==========
May 11th, 2020
Raleigh, NC
Off Camera
==========
Quarantine seems to be the word of the day in these
troubling times; that and “essential employees” seem to roll off the tongue
with ease. Everyone is taking things differently, but everyone is feeling
the pressure. One individual who does not take pressure too well is “The
Assassin” Clyde Sutter. The enormous monster of a man had expected to be
allowed to continue to compete. He is an athlete, a competitor, and
should be allowed to continue to hone his craft. Yet instead Sutter has
found himself benched from active competition shortly after Day of Infamy at
the beginning of the year. It has nothing to do with any debilitating
disease of any sorts. Sutter is being benched not because of his physical
health and well being but instead because his mental and emotional health and
well being is questioned. Who would question his mental state?
None other than his own agent, the man who claims
to want the best for him and his career, Mason Van Stanton. Sutter never
trusted Mason, not for a second. He had been using Van Stanton as a means
to an end. Glory Braddock had been doing her best to blackball Sutter,
keeping any and all wrestling companies she had connections with from signing
him to an extended contract. She was doing her best to pull the strings
and keep him from living his dream as a wrestler. Sutter knew that Van
Stanton held a grudge against Braddock. The reasons were unknown and, to
be perfectly honest, Sutter didn’t give a damn. He knew that Mason had
just as many connections as Glory Braddock and that if anyone could get him
signed to a wrestling contract, it would be him. And not only did Mason
get that contract drawn up, signed, sealed, and delivered for Sutter, but it
was a contract to compete with Supreme Championship Wrestling.
Yes, the same SCW that Glory Braddock competes
with. It was extra salt in the wound for Glory Braddock; not only did she
fail to keep him blackballed from professional wrestling but she now must work
with him in SCW. The ultimate stake in the heart for the so-called
British Bombshell would be Clyde Sutter succeeding in SCW where Braddock has
thus far failed. He has had his opportunities, competing against world
class talent, competing for championships, and even had the opportunity to
qualify for the Trios Tournament.
As it turns out, none if panned out. Sutter
is ok playing the long game. He is doing what he does best, crushing
skulls. He enjoys beating people up, it’s what he did to survive as a kid
on the streets growing up. Now he’s getting paid to do it legally.
But now Mason has sidelined him and his career by forcing him to see a
psychiatrist until his mental health can be assured. But why? Does
Mason truly feel that Clyde Sutter is a threat to himself and others? Or
is Van Stanton just impatient and isn’t favorable to the lack of results up
until this point? Van Stanton claims it is to protect Clyde Sutter from
potential prosecution.
Whatever the reason may be, Sutter still has one
opinion of it; bullshit. Complete and utter bullshit. Sutter has
done nothing to deserve this heat with Van Stanton, with Braddock, or with the
law. Sutter has seen the kind of shit games that are played live and in
front of SCW crowds on SCW programming by the likes of Syren and Sienna Swann,
even by Glory Braddock herself, and yet those people are lauded. They are
praised. They have the spotlight that Sutter feels he deserves.
Now “The Assassin” is sidelined and because of this
he missed Trios. He missed Retribution. He missed Cold
Blooded. And now? Taking Hold of the Flame. Sutter knows that
Taking Hold of the Flame is the beginning of the Rise to Greatness season.
And an impressing showing in the Taking Hold of the Flame rumble match would
assure him of his proper spot on the Rise To Greatness card. But he could
miss even this event unless he can get these insane psychiatric sessions to
end.
Somehow he has to convince this psychiatrist or
Mason Van Stanton to give him clearance to compete again...
Yet “The Assassin” Clyde Sutter finds himself
pacing angrily in the office of psychiatrist Teresa Fairground, headquartered
in Raleigh, North Carolina. This is all part of Mason Van Stanton’s plan
to protect Sutter from potential prosecution. And yet here again lies the
hypocrisy. Mason is just as much a criminal as Mason and yet he is
considered a legitimate businessman. Meanwhile Sutter has to come meet
with a psychiatrist because he is viewed as a danger to society and mentally
unbalanced.
The office is plain in its decor, with solid cream
colored walls and a wine colored plush carpeting on the floor. There is a
nice, comfortable black leather sofa against a wall that faces a large brown
oak desk. There is a nameplate on the desk that reads “Fairground”.
And this psychiatrist, this Teresa Fairground, is making him wait. That’s
not a good thing. That’s not a good idea. Sutter does not want to
be here at all, and the sooner that he can get this over with the better, and
yet this bitch is making him wait.
The nerve. This is all a waste of his
time. His time is being wasted right now, this very moment, as he is
being kept waiting on this psychiatrist’s arrival. Where the hell is
she? Why is she keeping him waiting? Lucky for Sutter, the wait is
not much longer.
The Assassin hears the doorknob to the office
turning. He turns in time to see the door open and he watches a brown
haired woman walks in in a green blaze, white blouse, matching green skirt and
pumps. She smiles politely at Sutter but The Assassin has no plans to be
polite. None whatsoever.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Sutter.” There
is a cheerful tone in the psychiatrist’s voice but it is enough to make Clyde
vomit. Sutter sneers back at her but won’t respond verbally. Not
yet, anyway. “How are we feeling today?”
“Well let’s see...my livelihood has been fucking
taken from me, you and my agent both think I’m a common criminal, and I’m
sitting here staring at your ugly face instead of preparing for one of the
biggest events of the calendar year in my profession…”
the sarcasm is dripping from his voice as he leans forward to stare down the
psychiatrist with his evil eyes “...so you tell me, doc, how the hell do you
think I’m feeling?!”
To the credit of Teresa Fairground, she does not
back down. She has been trained to deal with hostile patients and she has
been trained well. Perhaps she should be, but she will not be intimidated
by “The Assassin” Clyde Sutter. “You would be wise to sit down, Mr.
Sutter. As you well know, your agent, Mr. Van Stanton, will only allow
you to compete again with my recommendation.”
Few threaten Sutter and live to tell the
tale. And yes, this is a threat and it does anger The Assassin. To
say that physical violence hasn’t crossed his mind would be a lie but he knows
better. She is correct, she does hold his fate as a wrestler in her
hands. Sutter scowls but nods his head as he finds a seat on the plush
leather sofa. Fairground nods her head, smiling approvingly at what just
went down.
“Excellent. Now that you got that nastiness
out of your disposition we can begin.” Teresa
Fairground pulls up a chair a few feet away from Sutter and sits down.
She produces a pen and notepad so that she can begin taking notes of everything
that is said during this session, a session that she knows will be
intense. She has been seeing Sutter for these psychiatric sessions once a
week for the past few weeks since Mason Van Stanton recommended them in early
2020. Fairground has already grown to understand how Sutter operates
though she has yet to fully grasp what makes this young man so angry.
“Let us begin with your issues surrounding
females.”
“I got no damn issues about women!”
Sutter exclaims angrily.
“Your agent says you have had three relationships,
all of which ended rather poorly because of your actions. So I would
argue that yes, you do have a problem Mr. Sutter. Let us talk about them,
because that is the only way we are going to get to the heart of what troubles
you.”
Sutter rolls his eyes. “Like hell it will...I
told ya, I got no problems.”
“Tell me about these women you dated, Mr. Sutter.” Teresa
insists.
“Fine. One I met at a bar and I saved her
from a drunk who was harassing her. We had some damn fun times together
and let me tell ya, she gives a good blow…”
“I did not need to know that, Mr. Sutter.”
“You asked.” Sutter
smirks knowingly.
“Fair enough. Continue.”
“Anyway, when I was done with her I moved onto the
next. Now lemme tell ya, it was Mason’s fault I met her. He wanted
me to mingle with his type of people, the rich and high class bitches. So
he made me go to this party with all of wealthy friends. I met this chick
there and she seemed like someone I could really connect with…”
“Really? You made a legitimate connection?”
Fairground immediately begins scribbling notes onto her notepad. Sutter
nods his head and continues.
“Yeah...she was bored with the lifestyle of the
rich and stuck up that she was living. She wanted some excitement in her
life. And me? Well come on, I hated that life and Mason was
determined to shove it down my throat, the same way her parents were determined
to shove it down her throat.”
“Did your relationship blossom?”
Fairground asks. Sutter ponders his response after a few moments he
responds with a simple shake of the head.
“Nah...there was potential, sure, but Mason was
pissed because he didn’t want me dating his buddy’s daughter. He asked me
to break it off so I did.”
“So you were cooperative with Mr. Van Stanton?”
Fairground asks as she continues to make notes. Sutter nods his head.
“Yeah...guess so…”
“That’s a good thing, for you. But what about
the third one?”
“Third what?”
“The third lady you had a relationship with.
You told me about the other two.”
“Oh yeah…” Sutter
smirks devilishly “...her name was Melinda Braddock. I met her at the
Braddock Wrestling School when I began my training. At the time she was
pissed at her mom for not allowing her to follow in her footsteps and become a
wrestler. I guess she saw me as a shoulder could cry on or some shit like
that.”
“So one woman you got into a relationship after
saving her from harassment...the other two you preyed upon their emotions,
their feelings of resentment towards their parents.”
That last statement from Fairground was enough to set off Sutter. He
shoots up off of the sofa and glares angrily down at the psychiatrist. He
points a finger at her face.
“Hey! I don’t have to take this shit from
you! You said I preyed upon them...I was just helping them...I gave them
what they wanted...a little excitement in their lives. They didn’t think
their folks gave a damn about them and I showed up that I did care. So
tell me, doc, does that stupid piece of paper you went to school for give you
the right to judge me for doing what I thought was fucking right by them?”
Teresa had done quite well by standing up to
Sutter, but even she knows her limits. Instead of talking back to The
Assassin who now looms threateningly over her she decides to change her tone
and approach by backing off ever so slightly.
“Perhaps an apology is in order, Mr. Sutter; I did
not intend to sound judgmental. So I apologize. I’m just trying to
understand the nature of your relationships, that’s all.”
Fairground hopes that what she said was enough to calm Sutter down.
Luckily it was. He nods his head as he sits back down on the sofa.
“That’s better…” his
voice trails off.
“Now then, Mr. Sutter, may I ask how your
relationship Melinda Braddock came to an end?”
“No.”
“It would be wise of you to answer all of my
questions, Mr. Sutter. Remember, I am only trying to help. And
please, be honest.”
The Assassin pauses to contemplate what he will say
next. The memories of his relationship with Melinda Braddock come rushing
back to his mind. The short time they spent together was fun but it ended
abruptly and violently. Now both are bitter and Glory Braddock, Melinda’s
mother, holds a grudge.
“I lost my temper…”
“So you hit her?”
Fairground asks. Sutter narrows his brow in a hateful glare at the
psychiatrist. He growls under his breath.
“I lost my temper...that’s all I’m gonna say, don’t
make my repeat myself…”
“Fair enough.”
Fairground sighs and nods her head, realizing she won’t get anything else out
of Sutter right now, at least not about that particular issue. So instead
she decides to change the subject. “Now with two of these women, both of
them held resentment towards their parents. I am curious if that is where
the connection between you and them lies.”
“What do ya mean, doc?”
“Consider your own parents. You said yourself
that they rejected you, abandoned you at birth to an orphanage. Is
resentment towards your parents the underlying issue here?”
“You’re grasping at straws, doc. I told ya, I
never knew my mom and dad. How in the hell would I resent them?”
“You would be surprised. Have you managed to
find out any information about your biological parents as I asked you to do
earlier this year?”
“I gave that job to Mason.”
Sutter smirks. “I got better things to do, like training for a certain
battle royal…”
Fairground nods her head. “Ah yes, SCW Taking
Hold of the Flame…”
“It’s their biggest event of the year, doc, and
Mason has me sidelined! It’s fucking bullshit!”
“It is for your own good, Mr. Sutter; your record
with the English authorities is well known. Mr. Van Stanton has used his
considerable pull to keep it under wraps but if you get in trouble with the
law, here in the United States, then he may not be able to save you. For
your sake and for your career we need to work together, you and I, to find out
what is troubling you, what makes you so angry.”
“And you think my anger has to do with parents I
never even met?”
“Yes, I do.”
“You’re fucking nuts, doc.”
Sutter shakes his head.
“Let’s compromise, ok? The fact that you were
willing to break away from a relationship with a woman you cared for because
your agent thought it would lead to trouble proves you are capable of
cooperation. The fact that you were willing to come to these sessions
with me and have come to them regularly also shows great promise.”
“What are you saying?”
Sutter arches his brow out of curiosity.
“I am willing to sign off on a medical clearance to
allow you to compete again. You will be just in time for Taking Hold of
the Flame. However, I want you to actually look into the history of your
biological parents. I truly do believe that this could be the key to
unlocking what is going on in your head.”
“That’s it?”
“That’s it.” Fairground
nods her head. “But to ensure that you are living up to your end of the bargain,
I want you to continue to attend regular sessions with me until I release
you. Is that understood, Mr. Sutter?”
“Yeah, I get ya…”
It isn’t exactly what he wanted; The Assassin would
prefer for all of this nonsense to end. But it is a promising start.
At least he will get clearance to compete in Taking Hold of the Flame. He
will be back inside the ring where he belongs.
==========
May 17th, 2020
Dallas, TX
Off Camera
==========
It is dark, or rather dimly lit, outside in the
parking lot area of the AT&T Stadium in Dallas, Texas. This stadium
hosts the Dallas Cowboys NFL team amongst other events in Texas but tonight,
and all throughout this weekend, it played host to the three night GCW
Resurrection IX event. One of the primary players of tonight’s event is
the man seen trudging ever so slowly along, a man who may not appear like a
fighter but has been trained in the martial arts himself. This is Mason
Van Stanton, the crooked sleazy wrestling agent himself who has lost almost all
of his clientele, all but one.
“The Assassin” Clyde Sutter.
Mason Van Stanton has his gym bag with him and is
carrying it over his shoulder. He hurts all over after a tag team war
against two of his former clients, Hannah Myers and Kendra Classic. His
tag team partner was Chastity Noel, the woman formerly known as Julia
Braddock. His goal this night was not victory in the tag team match; but
still, as someone born to a pro-wrestling family, trained to be a wrestler
himself, he still loves to win. The competitive spirit still lives deep
down inside of him, even if he is still more of an a businessman now than an
active competitor. Yes, Mason is competitive. Yes, he loves to win.
And yes, it stings his pride when he loses. Thus his pride is stinging
very much so after this loss tonight to Hannah and Kendra.
While his wrestling task failed, he succeeded in
his business task. Thanks to a backdoor deal made between him and his
arch rival Glory Braddock, Chastity Noel is now in the hands of a mental
institution. A part of Mason feels bad about what he was a part of.
He truly did value Chastity above and beyond all of his other clients.
But she was showing troublesome signs. Mason never wanted Hannah and
Kendra to become his rivals but thanks to Chastity forcing them out, that is
exactly what happened. There was a more practical reason for getting rid
of Chastity as well and that is the fear of Glory Braddock.
Glory Braddock threatened to have evidence to prove
Mason’s other star client, Clyde Sutter, had raped Braddock’s daughter
Melinda. Mason doesn’t know if she actually has evidence or not but he
has always believed that Clyde Sutter has, in fact, committed sexual
assault. He just kept the accusation swept under the rug, hidden so that
Sutter could have a successful wrestling career. Mason would gladly
continue sweeping it under the rug but he has to take Glory’s threat
seriously. Shey may be bluffing but in the off chance she is not, if she
does have evidence to prove that a sexual assault happened, then that would not
only crush Sutter but it would practically ruin Mason Van Stanton. Who
would want to hire Mason, a man who knowingly protected a sexual predator?
Guilty or innocent, Mason must protect his
client. So Mason gave Glory what she wanted in order to keep her
silent. What did she want? She wanted Chastity locked up in a
mental institution.
Van Stanton is heading in the direction of his
rental car when he hears low, slow applauding from a few feet away. He
turns and spots the aforementioned Clyde Sutter standing not too far
away. A smug arrogant grin is on his face. He is wearing torn denim
jeans, black boots, a plain white torn t-shirt, and a black leather jacket.
“Good job tonight, Mason! I didn’t know you
had it in ya!”
“What are you doing here, Sutter?” Mason
asks, dropping his gym bag onto the ground.
“What? I can’t come and support my favorite
agent?”
“Your only agent.”
“Details.” Sutter
smirks knowingly. He is happy, happier than usual and Van Stanton, who is
used to seeing him enraged, is immediately suspicious.
“What do you want?”
“I told ya, I’m here to support you. I had
been wondering if you lost your damn mind, I mean you let go of two hot as fuck
broads like Hannah and Kendra, but tonight you earned my respect back.
Congratulations on a job well done.”
“So you’re here to rub it in?”
Mason rolls his eyes. “How mature of you.”
“I’m not here to rub it in, Mason. I told ya,
I’m here to congratulate you and I mean it. Ya did good.” Sutter
wraps an arm around Mason’s shoulder. Van Stanton, for his part, is now
thoroughly confused.
“What are you babbling about, Sutter? I lost
tonight! Weren’t you paying attention?”
“Yeah, yeah, I saw that part. But that’s not
what I was congratulating you about.” A
sinister laugh escapes Sutter’s lips. “What you did tonight to Braddock’s
sister...that was beautiful...absolutely beautiful…”
Sutter reaches up and pretends to wipe tears from
his eyes, as if he’s crying the tears a proud parent would cry after seeing
their child perform a great task. Van Stanton sighs deeply as he recalls
this evening’s task of betrayal. It was a betrayal that took an entire
weekend to work itself out. It started on night one when Mason Van
Stanton had a new contract drawn up for Chastity. But he did not ask
Chastity to sign it, he had Glory to do the honors, seeing as Chastity would
trust her more. Chastity was told that the contract including many perks,
including the largest payday of any wrestler on the roster, but what she wasn’t
told was that if her sister or agent ever questioned her mental state that she
could be committed to a mental institution. Night three, after losing
their tag match to Kendra and Hannah, Glory and Mason invoked that clause and
had Chastity locked away.
“People say I’m a rotten bastard but for you to do
that to your client and Glory to do that to her own sister...well that takes
the cake! So I gotta ask, Mason, what the hell did she do to piss off
Braddock enough to make her wanna lock her up in the fucking loony bin?”
“None of your business, Mr. Sutter.”
Mason shakes his head.
“I’ll that one slide because you’ve had a rough
night, Mason and because I have other business with you. You probably
know what it’s about, because you may be ignoring my calls but I know damn well
you’ve been getting them.”
Van Stanton sighs and nods his head. “I did get
your messages. I wasn’t intentionally avoiding you, Mr. Sutter, I just
wanted confirmation from Ms. Fairground herself that you were cleared.”
“What? My word isn’t good enough for ya?!”
Sutter demands angrily. Van Stanton shakes his head.
“No, I trust you about as far as I can throw
you. On a positive note I did speak with Sasha and SCW management and you
have the green light to compete in the Taking Hold of the Flame battle royal.”
“Yes!” Sutter
is showing genuine delight and excitement upon hearing this news. “Ya did a
great job, Mason. I mean that!”
“Thank you. Now do you want the news I have
on your parents?”
“Who?” Sutter
asks with a genuine look of confusion on his face. Van Stanton rolls his
eyes.
“Your parents! Ms. Fairground only cleared
you because you promised to try and deal with whatever issues you have with
your parents...and I will only allow you to compete in Taking Hold of the Flame
so long as you live up to that promise. I made the deal with Sasha to let
you compete but I can just as easily call her back and give that spot to
someone else.”
Sutter growls angrily. “Fine...what’d ya find
out?”
“There is a historian in your hometown in England
who has information about your parents.”
“What’d he tell ya?”
“He wouldn’t tell me.”
Mason shrugs his shoulders. “He wants to tell you. Personally.
Alone.”
“Bloody hell!” Sutter
is growing angrier, his frustration is building. He thought this nonsense
was over but yet another hurdle has been built, another obstacle is in his way.
“I didn’t wanna go back there, Mason!”
“I get it, I do. But if you want to compete
you have to do this. I’ll even purchase the ticket. You’ll have
first class luxury treatment and everything.”
“Whatever…”
“Look, you’re frustrated, I get that. But…”
“YOU DON’T GET IT!”
Sutter backhands Mason, causing him to fall to the ground. Sutter glares
angrily into Mason’s eyes. “You have no fucking idea, Van Stanton! No
fucking clue!”
With that, Sutter storms off. Mason watches
as his client walks away. Mason has to ask himself, what is it that has
Clyde Sutter so upset. Why is he so angry? What doesn’t he want to
find out about his parents?
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