The video begins and we see an excited looking Syren in the middle of the picture. From the background it once again looks like her home in Malibu, California, and she’s got a spring in her step as she holds the camera in front of herself, walking around the living room area and out to the kitchen as she speaks. It’s entirely possible, based on her appearance, that she’s just come off a workout. “Hey guys. So, it’s Wednesday morning. Let me say that again, it’s Wednesday morning. I’m in Malibu. Tonight is the biggest night of my life. I’m totally freaking out. Um, in a few hours I’m going to be in front of twenty thousand people in the STAPLES Center, in my hometown, fighting for an opportunity a year in the making, and I’m going to be totally honest with you guys right now at this moment in time I’m having a hard time looking past tonight. Like, my focus is right on tonight, you know? I am pumped. I am psyched. Ok, little disappointed in what Amy thinks of me and the fact that she trash-talked me pretty hard with her wrong opinions about me but whatever, you know? She’s entitled to be wrong if that’s her thing. That’s not going to break my focus on tonight. NOTHING is going to break my focus on tonight,” she says before pausing for a moment and biting her bottom lip in uncertainty. “Ok, well, I actually do have a problem with that though. You see nothing for me is going to be bigger than tonight. But, when tonight is over, win, lose or draw – you know, win I’m hoping but, you know – I know a few things for certain. First of those things is middle of the night I’m at the airport. First thing tomorrow morning I’m landing in Buffalo. No matter what happens tonight Best of the Best is happening in the First Niagara Center.”

She pauses for a moment and laughs again. “Wow, that’s weird to think about, but it’s true. No matter what happens tonight, no matter how much we tear each other apart, no matter how much we tear the STAPLES Center down tonight I’m still on a plane in the middle of the night tonight and I’m preparing for Best of the Best and… that’s my life right now. World title opportunity I’ve busted my ass for, followed immediately by tournament where fifteen different people are hoping they can kick my ass, and that’s just in Buffalo,” she says before laughing and shrugging at the camera. “That’s my life, guys. That’s how crazy stuff is. But you know what? I love it! I’d say I wouldn’t change it for anything but that’s not true, I’d TOTALLY add a few days in between if I could change it. But I can’t, so this is what we’re doing, and you want to know how many complaints you’re going to get from me? Zero. I didn’t complain when I was put through a table and I dragged my ass up and a few days later was battling the biggest asshat on the roster, who’s also one of the toughest son of a bitches on the roster, only to then face a giant guy and… well, that’s my life, guys! And while I’m one thousand percent focused on Breakdown tonight – Ravyn is over there and if she tells me you can’t be one thousand percent focused on something I may throw the camera at her – I know that tomorrow I’m going to be picking myself up no matter what and fighting again, so let’s talk about that a little, shall we?”

She pauses for a moment before taking in a deep breath and smiling again. “Wow, where do you even start? Can you tell that I haven’t planned this? I just literally don’t think I’m going to get any time between now and the start of the tournament so, you know, making do with what I have. I guess you start by talking about Best of the Best itself. I guess you start by talking about last year, about this amazing concept introduced to find sixty-four of the toughest wrestlers on the planet, put them in four different locations and tell them the only way to get to the end is to fight one another. And I hear this year there are people who don’t want to fight because they’re ‘tag team wrestlers’ or whatever, and to that I just have to ask are you guys even serious? You’re given a spot in the biggest tournament in wrestling – and I don’t think I’m exaggerating here, this is sixty-four fucking people including champions from other promotions, or at least one other promotion – and you say you don’t want it? Really?” she asks before rolling her eyes and shaking her head. “You know I try not to judge people based on their beliefs, or their lifestyle choices, or their gender, or their sexual preference, or anything like that, but I’m pretty sure that I can safely judge both of the ‘Sisterhood’ for being completely up their own asses. But whatever, you know? Take your ball and go home. The rest of us are staying. Some of us have the biggest nights of our LIVES tonight and we’re still doing this tomorrow so… whatever, I don’t even have the words for that.”

She sighs. “Where was I? Oh, right, last year! Last year this concept began and it was universally hailed as one of the greatest things SCW ever did, and the bar is already stupidly high on that. This year we’re doing it again. Four cities. Sixty-four people. The best wrestling on the planet. And all to find out who is the Best of the Best. It’s that simple. And guys you know there are a lot of things in thus business I haven’t done, right? I haven’t competed in a Shot of Adrenaline tournament. I haven’t competed in a Challenge Series. And in spite of what I have done, like, you know, main eventing Rise to Greatness, there are two things that I want desperately to be able to say I’ve done. The first is win at Taking Hold of the Flame. You guys know what that means to me. You know what that concept means to me. You know what that match means to me. It’s so much more than just a title shot on the line. It’s immortality. And the other is win Best of the Best, because that’s even bigger than immortality,” she says before laughing again. “C’mon, you know I’m right. Last year’s winner was David Helms. Can anyone say he didn’t deserve it? I lost to the guy in the semi-final and I couldn’t. Sure, I hated him for it. Well, I already hated him for other stuff, and loved him… seriously, we have a lot of stuff I’m not talking about here… and yet even I couldn’t say he didn’t earn it! He did. You win this tournament, you go through six rounds, constantly facing better opponents, constantly needing to up your game, constantly needing to fight for survival, and you come out on top? If you look up ‘earn it’ in the dictionary I’m pretty sure THAT is the definition!”

“And the fact is that I can’t talk about last year without talking about David Helms, because last year he did beat me and last year there was nothing I wanted more in the world than to do well, to prove myself, to WIN Best of the Best and it didn’t happen. Last year David ended my dreams. Then he up and retired and left us all fighting without him, and when you think about SCW right now – I spoke about it on Monday – then you know what he left behind. You know the chaos he left behind. But Best of the Best is a chance to put that aside. Best of the Best is a night not about domination and kidnapping and blood and monsters and everything wrong with wrestling, Best of the Best is about fight, determination, skill, perseverance and everything RIGHT about the sport I love,” she says with a nod. “Last year David ended my dream. This year though I look at the brackets and my first thought is that he’s trying to do it to me again by proxy! I mean seriously, he is, isn’t he? Because this year I open this thing up in the first round going up against a kid named Connor Green, the breakout star of David’s students, the guy who fought his way here, the guy who earned his spot in this tournament in the most impressive way and, you know, I can only applaud Connor for that. He fought his way here and now he gets to experience the insanity and majesty that is Best of the Best, and it’s going to be nuts. You know that, right Connor? It’s going to be completely nuts! And it’s you and me in the first round and… well, I’m not sure which one of us has the worst luck.”

She thinks about that for a moment, her light-hearted smile still on her face as she does. “Do you want to say you? Do you want to say me? It’s a tough call. I mean on the one hand you’ve got this ‘rookie kid’ who’s going up against a former three-time – soon to be four-time, super confident statement right there – World Champion and you’ve got to think that he had to look at the draw, think about fighting his way here, and immediately curse his luck for that happening. Then you flip it around and you’ve got a woman who has NO time to prepare for this tournament – and I don’t, I’m fighting Amy Chastaine in, like, eight and a half hours and every bit of my preparation has been for that – who’s going into this thing blind while you’ve got preparing you two of the greatest World Champions in history, two of the greatest men to have ever laced up their boots, not just in my friend, my often-times training partner, and a guy who knows me stupidly well in Thomas Valentine but also my ex-boyfriend, one of my biggest rivals, one of the best who ever lived, the guy who knocked me out of this thing LAST year, the guy who’s eliminated me from tournaments before that, and a guy who gave me confidence in myself and taught me a whole lot as well, David Helms. So, you know, when it comes to ‘knowing your opponent’ I can’t help but wonder if I’m going into this thing against Connor Green with him knowing me better than I know myself and me knowing… um…” she says before laughing again, “…that his name is Connor Green?”

She laughs again before shaking her head. “I’m kidding guys. I know more than that. But not much more. That’s kind of scary too. But it’s scary for all the right reasons. It’s scary because this is so unknown, it’s so very different, it’s someone I have total love for despite the fact I’ve never met him just because of where he came from and what I know he has to represent as a result of that, and I can say without doubt that it’ll be an absolute honour to fight him. I can also tell you, without any doubt, that if David is trying to beat me again by proxy he’s in for a fight, because this is Best of the Best and I’m the Best Female Wrestler in the World and Second to No Man, so this is going to be fun,” she says with a nod and another smile. “And I know that that could be it for me. First round, rookie sensation, boom, Syren is eliminated, Internet goes nuts with ‘well she sucks anyway’ tweets from Regan Street fans and… probably from Regan Street too. But let’s assume it’s not, ok? Let’s assume that I keep going. Let’s assume that I beat Connor Green in the first round. It won’t be easy, but it gets kind of boring from this point if we don’t assume that, so without any disrespect to Connor let’s talk about what happens next. Well, that’s round two. That’s Blake Mason or… you guessed it, AJ Helms. Like I said, eliminating me by proxy, I swear that’s actually a thing! But maybe it’s not. Because maybe this is Blake’s year. It could be, right? He’s always had the potential to make it his. Why couldn’t he do it right here?”

“Now I know you guys might be expecting a tirade from me about Blake because we’ve got history but you’re not going to get that. Yes, he says stupid things on social media. Do I think he means them? No. I think his fingers react before his brain does. But whatever he tweets about doesn’t change the fact that Blake is and always has been one of the best wrestlers on this roster. There is a reason when he walked out after Rise to Greatness a few years ago that I put the World title on the line to him and it’s not because I thought ‘oh, this will be easy’, it’s because I saw in him a guy who’d never had that chance, who’d never had that opportunity, who’d worked hard for it, who’d come close to it, and who deserved it! And that’s what I’m about. I’m not about belittling people and calling them flukes or telling them I’m better than them and claiming they lose on purpose. Hi Amy,” she says, waving jokingly. “I’m about opportunity. I’m about giving those who deserve it a chance. And Blake deserves it. There’s every chance it’s him in the second round. But there’s also every chance that it’s not, that it’s AJ Helms, that it’s the kid following in the biggest footsteps there were ever to follow in, and what better way to announce yourself and prove yourself against the belittling of the likes of the Monarchy than going all the way, winning Best of the Best, and guaranteeing the only people who’ve ever won this tournament are named ‘Helms’? That could happen guys. Everything I said about Connor Green goes double for AJ Helms after all!”

She nods her head purposefully before continuing. “Ok, so he’s not got the genetics. But fuck genetics. My dad’s a doctor. My mom’s a former teacher. I’m the Best Female Wrestler in the World. I know I said that already. I’m saying it again. Bite me. It proves my point. Genetics can get you places, maybe, but so can learning from the best. That’s why I’m here. Ivy Knight. Lucas Knight. CHBK. David Helms. Tommy Valentine. They’re just five of the people who’ve influenced me, who’ve taught me, who’ve helped me, and two of them are moulding AJ Helms into the man we all want him to be. Does he have a chance? You bet your ass! But then look at the bracket and tell me who doesn’t. Seriously, fans in Buffalo, you guys are being treated to some of the BEST IN THE WORLD in this tournament. Guys I haven’t even mentioned yet? Ok. Simon Lyman. Jake Starr. Katelyn Buehler. Red Rayne. Greg Cherry. Nicole Kinneck. Chris Cannon. Look at that list of names and tell me you know who’s winning in ANY round in Buffalo. You’re lying if you think you know,” she says with a completely genuine look and nod. “I want to walk into this thing as the SCW World Heavyweight Champion. That’s my focus tonight. I do that and you know what you could see in the Buffalo bracket semi-finals? SCW versus IWC. Champion versus Champion. It’s been a few years, right? And it’s been a few years for Katelyn and me as well. I haven’t forgotten. She hasn’t forgotten. But then it’s been a few years for me and Greg Cherry as well.”

She nods sincerely at the camera. “This bracket is stacked. Buffalo is going to be rocking. Tell me you know who’s going to win. Fifteen other people tell you it’ll be them. Tell me you know who’s going to win. You don’t. That’s why this is exciting. And the one who does will EARN it without doubt. The one who does will emerge a semi-finalist. And guys? I made it that far last year. You best your ass I want to make it further this year. I’m going in with all kinds of disadvantages and I don’t care. I’m going in, I’m fighting, I’m PROVING MYSELF, and if I go down I’m going down fighting. But I’m not intending to go down,” she says with a shrug and another smile. “You guys know me. You guys watch me. You want to know a secret about tournaments? Finding ways to win. You go into a tournament like this, you rely on one thing, one move or one skill, and you’re up against so many people so quickly that what if that one thing doesn’t work? I don’t rely on one thing. Sure, I’ve given a lot people a ‘Total Makeover’. But I don’t rely on dropping you on your face. I can go up high and take you down. I can twist through the air and drop you on your head. I can lock you up in the ring and make you tap. And as much as I talked about David Helms getting his guys ready to knock me out again, as much as I joked about it being this mad conspiracy, the fact is that as prepared as they are, as prepared as EVERYONE is, they don’t know what I’m going to do. But I’ll tell you. I’m going to find a way. It’s what I do.”

“I’m not the biggest dog in the fight but for six and a half years I’ve been bringing the fight to every match. I don’t use the word ‘rookie’ disrespectfully because I was a rookie once, and I beat the former and reigning Women’s Champions in my first month, I had the Women’s title on my shoulder before two months were up, and I held that title for four hundred and six days. I know what ‘rookies’ can do. The reason I did that was because I brought the fight. I’m bringing the fight tonight against Amy Chastaine. I’m bringing the fight to Buffalo. And, if I’m the bracket winner – and I’m going to bust my ass to try to be – I’m bringing the fight to the semi-final and the final and this year I’m not falling at the second to last hurdle because I’ve done that already, that’s motivating me this year to push on, to go further, to do everything I can, to go up against the best in the world and show that I am the Best of the Best,” she says confidently and proudly. “And like every tournament, like every opportunity, we’re going to see guys who try to cheat their way through, we’re going to see those who try to take every short cut they can, or who swing a chair and call it wrestling, or who bring their friends to guarantee themselves success, and to all those types of people and to the good ones, the honest ones, the hard working ones I say bring it the fuck on! Oh, I’m fired up baby. Tonight is the biggest night of my career. Best of the Best is about so much more. It’s about being beyond immortal. And that’s what we’re aiming for, isn’t it?”

She pauses for a moment and nods her head encouragingly. “Are you ready guys? Do you have your tickets? Are the beers chilled? Are the snacks ready? It starts tomorrow. SCW Best of the Best 2016. Sixty-four of the best. One tournament. One winner. If you’re not excited about that, if you’re thinking ‘no, no, it’s not fair, I don’t want to be in this’ then you’re in the wrong goddamn business or you’re watching the wrong goddamn sport,” she says passionately. “Tonight I’m going to my HOMETOWN against one of the best in the world and I’m giving everything I have to leave with the biggest title in this industry. Tonight I’m getting on a plane in the early hours. I’m getting off in Buffalo, New York. I’m finding a gym. I’m working out. I’m getting pumped up. I’m getting ready. Tomorrow night we kick off the BEST OF THE BEST and you guys are going to see WRESTLING and I don’t know what’s going to happen, I can’t promise you what’s going to happen, but I can promise you I’m bringing the fight, I’m doing all I can to STAND TALL in that ring, and Buffalo, we’re putting on a hell of a show for you guys. You never forget these tournaments. You never forget seeing history be made. Keep a careful watch over the next few days, including tonight, because that’s what I’m planning to be a part of. See this is the thing: I’m not the girl who tells you that you suck, that I’m better than you and you don’t have a chance against me. I’m not the girl who gets her friends to tell you how good she is. I’m not the girl who brings those friends to help her. I’m Zoe Sperling. I’m Syren. I’m the BEST FEMALE WRESTLER IN THE WORLD. Keep watch guys, I’m going to try to prove it. And if you don’t like that, then I have three words Buffalo will probably agree with: BE TOTALLY JEALOUS!”

She grins. “Los Angeles, California. Buffalo, New York. Atlanta, Georgia. One week. A whole bunch of potential matches. I’m ready. Are you? I hope so.”

She brings the camera in close and plants a kiss on the lens before smiling and turning it off. The last image we see is of a confident looking blonde ready for a fight as the scene fades to black and the replay button flashes up on the screen.