Post by Johnny Rebel on Dec 27, 2011 11:51:23 GMT -4
The scene opens up to the Clearview Mall somewhere inside the city limits of New Orleans where “Simply Put” Johnny Rebel is sitting at a table while shoveling down the remains of a milkshake. He’s angled perfectly to get the full view of the playground that is full of children about a hundred feet away. There is one side wide open where kids are climbing anything they can find but the other side is roped off and trash bags cover its contents. Men dressed in dark blue coveralls are carrying brand new items for the playground through the security doors to the right while weaving in and out of the shoppers walking by. Rebel continues slurping as Sarah walks up with several bags draped over her arm.
“You’ve got to stop staring at the playground like that, Johnny. People are going to start thinking you’re a creeper!” Sarah says while slamming her bags on the table, almost knocking the cup out of Rebel’s hands.
“Kids…” Rebel grunts. “How in the world do people put up with those things? In the forty-five minutes I’ve been sitting here waiting for you to do whatever it is you’re doing I’ve seen at least three kids blow snot rockets at each other!”
“Are you sure you weren’t just daydreaming about an APW Asylum event?” Sarah smirks, obviously taking a dig at professional wrestling.
“Very funny.” Rebel replies.
“What are we doing here in New Orleans anyway? You’ve got a little bit of a break with Overdrive being on hiatus until the beginning of 2012, right?”
“I didn’t tell you?” Rebel says while breaking his stare from the playground.
“Tell me what?” She answers back with curiosity.
“I volunteered to wrestle on Asylum this week. With Christmas coming and going I figured I didn’t have anything else to do so I threw my name in the hat.”
“That doesn’t make any sense, Johnny. You’ve flown the Overdrive flag for the better part of the last year and now you’re going to wrestle on Asylum! Please tell me they at least matched you up against somebody like Jason Kash or Rico Casteel?” Sarah says with a confused look on her face.
“No…” Rebel says while shaking his head.
“Let me get this straight… after merely surviving a match with Kurt Noble at Christmas Chaos, you have the opportunity to heal up and get some rest before the next Overdrive event but instead you decided to sign-up to wrestle on Asylum this week against a no-name who could potentially put a black eye on everything that you have accomplished here in the APW? Tell me again why I waste my time on you?”
“Because I pay the bills!” Rebel says with a proud smirk. “I didn’t just survive against Kurt at Christmas Chaos… I destroyed him! He knew that when the two of us finally got back in the ring and the odds weren’t stacked in his favor that he’d have no chance and would have to forfeit his Overdrive championship over to its rightful owner! Honestly, we should have never had that match at One Night in Hell as I was a little under the weather but now that I’m back at full strength there wasn’t any way that I wasn’t going to walk out of that cage without my title!”
“Okay… okay.” Sarah mumbles. “I’ll concede that you gave Noble the fight of his life but didn’t you just prove my point? You are the champion of the flagship show of APW… and not only that but when you defeated Noble you joined an exclusive list of people who held the Overdrive championship on multiple occasions. Your name will be mentioned among some of the greats when it’s all said and done! People like Arcadia, Biggs and Pence Weatherlight… all who have held the Overdrive championship more than once! Two of those have gone on to carry the Undisputed Championship. You’re putting all of that in jeopardy by stepping through the Asylum curtain and going up against somebody that the rest of the locker room has never heard of. I’m not telling you to not go through with it, I just want to make sure that you have thought through all of the repercussions."
“What can I say? I needed a chance to pad my record and I figured that the best place to do that was Asylum.”
“So, who is it?” Sarah questions Rebel. “Have I heard of him before?”
“I’m booked against a guy by the name of Anthony Bailey. I’ll be honest… I don’t know the first thing about him.”
“This is the reason why I don’t let you book your own matches!” Sarah says while slapping Rebel on the shoulder. “Anthony Bailey? Come on, Johnny!”
“I’ve already told you that I only took the match to help pad my record. After dealing with Team SCW in Supremacy…”
Sarah interrupts, “…which you were the first from Team APW eliminated!”
Rebel continues, while ignoring Sarah’s comment, “…to eliminating Noble’s name from the championship, I needed something to keep me going. I’m not getting any younger here, Sarah. The longer that I sit on the sidelines the harder it is to get back in that ring week after week. I know what I’m doing!”
“I sure hope so… but I don’t want to hear any whining if he does somehow get the victory and you look like the fool!”
“Look at that playground over there… “ Rebel says while pointing in the distance as Sarah begrudgingly turns towards the play area. “When you first look at that thing it isn’t the most appealing in the world. It’s old and dingy—broken down. I’ve watched parent after parent walk by and crush the dreams of their children as they continue to walk past the old dilapidated equipment. What is there to like about that old playground? It’s broken down, everything is rusted and the teeter-totter squeaks whenever a child hops off one side. From the outside it looks like it’s not worth anything… but you can’t help but notice that it’s completely full. There isn’t an empty square foot on the entire carpeted area. Kids are having the times of their life.”
Sarah sighs and gives Rebel a look as to say get on with it already.
“And even though the old equipment is enough to entertain the kids for hours, they are building a new one right next to it. Why? Because they are always looking for the bigger and better! People always want something that is a little bit shinier and a little bit more exciting than what they have already. Anthony Bailey is the future of APW and the fans are beside themselves to try and get a tough of his hand as he runs down the aisle. What those herpes harvesters are missing out on is that they already have the best that they are ever going to get! Until they realize that Johnny Rebel is the best they are ever going to get there are going to be delusional upstarts like Anthony Bailey who think they actually have a chance at unseating me from my throne!”
“You better be ready…” Sarah says. “If you aren’t focused and Bailey somehow pulls a rabbit out of his hat than you can kiss your hopes of the Undisputed championship goodbye!”
I’m honored.It’s not often that I get the chance to be the welcoming committee for a brand new member to the APW roster! And especially in a place like Asylum where for the first time I will grace my presence. I’m usually stuck kicking in the teeth of the old grizzled veterans who should have been sent to the glue factory years ago. It is the ones who are bright-eyed and bushytailed that give me the greatest thrill in the wrestling ring because they have a little spunk to them. It’s easier to get motivated for those types because they have everything to fight for and nothing to lose. They run down the aisles with their music blaring over the loudspeakers and smack the hands of any fan that extends theirs. They have a blank canvas as to paint their own future and from that a vibrancy spills out that is infectious! It only makes it that more sweet to be the one standing over them when it all comes crashing down!
Allow me to introduce myself: My name is Johnny Rebel and I’m the single greatest thing to happen to the APW. Before I arrived on the scene there was nothing but retreads and old hacks that were just holding on as long as possible to collect a paycheck. From there I saved them from the status quo and formed APW in to a legitimate championship level promotion and rebranded it Johnny Rebel Pro Wrestling! Without me, this place has to depend on names like Kurt Noble, C.J. Gates and Pence Weatherlight… and what a disaster that would be.
But hey, the world loves underdog stories right? After all, if you were somehow able to come up with the victory, it would be labeled as the greatest upset in sports history! It would be right up there with Kurt Noble stumbling his way to a victory over me at One Night in Hell. It’s not your ability in the ring that gives me pause but it’s the fact that you depend so much on those fans at ringside! Do you actually think that they will give you the edge? I had to wade through your mindless worship of them to actually find out what in the world you stand for and I wasn’t impressed. You’re the type of guy that I’d usually sweep under the rug and write off as completely worthless. I was willing to give you the benefit of the doubt before I saw that twinkle in your eyes!
I know that with every second that passes while you’re in the ring with me your confidence will only raise… and how could it not? The amount of publicity that you’ll receive just from your name being associated with mine will be uncanny. The problem with young upstarts like you is that eventually all of your insecurities are going to slowly seep through and provide me with the opportunity to pounce! I know that deep down inside you fit the bill of every other wrestler who has tried to navigate the muddy waters of this business and has come up short. The problem is that I’ve figured out people like you and know how to dispose of you just as easily! It’s not the championships or being competitive that get you off but the attention and the spotlight that keep you pressing forward!
The thing about running your mouth is that anybody can do it. However, at some point you’re going to have to start cashing those checks that you’ve been writing and if there is nothing to back them up: they are worthless! If you can’t accomplish all the things you’ve been promising than that attention that you were given based upon this match will start to dwindle and you’ll crumble like all the rest of them. It happens all the time when these rookies blabber on and on about something but quickly find out that they weren’t ever really a match for someone like me. The fans will turn on you and you’ll become vulnerable standing in the ring without anywhere to turn! When you aren’t standing so tall anymore and have nowhere else to run because the fans have turned their back on you, I’ll capitalize on your vulnerability! So, congrats Anthony! This week, you’ll get exactly what you’re craving: my full and undivided attention!
Unfortunately for you, that’s not something you want... because when you look back at the APW annuals from this night the only thing that the world will remember is a “W” next to my name and a “L” next to yours!
#SIMPLY
#F’N
#PUT
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“You’ve got to stop staring at the playground like that, Johnny. People are going to start thinking you’re a creeper!” Sarah says while slamming her bags on the table, almost knocking the cup out of Rebel’s hands.
“Kids…” Rebel grunts. “How in the world do people put up with those things? In the forty-five minutes I’ve been sitting here waiting for you to do whatever it is you’re doing I’ve seen at least three kids blow snot rockets at each other!”
“Are you sure you weren’t just daydreaming about an APW Asylum event?” Sarah smirks, obviously taking a dig at professional wrestling.
“Very funny.” Rebel replies.
“What are we doing here in New Orleans anyway? You’ve got a little bit of a break with Overdrive being on hiatus until the beginning of 2012, right?”
“I didn’t tell you?” Rebel says while breaking his stare from the playground.
“Tell me what?” She answers back with curiosity.
“I volunteered to wrestle on Asylum this week. With Christmas coming and going I figured I didn’t have anything else to do so I threw my name in the hat.”
“That doesn’t make any sense, Johnny. You’ve flown the Overdrive flag for the better part of the last year and now you’re going to wrestle on Asylum! Please tell me they at least matched you up against somebody like Jason Kash or Rico Casteel?” Sarah says with a confused look on her face.
“No…” Rebel says while shaking his head.
“Let me get this straight… after merely surviving a match with Kurt Noble at Christmas Chaos, you have the opportunity to heal up and get some rest before the next Overdrive event but instead you decided to sign-up to wrestle on Asylum this week against a no-name who could potentially put a black eye on everything that you have accomplished here in the APW? Tell me again why I waste my time on you?”
“Because I pay the bills!” Rebel says with a proud smirk. “I didn’t just survive against Kurt at Christmas Chaos… I destroyed him! He knew that when the two of us finally got back in the ring and the odds weren’t stacked in his favor that he’d have no chance and would have to forfeit his Overdrive championship over to its rightful owner! Honestly, we should have never had that match at One Night in Hell as I was a little under the weather but now that I’m back at full strength there wasn’t any way that I wasn’t going to walk out of that cage without my title!”
“Okay… okay.” Sarah mumbles. “I’ll concede that you gave Noble the fight of his life but didn’t you just prove my point? You are the champion of the flagship show of APW… and not only that but when you defeated Noble you joined an exclusive list of people who held the Overdrive championship on multiple occasions. Your name will be mentioned among some of the greats when it’s all said and done! People like Arcadia, Biggs and Pence Weatherlight… all who have held the Overdrive championship more than once! Two of those have gone on to carry the Undisputed Championship. You’re putting all of that in jeopardy by stepping through the Asylum curtain and going up against somebody that the rest of the locker room has never heard of. I’m not telling you to not go through with it, I just want to make sure that you have thought through all of the repercussions."
“What can I say? I needed a chance to pad my record and I figured that the best place to do that was Asylum.”
“So, who is it?” Sarah questions Rebel. “Have I heard of him before?”
“I’m booked against a guy by the name of Anthony Bailey. I’ll be honest… I don’t know the first thing about him.”
“This is the reason why I don’t let you book your own matches!” Sarah says while slapping Rebel on the shoulder. “Anthony Bailey? Come on, Johnny!”
“I’ve already told you that I only took the match to help pad my record. After dealing with Team SCW in Supremacy…”
Sarah interrupts, “…which you were the first from Team APW eliminated!”
Rebel continues, while ignoring Sarah’s comment, “…to eliminating Noble’s name from the championship, I needed something to keep me going. I’m not getting any younger here, Sarah. The longer that I sit on the sidelines the harder it is to get back in that ring week after week. I know what I’m doing!”
“I sure hope so… but I don’t want to hear any whining if he does somehow get the victory and you look like the fool!”
“Look at that playground over there… “ Rebel says while pointing in the distance as Sarah begrudgingly turns towards the play area. “When you first look at that thing it isn’t the most appealing in the world. It’s old and dingy—broken down. I’ve watched parent after parent walk by and crush the dreams of their children as they continue to walk past the old dilapidated equipment. What is there to like about that old playground? It’s broken down, everything is rusted and the teeter-totter squeaks whenever a child hops off one side. From the outside it looks like it’s not worth anything… but you can’t help but notice that it’s completely full. There isn’t an empty square foot on the entire carpeted area. Kids are having the times of their life.”
Sarah sighs and gives Rebel a look as to say get on with it already.
“And even though the old equipment is enough to entertain the kids for hours, they are building a new one right next to it. Why? Because they are always looking for the bigger and better! People always want something that is a little bit shinier and a little bit more exciting than what they have already. Anthony Bailey is the future of APW and the fans are beside themselves to try and get a tough of his hand as he runs down the aisle. What those herpes harvesters are missing out on is that they already have the best that they are ever going to get! Until they realize that Johnny Rebel is the best they are ever going to get there are going to be delusional upstarts like Anthony Bailey who think they actually have a chance at unseating me from my throne!”
“You better be ready…” Sarah says. “If you aren’t focused and Bailey somehow pulls a rabbit out of his hat than you can kiss your hopes of the Undisputed championship goodbye!”
*****
I’m honored.It’s not often that I get the chance to be the welcoming committee for a brand new member to the APW roster! And especially in a place like Asylum where for the first time I will grace my presence. I’m usually stuck kicking in the teeth of the old grizzled veterans who should have been sent to the glue factory years ago. It is the ones who are bright-eyed and bushytailed that give me the greatest thrill in the wrestling ring because they have a little spunk to them. It’s easier to get motivated for those types because they have everything to fight for and nothing to lose. They run down the aisles with their music blaring over the loudspeakers and smack the hands of any fan that extends theirs. They have a blank canvas as to paint their own future and from that a vibrancy spills out that is infectious! It only makes it that more sweet to be the one standing over them when it all comes crashing down!
Allow me to introduce myself: My name is Johnny Rebel and I’m the single greatest thing to happen to the APW. Before I arrived on the scene there was nothing but retreads and old hacks that were just holding on as long as possible to collect a paycheck. From there I saved them from the status quo and formed APW in to a legitimate championship level promotion and rebranded it Johnny Rebel Pro Wrestling! Without me, this place has to depend on names like Kurt Noble, C.J. Gates and Pence Weatherlight… and what a disaster that would be.
But hey, the world loves underdog stories right? After all, if you were somehow able to come up with the victory, it would be labeled as the greatest upset in sports history! It would be right up there with Kurt Noble stumbling his way to a victory over me at One Night in Hell. It’s not your ability in the ring that gives me pause but it’s the fact that you depend so much on those fans at ringside! Do you actually think that they will give you the edge? I had to wade through your mindless worship of them to actually find out what in the world you stand for and I wasn’t impressed. You’re the type of guy that I’d usually sweep under the rug and write off as completely worthless. I was willing to give you the benefit of the doubt before I saw that twinkle in your eyes!
I know that with every second that passes while you’re in the ring with me your confidence will only raise… and how could it not? The amount of publicity that you’ll receive just from your name being associated with mine will be uncanny. The problem with young upstarts like you is that eventually all of your insecurities are going to slowly seep through and provide me with the opportunity to pounce! I know that deep down inside you fit the bill of every other wrestler who has tried to navigate the muddy waters of this business and has come up short. The problem is that I’ve figured out people like you and know how to dispose of you just as easily! It’s not the championships or being competitive that get you off but the attention and the spotlight that keep you pressing forward!
The thing about running your mouth is that anybody can do it. However, at some point you’re going to have to start cashing those checks that you’ve been writing and if there is nothing to back them up: they are worthless! If you can’t accomplish all the things you’ve been promising than that attention that you were given based upon this match will start to dwindle and you’ll crumble like all the rest of them. It happens all the time when these rookies blabber on and on about something but quickly find out that they weren’t ever really a match for someone like me. The fans will turn on you and you’ll become vulnerable standing in the ring without anywhere to turn! When you aren’t standing so tall anymore and have nowhere else to run because the fans have turned their back on you, I’ll capitalize on your vulnerability! So, congrats Anthony! This week, you’ll get exactly what you’re craving: my full and undivided attention!
Unfortunately for you, that’s not something you want... because when you look back at the APW annuals from this night the only thing that the world will remember is a “W” next to my name and a “L” next to yours!
#SIMPLY
#F’N
#PUT
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