Looking in.

Chapter 1: 

“OK…” Claudia started, not bothering to empty her mouth of Rib meat before opening it. “But I don't understand why you're doing this. I didn't even know this fuckshot offshoot company existed!” 

Her dining companion barely acknowledged the statement, continuing to stare aimlessly over the river, his steak sitting mostly untouched on his plate. 

“And you're not even main eventing! And a week before…” 

“Claudia. Shut up.” 

She sat stunned. In their decade plus of friendship, he had never even told her to tone it down nevermind be this rude. She opened her mouth to respond, but couldn’t quite find the words, so instead, she just kept chewing, keeping her eye on Danny as he looked out over the river. Finally, he turned to her, his eyes focusing on her face. She could see the guilt in his eyes as he took her in. So obviously so infact that she was waving away his apology before he had really made it. 

“Sorry… sorry. Mind isn’t in it.” She watched his left eye twitch as he delivered the sentence. She wasn’t going to tell him that it was obvious how much things were starting to get on top of him lately; she’d watched his descent during the Hugh Solomon show and she’d watched it continue since. Still, even under this much strain, so much so that it was physically manifesting within him, it seemed to be doing well for his career prospects. 

“I just... I just don’t care any more. We can all see what is happening. Everyone, including that areshole I’ve got to face this week, has chosen to belittle my issues with our management. Yet, this keeps happening. I could sit here and bemoan the situation, but I’ve chosen to take a different path instead.”

She gave him a moment’s breath to see if he was going to add to the statement, but when no follow-up arrived, and she could see his eyes drifting away again, she posed the question that he’d left hanging. 

“And what is that?” 

“Oh.” He started, zoning back in to the conversation. “I’m just going to hurt people until I get bored of doing so.” He responded flatly, with no indication of malice or malevolence in his words. 

“Oh, is that all? I thought that was the norm for you anyway!” She quipped, looking for a reaction from him. If there was one, he wasn’t forthcoming. So, she sat, chewing away silently on her ribs, passing the time as he continued to perfect his thousand-yard stare. She’d have just upped and left if it wasn’t for the fact that her half-sister Lexi was on her way as they spoke… well, as she spoke. Lexi was the main reason for Claudia joining Ripper on his jaunt down to Texas, and she wasn’t going to turn down a free meal, so away she went, ripping meat from bone and washing it down with her beer of choice. She eyed Ripper’s Old Fashioned, sitting untouched on the table. Weirdly, he’d kind of gone off booze since the Solomon show. 

As she sat pondering this odd little fact, he turned back, apparently now hungry enough to pull apart his frankly delicious-looking ribeye. She eyed him carefully, noticing his lucidity as he enjoyed the meal before him, but even so, he grabbed the water to wash it down. 

“Are you still eating?” Claudia recognised her sister’s mixed accent right away. Lexi had spent her youth living between Houston, Cancún and Jalisco. It was one of the things Claudia had fallen in love with when the two sisters had met for the first time back in 2019. Claudia had arranged to meet her sister after their meal was over. Little did she know just how long that would take. As she stood to greet her sister, she was surprised to see him rise too. The siblings embraced tightly first. Lexi turned to Ripper and gave him a quick hug, which he returned. Lexi grabbed a chair from one of the empty tables nearby and sat. Claudia regarded her older sister for a moment; she always looked so put together, her blonde hair tied back in a neat ponytail, her makeup perfectly in place, but mostly she liked seeing Lexi smile. It was her mother’s smile. 

The girls chatted while Claudia finished her meal. She noticed that he was paying no mind, just swirling his drink around as he watched the boats travel up the river beside them. When she was done, they bade their farewells to Ripper and walked away from the restaurant, arm in arm down the riverside. 

“What’s up with him tonight?” Lexi asked her sister as they walked away. 

“God knows.” 

 

 

Chapter 2:

 “Is it cheesy to film a promo in front of the Alamo? Feels like it’s a bit overdone, doesn’t it?” Ripper asked no one in particular as he contemplated the building before him. The sun had well and truly set over The River City by now. Following his meal, Ripper had opted to walk, a choice he didn’t make often when in the United States, but this time it felt right. 

 “Thing is, I’m struggling for ideas. I can’t seem to come up with any interesting concepts for my promo this week. Now, I have been thinking about why that might be, and then the Hammer struck. What do I have to be inspired about here?” Ripper cut himself off, raising a finger to his the corner of his eye, taking in a subtle yet sharp intake of breath. He shakes his head and continues: 

 “I don’t know if any of you know this, but a few weeks ago, I did something quite historic. Now, I am sure everybody watching this is very interested to hear what I have to say in my first promo package as CWF World Champion. To those people, I must apologise. I will not be taking the time to talk through my match with Gordy, or the result of a lifetime. Why? Because that is a CWF matter and this is not a CWF show. I may be in this match as champion, but I was going to be made to do this anyway.” He turns away from the historical building and looks down the camera lens. 

 “Besides, that material would be wasted on someone like Dan Highlander. So why bother?” His mouth twitches, his trademark asshole smirk not materialising on this occasion. He begins to walk. The area is quiet for a warm summer evening, allowing Ripper to waft freely through the plaza uninterrupted. Soon the Spanish architecture disappears as he continues back towards the river on foot, seemingly in no rush. 

 “See, this is what I mean. I have left a place of beauty, of history, a place where stories were told. Now I am here, this run-of-the-mill, seen-it-everywhere, boring American street. Do you get the allegory? Dan? Dan? D’ya get it? I’m calling you boring! Ain't I the cleverest?” With a grimace, Ripper stops his little stroll, closing his eyes as he takes in a breath. 

 “Alright, let’s actually address this. This is many, many years in the making. We have traded indirect barbs since we came back this time around, so let me address you directly now and give you your flowers. Once upon a time, you were a worthy opponent. There. I said it. 

 Those days are long over, though. 2012 was a very, very long time ago. I would ask if you remember, but there is no way you forget the day that I beat you in that cage. One thing you might not know, though, is how cheap that all felt for me. My second CWF world title reign, and it came in against a checked-out shell of the man I once considered an equal. To add to it all, that title victory meant nothing. An artificial inflation of an arbitrary number. You may have carried around the guilt of not being yourself in that match; I’ve carried the embarrassment of knowing that until the other week, that was the last time I was on top of this company. Sorry. My company. 

 Since then, you’ve hung around, but you’ve allowed yourself to become the side character in your own story. Mark and Cali have been the top players. I’ve jabbed a lot at your beloved over the last few months simply to get a rise out of her, but in reality, she’s the real deal, the actual star of the show. She’s the one I want, so why do I get stuck with you? 

 In my mind, the Hammer these days is no more than a toy mallet, worn and broken from years of fading from relevance. But here you are, running around in this little hidden show of yours, propping yourself up as champion apparently.”

 Ripper turns away again, continuing down the road, ignoring the stares coming from passersby. 

 “I’ve heard that you’ve kinda become a mini version of me down there, facing all comers, match after match, and you’ve earned your stripes. Good for you. What I don’t understand is why you’re content with selling out Full Sail while I’m headlining Allegiant Stadium. Why have you relegated yourself? 

 I guess it doesn’t matter. I’m trying to place the man I once knew into a world that simply doesn’t exist now. I guess you’re happy where you are. Good for you. That’s always been one of the great differences between you and me. You’re content with your lot. I’m not. Never will be. If I show up, I do it to get to the top, to be the best, to add to my already insane legacy. I can’t be you, sitting on the side watching the world go by. I’m not content to be the guy who passes the torch to the next generation. Being the first champion of a brand new show is cool and all, but I’d rather be the best champion in the history of the biggest show. Your girl threatened to derail that for me more than once; I don’t plan to let that happen again. 

 Look, Lord knows I could wax until I’m dead about our past and my history with your family. We’ve ridden many metaphorical roads together, and there was a time that Dan Highlander and Danny B were the interchangeable 1A and 1B of CWF. The marquee. We were the guys. That was a long time ago. Now? Now I don’t know what to think of you. 

 Is this something that you actually want Dan? You seem to be doing OK for yourself in the rinky-dinks, so what does losing to me yet again get you? Is it somehow validating for you?  

 I cannot deny that I am intrigued. Maybe you feel like you have a chance because of Cali. Maybe you’ve been forced into this, and you’re shitting your little Aussie knickers. I can’t imagine you’re out for revenge for 2012; that’s just a disater waiting to happen. 

 I must say, the more I think about it, the more interested I become. That isn’t good for you. You’ve gone from being a boring waste of my time to an interesting proposition in the space of a single monologue. I’ve actually talked myself into being excited to fight you! Fancy that. Can you believe I was just going to show up and either humiliate you or shatter you? Now I’m looking forward to humiliating you and then shattering you! Don’t worry about me coming for payback, Cali will get her receipt when the time is right. No, this embarrassing night for you will be delivered in honour of our shared history. How fun. Be seeing you, kid.” 

The grin finally returns to his face.  

 

Chapter 3: 

As Claudia opened her eyes, she found herself needing to snap them shut again as light burned into the room, temporarily blinding her.

“Lexi! For fuck’s sake!” She choked out in frustration. Slowly, she opened her eyes, allowing time for them to adjust to the blidning intrusion coming from the uncovered windows. Before she had even fully opened them, she could tell that her sibling was no longer in the room. The two of them had consumed a few too many the night before, so instead of sending Lexi home, Claudia had offered her bed; it was a king-size anyway. She had just begun to wonder where said sibling could be when the hotel door clicked ope. In stepped her sister, obviously feeling no ill effects and fully dressed already. 

“Nice of you to join us.”

“Where the hell have you been?” Croaked Claudia, her mouth felt like an ashtray. She couldn’t remember smoking last night. 

“Downstairs getting breakfast with your man-friend.” The descriptor didn’t compute right away. 

“You mean Ripper?”

“Yeah. 

“He got up? For breakfast?”

“Well, he was up. I get the impression he hadn’t slept yet.”

“What the fuck?”

“He wanted to apologise for last night, so we went for some pancakes. Nice to get to know him actually. Considering he always seems to be around, I don't think I've ever had a proper conversation with him.

Claudia didn’t respond right away. She pulled herself free from the bedsheets and stumbled into the hotel bathroom. 

“What the hell did you two talk about?” She asked through the door. 

“Wrestling. Seems he has quite the passion for it.” Claudia stopped mid-stream. Has? Since when did it become has again? He hadn’t even mentioned wrestling after winning the belt at WrestleFest, not until he told her about this booking anyway. What the hell was going on? 

“Where is he now?” 

“Didn’t come back with me. Mentioned something about going to Rockport to see an old friend.” 

“Motherfucker!” 

“What?!” 

“I have to go after him. How long ago did he go?” 

“I left him about 15 minutes ago, why?”

“Because when he gets into this state, he’s a liability, and there’s only reason he’d go there. For her." 

"Who?"

"I'll explain on the way. C'mon get your shit. We're leaving!" 

Claudia emerged, pulled on her jeans and shoved the rest of her gear into her case. 

"What's up Claud?" 

"Seems our friend is feeling nostalgic. When he gets this way he becomes a liability unto himself. Last thing any of us need is those two coming face to face again." 

With that Claudia, carrying her case in one hand and her shoes in the other pushes her sister out of the hotel door.