Post by Real Untamed Demon on Jan 29, 2023 7:15:07 GMT -5
Brother will kill brother, spilling blood across the land. ~ Dave Mustaine
Date: 19th Jan 2023
Place: Steel Bones Wrestling ring
City: Damage’s own Gym, Downtown, Detroit, Michigan
Time: Morning 9.00 AM
PATH OF DESTRUCTION : camera status - OFF
How often have we done this? And more important, how many more times can we? he wasn’t 18 anymore and neither was his body. The life of an athlete was exciting but took a few years here and there.
"That’s not what ruined your body, Big man."
That was a fact. Long before Damage became a wrestler -- he lived a rough life. Ever seen barfly? Replace the booze with illegal substances and the bard with the villa of an Italian MOB leader. It would have been a lie to say he regretted that time, but sometimes he had those ‘What if’ moments. Of course every human being had that -- but things were slightly different when you had live and in color nightmares. But not one time had he woken up crying or feeling sorry for himself. Life wasn’t always kind and often enough forced you to make tough decisions. And he did. Every single time.
It was no shame to need someone in your life, but neither was it wrong to stand on your own too. Being that independent and strong man that was meant to lead instead of following. Maybe he was too cold at points. Too rough around the edges. Even too reckless. People always found a reason to judge, so why give a fuck?
Opinions are like assholes, everyone has one.
“What you gotten yourself into, Big guy?” he mumbled to himself while looking through his contract. “So very clever. Do not compete for 2 years and then do an one on one match. Bravo.”
He was sitting inside the Steel Bones Wrestling ring where the last students had just left. Some of them crawled on all four -- which was a rather satisfying view. Damage was leaning against the middle turnbuckle, scanning over the words.
DAMAGE. Match contract.
It was hard to deny that he was somewhat proud. No one before ever scored a deal like that -- at least not in WGWF history. They wanted him to sign badly, therefor they were read to step out of their comfort zone. The small grin on his face grew a little further when reading on, not paying attention to the steps behind him. That was till someone did an Oscar worth cough behind him.
“Now it's too late. You already sold your soul.”
Damage didn’t have to turn around to recognize the talker. He had heard this voice so often that even in high age when he went deaf, he would still hear it. And to a degree it would always make him shiver.
KEI HIDESHIMA. Shateigashira of the Ishida Yakuza Syndicate. Second lieutenant. Family information unknown, but the rumor is that he murdered his own family by setting the family home on fire, burning his face in the process. Controls activities in areas of New York (Newburgh area), Seattle and Norfolk. Official job description? Former World Champion and owner of Combat Syndicate, a training academy for wrestlers looking for a more violent style of wrestling.
“I would believe it is still with Shawna, right?” Damage let out a dry laughter. “Unless someone offered a shit load of money.”
Kei would quietly slide into the ring, finally coming into his view. Although Damage should have known better Kei still managed to surprise him. The way he moved -- like one of those huge wildcats. Without a noise. Always ready for the next jump, beautiful and deadly. He gracefully sunk down on the mat, stretching his legs out. But not without the tip of his shoe pointing against his contract.
“Are you sure about this? I don’t mean wrestling itself but you could do so much better, Big man. And we both know you don’t need the money. So what is your motivation, Kawaī? It can’t possibly be for the thrill of it, because apart from two or three people on that roster -- you will eat them alive.”
The sheer arrogance in his voice reminded him of the old times. Kei wasn’t dangerous because he was a skilled fighter or because he could probably use every weapon on this planet. It was his confidence that made most people shit their pants. The way he looked at his opposite without ever taking a visible breath.
“I could make up the fancy story that you probably wanna hear. About honor and destiny -- but let's be honest, not even I would believe that shit. I have been sitting at home for the past two years. Forming and torturing talent down at Steel Bones Wrestling and to a degree that was satisfying.” he put the papers on the ground. “But no matter how good they are -- it always leads back to the same thing. Am I better? Do I still have the desire for blood and violence… .”
“And, do you?”
Damage lifted both his hands, showing him his swollen and bruised knuckles. Half a smile appeared on Kei face while he observed them.
“I have seen worse on you. So I ask again, do you still feel that burning sensation? That hunger that no meal can every satisfy -- that disease that no pill can cure. You seem a little soft as of late.”
“I know exactly what you are doing, Kei. You try to piss me off and you know it usually works pretty well. The right words will make me jump and turn my sight to red.” Damage winked at him. “We know it still works on the right people.”
Kei didn’t have to spell it out for him to catch it. Once more Damage was greeted by this half smile which reminded him of a horror show. Kei looked back at the papers before his focus found Damage’s face.
“It is part of the game, isn’t it? Testing the limits. Pushing as hard as possible -- just to see someone break. But back to business, Damage. You do realize this guy Mr. John Cable is also big man like you and hits like a thunder.” He cracked his neck. “ And I think you are aware of the why?...”
"You are a threat to him."
“Funny enough I have seen like this guys try so many times to take me down. Take those Goddard for example. A bunch of people with the intellect of stones. Although I feel as if I have to apologize to the stones for that comparison.”
“Don’t underestimate the dumb. Often enough he acts out on sheer instinct.”
“If he can find his instincts -- it seems like his egos are big enough to blind the sun. The core of my words is a total different one though. I have seen it. I have been in the middle of it -- yet I am not very impressed. The lowest ranks in the MOB have better skills than those whiny bitches.”
Much to Damage’s surprise he laughed. It wasn’t a warm and welcoming laughter. More the kind that the Joker would burst out before pushing the button. Boom.
“You know the cure for big egos though, Kawaī. It is as simple as effective. They will bring a knife to a gunfight. Playing the ‘catch if you can’ game, no matter if it is in the ring or on social media. That is how the world rolls. And as much as I hate to tell you -- but there is no one you can count on.” He rubbed his fingers together. “Not your protégé nor our pale friend. At the end of the day you are in this alone.”
“Is that supposed to make me sweat? Look back at where I have been the past two years. The companies. The places. When did I ever count on anyone, Kei? I have had enough snakes crawl up my legs, trying to whisper in my ear. At points I fell for it. Maybe I was lonely. But you know me well enough. If there is a ship to wreck -- I am the man to do it.”
The tone of Damage voice had changed -- The look on his face underlined every word spoken. The anger boiling on the inside was hard to hide and he knew it. The mask covered the expression on his face -- but Kei didn’t even have to look. Knowing that he was satisfied. Once more he brought out something Damage so badly wanted to forget.
“There is no way of half - assing that. That Mr. Cables is hungry but Mr. Cables haven’t seen half the shit you have. So I wanna give you a reminder of who Damage is. 'An Untamed Demon.' A variety of what most competitors would love to be. But if you wanna run this place -- you gotta be willing to let that Demon out. Lose your chains.”
In this very moment there was no answer -- or at least none Damage would have found fitting. Instead Damage lifted himself from the mat, looking down at Kei. Without giving him another verbal response Damage rolled out of the ring. He grabbed his papers but not without looking at Kei for one last time.
Kei stared after Damage walking towards the exit with his head held high. Marching on like the hungry Untamed Demon. In grace and fury.
“And there he is -- MY Untamed Demon.”
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Date: 20th Jan 2023
Place: Press room of CCP Arena,
City: The Velvet Rabbit, Las Vegas
Time: Morning 9.00 AM
Camera Status: Off
It had been a long time since Damage had to walk into a new organization and work from the ground up. The media, of course, kept bringing up the fact that he was a reigning World champion... a "reigning" World champion of a now defunct promotion, but the point they had made had stuck. How did he feel about having to prove himself all over again? He had found it to be somewhat ironic, as he felt he had to constantly prove himself with each and every advance he made in his career.
Damage had to prove that he deserved the accolades he had acquired and the honours bestowed upon him.
Flanked by Saul Layman and Mr. Mark Roberts, Scott walked into the press room of the CCP Arena and stood at the back of the stage while Saul stood at the podium. A master of blowing smoke up the ass, Saul played to all of the gathered journalists, posing for photos before he held his hands up to quiet the room down.
"Ladies and gentlemen," said Saul proudly, "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Saul Layman and I am the Senior Advisor to Mr. Damage's management team. More than one month ago, amidst all of the rumour of a potential sale or merger of WGWF, my client signed a lucrative contract which will see one of the greatest talents compete in an WGWF ring. My client, as you should know, has become synonymous with words such as 'Real champion', and 'undisputed legend' and 'Future Hall of Famer' and when he steps into that ring he is going to show you exactly why he is the future of this company."
Saul had barely even paused for breath when a cacaphony of noise broke out, every journalist in the room trying to shout over one another to get the first question in. As Saul surrendered the podium to Damage, he pointed at none other than Denzel porter.
"First off," said Denzel, "welcome to WGWF, Mr. Damage but given your resume, what made you decide to sign a contract here rather than a more established promotion?"
"I'm glad you asked that," said Damage with a smirk, "you see, I've spent years signing contracts with established promotions with their established performers and their established way of doing things. Until I signed my previous contract with the All Goes Wrestling, the 'establishment' unfortunately just wasn't a good fit for anyone and so it became defunct. WGWF, on the other hand, is really in its good stages and far too nice company. Let's be honest, there are wrestlers who sorely use their star power and get the championship matches directly, but I am different. I really have interest in signing with an established organization like WGWF where I raise the bar for the talents and show them what it needs to be a famous superstar. Just wrestling normal matches for 1, 2 and 3 count is what these talents in WGWF think is a superstar material, but it is not the case in real, these guys must understand and know how to entertain the people who have paid their hard earned money to watch them. This is part where I come and so by signing with a company like WGWF where I can use my experience to my advantage and lead by example was the obvious choice.”
“You claim that you are here in WGWF to raise the Bar for the talents." said Denzel, “but why haven’t you accept your past rival Samuel Chatman’s Challenge.”
“An expected Question,” Damage smirks with that said, “You see, Mr. Samuel Chatman is a talented man but after I had showed his place in our previous organization he had become a loose cannon and to take on a loose cannon and put that again in its place, normal match is not enough.” Damage paused and look at every person before him at the press room. "Last week on WGWF Dark, I have issued him a Last man standing match for Wrestle wars 8 and you people know who didn’t accept the challenge.” said Damage with a small grin on his face.
"You've been booked against John Cable," said Denzel, "who is coming off a failure in Rumble against 19 talents at Westcoast rumble."
"Coming off a loss against 19 talents," Damage corrected, "but I won't hold that against Mr. John or my opinion of him. You see, I know from experience what it's like to be overlooked because of superficial and trivial details. Rumble matches do not amuse me as the winners of Rumble are purely through luck and coincidence. I'm not so closed minded that I cannot see the type of competitor Mr. John Cable is. He put up one hell of a fight against 19 men and women and could just have won that match," he smiled. "But it's important that everybody remember one thing: I'm not any of those 19 talents. I'm not somebody who ups and quits when the company hits a bump in the road and must embrace changes in order to stay in business, I embrace those challenges. One does not become a champion by tucking his tail between his legs and running away, to become a champion you need to not only take any opportunity which presents itself but make your own opportunities."
Damage again paused to allow for further questions, but the assembled journalists just looked back at him to continue. Damage looked over towards Saul, who just gave him an encouraging shrug.
"I know people may expect," Damage said, "that, being newly signed to WGWF, I will simply be content to work myself up through the rankings until I have 'earned' a shot at the WGWF Heavyweight championship but, trust me, I know what I want and I will stop at nothing to take it. As good as Mr. John Cable may be, he is standing in my way, a stepping stone to the prize we're all fighting for."
That brought about a growing murmur from the assembled journalists.
"Believe me," Damage said, "I would hate for anybody to call me a stepping stone and I certainly do respect the abilities of my opponents, but I respect my own abilities more. I know the level of competition I am capable of running with and I will settle for nothing less than main event talent and main event opportunities. The rest of the roster may have been content to play their roles in WGWF, but that is my ring now."
A hand shot up, which Saul acknowledged.
"Forgive me," said the representative of the Daily-news Reporter, "as you are called ‘The Untamed Demon’ he is called ‘Beast’ what is your take on that?."
"Yes, I've noticed that," said Damage. "So that should make this a very interesting match, shouldn't it? With both of us being the two big men with powerhouse/Brawler maneuvers and how to counter them, it may prove to be impossible to produce a finish with our moves. Or maybe it's just which one of us can keep our focus in the face of such a challenge. Could you imagine how frustrating it would be to be unable to connect with a move you've done countless times before? Which one of us wants is more?" Damage smiled. "Mr. John Cable can say whatever he wants, but when he steps into the ring against me, I am going to re-introduce him to his weaknesses from his own multitude of injuries, to his mental state during matches which shows his imbalance and his own ego."
Sensing Damage has had enough, Saul leaned over to the microphone. "Thank-you, ladies and gentlemen, but there will be no more questions for today, but you're welcome to join us after Mr. Damage has emerged victorious over Mr. John Cable and is one step closer in his quest for dominance in WGWF. Thank-you and goodnight."
-FIN-