And then the prelude ends.
We all know how this story moved on...one year later, Dominic joined up with the HWF and began pursuing his life-long dream. It was truly an amazing moment for his family, friends and loved ones. Dominic saw it as his own little way of fulfilling his broken promise to Crystal and, in another way, making her and everyone else proud of him.
Soon he would become a North American champion and, in the process, go down in the HWF's history books as one of the most dominating NA Champions there was. Suki would soon return and, over time, become his girlfriend when he finally realized his true feelings for her. Chris Champion would become one of Dominic's most heated rivals, closest of friends, and then once again become his rival.
Yet there is, in fact, a reason for these events.
There is a reason for Dominic's so-called betrayal of his fans, his cold attitude towards Suki and his attack on Chris Champion. There is a reason as to why this good man, a man once considered by many to be a hero, has suddenly and unexpectedly 'fallen from grace'. Last Suicide we learnt what we thought were Dominic's true intentions, that he was trying to save Chris from a future humiliation at the fan's hands...
This is not the truth, but in fact a large lie used to mask Dominic's face, and the pain that it shows.
Much like a child, Dominic is bringing those he cares about down with him in order to pull himself back up again from what he feels was an act of betrayal on him by the fans. When they cheered for his impending fall...the world around him had seemingly shattered in an instant.
For it was because of their reaction that he realized he could never truly make his promise unbroken. How can one play the hero when there are so many who will cheer your fall? For every fan who really did care about him that Dominic knew of...there would always be another waiting for his failures.
The fans didn't really betray Dominic, only a select few. Yet it was the actions of the few that brought corruption to the many. In Dominic's eyes, any of the fans could be the ones who would cheer for his downfall...they never cared about the promise he'd tried for so long to make unbroken.
Yet instead of revealing this secret to his friend, Chris Champion, he let a paranoia set in over him. Chris had excelled so much faster then Dominic, that he was the one who'd became the hero to the fans. Dominic was simply hidden in Chris' shadow, forever to be known as the 'Little Engine Who Couldn't'.
Chris, in Dominic's eyes, was just as guilty as the fans who'd cheered at Eve in stopping him from fulfilling his promise. It was because of this, this betrayel that he'd felt from a friend so close to him, that Dominic allowed his anger to take over. He became a relentless fighter in the ring, not allowing the rules to stop him in his quest to out-do his friend. This quest, inevitably, found a way to sabotage their friendship and cause Dominic to desperately seek another source to blame. After all, it wasn't Dominic's fault that he was failing Crystal after all of these years...it couldn't be.
And so now, reminiscent of a year prior, Dominic is teaming with one of his greatest rivals in the HWF. Two of them, in fact...and one who simply doesn't matter to him. Simon Tyrell was a problem for Dominic long ago, but he was a problem Dominic had ever since put behind him. The Eidelon is simply there for the ride, a man in the background unworthy of a true story.
It's Chris Champion, however, who holds the highest threat to Dominic. He knows they won't be able to co-exist, for their rivalry is fresh and unresolved, much unlike how his with Logan seemed during King of Violence 5. This won't prove well for their team, especially considering their opponents...
Jimmy Jett and Scott Anderson, who were at one time rivals of Dominic's and men he considered to be scum of the earth. Jonathan Fuller, a former ally of Dominic's and a man who, at one time, Dominic believed to be one of the best there ever was...and finally, Bill Carns. A man who Dominic, to be quite honest, could hardly care less about. To him, he served just as much of a purpose in that match as The Eidelon did.
Their future in the King of Violence tournament solely depends on their success in this match...and their future is looking bad as it is. Yet there is still hope...the story is not quite over yet. If Chris and Dominic can, at least for one night, coexist long enough to ensure their team the victory they need...then clearer skies will lie ahead, though the road will get rockier as their journey moves onward.
It's only a matter of time...and hey, the race to the pond isn't as long as it once seemed. Dominic is still growing ever closer to his shot at the big time, and when it comes, there will be no arguments nor 'crazy girls' to taint the final outcome.
There will only be one survivor, one...king.