Post by jackdiamond on Aug 12, 2016 10:33:18 GMT -5
Off Camera
Jack’s Perspective
Present Day
For once I count myself lucky the NGW crew is running late. I love Atomic Liquors, total dive. Gotta respect the joint for being the oldest freestanding bar in town. No place like it. Just a few hundred yards from casinos, but feels worlds away. Every time I look out the window, just desert stretching for miles; makes for a piece of peace amidst the hustle and bustle. Sipping on this Atomic Cocktail certainly helps too with putting me at ease. Splash of sherry, plus equal parts vodka, brandy, champagne, and divine.
Easy Jack, gotta cut a promo soon after all. Plus your condition made you into a bit of a lightweight. Don’t wanna show up on camera looking like Kenzie or KEG do you? Let’s put the drink down for now and jump on Twitter; see what that hussy Ashleigh is up to today. Maybe pull a few nuggets I can use in this promo. Let’s take a look….
Ugh, these two. Gavin and Ashleigh. “Stop Being So Adorable” from Gavin earlier this week. Only a few days before she discarded his last name. Almost like they flip a coin every morning to decide how they’ll treat each other that day. Heads: lovey dovey. Tails: cats and dogs.
Jack don’t be too hard on them, I remember love like that. Reyes would never put up with half the jazz Ashleigh does, but I remember the chaos. Can’t imagine the CFW days - being in That relationship - in the social media age. Wound up hard enough keeping our spats under wraps before Twitter became big.
7/23/16 Joey Reyes Follow You
Shit! How do I always end up looking at this Notification every time I go on Twitter. Joey Reyes - you actually gonna do something about it this time Jacky Boy? For the hundredth time though, let us run through how this may play out.
First - dealing with the delay. Reaching out weeks after she initiated? She’ll read that as me trying too hard at seeming cold and casual; mixing up my actual trepidation for acting sauve.
Why am I so nervous, I’m sweating bullets and it ain’t from the desert sun. I can’t get in my own way like this. Not everything needs this much planning. But it’s Reyes - you only get one shot at second chances.
Okay, against all odds she doesn’t write me off as still an asshole, what’s the move to make? Play it safe and just follow back….then why the hell bother do anything at all? So I feel special like Corey Bull for upping my Twitter reputation, please. Do I shoot her a tweet? And put myself on the line for everyone to see, Diamond are you nuts!? Leave yourself out in the open, what you change your last name to Grimes now too? A phone call - no way too personal, Jesus Jack!! Call your married ex flame out of the blue, if you are lucky enough that she hasn’t changed numbers!? Get your head in the fucking game. You are way overthinking this, you need to calm down. A Direct Message; yea that’s the right angle to play this out.
Now just deciding what to say. How hard is that slick?? Do I ask if she wants to meet up? Diamond you haven’t seen Reyes in six years, and you want to double down on the first message!? Again, remember she’s married now. I could just say Hi….come on Jacky Boy you are better than that. Let’s meet in the middle, shoot her a ‘how’s it going’. Simple, puts the ball in her court. Type it up
Hey doll, how’s it going?
Perfect. Wait don’t hit send yet! Let’s say all this works though and she she responds, then what? Pull yourself together Jack and worry about one message at a time. But it’s important to be a step ahead here. What if she asks how I am. Damn it! How much do I tip my hand? Do I tell her about getting back into wrestling; why, think she cares you and Bentley are back in business? How about the big news….no, of course not. She’s moved on, don’t insert yourself back into her life and make her deal with something like that. I got it - Isabella! Joey will laugh her ass off that I have a daughter now, but maybe she could offer a helping hand. She’s a mom after all, probably has some advice she can send my way.
Wait speaking of sending my way, she never sent me a message when she followed me….what does That say? I bet she just clicked on a bunch of ‘recommended follows’ while waiting for daycare or something. Half a seconds worth of thought, and here I’ve spent hours since I received that notification. Maybe she didn’t even read my name when she clicked follow. And now I want to reach out to her?
Jack cut this shit out now! You have bigger things to deal with than an old flame. You know full well there is only one way this plays out. End this once and for all. Fucking end this mental torture. What happened in the past stays in the past.
Do it Diamond, do it! Hit the Red Button
@joeyreyesthomas is blocked
There. It’s done.
On Camera
Atomic Liquors, Las Vegas
Present Day
This promo airs in black and white; providing stark contrasts throughout a dive bar. Only one patron sits at a bar, staring out a window into the desert. Jack Diamond does not acknowledge us, not turning his gaze from his view. Sitting in front of him is a martini glass, the elixir bubbling. Outside seems devoid of life, a wasteland except for a single dirty neon sign. It flashes “Atomic Liquors”. Keeping his eyes on the horizon Jack’s voice cuts into the silence.
Jack: During 1950s Vegas partook in a particularly perverse form of entertainment. That’s saying something, for this city to raise the bar on depravity. Save the old man jokes Ashleigh, this happened long before I was born. I’m talking about the peak of the Cold War
Diamond points out into the distance
Jack: Less than a hundred miles from Sin City the US Government tested atomic bombs. The most powerful weapon ever conceived. Now, do you think that stopped this town from partying? You bet it didn’t. Instead Vegas reveled in it, intoxicated by the adrenaline, the fear, the excitement. Suckers flocked from the four corners of the world just for a glimpse at such raw power. They treated the Apocalypse like a fireworks show; feeling the rush of danger from the ‘safe’ proximity of their luxury suites. Casinos trotted out specialty drinks, Miss Atomic Energy beauty pageants, all night ragers, the whole shebang. Why the history lesson you may ask? Because our tastes in entertainment remain twisted, unchanged over the past six decades.
Rather than watching the power of the atom explode, we get our kicks in NGW from the Power Couple imploding. The jokers in this joint stare in awe from a distance as The Grimes split and rejoin; enjoying every outburst of energy and tears. They say the Atom Bomb was the Best Thing to Happen to Vegas. Well Ashleigh and Gavin are the best thing to happen to New Generation Wrestling - at least in terms of ratings. Devlin even tells fans the same thing our government told onlookers after atomic blasts - take a cold shower after witnessing a blow up and everything will be fine. But as Ashleigh can tell you, sometimes showers are just as toxic.
Taking a sip from his Atomic Cocktail
Jack: When Ashleigh issued a challenge for her title, everyone sought shelter. Bentley as a friend I was shell-shocked you ducked the match and covered your ass with a lame excuse. Damon Graves meanwhile hunkered down hoping half a championship protected him. Not me though. Sure Ashleigh’s name lights up the night sky, but I don’t see her as some superweapon. In fact if anyone in NGW needs a shelter it is her….but not from a bomb sweetheart. I mean from your hubby.
Look I get it doll, you grew up alone. Without parents odds are you have no idea how couples should act. Trust me toots, it ain’t what you deal with in Gavin. Ashleigh if that joker worked in the NFL when your shower fight footage went public, he would be out on your corner begging for work. His career radioactive, no federation would touch him.
Nodding his head in disgust he turns toward the camera.
Jack: I saw your interview after that shower debacle. Phrases pouring out of your mouth justifying him getting physical because of your shit. That you were wrong about interfering in his title defense. That you had it coming. Explaining away what he does as ‘the ones closest to you hurt you the most’. Stating the only part that surprised you was he blew up like that on camera. Really? How volatile do things get when he ain’t held back by public opinion? Honey I’m not shocked you take too much credit for ending careers; it does leave me in awe though how much you take for ending your marriage.
At this point you likely shrug me off - lots of dupes point out what a terrible pair you make. But babydoll it creates a chain reaction destroying your whole life. One cascading out of your control. As your marriage falls apart it affects your work. Look no further than your latest promo.
I tuned in expecting a Big Boom - after all the whole wrestling world is blown away by your wit. All I saw was you fizzle, a complete failure to launch. The whole production culminated in what...
There is a dramatic pause before Jack deadpans with a tinge of disappointment
Jack: Calling me a Joker
He lets that linger in the air for a second
Jack: A joker. A term I casually fling around every day. That’s the best you can do? Can’t blame a broken hand for whiffing on that punchline toots.
Spinning on his barstool he looks out into the desert again.
Jack: As for the rest of your promo, it bombed in all the wrong ways. Terribly predictable - the way you self promote, calling me old, the card setup. Called each and every last one of those. Let’s make a deal. For now on leave the gambling analogies to me, and I’ll leave the sassy hashtags and gifs to you. Honestly I expected sloppy analogies from hapless marks like McCollum. You though struggled with a card concept like Corey Bull taking a class in nuclear physics.
First things first, you called yourself the Queen. Funny in a promo where you make the rules, you still put your value below a King - Gavin in this case, if the names of his signature moves didn’t make that abundantly clear. Before you go blaming gender identity, your routine could have involved an Ace - the only card that trumps a King.
But no, you chose Queen. With pride I may add. Did you play hookie during history class - even without eidetic memory you should remember Queen is a historically bad deal. Think it gets you want you want, lets you say what you want, and lets you do what you want? No dice. You do what the King demands, say what the King wants to hear, and get what the King gives you. Really what’s the difference between Queen and a Jester? Both act for the King’s amusement - just the Queen performs her dance horizontally and in more private quarters. A Queen serves only in perpetuating her King’s Legacy. Sounds like you and Gavin, no doubt about that. But for how long? Personally, I am starting to take bets who becomes Queen Grimes the Second after Gavin lobs your head off at Victory and Honor. If you make it to Ohio that is Ash.
Jack makes a dismissive wave with his hand, as if sending the topic into the wasteland
Jack: Enough about your station in life, let us deal with the suits you laid out and see if any really fit you.
I already discussed at length your role as Queen of Hearts. Suckers don’t chase you because you are a bombshell - no offense. The fans follow because you represent the Manic Pixie - wild but totally devoted. A bet that’s both high stakes and safe. A call girl that pays him for her service. The type of broad who goes crazy and punches a wall, but never raises her hands to protect herself.
Spades may suit you too. You kept digging your own grave with every word you spoke. All these careers you ended. So many careers ended, yet you remain untested. None of these names strike fear. Odds are if they had the misfortune of facing me I would blown them away - we know that’s true for a handful on your list anyway. Want to see the careers I discarded here in NGW so far: Mic Strong. Dean Judas - yes doll he belongs on my list - Pekelo Kimo. Sure they continued getting booked, but none found their voice after me. Three matches in NGW. Three careers vaporized. Do the math going into my fourth Grimes.
Let us circle back to Dean Judas though - he was on the wrong end of your Club right? You didn’t end his career though doll face, I did. When’s the last time you heard him make a peep? Right before I leveled him in the middle of the ring. The only reason I know it didn’t break his damn jaw was when he took a bite of your fingers two weeks later. In a match you all but lost thanks to a meltdown. Sure he made it to the main event - thanks to you dragging his reputation there. But paramedics needed to drag him to the arena first, thanks to yours truly. So to be blunt, maybe calling yourself a blunt instrument doesn’t really fit. I’ll let you keep the Club though toots. Take it home with you; King Gavin looks ready to blow any day now.
Queen of Diamonds - no dice. Sorry if you hoped to trade in your last name, and who could blame you. Sure that ring Grimes gave you looks nice, but we both know only one Diamond lasts forever.
Chuckling Jack winks at the camera
Jack: But I ain’t in the market for a Queen at the moment. On the topic of pairs though, that was some comparison you drew up for Dirk and me. A modern day Thelma and Louise, funny coming NGW’s Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Killing myself though in a blaze of glory, not gonna happen. Hope it doesn’t make you M.A.D. to hear this Ash, but our destruction is not mutually assured - only yours.
Diamond revolves back in his chair and stares at the camera, his hands resting on his knees as he gets closer to the screen.
Jack: All this counts down to the real issue I have with your promo: whining about a world filled with ‘Haves’ and ‘Have Nots’. Dropping lines about how I always sat in an ivory tower - contradicting the previous sentence acknowledging how I worked my way up there. It’s true though, how conned, swindled, and straight up bested everyone that stood in my way. But there is no such thing as ‘Haves’ and ‘Have Nots’ Ashleigh. Ready to have your mind blown
He mockingly puts his hands to his head
Jack: There are Only ‘Takers’ and the ‘Taken’
Pushing his hands outward he gestures an explosion. Even makes a few sounds for effect.
Jack: You only have what you take. And if you have nothing it means someone took it from you. Nobody to thank or blame but yourself. Gavin, the two bit hack he is, falls under takers. He takes everything from you - almost everything. Me, Jack Diamond, you bet I’m a taker. Money, power, success, your championship - I take what I want. In Connecticut, I took what I wanted. By the way you dismissed wrestling hotspots in that state; I can think of some pretty successful wrestling federations in Connecticut - one in Stamford to be exact. Wwe can’t mention the name or they may shutter NGW down, but you get my point. As for what have I done lately; what haven’t I done? I burst back onto the scene and sent shockwaves through this federation. How long did it take you to get a title shot - four matches? Took me only three. You talk about Inferno a lot but it’s me currently lighting the very air in NGW arenas ablaze.
Meanwhile you toots - you are taken at every turn. I don’t care about your undefeated streak, get your head out of the clouds about your record. When something actually rests on the line you will go up in smoke. As a kid you got taken off your corner by highrollers like me. You get taken out of the spotlight by your own husband. And Saturday I take away the Five Lakes Championship.
Diamond takes an extra long sip from his drink, now holding an empty glass
Jack: During your little promo you accused me of claiming conspiracy - never said that. I claimed Devlin showed incompetence when it came to booking, don’t give him so much credit. Devlin though is up to something else. Like a mad scientist, with Gavin as his Igor, he donned a white coat and dedicated the last few months in developing a secret weapon. One powerful enough to make NGW a world power. Fat Man and Little Boy created you - Ashleigh Grimes - their attempt at the Manhattan Project. Emphasize project. Devlin Scott tried energizing you through harnessing your relationship with Gavin. He performed controlled trials - testing your power against a few silent dummies like Maria and Malone. But all his work, and yet Ashleigh Grimes remains a dud.
Vendetta was supposed to be the countdown toward Grimes Vs. Grimes. But that plan just went up in smoke. I am ending that war here and now. The bomb drops early when I turn Ash into ash. My victory will make a wasteland of everything NGW holds dear. It will send shockwaves across the globe, shatter fan expectations, and reshape the balance of power forever. Victory and Honor won’t be the party Devlin wanted, everyone gathered to watch the wrestling world explode...
It will be for dealing with the Fallout.
He slams his martini glass with a bang. The screen flashes with blinding light and then suddenly blackness.
Off Camera
Jack’s Perspective
Flashback: June 2015
Doctor: Pancreatic Canc….
Boom! Feels like someone just detonated the entire room; my entire life. I can’t stop shaking, and everything the Doctor says is lost in a muted din. But I’ve heard enough to know. How the hell does this happen to me? Me!? What are the odds...
Doctor:...tumor...
One cell doesn’t do it’s fucking job and now….wait now what? I bet that’s what he’s explaining right now.
Doctor:...inherited mutated...BRCA2...metastasized...
I cannot make out a damn thing he’s saying - Forget about the words for a while, I bet he just talks in jargon. Would need to hear things repeated five times before I finally catch on. Focus on what you can understand Diamond, read his face.
Doctor:…risk...spreading…organs
Jaws pushing forward, lips drawing down. There ain’t any good news here.
Doctor:…complicated…options…
God enough of that, I need to collect my thoughts. Stare at the ceiling Jack, count the tiles….one….two…
Doctor:…stage three...
Jack stop and try paying attention - counting ain’t gonna cut it this time.
Doctor:….surgery...danger...location….nerves
It can’t go down like this Jacky Boy, it can’t go down like this. All my hard work. Grafting to the high-roller tables. Grinding to gold in the ring…..
Doctor:….chemotherapy...several months….this stage...no assurances...
Clawing to the top of the business world. I manage the Diamond Club damn it! I run part of this town now. Sure it ain’t actually named after me, but this is my big shot….it was my big shot...Now. Now, it’s gone. Betrayed by some tissue and bad luck. No, it can’t end like this. I am Jack fucking Diamond. I don’t follow the odds, I even them.
Doctor:...Radiation therapy…
Everything’s perfectly clear now, the fog lifted.
Jack: Doctor enough!
Doctor: Excuse me?
Jack: Give it to me straight doc
Doctor: Ok…
...
Jack: What are the chances I can beat this thing?
Jack’s Perspective
Present Day
For once I count myself lucky the NGW crew is running late. I love Atomic Liquors, total dive. Gotta respect the joint for being the oldest freestanding bar in town. No place like it. Just a few hundred yards from casinos, but feels worlds away. Every time I look out the window, just desert stretching for miles; makes for a piece of peace amidst the hustle and bustle. Sipping on this Atomic Cocktail certainly helps too with putting me at ease. Splash of sherry, plus equal parts vodka, brandy, champagne, and divine.
Easy Jack, gotta cut a promo soon after all. Plus your condition made you into a bit of a lightweight. Don’t wanna show up on camera looking like Kenzie or KEG do you? Let’s put the drink down for now and jump on Twitter; see what that hussy Ashleigh is up to today. Maybe pull a few nuggets I can use in this promo. Let’s take a look….
Ugh, these two. Gavin and Ashleigh. “Stop Being So Adorable” from Gavin earlier this week. Only a few days before she discarded his last name. Almost like they flip a coin every morning to decide how they’ll treat each other that day. Heads: lovey dovey. Tails: cats and dogs.
Jack don’t be too hard on them, I remember love like that. Reyes would never put up with half the jazz Ashleigh does, but I remember the chaos. Can’t imagine the CFW days - being in That relationship - in the social media age. Wound up hard enough keeping our spats under wraps before Twitter became big.
7/23/16 Joey Reyes Follow You
Shit! How do I always end up looking at this Notification every time I go on Twitter. Joey Reyes - you actually gonna do something about it this time Jacky Boy? For the hundredth time though, let us run through how this may play out.
First - dealing with the delay. Reaching out weeks after she initiated? She’ll read that as me trying too hard at seeming cold and casual; mixing up my actual trepidation for acting sauve.
Why am I so nervous, I’m sweating bullets and it ain’t from the desert sun. I can’t get in my own way like this. Not everything needs this much planning. But it’s Reyes - you only get one shot at second chances.
Okay, against all odds she doesn’t write me off as still an asshole, what’s the move to make? Play it safe and just follow back….then why the hell bother do anything at all? So I feel special like Corey Bull for upping my Twitter reputation, please. Do I shoot her a tweet? And put myself on the line for everyone to see, Diamond are you nuts!? Leave yourself out in the open, what you change your last name to Grimes now too? A phone call - no way too personal, Jesus Jack!! Call your married ex flame out of the blue, if you are lucky enough that she hasn’t changed numbers!? Get your head in the fucking game. You are way overthinking this, you need to calm down. A Direct Message; yea that’s the right angle to play this out.
Now just deciding what to say. How hard is that slick?? Do I ask if she wants to meet up? Diamond you haven’t seen Reyes in six years, and you want to double down on the first message!? Again, remember she’s married now. I could just say Hi….come on Jacky Boy you are better than that. Let’s meet in the middle, shoot her a ‘how’s it going’. Simple, puts the ball in her court. Type it up
Hey doll, how’s it going?
Perfect. Wait don’t hit send yet! Let’s say all this works though and she she responds, then what? Pull yourself together Jack and worry about one message at a time. But it’s important to be a step ahead here. What if she asks how I am. Damn it! How much do I tip my hand? Do I tell her about getting back into wrestling; why, think she cares you and Bentley are back in business? How about the big news….no, of course not. She’s moved on, don’t insert yourself back into her life and make her deal with something like that. I got it - Isabella! Joey will laugh her ass off that I have a daughter now, but maybe she could offer a helping hand. She’s a mom after all, probably has some advice she can send my way.
Wait speaking of sending my way, she never sent me a message when she followed me….what does That say? I bet she just clicked on a bunch of ‘recommended follows’ while waiting for daycare or something. Half a seconds worth of thought, and here I’ve spent hours since I received that notification. Maybe she didn’t even read my name when she clicked follow. And now I want to reach out to her?
Jack cut this shit out now! You have bigger things to deal with than an old flame. You know full well there is only one way this plays out. End this once and for all. Fucking end this mental torture. What happened in the past stays in the past.
Do it Diamond, do it! Hit the Red Button
@joeyreyesthomas is blocked
There. It’s done.
On Camera
Atomic Liquors, Las Vegas
Present Day
This promo airs in black and white; providing stark contrasts throughout a dive bar. Only one patron sits at a bar, staring out a window into the desert. Jack Diamond does not acknowledge us, not turning his gaze from his view. Sitting in front of him is a martini glass, the elixir bubbling. Outside seems devoid of life, a wasteland except for a single dirty neon sign. It flashes “Atomic Liquors”. Keeping his eyes on the horizon Jack’s voice cuts into the silence.
Jack: During 1950s Vegas partook in a particularly perverse form of entertainment. That’s saying something, for this city to raise the bar on depravity. Save the old man jokes Ashleigh, this happened long before I was born. I’m talking about the peak of the Cold War
Diamond points out into the distance
Jack: Less than a hundred miles from Sin City the US Government tested atomic bombs. The most powerful weapon ever conceived. Now, do you think that stopped this town from partying? You bet it didn’t. Instead Vegas reveled in it, intoxicated by the adrenaline, the fear, the excitement. Suckers flocked from the four corners of the world just for a glimpse at such raw power. They treated the Apocalypse like a fireworks show; feeling the rush of danger from the ‘safe’ proximity of their luxury suites. Casinos trotted out specialty drinks, Miss Atomic Energy beauty pageants, all night ragers, the whole shebang. Why the history lesson you may ask? Because our tastes in entertainment remain twisted, unchanged over the past six decades.
Rather than watching the power of the atom explode, we get our kicks in NGW from the Power Couple imploding. The jokers in this joint stare in awe from a distance as The Grimes split and rejoin; enjoying every outburst of energy and tears. They say the Atom Bomb was the Best Thing to Happen to Vegas. Well Ashleigh and Gavin are the best thing to happen to New Generation Wrestling - at least in terms of ratings. Devlin even tells fans the same thing our government told onlookers after atomic blasts - take a cold shower after witnessing a blow up and everything will be fine. But as Ashleigh can tell you, sometimes showers are just as toxic.
Taking a sip from his Atomic Cocktail
Jack: When Ashleigh issued a challenge for her title, everyone sought shelter. Bentley as a friend I was shell-shocked you ducked the match and covered your ass with a lame excuse. Damon Graves meanwhile hunkered down hoping half a championship protected him. Not me though. Sure Ashleigh’s name lights up the night sky, but I don’t see her as some superweapon. In fact if anyone in NGW needs a shelter it is her….but not from a bomb sweetheart. I mean from your hubby.
Look I get it doll, you grew up alone. Without parents odds are you have no idea how couples should act. Trust me toots, it ain’t what you deal with in Gavin. Ashleigh if that joker worked in the NFL when your shower fight footage went public, he would be out on your corner begging for work. His career radioactive, no federation would touch him.
Nodding his head in disgust he turns toward the camera.
Jack: I saw your interview after that shower debacle. Phrases pouring out of your mouth justifying him getting physical because of your shit. That you were wrong about interfering in his title defense. That you had it coming. Explaining away what he does as ‘the ones closest to you hurt you the most’. Stating the only part that surprised you was he blew up like that on camera. Really? How volatile do things get when he ain’t held back by public opinion? Honey I’m not shocked you take too much credit for ending careers; it does leave me in awe though how much you take for ending your marriage.
At this point you likely shrug me off - lots of dupes point out what a terrible pair you make. But babydoll it creates a chain reaction destroying your whole life. One cascading out of your control. As your marriage falls apart it affects your work. Look no further than your latest promo.
I tuned in expecting a Big Boom - after all the whole wrestling world is blown away by your wit. All I saw was you fizzle, a complete failure to launch. The whole production culminated in what...
There is a dramatic pause before Jack deadpans with a tinge of disappointment
Jack: Calling me a Joker
He lets that linger in the air for a second
Jack: A joker. A term I casually fling around every day. That’s the best you can do? Can’t blame a broken hand for whiffing on that punchline toots.
Spinning on his barstool he looks out into the desert again.
Jack: As for the rest of your promo, it bombed in all the wrong ways. Terribly predictable - the way you self promote, calling me old, the card setup. Called each and every last one of those. Let’s make a deal. For now on leave the gambling analogies to me, and I’ll leave the sassy hashtags and gifs to you. Honestly I expected sloppy analogies from hapless marks like McCollum. You though struggled with a card concept like Corey Bull taking a class in nuclear physics.
First things first, you called yourself the Queen. Funny in a promo where you make the rules, you still put your value below a King - Gavin in this case, if the names of his signature moves didn’t make that abundantly clear. Before you go blaming gender identity, your routine could have involved an Ace - the only card that trumps a King.
But no, you chose Queen. With pride I may add. Did you play hookie during history class - even without eidetic memory you should remember Queen is a historically bad deal. Think it gets you want you want, lets you say what you want, and lets you do what you want? No dice. You do what the King demands, say what the King wants to hear, and get what the King gives you. Really what’s the difference between Queen and a Jester? Both act for the King’s amusement - just the Queen performs her dance horizontally and in more private quarters. A Queen serves only in perpetuating her King’s Legacy. Sounds like you and Gavin, no doubt about that. But for how long? Personally, I am starting to take bets who becomes Queen Grimes the Second after Gavin lobs your head off at Victory and Honor. If you make it to Ohio that is Ash.
Jack makes a dismissive wave with his hand, as if sending the topic into the wasteland
Jack: Enough about your station in life, let us deal with the suits you laid out and see if any really fit you.
I already discussed at length your role as Queen of Hearts. Suckers don’t chase you because you are a bombshell - no offense. The fans follow because you represent the Manic Pixie - wild but totally devoted. A bet that’s both high stakes and safe. A call girl that pays him for her service. The type of broad who goes crazy and punches a wall, but never raises her hands to protect herself.
Spades may suit you too. You kept digging your own grave with every word you spoke. All these careers you ended. So many careers ended, yet you remain untested. None of these names strike fear. Odds are if they had the misfortune of facing me I would blown them away - we know that’s true for a handful on your list anyway. Want to see the careers I discarded here in NGW so far: Mic Strong. Dean Judas - yes doll he belongs on my list - Pekelo Kimo. Sure they continued getting booked, but none found their voice after me. Three matches in NGW. Three careers vaporized. Do the math going into my fourth Grimes.
Let us circle back to Dean Judas though - he was on the wrong end of your Club right? You didn’t end his career though doll face, I did. When’s the last time you heard him make a peep? Right before I leveled him in the middle of the ring. The only reason I know it didn’t break his damn jaw was when he took a bite of your fingers two weeks later. In a match you all but lost thanks to a meltdown. Sure he made it to the main event - thanks to you dragging his reputation there. But paramedics needed to drag him to the arena first, thanks to yours truly. So to be blunt, maybe calling yourself a blunt instrument doesn’t really fit. I’ll let you keep the Club though toots. Take it home with you; King Gavin looks ready to blow any day now.
Queen of Diamonds - no dice. Sorry if you hoped to trade in your last name, and who could blame you. Sure that ring Grimes gave you looks nice, but we both know only one Diamond lasts forever.
Chuckling Jack winks at the camera
Jack: But I ain’t in the market for a Queen at the moment. On the topic of pairs though, that was some comparison you drew up for Dirk and me. A modern day Thelma and Louise, funny coming NGW’s Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Killing myself though in a blaze of glory, not gonna happen. Hope it doesn’t make you M.A.D. to hear this Ash, but our destruction is not mutually assured - only yours.
Diamond revolves back in his chair and stares at the camera, his hands resting on his knees as he gets closer to the screen.
Jack: All this counts down to the real issue I have with your promo: whining about a world filled with ‘Haves’ and ‘Have Nots’. Dropping lines about how I always sat in an ivory tower - contradicting the previous sentence acknowledging how I worked my way up there. It’s true though, how conned, swindled, and straight up bested everyone that stood in my way. But there is no such thing as ‘Haves’ and ‘Have Nots’ Ashleigh. Ready to have your mind blown
He mockingly puts his hands to his head
Jack: There are Only ‘Takers’ and the ‘Taken’
Pushing his hands outward he gestures an explosion. Even makes a few sounds for effect.
Jack: You only have what you take. And if you have nothing it means someone took it from you. Nobody to thank or blame but yourself. Gavin, the two bit hack he is, falls under takers. He takes everything from you - almost everything. Me, Jack Diamond, you bet I’m a taker. Money, power, success, your championship - I take what I want. In Connecticut, I took what I wanted. By the way you dismissed wrestling hotspots in that state; I can think of some pretty successful wrestling federations in Connecticut - one in Stamford to be exact. Wwe can’t mention the name or they may shutter NGW down, but you get my point. As for what have I done lately; what haven’t I done? I burst back onto the scene and sent shockwaves through this federation. How long did it take you to get a title shot - four matches? Took me only three. You talk about Inferno a lot but it’s me currently lighting the very air in NGW arenas ablaze.
Meanwhile you toots - you are taken at every turn. I don’t care about your undefeated streak, get your head out of the clouds about your record. When something actually rests on the line you will go up in smoke. As a kid you got taken off your corner by highrollers like me. You get taken out of the spotlight by your own husband. And Saturday I take away the Five Lakes Championship.
Diamond takes an extra long sip from his drink, now holding an empty glass
Jack: During your little promo you accused me of claiming conspiracy - never said that. I claimed Devlin showed incompetence when it came to booking, don’t give him so much credit. Devlin though is up to something else. Like a mad scientist, with Gavin as his Igor, he donned a white coat and dedicated the last few months in developing a secret weapon. One powerful enough to make NGW a world power. Fat Man and Little Boy created you - Ashleigh Grimes - their attempt at the Manhattan Project. Emphasize project. Devlin Scott tried energizing you through harnessing your relationship with Gavin. He performed controlled trials - testing your power against a few silent dummies like Maria and Malone. But all his work, and yet Ashleigh Grimes remains a dud.
Vendetta was supposed to be the countdown toward Grimes Vs. Grimes. But that plan just went up in smoke. I am ending that war here and now. The bomb drops early when I turn Ash into ash. My victory will make a wasteland of everything NGW holds dear. It will send shockwaves across the globe, shatter fan expectations, and reshape the balance of power forever. Victory and Honor won’t be the party Devlin wanted, everyone gathered to watch the wrestling world explode...
It will be for dealing with the Fallout.
He slams his martini glass with a bang. The screen flashes with blinding light and then suddenly blackness.
Off Camera
Jack’s Perspective
Flashback: June 2015
Doctor: Pancreatic Canc….
Boom! Feels like someone just detonated the entire room; my entire life. I can’t stop shaking, and everything the Doctor says is lost in a muted din. But I’ve heard enough to know. How the hell does this happen to me? Me!? What are the odds...
Doctor:...tumor...
One cell doesn’t do it’s fucking job and now….wait now what? I bet that’s what he’s explaining right now.
Doctor:...inherited mutated...BRCA2...metastasized...
I cannot make out a damn thing he’s saying - Forget about the words for a while, I bet he just talks in jargon. Would need to hear things repeated five times before I finally catch on. Focus on what you can understand Diamond, read his face.
Doctor:…risk...spreading…organs
Jaws pushing forward, lips drawing down. There ain’t any good news here.
Doctor:…complicated…options…
God enough of that, I need to collect my thoughts. Stare at the ceiling Jack, count the tiles….one….two…
Doctor:…stage three...
Jack stop and try paying attention - counting ain’t gonna cut it this time.
Doctor:….surgery...danger...location….nerves
It can’t go down like this Jacky Boy, it can’t go down like this. All my hard work. Grafting to the high-roller tables. Grinding to gold in the ring…..
Doctor:….chemotherapy...several months….this stage...no assurances...
Clawing to the top of the business world. I manage the Diamond Club damn it! I run part of this town now. Sure it ain’t actually named after me, but this is my big shot….it was my big shot...Now. Now, it’s gone. Betrayed by some tissue and bad luck. No, it can’t end like this. I am Jack fucking Diamond. I don’t follow the odds, I even them.
Doctor:...Radiation therapy…
Everything’s perfectly clear now, the fog lifted.
Jack: Doctor enough!
Doctor: Excuse me?
Jack: Give it to me straight doc
Doctor: Ok…
...
Jack: What are the chances I can beat this thing?