The room of 217 smelled of sweat, chlorine, and blooming flowers. Any and all free space was dedicated to tropical plants, shrubs, even a mini palm tree. The effect was a tropical, colorful paradise that left the room sweltering. Nurses hated entering the room so they often neglected it. A guy in a coma doesn’t require much monitoring and most were happy to avoid the unique smell that left them dizzy.
So when B17 woke from his slumber the nurses of Brooklyn Hospital Center send in the rookie.
B17: HELLO! WHERE AM I? IS THIS Puerto Rico? JAFET!
Nurse Betty: Hello, hello! Mr. B17, I need you to remain calm. You’ve been in an induced coma for three weeks!
She burst through the brush and patted him gently on the arm. Motioning around the room she asked: Do you like them? They were sent by, well, we don’t know who. They are all signed the same. The B Community.
B17: Where am I?
Nurse Betty: Brooklyn Medical Center. Yeppers. You were brought in after a accident at work.
She consults the medical chart.
Betty: It says here you had a fractured hip...well that doesn’t seem right… Oh wait, yeah. I remember. You got a bit uppity when you were first brought in. Tried to get naked. Tried to get most of us naked. Jamie ain’t been to work since you took his shirt off.
B17 nodded his head thoughtfully: This all seems accurate, but how did I fall into a coma?
Betty: Oh well, we contacted your emergency contact number, some guy named Austin Lee. He said we should put you down. Seemed quite upset, he did, when we told him we put you into a coma. Says we misunderstood him. He sent his lawyer in a few days ago, a Mr. Archer. He was quite upset too.
B17: Mmm. Yes. Lee. I remember. Well then I will be off. Revenge to be had.
B17 clapped his hands together and ripped off the cords that ran to his chest.
Betty: You can’t go, you need to be discharged.
B17: I can discharge alone, or get my community to do it for me. Thank you, but no thanks.
While Betty The Nurse tries to sort this out in her head, B17 sits up from his bed tosses the covers away.
Betty: What the hell? How are you naked?
B17: I’m subconsciously conscious of all articles of clothing.
Standing tall, B17 reaches high into the air before bending over and touching his toes. After a few squats he pinches his nipples and slaps his ass.
B17: Good, everything is in place. Good bye, Betty.
Too disturbed to comment, Betty just watches apprehensively.
B17 catches sight of himself in the mirror and freezes in place. His hands shoot to his head and he caresses his now bald dome. Furiously he pulls at his ears and scratches his head.
B17: BETTY! BETTY! WHERE! WHAT! WHAT--
Betty: Oh, your wig? Yeah, don’t worry. We threw it away. Let me tell you, that sucker didn’t come off without a fight. One of the nurses swears it growled at her. But she has an active imagination anyways.
B17 crumples to the floor with a sick smack of bare flesh on title.
B17: I CAN’T FEEL MY LEGS!
Betty: Huh-?
B17: OH MY GOD. I CAN’T MOVE MY ARMS!
Betty looks down at the naked spread eagle B17. Uncertain of what to do she just watches: But...You were just moving. Literally a minute ago!
B17: THE ONSET HAS BEEN SO QUICK! WHAT IS THIS?
Betty: But--
B17: Betty, Betty, Betty! Is my penis still there? I can’t feel my penis!
Betty: Um. Yes.
B17 instinctively grabs his penis tight and holds on, fearful that if he lets go it might disappear.
Betty: You just moved! You’re grabbing your pennis right now!
B17: Trick of the light. Help me into my bed!
Betty swoops and helps B17 stand. She can feel him supporting himself with his arms draped over her and his legs pushing against the floor. Never before has she seen something so confusing. Dumping him onto the bed she considers running to get the doctor before things can get any weirder. But she is too late.
B17 grabs her wrist: Betty...I...I don’t have much ti---
Betty: You’re moving right now, literally grabbing me! See your right hand around my wrist?
B17 lets his arm go limp: I need you to call someone for me. He’s the only one that can save me…
Betty: Um...ok? Who do I call?
B17: He is the Sultan of Surgery, the Baron of Bypass, the Teacher of Transfusion--
Betty: Ok! How do I contact him?
B17: Hold on.
B17 arches his back and begins to dig beneath his sheet. Eventually he emerges with a small metal business card. He hands it to Betty who receives it gingerly.
B17: Press and hold the center button for three seconds. When it turns on, deliver this message: 01010011 01100001 01110110 01100101 00100000 01000010 01101001 01101110 01100111 01101111. He will only answer if you ask in binary code.
Betty walks out quickly to avoid any more odd requests. Just outside the door she presses the center button and waits three seconds. A bright blue light shoots up from the card and an odd dressed man appears via hologram.
Mugen: Salutations, please enter your message and the appropriate party will receive the message.
Bewildered at a virtual keyboard that shows up from the card, Betty begins to enter the message exactly as asked by B17. She hits enter and the virtual keyboard disappears.
Mugen: Thank you, your message will be delivered to the real me, your Overlord as soon as possible. Thank you.
The hologram flickers out and once again, Betty is only holding the metal card completely bewildered at what just happened.
******
As Wrex and Fury stand in the middle of the ring a confused referee hands over a couple of microphones to them.
Wrex: I’m going to make this quick, we said it last week didn’t we? We are going to do what we want to do, and if the booker doesn’t want us on the card, wants us to wait till another show, then we’ll just put ourselves onto it, now.
Fury: Escuchen! Listen… When we talk. This is not some fake mafioso act, this is the real deal. El artículo legítimo. When we say we’re going to do what we want… We mean it. We already dealt with those pretenders CodeTerror. Hada de código would be far, far better.
Wrex: It’s already on the internet, they’re already telling you what you need to do.
Fury: Entregarlas, just hand us the titles. It’s only a matter of time before we take them anyway. When the carajito tries to be a man, he realises he’s not a dragon, he’s a newt. Ni siquiera un obstáculo, una molestia!
Wrex: So little Dragon, as I’m sure you can probably hear, and most definitely read. I’m giving you a chance to “avenge” my actions, you only need to come out here, tell this idiot here you consent to this match.. and my rules. That’s all you need to do.
Fury scowls and lowers the microphone, eyes fixating on the entrance way.
Fury: Estamos esperando… Hurry up!
Wrex vs Ricky
******
Backstage after the impromptu “match” between Ragnarath and Wrex we find the Great Value Scumbag himself next to his tag partner, still clutching at his abdomen area after the terrible finishing decision.
Wrex: I don’t know how you damn lightweights do this stuff, Ricky and a hammer was better than this.
Fury: Carajito… When a child swings a hammer he can’t hurt but when a pull crashes it hurts everything, even itself. We did it again, we made the rules, this world is ours. It doesn’t matter if it’s Wrex, it doesn’t matter if it’s Fury. Scumciety always wins.
Wrex: And all it cost me was my gut, If I ever go near a top rope again, get me the hell off it before I do something dumb.
Fury smacks Wrex on the back.
Fury: No te preocupes por eso, it’s done, don’t worry about it.
Wrex: Yeah, it’s done. Code, done twice, idiots living in a box. Tay, done. Dragon.. done. Just his better half and Hollywood to go, then they aint got a choice but to hand us those little things.
******
Malu sits as the situation is explained to him. The Pride Championship sits brightly on his table.
Malu: So you're telling me those two punks walked out knowing what my Main Event was...
Malu looks calmly at the Pride Championship and smiles.
Malu: Good thing I've learned to be a step ahead of the talent here, so you can figure out how to let Archer know he's having his match on Riot. And next week he's going to have to deal with me. Austin may just get some too.
Malu: I'm trying to build this place into something greater but there are times when some people have to be put back in their place. Enjoy the next couple days boys because it's not going to be fun from here on out for you two.
The scene fades on a close-up shot of the Pride Champion.
