Phase Sixty-Seven: Band Camp
You can't teach God anything.
The audience at the UIC Pavilion was pumping with excitement, ready for the show they were about to witness, but just then, the lights went up to announce the arrival of Austin Aries to the ramp.
"I've been wrestling for nineteen years. Nineteen years of being The Greatest man that ever lived, the belt collector, the truth! Those are not all just "gimmicks," as you smarks like to call them, they're a lifestyle. Those titles mean I'm better than every single person in this roster, as close as they may get to my greatness.
However, at Chicago is burning I was attacked. I was attacked along with Kyle O'Reilly. As if I were some sort of... Commonplace man. Now I was almost certain it had been Spike Trivet, since we have unfinished business there, but everyone knows he wouldn't be smart enough to do what was done to the cameras.
Whoever did this, whoever committed this... Atrocity...!"
He raised his shirt, and on his left side, right on his ribs, the circuit-like smiley face glimmered under the lights.
"... Knew exactly what they were doing. And I demand to know who would stain me in such manner, who wouldn't be man enough to face me one on one instead of crawling around the cameras and the lights trying to--"
The lights went impossibly bright, and a voice boomed from every speaker in the arena. It wasn't distorted, it was actually a very crisp, clear and loud voice.
"Why did I cause so much pain? Didn’t I realize that each of us is a sacred, unique snowflake of special unique specialness?"
Aries looked around, lowering his microphone to wave one of the technicians over to ask who was doing that.
"Can’t I see how we’re all manifestations of love?"
Austin Aries was still trying to make heads or tails of this sudden interruption but just looked more and more enraged as the minutes went by.
You are not special, Austin. Nobody is.
We just are, and what happens just happens.
Everyone in this roster serves a very minimal purpose in the grand scheme of things. And I want in on this grand scheme... You're the chosen one. Do you know how in prison, you're supposed to take the biggest, the meanest, the most dangerous inmate and make them your bitch in order to secure your place in the food chain of the cages?
The lights dimmed from bright to red, the incorporeal voice swirling around and then focusing somewhere behind Aries.
Congratulations, Austin. You've secured my place in the food chain.
Loren Armitage took the taller man by surprise, appearing out of nowhere, and nailed him to the ramp with the fastest F5 the audience had ever seen.
Welcome to the cages.
_____________________________________________________________
UIC Pavilion
Priscilla Kelly vs Tessa Blanchard
Kelly has Blanchard the hair and headbutts her multiple times before kicking her in the chest. She proceeds to clothesline Tessa to the mat for a one count. Priscilla forces Tessa to her feet into a wristlock and tries to twist the arm, but Blanchard forearms her as a counter. She kicks the grip off her wrist and punches Priscilla back into the ropes before Kelly rebounds and misses a clothesline. Tessa runs up behind her and follows up with a cutter for a two count.
Blanchard forces Priscilla up and forearms her multiple times before rebound off the ropes for a clothesline, but Kelly counters into a facecrusher. Priscilla follows up with gouging the eyes to the count of three and yanks Tessa’s hair, proceeding to the lick the side of the face. Kelly laughs maniacally as she shoves Tessa back down and goes for the Scorpion Deathlock. Blanchard refused to tap out. Kelly can’t hold on forever, however she transitions into the Sharpshooter as she lets go of the arms.
Tessa manages to crawl to the ropes, but this only incites anger on the succubus. She stomps the head again and again into the ropes before choking Tessa with her leg. Priscilla tries to follow up with a running knee, but Tessa pulls the ropes down. She has an opening for a suicide dive, but it takes her time to recuperate. As soon as she tries to dive, Kelly has it scouted and strikes the face with brass knuckles originally hidden in her trunks. She didn’t even try to hide it and the referee disqualified her. It didn’t stop Priscilla from beating down on Blanchard until the woman couldn’t even remain conscious.
Indi Hartwell vs Kyle O'Reilly vs Rhea Ripley
Indi and Rhea double team O’Reilly with a suplex before Ripley drops Hartwell on top of him with a leg drop. Kyle is down for the time being, allowing Rhea to grab Indi by her hair to her feet for a forearm. She sends Indi into the corner and misses a big boot, allowing Indi to connect with a backstabber. She hooks the leg for a one count. Indi tried to climb high, but Rhea kicks the ropes. She climbs up and drops Hartwell with a back suplex for an eventual pin. She only gets a two count.
Kyle is back in and kicks Rhea in the back of the head while she’s still down. He tries to lift her with a snap suplex, but she counters and kicks him back. Rhea takes him out with a clothesline before dragging Kyle to the ropes to choke him. She forces him up for a chop against the ropes before whipping him. Indi races in and dropkicks him before he rebounds. She takes Ripley down with a dropkick to the leg and proceeds to beat down on her.
She drops the boot onto the back with a kick before forcing Rhea up. Hartwell uses the corner for a tornado DDT, but is caught and dropped with a sitout Guillotine slam. She can’t hook the legs as Kyle drives a knee into the face. He then lifts Hartwell for the brainbuster to steal the victory and bounce back from last week’s attack.
Hart to Heart vs Corvus & Vipress
Corvus tries to whip Natalya, but she’s far too strong and pulls him into a belly-to-side suplex. She goes for the Sharpshooter early, but he kicks her off and trips her up. Corvus drops a knee to the face before bending the arm with the elbow sticking up before stomping on it. He then goes for legs, trying to weaken her base with a few stomps. Corvus presses his boot into the leg, bending the foot back for a submission hold. Natalya refuses to tap out and drags herself to the ropes. Frankie wants the tag, but Corvus knocks her down from the apron. Natalya capitalizes with forearm and drops him with a stalling suplex.
She hooks the leg, but he kicks out. Natalya forced him up, but he dropkicks the same leg and follows up with a rebounding knee strike to the back of the head for a two count. He tags in Vipress and they whip Natalya into the corner before dropping her with a double German suplex. She makes the cover, but the champion kicks out. Frankie is back on the apron for the tag, but Vipress holds Natalya back. The Hart Dungeon Graduate elbows her back and makes the tag. Vipress doesn’t realize and clothesline Natalya while Frankie is up high. She launches herself off with a senton for a two count.
Frankie kicks Vipress in the gut and tries to rebound off the ropes, but Corvus grabs her hair and yanks her down to the mat. Vipress tries to take advantage with a suplex from the mat, but she’s caught with a rollup. Vipress kicks out at two and Frankie transitions into a triangle choke. The woman panics, trying to escape, and gets her long leg on the rope. Frankie breaks the hold, but rolls through to pull Vipress to her feet and elbow her back. She springboards from the ropes with an elevated arm drag and follows up with a running splash into the corner as Vipress tries to escape. She goes up high again, but is caught as Corvus shoves her down to the mat. Natalya races across the ring and shoulder blocks him down from the apron.
Vipress connects with a backbreaker to the blonde and sends her out the ring. Frankie is yanked up from the ground for a cutter, but she manages to shove Vipress off and suddenly connects with the Nat By Nature discus lariat for the pinning victory. The champions celebrate as Vipress and Corvus look on disgust and suddenly Corvus loses it. He attacks Frankie and bites her neck to draw blood. Natalya doesn’t have time to help as Vipress spears her down to the mat, throwing punches. Frankie eventually drops Corvus with a stunner to knock him off, holding her neck as Natalya escapes Vipress. Paramedics come racing down to help Frankie as the demon and Corvus slink away.
_____________________________________________________________
First Base.
Alexa and Ivelisse are seen arguing over the Heart of PCW Championship, Ivelisse keeping it out of her reach as she tries to snatch it. They continue to fuss even as Taya approaches them with a less than pleased expression. She raises a brow before snatching the title from Ivelisse.
“Hey! Who the hell do you th—“ she stops as she finally notices Valkyrie. “Oh, you... Can I have my title back?”
“YOUR title? I HAVE THE POINTS! You don’t! With Shaul clearly out of action, I should be able to cash in the points I never lost to become the rightful champion,” Bliss says with her arms crossed. “She just got here! Why should she be handed anything?!”
Valkyrie rolls her eyes. “Neither if you are being given anything. Shaul is concussed pretty badly thanks to somebody...” she glances at Ivelisse.
“It wasn’t even—“
“Whatever, don’t care. I’m hosting a tournament for this belt and the new champion will be crowned at the next pay-per-view in August. Points won’t matter in this one, so instead of arguing like toddlers, start training. You’re going to need it with the people I’m thinking of including.”
_____________________________________________________________
Phil Jackal vs Mitchell Knight vs Will Ospreay
Future Of Phoenix Championship Match
Will Ospreay was expecting to join Mitchell in the ring, but MJF had other plans. Knight watched as the man attacked Ospreay from behind with a fire extinguisher. He then sprays Will down, humiliating him as he covers the man with the foam. He doesn’t stop there, driving the extinguisher down against the back as Will tries to protect himself until security has to escort him out. Ospreay tried to continue, but he couldn’t even stand. He was carted off to the back as Jackal made his appearance. MJF made his job easier.
Mitchell and Jackal lock up in the center of the ring, Phil showing why he’s champion with an arm drag into a wristlock on the mat. He bends back the hand before kneeing Knight in the back while he’s down. Jackal bends the arm back even further behind Knight and kicks it for added damage. Jackal rebounds for a senton, but Mitchell brings up the knees. It buys him enough time to stand in the corner and evade a dropkick. Jackal is forearmed into the corner and Knight drives kicks to the chest before kneeing Phil in the gut. Despite the hurt arm, he uppercuts Jackal and the champion slumps to the mat. Knight covers for the two count.
Jackal tried to escape to the apron, but Knight snatched his torso back through the ropes, looking for the elbow drop to the mat. Phil is barely moving as Knight drags him to the center of the ring. Jackal quickly rolls him up for a one count. He’s able to evade a flying knee by grabbing the legs mid-air and drops back to launch his opponent into the ropes. Knight rebounds and chokes as a Jackal seems to be going for another rollup, but instead transitions into a wheelbarrow snapmare. He follows up with a superkick as Mitchell is on his knees, but the challenger smartly rolls out of the ring onto the floor. Jackal doesn’t slow down, looking for a suicide dive as Knight stands. The challenger side steps and brings up the leg to kick the champion in the face before he can fly.
Phil hangs on the ropes and Knight connects with a leg drop. Jackal’s face plants into the apron. He’s barely able to stand as he slides to the floor and Mitchell takes him down with a flying clothesline. He forces Phil up and slams the face into the apron. The referee counts as Jackal tries to evade him. He slides into the ring and Mitchell is close behind. He tries for a superkick, but Knight grabs the leg and reverses into a dragon whip. He proceeds with a springboard moonsault for a two count. Mitchell mounts Jackal, driving fist after fist into the face before picking Jackal up onto his shoulders.
He doesn’t connect with slam as Phil lands on his feet and connects with a superkick. Mitchell drops, but the champion is too dazed to pin him. He groggily drags Knight to the center for only a two count. Jackal slams the head into the mat out of frustration, forearming the face repeatedly until the referee has to give him a warning. Jackal seats Knight on the ropes before sprinting into the nearest corner, springboarding from it to connect with a hurricarana to the outside. Damage was taken by both men, but Jackal is up first by the count of six. He sends Knight into the ring and goes up high, connecting with a cross body. Mitchell rolls through, however, for a transition into a brainbuster for a two count. The champion rolls into the ropes and trips Knight up as he approaches him. Shades of Mysterio is shown as he connects with the 619. Jackal looks to the fans with a smirk, signaling that this was the end and follows up with a 450 splash from the ropes.
Mitchell manages to get the knees up and transitions into Hell’s Gate, applying pressure onto the face. Jackal had nowhere to go, but he refused to tap out. The champion fought and fought, facing turning a different shade as he was starting to fade. The referee lifted his arm and somehow life was still in him. Jackal managed to plant his feet and lift Knight right off the ground and connects with a buckle bomb in the corner. Both men try to recuperate before Jackal lands a monkey flip. He connects with a running knee to the back of the head and still on gets a two count. He goes up high to finish it and Mitchell knocks the legs from under him. Jackal is caught in the corner and Mitchell plants him with a backstabber before connecting with the Opal Miner to hook both legs and create an upset.
Everyone is in shock as Mitchell pins Jackal and is crowned the Future Phoenix Champion.
_____________________________________________________________
Second Base.
Tyler is seen with Scarlett as the two are locked in a heated argument. Bordeaux was stepping up to the champion, eyes locked with his with a smirk on her face.
“You’re scared, Tyler. You have two maniacs stalking you for this,” she says as she taps the championship. “And it’s only a matter of time before one of us decides to cash in and steal every bit of relevancy you have in PCW.”
“Scared? No, but irritated? Yeah, I’m getting real sick and tired of the games,” he says. “You, Bray—both of you seem to have this idea that if you play with me long enough, I’ll crack. While I’m the modern day Ken, or possibly even more gorgeous than that, I am not a toy to pull and tug on. I don’t mess around when it comes to this belt and if the two of you think mind games are gonna cut it, you are mistaken.”
“Tyler, sweetie...it’s nothing personal. I just have to do whatever it takes to secure my victory. I would have gladly cashed in last week, but seeing as Bray is stalking you now? I’d much rather watch this all play out like a movie in the theatre. Why risk my points when I could watch Wyatt tear you apart before I pick at the scraps he leaves behind? As powerful as he is, I know you’ll retain because you don’t want to miss the opportunity to face all of this...”
Scarlett turns her back to him, hands running up the sides of her body as she partially dips. A smirk forms on her face as she looks to the belt again before locking eyes with Breeze. “But in the long run, it doesn’t matter if it’s you or Bray because it’ll be me with the gold in the end. Now that is one sexy concept... Mmm, see you soon, Ken.” She blows him a kiss and leaves him alone to contemplate her words.
_____________________________________________________________
Taeler Hendrix vs Hania
Taeler awaits Hania in the ring, but the she-wolf is stopped short as Indigo comes storming down the ramp. Tensions were present after last week’s ordeal and Hania wanted nothing to do with it. She waves Indigo off and tries to enter the ring, but Indigo persist. Hendrix uses the opportunity to kick Hania from the apron. She proceeds the grab her by the hair and stares Indigo down as a silent warning. She slams the face into the floor and proceeds to drive fist after fist into the face. Taeler then tosses Hania into the barricade before looking to Indigo.
Indigo refused to take part as Taeler pointed at Hania, but she didn’t stop the woman from crashing a knee into the face. Hendrix then lifts Hania up before dropping the face onto the barricade, blood now pouring from an open wound. Face covered in red, Hania tries to stand, but she couldn’t see Taeler coming with a spin kick to send her back down. Indigo continues to look on in horror at first. Once Taeler was satisfied, she wiped her fingers on the gear, smearing it with blood and started to laugh before looking to Indigo with a smile.
Indigo... Smiled back.
Bray Wyatt vs Jon Moxley
Jon and Bray are locked in the center, but Moxley gouges the eyes early to force Wyatt back. He follows up with a shoulder block and proceeds to stomp down mercilessly on the chest. As Bray tries to stand, Moxley looks to Sami on the outside. This costs him as Bray punches the abdomen and plants Jon with a DDT. Wyatt floats over into the pin for a one count. He drags Jon by the hair and neck into the corner and stomps him down. Wyatt stands him up and chokes him in the corner until the count of four before elbowing Moxley. He tosses Jon across the ring and starts to laugh as the man is slow to stand.
Bray grabs the ropes, bending his back with a wicked smile. Jon looked on with disgust before developing a smile of his own. He races forward and lands a forearm. He then lifts Wyatt on his shoulders into the fireman’s carry. He drops Wyatt on his back and proceeds to get down to throw punch after punch to the face. Moxley slowly starts to lose it, trying to choke Bray now on the mat. Sami watches with a blank face. As the match goes on, Melissa makes her way to the ring. She approaches her boyfriend and tries to bring some sense into him, but he ignores her. She pulls his arm, trying to get him to leave, but he shoves her back.
Bray takes notice and demands she’s thrown into the ring, so Sami proceeds to do just that. Jon tries to capitalize off the distraction, but Wyatt headbutts him back. Bray forces Callihan to hold Santos’s arms as he approaches them. “You’ve been a thorn in my side long enough...” Suddenly the buzzard pulls a switchblade from his pocket, the metal glinting in the light as it flips out.
Jon is on Bray’s back, yelling at Melissa to leave. Instead, she breaks free from Sami and tries to shake him out of his trance. Wyatt knocks Moxley back and lunges Melissa from behind. In the last moment, Sami had a change of heart. Maybe it was her desperate screams or simply being done with Wyatt as a puppet, but he shoves Melissa out the way and the blade is plunged deep into his abdomen. The crowd is frozen in shock and horror. Bray seems unfazed as Callihan slowly collapsed to the mat. Melissa screams in agony as Moxley stares with wide eyes. He suddenly howls like a rabid dog and tries to attack Bray but the arena goes dark and Wyatt is gone once they’re back on.
Melissa cradles Sami into her arms and removes the mask that kept his lips silent. His breaths were ragged, he couldn’t really speak. He simply rolled his head further into her arms and smiled as the last bits of his life faded. Moxley was throwing a tantrum, cursing and screaming with rage before staring Melissa down. “This is your fault... This is your fucking fault. First Bray, then you.”
_____________________________________________________________
Third Base.
As the camera started to playback the recording, a crackle of dead leaves were heard in the background. The black screen made it difficult to discern the source of the noise, but it became clear it was simply dark outside. The night sky came into view and the stars scattered across it like fish settling into the vast, blue sea. The camera slowly shifted downward as the chirping of crickets accompanied the crackle of leaves and eventually, the boots of a woman were in view.
They crunched the leaves underneath as a long, black robe levitated behind them. Pale, slender legs were attached to those black boots, having their own ethereal glow as they moved through the night. The camera flashed to the back of this woman, the robe mixing with the night. Red locks fell down her shoulders and back with a fiery glow.
Her back remained to the screen as she walked until finally stopping. She found what she wanted. Her pale fingers brushed along the hardened material of the black coffin. His symbol was etched into the lid with such care. Intricate and deeply made as a lasting brand. She traced along the silver material before dragging fingertips to the latch. She started to open it and paused. A smile grew on her small lips, twisting into a wicked grin as the wind suddenly picked up. The coffin shook in the wind and the redhead settled those dark pupils on the sky again. “This one?” She asked the empty air. The wind only grew stronger and she undid the latch.
_____________________________________________________________