Post by doc on Sept 18, 2010 4:17:52 GMT -6
Blood Ties - a production of epic proportions?
Or an episode of Wipe Swap?
It's cool of you to treat AJ so well Angel. Not many people are so protective of the man that bones their ex and fathers their child. But it shows what a nice guy you are deep down.
The kind of man I want marrying my sister.
Detect the sarcasm?
You say I've weaved a web of lies, but you're the one trying to twist this whole situation to make yourself seem like the nice guy.
You've beaten me too?
When did this happen?
You tried to be nice?
On which occasion?
Nobody cared about XHF?
Then why the **** did you join it?
And yet, you talk about my 'web of lies' like I'm some kind of con artist. Nah Angel, I'm not a liar. I'm the most honest person on the roster, sometimes to my downfall. I represent the struggle I come from and the people going through similar struggles. I show people trapped in the wrong life, without a single slice of pizza to their name, that there is a successful way out. My career has inspired.. because everything is laid bare - my failures, my successes.. my rights, my wrongs.
I've had nothing easy in this life Angel. You say that my ego is inflated for demanding respect I don't return, but I'm not a man who believes in aristocracy. I wont give you respect just because you're Angel. I'm a man of the people. They'll write me off, they'll say I'm too gritty and streetwise to survive in nCw, they'll say my head isn't in the right place and Angel is going to make me regret my actions.. but when the time comes..
I'm going to do what I do best.
Prove everyone wrong, inside the squared the circle.
And the big occasion is where you thrive Angel. I already know that. Your legacy is built on going in to these matches and walking out as champion.
But so is mine.
Did you forget?
And this wasn't my doing - oh no. It was you who brought this upon yourself. As I remember it, I beat you fair and square - after admitting before the match that you were one of the best wrestlers on the planet. But you chose to attack me after the match.
And you want me to respect you?
But still, still I tried to give you the benefit of the doubt. I came in to your locker room to look for Tara, and when I tried to speak to you.. you just shot me a blank. But I'm the bad guy here, right Angel?
I'm the egomaniac?
This is coming from the guy who thinks he's a God amongst men.
And I'm the liar? Don't get me started.
Because your act might fool my sister, but it doesn't fool me. You can never be a normal member of society. You can never be a nice guy who means and does well. I have my problems, sure - I do have an ego, and I have a big mouth which I can't keep shut.
I apologize.
But you have much more worrying problems. Your partner might be trying to fool us with his talk of morality and honor.. telling us that you've changed like he has.
But I've stood across from you in that ring.
Your eyes are devoid of any remorse.. any compassion. To be frank Angel - you're a mean son of a b*tch. That's just how it is. And if I wasn't worried about my sister dating you - I wouldn't be a very good brother.
But obviously you underestimate just how much I care about her. You think you're just going to slap me around a little at Battlegrounds, take the tag belts and forget about me. I guess it figures that you aren't taking me too seriously.. if you thought you were going to lose, you'd have put your career on the line in this match, right?
Well you've made a gross miscalculation.
Forget XHF. Forget our first match. This Sunday Angel, we'll find out if I'm really all talk and no walk. We'll find out if I just bitch and moan like a little baby until I get my way.
Or we'll find out if I'm someone who's worked his ass off for every bit of respect he's been given. We'll find out if I'm someone who leaves everything I have in that ring each and every time I step between those ropes. I hear the same things every month. I'm just that little guy who mixes with the big boys.. they say I've got talent, but I'm up against someone too strong and powerful to take down. But when the pressure is on and the chips are down.. whether I win or lose, nobody wakes up the morning after facing me thinking I'm just another punk from just another company.
You wont be any different.
So you'll get your respect when you do something respect worthy.
I'll take mine this Sunday.
Because no matter how many times you say it Angel, you don't get respect when you give it.
You get respect when you earn it.
Or an episode of Wipe Swap?
It's cool of you to treat AJ so well Angel. Not many people are so protective of the man that bones their ex and fathers their child. But it shows what a nice guy you are deep down.
The kind of man I want marrying my sister.
Detect the sarcasm?
You say I've weaved a web of lies, but you're the one trying to twist this whole situation to make yourself seem like the nice guy.
You've beaten me too?
When did this happen?
You tried to be nice?
On which occasion?
Nobody cared about XHF?
Then why the **** did you join it?
And yet, you talk about my 'web of lies' like I'm some kind of con artist. Nah Angel, I'm not a liar. I'm the most honest person on the roster, sometimes to my downfall. I represent the struggle I come from and the people going through similar struggles. I show people trapped in the wrong life, without a single slice of pizza to their name, that there is a successful way out. My career has inspired.. because everything is laid bare - my failures, my successes.. my rights, my wrongs.
I've had nothing easy in this life Angel. You say that my ego is inflated for demanding respect I don't return, but I'm not a man who believes in aristocracy. I wont give you respect just because you're Angel. I'm a man of the people. They'll write me off, they'll say I'm too gritty and streetwise to survive in nCw, they'll say my head isn't in the right place and Angel is going to make me regret my actions.. but when the time comes..
I'm going to do what I do best.
Prove everyone wrong, inside the squared the circle.
And the big occasion is where you thrive Angel. I already know that. Your legacy is built on going in to these matches and walking out as champion.
But so is mine.
Did you forget?
And this wasn't my doing - oh no. It was you who brought this upon yourself. As I remember it, I beat you fair and square - after admitting before the match that you were one of the best wrestlers on the planet. But you chose to attack me after the match.
And you want me to respect you?
But still, still I tried to give you the benefit of the doubt. I came in to your locker room to look for Tara, and when I tried to speak to you.. you just shot me a blank. But I'm the bad guy here, right Angel?
I'm the egomaniac?
This is coming from the guy who thinks he's a God amongst men.
And I'm the liar? Don't get me started.
Because your act might fool my sister, but it doesn't fool me. You can never be a normal member of society. You can never be a nice guy who means and does well. I have my problems, sure - I do have an ego, and I have a big mouth which I can't keep shut.
I apologize.
But you have much more worrying problems. Your partner might be trying to fool us with his talk of morality and honor.. telling us that you've changed like he has.
But I've stood across from you in that ring.
Your eyes are devoid of any remorse.. any compassion. To be frank Angel - you're a mean son of a b*tch. That's just how it is. And if I wasn't worried about my sister dating you - I wouldn't be a very good brother.
But obviously you underestimate just how much I care about her. You think you're just going to slap me around a little at Battlegrounds, take the tag belts and forget about me. I guess it figures that you aren't taking me too seriously.. if you thought you were going to lose, you'd have put your career on the line in this match, right?
Well you've made a gross miscalculation.
Forget XHF. Forget our first match. This Sunday Angel, we'll find out if I'm really all talk and no walk. We'll find out if I just bitch and moan like a little baby until I get my way.
Or we'll find out if I'm someone who's worked his ass off for every bit of respect he's been given. We'll find out if I'm someone who leaves everything I have in that ring each and every time I step between those ropes. I hear the same things every month. I'm just that little guy who mixes with the big boys.. they say I've got talent, but I'm up against someone too strong and powerful to take down. But when the pressure is on and the chips are down.. whether I win or lose, nobody wakes up the morning after facing me thinking I'm just another punk from just another company.
You wont be any different.
So you'll get your respect when you do something respect worthy.
I'll take mine this Sunday.
Because no matter how many times you say it Angel, you don't get respect when you give it.
You get respect when you earn it.
"Doc.. we need to talk."
There was something in Tara's tone of voice which told Doc she felt a little uneasy about what she was about to say. But her brother wasn't startled by this. The two men she loved most in the world were just days away from beating the hell out of each other. And not over the Tag Team Championships. Not over her, or over Alex Jones. But because they had come to dislike each other personally.. and that's what troubled Tara the most.
"Sure. What's up?"
Doc replied to his sister so casually that you'd have been forgiven for thinking he wasn't listening in the first place. But he was. He was listening so closely that he had decided to turn off his television set with the flick of his remote, allowing his sister to speak. She was sitting on a comfortable sofa to the left of Doc, never taking her eyes off him as she spoke.
"I'm.. concerned about what you've become recently, Doc. With Angel, and then with Alex.. something has set you off. You've been acting like a kid, and more importantly, saying things you shouldn't. What happened? I thought everything was going great?"
Doc took a moment to reply. She was right, of course. And he had already known this. Venom had wasted no time in telling his partner how he felt either. Doc's antics recently have been more erractic than usual. Paranoia has taken over from reality in some cases, and it slowly eats away at him, a cancer destroying his mind. Nothing is black and white to him any more. He doesn't know what to believe or who to trust. He can't work out if the reality he sees.. is in fact, reality at all.
"I'm sorry Tara. I know that I've been wrong to act how I have been. Sometimes, times like now.. I get flashes of insight. I can see the bigger picture and come to terms with the fact that what I believed to be true.. was wrong. But these are the good days Tara. It's the bad days which worry me. The days that I become.. delusional. I've been trying to stay strong - for us, and for the Young Guns. But it seems like there is always an obstacle in front of us. Something which will try to trip us up, no matter how hard we try. The man my sister loves, and the man I hate the most.. a team, coming for our tag team championships. Sometimes I worry that I'm an emotional timebomb.. right now, I can focus, clearly, on what I have to do. But all it it takes.. all it takes is something to set me off-"
Doc switches his eyes across to meet Tara's.
"And bad things are going to happen. But I know you didn't come to here to give me a lecture Tara. You're here because of Angel. You're here in case I lose control again and hurt the man you want to spend the rest of your life with-"
"The father of your new niece or nephew."
Tara had come here to tell Doc about her pregnancy, but she had not rushed in to it. She had begun the conversation from a different angle, because she could never be sure how her brother would react. Doc himself had turned the conversation towards Angel, and she had taken that now was the perfect opportunity.
Doc had already responded, without speaking. His eyes widened in his head, his nostrils flared above his mouth. This is exactly what Tara had hoped would not happen.
But he was her brother. He had a right to know.
"Doc, please don't be mad, I know this is a delicate situation. I just want you to be happy for us. We're going to be a family Doc. Angel has promised me that after Battlegrounds, there will be no more bad blood. Can you not find it in your heart to bury the hatchet - if not for me, for the baby's sake?"
He didn't shout. He didn't yell, he didn't throw his phone off the wall or knock over his TV screen. He just sat there, staring at the wall in front of him, trying to control the rage inside his veins.
He would have patched it up with Angel for the sake of his sister, that wasn't a problem to him. But he wasn't hearing her right. He couldn't be.
"Get out."
"But Doc I-"
"Get out."
Tara stalled for a moment, unsure whether to reply or leave. She would choose the latter. It would be the right decision. Doc's tender psyche tried to fight off the agressive urges while his sister slammed the door shut behind her. Part of him was even angrier that he was subjecting Tara to this kind of stress during her pregnancy. But there was no other option.. she had to leave for now.
Once he had calmed down, once he had thought about this rationally.. he would call her back. But he doubted it would happen before Sunday. Not now.
A quick pat on his pocket let him know his cellphone was safely tucked away. He would make a call.
Just not to his sister.
He knew Angel was going to be the man to break up this family. He just knew it.
And he wasn't willing to let that happen.
What's wrong AJ? I upset you last week?
Aren't you the man who asked me to dig deeper?
What I seen last week was two different AJs. At the start of the week.. it was the 'new and improved' Alex Jones. Arguably one of the best on the nCw roster. But by the end of the week, we had caught a glimpse of the old AJ Phoenix. A rambling man, who copied everything I said and passed it off as his own promo. And I admit AJ, last week I may have been below the belt with what I said. But you stooped to that level just as readily.. except with bullsh*t instead of truth.
Don't you get it? It's easy for me to get under your skin. I told you last week that I could destroy your whole nice guy charade with the click of my fingers. But I didn't have to.
You achieved that on your own.
So tell me AJ, what's your strategy going in to this match? To kiss some ass by dancing on the grave of the company you killed? Tell me, what's more pathetic.. someone mentioning the history between two competitors, or someone bashing a dead federation to suck the d*ck of his current employer?
Well for someone whose clear message was to stop talking about XHF, you really should count how many times you drop those three letters.
More than me anyway.
And for the record.. that match you had with Angel? The carbon copy?
I'm the innovator.
You're the imitator.
You know what I'm talking about.
But I would be stupid to dwell on the past again. You want me to focus on the here and now, don't you? On how you were about to crack my skull with that steel chair until my partner ran down and saved me? On how you're going to take our tag team titles away this Sunday?
Come on AJ, act like the big man this week because you have one of the greatest wrestlers in history standing in your corner. Do I fear for our championships? Honestly? Yeah, I do. Do I fear for my health and well being in a match like this? Come on, I'm under no illusions.
Somebody's going to get hurt.
Badly.
And you're a brave man Alex.. newborn baby and all, putting your health on the line here. But think about it for a second before you enter the Warfare this Sunday. Think about your family. You have everything to lose Alex.
I have nothing - except Tara, the Young Guns, and the gold on my shoulder.
Angel is already trying to take Tara away from me. I'll be damned if you help him take our tag-team championships away too.
Yeah, that's right, our. Because Venom might have accused me of being selfish instead of being a team player earlier this week.. but that's fine – he said what he needed to say to help me regain focus. But my loyalty to the Young Guns.. it's not in question AJ. I'm a pr*ck, maybe. But honesty and loyalty are two traits you can never call in to question when addressing me. In doing exactly that.. you and Angel have shown how little you really know about your opponent.
You talk about the dynamic you and Angel have compared to Venom and I. You guys have been at war – and now you're a team. But God forbid, Venom and I are actually friends.. that must you give you guys a huge advantage going in to this match. I like your logic there AJ. But not only does it make you sound stupid, your facts, as always, are wrong.
Venom and I were enemies long before we were friends.
So no, we have not “only ever been friends”. Our relationship has evolved over the past 9 years. But that's not as dynamic as AJ and Angel facing off for a few months then teaming up. Of course not. Yet you hound me for speaking about things that have been and gone. But I'm just recollecting events. You're digging up the past and rewriting it as you go. So I guess it's like Angel said AJ.. let's not allow the facts to ruin a good story, huh?
Another thing I don't get is your whole spiel about being a different man to the young, rash AJ Phoenix. In my promo last week, did I not f*cking say that? I said that despite your mistakes.. “Alex Jones, the father of today, is a different man to the AJ Phoenix of the past”. Did I not say that you deserved another chance? Or are you just copying my promo and passing it off as your own this week as well? I swear.. sometimes you really get me going with your emotion, with your drive.. but then you open your mouth with those semi-retarded comments and remind me why I hated you in the first place.
But let me leave you with this thought. Before the Mini-Riot, remember I said that your career has been built on nothing but rivalries with men better than yourself? And what else did I say?
If you couldn't beat them, you joined them.
Now look what we have here.. Angel beats Alex Jones one month, and the next month they're teaming up together to fight for the tag team championships.
That's not the past. That's the here and now.
So am I really an "asshole", Alex?
Or do I just tell it like it is?
I'm done caring about you. I'm more excited at the prospect of facing the Hollands again if Venom and I pull this off than I am at the prospect of clobbering you over the head a few more times. If you hadn't become involved in the business between Angel and I, I wouldn't give a rat's ass what you were saying or doing right now. You're not as important to me as you think you are Alex. But you are someone I have unfinished business with.. and you want this to end? I need this end Alex.. I need this to at Battlegrounds. Because facing you time and time again, feeling that hatred swell up in my veins.. it's destroying me as a person.
So we will never be friends - that's no secret.
But this Sunday AJ.. it has to end.
One way or another.
Doc looks like a different man with his fists clenched and the veins showing in his forehead. A man we don't want to see.
It was twisted. His sister had fallen pregnant to a man she knew he didn't get along with. A man he would be squaring off against in a matter of two short days. And she had chosen to reveal her pregnancy to him just moments ago.. why? Why now, just days before the two men were about to go to war? Something wasn't right.
"How could I let this happen?!"
He pounds his fists against the wall. He had promised himself that nothing would break this family up. Tara had been adopted as a child, they didn't even meet for over half their lives. Every minute they share as a family..
Is worth dying for. And if it has to be in the ring, so be it.
He would not stand by and allow Angel to tear his family apart.
He's just worried he may be too late to stop it.
He reached in to his pocket, his bruised knuckle showing as he grabbed his cellphone. He flicked through his phone book until he found his partner.. Venom would know what to say.
He would know how to channel that aggression. In the right direction.
“V.. Can you come over?”
A slight tremor carried in Doc's voice. And it told Venom that something was wrong, immediately.
“Doc, don't go anywhere. I'll be right over. Can you speak?”
“Victor... Yeah.. I think I'm gonna do something I might.. regret. It's.. it's about Tara. I'll tell you when I see you.”
“Just wait for me.”
And Venom hung up. No more time could be lost if he was to stop doing Doc from going through with whatever he wanted to do tonight.
But this Sunday.. Venom wouldn't be able to stop him. Nobody would.
And Doc knew that too.