[Cue it up, foo. Suddenly, the opening chords very familiar to any real basketball fan fill the air.

Eddie: �?NBA on NBC?

[Sort of. It should be noted that the NBA on NBC is filled with a little extra bass�?and heaving breaths of working motivation.

Askin: What the hell is this?

[This slow pace continues for several moments�?until the remix really kicks in, going fully into the chorus of "Heart of a Champion" by Nelly.

PA "Ain’t no way they can, NO! Ain’t no way they can, NO! Ain’t no way they can, NO! Ain’t no way they can, NO! Ain’t no way they can stop me now! ‘Cause I’m on my way, I can feel my ring comin�? It’s the blood of a Champion pumpin�?deep inside my veins, too much pride to be runnin�? I’m gonna get what I can and more, even if my blood, my sweat, and my tears don’t mean nothin�? It’s the heart of a CHAMPIOOOOOOOOON�?�?IN ME!"

[And then the song cuts out.

PA: "Fran- Fran- Franchiiiiiise."

[The entire arena comes to its feet as this is quickly followed by the heavy introduction of "96 Quite Bitter Beings" by CKY... and Ryan FOCKin Cain steps through the curtain.

Eddie: The new World Heavyweight Champion of the Fans�?Wrestling Alliance is here!

Askin: And he has the belt!

[Indeed he does. The FWA World Heavyweight Championship Belt is slung over Ryan Cain’s shoulder�?on W2K Television.

Askin: Hamid must love this.

Eddie: Maybe we should find out why he’s here before we make that assumption.

[Though he does wear that grin on his face�?it seems a bit narrower, for some reason. Ryan starts making his way down the ramp now, toward the ring�?with every eye in the arena pointed at him�?and his belt. Sliding up onto the apron on one knee, Ryan steps through the ropes, into the ring, and pulls a microphone out of his back pocket. The music cuts�?and the audience is all ears.

Ryan: And so, for the first time�?I stand before you�?holding a World Heavyweight Championship Belt. For the first time�?I stand in this arena�?bearing one of the most coveted Titles in the wrestling world. For the first time in *history*�?I stand in a W2K Ring�?in front of a W2K Crowd�?the Heavyweight�?Champion�?of the World!

[The fans all cheer at this, and Ryan lowers his head slightly.)

Ryan: Then we come to the problems surrounding the entire situation. We come to the reasons behind the fact that, standing here as the World Heavyweight Champion�?having finally attained one of my lifelong dreams�?I’m not extremely happy. Sure, I came out here with some triumphant new music or whatever�?but that’s only because I’m a natural showman and I can’t help myself, as you all surely know, by now. But the fact is�?from Hamid Ismaili�?to Nic E. Dangerously�?to the FWA Roster refusing to trust me or even respect me as their Champion�?even to the fact that, yes, this is a World Heavyweight Title Belt�?but it isn’t the W2K Championship Belt�?all this isn’t as amazing as it was always supposed to be. And to those people I have to thank for that�?they can believe it when I say, they’ve got it coming. They’d better have their asses covered at all times, because when they least expect it�?well, we’ve seen that story unfold a thousand times before.

[Ryan takes a deep breath now, seemingly contemplating and going over and over something in his head.

Ryan: And then there’s the question I’ve been asked a million times over. "What side are you on, Ryan?" Where do I stand? Where the hell do I stand in this ridiculous war? And I now realize that I’ve reached the point where I can’t ride the fence any longer. I can’t pretend it isn’t all going on around me. As much as I hate to do it�?I have to choose.

[He takes his belt from his shoulder�?and stares down into its face�?looking into his own eyes.

Eddie: Which side is it, Ryan?

Ryan: So I look not only into myself�?but into the reflection presented by this piece of gold I’ve sought after for so long. I stare into it�?dive into its meaning�?its conceptual existence�?and I find nothing but the FWA World Heavyweight Champion. I realize that, in winning this belt�?I was assigned the duty of representing an entire body of people. When those wrestlers in the Fans�?Wrestling Alliance think of the current face of the dreams they’ve longed for since they started out in their careers�?they see only my fire-filled eyes.

Eddie: Wha-�?What does this mean?

[The arena seems cast in a haze.)

Ryan: I am�?the FWA World Heavyweight Champion.

Askin: Oh, come on.

Ryan: But to this day�?to this very focking moment�?

[Ryan’s mood seems to take on an upward swinging action�?and his energy starts to rise to new heights as he looks out into the fans, turning to face all of them one side at a time.

Ryan: �?I eat�?I drink�?I sleep, I sweat, I bleed, and I focking CRY Wrestling 2000!

[Cue the eruption from the crowd.)

Ryan: Cross was right when he said no matter where my body went�?my heart never left this W2K Ring. The more things change, the more they stay the same�?and this has stayed the focking same. Any FWA wrestler that wants a shot at *my* belt�?step up and ask for it, and it’s yours. I’m not going to hold this belt hostage�?but I *am* going to represent my home. How could I ever turn my back? Wrestling 2000 is where I belong, even if the president needs a foot stuck in his mouth. I’m not fighting for him�?and I’m sure as hell not holding this Title Belt for him. I’m fighting for myself�?and for the few friends I have here. I’m fighting and holding this World Heavyweight Championship Belt�?for every single one of you focking people that have supported me since day one!

[Ryan grins real wide out at the crowd around him�?and tosses his Championship Belt over his shoulder, once more.)

Ryan: The scales just tipped like never before.

[His music rocks the house, once more, as he drops the microphone to the canvas and exits the ring.)

Eddie: Ryan Cain is W2K! Ryan Cain is Wrestling 2000!

Askin: I never thought I’d be glad to hear that.