Team Rogue

---------------------------------April 12, 2011---------------------------------

Brandon heard his alarm clock going off. He rolled over in his bed and smacked it, turning it off. He hopped out of bed, and walked over to the shower. He hopped in and turned on the water, soaking in the steam for a while, before washing himself off and stepping out. He walked over to his closet, and dressed himself in the suit that was sitting in there. He walked out of the room, and over to James's room. He saw him there, in his suit, looking at himself in the mirror.

Brandon: "Finished checking yourself out?"

James: "Yeah, I'm done"

Brandon: "Good, then lets go"

James: "Alright, I was waiting on you anyways"

Brandon: "Yeah, whatever you say"

Brandon grabbed his bag, and walked out of the hotel room, with James following. They walked to the elevator, and waited as it lowered down to the first floor lobby. They walked out into a limo waiting for them, and drove off downtown. Brandon sat thinking about how big this day was. The opening of his gym. He had to introduce the coaches, the fighters, and give a tour to select media members. There were sponsors there too, and he needed to impress them to get them to sign on. Brandon was slightly nervous, but excited at the same time.

The limo arrived in a small back alley. Brandon climbed out of the vehicle, and walked over to a door. He pulled out a set of keys, and unlocked the door. Brandon walked inside, with James following behind. He walked over to a switch and flipped it, turning on all of the lights. He looked around at the gym.

There was a full size MMA cage in the corner, right beside two wrestling rings. Brandon looked over at the mat's that covered the ground, with red and white stripes everywhere. There were lots of weights over by a few mirrors, and a bunch of exercise machines. It was perfect. Brandon looked at James.

Brandon: "What do you think?"

James: "It looks great! They really did a good job"

Brandon: "Yeah, this is exactly how I wanted them to do it"

James: "Yeah, it looks amazing. I'm sure they will be impressed"

Brandon: "Yeah, I hope so"

James: "Brandon, you have a ton of great fighters, a ton of excellent staff, and state of the art facilities. There's no way they don't sponsor us"

Brandon: "Yeah, I guess I'm just a little nervous"

James: "Don't worry. Just go out and do your thing. I'll make sure that everyone gets here"

Brandon: "Okay. Within thirty minutes, remember?"

James: "Of course Brandon. I'll get it done. Go outside"

Brandon took a deep breath, and turned around. He walked to the front area of the gym, and quickly moved into his office. He checked his phone, and saw texts from all of the coaches, telling him that they were outside, and that people were waiting on him. He took another deep breath. This was it. His moment. His time to shine. But not as a fighter. But a business man. He stood up, and walked to the front door, and opened it. He was immediately met with flashing cameras, and tons of questions. He couldn't even hear what they were saying, because they came so fast and so jumbled.

Brandon: "Please, let me get to the podium, and I can answer questions"

Brandon pushed his way to the podium that was set up. There was a table there, with all of the coaches sitting, waiting to be introduced. Brandon got up and leaned in close to the microphone.

Brandon: "Thank you all for coming today. I'd like to take this time to welcome you to the grand opening of Team Rogue Gym! Home of Team Rogue. We're very happy that we could finally get this place running. We've spent many weeks preparing, building the place, setting it up, talking to coaches and fighters. And now that day is finally here. So, without further ado, here are the coaches that will be working with us here at Team Rogue."

Brandon motioned for all of the coaches to stand up. They did, and Brandon began to introduce them.

Brandon: "First off, we have the legendary Rafael Cordeiro. He is the co-head trainer of Team Rogue, along with myself. Rafael has been head trainer at many places, most notably the Chute Box Academy in Brazil. We're very happy that he has decided to join us, and we look forward to learning all of the things he can teach."

Rafael waved, as the audience clapped.

Brandon: "Next, one of the assistant trainers, we have Bob "Crazy Bob" Cook. He is primarily a submission trainer, and will continue to do so here. He has experience as a trainer with the American Kickboxing Academy, and we're glad he came to Team Rogue"

Bob smiled and laughed at the crowd.

Brandon: "Our greco-roman wrestling trainer, is the one and only Marty Morgan. A former head coach for the wrestling team at the University of Minnesota, he has plenty of experience training, and will continue to do so here. We also have our kickboxing coach, Shawn Tompkins, who has experience teaching with the Tapout Training Center."

Brandon looked at the crowd, where he saw the man representing Tapout smile. He smiled, as Shawn and Marty stood up and waved.

Brandon: "And finally, we're very proud here to announce that Team Rogue is not only a mixed martial arts gym, but also a professional wrestling gym. And because of that, we have signed one of the greatest wrestling coaches in Canadian history. Ladies and gentlemen, Scott D'Amore!"

Scott stood up, and bowed for the crowd. They applauded along with Brandon. He turned back towards the mic.

Brandon: "Alright, before I give you a tour of the inside, is there any questions from anyone?"

Brandon saw a bunch of hands raise. He pointed at one.

Man: "Mr. Macdonald, are you going to be focusing on training yourself? Or the other fighters?"

Brandon: "Well, obviously I don't plan on retiring from wrestling any time soon. So I will be making sure that I stay in shape, and working with some of trainers to improve myself. But my primary job is the head trainer, so I will be working to train each individual who is part of the team. I will mostly be focusing on the wrestling, alongside Scott, but I will also be helping Rafael with MMA."

Brandon looked at the audience and pointed at another.

Man: "Is it true that your brother is going to be one of the key members of your team?"

Brandon: "While it is true that my brother, the NFL linebacker James Macdonald, will be joining the team, I would not like to refer to him as 'a key member'. Here at Team Rogue, we are all equal members of the team. We do not have any fighters that are more important than others. And just because he's my brother, doesn't mean he gets anything handed to him. He has to earn the respect of all the trainers."

Man: "Do you think he will be able to do well this week in his Battle Royal?"

Brandon: "Absolutely. There's only one man in that match who even stands a remote chance of hanging with James, and that's Ruben Ricardo Leon. He's great, and I respect him a lot. But James is like a bigger, heavier me. And we all know how it turns out when I fight Ruben. Other than him though, there is not a single man who would even stand a chance against him. Unless Chris Matthews decides to step up. But Vincent Van Rose? No chance. Bryant Tanner? No chance. Chad Mason? Negative chance."

Man: "What about you? How do you feel about your fight with Corey Casey?"

Brandon: "Great. I've been training a lot lately, my body is much better than it was weeks ago. I'm quicker, my mind is sharper, and I'm hungrier than ever. I've been training with Scott here, and we feel we know exactly what I need to do to beat Corey. So I'm very confident in my match this week, and I know that I'll be walking out the champion."

Brandon looked around at some of the sponsors, and the audience. He smiled.

Brandon: "Well, I believe that it's time that I show everyone around the gym. Please, if you have a pass, come follow me."

Brandon walked over to the front door, and walked inside. The sponsors followed him, along with a few members of the media. He brought them into the main entrance room.

Brandon: "This is the main reception room. We'll have front desk employees who will deal with calls, memberships, etc. We'll have more pictures of fighters up on the walls once we get going."

He led them into the change rooms.

Brandon: "Here we have state of the art change rooms. We have many lockers, along with individual showers. We have a large jacuzzi, a sauna, and even a steam room. There is plenty of space, and is very warm and welcoming to anyone who enters."

They followed Brandon into the main gym room.

Brandon: "And this is where the magic happens. The gym. We have a brand new, official sized MMA cage, licensed by the UFC. We have two official wrestling rings, full sized, even equipped with under the ring weapons. The floor is all matted, and there is a full set of weights, machines, and cardio equipment over there. Lots of space, and different areas for each skill level. And if you look over there, we even have a stage and entrance ramp, to practise wresting entrances. It's quite something, if you ask me. Well, is there any questions so far? Or are you ready to see the team?"

Nobody put their hands up, or spoke up, so Brandon assumed they were ready.

Brandon: "Alright then. We have a team of ten fighters. Five of them are in the UFC, and five of them are wrestlers. Without further ado, here they are."

Brandon motioned back to where James was, behind a door. James opened it and led out a group of nine people, dressed in tight shirts and fighting shorts.

Brandon: "Ladies and gentlemen. First we have my brother, James Macdonald. Newest acquisition of the Insurgency Wrestling Federation, and NFL linebacker. Next we have Erick Stevens. Former two time World Heavyweight Champion on the independent circuit. Next we have Roderick Strong. A veteran of the independent scene, Roderick has won a total of eight World Championships, nine tag team titles, and three X-Division titles. He's looking forward to continuing on the independent scene, and hopefully make it to the big time some day. We have Jon Moxley, an eight time World Champion, and seven time tag team champion. And finally, we have Joseph Cabibbo, a seven time World Champion, and a seventeen time tag team champion."

Brandon turned around to the other fighters.

Brandon: "And now I'm going to introduce the UFC fighters. First off, we have Gray "The Bully" Maynard. 8-0-1 with 1 no contest in his UFC career. Next we have Mike "Qwick" Swick, 9-3 in his UFC career. "The All American" Brian Stann, who's 8-3 in the UFC. We also have Mr. Wonderful Phil Davis, who is undefeated in his five UFC fights. Here at Team Rogue, we hope to help all of these men achieve greatness in their respective divisions and careers. We're also open to public membership, as we'll teach public classes throughout the week"

Man: "Excuse me Mr. Macdonald?"

Brandon: "Yes?"

Man: "I thought you said there were 5 MMA fighters? You've only introduced four"

Brandon: "Ah yes. So I have. I guess he's not here yet"

Brock: "Sorry I'm late, traffic was nuts"

Everyone turned around towards the back entrance, as Brandon smiled.

Brandon: "Ladies and gentlemen, the baddest man on the planet, Brock Lesnar"

Brock: "How do you do"

Brandon: "There you have it folks. This is Team Rogue. And this is Team Rogue Gym. The hottest new fight gym in the United States. We're coming in strong. Look for us in the future. Because we're not going to go away. Thank you all for coming, and we hope to see you around again."

Brandon turned around and walked over to Brock.

Brandon: "Glad you could make it Brock"

Brock: "Wouldn't miss it. I'm glad you got me here"

Brandon: "We're trying our best. We just need three sponsors to really secure our future as a team. I'm hoping I did enough here today. We really have an all-star lineup, and that will only grow. We have huge potential."

Brock: "I'm sure everything will work out just fine"

Brandon shook Brock's hand, before turning around, and running into a man wearing a suit. He was holding a clipboard, with some papers on it.

Brandon: "Can I help you?"

Hardy: "Yes you may. I'm Mr. Hardy, I'm here representing Tapout clothing."

Brandon: "Well it's very nice to meet you Mr. Hardy"

Hardy: "Likewise. So I was sent here today to check out your new gym. And I must say, I was very impressed. You guys have lots of talents, all young, with bright futures ahead of them."

Brandon: "Thank you. We tried to get guys who really wanted to push themselves and really take their careers to the next level"

Hardy: "I like that. You really have this well thought out. We at Tapout really like where this is going. Because not only is this a UFC/MMA fight camp, but it also is a pro wrestling one. Something new, something different"

Brandon: "Yeah, we're very unique in that sense. Not many others have tried it"

Hardy: "They haven't. I believe you are the first. Anyways, I'll cut straight to the chase. We at Tapout would like to sponsor your team. It's very simple. You use our logo on your gym mats, your equipment, etc. You've been in the UFC, I'm fairly sure you know how our sponsorship works, correct?"

Brandon: "Of course. Where do I sign? We would love it if Tapout was our sponsor"

Hardy: "Great. If you'd just sign here, here, and here"

Brandon quickly scanned the contract that he was signing. He found nothing out of the ordinary, so he grabbed the pen that was handed to them, and signed his name off on the bottom of page. He smiled as he handed it back to Mr. Hardy.

Hardy: "Great. Thank you so much Mr. Macdonald"

He extended his hand. Brandon grabbed it and shook it.

Brandon: "No, thank you Mr. Hardy"

Brandon shook his hand again, and then Mr. Hardy turned around and walked away. Brandon smiled and turned around, bumping right into another man in a suit.

Michaels: "Hi there Mr. Macdonald. My name is Mr. Steve Michaels, and I represent Xyience. I just have to say, I loved your presentation, and I really love what you are doing here. I won't beat around the bush here. We'd love to sponsor you, and help you out. What do you say?"

Brandon: "That sounds amazing. We would love more sponsors."

Michaels: "Excellent. Just sign here, and here"

Brandon grabbed the pen again, and signed off on the contract. He shook hands with Michaels, and then turned back to some of the guys who had stuck around. He flashed a thumbs up. He looked at James, who was pointing at something. Brandon turned around and saw another man there, extending his hand.

Johnson: "Hello there. I'm George Johnson from Under Armour. It's nice to meet you Mr. Macdonald"

Brandon: "Nice to meet you too sir"

Johnson: "Well, what can I say? We love this place. We'd love to sponsor your team. How about it?"

Brandon: "Under Armour wants to sponsor our entire team?"

Johnson: "We would love to. We really like what you're doing here. It's great stuff. We would love to help you out"

Brandon: "Wow, that's amazing. I didn't think Under Armour was big into mixed martial arts sponsorships."

Johnson: "Right now we only have Georges St. Pierre. We are trying to expand our company, beyond the common knowledge that Under Armour is for football only. If we sign with your team, then we can really make it known that we are involved in more than just football."

Brandon: "Where do I sign?! We would love it if Under Armour would sponsor us. That would really help us get off the ground"

Johnson: "Then we have a deal! Excellent news"

Brandon took the pen and signed his name on the third contract of the day. He handed it back to Mr. Johnson, who smiled.

Johnson: "Well thank you very much Mr. Macdonald. I can't wait to see this place in a few months"

Brandon: "It will be much busier, that's for sure"

Johnson: "Well, good luck to you in the future Mr. Macdonald. I hope to see you again some day"

Brandon: "Thank you again sir. We won't let you down"

Johnson: "I do not believe that you will. Good day sir"

Johnson turned around and ran over to James, Brock, and Gray Maynard, all of whom had stayed. He high fived all of them.

Brandon: "Tapout, Xyience, and Under Armour!"

James: "Under Armour!?"

Brandon: "Yeah, isn't that crazy? I didn't know they sponsored for MMA"

Gray: "I know that St. Pierre is sponsored by them, but I don't know anyone else"

Brandon: "Yeah, he's the only one. Until now"

Brock: "Do I still get to keep my sponsors?"

Brandon: "I assume so. Because they are sponsoring our team, and so you guys have your individual sponsors, as well as team sponsors."

Brock: "Good, because I don't want to give up my Jack's Links beef jerky sponsorship"

Brandon: "Yeah, who would want to give that up?"

Brock: "No one. It's delicious"

Gray: "So when do we start training Brandon?"

Brandon: "I was thinking next week. Lets just give ourselves time to get everything ready and stuff"

Gray: "Sounds good. I gotta bounce guys. See ya next week"

Brandon: "See ya Gray"

James: "See ya man"

Brock: "Peace Maynard"

Brandon turned back to Brock and James.

Brandon: "I'm so excited for this to get going"

Brock: "Yeah. I need a better gym than my old one. Got nothing done. I have to beat Dos Santos"

Brandon: "You will. We'll make sure of it"

Brock: "Looks like you're the only one my size James. We'll have to be sparring partners"

James: "As long as we can spar for wrestling too"

Brock: "Don't forget that I used to be a professional wrestler. I'll help you out. Maybe even teach you a thing or two"

James: "Yeah, whatever you say Brock"

Brandon: "Hey Brock, are you free tonight? Do you want to come to dinner at my place? Anna's cooking"

Brock: "Ah, I wish I could. I got plans with the wife."

Brandon: "Fair enough. Anyways, we should probably head out, we have to catch a flight."

Brock: "Alright. I'm gonna work out if you don't mind. I'll lock up afterwords"

Brandon: "Alright, sounds good. Later Brock"

Brock: "See ya Brandon, see ya James"

James: "Peace Brock"

Brandon walked out of the backdoor, where the limo was still waiting. He knocked on the window, waking the driver up from a deep sleep. He climbed into the back, as the car began to pull away. James looked at Brandon.

James: "What was that about?"

Brandon: "What was what about?"

James: "Inviting Brock to dinner?"

Brandon: "What? I just wanted to invite him over. He's a friend."

James: "But what about Keagan and I? If he was there, he'd distract her from me"

Brandon: "Dude, she's met Brock before. Not interested. What's with you anyways?"

James: "What do you mean?"

Brandon: "You seem really nervous about Keagan"

James: "I am. I want her to like me. I dunno, I'm just nervous"

Brandon: "Relax dude. I guarantee that she'll like you. Don't worry so much"

James: "I don't know. This is weird. I never feel like this"

Brandon: "That's because you want more than a one night stand with her. And since that's all you're used to, its a big difference"

James: "You've got that right"

Brandon: "So you're just feeling nervous. Because you don't want to make a bad first impression"

James: "Man, how do you know all of this?"

Brandon: "I just do. I'm married remember?"

James: "Yeah, but Anna's the only girl you've ever been with. How do you about others?"

Brandon: "Well, my best friend is Keagan. Do you know how much she likes to talk?"

James: "Yeah, I guess"

Brandon: "Believe me. You'll be fine. Just be yourself. She'll love you"

James: "Okay. I trust your judgement"

Brandon sighed as the limo approached the airport. They got out and carried their bags to the private jet that would take them back to Caye Chapel Island. Once they were aboard, Brandon lay his head down and closed his eyes. He was so happy with how the day went. Not only was it a successful gym opening, but they had secured three huge sponsors. Under Armour was the icing on the cake. No other team had Under Armour as a sponsor, and they were such a huge global company. Having them behind them meant a lot. It meant that they would be financially secure, through something other than Brandon's own pockets. But it also meant that the pressure would be on to become huge. They needed to succeed, and relatively fast, in order to impress Under Armour. Brandon didn't think it was much of a problem. Gray has a title fight soon, Brock has his fight soon, everyone is moving on up. As long as they could keep going up, Brandon would be okay. He was happy. Now he could just relax.

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Brandon awoke as the plane was taxiing towards the tower. He got up, and shook James awake, before exiting the plane, which had come to a stop. He climbed down the stairs, and walked over to where his car was parked. He climbed in, and waited for James to hop inside. They drove off towards Brandon's house. Brandon noticed that James was looking off into space.

Brandon: "Relax James. You'll be fine"

James: "I know. I'm just thinking"

Brandon continued to drive, until they pulled up to his house. He climbed out of the car and walked inside. He walked into the kitchen and saw Anna setting up dinner.

Brandon: "Honey, I'm home!"

Anna: "Finally. Can you go get Keagan? Dinner is ready"

Brandon: "Already?"

Anna turned around and kissed him quickly.

Anna: "Yes. Now can you go please?"

Brandon: "Aren't you going to say hi to James?"

Anna: "Hi James. Thanks for coming. Will you make Brandon go get Keagan?"

James: "Yeah sure"

Brandon laughed and hugged Anna tight, before turning around and walking with James out the door, and over to the house next door. He knocked on the door. He heard Keagan yell something from inside. He waited as she opened the door.

Keagan: "Brandon!"

Brandon looked at Keagan, who was wearing short jean shorts, and a small bikini top, which she filled out well. He smiled at her.

Brandon: "Ready for dinner?"

Keagan: "Yes. Who's this?"

Brandon: "Oh, Keagan. You remember my brother James right?"

Keagan: "This is James?!"

Brandon: "Yeah, why?"

Keagan: "Oh, just wondering. Hi James. Long time no see"

James: "Yeah, same here. You been good?"

Keagan: "I guess you could say that"

Brandon: "She means that she hasn't been doing great"

Keagan: "He's right. Not exactly great."

James: "I'm sure we can discuss it over dinner, if you want"

Keagan: "Yeah, lets do that. I'm starving"

Brandon smiled to himself. He walked inside. James moved ahead of them, and Keagan leaned in to his ear.

Keagan:[color=violet] "When did your brother get so hot?"

Brandon: "When he started taking football seriously. He's a big guy eh?"

Keagan: "He's so strong. Wow, not at all what I remember"

Brandon: "Yeah, he changed a lot."

Keagan: "And it was a good chance"

Brandon: "If you say so"

Anna: "Who's ready to eat?"

The three of them all said yes, and began to take their seats at the table on the back patio. Brandon helped Anna carry all of the food out on to the table. He smiled as he saw Keagan and James talking already. Just like he thought they would.