Two of a Kind - Royal Flush Wrestling (C-Verse)

[Scapino1974]

Saturday of Week 3, February 2022

 

“So Mark just said we should wait here for them?” Abigail asked, stepping a bit closer to me for warmth.

 

I nodded and looked around. Mark had been vague in the details about what we’d be doing for Grace’s birthday party. The only thing he had told us to do was meet them at a certain corner in Minneapolis at a certain time, namely 8:00 PM. I don’t think he really scouted the area that well. It was a little sketchy, and it was snowing. Not a great combo. Thankfully, Abigail, Cassidy, and I were able to find a street light to stand under and the weather seemed to be keeping most people off the streets. Maybe it should have done the same for us.

 

I glanced at my watch. Not surprisingly, it was 8:10 and we hadn’t seen a hint of Mark or his big surprise. Maybe we should call it a night. Maybe we should.

 

“Hey, check that out!” Cassidy said with a laugh.

 

I looked where he was pointing and my jaw dropped open. A massive Hummer crept down the street, but then I realized what I was actually seeing. Not a real Humvee, but a large limo bus shaped like one. It rolled up next to us and then someone popped up out of the roof.

 

“Hey, party people!” Jack Pryde shouted. “Get on the bus, y’all! It’s time to get crazy!”

 

He let out a war whoop that echoed off the buildings. Abigail laughed. I couldn’t help but smile.

 

The limo’s door popped open and Mark slid out. “Welcome to the celebration, kids! Transportation courtesy of the Franchise.”

 

“That’s us!” Jack yelled.

 

Mark chuckled. “Sorry about that. We got a head start on all of you. So let’s get going!”

 

Cassidy didn’t need any more encouragement. With a whoop of his own, he ran across the pavement and clambered into the limo. I helped Abigail step down onto the snow-slicked street and boosted her up into the limo.

 

Mark grabbed me by the shoulder, then offered his hand to me. “Thanks for bringing them up, man. Grace really wanted you guys to be with us tonight.”

 

I shook Mark’s hand and he then helped me into the limo. Not that I needed it, but I appreciated the gesture.

 

Much to my surprise, there was already a small crowd crammed into the limo and I recognized exactly two of them, Jack and Grace. I suspected the rest were Mark and Grace’s friends from the U. Not to be too judgmental, but they all looked like they came from the same mold as Mark, beefy and thick-skulled.

 

“Ace!” Grace tumbled out of her seat and crawled over three other people. “You’re here!”

 

“I’m here!” I winced at her breath. A head start indeed.

 

She pressed a bottle of tequila into my hands. “You gotta try this! Where’s the salt? Give ’im the lime!”

 

Mark’s friends handed off the salt and lime and I took a quick swig straight from the bottle. The cheap tequila burned down my throat and I coughed. Everyone cheered and slapped me on the shoulders.

 

“This is going to be so great!” Grace shouted, even though she was inches from my face. “Let’s go!”

 

The driver probably heard her through the dividing wall, because with a rumble, the limo lurched forward and carried us into the night.

 

***

 

I think we visited three different bars in the course of four hours. After that point, my basic math skills took a nosedive into a pleasant haze. Somewhere along the way, we picked up some random women, much to the delight of Mark and Grace’s friends, and we finally wound up at a dance club. I did my best out on the floor, but the alcohol did not do any wonders for my dexterity or dancing abilities. At least, I don’t think it did. I vaguely remember dancing with Abigail. Then Grace for a while. And then Mark and Jack for some reason that seemed really compelling at the time.

 

After a while, though, I stumbled over to a corner table and watched as the rest of the partygoers did their best to impress each other. Abigail tried to coax me out onto the floor again at one point, but I tapped out. She wound up dancing with her cousin and Jack.

 

Finally, Grace wound up next to me as well. She was pretty far gone, stumbling and slurring her words.

 

“There you are!” she shouted. “Why aren’t you dancin’?”

 

“Too tired,” I replied. “Might sleep here.”

 

“No sleepin’!” She whacked me with a limp hand then giggled. “Not here, anyway.”

 

I groaned. “Grace, I don’t know how I’m getting home tonight. We’re all too wasted to drive.”

 

Again, she swatted at me. “I got you, fam. You’ll stay at my place tonight.”

 

“Your roomie won’t mind?”

 

Grace made a farting sound and said, “She’s gone for the weekend. Won’t know at all.”

 

“And you’ve got room for Cassidy and Abigail and me?”

 

“Oh yeah.” She looked at the dance floor and an odd look flickered across her face. “That should be fine. So long as you two don’t…”

 

I snorted. “With Cassidy in the room? Like that’s gonna happen.”

 

We fell silent for a little while, then Grace rolled over to look at me with big doe eyes.

 

“Ace, am I a good wrestler?”

 

“Are you kidding? You’re the best. Look out Alicia Strong, you gotta diamond wanting to kill ya!” I laughed at my play on words.

 

“I’m serious! Is…is the only reason you keep letting me win because you’re my friend? Or do I really deserve the title?”

 

I gaped at her. “You totally deserve it. Yeah, we’ve got some great women’s wrestlers on the roster…” I blinked a few times as my brain tried to catch up with my words. “…but you’re better’n all of ’em. ’At’s why you got the title still.”

 

Grace slumped in her chair. “Farrah Hesketh doesn’t think I’m any good.”

 

“That’s nuts! Then why’d she hire you?”

 

“Dunno. But she has me curtain-jerkin’. You didn’t even get to see my last two matches, Ace. They were good ones.”

 

“I bet they were.” It still bugged me that they hadn’t broadcast those matches. I had really wanted to see them!

 

“You’re a good friend, Ace,” she whispered. “Better’n I deserve.”

 

“What? That’s stupid. You’re being stupid.”

 

“Am not. You’re so good, and so nice, and so…so…” She had scooted her chair closer to me and leaned in close.

 

I stared at her, unsure of what I should do. But then she sagged forward and came to rest on my chest, gently snoring.

 

I froze. Now what? This was awkward, but I wasn’t sure what I could do about it. Wake her up? She clearly was done. But we couldn’t keep sitting like that. She could fall over and hurt herself. So I gently repositioned her, turning her away from my chest. As I did, she grumbled and snuggled into my shoulder, throwing an arm across my chest.

 

Oh, this was better! Hopefully no one would.

 

“Ace? What are you doing?” Jack Pryde came over from the dance floor, a puzzled look on her face.

 

“Uh…I think Grace might be done for the night.”

 

He hooted. “I’ll say. Hey, Latrell! Get over here!”

 

No. No no no no no no…

 

Sure enough, Mark wandered over. He stopped short when he saw us, his face twisting into a brief frown. Then he guffawed and pulled out his phone to snap a picture.

 

“Oh, come on, man,” I groaned.

 

He waved my words away. “Gotta document, bro. If she forgets, I want to be able to needle her a little. Did she think you were me?”

 

That was as good of an explanation as anything. “Uh, sure.”

 

“Figures. Well, I think this party’s done. When the birthday girl is unconscious, best thing to do is get her home, right?”

 

The two of them helped Grace to her feet. She woke up for a brief second, just long enough to throw her arms around Jack’s neck. He laughed and passed her off to Mark. He whistled and motioned for the partygoers to head for the exit.

 

Abigail came up to me, giggling. “Is Grace okay?”

 

She had seen that? I felt a bit of relief. “I think so. She just needs to sleep it off.”

 

“Me too.” Her hands roamed over my chest. “Where we gonna do that?”

 

“Grace’s place.”

 

“Oh.” Her smile disappeared, then she shrugged. “Works for—”

 

Then she vomited on my shoes. All in all, a great way to cap off the night.

[Blake Trask]

ah yeah mark and getting pictures of grace. that's gonna end well.

[ReapeR]

Just spent the day binge reading this. Very well done. I'm pretty sure in some places my wife was cutting onions, for no apparent reason.

 

As the belt boy here, curious what you are using in game for the titles? Just me being me.

 

Keep this up, I'll keep reading.

 

R

[Scapino1974]

Just spent the day binge reading this. Very well done. I'm pretty sure in some places my wife was cutting onions, for no apparent reason.

 

Sorry about the onions.

 

As the belt boy here, curious what you are using in game for the titles? Just me being me.

 

I hate to say this, but I can't seem to find the image files in the game directory to share the images. I will say that they're nothing special (just generic belt pictures that came with the game). Sorry!

[Scapino1974]

Sunday of Week 4, February 2022

 

Can a person be hungover for a week? I knew that it technically wasn’t possible, but it felt like a weird pall was pulled over my brain for the rest of the week after I got home.

 

I don’t know how much Grace remembered. Or Abigail for that matter. When we woke up in Grace’s apartment, we were all pretty disoriented. Abigail and I had wound up sleeping on the couch together, our limbs all tangled. Cassidy was crashed in a chair and snored through most of the morning. Once Grace appeared, we went out for a breakfast that none of us really ate. And then the Rochester contingent made the trip back south.

 

Since then, I hadn’t heard much from anyone. It seemed like all of us were keeping our heads down and making it through as best as we could. For me, that meant gathering up all the receipts and seeing how we did.

 

When I saw the bottom line, I was mildly surprised. We had made a little over a thousand dollars, bringing our warchest to $74,184. We had made about $500 in ticket sales, although our broadcast revenue went down, as did our sponsorship. Much to my surprise, our worker costs went down by $1,300, which didn’t feel quite right, but I wasn’t going to argue.

 

I also made two more difficult decisions. First of all, I moved All In to Thursday nights. That seemed to be one of the only nights where none of the other promotions were doing shows or events. Hopefully that meant we wouldn’t lose anyone to RIPW or QAW or anything like that.

 

And I also made the heavy decision to let Zippy and Garry go. As much fun as they were, the comedy really never gelled for us and it felt wrong to keep them around.

[Scapino1974]

From RFW.com...

 

Check out some of the exciting matches you’ll see this month on All In!

 

• Allie Perks takes on Selina Svelte
  
• In a six-way match, Papa Swoll vs. James Diaz vs. Cassidy Blaine vs. Original Sinner vs. Quentin Queen vs. The Masked Mauler VII
  
• Joy Rider faces off against Modesty Pador
  
• Minnesota Awesome dukes it out with The Scofield Index
  
• Tag team champs the Silver Bullet defend the RFW Tag Team titles against the Franchise
  
• RFW Women’s Champion Grace “Diamond” Kil takes on Sabrina Wells for the title
  
• RFW Champion Fro Sure faces Jay Silver for the title
  

 

Predictions, whatever...

[Herrbear]

Allie Perks takes on Selina Svelte

In a six-way match, Papa Swoll vs. James Diaz vs. Cassidy Blaine vs. Original Sinner vs. Quentin Queen vs. The Masked Mauler VII

Joy Rider faces off against Modesty Pador

Minnesota Awesome dukes it out with The Scofield Index

Tag team champs the Silver Bullet defend the RFW Tag Team titles against the Franchise

RFW Women’s Champion Grace “Diamond” Kil takes on Sabrina Wells for the title

RFW Champion Fro Sure faces Jay Silver for the title

[eayragt]

month on All In!

Allie Perks takes on Selina Svelte

In a six-way match, Papa Swoll vs. James Diaz vs. Cassidy Blaine vs. Original Sinner vs. Quentin Queen vs. The Masked Mauler VII

Joy Rider faces off against Modesty Pador

Minnesota Awesome dukes it out with The Scofield Index

Tag team champs the Silver Bullet defend the RFW Tag Team titles against the Franchise

RFW Women’s Champion Grace “Diamond” Kil takes on Sabrina Wells for the title

RFW Champion Fro Sure faces Jay Silver for the title

 

A couple of upsets to build challengers, but no surprises in the big matches.

[Scapino1974]

RFW All In

Thursday of Week 2, March 2022

Held at the Civic Center in Rochester, MN (Mid West Region)

Broadcast on WrestleWorld (22,231 viewers)

380 in attendance

 

I stopped short outside of the locker room. Tucked into a nearby corner, probably thinking they were completely out of sight, were James Diaz and Allie Perks, passionately making out. My mind locked up and I quickly looked away. How many couples did that make in RFW now? At least four or five by my count. Grace and Mark. Abigail and me. Selina and Quentin. I had heard rumors that Ruby Reece and Jay Silver had hooked up after a show recently. And now James and Allie? Probably that’s what I should have expected, hiring nothing but younger wrestlers.

 

I quietly slipped past them, hoping that they wouldn’t spot me. I think they were too distracted by each other to notice.

 

Once inside the locker room, I spotted Pepper Pelton joking with Perry and Clark, both of whom were busting a gut at whatever he was saying. And once again, Freddie was holding court with Charlie and Jerry.

 

As I entered, Tamara McFly caught my attention. “Hey, Ace, got a sec?”

 

I nodded and she beckoned me into a quieter corner of the locker room. She shot a look around the room then leaned in close.

 

“Have you talked to Diamond about how things are going on QAW?”

 

I frowned. I kind of remembered something from her birthday party, but so much of that night was a jumbled haze, I couldn’t say for sure. “Not recently. Why?”

 

Tamara pursed her lips thoughtfully. “I’m on decent terms with Farrah Hesketh. The other day, she called me and asked me how Grace handled direction. You know, was she actually a team player or was she something of a diva.”

 

“Oh yeah?” Why would Hesketh ask that?

 

“I told her that Grace is solid so far as I’m concerned. Never had an issue with her when I’ve worked with her and seems really open to whatever. But Farrah kinda beat around the bush a little. Kept probing around the issue, like she wasn’t quite satisfied with my answer. I thought that was weird, so I tried to talk to Grace about it tonight.”

 

“What did she say?”

 

Tamara laughed. “Oh, to hear her say it, everything is comin’ up roses for her down south. She’s learning so much, the girls are all great, she’s just happy to be paying her dues. Sounded really scripted, like that’s what she thought she should say. Now since I’m not that close to her, I figured she’s probably feeding me a line. So I thought I would check with you. She all right with everything?”

 

I gritted my teeth and tried to push through the mental haze surrounding my memories of Grace’s birthday party. I knew we talked about QAW at the last bar we were at and then…did she hug me? Or was that Abigail? I finally shrugged.

 

“Could be nothing, but you know, if your main draw is distracted, might not be a great night.” Tamara patted me on the shoulder. “For what it’s worth.”

 

She strolled away, flagging down Selina and shouting for Allie. I left the corner and looked for Grace, but she was already in a deep conversation with Sabrina Wells. I could tell that they were going over some details for their match. I wouldn’t want to distract them from that, so I decided to let it go for now. I mean, if something was bothering her, Grace would tell me, right?

 

***

 

After the initial roar of music, Martin and Curt welcomed the audience to the show.

 

1) ALLIE PERKS vs. SELINA SVELTE

 

Allie was in a pretty good mood coming out to the ring. Martin suggested that she was looking forward to competing against Selina and showing everyone that last month’s victory wasn’t a fluke. “Yeah, but she should remember: confidence only gets you so far in this game,” Curt said. “And against a competitor like Selina Svelte, you’ll need more than confidence.”

 

Curt’s words proved to be prophetic. Allie lit into Selina the moment the bell rang and it was clear that her strategy was to overwhelm Selina with rapid fire offense. She tried to unleash her machine-gun punches early in the match. Too early, it turns out, as Selina was able to shove her away and break what little momentum she had.

 

It was all downhill for Allie after that. Selina simply knocked her around the ring before she got her down and tapping in the Prawn Armlock.

 

WINNER: Selina Svelte in 10:11

RATING: 43

 

2) MINNESOTA AWESOME vs. THE SCOFIELD INDEX

 

A pretty decent match all around, although Pepper maybe should have been paying more attention to the match than cracking jokes backstage before the show. He was flailing a little in the match, but Jerry and his competitors were able to cover for him pretty well. Martin reminded folks that the Scofield Index was RFW’s first tag team champs, but Curt scoffed at the idea. When Martin asked if he thought Minnesota Awesome was better, Curt’s response was that they were both jokes.

 

After see-sawing back and forth in terms of momentum, Jerry put a definitive end to it all after he and Pepper dropped Perry with a Carolina Reaper.

 

WINNERS: The Scofield Index in 12:56

RATING: 34

 

3) Fro Sure came out to the ring and did some dancing for the crowd. He held up his title belt and basked in the cheers. Then he waved for everyone to settle down.

 

“It is good to see all of you as well! And I think I’m in for a real challenge tonight. I’m facing off against Jay Silver and—I know, right?” He smiled as some of the crowd oohed at the news. “Jay is a tough competitor and…”

 

Then Fro started laughing.

 

“I’m sorry. Jay is great, but let’s be honest: he hasn’t exactly made a name for himself here. He’s best known for being some Jason Momoa wannabe. I’m worried that he’s going to think he can summon a school of tuna to help in the match tonight and be all like…” Fro scrunched up his face and pressed to fingers to his temple. Then he laughed again. “But seriously, Jay’s a solid competitor and he might be thinking this is his big chance to prove it. So Khal Drogo, let’s see what happens tonight, shall we?”

 

RATING: 61

 

4) JOY RIDER vs. MODESTY PARDOR

 

The party continued as Joy made her way to the ring. Fro actually came back out to do some dancing with her, much to the delight of the crowd. He even hung around to see if Modesty would want to do some dancing as well, but Modesty seemed distinctly uncomfortable with the idea.

 

Modesty shook off her discomfort once the match got started. She and Joy tore into each other and while Joy tried to maintain a bubbly personality, it soon became clear she had to focus on the match rather than pumping up the crowd. She set aside her party attitude and lit into Modesty pretty quickly. Even though Modesty put up a great fight, Joy took the win after dropping Modesty with a Ryder Rocker.

 

WINNER: Joy Rider in 18:18

RATING: 33

 

5) Backstage, Charlie Corner found Sherry Smart, who had set up her fortune telling booth in a darkened corner of the Civic Center. When he tried to speak to her, she shushed him and told him to keep quiet. She was communing with the spirits. He seemed suitably impressed, although both Martin and Curt questioned if she knew what she was doing.

 

After a few moments of her rocking in her chair and mumbling stuff under her breath, she opened her eyes. “I know why you’re here, Charlie.”

 

“You do?”

 

“Yes.” She squinted at him. “You’ve lost your cat and you need my help to locate him. Never fear! I’ll get out my dowsing crystals and—”

 

“No, that’s not it at all! I’ve heard that you can see into the future. Is that true?”

 

Sherry nodded solemnly.

 

“Rock on!” Charlie threw up the devil horns, which seemed to disturb Sherry. “Look, I’ve heard that they’re going to book me in a match next month. Can you look into the future and tell me who I’m going to face?”

 

“Of course!” Sherry closed her eyes and resumed her rocking. Then her eyes popped open. “Charlie! You’re going to face Masked Marauder and…I’m sorry, Charlie. I think you’re going to lose.”

 

“Bummer!” Charlie’s shoulders slumped in an overly dramatic fashion. “Well, I appreciate the insight, Miss Sherry. Can I come back for another reading in the future?”

 

“I would love that.”

 

Charlie grinned and slipped out of the chair. Sherry watched him go.

 

“I would have loved to been paid for that too.”

 

RATING: 22

 

6) THE SILVER BULLET © vs. THE FRANCHISE for the RFW Tag Team Championship

 

Once again, the tension between Hangman and Stallion was palpable. It actually looked like they were going to start arguing as they came out to the ring, but Hangman shut down whatever it was.

 

Jack and Mark, though, looked like they were ready to tear up the place as they came out to the ring. They stopped to take a few selfies with each other, and at one point, Mark stopped to autograph a fan’s shirt, changing the generic RFW shirt to a “Mr. RFW” shirt in the process. The fan (a member of the Four-Clap Posse) did not look pleased at this.

 

Once the match got started, it was clear that the Franchise was going to take advantage of the champs’ distracted state. They took control of the match early on, isolating Texas Hangman in the middle of the ring and not letting him tag out to Stallion. Martin commented that it didn’t look like Stallion was all that interested in being in the match anyway.

 

But Hangman finally made it to his corner and tagged Stallion in. Stallion rolled his eyes and got into the ring, where he took the fight to Mark and Jack until he finally put Jack down with a Lakota cutter.

 

WINNERS: The Silver Bullet in 15:17

RATING: 32

 

7) PAPA SWOLL vs. JAMES DIAZ vs. CASSIDY BLAINE vs. ORIGINAL SINNER vs. QUENTIN QUEEN vs. MASKED MAULER VII

 

Martin pumped up this match as being a chance for some members of our roster to really show fans what they were all about. Even though it seemed like everyone was eying him, Papa Swoll seemed relatively unconcerned about how the match was going to go.

 

Once the bell rang, everyone tore into each other. For some reason, though, it seemed like James Diaz was focusing on Original Sinner. Even when he had clear chances to attack someone else, James stayed locked in on Sinner rather than go after easier targets. Curt suggested this was maybe not the best idea, seeing as there were four other really strong competitors in the ring.

 

Toward the end of the match, Sinner seemed to take control, tossing everyone around the ring. Martin said this would turn out to be a big upset: “Original Sinner is a powerhouse who has been lurking in the shadows here at RFW. This could be his first step onto the bigger stage!”

 

Sinner looked to make that happen by dropping Cassidy and getting ready to pin him. But before the ref could make the three count, James Diaz drop kicked Sinner in the head to break up the pin. Clearly Sinner had enough of James’s attitude and got in his face. The two started brawling and James wound up getting Sinner in the Asian Thumb Spike.

 

Cassidy recovered and looked ready to stop that, but then Papa Swoll hit Cassidy with the Pounce and made the pin. The ref hit three mere seconds before Sinner started tapping.

 

WINNER: Papa Swoll in 20:03

RATING: 38

 

8) GRACE “DIAMOND” KIL © vs. SABRINA WELLS for the RFW Women’s Championship

 

As the wrestlers came out to the ring, Martin said, “Here’s an interesting note: this is the first time that Sabrina and Grace have faced each other, which is kind of strange. Sabrina is a top competitor and you’d think they would have squared off against each other for the title at some point. I’m thinking this is going to turn out to be an amazing match.”

 

And Martin had a point. The two competitors shook hands before the bell rang. Once it did, they circled each other warily. They told a decent story in the ring, of two wrestlers in their prime who knew they were facing stiff challenges in each other. Once they got started fighting, though, they both laid it on the line until Sabrina missed a chance to hit Grace with her finisher, opening herself up for Grace to end things with a Diamond’s Edge.

 

WINNER: Grace “Diamond” Kil in 15:25

RATING: 52

 

9) In the backstage area, Original Sinner confronted James Diaz about what happened in the ring. James smiled enigmatically and told Sinner that he had his reasons for what he did. That didn’t satisfy Sinner and the two started brawling backstage. A bunch of the other workers quickly separated them, but not before Original Sinner said he wanted to take on James next month in the ring! James smiled and said that would be perfect.

 

RATING: 29

 

10) FRO SURE © vs. JAY SILVER for the RFW Championship

 

Jay seemed a little upset as he came out to the ring, and Martin said he didn’t blame him. “I mean, good natured teasing is one thing, but Fro may have crossed a line there.”

 

“But Jay does look like a bargain basement Jason Momoa,” Curt retorted.

 

“Are you complaining?”

 

There was a long pause, and then Curt said, “No.”

 

The match itself turned out to be pretty decent. Fro tried to shake Jay’s hand, only to have it slapped away. Jay seemed pretty hot and bothered and wanted to punish the champ for it. Fro stepped it up a notch and the two competitors kept up the heat on each other until Fro put Jay down with a Sure Thing. Afterwards, Fro went over and helped Jay up and it looked like he apologized. Jay glared at him, but then nodded and walked out of the ring while Fro led the audience in applauding for him as a competitor.

 

WINNER: Fro Sure in 15:02

RATING: 40

 

***

 

Afterwards, I heaped some praise on Sabrina, Grace, and Jay for their hard work. Jay and Fro spent some time afterwards, making Aquaman jokes at each other.

 

As the rest of the workers started their post-show cleanup duties, I tapped Grace on the shoulder and said, “Hey, can we talk?”

 

She nodded and we slipped away. How was I going to phrase this? I didn’t want to come off like I was accusing her of hiding anything again. But at the same time, I couldn’t ignore what Tamara had said.

 

“How’s everything at QAW?” I asked. “You’re heading down there again. Know who you’re wrestling?”

 

She sighed. “I’m not in pre-show, but I’m tag-teaming with someone against Air Raid Syren and Sonnaz Shah.”

 

“Well, that’s great!” I said. “At least people will see what you’re capable of!”

 

“I guess.” She frowned. “Ace…this is harder than I thought it’d be.”

 

“How so?”

 

“I dunno. I guess I kind of figured we’d be doing bigger things by now. You know, TV or selling out the Civic Center. We had so much heat going in the early days, I figured we were just going to zoom off into the stratosphere and…” She laughed mirthlessly. “I know, that sounds kind of stupid.”

 

“No, I get it. I want bigger things for us too.”

 

“And then, when QAW called, I figured, ‘This is it! This is my chance.’ And it really hasn’t worked out that well. And juggling school with this and now traveling down south for QAW…it’s just a lot.”

 

We stood there in awkward silence for a moment or two. “So are you okay?”

 

She offered me a half-hearted smile but wouldn’t meet my eyes. “Yeah, sure. Just kind of having an off month, that’s all. I’m good, Ace. Thanks.”

 

With that, she gave me a quick, kind of awkward hug, and then went over to her locker. I turned and found myself face-to-face with Mark. He gave me an inscrutable look, then went over to Grace and started whispering to her.

 

I sighed. Once this was all done, I would give Abigail a call and see if she was up for hanging out.

 

FINAL RATING: 43

 

Quick Results:

 

From RFW.com...

 

Check out what happened during the last All In:

 

Selina Svelte defeated Allie Perks

The Scofield Index defeated Minnesota Awesome

Joy Rider defeated Modesty Pardor

The Silver Bullet © defeated The Franchise to retain the RFW Tag Team Championship

Papa Swoll defeated James Diaz, Cassidy Blaine, Original Sinner, Quentin Queen, and Masked Mauler VII

Grace "Diamond" Kil © defeated Sabrina Wells to retain the RFW Women's Championship

Fro Sure © defeated Jay Silver to retain the RFW Championship

[Scapino1974]

QAW American Lucha

Friday of Week 3, March 2022

Held in Irvine Hall in Topeka, Kansas (Mid South Region)

 

It was true. What I had heard was true. I couldn’t believe it. When Jackson told me, I thought I was hearing things. Or it was a rib. But he didn’t act like it was. So it had to be true.

 

I was going to wrestle in the actual show!

 

“So you, Alice, Sonnaz, and Ellie are going to be up first,” Jackson said. “Now that’s a big responsibility. You four are going to set the tone for the whole show.”

 

“I know.” I felt a flash of annoyance. That’s the way we did things at RFW. Why would this be any different?

 

“And Farrah and I still feel that the right thing to do here is to have Alice and Sonnaz get the win, all right?”

 

All right? I was actually going to be in the show. My friends would be able to see me. Mark would be able to see me! Ace could finally see the match! This was… Tears stung my eyes and I swiped them away quickly.

 

Jackson frowned at me. “You okay?”

 

“Yeah, just… Just happy.”

 

“You say so.” He gestured toward the rest of the locker room. “We’re having Sherie handle the fine details this time around. Head on over there and figure everything out, got it?”

 

I saluted him without thinking. He rolled his eyes and headed to another part of the locker room, flagging down some more girls as he went.

 

Holding back a squeal, I headed over to Alice and the others.

 

Not pictured: Ellie de Grazia (couldn't upload her pic to Imgur for some reason)

 

Alice clapped me on the shoulder and said, “You’re going to die, Kil. Sonnaz and I are going to mop the mat with you.”

 

Ellie snorted. “That’s the plan, shug.”

 

“Knock it off.” Sherie, while not as angry as her on-screen persona, still looked pretty no-nonsense. “So obviously, Alice and Sonnaz are going to pick up the win, but I really want Grace and Ellie to get in some good licks at the start of the match. They need to look like a threat, got it?”

 

Sonnaz, who leaned against one of the lockers, shrugged. “No problem, boss.”

 

So Sherie launched into a discussion of how, exactly, Ellie and I would wind up having the tables turned on us, how Sonnaz and Alice would toss us around the ring, and how we’d ultimately get pinned. And it didn’t bother me a bit. Because tonight, we were going to actually be seen by more than just the audience in the arena. Look out, America. Here came Grace Kil!

 

***

 

By the time we were done, the audience was on their feet and screaming for more. At least, that’s how it sounded to me. Not to be immodest, but once again, I think I showed everyone what I brought to the table. Ellie and I did okay in the ring together. I mean, I wasn’t exactly hoping to keep doing tag team matches, but if I had to, I thought I was doing a decent enough job as a partner.

 

Sherie clapped us on the back as we returned to the locker room. “Good job, good hustle. Ellie, you looked solid out there, but you gotta be a little more careful with your foot placement during those big moves, right? And Sonnaz, resting bitch face isn’t a great look for you. We’ve talked about trying to show a little more emotion, right? Alice, keep doing what you’re doing. And Kil? Good job.”

 

That was it?

 

But Sherie turned to the next group of wrestlers, who were tugging their costumes into place and stretching out. “Now you guys. You gonna let them go out and set the bar? You gonna let them get away with that?”

 

“No way, Bomb!” Skye Hermosa shouted.

 

“Then go out there and show why you’re not just a bunch of over-glorified show openers, got it?”

 

Honey Badger slapped her own shoulders and roared, causing everyone in the locker room to laugh. But I stood there, a sinking feeling in my stomach. Is that how they still saw me? A glorified curtain-jerker?

 

And that’s the way the rest of the night went. Sherie kept sending out each new match with words to the effect of “Go show everyone why you’re better than Grace.” And what really sucked? A lot of them did. In the second to last match, Janna Hurricane defeated her title in a fatal four-way match that left me in shock. No wonder they kept putting me so low on the card.

 

As excited as I had been at the start of the night, by the time I went back to the hotel, I knew I was going to just cry myself to sleep.

[Scapino1974]

Friday of Week 4, March 2022

 

“It couldn’t have been that bad,” I said.

 

“It was, Ace.” Grace picked at her food. “They didn’t care how I did at all. Okay, so they did, but only to use it as a way to challenge the other ladies to do better than me.”

 

I frowned. That really didn’t sound all that great. I could hardly believe that someone would do that. I made a mental note to never do something like that to my workers.

 

The waitress headed over to our table with a water pitcher and a big smile. I smiled back.

 

“How’s the family, Lishan?” I asked.

 

She refilled our glasses and filled me in on how her children were doing. The workers at the Ethiopian restaurant had come to recognize us over the past few months. Grace paused and offered Lishan a wan smile.

 

The moment Lishan stepped away, Grace started talking again. “I just wish that things were going better. It feels like we should be doing bigger things by now.”

 

My cellphone chirped at me and I glanced at it. A new email.

 

“So how are the finances?” Grace asked.

 

“Holding steady, much to my surprise. We made almost two grand this last month, bringing us up to a little over $76,000.” I frowned. Who had the message come from?

 

As Grace kept talking, I quickly pulled up the email and my eyes widened. The email had come from USPW.com. Had I actually…had it worked?

 

Grace frowned. “What?”

 

“So…don’t get mad. I may have…I may have done something a bit…rash.”

 

Her gaze narrowed. “What did you do?”

 

I clenched my jaw, holding back my words. I didn’t want to admit to the whole story. A few weeks ago, when I was feeling sorry for myself, I had a crazy idea about how we could maybe take a bold step forward with the company. Grace headed off to QAW because we weren’t quite big enough. Plus I had been worried about how we’d make ends meet with our deal with WrestleWorld. If I could find a way to bring in some more money, raise our profile, get some more talented workers…

 

“I may or may not have reached out to Allen Packer to see if he’d want to use RFW as a development fed for USPW.”

 

Now Grace’s eyes widened. “Really?”

 

“I figured that we could smooth down the rough edges on some of their future stars, maybe borrow a few of their workers every now and then.” I leaned over the table and smirked. “Strong vs. Kil, anyone?”

 

Grace laughed. “So what do they say?”

 

I opened the email and froze. First thing I noticed, the email didn’t come from Allen Packer but from some lady I had never heard of. That might not be the worst thing in the world. After all, Packer had a lot of big issues to worry about. If I had a company as large as his, I’d probably work through intermediaries as well.

 

But then I kept reading. And I tried to keep my reaction from my face, but I clearly failed, because within seconds, Grace’s expression mirrored how I felt.

 

“What?”

 

I hadn’t read through all of it, but I had the gist of it at that point. “They’re not interested in partnering with us. We’re…too small. Not enough reach. Not enough fans. We’re just…not big enough.”

 

Grace looked like she deflated. She rested her cheek against her hand, looking absolutely defeated. And I hated it. I hated seeing that. This wasn’t right.

 

“What?” she asked.

 

“They want big? Let’s give them big.”

[Scapino1974]

From RFW.com…

 

It’s time to go big or go home! Our next All In is going to feature nothing but the biggest matches we can put on.

 

• Charlie Corner will face off against Dreadnought
  
• James Diaz will fight Original Sinner
  
• Champions the Silver Bullet will go up against three other teams in an elimination match for the RFW Tag Team Championship. Will they retain, or will Minnesota Awesome, the Hot Taggs, or the Franchise be the new champs?
  
• We will see some of the best women’s wrestlers we have in a six-way fight for the title. It’ll be Grace “Diamond” Kil © vs. Abigail Thompson vs. Allie Perks vs. Selina Svelte vs. Ruby Reece vs. Modesty Pardor for the RFW Women’s Championship
  
• We may see a new RFW Champion tonight in a ten man battle royal. Participants will include Cassidy Blaine, Cockroach Carter, Dustin Deuce, Fro Sure © , Jay Silver, John “Ace” Hart, Papa Swoll, Quentin Queen, Roger Monteiro, and Masked Mauler VII
  

 

If you want to make predictions or make comments or whatever, please feel free!

[Scapino1974]

Wednesday of Week 2, April 2022

 

Once again, it was all Grace’s idea.

 

Truth be told, I think I had had my fill of 21st birthday binges after Grace’s. Sure, getting that trashed was fun at the time, but I still felt woozy from the hangover the next day, and all of that had happened two months earlier. But when Grace caught wind that I wasn’t planning to do much for my big two-one, she stepped in to make things better.

 

Step one: schedule the party for a Wednesday night. Yes, I know, counterintuitive, but that led to the next part…

 

Step two: invite everyone who was going to compete at All In to arrive a day earlier and come with us to go drinking and celebrate this inevitable milestone of my life.

 

Step three: put Mark and Jack in charge of the rest of the planning.

 

I don’t know where they found it (or how they paid for it), but the night before All In, we all gathered in the hotel parking lot where a fleet of Humvee limos were waiting for us. And while Rochester didn’t have quite the same selection of bars as Minneapolis did, Mark was able to use his local contacts to set up a route that took us to plenty of them. And with close to thirty people in our group, it turned out that I didn’t have to worry about paying for much of anything. It seemed like every time I turned around, someone was pressing a drink into my hands. I vaguely remembered doing shots with—or maybe off of, I don’t quite remember—all of the women who were going to be in the title match.

 

Probably the worst part of the night was when Mark had me try something called a “cement mixer.” I nearly threw up right there afterwards, but the real kick was toward the end of the night, when it felt like the alcohol just rushed my system and knocked me for an absolute loop. The rest of the night turned into a chaotic blur, with laughing and crying and dancing and drinking and more laughing and more drinking and the limos and Abigail and Modesty and Jack and Fro and Swoll and…

 

***

 

My head felt like my skin was about to split straight down the middle so my skull could drip out. I tried to groan, but even that caused my stomach to lurch and my head to explode with agony. It didn’t help that the sunlight had somehow become knives that slowly twisted into my sockets.

 

“John? You okay?”

 

I groaned. Why was Dad screaming at me like that? I forced an eye open and realized I was staring at the ceiling of my bathroom. My back groaned in protest as I sat up and looked around. Yeah, my bathroom. And from the smell, I think it was probably a good thing I had spent the night in there. Hopefully the mess wouldn’t be that bad. I suspected I was going to have to clean it all up.

 

Dad sat on the edge of the bathtub with a concerned look on his face. “You feeling okay, son?”

 

I shook my head and collapsed back onto the floor. Stars exploded in my vision when my head hit the linoleum. Bad choice, just the worst.

 

Dad was saying something, but I really didn’t track what he was saying. Instead, I took several heaving breaths, trying to get my head to stop hurting and my stomach to settle down and…

 

Wait, did he say something about RFW? I rolled my head to one side and forced myself to focus on him.

 

Dad raised his eyebrows, as if he was waiting for me to respond.

 

“What?” I croaked.

 

He sighed. “If you’re feeling this poorly, do you really think it’ll be a good idea to go in tonight? There’s no way you’ll be in fighting form by the show.”

 

I shook my head and slowly levered myself up. “No, Dad, I gotta be there.”

 

“You’re in no shape to wrestle. No one’s gonna think any less of you if you stay home. That Freddie and Tamara can sub someone in for you.”

 

Except they would think less of me. They would. And I’d think less of myself as well. I glanced at my watch. As near as I could tell, I had about eight hours to recover and hopefully pull myself together. I’d get it done.

 

Somehow.

[Herrbear]

Charlie Corner will face off against Dreadnought

 

James Diaz will fight Original Sinner

 

Champions the Silver Bullet will go up against three other teams in an elimination match for the RFW Tag Team Championship. Will they retain, or will Minnesota Awesome, the Hot Taggs, or the Franchise be the new champs?

 

We will see some of the best women’s wrestlers we have in a six-way fight for the title. It’ll be Grace “Diamond” Kil © vs. Abigail Thompson vs. Allie Perks vs. Selina Svelte vs. Ruby Reece vs. Modesty Pardor for the RFW Women’s Championship

 

We may see a new RFW Champion tonight in a ten man battle royal. Participants will include Cassidy Blaine, Cockroach Carter, Dustin Deuce, Fro Sure © , Jay Silver, John “Ace” Hart, Papa Swoll, Quentin Queen, Roger Monteiro, and Masked Mauler VII

[Scapino1974]

RFW All In

Thursday of Week 2, April 2022

Held at the Civic Center in Rochester, MN (Mid West Region)

Broadcast on WrestleWorld (22,811 viewers)

405 in attendance

 

I think I actually needed another day or two to actually feel human again. Maybe a full week. I actually envied everyone in the locker room as I walked in. While I felt like death had been sitting on my head for most of the day, no one else looked the worse for wear.

 

Well, that wasn’t quite true. Everyone seemed subdued, quieter. People weren’t nearly as boisterous as they got ready for their matches. Freddie was holding court with his disciples in one corner, but he gave me a disapproving look as I walked in. I winced. In retrospect, having a major blow out party the night before a show was probably not the best idea.

 

As I made the rounds, Abigail flagged me down. She chuckled when she saw me and gave my hand a light squeeze. “You look awful.”

 

“I love you too,” I grumbled.

 

“You okay?”

 

I nodded. “Hydrated all day, lots of aspirin. Still feel like I’ve already wrestled.”

 

She leaned over and kissed me on the cheek. “Well, just make it through the night and we’ll go out for a quieter, more intimate birthday celebration afterward.”

 

I groaned. “I don’t think I can handle—”

 

“John.”

 

The tone in her voice made me pause. I looked at her and she smiled impishly.

 

“Okay. Deal.”

 

“Thought so.”

 

***

 

Martin and Curt welcomed the audience to the show.

 

“Welcome to a huge night for RFW!” Martin said. “Every show, our champs always defend their titles, but not like tonight. Tonight, we live up to our promotion’s name. Everyone is all in, with huge matches coming up. This is going to be an amazing night, I just know it.”

 

“Or it’ll be a total train wreck,” Curt retorted. “I know everyone’s been saying ‘Go big or go home’ around here lately, but there is such a thing as overextending yourself.”

 

“Well, time will tell if that’s the case here tonight!”

 

1) The Kings’ entrance music hit, and Fro Sure and Papa Swoll made their way out to the ring. The two of them hyped up the audience and did a bit of dancing with some of the fans in the front rows. At least, Fro did a lot of the dancing. Swoll seemed a lot more laid back, mostly just encouraging people to have a good time.

 

“Well, well, well. Tonight’s gonna be interesting, isn’t it, Papa?” Fro Sure asked.

 

“For sure, Fro Sure!” Swoll responded.

 

“Everyone’s going to be in these major matches, and it all culminates in the ten man battle royal for…well, this title right here.” Fro held up the title belt and the crowd went wild.

 

“You worried, Fro?” Swoll asked.

 

Fro looked ready to laugh it off, but then he sobered up. “Well, honestly, Papa? A little. Just a little. Because up until now, I’ve only ever had to worry about one competitor at a time. One guy comes into the ring with me, we fight it out, and then I pin them. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy.” He paused, then shuddered. “Sorry. Not sure what came over me there.”

 

“I was wondering.”

 

“But now, when we’ve got ten men in the ring with me? Each one trying to toss the others over the top rope to eliminate them? I gotta have eyes in the back of my head! I could be fighting someone and get tossed over without any warning. I could lose my title without much of a fight.”

 

“So you worried, Fro?”

 

Fro considered it, then laughed. “Nah, not really. I mean, don’t get me wrong. We got some big guys in this match. We got Roger Monteiro. We got Quentin Queen. We got my man, John ‘Ace’ Hart. And we even got Cassidy Blaine.”

 

He paused, but then Fro and Papa looked at each other and burst out laughing.

 

“Sorry. Couldn’t keep a straight face there. But yeah, there are some big threats in this match tonight.”

 

“But you worried, Fro?” Swoll emphasized each word.

 

Fro considered the question, but then smiled lazily. “Not even a little. Because this title isn’t going anywhere. It doesn’t matter when I enter the match, because this is what truly matters: I will be the last one in the ring. And this title isn’t going anywhere.”

 

RATING: 30

 

2) CHARLIE CORNER vs. DREADNOUGHT

 

As Charlie made his way out to the ring, Martin remarked that he seemed pretty confident going in. Martin reminded the audience that Sherry Smart had used her psychic gifts to predict that Charlie would win his match tonight.

 

“But she also predicted he’d face Dreadnought’s tag team partner, Masked Marauder. So maybe her ‘gift’ needs a bit of fine tuning.”

 

“Maybe the mask threw her off?”

 

Dreadnought seemed a bit out of it when he came out to the ring, and Martin and Curt tried to cover for him by saying that he was being thrown off by Charlie’s confident attitude. And the crowd seemed to respond to Charlie’s attitude as well. Even though the wrestling was definitely nothing to write home about, they were firmly on Charlie’s side as he took the fight to Dreadnought, countering his offense and keeping him on the run for most of the match until he finally put him down with the Corner Cutter.

 

WINNER: Charlie Corner in 9:44

RATING: 23

 

3) James Diaz came out to the ring and got on the mic. He spoke almost reverently about the threat that Original Sinner posed. “He is a big man, very aggressive, a force to be reckoned with. Most people, I think, would consider me insane for provoking him over the past few months.

 

“But here’s the thing: Original Sinner may have the power, but he is not the Son of the Monster. When he comes out here for our match, I’m going to prove who the dominant force in the RFW is. Believe it.”

 

RATING: 35

 

4) ORIGINAL SINNER vs. JAMES DIAZ

 

As Sinner came out to the match, Martin commented that the big man looked ready to destroy whoever was in his path. James, on the other hand, didn’t seem at all concerned. Instead, he leaned against the ropes in one corner and watched as Sinner stomped around, glaring at him the whole time.

 

But once the bell rang, James practically exploded out of the corner and tore into Sinner. Sinner seemed absolutely stunned by the extreme offense and spent the first minutes of the match just blocking punches and kicks. James punctuated his opening salvo by taking the big man off his feet with a clothesline that almost took Sinner out of his boots.

 

That set the tone for the rest of the match. While Sinner managed to rally a few times to get a little offense in, James simply countered his offense and got back to beating him. At one point, Martin commented that it seemed like James was more interested in punishing Sinner than beating him.

 

That proved to be an accurate assessment. Eventually, James managed to wear Sinner down and the big man collapsed in the ring. But rather than pin him, James simply kicked him repeatedly in the stomach before straddling him and raining down punches and blows. Referee Quincy Jargon ordered him to stop and make the pin, but James ignored him and kept up the abuse. Quincy finally called for the bell and ordered the match stopped.

 

WINNER: James Diaz in 14:58

RATING: 27

 

5) The camera found Charlie Corner and Sherry Smart backstage. Charlie was excited about his win, although he did admit that he was confused by the fact that he fought Dreadnought instead of Masked Mauler.

 

“The universe moves in mysterious ways, Charlie,” Sherry said. “We can’t always know for sure what would happen. I saw a masked wrestler in your future and that did come to pass, even if I didn’t quite get the details down 100%.”

 

That seemed to satisfy Charlie, although Curt made some snide remarks about that being a convenient excuse, especially since she had also predicted that Charlie was going to lose.

 

“So what about next month? What’s in store for me?”

 

Sherry closed her eyes and groped through the air as if trying to latch on to the information. Then her eyes snapped open.

 

“I see a great challenge in your future, Charlie. Next month, you will face a hometown hero, someone draped in newfound glory. I see an ace in your future, Charlie Corner. And I see you victorious over him.”

 

Charlie’s eyes widened. “Ace Hart is in the battle royal tonight for Fro’s title. Do you think he’ll…and then next month I’ll…”

 

Charlie let out a loud whoop and hugged her tightly. Then he rushed off to share the good news.

 

“Well, I think tonight’s going to be a big night for John Hart,” Martin said.

 

“Sure it will,” Curt retorted.

 

RATING: 33

 

6) The camera entered the locker room where Abigail Thompson was adjusting her tights. She bent over to tighten the laces on her boots, but then she realized that someone was standing near her. She looked up to see Grace Kil looking down at her.

 

“Hey, Grace!” Abigail said brightly. “You nervous for tonight?”

 

“Not particularly,” Grace said.

 

“I wish I could say the same thing,” Abigail said. “I mean, we’re gong to be in a match with four other women, some of the best in the business, and your title is on the line. I mean, you could lose your title if someone else gets pinned. That doesn’t worry you at all?”

 

Grace laughed. “Maybe a little. But here’s the thing. You know what creates a diamond in the first place? Pressure. Lots of it. Unrelenting. So yeah, there’s some pressure on me tonight for this match, but here’s the thing: diamonds don’t break. And neither do I. Good luck out there tonight, Abigail. Have as much as you want. Because I don’t need any.”

 

RATING: 36

 

7) THE SILVER BULLET © vs. MINNESOTA AWESOME vs. THE FRANCHISE vs. THE HOT TAGGS for the RFW Tag Team Championship

 

As the teams made their entrance, Martin reminded the audience of the rules: “This is a tag team elimination match tonight. That means that if someone gets pinned, his team is out of the running for the titles. Teams are going to need to be on the same page from the moment the bell rings.”

 

“That could be an issue for our champs,” Curt said. “Lately you can tell that something is off between Hangman and Stallion. We could very well see the titles change hands tonight if they’re not careful.”

 

Once the bell rang, the match started with Hangman, Kalder, Jack, and Perry in the ring. They ripped into each other and managed to knock each other around the ring pretty badly. Kalder quickly tagged in Wolfie, leading to Perry and Jack tagging in their partners as well. Hangman saw them do it, then dove for his corner, his hand outstretched…

 

Only to have his hand pass through empty air.

 

Stallion had hopped off his perch and stood at ring side. The champs stared at each other, with Hangman looking positively stunned. Then Stallion turned and walked out of the arena, leaving Hangman in the ring by himself.

 

But Hangman didn’t have time to figure out what happened. The fresh wrestlers were on him in an instant, battering him down. He wound up pinned by Wolfie, only to have Clark break up the pin. The match continued almost as if Hangman had been eliminated as he crawled to his corner and hung on the bottom rope, clearly stunned.

 

Within a few minutes, Kalder Tagg was pinned, eliminating the Hot Taggs. Then, as Minnesota Awesome and the Franchise continued the match, Hangman suddenly recovered and exploded out of his corner. He took the fight to everyone in the match, knocking people from their perches. He wound up Choke Slamming Mark Latrell and Clark Smallbone and it looked like he was going to retain the title all on his own.

 

But then Jack Pryde came out of nowhere and dropped him with a Prydefall. Then Jack quickly rolled Mark onto Clark (the two legal men), causing Minnesota Awesome to get eliminated.

 

Now the match turned into a handicap match as the Franchise toyed with Hangman. He tried his best to hold his own against them, but it was clear that he was in no shape to do so. In the end, he wound up Choke Slamming Jack Pryde and tried to pin him, but Jack wasn’t the legal man. That allowed Mark to break the pin attempt and roll Hangman into a pin himself, getting the win.

 

WINNERS: The Franchise in 25:19

RATING: 26

 

8) GRACE “DIAMOND” KIL © vs. ALLIE PERKS vs. ABIGAIL THOMPSON vs. SELINA SVELTE vs. RUBY REECE vs. MODESTY PARDOR for the RFW Women's Championship

 

The crowd really got into this as the competitors came out to the ring. We started with Abigail first and worked our way up to Grace. By the time Grace made it to the ring, the fans were on their feet and roaring their approval. Martin speculated that this could be the match of the night given the way the fans were amped up.

 

Once the bell rang, all six ladies collided in the center of the ring. It was clear that some of the women (Selina, Ruby, and Modesty) were particularly interested in taking out Grace, but that proved to be a mistake on their part. Any time they got too focused on the champ Allie or Abigail would strike, making sure they couldn’t get the pin. It wasn’t that anyone was allied with anyone else; it was more that half the competitors seemed eager to pin Grace rather than make an easier pin.

 

“That’s understandable,” Martin said. “Grace has been nearly untouchable here at RFW. Who wouldn’t want to be the one to put her down?”

 

“Yeah, but that isn’t the point of the match,” Curt countered. “The whole point of this is to claim the women’s championship belt. If you can get it by pinning Grace, more power to you, but you could also win by pinning Allie. Or Ruby. Anyone in that ring is a path to victory. You just have to be smart enough to see that.”

 

The match kept the fans out of their chairs for most of it. Everyone got a chance to shine. Allie got hit her machine-gun punches on Modesty. Ruby nearly took Selina’s head off with a sharp kick. And Grace, at one point, managed to hit the Diamond’s Edge on everyone, only to have her pin attempt on Abigail broken up by Selina. This was well on track toward becoming a great match.

 

But then disaster struck.

 

Grace was setting Modesty up for another Diamond’s Edge when Abigail hopped up to the top turnbuckle. She wobbled at little bit, but then launched herself at Grace. Grace immediately dropped Modesty.

 

Only Abigail was a bit off in her aim. Grace saw that and tried to reposition herself to catch Abigail properly. Except then Abigial flailed in midair and hit Grace wrong. The two of them went down in a tangle of limbs, but two things were unmistakable: the scream of pain the erupted from Grace as she hit the mat and the unnatural way that her knee twisted.

 

Referee Parker Terry stared in horror as Abigail rolled off of Grace. The champ rolled on the mat, clutching at her knee. Parker dropped down next to her and shouted something in her ear, but Grace shook her head. She hauled herself up and hobbled at Abigail, who stared at her in horror until Grace snared her and put her down in a Diamond’s Edge, maybe a bit stiffer and harder than she had to. Grace rolled on top of her and made the pin, even while her face was twisted in agony.

 

WINNER: Grace “Diamond” Kil in 29:48

RATING: 41

 

Backstage, the locker room erupted into chaos. Freddie and Tamara hurried to the door to help Parker get Grace onto a nearby bench. The other workers clustered around her, asking questions or offering advice. Tamara finally ordered all of them away.

 

Mark didn’t listen. He dropped down next to Grace and held her hand as Freddie and Tamara looked over Grace’s knee.

 

Then Tamara turned to the rest of us. “The show, geniuses! We’ve still got one match to go! Ace! Get them moving!”

 

I stared at her, not comprehending her words.

 

“Ace!” Freddie thundered. “Go!”

 

I snapped out of it finally. I turned to the others. “Let’s go! They’ll take care of her. Let them work and we’ll do our jobs.”

 

My gaze slid over the entrance to the locker room, where Abigial stood in the doorway, her eyes wide and filled with tears. But that would have to wait as well.

 

9) 10 MAN BATTLE ROYAL for the RFW Championship

 

The crowd was a bit restless. Glenn had played some video packages while they waited, but they started roaring as Quentin Queen’s music hit. The former champ came out with a sneer and he jawed at the crowd. As he made his way to the ring, Martin explained that this was a pretty typical battle royal: entrances staggered every two minutes, eliminations by throwing your opponents over the top rope, last man in the ring would be the champion.

 

Once Quentin reached the ring, my entrance music started. I grimly made my way to the ring. Martin suggested that I was obviously focused on the match. Sure. That was as good of an explanation as any.

 

Quentin and I tore into each other, working on getting the other one over the rope before things got more interesting. But neither of us could until the timer counted down. Dustin Deuce hit the ring and pretty soon, I found myself fighting two opponents at once.

 

Another two minutes passed, and the crowd popped to their feet as Fro Sure made his way to the ring. No dancing, no jokes, just determined focus. He hit the ring and went after Quentin, trying to force him out of the ring but failing.

 

Jay Silver and Cockroach Carter came next. As Cockroach made his way to the ring, I managed to hit Dustin with a dropkick that took him over the top rope and officially became the first elimination. He was quickly followed by Cockroach, who got thrown out of the ring by Quentin.

 

Roger Monteiro hit the ring next, followed by Cassidy Blaine and Masked Marauder. Roger took a few moments to clean house, tossing out Cassidy, then Jay, and finally me before Fro ran him over from behind.

 

The final entrant, Papa Swoll, made his way down the entrance to the ring. As he did, Fro and Quentin got into a major back-and-forth, one that was broken up by Roger as he hit Quentin and managed to toss him over the top rope.

 

That left Masked Mauler, Roger, Fro Sure, and Papa Swoll. Fro managed to toss Masked Mauler over the top rope, but then he got hit from behind by Roger. Roger tried to throw the champ over the top rope, but Fro fought back and managed to throw Roger out of the ring. But as he did, he hit his head on a turnbuckle pretty hard.

 

That left the Kings in the ring by themselves. The two of them stalked around each other and then tore into each other. Martin howeld that there was no room for partnerships or friendships in a match like this.

 

It was pretty obvious that they had each other scouted (“A testimony to their long partnership,” Martin said). Both men tried to eliminate the other. They were wearing each other out until finally, Fro managed to hit Swoll with a Sure Thing. But, bizarrely, Fro tried to pin Swoll after that. Curt screamed that that wouldn’t do it in this match. After Fro waited for a count to be made, he seemed to realize his mistake. He fought to get Swoll rolled over to the ropes and struggled to get him up and hung on the top rope.

 

But as he worked to get Swoll up and over the ropes, Swoll came back to life. He shoved Fro away and then, as Fro ricocheted off the ropes, Swoll caught him with the Pounce. But unlike Fro, Swoll immediately pulled Fro to his feet eand, in a burst of strength, threw the champ over the top rope.

 

WINNER: Papa Swoll in 29:36

RATING: 41

 

***

 

Tension flooded the locker room as the show wrapped up. No one said anything as the wrestlers gathered together.

 

I sat on a bench, near where Tamara and Freddie had been tending to Grace. They had sent her and Mark to Mayo while the battle royal was happening. We hadn’t heard anything about how she was doing. I planned to head over there as soon as everything was wrapped up here.

 

“This…” I swallowed hard. “This was not what I hoped for. This was supposed to be a night that would showcase what RFW could do. And now, the only thing people will talk about is what happened to Grace…who, by the way, was amazing. I mean, finishing the match like that? Just incredible.

 

“And Fro… You’re a rock star, man. We’re obviously not done with you here, but I appreciate your willingness to pass the title on to Swoll.”

 

Fro didn’t say anything. He didn’t even meet my gaze. None of them did.

 

Not even Abigail. She stood off to one side, isolated from the others. Whether that was her choice or theirs, I didn’t really care.

 

I pointed at her, wanting to say something. Anything. But I couldn’t find the words. So I pointed again and shook my head.

 

“I’m going to go see how Grace is doing.”

 

FINAL RATING: 38

 

 

Quick Results:

 

From RFW.com...

 

Here are the results from the last, explosive All In! If you missed it, you missed some big shake-ups and surprises!

 

Charlie Corner defeated Dreadnought

James Diaz defeated Original Sinner

The Franchise defeated The Silver Bullet ©, Minnesota Awesome, and the Hot Taggs to capture the RFW Tag Team Championship

Grace "Diamond" Kil © defeated Allie Perks, Abigail Thompson, Selina Svelte, Ruby Reece, and Modesty Pardor to retain the RFW Women's Championship

Papa Swoll won a 10 Man Battle Royal to capture the RFW Championship

[Scapino1974]

Thursday of Week 2, April 2022

 

By the time I made it to Mayo, the doctors had already taken Grace back to an exam room. All I could do was find Mark in the lobby. He paced, his hands laced behind his head.

 

“Any word yet?” I asked.

 

He glared at me, but shook his head. “No, nothing yet. They think it might be ligament damage, but they weren’t sure yet.”

 

I groaned. That could mean she’d be out of action for months if it was bad enough. One of our teammates in high school had torn the ligaments in his knee and he was out for the rest of the season.

 

“What the hell happened back there, man?” Mark said.

 

I shrugged. “I don’t know. We’ll have to look at the tape. It looked like Abigail tried a risky move and it didn’t work out and—”

 

“And my girlfriend paid the price for it!” Mark snapped.

 

I glared back at him. “Hey! It was an accident.”

 

“One that we’re going to have to figure out how to explain to Grace’s folks now.”

 

Oh. I hadn’t thought of that. But yeah, that was true.

 

“I’m sure she’ll think of something,” I said.

 

“She shouldn’t have to,” Mark said. “I don’t even know why you let Abigail wrestle. She clearly doesn’t know what she’s doing.”

 

“Excuse me?” I said.

 

“You heard me. She’s not an athlete. Not like Grace. Not like me. She barely knows what she’s doing in the ring.”

 

“You’re not exactly a seasoned veteran either, Mark,” I said.

 

“Then why’d you give me the title tonight, huh? Clearly you see something good here.”

 

I glared at him. There was a small measure of truth to what he said. I did like his Mr. RFW gimmick and I thought it paired well with Jack’s character. But them getting the belts was more a nod to Jack’s loyalty than any skill on Mark’s part.

 

“Let’s face it, Hart: the only reason why Abigail is in that ring is because you’re sleeping with her.”

 

Heat flashed through me and my fingers curled into fists. Good thing Mark was already in a hospital, because—

 

“There a problem here, gentlemen?”

 

I turned to look at the security guard. Big guy, didn’t look too happy to be talking to us.

 

“No problem, officer,” I said, forcing my fingers to relax.

 

“Well, let’s keep it that way. Sick people here trying to heal. Let’s not disturb them, okay?”

 

I nodded. I turned back to Mark, but he had already walked away.

 

I growled. Perfect. Just perfect.

 

My cell phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out and frowned at it. A number I didn’t recognize. Couldn’t place the area code either. A spam caller? Oh, perfect timing. I was going to rip them a—

 

“Hart? That you?”

 

Wait, I knew that voice. “Farrah Hesketh?”

 

“What the hell kind of promotion are you running up there?”

 

I groaned and closed my eyes. “You saw the match.”

 

“I saw the match, and I saw how that bimbo took out my newest hire with a horribly botched move.”

 

I ground my teeth and fought the urge to verbally lash out at Hesketh. “Accidents happen.”

 

“Not like that, they don’t. Or at least, they shouldn’t. Here’s the thing: I had plans for Grace this month. I wanted to throw her into a singles match against Emma May and see how she handled it. Even started advertising the match. Well, thanks to you, that’s not gonna happen now, is it?”

 

“You think I did this on purpose? What, some weird form of sabotage?” She started to say something, but I kept going. “Grace is my best friend and there’s no way I would ever want her to get hurt, accidentally or deliberately. And let me remind you, she’s still our women’s champion. You’re not the only one who might have to rethink their plans because of this.

 

“So this is what you’re going to do. You’re going to hang up right now and wait, like I am, until we hear what’s going on with Grace. And if, in the future, you want to talk to me again, you’ll remember that I’m the owner of RFW, not some guy you can scream at. You’ll talk to me as an equal next time. Because remember: as much as Grace loves wrestling for you, she’s still my best friend. And I can make your working relationship with her miserable.”

 

With that, I hung up the phone. As I did, I saw the same security guard coming after me. I held up my hands in surrender and headed for the exit. I probably wasn’t in the right frame of mind to see Grace anyway.

 

As I left the hospital, I went over what I had to do now. We didn’t offer our workers insurance—I mean, how could we?—so I’d probably have to dip into our warchests if her medical bills got too out of control. Or should I do that? I hadn’t with anyone else who got hurt. And I’d probably have to talk to Tamara and Freddie about all of this anyway, see if they had any suggestions about how to—

 

I shuffled to a stop. Abigail sat on the roof of my car.

 

“Is she okay?” she asked quietly.

 

I shrugged. “I have no idea. She was still with the docs, but I apparently was causing too much of a scene to stay.”

 

“Oh.”

 

I stood there, staring at her. Then finally, the question bubbled out of me: “What were you thinking?”

 

She looked down at the pavement. “I wanted to do something big for you. Wasn’t that the point of tonight? Go big or go home? I mean, I knew Grace was going to keep the title, but I figured if I did something big and flashy, that would help and—”

 

“And now our champ is injured and we don’t know how badly,” I finished for her.

 

“I didn’t do this on purpose, John.”

 

I sighed. “I know you didn’t.”

 

“Then why are you yelling at me like I did?”

 

“Because Grace is my best friend and she got hurt tonight!” I snapped. “She got hurt by you! And now, I don’t know how we’re going to explain this to her parents or what this might mean for the company or—”

 

Abigail slipped off the hood of the car, her eyes flashing. “Am I in there at all?”

 

“What?”

 

“You’re all worried about the company or Reverend Kil or Grace. Aren’t you at all upset about how I feel? I hurt someone tonight, John. This is exactly what I was worried about when you asked me to join RFW.”

 

“But not worried enough to not take a stupid risk.”

 

Her head snapped back as if I had slapped her. “I did that for you, remember.”

 

“Well, next time, don’t.”

 

She stared at me, then held up her hands. “I-I can’t. I just…”

 

She turned and ran away from me. I think she might have been sobbing, but I couldn’t tell for sure.

 

I stood there, frozen in place, unsure of what I could do. Should do. Go after Abigail? Go back into the hospital? Go home? Finally, I roared my frustration and kicked my car’s tires as hard as I could.

 

That wasn’t a smart idea. Now my foot hurt and I was still as angry and frustrated as before.

 

My phone chirped. I glanced at it, then froze. Grace.

 

Knee pretty banged up. Doc says I can’t wrestle for a month. You okay?

 

I stared at the message, tears stinging my eyes. Then I slid my phone into my pocket, got into my car, and drove out of the parking lot. I wasn’t going to go home. Didn’t want to. Didn’t know where I was heading. But all I knew was that I had to just drive.

[Blake Trask]

oh damn what a perfect storm of screw-uppery.

 

I have to admit I didn't quite realise John was supposed to be yelling at first, it didn't scan in the tone.

 

also I see you there mark. being Like That again.

[Scapino1974]

Sunday of Week 4, April 2022

 

I don’t think my parents ever really figured out what happened.

 

Oh, they knew something had happened to Grace. Mrs. Kil called them the next day and I could hear her crying on the other end of the phone. If Mom or Dad realized that Grace got injured at an RFW show, they didn’t say anything. They gave me my space.

 

Everyone did. For two weeks, I barely received any texts or emails from anyone at RFW. I think they knew. The only exception was Sabrina Wells. She sent me a to-the-point email asking for a $60 raise, bringing her pay to $100 per show. I granted that right away.

 

I didn’t see Abigail much. Not at all, really. The next week, rumors were going around campus that Abigail had dropped out of RCTC, which struck everyone as odd. We were so close to finishing our second year. Why would she do that now? A few people tried to ask me about it, but I played dumb. I didn’t know for sure what was happening. And I wasn’t sure I wanted to know.

 

Finally, at the end of the month, Grace came over to the house. She hobbled up the steps, her leg in a brace. Mom fussed all over her while I watched silently from one corner of the living room. Once Grace had settled into my dad’s favorite chair, Mom excused herself.

 

Grace glared at me. “What the hell is wrong with you?”

 

I blinked. “What?”

 

“Why did I have to drive all the way down here to make sure you were okay?” she demanded. “I texted you the night I got hurt, and I got nothing in return? And from what Cassidy tells me, you aren’t talking to Abigail either?”

 

“What does that matter to you?”

 

“Well, obviously Abigail isn’t my favorite person right now, but she deserves better than that! It was an accident. I’m fine. I’ll be ready to wrestle in about two weeks, just in time for the next All In.”

 

Oh, that would be great. Perfect thing to have on my conscience.

 

“So what did you tell your parents?”

 

She smiled thinly. “That I slipped getting out of the shower.”

 

“And they bought that?”

 

She shrugged. “I’m twenty-one. Doctor/patient confidentiality and all that. Even if they were to contact Dr. Edathil, he can’t tell them anything about my injury without my permission. And they definitely don’t have that.”

 

Well, one crisis averted.

 

Grace jabbed a finger at the couch. “Now sit down and fill your partner in on what’s going on.”

 

I did as I was told. Somehow, in spite of the “go big or go home” All In, we still managed to turn a profit (which baffled me, given how many workers we had used that month), making $3,216. We had almost made it to $80,000 in our warchest. I had quietly made the decision to start upgrading our merchandise again. I figured it was about time to do so, and better sales would likely help cushion our bottom line a bit more.

 

As we talked, some of the tension eased and Grace finally got me to open up about how I was feeling. I tried not to, but by the end of our talk, I was crying.

 

“So what are you going to do about Abigail?” she asked.

 

I shrugged. “As near as I can tell, she moved back to Albert Lea. I don’t think she’d want to talk to me after everything that happened.”

 

“Only one way to find out.”

 

“Yeah, I guess so. We’ll see.”

 

She studied me, then shrugged too. “Well, don’t give up on me, Ace. I’m just hurt, not dead. Things can only get better from here.”

 

I hoped that was true. Because there was no way I wanted to relive anything like those two weeks ever again.

[Aura]

What a roller coaster this has been. On the one hand, I want to cheer for Papa Swoll winning the big one, but with everything happening with Grace and Abigail... yeah...

[Scapino1974]

From RFW.com…

 

We have a new champion! So what will happen at this month’s All In?

 

Texas Hangman will face off against Quentin Queen

James Diaz will be in a 2-on-1 handicap match against Dreadmask

Minnesota Awesome will take on The Franchise © for the RFW Tag Team Championship

Grace “Diamond” Kil © will defend the RFW Women’s Championship against Ruby Reece

Papa Swoll © will make his first title defense against his tag-team partner Fro Sure for the RFW Championship

[Herrbear]

Texas Hangman will face off against Quentin Queen

 

James Diaz will be in a 2-on-1 handicap match against Dreadmask

 

Minnesota Awesome will take on The Franchise © for the RFW Tag Team Championship

 

Grace “Diamond” Kil © will defend the RFW Women’s Championship against Ruby Reece

 

Papa Swoll © will make his first title defense against his tag-team partner Fro Sure for the RFW Championship

[Scapino1974]

RFW All In

Thursday of Week 2, May 2022

Held at the Civic Center in Rochester, MN (Mid West Territory)

Broadcast on WrestleWorld (26,894)

408 in attendance

 

Curt and Martin welcomed the audience to the show.

 

“We had quite the eventful month last time. Two new champions were crowned and champion Grace Kil was injured in a freak accident. Will this month be as crazy?” Martin asked.

 

“Around here? There’s a definite possibility,” Curt added.

 

1) Grace’s entrance music hit and the crowd got to their feet, giving her a standing ovation. Grace walked down to the ring and carefully got into it. She basked in the adulation for a few moments before waving for everyone to quiet down.

 

“I appreciate that. I really do,” she said. “I’ll be honest, this last month was a tough one. I seriously worried that I wasn’t going to ever be able to compete in this or any other ring ever again. But the doctors gave me a clean bill of health and so, here I am. And I’m still the RFW Women’s Champion.”

 

The crowd roared in approval.

 

“Now a lot of you reached out to me on social media to make sure that I was okay. And for the most part, I appreciate the well wishes…although some of the suggestions some of you had for how to speed up my healing was a little creepy. Tone it down, my dudes. Tone it down.

 

“So thank you everyone for your support, and enjoy the—”

 

Grace’s words were cut off by Ruby Reece’s music. She came out to the ring entrance and sneered at her.

 

“So you’ve got a clean bill of health, Kil? At least, that’s what I heard. That’s why I asked the powers that be to give me a title shot against you later on. But hey, if you want to just leave the title in the ring, no one will think any less of you.”

 

Some of the audience members did not take that suggestion well. Grace let them shout some abuse and insults at Ruby before she answered.

 

“Ruby, I’m not going to back down from you or anyone else. You can’t break this Diamond. Not now, not ever. See you later.”

 

RATING: 48

 

2) ROGER MONTEIRO vs. DUSTIN DEUCE

 

The heat from Grace and Ruby jawing at each other bled through into this match. The fans really got into it as these two tore into each other. Dustin seemed to spend too much time mugging at the crowd and seemed way too confident that he had the match sewn up from the beginning. And, for the opening moments, it seemed like that was the case.

 

But after Dustin managed to get two near-falls on Roger, Roger came back to life and fought him off until he put Dustin down with the Eagle Chop.

 

WINNER: Roger Monteiro in 10:02

RATING: 40

 

3) Martin introduced some footage that was filmed last month after James Diaz’s match against Original Sinner.

 

James strutted into the backstage area, looking really pleased with himself (“And why wouldn’t he? We’ve spent a lot of time already talking about how Grace Kil was injured last month, but let’s not forget that James beat up Original Sinner so badly the match had to be stopped,” Martin said).

 

Before James could get too far, he was confronted by Dreadmask. Dreadnought and Masked Mauler were extremely upset about what happened out in the ring.

 

“You could have seriously injured Sinner,” Dreadnought snapped.

 

“Who knows, I just might have,” James said lightly.

 

“That doesn’t sit right with us, Diaz,” Masked Mauler growled.

 

“Well, if you two think you can stop me, why don’t we find out next month?” James asked. “The two of you against me.”

 

“You’re insane,” Dreadmask said. “We’ll destroy you!”

 

“You’re welcome to try,” James said. “But while you two may be big and strong, you’re forgetting that you’ll be facing off against the Son of the Monster.”

 

RATING: 35

 

4) CHARLIE CORNER vs. CASSIDY BLAINE

 

Charlie seemed a little upset as he and Sherry Smart came out to ringside. Sherry was saying something to him the whole way down to the ring that the microphones didn’t exactly pick up.

 

“She’s probably trying to explain her screw up,” Curt said. “Last month she said that Charlie was going to face off against a ‘hometown hero’ who was draped in glory. And Cassidy Blaine? Really?”

 

“Well, let’s not write off Cassidy just yet,” Martin said. “In Rochester, he is something of a hometown hero. Captain of his high school wrestling team. From what I understand, he was conference champ two years in a row.”

 

Curt made a scoffing sound just as the bell rang.

 

Charlie quickly got over any disappointment he might have been feeling and took the fight to Cassidy. Cassidy held his own, though, but Martin commented that it seemed like someone had lit a fire under Charlie. Maybe it was the crowd. For some reason, they really got into this match, cheering Charlie on as he got Cassidy down into a Figure Four leglock, getting Cassidy to tap out.

 

WINNER: Charlie Corner in 13:49

RATING: 32

 

5) Papa Swoll was in the locker room, checking himself out in the mirror with the title belt draped over his shoulder. He seemed to really like what he saw.

 

But then someone grabbed him by the shoulder and spun him around. Swoll found himself face-to-face with Fro Sure. But Fro wasn’t looking Swoll in the eye. Instead, he stared intently at the title. They stood there for a few moments before Swoll carefully set down the title. Fro followed the belt with his gaze until Swoll snapped his fingers in his face.

 

“You okay there, Fro Sure?” Swoll asked.

 

“Just a little confused about what happened last month is all,” Fro said. “I thought you and me were friends. Partners. Kings.”

 

“We are, Fro Sure,” Swoll said.

 

“Then why is it that you tossed me over the top rope last month? Why is it that you took my title?” Fro asked.

 

Swoll shrugged. “It’s just a match, Fro. Just a title. Someone had to win and hey, why couldn’t it be me?”

 

“Why couldn’t it—” Fro clenches his fingers. “Swoll, I’m the one who’s held that title the longest. I won it in December of 2020 and I held on to it until last month. 13 defenses in that year and a half, Swoll. And I lost it because you threw me over the top rope.”

 

“It’s a battle royal, Fro. What’d you want me to do, take a fall? Papa Swoll doesn’t play that way. That’s for sure, Fro Sure. And hey, you got your rematch for tonight. If you think there’s been some sort of mistake, you go ahead and fix it out there where it counts.” He picked up the belt and draped it over his shoulder again. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m gonna go get some pictures taken. ’Cuz I don’t plan on losing this any time soon.”

 

RATING: 46

 

6) TEXAS HANGMAN vs. QUENTIN QUEEN

 

Once again, the crowd really got into this match. Texas Hangman looked particularly focused and angry, which Martin said was understandable. “Last month, Hangman’s partner stabbed him in the back and left him to face three other tag teams on his own. It’s a miracle that we didn’t have three injuries last month,” Martin said.

 

“Well, he’d better not dwell in the past. As much as Fro Sure thinks the championship belongs to him, let’s not forget that Quentin Queen was the first RFW champ. If Hangman doesn’t stay focused on what’s in front of him, he’s gonna have a hard night,” Curt said.

 

Hangman took the fight to Quentin almost immediately, which caused Quentin to bail out of the ring. As a matter of fact, Quentin seemed to beg off of most of the match, ducking out of the way or hiding behind referee Quincy Jargon. Jargon kept ordering him back into the fight, but every time Hangman started to work up an offense, Quentin managed to stop it with another dodge.

 

Eventually, though, Hangman managed to catch Quentin in the ring and started to pound the holy hell out of him. Just as Hangman was setting him up for a Choke Slam, though, Quentin slipped out of the hold and went over to Jargon to complain about some imagined breach of the rules. Jargon ordered Hangman to back off until he could sort out Quentin’s story.

 

While Jargon’s back was turned, Wild Red Stallion hit the ring and attacked Hangman, laying him out with a Lakota Cutter. Stallion then bailed. Hangman staggered to his feet, only to have Quentin shove past the ref and hit Hangman with a Q-Ball, making a fast pin and then getting out of there as quickly as he could.

 

WINNER: Quentin Queen in 9:37

RATING: 47

 

7) Quentin stopped at the ring entrance and got a mic.

 

“Hey! Swoll and Sure! Don’t think I didn’t hear what you two were arguing about. Fro, you may have held the belt longer than me. And Swoll, you may have it right now. But I’m coming for that belt. You just wait and see. I’ll be the first two-time RFW Champion before you know it!”

 

RATING: 32

 

8) DREADMASK vs. JAMES DIAZ

 

Dreadmask made their way to the ring first, and it was pretty clear that they weren’t worried about James at all. As he made his entrance, Dreadnought and Masked Mauler nudged each other and chuckled. They even held open the ropes for him, acting with faux-deference to him. James didn’t seem to mind. Nor did he seem worried either.

 

Once the bell rang, James exploded out of his corner and smashed into Dreadnought. He nearly finished the match in the first thirty seconds before Dreadnought managed to break away and tag in Masked Mauler. Mauler got into the ring with a bit more caution, only to receive a similar beating.

 

“Normally, a handicap match like this would favor the two over the one,” Martin said. “But I’m not sure that’s the case here.”

 

“Or it could just be James being smart,” Curt said. “In a situation like this, you want to make the other team hesitate. By being so aggressive, James has gotten into Dreadmask’s heads and I don’t think he’ll be evicted any time soon.”

 

Curt’s observation proved correct. Even though Dreadnought and Mauler could tag in and out, it didn’t really matter. James didn’t back down from either of them and didn’t seem all that concerned.

 

In the end, while Dreadnought was the legal man, James managed to grab Mauler by the head and smashed him face-first into the corner post, knocking him off his perch. Then he went after Dreadnought and started to beat him down. Even after Dreadnought fell to the mat, James straddled him and rained down punches until referee Parker Terry called for the bell, stopping the match.

 

WINNER: James Diaz in 9:39

RATING: 42

 

9) James wasn’t done. He rolled out of the ring and retrieved Masked Mauler, shoving him under the bottom rope. He then positioned the two men in the middle of the ring. He retrieved a steel chair and used it to smash them both over the head, then dragged them closer to one of the corners. He then set the chair over both of their faces and, while Martin screamed in horror, jumped feet-first off the top turnbuckle onto the chair, driving it into his competitors’ faces. He then laughed and rolled out of the ring while medics swarmed out of the back.

 

RATING: 28

 

10) MINNESOTA AWESOME vs. THE FRANCHISE © for the RFW Tag Team Championship

 

As soon as the ring was cleared, the challengers came out. Normally, Minnesota Awesome liked to play to the crowd, but they looked grim and somber. Martin said he couldn’t blame them after what just happened. Then the champs made their entrance. Mark and Jack played it up, flirting with the girls and acting like they were hot stuff. Martin suggested they should really learn to read the room.

 

Once the match got started, the teams went to work. Martin commented that they seemed to be evenly matched, although Curt pointed out that Minnesota Awesome had been teaming together on the indy scene for a while. It was clear that they were able to work together a little more smoothly than the champs.

 

But that didn’t matter, as Jack put an end to the match with a PrydeFall on Clark. When Perry tried to break up the pin, Mark charged in and nearly speared him out of his boots, allowing the ref to make the three-count.

 

WINNERS: The Franchise in 12:03

RATING: 37

 

11) GRACE “DIAMOND” KIL © vs. RUBY REECE for the RFW Women’s Championship

 

The roof was nearly blown off as Grace made her way to the ring. But she seemed somewhat subdued. “Not that we can blame her,” Martin said. “The last time she was in the ring, she injured her knee. She’s probably having some mixed feelings about being back in the ring so soon after being cleared medically.”

 

“If she’s nervous, it’s her own fault,” Curt said. “No one would have thought any less of her if she turned down Ruby’s challenge tonight. But she signed off on the match.”

 

Ruby made her way to the ring and, as she rolled in, she smiled ferally at Grace and pointed at her knee. Grace glared back.

 

Then the bell rang and Ruby ran straight for Grace, clearly aiming for her knee.

 

Grace danced out of the way and quickly took the fight to Ruby. The two of them straight up brawled in the middle of the ring. Any time Ruby tried to target Grace’s injured knee, Grace managed to protect herself and unleashed a withering assault on Ruby that caused the challenger to back off. Martin said that was smart, but Curt countered that it actually signaled how frightened Grace was about being injured again, a sign of weakness Ruby clearly wanted to exploit.

 

As much as Ruby tried to catch the champ and take advantage of her trepidation, Grace didn’t let up. Eventually, Grace managed to put Ruby down with a Diamond’s Edge. She then quickly got out of the ring and stood near the entrance ramp, staring at it with wide eyes and letting out a visible shaky breath.

 

WINNER: Grace “Diamond” Kil in 20:02

RATING: 57

 

12) PAPA SWOLL © vs. FRO SURE for the RFW Championship

 

A pretty good match to cap off the night. Both competitors were focused on the win for the entire match. Martin pointed out that these two were friends and partners, which meant that they had a good level of respect for each other.

 

Or at least, they did. Swoll seemed to want to play things fair and even, but Fro clearly wasn’t feeling that. Fro seemed to be particularly focused on getting the win any way he could, keeping after Swoll with an intensity that Martin said he found somewhat disturbing.

 

Toward the end of the match, Fro managed to hit Swoll with two successive For Sures, only to have Swoll kick out both times. He tried to go for a third, but Swoll shoved him into the ropes. As Fro ricocheted off, Swoll hit him with the Pounce and managed to get the pin.

 

WINNER: Papa Swoll in 15:30

RATING: 47

 

***

 

The mood backstage was much lighter as the show wrapped up. People were chatting and laughing with each other and I felt a whole lot better than I did a month ago. Yeah, we had hit some rough waters but it seemed like the worst was behind us.

 

I motioned for everyone to gather around. “We bounced back pretty well and I’m really proud of all of you. Last month was supposed to be our ‘go big or go home’ night, but it feels like we all stepped up the way we needed to. But there are three people I want to really congratulate on a job well done. Jack, you really shone in the tag match and I appreciate the work you’re doing there. Swoll, I think you’re going to make a great champ going forward. And Ruby, thank you for that match. We’re going to keep going, and I think we’re going to do amazing things.”

 

There was a smattering of applause, and then people drifted back to their conversations. But before I could get to work cleaning up, Swoll caught my attention. I stepped over to him and he steered me to an empty corner.

 

“Two things real quick, Ace. I noticed Abi isn’t here. You two okay?” he whispered.

 

I clamped my mouth shut. I considered lying, but that didn’t seem wise. After all, Swoll could always ask Grace and I doubted she would lie for me about this. So I shook my head once.

 

Swoll sighed and shook his head. “I’m sorry, man. I really am. You wanna talk about it?”

 

Again, I shook my head.

 

“If you ever do, call me. I got two ears, and they’re always open. And second…well, now that I have the strap, I’m thinking I need to talk to you about my pay. I signed on for thirty bucks a show. I’m thinking I’m worth about a hundred-twenty at this point. Sound okay?”

 

I thought about it and nodded. Swoll deserved that.

 

He clapped me on the shoulder. “Thanks, man. Knew I could count on you.”

 

FINAL RATING: 48

 

 

Quick Results:

 

From RFW.com...

 

Here are the results from tonight's All In:

 

Roger Monteiro defeated Dustin Deuce

Charlie Corner defeated Cassidy Blaine

Quentin Queen defeated Texas Hangman

James Diaz defeated Dreadmask

The Franchise © defeated Minnesota Awesome to retain the RFW Tag Team Championship

Grace "Diamond" Kil © defeated Ruby Reece to retain the RFW Women's Championship

Papa Swoll © defeated Fro Sure to retain the RFW Championship

[Scapino1974]

QAW BattleBowl 2022

Friday of Week 3, May 2022

Held in Wichita, KS (Mid South Region)

 

I was going to die out in the ring. I just knew it. But that was only if I could make it out there first. And given the way my body was trembling, I wasn’t sure I could.

 

What was I thinking, coming back so soon? I heard what Curt said on commentary after the last All In. And what he said made sense. I had been on the bench for a month. I had never been hurt like that before. I could still remember what it felt like when my knee twisted as Abigail came down on me. And yeah, the docs had cleared me to wrestle a week and a half earlier. So when Ace asked me to get back in the ring right away, I didn’t even think twice. And Ruby had been good for me. As much as she made it look like she was going after my knee, she had been really careful with me.

 

But now I was back at QAW… I screwed my eyes shut and tried to block out the noise.

 

Everyone had welcomed me back to the show. They said they missed me. And then Jackson told me that I had been booked for the main event: a ten-woman battle royal. Emma May would win; she was on a hot streak and seemed to be on track to become champ at some point soon. I knew everyone in the ring with me would be careful. No one wanted anyone to get hurt.

 

But unlike a one-on-one match with Ruby Reece, this was ten people. Ten! More than were in the match the month before. So much easier to accidentally hit someone. So much easier for someone to get out of place and wind up in the wrong place at the wrong time.

 

My knee had started to ache the moment I heard about it, and my stomach started twisting soon after. Once I got dressed and was supposedly ready, I wound up sitting a corner and just waiting. Giving my mind time to spin up all sorts of visions of what could happen to me if I got into that ring.

 

By the time the second-to-last match started (Juana Hurricane taking on Little Miss Perfect for the World title), I felt like I had been frozen in place. My heart was slamming into my ribs so hard I thought they would bruise if not break. And I could barely keep my breathing under control. Worse, no one seemed to notice…or care.

 

At least, they didn’t until Sabrina Wells noticed me. She whispered something to Honey Badger, who hurried off and came back with Sherie. Sherie knelt down next to me and said…something. I have no idea what.

 

Then off in the distance, the crowd roared and I could hear Juana Hurricane’s music playing. The match was done. It was time for ours to start. Only I knew I couldn’t move. Wouldn’t. No way.

 

Sherie frowned, then signaled to Sabrina. “Tell the boys in the booth to play a couple of promo packages for cover, then get Jackson back here.”

 

Sabrina nodded and hustled out of the room. A minute later, she came back with Jackson in tow. Jackson took one look at me, and sighed. He knelt down next to me.

 

“Kil, look at me.” He touched my shoulder. “Look at me.”

 

Somehow I managed to turn my head a fraction of an inch. But that was too much. My knee started throbbing.

 

“I get it. I do. You’re coming off an injury and now, this is your first big match back and you can’t do it. You’re gonna stay rooted there the rest of the night. I’ve been there.”

 

Sherie shouted for the other competitors to get lined up for the final match. A few of them shot looks in my direction. Some actually looked sympathetic.

 

“Look, back when I was still a young pup, I was working a match down in Mobile. Biggest match of my career up to that point. Was gonna put my name in lights, I knew it. Instead, I got sloppy and wound up tumbling out of the ring onto the cement. Damn near broke my neck in two places. I remember lying on the floor, staring at the lights, and thinking, that was it. I was done. I was sidelined for a year so I could heal.”

 

“Pam, go!” Sherie yelled. “Coco, you’re up next!”

 

My gaze flicked toward the locker room door.

 

“So I spent that year working as an office drone while my neck healed up. And I gotta be honest, there were days I wasn’t sure I coudl go back into the ring. I wanted to, but every time I thought about doin’ it, I just locked up. Couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t move. Could barely think. Y’know what I mean?”

 

Somehow I managed a small nod, taking in a ragged breath.

 

He patted my other knee. “But I couldn’t stay away. Soon as the docs cleared me, I went right back. But when I was supposed to go out into the ring, I froze. Wasn’t sure I’d make it. Sat in a corner kinda like this one and didn’t want to move.

 

“But then this guy named Michael Steele, this big sumbitch who was our road agent, came over and smacked me in the chest and said, ‘This is what you’re gonna do, Brayfield. You’re gonna go out into the ring, slap that SOB ’cross the face, and then have him clothesline you out of your boots. Take that bump as hard as you can, so hard you smash the ring to pieces. And then you finish that match and show us why you came back.’

 

“I thought Steele was nuts, but you didn’t argue with him. So that’s what I did. Slapped my opponent for real. Whispered for him to clothesline me hard. I hit the mat so hard I thought for sure I had broken my neck again.”

 

How was any of this supposed to help? But then Sherie called for Sabrina to head out to the ring.

 

“But I hadn’t. And you know what? That time, starin’ up at the lights, I realized I was gonna be all right. I got up off the mat and kept fighting.”

 

“Did you win?” I whispered.

 

“My first night back? Hell no! He buried me but good. But I realized something: you can get hurt. You can get knocked down. What counts is how you get back up again.

 

“So this is what you’re gonna do. You’re number seven out there. I want you to go out there, get in Pamela Rojo’s face, and slap her. Then tell her to suplex you and hit you with a running powerbomb. Then you get up and keep fighting, got it?”

 

He was crazy. Absolutely nuts. My body trembled harder and I thought for sure I was going to fall apart.

 

“Kil, listen to me. If you’ve come up on a wall you can’t get over or through, there’s no shame in turning back. None of us would blame you. But only you can decide if that’s the case for you. So what’s it going to be?”

 

I took several deep breaths, then nodded. He helped me up and patted me on the shoulder. “Go get ’em.”

 

***

 

I stumbled back into the locker room, my back sore and I was pretty sure that I’d have cartoon birds swarming around my head if that actually happened in real life. But I had done it. I had gone out, smacked Pamela Rojo in the face, and she had absolutely destroyed me. I hit the mat hard after the powerbomb and stared up at the lights.

 

And as I did, I started laughing. I was going to be okay. I was going to be just fine. Granted, I was only in the ring for another three minutes before Ashley Grover tossed me out of the ring, where Sabrina and Coco caught me just in case.

 

Emma May did indeed win the battle royal itself, but I felt like I had walked off with the championship. And the way Jackson winked at me at the end of the night, I thought he might have thought so too.

 

The Diamond was back. And I wasn’t going to let anything stop me.

[Scapino1974]

Sunday of Week 4, May 2022

 

I frowned as I read the email. According to WrestleWorld, our contract with them was going to expire in a month. How could that be possible? We had signed for nine months back in… oh yeah, last year. Wow. Time had flown by a lot faster than I expected. I shot back an email, asking for an extension on the same terms. Within an hour, we had the contract done and ready to go.

 

I checked the financials next. We had made almost $1,500 in May, bringing our warchest to just over eighty grand. We were solid financially.

 

So why did I feel so unsettled?

 

My gaze skipped over my desk, then up to the bulletin board, landing finally on a picture of Abigail and me from a few months earlier. She had snapped a selfie of the two of us during one of our study sessions, her head resting on my shoulder and a twinkle in her eye. I had tried to look tough but came off looking kind of stupid. But she was so stunning, I had printed a copy and tacked it to my board.

 

My fingers brushed my cellphone. I hadn’t spoken to her since April. At first, I had convinced myself I was too angry at what happened. Then I figured that if she wanted to talk, she knew where to find me. And then it was just a matter of inertia. So much time had passed, how could I call her.

 

But for the first time in weeks, I kind of wanted to hear her voice again. She’d probably hang up on me right away. Or just not answer at all. But a part of me was missing. And it hurt. It hurt a lot more than I thought it would.

 

No. I couldn’t call. Not out of the blue like this. Too much. But I picked up the phone and shot off a text before I could get cold feet.

 

Hey, you up? Can we talk?

 

I sat and stared at the screen, holding my breath in hopes that would make her reply faster. And sure enough, the bubble with the three dots appeared. Then disappeared. Then reappeared. Then vanished and didn’t come back.

 

I sighed. Worth a shot. But I wasn’t ready to give up on us. Not yet.

[Scapino1974]

From RFW.com…

 

What’s coming up at the next All In?

 

• Texas Hangman will face off against hometown hero Cassidy Blaine
  
• John “Ace” Hart will go toe-to-toe with Kalder Tagg
  
• Former champion Fro Sure will take on Wolfie Tagg
  
• Allie Perks will fight Modesty Pardor
  
• Chip Martin and Charlie Corner will take on the Franchise © for the RFW Tag Team Championship
  
• Grace “Diamond” Kil © will defend the RFW Women’s Championship against Joy Rider
  
• Papa Swoll © will take on Quentin Queen for the RFW Championship