Post by Virgil Barrick on Apr 9, 2022 10:24:55 GMT -5
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---| Project: Underground X |---
\ A Whole New World /
---| The Smooth Operator |---
\ Virgil Barrick /
---| The Good Life |---
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---| VIRGIL |---
---\ Tryout /---
Flicks of paper snap through the air as the camera pans over the looming frame of a man facing away. Broad shoulders and a stout, stumpy dome for a head, perched with a fedora over the receding hairline with a slant to fit the casual droop of his posture.
Sitting across from him, revealed by the slow pan of the camera, is The Smooth Operator himself, albeit a younger man than we’ve seen currently. Bearing a more full beard, but trimmed neatly to reflect his professional aura.
The resume ripples in the larger man’s hands as if it were a broadsheet newspaper. A small grumble to clear their throat follows. Pudgy fingers clasped in audacious rings of gold pass through the experiences, and traits, and values, topped with rainbow gems that glow in the dark sitting room.
Barrick looks unconcerned, wholly at home with the scrutiny his life was under as he waits expectantly.
After a number of moments, the other man peers up to look Barrick dead in the eyes. Small, beady eyes scanning out from the shadow of his hat’s brim. A well groomed beard himself, but thinner to a pencil line over his blubbered jawline. As he speaks in his rumbling voice, glints of freshly whitened teeth pop in his mouth.
?: Your reputation precedes you. But I’m not here to compare you on-paper to the other hopefuls attending here tonight. I want to really know about you. As an individual. Go ahead, tell me about yourself”.
VIRGIL BARRICK: “I'd like to think that you already know of me, sir. One doesn't get an audience with yourself on paper alone"
?: "Ahah, just so, this is true, they know this. I do know of you, Mr. Barrick. You came highly praised from my contemporaries. You are right, because it does take more than that alone to get my attention. But, I like to see how people think of themselves. When you put people under the magnifying glass, and ask them to look at themselves, it's always a fascinating discovery for all involved".
Virgil sips his glass politely, carefully thinking about his words very carefully. He wasn't one to lie, but the sliver of uncertainty as to this man's true intentions were a mystery to him. Naturally, one doesn't sign up to a job interview for the seediest crime bosses in the city without having one's head on a swivel. He was relaxed in that head space, as is required for this occupation...but the smile on the man's face was slightly off-putting.
The man chomps down on a cigar and strikes a match to light it. The small glow and crackle of the tobacco crisping in the air, followed by the hoofing whoosh of smoke from the portly mans's grin.
VIRGIL BARRICK: "Being honest with you, I have nothing else in my life. I don't have a wife. I don't have kids. I don't have an extended family. I don;'t have neighbors that I talk to. I don't have friends to joke around at the bar with. I don't have hobbies to distract from the world around me, or vices to wind down after a long day....
"I have this. This, is what I do. I am this, and without it, I am not Virgil Barrick. Anything you may have heard, good or bad about me, doesn't happen without the framework to make it real. The grounds that men such as yourself offer to people like me. You will find fighters from all across the world in an infinite combination of disciplines and broken backgrounds to line your halls with, and guard your doors with. They're out there waiting for you to pay them, right now. That isn't what I am. This isn't about earning the dream, or earning the good life. Get your coin to escape..."
"No".
"This is the good life".
Barrick's eyebrow raises he is received by a loud, slow clap from the man. The unnerving smile growing with a chuckle.
?: "Very good, very good! Poetic even. I like what you're telling me, Mr. Barrick, I really do. I can tell you, it isn't easy to find someone who truly wants to do this to make their living in this world. We get so many that talk themselves to the moon, but cannot survive under the bright ligts of what we do. So I appreciate your passion and dedication...."
Virgil could sense the 'but' coming from a mile away, smartly electing to not smile along with his potential new boss until he could afford it.
?: "But, I want to see what you can do".
The man clicks his fingers together, and they sing with the clink of gems scraping together as the TV screen in his lavish office begins to play CCTV footage of Barrick's violent talents on a previous night.
?: "This vacancy is only available because you made it, Mr. Barrick. My last hammer decided to leave this life after you punched his teeth down his throat and blew out his retina. All for peacefully waltzing into your bar".
"While select, this is a sought after position, Mr. Barrick. And I can only take on one member of this close family. So, as a true first-hand test of what you can do, and as some recompense for...inconveniencing me....through that door behind you, you will find the next stage of this interview".
Two of the man's guards open the doors to reveal a grimy room with mesh wiring to form a cage. A fighter's cage. Within it is a gnarling, intimidating brute of a man, also dressed smartly for this day. However, with their jacket removed and sleeves rolled up, Virgil remains the more pristine of the two in dress, and demeanor. The man smiles more, drawing another inhale from his cigar.
?: "A tryout, if you will".
Virgil doesn't turn back to the man, still leaning around on his chair to stoically stare at the other interviewee through he cage walls.
This was the time for him to smile.
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---| VIRGIL |---
---\ Sharpened on the Grindstone /---
VIRGIL BARRICK [V.O]: "Project: Underground's new era is here. But still, the shadows walk with you...."
Virgil appears from the blackened screen fading in, standing in the middle of a Project; Underground ring. He paces around the edges, his hand gently gliding over the violet purple ropes.
VIRGIL BARRICK: "I imagine that's what you're thinking this is, Mr. Blaze. An opportunity to slink along in the background, to emerge and strike when the time is right. In the old ownership of this brand, you would have been right. But we are not there anymore. The curtains have been pulled back, to let the light in".
"I want to know how, and why you would think it to be different now. That isn't a threat, or an attempt to belittle you. No, it's a genuine interest. For all the silky words that can be spun, your talent is there. As I have made clear to anyone that gets placed across from me, this is just as much an opportunity for you, as it is for me".
"Now, more than ever. Not only does The Messenger get their chance to show ME how much they have improved...but also the new overseer of our....playground, as you would prefer to say".
"This is a new slate built on the old foundations, Mr. Blaze. A new chance it might be, but I am still the man to beat in Project: Underground. That state of play will remain no matter how many at the top wear the hat. I don't talk the talk, without at least having something to back it up with. Everyone that has come around for a second bite of the cherry has been left wanting".
"If there is one attribute that I will hold over everyone on this brand, it is that I learn. I am the greatest litmus test for anyone that wants to prove their mettle, while also being there to improve with them. What use would I be as a prospective talent, if I did not move with the tide?".
"I'm afraid that hopefuls like Nathan O'Connor have already become....to rigid to truly adapt to this stage. While I might extend the courtesy of chance to someone as him before falling twice...I don't feel the same for you, Joseph. Don't take that personally, I just don't take kindly to a movement without a cause".
"This re-invigoration is what I desire. Mark Hunter can be many things, but one cannot doubt the doors he could open for someone he deems worthy of investment. Will he look fondly over someone that has already stumbled as they try to walk? No. Will be see future wannabe kings proclaiming their rule over everything? I doubt it....."
"Will he fall prey to the influence of a man already volatile enough to rock the boat?"
"That remains to be seen. YOU, Joseph Blaze, remain to be seen. You can hide around and play your games all you want, but as with everyone, someday, they need to step out from the shadows and show who they truly are. Laid bare for all to see".
"I can offer this to Mark Hunter. An audit of the Project: Undeground roster. To find all the real talents that are willing to improve, those that are due a chance to stay....and to weed out the weak....those whose train stops here".
"Against me, everyone has had to bring their absolute best, because otherwise they fall victim to their own rookie shortcomings. Their falls become my gains. And your BEST, Mr. Blaze, WAS NOT ENOUGH. The most fundamental flaw in your game that there could be. Underhanded or not, charismatic or not, prodigal or not....YOU, are not enough".
"I will entertain the idea that you have grown stronger since last we met. You deserve that much. But that is where the pleasantries end. I have my own career to forward, and that needs to go through you. Under a veil you cast, the field of Project: Underground grows fetid and dies in a toxic deluge.....Under me....everyone, even you, will reap the benefits".
"There is only one man who is fitting to lead this brand. To call themselves the Underground Champion".
"With everyone sharpened on the grindstone along the way, that would be me. I will raise this place from the ground up if given the opportunity. I don't think you can say the same...."
"You're already fighting uphill in this battle, Blaze. Lightning doesn't strike twice when you're still chasing the first".
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[1,794 Words]
---| Project: Underground X |---
\ A Whole New World /
---| The Smooth Operator |---
\ Virgil Barrick /
---| The Good Life |---
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
---| VIRGIL |---
---\ Tryout /---
Several Years Ago
New York City
New York City
Flicks of paper snap through the air as the camera pans over the looming frame of a man facing away. Broad shoulders and a stout, stumpy dome for a head, perched with a fedora over the receding hairline with a slant to fit the casual droop of his posture.
Sitting across from him, revealed by the slow pan of the camera, is The Smooth Operator himself, albeit a younger man than we’ve seen currently. Bearing a more full beard, but trimmed neatly to reflect his professional aura.
The resume ripples in the larger man’s hands as if it were a broadsheet newspaper. A small grumble to clear their throat follows. Pudgy fingers clasped in audacious rings of gold pass through the experiences, and traits, and values, topped with rainbow gems that glow in the dark sitting room.
Barrick looks unconcerned, wholly at home with the scrutiny his life was under as he waits expectantly.
After a number of moments, the other man peers up to look Barrick dead in the eyes. Small, beady eyes scanning out from the shadow of his hat’s brim. A well groomed beard himself, but thinner to a pencil line over his blubbered jawline. As he speaks in his rumbling voice, glints of freshly whitened teeth pop in his mouth.
?: Your reputation precedes you. But I’m not here to compare you on-paper to the other hopefuls attending here tonight. I want to really know about you. As an individual. Go ahead, tell me about yourself”.
VIRGIL BARRICK: “I'd like to think that you already know of me, sir. One doesn't get an audience with yourself on paper alone"
?: "Ahah, just so, this is true, they know this. I do know of you, Mr. Barrick. You came highly praised from my contemporaries. You are right, because it does take more than that alone to get my attention. But, I like to see how people think of themselves. When you put people under the magnifying glass, and ask them to look at themselves, it's always a fascinating discovery for all involved".
Virgil sips his glass politely, carefully thinking about his words very carefully. He wasn't one to lie, but the sliver of uncertainty as to this man's true intentions were a mystery to him. Naturally, one doesn't sign up to a job interview for the seediest crime bosses in the city without having one's head on a swivel. He was relaxed in that head space, as is required for this occupation...but the smile on the man's face was slightly off-putting.
The man chomps down on a cigar and strikes a match to light it. The small glow and crackle of the tobacco crisping in the air, followed by the hoofing whoosh of smoke from the portly mans's grin.
VIRGIL BARRICK: "Being honest with you, I have nothing else in my life. I don't have a wife. I don't have kids. I don't have an extended family. I don;'t have neighbors that I talk to. I don't have friends to joke around at the bar with. I don't have hobbies to distract from the world around me, or vices to wind down after a long day....
"I have this. This, is what I do. I am this, and without it, I am not Virgil Barrick. Anything you may have heard, good or bad about me, doesn't happen without the framework to make it real. The grounds that men such as yourself offer to people like me. You will find fighters from all across the world in an infinite combination of disciplines and broken backgrounds to line your halls with, and guard your doors with. They're out there waiting for you to pay them, right now. That isn't what I am. This isn't about earning the dream, or earning the good life. Get your coin to escape..."
"No".
"This is the good life".
Barrick's eyebrow raises he is received by a loud, slow clap from the man. The unnerving smile growing with a chuckle.
?: "Very good, very good! Poetic even. I like what you're telling me, Mr. Barrick, I really do. I can tell you, it isn't easy to find someone who truly wants to do this to make their living in this world. We get so many that talk themselves to the moon, but cannot survive under the bright ligts of what we do. So I appreciate your passion and dedication...."
Virgil could sense the 'but' coming from a mile away, smartly electing to not smile along with his potential new boss until he could afford it.
?: "But, I want to see what you can do".
The man clicks his fingers together, and they sing with the clink of gems scraping together as the TV screen in his lavish office begins to play CCTV footage of Barrick's violent talents on a previous night.
?: "This vacancy is only available because you made it, Mr. Barrick. My last hammer decided to leave this life after you punched his teeth down his throat and blew out his retina. All for peacefully waltzing into your bar".
"While select, this is a sought after position, Mr. Barrick. And I can only take on one member of this close family. So, as a true first-hand test of what you can do, and as some recompense for...inconveniencing me....through that door behind you, you will find the next stage of this interview".
Two of the man's guards open the doors to reveal a grimy room with mesh wiring to form a cage. A fighter's cage. Within it is a gnarling, intimidating brute of a man, also dressed smartly for this day. However, with their jacket removed and sleeves rolled up, Virgil remains the more pristine of the two in dress, and demeanor. The man smiles more, drawing another inhale from his cigar.
?: "A tryout, if you will".
Virgil doesn't turn back to the man, still leaning around on his chair to stoically stare at the other interviewee through he cage walls.
This was the time for him to smile.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
---| VIRGIL |---
---\ Sharpened on the Grindstone /---
VIRGIL BARRICK [V.O]: "Project: Underground's new era is here. But still, the shadows walk with you...."
Virgil appears from the blackened screen fading in, standing in the middle of a Project; Underground ring. He paces around the edges, his hand gently gliding over the violet purple ropes.
VIRGIL BARRICK: "I imagine that's what you're thinking this is, Mr. Blaze. An opportunity to slink along in the background, to emerge and strike when the time is right. In the old ownership of this brand, you would have been right. But we are not there anymore. The curtains have been pulled back, to let the light in".
"I want to know how, and why you would think it to be different now. That isn't a threat, or an attempt to belittle you. No, it's a genuine interest. For all the silky words that can be spun, your talent is there. As I have made clear to anyone that gets placed across from me, this is just as much an opportunity for you, as it is for me".
"Now, more than ever. Not only does The Messenger get their chance to show ME how much they have improved...but also the new overseer of our....playground, as you would prefer to say".
"This is a new slate built on the old foundations, Mr. Blaze. A new chance it might be, but I am still the man to beat in Project: Underground. That state of play will remain no matter how many at the top wear the hat. I don't talk the talk, without at least having something to back it up with. Everyone that has come around for a second bite of the cherry has been left wanting".
"If there is one attribute that I will hold over everyone on this brand, it is that I learn. I am the greatest litmus test for anyone that wants to prove their mettle, while also being there to improve with them. What use would I be as a prospective talent, if I did not move with the tide?".
"I'm afraid that hopefuls like Nathan O'Connor have already become....to rigid to truly adapt to this stage. While I might extend the courtesy of chance to someone as him before falling twice...I don't feel the same for you, Joseph. Don't take that personally, I just don't take kindly to a movement without a cause".
"This re-invigoration is what I desire. Mark Hunter can be many things, but one cannot doubt the doors he could open for someone he deems worthy of investment. Will he look fondly over someone that has already stumbled as they try to walk? No. Will be see future wannabe kings proclaiming their rule over everything? I doubt it....."
"Will he fall prey to the influence of a man already volatile enough to rock the boat?"
"That remains to be seen. YOU, Joseph Blaze, remain to be seen. You can hide around and play your games all you want, but as with everyone, someday, they need to step out from the shadows and show who they truly are. Laid bare for all to see".
"I can offer this to Mark Hunter. An audit of the Project: Undeground roster. To find all the real talents that are willing to improve, those that are due a chance to stay....and to weed out the weak....those whose train stops here".
"Against me, everyone has had to bring their absolute best, because otherwise they fall victim to their own rookie shortcomings. Their falls become my gains. And your BEST, Mr. Blaze, WAS NOT ENOUGH. The most fundamental flaw in your game that there could be. Underhanded or not, charismatic or not, prodigal or not....YOU, are not enough".
"I will entertain the idea that you have grown stronger since last we met. You deserve that much. But that is where the pleasantries end. I have my own career to forward, and that needs to go through you. Under a veil you cast, the field of Project: Underground grows fetid and dies in a toxic deluge.....Under me....everyone, even you, will reap the benefits".
"There is only one man who is fitting to lead this brand. To call themselves the Underground Champion".
"With everyone sharpened on the grindstone along the way, that would be me. I will raise this place from the ground up if given the opportunity. I don't think you can say the same...."
"You're already fighting uphill in this battle, Blaze. Lightning doesn't strike twice when you're still chasing the first".
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[1,794 Words]