Vignette 21: The first match back

He watched Hunter get literally decimated in the ring by the twin furies of Hall and Pac and sighed. As long as Hunter's thigh injury wasn't worsened, everything would be fine. He sighed and looked at Stephanie's ex as he rolled around the RAW ring, blood dripping from his forehead. He got up on his knees while Scott and X-Pac retreated up the ramp and he leaned over the middle rope. And through the curtain of blood leaking down his face, he smiled.

Vignette 22: Not quite final hurrah

His last WWFE match. Hunter strode into the ring with a grin that belied the reality of a man about to engage in a handicap match against Austin, the Rock and Undertaker with the whole RAW roster acting as lumberjacks. Rocky was the new champion and was doing double duty on RAW and SMACKDOWN. Hunter took his sweet time, trash talking every wrestler he passed along the way, doing his water bit before getting into the ring.
To say he fought hard would have been an understatement and an insult. He found like a man possessed, kicking out of numerous three counts and outwrestling all three of his adversaries. While he was being held down by Taker and Austin, Rocky went to town on him, hitting him with right hand after right hand. His chest red and stinging from the numerous hits, Hunter slumped to the mat and while he tried to keep himself from slipping into unconsciousness, he saw something out of the corner of his eyes that made him fight twice as hard.
With a head butt, he low blowed Taker, and getting up on his knees, he went for pay dirt as he cupped Austin's balls and twisted. With two of his opponents holding on to their genitals for dear life, Hunter got up and nodded to the apron where Stephanie was standing, poised to get into the ring.
"Get out of the ring!"
"No... I want to see you get your ass kicked!"
"Get out of this ring now or I will kick your ass."
"Oh no you won't. Rocky, let him have it!"
"Truth be told Steph, I'd rather see you get it. Hunter, whenever you feel ready."
"Nooooooooooo..."
Moving quickly, Hunter pulled Stephanie's head between his massive thighs and pedigreed her while Rocky made sure Kurt didn't interfere.
"Bet that felt good," the Rock asked the Game.
"Felt great."
"This won't though."
Rocky relaunched the attack and by the time Austin and Taker joined him, Hunter had nothing left in him to fight them off with. He was battered and bruised and all three men covered him for the three-count. While he lay in the ring, Austin and Taker led the lumberjacks off the ramp, Rocky closing the march. Dredging up what little strength he had, Hunter pulled himself back up to his feet and raised his hands in the air in a sign of victory. The crowd rose to their feet and acclaimed the hero who'd given them so much of himself. On the ramp, only Rocky was left and he paused, looking at his former coworker. He looked at him for a good long time before coming down the ramp to the ring.
The two men stood face to face, in silence for a long minute, the crowd watching them with bated breath. With a smile, Hunter stuck his hand out for a handshake. Rocky took the olive branch, shaking Hunter's hand firmly. Then, impulsively, Hunter pulled Rocky in for a long hug that had the roof shaking from the fans' cheers. Then, Rocky left the ring, leaving Hunter to pose on the turnbuckles for his fans.

Vignette 23: Word of medicine

"How bad is it doc?"
"Three months. Usually I'd say six months but I remember his last rehab... three months."
"Thanks Doc." Hunter said before turning to his new boss and grinning sheepishly, "Sorry."
"Hey, I was there, I saw what they did to you. And anyhow, we're not coming onto the scene until all the people we have on board are free and clear and that's not for another six months."
"Man... Vince is going to be so shocked when he finds out."
"Oh, don't underestimate Vince. He knows it's coming... he just doesn't know when or from where. That's our only advantage... the fact that he doesn't know who I am or how badly I'm going to cripple him."

Vignette 24: Masked

Five months after Hunter's departure and still nothing... Vince was going crazy. Everyone of his quitters had dropped right off the face of the earth and into oblivion. Whoever was running this new organization was keeping a tight lid on things. And now, as he looked at his private investigator's newest report, he felt even more stumped. Bret was strongly committed to WWA and made no bones about it. He wasn't the mastermind behind the new promotion.
"Heyman," Vince said, looking up as the door to his office opened.
"Hey Vince."
"You were right about Hart. He's not the man we're looking for."
"Yeah, I figured as much. I got this in the mail."
Heyman handed Vince a flyer. The New Era of Mystery. Remember the good old days of the Masked Wrestlers? Well, those days are back. To see wrestling as it was meant to be, join us at the Jean-Béliveau Arena in Longueil, Quebec and revisit the good old days.
"Buy tickets. We'll have a few of our people see what this is all about."
"All right."

Vignette 25: Infiltration failed

It was like watching a classic match from the 1970s, Heyman thought as he watched the show from the front row. And from the fans' reactions, they were loving it. The announcing was broadcasted over loud speakers, all of it in French, and from the looks of things, most of the people assembled understood the language. He looked toward the ring and shook his head. The two men wrestling around in the ring wearing full body tights in bold colors had the same general shape of Mike Sanders and Maven and their style was similar, but nothing for sure. The fact that their tights were padded and that their hair was completely covered certainly didn't help. Frustration made him want to explode. The wrestlers weren't speaking to each other, merely listening to the referee so their voices couldn't serve as an even better indicator.
Finally, the maybe-Raven won with a small package and Paul moved to his feet and hurried to the possible entrance of the backstage area. He swept the heavy black curtain aside and found himself facing a large black man with huge biceps.
"Let me in."
"Qui êtes-vous?" Who are you?
"My name is Paul Heyman and I have business in the back."
"Votre nom ne figure pas sur la liste autorisée, donc non." Your name is not on the authorized list, so no.
"Get out of my way."
The man guarding the door nodded to a few of his equally massive colleagues who came over, plucked Heyman off his feet and carried him, kicking and screaming out of the arena.

More Extension
More Series Fics
More Fan Fic
Main Page