As tonight's Turmoil show rumbles on, we find Stacy Clark sitting in a chair preparing for an interview, as she has done hundreds of times before. However, this interview would be more on the extraordinary side. With the cameras and microphones in place, a door can be heard opening, snapping Stacy to attention, and a voice in a familiar accent calls out to her.
Voice: So sorry for the delay, Stacy. I certainly don't miss the traffic in this town.
Stacy Clark: Oh, that's perfectly fine. And trust me, nobody does. Stacy says with a small chuckle.
The owner of the voice steps forward into frame, revealing it to be none other than The Mantis, a rookie Superstar that had not been seen or heard from in OCW for almost two years. Members of the crowd can be heard distantly cheering as The Mantis, dressed in a pressed, two piece dark green suit with white tie, takes a seat on the chair opposite from Stacy.
Stacy Clark: Right, let's begin, then. The director gestures for places and begins to count down before Stacy Clark goes live before the OCW Universe.
Stacy Clark: Good evening, everyone. I hope that first match was able to set the tone for the rest of the evening, but if that somehow fails, then I've got something that might do a bit better. I have secured an exclusive interview with an OCW talent that has been off the stage for quite a while. So please, ladies and gentlemen, please welcome back to the fold...The Mantis. Great to have you back with us.
The Mantis: Likewise, Stacy. It's a joy to be back. He says with a smile.
Stacy Clark: Good to hear. Now, straight away, I think the first question-well, really, the ONLY question that's on everybody's mind is...where the hell have you been? Stacy asks with another lighthearted chuckle.
The Mantis: Ah, yes...well, if I may be honest, Stacy, I've not been in a good place for quite a while. I'd been in a sort of...involuntary solitude, I guess you could say. Not long after I'd last been in the ring, I'd had lot of anguish and pain just come crashing down on me. My mother had recently passed on at the time, but I figured if I could just block it all out and try to focus on my work, that it would all just, sort of...fade into the background.
Stacy Clark nods, respectfully listening to The Mantis open up, something that he had very rarely done before. The Mantis appears sullen, his eyes looking everywhere except for Stacy.
The Mantis: Unfortunately, that's not quite how it happened. I stopped going out, I wasn't returning people's phone calls, I'd been pigging out on takeout food, it was just a real messy situation I was in. Just trying to drown out all that misery and sadness, and all it seemed to do was drag me in further and further.
The Mantis: Then, a few weeks ago, it suddenly hits me. I've been letting it all get to me so much, that I'd even cast out the one thing in my life that I had left I genuinely had passion for, that gave my life any sort of meaning. I'd turned my back on people that that had been my only friends, and my mentors. I realized that somewhere, out there, there still were people out there who didn't want to see me fail, that still believed in me. And if I had kept on wallowing like I had been, then I would have failed not only them, but myself, too. And...as much as me Ma hated what I did for a living, knowing what I'd been going through would've been even worse. So, I've come back with a whole new outlook, and I'm hoping to start entertaining the OCW Universe again. They were like family to me...hell, they ARE my family now.
Stacy Clark then turns to look into the camera.
Stacy Clark: Turmoil on OCW continues after these messages.
Both Stacy and The Mantis smile into the camera as the feed fades to black...
TAG BATTLE
UNDISPUTED ELITE vs. DNS
Backstage, Kid Ego himself Paul Pugh is haunting the hallways of Turmoil. He’s leaning up against a wall chatting on the phone to an unknown and potentially naked member of OCW’s Canadian Ruling Mafia
Pugh: …Transylvania seems like a long way… what? I can’t hear you. Are you eating on the phone?
He stops for a moment looking confused
Pugh: Why are you breathing that heavy? …you’re a disgrace. If you keep at those maple snacks you’ll be dead by 50… this isn’t a dye job you prick…
He shakes his head
Pugh: …listen, they’re filming me and this one-sided bickering is making for terrible content…
He pauses and nods
Pugh: …ok ok, I’ll go to Transylvania on one condition… if I beat him, I’m allowed back in Chicago…
He grins as a tiny Canadian voice radiates from his phone - substantially louder than it was a moment ago
Pugh: …it’s that or nothing. I’ve got an Italian Beef business there that I haven’t been able to check on for 4 years - fuck knows what they’ve done with my money… No, I know I shouldn’t say fuck on TV.
Pugh: Yes I know this segment is pointless.
Pugh: No I don’t care about the Animols… it’s Chicago or nothing. Deal with it.
There’s an audible beep
Pugh: Hello? HELLO? Not even a goodbye? Cosmic twat!
He throws his phone against the wall and lets out a long sigh as it shatters into a million pieces. He's horrified - will the OCW corporate insurance cover this? Are funds available to replace this phone after last week's ghastly pyro display? Are these sentences an unnecessary way of conveying half an idea that I had but couldn't execute properly? Almost certainly.
Pugh: …I don’t know why I keep doing that.
He shakes his head side to side and walks out of shot looking dejected
