Post by Project: Honor on Sept 12, 2021 23:04:13 GMT -5
In Honor of National Popcorn Day, Demarco set up a match between Proving Ground-transfer Angelo Caito, newcomers Noah Hope and Cole Madden, and the quiet that is known as Keno….in a Movie Theatre Madness Match. The match, starting in the middle of a movie theatre lobby, instantly kicked off with Angelo Caito grabbing onto Keno and unleashing all his pent-up aggression from his Collision Course loss. Noah Hope and Cole Madden watched in amazement, similar to the kids watching Ralphie beat up Scut in ‘A Christmas Story’. Forearms flew, kicks soared, and even an occasional headbutt connected...sending Keno up against the concession stand, before Angelo dropped the bump-on-a-log Keno, with a double-axe handle off of the counter by the register. Keno crumbled onto his stomach and Angelo quickly jumped on him for the pin. But before the ref could even start the count, Noah and Cole jumped in and broke it up. Finally all four men were tussling, which led to Keno getting his head smashed through the glass candy case, Noah getting hot butter poured on his face, Cole getting Junior Mints shoved down his throat, and Angelo getting nearly drowned underneath the soda fountain Coke dispenser.
It didn’t take long after that, for the fight to move into the actual theatres themselves. Men were whipped into the arms of chairs and choked by the velvet ropes set up to keep folks out of the theatres without a ticket. The real fun started when Noah Hope climbed up to the top area of theatre seating and jumped, performing his own version of a Shooting Star Press…”The Shot of Hope”...but was caught in mid-air by Angelo Cato. Quickly Angelo downed Noah with a GTS… “Honor Roll”. With those two distracted, Keno attempted a discuss lariat… “The Kill”...on Cole Madden, only for Cole to duck under it and drop kicking Keno from behind. Keno goes headfirst into an open garbage can and falls down onto the ground. Cole turns around only to watch Angelo run, jump, spring off the wall, and come down with a THUNDEROUS elbow to the jaw. Cole drops like a rock, giving Angelo the time to crawl over to Keno and hook his leg for the three count and the win.
WINNER: ANGELO CAITO
♫ Never needed any reason
To find deliverance
Like a cancer running through my veins, oh
That's never gonna give in ♫
As the opening lyrics to Daughtry’s “Heavy is the Crown” play in the background, images featuring the stars who will compete on the first Night of Honor broadcast dance across the screen. The imposing figure of Scott Oasis is the first to emerge as we see him physically dominating opponents within the squared circle. Not the least of these highlights is his tag team victory alongside Lil’ Petey over the very man he will face during tonight’s program, Brandon Hendrix. We then transition into shots of Hendrix himself, culminating with scenes from what many are calling his breakout match against Mark Hunter just two weeks ago.
♫ See 'em march like lambs to the slaughter
Toy soldiers lined up on the altar
I was never meant to drink that water
And they'll remember me when I'm underground ♫
As the song continues, we see the man known as “The Damned Heart” in his recent successful outings in Project: Honor, including his most recent win over James Ranger and Percival Burque. Even more interesting, is Jay Crowley’s tag team triumph alongside Swindle Shelldrake and Arata Asakura as we see shots of their victory over Ulf Hednir, TJ Thompson, and Yung Sauce. Then it is the young Drip God himself whose image takes over the video montage, as The Saucy One crashes down upon an unsuspecting opponent.
♫ Heavy is the crown
Never falter, never let 'em bleed you out
I'll be still standing when they try to bring my castle down
I'll never bow down, heavy is the crown
Heavy is the crown, heavy is the crown, oh
Heavy is the crown ♫
The next images are reserved for two of the most recent Ascension Champions, as we see recent footage of both Lesley Adora and Slade Castle holding the prestigious gold. While that title is momentarily out of their reach, the video package highlights their championship victories nonetheless. As highlights from “The Bringer of Light” and “The Slayer of the Streets” flash across the screen, a graphic reminds viewers that tonight they face off for a shot at a different championship, The Noble Title.
♫ With the weight of the world crashing
Pushing you closer to the edge
You find a way to get a little bit stronger
To fight off the demons, yeah ♫
From former Ascension contenders to the current Warrior Rising gladiators, scenes of Emmanuelle’s historic reign are displayed in all their glory. From her victory over Scott Oasis to her survival inside The Gates of Hell, it is clear to see that “The Platinum Standard” has redefined what it means to be a Rising Warrior within Project: Honor. Not to be outdone, we are then treated to highlights featuring Tara Fenix, including her impressive debut at Hell on Earth to her journey through the Friends Like These Tournament. Tonight, she stands poised as the greatest threat to Emmanuelle’s platinum reign.
♫ See 'em march like lambs to the slaughter
Toy soldiers lined up on the altar
I'll rise, hell or high water
And you'll remember me when I'm underground ♫
“The Los Angeles Outlaw”, a brash and talented competitor who has been turning so many heads on Fallout that he’s receiving royalties from chiropractors worldwide, is the next superstar highlighted in the video package. His recent war with Jason Long and his ascension to the top of a ladder to earn a future Legacy Championship Match are just a few things we see as Syndicate takes center stage. His images are then replaced to highlight the man who followed him up that ladder to earn a future Prime Championship Match, “Furious” Julius Fairweather. There is a plethora of footage to show of the Fallout staple, much of which features him throwing The Royale With Cheese. These two men with massive egos and golden destinies prepare to put their harsh words aside and settle their differences on the biggest stage of the year.
♫ Heavy is the crown
Never falter, never let 'em bleed you out
I'll be still standing when they try to bring my castle down
I'll never bow down, heavy is the crown ♫
A dominating champion. A monster among men. Rising from the darkest depths to conquer all he sees, Ozymandias takes over the video package. His decimation of Lil’ Petey and clever outmaneuvering of Mark Hunter are only the beginning images we see of Project: Honor’s Grand Champion. His team victory over The Project: Honor originals and his complete destruction of two opponents in a handicap match soon follow.
An opportunistic contender. A man striving for respect. In a shower of golden pyrotechnics, Cadillac Jackson replaces the champion on the screen as his night of destiny approaches. We see his unprecedented triumph in The Opportunity Knocks rumble along with his defiant face-to-face confrontation with The Butcher of Reine, ultimately leading to his humbling at Ozymandias’ feet. Will the dominant champion continue his reign, or will the challenger rise up to shock the world a second time?
♫ Everything will fade away
Nothing in this world is meant to stay
Heavy is the crown, heavy is the crown, oh
Heavy is the crown, heavy is the crown, oh
Heavy is the crown, heavy is the crown, oh
Heavy is the crown ♫
As the song nears its conclusion, we see an unlikely pairing take over the video package, as early footage of Caliban facing Indy Darling is shown. Those early moments from Project: Honor are quickly replaced to show the men as they are today; leaders of their individual brands, rivals in a war of attrition. Christian DeMarco and Indy Darling do not remain on the screen long however, as the recent hostilities between Proving Ground and Fallout take center stage.
Next are highlights from Mark Hunter’s opening shot, to the retaliation from Lazarus Arjen and Charon Seede, and finally Arata Asakura reluctantly joining the other members of his “team”. We see the rising star named Ulf Hednir and the Proving Ground staple, TJ Thompson, soon followed by images of Ellie Quinn and Switchblxde, new faces who still embody the violent credo of their brand. Finally, there are highlights from Swindle Shelldrake’s recent main event match against Jason Long, and Mason Destruction's unexpected return from his brief exile. The images flashing across the screen begin to pick up speed, as the near-riot from the penultimate episode of Proving Ground before Night of Honor is highlighted.
♫ Heavy is the crown
Never falter, never let 'em bleed you out
I'll be still standing when they try to bring my castle down
I'll never bow down, heavy is the crown
Heavy is the crown, heavy is the crown, oh (Heavy is the crown)
Heavy is the crown, heavy is the crown, oh
Heavy is the crown, heavy is the crown, oh (Heavy is the crown)
Heavy is the crown, heavy is the crown, oh
Heavy is the crown, heavy is the crown, oh
Heavy is the crown, heavy is the crown ♫
With a deafening explosion, pyrotechnics erupt from the grand entrance stage, along the extended entrance ramp, around the wrestling ring, and along the highest reaches of The Tokyo Dome. The first night of Project: Honor’s grandest event of the year, Night of Honor is officially on the air as the various cameras rotate to show off the 55,000 fans in attendance! The roar of the crowd that follows is nearly as impressive as the fireworks display that preceded it, as one of the ringside cameras scans the crowd to pick up a few of their homemade signs...
“PROVING GROUND WILL BE MASSACRED”
“I SYMP 4 SYNDICATE”
“BON BASH BADER < RON RASH RAIDER”
“CADDY IS MY DADDY”
“FALLOUT WILL BE SWINDLED”
Finally, one of the cameras falls upon the announce position at ringside. Both commentary teams from Fallout and Proving Ground are present and ready to welcome the worldwide audience watching at home.
TREY BOOKER: The second season of Project: Honor has all led to this! Welcome one and all to Night of Honor!
KAYDEN ELLIS: Proudly presented to you by the most violent brand in professional wrestling...Fallout!
J.T. PRICE: That’s not even cool, dude. We’re sitting right here.
ALARA ADAMS: Both brands will be in action tonight and during night two next weekend for this cross-branded event! We’ll be rotating announcing duties throughout the night, but no matter who’s calling the action, Night of Honor promises to live up to all the hype that’s surrounded it!
TREY BOOKER: I could’ve said it better myself, but the viewers at home will realize that soon enough as we kick off the show with two beasts from Proving Ground!
Song Playing: Japanese Mafia Music
The lights in the Tokyo Dome cut out, leaving the entire arena in a blackout. Many of the wonderful Japanese wrestling fans are left in confusion of what is happening within their very own environment, but all that confusion ends when on the Honortron reads: "The Don Has Arrived", followed by the yell of a Japanese male, and to the English viewers, they don't understand much of what is said, but they understand one word: "Yakuza". The lights come back on, and there are two rows of men: dressed in suits with ties, fedoras on their heads and armed with Kiwami Machine Guns, and then on the Honortron it reads: "If you're betrayed, endure. Never betray others. If you do, you won't be able to trust anyone and you can't live as a Yakuza", followed by: "Never Betray Brandon Hendrix". The armed Mafia then raise their weapons and take fire (shooting blanks. No adult, children, or even birds were harmed in the making of this entrance). When the clips empty, coming from within the Gorilla position is the man himself. Brandon Hendrix. Dressed in his best suit, fedora on his head over his hair which is placed in a ponytail, and machine gun in his possession as well. The lights dim out and a single spotlight aims down at Brandon. He looks around at the crowd covered in darkness before aiming the gun towards the light source. He says "Long Live The Don", before shooting a blank off and the sound of a light fixture exploding, creating another blackout in the arena. In this darkness we get the voice of Holly Perez.
HOLLY PEREZ: The following match is scheduled for one fall… making his entrance… Standing at six foot, six inches tall… Weighing in at two hundred and thirty two pounds… From San Antonio, Texas… Don Dada… BRRRAAANNNDDDOOONNN HEEENNNDDDRRRIIIXXX!!!
Song Playing: "In My Zone" by Rittz, Mike Posner, and B.o.B
"I've got sunshine in my pocket, I'm just right here in my zone
I've got Sade in my tape deck, I'm just movin' right along
All these haters really love me, they just pretend that they don't
'Cause I've got sunshine in my pocket, I'm just right here in my zone
In my zone"
"I've got sunshine in my pocket, I'm just right here in my zone
I've got Sade in my tape deck, I'm just movin' right along
All these haters really love me, they just pretend that they don't
'Cause I've got sunshine in my pocket, I'm just right here in my zone
In my zone"
The lights come back on and Brandon Hendrix is standing on the steel ramp, dressed for a war. His hair is let down, flowing down his neck to his upper back, his glove on his right hand designed in bloodstain, his pants in black with red bloodstains on both sides as Brandon stares off into the crowd who shows a mixed reaction towards "The Don" as he adjusts the strap of his glove before hopping around on the stage, a devilish grin appearing on his face before slamming it into the stage and fire erupts from the stage area. Brandon pushes himself back up to his feet as he lets out a battle cry before starting his journey down the rampway and towards the battle zone. Brandon's first major pay-per-view match to kick off the show and what a way to kick off Night Of Honor! Step after step down the long ramp before finally making it to the ring. He runs his fingers against the apron before letting a small chuckle escape him as he turns his attention to the steel steps and walks himself up the steps to stand on the ring apron. He stares out into the crowd for a few moments, soaking in the experience before stepping through the ropes.
He stands in the middle of the ring before climbing the turnbuckle and stares off into the crowd. He points to his chest before yelling at the crowd to bow to him and he throws his arms in the air, causing another eruption of fire from the stage as Brandon nods with another devilish grin on his face before getting off the turnbuckle, ready for his match up.
TREY BOOKER: What an entrance for Hendrix!
HOLLY PEREZ: And his opponent… from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania... standing at six foot four inches and weighing in at two hundred and seventy pounds…“The Vanilla Gorilla”...SCOTT OASIS!!!
Oasis’ MMA roots show in his entrance as he doesn’t do anything too extravagant himself, staying focused on the task at hand while the red carpet is rolled out around him to express how big of a deal he is. Scott Oasis’ wealthy status speaks for itself when he comes out in special made Gucci boxing shorts and 1000 dollar boots made in a collaboration by Adidas x Virgil. He shadow boxes in his Big Oasis Brand and skullcap while his hype men hold up the boombox playing his theme. To make his entrance more grand, he comes out with a whole team of people which include his trainers and advisers, adding to the presentation by sporting a hoodie with the name of his brand on it and tights adorned with all of his different sponsors.
J.T. PRICE: As grand as Oasis is, not quite the same pomp and circumstance from Oasis as we just witnessed from his opponent.
Eventually the two men end up face to face in the ring and the ref calls for the bell.
DING! DING! DING!
The two big men trade verbals but neither man shows a flicker of intimidation.
TREY BOOKER: If we get the same version of Brandon Hendrix we got against Mark Hunter then this will be an interesting one.
J.T. PRICE: If we get that Hendrix, Oasis may as well turn back around and go home now.
Hendrix and Oasis still haven’t let up on the verbals until Scott takes the initiative by shoving Brandon into the ropes, unfortunately for Oasis, Brandon springs back with a thunderous superman punch to the jaw. The grin on Brandon’s face is clear as Scott Oasis stumbles around looking lost.
TREY BOOKER: What a shot, Oasis is rocking.
Wasting very little time Brandon Hendrix takes a couple of steps back before launching forward again with a second superman punch to the jaw, again Scott Oasis stays standing but his eyes are glazed.
J.T. PRICE: WOW!!! Brandon Hendrix is on a mission, what an impactful start.
TREY BOOKER: Scott Oasis may not know who he even is right now, but the tough son of a bitch is still on his damn feet.
Once again Brandon takes a few steps back creating distance for a strike, Oasis uses the ropes to stay upright and turns round just in time to be met by a running Brandon. Hendrix is head down and looks to nail his spear! Oasis however, on surely instinct alone, rolls with the spear and has Hendrix locked in a guillotine choke akin to the one often used by Hendrix himself.
TREY BOOKER: Great move by Scott, no idea how he found that in him though.
J.T. PRICE: He’s a tough bastard for sure.
Despite Oasis having both legs wrapped around his body, Brandon manages to start lifting the whole two hundred and seventy pound bulk of Scott Oasis. Hendrix in fact manages to lift his opponent all the way to a stable vertical base, from here Brandon drops Scott with a harsh spinebuster.
TREY BOOKER: Amazing strength from Brandon!
J.T. PRICE: Both down after a fast paced start.
The ref begins counting both men but quickly both men start stirring, both on their knees they start trading shots. Just as it appears Brandon Hendrix is getting the better of the situation, Oasis blocks a wild left hand and this time locks in a kimura lock on Brandon.
TREY BOOKER: The choke didn’t work but maybe this will.
Hendrix struggles for a while and again starts to show amazing strength by lifting the huge frame of Scott Oasis, Oasis attempts to break free but for a second time he’s planted with a harsh spinebuster to break the hold. Both men are down enjoying a breather.
TREY BOOKER: Brandon seems to have an answer for whatever Scott Oasis tries.
J.T. PRICE: He put in a career changing performance against Hunter and you can be certain he has no plans to look like a fool here tonight after that entrance.
Hendrix is first to his feet this time but Oasis isn’t far behind, wasting no time Brandon goes for a third superman punch but Oasis sees him coming, Oasis ducks the punch and grabs the waist of Hendrix. Oasis sends his opponent over with a german suplex, rather than release he rolls over and drags Brandon up before launching him with a second one.
TREY BOOKER: Just like that Scott Oasis has gained control.
Enjoying his moment of control, Scott drags Brandon Hendrix up yet again before sending him back down with an exploder suplex.
J.T. PRICE: Can never rule out The Commander of Drip.
The Versace Villain seems to be enjoying himself and starts shouting abuse at the fallen Hendrix, after a couple of well placed stomps he steps back admiring his handy work. Brandon, using the ropes, is eventually able to stand but is quickly hooked up by Oasis, Scott gets him in position for his pumphandle death valley driver.
TREY BOOKER: The Relapse is incoming!
However Brandon slivers out and instantly runs for the ropes, on the way back he nails Scott with a quick fire spear.
J.T. PRICE: ACKNOWLEDGE!!!
Brandon doesn’t go for the cover, he in fact backs up into a corner and starts screaming for Oasis to get up, after a fair while Scott obliges but is clearly done. BRANDON TAKES OFF AND NAILS A SECOND SPEAR!!!
J.T. PRICE: YET AGAIN WITH THE ACKNOWLEDGE!!!
TREY BOOKER: This is over.
Brandon Hendrix makes the cover but doesn’t feel the need to hook the leg…
ONE!
TWO!
THREE!!! BRANDON HENDRIX WINS!!!
DING! DING! DING!
TREY BOOKER: Brandon Hendrix is a damn star.
J.T. PRICE: That match was crazy, no near falls, just big shot after big shot until Brandon hit the biggest of them all.
Brandon gets to his feet and enjoys the moment as the referee raises his arm in victory.
HOLLY PEREZ: The winner of the match via pinfall… DON DADA… BRANDON HENDRIX!!!!!
The camera fades to John Blade walking into the arena as the fans cheer him. He has his bags and is looking for his locker room. John Blade puts his stuff in his locker room and starts to walk down the hall as he sees Crystal Ward.
CRYSTAL WARD: John! John! Can I get a few words on your Battle royal match up with James Ranger, Rapture, and the rest of the potential Gatekeepers?
JOHN BLADE: Yo, Hold up lady. Yo, you want my words kid?
CRYSTAL WARD: ...Yes.
JOHN BLADE: Alright, Catch it. John Blade got a PHd in Thuganomics.. My challengers aint nothing.. they're just bluffing. And they’re all out nothing. Thorborg Aaronsson, Fee, Fye, Fo Dumb! I'm tippin back the rum thinking you're strong, but you're nothing but as jealous as eve plumb! See I'm here to whoop you, Beat you down, Don't give a rat’s ass what goes down, next Sunday. I'm rapping my story, Going out there and achieving my glory. Yo listen up yea its a true story! You don't like it? Too Bad. Oh well. I'm so rich your ass I could buy and sell! So Step off Puppy bitch!
CRYSTAL WARD: Well, do you think that Thorberg Aaronsson will be a threat next week?
JOHN BLADE: Yo yo.. next Sunday I walk into my arena with a mission.. If your not careful you'll get locked into a submission. Step back I'm not done talking, Better get my victory board and start chalking. See next week I walk out there, saying my verbs, My own weapons, yea my own words! See next Sunday I'm gonna prove why I am The Half Man, Half Machine. All my fans probably have afro-sheen! Next week’s show I'll walk down that ramp, with fire and fury in my eyes. Then you'll know it's you, your fans and these people I despise. Oh and about that rumor, yeah that'll give Show a Brian Tumor, next Sunday Serrano Poblano will have just passed you by! And no, it ain't my funny ass Humor! Next week we clash and next Sunday, I get my props. I get the obsession. Next week Thuganomics 101 is in session!
Crystal has a confused look on her face as Blade walks down the hall. While he does that, he stops into his locker room and he's talking to someone.
JOHN BLADE: Yo yo what up pretty lady?
RANDOM CHICK: Hey John!
JOHN BLADE: Yo, how’s my horny little she-devil? Horny?
RANDOM CHICK: You know... I missed you..
JOHN BLADE: You did?
RANDOM CHICK: Yeah I did.. alot..
JOHN BLADE: Yo don't worry hunny... Your Thuganomics Tutor’s here. How about later we go to my hotel room, take a nightcap. That way I can relax without thinking about this stress crap. You know my hotel room, you have the key, I wouldn't give up our time to own a sea!
RANDOM CHICK: Ok Blade... I'll be there. I Promise.
Blade walks away, but Random Chick grabs him and gives him a kiss on the lips as Blade gets into it. Random Chick then lets go as John gets a depressed look on his face, then walks off, heading towards the locker room. As he enters, we hear him say something about Ace Sky polishing his Gatekeeper Championship…
TREY BOOKER: Wait...is Ace Sky really in Blade’s dressing room? He knows he’s not the Gatekeeper Champion yet, doesn’t he?
J.T. PRICE: I find that it’s better not to ask questions, Trey. This is John Blade’s world, we just live in it.
HOLLY PEREZ: The following contest is scheduled for one fall...
The lights go completely out, the titantron completely blacked out until the drums begin to kick in where the titantron begins to come out, a blackheart on a white background plays on the titantron as it beats the sound of clapping in the song background, as “NOTHING IN THE CAGE OF MY RIBCAGE” echoes throughout the arena Crowley enters with his hood and mask on, he walks down to the ring in complete darkness with red lighting circling throughout the building to give the fans something to view. As he gets onto the apron, he turns to the crowd to remove his hood revealing just his mask, he enters the ring and as he is announced he rips off his mask posing with his arms spread out in the middle of the ring eyes closed as he simply drowns in a full white spotlight on him before moving to his corner.
HOLLY PEREZ: Introducing first, standing at six feet tall and weighing in at two hundred twenty three pounds...fighting out of Sin City...he is “The Damned Heart”, “The Lucha Hunter”, and “The Demon of the Ring”...JAAAAAYYY CROOOOWWWWLEEEYYYY!!!
“SHHHHEEEEEESSSSHHHHHH!”
After hearing the voice of The Stallion of Sauce, “Man in The Mirror” by bbno$ is heard through the speakers and the crowd cheers out loud. All of the house lights shine down onto the entrance ramp as the slow beat to the song continues before the lyrics hit the speakers.
“I see a man in the mirror that I'm proud of
In way too deep, on my mama, I need power
Baby's on the streak, I make hits like every hour
If you want some beef, yeah, baby ain't a coward
You better stand clear, only alive for some dead presidents”
That’s when the crowd are met with The Disputed King of Drip as he makes his way out from behind the curtain, all smiles on his face as he leaps around on the stage and sees all the fans that are there for him.
“I'm the man in the mirror
I'm here for long, I claimed my residence
I'm the man in the mirror
My numbers growing, ain't it evident?
I'm the man in the mirror
I'm finally glad I set some precedence
I'm the man in the mirror"
Sauce begins to make his way down the ramp, hitting his hand along the fan’s hands as he passes them by, mouthing the words to the song as he makes his way to ringside.
HOLLY PEREZ: Wrestling out of The Hip House in Inglewood, California and weighing in tonight at two hundred and two pounds… he is “The Stallion of Sauce”, “The Disputed King of Drip”, “The Yung Drip Gawd”, “The Sauce”, “The Exaggerated Swagger of a White Teen”, “The Pretty Fly Guy”, “The Sauce”, “The Milli-Billi-Dripper”, “The Kid Everyone Loves To Hate”, “Toronto’s Biggest Hit”, “The Big Dripper”. “The Sus Imposter”, “He’s Really Good at Soundcloud”, “The Headliner”, “The Product Placement”... THHHHHEEEEE BIIIIIIG DRRRRRIIIIIIPPPPP PRRRRIIIIIIINNNNNCEEEE… YUUUUUUUNNNNGGGGG SAAUUUUUUUUUCCCEEEEEEE!!!!!
“Please chill out, baby got all the labels like tweaking, now
Yeah, I just set a standard they all have to allow
Yeah, I'm sure I got some years left, watch me keep to my sound
I'm gon' deem myself the man of the year”
Sauce rolls under the bottom rope and leaps to his feet, running into the corner to climb up to the second rope and allowing the fans to cheer as loud as they can as the music fades.
DING! DING! DING!
TREY BOOKER: This should be an interesting contest, J.T. Both men are members of established tag teams, but tonight they’ll be going it alone!
J.T. PRICE: Their partners, TJ Thompson and Swindle Shelldrake, will actually be on the same side later in our main event!
Sauce is still soaking in the adulation from his fans when Jay Crowley charges across the ring to level him with an elbow strike to the back of the head! Sauce hits the mat hard and Crowley continues his sudden offense with several stomps to the young man’s neck. He finally pulls Sauce up and shoves him into the corner before continuing to attack with a variation of stiff kicks. Crowley then positions himself on the turnbuckle before attempting to drive Sauce’s head into the mat with tornado DDT. Instead, Sauce manages to hang on to his opponent and drop him over his knee with an inverted atomic drop! Crowley is momentarily stunned, giving Sauce the opportunity to take a step back before unloading with a superkick! Just like that, he goes for the pin!
ONE!
TWO!
KICKOUT!
TREY BOOKER: We’re off to a quick start from these two, with Sauce attempting the early pin!
J.T. PRICE: Way too early, Trey!
Sauce pulls Crowley up and quickly locks him in a full nelson, but before he can turn it into a slam, Jay breaks the hold and spins back with a lariat! Sauce ducks under at the last second, Jay spins around, and The Drip Prince hits a sudden lariat of his own! Quick cover!
ONE!
TWO!
KICKOUT!
Crowley gets to his feet again, immediately taking another swing at Sauce, who ducks into Jay to counter with a Uranage Slam! Instead of going for the pin attempt, Sauce quickly leaps to the top turnbuckle as Crowley is getting to his feet. Yung Sauce flies off with an attempted missile dropkick, but Crowley has the same idea as he leaves his feet and hits his own dropkick to Sauce’s midsection! With his opponent stunned, Crowley grabs Sauce and lifts him up for a Last Ride Powerbomb! It connects hard!
ONE!
TWO!
KICKOUT!
TREY BOOKER: Talk about fast-paced action! These men are moving faster than I can call!
J.T. PRICE: Old age gets to us all, Trey.
Not to be deterred and determined to maintain his advantage, Crowley pulls Sauce to his feet, wrenches his arm, drives the point of his elbow against it a few times, and then drives him back to the mat with an armbar. The hold is locked on tight as Sauce struggles to reverse it, ultimately having no choice but to fight his way to the ropes for a break. Perhaps foolishly, Sauce takes a wide swing at Crowley upon getting on his feet, but Jay catches his arm and drops backwards, driving both of his extended knees into Sauce’s appendage. Holding his arm in pain, Sauce is left wide open as Crowley hits a few high kicks against his shoulder, before sending him back to the mat with an armdrag and reapplying the armbar.
Once again, Sauce is forced to retreat to the ropes, but this time he guards his arm as he gets to his feet. In response, Crowley hits a low dropkick to knock Sauce’s feet out from under him, then pulls him away from the ropes to apply a figure four!
TREY BOOKER: Crowley has really switched things up here! He’s turned this match from a game of fast-paced moves into working over the limbs of the Saucy One!
J.T. PRICE: First the arm and now the legs, I hate to imagine what part of Sauce’s body he’ll go for next…
TREY BOOKER: Damn it, J.T...
J.T. PRICE: What? I was talking about his neck, you old perv!
After struggling in the figure four for longer than he would like, Sauce is finally able to roll over, leaving Jay no choice but break the hold. Yung Sauce hobbles back to his feet, but Jay quickly snatches his leg and spins him back down with a dragon screw! From there, he keeps hold of Sauce’s leg and starts to apply another figure four, but Sauce counters by hooking Jay’s head and rolling him to the mat with a small package!
ONE!
TWO!
KICKOUT!
Instinctively, Sauce throws a kick at Jay, who wisely counters with a double leg takedown! Without missing a beat, Crowly then rolls Sauce over into a Boston Crab, applying further pressure to his leg and now his back as well! Despite his best efforts, Sauce cannot power out of the move and slowly drags himself and Jay across the mat until he can get his hands on the bottom rope. The referee instructs Crowley to release the hold, but he refuses!
ONE!
TWO!
THREE!
FOUR!
FIVE!
The referee grabs hold of Jay Crowley to pull him off of Yung Sauce, giving him a stern warning to obey his count or risk disqualification. In response, Crowley definitely shoves the official, showing that he’s not one for listening to authority. As the ref continues to argue with Jay, Sauce creeps up behind him and rolls him down to the mat with a school boy!
ONE!
TWO!
THREE - NO!
TREY BOOKER: Whoa! Sauce almost stole this one while Jay was busy with the official!
Frustrated by what’s happened, Jay shoves Sauce when both men get back to their feet, but The Drip Prince bounces off the ropes and comes back with a bicycle knee strike! Crowley is rocked and Sauce follows up by springing off the ropes and connecting with his New Magic Wand! The spear drives Crowley down and Sauce has turned the momentum to his favor just like that! He goes for another pin attempt…
ONE!
TWO!
THREE! NO!
Crowley manages to kick out at the last second, but it’s clear that Sauce’s knee strike and spear have taken their toll! The Drip Prince is looking to end the match once and for all as he positions for The Holy Calamafuck submission hold! He applies the hammerlock but before he can finish executing the hold, Crowley manages to counter and spin behind Sauce! He then hooks the Prince’s head, lifts him up, and spins him around...Final Judgment!
ONE!
TWO!
THREE!
DING! DING! DING!
HOLLY PEREZ: And your winner of the match… “DAMNED HEART”...JAAAAAAY CROOOOWWWWLEYYYYY!!!
TREY BOOKER: That was one hell of a performance by Crowley! Along with this victory, his recent wins have to put him in consideration for a shot at The Warrior Rising Championship!
J.T. PRICE: I’d have to agree with you on that one, Trey. Sauce can be hit or miss, but he’s still a tough opponent.
CLARA OLSON: The following contest will be under Noble Rules and is to determine the number one contender to The Noble Championship!
The beautiful orchestra of "Two Steps from Hell" by Archangel plays, and the lights dim. Mostly white mixed with gold, purple and pink spotlights shoot through the arena, lighting the smoke that slowly rolls from the entrance ramp. Finally, Lesley Adora makes his way onto the ramp, the white smoke rolling over his legs almost hiding his beautiful sparkling bodysuit - white with silver accents, streamers falling from the arms, bird wing embroidery, unzipped enough to show his large oiled chest. Slowly he walks to the ring, making eye contact and pointing at fans who generally want nothing to do with him until he gets to the ring apron. The ring steps have been moved to be centered to the apron, where Lesley slowly walks with his arms wide to each side. He spins when he gets on the apron, leaning his back against the ropes and allowing the spotlights to center on him, smoke flying from all sides of him as he closes his eyes and allows everyone to take him all in. From there he enters the ring, and slowly removes his bodysuit to get ready for action.
CLARA OLSON: Introducing first, standing at six foot four inches and weighing in at two hundred fifty eight pounds...he comes to us from The Garden of Purity...he is “The White Rose”...LESSSLEEEYYY AAADOOORRRRAAAAA!!!!
The arena darkens with a single soft spotlight on the stage where smoke begins to cover the ground. After the initial guitar strum of his theme, a silhouette can be seen through the spotlight. The silhouette is slightly rocking with his gaze down towards his hands. Slade walks into the spotlight still taping his fists and begins staring intensely, yet void of emotion, at the ring. Slade finishes taping his fists and cracks his knuckles, then his neck. Ignoring the rest of his surroundings, he begins his walk down to the entryway of the ring. No matter what the fans at ringside do, nothing breaks Slade's focus or gaze. Once getting to the ring, Slade stops and scans the ring before approaching the stairs in the corner. Slade climbs the stairs and quickly enters the ring as In Time begins to pick up in pace.
The Slayer of the Street begins to walk circles in the ring. He appears to get more and more pumped up before approaching the corner. Slade begins unleashing a flurry of punches on the turnbuckle pad until bellowing out finally showing any sign of emotion. Anger. As the music fades away and the lights come up, Slade's punches begin to lose steam. Slowly as he regains his focus, he now begins directing his gaze to his competitor and awaits the bell.
CLARA OLSON: And his opponent, standing at six foot three inches and weighing in at two hundred twenty two pounds...he fights out of Detroit, Michigan… “The Slayer of the Streets”....SSSSLLLAAAADE CAAAASSSSTLLLLLE!!!!
DING! DING! DING!
ALARA ADAMS: There’s no way around it, Kayden. I think we’re not only looking at a contrast in styles but a serious contrast in ideologies in this one.
KAYDEN ELLIS: Both men are former Ascension Champions, but their performances in that division have convinced GM DeMarco that they deserve a shot at the Noble Title.
DING! DING! DING!
The two men eye each other and briefly circle the center of the ring, before finally coming together for a lock up. Then, at the very last moment, Lesley Adora raises his knee into Castle’s midsection, drawing boos from the fans in the Tokyo Dome. The White Rose gives the former Marine a few more knee lifts for good measure before pushing him into the corner. Lesley then tries to light up Castle with an echoing knife edge chop, but Slade glares back at the White Rose in return. Lesley lets loose with another chop, but still Castle only stares at him in response. Suddenly, The Slayer spins Lesley into the corner and begins to throw his own series of strikes before finishing the combo with a hard headbutt to the nose! The referee leaps in to drive Castle back, sternly reminding him that the match is being contested under Noble Rules.
Lesley steps out of the corner and wipes a trickle of blood from his lips, a side effect of Castle’s stiff headbutt, and he looks horrified that his pure blood has been spilled. Castle motions for Lesley to meet him in the center of the ring, but instead, The White Rose hops to ringside where he continues to tend to his sore lip. With his back to the ring, Lesley is unaware as Castle makes his way to the ropes, eventually leaning over them to grab two handfuls of Lesley’s hair. This forces Adora to climb back onto the apron, where Slade can bring him back into the ring with a suplex. He then kneels over Adora and starts to fire away with some mounted punches, but once again the referee intervenes on Lesley’s behalf.
Hooking Castle’s arm, the referee pulls him to his feet and Slade immediately gets in the official’s face. With both of them distracted, Lesley has the opportunity to hit Castle from behind with a blatant low blow! As Slade sinks to the mat, the referee immediately begins to question Adora, who does a great job feigning innocence.
KAYDEN ELLIS: Right in the wedding tackle!
ALARA ADAMS: Slade is playing right into Lesley’s hands here! His aggression is getting the better of him while Adora is playing it smart!
With Slade stunned, Lesley pulls him up and whips him into the corner, quickly following him in with a running big boot! The impact forces Slade into a seated position, allowing Lesley to follow up with a running cannonball in the corner! Now in full control, Lesley measures Slade as he gets back to his feet, then bounces off the ropes to hit him with a stiff lariat to the back of the head! Slade goes down and Adora pounces on top of him!
ONE!
TWO!
KICKOUT!
Slade gets his shoulder off the mat, but that doesn’t seem to concern Lesley as he guides Castle to his feet and then fires off a stunning discus elbow, but Castle ducks under it! The Slayer of the Streets wraps his arms around Lesley’s waist and then takes him over with a German Suplex, holding him down with a bridge!
ONE!
TWO!
KICKOUT!
Lesley pops back onto his feet but Slade is ready for him with a stiff lariat of his own! He then grabs Lesley by the head, guiding him toward the corner, and proceeds to slam his face against the top turnbuckle as the fans count along!
ONE! TWO! THREE! FOUR! FIVE! SIX! SEVEN! EIGHT! NINE! TEN!
Castle then releases Lesley, who staggers out of the corner, but The Slayer immediately spins around, driving a back fist against the side of Lesley’s head! As soon as The White Rose hits the mat, Slade dives on him for the pin attempt!
ONE!
TWO!
THR - NO!
Somehow, Adora manages to find the will to kick out after Slade’s Visions of Delusion, much to the dismay of The Slayer of the Streets. Castle then backs into the corner, motioning for Lesley to get back on his feet. Adora does just that on the opposite side of the ring with the assistance of the turnbuckles, but as he turns around, Slade is charging in for The Loss of Control! At the last second, Adora leapfrogs over him, and Castle’s shoulder dives between the ropes and into the steel ringpost! As Lesley tries to shake off the effects of the spinning back fist from earlier, Slade stumbles out of the corner and right into the grasp of The White Rose! Adora hits a snap DDT on Castle that plants him on the mat! Then, with Slade laying prone, Lesley goes to the top rope. He launches himself off backwards, landing on top of Slade with The Promise moonsault!
ONE!
TWO!
THR - NO!
This time it is Slade who kicks out at the last second, as we see the frustration growing on Adora’s face. Looking to hit another of his signature moves, Lesley pulls Slade onto his shoulders and then backs into the corner, making his way to the second buckle…
KAYDEN ELLIS: He’s going for Under My Wings! If he hits this, it could be over!
ALARA ADAMS: Lesley’s got that Noble Title on his mind!
Lesley prepares to flip off the buckles and plant Slade in the process, but Castle responds by hammering the side of Lesley’s face with some stiff elbows. This manages to throw Lesley off balance just enough for Slade to escape and sit on the top buckle behind Adora...Lights Out is locked in! Castle has his rear naked choke applied, but the referee does not want to allow it as both men are on the buckles and thus touching the ropes. Slade finally releases his hold on a count of four, allowing Lesley to drop back to the canvas. Castle then starts to argue with the official yet again, giving Adora the chance to pull himself back up with the assistance of the ropes. He’s setting up for Into the Light!
Castle turns his attention back to Adora just as he unleashes his palm strike, but Slade ducks underneath, hooks Adora’s arm, and locks on a crossface chickenwing! The hold is on tight and Slade has the foresight to immediately drag Adora toward the center of the ring! Once they’re in the middle, Castle releases the hold and immediately transitions back into The Light’s Out! This time he wraps his own legs around Lesley’s midsection, foring both men onto the mat in the center of the ring! Lesley squirms and fights for all he’s worth, but he can’t find a counter to Slade’s hold and the ropes are too far out of his reach! Castle continues to apply more pressure until Lesley’s struggling slows...and finally stops altogether! The ref dives in to check his arm, lifting it…
ONCE…
TWICE…
THE ARM FALLS THREE TIMES!
DING! DING! DING!
CLARA OLSON: The winner of the match by way of knockout and the new number one contender to the Noble Championship...SLAAAADE CASTLLLLLEEEE!!!!
KAYDEN ELLIS: Damn! Lesley tried to send Slade Into the Light, but instead it was Lights Out for The White Rose!
ALARA ADAMS: Castle will now meet the winner of next week’s contest between Pyro and Havoc for a shot at the Noble Title! Maybe one of those men will be able to bring the violence that he seems to crave so much!
Backstage. Tara is spotted in the hallway doing her pre-match routine; stretches, and miniscule exercising to make sure she is loosened up for the upcoming match. Despite the challenge, she knows that she has her work cut out for her against Emmanuelle. It would take a lot of work to capture the Warrior Rising Championship. While stretching, there came the slow, steady footsteps indicating someone else arriving on the scene and as the camera panned over you could see Christian DeMarco approaching.
CHRISTIAN DeMARCO: Good luck.
The voice startled Tara, and caused her to stand upright. She recognized the voice as someone she considered a good friend since she first signed with Project: Honor, and one who has supported her since her arrival. She pivoted on her feet, and looked toward Christian with a smile.
TARA FENIX: Fancy seeing you here. Thank you! Umm… I would say “good luck” to you too, but I kind of have to root for Proving Ground tonight.
She said with a chuckle. Christian shrugged.
CHRISTIAN DeMARCO: You could always come to Fallout.
TARA FENIX: That’s going to be hard to do when I’m the Warrior Rising Champion.
CHRISTIAN DeMARCO: When you lose it.
Tara’s eyes went absolutely wide, as if in absolute shock upon the words escaping Christian’s lips. The glare would frighten away any ordinary person.
TARA FENIX: Excuse me?
CHRISTIAN DeMARCO: Should I start running?
There came a sudden loud commotion from around the corner which caught Tara’s attention, and she looked up to see a group of people coming her way… She looked up to see the trio of Jennie, Seth, Sabin. Christian couldn’t help but take a double-take of Jennie, but quickly brought himself back to being professional. Sabin held a document in his hand with a smile on his face as the three were conversing amongst themselves. Tara looked surprised, yet happy, to see them. Jennie was the first to rush forward and threw her arms around her sister, hugging her tightly.
TARA FENIX: What are you all doing here?
Jennie took a step back, and Seth hugged his trainer before taking a step back to join the other two.
JENNIE FENIX: It’s your title match! You know we’re not going to miss it. Plus--
Jennie held an arm up and reached back for Sabin, her nephew, and Tara’s oldest son; he ducked under her arm and she wrapped an arm around his shoulder giving him a gentle squeeze.
JENNIE FENIX: The little scamp here has some terrific news for you!
Tara cocked her head to the side, a visible look of confusion written on her face. Sabin glanced at the cameras, and knew his own in-ring persona… he did not like talking on-camera as of yet, so with a smirk, he shrugged a shoulder and held a letter out for his mother. She took the letter and began skimming it.
SETH EVANS: Well, read it aloud!
Christian seemed intrigued, too.
CHRISTIAN DeMARCO: Yeah. What’s it say?
Tara cleared her throat.
TARA FENIX: Effective as of September 12, 2021… today… The state of Connecticut has ruled in the case of Docherty versus Blake in favor of Docherty. Miss Docherty will be granted shared custody of one Edward Blake.
Joyous tears began welling up in her eyes, which she tried to constrain but the trio burst into a loud cheer for her and Christian stood beside to clap along with them.
CHRISTIAN DeMARCO: Congratulations!
JENNIE FENIX: Yes! Now you have ONE thing you need to do. Go out there, win that belt, and take it home so you can show it off to Edward!
TARA FENIX: I can do that.
Tara handed the letter back to Sabin, who folded it up carefully. It was time for her match… she walked past all of them as they all shouted out various phrases of encouragement, assuring her that she had this. Up next: Emmanuelle versus Tara Fenix for the Warrior Rising Championship.
HOLLY PEREZ: The following contest is for the Warrior Rising Championship, it’s scheduled for one fall and has a fifteen minute time limit.
Every light in the arena shuts off… moments later, a single blue spotlight shines to the curtain as the opening melody for “The Eagle Flies Alone” by Arch Enemy plays over the PA system and the crowd is giving their mixed reactions… The longtime fans have cheered, and overpower the ones who do not know whether to cheer or not; some join in just out of peer pressure.
HOLLY PEREZ: Introducing first… the challenger… currently residing in Hartford, Connecticut… The Phoenix Queen… TAAAARAAAAA FENIX!!!
Fog has filled the stage. The first verse comes and goes. The chorus comes in.
I, I go my own way!
I swim against the stream!
(Forever) I will fight the powers that be!
Tara emerges from behind the curtains; her head is covered by her hood. Tara stands at the top of the stage with a sneer on her face as her eyes scan the crowd as if to find her supporters. Some of the crowd has gotten louder in her favor, while others are still mixed. Tara flings the hood back, and takes a better look at the crowd. The legendary Tara strides down the ramp; the stride turns to a brisk walk about halfway down the ramp. The crowd along the front row is bowing down to her. As she reaches the bottom of the ramp, she goes around to the camera side of the ring, leaps onto the apron with one knee and straightens out her other leg while looking at the crowd and the camera.
I, I go my own way!
I swim against the stream!
(Forever) I will fight the pοwers that be!
The eagle flies alone!
Tara crawls between the middle and lower ropes, and crawls to the middle of the ring. After standing up, she walks to the nearest turnbuckle and goes to the second turnbuckle; she just stares out at the crowd, and shouts out inaudible words. After several seconds of basking, she does a one-eighty off of the second rope and landing. She hands her coat to the referee, then proceeds to wait for the champion's arrival.
HOLLY PEREZ: And her opponent… from Pacific Palisades, California… She is the current, reigning, and defending Warrior Rising Champion… The Platinum Standard… EMMANUELLE!!!
“Cash Flow” by Ace Hood ft T-Pain and Rick Ross begins to play, and the crowd stands in knowing that she’s here; “The Silver Starlet” Emmanuelle. Entering between the ropes, Emmanuelle gives her opponent a neutral expression, as if her mind is more focused on the match than anything else. After a short pause she hands her belt to the referee who raises it in the air before handing it to the timekeeper.
TREY BOOKER: I can’t wait to see how this one goes, these two seem so evenly matched.
DING! DING! DING!
Emmanuelle and Tara square up and what starts as a seemingly harmless trading of words quickly appears to escalate, Tara points a finger at Emmy which gets slapped away. Tara just smirks before being shoved by Emmanuelle, the shove clearly fires her up as Tara springs forward with a takedown, she instantly starts firing in punches.
J.T. PRICE: Tara has been in this business too long to miss an opening like that one.
TREY BOOKER: A fair point but although Emmanuelle is ten years Tara’s junior, she’s no rookie, she has an uncanny ability to stay calm and get things done.
Tara jumps to her feet and runs at the ropes, on the way back she nails a running elbow to the spine of a still seated Emmanuelle. Tara doesn’t waste a breath as she heads for the other side of the ring, she bounces back with a stiff running clothesline. Tara makes the cover…
ONE… STRONG KICK OUT BY EMMANUELLE!!
TREY BOOKER: Never beating Emmanuelle that quick but I think Tara kinda knew that.
J.T. PRICE: True, but making someone kick out of a pin attempt is a logical way of making them expend energy.
Tara is back up and drags Emmanuelle with her. Tara pulls her opponent toward the corner and in a rather ungraceful manner attempts to slam Emmanuelle’s head into the top turnbuckle, however Emmanuelle elbows Tara in the gut before turning the tables and forcing her opponent’s head into the turnbuckle a couple of times. A third effort fails due to Tara now elbowing Emmanuelle in the rib area, Emmanuelle flinches and almost instantly has her own head smashed into the turnbuckle a couple of times. With The Silver Starlet slightly dazed, Tara picks her up and places her upside down in the tree of woe.
J.T. PRICE: These two are being rather unfriendly.
Having taken a few paces back, Tara runs in and nails a dropkick to the defenseless champion. The move forces Emmanuelle to crumble to the mat, Tara makes a cover…
ONE!
T… ANOTHER REALLY STRONG KICK OUT BY EMMANUELLE!!
Both are up quickly, Tara runs at Emmanuelle but gets the momentum used against her as Emmanuelle rolls her into a small package…
ONE!
TWO!
THR… KICK OUT FROM TARA FENIX!!
TREY BOOKER: Damn, that was close!
Emmanuelle drags Tara up and without wasting a second whips her toward the corner. Tara though springs up and rebounds with a perfect crossbody taking both to the mat. The Silver Starlet rolls to the outside for a sensible breather.
TREY BOOKER: Tara may be the more experienced, but Emmanuelle here with the veteran-like move to create space.
J.T. PRICE: Good idea on Tara’s part not to follow though, she can’t win that belt on the outside.
Tara Fenix chooses to step back and allow plenty of room for her opponent to re-enter the ring, Emmanuelle obliges by rolling under the bottom rope. With both on their feet, they again trade verbals and square up, Emmanuelle points to her chin clearly trying to goad Tara in, Tara throws a right but is countered with a seriously stiff right cross from Emmanuelle!!
TREY BOOKER: CROSS COUNTER!!!
Tara falls hard and is covered quickly…
ONE!
TWO!
THRE… SHOULDER UP BY TARA!!!
Emmanuelle doesn’t waste a breath as she springs up dragging a lifeless Tara with her, she hooks her up and sends her back down hard with a double underhook sitout powerbomb!!
TREY BOOKER: PASADENA BOMB!!!
J.T. PRICE: Emmanuelle is in control!
The Platinum Standard covers Tara Fenix again…
ONE!
TWO!
THRE… SHOULDER UP AGAIN BY TARA!!!
TREY BOOKER: Sorry for stating the obvious, but these two are damn tough.
Emmanuelle is up and stalking the laid out Tara, as she goes past Tara’s legs she gets caught with a drop toe hold sending her face first to the mat. The Phoenix Queen floats over her opponent to face her as she rises to her knees, with both of them in that position they start trading quick fire punches. They continue to do so as they rise up to their feet, Emmanuelle stops punching just long enough to grab and whip Tara into the ropes, upon rebounding Tara hits Emmy with a double ax handle. Emmanuelle bounces up only to be hit by another. Emmanuelle doesn’t fall from the impact of the second but recoils back into a corner, Tara follows in at pace with a stinger splash!
TREY BOOKER: I’m loving this match so far.
J.T. PRICE: Can you believe this match only has three minutes left before being called a draw?
Tara makes the most of being in control by spinning Emmanuelle around and sending her brutally into the turnbuckle with a snap suplex. Emmanuelle grabs at her spine but is given no time to recover. Tara tries to use the position in the corner to her advantage by going for her Double-Arm Tornado DDT, Emmanuelle breaks free though and from almost nowhere seems to find the ability to hit a picture perfect Hammerlock Back Suplex Into a Michinoku Driver II… Both are down and in need of a breather!
J.T. PRICE: HOLY SHIT!!! ATTEMPTED PHOENIX WINGS REVERSED INTO THE RODEO DRIVER!!!
TREY BOOKER: But the ref is counting them both down because Emmanuelle can’t get over for a cover.
The ref gets to a count of seven but Emmanuelle is up via the ropes. Tara isn’t far behind but is pulled in by The Silver Starlet, despite the draining nature of the match, Emmanuelle has enough strength to again lift Tara up for the Rodeo Driver…
TREY BOOKER: This could be it…
Emmanuelle starts the move but on the way down Tara transitions into a stunning codebreaker!!
TREY BOOKER: DAMN!! RODEO DRIVER REVERSED INTO THE FALLEN PHOENIX!!!
J.T. PRICE: HOW THE FUCK DID SHE DO THAT?
Tara drapes an arm over Emmanuelle…
ONE!
TWO!
THREE!!! TARA FENIX WINS!!!
DING! DING! DING!
J.T. PRICE: What a fucking match, these two are amazing.
HOLLY PEREZ: THE WINNER OF THE MATCH… AND NEWWWWW WARRIOR RISING CHAMPION… THE PHOENIX QUEEN… TARA FENIX!!!
TREY BOOKER: All I have left to say about that is… WOW!!
Both women are still down on the mat as the referee places the title belt across the waist of Tara Fenix, the crowd showering both with chants of “That was awesome”.
Following an amazing contest for The Warrior Rising Championship, one of the roving cameras takes us backstage where the X-Factor Champion, Lance Williams is making his way through one of the Tokyo Dome’s corridors. With the title over his shoulder and a smug look on his face, it looks as if the champion is mentally prepared for his Iron Man showdown with MYOJIN in just seven days.
Suddenly, the camera picks up some movement behind Lance as we see a flash of red. He continues on his way, and moments later, he is struck from behind as a cookie sheet slams against his shoulder blades! Unhurt but still shocked, Lance spins around to see a chubby man in a homemade red mask, holding the bent cookie sheet in his hands.
LANCE WILLIAMS: Serrano?!?!
The inept combat chef frowns underneath his homemade vigilante mask.
SERRANO POBLANO: ...you were supposed to fall down…
LANCE WILLIAMS: You fucking moron!
With surprising speed, Lance reaches out with hand and wraps it around Serrano’s neck. He lifts the masked man off his feet, slamming him against the nearest wall. He then uses his other hand to rip the poorly made mask off of Serrano’s face.
LANCE WILLIAMS: I should fucking kill you for that!
With his face turning purple, Serrano does his best to choke out a response.
SERRANO POBLANO: ...must…*ggk*...avenge…*gasp*...my parents…
Despite the jobber’s determination, Lance continues to squeeze.
LANCE WILLIAMS: The only reason I’m going to let you live is so I can see how you disgrace yourself next. But I swear, if you come at me again, especially when I’m beating MYOJIN’s ass next week...I will fucking end you.
Lance leans in so that Serrano can get a good look at just how serious he is, before he finally releases his grip on the chubby man’s throat, allowing him to slink to the floor. Lance then looks down at Serrano one last time, scoffs as he shakes his head, and continues on his way...
The camera focuses on a middle aged man with salt-and-pepper hair standing in the center of the ring. In place of the recently deceased Winston Winfield, it is none other than former member of N’SYNC, Joey Fatone. He is dressed in a black tuxedo and is holding a single index card in his left hand. We then see a microphone lowered from the ceiling into the man’s waiting grasp. He takes the microphone in his right hand and raises it as he begins to read from his card.
JOEY FATONE: Ladies and gentlemen, Project: Honor is proud to present this next contest, featuring a man who truly needs no introduction. Nevertheless, I shall do my best to do this legendary figure justice. He is an athlete that has crossed through the ranks of amateur wrestling, professional boxing, and mixed martial arts, winning championships and accolades in all of those arenas. Hailing from Detroit, Michigan and currently residing on the open road, he stands at six foot three inches and fills that impressive frame with a lean yet chiseled two hundred and forty-five pounds of grit and determination. He is a man that goes by many names. He is The Weatherman...he is The Shepherd of Lost Souls...he is a Bad Mother Fucker...he is…”Furious”...Julius...Fairweather!!!
As Julius' own version of "Stackolee" begins to play, a spotlight shines through the dimmed lighting to rest upon the entrance, where Julius Fairweather stands with both arms raised over his head, a look of total determination on his face. Wearing a black boxer’s robe with golden trim, hood down and the front untied, he begins to bounce back and forth on his feet, shadow boxing as the instrumental beat perfectly accompanies his movements. As the song shifts in tone, Julius begins to advance toward the ring, stopping to give a fan a cold stare when they manage to grab his attention. It is a bug-eyed look from a man that simply does not give a fuck, and fearing the possibility of being knocked out, the fan backs down.
After stepping between the ropes, Julius gives Joey Fatone a bug-eyed glare before continuing to bounce from left to right, jabbing and striking with a flurry of warm-up punches. He ends his routine with an impressive leaping roundhouse kick before stepping to the ropes to give that cold-hearted stare to both his fans and detractors. While some eat it up and others cautiously boo, Julius removes his ring robe and drops it over the top rope to his ring announcer and personal attendant. He then moves to his corner and continues to stay loose with a few wind up punches and knee lifts.
The sound of television static flows through the sound system as the lights dim. While the crowd voices their complete disapproval of what is to come, the hiss fades into "Wake Up" by Rage Against the Machine.
As "SYNDICATE" appears in massive white letters on the videoboard, a single spotlight shines down onto the Los Angeles Outlaw himself, Syndicate. Dressed in a black leather jacket along with blue denim jeans and gray Under Armour sneakers, he stretches his arms outward into a crucifix pose with his shoulder-length blonde hair shimmering in the glow of the light from above.
CLARA OLSON: Making his way to the ring, from the City of Angels, weighing 224 pounds, he is the Los Angeles Outlaw...SYYYYNNNNNNDICATEEEEEEE!
DING! DING! DING!
ALARA ADAMS: This match is gonna be awesome. The last time these two men were in the ring with each other, Syndicate earned a Legacy Championship Match by being the first man up the ladder. Julius still fared well in the match’s outcome, but you just know he wants to prove he’s as capable as The LA Outlaw...
KAYDEN ELLIS: Let’s go motherfuckers!!!
Julius Fairweather and Syndicate lock up in the ring, each one of them trying to push the other into a corner. Syndicate has had enough and just rakes the eyes of Julius before hitting him with a snap suplex. Syndicate follows it up by getting in a mount position and starts to unload punches. Julius manages to block most of the punches, but two or three good strikes get through. Well before Syndicate can do any more damage, Julius is able to capture his arm and rolls him onto his back with an armbar locked in. Syndicate manages to roll and pick Julius up and throw him back down to the mat hard with a powerbomb that causes Julius to let go of Syndicate’s arm. Syndicate backs up into the corner, trying to shake the feeling back into the arm Julius had locked in the hold. Syndicate sees Julius get up to one knee and runs at him, going for the Original Syn (V-Trigger) but Julius is quick to get out of the way.
ALARA ADAMS: Syndicate is trying to wrap this match up early!
KAYDEN ELLIS: Yeah but he was a bit premature with the trigger there.
When Syndicate turns around he sees Julius standing there with a grin on his face and Julius is shaking his head at Syndicate. That only angers Syndicate more, who starts unleashing lefts and rights, but much to his anger even more, Julius starts ducking and weaving the punches as he shows off his boxing skills. Eventually Syndicate stops and Julius hasn’t noticed as he continues to duck and weave after, making himself look foolish. When Julius does notice though, it’s too late to do anything as Syndicate takes him down with a clothesline that nearly takes his damn head off. Syndicate kneels down beside Julius and to add insult to injury starts slapping him on his bald head again and again. After about six or seven times, Syndicate has had enough as he lifts Julius up to his feet and drops him back down to the mat again with a belly to belly suplex and goes straight for the pin.
ONE…
TW…
KICK OUT BY JULIUS FAIRWEATHER!!!
ALARA ADAMS: Nearly a two count but not quite.
KAYDEN ELLIS: Basically the same as saying “Nearly skidmarks in my pants but there isn’t."
ALARA ADAMS: Damn it, Kayden!
An angry Syndicate punches the mat before getting up to his feet. He goes to help Julius up to his feet, but Julius has other ideas as he rolls Syndicate up for the pin.
ONE…
KICK OUT BY SYNDICATE!!!
ALARA ADAMS: Syndicate wasn’t paying attention there.
KAYDEN ELLIS: Paying enough attention to kick out at one though.
Both of them manage to get to their feet as Julius is the first to throw a punch followed by Syndicate returning the favor with a punch of his own. Both men are in the middle of the ring just trading punches back and forth as the ref watches on. Julius starts to get the upper hand as he lands a combo of three punches and goes for a roundhouse kick only for Syndicate to duck and spear Julius to the ground. There was enough momentum to take Julius down but not to keep him down as once again they’re both back to their feet trading punches. Julius manages to get the upper hand again as he hits Syndicate with the Great Vengeance (Side Headlock with Series of Uppercuts) and follows it up straight away with the Furious Anger (Arm Trapped Series of Headbutts) and goes for the pin.
ONE…
TWO…
TH… KICK OUT BY SYNDICATE!!!
ALARA ADAMS: Another kick out by Syndicate.
KAYDEN ELLIS: ANOTHER ONE!
Julius Fairweather is the first up to his feet, well he is the only one up to his feet by his own doing as he helps Syndicate up as well. Julius irish whips Syndicate into the ropes and as Syndicate rebounds off them and comes towards Julius, he goes for a jumping knee strike that Syndicate ducks under and then hits Julius with the Fall From Grace (Reverse Suplex). Syndicate crawls to the corner and leans against the turnbuckle to compose himself as he sees Julius laying there. Syndicate is now to his feet and as Julius gets to his feet slowly too, Syndicate runs at Julius and hits a shotgun dropkick that sends him back first intot the turnbuckle. Julius hits the turnbuckle hard and slumps down into a seated position, even slouched in the corner, Julius still manages to flip Syndicate the middle finger at him on one of his hands. This pisses Syndicate off as he runs at Julius, going for a dropkick to the corner, but Julius moves out of the way. Julius ends up sliding out of the ring as Syndicate ends up doing the same and only just misses headbutting the steel post.
ALARA ADAMS: That would’ve hurt, the head meeting the post.
KAYDEN ELLIS: He STEEL would’ve had the headache next week.
Both men are on their feet, Julius is more steady on them than Syndicate is as they begin to start fighting on the outside. They’re trading punches when Syndicate blocks a punch and with his other hand he pokes Julius in the eye before slamming his head into the barricade again and again. This eventually busts Julius Fairweather’s head open as Syndicate lets him fall to the floor. Julius only falls to one knee as he grabs the barricade with one of his hands. Syndicate isn’t happy about the fight that Julius is putting up and goes to kick him in the face only for Julius to catch his leg. Julius manages to get up to his feet still holding onto Syndicate’s leg as Syndicate is trying to plead with Julius to let go. A grin appears on Julius face as the leg he has hold of is smashed into the steel post three times as Syndicate screams out in pain. Syndicate falls to the floor as Julius wipes the blood from his face.
ALARA ADAMS: You got blood on your face.
KAYDEN ELLIS: You big disgrace.
Julius walks over to Syndicate and rolls him into the ring and rolls in after him. Julius attempts to lock in a heel hook on Syndicate’s leg he smashed into the steel post but Syndicate has other ideas. Syndicate starts kicking Julius in the face until he lets go, Syndicate with the aid of the ropes manages to get to his feet trying to shake some feeling into his leg. Julius comes at Syndicate who, without thinking, hits a superkick on Julius knocking him to the mat only to fall to the mat himself as his leg still can’t take his weight. Both men are now on the floor, Syndicate trying everything he can to get the feeling back into his leg. Syndicate just about manages to get enough feeling in his leg to get to his feet just as Julius gets to his feet too. Julius tries to kick the damaged leg of Syndicate but he has other ideas as he manages to leg check Julius to block the kick with his good leg.
ALARA ADAMS: Julius better start waving his banner all over the place.
KAYDEN ELLIS: WE WILL ROCK YOU!!!
Julius out of nowhere goes for The Foot Fuckin’ Master (Jumping Roundhouse Kick) but Syndicate manages to get out of the way and tries to drop Julius with the Catalyst DDT (Snap DDT) only for Julius to reverse it by sweeping the damaged left leg of Syndicate out from beneath him.
Julius is the first to his feet as he watches Syndicate struggling to get to his feet with the help of the ropes. Julius just shakes his head before hitting Syndicate with The Royale With Cheese (Straight Right Hand Knockout Punch) and goes for the pin.
ONE…
TWO…
THREE!!!
CLARA OLSON: The winner of this match due to a PINFALL… The Weatherman, The Shepherd, The Gatekeeper, The Bad Mother Fucker… JUUULLLIIIUUUSSS FAAAIIIRRRWWWEEEAAATTTHHHEEERRR!!!
ALARA ADAMS: Hell of a fight by both men, but this round goes to the Bad Mother...
KAYDEN ELLIS: Watch yo’ mouth!
ALARA ADAMS: So Syndicate can claim the first win and Julius the second...wonder if we’ll see a rubber match?
SEASON 3... THURSDAYS ON AMC!
SEASON 3... FRIDAYS ON FX!
HOLLY PEREZ: Ladies and gentlemen, our next contest is scheduled for one fall and it is for the Project: Honor Grand Championship!!!
[ALL OF THE LIGHTS]
"All of the Lights" by Kanye West hits, and the lights go out. Small flashes of multicolored lasers shoot through the arena in the dark, as a large white spotlight scans the crowd during the intro of the song. As we approach the drop, the lights go out besides the spotlight that stays on the middle of the entrance curtain. As the drums and lyrics pick up in the song after the drop, Cadillac bursts through the curtain and into the spotlight, where he stands soaking in it for a few moments. He then makes his way to the ring with the spotlight following him, pointing and waving at fans while making sure to be out of reach of them. He walks up the stairs and onto the apron, leaning his back against the ropes and surveying the crowd before spinning around and hopping into the ring. He goes to the top rope and removes his sunglasses and ring jacket, handing it to a stagehand before hopping down and getting ready for action.
HOLLY PEREZ: Introducing first, the challenger, standing at six foot three inches and weighing in at two hundred seventy four pounds...he hails from Hampton Falls, New Hampshire...this is “The Luxury Experience” and “Mr. Opportunity Knocks”...CAAAADILLAAAAAAC JAAAAAACKSOOOOOONNNNNNN!!!!
As the slow, creeping sounds of Heilung start to play the lights around the entrance dim down to bare visibility. The drums of the song beat, as small glimpses of a rainstorm can be seen on screen. The stage itself begins to billow out a thick fog, a cold mist curling its way along the platform and down the ramp. Quickly, the stage itself is engulfed in the fog, as much of the ramp is also. A small light shines its weak glow from the entrance, shining against the figure of a man. His silhouette, huge in size against the soft light now moves as he does, down the ramp and through the curtain of mist. He emerges towards the end of the ramp, his form now fully visible… Ozymandias.
He pauses before the ring, staring into the squared-cage before slowly removing his jacket and placing it under the apron. He stands upright, cracks his neck in both directions then power-squats onto the apron, before entering through the ropes.
HOLLY PEREZ: And his opponent, standing at six foot seven inches tall and weighing in at three hundred fifty seven pounds...fighting out of Old Harbour, Alaska...he is the reigning and defending Grand Champion of Project: Honor… “The Butcher of Reine”...OOOOZZZYMAAANNNDIASSSSSSS!!!!
DING! DING! DING!
TREY BOOKER: Here we go! Since Cadillac Jackson won The Opportunity Knocks Rumble to prove himself as the most worthy competitor on Proving Ground, these two men have been on a collision course!
J.T. PRICE: It all comes down to this!
As the champion hands his title over to the official, he keeps eye contact with the number one contender at all times. The official raises the belt high above his head for all to see before handing it to the time keeper at ringside, as Ozymandias and Cadillac Jackson come face to face in the center of the ring. For several tense moments, neither man makes a move as they stare each other down, the crowd on edge as they wonder who will make the first move. Then, without saying a word, Cadillac raises his arm and gives the champion a defiant middle finger! For a brief moment, it looks as if Ozymandias is shocked by this display, until he finally responds with visible laughter. Jackson then takes a step back and begins to circle as the champion continues to keep his eyes on him, until they finally meet in a collar and elbow lock up! While not a small man by any means, it is clear that Cadillac is still at a size and strength disadvantage, as most men would be against someone as impressive as the champion. As if to add emphasis to this, Ozy gives Cadillac a mighty shove, pushing him down on his back!
The challenger takes a moment to look away from Ozymandias, his expression a mix of shock and disgust. The champion remains standing in the center of the ring, as if he’s daring Cadillac to get back on his feet. After a few moments on the mat, Jackson starts to oblige as he gets onto one knee, but then he suddenly lunges forward, grabbing Ozymandias with a double leg takedown! The quickness of the move and the sheer velocity behind Jackson’s charge takes Ozy to the mat, as the challenger leaps on top of him to unload with a sudden flurry of rights and lefts!
J.T. PRICE: Holy shit! Look at the fire in Cadillac Jackson!
TREY BOOKER: By god, I don’t think he’s afraid of Ozymandias in the slightest!
The champion does his best to cover up, but Cadillac’s punches have such force behind them that it is nearly an impossible task. Once he’s content with his opening salvo, Cadillac rolls off of the champion but immediately fires down on him with some stiff elbow drops! He then bounces to the ropes as Ozymandias is getting to his feet, leapfrogs over the champion, and comes charging back with a huge clothesline that sends The Butcher of Reine backwards against the ring ropes! The champion has clearly been thrown off his game by the ferocity Cadillac is displaying, as when Jackson rushes in for another clothesline, it sends Ozymandias toppling over the top rope!
Ever the impressive specimen, Ozymandias lands on his feet at ringside, but he has little time to collect his thoughts as Cadillac Jackson slides under the bottom rope to hit him with a baseball slide! The impact sends The Butches into the guardrail, and joining him at ringside, Cadillac continues the offense by grabbing Ozy’s head and slamming it against the top of the steel barricade! The challenger then takes a few steps back, measuring Ozymandias for another clothesline that will no doubt send him toppling over the guardrail, but the champion counters with a back body drop at the last moment, sending Cadillac into the first row!
ONE!
TWO!
THREE!
FOUR!
This gives Ozymandias valuable time to shake off the damage he’s inflicted, as ringside fans swarm around the fallen challenger. Finally, Ozy goes to grab Cadillac and pull him back to ringside, but the challenger answers by throwing a cup of beer in the champion’s face!
TREY BOOKER: Party foul by Jackson!
FIVE!
SIX!
SEVEN!
He then slams the champion’s face down against the barricade a second time for good measure, before leaping back over the railing and shoving Ozymandias under the bottom rope. Quickly following him back in, Cadillac pulls the champion back to his feet and we see that the impact with the steel barricade has opened up the monster’s forehead! Ozymandias is bleeding and Cadillac Jackson is on a roll! The challenger bounces off the ropes and comes charging back towards Ozy, looking to hit The Ejection, but somehow the champion catches him in his massive arms! Without missing a beat, Ozymandias throws Cadillac Jackson with an overhead belly to belly suplex, sending him back out of the ring over the top rope! The Luxury Experience lands on his back at ringside with a sickening thud, sending shockwaves of pain through his entire body!
TREY BOOKER: Damn it! Rumors have been circulating that Cadillac’s back is not at one hundred percent after he took The World Ender at the last Proving Ground. A move like that will not do him any favors!
As Jackson writhes in pain at ringside, Ozymandias reaches up to wipe some of the blood from his forehead. He takes a moment to look at the crimson fluid on his hand, but it’s impossible to tell whether he is impressed or angered. He then leaves the ring and pulls Cadillac onto his feet, locking him in his massive arms once again. Just when it looks like Ozymandias is content to apply a bearhug, he charges forward with Cadillac in his arms and drives him back first against the steel ringpost! As Ozy releases his hold, Jackson crumples to the floor in heap!
ONE!
TWO!
THREE!
FOUR!
Showing no mercy, Ozymandias pulls Cadillac back up and leans him against the post, clearly the only thing keeping him on his feet. Ozy then charges forward to inflict further damage, but Caddy side steps at the last second and Ozy’s head connects with the steel!
FIVE!
SIX!
SEVEN!
EIGHT!
Despite the numbness in his legs, Cadillac Jackson rolls back under the bottom rope, and even with more blood flowing from his forehead, Ozymandias manages to follow. As Jackson pulls himself up with the assistance of the ropes, The Butcher shakes his head as if he’s trying to shake off the cobwebs. Realizing that he has to take advantage of the situation, Cadillac goes for The Ejection a second time, and it connects! Ozymandias goes down and the challenger goes for his first pin attempt in the match!
ONE!
TWO!
THR - KICKOUT!
The champion immediately begins to get back on his feet, but Cadillac tries to ignore the throbbing pain in his back as he bounces off the ropes to hit a swinging neckbreaker. Ozymandias goes down once again, and this time Jackson keeps him there with a few well-placed fist drops. Then, limping toward the corner in obvious pain, Cadillac climbs onto the second turnbuckle, patiently waiting for the champion to get back on his feet. He leaps off for a double ax handle, only to be caught in Ozymandias’ arms once again! Another overhead belly to belly suplex puts Jackson on the mat, but instead of immediately following up, the champion staggers back to lean against the corner turnbuckles.
TREY BOOKER: This match has already taken so much out of both men! They’re showing how important it is to be The Grand Champion!
J.T. PRICE: Cadillac almost looks like an invalid in there, but he’s still managed to take it to the champion like no one else has before!
As Jackson starts to pull himself up, Ozymandias suddenly rushes out of the corner, nailing him with hard knee lift! He then pauses in the opposite corner, not only allowing his own body to recharge, but to stalk his opponent like an animal hunting his prey. Once again, Jackson starts to get to his feet, but this time The Butcher greets him with a jumping bicycle kick! Instead of retreating to the corner a third time, Ozymandias pulls Cadillac to his feet and whips him into the ropes, greeting him on the rebound with a pop up spinebuster! Cadillac arches his body in such a way that the viewers at home can almost feel the pain he’s in, but that isn’t enough for the champion to show mercy. Instead, he pulls Cadillac up yet again, this time wrapping him in The Arms of Azathoth!
The challenger looks as helpless as a child in Ozymandias’ grasp as the champion lifts him off the mat while applying as much pressure to the back as possible! The referee is right there, asking the challenger if he wants to submit, but that seems to be the furthest thing from Cadillac Jackson’s mind. Ozy squeezes tighter and tighter, exuding enough pressure that his own wounded head drips blood at a faster pace. Still, despite the agony on his face, the challenger refuses to give in. Cadillac balls up his fist and drives a desperate right hand against the champion’s wounded head, but Ozymandias doesn’t relent in the slightest. Again, Cadillac drives a hard right hand against Ozy’s head, but still the monster does not flinch. Still not ready to give up, Cadillac fires a third, fourth, fifth, and sixth punch against Ozymandias’ bleeding head, and finally his hold on the challenger begins to weaken. With his knuckles stained red from the champion’s blood, Cadillac finds the strength to continue punching away, until Ozymandias finally staggers and drops Jackson back to his feet!
Having made himself an opening, Jackson looks to capitalize with his Jack ‘Em Up spear, but the dazed Ozymandias is able to counter with a hard knee to the side of his opponent’s head. He then pulls Jackson in, lifts him onto his shoulders, and finally holds him upright in the crucifix position before driving Caddy to the mat!
TREY BOOKER: The Call! The Call! This one is over!
ONE!
TWO!
THREE! NO!
Somehow, Cadillac manages to kick out at the last moment, bringing the fans out of their seats in the process. Ozymandias, however, is not so easily impressed. With blood clouding his vision, Ozy pulls Cadillac back up, hooks his head, and lifts him off his feet for The Sinking Faith! Once again, the challenger’s back is slammed hard against the mat!
ONE!
TWO!
THREE!
NO!
Facing the biggest opportunity of his career on the biggest stage of them all, Cadillac Jackson somehow pushes the pain out of his mind long enough to get a shoulder off of the mat. Ozymandias crouches on his knees for a few moments, looking at his opponent with a strange curiosity and silently counting the number of people who have kicked out of his jackhammer. After a few seconds, Ozymandias cracks his neck and then gets back on his feet, turning his attention to the ringside area. He steps through the ropes and makes his way to the guardrail, looking down at his own blood dried upon the steel. Then, without warning or explanation, he grabs the section of guardrail with both hands and pulls it away from the other sections. He turns back, looking to take his new toy into the ring, when he’s hit with another baseball slide out of nowhere!
The champion falls onto the floor with the guardrail on top of him as Cadillac Jackson joins him at ringside. The challenger then begins to stomp away at the guardrail, driving it down against Ozymandias’ prone body! After several stomps, Caddy grabs the section of barricade and slides it under the bottom rope, before grabbing Ozymandias and returning him to the ring as well. Having found his second wind, Cadillac pulls Ozymandias up, hooks him for a suplex, and then drops him back down with The Test Drive onto the steel guardrail! The crowd goes insane as he makes the cover…
ONE!
TWO!
THREE!
NO!
Despite the loss of blood and the pain in his body, the champion gets a shoulder up! We can see the cuss words flying out of Cadillac’s mouth as sits up, wondering what he has to do to slay the monster once and for all. With Ozymandias still on the mat, Cadillac grabs the steel guardrail and lays it on top of the champion’s body. He then looks at the turnbuckles, shakes his head as if he knows what he’s about to do is insane, and begins to climb nonetheless. Once reaching the top, he takes a brief moment to measure his fallen opponent, and then leaps off to hit his Going Over swanton bomb onto the guardrail, driving it into the champion with the full force of his own body!
CROWD: HOLY SHIT! HOLY SHIT! HOLY SHIT!
Cadillac sits up and arches his back in extreme pain, having inflicted a fair amount of punishment to his own injured back in a desperate attempt to keep Ozymandias down for good. Ignoring the waves of pain, he slowly rolls backwards until he can drape a limp arm over the champion…
ONE!
TWO!
THREE!
And Ozymandias’ shoulder comes off the mat a mere fraction of a second before the ref’s hand hits the mat!
TREY BOOKER: My god! Cadillac took the ultimate chance...made the ultimate sacrifice...and it was all for nothing!
J.T. PRICE: This is insane! What’s it gonna take to keep on of these men down?
Bruised and battered, Cadillac slowly gets to his feet, pulling the barely conscious champion up with him. He then hooks Ozymandias’ head, looking to hit one final Test Drive, the one that will define his professional career...when Ozymandias suddenly reverses it by lifting Cadillac off his feet instead! Sinking Faith onto the steel barricade, finally destroying the section of guardrail beyond recognition! The champion remains laying on top of the challenger with not even enough strength to hook his leg...
ONE!
Cadillac Jackson’s eyes flutter...
TWO!
...and his feet twitch uncontrollably...
THREE!
...but the spasms in his back can no longer be overcome.
DING! DING! DING!
For several moments, both men continue to lay upon the mat, Ozymandias nearly unconscious from a loss of blood and Cadillac Jackson nearly paralyzed from the damage inflicted on his spine. The referee reaches down to raise the champion’s hand, but Ozymandias pulls it away and slowly forces himself to sit up. The referee immediately turns his attention to the fallen challenger as Holly Perez makes the official announcement.
HOLLY PEREZ: Your winner of the match...and STILL PROJECT: HONOR GRAND CHAMPION….OOOOOZZZYYYYMANNNNDIIIIASSSSS!!!
TREY BOOKER: The absolute torture those men put their bodies through, the pain and sacrifice from both of them...this was one for the ages!
J.T. PRICE: Ozymandias is still the champion, but we can’t deny that Cadillac Jackson immortalized his name in the history books here tonight!
TREY BOOKER: I don’t know if these fans like him, but they sure as hell respect him!
With the title hanging limp from his hand, Ozymandias rolls to ringside, his own body in too much pain to bring further insult against his opponent. Then, as the champion is making his way back up the ramp, Cadillac Jackson finally pulls himself off the mat and onto his knees. His body trembling, he looks down at his open palms, broken-hearted that the title is not laying upon them. Yet despite that disappointment, he is pulled out of the moment by the thundering echo of his name being chanted by 55,000 fans in the Tokyo Dome.
Before the final match of the evening, we go backstage where Indy Darling and Mark Hunter are going over some last minute strategy in the Gorilla Position.
INDY DARLING: I don’t know, man. I’m starting to have second thoughts. Maybe it’s just the nerves from being in The Tokyo Dome, but do you think I’ve put together the right team?
MARK HUNTER: Are you kidding me? I may not like his attitude, but Arata Asakura is one of the best in that ring. Ulf and Swindle, they’ve impressed everyone on the brand with how well they’ve established themselves in such a short time. And TJ is...well, he’s TJ.
INDY DARLING: Hopefully he didn’t get kidnapped today. I haven’t seen him anywhere...
MARK HUNTER: Pretty sure the giraffe in catering means that he’s here somewhere.
INDY DARLING: He didn’t...
MARK HUNTER: He did.
Indy and Mark pause as they consider the ramifications of Gerald’s presence in the Tokyo Dome, before the concern finally returns to Indy’s face.
INDY DARLING: Still, DeMarco is a snake and he could come up with anything...
Before Indy can finish his thought, Mark gives him a light slug on the shoulder to get his attention.
MARK HUNTER: Look, here comes the rest of the team now.
The GM nods his head as he tries to put on his game face, but Mark has one final message to give him.
MARK HUNTER: I've never lied to you Indy and I'm not gonna start tonight, I mean it when I say I'll do whatever it fucking takes to make sure the show I believe in most wins tonight.
With that, Mark walks forward as the rest of Indy’s team approaches. Indy pauses for a few seconds as Mark’s words begin to sink in, at which point he suddenly looks after the former Grand Champion with a concerned expression.
INDY DARLING: The show you believe in...you mean Proving Ground, right? Mark...Mark! What do you mean by ‘THE show’...
With that, Indy leaves the scene and we return to ringside...
CLARA OLSON: Ladies and Gentleman, the FINAL match of this evening is our MAIN EVENT, and is an elimination Fallout rules match...Team Darling versus Team DeMarco!!!
Fans pop!
CLARA OLSON: Introducing first, at a combined weight of one-thousand and forty-five pounds...Mark Hunter, Arata Asakura, Ulf Hednir, Swindle Shelldrake, and TJ Thompson...TEEEAAM DAAAAAARRRLLIIINNNGGG!!!
“Just Like You” by Falling In Reverse blares out of the pa system as the fans give off a large cheering reception. Proving Ground General Manager Indy Darling steps out of the entrance way, with Hunter, Asakura, Hednir, Shelldrake, and Thompson behind him. They all stop at the top of the ramp and let the fan reaction from the Tokyo Dome soak in, as Indy steps aside to give his team the moment to shine.
ALARA ADAMS: Boooo!
Continuing down the ramp, Darling finally leads his warriors down and up into the ring,the former X-Factor Champion’s music ending.
CLARA OLSON: And their opponents, at a combined weight of nine-hundred and seventy-nine pounds...Lazarus Arjen, Charon Seede, Mason Destruction, SWITCHBLXDE, and Ellie Quinn...TEEEEAM DeeeeMAAAARRRCCOOOO!!!
“Popular Monster” by Falling In Reverse explodes out into the arena as the fans begin to roar in approval. Christian DeMarco walks out onto the entrance ramp, microphone in hand, by himself. Indy can be seen laughing in the ring as he reaches out and grabs Clara’s microphone from her...winking at her as he does. He lifts the microphone to his lips as DeMarco’s music ends.
INDY DARLING: Where’s your team, Christian? Where’s all those people who were supposed to back you up? Did they finally realize how much of a lost cause you are? Did they finally realize how stupid it was to follow someone like you? I mean, I would be happy to help them all achieve TRUE greatness on Proving Ground. After all, we all see you burning through that Fallout roster show after show. I’m honestly surprised some of your own roster members have stuck around for so long.
DeMarco lifts the microphone up to his lips, but before he can say anything...he is interrupted.
INDY DARLING: No, don’t speak, Christian. You haven't had a decent word to say anyway, since you used to walk around these parts as Caliban. We can have the ref ring the bell...wait the ten seconds...and then call this match for Proving Ground. You can just turn around and head sulking into the back.
Christian smirks, keeping the microphone up near his mouth.
INDY DARLING: I have the former Grand Champion a-k-a YOUR Purge Match winner...I have a former Warrior Rising Champion...that alone should scare you back into your office. But with the Gaijin Killer, The Kraken, AND the Son of Thor...we all knew the outcome of this match before the night even started.
Finally, DeMarco holds up his hand and begins to speak.
CHRISTIAN DeMARCO: First off, before I get to you lot...I want to bring out a special guest who is getting an extra SPECIAL seat for tonight’s match.
INDY DARLING: What gue-
Before Indy could finish that thought, a spotlight shines onto security leading someone to a front row seat... WrestleWorld’s own, Jacob Striker, who is no fan of Proving Ground’s General Manager. A look of anger graces Indy’s face.
INDY DARLING: Do you think he is going to have any say in this, Christian? Is HE going to come into the ring and fight this match for you?
Indy watches Jacob, who sits in his seat and begins eating from a bag of popcorn before flipping off the GM. Indy shakes his head and returns his attention to DeMarco on the entrance stage.
CHRISTIAN DeMARCO: Quite the contrary. You see, Indy, a while ago, I told my Prime Champion...you know Swindle...the one that just kicked your ass a couple weeks ago…
Swindle scowls at the Fallout General Manager.
CHRISTIAN DeMARCO: ...that chaos begets chaos. And I think that is more true now than it ever was. Mark Hunter comes onto my show, pretends to play my games...then kicks me in the jaw. The next night Mark Hunter thinks he is nice and cozy...and The Massacre comes in and tries to behead him. You see, there is a man who used to be a mystic back in the day...who died at the turn of the century, from the same condition that I surprisingly survived, a brain tumor. But he put it so nicely, in a way that could be a true definition of our battles...Indy. Terence McKenna once said “Chaos is what we’ve lost touch with. This is why it is given a bad name. It is feared by the dominant archetype of our world, which is Ego, which clenches because its existence is defined in terms of control.”
Indy Darling and the rest of Team Darling give DeMarco an odd look, Indy going back to his own microphone.
INDY DARLING: What in the babbling-mystic bullshit are you talking about?
CHRISTIAN DeMARCO: Ego fears Chaos. Because chaos is unpredictable.
The fans pop LOUDLY as suddenly Team DeMarco hops over the barricades and slides into the ring behind Team Darling.
DING! DING! DING!
Team Darling turns around and Team DeMarco ATTACKS them. Arjen on Hunter, Seede on Asakura, Destruction on Hednir, SWITCHBLXDE on Shelldrake, and Quinn on Thompson.
TREY BOOKER: Typical Fallout style...cowards.
ALARA ADAMS: Oh you can fuck off, Trey.
Everyone with exception of Quinn and Thompson, have pushed the battle to outside the ring. Meanwhile, on the inside, TJ has taken the upper hand and has Quinn locked in with a side headlock. He tries to use his bodyweight to push her down to the mat, but Ellie instead grabs TJ around the waist and with all of her might picks him up and SUPLEXES HER WAY OUT OF THE HEADLOCK! TJ Grabs the back of his neck, but is quick to his feet. Ellie stares at TJ from across the ring…
TREY BOOKER: Charon Seede is climbing up onto the apron behind TJ…
Seede reaches over the ropes and grabs TJ, causing the member of Big Drip to turn around. Both men begin jawing at each other.
ALARA ADAMS: ELLIE SIDE STEPS FORWARD...SLAYERKICK!!!
Superkick to the back of TJ’s head and the former Champ lunges forward towards Charon Seede. The member of Massacre grabs the limp Thompson around the neck…
TREY BOOKER: Why did SWITCHBLXDE just set a unfolded metal chair up behind Charon? Is he going to watch TJ. come to life and…
Before Trey could finish his sentence, Charon lifts the unconscious TJ into a three-quarter vertical suplex and falls INTO A SITOUT IMPLANT DDT OFF THE APRON ONTO THE METAL CHAIR!!!
ALARA ADAMS: FALL OF MAN BY CHARON SEEDE AND TJ’S HEAD JUST BENT THE SHIT OUT OF THAT CHAIR!!!
Hednir, who breaks away from the two-on-one beating he and Arata were sharing with Destruction...grabs Charon and pulls him to his feet, starting their own little battle. SWITCHBLXDE grabs the bent up metal chair and tries to fold it back, but does a poor job of it due to how bent up it is. He looks up at Ellie Quinn who has climbed onto the top of the turnbuckle and is eyeing up the downed TJ Thompson. SWITCHBLXDE tosses the chair onto the head of TJ and backs away as Ellie JUMPS OFF THE TOP...BUT ULF HEDNIR OUT OF NOWHERE OFF THE APRON...WITH A SUPERMAN PUNCH TO ELLIE QUINN!!!
TREY BOOKER: CRACK THE SKY!!!
Ellie crumples to the ground as Ulf lands on his feet. He looks up at SWITCHBLXDE and holds his arms out, inviting one of the newest Fallout rookies to come at him. SWITCHBLXDE takes a step, but the resilient TJ Thompson grabs his leg and holds on tight. With SWITCH now distracted, Ulf places a foot on the stomach of the unconscious Quinn.
ONE!
TWO!!
THREE!!!
CLARA OLSON: Ellie Quinn IS ELIMINATED!!!
ALARA ADAMS: DAMMIT!!!
Meanwhile, Mark Hunter comes out of nowhere and LEVELS SWITCHBLXDE, who was still trying to shake off TJ . He quickly grabs the bent chair that was used earlier and grips it tightly, waiting for SWITCHBLXDE to stand up. He smacks the chair off the ground a couple times and can both be seen and heard screaming ‘GET UP!’.
TREY BOOKER: The former Grand Champion slipping away from The Massacre and is trying to even the score here.
SWITCHBLXDE back to his feet, turns to look at Hunter...AND HUNTER CHARGES FORWARD WITH THE CHAIR IN THE AIR!!! Hunter swings...BUT SWITCHBLXDE DUCKS UNDER THE SHOT! Hunter turns in time to see SWITCHBLXDE lunge at him, only to duck under HIS reach. SWITCHBLXDE straightens himself up...but not before Hunter had lifted the chair up towards the back of his head.
ALARA ADAMS: What the hell is he doing?
ARATA ASAKURA OUT OF NOWHERE WITH THE RAIKIRI!!! A SHINING WIZARD KICK INTO THE METAL CHAIR INTO THE BACK OF SWITCHBLXDE’S HEAD!!! SWITCH CRUMPLES TO THE GROUND AS WELL!!!
TREY BOOKER: YES!!! LOVE TO SEE IT!!!
ALARA ADAMS: FUCK!!!
Hunter and Arata suddenly get pulled into the mob of others as TJ pulls himself over to the fallen SWITCHBLXDE and covers his body.
ONE!
TWO!!
THREE!!!
CLARA OLSON: SWITCHBLXDE IS ELIMINATED!!!
TREY BOOKER: That makes it a five on three contest here! Proving Ground is cleaning house like we knew they would!
Somehow Lazarus Arjen slips away from the main group and his eyes meet with TJ’s...who is trying to use the Japanese announcer’s table to pull himself up. But before he could get steady on his feet, Lazarus was already on him and had him in a headlock from behind. Suddenly, Alara Adams reaches out and hands something to Lazarus.
TREY BOOKER: Wait...what the hell did you just give that...oh...shit…
Alara has handed Lazarus a small bag, which he manages to open with one hand on his teeth. With a deranged smile on his face he grabs the contents and shakes the bag to the ground...revealing a duct-taped bundle of syringes.
ALARA ADAMS: Time for Lazarus to show everyone what a REAL man can do with a syringe!
Without hesitation, Lazarus jams the bundle needle-first into the top of TJ’s head. The lone member of Big Drip lets out a howl of pain before Lazarus lets go of TJ, for Thompson to drop to his knees...crying out in pain and touching at the top of his head. Lazarus takes a few steps back...then lunges forward and delivers a bull hammer elbow to the back of TJ’s head, cracking his face off the corner of the announcer’s table.
ALARA ADAMS: FINIT HIC, DEO!!! AND TJ IS OUT! Lazarus drops and flips him over, covering him and hooking the leg!
ONE!
TWO!!
THREE!!!
CLARA OLSON: TJ THOMPSON IS ELIMINATED!!!
TREY BOOKER: Proving Ground still with the advantage!
Meanwhile Arata, Swindle, and Hunter have all begun a three-on-one beating on Charon Seede...while Ulf has Mason Destruction pressed up against the stairs. Ulf SLAMS Destruction’s face onto the metal stairs...leaving the former Ascension Champion bleeding from a gash on his forehead. Ulf climbs up onto the apron and is measuring up Destruction, planning on giving him the same Crack The Sky that he laid out Ellie Quinn with. Suddenly, Lazarus is up on the apron behind him...runs...AND DROPKICKS ULF FROM BEHIND!!! ULF GOES FLYING OFF THE APRON TOWARDS MASON DESTRUCTION...AND DESTRUCTION IS ALREADY UP TO HIS FEET...DESTRUCTO KICK!!! DESTRUCTO KICK!!! BIG BOOT TO THE FACE OF ULF HEDNIR!!!
TREY BOOKER: That shoe must be specially made at a weapons factory! HOLY FUCK! Is Ulf alive?
Lazarus goes to run to follow up on Ulf, but the beat down on Charon catches his eye. He quickly climbs to the closest turnbuckle to the action...sets himself up...DIVING CROSSBODY INTO THE GROUP OF PEOPLE!!!
ALARA ADAMS: Come on…
Mason Destruction wipes the blood coming from his forehead and kneels down next to Ulf, placing both of his massive hands on the viking’s chest.
ONE!
TWO!!
THREE!!!
CLARA OLSON: ULF HEDNIR IS ELIMINATED!!!
ALARA ADAMS: YES! WE ARE NOW IN A THREE ON THREE!!!
TREY BOOKER: Just luck. You watch...no one else from Team Darling will be eliminated!
Mason runs over to the group, who are just getting back to their feet...but catches a hard elbow to the face by Mark Hunter, splitting open his cut just a bit more. As Arata and Lazarus begin to tussle away from the group, Swindle gets to his feet and pulls the battered Charon Seede up. Swindle grabs him by the arm and whips...NO REVERSED!!! SWINDLE GOES FLYING TOWARDS THE CORNER AND CHARON COMES RUNNING BEHIND HIM...but Swindle drops...AND SWEEPS CHARON’S FEET OUT FROM UNDER HIM!!! CHARON GOES FACE FIRST INTO THE CORNER POST ON THE OUTSIDE!!!
ALARA ADAMS: NO!
TREY BOOKER: I think the boy just broke his neck. That did NOT look natural!
Taking advantage of the situation, Swindle reaches under the apron and pulls out a table...but doesn’t unfold it. He then reaches back under the apron and pulls out a ladder. With a flicker of violence in his eyes, he lifts the ladder up and slides it into the ring. Another flicker as Charon begins to slightly move...but Swindle still takes his time, turning around and setting up the table.
ALARA ADAMS: Come on Charon, get up!
TREY BOOKER: The boy DID just wrestle in that Collision Course Tournament. He’s probably tired as hell. Just let him sleep it off!
Charon slowly gets to his feet, but you can tell he is still very unsure of them. Shelldrake quickly climbs up onto the apron...and then reaches down, grabbing Seede and pulling him up onto the apron with him. He reaches around the back of Charon’s neck, doubling one-half of Massacre over...then grabs his arm over his back…
ALARA ADAMS: What the hell is this, Proving Ground’s version of Twister?
Swindle kicks out his leg, then comes back, bashing in the back of Charon’s knee...forcing Charon to fall backwards...off the apron...in a Cross-Arm Hammerlock Ranhei..THROUGH THE TABLE!!!
TREY BOOKER: XANADU CLUTCH!!! SPLINTERS AND SAWDUST ARE EVERYWHERE!!! AND SWINDLE COVERS CHARON…
ONE!
TWO!!
THREE!!!
CLARA OLSON: CHARON SEEDE IS ELIMINATED!!!
Lazarus...seeing what just happened, breaks away from a groggy Arata and charges towards the seed of his tag team partner’s elimination. He looks down at Swindle, fire in his eyes. He grabs Swindle and YANKS him to his feet, instantly greeting him with a knee to the stomach. Swindle doubles over and Lazarus quickly grabs him around the neck...PARADIGM SHIFT DDT...but Arjen doesn’t let go...HE ROLLS IT INTO A GUILLOTINE CHOKE!!!
ALARA ADAMS: METAMORPHOSIS STAGE TWO!!! CHOKE THAT BASTARD OUT!!!
As Lazarus tightens the grip, the light in Swindle’s eyes slowly begins to dim. Asakura, finally stable, comes charging towards Lazarus and the chokehold to break it up...BUT MASON DESTRUCTION OUT OF NOWHERE WITH A DESTRUCTO KICK OVER THE HEAD OF LAZARUS, TO THE FACE OF ARATA ASAKURA!!!
TREY BOOKER: FUCK! For only a shoe, that son-of-a-bitch is deadly!
A ref checks on Swindle and instantly turns, pointing at Clara Olson.
CLARA OLSON: By way of choke out...SWINDLE SHELLDRAKE IS ELIMINATED!!!
The same ref turns to see Mason Destruction crawl onto Arata and hook his leg.
ONE!
TWO!!
THREE!!!
CLARA OLSON: ARATA ASAKURA IS ELIMINATED!!!
ALARA ADAMS: What was that about no more PG peeps being eliminated?
TREY BOOKER: Fuck off.
Destruction climbs to his feet to see Mark Hunter looking down at him and Lazarus from the top of the ladder that had been set up in the ring. Mark Hunter jumps...ZERO GRAVITY...SHOOTING STAR PRESS ONTO LAZARUS...WHO WAS STILL NOT LETTING GO OF SWINDLE, DESPITE PLEAS FROM THE REF!!! Mark grabs his stomach in pain...as Mason runs over and grabs him, pulling him to his feet before he could try to pin Lazarus…
ALARA ADAMS: KICK TO THE NUTS!!! MARK HUNTER JUST KICKED MASON DESTRUCTION SQUARE IN THE JUNK!!!
Mason drops to his knees as Mark turns and drops down onto Lazarus, pushing the unconscious body of Swindle Shelldrake away, and hooks the leg.
ONE!
TWO!!
THREE!!!
CLARA OLSON: LAZARUS ARJEN IS ELIMINATED!!!
Hunter quickly gets up to his feet, turning to see where Mason is...only to see the big man has climbed into the ring. He slides in the ring and is INSTANTLY met with a stomp to the ribs, but the former Grand Champion fights through it and manages to get up to his feet. Destruction swings...but Hunter ducks...AND RAMS HIS SHOULDER INTO THE RIBS OF MASON DESTRUCTION...PUSHING HIM BACK INTO THE LADDER...knocking it down onto the ropes. Mason lifts his hands and comes down HARD with a double axe handle to the back of Hunter’s neck, trying to break Mark’s grip he now has around Mason.
ALARA ADAMS: Tell your former Champion to stop hugging my former Champion.
Mason lifts his arms and comes down with another double axe handle to the back of Hunter’s neck, causing Mark to let go and drop to one knee. Mason leans down, grabbing Mark by the hair and delivers a HUGE headbutt that drops the former Grand Champ to both knees. With Mark a little dazed, Mason runs back, bounces off the ropes and comes flying back...DESTRUCTO KICK...NO!!! MARK DUCKED IT AND UPPERCUTTED MASON SQUARE IN THE SACK AGAIN!!!
TREY BOOKER: FALLOUT RULES, BAY BAY!!!
Destruction is weak on his legs as he bends over in pain. Hunter up and grabs him around the neck...but decides to take a couple steps up the fallen ladder that is slightly bouncing on the ropes...THE ANTIDOTE!!! THE ANTIDOTE ONTO THE LADDER!!!
ALARA ADAMS: HUGE Twist of Fate onto Mason and Hunter covers him.
ONE!
TWO!!
KICKOUT!!!
The fans pop as Hunter sits up, breathing heavily. Mason slowly rolls over and gets onto his knees, trying to push himself to get up. Mark Hunter watching and waiting...getting to his own feet as well. Mason turns around...INSTANT KARMA!!!
TREY BOOKER: That superkick has to be the end of it! It’s over! Team Darling with the win!
Hunter drops down onto Mason.
ONE!
TWO!!
THRE-
KICKOUT!!!
TREY BOOKER: THAT WAS A SLOW COUNT!!!
Hunter is thrown off of Mason, but lands on his own hands as knees as the fire is starting to build in the former Ascension Champion. He grabs the rope and starts to pull himself up...BUT MARK HUNTER OUT OF NOWHERE WITH THE SCHOOLBOY ROLL UP PIN!!! Mason almost- MARK PUTS HIS LEGS ON THE ROPES, USING THEM FOR LEVERAGE LIKE HE DID TO WIN THE GRAND CHAMPIONSHIP!!!
ONE!
TWO!!
THREE!!!
DING! DING! DING!
ALARA ADAMS: NO! NO! NO!
TREY BOOKER: YES!
CLARA OLSON: Your winner of the match and the sole survivor... representing Team Darling and Proving Ground... MARRRRK HUNTERRRR!!!
Mark rolls onto his knees and shakes his head in disbelief as a semi-conscious Mason Destruction slowly rolls to the ringside area. Overjoyed with the outcome, Indy Darling enters the ring from his vantage point at ringside, and raises the arm of the kneeling Mark Hunter. As the two men give each other a nod of accomplishment amid the destruction around the ring, Christian DeMarco once again emerges from backstage. This time he doesn’t stop on the stage, continuing all the way to the ringside area, where he meets a dejected Mason Destruction with a handshake and pat on the back. Then, as Mason continues on his way back up the ramp, DeMarco makes his way into the ring.
Mark Hunter immediately takes a step forward, but Indy is quick to stop him with a hand on the shoulder. The two men exchange a few words, before Mark finally begins to leave the ring, although somewhat reluctantly. As DeMarco approaches Indy, the Proving Ground GM produces a microphone from his back pocket.
INDY DARLING: You’ve got a lot of balls to come back out here, Christian, but I guess that’s part of Fallout’s charm. After all, your band of misfits and psychopaths just tore into the best competition I could come up with, and they damn near pulled it off.
Christian continues to leer at Indy as he wraps up what he has to say.
INDY DARLING: I don’t like you, Christian. I never have and I probably never will, but this is Night of Honor, and the least I can do is admit that I respect you and what you’re trying to accomplish with Fallout.
Suddenly, Christian rips the microphone out of Indy’s hand in an almost violent manner. Slowly, he raises it up to respond, but before he can utter his first word, Indy Darling is struck from behind! Producing a lead pipe from his previously unassuming bag of popcorn is Jacob Striker...
TREY BOOKER: What the hell?! That man doesn’t even work here! His issues with Indy Darling have nothing to do with this company! DeMarco has set up Indy Darling all along!
ALARA ADAMS: Actually...I’m not so sure that’s what the boss had in mind…
The glare that Christian previously directed at Indy is now directed toward Striker, who looks ready to continue his assault on the fallen GM. Then, Christian takes a big step over Indy’s prone body, putting himself between Indy and his attacker. He stares down Striker for a moment until the invader finally nods his head and takes a step back, content that he’s sent his message to Indy Darling. Then, once Striker has left the ring and allowed himself to be escorted by security, Christian leans down to grab Indy by the wrist, helping him to his feet. The two men exchange a look, before Christian finally gives him a nod.
TREY BOOKER: Have the General Managers finally reached an understanding? Is this the end of the war or just a cease fire?
ALARA ADAMS: I can’t answer that, Trey, but one thing I do know...Fallout or Proving Ground...they’re both Project: Honor to the core.
TREY BOOKER: Amen, sister! And we’ll have more Project: Honor in just one week as our second broadcast of Night of Honor comes your way! For Kayden Ellis, J.T. Price, and the rest of us here at Project: Honor, this is Alara Adams and Trey Booker wishing you a goodnight!
The camera slowly fades out and into the Project: Honor Logo.