Peaks and Valleys (War of the Worlds Promo 1 for Cynthia)

(The camera opens in a physical rehab wing of Eden. The room is big and filled with nothing but massage tables, all corralled within a frame of glass walls. On one of the center tables, Cynthia Rose lays stomach down with her face nestled in her crossed forearms and a towel draped over her lower body as an all too familiar looking female masseuse rubs her shoulders.)

Sam: Are you worried?

Cynthia Rose: About what? The match? It's a big one, but I'll give it my best.

Sam: I was talking about that trick knee of yours, but perhaps that's part of the worry with the match as well. How's your back feeling?

Cynthia Rose: Oh you've done wonders with it, but it's like he knew to target that knee.

Sam: It felt like he was attacking all of your limbs and vertebrae indiscriminately. That guy had a real bone to pick with you.

Cynthia Rose: He resented me for being happy with my life...or at least for acting outwardly optimistic about things.

Sam: Are you?

Cynthia Rose: I try to look on the bright side, sure.

Sam: I meant are you happy with your life?

Cynthia Rose: I 'unno. Things could be better, stuff could get worse, but ultimately I can't complain.

Sam: Would you even if you could?

(Cynthia is momentarily stunned by what sounds like a back handed compliment, but politely begins to answer when the sound of the glass door opening interrupts her. She rolls her eyes as the familiar sound of Percy's erratic footsteps make their way to her table. She feels Sam's hands ripped from her shoulders.)

Percy: What the hell are you doing here?

Sam: Working. I work here.

Percy: You work at the castle.

Sam: Funny thing about working in a castle with only two people in it; they don't always need a massage or a mani-pedi. Besides, the extra money working at Eden helps keeps the lights on back at the hotel...you remember the hotel, right? The place you abandoned me at the drop of a hat without so much as saying goodbye?

Percy: Uh-uh, you ain't turning this one around on me! We left because I thought you were spying for Claudia. Now that you're here, I'm damn sure I was right to follow my instincts.

Sam: I'm just a masseuse! Why can't anyone get that through their-

"GUYS! STOP!"

(Percy and Sam both snap around to find Cynthia sitting up on the table, clutching the towel to her chest as she stares at them with pleading eyes. Percy glances down at her now exposed knee peaking out from beneath the towel.)

Percy: How's the leg, champ?

Cynthia Rose: It feels tense.

Percy: Try stretching it more.

Cynthia Rose: It'd feel way less tense if you two would stop arguing.

(Percy glances up at Cynthia's pleading expression, and then at Sam's empty gaze, then down at his hands that still hold Sam's wrist tight in their grip. After a moment of reflection, he lets go and turns to leave.)

Cynthia Rose: Percy, I didn't mean-

Percy: Nah, it's okay. I'll go get you some ice for that knee.

Cynthia Rose: I just meant be cordial and-

(Percy stops and turns back to the two of them, a forced smile on his face as he holds his hands up to stop Cynthia's protests.)

Percy: I'm not mad. I shouldn't have came down anyway. You need to relax before the big match. Loosen up and elevate that leg. Lord it might even be nice for you to be around a half-sane woman for once instead of sweaty dudes and whatever the hell that bitch Kimberly is.

Cynthia Rose: Language...

Percy: I'll be back in 30 with some ice, okay? Sam's good at her job.

Sam: Thank you.

Percy: Besides, what's she going to get out of you with torture that you wouldn't give up willingly? It's not like we have a playbook of secrets she could sell to Claudia or anything. We're winging it and calling it out on the field.

(Percy turns and begins walking toward the door again as Cynthia lowers herself back on the table. Sam glances at them both in disbelief before throwing up her hands.)

Sam: I'M NOT A SPY! I'M A MASSAGE THERAPIST!

Percy: Whatever bitch.

Cynthia Rose: Language!

(Percy chuckles and exits the room as Sam stares after him. Cynthia relaxes her chin back on her forearms and stretches out prone for her massage. Sam obliges, blankly rubbing away at her lower back.)

Cynthia Rose: He still likes you, ya know?

Sam: Whatever...

Cynthia Rose: Just sayin'. It's hard to come by friends on this giant floating rock out in the middle of the ocean. Everyone's hungry, out for themselves, looking to take any shortcut or opening to get to the top. That's basically the entire spirit of the American Dream Division...eh...no offense.

Sam: Save it. I live with Claudia Michaels breathing down my neck. I've seen what the American Dream looks like up close. It ain't pretty.

Cynthia Rose: It might be our biggest opposition in this match, really. Jay Jones is the embodiment of what the title means. He's hungry to break out on his own and strike it big. It's no wonder Claudia picked him as captain. It's probably the closest she'll ever get to him being on her side anyway. I know he was a hot prospect for Underworld last Book, but he turned them down. That takes courage, conviction, and maybe even a little foolishness. He's very foolhardy, but it's taken him this far so you can't really argue with the results. I do wonder how he'll do with his teammates. I wonder if he's looking to lead them as knights or pawns.

Sam: My experience with those types has always been that they look out for themselves and throw others in the path of danger. They don't think of the consequences of their actions, who it effects, or if it'll come back and bite them in the ass in the end. There's a butterfly effect to it all. Look no further than how Underworld turned out to see what that sort of 'ambition' leads to. Nobody cares about the civilians in a civil war. Nobody consuls you or says they're sorry when you feel the repercussions of their actions, and then what happens to you Kim? You end up hogtied in the back of a '57 Chevy with shoes full of itching powder...

Cynthia Rose: Sorry if any of this is triggering some sort of PTSD.

Sam: Don't be. You didn't do anything to me. People like Jay Jones did. They did it with their carelessness, just like Claudia was negligent with handling Andrew and the rest of Underworld. Now he's dead, Wraith's in a hospital bed, and Mav's stuck a dagger through her heart. It'll happen to Jay too. He might not even have to wait long for the likes of Crazy Violet to do it to him. Lord knows she's had enough of the tyrants representing that division...

Cynthia Rose: I feel bad for her.

Sam: You're just about the only one.

Cynthia Rose: No, I mean she doesn't belong in that pack. Don't get me wrong, Violet's dangerous but she's also not a cold blooded killer. They'll eat her alive. That meany "Coach" Hecht will be murder on her psyche even if he proves to be a team player, and then there's Danse...

Sam: She's got Daniel Horror watching her back at least. Despite his rough edges, he seems to be a decent guy.

Cynthia Rose: Maybe, but he hasn't exactly had a great success record thus far in Wrestleworld. I could see him trusting someone like Danse and it costing him. Men like Danse tend to love playing that manipulation game.

Sam: I feel as though you're projecting Animus onto Danse Macabre.

Cynthia Rose: If the shoe fits...they're in this to hurt people. Them and the likes of Jensen and Ozy. I don't understand this need to physically torture someone that seems to be floating around Wrestleworld, never mind the European Division as a whole.

Sam: That's because you're a pretty white girl who grew up in the south and didn't have much in the way of bullying or prejudice tainting your childhood. These people grew up in violence, so all they know is violence.

Cynthia Rose: And to think I was hoping to bring reform to that division of sadists mere weeks ago...At least Lillie's sweet. I don't know much about Coomer or Kennedy, but a big part of me hopes that Lillie takes the whole thing if I don't.

Sam: You seem fairly optimistic for a girl with a busted back and a flat tire.

Cynthia Rose: They're going to rip me to shreds aren't they? If it isn't the European Division stretching my body beyond it's limits that gets me, it'll be the Shoguns chopping me down at the knee with stiff kicks.

Sam: That division's quite the rogues gallery. Unlucky for them it also resembles the Bad News Bears.

Cynthia Rose: RD3 is quite the rash and dangerous individual, that's for sure. The rest seem rather professional.

Sam: As a woman who not only formerly went by the moniker of Fertility Lynch, but also has been abducted by a douche in a suit, I feel obligated to warn you that you should fear professionals.

Cynthia Rose: I don't know...Beauty Melanie seems on the up-and-up. She may be the only person in this match not actively going out of her way to harm me. Don't get me wrong, Hana Nakajima is swell outside of the ring, but she can be a terror once you step through the ropes. Chris Sabertooth seems to have exorcised most of his personal and spiritual demons, but that doesn't mean the man lacks an edge. Then there's Xavier Grimwood whose literally a mercenary for hire.

Sam: That's a lot of combustible elements. Think they'll explode all on their own?

Cynthia Rose: Maybe? I mean, who knows when Sabertooth will lose himself to Havoc again? How far will RD3 try to push his division in the name of his own personal gain? Will conscience get the better of Hana and Melanie? and then there's the intangible fifth participant who remains shrouded in mystery.

Sam: You're starting to tense up again.

Cynthia Rose: Ohmigosh, sorry, sorry...

(Cynthia forces her body to fall limp once more, but the tension in her joints is still clearly present and rigid as ever. Sam moves down her body, gently massaging her thighs through the towel. Cynthia's eyes roll back into her head as she lets out a giant relaxed sigh of relief.)

Sam: Now that I've gotten you settled again, what about your own team?

(Cynthia's body immiediately tenses back up again as she buries her head into the padded headrest portion of the massage table and lets out an exasperated growl.)


Sam: That bad, huh?

Cynthia Rose: I don't know? If it comes down to it, who am I going to even tag with? Kimberly Chase hates me, I don't know "So Fly" Don Jordan from Adam, and April Song seems as volatile as ever. Of the choices, I'd probably still go with Song. She has experience, talent, and a general's mind. I looked up to her coming up on the collegiate scene. She never let emotion get in the way of a match, but she was also never negligent or took liberties just because she could.

Sam: Oh how times have changed...

Cynthia Rose: I don't blame her for growing bitter. She's never gotten all the breaks she truly deserved, and the few that have been given to her were always rimmed with the salty caveat of Stephanie Matsuda being involved.

Sam: You thirsty or something?

Cynthia Rose: Been dry since I got to Wrestleworld. Guess it's finally getting to me.

Sam: What about Jimmy Johnson?

Cynthia Rose: Jimmy's sweet, funny, and talented. There's no question as to whether he's a nice guy or not, but he's not exactly reliable. When he's good he's one of the best, but when he starts messing around he often catches the receipt for his bravado. I wouldn't mind teaming with a driven and motivated Jimmy Johnson, but something tells me that he won't take this seriously either.

Sam: We're ignoring the inevitable here, and that's Kimberly Chase. Drake and Jones love making quote/unquote 'wild card' tandems in their division. I'm sure they'd be chomping at the bit to put you two together for their own entertainment if she makes it to the end with you.

Cynthia Rose: I try being nice and what does it get me? I had the European title won, and I was just about to put Animus away when she showed up this week. The girl has a panache for costing me victories, that's for sure.

Sam: Yeah, but she also won the only tag match you've had together in quick fashion.

Cynthia Rose: It wasn't the cleanest victory...

Sam: But it was a quick and decisive one. Someone that spontaneous and improvisational could be great to have in your corner.

Cynthia Rose: I think you mean exploitative.

Sam: So she exploited a situation or two? She got what she wanted out of it in the end, didn't she? When she wanted you to pay for messing up her kicks, she goaded you into a match with Colt. When she saw you had his championship within your reach, she snatched the rug out from under you. She won that tag match with little more than a roll up, and if she was hoping to see you limp into World Domination then she got her wish. The girl gets things done. It's not often you see someone have their cake and eat it too around here, no matter the means to the end.

(Cynthia stares ahead in thought as Sam moves down to her calves. Cynthia shivers as Sam squeezes just below her still sore and swollen knee. She grits her teeth together as Sam massages the cramp out of her calf.)

Cynthia Rose: Nnngh...Minori at least seems cool. If I could have someone in my corner out of the pack, I think it'd be her. We have a lot in common; professional wrestling didn't come naturally to us, we studied other disciplines of fighting, and we haven't lost our sense of wonder or grown jaded from our experiences and green shortcomings in the ring.

Sam: ...and that's about as far as the comparisons go. She uses her feet in the ring more so than her hands. She's a kicker, a striker, and that's very un-Cynthia.

Cynthia Rose: Yeah, but she's a skilled kick boxer who isn't going to maliciously lay into an opponent with the intent of injuring them. She's just trying to win with the tools she's plied elsewhere. I can respect that.

Sam: I still think you'd be better off with Kimberly. Call it a bias towards girls with the name Kim, but your styles are more complimentary.

Cynthia Rose: They say styles make matches, and maybe the clash of disciplines between Minori and I would create something unique and beautiful. Besides, I don't like stretching opponents into a submissive state if I can avoid it.

Sam: You certainly didn't seem to mind trying to make Animus tap.

Cynthia Rose: Extenuating circumstances. Besides, it's not like I hit him. I applied a few pressure point targeting and benign joint manipulating holds and tried to get him to tap before any real damage could be done.

Sam: You think Kimberly's out to hurt someone?

Cynthia Rose: I'd hate to think the worst of someone, but Kimberly's given me ample reason to not trust her motives inside of the ring or out.

Sam: That's fair.

(Cynthia's eyes widen as she feels the towel lift off of her legs. Sam's hands gently grip her ankle, but before she can go any further Cynthia sits up and pulls her legs in close to her, hugging her knees as she stares in fright at the dumbfounded Sam.)

Sam: I was just going to massage-

Cynthia Rose: Percy told me not to let you. He's still kind of hung up on what you did to Andrew.

Sam: Oh for the love of-

(Before Sam can finish her expletive, Percy walks through the door with an ice pack in hand. He stares at the curled up Cynthia on the table, and then to the taken aback Sam at the foot of the table. Percy puts two and two together and narrows his eyes in disgust.)

Percy: She try anything?

Sam: I did no such-

Cynthia Rose: It's hard to know for sure. She was squeezing around my knee before she went for anything, but I pulled away just in time not to find out.

Sam: I'M A MASSEUSE!

Percy: Looks like you didn't have any problem bending your knee pulling away. That's good!

Sam: I WASN'T GOING TO-

Cynthia Rose: Nah, it smarts. I might need your help stretching it back out again.

Sam: I can do tha-

(Before Sam can continue, Percy gently pushes her aside and plants the ice pack on Cynthia's knee. Cynthia sucks in air through her teeth upon the introduction of the ice to her kneecap. Percy gently grabs her ankle and gingerly extends her leg out. Once it's fully extended, he helps her off of the table as Sam huffs and throws up her hands.)

Percy: We'll talk about this later Sam.

Sam: I DON'T WORK FOR CLAUDIA IN THAT WAY!

Percy: Uh huh, just like you didn't work for Claudia in "that way" before when you tortured PB.

Sam: Oh come on now! HE TORTURED ME BACK! WHEN DO I GET TO LIVE THIS DOWN!?!

(Percy guides Cynthia to the door, his eyes never leaving the irate Sam as she shouts after them from behind the table.)

Percy: Grow up and take responsibility for your actions and maybe we'll work on trust.

Sam: Uggghhh! Whatever. Take your Barbie doll play thing and get out of my sight!

Cynthia Rose: HEY!

Sam: Hmph...tell me to grow up...He's out here running around with 20 year old girls and I'm the one who needs to grow up. Psshhht!

Percy: I'm her trainer!

Sam: I DON'T CARE!

(Percy carefully leads Cynthia out the door, locked in a staring contest with his former fling all the way. Once Cynthia's cleared the threshold, Percy backs out of the room, never breaking line of sight and even keeping his gaze locked on Sam through the glass walls until the rehab center leaves their line of sight as the duo head down the hallway.)

Percy: What'd you two talk about?

Cynthia Rose: I 'unno, the upcoming match at War of the Worlds mostly.

Percy: She ask about me?

Cynthia Rose: Not really. I mostly just talked about my opponents and my strategy.

Percy: You have a strategy?

Cynthia Rose: Again, not really.

Percy: Good. That means you didn't tell her anything pertinent.

Cynthia Rose: You really think she's a mole for Claudia Michaels?

Percy: I don't know anymore. It's the only reason I can come up with for her stalking us.

Cynthia Rose: Well, there's that and the fact that she still likes you.

Percy: She say that?

Cynthia Rose: No, not in so many words.

Percy: Good, then it might be true.

Cynthia Rose: Does that mean she's not a spy?

Percy: Not exactly.

(The two approach an elevator just as it's doors open. They step in, Percy smiling and Cynthia staring at him with a confused look on her face.)

Cynthia Rose: Then why's it good?

Percy: Because it means cha boy Percy might get a chance to break off another piece.

Cynthia Rose: Gross!

Percy: HAH HAH! Percy gonna get some booooty. Percy gonna get some boooty.

(The doors close as Percy cabbage patches in place while taunting his student in a sing-song voice. Cynthia smacks her forehead in regret, perhaps pondering if the pain would've been worth it if she were to jump off last second and take the stairs as the doors close on the two of them and seal her fate. The camera cuts to a shot of Cynthia's modest room next to the laundry room in the basement of Eden. She lays on her bed with one leg cocked up and her swollen knee stretched out and extended in front of her. She stares down at the knee, still bracing it with the nearly melted ice pack as her usually cheerful eyes remain in a somber half-slit open state.)

"I've done a lot to get where I am now. I've moved mountains, I've traveled down long and winding roads in the dark, and I've sacrificed comfort and my physical well-being just to make it all the way to this precipice in my career. As I stand looking over the edge, trying to see what's below, I question if now is the time to leap into the great unknown void composed of either minor success or soul crushing failure. The pillows below are shaped like rocks, and the smooth surface of water ready to engulf me entirely could pass for polished granite, sealing my fate of either a safe landing waiting to pour over me and engulf me with vitality and notoriety, or a one way return trip to rock bottom. Right now I look at my knee and I look at the opponents in front of me, and I don't know whether the pool is shallow or too deep for a short girl like me swim in. I see familiar and unfriendly faces joining me at the edge, looking to push me off first and see if I make a big splash or a muted splat. I see friendly yet not entirely familiar faces meeting me at the edge of the cliff, wondering if they can beat me to the bottom, unafraid of the potential of losing one another or themselves along the way. I see all of these eager and bright eyed faces staring past me as my toes hug the cliff's ledge and I freeze in place. What will I do? Will I jump ahead in line? Will I take the leap and hope someone good and decent survives along with me? or do I hang back and see what happens to the rest and risk falling behind in the pack? Part of me thinks the latter, but then I think of the faces that aren't here. I think of the ones I can only see in my memories of back home. They rooted for me before, and I hesitated, and it cost me everything including their faith in me. Afterwards I recklessly dove into the drink head first, but it was too late to accomplish anything in doing so. I found myself on a desert back road with my lungs filled at capacity with all of the drink I'd inhaled during the fall. My blood ran thin and my senses fell short, and I was just about to hit rock bottom for the last time when Uncle Tony appeared from out of the blue and threw me out on this rock and set me to the task of finding the next plateau to dive off of, in hopes that I'd find something stronger than the drink...In hopes that I became something stronger than the drink."

(Cynthia blinks and then looks up directly into the camera as her usually rosy cheeks drain of any color and her vibrant blue eyes turn to cold steel.)

"I don't know if I'm going to survive this...this war over World Domination. Furthermore, at this point I'm not even sure if I want to...I'm not ready to face this one head on. I'm not ready to accept the reality of victory or defeat. My back is aching, my knee is shot, and my sobriety is screeching. What's sad is that it's not crying for alcohol. It's not looking to get lost in the bottom of a bottle out on the side of the road on Route 66, it wants to quit. All of me wants to quit, because even the best outcome to this match most likely sees me paired up with someone who despises me and revels in trying my patience. My smile isn't set in stone. My resolve isn't iron clad. I'm going into this battle weak in every measurable way possible. I'm weak in spirit, weak in body, and weak in mind. The only thing I'm not weak in is constitution. I let Animus change how I wrestled just so I could catch him off guard, just so I could hang in his world and show him I'm not someone who is here to be pushed around. I deviated from my usual style and in the end it cost me. I don't know, maybe I would have lost anyway? Kimberly was bound to come out and run interference inevitably, but my point is that when I follow my own rules in that ring, success falls in close behind. That's an irrefutable truth, one of the few I can stomach right now because..."

(Cynthia fans her eyes and wipes her nose with her forearm as her pupils gloss over and threaten tears. Her voice cracks and waivers as she tries to continue)

"...because I find myself once again in the same position I found myself in nearly four months ago to the day when I showed up here on Claudia Michaels' doorstep and my aunt and uncle begged for her to train me. I'm coming off the biggest failure of my athletic career, my knee's swollen to the size of a softball, and everyone's cashed out on Cynthia Rose ever becoming anyone or anything of note. Last time I let all of that hold me back for fear of losing something, and it cost me everything. This time though? This time I come to the precipice ready to throw caution to the wind, for I have nothing to truly lose because the only things I have worth losing are my integrity and my spirit and I'll be darned if I let those vital things that define me slip through my fingers. The time for fight or flight has arrived at my most desperate hour, and instead of choosing one I've decided on taking both options on the table."

(Cynthia reaches off camera, retrieving her ornate wings that she uses for her special entrances. She studies their delicate patterns with her fingertips as she sternly gazes upon them.)

"This time I can catch myself from falling all the way if success eludes me. This time I can pull up out of the nose dive, fly back up to the top, and wait for the next opportunity that arises to jump toward something dangerous and elusive that looks like success. This match wont be the end of me, so that means the only alternative is for it to be the beginning of something big. Now whether that's teaming with someone I despise, or finding myself at the feet of a master, or even working and growing alongside someone whose just as much of a fish out of water as I am, I'm happy to accept the challenge knowing full well that I can come back from whatever life throws at me. It wasn't that long ago that a good man went to war and came back a hero. Now is the time for a good woman to do the same, and come back to find her spot outside of his shadow with the spoils of victory mapping her career. I'm bent on World Domination, and when I attain it I'll be doing so not for the naysayers, the agitators, or even the ones who've supported me along the way: I'll be doing it for me and me alone, because in the end I'm the only person I truly need to prove something to because I'm the only one whose really doubting what I'm capable of. I'm taking that dangerous dive into the abyss of tomorrow, and I've got enough wing power to carry myself and my team all the way out to the other side intact. We'll see the light of day rising on us, but when that sun finally reaches the highest hemisphere, it'll shine down on me and me alone...well, me and a tag partner. Ohmigosh, I should've ended it there."

(Cynthia lets herself smile as one single tear trickles down her cheek and down the smile line in her face. As she wipes it away and blinks her eyes dry, the camera fades to black only to come up back in the massage parlor where Sam stands with her cell phone pressed to her ear listening intently as the person on the other line gives her marching orders.)

Sam: Yeah...yeah they don't trust me, but I got a little valuable intel in the process of the massage. I would've gotten more if-what's that? Game plan? Oh, no. Not a damn thing. You have nothing to worry about.

(Fade to black.)