Brian Kendrick had just attended a fan Access. He signed autographs. Lots and lots of autographs. No incidents occurred. No one was touched inappropriately. No one was stabbed or shot. He didn't show up wasted or under the influence. Not a single life was ended on this day. Although, at this point he sort of felt like he was dead. From what he was able to gather, his push to superstardom was derailed because he didn't "respect the fans". This was cemented by the fact that he infamously did not attend the 2011 Slammy Awards or any of the activities scheduled for WrestleMania weekend. So with this little hurdle out of the way, the higher ups would have to use the three hundred other reasons why he would never be a World Champion against him. Like, that he was too small. Or that he smoked too much pot. He wasn't dedicated enough. Whatever it was, he had heard every excuse possible.
As soon as he was able, he departed the park for a nearby alley. Sitting on a dumpster, he took a nice long drag of a cigarette before shaking a few ashes loose. Paul London, who had kept Brian sane by making fun of the fans with the really stupid questions, stood beside his friend with his back pressed against a brick wall.
| Brian Kendrick | Do I get the title now?
| Paul London | Yes. You get the title. All of the titles.
Brian knew full well in his heart that going to an autograph signing, which everyone was supposed to do anyway, was not going to suddenly win him over with the management. He was well aware of why he was in the main event in a few days. Because the guy that was penciled in was suspended by the brain dead old regime.
| Paul London | You know, if you have this much trouble singing autographs..what are you going to do if they ask you to go on Jimmy Fallon or something?
Brian took a long moment to contemplate this question. He responded by lighting up another cigarette.
| Paul London | My point exactly.
| Brian Kendrick | It's not like I was going to win either way. Wes is back in charge. He's bestie's with Jericho. Chris is just going to be like..
Imitating a chummy conversation between the two pals, Kendrick nudged London in the ribs.
| Brian Kendrick | "Say Wes, it's glad to have you back, chum. I think it would be a good idea to keep this title on me a little longer. Gotta stay strong, you know? Let's give this Kendrick guy some shine before we kick him back to opening matches. Oh. A picnic? This weekend? Sure! Let's load up the kids!"
| Paul London | Chris isn't like that..
Paul recalled his stint working with Chris as a member of FedEx which Brian was also a part of. But his expression seemed a little worried.
| Paul London | ..is he?
| Brian Kendrick | Paul, do you remember anything from that time period other than the fact that we were completely fucked up one hundred percent of the time? We were with Jericho, ratings were up and no one gave a shit what we did. It's a blur. I vaguely doing a promo where we got sagely advice from Braden Walker. Chris might have been on something too.
| Paul London | ..Something about..time traveling..or..outer space..or..something..
Paul tried to remember his previous gimmick but it was all a drug fueled haze at this point. He shrugged it off and gave in.
| Paul London | Alright, maybe he is an asshole.
| Brian Kendrick | Yeah. Maybe he is.
| CM Punk | Well, look at these morose mother fuckers.
With that came the voice of the recently suspended and former World Champion: CM Punk. He had spotted London's car on his way to the Access event and decided to pay his friends a visit. Punk didn't share Kendrick and London's lifestyle in the least but they had all come up through the indies together, Ring of Honor and other organizations. Punk strolled up with his hands stuffed in the pockets of his hoodie.
| Brian Kendrick | Where is your girlfriend?
Kendrick had lifted his head and spouted that question as soon as Punk got into his view. Punk rolled his eyes, as if Kendrick asked him this question each time they met up.
| CM Punk | Where is your pen? Thought you were signing autographs.
| Brian Kendrick | I was. It's done.
Glancing down to the five cigarette remains Brian had burned through on the concrete and put two and two together.
| CM Punk | Was it everything you had hoped for?
| Brian Kendrick | I don't understand why it's like this. I perform for them how ever many days out of the year. If I don't want to be close enough for them to breathe on me, I shouldn't have to. They pay to see me, I perform, I want to leave it at that. I want to wrestle. I don't want to be a media darling, internet trending topic on twitter.
| CM Punk | You are in the exact same position I was in before I got the belt. I don't like doing it either. But it gets a little easier after awhile. Hey, I got to make Jay Leno look like a jackass so it wasn't all bad. There is a lot of pressure but if you want it, it's worth it.
Kendrick's blue eyes started to narrow.
| Brian Kendrick | I want it and I deserve it. Every single person in this company knows I deserve my opportunity.
| Paul London | Hey, you've got your picture on one of those billboards again. Three times, right? Once when you had the match with Cena and that time all three of us were on one for..uh..whatever pay per view that was.
Paul didn't exactly have the same aspirations as his best friend. Brian sought to be World Champion and Paul was just content to get paid and wrestle. Just as long as he got to have fun while he did it.
| CM Punk | And I'm not friends with Chris but he's an alright guy. You're guaranteed to have a good match no matter what happens.
| Brian Kendrick | I can have a good match with anybody. And he's not an "alright guy". I wanted to punch him during that meeting.
| CM Punk | What meeting?
Punk, being somewhat out of the loop lately, wasn't entirely sure what he was talking about.
| Brian Kendrick | The whole "Wes is back" meeting.
| CM Punk | Ah. I'll be honest with you. If you win that belt, it's not going to be easy for you. Nic is cool but Wes still kind of a douche. And since you're about as lovable as a piranha, I don't really see you ever getting on friendly terms with the bosses. And this is coming from me. But he never got along with Randy either but he put the belt on him for a year. If he thinks it's the right choice, he's not going to let his friendship with Chris play a factor in it.
Brian sat in silence and thought about what Punk had said. He was never one to sugar coat anything. Finally sliding off of the dumpster, Brian dusted himself off and stepped in front of the tattooed figure. He placed a hand on his shoulder and began to speak.
| Brian Kendrick | I hate you. You have a hot, wholesome looking girlfriend and you're a tattoo covered scum bag. You're just as big of an asshole as me but you got your shot on top before I did. I hope your apartment explodes.
Brian strolled off out of the alley as it began to lightly rain and Punk watched after him with a smirk on his face.
| Paul London | That's his way of saying "thanks".
| CM Punk | I gathered, London.
Their friendship was not a normal one but then again neither were they. With Brian having departed, Punk was left to catch up with Paul.
--------
Halloween seemed like a pretty big deal in St. Louis. It was a full day before the nightmare inducing holiday and the streets were already flooded with goblins, ghouls and zombies. Everything looked macabre but Brian Kendrick was not in the mood to celebrate or indulge in costumes. Sitting on a bench, with his head lowered and a steel lighter in his hand, he flicked the portable device open and then closed constantly. He produced a flame just to snuff it out just as quickly. Spooky decorations from the nearby stores surrounded him and over all merriment could be heard from every alley. Even though he was not in the spirit of things, this didn't mean three of his cohorts were not. The three female members of the Midnight Gang strolled in front of the camera, each wearing a different mask. Daffney, who also held a orange bag filled with candy and a jack 'o lantern design on it, was sporting a witches mask and hat. Tiffany had on a bright red, ghastly, grinning devil mask. And Jamilia, who was usually masked anyway, wore the shroud of a frowning skeleton.
| Daffney | La, la, la, la! Let's kidnap Chris Jericho, lock him up real tight! Throw away the keys and then turn off all the lights!
| Tiffany | Wait, I've got a better plan to catch that Canadian bastard! Let's pop him in a boiling pot and when he's done we'll butter him up!
| Jamilia Craft | Th-Then Mr. Kendrick can take the whole thing over..
Daffney threw a finger into the sky, having come up with an even more horrible demise for the World Champion.
| Daffney | I say that we take a cannon aim at his FACE and then he'll be no more!
| Tiffany | You're so stupid! Think now! If we blow his ass up there will be nothing left for Brian!
| Jamilia Craft | H-H-He would beat us black and green..
The three continued to argue with one another as they left the camera's vision. Needless to say, they were preparing for Sunday night. Kendrick lifted his head upwards and leaned back on the bench, idly tossing his lighter back and forth between his palms.
| Brian Kendrick | Eventually, everyone is going to learn not..to mess with me. Someone always seems to get hurt. No one ever gets out of these little "wrasslin feuds" with me without a few scars or trauma. John Cena for example. Mr. Never-Give-Up-Rise-Above-Hate. Well, John didn't rise above it when the two of us had our little issue. Captain America, the boy scout, got pushed to do things that a guy like him, a role model, isn't really supposed to do. I recall him trying to electrocute Tyler Reks and nearly putting his hands on Tiffany. All because I went and broke into his then girlfriend Torrie Wilson's home. Scared the poor thing half to death. John didn't like that. Big tough guy like him. He should have been able to rip my head off and chuck it into the fifth row. But I'll let you in on something..
The long haired number one contender leaned forward and cupped a hand around his mouth.
| Brian Kendrick | ..he couldn't. And then there was AJ Styles. God fearing, pure, family man and his sweet little girlfriend Layla. But, honestly, it was his own fault. For some reason, AJ went off and decided..
He began to throw on exaggerated southern accent.
| Brian Kendrick | "Hyuck! I'm gonna take out that Kendrick feller and make muh momma proud!" And, oh, sure, I gave him plenty of physical abuse. But the mental? That really did him in. I took away his pride in front of his children. I took the love of his life from him. I ruined..every..aspect..of..his..existence. And the good..Christian..southern gent..started to look more like a devil. He wanted me dead. He did everything he could to try and hurt me. I twisted him, just like I twisted Cena. I also find it ironic that both of them are now at each others throats after their brief partnership to try and rip my face off ended. This is what I do. I create monsters. Call me Dr. Frakenstien. I take otherwise decent and upstanding individuals and I turn them into me. I force them to do things. I make them go to levels that they wouldn't possibly reach without me around. Case in point..Chris Jericho..
A hooded child in a classic, white sheet ghost costume went walking past, holding a plastic pumpkin full of candy in one hand and a candy apple in the other. Kendrick snatched the apple from him and the tot went speeding off in fright. He bit into it his face looked somewhat confused. Extending two fingers into the treat, he pulled out a sharp razor.
| Brian Kendrick | Oh, the world is such a bad place. But it's about to get worse.
He stuck the razor between his teeth and flashed a wide, deranged grin towards the camera before spitting the sharp instrument into his palm.
| Brian Kendrick | Chris Jericho obviously didn't know what he was getting into. I guess he hadn't really been following me much lately. Maybe he thought I was still, somewhere deep down, the comedy stoner that use to pal around him a few years ago. Because Chris, for whatever reason, really tried to goad me into doing something horrible to him and his loved one's. He shouted for all the world to hear that he was "ready for anything" that I may have been planning.
Shrugging lightly, he applied the razor into his palm and seemed to wince lightly. But his promo continued on.
| Brian Kendrick | I guess he was feeling pretty good about himself. I mean, he had finally defeated his arch nemesis CM Punk. I suppose because Punk was running the show that Chris felt I was just small potatoes. A mistake to be sure. Because I watched, and hell, I was on hand for a lot of those beat down's that Punk gave him. Punk believed if he beat Jericho down enough, he would eventually stay down. I know that this is not the case. I saw the size of Jericho's heart and I knew that would never be enough. You can hurt a man and he will eventually get back up. And he will be very determined to return the favor once he licks his wounds. And after all those beatings, Jericho had built up enough frustration to finally steal the World Title from Punk. Yeah, beatings can only do so much. But once you get in someone's mind..
He began to lightly tap a finger against the side of his head and mass of hair.
| Brian Kendrick | They don't get up so easily.
Returning his attention to his palm, Kendrick seemed to continue to drag the razor along his skin. Again, he winced.
| Brian Kendrick | Sure, sure, Jericho tried to one up me. I tried to break into his house and fornicate with his wife while I forced him to watch but he got the jump on me. I mean, it was embarrassing. I'll admit that. I had these grand ideas, I bought this nice little camera, and all I got was a vase smashed over my head and a terrible ass kicking. And then, after defeating the Tag Team AND Intercontinental Champion, Paul and I were going to have a little fun and give Chris some payback. But once again, he was prepared. He dusted Lance Storm out from obscurity and evened the odds. ..And this..this was his fatal mistake..
That manic grin had returned to his face.
| Brian Kendrick | Chris willingly introduced someone into his scenario that he cared about. Lance Storm is his best friend. And now, because of me, Lance Storm is eating out of a tube somewhere. And when I looked into Chris' helpless eyes as he was hand-cuffed and forced to watch the whole thing..I knew that I had broken him. Someone he truly cared for had just become a causality, which inevitably always happens.
Blood could be seen slowly trickling out from between Kendrick's fingers.
| Brian Kendrick | But how exactly can I be blamed for this? JERICHO was the one who got Lance involved. He knew the risks. Heck, I use to think Lance was pretty OK. The guy knew one hundred and one different cock jokes! Who doesn't want to hang around someone like that? But now Lance might as well be dead. And it isn't my fault that this happened. It's Jericho's.
He lightly began to snicker.
| Brian Kendrick | So now I'm anxious. I'm anxious to see just what kind of Chris Jericho is going to come to the ring at Fanniversary. Because, no matter how many times Punk drove him into the ground, we still got the same "Give me one more chance to prove myself!" Jericho who never thought of driving his car through Phil's living room. Yeah, he was getting pissed off, but not like this. I'll bet things are different now. I bet we'll see a Chris Jericho we've never seen before. I deserve a reward or at least a round of applause! Because the match hasn't happened yet and I've already won. I've forced Chris Jericho to transform into something he doesn't want to be. And to complete the transformation? He's going to have to take me out. Because I won't stop unless he hacks me to pieces. I'm not leaving that arena unless it's on a stretcher or with that World Title around my waist. I've waited, far, FAR too long. I'm finally going to have my chance. I hope everyone is going to like what I plan on doing to this place. It's going to be a cathedral of cutting edge taste so I'm sure it will hold no interest for Jericho and his tragically Canadian sensibilities.
A prominent scowl is formed.
| Brian Kendrick | But Jericho won't stop me. He doesn't have what it TAKES to stop me. It took both Cena and Styles together just to throw me in an ambulance. And this soft, forty year old guy with his expensive ass haircut is going to hurt me? The family man is going to stop me? Someone who has been clawing and tearing for that title and is STARVING for it? He's going to be the one to finally make my heart stop? I don't think so. He got lucky to get that belt off of Punk and I'm glad he got one last dance with the gold. Because it's going to be awfully fleeting and when it's over he'll wish he had never won it in the first place. I'm going to be the guy that killed The ThrillSeeker's in the same month. And I hope they put Chris in a bed right next to Lance so they can look at each other in the eyes, without having the strength to speak, and silently know that they never, EVER should have crossed my path. And I hope Lance will hold a grudge against Jericho for the rest of his life. Because he's the reason I retired him. Storm's blood is on Jericho's hands and because of me Storm's blood is even on Jericho's World Title.
One finally slice and he grips his wrist, seething through his teeth.
| Brian Kendrick | So I hope every time Chris looks at that title that he see's what happened to his friend. I hope it replays over and over again. I hope every time he tries to scrub the blood off, it never goes away. I hope he can't sleep. I hope it eats away at him and he SCREAMS ABOUT IT! I hope he can't live another day without thinking about what he made me do. Yeah. Lance Storm's blood is on Chris Jericho's hands. And after Fanniversary..
He exposes his palm towards the camera to reveal that he had carved "Y2J" into his flesh during the course of the interview. The blood runs down his palm from the open cuts.
| Brian Kendrick | ..Chris Jericho's blood is going to be all over mine.
Kendrick smiles once more before his expression begins to resemble the blank, wide eyed look he had when he stared into Jericho's hues after destroying Lance Storm. The scene ends on his shot.
