Post by Frank Washington on Jun 15, 2014 4:24:15 GMT -6
“Great results can be achieved with small forces.”
― Sun Tzu, The Art of War
The sounds of billiard balls clanging against each other can be heard as the scene opens up inside the recreation room of Frank Washington’s New Orleans, Louisiana home. Many of the balls have been cleared from the table into their respective pockets but as the camera focuses on the pool table we see the cue ball placed right behind the 8 ball in a precarious situation, it would be difficult to maneuver around it but not entirely impossible. The camera then focuses back on Frank Washington as he kneels looking over the pool table with cue stick in hand as he contemplates the situation at hand.
Frank Washington: Behind the 8 ball, one of the worst possible situations one can find themselves in. Be it in a game of pool or in the figurative sense its one with very few outs and the odds could very well be insurmountable.
Frank continues to study the table and the positioning of the balls on the table in deep thought for several moments. A wry smile formed on his face as his thoughts kept drifting towards the tag match from last Unstoppable, a match that might as well have been a handicap match up until the very end. The only reason why he and his unlikely partner were even in the second round was due to interference from the Gentlemen’s Club who ironically were their opponents this week.
Frank Washington: The margin for error is extremely slim and to escape from a daunting situation requires near flawless execution. TJ Bryce I’ve kept my eye on you for a while and you do bring up a very good point, you and Roman Gold are definitely on the same page. You know what the other is thinking and you know how each is going to react in the middle of that ring, a hallmark of a great tag team. The deck is stacked heavily in your favor one way or the other; whether Daniel Bane is at ringside to do your dirty work or my own “partner” twisting the knife further into my back. But…
Frank pauses momentarily as he stands back up, his eyes reflecting his inner fire and steely determination as they were locked onto the table.
Frank Washington: To say that Badger and I don’t know each other… couldn’t be further from the truth! At one time we were the best of friends, we grew up together in Louisiana, hell at one point I was his manager to his dismay.
Frank briefly looked away from the camera with a look of remorse in his eyes as the flood of memories of the Walton Correctional Facility came flooding back. He quickly regained his composure and turned his focus sharply back to the camera and his opponents.
Frank Washington: Armed with the knowledge I have I should’ve known better than to expect Robert Garland to have my back with our history. Even after the interview with Charles Matias and even after our confrontation before our match I wanted to hope that he had at least a shred of honor to put our bad blood aside until the end of the match… but I was wrong. I took a leap of faith and crashed back down to earth.
Frank shook his head as the frustration was apparent on his face.
Frank Washington: Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me and I assure you Frank Washington rarely if ever makes the same mistake twice. It opened my eyes to the realization that if I want to become the first MSW Tag Team Champion I’ll have to do it all on my own. I’m going to have to run the gauntlet in a series of handicap matches, be it effective 2 on 1 or 3 on 1s, an unprecedented feat in a tag team wrestling tournament.
Frank leans the cue stick against the pool table before pacing back and forth by the pool table as his mind was enthralled in deep thought.
Frank Washington: Sun Tzu said it best, “knowing the enemy enables you to take the offensive, knowing yourself enables you to stand on the defensive.” The Gentlemen’s Club will take whatever advantage they can to bring home the victory, legal or not but back in the day I wrote the book on that. I knew every single rule in the book and knew how to exploit each and every one of them and bend them as far as they could go before the referee would decide to throw the match out with a disqualification. I’ve been in the position the Gentlemen’s Club is in now many times in my career and I know the mindset each and every member of that group lives by; reaching the top at any cost. The ends always justify the means with guys like Roman Gold and TJ Bryce but I can assure both of you and Daniel Bane that whatever shortcut you guys plan on taking to the top sure as hell isn’t running through me. There’s an unfortunate detour waiting for the three of you at the end of this tunnel and it takes you straight out of tag team title contention.
Frank stops in his steps and pauses as he looks to the ground with a solemn expression. Robert Garland was his partner only as far as the card was concerned but it didn’t take a rocket scientist to know that the tag team tournament was only fanning the flames of the rivalry to grow past the inferno it already has become. With how well they knew each other they could very well be the team to beat if they ever got on the same page but if last Unstoppable was any bellwether he was as much of an enemy as The Gentlemen’s Club.
Frank Washington: As for Robert Garland? Stay out of my way; stay away from the ring and better yet? Don’t even show up to the building and stay home. I haven’t forgotten Travis Rech paying off Bane to take me out in the middle of our tag match last time and if I even suspect that either of you are going to go into business for yourselves? You better hope Danny Stevenson fires me before I get my hands on either one of you because I’m going to make Best of the Best look like a sparring session compared to what I’m going to do to. If you want to fight me then accept my challenge like a man to my face instead of treating this tournament like it’s some kind of game to see who can “soften up” Frank Washington the most before you finally decide to pick up the scraps.
I’m going to put on a hell of a show for the MSW fans and I’m going to advance to the finals of the tournament – with or without you so you better pick a position and stick to it; you’re either in or you’re out!
Frank picks up the cue stick and takes his position at the table as he takes aim and places his left hand on the table to rest the edge of the stick.
Frank Washington: Unstoppable #9 will be a true test of will and fortitude with my back to the wall and just like I have time and time again? I’ll weather this storm; I’ll dig down deep and find a way to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat in a match I’m “not supposed to win”. I’m not going down without a fight and you’ll have to knock me unconscious if you have any plans of keeping my shoulders on the mat for a three count. I’m Frank Washington… and I’m looking out for Number One!
Frank takes careful aim at the cue ball, knowing that this next shot was crucial. Much like the main event there was very little room for error as he was surrounded by enemies on all sides; it would take nothing short of surgeon like precision to find a way out. As Frank pulls the stick back, ready to take his shot the camera fades to black with the sounds of the balls colliding echoing as the feed cuts out.
