McBride Incorporated Briefing

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Off Camera

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“How do you do it?”

Melanie McBride, the youngest of the McBride siblings, is seated on a plush black leather chair in the waiting room just outside of the conference room on the second floor of McBride Incorporated’s Corporate Headquarters in New York City.  The young brunette, dressed in a cream colored sundress with a hem that extends to just above the knee and an orange floral print design, is watching with awe at her older sister, Karen.

Albeit they are sisters only by adoption only, Karen and Melanie have been closer than any siblings have ever been.  Truthfully, they are the best of friends.  Once upon a time Melanie was bullied by the two older siblings, Stan Lee Jr. and Blaire McBride, and Karen was the only one willing to stand up to them on Melanie’s behalf.  Karen, having a history of being the outcast and oppressed, did not want to sit idly by while one was being abused.

The two were fast friends ever since and even now that Blaire has changed her ways and has made up with Karen and Melanie, it is still Karen and Melanie who are the closest.  They still watch each other’s backs. 

Melanie knows all about Karen’s rough upbringing.  She knows all about Karen’s teenage years of living on the streets having to fend for herself.  She knows how Karen has had to fight all of her life so it is no surprise at all to Melanie that her adopted sister can fight very well, but that doesn’t change or ease the pain of watching her take the abuse that she took at the hands of Ambrosia at Upping The Ante.

And yet, despite it all, Karen McBride came out victorious, just as Melanie knew she would.

It also enraged Melanie to no end when she saw Veronica Rodriguez, also known as Fury, blindside her sister with a lead pipe.  Rodriguez, a woman whose family speaks so much about respect, disrespects Karen with a lead pipe assault after she had just been through hell with Ambrosia, it was enough to piss off anyone, especially young Melanie who idolizes Karen.

Yet there is a time and place for everything.  Sometimes Karen has to tuck that side of herself, that part of her who can street fight with the best of them, away for a period of time so she can deal with the business aspect.  Sometimes she has to cease being Karen Leonard the fighter and become Karen McBride the corporate businesswoman.

Today she is here at McBride Incorporated’s Corporate Headquarters in New York City as Karen McBride the  cutthroat businesswoman, not as a street fighter, and Melanie has to admit that she is impressed with how quickly she can turn that switch and transition from fighter to businesswoman so easily.

“Do what, Mel?”

Karen asks this as she stands a few feet away from the door and a few feet away from Melanie.  The brunette principle owner of IWC is wearing a white silk blouse, black blazer, and a black pencil skirt.  Her feet are encased in black high heeled pumps.  Karen is the picture of a corporate super power ready to strike.

“I mean, look at you…” she waves with her hands at her sister “…here you are, ready to set foot into that room with some really nasty corporate big wigs and fat cats, ready to speak their language and do business with them like a pro, and yet just last week you and Ambrosia were beating the hell out of each other in a street fight!”

The elder McBride smirks knowingly.  Then, with a gentle, smug, stride she walks over to Melanie and sits down in a chair next to her and places a hand on top of hers.

“You know me pretty well by now, Mel.”

“Better than anyone, I think!” Melanie responds with a bright, cheerful smile before leaning in closely to whisper into her ear. “I read your diary!”

Karen half-smiles. “Is that so?”

“Yup…who is Troy, by the way?”

“…he isn’t important…”

“I doubt it!” Melanie says playfully.

“He is from my past, Mel, and speaking of my past, you know about my past on the streets…”

Melanie suddenly grows serious once more.  She doesn’t look hearing the stories about her sister on the streets.  She knows all too well about how Karen had to be a prostitute to make enough money to support her mother and two brothers after their father left and abandoned them.  The thought of poor Karen whoring herself off just to survive breaks Melanie’s heart.

“Yeah, I know…”

“And you know about the monsters I had to deal with on the streets, monsters that nearly took my life some nights…”

Melanie shakes her head. “I don’t want to talk about this, Kare-Bear.”

“I know you don’t, but all I’m trying to say is that I have dealt with monsters before, and what I have come to realize since your parents adopted me is that the monsters of the corporate world are no different and no less evil than the monsters of the streets.  They just use different tactics.”

Karen runs a hand through her sister’s long dark hair. “So don’t worry about me.  I’ll be fine.”

Karen stands up, so does Melanie, and the two share a heartwarming embrace…one that is cut rather short when the door to the conference room opens and their sister Blaire exits.

“Ah, how touching!”

Karen and Melanie turn to face Blaire who smiles at the both of them. “No hug for me?”

“Usually a hug from you is followed by a knife in the back.” Karen says with a wink.

“Ok, ok!” Blaire holds up her hands in a joking sign of defeat. “Guilty as charged, I deserve that!”

Melanie is the first to break the ice with a hug for Blaire.  Blaire then turns and embraces Karen as well.

“So, are they ready?”

Blaire nods her head. “Yes, and you’re lucky that IWC Upping The Ante did so well in terms of pay per view buy rates because I was able to use those sales to warm them up…”

She places a hand on Karen’s shoulder. “But now the ball is in your court.  You have to seal the deal and make sure they are pleased with how our IWC project is going.”

“Is Stan there?”

Stan Lee Jr. is their brother and the oldest of the siblings.  Used to Stan and Blaire were allies while Karen and Melanie were the best of friends.  Now Blaire has sided with Karen and Melanie and Stan is on his own.

“Yes he is, and he will do anything to convince the board not to let you proceed any further.”

“But he can’t do that.” Melanie butts in, interrupting Blaire and Karen. “He only has a 12 and 1/2 percent stake in McBride Incorporated.  You two together have a 37 and 1/2 stake in McBride Incorporated.”

Blaire nods her head. “Yes, Melanie, but there’s still the other 50%...”

“Mom and dad.” Karen responds.

“He can’t stop us today, but Stan could easily turn people against us.” Blaire embraces Karen one last time. “So knock them dead, Kare-Bear.”

Karen snickers. “Only Melanie is allowed to call me that...”

With that said Melanie wishes Karen good luck as she and Blaire watch Karen turn and walk into the conference room.  Karen shuts the door behind her.  Men and women, some older some younger, are seated are a long, oval shaped table that is in the center of the room and then heads immediately to the front of the table where she sits down.

“Greetings everyone!” She says cheerfully. “I hope you found my sister Blaire’s news rather promising.”

“Yes, we heard some good things from Blaire.”

The woman who answered her is a slightly heavyset, older woman who looks very debonair is none other than Diane Cooker McBride, the mother of Stan Lee Jr., Blaire, and Melanie McBride, the woman who adopted Karen.  A pleasant smile is on her face, which is in stark contrast to the sneer on the face of the younger man sitting to her left.  That man happens to be Stan Lee. Jr, the oldest of the McBride siblings.

“But your brother,” she motions to Stan “still has a few reservations.”

“I take it Blaire did not ease his mind?”

Diane shakes her head. “No, he has a few questions, as do a few other members of the board, but Stan will represent them all.”

“Wonderful.” Karen smirks rather smugly, looking forward to a confrontation with her older brother. “But if I may, could I please make my opening statement?”

“No!” Stan Lee Jr. shoots right up out of the chair. “We’ve already heard from Blaire!  It’s my turn!”

“Now hold on, Stan.” Diane grabs him by his arm and gently tugs. “This is Karen’s project primarily, I think we should hear her out.”

Stan knows that his mother, along with the patriarch of the family Stan Lee Sr., hold 50% of the company and making them angry would not be wise, so he sighs and sits back down.  Karen grins confidently, proud of her first of hopefully many victories today.

“Excellent, now some of this will be old news as Blaire I’m sure already told you a lot of this, but profits in McBride Incorporated have been up consistently ever since Reawakening Day and those profits can be directly credited to the pay per view buy rates, ticket sales, and merchandise sales of the Independent Wrestling Cartel.  And THAT is why I wanted to purchase a 25% share of IWC ownership.  I saw the potential in the product and I knew…”

“Bullshit!” Stan’s outburst shocks the other board members. “You just wanted a world title match!”

“Hush, Stan.” Diane remarks. “Let her finish.”

Karen grins smugly. “Thank you…now as I was saying, I knew that owning a 25% share of IWC would assist our company as well.  And thus far I have been right.  So I ask…”

Karen shrugs her shoulders. “What is the problem?”

Stan Lee shoots a desperate, pleading look at his mother Diane. “Can I talk now?”

She nods her head. “Yes, voice your reservations so that Karen may address them.”

He sneers. “With pleasure...”

He points a finger. “You are mishandling everything in IWC!”

“Mishandling?” Karen feigns innocence. “How?”

“Desmond Drake is getting your ass kicked, Kloe Masters is making you look like a fool, and this is NOT good for you or OUR company!”

Karen grins. “That’s nice of you to pretend to care about me, Stan; just like the used car salesman you are.”

“I do care…”

“No, you don’t, you only care about the bottom line.” She laughs slightly. “Actually, no, you only care about trying to make me look bad.”

“I am trying to be fair to you, Karen.  That’s what I’m trying to do.”

The principle owner shakes her head. “Sorry, but not convinced.  Now then, why don’t you get on with it?  I have a wrestling company to run and you have a goat to sacrifice to Satan.”

Stan Lee Jr. is now thoroughly frustrated with his sister’s tactics and insults.  But that’s how she’s always done business in McBride Incorporated.  This tactic always worked well against Stan because it took him off of his game.

“Let me spell it out for you, then…Upping The Ante, you against Ambrosia…”

“I won.  Kicked her ass too, might I add.”

“Yeah and afterwards Veronica Rodriguez, some dumb bitch named Fury, hit you with a pipe!”

Karen sighs, nodding her head. “This is true…”

“And now you two are facing each other in a hardcore match!”

“Right, and your point is?”

“My point is that IMAGE IS EVERYTHING!” Stan’s voice grows a little as he gets intense. “And you getting trashed week in and week out by Drake’s cronies makes US look bad as a company!”

“Are you done?”

Stan thinks about that question for just a moment before sitting down. “Yeah, I’m done.”

“Good, because I’m ready to address these concerns.” Karen stands up.

“First of all, IWC is my company, not yours, and secondly, I bought that 25% of IWC with my personal wealth, McBride Incorporated does not own IWC.  So how exactly are my problems with Desmond Drake and Kloe Masters a problem for McBride Incorporated?”

“Image is…” Stan starts to say again, repeating himself, but Karen interrupts

“NO!  Don’t say it because you already have.  You say image is everything but let’s examine this for just a moment.  Yes, I had to fight Ambrosia in a hardcore match at Upping The ante but I won.  Now I have to fight Veronica Rodriguez on RIOT and yes, I will win again.  But win or lose, what it comes down to is the almighty dollar…”

She smirks confidently. “…money is what makes the world go around, am I right?  Money is the bottom line for McBride Incorporated and so far my IWC Project has made you money, correct?”

“Yes, but…”

Karen shakes her head. “No buts, Stan, it’s simple business.  We are making you money and as long as that pattern remains McBride Incorporated should not have any issues.  Now then, are there any other concerns?”

The room remains quiet, even Stan Lee Jr. cannot say anything.  “Good…now then, I will take my leave, and Stan...”

He looks up at her as she gets out of her chair. “Huh?”

“Do me a favor, choke on a chicken wing this evening when you take whoever your whore of the day is out for a date.”

Karen makes her exit.

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Stan Lee McBride Jr.

On Camera

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How did I get roped into this?  Nevermind.

Veronica Rodriguez, my sister’s latest opponent.  Or maybe the better term is assassin because even I can clearly see that she’s being booked in a way by the IWC powers that be, namely Desmond Drake and I wouldn’t be surprised if that bitch Kloe Masters is involved either, to try and get her hurt or injured.

Come to think of it, I honestly wouldn’t mind if you roughed up Karen a little bit.  She’s not a REAL McBride anyway.  I don’t care what happens to her.  And you’ll get your licks in. You’ll bruise her and maybe even draw some blood.  It is a hardcore match, after all.

But you’re not going to win.  You just cannot win, Fury.  You can’t win because Karen McBride is just too God-damned stubborn to lose.  She is too damn stubborn to just give up and leave well enough alone and walk away from it all.

And as much as I hate to admit it, she’s a hell of a fighter.

This is one dangerous person you face, Veronica.  A stubborn little bitch who has no problem busting you in the mouth as she likes to say.  And what makes her even more dangerous is the fact that she is backed into a corner.  She has Desmond Drake and Sinistry targeting her, she’ll no doubt have End Effect going after her, and I’m sure that crazy broad Ambrosia will want some revenge after she got her ass kicked by Karen at Upping The Ante.

As a businessman I tend to call things like I see them.  Do I like Karen?  Not a bit.  Nothing would make me happier than to see her get busted in the mouth.  And I’m sure you’re more than capable of delivering that, toots, but the problem for you is that my sister will bust you in the mouth too, and then she’ll shove her foot so far up your ass that it’ll have to be surgically removed.

Good luck…no honestly, I mean it, good luck…you’re going to need it.

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Gregory Leonard

On Camera

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I’m admittedly still rather new to this whole wrestling thing…

…oh I’m sorry, an introduction is in order right?  My name is Gregory Leonard, one of Karen’s biological brothers.  Or, as I like to call myself, her blood brother.

I may not know a whole lot about wrestling, but I am learning, and one thing that has struck me is this group that recently popped up in IWC calling itself End Effect.

End Effect seems like something that, once upon a time before our mother was murdered, me and Sam and Karen could all have gotten into.  We were the outcasts of society and all we wanted was respect.  Now?

Karen has earned her respect from those on the streets because she uses the wealth she was adopted into for good causes and she doesn’t just sit on her wealth either.  She fights for a living.  She works to maintain herself.  She fights for what’s right and that has earned her a hell of a lot of respect among the outcasts.

I know because I am there to listen to them.

So yeah, I thought this End Effect was pretty cool stuff…until Veronica Rodriguez thought it was in her best interest to attack my sister with no cause whatsoever.

I’d ask you why you did it…I’d ask you why you blasted her with that pipe…my sister has her theories which I’m sure she’ll get to but honestly, I don’t care about why you did it.  All I know is that for every action there is a consequence.

Or as those fancy scientists like to put it, for every action, there is an equal but opposite reaction.

You took her out with that pipe at Upping The Ante, you had the last world then and I hope you felt good about it, I hope you enjoyed that, because now Karen  gets her revenge.  She gets her payback.  And you had better believe she is going to leave you lying flat on your damn back just like you left her lying at Upping The Ante.

Prepare yourself, little bitch.  Prepare to be busted in the mouth.

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Karen McBride

On Camera

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I can hear it now, all of the shock and awe on the lips of the IWC universe, none of them expected The Harlequin of Hardcore to be bested in a street fight by Karen McBride.  No one expected her to go down in defeat at the hands of the 25% principle owner of this company.  And yet that is exactly what happened.

What gives?  Is Ambrosia just not as good as she used to be?  Was she having an off day?  Or did I just get lucky?  Some might even say that Ambrosia got beat at her own game.

Wrong on all counts.  The fact is that hardcore rules, street fighting, that is MY game!  It is MY world!  She dared to set foot into my world and she paid a hefty price.  I kicked her ass and I came out the winner, just as I said I would.  And just as I predicted, Desmond Drake’s little plan to rough me up did not work.

Nice try, but I guess now you’re going to recruit Veronica Rodriguez?  Yet another hardcore rules match, yet another hopeless attempt at destroying me.

The problem this time is that you picked a really lousy assassin.  You were better off with Ambrosia.

Fury, Rodriguez, or whatever the hell you want people to call you, you and your End Effect pals talk of respect while, in reality, you know nothing about respect.  I am a principle owner of this company, Vero.  What that means is that I’m your boss.  Most employers would just be happy and content to sit back and let the underlings and minions do their dirty work while they reap the rewards.

Namely, I’m describing Desmond Drake.

Those people don’t know what the hell it’s like to get in the ring and compete.  They don’t know what it is like to bleed and sweat and pay the price for this industry.  I do because I am willing to get right there in the trenches with the people who work for me.  I am willing to get right there on the front lines with the soldiers of IWC whereas others are just as pleased sending pawns to do their dirty work.

Your, Veronica, are a pawn in Desmond Drake’s game.  You…Ambrosia…and End Effect, all of you are pawns he is using to try and take me out.  You are being used and manipulated, and you are either happy little servants or just completely stupid and ignorant of it all.

Either way looks bad on you.

You jumped me at Upping The Ante with a lead pipe after my fight with Ambrosia.  What that tells me is just how pathetic you are.  Not only did you need a weapon to put me down but you couldn’t put me down until AFTER I had been through a war with Ambrosia.

So tell me something, Rodriguez, just what exactly do you think is going to happen on RIOT when you have to face me in a hardcore match and I am fresh, I am ready for you, and you don’t have the advantage of a surprise attack?

I kicked the shit out of Ambrosia at Upping The Ante, you better believe I’ll kick the shit out of you on RIOT.  You have nothing on me, Fury…absolutely NOTHING…

…heh, funny, that name of yours; FURY…the truth is that the only Fury that the IWC fans will bear witness to is my own, the fury of Karen McBride, a street fighter and principle owner, the bitch that is beyond pissed off right now at this situation and will gladly plant a boot up the ass of anyone who dares step in her way.

And you, Veronica, you are putting yourself in the way…you are putting yourself into harm’s way because you are too stupid to realize just what the hell you have gotten yourself into by choosing to lie down with the dogs like Ambrosia and Desmond Drake.

Furthermore, End Effect likes to speak about the outcast of society…at least that’s what I’ve heard time and again from Eric Herrera…proudly representing the outcasts.  Appropriate, then, that you get to face someone who knows all about being the outcast of society.

I was NOT born into wealth.  I was left in a situation where my father left my mother to raise three children on her own.  My mother couldn’t support us as she was chronically ill, so I had to get the money…

…by any means necessary…

…only for my efforts to be done in vain when a drive by shooting took the life of my mother.  I was lucky, though.  I was lucky enough to be adopted by a wealthy family who raised me and educated me.  But I will never ever forget where I came from.  I will never ever forget the outcasts.

I respect what End Effect and its members have done but what I don’t respect is selling your soul. It’s clear to me whose side you are on, Veronica, and it saddens me to see that, but I’m not going to grieve.  I’m not going to mourn.

I’m just going to bust you in the mouth.

What Makes Me Tick

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Scene 1

Off Camera

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Karen McBride thought that things would be so much easier for her once she dropped her nuclear bomb, forcing the IWC roster and especially Desmond Drake to recognize her with the proper respect she is due as a part owner of the company.

Boy was she wrong.

Since the nuclear bomb was dropped and the revelation about Karen’s newfound power has come out, she has been manipulated and used by Silas Mason and blatantly assaulted by Sinistry or put in matches by Drake where she is set-up to fail, set-up to get destroyed.  And she didn’t help matters out for herself by making some mistakes of her own along the way.  The biggest one being to grant herself a world title match without having to earn it.

Karen believed herself justified in granting that title match to herself.  She had made a deal with Desmond Drake that if she helped him purchase IWC she’d get a world title match and he never lived up to his end of the bargain.  Karen felt that she was just doing what was right.

The truth is, she was trying to take a shortcut and the rest of the roster who had supported her initially noticed it and turned on her immediately.  Now Karen McBride seems to have only one ally in the entire world, William Mason, and he is none too popular himself.

One ally in a war against very powerful men who want to control IWC is not a good place to find yourself in.

Another bad place Karen finds herself in is a match against Ambrosia, a hardcore match at Upping The Ante…

Today we find Karen McBride in her private gym in New York City.  The lovely brunette has her hair pulled back into a ponytail, she is wearing black workout pants and a black top with, yes, black sneakers.  The twenty-five percent owner of the Independent Wrestling Cartel stands in the center of a ring, circling her brother Gregory Leonard, who is similarly attired only his workout gear consists of gray sweats and white tennis shoes.  Both seem apprehensive, reluctant even, to get started.  Neither want to be the first to ignite this sparring session.

“What are you waiting for, Greg?” Karen asks with a sly grin. “Go on, come at me.”

“Not on your life.” He remarks. “You’re a better reaction-fighter than I am…”

“You mean I’m a good counter-wrestler.”

“Counter wrestler, reaction-fighter, whatever.  Point is I know better than to be the first to go after you.  You’ll take me apart.”

The two continue to circle one another, as neither is certain of what to do next.  Neither wants to make the first move, that much is evident.  Finally McBride breaks the ice if you will…

“Ok then…let’s do it…”

Karen goes in for a collar and elbow tie up.  You may think that Gregory’s size and strength would give him an edge but he has no formal wrestling training and Karen is easily able to go behind him with a waist lock and then take him down to the mat before locking in a headlock.

“Do you give?”

“Argh!” He winces in pain as she wrenches the hold in tight. “Yes!  Yes I give!”

Karen relinquishes the hold and gets back to her feet, shaking her head with disappointment.

“You disappointment me, Greg.  That was far too easy.”

“Of course it was…” Gregory gets up to his feet, rubbing his neck in an attempt to ease the pain “…like I said, you are a better wrestler than I am.  You’re going to beat my ass in a wrestling match every time.”

Karen sighs, realizing the truth of his words. “Yes, that is true isn’t it?  Maybe asking you to spar with me was a mistake?”

“If you needed me to help you prepare for a wrestling match, then yeah, it was a mistake.” A sly grin forms across his face. “But you’re not gonna be wrestling, are ya?”

“Come again?” Karen asks, looking genuinely confused.

“Let’s be real here, sis.  That Ambrosia chick is nuttier than three fruitcakes.  It’s clear she is a brawler more than a wrestler.  Even I know that and I haven’t done any of the homework that you should be doing.”

McBride nods her head.  Gregory is right and she knows it, for she has indeed done her homework on the woman known as Ambrosia.  She has been champion in many organizations but her success has come mostly from her skills as a fighter, especially in the realm of the hardcore and extreme fighting rather than the pure technicality of the sport of wrestling.

“Once again you’re right…”

“Damn, I’m on a roll!” Gregory exclaims, feeling rather proud of himself.

“And furthermore, this IS a hardcore match, if I understand correctly, made specifically by Desmond Drake with the hopes that Ambrosia will utterly annihilate me.”

“And sis, I hate to say it,” Gregory places a hand on her shoulder “that may very well happen.”

“Huh?”

“Let’s be honest, Sam was right about you.  The lifestyle of the rich and famous has kinda made you soft…”

The suggestion that the eldest brother, Samuel Leonard, was right about Karen, that she had indeed gone soft, was enough to get her blood boiling.  Karen drives a knee into Gregory’s midsection and then throws a right hand that further staggers him.  A spear takedown on Gregory from Karen and then she goes into mounted punches.

“I…AM…NOT…” Karen suddenly stops as she realizes she busted his nose open, blood is coming out of it “…soft?”

Karen gasps. “Oh God, I’m sorry!”

“Don’t be!” Gregory kicks her off of him as he scrambles to his feet, not bothering to wipe the blood that is still coming from his nose. “Ambrosia damn sure won’t apologize for splitting your head open!”

Karen frowns. “So you just said that to provoke me?”

“Yes, because damn it Karen, you need to be a street fighter for this match, not a wrestler, and I am gonna remind you of what kind of street fighter you can really be!”

She rolls her eyes. “Yeah, sure…”

“Come at me, sis…just come on…”

He doesn’t need to ask her twice.  McBride charges in but Gregory side steps her.  Karen hits the ropes, rebounds, and then comes back with a yakuza kick to the face that sends him to the mat.  He rolls to the outside to avoid further offense but Karen follows him.  She starts to after him again but he rolls out of the way and pushes her into the steel steps.  Karen struggles to her feet, clutching at her shoulder.

“Damn…that looked like it hurt…”

“It did.” She winces. “But don’t worry, keep coming.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.  Ambrosia won’t take pity on me.”

Gregory nods he walks in and goes for a right but Karen blocks it and then kicks him below the belt line.  He doubles over in pain as Karen delivers a knee lift to the chin that finally drops him to the floor.  Karen is about to inflict more punishment when she is stopped by the sound of hands clapping together…applause coming from the other side of the gym.  McBride turns to see that her adoptive sister Blaire McBride has entered the gym and is applauding with a wide grin on her face.

“Good move there, Karen” she snickers “but unfortunately that move won’t work against Ambrosia.”

“This is true, Blaire,” Karen retorts as she reaches down to help her brother back to his feet “but that’s a move that always works against my brother.”

“Doesn’t it work against all men, dear?”

“Yes, but in a fight you would think they would try to protect that rather sensitive area.  My brother here never did learn to guard against that.”

The two women share a laugh at poor Gregory’s expense but the lone male in the room seems to take it all in stride.

“Maybe someday I’ll learn…” He says with a wink.

“I doubt it.” Karen says mockingly. “You haven’t learned in well over twenty years, dear, what makes you think you’ll start now?”

“Don’t you worry about me, sis” Gregory begins with a shake of his head “you worry about yourself and that crazy ass Ambrosia chick.”

“Yes, yes, I know, and we’ll get right back to the sparring session.” Karen grins knowingly. “So where were we?  I believe we left off with me pummeling you.”

Karen and Gregory share a laugh, completely forgetting that Blaire had entered this gym for a reason.

“Ahem,” she clears her throat “before you two get back to kicking each other’s asses, I think there is something Karen should be aware of.”

Karen and Blaire are not blood related.  Karen and Gregory are blood related.  Blaire was born into this wealth and privilege.  Karen was born into poverty, born into a situation where she had to fight to survive and fight to make sure her family survived.  Were it not for the McBride family adopting her after their parents had been killed, Karen Leonard, now known as Karen McBride, would never have survived to this day.  Karen and Blaire didn’t used to get along, but they do now, and still to this day Karen does not appreciate all of Blaire’s tactics and approach to business.

For Blaire it has always been business first.  Blaire has always been about what’s best for business and the bottom line before anything else, even before what is morally right and just.  While Karen can be as deceptive and manipulative as Blaire is, she at least knows the difference between right and wrong and will put what’s right and just before the business any day of the week.

“What is it, Blaire?”

“Things are not well on the corporate front.” 

Karen sighs. “How do you mean?”

“The company, dear Karen.” Blaire answers. “The company isn’t looking very favorable upon you right now.”

“Tell me something I don’t already know.” Karen catches a towel that Gregory tosses her.  She uses it to wipe the sweat from her face. “Let’s see, Sinistry still has twenty-five percent of IWC and Kloe Masters has fifty-percent.  And the one I’d be willing to work with, namely Ms. Masters, doesn’t trust me.”

“Karen…”

“And that’s not to mention the fact that Sinistry, just like me, has some booking powers still available to them.  The fact that I was booked in this hardcore match against Ambrosia as their way to try and eliminate me is evidence of that.  So yes, Blaire, I am fully aware that things are not well for me in IWC at the moment.”

Blaire places her hands on her hips. “That isn’t what I was talking about.”

“Huh?”

“That’s your problem, Karen,” Blaire begins in a tone that resembles a mother lecturing her disobedient daughter “that’s always been your problem.  You never listen.  You’re too gung-ho, too pig-headed at times.”

Karen nods her head. “Yes, I realize I am not the best businesswoman in the world.  That’s why I asked you to handle the corporate side of things for me while I handled the wrestling side of things.”

“Yes and that was a good move, because in order for this team to work we need to play to our strengths.  You admit that I am a better businesswoman than you…”

Karen smirks knowingly. “Not necessarily better, you just know more tricks than I do, you have more experience than I do, and you are willing to do more things than I am in order to get your way.”

“Yes, well, you asked me to help because the corporate world is my strength.  And I stayed out of the wrestling world because that is your field of expertise.”

“So tell me then,” Karen folds her arms over her chest “have you been doing your job?”

“That’s the thing, Karen, we cannot operate independently from one another.” She reaches out and places her hand on her sister’s shoulder. “Ours is a symbiotic relationship.  I cannot do my job if you are not doing yours.”

Karen frowns before removing Blaire’s hand from her shoulder. “What are you implying?”

“I am not implying anything.” Blaire shakes her head. “I am simply warning you that McBride Incorporated is very unhappy with the two of us, but more specifically with you.”

“They’re unhappy with me?!” Karen exclaims, her voice growing louder as the shock and realization sets in, as she tries to fathom what she was just told. “What does that mean?!”

“Allow me to spell it out for you, Karen.  McBride Incorporated wants answers and they believe they are entitled to these answers because you used their resources and finances to make that purchase of twenty-five percent stake in IWC.”

Karen’s rage and anger begins to grow, it begins to boil over.  It takes all of her willpower not to take out her frustrations either on Blaire or on Gregory right here and right now, but she has to remind herself that Blaire has nothing to do with this.  She is just the messenger.

“MY resources and MY finances you mean!” Karen exclaims. “I am twenty-five percent owner of McBride Incorporated.  Those were mine to do as I saw fit, and I saw fit to buy IWC.”

“Yes, and up until now they have been very supportive of you.  But lately they think you’re making them look bad.”

“Making them look bad?!”  Karen bangs her fist on the ring mat out of frustration. “Why the hell are they getting upset with me now?!  I’ve been a wrestler for YEARS and they never once whined about me making them look bad!”

“McBride Incorporated supported your wrestling career because that was an independent decision of yours that had no bearing upon them.” Blaire sighs. “Believe me, I know, Stan and I both tried to convince them to not allow you to do it.”

Karen shakes her head with disgust. “I recall…”

“Yes, and we were wrong about that.  We had no right to try and stop you from your dream of being a wrestler.  But this is different.”

“How is it different, Blaire?!”  Karen’s frustration continues to show through. “How the hell is this different?!”

“It’s different because the McBride Incorporated name is attached to it.  McBride Incorporated was excited at first to hear about you becoming part owner of IWC.  That allowed them a way into the wrestling business themselves, a business they thought was a lucrative one after seeing your success.”

“But things changed…”

“Yes, they have.” Blaire nods her head. “Between Desmond Drake booking you in these matches against psychopaths like Ambrosia with the full intent to hurt you and put you out and then women like Kloe Masters making a power play to become fifty-percent owner and thus negating you entirely, well it’s made you look very weak.”

“Weak?”

Karen wants to lash out but she cannot seem to find that anger any longer.  The street fighter turned business woman turned wrestler cannot find the anger inside her to lash out and that is probably because deep down in her heart she realizes that Blaire is right on the money.  She has looked weak lately and a lot of it is because of her own mistakes.  Karen has never run a wrestling company before and it is becoming clear that she is an amateur.

She hops up on the edge of the apron and sits down.  Gregory and Blaire approach her.  Gregory looks across at Blaire.

“What should she do?”

“She just needs to show signs of strength.” Blaire answers. “She needs to show IWC that she is not some pushover.”

“Would beating Ambrosia help any?”

Blaire nods her head. “Yes, definitely.  But she can’t rely on her wrestling skill alone.  She has to also show that she can outwit and outmaneuver people like Desmond Drake and Kloe Masters.”

Karen looks up at Blaire. “I want Kloe as an ally.”

“Sweetie, she’s part of the reason you look weak right now.” Blaire hops up on the ring apron next to Karen. “Hell, she’s the biggest reason you look weak.”

“But Desmond…”

“Desmond Drake has so far put you and William in tag weapons matches and in a match against Ambrosia.  That’s it.  And admit it, you teaming with your Prestige tag team partner is something you’d be doing anyway, correct?”

“I guess…”

“Right, and even in those matches he put you in you’ve done very well.  Kloe Masters is the one who managed to secure fifty-percent of the company and is making decisions around here, she has the power to overrule you.  Everyone looks at HER as the primary executive in charge, not you.”

Blaire wraps an arm around Karen’s shoulder. “Even if you managed to get Kloe Masters as an ally, you’d still look like a subordinate to her as opposed to an equal.”

“What do you suggest I do, Blaire?”

“Outmaneuver Kloe.” Blaire states matter-of-factly. “Take her out of the picture, then worry about Desmond.”

“And how do you propose I do that?!”

“Simple…Desmond has twenty-five percent, you have twenty-five percent, together you have fifty-percent and can negate anything Kloe tries.  Get rid of her.  Then find your own army to take on Desmond and Sinistry.  Once he’s out of the picture you have full power in IWC all to yourself.”

She pats Karen on the back. “Power my dear…power…”

It is tempting, very tempting, to go with Blaire’s suggestion.  It would be easy for Karen and Desmond together to take out Kloe.  It would be too easy…and Karen isn’t about to go the easy route.  That’s not how she was raised, by either her adoptive parents or biological parents…

“I can’t do it.” Karen hops off of the ring apron, standing to her feet. “It isn’t right.”

“This is all about power, Karen.”

“No, it isn’t Blaire.  Wrestling should be about competition and entertaining the fans.  Desmond Drake and Sinistry want to turn it into a blue kool-aid drinking Jim Jones house of horrors and I won’t let that happen.”

The two sisters stare each other down.  Karen tenses up, not wanting to blink first.  Finally Blaire cracks a smile.

“Good, I like your passion.  You’ll need it.”

Karen blinks out of confusion.  That was not the reaction she was expecting from Blaire. “Huh?”

“I didn’t think you would go along with my suggestion.  It’s the easiest path but it’s also a tad bit immoral.”

“A ‘tad’ bit immoral?”

“Ok, a LOT immoral!” Blaire snickers. “Point is, you’ve always been a better person than me, and I admire you for that.  I figured you wouldn’t take the easy path.  I figured you’d still want to do what’s right.  But I thought I’d pitch the idea anyway.”

Karen sighs, shrugging her shoulders. “Ok, so what do I do now?”

“Now you go back to training, you have a match against Ambrosia at Upping The Ante and a win will help you look strong.  But you also need to keep hold of that passion and fire you had just now, keep it and use it because McBride Incorporated investors will want to know what’s going on.  You will need to convince them to either trust your judgment or you’ll need to tell them to mind their own business.  I cannot keep speaking on your behalf in front of McBride Incorporated for much longer.  They want to see you in person, Karen.”

“Well they’ll get to see me in person.” Karen bangs her fist into the palm of her other hand. “And they’ll remember, just like IWC will remember, who Karen McBride is…”

==========

Gregory Leonard

On Camera

==========

Hello IWC.  You don’t know me and hell, you probably won’t see me that much either.  I’m not exactly the sharpest dressing guy there is and I’m not exactly the most well-mannered either.  My name is Gregory Leonard, I am Karen McBride’s biological brother.

You all know the twenty-five percent owner of IWC as Karen McBride, a brilliant and cutthroat businesswoman, but you don’t know her the way I know her.  You don’t know the person I know.  I know a Karen you guys don’t know.

I know Karen Leonard.

The Karen Leonard I knew was the toughest bitch in San Antonio.  And yeah, she had that Texas sized personality growing up too.  Go big or go home.  That’s why it didn’t surprise me at all to find out she risked a lot to become a twenty-five percent stockholder in the very same company she wrestles for.  It also didn’t surprise me that she saw the error of her ways after granting herself a world title match.  It didn’t surprise me that she gave that world title match away.

She gave it away because unlike midget boy, my sister has a conscience.

I also know Karen Leonard as a woman who would always fight like hell, not for herself but for others.  She fought and sacrificed so every damn day and every damn night to make sure me, my brother, and our mother survived.  Unfortunately mom ended up dead anyway, but then again, there’s only so much you can do when you’re caught in the crossfire of two warring gangs.

And maybe that’s why this war for the power within IWC is so important to Karen.  She knows what a gang war can do to people.  She knows the consequences of gang warfare.  And hell, you got a perfect gang warfare in the form of Sinistry against Silas World against The IWC.

Now the leaders of one of those gangs is trying to take out my sister by using some hired gun, a crazy psycho chick named Ambrosia.

I never did follow wrestling until my sister got involved in it, but Ambrosia your reputation for hardcore proceeds you.  Thing is, if puny Drake thinks you’re gonna bloody my sister up, then he’s got another thing coming.

Karen Leonard…my sister…is gonna bust you in the mouth.

==========

Blaire McBride

On Camera

==========

What’s in a name?  A lot, if you think about it.

In many ways, Karen is two different people.  Well, two different people without the whole split personality thing going on.  We don’t need any more of those running around now do we?

When she needs to be Karen McBride is a cutthroat businesswoman.  She is truly a corporate powerhouse and one of the best legal minds I know.  She claims that she doesn’t know every trick but that’s a lie.  She knows every trick in the book.  She’s damn good at what she does.  Case in point, back when she and I were at odds, she managed to outmaneuver my brother and I so that she had both of our shares of stock in McBride Incorporated.  She made a massive power grab taking control of the company from us.

That’s how her mind works.  She is a brilliant tactician and can outmaneuver and outthink anyone.  But that’s not the only thing that makes her dangerous.

Karen, you see, comes from the streets.  She comes from an environment that I admittedly will never understand.  She comes from an environment where you truly do not know if you’ll live another five minutes let alone to see another sunrise.  She comes from a world where you have to fight with every fiber of your being just to have enough to get by for the day, just to continue living and breathing.

You may look at Karen McBride and see a well-dressed woman, a fancy rich girl, but if you think that’s all that she’s about then you have read her all wrong and you have fallen right into her trap.  If you misidentify her as just a technical wrestler, just a good tactician, then you are wrong and she will beat you.

Ambrosia, darling, I hope you’re smart enough not to make assumptions about Karen McBride.  If you just assume you know everything about her without doing any homework then you’re destined to fail.  The fact is that my sister loves a good fight and she will be ready to give you the fight of your life at Upping The Ante.

==========

Karen McBride

On Camera

==========

People in power tend to make enemies real quick.  That’s a lesson you learn not just in the business world but on the streets as well.  Any person of power, whether it be gangster on the street or Bernie Madoff, they all know that power attracts enemies.

I guess I rubbed poor little…and I do mean little…Desmond Drake the wrong way when I dropped my bombshell, when I let the world that I am a twenty-five percent owner of IWC, that I have just as much power and control in this company as Desmond Drake and Sinistry does.

Apologies, Little Dessie, but you brought this upon yourself.  You made a deal with the wrong damn woman and now you are going to pay for it.  You realize that too, don’t you?  That’s why your hired gun Ambrosia is going to try and take me out at Upping The Ante.

Hardcore match, eh?  Yeah, yeah, I get it.  I see through your scheme.  I see through your plans.  See, I have heard of Ambrosia.  Even before I did my homework, before I studied up on her, I had heard of her skill in the art of hardcore.

You don’t get the nickname Harlequin of Hardcore for no reason.

So this is the brilliant line of thought from Desmond Drake…poor Karen McBride will get maimed by little miss hardcore queen Ambrosia.

Nice thought but the logic is flawed and you are going to be the one who pays for it, Ambrosia.  What Desmond Drake failed to consider is that Karen McBride is not JUST a good wrestler, Karen McBride is not JUST a brilliant business woman…

For all my life until I was eighteen years old I was a brawler, a street fighter. All my life I had to learn how to use weapons to help me survive on the streets, just to get by another day.

A hardcore match with Ambrosia?  That’s a walk in the park.

On Riot you said you wanted to know what made me tick.  I’ll tell you what makes me tick, Ambrosia.  What makes me tick is a desire to do what’s right, to fight for what’s just.  No, I’m not a hero and I don’t pretend to be.  I just know from my experience growing up the kind of evil acts people in power can do and I want to do everything in my power to stop those people.

You’re not even evil, Ambrosia.  Crazy, maybe, but not evil.  And you’re not even a major player here.  You’re just a hired gun.  You are one of Sinistry’s goons fighting on their behalf.

You’re a lackey.  You went from being the Harlequin of Hardcore to being a lackey.

I just want you to understand that when you step into this hardcore environment against a woman who has perpetrated some pretty damn heinous acts in her past, that you are putting yourself at risk, not for glory or success, not for a title, and not even for the joy of blood and gore if that’s your thing…

…you’re doing it because you’ve become Desmond Drake’s lackey.

You should be the one to fear, though.  You should fear me because I can take you out.  I can maim you just as much as you want to maim me.  Oh but don’t worry darling, I won’t cripple or maim you.  I’ll allow you to walk away under your own power.

After all, I’d hate to take away the joy you apparently get from sucking off Desmond Drake…