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Burning Down the House…
At the End of Forever
- From LA to Tokyo
As Tommy Bedlam and Chris Crowe made their way through TSA at LAX, their minds were in two very different places. They had found out about this promotional appearance in Tokoyo only 24 hours earlier, and the previous day had been chaos. Tommy had been enjoying some time at home with Randi and Walker while Chris had been settling back into his lifestyle as a successful FWA wrestler in the Badlands Trailer Park.
It quickly became obvious that the male agent who was inspecting Tommy and his luggage wasn’t a wrestling fan. The FWA X Championship had set off the metal detectors, and the agent didn’t understand why a man in a cowboy hat had such a large belt with him. Clearly, he had never seen professional wrestling, nor had he been to Texas.
Tommy’s mind was on the buttons on the guard’s uniform, each of which looked like they were one good sneeze away from flying across the airport and putting someone’s eye out. The rotund man was giving his beige uniform everything that it could handle.
“I’m a professional wrestler. This is my championship belt. I’m going to Tokyo for a promotional appearance. I’m not sure how else I can explain this to you.”
The man gave Tommy a suspicious look as he called for a supervisor.
“Would it help if I wore the belt? Would you be so suspicious if I was wearing it like a belt?”
Tommy reached for the title belt, but the guard pulled it back.
Chris wasn’t having nearly the bad time that Tommy was as he had gone into full-blown man-whore mode with the guard who was checking him. Tommy’s eyes rolled back in his head as he looked across the aisle and saw the woman, who wasn’t much smaller than the man who was holding Tommy up, giggling and laughing, rubbing Chris’ arm with every word.
She motioned for Chris to go on to the plane.
“I can’t really go anywhere without my partner over there. Say, think you could get your buddy to let him go? We really need to get to Tokyo.”
“Anything for you, Showman,” she said with a girlish wink.
She made her way over to Reginald, the guard who was holding Tommy’s X Championship, and whispered something in his ear. He looked like he didn’t believe her, but he finally relented, placed the championship back in Tommy’s luggage, and motioned for him to go on.
“I think she was into me, dude. For real.”
“Chris, she was frisking you. They frisk everybody.”
“Bro, she spent a lot of time patting me down…down there, you know what I mean?”
“Why is that a good thing?! That woman is a Popeye’s biscuit away from 400 pounds!”
“Hey! Big girls need lovin’ too, I got her number.”
“Of fucking course you did.”
“Well excuse me. Not all of us have one person waiting for us at home.”
Chris Crowe and Tommy Bedlam made their way to the coach section of the flight, and were willing to snap a few pictures and sign some autographs along the way. Everyone on the flight wasn’t a wrestling fan, but there were enough of them present that word quickly spread through the section about who was boarding.
They settled in for the 12-hour non-stop flight to Tokyo.
“Why did Rocco set this thing up in Tokyo? We’re not even in Tokyo this week.”
“Huh? Rocco? He didn’t find out about this until I told him. We thought Harry set it up.”
“Dude, Harry doesn’t set anything up. He just goes with me. We figured this was all Rocco.”
An attractive flight attendant walked by and asked the members of Deathswitch if she could get them a drink. Both men ordered a beer and her shapely figure walked the short distance to the back of the plane.
Tommy and Chris had been friends since Tommy had initially joined the FWA. The last couple of months had been a bit stressful, though neither of them wanted to acknowledge it. Tommy had finally found single’s success and had been the X Champion for well over six months. Chris had won the Buddy Bowl, but not with his Deathswitch partner, instead winning it with Randy Ramon. In the same way that Chris was happy for Tommy’s single success, but was still annoyed by his own loss in the North American title match, Tommy was both happy for his friend, but somewhat let down that Deathswitch wasn’t gearing up for a Tag Team Championship match.
There had also been a lot of speculation backstage about some tension brewing between them. There were still no answers about who had attacked Chris Crowe before his match with Bryan Baxter, but one of the dirt sheet “journalists” had tried to stir some speculation that Tommy knew more than he was telling. Chris didn’t believe it, but the rumblings were there. There was also the fact that Tommy had left the party lifestyle that had become so much a part of Deathswitch’s image. He had sworn that he would never turn into an absentee father like Sammy, and Crowe had nothing holding him back from the sex, drugs, and rock and roll that he enjoyed so much.
Despite the rumblings online and the speculation in the locker room, Chris Crowe and Tommy Bedlam were friends. In an industry that doesn’t facilitate a lot of trust, the two men had one another’s backs. Even if he was disappointed that Crowe was getting a shot at tag team gold with someone else, Tommy was thrilled that his friend was back in the company. Most of all, he was happy to be tagging with him against the returning Aka Manto on Fallout in China.Travel arrangements were in place, and after a couple of days in Japan, Chris and Tommy were going to head straight to Hong Kong for the show.
That is if they ever made it out of Japan.
- Meanwhile, in Japan…
Chris was napping after his sixth or seventh drink, but Tommy couldn’t shut his mind off. That had been harder to do as of late. He was thinking about Randi and Walker, and while he had cleaned up a lot of the partying lifestyle, he was still spending less and less time at home. This trip to Japan came near the end of what was supposed to be an extended weekend for the young family. He also found his mind wandering toward his future as a singles competitor. Not only had he put the FWA X Championship on the line in the King of the Deathmatch Tournament, but, if he survived that, he had a date with FWA Rookie of the Year, Xavien Marshall for the gold.
As Tommy’s mind raced, Chris’ dreams were as spastic as one would expect. He was dreaming about winning the Tag Team Championship with Randy Ramon. He was also dreaming about picking up girls at whatever bar he happened to find. At one point, he even had a dream about Vivian, the linebacker-esque TSA agent from LAX.
As the members of Deathswitch soared 30,000 feet above the Pacific Ocean, they had no idea of the storm that was brewing beneath them. No, there was no cyclone forming in the waters, and the tectonic plates were not shifting.
“Our guests should be arriving any moment, now.”
“I didn’t know we were expecting guests.”
“Tommy Bedlam and Chris Crowe. Deathswitch. They’re on their way to Tokyo for their promotional appearance. At least, they think they are.”
“What have you done now?”
“I’m just making things happen. You know they’re facing our Japanese sisters this week. Aka Manto is finally making their return to FWA, and I want to do my part to make sure that things go well.”
“I’m not entirely sure what you’re getting at.”
“Crowe and Bedlam are formidable opponents. I believe in Aka Manto, and I’m more than confident that Aka and Keiko can overcome them, but they’ve been gone for a while. There will be ring rust. So, I’m taking matters into my own hands. Well, our own hands.”
“Our? Who said I was helping?”
“We both know you’re going to be a part of this. Listen, I’ve set up this fake promotional appearance. The Cowboy is starting to let the fame of his title run go to his head. The Showman is a sucker for girls. I plan on using their pride and lust to bring them down. They should be here by this afternoon, and then we will take care of things from there.”
The unnamed female closed her laptop screen and made her way across the room. She pulled out a couple of FWA-branded shirts from the armoire in the corner, tossed one to her friend, and started to change clothes.
“Where are we going?”
“The airport, of course. Nothing will make those two dimwits happier than seeing two excited FWA fangirls drooling over them when they land.”
12 hours after their plane had departed LAX, Deathswitch touched down in Tokyo. Tommy had managed to nap for a couple of hours but was still feeling the jetlag.
As Tommy and Chris stood near the baggage claim waiting for their luggage, they couldn’t help but feel like someone was watching them. They didn’t say much about it, but the two friends continued to give each other looks that signified that they both knew something was off.
“They probably just recognize us. You know wrestling is huge over here,” Crowe said, more so to convince himself than Tommy.
“I don’t know, man. Just feels like somebody’s staring a hole through me.”
After what felt like forever, their suitcases finally came around the large luggage carousel. As they picked up their belongings, they turned around and found the source of the staring. It was two gorgeous young ladies wearing FWA merchandise.
“See? I told you. Just a couple of fans happy to see us. How are you ladies doing?”
Somehow Chris Crowe’s cheesy pickup lines transcended language barriers, and both girls began giggling.
“We are huge fans! Welcome to Tokyo! Can we show you good time?”
Wow. Straight to the point.
“No thanks, ladies. We’re going to get something to eat and get to the hotel.”
“Where you staying? We meet you there.”
Chris looked at Tommy, and Tommy returned his confused look. Neither of them had bothered to book a hotel room. It had been so long since they made their own travel arrangements that they had forgotten the most important one.
“I’m not sure. We’re going to grab some lunch and then figure that out. Give me your numbers, and I’ll let you know.”
Each of the attractive young ladies scribbled their numbers down to give them to Chris, as Deathswitch made their way toward the street to catch a cab. As Tommy threw his hand in the air, a cab slowed down alongside the curb, and an absolutely gorgeous woman, no older than 40, pulled up alongside them and rolled her window down. In almost perfect English, she asked them where they were going.
“Can you just take us somewhere with the best Japanese food around? I want some sushi.”
“I bet they just call it ‘food’ here…”
She assured them that she knew just the place, and they loaded their luggage into the trunk of her cab. It was then that Tommy checked his phone and saw the message from Rocco.
“Something’s up. Call me ASAP. There is no promotional appearance.”
Tommy slid his phone back into his pocket and decided that he would figure it out after lunch.
3. Sushi, Saki, and Stalkers
The cab driver dropped Chris and Tommy off in front of a hibachi-style restaurant and assured them that people often went there right after leaving the airport. Them rolling their suitcases in wouldn’t be a problem at all. Tommy handed her some cash, as he and Chris made their way into the restaurant.
They walked past a wall covered in large kabuki masks and were greeted by a hostess. She quickly took them to a table in the corner, and they took their seats around a large hibachi grill. The other tables were already enthralled by the show, as male chefs were flipping shrimp into the air, causing fire to shoot up from the tabletop grills, and entertaining the guests.
Things took an awkward turn when an attractive young lady stepped out from the back and rolled her cart to the middle of the table where Chris and Tommy were seated. She looked familiar. In fact, she looked entirely too familiar. The voice was a bit different, but both men were sure that she was the aggressive fan from the airport, and they shot a weird look at each other.
Tommy wasn’t sure, but as he did a quick scan around the restaurant, he would’ve sworn that the woman sitting at the sushi bar was her friend. The text from Rocco was starting to make more sense. Something was definitely wrong, and he just hoped that Randi wasn’t aware. Crowe was uneasy, but it wasn’t doing anything to slow down his Saki consumption.
They tried to avoid eye contact with the cook as she quickly whipped food around the table and onto the plates of the patrons. Chris threw some cash on the table when the food was gone, as Deathswitch grabbed their suitcases and rolled toward the door.
“So, do you know where this promotional appearance is supposed to be? Please tell me a whore house, or a strip club, fuck, I’ll even take a nightclub.”
“Some house. I don’t know. You know me, Showman. I hate to travel as much as you do.”
Tommy stuffed a large wad of Skoal into his bottom lip and extended the can toward Chris who quickly accepted the offer.
“Is it me or are all the women on the slim side here in Japan? I’m not complaining, it’s just I can’t get that TSA agent out of my head.”
Tommy let out a big sigh as he shook his head at his partner.
“This sure as hell ain’t Texas, I’ll tell you that.”
Crowe and Tommy headed outside and to their surprise, there was actually somebody waiting for them.
“Showman? Tommy Bedlam? Follow me!”
The excited young Japanese man shouted as Crowe and Bedlam followed suit into a luxurious town car. Just as they were climbing into the car, Chris nodded back toward the door of the hibachi restaurant.
“I swear on everything Tommy, they’re following us. Look at the door.”
Sure enough, the woman who had just prepared their food and her friend were loitering around the front of the restaurant trying not to look obvious.
“Well, maybe they know where the fuck we’re supposed to go, because we sure as shit don’t.”
The chauffeur took off down the busy road as Tommy and Crowe had time to reflect on their journey to Japan thus far.
“Hey, boss man. Where are we going?”
The chauffeur looks up, still excited to be in the car with Deatswitch…
“Yokohama. Almost there.”
“Brother, you could have said Vermont and it would still be all the same to me.”
Deathswitch continued their journey through the backroads. Twists and turns, ups and downs, almost as reflective as both Bedlam and Crowe’s time in FWA. After what felt like an eternity, the chauffeur finally began to turn down streets in civilization.
“Your destination is up ahead, my friends!”
“Do I have time to make a quick phone call?”
“Yes. Make call!”
Tommy dialed Rocco’s number, and Sullivan answered halfway through the first ring.
“KID! Where are you?”
“Somewhere in fucking Japan, Rocco. Listen, we just pulled onto a street, and the guy who is driving us around told us our destination is up ahead. No I don’t know who he is. He was waiting for us outside the restaurant. Listen, I’m on some street called Eien Ni. There’s nothing here but a bunch of houses.”
“Forever.”
“What?”
“Eien Ni is Japanese for ‘forever.’”
“Ok. Thanks for the lesson in Japanese. Anyway, I’m not sure what the deal is, but we’re kinda stuck here. I have no idea how to get back to Tokyo, so if you have any miracle that you can pull out of your ass, we’re going to be at some house on Eien Ni, Forever Street. I gotta go.”
Crowe looked out the window, having heard everything that Tommy had just said.
“Which fucking house is it? They all look the same!”
“Not sure, buddy. But I’m guessing you picked up…”
“On the fact that Rocco has no clue what’s going on? Yea, I got that. Listen man, we’re either being set up by the Yakuza, Russnow is fucking with us, or there was just a breakdown in communication. Either way, you and me are getting out of here as quick as we can. We gotta match to win in Hong Kong.”
Finally, the car pulled off to the side of the road. To the right of the car was a gathering of people, press, and big balloons that read “FWA.”
“Well, I think we’re at the right house.”
“Last house on the street.”
“Yep. Guess we’re supposed to be at the house at the end of Forever.”
4. A Deathtrap for Deathswitch
They were immediately greeted by reporters and photographers. Deathswitch posed for a quick photo before heading into the house. The chauffeur from the car ride was also their guide, a fact he was quite proud of as he ushered them into the house.
The house was quite the scene. It was an old, beat up, creaky-ass house. The floorboards felt like Bedlam and Crowe were doomed to fall through at any second.
“Hey, boss man, you sure this floor is safe? I don’t wanna end up in the fucking basement.”
The chauffeur-turned-guide turned around and smiled at Crowe.
“Floor is creaky because it ninja-proof.”
Crowe and Tommy looked at each other and shared a laugh, their first of the afternoon.
“Only in fucking Japan!”
The guide led them into the back room of the house, where a big table awaited the duo. After signing some autographs along the way, they sat down at the table. The guide gathers everybody’s attention as the press and journalists in the crowd settle down.
“Thank you all for coming here today. Today is a big day. FWA has sent two of their best wrestlers to take pictures and sign autographs. Tommy Bedlam and “The Showman,” Chris Crowe, also better known as Deathswitch!”
The crowd cheered for Bedlam and Crowe as they waved out to the crowd. A long line began to form as Crowe and Bedlam signed autographs, took pictures with fans, and pretended like they actually gave a shit.
The promotional appearance went off without a hitch. Hundreds, if not thousands of people came in and out of the old, creaky-ass house throughout the mid afternoon all the way through the night. Crowe and Tommy help the time pass by chugging the flask that Bedlam brought with him. Soon, nearly six hours have gone by, and the line was finally starting to dwindle down.
Crowe and Bedlam finally have a brief minute to breathe. They look over at each other and shake their heads in unison.
“I wouldn’t wanna do this shit with anybody else, Tommy fuckin’ Bedlam!”
Crowe and Bedlam share a fist bump…
“Deathswitch forever, Showman.”
“Are we too late for autographs?”
Tommy and Chris looked up in unison and were greeted by the same two girls from the airport and the hibachi restaurant.
“You girls following us? Let’s just cut the shit, here. You were at the airport. You were at the restaurant. Shit, I’m pretty sure you cooked my steak,” Chris said as he pointed his finger at the unnamed, unofficial leader of the duo.
“There’s gotta be more than 100 million people in this country, and somehow I’ve seen you two at least three times today. Shit, we’re almost an hour away from Tokyo, and you’re here.”
The two attractive young ladies looked at each other sheepishly, as though they had been caught. The guys from Deathswitch had no idea how the wheels were really turning.
“You right. We have been everywhere. We are just really big fans. I work at restaurant. My friend heard about autograph signing. Airport? We got lucky. We just wanted to see you.”
Soon, the line has vanished, and the room is near empty sans a few reporters who have stuck around, leaving Tommy and Chris with the two stalker fans. Chris was having a hard time sending them away. After all, their story was certainly believable. There had always been stories about rabid fans waiting for their favorite wrestlers, and Deathswitch certainly deserved the recognition.
“Okay. Thank you all for coming. Deathswitch needs their rest now. Very long day.”
“So, what hotel are we staying at?”
“Fuck if I know. Let’s ask the boss man over here.”
The guide, who had embraced his nickname as “Boss Man” quickly turned around, still with the same energy and excitement he had earlier on in the day.
“You two stay here tonight. Nice beds upstairs. Two rooms. One for each of you. Come here, let me get you settled in.”
Crowe and Bedlam shared a look, not knowing what to think about staying the night in the old house. Each man had slept in way worse conditions, but the fact that they were about to sleep in a house over 100 years old, in the middle of Japan, had both men a bit cautious.
“You sure we stay here? Not like a Four Seasons hotel? Hyatt? Shit, even a Best Western?”
The guide shook his head…
“This is where you stay. Long day. Need sleep.”
Tommy looked over at Crowe who just simply nodded his head in agreement.
“The jury has spoken, I suppose.”
“Yeah, I’m beat to shit, Showman. Let’s just crash here, what’s the worst that can happen?”
The answer to that question should have been obvious. The two alleged fans were still loitering around the door, hoping that Chris Crowe would invite them to spend some time with their supposed favorite wrestlers.
Crowe and Bedlam headed to their rooms, getting ready to crash for the night. Bedlam, a family man, had no intentions of getting into any shenanigans. However, if anyone had followed Chris Crowe since his arrival in FWA in 2021, they would know that shenanigans were among his favorite things.
The duo shut off their respective lights, as Bedlam hopped into bed. Everything ached. He didn’t know if it was from the grueling FWA schedule or just age. With the walls being paper-thin, he could easily hear Crowe on the phone.
“Showman, who were you on the phone with?”
“Those two fine ladies from before. They’re game, Tommy! You want one? Or do you mind if I get both?”
Bedlam let out a loud laugh. A late-night booty call is the last thing on his mind right now.
“Have at it, Showman. I’m about to knock out for the night.”
No more than 15 minutes had passed since Crowe hung up the phone. Bedlam was fast asleep, having assured Rocco that everything was fine and the pair would head to the airport tomorrow to fly on to Hong Kong. He touched base with Randi and didn’t let on that anything had been out of place. It was best to let her avoid the stress.
Crowe heard two car doors slam outside. Crowe reached into his gym bag and pulled out two big bottles of Saki. The party was just getting started! The two women let themselves into the house. Crowe didn’t even let them in, as they seemed to just appear at the bottom of the stairs.
“Ladies. Welcome. I’m up here. Come on up. I got a bottle of Saki!”
The two women giggled as they walked up the stairs and straight into Crowe’s room.
“I’m about to scratch another one off the ol’ bucket list,” Crowe said to himself as the two women made themselves at home in Crowe’s room.
The liquor started to flow as the party intensified. Clothes started piling up on the floor near the corner, and Chris couldn’t have been happier. Things changed when Crowe began to lose control of his movements. His arms and legs felt like rubber, and his speech is slurred. The Showman never got too drunk. He had certainly drunk more in a single sitting, but something was different.
Chris didn’t remember much of the rest of the night. If that evening proved to be the completion of a bucket list item, he had no recollection. And things were about to go from bad to worse.
5. Sunrise in the Land of the Rising Sun
The sun began to rise, illuminating the small bathroom where Chris Crowe found himself on the floor. The cold tile pressed against his face. He struggled to open one eye, hoping to find himself in the middle of the bed in between two gorgeous Japanese women. Instead, he found himself tied to the bathroom sink. Both arms are tightly knotted to a pipe underneath the sink. His legs were also bound together.
“TOMMY! WHAT THE FUCK! TOMMY! WAKE THE FUCK UP!”
Crowe began to shout and panic as he tried to untie himself, however, these knots were expertly tied and Crowe couldn’t move an inch!
“They must have fucking ghosted me! Mother fucker! I was looking forward to that one!”
Crowe, in his time of peril, was more pissed about not being awake for a threesome rather than figuring out what exactly happened to him that he ended up tied to the bathroom sink. Tommy finally came barreling down the hallway.
“TOMMY! IN HERE!”
Bedlam, still half-asleep himself, tried to open the door, but the knob wouldn’t even turn.
“Showman! What the fuck happened? You got it locked in there?”
“NO! I DIDN’T LOCK IT! GET ME THE FUCK OUT OF HERE!”
Tommy took a couple of steps back and kicked the door near the knob, popping it open. He couldn’t help but chuckle as he stepped into the bathroom to find his tag team partner and closest friend tied to a copper pipe under a sink. Crowe shook his head as Tommy began to laugh. He untied Crowe from the bathroom sink and helped him to his feet.
“The sad part is that I don’t remember any of it! NOTHING! Tommy, please tell me you heard something?”
Tommy nodded his head…
“I heard everything!”
Tommy tried to hold back his laughter, as that motherfucker was so fast asleep Crowe could have driven a train through his bedroom and Tommy wouldn’t have budged…
“Did you really? Did it sound like we were having fun, at least?”
“I have no fucking clue. I was out like a light.”
Crowe looked over at Tommy as the two began to laugh. Neither man had any idea how the two women were able to tie Crowe to the sink, nor did they know where they even ended up. They could have been downstairs cooking breakfast for all they knew…but the two women were, in fact, not downstairs, nor cooking breakfast. “The Showman” Chris Crowe had been roofied, tied up, and more importantly…he got ghosted….
6. Fucking Ghosts, Huh?
Following their interaction in the wee hours of the morning, Crowe and Tommy were still exhausted. Instead of going back into the bedroom where Crowe did not spend the night, he decided to crash on the floor in Tommy’s room. The dynamic duo are a few days away from their big match against the formidable team of Aka Manto on Fallout. Sleep is their number one priority at the moment, but it was something that would continue to elude Deathswitch…
“Tommy, wake up!”
Crowe was whispering as Tommy woke up for the second time to the sound of Crowe’s voice. He looked down at Crowe who had his finger over his mouth, telling Tommy to be quiet. Crowe pointed in the direction of the door. Creaks could be heard in the hallway- after all this was a ninja-proof house…
“We have company…”
Tommy and Crowe both got up and slowly headed towards the bedroom door. They put their ears up to the door and listened to the very quiet footsteps in the upstairs hallway.
“Grab a weapon. Let’s bash some fucking heads in!”
Crowe and Tommy searched through the room for anything they could get their hands on. Crowe, one to always be prepared, grabbed a pair of nunchucks from his bag. Tommy decided to go a more natural route and ripped the bedpost off of its hinges. The two men, armed with weapons (if you can call them that) quietly walked towards the door. They could hear two sets of feet walking, rummaging through Crowe’s bedroom.
Tommy took the lead as he pointed back at Crowe, and signaled a countdown as they were ready to burst into Crowe’s bedroom, ready to take on whoever was in the room…
“3…2…1…GO!”
Crowe and Tommy barged into the room, yelling at full throttle, only to find the two ladies who ghosted Crowe the night before
Deathswitch charged in at full speed ahead, charging at the women, who were apparently endued with supernatural powers and lept over Bedlam and Crowe. They turned around only for the women to be armed with a full bottle of Saki, each. Crowe and Bedlam charge again, and in unison, the two ghost women SMASHED THE BOTTLES OF SAKI OVER CROWE AND BEDLAM’S HEADS!
“Ah, fuck, Tommy! That shit stings! What the fuck is going on?”
Crowe shouted as he held his head…
“I don’t know, Chris! This is some pretty good Saki. BUT FUCK DOES IT BURN! MY EYES!”
The two recovered quickly enough to drop the ghost women by sweeping their feet from underneath them. The women fell to the ground for a brief second but then decided to use their supernatural powers and stand on the other side of the room. Tommy and Crowe charged at them again, but the women moved out of the way, and both Deathswitch members flew right out of the room and went tumbling down the stairs!
Crowe and Bedlam ended up in the kitchen, where they hoped to find access to knives or some other sort of weapon. However, the kitchen was completely bare sans a plastic fork. The nunchucks and bedpost must have flown somewhere else because neither Crowe nor Tommy had their weapons on them. They head to the bottom of the stairs, the same place where Crowe first laid eyes on these two women a mere ten hours ago- where the women came flying down the stairs, landing flying dives on both Crowe and Tommy!
The ghost women landed right on their feet, and pulled out two more full bottles of Saki! They went to smash them over the heads of Crowe and Tommy once more, but before they could, Deathswitch was ready…AND ROUNDHOUSE KICK THE BOTTLES- EXPLODING THEM IN MID-AIR!
The entire downstairs was drenched in Saki as Crowe and Tommy struggled to figure out their next move. Before they could even communicate, Crowe was speared by both women to the floor! In the exchange, Crowe’s lighter flew out of his pocket, smashing on the ground. The lighter fluid was more than sufficient enough to start a full-blown FUCKING HOUSE FIRE! The wood-panel walls engulfed, the couches engulfed, basically everything in the house was on fire!
“Tommy! You okay?”
Tommy, coughing through the thick black smoke, responds…
“Not really. They got me!”
Crowe searched through the smoke to find Tommy Bedlam, his best and only friend in FWA, tied to the floor, with a trail of Saki going right up toward his crotch. The ghost women had a torch (because they’re supernatural!) and began to creep closer towards the trail of Saki.
“Uhh, Showman. I’m gonna need some FUCKING HELP! FAST, TOO!”
“Tommy, I have a plan, but it’s gonna hurt like hell…”
“I don’t think anything can hurt worse than getting your balls torched, Showman. So get on with it!”
“These floors are supposed to be ninja-proof, right? Well, I think that’s a load of bullshit! I think they’re just old, shitty, creaky-ass floorboards!”
Crowe ran forward, lept on top of the flaming couch and then skied through the air, full speed like a tornado, landing on Tommy! Crowe’s plan works, as the two men fly THROUGH THE FLOOR, and land underneath the house!
“That was a close one!”
“We’re not finished yet, I rigged a stick of dynamite to blow this bitch to the ground, we gotta crawl out of here, NOW!”
Crowe and Tommy looked for any glimmer of light to get to, and then suddenly heard a familiar voice…
“Showman. Tommy. Here. Take my hand!”
The guide who has now been named “BOSS MAN” held out his hand, and Crowe and Tommy grabbed on as he dragged them through to the backyard.
“Cover your ears, Boss Man!”
And not a second later, the entire house EXPLODES!
Crowe looked down at Tommy, who looked back at Crowe, and the two men began to burst out laughing hysterically. They hug Boss Man and thank him for saving their lives.
After about five minutes of grasping what actually just happened, Crowe and Tommy head to their luxury town car, where Boss Man was happily waiting to take them back to the airport, so that they can catch their flight to Hong Kong for Fallout.
“Well, chalk one more up to the good guys.”
“Yep, you can say that again. What a fucking trip.”
“Ghosts, man. Fucking ghosts. Can’t trust them.”
“Nope.”
“Can’t go anywhere with them…”
“Fuck no.”
The two were seated in the car. Boss Man looked into the rearview mirror at both men in the backseat…
“Fucking ghosts, huh?”
Crowe and Tommy shared one more laugh, as their bond was as strong as it had ever been. They’ve endured a lot through the years, but this experience definitely has brought them a lot closer as a team, and a win over Aka Manto at Fallout just might bring them a lot closer to something they’ve strived for since forming…the FWA Tag Team Championship…
7. Flying First Class
Roughly 24 hours had passed since the last time Deathswitch was on a flight. As they boarded their plane at Tokyo International Airport and set out for Hong Kong, both men could already tell the difference. They weren’t stuck in coach, they were in first class. Security had been a breeze, and no one even hassled Tommy about the giant gold belt that was seen on the X-ray machine that scanned his luggage.
A gorgeous flight attendant immediately recognized Chris and Tommy and asked if she could take a picture with them to send to her son. Chris eagerly agreed, and glanced down, noticing that she didn’t have a ring on her finger.
“Of course, we’ll take a picture. Think we can get a couple of drinks, too?”
Tommy shot his best friend a glare.
“We’ll both have water.”
They smiled for the selfie with the flight attendant who went toward the back of the plane to get Deathswitch their waters.
“Sorry buddy. The last time you saw an attractive woman and started drinking, I almost got my nuts set on fire. We’re having water, and you’re not talking to anybody but me for the rest of the flight.”
The waters were set in front of Chris and Tommy as both men started scrolling through their phones.
“Hey, remember yesterday when I was griping at Rocco for knowing Japanese?”
“Yea. He knows a ton of useless shit, doesn’t he?”
“He does. But I was texting with him earlier about you being tied up in the bathroom and all that shit. He thinks Aka Manto may have been behind it.”
“What? Those girls were definitely not pro wrestlers. I know I was pretty fucked up, but I know what Aka Manto looks like.”
“No, it wasn’t them. But check this out.”
Tommy handed Chris his phone, and “The Showman” started to read out loud.
“Aka Manto, also known as The Red Cape, is a malicious spirit according to Japanese Urban legend. Aka Manto haunts….PUBLIC BATHROOMS?! What the fuck? I got tied up by a fucking bathroom ghost?!”
“It sure looks like it. Don’t even think about trying to join the mile-high club, OK? We’ve got about six hours until we land in Hong Kong. Drink your water, and sit right here.”
