Post by Haunting Curse on Apr 10, 2024 15:53:56 GMT -6
Shortly after NEXTGEN #010
We fade into a corridor in the bowels of the arena. There is an upturned folding table and a water cooler strewn across the floor, its contents seeping out to each wall. Professor Charles Birch steps over the puddle and sighs heavily. He lifts the table up and begins fiddling with the hinge of the metal legs before Samantha Lyric steps into view.
Lyric: Hello again Professor.
Birch: Oh, hello, my dear. I, uh, must apologize on behalf of my "client" for the mess.
She surveys the chaos with her eyebrows raised.
Lyric: I guess someone wasn't very happy with that main event.
Birch: No... to the Curse, NEXTGEN #010 was a glorious ceremony ruined by a thief.
Lyric: I mean, Tori won the match. If your boy wasn't busy throwing hands at ZERO then maybe -
Birch: Yes, I know. It doesn't think like you or me - that much should be evident.
He stoops to pick up a few plastic cups and places them on the table.
Birch: We must be grateful its rage was only towards the inanimate. This time.
Lyric: Professor, I gotta ask you - what's with the "it"? Haunting Curse is male, right?
Birch: Well the host is male. But the Curse itself... well from what I gather, the Curse is a genderless spirit without a body of its own. So it must act through a vessel. The Amazonian tribes say it can be a mammal, reptile, or human.
With a puzzled expression, Samantha cocks her head to one side.
Lyric: Like a demonic possession... but then who's the host?
There is a flicker of panic in the eyes of the Professor.
Birch: Perhaps another time, Miss Lyric - I have a flight to catch.
---
Present day
We cut to a close shot of Professor Charles Birch. He is sat in a leather armchair with a floor-to-ceiling bookcase in the background. There is a notepad in his lap, which he glances down at for a moment before looking into the camera.
Birch: Greetings, Miss Taylor. First of all, congratulations on obtaining the NEXTGEN Championship. You must be delighted, and I suspect relieved - although you may not care to admit it. I have been reviewing footage from Duluth and have a couple of observations ahead of NEXTGEN #011, where you will not have the benefit of ZERO to distract Haunting Curse.
He adjusts his posture while scanning the notes again.
Birch: You utilized a submission hold to defeat Mr Simpson, and while I'm sure it is excruciating, I can't foresee Haunting Curse "tapping out" like a typical wrestler under such conditions. When you locked in that hold, Mr Simpson would have been thinking of his health and future income - perhaps even those dear to him. He knew it was better to give up and fight another day than risk the consequences of foolish pride. But the Curse doesn't fear injury, I don't even know if it can be injured. No, you will have to wrench until it passes out. You will have to drain the life from its host because it will not give up.
The Professor stops to hopefully let the warning sink in.
Birch: In the main event, you exhibited tremendous strength in hoisting Konstantine onto your shoulders. Haunting Curse is a similar build and so I expect you will attempt a similar feat, but do remember how your knee buckled under the strain of 280 lbs. Perhaps you were fortunate to fall into that pin or perhaps it was a display of technical finesse? While it finished the match, it didn't feel... conclusive. I'm not trying to discredit your victory but you didn't best ZERO, let alone Haunting Curse. Don't get me wrong, it was wise to slip away and leave the behemoths to fight one another, but you may come to regret taking that championship with you.
There is a solemn tone to his voice as he continues.
Birch: Now you must face the Curse in Oshkosh to earn what is currently in your possession. There will be no disqualifications to save you from its bloodlust. I wish you no ill-well, I just speak from its perspective. The NEXTGEN Championship was our tribute, it was supposed to crown an exhibition of its force. You spoiled that, and I fear you will pay for it; a brief reign should be the least of your concerns because the Curse is REAL.
We suddenly cut to static.
We fade into a corridor in the bowels of the arena. There is an upturned folding table and a water cooler strewn across the floor, its contents seeping out to each wall. Professor Charles Birch steps over the puddle and sighs heavily. He lifts the table up and begins fiddling with the hinge of the metal legs before Samantha Lyric steps into view.
Lyric: Hello again Professor.
Birch: Oh, hello, my dear. I, uh, must apologize on behalf of my "client" for the mess.
She surveys the chaos with her eyebrows raised.
Lyric: I guess someone wasn't very happy with that main event.
Birch: No... to the Curse, NEXTGEN #010 was a glorious ceremony ruined by a thief.
Lyric: I mean, Tori won the match. If your boy wasn't busy throwing hands at ZERO then maybe -
Birch: Yes, I know. It doesn't think like you or me - that much should be evident.
He stoops to pick up a few plastic cups and places them on the table.
Birch: We must be grateful its rage was only towards the inanimate. This time.
Lyric: Professor, I gotta ask you - what's with the "it"? Haunting Curse is male, right?
Birch: Well the host is male. But the Curse itself... well from what I gather, the Curse is a genderless spirit without a body of its own. So it must act through a vessel. The Amazonian tribes say it can be a mammal, reptile, or human.
With a puzzled expression, Samantha cocks her head to one side.
Lyric: Like a demonic possession... but then who's the host?
There is a flicker of panic in the eyes of the Professor.
Birch: Perhaps another time, Miss Lyric - I have a flight to catch.
---
Present day
We cut to a close shot of Professor Charles Birch. He is sat in a leather armchair with a floor-to-ceiling bookcase in the background. There is a notepad in his lap, which he glances down at for a moment before looking into the camera.
Birch: Greetings, Miss Taylor. First of all, congratulations on obtaining the NEXTGEN Championship. You must be delighted, and I suspect relieved - although you may not care to admit it. I have been reviewing footage from Duluth and have a couple of observations ahead of NEXTGEN #011, where you will not have the benefit of ZERO to distract Haunting Curse.
He adjusts his posture while scanning the notes again.
Birch: You utilized a submission hold to defeat Mr Simpson, and while I'm sure it is excruciating, I can't foresee Haunting Curse "tapping out" like a typical wrestler under such conditions. When you locked in that hold, Mr Simpson would have been thinking of his health and future income - perhaps even those dear to him. He knew it was better to give up and fight another day than risk the consequences of foolish pride. But the Curse doesn't fear injury, I don't even know if it can be injured. No, you will have to wrench until it passes out. You will have to drain the life from its host because it will not give up.
The Professor stops to hopefully let the warning sink in.
Birch: In the main event, you exhibited tremendous strength in hoisting Konstantine onto your shoulders. Haunting Curse is a similar build and so I expect you will attempt a similar feat, but do remember how your knee buckled under the strain of 280 lbs. Perhaps you were fortunate to fall into that pin or perhaps it was a display of technical finesse? While it finished the match, it didn't feel... conclusive. I'm not trying to discredit your victory but you didn't best ZERO, let alone Haunting Curse. Don't get me wrong, it was wise to slip away and leave the behemoths to fight one another, but you may come to regret taking that championship with you.
There is a solemn tone to his voice as he continues.
Birch: Now you must face the Curse in Oshkosh to earn what is currently in your possession. There will be no disqualifications to save you from its bloodlust. I wish you no ill-well, I just speak from its perspective. The NEXTGEN Championship was our tribute, it was supposed to crown an exhibition of its force. You spoiled that, and I fear you will pay for it; a brief reign should be the least of your concerns because the Curse is REAL.
We suddenly cut to static.