Post by C.J. Gates on Dec 18, 2010 16:08:39 GMT -4
(The scene opens with a shot of a large white board affixed to the wall, and on that board, are five pieces of blank paper, attached with tape. After a few moments, the door to what looks to be a classroom opens up and in walks one half of the APW Tag Team champions C.J. Gates wearing a pair of black pants, a white dress shirt, black jacket and his cowboy hat, the Tag Team title around his waist. He walks across the floor, passed the white board to a desk to the left of the board and removes his cowboy hat and title belt, placing both of them on the top. Gates then turns and walks back toward the center of the room, stopping in front of the white board.)
C.J. Gates: Last week went basically like I thought it would. I'll admit I had vision of a win, and visions of taking control of that match when I tagged myself in, but unfortunately, certain people didn't think that should be the case. I also admit that tagging myself in might have been a premature move, but Sally looked to have her hands full, and I figured I could lend a hand. Because that is what teammates do. She might not have liked it, and for that I will apologize. But I won't deny that I had the best intentions in mind when I did. I wanted to win as bad as anyone around that ring, and they all saw it. Whether it was in my eyes, in the way that I executed, or simply in the manner in which I held myself, they all saw that I wanted to win.
Because that is what I do. Unlike some, winning isn't everything for me, it just seems to find me. As I have said, the most important thing to me is making sure that the match is not dull. That the fans enjoy themselves, that I enjoy myself, and that at the end of the night, I can nod my head and feel good about what I just did. And whether that is beating the former champs for their titles, going toe to toe in a losing effort with Sally Talfourd, or defeating wanna-be champions, I always make sure I can look back and feel proud. Winning is just what usually seems to happen. I can't deny that it feels good though. Because it does. It feels awesome when a victory follows the great effort I put out inside of that ring time after time.
What does this all mean, you ask? Well, this weekend we will hold our last event of the year. Our last hurrah for all of those fans that want to see a great show. And a great show it will be. And, of course, you can't have a great show without the Exchange Rate. You can't have a great show without yet another win by the best tag team in the APW. And just like the last time we teamed up at a Pay-Per-View, Blade and I get to start the show off on the right foot. We get the honor of setting the tone for the entire evening.
I know that we won't be the best match of the night. There is a reason why we have Main Events. But I also understand that Blade and I will do what we have always done. We will go out to that ring and send the electricity through the arena, get the fans up off their seats cheering and chanting, begging for us to put the Red Shield Mafia in their place. I say this because it is what will happen. The Red Shield Mafia will fail in their quest to capture the gold, just like they failed in their quest to gain the upper hand each and every week leading up to Christmas Chaos.
The only way they will get the title is after I'm long gone. To pry them out of our cold dead hands.
Which, really, is probably right up their alley. After all, we all saw Kingston black out from all the...pain he was in while taking a leak. And I'm sure ABC would have a field day pulling all of the gay sex jokes out of that situation. It's almost like they lobbed it up for someone to knock out of the park. It's like they are the Pittsburgh Pirates, begging to get beaten every time they have a game that is of somewhat importance.
And then when they get to a really important one, well, they fall flat on their faces. Which is what the Red Shield Mafia seem to be doing. Falling flat and failing hard.
Though, I admit.
(Gates turns and takes a few steps back to the white board and standing beside it.)
C.J. Gates: I admit that I haven't really been fair to you guys. I have spent all this time making fun of you that I haven't really given enough time to each one of you in turn. Which is why I decided to hold this little session in a classroom. To not only show everyone that I have paid attention to you and what you are all about, but to also, possibly, enlighten the rest of the community into what you guys are all about. So, without further ado.
(Gates picks up a red white board marker and above the pictures writes, in big letters, RED SHIELD MAFIA.)
C.J. Gates: So, just who do we have? Well, let's start with the brainchild of the entire operation.
(Gates turns the first picture around, sticking it back on the board. The first picture is that of Damian Walker, the manager of the Red Shield Mafia.)
C.J. Gates: Damian, you are a teams manager, I'll give you that. You are there to help out when they need you, provide encouragement and support for them inside of the ring. I just feel sorry that you got caught up on the wrong team. With the wrong team. You've got great talent, but you're wasting it on the Mafia. And for that, well, you got your payment when Rico Casteel punched you straight in the face a few weeks ago. And don't worry. Even though he's fighting in the IWC Super Show this week, Rico will be there, just in case you get yourself mixed up in the action yet again. He will be there to pound you down again, and make sure you don't come back up. Because really, you have no business meddling in this match. You have no business managing the tag team champions. You have no business being in the APW, really, but we can't really blame anyone for that. You just happened to scoot in on the coat tails for your three men.
So, really, worrying about you is about as futile as Kingston and Mannie thinking they can get the titles off of us this weekend. Because in the end, you won't play a factor in how this match comes out. Whether you poke your nose in or not, the Exchange Rate will still win the match, with or without your animated jumping on the outside while your boys get pinned. With or without your shouts of encouragement as the Exchange Rate goes big and wipes away the hopes of the Mafia. Which brings me to my next person, an actual wrestler with your little clique.
(Gates reaches over and flips the next picture over, sticking it back to the board. This one is a picture of Diamente Valentine.)
C.J. Gates: I realized something the other day, and you guys will probably jump all over it like a fat kid on a smartie. When Blade and I first beat the Red Shield Mafia, we beat Valentine and Kingston. And while we are facing a different pairing this week, the outcome will be the same. Nevertheless, to the people who seem to think I am talking a lot of things I don't know, I do know what Valentine is capable of, and I do know that Valentine isn't really cut out for anything more than the Xtreme title he is chasing. Which, I guess, is a smart move on his part. He's shooting for what he knows he can obtain, not like Young Mannie who tried to win the World Heavyweight title in a match that was so far over his head. I mean, honestly, what made him think that he could beat all of those elite wrestlers in an Elimination Chamber match?
But Valentine, he's that one guy that doesn't add up. Mannie and Kingston are almost made for each other, and then there's the pretty boy who thinks he is the big man on campus, but is really just the small fish in a enormous pond. You TRY to win over the crowd with all your suave and debonair actions, but they don't see through your greasy exterior. They all see what we see. A man who thinks the women love him, but a man who couldn't keep his emotions in check for the life of him. A man who smiles, but not enough to cover up the fact that he would love to rip your head off. Yet, he couldn't even hurt a fly. Or at least, not a fly named C.J. Gates or Blade.
The question now is why does Valentine matter. He isn't in this match and he has his own title fight to worry about. So why worry? Because this is the Red Shield Mafia. The last time they did anything by the book, the APW didn't even exist. Because that is all I have seen them do. Sneak attacks, interference, run-ins, team beatings. Never have I seen them go out and fight a straight up match. Never have I seen the Mafia win or lose without any sort of uncertainties surrounding the match. So I know that it's only a formality that Valentine isn't in the match, because he will eventually be in the match. And he will eventually feel the same disappointment that his running buddies will feel. Pure defeat.
Let's carry on.
(Gates reaches back up and turns the next picture over, sticking it back to the board as well. This time, the picture is of Young Mannie.)
C.J. Gates: You know what? Let's hit two birds with one stone, since these are the two that REALLY matter when it comes to this match.
(Gates turns the next picture over to reveal the mug of J.R. Kingston.)
C.J. Gates: The team that is challenging for the Tag Team titles this week, Young Mannie and J.R. Kingston. On one hand we have a man who Blade and I have already beaten in a tag team match to earn the initial shot that led to where we are today, and on the other hand, we have the man who thought he was a God in the ring, but ended up losing in fine fashion at One Night in Hell. And together, they have this insane idea that they will be able to beat Blade and I for the tag team titles. They have this crazy belief that they will walk away as the champions, after weeks and weeks, months and months of failure at doing...well, much of anything. They attacked us after one of our matches, and then the very next week, we attacked them right back.
They tried to plan some sort of attack, but Blade and I got the upper hand and hit them where it counts. And even more, we sent them a little message that I'm sure they will not soon forget.
(Gates turns the fifth and final picture over to show a close up of the T-shirts that he and Blade plastered their locker room with last week. The black shirts that read "RSM IS #2".)
C.J. Gates: In fact, I think placing you guys at number two is a bit of a stretch. What might have been more accurate was to place you guys at number three or four, since that's really where you would fit in the grand scheme of things. Because even though we beat Valentine and Kingston a few months back, it's all the same. Everything is the exact same with Young Mannie taking Valentine's place, there is no doubt about it. Crazy part is that Kingston and Rico would be a good fit for one another. No, ABC, not because they're gay, but because they are similar. They are both ex fighters that were banned from the mixed martial arts world because of their own disorderly conduct. Because they did things that they just shouldn't have done. That they were relentless in their continued assault even after the bell had rung or the fight had been canceled.
Which is probably supposed to scare me or intimidate me. But it doesn't. Because, really, it's nothing that I can't overcome. David Wallace was a bad ass giant who didn't really worry about anyone's safety and I overcame him time after time. So J.R. holds nothing to me. Even if he thinks that he will squash me like a bug, it doesn't intimidate me or make me shake in my boots. If anything, it makes me wonder if he has his head on straight, and only because I'm worried he won't find his way to the ring. Maybe the marijuana that he guys always partake in offsets that fact, but who can really tell.
Besides, I figure that working together, Blade and I can overcome whatever you two can throw at us. So Kingston doesn't stop? Even if he has a hold on one of us, he's only going to end up getting the team disqualified and costing them the titles. It's not like this is the match that we had with the Sports Nutz. This is nothing like that, because here, something like holding onto that choke for too long can end up hurting you guys in the long run. Sure, if it all happens that way, Blade or myself will feel your wrath, and feel pain for it, but we aren't too worried. Because we are confident in our own abilities.
Abilities that start with avoiding anything you guys have to throw our way. Abilities that allow us to turn the match around at a moments notice. Your strength means you're slow, while both Blade and I are as fast as anything. As crafty as anything. Once that bell rings, we are a whole different team. We work together. We don't get mad if one of us screws up, we encourage each other to do better. To power through it. But that's what makes us a great team. We haven't been together as long as you guys, so we don't have the whole experience thing, but we've been together long enough to know how each other operates.
It's good to know that at least Mannie has his head on straight, though you think he would try and actually conquer something of use. I mean, considering how he values weed, money, women and fame, you figure he'd have gone down to IWC and tried to win one of their titles, rather then face the competition in APW. Because time after time, the result will always be the same for him. He will fail to win. He will fail to do anything but lose time after time whenever there is a title involved. But maybe that value will drive him harder to win this week. Will force him to be a bit more of a factor in this match then we give him credit for.
Because honestly, Mannie, I'm about ready to write you off. Not saying that I have yet, but I am about to. About to just give you and Kingston the old wave of a hand, and pass the two of you along to the next feat. And the sooner you guys realize that you have no chance to beat Blade and myself, the better. And even if you don't realize it, once we get through thrashing you two inside of the ring this weekend, we will finally be able to move on. Move on from the Red Shield Mafia and onto competition that will pose a real challenge and a real threat to our belts. Beautiful Disaster, Aaron Drake and Kulev Mahu...hell, get ABC a partner and let him fight it out with us, since that's really what he wants to do. Either way, any of those three teams would be a welcome breath of fresh air to the stagnant nothing of the Mafia.
The three of you are the same week in and week out. You smoke, you joke, you toke, and then when you finally find your way to the arena, you can barely put on a good match. Blade and I will be carrying you at Christmas Chaos, that I have no doubt about. And even when you manage to stumble into a good match, you make the whole thing suffer because you don't have any actual skills. You don't have any talent inside of that ring. At least Valentine realized that and split away to do his own thing, in a division where you figured he could have more luck. And taking nothing away from Branden Harvey, Valentine will have an easier time taking his Xtreme title away, then the two of you will have taking our tag team titles.
(Gates walks away from the white board and toward one of the small desks that rests before the board. He places his hands on the top, stooping down a bit, and smiles.)
C.J. Gates: Do I think you guys don't deserve a title shot? After thinking it through, it might be on the contrary. You guys definitely earned a title shot, and not because you are the second best team like that T-shirt says you are. Not because we recognized your past talent and figured we'd reward whatever Fisher Price and Arrow said you guys did in another federation. Mainly, because the only other tag teams in the APW have just started out. Giving them a title shot might seem a bit...unfair. So why not give it to the only other team left. And maybe, just maybe, we can run you guys out of here as well, and make sure that the only tag teams left, are the ones with actual talent. The ones that can actually speak without needing to consult hooked on phonics every time they do.
The ones who can draw. Who can make the fans cheer, chant, scream in joy. Because that's what the Sports Nutz couldn't do. And that is what Blade and I can do. So bring whatever back-up you wish to bring. Though, hopefully, if you do bring some, it will last longer than The Number did. He seemed to have taken your money and jumped ship, so I guess you pay well. Either way, Valentine is about all you can truly rely on, and Blade and I are ready for him to poke his nose into our business. Why do you think I brought in Rico? Not to just make us look tougher, but to make the rest of you think twice about trying to pull a fast one over on us.
But you think that you are in our heads? Really? You REALLY think that you have planted some sort of doubt, that you have gotten inside and worked your magic? I'm sorry to say that you have done nothing like that. Nothing at all. Blade and I don't fall for games like that, especially games that are as half-assed as yours are. You seem to have completely forgotten about what Blade and I did last week. The whole T-shirt thing. Maybe it is us that have gotten inside of your heads. Messing around and working OUR magic. Right? Just maybe you guys are trying to forget about it so that it doesn't tip us off.
I guess we will have to see what happens at Christmas Chaos. I guess whichever one of us loses the match, we can say that they were the ones that got toyed with. That it was their minds that got messed up in this whole psychological game you claim that you are playing. To me, you guys are just flexing your muscles.
Nothing more. Nothing less.
And after this match, this weekend, you two...nay, the four of you will realize that the Exchange Rate will not lose. That we will never lose. The only thing that we are going to be doing, is going big, because we have no intentions of going home. None.
And we will still be APW Tag Team champions.
(Gates smirks before walking back to the desk and picking up and putting on his hat. He then picks up the title belt and re-straps it around his waist, under his jacket. Before leaving the room, he picks the red marker back up and draws a few hurried lines through the RED SHIELD MAFIA name that he had written at the top. Gates drops the marker, nodding his head in approval, before he exits the room as the scene fades to black.)
C.J. Gates: Last week went basically like I thought it would. I'll admit I had vision of a win, and visions of taking control of that match when I tagged myself in, but unfortunately, certain people didn't think that should be the case. I also admit that tagging myself in might have been a premature move, but Sally looked to have her hands full, and I figured I could lend a hand. Because that is what teammates do. She might not have liked it, and for that I will apologize. But I won't deny that I had the best intentions in mind when I did. I wanted to win as bad as anyone around that ring, and they all saw it. Whether it was in my eyes, in the way that I executed, or simply in the manner in which I held myself, they all saw that I wanted to win.
Because that is what I do. Unlike some, winning isn't everything for me, it just seems to find me. As I have said, the most important thing to me is making sure that the match is not dull. That the fans enjoy themselves, that I enjoy myself, and that at the end of the night, I can nod my head and feel good about what I just did. And whether that is beating the former champs for their titles, going toe to toe in a losing effort with Sally Talfourd, or defeating wanna-be champions, I always make sure I can look back and feel proud. Winning is just what usually seems to happen. I can't deny that it feels good though. Because it does. It feels awesome when a victory follows the great effort I put out inside of that ring time after time.
What does this all mean, you ask? Well, this weekend we will hold our last event of the year. Our last hurrah for all of those fans that want to see a great show. And a great show it will be. And, of course, you can't have a great show without the Exchange Rate. You can't have a great show without yet another win by the best tag team in the APW. And just like the last time we teamed up at a Pay-Per-View, Blade and I get to start the show off on the right foot. We get the honor of setting the tone for the entire evening.
I know that we won't be the best match of the night. There is a reason why we have Main Events. But I also understand that Blade and I will do what we have always done. We will go out to that ring and send the electricity through the arena, get the fans up off their seats cheering and chanting, begging for us to put the Red Shield Mafia in their place. I say this because it is what will happen. The Red Shield Mafia will fail in their quest to capture the gold, just like they failed in their quest to gain the upper hand each and every week leading up to Christmas Chaos.
The only way they will get the title is after I'm long gone. To pry them out of our cold dead hands.
Which, really, is probably right up their alley. After all, we all saw Kingston black out from all the...pain he was in while taking a leak. And I'm sure ABC would have a field day pulling all of the gay sex jokes out of that situation. It's almost like they lobbed it up for someone to knock out of the park. It's like they are the Pittsburgh Pirates, begging to get beaten every time they have a game that is of somewhat importance.
And then when they get to a really important one, well, they fall flat on their faces. Which is what the Red Shield Mafia seem to be doing. Falling flat and failing hard.
Though, I admit.
(Gates turns and takes a few steps back to the white board and standing beside it.)
C.J. Gates: I admit that I haven't really been fair to you guys. I have spent all this time making fun of you that I haven't really given enough time to each one of you in turn. Which is why I decided to hold this little session in a classroom. To not only show everyone that I have paid attention to you and what you are all about, but to also, possibly, enlighten the rest of the community into what you guys are all about. So, without further ado.
(Gates picks up a red white board marker and above the pictures writes, in big letters, RED SHIELD MAFIA.)
C.J. Gates: So, just who do we have? Well, let's start with the brainchild of the entire operation.
(Gates turns the first picture around, sticking it back on the board. The first picture is that of Damian Walker, the manager of the Red Shield Mafia.)
C.J. Gates: Damian, you are a teams manager, I'll give you that. You are there to help out when they need you, provide encouragement and support for them inside of the ring. I just feel sorry that you got caught up on the wrong team. With the wrong team. You've got great talent, but you're wasting it on the Mafia. And for that, well, you got your payment when Rico Casteel punched you straight in the face a few weeks ago. And don't worry. Even though he's fighting in the IWC Super Show this week, Rico will be there, just in case you get yourself mixed up in the action yet again. He will be there to pound you down again, and make sure you don't come back up. Because really, you have no business meddling in this match. You have no business managing the tag team champions. You have no business being in the APW, really, but we can't really blame anyone for that. You just happened to scoot in on the coat tails for your three men.
So, really, worrying about you is about as futile as Kingston and Mannie thinking they can get the titles off of us this weekend. Because in the end, you won't play a factor in how this match comes out. Whether you poke your nose in or not, the Exchange Rate will still win the match, with or without your animated jumping on the outside while your boys get pinned. With or without your shouts of encouragement as the Exchange Rate goes big and wipes away the hopes of the Mafia. Which brings me to my next person, an actual wrestler with your little clique.
(Gates reaches over and flips the next picture over, sticking it back to the board. This one is a picture of Diamente Valentine.)
C.J. Gates: I realized something the other day, and you guys will probably jump all over it like a fat kid on a smartie. When Blade and I first beat the Red Shield Mafia, we beat Valentine and Kingston. And while we are facing a different pairing this week, the outcome will be the same. Nevertheless, to the people who seem to think I am talking a lot of things I don't know, I do know what Valentine is capable of, and I do know that Valentine isn't really cut out for anything more than the Xtreme title he is chasing. Which, I guess, is a smart move on his part. He's shooting for what he knows he can obtain, not like Young Mannie who tried to win the World Heavyweight title in a match that was so far over his head. I mean, honestly, what made him think that he could beat all of those elite wrestlers in an Elimination Chamber match?
But Valentine, he's that one guy that doesn't add up. Mannie and Kingston are almost made for each other, and then there's the pretty boy who thinks he is the big man on campus, but is really just the small fish in a enormous pond. You TRY to win over the crowd with all your suave and debonair actions, but they don't see through your greasy exterior. They all see what we see. A man who thinks the women love him, but a man who couldn't keep his emotions in check for the life of him. A man who smiles, but not enough to cover up the fact that he would love to rip your head off. Yet, he couldn't even hurt a fly. Or at least, not a fly named C.J. Gates or Blade.
The question now is why does Valentine matter. He isn't in this match and he has his own title fight to worry about. So why worry? Because this is the Red Shield Mafia. The last time they did anything by the book, the APW didn't even exist. Because that is all I have seen them do. Sneak attacks, interference, run-ins, team beatings. Never have I seen them go out and fight a straight up match. Never have I seen the Mafia win or lose without any sort of uncertainties surrounding the match. So I know that it's only a formality that Valentine isn't in the match, because he will eventually be in the match. And he will eventually feel the same disappointment that his running buddies will feel. Pure defeat.
Let's carry on.
(Gates reaches back up and turns the next picture over, sticking it back to the board as well. This time, the picture is of Young Mannie.)
C.J. Gates: You know what? Let's hit two birds with one stone, since these are the two that REALLY matter when it comes to this match.
(Gates turns the next picture over to reveal the mug of J.R. Kingston.)
C.J. Gates: The team that is challenging for the Tag Team titles this week, Young Mannie and J.R. Kingston. On one hand we have a man who Blade and I have already beaten in a tag team match to earn the initial shot that led to where we are today, and on the other hand, we have the man who thought he was a God in the ring, but ended up losing in fine fashion at One Night in Hell. And together, they have this insane idea that they will be able to beat Blade and I for the tag team titles. They have this crazy belief that they will walk away as the champions, after weeks and weeks, months and months of failure at doing...well, much of anything. They attacked us after one of our matches, and then the very next week, we attacked them right back.
They tried to plan some sort of attack, but Blade and I got the upper hand and hit them where it counts. And even more, we sent them a little message that I'm sure they will not soon forget.
(Gates turns the fifth and final picture over to show a close up of the T-shirts that he and Blade plastered their locker room with last week. The black shirts that read "RSM IS #2".)
C.J. Gates: In fact, I think placing you guys at number two is a bit of a stretch. What might have been more accurate was to place you guys at number three or four, since that's really where you would fit in the grand scheme of things. Because even though we beat Valentine and Kingston a few months back, it's all the same. Everything is the exact same with Young Mannie taking Valentine's place, there is no doubt about it. Crazy part is that Kingston and Rico would be a good fit for one another. No, ABC, not because they're gay, but because they are similar. They are both ex fighters that were banned from the mixed martial arts world because of their own disorderly conduct. Because they did things that they just shouldn't have done. That they were relentless in their continued assault even after the bell had rung or the fight had been canceled.
Which is probably supposed to scare me or intimidate me. But it doesn't. Because, really, it's nothing that I can't overcome. David Wallace was a bad ass giant who didn't really worry about anyone's safety and I overcame him time after time. So J.R. holds nothing to me. Even if he thinks that he will squash me like a bug, it doesn't intimidate me or make me shake in my boots. If anything, it makes me wonder if he has his head on straight, and only because I'm worried he won't find his way to the ring. Maybe the marijuana that he guys always partake in offsets that fact, but who can really tell.
Besides, I figure that working together, Blade and I can overcome whatever you two can throw at us. So Kingston doesn't stop? Even if he has a hold on one of us, he's only going to end up getting the team disqualified and costing them the titles. It's not like this is the match that we had with the Sports Nutz. This is nothing like that, because here, something like holding onto that choke for too long can end up hurting you guys in the long run. Sure, if it all happens that way, Blade or myself will feel your wrath, and feel pain for it, but we aren't too worried. Because we are confident in our own abilities.
Abilities that start with avoiding anything you guys have to throw our way. Abilities that allow us to turn the match around at a moments notice. Your strength means you're slow, while both Blade and I are as fast as anything. As crafty as anything. Once that bell rings, we are a whole different team. We work together. We don't get mad if one of us screws up, we encourage each other to do better. To power through it. But that's what makes us a great team. We haven't been together as long as you guys, so we don't have the whole experience thing, but we've been together long enough to know how each other operates.
It's good to know that at least Mannie has his head on straight, though you think he would try and actually conquer something of use. I mean, considering how he values weed, money, women and fame, you figure he'd have gone down to IWC and tried to win one of their titles, rather then face the competition in APW. Because time after time, the result will always be the same for him. He will fail to win. He will fail to do anything but lose time after time whenever there is a title involved. But maybe that value will drive him harder to win this week. Will force him to be a bit more of a factor in this match then we give him credit for.
Because honestly, Mannie, I'm about ready to write you off. Not saying that I have yet, but I am about to. About to just give you and Kingston the old wave of a hand, and pass the two of you along to the next feat. And the sooner you guys realize that you have no chance to beat Blade and myself, the better. And even if you don't realize it, once we get through thrashing you two inside of the ring this weekend, we will finally be able to move on. Move on from the Red Shield Mafia and onto competition that will pose a real challenge and a real threat to our belts. Beautiful Disaster, Aaron Drake and Kulev Mahu...hell, get ABC a partner and let him fight it out with us, since that's really what he wants to do. Either way, any of those three teams would be a welcome breath of fresh air to the stagnant nothing of the Mafia.
The three of you are the same week in and week out. You smoke, you joke, you toke, and then when you finally find your way to the arena, you can barely put on a good match. Blade and I will be carrying you at Christmas Chaos, that I have no doubt about. And even when you manage to stumble into a good match, you make the whole thing suffer because you don't have any actual skills. You don't have any talent inside of that ring. At least Valentine realized that and split away to do his own thing, in a division where you figured he could have more luck. And taking nothing away from Branden Harvey, Valentine will have an easier time taking his Xtreme title away, then the two of you will have taking our tag team titles.
(Gates walks away from the white board and toward one of the small desks that rests before the board. He places his hands on the top, stooping down a bit, and smiles.)
C.J. Gates: Do I think you guys don't deserve a title shot? After thinking it through, it might be on the contrary. You guys definitely earned a title shot, and not because you are the second best team like that T-shirt says you are. Not because we recognized your past talent and figured we'd reward whatever Fisher Price and Arrow said you guys did in another federation. Mainly, because the only other tag teams in the APW have just started out. Giving them a title shot might seem a bit...unfair. So why not give it to the only other team left. And maybe, just maybe, we can run you guys out of here as well, and make sure that the only tag teams left, are the ones with actual talent. The ones that can actually speak without needing to consult hooked on phonics every time they do.
The ones who can draw. Who can make the fans cheer, chant, scream in joy. Because that's what the Sports Nutz couldn't do. And that is what Blade and I can do. So bring whatever back-up you wish to bring. Though, hopefully, if you do bring some, it will last longer than The Number did. He seemed to have taken your money and jumped ship, so I guess you pay well. Either way, Valentine is about all you can truly rely on, and Blade and I are ready for him to poke his nose into our business. Why do you think I brought in Rico? Not to just make us look tougher, but to make the rest of you think twice about trying to pull a fast one over on us.
But you think that you are in our heads? Really? You REALLY think that you have planted some sort of doubt, that you have gotten inside and worked your magic? I'm sorry to say that you have done nothing like that. Nothing at all. Blade and I don't fall for games like that, especially games that are as half-assed as yours are. You seem to have completely forgotten about what Blade and I did last week. The whole T-shirt thing. Maybe it is us that have gotten inside of your heads. Messing around and working OUR magic. Right? Just maybe you guys are trying to forget about it so that it doesn't tip us off.
I guess we will have to see what happens at Christmas Chaos. I guess whichever one of us loses the match, we can say that they were the ones that got toyed with. That it was their minds that got messed up in this whole psychological game you claim that you are playing. To me, you guys are just flexing your muscles.
Nothing more. Nothing less.
And after this match, this weekend, you two...nay, the four of you will realize that the Exchange Rate will not lose. That we will never lose. The only thing that we are going to be doing, is going big, because we have no intentions of going home. None.
And we will still be APW Tag Team champions.
(Gates smirks before walking back to the desk and picking up and putting on his hat. He then picks up the title belt and re-straps it around his waist, under his jacket. Before leaving the room, he picks the red marker back up and draws a few hurried lines through the RED SHIELD MAFIA name that he had written at the top. Gates drops the marker, nodding his head in approval, before he exits the room as the scene fades to black.)
