6 Hours Before CruiserClash Started..
May 3, 2021 23:00:46 GMT -5
Carter Shaw, Downfall, and 1 more like this
Post by Action Reel on May 3, 2021 23:00:46 GMT -5
About six hours before the start of CruiserClash...
Two people can be seen talking inside the Kwik Trip Arena. One is CJ Phoenix, who is shirtless and has tape around both his ribs and his head from the Execution Cage Match he had a week ago. The Hardcore Title rests over his shoulder as he talks to Vanessa Rivers, an intern in a royal blue dress and heels that was recently promoted to full-time assistant. She has a pen in one hand and a clipboard in the other.
Vanessa: I'm telling you, it's AWFUL!
Phoenix: I know. I've seen how he ruins matches. I've been in one of them.
Vanessa: It's not just the matches, CJ. It's not even just the wrestlers. Ever since he became co-general manager CruiserClash, he's been treating the backstage crew like garbage. Once D-Day got hurt, the mistreatment greatly intensified.
Phoenix: Seriously? Damn.
Vanessa: Yes! If you're not one of his personal yes men, he makes your life hell. You wouldn't believe the things that he makes us do.
Phoenix: Do tell.
Vanessa: Well, we're not allowed to park in the arena during the day of the show. He annoys us to death during our breaks. He's always calling us to do a list of things that don't make sense, hence the clipboard, and he essentially has us walking on eggshells.
CJ shakes his head in frustration.
Vanessa: You know how he fired JJ Biggs last week?
Phoenix: Yeah?
Vanessa: He fired FOUR other people that same night before that disgusting tobacco spit match even started. One girl got fired for walking into the same room as him before he did. Another one got dropped because she wasn't "capturing his good side" with the camera despite him repeatedly yelling "EVERY SIDE IS MY GOOD SIDE!", and then he canned two guys for apparently taking too long to bring the tobacco spit to the arena....even though they showed up 45 minutes earlier than scheduled.
Phoenix: Now that's just stupid and unnecessary.
Vanessa: Right! The guy is a total madman and I can't stand him! He's inconsiderate, conniving, and somehow manages to be more of a jerk with each passing day!
Vanessa takes a couple of deep breaths to calm herself as her tone drops from fury to sadness.
Vanessa: Unfortunately, I can't do anything about it. I'm not a fighter, so I can't take him down physically. I've barely been an assistant half as long as I was an intern, so I can't use my positioning in CruiserClash to stop him. All I can do...is watch...and it hurts. I just want to help people, you know? I like learning from others and seeing people succeed, but it's hard to do that when some tyrant is trashing every other match. It's demoralizing every time I see his face. Still, I can't leave this place. Not because of any contract stipulations or anything, but because I want to be here. I want to be a part of this. CruiserClash feels like my home away from home, and I want people to be happy here. That's why I deal with Jim's insanity. Many of the others do it because they have families to feed and can't exactly afford to be unemployed. It breaks my heart whenever I see one of them suffering because he uses things like financial status and company position to bully people into doing his bidding.
She looks down and shakes her head. CJ places a hand on her shoulder.
Phoenix: It's okay. Things will get better for you, and for all of the people that are being mistreated.
Vanessa: You sure about that? D-Day's already taken a shot at getting him removed and...well...you saw the underhanded tactics that Jim used.
Phoenix: Yeah. Still, I'm sure.
Vanessa: Is it because Torture's gonna address the situation tonight? He's gonna fix it all, right?
Phoenix: I can't say for certain, but I do know that when Torture has to come out, it's serious. We'll see how it goes.
Vanessa: But what if it doesn't work? What if Mud has some loophole that he exploits or something?
Phoenix: Again, we see how it goes and work from there. Besides, there isn't much I can do since I'm on Clash now.
A smirk grows on CJ's face.
Phoenix: However, you can do something about it. Even if it doesn't seem like much at first.
Vanessa's eyes light up with hope.
Vanessa: What is it? What can I do?
Phoenix: Well, remember how I told you about-
The camera starts malfunctioning, and then it cuts off completely.