001. The New Guy

[Rated R]

Tyler Draven Presents
The New Guy

The Deal

Crack.

Everyone's done bad sh*t in their life. Go on, you show me someone who hasn't done a single sh*tty thing and I'll show you a straight up liar. It's just the way the world works, ain't a chance you get anywhere without doing some messed up crap. Is it right? Maybe not, but it's the way things work. Not sure I ever understood that before, but now?

Crack.

Now I understand. Sometimes doing something f*cked up is the only way forward, sometimes you do it because it’s the right thing to do, sometimes you do it because nobody else has the balls. Me? I did it for my sister, and for the WFWF. I did it because there was a sociopath running around doing whatever he wanted, and nobody else was going to step up and stop him.

Crack.

That’s why I smashed Trace Demon’s skull in…

"You did the right thing Tyler."

She says it like she’s trying to reassure me, but the fact she could barely look at me when we were stood out there on the ramp tells me exactly what she thinks of me. Lila Sleater, a woman who wanted rid of Trace Demon more than anybody else, thinks I’m no better than he was. Thing is, is she really wrong about that?

"Not sure everybody’s gonna see it that way."

"Like Frank? I know what he said to you, but don’t let that get to you. He doesn’t see the bigger picture."

Frank Lynn? She thinks I’m worried what that hypocrite thinks of me? I saw what he did out there just now, the guy’s just proving what Trace said about him, he’s as ego-driven as everybody else round here. That whole revolution was a f*cking joke.

"Right… sure. Let’s just get this done with, alright? I need a shower."

I’ve not even changed. Trace’s blood’s still splattered all over me, like some art piece with a message nobody’s ever gonna get. I’ve been sat in Lila’s office since it happened, just staring at that damn bat, hearing that noise, the crack of Trace’s skull, over and over again, like he’s still there, taunting me even now. But he’s not, he can’t be, because he’s getting carted off to some hospital.

"We can table this, come back to it at a time when you’re a little more… put together?"

"Lila, I just bashed a man’s head in with a f*cking barbed wire bat, the very same man who got my foot in the door. He might have been a sociopath but I did that to him. What’s waiting gonna do? Ease my soul? Nah, let’s just get this done with while you can still bare to be in the same room as me."

She doesn’t try to deny it, at least she’s got enough respect to not try and bullsh*t me. Hell, maybe that’s one thing I’ve got on the rest of these guys now, her respect. Might have earned it by giving a guy brain damage but worth it, right? What a f*cking joke.

"Right, here it is."

She pulls out the same binder she showed me weeks ago. At that point I thought it was the best thing that had ever happened to me, that no matter what I had to do that it was worth it. Now? Now I’m not so sure.

"This, Tyler, is your official WFWF contract. It’s everything we agreed upon. You’ll be treated the same as everyone else, have to work your way up of course, prove you can cope with the life of a wrestler, but I’ll give you a fair shot, as promised. You sign this and you’ll officially be a WFWF competitor."

"No catches, no bullsh*t?"

"I’m a woman of my word Tyler. You’ve proven that you’re reliable, that you can make the right decisions for yourself and the company. You’re a better man than Trace Demon ever was, we could use someone like that around."

"You mean someone who’ll swing a bat when you tell him to?"

"When you sign that you’re a legitimate WFWF competitor, you’re not my lackey Tyler, I’m not expecting you to fight my battles for me. I’m a big girl, I can take care of myself."

Just not this time, right? No matter what Trace thought I’m not stupid, I know what Lila thinks of me, and I know she thinks that my making this grand gesture, giving me the contract I’ve always wanted, that I’ll think I owe her. But again, I’m not stupid. If anything she owes me. I dealt with her problem for her, I’m not about to let her forget it.

"Done."

I finish skimming over the contract. Not gonna lie, half of the legal jargon went straight over my head, stay in school kids, but it seems as straight forward as it’s gonna be. I won’t be earning Trace Demon money any time soon but it’ll be enough to make a difference for Lucy. I put my name to it and just like that, I’m officially a professional wrestler. Who knew it was so easy?

"Welcome to the fold Tyler."

She offers her hand and I take it. She just made me a WFWF superstar, least I can do is shake her hand.

"You know Trace always said a lot of bad things about you Lila, a lot of bad things, but aside from the manipulation and turning me into a butcher, you’re not as bad as he made out."

"Thanks… I think."

I take the bat off of her desk, keep the barb wire end far away from my skin. That sh*t looks like it hurts. Lila watches me cautiously, got to wonder if I’ve already given myself a reputation. How are the crowds going to treat me? As some hero who got rid of the big bad villain, or just another crazy f*cker who bashed a guys head in.

"I’m gonna keep this by the way. Trace always said every new guy needs a hook, figure this is as good as any."

"Tyler, before you go, can I offer you some advice? Don’t turn into these people. What you did out there? It was sick and messed up, but you did it for the right reasons. You know that as well as I do. Trace had to be stopped, and you did what needed to be done, but don’t let that turn you into another bitter and twisted f*ck. We’ve got enough of those around here, you’re not like them. You’re a good person."

"Thanks Lila, I’ll keep it in mind."

Everyone’s done bad sh*t in their life, but does that make them a bad person? Just because it was the right thing to do, does that make it right when you take a barbed wire bat to somebody’s skull? Does that make it right that right now, in my hand, I’m holding a bat that’s got Trace’s flesh still clinging to it? The f*ck if I know. All I know is that I’ve got a WFWF contract, and if I don’t think about that cracking noise, then maybe I won’t hear it every time there’s a brief silence…

Crack.

< *** >

Alone

”She doesn’t want to speak to you Tyler."

"What do you mean she doesn’t want to speak to me? She’s my sister!"

"Well you should have thought about that before you did what you did. Seriously, what were you thinking? That was… it was sick Tyler. Sick."

"I did what I had to, for her. The money will-"

"The money? You could have found money some other way! You could have got a proper job! The money’s not an excuse for what you did. Your parents would be ashamed of you."

"Don’t speak about my parents like that!"

"Or what? You’ll attack me with that bat as well? Goodbye Tyler, I’ll let you know when Lucy wants to talk to you, but honestly? Don’t hold your breath."

The line goes dead. I sink into the chair, resist the urge to throw my phone halfway across the room. The silence is unbearable. I’ve barely ever gone a day without speaking to my sister since the accident but since that night I’ve not spoken to her. I went into that arena knowing full well what I was gonna do, which made the idea of her staying with Trace’s weird extended family pretty messed up when you think about it. So I made a call I thought I’d never make. See my parents might of died a few years back in the same accident that put my sister in that chair of hers, but that doesn’t mean I don’t have any family at all. I’ve got an uncle and an aunt who’ve never stopped talking about how Lucy would’ve been better off staying with them. That staying in L.A. wasn’t right for ‘someone like her’, as if they knew the first f*cking thing about what it took to look after her all these years. I never thought I’d actually take them up on the offer, but I never thought I’d be putting people in hospital either, so turns out I’m crossing a lot of lines recently.

Anyway, I made the call and told them to look after Lucy, told them that what I was about to do I didn’t want her knowing about. She’d find out, obviously, not like she can’t use a computer, but I didn’t want her watching and I didn’t want her there when I got home, dirty clothes covered in another man’s blood. Fact is me being a wrestler without Trace’s support network would’ve made it difficult to look after her anyway, and everything I do I do for her, so I made the right decision, hard as it may be, and told them to look after her for me. She wasn’t happy about it, cried for hours, but it was the right thing to do, end of the day.

Feels like I’m saying that a lot this past week.

F*ck.

Trace Demon’s in the hospital, they reckon it’s brain damage, as far as I’ve heard. Not sure when he’ll wake up, or even if he will. That’s messed up. I know I wanted to injure him, end him even, but really I only wanted to take him out of the WFWF. Would have just aimed for the knees if I didn’t think he’d find a way to crawl into my apartment and strangle me in my sleep. F*ck, that’s an image I didn’t need, that f*cker’ll haunt me.

Was it worth it? Sure, the money’ll help Lucy, whether she’s talking to me or not. And I’m getting to live my dream, I’m a wrestler for the WFWF. This is what I was working for, this is why I was hanging around Trace in the first place. But at the end of the day? Was it worth it? Was it worth battering a man’s head in just to get a job? I can’t stop thinking about that, whether it was worth it. And every time I do I come to the same answer.

"It’s always worth it."

"What the f*ck?"

I could have sworn I head something, a voice, right behind me, but there’s nobody else here. I’m all alone. Everything that’s gone on is getting to me, messing with my head. I need to relax, forget about everything. Get the f*ck out of this apartment before it drives me mad. Maybe head off to Charlotte early. Don’t even know who I’ll be facing yet but getting away from this place has to settle my mind. Maybe give me some time to prepare, train. It’s not going to be easy, I’m not exactly the most experienced wrestler around. Yeah, that’s what I’ll do, get the hell away from here…

I knew that voice.

< *** >

The Ring

The day of a show, after we’d arrived in whatever city the WFWF was running that night, Trace would disappear for a few hours. He wouldn’t say anything to anyone, he’d just go, usually first thing in the morning too. Later he’d tell me it was this ritual he had. He’d turn up at the arena the show was scheduled to run in, he’d head down to where the ring was usually already set up and he’d sit there in it, in the middle of an empty arena. Said it cleared his mind, got him ready for that night, for whoever he was ‘going to rip apart’ as he put it. The guy had a way with words, that’s for sure.

He might have been a sociopath, but he was right about this. About the feeling of standing in the ring when there’s nobody else around. Well, nobody but the fifty or so guys putting together everything for the night, but they don’t bother me as long as I don’t get in their way. It’s weird thinking about how in just a few hours there’ll be people cueing up to get in here yet here I am, like I belong here. I guess I do. Whether these people like me or not, or think I got here the right way, I belong here. I’ve earned this.

Is that really how you earn things though? By bashing a man’s head in? I still can’t get the sound out of my head, the way his blood spurted from his skull, the vacant look in his eyes as he dropped to the mat. This mat, right here. Another building maybe, but it’s this ring. Right below my feet is where he fell, like he was nothing. A man who’d wrestled for over ten years in the WFWF, a man nobody else had been able to get rid of. Gone, just like that, like he was nothing, because of me. I’d like the say I couldn’t do it again, but I reckon I’d be lying. It wasn’t that hard, that’s the scary thing. After I’d taken that first swing the next two were easy, just like hitting a baseball. I can see him, right now, when I close my eyes. Like I’m still there.

Crack. Crack. Crack.

That’s it. Three swings, three hits, and I ended the career of a WFWF Hall of Famer. Easy.

So why can’t I sleep? Why do I see blood every time I close my eyes? Why is the only time I can forget about it when I’m drinking myself into a stupor? I don’t even like alcohol, it tastes f*cking grim, but it’s the only thing stopping me from seeing Trace’s face when I finally manage to drift off because my eyes won’t stay open anymore. Is that how it started for him? Was Trace Demon a normal man who did something horrible and let the darkness creep in? Or was he always a monster? I mean if you listen to the people around here he was, or even if you watch the WFWF Archive (available for a low low price I’m told, though I get it free, perk of the job and all), but he had to be good once, right? Nobody’s born evil.

Except Manson. That dude f*cking sucked.

Either way, it doesn’t really matter. I’m not here to be the next Trace Demon, I’m here to be the first Tyler Draven. It might have been easy to take his head off, I might still have that bat in the back, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to let myself become like him. Or like any of them. I can be better. I can show that you can win the right way. I can redeem myself. Can’t I?

"Ah, Tyler, fantastic, they told me you’d already arrived."

My peace is cut off by Lila, but unlike every other interaction I’ve had with her this time she’s not alone. She’s flanked by a guy in a cheap looking suit, chubby, balding, a huge sh*t-eating grin plastered across his face. I recognise him immediately, even though I’ve only ever met him once before. Jason Anders, Trace Demon’s former lackey and ex-WFWF General Manager.

"It’s good to see you again Mr. Draven."

I roll out of the ring, perch myself on the edge of the canvas, looking the pair of them over. Weird seeing the two of them together, I’d assumed they’d hate each other given their former involvement with Trace, but then again they both hated him by the end of it. Anders even urged me to take Lila up on her offer, to put an end to Trace. Sh*t. Did the two of them play me?

"I know what you’re thinking Tyler and don’t worry, mine and Jason’s business together happened after the two of you had your little conversation, not that I wasn’t pleasantly surprised to hear that he supported our endeavour."

"You make beating a man’s head in sound like a business deal."

"I’ve come to terms with what we did Tyler, I think you should to. Dwelling on the past isn’t going to get you anywhere."

Easy for her to say. Wasn’t her that swung the bat.

"Now, I suppose you’re wondering why myself and Mr. Anders here interrupted your quiet contemplation?"

"Oh it wasn’t just for a friendly chat?"

"I see you picked up on some of Trace’s sarcasm during your time together. I suppose that will make the adjustment easier."

"Adjustment? What’re you talking about."

"After the incident with Trace Mr. Anders contacted me, said he wanted to reach out and congratulate me on doing what was best for the WFWF. I appreciated the sentiment and we began to discuss what exactly is best for the WFWF."

"I was passionate about this company once upon a time, I want to see it succeed as much as anyone. And for it to do that it needs to have a bright future ahead of it. We think you’re a big part of that future."

"A man driven by doing what is right for the WFWF, who isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty, who sees the value in doing the tough jobs to make things better. That’s somebody who I want to nurture."

"I told you before Lila, I’m not being your lackey. What I did… it needed doing, but that doesn’t mean I liked doing it. I stopped Trace because it was the right thing to do, not because you wanted me to do it."

If she’s surprised to hear me talking back to her she doesn’t show it. She keeps that business-woman smile plastered firmly on her lips.

"I told you Tyler, I’m not going to offer you any favourable treatment, so I’m not expecting any in return. But you’re new to this world, and you’re previous… guide, shall we say? He wasn’t exactly the type of teacher I’d like promising talent to learn from. I feel like, while you learn you way around the WFWF, learn the way things are supposed to happen, then you could do with someone in your corner. Someone unbiased."

"Someone like him?"

"Someone like me."

"I’d rather not."

"I’m afraid that’s not an option Tyler. I’m making Mr. Anders here your official handler. Consider him an agent, a confidant and a personal assistant all rolled into one. I want to make sure you’re getting the best possible treatment here Tyler, this is a good thing for you, trust me."

Trust her? Not a chance. I can’t trust anyone around here, if I’ve learned anything so far it’s that.

"So, what d’you say kid? You ready to take this career of yours up a notch?"

It’s not hard to see why Trace always made fun of the guy. He tries too hard and it’s really a bit sad. He offers me his hand, both Anders and Lila still with those wide grins. Trace always told me to tread carefully around friendly people, they’re always after something. It’s not difficult to see that that’s true here. Lila wants Anders to keep an eye on me, and I can’t help but think that it’s not for my own wellbeing. But at the end of the day I’m still new here, and I’ve got to try and play the game if everyone else is doing it.

Course, I’ve got to learn the game first.

"I’ll give it a try, but if you start to annoy me I’m gonna be honest, I’m probably gonna walk out on you."

"Me? Oh you won’t have to worry about that Mr. Draven, I feel like we’re going to get along just fine."

I very much have doubts about that.

< *** >

It’s funny how quickly things change. A few years back I could only dream about being a professional wrestler, now here I am about to step foot in the ring for the first time. That should be a big deal, right? People should be talking about that sh*t. And they are… but not the way I want. They’re not asking who is this guy, what’s his story, how’s he gonna do. Nobody cares about me actually wrestling, all they care about is that I’m the man who ended Trace Demon. And I get it, that’s a big story, and anybody else would be grateful for the publicity. They’d be happy people were talking about them. But that’s not me. Because I don’t want to be known as the man who ended Trace Demon. I don’t want to be known as the man who did what nobody else could do. But sh*t, I brought it on myself, right? I did what I did, shouldn’t be surprised people took notice. But if you think that’s all I am, then you’re about to get a very big surprise.

See what people should be saying is that this is the guy who didn’t just end Trace Demon, he’s the guy who was trained by Trace Demon. He’s the guy who was mentored my a WFWF Hall of Famer, a former World Champion, a former everything-champion. What they should be asking is what does this guy know? What did Trace Demon teach him? What’s he gonna do when he steps foot in that ring and stands toe to toe with Brandon Bison? But they’re not, they’re not asking any of that… and that pisses me off, because I deserve to be here. I have worked hard to get myself this shot. I have done things that nobody else has ever had to do just to get this opportunity. Don’t believe me? You’ve got janitors and old men and people nobody have ever heard of getting shots that they haven’t had to work half as hard for, and then there’s me, a man with principles, a man with honour, a man who believes in doing the right thing. And to get this shot I had to put an end to one of the most prolific careers in WFWF history.

So, Brandon Bison, ask yourself, if that’s what I was capable of doing to get this opportunity, if that’s what I was willing to do to get my foot in the door, what I am willing to do to stay here? See I don’t know a lot about you, you were never really on Trace’s radar, but from what I can see you’re one of the few ‘good guys’ in the WFWF. Good stuff man, it’s nice to see not everybody is about f*cking everybody’s sh*t up, but gonna be honest with you, that stuff don’t seem to fly around here much anymore. The WFWF doesn’t exactly cater to good wholesome ethics, does it? And a lot of that got thrown on Trace but when you got sickos like Schneider and Kyzer running about let’s spread the blame a bit, right? But I’m happy my first match is going to be against somebody who respects the business, who wants to go out to that ring and win fair and square. You bring that attitude to our match and I’ll do the same. We can stand there, we can shake hands and we can wrestle and everyone’ll see that there’s still some good guys left in this business.

But I get you’ll probably have your concerns about shaking my hand, given the blood that’s already on it. I’m not gonna offer any apologies for what I did, because somebody had to do it. Trace Demon ran around like he owned the place for too long, and nobody else had the balls to step up. So I did it, and it’s already cost me more than you’ll ever understand. I can’t close my eyes without seeing the blood spurting out of his skull, without hearing the noise of the bat, or the sound of flesh ripping away. crack, crack, crack, rip, rip rip. It’s floating through my head all day, every day. That’s what I’ve coped with every single day since… but it had to be done, right? Yeah, it had to be done. And if nobody else was going to step up then it may as well be me. So if you don’t want to shake my hand Bison, then fine, but I’ll still offer it, I’ll still fight fair, I’ll still give it my all to try and put on one hell of a match.

And I’ll win. See that’s the other thing I want to make sure you know about me. I’m a good guy, deep down, but I want this more than anything. I need the money for my sister, and I need to win to get it. I’ve got a purpose for being here, and it doesn’t matter whether you’re a good guy or a complete f*cking ass, if you’re stepping into that ring with me you better be ready for a fight, because I’ve got nothing else. I know you’ve got these big dreams Bison of making your mark, of starting up this new era where you’re on top, but if you think I’m about to step aside for that? F*ck off. This is all I have, this is all I can do. So tell me Bison, what’re you going to do when you step inside that ring with a man who’s got nothing else? What’re you going to do when you hit me as hard as you can and I get back up? What’re you going to do when you throw everything at me and then you look me in the eyes and know it’s not enough because there is nothing else but this match? I know you’ve got experience on your side Bison, but you’ve not faced a man like me.

And by the time we’re doing these people aren’t gonna be speaking about Tyler Draven, the man who ended Trace Demon, they’re gonna be talking about Tyler Draven, the man who gives it his all, who fights till his last breath, who takes each hit and comes back harder. You think you’ve faced some tough b*stards in the past? Let me promise you one thing man.

You ain’t never faced anybody like me.

[Rated R]

It's weird writing a new character after 10+ years of writing Trace, so I think it's gonna take me a while to get the voice down the way I want it to, but this is as good as an introductory bit I can think of and sets up a lot of things that'll really pay off down the line for Tyler's story. Good luck Bison.

[King Richius]

I thought Tyler was all over the place in this RP and that is a good thing given his actions at the last show. Part wannabe good guy, part baseball bat wielding badass, and part whiner. He's going through a lot and you showed that well with how he bounced around trying various ways to come to grips with his actions. It's similar to what I'm doing with Frank - both men are trying really hard to rationalize their way out of the accepting that they may be assh*les.

There were times when a little too much Trace Demon slipped into Tyler's voice but as you say, after ten years writing Trace it's gonna take some time to find Tyler's true voice. For example, the line "Except Manson. That dude f*cking sucked." I totally read that in what I have come to imagine as Trace's voice.

I'd give Tyler's official debut one and a half thumbs up. Good but with some room for improvement.

[CM Poor]

I liked this a lot. I feel like there's a lot of meat to the story of a guy who's done something heinous in the interest of ends he thought were justifiable. It's all the better that he's not gone full tilt into the realm of "deluded bad guy" who thinks that he's singularly pursuing some course of justice while the rest of the world is blind - he has a very grounded, very real sense of morality, and I thought you played up the conflict there handsomely. Obviously, there's going to be a decade's worth of a voice to shake off, and it's possible I'm just being apologetic due to your being one of favorite tenured writers here, but if it really, really became an issue, it's perfectly reasonable in the sense of the story for there to be some bit of Trace in Tyler's voice, and so for me, it's not so much a detraction against the piece as a whole.

Glad you're sticking with us, and I'm psyched to see what you do with something a little fresh. Good looks.

[Devilkiller]

This was a fun read. I personally liked Draven having Trace Demon in his voice. It shows how much time they spent together, and shows how much time you spent as Trace Demon. I like his layers. That's the key to wrestlers that no one really talks about. Wrestlers have layers. They're rappers, movie stars, wrestlers.

I love the direction of the RP as well. The sister is going to be a great "angle", if you can call it that, and makes Tyler Draven lovable, even if he isn't a through and through nice guy. It was good, and knowing your writing, it won't be long until Tyler Draven erases the history of Trace Demon and puts himself in.