A man and a jaguar walk into a tag division.....

(Our scene begins at the Entry Border of Wrestleworld as several incoming guests are lined up waiting to be welcomed into the grandiose haven. Teddy Mac, who just touched down at the territory for the week, is at the front of the line, going through the inspection process with security. The monitors seem to go a bit easy on Teddy, giving a quick check before waving him off with a smile -- though their reactions are preceded by a momentary cringe as they look him in the face. Teddy’s skin is covered with fading, yet still noticeable bruises and cuts and gashes which are still healing from Carnival Carnage. Teddy places his shades on to take some of the attention away from his scarring and shrugs off any concern with his typical cheery demeanor. He slings his bag over his shoulder and heads off to make his way toward the Wrestleworld Capital.)

Teddy Mac: Alright Teddy, you’re here in Wrestleworld….now you just gotta find your way around the Capital again. I swear I could visit this place a thousand times and still not remember how to get from one place to the next. Where’s Nobi with the directions when you need him….

“You’re right. It takes some time to get used to.”

Teddy Mac: Hmm?

(Teddy Mac turns around to follow the voice he heard, identifying the person as Jungle Jaguar. Jaguar smirks as Teddy puts his guard down and lets out a sigh of relief.)

Teddy Mac: Oh, it’s you! Jag, my guy, how are you?

Jungle Jaguar: I’m doing good. Still continuing to get acclimated to the environment around here. When I’m not out exploring the land, I’ve been enjoying a fair amount of downtime. Doing a lot of training, meditating and of course a good deal of recovery in the wake of the Carnival Carnage.

(Jaguar looks Teddy over, quickly examining his condition.)

Jungle Jaguar: It appears you may need more downtime than me in that regard, however. Returning here so soon?

Teddy Mac: Ha, that’s what everyone’s been saying these past few weeks. At least I got the stitches taken out a few days back; you’d be really floored with how I looked if you caught me then. I understand that my mug’s not looking too pretty lately, but then again when is it ever?

(The two share a brief laugh.)

Jungle Jaguar: Good to see you’re keeping in good humor during this time.

Teddy Mac: Kidding aside, I’ll have to admit the state Ozy left me in was pretty gnarly. The submission was painful enough, but those stomps to the head were something else. My girl’s definitely did not get to watch the broadcast of the show once it got to that part. One minute I’m in the final two of the gauntlet, so close to the end, so close to the glory of a European Championship shot that I can practically taste it…..I’m laying dead center in the middle of the ring while gritting my teeth and clenching my fists. Refusing to tap out. Refusing to surrender. Determined to break free from his control and come out on top to make everyone rooting for me proud. I’ve got the mighty Ozymandias frustrated from how much he was struggling. He was tired and didn’t expect such a fight out of me. It was a stalemate. Until he got desperate. Then I black out, and the next minute I’m in the medics room getting bandaged up and treated for a grade two concussion.

Jungle Jaguar: Time flies when you’re out like a light.

Teddy Mac: Oh, I was OUT for sure. That man almost pulled off attempted murder to get that technical submission, it’s a surprise I even came back to consciousness when I did. When I woke up it felt like I survived getting run over by a mack truck. Checking myself out in the mirror it was a similar visual too. I was sore over the match, not just physically but emotionally. Whenever I looked at my face I ended up beating myself up worse INTERNALLY than how Ozy ACTUALLY did me in that ring.

Jungle Jaguar: Why’s that? You had no reason to be upset over your showing.

Teddy Mac: I know that now, but at the time those feelings were some rather misplaced reactions to failure. I viewed myself the same way everyone on the street probably does when they recognize me and see my wounds. I felt sorry for myself. I felt like I was looking at a loser to the fight. Now I realize that there was nothing to be ashamed of. In fact, I see all of my injuries as a source of pride. These are no ordinary wounds, they’re wounds of war. They’re the undeniable proof of how hard I was to put down. Each bit of damage represents how caught off guard Ozy was at my persistence, how much Ozy FAILED in making me legitimately submit. The difficulty in getting these scars to fade parallel the difficulty Ozymandias had in making my strength fade, the failings in beating me straight up. In a match where the goal was SUBMITTING, I was the one with the greater will between the two of us. The flesh might be torn up but the heart and the soul were not broken. I never gave in. I never accepted defeat. Every ache in my bones, every gasp from the civilians who see me, those are a reminder of me sharing the ring with an all powerful devil of a man and still managing to keep my word: to not cave to my opponent.

Jungle Jaguar: That’s one wonderful way to look at it. That finish was something to behold, I’ll tell you. Your resiliency was in a brand new tier. That’s what I admire about you in all honesty, Teddy. The fact that you just keep at it. You won’t fold. You’ll keep on going no matter the circumstances. Your inner strength even exceeds the limitations of your own body as we saw that night. You’re the type of wrestler I was hoping to see when I signed with this company. It was a coincidence we were teamed together on our debuts, but it made all the sense in the world. After I saw what you were about I immediately grativated to you at the Carnival. I knew then that you were a decent, hard working competitor. Someone who I’d be honored to do battle with.

Teddy Mac: It was a privilege to have your back in that match. Working together with you was like a dream, buddy. If it wasn’t for you covering for me I don’t think I would have come close to making it as far as I did in that bout. You might respect me, but I aspire to be like you. I force myself to get through situations, you face tasks head on with zero fear. There’s no challenge you won’t tackle, and no compromises you’ll make towards your principles. You’re going to be a leader in this sport, I can tell. An amazing, disciplined athlete whose ring prowess is only topped by their morals and character. You don’t need the mask or the attire for me to see you as a hero.

Jungle Jaguar: I see the same good traits in you. It took a lot of guts, not only to stand up on your own against Ozy, but to throw caution to the wind and leave your comfortable life to pursue this in the first place. You want to talk about heroes, then go ahead and reflect on your bravery. Reflect on what you’re doing for yourself, your friends and your family right now. Consider the desire that you have to be something more, the example you are actively setting for your daughters…..you’re a man with a purpose and a set of principles just like me. I know a gauntlet battle royal is meant to be a free for all, but in a match with all sorts of unholy alliances and psychotic threats, having a friend is always welcomed. There’s a reason why I turned to you when I slid into that ring.

Teddy Mac: You and I knew we had to band together without even saying a word.

Jungle Jaguar: It was as if we were on the same wavelength. Acting as the perfect unit in an instant. For two almost-strangers who only had one match together beforehand, we gelled great together.

Teddy Mac: I felt the same electricity being by your side as I did when Nobi and I first bumped fists and became a pair in the ring. You know, Jag….

Jungle Jaguar: Yes?

Teddy Mac: I’d say this is the beginning of not only a beautiful friendship, but a beautiful partnership. The Nice Guys isn’t on the table for me here in the Neutral Territories….but the Bear and Jag Connection is ready to go.

Jungle Jaguar: “Bear and Jag Connection”, huh?

Teddy Mac: It’s catchy isn’t it? Come on, imagine the heights we could go! They could sell plushes of us! T-Shirts! Get a video game for us on the Nintendo! Do a little cartoon for the kids on Saturday mornings!

Jungle Jaguar: That’s all well and good --

Teddy Mac: And I haven’t forgotten, it’d also be a clear path for us to get some gold. The tag championships!

Jungle Jaguar: I must say, THAT would appeal to me. I’m interested in a team, no denying it. I think the powers that be are testing the waters for us as well seeing as we’re paired up in a match again.

Teddy Mac: Really now? I won’t lie, I haven’t looked at the memo yet.

Jungle Jaguar: Teddy, my friend. You came here to Wrestleworld with no idea what type of fight you were getting into this week? Going in blind!?

Teddy Mac: Hey! It’s hard to get a proper read of your schedule when you’ve got two little rugrats around. Phone in the toilet, cola soaking the laptop, you know the drill.

Jungle Jaguar: Fair enough. Anyway, it’s you and I competing at CHAPTER 16. We’ve moved up from Dominion, and our opponents are none other than the Campeonatos de Parejas themselves: The Red Zone District!

Teddy Mac: Holy cow! This is fate working on our side. The premiere tag team of Wrestleworld, the guys who dethroned Drake and Jones! Beating them would be an immediate statement on our standings in the tag division. A one way golden ticket to the straps!

Jungle Jaguar: The opportunity that awaits us should we come out victorious is promising. At the same time It’s going to take a lot to best them and we’re still such a fresh pairing.

Teddy Mac: Us being a fresh team is another positive! We’re new but we’re clicking as if we’d been honing our craft as a tandem for years! That’s because in a way we have. While we’ve spent our lives separate from each other, in different parts of the world with different roles in life and different expectations. We’ve lived our lives with the same ethic. We’ve spent our days growing up to become the men we are today by carrying a lot of pressure, by having our integrity instilled in us by hardening experiences and going through fire in order to get to our goals. We’ve acquired a drive that matches one another. We’ve both picked up wills sharp enough to cut stone! We have responsibilities, people that rely on us, ideal versions of ourselves that we’ve looked up to for years, and more importantly everything we’ve done in our lives, every dream we’ve had, every risk we’ve taken, every rep in the gym and every bump or scrape we’ve gotten up from in that ring….it was all built toward the idea of us becoming champion. We want to join that upper level of competitor like our peers. Not out of greed. Not out of unwarranted self importance. Not even to look down on others. We want to be champion because of the long line of great men who paved the way before us. We want to carry a badge of excellence and be seen as people who excelled in this industry. We want to be who everyone else in that locker room looks to and sees as a motivator to do better, we want to bring up the whole industry and raise the bar for competition!

(Teddy Mac looks Jungle Jaguar dead in the eyes while pointing at his chest.)

Teddy Mac: You and I are the exact same man, with the exact same blood pumping through our veins and the same thoughts running through our mind. You might be more photogenic than me, and you’ve darn sure been in the gym way more than I can afford to say, but when we get into that ring I’m confident that we can function as ONE. The Red Zone District won’t be expecting that. They’ll be seeing us as the underdogs! They’ll write us off as two rookies becoming a tag team to try and mask their weaknesses. A layup match gifted to them by the matchmakers to give them an easy ride while they celebrate their newly won belts. What they don’t know is that we have the capabilities to not only rain on that parade, but to cancel it outright. We can put an end to their reign before it even gets a chance to take off, and it starts this week in this non-title affair! They beat Drake and Jones, but those two, while a great team, are also egomaniacs. They’re very into their image, they boast about the attention and the perception that surrounds their team. They’ve become a household name and when you really think about it, they’ve evolved more into a brand than a team. People get excited at even the mention of Drake and Jones, it’s something that goes beyond them as an in-ring duo. Picture getting into a ring and right away being seen as the winner off the back of the fame and notoriety you’ve attained. Drake and Jones to put it bluntly, had room to get complacent. They had no reason to keep on working like they were years back when they had to grind it out to get an iota of reverence from the people. Red Zone District beat a phenomenal team but a team that also was based in arrogance and bad intentions. That’s not what a team between the two of us would be about. We’re fighting for our spots here. We live to be the best, and to maintain that standard because we know what it’s like to be lesser than and at the bottom. There are no egos between us, we have our insecurities, we know we can’t wake up and be “those dudes”, that’s why we’re out there giving it our all and focusing on progressing. There is no place for comfort in either of our mentalities, only the belief in moving forward. And how we’ll move forward is by running through Red Zone District, getting noticed, and then mowing them down again for the belts on a later date. They won’t see it coming either.

Jungle Jaguar: I like the sound of that.

Teddy Mac: I do too. You know what else I’d like the sound of? The sound of a plate meeting table. Preferably with a multi-course meal on it. I know the Capital isn’t the mountains you’re used to hanging in, but do you think you’re familiar enough with the spot to show me where to get some grub?

Jungle Jaguar: I believe so.

Teddy Mac: Spectacular, let’s go! We can talk strategy on the way there!

(Teddy Mac puts his arm around Jungle Jaguar as Jag leads the way into the city.)

Teddy Mac: I swear to you, this team is going to change the game in Wrestleworld. Red Zone District is uniform, but us? We’d make them look fractured in comparison with all due respect! Two selfless individuals who get in that headspace in the squared circle where all they can see is the victory ahead! It’ll be a 50/50 partnership with both guys watching out for the other and putting in the same efforts…...but on that note we may need to go 60/40 on the bill.

(Jaguar lets out an amused sigh as the two continue through the capital, getting lost in the busy street life as our scene fades out.)