Weekend Warfare - July 15th - Around 9:40 pm…

…Ish

…Sorry if this is murky or unclear.

What happened that night was… blurry. Flynn's attempts to summarize the evening ends up less like events-in-sequence and more like a series of odd mental snapshots…

The last thing Flynn remembers clearly is… Telling Gravy not to press the detonator… That the switch in Gravy’s hand was the one connected to Gravy’s own neck.

Then, a laugh.

A popping sound.

A red mist hitting Flynn in the face.

…

The guy driving the remote control bomb squad robot trying to make polite conversation as he deactivates the explosives rigged to Flynn’s neck.

The glint of a hacksaw… Apparently, Gravy’s “exploding dog collar” design basically made it irremovable without sawing through it.

When Gravy’s dog collar was finally sawed off Flynn’s neck, it flopped like a dead fish, and rested at the center of the wrestling mat…

Just before they shoved it into an evidence bag…

Flynn got a glimpse of the inside of the dog collar.

A message from Gravy.

Written in black sharpie.

To My Good Pal, Mark Flynn

…

Thanks for Everything!

…

…Funny guy… that Gravy.

Twisted? Yep.

Sick? Sure.

Evil?

…

I mean, Flynn would usually balk at objective statements about good and evil.

However, if you wanted to prove someone was evil? Kidnapping and Attempted child murder is pretty good evidence in your favor, counselor.

But, funny?

…

Yeah. Funny.

Funny like dying of smoke inhalation while touring a carbon monoxide detector factory.

…

But funny, nonetheless.

…

Probably shouldn’t talk about Gravy’s comedic merits to any of the parents reuniting with their kids… Flynn remembered thinking to himself… Either at the top of the ramp or inside the ring.

Not sure which.

Flynn just remembers seeing arena rafters when he thought it…

Then, the scratch of an itchy blanket in his hands as he lay on a medical gurney.

...

Fortunately for Flynn, none of the kids or the parents wanted a post-rescue conversation backstage. Hell, virtually no words were spoken behind that curtain.

Just a lot of screaming and crying from the kids.

Parents scooping their children in their arms, weeping and holding each other…

Flynn remembered feeling an awkwardness that comes with being next to something very personal…

…

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a familiar face…

Irwin.

Wrapped in a big gray blanket, sipping at a mug of cocoa, like he’d been rescued from a fire…

Instead of being the one pulling people out of it.

Flynn played the distraction role, but Irwin was the actual defuser... He scrambled around the ring, saving six children from closed-casket funerals.

Kinda... Funny.

A moment (or maybe half an hour) later, Irwin was hovering over Flynn’s face…

”Mister Flynn, the arena! Do you hear them?”

…

Hear?

Flynn couldn’t hear much. His ears were still ringing from the explosion. Honestly, he was only getting bits and pieces of what Irwin was saying just inches from his face. Kinda sounded like the inside of a fishbowl.

”...Mark! Are you okay?”

…

”They alright?”

...Irwin squinted with confusion, trying to comprehend Flynn's meaning.

"...The kids. They're good?"

…Irwin looks up, scanning around the room at each of the families reunited. Despondent faces slowly turning to smiles… The tears keep flowing.

Irwin nods, sighing with relief.

”Yessir. They're all safe."

…

From his gurney, Flynn gently lifts a thumbs-up an inch above his chest. Too exhausted to lift his arm...

”Then, it’s fine, I-man.”

That moment, the wheels under Flynn began to squeak…

An ambulance door closing.

The last thing Flynn remembered before his body dragged him into slumber was…

Muttering to no one in particular…

”If they’re safe… What else matters?”

---

July 16th - Exactly 9:28 AM

”WHAT DO YOU MEEEEEEEAN THEY’RE STILL BOOING ME?!?!?”

…

”Well, sir… I… uh…” Irwin flips through a page on his clipboard…

…

Irwin flips another page.

…

”Nope.” Irwin shakes his head, flipping back to the front. ”That about sums it up. The XWF fans are… still booing you.”

Flynn sits up in his hospital bed. Thinking so hard, his forehead turns the same shade of reddish purple as the bruises on his face, fresh from his fight with the now-deceased Micheal Graves…

“...No.” Flynn shakes his head. “No, that’s impossible.” Flynn emphatically denies, waving his arm dismissively. “No, no no no. CLEARLY, you only surveyed people that watch Warfare on re-run. That haven’t seen the show yet. Because How could ANYONE boo me after watching me save SIX CHILDREN from BRUTAL EXPLOSION?!?! How could ANYONE who knows I risked my LIFE AND LIMB to rescue SIX CHILDREN not cheer me.” Flynn spits. “NOT EVEN CHEER. WE’RE NOT EVEN TALKING ABOUT CELEBRATING ME, IRWIN. But simply possessing the DECENCY to TOLERATE MY EXISTENCE without BOOING.”

Flynn sits back, sipping on a hospital apple juice. “No. Nononononono.”

…

“No. No, your survey data is off.”

…

Irwin clears his throat.

“Sir. This… uh… this isn’t survey data.”

…

“Well, then, how d'you know people are booing me?”

“I have…” Irwin sighs. “Videographic evidence.”

…

“Videographic?”

“As in, Live footage. Of Warfare.” Irwin scratches the back of his head, as he picks the remote up off the side table beside Flynn’s hospital bed.

Flynn curiously tilts his head toward the screen as the picture comes on…

---

Quote:The morose opening chords of “Identity” by Grandson hit the soundsystem and the arena is plunged into darkness, but we can still hear the big time pops from the excited crowd as they await the Universal Champion. As the song starts to pick up in tempo a lit up figure can be seen standing on the ramp way, his jacket flashing hearts and lightning bolts. Then, with an explosion of pyro the lights come back on and Corey Smith is there!

”Whoa, whoa. Corey was on the show last night? I didn’t see him! When did this happen?”

”He popped in to cut a promo after your main event.”

…

”Leave it to Corey Smith to think he can follow a man’s head exploding with only the sound of his own fucking voice. Ugh, go on.”

Quote:He races to the ring, slapping hands as he goes. In fact, he does a lap around the ring, greeting his fans and clapping hands before sliding into the ring and kipping up like a house of fire. He calls for a mic and gets one. The music dies down as Corey gets on the stick.

Heeelllllooooooo Sacramento!

”Pssssssh, pandering. Ooooh, you dumb yokels should slap your hands together like trained seals because *I* know the name of the city we’re in! Like they’d fall for that.”

Quote:The fans pop.

…

”*sigh* Fast-forward, Irwin. While I still have a SHRED of faith in humanity.”

Irwin skips ahead a little bit in the promo…

Quote:It’s time to look towards the future…towards Leap of Faith. Now obviously yours truly will not be in the Leap of Faith match. But I am staring down the barrel of my first title defense. And so many names have been rolling around in my head as being deserving of a shot. I thought of….I thought of….Noah Jackson!

This draws a mixed reply from the crowd.

”Noah Jackson?” Flynn scoffs. ”I mean, the kid’s got raw talent but he lacks consistency. One second, he’s pinning Peter Vaughn at March Madness… The next minute he’s getting rolled-up by Ned Kaye. Another minute, he got a pin on Kido at WarGames. The next…”

…

”Actually, has he even been on TV since WarGames?”

Quote:Now, now, now! He did pin the Universal Champion at War Games. I mean, he’s done fuck all but lose to the Television champion since then, but I digress.

”Oh yeah, that's right! Noah lost to Angie Vaughn. Couldn’t make an omelette better than someone who lost FIRST-ROUND in Celebrity Cook-Off. Truly humiliating.”

”Still, notice that reaction, sir? Mixed.”

”Of course. Jackson is the son of an XWF Legend. Obviously, parts of the crowd are the spineless cowards that believe being the child of a successful person is an accomplishment. And the rest have functional frontal lobes. What’s your point, Ir-dawg?”

Irwin marks down on his sheet a 5/10… ”Keep watching.”

Quote:Corey allows himself a shit eating grin. Nah. Nah, folks I got an even more interesting name rattling around in the ol’ dome too.

Isaiah King.

This draws more of a pop.

The man who beat the previous Universal Champion in a non-title match. I mean, the guy is all but the uncrowned Universal Champion, right? He deserves a shot!

Flynn’s brow scrunches irritatedly, mumbling under his breath.

Irwin side-eyes Flynn. ”You doing all right, sir?”

…Flynn snorts, shaking his head, dismissing his righteous fury.

”OBVIOUSLY, I… *ahem* I don’t mind that pick at all. I like Isaiah.” Flynn clearly struggles, trying to swallow down the bile that builds in his throat whenever someone gets an opportunity he wants.

He sniffs. And nods, convincing himself that it is a good choice (which it is (definitely is)). ”After all, the kid pulled his weight on our WarGames team, he took out Jay Omega, which is no easy feat.”

…

”Or rather, we all thought it was. Turns out when the going gets tough, Omega gets going. Took his mental acrobat friend, Alex Richards, got in that clown car he calls a spaceship and ran off to a smaller circus.”

Flynn grimaces bitterly.

”But, back to King. He gave Kido a beating. Pinned him clean as a whistle while Raion was Uni champ. If Kido had the stones to defend the belt that night, King already would be the top guy. Only makes sense to throw him in the discussion.”

”But, moreover, Mister Flynn. Did you notice the crowd cheered at the mention of Isaiah King?”

…

Flynn’s nostrils flare…

…

”...*ahem* Yes, I did.”

…

”I guess the XWF Universe sees a man… *throat-clear* HARRASSING and STALKING Ned Kaye and must… *sniff*... APPRECIATE his TENACITY. And STICK-TO-ITIVENESS. Such... Admirable... qualities”

…

Flynn grits his teeth, grinding them so hard, they nearly draw sparks.

Irwin jots that down. ”Crowd… cheered…”

Irwin marks down a 7 out of 10 on his sheet… Then, unpauses.

Quote:But, does King scream big money match yet?

”Maybe.” Flynn mock-humbly dusts his knuckles across his chest. ”I mean, King’s a growing draw. But did he usher in the RECORD PROFITS ERA™ of XWF?” Flynn grins, confidently. ”I don’t think so.”

Quote:He’s still pretty green. Still pretty new.

”Especially compared to a VETERAN that’s nearing his TWELFTH YEAR in the company… A former Universal champion, no-less!” Flynn nods, seeing where Corey is going with this.

Quote:That’s when another name occurred to me.

”Perhaps the name occurred to Corey when the owner of that name, less than FIFTEEN minutes prior, in front of millions of eyes, saved SIX CHILDREN from being EXPLODED INTO LIQUID.”

Quote:Mark Flynn.

”YESSSSSSSSS! RECOGNITION!”

Quote:OVERWHELMING CATASTROPHIC BOOS!

…

Irwin reaches down and turns the volume down a couple notches. Even on a 20-inch hospital TV, that was BOOMING!

…He then marks down a 1 out of 10.

…

He then scratches out, writes in a zero to the left of the 1, and circles that.

…

Flynn is seething.

Frothing at the mouth.

Quote:Corey mocks looking overwhelmed by the response. Whoa…whoa….it’s almost as if you guys think he’s a bad guy or something.

“I!”

Flynn snatches the remote from Irwin’s hand!

“AM!”

Flynn reels it back over his head like an Olympic javelin-thrower…

“A GOOD GUY!”

Flynn HHHHHUCKS the remote with all his might!

KERACK! The remote is embedded into the screen! The screen shatters!

”Hey!”

Flynn and Irwin look over.

The camera pans to the left, to reveal an octogenarian in an iron lung, drool dribbling down his chin.

”...I was watchin’ that…”

---

”HOW!” Flynn demands, pulling off his hospital wristband as he speed-walks out the hospital’s front door! ”How the HELL am I still not a good guy?!? It doesn’t make sense!!!!”

”W-w-well, sir!” Irwin says, running out of breath trying to keep up with Flynn’s pace, as the GOOD GUY™ scours the lot for his car. ”We did do some post-event interviews to try and drill into the topic of why people were… unmoved, let’s say, by your heroic rescue efforts against Micheal Graves.”

…

”Unmoved?”

Irwin lifts up his phone to Flynn’s face.

Quote:A cell phone video.

The screen rushes up to a man wearing a Raion Kido shirt, exiting the Golden 1 Center.

”Excuse me, sir!”

”...Yeah?” Says the guy skeptically of the pasty white nerd who just ran up to him.

”Would you be willing to answer a few questions about the program you just watched?”

”I dunno, man… I’ve got… uh… a thing I left in the car. So… I should probably get goin’...”

”What if I offered you a $5 gift card, redeemable on the XWF shopzone?”

…

”You know what, it can wait. Let’s do this.”

”Okay. Did you watch Mark Flynn’s match against Micheal Graves for the X-Treme Title.”

The man’s face lights up.

”Oh my god, yes. That was so crazy!”

…

The man squints.

”Actually. You look familiar. Were you… uh… ring crew on that match?”

…Irwin clears his throat.

”Nope! I’m just with the… data collection department. *cough* ANYWAY, what do you think of Micheal Graves?”

”Scumbug. Was gonna kill those kids. Glad he’s dead.”

Flynn sticks his finger at the camera! ”Ex-ZACTLY! And I’m the guy who stopped him!”

Quote:”And what about the man who stopped him, Mark Flynn?”

…The man sucks air.

”That guy’s even worse.”

”WHAT?!?!?”

Quote:”I mean, it’s obvious Graves and Flynn were in cahoots this whole time. Flynn obviously wants people to think he's a good guy so bad, he was willing to let Micheal Graves kidnap children! In fact, I'd bet that the whole thing was his idea!”

”...WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!?”

Quote:”I mean, it wouldn’t even surprise me if Flynn blew up that terminally-ill girl intentionally! Just to eliminate suspicion that he and Gravy were simpatico, dig?”

…

Quote:”So… keeping children safe is important to you for the likability of a person?”

”Oh, absolutely, I’ve got a kid of my own.”

…

”That’s actually the ‘thing’ I left in the car.”

...

"So, do I have to fill out a form for the gift card? Cuz I got time."

Irwin stops the clip and folds up his phone.

…

Flynn is beside himself.

”...He thinks I KILLED LILABETH?”

”Yessir. And not just him.” Irwin coughs. ”There’s a... theory among the XWF fans that, perhaps you concocted the child rescue plan *with* Micheal Graves to improve your standing among the fans.”

…

”That’s INSANE! I plotted with Gravy for him to kidnap children?!?”

”Apparently, that’s the working theory.”

“How would they even COME UP WITH THAT?!?”

…

Irwin clears his throat.

”Sir, I know you told me you hate when I point things out to you.”

”Ohhhhh, how I do.” Flynn’s eyes narrow angrily.

”...That said.” Irwin’s lips purse. ”The audience might think that… Because that’s literally what you did, when you tricked Ned Kaye before WarGames?”

…

”Do you recall? The whole ‘plotting a fake robbery to stop it yourself and be praised as a hero’ routine?”

…

”You attempting to trick Ned Kaye into a partnership with a theatrical bank heist?”

...

"In Toky-"

”YES. I GET IT, IRWIN.”

…Flynn squints angrily, his fists tightening.

”...But, that doesn't make any sense!!! I mean, Did Mieky agree to have his HEAD EXPLODED?!?!”

Irwin flips through his charts. ”Well, certain circles within this ‘conspiracy theory’, we’ll call it, believe you silenced Gravy by giving him his own detonator and manipulated him into pressing the trigger. Eliminating your co-conspirator.”

…

Flynn takes a deep breath.

”Okaaaaaaaay. This calls… for a NEW PLAN.”

Flynn reaches out and rips a sheet of paper of Irwin’s clipboard.

”H-hey! That’s my data!” Irwin meekly protests.

”AND IT’S ABOUT TO BECOME USEFUL, I-MAN!” Flynn shouts down his simp.

…

“So…” Flynn frantically scribbles. ”We tried… Attaching me to an existing hero brand.”

”Yes, the fake robbery in Tokyo with Ned Kaye. That somehow became a real robbery. The collaboration was a success, Mister Kaye is a reliable ally! The brand improvement was… not as sucessful.”

”Then, we tried setting me OPPOSITE an existing villain brand.”

”Indeed, the ACTUAL child kidnapping stoppage against Micheal Graves… And somehow, that might have actually hurt your numbers.”

”SO!” Flynn spits. ”CLEARLY, our next step is…”

…

Flynn scribbles.

…

”...Logically, our next move… would be…”

…

He scratches out what he wrote.

…

He starts writing again…

…

”...Anyone with a brain cell could see that… To make me a… good guy… We have toooooooo…”

…

……

He takes the paper.

”FUCK.”

Balls it up.

”FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK.”

Throws it on the ground.

”FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK.”

And starts stomping it.

”WE. TRIED. EVERYTHING. AND, IF ANYTHING, PEOPLE ARE BOOING ME MORE NOW!”

”If it makes you feel any better, sir...” Irwin chimes in comfortingly. ”Your ‘Most Hated Man in the XWF’ t-shirt sales are through the roof.”

Flynn sniffs, a twinkle of hope in his eye. ”...Really?”

”Yes.”

…

”People have taken to…” Irwin clears his throat. ”Burning them when you’re on-screen.”

…

…Flynn exhales.

”...That’s terrible for the environment.”

He falls backward, lying down on the concrete of the parking lot. A number of people walking through the lot to the hospital awkwardly step around his fallen form.

…

Irwin awkwardly remains standing.

”...God dammit." Flynn mutters. ”...I really tried, y’know, Irmano?”

”Tried what, sir?”

…

”I tried to… be better, I guess.” Flynn sighs. ”I screwed up a few times, yes. But… my heart… (if-I-have-one)...” Flynn shakes his head. ”It felt like it was in the right place, y’know?”

…

Irwin exhales, remembering Flynn the night before. Covered in blood. Ears ringing from the explosion.

Only asking if the kids were all right.

…

Irwin tries to bend over to sit down next to his ‘hero’…

But then he sees a bit of gum on the ground.

…

He decides to remain standing.

” I agree, sir. You’ve done good recently. And not just PR good, but some genuine good.”

…

”Unfortunately, we’re dealing with wrestling fans. A stubborn, set-in-their-ways people.” Irwin shrugs, ready to admit defeat. ”You can’t just force people to change their minds.”

…

FLYNN GASPS.

HE SPRINGS UP OFF THE GROUND.

”Irwin! One of us is a genius!”

Irwin sighs.

”And it’s y-”

”And it’s YOU!”

…

Irwin chuckles, eyes bright with wonder. ”W-whoa! Thank you, sir!”

”That’s it!” Flynn reels up his legs… Kipping up off the ground! Snapping his fingers! ”That’s the answer! THAT is how we convince people I’m a good guy!”

”Yes! Yessssss!” Irwin does a small, dignified happy dance.

…

”*ahem* And how is that, sir?”

”We’ll FORCE people to change their minds!!!”

…

……

”Oh.”

…

”Oh no.”

---

No one can say I’ve ever done things traditionally...

Or followed the pattern laid by the wrestlers who came before me.

I mean, obviously, right? You’re looking at the man who turned a two-week Heavymetalweight Title run into two 24/7 briefcases.

You’re looking at the man who won his X-Treme title via BREACH OF CONTRACT!

…

And if being a good guy means a little mind control? A modicum of mental massagery?

…

I mean, it wasn’t Plan A… But, let’s not shut down a million-dollar idea before we’ve invested the R&D into it, right?

…

Speaking of not doing things traditionally…

Let’s talk about my road to a 24/7 briefcase, huh? My JOURNEY as X-Treme champion.

Sure, it started out… some-would-say, controversially.

I tricked Kris Von Bonn. My attorney argued breach of contract and ol’ Hammer-brain got so twisted up by the legalese, he threw me the belt just to shut me up.

But, after that?

I am the ONLY X-Treme champion to retain his belt after WARGAMES.

The only X-Treme champ to fight multiple matches in one night!

And when Theo Pryce… and the rest of the management board… pushed back my match counter. How did I respond?

By WINNING.

BY BEATING XWF LEGEND, DOCTOR LOUIS D’VILLE!

FORMER UNI CHAMP, SIDNEY GREY!

And the sickest mind in XWF History… MICHEAL GRAVES!

Talk about a difficult road to the briefcase, huh?

Talk about elevating the X-Treme title from what it had become. A hot potato, tossed from one lame duck to another.

I am ONE WIN AWAY from becoming the first X-Treme champion to successfully earn a briefcase in almost TWO YEARS. (November 17th, 2021 - Wednesday Night Warfare - Jim Caedus).

…Hahaha… Jealous, Jen-Jen?

Wish you were here?

See, Jenny Myst sure has enjoyed shooting her mouth off about how the X-Treme division has fallen off since she lost the belt. How she DESERVED her briefcase and how we’ve all suffered without her.

…

Heheh.

Two points on rebuttal.

Point one. Jenaroo conveniently omits the reason she won back that X-Treme belt in the first place.

Ol’ RECORD PROFITS carried her flat ass over Marfy and Chucky Nickles. I ravaged the ol’ Carnie Bastards in a glorified handicap match, then let Jen-Jen sneak away with the belt.

If ol’ Flynn decided to let Myst captain the ship that week… we might've seen MARF SWAYSONS failing his way to a briefcase.

Jenners? I get you like to yap. But never forget who fed you.

Point two? In order to deserve a briefcase, Jen-Jen? You have to EARN IT.

And in order to earn it? You have to WIN your matches.

Ol’ Jen pulled off a couple wins. But she got stopped halfway through.

And acts like she was robbed.

No, Jen-Jen. You got BEAT.

By Jason Cashe of all people.

And now, you’re trying to one-step solution your way to a briefcase… By winning Leap of Faith.

Because you couldn’t do what I did.

…

Or, should I say, what I’m about to do?

After all this fighting.

After one of the most difficult roads to a briefcase in the history of the X-Treme Title.

I’m still one win away.

…

…Should I?

Should I really, though?

Do I need to say 'about to', like I haven't already made it?

Let’s be honest.

After what I’ve achieved to get here…

After a 12-year career of shredding through the VERY BEST that has ever run the ropes in the history of this company…

Should I really be waiting to count my unhatched chickens…

When the only people in my way…

Are Mastermind?

And Reggie Estrada?

...

Non-traditional, to be sure.

To face off against some of the most talented people to ever step foot in an XWF ring at the start...

And finish things...

With Mastermind...

And Reggie Estrada...

...

Let’s start with the Kiwi and his clown posse.

Good god, how many sidekicks does a guy need Mastermind? FOUR?!?

Scarlett the Huntress.

Melanie ‘Cray-zee’ Childs.

Kris ‘The Hammer’ Von Bonn.

AND Anthony the Jerk.

I guess they do say 'There’s strength in numbers', huh?

…

They’d be proven wrong, though, if they checked your win-loss record, heheheheheh.

LOOK, Mastermind. I promise I’m trying to step away from the stats routine.

But, seriously. It’s one thing to be the LOSING-EST wrestler in XWF History.

The man who has lost MORE MATCHES than ANYONE ELSE in the TWENTY-FOUR-YEAR HISTORY of this company.

…

But, to achieve that statistic… With four people in your corner? Four lackeys, humiliating themselves, bending over backward to skew the scales in your favor?

Only to watch you lose again and again AND AGAIN?

…

That is an ANTI-accomplishment there, Mastermind.

That’s a level of failure you only see once… Maybe twice in a lifetime.

And no one can say you haven’t earned it.

Other wrestlers might try to improve their work in the ring. Or innovate new strategies to hide their weaknesses and highlight their strengths.

…

And then, there’s Mastermind. Doing the same ol’ crap since 2013.

Ambush shenanigans, managers hopping on the apron.

I mean, Mastermind is so unoriginal, he's even celebrated his few victories the exact same way for TEN YEARS: Making the exact same t-shirt design.











Seriously, who even buys these?

Let’s say, hypothetically, I’m the ONE Mastermind fan. And he beats Future Legend Jordi. And I’m amped about it, (because it’s the first time Mastermind has won in, like, six months).

…Do I buy the t-shirt?

*I* didn’t master Future Legend Jordi’s mind.

Mastermind did.

Is this like a stolen valor thing? Do all your fans like to say they won matches you won?

Or are you just making these shirts for yourself?

It’s not even a status thing! Anyone can make a t-shirt!

I mean, I MIGHT understand opulence, y’know?

Like, if every time Mastermind won a match, he had a velvet portrait created of his moment of victory?

Silly? Perhaps. But, the ultimate form of creating a PERMANENT ARTIFACT of his dominance.

…Who the fuck gives a shit about their name being on an eight dollar t-shirt, sitting on top of the other 50 t-shirts in Mastermind’s closet?

…

My point is, Mastermind hasn’t changed his already-lackluster game in TEN YEARS.

Which is funny, because ten years ago, the last time we faced off.

I BRUTALIZED ol’ MM. Absolutely DOMINATED the Kiwi.

And in ten years, I’ve only grown. I’ve only thrived. While Mastermind has stagnated, withered and shrunk in ability.

That does not bode well for ol' MM.

…

Speaking of guys who have been around for years and have nothing to show for it…

Reggie Estrada!

The Man once known as Wrestler82!

Now, I should clarify, I'm fine with Reggie.

Hell, I don’t dislike any of the T.H.U.G.S.

For a little while, I even tagged with J.B. Johnny Black’s a damn fine tag-wrestler.

...

I mean, do I think Tommy Wish is an identity-shifting time lord?

Yes, I do.

And I regularly publish a newsletter going into extensive detail on the evidence backing up my theories.

But, no *personal* problems with Wish.

...

…Kinda of a incel stalkery vibe, though.

I mean, have you read Tommy’s pin attempts whenever there’s a female X-Treme champ? Guy basically conks the champ over the head and feels her up, calling it a pin attempt.

Don’t get me started on the Fetish Lock, which is LITERALLY an excuse to hold a woman in place while staring at her feet.

That’s not even a joke. That’s legitimately why Tommy does that.

…

Okay, sorry, I’m getting distracted.

Back to Reggie? Ol’ Wrestler82?

Not a bad guy.

…

I mean, he did say in his four corners qualifier a few weeks ago, he wanted to beat up Jenny Myst for rejecting Tommy’s creepy-ass efforts to pick her up.

Quote:

Oh God, “playing house” is a skin-crawling way to refer to physical intimacy.

Check my arm, that actually gave me a goosebump…

...

Ehhhhhhhh.

Look, disregard what I said earlier, Tommy is a fuckin’ creep. Jen is an overconfident dummy, but wise to avoid being on the same block as ol’ Wish-o, let alone let him take her to dinner.

Which knowing Tommy, he’d make her pay for the date, then steal her credit card to smell it later because it touched her hand, and the hand is just the foot of the arm.

…

Y’know, while I’m on the topic…

Even if Tommy WASN’T a creep.

What the fuck is Reggie talking about? You want to beat up somebody for turning your friend down? What the fuck kinda bullshit is that?

Jesus Christ, Regetables. If someone doesn’t want to bone down with your friend, you think that’s a reason to PHYSICALLY PUNISH THEM.

Lil’ Mysty turned down your boy and you say you’ve got to show her “not to cross those lines”?

A lady limiting her sexual interests to not include your friend is ‘crossing a line’? What the actual fuck?!?

…

Okay, so… two-thirds of T.H.U.G.S. has… let’s say… problematic relationships with women.

…

JB, tho!

Ol’ John Black! I’ve tagged with him before!

Decent fella!

…

……

*siiiiiiiiiigh*

Okay, I mean, he co-signs on Reggie’s and Tommy’s bullshit.

They occasionally come to ol’ JB seeking wisdom.

And JB… Seems to tell them to go for it.

Which is… when you think objectively… enabling two sexual predators-slash-deviants to run wild on an unsuspecting roster.

…

Y’know, what?

Fuck the THUGS.

Fuck Reggie Estrada.

And FUCK Mastermind.

This match at Leap of Faith. This TITLE DEFENSE.

It isn’t JUST going to be an easy cruise on my way to a briefcase.

This isn’t JUST going to be another dominant showing, where Mark Flynn CRUSHES INFERIOR talent INTO DUST.

…

This is going to be Mark Flynn.

THE GOOD GUY.

The man who SAVED THE CHILDREN.

And got booed for it?

…

Beating down two VILLAINS.

…

Stomping two assholes that the people seem to cheer.

No matter what they do.

Regardless of their repetitive, dull antics.

Regardless of their clear issues with consent.

Regardless of their LACK of ACHIEVEMENT.

…

And if I get booed?

For doing the right thing?

For DISMANTLING two of the XWF’s BIGGEST, most PUNGENT ASSHOLES?!?

…

Then, fuck the crowd.

The ‘Bad Guy’ Mark Flynn never needed them before.

Why would ‘Good Guy’ Mark Flynn need them now?