|
|
|
Endgame
#1 – The Gathering [RP
IN] DATE/TIME:
10:30 PM, Sunday, May 24, 2009 Business
meetings never were Steve Jason’s strong point. If
it were up to him, he’d never even bother showing his face to
the main boardroom of the Richards Conglomerate’s skyscraper
headquarters, As
far as most XWF viewers knew, Steve had recently accepted a position
with the XWF- in addition to his trainer role, he’d also been
appointed by FuZz
as the Chief of Security- something that he was able to do well due to
both his rapport with the roster, and his considerable physical ability
to enforce the law. That much was true, but the actual process behind
the appointment was a bit more convoluted. Technically, Steve was being
contracted out to the XWF on behalf of the Richards Conglomerate- a
situation not unlike his wrestling contract, which was set to expire. For
good. Steve
never thought he’d be considering permanent retirement. If
the question had been asked of him five years ago, he’d have
laughed straight in the face of the person asking the question before
asserting he would never retire at all. Sure, there had been the odd
temporary departure and injury here and there, but nothing that Steve
would have ever considered a permanent retirement. Even now, a week
away from the end of his career, he found it damn near impossible to
get his head around the fact that it was, at long last, finally
happening… “So!”
the
booming voice of Douglas Henry Phidippidies
McNamara III, Steve Jason’s long-time best friend, echoed
throughout the boardroom, “Ladies
and gentlemen, let’s get the final ever meeting of Steve
Jason’s Crew to order!” That
was followed immediately by Dougy
rapping a hammer down on the surface of the table. As usual, Dougy’s
corporate style was regarded as ‘flamboyant’- his
only concession to business attire was throwing a suit jacket on over
his Hawaiian shirt and shorts, and a ten-gallon cowboy hat. Other than
him, Talia Richards was the only person in the room. Her blonde hair
was pulled back into a ponytail, and unlike her husband, she was
dressed far more elegantly in a black business jacket and white blouse.
Steve was somewhere in between the two extremes, wearing a nondescript
black long-sleeved shirt and slacks. “Mate,
I just can’t believe this is the last
meeting…” Dougy
said, steepling
his hands, “The
last meeting. We’ve all been deeply involved in SJ’s
career for the vast majority of the last decade. Never thought
it’d happen.” “When
I was younger, I didn’t either.” Steve
shrugged, “But
then again, our lives always have a habit of going somewhere that we
don’t expect them to.” “On
that topic, we have to talk about where you’re headed next,
Steve…” Talia
frowned thoughtfully, “I
know you’ve put off every single discussion about it, but you
can’t just retire and disappear forever. Not with your
stature. You have to move on to something big to follow it up. I
don’t know, maybe act…” “Forget
it.” Steve
cut Talia off right there, “I
didn’t spend ten years ranting about how retarded it is for
wrestlers to sell out and go into that “I’m
keeping my opinions about that one to myself, Steve. You boys are going
to have to sort it out among yourselves.” Talia
was in a unique position with this match- while she was one of
Steve’s friends and closest confidantes,
she had also struck up a friendship with the Angry Italian himself-
something which had once been a major source of friction for all three.
Dougy,
in a surprise move of diplomacy, got straight back on track. “So,
back on to the future. Ever thought about Mixed Martial Arts?
Apparently a lot of wrestlers are crossing over into that and kicking
arse. And making major
moolah.” “I’m
retiring
from combat sports, Dougy,
not looking to get into another one. Besides, money’s never
been the issue. Point I’m making is that I’m
getting out of fighting,
and proceeding with something new in my life.” “You
know, it’s probably the best time in your life to publish an
autobiography…” Talia
noted, a finger absently tapping against her cheek, “The
Conglomerate are
deep in publishing already, and it’s not like
you’re bad with the written word. And you do have an exciting
story to tell.” Steve
was about to answer that, but he didn’t get far as suddenly,
the double-doors of the boardroom opened, heralding the arrival of a
young man in his early-to-mid twenties through the door. He stood at
about five foot ten, and had a somewhat blocky build- broad shoulders,
thick arms and a bit stout around the middle. His black hair was
clipped short, and his pale face was adorned with a two-day growth of
stubble. His eyes were odd- one was solid green, while the other was
almost blue. A simple black Billabong t-shirt and jeans covered his
frame as he strode towards the table with purpose. “Liam
Johnston?” Steve
blinked at the arrival of the young Australian man who he’d
only met a handful of times. “The
very same…” Liam
replied with a broad smirk, “Who
were you expecting, God?” “What
are you doing here in “Gambling.”
Liam
shrugged, “Under
normal circumstances I wouldn’t even be here in Vegas, but
the rules have changed a little bit, so you’d better bet your
arse I’m going to make the most of it. Oh, and I’m
also here with some other folks who have business with you.” “What
do you mean, ‘the rules have changed a little
bit?’” Steve
demanded. “Uh…”
For
a few moments, a look of indecision crossed the young man’s
face, followed by a thoughtful frown, then
he shook his head, “Nah.
Probably better you don’t know- you’re gonna
need your sanity intact for this one last match. And you
wouldn’t believe me anyway.” “Wouldn’t
believe what?” “What
did I just say, SJ?” “Gah,
forget it.” Steve
threw his hands up in disbelief at the enigmatic behaviour of the young
man, “Who’re
the other people coming with you, anyway? And how did you get here?
Last time I checked you were making peanuts as an unqualified
engineer.” “Draftsman,
SJ, draftsman. There’s a big difference. And yeah, I still am
an unqualified draftsman. And
I’m living with a chick now, and you wouldn’t believe
how much that bites out of your bank balance. I actually hitched a ride
with the people looking for you- free of charge, would you believe it?
Perth International to McCarran,
and I didn’t have to pay a bloody cent!” “You
always were the king of free-loading, kid. Even put me to
shame…” Dougy
remarked owlishly in the background. Steve, however, merely levelled
the young man with an icy stare. “I
could use some names, kid…” At
that precise moment the double doors burst open with an abrupt and
seemingly over-dramatised crash as, at that precise moment, two people
entered the room, flanked on both sides by the Myrmidons, the elite
security guards of the Richards Conglomerate, complete with
pseudo-military combat jackets, pants and berets. The first was none
other than Steve’s friend Sergei Volkov,
the Russian immigrant who Steve had befriended during his time in It
was the woman, however, who took Steve the most by surprise- probably
because, with the possible exception of Dougy,
she was one of the people he had the most history with in the room.
He’d known her well since they were sixteen years old- which
in comparison to today seemed like a lifetime ago. She was slender and
tall- an inch or two taller than Liam and Sergei- and had long dark
brown hair hanging down to her shoulders, with almost catlike blue eyes
and features that held both beauty and a slight hint of mischief in the
mix. She wore a short baby-doll shirt and blue jeans, moving into
position next to Sergei. “Felicia?” Steve
blurted in surprise at the sight of his first love. “Good
to see you too, Steve…” Sergei
commented in the dry, sarcastic tone he was known for so well. Felicia
Hawking, on the other hand, offered a dazzling smile across at him,
practically radiating a warm aura in the process. “Hi,
Steve. It’s been a long time.” “That’s
understatement of the decade...” He
paused to scratch at his cheek, “What
are you doing here in “Yeah,
but I’ve got a few days off, and Dougy
got the word around that you’re retiring. That’s
something I never thought I’d see… I thought you
were pretty dedicated to this place.” “Long
story.” Steve
smirked, “But
seriously, you came here because I’m retiring?
That’s a lot of cash and a lot of trouble for something you
could have just watched at home.” “I
could sit at home watching it…” Felicia
shrugged, “But
then I really got down to thinking about it. I was with you when you
first started your career, and while I’ve been absent for the
vast majority of it, I think it’d be nice if I was with you
at the end. So I’m basically here to give you my support and
to see you through to the end.” “That’s…”
In
a rare moment, Steve almost found himself succumbing to emotion,
pausing in awe at that gesture- and, once again, at the idea that it
was almost over. He forced it down and offered a short smile, “That’s
awesome of you, Fi.” “Word
of advice, SJ? The ice man thing works on most people, but you know I
can see right through it. I’m proud to be here, and
I’ll be proud to watch you through to the end.” She
cleared her throat, “But
enough about me. Sergei here’s got something important here
to tell you,
and I wouldn’t stand in the way of it.” “Thanks,
Miss Hawking. I apologise for interrupting the little
reunion.” With
that said, Sergei stepped forwards, putting his hands down on the round
table, “We’ve
managed to get ourselves a development, Steve. It took us long enough,
and admittedly we probably could have timed this a lot better, but
we’ve managed to pin them down.” That
brought Steve stock upright in his chair. That was almost a bigger
surprise than Felicia’s appearance. He knew what
he’d sent Sergei out to look for, and it was a search that
had consumed the vast majority of the last half a year of his life.
Excitement surged through him, then
he forced himself to be calm and looked Sergei square in the eye. “What’ve
you found out, man?” “We
have managed to pinpoint the precise location of Zachary and Zoe, your
twins. It hasn’t been easy, with the Setsujoku-Kai
trying to cause problems for us at every turn, but we finally managed
to get enough eyes and ears among the ones still sympathetic to us to
know where they are being held. The bad news is that they’re
under Ekachi’s
guard, and you’re going to have to fight your way to him to
get them.” At
last. He knew where the twins were. Twins that he’d never
even seen, twins that had been hidden for their own protection since
their birth and then stolen. He knew that the Setsujoku-Kai
had them- which was bad
news- but he hadn’t had a bead on their position- until now.
Now seriously struggling to fight the urge to jump up and dash to their
location, he eyed Sergei one more time. “Where
are they?” “Right
here in
|
l