Post by Nightmare on Jan 25, 2007 15:49:56 GMT -5
OOC: Flashbacks, Narration, (Normal).
===
What we have seen from man is that he thinks demon has done nothing to warrant any kind of fear, or respect.
But does he really know the demon? As a person? As a man?
He can not even begin to comprehend the aggression that lies beneath demon's skin. Waiting for the chance to break free.
But what he can't seem to understand is that demon's true potential and power has been revealed before.
For the destruction man has seen is merely a taste of the fire that grows with each waking sunset. With each moment...
And he continues to build that fire, oblivious.
===
Nightmare has found nothing else to destroy. He has nothing else to release his anger upon until Friday Night, when he meets Thomas Young. Face to face, as it always should have been. Young continues to provoke him with ridiculous insults that Nightmare knows he should not be bothered by. They never would have bothered him before. But this anger, this hatred, this fire within him continues to grow beyond his control. He has become unable to control his own emotions. Fear, doubt, disbelief, all of them gone. All that remains is anger, hate, jealousy, and the satisfaction of having his hand held high in the ring by the referee has never came. The Dream Catcher is his only option, if he loses on Friday NAPW will not ever be able to sleep without that provoking image of Nightmare's angry face haunting them. If he loses Nightmare may never be the same as he once was. This career may have destroyed his soul. He has done it to himself, in spite of himself. Young may not have revealed so, but deep inside he knows there is no escape for him now.
(We open to see NIGHTMARE on a bench-pressing table, wearing his in ring attire which is not much different from his regular attire. Black jeans in dire need of a wash and a white long sleeve tee. With nothing else to smash to pieces he must release his anger another way, by putting his arms and chest to the test. We see the weights on the bar, three on each side, reading forty-five pounds each. The bar itself weighs forty-five pounds and all that weight together sums up to three hundred and fifteen pounds. There is a personal trainer behind him, counting the repetitions. NIGHTMARE grunts an shakes violently lifting the bar high to his full arm extension, and back down very near his chest as the personal trainer reaches number "forty-seven". The wind-breaker that the personal trainer is wearing reads "Gold's Gym" on the breast pocket and "PERSONAL TRAINER" on the back across the shoulder blades. The trainer himself is in need of a shave, stands around 5'8" and has a crooked nose. He has black hair and wears black track pants matching his wind-breaker.)
So, Nightmare has put himself where the competition is, Prince George, British Columbia, hours away from his contest with Thomas Young. Hours away from introducing the new Gregory Hanson, the new Dream Demon. The winning kind. This has become much more than a physical contest between two athletes, it has become a psychological battle between two beings. Man. And demon. It is obvious that he has been preparing for quite some time to compete against what has summed up to be a formidable foe. Even if a tiny spark of respect for Thomas Young has floated to the surface, it has been completely burned away by the anger and hate for life, for his failure in it that consumes his actions, his thoughts. And no matter how much pain Nightmare inflicts upon himself, and those around him, the anger and jealousy will not end. Not until his true colors emerge as the dreadful Apocalypse that he has kept hidden away for quite some time.[/color]
(The personal trainer, spotting NIGHTMARE, becomes more and more nervous as to the condition of NIGHTMARE's muscles. He has lifted a lot of weight for a lot of repetitions and is beginning to slow down. NIGHTMARE's forehead sweats as he continues to lift the weight, putting his chest and arms to the test. We don't know what he is trying to prove, nor are we even sure if he's trying to prove anything. Finally, after the trainer reaches "sixty-two", NIGHTMARE sets the heavy weight down with a clang against the bench and sits up breathing deeply.)
PERSONAL TRAINER - At least you know when it's time to quit.
(NIGHTMARE looks up at the trainer.)
NIGHTMARE - I'm not about to quit. I didn’t come all this way just to quit.
(The personal trainer looks at NIGHTMARE strangely. Are they talking about the same thing?)
NIGHTMARE – I didn’t fight through life as an outcast of society to end all of my nightmares to just up and quit. I didn’t come all this way in the NAPW to quit. And you’re accusing me of doing just that. You’re accusing me of quitting.
PERSONAL TRAINER – What? I was talking about the bench press.
(NIGHTMARE looks away from the trainer shaking his head. They’re all the same to him. People that don’t believe in him, people that believe without any doubt that he’ll never amount to anything, never accomplish anything. And to have the satisfaction of proving them wrong, for NIGHTMARE, would be bliss. The personal trainer looks at his watch.)
PERSONAL TRAINER – Look, it’s getting kind of late. We’re supposed to close down soon. And it’s already time for me to go home.
NIGHTMARE – (impatient) Go home then! Why waste my time? I don’t care, I survived through life alone! I think I’ll do just fine for an hour by myself.
(The personal trainer starts to leave, no arguments. Just before he walks out of the weight training room he looks back at NIGHTMARE.)
PERSONAL TRAINER – You shouldn’t lift heavy weights without a spotter, so I advise you to reduce the weight on that bar.
(NIGHTMARE says nothing, nor does he even look up at the trainer. The trainer leaves and NIGHTMARE is left alone. But this is how he likes it. It’s how he’s been for most of his life. It’s the only thing he’s ever known. He’s never had a need for human company, at least NIGHTMARE doesn’t now. But the Gregory Hanson that still hides beneath the enraged demon of NIGHTMARE still longs for that luxury.)
(NIGHTMARE stands up from the bench and walks over to a white towel hanging on a metal bar on the wall. He takes the towel and wipes his forehead before looking at the camera.)
NIGHTMARE – Why does NAPW insist on sending a camera man to follow me wherever I go? Is there a need to be watching me like a hawk? Is the poor commish worried that I’ll destroy something else? No matter, if he’s got a problem with what I’m doing here, then he can say it to my face.
Or maybe you want me to say something else about Thomas Young? Haven’t you heard enough? You know what? (BLEEP) Thomas Young. Let’s talk about me.
In my career in the NAPW, since November ’05 – yes, I know it’s been on and off, we’ll get to that – I’ve done lots of things. At one point I had a huge four week battle with a giant. Caliban, I’m sure you remember…
I remember hearing the music.
…the one the size of a car.
And in that one night I had more anger and hatred coursing through my veins since… ever.
I remember the anger overcoming me like a plague.
Patience was not an option and neither was hesitation.
I only had my mind on one thing: Releasing the anger that I had bottled up inside since my first defeat. Caliban was my ticket then… perhaps Thomas Young’s my ticket now. But one thing was different when I was fighting Caliban…
I just seemed to get angrier.
The battle gave me more of an urge to continue.
It made me angrier, yet I continued to let myself believe that the destruction would end it.
Why would I continue if I knew that I could not escape the anger?
It was at that point I knew that the Dream Catcher would be my only way to escape the anger. What I didn’t realize was that while I was angry, I was at my best. My most impressive battle was against the giant that night. And it was because I was angry.
(chuckles) Maybe if I’d have stayed angry throughout every other match I’d be champion right now. Undefeated maybe. Just maybe.
That night I was at my best, angrier than I’ve ever been in my life. More focused than I’ve ever been in my life. More determined than I’ve ever been. I was the Nightmare I have been telling everyone I am today that night. I put those feelings away, banished them to my nightmares. What I didn’t know was that they were my key to winning matches. These emotions were my ticket to a championship. Sadly, it never came. If I had been even half as angry and determined as I was that night when I challenged Rees for the provincial title… Maybe I wouldn’t have bothered for the TV title last week, if you get my drift.
And Thomas Young had the audacity to say to me that he was the monster I always dreamed of being. Who’s dreaming, Young? I’ve already been there, and it was five times the monster you’ve ever dreamed of becoming. Are you really a new man, Young? Is this new man prepared to take on the consequences of wrestling a demon?
I’m not interested in whether or not you can do what I can, or what I have done. You can keep telling yourself that if you want. I don’t care. As long as it helps you sleep at night. You said something about me thinking the worst you’ve ever been is the best you can be. STOP PUTTING WORDS IN MY MOUTH! Believe me, never once had I decided that this was going to be an easy battle. Never once had I told myself that you were (BLEEP) and that I was surely going to walk out victorious. Never ONCE. Do you understand me? You say you’re different, but you’re just like the rest of them.
You’re one of the people who are just so sure that I think little of everyone!
(The pent up anger that NIGHTMARE has masked so well for a majority of the promo is starting to shine through. He takes some deep breaths to try and suppress it, but to no avail.)
NIGHTMARE – I have heard nothing but trash being said about me, Young. That’s all going to change, starting tomorrow night.
Oh, and as for that comment about me, oh what was it…
“Waking up in the hospital with no feeling in my neck and a tube down my throat sucking out the blood to ensure I don't choke.”
(NIGHTMARE looks at the camera, a look of extreme determination flows out from his green eyes that could pierce holes.)
NIGHTMARE – We’ll see exactly who wakes up in the hospital.
As we look into the green eyes of a determined, focused, motivated, angry Dream Demon, we see the hatred, the anger, every emotion that he has kept away for too long. And as we look into the eyes of “Nightmare” Gregory Hanson, we can see the heart that will go into his match tomorrow. What you are about to see you’ll never forget. Because you’ve never experienced a Nightmare like this. Unless you’re Caliban or Ringmaster Iago.
Thomas Young is about to become one of them. Just a memory. Just a crushed dream catcher on Nightmare’s bedroom floor. Just another stepping stone.
(Fade to black.)
===
He continues to dig himself a deeper hole.
And will not realize it until it’s too deep for him to climb out.
===
What we have seen from man is that he thinks demon has done nothing to warrant any kind of fear, or respect.
But does he really know the demon? As a person? As a man?
He can not even begin to comprehend the aggression that lies beneath demon's skin. Waiting for the chance to break free.
But what he can't seem to understand is that demon's true potential and power has been revealed before.
For the destruction man has seen is merely a taste of the fire that grows with each waking sunset. With each moment...
And he continues to build that fire, oblivious.
===
Nightmare has found nothing else to destroy. He has nothing else to release his anger upon until Friday Night, when he meets Thomas Young. Face to face, as it always should have been. Young continues to provoke him with ridiculous insults that Nightmare knows he should not be bothered by. They never would have bothered him before. But this anger, this hatred, this fire within him continues to grow beyond his control. He has become unable to control his own emotions. Fear, doubt, disbelief, all of them gone. All that remains is anger, hate, jealousy, and the satisfaction of having his hand held high in the ring by the referee has never came. The Dream Catcher is his only option, if he loses on Friday NAPW will not ever be able to sleep without that provoking image of Nightmare's angry face haunting them. If he loses Nightmare may never be the same as he once was. This career may have destroyed his soul. He has done it to himself, in spite of himself. Young may not have revealed so, but deep inside he knows there is no escape for him now.
(We open to see NIGHTMARE on a bench-pressing table, wearing his in ring attire which is not much different from his regular attire. Black jeans in dire need of a wash and a white long sleeve tee. With nothing else to smash to pieces he must release his anger another way, by putting his arms and chest to the test. We see the weights on the bar, three on each side, reading forty-five pounds each. The bar itself weighs forty-five pounds and all that weight together sums up to three hundred and fifteen pounds. There is a personal trainer behind him, counting the repetitions. NIGHTMARE grunts an shakes violently lifting the bar high to his full arm extension, and back down very near his chest as the personal trainer reaches number "forty-seven". The wind-breaker that the personal trainer is wearing reads "Gold's Gym" on the breast pocket and "PERSONAL TRAINER" on the back across the shoulder blades. The trainer himself is in need of a shave, stands around 5'8" and has a crooked nose. He has black hair and wears black track pants matching his wind-breaker.)
So, Nightmare has put himself where the competition is, Prince George, British Columbia, hours away from his contest with Thomas Young. Hours away from introducing the new Gregory Hanson, the new Dream Demon. The winning kind. This has become much more than a physical contest between two athletes, it has become a psychological battle between two beings. Man. And demon. It is obvious that he has been preparing for quite some time to compete against what has summed up to be a formidable foe. Even if a tiny spark of respect for Thomas Young has floated to the surface, it has been completely burned away by the anger and hate for life, for his failure in it that consumes his actions, his thoughts. And no matter how much pain Nightmare inflicts upon himself, and those around him, the anger and jealousy will not end. Not until his true colors emerge as the dreadful Apocalypse that he has kept hidden away for quite some time.[/color]
(The personal trainer, spotting NIGHTMARE, becomes more and more nervous as to the condition of NIGHTMARE's muscles. He has lifted a lot of weight for a lot of repetitions and is beginning to slow down. NIGHTMARE's forehead sweats as he continues to lift the weight, putting his chest and arms to the test. We don't know what he is trying to prove, nor are we even sure if he's trying to prove anything. Finally, after the trainer reaches "sixty-two", NIGHTMARE sets the heavy weight down with a clang against the bench and sits up breathing deeply.)
PERSONAL TRAINER - At least you know when it's time to quit.
(NIGHTMARE looks up at the trainer.)
NIGHTMARE - I'm not about to quit. I didn’t come all this way just to quit.
(The personal trainer looks at NIGHTMARE strangely. Are they talking about the same thing?)
NIGHTMARE – I didn’t fight through life as an outcast of society to end all of my nightmares to just up and quit. I didn’t come all this way in the NAPW to quit. And you’re accusing me of doing just that. You’re accusing me of quitting.
PERSONAL TRAINER – What? I was talking about the bench press.
(NIGHTMARE looks away from the trainer shaking his head. They’re all the same to him. People that don’t believe in him, people that believe without any doubt that he’ll never amount to anything, never accomplish anything. And to have the satisfaction of proving them wrong, for NIGHTMARE, would be bliss. The personal trainer looks at his watch.)
PERSONAL TRAINER – Look, it’s getting kind of late. We’re supposed to close down soon. And it’s already time for me to go home.
NIGHTMARE – (impatient) Go home then! Why waste my time? I don’t care, I survived through life alone! I think I’ll do just fine for an hour by myself.
(The personal trainer starts to leave, no arguments. Just before he walks out of the weight training room he looks back at NIGHTMARE.)
PERSONAL TRAINER – You shouldn’t lift heavy weights without a spotter, so I advise you to reduce the weight on that bar.
(NIGHTMARE says nothing, nor does he even look up at the trainer. The trainer leaves and NIGHTMARE is left alone. But this is how he likes it. It’s how he’s been for most of his life. It’s the only thing he’s ever known. He’s never had a need for human company, at least NIGHTMARE doesn’t now. But the Gregory Hanson that still hides beneath the enraged demon of NIGHTMARE still longs for that luxury.)
(NIGHTMARE stands up from the bench and walks over to a white towel hanging on a metal bar on the wall. He takes the towel and wipes his forehead before looking at the camera.)
NIGHTMARE – Why does NAPW insist on sending a camera man to follow me wherever I go? Is there a need to be watching me like a hawk? Is the poor commish worried that I’ll destroy something else? No matter, if he’s got a problem with what I’m doing here, then he can say it to my face.
Or maybe you want me to say something else about Thomas Young? Haven’t you heard enough? You know what? (BLEEP) Thomas Young. Let’s talk about me.
In my career in the NAPW, since November ’05 – yes, I know it’s been on and off, we’ll get to that – I’ve done lots of things. At one point I had a huge four week battle with a giant. Caliban, I’m sure you remember…
I remember hearing the music.
…the one the size of a car.
And in that one night I had more anger and hatred coursing through my veins since… ever.
I remember the anger overcoming me like a plague.
Patience was not an option and neither was hesitation.
I only had my mind on one thing: Releasing the anger that I had bottled up inside since my first defeat. Caliban was my ticket then… perhaps Thomas Young’s my ticket now. But one thing was different when I was fighting Caliban…
I just seemed to get angrier.
The battle gave me more of an urge to continue.
It made me angrier, yet I continued to let myself believe that the destruction would end it.
Why would I continue if I knew that I could not escape the anger?
It was at that point I knew that the Dream Catcher would be my only way to escape the anger. What I didn’t realize was that while I was angry, I was at my best. My most impressive battle was against the giant that night. And it was because I was angry.
(chuckles) Maybe if I’d have stayed angry throughout every other match I’d be champion right now. Undefeated maybe. Just maybe.
That night I was at my best, angrier than I’ve ever been in my life. More focused than I’ve ever been in my life. More determined than I’ve ever been. I was the Nightmare I have been telling everyone I am today that night. I put those feelings away, banished them to my nightmares. What I didn’t know was that they were my key to winning matches. These emotions were my ticket to a championship. Sadly, it never came. If I had been even half as angry and determined as I was that night when I challenged Rees for the provincial title… Maybe I wouldn’t have bothered for the TV title last week, if you get my drift.
And Thomas Young had the audacity to say to me that he was the monster I always dreamed of being. Who’s dreaming, Young? I’ve already been there, and it was five times the monster you’ve ever dreamed of becoming. Are you really a new man, Young? Is this new man prepared to take on the consequences of wrestling a demon?
I’m not interested in whether or not you can do what I can, or what I have done. You can keep telling yourself that if you want. I don’t care. As long as it helps you sleep at night. You said something about me thinking the worst you’ve ever been is the best you can be. STOP PUTTING WORDS IN MY MOUTH! Believe me, never once had I decided that this was going to be an easy battle. Never once had I told myself that you were (BLEEP) and that I was surely going to walk out victorious. Never ONCE. Do you understand me? You say you’re different, but you’re just like the rest of them.
You’re one of the people who are just so sure that I think little of everyone!
(The pent up anger that NIGHTMARE has masked so well for a majority of the promo is starting to shine through. He takes some deep breaths to try and suppress it, but to no avail.)
NIGHTMARE – I have heard nothing but trash being said about me, Young. That’s all going to change, starting tomorrow night.
Oh, and as for that comment about me, oh what was it…
“Waking up in the hospital with no feeling in my neck and a tube down my throat sucking out the blood to ensure I don't choke.”
(NIGHTMARE looks at the camera, a look of extreme determination flows out from his green eyes that could pierce holes.)
NIGHTMARE – We’ll see exactly who wakes up in the hospital.
As we look into the green eyes of a determined, focused, motivated, angry Dream Demon, we see the hatred, the anger, every emotion that he has kept away for too long. And as we look into the eyes of “Nightmare” Gregory Hanson, we can see the heart that will go into his match tomorrow. What you are about to see you’ll never forget. Because you’ve never experienced a Nightmare like this. Unless you’re Caliban or Ringmaster Iago.
Thomas Young is about to become one of them. Just a memory. Just a crushed dream catcher on Nightmare’s bedroom floor. Just another stepping stone.
(Fade to black.)
===
He continues to dig himself a deeper hole.
And will not realize it until it’s too deep for him to climb out.