|
|
Post by PANGAEA on Jun 27, 2015 18:12:16 GMT
[Single Match]
Derrick Daze vs. Karen Hardy
|
|
|
|
Post by Karen Hardy on Jul 3, 2015 8:07:41 GMT
The scene opens in the gym where Karen trains with Mitchell Schumacher, “The Steel City Striker.” It’s still grimy, an image that is accentuated by a two-day stubble on the Striker’s jawline. Despite this, and Karen’s loss, he’s grinning.
Mitchell Schumacher I liked what I saw out of you this round, Karen.
Karen raises an eyebrow.
Karen Hardy But I lost.
Mitchell Schumacher You sure did, but that’s not what I meant.
Karen still looks like a deer in headlights, so Mitchell smiles reassuringly.
Mitchell Schumacher My dear, that hair whip. I loved that. If I were still active I’d grow my hair out just to steal that.
Karen furrows her brow.
Karen Hardy But that was an--
Mitchell Schumacher (interrupting) Ah ah.
Mitchell continues smiling despite the hand held up in Karen’s face to punctuate his interruption.
Mitchell Schumacher You don’t have to lie to me, Karen. Even if you lost, that move gave you a serious advantage, and if you were more experienced, you’d’ve ground that rich girl to paste. But you shouldn’t do it every week, the refs would start to get wise to it I think.
Karen Hardy (through grit teeth) I did not do it on purpose.
Mitch’s smile fades in the wake of Karen’s glare.
Mitchell Schumacher Fine, don’t take the compliment.
Karen Hardy Accusing me of lying is complimentary now?
Mitchell Schumacher If you’re not lying, you’re a fool. You think a goodie-two-shoes is gonna’ last in an environment where “The Murder Machine” is king?
It’s Karen’s turn to recoil, taken aback by the ferocity of Mitchell’s rebuttals.
Mitchell Schumacher I don’t know if you’ve got your eyes open, but nice guys are dropping like flies. This is war, remember? Don’t just wear that ponytail spiral, put fucking spikes on it and drag it across the face of whatever poor sap gets put in the ring with you. You get DQed? Fuck it, you survived and your opponent’s on a stretcher on his way to the hospital.
Karen’s face pales, which only makes Mitchell’s expression angrier.
Mitchell Schumacher That’s the mindset you have to have in this industry, or haven’t you been paying attention?
Karen swallows, her throat moving visibly with the action, as she steels herself against her trainer’s onslaught.
Mitchell Schumacher I’m telling you to be sadistic and ruthless to succeed, and that is what I’m trying to mold you into. So now I’m going to give you a choice.
You can stay right where you are and we can have today’s session, where I emphasize again how important kill or be killed is to this business, or you can leave the ring right now and walk out of here and try to find your own path. Now are you going to pull up your big girl panties, or--
Karen doesn’t let him finish as she wheels back and blasts him across the face with a closed fist punch. Mitch stumbles back, not expecting a sudden haymaker, and lands on his ass a few feet away, back up against the ropes. He feels his lip to see if he’s bleeding--he is--and chuckles as he looks up at a furious Karen.
Mitchell Schumacher It’s a shame. You’re going to leave, but more of this is just what I wanted all along.
Karen just laughs--one sudden, sharp, humorless laugh--before dropping to the mat and rolling under the bottom rope and out of the ring.
We cut to later. Karen is in the gym now, and she’s got the same look on her face as she works out. (Butterflies, for curious minds.) Everyone is giving her a wide berth, though whether it is because she’s angry or because she’s using more weight on the machine than what most of them weigh is a question left up to the viewer.
Thug #1 What the fuck you doing in here?
Thug #2 Shouldn’t you be on a yoga mat?
What isn’t is that Karen drops what she’s doing when she sees five or six overmuscled dudes around one of the cable machines harassing its current occupant. Without even pausing to rest or reset the machine for the next person, she gets up and stomps over to the cluster. They all turn to look at her, some with impressed expressions, the rest looking annoyed.
Thug #1 Can I help you?
Karen’s response is an echo of her final moments in the Steel City Striker’s presence, a stiff right hand to the jaw of the nearest thug. This causes an uproar in his fellows--both the audacity and the fact that he falls on his ass, just like Mitch--but because all eyes are on them now, the thugs just glare at Karen before picking up their fallen comrade, who glares daggers at her.
Thug #1 Big mistake, bitch...you’ll pay.
Karen Hardy (coldly) I’m sure.
She returns the death glare with one of her own, causing the muscleheads to bow up but ultimately back down and retreat. Karen sighs a bit, then looks over at the guy who was being harassed.
She is surprised to see a glare on his face as well.
Karen Hardy Those guys...they--
Small Man I can take care of myself, miss. Thank you.
Karen frowns and walks back over to her machine, knowing only that he was not the least bit thankful. Was it such a bad thing that she wanted to use her strength for good?
Was Mitch right? Is she better off treating Derrick Daze more as a plaything than as a sports opponent?
The only thing she knows for sure is that she'd better figure it out quick, because Sweden gets closer and closer with each passing day. |
|
daze
PANGAEA Fan
Posts: 12 
|
Post by daze on Jul 4, 2015 6:46:07 GMT
Stockholm Concert Hall, best known as the venue where the Nobel prize for sciences is held. Much like a moth to the flame, Derrick is drawn to the place known for a meeting of great minds. He is seen tucking away what looks to be a hard backed journal into an inner Jacket pocket
“Hail Destroyer! Hail Destroyer! I am certain that will become a great title for a DVD. Might even be a great slogan for a t-shirt. It seems even monsters know a thing or two about merchandizing.Those two words mean something a little different to me. I ended a long journey in Madrid, Spain. While I would like to call it a journey of self discovery; it is sadly the opposite. It was a journey of self denial. You see, it is tough for a person like myself to admit. I a person who prides himself in the mountain of books that I own. An individual who makes a habit of seeing multiple paths for the same situation and almost always takes the right one. For a short amount of time after sustaining an injury; I began to think inversely. Questions arose.. Was I wrong? Were all those jeers correct. So I put on a mask and flitted about the world wrestling for charity. Living in homeless shelters while I donated my entire pay.”
“That journey came to an end when I realized I only doubled the burden I felt. I only enhanced the twinge of guilt. In Madrid, Spain for the first time since that fiasco I wrestled in my own skin.It was liberating. Our mutual acquaintance in Mr. Taylor learned quite quickly how dangerous I can be in my prime mindset. But, I will not further divulge on that opponent. Boasting of besting that man would be far too similar to boasting of a basic bodily function.”
“Our little meeting takes place in a favorite place of mine. Being born in a country that glorifies anti-intelligence can be quite taxing. Taking short visits to a country that rewards forward thinkers is quite refreshing. Apologies for rambling, Miss Hardy. Let it not be indicative of the amount of focus that shall be placed upon you between the bells. You can be certain that it will be unwavering.”
“But what about you, Miss Hardy? Every one in this sport has something. Some gimmick, some anomaly, some cause that differentiates them from other participants. Where is your edge? I noticed you are a physical anomaly. Six feet, two inches. Over two hundred pounds, certainly a rarity amongst the fairer of the species. You’ve certainly discovered a thing here or there that gives you an advantage. But have you mastered it? Have you aligned your mind and body to work in sync? I understand. What I just said sounds like drivel. It sounds like the existentialist tripe that is recited in those hoaky martial arts films. But these questions come from a place of experience. Every minute change you you make to your body, your mind has to adjust. I am constantly training both. I am constantly making sure both are on level with each other. That is why, even with my diminutive stature; I am confidant. I know everything I can do.”
“If you lack the discipline to gain that knowledge then your toned and strong physique is worthless.It’s just another run of the mill body. Something I’ve spent many years learning to manipulate and exploit. Do you know your potential? Do you know your limit? I know it may seem I am posing a lot of questions. But, am I?”
“In comparison, I’m not asking that many at all. Just call it intuition. You are questioning yourself. You faced off against opponents and came out victorious, but you and I know their worth is questionable. And the first seemingly competent opponent you face. You lose. It’s safe you say you are questioning your ability right now. Did you zig when you should have zagged? What mistakes did you make?Are you actually prepared? On top of all that, it’ s been shown management only thinks of you as a minor obstacle. You were in a stipulated match that offered no reward for you wine or lose. You lost, your opponent gained the match they wanted. While for you it was just the possibility of lateral movement. That also must eat at you. You expect our match to answer all those things. To quell the storm in your mind.”
“You will be disappointed. I am not the opponent you can come to with a conflicted mind. You should answer those questions on your own time. The only answers I offer will leave you in a Daze”
Ad Noctum.
|
|
|
|
Post by Karen Hardy on Jul 7, 2015 1:02:53 GMT
Karen Hardy Somebody likes big words.
The scene opens on something that Karen has not done in a while.
She is sitting in a chair and looking right at the camera. She does not have a pleasant expression on her face.
Karen Hardy Somebody likes big words, but they don’t mean very much, do they? I spent the last couple of days going over what Derrick said to me, and I think I can boil it down into way less words. (imitating Daze) Being small does not stop me. Look how smart I am. You’re in doubt and not as smart, therefore you will lose. (back to normal) Seems a bit pretentious to me. But maybe I’m just too new, or maybe I’m just too focused on my loss against Brooklyn Blake.
Karen rolls her eyes as she shifts in her seat. It’s part of a long row of interlocked chairs in an airport. There’s a lot of foot traffic behind and around her, but she keeps her focus on the camera.
Karen Hardy That’s what really gets me. You like to think you’re so smart, then you come in and say the most obvious thing in the world. Of course I’m doubting myself right now, I’m four matches into my career, I’m flying all over the world for commitments to a career that could shorten or end my life at any moment, and I just lost a big match to someone literally half my size.
Yes, I’m questioning myself.
Yes, I’m looking at my mistakes and trying to figure out what went wrong.
Yes, I am frustrated that my match had stakes for my opponent but none for me.
But none of that is what my problem is. My problem is that you have the nerve to call yourself an intellectual and that was the best you could come up with.
Where’s your edge?
Are you prepared?
It feels like you’re not even trying. To somebody that’s only been in this business two months. I don’t know a lot, and I know that I don’t know a lot, but what I do know is that if you were really that clever, your words would have made me really stop and think about what I’m doing and whether I can overcome.
You don’t feel like that to me. The only thing you made me feel like was when my mother used to lecture me about how I am supposed to live my life.
You annoyed me, like a little gnat flitting around my head that I want to squish in-between my fingers.
Maybe that sounds like drivel to you, maybe you’ve heard that tripe before. Maybe that just doesn’t do anything for you.
Good, we’re even.
Karen smiles at the camera, but there is no smile in her eyes, ruining what could have been an enchanting gaze.
Karen Hardy You are just the worst at making me doubt myself. I mean, I feel better now than I did a week ago when I found out about the match. If I was booked against Olethros I might shit myself, but against you I feel no fear. Even if you do catch me in the end and make me tap out like Brooklyn did, you can rest assured that it will be at the end of an ungodly asskicking, one that will make you doubt yourself and make what happened to Brooklyn look like a walk in the park.
I mean, yeah you'll have won, but you just got pounded half to death by a noob. What the hell are you going to do against someone who actually knows what they’re doing?
Karen’s disingenuous smile turns into a very genuine smirk.
Karen Hardy And that’s why I’m going to win. Because I’m not wasting my time figuring out how to spin things to make myself look smart. I spend my time training and making myself the strongest, most efficient gladiator that I possibly can, because you can tout your gameplan and your supposed intelligence all you want, but when the bell rings and you’ve got me barreling towards you, none of that is going to matter. All that will matter is how you react to getting punched in the face, and kicked, and slammed to the mat, and eventually driven down headfirst into the mat.
Your little journal isn’t going to save you.
Your brain isn’t going to save you.
You’ll have to save yourself.
But my money’s on you being too dazed from a Hard Landing to do anything.
Karen stares intently at the camera for a moment before looking up. Something is being said over the intercom, but the microphone on her camera is not good enough to pick it up (or else is being made to not pick it up). Karen nods a bit.
Karen Hardy Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to board my flight.
Karen gets up and grabs the portable camera. We hear a click, but the camera does not turn off. Karen stows the camera into her bag and we are treated to a few seconds of her walking towards her gate before we hear a great commotion. The camera, the bag, and presumably Karen take a big spill, the camera falling out of the bag and clattering on the tile floor. It soon becomes apparent that Karen did not trip, as lots of feet are seen as they rise and fall, stomping Karen mercilessly.
As quickly as it began, it is over as airport security rush over. In the stampede of footsteps, nothing else can be discerned in the shaky footage until at last one foot comes crashing down on the camera itself, bringing the video to an abrupt end. |
|
daze
PANGAEA Fan
Posts: 12
|
Post by daze on Jul 7, 2015 3:55:54 GMT
"Let it be known that Miss Hardy certainly does not lack in the imagination department. The lengths you went to in order to deliberately misunderstand me is certainly begging for applause. Resorting to piping words into another's mouth is certainly not a strategy I favor but you are still prodding around and figuring out what is working for you. All this time you spent trying to spin things around and doubt my intelligence, you missed the point. Not only did you miss the point, you swerved away from it. You didn't come at me with fire. You came at me with a plethora of defensive statements. You flew into a bag of cliches of things I've heard for the past ten years." "How foolish. Even when I simplify my language, I am still misunderstood. This is probably why I decided to have a home in the middle of nowhere. I try to keep interaction with others to a minimum. All this time away civilization is not devoted to bolstering my vocabulary, mind you. I think I went over quite a bit how I train mind and body. You probably only heard mind and zoned out trying to make a quip about how un-clever I am. These lovely little promotional videos are the apex of my social interaction. " "You see all the time you spent puffing out your chest defiantly, and painting a picture of me with colors not provided. I've been training. Yes, Miss Hardy I happen to do that. A very large percentage of my daily waking hours are devoted to training. I've been on more busses, more air planes in a decade than most in their lifetime. I've alienated myself from Family and long time friends. And never once have I regretted it. So forgive me if I fail to give a damn when you lament about what you have signed up for. What every single person in this company has signed up. And you wonder why I questioned your preparation. " "I never fancied myself a mind reader. Nor do I believe myself to be some type of master manipulator. I've seen this match run though my head long before you even spoke. Not because I believe to be before mentioned things. It's because you are predictable. I'm not going to beat you because I am so smart. I am going to defeat you because I have something you have a severe lack of. Awareness. Perception. You just react to your environment. I exploit my environment. You grasp at straws and try to make absurd connections. Yes, I am certain you will fight. I'll just win." Derrick reaches into his jacket pocket and produces the hard backed journal. He opens it, pages facing the camera while he flicks them rapidly.  "And I just enjoy doodling before doing these videos. " Ad Noctum |
|
