Post by jamesradford on Feb 7, 2020 10:41:31 GMT -5
FOLLOWING LIGHTS OUT #36
THE MICROSOFT THEATRE
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA
For the first time since appearing in the trainer's room, Benson took a deep breath, reaching into his front pocket for a handkerchief to dab at the sweat building on his brow. He had just blown up at a cameraman, vowing revenge against Bryan Williams for putting hands on him. No doubt that was already being uploaded to the Battleground Network where it would reach all four corners of the globe. He had to admit, after the explosive dialogue, he felt better.
That is when he finally turned to look over at his client, James Radford, and at the site of surgical thread being forced through the man's skin, Bobby blanched and shook his head.
"God damn, James! How did this happen?" Bobby exclaimed, hands thrown out at his sides.
Radford's eyes narrowed as a frown formed on his face. "Because you threw the hammer into the ring in the first place."
James was angry, but no more so than Benson, as he stepped forward defensively and fired back. "Yeah, and you would have been fine if you had just picked the damn thing up and used it! Instead, you got impaled thanks to Indi Rhyder."
James was getting more worked up with every word, pushing forward off the bed so that the medic lost control of his needle. Blood oozed from the wound as muscles strained, and Radford looked like he was about to throttle the manager.
"You should have stayed out of it! But not you! Not Bobby Benson! That's why you're back is out of alignment right now! What the hell were you thinking climbing that cage?"
Benson was beyond irritated now, and he didn't care if his clients arm fell off at the shoulder. "I had to get involved, James! You were getting your ass kicked, and were distracted by Indi every time Williams made an attempt to win the match! This could have all been avoided if you had just taken advantage like I've been preaching your entire career! But don't you worry about Bryan Williams! We'll have our revenge before it's over!"
Bobby eased off now, gears turning in a new direction as James allowed the medic to force him back against the seat so he could stop the bleeding. James watched his manager and knew that he was up to no good, and he shook his head in response.
"Don't get me tangled up in your insane plots, Bobby. Bryan Williams won. The end. I'm not going to be involved in some revenge scheme you've cooked up because of your ill conceived offense."
"Ill conceived offense..." Bobby started, truly taken aback. "The man knocked me off a cage through the announce table! At my age, my back might never be the same! I should file a complaint! I should petition congress! I should sue!"
Bobby looked up to see that James wasn't paying him anymore attention, which set his blood to boiling even more. He moved so that he forced his way into Radford's line of sight.
"And you will be involved, James, whether you want to or not. I represent you, but just the same you represent me! By the time I'm done with Bryan Williams he's going to be out for blood, and who do you think is going to bare the brunt of that? Not me! I mean, you remember how it was in AWE, right? I would do something, they'd blame you. That you weren't as wholesome as you claimed."
Bobby smiles now, like a true villain. "See, you'll either fight whoever I set in front of you, or you'll go down. The end."
The last is said mockingly as James turned his head so that he didn't have to look at the bastard anymore, and because he didn't want to give him the satisfaction of knowing that he was right. The story played out plain as day in Radford's eyes because he had been put in this same position before. He had hoped that this time it would be different, but it was naive. That was the story of his life, he guessed, hoping for change where there was none. Giving others the benefit of the doubt. Maybe Bobby was right. Maybe it was time to stop giving people second and third chances. Maybe it was time to look at them and realize that this is just who they are, regardless of what they are trying to sell to the contrary.
James finally looked back over to Bobby who had taken the silence as a sign of victory. Imagine his surprise when the burly Mississippian pointed at the door and said, "Get out."
Bobby looked flabbergasted but the dark expression in James's face brought no retort this time. Bobby promptly turned on his heel and exited the room as James sighed loudly and fell back against the seat. The doctor snipped the end of the thread and wiped the area one last time before moving into another section of the room. James stared up at the ceiling tile, a mixture of emotions.
His shoulder was sore, but his mind was elsewhere, back in the match where he watched from the canvas as Bryan Williams slid on his rooster mask and was announced the winner. He would go on to face Dakota Smith at Coup De Grace for the Union Battleground Championship, not James. Bryan had spent the majority of his time on screen before the match claiming that he was the man to save Union from Smith by bringing the championship back home. And truthfully, after Perry Wallace's appearance at the top of the show, maybe he had a point. Maybe the championship did need to be saved, but would it be a masked vigilante who would do it, or someone who didn't need to hide his face to feel normal?
He couldn't think about that now. He'd have his next opponent to contend with soon, and he had a pretty good idea who it would be. With that thought, James closed his eyes and let the pain medication do it's work.
The scene opens to a wide shot from inside a small church somewhere in Jackson, Mississippi. James Radford sits in a pew at the very back, and he is surrounded by parishioners that indicate by the dress that they are from the more impoverished areas of the county. At the front of the church is a stage where a podium stands directly in front of an effigy of Jesus on the cross, and it is flanked on either side by the United States flag and the Alabama State flag. For the most part, it looks like any number of small country parishes, save for the snake carved into the front of the podium with the words 'Church of God' etched in a circle around it. Lining the far left wall are crates elevated off the ground by two-by-four's and covered by chicken wire tops.
The preacher is a plump man wearing overalls who has some trouble navigating the steps before finally settling behind the pulpit. He's already dabbing at his ample jowls with a cloth before he begins to speak. Almost immediately to James's left a woman bursts out of her seat and lets out a holler that causes the Pride of Jackson to start. He settles back when he sees that no one else seems effected by the outburst, which is quickly joined by a man who starts spitting out gibberish. As the preachers words grow in excitement and bass, the people begin to writhe and the cacophony of nonsense gets louder and louder.
Suddenly the preacher stops but the crowd continues their litany. He looks as if he's on the verge of a stroke when he makes his way over to the crates and lifts one of the chicken wire tops. The church goers go into a frenzy as his hands plunge into the opening and emerge covered in snakes. James watches all of this with wonder before finally shaking his head and placing his trademark Stetson onto his head.
The camera follows James as he quietly exits the church, pushing the doors closed behind him to take a seat on the top step.
"Indi Rhyder. Snake Charmer."
James chuckles, thumbing at a nail that is pushed out of the crumbling wood of his seat.
"Before our last encounter I talked about how you and I were the same. Of course we have different genders, styles, and philosophies, but at the core of things we're good. I genuinely believed that at the time."
James abandons the nail to rest his forearms on his knees and looks up under the brim of his hat.
"And then there was the main event of Lights Out #36..."
He paused to collect his thoughts, his eyes glossing over in retrospect.
"I have no excuses for why I lost. Bryan Williams fought through every obstacle presented, including the distractions of my manager. He was the better man that night. He did what he said he would do, and for that I can't do anything but applaud him. Bryan being the one with is hand raised wasn't the surprise for me that night."
James shook his head, growing more somber by the moment.
"I can't make up excuses for Bobby Benson, the albatross around my neck. Bobby is who he is and there's no changing that. Lord knows I've tried. So it was no surprise when Bobby tossed a weapon through the cage into the ring. Its what he's going to do every time. He does it, even when he knows I'm not going to go for it."
James allows a sigh before continuing.
"So there it was. A claw hammer sitting right in the middle of the ring. When I turned away from it and Bryan Williams took advantage of the distraction, I already knew that I was about to get brained by that hammer. By all accounts after watching the playback, that was exactly what he planned to do. THAT, is who Bryan Williams is. A man who will take the advantage if the opportunity presents its self. I know a lot of people probably agree with that, and maybe their right. I'm not so sure anymore. I certainly know that Bobby wishes I would adopt that philosophy, but it just doesn't compute with me. I don't want the advantage, nor the distraction. I want to win and fail on my own merits!"
There is passion in his voice now, but as quickly as it bubbles it dissipates.
"But it wasn't Bryan Williams who scooped up that hammer. It was you, Indi, and you tried to take his head off. Only...he ducked, and that claw sank right into my left shoulder. Everyone was shocked. I know they were, cause I saw it when I looked out at the crowd. When I looked down at Bobby. Hell, even Bryan Williams was dumbstruck for a moment. But for me even that wasn't so surprising. I'm learning the hard way that its just a hazard of the trade here in Union Battleground. No, it wasn't until I glanced over at you..."
James's jaw tightens, eyes going cold as he looks up at the camera.
"And you smiled. That was the surprise in this match, Indi. That was the moment that I knew that we weren't the same at all. That you were just like every other person in this promotion regardless of your idealistic professions of truth. A snake in the grass just waiting for your moment to shed your skin and inject your unsuspecting audience with wicked venom. So I did the only thing I could think of to do at the time..."
James seems to find resolve at the memory.
"I pulled that hammer out of my shoulder and used it to smash in your face."
A slight smile tugged at his lips.
"Some people might say it was the same thing that you did to me, or what Bryan would have done if he'd been quicker on the draw, but no. James Radford might not try and cheat the system, but he will fight fire with fire. As the brethren inside would say, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth."
He thumbs to the closed doors behind him and chuckles.
"And now we're here with a contest at an aptly named PPV called Coups de Grace. And though it seems like we've just begun, Indi, this will be where we finish it. Don't get me wrong, either. This isn't about revenge or retribution. I'm not Bobby Benson. But we've been overlapped too many times for it to be coincidence, and something needs to happen here to establish exactly which one of us is going to move up the ladder. The powers that be obviously feel the same, or they wouldn't have booked the match in the first place."
James leans against the door frame, propping his boot on his knee.
"There is no denying your talent, and you have a following in and outside the ring. I don't think there's anyone whose been trying to leave the building who hasn't noticed that caravan of cultists you travel with. See, these people inside the church here, they call that faith. The holy spirit. Me...I call it bat shit crazy, and you, Indi Rhyder, are just another in a long list of egos complete with her own traveling circus."
Eye roll.
"You've said some things that were flat out delusional in the past, but hey, who am I to deny a divine request. Just like this afternoon with these yahoo's, maybe I will waltz on into that self proclaimed Galactic Expanse, but I can guarantee I won't be falling to my knee's with the voice of the Lord."
James smirks.
"No, I'm going to be there to expose you for the fraud that you are. Like Moses, parting the Red Sea, I'm going to lead these fans of yours out of the hands of temptation. Not cause I'm a savior like Bryan Williams, but because when I wade past the glitter, the bravado, and the glam that is Indi Rhyder...No one is going to see you the same again."
The somberness returns.
"Because at the end of the day, you embarrassed me. Not by winning or hitting me with that hammer, but because I believed in you. I was ready to drink the Kool-Aide. I thought you were someone that I might be able to hold in some esteem, someone that had actually earned the credibility of practicing what she preached. In short, I thought we were cut from the same cloth. That is how you hurt me, Indi. With a spiritual gut punch that's taken me some time to get over. And now you're going to go out and tell the masses how I'm wrong. How I'm the one who has the shade, who doesn't understand, but it isn't going to work this time. Cause Indi..."
James slides forward again, cold eyes staring directly into the camera as 'Amazing Grace' starts up from within the church.
"I was blind, but now I see."
James tips the Stetson towards the camera with a sly smile as the camera fades to black off the music.
That is when he finally turned to look over at his client, James Radford, and at the site of surgical thread being forced through the man's skin, Bobby blanched and shook his head.
"God damn, James! How did this happen?" Bobby exclaimed, hands thrown out at his sides.
Radford's eyes narrowed as a frown formed on his face. "Because you threw the hammer into the ring in the first place."
James was angry, but no more so than Benson, as he stepped forward defensively and fired back. "Yeah, and you would have been fine if you had just picked the damn thing up and used it! Instead, you got impaled thanks to Indi Rhyder."
James was getting more worked up with every word, pushing forward off the bed so that the medic lost control of his needle. Blood oozed from the wound as muscles strained, and Radford looked like he was about to throttle the manager.
"You should have stayed out of it! But not you! Not Bobby Benson! That's why you're back is out of alignment right now! What the hell were you thinking climbing that cage?"
Benson was beyond irritated now, and he didn't care if his clients arm fell off at the shoulder. "I had to get involved, James! You were getting your ass kicked, and were distracted by Indi every time Williams made an attempt to win the match! This could have all been avoided if you had just taken advantage like I've been preaching your entire career! But don't you worry about Bryan Williams! We'll have our revenge before it's over!"
Bobby eased off now, gears turning in a new direction as James allowed the medic to force him back against the seat so he could stop the bleeding. James watched his manager and knew that he was up to no good, and he shook his head in response.
"Don't get me tangled up in your insane plots, Bobby. Bryan Williams won. The end. I'm not going to be involved in some revenge scheme you've cooked up because of your ill conceived offense."
"Ill conceived offense..." Bobby started, truly taken aback. "The man knocked me off a cage through the announce table! At my age, my back might never be the same! I should file a complaint! I should petition congress! I should sue!"
Bobby looked up to see that James wasn't paying him anymore attention, which set his blood to boiling even more. He moved so that he forced his way into Radford's line of sight.
"And you will be involved, James, whether you want to or not. I represent you, but just the same you represent me! By the time I'm done with Bryan Williams he's going to be out for blood, and who do you think is going to bare the brunt of that? Not me! I mean, you remember how it was in AWE, right? I would do something, they'd blame you. That you weren't as wholesome as you claimed."
Bobby smiles now, like a true villain. "See, you'll either fight whoever I set in front of you, or you'll go down. The end."
The last is said mockingly as James turned his head so that he didn't have to look at the bastard anymore, and because he didn't want to give him the satisfaction of knowing that he was right. The story played out plain as day in Radford's eyes because he had been put in this same position before. He had hoped that this time it would be different, but it was naive. That was the story of his life, he guessed, hoping for change where there was none. Giving others the benefit of the doubt. Maybe Bobby was right. Maybe it was time to stop giving people second and third chances. Maybe it was time to look at them and realize that this is just who they are, regardless of what they are trying to sell to the contrary.
James finally looked back over to Bobby who had taken the silence as a sign of victory. Imagine his surprise when the burly Mississippian pointed at the door and said, "Get out."
Bobby looked flabbergasted but the dark expression in James's face brought no retort this time. Bobby promptly turned on his heel and exited the room as James sighed loudly and fell back against the seat. The doctor snipped the end of the thread and wiped the area one last time before moving into another section of the room. James stared up at the ceiling tile, a mixture of emotions.
His shoulder was sore, but his mind was elsewhere, back in the match where he watched from the canvas as Bryan Williams slid on his rooster mask and was announced the winner. He would go on to face Dakota Smith at Coup De Grace for the Union Battleground Championship, not James. Bryan had spent the majority of his time on screen before the match claiming that he was the man to save Union from Smith by bringing the championship back home. And truthfully, after Perry Wallace's appearance at the top of the show, maybe he had a point. Maybe the championship did need to be saved, but would it be a masked vigilante who would do it, or someone who didn't need to hide his face to feel normal?
He couldn't think about that now. He'd have his next opponent to contend with soon, and he had a pretty good idea who it would be. With that thought, James closed his eyes and let the pain medication do it's work.
2/9/2020
CHURCH OF GOD
JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI
The scene opens to a wide shot from inside a small church somewhere in Jackson, Mississippi. James Radford sits in a pew at the very back, and he is surrounded by parishioners that indicate by the dress that they are from the more impoverished areas of the county. At the front of the church is a stage where a podium stands directly in front of an effigy of Jesus on the cross, and it is flanked on either side by the United States flag and the Alabama State flag. For the most part, it looks like any number of small country parishes, save for the snake carved into the front of the podium with the words 'Church of God' etched in a circle around it. Lining the far left wall are crates elevated off the ground by two-by-four's and covered by chicken wire tops.
The preacher is a plump man wearing overalls who has some trouble navigating the steps before finally settling behind the pulpit. He's already dabbing at his ample jowls with a cloth before he begins to speak. Almost immediately to James's left a woman bursts out of her seat and lets out a holler that causes the Pride of Jackson to start. He settles back when he sees that no one else seems effected by the outburst, which is quickly joined by a man who starts spitting out gibberish. As the preachers words grow in excitement and bass, the people begin to writhe and the cacophony of nonsense gets louder and louder.
Suddenly the preacher stops but the crowd continues their litany. He looks as if he's on the verge of a stroke when he makes his way over to the crates and lifts one of the chicken wire tops. The church goers go into a frenzy as his hands plunge into the opening and emerge covered in snakes. James watches all of this with wonder before finally shaking his head and placing his trademark Stetson onto his head.
The camera follows James as he quietly exits the church, pushing the doors closed behind him to take a seat on the top step.
"Indi Rhyder. Snake Charmer."
James chuckles, thumbing at a nail that is pushed out of the crumbling wood of his seat.
"Before our last encounter I talked about how you and I were the same. Of course we have different genders, styles, and philosophies, but at the core of things we're good. I genuinely believed that at the time."
James abandons the nail to rest his forearms on his knees and looks up under the brim of his hat.
"And then there was the main event of Lights Out #36..."
He paused to collect his thoughts, his eyes glossing over in retrospect.
"I have no excuses for why I lost. Bryan Williams fought through every obstacle presented, including the distractions of my manager. He was the better man that night. He did what he said he would do, and for that I can't do anything but applaud him. Bryan being the one with is hand raised wasn't the surprise for me that night."
James shook his head, growing more somber by the moment.
"I can't make up excuses for Bobby Benson, the albatross around my neck. Bobby is who he is and there's no changing that. Lord knows I've tried. So it was no surprise when Bobby tossed a weapon through the cage into the ring. Its what he's going to do every time. He does it, even when he knows I'm not going to go for it."
James allows a sigh before continuing.
"So there it was. A claw hammer sitting right in the middle of the ring. When I turned away from it and Bryan Williams took advantage of the distraction, I already knew that I was about to get brained by that hammer. By all accounts after watching the playback, that was exactly what he planned to do. THAT, is who Bryan Williams is. A man who will take the advantage if the opportunity presents its self. I know a lot of people probably agree with that, and maybe their right. I'm not so sure anymore. I certainly know that Bobby wishes I would adopt that philosophy, but it just doesn't compute with me. I don't want the advantage, nor the distraction. I want to win and fail on my own merits!"
There is passion in his voice now, but as quickly as it bubbles it dissipates.
"But it wasn't Bryan Williams who scooped up that hammer. It was you, Indi, and you tried to take his head off. Only...he ducked, and that claw sank right into my left shoulder. Everyone was shocked. I know they were, cause I saw it when I looked out at the crowd. When I looked down at Bobby. Hell, even Bryan Williams was dumbstruck for a moment. But for me even that wasn't so surprising. I'm learning the hard way that its just a hazard of the trade here in Union Battleground. No, it wasn't until I glanced over at you..."
James's jaw tightens, eyes going cold as he looks up at the camera.
"And you smiled. That was the surprise in this match, Indi. That was the moment that I knew that we weren't the same at all. That you were just like every other person in this promotion regardless of your idealistic professions of truth. A snake in the grass just waiting for your moment to shed your skin and inject your unsuspecting audience with wicked venom. So I did the only thing I could think of to do at the time..."
James seems to find resolve at the memory.
"I pulled that hammer out of my shoulder and used it to smash in your face."
A slight smile tugged at his lips.
"Some people might say it was the same thing that you did to me, or what Bryan would have done if he'd been quicker on the draw, but no. James Radford might not try and cheat the system, but he will fight fire with fire. As the brethren inside would say, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth."
He thumbs to the closed doors behind him and chuckles.
"And now we're here with a contest at an aptly named PPV called Coups de Grace. And though it seems like we've just begun, Indi, this will be where we finish it. Don't get me wrong, either. This isn't about revenge or retribution. I'm not Bobby Benson. But we've been overlapped too many times for it to be coincidence, and something needs to happen here to establish exactly which one of us is going to move up the ladder. The powers that be obviously feel the same, or they wouldn't have booked the match in the first place."
James leans against the door frame, propping his boot on his knee.
"There is no denying your talent, and you have a following in and outside the ring. I don't think there's anyone whose been trying to leave the building who hasn't noticed that caravan of cultists you travel with. See, these people inside the church here, they call that faith. The holy spirit. Me...I call it bat shit crazy, and you, Indi Rhyder, are just another in a long list of egos complete with her own traveling circus."
Eye roll.
"You've said some things that were flat out delusional in the past, but hey, who am I to deny a divine request. Just like this afternoon with these yahoo's, maybe I will waltz on into that self proclaimed Galactic Expanse, but I can guarantee I won't be falling to my knee's with the voice of the Lord."
James smirks.
"No, I'm going to be there to expose you for the fraud that you are. Like Moses, parting the Red Sea, I'm going to lead these fans of yours out of the hands of temptation. Not cause I'm a savior like Bryan Williams, but because when I wade past the glitter, the bravado, and the glam that is Indi Rhyder...No one is going to see you the same again."
The somberness returns.
"Because at the end of the day, you embarrassed me. Not by winning or hitting me with that hammer, but because I believed in you. I was ready to drink the Kool-Aide. I thought you were someone that I might be able to hold in some esteem, someone that had actually earned the credibility of practicing what she preached. In short, I thought we were cut from the same cloth. That is how you hurt me, Indi. With a spiritual gut punch that's taken me some time to get over. And now you're going to go out and tell the masses how I'm wrong. How I'm the one who has the shade, who doesn't understand, but it isn't going to work this time. Cause Indi..."
James slides forward again, cold eyes staring directly into the camera as 'Amazing Grace' starts up from within the church.
"I was blind, but now I see."
James tips the Stetson towards the camera with a sly smile as the camera fades to black off the music.
TO BE CONTINUED AT COUPS DE GRACE...