Post by Kaven Drell on Mar 4, 2019 20:55:58 GMT -5
The creak of an old rocking chair moving in rhythmic fashion can be heard softly nearby, but the view of it is obscured dim lighting and a haze of smoke that lingers in the darkened room. A moment later a soft hum in a deep voice can be heard gently hitting the notes of the familiar nursery rhyme “All The Pretty Little Horses” while the chair continues to creak and rock back and forth, over and over and over again until the ever familiar unhinged laughter of Kaven Drell erupts. When he settles, his humming ceases and the creaking of the rocking chair halts. Silence fills the room but there’s tension in the air as the viewer knows that Drell is there, somewhere, just out of sight.
“CLETUS FRANKLIN!”
His voice bellows through the haze, giggling as he listens to the sound of his own words echo off of the walls.
“You, sir, are the man that I have been waiting for. A man of conviction. A man with beliefs! Oh yes, yes. You love the smoke, don’t you. To breathe it into your lungs. To let its effects linger and lure you into that haze where you think nothing can touch you. Nothing at all! Oh you’re so confident. So proud. So certain of yourself. Yes, you’re the one I’ve been waiting for. Cletus. Please. I’m begging you. Make me a promise right now.”
Once more the rocking chair creaks, just once and then quiet fills the room once more. It’s only for a fraction of a second, however, as that void of sound was quickly chased away by the cracking of the back of the rocking chair against the wall that was behind it. And then, after another moments pause, Kaven Drell crawled out of the smoke, lurching forward on his hands and knees with a curious grin on his face as he looked at the camera that was now entirely focused on him after he had revealed himself.
“Please, please me you won’t lose that surety you feel before the bell rings. Don’t be afraid. I just want to play a little game. A little, teensy, tiny game between just the two of us. Something to occupy my interest while I wait to take the one remaining item she has that keeps her clinging to this industry instead of becoming what she is meant to be. It will be fun, but you have to promise me, Cletus, that you won’t change before that bell sounds.”
His grin turned sinister quickly as whispers of “kill, drell, kill” seemed to come from every single direction and in response he nodded his head in agreement.
“I want to know what this promised land is that you speak of. Will you show me the way? Will you take me there? Will you let the big bad wolf into your home when he comes knocking? OR must you make me stand outside and huff, puff and blow that house down around you. You see, all of my other opponents before you I’ve wanted to take something from. I’ve wanted them to be reborn as something better than who they were already. Elena. Michael Kelly. Karnivall. They all had something that was sapping the soul right out of their body and it was my responsibility to destroy those things and become something greater. But you…”
Reaching out with his right hand, his left knee shuffled forward and he crawled a bit closer to the camera, still never taking his gaze away from looking directly into it.
“You have nothing for me to take. Who am I to remove someone’s foolish pride when it could be better used to teach them a much needed lesson? Who am I to stop a man from voicing an opinion that no one asked for when the words can simply be taken and shoved down his throat, reminding him of just how little he means to the world. I want to play a game with you, Cletus, like a little boy with a magnifying glass and ants scurrying across the pavement on a sunny summers day. Mama always told me I shouldn’t play with my food but, you know…”
Pulling his knees up under him, Kaven leaned back and straightened his torso vertically.
“I never was very good at listening to what my mama told me to do. No no, the hunt is so much more fun when the prey overestimates its own capabilities. There’s something exhilarating about taking a man who thought to highly of himself and staring directly into his eyes the moment he realizes he’s been broken by a better man. I don’t want you to change, Cletus, because I want to break you. I want you to keep believing that there’s something special about you. I want you to keep thinking that you’re some superior athlete, so that when my face smashes into yours, and when I wrap my arms around your neck and drive you down into the mat, I can feel all of that pride give way to despair as your body, your mind, your soul and your will power all yields to me.”
Laughter once more escapes him from deep within his soul, his chest and shoulders heaving and vibrating as his gaze finally averts from the camera and looks downward toward his lap. An amused gasp cuts his laughter off and he brings his right hand up to his mouth, as though he’s telling the viewers, and his opponent, a secret that was meant to be just between them. Even his voice drops from its usual volume to being a hushed whisper.
“Goodness, Cletus, the thought has me utterly aroused.”
Drell lets one more bark of laughter rumble from within him before his expression suddenly turns completely serious.
“A man who loves his smoke is too foolish to realize the warnings that it sends. Cletus Franklin, you’re a man so lost in yourself you can’t even begin to fathom the danger you’ve placed yourself in, and willingly. Take a moment and look around you. Observe your surroundings. Shut your fat, blubbery mouth for one moment and use the senses that you’ve been blessed with to grasp just how dire your situation has become. That smoke that you love so dearly, it comes from one place and one place alone. Somewhere, there’s a fire burning. It’s not smoke that consumes. It’s not smoke that eviscerates. It’s not smoke that incinerates. It’s not smoke that leaves forests, towns, homes and anything in its wake in ashes.”
The stare that Drell shoots in the direction of the viewer is one that could cause doubt to creep into the staunchest, most confident opponent.
“I am that fire, Cletus, and I burn white hot at all times. Unfortunately for you you walked yourself right into a house that’s been burning for weeks now, and you’ve come straight to the source. There’s no getting out. There’s no getting away without being left, at the very least scarred and permanently changed. Ask anyone who has stepped inside of that wrestling ring with me, Cletus. No one remains the same. Every single person leaves worse for the wear and it won’t end with you. The difference between you and them? There’s no fall for you. You’re already at the bottom. This? This is the first lesson for you and then you can start to climb. There’s no need to tear anything down, for the only things you’ve built are illusions in the first place. At Lights Out #32, you’ll learn a lesson that you never could have learned elsewhere. It will be a hard one. A painful one. One that will see you consumed by a fire but…”
Once more his sinister expression gives way, this time to the same jovial smile that had been etched into his expression earlier. As his words faded for a moment he began to hum the notes to the same lullabye he had been humming earlier. Then, softly, the notes gave way to the lyrics.
”Hush-a-bye. Don’t you cry. Go to sleep little baby. When you wake, you’ll have cake, And all the pretty little horses. Black and bay, dapple and grey, Coach and six little horses. Hush-a-bye, don’t you cry, Go to sleepy little baby. Hush-a-bye, don’t you cry, Go to sleepy little baby. When you wake, you’ll have cake…”
Drells eyes closed and he held his arms out at his sides, parallel to the ground. When he did so the room suddenly burst to light as flames shot up all around him. Red and yellow colors flickered against the hazy gray cloud of smoke that hung overhead. Behind him, the rocking chair that he had been sitting in at the start found itself alight with flame as well. And yet Drell sat calmly, nodding his head in the midst of it all as his voice dropped to a whisper once more.
“And all the pretty little horses…”
A moment later the flames rose above his head, obscuring him from sight before everything went to static.
Post by Cletus Franklin on Mar 4, 2019 23:17:42 GMT -5
Cletus Franklin makes his way through the arena parking lot and finds a place to park his all black custom 1979 Lincoln Continental. Cletus shifts to park and double taps the throttle as the engine roars echoing off the walls. He kills the motor before the Lincoln slowly lowers to the ground and the driver door pops open as Cletus makes his way out of the car. He makes his way over to the trunk pressing a button on his keys as the trunk pops open and the trunk lid slides open allowing Cletus to remove his bag. Cletus closes the trunk lid hitting the lock button on his keys and pulls up on the handle of his bag as he makes his way through the parking lot to the backstage area.
Cletus makes his way through the hallways of the arena before he finally reaches his locker room door. He makes his way through the door and lifts his bag up onto a nearby table before he paces the room back and forth. He walks over to the ice chest sitting in the corner of the room and opens the lid reaching into the ice cold water before pulling out a Bud Light tall boy. Cletus closes the lid and pops the tab of the tall boy and downs a sip.
“Just a beer or two to calm the nerves before I make my debut, not only is this upcoming match my Union Battleground debut, but it’s also for the War Horse Championship. A championship held by the man known as Kaven Drell, a man that has been on one hell of a ride since he made his debut, a man that’s about to find out first hand what it’s like to be King of the Mountain one moment and a man that will witness first hand how he can be dethroned in just a matter of seconds.”
Cletus downs the rest of his tall boy and tosses the empty can into a nearby trash can. Cletus reaches into the ice chest again pulling out another beer before popping the top and downing a sip.
“After another dominant showing in the Crown of the King Cobra, the biggest threat to your reign here in Battleground has just reared his head and you’re looking at him, so take a moment and soak it in man.”
“You see, much like you have done since your debut Kaven Drell, I’m looking to make that same kind of impact, but just on a much bigger scale and what bigger way than by dethroning you . Just think about it Mr. Drell, my debut here in the Battleground is for the War Horse Championship, on my first official night with the company I could walk out of the Oman Arena as the NEW War Horse Champion.”
“With your War Horse Championship on the line this is Do or Die for me Mr. Drell, this is my opportunity to derail the hype train and forge my own path by defeating the likes of you. If you really take a moment to sit back and think about the big picture at hand, this is actually Do or Die for you Kaven Drell.”
“Let’s just keep it real with one another, with the dominant run you’ve been on lately this should be a walk in the park for you right?”
Cletus grabs his tall boy from the table and downs another sip before setting it back onto the table.
“How pathetic would you look as Champion if you couldn’t defeat the newest signee? How weak of a man will you become when I dethrone you in order to claim the War Horse Championship for myself? How low will you feel deep on the inside when you find out first hand you can’t measure up to the hype that you built? So many questions floating in the air leaving you to wonder if you have what it takes to keep the streak going.”
“You have so much to prove and everything to lose Mr. Drell, but just know after it’s all said and done and once the dust settles, yours truly Cletus ‘Motherfuckin’ Franklin will be standing tall as the NEW War Horse Champion.”
Cletus grabs his beer and takes another swig knocking out the rest of the can. He tosses the empty can into the trash can and reaches into the ice chest pulling out another tall boy and pops the top to down another sip. He places the can on the table and wipes his beard free of beer foam.
“It’s been a minute since I was in a title picture, so what the fuck is popping now I’m back up in it. They don’t get it they telling me I’ve been acting different, A new breed of Cletus Franklin now they all about to witness. This time around when they talking reckless I ain’t going to listen. To be honest I’ve just been in my zone though, and truth be told if you’re still hating in 2019 than you’re just a bozo.”
“Kaven Drell, I’m a god bitch, you not, I’ve got nothing to lose. Since your past is such a mystery I’ll be your pop pop, your father and your brother to. The only difference here is I don’t have no love for you. Just know if there’s one of me that means there could be none of you. My fans know me against anybody is a landslide, I’ll do it with my eyes closed and both hands tied.”
Cletus laughs to himself and takes another sip of his beer.
“Mr. Drell just know this if I fuck around and I let lose than you’re going to have hell to pay. No matter how hard you hit me, how many times you hit me or how many Kill Drells you manage to pop off, I’ll keep getting back up and coming for more. I’ll do whatever it takes to keep getting back up until I secure this victory. I’ll take your best shot and stand back up asking for more Kaven Drell. You’ve never met a man like me Mr. Drell, you’ve never stepped in the ring with a man like me. You have no idea what I can do in that squared circle and it’s a shame it’s going to take an opening bell in order for you to find that out.”
“No Tolling Bell will be enough to save you Kaven and neither will Hush if I manage to push you to the point of using your ace in the hole to keep your hands wrapped about that championship. No matter how creative you may get with your move set it still won’t be enough to put me down. Whether you try to beat my face in, kick my ass, slam me against steel or concrete it still will never be enough. It doesn’t matter what you do to me or how much blood you spill Kaven Drell, I WILL NOT STOP UNTIL YOU DO and that’s a promise.”
“At any moment I know you’ll get that caged animal mentality when you finally realize that your Championship is slipping through your fingers and you’ll go apeshit as your survivor instincts kick in. I’ll be psychically and mentally prepared for that turn of events Kaven Drell and when you least expect it I’ll drive my knee straight through your face to halt any momentum you amount to muster leaving you with Smokey Dreams.”
Cletus grabs his can and downs another sip once again wiping his beard free of beer foam.
“I’m no fool Kaven Drell I know you have a reputation to protect, I know by bell time you will have done your homework and I know by bell time you’ll meet an early demise to your reign here in the Battleground. I know your brains along with your athletic prowess surely has all the angles of Smokey Dreams scouted, documented and counters galore just waiting in your back pocket or hidden up your sleeves.”
“Just know a man of my size and agility is a very dangerous combination with endless possibilities. For every counter you found, there’s a handful of ones you missed and it will only take just one Smokey Dreams to scramble your brains into eternal bliss. The only problem I have come across is deciding to take the easy way out or by taking my time to make you suffer. Should I end it fast and early with Zero Fucks Given or do I drag it out and cause you to overdose on Serotonin. However, knowing how stubborn you are not to stay down, Just know this Kaven Drell I’m going to beat you down repeatedly until you no longer have the strength to lift a finger.”
“In closing I’m ready to pop off, the War Horse Championship and the New Year is not yours. This year the only time I’m seeing defeat is when I’m taking my socks off.”
