A Safe Place

Shortly after winning his very first World Title, Cody Rhodes took to twitter and simply stated that "the drinks are on me tonight." And this wasn't merely a celebratory phrase. It had taken a week or two but many EBWF employee's had gathered to a sport's bar. Under card wrestlers, some who haven't even made their televised debuts yet, had taken Rhodes up on his generosity. Not just performers were invited. Referee's, match agents, ring crew, camera man..they were all allowed to take part. As drink after drink went down, Cody brought himself in front of his many peers. Wearing a dress shirt and dark colored shorts, he rose a glass to his coworkers. After taking a quick moment to clear his throat he began to address them.

| Cody Rhodes | Don't worry I won't take up much of your time. 

He smirked lightly and took a small drink from his glass which drew some chuckles. 

| Cody Rhodes | This is merely a gesture of solidarity. We all work towards one common goal. None of us can operate without the other. Without the main event, their is no mid-card. Conversely, without a strong mid-card their is no main event. Referee's, agents, ring crew, production staff..we all need one another. With that said, let's all continue to work hard to provide for ourselves and our families. Not to mention the fans who come to every show. That's all I've got. Drink up, drink up! The night's still young!

A semi-drunken chant of "Cody!" "Cody!" rung out as the young champion lightly fist pumped the air to the rhythm of their voices. After excusing himself, he downed the rest of his alcohol and stepped outside. He pressed his back against the wall of the establishment as the neon sign glowed over his head. A figure, concealed by darkness, was seated on the ground nearby.

|  Cody Rhodes | Oh. Didn't see you down there.

Whomever he was speaking to gave some silent form of acknowledgement

| Cody Rhodes |  That..

He pointed a thumb over his shoulder, indicating the party going on inside.

| Cody Rhodes | ..is part of playing the game. Keeping up appearances. A lot of people don't want any part of it. But I have no issues. It's all about my prosperity. It's all about keeping that World Title as long as I can. And the longer I stay on top..the more prosperous I am.

Cody flashed a quick smirk.

| Cody Rhodes | I knew I was going to win the title. It's not arrogance. I was simply the best choice. I had the biggest buzz and I have absoutely no baggage whatsoever. 

His arms found their way to a resting position behind his head.

| Cody Rhodes | AJ was a solid champion. But I just don't think he had that overwhelming.."it". Do you know what I mean? Of course, he had to get a reign eventually. His ring work is too good. Solid promo's. But nothing long term. Kevin Nash seems to think the world of him. Personally? I think he would be better suited for the mid-card. Merely my opinion. And I have..a lot of opinions. 

His gaze seemed to remain locked forward as he began to verbalize his thoughts.

| Cody Rhodes | The longer I stay champion..the more I draw..the more tickets I sell..I'll get to voice of my opinion. And I'm sure I'll eventually work with AJ again. Which is fine. Good matches. But it reminds me of a twitter argument that Nash and Christian had a week ago. It was about Hulk Hogan. Bare with me, it's all going to make sense. If I have a match with AJ..it's going be very aesthetically pleasing. An athletic contest that the internet can rave about. Solid crowd heat. But..if I have a match with Hogan..the crowd heat is going to be there..and I don't have to do as much. Because he has limitations. AJ doesn't. AJ can do anything in the ring. Hogan can't. But I would take the Hogan match. Less work and bigger results. And the man is still a highly recognized figure in the industry. Tell me, were you a big "hulkamaniac?"

After a moment of silence, Cody laughed silently to himself.

|  Cody Rhodes | Didn't think so. And I'm very eager to work this program with Punk. I'll tell you why. Best of both worlds. He's talented so a match with him is easy. The crowd is in the palm of his hand so the reactions are going to be there. Much like myself, he stays off of twitter and tries to avoid having his personal life on display. Can't really say that about AJ. The man was every where for awhile there. Punk's deal is a little trickier. John Cena went insane so it wasn't really his fault. Everyone's more sympathetic towards Punk wheras AJ's drama was self inflicted.

Another pause.

| Cody Rhodes | Does that make sense to you? I want to work with the best. The best wrestlers. The best entertainers. Punk is up there. He's held in high regard in this company, even if it took some time for him to get there. He has that mouth but he only speaks up when he feels he needs to. Otherwise he's all business. Again, the recent spat with Cena notwithstanding. But it works. He's a triumphant hero and I'm the horrible villain. Simple. I don't really see a place where AJ Styles can fit in there. So I would assume it's back down the card for him. And, like I said, I don't think that's a bad place for him.

A headlight of a car pulling up revealed who Cody had been speaking to. Tiffany. The blond's hair was messy and she was clearly intoxicated. She gave a wide, drunken smile and her words slurred as she spoke.

|  Tiffany | I'm really, really drunk right now.

Cody's expression was impossible to read because it was blank.

| Tiffany | And I dunno how much longer I'll have a job here so thanks for the drinks!

| Cody Rhodes | ..Yeah. Make sure you get a ride. Or call a cab. Pity about your job. 

Lightly rolling his eyes, Rhodes gave the young woman a light pat on the head and turned back towards the bar. His face remained emotionless before he threw on a fake smile and headed his way back inside.

---

"PHENOMENAL". That word was seen stretched across the screen in a close up. Bright and dazzling. It was written across the ring jacket of AJ Styles. His arms were stretched out and the hood connected to the jacket sat low over his head. The long ring tights matched the color's. Despite the intense light coming from his ring gear, his surroundings were much more dim. A cabin of some kind. Dark, other than a half open window which allowed some light to pour in. Hanging above him was a somewhat dire image of Jesus Christ upon a cross, hung and framed. A wooden table beside him held a few objects. A small, framed photograph of three young children. A magazine, the recent Maxim, with a barely clothed starlet. A cigar followed out and filled with marijuana. And the World Title in the center of all this. AJ began to speak and his voice sounded strangely muffled.

| AJ Styles | ..I'm AJ Styles and I..

His arms lowered as well as his head.

| AJ Styles | ..have made a lot of enemies. And it costs me. Constantly. But this time I made too many enemies and it bit me. I could have handled two of them. But one was too much for me. He's someone who saw through all the garbage that come kept falling from my mouth. And I'm no longer a champion. But..hey..

The voice got a little more jovial.

| AJ Styles | ..that's OK. Because I'm AJ Styles.

He even hopped slightly off of the ground and clicked his heels together.

| AJ Styles | And I've always got something to distract me from reality. I've always got something to distract me from how truly horrible of a human being I truly am. I can hide all I want. Because I've got..my kids..

AJ traced his fingers along the photograph of his trio of young children.

| AJ Styles | My boy's are too young to understand that their daddy is screwed up wreck of a human being. They love their daddy. Even though I let them get drug into my wars and probably scarred them for life I let some nut case beat me down in front of them. Yep. They love 'ol dad. Good boy's, good boy's.

AJ's southern twang seemed to have grown more exaggerated.

| AJ Styles | Yep. I look nice in an expensive suit. I can go out in public and people don't turn away and scream. Uh huh. I'm a good lookin' man who looks good in a suit. And I have women. So many women.

He picked up the Maxim and thumbed through it. After opening it up he turned it sideways to inspect the barely covered featured woman and whistled lowly.

| AJ Styles | Boy oh boy, do I get those women folk. Got a different one all the time. And they get me into a might bit of trouble, yessir. But I don't mind. These ladies are only their for me feel better about myself. And Lords knows I need that because I am, once again, a wretched excuse for a mean. And speaking 'o the Lord!

Still with his back turned to the camera, he motioned towards the dreary painting above him.

| AJ Styles | The Lord shall see me through! He'll always forgive me for all my wrong-doin's! Yessir. And I've got a lot of 'em. 'Cause I might be purdy on the outside but I sure as hell am hideous on the inside.

His fingers danced over to the blunt and he quickly flicked it away.

| AJ Styles | Nope. Don't do that no more. That's old me. Because if I say that enough, "the old me", people really will think I changed. I'm a mighty fine liar. For instance, I told everyone that when Cody Rhodes dumped those creepy, hairy, crawlin spiders all of me..that it didn't bother me none!

His voice dropped to a whipser.

| AJ Styles | But I lied. It did bother. It got into my head somethin' awful. I gotta tell. There ain't nothin' I hate worse than spiders. Well, besides maybe losin' my World Title. Shucks, I didn't deserve to be champion anyway..

AJ slowly turned to the camera. It was then that it was clear to see that it wasn't AJ Styles at all. His physique was different. Taller and lankier. The hood was pulled away. His eyes were wide and dead. And when he spoke his mouth didn't seem to move at all. That was because the face was a frighteningly realistic mask. A mask of AJ Styles' face. The hair looked extremely authentic and real. Very Hollywood but also extremely disturbing. The overly southern voice stopped and became a quivering one.

| Cody Rhodes | I have a very good life. I have to have more. And I have to keep indulging. That is the horrible, ugly side to me. That is why Cody Rhodes defeated me. That is why he is a better champion than me. And that is why he's going to destroy me for the third time. 

He eased backwards until he found himself sitting on the table. He began to stare at his palms. It seemed as though it took him a moment or two to drag himself out of the character he had been portraying.

| Cody Rhodes | I almost feel comfortable like this. Like this could be a safe place. In the skin of someone else. Like maybe I live out this kind of life. This kind of hideous existence.

Cody's fingers began to tug away on the bottom of the mask as he pulled and stretched at it. The artificial skin began to rip and tear until it was removed. But he made sure to quickly hold his transparent mask in front of his features.

| Cody Rhodes | I don't want to be AJ Styles. Because he is more of a monster than I'll ever be. And he took me lightly. He wanted to have his little "Trilogy" war. But I interfered with those plans. The starving freak took out the three, spoiled pretty boy's. Big surprise. And I'm going to do it once more to prove to him and the world that, without a shadow of a doubt, I am his superior. 

The remains of the ghastly mask were held in his free hand, a pair of fingers stuck through the dark, blank eye sockets.

| Cody Rhodes | I am not the only one who wears a mask. You all wear masks. I only tear those masks off and reveal you for the people you truly are. Once again..if it wasn't horrifying enough before..the monstrosity that is AJ Styles will once again be unveiled.   

The mask was dropped to the hard, wooden, brown floor. The camera closed in on the frayed and strained disguise, it's mouth hung open and chunks of the face now missing.