SCW Taking Hold of the Flame Battle Royal

[Braddock]

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May 18th, 2023
Las Vegas, NV
Off Camera
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It is an odd circumstance for someone as competitive as Glory Braddock to be completely left off of a wrestling card, to be left with absolutely nothing to do on Breakdown. In this case, when SCW Breakdown rolled into Las Vegas, Nevada, The British Bombshell found herself in that very rare scenario of having absolutely nothing to do. It was a problem of her own creation. Glory lost her first round match in the United States Title Tournament to Deanna Frost, which meant Deanna advanced tonight to face Amelia Blythe, not Braddock. It is also rare for most wrestlers in these situations to still travel with the promotion when they are left off of the card. While this may be unusual for most, this is not unusual for The British Bombshell. Glory Braddock prides herself on being committed to the business, especially committed to Supreme Championship Wrestling. She may not get the chance to compete tonight but she does get the opportunity to scout her future competition. After all, Rise To Greatness season is coming up and that means Taking Hold of the Flame is on the horizon. Taking Hold of the Flame is one of the most challenging rumble matches in the sport. Braddock herself has attempted to win it on more than one occasion but has thus far failed to win it. Glory is seeking competition and new challenges for herself in SCW. Among those new challenges is to win the SCW World Tag Team Championship and thus become Supreme Champion. But she forgot that Taking Hold of the Flame is still there. This one singular event that comes around once a year is still a feather in the cap that she has yet to obtain. And when you talk about challenges, for someone who enjoys a good challenge, you would be hard pressed to find a greater challenge than Taking Hold of the Flame.

Braddock currently finds herself sitting backstage in the locker room area watching the proceedings of Breakdown on a monitor. The British Bombshell is wearing tight form fitting jeans, black high heeled boots, and a royal purple blouse. Her long blonde hair is pulled into a ponytail in the back. Standing up next to her is her cousin, Angelica Jones. Angelica is dressed in a knee length black pencil skirt, black open toed high heel pumps, and a long sleeve black sweater. Her long red hair hangs straight and unrestrained to past the shoulder. Jones, like Glory, is not competing tonight. But Jones isn’t an active wrestler on the SCW roster. She is here as an advisor and advocate for her daughter and Glory’s cousin, the SCW Underground Champion Kimberly Williams.

“So who do you want to see face Selena in the world title finals?” Angelica asks, smiling wryly at her cousin. Braddock looks up with a smirk of her own.

“Who do I WANT or who do I THINK will face Selena in the finals?”

“It’s a toss up, either way.” Angelica says with a chuckle. “It’s not like Kandis or Allocco are very popular right now.”

“Exactly. So maybe I’ll go with Adam? He may not be the most ethical or moral person but bloody hell, that main event from last year’s Rise To Greatness was a banger. I’d love to see that one again.”

“Well just to be different from you, I’ll go with Kandis.” Angelica shrugs her shoulders. “It might be fun to see something different for a change.”

“Of course you would go with Kandis.” Glory smirks. “Just to be different?”

“Just to be different.”

“Well now we need your daughter to break the tie.” Glory states. “Where is Kim anyway?”

“She’s somewhere petitioning for something to do at Taking Hold of the Flame.” Angelica sighs. “I pray she’s behaving herself.”

“Does Kim ever behave herself?”

“No. But don’t complain. She’s going to bring us some coffee back.”

“Great.” Glory leans back in her chair and relaxes as she watches the monitor. Angelica walks over and finds a chair. She pulls it up next to Glory and sits down in it.

“I’ll be honest with you, I’m kind of surprise to see you here tonight.”

“Oh?” Glory turns and looks over at her cousin. Angelica nods her head.

“I mean, Kim I understand. She wants to entertain the fans. So if she can’t wrestle then she’s going to go out there and do something wild and insane to get the crowd all going nuts. But you, Glory, you’ve always been about competition. And you’re not competing at all tonight. Yet here you are. I just find that odd.”

“There’s more to competition than just the ten to twenty or thirty minutes that goes on between the ringing of the bells. You know? It also comes down to scouting. Studying each and every potential all…or enemy…” Glory’s voice trails off. Angelica smirks knowingly.

“Scouting, eh? So are you still thinking about going after the tag team championship?”

“Oh definitely.” Glory nods her head. “But that’s not what’s on my mind right now. After I lost to Deanna last week, I had a lot to think about. Why did I lose? A lot of that fault is on me.”

“You?” Angelica asks curiously. Glory nods her head.

“Yes. Now that’s not to take anything away from Deanna. That night she was better than she had ever been. She needed to be perfect and she was as close to perfect as one could come. But I also made a critical mistake.” She taps her head. “My focus wasn’t entirely on that tournament. Let’s face it, I’ve had a divided focus as of late. Some of that was personal crap that I let get into my head and distract me. But last week, I was still divided between trying to win that tournament and becoming Supreme Champion.”

“But isn’t Supreme Champion your goal?”

“It is. But I have to realize that it won’t come instantly. And I cannot expect it to just drop into my lap. One day those tag titles will come, but until then I just have to play the hand that is dealt me and when an opportunity arises, I cannot just turn away from it. How do you Americans say it? Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth. I had an opportunity last week and I blew it.” Braddock shakes her head. “But I’m not going to make that mistake again, especially not with this opportunity coming up.”

“I take it you mean The Flame?” Angelica says with a grin. Glory nods her head.

“Damn right. Ultimately what I want is a challenge. You don’t get a bigger challenge than Taking Hold of the Flame. You don’t get a bigger challenge than having to overcome thirty nine other wrestlers just for a shot…a shot at becoming SCW World Champion at Rise To Greatness.”

“Does that mean the tag titles and thus Supreme Champion is on the back burner?” Angelica asks.

“For now, temporarily. Right now I am one hundred percent focused entirely on Taking Hold of the Flame. To win that event I will have to be focused and ready. I cannot be distracted by…”

“TA-DA!” Glory and Angelica are both distracted by the sudden arrival of Kimberly Williams into the scene. She is wearing her strange, obnoxious looking suit and she has the SCW Underground Championship title belt wrapped around her waist. The Woman Scorned has two cups of coffee, one in each hand.

“...by anything…” Glory says, finishing her sentence. Kim smirks as she passes one cup of coffee to Glory and then the other to Angelica.

“You’re welcome!” Kim sticks her tongue out at Glory.

“Thank you, Kim.” Glory says as she takes a sip of her coffee.

“Thank you? That’s all you can say! After everything I’ve done today! After interrupting your little speech, after terrorizing the commentary team…”

“Terrorizing the commentary team?” Angelica asks with an arched brow of curiosity. Kim ignores her mother and continues to focus on Glory.

“...after ALL that, all you can say to me is…thank you?”

“Yep.” Glory nods her head.

“You were more fun when you had a stick up your ass.” Kim pouts as she folds her arms over her chest. Glory starts laughing.

“Sorry to disappoint you, mate. But trust me, I don’t think anyone really wants that obnoxious bitch back, least of all me. That’s just not who I am. Not anymore, anyway.” Braddock sighs as she takes another sip of her coffee. “Hopefully I can continue to find out who I am.”

“You don’t know who you are?” Kim taps Glory on the head. “You got amnesia or something?” Glory chuckles softly.

“No, I mean that in a figurative sense. I mean, I forgot what it meant to be a Braddock. I forgot what my father stood for and what he taught me. But at least I had the information, I had the knowledge, I just had to relearn it. But my mom…” Glory shrugs her shoulders “...I genuinely don’t know much about her.” Glory points a finger at Kim. “I mean, surely you can appreciate this. You went and did some research into your family’s past, didn’t you?”

“Yup!” Kim nods her head happily. “I learned I’m the daughter of a serial killer!”

“Huh?” Glory looks on shockingly. “Uh…sorry…I didn’t…”

“It’s all good in the hood yo!” Kim remarks. “I’ve made peace with my tormented past. Besides, doing the research was a blast. I wish I could keep digging and digging and seeing what kind of bodies I uncover…”

“I hope you mean figurative bodies?” Glory asks. Angelica nods her head reassuringly.

“She does, trust me. But hey, you mention your mom…Maria Kurinsky, my aunt and Kim, your great aunt.”

“How great was she?” Kim asks curiously. Glory rolls her eyes.

“She also happens to be the sister of your grandmother, Kelly Kurinsky; my mother. So this really involves you too.” Angelica points out.

“What are you getting at?” Kim asks.

“Oh I see.” Glory grins as she sets her coffee down. “Kim, you enjoyed doing your own ancestry research so much? Why don’t you help me and your mom out by looking into the Kurinsky family?”

“Kurinsky? The Russians?” Kim pauses for a moment before nodding her head.

“Yes.” Angelica says, nodding her head. “It is your family too. So what do you say? You think you could help Glory and myself out and dig into this for us? Since, you know, you do enjoy doing ancestry research like this.” Angelica winks at her daughter. Kim pauses for a moment, just a brief moment, to think it over.

“Y’know what? What the hell? It might be fun!”

“Are you sure?” Glory asks. Kim immediately nods her head.

“Of course! Like mom said, it is my family too. Besides, I’m bored. I need something to do.” Kim shrugs her shoulders. Glory embraces Kim in a hug, which surprises The Woman Scorned.

“Thanks, Kim. I really do appreciate it.” They break the embrace. Glory is smiling from ear to ear. “And if you need anything, I can…”

Before The British Bombshell can finish her sentence the door swings open wildly. Braddock, Kim, and Angelica turn to see the newcomer, the unexpected and unwanted visitor into their area; all three recognize him immediately and Glory is taken aback the most upon seeing the arrival of her childhood best friend Matthew Taylor. He is wearing torn denim shorts, sneakers, and a black t-shirt. A cocky, smug grin is etched across his face.

“Ladies! Ladies! I’m not interrupting anything, am I?”

“You kinda were.” Angelica says with an eye roll. Glory holds up her hand, indicating that her cousin should back off. Matthew takes a small bow.

“Apologies! I didn’t mean anything by it! I just happened to be in the area and figured I’d stop in and speak to Glory…” he looks at Angelica and then at Kim “...alone.”

“Seriously?” Angelica is surprised at this. She doesn’t believe for one second that Matthew just happened to be in the area. Up until recently he had been living in Charlotte, but she had heard he had moved back to Birmingham, England. Either way he wouldn’t just be in the area. Kim also looks on at Matthew with a skeptical look. However both are taken by surprise by Glory’s response to this unexpected turn of events.

“It’s ok…” she says.

“Are you sure?” Angelica asks. Glory nods her head.

“Yes, I’m sure.”

“Ok…” Angelica reluctantly nods her head “...Kim and I will be just outside.”

“Awwww!” Kim feigns disappointment “...does this mean I can’t maim him?”

“Come with me, Kim!” Angelica exclaims. Kim nods her head and follows her mother out the door. Matthew eyes them cautiously and nervously as he watches them exit. Then he turns to look back at Glory.

“Uh, she was just kidding about maiming me, right?”

“With Kim you never know.”

“Oh….” Matthew gulps “...well…”

“Just get on with it, mate.” Glory asks, sounding rather frustrated by everything, especially by Matthew’s arrival. “I know you. I know for a fact you left your sister’s house in Charlotte and have moved back to Birmingham. I know there is no way you ‘just so happened’ to be in the United States let alone be anywhere near Vegas for Breakdown. So what’s your game? What are you doing here?”

“Alright, alright, cool down, Glory.” Matthew says, nodding his head. “You’re right, I didn’t just happen to be in the area. I did make it a point to travel here.”

“Why?” Glory demands as she puts her hands on her hips. Matthew smirks and points a finger at her.

“Because I want to talk to you.”

“Oh Matty…” Glory groans out loud, for she immediately realizes what he is here about, what he wants to talk to her about “...no, no, no…”

“Yes!” Matthew exclaims. “Listen, you and I were meant to be!”

“No, we’re not.” Glory flashes him her wedding ring. “I’m married. Remember?”

“Ok, right, I’m sorry.” He shakes his head vehemently. “That came out wrong. I meant this tag team, you and me, WE WERE MEANT TO BE!”

“How the hell did you get that silly notion in your head?”

“Think about it. I want to wrestle again. You want a partner that you can trust, someone who can lead you to the tag team titles. We’re a perfect fit!”

“Seriously?”

“Seriously.” Matthew nods his head. Glory sighs deeply and shakes her head.

“No…I mean, you’re right, I do need a tag team partner that I can trust, but honestly? I’m not sure that I can trust you. It’s obvious that your heart is still not accepting the fact that you and I cannot and will not ever be an item. Your heart just will not accept that I am married to Kurt. That in and of itself would create too many problems for us.”

“You’re wrong, Glory!” He insists. “I know to stay in my lane. I know to respect your relationship with Kurt. I just want a chance and you are my ticket. Just give me the chance!”

“I can’t.” Glory shakes her head. “I’m sorry, but even if I did ignore all of that, there’s still the fact that my husband does not approve of this. Kurt is not comfortable with this idea.”

“Who the hell cares what Kurt thinks?!” He exclaims loudly. Glory glares daggers right through him. Matthew gasps as he realizes what he just did. “Uh, I mean, I’m sorry. It came out wrong. I just…”

“Stop it.” Glory sighs deeply. “See, that’s why this can never happen. That’s why you and I will never happen.”

“So that’s your final answer then?” Matthew asks, seemingly resigned. “No?”

“That’s right.” She nods her head. “No.”

“I busted my ass to get back into ring shape. I made this trip from Birmingham all the way to Vegas. All of this just to be rejected?”

“Don’t make this harder than it already is, Matty.”

Oh no, it’s ok, I get it.” Matthew glares angrily at Glory. “I get where I rank. I get it.” Matthew turns and swings the door open violently. He exits and slams it shut behind him. Glory sighs and shakes her head. She hates that it came down to this, she hates that it ended this way, but she knows that she had no other choice. Unfortunately she had no idea that Matthew still had such strong feelings for her. He had insisted and swore that he just wanted to be her tag team partner, but after hearing him this evening, and seeing this reaction, Glory is beginning to believe that he may still love her. And she just crushed his dreams. Even if it was necessary, it still hurts her. And it makes things all the more difficult. She still has an upcoming business meeting with his sister, Francis Taylor, in Charlotte. And all of that baggage now being back in her life, back in her head, will again distract her. And distractions are the last things she needs heading into Taking Hold of the Flame.

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May 23rd, 2023
Charlotte, NC
Off Camera
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It has been nearly five days since Breakdown in Las Vegas, Nevada where Glory Braddock had the tense encounter with Matthew Taylor. Braddock had hoped that by now every single bit of her personal problems and professional issues would be behind her so that she could put her entire focus into competing in Taking Hold of the Flame. This one yearly rumble match is easily one of the most challenging competitions in the sport of wrestling and for Glory Braddock, who is seeking new challenges, would love to take on this challenge. She would love nothing more than to win Taking Hold of the Flame and be able to say that she overcame one of the most difficult challenges in the business today. Unfortunately it seems as if yet again more distractions have risen up to make things difficult for her to focus. Matthew had once again pitched the idea of teaming with Glory Braddock. When she flat out rejected his idea, she could tell that he did not take it very well. She could tell that he was hurt and angry. It would be easy enough for The British Bombshell to just ignore it, to just forget about it and let him be hurt. But Matthew has been her friend for many years. They were friends since school. Matthew has always been there for her and vice versa. The fact that their friendship may be over due to this partnership that just cannot happen drives Glory crazy. It also makes things very difficult for her own business affairs, for the president of her company, the woman who she entrusted to run Glorious Golden Enterprises for her, is none other than Francis Taylor, Matthew’s sister.

Nevertheless, this meeting between the corporate owner and corporate president has been planned weeks in advance, long before the explosion five days ago between Braddock and Matthew occurred in Vegas. It may be an awkward meeting but it is a meeting Glory must go through with, because she has to meet her obligations to the company. Besides, this does serve as an opportunity for The British Bombshell to get some insight into what Matthew is thinking right now. If anyone may know something about Matthew Taylor, it would have to be his sister. And currently, while the two women sit in Braddock’s office in Charlotte, North Carolina, doing their business, the thoughts of Matthew and what happened a few days ago is still an underlying and unspoken topic. Braddock sits behind her desk. She is dressed in a royal purple maxi skirt, sandals, and a white lace blouse with quarter length sleeves that shows off just a little midriff. Her long blonde hair hangs straight and unrestrained to past the shoulders. Sitting across from her is Francis Taylor. She is wearing navy blue dress pants, matching flats, a white silk blouse, and matching navy blue jacket.

“So do we start with our earnings over each of our three branches?” Francis asks. Glory shakes her head.

“Not necessary. I know our wrestling promotion is bringing in a ton of income, especially this time of year. And I was just recently overseas in England where I got to talk to Randall and Mark about my late father’s wrestling school. The only thing I need to know is our modeling business. I haven’t yet touched base with Kayla on that one.”

“Very well.” Francis shuffles some papers until she finds the one she is looking for. “Earnings have increased by twenty percent. We are also signing more and more models to our agency. Getting into the modeling field was indeed a very profitable move, Glory.”

“And are we still able to cover everyone’s medical insurance?” Glory asks. Francis smiles and nods her head.

“Indeed we are. Your ex lover certainly has been a Godsend regarding that.”

“Bloody hell…” Glory shakes her head “...don’t call him that!”

“I’m just teasing.” Francis says. “But he is your daughter’s father, isn’t he?”

“Biological father, yes.” Glory says, nodding her head. “And you’re right, Thomas has been a wonderful partner in providing all of our employees with health care.”

“Then what’s the problem?” Francis asks. “You do seem on edge.”

“I suppose I am on edge just a little bit.” Glory sighs deeply and nods her head. “I apologize. It’s just that I’m a little distracted right now. Maybe doing business today wasn’t such a good idea?”

“If you’re distracted right now we can take a break. Put the meeting off until tomorrow if you plan to stick around at least one more day?”

“That might be a good idea.” Glory agrees. “Maybe I can get my head clear by then.”

“That sounds fine to me.” Francis states. “But what is bothering you…if you don’t mind me asking?”

“I’m glad you asked. It actually has to do with your brother.”

“I see.” Francis nods her head as she leans back in her chair. “I had heard that you two got into a bit of an argument a few days ago.”

“He’s been hell bent on trying to force himself on me as my new tag team partner. He knows that I want to one day become tag team champion in SCW, which is the only title that I lack, the one title that is keeping me from becoming Supreme Champion. And he was using that to try and get close to me.”

“I take it you rejected his proposal?” Francis asks. Glory nods her head.

“Yes. I mean, I had to; Matthew and I had an affair and I regret it. I regret cheating on my husband and losing his trust. We barely salvaged our marriage but our marriage would not survive if me and Matty went through on this ridiculous tag team idea of his. Besides, this is Rise To Greatness season. Taking Hold of the Flame is coming up and if there is ONE challenge bigger than the Supreme Championship it is that one battle royal. I need to be focused on that. I cannot be bothered with your brother.” She sighs deeply. “Yet it seems he put me into a lose-lose situation. Either I agree to let him partner with me to keep him happy and end up pissing off my husband, or I reject Matty in order to save my marriage and end up ruining the friendship I had with Matty in the process.”

“So you either lose Kurt or you lose my brother.” Francis shakes her head. “Definitely a no win scenario.”

“May I ask you something?”

“Of course.” Francis states with a nod of her head.

“Does your brother still have feelings for me?”

“My brother is a complex individual. He may seem to be a laid back, chill person who just wants to have fun, but deep down inside he is very complex, far more complex than anyone would know. One thing I can tell you for certain is that he always seemed to have a thing for you.” She points a finger at Glory. This revelation seems to take The British Bombshell by surprise. “In fact, he was being primed to take over the family business until he met you in school. Meeting you, the Braddocks, it changed the trajectory of his life forever. He decided his dream was to be a wrestler and he chased after that dream, leaving me to take over the family business in his stead. And he never quit chasing that dream, even after pissing off your father enough to make him kick Matthew out of the wrestling school, he still managed to find someone else to train him.”

“Blake O’Malley.” Glory says. Francis nods her head.

“Yes, that’s the one. O’Malley stepped in and completed my brother’s training, allowing him to fulfill his dream of being a wrestler. Do you remember the time you two did team together?”

“Yes, of course.” Glory nods her head. “It was in the Millennium Wrestling Alliance. We called ourselves The British Parliament. Bloody stupid name but it was Matty’s idea.”

“Of course.” Francis chuckles. “He never was good at names. In any event, that time teaming with you in MWA was the time of his life. Then when you quit teaming with him, when that partnership ended, he was devastated. He dropped into a deep depression. He no longer cared about wrestling. In fact, he came crawling back to me, willing to return to the family business.” Francis shrugs her shoulders. “I suppose you broke his spirit.”

“I had no idea that working with me meant so much to him.” Glory says in disbelief.

“Oh but then you had that affair.” Francis smirks. “That depression he had been in for years almost immediately lifted. That old happy go-lucky Matthew was back. Does he love you, Glory? I think I can safely say that yes, he does in fact love you. And it killed him to break off the affair. It killed him to give you up. But he did it because he loved you too much to be the reason that your marriage to Kurt came to an end.” She sighs. “He could tell that you love Kurt more than you love him. That hurt him too.”

“I had no idea.” Glory shakes her head in disbelief. “I thought it was just a brief fling, a mistake both of us made, but he took it very seriously. He really did love me…he still has feelings for me…”

“Yes, he does.” Francis says, nodding her head.

“Now I’ve rejected him for a third time.” Glory says slowly. “I probably sent him into a third depression. Is he going to be ok? Have you spoken to him since Thursday?”

“All I can tell you is that he is not himself.” Francis says quietly. “And it bothers me.”

“I feel as if I am responsible. I did push him over the edge.”

“No.” Francis shakes her head. “You are not responsible. My brother should have known better than to ask a married woman he had an affair with to be his tag team partner. He should have known would have rejected the idea. But he’s too blind to see it. You are not responsible. You did nothing wrong.”

“Maybe you’re right…” Glory’s voice trails off “...still, I wish I could do something to help.”

“Do you want my advice, Glory? As your friend, not as your employee?”

“Yes.”

“My advice is to stay out of it.” She says flatly. “Stay out of it and stay away from my brother. Let him deal with it in his own way. Trust me, it’s for your own good.”

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May 27th, 2023
Birmingham, England
Off Camera
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It has been several days since Glory Braddock’s meeting with Francis Taylor, sister of Matthew Taylor. The meeting with certainly disturbing in the sense that her fears were confirmed, Matthew does indeed still have feelings for The British Bombshell. But despite all of that, she must find a way to put it all in the back of her mind; because she is one week away from SCW Taking Hold of the Flame. This is the most challenging competition one could ask for and at the end of the day competition is all Braddock wants. Competing against thirty nine other wrestlers in the ultimate test of endurance for the chance to main event Rise To Greatness and challenge for the SCW World Championship is something everyone looks forward to, but especially Glory Braddock this year. She wants to face new challenges and more importantly she would love to get another crack at the SCW World Title, she would love to win it back and actually have a legitimate run with the title, not the cup of coffee reign she had over a year ago. The first step towards achieving that goal is Taking Hold of the Flame and Braddock will have to put everything else out of her mind and focus only on the battle royal. She will also have to be at the top of her game. Getting to the top of her game, especially for a challenge as great as this, isn’t an easy task. In previous years she would look to her famous father, Glenn Braddock, to help her prepare for such a test. Glenn Braddock never failed to prepare her for any challenge that she met in her career and she is certain that her father would have been able to prepare her for this challenge as well.

Unfortunately her father is no longer on this earth. Her father, Glenn Braddock, has passed away. But if she learned anything from her time in England rediscovering herself, she learned to never forget who she is at her core. She may not be able to draw from the wisdom of Glenn Braddock himself, but she does have the next best thing; her father’s best friend, another veteran retired wrestler turned trainer Blake O’Malley. In fact, Blake has even reopened his wrestling gym for prospective wrestlers and current wrestlers who just want to improve their game. Glory is certain that Blake would have no issues helping her prepare for Taking Hold of the Flame. He was there for her when she needed help preparing for Kimberly Williams’s chaotic Trios Cash In. He would no doubt help her again. That’s not the problem. The problem is the fact that Blake is also currently training Matthew Taylor for a potential in ring return. Francis Taylor, Matthew’s sister, had urged Glory to stay away from him. Requesting Blake’s help in preparing for Taking Hold of the Flame could end up causing Glory to once again run into Matthew, leading to further problems between the two.

This is a risk she is willing to take in order to get the proper training and preparation time in for this insane battle royal that is just over a week away. Therefore Glory Braddock finds herself in a pub in Birmingham, England; the pub that Blake O’Malley frequents several times during the week. She is making her way through the pub, wearing denim jeans, sandals, and a purple t-shirt. Her long blonde hair is pulled into a ponytail in the back. The pub is currently quiet, which is rather odd considering the number of people here is quite large. Still, she easily spots her father’s old friend friend Blake sitting in his usual seat at the bar. Braddock smiles warmly as she slowly approaches and sits down in an empty seat next to Blake.

“Fancy seeing you here, Uncle Blake.”

“Fancy seeing me here?” Blake says gruffly. “You should talk. I thought you lived in Miami?”

“Who says you can’t come home?”

“So England is your home?”

“Always will be my home away from home, Blake. You know that.” Glory says. Blake finally smiles before embracing her in a tight hug.

“Of course. It’s great to see you again, love.” The bartender approaches as Glory and Blake break the embrace.

“I’d like a Guiness, mate.” Glory requests. The bartender nods and walks off to fill the order. Glory then turns back to face Blake.

“So to what do I owe the pleasure? You got more questions about your old man?” Blake asks. Glory chuckles and shakes her head.

“Not this time. I need your help for more practical reasons this time. I have a match coming up, a very special match, and I’d like you to help me train for it.”

“Oh yeah?” Blake takes a big sip of his beer. “Is it something normal this time or is it some kinda clusterfuck like the last thing you had me help you with?”

“Sorry, Uncle Blake, but this is far from normal. It’s SCW Taking Hold of the Flame. It’s a battle royal.”

“Bloody hell,” he shakes his head “I always hated battle royals. It’s impossible to watch your back in those damned things. How many are in it?”

“Forty.” Glory answers. Blake sighs.

“Well that makes it even better, now doesn’t it? You DO remember the last multi-person clusterfuck I helped you prepare for, right?”

“I do.”

“And if I recall you ended up getting shoved in a damn crate.”

“I did.”

“And you STILL want me to help you? To train you?” Blake asks with arched brows. “Aren’t ya worried I’ll get ya stuck in another crate?”

“Look, Blake, that wasn’t your fault. That was a trio of brassers jealous of yours truly.” Glory smirks. “Besides, this is just your traditional rumble battle royal type match. Not a no holds barred hardcore match. Nothing unusual about this.”

“And you want me to train you?” Blake asks. Glory nods he head. The bartender returns with the bottle of Guinness for Glory. Glory nods her head.

“Yes, yes I do.” she takes a sip of her drink.

“There’s something different about you.” Blake points out. “First you wanted me to train ya for that hardcore clusterfuck. Now ya want me to train ya for this. What’s with ya, lately, huh?”

“Nothing, honest.” Glory remarks. “Like I said, I needed to rediscover myself and while I was here in England I did just that. I learned who I was at my core. It wasn’t that long ago that I was lost, and I was losing, I was losing because I let my own ego and conceited arrogant self get out of control. I needed to be humbled. And being here, reminding myself of my own beginnings, that humbled me. I needed to be reminded that even I need help once in awhile.” She sighs. “Look, one thing that the Braddock name means more than anything else is competition. This battle royal, Taking Hold of the Flame, there is no bigger competition than this. Sure, if I win I get a shot at the SCW World Championship. That’s certainly in the back of my mind. Ultimately, though, I want to test myself against thirty nine other wrestlers and see if I can prove that I really am among the very best to do it in SCW. And I need your help, Blake.”

“Layin’ it on thick, aren’t ya?” Blake chuckles softly. “Tell ya what, you got yourself a trainer.”

“You’re the best, Uncle Blake!” Glory embraces Blake again in a hug. After breaking the embrace Blake takes another sip of his beer.

“Well, I suppose first we’ll work on the obvious problem of battle royals and that’s expecting the unexpected. You never know how many of these damn fools you’ll have to deal with at one time. Like I said, last time you were in a chaotic situation like that you ended up in a damn crate.”

“Don’t remind me.” Glory rolls her eyes.

“You better remember so you can be better prepared.” Blake points out. “I’ll try to round up as many of my current students, any who want extra credit at least, and see if they’ll volunteer as sparring partners. See how many you can spar with at one time. That could be a good start.”

Glory Braddock is pleased that she recruited Blake O’Malley to assist her in preparing for the upcoming Taking Hold of the Flame battle royal. If anyone can prepare her for such a challenge, it is Blake. She is about to thank him again when she feels hands on her back and neck. Then the hands quickly reach around to try and get a feel of her breasts.

“Bloody hell!” She exclaims as she quickly hops up off of the stool and turns to face the assailant. She is shocked to see it’s Matthew Taylor…a very drunk Matthew Taylor. “Matty?”

“I kne…kne…I knew you couldn’t resist me babe!” He walks forward, closer to her, but she shoves him away.

“Bloody hell, Matt! How many drinks have you had?!”

“Too damn many, that’s for sure.” Blake responds.

“You and I were….meant to…beeee…” Matthew tries to force a kiss on Glory but she elbows him in the gut and pushes him back.

“I told you that this cannot happen!” Glory sighs out of frustration as Matthew lunges forward again and she barely avoids him. “What the hell? You’re too drunk to understand anything!”

“Precisely.” Comes the voice of Blake O’Malley, who takes his empty beer bottle and smashes it over Matthew’s head. Matthew was already nearly ready to pass out from alcohol, this shot to the head made it happen faster as he falls over unconscious at Glory’s feet. Glory gasps as she looks up at Blake.

“Was that necessary?”

“Yeah, it was.” He nods his head. “You said it yourself, he was too bloody drunk to understand or comprehend anything you were saying to him.”

“Oh Matty…” Glory’s voice trails off as she looks down at her fallen friend. Then she looks up at Blake. “...has he been acting like this a lot lately?”

“Come to think of it, yeah,” he nods his head “he has spent a lot more time getting drunk here lately.”

“I think I’m to blame.” Glory says quietly.

“Oh?”

“Matty has feelings for me. I suspected as much but I thought he was over me. But then he recently tried to form that tag team with me.”

“He did mention that.” Blake states. “So that was just a ploy to get back with you?”

“I think so.” Glory nods her head. “I rejected him and the tag team idea. A week and a half ago. He hasn’t been the same since.” Tears form in her eyes. She still feels guilt over what has happened to her friend Matthew. Blake O’Malley can tell that Glory feels upset. He wraps an arm around her shoulder.

“Don’t feel bad, Glory. He did it to himself. He only has himself to blame.”

“Easy for you to say.”

“Look at me.” Blake says sternly. Glory looks up at him. “Focus on the task at hand. Focus on Taking Hold of the Flame. What’s wrong with Matthew is not your fault. Understand?”

“Yeah.” She nods her head. “I hear you.”

“Now come on.” He motions for Glory to follow him. “We have a lot of work to do.”