SONYA
Benson Prologue
Five years ago billionaire heiress Sonya Benson set out on a crusade against professional wrestling after it killed her little brother, Benjamin. In a stunning display of oppression using her wealth, influence, and manipulation of political constituents tied to her father, the self-styled First World Hero shut down wrestling promotions across the United States, putting thousands of wrestlers out of jobs and crushing their dreams.
Six months ago that all changed. Her father, the renowned business and entertainment magnate, Randall Benson, stepped in and put a halt to it. Her activism against the sport had established an opposition consisting of promoters with stroke in the ruling class also. This league of promoters had used their pull to paint Randall in a negative light, which caused contracts to be repealed, sponsorships to be nulled, and business partnerships to cease.
Randall offered them a solution. He would make Sonya cease and desist her activism. That wasn’t good enough for the league of promoters though. They wanted her punished. Randall offered to punish her by making her the thing she hated the most - a professional wrestler. He tacked on a quota for her to reach in order for the punishment to end. She must secure 25 wins. They liked it, and thus began her peril.
If she refused, she’d be severed from the family thus putting her in financial ruin, and she would be cut from his will. With her world turned upside down, Sonya set out to use her wealth to enroll in wrestling school but most wouldn’t accept her despite the money offered, due to her activism and the bad publicity it would bring to their school. Two did accept, but she quit after one day of training, claiming they’d molested her under the guise of training.
Her father, fed up with this, forced her to sign with XWF regardless of her untrained status. To Sonya’s credit she tried to secure a personal wrestling trainer, even offering one million dollars, but none accepted save for a few trolls who only did so to, well, troll her. How poetic. The one thing she needed the most, was the one thing she couldn’t afford.
From XWF to OCW to TPW to Project: Honor Sonya used cunning to weasel out of her contracts while using cowardly acts to attain wins, thus reducing her quota from 25 wins to 19. Her actions several weeks ago in Project: Honor, however, was the straw that broke the camel’s back. That camel being her father.
And now, she must deal with him.
……………..
Benson Estate
Sonya’s office suite
Afternoon, March 2nd, 2022Tick tok tick tok on the clock.
The grizzled wrestling legend sat in the large room twiddling his thumbs. The meeting with Sonya Benson was set for one o’clock yet the aristocratic woman was already thirty minutes late. Sitting beside him was her famed father who was lost in thought and tapping his glass of scotch on the rocks. Bored, the man stood up to stretch his legs and gave the seemingly mute door sentry, Rex, a nod.
”Just gonna have a walk. Sonya must be tied up with something. She’s late.” The ring general remarked.
The massive man grunted.
”Ms. Benson's never late. She's always precisely on time. You're simply expecting her early.” the guard corrected him.
The Icon Statys CEO was going to provide evidence to the contrary but decided against wasting his time on the man. He assumed Randall would be apt to correct him, which didn’t happen either.
”But you can tour the room. Just don’t touch anything.”The legend nodded and perused the confines, marveling at the art and relics affixed to the walls, then he made his way to a wall covered in plaques of recognition for the services her family had done for communities and charities. He continued on his trek, stopping at a wall of memoriam for Sonya’s deceased little brother, Benjamin - The death that sparked her crusade against professional wrestling.
A huge portrait of Benjamin stood dominant on the wall, surrounded by smaller pictures of the Benson family in various locations across the world. He noticed in every picture Benjamin was clung to Sonya like an extra appendage. One frame particularly caught his attention. It was a grinning Sonya decked in graduation attire inside a lab. To her side was Benjamin, who was looking up at her with wide eyes and a smile. The ring veteran strained his eyes to make out an item being proudly displayed in her hands.
Atlantic City School for Advanced Studies awards Sonya Benson th- The door opened, pulling his attention to the stunning woman who’d plunged scores of wrestling promotions into oblivion. Her strides were marked with purpose as she took to her desk and sat down, offering no apologies for her tardiness. A few more bodyguards filed in and of course her manager Norris and her bodyguard Smith trailed in her wake.
”What the hell is this about, dad? And who’s this… wait… You look familiar.” Sonya exclaimed.
The wrestling great’s name was on the tip of her tongue. The gentleman took his seat and shot her a nod, which she dismissed with a scoff and pinned her oceanic blue orbs on her father.
”This is Damon ‘HavoK’ Riggs. Twenty-three time world champion. Legend. Billionaire. CEO of Icon Statys Inc.” He began, fingers tightening around the glass as he fought the urge to throw it at her head.
”And he will be your personal wrestling trainer.” He added and gulped down the last of the scotch.
Wide went Sonya’s captivating blue eyes that so many get lost at sea in, and her mouth fell agape upon hearing the news. For several moments there was silence as she coped with the sudden development.
”No… no-no-no-no…excuse me?? I’m the one who says who can train me!” She clapped back.
”Bull-fucking-shit! You lost that right when you orchestrated the insurrection on Project: Honor’s HQ. That stunt has cost us MILLIONS of dollars! I’m being force fed a shit-sandwhich in the media because of it. Social media is crucifying me. I pulled you out of that company to do damage control and people are still hounding me. I’m lucky I found a spot for you in Pro Wrestling Excellence.”Sonya piped up to protest but her dad lurched forward in his chair, cranking the beverage glass back as if to throw it, which silenced her rebuttal. Damon recognized the meeting was already spiraling south and that the Benson clan were more dysfunctional than the Jackson Five, so he held a hand up to gain their attention.
”Hey guys, listen, I-”Sonya snapped her head at Damon and facial’d him from across her desk.
”Talk to the hand because these ears don’t give a damn, scrotum face!”HavoK clenched his jaw and beamed a warning glance at her. She wisely took heed and slid her gaze back to her dad.
”What’s Damon getting out of this huh? Money? No, couldn’t be. He’s a billionaire. Status? He’s a CEO. Let me guess, he’s doing this as a favor because he was in a jam at some point and you bailed him out, now he’s paying off the debt. Yeah?”She aimed her attention back and forth between the two men, reading every line in their faces to get a bead on their disposition, but found them to be wearing poker faces.
”The deal I’ve worked with him is none of your damn business. For six months I’ve watched you attempt to bribe and blackmail wrestlers into training you and you’ve failed. I’m stepping in and putting the leash on you from here on out. I’m tired of you calling me your ‘cruel old daddy’ in the media when I’m the one who’s allowed you to retain all those businesses others are managing in your stead. I’m the one who pulled you from Project: Honor when they tried to feed you to their murderers and psychopaths on Fallout. You need to fulfill your punishment, but this is love too, tough love.”She seethed at his remarks. If looks could kill he would’ve been dead via nuclear missile. Seeing the tense lull, Damon chimed in with some good news for her.
”If I may interject here, please understand that I’ve trained lots of people, Sonya. I discovered and trained Vhodka Black, who’s now the Excellence Champion.”Sonya kept her oculars pinned to her dad but addressed Damon’s statement nonetheless.
”Ah, yes. The woman who has more ink than brain cells. What a remarkable young lady she turned out to be. Such a paragon of virtue.”Damon brushed off the slander and continued.
”I’m one of few who can take a completely untrained prospect and expeditiously turn them into something outstanding - like transforming piles of shit into mounds of sugar. And if you play your cards right, I might be able to score you some backup with cats I know in PWE. It’s always nice to have an ace up your sleeve when the shit hits the fan.”Yet again Sonya didn’t afford Damon the courtesy of eye contact. Her enthralling oculars were pinned to her dad, and his was pinned to hers in equal measure.
”You’re just gonna be another puppet for my daddy dearest here, Mr. Riggs. Let me guess, he wants you to report back to him anything I say or do that might cause him some blowback?”Damon tried to reply but she elevated her voice over his.
”RHETORICAL!” Riggs bit his bottom lip. Under other circumstances he would’ve verbally destroyed the bitch by now and made her feel two inches tall. Fortunately for Sonya, her dad had begged Damon to show restraint during the meeting, and Damon was doing a damn good job of it.
”You son of a..” Her voice trailed and she laughed. It wasn’t a funny laugh. It was the chuckle one gets when they realize they’re getting bent over the barrel and there’s nothing they can do about it.
”This is the way it is. You don’t have to like it, but you have to live it. So, with that all that straightened out, your training begins Monday. Oh and by the way, you’re also now a member of Damon’s Icon Statys Incorporated. Congrats! Wooo! Now get the fuck out of here!” He growled.
”This is my office! You get out! Both of you! GO!” She screeched.
”Your office is on my estate, you get the fuck out!”Sonya bolted to a stand and tried to protest, but words escaped her. Her heart hammered against her chest. Flustered, the Rich Bitch stormed off as Norris bowed to Damon and gave him the prayer gesture and a “thank God for you” upon their exit.
With Sonya and her entourage gone, Randall perked up with some pep and shook Damon’s hand.
”Believe it or not, that went very well. She didn’t throw anything. Progress.”Damon raised his brows and chuckled.
”That was Sonya lite? Heh. Don’t worry, I’ll train her well, and I’ll break her.” Randall grinned. He’d made a wise investment in this one.
Legendary Benson Plaza Tower
Atlantic City, NJ.
March 3rd, 2022
Dusk
Sonya delicately sipped on her quadruple shot Pecan Praline Frappuccino and then passed it off to her manager Norris. Instead of her dad or Damon issuing the official statement to the media, she’d been tasked to do it herself. It was more of her punishment, her dad said. The embattled First World Hero took a deep breath and emerged from the double doors, whereupon she was smothered with questions while flashes from the cameras sparkled across the venue like the kickoff to the Super Bowl.
”Friggin’ vultures..” Norris muttered as they approached the podium stationed atop the steps and Sonya took her place at the microphone.
All the media were there. CNN, ESPN, FOX, wrestling outlets galore, and of course Denzel Porter was there. Sonya GLARED HARD at him before turning her attention to the assembly as a whole.
”Ladies and gentlemen, I’m here to officially announce that I’ve joined Icon Statys Incorporated and to confirm that Damon Riggs is my personal wrestling trainer. My first training session will be Monday, and I'll be competing in Pro Wrestling Excellence now."Murmurs and mixed reactions spread among the reporters. Peering down at the prepared statement written by her father, Sonya gritted her teeth and adjusted her gorgeous white Sherbrooke pants suit. Her eyes drifted back up and locked onto Denzel Porter’s and his quixotic visage. Her teeth gritting intensified. She couldn’t believe the script called for her to praise Damon; to call him a god-send to her. It sickened her and she realized she couldn’t do it, so she ripped the paper up and huffed into the talking stick.
”Yes, it’s true, but I’m being forced and coerced into it by my cruel old daddy whom you all just looove so much! He’s micromanaging me!”The crowd cheered and reminded her of all her atrocities. If anyone needed to be tamed, it was damn sure Sonya Benson.
”You people cheer? I’m gonna be trained by a man who nearly murdered someone in the ring on live TV. He orchestrated invasions of companies and shuttered them, which is worse than that so-called ‘insurrection’ I led in Project: Honor. He’s in league with those insufferable toe-rags, Vincent and Vhodka Black. You reprehensible creatures CHEER that?”Yes they did. Sonya was gobsmacked and ran a hand through her majestic tresses.
”Unbelievable! Even for you leeches. Oh and even worse than all that, my cruel old daddy got me booked in a tag team goat rodeo, so now I have to travel down to podunk San Antonio *gets hick voice suddenly* Tex-us and deal with cow-dung smells and people with rotted teeth.”Norris gave her a warning nudge. Her dad wasn’t gonna like her going off script. She no-sold him though.
”And of course they saddled me with a terrifying man who I can’t understand because he talks in that marble mouthed Irish dialect. Scott Hampton is his name. He scares me. I suppose since I’m holding court here, I’ll address him personally. Scott, don’t tag me in. Don’t even look at me. You’re an angry powder keg who needs to avenge your loss in that battle royal, so I suggest you take it out on our opponents, Ruby Steele and Holly Rhodes. Ladies and gentlemen, regarding Scott’s humiliating performance in the battle royal, be advised he only lost because a fan threw a banana peel in the ring and he slipped on it, then up and over he went.”It was a lie, but she needed something to conceal Scott’s epic failure in the battle royal.
”Had that not happened, he would’ve decimated all. Do you understand that, Ruby and Holly? There’s a reason one of his monikers is ‘Invincible’. He demolished Jason Long. If you don’t know who Jason Long is, let’s just say he’s a god tier mongoloid in this exquisite ‘sport’ of butt touching and face punching. He’s nigh unbeatable and holds more championships than Solomon had gold. Yet, Scott annihilated him at Next Level Wrestling’s Collision Course. Scott cared so much about winning that he gloated to the fans after his victory, instead of checking on his pregnant wife who Jason had obliterated with his signature Deux Ex Machina maneuver moments before. That’s the man you’ll have to beat at the AT&T Center on Victory X, and he’s gonna be looking to expunge that blunder of the battle royal.”The media withheld their words and interruptions, for they realized she’d inadvertently turned the simple press conference into her promotional shoot for the upcoming tag match. Sonya relished their reserve, and savored it for a beat.
”Since I have everyone’s undivided attention and a wide audience, I’d like to reach out to one of my opponents specifically. Holly Rhodes. You’re one of the few wrestlers I actually respect. You’re not like the other females in wrestling. You don’t flaunt your virtuous parts for all to see while wearing next to nothing. You did start down that path, but you reversed course. It took you becoming homeless and suicidal to do it, but you did it. You removed the implants. You removed all the things that made you just another trash juice plastic bimbo in wrestling. Holly, you actually have a brain, believe it or not. You just don’t know how to use it when it comes to this misbegotten sport.”She tapped her temple all knowingly.
”I do. Each week I’m forced into a ring of barbarism, carrying neither sword nor shield, armed only with my cunning and resourcefulness. I rise and I fall. I rise more than I fall. I’ve narrowed my prison sentence in this sport from 25 wins to 19 wins needed to secure my release, and I’ve done it while not being trained. So, you see, I’m smart enough to recognize someone I can work with, and that person is you. That’s why I’m hereby offering you a contractor job. You’re 6’1”, 165 pounds, with a physique Wonder Woman would be jealous of. You know how to defend yourself. You lasted 45 minutes in that quagmire of a battle royal. I need someone like that working for me. I have a manager. I have a bodyguard. What I don’t have is an enforcer. You could fulfill that role.”The crowd began to intercede, peeved by the audacity of Sonya short changing the blue chipper’s career, but the Rich Bitch’s gargantuan bodyguard, Smith, boomed a yell that silenced them.
”As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted, Holly the job is yours if you want it. Take a moment to evaluate things. You went from headliner to main eventer to multiple title shots for two different belts which you lost, then plummeted all the way down to the opening match opposite me. A random tag victory isn’t gonna propel you back to the top. You’re gonna have to make a huge statement. You’re gonna have to start marketing yourself on your own, because PWE is done trying to do it for you. So here’s some free advice since I’ve taken a shine to you.”She cleared her throat and beamed the prettiest, practiced politician's smile.
”Stop being a good girl in the ring. The rules are stacked against the goody two shoes. Opponents get to cheat all the live the long day and the goody goods suffer. The fan favorites are in proverbial handicap matches each time they compete. This god awful sport encourages debauchery, after all. In fact, Holly, do you know what would make a big impact in our tag match? You cold-cocking Ruby Steele. Leave her to Scott’s brutality. Remember, Ruby stole that triple threat win from you recently. She’ll try to steal the win from you in this tag match too. It could lead to a feud, which increases your exposure and marketability if you beat her. Women stealing victories from you is a trend come to think about it, huh? Ruby did it. Zoey did it. Holly, it’s time to take the gloves off and force things to happen. The fans will turn on you, yes, but they’re easily manipulated so you can say a few nice things to them at some point down the road and they’ll cheer you again. For now, though? Give me a chance. Give us a chance. I’ll put you on Wheaties boxes. I’ll get you a shoe endorsement. I’ll take you places.”Before the throng of reporters could barrage her, she shushed them with a gesture and the nastiest Benson Bitchface to date.
”I’m not finished! Ruby Steele, I just pitched an idea to Holly that may or may not bring your demise in this tag match, but that’s the beauty of it. You don’t know. I would offer you a similar deal, but honestly? You disgust me. You’re another one of these imbecilic women in wrestling trying to prove to your oatmeal brained family that you can punch someone in the face a bunch of times and hurl your body recklessly through the air like they did. Wow. Gee willikers. Such a noble endeavor. What’s your major malfunction, Ruby? If brains were gas, you couldn’t power an ant’s motorcycle around the inside of a Cheerio. Each time you compete you endanger your love of playing the bass and singing. Perhaps worse than that, you didn’t use your high profile wrestling status elsewhere to boost your band, Diamond and the Gem Stones. Like, what?”She pinched the bridge of her nose and shook her head.
”And the last we heard from you, you were saying meh maybe I’ll win, maybe I won’t. You were accepting the life of mediocrity, and proved it by getting dribbled all over the canvas by that paunchy dread-bolted clotpole, Vhodka Black. If you’re gonna have that type of attitude, then I’ll gladly pay you a generous amount of money to lie down in the match and let Scott pin you quick and easy. You won’t have to endure Scott eviscerating you. That’s the only offer I’ll throw your way, you moon pie faced nincompoop!”She threw her hands up in exasperation. Having Ruby on her tongue was stressing her, so she waved a dismissive gesture to the masses.
”I can’t even deal right now. I’m so done with this presser. I’m not answering your stupid questions, especially yours Denzel, you fugly popcorn fart. So, to all of you, may all the bad things that can happen to someone happen to all of you. May all of you die before the sun comes up, and may you rot in hell. Hmmp!”Denzel clapped back at her with some sauce that earned him applause and laughter from his fellow journalists, but Sonya ignored him and disappeared into Benson Plaza with her entourage.
End.
OOC: Sorry for the prologue at the start. New fed so I had to explain.
Also, I had Denzel’s permission.
