Brand New Me

I have said it once, twice, hell, I have said it so many times that I am sure all of you are sick and tired of hearing me say it, but I am going to say it again because the fact is that I am going to make a name for myself in Supreme Championship Wrestling.  No more fighting for other people.  No more fighting the forces of evil or any of that happy ass bullshit.

Just…no more.

The Shot of Adrenaline Tournament is my chance to do things my way and to make a name for myself.  Unfortunately, I have tried oh so many times to cement the name of Jessica Lasiewicz in the SCW history books but I have come up empty oh so many times.

What was I doing wrong?  Perhaps I did nothing wrong.  Perhaps Jessica Lasiewicz was just never meant to be a history maker?

That may very well be the case.  If that is the case, then that means I have only one option available to me…

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Off Camera

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The SCW Shot of Adrenaline Tournament has been many things for many different individuals.  For some veterans, the Shot of Adrenaline is viewed as a chance to revitalize a career they thought long dead.  For rookies and other newcomers to the company the Shot Adrenaline is an opportunity to make an impact, to make a name for themselves.  And for those who seem lost in the shuffle, those who just seem to be treading water, the Shot of Adrenaline Tournament presents them with an opportunity to re-define themselves.  For Jessica Lasiewicz, this tournament is a chance to not only re-define herself but to also get a fresh start in SCW.

For the longest time, Jessica saw herself as a vigilante of justice, fighting on behalf of others.  She fought for Brittany Lohan against Blood Grove, she fought for Angelica Jones against Silas World.  And that is just during her tenure within Supreme Championship Wrestling.  Sure, Jessica has had her opportunities to make a name for herself.  She had a chance to become SCW Women’s Champion, a chance that Jessica failed to capitalize on.  She had a chance to become number one contender to the women’s title but, again, she failed to capitalize upon the opportunity.

Jessica had told herself and anyone else who would listen that she was going to start fighting for herself.  She tried convincing the wrestling world that she would be selfish from now on and start focusing on her wrestling career rather than constantly fighting for others.  And yet each time she tries to do something herself, she always fails and she always ends up caught back up in the same old routine.

And yet now she finds herself scheduled to participate in the Shot of Adrenaline Tournament.  Many may overlook her or underestimate her.  Many may view her as just simply filler.  They may think she’s just taking up a spot in the tournament.  They may not expect her to win at all.

Jessica herself doesn’t expect to run the tables.  She realizes that there will be ups and downs in this roller coaster of a tournament.  But one thing is certain and that is the fact that she plans on doing anything and everything necessary to win it all…

…and that includes seeking out comfort from a likely (or perhaps unlikely) source.

And thus we find ourselves in a local gym on the outskirts of Boston, Massachusetts.  Jessica Lasiewicz finds herself walking through the front doors and walking ever so gracefully and quietly towards the far side of the gym area.  Well, she is walking as quietly as she can considering she has strappy black high heeled sandals on her feet that click as she takes each step across the concrete floor.  The lower half of her body is encased in a red floral print red maxi-skirt and her upper half is attired in a long sleeved black sweater.  The most distinctive thing about her today is that her long shoulder length hair is dyed red.  This is in contrast to her natural black hair color that she used to sport.

Young Jessica follows the sounds of grunting and the sounds of fists against leather off in the distance.  As she continues her careful stride the sounds get louder and louder until she spots another ginger-haired woman dealing some death blows to a red heavy bag.  She has her hair in a ponytail and she is wearing a plain white t-shirt, black Adidas windpants, and white tennis shoes.

This woman is none other than Marie Annabelle Jones, Jessica’s half-sister.  They share the same mother in Angelica Jones but Marie’s biological father is dead, unlike Jessica, who still has both of her parents still alive.  In that sense, you might expect that Jessica would be the more well-rounded of the siblings, but you would be mistaken.

“Hi, Marie.”

Marie is so intensely focused on her workout that she doesn’t even notice her sister nor does she hear her.  Jessica waits a few moments before trying again.

“Marie…”

Still nothing.  Jessica sighs and prepares to get loud.

“Marie!”

That was enough.  Marie stops punching the heavy bag long enough to turn around and face Jessica.  She smiles at first but then tilts her head to one side, her facial features contorting into a look of slight confusion.

“Jess?  Is that you?”

The younger sister nods her head.

“Yes, it’s me.” Jessica answers. “I thought I’d find you here.  Preparing for your IWC comeback?”

Marie nods her head. “Yeah…”

Jessica laughs lightly. “I didn’t think any injury would keep you down.  You’re a fighter, Marie.  Always have been.  Always will be.”

Marie smiles warmly. “Thanks.”

“Are you going after Vanilla Skyy again?”

The elder sibling shrugs her shoulders. “Don’t know.  Maybe.  All I know is that I want to be world champion eventually and if that means gunning for Vanilla, then yeah, I’ll gun for her, but I’m going to earn my way to the top this time.  No funny tricks.”

“Good for you.”

Marie has been injured since her last match in IWC.  Medical staff won’t clear her yet but that isn’t stopping her from preparing for her grand return.  Marie, like all Jones women, are too stubborn to quit and, to be perfectly frank, will not quit.  She will return to IWC if it’s the last she does.  That’s why she is here in the gym today, preparing for that return.

Jessica flicks a strand of her long red hair back to behind her shoulder and she smirks knowingly. “Do you like my new look?”

Marie studies her for a moment, looking her over carefully, before nodding her head.

“I do…definitely, I do…but it’s just…”

“What?”

“I dunno,” Marie shrugs “I guess I’m surprised to see you going back to Jones red, that’s all.”

“It just made sense.”

Jessica’s response was cryptic. It was very cryptic.  Being cryptic is nothing new for Jessica and thus Marie tends to expect it from her sister.  But this is different.  In fact, her sister’s entire demeanor, the way she carries herself, everything about her, even in the smallest of ways, seems different right now.  These differences are bothering Marie and she wants to get to the bottom of it so she continues her line of questioning.

“What do you mean by that?”

With a shake of her head, Jessica motions for Marie to follow her.  The two women make their way over to the nearby wall where to steel folding chairs lay propped up.  Jessica takes one and sets it up.  Marie does the same.  The two sisters sit down in the chairs, facing one another.  Marie’s head is propped up in her right hand as she listens intently to her younger sister’s confessions.

“It was time for a change, Marie, and so I made a change in my life.  A lot of changes, as you will soon see.”

“That’s still nothing but cryptic nonsense, Jess.” Marie snaps back. “Tell me about these changes.”

“First of all, don’t call me Jessica any longer.”

Marie blinks with confusion. “Huh?”

“You heard me.” Jessica answers back plainly. “My name is Corey.  Corey  Jones.”

“Going by mom’s name, then?”

Corey nods her head. “That’s right and since I am going by the legendary Jones name, I felt it was only appropriate to sport Jones red.”

“Corey Jones…” Marie’s voice trails off as she studies her younger sister for a few more seconds “…I like it.”

Corey smiles, perking up as she hears her sister’s approval. “Thanks!”

“But…”

Corey frowns. “But what?”

“What will your dad think about this?”

It is an honest question.  It is a legitimate question.  Only one of Marie’s parents was a famous wrestler, her mother.  Thus Corey has a famous wrestler in her family too, but her father is also a famous wrestler.  How would he react to this news?  Corey seems to shrug it off, though, without a second thought.

“Meh, I don’t really care.”

“Really?”

“You seem surprised.”

“Well, ummm,” Marie nods her head “yeah, I kind of am.”

Corey smirks. “Marie, dear, think back a few years ago.  What name did I go by then?”

“Jessica Jones.”

“Precisely.  My full birth name was Jessica Corey Jones-Lasiewicz but I dropped the Corey Lasiewicz part and chose to go by my mother’s name, up until a few years ago when my father resurfaced after God knows how long of partying it up in Europe.  I felt I owed it to him to use his name, to continue his legacy.”

She chuckles and shakes her head. “I was misguided.  I owed him nothing.  I still owe him nothing and I don’t care what he thinks, just as I did not care about what our mother would think about me dropping her name back then.  To be perfectly honest with you, Marie, I don’t even care if our mom approves or disapproves of me taking her name back.”

Marie tilts her head to one side and studies her younger sibling carefully.  A change has occurred.  It is true, the Jessica she knew is long gone.  This woman is not Jessica.  This is Corey and she is a far cry from the woman who helped guide Marie down her road to redemption.

“Are you ok, sis?”

“I am better than ok.” Corey remarks with a knowing grin on her face. “In fact, I have never been better.   My mind has not been this clear in a very long time.”

Corey points a finger at Marie. “You have had it easy.  Think about it, you had our mother, and yes, she came with high expectations and a lot of baggage, but you just had mother.  Your father was a nobody.  No offense.”

Marie shakes her head. “None taken.”

“I have two,” Corey holds up two fingers “count ‘em, two famous parents, both with high expectations and both a shit load of baggage. You had just one legacy to live up to, I always had two legacies to deal with; two legacies to live up to and uphold.”

She shakes her head. “Not any longer.  From now on, this is about me.”

“Whoa, whoa, slow down.” Marie says, shaking her head and stifling laughter. “Haven’t you been saying that for awhile now?”

“Yes, I have, and yet for one reason or another I keep getting drawn back into other people’s battles, or I keep getting drawn back into our mother’s shadow or my father’s shadow.  Now matter how many times I said it, I kept getting drawn back in. And recently I figured out what I needed to do.”

“I am almost afraid to ask,” Marie begins hesitantly “but what did you need to do?”

“I needed to make everyone forget that Jessica Lasiewicz ever existed.”

The younger sibling stands up and poses like a model. “New name, new hair, new look…I am not some raggedy hobo, and while I am also not among the super rich, I definitely am well-off enough to dress like the sexy gorgeous woman I am.”

Corey reaches down and grabs Marie.  She gently pulls her to her feet and then embraces her in a tight, sisterly hug.

“And I owe it all to you.”

“Ummmm…” Marie’s voice trails off as she is clearly confused a little “…me?”

Corey breaks the embrace, but just before releasing her sister, she kisses her on the cheek.

“Yeah, babe, you.  I helped you even when you were trying to refuse my help.  I kept coming after you until I convinced you to abandon Silas Mason and his ilk.  You returned the favor by coming to my aid when I needed it but you didn’t come alone.  You brought the entire #GingerNation with you.  You and the nation helped me with my personal war and my personal demons and through the good times and the bad times every one of you stood by my side.  No matter what I did you stood by my side and never once questioned me or abandoned me.”

Marie nods her. “Of course we did.  I am your sister, I would never abandon you.”

“Right, and it was then that I realized that you and your #GingerNation had it right all along.  I never should have tried to continue to live up to my father’s failed moral compass.  I’m not even sure he has a moral compass any longer.  And it isn’t about trying to be the next Angelica Jones.  This is about me being the first Corey Jones.”

Corey embraces Marie again. “So thank you for helping me see the light.”

“Uh, no problem.”

Marie is still somewhat skeptical, even after the embrace and positive praise Corey has heaped upon her.

“So are you going to, um, use that as your rallying cry going into Shot of Adrenaline?”

“You could say that.” Corey smirks. “I am a brand new person and Shot of Adrenaline is the perfect opportunity for me to show that to the entire world.”

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Marie Jones

On Camera

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I have always had faith in my sister.  I have always had faith in Jessica Lasiewicz.  For as long as we’ve both been alive I always known her to be a fighter.  I have always known her to be someone who would never once give up on anything that she set her mind to.  Call it being stubborn or call it perseverance, but whatever you want to call it, Jessica Lasiewicz never quits until she has achieved her goal.

I should know.  I stubbornly refused to listen to her as she tried to save me from Silas Mason.  Despite my constant rejections and refusals, despite my  physical assaults even, she continued to show that she cared about me because she kept coming, she did not quit, and she would not quit until I had left Silas Mason.

That is the Jessica Lasiewicz I know.  The caring, compassionate individual who will stop at nothing to achieve her goal.  The Jessica Lasiewicz I know would easily be my favorite to win Shot of Adrenaline.

Sorry, mom.

But something has changed.  Something about SCW has caused her to change.  This woman who now competes is not the Jessica Lasiewicz I know.  And that may not be a good thing for the other participants in the tournament.  She is no longer as compassionate or as caring as she used to be.  I don’t see that same compassion in her eyes.  I see coldness.  I see an intense rage that will not allow her to be stopped.

This woman is an oncoming storm that will run roughshod over the rest of you if given the chance.  And I only have one piece of advice to give the rest of you who will be unfortunate enough to encounter her…

…run.

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Corey Jones

Brand New Me

On Camera

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The slow steady of dripping water across metal can be heard in the pitch darkness that envelopes the area, an area where you could not even see your own hand in front of your face if you tried.  That slow and steady dripping of water is the only sound we hear for the longest time; or at least it seems like a long time.  In reality it’s only been about a minute until we begin to hear footsteps coming from off in the distance.  As the footsteps continue to come closer and closer thunder begins to roll in.  Lightning flashes as well and we see the distinct image of a female silhouette approaching.  The lightning flashes again and we see the female has stopped her approach and is a few feet away from the camera.  Still, in the brief light the lightning provides, we cannot make out who it is.

“Nie wieszto kim jestem.”

(Polish Translation: You do not know who I am)

The female snaps her fingers, or at least the snapping of fingers can be heard through the darkness and we can only assume she snapped her fingers.  Suddenly the thundering ends, the lightning ends, and a singular spotlight comes on in full force and we see the female that stands before us is none other than Corey Jones, wearing a long black trench coat that also has a hood, the hood being pulled over her head.  We can just make out some of her facial features to detect who this is.

“Je ne suis pas celui que vous croyez que je suis.”

(French Translation: I am not who you think I am)

She reaches down and slowly begins to undo the trench coat.  Once the buttons are undone she throws the hood off and then pulls the trench coat off and tosses it to the side.  Corey is wearing a knee length sparkling red dress and matching red high heel pumps.  Her nails are painted red to match and her long naturally black hair is dyed an orange-ginger color to match her sister and mother’s locks.

“What’s in a name?  I am sure that most of you would think that a name is just merely a label and nothing more.  The atomic bombs that wreaked havoc upon Japan were named Little Boy and Fat Man but they still eradicated any kind of life they came in contact with and forever altered the life and livelihoods of the citizens of Japan.  So really, what is in a name?”

She frowns. “A great deal.  Jessica Lasiewicz tried and tried and tried again and again to make a difference in Supreme Championship Wrestling.  And yes, she did help get rid of Silas Mason, but who did most of the legwork there?”

She pauses, as if waiting upon an answer. “Regan Street.  And what did come of that, by the way?  Angelica Jones was free and became world tag team champion.  Regan was free and became number one contender to the SCW World Championship.  But what about Jessica?  What about the woman who wanted to make a difference?”

Corey sighs and shakes her head. “She got nothing out of the deal.  You may call it sour grapes, but trust me, she isn’t complaining.  Angelica and Regan both earned their opportunities and Jessica wishes them only the best.  But Jessica also realizes that she can no longer be satisfied with being the hero.  The hero doesn’t always get a reward.  It’s time Jessica got serious about looking out for her career.   And yes, The Shot of Adrenaline Tournament is the perfect opportunity to do that.  Jessica knows that winning this tournament can potentially skyrocket her career.”

“Unfortunately she also knows that she cannot do it as Jessica Lasiewicz.  She knows that Jessica Lasiewicz will not succeed.  Desperate measures had to be taken and so she did the one thing that she had to do.  Jessica Lasiewicz has taken a leave of absence.  Jessica Lasiewicz, as you knew her, is gone forever.”

Corey smirks, a confident gaze coming from every pore. “Standing in her place is me, Corey Jones, a woman who is more than capable of not only running the gauntlet that is Shot of Adrenaline but also running the tables and winning the whole damn thing.”

“What’s in a name?  Everything.  This name means a brand new me.  A brand new me means that I have a new lease on my professional life here in SCW.  This name means a brand new purpose to life and a brand new opportunity to make an impact in SCW.”

Corey points a long slender finger at the camera, as if pointing directly at her opponent.

“Amy Chastaine, I’m talking to you right now, because you are going to be the lucky one to first encounter the brand new me.  You are a standout.  You are a star.  Some wouldn’t say you’re a favorite, necessarily, but I don’t think those people are giving you your due.  You are a favorite.  You have the talent to win it all.  You’ve already gotten off to a good start and won your first match and thus earned two points.”

She golf claps. “Good job, honey, honest, I mean that.  Unfortunately you’ve now run into me and I am not going to be a welcome mat for anyone else any longer.  I am no one’s stepping stone and I am damn sure not in this tournament to just fill up space.  Whether anyone believes me or not, and whether you believe me or not, I am the real threat, I am the biggest danger to everyone else in this damn tournament because inside this sexy gorgeous exterior lies the black heart and soul of a monster ready, willing, and able to do anything and everything necessary to win…and win…and win…until everyone else has been beaten up, beaten down, and lying in a bloody heap at my feet and I am left standing all alone as the winner of Shot of Adrenaline.”

“And it all starts with you.  You’re my first victim, Amy.  It’s nothing personal.  And I’m sure we’ll put on a hell of a show for the fans.  But this isn’t about the fans. This is about Shot of Adrenaline and you’re in my way.”

“You have some momentum going , Amy, but that momentum ends now because you’re facing the deadliest threat in Shot of Adrenaline.  You may have been preparing for Jessica Lasiewicz and you may have been able to defeat her given the chance but you’re not facing Jessica Lasiewicz.  You’re facing Corey Jones and unlike Jessica, I will not be merciful and I will not stop until I have stopped you.”

She winks. “Goodnight…”

Corey claps her hands and the lights go off.