16. Two Weeks Left
Vesvius
The Wicked God
"Yo!" you call across the ring. Allie pauses where she is, getting ready for another springboard attempt, and looks at you questioningly. "Do you mind giving me some pointers? It just doesn't feel right."
She shoots you a blinding smile. "'Course! Just… just gimme a minute." With that said, she launches herself into the sky one more time, letting out a loud peal of laughter as she does a three-quarters flip in midair. Allie lands in a perfect senton, back and shoulders crashing against the dummy.
You move across the ring to offer a hand but it's unneeded. Allie coils her body, legs over her head, and springs off of the ground in a textbook kip-up. "Alright!" she says, face glowing. "Let's see what you're fucking up!"
The two of you head back to the apron and before you even take off, Allie has correction after correction for you. Your legs aren't spread far enough apart. Your grip needs to be a bit looser on the rope. You need to bend your knees a little before you start to flex your legs for the jump.
You nod in thanks. None of this would've really occurred to you beforehand, but it all seems to make sense. You prepare, standing in the perfect position, and jump-
Only for Allie to force you back down to the apron with a hand on your shoulder. She tsks at you, smiling as she does it. "Nu-uh, Eager. You try, but you land on the rope, and then hop down. Nothing else."
Huh? Isn't the whole point of learning to springboard… springboarding? But you asked for her help, and you're not stupid enough to turn it down now that it's here. You do as she asks, jumping and landing on the rope before hopping down, landing on your feet. Allie stares at your feet, shaking her head.
"We've got a lot more to go over." she says with a sigh.
The corrections keep coming after you make the attempt, one after the other without pause. You need to put both feet firmly on the rope. You need to adjust your body weight this way and that. Again, your knees are all out of position. Some of her advice doesn't sit well with you, doesn't mesh with what you know of your body, but you take it as best you can.
Finally, finally, two minutes before your usual ending time, Allie decides you're ready to make an attempt. An actual one, not an aborted one like you've been doing. You stand as directed. You hop once, twice in the air, and then leap-
-you land on the rope-
-and you fly through the air in a springboard splash.
It's not beautiful. It's not a work of art like Allie's. Your arms and legs are flailing a bit, and whatever noise you're making isn't the laughter she lets out, but it doesn't matter. You fly through the air and come crashing down on the dummy just like you wanted to. And while you weren't laughing in flight, you definitely are now.
You hop up. The pains of the day are irrelevant. You just did a fucking springboard splash! You spin, arms outstretched as you let out a cry of victory! Jack's watching you with an amused look on his face but fuck him, you got this! This is yours! Nothing is going to-
Allie soars through the air and lands on the dummy in a reclining position, arms behind her head.
She raises one eyebrow at you. "Don't get cocky."
...Alright. Maybe you have more work to do.
And work you do. There's only a month left in your training, and for the next week and a half, you devote yourself to the air. You do all of Daybreak's lessons, you absorb all of her teachings like a sponge, you study tape, take notes and trade gimmick ideas. But whenever you can, you're either flying off the top turnbuckle or springboarding yourself through the air, Allie either cheering you on or popping your ego when you get just a little too proud.
The two of you aren't alone. Once she resigns herself to the fact that you're going to keep doing 'stupid shit', Daybreak chimes in with a few tips that neither you or Allie would've figured out on your own. And Jack… while your friend has no interest in flying high- what's wrong with him?- he proves to be an excellent base and a good target.
Even if he's not entirely pleased with that last role.
"Come on…" he groans out. "Do we really have to do this again?"
You nod from your usual spot on the apron. "Yeah. Sorry man, but we need to get this down if we want to have any hope of using it outside Horizon. So we need the practice."
Allie seems much less reluctant from her position opposite you, on the other side of the ring. "Practice makes perfect!" she chirps. And without any further buildup, she springboards through the air, barely touching Jack as she rolls through a somersault senton. She doesn't stop with one roll either, continuing on until she's out of the way of your way. The whole thing takes maybe five seconds.
You're too busy to count; you're already in the air as she gets out of the danger zone, arms spread wide as you springboard into a splash. Gotta focus here. Arms and legs braced just so. You need your limbs to take the impact so that Jack barely gets touched- and you can't make it look like you're doing it. To an outside observer, it has to look like you're crushing Jack beneath your weight.
The mat rushes up to you and you barely register that Jack's face is perfectly motionless and his eyes are screwed tight. It wouldn't be the first time you've gotten this wrong and he's taken all the impact. But not this time. Not this-
You land with your limbs spread just a bit too wide, and Jack takes the impact to his gut. "Motherfucker." he grunts out.
Shit. You did it again. But hey, it looks like you did it better this time. It looks like he's only winded. A smile breaks out on your face.
"Oooooh." Allie groans. "So close, but so far away. You can do better. Let's go for it one more time and then-"
Daybreak's ringing tones cut through your practice. "Hey, minions! Finish it up and come here!"
You obediently hop off of Jack and offer him a hand up, which he takes gratefully. He leans on you for a moment as he collects himself. You must've hit him more than you thought. But he recovers quickly and the three of you make your way over towards where Daybreak's sitting at the monitor. There's a match frozen on the screen- the Poison of Man vs. the Dynamite Dudes from XPC: Shockwave, unless you miss your guess. Naomi has the remote in her hand, and she's gesturing at the screen, explaining something to Chloe.
The rest of the class joins you shortly. Nick and Caleb finish up their headlock-takeover drills, and Leah wraps up the promo she's cutting in front of Angelina. Daybreak gets up out of her seat as the last of them parks themselves in the plastic chairs. You glance behind you, seeing the rows and rows of empty seats. So many of you gone.
Daybreak grabs your attention with a brisk clap, taking her usual place in front of group. "Alright kiddies." she says, rubbing her hands together. "No more ring training today. We've got final exams to prep for."
Whatever mumbled conversations that were going on fade into silence. Final Exams. You knew they had to be coming; there's no way Daybreak would let you claim that you graduated from her school without proving that you were competent. But you had no idea what form they were going to take. And with only two weeks left of Daybreak's promised twelve weeks of training, you were starting to get antsy.
But the wait is over. Daybreak looks from person to person, wide smile on her face as if she can read your minds. The silence grows and swells like a physical thing. Daybreak milks it for all it's worth. Part of you is annoyed, but most of you is appreciative; Daybreak's a pro wrestler to her core, no matter what she says.
Finally she claps once more. "Okay. So final exams. You've got two of 'em."
"First. How many of you are familiar with the local scene?" She asks. A few people speak up, Jack among them. Daybreak nods and goes on, "And how many of you have heard of the 'SWF'?"
No one answers that. Daybreak barks out a laugh. "Just like I thought. The 'Supreme Wrestling Federation' is a local indy. A micro-indy if that's even possible. They draw maybe thirty people a show and have maybe ten regular workers. They pay chump change, and the entire thing exists because the owner likes to pretend he's champion of something."
"And in a few days, you're gonna make your debut for them!"
Her words draw a small rumble of conversation from you all. She cuts it off with a slashing motion over her throat. "Uh-uh, don't get too excited. You're going to be making your debut there. You're sure as shit not gonna win. I've got an agreement with the boss there; I let my students get their first taste of an actual crowd in his ring, his guys get some wins."
"But still it's your first actual match. That's the first part of your final. Go to the SWF, do a good job, don't get hurt, and you're good." Daybreak gives you a few moments to let that sink in.
"Since you're heading into an actual locker room there're a few lessons I want you to pick up. These have nothing to do with actual in-ring shit. Hell, you'd probably figure them out yourselves in a few weeks. But what's the point of having a teacher if they're not going to tell you what to do."
Daybreak holds up one finger. "First: every time you go into a locker room, you shake everyone's hand, introduce yourself, and thank them for letting you be on the card. It doesn't matter how big a deal that person is. You shake their hand, you introduce yourself, you thank them. Every. Single. Time. You only stop when they start getting sick of it. Every person in that room is your senior until they're not. Show them some respect. Even if they suck."
Another finger. "Two. You're gonna wind up drinking with these people. If you don't drink, get ready to be called a pussy. But if you do, keep a thumb on your beer. It's fucking hilarious to slip a sleeping pill in a bottle and watch a green rookie stagger around a room. If they're not nice, it's gonna be stronger than a Nyquill too. So unless you like getting drugged, thumb on the beer."
"Three." She says, looking around the group at all of you. "Your money. Count it. Every time. Some promoters are good guys and they wouldn't even imagine trying to fuck a worker over. Most aren't. Count your money right there. And when you find out you're twenty short, smile, and say you're sure it's an accident. You'll get your cash, and the fuckwad will know not to try that again. At least for a while."
A final finger. "And fourth." Daybreak's smile grows to shark-like proportions. "Every once in awhile, a fan's going to try and hop in the ring. Maybe he's so into the match he wants to help. More likely he's a drunk bumblefuck who wants to prove he's a tough guy. Some bosses'll tell you to let em go and let security handle it. But if they're in the ring, they're a danger to you, the guy you're working with, and everyone else. Fuck em up. If they get in the ring, their ass is yours. Be ready to handle it."
Daybreak waggles the four fingers at you all again, emphasizing each of them. "Those're my four commandments. Follow em, and maybe you won't get fucked over too bad." With her lessons done, she turns and moves to walk towards the stairs.
Her steps are slow though. She's waiting for something. After a second you realize what it is and hold in a smile. Daybreak's a showman to the core. "But boss," you ask, voice pitched to carry. "You said that that was only the first part of our final. What's the next?"
She spins so quickly you know you guessed right; she was just waiting for someone to ask. "I'm glad you reminded me, Fanatic!" She near-giggles, marching back to the front of the room. "Part two is my favorite part!"
"After your fun time at the SWF, there's going to be six class days left. For the first five, you're going to do whatever it is. Skip class. Work on a hole in your game. Whatever. I'm at your disposal. And on the sixth?"
"You have your second match, right here, in that ring." She points at the very familiar ring in the middle of the basement.
No one answers that for a moment. Leah finally speaks up. "Uh, boss? Who's working with us?"
"Excellent question, Dollface!" Daybreak answers. "You're gonna work a very, very special opponent. So get on whatever gimmick you're practicing, figure out what you want to do, and prepare to bring what passes as your A game. Because you're going to be working with me."
Again, no one speaks. Nick eventually raises one hand. "Um, boss?" he asks tentatively. "We work with you every day."
Daybreak snorts. "Not like this you haven't." She looks each and every one of you in the eyes. "Because on the last day of class, you're not the only ones gimmicking up. And I've never had a shit match when I'm painted up. Never. I had a good match against a green as shit fitness model when I had a bum leg and a dislocated arm. I can have one with you fucks."
"So if we have a shit match? It's on you. You're the one piece of chickenshit I can't make chicken salad out of. And in that case, you fail part two of your final."
With that, she turns and walks away from the group. For real this time.
Class breaks up soon after that. Your trio is too caught up in the idea of your first matches to even think about your usual extra practice. The three of you head out when everyone else does for once, heads together as you start planning your match against Daybreak. You talk during the jog to the motel and continues when you get into your room.
It's not just that it's your first and second matches. It's that your second match is against Daybreak. Not the woman, the actual character. The being you saw on your screen when you were a kid, smashing women and men alike into quivering husks of their former selves with nothing more than an attitude and the occasional lead pipe. One of the toughest motherfuckers to ever get between the ropes. You train with her every day, you took her and her daughter out for ice cream, but still there's something almost mythical about your teacher when you imagine her with her hair spiked up and her face painted that black and gold.
You, Jack, and Allie talk for hours about it, throwing out ideas for matches and finishes. It's only when the sun is well below the horizon and you can see the stars through your window that Jack brings up your first match. "How about the SWF?" he asks. "Who do you think we're going to work there?"
You shrug. "No idea. But it doesn't sound like it's going to be anyone that good. And it's hard to plan without actually meeting the guy you're working."
"Or even what kind of match you're going to have." Allie chimes in.
Jack scoffs. "It's going to be a straight match." he says. "There's no way Daybreak would have us do anything more complicated than that for our first match. If we wanted to learn with thumbtacks and fire, we should've gone to Philly."
Allie throws your pillow at him to your annoyance. That's yours! You brought it from home! But she doesn't acknowledge you besides flipping you off as she talks. "Not like that, dumbass. I mean if we're having a singles or what?"
You grab your pillow to protect it from any further abuse. "You think she'd put us in a tag?" you ask.
She shrugs. "I don't see why she wouldn't if we asked. Chloe and Naomi were talking about it when we left. Daybreak'd probably have us do whatever kind of match we asked for."
Jack nods slowly. "Yeah. Makes sense." He looks at Allie and then at you. "You guys want to do singles or what?"
Hmm. This needs some thought.
What kind of match do you want to ask for at the SWF show?
[] A singles match. You want to get in the ring with no one else to depend on and no one else relying on you.
[] A tag team match. You want to team up with one of your friends and show whatever crowd shows up what you can do as a unit.
-[] You'll team with Jack.
-[] You'll team with Allie.
[] A trios match. You, Jack, and Allie have come this far together. You don't see any reason why the three of you shouldn't make your pro debuts at the same time.
-------
Mechanic Changes
Skill Change
Aerial: Mediocre 221/250 -> Average 346/500
Trait Change
Major Trait: Aerial Enthusiast levels up to Core Trait: Natural Aerialist: In addition to the standard bonuses (see mechanics), Tommy gets an additional 75% XP every time he works on his Aerial Skills!
Relationship Change
Allison Gray: Friend -> Ally.
She shoots you a blinding smile. "'Course! Just… just gimme a minute." With that said, she launches herself into the sky one more time, letting out a loud peal of laughter as she does a three-quarters flip in midair. Allie lands in a perfect senton, back and shoulders crashing against the dummy.
You move across the ring to offer a hand but it's unneeded. Allie coils her body, legs over her head, and springs off of the ground in a textbook kip-up. "Alright!" she says, face glowing. "Let's see what you're fucking up!"
The two of you head back to the apron and before you even take off, Allie has correction after correction for you. Your legs aren't spread far enough apart. Your grip needs to be a bit looser on the rope. You need to bend your knees a little before you start to flex your legs for the jump.
You nod in thanks. None of this would've really occurred to you beforehand, but it all seems to make sense. You prepare, standing in the perfect position, and jump-
Only for Allie to force you back down to the apron with a hand on your shoulder. She tsks at you, smiling as she does it. "Nu-uh, Eager. You try, but you land on the rope, and then hop down. Nothing else."
Huh? Isn't the whole point of learning to springboard… springboarding? But you asked for her help, and you're not stupid enough to turn it down now that it's here. You do as she asks, jumping and landing on the rope before hopping down, landing on your feet. Allie stares at your feet, shaking her head.
"We've got a lot more to go over." she says with a sigh.
The corrections keep coming after you make the attempt, one after the other without pause. You need to put both feet firmly on the rope. You need to adjust your body weight this way and that. Again, your knees are all out of position. Some of her advice doesn't sit well with you, doesn't mesh with what you know of your body, but you take it as best you can.
Finally, finally, two minutes before your usual ending time, Allie decides you're ready to make an attempt. An actual one, not an aborted one like you've been doing. You stand as directed. You hop once, twice in the air, and then leap-
-you land on the rope-
-and you fly through the air in a springboard splash.
It's not beautiful. It's not a work of art like Allie's. Your arms and legs are flailing a bit, and whatever noise you're making isn't the laughter she lets out, but it doesn't matter. You fly through the air and come crashing down on the dummy just like you wanted to. And while you weren't laughing in flight, you definitely are now.
You hop up. The pains of the day are irrelevant. You just did a fucking springboard splash! You spin, arms outstretched as you let out a cry of victory! Jack's watching you with an amused look on his face but fuck him, you got this! This is yours! Nothing is going to-
Allie soars through the air and lands on the dummy in a reclining position, arms behind her head.
She raises one eyebrow at you. "Don't get cocky."
...Alright. Maybe you have more work to do.
And work you do. There's only a month left in your training, and for the next week and a half, you devote yourself to the air. You do all of Daybreak's lessons, you absorb all of her teachings like a sponge, you study tape, take notes and trade gimmick ideas. But whenever you can, you're either flying off the top turnbuckle or springboarding yourself through the air, Allie either cheering you on or popping your ego when you get just a little too proud.
The two of you aren't alone. Once she resigns herself to the fact that you're going to keep doing 'stupid shit', Daybreak chimes in with a few tips that neither you or Allie would've figured out on your own. And Jack… while your friend has no interest in flying high- what's wrong with him?- he proves to be an excellent base and a good target.
Even if he's not entirely pleased with that last role.
"Come on…" he groans out. "Do we really have to do this again?"
You nod from your usual spot on the apron. "Yeah. Sorry man, but we need to get this down if we want to have any hope of using it outside Horizon. So we need the practice."
Allie seems much less reluctant from her position opposite you, on the other side of the ring. "Practice makes perfect!" she chirps. And without any further buildup, she springboards through the air, barely touching Jack as she rolls through a somersault senton. She doesn't stop with one roll either, continuing on until she's out of the way of your way. The whole thing takes maybe five seconds.
You're too busy to count; you're already in the air as she gets out of the danger zone, arms spread wide as you springboard into a splash. Gotta focus here. Arms and legs braced just so. You need your limbs to take the impact so that Jack barely gets touched- and you can't make it look like you're doing it. To an outside observer, it has to look like you're crushing Jack beneath your weight.
The mat rushes up to you and you barely register that Jack's face is perfectly motionless and his eyes are screwed tight. It wouldn't be the first time you've gotten this wrong and he's taken all the impact. But not this time. Not this-
You land with your limbs spread just a bit too wide, and Jack takes the impact to his gut. "Motherfucker." he grunts out.
Shit. You did it again. But hey, it looks like you did it better this time. It looks like he's only winded. A smile breaks out on your face.
"Oooooh." Allie groans. "So close, but so far away. You can do better. Let's go for it one more time and then-"
Daybreak's ringing tones cut through your practice. "Hey, minions! Finish it up and come here!"
You obediently hop off of Jack and offer him a hand up, which he takes gratefully. He leans on you for a moment as he collects himself. You must've hit him more than you thought. But he recovers quickly and the three of you make your way over towards where Daybreak's sitting at the monitor. There's a match frozen on the screen- the Poison of Man vs. the Dynamite Dudes from XPC: Shockwave, unless you miss your guess. Naomi has the remote in her hand, and she's gesturing at the screen, explaining something to Chloe.
The rest of the class joins you shortly. Nick and Caleb finish up their headlock-takeover drills, and Leah wraps up the promo she's cutting in front of Angelina. Daybreak gets up out of her seat as the last of them parks themselves in the plastic chairs. You glance behind you, seeing the rows and rows of empty seats. So many of you gone.
Daybreak grabs your attention with a brisk clap, taking her usual place in front of group. "Alright kiddies." she says, rubbing her hands together. "No more ring training today. We've got final exams to prep for."
Whatever mumbled conversations that were going on fade into silence. Final Exams. You knew they had to be coming; there's no way Daybreak would let you claim that you graduated from her school without proving that you were competent. But you had no idea what form they were going to take. And with only two weeks left of Daybreak's promised twelve weeks of training, you were starting to get antsy.
But the wait is over. Daybreak looks from person to person, wide smile on her face as if she can read your minds. The silence grows and swells like a physical thing. Daybreak milks it for all it's worth. Part of you is annoyed, but most of you is appreciative; Daybreak's a pro wrestler to her core, no matter what she says.
Finally she claps once more. "Okay. So final exams. You've got two of 'em."
"First. How many of you are familiar with the local scene?" She asks. A few people speak up, Jack among them. Daybreak nods and goes on, "And how many of you have heard of the 'SWF'?"
No one answers that. Daybreak barks out a laugh. "Just like I thought. The 'Supreme Wrestling Federation' is a local indy. A micro-indy if that's even possible. They draw maybe thirty people a show and have maybe ten regular workers. They pay chump change, and the entire thing exists because the owner likes to pretend he's champion of something."
"And in a few days, you're gonna make your debut for them!"
Her words draw a small rumble of conversation from you all. She cuts it off with a slashing motion over her throat. "Uh-uh, don't get too excited. You're going to be making your debut there. You're sure as shit not gonna win. I've got an agreement with the boss there; I let my students get their first taste of an actual crowd in his ring, his guys get some wins."
"But still it's your first actual match. That's the first part of your final. Go to the SWF, do a good job, don't get hurt, and you're good." Daybreak gives you a few moments to let that sink in.
"Since you're heading into an actual locker room there're a few lessons I want you to pick up. These have nothing to do with actual in-ring shit. Hell, you'd probably figure them out yourselves in a few weeks. But what's the point of having a teacher if they're not going to tell you what to do."
Daybreak holds up one finger. "First: every time you go into a locker room, you shake everyone's hand, introduce yourself, and thank them for letting you be on the card. It doesn't matter how big a deal that person is. You shake their hand, you introduce yourself, you thank them. Every. Single. Time. You only stop when they start getting sick of it. Every person in that room is your senior until they're not. Show them some respect. Even if they suck."
Another finger. "Two. You're gonna wind up drinking with these people. If you don't drink, get ready to be called a pussy. But if you do, keep a thumb on your beer. It's fucking hilarious to slip a sleeping pill in a bottle and watch a green rookie stagger around a room. If they're not nice, it's gonna be stronger than a Nyquill too. So unless you like getting drugged, thumb on the beer."
"Three." She says, looking around the group at all of you. "Your money. Count it. Every time. Some promoters are good guys and they wouldn't even imagine trying to fuck a worker over. Most aren't. Count your money right there. And when you find out you're twenty short, smile, and say you're sure it's an accident. You'll get your cash, and the fuckwad will know not to try that again. At least for a while."
A final finger. "And fourth." Daybreak's smile grows to shark-like proportions. "Every once in awhile, a fan's going to try and hop in the ring. Maybe he's so into the match he wants to help. More likely he's a drunk bumblefuck who wants to prove he's a tough guy. Some bosses'll tell you to let em go and let security handle it. But if they're in the ring, they're a danger to you, the guy you're working with, and everyone else. Fuck em up. If they get in the ring, their ass is yours. Be ready to handle it."
Daybreak waggles the four fingers at you all again, emphasizing each of them. "Those're my four commandments. Follow em, and maybe you won't get fucked over too bad." With her lessons done, she turns and moves to walk towards the stairs.
Her steps are slow though. She's waiting for something. After a second you realize what it is and hold in a smile. Daybreak's a showman to the core. "But boss," you ask, voice pitched to carry. "You said that that was only the first part of our final. What's the next?"
She spins so quickly you know you guessed right; she was just waiting for someone to ask. "I'm glad you reminded me, Fanatic!" She near-giggles, marching back to the front of the room. "Part two is my favorite part!"
"After your fun time at the SWF, there's going to be six class days left. For the first five, you're going to do whatever it is. Skip class. Work on a hole in your game. Whatever. I'm at your disposal. And on the sixth?"
"You have your second match, right here, in that ring." She points at the very familiar ring in the middle of the basement.
No one answers that for a moment. Leah finally speaks up. "Uh, boss? Who's working with us?"
"Excellent question, Dollface!" Daybreak answers. "You're gonna work a very, very special opponent. So get on whatever gimmick you're practicing, figure out what you want to do, and prepare to bring what passes as your A game. Because you're going to be working with me."
Again, no one speaks. Nick eventually raises one hand. "Um, boss?" he asks tentatively. "We work with you every day."
Daybreak snorts. "Not like this you haven't." She looks each and every one of you in the eyes. "Because on the last day of class, you're not the only ones gimmicking up. And I've never had a shit match when I'm painted up. Never. I had a good match against a green as shit fitness model when I had a bum leg and a dislocated arm. I can have one with you fucks."
"So if we have a shit match? It's on you. You're the one piece of chickenshit I can't make chicken salad out of. And in that case, you fail part two of your final."
With that, she turns and walks away from the group. For real this time.
Class breaks up soon after that. Your trio is too caught up in the idea of your first matches to even think about your usual extra practice. The three of you head out when everyone else does for once, heads together as you start planning your match against Daybreak. You talk during the jog to the motel and continues when you get into your room.
It's not just that it's your first and second matches. It's that your second match is against Daybreak. Not the woman, the actual character. The being you saw on your screen when you were a kid, smashing women and men alike into quivering husks of their former selves with nothing more than an attitude and the occasional lead pipe. One of the toughest motherfuckers to ever get between the ropes. You train with her every day, you took her and her daughter out for ice cream, but still there's something almost mythical about your teacher when you imagine her with her hair spiked up and her face painted that black and gold.
You, Jack, and Allie talk for hours about it, throwing out ideas for matches and finishes. It's only when the sun is well below the horizon and you can see the stars through your window that Jack brings up your first match. "How about the SWF?" he asks. "Who do you think we're going to work there?"
You shrug. "No idea. But it doesn't sound like it's going to be anyone that good. And it's hard to plan without actually meeting the guy you're working."
"Or even what kind of match you're going to have." Allie chimes in.
Jack scoffs. "It's going to be a straight match." he says. "There's no way Daybreak would have us do anything more complicated than that for our first match. If we wanted to learn with thumbtacks and fire, we should've gone to Philly."
Allie throws your pillow at him to your annoyance. That's yours! You brought it from home! But she doesn't acknowledge you besides flipping you off as she talks. "Not like that, dumbass. I mean if we're having a singles or what?"
You grab your pillow to protect it from any further abuse. "You think she'd put us in a tag?" you ask.
She shrugs. "I don't see why she wouldn't if we asked. Chloe and Naomi were talking about it when we left. Daybreak'd probably have us do whatever kind of match we asked for."
Jack nods slowly. "Yeah. Makes sense." He looks at Allie and then at you. "You guys want to do singles or what?"
Hmm. This needs some thought.
What kind of match do you want to ask for at the SWF show?
[] A singles match. You want to get in the ring with no one else to depend on and no one else relying on you.
[] A tag team match. You want to team up with one of your friends and show whatever crowd shows up what you can do as a unit.
-[] You'll team with Jack.
-[] You'll team with Allie.
[] A trios match. You, Jack, and Allie have come this far together. You don't see any reason why the three of you shouldn't make your pro debuts at the same time.
-------
Mechanic Changes
Skill Change
Aerial: Mediocre 221/250 -> Average 346/500
Trait Change
Major Trait: Aerial Enthusiast levels up to Core Trait: Natural Aerialist: In addition to the standard bonuses (see mechanics), Tommy gets an additional 75% XP every time he works on his Aerial Skills!
Relationship Change
Allison Gray: Friend -> Ally.
