Post by SalTal on Nov 9, 2012 22:06:17 GMT -4
Internet Explorer-*click*-Favorites-*click*-APW.com-*click*-Survive and Conquer-*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 fades away to a shot of the World Heavyweight Title. That beautiful hunk of gold that so few ever get to touch, and even fewer get to hold. There it is, in all it’s glowing glory. Then, gently ... softly ... a most delicate hand runs across it. The fingers caress over each of the bumps, the outlines, the edgings. Slowly the shot comes out to find the glamourous and beautiful Sally Talfourd, sitting there on her motel room bed, her newly won title spread across beside her.
[Sally] Ladies and gentlemen, welcome back to Happy Endings TV - champion edition. *Sally gives a self-satisfied, “I told you so”, nod to the camera*[/b] Here we are, not two weeks out from what was the biggest Asylum main event in a long time; The elimination chamber. And, for those unfortunate souls who missed it ... let me tell you what happened. Sally Talfourd came in as one of the starting competitors ... she railed through not one, not two, not three, not even four but five opponents ... and then, at the very end, after pinning the previous champion she went on to pin the sole remaining guy to win the World Heavyweight Championship! [/color]
Sally goes to speak again, but has to stop. She looks off-camera to Shane behind
[Shane] ...
[Sally] Shane? Shane, isn’t there something you want to say?
[Shane] Now.
[Sally] I think there is Shane ...
[Shane] Ugh, ok. *A sigh, a rustle of paper, and then in a deadpan delivery ...*[/b] But Sally, aren’t you describing your 2010 win? [/color]
[Sally] Why no Shane, I’m not! You see, that record-breaking, history-breaking, expectations-breaking feat I achieved in 2010 was just about the same as what I did in 2012! Can you believe that! And then, this year, it is even bigger. You see, I’m not the first female World Heavyweight Champion. I’m the first champion to even hold both the top belts on both shows, too!
Sally scoots forward on the bed, getting a little more comfortable. She crosses her legs like a prim and proper champion, gently placing her hands in her lap, and tilting her head ever-so-slightly with a wide grin.
[Sally] Fans, I can’t thank you enough for helping me get here. Your cheers and you screams and your applause got me through that match. I knew I wasn’t the only one in that match you were cheering for, but by the end, I knew that I was doing you all proud - whether you wanted me to walk out as champion or not. And now, with this belt *Sally pats the big gold beside her*[/b] I hope that I can make Asylum even bigger and better and stronger than it was before. [/color]
Sally smiles, looks down at her hands remembering what it felt like to raise the title all over again. Boy was it something. And, honestly, not something she was expecting. The talent and the competition in that match far exceeded the 2010 achievement. To find the win this time, against those men? Wow. Just ... wow. While she’s distracted in her memories, Shane, hoping to keep things moving, interjects.
[Shane] So does it feel the same this time? Being a top-tier champion?
[Sally] Sort of. But, no. It feels better. That first time, it was to get recognised. I had the element of surprise. And I was younger and fitter back then. This time? This time I had to work, and work hard for it. I had to step up, because everyone already knew me. And I had to fight through pain and a body that’s just a bit more worn than the last time. No, this time, I don’t feel the same as last time. I feel much, much better.
Again, that grin. She knows that this win was a harder one than the last. Even getting into the match was harder. Beat out someone like Rebel? The man she had to beat to get in in 2010 isn’t even remembered in APW. And sure, squaring off against Level-One as the final in the chamber in 2010 was a challenge, but getting to the final one-on-one this year was far more challenging. Saint? Rebel? Atken? Callahan? Bailey? Toughest chamber match ever, trust her.
[Shane] Well, the wheel keeps turning.
[Sally] That’s right. And this week, it’s champion versus champion. World Heavyweight Title up against the Tap Out Title - both titles that have my utmost respect.
[Shane] It’s a big match to be coming back to.
[Sally] That’s very true! It’s not some puff piece, is it?
[Shane] You haven’t had much to do with Julius, have you?
[Sally] No, though it’s not really been planned like that. It’s just happened, you know? *Sally stops to think, for a short moment, about her path through APW, parallel almost to Julius, though some months behind in a sense*[/b] We’re an elite breed, Julius. We’re distinct among the many. But one thing I’ve learned along the way because ... you know ... I’d been champion before is to not let it go to your head. That it’s better to go into every match willfully ignorant of the fact that, at the end of the day, you’re a recognised champion. It’s best to, you know, walk down to the ring, wrestle that match, and get that win without even remembering that you’re a champion. But why’s that, I hear you asking? [/color]
[Shane] That was me, actually.
[Sally] Well, you won’t be the only one. But it’s important to not let yourself get carried away when you’re a champion. Yes, it’s a sign that you’re one of the best. Yes, it’s a mark of excellence. Yes, it’s a ticket to a place in history. But being a champion doesn’t make a match any easier. It doesn’t make wrestling and easier. And it doesn’t make getting a win any easier either. Nothing is any easier just because you’re a champion. In fact, it might make it even harder.
[Shane] How so?
[Sally] Everyone wants to be a champion - so what better way that to go harder at champions. I wouldn’t be surprised if it gets harder to beat people like Julius, Callahan, Kash ...
[Shane] Kash? Really?
[Sally] Hmmm, yeah, no one will believe that. How about Saint then? Or Strike? They are all potentially gunning for me now, and they will make beating them even harder than before. Everyone wants to test themselves against a champion, so they go out and wrestle harder and better and tougher than they might usually. They want to look better when they walk off that if they had wrestled anybody else. That’s the greatness of going up against a champ. Everyone wants to do it. Everyone wants to test themselves. And, to be honest, so do I.
[Shane] But ... how are you going to wrestle yourself?
[Sally] What?
[Shane] *Who is now down to a whisper*[/b] Have you mastered ... time travel? [/color]
[Sally] ... what are you talking about?
[Shane] What are you talking about?
[Sally] I’m talking about wrestling Farquhar - the Tap Out Champion!
[Shane] Oh! Right. Carry on.
[Sally] Far out. Anyway. Yes, I want to go up against the man holding the title that says he is the best pure wrestler this company has. Tap Out Champion? He’d have to be good at wrestling, right? He makes just about everyone tap out! You don’t do that with silliness! No, Julius should be considered one of the great wrestlers that is in APW right now purely because of that belt he holds. But remember, Julius: Don’t let it get to your head.
Sally winks to the camera, a sort of giggle to follow. It’s hard when people are talking you up to keep yourself grounded. For wrestlers who are vain and egotistical and the sort of person obsessing about image - they take off with the soaring rhetoric and they don’t land until they come crashing down with a loss. Sally’s suffered that same fate before, she’s not about to do it again. But if Julius were to suffer that same conundrum - even if the belt isn’t on the line this week - then, well, that wouldn’t be the worst thing, would it?
[Sally] So I want to go out and test myself against the best wrestler on APW. Julius, I’ve always prided myself on my ability to wrestle. The thing that I have always made sure that people remember is my in-ring skills. I have always wanted to earn the respect and adoration of the fans and my fellow wrestlers not through looks or ‘baring it all’, but instead through my wrestling abilities. I’ve always wanted to be the best performer, the best wrestler, in the ring for my match. Win or lose, that’s mostly been a side-effect. It’s the ability I’ve cared about the most. And going up against you now, the current Tap Out Champion ... a champion who must be a darn sight better than most wrestlers because you’ve managed to hold on to the belt for some time now ... going up against you, well, I can’t think of a more fitting wrestling contest.
[Shane] So the fans would be happy? A big, fresh showdown?
[Sally] They’ll be happy, Shane, but not because it’s fresh. I mean, I’ve beat Julius before. I’ve beat him in a singles match earlier this year upon my glorious return to Asylum! I then went on to beat him in a tag match. And then, most recently, I’ve beat him in a fatal four-way which won me my shot at Shockwave. The fact is, Sally-Farquhar matches are almost becoming a regular occurrence here on Asylum! And the results ... predictable. No, that’s not what excites the fans. What’s getting them all, you know, hot and bothered about this week is that they will see two genuine wrestlers at their peak going at it. The World Heavyweight Champion, newly crowned and minted, going against the retaining Tap Out Champion, hot off a defense and looking to prove even more worth! They want to see wrestling.
That silly business of violence and carnage and blood is reserved for the opener and people who have to entertain in a different way. Julius and I? We entertain the masses with our bodies. *Sally gives an exasperated look just to the side of the shot, no doubt to Shane*[/b] No, not like that. We entertain by what we can do with them! *She stops to think for a moment*[/b] Ok, that doesn’t sound any better. What I think I’m trying to say is that we don’t need weapons and antics and fireworks to entertain. We do it with our wrestling. Our natural abilities. The craft that we’ve been working on more than anyone else here on Asylum. That sounds better, right? [/color]
[Shane] Yep.
Sally lets out a relieved sigh. She’s really hoping that gets past the censors!
[Sally] So that’s what you, the fans, will be getting more of this week. Wrestling. Entertaining, pure, unfiltered wrestling. The kind that makes people love this business! That’s what I know I want to do: Get more people back into wrestling! Make it cool again. And to do that, to start that process, it means winning this week. It means making sure the best wrestler wins. The best in the ring and the best for the fans. Someone the fans can continue to believe in.
[Shane] And there going all the love ... straight out the window.
[Sally] Hey! That’s unfair. Look, *Sally leans forward, trying to get in closer to the camera*[/b] I respect Julius. I sort of like him, but I definitely respect him. He probably doesn’t like me, but I imagine there’s a teeeny tiny bit of respect in him for me and what I’ve done. We’re two of the best, but that doesn’t take away the competition. I know that the thing both of us want more than anything this week is a win. And while I know what a win over Jules tastes like, he has no idea what it’s like to win over me. And I bet he wants to know. I bet he’s dying to know. That drive, deep down in him ... that drive that pushes you to do wild and unimaginable things ... that animalistic, beastly drive that sends a man crazy with obsession. I know you want to pin me, Julius. I know you want it badder than anything you’ve ever had. You want the chance to say that you beat Sally Talfourd. You pinned the World Heavyweight Champion for a three count. You want to have a win against someone who is going down in APW history.
You want it, and you want it bad, Julius. I know you do. I’ve seen men like you come and come and come again, trying to get me. Many have tried, and the vast majority have failed. And even the people who have succeeded ... they’ve ended up failing on the return match. But other people don’t matter to you, right? It doesn’t matter who has been here yet or not. It’s all about you, isn’t it? What you’re going to do, and how well you’re going to do it? That’s all that’s going through your mind right now. An obsession with making your own mark. But while you’ll see it as some sort of mark ... it’s a stain, to me. A win for you woul be a stain that needs cleaning. Cleaning from APW. Cleaning from the records books. Cleaning from the ring. Now I’m not much fro cleaning up and all that. I mean, it’s never been my thing. So the best way to make sure I don’t have to clean up your mess? Make sure the mess doesn’t even happen! [/color]
Sally resolves all of this with a nod. Really, she hates cleaning. You’ve seen her lockers and rooms and whatnot. Never really one for domestic duties. Maybe that’s her one true failing. But anyway, that’s where we’re leaving this episode to finish. After a moment more on Sally, who looks over to her belt again with a big smile, there’s a slow fade out and then into...
Sally Talfourd
written across the screen, which in turn fades away as 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 fades away to a shot of the World Heavyweight Title. That beautiful hunk of gold that so few ever get to touch, and even fewer get to hold. There it is, in all it’s glowing glory. Then, gently ... softly ... a most delicate hand runs across it. The fingers caress over each of the bumps, the outlines, the edgings. Slowly the shot comes out to find the glamourous and beautiful Sally Talfourd, sitting there on her motel room bed, her newly won title spread across beside her.
[Sally] Ladies and gentlemen, welcome back to Happy Endings TV - champion edition. *Sally gives a self-satisfied, “I told you so”, nod to the camera*[/b] Here we are, not two weeks out from what was the biggest Asylum main event in a long time; The elimination chamber. And, for those unfortunate souls who missed it ... let me tell you what happened. Sally Talfourd came in as one of the starting competitors ... she railed through not one, not two, not three, not even four but five opponents ... and then, at the very end, after pinning the previous champion she went on to pin the sole remaining guy to win the World Heavyweight Championship! [/color]
Sally goes to speak again, but has to stop. She looks off-camera to Shane behind
[Shane] ...
[Sally] Shane? Shane, isn’t there something you want to say?
[Shane] Now.
[Sally] I think there is Shane ...
[Shane] Ugh, ok. *A sigh, a rustle of paper, and then in a deadpan delivery ...*[/b] But Sally, aren’t you describing your 2010 win? [/color]
[Sally] Why no Shane, I’m not! You see, that record-breaking, history-breaking, expectations-breaking feat I achieved in 2010 was just about the same as what I did in 2012! Can you believe that! And then, this year, it is even bigger. You see, I’m not the first female World Heavyweight Champion. I’m the first champion to even hold both the top belts on both shows, too!
Sally scoots forward on the bed, getting a little more comfortable. She crosses her legs like a prim and proper champion, gently placing her hands in her lap, and tilting her head ever-so-slightly with a wide grin.
[Sally] Fans, I can’t thank you enough for helping me get here. Your cheers and you screams and your applause got me through that match. I knew I wasn’t the only one in that match you were cheering for, but by the end, I knew that I was doing you all proud - whether you wanted me to walk out as champion or not. And now, with this belt *Sally pats the big gold beside her*[/b] I hope that I can make Asylum even bigger and better and stronger than it was before. [/color]
Sally smiles, looks down at her hands remembering what it felt like to raise the title all over again. Boy was it something. And, honestly, not something she was expecting. The talent and the competition in that match far exceeded the 2010 achievement. To find the win this time, against those men? Wow. Just ... wow. While she’s distracted in her memories, Shane, hoping to keep things moving, interjects.
[Shane] So does it feel the same this time? Being a top-tier champion?
[Sally] Sort of. But, no. It feels better. That first time, it was to get recognised. I had the element of surprise. And I was younger and fitter back then. This time? This time I had to work, and work hard for it. I had to step up, because everyone already knew me. And I had to fight through pain and a body that’s just a bit more worn than the last time. No, this time, I don’t feel the same as last time. I feel much, much better.
Again, that grin. She knows that this win was a harder one than the last. Even getting into the match was harder. Beat out someone like Rebel? The man she had to beat to get in in 2010 isn’t even remembered in APW. And sure, squaring off against Level-One as the final in the chamber in 2010 was a challenge, but getting to the final one-on-one this year was far more challenging. Saint? Rebel? Atken? Callahan? Bailey? Toughest chamber match ever, trust her.
[Shane] Well, the wheel keeps turning.
[Sally] That’s right. And this week, it’s champion versus champion. World Heavyweight Title up against the Tap Out Title - both titles that have my utmost respect.
[Shane] It’s a big match to be coming back to.
[Sally] That’s very true! It’s not some puff piece, is it?
[Shane] You haven’t had much to do with Julius, have you?
[Sally] No, though it’s not really been planned like that. It’s just happened, you know? *Sally stops to think, for a short moment, about her path through APW, parallel almost to Julius, though some months behind in a sense*[/b] We’re an elite breed, Julius. We’re distinct among the many. But one thing I’ve learned along the way because ... you know ... I’d been champion before is to not let it go to your head. That it’s better to go into every match willfully ignorant of the fact that, at the end of the day, you’re a recognised champion. It’s best to, you know, walk down to the ring, wrestle that match, and get that win without even remembering that you’re a champion. But why’s that, I hear you asking? [/color]
[Shane] That was me, actually.
[Sally] Well, you won’t be the only one. But it’s important to not let yourself get carried away when you’re a champion. Yes, it’s a sign that you’re one of the best. Yes, it’s a mark of excellence. Yes, it’s a ticket to a place in history. But being a champion doesn’t make a match any easier. It doesn’t make wrestling and easier. And it doesn’t make getting a win any easier either. Nothing is any easier just because you’re a champion. In fact, it might make it even harder.
[Shane] How so?
[Sally] Everyone wants to be a champion - so what better way that to go harder at champions. I wouldn’t be surprised if it gets harder to beat people like Julius, Callahan, Kash ...
[Shane] Kash? Really?
[Sally] Hmmm, yeah, no one will believe that. How about Saint then? Or Strike? They are all potentially gunning for me now, and they will make beating them even harder than before. Everyone wants to test themselves against a champion, so they go out and wrestle harder and better and tougher than they might usually. They want to look better when they walk off that if they had wrestled anybody else. That’s the greatness of going up against a champ. Everyone wants to do it. Everyone wants to test themselves. And, to be honest, so do I.
[Shane] But ... how are you going to wrestle yourself?
[Sally] What?
[Shane] *Who is now down to a whisper*[/b] Have you mastered ... time travel? [/color]
[Sally] ... what are you talking about?
[Shane] What are you talking about?
[Sally] I’m talking about wrestling Farquhar - the Tap Out Champion!
[Shane] Oh! Right. Carry on.
[Sally] Far out. Anyway. Yes, I want to go up against the man holding the title that says he is the best pure wrestler this company has. Tap Out Champion? He’d have to be good at wrestling, right? He makes just about everyone tap out! You don’t do that with silliness! No, Julius should be considered one of the great wrestlers that is in APW right now purely because of that belt he holds. But remember, Julius: Don’t let it get to your head.
Sally winks to the camera, a sort of giggle to follow. It’s hard when people are talking you up to keep yourself grounded. For wrestlers who are vain and egotistical and the sort of person obsessing about image - they take off with the soaring rhetoric and they don’t land until they come crashing down with a loss. Sally’s suffered that same fate before, she’s not about to do it again. But if Julius were to suffer that same conundrum - even if the belt isn’t on the line this week - then, well, that wouldn’t be the worst thing, would it?
[Sally] So I want to go out and test myself against the best wrestler on APW. Julius, I’ve always prided myself on my ability to wrestle. The thing that I have always made sure that people remember is my in-ring skills. I have always wanted to earn the respect and adoration of the fans and my fellow wrestlers not through looks or ‘baring it all’, but instead through my wrestling abilities. I’ve always wanted to be the best performer, the best wrestler, in the ring for my match. Win or lose, that’s mostly been a side-effect. It’s the ability I’ve cared about the most. And going up against you now, the current Tap Out Champion ... a champion who must be a darn sight better than most wrestlers because you’ve managed to hold on to the belt for some time now ... going up against you, well, I can’t think of a more fitting wrestling contest.
[Shane] So the fans would be happy? A big, fresh showdown?
[Sally] They’ll be happy, Shane, but not because it’s fresh. I mean, I’ve beat Julius before. I’ve beat him in a singles match earlier this year upon my glorious return to Asylum! I then went on to beat him in a tag match. And then, most recently, I’ve beat him in a fatal four-way which won me my shot at Shockwave. The fact is, Sally-Farquhar matches are almost becoming a regular occurrence here on Asylum! And the results ... predictable. No, that’s not what excites the fans. What’s getting them all, you know, hot and bothered about this week is that they will see two genuine wrestlers at their peak going at it. The World Heavyweight Champion, newly crowned and minted, going against the retaining Tap Out Champion, hot off a defense and looking to prove even more worth! They want to see wrestling.
That silly business of violence and carnage and blood is reserved for the opener and people who have to entertain in a different way. Julius and I? We entertain the masses with our bodies. *Sally gives an exasperated look just to the side of the shot, no doubt to Shane*[/b] No, not like that. We entertain by what we can do with them! *She stops to think for a moment*[/b] Ok, that doesn’t sound any better. What I think I’m trying to say is that we don’t need weapons and antics and fireworks to entertain. We do it with our wrestling. Our natural abilities. The craft that we’ve been working on more than anyone else here on Asylum. That sounds better, right? [/color]
[Shane] Yep.
Sally lets out a relieved sigh. She’s really hoping that gets past the censors!
[Sally] So that’s what you, the fans, will be getting more of this week. Wrestling. Entertaining, pure, unfiltered wrestling. The kind that makes people love this business! That’s what I know I want to do: Get more people back into wrestling! Make it cool again. And to do that, to start that process, it means winning this week. It means making sure the best wrestler wins. The best in the ring and the best for the fans. Someone the fans can continue to believe in.
[Shane] And there going all the love ... straight out the window.
[Sally] Hey! That’s unfair. Look, *Sally leans forward, trying to get in closer to the camera*[/b] I respect Julius. I sort of like him, but I definitely respect him. He probably doesn’t like me, but I imagine there’s a teeeny tiny bit of respect in him for me and what I’ve done. We’re two of the best, but that doesn’t take away the competition. I know that the thing both of us want more than anything this week is a win. And while I know what a win over Jules tastes like, he has no idea what it’s like to win over me. And I bet he wants to know. I bet he’s dying to know. That drive, deep down in him ... that drive that pushes you to do wild and unimaginable things ... that animalistic, beastly drive that sends a man crazy with obsession. I know you want to pin me, Julius. I know you want it badder than anything you’ve ever had. You want the chance to say that you beat Sally Talfourd. You pinned the World Heavyweight Champion for a three count. You want to have a win against someone who is going down in APW history.
You want it, and you want it bad, Julius. I know you do. I’ve seen men like you come and come and come again, trying to get me. Many have tried, and the vast majority have failed. And even the people who have succeeded ... they’ve ended up failing on the return match. But other people don’t matter to you, right? It doesn’t matter who has been here yet or not. It’s all about you, isn’t it? What you’re going to do, and how well you’re going to do it? That’s all that’s going through your mind right now. An obsession with making your own mark. But while you’ll see it as some sort of mark ... it’s a stain, to me. A win for you woul be a stain that needs cleaning. Cleaning from APW. Cleaning from the records books. Cleaning from the ring. Now I’m not much fro cleaning up and all that. I mean, it’s never been my thing. So the best way to make sure I don’t have to clean up your mess? Make sure the mess doesn’t even happen! [/color]
Sally resolves all of this with a nod. Really, she hates cleaning. You’ve seen her lockers and rooms and whatnot. Never really one for domestic duties. Maybe that’s her one true failing. But anyway, that’s where we’re leaving this episode to finish. After a moment more on Sally, who looks over to her belt again with a big smile, there’s a slow fade out and then into...
Sally Talfourd
written across the screen, which in turn fades away as the episode comes to a close.
