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[TKOW Board]

TKOW Title Match
Prince of Hell

Phoenix

vs

Carpenter

vs

Matt Griffen

vs

Tobias Burden

vs

Bob Lancelot

[Phoenix]

A feed begins to slowly cut in. It starts off as a static cut feed, then slowly focuses in to show the dank Phoenix Pit. The screen flickers between color and b&w, and there is just enough static left to make the darkness seem even more foreboding. We see a man alone in the dark room sitting opposite the camera, which is leaning on a slight slant. Through the grainy feed we can make out the rest of the Pit.

That man is sitting on a pile of busted tables, cracked kendo sticks, flattened trashcans, and dented chairs, among other weapons. Many of these are rusted and/or stained with blood. The pile is set in such a way that it resembles a throne. A black steel baseball bat leans on the side of the pile, within reach. The main light source in the room is a fire pit that is between him and the camera. In the far reaches of the room, flames dance high along the walls, creating an atmosphere like everything is burning.

Chains are hanging in various places in the Pit. One side of an HPWA Brutality Cage is leaning against the back wall. A black steel ladder is shown against the side wall, and dented chairs with names scratched in them are hanging like trophies. Names like 'Jacko', 'Hitman', 'Armageddon', 'Cobryn', 'Pagan', 'Haven', 'Sadler', 'Soulfly', 'Soutter', and three blackened and burnt chairs with 'Rave', 'D. Dynamite', and 'Soulfly'. Alongside them are replicas of nine title belts and the broken 2004 TKOW King of the Jungle trophy.

The man, shadowed in darkness, stares at the flames in front of him, entranced by the fire. A leather jacket is draped over the pile of weapons, and the fire shines off the TKOW "Fiery" Title. He is leaning back, his head resting on his fist.

Phoenix: Fourscore and... several weeks ago, our heads of fed brought us a new concept, an evil concept. A concept that, by it's very design, was made in the hopes that the bloated cancer known as the Church would eat itself alive facing the treatment of a Griffen, a Riot, and steel.

Instead, what we saw, what we experienced, was the very definition of being champion. We saw why I hold the TKOW Title. We saw why I've held it over a year. We saw why I am the only person on this roster, now, then, or ever, that can define what it means to be.

Phoenix swipes his hand across the TKOW Title, as if to dust it off.

Phoenix: TKOW Champion.

I suppose, in essence, it was a Brutality Cage Match. It was Matt Griffen's match to win, so long as Carpenter could be kept at bay. That, in and of itself, is not such an easy task, as Tobias Burden found out, the hard way.

Phoenix shifts on the weapons, sending a metal tube clanking to the floor.

Phoenix: I have to admit, though, that the match was strangely, invigorating. I haven't had nearly that much fun since Soulfly at New Era. And to think, we get to do it bigger, better, and uncut at Holiday Hell. A Pay Per View designed by the HPWA to end the year with style, with pinash, with great triumph and tragedy. An event created to test the limits of all involved. A match that had never been seen or heard of before.

This, true believers, is the ultimate. The Prince of Hell structure was one of a kind. Sure, TNA made it's bastard retarded cousin, the Elevation X, but who the hell cares whether Rhino or AJ Styles can knock the other off first? You saw them; they can barely stand up on the thing.

The screen becomes superimposed with a splitscreen; the left showing the Prince of Hell structure and the right showing the Elevation X ripoff.

Phoenix: No, fans, this is the Prince of Hell. The same steel. The same scaffolding. But we add fire. We add a timer. This isn't about knocking one opponent off a shaking pile of metal. This is about keeping others from knocking you away from the TKOW Title, hanging above the structure itself, in the middle of the X. This is about surviving the fall only to climb back to the top, brave the flames, and do it all over again until time runs out.

This is what HPWA and TKOW fans want. This is what TNA wished they could steal from us.

Friends turned enemies in a steel cage, with the winner being put through the cage wall rather than the normal means of escape?

We did it weeks before Rhino and Cage.

X shaped scaffolding made of steel?

We did it 15 months ago.

Imitation is truly the first form of flattery, but it's really fucking annoying.

The splitscreen fades away, as Phoenix leans forward.

Phoenix: What's going to happen, you may wonder, when the five of us, assuming Tobias stops being a pansy, put ourselves on that steel. When we avoid those flames. When we fall off to the mat, to the floor, or if we're lucky, through a table or two? When the top prize in the business is hanging there, over the X, waiting for the hands of it's Lord?

I think you know what's going to happen.

The Prince of Hell match has something special just for me. It has fire. Lots of fire. And if the commonfolk in TKOW have learned anything about me in all these years, it's that fire is Phoenix's best friend. Fire doesn't burn me. Fire doesn't consume me.

The fire empowers me. It urges me forward, those extra steps, that extra oomph, that rush of adrenaline that will be the difference between them being in my spot and me standing tall, holding that gold. Holding my gold.

The champion removes the title and holds it close to the camera.

Phoenix: Bob Lancelot, takea few steps closer to your tv screen. Closer... closer... ok that'll do.

Bob, this is the closest you'll ever come to my title. This is the closest you'll ever come to dreaming of defeating me. You claim to be Hardcore. You claim to be destructive. You claim to be the catalyst of all things explosive in this federation. Let me remind you of something Bob. I am the TKOW champion. That consolation prize you carry around with you wasn't even good enough to be my brothers paperweight. He gave you the damn thing back, Bob.

You couldn't beat Carpenter, Bob. You couldn't beat him with Dark Schnitzel and Claire's help, with all sorts of hardcore implents of devastation, in a ladder match, with that piece of crap on the line.

How do you plan to stand up to big brother, Bob? What is it you bring to my flaming table of pain and suffering that makes you think you can defeat a legend.

A myth.

A god.

Do yourself a favor Bob. Call in sick for Holiday Hell. Even if Tobias shows up, he's only going to buffer you from my brother for so long. You really think you can go around high horsing a title he gave you and not eventually suffer the consequences?

And Bob, don't even think of approaching me. I may not be Carpenter, but I have this, thing, against loud mouthed no talent hacks stinking up my main events. Why T.H. allowed you into this thing I couldn't begin to guess.

Phoenix lays down the title and sinks to his knees, his face looking pale and withdrawn.

Phoenix: I guess, then, that brings me to Matt Griffen.

Matt, I gave you a chance at MegaBowl V to stop me. I knew if anyone could, it would be you. And a steel cage, well, it was just perfect. And you ruined it Matt. You let your rage take over, again, and you ruined it all.

I suppose it was too much to hope, that you could take care of business early on, before things went south. But I did teach you, did train you, did toughen you up. Maybe one day the student can surpass the master. But that wasn't your day.

T.H. tried to help too, in his own way. You think I don't know that he set up last Mass Khaos' title match just for you? You think I couldn't comprehend that Section 8 was determined to flush me right out of TKOW?

But once again, the plan went sour. I suppose that adding Carpenter to the mix was a bad idea. Had he left Carpenter locked outside, maybe between you and Tobias I would be dethroned. Maybe I would be hurt, instead of poor Burden. Maybe you could have finally ascended.

Phoenix's lips curl into a sneer.

Phoenix: Or maybe you and Tobias would be so busy fighting over my scraps that I would have went Kevorkian on both your asses and TKOW wouldn't have had to hear any more of your incessant, childish, tear-filled monologues about how betrayed you feel.

Boo hoo Phoenix is hurting Aello waaa waaaa Phoenix attacked his friends sniffle sniffle why Phoenix why.

I'm ashamed of you Matt. I thought you were a man, not a pathetic, cowering little girl. For all these years you've been trailing my shadow, hoping one day I'd step aside and let you feel the light that I feel at the top. You've never, ever, had the sheer cahones to reach up and yank me the heck out of the way. You just sat back and waited for me to move, crying anytime something didn't go your way.

This is your final cry Matt. You failed in the steel cage. You failed in Brutality. You face me now on the gates of Hell. You may have survived this structure once, Matt, but you didn't have me staring across from you last time. You didn't have my title as the prize.

You're going to fall short again, Matt. You're going to fail.

I am the fire.

I am the steel.

You are an insignificant wretch, awaiting judgment.

The scriptures say "Let thy judgment be swift and merciful, O Lord".

No my scriptures.

The Church of Pain & Suffering's passage reads, a bit differently.

The Metatron: Let thy firey wrath awash those that sit in judgment, O Lord. Let the righteous be reduced to ashes. Let the good hearted flitter away in smoke. Share your pain with them, and let them recieve thy generous bounty of pure suffering.

Phoenix: So it was written.

So it shall be.

The Metatron: Let us pray.

Phoenix: Amen.

The shot fades to static.

[Bob Lancelot]

Bob Lancelot is shown backstage, he is wearing his usual getup of shades, a pair of jeans and a black Hardcore Superstar t-shirt. Bob's long brown hair looks greasy as if he hasn't washed it in a few weeks. Bob has the Television Championship belt draped over his left shoulder, the belt is covered in barbed wire and yellow "Do Not Cross" police tape. Bob removes his shades and looks smugly at the camera then raises the Television Championship up over his head with one arm.

Lancelot: You are looking at the longest reigning Television Champion in history. You are in the presence of a legend, and not just any legend - a hardcore legend.

Bob lowers the title and drapes it back over his shoulder.

Lancelot: I've been in the most violent of matches.... I've survived TLC.... I've survived Brutality Gauntlets....I've survived first blood matches...... but there is one match that I long to participate in, this match is fabled, the match is feared ......PRINCE...... OF ....... HELL.....the very sound of the words makes people shudder

Lancelot shrugs off the match like it is a pillow match.

Lancelot: I am the Hardcore Superstar Bob Lancelot, do you think I fear Prince Of Hell? Do you think I shudder at the sound of the words "Prince Of Hell"? I have been to hell and back - I kind of liked it. I have suffered at the hands of demons, I have bled in the presence of psychopaths, and I have triumphed against all the odds.

Bob looks at his left shoulder and the Television Championship, he smiles, he then looks across to his right shoulder and begins to speak.

Lancelot: I want it all. I want to reign supreme over TKOW, and to do that I need the TKOW Championship. To do that I need to overcome all the odds and win the Prince Of Hell match. I need to climb that scaffolding and stay in the center of it for as long as possible.

When Power put me in this match, everyone was shocked, everyone questioned Power's decision. "Can Bob do it?", "Can Bob become TKOW's first Double Crown Champion"?, "Can Bob survive against the likes of Phoenix, Burden, Griffen and Carpenter?".

People have always questioned me, it’s the way I like it. I will walk into that match the under dog but I will leave as your new TKOW Champion.

Bob grins, relishing the thought of becoming a Double Crown Champion.

Lancelot: My career is on the up, I will lead TKOW to victory in Federation Domination 2, I will be victorious at Holiday Hell and capture the TKOW Championship and I will become the first ever TKOW Double Crown Champion.

I will cement my name in the history of this company, I will cement my name in the history of this sport.....legendary status will be certified. I will be the biggest star this sport has ever known, my name will live on long after I am dead and gone. Few men gain immortality, but I will......"The Immortal" Bob Lancelot. Sounds nice.

I will destroy any man who stands in my way to get what I want, to get what I need....to get what I deserve.

I have spent many hours in my hotel room with a copy of the Holiday Hell 2005 DVD, I have spent many hours studying the last Prince Of Hell match - I know the inns and outs of the structure, I know the quickest ways to climb it, I know the best places to throw my opponent from - I know how to survive it. Kid Styles won the last Prince of Hell match. To do that he beat Carpenter, Duke McFilthy, Salazar Tyrenus, Matt Griffen and Ghalleon. What does Kid Styles have that The Hardcore Superstar doesn't? Kid had speed.... Kid had strength.... Kid had ingenuity.... but I have more, oh so much more. I don't play by the rules, I don't give a crap, I have double the speed of Kid Styles, I have double the strength and triple the ingenuity...and all that combined with my wit, good looks and boyish charm makes me the prime candidate to be standing tall as the Double Crown Champion at the end of Holiday Hell.

Lancelot smiles proudly to himself.

Lancelot: So before I end this tirade, I want to give one last message...no....one last warning to my opponents at Holiday Hell. Carp, Matt, Phoenix, and Toby.....Nobody is making you guys participate in this match, do you really want your careers to end at Holiday Hell? Do you really want to be remembered as the guys who were the stepping stone to Bob Lancelot's immortality? You have families surely? Do you want to put them through the agony of not having a son...a boyfriend....a husband....a father.....? Because by entering the Prince Of Hell match with me you are all putting your lives at risk. You could leave this match crippled, paralyzed or even dead. Do you want that responsibility on your shoulders? And what is it all for? A piece of gold on a leather strap....surely this is not worth your life?

So I ask you all...please stay at home on Sunday March 11th. Stay at home and watch as I climb to the top of the scaffold against whichever of you is foolish enough not to heed my warnings, and watch as I end their careers and make my career by becoming the TKOW Champion. Do what you must, but think it over carefully.

Bob shakes his head at the camera and then walks away.

[Kahlan - R.I.P.]

The scene opens up in a familiar training room, a familiar strawberry-blonde man once again taking out his frustrations on a large punch bag with his fists. His clothing is dampened and stained from his efforts and his hair is fairly much plastered to his head. He pauses and uses the towel draped around his neck to wipe away the sweat dripping into his eyes and the rest of his face. His breathing is heavy and fast. Many expressions run gamut over his features as he turns to the window to gaze out into the darkening landscape. The few people sharing the room go about their training normally.

The camera moves in and positions next to him for a profile view, although it also catches his faint, but deepening reflection in the glass as the last bit of daylight fades.

Matt: So… Burden is out of this round.

Griffen slowly shakes his head.

Matt: I hope he’s able to return soon. Being out on medical leave and not being able to do the thing you enjoy is difficult to take, especially after accomplishing something no one thought was possible.

He pauses, still looking out the glass, his breathing finally returning to normal.

Matt: Last year’s Holiday Hell there were six of us. The first to battle on the Prince of Hell structure—Salazar Tyrenus, Carpenter, Duke McFilthy, Ghalleon, Kid Styles, and myself. This year there would have been five, yet now we dwindle to four. Will that make the Prince of Hell less? I don’t think so. Burden would have been a great asset, but everyone knows those of us remaining in this battle will make it outstanding, worthy of the tradition of TKOW and HPWA.

Again, he uses the towel to wipe his face, this time rubbing it roughly into his hair. When he drops the towel to his chest once more, his hair stands rakishly in all directions.

Matt: Lancelot. This is his first real shot at attaining greatness. As cocky as he is, as much as he runs his mouth, declaring himself so great, here is his first real opportunity for the TKOW title. The guy has come a long way from his days in SCW. No one can deny that. Every match he has grown. Every match he has improved. Even in those he lost. Do I think he can win the Prince of Hell?

Reflecting in the mirror-like glass, his eyes look into the camera.

Matt: In all honestly, I think it depends upon what the other three of us are doing. It’s possible, but not likely. That’s not saying he won’t try. He will. He will do whatever it takes… as will the rest of us.

His jaw clenches. He turns his head to look at the camera, revealing the green of his eyes.

Matt: At the moment I’m torn about the Prince of Hell. Do I go for the win… or do I do what it is my instincts have been screaming for me to do the last several weeks? Phoenix knows what I’m saying.

Griffen turns back to the bag, adjusting the chains and hooks. When he speaks again, his voice is strained, filled with anger, derision and a touch of other strong and negative emotions.

Matt: “If you hurt her, I will hunt you down and kill you, and I’ll bring Murphy with me.” I remember those words, who said them, where and when. The same man now… is a hypocrite.

Griffen lets fly with a punch into the bag so hard that it swings several feet out. On its return he punches it again, killing its momentum.

Matt: What you did, Phoenix, is inexcusable. She is my family, not just Section 8. Someone lost to us since early childhood. The same blood runs in her veins and mine.

His nostrils flare and he breathes hard. His visible muscles tense. When he looks to the camera, his expression is a hard, cold one, completely contrary to his normal appearance.

Matt: You did more than hurt her. By your actions you nearly took her from us permanently. *sneering* Carpenter probably rejoiced and celebrated when you told him you nearly damn well killed her. You finally did something he could look up to you for.

His hands grip the large bag, his knuckles blanching white as his fingers dig into it. His voice is filled with a cold rage.

Matt: *growling* You don’t know how much I want to get my hands on you, to get my hands around your throat and choke you; How much I want to slam you from the top of the Prince of Hell structure… not to the mat, but to the floor, multiple times; how much I want to hear your bones crunch under my fists; how much I want to see you bleed, scream out in pain from your injuries and the burns you’ll receive from the flames when I hold you in them and your skin crackles and blackens and the fat drips from it.

I want to see you struggling to draw in a breath and not be able... no matter how hard you try. Just like she did.

He stops, overcome with his emotions, looking away from the camera. It takes him nearly a minute before he can continue, and when he does, his voice is more restrained, although still low and cold.

Matt: That’s what my instincts cry out for and demand. It doesn’t mean I’m a convert to the ways of The Church, Carpenter. Not by a long shot.

Revenge. It’s a simple concept. Someone does something bad to you, you do something bad to them in return. An eye for an eye and… a life for a life. So simple… only revenge never ends. It’s an endless spiraling cycle that teaches hatred and that violence is the first choice in resolving a situation.

His eyes finally look into the camera once more.

Matt: At the moment I’m at the closest to hating someone in my life as I have ever been; The only others being those who tortured Skye... for fun, much as you. Every person carries that darkness in them, some more than others. At times it rises up and overtakes and only the strong can survive, deny its demands, and use it to make ourselves stronger.

I don’t believe in revenge, but at the moment, it’s what I want. Whether I am in control come Holiday Hell or the darkness is, remains to be seen. Just know this… I won’t be the gentle giant that night whichever is, period.

[Bob Lancelot]

Bob Lancelot is in the Wrestleworld TV recording studio, he is sitting on a chair in front of a camera and wearing a pair of jeans and a black t-shirt, his hair looks cleaner than the last time we saw him, but it is still greasy. Across from Bob is Dave Hewitt, a reporter from the Wrestleworld TV channel. He is wearing a pair of thick rimmed glasses and a suit. The camera shows both men but then cuts to a front shot of the reporter.

Dave: Hello Wrestlefans! I'm Dave Hewitt and today on The Wrestle Hour we have highlights from Federation Domination 2, a clip of that now infamous Christian Cage promo from TNA Impact and a special behind the scenes look to see what happens backstage at a ROH show! But first let me introduce you to a man who has the chance to become the first Double Crown Champion in TKOW's history, this man will be participating in the Prince of Hell match at TKOW's Holiday Hell pay per view - he is the current Television Champion.... he is The Hardcore Superstar.... he is Bob Lancelot!

The camera cuts to Bob Lancelot.

Lancelot: Hi Dave, it’s nice to be here on Wrestleworld TV.

The camera cuts to Dave and Bob.

Dave: Thanks - let’s take a look at Bob in action!

We cut to a video package set to "Give It Away" by The Red Hot Chilli Peppers.

The video starts with clips of Bob walking to the ring and as the music picks up it shows Bob in matches against Carpenter, James Orich and Cypher. The video then shows Bob hitting the Swinging Bells on several opponents and then shows him hitting the Hardcore Shooting Star in the Brutality Gauntlet, the video goes on to show Bob and Claire making out with each other and then several clips of Claire flashing her Weapons of Mass Distraction to various people. The video continues to show clips on Bob taking extreme bumps through tables and off of ladders and finishes showing Bob holding up the Television Championship.

Dave: Impressive stuff there Bob. So, this Sunday you will be stepping into the Prince of Hell match against Carpenter, Matt Griffen and Phoenix. Any apprehension about going into such a brutal and dangerous match?

Lancelot: Yes, of course I will be apprehensive about going into this match, the very nature of the match is life threatening - having to survive on scaffolding twenty feet in the air when there are 3 other guys all wanting to throw you off the top of it definitely isn't good for your health. But it is a risk I am willing to take to get what I deserve, the TKOW World Championship.

Dave: Tobias Burden has already dropped out of this match due to injury....

Lancelot cuts Dave off.

Lancelot: Let me correct you there Dave, Burden didn't drop out because he was injured, that was just an excuse. Burden dropped out of this match because he was scared. Burden dropped out because he took warning from what I said, he took what I said seriously.... unlike the other people in this match. Burden knew what was good for him and so he pulled a sickie - but let me tell you something, Tobias Burden is nothing but a low down, yellow bellied coward.

Dave: Ok, I'll take your word for it. As I was saying, Tobias burden has already dropped out of this match due to........due to being afraid..... do you think there will be any more dropouts before Sunday?

Lancelot: If they know what is best for them then yes, there will be 3 more dropouts added to the list before Sunday....but there is no chance in hell that you will see The Hardcore Superstar on that list. I am climbing to the top of that scaffolding and securing my place in history.

Dave: Speaking of history, on Sunday you have the chance to become the first Double Crown Champion in TKOW history, holding both the TKOW Championship and the TKOW Television Championship at the same time. Whether or not this will be the case, you will still have to defend your Television Championship in two weeks at Mass Khaos against the last TKOW superstar left in the Got Wood Invitational, are you nervous about this defense?

Lancelot: Are you purposely trying to make me look bad live on national television? You shouldn't be questioning the abilities of The Hardcore Superstar Bob Lancelot, you should just be praising me..... I don't know the meaning of the word nervous! There is no way that anybody will take my Television Championship off of me, regardless whether they outlast 15 wrestlers to win the Got Wood Invitational or not.

Dave: How are you preparing for the Prince of Hell match?

Lancelot: I have taken up a part time job as a builder to get used to walking on scaffolding.......what the fuck do you think I am doing? I am preparing for this match like I would any other... doing weights, eating right, scouting my opponents and scouting this match type by watching old DVD's.

Dave: Your fiancé Claire has played a big role in some of your biggest victories to date using her "Weapons of Mass Distraction" as she calls them....how much of a role will Claire play this Sunday at Holiday Hell?

Lancelot: Claire will be at ringside like she is for most of my matches, and should she need to intervene to help me win, then she will - whether that involves using her Weapons of Mass Distraction.....well I'll leave it to your imagination, but all I can say to all the geeks watching at the moment is to set your Tivo's to record this Sunday, because you might get plenty of right hand action with the replays.

Dave: Speaking of Claire, it is rumored that she will be cover girl of April's edition of Playboy magazine, is there any truth to this rumor?

Lancelot: Yes, Claire will be April's cover girl in Playboy.....and she will be unveiling the cover at Holiday Hell, another reason for the geeks who are watching to set their Tivo's to record Holiday Hell.

Dave: Well, it has been great talking to you, and I would like to wish you good luck for the Prince Of Hell match this Sunday.

Lancelot: Thanks....but I just have one last thing to say to my opponents this Sunday, if you will allow me the time to address them.

Dave: Sure...go ahead.

Lancelot: Due to Tobias' departure, my chances of winning the TKOW World Championship have increased....but I am still the underdog......but you all know I pose the biggest threat to you in winning that belt. Whilst you three guys are all settling your personal differences, I will climb up the scaffolding and let the timer tick down as I inch closer and closer to claiming the TKOW World Championship, and I assure you all.... I will leave the HPWA Arena on Sunday as the new TKOW World Champion....make no mistake about it, Phoenix, my era as champion is just beginning....and yours....yours is all burned out.

Dave points at Bob Lancelot.

Dave: Bob Lancelot everybody! Its time to cut to a commercial brake.

The camera fades out to the commercial brake.

[Kahlan - R.I.P.]

The glorious rising sun burns away the remnants of wispy high-altitude clouds, clearing and purifying the sky to a beautiful blue. In response, birds soar and dip, singing out their spring melodies. The branches of budding, denuded, deciduous trees, interspersed with a few evergreens, move slightly in the early morning breeze. At the tree line, a startled doe disappears within the woods. In the adjacent open field, daffodils and a few other early blooming plants litter an expanse of slowly awakening dormant grasses. Insects buzz industriously, occasionally falling victim to a swiftly diving bird. In the distance is the hum of vehicles quickly approaching.

Nearby, a twig snaps, followed by the soft whispers of someone walking in tall grass. His eyes narrowed from the brightness of the sun and dressed only in a long-sleeved t-shirt and jeans, Griffen strides into view, a carved walking stick in hand. He appears to be in a calmer state than seen previously. When he speaks, his voice is low and soft, yet filled with forceful undertones.

Matt: It’s a beautiful way to start a day. Full of promise. Full of hope. Expectations. Dreams. Anything is possible.

Or… at least we believe so… like Bob Lancelot believes he’s going to walk out with the TKOW title come Holiday Hell.

Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight.

Multiple car doors slam as motors are cut.

Matt: Bob Lancelot leading TKOW through Fed Dom 2.

Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight.

More doors slam shut, followed by male voices greeting one another.

Matt: Bob Lancelot is THE MAN! He’s the future Double Crown Champion of TKOW! We must bow to his double-crown assness or pay the consequences!

Sounds like something someone else has been saying lately.

Griffen appears amused.

Matt: Really, Bob, you’re a riot… no. That’s Burden. Bob, you act like the TV title is the end all and be all. You puff up your chest and crow like a little banty rooster over the thing, this when you couldn’t even keep it from Carpenter and would have lost it to Cypher had it not been for someone interfering in your match. Oh, before you come back with how you took it in the two out of three falls, remember… Carpenter doesn’t care about titles unless it’s to keep the one around Phoenix’s waist. He was toying with you the entire time. Everyone but you realizes that because you’re drowning in your own hype.

Griffen tilts his head slightly, a thoughtful expression crossing his face.

Matt: Let me guess. You sleep with the TV title more than you sleep with Claire. You snuggle and caress and kiss it every night before sleeping and use it as a child would a security blanket. You talk to it. You tell it your thoughts and aspirations. You love it more than anything in the world. It’s your very best friend. If you get the TKOW title why... you'll have your own threesome and without Dark Schnitzel!

Griffen looks down, shaking his head and chuckling. He moves the walking stick in front of him and rests one hand over the other on it and looks back to the camera.

Matt: So fixated on the TV title and now you already see the TKOW title as yours. If the improbable happens and you win it, will you “hardcore” it up, too? *derisively* You remind me of Real Deal Killa and that plastic Intercontinental title he was always going on about during his time in HPWA. Unfortunately, you’re much worse. You’re a seedy, greedy little bastard who wants everything everyone else has… regardless of whether you deserve it or not—all to prove that you’re somebody. *normally* Let me clue you in, Bob. Winning the TKOW title won’t change that. If you’re a nobody before you win it, you’ll still be a nobody afterwards, because that is something that comes from the inside, not by material objects. What are you going to do when Claire, carrying the TV title for you, follows you out when you’re wheeled out of the HPWA arena on a gurney, burned and broken … and without the TKOW title? Then, at the next Mass Khaos you’re scheduled, lose the TV title? You know what you’ll be called then, don’t you? Bob Lancelot, the Double Crown Loser.

A loud motor starts and a man off camera can be faintly heard calling out, but the noise makes him unintelligible. Griffen looks off camera, apparently in the direction of the noise while adjusting his stance. He raises his voice to be sure the mic can pick him up when he turns his attention back to the camera.

Matt: Then… there’s the new god of TKOW, disturbed and flawed… like the ancient gods of Olympia. I’m surprised we’ve not been presented with a golden idol to worship for when your “magnificence” is not in our presence.

Griffen stares into the camera.

Matt: He broke you, didn’t he, Phoenix? He broke you down into tiny pieces and remade you in his image… and you let him. The one thing you said you wouldn’t do… you’re doing—becoming Murphy. He was right, wasn’t he? You may as well be the same person, because it had to be inside you from the start or you wouldn’t have become who you are now. You can’t be what you’re not. Nothing to hold you back. Once you set your mind on something you follow through, be it in the ring or out. I know you, or at least the old you. I know what you’re capable of doing. And you know me. You try to play me, like you always have, to get an advantage. You attempt to use what you believe to be my weaknesses against me, but weaknesses can be turned into strengths with a little work. You taunt me with remarks insecure men would jump to argue, expecting me to fall into reacting instead of thinking and focusing on what really matters.

Griffen pauses.

Matt: How long has it been since, Phoenix? The better part of a year since you’ve been around me to know who I or anyone else is anymore. It’s time enough for people to change, just as you have. You brought me and Skye in to wrestling at HPWA to regain your honor when it was stripped from you in HPWA. Tell me, Phoenix, what honor have you now? Not even the TKOW title brings you any. Feared by some. Hated and disrespected by others. Nothing honorable there. All you have are people who humble themselves to you out of fear. You despise them for it.

I refuse to be one of them.

You say you’re ashamed of me, attempt to insult me.

He shrugs.

Matt: Fine. It relieves us of being attached to you in any shape or form. No more defending non-existent honor.

Keep running your mouth, Phoenix. It’s nothing but words. We both know it. They can be mightier than the sword at times, demolishing someone into a blubbering mess or infuriating another into a seething mass… but only if they allow it. You know how to use them to make your opponents doubt themselves. You get under their skin.

He looks calmly into the camera. Off camera the motor shuts off and sawing and chopping is heard.

Matt: I won’t let you. Not at all. This won’t be a fight of words. We’re going all out face to face on the Prince of Hell structure.

Carp and I have the advantage of knowing it. I’m sure he’s drilling it into your head what he knows of it, but until you’ve been on it, there’s no way of really knowing how it moves, how the jets flare up, how it feels to land on the hot scaffolding and keep from falling off or climb back on, the burn of the flames.

A small grin crosses Griffen’s lips.

Matt: As for you being there? I’m looking forward to it. Relishing it. I’m going to make you hurt, make you bleed, take you off the top several times to break you and then take your title…

A look of pleasure and satisfaction crosses his face.

Matt: …and let Aello hold it for me.

[Phoenix]

Phoenix: The clock strikes midnight. The bells toll. Holiday Hell is upon us.

Phoenix is standing, in his usual attire, within a patch of dirt. He is performing the jenga, the main movement of the capoeira style of martial arts. The area is lit by three torches.

Phoenix: I have but one concern come Holiday Hell. It's not you, Bob. Your chances at taking my title are as slim as the chances of anyone caring that Amy Chastaine didn't show up for the Invitational.

Yes, Matt, it's all about you.

Once, we were all a solid group of people. Unflinching in our motivations and ideals.

That was some time ago. Things have, changed.

You still stand by those ideals Matt. Outdated as they may be. Yet you have, no matter how you try and fight it, embraced the culture that has sprung forth from the Church. You have seen our path, Matt, and learned that we travel the same road you do.

We just run over pedestrians on the way.

I left you behind, Matt, months ago. I did what had to be done. Someday, you may accept that.

Phoenix shimmies and uses a flipping jump crescent kick to knock the tip off a torch, putting it out.

Phoenix: There was the woman you are so desperately trying to avenge, Aello. You seen to think your being her distant eight times removed cousin makes her more important to you than she is to me. You're wrong Matt. The bond she and I share, shared... well, guess what; it's more than you'll understand.

But times are desperate. Bad things have happened to good people. And that's not going to stop just because you're teed off.

A high arc back kick sends another tip flying.

Phoenix: Holiday Hell is coming, Matt. You're on the road to meet the maker, and as it turns out, he's not in a very good mood. You're about to face down the devil in his own backyard. Just because you've survived this thing doesn't mean you have what it takes to compete with me, at the top of my brand new game, on a structure I helped create, with my belt on the line.

Phoenix eyes the final torch, but makes no new move...

Phoenix: You're going to learn, all too quickly, Matt, that force of will, attitude, these things only get you so far. Your inner fire and mine, they are two different animals, Matt. You don't have what it takes to overcome the flames of the Phoenix. You know, deep down, that this is the truth. You won't admit it, because you're too narrowminded in your quest, our quest, the one that puts you square in my path.

I'll leave you, with this.

Have you ever danced with the devil in the pale moonlight?

Phoenix backhands the final torch. As the camera adjusts to the new lighting, the moon, Phoenix's mask lenses begin to glow.

Phoenix: "You're about to.

Fade.

[Bob Lancelot]

We are shown the outside of a run down Motel 8, the sign of which has a neon "Vacancies" flashing underneath it, three cars are in the parking lot as the camera tracks across it and toward room 6. We cut inside room 6 and we see Bob Lancelot lying on the bed in a pair of boxer shorts, he looks very satisfied as we see a lump in the bed sheet next to him.

Lancelot: That was so good, we should do it more often.

The lump in the sheets remains motionless.

Lancelot: I love you.

The lump again remains motionless.

Lancelot: You know, I love you more than my fiancé, Claire.

Bob pulls back the bed sheet, not to reveal a girl as we expected, but to reveal his TKOW Television Title.

Lancelot: No I didn't really just jerk off to my Television Title...... I am making fun of myself....its called having a sense of humour, something that Phoenix or Matt Griffen don't have.

Lancelot walks over to the mirror and looks at himself.

Lancelot: I admit, I do love my Television Title, and I do accept that there is a huge chance that in two weeks I will lose it at Mass Khaos due to the severe injuries I will probably suffer at Holiday Hell.....but it is a chance I am willing to take as I will have a much bigger prize to console my grieving, so whether or not I am a Double Crown Champion for 2 weeks or 2 years....it is still more of an accomplishment than Matt Griffen has ever achieved.

Bob grins to himself and then returns to the bed and sits down on the edge.

Lancelot: But the fact remains I am Matt Griffen's biggest threat, it is all down to psychology, you are like a Dr Zeus, Matt...you are so easy to read. The fact is you talk about me first, you always talk about Bob Lancelot before you talk about any other opponent in this match making it entirely obvious that you fear me, you feel I am the biggest challenge you will face in the Prince of Hell.....well you are right, but I only wish Phoenix and Carpenter would realise this before it is too late for them to do anything about it.

Matt, you are a smart guy, you got good grades in school right? I guess you have a degree? You should be smart enough to know that entering the Prince of Hell isn't worth it for a guy like you. You have plenty to live for, you have a full life ahead of you.....you know you don't stand a chance against Phoenix, you lost to him before, you will lose to him again....don't let this fight be your last. You can back down now and everything will be alright, grudges fade with time, and in five years, you won't remember who Phoenix is, you won't remember why you hate him, you won't remember why you wanted to end his pathetic life.....but if you go through with this match....in five years, Matt Griffen will be remembered as the guy who got his ass handed to him in the Prince of Hell match, Matt Griffen will be remembered as the cripple who's career ended at Holiday Hell. You don't want that do you?

Bob smiles and then looks at his Television Title.

Lancelot: But in five years, I will be remembered as the greatest wrestler ever to hold the Television Championship, I will be remembered as the greatest wrestler to ever hold the TKOW World Championship....I will be remembered as the greatest wrestler ever...period. Phoenix's legacy has nothing on the legacy I will create for myself, on the legacy that Phoenix will help create for me this Sunday.

Power better start looking for some new talent, because this Sunday in the Prince of Hell match, I will be destroying three of your biggest superstars. I guarantee I will end Matt Griffen's career, I guarantee I will end Carpenter's career......and I promise I will end Phoenix's career, because without the TKOW World Championship.....Phoenix is nothing but a washed up never has been!

Bob laughs to himself manically, and through his laughter he begins to speak.

Lancelot: I haven't felt like this for a long time, I am looking forward to producing as much pain as possible to the participants of this match. I will break your bones, I will make you bleed....the referee will ask me to break a submission hold, but I will keep it held on until you pass out, tightening my grip as you gasp for air and your pathetic, meaningless life comes to and end and you die at my hands. I will play God this Sunday, I will decide who lives and who dies, it will be me who decides the outcome of this match...and I will decide it in my favour. I am the tipping force on the scales of the Prince of Hell match and they are weighted on my side. You people are looking at the New Double Crown Champion of TKOW, and you better get used to looking at my face, because you will be seeing it a whole lot more come this Sunday.

[Phoenix]

The Church of Pain & Suffering is humming with anticipation of the upcoming sermon. Once again, teh building itself was filled beyond capacity, as the captured altar boy, pale, and shaking with fear, walked from pew to pew, accepting donations to the "Hire Fed Dom 3 some Staff" fund.

In the back room, Carpenter clicks on the gong mechanism, starting up the heavy bells into a series of rings heard miles away on the mainland. The Metatron finishes donning his robe and Rosary, as Phoenix sits, waiting, on the stone throne.

The Metatron: My lord, you must try to perk up. It's not everyday you prepare to enter into divine battle with upstart heathens.

Carpenter clears his throat. The Metatron peeks back at The Deacon, who is shaking his head "yes".

The Metatron: Mm. I guess it is every day afterall.

You don't make many friends doing what you do, do you. Not before your enlightenment, and certainly not now.

The Metatron sighs heavily.

The Metatron: I suppose it is the burden you bear, the weight of the world on your shoulders. I could certainly never stand fast under that kind of pressure.

Phoenix: You have no idea what pressure is boy. You'll find out, one day. I guarendamntee you that. You will pay the price.

The Metatron: Do not rile yourself with such impure thoughts. You must retain focus of the obsticles in your path. I am not one of those obastacles. I am just simply your lowly servant.

Phoenix sneers and responds with a roar, a passion and hatred in his voice not heard since MegaBowl IV.

Phoenix: The get me OUT OF HERE!

Carpenter takes a few steps towards the throne.

Carpenter: You know better than that. You're here for your own good. Look at what happens when you go out on your own. Clipping that poor harpies wings like that. Tsk tsk tsk. You should be...

Carpenter turns away and prepares to open the altar doors.

Carpenter: ...proud.

Seethe for the crowd brother. They love a good show.

Carpenter pushes open the doors and bows slightly as The Metatron curtly steps past him to the dais.

The Metatron: My brothers and sisters, you who have found yourselves wanting in the prescence of our Lord almighty, rejoice, for the hour of His greatest triumph is drawing nigh.

At the show they call Holiday Hell, our saviour, the Lord of Fire, embarks on a new quest, a journey of mass genocide. His tools were crafted for him by the very ones that seek to destroy him. We know of these tools as the Prince of Hell structure.

The steel and the flames represent our Lord in every way, from the towering greatness, to the unbreakable exterior, to the fire that burns within, to be released in glorious pain giving waves, this structure is Phoenix; he is the structure.

Many have climbed the structure and survived. Many have given their blood, their bones, their flesh, in payment to this great temple of our Lord. But they have never faced the Creator. They who seek to tarnsih the name of God shall find that on this day there shall be a reckoning! It will come in fire. It will come in steel. It will come in human form to cleanse them of their transgressions. So sayeth the Lord.

Crowd: Let he who is without sin try to survive.

The Metatron: Bob Lancelot, the Lord sayeth to you; have your sense of humor. Laugh, be merry with your tin toy. Parade your whore to the world. We are not in fear. We are not concerned. You have fallen to His disciple, His Deacon.

Now you face the Lord himself in pitched battle.

You shall be the first to fall, Bob Lancelot. You will fall from his graces, to the cold, hard ring below, and though you shall try to ascend once more to the heavens, you will never be able to pass the gates of fire. So sayeth the Lord.

Crowd: Amen.

The Metatron: Matt Griffen, the Lord has taken a special interest in you. You will be drawn. You will be quartered. You will be found wanting. This is the Lord's word, and as such, is beyond contestation.

You failed, last year, to impress the Lord. You failed against those such as Kid Styles and Ghalleon. You failed against lesser men then yourself. Yet you put your soul into this war, over a misbegoten sense of pride and chivalry.

You took advantage of a confused Phoenix at MegaBowl. He did not see his new life clearly, did not accept it. But at Mass Khaos, in your homefield, the Brutality Cage, you saw it. You felt the fire rising from his soul. You were burned deeply Matt Griffen. More deeply than any living flame could ever do to you.

And so, Matt Griffen, you enter this contest, knowing the one and only truth.

He is greater than you will ever be. He stands tall, His shadow cast over your existence. You cannot escape the ineviteble.

You will try, Matt Griffen, as your kind always do. You will try.

And you will fail.

Crowd: Amen.

The Metatron: In nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti.

Fade.

[Kahlan - R.I.P.]

The scene opens up on a bonfire. Many people are around it, some roasting hot dogs and marshmallow with long thin branches. Music livens the atmosphere and some people and dance around while eating and talking, while some of the older folk sit on square bales of hay, all clearly enjoying themselves… except one. He finishes a hot dog and chases it with the last of his drink and moves away from the crowd. Griffen walks over to the vehicles and sits on the downed tailgate of a truck. The camera follows. The light plays over his face as he looks back toward the fire, his eyes searching.

Matt: Bob, I see you have a sense of humor. That’s good, because it’s the only thing that’s going to keep you going when the Prince of Hell is over, when you’re confined to a lengthy hospital stay… again.

I really don’t grasp the comparison of me to a Punjabi musician, but, heh… you don’t have much reasoning, anyway. If you did, you’d know the reason I mentioned you first is that I like to clear out the little things before tackling the big jobs. That way, when I’m done… I’m done. You know the saying…

He looks toward the camera.

Matt: …saving the best for last.

A voice calls out for him to return to the group, but he shakes his head and casts his thumb toward the camera to show them he’s taping.

Matt: To do it the other way would be like having the dessert before the appetizers, sex before foreplay, the main event at the start of the show, giving a title to a newcomer before they’ve had their debut match in the fed… doesn’t make much sense, but I bet you’d find it perfectly logical.

He shrugs.

Matt: Enjoy your next two nights with Claire. After the Prince of Hell, it will be a while before you’ll have that luxury again, because it won’t be my career that ends… but yours.

He shifts on the tailgate. His eyes lock onto something off camera and a slight smile crosses his lips.

Matt: Bob, you and Phoenix talk a similar talk, but he’s walked the walk more times, proven himself more than you have. He holds the higher ranked title. Why should anyone fight you for the TV title when the TKOW title is attainable? Entertainment, maybe. Out of boredom, possibly. I haven’t because I didn’t want to waste my time on you and the lesser title when I know the TKOW is just within reach. If I’m going to do something, I’m going to go all out and give it all I’ve got for something deserving of my time and labor.

Skye approaches, bringing him a drink. She walks up to him, moves in very closely, positioning herself between his legs and leaning into him, slipping her free hand behind his neck, pulling his head forward and apparently whispering something in his ear. He nods in response and gives her a quick smile. Her hand swiftly caresses his jaw before she walks back to join the others. He sits the drink next to him as he watches her leave, an enigmatic expression overcoming his face. He turns his attention back to the camera.

Matt: A new game, is that what you call it, Phoenix? Barely retaining your title the last go around after your loss. Having to depend upon Carpenter to keep it. Yeah, that’s definitely a new game plan…. This from the man who didn’t need anyone to help him win. You’re breaking, Phoenix… just like you broke Aello… and you’ll regret that. You can shrug it off like everything else if you want, but one day it’s going to hit you like Down In Flames about what you’ve done. Don’t say I never warned you.

He leans forward, now speaking in earnest, the planes of his face hardening.

Matt: You want to dance? Let’s dance, Phoenix. Dance so the entire Prince of Hell structures shakes and swings like a rope bridge on a windy day, to the point where neither Carpenter or Lancelot can keep their footing or even stay on it. You remember when I fought Bishop, what I was like then. That’s what you want, isn’t it, but according to you, even that’s not enough. We’ll see if it is. You remember what set me off then. what difference do you think it makes that Aello is my second cousin and not my first. What’s worse is YOU did it to her. For that, you’re going to pay, just like Bishop.

He grabs his drink and strides toward the fire.