Post by mstryker29 on Mar 4, 2006 16:29:05 GMT -5
Fade in.
We’re backstage at Excess, where Mike Stryker has arrived and is sitting in his dressing room. As he slowly tapes up his hands and wrists, his look is of intense focus. Tonight, after all, is the night he’s been waiting for since returning to wrestling, since coming to Valor.
It’s amazing, when I think about it. Life is truly all about opportunity. It’s about recognizing opportunity when it arrives, and having the will and the ability to take advantage of it. It’s about that old saying, something about grabbing the brass ring. It’s a million clichés.
It’s also what happens tonight.
Stryker punctuates his point by ripping the tape on his one fist, finishing up, and starting to tape up the other one. He doesn’t miss a beat, he can do this with his eyes closed.
There’s been a lot of things happening around this company that have clouded that opportunity. From a bad break at Wrestlefest, Seth Xavier stealing a victory because of some badd officiating, to the rise in power of Michael Kyser and his vendetta against Eric Hardcastle. From me and Zmaster colliding, to Eric Hardcastle being buried and the world title, that prize that I care about more than life itself, being buried along with him. From Seth Xavier riding a wave of good fortune all the way to tonight, all the way to Zmaster talking about how this is his last chance. Yes, Valor’s become a real confusing mess in the last few weeks. However in all of this, through all the clouds of confusion and change, one thing has remained constant. One thing has held firm. Just ONE thing has not wavered in all of this.
I still haven’t lost it.
Whether it’s Bryan Stinberg or Zmaster, it doesn’t matter. The bottom line is you put me in a ring, and I find a way to win. The only way anyone’s stopped me is by trapping me back here in my dressing room. Once I’m in that ring, it’s all over. It doesn’t matter who, and it doesn’t matter how. Fact is, Mike Stryker is the best God damn wrestler that has ever strapped on a pair of boots. Fact is that once I get rolling, I simply can not be stopped. It simply doesn’t matter to me if anyone around here likes it, it doesn’t matter to me if anyone disagrees with it. It’s a plain and simple fact. Tonight is that fabled opportunity at the brass ring. It’s my chance to get what I want. It’s my chance to get a shot at the VWA world heavyweight title. A title that I helped make the most coveted prize in our sport years ago. A title that I know, in my heart and in my soul, can be mine just one more time.
Stryker stops his tape job and finally looks up at the camera, a small smirk crossing his face.
You know, I guess what they say is always true. You can leave the business, leave the ring…but it never really leaves you. I never was like some of those older guys, who constantly come back because they can’t live without that pop, without that adrenaline rush that only a crowd can provide. They need the traveling, the working, they NEED the business. When I walked away 3 years ago I thought I’d never want it back. And I was right, until I got in front of that crowd again. When I heard those cheers once…it was like a drug. It was like a high that I’d thought I’d conquered. Once I felt that high, I had to come back. I had to give it one last try. When I was training, I’d lay in bed, not able to sleep, like a kid on Christmas Eve. Thinking about what it would be like to be World Champion one more time. Just one more look at that beautiful gold belt. Just one more chance to raise it over my head, to look around and know that I’m the king of the jungle. One more, it’s all I want now. Just one more.
And that desire, that knowledge in my soul, all of it has brought me here tonight. It’s brought me here to face two men. To go at it, no holds barred. Anything goes. There’s no limit. Mike Stryker, Seth Xavier, Zmaster. Only one man gets to go to Super Slam. Only one of us gets the glory. Only one of us will get that brass ring.
The other two get nothing.
As far as you go Z, you and I have each other’s respect. You’re a legend. You’re one of the best the industry. You can beat anyone at any time. You want that title shot so bad you can TASTE it. However, remember last week? Your whole issue about “momentum”. Well, you don’t have it. You lost. Any other man, any other week, the smart money is on you. But it’s not any other man you’re facing, and it’s not any other night. It’s me, and it’s tonight. Unfortunately for you, all your accolades, all your talent, it’s all for nothing. Because tonight, you simply can not beat me.
The same goes for you Seth Xavier…but with a twist. See, I respect Z. I know how good he is. I know why he’s got this opportunity. I understand what he brings to the table. You, on the other hand…
Who the hell are you, anyway? What have you got? What exactly did you do to get here tonight? I mean, last I checked, you got beat at wrestlefest. Last I checked, you don’t deserve this. However, you have earned one thing. It’s something that you can cherish for the rest of your life. The kind of thing that one day, when you’re old and grey, and you’re bouncing your grandkids on your knee, you can tell them all about it. You, my friend, have earned a one of a kind, custom fitted ass kicking courtesy of Mike Stryker. I’m talking about the kind of beating that will change your outlook on life. See, you robbed me, you stole from me. I owe you for that. You have made the last month of my life a living hell, and for that, I’m going to take some time out of this night to make sure that you get your receipt. When I’m done…you’ll be done too.
Oh, and lest I forget about our ref tonight. Eric Hardcastle. Now Eric, I think you’re a good guy, a fair guy, but this is still something that needs to be said. Quite simply, if you do anything to hurt my chances in this match, if you stray from that “middle” even just a little bit, I swear before everything holy that I will end you. I’d understand if you did, after all, you have a chance to basically pick who you’re gonna face at Super Slam. And no man in his right mind would CHOOSE to put his title on the line against a man like Mike Stryker. It would be like simply handing me that title Eric. So again, I know you’ll be tempted to sway things against me. But I warn you, for your own good, your own health…don’t even give it a second thought. You may not want to face me at Super slam for that title…but I guarantee that if you do something to prevent it…you won’t make it to Super Slam.
Tonight boys, I grab my brass ring, and there’s nothing that anyone can do about it. Not Z, not Seth, not Michael Kyser, not Eric Hardcastle, not Jesus Christ Himself. Tonight…..
It’s MY night.
Stryker stares down the camera, smoldering focus, as we fade to black.
We’re backstage at Excess, where Mike Stryker has arrived and is sitting in his dressing room. As he slowly tapes up his hands and wrists, his look is of intense focus. Tonight, after all, is the night he’s been waiting for since returning to wrestling, since coming to Valor.
It’s amazing, when I think about it. Life is truly all about opportunity. It’s about recognizing opportunity when it arrives, and having the will and the ability to take advantage of it. It’s about that old saying, something about grabbing the brass ring. It’s a million clichés.
It’s also what happens tonight.
Stryker punctuates his point by ripping the tape on his one fist, finishing up, and starting to tape up the other one. He doesn’t miss a beat, he can do this with his eyes closed.
There’s been a lot of things happening around this company that have clouded that opportunity. From a bad break at Wrestlefest, Seth Xavier stealing a victory because of some badd officiating, to the rise in power of Michael Kyser and his vendetta against Eric Hardcastle. From me and Zmaster colliding, to Eric Hardcastle being buried and the world title, that prize that I care about more than life itself, being buried along with him. From Seth Xavier riding a wave of good fortune all the way to tonight, all the way to Zmaster talking about how this is his last chance. Yes, Valor’s become a real confusing mess in the last few weeks. However in all of this, through all the clouds of confusion and change, one thing has remained constant. One thing has held firm. Just ONE thing has not wavered in all of this.
I still haven’t lost it.
Whether it’s Bryan Stinberg or Zmaster, it doesn’t matter. The bottom line is you put me in a ring, and I find a way to win. The only way anyone’s stopped me is by trapping me back here in my dressing room. Once I’m in that ring, it’s all over. It doesn’t matter who, and it doesn’t matter how. Fact is, Mike Stryker is the best God damn wrestler that has ever strapped on a pair of boots. Fact is that once I get rolling, I simply can not be stopped. It simply doesn’t matter to me if anyone around here likes it, it doesn’t matter to me if anyone disagrees with it. It’s a plain and simple fact. Tonight is that fabled opportunity at the brass ring. It’s my chance to get what I want. It’s my chance to get a shot at the VWA world heavyweight title. A title that I helped make the most coveted prize in our sport years ago. A title that I know, in my heart and in my soul, can be mine just one more time.
Stryker stops his tape job and finally looks up at the camera, a small smirk crossing his face.
You know, I guess what they say is always true. You can leave the business, leave the ring…but it never really leaves you. I never was like some of those older guys, who constantly come back because they can’t live without that pop, without that adrenaline rush that only a crowd can provide. They need the traveling, the working, they NEED the business. When I walked away 3 years ago I thought I’d never want it back. And I was right, until I got in front of that crowd again. When I heard those cheers once…it was like a drug. It was like a high that I’d thought I’d conquered. Once I felt that high, I had to come back. I had to give it one last try. When I was training, I’d lay in bed, not able to sleep, like a kid on Christmas Eve. Thinking about what it would be like to be World Champion one more time. Just one more look at that beautiful gold belt. Just one more chance to raise it over my head, to look around and know that I’m the king of the jungle. One more, it’s all I want now. Just one more.
And that desire, that knowledge in my soul, all of it has brought me here tonight. It’s brought me here to face two men. To go at it, no holds barred. Anything goes. There’s no limit. Mike Stryker, Seth Xavier, Zmaster. Only one man gets to go to Super Slam. Only one of us gets the glory. Only one of us will get that brass ring.
The other two get nothing.
As far as you go Z, you and I have each other’s respect. You’re a legend. You’re one of the best the industry. You can beat anyone at any time. You want that title shot so bad you can TASTE it. However, remember last week? Your whole issue about “momentum”. Well, you don’t have it. You lost. Any other man, any other week, the smart money is on you. But it’s not any other man you’re facing, and it’s not any other night. It’s me, and it’s tonight. Unfortunately for you, all your accolades, all your talent, it’s all for nothing. Because tonight, you simply can not beat me.
The same goes for you Seth Xavier…but with a twist. See, I respect Z. I know how good he is. I know why he’s got this opportunity. I understand what he brings to the table. You, on the other hand…
Who the hell are you, anyway? What have you got? What exactly did you do to get here tonight? I mean, last I checked, you got beat at wrestlefest. Last I checked, you don’t deserve this. However, you have earned one thing. It’s something that you can cherish for the rest of your life. The kind of thing that one day, when you’re old and grey, and you’re bouncing your grandkids on your knee, you can tell them all about it. You, my friend, have earned a one of a kind, custom fitted ass kicking courtesy of Mike Stryker. I’m talking about the kind of beating that will change your outlook on life. See, you robbed me, you stole from me. I owe you for that. You have made the last month of my life a living hell, and for that, I’m going to take some time out of this night to make sure that you get your receipt. When I’m done…you’ll be done too.
Oh, and lest I forget about our ref tonight. Eric Hardcastle. Now Eric, I think you’re a good guy, a fair guy, but this is still something that needs to be said. Quite simply, if you do anything to hurt my chances in this match, if you stray from that “middle” even just a little bit, I swear before everything holy that I will end you. I’d understand if you did, after all, you have a chance to basically pick who you’re gonna face at Super Slam. And no man in his right mind would CHOOSE to put his title on the line against a man like Mike Stryker. It would be like simply handing me that title Eric. So again, I know you’ll be tempted to sway things against me. But I warn you, for your own good, your own health…don’t even give it a second thought. You may not want to face me at Super slam for that title…but I guarantee that if you do something to prevent it…you won’t make it to Super Slam.
Tonight boys, I grab my brass ring, and there’s nothing that anyone can do about it. Not Z, not Seth, not Michael Kyser, not Eric Hardcastle, not Jesus Christ Himself. Tonight…..
It’s MY night.
Stryker stares down the camera, smoldering focus, as we fade to black.
