Pryce Industries
Theo Pryce’s Office


As the scene fades in we see Theo Pryce sitting behind his desk staring intently at his computer screen. His concentration is interrupted by the phone ringing on his desk. It isn’t the first ring that breaks Theo from his trance, or the second, but the third. Theo reaches down and hits the “IC” (intercom) button on his phone and the voice of his secretary comes out over the phone.


“Mr. Pryce there is a Steve Sayors on the phone for you.”

“Patch it through.”

“Yes sir.”


Theo get’s up and walks over to his dry bar. He grabs one of his custom monogrammed glasses and a bottle of Johnnie Walker Blue label and brings them both back to his desk just as the phone begins ringing again. This time Theo hits the blinking "Line 2" button while also pouring himself a healthy dose of Whiskey.


“Stevie Sayors, the XWF’s resident nerd, how the hell are you?”

“I am fine Mr. Pryce thanks for asking. Is now a good time?”

“If I say no will you call back later?”

“Yes.”

“Well then we might as well just get this over with. I have things to do.”

“Ok then, let’s get right down to it. Next Sunday is the XWF’s first ever World War X Pay Per View where everything is on the line…”

“Are you reading from a script Stevie?”

“No, why do you ask?”

“Because you sound like a robot right now, “where everything is on the line.” Seriously Steve, either you are reading from a script or you are a robot.”

“I see. Well no, I am not reading from a script and I am most assuredly not a robot.”

“If you say so Stevie.”

“Anyway, the rules of the pay per view were released last night in an official XWF memo and it stipulates that you must name someone who will represent your team in Round One. Have you come up with a name yet?”

“Yes I have.”

“And who is that name?”

“Well Steve I have to be honest with you. There was some debate as to who that person should be. First I thought about throwing myself in there, you know, to set the tone so to speak. But after giving it more thought I decided that was not the best course of action. A few other names got tossed around the hat. Literally by the way, I wrote some names down on paper, tore them up and tossed them in a hat and then had my personal assistant Isabel pick a name. Well, actually she picked two names because I didn’t like the first name she picked.”

“And who was that name?”

“Well Steve, the man that has been selected after much thought and debate is none of than…Mr.Supernova’s almost carbon copy, the self proclaimed best in the multiverse…Mr.Radio.”

“So Mr.Radio it is. How confident are you in this decision?”

“Extremely confident Steve, wouldn’t you be? This guy is the best in the multiverse. Do you know what that means Steve?”

“I can honestly say I don’t.”

“Well shit. I was really hoping you did because I don’t have a clue either. I had a few weeks with this cat a few weeks back and I tried to figure it out then but then I got bored and went on doing whatever it was I was doing at the time. I think it was taking a dump I can’t remember. “

“Lovely imagery.”

“Oh that’s nothing Steve. I can paint you a real picture if you want.”

“No that will be ok thank you.”

“Don’t know if you caught the news Steve-O but not only does Mr. Radio get to set the tone for our team, he also gets a chance to win the US title. Pretty awesome if you ask me.”

“I suppose so. Now Mr. Pryce, I have to ask you, Sid Feder, he called you out recently, you and a few of your team mates, do you care to respond to that?”

“Not particularly. But since you asked nicely I will. Sid Feder is the best shit talker this federation has ever seen. Bar none. And that’s not me trying to kiss his ass, it’s the God’s honest truth. Unfortunately this isn’t 8 mile and we aren’t in a freestyle rap off. This is a wrestling company. Talking will only get you so far. So Sid is welcomed to call out everyone he wants, and everyone is welcomed to respond to him as they see fit, but as far as I am concerned, I’ll worry about the things that matter, like winning the match, not who can say the most times while trying to look like they aren’t a closet homo.”

“And what of Sid’s request for Eli to put him in the match first? You still want to go with Mr. Radio despite Sid sacrificing himself to be at the front of the line?”

“Sacraifice? Is that what you are calling it? It’s certainly what Sid wants you to believe, that he is making some great sacrifice by offering himself up first. Nero said it best so I won’t reinvent the wheel. Instead I’ll just replay if for you Steve.

(03-08-2014, 04:27 PM)Neonero Said: In his mind, he is going to go in, win the 'significant victory', then go backstage, if his team wins then he can claim it's down to him, and if they lose it's in spite of him.

“And he is exactly right. I will also add to that that Sid is trying his hardest to make this event all about him. He wants to be bigger than the team. So be it. That’s his right. He wants to call me out as being an inept Captain, that’s fine. Everyone thinks they can do a better job until they actually have to do it. And then it’s excuse after excuse after excuse when they fail. Sid has a plan, it’s not a bad one, call out everyone, try and make enemies, get them to speak against you. He wants people give him ammo, he wants to sit there with his depends and his elastic waist band pants that he bought for $10 at Costco and jot notes into his little black burn book so that when it comes time to cut promos he has all kinds of fuel for his fire. I get it. He’s not the first guy to opt for that sort of strategy; he certainly won’t be the last. But don’t tell Sid that, it’s a sin to try and rip off someone else, that’s certainly what he likes to tell anyone that will listen.”

“Well what about Smoke? He offered to face Sid one on one to start things off.”

“Well Steve, I have no idea what Eli James is going to do. Maybe he will listen to Sid, maybe he won’t. He gets to make that decision, but I’ve already made mine. Mr. Radio is the guy. And I have faith in that decision. I would have equal faith if it were Smoke or Nero or me or any of the other names on this team. I respect Smoke for offering to be that guy, I really do. As much as I would love to say that Sid is some no talent asshole that can be taken out easily he’s not. Facing Sid isn’t an easy task. So I respect Smoke for being willing to go in there to start things off, and I have no doubt Smoke could have done what needed to be done but I’ve made my decision.”

“That’s fair. And who do you think your counterpart is going to pick to start the match off?”

“I have no idea Steve. It’s not worth me spending the time to try and figure it out. It’s possible he knows exactly who it is and it’s possible he’s taking the time that I did to figure it out. Either way, there is no right or wrong decision here. Everything is a calculated risk.”

“To that end, how do you feel about your team overall?”

“Pretty good Steve, I think top to bottom it’s a very strong team. I am very happy with the men and woman that I am set to go to war with.”

“And what of Weapon:Ashen? We all saw what transpired at the end of Madness, he seems to have his own agenda.”


Theo takes a sip of his drink and then leans back in his chair. “Hahaha, it does seem that way doesn’t it Steve? You know, Weapon:Ashen is a bit of a wildcard, I can’t deny that. For the time being, Eli James is his primary target. I am going to operate under the assumption that at least until that objective is completed he will be a valuable member of the team.”


“And what happens after that objective is completed?”

“Well that’s a bridge I will cross if and when I come to it.”

“Very well then, one last question if you have the time.”

“Go for it Stevie.”

“There are rumors circulating that you are engaging in some legal troubles, care to respond to that?”

“Legal troubles? What the hell are you on about?”

“Pryce Industries was responsible for the Bio Dome that was used last week in Paul Heyman’s Nuclear Winter show is that correct?”

“It is.”

“Are you aware that the Dome sprung a leak, and that 100,000 Japanese citizens were trapped inside and ultimately died?”

“What?”


Theo puts the call on hold and hit’s his “IC” button and then a three digit extension. His P.A’s voice comes out over the phone.


“Yes Mr.Pryce.”

“Get down here immediately. Bring legal with you.”

“Yes sir. Right away sir.”


Theo hangs up with Isabel and goes back to his conversation with Steve, who is oddly in mid sentence.


“Steve, Steve, listen to me. I have to go. Thanks for the call.”

“Wait, so you have no comment on the…”


Theo hits the “Speaker” button on his phone, ending the call. He then frantically grabs the receiver and dials a 10 digit number. A couple of rings and the person on the other end picks up.


“Theo Pryce, what’s going on?”

“You tell me Paul.”

“What are you talking about?”

“How about 100,000 dead Japanese? What the fuck Paul? Why didn’t you tell me that you were going to enact some 73 year revenge plan on the Japs?”

“Well just so you know, I didn’t plan it that way, the leak was not something I had anticipated, the end result however, not unwelcomed.”

“You don’t think Hiroshima and Nagasaki were enough?”

“Did you just call to yell Theo? I am kind of busy here.”

“Busy, busy with what?”

“Sebastian Duke wants to meet with me and John Samuels at his compound in Connecticut.”

“What? I’ve been trying to get Samuels on the phone for days, what the hell?”

“Yeah he mentioned something about that. In order to get to the Senator, you have to go through me. That's how it works. Look I have to go. I’ll give you a call after I get this stuff sorted out with Duke and Samuels.”

“Paul, have the feds been in contact with you?”

“Yes they have but apparently Sebastian has some connections, he is going to take care of the problem in return for me bringing Samuels to The Compound. I wish I could help out.”

“I’m not worried about it. You think the United States is going to allow their biggest supplier of weapons, the guy who is single-handedly responsible for building up their nuclear stockpile to get dragged through the mud? Please. One phone call and this is all squashed.”

“Good. Good. Well that’s great to hear. I'd just hate myself if this fortunate incident were to end our business relationship. I’ll speak with you soon Theo.”

“Right.”


Theo hangs up the phone just as Isabel and their legal team walk into the office. As they do, Theo’s cell phone starts vibrating on his desk. He looks down at it, picks it up and stares at the number on the screen, clearly not recognizing who is calling. Instead of letting it go to voicemail as he generally does for numbers he does not recognize but for some reason something felt different about this call.


“Hello?”

“Theo Pryce, this is Sebastian Duke.”

“This day get’s better and better. What do you want Duke?"

“As you know I was recently added to your team for World War X. I decided to be the lone representative from The Black Circle and lucky you, I picked your team. I want you to come to my Compound in…”

“I know where your Compound is Duke. You aren’t nearly as secretive as you think you are. When do you want me there?”

“Within 48 hours. No more.”

“Good, because I need to meet with Heyman and Samuels, and as I understand it they are going to be there as well.”

“How do you know that?”

“Don’t worry Duke, I don’t have the place bugged. I just got off the phone with Paul, he mentioned it to me.”

“Very well then, I'll be seeing you.”

“Yes you will.”


Theo hangs up the phone with Duke and engages his P.A and the legal team.


“Is everything ok Mr.Pryce?”

“Yes Isbael, everything is fine. I need you to get on the phone and get my jet ready. I need to get to Connecticut. As for you, my overpaid legal team, I want you to call this number, tell them who you are, that you work for me and that you are calling about the Fukushima incident. Let their response dictate your next course of action.”


Theo Pryce get’s up from his chair, finishes his whiskey, put’s on his suit coat and walks out of the office as the scene fades out.