==========
September 11th, 2020
Vancouver, BC, Canada
Off Camera
==========
Immediately following her victory over Peyton Rice
at Rise To Greatness to become the new SCW Adrenaline Champion, Glory Braddock
knew right away what would come next. She knew that she would set her
sights next upon David Helms and the SCW World Championship at Apocalypse and
that she would use her Trios Contract to get her there. The anticipation
has been building for weeks now and the time has come. No more Breakdowns,
no more House Shows, no more talk. In just a few days Apocalypse will arrive
and Glory’s first one on one opportunity at the SCW World Championship will
finally be here.
The sounds of a female grunting as well the echoes
of feet against a heavy bag are heard throughout an empty gymnasium on the
outskirts of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Vancouver is where
Apocalypse will take place but Glory wants to be prepared, she wants to be
ready for the biggest match of her recent career, and so she is going to get
some final last minute training in. Lucky for her, her associate, Meagan
Collins, or more specifically Meagan’s husband Michael, owns a private gym
nearby and has loaned it out to The British Bombshell for the weekend prior to
Apocalypse. The SCW Adrenaline Champion plans to make the most of her
time here at this establishment, because Braddock knows perhaps better than
anyone else that opportunities at the World Championship do not come very
often. Two of her recent World Championship opportunities have come by
virtue of a Trios Contract cash in. How rare is it for any one wrestler
to win back to back Trios contracts?
Very rare. Her first Trios cash in failed at
Rise To Greatness XVI. But Glory Braddock was lucky to win a second Trios
contract, thus earning herself a chance at redemption. Now over a year
later at Apocalypse The Best in the World intends to make good on her promise
to become a fifteen time world champion.
The concrete floor is gray and the walls are
painted an off-white color, at least the walls that still have paint on them,
as most of the paint on the walls have begun to peel. There is a standard
wrestling set up in the center, weights scattered all over the floor. At
one of the far ends of the room is a red heavy bag. The lovely Glory Braddock
is standing there at the heavy bag dressed in a pair of workout shorts, black
tanktop, and her long gorgeous blonde locks of hair are pulled into a ponytail
in the back, as she viciously attacks the heavy bag with her well-educated
feet. Sweat is pouring from her forehead as she intensely throws fists and
kicks at the punching bag. Yet, as strange as it may be, her focus even now is
divided.
Distraction is expected when you have been attacked
by gunmen three times. Once was outside of a hotel, another time outside
of a church, and the most recent time on a highway which resulted in Glory and
her husband Kurt wrecking their vehicle. Braddock’s associate, Meagan,
believes that these were all messages being sent by organized crime, most
likely those connected to the powerful family that founded the company Glory
now owns, the Alan family. A retaliatory attack was ordered by Meagan
Collins against Jennifer Alan, Matthew Alan’s sister. Luckily no one was
injured and the authorities do not suspect her. They suspect that Matthew
Alan himself may be trying to silence potential witnesses, his own family
included, who are going to testify against him in his ongoing trial.
Glory does feel safe knowing that authorities do not yet suspect her
involvement but still, she wants out of this before she gets too deep in it
because one thing she is not is a gangster.
Every so often she casts a curious gaze at her
iPhone, which sits by her gym bag a few feet away. Braddock knows that
training for her title match should be the only thing on her mind right now but
she is equally as focused on her corporate dealings. And so she is
awaiting a call from the President of her company, Francis Taylor. A few
moments later she hears the familiar ringing. Glory immediately stops
taking on the heavy bag. She marches towards her phone, picks it up, and
looks at the front: the caller ID identifies it is indeed Francis, and that she
is requesting a face time call. Glory answers the call and smiles warmly
upon seeing Francis Taylor appear on the screen.
“Hello Francis. How are you?”
“I’m doing wonderful, Ms. Braddock.”
“Please, there is no need to be so damned
formal. Call me Glory.”
Taylor nods her head. “Very well, Glory.
Just calling you as you requested.”
“Thank you. I only wish we could have met in
person. You did get my ticket to Apocalypse?”
“Yes, I got the backstage pass as well, but
unfortunately more pressing matters are keeping me here in the corporate
offices at Miami.”
Glory nods her head; with all of the recent string
of incidents that have sprung up surrounding her company she anticipated that
her president would end up with quite the hefty workload upon her
shoulders. The British Bombshell picks up a white towel and wipes the
sweat from her face. Then she finds a seat on a black steel folding chair
close to the wrestling ring set up nearby.
“So what is going on at corporate?”
“Do you really have to ask, Ms. Bra...Glory?”
Braddock sighs deeply. “The Jennifer Alan
shooting.”
“That and the recent attack on you and your
husband.”
“I never reported that.”
Glory seems genuinely shocked and surprised to hear this from Francis Taylor. “How
did that get out?”
“I have no idea but it certainly wasn’t me, nor was
it Meagan. Yet somehow the Board of Directors knew of both
incidents. They also know that the FBI is actively investigating the
possibility of Matthew Alan’s involvement in organized crime.”
“How does this impact my standing with the Board?”
“Quite well, actually.” Francis
says with a prideful smile. “At first the Board refused to believe in the
potential of Matthew Alan being tied to organized crime, but that was before
Joshua Hernandez was arrested. You wouldn’t know anything about that,
would you Glory?”
“Nothing at all.” This
is, of course, a lie. Glory was the one who tipped the FBI agents off to
Hernandez and his ties to organized crime. Francis herself can safely
assume that it was Glory who tipped them off. But this fact goes unsaid
and spoken by the two women. It is best that way.
“Very good. While this certainly does not
prove Matthew himself had any ties to organized crime, it did cast the entire
faction of Matthew Alan supporters in a very poor light. From what I hear
Hernandez was taken by surprise by his arrest and is spilling the beans on a
great many secrets. I wouldn’t be surprised if more Alan family
supporters weren’t arrested before this is all said and done.”
A confident grin forms on the face of The British
Bombshell. This is the absolute best news she has heard in the past two
weeks. Everything seems to be coming together, she seemingly has things
under control. Her enemies are seemingly done for and all that remains is
to ensure that none of this is traceable back to her.
“You have done a good job, Francis. Thank you
for handling this for me.”
“There is one final thing I would like to ask you
about, if you have time.”
“Sure. What is it?”
“With this recent investigation into our company’s
former owner, with this recent string of attacks that could be connected to
him, we could end up becoming a target of the investigation. So I have to
know…” Francis pauses to consider her next words
carefully “...off the record…”
“Off the record.” Glory
replies, nodding her head.
“Yes, off the record...did you have anything to do
with any of this?”
Glory knows that Francis is asking for an honest
answer. That is what “off the record” implies. But can Glory trust
Francis with the truth? Braddock was taught in the corporate world to
trust no one unless you hold something over them. That is why she does
trust Meagan, she holds something over her head to keep her loyal. She
does not have Francis Taylor’s loyalty guaranteed. Braddock opts for
safety and shakes her head.
“No, not at all.”
“Is that the truth?”
Francis doesn’t quite believer her boss and is
pressuring for more information. Glory can tell and is growing
frustrated. But then she hears the door to this private gym opening
up. She spots Meagan Collins making her way over in her direction.
Braddock looks down at Francis.
“We can talk about this later.” Glory
hangs up abruptly on Francis. She quickly puts her phone away just as
Meagan Collins arrives. The devious woman has a grin on her face.
“Did I interrupt anything important, Glo?”
“Nothing important.”
“It has to be important to keep a workhorse like
you away from all that bleeding, sweating, and crying to win that world title
you’ve been after the last million years.”
Braddock rolls her eyes. “Funny, Megs.”
“It’s true! But don’t worry, I know you’re
gonna kick ol’ Dave Crockett Helms back into the stone age thanks to what I’ve
provided you!”
“What exactly are you doing to beat Helms?” Glory
arches her brow curiously.
“I gave you access to this!”
Meagan spins around, twirling a few times in a circle, motioning to this
private gym. “My hubby bought this for me when I was an active
competitor. I mean, I used to live in Canada and I needed it! It
helped me and I know it’ll help you!”
“Thanks for that vote of confidence.” Glory
nods her head.
“No problemo, chief!” Meagan
playfully salutes her boss. “But uh, seriously though, I would think
you’d be a mite more concerned about Davey Boy than your company in Miami,
especially since ya got Francis down there handling things for you.”
“And that’s who I was talking to.”
Glory answers immediately, sharply. Meagan’s eyes immediately grow
wide. A sense of nervousness washes over her.
“What did she want to know?”
“She wanted to know nothing. I asked her to
call me.”
“What was the conversation about?”
“Bloody hell, Meagan, calm down. It was just
boring corporate stuff, I assure you.”
“Crap, crap, crap!” Meagan
starts pacing the floor. Glory watches her curiously.
“We just spoke about the business. What is
any of that to you, mate?”
“Because we are under the microscope, Glory!” Meagan
exclaims. “Look, you’ve been kept in the dark for so long and you’ve been
silent and kept innocent for so long that you have become delusional!
Absolutely delusional!”
“How am I delusional?” Glory
asks. Meagan is so erratic and upset right now that she doesn’t notice
Braddock retrieving her phone and dialing a number.
“You want the hard truth, Glory?!”
“Yeah, I’d like the truth, mate, because quite
frankly I’m bloody sick and tired of being lied to and manipulated at every
turn.”
“Yeah, well you’ve been manipulated for a long damn
time.” Meagan’s eyes grow narrow and more intense. “You
may think Matthew Alan and his connection to organized crime is your only
problem but you have no idea how much that his ties to organized crime have
permeated your company!”
“I am beginning to gain some knowledge of it,
Meagan.” Glory says with a knowing smirk on her face. “Did
you hear that Hernandez was arrested?”
“What?!” Meagan
cries out in shock.
“It turns out that he was involved in organized
crime. He helped Matthew Alan maintain influence over my company for a
long time after he lost it. And he wasn’t the only one involved,
apparently.”
Almost as if on cue the doors to the gym burst open
and local authorities, police, and other agents come bursting in the room
They surround Meagan Collins and Glory Braddock. Meagan looks too stunned
to move and her arms are raised high in the air. Glory just looks back
with a smirk on her face.
“Hernandez cut a deal with the FBI. He has
agreed to testify against Matthew Alan and talk about some of the deeper rooted
problems within the company in exchange for leniency. I had no idea that
you were involved with this, Meagan.” She
shakes her head with a faked look of disappointment. “Such a shame.”
Meagan Collins is handcuffed with her hands behind
her back. Meagan glares angrily at Glory. “You…”
“I expected better of you, Meagan. My company
is an upright place for good people. I cannot imagine you would have
orchestrated such despicable acts.”
Glory continues to stare at Meagan with a confident
smirk. Meagan’s look of contempt slowly shifts from acceptance of her
fate to a sly grin of her own. She did, after all, have to realize that
eventually she would go down. Glory Braddock had damning evidence against
her already; it was only a matter of time before Glory found Meagan to be no
longer useful and turned her in. Glory though is turning her in because
Meagan has become a liability. Glory Braddock is not a gangster and she
cannot allow these recent string of attacks to be traced back to her. She
had to turn Meagan in.
“I suppose this was going to happen eventually.”
“You can’t escape justice forever, Meagan.”
Those are the final words these two former friends
exchange before the authorities drag Meagan Collins away. Glory is
surprised that this devious, manipulative woman took her downfall as well as
she did. But now that Meagan is out of the picture Glory is definitively
cleared of any potential charges that would have come her way. Glory
Braddock sets her phone down and approaches the ring. She sits upon the edge
of apron and sighs deeply, contemplating her future. She doesn’t get much
time to think before she hears another door opening, a door from the
back. A warm smile forms upon her lovely face.
“Did you enjoy the show, love?”
A few moments later Kurt Logan, Glory’s loyal and
supportive husband, enters into view. He stares at her stoically and nods
his head. “You did the right thing.”
“Did I?”
“Yes. I admit, I do not like how you chose to
do it, but you did the right thing by getting Meagan Collins out of your life.”
“Maybe so but this only solves one small problem.”
“I think potentially having yourself or your
company go under was a pretty damn big problem you dealt with, Glory.”
“In the grand scheme of things? Are you
sure?” Glory sighs. “I mean, yes, I’m in the
clear. But are my problems with organized crime truly over? If
there is a faction of Matthew Alan supporters willing to go that far to take me
down, who is to say they’re going to stop now?”
“Fair point.” Kurt
admits, nodding his head.
“All of this happened because of what I did,
Kurt. All of this happened because I wanted unlimited and unquestioned
power within my company. That drive for power made me paranoid and caused
my mental issues to resurface. And those mental issues are not going away
anytime soon, Kurt. My drive for more power isn’t going away either.” Braddock
shakes her head. “That isn’t me…”
“I wasn’t going to say anything, but you’re
right. It isn’t you.”
“What happens if I keep going down this path I’m
on? Between Meagan Collins and Aphrodite Noel I’ve learned a great deal
about how to win and maintain power. I’ve hurt a lot of people on my way
to maintaining my power and I even hurt and betrayed both of them in the
process.”
“So what do you want to do?”
“I don’t know.” Glory
shrugs her shoulders. “I am at a crossroads. I could stay on this path
but these past two weeks gave me a reality check. It gave me a true
glimpse into my future. I will be constantly paranoid, constantly looking
over my shoulder at possible enemies looking to betray me, looking to do to me
what I just did to Meagan.”
“Or you could change your ways.”
“Yeah, and risk losing everything I have fought to
obtain.”
Glory hops off of the ring apron and approaches the
heavy bag. She resumes smacking it with closed left and right hands as
well as a few martial arts kicks mixed in here and there. Kurt studies
his wife for a few moments before speaking.
“Well?”
“Well what?”
“What are you going to do?”
“That’s a question for another time, Kurt. I
have a World Championship to win.”
==========
September 13th, 2020
Vancouver, BC, Canada
On Camera
==========
It is a gorgeous day in Vancouver, British
Columbia, Canada. It is a bright and sunny day in a bright blue sky over
by English Bay. Standing nearby is a giant work of art, the
Inukshuk. It isn’t long until we hear the clicking of high heels across
granite stone. A few moments later we see the reigning SCW Adrenaline
Champion and self-proclaimed “Best in the World” Glory Braddock step into view
from stage right. The blonde haired beauty steps into view from stage
left. Braddock is wearing denim jeans, black patent leather high heel
pumps, a black top, and a black leather jacket. Her long blonde hair hangs
unrestrained to shoulder length. Sunglasses are covering her eyes.
Her SCW Adrenaline Championship title belt is draped over her right shoulder.
“Behind me you see an inukshuk. It was
commissioned by the government of the Northwest Territories and given to the city
of Vancouver. Traditionally this represents hospitality and friendship…” Braddock
chuckles lightly “...funny, because hospitality and friendship is the
farthest thing on my mind right now.”
Braddock points to the monument behind her. “This
is almost like a monolith in that it is representative of this fair city.
When people see this thing they think of Vancouver. Bloody hell, they had
its image of the logo for the 2010 Winter Olympics. And like I said, you
David Helms, are a monolith for Supreme Championship Wrestling because when
people look at you, they think SCW. And why not? You have been
around this company for a very long time. You have done it all in SCW,
you have won every brass ring that there is to win. You are indeed one of
the best this company has to produce and you have more than earned your right
to be one of this company’s monoliths.”
“Unfortunately even a monolith cannot stand the
test of time. Whether it be through weathering, erosion, warfare, or
politics, monuments such as this will fall eventually. They will fall and
new monuments will be erected in their place. A symbol of Supreme
Championship Wrestling will stand tall. And that, really and truly, is
what is on my mind right now. Not this backdrop of the inukshuk or monoliths
or this city of Vancouver, my mind is on this event tonight and what it
represents. It’s name is a foreshadowing of your destiny, Helms.”
The Adrenaline Champion nods her head as a sly
smirk forms across her face. “Apocalypse. When the term “Apocalypse”
gets thrown around immediately people come to think of the end of the world,
but the Apocalypse isn’t about any of that. Time doesn’t end, you
see. Time never ends. Time just continues. Time is the one
thing that is truly immortal about this life. Thus the Apocalypse isn’t
about the end of times but instead it is about the end of one time and the
beginning of a new time.”
“Your problem is that you are blind to the
Apocalypse that stands before you. You are blind to the Apocalypse that
you must now face in just a few hours. You have been blind to this
Apocalypse since the day you made your return. You thought you could
return to Supreme Championship Wrestling and once again be relevant. You
managed to win a Trios Tournament...with MY help, thank you very much...and
then you went and you won Taking Hold of the Flame. And then you thought you
could be SCW’s savior and dethrone Bree Lancaster at Rise To Greatness.
Sure enough, you managed to pull that one off too. This kind of success
is unimaginable, so I can understand how you would get this idea that you are
SCW’s hero, that you are the man to lead SCW into the future. You believe
you are the man to lead SCW through this new Apocalypse, these changing of the
times.”
Braddock shakes her head. “I am here to tell you
right now that you are not the man to lead this company into the future.
This idea in your head, an idea in the head of all of your delusional fans,
this idea that a relic of the past can lead this company into the future is
complete and utter nonsense. This company doesn’t belong to dusty old
Hall of Famers who should never have crawled out of the nursing home they were
locked up in. This company and its future belongs to men and women who
are fierce enough, strong enough, powerful enough, and intelligent enough to
take this opportunity and run with it.”
The British Bombshell motions to herself. “I am
that woman. I am bold and fierce enough to challenge you for the SCW World
Championship. You may believe yourself to be invulnerable right now and
these leeches who call themselves your fans may believe you to be invincible
but I am strong enough to take you down. I have all of the right tools in
my arsenal to take you down. In my career I have stood toe to toe with
athlete after athlete, competitor after competitor, who had all the momentum in
the world behind them, who were seemingly unbeatable and unstoppable. But
what happened to these unbeatable invincible competitors when they met me?”
“Simple. They realized very quickly that I am
exactly what I say I am. They realized that I am not bragging when I say
I am The Best in the World. They realize it isn’t just a cute
catchphrase. They realized that I really and truly am The Best in the
World and that realization usually smacks them in the face right after I’ve
pinned their shoulders to the mat for a three count or made them tap out to my
triangle choke. I am also smart enough to know how and when to call my
shot. I am intelligent enough to know when to take my opportunity.
Lucky for me, I was also one of three individuals with the ability to take my
opportunity whenever I damn well pleased.”
“Thanks to my Trios Contract, one that I obtained
with you and Ace, my second straight Trios Tournament victory, gave me the
right and privilege to make any match I wanted. And I chose this match,
one on one against the SCW World Champion. I didn’t really give a damn
who the champion was, it just so happened to be you. But right here and now
is when you as champion are the most vulnerable. You just don’t know it
yet. But someone like you, a great symbol of SCW’s past, you should know
this better than anyone else. But feel free to pay attention, Helms,
while I educate you and everyone else on the history of Apocalypse.”
“2015...new World Champion, Dawn Lohan.” Glory
holds up one finger.
“2016...new World Champion, Syren.”
Glory holds up a second finger.
“2017...new World Champion, Ace Marshall.”
Glory holds up a third finger.
“2018...still World Champion, Sienna Swann.”
No new fingers are raised up this time.
“2019...new World Champion, Owen Cruze.”
Glory holds up a fourth finger.
“Have you figured it out yet, Dave? If not
let me spell it out for you. That’s four new champions in a five year
span. SCW World Champions do not fare too well at Apocalypse. I
have better odds at beating you at this event on this night than on any other
night. So why wouldn’t I want to wait and use my Trios Contract for this
moment? Some people may not like what I did, but that’s fine, they can
kiss my gorgeous ass. And if they want to be jealous and complain about
it, let them. It is a cross I must bear as the woman of destiny, the
woman chosen to lead SCW into the future.”
“You are most certainly not the one to lead SCW
into the future. As I said, relics of the past are to stay in the past
and that is where I shall make damn sure you stay. All the past is here
to do is serve as a reminder or as a teacher. The past teaches us lessons
to learn about the present and the present then leads us into the future.
I already showed you the past, Dave. The past of SCW Apocalypse is a
history of new SCW World Champions being crowned. It has been a history
of ushering in new eras. And this present Apocalypse will be no
different. Your past will end, my future will be ushered in.”
The British Bombshell shakes her head. “No one
can stop me. Especially not you, Dave. Even with all of the
momentum you have had since your return, even with all of your fan support,
even with your never say die attitude, even with all of that, it will still not
be enough to stop me. I will end this momentum you’ve built up, I will
destroy your glorious return, and I will lead SCW into the future all while holding
the SCW World Championship proudly over my head. I will lead because it
is my duty, my obligation, and my responsibility to lead. I must do this
because I earned this; I earned this opportunity by winning Trios. I was
better than everyone else on that night, which is why I had the contract, and
on Apocalypse all I have to do is be better than one person.”
She points her lovely finger at the camera, as if
pointing at David himself. “I just have to be better than you, Dave.
And it isn’t like I haven’t beaten Helms boys before. Ask Jason if he
thinks you can stop my destiny from arriving. Or ask Alistaire Allocco, a
former SCW World Champion might I add, if you can stop my future? And if
you still need further proof, just ask Peyton Rice if you can stop me from
taking your championship? Because she thought she could stop me from
taking hers but I proved her wrong.” Glory pats the Adrenaline Championship
title belt that sets over her right shoulder.
“I proved to Jason, Alistaire, and Peyton that you
cannot fight time. And tonight, Dave, as good as you are, you are going
to come to the same harsh conclusion that they all came to; you are going to
realize that even David Helms isn’t strong enough to stop time. The fact
is, you have been around this game far too long. You are any empty waste
of space taking up my rightful place at the top of this company. And
tonight, The Next Level is going to meet the one level you cannot overcome, and
that level is known simply as The Best in the World.”
Glory removes her sunglasses and casts them
aside. The look in her eyes is one of sheer intensity. “Apocalypse is
coming and no one can stop it. Sic Semper Tyrannis…”
No comments:
Post a Comment