Vanguard #33 (01/10/24)

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We cut to the bar inside the Cabo Wabo Cantina in Las Vegas, where we see a massive banner hanging overhead that reads “VANGUARD VIEWING PARTY TONIGHT.” Off to the side is another sign that reads “Guest Bartender: Gigi Nova.” The camera pans over to reveal HYBRID Iron Heart Champion Gigi Nova standing behind the bar, doing the one thing she loves as much as wrestling… mixing drinks. She effortlessly tosses a bottle of blue curacao behind her back, catching it as it flips back over her shoulder, the spout pointing down into a glass filled with ice. She tops it off with some sweet and sour mix and a quick splash of 7-Up, gives it a quick shake, then drops a lemon wedge and a cherry into the glass before passing the finished cocktail into the hands of an eager patron.

Gigi Nova: There ya go; one AMF!

Patron: Thanks! Oh, man… wait until the rest of the party finds out I got an AMF from Gigi Nova!

The fan’s shoulders slump in mild disappointment.

Patron: Come to think of it, they might think I’ve had too much to drink and cut me off!

Gigi Nova: Well, to be fair, keep knocking these babies back, and… well, they don’t call it an “Adios Motherfucker” for nothing, ya know?

Patron: You can say that again!

He chuckles before taking a quick sip of his beverage.

Patron: Ah… absolutely perfect! It’s like you were born behind the bar!

Gigi blushes at the compliment.

Gigi Nova: Thanks, even if I was born in a hospital.

She smiles sheepishly as the fan pulls out his cell phone.

Patron: Say, do you think I could trouble you for a quick selfie? You know, so I can say it was actually you and not some rando that poured this drink?

Mouthing the word “rando” silently as she snickers, she nods her head.

Gigi Nova: Sure thing, my friend… just let me lean in while you get your phone ready…

She leans forward as the fan carefully positions his phone so that both he and Gigi are in frame, then snaps the picture. With an ear-to-ear grin, he looks at the image on his screen, then turns to Gigi.

Patron: This is great! Thanks so much, Gigi!

Gigi Nova: You’re very welcome!

She smiles again and waves as the fan walks away, but not before he stuffs an untold amount of cash into a tip jar with her name taped to the side. She turns around to put the liquor bottles she’d been using away when her attention is sought with the sound of a man clearing his throat.

Male Voice: Having fun, champ?

She turns around to see her agent, Lorenzo Merrick standing there, leaning against the bar with his usual smirk on his face.

Gigi Nova: As if I’d ever miss a chance to come here… this is my favorite joint in the whole chain!

Lorenzo Merrick: Can’t say that I blame you. I’m just glad you’re keeping a positive attitude about things. You know, tonight isn’t for the title…

Gigi sighs. She glances at the clock on the wall and frowns a little before taking off her apron.

Gigi Nova: I know, Lorenzo, but I’ll be damned if that means I’m gonna slack off.

Lorenzo Merrick: Never said you were. But you do have to admit, it does seem a little strange to be slinging drinks right before a fight.

She shrugs.

Gigi Nova: I look at it this way… it’s what paid for my training, right?

Lorenzo Merrick: True… and if you hadn’t been working in that little bar in Torrance, we likely never would’ve had the chance to meet.

Gigi can feel the flush of color flood into her cheeks as her eyes widen slightly.

Lorenzo Merrick: You okay?

Gigi Nova: I’m fine, Lorenzo…

She turns away from him for a moment, rolling her eyes as she rubs her hands together/

Lorenzo Merrick: You had me worried for a second. Your face went a little red.

Gigi Nova: It’s the weather; it’s cold as fuck as it is, and a gust of wind just blew through from outside.

Lorenzo Merrick: Well then maybe we shouldn’t be standing so close to the patio door.

Gigi Nova: Point taken. But let’s get out of here… I’ve got a match in a couple of hours.

She comes out from behind the bar, leaving the tip jar with her name on it behind. One of the other bartenders, a woman slightly older than her with brown hair, snaps it up and begins to run after her.

Other Bartender: Hey, champ! You forgot your tips!

Gigi shakes her head, then looks over her shoulder and smiles.

Gigi Nova: Keep it! I just did this for the fun of it!

As Gigi walks away, the other bartender looks into the tip jar and does a double take at the massive amount of cash left inside. She looks over in Gigi’s direction with shock on her face, but Gigi and Lorenzo have already vanished into the crowd. Minutes later, Gigi is standing on a pedestrian bridge, looking out over Las Vegas Boulevard, her championship belt draped over her shoulder. Now bundled up in a red jacket and matching beanie to keep off the January chill in the air, she turns to face the camera.

Gigi Nova: Ace Sky… Nebula Ninja… Space Shaman… and any other amalgamation of alliterations relating to the cosmos you might want to throw out there…

She snickers.

Gigi Nova: Nah, I’m just having a little fun. Just like I did earlier…

She points off in the direction of the Cantina, nearly a block away from the bridge where she is standing.

Gigi Nova: Sure, I like to have fun. What is life even for if you don’t get out there and do what makes you happy, right?

She quickly tilts her head to the side and smiles.

Gigi Nova: But back to you. You’ve been wrestling longer than I’ve even been alive, which isn’t something a lot of people in this industry can say. What that tells me is that you must really love what you do.

Sure, you may have me beat in terms of experience, but what I lack in that respect, I more than make up for in effort. After all, I didn’t get this belt right here…

She pauses to pat the Iron Heart Championship belt’s center plate.

Gigi Nova: ...By standing around with my hands in my pockets. Don’t let my little side job fool you. Sure, I love being behind the bar… you hear all kinds of different stories from people from all walks of life… in the case of this city, I’ll likely never cross paths with them again. You get to see people having a good time… even if sometimes they overdo it. But at the end of the day, the one thing bartending and wrestling have in common is making sure the crowd is happy.

Gigi Nova: Tonight, at the T-Mobile Arena, we open the show, and that means we set the tone for the rest of the night. The Iron Heart Championship may not be on the line, but the fans are paying good money to see us tear it up, and I for one am not about to disappoint them.

She smiles, but the smile quickly fades as another gust of wind blows through, sending Gigi’s hair flying behind her as she reaches up to keep her beanie from blowing away.

Gigi Nova: It’s cold out here, but we’re gonna heat things up in that ring soon enough, Ace. I’ll see you there. Cheers!

She flashes one last smile at the camera before the camera pans over the Strip, taking in the flashing lights of the city before fading out.



We go backstage where Griffin Hawkins is sitting against the wall, his hands in the pockets of his leather jacket as he is thinking on tonight's match and the end of HYBRID.

Griffin Hawkins: The end of HYBRID is not too far away. With many staking their claim to go out with a bang...some champions are looking to end their chapter with their belts in tact. The title may not be on the line, but I am going to give the people a show of a lifetime. But before I address that...I'd like to address a challenge made to me on the previous show by one Cordelia Clark.

He reaches off camera and picks up the Vanguard Title.

Griffin Hawkins: Now...weeks ago you made a challenge to me for this very belt. They very belt you used to own. You're angry at yourself because you felt you were too naive and trusting to accept a triple threat match against Tiffany Lynn Page and me for the gold. It's like I said, a real champion fights any kind of match. Whether it be one person, two people, three people..five other people or more. If you can't handle that kind of responsibility then you might as well not compete for any title. However I do agree with you. The way you've been treated you DO deserve better. The way management has been overlooking you and giving you throwaway matches as filler..you DO deserve better. Aleki Kekoa had the opportunity to face me for the title..but the minute it was announced this company is closing it's doors in the new year, he packed up and went to some secondary promotion. Me..I'm not leaving. If HYBRID goes down, I'm going with it. You want me one on one at Best Served Cold? All you had to do was ask. You got it. You and me..no excuses..we'll see who leaves HYBRID with the gold.

He places the title over his shoulder.

Griffin Hawkins: Now...as for tonight I face a member of The Kingdom, Stephanie Kenyon. Man...this must be a small business because we keep meeting in the ring whether it be singles or tag...but Stephanie always brings her best and is not afraid to back down. I respect her as an athlete and a friend and I look very forward to this match tonight. I know for sure that she's not going to pull any punches as she's looking to leave one more mark on HYBRID. And on the other side Charles Morgan..someone else I am familiar with. Last time me and him got in the ring to dance it was me who got the pin in our tag match. And I know for sure he didn't like that. Maybe me and him will meet again down the line...but for tonight, it doesn't matter if its Cordy...it doesn't matter if its Morgan...somebody's gonna get rocked!

He walks off as we go back to the ring.



We come back from commercial to find Ollie Maverick seated in the center of the ring. His face remains censored. Several members of security as well as a few individuals in medical scrubs surround the ring.

Ollie Maverick: You all… keep telling me… I’m crazy.

Ollie very suddenly stands and several of the members of the security team's hands begin to go to their waist. Ollie spares a moment to chuckle when they stand down.

Ollie Maverick: They told me that for seeking out to do great harm to the man who actively and admittedly ruined my life… I was crazy.

Ollie makes the ‘cuckoo’ cartoon hand gesture.

Ollie Maverick: And then Aloysius essentially said to me ‘Hey that guy you’ve dedicated your life to hurting… asked for his release and is going off the grid completely and you’re probably never gonna have a chance to fight him and I’m the one responsible for that now let me go back to not booking you for months on end.’ And I took that…poorly. Is that crazy? People tell me that’s crazy.

Ollie’s voice gets a little bit more intense.

Ollie Maverick: The same people who tell me I’m crazy for keeping my face censored from broadcasts… have a different face on social media every day and act like that’s just…fucking normal. No Ollie! What YOU DO is crazy!

Anger has found the voice of the Faceless man.

Ollie Maverick: I am done letting you gaggle of fucking psychopaths tell me how I should live. Like the old song says. I went to YOUR schools. I went to YOUR churches. I went to YOUR institutional learning facilities. How can you say I’m crazy? How can you tell ME I’m crazy when the MOMENT I gave into those ‘crazy’ impulses and beat the hell out of boss man I got EXACTLY what I wanted.

The crowd boos Ollie who doesn’t seem to care.

Ollie Maverick: Listen to me, Forge… I don’t regret not one bit of what I did because all I wanted was a proper fucking dance partner. Someone who REALLY wanted to hurt me. I told this whole company that someone needed to stop me before I actually hurt someone and no one should have taken that more seriously than YOU and YOU… FAILED. You FAILED your dipshit boss with too many names, you FAILED this company, and you FAILED all of these people.

Even louder booing, but Ollie continues like they aren’t even there, going to each corner of the ring and…feeling each turnbuckle?

Ollie Maverick: So now… you can stay back there and your failure can be complete OR…

Ollie makes a happy little noise as he finds the stash he paid a member of the ring crew to plant and produces his signature box cutter/utility knife. The security and men in scrubs are all on high alert.

Ollie Maverick: …Or you can come to the ring right now and you can either ‘teach me a lesson’ or we can complete your failure in a different way. Your call, bud.

It’s only a moment later when Forge steps out onto the stage, microphone in hand. No music, no flashing lights, no pomp. He stands there, staring down at the ring, at Ollie. And, finally, he shakes his head.

Forge: So because you didn’t get what you wanted, you took the bitch way out and attacked Vance. Dixon chose to take a fuckin’ walk. Vance made several offers, all denied. But that’s the problem with people like you, Ollie: you don’t fuckin’ think. You act on impulse. Then you sit on your thumb and come up with excuses to try and pull the wool over everyone’s fuckin’ eyes so you can play the victim and get sympathy for your bullshit. News flash, fucker: that don’t fly in the real world. It damn sure don’t fly with the HYBRID Nation. And it sure as fuck don’t fly with me.

He has the look of a man who wants to storm that ring and rip Ollie asunder. The fans certainly seem eager for such an outcome. But Forge doesn’t do that.

Forge: You attacked an innocent man. You attacked one of the few people on this worthless fucking mudball of a planet that I call friend. And then you wander out here and try to say that’s my fault?

Forge goes from chuckling to glowering, staring at the ring as Ollie taunts him wordlessly with facial expressions and feigned looks of impatience and amusement. But he doesn’t give in to the violent urge.

Forge: Maybe it is. Maybe I should’ve seen you for the piece of shit you are from the get and curb-stomped you before the ink dried on your fucking contract. But that’s the beauty of wrestling, see? Mistakes like that? They’re easy to rectify.

A sinister smile is back on the face of the Martyr Machine.

Forge: I’ll be doing that at Best Served Cold. You and me, Ollie. One-on-one. No rules, no limits, no bullshit. If you don’t show up, I’ll personally come to your house and beat the dog out of you. You’re gonna get your due by being ground up by the Martyr Machine and what’s left of you can feed the worms, motherfucker. See you there.

Forge tosses down the microphone and walks off without music. Ollie, shrugging and laughing, retorts simply.

Ollie Maverick: Looks like I get what I want after all! You’re on, bitch!



Cordelia Clark is backstage and as what has been pretty much the norm with her lately she is not in the happiest mood. She’s aware of what Griffin said earlier and not even that is enough for her to be at least the slightest bit happier than she’s been lately. She’s mainly business focused and nothing else as she begins to express her thoughts.

Cordelia Clark: At least Griffin accepted the challenge that I laid out for him, even though I may not necessarily agree with EVERYTHING that he said. I can vent and rant about Griffin all night long but all I am going to say about that is that I WILL pull through there and I will become a three time, and the last, Vanguard champion of this company. But, that’s for a later time. I’ve got to focus on tonight. It’s funny how things change in a year, right? A year ago, hell maybe even a few months ago, I would’ve been excited to be in a main event considering the competition that is involved. But now? Not that I’m not grateful, but I’m far beyond the just ‘happy to be here’ part of my career now. It’s funny how Jessi’s like ‘look alive out there’...

Cordelia pauses and rolls her eyes, obviously unsure as to how she’s going to process that at the moment. She does think about that comment for a little bit before she continues on.

Cordelia Clark: I’m not sure where she was going with that and it’s probably best that I don’t speculate. It could’ve been a joke that has gone over my head for all I know. But what I will say is, even though I am by no means happy to be in yet another tag team match, at least Jessi is going to be much more competent of a partner than Charles Morgan was. I don’t have to like her and I don’t have to necessarily agree with her methods, but at this point, I’ll take whatever I can get. Now as far as the task at hand is concerned?

Bianca Davis?

Her reputation precedes her and not in the best way. She’s been around. She has a reputation for seemingly caring more about her own looks than her wrestling career and in general, being a basic bitch that regurgitates the same old crap on Twitter and thinks that it’s all about how you look and…. UGH! Let’s just straight up say that she’s as shallow as shallow can be. In my book, she’s a disgrace to the business and I’ve never really BEEN a fan of girls like her even though I acted somewhat close to what she has always been when I first started. That’s the difference between her and I… I evolved over time. Bianca? Nah, she just stays stuck with the same old thing for years at a time.

Then you have Duke Andrews…

Cordelia takes a pause as just saying the name ‘Duke Andrews’ makes her a little more angry.

Cordelia Clark: I have a LONG memory… and Duke Andrews is the epitome of what I’ve been talking about lately where I’ve grown sick and tired of being a ‘pushover to the bigger stars’. He probably doesn’t remember anything about what I am about to mention since the guy is stuck in his own little world and for the most part, just shows up whenever he feels like it. Well let me mention this, Duke… back when I was just ‘happy to be here’, I was in a main event match with Eddy Todd. You were feuding with him at the time and I hadn’t found my feet yet in this company. I didn’t win against Eddy, though I gave it my best…

In hindsight, that was a start of an unfortunate trend for me here, but that’s besides the point. I remember you coming out through the curtains and I remember you telling me to get out because ‘the adults were talking’. That one little comment epitomizes EVERYTHING that I’ve had to put up with since I’ve been here… where I’ve been treated at times like a second class citizen because my name isn’t Duke Andrews or because my name isn’t Jessi Ozbourne or hell, even because my name isn’t Griffin Hawkins. It epitomizes the fact that HYBRID, or this incarnation of it, lost its plot and forgot about its mission to be a breeding ground for up and coming talent when basically every world champion in this incarnation had already been a big name somewhere else beforehand or in the previous incarnation of HYBRID.

And I’m not going to stand for that anymore. The fact of the matter is, I’m no fucking second class citizen and I KNOW that I am JUST as good and JUST as deserving of having a world title match like you and Jessi are and if you want to shade that, just remember that one of my successful Vanguard title defenses WAS against Jessi. I’m about to take that ‘adults are talking’ comment from so long ago and I’m about to shove it up your ass.

Because the fact of the matter is Duke, you don’t have a right to claim ‘adult’ because you hardly ever act like one. Hell, the only difference between you and those that have bailed is that at least you’re here in body because you’re surely mailing it in yourself at this point… that’s why Jessi’s going to beat you at Best Served Cold… and with an equally passionless tag partner you have… that’s why we’re going to win tonight…

Needless to say? I’ve really reached my “don’t give a crap” point myself…

Cordelia walks out of the room, still carrying much anger with her, as the scene itself fades to black.