the WCF and Hyena this week. This was truly a time to shine. It is do or die this coming week; Go big or go home.. A win would solidify his status as a true superstar in the business. But a loss would…
He would rather look on the positive. This week he would be getting a bigger audience, the fans of the Pantheon and New Confederacy as well as Team Science and the People’s Champion would get their first true glimpse at how much Grayson Pierce could electrify an audience.
He looked at his father, then looked at his Uncle. His Uncle held ‘The Great Gastby,’ the book they were discussing in their weekly classes. His dad held a look of determination. Then Gray felt his head, it was still sore. His brain told him to stay home and get his learning on. But…
“I’m sorry, Egg. This is a big opportunity for me and…”
“Go, go on. Practice, get into shape. Nick Carraway will always be here. Besides, I’m expecting a big date tonight. I better get ready.”
He knew Egg was lying about the latter part, but he was a good nephew and would never call him out on it. Damien went to open his mouth but was shut up by the piercing glare by Gray. He knew it would be best to let this small victory be a quiet one as the two men left the house together, got in Damien’s ’69 Trans Am and drove off into the distance.
The Next Day
“Alright, good training session.”
Damien Pierce said to Gray as he wiped the sweat off his head.
“Thanks so much for helping, Ricky.”
Gray said to the Hispanic man wearing red and green trunks standing next to him.
“No problem, any time. It’s always an honor to work with a local legend.”
Ricky replied. Ricky Reyes is a local wrestler for Victory Pro Wrestling, a troupe that only tours Long Island. He felt a special attraction towards this company seeing how his band was one that only traveled the biggest venues in the Tri-State Area. He had a soft spot for local stars. He is the best wrestler in the company which is saying more than you would think even though the talent pool isn’t very deep. He has the ability to go into a stronger fed, but constant nagging knee injuries have kept him off the main circuit. What Reyes was great at, and Gray appreciated this truly, was mimicking moves. He had this odd ability to see a move and replicate it almost immediately. Even the simplest nuances of the moves can be replicated perfectly, and sometimes it’s those subtleties that change a move from ordinary to extraordinary.
Like the way Price grabs an opponent during his atomic drops; the way Chelsea lands the corner splash higher on the neck than most people, or the way Jonny Fly traps your face within the crevice of his arm when he delivers his European Uppercut. Also the way that NVL’s forearm smash is awfully similar to an elbow smash; how Hyena adds a kidney shot to his sidewalk slam, and even Corey Black’s extra torque in his tornado DDT to account for his less than impressive stature.
All of this and more was studied by the surprisingly still sharp mind of Damien, Gray and Ricky and they trained on this in the ring for hours the past 2 days, and the same planned on being done the next day before Gray took a ride to his sister’s house in Jersey where she said he could stay before the show on Sunday with the caveat that his dad gets a hotel room on her dime. Damien was still not liked within the family, and Gray was just happy not to become an outcast himself.
The three men shook hands and Ricky left with his now trademark limp. He opened the door to the Deer Park Gym and Clifford James almost knocked him over as he walked in past him. An apologetic pat on the shoulder followed as Cliff walked in towards Gray.
“I got some news on that shooting last week…”
Cliff said.
“Shooting?”
Cliff shrugged towards Gray, assuming that he told his father. Gray didn’t bother to tell his him about the incident at home last week, and the ignorant fool didn’t even notice the patch on the door to Gray’s house when he went over the day before. This affirmed his decision. He was also affirmed when Damien got inappropriate.
“Ever since they let black people move into this neighborhood shit has been happening non-stop. What kind of shit….”
This went on for about another minute of unnecessary racism, and with each passing moment the normally passive Clifford James clenched his fists and bit his tongue. He understood ignorance, but it still upset him nonetheless. It got hairy when Damien culminate with...
“It’s because you’ve been hanging around this N*bleep* over here!”
Pointing at Clifford James. Gray let his arm go, which was trembling and let him literally pick the massive Damien up off his feet and smash him against the wall.
“Listen you scrawny old man,”
Funny because Damien stood over 6 foot 4 inches and weighed an impressive 250 lbs, but Cliff lifted him up like a feather nonetheless.
“The only reason I’m not ending you for what you said is because in spite of your actions my boy over here is succeeding, and he doesn’t need your death on his hands. So mind your mouth and mind your manners… please.”
Don’t be confused by the politeness of it, the look on his face, and the shaking of his arms told a different story than his words. He and Gray left the room and got into Cliff’s crappy Buick LeSabre.
“So what’s the deal?”
Gray said quickly changing the subject. Gray had never seen his father act like that before, and wondered what he would try to make him say if he ever got to step into the ring with Steve Orbit. Where Cliff has restraint, he figured it would be best to keep his father away from Pantheon until he cooled down.
“It was Joey Lauro and Danny Mcintyre.”
“No way.”
Joey and Danny were the guys that played second string in Highschool football to Cliff and Gray. Cliff was the starting tight end and Gray was the starting Quarterback. Joey was back up to Cliff, and Danny to Gray. Now, being the captain of this team wasn’t the spectacle it is in good football towns seeing as ESPN Magazine rated Centereach High School Football the worst high school football team in America 1999. They were called the team that every team wanted to play for their homecoming, and though in 2001 Gray led the team to the State Championship where they lost, no prestige was brought back to the school.
But why would they be exacting revenge now, in such an extreme way. Clifford had no answers and said that he was still looking into it. For now he decided to let Cliff handle it, since there were no more incidents to his house or his family. Cliff handed him another disgusting looking concoction.
“Acai Berry and nutmeg smoothie.”
Cliff said as the two gulped down their delicious drinks.
WCF House Show
“First I want to bring up the elephant in the room.”
Gray Pierce stands in the middle of the ring after making his normal breathtaking entrance. Though the women shrieked, and he could easily have his pick of the herd, he had one thing on his mind this week, and that was to make a true impact at Slam!
“You think you embarrassed me last week, Hyena? By attacking me with a chair from behind all you did was embarrass yourself. Your intention was to take me out, but I’m still standing. I’m still here, and I’m asking for more. You are nothing but a coward for jumping me from behind with a weapon no less. This week you get to prove me wrong, Hyena. When we step into the ring face to face, mano a mano, I can only hope that you will be brave. I hope that the fear that you clearly have for me wanes enough for you to put up at least some semblance of a fight.
You won last week. But you’re not about winning; you’re about hurting people and feeding off their pain. Well you’re in the right business because we all are here dealing with our own types of pain be it emotional or physical. And we deal with it and fight through it. We are warriors, all 9 of us stepping into the ring next week are warriors, but there is only one of us that can also be classified as a coward and a phony.
You don’t feed off the pain of others. Don’t act like you’re some sort of supernatural being. You are nothing but a puppy looking to get stroked by his master. You are nothing but a cat looking to for a toy to play with. Maybe if I get a laser pointer you can chase it around the ring for a few hours until you tire out so you can get a good night’s rest. No, better yet, how about I beat the ever living shit out of you and then kick your head off to the Ultimate Showdown where we get to meet one on one, run, meet it there, and crack it with a baseball bat to Revenge and then punt it all the way to War XIII where you will be nothing but a shell of your former self, which is now nothing but a nutty piece of crap anyway.”
The crowd laughs. Grayson tries to hide his smile, and it’s noticeable. He calls for the time keeper to come over and to toss him a chair. He sets it up in the middle of the ring and calls for a bottle of water. He sits with his legs crossed on the chair sipping his Dasani as the crowd settles down and he carries on.
“Your biggest problem is that you don't play well with others, and this is, after all, a tag team match. Your only saving grace, and I mean ONLY is that you are teaming up with one half of the tag team champions and the current People’s Champion. Both people that I have on my radar and both people that I plan on thoroughly impressing this week at Slam.
The team seems to be one made in hell. I can see it now, you three fight with yourself more than you fight your opponents. But If you do somehow find a way to work together towards a common it can be impressive. The carnivorous beast is teaming up with a psychopath with a personality disorder and a soap box hero; a person who likes to stand on top of her soapbox and say ‘because I’m a woman I should be respected more.’ But I’m gonna ignore the fact that you’re a woman, because man, woman, or child who steps into the ring with me gets the same Shock Therapy!
Your life in in shambles, Chelsea, and for that I’m truly sorry, and I hope that despite the fact that we’re competitors this week, that you can believe me. I also hope that you believe me when I say that I don’t give a shit about what’s going on in your personal life when we step into the ring, and that I can only hope that you bring that frustration from your home life into the ring and let it all out there, where it belongs.
See, we are warriors, and though I’ve been shot at recently, that doesn’t distract me from what my goal is. Your crappy life clearly hasn’t distracted you as you amass victory after victory and attain championship gold after championship gold. On Sunday, we don’t step into the ring, not as a near gunshot victim, or a sympathetic divorcee, but as two soldiers fighting for Seth Lerch for the adoration of the fans and for the glory that comes with being called the victor, and we know how important that is for you, especially right now. You have to win something in your life, don’t you? But the whole time you’ll have to keep one eye open for your tag team partner, the SPAC antagonist Nathan Von Lickdick.”
Gray sips his water again and calls for the camera to zoom to his face. He points to his eyes and then to the camera trying to peer into the souls of anyone watching at home, especially…
“NVL, you are a tag team champion, and Ultimate Showdown Winner among other accolades you may have. But you still live in the past as though you are some kind of underdog. If it hasn’t gotten through your thick skull that Team Science and you specifically are no longer an underdog then you belong in that nut house. But just because your past accomplishments precede you, that’s where they will stay, in the past.
Because I am the future of the WCF. This is a sport for people with heart and desire to win. Not as a last ditch effort to relieve the stress of having a personality that you don’t fully have the ability to control. Still, despite yourself you are an accomplished wrestler, and performer, and I’m not going to let my damned ego get in the way of preparing for this match.
I have watched you work, and even though it’s scattered, there is a pattern to the things you do. You are methodical, and very precise in nature, and that’s why you’ve been so successful. I can fine tune what you do and find the things that make you weak; your untapped aggression for example. If I can unleash that it will be the key… the sight of blood, is it? Maybe I’ll cut myself just to meet Vlad personally. And just like I did with Hyena 2 weeks ago, and will do again this week as well as next week, I will tame that violent beast that you say you can’t control. I will control that intensity that makes you so dangerous and use it to my advantage. I will take that injury problem that you are so prone to and exploit it to take Vlad down a notch and Nathan down two more.
Nathan, Vlad, whatever you like to be called, after this match you'll be praying to your panda god to go back to your padded cell because after you see the Livewire pin either a current champion or a member of the famed Pantheon you'll be thrashing around that room and the padding will be the only thing preventing you from destroying your entire life and, like it or not, that damned place that you call home.”
Gray gets up, folds the chair up and slides it under the bottom rope. He looks like he goes to exit but comically stops as he’s halfway under the ropes. He gets back into the ring as the crowd chants “PANTHEON… PANTHEON… PANTHEON…” Despite their nature, some of the crowd eats it up.
“And that’s what confuses me about wrestling. Despite how negative a man’s morals are, or how poorly a stable treats a roster, or the audience, the people who make us who were are; the people who make us SUPERSTARS!”
Gray accepts the cheap applause that he just fished for successfully.
“Corey, Jayson and Jonny… ha, you sound like a 1980’s Social Gang.”
In a nerdy voice
“Gee, Corey, Jay and Jonny, the principal is gonna read us the riot act if we don’t do our homework this week!”
The crowd laughs hysterically as Gray is very funny and creative… in reality they laughed a normal amount because if they actually hysterically laughed they would have had to be checked into a mental institution next to NVL because what they had just heard was so funny it literally ruined their lives, and they went hysterical. This was funny, but not THAT funny.
“I wouldn’t dare leave here tonight without talking about the most dominant stable in the WCF today. This Sunday I get my first opportunity to take them down so they can go running home to Papa Orbit and tell them that a rookie beat them up. But Jason Price, you already have experience in that don't you?
The first match I watched you wrestle live was between you and Orbit. And after I saw that match I thought to myself, that's why Pantheon is so dominant. The athletic display you put forth that night solidified my resolve to join the WCF, but since then both you and he have been unimpressive to say the least. I'll leave Orbit out of this because his time will surely come, and his World Title Reign is slowly coming to an end, and just talk about you, Jayson.
First, you lost to Omega, but in the most embarrassing fashion. Don't get me wrong, he's a he'll of a competitor and despite the not so kind words we exchanged last week we left the ring with a new found respect for one another. But it was like a training session when you and he met. I mean he's good but not that good that he should be able to treat anyone here like that, no one is. But maybe it’s not that he's that good, it's that you're that bad.
Are you that bad, Price? This Sunday are you going to go out there and embarrass yourself yet again? Now please, I said it earlier and it bears repeating. Despite the fact that Price is a whiny loser doesn't mean I'm going to take him lightly. I am smart enough to learn from my past mistakes. No one in the WCF should be taken lightly or underestimated in any way. That's why I want you to bring the Price that fought to a draw with Orbit 3 weeks ago. I want the man who the weeks prior to that earned his title shot that night, because that’s the man I’ve been preparing for and I do so hate to be disappointed.
I don't want you to have to be carried by your fellow stable mates. Well, we know that at least one of them wouldn't be physically able to carry your fat ass. Corey Black standing at 5 foot nothing and a hundred and nothing pounds soaking wet would be lucky if he could carry a baby up a flight of stairs without falling. But you don't play the strength game, do you, Black.”
Livewire puts the microphone down and runs towards the turnbuckles. He uses them as steps and does a back flip off the top one to the ‘oohs and ahhhs’ of the crowd. He nonchalantly picks up the microphone and smiles.
You play a similar game to mine, Black. You use your speed and agility to your benefit, and your pound for pound strength, not brute force. You play that game and you believe that you’ve mastered it. You have flown high and shined brighter by than most during your career, but watching you lately it appears that either you still have a lot to learn, or more likely, you have lost a step.
It’s nothing to be ashamed of, Corey. Your career has been impressive, 13 plus years on the circuit are nothing to be ashamed of. But you have to realize when it's time to step aside and make room for newer, brighter talent. 13 years gives you an intangible advantage but the wear and tear also gives you a very tangible disadvantage. I am so greatly looking forward to stepping into the ring with you this Sunday at Slam. When we look eye to eye pose will be watching what is good enough to be a main event match.
I'll look down on that bald spot on the top of your head while you stare into my chest, but my height won't intimidate you as it shouldn't. The fans will know that they are looking at the past and the future of the WCF; like Wrestlemania 19 when Jericho, and Michaels stepped into the ring against each other magic will happen. Both of us surely will put it all on the line like we always do to prove that you don't have to be a massive giant, or a dinosaur to be successful. The fans will eat up every second of it. It unlike Wrestlemania 19 it will be me, the younger of the two, who will kick the veterans head in.”
The crowd starts chanting HBK, to the dismay of gray. This too an unsuspected but in retrospect obvious turn. He played off the crowds energy and continued.
“Unfortunately for me and the fans, but fortunately for you, we probably won't get much time in the ring together. You've got other people that are trying to steal the limelight like Jonny Fly for example. I don't know much about you, Jonny, but on the flip side you don't know much about me either. You probably don't care to know but it would be wise for you to learn. Based on your return I can tell that you are a glory hog but it doesn't stop there.
You are an incredibly talented and accomplished wrestler but you are the worst kind of accomplished, you lied and cheated your way to the top. You didn't have to but you chose to because you were never confident in your ability. You achieved what you did with a lack of poise it would be amazing to see what you could do with a little bit of self-assurance on your side.
But cheating wasn’t everything. You're unique style helped you scrape your way to the top. That and your enigmatic chameleonesque ability to alter your style based on your opponent. Considering you have six opponents on Sunday that skill should come in handy. And all six of us have different styles so you will be put to the ultimate test. It’s easy to say that you'll fail because of ring rust, or because I have so many different styles that you won't be able to keep up but I find that actions speak louder than words, I'll show you, and the rest of Pantheon this Sunday that I'm the better man.”
Gray puts his hands up and brings them down, and the lights in the arena go down with them. A spotlight lights the ring right where Gray Pierce stands.
"You can call me cocky, or arrogant or an egomaniac or any other synonym that your pathetic minds can come up with and I will stand here right here right now and tell you that you're right. I'm a bit of a narcissist but when I know that I'm right I deserve to be one. I am also humble enough to know when I'm wrong, or when I have more to learn. I'm still relatively new to the business, but it courses through my blood. I've known how to wrestle my whole life, just never had a reason to tap that ability.
The fact that my father is a former champion isn't what makes me confident. Not even the fact that he is the one training me. What makes me confident is what I've been able to accomplish in my life despite my limited resources. I didn't do it alone. I got my record deal because of the crew of talented musicians I had backing me and this week I'm gonna win because of the incredibly impressive team I have in my corner.”
A screen appears behind Gray and on either side of him an image of Johnny Reb and Doc Henry appear. A photo op would lead you to believe that the three men were actually standing in the ring together.
“This week I get the distinct honor to team up with The New Confederacy. A team so in tune with each other that they can finish each other's sentences but more importantly finish each other's moves. Two people that separately have accomplished a lot and combined have accomplished it all. To team up with Doc Henry and Johnny Reb is a privilege and it will be and honor to have my hand nd high alongside yours after the match on Sunday.
Pantheon are the clear favorites to win this week as far as the betting world goes. But in my book we are the favorites. There will be Thunder in Paradise for someone this Sunday as the other team gets hit with some High Voltage. In the words of Lao Tzu 'The journey of a thousand miles begins with nose step.' I've been preaching since I started about electrifying the WCF one step at a time, well after I win this week it will be a HUGE step in the right direction.”
The images disappear and the spotlight shines again only on Grayson Pierce.
“Livewire out."
The spotlight fades out and the crowd cheers. Then the lights turn on again and “He'll Yea” by Rev Theory plays through the arena as Gray embraces the applause from the fans and he shows his appreciation by signing autographs for he fortunate ones in the front rows as he exits the area.
fin
