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It was the latter half of December, 2012. A week before Christmas. And there was trouble brewing. Trouble of the kind that required a rare full-locker-room, but-there's-no-show-tonight meeting.

 

"So, I know you're all wondering why I called you here today. But if I'm right, you can take a guess."

 

The Coastal Zone Championship Wrestling figurehead, Fox Mask, was speaking. In his role as long-time veteran, he was the de-facto locker room leader. Good old Fox. The others put him on a pedestal, and he's spent his career thinking he's better than he really is because of it. And he wonders why Japan hasn't come beating down his door.

 

"Yeah. My check for the last show bounced."

 

Carlos Barrera, one of the rookies, was the first to speak his mind -- as usual, from what I've heard. He could be fun to work with... or a pain in my ass. Either way, I was looking forward to it. The others in the room, rookies and vets alike, those I knew and those who I would need to learn about, nodded.

 

"That's what I thought," replied Fox. "I talked to the accountants, and the money is there. We're not bankrupt. It looks like it was just some sort of administrative issue. We just--"

 

The door opened, and in walked the promotion's owner, Cliff Anderson. Walked may be the wrong word. He shuffled in. Quietly. Meekly. Like a mouse into a room full of cats. All eyes were on him. The cats didn't realize there was an alpha dog waiting in the wings.

 

"I, uh... hi."

 

"Cliff... what's going on?"

 

"... I didn't want you to find out like this. I was going to tell you. But by the time I found out... well, it was too late. I guess, first thing's first, you -will- get paid. Good checks will go out tomorrow. But, uh... they won't have my signature on them."

 

"Why not?"

 

Cliff sighed. "Some of you who've been here a while know that, years ago, there was an... incident. What you don't know is that there have been lawsuits involved. And earlier this month... a lawyer found a loophole in someone's old contract. Combined with a few other things... I am no longer the owner of CZCW. Guru... you're out as head booker, too, I'd imagine."

 

Turmoil. Everyone talking over each other. Chaos. I loved it. Their world had just turned upside down. It took a few moments for Fox to get everyone calmed down enough to ask the questions on everyone's mind.

 

"How did this... nevermind. Is it... who I think it is, Cliff?"

 

Cliff, that bitter old man, simply nodded in defeat. It was time. No music, no pyro, but this would be the most dramatic entrance I'd made in years as I opened the locker-room door and strode inside.

 

"That's right, Foxy-baby. I'm back, I'm the boss, and I'm the booker. Cliff has always been content with his own little corner of the country... I look back on our glory days and say, that was a mistake. I say, we can be greatness personified. I say, it's time to make changes. You can leave if you don't like it... but I'm officially telling you all that you're welcome to stay here..."

 

My name is Charles Weston. I've had other names... E.M.M.Moe. Citizen X. But now, they'll just call me... Boss.

 

"Welcome... to Coastal Zone Combat Wrestling."

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(OOC: Fair warning, it's been about a year since I last played TEW (My aborted attempt to do a USPW diary that didn't even see a single show) and just over two years since my last actually-played-on-a-regular-basis game. So expect the typical Infinity-ness as I struggle to remember what I've forgotten and get used to the new game.)

 

"Now, Cliff and I never really saw eye to eye. You all know that... or have heard the stories. The fact is, he has a scout's eye for talent, but a miser's grip on the purse-strings. Me, I believe in paying for talent. You show me you can go, I'll show you I can pay.

 

"Because I am not content being "The Indy's Indy". Cliff was content. He was scared. He joins this alliance with MAW, with NYCW, so he doesn't have to worry about expanding east. 4C, so he doesn't have the option of going north, and OLLIE, so he can't go south. I refuse to see those four as obstacles. They're tools to be used to help us grow. There are people there that will want to join us. We'll welcome them. If anyone wants to see what the grass is like on the other side of the hill, say so; you can go work a few shows for them, no recriminations... because you'll see that my way is better."

 

"Big talk, Chuck," Fox replied, "But we know your track record. You don't get your way, you take your ball and go home. You going to take the Zone away from us if we don't play ball?"

 

"Foxy, Foxy, Foxy... of course I will. What promoter wouldn't? But the fact is... the Zone is weak. How many scouts have come to the shows in the last year? That light at the end of the tunnel you saw when you heard about Black Canvas Grappling... did they ever come see you? Anyone here? No. Because the Zone refused to change with the times. You used to be innovative and breathtaking. Now, everyone does the **** you guys do. You're all has-beens and never-weres.

 

"We're changing that. We're working in a bit more comedy, and we're working in a lot more fighting. The Combat is coming back to Coastal Zone Combat Wrestling. Because if we don't... well, there's these two little feds that cater to brawls that're just -begging- to take our place as the king of the Southwest.

 

"Tell me I'm wrong, Foxy. Go on."

 

"... You're wrong, Chuck. The Zone is the Zone. We may not be internationally known, we may not know how to rock a microphone, but we're not stupid. We're outrageou... ****, I'm quoting song lyrics, aren't I."

 

"... Yes. Yes, you are. But keep that. I like that. Anyway... all I ask, is you give me one show. You don't like it, you can leave. But, Fox?"

 

"Yeah?"

 

"It's you and me, next show. You don't bring everything you got... I may just replace you with some talented warehouse punk who has a chance of getting to the big leagues before he's thirty."

 

I really wished I had some aloe on hand to offer Mark for that burn...

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For those of you who don't know the Coastal Zone:

 

CZCW is the Eternal Indy: They never get big, they never die. But they've consistently turned out quality fliers and wrestlers who eventually go on to do great things. Face and Heel are meaningless here; it's all about who can turn out the best performance and get the crowd up off their butts and cheering.

 

Their Main Eventers are Fox Mask (The everpresent Vet), Mikey James (The Dragon and CZCW Champion), Donnie J (The big-league has-been), and Masked Cougar (The Indy Darling). Oh, and Citizen X, the new owner and head booker.

 

The uppercard is rounded out with Remmy Skye (the Druggie), Marc Speed (The Technician), Matt Sparrow (The Wanna-Be), Frankie Perez (The No-Nonsense Fighter).

 

For the midcard, we have American Flash (Mentorless Lucha Wanna-Be), Air Attack Weasel (The Fun-Lover), Jackpot Jordan (The Lucky One), Al Coleman (Mr. Submission), and California Love Machine (The... well, Love Machine).

 

The rest of the card is made up of Jake Idol (Jackpot's Tag Partner), Jonnie Perez (Frankie's Brother), Frankie-Boy Fernandez (The Fanboy), Miguel Rivera and Carlos Barrera (The Gangsters), and Waylon Walls (... Also a Gangster).

 

We have two valets, Willow (Managing Al Coleman), and Britney (for Donnie J). Your ref is Pee-Wee Germain, with Dylan Sidle working as a road agent.

 

Your announce team is Cliff Anderson and The Guru... And neither one can be too happy with how things worked out.

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January 2013, Week 1

CZCW Revolution

Grissom Auditorium

 

Ah, an apt name. Almost as if I planned it. l Coleman is telling people I'm goin to love him and push him once I see what he's capable of. I like the kid. The rest of the locker room... they don't seem to.

 

I sketch out the show beforehand, and the locker room seems to agree with it... but afterwards, Fox walks up to me with a smirk. I knew Cliff was a coward... but I didn't know he was so scared of losing Fox he offered him a damn Creative Control clause.

 

"You realize, I could just fire you?"

 

"Before the show? With everyone knowing what you did? You're an egomaniac, Chuck, but you're not stupid."

 

"Fine. You'll get the win. But won't pull this crap on me again, or I -will- fire your furry-masked ass. Got it?"

 

-------------

 

We start the show with a tag-team match, a hardcore tag team match -- in fact, most every match will now be without rules. This is basicly the guys I didn't have anything else for tonight, with The Perez Brothers taking on Speedball and Sparrow. It's a decent match, and the brothers work well together, but the crowd is really tearing into Jonnie for some reason. Sparrow gets the win by pinning Jonnie. Everyone complains about not liking hardcore matches afterwards -- but they'll just have to learn. (D)

 

I have Frankie-Boy get a win over Waylon Wells, and my god... these two absolutely suck. And the crowd really doesn't like Waylon. (F)

 

I come out and spend some time explaining how I'm in charge now, and things are going to be a bit more... high-impact. The crowd laps it up... or maybe they're just glad the last match is over (D-)

 

Donnie J and Remmy Skye get a tables match, and it's as good as our opener; Donnie gets the win because I have plans for him, and I'm starting to see why he's got his girlfriend working as a valet. (D)

 

The Xtreme Title is next, and as per tradition it's a ladder match. Air Attack Weasel, Al Coleman, California Love Machine, and American Flash. And... it's not a -horrid- match, but I swear, if this is what passes for the Zone's midcard, I need to do a lot of housecleaning around here. Coleman wins... what can I say, I like a braggart... (E+)

 

A hardcore tag match is next, with Notorious (Barerra & Rivera) vs Rich & Famous (Idol & Jordan). See my comments for last match. Copy. Paste here. Crowd doesn't like Rivera. Too bad. (E+)

 

Next up is me and Fox, no rules... y'know, I'm going to get bored with saying that. All matches are hardcore matches unless I say otherwise, okay? I've got enough work to do without typing that out all this time. We turn out another decent match, and Fox gets his win... after Donnie J runs out and beans me with a chair. See, Donnie I'm fairly sure is willing to job out to me. (D)

 

Donnie and I bicker back and forth afterwards, with Donnie declaring himself the head of the Zone Resistance. And we set up a match for next month. The crowd likes this idea (C-).

 

And finally, our main event ladder match for the CZCW Title. If you've been keeping track, you know it's Mikey James defending against Masked Cougar. Now, this is the sort of thing I remember from the Zone... a nice, good match with a few nice ladder spots. Mikey retains, but I make a note: Both men have their jobs saved tonight. (D+)

 

Final show rating: D

Attendance: 2,000.

 

Afterwards, I make a speech, complementing Mikey and Cougar, and telling Fox he used to be able to do better. We'll see if we can knock Fox down a few pegs...

 

----------------

 

Next time, on the Coastal Zone: CZCW Vendetta comes around, and Citizen X reveals his next big change for the Zone. Are people being fired? Who's being hired? And will the writer make any huge mistakes (well, beyond tinkering with the product in strange and arcane ways)?

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Speaking of product, what changes have you made? At least from reading it seems like cult and hardcore, maybe risque too, have gone up?

 

Key - Modern

Heavy - Cult, Daredevil

Medium - Comedy, Hardcore, Lucha, Realism, Mainsteam

Low - Traditional, Risque

Very Low - Pure

 

Basicly, the Zone with the technical parts somewhat de-emphasized and the daredevil/hardcore elements brought to the forefront. And yes, I'm betting sponsorship is going to alternate between sucking and blowing.

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Over the next few weeks, I take a hard look at the roster. I know who I want to bring in. The question is... which of these wastes of a paycheck do I cut loose?

 

One possible factor: Jackpot Jordan has gotten into multiple wars of words with Sidle over the last few days. The two aren't speaking; not even to go over matches. Cocky youngster who thinks he knows better than a retired old man?

 

... I like this kid. Note to self, push Rich & Famous.

 

Jake Idol is pissed at me over losing his match last month.

 

Note to self, don't push Rich & Famous.

 

We have a handful of new signees. I bring in FCW's Hell's Bouncer (Who will tower over everyone) and WLW's Hell Monkey (Let's face it, I've got to admire anyone who can get that gimmick over). The former, due to his skills; the latter, due to his being someone who's the same age as Fox and made it big in Japan, unlike Fox. Y'know... rub his face in it. I also need people who can fly while teaching the rest of these spot-monkeys how to do hardcore. Thus, welcome Little Bill Lebowski (PSW's token flier) and Kid Toma (He's a bit young for a has-been... but he'll be able to show these guys he means business).

 

Now, these guys are expensive, so we've got to cut some chaff. First up, Dylan Sidle is gone; The Guru will be our road agent. Cliff is also gone; we'll hire a new announcer, Sammy Curran. Everyone else except Donnie, Cougar, and Mikey are warned: Their jobs depend on their performance this month... and in March, we’re moving to two shows a month. Anyone who thinks they can’t keep up is welcome to leave.

 

GSW made an offer to The Guru. He wasn’t as upset at losing the booker position as I had thought, as he was willing to stay on with us. I didn’t mind him picking up more work. They also go after Remmy and Frankie Perez. Them... hrm. I may need to schedule shows the same day as GSW. Strictly so my boys don’t get too tired, of course. They also steal four workers from IPW. Interesting.

 

The USPW Experiment is over, as they fall to Cult. And we only lost a bit over two grand -- not too shabby.

 

 

February 2013, Week 1

CZCW Vendetta

Grissom Auditorium

 

Donnie J informs me that he, too, has creative control and does not wish to lose to me. Fine. New plan. How many people did Cliff think he needed to impress here, anyway?

 

We open with a triangle Tag Team Title ladder match: Going Coastal (Champions CLM and Frankie-Boy), Notorious, and Rich & Famous. It’s not that bad of a match... okay, it is... but it does its job as Idol grabs the titles and we have tag team champions I like: One reminds me of me, the other doesn’t like me. (D-)

 

Next, we introduce Little Bill Lebowski with a win over Jonnie Perez. Crowd still doesn’t like Jonnie, and it shows. (E-)

 

I come out to speak for awhile on how you’d better enjoy the show -- some of these people won’t be here next time. I toss out some names to see the crowd reaction. (D)

 

I put Fox and Cougar in a match; it looks like last month’s match was either all Mikey James, or I really carried Fox to a good match. This sucked. Cougar wins, and to be honest, I’m thinking I should just fire Fox. (E+) Both men, of course, blame the fact that they don’t do Hardcore. I say, they’ve got to learn.

 

We introduce Hell Monkey with a debut title win over Al Coleman in a ladder match for the Xtreme title. That’s right, Al. I giveth, I taketh away. Our best match of the night so far. (D)

 

Another intro match, with Kid Toma defeating Air Attack Weasel. That name sucks when the ‘A’ key on your keyboard doesn’t work all the time. The match is bad, and these two should feel bad. I’ll blame Weasel. (E)

 

In a random four-way harcore match, we have American Flash, Speedball, and Sparrow all lose to Hell’s Bouncer. Not the best match, but an improvement. (E+)

 

Then, on to the big stuff. Me vs Donnie J, and I get a better match from Donnie than I did from Fox. Donnie, of course, refuses to lose, so Fox runs in and attacks me, letting Donnie win (D+). The two continue to attack me, only for me to be saved by Frankie Perez, and we set up a match for next month. If I don’t fire Fox and Donnie. (D)

 

Then, in the main event, CZCW Title, Ladder match, Mikey takes on Remmy Skye. Good match, not great, and Mikey retains. (D+)

 

Show rating: D+

Attendence: 1,717 tickets.

 

No speech tonight -- I need to plan March’s two shows. And decide who the hell I’m going to fire.

 

Next time, on the Coastal Zone: That didn’t take long... our first injury! Who is it? Who did it? Who gets fired? And will we come up with a snappy name for our second show of March?

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We finished #2 in the regional battle last month; AAA is apparently better-liked than us. I blame Cliff and his stick-in-the-mud policies for that. We’ll fix the damage he’s done soon.

 

Ah, our first injury. I was waiting for that. Hell Monkey hurt his hips. I won’t blame Coleman for it... this time. Espectially since he’ll be fine in time for the next show.

 

In worse news, BHOTWG wants Mikey James. It’s just a touring contract, but it might make scheduling interesting, cutting out three days a week.

 

IPW makes an offer to Fox Mask. I decide I won’t fire him yet. Better to see if I can make him quit. He always was Cliff’s lapdog... They also want Cougar. And Donnie J. In other words, they’re desperate after GSW stole some of their guys. If I could afford it, I’d buy one of them so I could teach people how to wrestle hardcore. Also, MAW asked to borrow Mikey for a bit. Hey, why not? They had him challenge Cameron Vessey for the Mid-Atlantic Title. He failed, of course -- but it was a C- match, so I’ve got some faith in him staying as our champion.

 

We make an offer to a 37-year-old rookie named Karl Reed. (OOC: We have random workers turned on from the get-go. Why? Two words: Victor St. Hubbins. If you don’t know what I’m talking about... I feel old.) Why? Because I’m fairly sure I’m going to be ditching one of our jobbers, and I want a replacement.

 

Speaking of which: American Flash is gone. Don’t like him. Not performing well.

 

(OOC: The American Indy show gets a D+ based off of Cahill/Stink vs Grunt/Ota C- main event. I suddenly don’t feel like I’m doing nearly as well as I should... The freakin’ one-shot indies would be beating us in a regional battle...)

 

SWF falls to National. Did not see that coming. When did they grow past it?

 

Our first (Well, not our, but the game’s) major injury: Casey Valentine has broken his neck. Which is odd, as he hasn’t worked in a month. Must’ve been a training accident. Or someone forgot to spot him at the gym.

 

We didn’t do as well this month; #3 in the region. AAA and GSW both beat us. Yeah... it was war with GSW then. We’ve lost four grand, but we were still good for a couple years, and honestly... it was Cliff’s money. Well, my money now, but I didn’t work for it.

 

We rework the schedule a bit. Uprising will be held the same day as GSW’s show. The new event, Hostility, will be the same day as IPW’s show. It meant Mikey James wouldn’t be available for one of them due to his BHOTWG tour... but that wouldn’t be a problem.

 

March 2012, Week 2

CZCW Uprising

Grissom Auditorium

 

The backstage is a bit chaotic. Kid Toma is doing impressions. Donnie J has decided to teach California Love Machine a few things. And somehow the newest member of the Zone, Karl Reed, is singing showtunes with Fox Mask. Showtunes. Seriously. I... have no words. Except to consider making that Fox’s gimmick.

 

We open the show with an Xtreme Title match between... wait, what do you mean Al Coleman is still... I forgot to put the title on the line last week? Dammit. Okay, hold that thought. It’ll just be a regular ladder match for... um, a... contract of some sort... between Kid Toma and California Love Machine. Turns out they don’t work well together. The match isn’t... well, bad, but nowhere near good either. Toma wins, and now I need to decide what that contract is for. (D-)

 

Little Bill Lebowski beats Jonnie Perez. Jonnie doesn’t seem to be learning anything from him. (E)

 

I come out and talk for a bit (D), which is the highlight of the night so far.

 

I rectify the earlier Xtreme Title snafu by having Al Coleman lose it to Hell Monkey. I mean, he’s a big monkey! What’s not to love about that? Well... the match, I guess. (D-)

 

We get a short and ugly match as Notorious falls to Rich & Famous as the champs retain their titles. This one is... well, just plain ugly. (E)

 

Hells Bouncer defeats Air Attack Weasel, and it’s still a bad match -- which means my match is going to look even better by comparison (E-)

 

It’s me and Frankie Perez against Fox Mask and Donnie J. Neither of them want to lose, and neither do I, so Frankie eats table, but I almost put both of the Zone favorites through tables on my own. (D-)

 

And, in the main event, Mikey defends against Cougar -and- Skye. It’s the match of the night, but I’m thinking we can do better here... somehow... Mikey retains, which means our next show will have no CZCW Title match. I’ll think of something... (D+)

 

Show rating: D

Attendance: 1,545 tickets.

 

Jake Idol doesn’t want to re-sign his contract. Guess I know who’s losing the tag titles next show...

 

… hrm. I have an idea.

 

On the next Coastal Zone: The stupidest idea for a gimmick, given to the worst possible candidate. Could it actually *gasp* work? Will Citizen X force Donnie J and Fox Mask out of the Zone? Or will two shows a month threaten to drive the Zone into bankruptcy twice as fast?

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(OOC: The American Indy show gets a D+ based off of Cahill/Stink vs Grunt/Ota C- main event. I suddenly don’t feel like I’m doing nearly as well as I should... The freakin’ one-shot indies would be beating us in a regional battle...)

 

Probably the hardcore matches hurting the grade. ;)

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Probably the hardcore matches hurting the grade. ;)

 

Hrm, y'think? But Citizen X refuses to accept that it's a stupid idea. For all his talk about the Zone, he's actually confident that the people there can learn to work a more hardcore style. They just need his help and guidance, that's all.

 

-------------

 

March 2012, Week 3

CZCW Hostility

Grissom Auditorium

 

Okay, time for my brilliant idea. I come out and say that there’s a few people I’m upset with... so tonight, we’ll open with a Tag Team Title match, where the losing team will be broken up because someone will be fired. (E+)

 

And that match is Rich & Famous defending against... Fox Mask & Kit? Kit? Who's Kit? Let me explain. We’ve got big Karl Reed. 37 years old and a rookie. He can’t fly. He can punch, kind of. He’s big. So I put one of Fox’s old masks on him and he’s now Fox’s sidekick, Kit. Which is, of course, the term for a young fox. And he's several years olde than Fox.

 

See, I'm going for irony here. To make Fox look bad. Yes, I'm trying to Adam West him. Sort of.

 

The new team wins, and the match isn’t actually that bad... the two have excellent chemistry. Which, of course, I knew would happen. And Idol will probably be leaving us after this one. (D)

 

Donnie J gets a handicap match against Waylon and Frankie-Boy. Which he wins. The jobbers work horrible together, the crowd hates Waylon, he’s not learning... but he’s cheap! (E+)

 

Hell Monkey’s first Xtreme Title defense against someone I know can hang with him, so it’s Little Bill’s chance at the limelight. The two steal the show, putting on good match that hopefully puts the ‘original Zoners’ on notice. Monkey retains the title, Bill retains his job. (D+)

 

Up next, California Love Machine gets some mic time, announcing that he’s decided to hire a bouncer to weed out the nobodys who want access to Club CLM... and that is Hell’s Bouncer (C ). The two then have a tag match against The Shoot Club. Speedball and Coleman fall to the new pairing, even though the match isn’t as good as I had hoped (E+) as nobody seems to be learning how to work hardcore.

 

A random tag match, as The Perez Boys get a win over Notorious. For the crowd not liking half of each team, it’s not that bad a match. If notorious wasn’t cheap, and if this match hadn’t been decent... they’d be gone. (D-)

 

For main events, we have Kid Toma defeat Masked Cougar in a bit of a disappointment (D-), and then I defeat Remmy Skye in a good match... that was overshadowed by Monkey and Bill (D).

 

Show rating: D

Attendance: 1,583 tickets

 

We might be in trouble. IPW pulled off a D+. AAA probably did better. GSW did a D, so that’s a toss-up. I need to light a fire under people to learn the new style, ASAP... Our tactic of scheduling our shows for the same days as the competition appeared to be not working. We’d try it again in April... but if that didn’t work...

 

Yeap. Dead last. Time to pull out all the stops. Even if we start losing more money -- Twice as much last month as the last two months combined. We keep this up, we'll be a laughingstock. Well, more than we already are.

 

Next time, on the Coastal Zone: Chemistry issues rear their ugly heads. Backstage arguements. Will we continue our slide into losing money? It can't possibly be because Citizen X is throwing tons of cash around to hire people, can it? And will we finally be able to beat the upstart Warehouse promotions at their own game?

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So I put one of Fox’s old masks on him and he’s now Fox’s sidekick, Kit. Which is, of course, the term for a young fox. And he's several years olde than Fox.

 

See, I'm going for irony here. To make Fox look bad. Yes, I'm trying to Adam West him. Sort of.

 

Citizen x is officially my favorite character you have ever portrayed in "Welcome." Keep up the awesome.

 

Also, is there any correlation between your in game post show speeches and the ones you write about?

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