Trying
The shot opens on a concrete stairwell. A single fluorescent tube shines on the bare walls. David Stryker sits on a step, the hood of his jacket pulled up. He stays like that for a few seconds before finally speaking.
„I’ve been… Replaying it. All the time,“ he says, his voice quieter than usual. Not softer. There’s anger in it, disappointment.
„I had that big motherfucker right where I wanted him… Nearly took his leg off… I felt the match going my way and then…“
He exhales through his nose.
„Then… I guess… He showed me sometimes a perfect plan is not enough if the opponent just declines to accept it and powers through it. And then, one Choke Bomb later, my reign… Was over.“
He leans back, head tilting up, finally looking at the camera.
„I won my first championship in just the eight match of my career. I beat veterans, former world champions, tag team champions. I built something real in this company from nothing, on my own terms, without asking anybody for a shortcut. And then, in the ninth match already, it was all over. For the first few days, I was… Angry. Nothing else. Angry at that match. At ONE. I was fucking angry at myself for letting everything slip so quickly… But I spoke to my father about it. He told me about the first title he lost, and that I should take it as a lesson. Not let the bad part dictate my year. Move on to the other chances… And man, I’m still pretty angry, but…“
A small hint of a smile appears on his face.
„I do have a chance right this week…“
He nods once.
„I already won one tournament in AWS, and I whipped that bitch ass emo boy JohnZo Scary out of here in the process… And now, at the new show Black Out, I get to do it aaaaall again. Against mister A… J… Flare…“ he says the name slowly, flatly.
„I hear a lot about AJ. The Greatest. The leader of the World Elite. The man who’s been wrestling for titles since the days when I was learning how much 2+2 is. I HEARD all of that a lot, yeah,“ he says, emphasising the word ‚heard‘ so much it echoes a little through the empty stairwell.
„That’s how I read you, AJ, ever since I kicked the door open in AWS. You WERE somebody. You USED to be a champion here. But the last title you held doesn’t even exist anymore. You spend a shit-ton of time yapping about being the greatest, but you don’t realize you spend just as much time on your back, wondering where you are while your opponent’s music is playing.“
David smirks and pulls the hood down. His hair is slicked back and you can finally see his face properly. An arrogant smirk mixes with the intensity in his eyes.
„Right now, AJ? You’re just trying to catch up to what you maybe were. And for a while now, the trying has been your story instead of the achieving. You’re a World title away from a Grand Slam here in AWS, but you’re further from a World title shot than an 18 year old kid who walked in not even half a year ago… Doesn’t that sting at least a bit? Or have you not really come to grasp of it? That the once great AJ Flare is now just… a good hand. A name you write down when you got a blank spot on the card. The man who works hard all the damn time, keeps trying and trying, but in the end… He’s just there to elevate the REAL stars…“
David chuckles.
„And it looks like the management of AWS has a sense of humor because they put you, a great highflyer, and me, a vicious striker and grappler… In a tables match. Sounds left field for both of us, huh? Well… I think a tables match is exactly what I need right now…“
He gets up and folds his arms across his chest.
„Pinning someone? Sure, fun… But putting somebody, let alone a decorated vet like you, through a table? Now that’s a statement, isn’t it? A statement that will show that David Stryker is not just built for matches where you have to be strategic and target your opponent’s specific weak points and outwrestle them… David Stryker can win ugly and let all the anger and frustration from losing the title out on someone. David Stryker will do whatever it takes to go 2 for 2 in AWS tournaments and show that he will do more in less than a year than most of these chumps on the roster will do over their entire careers…“
He walks down the steps, closer to the camera.
„The Shortcut to the Top tournament has my full focus. It’s my road back. And you, AJ… Are just the first step on it. So keep trying. Keep working hard. Keep telling yourself that you still got it. One day, before you pull the curtain on your career, you might get lucky again and get that big win, maybe even another title. But not this week. This week, at Black Out… Your old broken back is flying through that table.“
Fade to black.