Legacy Earned And Unearned
Sept 24, 2022 13:41:49 GMT -5
Chris Page, TheNewBreed, and 2 more like this
Post by Centurion on Sept 24, 2022 13:41:49 GMT -5
He never thought he’d be in this situation again.
When Centurion returned to professional wrestling in 2019, he knew he would travel to many wrestling companies in order to test himself against new and impressive talent. Not only has he competed in the XWF, but since his return, he has been in UGWC, Level Up, and Fight! NYC, as well as various multifed supershows. All of that was expected.
What wasn’t expected, however, was that he would be lacing up the boots to step into the ring…for the WGWF.
The moment the rebirth of the WGWF was announced, Centurion’s thoughts immediately returned to the last time he worked for Chris Page’s company. It ruined his life. After taking over as the president of the company, Centurion became drunk with power – casting aside all of his previous relationships and turning into the tyrant he always fought in his glory days.
And yet, when Chris Page asked him if he wanted to be a part of the reboot, there was no hesitation. He accepted without a second thought. What would possess someone to return to the scene of his greatest downfall? That is something even Centurion’s closest associates can not answer.
We open up inside the old C&C Inc. training facility in Atlantic City, New Jersey. There, we see Centurion in workout gear, lifting weights over the sound of rock music playing loudly in the background. He does a few more reps with the barbell before setting it back on the rack and sitting up on the weight bench. He leans down and grabs a towel and water bottle.
As Centurion towels off, the sound of the front door opening can be heard. Centurion doesn’t turn to the door, as he has been expecting Nellie to show up any time now. Centurion takes a swig of his water before putting the cap back on.
“You’re early.” Centurion says, still looking away from the door. “Did you bring coffee?”
There is no answer. Instead, the radio is turned off, causing Centurion to raise an eyebrow.
“Sorry, love.” A very familiar British voice is heard from behind. “Looks like you’re gonna haveta brew your own.”
Centurion quickly turns around and faces the unexpected guest – WGWF Hall of Famer Jocelyn Camden. Centurion smiles as he finishes toweling off and stands up from the bench. “Jay!” Centurion yells out in an excited tone. “I didn’t think you and Al were coming back to the States until November. When did you get in?”
“Just an hour ago.” Jocelyn responds. “It’s a bit of an unplanned trip. I got a last-minute opportunity to do some work, so we hopped a flight.”
“That’s great!” Centurion exclaims. “You’re going to have to tell me all about it over dinner. I’ll have Nellie make some reservations for us.” Centurion walks up to Jocelyn with a wide smile on his face. “It’s great to see you. Sorry for being all sweaty and gross. I have a stressful weekend of matches coming up, so I’m trying to fit in as much gym time as I can.”
“Yeah, I’ve heard.” Jocelyn says, her voice tailing off. “You’ve got a big one with the WGWF.”
“That’s right!” Centurion says, still amped up. “Can you believe it? Never in a hundred years would I have guessed the WGWF would come back. I assumed it was dead and buried. But now, not only am I going to be working there, but I’m going to be in the main event of the first show back.”
“I’m happy for you.” Jocelyn says, but her voice says otherwise. She stares at Centurion with an icy glare, causing Centurion’s smile to fade.
“What’s the matter?” Centurion questions.
“Nothing.” Jocelyn says in response. “I just…I find it interesting that the main event “throwback” match is you and Nathan Miles’ kid. You didn’t wrestle much in the WGWF. You were an authority figure.”
“Yeah, well…” Centurion explains, trying to come up with an answer. “Maybe it’s because of all the different shit I was involved in? It makes for a great story, doesn’t it? The last time I was there, I left in disgrace. Now I have a chance at redemption. That’s money making stuff there.”
“Could be.” Jocelyn says, not buying Centurion’s explanation. “Or, it could be that you simply asked your buddy Chris for the match.”
Centurion stops dead in his tracks. “What are you implying?”
Jocelyn takes a few steps closer toward Centurion, asserting herself as the aggressor in this situation. “I’m implying you’re taking a spot that should have been mine.”
“It COULD have been you!” An exacerbated Centurion yells out.
“Oh, I’m sorry!” Jocelyn yells back. “I guess I must have lost my invitation in the fucking mail!”
“An invitation?!” Centurion yells, gob smacked. “This is professional wrestling! You don’t get an invitation! You have to go out there and get it yourself!”
“Bullshit!” Jocelyn’s voice reaches a fever pitch. “That’s what you old fuckers say to convince yourselves it’s still 2005! That ain’t this business anymore. These spots aren’t earned anymore – they’re given. If they were earned, this main event would feature me. Or Paul Frost. Dean James. Kyle Shane. Isabelle Desjardins! But instead, you made a couple of tweets, placed one phone call, and you were giftwrapped a premium spot.”
Centurion makes a gesture of dismissal towards Jocelyn as he turns away from her. He starts to walk away from her, but Jocelyn follows him, continuing to argue her point.
“I honestly can’t believe you.” Jocelyn continues, her voice not as high, but still as combative. “After everything we’ve been through. After everything Chris Page has done to you and those around you, the fact that you’ve swept it all under the rug to become best friends with him is insulting.”
Centurion stops in his tracks and instantly turns to face Jocelyn. “We are NOT best friends! I keep Page at an arms-length. We have mutual interests. That’s it!”
“You work for him!” Jocelyn snaps back. “You hang out with his wife! You compete at all of the super shows he puts on!”
“You were on that show! You were on that team with Candice!” Centurion says, reminding Jocelyn of the Cannabis Cup. “And I bet all the money in my pockets against all the money in your pockets that if you would have told Chris Page you wanted to wrestle at the first Brawl, he not only would have said yes, but he would have done a cartwheel and personally asked you who you wanted to face and where on the card you wanted the match!”
The anger on Jocelyn’s face somewhat fades, as a look of sadness starts to creep in. “Yeah, Page probably would have. Then you would have talked to him, and you would have convinced him to keep you in the main event. For you, this has nothing to do with the WGWF. It has nothing to do with the history or anything like that. It has EVERYTHING to do with your career. You’re using this match to flex your position in the wrestling business and to try to increase your stock.”
Centurion goes to respond to Jocelyn’s accusations, but he stops. While Jocelyn’s delivery is a bit harsh, she’s not completely incorrect in her assessment, and Centurion knows it. “So what if I am? I’m still active! I’m still trying to build something here, and the last few months have not been great for me.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry for you.” Jocelyn says very sarcastically. “It must be difficult to lose a couple of matches in the middle of your 21 year long Hall of Fame career.”
“Don’t act all high and mighty!” Centurion snaps back. “You would do the same thing if you were in my shoes.”
“I wouldn’t know!” Jocelyn says in response. “You don’t let anyone around you get to that point. The moment – the VERY MOMENT – I became a massive superstar, you had to jump in to take some of the spotlight. And I forgave you. Allison forgave you. We all thought you were a different person back then, so we’ve grown and we’ve let the past be the past. But now here you are, lacing up the boots and getting ready for a match you know you didn’t earn, and when I call your ass out for it, you immediately try to handwave it. I don’t think you were different at all. I think you’re still the same selfish bastard you were back then.”
A now furious Centurion takes a few steps forward and gets directly into Jocelyn’s face. “How the fuck would you know?! While you and Allison have been in London, sipping your wine and dining with royals, I’ve been working my ass off trying to get back everything I lost! I’m sorry that you got a little bit of money and decided to phone in your career, but some of us continue to have a work ethic.”
The final words causes Jocelyn to lash out and shove Centurion, which causes him to stumble back a bit. Centurion takes a deep breath before stepping forward and shoving Jocelyn back. In retaliation, Jocelyn punches Centurion in the face, causing him to turn and fall to one knee. He rubs the side of his face and grumbles before darting towards Jocelyn and tackling her to the ground. Jocelyn begins punching the side of Centurion’s head as Centurion delivers punches to her ribs.
After a few seconds of brawling, the door to the facility opens once again. Into the building steps a joyful looking Nellie, as well as Allison Cortinovis, the sister of Centurion and the wife of Jocelyn. The moment they spot Centurion and Jocelyn, they become mortified as they run towards the two fighting friends. Allison pulls Centurion off the ground and away from Jocelyn as Nellie steps in front of Jocelyn. Jocelyn and Centurion both look to take another swing at each other, but Allison and Nellie step in front of the two of them.
“HEY! CUT IT OUT!” Screams Allison, causing Centurion and Jocelyn to stop in their tracks. “Quit acting like children!” Centurion and Jocelyn both begin to yell something to their defense, but Allison raises her hand and puts a stop to it. “I don’t want to hear it! Andy, you’re wrestling in a match that probably should have been Jocey’s.” Centurion goes to defend himself, but Allison instantly cuts him off. “You could have easily set it up, but you were thinking of yourself. And Jay, you should have stepped up and said something when you had the chance.” This time, Jocelyn goes to speak, but Allison cuts her off. “You had every opportunity to speak up and let your intentions known, but you’re so damn stubborn that you wanted someone to knock on your door and personally ask you. You’re both ridiculously frustrating human beings, and if you would just fucking CALL each other once and a while, you’d be able to work this shit out!”
Jocelyn and Centurion both step in opposite directions in an effort to calm themselves down. They both shakes their heads and take a deep breath before facing each other again.
After a few quiet seconds, Centurion speaks up once again. “Do you want to come back?” Centurion asks to Jocelyn in a much calmer voice.
All attention turns to Jocelyn, whose face has turned from anger to curiosity. “I…” Jocelyn searches for the words to use, but the truth is, she does not know herself. “I don’t know. I know it’s stupid. I’ve accomplished everything I’ve ever wanted in the WGWF. I was content with my life. But now I see that it’s back and…all these feelings come rushing back to me.”
Centurion rubs his jaw once more before gesturing over to Jocelyn. “Come with me to Las Vegas. There’s someone we should talk to.”
------Legacy Earned and Unearned------
We reopen inside the MGM Grand Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. There, seated at a leather couch inside a cocktail lounge is Centurion, dressed as we are normally used to seeing him – full suit, glass of scotch, cigar. Centurion closes his eyes and takes a deep breath before he speaks.
“The World Global Wrestling Federation. A brand that has been dead and buried for years. Honestly, if it wasn’t for a bunch of stubborn old men, the brand would STILL be dead, but there’s something about old gunslingers that keep us coming back, repeating the same mistakes over and over again.
Legends of the business have come though these gates – both those that built a resume elsewhere and brought it into the halls of the WGWF, and those who started here and went on to become massive stars in the industry. There are a lot of people who earned a lot of money and recognition because of the WGWF. There are also a lot of people who received a lot of money and recognition but did not necessarily earn them.
The latter is a description of Max Daemon.”
Centurion takes a hit of his cigar and sets it down in an ashtray next to him. He exhales the smoke before continuing.
“Allow me to first say that I have nothing but respect for Max’s father. Despite the fact that the bulk of his success came after I already exiled himself from the business, I am highly away of the career that Nathan Miles built for himself. I would love to be able to test my metal against him someday, if he ever has the inkling to come back to the business. I don’t know what he’s up to these days. I honestly don’t know if he’s even still alive. But when people praise his name and the things he was able to accomplish in the WGWF, know that he earned every bit of that.
But with the recognition of Nathan Miles came the recognition of Max Daemon, who started to see his father’s success as his own. Now, I’m usually not the one to toss around accusations of nepotism. I’ve seen first hand through my daughter how difficult it can be to leave the shadow of a famous, successful parent, and I know a lot of those children work extra hard to build a name for themselves. There are children of legends that have been able to make a legendary career for themselves through hardwork and dedication of the craft. I wouldn’t tell this to his face, but take a look at Thaddeus Duke. The man had every opportunity to rest on his father’s laurels, but he wanted to be something better, and he has been able to pull that off.
But Thad Duke is a passionate man who works his ass off to make sure that it’s his father living in his shadow, not the other way around. What’s your excuse, Max?”
Centurion gives a smile and takes a sip of his scotch before continuing.
“Oh, I know you’ve had SOME success. I see that you’ve been able to build a nice little career over in Action Wrestling. I’m not going to downplay that too much, though I’m sure even you would admit that competing over there is a LOT different then competing elsewhere. You don’t absolutely suck. You’re decent. If you were to just keep your head down and compete, you’d likely rack up a nice career for yourself.
But no, you don’t do that, do you? You decided you want to be an annoying little troll on Twitter. You want to open your mouth and insult pretty much everyone and everything in this business. You talk like you’re Chris Page in his prime, but you wrestle like you’re UGWC era Gabe Reno. I don’t know if you’re just a brat, or if you honestly think you are the same caliber of wrestler as your father, but it’s amazing the amount of shit that can come out of your mouth on a daily basis.”
Centurion reaches into his pockets and pulls out his phone. He shows it to the camera, showing off that he has the Twitter app opened and focused on Max Daemon’s profile. Centurion turns the phone back around and begins to scroll through it.
“Let’s start with the first, most obvious thing – this constant threat to end my career. I want to clear that up right now – no. No, you won’t. Every wrestler I’ve faced for the past 15 years has promised to end my career, and they’ve all failed to do so. If I can stand in the ring with some of the toughest mother fuckers who want to rip my head off and come out alive, you think I’m going to let YOU be the one who sends me packing? Please. If I ever retire – and that’s a big, old “if”, it won’t be you who sends me to the retirement home. My goal is to keep going until they take me out of the ring in a hearse, and I can almost promise you that that will happen long after your silly ass has decided that professional wrestling isn’t the career for you.
This is how I know you’re nothing like your father. You father would never have said anything as stupid as that. He would guarantee victory. He would want to destroy me in every facet of the match. But he would know better than to say he would end my career, because if someone said that to HIM, he’d fucking snap and rip their head off. I get it – you’re young, and you don’t know any different. You’re not used to stepping in the ring with certified legends. You’re only used to fighting women that you have absolutely no respect for.”
Centurion places his phone down on the table next to him and takes another sip of his scotch before putting his finger up.
“Let’s talk about that next. You’re a cocky mother fucker, as I’ve previously stated, but you interact with people in different ways. When you’re getting ready to fight me, or Corey Black, or any number of male wrestlers, you talk about the ring work and what the victory means to you. You say you’re going to win, whatever…but when you’re wrestling a female wrestler, it suddenly becomes more personal. You start to reach into the bag and throw out bigger insults. I think, deep down…you’re a misogynist.
Of course, you probably don’t think that. You probably assume you’re treating all your opponents equally, but let me tell you the big difference – you don’t send your Reddit trolls out into the wild to use personal information and praise leaked photos of male wrestler.
Yes, I’m still pissed at you for your involvement in the Lissie Hope scandal.
Obviously, you’re not the main antagonist in that story. That’s Cypher. But your desire to get “one over” on one of your rivals blinded you from the fact that the person you were fighting was a victim, and instead of condemning his actions and telling people that that kind of activity has no place in professional wrestling, you sat back and allowed your army of incels to weaponize it in hopes Lissie would walk away from the business, leaving you standing all on your own without any competition. And don’t try to tell me you “have no control over them”. You absolutely do. You do nothing to stop them because you actually love the admiration you receive from those assholes.”
Centurion stands up from the couch and slowly steps towards the camera.
“You’re not a professional wrestler, Max. Not even close. You’re a social media influencer. You’re a clout chaser. At BEST, you’re a spot monkey who is willing to slice your own head open to get photos of yourself on the internet. That’s it. You step into the ring with someone who actually knows what they’re doing? You don’t stand a chance. And believe me – I’m not here to make you look good. I’m not here to get you endorsements or to improve your Instagram likes. I’m here to destroy you.
Of course, I’m not expecting you to give me any sort of praise when that happens. Hell, I don’t expect you to acknowledge it at all. That’s fine – you don’t have to. You can go ahead and pretend like it never happened. I’ll still be around to remind you, and everyone, of what happened. Don’t worry – I’ll have the tapes over to Lissie, so she can play them on Action Wrestling TV over, and over, and over again. You may try to bury it about it, but I guarantee those that hate your guts will never let you forget it.
I hear you might be spending more time in the WGWF than just this match. Good. I wish you the best of luck. I’m interested in seeing how you do against this new level of competition. Honestly, I kind of hope you dominate. Maybe I’ll put the headset back down and jump back into the ring if this roster can’t prove to be better than you. In the meantime, after this match, go ahead and tell this new crop of wrestlers just exactly what it feels like to meet your…
FINAL FANTASY!!!
When Centurion returned to professional wrestling in 2019, he knew he would travel to many wrestling companies in order to test himself against new and impressive talent. Not only has he competed in the XWF, but since his return, he has been in UGWC, Level Up, and Fight! NYC, as well as various multifed supershows. All of that was expected.
What wasn’t expected, however, was that he would be lacing up the boots to step into the ring…for the WGWF.
The moment the rebirth of the WGWF was announced, Centurion’s thoughts immediately returned to the last time he worked for Chris Page’s company. It ruined his life. After taking over as the president of the company, Centurion became drunk with power – casting aside all of his previous relationships and turning into the tyrant he always fought in his glory days.
And yet, when Chris Page asked him if he wanted to be a part of the reboot, there was no hesitation. He accepted without a second thought. What would possess someone to return to the scene of his greatest downfall? That is something even Centurion’s closest associates can not answer.
We open up inside the old C&C Inc. training facility in Atlantic City, New Jersey. There, we see Centurion in workout gear, lifting weights over the sound of rock music playing loudly in the background. He does a few more reps with the barbell before setting it back on the rack and sitting up on the weight bench. He leans down and grabs a towel and water bottle.
As Centurion towels off, the sound of the front door opening can be heard. Centurion doesn’t turn to the door, as he has been expecting Nellie to show up any time now. Centurion takes a swig of his water before putting the cap back on.
“You’re early.” Centurion says, still looking away from the door. “Did you bring coffee?”
There is no answer. Instead, the radio is turned off, causing Centurion to raise an eyebrow.
“Sorry, love.” A very familiar British voice is heard from behind. “Looks like you’re gonna haveta brew your own.”
Centurion quickly turns around and faces the unexpected guest – WGWF Hall of Famer Jocelyn Camden. Centurion smiles as he finishes toweling off and stands up from the bench. “Jay!” Centurion yells out in an excited tone. “I didn’t think you and Al were coming back to the States until November. When did you get in?”
“Just an hour ago.” Jocelyn responds. “It’s a bit of an unplanned trip. I got a last-minute opportunity to do some work, so we hopped a flight.”
“That’s great!” Centurion exclaims. “You’re going to have to tell me all about it over dinner. I’ll have Nellie make some reservations for us.” Centurion walks up to Jocelyn with a wide smile on his face. “It’s great to see you. Sorry for being all sweaty and gross. I have a stressful weekend of matches coming up, so I’m trying to fit in as much gym time as I can.”
“Yeah, I’ve heard.” Jocelyn says, her voice tailing off. “You’ve got a big one with the WGWF.”
“That’s right!” Centurion says, still amped up. “Can you believe it? Never in a hundred years would I have guessed the WGWF would come back. I assumed it was dead and buried. But now, not only am I going to be working there, but I’m going to be in the main event of the first show back.”
“I’m happy for you.” Jocelyn says, but her voice says otherwise. She stares at Centurion with an icy glare, causing Centurion’s smile to fade.
“What’s the matter?” Centurion questions.
“Nothing.” Jocelyn says in response. “I just…I find it interesting that the main event “throwback” match is you and Nathan Miles’ kid. You didn’t wrestle much in the WGWF. You were an authority figure.”
“Yeah, well…” Centurion explains, trying to come up with an answer. “Maybe it’s because of all the different shit I was involved in? It makes for a great story, doesn’t it? The last time I was there, I left in disgrace. Now I have a chance at redemption. That’s money making stuff there.”
“Could be.” Jocelyn says, not buying Centurion’s explanation. “Or, it could be that you simply asked your buddy Chris for the match.”
Centurion stops dead in his tracks. “What are you implying?”
Jocelyn takes a few steps closer toward Centurion, asserting herself as the aggressor in this situation. “I’m implying you’re taking a spot that should have been mine.”
“It COULD have been you!” An exacerbated Centurion yells out.
“Oh, I’m sorry!” Jocelyn yells back. “I guess I must have lost my invitation in the fucking mail!”
“An invitation?!” Centurion yells, gob smacked. “This is professional wrestling! You don’t get an invitation! You have to go out there and get it yourself!”
“Bullshit!” Jocelyn’s voice reaches a fever pitch. “That’s what you old fuckers say to convince yourselves it’s still 2005! That ain’t this business anymore. These spots aren’t earned anymore – they’re given. If they were earned, this main event would feature me. Or Paul Frost. Dean James. Kyle Shane. Isabelle Desjardins! But instead, you made a couple of tweets, placed one phone call, and you were giftwrapped a premium spot.”
Centurion makes a gesture of dismissal towards Jocelyn as he turns away from her. He starts to walk away from her, but Jocelyn follows him, continuing to argue her point.
“I honestly can’t believe you.” Jocelyn continues, her voice not as high, but still as combative. “After everything we’ve been through. After everything Chris Page has done to you and those around you, the fact that you’ve swept it all under the rug to become best friends with him is insulting.”
Centurion stops in his tracks and instantly turns to face Jocelyn. “We are NOT best friends! I keep Page at an arms-length. We have mutual interests. That’s it!”
“You work for him!” Jocelyn snaps back. “You hang out with his wife! You compete at all of the super shows he puts on!”
“You were on that show! You were on that team with Candice!” Centurion says, reminding Jocelyn of the Cannabis Cup. “And I bet all the money in my pockets against all the money in your pockets that if you would have told Chris Page you wanted to wrestle at the first Brawl, he not only would have said yes, but he would have done a cartwheel and personally asked you who you wanted to face and where on the card you wanted the match!”
The anger on Jocelyn’s face somewhat fades, as a look of sadness starts to creep in. “Yeah, Page probably would have. Then you would have talked to him, and you would have convinced him to keep you in the main event. For you, this has nothing to do with the WGWF. It has nothing to do with the history or anything like that. It has EVERYTHING to do with your career. You’re using this match to flex your position in the wrestling business and to try to increase your stock.”
Centurion goes to respond to Jocelyn’s accusations, but he stops. While Jocelyn’s delivery is a bit harsh, she’s not completely incorrect in her assessment, and Centurion knows it. “So what if I am? I’m still active! I’m still trying to build something here, and the last few months have not been great for me.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry for you.” Jocelyn says very sarcastically. “It must be difficult to lose a couple of matches in the middle of your 21 year long Hall of Fame career.”
“Don’t act all high and mighty!” Centurion snaps back. “You would do the same thing if you were in my shoes.”
“I wouldn’t know!” Jocelyn says in response. “You don’t let anyone around you get to that point. The moment – the VERY MOMENT – I became a massive superstar, you had to jump in to take some of the spotlight. And I forgave you. Allison forgave you. We all thought you were a different person back then, so we’ve grown and we’ve let the past be the past. But now here you are, lacing up the boots and getting ready for a match you know you didn’t earn, and when I call your ass out for it, you immediately try to handwave it. I don’t think you were different at all. I think you’re still the same selfish bastard you were back then.”
A now furious Centurion takes a few steps forward and gets directly into Jocelyn’s face. “How the fuck would you know?! While you and Allison have been in London, sipping your wine and dining with royals, I’ve been working my ass off trying to get back everything I lost! I’m sorry that you got a little bit of money and decided to phone in your career, but some of us continue to have a work ethic.”
The final words causes Jocelyn to lash out and shove Centurion, which causes him to stumble back a bit. Centurion takes a deep breath before stepping forward and shoving Jocelyn back. In retaliation, Jocelyn punches Centurion in the face, causing him to turn and fall to one knee. He rubs the side of his face and grumbles before darting towards Jocelyn and tackling her to the ground. Jocelyn begins punching the side of Centurion’s head as Centurion delivers punches to her ribs.
After a few seconds of brawling, the door to the facility opens once again. Into the building steps a joyful looking Nellie, as well as Allison Cortinovis, the sister of Centurion and the wife of Jocelyn. The moment they spot Centurion and Jocelyn, they become mortified as they run towards the two fighting friends. Allison pulls Centurion off the ground and away from Jocelyn as Nellie steps in front of Jocelyn. Jocelyn and Centurion both look to take another swing at each other, but Allison and Nellie step in front of the two of them.
“HEY! CUT IT OUT!” Screams Allison, causing Centurion and Jocelyn to stop in their tracks. “Quit acting like children!” Centurion and Jocelyn both begin to yell something to their defense, but Allison raises her hand and puts a stop to it. “I don’t want to hear it! Andy, you’re wrestling in a match that probably should have been Jocey’s.” Centurion goes to defend himself, but Allison instantly cuts him off. “You could have easily set it up, but you were thinking of yourself. And Jay, you should have stepped up and said something when you had the chance.” This time, Jocelyn goes to speak, but Allison cuts her off. “You had every opportunity to speak up and let your intentions known, but you’re so damn stubborn that you wanted someone to knock on your door and personally ask you. You’re both ridiculously frustrating human beings, and if you would just fucking CALL each other once and a while, you’d be able to work this shit out!”
Jocelyn and Centurion both step in opposite directions in an effort to calm themselves down. They both shakes their heads and take a deep breath before facing each other again.
After a few quiet seconds, Centurion speaks up once again. “Do you want to come back?” Centurion asks to Jocelyn in a much calmer voice.
All attention turns to Jocelyn, whose face has turned from anger to curiosity. “I…” Jocelyn searches for the words to use, but the truth is, she does not know herself. “I don’t know. I know it’s stupid. I’ve accomplished everything I’ve ever wanted in the WGWF. I was content with my life. But now I see that it’s back and…all these feelings come rushing back to me.”
Centurion rubs his jaw once more before gesturing over to Jocelyn. “Come with me to Las Vegas. There’s someone we should talk to.”
------Legacy Earned and Unearned------
We reopen inside the MGM Grand Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. There, seated at a leather couch inside a cocktail lounge is Centurion, dressed as we are normally used to seeing him – full suit, glass of scotch, cigar. Centurion closes his eyes and takes a deep breath before he speaks.
“The World Global Wrestling Federation. A brand that has been dead and buried for years. Honestly, if it wasn’t for a bunch of stubborn old men, the brand would STILL be dead, but there’s something about old gunslingers that keep us coming back, repeating the same mistakes over and over again.
Legends of the business have come though these gates – both those that built a resume elsewhere and brought it into the halls of the WGWF, and those who started here and went on to become massive stars in the industry. There are a lot of people who earned a lot of money and recognition because of the WGWF. There are also a lot of people who received a lot of money and recognition but did not necessarily earn them.
The latter is a description of Max Daemon.”
Centurion takes a hit of his cigar and sets it down in an ashtray next to him. He exhales the smoke before continuing.
“Allow me to first say that I have nothing but respect for Max’s father. Despite the fact that the bulk of his success came after I already exiled himself from the business, I am highly away of the career that Nathan Miles built for himself. I would love to be able to test my metal against him someday, if he ever has the inkling to come back to the business. I don’t know what he’s up to these days. I honestly don’t know if he’s even still alive. But when people praise his name and the things he was able to accomplish in the WGWF, know that he earned every bit of that.
But with the recognition of Nathan Miles came the recognition of Max Daemon, who started to see his father’s success as his own. Now, I’m usually not the one to toss around accusations of nepotism. I’ve seen first hand through my daughter how difficult it can be to leave the shadow of a famous, successful parent, and I know a lot of those children work extra hard to build a name for themselves. There are children of legends that have been able to make a legendary career for themselves through hardwork and dedication of the craft. I wouldn’t tell this to his face, but take a look at Thaddeus Duke. The man had every opportunity to rest on his father’s laurels, but he wanted to be something better, and he has been able to pull that off.
But Thad Duke is a passionate man who works his ass off to make sure that it’s his father living in his shadow, not the other way around. What’s your excuse, Max?”
Centurion gives a smile and takes a sip of his scotch before continuing.
“Oh, I know you’ve had SOME success. I see that you’ve been able to build a nice little career over in Action Wrestling. I’m not going to downplay that too much, though I’m sure even you would admit that competing over there is a LOT different then competing elsewhere. You don’t absolutely suck. You’re decent. If you were to just keep your head down and compete, you’d likely rack up a nice career for yourself.
But no, you don’t do that, do you? You decided you want to be an annoying little troll on Twitter. You want to open your mouth and insult pretty much everyone and everything in this business. You talk like you’re Chris Page in his prime, but you wrestle like you’re UGWC era Gabe Reno. I don’t know if you’re just a brat, or if you honestly think you are the same caliber of wrestler as your father, but it’s amazing the amount of shit that can come out of your mouth on a daily basis.”
Centurion reaches into his pockets and pulls out his phone. He shows it to the camera, showing off that he has the Twitter app opened and focused on Max Daemon’s profile. Centurion turns the phone back around and begins to scroll through it.
“Let’s start with the first, most obvious thing – this constant threat to end my career. I want to clear that up right now – no. No, you won’t. Every wrestler I’ve faced for the past 15 years has promised to end my career, and they’ve all failed to do so. If I can stand in the ring with some of the toughest mother fuckers who want to rip my head off and come out alive, you think I’m going to let YOU be the one who sends me packing? Please. If I ever retire – and that’s a big, old “if”, it won’t be you who sends me to the retirement home. My goal is to keep going until they take me out of the ring in a hearse, and I can almost promise you that that will happen long after your silly ass has decided that professional wrestling isn’t the career for you.
This is how I know you’re nothing like your father. You father would never have said anything as stupid as that. He would guarantee victory. He would want to destroy me in every facet of the match. But he would know better than to say he would end my career, because if someone said that to HIM, he’d fucking snap and rip their head off. I get it – you’re young, and you don’t know any different. You’re not used to stepping in the ring with certified legends. You’re only used to fighting women that you have absolutely no respect for.”
Centurion places his phone down on the table next to him and takes another sip of his scotch before putting his finger up.
“Let’s talk about that next. You’re a cocky mother fucker, as I’ve previously stated, but you interact with people in different ways. When you’re getting ready to fight me, or Corey Black, or any number of male wrestlers, you talk about the ring work and what the victory means to you. You say you’re going to win, whatever…but when you’re wrestling a female wrestler, it suddenly becomes more personal. You start to reach into the bag and throw out bigger insults. I think, deep down…you’re a misogynist.
Of course, you probably don’t think that. You probably assume you’re treating all your opponents equally, but let me tell you the big difference – you don’t send your Reddit trolls out into the wild to use personal information and praise leaked photos of male wrestler.
Yes, I’m still pissed at you for your involvement in the Lissie Hope scandal.
Obviously, you’re not the main antagonist in that story. That’s Cypher. But your desire to get “one over” on one of your rivals blinded you from the fact that the person you were fighting was a victim, and instead of condemning his actions and telling people that that kind of activity has no place in professional wrestling, you sat back and allowed your army of incels to weaponize it in hopes Lissie would walk away from the business, leaving you standing all on your own without any competition. And don’t try to tell me you “have no control over them”. You absolutely do. You do nothing to stop them because you actually love the admiration you receive from those assholes.”
Centurion stands up from the couch and slowly steps towards the camera.
“You’re not a professional wrestler, Max. Not even close. You’re a social media influencer. You’re a clout chaser. At BEST, you’re a spot monkey who is willing to slice your own head open to get photos of yourself on the internet. That’s it. You step into the ring with someone who actually knows what they’re doing? You don’t stand a chance. And believe me – I’m not here to make you look good. I’m not here to get you endorsements or to improve your Instagram likes. I’m here to destroy you.
Of course, I’m not expecting you to give me any sort of praise when that happens. Hell, I don’t expect you to acknowledge it at all. That’s fine – you don’t have to. You can go ahead and pretend like it never happened. I’ll still be around to remind you, and everyone, of what happened. Don’t worry – I’ll have the tapes over to Lissie, so she can play them on Action Wrestling TV over, and over, and over again. You may try to bury it about it, but I guarantee those that hate your guts will never let you forget it.
I hear you might be spending more time in the WGWF than just this match. Good. I wish you the best of luck. I’m interested in seeing how you do against this new level of competition. Honestly, I kind of hope you dominate. Maybe I’ll put the headset back down and jump back into the ring if this roster can’t prove to be better than you. In the meantime, after this match, go ahead and tell this new crop of wrestlers just exactly what it feels like to meet your…
FINAL FANTASY!!!