"Ladies and gentlemen... I say... put your breasts away, m'am..."

A woman in the fifth row had her top pulled up and was generating a lot of attention from the men nearby. The camera crew, curious about this, turned in place with their cameras still on and focused on the girl, whose image at once appeared on the large screen as well as several homes across the country. Realizing their mistake the camera crew quickly focused elsewhere, this time ending up on a heavy older man who wore a t-shirt proclaiming, "I am a sex animal". This brought loud laughter from the crowd and the ring announcer's face reddened slightly.

"Once again, ladies and gentlemen... this is the second triple threat match of the night to determine who will advance in the CWL World Heavyweight Championship tourna..."

But the crowd was ignoring him, once again looking over at the woman who was still flashing the audience around her. She had been joined by a friend, and the two girls were giggling loudly as the men around them cheered and tossed beer in their direction. Frustrated and annoyed, the ring announcer tossed the microphone down and marched out of the ring. Passing by Mike and Lynn at the announcing table, he grumbled loudly enough for the microphones to pick up his words.

"That does it... bloody awful sport. Worst fans I've ever seen and I've called Soccer games that erupted into riots. No amount of money is worth this bother... you tell Nodar that he can take this job and cram it right up his..."

But he had drifted out of microphone range at that point. Mike and Lynn looked at each other and shrugged, unsure of what to do next. The staff in the production truck, thinking quickly, cued up Havoc's music. The crowd turned their attention to the ramp as Havoc was shoved out and through the curtains. He turned and looked furiously at the curtains, yelling at whoever was behind them. Then he turned and walked toward the ring, slapping hands with some of the fans in attendance but generally looking cross and aggravated at the situation. Havoc got to the ring and climbed up onto the ring apron. He raised his fist into the air for a pop from the crowd, then ducked inside and worked on removing his shirt. Havoc exchanged angry words with the referee as his music died down.

Victoria came out onto the entrance ramp and turned pointing with both hands at the curtains. With a sweep of the hands Vince Jacobs pushed his way out from behind them and extended both arms out on each side. He grinned, nodded his head in time with the music, then joined Victoria and the two walked to the ring together. Eying Havoc inside the ring Jacobs said something quiet to Victoria, and she nodded and walked around to the announcer's table and joined Mike and Lynn on commentary. Jacobs slid into the ring and quickly got to his feet, still eying Havoc with suspicion and allowing the referee to check his arm and knee pads.

The lights dimmed and both Jacobs and Havoc glanced up at the top of the ramp to see the new arrival. Green fireworks burst from the sides of the entrance ramp, and striding out through the embers was Blade.

Blade wore a black leather jacket with the letters NBK scrawled on the back of it. Blade wore sunglasses and had an indescribable expression on his face as walked slowly toward the ring. He slowed even further as he neared the ring, looking up at Havoc and Jacobs with a slight smile now on his face. He nodded slowly, then removed his jacket and tossed it toward the announcers table. Removing his sunglasses he tossed them into the crowd, then climbed up on the ring apron, the entire time not letting his glance stray from his opponents inside the ring. As he ducked under the ropes to enter the bell rang, and Vince Jacobs let his hands tighten into fists at the sound.

The three men paced each other, a stark contrast to the match earlier in the night as neither one of the three men seemed ready to make the first move. Finally Jacobs locked up with Havoc, and Blade paced around the two as they grappled for positioning. Jacobs had the advantage at first, but then Havoc used his upper body strength to bend the man backward and finally down to his knees. Havoc quickly kicked out with a boot, hammering Vince's head while still holding him in position by his arms. Havoc kicked out again and again, dropping Jacobs backward until he was on the mat. Havoc fell with a lateral press, but before the referee could count Blade dropped an elbow into Havoc's head. Havoc rolled off and to one side, and Blade quickly stomped down on Havoc's knee to cut off his vertical base.

After several stomps, Blade grabbed Havoc's legs and twisted him around for a figure four, locking in the hold in the center of the ring with no hope of Havoc escaping to the ropes. Blade bend back, applying all of the leverage that he could to the hold. Vince Jacobs got to his feet and looked down at Blade and Havoc, then walked to the corner post and climbed to the second rope. He sprung off with a leg drop onto Blade, but Blade kept the hold locked in even though he grunted in pain from the move. Determined to end the match quickly on a submission, Blade bend his body back even further and applied still more pressure to the figure four hold. Havoc gritted his teeth and squinted his eyes, in obvious pain from the move.

Jacobs stood and stomped down on Blade's face, opening up a cut on the side of his head from the sole of his boot as he pummeled his opponent. Blade continued to lock in the hold, struggling to maintain despite the punishment from Jacobs. Jacobs walked to the corner once more, but this time climbed all the way to the top rope. Signaling briefly to the crowd, Jacobs sprung off with a flying moonsault that landed directly on Blade's chest. With a gasp of air Blade released the hold, and Havoc drug himself away.

Jacobs turned himself over and covered Blade, hooking the leg as he went. The referee went down, but on two Blade shot a shoulder up, weakly breaking free of the cover just moments before the match would have been over. Vince Jacobs stood, surveying the damage in the ring. On the outside Victoria clapped with approval, and Jacobs smiled a confidant grin out to her and the crowd. Working methodically now, Jacobs dropped an elbow on Blade, but Blade rolled and struck him in the chin with a heavy fist.

Suddenly from atop the entrance, Zero walked out onto the ramp. He stood, silent, still; looking on as he observed the action that took place from inside the ring. More so, as he specifically watched one man who stood inside the ring. Havoc. Inside the ring, as Vince Jacobs retaliated against Blade, Havoc happened to turn his head ever so slightly. At that moment, from the corner of his eye, he saw Zero. He looked once again to the action before him, but his eyes slowly swung back to the standing figure that stood just a little over hundred feet from him. And he felt his body move towards the ropes. Instinct? Possibly. Instinct beyond control? As Havoc stepped through the ropes to make his way up the ramp in a slow, cutting walk, that was definitely what it was.

Blade and Vince Jacobs watched him leave, but with just a moment as any drop of their offenses could spell defeat. Jacobs moved in with a running lariat, but Blade ducked down and grabbed the neck, turning the move into a swinging neck breaker that snapped Jacobs down to the mat. He quickly covered, but in his haste he didn't cover the leg and Jacobs powered out with a quick rise of the shoulder. Blade rolled free, breathing hard and thought quickly about what he would do next.

Zero saw Havoc coming towards him. It had came to this. But at that moment, Zero was ready... and looking forward to the encounter. No more avoidance of what the present had dealt him. This was his destiny. His destiny, a man with a bad knee that he had created. His destiny, as it slowly made it's way up towards him on the entrance ramp. Zero looked into the eyes of Havoc, he being just thirty feet away. A smile had crept across Havoc's face. Zero tightened his fists, awaiting the man to come to him.

Blade helped Vince Jacobs to his feet and chopped hard with a stiff arm that instantly marked his chest with a red ribbon of blood rising toward the skin surface in a deep welt. Jacobs staggered backward, and Blade charged forward with a running spear that toppled Jacobs back into the ropes, and then out over the top and down to the cold, hard arena floor below. Jacobs lay still, and Victoria crept away from the announcer's table and knelt down near him, concerned.

The pain in Havoc's knee throbbed. But as his vision set in on Zero before him, a smile of misplaced confidence stretched across his face. The pain became a memory as Havoc felt the confrontation building. The knee gave way to a run, as Havoc finished out the distance between them with a straight plunge into the zone that Zero occupied.

Blade swung out of the ring after Vince Jacobs. He paused as he saw Victoria, then pushed her aside and drug Jacobs up by his hair. He pulled him over, hammering him in the face with a series of quick jabs, then swung him toward the steel ring steps. But Jacobs fell as he was thrown, grabbing hold of Blade's leg and shoving him forward as he dropped. Blade spiraled forward, cracking into the steps with a loud clang that echoed throughout the arena. Blade dropped back next to Jacobs, as inside the ring the referee began to count.

Just as Havoc started the momentum towards him, Zero moved from where he stood and entered into his own charge. Like two titans on a football field, they collided at the top of the ramp with a flurry of stiff right hands. Havoc struck first, all of his speed coming forth through a punch that got through Zero's defenses and struck him in the jaw. As he saw Zero rock back from the punch, Havoc followed it with a looping right hand. Zero blocked that, though, and got in a right hand across Havoc's cranium.

Jacobs was stumbling to his feet on the outside of the ring, glancing at Victoria then down at Blade. He picked him up and shoved Blade into the ring, stopping the count. He started to climb into the ring after him, but stopped as the crowd began to shout with excitement. XXXstasy was coming down the ramp, past Zero and Havoc, and pointing to Jacobs. The two began to yell at one another, their tempers flaring and starting to grow as they shouted. Ten feet away now XXXstasy stopped, still yelling as Jacobs now began to advance up the entrance ramp. Before he could take two steps, Blade grabbed his head from inside the ring and pulled him fiercely backward, cracking his head against the ring apron and pulling him inside.

Zero landed the punch, but his instincts weren't to carry on with the wild blows. There was only one thing he wanted to do. His vision caught a glimpse of the edge of the ramp. How far down did it plunge? Zero didn't know. Only Havoc would be the one to find that out. With a lunging grasp, Zero caught an errant knee shot but still managed to wrap his arms around Havoc's larger frame. He twisted with all of his momentum, but felt something go wrong as he did.

Blade went for a cover on Jacobs, but Blade's foot hung onto the bottom rope and broke the count. Frustrated Blade drug Jacobs back, toward the center of the ring, and lifted him up to his knees. With Jacobs swaying slightly, dazed and unable to prevent what was coming. Blade backed up, then swung his leg around in a tight arc that clipped Jacobs in the head and dropped him down to the mat, still and unmoving. Blade's face grinned with triumph, and on the outside XXXstasy nodded with approval.

Havoc felt his balance waver. He was moving towards the edge of the ramp, and his balance was being overtaken by Zero's drive that pushed him towards that edge. Accepting fate, Havoc latched onto Zero's shoulder and secured a dead tight grip. Closer they drove, and although it seemed as if it was slow motion, only a mere two seconds filled up the void of time as the two took the plunge from atop the ramp.

Blade signaled to the crowd, dropped to the mat, and covered Jacobs. The referee slid into position, let his arm fall once... then twice... but one brief second before final hand fell Jacobs shifted a shoulder up and the count was broken. Blade looked up in disbelief, shaking his head. He glanced over at the referee, hands on his knees, then turned his attention back to Jacobs. He hammered with a shot to his head, then picked him up and dropped him with a quick body slam. Now signaling once more that it was over, Blade walked to the turnbuckle and climbed to the top, flash bulbs bursting around the arena. Blade held his arms out, turned, and prepared for a moonsault. On the mat, Jacobs slowly was getting to his feet, but his eyes were distant and dazed.

The fall was at least fifteen feet. Havoc hit first, crashing through the tables that always seemed to be at the base of ramps. On top of him and landing with a slightly cushioned spot, Zero crashed and fell into a roll away from the carnage. He had gone through the fall relatively unscathed, thanks to the damage that Havoc had sustained. Havoc was still atop the shards of wood, blood seeming to trickle down his mouth as he moved a shoulder.

Blade had paused, looking out over the crowd and savoring the moment of his imminent victory. Behind him Jacobs had gotten to his feet and was shaking his head. Blade tensed, then sprung off with the moonsault, but now Jacobs was ready for him. Jacobs caught Blade in mid air, and Blade's face broke into a expression of surprise and horror. For a moment things stood still, Jacobs holding Blade in the center of the ring, then slowly things began to move once more. Blade struggled, but Jacobs had a firm hold on him. He broke backward, snapping Blade up and over with a back tiger driver. Blade bounced on the mat, his head cracking into the canvas and crumpling onto one side. Jacobs collapsed down next to him on hands and knees, dazed. He slowly looked over at the prone and still Blade, then in agony worked to make the cover.

Zero got to his feet and looked to Havoc. He didn't further pursue an attack. As the EMT's rushed by him, Zero only took one long, lasting stare before slowly turning to walk away from the carnage. To walk away from Havoc, the man who had made it halfway up, only to see Zero walking away from him. As the EMT's crowded around Havoc to check on him, the pain that Havoc must have obviously felt was just simply second nature. With a shove, he pushed the closely standing EMT's away. With a struggle to not show his body's weaknesses, he forced himself to his feet. As long as Zero was walking away, Havoc's goal could never be completed.

He spat the blood from his mouth as he walked, crimson dotting the concrete floor. As he swiped his long hair from his eyes, Havoc wiped his chin with the back of his hand, smearing it with red. Wide-eyed and alert, he stormed down the backstage corridor. The commotion which stewed from where he had just come could only be security hot on his trail, he knew. After what had happened two weeks ago, the last thing Nodar would want is another backstage skirmish between Zero and Havoc. That meant... that Havoc didn't have much time.Darting around a corner, Havoc tried to get his bearings. He knew Zero well enough to know that he wouldn't RUN. That wasn't his style. "He can't be far...", he mumbled to himself, glancing to the left and right.

Setting off once more down the corridor, he began to notice a slight 'buzzing' in his knee. He faltered in his steps to look down at the brace he had put on prior to the match, only to see that it had become undone, most probably due to the plunge off the rampway. Not only that... but his entire leg seemed to be throbbing. Not just the knee. This was a new sensation entirely... and it wasn't one that Havoc was particularly fond of.

"Damn." Havoc had to rethink things. He certainly wasn't physically prepared to face Zero now. The more he acknowledged the pain in his leg... the more it intensified. "Damn."

He snapped his head back the way he came... the voices were growing louder. The yellow shirted cavalry were on their way. He found himself far from the lockerrooms... far from the arena entrance... far from the curtain. Ahead of him, the corridor was black... as if the lights had been shut off. Havoc peered into it, squinting his eyes. They went wide once more when, at the very far end of the darkened corridor, a cigarette lighter flared... illuminating the face of Zero.

For what felt like an eternity, Havoc eyed Zero, lighting his cigarette. It wasn't until Zero, himself, flit his eyes up as well... locking them with Havoc... that Havoc first took a step down the corridor.

As he walked further towards the darkness, the pain in his knee faded. As he watched the lit cigarette's ember come closer... as he heard the footfalls of Zero walking also towards him through the black... the throbbing in his leg ebbed away. But with every step, something in the back of his head begged him to turn around... to walk away. His bad knee had cost him dearly in their last meeting... it had caused Zero to walk away the victor... with the upperhand again. He didn't want it to lose him more face tonight.

Zero stopped just short of the light.. Havoc, just short of the dark. They eyed eachother silently: Zero shooting a sideways glare through a haze of smoke... Havoc standing stoicly, a trail of crimson from the corner of his mouth leading down his chest. The air between them seemed almost frozen... stagnant. Havoc watched as Zero's eyes glanced at his unhooked knee brace. "Is that what you wanted now?" Zero asked, breaking the silence. "Or with your knee in the shape that it's in, did I come at the wrong time?" His eyes narrowed into Havoc's.

Havoc consciously shifted his weight, all from the left leg underneath him, to both of his legs. When he spoke, he forced the words out, unsure of their validity. "No time like the present" he mustered.

Veiled in smoke and dark, Havoc couldn't be certain if the smirk he saw on Zero's face was even there... or a figment of his imagination.

Slowly, Zero took one more step forward… just to the edge of the shadowed area. Softly, only loud enough for Havoc to barely hear, Zero spoke. "You wanted me, Mason. So now you've got me," Zero said quietly in between drags on his cigarette. "So... now what are you going to do about me?"

Havoc's eyes narrowed as he stared at the man who had thrown the two from the ramp not more than ten minutes earlier. The desire to just reach out and strike him was the first thing that passed through Havoc's mind. But as the two stood there, neither made a move towards physical hostility. It was only a clash of the two's minds, their emotions… their unspoken hatred.

"Next week," Havoc replied. His voice was dropped to a volume no higher than that of Zero's.

Zero regarded Havoc's words, but his eyes looked over the man's shoulder, further into the lit corridor. "I see you brought your friends," said Zero, raising his voice just slightly higher to a more conversational tone.

Havoc heard the stampede round the corner and, after a moment, looked back at the group of security guards barreling down the hall towards them. "They're no friends of mine," Havoc corrected, looking back at Zero. "But it's apparent that this party is over." They stared at each other a moment more. "See you next week, Lint." Havoc's voice was cold, restrained.

"Next week," Zero replied, not flinching. He nodded a small nod of his head, one full of constrain, but overflowing with self control at that moment. Slowly, he turned and made the walk back into the deep darkness of the hallway from which he had came. A flicker of light passed through the walls as he flicked his cigarette behind him.

With a deep breath, Havoc turned and walked the way he came, through the mass of oncoming men. They stumbled over their feet, some of them clawing at Havoc's shirt as he stalked past. He wrenched himself free with a swing of his arms and a grunt and continued down the hall, not looking back.