Post by C.J. Gates on Jun 29, 2013 9:16:05 GMT -4
"Thank you all for coming," C.J. Gates says as he adjusts one of the microphones on the podium. Seated in front of him are numerous reporters. "Earlier this week, it was mentioned that I do not belong in this years tournament. That because of my past involvement and title matches, my time in the spotlight is over. That is far from being the case.
"It has come to my attention," Gates continues, "that some people see a potential win for me as being all for naught. That if I win, it would be pointless because it would mean an automatic win for the current champions. They see me as a sacrificial lamb, a whipping boy, and that is just not the case.
"Yes, I haven't had the best of luck when it comes to title matches. In the past year alone, I've had numerous chances yet here I stand without a title in my hands. Some see that as me being incapable of winning the big one, unable to pull the trigger, however those are the same people that overlook how my matches ended.
"Those are the same people who probably perpetrated the attacks, or saw them as acceptable. So I am here to clear the air. I am here to let everyone know that my shortcomings against the likes of Terry Marvin and Level One were only made shortcomings because of people like Terry Marvin and Level One costing me matches. That is the reason why I stand here without a title.
"Those many chances I've had were stolen from me. Without a Level One briefcase to the head, a Johnny Chase intervention or a Terry Marvin sighting, I would be standing here as a top champion.
"Also realize that even though this event is a vehicle to showcase the future talent of APW, I am still very much apart of this federations future. Regardless of what I have done in the past or who I am going up against in the tournament, I am far from being out to pasture. I will still give it my all, fight in the name of good, and compete at a high level."
Gates takes a deep breath and smiles. "So I want to wish everyone luck, and I look forward to seeing what everyone has to offer in this years tournament.
"May the best person win."
"The gatekeeper.
"I can't really understand why people use this in reference to me. Maybe it's peoples perceptions of me, seeing me as a man that claims to be in charge of who comes and goes on Overdrive. Maybe they see me as the measuring stick that everyone is going to be graded against. Sure, I monitor whether or not people have to resort to cheating to get by, but I'm not deputizing myself to go out and round up every single one of them.
"I deal with them as they come. And really, aside from it being a play on my last name, I don't get the gatekeeper thing. People like Level One would fit that role better. Hell, Nathaniel Havok gave himself that very job title when he was fighting on Meltdown and for people like him, it fits. For people who always have to get their noses into everyone's business, for guys who need to be tied to President Jeff at every turn, it works.
"I don't think it fits me, but maybe I'm missing something, something that Aubrey J. Parker can fill me in on. After all, she is the one that seems to see me as the gatekeeper, when she's not tallying up how many times I have failed at winning the Undisputed or World Heavyweight titles.
"Which is fine, really. If she wants to be more worried with what I haven't done, then that's all the better for me. It just means that if her and I step into the ring this weekend, she'll be thinking that the match is in the bag. All of those pillow talk whispers between her and Terry Marvin would have gone to her head, and she will be comfortable thinking that she has that match in the bag.
"Unfortunately, she doesn't. Granted, she has talent. She won the tag team titles a few times, she won the Suicidal title, and she's made sure to keep her face in the public eye. She did all of that with her various talents, and I know that a fight against her, is going to be a brutal battle. Because that's her style, and with her currently in the mindset that she is, that's how its going to be at Test for the Best.
"Hell, it might even rival the battle between Johnny Rebel and Khaos, where blood was spilled and bodies were nearly broken. But that's because Aubrey wants this win. She says she needs this win. For what? Because she feels cheated out of potential shots? Because she had the title ripped away from her by a mere millisecond? Because she was blasted in the head with a briefcase?
"She wonders if I have motivation? Of course I do."
C.J. Gates drops a head shot of Aubrey J. Parker to the tabletop, sits back in his chair and exhales. The door to the board room opens, casting light into the room as Vincent James steps through the doorway.
"Preparing yourself even more for the tournament?" James asks as he enters, surveying the large whiteboard behind the former Undisputed champion. The board is empty, save for a few notes scratched toward the bottom. In front of Gates sit nine pictures, all with a heading. He places the Parker photo back under the heading of 'spark plug'.
Gates nods. "I need to make sure I'm ready. I need to make sure I stand a good chance in this thing. I," Gates trails off. "I need this tournament win, Vinnie."
"I know," James says. "It will help get you right back into the thick of things."
"Exactly. I can't just sit around and wait."
James nods. "You've got your work cut out for you, though. It's some stiff competition to overcome if you want to be victorious."
"Tell me about it," Gates says. "From top to bottom, this tournament is stacked with talent. Anyone could come out the winner."
"Isn't it better that way?" James asks. "You said it best before, the whole be the best by beating the best."
"That's exactly why I'm still preparing. If I want to win, to be the best of this tournament, I have to make sure I'm ready for anything. I don't know who I'm fighting, I don't know who is fighting who, I don't know who is going to go on to the next rounds. All I know, is that I have to win three matches."
"Against these people," James says, motioning down at the photos.
"Against them. And none of them can be taken for granted." Gates picks up the picture of Jace Savage. "Take Jace Savage for example. Jace is somewhat new to APW having been around for a few months, and already I can tell that he is the sort of man who will always bring his A-game. He's already come out and stated that he's going to go big this week to show just what he has in the tank.
"I can respect that. After all, I'm always looking to put on the best match possible for myself and the fans, and I can't do that unless everyone is giving it their all. If Jace is willing to go big, then I am going to make sure that if he and I meet in the finals, we will make it a match to remember.
"Of course there might be the temptation for him to try and get a cheap win by grabbing the tights or using the ropes. I can only hope that it doesn't come to that, and that his claims of going big apply to how fairly this potential match would be fought. After all, would he really want his first big title shot to come because he cheated to win?"
James nods as he takes a seat. "I don't see him being the type to cheat, though."
"Anyone can," Gates says with a smirk. "Remember when I grabbed those ropes to win my first Overdrive title shot? Not exactly proud of it, but it's a sign that even the best could fall into that sort of trap."
"You calling yourself the best?"
"I won the tournament before, right?" Gates cracks a smile as he puts down the picture of Jace Savage under the heading 'savage'. "But no, I just mean that anyone is capable of it, even Jace."
"I guess it is a possibility," James says.
"It is." Gates picks up the picture of Jair Hopkins. "And like my need to prepare for everyone, I have to prepare for the possibility of cheating."
"Don't you normally?"
"Yes, and I need to keep it that way. I need to make sure I don't overlook someone like Jair Hopkins. Not that I would, but he's the kind of guy that could fall into the backseat of this tournament and really take everyone by surprise. People might write him off, and by the time they realize what they've done, it will be too late. This dark horse will have already won. I won't let that happen to me.
"The odd thing is, I'm not one hundred percent sure what to expect from Hopkins. I mean, I can watch his matches and get a feel for his style, but people like Aubrey and Biggs, I know what they're capable of. I've watched their matches more then others and I've seen them in person. Hopkins doesn't fall into that category.
"For all I know, he's going to be the sort of guy to Terry Marvin himself through this tournament. Or maybe not. It's hard to say without knowing one hundred percent what he's capable of. What I do know is that if he and I meet, whether it be round one or the finals, I won't let him get the better of me. I refuse to allow it, actually."
"He's the one that tag teams with Bailey, right?" James asks.
"Right," Gates says. "Who knows, maybe when he's not in a tag match, it might open the door for everyone else. He's a great tag team wrestler, but maybe not the same greatness in singles competition. Maybe he'll be out of his element."
"But didn't he qualify as a singles wrestler?"
"I said maybe," Gates smiles as he puts the picture on the table under the heading 'dark horse'.
"What about that one?" James asks pointing to the picture of Christian Kane.
"Kane?" Gates asks. "What about him?"
"I've heard the name before, before he came to APW, and I thought he had all the promise in the world, but he hasn't seemed to live up to the hype."
"True," Gates says. "But I'd be remiss if I didn't take him seriously. He might not have the sterling record or the multiple titles that he might have wanted or that people might have wanted him to have, but he is still a huge threat. He might have an attitude, but he's also dangerous and could put my ideas of winning this tournament into jeopardy.
"It's probably just a matter of time before his big break comes and he ends up constantly in the hunt for World titles. This tournament could be that coming out party. I guess the question I have, is whether he's prepared to put down his friends for that win. If he's prepared to do everything that he can to get to the top. It would be unfortunate if he stopped halfway to his dream because he wanted to let one of his friends win instead.
"He needs to put it all together here in APW, and if he manages that in this tournament, then I will be there waiting for him and I will challenge him to the best of my ability. Because that's how it should be done. I mean, he might be dangerous, but that's no reason not to try your hardest, right?"
"I bet he's one of those tough sons of bitches," James says. "The ones who never give up, no matter how many stitches they might need."
"He's one of them," Gates says as he places the Kane picture down under the 'self-centered' heading.
"The other?"
"Logan Alexander." Gates picks up the corresponding picture.
"Logan?"
"Yeah," Gates says. "I guess it's fitting that he and Kane are similarly tough. They seem cut from the same cloth, even if they have different ambitions in mind. I know Alexander is poised for greatness, even if that statement falls on deaf ears or gets misconstrued to make it sound like I pick him to win. I wonder, though, if he's content with letting his tag team partner Aubrey take all the glory for herself. They work well together, and with Logan already being the Tap Out champ, maybe that's enough for him to let her have the spotlight.
"Just like Aubrey, he's got his eye on how many times I've lost to Level One and Marvin, as if it matters. I mean, yeah, maybe I have a lot of losses to them, but Logan is not Level One, nor is he Terry Marvin, so I doubt that I am going to find him as hard to battle against. I don't want it to sound like I'm full of myself, but if Logan and I meet inside of the ring, maybe even in the finals, I'm not exactly going to be quaking. I might treat the potential match like I would if I was facing Marvin, but I'm not facing him.
"I'd be facing Logan Alexander."
"At least he recognizes you as a hero," James shrugs.
"Sure," Gates says, "though he also recognizes Biggs as a man who has a reputation of doing good. Don't get me wrong, I respect the hell out of Biggs, but only in the past six months has he begun to see the error of his ways. Only recently has he begun to walk a straighter line."
"Maybe he misspoke?"
"I guess it's possible," Gates says. "But maybe he didn't. Maybe he's just so clouded in corruption that he thinks Biggs has been good for his entire career." Gates places the Logan picture back down, this time under the heading 'chaos strike'.
"That seems hard to believe," James says. "Even a true degenerate would be able to see Biggs sordid past," James says. "What about her?"
"Ah, Robina Hood," Gates says as he picks her picture up. "I had such high expectations for her, but she seems unable to live up to them. Whether that's because Sienna Harrison has got into her mind or not, I can't say, but she seems unsure of what is going on.
"I mean, she figures she's going to face me in the finals, because she recognizes how talented I am. She recognizes that I am one of the best, although claims that I'm nothing. That I still need to win this tournament in order to be recognized as anything more then a whipping boy. Sure I don't have the title to show for it, but I've been at the top, fighting for what is right for the past year at least, while she has been doing, what? Failing to beat the Guv'Nor?
"She's a threat, don't get me wrong, and I will treat her as one. She wants to face me so she can beat me, that's fine. She will do all that she can to live up to expectations set out before the Perfect Megastar, and I will be there to show her the error of her ways. To show her the truth about what kind of Megastar I am."
"You had expectations for her?"
"I had a few," Gates says as he puts the picture back down under the heading of 'the hood'.
"Maybe you are a gatekeeper," James says.
"Come on, now. You know that I'm not. I don't fit in with any of it. I'm just a man trying to fight for the good of APW."
"I guess there's a bit of a difference there," James responds. He then looks at the table. "I guess the last three are the three your most familiar with."
Gates nods. "Nathaniel Havok, A.C. Smith and Biggs."
"Do you think they will be the most challenging?"
"Perhaps," Gates says. "But I don't think they will be anymore a challenge then the other six. These are just the ones I know best."
"Like Havok."
"Like Havok," Gates says as he picks up the picture. "He and I have wrestled on Overdrive together, yet we haven't really crossed paths. And now with his new lease on life, I don't know if that's going to happen. Regardless, he's a bit of a head case sometimes. He gets himself all worried about President Jeff, and then blames Jeff for everything that goes wrong with him. Truth is, Havok puts himself in those positions, so he can only really blame himself.
"Maybe that's why he joined the League, to kind of give himself a bit of a leg up. Maybe he could shed his reliance on Jeff, and replace it with a reliance on himself. Who knows. Maybe he's just got a hard on for Jeff that can't be beat. I don't know. All I know is that Havok doesn't seem to go a month of two without blaming the one man he talks to the most.
"I hope he can start thinking for himself, though. Maybe he will one day. Maybe he will realize that the only way to truly become a legend is to make yourself your own man. Forget about the win against a guy that wrestles once a year. Forget about the ironclad contract that he didn't see through on Meltdown. Forget that he isn't what people see as the gatekeeper. Just be himself and worry about himself."
"You think he's dependent on Jeff?" James asks as Gates puts Havok's picture back on the table under the heading of 'man of sorrow'.
"It seems that way," Gates says as he picks up A.C. Smith's picture. "And this man is the complete opposite. Smith beats to his own drum and he does things his way, while still being a respectable man. He doesn't cheat to win, and still dominates. He's the Xtreme champion, and has been for awhile now, showing his staying power. And all of that he does without having to cry on President Jeff's shoulder.
"I respect him," Gates continues. "And I think Smith knows that. Or, at the very least, he can agree that we had one of the better Overdrive matches in recent memory. If he and I meet in the finals, it's going to be another instant classic, and we are once again going to tear the house down. Like I said earlier this week, Vinnie, if I could fight in the finals against Biggs or Smith, that would be the best way to end this tournament.
"Because those two are going to be houses of fire. Those two are going to want this. Smith has already shown how much he wants this, having had to fight in four matches to qualify for two tournaments in the past two years. He wants this and he's going to get it eventually. I just hope it's not this year, this weekend, against me. I hope that he wins at some point, I just hope that it's not at my expense, you know?"
"It makes sense," James says. "You respect the guy. You want to see him get his due."
"The fact that he wants to come at me," Gates begins, "shows me that his mind is set in this thing, and I can't wait to see the path of destruction that he leaves behind him. It's going to be crazy to see because this man is a walking wrecking ball. There won't be a David versus Goliath situation, but it's going to be a crazy fight between the two of us if we meet." Gates places the picture back on the table under the heading 'the enforcer'.
"I guess that leaves just one," James says with a smile. "The other half of the Space Cowboys."
Gates smirks as he picks the picture of Biggs up. "To think that last year at this time, he and I were still at each others throats, and now, we're tag team partners. Or at least friends if people don't recognize us as an official team. Not only that, but we're both in this tournament and we're both eying the prize at the end of it.
"We're evenly matched, and know each other exceptionally well. If we meet in the finals, it could be one of the longest matches in Test for the Best tournament history just because neither one of us will want to give up. It would be intense, and probably better then if Smith and I faced, just because of what Biggs and I have been through.
"So I know how dangerous Biggs is, and I know how capable he is. I have seen him beat Level One for the Undisputed title two years ago, and I know that if he is able to pull something like that out this weekend, it's going to be his tournament to lose. Honestly, though, if Biggs were to win, maybe even with me coming second, I wouldn't mind. I wouldn't cry foul if he won fairly, because I respect him that much. Besides, I'd rather see one of myself, Smith or Biggs win over some of the other choices."
"What, you don't want to see Terry Marvin orchestrate a lie down win with his groupies at Shockwave?" James jokes.
"Not at all," Gates says. "That would probably kill the prestige of the Undisputed title. Of course, that's if Terry makes it to level two."
James shakes his head. "So you're ready?"
"Of course," Gates says as he places the Biggs picture on the table under the heading of 'spaceman'. "This is a moment I've been looking forward to since I was screwed out of it last year."
"Some people think it was justified," James says. "You've heard them. They don't want you here and think that even if you win, you won't make it count."
Gates chuckles. "Maybe this is the chance to prove them all wrong. For every one of them that thinks my win at Christmas Chaos was a fluke, I will have to work that much harder to make sure I prove them wrong.
"And the first step of that, is to win Test for the Best, something I am going to try and make happen.
"The first step is to go big and send everyone else home."
"You think you're ready?" the officer says to the cowboy as the two travel through the forest in the back of a truck.
"Of course I am."
"You think you're ready even though you don't know whats around the next tree? You have no idea which one of them will be there to try and take you out, and you can bet it will be one of them."
"I can try," the cowboy says. "And I think I can beat them all."
"Really? You think you can beat them all?
"You think you can beat the spark plug?
"The savage?
"The dark horse?
"The self-centered?
"The chaos strike?
"The hood?
"The man of sorrow?
"The enforcer?
"The spaceman?
"You think you can beat them all?"
"I think I stand a very good chance."
The officer smiles. "Then good luck." The truck stops and the officer shoves the cowboy out of the back of the truck.
"Because the battle has begun!"
"It has come to my attention," Gates continues, "that some people see a potential win for me as being all for naught. That if I win, it would be pointless because it would mean an automatic win for the current champions. They see me as a sacrificial lamb, a whipping boy, and that is just not the case.
"Yes, I haven't had the best of luck when it comes to title matches. In the past year alone, I've had numerous chances yet here I stand without a title in my hands. Some see that as me being incapable of winning the big one, unable to pull the trigger, however those are the same people that overlook how my matches ended.
"Those are the same people who probably perpetrated the attacks, or saw them as acceptable. So I am here to clear the air. I am here to let everyone know that my shortcomings against the likes of Terry Marvin and Level One were only made shortcomings because of people like Terry Marvin and Level One costing me matches. That is the reason why I stand here without a title.
"Those many chances I've had were stolen from me. Without a Level One briefcase to the head, a Johnny Chase intervention or a Terry Marvin sighting, I would be standing here as a top champion.
"Also realize that even though this event is a vehicle to showcase the future talent of APW, I am still very much apart of this federations future. Regardless of what I have done in the past or who I am going up against in the tournament, I am far from being out to pasture. I will still give it my all, fight in the name of good, and compete at a high level."
Gates takes a deep breath and smiles. "So I want to wish everyone luck, and I look forward to seeing what everyone has to offer in this years tournament.
"May the best person win."
--------------------------------------------
"The gatekeeper.
"I can't really understand why people use this in reference to me. Maybe it's peoples perceptions of me, seeing me as a man that claims to be in charge of who comes and goes on Overdrive. Maybe they see me as the measuring stick that everyone is going to be graded against. Sure, I monitor whether or not people have to resort to cheating to get by, but I'm not deputizing myself to go out and round up every single one of them.
"I deal with them as they come. And really, aside from it being a play on my last name, I don't get the gatekeeper thing. People like Level One would fit that role better. Hell, Nathaniel Havok gave himself that very job title when he was fighting on Meltdown and for people like him, it fits. For people who always have to get their noses into everyone's business, for guys who need to be tied to President Jeff at every turn, it works.
"I don't think it fits me, but maybe I'm missing something, something that Aubrey J. Parker can fill me in on. After all, she is the one that seems to see me as the gatekeeper, when she's not tallying up how many times I have failed at winning the Undisputed or World Heavyweight titles.
"Which is fine, really. If she wants to be more worried with what I haven't done, then that's all the better for me. It just means that if her and I step into the ring this weekend, she'll be thinking that the match is in the bag. All of those pillow talk whispers between her and Terry Marvin would have gone to her head, and she will be comfortable thinking that she has that match in the bag.
"Unfortunately, she doesn't. Granted, she has talent. She won the tag team titles a few times, she won the Suicidal title, and she's made sure to keep her face in the public eye. She did all of that with her various talents, and I know that a fight against her, is going to be a brutal battle. Because that's her style, and with her currently in the mindset that she is, that's how its going to be at Test for the Best.
"Hell, it might even rival the battle between Johnny Rebel and Khaos, where blood was spilled and bodies were nearly broken. But that's because Aubrey wants this win. She says she needs this win. For what? Because she feels cheated out of potential shots? Because she had the title ripped away from her by a mere millisecond? Because she was blasted in the head with a briefcase?
"She wonders if I have motivation? Of course I do."
C.J. Gates drops a head shot of Aubrey J. Parker to the tabletop, sits back in his chair and exhales. The door to the board room opens, casting light into the room as Vincent James steps through the doorway.
"Preparing yourself even more for the tournament?" James asks as he enters, surveying the large whiteboard behind the former Undisputed champion. The board is empty, save for a few notes scratched toward the bottom. In front of Gates sit nine pictures, all with a heading. He places the Parker photo back under the heading of 'spark plug'.
Gates nods. "I need to make sure I'm ready. I need to make sure I stand a good chance in this thing. I," Gates trails off. "I need this tournament win, Vinnie."
"I know," James says. "It will help get you right back into the thick of things."
"Exactly. I can't just sit around and wait."
James nods. "You've got your work cut out for you, though. It's some stiff competition to overcome if you want to be victorious."
"Tell me about it," Gates says. "From top to bottom, this tournament is stacked with talent. Anyone could come out the winner."
"Isn't it better that way?" James asks. "You said it best before, the whole be the best by beating the best."
"That's exactly why I'm still preparing. If I want to win, to be the best of this tournament, I have to make sure I'm ready for anything. I don't know who I'm fighting, I don't know who is fighting who, I don't know who is going to go on to the next rounds. All I know, is that I have to win three matches."
"Against these people," James says, motioning down at the photos.
"Against them. And none of them can be taken for granted." Gates picks up the picture of Jace Savage. "Take Jace Savage for example. Jace is somewhat new to APW having been around for a few months, and already I can tell that he is the sort of man who will always bring his A-game. He's already come out and stated that he's going to go big this week to show just what he has in the tank.
"I can respect that. After all, I'm always looking to put on the best match possible for myself and the fans, and I can't do that unless everyone is giving it their all. If Jace is willing to go big, then I am going to make sure that if he and I meet in the finals, we will make it a match to remember.
"Of course there might be the temptation for him to try and get a cheap win by grabbing the tights or using the ropes. I can only hope that it doesn't come to that, and that his claims of going big apply to how fairly this potential match would be fought. After all, would he really want his first big title shot to come because he cheated to win?"
James nods as he takes a seat. "I don't see him being the type to cheat, though."
"Anyone can," Gates says with a smirk. "Remember when I grabbed those ropes to win my first Overdrive title shot? Not exactly proud of it, but it's a sign that even the best could fall into that sort of trap."
"You calling yourself the best?"
"I won the tournament before, right?" Gates cracks a smile as he puts down the picture of Jace Savage under the heading 'savage'. "But no, I just mean that anyone is capable of it, even Jace."
"I guess it is a possibility," James says.
"It is." Gates picks up the picture of Jair Hopkins. "And like my need to prepare for everyone, I have to prepare for the possibility of cheating."
"Don't you normally?"
"Yes, and I need to keep it that way. I need to make sure I don't overlook someone like Jair Hopkins. Not that I would, but he's the kind of guy that could fall into the backseat of this tournament and really take everyone by surprise. People might write him off, and by the time they realize what they've done, it will be too late. This dark horse will have already won. I won't let that happen to me.
"The odd thing is, I'm not one hundred percent sure what to expect from Hopkins. I mean, I can watch his matches and get a feel for his style, but people like Aubrey and Biggs, I know what they're capable of. I've watched their matches more then others and I've seen them in person. Hopkins doesn't fall into that category.
"For all I know, he's going to be the sort of guy to Terry Marvin himself through this tournament. Or maybe not. It's hard to say without knowing one hundred percent what he's capable of. What I do know is that if he and I meet, whether it be round one or the finals, I won't let him get the better of me. I refuse to allow it, actually."
"He's the one that tag teams with Bailey, right?" James asks.
"Right," Gates says. "Who knows, maybe when he's not in a tag match, it might open the door for everyone else. He's a great tag team wrestler, but maybe not the same greatness in singles competition. Maybe he'll be out of his element."
"But didn't he qualify as a singles wrestler?"
"I said maybe," Gates smiles as he puts the picture on the table under the heading 'dark horse'.
"What about that one?" James asks pointing to the picture of Christian Kane.
"Kane?" Gates asks. "What about him?"
"I've heard the name before, before he came to APW, and I thought he had all the promise in the world, but he hasn't seemed to live up to the hype."
"True," Gates says. "But I'd be remiss if I didn't take him seriously. He might not have the sterling record or the multiple titles that he might have wanted or that people might have wanted him to have, but he is still a huge threat. He might have an attitude, but he's also dangerous and could put my ideas of winning this tournament into jeopardy.
"It's probably just a matter of time before his big break comes and he ends up constantly in the hunt for World titles. This tournament could be that coming out party. I guess the question I have, is whether he's prepared to put down his friends for that win. If he's prepared to do everything that he can to get to the top. It would be unfortunate if he stopped halfway to his dream because he wanted to let one of his friends win instead.
"He needs to put it all together here in APW, and if he manages that in this tournament, then I will be there waiting for him and I will challenge him to the best of my ability. Because that's how it should be done. I mean, he might be dangerous, but that's no reason not to try your hardest, right?"
"I bet he's one of those tough sons of bitches," James says. "The ones who never give up, no matter how many stitches they might need."
"He's one of them," Gates says as he places the Kane picture down under the 'self-centered' heading.
"The other?"
"Logan Alexander." Gates picks up the corresponding picture.
"Logan?"
"Yeah," Gates says. "I guess it's fitting that he and Kane are similarly tough. They seem cut from the same cloth, even if they have different ambitions in mind. I know Alexander is poised for greatness, even if that statement falls on deaf ears or gets misconstrued to make it sound like I pick him to win. I wonder, though, if he's content with letting his tag team partner Aubrey take all the glory for herself. They work well together, and with Logan already being the Tap Out champ, maybe that's enough for him to let her have the spotlight.
"Just like Aubrey, he's got his eye on how many times I've lost to Level One and Marvin, as if it matters. I mean, yeah, maybe I have a lot of losses to them, but Logan is not Level One, nor is he Terry Marvin, so I doubt that I am going to find him as hard to battle against. I don't want it to sound like I'm full of myself, but if Logan and I meet inside of the ring, maybe even in the finals, I'm not exactly going to be quaking. I might treat the potential match like I would if I was facing Marvin, but I'm not facing him.
"I'd be facing Logan Alexander."
"At least he recognizes you as a hero," James shrugs.
"Sure," Gates says, "though he also recognizes Biggs as a man who has a reputation of doing good. Don't get me wrong, I respect the hell out of Biggs, but only in the past six months has he begun to see the error of his ways. Only recently has he begun to walk a straighter line."
"Maybe he misspoke?"
"I guess it's possible," Gates says. "But maybe he didn't. Maybe he's just so clouded in corruption that he thinks Biggs has been good for his entire career." Gates places the Logan picture back down, this time under the heading 'chaos strike'.
"That seems hard to believe," James says. "Even a true degenerate would be able to see Biggs sordid past," James says. "What about her?"
"Ah, Robina Hood," Gates says as he picks her picture up. "I had such high expectations for her, but she seems unable to live up to them. Whether that's because Sienna Harrison has got into her mind or not, I can't say, but she seems unsure of what is going on.
"I mean, she figures she's going to face me in the finals, because she recognizes how talented I am. She recognizes that I am one of the best, although claims that I'm nothing. That I still need to win this tournament in order to be recognized as anything more then a whipping boy. Sure I don't have the title to show for it, but I've been at the top, fighting for what is right for the past year at least, while she has been doing, what? Failing to beat the Guv'Nor?
"She's a threat, don't get me wrong, and I will treat her as one. She wants to face me so she can beat me, that's fine. She will do all that she can to live up to expectations set out before the Perfect Megastar, and I will be there to show her the error of her ways. To show her the truth about what kind of Megastar I am."
"You had expectations for her?"
"I had a few," Gates says as he puts the picture back down under the heading of 'the hood'.
"Maybe you are a gatekeeper," James says.
"Come on, now. You know that I'm not. I don't fit in with any of it. I'm just a man trying to fight for the good of APW."
"I guess there's a bit of a difference there," James responds. He then looks at the table. "I guess the last three are the three your most familiar with."
Gates nods. "Nathaniel Havok, A.C. Smith and Biggs."
"Do you think they will be the most challenging?"
"Perhaps," Gates says. "But I don't think they will be anymore a challenge then the other six. These are just the ones I know best."
"Like Havok."
"Like Havok," Gates says as he picks up the picture. "He and I have wrestled on Overdrive together, yet we haven't really crossed paths. And now with his new lease on life, I don't know if that's going to happen. Regardless, he's a bit of a head case sometimes. He gets himself all worried about President Jeff, and then blames Jeff for everything that goes wrong with him. Truth is, Havok puts himself in those positions, so he can only really blame himself.
"Maybe that's why he joined the League, to kind of give himself a bit of a leg up. Maybe he could shed his reliance on Jeff, and replace it with a reliance on himself. Who knows. Maybe he's just got a hard on for Jeff that can't be beat. I don't know. All I know is that Havok doesn't seem to go a month of two without blaming the one man he talks to the most.
"I hope he can start thinking for himself, though. Maybe he will one day. Maybe he will realize that the only way to truly become a legend is to make yourself your own man. Forget about the win against a guy that wrestles once a year. Forget about the ironclad contract that he didn't see through on Meltdown. Forget that he isn't what people see as the gatekeeper. Just be himself and worry about himself."
"You think he's dependent on Jeff?" James asks as Gates puts Havok's picture back on the table under the heading of 'man of sorrow'.
"It seems that way," Gates says as he picks up A.C. Smith's picture. "And this man is the complete opposite. Smith beats to his own drum and he does things his way, while still being a respectable man. He doesn't cheat to win, and still dominates. He's the Xtreme champion, and has been for awhile now, showing his staying power. And all of that he does without having to cry on President Jeff's shoulder.
"I respect him," Gates continues. "And I think Smith knows that. Or, at the very least, he can agree that we had one of the better Overdrive matches in recent memory. If he and I meet in the finals, it's going to be another instant classic, and we are once again going to tear the house down. Like I said earlier this week, Vinnie, if I could fight in the finals against Biggs or Smith, that would be the best way to end this tournament.
"Because those two are going to be houses of fire. Those two are going to want this. Smith has already shown how much he wants this, having had to fight in four matches to qualify for two tournaments in the past two years. He wants this and he's going to get it eventually. I just hope it's not this year, this weekend, against me. I hope that he wins at some point, I just hope that it's not at my expense, you know?"
"It makes sense," James says. "You respect the guy. You want to see him get his due."
"The fact that he wants to come at me," Gates begins, "shows me that his mind is set in this thing, and I can't wait to see the path of destruction that he leaves behind him. It's going to be crazy to see because this man is a walking wrecking ball. There won't be a David versus Goliath situation, but it's going to be a crazy fight between the two of us if we meet." Gates places the picture back on the table under the heading 'the enforcer'.
"I guess that leaves just one," James says with a smile. "The other half of the Space Cowboys."
Gates smirks as he picks the picture of Biggs up. "To think that last year at this time, he and I were still at each others throats, and now, we're tag team partners. Or at least friends if people don't recognize us as an official team. Not only that, but we're both in this tournament and we're both eying the prize at the end of it.
"We're evenly matched, and know each other exceptionally well. If we meet in the finals, it could be one of the longest matches in Test for the Best tournament history just because neither one of us will want to give up. It would be intense, and probably better then if Smith and I faced, just because of what Biggs and I have been through.
"So I know how dangerous Biggs is, and I know how capable he is. I have seen him beat Level One for the Undisputed title two years ago, and I know that if he is able to pull something like that out this weekend, it's going to be his tournament to lose. Honestly, though, if Biggs were to win, maybe even with me coming second, I wouldn't mind. I wouldn't cry foul if he won fairly, because I respect him that much. Besides, I'd rather see one of myself, Smith or Biggs win over some of the other choices."
"What, you don't want to see Terry Marvin orchestrate a lie down win with his groupies at Shockwave?" James jokes.
"Not at all," Gates says. "That would probably kill the prestige of the Undisputed title. Of course, that's if Terry makes it to level two."
James shakes his head. "So you're ready?"
"Of course," Gates says as he places the Biggs picture on the table under the heading of 'spaceman'. "This is a moment I've been looking forward to since I was screwed out of it last year."
"Some people think it was justified," James says. "You've heard them. They don't want you here and think that even if you win, you won't make it count."
Gates chuckles. "Maybe this is the chance to prove them all wrong. For every one of them that thinks my win at Christmas Chaos was a fluke, I will have to work that much harder to make sure I prove them wrong.
"And the first step of that, is to win Test for the Best, something I am going to try and make happen.
"The first step is to go big and send everyone else home."
--------------------------------------------
"You think you're ready?" the officer says to the cowboy as the two travel through the forest in the back of a truck.
"Of course I am."
"You think you're ready even though you don't know whats around the next tree? You have no idea which one of them will be there to try and take you out, and you can bet it will be one of them."
"I can try," the cowboy says. "And I think I can beat them all."
"Really? You think you can beat them all?
"You think you can beat the spark plug?
"The savage?
"The dark horse?
"The self-centered?
"The chaos strike?
"The hood?
"The man of sorrow?
"The enforcer?
"The spaceman?
"You think you can beat them all?"
"I think I stand a very good chance."
The officer smiles. "Then good luck." The truck stops and the officer shoves the cowboy out of the back of the truck.
"Because the battle has begun!"
