Post by Matt Pulver on Jan 20, 2023 1:51:15 GMT
The room is completely dark except for the television screen. Pollo Dorado II sits on the edge of the bed, his eyes glued to the screen, while stretching his neck.
On the screen, a bloody Reo Ojima hooks his arms around his opponent's waist - DEADLIFT GERMAN SUPLEX! Right into the turnbuckles! Dorado feels a knot tighten in his neck. It’s way past midnight and he’s been watching Reo Ojima matches for several hours now.
Ojima’s opponent, Kazuya Cruz, begins fighting back. He charges at Ojima, but gets caught - SPINEBUSTER! Dorado feels a twitch in the back of his head, as Cruz’s head whiplashes off the canvas.
Dorado begins gently massaging his neck. He watches on as Ojima gets taken down by a barrage of hard hitting attacks, before eventually roaring back to his feet. LAST CALL! The Powerslam connects. Another whiplash. Ojima pulls his opponent back up… he’s firing off slaps… DISCUS LARIAT! More tension. HE’S NOT DONE YET! HE PULLS CRUZ BACK UP AND HITS A SECOND DISCUS LARIAT!
A jolt of intense pain shoots through his neck. His vision becomes blurry and his breath shallow. He manages to grab the remote, as Ojima lifts the King of Hyperfight Heavyweight Championship above his head, and shuts the TV off. After catching his breath, he exits the room.
He closes the door to his apartment behind him and steps out into the corridor. The apartment complex was built by Pollo Bucket to serve as housing for employees who either had to relocate to the area or were on long business trips. Walking through its hotel-like corridors makes him feel like a visitor, living on borrowed time.
As he continues down the corridor, he thinks back to his career in the ring before he donned the mask - even before he trained with El Chiflado. Though many years have passed, he still carries injuries from his younger years. His body may seem fine and healed up from the outside - but even just one impactful enough move could be enough to reveal the truth underneath.
Heading down a set of stairs, he comes into a lounge area, which looks strikingly similar to a hotel lobby. He walks over to a table with a water cooler, and decides to grab some water. The cool water helps him wake up. It's almost refreshing.
Noticing a magazine next to the cooler, he picks it up. It's the latest issue of "The Chicken Scoop", Pollo Bucket's internal magazine for employees. It's filled with news and fluff pieces about the company. Mostly fluff pieces.
Flicking through it, a headline captures his attention -
"Golden Chicken or Golden Goose?"
Underneath it is a picture of himself with Ojima in the Chicken Nugget Lock.
He puts down his cup of water and starts reading. It describes the supposed "Pollo Curse", allegedly caused by Hijo's death.
“Not only did restaurants and other ventures begin failing for no good reason, but Pollo family wrestlers began facing injuries and legal troubles. Company morale was at an all time low…”
It then goes on detailing Pollo Dorado's victory in the Hijo Invitational, as well as him beating Ojima in the Captain's Fall match.
"As company stocks have begun to rise since the arrival of the new Pollo Dorado, many are putting their hope in this newcomer…"
Dorado knows he was lucky to be able to catch Ojima off guard at the last show. He’s been lucky to avoid too many hard hits since his debut. But now when he steps into the ring with Ojima one-on-one, he will need more than luck.
"Many call Reo Ojima’s attitude in the ring and towards Pollo Bucket subsidiaries 'troubling' and 'not a good fit for the brand'..."
In his mind, Dorado knows that he can outmatch Ojima in both speed and technique, and that he can dodge and counter almost anything Ojima throws at him. But his body knows that he can’t avoid every hit.
And one blow from Ojima is all it takes.
He looks up from the magazine and out of the window. The night sky is beginning to brighten. He gently massages the knot in his neck, as he heads out of the back door onto the patio.
The sun has begun rising in the horizon. Taking a deep breath and filling his lungs with cold air. He looks back down at the magazine and reads the final words of the article.
"Will the company finally see a champion it can be proud of?"
On the screen, a bloody Reo Ojima hooks his arms around his opponent's waist - DEADLIFT GERMAN SUPLEX! Right into the turnbuckles! Dorado feels a knot tighten in his neck. It’s way past midnight and he’s been watching Reo Ojima matches for several hours now.
Ojima’s opponent, Kazuya Cruz, begins fighting back. He charges at Ojima, but gets caught - SPINEBUSTER! Dorado feels a twitch in the back of his head, as Cruz’s head whiplashes off the canvas.
Dorado begins gently massaging his neck. He watches on as Ojima gets taken down by a barrage of hard hitting attacks, before eventually roaring back to his feet. LAST CALL! The Powerslam connects. Another whiplash. Ojima pulls his opponent back up… he’s firing off slaps… DISCUS LARIAT! More tension. HE’S NOT DONE YET! HE PULLS CRUZ BACK UP AND HITS A SECOND DISCUS LARIAT!
A jolt of intense pain shoots through his neck. His vision becomes blurry and his breath shallow. He manages to grab the remote, as Ojima lifts the King of Hyperfight Heavyweight Championship above his head, and shuts the TV off. After catching his breath, he exits the room.
He closes the door to his apartment behind him and steps out into the corridor. The apartment complex was built by Pollo Bucket to serve as housing for employees who either had to relocate to the area or were on long business trips. Walking through its hotel-like corridors makes him feel like a visitor, living on borrowed time.
As he continues down the corridor, he thinks back to his career in the ring before he donned the mask - even before he trained with El Chiflado. Though many years have passed, he still carries injuries from his younger years. His body may seem fine and healed up from the outside - but even just one impactful enough move could be enough to reveal the truth underneath.
Heading down a set of stairs, he comes into a lounge area, which looks strikingly similar to a hotel lobby. He walks over to a table with a water cooler, and decides to grab some water. The cool water helps him wake up. It's almost refreshing.
Noticing a magazine next to the cooler, he picks it up. It's the latest issue of "The Chicken Scoop", Pollo Bucket's internal magazine for employees. It's filled with news and fluff pieces about the company. Mostly fluff pieces.
Flicking through it, a headline captures his attention -
"Golden Chicken or Golden Goose?"
Underneath it is a picture of himself with Ojima in the Chicken Nugget Lock.
He puts down his cup of water and starts reading. It describes the supposed "Pollo Curse", allegedly caused by Hijo's death.
“Not only did restaurants and other ventures begin failing for no good reason, but Pollo family wrestlers began facing injuries and legal troubles. Company morale was at an all time low…”
It then goes on detailing Pollo Dorado's victory in the Hijo Invitational, as well as him beating Ojima in the Captain's Fall match.
"As company stocks have begun to rise since the arrival of the new Pollo Dorado, many are putting their hope in this newcomer…"
Dorado knows he was lucky to be able to catch Ojima off guard at the last show. He’s been lucky to avoid too many hard hits since his debut. But now when he steps into the ring with Ojima one-on-one, he will need more than luck.
"Many call Reo Ojima’s attitude in the ring and towards Pollo Bucket subsidiaries 'troubling' and 'not a good fit for the brand'..."
In his mind, Dorado knows that he can outmatch Ojima in both speed and technique, and that he can dodge and counter almost anything Ojima throws at him. But his body knows that he can’t avoid every hit.
And one blow from Ojima is all it takes.
He looks up from the magazine and out of the window. The night sky is beginning to brighten. He gently massages the knot in his neck, as he heads out of the back door onto the patio.
The sun has begun rising in the horizon. Taking a deep breath and filling his lungs with cold air. He looks back down at the magazine and reads the final words of the article.
"Will the company finally see a champion it can be proud of?"