Hard Times (XHF Tag Team COTI)
Jun 26, 2021 14:19:36 GMT -5
Mongo the Destroyer, Curtis D. Kanyon, and 1 more like this
Post by Adrien on Jun 26, 2021 14:19:36 GMT -5
Sunday, June 13th, 2021
Bonnie Jenkins: “YOUR WINNERS AND EARNING SPOTS IN THE X*CROWN QUALIFIERS FOR NIGHT OF CHAMPIONS AT OVERHEATED … CURTIS KANYON, STEVE AWESOME, SPIKE KANE, DONNY DEVILLE, AND EL COMBATIENTE … THE BANG BROS!”
Adam Sanders watches on the monitor as XHF Tag Team Champion Curtis Kanyon lifts his arms in the air after becoming the sole survivor for Call to Arms. Knowing that his team eliminated Adam’s gave the feeling a slightly bitter taste in his mouth, now that Adam will be going after Kanyon’s XHF Tag Team Championship.
Adam: “This is going to be one hell of an uphill battle.”
It was like a sudden rush that went to his head that made him realize that he and his best friend, Betsy Granger, are going to be major underdogs taking on the Unique Stud Alliance, assuming they get past Kira Izumi and Carnivore. Which Adam feels like they will…
Beside him, Betsy Granger watches the screen like a hawk, unconsciously grinding her teeth together. Her fists clench and unclench repeatedly as she watches the Bang Bros, the rest of whom have joined Kanyon in the ring, celebrate together, lifting him onto their shoulders.
Betsy: “Hail the conquering hero…”
There’s a bitter edge to her tone that Adam recognizes immediately.
Adam: “President Kanyon is considered to be one of the biggest legends here in the Network. I didn’t think this would ever become the obstacle we’d have to encounter. He won the X*Crown years ago. I always saw him as part of the Network’s past while he was focusing on his political career.”
Sanders still has his eyes glued to the television screen, in disbelief that they let this team eliminate Adam and Betsy, knowing that this was their likely XHF Tag Team Championship opponents. Betsy tips her head as she focuses on both members of the Unique Stud Alliance.
Betsy: “They may have won the night, but they have no idea what they’re in for when the two of them-”
She jabs her thumb at the monitor as she turns to face Adam. Fire is lighting up her emerald eyes now.
Betsy: “-take on the two of us. They’d be fools to think tonight’s performance is in any way indicative to how WE-”
Now she taps her chest before tapping Adam’s as well.
Betsy: “-function as a unit. So this-”
She sweeps her arms out around them now, spinning in a small circle.
Betsy: “-this is merely a bump in the road. They can have this night, I hope they celebrate their hearts out. They’ve earned it. Soon enough, we’ll have their belts.”
Adam looks on at the championship belt on the screen. This was the next goal. Impossibly Awkward… and the seemingly impossible challenge to become the XHF Tag Team Champions.
Adam: “We can do this. It won’t be easy. It’ll be one of the biggest hurdles either of us has ever faced. But I know it in my heart…”
For the first time, Adam moves his eyes from the monitor to the eyes of his best friend.
Adam: “We can be the ones to unseat them. We can be the next XHF Tag Team Champions. I know we can.”
Stepping up to Adam again, she meets his big brown eyes. Something about his tone catches her ear; subtle, but she was attuned to it now. A gentle expression crosses her face as she touches his shoulder.
Betsy: “Who are you trying to convince right now?”
Adam: “Honestly… myself…”
Betsy: “It’s okay, Adam… I’m a bit shaken up about this myself. I thought for sure we would get farther in this stupid thing than we did. I expected us to be in a better position when we had Eddie issue the challenge for us. But…”
Sliding her hand down his arm, she takes his and squeezes it gently.
Betsy: “I believe in us. And I know we can do this; and even if we don’t get it done this time, we’ll have other opportunities. It’s just that… Well, we’re not going to have to worry about that. Because Impossibly Awkward is here to make the impossible happen.”
Adam nods his head as Betsy squeezes his hand again.
Adam: “I sure hope so. Because after everything that’s happened, losing to them again would be really… well, awkward for our run as a tag team here in the XHF.”
“I stand before you in a precarious position. When it comes to my history of pursuing Global Championships… let’s just say the journey has not been kind to me, to date anyway. It’s a narrative I’m aware of and one that I’m going to change.”
Adam Sanders gives a slight nod to the camera from his backyard in Asheville, North Carolina.
“I know there is a famous speech from a wrestling legend from before I was born that spoke about hard times. I’m not going to recite it, but I know you’re familiar with it. Let me tell you, I’ve been through some hard times. I nearly got my head taken off by Brad Swann. I had a stable of wrestlers aim to try to remove me from AWF and wrestling altogether. After my last two attempts at earning an X*Crown shot ended with me falling short after literally being stabbed by the same man, both at the End of Days semifinals and my qualifying match at Battle for Hegemony. I’m being forced to face my tag team partner and best friend on this final AWF show for our Prestige Championship, a little factoid you two shouldn’t worry about since there is an unbreakable bond and trust between me and Betsy Granger.
“But what’s that saying again? ‘Hard times create strong men, strong men create good times, good times create weak men, weak men create hard times.’
“What hard times have you been going through, Mr. President? You take on the presidency without having to win an election for the seat. You have a lifetime protection of Secret Service agents and a pension for life. You walk into Fireside and immediately are handed the championship to replace Joe Nobody as Deville’s tag team partner. And then you literally hand Steve Awesome the XHF Tag Team Championship. What was it Donny said to Joe Nobody? You saved him from the millions of dollars, cars, women, screaming fans, press tours, and posters with your face on it.
“You walk into Call to Arms with every legend in this industry you could think of, getting people who don’t have to work constantly every show to advance their career, living off how big their names are to jump in immediately to get their name in the hat for the X*Crown Championship just because they did it all and get to relax beside the pools in their giant houses and mansions, driving fancy cars and eating lobster tails and drinking the finest of wines. Hell, Spike Kane just finally signed to be on a roster again for the first time in forever but was already in Overheated before he did. El Combatiente resurfaced out of nowhere after being gone for what felt like months. Steve has been in NPW for, what, six weeks? All legends and very talented people, but they just decided to come back when the opportunity for the X*Crown was there for them.
“And that brings me to you, Steve. Former X*Crown Champion, last XHF United States Champion, and like Curtis Kanyon, this isn’t your first time holding the XHF Tag Team Championship. Just your nCw career overshadows everything I’ve ever done. I refer to the two of you by the term ‘legends’ because I know you guys have done it all and don’t have much more to do. But this isn’t 2009 anymore, Steve. But the only hugely successful thing you’ve done since I got here was actually winning Call to Arms, which you won with a literal All-Star team. And even then, you were pinned by Betsy. You were an early out in the FIRESIDE New Year, New Me Battle Royal, and then again in the XHF Rumble. You failed to win the NPW Openweight Tournament, and my first exposure to you was having a short but not very memorable run in J-ROK. You’ve been living off the name Steve Awesome, former X*Crown Champion, and you’ve still been getting everything you ever wanted until the bell rings at least. You are coasting on the easy path of life just like your BANG Bros compadre. One of the first times you appeared on camera for NPW, a limo was there within seconds. Hell, your nickname is that you are the Face of the Franchise, despite the fact you haven’t recently remained in any company long enough to actually become that. Everyone throws all the money they can to sign Steve Awesome to show up for a few matches until he decides he can make more money elsewhere. It’s why you jumped ship from J-ROK to NPW, right? Was that your main goal when you were in the Fireside Battle Royal… get a quick championship and have that for leverage to suck Caffrey dry for a contract? Even now, when Donny decides he was going to talk down to us and then back out, Kanyon hands you an XHF Tag Team Championship to come face us. At this point, these titles have hot potato’d to the point where no one who won the FIRESIDE belts at Blaze of Glory is even in this match.
“I don’t have any of those luxuries. I have to earn every single paycheck from every single match to pay for things like my two-bedroom house. I entered several opportunities to try to make a name for myself such as End of Days, NLW G1, hell, I joined a birthday party tournament for someone I’ve never actually met… though ironically, it was Joe Nobody… just to prove myself against everything the Network’s got! I drive a six-year-old Chevy Impala that has a few dings on the passenger side door. I had to start off at the bottom of the card here in AWF and work my way up to the main event, all in a single year. I suffered great losses and earned glorious victories. The only thing protecting me day-to-day is me and myself. Dinner tonight? Spaghetti and meatballs with a sauce made from tomatoes I grew myself. Hell, everything you see in this backyard is something I did myself with hammers and saws and power drills.
“Everything I’ve ever earned in my life, I had to work and work and work… just to get every little bit of satisfaction I can from it. And that includes what happened last March… when I got this…”
Sanders slightly lifts the AWF Prestige Championship and looks at it for a moment.
“I knew that this was a culmination of everything I’ve had thrown at me since I got here in the XHF Network. I am not the same man had I not gone through all those hard times. I might not have become Prestige Champion. I might not be a man worth worrying about in this XHF Tag Team division.
“But those moments strengthened me. I chose to have it make me a stronger competitor and a stronger man, instead of giving up when the goings got rough. When weaker men would have quit, I kept going. All the pain, the agony, the disappointment… I didn’t let it break me. And I won’t let it break me this time. I won’t let YOU break me either, Mr. President. And you will see just how strong all of these hardships have made me, Steve.
“I saw your first announcement after our challenge was put forth. President Kanyon was bragging about Fireside being the best company in the world while AWF is closing, like the damn logo on the ring apron means absolutely anything. Remember, Steve is in NPW.
“AWF was around for years and years and years. Fireside is still less than a year old. Yes, they have two of the three Global Championships. It’s a good company that is on the list of companies we are considering once AWF’s closure arrives, along with NLW, FWA, and J-ROK. But the other Global is here: Bloodied Fox’s Junior Heavyweight Championship. There was once a point where AWF had those tag titles with LGBTKO. The X*Crown spent a lot of time here between Seth Dillinger, Bobby Barrett, Michael Storm, Jason Long, and Jack Diamond. The company that these belts go to is completely cyclical and doesn’t mean the company is some sort of sacred ground. Some other company will hold each belt sooner or later, and that doesn’t make Fireside any lesser of a company when that moment comes.
“But Fireside has its faults just like any other company. The owner likes the spotlight so much, he has a tendency to appear for every second of camera time he can muster. He hands out opportunities way too easily like just winning a Global match against anyone getting them a title shot, which makes it less work to truly earn title shots. AWF is not perfect either. Have you met Terry Bradshaw? Have you seen the kind of turnover ratio this company has had? I am not delusional, but every company is going to have its quirks that make it unique.
“But do you know what AWF is presenting to me and Betsy? We’re not going to Overheated because we have another avenue for a shot at the X*Crown. And it’s right here.”
Instead of a slight lift of the belt, Adam raises the belt for the camera to clearly see it.
“One of us will be getting a one-on-one opportunity for it at some point. Call to Arms was merely another crack at it.
“And don’t forget that I can take another crack at you two either. Impossibly Awkward is not the only tag team I have the points to challenge for the belts. Beat me and Betsy? Fine. I’m coming back at you with Adrien right after. I just need two more matches with Betsy to get the requisite points again and keep coming, and keep coming I will. You think you’re rid of me if you survive this match? You’re not. I’ll keep fighting until I reach my goal. No matter the pain, suffering, and hardships you bring upon me. I don’t care how many times you knock me down. I’ll keep getting back up.
“If you think this is impossible for us to win, if you think you’re completely unbeatable then you’ll have to deal with the very awkward feeling of watching me and Betsy holding up those tag belts when that bell rings. And remember this: if one of you two walk out of Night of Champions with the X*Crown…
“One of us will be waiting for you again.”
Bonnie Jenkins: “YOUR WINNERS AND EARNING SPOTS IN THE X*CROWN QUALIFIERS FOR NIGHT OF CHAMPIONS AT OVERHEATED … CURTIS KANYON, STEVE AWESOME, SPIKE KANE, DONNY DEVILLE, AND EL COMBATIENTE … THE BANG BROS!”
Adam Sanders watches on the monitor as XHF Tag Team Champion Curtis Kanyon lifts his arms in the air after becoming the sole survivor for Call to Arms. Knowing that his team eliminated Adam’s gave the feeling a slightly bitter taste in his mouth, now that Adam will be going after Kanyon’s XHF Tag Team Championship.
Adam: “This is going to be one hell of an uphill battle.”
It was like a sudden rush that went to his head that made him realize that he and his best friend, Betsy Granger, are going to be major underdogs taking on the Unique Stud Alliance, assuming they get past Kira Izumi and Carnivore. Which Adam feels like they will…
Beside him, Betsy Granger watches the screen like a hawk, unconsciously grinding her teeth together. Her fists clench and unclench repeatedly as she watches the Bang Bros, the rest of whom have joined Kanyon in the ring, celebrate together, lifting him onto their shoulders.
Betsy: “Hail the conquering hero…”
There’s a bitter edge to her tone that Adam recognizes immediately.
Adam: “President Kanyon is considered to be one of the biggest legends here in the Network. I didn’t think this would ever become the obstacle we’d have to encounter. He won the X*Crown years ago. I always saw him as part of the Network’s past while he was focusing on his political career.”
Sanders still has his eyes glued to the television screen, in disbelief that they let this team eliminate Adam and Betsy, knowing that this was their likely XHF Tag Team Championship opponents. Betsy tips her head as she focuses on both members of the Unique Stud Alliance.
Betsy: “They may have won the night, but they have no idea what they’re in for when the two of them-”
She jabs her thumb at the monitor as she turns to face Adam. Fire is lighting up her emerald eyes now.
Betsy: “-take on the two of us. They’d be fools to think tonight’s performance is in any way indicative to how WE-”
Now she taps her chest before tapping Adam’s as well.
Betsy: “-function as a unit. So this-”
She sweeps her arms out around them now, spinning in a small circle.
Betsy: “-this is merely a bump in the road. They can have this night, I hope they celebrate their hearts out. They’ve earned it. Soon enough, we’ll have their belts.”
Adam looks on at the championship belt on the screen. This was the next goal. Impossibly Awkward… and the seemingly impossible challenge to become the XHF Tag Team Champions.
Adam: “We can do this. It won’t be easy. It’ll be one of the biggest hurdles either of us has ever faced. But I know it in my heart…”
For the first time, Adam moves his eyes from the monitor to the eyes of his best friend.
Adam: “We can be the ones to unseat them. We can be the next XHF Tag Team Champions. I know we can.”
Stepping up to Adam again, she meets his big brown eyes. Something about his tone catches her ear; subtle, but she was attuned to it now. A gentle expression crosses her face as she touches his shoulder.
Betsy: “Who are you trying to convince right now?”
Adam: “Honestly… myself…”
Betsy: “It’s okay, Adam… I’m a bit shaken up about this myself. I thought for sure we would get farther in this stupid thing than we did. I expected us to be in a better position when we had Eddie issue the challenge for us. But…”
Sliding her hand down his arm, she takes his and squeezes it gently.
Betsy: “I believe in us. And I know we can do this; and even if we don’t get it done this time, we’ll have other opportunities. It’s just that… Well, we’re not going to have to worry about that. Because Impossibly Awkward is here to make the impossible happen.”
Adam nods his head as Betsy squeezes his hand again.
Adam: “I sure hope so. Because after everything that’s happened, losing to them again would be really… well, awkward for our run as a tag team here in the XHF.”
“I stand before you in a precarious position. When it comes to my history of pursuing Global Championships… let’s just say the journey has not been kind to me, to date anyway. It’s a narrative I’m aware of and one that I’m going to change.”
Adam Sanders gives a slight nod to the camera from his backyard in Asheville, North Carolina.
“I know there is a famous speech from a wrestling legend from before I was born that spoke about hard times. I’m not going to recite it, but I know you’re familiar with it. Let me tell you, I’ve been through some hard times. I nearly got my head taken off by Brad Swann. I had a stable of wrestlers aim to try to remove me from AWF and wrestling altogether. After my last two attempts at earning an X*Crown shot ended with me falling short after literally being stabbed by the same man, both at the End of Days semifinals and my qualifying match at Battle for Hegemony. I’m being forced to face my tag team partner and best friend on this final AWF show for our Prestige Championship, a little factoid you two shouldn’t worry about since there is an unbreakable bond and trust between me and Betsy Granger.
“But what’s that saying again? ‘Hard times create strong men, strong men create good times, good times create weak men, weak men create hard times.’
“What hard times have you been going through, Mr. President? You take on the presidency without having to win an election for the seat. You have a lifetime protection of Secret Service agents and a pension for life. You walk into Fireside and immediately are handed the championship to replace Joe Nobody as Deville’s tag team partner. And then you literally hand Steve Awesome the XHF Tag Team Championship. What was it Donny said to Joe Nobody? You saved him from the millions of dollars, cars, women, screaming fans, press tours, and posters with your face on it.
“You walk into Call to Arms with every legend in this industry you could think of, getting people who don’t have to work constantly every show to advance their career, living off how big their names are to jump in immediately to get their name in the hat for the X*Crown Championship just because they did it all and get to relax beside the pools in their giant houses and mansions, driving fancy cars and eating lobster tails and drinking the finest of wines. Hell, Spike Kane just finally signed to be on a roster again for the first time in forever but was already in Overheated before he did. El Combatiente resurfaced out of nowhere after being gone for what felt like months. Steve has been in NPW for, what, six weeks? All legends and very talented people, but they just decided to come back when the opportunity for the X*Crown was there for them.
“And that brings me to you, Steve. Former X*Crown Champion, last XHF United States Champion, and like Curtis Kanyon, this isn’t your first time holding the XHF Tag Team Championship. Just your nCw career overshadows everything I’ve ever done. I refer to the two of you by the term ‘legends’ because I know you guys have done it all and don’t have much more to do. But this isn’t 2009 anymore, Steve. But the only hugely successful thing you’ve done since I got here was actually winning Call to Arms, which you won with a literal All-Star team. And even then, you were pinned by Betsy. You were an early out in the FIRESIDE New Year, New Me Battle Royal, and then again in the XHF Rumble. You failed to win the NPW Openweight Tournament, and my first exposure to you was having a short but not very memorable run in J-ROK. You’ve been living off the name Steve Awesome, former X*Crown Champion, and you’ve still been getting everything you ever wanted until the bell rings at least. You are coasting on the easy path of life just like your BANG Bros compadre. One of the first times you appeared on camera for NPW, a limo was there within seconds. Hell, your nickname is that you are the Face of the Franchise, despite the fact you haven’t recently remained in any company long enough to actually become that. Everyone throws all the money they can to sign Steve Awesome to show up for a few matches until he decides he can make more money elsewhere. It’s why you jumped ship from J-ROK to NPW, right? Was that your main goal when you were in the Fireside Battle Royal… get a quick championship and have that for leverage to suck Caffrey dry for a contract? Even now, when Donny decides he was going to talk down to us and then back out, Kanyon hands you an XHF Tag Team Championship to come face us. At this point, these titles have hot potato’d to the point where no one who won the FIRESIDE belts at Blaze of Glory is even in this match.
“I don’t have any of those luxuries. I have to earn every single paycheck from every single match to pay for things like my two-bedroom house. I entered several opportunities to try to make a name for myself such as End of Days, NLW G1, hell, I joined a birthday party tournament for someone I’ve never actually met… though ironically, it was Joe Nobody… just to prove myself against everything the Network’s got! I drive a six-year-old Chevy Impala that has a few dings on the passenger side door. I had to start off at the bottom of the card here in AWF and work my way up to the main event, all in a single year. I suffered great losses and earned glorious victories. The only thing protecting me day-to-day is me and myself. Dinner tonight? Spaghetti and meatballs with a sauce made from tomatoes I grew myself. Hell, everything you see in this backyard is something I did myself with hammers and saws and power drills.
“Everything I’ve ever earned in my life, I had to work and work and work… just to get every little bit of satisfaction I can from it. And that includes what happened last March… when I got this…”
Sanders slightly lifts the AWF Prestige Championship and looks at it for a moment.
“I knew that this was a culmination of everything I’ve had thrown at me since I got here in the XHF Network. I am not the same man had I not gone through all those hard times. I might not have become Prestige Champion. I might not be a man worth worrying about in this XHF Tag Team division.
“But those moments strengthened me. I chose to have it make me a stronger competitor and a stronger man, instead of giving up when the goings got rough. When weaker men would have quit, I kept going. All the pain, the agony, the disappointment… I didn’t let it break me. And I won’t let it break me this time. I won’t let YOU break me either, Mr. President. And you will see just how strong all of these hardships have made me, Steve.
“I saw your first announcement after our challenge was put forth. President Kanyon was bragging about Fireside being the best company in the world while AWF is closing, like the damn logo on the ring apron means absolutely anything. Remember, Steve is in NPW.
“AWF was around for years and years and years. Fireside is still less than a year old. Yes, they have two of the three Global Championships. It’s a good company that is on the list of companies we are considering once AWF’s closure arrives, along with NLW, FWA, and J-ROK. But the other Global is here: Bloodied Fox’s Junior Heavyweight Championship. There was once a point where AWF had those tag titles with LGBTKO. The X*Crown spent a lot of time here between Seth Dillinger, Bobby Barrett, Michael Storm, Jason Long, and Jack Diamond. The company that these belts go to is completely cyclical and doesn’t mean the company is some sort of sacred ground. Some other company will hold each belt sooner or later, and that doesn’t make Fireside any lesser of a company when that moment comes.
“But Fireside has its faults just like any other company. The owner likes the spotlight so much, he has a tendency to appear for every second of camera time he can muster. He hands out opportunities way too easily like just winning a Global match against anyone getting them a title shot, which makes it less work to truly earn title shots. AWF is not perfect either. Have you met Terry Bradshaw? Have you seen the kind of turnover ratio this company has had? I am not delusional, but every company is going to have its quirks that make it unique.
“But do you know what AWF is presenting to me and Betsy? We’re not going to Overheated because we have another avenue for a shot at the X*Crown. And it’s right here.”
Instead of a slight lift of the belt, Adam raises the belt for the camera to clearly see it.
“One of us will be getting a one-on-one opportunity for it at some point. Call to Arms was merely another crack at it.
“And don’t forget that I can take another crack at you two either. Impossibly Awkward is not the only tag team I have the points to challenge for the belts. Beat me and Betsy? Fine. I’m coming back at you with Adrien right after. I just need two more matches with Betsy to get the requisite points again and keep coming, and keep coming I will. You think you’re rid of me if you survive this match? You’re not. I’ll keep fighting until I reach my goal. No matter the pain, suffering, and hardships you bring upon me. I don’t care how many times you knock me down. I’ll keep getting back up.
“If you think this is impossible for us to win, if you think you’re completely unbeatable then you’ll have to deal with the very awkward feeling of watching me and Betsy holding up those tag belts when that bell rings. And remember this: if one of you two walk out of Night of Champions with the X*Crown…
“One of us will be waiting for you again.”