The video begins, and we see a shot of the classic SCW World Championship hanging from a wall. The camera is focused in tight on the championship belt, held by the most legendary figures in the sport, and now adorning a wall of a champion who, in her own mind, has already achieved legendary status. “Beautiful, isn’t it?” Syren asks from behind the camera as the camera slowly pans out. She steps in front of the championship then with another on her shoulder, the current SCW World Championship title, and pats it three times slowly but firmly. “But not as beautiful as this one. Now don’t get me wrong, that belt back there was quite possibly the most amazing gift I’ve ever been given, by a man who believes in me more than anyone else ever has before him. That belt on that wall represents not only the history of Supreme Championship Wrestling but the history of wrestling worldwide. That belt represents a legacy that most of the people who chase this one on my shoulder today can’t even BEGIN to understand, let alone comprehend. That’s because most of the people chasing this belt right now don’t understand where this belt comes from, how many have fought and bled to establish it as the premiere belt in this industry, and what it means to anyone to hold onto it. But there are some who understand. Jake Starr, for all his faults, I think understands. That’s because he’s bled for this belt. He’s sacrificed for this belt. He’s given all he has for this belt. He’s a multi-time SCW World Champion, and a legendary figure in this industry. But he is not better than me.”

She smirks proudly, tapping the belt on her shoulder again. “Oh look, here’s the proof of that right here,” she says playfully, an almost evil grin on her face as she strokes the belt teasingly and then looks back up into the camera. “But I already know what you’re going to say. You’re going to tell me that Jake Starr was screwed a few weeks ago, aren’t you? You’re going to tell me that if not for Xander Valentine he would have had that match won, just like you’re going to tell me that a few weeks before that, at Learning From History, he was going to win the match over me and Bree Lancaster for certain. And why would you not believe that? He’d already hit me with the Shooting Five Star, and in the history of that move it’s not hard to actually count the number of people who’ve kicked out after being hit by it. I’ve been hit by it many times. I can tell you it hurts like hell. And I can tell you that, if not for Bree Lancaster, I wouldn’t have kicked out when he hit it on me. But Bree was there. She came to the rescue. She saved her opportunity. The match continued on. And then Jake laid her out, climbed to the top rope, and was in position to end her… when it all went horribly wrong. But let’s stop a moment and go back. Let’s go back to Jake Starr being on the top rope. Let’s go back to Jake Starr standing over a barely conscious Bree Lancaster. Let’s imagine that moment in our minds and then hit freeze-frame, and let’s pretend there is no CHBK, that there is no Ravyn Taylor, that I’m out there on my own… and let’s play a game. What happens next?”

She tilts her head to the side, looking curiously into the camera and waiting for an answer before leaning forward and putting a hand to her ear. “Wait, what’s that? Jake Starr hits the Shooting Five Star and wins the match? Yah, ok, that’s one possibility. Anyone else? Jake Starr misses, Bree Lancaster gets her knees up, and Jake has every bit of wind driven out of him to the point that he’s no longer able to suck in oxygen enough to survive whatever happens next? Sure. That’s entirely possible. Oh, what was that one? Yah, that’s the one I was waiting for. Jake Starr leaps off the top rope, nails the Shooting Five Star, bounces off, gets the pin, and I kick him between the eyes and fall on top of BOTH of them for the victory,” she says firmly before looking at the World title again and nodding her head as she looks into the camera. “Now prove me wrong. Prove to me that wouldn’t happen. I wasn’t out of it. I remember hearing the thud at the side of the ring when Tommy got kicked in the head. I remember looking up at Ravyn swinging that steel chair. And that was BEFORE Jake had hit his move. That was BEFORE he’d recovered enough to get the pin. But it was certain, right? It was a sure thing! There was absolutely NO DOUBT that Jake was going to win from that point… and that someone else wouldn’t have interrupted him. What, do we think Xander Valentine didn’t come up with his idea to come back until the middle of February? Was he, like, super busy on the Sunday? Was he chilling on a beach somewhere? How do you know he wasn’t waiting in the back and Alex and Ravyn just beat him to the punch?”

She laughs and rolls her eyes. “You don’t. You don’t know what was going to happen. That’s not just the thing about this business, or the thing about SCW, but it’s the joy of TRIPLE THREAT MATCHES. You don’t know what was going to happen that night because ANYTHING could have happened when Jake took off from that top rope. He could have won. I could have won. Hell, even Bree might have recovered and won… but we’ll get to that later, ok? Put a pin in that for a moment. I’m not done with that subject just yet. But the true point is that anything could have happened from that moment forward… and yet for the past seven goddamn weeks all I’ve heard is how Jake Starr was screwed. Well guys, I can’t believe I finally get to say this to you loudly and honestly, but I DON’T GIVE A FUCK ABOUT JAKE STARR! Do you hear me? I do not CARE about him and his pathetic whining fans. I NEVER have. But I’ve bit my tongue before because he’s Jake Starr, he’s Mr Popularity, he’s the everlasting comedian… and he’s a disrespectful, full-of-himself asshole who’s never shown me the respect I deserve. But I’m supposed to care that he MIGHT have gone on to win that match?” she asks before beginning to laugh and shake her head repeatedly. “Hell no. He didn’t. There was no Jake Starr victory party. There was no Jake Starr celebratory parade. There was only this. There was only me. There was only YOUR World Champion. And it’s about goddamn time you recognise that because I’m done being ignored by the likes of you people.”

She laughs again. “The fact is you don’t get the option of ignoring me anymore. You don’t get the option of lording all your praise on the new flavour of the moment, be that Selena Frost, Alistair Allocco or even Alexis Quinne. You don’t get the option of praising the ‘flawless’ and the ‘perfect’ and the ‘angelic’ or any of that bullshit because I have the prize, and this time I’m not going to gush all humbly and tell the world that it’s all about them for their support and their love… because it’s not. It never was. And anyone who tells you otherwise is lying to your face. I mean, I’d know right? Because I got really, really good at looking you people in the eyes and lying to you about why I did what I did. And they all do too. When Alexis tells you ‘it’s all about the Bay Area’ what she means is ‘it’s all about me, and I happen to be from the same place as you’. When Selena Frost says it’s about ‘the believers’ because they ‘believe’ in her, what she means is it’s all about the gullible idiots who’ll do anything for her because she’s pretty and blonde and says the right things, and again TRUST ME, I know, because I’m pretty and blonde and bored of saying the right things,” she says before rolling her eyes and laughing. “And when Kennedy Street tells you this Sunday is all about ‘doing things the right way’ and ‘proving herself as worthy’ and ‘showing she deserves it’ what she means is that it’s all about WINNING, and believe me when I tell you that Kennedy Street does not give a fuck HOW she wins this Sunday. What, you think she believes every word she said? Sure, but you used to think that about Ravyn and me too, didn’t you?”

She winks at the camera before cracking a smile. “Now, I’m going to paint a scenario for you, and you just stop me and tell me when you think I get something wrong. Ok, so, it’s Sunday night, the crowd are sold out inside the AT&T Center and they’re on their feet. I’m talking standing room only! Syren is on the top rope. Below her in the ring is Bree Mason. She’s unconscious. I’ve just spiked her on her head with a DDT. There’s no way she’s moving, let alone getting out the way. And I’m about to hit the move that I think is going to win me the match. And then, out of nowhere, Josh Hudson hits the ring. He’s not alone either. With him are Sienna Swann and Regan Street, and they pull me off the top rope, and they beat the hell out of me, and they drop me in the middle of the ring, and they walk off laughing toward the back. And now I’m down in that ring, and there’s no way I’m moving, and Bree is down, and Kennedy is the only one moving… and Kennedy sees her opportunity, and she goes for the pin, and she pins me, and she gets to her feet, and the referee hands her the World title, and she celebrates and… hmm, that’s odd, because nobody ever stopped me,” she says, thinking about it for a moment before shrugging her shoulders. “You know why nobody stopped me, don’t you? Because if Past, Present, Future were to hit that ring this Sunday that is EXACTLY what would happen. Kennedy wouldn’t get back in that ring and fight for me. She wouldn’t fight for Bree. She wouldn’t refuse the gift she was given. She wouldn’t demand SCW medical staff hit the ring and attend to me, and ask to redo the match on Breakdown, she’d dive into the cover with a grin on her face a mile wide. And you know it.”

She nods her head. “Tell me I’m wrong. Tell me I’m wrong I DARE you. Tell me that that bitch wouldn’t love that opportunity and tell me that she wouldn’t see it anything BUT the best thing that’s happened to her all week. Now maybe she’d agree to a rematch. Maybe she’d agree that things could have been different. And of course she’d tell the world that she had nothing to do with the attack, and maybe she’d even be right, but that wouldn’t stop her benefiting from it, would it? Tell me I’m wrong. You can’t. Because you whether you want to admit to yourself or not, Kennedy Street is still the same girl she’s always been… and that’s not even the only reason she’d jump into that pin and take the title home with her. It’s because anyone would. Selena Frost would. Jake Starr would. Tommy Valentine would. AJ Helms would. Alexis Quinne would. Give me the name of ONE of your heroes who’d refuse that gift and I’ll laugh in your face for being the single most gullible idiot I’ve ever met in nine years in this sport. Because THIS BELT is all that matters in this sport, ladies and gentlemen, and whether you want to admit that or not deep down inside you KNOW I’m right,” she says aggressively and purposefully. “Do you remember how I won my first World title? Do you remember the tournament I went through the show after Rise to Greatness? Do you remember the people I beat? Do you remember the WORLD CHAMPIONS I beat in that tournament? Can you even name one of them? No. Because nobody remembers the losers.”

She scoffs. “It’s not what you want to hear when you are one, but nobody remembers second place. They don’t remember you trying really hard. They don’t remember how close you came, or how many two-counts you got. They remember the winner. They remember the champion. And for all her talk about how good she is now and how much she’s changed, Kennedy still knows that better than anyone. That said, I’ll give her a little credit for something. I mean, she didn’t like the things people said about her before, so she set about changing them, right? Believe it or not, I can respect that. That’s because I’ve been there. I know what it’s like for people to tell you that you can’t win on your own. And it doesn’t matter how many times you do it, it doesn’t matter how many times you stand by yourself, you can beat the biggest and the best on your own but once you have that reputation it follows you everywhere you go. And Kennedy had that reputation. She didn’t like it. She wanted to change it. Bravo to her. Now she stands on her own. Now she no longer fucks her sister’s husbands, or whatever the hell that was. Do you guys remember that? Ugh, and people say I’m a slut. Pretty sure I’ve never fucked anyone I was legally related to, even if it was by marriage. But whatever, she doesn’t do that anymore. Bravo her. But that doesn’t change who she is at her core,” she says, shaking her head dismissively. “Do you need further proof of that? Look at this match. Look at how she got here. Look at the reason she’s even competing tomorrow night. Because she was framed, right? Because she was wronged. Because her new reputation was besmirched…”

She starts laughing. “Ok, seriously, is that how fucking easy it is to justify a World title match now? I mean goddamn Oleksa, it took you HOW LONG to decide you wanted to put me in a match you promised me A YEAR EARLIER after we were run off the road? And yet poor Kennedy’s reputation was besmirched and goddamn it if you didn’t RUSH her into a World title match as quickly as you could. Does she have incriminating photos of you or what?” she asks before laughing. “Or maybe the reason you were so quick to give her this opportunity isn’t because you believe she can beat me, but because you know she can’t. I mean, that has to be a lot easier for you. It’s got to be a whole lot easier to put someone in a match when you expect that they’ll lose than when you think they’ll actually win. So, do you believe in Kennedy Street, Mr D? Because if you do you’re going to be disappointed TWO TIMES tomorrow night. I mean, you know that Tommy Valentine is going to let you down, right? And Kennedy is too. But maybe you expect that. Maybe you know that I won’t let that bitch take my belt from me a second time. Maybe you know me well enough to know how doggedly I can hold onto this title when I get my hands on it, and that it’ll take a whole lot more than a Street OR a Mason to take it from me. Maybe you anticipated that the moment you put this match together, after granting Jake Starr his rematch and knowing in advance that I’d be the one standing here with the belt and not him. Ok, so maybe you didn’t know that would be the case… but you kinda suspected, didn’t you?”

She winks for a second time before giggling. “If Mr D thought otherwise, or any of you think otherwise, then you’re in for a disappointing night on Sunday. But don’t worry because it won’t be you who’s the most disappointed. Hell, you won’t even be in the top two. I can’t decide who’ll be the more angry at themselves when the night is over, Kennedy or Bree. It’s a tough call to make, but we know they’re both talented, don’t we? We know they’re both capable. We know they both have talents. And we know they’ll both do whatever it takes to take this belt. We also know there’s no championship advantage and I don’t need to be pinned to lose my belt, so we know it’s open season this Sunday. And, on top of all of that, we know that none of us will be alone. In Bree’s corner there will be Blake and Scott, in Kennedy’s corner there will be Amy, and in my corner there will be my mentor, my role model and the man who helped me get back where I am, CHBK, and my wife, my soul-mate and my very best friend, Ravyn Taylor. They’ve got back up in their corners. I’ve got family in mine,” she says confidently. “But who’s going to be more disappointed? Will it be Kennedy, out to prove that she belongs, out to prove she can do it without the reputation that surrounded her before, out to prove she can do it without the sidekicks, the ‘Flawless Gauntlets’ and the Street family backup? Or will it be Bree Mason who’s so sure of herself, so confident, and hoping to ride the emotional high of becoming Mrs Mason into becoming SCW World Champion on Sunday?”

She pauses for a moment. “Ok, couple of things. Just because I know what it’s like to get married and feel good about it, congratulations Bree. I read your interview. You seem really happy. I’m sure the ceremony was amazing, and I love that you didn’t do the whole ‘look at us and how much money we have’ wedding, because that’s been done. I mean, that’s a Street thing, right?” she says before nodding her head. “But there is just one thing about that whole situation that’s been nagging on me, and it’s something that I’ve got to ask. Did you seriously marry Blake Mason? What, did you lose a bet? Ugh, don’t tell me you play those bets with Ace Marshall as well. I mean, you know you can veto the ones you really don’t want to do, right? And I could seriously see him thinking up ‘marry Blake Mason’ as the most awful thing he can think of, because I’ll be honest it’s the most awful thing I can think of. I always said when I got married it would be to the perfect partner, someone who respected me, loved me and who I wanted to spend the rest of my life with, the ideal partner who’s my soul mate in life and who I couldn’t possibly live without… but, you know, marrying the doofus with a bunch of money and fame is also a way to go, I guess? And you didn’t really mean the stuff about loving him, right? Because, you know, hasn’t he slept his way through most of the Indy locker room at this point? Doesn’t he have like sixteen kids with different women? Ok, I might be exaggerating that, but I’m pretty sure it’s at least one or two. And plus… it’s Blake Mason. I don’t even like you and even I think you can do better…”

There’s laughter from someone behind the camera and Syren just shrugs. “What? I was being sincere. Whatever though, this whole thing isn’t about her marriage anyway. No, it’s about her ‘rematch’. It’s about her second chance. It’s about her coming after the SCW World Championship again because she was screwed in January and she earned it super hard. Hell, she earned it so super hard that Mr D gave her two chances at it. Wait is SHE the one with incriminating photos of him? Are Kennedy and Bree sharing the photos? Am I the only one WITHOUT incriminating photos of him? Probably for the best. I really don’t want to see what he looks like without the suit…” she says, pulling a disgusted looking face before shaking her head and getting back in the moment. “The thing about the second chance though is that this is where the problem lies for Bree, because she was gutted last month when she failed to get it done, so she’s going to feel even worse this time around when I walk out of that ring with my title belt still in my hands. And of course she thinks I’m wrong. She thinks she’s got this. She thinks that she’s prepared and ready. But she thought that last time too, right? And how’d that work out for her? So, what’s changed in the meantime? She’s… still getting other people to do her dirty work for her. That hasn’t changed. Yah, Bree, and I really must applaud you for how you single-handedly took it to me at the Trios Tournament. Oh no, wait, you tried to get Tommy Valentine to do your dirty work for you. Then you threw a hissy fit. And even though I was barely conscious I still laughed, because I was still the SCW World Champion and you still weren’t.”

She pats the belt again, all the comedic demeanour she’s slipped into the last few moments disappearing in an instant. She puts a hand on the belt again. “But while I may like to mock you and your husband, I know damn well how hungry you are for this. I know damn well how much it means to you to be coming for it. And yah, sweetie, I know how hard you worked for your shot. But every time you tell me that I ‘didn’t deserve’ to be there in January you show just how young and stupid you really are. Because you earned that shot in the ring, I’ll give you that, but I earned it ten times over. While you were losing last year to the current ‘main event’ crowd, I was beating HALL OF FAMERS. While you were joining in gang attacks on behalf of Regan Street as one of her cronies, I was stepping up to challenge after challenge and winning. But that’s the thing about me that everyone forgets, because I win so goddamn often that it’s no longer surprising to hear that Syren beat Donovan Kayl after he challenged her, or Syren knocked off Josh Hudson, or even Dark Fantasy beat you, Bree. Nah, it’s not newsworthy anymore. People expect it from me, because I am THAT GOOD. There’s a reason they know me around the world as the BEST FEMALE WRESTLER ON THE PLANET,” she says confidently before turning slowly around and revealing the t-shirt she’s wearing as a colourised target on the back of it. “And there’s a reason that I’ve got a target on my back even when I DON’T have a title on my shoulder.”

She spins back around and looks into the camera confidently. “It’s because I am the BEST, Bree. Say it with me again, ok? The. Best. And every time you mutter that I ‘didn’t deserve’ to be in that match it makes me want to laugh in your face. I didn’t just deserve to be the challenger going in, I should have been the champion. I should have had my rematch a long, long time ago, so you’ll forgive me if I scoff derisively every time the spoiled little rich girl thinks she deserves something and nobody else does, won’t you?” she asks before rolling her eyes. “Make no mistake about it Bree I know you’re good – I know Kennedy is good – but I also know that I’M. BETTER. And that’s not ego talking. That’s not arrogance. That’s not deluded self-belief. That, sweetie, is confidence. That is the knowledge that I have been here before, I have done this before, and I know EXACTLY what it’ll take to win this Sunday. I also know how hard I worked to get back here, I know how hard I fought to get this title in the first place, and I know what it means to hold it. You think I’m going to let it slip away that easily? You think you’re going to come charging in and snatch it from my fingers? No. It won’t happen. Because while people may be saying right now that I’ve changed, that I’m ‘past it’, that I ‘realise my time is over’ and all that bullshit, they’re just telling people like you what you want to hear. The truth is that I’ve never been in a better position than I am with CHBK at my side, and this reign isn’t the beginning of the end for Syren. It’s the end of the beginning, and the rest of my story is just now starting!”

She nods slowly. “But you know what? I’m well aware of who I’m facing this week. I mean, I’m not just facing two of the best competitors on the planet. I’m not just facing two of the best women on the week of International Women’s Day. I’m facing two members of the BILLIONAIRE’S CLUB, right? Oh yah, the Billionaire’s Club, where they buy and sell people for fun. But yay, let’s cheer the billionaires and their problems like ‘all my money won’t fit in these cheap safes’ and ‘dammit, my butler brought me the wrong type of caviar’. Still, there has to be advantages for the two of you being in that club… and since I’m a fighting champion still, in spite of what people say of me – Eff Why Eye I’ve not changed. I’m still the same damn champion I’ve always been – let me give you two some free advice, regular old self-made woman to member of the Billionairess Society, and that’s to Bree, go get your sugar-daddy’s chequebook, and Kennedy, go get daddy’s chequebook, ok? Now, both of you write out a cheque for the biggest number you can think of, take that cheque into the locker room this Sunday, wave it around a little, and tell the entire roster that it’s theirs if they do the one thing that nobody has managed to do in nine fucking years and that’s take me out,” she says coldly before nodding her head. “Yah, you heard me. Do what you bitches are both famous for. Get someone else to do your dirty work. Put a hit on me, and get the entire roster to try and cash in. Because THAT is what it’s going to take this Sunday to get this title away from me, and nothing short of THE ENTIRE ROSTER is going to stop me from walking out of San Antonio STILL your World Champion.”

She nods her head. “Doubt me. Please doubt me. Bree, go ahead and tell everyone who’ll listen that you were robbed and how I didn’t deserve to be in that match. Kennedy, go ahead and tell the same people that I framed you, that I besmirched your legacy, that I wronged you – or admit that you’re coming after me because I’ve got what you want, and you’re just another typical Street who puts the shiny golden objects before logic or reason – and that you’re going to prove I don’t belong this weekend. Go ahead both of you. Tell me you’re going to win. Tell me why you’re going to win. Sing your praises. Get family members to praise you. Get relatives to tell me how good you are. Write those cheques, hire your hitmen, and hope that they can get the job done, and then come out to that ring on Sunday, at Retribution, in front of eighteen thousand fans, and give the best you’ve got… and lose,” she says as she takes a deep breath and slowly pats the SCW World Championship. “You know, it’s funny that Jake talked about not appreciating having this belt while he had it, and only appreciating it once it was gone. For Kennedy I think the same was true. For Bree, she’s not yet got that feeling to begin with. But for me I’ve truly appreciated every moment of this reign, and I will go on appreciating every moment still to come, because I’m here for a reason. I’m here because I’m better than you two. Doubt it, doesn’t stop it being true. I’m here because I deserve to be here, because I’ve earned the right to call myself the top bitch in SCW a thousand times over. And best of all, I’m here because the icon of this industry helped me get where I belong. And I belong here because, whether you like it or not, I am the FRANCHISE PLAYER in this company. I’m the John Elway. I’m the LeVeon Bell. I’m the one this company is set to build around in 2018, and this Sunday won’t change that, and neither will Kennedy or Bree.”

She laughs. “Call it arrogance if you must. Say I’m too conceited. Or just accept that I’ve finally started looking out for me and mine, and it’s long, long overdue. This Sunday, I step into the ring as SCW World Champion, I fight through another Triple Threat match where anything can happen, I step out of the ring still SCW World Champion, I raise this title over my head, and I remind you all there’s just one thing I need from all of you…” she says before sliding the World title off her admittedly small shoulders next to the size of the belt and raising it up. “Be jealous.”

The video abruptly ends there as we cut to black and the replay button flashes up on the screen.