William Regal has scouted out his newest prospect. Axel Trese, the "Strong Style Assassin," has traveled all around the world, winning matches and nabbing some gold along the way, and the WWE is now in his crosshairs.
Meanwhile, behind the cameras...
With an audible groan, Steffanie slowly sat up on the bed and turned her eyes to the alarm clock. It was only 5AM and she turned around to see Xander, who was the usual early bird of the house, still asleep. Sighing, the Welsh wrestler slipped on a white blouse and jean shorts over her black underclothes before heading downstairs to feed Blue and make breakfast in Xander's place.
(Later...)
Sporting black Nike shorts and a gray muscle shirt, Xander slowly walked down the stairs, groaning with each step. As he reached the ground floor, he caught a glimpse of something pleasant in the kitchen/dining area.
"Is that...chicken and waffles?" Xander groaned as Steffanie, who sat in front of the dining table, shot him a smile.
"Dig in, champ. You had a busy night." She said.
Chuckling, Xander gave Steffanie a quick kiss before sitting next to her and picking up a piece of fried chicken and a waffle. Wasting no time, he ferociously bit into the chicken before pouring some maple syrup on his waffle.
"Lots of people are buzzing about the Bash." Steffanie told him. "And we have the day off. What do you want to do?"
"Never really thought of that." Xander answered after swallowing the chicken while putting the maple syrup away.
"Well,...just take it easy."
(Later...)
"Quick question...how are you ending fights as Dragunov that quickly?" Steffanie asked as she watched Xander play Tekken 7 in the game room for a video on their channel. She sat beside him, a bag of marshmallows in hand.
"Because...as Dragunov, I throw defense out the window." Xander replied. "And yes, viewers, I tend to not block when I should."
"Makes me wonder how you still kick my ass every time." She sighed before biting into and chewing on a marshmallow.
"It's all on the frames, knowing which moves are not worth using, etc. Not the best player, but I like to think I know what I'm doing."
"Do you?"
"Not all the time. It's a heat of the moment kind of thing."
Steffanie laughed as Xander now faced his next challenger, a King player. Right of the gate, he, as Dragunov, was immediately parried and subject to an aerial combo that cut a big chunk of his health followed by a wall follow-up that took Xander down to less than half his health.
"You're getting owned." Steffanie laughed.
"Yeah, no shit, princess." Xander grunted before managing to catch the King off guard, firing away with an air combo and a small follow-up combo of his own.
"Alright, we're goo-" He couldn't get the words out as Dragunov was now caught in a chain grab. Xander pressed random buttons, hoping to break the chain as Steffanie looked at the screen, eyes widened. In the end, however, King took Round 1.
"Damn. Is this LilMajin in secret?" Xander asked himself.
"No idea." Steffanie shrugged.
____________
(July 15, 2020)
The crowd instantly popped at the sight of the new NXT Champion, Axel Trese, NXT Championship over his shoulder while wearing a trench coat, dress shirt, black pants, and shoes. He surveyed the cheering fans before slowly making his way down the ramp. (See below picture for gear)
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"Last week, at the main event of Night Two of the Great American Bash, Axel Trese defeated Adam Cole after what almost felt like an entire hour." Mauro explained. "But, in the process, he became NXT Champion."
"And this can only be the beginning of the future that REBIRTH had envisioned." Nigel added as Axel took to the center of the ring and raised the NXT Championship in the air before placing it on his shoulder. The music stopped and a microphone was now in the Strong Style Emperor's free hand.
"Last week was only the first step, the first victory." He said. "Last week, I came into this arena with nothing but the clothes on my back and a dream, I saw the prize of a lifetime, I conquered Adam Cole and sent him down the ladder. Now, I stand tall at the highest rung, as the new NXT Champion."
The crowd cheered at those words.
"No longer am I the one who is left to go stale." Axel continued. "For, with this title, you could say that I am now the paragon of NXT, the face of the brand. Adam Cole put up a good fight at the Bash, but in the end, the true standard bearer of Team Shock Style stood tall, the better man stood tall, and he will elevate this title to new heights. Now that I have taken this belt, the change in the landscape is now clearer than before. NXT has come a long way from simply being the 'developmental brand' of the WWE. Now? This show is its saving grace, and it will be for years to come. REBIRTH will make sure of it. Now, I am already aware of the inevitability of challengers, and I implore them to try to take me off my throne and take this belt from me. Let the challengers keep coming, because there are certain challengers in the locker room that I, as part of REBIRTH's objective, feel the need to make an example of."
After those final words, Axel dropped the microphone and left the ring.
(Later...Backstage...off screen...)
"You know, Xander, some day, you're gonna have to get fashion tips from someone other than Jin Kazama." Austin chuckled as he lightly tossed a water bottle at Xander, who caught it. Both men were in the men's locker room, where some of the talent were chatting.
"Maybe if I got my hands on a realistic jaguar mask, sure." Xander laughed.
"I don't mind seeing that." Keith told them with a grin as he was about to exit the locker room. "Now, if you guys don't mind, Kevin (Karrion Kross) and I are about to start our segment."
"Go ahead." Austin patted the big man on the back.
"Good luck!" Xander called out to Keith while raising his water bottle as Keith exited the locker room.
