Re-Writing The Book: InVasion, Final Month+Epilogue (The Reckoning) Part 3

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Survivor Series: Nov. 18th

The video package for Survivor Series is a tour de force of the history of WWF, WCW and ECW, showing classic footage dating back to Gorgeous George, up through Terry Funk, Bruno Sammartino, Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair, Sting, Bret Hart and current stars. Freddie Blassie gets the last word of the piece, a haunting proclamation that “In war, there are no winners; only survivors.”

WCW’s Survivor Series inter-gender elimination match is the first out of the gate, pitting the Fringe team of Jerry Lynn, Steven Richards, Lita and the Impact Players against Kronik, Sean O’Haire, Chuck Palumbo and Molly Holly. Both teams send their women in first, but Lita quickly tags out to Richards when Molly unloads on her with a blur of offense. Molly responds by tagging in Bryan Clarke. The switch marks the beginning of a long period of pain for the Fringe team, who lose Richards in short order to a High Times from Kronik, followed by Lynn falling to a double-team from the Natural Born Thrillers. Upon those two eliminations, the IP force Lita back in, and the WCW team puts Molly back in. With the women, the Fringe finally get an elimination, thanks to Lita using the ropes during a schoolboy. But without another female to wrestle against, Lita finds herself stuck in a land of giants, and quickly tags out to Justin Credible. Credible begs for mercy from Brian Adams but gets none, and Credible is thrown around the ring by one person after another. It is only when Palumbo, looking to set up the Jungle Kick on a downed Credible, gets blasted by a super-kick from Lance Storm that the Fringe finally catch a break and eliminate a competitor. Adams jumps in, looking to pick off the weakened Credible, but Credible scores with a low blow the referee doesn’t quite see, allowing a tag to Storm. Storm uses his freshness and speed to stick and move, and the help of Credible and Lita on the outside occupying the other two helps when he manages to cinch on the Canadian Maple Leaf, forcing Adams to tap out. Storm is up on his feet as the next person, O’Haire, gets tossed in by Credible (after being hit in the head with a Singapore cane behind the ref’s back). But when O’Haire manages to drop Storm with a clothesline, he tags in Clarke, who cleans house on the IP and plants Storm with a pumphandle powerslam for the three count. Credible, upon realizing he is all alone (aside from the absolutely useless Lita), begs for mercy; Clarke gives him none, pummeling him like a boxer would a speed-bag. Lita goes for a misguided save attempt by slapping Clarke as he has Credible over his shoulder for a powerslam; Clarke merely feints lunging at her, sending her scurrying back to the apron. Clarke drills Credible, then tags in O’Haire, who hits the Seanton Bomb and the pinfall. Lita stands on the apron, too horrified to move. Clarke and O’Haire just stand in the ring, smiling, reclined in the corners. Lita drops down to the mat and backs away; when the ref reaches 10, the announcer declares WCW the winner and, per the results of WarGames, a WCW Tag Title match on Nitro for both the NBT and Kronik.

The second of two Survivor Series matches occurs next, with an unannounced stipulation: it is a tables match. With no tags and no rules, the violence is barely containable, and the refs have to officiate at a distance, lest they find themselves becoming unintentional victims. Spike Dudley is the first to go, a victim of a double-powerbomb by the APA over the top rope to a table on the floor, but the Fringe team quickly even up the sides by putting Faarooq through a table with a 3D. Jeff is the next victim, put through a table with Saturn’s Moss-Covered 3-Handled Family Credenza, but the WWF makes it 2-on-2 when Bradshaw hits the Clothesline From Hell into Saturn while propped up against a table in the corner. But an attempt by Bradshaw to powerbomb D-Von into a table is reversed into a back body drop, and, weakened from one fall through a table makes him easy prey to be hit with a 3D through another, leaving Matt alone. Matt fights valiantly, but the numbers game proves too much and, soon, he too falls victim to a 3D to give the match to the Dudleys. JR waxes about how ominous the loss is for the WWF, and what the fate of the Tag Titles will be if the WWF is annihilated at the evening’s end.

Edge and Raven exchange a handshake before they square off for the vacant Intercontinental Title, but both watch the other with a cautious eye; for Edge, the unknown factor is Raven’s condition—how much may be real, how much may be played up to sucker him in. For Raven, the unknown is having to adjust his nature hardcore style to something more constrained … all the while keeping his opponent off balance, and keeping an eye out for Edge’s brother Christian … or the missing Tommy Dreamer. Edge is surprised by Raven’s ability to keep up with the wrestling, but is disheartened that Raven isn’t in as bad a shape as he’d hoped, giving Edge a tougher fight then he expected. And to Raven’s surprise, Edge proves a tougher competitor then he expects, taking the high-impact, brutal punishment he dishes out and never stays down. When the ref gets sandwiched in an errant clothesline attempt by Edge, Raven resists going to the plunder and sticks to wrestling, and connects with the Raven Effect. But Christian comes down to the ring and smashes Raven in the head with a chair, then drapes Edge over Raven. The ref stirs enough to see the count and issues a very slow three count. Paramedics come down to check on Raven, but as the ref raises Edge’s hand in victory, Christian blasts Edge with the chair. Christian grabs the Intercontinental Title, puts it on the back of Edge’s head and delivers another gruesome chair shot. Christian smiles a sickening, almost demonic smile and grabs a microphone as the paramedics now split to check on both men. “You still think my time’s coming, brother? I told you I want a title shot … do I get one now? I gave you the Intercontinental Title on a silver platter … what do I get out of it? Do I get to experience His Majesty Edge’s generosity now?” Christian throws the chair down, his face a twisted mix of rage and self-satisfaction as he walks away, looking back at his handiwork.

The music of the Four Horsemen cues up, and Arn walks down to the ring wearing a striped shirt. On the way, he stops to say hello to Chris Benoit, seated at ringside, then gets in the ring. “Ya know something, it occurred to me the other day … normally, we don’t go having the Horsemen fight each other. But, as this was Dean’s idea, as a way for Mike to prove himself once and for all, I figured it’d only be fitting if a Horsemen officiated this little shindig. But if the Horsemen are gonna fight each other tonight, then we’re doing this under Horsemen Rules. It’s real simple; there won’t be rope breaks, and there won’t any be count-outs. I ain’t gonna tolerate steel chairs or garbage cans, but I expect the two of you to go toe-to-toe, just like the Horsemen have always done, and don’t stop until you put your opponent down for the count.” Arn gives the four-fingered sign, held high above as Malenko and Awesome come to the ring for their showdown. A handshake between the two starts the match, which has both men pulling out every trick in their respective books, including some new ones to get the upper hand. For Malenko, due to his size, it is a new viciousness and dedication to working over the legs, all the while staying within the lines of Arn’s Horsemen Rules. For Awesome, the goal becomes to wear down Malenko with as much high-impact offense as possible without crossing the line into disrespect. Whenever Malenko gets a moment of offense, he goes right for the legs, hitting dropkicks, leg drags and anything else he can to keep the big man off his feet; the plan alters Awesome’s ability to effectively assert his size advantage. Awesome’s fatal mistake comes when he tries a top rope splash, but the weakened leg gives out and he crashes to the mat. Malenko, battered and weak, pulls himself up and puts on the Texas Cloverleaf. The positioning, near the corner but with Awesome facing the middle of the ring, puts him in a horrible position to try for the ropes, and, with no place to go, Awesome has to tap out. Malenko and Arn help Awesome to his feet; Malenko shakes Awesome’s hand, as does Arn, who says; “There isn’t any shame in tapping out, Mike. The better man isn’t just the winner of the match; it’s also the man who comes back to fight again. That’s what the Horsemen are all about.” Arn holds up the four fingers; Awesome, still trying to catch his breath, nods and offers up a return four-fingered gesture, and the three walk back to the locker room together to the ecstatic cheers of the crowd.

By contrast, though Regal puts forth a gentlemanly air, he displays none of it against Flair, using every dirty-handed trick he can to gain the edge; from the moment the bell rings, Regal starts in, hitting Flair in the back of the head as he takes off his robe, and using the robe to immobilize Flair to beat on him. In between cheap shots, Regal waves to the crowd as if they actually like him, ignoring the negative reply the audience gives him. But the second time Regal waves to the crowd, Flair chop-blocks Regal to the mat. Flair goes right to work on the legs and, like Regal did, stops to acknowledge the crowd, but with a strut and a “Woo!” that is responded to in kind. Flair continues the punishment on Regal until he blocks an attempt at the figure-four by putting a foot on Flair’s ass and shoving him head-first into the turnbuckle. Regal shakes out the cobwebs and goes on the offense, punishing Flair with throws, suplexes and stiff shots to the head. When Regal locks on the Regal Stretch, the crowd expects the legend to fall to the obnoxious WWF Commissioner, but Flair manages to reach the ropes to break the hold. Regal goes right back on the offensive, dragging out the punishment as long as he can without trying for a pinfall. But when Regal backs up Flair into a corner, he paint-brushes Flair, which suddenly sparks a second wind. Flair explodes out of the corner and takes Regal down to the mat, hitting him with a blizzard of lefts and rights. Regal tries to bail when he comes to realize there’s no real counter to Flair’s rage, but Flair catches up with Regal and throws him into the steel steps. A pair of shinbreakers on the steps follow, and Flair tosses Regal back in to slap on the figure-four. Regal holds on as long as he can, but with Flair giving him no slack to go for the ropes and the pain almost making him black out, Regal has no choice but to tap, giving the Horsemen a clean sweep for the evening. Flair shakes hands with Benoit on the way back to the locker room as the crowd gives him a rousing ovation.

The mixed announcing team recaps the modified WarGames rules: a man from each team starts the match, with a new wrestler coming in five minutes later (the order determined by a random draw prior to the event), and further wrestlers in two minute intervals. The Match Beyond begins when all four teams are complete, with submission or surrender the only way to lose, with one modification; instead of one-decision-to-the-win, it is elimination rules, with the last team standing the winner. For the WWF and WCW, a victory will lead to abolishment of the Fringe and the absorbing of the opposing company. For the Fringe, a victory eliminates both the WWF and WCW. For the so-called People’s Team … JR and Tenay can only speculate, as even the contract’s language stipulates (albeit in far more formal legal language) that the People’s Team will “call the shots” should they win. The risk of the anonymous winning conditions has both sides nervous, considering Jericho’s mercurial track record of late … but as the cage lowers, both announcers state the obvious: it is far too late to back out now.

The steel enclosure lowers from the ceiling, not only surrounding the twin rings but giving space on the arena floor for movement, like an over-sized Hell In A Cell. Kurt Angle and Steve Austin, the first two to enter, start fighting before they even get to the ring. DDP, no friend of either man, follows right behind but hangs back, content to let the two beat the living hell out of each other … until Tazz, the fourth starter, comes in and goes after him. By the time the five minute opening period has elapsed, two of the men, Austin and Angle, are already bleeding, and Tazz is busy throwing DDP head-first into everything he can find to try and open him up. The door opens, and the crowd holds their breath as they wait for the music to clue them into the next fighter … who turns out to be Booker T. Booker immediately comes to the aid of DDP, throwing Tazz into the cage wall. Inside the ring, Angle pushes Austin off when he tries a Stunner and connects with an Angle Slam. Angle slaps on the Ankle Lock, torquing it as hard as he can; after a couple of particularly vicious twists, Austin starts to tap, but without complete teams, the submission does no good. Austin’s luck changes when the next person in the ring is Kane, who gets Angle off of Austin with a vicious chokeslam. Austin and Kane double-team Angle while Booker and DDP double-team Tazz until the two minutes elapses, and Rhyno is the next person in. Rhyno cuts Austin in half with a Gore en route to Tazz; when Kane tries to stop him, Rhyno kicks Kane in the gut and lands a spine-shattering piledriver. Rhyno then changes rings, grabbing Booker and throwing him into a steel ring post. Tazz manages to stop DDP with a drop-toe-hold into the bottom turnbuckle, leaving them the only people standing … until Angle makes the mistake of getting to his feet. Rhyno and Tazz switch rings and stalk the Olympic hero until the horn sounds and The Rock joins the match and takes out Tazz from behind. Rhyno charges Angle, who is all too ready for another piece of the Man-Beast. As the Fringe and the People’s Team clash, Austin finally manages to stir and stumbles into DDP in the next ring, and the two start to brawl. The horn sounds again, and the final member of Team WCW, The Big Show, enters the ring, making a beeline for Austin. Show throws Austin aside like a bug, but Kane comes up from behind with a low blow that drops the giant. Booker clocks Kane with a kick to the jaw, and Team WCW uses their numbers over Team WWF, while The People’s Team has their way with the Fringe team. Kane is chokeslammed off the top rope by Show, while Austin is scraped across the steel cage, turning his already-bleeding cut into a gusher. Reinforcements come in the form of Undertaker, completing Team WWF; ‘Taker grabs DDP and introduces him to the many steel surfaces around the rings, from the posts to the steps and the cage. With the reprieve from the two-on-one beating, Austin manages to score some hits on Booker. The horn sounds for the next participant, the man who promised victory, Rob Van Dam. RVD’s first attack comes from behind, a double-springboard (using the two opposing sets of ring-ropes) missle dropkick to the back of The Rock. The Fringe uses their numbers to turn the tide back in their favor, with RVD helping to turn Rhyno’s devastating piledriver into a spike, sending Angle into a fit of convulsions. Tazz whips out his arsenal of suplexes on Rocky, and for good measure, RVD connects with a Five-Star Frog Splash. The horn sounds for the final time, and Jericho comes in like a man on fire, hitting everyone standing between him and his teammates; Austin, Big Show, DDP, Rhyno and RVD all get a piece of Jericho as he fights to come to the aid of his teammates. Just slightly drowned out by the noise the crowd makes as Jericho sets the ring on fire is the announcer, officially declaring that The Match Beyond has now begun.

Jericho rallies his troops against the Fringe team as the bell rings, signifying the start of The Match Beyond. In the other ring and outside, the people Jericho hit as he blew by come to again and immediately look for the living symbol of the rebellion. Big Show is the first to come after Jericho, but RVD steps in the way, trying to use his fast feet and martial arts to fell the human tower; Show shoves RVD away like a mosquito, but RVD keeps coming back. Austin and DDP are the next to filter through and, as their teammates see what is going on, the rest of them follow suit. Rhyno goes after Jericho, but Angle and Rocky pull themselves up and come to his defense; within moments, similar scenes unfold with RVD and Tazz, quickly revealing a unique position: every member of the Fringe stuck facing three people apiece. Outside, Heyman screams at his men to toughen up and beat back the “weaklings”, but the three teams quickly see their opportunity and press the numbers advantage. Before long, the fight turns into a downright mugging, with the Fringe team being thrown around, bloodied and battered at an almost inhumane pace, until Angle secures the Ankle Lock on RVD. Jericho grabs the other ankle and twists while Rock gets down on the mat and talks smack on RVD’s face until it becomes too much to bear and RVD taps. The explosion of applause is both joy and relief that soon mutates into a rousing chorus of “Na, Na, Hey, Hey, Goodbye” as the Fringe team are rudely shown the door. Heyman screams denials and curses at everyone on earth until RVD finally crosses his path; Heyman slaps RVD and goes to choke him, but RVD shoves him off and buries a boot in Heyman’s gut. The rest of the Fringe see RVD’s abuse of Heyman and descend upon the source of their failure, but RVD, hobbling as fast as he can, gets lost in the sea of the audience.

Back in the ring, the teamwork disintegrates immediately, with people striking anyone that isn’t a team member. Austin and Rock finally cross paths, trading punches until Austin tries for a Stunner that Rock reverses into a Rock Bottom, but the follow-up Sharpshooter gets broken up by Undertaker. Booker tries to capitalize and put the hurt on Rock, but Angle breaks it up, beginning a chain of attacks and counter-attacks as each group tries to one-up the other. Jericho smartens up and grabs a chair from under the ring and starts waffling people until DDP catches him from behind and drops him with a Diamond Cutter. Kane brings in the steel steps, trying to crush Jericho, but Big Show kicks them back in Kane’s face. Big Show uses his size to throw people around the ring and to the outside, sending Angle into the cage like a torpedo and throwing Austin half-way across the ring onto the steel chair. Undertaker and Rock work together to put Show on the mat, but the teamwork stops as soon as Show falls, and Booker drops Undertaker with a shot to the nuts. Booker quickly moves over to Austin, wrapping the chair around his head and starts stomping on it. Within seconds, Austin is coughing up blood, but Booker continues, repeatedly stomping until deciding to just stand on it. Kane struggles to his feet to try and intercept, but Jericho and Angle pounce on him, while Angle teams up with DDP to cut off Kane. Booker stomps on the chair a couple more times until, finally, from under a curtain of blood and a face turning blue from lack of oxygen, Austin taps and whispers a surrender. The small contingent of WWF partisan fans boo, but the rest of the crowd goes nuts with excitement. Officials swarm in and usher Kane and Undertaker out and pull Booker off the chair so medics can assist Austin out of the cage.

When the cage door shuts again, the six remaining fighters measure each other, not a single one of them not bleeding. Big Show is the first to lunge into the fight, met by The Rock; DDP squares off with his old nemesis Kurt Angle, and Booker and Jericho collide. The fists fly and the blood pours as the six fighters, wracked with exhaustion and unimaginable levels of pain, reach into the very bottom of their tanks and unload everything they have, using the environment and every implement therein for unseen levels of brutality. Booker and DDP attack with uncharacteristic ferocity, while Big Show relies on size and strength as his advantage; but none of them expect the will of The People’s Team to be so strong. Nothing the WCW team can do keeps Jericho, Rock and Angle down for too long, no matter how much blood is lost or how bad the blow. Jericho manages to plaster DDP with a chair and, with Angle and DDP occupied, assists Rock in sending Show out of the ring; the tandem introduce Show’s head to the metal crossbeam in the cage wall, which drops the giant like a dead tree. With Team WCW’s big gun on the arena floor, bleeding and unconscious, Rock and Jericho get back in the ring and team up on Booker. DDP plants Angle with a Diamond Cutter and goes after Jericho with the chair. He sets up Jericho on the top turnbuckle and goes for a super-plex, but Angle pops up like a jack-in-the-box, races up the turnbuckles and unleashes an Angle Slam from the top. Booker tries to seize upon Angle, but Rock intercepts and takes Booker off his feet with a Rock Bottom. Jericho comes off the top with an elbow onto DDP as Rock slaps on the Sharpshooter on Booker. Jericho puts the Walls Of Jericho on DDP, but neither he nor Booker will tap out. But Big Show comes to, bleeding profusely and dizzied, and sees his teammates in no man’s land and signals the surrender. The crowd noise almost drowns out the announcer proclaiming The People’s Team the winner of WarGames. Officials and paramedics come in to check on the wrestlers, but Jericho grabs the announcer’s microphone. “Tomorrow …” he says, gasping for breath, his voice a barely audible rasp. “Nitro … tomorrow … revolution …” With the heat of battle gone and the need for adrenaline gone, the strength finally drains from Jericho and he falls to his knees. The crowd chants “Jericho!” as he sits on his knees in the aisle, letting the applause wash over him … and, with the applause, the sense of relief and vindication … and, most of all, the knowledge that the war is over.

Epilogue: Nitro: Nov. 19th

The Impact Players’ WCW Tag Title defense against the NBT and Kronik is announced, but, aside from that, only one other thing is announced for Nitro: appearances by Kurt Angle, The Rock and Chris Jericho, to discuss how they plan to “call the shots” as a condition of their WarGames victory.

Shane McMahon stands in the center of the ring as the opening fireworks blow off. Once the noise is gone and the smoke clears, Shane announces; “First off, let me welcome to the ring three people; firstly, my parents, Linda and Vince McMahon!” The McMahons comes out to a vicious round of boos; Vince regards the audience with sanctimonious scorn, while Linda just walks with him, knowing the hatred expressed by the crowd is really directed at her husband. When they get in the ring, Shane grasps his mother’s hand and kisses her on the cheek, but an offer to shake hands with his father is rudely rebuffed by Vince crossing his arms. Linda tries to urge Vince to do it, but Vince is steadfast; Shane tells Linda not to worry about it, and moves on with the introductions. “I’d also like to the man behind the Lunatic Fringe, Mr. Paul Heyman to join us in the ring.”

The response to Heyman is so overwhelming, the negativity seems mere moments away from turning into a lynching. Heyman yells at the crowd as he walks down the aisle, which incites the audience to get even more rowdy. Finally, Heyman just gives up and walks to the ring, standing as far away from the McMahons as possible, arms crossed and a sneer chiseled into his face.

“And last but not least,” proclaims Shane, “the winners of WarGames at Survivor Series 2001, The Rock, Kurt Angle and Chris Jericho!” The threesome come out to the music of Jericho, their unofficial captain, and are treated to a respectable, if not entirely warm, reception from the partisan WCW crowd. The trio shake hands with Shane and Linda, while Vince and Heyman keep their hands stuffed in their pockets; Angle responds to this by hugging Vince anyway, drawing a look of confused disgust from Vince. Meanwhile, Shane says; “Gentlemen, we have assembled to hear your terms; you have the floor.”

Angle takes the stick first, all smiles and bright eyes. “Ya know, since I first talked to Chris Jericho a couple weeks ago, and understood where he was coming from, I’ve felt a huge weight lifted off my shoulders. I was being stupid, following around Austin and Undertaker and those guys; those guys didn’t care about me, they only wanted to use me for their purposes. And their purpose is to keep the business the way it is: with them, on top, forever. They don’t care about seeing this business grow; they’d rather drive it into the ground, then let someone else have a shot. That’s why the first thing we’re doing is stopping these guys in their tracks. Effective immediately, there will be no more wars or hostilities between WWF and WCW. Anyone who willfully invades the other federation will be fired instantaneously, no second chances. No more wars; this country is big enough for the WWF and WCW to exist, side by side.”

Angle hands the mike to Rock, who knows better then to expect a “Rocky” chant from the crowd. “The Rock isn’t gonna waste your time with what The Rock always says, cause The Rock knows you don’t wanna hear it. The bottom line is this: we came here with an agenda, and The Rock’s gonna move right along with Point #2 on the agenda: WCW and WWF, all by themselves, what they’re gonna do now that the war is over.” Rock steps up to Linda and Vince, takes off his sunglasses and turns his gaze to Vince. “Rock is gonna make this simple, so simple, even your diseased monkey’s brain can understand it, Vince; your buddy, Willie Regal? Gone. New Commissioner, this Thursday on Smackdown. You wanna get Raw back? Ask TNN to give you another show, cause Nitro stays Nitro.” Rock turns to Shane. “As for you and WCW … until WCW’s ready to put on their own, the pay-per-views are shared … just keep your people out of the way of the WWF people, and vice versa.” Rock turns away, then turns back and gets right back in Vince’s face. “Oh, there’s just one more thing, Vince, just”-Rock’s voice gets quiet, a gravelly, lethal whisper-“one more thing. The world may be big enough for two wrestling federations, but the World Wrestling Federation … it ain’t big enough for The Rock and Steve Austin. Thursday … Rock … Austin … one last time, no interference … Austin wins, and The Rock goes to Hollywood forever … The Rock wins …” Rock grins, backs away, then points at Shane McMahon. “If The Rock wins, you got yourself a new superstar, Shane.” The crowd explodes as Rock tosses the microphone to Jericho; Linda and Vince both turn several shades of white, horrified at the guaranteed prospect of losing one of their biggest assets; Shane, meanwhile, cracks a world-class shit-eating grin, even as the crowd breaks out into a “Rocky” chant after all.

Jericho pauses, looking to the crowd, who has quickly taken to The People’s Team’s messages of live-and-let-live. The “Rocky” chant melts into a “Y2J” chant; Jericho just lets it die off before breaking his silence. “Oh, and Vince? One more thing. You know how the board suspended you indefinitely? Allow me to put a timeframe on that, jerky: hows about forever?”

Vince’s eyes go wide, blazing like suns gone supernova. “You can’t do that to me! I’m Vince McMahon, dammit! I made this industry! You wouldn’t have a job if it weren’t for me! You-“

I can do anything I want, Vince. Remember; we call the shots now. We won that last night. And while you may have helped this industry become what is it today, the bottom line is this is still a wrestling business, not the Vince McMahon show. This business is bigger then you, and now, it’ll finally have the chance to prove it.” Jericho shoves the microphone in Vince’s chest and starts to walk off, until Heyman crosses the ring, rips the microphone out of Vince’s hands and starts yelling. “What the hell was that? Was I invisible, or …” Sudden realization dawns on Heyman. “Are you … are you letting me slide?”

Jericho pauses, looking at Heyman and grinning. Finally, he comes back, rips the microphone away from Heyman and says; “No, Paul, I’d forgotten about you simply cause you mean that much to me.” Much of the audience, including Shane and Linda, laugh at this; Heyman does not find it as amusing. “But since you seem like you just gotta know … I was gonna do this by courier, since you really aren’t worth the time.” Jericho bats around Heyman’s tie playfully, like a cat with a mouse. “Them contracts your Fringe boys have with the WWF and WCW? Nullified. They’re free agents. They can sign anywhere they want.” Heyman looks confused, cocking his head sideways like a dog. “Let me break that down for you in real simple terms, Paulie: they’re fired! Every last one of them!”

“Y-y-y-you can’t do that! Just cause you won last night doesn’t mean you can go firing people! That wasn’t part of the deal! It wasn’t part of the d-

“Plead your case to the boards of WCW and WWF, Paulie, cause we don’t give a rat’s ass. Bottom line: if you can somehow manage to convince the WWF and WCW to keep on your wrestlers, and if you can somehow keep them from being hunted down like dogs in the locker room and beaten into a coma … if we ever …” Jericho looks over to The Rock.

And The Rock means ever!” he adds.

“Thank you. If we ever see Fringe members teaming up, ganging up, forming a faction, or sharing a cup of coffee … their ass is suspended. No more Fringe, every last one of them … done. Gone. No goodbyes, no final matches together, no farewells.” Jericho turns to Shane and adds; “Except for The Impact Players. They will run out their title reign … then, they break up.”

“That’s not fair! You can’t just-“

“We can, we have, it’s done. As for Van Dam and Dreamer … well, they’re technically free agents, since you never bothered to actually sign then to a WWF contract or anything, so … good luck finding them jobs. And while we’re at it … good luck finding yourself one, Paulie … you’re fired.”

Epilogue: Smackdown: 22nd

The Austin/Rock career-direction match headlines the first Smackdown in the post-InVasion era, but coming on the heels of the earth-shattering news from Nitro’s conference with Jericho, Rock and Angle, the fans and the company know the night will be something special.

To that end, no sooner have the fireworks opening the show ended then Jericho’s music hits. Y2J comes out and panders to the crowd for a couple seconds from the stage before saying; “Ladies and gentlemen … are you ready? Are you ready to meet your new commissioner?” Jericho swings his arm like a windmill before finally pointing towards the entrance … but the screech of breaks and a simple set of power chords tell the crowd who’s coming out before Mick Foley steps through the curtain. The site of the hardcore legend is a heartwarming and thrilling thing after the months of darkness and corruption from the reign of William Regal. Foley waves to the crowd gamely, gives the cheap-pop thumbs-up as he walks down the aisle. “Thank you,” he says, “and let me just say it is great to be back in the WWF … back as your commissioner … and back in the great town of Fayetteville, North Carolina!” After the requisite cheap-pop, Foley waves to Jericho. “And a special thanks, to Chris Jericho, to Kurt Angle and to The Rock, for bringing me back to the World Wrestling Federation. And tonight, tonight I’ve got a huge surprise for everyone! That’s right … tonight … in this very ring … not only will you see Stone Cold Steve Austin face The Rock with their careers on the line, but the special guest referee …” Foley pauses, drawing out the moment; faint chants of “Foley” cue up, but Foley shakes his head. “No, not me … the Heartbreak Kid Shawn Michaels!”

In the back, a man in a suit walks through the halls, asking for directions to the Commissioner’s office. Trish Stratus tells him the Commissioner is in the ring, which prompts him to bark; “I didn’t ask for a status update. Where is his office?” Trish points him in the right direction, and when he gets into Foley’s office, he takes a seat, waiting for the new Commissioner. Foley returns to his office after the commercial, surprised to see the stranger in his office. “Good evening,” he says, offering a hand. “my name is Jay Barnes. I am the proxy representative on the board of directors for EHKS Holdings.”

“If you’re looking for Linda McMahon, she usually isn’t at the shows. Her office is in Stamford, Conn-“

“I am well aware of where Mrs. McMahon’s office is, Mr. Foley.” Barnes lifts his briefcase and drops it on Foley’s desk, unsnapping the clasps; Foley (and the camera) take notice of the logo emblazoned on the black leather: a bright white square, enclosing four letters, printed in a sloppy typeset and in out-of-proper-sequence sizes. “As I said, I am EHKS Holding’s representative on the board of directors; I would know where the headquarters is.”

Foley raises an eyebrow, taken aback by his rude guest. “So, then, what can I ask brings you to a live WWF event, Mr. Barnes?”

“The men who make up EHKS Holdings are on their way to the event tonight, and expect the proper welcome to be given.” Barnes pulls out a file folder and hands it to Foley. “When those gentlemen arrive, I expect nothing but the utmost respect shown for them. These men have made extraordinary arrangements to appear here tonight, and are eager to take a hands-on approach to the company after the past several months of mismanagement.”

Foley chuckles. “We don’t give special welcomes for the McMahons, sir, and as far as mismanagement goes, you can blame Vince and my predecessor for that. And, frankly, we’re in the middle of a show; I’m a little too busy. If you’ll excuse me, I have some things to attend to.” Foley gets up and leaves, leaving the representative sitting in the chair.

The introduction of the three participants in the main event sends the crowd into overdrive, positive for Rock and Shawn, negative for Austin. Foley comes down, causing yet another thunderous pop and recaps the stipulations and the restrictions that there is to be no interference on behalf of either man from their respective camps. Rock and Austin listen to all these while standing in the middle of the ring, nose to nose, staring at each other without saying a word. When Foley finishes, Shawn signals for the bell, and the fists start flying. For the next 20 minutes, Rock and Austin go at each other like two hungry men fighting for a scrap of food. Shawn allows a shocking degree of leniency, letting choking, closed fists and exposed turnbuckles occur without repercussion. When the action spills to the outside and Austin manages to drop Rock with a throw into the ring post, Austin gets in Foley’s face; Foley stands his ground, barking right back for Austin to get in the ring. But when Austin tries for a kick to set up the Stunner, Rock catches Austin and plants him with a Rock Bottom, the second of the night; the People’s Elbow follows, and connects, but only gets two. A third Rock Bottom follows, and that gets the three, and the crowd explodes like a volcano. Foley slides in the ring and shakes the hand of his old friend Rock while Austin rolls out of the ring, cursing, kicking and swinging wildly at anything within arms’ reach … including Jay Barnes. Officials scramble to check on the EHKS representative, but Austin, having nothing left to lose, slides back in the ring. While Rock and Shawn are busy playing to the crowd and celebrating, Austin drops Foley with a Stunner. Austin lingers long enough to see the faces of Shawn and Rock … until Tazz comes from behind and blindsides Austin with a chair. Austin goes down in a heap, leaving Rock staring at the return of one of the Fringe’s premier members. Rock tries to go after Tazz, but a voice cuts through the arena, a very familiar voice.

“There’s no need to do that, Rocky,” says the voice. The owner, a pudgy, balding short man in a Yankess ballcap, comes out onto the stage. “Tazz is, once again, a proud employee of the World Wrestling Federation! He’s just helping flush out that WCW scum!”

Heyman comes down the ramp, the crowd utterly shocked. Heyman, however, is all smiles. “Don’t look so surprised, Rock. You’ve grown up in this business; you should know, or at least heard about guys like me. We’re never down for very long. We find ways to keep coming back, especially when you’ve got help …”

Heyman looks back towards the entrance, and if the unexpected sight of Heyman wasn’t enough to send the crowd into shock, the sight of Eric Bischoff stepping out onto the stage causes every jaw in the building to drop. Bischoff blows kisses and gestures wildly, an echo of the deluded leader of the nWo years before. A smattering of jeers begins to circulate as people begin to realize he was introduced by Heyman … but the confusion is still too thick for people to make much sense of anything.

Bischoff gets to the ring as Tazz throws Austin into the steel steps, splaying open the cut that had been closed with butterfly clasps from the battle at Survivor Series. Bischoff shakes hands with Heyman, which turns into a hug, cementing him in the mind of the crowd as an arch villain … but Rock and Shawn are frozen in place, unable to take their eyes off the surreal sight of Bischoff and Heyman in a WWF ring, hugging like old chums. “You know what I liked best?” Heyman says. “EHKS Holdings. Everybody wondered … what did it stand for? Who were these new owners? Nobody knew! You wouldn’t believe the rumors I heard in these halls …” Heyman holds up a hand; “Get this, Eric; someone actually thought it meant ‘Eric, Hulk, Kevin, Scott’! How do you like that?”

Eric lets loose with a mighty belly-laugh, which Heyman picks up on. Foley, the cobwebs finally shaken loose, pulls himself up to a vastly different tableau then before his Stunner. Rock’s paralysis finally breaks and he grabs Heyman by the lapels; Shawn grabs Rock by the shoulders, trying to get him to move away. “Don’t you get it, Rock? They own us! They own the WWF!” Rock dismissed Shawn with a gesture … until Shawn nearly takes off Rock’s head with Sweet Chin Music. Foley staggers forward, totally confused. “What … Shawn … how …”

“Walk away, Mick,” says Shawn. “Just walk away before you get hurt.”

“Take his advice, Foley,” says Bischoff. “You’re better off if you just walk up that ramp, get on a plane back to Long Island, and stay there. If we could pull the wool over the McMahons and the entire wrestling world and execute this stunning hostile takeover, what do you think we can do to you?

Mick never looks away from Shawn. “But, Shawn …”

“Mick, you know as well as I how ruthless, how much of a rotten bastard Vince McMahon is. You know the pain and suffering Vince McMahon has put people through in his career.”

“I’ve had enough of this,” Heyman says. “Get him.”

Foley whips around, in time to see Rhyno slide into the ring. Foley looks to the ramp, hoping against hope for help … only to see armed security forming a human wall in the entranceway. Mick turns toward Rhyno just in time to be cut in two by the Gore. The reigning WWF Champion pounds his chest triumphantly. Heyman, Bischoff and Shawn laugh with self-satisfaction. Heyman claps Shawn on the shoulder. “Thank you, Shawn! Thank you for helping make this possible! You see folks, it was Shawn Michaels who was our inside source, who let us know when to make our moves! And when the time was right, we sprung our trap and Vince walked right into it … the Loyalty Agreements, suspending people, waging war on WCW, getting suspended … everything he did made our job easier!”

“Vince,” Bischoff says, “there is no more a hated man in this business then you. Vince McMahon: the man who buried the NWA. The man who slowly bled the AWA dry. The man who stole WCW out from underneath me, the only man who ever gave a rat’s ass about the company! The man who kept ECW in business as long as there was talent to steal! Vince McMahon is a cancer to this industry, and with the help of Shawn Michaels, we formulated a plan to excise the cancer in this business and heal it once and for all! What we’ve done … the deception, the lies, the secrets … everything has been for the good of the business, and the good of the fans! You wanted to see RVD in the WWF, and by god, we brought him to the WWF! You wanted to see Raven and Tommy Dreamer wrestle in the big time … you wanted to see The Rock take on Booker T … you wanted to see the greatest war in the history of our sport, the Monday Night Wars, explode in this very ring? We brought it to you! When has Vince ever done as much for you as we have over the past few months?”

The crowd’s incredibly hostile reaction is lost on the trio in the ring, who act as if they’re conquering kings receiving a warm welcome home; Bischoff gives the crowd a double thumbs-up. But it is Shawn, the traitorous employee, the backdoor for the real invasion, that has the last words; “Don’t you worry, Vinnie Mac, don’t you worry … all this chaos is just temporary. We’ll have this company in working order in no time … after all, we got a vested interest in it, don’t we, boys?” Bischoff and Heyman laugh as Shawn leans on the ropes in front of the camera. “With me, Eric and Paul, the WWF couldn’t be in better hands.”

The end

And so here we are. The end, of the story, and, on a full-time basis, the column (which you knew if you read my blog). It’s been an honor and a privilege to serve you all these little products of my over-active fan’s imagination. Before I close up shop, many thanks …

Firstly, the so-called RTB Three: Kurtis, Bonto and Matt. The three of you have bailed me out of many a jam, supplied many an idea during a dry spell, and have been excellent sounding boards when I needed to run an idea past someone. Every writer should be so blessed.

All across the site, I’ve received praise and support … Eric, Hevia, Hatton and Gordi have been just a few in Wrestling who’ve shown support, be it through direct commentary or pimping. If there’s others I’ve left out, I apologize.

Across the rest of the site, D’Errico (man, were you right on the new COC!) and Fernandez in Music have been great. Michaelangelo in Movies (my new home, coming soon!) and, when he still posted there, J. Kern (where’s the Dollar Movie Review, man?), have been more then kosher, and I can only hope the hazing process doesn’t take too long or involve too many goats, okay? As well, Blottie has become a great friend and a big supporter of the RTB, although he hasn’t posted in so long, I have nothing to pimp for him. As it states above, if I’m missing anyone, I apologize. No slight intended.

Big ups to our forums and their crazy cast of characters; the support from there has been huge, the pimpage has been appreciated (join the e-fed in there while you’re at it … good fun, great guys, and Blottie runs it … and it’s at least half as fun as reading this column), and its just a damned good forum. I know I got a thread over there somewhere for this story arc … go over and check it out, join up and post. Be a part of the IP Community, whydontcha!

And, of course, Widro and Matthew Michael, for putting up with my as-of-late spotty schedule, and for providing the playground in which I do my thang.

And, last, but surely not least, a big thanks to you, the readership, for supporting RTB in the first place. There are two types of writers in this world: ones who write for the $$$, and ones who write because they enjoy it, and the fans can sniff out the money-grubbers right quick. I’ve always been about writing for the love of the art, and I like to think you guys sensed it. If the fan mail I’ve received over the past year is any indication, I think I’m right. So, to all you guys … from regulars like Joe Violet … Joe Doucette – Executive Chef … Rick Cobos … Geoff Setty … Eoin McIlwee … the list goes on and on and on. Just know that, whether you were a regular like the guys listed above, someone who only wrote in once in a while, or whether you just appreciated these works in silence … I appreciate you all.

I project the next one of these will be sometime towards the end of summer. August, perhaps September … no promises. But I do guarantee at least one, possibly two more stories before year’s end … one will take us back to Philadelphia to revisit (and reimagine) one man’s hardcore campaign, and one will revisit another, wholly different invasion … until then, be sure to check out my upcoming Movies column (keep tuned to the forums or my blog for the debut date) won’t you? It’s been real, folks … later.