The scene opens inside of a lifeless "Icebox" in New York. The lights are all off, sans a single spotlight shining down into one of the many rings that fill the large warehouse-like portion of the elite training facility.
The fringed air is apparent as a cloud of steamy breath is seen from a silhouetted figure standing in the center of the ring. His head covered by a white gym towel, the figure exhales a deep breath and the steam-like cloud fills the air once more.
The figure slowly begins to speak in a raspy, chilling tone, his voice empty of any emotion, yet still filled with a cold, calculated overtone.
"For the past nine months I have tried to play the role I chose for myself... The roll of the messiah, the roll of Immanuel, but as the times have changed, the plans have been foiled, and the landscapes changed, I have realized one thing."
Pausing, another large exhale of steam exits from the towel covered head as the figure continues to look down, and is silhouetted by the spotlight shining down from behind him.
"While my failings have angered me, I have come to terms with them. Perfection takes time, as the saying goes, and it is but a matter of time before Ronnie McNeil tastes his own failure... I will however say, Ronnie; your run as champion has been a feet not matched by anyone in a long time. You have managed to keep the title as myself, Romano, and Senester have all taken our best and thrown it at you, yet like the Warrior you are, you have found a way to survive... which is the one thing we still have in common... We each find a way to survive. Adapting, Overcoming, yet now we find ourselves on paths that have gone so far in the opposite direction that we are once again face to face... As I look at my time here in HWA I see now that it was never Michael, it was never Eddie, it was never AC, nor Butch, or Logan, it was you that has always been my greatest rival, a peer who I knew would never fail to deliver."
The camera pans around the ring, giving a 360 degree look at Talon as he continues to stand still, nearly in the exact same position he was in when the video began.
"So at Road to Ruin, I say we do this just one last time... Ronnie, no matter how much we may loathe each other on this day, and for the rest of eternity, I can not deny that you are a living legend. I also can not deny that you will forever be a brother to me...
I am not apologizing, I am not 'patching things up' I am simply telling you the truth. At Road to Ruin, I am going to revert to the man I was when we first stepped into the ring, the same man I was when we did battle in back to back Ring Master tournament. The man I was when I raised the HWA World Heavyweight Championship high above my head, declaring that I was the greatest in the HWA... In 9 days, I will step into the ring with you, not as the Seraphim, not as The Sword of Senester, and not as the Reflection of his Perfection. No, on April 23rd, I will step into the ring simply as Talon Wilkinson..."
Talon steps forward, removing the towel from his head, revealing his once trademark mohawk. He exhales again, the steam clouding around him as the camera gets closer, revealing a 5 inch cut trailing from just below his left eye down his cheek. The wound is no longer bleeding, but the remnants of his blood can be seen on his face as his eyes appear to be lifeless. His expression is almost completely blank as he looks, seemingly, past the camera into the darkness.
"Ronnie, on Havoc I was embarrassed and defeated, at Road to Ruin, I will not be either. It is not because Romano is the referee, because you know as well as I, that he could just as easily turn on my as he could attack you. His motives are his own, and his placement in our final battle is not of my doing... but no matter the circumstance, I will once again climb into the ring and do what I do best, and if it turns out that my "best" is no longer enough, then it will be the final time you see me in the ring, because this is it for me.
...For nine months I have gone through the motions, I have done what the ones I criticized had done. I coasted, and "got by" but that is done. I am training, day and night, eating, breathing, and living in this moment. It will be a glorious battle Ron, because I will leave nothing on the table, I will give you every last ounce of life that is in this body before you. I will push myself to the limits, limits that I have truly never dared reach for, because I have told myself that if I can not defeat you, Ronnie McNeil, and once again win the HWA World Heavyweight Championship, that I will retire for the HWA and admit my failings once and for all..."
Pausing, a small twitch strikes Talon's left eye as he takes a breath, seemingly chilling himself with his thoughts.
"Since I was 12, I dreamed of being the greatest and I worked harder than anyone else around me to guarantee myself that I was. From my time wrestling in the basement and the backyard, to my first indy job. I climbed the ranks until I reached RWF and conquered the entire company, finally reaching the summit of the industry by signing my deal here in HWA... So for me to say that I will be stepping away from this industry, that I have worked so hard my entire life to conquer, it digs at me, not in my head, not in my heart, but at my very soul. I want nothing more than to hoist the World Championship above my head again and hear the announcer declare me the victor, and I am prepared to do whatever it takes to take that belt from you Ronnie.
When the wrestling scholars look back, they will either say that this was the night that McNeil's amazing run ended and Talon Wilkinson's second era began, or they will say that it was the night that Ronnie DeShawn McNeil ended the career of the man who was but a mirror image of himself...
You will claw and fight to engrave your ending into history, of that I am sure brother, but for me... it is no longer just another match, it is my life on the line. If I fail at this task, you know the ramifications it will bare for me, with Senester already displeased, I will have much more than just a single scar down my face, and I have much more invested in Dark Horse than just my wrestling contract... but Ronnie, you know about that all too well."
Another deep sigh is let loose as Talon continues.
"My project has already been hindered, and the emergence of Mercury and this... Toast, have only brought more pressure and scrutiny, so I now stand before you... before the world, and knowledge that this week, these nine days, could be my last.
...My life vs. your livelihood. Ronnie, do you think you can pull the trigger when you are staring down the barrel? ...if so, then goodbye old friend."
...static
Message Thread
« Back to index