GARY BLOOMFIELD: “Folks, I’m being told now that we have a special presentation. Let’s turn our attention to the ring now.”
*“Charisma” by W.A.S.P. blares over the speakers and out from the curtain and down the ramp strides Damion Black, the owner of PWA, dressed in in his trademark black Armani suit, black hair immaculate, Hollywood smile on full display. The crowd gives him a warm and wild reception. Damion walks up the steps and enters the ring, then calls for a microphone.*
DAMION BLACK: “Thank you. Thank all of you for coming out tonight and showing your support for the sport of professional wrestling and Prestige Wrestling Association. All of us at PWA certainly hope you have enjoyed yourselves this evening and hope that you will come back or tune in so that we may entertain you all again. *Crowd cheers* While Prestige Wrestling Association is it’s own entity and certainly the new premier organization in the sport of professional wrestling, we have drawn some comparison to another organization that is no longer in existence but is still beloved by wrestling fans the world over; the premier wrestling promotion of it’s time, Pro Wrestling SHAFT. *Chants of “PWS” break out in the crowd* That’s right. Some of you may know that I wrestled in PWS, and some of you may have even seen Yours Truly in PWS some ten years ago. I was a different man then. I did some things that I am very proud of, and then some things that I am not proud of. In the end, I was forced to leave SHAFT and I left behind some unfinished business when I left. For a time, toward the end of my tenure in SHAFT, I wrestled alongside one of the very best talents I have ever seen in the squared circle. I called him a friend. I called him my brother. We shared goals. We shared enemies. We shared good times. And women. Heheh, we shared a LOT of women. And then, one night, I looked my friend in the eye, I picked up a chair, and I cracked his skull open. I cost him a championship match that he should have won. Looking back, that doesn’t sit well with me. Knowing what I did all those years ago haunts me to this day. As fate would have it, the opportunity has presented itself for me to atone for my past actions. Without further ado, please help me welcome to PWA….. The Natural Born Thrilla, Johnny Ecks!”
*”You Really Are My Ecstacy” hits and the crowd bristles with excitement. The crowd leaps to its collective feet and roars as Johnny Ecks appears on the stage. Ecks breaks out in a big grin as he takes in the adulation of the fans and then poses for the crowd. Ecks makes his way to the ring, high-fiving and hugging fans. The crowd is still on its feet as Ecks walks up the stairs and climbs into the ring. Ecks is still smiling but appears wary of Black.*
DAMION: “Johnny, first allow me to thank you for agreeing to come here tonight and meet me in the ring in front of all these fans. After the way we parted, you have no reason to trust me, and it is a testament to your character that you are here tonight. I have a million things I want to say to you. Let me start by saying that I have no excuses for my past actions. There is no good reason I can give you. I was consumed with pride and jealousy, and at the time I could not stand the thought of you, my friend, surpassing my own efforts in the ring. Watching your star rise above and beyond my own ate me alive inside. I made a rash decision and took matters into my own hands, and destroyed the friendship we built together. Words cannot fully express my regret. I apologize. From the bottom of my heart, I am sorry for what I did to you all those years ago. I hope that you can find it in your heart to forgive me.”
JOHNNY: “The past is the past baybeeeeeee!!!! Let it die off and we can start over brand new. This is brand new, new things for me and you; I’m just happy that you called me up and remembered being a Thrill Seeker and a Suicide King. I gotta say I love the idea of starting up the aMx down over here at-“
*The arena lights lower and the entrance ramp is bathed in smoke and red light. The hard drums and electric guitar of NRG’s Instruments of Destruction erupt over the arena sound system. The crowd murmurs in recognition as the stage lights pulse in time with the music and a familiar figure emerges from the smoke into bright lights of the arena. For the first time in fifteen years, the former PWS Extreme Champion Nemesis Rex strides down he entrance ramp with smile on his face a microphone in his hand. Despite the passage of time, the weathered veteran doesn’t appear to have aged a day since his time in PWS. As Rex walks down the ramp toward the ring, he raises the microphone to his mouth and chuckles under his breath.*
NEMESIS REX: “Hah… what a ‘lovely’ moment. PWS superstars Damion Black and Johnny Ecks together in the ring again after so many years. Putting a decade of animosity and betrayal behind them and finally embracing as friends in the twilight of their careers.”
*Nemesis Rex’s smile turns to a scowl.*
REX: “This is bad comedy. It boggles the mind to think that the last gasp of the once great Pro Wrestling SHAFT is to be the pair of you mugging for the cameras and letting bygones be bygones. Pathetic. Johnny Ecks and Damion Black once thought to be the bright future of professional wrestling… happily willing themselves out to pasture with nary more than a whimper.”
*The crowd erupts in a chorus of boos as Rex stops and does a slow turn, taking in the reaction of the crowd with a sneer.*
REX: “Is this truly how PWS breathes its last breath? With a handshake and a hug and humility learned? I think not. Black… your days as a competitor may be done, but Johnny Ecks… I wonder if you have one match left in you. You see… when I heard that you were coming here tonight to be honored, I took that as nothing less than a personal insult. How dare this pathetic organization pay homage to an also-ran like you while an immortal like Nemesis Rex goes unrecognized.”
*The crowd erupts in dueling chants of “Johnny Ecks” and “One more match”*
REX: “Listen here Ecks. You may have seen yourself as a main eventer in your day… but the truth is that on your BEST day you could never hold a candle to the Devil’s Own. You were NEVER in the same league as Nemesis Rex. I ruled the PWS Extreme division for nearly a year while you were cutting your teeth in the independent circuit. Pro Wrestling SHAFT is MY legacy, not yours. You are less than NOTHING… and tonight, I shall end your career with an exclamation point befitting a true legend like myself. What do you say Ecks… do you have the guts to step into the ring, right now, one more time?”
JOHNNY: “You know something big mouth I accept your challenge. I’ll show you what an XFactor is all about being Bubba! It’s on like Donkey Kong! Jack! From the mean savage streets of San Diego, Cali I will show you that the old aMx will never die!!!”
DAMION: “Ladies and gentlemen, we have a challenge! That challenge has been accepted! We have a ring! We have cameras! We have an audience! I can sanction this match right now! *Crowd cheers* The only thing we don’t have…. is a referee. *Crowd murmurs* If I haven’t proven my dedication to all of you and to this sport, then far be it from me let anything get in the way of what you demand to see. For this impromptu contest, your referee will be…. *Damion Black unbuttons and shrugs off his suit jacket and removes his tie.* …myself!”
*The crowd goes wild. Nemesis Rex’s scowl turns into a mask of hatred and he stalks to the ring, as Johnny Ecks removes his shirt and prepares for combat.*
GARY: “What a shocking turn of events! We have a surprise main event! Folks, stay with us because we are staying on the air for the duration of this match! This going to be a blockbuster! Nemesis Rex versus the “Natural Born Thrilla” Johnny Ecks! I don’t know if the PWA arena can contain the action that’s going to explode during this contest! Strap yourselves in, this going to be one heck of a ride!”