Post by Thomas Snow on Jul 28, 2019 13:36:29 GMT -5
"C'mon, Tommy! Pick it up!"
*THUD*
Thomas Snow was laid flat on his back by a stiff clothesline.
"You'll never win that battle royal if you can't even beat me!"
The woman hurling the trash talk picked Thomas up and whipped him into the corner. She charged him but Thomas was able to duck out of the way of her high knee attempt. Before she could react, he jumped up and flipped her over with a monkey flip.
"There you go, dude!" The woman said as she staggered to her feet. "Gimme more of-"
She was cut off by Snow flying off the top rope and hitting her with a Meteora. He grabbed her by the shirt and pulled her to her feet. Snow dragged her to the ropes and tossed her over the top rope, allowing her to land safely on the ring apron.
Before she could react, Thomas launched off the ropes and hit her with a triangle dropkick, knocking her to the floor.
"Ow!"
"You okay, Si?" Thomas asked as he climbed out of the ring and came to his friend's side.
"Yeah, just landed on my butt," his friend, Sierra, said. "I'd be better if you would get your eliminations down right."
"What do you mean? I thought that dropkick was pretty good."
"Never leave your feet in a battle royal! Never ever ever!"
"Oh, yeah... Good point."
"Go for that dropkick against a real wrestler and they'll catch and dump you."
The two got up and walked over to a set of bleachers where they had left their stuff and sat down to rest.
"You're looking pretty good. Just try to avoid flying, that'll kill you."
"Okay, got it. Anything else?"
"Yeah, I know how you are. Don't get cocky just because you're entering last. You and I both know that number 30 doesn't guarantee anything. Pasha has just as much of a statistical chance at winning as you do. Understand?"
"Understood."
"Then we're good."
The two sat in silence for a while, drinking from their water bottles. They had been friends since they were kids, bonded over their shared love for various things, pro wrestling chief among them. Sierra and Thomas began training together, even making their debut together as a tag team. However they were soon broken up after the bookers took note of Snow's natural abilities.
"So, what's it like? Being a big time superstar now."
"I'm not a 'big time wrestler'. I just got a lucky break."
"Dude, you were hand picked for this. You won in the first show's main event. You're in a marquee position in the world title battle royal."
"C'mon, Si. You're a better wrestler than I am and you know it."
"Yeah, well I don't have anyone knocking down my door trying to sign me, let alone a some big shot promotion like Trinity. I'm barely booked as is."
"Let me talk to Ms. Moore. I mean, after we figure out what Pandora did with her... But I'm sure I could-"
"Tommy, please. That's sweet of you but I kinda want to focus on school anyway."
"But-"
"Quit worrying about me, Tom. I'm all good. You just need to focus on kicking the asses of twenty nine poor souls and win that belt. Okay?"
"All right, fine."
Another stretch of silence washed over the room. Sierra eventually stole a glance at her friend, reading his face...
"What is it?"
"Hm?"
"I've known you since first grade, I know when something's on your mind."
"It's... nothing."
"Don't make me take you out again."
Sierra playfully punching Thomas' shoulder gently, causing them both to laugh lightly.
"Okay, okay, I give!"
"Tell me!"
"It's just... Something doesn't feel right about all this..."
"You're being groomed to be the face of a brand new company and you don't 'feel right'? Is the modest little Thomas Snow already becoming complacent?"
"No, I mean, ever since my dad started managing my career, things have just felt... different."
"Tommy, you do know you're an adult, right?"
"Yeah, but..."
"Listen, Tom, I know how it's been between you two since... you know. But you can't let him control your life anymore. You can't let him ruin this shot for you."
"But... I did win with his advice."
"You won because you're you. That promo you cut? Wasn't you."
"I've never been good at talk-"
"I know. But you're even worse when you try to be like your dad. You're too nice to be like your dad."
"Nobody is going to take me seriously if I look like I want to hug the guys rather than wrestle them."
"Bull. Look at that Pasha guy. You looked pretty intimidated against him and he hugs literally everyone."
"He also has two feet and more than three hundred pounds on me."
"...Touche… But my point is that you're not a bad guy. You're too sweet and nice for anyone to take you seriously. People like you for you. Don't be like him."
"...Maybe you're-"
Thomas was cut off by the piercing ring of his cell phone. He rummaged around in his bag until he retrieved it. His heart sank a little bit when the caller ID read "Dad".
"Hey, dad," he said, answering the phone.
"Where are you?"
"Training with Sierra."
"I thought we agreed to record your promo today."
"Yeah, but she's in town and-"
"Okay, great, and you've seen her. Now it's time to work."
"Maybe she can come with? Maybe give me pointers?"
"The only pointers you need will come from me. Got it?"
"*sigh* Yeah, dad. I got it."
"Good, I'll see you at the hotel."
"All right, I'll-"
*beep beep beep*
Thomas sighed and got up, rounding up his gear and stuffing it into his bag.
"Sorry, Si," he said, throwing his bag over his shoulder.
"Hey, it's whatever. I'll be at the show so I'll see you then."
The two hugged each other and said their goodbyes. Thomas waved as he walked out of the gym while Sierra began to pack up her things.
A short Uber ride later and Thomas arrived back at his hotel. Waiting for him as he walked into his room was his father, looking rather impatient.
"Sorry, I-"
"Don't be sorry. Let's just do this."
"Okay..."
"But first, I want to talk about your last match."
"Okay..."
"First. Your entrance was too weak. People have their opinion of you the second you step out. You know what my opinion was? I thought you looked like a naïve fool. You looked like a deer in the headlights. Like you've never wrestled before. And that music, Jesus Christ why did you pick that boyband shit?"
"I... like We The Kings?"
"It makes you look weak. You need something loud, something heavy. Something that tells everyone right away that you're a Snow and you're not afraid to make them bleed."
"All right, like what?"
"I'll handle that before your next show. It's too late to change that 'We're The Pussies' shit for this show so we're stuck with it. But I want you to know just how much that song sucked."
"Yeah, I got it."
"Second. You looked really sloppy in your match."
"But I won."
"You won because that fat Russian is even softer than you are. A capable wrestler like... Claire Hawkins or Terra Walker? Or a fucking broom? You would be eaten alive. You have to beat those fuckers like they owe you money, not like you're in kindergarten and someone took your juice. Get angry! Get mean! Do you fucking understand?!"
"Yeah... I do..."
"Good. Then let's get started. Get in front of the camera."
Thomas sighed and set his bag down on his bed as he positioned himself in front of the camera that was set up in between their two beds. He glanced at his father, awaiting his instructions.
"I got nothing for you. I want to see if anything I've taught you has sunk in. Cut those bastards down to size."
"All right..."
Alex walked behind the camera and adjusted the shot. He looked up to Thomas, confirming he's ready. Thomas nodded so Alex hit record.
Thomas' face went stern as he began speaking.
"Ladies and gentlemen. Tuesday, July 30th 2019 is a historic day. That day marks the official start of the hottest wrestling promotions today. And we're going to start with a bang! A battle royal featuring thirty of the best, brightest superstars this business has to offer. Wrestlers like Pasha, Trapson even-"
"Hold up, cut it!"
*sigh*
"I knew you couldn't handle this shit on your own."
Alex went over to the table between the beds and opened the drawer. He pulled out a few pieces of paper and handed them to his son.
"Read this, study it. Let me know when you're ready. And you'd better be ready and say it with conviction. Because you've wasted enough of my time tonight."
Thomas silently took the papers from Alex and sat down on his bed to begin reading. As he read, those familiar feelings began creeping back. Those feelings that told him something was off. What was once his lifelong dream of being a pro wrestler suddenly made him feel nothing.
After about an hour, Thomas set the papers down and got up in front of the camera again. Alex took his place behind the camera got it ready to record again. Thomas crossed his arms and wore a face of authority, betraying a small portion of uneasiness.
"Eyes up and ears open, everyone. Thomas Snow has something to say once again. Now, this Tuesday... we all know how important it is. We all know its the start of a new era! Yeah, Trinity Wrestling makes its official debut, but nobody cares about that. No, this new era is the Snow Era. This Tuesday I will run through twenty nine other parasites while on my way to the Trinity World title.
"I will let nothing stand in my way because nothing CAN get in my way. I am an athlete of the highest degree. Everyone thinks they have an edge on me because of my size and maybe they're right. But what I lack in size I make up for in pure wrestling ability, something that idiots like Pandora, Trapson, and Melancholy know nothing about. These are the people who think they can get along in this industry with mediocre talent and stupid names.
Wannabes like Cody Larson, Emmit Kraus, and Taysia Lattimore wish they had the talent necessary to lace up my boots, let alone compete with me on a wrestling level. They jumped ship to Trinity to try and make a name for themselves right off the bat. Makes sense, I did the same thing. The only difference is I don't just talk. I have more than what it takes to back it up.
"Proof? I not only took that giant Russian Pasha to his limit, I chopped him down, kicked his ass, put him in his place. A modern day David and Goliath! Now let me tell you, Pasha is a fine competitor, but I am leagues ahead of him on every single level. A man who is bigger than literally everyone on the roster was done in by some kid who nobody takes seriously...
"Can you hear me now?
That brings me to the likes of Solomon Graham, Irina Ivanova, and Kandi Washington. Invading Trinity representing every obscure promotion imaginable. They think they can put their home feds on the map by taking the Trinity World title from me. Hell will freeze over and the sun will explode before that happens. You will have to kill me if you want to throw me over that top rope.
"The last two people I am going to talk about is Claire Hawkins and Terra Walker. That's because everyone else is entirely irrelevant. More than half of this field isn't even worthy enough to wash my car. They couldn't even beat Pasha, let alone make it all the way to me. So if you're watching this and you're one of the many I neglected, don't take it personally... or do. I could not care less.
"Now, back to Hawkins and Walker. These two ladies are the only competitors that I feel can give me any sort of run for my money. Even then, I'm not worried about a couple of women. Don't get me wrong, I'm well aware of their individual accomplishments, but here in Trinity Wrestling, they have done nothing of note. Meanwhile I've already made my mark and I'm only going to improve upon my success by winning the battle royal and the Trinity World title. The rest of you can fight over the Nomad title, but I will be the one standing tall In the end. Why? Because I am a Snow. And Snows are nothing but winners.
"Bring. The. Blizzard."
"Great work, kid. That's what I wanted to see," Alex said, hitting stop on the camera.
"Thanks... Hey, I'm gonna go for a walk, maybe call Sierra."
"Fine, I'm going to work on this. Don't be too late."
Thomas nodded, grabbed his phone, and walked out. As soon as the door closed behind him, he sat against the wall in the hallway, finally releasing the breath he had been holding since he finished his promo.
This isn't how he imagined things would go...
FIN
*THUD*
Thomas Snow was laid flat on his back by a stiff clothesline.
"You'll never win that battle royal if you can't even beat me!"
The woman hurling the trash talk picked Thomas up and whipped him into the corner. She charged him but Thomas was able to duck out of the way of her high knee attempt. Before she could react, he jumped up and flipped her over with a monkey flip.
"There you go, dude!" The woman said as she staggered to her feet. "Gimme more of-"
She was cut off by Snow flying off the top rope and hitting her with a Meteora. He grabbed her by the shirt and pulled her to her feet. Snow dragged her to the ropes and tossed her over the top rope, allowing her to land safely on the ring apron.
Before she could react, Thomas launched off the ropes and hit her with a triangle dropkick, knocking her to the floor.
"Ow!"
"You okay, Si?" Thomas asked as he climbed out of the ring and came to his friend's side.
"Yeah, just landed on my butt," his friend, Sierra, said. "I'd be better if you would get your eliminations down right."
"What do you mean? I thought that dropkick was pretty good."
"Never leave your feet in a battle royal! Never ever ever!"
"Oh, yeah... Good point."
"Go for that dropkick against a real wrestler and they'll catch and dump you."
The two got up and walked over to a set of bleachers where they had left their stuff and sat down to rest.
"You're looking pretty good. Just try to avoid flying, that'll kill you."
"Okay, got it. Anything else?"
"Yeah, I know how you are. Don't get cocky just because you're entering last. You and I both know that number 30 doesn't guarantee anything. Pasha has just as much of a statistical chance at winning as you do. Understand?"
"Understood."
"Then we're good."
The two sat in silence for a while, drinking from their water bottles. They had been friends since they were kids, bonded over their shared love for various things, pro wrestling chief among them. Sierra and Thomas began training together, even making their debut together as a tag team. However they were soon broken up after the bookers took note of Snow's natural abilities.
"So, what's it like? Being a big time superstar now."
"I'm not a 'big time wrestler'. I just got a lucky break."
"Dude, you were hand picked for this. You won in the first show's main event. You're in a marquee position in the world title battle royal."
"C'mon, Si. You're a better wrestler than I am and you know it."
"Yeah, well I don't have anyone knocking down my door trying to sign me, let alone a some big shot promotion like Trinity. I'm barely booked as is."
"Let me talk to Ms. Moore. I mean, after we figure out what Pandora did with her... But I'm sure I could-"
"Tommy, please. That's sweet of you but I kinda want to focus on school anyway."
"But-"
"Quit worrying about me, Tom. I'm all good. You just need to focus on kicking the asses of twenty nine poor souls and win that belt. Okay?"
"All right, fine."
Another stretch of silence washed over the room. Sierra eventually stole a glance at her friend, reading his face...
"What is it?"
"Hm?"
"I've known you since first grade, I know when something's on your mind."
"It's... nothing."
"Don't make me take you out again."
Sierra playfully punching Thomas' shoulder gently, causing them both to laugh lightly.
"Okay, okay, I give!"
"Tell me!"
"It's just... Something doesn't feel right about all this..."
"You're being groomed to be the face of a brand new company and you don't 'feel right'? Is the modest little Thomas Snow already becoming complacent?"
"No, I mean, ever since my dad started managing my career, things have just felt... different."
"Tommy, you do know you're an adult, right?"
"Yeah, but..."
"Listen, Tom, I know how it's been between you two since... you know. But you can't let him control your life anymore. You can't let him ruin this shot for you."
"But... I did win with his advice."
"You won because you're you. That promo you cut? Wasn't you."
"I've never been good at talk-"
"I know. But you're even worse when you try to be like your dad. You're too nice to be like your dad."
"Nobody is going to take me seriously if I look like I want to hug the guys rather than wrestle them."
"Bull. Look at that Pasha guy. You looked pretty intimidated against him and he hugs literally everyone."
"He also has two feet and more than three hundred pounds on me."
"...Touche… But my point is that you're not a bad guy. You're too sweet and nice for anyone to take you seriously. People like you for you. Don't be like him."
"...Maybe you're-"
Thomas was cut off by the piercing ring of his cell phone. He rummaged around in his bag until he retrieved it. His heart sank a little bit when the caller ID read "Dad".
"Hey, dad," he said, answering the phone.
"Where are you?"
"Training with Sierra."
"I thought we agreed to record your promo today."
"Yeah, but she's in town and-"
"Okay, great, and you've seen her. Now it's time to work."
"Maybe she can come with? Maybe give me pointers?"
"The only pointers you need will come from me. Got it?"
"*sigh* Yeah, dad. I got it."
"Good, I'll see you at the hotel."
"All right, I'll-"
*beep beep beep*
Thomas sighed and got up, rounding up his gear and stuffing it into his bag.
"Sorry, Si," he said, throwing his bag over his shoulder.
"Hey, it's whatever. I'll be at the show so I'll see you then."
The two hugged each other and said their goodbyes. Thomas waved as he walked out of the gym while Sierra began to pack up her things.
A short Uber ride later and Thomas arrived back at his hotel. Waiting for him as he walked into his room was his father, looking rather impatient.
"Sorry, I-"
"Don't be sorry. Let's just do this."
"Okay..."
"But first, I want to talk about your last match."
"Okay..."
"First. Your entrance was too weak. People have their opinion of you the second you step out. You know what my opinion was? I thought you looked like a naïve fool. You looked like a deer in the headlights. Like you've never wrestled before. And that music, Jesus Christ why did you pick that boyband shit?"
"I... like We The Kings?"
"It makes you look weak. You need something loud, something heavy. Something that tells everyone right away that you're a Snow and you're not afraid to make them bleed."
"All right, like what?"
"I'll handle that before your next show. It's too late to change that 'We're The Pussies' shit for this show so we're stuck with it. But I want you to know just how much that song sucked."
"Yeah, I got it."
"Second. You looked really sloppy in your match."
"But I won."
"You won because that fat Russian is even softer than you are. A capable wrestler like... Claire Hawkins or Terra Walker? Or a fucking broom? You would be eaten alive. You have to beat those fuckers like they owe you money, not like you're in kindergarten and someone took your juice. Get angry! Get mean! Do you fucking understand?!"
"Yeah... I do..."
"Good. Then let's get started. Get in front of the camera."
Thomas sighed and set his bag down on his bed as he positioned himself in front of the camera that was set up in between their two beds. He glanced at his father, awaiting his instructions.
"I got nothing for you. I want to see if anything I've taught you has sunk in. Cut those bastards down to size."
"All right..."
Alex walked behind the camera and adjusted the shot. He looked up to Thomas, confirming he's ready. Thomas nodded so Alex hit record.
Thomas' face went stern as he began speaking.
"Ladies and gentlemen. Tuesday, July 30th 2019 is a historic day. That day marks the official start of the hottest wrestling promotions today. And we're going to start with a bang! A battle royal featuring thirty of the best, brightest superstars this business has to offer. Wrestlers like Pasha, Trapson even-"
"Hold up, cut it!"
*sigh*
"I knew you couldn't handle this shit on your own."
Alex went over to the table between the beds and opened the drawer. He pulled out a few pieces of paper and handed them to his son.
"Read this, study it. Let me know when you're ready. And you'd better be ready and say it with conviction. Because you've wasted enough of my time tonight."
Thomas silently took the papers from Alex and sat down on his bed to begin reading. As he read, those familiar feelings began creeping back. Those feelings that told him something was off. What was once his lifelong dream of being a pro wrestler suddenly made him feel nothing.
After about an hour, Thomas set the papers down and got up in front of the camera again. Alex took his place behind the camera got it ready to record again. Thomas crossed his arms and wore a face of authority, betraying a small portion of uneasiness.
"Eyes up and ears open, everyone. Thomas Snow has something to say once again. Now, this Tuesday... we all know how important it is. We all know its the start of a new era! Yeah, Trinity Wrestling makes its official debut, but nobody cares about that. No, this new era is the Snow Era. This Tuesday I will run through twenty nine other parasites while on my way to the Trinity World title.
"I will let nothing stand in my way because nothing CAN get in my way. I am an athlete of the highest degree. Everyone thinks they have an edge on me because of my size and maybe they're right. But what I lack in size I make up for in pure wrestling ability, something that idiots like Pandora, Trapson, and Melancholy know nothing about. These are the people who think they can get along in this industry with mediocre talent and stupid names.
Wannabes like Cody Larson, Emmit Kraus, and Taysia Lattimore wish they had the talent necessary to lace up my boots, let alone compete with me on a wrestling level. They jumped ship to Trinity to try and make a name for themselves right off the bat. Makes sense, I did the same thing. The only difference is I don't just talk. I have more than what it takes to back it up.
"Proof? I not only took that giant Russian Pasha to his limit, I chopped him down, kicked his ass, put him in his place. A modern day David and Goliath! Now let me tell you, Pasha is a fine competitor, but I am leagues ahead of him on every single level. A man who is bigger than literally everyone on the roster was done in by some kid who nobody takes seriously...
"Can you hear me now?
That brings me to the likes of Solomon Graham, Irina Ivanova, and Kandi Washington. Invading Trinity representing every obscure promotion imaginable. They think they can put their home feds on the map by taking the Trinity World title from me. Hell will freeze over and the sun will explode before that happens. You will have to kill me if you want to throw me over that top rope.
"The last two people I am going to talk about is Claire Hawkins and Terra Walker. That's because everyone else is entirely irrelevant. More than half of this field isn't even worthy enough to wash my car. They couldn't even beat Pasha, let alone make it all the way to me. So if you're watching this and you're one of the many I neglected, don't take it personally... or do. I could not care less.
"Now, back to Hawkins and Walker. These two ladies are the only competitors that I feel can give me any sort of run for my money. Even then, I'm not worried about a couple of women. Don't get me wrong, I'm well aware of their individual accomplishments, but here in Trinity Wrestling, they have done nothing of note. Meanwhile I've already made my mark and I'm only going to improve upon my success by winning the battle royal and the Trinity World title. The rest of you can fight over the Nomad title, but I will be the one standing tall In the end. Why? Because I am a Snow. And Snows are nothing but winners.
"Bring. The. Blizzard."
"Great work, kid. That's what I wanted to see," Alex said, hitting stop on the camera.
"Thanks... Hey, I'm gonna go for a walk, maybe call Sierra."
"Fine, I'm going to work on this. Don't be too late."
Thomas nodded, grabbed his phone, and walked out. As soon as the door closed behind him, he sat against the wall in the hallway, finally releasing the breath he had been holding since he finished his promo.
This isn't how he imagined things would go...
FIN