Post by rocketmanedh on May 30, 2021 19:42:40 GMT -5
The television clicks on and is filled with static. The scene is painted with black and white and as the camera zooms away, it is clear that this was a stylistic choice and not only a byproduct of the static. A remote can be heard clicking in the background and suddenly the static stops. It springs to life in color, contrasting with the black and white visible in the rest of the screen. A countdown appears on the screen. When it hits 1, a rocket launch can be heard. A variety of clips pass through. We see Ed Houston hitting a blast off on a variety of his greatest foes including Mack O’Connor, Mike Zybala, Duce Jones, Dylan Thomas, and his biggest foe, size-wise, The Big Bifford. The camera moves away from the screen and focuses in on Ed Houston, looking a little older in the face but still the same Rocket Man from the past. He has a bright smile on his face as the highlights flash through.
The volume is turned up and we can hear the crowd cheering wildly. Then, all of a sudden, the sound cuts off. Ed is faced with the static again. He ejects the tape from the old school VCR he has set up. He takes the tape out and places it in a box. The camera zooms in on the contents of the box. There are various knick-knacks from Ed’s time in both OCW and GCWA. He puts a lid on the box and holds it in his hand. There is a sad, nostalgic smile on his face. It is one that misses the past but understands that it is the past. The look in his eye is one that shows confidence in himself and what he has accomplished while also hammering home the fact that he has moved on. He takes the box and stands up. Ed opens a closet door and puts the box inside. The camera pans across his room, showing various championship belts on the wall. In the center of it is a recent picture of Ed with George Clooney. Both have masks on their faces. The camera turns back to Ed who has his phone out. Shock replaces the confident look that was on his face seconds before. The camera shows the phone with five words splayed across the screen. OCW is opening back up.
Color floods the screen as Ed dials a number and puts it up to his ear.
Houston: “Bob! What the fuck do you mean OCW is opening back up?”
Bob: “Ah, Ed! Good to hear from you. It’s been a while.”
Houston: “Yeah, yeah. Did OCW reach out to you? What do you mean its back?”
Bob: “Uh no.”
Houston: “What do you mean no?”
Bob: “They didn’t reach out to me and it’s full.”
Houston: “What do you mean, full? A fed can’t be full.”
Bob: “They’re only letting eight people in.”
Houston: “And they didn't reach out to you.”
Bob: “No.”
Houston: “Well, who did they reach out to?”
Bob: “It looks like Mike Zybala is going to be in.”
Houston: “Beat him.”
Bob: “And Dylan Thomas.”
Houston: “Beat him and his entire entourage.”
Bob: “Duce Jones, oh wait no I think it’s someone loosely related to Duce.”
Houston: “Well I’ve beaten Duce and I’m sure this mysterious relative is about the same.”
Bob: “Curt Canon.”
Houston: “Oh god. Curt got an invitation over me. Another guy I beat.”
Bob: “Peter the Janitor.”
Houston: “Peter the Janitor? Why did he get invited?”
Bob: “I don’t know. But you aren’t going to like the last one I recognize.”
Houston: “Who is it?”
Bob: “Mack O’Connor.”
Houston: “Seriously. Mack? I shouldn’t be surprised. OCW loves Mack. They act like he’s the greatest thing in wrestling since the suplex. I’m going to take care of this.”
Bob: “What do you mean, Ed?”
Houston: “I mean what I said.”
Bob: “Ed, you don’t even want to wrestle anymore. You’re over that and you should be. You’re one of the few wrestlers that were actually able to make a difference and I don’t mean by announcing some fake presidential campaign or anything like that. You’ve founded three non-profits in the past year. You're going to help kids get into science. You have money now. You don’t need this and I know you don’t want it so who cares if OCW doesn’t want you back.”
Houston: “I didn’t want it five minutes ago but I want it now. This is about legacy. OCW has never fully respected me. They invited a bunch of guys that I’ve beaten in OCW back before me. They act like I’m Curt Canon even though I’ve proven at every opportunity that I’m better than him and they continue to put everything they have behind Mack O’Connor. I’m tired of it. I’m getting back into OCW and I know just how to do it.”
The scene changes again. The timeline shifts two weeks to present day. Ed Houston is dressed in a suit. He is about to walk onto a stage when he gets a phone call.
Houston: “Hey Bob! Did you see what I did.”
Bob: “You can’t be doing that, man.”
Houston: “You’re just mad that I did what you couldn’t do. I swear I don’t know what I pay you for some times. I got myself back into OCW.”
Bob: “You have outside commitments now. You can’t bully whoever you want anymore.”
Houston: “I never bully anyone and I didn’t this time either.”
Bob: “You got Mack O’Connor to leave.”
Houston: “He threw the fit. It wasn’t even that hard to get him to quit. It is in his DNA after all. And OCW still threw him a bone. They continue to feature him even though he quit. At Quarantine I’m going to make them forget about Mack like they should’ve as soon as I poked him into quitting.”
Bob: “But what if the board sees what you’re doing in wrestling and thinks it is a liability to them.”
Houston: “Who cares what I do in the ring. As far as they know, wrestling is fake. I’ll play dumb if I have to. I’m going to do what I have to in the ring. For far too long I’ve let people and companies walk over me. I’m not going to try to break the rules out there but I’m going to win by any means necessary. You have to realize this, Bob. Only four contracts are guaranteed every month and you have to win a championship to get that guarantee. I wasn’t even in the top eight choices and if you throw in what Who’Re said, not the first one out either so I have to get this win and I have to continue to win. If that means I have to do things that the fans might not like all the time, then so be it. My legacy is at stake in a way that it isn’t for the rest of these guys and the fans will understand. I need the stage for my charities.”
Bob: “If you say so, man. I hope you won’t lose sight of what is important.”
Houston: “What’s important is always on my mind. Right now it’s winning. I didn’t expect to step foot in the ring again, but I’m excited for the opportunity. I have time to manage that fire inside of me while trying to better the world but I know I can do it. I’m used to dealing with disrespect. NASA was full of it but now I have the chance to correct some of this disrespect and that is exactly what I’m setting out to do.”
Bob: “Alright, man. I trust you. Your instinct has gotten you this far. Have you heard what some of the other people have said about you?”
Houston: “The same old stuff. I’ve been off for 8 months so I’ve obviously forgotten how to wrestle. Like I don’t have two weeks to get back in shape. Like me at 100% was way better than them so 90% shouldn’t be that bad. They want to act like I wasn’t a GCWA Champion. They want to act like I haven’t held more championships in OCW than nearly everyone in this match. Like I’m a nobody again which is fine with me. At the end of the night they’re going to remember what the Rocket Man can do inside the ring. Even someone like Mike Zybala who has made so much of his name and his money off of my ideas didn’t mention me. Outcast basically stole my shtick line for line. The only difference is I know that he is falling and I’m flying. I’ve built an entire career off of motivation and while I shake off some ring rust, these seven are making motivation easy to come by.”
A woman walks up to Ed. “Hey, Ed? Are you almost done with that call. We’re ready for you. The press has been waiting for a while now.”
Houston: “Oh sorry.” He speaks into the phone. “I have to go, Bob. The children need me.”
He hangs up the phone and puts it back in his pocket. He walks on to the stage with a loud applause as he holds his hands up in the air. The camera focuses on the banner above the stage. The Rocket Foundation is the last image that holds as Ed sits down and the scene fades to black.
The volume is turned up and we can hear the crowd cheering wildly. Then, all of a sudden, the sound cuts off. Ed is faced with the static again. He ejects the tape from the old school VCR he has set up. He takes the tape out and places it in a box. The camera zooms in on the contents of the box. There are various knick-knacks from Ed’s time in both OCW and GCWA. He puts a lid on the box and holds it in his hand. There is a sad, nostalgic smile on his face. It is one that misses the past but understands that it is the past. The look in his eye is one that shows confidence in himself and what he has accomplished while also hammering home the fact that he has moved on. He takes the box and stands up. Ed opens a closet door and puts the box inside. The camera pans across his room, showing various championship belts on the wall. In the center of it is a recent picture of Ed with George Clooney. Both have masks on their faces. The camera turns back to Ed who has his phone out. Shock replaces the confident look that was on his face seconds before. The camera shows the phone with five words splayed across the screen. OCW is opening back up.
Color floods the screen as Ed dials a number and puts it up to his ear.
Houston: “Bob! What the fuck do you mean OCW is opening back up?”
Bob: “Ah, Ed! Good to hear from you. It’s been a while.”
Houston: “Yeah, yeah. Did OCW reach out to you? What do you mean its back?”
Bob: “Uh no.”
Houston: “What do you mean no?”
Bob: “They didn’t reach out to me and it’s full.”
Houston: “What do you mean, full? A fed can’t be full.”
Bob: “They’re only letting eight people in.”
Houston: “And they didn't reach out to you.”
Bob: “No.”
Houston: “Well, who did they reach out to?”
Bob: “It looks like Mike Zybala is going to be in.”
Houston: “Beat him.”
Bob: “And Dylan Thomas.”
Houston: “Beat him and his entire entourage.”
Bob: “Duce Jones, oh wait no I think it’s someone loosely related to Duce.”
Houston: “Well I’ve beaten Duce and I’m sure this mysterious relative is about the same.”
Bob: “Curt Canon.”
Houston: “Oh god. Curt got an invitation over me. Another guy I beat.”
Bob: “Peter the Janitor.”
Houston: “Peter the Janitor? Why did he get invited?”
Bob: “I don’t know. But you aren’t going to like the last one I recognize.”
Houston: “Who is it?”
Bob: “Mack O’Connor.”
Houston: “Seriously. Mack? I shouldn’t be surprised. OCW loves Mack. They act like he’s the greatest thing in wrestling since the suplex. I’m going to take care of this.”
Bob: “What do you mean, Ed?”
Houston: “I mean what I said.”
Bob: “Ed, you don’t even want to wrestle anymore. You’re over that and you should be. You’re one of the few wrestlers that were actually able to make a difference and I don’t mean by announcing some fake presidential campaign or anything like that. You’ve founded three non-profits in the past year. You're going to help kids get into science. You have money now. You don’t need this and I know you don’t want it so who cares if OCW doesn’t want you back.”
Houston: “I didn’t want it five minutes ago but I want it now. This is about legacy. OCW has never fully respected me. They invited a bunch of guys that I’ve beaten in OCW back before me. They act like I’m Curt Canon even though I’ve proven at every opportunity that I’m better than him and they continue to put everything they have behind Mack O’Connor. I’m tired of it. I’m getting back into OCW and I know just how to do it.”
The scene changes again. The timeline shifts two weeks to present day. Ed Houston is dressed in a suit. He is about to walk onto a stage when he gets a phone call.
Houston: “Hey Bob! Did you see what I did.”
Bob: “You can’t be doing that, man.”
Houston: “You’re just mad that I did what you couldn’t do. I swear I don’t know what I pay you for some times. I got myself back into OCW.”
Bob: “You have outside commitments now. You can’t bully whoever you want anymore.”
Houston: “I never bully anyone and I didn’t this time either.”
Bob: “You got Mack O’Connor to leave.”
Houston: “He threw the fit. It wasn’t even that hard to get him to quit. It is in his DNA after all. And OCW still threw him a bone. They continue to feature him even though he quit. At Quarantine I’m going to make them forget about Mack like they should’ve as soon as I poked him into quitting.”
Bob: “But what if the board sees what you’re doing in wrestling and thinks it is a liability to them.”
Houston: “Who cares what I do in the ring. As far as they know, wrestling is fake. I’ll play dumb if I have to. I’m going to do what I have to in the ring. For far too long I’ve let people and companies walk over me. I’m not going to try to break the rules out there but I’m going to win by any means necessary. You have to realize this, Bob. Only four contracts are guaranteed every month and you have to win a championship to get that guarantee. I wasn’t even in the top eight choices and if you throw in what Who’Re said, not the first one out either so I have to get this win and I have to continue to win. If that means I have to do things that the fans might not like all the time, then so be it. My legacy is at stake in a way that it isn’t for the rest of these guys and the fans will understand. I need the stage for my charities.”
Bob: “If you say so, man. I hope you won’t lose sight of what is important.”
Houston: “What’s important is always on my mind. Right now it’s winning. I didn’t expect to step foot in the ring again, but I’m excited for the opportunity. I have time to manage that fire inside of me while trying to better the world but I know I can do it. I’m used to dealing with disrespect. NASA was full of it but now I have the chance to correct some of this disrespect and that is exactly what I’m setting out to do.”
Bob: “Alright, man. I trust you. Your instinct has gotten you this far. Have you heard what some of the other people have said about you?”
Houston: “The same old stuff. I’ve been off for 8 months so I’ve obviously forgotten how to wrestle. Like I don’t have two weeks to get back in shape. Like me at 100% was way better than them so 90% shouldn’t be that bad. They want to act like I wasn’t a GCWA Champion. They want to act like I haven’t held more championships in OCW than nearly everyone in this match. Like I’m a nobody again which is fine with me. At the end of the night they’re going to remember what the Rocket Man can do inside the ring. Even someone like Mike Zybala who has made so much of his name and his money off of my ideas didn’t mention me. Outcast basically stole my shtick line for line. The only difference is I know that he is falling and I’m flying. I’ve built an entire career off of motivation and while I shake off some ring rust, these seven are making motivation easy to come by.”
A woman walks up to Ed. “Hey, Ed? Are you almost done with that call. We’re ready for you. The press has been waiting for a while now.”
Houston: “Oh sorry.” He speaks into the phone. “I have to go, Bob. The children need me.”
He hangs up the phone and puts it back in his pocket. He walks on to the stage with a loud applause as he holds his hands up in the air. The camera focuses on the banner above the stage. The Rocket Foundation is the last image that holds as Ed sits down and the scene fades to black.
