THE THREAT IS REAL
The scene switches to inside the LOVE CONVOY locker room where Jonathan-Christopher Hall sits at the far end of the room. There’s a spot for Tristan-Crispin Gladhappy and Darin Zion but both of them aren’t there at this time – just their gear resides on the bench. Of course, flanked in the center of the room, pacing back and forth is Mrs. PRETTY PINK© herself, Vickie Hall. She’s in mid-sentence, running through the plan for next week when Hall takes on Ivan Stanislav for an opportunity to join the Turmoil match. Vickie holds up an Ivan mugshot, while Jonathan-Christopher scribbles notes down at a rapid pace. The Timid Tiger would write faster, if he could, but his anxiety has skyrocketed with news of this match in two weeks.
Vickie Hall: …You also need to know he’s old. Very old. He should break-down quickly if you use your nimble little feet – gosh golly your nimble little feet are so adorbs, Jonathan-Christopher. I will need them to carry us to a victory. Remember, you-
THUMP.
The Hall locker room door opens quickly and it looks like a head peers in… but then it vanishes and the door slams shut.
Vickie glances behind her, gives her shoulders a shrug and continues.
Vickie Hall: …As I was saying, a seven-foot, four-hundred-pound grandpa is going to break down. He is so ripe for the taking, my dearest Jonathan-Christo-
THUMP!
There it is again, louder than before. The locker room door opens, a head peaks through, and then it slams shut again.
This time, however, Jonathan-Christopher SAW whose head poked through. He saw it CLEARLY.
And he is shaking like a mother fucker!
Vickie Hall: What is it, my honey bunch of oats?
Vickie casually strolls up to Jonathan-Christopher but you can tell from her body language she’s not thrilled she has taken time out of her speech to attend to her man’s anxiety. The Woman of Wonder tilts her head and gazes into Jonathan-Christopher’s eyes.
Vickie Hall: Did you get a good look at who did this to us?
Jonathan-Christopher tries lifting his hand but he’s shaking so much. Luckily (or perhaps unluckily) for him, the door opens once more and this time Vickie sees it. Ivan Stanislav pokes his head through, only to pull it back.
Silence follows… and then random shuffling is heard on the other side of the door.
THUMP!
The door FLIES open and Ivan Stanislav is standing right there, covering the ENTIRE space!
Jonathan-Christopher has a stroke. He leaps up out of his seat and falls to the ground, curling himself into a ball beneath Vickie Hall’s feet.
Vickie, however, is none too pleased. She carefully kicks Jonathan-Christopher off her leg and has a no-fucks-given march towards the Russian Bear. Vickie cocks her head and stares directly at Stanislav.
Vickie Hall: Can I help YOU!?
Stanislav is wholly unimpressed, despite Vickie’s bravado.
Ivan Stanislav: No.
With a hand larger than her head, Stanislav engulfs Vickie’s shoulder, picks her up and places her to the side as easy as if she was a pawn on a chessboard. Behind Stanislav, loitering outside the room, stands Alexei Ruslan, Kenny Freeman, and the wheelchair-bound Randall Schwartz. It looks like the Red Army is on the move.
Stanislav otherwise ignores Vickie and glares nuclear missiles down at Jonathan-Christopher. Despite his upcoming “good news”, Ivan’s face exudes menace.
Ivan Stanislav: Congratulations, Ivan-Khristof. You have pleasure of being booked against me for Universal Title contender tournament. And if you even consider walking down that entry ramp, I will turn you into Jared Sykes: wholly useless to a woman. Do you understand me? So you can instead take ReVival 30 off and enjoy yourself with… this.
Ivan waves dismissively over at Vickie… who is about to blow a gasket at how she’s been disrespected.
Vickie Hall: UMMMM HELLO I am Jonathan-Christopher’s MANAGERRRRRRRR!!!… anything you have to say… you say to MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!
Vickie dusts herself off, going absolutely mental with anger. Meanwhile, it seriously looks like Jonathan-Christopher might have peed himself and is trying to cover it up.
Vickie Hall: My man is going to beat you at ReVival 30. End of story. Good day to you.
Vickie’s filter is completely turned off. She clearly doesn’t know what she’s getting herself into. Maybe Ivan doesn’t know what he’s getting himself into, as well? But he knows how to handle it. He wheels away from the simpering JCH and booms over Vickie.
Ivan Stanislav: Oh shut up you garish harpy!
He points an enormous finger down at the woman.
Ivan Stanislav: When your honey bunches of cowardice is done pissing his pants, you tell him that this is his stay of execution. And if either of you decide to show your faces at my match, I’ll destroy both of you. Then you won’t have to worry about plastering your face with all that makeup, сука, because I will have knocked it clean off your tiny shoulders!
Stanislav growls threateningly.
Ivan Stanislav: Why don’t you two lovebirds watch a monitor and see what happens to companions who try to grow brains, eh? I will be appearing soon enough. Da svidaniya, coward.
With a contemptuous glare down at JCH, as quickly as Stanislav has entered, he leaves. But not without slamming the door loudly behind him. The door crunches, and then embeds itself in the doorframe a moment later.
Vickie now brings her attention to a quivering Jonathan-Christopher. Her face is red and she is rather cross.
Vickie Hall: You’re supposed to step up and be the man, Jonathan-Christopher. I need you to defend me so the little girl inside of my soul doesn’t become damaged.
Vickie kneels down beside the still struggling JCH. Her eyes narrow and there’s a sense of spite in her voice as she glances back to the door, where Ivan Stanislav came from.
Vickie Hall: We’ll show him…
She cracks her knuckles as the scene fades out.
Vickie Hall: Won’t we, my dear?