The night’s sky was illuminated a shade of orange over the English countryside, and the feed panned down to the panicked scene in the grounds of Manton Manor. The large manor building, a stately home, was ablaze and was surrounded by emergency vehicles. The flashing blue lights of police cars, ambulances and fire engines lit up the burning remains of the centuries-old building.
Zoom out, and a man standing with the grounds holds a microphone. He wears a grey coat and then nods, his cue ready. “Tragedy strikes here at the historic Manton Manor. It was first reported roughly half an hour ago that the roof collapsed into the building, causing an explosion inside. The cause of the explosion is unknown, however several local residents reported seeing a blimp-like craft in the area roughly two hours ago, with one saying it then landed on top of the main house here.”
The reporter pauses as another fire engine barrels past; he waits until the sirens have quietened down. “Whilst there is of course a future investigation into the cause of this terrible accident, the priority now is rescuing any survivors still trapped in the wreckage. It is unknown whether anyone is said to have died in the collapse, but local sources have informed me that the house had been hired for a small private event and some of the attendees are rumoured to be associated with the international professional wrestling company…”
He checks a note in his hand. “The Fantasy Wrestling Association. There are still a lot of questions to be answered, but for now, emergency services are working tirelessly to control the spread of the blaze and perform rescue operations. We will look for further updates, but in the meantime, this is Michael Hunt for BBC News, here at Manor House.”
Just as Mike Hunt is preparing to sign off, raised voices are heard and he turns around, alarmed. The camera zooms back in on the house and some figures are shown running out of it. For BBC News viewers who are familiar with the world of the FWA, they can identify these individuals as Allen Price, Drew Peacock, Rick Vance, Santino Dongarelli and Violet Dreyer. Drew is being helped out of the burning building by both of the Diamond Dogs and Violet drops to her knees and starts coughing her lungs up due to likely smoke inhalation. All are covered in rubble and other debris-like substances.
A few seconds later, a dozen firefighters rush into the building and more shouting can be heard, including a loud “GET THE FUCK OFF OF ME!” from inside the building and some groans of pain. Two of the firemen run back out and remove their helmets, one with a bloodied nose and the other sporting a split lip. Then another four of them follow, carrying one man out. He wears a black mask which covers his face but given the loud Australian protesting, it is clear that it is Alyster Black. Black struggles against the firefighters and is then escorted away by some policemen to allow the firefighters to get back inside and tackle the blaze.
Allen Price screams in despair, dressed in a ridiculous tuxedo which is inexplicably still in immaculate condition. Mike Hunt of BBC News rushes out onto the scene and thrusts his microphone into the distraught and flustered colour commentator. “Excuse me, sir… what happened here? Are you okay? Are there others still trapped inside?”
“IT’S AWFUL!” Price screamed into the microphone, still looking extremely pristine. “We were enjoying a succulent Italian meal and then the ceiling fell down onto us. There was an explosion and I think I even saw Jesus in the flames… I thought that was the end for me.”
“Are there people still inside?”
“What-”
As Price is about to answer the question, raised voices and screaming can be heard… but not from inside the building but from the emergency service personnel outside. An engine revs loudly and the sound of it gets closer…
“AAAAAAAAH!”
The large doors at the front of Manton Manor swing open and Allen Price lowers his arms with a beaming smile on his face. He looks at the guests that have gathered in front of the entry hall up and down, admiring their outfits and the effort that they have made for this grand occasion.
“Welcome! Tonight, you will all play guests to a celebration! A celebration of the achievements of the greatest man in history! I am of course talking about my friend - and yours - the FWA World Champion, Chris Peacock! I am your master of ceremonies for the evening, Mister Allen Price. Please, hold your applause for now.”
It is safe to say that the response was not what Allen Price was expecting, but given he was standing in front of only four people, exactly what he was expecting is anyone’s guess. The four guests were composed of both Diamond Dogs - Rick Vance and Santino Dongarelli - who were accompanied by their dates for the evening; two young women. ‘Slick’ Rick lived up to his moniker in a dapper suit whilst Sonny was far too casual for the occasion in comparison, sporting a blue polyester tracksuit.
“Can we just come in, Allen? It’s pretty cold out here.” Rick said, looking at Sonny’s ‘early 2000’s Sopranos extra’ drip and actually being rather envious of how warm his tag team partner must be. “What’s with all of the extravagance anyway, man? Isn’t it just the five of us and Chris?”
Price beckoned the group to follow him into the large entrance hall of the manor, and the two young women audibly awed at how majestic it was. “There’s no need to be reserved, even when just around friends. As your master of ceremonies, my job is to entertain, excite and THRILL!”
In between marvelling at the architecture and interior design of Manton Manor, the two guests of the Diamond Dogs took time to speak to each other in hushed tones.
“サイラス・トゥルースを騙したバカじゃないの？なぜ私たちはこの愚か者と一緒にここにいるのですか”
“質問しないでください、彼らはただ一緒に食事をするために私たちにお金を払っているのです”
“What’s that now? What are they saying?”
The girls laughing between themselves caused Price to feel slightly paranoid and also upset that he had been left out of some sort of private joke. Both Rick and Sonny D look at each other and shrug.
“I’m not really sure, to be honest.”
“Yeah, don’t worry, Allen. They’re going to be cool tonight, because they might not be getting what they thought at the end of it if they don’t…”
The stern words from Sonny directed at the ladies caused them to stop having their own conversation in Japanese and they then give their full attention back to Allen Price as he continues to escort the guests through the house and eventually into the dining room. A large table almost the length of the entire room was set up to have just six places, with each dining set being a ludicrous distance away from the nearest one to it.
There were a couple of other doors leading out of the room. The first on the west wall was clearly to the kitchen, given the banging together of pots and pans coming from behind it. There was another door on the rear wall to the south, but what hid behind it was a mystery, until Price made sure it was the first thing he pointed out upon entering the dining room with the others. “Chris is just back there, getting ready. You know how he likes to make grand, surprising entrances.”
“Why did you tell us if it is a surprise?”
Allen went to answer and he stumbled on his words, but his embarrassment was saved by a loud thud which seemed to shake the entire building. It caused some of the plates to rattle on the table and the champagne glasses on the sideboard near the door to shake and clink into each other. The guests inside the dining room looked up in alarm, and Allen quickly ran from the room back towards the front entrance to the manor.
As Allen reached the front entrance, a rope ladder fell down in front of his face in the doorway and he looked up to see a figure clad in all black descending. A masked man wearing an uncharacteristic black suit.
“I didn’t think those things weighed anything when they were full. You think they noticed that?” Alyster reached the bottom of the ladder after loudly asking his question and cursed under his breath when he saw Allen waiting for him at the bottom. “Shit. Hey Allen, how are you doing, buddy?”
“What are you doing here, Alyster? You know that he doesn’t want you here.” Price did not have time to receive an answer as his attention turned to Violet Dreyer who landed next to Alyster after climbing down from the ladder. She was not dressed to code, opting for a hoodie/jean combination rather than formal dinner wear. Violet bumped past Price and walked straight into the manor behind him.
“Okay, the zeppelin is fucked, but it’s definitely safe to climb down.” She called out.
“She was definitely not wanted either!!”
“Great…”
Upon hearing a third voice, Allen’s eyes widened and he shook his head in disbelief. Alyster scoffed and looked up to see Krash slowly descending down from the zeppelin, the Moustache Maverick was dressed for the occasion, wearing a suit that mirrored Alyster’s, only it was purple.
“Y-Y-You brought him?”
Alyster did not answer and Krash then planted his feet on the ground and quickly extended his hand to Price, who looked straight into his eyes with a dumbfounded expression on his face. “Thank you for the warm welcome! You look great.”
No answer.
Allen screamed at the top of his lungs and ran away.
“Well, that was fun.”
“That was nothing.”
“It’s going to be that bad?”
“He’s going to hate it.”
“I didn’t want to come in the first place. Maybe I should go…”
“You’re not going anywhere.” Alyster looked ahead into the manor and took his moustachioed friend by the arm, dragging him inside. “Chris is going to get over this one way or the other, and he’s going to do it tonight. Besides, you’ll never snap out of that funk if you just continue to hide away from the world.”
“It’s not a funk…”
“Right, right. Crippling depression. Let’s go.”
Fully aware of the impending disaster - and not the one where the crashed zeppelin causes the roof to collapse later on - Alyster confidently entered the dining room. He knew that Krash and Violet being here was going to annoy Chris Peacock to no end. Hell, his attendance after what happened at Back in Business was going to frustrate his partner.
The fact of the matter was that Chris’s insecurities over Krash were the root cause of any tension between the friends and the true threat to FTN’s survival. So, for Alyster, the importance of resolving those issues could not be understated. Krash was back, but that did not mean that FTN had to end. Alyster knew that, it was just a case of convincing Chris Peacock that was the case. Alyster also knew that was much easier said than done, because Chris Peacock is one stubborn son of a bitch.
With the three additional and unexpected guests, the seats were less spaced out than before, but there seemed to be a clear divide between those already seated. Both Diamond Dogs and their dates were on one of the longer sides of the table, and Krash, Violet and Allen were on the other. Allen in particular was perturbed as the seat he was hoping to take at the end of the table had been unceremoniously swiped by Alyster.
Everyone sat in silence, a silence that permeated for a period of time that felt like it had lasted for aeons. A silence that was broken by the loud-mouthed punk girl.
“Why is is so fucking awkward in here?”
Violet was bored. Bored beyond belief. She didn’t want to attend this dinner party. She didn’t care much for its guest of honour, nor did she care for any of the people in attendance with the exception of one. Two at a stretch. But she still attended anyway in some sort of vain attempt to rehabilitate Krash to life. An idea of Alyster’s that didn’t receive her full backing.
Her outburst was met with laughter from her masked compatriot who was now leaning back in his chair and had put his feet on the table, much to Allen Price’s horror.
“Alyster, please put your feet down! This is an exquisite dinner party that if you insist on crashing you must be on your best behaviour for.”
Alyster ignored Price and instead turned his attention to Violet. “It’s so fuckin’ awkward in here because we’re gatecrashing this shindig.”
“I thought you and Chris had become friends.” Krash asked meekly, looking down at the table in front of him.
Violet rolled her eyes, “Friends is an understatement, they’ve developed an unhealthy parasitic relationship.”
The Diamond Dogs both chortled. They found Violet Dreyer amusing. She in turn found both of them revolting, especially since they were both clearly accompanied by a pair of hired escorts.
“Which one of ‘em’s the parasite?” Rick asked in earnest.
“Isn’t it obvious Rick?”
Violet found it hard to imagine that anything was obvious to Rick.
Alyster chortled, “There ain’t no parasites in this partnership, Violet. Ours is a mutually beneficial tandem that I for one am happy to be a part of.”
“Your partner doesn’t exactly feel the same way at the moment, Alyster.” Allen interjected, locking eyes with the masked man sitting down at the end of the table.
“Don’t you worry a hair on that head of yours, Allen. I’m a people person, I’ll make things right.”
Violet was glad that her eyes were secure in their sockets, she feared that the eye rolling would force them to pop out otherwise.
Beside her sat Krash who had fallen silent and was staring out into the distance. In another daze. She reached out to take him by the hand and bring him back to reality but stopped as the lights suddenly went out.
One of the chandeliers affixed to the ceiling then lit back up and the Diamond Dogs sat up in earnest, knowing what was coming next. Their dates were thoroughly confused and Violet could be heard loudly scoffing. Krash’s shoulders were almost by his ears as he felt a sense of impending doom. Alyster meanwhile sunk down the rest of his glass of wine in anticipation for what was assuredly going to be the grandest of entrances.
A chair scraping across the floor indicated that Allen had clumsily risen from his seat and he had somehow acquired a microphone. “Ladies and gentlemen and wrestling fans of all ages! Please allow me to introduce the man of the moment… he is the ONLY dual champion in the FWA today… you all know him and you all love him - but not as much as I do - he is Chris Peacock!”
To no music, although Price did pathetically sing “He’s the greatest dancer… that there’s ever been!” into the microphone, Chris Peacock jogged backwards out of the rear door in the dining room, wearing a sharp white suit and sunglasses. Chris was clearly living his best life; ignoring the constant pain in his broken ribs. The euphoria was enough to allow him to ignore the agony caused by his tag team partner.
The same tag team partner that he found himself staring at across the table as he grabbed his seat at the other end. “Wha-”
After looking at Alyster in anger and bewilderment, his eyes drifted over to the green mohawk attached to Violet Dreyer’s head. “What the-”
Then he saw him. Him. Whilst Alyster and Violet seemed to derive some enjoyment out of Chris’s party coming crashing down around him, the same could not be said for Krash. Chris locked eyes with the man who he feared more than any other in the world. It was not the typical kind of fear. Chris was not intimidated by Krash, especially with the latter in this state. No, Chris feared what Krash meant. This fucking guy right here was the only person in the world that could take Alyster away from him.
“WHAT THE FUCK?!”
The appetisers were served. Mushroom linguini accompanied by traditional Italian antipasto, sliced cold cuts, olives, bread, artichokes, chillies, arancini and a serving of bruschetta for each dinner guest that was mouth watering to say the least.
“Oh fa!” Alyster beamed as he began to roll the bottom of his mask up. “Drew has outdone himself. This is an entree fit for a trio of World Champions.” Alyster winked at his two moustachioed compatriots, but started with Krash, which Chris Peacock was sure to note and was fuming about inside.
It was true. Drew in the kitchen had done a phenomenal job with the opening course and Alyster was happy to admit it, especially as he found Chris’s brother by far the most tolerable out of his partner’s usual entourage. It was mainly because of how Drew appeared to view Chris in a similar way that he did himself. He loved the guy, but at the same time, one of his favourite things in the world to do was get under Chris’s skin. The linguine slapped, and after all, this was a recipe that he could try back home in his new kitchen.
As Alyster imagined all of the modifications he could make to Drew’s recipe, Chris had barely touched his own plate. He could not decide which of Alyster, Violet or Krash to point the daggers in his eyes at. Quite simply, he did not want any of them there. The others were here to celebrate him, although he highly suspected that both of the Japanese women accompanying Sonny and Rick were there because they were being paid to be.
It pissed Chris off that Alyster was enjoying the food so much. It pissed Chris off that Krash was the only other person at the table who had not eaten anything from his plate. Being present was disrespectful enough; now this guy wasn’t even going to try any of the food?
Allen was enjoying the meal that Drew had prepared almost as much as anyone else. It had been a while since he had eaten at Dazzling Dave’s and tasted Drew’s food. He was so engrossed in his meal that he failed to notice some small pieces of ceiling fall down and land in his wine. He also failed to notice the pieces of ceiling when he took a swig from the same glass.
As everyone began to dig in, Sonny had decided to do something to lighten the mood. Something to cheer his buddy Chris up, who was making no effort to hide how foul of a mood he was in. He stood up from his chair, glass in hand and tapped it with his spoon. The dings grabbed everyone’s attention and hushed the room.
“I think it goes without saying that without Chris Peacock we wouldn’t all be gathered here right now.”
A murmur of agreement from the guest followed that obvious statement. “It is in his honour that we are all here, and it is in honour of his achievements, of which Rick and I are proud to have contributed to.”
Sonny was interrupted by the sound of uncontrollable laughter coming from the other end of the table, specifically from Alyster Black and Violet Dreyer. Undeterred he continued, “It is because of these achievements, of which we are most proud to have helped you achieve that we are enjoying this succulent Italian meal. So with that being said, I think we should all raise our glasses to the man himself.”
Rick and Allen were the first to join Sonny, both springing to their feet with their glasses raised high. After composing himself, Alyster raised his glass but refused to leave his chair. Krash did stand and raise his glass, but couldn’t help spilling a couple of drops on the table due to the tremor in his hand. Violet however refused to partake. The Diamond Dogs’ dates required coaxing from Rick to join everyone else.
Once all the glasses were raised, at least all the glasses that mattered, Sonny finished his toast. “To Chris Peacock, salute.”
“Salute” Alyster, Rick and Allen chanted before downing their drinks. Allen did not notice the ceiling infusion in his drink at this juncture, either. Krash stumbled and followed their lead and the two Diamond Dog’s dates joined in rather half-heartedly.
It was clear that Chris Peacock was furious, giving both Alyster Black and Violet Dreyer death stares until the toast was concluded, at which point Chris actually managed a smile. Of course, there was no better way into his heart than through his ego. Sonny was pleased with his efforts, in spite of those gate-crashers there was still hope that tonight was salvageable, and it was all thanks to the Diamond Dogs.
Not to be outshone by his partner though, Rick immediately sprung back to his feet, glass in hand and bashed it with his own spoon.
“I have something to say too, about our friend Chris.”
Everyone fell silent as Rick stumbled over his own thoughts, desperately trying to find the words that should have come naturally to him. His date turned to Sonny’s date and muttered something under her breath in Japanese. Luckily, Rick was oblivious to the tone of voice she spoke in, otherwise he’d have felt the sharp sting of her judgement.
The silence went on a little longer than it should have, to the point of discomfort. Until Sonny Dongarelli leapt to his partner’s rescue. He turned to Chris, laughing.
“Stunned silent, in absolute awe of your achievements Chris. That’s what Rick is, that’s what we all are!”
“Here here!” Cheered Rick, followed by Allen Price, but they were alone this time.
Chris however was flattered, the smile that permeated over his face during Sonny’s toast had endured through Rick’s attempt and the FWA World Champion was now beaming. Until he turned his attention back to the table, locking eyes with his tag team partner across from him and promptly went back to staring daggers at him.
It seemed that the Diamond Dogs' attempt to cheer up their buddy had ultimately failed. But the pair was blissfully unaware of this, as they began to stir up conversation.
“So yeah, we were in the Cosmic Playground backing up our boy Chris, against those Nephew fucks.” Rick turned to his date and to Violet and Krash across the table from him. “Those Nephews put up a fight but you know, when the Diamond Dogs are sicced on you then you’ve got no hope of surviving.”
“Didn’t you guys lose that match?”
“Wins and losses don’t matter, the point is that we were there for Chris. Where were you guys during that whole fiasco?”
“Fighting Golden Rock, I think.” Krash murmured as early memories of Fallout came flying back to him. He immediately fell silent at the thought of Randy Ramon. In his silence he could almost hear the fire in Chris’s eyes as he too thought of Ramon, and was reminded of what happened at Back in Business.
“That early Nephew stuff was terrible business.”
“But it laid the foundation of something far greater than your Cosmic Playground squad. If not for those Nephews, we wouldn’t be here celebrating today.” Alyster interjected. “We all know what ‘FTN’ stands for, after all…”
Chris scoffed from across the table, “We handled them just fine. That Cosmic Playground squad deserves your respect.”
“Maybe if they’d have gotten the job done we would respect them.”
“If they’d have gotten the job done then Uncle wouldn’t have been around to draft us into his Cibernetico team, and Chris and I wouldn’t have figured out just how insanely good a team we make.”
Krash’s eyes went wide at the mention of Cibernetico. The match that pushed him over the edge and turned fandom into pure obsession. Again, he felt the pulse of Chris’s ire… as he overcame the current FWA World Champion en route to winning the title himself in that match.
Both Alyster and Violet picked up on the sudden downturn in Krash’s mood. Alyster quickly tried to change the subject while Violet focused on calming the very subtly panicking Krash down.
“I mean yeah, we definitely had things down pat by that warehouse. When do you think that’ll get released anyway Chris?”
Peacock furrowed his brow, he didn’t want to reminisce on the good times, he was content with being upset with his masked partner. “Don’t reminisce with me.” He spat.
Alyster smirked under his mask; he was enjoying Chris’s frustration towards him. “Allen, you’re an agent of some sort, can’t you look into the legalities of acquiring that tape and releasing it.”
“Now that’s an idea. Allen Price Productions presents a Thomas Princeton production, the Warehouse 3!” Allen was practically salivating at the prospect, “We can sell it as the night when FTN officially teamed together for the first time.”
Alyster snapped his fingers, “Now that’s an idea that’s sure to draw some dimes!”
Chris gritted his teeth and continued to stare daggers at his FTN partner. Alyster noticed of course and couldn’t help but to poke the bear.
“Come on Chris, are you gonna be sore all night? This is your party! Lighten up and enjoy yourself.”
“It’s hard to feel good when the man who broke my ribs and nearly cost me the World Championship is here breaking balls.”
“Chris!” Alyster threw his hands up in innocence. “That stunt defended our tag team titles.”
“You could have done the save by just hitting Makima!”
“Come on now, we both know I couldn’t do that. She was just too cute.”
“Boys, boys, why are you two at each other’s throats like this? You won all three of your matches at Back in Business, isn’t that what matters? Between the two of you, you beat Cyrus Truth, weaselperson, dayspring/nightfall and Aka Manto.”
“Who the fuck is that last one?”
“Aka Manto?”
“Yeah, who’s that guy?”
“That’s the other tag team from the ladder match you dolt!”
“There was another tag team in the ladder match?”
“Yeah, two Japanese girls. Are you kidding me, did that match mean so little to you that you don’t even know who we fought?”
The Diamond Dogs two dates chirped up in agreement with Chris, both of them nodding their heads before muttering some rather unfortunate words about Alyster under their breath.
“You hurt me, and you don’t even pay attention to who we’re fighting…that’s bullshit.”
“I mean, if we want to talk about bullshit from Back in Business, why the hell did you let Allen cheat for you and not me? I’d have done it. And I would have been out there to kick Ramon’s ass too.”
Chris scoffed and rolled his eyes. He was finished discussing Back in Business with Alyster Black and waved him off. The discussion was over, that much was clear.
Following that exchange, everyone went about finishing off their appetisers and the selection of meats available for sharing on the table. Having already finished, Alyster’s view was drawn to Krash and he hoped that his changing of the subject would have calmed Krash down somewhat. It appeared to have done the trick with Violet’s assistance.
Black noticed that Peacock was finally tucking into the plate of pasta in front of him. Not even someone as stubborn as Chris would allow good food to go to waste, regardless of how angry he was. Despite Alyster’s fondness of annoying his fellow FWA World Tag Team Champion, he did feel a slight swell of relief to see that Chris was sustaining himself. His comfort in Chris’s comfort allowed him another chance to check on Krash’s wellbeing.
To Alyster’s surprise, Krash was reaching forward with his fork towards the pasta. Alyster quickly jumped from his seat and slapped the fork out of Krash’s hand and the clattering sound it made on the floor drew everyone’s attention. Sonny gasped loudly. With all eyes on the Gang Stars, Alyster looked at each face on the table and in particular focused on Chris.
Chris was seething. Breaking his ribs. Abandoning him to help Krash. Crashing this dinner. Bringing Violet and Krash. Mocking his friends. Now he was deeming his brother’s cooking not good enough for Krash?
As the table was being cleared of the appetisers and sharing plates, Chris wondered whether it was time to clear his life of Alyster Black.
It was now time for the main course, a steak dinner as it were. Fillets for every dinner guest, even the ones who weren’t invited.
Even for Krash who didn’t want to be here, let alone want to taste the flesh of a dead cow.
It was an appetising dish, though he did wonder how a steak dinner could be considered part of a succulent Italian meal. He supposed steak was universal, except perhaps in India. Regardless, Drew had outdone himself with the main dish.
Each steak was cooked to perfection, all rare to medium rare depending on the person eating its preference. All except for Allen who insisted on not wanting a single drop of blood in his meat and demanding that it be well done. He was not served a fillet steak like everyone else, instead it looked as if he was served a low grade cut of beef that no one could be sure was actually cut from a real cow. Allen didn’t seem to notice, though people who eat leather hardly do. He also failed to notice the extra sprinkling of ceiling dust that had landed on it from the growing crack in the ceiling above the diners.
Tension was still high and the main course was dug into with only polite conversation. Allen of course was trying to be the centre of attention and lighten the mood. Krash was grateful that at least someone was having a good time and decided to engage him as he was not eating the steak.
“You guys really should have been out there for it, like being there in person, it was magical. Coming out in a big cum truck is just genius.” Allen gushed as he talked about the infamous entrance from Back in Business, still fresh in everyone’s mind. Everyone except for the White Wolf, who at this point barely registered that there even were matches outside his own, let alone watched them. The cum truck was news to him and he couldn’t help but to smile meekly as Allen gave a first hand account of its illustrious debut.
“It certainly sounds like quite an extravagant entrance.”
“Like you wouldn’t believe, and the buzz it generated was astounding. You can’t pay for press that good. You know what I always say Chris?” Allen turned to his client sitting at the head of the table. “All publicity is good publicity.”
“You do say that Allen, but please, we’re trying to eat here. That’s enough about the cum truck.” There was of course a dual purpose for Chris not wanting this to be discussed further. Whilst it made for better dining etiquette not to discuss ejaculate, it was also another fond memory of Alyster he did not wish to be reminded of whilst he was so angry with him.
The Diamond Dogs’ dates were disgusted with Allen regaling them with this tale.
“If I had known we’d have to sit through this then I wouldn’t have come.”
“It’s revolting. What is wrong with you people?”
Rick interjected, wrapping an arm around his date who quickly shoved him away in disgust. “He hasn’t even gotten to the best part darl. Tell ‘em, Allen.”
“Not only did they ride out there with those hoses waving around to imitate their…” Allen quietened down and whispered the next part of his sentence, “cocks.” He chuckled immaturely before continuing at his usual attention demanding volume. “But then they began to spray actual… you know… all over the choir.”
Both of the Diamond Dogs dates pushed their food away in vile horror, the steaks had hardly been touched, but their appetites were now gone. Their dates, the Diamond Dogs themselves, were howling with laughter, slamming their fists down on the table and making absolute fools of themselves. Violet Dreyer was trapped in a daze, trying her best to block out the memories of the opening matches at Back in Business from her mind while Alyster beamed with pride. Chris fought off the smirk trying to form on his face with all of the might that he could.
Krash of course was proud of his friend’s accomplishment, and happy to see him having such a good time. At least until Allen went into detail about his own spraying incident.
“And it got in my hair.” Allen ran his fingers through his impressive mane, then over his handsome moustache. “And it stunk!”
“Riveting.” Krash had reached his limit with this tale. He too pushed his plate away from him. Not that he was going to eat the meat, or had much of an appetite in the first place, but he had reached the same line as the Japanese women. Almost instinctively, Alyster reached over and jabbed Krash’s steak with his knife and hoisted it over onto his own plate.
Chris glared at Alyster once more. It was the second time that Krash had rejected the food that his brother had made for him whilst not even initially expecting to. He saw the look in Violet’s eye as she looked across at Rick, Sonny and Allen. These were his friends, and she was openly using them as a source of derision. As his friends, they were an extension of him. Alyster was sitting there and allowing Violet to mock him.
Alyster’s mannerisms and actions were enough to allow Chris to arrive at the conclusion that he was just there to annoy him and mock him with Krash’s presence. And he’d had enough.
Without even finishing his steak, Chris rose from his seat which attracted everyone’s attention and he threw his napkin down over his plate. Without a word, he left the table. Within a few seconds, he had disappeared behind the door through which he had arrived and slammed it closed behind him. The force of the slam caused a large chunk of the ceiling to fall down and land on the floor behind Alyster, but no one noticed.
Everyone left at the table stared at each other. No one knew what to do or say. Immediately, Allen rose to his feet. “Shall I try announcing him again? He might come back?”
“No,” Alyster said, shaking his head as he too stood up. “I let this go on for long enough. I should have known better than to let him get this upset. Let me go and talk to him.”
As Alyster left to confront Chris, he felt a tight grip on his wrist. He looked down to see Krash holding him in place. “What are you doing?”
“Let me talk to him.” Krash said, quietly.
Alyster looked quizzically at Krash. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“I think it is. I’d hate to be the person around this table that acts like they are the centre of attention, but this is all because of me. I should be the one to talk to him.”
Unable to come up with a better reason for him not to go, Alyster watched as Krash slowly rose to his feet and headed towards the door that Chris had left through. Not for the first time tonight, Alyster anticipated disaster. Again though, it was not because of the imminent roof collapse. He wanted to be in control of the moment that Chris finally confronted his issues with Krash. He knew that it was not going to be pretty.
“Krash?” Alyster called out.
Krash didn’t turn around, but stopped just as he placed his hand on the doorknob.
“Be careful.”
“What could go wrong?”
The roof had collapsed, debris had fallen all over and there was an active blaze roaring. What was left of the ceiling was unstable and large, dangerous chunks were falling around him. But Alyster didn’t care, not about his own safety. In the next room was his best friend, and his other best friend. And he needed to save them.
“KRASH!” He banged his fist impotently against the doors, they did not budge. “CHRISTOPHER!” He threw his shoulder into it, his entire body, everything he had. But the door was blocked, likely by whatever debris had stacked up on the other side.
He prayed that their bodies weren’t a part of it.
“Fuck! Answer me guys! I know you’re both okay!” He slammed his forehead against the door, tears welled up in his eyes. “Come on…” he whispered, “I can’t lose you again Krash, I just got you back.”
He felt a hand on his shoulder, it was Rick Vance. “Come on big guy. We’ve got this.”
Besides Rick was his partner Sonny. Both men were hurt, their suits torn with bloody cuts over their faces and arms. They were in worse shape than Alyster. But they were determined to save their friend.
These guys were alright. Alyster was wrong about them. They were willing to march over hot coals barefoot for Chris. They went into Cosmic Playground for the man. How dare Alyster Black judge them, how dare he think badly about them.
Alyster nodded and the three of them began throwing themselves at the doors. Over and over and over again, until all of their arms were numb, until they were sure that they had popped their shoulders out of their sockets. All while the building was falling around them, all while they felt the temperature rise as the fires roared.
Until finally the door was nudged open ever so slightly, but only by a centimetre. Enough to see that the otherside was completely inaccessible, blocked by stone, tiles, and wood. Smoke began flowing through the crack. All three men stepped back.
“No!” Alyster screamed before throwing himself at the door once more. He was about to do it again if not for the Diamond Dogs pulling him back.
“Wait for help, wait for help. This whole place is falling around us, you’re gonna get killed.”
“They wouldn’t want this man, back off.”
“Fuck…” They actually managed to pull him back. Far back enough that he noticed the kitchen door hanging ajar from its hinge.
“Wait a second.” Alyster pushed both Sonny and Rick aside then rushed over to the kitchen. A wood support from the ceiling dropped down in front of him, almost hitting him in the head. He was lucky. Just as lucky as Drew Peacock was when Alyster dragged him out of the kitchen.
Inside was a burning inferno with black smoke permeating through the air, it was almost blinding. Drew had almost made it to the door, it was the only way Alyster could have hoped to find him inside this death trap. But he was pinned down by a large metal cabinet. Alyster began to lift it up, struggling with the weight.
Both Sonny and Rick had followed him, thankfully. All three of them were able to achieve what one could not. Their combined efforts allowed them to lift the cabinet and toss it aside. It was the Diamond Dogs who then carried Drew out of the inferno, whilst Alyster began looking for another way to save his best friends.
He rummaged through the fire, the smoke blinding him. But he wasn’t afraid, nor concerned for his own safety. “CHRISTOPHER!” He called out again, before another hand clasped his shoulder, followed by another, and then a third.
The firemen dragged the screaming and fighting Alyster out of the collapsing building. He put up a fight, and they called for backup. Chalking his protests up to hysterics. It took a dozen firemen to drag Alyster Black out of the building, and they suffered casualties for their efforts, two broken noses, a dislocated shoulder, and some minor cuts and bruises.
Alyster was left in police custody while those brave men went back inside, promising to save his friends. The masked man would have to wait outside with everyone else. Wait patiently while Krash and Chris Peacock were left in that hellhole to die together.
Everyone else was safe, Allen, Violet, The Diamond Dogs and Drew Peacock. Everyone else was outside, being attended to by paramedics. The manor was ablaze, the blimp that had been parked on the roof had exploded. Alyster was sure this would happen, parking a deathtrap like that anywhere near a burning flame was a recipe for disaster.
He remembered the discussion he’d had with Violet prior to taking Krash out in the zeppelin.
“All it would take is one spark and we’re all dead.”
“For the last time, helium is a non-combustible gas! This fucking balloon will not explode!”
How wrong she was. But Alyster was the bigger man, he wouldn’t rub this in her face. Not now, not ever.
He leaned against the hood of the police car and tried his best to remain calm. All while listening to the murmurs of the rubbernecks watching the incident. He could hear them whispering, he knew what they were saying.
FTN was destined to go up in flames.
The foundation of their relationship would collapse at any moment for any reason.
It would all be Alyster’s fault.
He should have seen this coming, he should have known that he’d ruin everything. That all those nay-sayers and haters were all right. FTN was doomed from the beginning.
Fuck that.
Fuck all of them.
FTN wasn’t doomed, it will thrive. Krash made it to Chris, they talked, everything was okay now. That’s just the effect Krash has on people. Chris would have to know that everything was okay, that Alyster was dedicated to this team, to their cause.
All the masked man had to do now was his part. He had to save his best friend, and the very thing he needed to pull it off was staring him right in the face.
A 30 tonne firefighting machine that was left unattended, with the keys in the ignition and a clear line right into the part of the building where both Krash and Chris were.
Alyster took a deep breath then slipped away as the police were distracted by the spectacle of reporter Mike Hunt on the scene.
Moments later the firetruck went careening into the side of the building.
Chris opened his eyes and for a moment he feared that one of his vivid nightmares had come to life. So many times he had dreamt that his world was going to fall down around him that he was stunned by panic when he saw it unfolding in front of his eyes. The fire burned and crackled high up to what remained of the ceiling, obscuring his view of the night’s sky above. The smoke that he had already inhaled caused him to choke and gag, which only served to increase the strain on his broken ribs.
He looked down at his foot to see that it had narrowly avoided being crushed by a piece of falling debris. Despite his peril, he knew that had his foot been pulverised, he would have had no choice but to surrender his championships, which he could not do. The thought of the tag titles immediately caused him to think about Alyster. Petty squabbles begone, this was real. Chris pulled himself up and made way towards the door back into the dining room where all of his friends were waiting and he hoped that they were all unharmed.
“ALYSTER?” Chris screamed as he moved in on the door. “ALYSTER!”
His path to the door was blocked by a fallen dresser with some rubble on top of it. As Chris scanned the room for another exit point, he heard a faint groaning sound above all of the other noises. He could not explain how, but it was a very Australian groaning sound… and it was coming from the fallen dresser.
Chris panicked and immediately set about removing the chunks of stone from on top of the dresser, straining his ribs and his back as he did so. It hurt, but he needed to get to Alyster. He simply had to save him. He could not depart from this world on that kind of note with his best friend. He slid the last off the rubble from the dresser and then erected it back onto its base and swung open the doors…
“H-h-he-help… me…”
“You?”
Never in Chris Peacock’s life had he been more disappointed and angry. He looked down at Krash, bloodied and cowering, in the dresser with abject disgust. Krash’s hand was limply reaching out towards him and his white face showed that he was not really with it. It was highly likely that he did not know who he was asking for help from. This didn’t matter to Chris. What he saw in front of him was the one person in the world that was getting in the way of the happiness in his life.
Without Krash, Alyster wouldn’t need to say that he was fully committed to Chris, he just would be. If Krash was out of the picture, that insecurity would be gone.
“P-please...”
With both of his hands on the doors of the dresser, Chris contemplated what to do next. He could just close the doors again, tip the furniture back onto its front and even heave some of the debris back on it to sell his story more.
“Oh, Chris did EVERYTHING in his power to save Krash, but he was just too weak because of what Alyster did to him at Back in Business!”
He could even just lie down and feign injury until help arrives and let the battered Krash just succumb to whatever injury he has now.
“How could Chris have helped? He was unconscious!”
All of these scenarios raced through Chris’s mind. Constant reminders of how much easier his life would be if Krash was just gone. That fucking dick Ramon, too. Chris hated that river in Brazil for not doing a good enough job on the both of them.
“Alyster?”
The mention of his partner’s name caused him to snap out of his fantasies. The reality was that Chris knew that he would not be able to live with the guilt of allowing someone to die for real. How would he be able to be around Alyster, knowing that he was responsible for probably the worst thing that would ever happen to him? There’s a lot of things that Chris Peacock was willing to do, or condone, but this was not one of them.
The two moustachioed men looked into each other’s eyes and it was at this moment that Krash realised that it was Chris he was with and not Alyster. He went through the same disappointment that Chris himself did. Neither man wanted to be stuck in this situation with the other, and they both actually wished they were with the same masked idiot that they both call their best friend.
Despite this, Chris reached inside the dresser and pulled Krash out and made sure that he could stand on both of his feet. Krash needed to lean on Chris for a moment but soon found his footing. Chris was not best pleased about being leaned on by a man he did not like. “You hurt?”
“Nothing t-too bad. I’ve had worse.”
The attempt at humour by Krash went down like a lead balloon. Krash opted to sit down against the wall and Chris looked down at him. “Do you know what happened?”
“Ceiling fell in.”
Peacock’s cold tone was evident even to someone that had spent over a year away from true civilization and conversations that were not with a madman. “I was hoping to talk to you-”
“No.” Chris looked down at Krash and shook his head, rage bubbling inside of him. “No. I don’t want to hear a fucking word out of your mouth, okay? You should just consider yourself lucky that I didn’t leave you in that wardrobe. Trust me, my life would be much easier if I did.
“My life would be so much better if the two of you would have just stayed dead. You know how fucked it is that’s what I think? I’m aware of how messed up that sounds, but I’m tired of pretending that it isn’t true. Not that I have it in me to actually leave you here to die, mind you, but I have spent the last few months wishing that you were still gone. Now after Back in Business, I wish Ramon had stayed gone, too. Fuck him and fuck you, Krash.
“I can’t even admit that, either. Alyster knows I don’t like you - I’ve made that very clear - but I can’t actually share how I feel with him. I can’t tell him that I wish you were gone, because that’s not fair on him. I’d have to put him in the position where he’d have no choice but to choose between us… and… and…”
Chris stopped, almost choking on his words. “And no matter how many times he says that this is what we’re doing now, I know… I FUCKING KNOW… that he’d choose you and I’d lose him.
“So I bite my tongue. I suffer… but I know in the back of my mind that slowly but surely you’re going to kill one of the best things that has ever happened to me… and there’s nothing I can do but sit there and take it.”
After a small feeling of relief, Chris fell back against a sideboard along the wall and he looked over at Krash, who was wiping a tear from his eye and snivelling. “What’s wrong with you?”
“I know that it would be easy to tell you that you’re overreacting… but you aren’t. You have every right to be as upset as you are and hey, if it wasn’t for… you know who… you’d have your wish, Chris. I didn’t ask to be brought back.
“The reason I wanted to talk to you is to say that there’s no hard feelings here, at least from my end. You stepped up and was there for Alyster when he needed someone to be. It would have been selfish for me to expect him not to move on. He was the World Champion, and you were there for him when he did it. You got him through Truth, Golden and losing the X Championship, Carnal Contendership… he needed someone and you were there. I know it may not mean a lot coming from me, but I can’t thank you enough for doing that.”
There was a pause in the conversation as Chris ingested what Krash had said. He slowly nodded his head, agreeing with what Krash was saying. He was the one there for Alyster when he needed someone, and Alyster was always on hand to return the favour..
“Thank you. It… means a lot.”
“You’ve been worried and paranoid and you’re probably seeing everything tonight as a bit of a slap in the face. I’m really sorry for not eating any of the food; I was turned off of eating that steak after…the whole…truck thing…and Alyster remembered that I have a mushroom allergy, as I’d apparently forgotten.
“I know that Alyster has said that me being back doesn’t change things between the two of you, and I just want to say that you should believe him. I’ve got no plans on coming back and even if I did, I enjoy what you two are doing too much to interfere. That truck seems like it was something.
“I can see why he likes teaming with you… you seem like the kind of guy who would park a zeppelin on the roof of an old country house as well.”
Krash allowed himself a laugh, and Chris even afforded a small chuckle as well. The stubbornness inside of him hated that Krash had managed to melt through his defences and his anger towards him. He had spent so much time and energy worrying about him, and it really did seem like he actually had nothing to worry about. Chris felt like an idiot because this is what Alyster had been assuring him of all along. Krash had no designs to see FTN’s demise and hearing it from the wolf’s mouth made it much more believable to Chris.
Reaching to his side, Chris pulled open one of the doors on the sideboard and opened it, and he grinned upon seeing that the contents were undamaged. He pulled out a bottle of whiskey and two glasses. “I take it you’d like one?”
“Unless it has any..truck discharge or mushrooms in there.”
Chris snorted and poured the drinks out and then leaned forward to give one to Krash. Both men raised their glasses.
“To Alyster Black.”
“Alyster Black.”
Both servings of whiskey went down the hatches and neither man reacted in any way to it, impressing the other. Chris tossed his glass into the fire and Krash did the same, both smashing loudly on the first thing they hit.
“Shall we get out of here?”
That’s right. Neither of these idiots had actually tried leaving the active fire. The less-injured Chris stood up and then helped Krash up and together they walked towards the door. However before they could even attempt to escape… the sound of screaming and a vehicle accelerating loudly could be heard from outside…
Everything was a blur to Chris Peacock. The walls had just fallen around him, bricks thrown about in every direction. It was a miracle that he wasn’t struck and killed. It was a miracle that he’d survived this whole ordeal. But he was safe, safe in the arms of the man who had just driven a fire truck through a wall to save him.
That was the relationship that he and Alyster had. This was the lengths they were willing to go through for one another.
Alyster dragged Chris out of the rubble, onto the grass outside then immediately went back into the blazing building to retrieve his other moustachioed counterpart. Krash was laid down beside Chris, both men were stunned, breathing fresh air and looking up at the night sky above. The warmth of the fire kept them comfortable in the cold night air.
Alyster collapsed in between them, laying on his back and looking up at that same night sky. All three men remained silent for a brief moment until Alyster raised his fist beside Chris Peacock. The FWA World Champion raised his own and the two partners fist-bumped in solidarity before all three men broke out in laughter.
Why the roof collapsed was anyone’s guess. Why the zeppelin exploded was another confounding mystery. But everyone who mattered had survived with only the most minor of scrapes.
“So…” Alyster broke the silence, “What did you guys talk about?”
“Ah you know…how much we hate the Nephews.”
“Ah, Nephew hate, the greatest bonding tool in the universe.”
“Sure, screw the Nephews.” Krash rolled over, his bones cracking as he did so. He strained as he pulled himself up to his feet and began dusting his purple suit off. “Does this sort of thing happen around you guys often?”
“What do you mean?”
“I think he was talking about how bad a car crash tonight was.”
“Wasn’t Car Krash what your team with Mike Parr was called.”
“No!” Krash spat back, showing some genuine emotion beside pity and empathy for the first time this evening.
“It was the Parr Krash Car Crash actually.”
“No it wasn’t.”
“I seem to recall it was.”
“Yeah, me too buddy.”
“God, you two are annoying. You deserve each other.”
Krash stumbled away toward Violet Dreyer who had just arrived on the scene. She caught him as he limped toward her and helped him stand upright against the firetruck while watching emergency services attend to the inferno.
Alyster and Chris were left relatively alone.
“I’m sorry.” Chris muttered quietly, loud enough for Alyster to hear but still rather quietly. “I was wrong about Krash, and I was insane for feeling jealous. I shouldn’t have let myself get as worked up as I did.”
Alyster nodded his head in agreement, “Yeah. Well, I’m sorry too. For showing up here just to grind your gears, and especially for hurting you at Back in Business. I will never hesitate like that again, you have my word.”
Alyster sat up, cranking his neck from side to side before continuing. “You know, I would have done everything Allen did for you during the main event and more. You didn’t have to fight Cyrus alone.”
“I know bud. I shouldn’t have been so harsh, I shouldn’t have told you off or stopped you from coming out.”
“Awesome. So we’re all cool then?”
“Yeah, ride or die baby.”
“Forever champs.”
Alyster helped Chris to his feet and they soon joined Krash and Violet by the firetruck. They were followed by the Diamond Dogs, then a recovered Drew Peacock and finally Allen Price.
The whole gang had made it. They’d survived.
At least everyone important had. They all watched in horror as the fire had dwindled down to an ember and paramedics wheeled out two body bags. Body bags containing the dates of the Diamond Dogs.
“That’s grim.” Chris muttered with barely a hint of pity in his voice.
“Eh, they don’t matter. None of them do. All that fucking matters is us, FTN. Fuck everyone else.”
“Absolutely. Fuck everyone else.”
