XXXI: “IN DREAMS.”
Live from the Arena Monterrey in Monterrey, Mexico.
Thursday 22nd June, 2023.
The show opens up in the ring, where Katie-Lynn Goldsmith stands with a microphone in her hand.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: “Ladies and gentlemen, the following is your opening contest of Meltdown XXXI and it’s for the FWA TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP!”
The theme music of the tag champs begins as the crowd gets to their feet in anticipation though no one immediately walks out, allowing the music to continue to play for a couple minutes, the cheers growing louder and louder as the song plays.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: “Introducing first… they are the FWA World Tag Team Champions…. “Black Jesus” Alyster Black… “Disco’s Last Warrior” Chris Peacock…. They are… F. T. N!”
Anzu Kurosawa: ”For the first time in as long as I can remember, it won’t be The Connection walking down to the ring with the tag belts around their waists.”
Rod Sterling: “That’s right, Anzu. On Meltdown XXX, Chris Peacock shocked the world when he brought out Alyster Black as his tag partner and what was supposed to be a singles match between himself and MvH became a match for the tag team titles! And FTN was able to successfully do what so many teams have failed over the past year… defeat The Connection!”
Anzu Kurosawa: ”The champs sure like to know how to build up the anticipation… these fans are ready to see them!”
After a couple of minutes, finally Chris Peacock and Alyster Back emerge from backstage. Peacock has the FWA Tag Title around one of his shoulders and the FWA World Championship around the other while Black has his title around one of his shoulders. The pair stop on the stage and share a fist bump as the crowd gives the champs a loud ovation.
Rod Sterling: “With Back in Business just around the corner, Chris Peacock has suddenly doubled his workload as well. Because not only will he have to defend the World Championship against Cyrus Truth in the Night 2 Main Event, but on Night 1 he’s going to be in a three way ladder match defending these tag titles!”
Anzu Kurosawa: ”Let’s not write off FTN’s competitors tonight though, Rod. We don’t want to assume anything, do we?”
Rod Sterling: “That’s a fair point, Anzu. But I have to like FTN’s odds in what seems to amount to basically a handi-cap match against Jeremy Best. If Jeremy had the actual Krash with him… and he was at 100%... then we’d have ourselves a contest I think. Not that we don’t know if that is Krash or not under the mask…”
Anzu Kurosawa: ”With the way the masked Krash struggled against a team like Kung-Fu Boom last week, I definitely don’t like his odds up against a team that includes the real Krash’s best friend, Alyster Black. Black may end both of them here tonight!”
Alyster and Peacock climb into the ring, Peacock taking a moment to shimmy with both titles around his waist while Alyster gives a proud pat to his own title.
The opening beats to the happy tune from the Muppets begins, but much like the tag champs, the challengers do not appear immediately, though the boos certainly do begin in earnest.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: “And their opponents…. “The Moustached Maverick”... …. Krash…….
The hesitation in KLG’s delivery shows her own disdain for having to announce the masked man as Krash… but ever the professional… she continues.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: “And… “Your New Best Friend” Jeremy Best… they are… the Friendship Wrestling Alliance.”
Anzu Kurosawa: ”Even Katie-Lynn isn't buying any of this!”
Rod Sterling: “It appears the challengers are taking a page out of FTN’s playbook here because they two are letting their music play for a bit before showing up. Perhaps more mind games from Jeremy Best?”
Anzu Kurosawa: ”I don’t know about mind games, Rod. I think not all is okay up there in that head of his.
The song continues to play with the boos growing louder and louder. A couple minutes pass and there’s still no sign of the challengers. Peacock tosses his arms up in the air, his frustration evident. The champs gather around Katie-Lynn, seeing what’s going on but she clearly has no idea.
Abruptly the cameras cut to the back where a frantic Jeremy Best is pacing back and forth as Bryan Baxter rushes into the scene.
Bryan Baxter: “What’s going on? You guys need to get out there!”
Jeremy Best: “I can’t. I can’t go out there yet. I can’t find him. He’s… missing!”
Bryan Baxter: “What do you mean he’s missing? Where’s Frank?”
Jeremy Best: “What? Who are you talking about? There’s no time for your silliness, Bryan! Krash is missing. And at a time like this!”
Bryan sighs and shakes his head.
Bryan Baxter: “Should’ve known he’d flake out. Look, bud… I always got your back, right?”
Jeremy nods fervently.
Bryan Baxter: “Don’t you worry, okay. We’ll get you those tag titles… I know that’s what you really want. To be tag champs with… Krash. Well… I am prepared for this and I have a Plan B. But… you gotta buy me some time. Okay?”
Jeremy Best: “Hmm.. okay, thanks! You are such a great friend, Bryan. Thanks so much!”
Jeremy gives his friend a big ol’ hug and Jeremy rushes out as Baxter heads off to do whatever “Plan B” is.
Back in the arena, Alyster Black and Chris Peacock are increasingly frustrated as the Muppets music continues to play in the arena.
Rod Sterling: “It would appear that the masked Krash is MIA! Jeremy Best is without a partner for this match.”
Anzu Kurosawa: ”Honestly… probably the best decision the imposter Krash could’ve made. Live to fight another day. Or at least live. Not sure how much fight that guy has in him.”
Finally, Jeremy Best trots out from the back with a microphone in his hand. The crowd greets him with massive boos.
Jeremy Best: “Hiya friends! Hiya Chris. Hiya Aly! So good to see you guys tonight!”
Peacock and Black don’t seem interested in Jeremy’s pleasantries, surprisingly enough. They motion for him to come on down to the ring.
Jeremy Best: “But it appears… we need to postpone this match a bit, okay? Krashy… looks like he’s having… some cold feet, of sorts. Maybe a little nervous about getting a title shot so soon after his return. Not that he doesn’t deserve it… a man of his status has earned pretty much any title shot he wants upon his return! I am sure you agree, don’t you, Aly? But in any event, his anxiety is getting to him again. BUT.. we just need a little time.”
In the ring, Peacock and Black do not seem too thrilled with the turn of events. Chris Peacock grabs the microphone.
Chris Peacock: “C’mon man, we’re ready to kick your ass now. The match is supposed to happen now… so let’s have it happen… NOW!”
The crowd eagerly agrees, while some frustration seems to cross Jeremy’s face as he sighs and his tone becomes much more serious. The normally chipper sounding Jeremy becomes more firm as he speaks next.
Jeremy Best: “Look… you guys want to kick my butt so badly… What's another hour or two? Okay?”
Black and Peacock share a look with one another and then shrug their shoulders.
Chris Peacock: “Fine. Have it your way Best. But one way or another… you’re getting what’s coming to you… TONIGHT!”
Jeremy’s face lights back up despite the ominous threat from the champion.
Jeremy Best: “Oh great! Thank you guys! Guess we’ll see you later tonight!”
Jeremy gives a friendly wave to FTN and then to the fans before running back to the back while a frustrated Black and Peacock also begin to exit the ring.
A candy-coloured clown they call the sandman…
There's a mixed reaction in the arena as Roy Orbison begins to play, with the audience not entirely sure what reaction to give Dreamer as she appears on stage. Her facial expression is inscrutable: perhaps it's one of renewed focus given her loss and the loss of the FWA World Tag Team Championships, and the enormity of a task now exactly thirty days in her future.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith:: "Ladies and gentlemen, the following contest is scheduled for one-fall and has a twenty minute time limit. Introducing first, from Rotterdam in the Netherlands and weighing in at fifty three kilograms… 'Dreamer'... Michelle… von… HORROWITZ!"
Rod Sterling: "It feels strange to say it, but we might be watching MvH coming to the ring here on FWA Meltdown for the very last time."
Anzu Kurosawa: "It does feel strange. I'd rather you didn't say it out loud at all, thanks Rod."
Rod Sterling: "Even if you don't want to think about it, Anzu, I'm sure there's been little else on Michelle's mind over the past few weeks. Von Horrowitz puts her career on the line at Back in Business against Jon Snowmantashi… difficult to imagine she's been able to focus on preparation for her opponent tonight. Maybe to her peril."
Anzu Kurosawa: "Guess we're about to find out…"
Von Horrowitz slides into the ring and then takes up her customary position in the corner with her head propped against the second turnbuckle. Then…
The crowd cheers as Trixie Bordeaux makes her way into the stage, a smile on her face that suggests nervousness more than anything else. She scans the faces of her (surprisingly, to her) adoring crowd and then, after a deep breath, begins down the ramp.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith:: "And her opponent…weighing in at one hundred and twenty five pounds… from Baton Rouge, Louisiana… TRIXIE BORDEAUX!!"
Rod Sterling: "It's been an up and down start for Bellatrix Bordeaux in the FWA, but she seems to have found her feet recently."
Anzu Kurosawa: "Yes, and this patch of good form has coincided with her recently blossoming relationship with the Coven. What precisely is going on between Trixie, the Ravenwoods, and Kleio De Santos remains to be seen, and it'll be interesting to see if they play a role in proceedings here…"
Rod Sterling: "Well, we know that Michelle von Horrowitz - who has noticeably arrived at the ring tonight alone - isn't afraid of bringing in some outside help to secure victory. Might be nice to see the odds evened up a little."
Trixie climbs through the ropes and takes up position in the corner opposite Michelle, who uses the top rope to drag herself up to her feet. Trixie's music fades out and Dreamer glares at her from across the ring. The official conducts his final checks and then calls for the bell.
<< 00:00. >>
As soon as the bell rings, Dreamer charges across the ring with Trixie almost frozen in spot…
Rod Sterling: "Shotgun dropkick from Michelle to start the match! Trixie is knocked off her feet and back into the turnbuckles! Dreamer looks all business here…"
Michelle hoists Trixie up and throws her across the ring with a HARD Irish whip. Bordeaux hits the turnbuckles with impact and bounces back towards Michelle…
Anzu Kurosawa: "BUSAIKU KNEE! Michelle hits it!! We're less than thirty seconds in!"
Rod Sterling: "Dreamer hooks the leg, looking to end this early…”
ONE… TWO… THR – NO
Trixie forces the shoulder up! But Michelle transitions immediately into cattle mutilation!! In the middle of the ring!
Rod Sterling: "von Horrowitz has the submission locked in! Trixie is sundered in the middle of the ring! Dreamer is not wasting ANY time here, trying to see off Trixie Bordeaux as quickly as she possibly can…"
Anzu Kurosawa: "Perhaps she feels like she has a point to prove? And she might be just about to prove it!!"
The official is in close, asking Trixie if she wants to give it up… but Bordeaux refuses to submit, not this early on! She clenches her hand into a fist and then shuffles closer and closer to the bottom rope… which eventually she is able to hook an outstretched boot onto! The official starts a count, Michelle using four and a half seconds of it before finally observing the rope break. MvH backs away, but only for a moment, taking Bordeaux down with a dragon screw leg whip as soon as she reaches a vertical base. Dreamer assumes control…
***
<< 04:47. >>
Rod Sterling: "Dreamer has been dominating the early stretches of this match-up, and I think Trixie needs to get this one back into the ring as soon as possible…"
MvH has Trixie backed up against the barricade on the outside, where she lays into her with alternating knife edge chops and forearm strikes.
Anzu Kurosawa: "I don't think Trixie really has too much of a say in things right now… and I'm also unsure what respite the ring will bring her. Dreamer has been relentless in these opening five minutes, both within the ropes and outside of them."
The official's count has reached eight, and so Dreamer rolls into the ring and then back out of it. She collects Trixie (who is slumped next to the barricade and receiving some words of encouragement from the fans in the front row) by the wrist, drags her up and towards the steel ring steps, and then slams her face first onto them with a drop toe hold! Dreamer takes a deep bow in front of the audience, some of whom cheer whilst others boo, and then finally tosses Trixie in beneath the bottom rope.
Rod Sterling: "Michelle von Horrowitz taking things up to the high rent district, here… she's waiting for Trixie Bordeaux to find her feet in the ring…"
Dreamer stands up atop the top turnbuckle, before leaping off with an all-or-nothing cross-body…
Rod Sterling: "DROPKICK FROM TRIXIE! Effective anti-air by Bordeaux, and von Horrowitz is down!"
Anzu Kurosawa: "But, after the bludgeoning Trixie has taken over the last six minutes, she's unable to follow up! Both women struggle slowly to their feet…"
Eventually they both make it up at roughly the same time, and it looks as though Dreamer acts first, attempting to wipe Trixie out with a discus forearm… but it's ducked by Bordeaux! And then a school-boy! Michelle's shoulders are down!
ONE… TWO… THR – NO!
Dreamer kicks out! Both women scramble up and Trixie hits a sit out jawbreaker, MvH recoiling to the ropes. Bordeaux charges at her and attempts a clothesline over the top and to the outside, but Dreamer ducks beneath it and launches Trixie out instead with a BIG back body drop!! Bordeaux lands in a heap on the floor!
Dreamer collapses in the ring into a seated position, massaging her jaw after the dropkick and jawbreaker, and watches on patiently as the official begins a ten-count…
***
<< 10:27. >>
In the ring, with Bordeaux down after a brainbuster and a two-count, Michelle begins to loosen one of the second turnbuckle covers right under the official's nose…
Rod Sterling: "Hey referee! That isn't allowed!"
Anzu Kurosawa: "Narc…"
The official is wise to it, though, and grabs the cover from Michelle to refasten it. Von Horrowitz moves to the opposite corner and removed the second turnbuckle covers from there instead. She gets it off and launches it into the crowd, a minor melee occurring as a group of fans tussle over it…
Rod Sterling: "This doesn't look good for Bellatrix Bordeaux…"
Anzu Kurosawa: "Not much of this match has, Rod!"
The official finally has the original cover back on the turnbuckle and turns to see Michelle picking Trixie up by the wrist, she looks as though she's attempting to Irish whip her into the corner she's been working on, or perhaps to drop toe hold her into the steel ring… but Trixie plants her feet and refuses to shift! MvH abandons the whip attempt and rocks Trixie with a European uppercut, sending her stumbling back into the middle of the ring. MvH tries to run through her with a lariat, but Bordeaux ducks it, kick to the midsection…
Rod Sterling: "SNAP DDT! Did you hear that reaction?!"
The crowd roars it's approval as Trixie climbs to her feet, signalling that she's moving in for the kill. MvH struggles up to her own feet. Trixie comes towards her, maybe for Sweet Dreams…
… but she's flattened by a discus forearm!! Trixie crumples into a heap, but Dreamer - now somewhat enraged - hoists Bordeaux back to her feet. She puts her in pumphandle position…
Anzu Kurosawa: "Here it comes! Michelle's going for Psycho Driver #2!"
Rod Sterling: "BUT TRIXIE'S BITING HER!! SHE'S BITING MICHELLE VON HORROWITZ'S NECK!!!"
Under this surprising attack, Dreamer is forced to release Trixie from her pumphandle. She backs away from Bordeaux and wipes her neck, before staring down at a hand smeared with blood!! She looks down at it, surprised and incensed…
Rod Sterling: "SWEET DREAMS!! Trixie catches Michelle off-guard!!"
Trixie hits her code-breaker finisher clean! Michelle hits the mat, and an eager and excited Trixie dives on top of her….
Anzu Kurosawa: "Lateral press!"
ONE… TWO… … ….
Anzu Kurosawa: "FOOT ON THE ROPES!!!"
Trixie can't believe it! She looks, aghast, first at Michelle's boot propped on the bottom rope, and then at the official (who, to be fair, looks as disappointed as she is). The audience are now firmly on side, launching into a TRIX-IE chant, willing Bordeaux onto a big finish…
… but Michelle wants none of it, and rolls beneath the bottom rope and onto the outside. Trixie, exhausted herself, takes a few deep, laboured breaths in the ring before following her out…
***
<< 14:53. >>
After a period where Trixie has the advantage, von Horrowitz turns the tables again thanks to a surprise German suplex, settling back into a rhythm with the advantage once more. Michelle has a front facelock applied in the middle of the ring, attempting to wrench Trixie up - perhaps for her patented brainbuster - but Bordeaux anchors her weight down to block the move. Michelle releases the front facelock, but has Trixie by the hair, and lays into her with a half-dozen headbutts. She reapplies her front face lock, and this time manages to lift Trixie up off her feet…
Rod Sterling: "Michelle von Horrowitz going for a brainbuster, but Trixie Bordeaux strikes her on the top of the head with a knee! Bordeaux lands behind MvH and applies a rear waistlock, bundling her forward into a corner…"
Anzu Kurosawa: "… and into that exposed steel ring!! SKULLDUGGERY!"
Rod Sterling: "I think that was more luck than judgement - bad luck in Michelle’s case - but Trixie is reaping the rewards… O’Conner roll! Michelle’s shoulders are down!!"
ONE… TWO… THRE – NO!!
Michelle forces her way out! She rolls over to her front, clutching her ribs, and then - with the crowd firmly behind her - she begins her ascent towards the top rope…
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith:: "Ladies and gentlemen: this is your FOUR-MINUTE WARNING!"
Anzu Kurosawa: "Trixie’s going up top… with time ticking away! Only four minutes remain!"
Rod Sterling: "Isn’t that a Fallout thing?"
Anzu Kurosawa: "I think it’s just seeped into the FWA zeitgeist…"
Trixie steadies herself on the top turnbuckle, her sense of urgency heightened by the warning from the announcer. MvH is on her feet, and turns round to face the flying Bordeaux…
Rod Sterling: "Trixie goes for a cross-body… BUT SHE EATS A SUPERKICK!!"
Anzu Kurosawa: "Michelle pays her back for that dropkick earlier in the match!!"
Dreamer takes a moment to shake loose the cobwebs, and then climbs up to the top turnbuckle herself. Trixie is in perfect position and on dream street…
Rod Sterling: "450 SPLASH!!!"
Anzu Kurosawa: "Michelle gets all of it!! And she hooks the leg!"
ONE… TWO… THRE – NO!!!
Rod Sterling: "TRIXIE KICKS OUT!! SOMEHOW!!"
Michelle looks at the official, frustration the primary component on her face at first. Then, she stares down at Bordeaux, and her countenance turns to a smile. Not sinister: almost impressed, even.
Then, she hoists Bordeaux up and puts her in pumphandle position…
Anzu Kurosawa: "PSYCHO DRIVER #2! GOOD NIGHT!"
ONE… TWO… THREE!
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith:: "Here is your winner… Michelle von Horrowitz!"
Dreamer allows her hand to be lifted by the match official before immediately snatching it away again.
Anzu Kurosawa: "You noted earlier that Michelle von Horrowitz came here tonight alone… perhaps sending a message ahead of Back in Business? Many have questioned whether the Nephews will play a part in her tussle with the kaiju… if tonight is anything to go by, that doesn't look like it will be the case."
Rod Sterling: "I wouldn't put it past her, Anzu. You're too trusting. Michelle and the Nephews always have something up their sleeve…"
Anzu Kurosawa: "You're not trusting enough, Rod."
Rod Sterling: "Either way, I'd like to see Dreamer get the kaiju up for Psycho Driver #2, or any other Psycho Driver for that matter…"
As Michelle stares down at Trixie, this thought is perhaps crossing her mind, too. She stands in the ring, now vacated by the opponent and the official, and looks around herself: at the pink ropes, the black turnbuckles emblazoned with the FWA logo, the show’s own branding in the middle of the dark grey ring mat. She looks up at the familiar staging. It’s all familiar. Michelle closes her eyes as we fade to black.
The crowd is amped up as Meltdown continues on. Just then as they’re not sure what is going to happen next a familiar, yet long unheard song begins to play through the arena. Legendary from Royce Da 5'9" blasts on the sound system.
Out from the backstage area walks Johnny “The Legend” Johnson. Dressed in a designer suit. The suit has a white pants and a jacket with a red dress shirt under the jacket. He walks out with a smug look on his face as the fans throttle him with boos. He takes a look out to the crowd, to the left, to the right and then just lets out a slight chuckle. He then starts to make his walk down to the ring.
Rod Sterling: We have finally been blessed to have The Legend back here in FWA last week. And now this week we are even further blessed by him actually coming to the ring. The fans should be bowing down to him, not showing pure disrespect to him like they are.
Anzu Kurosawa: C’mon Rod, even you have to admit he’s not the most likable person on the planet.
Rod Sterling: I will admit nothing of the sort. This man should have an altar in every venue the FWA has been at and will ever be at.
Johnny stops right before stepping on the ring steps and takes one last look into the crowd this time he just scoffs at the crowd and their reaction to him. He then pulls at the lapel of his jacket with both hands and then makes his way up the ring steps. He enters the ring through the ropes and pulls out a microphone from the pocket on the inside of his suit jacket. He rolls his neck around to get the kinks out of it and then lifts the microphone to his mouth.
Johnny Johnson: Monterrey, Mexico…..
Johnny stops for a second as the roar of the crowd pops for the home city.
Johnny Johnson: What a shit hole this place is!
That statement throws the crowd into a frenzy as they roar with disapproval and begin throwing drinks and other objects into the ring. A slight smile appears on Johnny’s face. He then begins to fire back at the crowd with a visceral demeaning behind his voice.
Johnny Johnson: Hey! Don’t be angry at me because you pieces of trash decided to live in a place like this inside of making smart decisions in your life and getting to live the good life like I have. It’s not my fault that I have to come down here and actually walk outside of this place. The only thing that would smell worse than this cesspool of a city is if a big bull elephant marched out to this ring right now and took a big, heaping pile of shit right in the middle of this ring.
But I digress, I didn’t come out here to try to get through the thick skulls of you idiots all night long. I came out here to ensure that everyone understands why I have decided to come back to FWA. Because I didn’t have to. I have been doing my own thing outside of this ring. And when I wanted to kick the shit out of someone I was slapping twats back and forth in this nice little place called NGW. I pretty much have been wrestling for NGW ONLY, to quench the thirst that I sometimes have to have a loser’s head get smashed in by these boots I wear.
Anzu Kurosawa: I really wish he would get to the point instead of babbling on like we don’t have better things to move on to in this show.
Rod Sterling: Anzu, there is nothing better than who you see before you in this ring, right now!
Johnny Johnson: I have come back to FWA, not as someone who will be wrestling in this ring. Not even in the slightest. I have come back to do something that has needed to be done in this place for a very long time. I have come back to ensure that this corrupt, evil, undermining trash heap that runs this company will once and for all be eradicated from this place.
I assume your next idiotic question will be, “well how Mr. Legend, will you be able to do that?”. The answer is simple, I form a family of my own. You see, my own family was worthless. Every single one of them was beneath me and all they ever did was drag me down like an anchor. So now it’s time to start my own. I plan on doing that by allowing a very select few of the most dangerous, most diabolical, most ruthless, most blood thirsty individuals here in FWA to be saved by yours truly and there upon become my very own weapons of vengeance to bring this pathetic state of a wrestling company that FWA currently is down to its knees. I will be their savior. I will be your savior. I will be FWA’s savior!
But all that attempt to come against The Legend and his family be warned. There will be no quarter for you. There is a great tsunami coming and it will wash away all of the filth and bury it under the deepest of depths, never to be seen again!
Anzu Kurosawa: Some strong words from Johnny. The real question is who will be the select few that he speaks of and if he can follow through on his promises.
Rod Sterling: When the Legend makes a threat like this everyone needs to listen and be ready for what happens next.
Johnny Johnson: And my final words are for Jon Russnow himself. Since day one that you have entered this place you thought The Legend was someone you could hold under your thumb. I’m here now to tell you that that never was the case. In this ring right now I’m warning you that this corrupt empire you have been operating like a vile dictator will very shortly crumble at your very feet. I’m not here to put myself in your position, I’m here now to ensure you and every single one of your ass-kissing lackeys you have on this roster are taken out like the piles of trash they are. And yes Russnow, that is a threat. The revolution is upon us and I promise to everyone it will be LEGENDARY!
With that last sentence "Legendary” from Royce Da 5’9” begins to play once again and the segment fades to black.
We return from an advert for FWA’s YouTube channel gaming channel in time for…
There are some boos in the arena, but most are unfamiliar with the tune. It is only those that have been keeping abreast with the FWA’s latest side-hustle, COSMIC Discord Wrestling, that are familiar with the swaggering, posturing, super-wealthy, anthropomorphic roadsign who launch into a showing of derision.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: “Ladies and gentlemen… please welcome at this time the General Secretary of Cosmic Discord Wrestling… he is the only roadsign to ever be featured in Forbes’ rich list, and currently is the wealthiest sign of any kind in the universe… friend to the Nephews and friend to pro-wrestling… Stop Sign #3!"
Rod Sterling: "Well, this is different…"
Anzu Kurosawa:: "Weirdest thing is that neither of us can say we’ve never seen anything like this."
After swaggering all the way down to the ring and climbing up the steps, Stop Sign #3 climbs through the ropes and stands with a huge grin on his red, octagonal face face. The reaction to him is still a mixture of scorn and bemusement. His music fades out as he lifts the microphone up to his lips.
Stop Sign #3: "Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, sentient beings of all ages… allow me to introduce myself to you: I am Stop Sign #3. The greatest gift to professional wrestling since Roberto Superstar. Look it up, kids! The internet’s a weird and wonderful place. And that’s sort of why I’m here. You see, I’ve been reading quite a few comments, including those from officials and wrestlers from a certain renegade developmental brand, who seem to arrived at a rather backwards and inexplicable point. That is, ladies and gentleman, that the little renegade federation known as nGw is a superior side hustle to my own, beautiful thought-child."
There are some C-D-W chants, but they are mostly drowned out by those for n-G-w. Stop Sign #3 shakes his head ruefully.
Stop Sign #3: "Well, I got a few problems with that. The first: CDW ain’t so side hustle, baby. It’s the whole hustle! The be all and end all, this side or any side of the Crease! If you aint got a tentacle then you aint shit! And second: has anybody even watched nGw since they got rid of the laser sharks?! I know I haven’t! You know, I was thinking about getting a few laser sharks for the COSMIC! Zone. Or maybe laser piranhas. WAIT! Laser octopi! That’s it! Anyway, I’m getting off track…"
SS3 lets out a chuckle, seemingly enjoying himself. The crowd are bidding him to get on with it.
Stop Sign #3: "But I’ve never been only a roadsign of words. I am also a roadsign of action! Although, I do know an awful lot of words, too. I know sixty eight point two percent of the words in the O.E.D., for instance. I know this, because I counted the words in there that I knew. Then I counted the total number of words. I divided one by the other, and multiplied by a hundred. The answer was sixty eight point two. This simple calculation is but one example of my actions! Here’s another: Bell Connelly, Dreamer tells me you like to lead people on. Well, no Earthling is going to lead Stop Sign #3 on! You think your boys and girls are better than my intelligent life forms?! No chance! Our worst could beat your best! But if you think otherwise, let’s find out! Back in Business: Night Two..."
He lowers his voice.
Stop Sign #3: "On the pre-show, because that’s all I could negotiate…"
Back to a normal volume.
Stop Sign #3: "I’ll put up the very worst wrestler on the CDW roster against anyone that the renowned callous heartbreaker, the malignant tumour in the soul of love, Bell Connelly chooses from the nGw roster! And if you don’t believe me, here’s out pathetic entry! Get out here, Sting Ray!"
The crowd continues along its bemused/derisive split as Sting Ray - a humanoid Ray with thick arms and pectoral fins wider than a man is tall - appears on the stage. He shuffles awkwardly as he walks down the ramp, an anxious look on his face…
Rod Sterling: "Well, I’m glad I’m not commentating on the pre-show…"
Ray gets into the ring, scratches his spiracle, and then talks into SS3’s microphone…
Sting Ray: "I thought you said I’d be our champion? What’s that about the worst on the roster? Pathetic?! How’s that meant to make me feel?! You know I struggle with self-esteem."
Stop Sign #3: "Relax, Ray. Mind games! I’m a master manipulator."
Ray doesn’t seem so sure. SS3 turns away from him and readdresses the camera.
Stop Sign #3: "So how about it, Bell? Let’s see you put your money where your mouth is! For bragging rights and for the brand! And in the honour of Cthulhu, of course!"
Sting Ray: "I think we might be dropping the Cthulhu part. Definitely nothing so honourific and on-the-nose."
Stop Sign #3: "Why?"
Sting Ray: "Turns out he was an anti-semite. Israel has the right to exist, you know."
Stop Sign #3: "Tell that to Gaza Phil."
Sting Ray: "Who is Gaza Phil?"
Stop Sign #3: "Latest Nephew. Uncle met him in Gaza. His name’s Phil."
Sting Ray: "Are we done here?"
SS3 thinks for a second. He’s unaware that we’ve been on ad break, and only our international viewers have been watching, for quite some time.
Stop Sign #3: "Yes."
They leave the ring, SS3’s music playing again as we fade away from the scene. An ‘FWA: Meltdown’ logo appears, replaying an obnoxious and generic version of the main credits theme.
The camera cuts to backstage where Todd Salum has caught up with a clearly very nervous Jeremy Best.
Todd Salum: “Jeremy, real quick… what went wrong to start Meltdown tonight. Where is your tag team partner?”
Jeremy straightens up, trying and mostly failing to hide his emotions.
Jeremy Best: “Oh, yeah, hiya Todd.. uhh, erm, about that. So yeah, my pal Krash is just having a little bit flare up of that anxiety he’s been dealin’ with lately. Yeah, yeah, that’s what it is, you see.”
Todd Salum: “Then what exactly is this ‘Plan B’ we heard Bryan Baxter mention. And where has he gone?”
Jeremy Best: “Plan B? Oh, you know that Bryan. Always so overdramatic with his serious codenames for things that don’t really need them. You see, Bryan’s gone to talk to Krash and calm him down. Get him ready to go back out there later tonight and try again.”
Todd Salum: “Bryan Baxter… is the one trying to calm someone down?”
Jeremy Best: “Uhh… yeah, sure. I know people think he’s a pretty harsh guy with that rough exterior of his but trust me, Bryan’s a big ole teddy bear. He and Krash get along great! And I know Bryan will have Krash ready for the tag team title match in no time at all! Don’t worry Besties, you will see Krash and Jeremy together tonight. I promise!”
Todd Salum: “Well, I guess there you have it folks. While a bit pre-empted, we will still see the Friendship Wrestling Alliance in action tonight against FTN! Let’s send it back to the ring!”
There is not much of a response from the Guadalajara crowd as Ratin Mikichin walks out from the back. Interestingly, Ratin is NOT wearing his usual brightly-coloured mankini. Thankfully, he is still wearing something, though, and that something is a pair of wrestling trunks. They are plain black aside from the Kazakhstan flag and he has matching boots and knee pads to go with them. Also missing is his usual exuberance, as he walks towards the ring with a plain expression on his face and without his usual dancing.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: “The following contest is an Anything Goes Match scheduled for one fall! There will be no time limit, no disqualifications and no count outs. This match will continue until there is a definitive winner! Introducing first, from Kazakhstan… Ratin Mikichin!”
Rod Sterling: “Well, this is an even stranger occurrence than usual, Anzu. We’re used to seeing Ratin Mikichin wearing next to nothing and acting like a complete and utter goofball, but this is different.”
Anzu Kurosawa: “Yeah, I’m really not sure what is going on here. I do know Ratin was very pleased about FTN becoming the FWA World Tag Team Champions, but I doubt this has anything to do with that. Influence of The Higher Power, maybe?”
Without much fuss, Ratin enters the ring normally without showing off his behind. He takes a place in the middle of the ring and raises an arm into the air and then does some stretches as he awaits his very familiar opponent.
The crowd as usual are much more excited to see Steve the Techno Vampire than they are Ratin, but the bemusement continues when Steve emerges from the back wearing similar attire to Ratin, except that his gear is white to match his pale skin and they are covered in bat and fang designs. Steve possesses the same stoicness that Ratin did as well.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: “His opponent… from Trancesylvania… Steve the Techno Vampire!!”[
Rod Sterling: “What has gotten into these guys tonight?”
Anzu Kurosawa: “Well, I was kind of looking forward to a bloody war between these two in this Anything Goes Match; it is supposed to be the end of the months of battle between these two men!”
Rod Sterling: “These usually very colorful characters have been muted tonight, and I have no idea what it means for the match set to take place between them.”
Steve joins Ratin in the ring and the two foes nod their heads at each other. It has been a tumultuous journey, but one that they have been on together. It all comes to an end… now.
As soon as the bell rings, Dreamer charges across the ring with Trixie almost frozen in spot…
Rod Sterling: "Shotgun dropkick from Michelle to start the match! Trixie is knocked off her feet and back into the turnbuckles! Dreamer looks all business here…"
Michelle hoists Trixie up and throws her across the ring with a HARD Irish whip. Bordeaux hits the turnbuckles with impact and bounces back towards Michelle…
Anzu Kurosawa: "BUSAIKU KNEE! Michelle hits it!! We're less than thirty seconds in!"
Rod Sterling: "Dreamer hooks the leg, looking to end this early…”
ONE… TWO… THR – NO
Trixie forces the shoulder up! But Michelle transitions immediately into cattle mutilation!! In the middle of the ring!
Rod Sterling: "von Horrowitz has the submission locked in! Trixie is sundered in the middle of the ring! Dreamer is not wasting ANY time here, trying to see off Trixie Bordeaux as quickly as she possibly can…"
Anzu Kurosawa: "Perhaps she feels like she has a point to prove? And she might be just about to prove it!!"
The official is in close, asking Trixie if she wants to give it up… but Bordeaux refuses to submit, not this early on! She clenches her hand into a fist and then shuffles closer and closer to the bottom rope… which eventually she is able to hook an outstretched boot onto! The official starts a count, Michelle using four and a half seconds of it before finally observing the rope break. MvH backs away, but only for a moment, taking Bordeaux down with a dragon screw leg whip as soon as she reaches a vertical base. Dreamer assumes control…
***
<< 04:47. >>
Rod Sterling: "Dreamer has been dominating the early stretches of this match-up, and I think Trixie needs to get this one back into the ring as soon as possible…"
MvH has Trixie backed up against the barricade on the outside, where she lays into her with alternating knife edge chops and forearm strikes.
Anzu Kurosawa: "I don't think Trixie really has too much of a say in things right now… and I'm also unsure what respite the ring will bring her. Dreamer has been relentless in these opening five minutes, both within the ropes and outside of them."
The official's count has reached eight, and so Dreamer rolls into the ring and then back out of it. She collects Trixie (who is slumped next to the barricade and receiving some words of encouragement from the fans in the front row) by the wrist, drags her up and towards the steel ring steps, and then slams her face first onto them with a drop toe hold! Dreamer takes a deep bow in front of the audience, some of whom cheer whilst others boo, and then finally tosses Trixie in beneath the bottom rope.
Rod Sterling: "Michelle von Horrowitz taking things up to the high rent district, here… she's waiting for Trixie Bordeaux to find her feet in the ring…"
Dreamer stands up atop the top turnbuckle, before leaping off with an all-or-nothing cross-body…
Rod Sterling: "DROPKICK FROM TRIXIE! Effective anti-air by Bordeaux, and von Horrowitz is down!"
Anzu Kurosawa: "But, after the bludgeoning Trixie has taken over the last six minutes, she's unable to follow up! Both women struggle slowly to their feet…"
Eventually they both make it up at roughly the same time, and it looks as though Dreamer acts first, attempting to wipe Trixie out with a discus forearm… but it's ducked by Bordeaux! And then a school-boy! Michelle's shoulders are down!
ONE… TWO… THR – NO!
Dreamer kicks out! Both women scramble up and Trixie hits a sit out jawbreaker, MvH recoiling to the ropes. Bordeaux charges at her and attempts a clothesline over the top and to the outside, but Dreamer ducks beneath it and launches Trixie out instead with a BIG back body drop!! Bordeaux lands in a heap on the floor!
Dreamer collapses in the ring into a seated position, massaging her jaw after the dropkick and jawbreaker, and watches on patiently as the official begins a ten-count…
***
<< 10:27. >>
In the ring, with Bordeaux down after a brainbuster and a two-count, Michelle begins to loosen one of the second turnbuckle covers right under the official's nose…
Rod Sterling: "Hey referee! That isn't allowed!"
Anzu Kurosawa: "Narc…"
The official is wise to it, though, and grabs the cover from Michelle to refasten it. Von Horrowitz moves to the opposite corner and removed the second turnbuckle covers from there instead. She gets it off and launches it into the crowd, a minor melee occurring as a group of fans tussle over it…
Rod Sterling: "This doesn't look good for Bellatrix Bordeaux…"
Anzu Kurosawa: "Not much of this match has, Rod!"
The official finally has the original cover back on the turnbuckle and turns to see Michelle picking Trixie up by the wrist, she looks as though she's attempting to Irish whip her into the corner she's been working on, or perhaps to drop toe hold her into the steel ring… but Trixie plants her feet and refuses to shift! MvH abandons the whip attempt and rocks Trixie with a European uppercut, sending her stumbling back into the middle of the ring. MvH tries to run through her with a lariat, but Bordeaux ducks it, kick to the midsection…
Rod Sterling: "SNAP DDT! Did you hear that reaction?!"
The crowd roars it's approval as Trixie climbs to her feet, signalling that she's moving in for the kill. MvH struggles up to her own feet. Trixie comes towards her, maybe for Sweet Dreams…
… but she's flattened by a discus forearm!! Trixie crumples into a heap, but Dreamer - now somewhat enraged - hoists Bordeaux back to her feet. She puts her in pumphandle position…
Anzu Kurosawa: "Here it comes! Michelle's going for Psycho Driver #2!"
Rod Sterling: "BUT TRIXIE'S BITING HER!! SHE'S BITING MICHELLE VON HORROWITZ'S NECK!!!"
Under this surprising attack, Dreamer is forced to release Trixie from her pumphandle. She backs away from Bordeaux and wipes her neck, before staring down at a hand smeared with blood!! She looks down at it, surprised and incensed…
Rod Sterling: "SWEET DREAMS!! Trixie catches Michelle off-guard!!"
Trixie hits her code-breaker finisher clean! Michelle hits the mat, and an eager and excited Trixie dives on top of her….
Anzu Kurosawa: "Lateral press!"
ONE… TWO… … ….
Anzu Kurosawa: "FOOT ON THE ROPES!!!"
Trixie can't believe it! She looks, aghast, first at Michelle's boot propped on the bottom rope, and then at the official (who, to be fair, looks as disappointed as she is). The audience are now firmly on side, launching into a TRIX-IE chant, willing Bordeaux onto a big finish…
… but Michelle wants none of it, and rolls beneath the bottom rope and onto the outside. Trixie, exhausted herself, takes a few deep, laboured breaths in the ring before following her out…
***
<< 14:53. >>
After a period where Trixie has the advantage, von Horrowitz turns the tables again thanks to a surprise German suplex, settling back into a rhythm with the advantage once more. Michelle has a front facelock applied in the middle of the ring, attempting to wrench Trixie up - perhaps for her patented brainbuster - but Bordeaux anchors her weight down to block the move. Michelle releases the front facelock, but has Trixie by the hair, and lays into her with a half-dozen headbutts. She reapplies her front face lock, and this time manages to lift Trixie up off her feet…
Rod Sterling: "Michelle von Horrowitz going for a brainbuster, but Trixie Bordeaux strikes her on the top of the head with a knee! Bordeaux lands behind MvH and applies a rear waistlock, bundling her forward into a corner…"
Anzu Kurosawa: "… and into that exposed steel ring!! SKULLDUGGERY!"
Rod Sterling: "I think that was more luck than judgement - bad luck in Michelle’s case - but Trixie is reaping the rewards… O’Conner roll! Michelle’s shoulders are down!!"
ONE… TWO… THRE – NO!!
Michelle forces her way out! She rolls over to her front, clutching her ribs, and then - with the crowd firmly behind her - she begins her ascent towards the top rope…
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith:: "Ladies and gentlemen: this is your FOUR-MINUTE WARNING!"
Anzu Kurosawa: "Trixie’s going up top… with time ticking away! Only four minutes remain!"
Rod Sterling: "Isn’t that a Fallout thing?"
Anzu Kurosawa: "I think it’s just seeped into the FWA zeitgeist…"
Trixie steadies herself on the top turnbuckle, her sense of urgency heightened by the warning from the announcer. MvH is on her feet, and turns round to face the flying Bordeaux…
Rod Sterling: "Trixie goes for a cross-body… BUT SHE EATS A SUPERKICK!!"
Anzu Kurosawa: "Michelle pays her back for that dropkick earlier in the match!!"
Dreamer takes a moment to shake loose the cobwebs, and then climbs up to the top turnbuckle herself. Trixie is in perfect position and on dream street…
Rod Sterling: "450 SPLASH!!!"
Anzu Kurosawa: "Michelle gets all of it!! And she hooks the leg!"
ONE… TWO… THRE – NO!!!
Rod Sterling: "TRIXIE KICKS OUT!! SOMEHOW!!"
Michelle looks at the official, frustration the primary component on her face at first. Then, she stares down at Bordeaux, and her countenance turns to a smile. Not sinister: almost impressed, even.
Then, she hoists Bordeaux up and puts her in pumphandle position…
Anzu Kurosawa: "PSYCHO DRIVER #2! GOOD NIGHT!"
ONE… TWO… THREE!
Winner: Michelle von Horrowitz by pinfall at 17:44.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith:: "Here is your winner… Michelle von Horrowitz!"
Dreamer allows her hand to be lifted by the match official before immediately snatching it away again.
Anzu Kurosawa: "You noted earlier that Michelle von Horrowitz came here tonight alone… perhaps sending a message ahead of Back in Business? Many have questioned whether the Nephews will play a part in her tussle with the kaiju… if tonight is anything to go by, that doesn't look like it will be the case."
Rod Sterling: "I wouldn't put it past her, Anzu. You're too trusting. Michelle and the Nephews always have something up their sleeve…"
Anzu Kurosawa: "You're not trusting enough, Rod."
Rod Sterling: "Either way, I'd like to see Dreamer get the kaiju up for Psycho Driver #2, or any other Psycho Driver for that matter…"
As Michelle stares down at Trixie, this thought is perhaps crossing her mind, too. She stands in the ring, now vacated by the opponent and the official, and looks around herself: at the pink ropes, the black turnbuckles emblazoned with the FWA logo, the show’s own branding in the middle of the dark grey ring mat. She looks up at the familiar staging. It’s all familiar. Michelle closes her eyes as we fade to black.
The crowd is amped up as Meltdown continues on. Just then as they’re not sure what is going to happen next a familiar, yet long unheard song begins to play through the arena. Legendary from Royce Da 5'9" blasts on the sound system.
Out from the backstage area walks Johnny “The Legend” Johnson. Dressed in a designer suit. The suit has a white pants and a jacket with a red dress shirt under the jacket. He walks out with a smug look on his face as the fans throttle him with boos. He takes a look out to the crowd, to the left, to the right and then just lets out a slight chuckle. He then starts to make his walk down to the ring.
Rod Sterling: We have finally been blessed to have The Legend back here in FWA last week. And now this week we are even further blessed by him actually coming to the ring. The fans should be bowing down to him, not showing pure disrespect to him like they are.
Anzu Kurosawa: C’mon Rod, even you have to admit he’s not the most likable person on the planet.
Rod Sterling: I will admit nothing of the sort. This man should have an altar in every venue the FWA has been at and will ever be at.
Johnny stops right before stepping on the ring steps and takes one last look into the crowd this time he just scoffs at the crowd and their reaction to him. He then pulls at the lapel of his jacket with both hands and then makes his way up the ring steps. He enters the ring through the ropes and pulls out a microphone from the pocket on the inside of his suit jacket. He rolls his neck around to get the kinks out of it and then lifts the microphone to his mouth.
Johnny Johnson: Monterrey, Mexico…..
Johnny stops for a second as the roar of the crowd pops for the home city.
Johnny Johnson: What a shit hole this place is!
That statement throws the crowd into a frenzy as they roar with disapproval and begin throwing drinks and other objects into the ring. A slight smile appears on Johnny’s face. He then begins to fire back at the crowd with a visceral demeaning behind his voice.
Johnny Johnson: Hey! Don’t be angry at me because you pieces of trash decided to live in a place like this inside of making smart decisions in your life and getting to live the good life like I have. It’s not my fault that I have to come down here and actually walk outside of this place. The only thing that would smell worse than this cesspool of a city is if a big bull elephant marched out to this ring right now and took a big, heaping pile of shit right in the middle of this ring.
But I digress, I didn’t come out here to try to get through the thick skulls of you idiots all night long. I came out here to ensure that everyone understands why I have decided to come back to FWA. Because I didn’t have to. I have been doing my own thing outside of this ring. And when I wanted to kick the shit out of someone I was slapping twats back and forth in this nice little place called NGW. I pretty much have been wrestling for NGW ONLY, to quench the thirst that I sometimes have to have a loser’s head get smashed in by these boots I wear.
Anzu Kurosawa: I really wish he would get to the point instead of babbling on like we don’t have better things to move on to in this show.
Rod Sterling: Anzu, there is nothing better than who you see before you in this ring, right now!
Johnny Johnson: I have come back to FWA, not as someone who will be wrestling in this ring. Not even in the slightest. I have come back to do something that has needed to be done in this place for a very long time. I have come back to ensure that this corrupt, evil, undermining trash heap that runs this company will once and for all be eradicated from this place.
I assume your next idiotic question will be, “well how Mr. Legend, will you be able to do that?”. The answer is simple, I form a family of my own. You see, my own family was worthless. Every single one of them was beneath me and all they ever did was drag me down like an anchor. So now it’s time to start my own. I plan on doing that by allowing a very select few of the most dangerous, most diabolical, most ruthless, most blood thirsty individuals here in FWA to be saved by yours truly and there upon become my very own weapons of vengeance to bring this pathetic state of a wrestling company that FWA currently is down to its knees. I will be their savior. I will be your savior. I will be FWA’s savior!
But all that attempt to come against The Legend and his family be warned. There will be no quarter for you. There is a great tsunami coming and it will wash away all of the filth and bury it under the deepest of depths, never to be seen again!
Anzu Kurosawa: Some strong words from Johnny. The real question is who will be the select few that he speaks of and if he can follow through on his promises.
Rod Sterling: When the Legend makes a threat like this everyone needs to listen and be ready for what happens next.
Johnny Johnson: And my final words are for Jon Russnow himself. Since day one that you have entered this place you thought The Legend was someone you could hold under your thumb. I’m here now to tell you that that never was the case. In this ring right now I’m warning you that this corrupt empire you have been operating like a vile dictator will very shortly crumble at your very feet. I’m not here to put myself in your position, I’m here now to ensure you and every single one of your ass-kissing lackeys you have on this roster are taken out like the piles of trash they are. And yes Russnow, that is a threat. The revolution is upon us and I promise to everyone it will be LEGENDARY!
With that last sentence "Legendary” from Royce Da 5’9” begins to play once again and the segment fades to black.
We return from an advert for FWA’s YouTube channel gaming channel in time for…
There are some boos in the arena, but most are unfamiliar with the tune. It is only those that have been keeping abreast with the FWA’s latest side-hustle, COSMIC Discord Wrestling, that are familiar with the swaggering, posturing, super-wealthy, anthropomorphic roadsign who launch into a showing of derision.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: “Ladies and gentlemen… please welcome at this time the General Secretary of Cosmic Discord Wrestling… he is the only roadsign to ever be featured in Forbes’ rich list, and currently is the wealthiest sign of any kind in the universe… friend to the Nephews and friend to pro-wrestling… Stop Sign #3!"
Rod Sterling: "Well, this is different…"
Anzu Kurosawa:: "Weirdest thing is that neither of us can say we’ve never seen anything like this."
After swaggering all the way down to the ring and climbing up the steps, Stop Sign #3 climbs through the ropes and stands with a huge grin on his red, octagonal face face. The reaction to him is still a mixture of scorn and bemusement. His music fades out as he lifts the microphone up to his lips.
Stop Sign #3: "Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, sentient beings of all ages… allow me to introduce myself to you: I am Stop Sign #3. The greatest gift to professional wrestling since Roberto Superstar. Look it up, kids! The internet’s a weird and wonderful place. And that’s sort of why I’m here. You see, I’ve been reading quite a few comments, including those from officials and wrestlers from a certain renegade developmental brand, who seem to arrived at a rather backwards and inexplicable point. That is, ladies and gentleman, that the little renegade federation known as nGw is a superior side hustle to my own, beautiful thought-child."
There are some C-D-W chants, but they are mostly drowned out by those for n-G-w. Stop Sign #3 shakes his head ruefully.
Stop Sign #3: "Well, I got a few problems with that. The first: CDW ain’t so side hustle, baby. It’s the whole hustle! The be all and end all, this side or any side of the Crease! If you aint got a tentacle then you aint shit! And second: has anybody even watched nGw since they got rid of the laser sharks?! I know I haven’t! You know, I was thinking about getting a few laser sharks for the COSMIC! Zone. Or maybe laser piranhas. WAIT! Laser octopi! That’s it! Anyway, I’m getting off track…"
SS3 lets out a chuckle, seemingly enjoying himself. The crowd are bidding him to get on with it.
Stop Sign #3: "But I’ve never been only a roadsign of words. I am also a roadsign of action! Although, I do know an awful lot of words, too. I know sixty eight point two percent of the words in the O.E.D., for instance. I know this, because I counted the words in there that I knew. Then I counted the total number of words. I divided one by the other, and multiplied by a hundred. The answer was sixty eight point two. This simple calculation is but one example of my actions! Here’s another: Bell Connelly, Dreamer tells me you like to lead people on. Well, no Earthling is going to lead Stop Sign #3 on! You think your boys and girls are better than my intelligent life forms?! No chance! Our worst could beat your best! But if you think otherwise, let’s find out! Back in Business: Night Two..."
He lowers his voice.
Stop Sign #3: "On the pre-show, because that’s all I could negotiate…"
Back to a normal volume.
Stop Sign #3: "I’ll put up the very worst wrestler on the CDW roster against anyone that the renowned callous heartbreaker, the malignant tumour in the soul of love, Bell Connelly chooses from the nGw roster! And if you don’t believe me, here’s out pathetic entry! Get out here, Sting Ray!"
The crowd continues along its bemused/derisive split as Sting Ray - a humanoid Ray with thick arms and pectoral fins wider than a man is tall - appears on the stage. He shuffles awkwardly as he walks down the ramp, an anxious look on his face…
Rod Sterling: "Well, I’m glad I’m not commentating on the pre-show…"
Ray gets into the ring, scratches his spiracle, and then talks into SS3’s microphone…
Sting Ray: "I thought you said I’d be our champion? What’s that about the worst on the roster? Pathetic?! How’s that meant to make me feel?! You know I struggle with self-esteem."
Stop Sign #3: "Relax, Ray. Mind games! I’m a master manipulator."
Ray doesn’t seem so sure. SS3 turns away from him and readdresses the camera.
Stop Sign #3: "So how about it, Bell? Let’s see you put your money where your mouth is! For bragging rights and for the brand! And in the honour of Cthulhu, of course!"
Sting Ray: "I think we might be dropping the Cthulhu part. Definitely nothing so honourific and on-the-nose."
Stop Sign #3: "Why?"
Sting Ray: "Turns out he was an anti-semite. Israel has the right to exist, you know."
Stop Sign #3: "Tell that to Gaza Phil."
Sting Ray: "Who is Gaza Phil?"
Stop Sign #3: "Latest Nephew. Uncle met him in Gaza. His name’s Phil."
Sting Ray: "Are we done here?"
SS3 thinks for a second. He’s unaware that we’ve been on ad break, and only our international viewers have been watching, for quite some time.
Stop Sign #3: "Yes."
They leave the ring, SS3’s music playing again as we fade away from the scene. An ‘FWA: Meltdown’ logo appears, replaying an obnoxious and generic version of the main credits theme.
The camera cuts to backstage where Todd Salum has caught up with a clearly very nervous Jeremy Best.
Todd Salum: “Jeremy, real quick… what went wrong to start Meltdown tonight. Where is your tag team partner?”
Jeremy straightens up, trying and mostly failing to hide his emotions.
Jeremy Best: “Oh, yeah, hiya Todd.. uhh, erm, about that. So yeah, my pal Krash is just having a little bit flare up of that anxiety he’s been dealin’ with lately. Yeah, yeah, that’s what it is, you see.”
Todd Salum: “Then what exactly is this ‘Plan B’ we heard Bryan Baxter mention. And where has he gone?”
Jeremy Best: “Plan B? Oh, you know that Bryan. Always so overdramatic with his serious codenames for things that don’t really need them. You see, Bryan’s gone to talk to Krash and calm him down. Get him ready to go back out there later tonight and try again.”
Todd Salum: “Bryan Baxter… is the one trying to calm someone down?”
Jeremy Best: “Uhh… yeah, sure. I know people think he’s a pretty harsh guy with that rough exterior of his but trust me, Bryan’s a big ole teddy bear. He and Krash get along great! And I know Bryan will have Krash ready for the tag team title match in no time at all! Don’t worry Besties, you will see Krash and Jeremy together tonight. I promise!”
Todd Salum: “Well, I guess there you have it folks. While a bit pre-empted, we will still see the Friendship Wrestling Alliance in action tonight against FTN! Let’s send it back to the ring!”
There is not much of a response from the Guadalajara crowd as Ratin Mikichin walks out from the back. Interestingly, Ratin is NOT wearing his usual brightly-coloured mankini. Thankfully, he is still wearing something, though, and that something is a pair of wrestling trunks. They are plain black aside from the Kazakhstan flag and he has matching boots and knee pads to go with them. Also missing is his usual exuberance, as he walks towards the ring with a plain expression on his face and without his usual dancing.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: “The following contest is an Anything Goes Match scheduled for one fall! There will be no time limit, no disqualifications and no count outs. This match will continue until there is a definitive winner! Introducing first, from Kazakhstan… Ratin Mikichin!”
Rod Sterling: “Well, this is an even stranger occurrence than usual, Anzu. We’re used to seeing Ratin Mikichin wearing next to nothing and acting like a complete and utter goofball, but this is different.”
Anzu Kurosawa: “Yeah, I’m really not sure what is going on here. I do know Ratin was very pleased about FTN becoming the FWA World Tag Team Champions, but I doubt this has anything to do with that. Influence of The Higher Power, maybe?”
Without much fuss, Ratin enters the ring normally without showing off his behind. He takes a place in the middle of the ring and raises an arm into the air and then does some stretches as he awaits his very familiar opponent.
The crowd as usual are much more excited to see Steve the Techno Vampire than they are Ratin, but the bemusement continues when Steve emerges from the back wearing similar attire to Ratin, except that his gear is white to match his pale skin and they are covered in bat and fang designs. Steve possesses the same stoicness that Ratin did as well.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: “His opponent… from Trancesylvania… Steve the Techno Vampire!!”[
Rod Sterling: “What has gotten into these guys tonight?”
Anzu Kurosawa: “Well, I was kind of looking forward to a bloody war between these two in this Anything Goes Match; it is supposed to be the end of the months of battle between these two men!”
Rod Sterling: “These usually very colorful characters have been muted tonight, and I have no idea what it means for the match set to take place between them.”
Steve joins Ratin in the ring and the two foes nod their heads at each other. It has been a tumultuous journey, but one that they have been on together. It all comes to an end… now.
<< 00:00. >>
The bell rings and there is actually an air of excitement in the crowd as this long rivalry is finally going to be coming to an end. Both Ratin and Steve approach the centre of the ring slowly… and they lock up! It is a standard collar-and-elbow tie-up and it initially seems extremely even between the two of them… until it becomes apparent that neither man is trying to obtain any sort of advantage in the hold.
Anzu Kurosawa: “Rod… they’re not doing anything. They’re just standing there holding each other’s arms… this isn’t the match we were promised.”
Rod Sterling: “I have no explanation to offer you, Anzu. Ratin Mikichin and Steve the Techno Vampire are just refusing to engage each other in combat properly.”
As it becomes clear to everyone else in the crowd that nothing is actually happening in the match, they become restless. Both Steve and Ratin seem to understand why the crowd begins to viciously boo them.
Rod Sterling: “How long do they plan on doing this for?”
Anzu Kurosawa: “As long as they want! This match doesn’t have a time limit! We could be here for hours! I might have to take a page out of Jean-Luc’s book and take matters into my own hands…”
Before Anzu can do this though, the feed abruptly cuts to a backstage area where Katie Baxter is running down a corridor, out of breath.
Katie Baxter: “There’s some sort of commotion happening in Jon Russnow’s office here in the arena.. COME ON!”
As Katie rounds a corner, Jon Russnow’s office door is seen swung wide open and there some raised voices heard and the camera enters the room to see that it is the FWA Brand Coordinator in the process of engaging with the mysterious individual known as The Higher Power.
Jon Russnow: “Make them stop this, right now! You are not going to hijack this show, you robed freak!”
The Higher Power: “You agreed to the match having no time limit, Russnow. You are just as liable for this abomination as I. Besides, if you want this to end, you will give me what I want.”
Jon Russnow: “I am not going to be threatened by you!”
The Higher Power: “If you cannot give those men what they want - no, what they deserve - I will be forced to permit them to do this ALL NIGHT. The choice is yours, Russnow.”
Despite the threat, Russnow gets himself comfortable in his seat with his arms crossed. The Higher Power clicks his fingers and a couple of men walk into the room behind The Higher Power. One is of Baltic descent and one is of Asian descent. They are both at least seven feet tall and they stand with their arms crossed.
The Higher Power: “Perhaps my friends here can persuade you otherwise…”
Jon Russnow gulps and the feed then cuts back to the ring, where Ratin and Steve are still in the same tie up in the centre of the ring and the Mexican fans are absolutely beside themselves.
Rod Sterling: “I’m not sure what is happening here or what that means for Jon Russnow - but nothing has changed here in the ring. These guys are still going at it!”
Anzu Kurosawa: “I think that may be overselling what is actually going on here, Rod. They’re not moving.”
However, there is some stirring as someone sprints out from the back - it’s Greg! In his hand, he has a microphone and he slides into the ring. Our of breath, he begins to talk.
Greg: “Hi, everyone… I’m… Greg.”
Boos. Greg turns to Ratin and Steve.
Greg: “Guys, you can stop! We did it! The Higher Power came through for all of us! As per the orders of Jon Russnow… this match will continue… AT BACK IN BUSINESS!”
The crowd are shocked and some begin to cheer, and Steve and Ratin end their stalemate and look at each other with shocked and pleased expressions on their faces… and then they high-five!
Greg: “Let’s get out of here, guys! ALL HAIL THE HIGHER POWER!”
Greg begins to escort Ratin and Steve out of the ring with his arms around them both, with the three of them very pleased with this turn of events.
Anzu Kurosawa: “Wait, did he say Back in Business? Ratin and Steve are going to Back in Business?! To continue this match? It’s not over?”
Rod Sterling: “It would appear so, Anzu… This historic rivalry is going to truly come to an end in Mexico City.”
It's a familiar shot of people crowding around various landmarks, people in crowds, taxis, stopping in blurs that go on down the streets...and goes down....and down.... what seems to be quite a gloomy and grimy alleyways deep in the middle of the night, a cold, dark place, a desolate, barren street that couldn't be any more different from the glitz and glamour of the London high streets the camera zooms down the alley and focuses on a sign.
WELCOME TO WHITE CHAPEL.
Realizing we're here in the most infamous streets in the world as if waiting for a cue, a shrill-pitched scream joining the choir of them from centuries past as if looking for the source, the camera zooms forward into the dark void as the sound gets louder and louder until the camera stops seemingly having located where the screams were coming from.
An old, dilapidated barber shop
But this time, the segment doesn't end; this time, the doors of the barber shop creek open with the groan of rusty springs; as the camera zooms into the inky dark of the barber shop, what follows looks like some kind of horror show, people in mouldy chairs screaming as a figure in the distance hack and slice their hair, ruining their locks and turning them into something that looks like they belong in an 80s punk rock music video.
The camera scans the old grimy walls of the barber shop to reveal various headshots of FWA Wrestlers Chris Peacock. Krash. Joe Burr. Each and every one of them has a big X slashed into them clearly by scissors.
"Ya, just in time..."
The camera twists around to reveal two dark and gothic-looking girls staring at the camera, both clear twins, wearing the same dark outfits, their hair styled the same, and both wearing matching evil grins.
"...Your appointment is coming up."
"Aw, bloody Norah' dis geezer dun looks like he pissed his pants."
"Well, one does tend to feel fear when someone comes our way."
"Ain't my fault everyone who needs a haircut is a bleed' wanker."
"Not for long. Soon the clipper will have a far better clientele in the States. There are many sheep to be sheered in FWA."
Huh, weird, despite the fact that these two are clearly identical twins, one speaks with an over-the-top cockney accent, while the other sounds like she's auditioning to be part of the royal family.
"And once we arrive in FWA. It will be time for pain, time for destruction...time for..."
Booming footsteps interrupt the woman, we don't see who they belong to, but we see a dark looming shadow sweep across the wall behind them. A large ominous shape that would make anyone think that Jack The Ripper was back prowling the streets...
...except this time, instead of a knife, he has a pair of scissors
"A little off the top"
Gentle violin music plays in the background as a the silhouette of a woman walks in a garden late at night. The night sky twinkles with stars as the woman walks alongside the walkway which is adorned with flowers and bushes. A light sniffle is heard from the woman. At the end, there is a large collection of flowers, vines, and more unable to be made out due to the darkness of night. The woman kneels down and holds out a photo in her hands. Wearing a Brooklyn Nets Basketball jersey, we can tell who it is. Lizzie Rose. And thus, we can safely assume the mystery woman’s identity.
Princess Nova.
Just over a week ago, she and Keres offered her a spot alongside them. But Lizzie instead seemed to have broken the mental spell they had over her and struck Nova in the head. Holding the picture in her gloved hand, a tear from Nova’s face lands on the picture.
Princess Nova: “I-I really thought we had broken through to you.”
There’s a catch in her throat.
Princess Nova: “It’s always hard to get people to understand why I chose my life. Shedding my old ways for a new identity. I understood the sacrifices. But…”
The TORN Angel sniffles.
Princess Nova: “I always wanted to find a kindred spirit. Someone to go through the same journey as me. Grow into someone just as strong as me, if not stronger. Elizabeth… No, Lizzie.”
She squeezes the photo in her hand.
Princess Nova: “I thought that was you!”
Nova cries out. Her hand shakes. She slowly uncrumples the picture- and it has changed.
The woman in the picture has rainbow hair, colourful streaks showing all sides of the rainbow. She has in-ring gear on with long rainbow splattered tights, shiny boots. On top of her head is a backwards ball cap and she has a white vest with a colourful tirm. Until you look at the face, you can hardly tell that that woman now-
Has become Princess Nova.
Princess Nova: “There would be a time when I would have been at your side as the woman who you THINK you are. Ignore life’s tragedies. Cover a feeling of gray with all the colours of the rainbow. That girl…”
She shakes her head.
Princess Nova: “Is missed by some. But not me. The punching bag for others. The woman who would sacrifice and sacrifice for supposed family and be only repaid with a ticket to my own destruction. So now you know why we felt it was necessary to help you. I didn’t want another Nova Taylor to fall into a spiral. I wanted a friend. I wanted a sister who I could give my kindness to and would return it.”
Putting her hand on her picture, the image of the old Nova is gone, back to the picture of Lizzie Rose.
Princess Nova: “So that leads us to today. I do not want to give up hope. But after you hurt me and broke my heart…”
The picture falls out of Nova’s hand, gently falling to the soil below. Nova’s frozen. Her body is stiff, voice cold, monotonous.
Princess Nova: “-Drastic measures need to be taken. We have chosen where you will battle with Keres. I know what I need to do.”
Normally, she’d switch back to her normal cheerful self. But not this time. Her hand moves rigidly, as if being pulled by a string, pushing the photo into the dirt.
Princess Nova: “We have already planted our seed in your mind. A part of us is with you. Saturday night is not about a match result. It is my job to fertilize your mind. Lay the groundwork.”
Nova’s head tilts slightly. We get a glimpse of her face. It is blank.
Princess Nova: “At Back in Business, in our garden, it is up to Keres to nurture it. Provide sunlight. Water it in your blood. Then you will truly blossom into the wonderful woman you were always meant to be-”
A figure walks up behind Nova. We can tell who it is by the shape of her shadow. Keres. She moves her mouth, but no words come out from it. Instead, from Nova’s.
Princess Nova: “B̸̢͎̬̖̟̬͂͆͒͐̚͠ȩ̵͔̞͓̓̿ ̷̢̹͙͔̂̆͐͐͑͊̃ͅn̸̥̅͋͛͗́͂ô̶̦̰͈͖͙t̵͉͔̺͚͛̄͂̎͆͝ ̶̖̘̗̯̑̉̃͘͜a̴̢͎̩̥͈̟͕̾̓͋̈͠f̸̮̜̫̪̪̮̳̅r̵̢̛͖͓̪̔͂̆͝͠ą̶͙̻͎̦̥̍̆̐͒̀̿̾i̴̢̨͓͈̩͉̹̊̆ḏ̴̮̭̞̾̋̏̌̽͆͂.̴͖͚̬̘̓̌͑͗́̋͝ ̸̧̫͇̻̏͒̃ͅT̵̖̝͎̭͈͍̕h̵̰̪̞͕͒͗̈į̴̮̦̓́̀̒̔̔͗s̶̗͔̒̀̿̐̕ ̸͙̟͠ľ̶̻̪̤̥̗̻̐͒̾̈̈́͜͝í̷̱̭͎̳̮̱ͅf̴̠͚̯̰̮̟̓̃̈́̆̑͘ͅe̶̛̤͗̌̆ ̸̡͓̦̟͇̖̓̏̑͌̕i̶̛̤̚͝͠ṡ̴̛͈̣͆͠͝ ̷̡̥̪̱̞̳̓̀͂l̴̨͚͔̱͇̟̇i̶̧̞̱͈̻̼̬͐̈́̍́̅͑͐b̸̛̙̉e̷͈̙̗̒̅̾̄̕ŗ̵͓̗͉̳̞̒̋̕ͅā̵̢̡̦̙̩̈́́͗̄t̴̖̓̂̃̂͠ǐ̴͙̯̟̰̦̍̎́͑͐̈́n̵̢̮̼͚̺͊g̸̡̠͓͔̈̐̆̽̏̒.̸̬͚̱͔̏͗͂̏̐̀̌ͅ”
Keres motions with her figure for Nova to stand up. Princess Nova obeys and turns to Keres. The Daughter of Demise puts her hand on the cheek of her sister, her most loyal follower. A smile appears on Nova’s face as she curtsies to her and Keres leads her off.
The camera zooms in on the picture which is now partially buried under the soil. Surrounding it are roses and tulips. It rests-
At the base of a vine-covered stone. Flowers bloom on it. Mixed with some of the vines-
Is razor sharp-
Unforgiving-
Barbed-wire.
Etched on the stone.
Is the name.
Lizzie
Rose.
Rod Sterling: “Coming up next we’ll be revisiting a rivalry as Death Walker will square off with XYZ. It’s been a bitter rivalry with these two that dates several months back…”
Before Rod can finish his introduction he’s cut off by the sound of a familiar tune and after a few seconds “The Wildcard” appears on stage to a mixed reaction from the fans in Monterrey. Randall is wearing black cargo pants, boots, a black hooded jacket with the Nephews logo on the side and the same logo on the back, and his own “Wildcard” t-shirt that can be found on ShopFWA.com
Rod Sterling: “This isn’t who we were expecting right now. I don’t believe Randall is scheduled for tonight’s show.”
Anzu Kurosawa: “He isn’t scheduled but he does have a vested interest in this match considering he’s caught in the middle of this ongoing rivalry.”
Rod Sterling: “The Wildcard’s history with Death Walker dates back even further than Death Walker and XYZ. Death Walker is the reason Randall wears that knee brace, and it appears that Randall will be joining us here at the desk…welcome Jason.”
Randall takes a seat at the end of the table beside Anzu and adjusts his headset.
Anzu Kurosawa: “Pleasure to have you here, Wildcard.”
Jason Randall: “Anzu…Rod…”
Randall gives them each a curt nod in response…
And now… all of the lights turn off momentarily as a demonic voice speaks out to all who are in attendance. While this intro plays, a bright red spotlight pops in the center of a smoke filled stage where it illuminates over a dark hooded figure. The song begins…
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: “The following match is scheduled for one fall with a twenty-minute-time-limit! Introducing first, from the depths of HELL and weighing in at 243 lb…he is The Dark Traveler…Death Walker!”
…and the house lights are brought back on but flashing in between the colors of red and white. As we can see the hooded individual in an all-black sleeved cloak with dark red trim along with another individual in just an oversized black cloak standing right behind it. The two of them take a slow, methodical stroll down the path to the ring. They never raise their heads to reveal who's under these big hooded cloaks as each hides their identity well. That is until they step up the ring stairs and step between the top and middle rope. Once the first hooded figure positions itself in the center of the ring, the other walks over and stands in front of the first. Standing motionless for a few seconds as smoke surrounds the outside of the ring, the person from behind unhooks the other's cloak. And the evil entity known as Death Walker steps forward to reveal himself to the audience and drops the entire cloak with his arms forming an X at neck level. The crowd erupts in madness and chaos as his music most likely ends by now or replays all over again but Death Walker remains staring out at the hard camera to present fear and panic to whomever.
Rod Sterling: “Quite an ominous entrance, wouldn’t you say Wildcard?”
Jason Randall: “This doesn’t scare me. There’s nothing about this guy that doesn’t scare me. He should’ve killed me when he had the chance but he didn’t and I’m still here.”
Anzu Kurosawa: “You’re referring to the beatdown you suffered at his hands when he and his Dark Guardian were attempting to bargain with XYZ about an alliance.”
Jason Randall: “That’s right, yeah he’s looking over here. Keep on looking you big ugly bastard!”
XYZ makes his way out to a nice ovation from the Monterrey crowd and after some fanfare and posturing for the fans, XYZ quickly makes his way down to the ring.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: “and his opponent, from Sitka, Alaska and weighing in at 180 lb…X…Y…Z!”
Rod Sterling: “You tried to barter with XYZ as well, Jason and that didn’t go the way you would have liked.”
Jason Randall: “I don’t know, I thought it was a good idea to form an alliance but looking back maybe it wasn’t such a bad thing that he declined my offer. I mean, he wouldn’t have been much help as we saw last time when he let Death Walker beat the hell out of me!”
XYZ enters the ring where he then removes his cape and hands it off to the ringside attendant. He begins to loosen up a little while the referee checks on both men and then calls for the bell.
The bell rings and there is actually an air of excitement in the crowd as this long rivalry is finally going to be coming to an end. Both Ratin and Steve approach the centre of the ring slowly… and they lock up! It is a standard collar-and-elbow tie-up and it initially seems extremely even between the two of them… until it becomes apparent that neither man is trying to obtain any sort of advantage in the hold.
Anzu Kurosawa: “Rod… they’re not doing anything. They’re just standing there holding each other’s arms… this isn’t the match we were promised.”
Rod Sterling: “I have no explanation to offer you, Anzu. Ratin Mikichin and Steve the Techno Vampire are just refusing to engage each other in combat properly.”
As it becomes clear to everyone else in the crowd that nothing is actually happening in the match, they become restless. Both Steve and Ratin seem to understand why the crowd begins to viciously boo them.
Rod Sterling: “How long do they plan on doing this for?”
Anzu Kurosawa: “As long as they want! This match doesn’t have a time limit! We could be here for hours! I might have to take a page out of Jean-Luc’s book and take matters into my own hands…”
Before Anzu can do this though, the feed abruptly cuts to a backstage area where Katie Baxter is running down a corridor, out of breath.
Katie Baxter: “There’s some sort of commotion happening in Jon Russnow’s office here in the arena.. COME ON!”
As Katie rounds a corner, Jon Russnow’s office door is seen swung wide open and there some raised voices heard and the camera enters the room to see that it is the FWA Brand Coordinator in the process of engaging with the mysterious individual known as The Higher Power.
Jon Russnow: “Make them stop this, right now! You are not going to hijack this show, you robed freak!”
The Higher Power: “You agreed to the match having no time limit, Russnow. You are just as liable for this abomination as I. Besides, if you want this to end, you will give me what I want.”
Jon Russnow: “I am not going to be threatened by you!”
The Higher Power: “If you cannot give those men what they want - no, what they deserve - I will be forced to permit them to do this ALL NIGHT. The choice is yours, Russnow.”
Despite the threat, Russnow gets himself comfortable in his seat with his arms crossed. The Higher Power clicks his fingers and a couple of men walk into the room behind The Higher Power. One is of Baltic descent and one is of Asian descent. They are both at least seven feet tall and they stand with their arms crossed.
The Higher Power: “Perhaps my friends here can persuade you otherwise…”
Jon Russnow gulps and the feed then cuts back to the ring, where Ratin and Steve are still in the same tie up in the centre of the ring and the Mexican fans are absolutely beside themselves.
Rod Sterling: “I’m not sure what is happening here or what that means for Jon Russnow - but nothing has changed here in the ring. These guys are still going at it!”
Anzu Kurosawa: “I think that may be overselling what is actually going on here, Rod. They’re not moving.”
However, there is some stirring as someone sprints out from the back - it’s Greg! In his hand, he has a microphone and he slides into the ring. Our of breath, he begins to talk.
Greg: “Hi, everyone… I’m… Greg.”
Boos. Greg turns to Ratin and Steve.
Greg: “Guys, you can stop! We did it! The Higher Power came through for all of us! As per the orders of Jon Russnow… this match will continue… AT BACK IN BUSINESS!”
The crowd are shocked and some begin to cheer, and Steve and Ratin end their stalemate and look at each other with shocked and pleased expressions on their faces… and then they high-five!
Greg: “Let’s get out of here, guys! ALL HAIL THE HIGHER POWER!”
Greg begins to escort Ratin and Steve out of the ring with his arms around them both, with the three of them very pleased with this turn of events.
Anzu Kurosawa: “Wait, did he say Back in Business? Ratin and Steve are going to Back in Business?! To continue this match? It’s not over?”
Rod Sterling: “It would appear so, Anzu… This historic rivalry is going to truly come to an end in Mexico City.”
It's a familiar shot of people crowding around various landmarks, people in crowds, taxis, stopping in blurs that go on down the streets...and goes down....and down.... what seems to be quite a gloomy and grimy alleyways deep in the middle of the night, a cold, dark place, a desolate, barren street that couldn't be any more different from the glitz and glamour of the London high streets the camera zooms down the alley and focuses on a sign.
WELCOME TO WHITE CHAPEL.
Realizing we're here in the most infamous streets in the world as if waiting for a cue, a shrill-pitched scream joining the choir of them from centuries past as if looking for the source, the camera zooms forward into the dark void as the sound gets louder and louder until the camera stops seemingly having located where the screams were coming from.
An old, dilapidated barber shop
But this time, the segment doesn't end; this time, the doors of the barber shop creek open with the groan of rusty springs; as the camera zooms into the inky dark of the barber shop, what follows looks like some kind of horror show, people in mouldy chairs screaming as a figure in the distance hack and slice their hair, ruining their locks and turning them into something that looks like they belong in an 80s punk rock music video.
The camera scans the old grimy walls of the barber shop to reveal various headshots of FWA Wrestlers Chris Peacock. Krash. Joe Burr. Each and every one of them has a big X slashed into them clearly by scissors.
"Ya, just in time..."
The camera twists around to reveal two dark and gothic-looking girls staring at the camera, both clear twins, wearing the same dark outfits, their hair styled the same, and both wearing matching evil grins.
"...Your appointment is coming up."
"Aw, bloody Norah' dis geezer dun looks like he pissed his pants."
"Well, one does tend to feel fear when someone comes our way."
"Ain't my fault everyone who needs a haircut is a bleed' wanker."
"Not for long. Soon the clipper will have a far better clientele in the States. There are many sheep to be sheered in FWA."
Huh, weird, despite the fact that these two are clearly identical twins, one speaks with an over-the-top cockney accent, while the other sounds like she's auditioning to be part of the royal family.
"And once we arrive in FWA. It will be time for pain, time for destruction...time for..."
Booming footsteps interrupt the woman, we don't see who they belong to, but we see a dark looming shadow sweep across the wall behind them. A large ominous shape that would make anyone think that Jack The Ripper was back prowling the streets...
...except this time, instead of a knife, he has a pair of scissors
"A little off the top"
Gentle violin music plays in the background as a the silhouette of a woman walks in a garden late at night. The night sky twinkles with stars as the woman walks alongside the walkway which is adorned with flowers and bushes. A light sniffle is heard from the woman. At the end, there is a large collection of flowers, vines, and more unable to be made out due to the darkness of night. The woman kneels down and holds out a photo in her hands. Wearing a Brooklyn Nets Basketball jersey, we can tell who it is. Lizzie Rose. And thus, we can safely assume the mystery woman’s identity.
Princess Nova.
Just over a week ago, she and Keres offered her a spot alongside them. But Lizzie instead seemed to have broken the mental spell they had over her and struck Nova in the head. Holding the picture in her gloved hand, a tear from Nova’s face lands on the picture.
Princess Nova: “I-I really thought we had broken through to you.”
There’s a catch in her throat.
Princess Nova: “It’s always hard to get people to understand why I chose my life. Shedding my old ways for a new identity. I understood the sacrifices. But…”
The TORN Angel sniffles.
Princess Nova: “I always wanted to find a kindred spirit. Someone to go through the same journey as me. Grow into someone just as strong as me, if not stronger. Elizabeth… No, Lizzie.”
She squeezes the photo in her hand.
Princess Nova: “I thought that was you!”
Nova cries out. Her hand shakes. She slowly uncrumples the picture- and it has changed.
The woman in the picture has rainbow hair, colourful streaks showing all sides of the rainbow. She has in-ring gear on with long rainbow splattered tights, shiny boots. On top of her head is a backwards ball cap and she has a white vest with a colourful tirm. Until you look at the face, you can hardly tell that that woman now-
Has become Princess Nova.
Princess Nova: “There would be a time when I would have been at your side as the woman who you THINK you are. Ignore life’s tragedies. Cover a feeling of gray with all the colours of the rainbow. That girl…”
She shakes her head.
Princess Nova: “Is missed by some. But not me. The punching bag for others. The woman who would sacrifice and sacrifice for supposed family and be only repaid with a ticket to my own destruction. So now you know why we felt it was necessary to help you. I didn’t want another Nova Taylor to fall into a spiral. I wanted a friend. I wanted a sister who I could give my kindness to and would return it.”
Putting her hand on her picture, the image of the old Nova is gone, back to the picture of Lizzie Rose.
Princess Nova: “So that leads us to today. I do not want to give up hope. But after you hurt me and broke my heart…”
The picture falls out of Nova’s hand, gently falling to the soil below. Nova’s frozen. Her body is stiff, voice cold, monotonous.
Princess Nova: “-Drastic measures need to be taken. We have chosen where you will battle with Keres. I know what I need to do.”
Normally, she’d switch back to her normal cheerful self. But not this time. Her hand moves rigidly, as if being pulled by a string, pushing the photo into the dirt.
Princess Nova: “We have already planted our seed in your mind. A part of us is with you. Saturday night is not about a match result. It is my job to fertilize your mind. Lay the groundwork.”
Nova’s head tilts slightly. We get a glimpse of her face. It is blank.
Princess Nova: “At Back in Business, in our garden, it is up to Keres to nurture it. Provide sunlight. Water it in your blood. Then you will truly blossom into the wonderful woman you were always meant to be-”
A figure walks up behind Nova. We can tell who it is by the shape of her shadow. Keres. She moves her mouth, but no words come out from it. Instead, from Nova’s.
Princess Nova: “B̸̢͎̬̖̟̬͂͆͒͐̚͠ȩ̵͔̞͓̓̿ ̷̢̹͙͔̂̆͐͐͑͊̃ͅn̸̥̅͋͛͗́͂ô̶̦̰͈͖͙t̵͉͔̺͚͛̄͂̎͆͝ ̶̖̘̗̯̑̉̃͘͜a̴̢͎̩̥͈̟͕̾̓͋̈͠f̸̮̜̫̪̪̮̳̅r̵̢̛͖͓̪̔͂̆͝͠ą̶͙̻͎̦̥̍̆̐͒̀̿̾i̴̢̨͓͈̩͉̹̊̆ḏ̴̮̭̞̾̋̏̌̽͆͂.̴͖͚̬̘̓̌͑͗́̋͝ ̸̧̫͇̻̏͒̃ͅT̵̖̝͎̭͈͍̕h̵̰̪̞͕͒͗̈į̴̮̦̓́̀̒̔̔͗s̶̗͔̒̀̿̐̕ ̸͙̟͠ľ̶̻̪̤̥̗̻̐͒̾̈̈́͜͝í̷̱̭͎̳̮̱ͅf̴̠͚̯̰̮̟̓̃̈́̆̑͘ͅe̶̛̤͗̌̆ ̸̡͓̦̟͇̖̓̏̑͌̕i̶̛̤̚͝͠ṡ̴̛͈̣͆͠͝ ̷̡̥̪̱̞̳̓̀͂l̴̨͚͔̱͇̟̇i̶̧̞̱͈̻̼̬͐̈́̍́̅͑͐b̸̛̙̉e̷͈̙̗̒̅̾̄̕ŗ̵͓̗͉̳̞̒̋̕ͅā̵̢̡̦̙̩̈́́͗̄t̴̖̓̂̃̂͠ǐ̴͙̯̟̰̦̍̎́͑͐̈́n̵̢̮̼͚̺͊g̸̡̠͓͔̈̐̆̽̏̒.̸̬͚̱͔̏͗͂̏̐̀̌ͅ”
Keres motions with her figure for Nova to stand up. Princess Nova obeys and turns to Keres. The Daughter of Demise puts her hand on the cheek of her sister, her most loyal follower. A smile appears on Nova’s face as she curtsies to her and Keres leads her off.
The camera zooms in on the picture which is now partially buried under the soil. Surrounding it are roses and tulips. It rests-
At the base of a vine-covered stone. Flowers bloom on it. Mixed with some of the vines-
Is razor sharp-
Unforgiving-
Barbed-wire.
Etched on the stone.
Is the name.
Lizzie
Rose.
Rod Sterling: “Coming up next we’ll be revisiting a rivalry as Death Walker will square off with XYZ. It’s been a bitter rivalry with these two that dates several months back…”
Before Rod can finish his introduction he’s cut off by the sound of a familiar tune and after a few seconds “The Wildcard” appears on stage to a mixed reaction from the fans in Monterrey. Randall is wearing black cargo pants, boots, a black hooded jacket with the Nephews logo on the side and the same logo on the back, and his own “Wildcard” t-shirt that can be found on ShopFWA.com
Rod Sterling: “This isn’t who we were expecting right now. I don’t believe Randall is scheduled for tonight’s show.”
Anzu Kurosawa: “He isn’t scheduled but he does have a vested interest in this match considering he’s caught in the middle of this ongoing rivalry.”
Rod Sterling: “The Wildcard’s history with Death Walker dates back even further than Death Walker and XYZ. Death Walker is the reason Randall wears that knee brace, and it appears that Randall will be joining us here at the desk…welcome Jason.”
Randall takes a seat at the end of the table beside Anzu and adjusts his headset.
Anzu Kurosawa: “Pleasure to have you here, Wildcard.”
Jason Randall: “Anzu…Rod…”
Randall gives them each a curt nod in response…
And now… all of the lights turn off momentarily as a demonic voice speaks out to all who are in attendance. While this intro plays, a bright red spotlight pops in the center of a smoke filled stage where it illuminates over a dark hooded figure. The song begins…
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: “The following match is scheduled for one fall with a twenty-minute-time-limit! Introducing first, from the depths of HELL and weighing in at 243 lb…he is The Dark Traveler…Death Walker!”
…and the house lights are brought back on but flashing in between the colors of red and white. As we can see the hooded individual in an all-black sleeved cloak with dark red trim along with another individual in just an oversized black cloak standing right behind it. The two of them take a slow, methodical stroll down the path to the ring. They never raise their heads to reveal who's under these big hooded cloaks as each hides their identity well. That is until they step up the ring stairs and step between the top and middle rope. Once the first hooded figure positions itself in the center of the ring, the other walks over and stands in front of the first. Standing motionless for a few seconds as smoke surrounds the outside of the ring, the person from behind unhooks the other's cloak. And the evil entity known as Death Walker steps forward to reveal himself to the audience and drops the entire cloak with his arms forming an X at neck level. The crowd erupts in madness and chaos as his music most likely ends by now or replays all over again but Death Walker remains staring out at the hard camera to present fear and panic to whomever.
Rod Sterling: “Quite an ominous entrance, wouldn’t you say Wildcard?”
Jason Randall: “This doesn’t scare me. There’s nothing about this guy that doesn’t scare me. He should’ve killed me when he had the chance but he didn’t and I’m still here.”
Anzu Kurosawa: “You’re referring to the beatdown you suffered at his hands when he and his Dark Guardian were attempting to bargain with XYZ about an alliance.”
Jason Randall: “That’s right, yeah he’s looking over here. Keep on looking you big ugly bastard!”
XYZ makes his way out to a nice ovation from the Monterrey crowd and after some fanfare and posturing for the fans, XYZ quickly makes his way down to the ring.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: “and his opponent, from Sitka, Alaska and weighing in at 180 lb…X…Y…Z!”
Rod Sterling: “You tried to barter with XYZ as well, Jason and that didn’t go the way you would have liked.”
Jason Randall: “I don’t know, I thought it was a good idea to form an alliance but looking back maybe it wasn’t such a bad thing that he declined my offer. I mean, he wouldn’t have been much help as we saw last time when he let Death Walker beat the hell out of me!”
XYZ enters the ring where he then removes his cape and hands it off to the ringside attendant. He begins to loosen up a little while the referee checks on both men and then calls for the bell.
DING! DING! DING!
<< 00:00 >>
Death Walker marches toward XYZ in an attempt to intimidate and strike fear in his opponent, but XYZ doesn’t show signs of trepidation and he’s not backing down. Death Walker lunges forward with a grapple attempt, but XYZ side steps him and he starts clubbing Death Walker on the back with balled up fists. XYZ then lights up Death Walker’s shins with vicious kicks but those seem to have little effect on the much bigger man, and Death Walker clutches XYZ by the throat with both hands and then he tosses XYZ into the corner!
Death Walker unloads on XYZ with vicious punches to the chest and stomach in the corner! XYZ is already looking worse for wear and Death Walker doesn’t let up and he nails XYZ with a corner clothesline! Death drags XYZ out of the corner and he launches him halfway across the ring with a capture suplex! XYZ staggers and stumbles back to his feet and stumbles back into the nearest corner, and that leaves him open for Death to strike with a running elbow strike! Death brings him in close and hits him with another capture suplex! This time XYZ stays down…
Rod Sterling: ”Sheer dominance on display by Death Walker! You’re no stranger to being on the receiving of this man’s dominance, Jason.”
Jason Randall: ”One too many times than I’d care to admit, but I’m still here. He didn’t finish the job.”
Anzu Kurosawa: ”XYZ might be finished in a matter of moments if Death Walker keeps it up!”
Death Walker does indeed look for the finish as he makes the cover…
ONE… TW - - NO!
XYZ gets a shoulder up and finds a way to stay in this fight. Death drives down more punishment with mounted punches and then hits a standing elbow drop onto XYZ! Death then applies a knee bar submission on XYZ…
Rod Sterling: ”Death Walker with the same submission locked in that has you wearing that knee brace.”
Jason Randall: ”The bastard tried to rip my leg clean out of the socket!”
Anzu Kurosawa: ”He’s intending on doing the same to XYZ. You might have to hook XYZ up with a spare knee brace if you have one handy!”
Jason Randall: ”Yeah, that’s not happening.”
<< 05:22 >>
XYZ is starting to inch his way toward the bottom rope and he manages to make it and breaks free of the submission! Death is reluctant to release the hold and he stomps down on the same leg for good measure! Death turns his attention toward the ringside area where Jason Randall is at the commentary desk.
Jason Randall: ”You keep looking at me and I’ll do something about it!”
Death turns back to XYZ and as he brings him up, XYZ connects with a standing dropkick to the chest! Death staggers back a few steps and XYZ seizes this opening with vicious kicks to the shins and takes Death down with a leg sweep into a quick elbow drop and a pin!
ONE…NO!
XYZ quickly kips up and goes for a springboard moonsault but does a fake out after he lands on his feet. XYZ then goes for a standing senton but Death rolls out of the way in time! XYZ grimaces in pain after hitting the mat and as he tries to rise to a knee, he eats a running big boot from Death Walker!
<< 08:06 >>
XYZ doesn’t go down though and he’s still on one knee…THE WRIGHT WAY! Death Walker connects with a vicious running high knee!
Anzu Kurosawa: ”XYZ showed promise with that comeback, but I don’t think it was meant to be.”
Rod Sterling: ”Death Walker might as well end it here because I don’t think XYZ can handle much more of this.”
Death begins to stalk XYZ before he brings him up…DARK CLOUD! Death promptly makes the cover…
ONE…TWO…THREE!
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: ”The winner of the match…Death Walker!”
Rod Sterling: ”The referee could have counted to one hundred and I don’t think it would have made a difference, there was no getting up from that!”
Anzu Kurosawa: ”Complete dominance by Death Walker!”
Once the bell rings and Death Walker rises up, Jason Randall emerges from the announcers table and slowly approaches the ring. "The Wildcard" steps up to the apron but Death Walker lunges and Randall steps down. Death Walker continues to stare a hole into Randall, but he turns and sees XYZ slowly come to his feet.
As the announcers all note that X looks to be in trouble, Death Walker charges but Randall again gets to the apron and distracts Death Walker. XYZ turns in time to see Death Walker charge at Randall, who drops and pulls down the ropes as Death Walker tumbles to the outside. Randall and Death Walker begin throwing wild haymakers at one another as officials separate them.
Crowd: LET THEM FIGHT!
XYZ remains in the ring and requests a microphone as he watches the brouhaha on the outside.
XYZ: "It is time ... to move on from these silly little side quests. Death Walker and Jason Randall ... mere distractions from the truth. And the truth is an arrow, pointed directly to the pole of light off in the distance.
The main quest is to bring joy to the joyless. And if that means piloting a ship to the X Championship, then I ... will CAPTAIN ... that SHIP!
Successes and failures on the low end of the life muscle move the needle naught. Because naught is night, and night is neigh. And neigh ... is the horse's gallop.
So let's all gallop to glory. Climb the mountain with me, because whether there are distractions or disappointments or losses or near-misses, me and the rest of my loyal friends ... including all of you ... will soldier on with the sealions at our back and the rhino's horns guiding the way.
The dream never dies, folks. The dream ... never ... dies."
XYZ drops the microphone and is about to leave the ring when he’s dragged from underneath the bottom ropes to the outside by Death Walker and Death drills him with a headbutt! Randall then fires off a forearm strike to XYZ! Randall then throws XYZ shoulder first into the steel steps! Randall starts stomping away on XYZ before he’s shoved away by Death Walker and Death Walker starts stomping on XYZ until Randall shoves him back, and the two of them continue their fight while more referees try to break it up…
Shawn Summers sat cross-legged on the gritty road, surrounded by the rugged expanse of the desert. The FWA X Championship glistened in front of him, while the Television Championship rested nonchalantly on his shoulder. His gaze wandered into the infinite horizon, but then he abruptly turned his attention to the viewer. His eyes, burdened by dark circles, revealed the toll of sleepless nights. His hair, once vibrant, now bore only remnants of its blonde patches. Clad in a tattered white shirt clinging lazily to his worn-out body and donning unwashed jeans and scuffed converse, Shawn exuded a weathered yet defiant aura.
Shawn Summers: "How poetic it seems to me that my first appearance on Meltdown this year involved a grand entrance via helicopter, surrounded by security, and firmly clutching the television championship. Oh, how things have changed since then. Here I am, in the middle of this desolate road, devoid of security, lavish suits, and anyone capable of halting the regicide that all of you wish upon me.
"This year has been a chorus of your wants—your desires echoing through the wrestling world. "I want to enter the F1. I want to claim a championship. I want to win the Carnal Contendership. I want to qualify for the Golden Opportunity." But among all these wants, my favorite has been your collective desires concerning me.
"I want to witness Shawn Summers defeated. I want to seize his championship. I want him to disappear. I want to strip him of everything he's earned."
Shawn takes a moment, a faint smirk playing on his lips as he chuckles to himself, disdainfully scoffing at their wishes. He swiftly swipes his hand beneath his nose, wiping away any sign of vulnerability, before continuing.
Shawn Summers: "This year alone, countless people have yearned for my downfall, all to satisfy their insatiable desires. They crave the taste of my championship, my name etched triumphantly in their "beat ya" books. I can't stand any of you. You label me the villain, yet you spend the entire year longing for my misfortune because you can't bear the fact that I embrace my truth. I fearlessly expose your bullshit, and I defend myself when misguided arrows are fired my way. I'm the bad guy because I play the game. I'm the bad guy because my words cut deeper than the sword you forge against me. Pathetic, all of you."
With a determined push, Shawn attempts to rise but falters, shooting a sharp, challenging glare in our direction. Slowly, he regains his footing, dusting himself off. Despite his worn-out appearance, his physical prowess radiates undeniable strength.
Shawn Summers: "Tommy, you're about to embark on the opportunity of a lifetime—multiple matches with me. That, my friend, is my gift to you. You'll have the chance to attain the ultimate prize, to extract everything you desire from Shawn Summers. Championships, glory, revenge—it's all within your grasp. But... you see, beating you isn't what I want. Oh no, I don't need that validation. I already know I'm superior to you. What I truly desire is something you can't directly provide, but you can assist me in obtaining it. At Back in Business, while you fight for titles and revenge, I'll be fighting for a contract.
"That's it. That's my ultimate goal. A contract. The very same contract I earned last year at Back in Business. Same terms, same clauses. That's all I want. And that's something you can help me achieve, Thomas. I'll see you soon, cowboy."
Shawn walks off into the distance,
We return to the ring as Mexico’s own Juan Tothrefor is already in the ring, soaking in some of the cheers from the fans giving him a nice home country reaction.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: “The following match is scheduled for one fall with a twenty-minute-time-limit! Introducing first, already in the ring, he is Mexico’s own… JJJJJJUAN TOOOOTHREEEEFOR!
The masked man tosses his arms up in the air, playing to the crowd as he does a little jig, delighting many of the fans.
Rod Sterling: ”It’s a big opportunity for Juan Tothrefor here tonight. We saw the Art of Wrestling star in the Carnal Contendership but now he gets to showcase his talents here on Meltdown in singles competition!”
Anzu Kurosawa: ”Look at those moves, Rod. I like this guy already.”
The lights in the arena go pitch black as the opening guitar rifts of Metallica begin before purple and green strobe lights began to flash through the arena. As the music speeds up, the lights come back up with a blast of pyro on the stage as El Vengador now stands surrounded by a cloud of smoke.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: “And his opponent, making his FWA in-ring debut… from the Realm of Despair, weighing in at two hundred fifty pounds, he is the winner of Ground Zero Season 4…. EEEELLLLLLLL VVVEEEEENNNGADOORRRRR!”
Rod Sterling: ”El Vendagor is here in Mexico making his in-ring debut after winning the most reason season of Ground Zero, but he’s already made quite a statement just a few weeks ago.”
Anzu Kurosawa: ”That he did. He “thanked” his Ground Zero coach, Katsu, by blind siding her with an attack. Not the gracious student, this guy.”
Rod Sterling: ”We don’t know a whole lot about this masked man other than we’ve seen him display some ruthless aggression in the ring but he’s also shown a fierce determination, which he put on display by coming back to win Ground Zero after previously being eliminated.”
El Vengador slowly walks down the ring with the crowd responding to him with a modest mixed reaction before climbing into the ring and awaiting his opponent.
Before Juan Tothrefor can get into the ring, we hear “Megitsune” blaring through the speakers. El Vengador turns his head to the entranceway as, after a few moments, Katsu makes her way out. She has a white hoodie on with a fox-logo on it, along with some black jeans. Of course, this is with her signature mask.
Rod Sterling: “Katsu said she is going to confront him face to face before Back in Business, and here she is.”
Anzu Kurosawa: “I think she needs to be careful. El Vengador already laid her out once before.”
Heading down the ramp, Katsy has a microphone in her hands and has a slight smirk on her face as she looks at the man she coached on Season Four of Ground Zero. El Vengador stands tall, imposing, trying to intimidate his former coach. Katsu simply heads up the steps and into the ring. Her theme music fades and she stands across from El Vengador. The masked brawler stands his ground, not saying a word. Katsu hums.
Katsu: “Bad time?”
She sneers.
Katsu: “My apologies, Juan, but if I could just have a couple moments of El Vengador’s time here. Because I don’t know about you, but I am tired of back and forth, you simply waiting and watching. May 11th, I introduced you to FWA. I congratulated you. I thanked you. I handed you your contract on behalf of FWA so you can reap the rewards you earned. Then the one second I had my eyes off you… You gave me your ‘thanks,’ and why?”
Stepping forward, Katsu looks slightly up at El Vengador.
Katsu: “In the name of justicia, to strike down a ‘not mentor.’ I did not expect you to be a best friend. I have my friends, and they are not here tonight. I doubt I’d be in your corner needing to ‘coach’ you forever. I just expected that maybe, for a man who preaches justice, you would return some respect. So, I am here to look you in the eyes. I want to hear directly from you. I want to feel what you say. Judge you correctly, and fairly. Because the meaning of justice might have a different meaning to me than you…”
The joshi motions to the ringside area as someone is grabbing a microphone for El Vengedor.
Katsu: “So, go ahead. The floor is yours. Don’t worry, I don’t bite… Anymore.”
The masked man takes the microphone, but remains silent, just offering a stare toward his former coach.
El Vengador: “Respect. That’s pretty funny. Where I come from, respect isn’t something that you just get. You earn it. I am the new guy around here so I know I still have a lot to earn myself. I get that. But mark my words. I will earn the respect of each and every wrestler in the back and every FWA fan. But you… your so-called coaching did was get me eliminated. You were more interested in searching your own soul that you didn’t care about the souls you were supposed to be leading. But I found my way back in. Because if there’s one thing I’ve learned in my life… it’s how to survive! I didn’t win Ground Zero. I SURVIVED IT. And it wasn’t any thanks to you. So I don’t want to hear anything about respect from you. You haven’t earned it.”
Vengador’s harsh words for Katu earns him a helping of boos from the fans in Mexico.
El Vengador: “So I did what I had to do. To right the wrong of the disservice you did to me as a coach. But more importantly… to make a statement. To show FWA… that justicia is coming!”
Katsu looks at El Vengador long. She digests his words, looking at him through the eyes of his mask. The larger wrestler takes a step forward and his eyes cut through Katsu.
Katsu: “You know. I could say a lot right now. I can. It may not mean much right now, but one thing that may surprise you is this…”
There is a pause in her voice. She mutters.
Katsu: “Sorry.”
Vengador remains stoic, perhaps not interested in her apology.
Katsu explains further.
Katsu: “Sorry if I was not coaching at my best. Truthfully, yes. I was going through a lot personally during the show. It was a miracle I even accepted the offer to coach. I am young. That was my first… FIRST time coaching. I had a lot to learn too. You did a lot. As you said, you SURVIVED. You came back and won…”
She steps forward.
Katsu: “But you blame me for your elimination? Was I the one fighting TYLER? You were the one who let your anger get the better of you. You were the one who let down your guard. I told you before that your emotions can be a weapon, but a sword you can fall on. And you’re several years my senior and yet you made that mistake and I see it here, again and again-”
El Vengador: “My anger is what has kept me alive as long as it has. But I don’t need to go on a quest of self-reflection to hide my own failures. Because I’ve learned failure just is not an option. And at Back in Business… I won’t fail. And I will deliver you to justicia.”
There is a cold chill in his voice over the microphone. Katsu shakes her head.
Katsu: “No, you will boil yourself alive in your anger. You will blind yourself with red. Because failure is inevitable. You will make mistakes again and again. But what you do is get up and learn. I was trained by Yukari Kozakai. I was brought into my first group by Queen Yoshiko under Sin. I have since been under the learning tree of Saori Suzuki of MAYHEM. Each of these women I have learned what to do and what not to do, all to learn about what I do. During that time I was knocked down, beaten down, and yet here I am. Like you, I survived! But, I have also learned from each mistake to become a stronger person. You haven’t.”
El Vengedor steps in front of Katsu, looking down, he is forehead to forehead, mask to mask with her. His breathing is heard over the microphone. Katsu holds it up to her face.
Katsu: “So, how about I give you one lesson. One final lesson before Back in Business. Maybe this time, you’ll learn something…”
Backing up, Katsu slides out of the ring. Slowly, El Vengedor turns his head, not keeping his eyes off his future opponent.
Katsu: “If you truly believe in Justica, you have to understand that actions have consequences. Your misconduct has led to us coming face to face at Back in Business. But also…”
Going to the commentator’s area, Katsu grabs a folding steel chair. She slaps it and slides into the ring. El Vengedor stands his ground.
Katsu: “If you truly believe in justice, you don’t stab someone in the back…”
The masked joshi raises the chair… Before dropping it in front of El Vengedor.
Katsu: “You stab them in the front.”
Katsu sits down in front of El Vengedor. She crosses her legs. Looking up at the masked brawler, she says.
Katsu: “So go ahead, do it right.”
Rod Sterling: “Is Katsu crazy?! She’s just sitting there, giving El Vengedor literal ammunition.”
Anzu Kurosawa:”And for some reason, she doesn’t seem intimidated at all.”
El Vengador looks down at Katsu, who remains firm in her decision, simply sitting and waiting for Vengador to act. He leans over and picks up the chair, eyeing it from top to bottom before looking back down at Katsu.
Rod Sterling: ”You have to wonder what’s going through El Vengador’s mind here… what’s he going to do? He has an opportunity here to cause some real damage to Katsu heading into Back in Business.”
Anzu Kurosawa:”Hey, she’s asking for it. Who can blame him if he wants to take his shot here.”
The crowd boos as Vengador tilts his head, continuing to measure up Katsu, who surprisingly does not grow impatient on her former student. He finally lifts the chair up into the air…
And..
SWINGS IT DOWN!
The chair crashes to the canvas right beside Katsu, causing a slight flinch from the joshi star.
Vengador, still holding the chair as he kneels down in front of Katsu, picking the the microphone back up with his other hand.
El Vengador: “Perhaps… I was wrong about you. Perhaps. So tonight… I spare you… but at Back in Business… it will be a different story.”
Vengador tosses the chair down beside Katsu. She grabs the microphone next to her and picks it up.
Katsu: “You will see there is more to me than you realize… But for now, I think I’ll take my chance to learn about you…”
She grabs the chair and slides out of the ring. She unfolds it to sit at ringside, folding her legs.
Rod Sterling: ”Now that’s a strange encounter. Mind games from both of them.”
Anzu Kurosawa: ”And some emotion from both of them. Katsu’s got the Trios Championship match with her YOKAI Death Squad teammates, along with the Golden Opportunity after Back in Business. We know what she needs, but El Vengedor has something to prove…”
Rod Sterling: ”And I guess we’ll see what he has now.”
As Katsu sets up shop to spectate, Juan finally is able to climb into the ring and get this match underway.
<< 00:00 >>
Death Walker marches toward XYZ in an attempt to intimidate and strike fear in his opponent, but XYZ doesn’t show signs of trepidation and he’s not backing down. Death Walker lunges forward with a grapple attempt, but XYZ side steps him and he starts clubbing Death Walker on the back with balled up fists. XYZ then lights up Death Walker’s shins with vicious kicks but those seem to have little effect on the much bigger man, and Death Walker clutches XYZ by the throat with both hands and then he tosses XYZ into the corner!
Death Walker unloads on XYZ with vicious punches to the chest and stomach in the corner! XYZ is already looking worse for wear and Death Walker doesn’t let up and he nails XYZ with a corner clothesline! Death drags XYZ out of the corner and he launches him halfway across the ring with a capture suplex! XYZ staggers and stumbles back to his feet and stumbles back into the nearest corner, and that leaves him open for Death to strike with a running elbow strike! Death brings him in close and hits him with another capture suplex! This time XYZ stays down…
Rod Sterling: ”Sheer dominance on display by Death Walker! You’re no stranger to being on the receiving of this man’s dominance, Jason.”
Jason Randall: ”One too many times than I’d care to admit, but I’m still here. He didn’t finish the job.”
Anzu Kurosawa: ”XYZ might be finished in a matter of moments if Death Walker keeps it up!”
Death Walker does indeed look for the finish as he makes the cover…
ONE… TW - - NO!
XYZ gets a shoulder up and finds a way to stay in this fight. Death drives down more punishment with mounted punches and then hits a standing elbow drop onto XYZ! Death then applies a knee bar submission on XYZ…
Rod Sterling: ”Death Walker with the same submission locked in that has you wearing that knee brace.”
Jason Randall: ”The bastard tried to rip my leg clean out of the socket!”
Anzu Kurosawa: ”He’s intending on doing the same to XYZ. You might have to hook XYZ up with a spare knee brace if you have one handy!”
Jason Randall: ”Yeah, that’s not happening.”
<< 05:22 >>
XYZ is starting to inch his way toward the bottom rope and he manages to make it and breaks free of the submission! Death is reluctant to release the hold and he stomps down on the same leg for good measure! Death turns his attention toward the ringside area where Jason Randall is at the commentary desk.
Jason Randall: ”You keep looking at me and I’ll do something about it!”
Death turns back to XYZ and as he brings him up, XYZ connects with a standing dropkick to the chest! Death staggers back a few steps and XYZ seizes this opening with vicious kicks to the shins and takes Death down with a leg sweep into a quick elbow drop and a pin!
ONE…NO!
XYZ quickly kips up and goes for a springboard moonsault but does a fake out after he lands on his feet. XYZ then goes for a standing senton but Death rolls out of the way in time! XYZ grimaces in pain after hitting the mat and as he tries to rise to a knee, he eats a running big boot from Death Walker!
<< 08:06 >>
XYZ doesn’t go down though and he’s still on one knee…THE WRIGHT WAY! Death Walker connects with a vicious running high knee!
Anzu Kurosawa: ”XYZ showed promise with that comeback, but I don’t think it was meant to be.”
Rod Sterling: ”Death Walker might as well end it here because I don’t think XYZ can handle much more of this.”
Death begins to stalk XYZ before he brings him up…DARK CLOUD! Death promptly makes the cover…
ONE…TWO…THREE!
Winner: Death Walker by pinfall at 09: 10.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: ”The winner of the match…Death Walker!”
Rod Sterling: ”The referee could have counted to one hundred and I don’t think it would have made a difference, there was no getting up from that!”
Anzu Kurosawa: ”Complete dominance by Death Walker!”
Once the bell rings and Death Walker rises up, Jason Randall emerges from the announcers table and slowly approaches the ring. "The Wildcard" steps up to the apron but Death Walker lunges and Randall steps down. Death Walker continues to stare a hole into Randall, but he turns and sees XYZ slowly come to his feet.
As the announcers all note that X looks to be in trouble, Death Walker charges but Randall again gets to the apron and distracts Death Walker. XYZ turns in time to see Death Walker charge at Randall, who drops and pulls down the ropes as Death Walker tumbles to the outside. Randall and Death Walker begin throwing wild haymakers at one another as officials separate them.
Crowd: LET THEM FIGHT!
XYZ remains in the ring and requests a microphone as he watches the brouhaha on the outside.
XYZ: "It is time ... to move on from these silly little side quests. Death Walker and Jason Randall ... mere distractions from the truth. And the truth is an arrow, pointed directly to the pole of light off in the distance.
The main quest is to bring joy to the joyless. And if that means piloting a ship to the X Championship, then I ... will CAPTAIN ... that SHIP!
Successes and failures on the low end of the life muscle move the needle naught. Because naught is night, and night is neigh. And neigh ... is the horse's gallop.
So let's all gallop to glory. Climb the mountain with me, because whether there are distractions or disappointments or losses or near-misses, me and the rest of my loyal friends ... including all of you ... will soldier on with the sealions at our back and the rhino's horns guiding the way.
The dream never dies, folks. The dream ... never ... dies."
XYZ drops the microphone and is about to leave the ring when he’s dragged from underneath the bottom ropes to the outside by Death Walker and Death drills him with a headbutt! Randall then fires off a forearm strike to XYZ! Randall then throws XYZ shoulder first into the steel steps! Randall starts stomping away on XYZ before he’s shoved away by Death Walker and Death Walker starts stomping on XYZ until Randall shoves him back, and the two of them continue their fight while more referees try to break it up…
Shawn Summers sat cross-legged on the gritty road, surrounded by the rugged expanse of the desert. The FWA X Championship glistened in front of him, while the Television Championship rested nonchalantly on his shoulder. His gaze wandered into the infinite horizon, but then he abruptly turned his attention to the viewer. His eyes, burdened by dark circles, revealed the toll of sleepless nights. His hair, once vibrant, now bore only remnants of its blonde patches. Clad in a tattered white shirt clinging lazily to his worn-out body and donning unwashed jeans and scuffed converse, Shawn exuded a weathered yet defiant aura.
Shawn Summers: "How poetic it seems to me that my first appearance on Meltdown this year involved a grand entrance via helicopter, surrounded by security, and firmly clutching the television championship. Oh, how things have changed since then. Here I am, in the middle of this desolate road, devoid of security, lavish suits, and anyone capable of halting the regicide that all of you wish upon me.
"This year has been a chorus of your wants—your desires echoing through the wrestling world. "I want to enter the F1. I want to claim a championship. I want to win the Carnal Contendership. I want to qualify for the Golden Opportunity." But among all these wants, my favorite has been your collective desires concerning me.
"I want to witness Shawn Summers defeated. I want to seize his championship. I want him to disappear. I want to strip him of everything he's earned."
Shawn takes a moment, a faint smirk playing on his lips as he chuckles to himself, disdainfully scoffing at their wishes. He swiftly swipes his hand beneath his nose, wiping away any sign of vulnerability, before continuing.
Shawn Summers: "This year alone, countless people have yearned for my downfall, all to satisfy their insatiable desires. They crave the taste of my championship, my name etched triumphantly in their "beat ya" books. I can't stand any of you. You label me the villain, yet you spend the entire year longing for my misfortune because you can't bear the fact that I embrace my truth. I fearlessly expose your bullshit, and I defend myself when misguided arrows are fired my way. I'm the bad guy because I play the game. I'm the bad guy because my words cut deeper than the sword you forge against me. Pathetic, all of you."
With a determined push, Shawn attempts to rise but falters, shooting a sharp, challenging glare in our direction. Slowly, he regains his footing, dusting himself off. Despite his worn-out appearance, his physical prowess radiates undeniable strength.
Shawn Summers: "Tommy, you're about to embark on the opportunity of a lifetime—multiple matches with me. That, my friend, is my gift to you. You'll have the chance to attain the ultimate prize, to extract everything you desire from Shawn Summers. Championships, glory, revenge—it's all within your grasp. But... you see, beating you isn't what I want. Oh no, I don't need that validation. I already know I'm superior to you. What I truly desire is something you can't directly provide, but you can assist me in obtaining it. At Back in Business, while you fight for titles and revenge, I'll be fighting for a contract.
"That's it. That's my ultimate goal. A contract. The very same contract I earned last year at Back in Business. Same terms, same clauses. That's all I want. And that's something you can help me achieve, Thomas. I'll see you soon, cowboy."
Shawn walks off into the distance,
We return to the ring as Mexico’s own Juan Tothrefor is already in the ring, soaking in some of the cheers from the fans giving him a nice home country reaction.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: “The following match is scheduled for one fall with a twenty-minute-time-limit! Introducing first, already in the ring, he is Mexico’s own… JJJJJJUAN TOOOOTHREEEEFOR!
The masked man tosses his arms up in the air, playing to the crowd as he does a little jig, delighting many of the fans.
Rod Sterling: ”It’s a big opportunity for Juan Tothrefor here tonight. We saw the Art of Wrestling star in the Carnal Contendership but now he gets to showcase his talents here on Meltdown in singles competition!”
Anzu Kurosawa: ”Look at those moves, Rod. I like this guy already.”
The lights in the arena go pitch black as the opening guitar rifts of Metallica begin before purple and green strobe lights began to flash through the arena. As the music speeds up, the lights come back up with a blast of pyro on the stage as El Vengador now stands surrounded by a cloud of smoke.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: “And his opponent, making his FWA in-ring debut… from the Realm of Despair, weighing in at two hundred fifty pounds, he is the winner of Ground Zero Season 4…. EEEELLLLLLLL VVVEEEEENNNGADOORRRRR!”
Rod Sterling: ”El Vendagor is here in Mexico making his in-ring debut after winning the most reason season of Ground Zero, but he’s already made quite a statement just a few weeks ago.”
Anzu Kurosawa: ”That he did. He “thanked” his Ground Zero coach, Katsu, by blind siding her with an attack. Not the gracious student, this guy.”
Rod Sterling: ”We don’t know a whole lot about this masked man other than we’ve seen him display some ruthless aggression in the ring but he’s also shown a fierce determination, which he put on display by coming back to win Ground Zero after previously being eliminated.”
El Vengador slowly walks down the ring with the crowd responding to him with a modest mixed reaction before climbing into the ring and awaiting his opponent.
]
Before Juan Tothrefor can get into the ring, we hear “Megitsune” blaring through the speakers. El Vengador turns his head to the entranceway as, after a few moments, Katsu makes her way out. She has a white hoodie on with a fox-logo on it, along with some black jeans. Of course, this is with her signature mask.
Rod Sterling: “Katsu said she is going to confront him face to face before Back in Business, and here she is.”
Anzu Kurosawa: “I think she needs to be careful. El Vengador already laid her out once before.”
Heading down the ramp, Katsy has a microphone in her hands and has a slight smirk on her face as she looks at the man she coached on Season Four of Ground Zero. El Vengador stands tall, imposing, trying to intimidate his former coach. Katsu simply heads up the steps and into the ring. Her theme music fades and she stands across from El Vengador. The masked brawler stands his ground, not saying a word. Katsu hums.
Katsu: “Bad time?”
She sneers.
Katsu: “My apologies, Juan, but if I could just have a couple moments of El Vengador’s time here. Because I don’t know about you, but I am tired of back and forth, you simply waiting and watching. May 11th, I introduced you to FWA. I congratulated you. I thanked you. I handed you your contract on behalf of FWA so you can reap the rewards you earned. Then the one second I had my eyes off you… You gave me your ‘thanks,’ and why?”
Stepping forward, Katsu looks slightly up at El Vengador.
Katsu: “In the name of justicia, to strike down a ‘not mentor.’ I did not expect you to be a best friend. I have my friends, and they are not here tonight. I doubt I’d be in your corner needing to ‘coach’ you forever. I just expected that maybe, for a man who preaches justice, you would return some respect. So, I am here to look you in the eyes. I want to hear directly from you. I want to feel what you say. Judge you correctly, and fairly. Because the meaning of justice might have a different meaning to me than you…”
The joshi motions to the ringside area as someone is grabbing a microphone for El Vengedor.
Katsu: “So, go ahead. The floor is yours. Don’t worry, I don’t bite… Anymore.”
The masked man takes the microphone, but remains silent, just offering a stare toward his former coach.
El Vengador: “Respect. That’s pretty funny. Where I come from, respect isn’t something that you just get. You earn it. I am the new guy around here so I know I still have a lot to earn myself. I get that. But mark my words. I will earn the respect of each and every wrestler in the back and every FWA fan. But you… your so-called coaching did was get me eliminated. You were more interested in searching your own soul that you didn’t care about the souls you were supposed to be leading. But I found my way back in. Because if there’s one thing I’ve learned in my life… it’s how to survive! I didn’t win Ground Zero. I SURVIVED IT. And it wasn’t any thanks to you. So I don’t want to hear anything about respect from you. You haven’t earned it.”
Vengador’s harsh words for Katu earns him a helping of boos from the fans in Mexico.
El Vengador: “So I did what I had to do. To right the wrong of the disservice you did to me as a coach. But more importantly… to make a statement. To show FWA… that justicia is coming!”
Katsu looks at El Vengador long. She digests his words, looking at him through the eyes of his mask. The larger wrestler takes a step forward and his eyes cut through Katsu.
Katsu: “You know. I could say a lot right now. I can. It may not mean much right now, but one thing that may surprise you is this…”
There is a pause in her voice. She mutters.
Katsu: “Sorry.”
Vengador remains stoic, perhaps not interested in her apology.
Katsu explains further.
Katsu: “Sorry if I was not coaching at my best. Truthfully, yes. I was going through a lot personally during the show. It was a miracle I even accepted the offer to coach. I am young. That was my first… FIRST time coaching. I had a lot to learn too. You did a lot. As you said, you SURVIVED. You came back and won…”
She steps forward.
Katsu: “But you blame me for your elimination? Was I the one fighting TYLER? You were the one who let your anger get the better of you. You were the one who let down your guard. I told you before that your emotions can be a weapon, but a sword you can fall on. And you’re several years my senior and yet you made that mistake and I see it here, again and again-”
El Vengador: “My anger is what has kept me alive as long as it has. But I don’t need to go on a quest of self-reflection to hide my own failures. Because I’ve learned failure just is not an option. And at Back in Business… I won’t fail. And I will deliver you to justicia.”
There is a cold chill in his voice over the microphone. Katsu shakes her head.
Katsu: “No, you will boil yourself alive in your anger. You will blind yourself with red. Because failure is inevitable. You will make mistakes again and again. But what you do is get up and learn. I was trained by Yukari Kozakai. I was brought into my first group by Queen Yoshiko under Sin. I have since been under the learning tree of Saori Suzuki of MAYHEM. Each of these women I have learned what to do and what not to do, all to learn about what I do. During that time I was knocked down, beaten down, and yet here I am. Like you, I survived! But, I have also learned from each mistake to become a stronger person. You haven’t.”
El Vengedor steps in front of Katsu, looking down, he is forehead to forehead, mask to mask with her. His breathing is heard over the microphone. Katsu holds it up to her face.
Katsu: “So, how about I give you one lesson. One final lesson before Back in Business. Maybe this time, you’ll learn something…”
Backing up, Katsu slides out of the ring. Slowly, El Vengedor turns his head, not keeping his eyes off his future opponent.
Katsu: “If you truly believe in Justica, you have to understand that actions have consequences. Your misconduct has led to us coming face to face at Back in Business. But also…”
Going to the commentator’s area, Katsu grabs a folding steel chair. She slaps it and slides into the ring. El Vengedor stands his ground.
Katsu: “If you truly believe in justice, you don’t stab someone in the back…”
The masked joshi raises the chair… Before dropping it in front of El Vengedor.
Katsu: “You stab them in the front.”
Katsu sits down in front of El Vengedor. She crosses her legs. Looking up at the masked brawler, she says.
Katsu: “So go ahead, do it right.”
Rod Sterling: “Is Katsu crazy?! She’s just sitting there, giving El Vengedor literal ammunition.”
Anzu Kurosawa:”And for some reason, she doesn’t seem intimidated at all.”
El Vengador looks down at Katsu, who remains firm in her decision, simply sitting and waiting for Vengador to act. He leans over and picks up the chair, eyeing it from top to bottom before looking back down at Katsu.
Rod Sterling: ”You have to wonder what’s going through El Vengador’s mind here… what’s he going to do? He has an opportunity here to cause some real damage to Katsu heading into Back in Business.”
Anzu Kurosawa:”Hey, she’s asking for it. Who can blame him if he wants to take his shot here.”
The crowd boos as Vengador tilts his head, continuing to measure up Katsu, who surprisingly does not grow impatient on her former student. He finally lifts the chair up into the air…
And..
SWINGS IT DOWN!
The chair crashes to the canvas right beside Katsu, causing a slight flinch from the joshi star.
Vengador, still holding the chair as he kneels down in front of Katsu, picking the the microphone back up with his other hand.
El Vengador: “Perhaps… I was wrong about you. Perhaps. So tonight… I spare you… but at Back in Business… it will be a different story.”
Vengador tosses the chair down beside Katsu. She grabs the microphone next to her and picks it up.
Katsu: “You will see there is more to me than you realize… But for now, I think I’ll take my chance to learn about you…”
She grabs the chair and slides out of the ring. She unfolds it to sit at ringside, folding her legs.
Rod Sterling: ”Now that’s a strange encounter. Mind games from both of them.”
Anzu Kurosawa: ”And some emotion from both of them. Katsu’s got the Trios Championship match with her YOKAI Death Squad teammates, along with the Golden Opportunity after Back in Business. We know what she needs, but El Vengedor has something to prove…”
Rod Sterling: ”And I guess we’ll see what he has now.”
As Katsu sets up shop to spectate, Juan finally is able to climb into the ring and get this match underway.
<< 00:00. >>
Juan and Vengador meet in the center of the ring, Vengador going for a lock up but Juan showcases some of his surprising agility as he avoids the lock up and immediately grapples his fellow luchadore in a waistlock. Vengador battles it off with a pair of back elbows to stagger Tothrefor backwards before he hits a stiff lariat, knocking the stocky luchadore down to the mat. Vengador stops to look at Katsu at ringside before unleashing a series of angry stomps to Juan’s back.
Rod Sterling: ”I think that confrontation with Katsu in the pre-match has El Vengador agitated and now he’s taking out that aggression on Juan Tothrefor!”
Juan tries to crawl to the corner, pulling himself up but Vengador meets him with some stiff rapid fire machine gun chops to the chest before lifting up his boot and placing it across the thick neck of Tothrefour! Vengador gets a four count and a stern warning from the FWA official.
Vengador brushes off the referee and pulls Juan out of the corner and snapmaring the Art of Wrestling star down to the mat before leaping over him with a rolling neck snap! Vengador pops right back up and follows up this series of moves with a standing moonsault, showcasing his own impressive agility for a 250 pounder.
But instead of going for the pin, Vengador decides to turn his attention to Katsu once again. ”I hope you’re learning something!” he shouts out, though Katsu simply tells Vengador to pay attention to the ring, because by the time he turns around, Juan is back to his feet and hits a well placed dropkick to the chest of Vengador to take him down to the mat!
Anzu Kurosawa: ”Rookie mistake by Vengador! He’s too worried about Katsu being at ringside that he took his eyes off the ball and the lucha veteran Juan took advantage.”
Juan and Vengador meet in the center of the ring, Vengador going for a lock up but Juan showcases some of his surprising agility as he avoids the lock up and immediately grapples his fellow luchadore in a waistlock. Vengador battles it off with a pair of back elbows to stagger Tothrefor backwards before he hits a stiff lariat, knocking the stocky luchadore down to the mat. Vengador stops to look at Katsu at ringside before unleashing a series of angry stomps to Juan’s back.
Rod Sterling: ”I think that confrontation with Katsu in the pre-match has El Vengador agitated and now he’s taking out that aggression on Juan Tothrefor!”
Juan tries to crawl to the corner, pulling himself up but Vengador meets him with some stiff rapid fire machine gun chops to the chest before lifting up his boot and placing it across the thick neck of Tothrefour! Vengador gets a four count and a stern warning from the FWA official.
Vengador brushes off the referee and pulls Juan out of the corner and snapmaring the Art of Wrestling star down to the mat before leaping over him with a rolling neck snap! Vengador pops right back up and follows up this series of moves with a standing moonsault, showcasing his own impressive agility for a 250 pounder.
But instead of going for the pin, Vengador decides to turn his attention to Katsu once again. ”I hope you’re learning something!” he shouts out, though Katsu simply tells Vengador to pay attention to the ring, because by the time he turns around, Juan is back to his feet and hits a well placed dropkick to the chest of Vengador to take him down to the mat!
Anzu Kurosawa: ”Rookie mistake by Vengador! He’s too worried about Katsu being at ringside that he took his eyes off the ball and the lucha veteran Juan took advantage.”
<< 03:57. >>
Juan Tothrefor sends Vengador into the turnbuckles with an Irish Whip, following it up by rushing in with a big leaping corner splash to the man in purple. Vengador staggers out of the corner and is scooped up by Juan and then dropped to the mat with a powerslam! Juan points to the top rope, eliciting a pop from the crowd as he begins to ascend the turnbuckles.
FROG SPLASH from Juan!
But Vengador gets his knees up! The Ground Zero winner slowly pulls himself up while Juan tries to recover from the failed high risk maneuver. Vengador strikes first, hitting a superkick to Juan that sends the chubbier man back into the ropes, bouncing right back towards Vengy. He ducks through a big boot from Vengador and then strikes with his own superkick!
Vengador only falls to a knee however and gets right back up as Tothrefor goes for another superkick, but it’s caught by EV! Vengador spins Juan around and then hits a jumping big boot to lay out the fan favorite!
Tothrefor tries to pull himself up, but Vengador is waiting for him as he rushes in with a running knee to the face, sending him right back down to the mat.
”JUSTICIA!” he cries out as he pulls Jaun back up and locks his eyes on Katsu before lifting him up and driving Tothrefor back into the canvas with his Justicia finishing maneuver.
Vengador rolls Juan onto his back, pressing his arms down across the shoulders of the luchadore.
ONE - TWO - THREE!
Vengador sits up to his knees before standing up to a mostly negative reaction from the fans in Mexico. He doesn’t seem to mind however and gladly allows the referee to lift up his arm in victory before he once again diverts his attention to Katsu, who has now stood up from her chair and offers a sarcastic round of applause for the victor.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith:: "Here is your winner… EL VENGADOR!"
Rod Sterling: ”An impressive victory for El Vengador as he fends off the spirited fight from his opponent who had definitely had home field advantage here tonight!”
Anzu Kurosawa: ”I’m not sure how impressed his former coach is however. I sense quite a bit of insincerity in those claps.”
Katsu folds up her chair and turns away from the ring, El Vengador watching his Back in Business opponent closely as she exits. He takes one last look at Juan as he struggles to get back to his feet before he himself steps out of the ring.
The fans in Mexico show their respect for Juan even in defeat as he grabs the ropes and pulls himself back up. He seems pleased by the kind response.
Rod Sterling: ”What a great show of support for Juan Tothrefor here tonight in his home country. Hopefully we will get to see a bit more of him here in the futur-”
El Vengador is shown pausing on the ramp as another hulking beast emerges from the back and there is audible shock from the crowd as the being known as ‘The Great’ Maru stomps out onto the stage. Maru pays no attention to Vengador as he advances towards the ring where Juan Tothrefor becomes aware of his approach, also.
Anzu Kurosawa: ”Oh, this isn’t good. Juan should really think about getting out of there, Rod…”
Rod Sterling: ”Not good indeed! This is ‘The Great’ Maru, and he appeared for the first time in the FWA on Fallout 030 where he took apart three men at once, and I think Juan Tothrefor is in his sights right now!”
Maru reaches the bottom of the ramp and then pulls himself up onto the apron and steps over the top rope into the ring, where Juan comes to meet him. Juan gets a couple of shots away which have little to no effect. Maru is then able to shove Juan back and Juan rolls through and gets to his feet before valiantly charging in again… AND MARU PLANTS HIM ON THE MAT WITH A URANAGE!
The impact sees Juan down on the mat, winded, and Maru effortlessly lifts him into the air and picks him up… OVER SHOULDER REVERSE PILEDRIVER!!! Juan is absolutely spiked on the top of his head and he falls flat down onto his back in the middle of the ring. Maru slowly rises back to his feet and stands over the downed Juan as his music plays again.
Rod Sterling: ”Message sent. We still have no idea what ‘The Great’ Maru wants here in the FWA but he is leaving bodies in his wake wherever he goes!”
The crowd are not happy to see their countryman obliterated in the middle of the ring and Maru looks to leave as soon as he arrived.
Anzu Kurosawa: ”His motives may not be clear, but the results speak for themselves…”
For seven days, Lucy Lupone has been trying to survive in the enchanted forest, eating as much honey as she possibly could and fighting her way through the goblin-infested valleys of the past. Nestled within the roots of a massive oak tree. The tiny cottages were a welcome sight for the weary traveller. As she approached the town, a warm breeze blew over them. Chasing away the chill of the frozen pass and carrying with it the sweet smell of cooking fires.
Inside the mysterious house was tightly packed earth, with planks nailed down for the floor. A writing desk with a squat, burning candle was set up in the corner, and shelves full of books lined the walls. Lucy studied the titles next to her "Tankards and Tempers" to "In the Cards" to "Makings of a Monster" There were even four volumes of short stories that were all entitled "Throne Wars" from the ceiling, a large glass Globe filled with magical light globe glowed softly.
The man himself stood beneath the glass orbs, arms folded and almost disappearing in the creases of his dun-coloured robes.
???: "Welcome; I've been expecting you."
Lucy LuPone: "I've been told you're the one to go to for answers...Who are you?"
???:"I go by many names, but you'll probably know me by the name humanity has given me."
And in one swift and sudden motion, the man removed his hood to reveal an incredibly hairy yet wise face.
???:"BIG FOOT!"
Lucy LuPone: "Oh hey, bigfoot."
Big Foot: "hi"
-Slight awkward pause-
Big Foot:"Would you like some tea? An assortment of treats? Some tepid room temperature water."
Lucy LuPone: "Oh, room temperature, you say? Temping, but no, I've spent the last week travelling the length of this realm to seek out your wisdom. With a band of fearless adventures, rogues, bards, and wizards facing endless battles with undead hordes."
Big Foot:"That sounds positively exciting and would be an exciting read."
Lucy LuPone:"Yes, maybe one day we'll explore such awesome adventures in some kind of written piece or maybe a game of DND, but now is not the time to relive such intense high fantasy adventure. I need your wisdom on how to move forward with my life.
Big foot raised a single eyebrow, almost in bemusement.
Big Foot:"You've travelled such great distances for an answer you had the entire time."
Lucy Lupone: "What do you mean?"
Big Foot: "You had such amazing adventures, ones that would be really cool to read, I'm sure...Slaying dragons and fighting battles...but you couldn't do it on your own. You needed a clam. A family. Someone to have your back. That's why you need your family...and why your brothers need you.
Lucy's eyes widened in stunned silence as the truth of the situation came to her; the revelation came to her like a slap in her face.
Big Foot: "Look at me, alone, I am hunted as a cryptid to put in someone's museum, but if I had two partners with me, I wouldn't be alone, I wouldn't be hunted, and I would be happy.
Lucy looks down, deep in thought, and pinpricks of tears appear in her eyes.
Lucy LuPone: "Yes, of course.......I understand now...Thank you, Mr Big Foot...I know who I am now...and I need to fight for my family. I will join the Lumberjacks and fight for the trio's titles. Thank you. So much for your wisdom, and now I must fly away. FORWARD!"
And with that, Lucy Lupone thrust her fist out and flew out of Big Foot's cottage and into a rainbow.
-----
Smash cut to The Lumberjacks at a local bar.
Doug LuPone: "Oh crap"
Dan LuPone "What's up?"
Doug LuPone: "Did we remember to tell Lucy that the honey in the forest makes you hallucinate weird stuff?"
Dan LuPone: "Probably."
Doug LuPone:"Yeah. It's probably fine."
Meltdown returns from a commercial break and the crowd cheers as we see Al Blizzard standing in the ring, leather jacket on, aviator-style glass on and a mic in his hand.
Rod Sterling: ”Al Blizzard is here on Meltdown and with everything that has been going on lately with him and his brother Jason Quinn, I’m sure he has some things on his mind.”
Al Blizzard: “Shit’s been rough, I lost my match. And more importantly, it was because of my brother, Jason. He asked me for a match at Back in Business and I said no. Why did I say no? Because I don’t want to give him the light of day. I am not giving Jason a platform. If he wants one he has to earn it himself. But on Meltdown Thirty, he took it too far. He crossed a line I never thought existed. And you know what, he pushed me over that line with him. I didn’t believe that all the hate I’d stored over the years would be focused on my brother. But here we are. Jason… it’s time to settle this. Get your ass out here.”
There is a slight pause before Jason Quinn’s theme hits.
Jason walks out with a huge smirk on his face and a mic in his hand. He pauses on the stage and looks at Blizzard.
Jason Quinn: “You know brother. I figured you’d eventually come to your senses. But I realise I had to step over that line. And I will continue to do so until you face me.”
Jason turns to the curtain and shouts in that direction still with a smirk on his face. A few seconds later, two people emerge from the curtain, Sophie, Al’s Girlfriend and his Son Matthew. Blizzard looks relieved that they’re ok, yet angry.
Jason: You see, I couldn’t just simply return them to you could I, that wouldn’t be fun at all.
Jason, Sophie and Matthew make their way down to the ring and Jason forces Sophie and Matthew to get into the ring first. Blizzard attempts to hug Sophie and Matthew but Jason steps up to him
Jason Quinn: “Nuh-uh. Not yet. Not until after you accept my challenge.”
Blizzard reluctantly backs away from them.
Al Blizzard: “Give me my family back. Before I fucking kill you.”
Jason Quinn: “Oh Alex, so naive. You’ll have your chance if you give me what I want. Jason Quinn versus Al Blizzard at Back In Business. If I win, you do as I say and if you win, you get your family back and you’ll never see me again.”
Al Blizzard: “You got your match.”
The crowd cheer whilst Jasons’ smirk grows even larger. Jason turns around, ready to leave the ring but is interrupted.
Al Blizzard: “On one condition.”
A sea of “ooh's” emanate from the crowd and Jason turns back around, still smirking.
Jason Quinn: “What is your condition?”
Al Blizzard: “I spoke to Robert Steel recently and he gave me some good advice. He told me many things but among those things. He made me realise that to fight you, I have to fight you how you want to fight me. Do you want to play rough Jason?”
The crowd cheers as Jason takes a small step back.
Jason Quinn: “You bet your ass I want to play rough.”
The crowd cheer as the two men step toward each other.
Al Blizzard: “Then let’s play rough. At Back In Business, it’ll be me, The Perfect Storm, Al Blizzard versus you, The Wolf Blood, Jason Quinn. ”
The crowd cheer a lot louder than before.
Jason Quinn: “And how do you want to play rough?”
Al Blizzard: “Bloody... Fucking… Massacre. No Counts Outs, No DQ, Falls Count Anywhere.”
The crowd go crazy as Jason's smirk is larger than ever but likewise is Blizzard’s.
Jason Quinn: “You’re on hotshot. I’ll see you at Back In Business. But remember, no one is left to save you now.”
The crowd boo at Jason as he forces Sophie and Matthew out of the ring.
Rod Sterling: “It is official, Al Blizzard will go one on one with his own brother Jason Quinn in a Bloody Massacre match.”
The screen fades to black as we see Blizzard standing in the ring, looking triumphant.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith:: "Ladies and gentlemen, the following is your Meltdown XXXI main event, scheduled for one-fall with a twenty minute time limit… Introducing first, weighing in at two hundred and forty pounds… 'the Prodigy'... Mike PARR!!"
A mixed reaction for the Prodigy as he walks out onto the stage. He pays the fans no mind, electing to walk down towards the ring with a stern look of focus on his face…
Rod Sterling: "Here comes the man who will challenge Bryan Baxter for the FWA North American Championship at Back in Business, and Mike Parr has been undefeated in singles action since he returned to the FWA a couple of months ago."
Anzu Kurosawa: "He'll want to continue that head of steam into Mexico City, where Parr will hope to overthrow Baxter to add yet another reign with the North American Championship to his trophy cabinet."
Parr climbs into the ring and warms up in the corner. His music fades out and is replaced by…
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith:: "And his opponent… from Sweetwater, Texas and weighing in at two hundred and forty four pounds… Tommy BEDLAM!!"
The reaction for Tommy is much more overwhelmingly positive as he appears on the stage with Randi at his side.
Rod Sterling: "Whilst Parr looks to usurp Baxter for the North American Title, Tommy Bedlam has his own date in Mexico City with Shawn Summers. The Cowboy will look to claim both the X and Television Championships, both currently held by Der Bastard. This 'challenger vs. challenger' main event will afford a good look at both men before their big opportunities at Back in Business."
Anzu Kurosawa: "Don't forget that we saw them across the ring from one another last week, in a tag team match also involving both of the aforementioned champions. It was Tommy Bedlam who triumphed then whilst partnering with Bryan Baxter, and surely Mike Parr will be looking for some sort of payback following that loss last time out…"
Bedlam climbs into the ring and loosens up in the opposite corner to Parr, who stares at him with almost a sneer on his face. Bedlam's music fades out and, after the official is done with his final checks, we hear the opening bell…
Juan Tothrefor sends Vengador into the turnbuckles with an Irish Whip, following it up by rushing in with a big leaping corner splash to the man in purple. Vengador staggers out of the corner and is scooped up by Juan and then dropped to the mat with a powerslam! Juan points to the top rope, eliciting a pop from the crowd as he begins to ascend the turnbuckles.
FROG SPLASH from Juan!
But Vengador gets his knees up! The Ground Zero winner slowly pulls himself up while Juan tries to recover from the failed high risk maneuver. Vengador strikes first, hitting a superkick to Juan that sends the chubbier man back into the ropes, bouncing right back towards Vengy. He ducks through a big boot from Vengador and then strikes with his own superkick!
Vengador only falls to a knee however and gets right back up as Tothrefor goes for another superkick, but it’s caught by EV! Vengador spins Juan around and then hits a jumping big boot to lay out the fan favorite!
Tothrefor tries to pull himself up, but Vengador is waiting for him as he rushes in with a running knee to the face, sending him right back down to the mat.
”JUSTICIA!” he cries out as he pulls Jaun back up and locks his eyes on Katsu before lifting him up and driving Tothrefor back into the canvas with his Justicia finishing maneuver.
Vengador rolls Juan onto his back, pressing his arms down across the shoulders of the luchadore.
ONE - TWO - THREE!
Winner: El Vengador by pinfall at 5:23.
Vengador sits up to his knees before standing up to a mostly negative reaction from the fans in Mexico. He doesn’t seem to mind however and gladly allows the referee to lift up his arm in victory before he once again diverts his attention to Katsu, who has now stood up from her chair and offers a sarcastic round of applause for the victor.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith:: "Here is your winner… EL VENGADOR!"
Rod Sterling: ”An impressive victory for El Vengador as he fends off the spirited fight from his opponent who had definitely had home field advantage here tonight!”
Anzu Kurosawa: ”I’m not sure how impressed his former coach is however. I sense quite a bit of insincerity in those claps.”
Katsu folds up her chair and turns away from the ring, El Vengador watching his Back in Business opponent closely as she exits. He takes one last look at Juan as he struggles to get back to his feet before he himself steps out of the ring.
The fans in Mexico show their respect for Juan even in defeat as he grabs the ropes and pulls himself back up. He seems pleased by the kind response.
Rod Sterling: ”What a great show of support for Juan Tothrefor here tonight in his home country. Hopefully we will get to see a bit more of him here in the futur-”
El Vengador is shown pausing on the ramp as another hulking beast emerges from the back and there is audible shock from the crowd as the being known as ‘The Great’ Maru stomps out onto the stage. Maru pays no attention to Vengador as he advances towards the ring where Juan Tothrefor becomes aware of his approach, also.
Anzu Kurosawa: ”Oh, this isn’t good. Juan should really think about getting out of there, Rod…”
Rod Sterling: ”Not good indeed! This is ‘The Great’ Maru, and he appeared for the first time in the FWA on Fallout 030 where he took apart three men at once, and I think Juan Tothrefor is in his sights right now!”
Maru reaches the bottom of the ramp and then pulls himself up onto the apron and steps over the top rope into the ring, where Juan comes to meet him. Juan gets a couple of shots away which have little to no effect. Maru is then able to shove Juan back and Juan rolls through and gets to his feet before valiantly charging in again… AND MARU PLANTS HIM ON THE MAT WITH A URANAGE!
The impact sees Juan down on the mat, winded, and Maru effortlessly lifts him into the air and picks him up… OVER SHOULDER REVERSE PILEDRIVER!!! Juan is absolutely spiked on the top of his head and he falls flat down onto his back in the middle of the ring. Maru slowly rises back to his feet and stands over the downed Juan as his music plays again.
Rod Sterling: ”Message sent. We still have no idea what ‘The Great’ Maru wants here in the FWA but he is leaving bodies in his wake wherever he goes!”
The crowd are not happy to see their countryman obliterated in the middle of the ring and Maru looks to leave as soon as he arrived.
Anzu Kurosawa: ”His motives may not be clear, but the results speak for themselves…”
For seven days, Lucy Lupone has been trying to survive in the enchanted forest, eating as much honey as she possibly could and fighting her way through the goblin-infested valleys of the past. Nestled within the roots of a massive oak tree. The tiny cottages were a welcome sight for the weary traveller. As she approached the town, a warm breeze blew over them. Chasing away the chill of the frozen pass and carrying with it the sweet smell of cooking fires.
Inside the mysterious house was tightly packed earth, with planks nailed down for the floor. A writing desk with a squat, burning candle was set up in the corner, and shelves full of books lined the walls. Lucy studied the titles next to her "Tankards and Tempers" to "In the Cards" to "Makings of a Monster" There were even four volumes of short stories that were all entitled "Throne Wars" from the ceiling, a large glass Globe filled with magical light globe glowed softly.
The man himself stood beneath the glass orbs, arms folded and almost disappearing in the creases of his dun-coloured robes.
???: "Welcome; I've been expecting you."
Lucy LuPone: "I've been told you're the one to go to for answers...Who are you?"
???:"I go by many names, but you'll probably know me by the name humanity has given me."
And in one swift and sudden motion, the man removed his hood to reveal an incredibly hairy yet wise face.
???:"BIG FOOT!"
Lucy LuPone: "Oh hey, bigfoot."
Big Foot: "hi"
-Slight awkward pause-
Big Foot:"Would you like some tea? An assortment of treats? Some tepid room temperature water."
Lucy LuPone: "Oh, room temperature, you say? Temping, but no, I've spent the last week travelling the length of this realm to seek out your wisdom. With a band of fearless adventures, rogues, bards, and wizards facing endless battles with undead hordes."
Big Foot:"That sounds positively exciting and would be an exciting read."
Lucy LuPone:"Yes, maybe one day we'll explore such awesome adventures in some kind of written piece or maybe a game of DND, but now is not the time to relive such intense high fantasy adventure. I need your wisdom on how to move forward with my life.
Big foot raised a single eyebrow, almost in bemusement.
Big Foot:"You've travelled such great distances for an answer you had the entire time."
Lucy Lupone: "What do you mean?"
Big Foot: "You had such amazing adventures, ones that would be really cool to read, I'm sure...Slaying dragons and fighting battles...but you couldn't do it on your own. You needed a clam. A family. Someone to have your back. That's why you need your family...and why your brothers need you.
Lucy's eyes widened in stunned silence as the truth of the situation came to her; the revelation came to her like a slap in her face.
Big Foot: "Look at me, alone, I am hunted as a cryptid to put in someone's museum, but if I had two partners with me, I wouldn't be alone, I wouldn't be hunted, and I would be happy.
Lucy looks down, deep in thought, and pinpricks of tears appear in her eyes.
Lucy LuPone: "Yes, of course.......I understand now...Thank you, Mr Big Foot...I know who I am now...and I need to fight for my family. I will join the Lumberjacks and fight for the trio's titles. Thank you. So much for your wisdom, and now I must fly away. FORWARD!"
And with that, Lucy Lupone thrust her fist out and flew out of Big Foot's cottage and into a rainbow.
-----
Smash cut to The Lumberjacks at a local bar.
Doug LuPone: "Oh crap"
Dan LuPone "What's up?"
Doug LuPone: "Did we remember to tell Lucy that the honey in the forest makes you hallucinate weird stuff?"
Dan LuPone: "Probably."
Doug LuPone:"Yeah. It's probably fine."
Meltdown returns from a commercial break and the crowd cheers as we see Al Blizzard standing in the ring, leather jacket on, aviator-style glass on and a mic in his hand.
Rod Sterling: ”Al Blizzard is here on Meltdown and with everything that has been going on lately with him and his brother Jason Quinn, I’m sure he has some things on his mind.”
Al Blizzard: “Shit’s been rough, I lost my match. And more importantly, it was because of my brother, Jason. He asked me for a match at Back in Business and I said no. Why did I say no? Because I don’t want to give him the light of day. I am not giving Jason a platform. If he wants one he has to earn it himself. But on Meltdown Thirty, he took it too far. He crossed a line I never thought existed. And you know what, he pushed me over that line with him. I didn’t believe that all the hate I’d stored over the years would be focused on my brother. But here we are. Jason… it’s time to settle this. Get your ass out here.”
There is a slight pause before Jason Quinn’s theme hits.
Jason walks out with a huge smirk on his face and a mic in his hand. He pauses on the stage and looks at Blizzard.
Jason Quinn: “You know brother. I figured you’d eventually come to your senses. But I realise I had to step over that line. And I will continue to do so until you face me.”
Jason turns to the curtain and shouts in that direction still with a smirk on his face. A few seconds later, two people emerge from the curtain, Sophie, Al’s Girlfriend and his Son Matthew. Blizzard looks relieved that they’re ok, yet angry.
Jason: You see, I couldn’t just simply return them to you could I, that wouldn’t be fun at all.
Jason, Sophie and Matthew make their way down to the ring and Jason forces Sophie and Matthew to get into the ring first. Blizzard attempts to hug Sophie and Matthew but Jason steps up to him
Jason Quinn: “Nuh-uh. Not yet. Not until after you accept my challenge.”
Blizzard reluctantly backs away from them.
Al Blizzard: “Give me my family back. Before I fucking kill you.”
Jason Quinn: “Oh Alex, so naive. You’ll have your chance if you give me what I want. Jason Quinn versus Al Blizzard at Back In Business. If I win, you do as I say and if you win, you get your family back and you’ll never see me again.”
Al Blizzard: “You got your match.”
The crowd cheer whilst Jasons’ smirk grows even larger. Jason turns around, ready to leave the ring but is interrupted.
Al Blizzard: “On one condition.”
A sea of “ooh's” emanate from the crowd and Jason turns back around, still smirking.
Jason Quinn: “What is your condition?”
Al Blizzard: “I spoke to Robert Steel recently and he gave me some good advice. He told me many things but among those things. He made me realise that to fight you, I have to fight you how you want to fight me. Do you want to play rough Jason?”
The crowd cheers as Jason takes a small step back.
Jason Quinn: “You bet your ass I want to play rough.”
The crowd cheer as the two men step toward each other.
Al Blizzard: “Then let’s play rough. At Back In Business, it’ll be me, The Perfect Storm, Al Blizzard versus you, The Wolf Blood, Jason Quinn. ”
The crowd cheer a lot louder than before.
Jason Quinn: “And how do you want to play rough?”
Al Blizzard: “Bloody... Fucking… Massacre. No Counts Outs, No DQ, Falls Count Anywhere.”
The crowd go crazy as Jason's smirk is larger than ever but likewise is Blizzard’s.
Jason Quinn: “You’re on hotshot. I’ll see you at Back In Business. But remember, no one is left to save you now.”
The crowd boo at Jason as he forces Sophie and Matthew out of the ring.
Rod Sterling: “It is official, Al Blizzard will go one on one with his own brother Jason Quinn in a Bloody Massacre match.”
The screen fades to black as we see Blizzard standing in the ring, looking triumphant.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith:: "Ladies and gentlemen, the following is your Meltdown XXXI main event, scheduled for one-fall with a twenty minute time limit… Introducing first, weighing in at two hundred and forty pounds… 'the Prodigy'... Mike PARR!!"
A mixed reaction for the Prodigy as he walks out onto the stage. He pays the fans no mind, electing to walk down towards the ring with a stern look of focus on his face…
Rod Sterling: "Here comes the man who will challenge Bryan Baxter for the FWA North American Championship at Back in Business, and Mike Parr has been undefeated in singles action since he returned to the FWA a couple of months ago."
Anzu Kurosawa: "He'll want to continue that head of steam into Mexico City, where Parr will hope to overthrow Baxter to add yet another reign with the North American Championship to his trophy cabinet."
Parr climbs into the ring and warms up in the corner. His music fades out and is replaced by…
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith:: "And his opponent… from Sweetwater, Texas and weighing in at two hundred and forty four pounds… Tommy BEDLAM!!"
The reaction for Tommy is much more overwhelmingly positive as he appears on the stage with Randi at his side.
Rod Sterling: "Whilst Parr looks to usurp Baxter for the North American Title, Tommy Bedlam has his own date in Mexico City with Shawn Summers. The Cowboy will look to claim both the X and Television Championships, both currently held by Der Bastard. This 'challenger vs. challenger' main event will afford a good look at both men before their big opportunities at Back in Business."
Anzu Kurosawa: "Don't forget that we saw them across the ring from one another last week, in a tag team match also involving both of the aforementioned champions. It was Tommy Bedlam who triumphed then whilst partnering with Bryan Baxter, and surely Mike Parr will be looking for some sort of payback following that loss last time out…"
Bedlam climbs into the ring and loosens up in the opposite corner to Parr, who stares at him with almost a sneer on his face. Bedlam's music fades out and, after the official is done with his final checks, we hear the opening bell…
<< 00:00. >>
The two circle the ring, and it appears that they’re going to bring it together with a test of strength to start things off. Parr offers the hand first and Tommy slowly, hesitantly lists his hand so as to reciprocate…
Rod Sterling: "Parr attempts to unleash a kick into Tommy’s gut… but Bedlam catches his boot!"
Anzu Kurosawa: "The Cowboy saw that sneak attack coming!"
Bedlam wags a finger in Parr’s face, smirking at the underhanded (and failed) tactics, and then yanks him towards him by the caught boot… before wiping him out with a clothesline! Parr is folded up by the move, landing at an ugly angle on the back of his neck. Bedlam hoists him up to his feet and then onto his shoulders, perhaps looking for a running powerslam…
Anzu Kurosawa: "Parr’s a slippery customer, though! He slips out the back and into a half-nelson… half-nelson suplex from the Prodigy!! It’s Tommy’s turn to take a bad bump on the back of the head!"
Rod Sterling: "The Prodigy isn’t finished, he’s grasping at Bedlam’s legs, going for some sort of submission, maybe?"
Anzu Kurosawa: "He’s looking for that inverted sharpshooter! Bad news for Tommy if he gets it locked in… and the Cowboy knows it too! He unloads on Mike Parr with right hands from his grounded position, and then kicks the Prodigy away!"
Separation is caused, but Parr is still on his feet as Bedlam scrambles up himself. The Prodigy charges at Bedlam, trying to clothesline him over the top rope… but Tommy catches him with a flapjack!! Mike Parr is hung up on the top rope! Bedlam takes a few deep breaths, and then looks to follow up, only to find that the Prodigy has rolled under the bottom rope to take a breather of his own. Undeterred, Tommy follows him out…
***
<< 05:13. >>
It’s Parr that has the advantage, with Bedlam against the turnbuckles and the Prodigy standing on the second rope and showering down right hands on him. The crowd counts along, even if they are firmly in Bedlam’s corner. After delivering the tenth and final right hand, Parr hops down from the ropes and drives a shoulder into Tommy’s gut before hoisting him up into a seated position on the top turnbuckle…
Anzu Kurosawa: "Here goes Mike Parr, he’s following Tommy Bedlam up onto the second rope… this could be bad for both men! The Prodigy maybe thinking of a superplex?"
Rod Sterling: "Not right now… Parr is more interested in clubbing into Bedlam with a vicious series of forearm strikes…"
There’s at least a half-dozen of them in quick succession, before he maneuvers Bedlam’s legs so they’re on the other side of the ropes to his own. Then, he applies a front facelock, attempting to wrench Tommy up and over for the superplex…
Rod Sterling: "… but Tommy Bedlam wants none of it! He grips onto the top rope with his free arm, anchoring his weight down!"
After a couple of attempts, Parr gives up on the superplex momentarily in the favour of another forearm strike… but Bedlam blocks it! And then he fires back with a headbutt of his own!! Mike Parr falls from his perch on the second rope, landing on his back and then struggling to shake loose the cobwebs and ascend to his feet. Meanwhile, Bedlam steps up onto the top turnbuckle…
Rod Sterling: "Unfamiliar territory for Tommy Bedlam! The Cowboy doesn’t usually fly!"
Anzu Kurosawa: "He looks unsteady, but waits patiently for Parr to turn and face him… TOP ROPE CLOTHESLINE!! Tommy Bedlam connects!"
The Cowboy is quickly up to his feet, the crowd cheering him on as he drags Parr up and then onto his shoulder…
Rod Sterling: "Running powerslam!! Bedlam went for it early in the match, and now he’s able to connect! He hooks the leg…"
ONE… TWO… TH – NO!
Parr with the shoulder up! Bedlam takes a few moments to compose himself and then goes back to work…
***
<< 09:52. >>
With Parr down, Bedlam stalks him from the corner, building up to a big finish. The Prodigy gets to his feet slowly, unsteady on them as he turns to face Bedlam. The Cowboy kicks him in the gut and applies a front facelock…
Rod Sterling: "Tommy Bedlam going for his patented Bullseye DDT… but reversal from Parr! Northern Lights suplex! With a bridge!"
ONE… TWO… T – NO!
Parr almost catches Bedlam out, but the Cowboy thrusts a shoulder up. Both men are quick to scramble to their feet, with Bedlam first to react and going for a big clothesline… but it’s ducked beneath by Mike Parr, who catches Bedlam in a backslide!
ONE… TWO… THRE – NO!!
Rod Sterling: "So close! But Tommy’s still in this!"
With Tommy up on his knees, Parr is quick to follow up with a spin kick to the gut, and then a kick to the side of the head!"[/b][/color]
Anzu Kurosawa: "But for how long?! Parr piles on the punishment!!"
With Bedlam struggling to remain on his knees, at least ostensibly, Mike Parr throws himself off an adjacent set of ropes, looking for his shining wizard… but Bedlam launches himself to his feet and at Parr like a defensive end, turning the Prodigy inside out with a huge lariat!! The crowd roars, Tommy waiting in the corner again and signalling for his superkick. The Prodigy is slow to rise, turns to face Tommy… and ducks the Buckshot! He collects Bedlam from behind in a reverse facelock…
Rod Sterling: "Mike Parr is going for his rolling cutter! But Tommy Bedlam rotates out of it, inverted DDT!"
Anzu Kurosawa: "No cover attempt from Tommy! He wants to make absolutely sure!"
He collects Parr and drags him up, positioning his head beneath the Prodigy’s arm…
Rod Sterling: "ROUGH RIDE!!"
Anzu Kurosawa: "Tommy hooks the far leg!"
ONE… TWO… THREE!
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: “Here is your winner… TOMMY BEDLAM!!”
The Cowboy gets up to his feet, allowing the official to raise his hand in victory.
Rod Sterling: “A big win tonight for Tommy Bedlam, who moves towards Back in Business with some much-needed momentum ahead of his title challenge against, well…”
The big screen in the arena displays Shawn Summers, a championship belt on each of his shoulders, watching proceedings from his locker room. He offers Bedlam a weak applause.
Rod Sterling: “Against this man.”
Anzu Kurosawa: “Der Basterd may look confident, but tonight’s win, against the man who will challenge for the FWA North American Championship, no less, proves that Summers’ X and Television titles are in serious jeopardy in Mexico City.”
In the ring, Bedlam catches a glimpse of Summers on the big screen. He shakes his head and then climbs out through the ropes. Randi is there to greet him, offering him an embrace and then helping him up the ramp. We fade to commercials.
We cut to the entrance ramp where a figure has appeared, unaccompanied by any entrance music but on the receiving end of a massive pop from the crowd and the sounds of groans from our commentary team.
Rod Sterling: “Oh great, it’s dragonperson.”
Anzu Kurosawa: “I can imagine he has a lot to say tonight, shall we take off for a quick smoke break Rod?”
Rod Sterling: “No Anzu, I think we’d better maintain an allure of decorum and professionalism. Remain in your post.”
Anzu Kurosawa: “Aye-aye.”
dragonperson saunters down the entrance ramp with both hands held outstretched, serpentining from one side of the ramp to the other and slapping hands with the Meltdown faithful in the front row. dragonperson arrives by the ringsteps and begins his long ascent, making sure to balance the giant costume dragon head as it negotiates its way into the ring. The audience showers him with praise and applause when he makes it inside unharmed.
dragonperson motions for a microphone and obliged by Katie-Lynn Goldsmith at ringside, of course our dragon friend almost loses his head bending over to accept the piece of hardware.
dragonperson: “Rawr!”
The audience goes wild, roaring back at dragonperson.
dragonperson: “Rawr, rawr rawr rawr rawr!”
dragonperson paces back and forth, his loving roars which were delivered with such joviality have quickly turned into roars of anger. dragonperson turns to face the entranceway and begins pointing past the curtains.
dragonperson: “Rawr rawr rawr rawr, rawr, rawr! RAWR!”
dragonperson is calling someone out.
Anzu Kurosawa: “Oh good Rod, the vocabulary of our performers has just doubled.”
weaselperson appears to be that someone, and it wants a piece of dragonperson, rushing down to the ring, eyes fixated on its reptilian opposition. weaselperson has a much easier time navigating its way into the ring and immediate stands snout to snout with the allegedly fire-breathing dragon.
A duelling chorus of roaring and barking echoes through the rabid Meltdown crowd and both dragon and weasel people are snapped out of their intense staredown, both turning their heads from side to side and taking in the electricity around them.
But not for long, weaselperson has its eye on the prize, snatching the microphone out of dragonperson’s hand and raising it to its mouth. The audience falls silent in anticipation.
weaselperson: “Bark!”
A loud hollering picks up in the arena but is quietened down at the sight of dragonperson snatching the microphone back from weaselperson.
dragonperson: “Rawr!”
weaselperson steps up to dragonperson, pushing its chest against dragonperson’s and again taking the microphone from it.
weaselperson: “Bark bark bark!”
Not to be outdone, dragonperson steps back and swings its tail mightily, swiping at weaselperson…to no effect. But it is enough to lower weaselperson’s defences and allow dragonperson to snatch the microphone back.
dragonperson: “Rawr rawr rawr!”
Rod Sterling: “Did we die Anzu? Is this hell?”
Anzu Kurosawa: “I cannot imagine what sin we’ve committed to deserve this Rod.”
Much to the chagrin of our announce team, the audience is eating this up. Sitting on the edge of their seat for every word exchanged by these two behemoths. They holler in response to every witty retort, and show their favouritism by barking or roaring in support of their favourite person respectively.
weaselperson meanwhile has snatch the microphone back from dragonperson, but this time instead of dragonperson attempting to steal it back Katie-Lynn Goldsmith has intervene and given it it’s own microphone.
dragonperson: “Rawr, rawr rawr rawr rawr rawr rawr rawr rawr rawr! Rawr! RAWR! Rawr…rawr!”
weaselperson: “BARK! Bark bark bark! Bark, bark bark bark BARK BARK!”
dragonperson: “RRRRRAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWRRRR!!!”
weaselperson: “BBBBBBBBBAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRKKKKKKKK!”
As dragonperson is about to roar in response, weaselperson raises a paw in its face, shutting it up. weaselperson then points to a large Back in Business banner hanging from the rafters.
Silence.
The anticipation is killing the audience, but they’re too invested to dare make noise and interrupt this moment.
weaselperson waits for dragonperson’s response, and receives a nod.
The crowd explodes, even Anzu and Rod are relieved!
Rod Sterling: “I suppose this means we’ll be seeing weaselperson verses dragonperson at Back in Business.”
Anzu Kurosawa: “Which means more of this roar/bark nonsense. At least the match should be sufficiently violent to make up for it.”
Satisfied with the response given, weaselperson turns tail and makes their exit whilst dragonperson continues to roar in the ring as the crowd barks and roars back at them.
Out from behind the curtain, steps a fidgeting Jeremy Best. As he is showered with a chorus of boos and jeers, Best wrings his hands anxiously, breathing deeply, running his palms across his custom-designed gear for this occasion. He waves nervously at the audience. Someone directly in sight of the camera flips him the bird.
Rod Sterling: “There’s a lot of disliked athletes on our roster, Anzu. But Jeremy… Jeremy hits different.”
Anzu Kurosawa: “It’s because he exudes such innocent, oblivious energy, that you start to soften. You start to wonder if this kid isn’t as bad as people say. Then you remember he and his crony kidnapped a man everyone thought was dead, for his own sick reasoning.”
Rod Sterling: “It was mentioned earlier tonight that Jeremy’s supposed tag team partner tonight, the man in a mask Jeremy calls ‘Krash’-”
Anzu Kurosawa: “Who is not Krash, for the record. Just so we’re clear..”
Rod Sterling: “We can’t say that for certain, Anzu. Regardless, Jeremy’s initial partner seemed to be not in the arena. As such, the match has been postponed until Jeremy organized his ‘Plan B.’”
Anzu Kurosawa: “Plan B for Baxter, I would presume.
Jeremy Best pulls out a microphone from his back pocket, gesturing for quiet. As he approaches the ring, the booing and jeering begrudgingly settle down, though there is still a notable murmur of dissension.
Jeremy Best: ”I hope we didn’t keep you all waiting for too long-”
“FUCK YOU JEREMY!”
“FUCK YOU JEREMY!”
“FUCK YOU JEREMY!”
Jeremy Best: ”Wow, you’re really excited for this tag title match, huh?”
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Jeremy Best: ”Well, I’ll let you in on a little secret - So am I! I’ve been looking forward to tonight for months, years even! The night came a little bit earlier than expected, but sometimes you gotta roll with the flow, y’know?”
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Anzu Kurosawa: “His obliviousness is almost impressive.”
Jeremy Best: ”I know, right? But, I’ve come to realize, if there is EVER a time to put this next step forward, it’s tonight. So, allow me to introduce to you, my tag team partner for tonight’s main event…”
Jeremy gestures with gravitas towards the entranceway with enthusiasm, the nerves fading away with his excitement. Bouncing on the balls of his feet, a toothy grin across his features, and a joyous gleam in his eyes, like a kid in a candy store.
Jeremy Best: ”… Krash!”
The crowd collectively rolls their eyes once more as Jeremy’s theme starts up again, groaning in annoyance. From the entranceway, a figure stumbles out…
Anzu Kurosawa: “If it’s the masked git I’m going to shi-”
Rod Sterling: “Hold the phone. Hold the phone, Anzu. That’s… That’s-”
A spotlight shines on the figure, and the figure in the spotlight takes a step black, blinded by the light, before lowering his hands. The audience’s jeering crumbles to a halt in shock, before restarting with a roar - this time a roar of approval, of excitement, of sheer ‘wait, really?’ at the sight of a familiar, familiar mustache.
Rod Sterling: “That’s Krash!”
It most certainly is! Though he’s noticeably paler, gaunt, lost a noticeable bit of weight and seems more dazed than anything… It’s him. In the flesh and blood, as much as that flesh and blood barely looks alive. No mask, no asterisks, no quotation marks - it’s Krash.
Anzu Kurosawa: “He looks a bit worse for wear, but… But you’re right! That’s Krash!”
Rod Sterling: “He’s also not alone…”
As the spotlight fades, Bryan Baxter is revealed to be standing next to Krash, with a firm grip on his upper arm. With all the care and grace you would expect from Baxter, he begins guiding/directing/dragging Krash towards the ring - Towards Jeremy Best. Hands tied, the light in his eyes not entirely there, Krash doesn’t put up much of a resistance, as Baxter pushes him into the ring, climbing in after him.
Anzu Kurosawa: “Kick him in the junk and run, Krash.”
Jeremy Best immediately drags Krash into a deep, deep hug. There is the barest hint of hesitation, a flicker of trepidation, but it’s gone so fast you wouldn’t notice if you weren’t explicitly looking for it. The embrace breaks, and Jeremy throws an arm over Krash’s shoulders, beaming. The light in his eyes flickering, Krash looks somehow more pale, swaying on his feet.
Jeremy Best: ”Krash… Ol’ buddy, ol pal, are you ready for this? We're finally gonna do it. Me and you. The Dream Team, The Friendship Patrol… The Friendship Wrestling Alliance… that’s us! The soon to be Tag Team Champions? Can you believe it?”
Jeremy shoves the microphone right under Krash’s nose, then takes it back before Krash can even utter a word in his excitement. Not that Krash made any motion of speaking. He instead glanced at Bryan Baxter, standing menacingly beside the two. That light behind his eyes is flickering brighter.
Jeremy Best: ”Buddy, you don’t gotta tell me, I know how excited you are! You want this just as badly as I do, maybe even more! After all, what better way to win the Tag Team Championships with your New Best Friend… Then by taking them out of the hands of your Old Best Friend and the guy he replaced you with?”
The question is said so offhandedly Jeremy’s expression doesn't change in the slightest, but Krash whips his head to Jeremy, the shadow of a hurt grimace on his face. Jeremy only turns his head to make eye contact with Krash, which Krash immediately breaks, instead looking at the mat.
Jeremy Best: ”Krash, buddy, we’re going to make history, you and I. Just like I dreamed. Just like you dreamed. We’re going to go down as the greatest team in FWA history! Whadduya say, pal?”
Baxter steps forward, untying the knot around Krash’s hands. Massaging the ropeburn and indents across his wrists, Krash’s pained expression grows as he realizes Jeremy is now holding the mic out to him expectantly.
Rod Sterling: “This is… uncomfortable, Anzu. We don’t even know how much of Krash is still in there. Last time we say him he was borderline comatose.”
Anzu Kurosawa: “I think he’s still a bit out of it, Rod… But I also think there’s a little more life in those eyes this time.”
Krash attempts to hold the microphone, only for it to slip out of his grasp and onto the floor. Undeterred, Jeremy quickly scoops the microphone, dusting it off, and pressing it into Krash’s palm.
Jeremy Best: ”I’m nervous too, Krash. But we can do this. We should do this. As friends should. Don’t you think?”
Hesitant, Krash opens his mouth to answer, glancing between the microphone and Bryan Baxter, when-
Anzu Kurosawa: “Oh! We know that music! Judging by his expression, so does Jeremy!”
A surprisingly decent pop echoes through the arena, while Jeremy's face has fallen into an expression of horror, memories of his unfortunate encounter with a certain green mohawked someone flashing in his mind, as he gazes up the entranceway. Baxter is furious, indignant, while Krash… Is unreadable. There’s a commotion at the entranceway, as a body is thrown through the curtain! A masked body, with a cursive mustache gracing the cover - it’s the other Krash! “Krash”, if you will!
Rod Sterling: “It’s Masked Krash??? I thought Jeremy said he was missing!”
Another person storms out from behind the curtain to a pop - it’s Violet Dreyer! And she’s dragging an iron crowbar behind her!
Anzu Kurosawa: “Violet Dreyer! One of the hottest talents to not be signed with FWA! I hear Ground Zero might have an opening.”
Rod Sterling: “I think this answers the question of where Jeremy’s “Krash” went to…”
Staring daggers at Jeremy Best in the ring, Violet spits in the ground, taking position with her crowbar as “Krash” gets to his knees. She swings for the fences, and clocks “Krash” in the face with the crowbar with a horrendous ‘THWACK!’
Anzu Kurosawa: “HELL YEAH. Violet Dreyer to the rescue!”
Mortified, Jeremy Best hurriedly whispers something in Bryan Baxter’s ear, the in-ring mics picking up him informing Baxter to ‘not let her ruin the moment.’ With a nod, Baxter exits the ring, sliding on his brass knuckles, as he marches towards Dreyer! He’s not afraid of some punk with a crowbar! Dreyer stands ready at the entranceway as he approaches, shifting on her heels!
… Before she suddenly turns tail as Baxter gets close, backing up and sprinting through the entrance curtain!
Rod Sterling: “Well, there was an effort.”
Baxter checks on “Krash”, before moving towards the curtain to make sure she’s gone-
BAM!
He’s rocked with a pair of superkicks out of the curtain! It’s the FWA Tag Team Champions, Chris Peacock and Alyster Black! The crowd roars in approval!
Rod Sterling: “The tag champions with a superkick!”
Anzu Kurosawa: “It was a trap!”
The kicks don’t fall the big man, only stuns him, but FTN isn't done! They grab their FWA Tag Team Championships, and strike him with the belts at same time! Baxter goes down! Black gets an extra few stomps in for good measure, as the crowd cheers!
Rod Sterling: “No backup for this match, Jeremy!”
Jeremy Best is, appropriately, shaken, but visibly reassures himself - after all, he still has his Best Friend by his side. He turns, grabbing Krash by the hand and dragging him to his side, refusing to show fear as Peacock & Black slowly saunter towards the ring. There is no fear, when you’ve got your friends.
Rod Sterling: “I wonder what’s going on behind the mask of Alster Black. This is the first time he’s seen his former tag team partner in months, and here he is, holding hands with someone like Jeremy Best.”
Jeremy Best stands tall, proud, while FTN both stop at ringside, quietly watching. Alyster Black leans over to whisper something in Chris Peacock’s ear, going unheard. Jeremy takes a step forward-
He’s stopped by Krash’s grip on his hand. Krash has not moved from his spot, as he gazes at Alyster Black with a pained expression.
Rod Sterling: “And for that matter, what’s Krash’s mindframe like? Jeremy would’ve been telling Krash that everyone, including Alyster, abandoned him… There has to be some part of him that believes that…”
Anzu Kurosawa: “C’mon, Krash… Break free…”
Jeremy turns to face Krash, his face confident-
BAM!
A superkick! Krash strikes with a superkick to the jaw of Jeremy Best!
Anzu Kurosawa: “YES!”
Jeremy Best goes down to the mat, stunned, staring up at Krash with a confused, torn expression. Shaking, Krash retreats, stumbling towards the ropes, his chest heaving, as he glances from Jeremy, to Alyster, to Chris, to the crowd, then back to Jeremy. Seemingly remembering he has a microphone, Krash finally brings it up, nearly striking himself in the chin as he does so.
Krash: “Stay the FUCK away from me!”
His voice sounds hoarse, raw, as Krash throws the microphone down to Jeremy! He exits the ring, staggering to the ringside barrier. Chris Peacock and Alyster Black are applauding, delighted, and Alyster takes a step forward-
- And Krash takes a step back. Nearly tripping over his heels, he vaults himself over the ringside barrier, into the audience! He staggers up the aisle as the crowd roars, in an uncertain waltz, constantly looking behind him back at those in the ring. He pauses right before an exit, shivering, glancing one last time at Peacock, at Black, and finally, at Best, before he stumbles out of the exit door, vanishing.
At ringside, Alyster Black watched him go, Chris Peacock with a reassuring hand on his shoulder.
And in the ring, Jeremy Best sat, tears welling in his eyes, the dropped microphone only picking up one word.
Jeremy Best: ”… Why?”
Fallout comes to a close of the distraught Jeremy Best, tears rolling down his face as the fans take much delight in the moment they had been waiting for.
Krash was free.
The two circle the ring, and it appears that they’re going to bring it together with a test of strength to start things off. Parr offers the hand first and Tommy slowly, hesitantly lists his hand so as to reciprocate…
Rod Sterling: "Parr attempts to unleash a kick into Tommy’s gut… but Bedlam catches his boot!"
Anzu Kurosawa: "The Cowboy saw that sneak attack coming!"
Bedlam wags a finger in Parr’s face, smirking at the underhanded (and failed) tactics, and then yanks him towards him by the caught boot… before wiping him out with a clothesline! Parr is folded up by the move, landing at an ugly angle on the back of his neck. Bedlam hoists him up to his feet and then onto his shoulders, perhaps looking for a running powerslam…
Anzu Kurosawa: "Parr’s a slippery customer, though! He slips out the back and into a half-nelson… half-nelson suplex from the Prodigy!! It’s Tommy’s turn to take a bad bump on the back of the head!"
Rod Sterling: "The Prodigy isn’t finished, he’s grasping at Bedlam’s legs, going for some sort of submission, maybe?"
Anzu Kurosawa: "He’s looking for that inverted sharpshooter! Bad news for Tommy if he gets it locked in… and the Cowboy knows it too! He unloads on Mike Parr with right hands from his grounded position, and then kicks the Prodigy away!"
Separation is caused, but Parr is still on his feet as Bedlam scrambles up himself. The Prodigy charges at Bedlam, trying to clothesline him over the top rope… but Tommy catches him with a flapjack!! Mike Parr is hung up on the top rope! Bedlam takes a few deep breaths, and then looks to follow up, only to find that the Prodigy has rolled under the bottom rope to take a breather of his own. Undeterred, Tommy follows him out…
***
<< 05:13. >>
It’s Parr that has the advantage, with Bedlam against the turnbuckles and the Prodigy standing on the second rope and showering down right hands on him. The crowd counts along, even if they are firmly in Bedlam’s corner. After delivering the tenth and final right hand, Parr hops down from the ropes and drives a shoulder into Tommy’s gut before hoisting him up into a seated position on the top turnbuckle…
Anzu Kurosawa: "Here goes Mike Parr, he’s following Tommy Bedlam up onto the second rope… this could be bad for both men! The Prodigy maybe thinking of a superplex?"
Rod Sterling: "Not right now… Parr is more interested in clubbing into Bedlam with a vicious series of forearm strikes…"
There’s at least a half-dozen of them in quick succession, before he maneuvers Bedlam’s legs so they’re on the other side of the ropes to his own. Then, he applies a front facelock, attempting to wrench Tommy up and over for the superplex…
Rod Sterling: "… but Tommy Bedlam wants none of it! He grips onto the top rope with his free arm, anchoring his weight down!"
After a couple of attempts, Parr gives up on the superplex momentarily in the favour of another forearm strike… but Bedlam blocks it! And then he fires back with a headbutt of his own!! Mike Parr falls from his perch on the second rope, landing on his back and then struggling to shake loose the cobwebs and ascend to his feet. Meanwhile, Bedlam steps up onto the top turnbuckle…
Rod Sterling: "Unfamiliar territory for Tommy Bedlam! The Cowboy doesn’t usually fly!"
Anzu Kurosawa: "He looks unsteady, but waits patiently for Parr to turn and face him… TOP ROPE CLOTHESLINE!! Tommy Bedlam connects!"
The Cowboy is quickly up to his feet, the crowd cheering him on as he drags Parr up and then onto his shoulder…
Rod Sterling: "Running powerslam!! Bedlam went for it early in the match, and now he’s able to connect! He hooks the leg…"
ONE… TWO… TH – NO!
Parr with the shoulder up! Bedlam takes a few moments to compose himself and then goes back to work…
***
<< 09:52. >>
With Parr down, Bedlam stalks him from the corner, building up to a big finish. The Prodigy gets to his feet slowly, unsteady on them as he turns to face Bedlam. The Cowboy kicks him in the gut and applies a front facelock…
Rod Sterling: "Tommy Bedlam going for his patented Bullseye DDT… but reversal from Parr! Northern Lights suplex! With a bridge!"
ONE… TWO… T – NO!
Parr almost catches Bedlam out, but the Cowboy thrusts a shoulder up. Both men are quick to scramble to their feet, with Bedlam first to react and going for a big clothesline… but it’s ducked beneath by Mike Parr, who catches Bedlam in a backslide!
ONE… TWO… THRE – NO!!
Rod Sterling: "So close! But Tommy’s still in this!"
With Tommy up on his knees, Parr is quick to follow up with a spin kick to the gut, and then a kick to the side of the head!"[/b][/color]
Anzu Kurosawa: "But for how long?! Parr piles on the punishment!!"
With Bedlam struggling to remain on his knees, at least ostensibly, Mike Parr throws himself off an adjacent set of ropes, looking for his shining wizard… but Bedlam launches himself to his feet and at Parr like a defensive end, turning the Prodigy inside out with a huge lariat!! The crowd roars, Tommy waiting in the corner again and signalling for his superkick. The Prodigy is slow to rise, turns to face Tommy… and ducks the Buckshot! He collects Bedlam from behind in a reverse facelock…
Rod Sterling: "Mike Parr is going for his rolling cutter! But Tommy Bedlam rotates out of it, inverted DDT!"
Anzu Kurosawa: "No cover attempt from Tommy! He wants to make absolutely sure!"
He collects Parr and drags him up, positioning his head beneath the Prodigy’s arm…
Rod Sterling: "ROUGH RIDE!!"
Anzu Kurosawa: "Tommy hooks the far leg!"
ONE… TWO… THREE!
Winner: Tommy Bedlam via pinfall at 11:00.
Katie-Lynn Goldsmith: “Here is your winner… TOMMY BEDLAM!!”
The Cowboy gets up to his feet, allowing the official to raise his hand in victory.
Rod Sterling: “A big win tonight for Tommy Bedlam, who moves towards Back in Business with some much-needed momentum ahead of his title challenge against, well…”
The big screen in the arena displays Shawn Summers, a championship belt on each of his shoulders, watching proceedings from his locker room. He offers Bedlam a weak applause.
Rod Sterling: “Against this man.”
Anzu Kurosawa: “Der Basterd may look confident, but tonight’s win, against the man who will challenge for the FWA North American Championship, no less, proves that Summers’ X and Television titles are in serious jeopardy in Mexico City.”
In the ring, Bedlam catches a glimpse of Summers on the big screen. He shakes his head and then climbs out through the ropes. Randi is there to greet him, offering him an embrace and then helping him up the ramp. We fade to commercials.
We cut to the entrance ramp where a figure has appeared, unaccompanied by any entrance music but on the receiving end of a massive pop from the crowd and the sounds of groans from our commentary team.
Rod Sterling: “Oh great, it’s dragonperson.”
Anzu Kurosawa: “I can imagine he has a lot to say tonight, shall we take off for a quick smoke break Rod?”
Rod Sterling: “No Anzu, I think we’d better maintain an allure of decorum and professionalism. Remain in your post.”
Anzu Kurosawa: “Aye-aye.”
dragonperson saunters down the entrance ramp with both hands held outstretched, serpentining from one side of the ramp to the other and slapping hands with the Meltdown faithful in the front row. dragonperson arrives by the ringsteps and begins his long ascent, making sure to balance the giant costume dragon head as it negotiates its way into the ring. The audience showers him with praise and applause when he makes it inside unharmed.
dragonperson motions for a microphone and obliged by Katie-Lynn Goldsmith at ringside, of course our dragon friend almost loses his head bending over to accept the piece of hardware.
dragonperson: “Rawr!”
The audience goes wild, roaring back at dragonperson.
dragonperson: “Rawr, rawr rawr rawr rawr!”
dragonperson paces back and forth, his loving roars which were delivered with such joviality have quickly turned into roars of anger. dragonperson turns to face the entranceway and begins pointing past the curtains.
dragonperson: “Rawr rawr rawr rawr, rawr, rawr! RAWR!”
dragonperson is calling someone out.
Anzu Kurosawa: “Oh good Rod, the vocabulary of our performers has just doubled.”
weaselperson appears to be that someone, and it wants a piece of dragonperson, rushing down to the ring, eyes fixated on its reptilian opposition. weaselperson has a much easier time navigating its way into the ring and immediate stands snout to snout with the allegedly fire-breathing dragon.
A duelling chorus of roaring and barking echoes through the rabid Meltdown crowd and both dragon and weasel people are snapped out of their intense staredown, both turning their heads from side to side and taking in the electricity around them.
But not for long, weaselperson has its eye on the prize, snatching the microphone out of dragonperson’s hand and raising it to its mouth. The audience falls silent in anticipation.
weaselperson: “Bark!”
A loud hollering picks up in the arena but is quietened down at the sight of dragonperson snatching the microphone back from weaselperson.
dragonperson: “Rawr!”
weaselperson steps up to dragonperson, pushing its chest against dragonperson’s and again taking the microphone from it.
weaselperson: “Bark bark bark!”
Not to be outdone, dragonperson steps back and swings its tail mightily, swiping at weaselperson…to no effect. But it is enough to lower weaselperson’s defences and allow dragonperson to snatch the microphone back.
dragonperson: “Rawr rawr rawr!”
Rod Sterling: “Did we die Anzu? Is this hell?”
Anzu Kurosawa: “I cannot imagine what sin we’ve committed to deserve this Rod.”
Much to the chagrin of our announce team, the audience is eating this up. Sitting on the edge of their seat for every word exchanged by these two behemoths. They holler in response to every witty retort, and show their favouritism by barking or roaring in support of their favourite person respectively.
weaselperson meanwhile has snatch the microphone back from dragonperson, but this time instead of dragonperson attempting to steal it back Katie-Lynn Goldsmith has intervene and given it it’s own microphone.
dragonperson: “Rawr, rawr rawr rawr rawr rawr rawr rawr rawr rawr! Rawr! RAWR! Rawr…rawr!”
weaselperson: “BARK! Bark bark bark! Bark, bark bark bark BARK BARK!”
dragonperson: “RRRRRAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWRRRR!!!”
weaselperson: “BBBBBBBBBAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRKKKKKKKK!”
As dragonperson is about to roar in response, weaselperson raises a paw in its face, shutting it up. weaselperson then points to a large Back in Business banner hanging from the rafters.
Silence.
The anticipation is killing the audience, but they’re too invested to dare make noise and interrupt this moment.
weaselperson waits for dragonperson’s response, and receives a nod.
The crowd explodes, even Anzu and Rod are relieved!
Rod Sterling: “I suppose this means we’ll be seeing weaselperson verses dragonperson at Back in Business.”
Anzu Kurosawa: “Which means more of this roar/bark nonsense. At least the match should be sufficiently violent to make up for it.”
Satisfied with the response given, weaselperson turns tail and makes their exit whilst dragonperson continues to roar in the ring as the crowd barks and roars back at them.
Out from behind the curtain, steps a fidgeting Jeremy Best. As he is showered with a chorus of boos and jeers, Best wrings his hands anxiously, breathing deeply, running his palms across his custom-designed gear for this occasion. He waves nervously at the audience. Someone directly in sight of the camera flips him the bird.
Rod Sterling: “There’s a lot of disliked athletes on our roster, Anzu. But Jeremy… Jeremy hits different.”
Anzu Kurosawa: “It’s because he exudes such innocent, oblivious energy, that you start to soften. You start to wonder if this kid isn’t as bad as people say. Then you remember he and his crony kidnapped a man everyone thought was dead, for his own sick reasoning.”
Rod Sterling: “It was mentioned earlier tonight that Jeremy’s supposed tag team partner tonight, the man in a mask Jeremy calls ‘Krash’-”
Anzu Kurosawa: “Who is not Krash, for the record. Just so we’re clear..”
Rod Sterling: “We can’t say that for certain, Anzu. Regardless, Jeremy’s initial partner seemed to be not in the arena. As such, the match has been postponed until Jeremy organized his ‘Plan B.’”
Anzu Kurosawa: “Plan B for Baxter, I would presume.
Jeremy Best pulls out a microphone from his back pocket, gesturing for quiet. As he approaches the ring, the booing and jeering begrudgingly settle down, though there is still a notable murmur of dissension.
Jeremy Best: ”I hope we didn’t keep you all waiting for too long-”
“FUCK YOU JEREMY!”
“FUCK YOU JEREMY!”
“FUCK YOU JEREMY!”
Jeremy Best: ”Wow, you’re really excited for this tag title match, huh?”
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Jeremy Best: ”Well, I’ll let you in on a little secret - So am I! I’ve been looking forward to tonight for months, years even! The night came a little bit earlier than expected, but sometimes you gotta roll with the flow, y’know?”
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Anzu Kurosawa: “His obliviousness is almost impressive.”
Jeremy Best: ”I know, right? But, I’ve come to realize, if there is EVER a time to put this next step forward, it’s tonight. So, allow me to introduce to you, my tag team partner for tonight’s main event…”
Jeremy gestures with gravitas towards the entranceway with enthusiasm, the nerves fading away with his excitement. Bouncing on the balls of his feet, a toothy grin across his features, and a joyous gleam in his eyes, like a kid in a candy store.
Jeremy Best: ”… Krash!”
The crowd collectively rolls their eyes once more as Jeremy’s theme starts up again, groaning in annoyance. From the entranceway, a figure stumbles out…
Anzu Kurosawa: “If it’s the masked git I’m going to shi-”
Rod Sterling: “Hold the phone. Hold the phone, Anzu. That’s… That’s-”
A spotlight shines on the figure, and the figure in the spotlight takes a step black, blinded by the light, before lowering his hands. The audience’s jeering crumbles to a halt in shock, before restarting with a roar - this time a roar of approval, of excitement, of sheer ‘wait, really?’ at the sight of a familiar, familiar mustache.
Rod Sterling: “That’s Krash!”
It most certainly is! Though he’s noticeably paler, gaunt, lost a noticeable bit of weight and seems more dazed than anything… It’s him. In the flesh and blood, as much as that flesh and blood barely looks alive. No mask, no asterisks, no quotation marks - it’s Krash.
Anzu Kurosawa: “He looks a bit worse for wear, but… But you’re right! That’s Krash!”
Rod Sterling: “He’s also not alone…”
As the spotlight fades, Bryan Baxter is revealed to be standing next to Krash, with a firm grip on his upper arm. With all the care and grace you would expect from Baxter, he begins guiding/directing/dragging Krash towards the ring - Towards Jeremy Best. Hands tied, the light in his eyes not entirely there, Krash doesn’t put up much of a resistance, as Baxter pushes him into the ring, climbing in after him.
Anzu Kurosawa: “Kick him in the junk and run, Krash.”
Jeremy Best immediately drags Krash into a deep, deep hug. There is the barest hint of hesitation, a flicker of trepidation, but it’s gone so fast you wouldn’t notice if you weren’t explicitly looking for it. The embrace breaks, and Jeremy throws an arm over Krash’s shoulders, beaming. The light in his eyes flickering, Krash looks somehow more pale, swaying on his feet.
Jeremy Best: ”Krash… Ol’ buddy, ol pal, are you ready for this? We're finally gonna do it. Me and you. The Dream Team, The Friendship Patrol… The Friendship Wrestling Alliance… that’s us! The soon to be Tag Team Champions? Can you believe it?”
Jeremy shoves the microphone right under Krash’s nose, then takes it back before Krash can even utter a word in his excitement. Not that Krash made any motion of speaking. He instead glanced at Bryan Baxter, standing menacingly beside the two. That light behind his eyes is flickering brighter.
Jeremy Best: ”Buddy, you don’t gotta tell me, I know how excited you are! You want this just as badly as I do, maybe even more! After all, what better way to win the Tag Team Championships with your New Best Friend… Then by taking them out of the hands of your Old Best Friend and the guy he replaced you with?”
The question is said so offhandedly Jeremy’s expression doesn't change in the slightest, but Krash whips his head to Jeremy, the shadow of a hurt grimace on his face. Jeremy only turns his head to make eye contact with Krash, which Krash immediately breaks, instead looking at the mat.
Jeremy Best: ”Krash, buddy, we’re going to make history, you and I. Just like I dreamed. Just like you dreamed. We’re going to go down as the greatest team in FWA history! Whadduya say, pal?”
Baxter steps forward, untying the knot around Krash’s hands. Massaging the ropeburn and indents across his wrists, Krash’s pained expression grows as he realizes Jeremy is now holding the mic out to him expectantly.
Rod Sterling: “This is… uncomfortable, Anzu. We don’t even know how much of Krash is still in there. Last time we say him he was borderline comatose.”
Anzu Kurosawa: “I think he’s still a bit out of it, Rod… But I also think there’s a little more life in those eyes this time.”
Krash attempts to hold the microphone, only for it to slip out of his grasp and onto the floor. Undeterred, Jeremy quickly scoops the microphone, dusting it off, and pressing it into Krash’s palm.
Jeremy Best: ”I’m nervous too, Krash. But we can do this. We should do this. As friends should. Don’t you think?”
Hesitant, Krash opens his mouth to answer, glancing between the microphone and Bryan Baxter, when-
Anzu Kurosawa: “Oh! We know that music! Judging by his expression, so does Jeremy!”
A surprisingly decent pop echoes through the arena, while Jeremy's face has fallen into an expression of horror, memories of his unfortunate encounter with a certain green mohawked someone flashing in his mind, as he gazes up the entranceway. Baxter is furious, indignant, while Krash… Is unreadable. There’s a commotion at the entranceway, as a body is thrown through the curtain! A masked body, with a cursive mustache gracing the cover - it’s the other Krash! “Krash”, if you will!
Rod Sterling: “It’s Masked Krash??? I thought Jeremy said he was missing!”
Another person storms out from behind the curtain to a pop - it’s Violet Dreyer! And she’s dragging an iron crowbar behind her!
Anzu Kurosawa: “Violet Dreyer! One of the hottest talents to not be signed with FWA! I hear Ground Zero might have an opening.”
Rod Sterling: “I think this answers the question of where Jeremy’s “Krash” went to…”
Staring daggers at Jeremy Best in the ring, Violet spits in the ground, taking position with her crowbar as “Krash” gets to his knees. She swings for the fences, and clocks “Krash” in the face with the crowbar with a horrendous ‘THWACK!’
Anzu Kurosawa: “HELL YEAH. Violet Dreyer to the rescue!”
Mortified, Jeremy Best hurriedly whispers something in Bryan Baxter’s ear, the in-ring mics picking up him informing Baxter to ‘not let her ruin the moment.’ With a nod, Baxter exits the ring, sliding on his brass knuckles, as he marches towards Dreyer! He’s not afraid of some punk with a crowbar! Dreyer stands ready at the entranceway as he approaches, shifting on her heels!
… Before she suddenly turns tail as Baxter gets close, backing up and sprinting through the entrance curtain!
Rod Sterling: “Well, there was an effort.”
Baxter checks on “Krash”, before moving towards the curtain to make sure she’s gone-
BAM!
He’s rocked with a pair of superkicks out of the curtain! It’s the FWA Tag Team Champions, Chris Peacock and Alyster Black! The crowd roars in approval!
Rod Sterling: “The tag champions with a superkick!”
Anzu Kurosawa: “It was a trap!”
The kicks don’t fall the big man, only stuns him, but FTN isn't done! They grab their FWA Tag Team Championships, and strike him with the belts at same time! Baxter goes down! Black gets an extra few stomps in for good measure, as the crowd cheers!
Rod Sterling: “No backup for this match, Jeremy!”
Jeremy Best is, appropriately, shaken, but visibly reassures himself - after all, he still has his Best Friend by his side. He turns, grabbing Krash by the hand and dragging him to his side, refusing to show fear as Peacock & Black slowly saunter towards the ring. There is no fear, when you’ve got your friends.
Rod Sterling: “I wonder what’s going on behind the mask of Alster Black. This is the first time he’s seen his former tag team partner in months, and here he is, holding hands with someone like Jeremy Best.”
Jeremy Best stands tall, proud, while FTN both stop at ringside, quietly watching. Alyster Black leans over to whisper something in Chris Peacock’s ear, going unheard. Jeremy takes a step forward-
He’s stopped by Krash’s grip on his hand. Krash has not moved from his spot, as he gazes at Alyster Black with a pained expression.
Rod Sterling: “And for that matter, what’s Krash’s mindframe like? Jeremy would’ve been telling Krash that everyone, including Alyster, abandoned him… There has to be some part of him that believes that…”
Anzu Kurosawa: “C’mon, Krash… Break free…”
Jeremy turns to face Krash, his face confident-
BAM!
A superkick! Krash strikes with a superkick to the jaw of Jeremy Best!
Anzu Kurosawa: “YES!”
Jeremy Best goes down to the mat, stunned, staring up at Krash with a confused, torn expression. Shaking, Krash retreats, stumbling towards the ropes, his chest heaving, as he glances from Jeremy, to Alyster, to Chris, to the crowd, then back to Jeremy. Seemingly remembering he has a microphone, Krash finally brings it up, nearly striking himself in the chin as he does so.
Krash: “Stay the FUCK away from me!”
His voice sounds hoarse, raw, as Krash throws the microphone down to Jeremy! He exits the ring, staggering to the ringside barrier. Chris Peacock and Alyster Black are applauding, delighted, and Alyster takes a step forward-
- And Krash takes a step back. Nearly tripping over his heels, he vaults himself over the ringside barrier, into the audience! He staggers up the aisle as the crowd roars, in an uncertain waltz, constantly looking behind him back at those in the ring. He pauses right before an exit, shivering, glancing one last time at Peacock, at Black, and finally, at Best, before he stumbles out of the exit door, vanishing.
At ringside, Alyster Black watched him go, Chris Peacock with a reassuring hand on his shoulder.
And in the ring, Jeremy Best sat, tears welling in his eyes, the dropped microphone only picking up one word.
Jeremy Best: ”… Why?”
Fallout comes to a close of the distraught Jeremy Best, tears rolling down his face as the fans take much delight in the moment they had been waiting for.
Krash was free.
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