Happy Endings #94 - Forget the History
Sept 12, 2013 23:42:30 GMT -4
Jason Cashe and Evan De Parker like this
Post by SalTal on Sept 12, 2013 23:42:30 GMT -4
Internet Explorer-*click*-Favorites-*click*-APW.com-*click*-Meltdown Finale-*click*-Sally Talfourd-*click*-Loading...
"Sally Talfourd presents ...".
is written across the screen, fades out, then
"In association with Action Packed Wrestling...".
is next to appear, holds, then fades out for
"Happy Endings T.V.".
Which finally fades to a shot of a wrestling boot. Not just any boot, but a dazzling, sparkling, dirtied-white wrestling boot standing there with no one in it. The laces aren’t undone - they’re cut down the middle, the frayed edged spilling all over the place. Next to it, fallen over into a heap, is another boot.
[Shane] Sally!.
The camera comes up to find Sally Talfourd in the final stages of being strapped to a stretcher. They were her boots. Motionless, near on unresponsive, the doctors and EMTs tend to her as best they can before pushing her away at quite the speed. Shane, camera always at the ready, follows after, but to no avail. They are too quick for him and are loaded up in the back of the medical van. Just as Shane arrives, the van takes off.
[Sally] Shane?.
A weary, dazed, and tired Sally stirs in the hospital bed she finds herself in. The camera - off to the side - is unmanned by Shane. He, instead, is slumped over the edge of the bed as he sits in a chair, passed out due to sheer tiredness. However, hearing Sally, he stirs to sit up.
[Sally] Hospital again? .
[Shane] Yeah. *He rubs his eyes, forcing himself to wake up* Doctor said you’re alright - nothing severe enough to keep you out the ring long enough to matter. .
[Sally] That’s a relief. .
Sally sits herself up in the bed, taking everything in as the brain slowly reboots.
[Shane] Mannie did a number on you. .
[Sally] Please, let’s not talk about him until we’re out of here? .
[Shane] What about Aubrey? .
[Sally] Her? What would I have to say about her? She’s as helpful as ... .
Sally winces in pain, and lets the idea go. She falls back down to the bed, holding her sides.
[Sally] Let’s leave her out of this for a while as well, yeah? .
The topics decided, Shane scoots closer to the edge of the bed so that he can lean on it and catch Sally up. And so the conversation goes on - What happened afterwards, what she needs to do to get better, and when the doctors will be by to check on her again. The scene fades out on this touching moment. There’s a hold on the blanks screen, then we’re bough right back with the yelling of...
[Sally] What!? .
Sally, much more active and alive, though dressed down in her training gear, runs like the devil’s after her on the treadmill. Looking to get into fit and fighting form again, she’s hit the gym up for the first time since the beat-down. Shane, over to the side, has delivered the untimely news of her next match.
[Sally] Is this some sort of sick joke? The woman leaves me to get beat down by that hoon Mannie...and now I have to team with her!? What lunatic devised this genius pairing? .
[Shane] Jason Kash, actually. He’s the interim manager or something. You may not remember because of the whole attack-thing, but that night he was made... .
Sally has switched off, and is running even hard now. Each foot thuds into the tread, one after another after another. She stares straight ahead. The sweat trickles down her face.
[Sally] Who’s the opponents? .
[Shane] Ha...here’s the kicker: Foul Play. .
[Sally] Who? .
[Shane] Jason Kash and Knuc...I mean Reaver. .
The treadmill slows. Slows. Stops. Sally turns, glares at Shane as if she’s just found out something terrible has happened. Well, actually...something terrible HAS happened! This match!
[Sally] Are you...this is...I’ll... .
She seems to be moving through the stages of grief there. Finally, coming to acceptance, she steps off the machine.
[Sally] Fine. It’s not that bad. It’s not good, but it could be worse. I just need to hope AJP is onboard with this. .
[Shane] Word is she’s fuming that it’s the opening match. Threatening to not even show. .
Sally lets out a scoffing-laugh as she whips up her towel and starts to dry herself off.
[Sally] That’d be right. I mean...here’s a girl with not only her whole career in front of her, but the whole of this company. Ive never hidden the fact that I know - along with everyone else - that AJP is the future here. She’s one of the best APW has. And, in any other setup, I’d be more than excited to team with her. I mean, can you imagine it Shane: Sally and AJP, together? The two most dominant women, the two most successful women, that APW has ever had? I mean, if Aubrey can get herself into the ring and actually work with me...I don’t know if there’s a team anywhere that could stop us. .
[Shane] And if she doesn’t? .
[Sally] Well...then I have a problem. Because as good as I am, I don’t know if I’m good enough to take on two men. Two men who have no fond feelings for me. We’ve got one who has been bottom-feeding off the company I’ve put my everything into, and the other is a guy who has been trading off my name since he ever heard it! .
[Shane] Reaver is the bottom-feeder, right? *Sally nods in agreement* Well, actually, he’s a champion now. Won it at the last show. .
[Sally] You don’t say? *Sally looks quite surprised herself, then starts to nod* I supposed the tortoise did with the race after all. Anyway *She brushes away the thought with the wave of a hand* A title, a megastar, it doth not create. We...or I...still have to deal with two megastars unlike any others. Two people that have probably been underestimated for as long as anyone has known them. Maybe it was fair to do that; maybe it wasn’t.
I guess the jury is still out on them. I mean, how’s Kash’s form been of late? And how many losses has Knuckles racked up? I’d say that their legacy is far from secure. Not that that will deter them from going at this match hard. The thing about being underestimated is that you’re always full of confidence. Always full of eagerness. Always full of the desire to go out and prove them wrong. And, given that everyone will be saying AJP and I are shoe-ins for the win this week...well...it gives them even more to disprove. .
Sally throws the towel over the console of the treadmill, then takes up her bottle of water, looking to drink as much as she can, and as quickly as she can.
[Shane] They’d probably be eager to disprove the history that’s already there. .
[Sally] Eager!? They’d be jumping at the opportunity! *Sally grins, knowing full well what the history is between them all* I mean, the greatest lie ever perpetrated amongst the APW people is that Jason Kash is successful against your’s truly. He brags and goes on and on about he beats time and time again. Truth be told, he has beat me...in count-for-nothing tag matches and the like. .
[Shane] This is a tag match though, isn’t it? .
[Sally] Yes, true. But it counts for something, you know? There’s enough at stake to make this count for something. Me? It’s the second match back. And after getting a proper and clean win robbed for me, you can imagine how much I want this match to fall my way. As for AJP...if her senses come around, she’ll realise that this match is one of those all-important matches where you can get back into the main event and ANOTHER title match. She just needs to look back to 2010. There I was, coming off a title match loss with Level-One from Shockwave, thinking I had nothing. Then, a few big wins later, I was in the elimination chamber match and I won the Undisputed Title.
AJP has everything to wrestle for. Yes, she lost to a big name. Yes, she lost the title. And yes, it feels like she’s at the bottom of a barrel. But it’s a match like this where you can go out, work with a former champion, beat another former champion, and beat a current champion that gets you back in the running. *Sally drops the bottle onto the towel, shaking her head with slight disappointment* I just hope that she sees that before the match is out. .
Gathering up her things, Sally starts to walk her way through and between the machinery. Shane is in hot pursuit, eager to keep recording (and his job!).
[Sally] As for the two Tweedle’s, they have plenty to prove. Their on-again/off-again tag team isn’t necessarily the resonance of success. Nor, too, is the bigger name of them. Kash returns from his exodus only to find that things have changed. And while he might be my temporary boss, he better not be under any illusion he’s getting soft treatment. Kash has always had a tough exterior, but a soft underbelly. If you can strike fast and often, you can take him out. If you try and match him with braun and with strength and endurance, he’ll win. I’ll give him that. But if you come at him with brains, with speed, and with tactics, you’ll get the win every time. That’s how I’ve done it before and it’s how I’ll do it again. And again.
And again.
But, when it comes to Kash: He’s going to want to prove that wrong. He’s going to want to patch over that weakness. And, most of all, he’s going to want to do something that makes everyone forget he’s been beat by me every time it’s mattered. But he’s going to be weak. He’s going to be rusty. He’s going to be out of it because he’s been out of it. Reinstatement is one thing; winning a match is another. And considering he’s going to be the heavy lifter of his team, I don’t know how well they’re going to fare. .
[Shane] So Reaver is along for the ride? .
[Sally] No no, don’t get me wrong. Reaver is pretty dangerous here too. But he’s no Kash. Reaver might be in the best purple patch of his life. Reaver might be in his best ever form. Reaver might be on - dare I say it - a winning streak. But there’s still a few steps between what he’s doing now, and his partner. And considering the distance between both of them, and both of us...I’d say they are fighting the harder battle. And Reaver is fighting the hardest. He’s got some skill, I’ll give him that. But it’s rudimentary. It’s mundane. It’s...predicable. Prior to his title, his best achievement was fourth in Survive and Conquer. Now I’m not one to gloat, *A sarcastic look from Shane behind the camera* but I’ve finished third, fifth and second. Even my average is better than his best.
Reaver, at the end of the day, is a solid wrestler, and nothing more. While he sees three moves ahead, people like AJP and I see five or six. While he can come back from a beating, he doesn’t know when to change tactics. While he can hold his own, he certainly can’t hold someone else’s. I want a guy like him to succeed if only because wrestling deserves an underdog every once in a while. He’s had his ‘once in a while’ now. He’s won his title. Now - as much as he is going to hate it - reality is going to come back into play and, well, we’ll all go back to where we were once before. Reaver is...well, Reaver is Reaver. He always has been and he always will. I wish him luck in this match, because he’s going to need it. .
We arrive at the doors to the changerooms. Sally opens up the door, but just holds off before she goes in.
[Sally] I’ll just say this before we’re done, and I’ll say it to everyone involved in this match: AJP, we don’t have to be best of friends to win this match. We don’t have to be anything more than partners. If we can work together long enough, we cam walk out with the ending we both want. It takes a big woman to swallow one’s ego...but it also takes a big woman to be a champion. Learn from this. Learn from it and be better.
As for you two delinquents in Foul Play...you better not be hoping that history is going to save you. This is a new match. It’s a new year. We’re pretty much wrestling on a whole new show, what with Kash in charge of business now. This match isn’t one where you can hide a weakness or two. You’re going to need your best. Your absolute best. Nothing short of perfection. Because you’re wrestling perfection. You’re wrestling one, maybe two, sublime and perfect wrestlers. You’re wrestling against me - a woman who can wear you down and tie you up better than anyone else here. You’re up against history, so you’d best not be hoping that will help you. The history of two of the most successful women in APW. .
Sally goes to walk into the changerooms, Shane goes to follow. However, realising he’s trying to get in, Sally turns around - abrupt enough cause Shane to go bumping into her.
[Sally] Going somewhere? .
[Shane] I didn’t know if you were finished or not. .
[Sally] I’m not; but you are Shane if you think you’re getting in here! .
Sally slams the door in Shane (and the camera’s) face. He’s left there, not really knowing what to do. With a sigh, he looks around, finds a bench, and plonks himself down on it. The shot holds on the gym - people doing their exercise and whatnot - for a moment, then scene fades out to a blank screen, where:
“Sally Talfourd”.
Is handwritten across the screen. There’s a hold on that, and then the screen fades out and the episode comes to a close.
"Sally Talfourd presents ...".
is written across the screen, fades out, then
"In association with Action Packed Wrestling...".
is next to appear, holds, then fades out for
"Happy Endings T.V.".
Which finally fades to a shot of a wrestling boot. Not just any boot, but a dazzling, sparkling, dirtied-white wrestling boot standing there with no one in it. The laces aren’t undone - they’re cut down the middle, the frayed edged spilling all over the place. Next to it, fallen over into a heap, is another boot.
[Shane] Sally!.
The camera comes up to find Sally Talfourd in the final stages of being strapped to a stretcher. They were her boots. Motionless, near on unresponsive, the doctors and EMTs tend to her as best they can before pushing her away at quite the speed. Shane, camera always at the ready, follows after, but to no avail. They are too quick for him and are loaded up in the back of the medical van. Just as Shane arrives, the van takes off.
[The Next Day]
[Sally] Shane?.
A weary, dazed, and tired Sally stirs in the hospital bed she finds herself in. The camera - off to the side - is unmanned by Shane. He, instead, is slumped over the edge of the bed as he sits in a chair, passed out due to sheer tiredness. However, hearing Sally, he stirs to sit up.
[Sally] Hospital again? .
[Shane] Yeah. *He rubs his eyes, forcing himself to wake up* Doctor said you’re alright - nothing severe enough to keep you out the ring long enough to matter. .
[Sally] That’s a relief. .
Sally sits herself up in the bed, taking everything in as the brain slowly reboots.
[Shane] Mannie did a number on you. .
[Sally] Please, let’s not talk about him until we’re out of here? .
[Shane] What about Aubrey? .
[Sally] Her? What would I have to say about her? She’s as helpful as ... .
Sally winces in pain, and lets the idea go. She falls back down to the bed, holding her sides.
[Sally] Let’s leave her out of this for a while as well, yeah? .
The topics decided, Shane scoots closer to the edge of the bed so that he can lean on it and catch Sally up. And so the conversation goes on - What happened afterwards, what she needs to do to get better, and when the doctors will be by to check on her again. The scene fades out on this touching moment. There’s a hold on the blanks screen, then we’re bough right back with the yelling of...
[Sally] What!? .
[Next Week]
Sally, much more active and alive, though dressed down in her training gear, runs like the devil’s after her on the treadmill. Looking to get into fit and fighting form again, she’s hit the gym up for the first time since the beat-down. Shane, over to the side, has delivered the untimely news of her next match.
[Sally] Is this some sort of sick joke? The woman leaves me to get beat down by that hoon Mannie...and now I have to team with her!? What lunatic devised this genius pairing? .
[Shane] Jason Kash, actually. He’s the interim manager or something. You may not remember because of the whole attack-thing, but that night he was made... .
Sally has switched off, and is running even hard now. Each foot thuds into the tread, one after another after another. She stares straight ahead. The sweat trickles down her face.
[Sally] Who’s the opponents? .
[Shane] Ha...here’s the kicker: Foul Play. .
[Sally] Who? .
[Shane] Jason Kash and Knuc...I mean Reaver. .
The treadmill slows. Slows. Stops. Sally turns, glares at Shane as if she’s just found out something terrible has happened. Well, actually...something terrible HAS happened! This match!
[Sally] Are you...this is...I’ll... .
She seems to be moving through the stages of grief there. Finally, coming to acceptance, she steps off the machine.
[Sally] Fine. It’s not that bad. It’s not good, but it could be worse. I just need to hope AJP is onboard with this. .
[Shane] Word is she’s fuming that it’s the opening match. Threatening to not even show. .
Sally lets out a scoffing-laugh as she whips up her towel and starts to dry herself off.
[Sally] That’d be right. I mean...here’s a girl with not only her whole career in front of her, but the whole of this company. Ive never hidden the fact that I know - along with everyone else - that AJP is the future here. She’s one of the best APW has. And, in any other setup, I’d be more than excited to team with her. I mean, can you imagine it Shane: Sally and AJP, together? The two most dominant women, the two most successful women, that APW has ever had? I mean, if Aubrey can get herself into the ring and actually work with me...I don’t know if there’s a team anywhere that could stop us. .
[Shane] And if she doesn’t? .
[Sally] Well...then I have a problem. Because as good as I am, I don’t know if I’m good enough to take on two men. Two men who have no fond feelings for me. We’ve got one who has been bottom-feeding off the company I’ve put my everything into, and the other is a guy who has been trading off my name since he ever heard it! .
[Shane] Reaver is the bottom-feeder, right? *Sally nods in agreement* Well, actually, he’s a champion now. Won it at the last show. .
[Sally] You don’t say? *Sally looks quite surprised herself, then starts to nod* I supposed the tortoise did with the race after all. Anyway *She brushes away the thought with the wave of a hand* A title, a megastar, it doth not create. We...or I...still have to deal with two megastars unlike any others. Two people that have probably been underestimated for as long as anyone has known them. Maybe it was fair to do that; maybe it wasn’t.
I guess the jury is still out on them. I mean, how’s Kash’s form been of late? And how many losses has Knuckles racked up? I’d say that their legacy is far from secure. Not that that will deter them from going at this match hard. The thing about being underestimated is that you’re always full of confidence. Always full of eagerness. Always full of the desire to go out and prove them wrong. And, given that everyone will be saying AJP and I are shoe-ins for the win this week...well...it gives them even more to disprove. .
Sally throws the towel over the console of the treadmill, then takes up her bottle of water, looking to drink as much as she can, and as quickly as she can.
[Shane] They’d probably be eager to disprove the history that’s already there. .
[Sally] Eager!? They’d be jumping at the opportunity! *Sally grins, knowing full well what the history is between them all* I mean, the greatest lie ever perpetrated amongst the APW people is that Jason Kash is successful against your’s truly. He brags and goes on and on about he beats time and time again. Truth be told, he has beat me...in count-for-nothing tag matches and the like. .
[Shane] This is a tag match though, isn’t it? .
[Sally] Yes, true. But it counts for something, you know? There’s enough at stake to make this count for something. Me? It’s the second match back. And after getting a proper and clean win robbed for me, you can imagine how much I want this match to fall my way. As for AJP...if her senses come around, she’ll realise that this match is one of those all-important matches where you can get back into the main event and ANOTHER title match. She just needs to look back to 2010. There I was, coming off a title match loss with Level-One from Shockwave, thinking I had nothing. Then, a few big wins later, I was in the elimination chamber match and I won the Undisputed Title.
AJP has everything to wrestle for. Yes, she lost to a big name. Yes, she lost the title. And yes, it feels like she’s at the bottom of a barrel. But it’s a match like this where you can go out, work with a former champion, beat another former champion, and beat a current champion that gets you back in the running. *Sally drops the bottle onto the towel, shaking her head with slight disappointment* I just hope that she sees that before the match is out. .
Gathering up her things, Sally starts to walk her way through and between the machinery. Shane is in hot pursuit, eager to keep recording (and his job!).
[Sally] As for the two Tweedle’s, they have plenty to prove. Their on-again/off-again tag team isn’t necessarily the resonance of success. Nor, too, is the bigger name of them. Kash returns from his exodus only to find that things have changed. And while he might be my temporary boss, he better not be under any illusion he’s getting soft treatment. Kash has always had a tough exterior, but a soft underbelly. If you can strike fast and often, you can take him out. If you try and match him with braun and with strength and endurance, he’ll win. I’ll give him that. But if you come at him with brains, with speed, and with tactics, you’ll get the win every time. That’s how I’ve done it before and it’s how I’ll do it again. And again.
And again.
But, when it comes to Kash: He’s going to want to prove that wrong. He’s going to want to patch over that weakness. And, most of all, he’s going to want to do something that makes everyone forget he’s been beat by me every time it’s mattered. But he’s going to be weak. He’s going to be rusty. He’s going to be out of it because he’s been out of it. Reinstatement is one thing; winning a match is another. And considering he’s going to be the heavy lifter of his team, I don’t know how well they’re going to fare. .
[Shane] So Reaver is along for the ride? .
[Sally] No no, don’t get me wrong. Reaver is pretty dangerous here too. But he’s no Kash. Reaver might be in the best purple patch of his life. Reaver might be in his best ever form. Reaver might be on - dare I say it - a winning streak. But there’s still a few steps between what he’s doing now, and his partner. And considering the distance between both of them, and both of us...I’d say they are fighting the harder battle. And Reaver is fighting the hardest. He’s got some skill, I’ll give him that. But it’s rudimentary. It’s mundane. It’s...predicable. Prior to his title, his best achievement was fourth in Survive and Conquer. Now I’m not one to gloat, *A sarcastic look from Shane behind the camera* but I’ve finished third, fifth and second. Even my average is better than his best.
Reaver, at the end of the day, is a solid wrestler, and nothing more. While he sees three moves ahead, people like AJP and I see five or six. While he can come back from a beating, he doesn’t know when to change tactics. While he can hold his own, he certainly can’t hold someone else’s. I want a guy like him to succeed if only because wrestling deserves an underdog every once in a while. He’s had his ‘once in a while’ now. He’s won his title. Now - as much as he is going to hate it - reality is going to come back into play and, well, we’ll all go back to where we were once before. Reaver is...well, Reaver is Reaver. He always has been and he always will. I wish him luck in this match, because he’s going to need it. .
We arrive at the doors to the changerooms. Sally opens up the door, but just holds off before she goes in.
[Sally] I’ll just say this before we’re done, and I’ll say it to everyone involved in this match: AJP, we don’t have to be best of friends to win this match. We don’t have to be anything more than partners. If we can work together long enough, we cam walk out with the ending we both want. It takes a big woman to swallow one’s ego...but it also takes a big woman to be a champion. Learn from this. Learn from it and be better.
As for you two delinquents in Foul Play...you better not be hoping that history is going to save you. This is a new match. It’s a new year. We’re pretty much wrestling on a whole new show, what with Kash in charge of business now. This match isn’t one where you can hide a weakness or two. You’re going to need your best. Your absolute best. Nothing short of perfection. Because you’re wrestling perfection. You’re wrestling one, maybe two, sublime and perfect wrestlers. You’re wrestling against me - a woman who can wear you down and tie you up better than anyone else here. You’re up against history, so you’d best not be hoping that will help you. The history of two of the most successful women in APW. .
Sally goes to walk into the changerooms, Shane goes to follow. However, realising he’s trying to get in, Sally turns around - abrupt enough cause Shane to go bumping into her.
[Sally] Going somewhere? .
[Shane] I didn’t know if you were finished or not. .
[Sally] I’m not; but you are Shane if you think you’re getting in here! .
Sally slams the door in Shane (and the camera’s) face. He’s left there, not really knowing what to do. With a sigh, he looks around, finds a bench, and plonks himself down on it. The shot holds on the gym - people doing their exercise and whatnot - for a moment, then scene fades out to a blank screen, where:
“Sally Talfourd”.
Is handwritten across the screen. There’s a hold on that, and then the screen fades out and the episode comes to a close.
