He's Got a Ticket to Ride

V.O.
"I hate how most stories start with 'Once Upon A Time'. Everyone's heard it, and it always winds up the same. It's nothing more than old joke you hear about, you know that one where three people walk into a bar. They have nothing in common, someone purchases a drink that's accustomed to their stereotype. Somebody makes a quip about it, then they spout some generic one liner.

Anyways... Once upon a time.."

AT&T Stadium, Dallas Texas
February 23, 2020

Three men walk into the sky box overlooking the stadium's interior. Two suits, and a cowboy.

V.O.
"Not one fucking word, fourth wall."

Check it out, there's food. Lovely chairs, they're definitely not cheap around here.

Both men, adorned in suits, walk towards the the balcony, peering down at the ring. The cowboy, let's call him, Colt. He takes a gander around before joining the suits at the balcony.

Legal Beagle
"I suppose you know why you're here, Mr. Montoya."

Colt Montoya
"Colt, my teacher used to call me Montoya, too formal."

Legal Beagle
"Err..Alright Colt. We wanted to bring you here to see Badlands, from one of the best seats in the house. We hope you have a great time, and we'll be back in a little bit with your contract."

The two suits leave Colt to look at the arena. It's nearly full. He takes a seat in the chair, and kicks his feet up on the balcony. Alone, he peers down towards the ring, it looks a lot smaller than he thought. Granted, he's sitting up towards the very back of the seats in the box.

V.O.
"I felt so overdressed, who would have known that a tuxedo t-shirt wasn't considered professional attire."

Colt ganders down at his shirt, and shrugs before looking around. He sees something ominous above the ring though. This huge contraption.

Suit #2
"They call it the Elimination Chamber."

The suit stands next to the seated Colt, who nearly jolts from his chair.

Colt Montoya
"Okay, how long have you been standing there? Don't do that."

Suit #2
"The show's about to begin."

(Minutes later, following a pretty epic opening montage. They did Texas well, as Colt smiled in approval. Up first, The European Title Match. Havoc looks like a beast, but Tristan Killebrew brought a hell of a fight to him.)

Suit #2
"Pretty impressive?"

Colt Montoya
"Havoc, huh?"

Suit #2
"Havoc is a violent human being. He thrives in bringing agony to those around him. Legal doesn't like him very much."

Colt Montoya
"He's a'right. Hell of a fight though."

A stadium employee brings Colt a beer. He signals for another one before sitting back.

Suit #2
"Two?"

Colt Montoya
"A man hates to be interrupted."

(Next up was the six person Divide and Conquer match. Who do you trust in those kinds of matches anyways? Colt watched intently during the match. Action packed, the battle of battles in which the winner gets a title match of their desires. A lot of near falls, which kept Colt moving around in his chair. The beers were coming and going very quickly. Ultimately, Puppy came away with the huge win.)

Colt Montoya
"Seriously? Lost to a dog? I've now seen everything."

Speaking of dogs, the Legal Beagle walks towards the balcony with a padded notebook in his hand.

Legal Beagle
"Everything's ready for you to sign. We should make note of this though. This contract for you to sign, is not a guarantee of employment, as this is an opportunity, not a promise. You're required dates per month are listed on page three. If you wrestle for a company without our approval, the contract will be altered to punishments, up to dismissal from Wrestleworld."

Colt Montoya
"That's great, I suppose now's a good time to let you know that I can read. Don't get confused, man."

Colt takes the padded notebook, and peers through the contract.

Legal Beagle
"Your compensation and subseque.."

Colt simply looks at Legal, not impressed.

Legal Beagle
"Right, you can read."

(Throughout the show, Colt saw some amazing wrestling. Chad Kennedy, not so much. Jacob Senn looked pretty good out there. Pendragon vs. Asakura was entertaining. Spitfires vs. The War Vessel was pretty good too.)

Suit #2
"Are you going to sign the contract tonight?"

Colt Montoya
"I'm taking it home tonight. There's a lot to go through, and I simply a bit buzzed. Never sign anything while drinking. That's how I met my ex-wife."

The Elimination Chamber begins to descend following an impressive video package. Colt's eyes are locked on the chamber, as another beer is brought to him.

Colt Montoya
"I feel like I've been in one of those before."

Suit #2
"Really? What's it like?"

Colt Montoya
"I got caught up in a bit of an electric fence down in Denton. Three bulls, two hillbillies, and one chicken. We all took a beating, but that chicken, he did alright. The chicken always wins."

(The match went on as scheduled, and as hyped. Brutal spots, amazing warfare throughout the entire event, but it culminated here with the Chamber match. It came down to the wire, with April Song being eliminated. Down to Claudia Michaels and the Professional. The Professional laid down for Michaels to gain the victory.)

The two are silent for a moment, as Colt polishes off his last beer.

Colt Montoya
"Like I said, the chicken always wins.."

Disappointed by the finish, Colt stands himself up. He takes the padded notebook, running through the pages of the contract. He pauses for a moment, looking at the Legal Beagle, then at the Suit. He looks back at the ring, where Claudia and the Professional had a great chamber match, but that ending..

Colt Montoya
"Fuck this.."

Colt grabs a pen, and signs the contract. He throws the notebook down on the chair and stammers off. Maybe it was the amount he drank, or the situation at ringside, but that didn't sit well.

Legal Beagle
"Welcome to Wrestleworld!"

Stopping at the door, Colt looks back at them.

Colt Montoya
"Tell me something. You got six people in a match. And somehow, it ends like that? Tell your boys I'll see them at Chapter 10."

Legal Beagle
"Sir, you're not scheduled for the event."

Colt Montoya
"Has that ever stopped an angry wrestler before? Keep a ringside seat open for me, keep the beer on ice."

The door swings open, as Colt exits. The door slams loudly behind him. The flabbergasted suits stare at each other, then back down at the ring.

V.O.
"I guess I could tell you that the story ends happily ever after. It wouldn't be much of a story though. Soon enough, the Wrestleworld will be handed the Coin of Montoya. One side, a chill, sober hillbilly. The other? A wrath and reckoning obsessed son of a bitch. It's up to them which side they want to see."