One Fall

  * * * * *

  Joey’s flight left at seven on Saturday morning. It was nonstop to JFK in New York, arriving shortly before one in the afternoon.

  Upon entering the baggage claim area, Joey was pleased to see his name on one of the white posters being held up in the line of chauffeurs. His driver, a tall black man in his fifties who didn’t give his name, took Joey to Centersound studios in Brooklyn.

  A man Joey recognized greeted him at the front door.

  “Good afternoon Joey. I trust your flight in was okay.”

  “It was fine, thanks. Asher, right?” Joey said as he shook the man’s hand.

  “That’s right Joey. You probably remember me as Nero Caligula from the 80s. Now I’m the project coordinator for Revolution’s production department.”

  “Excellent. It’s a pleasure,” said Joey. He of course remembered Nero Caligula, real name Asher Mulrooney, the comic wrestler of the 80s who always came to the ring in a toga.

  “Come on back Joey. We’re going to get you started right away on your voiceovers. When those are done, we’ll get you in makeup and film some scenes.”

  The next twenty-four hours were a blur of excitement. The first six were spent recording the footage for the video package. With every take, and every playback, it became increasingly apparent that the video package would be everything Max had promised it to be. The world of wrestling would change forever with the telling of this story. When Joey and Goliath went back to their hotel on Saturday night, they were giddy with anticipation of what they would soon present to the world.

  Sunday began with breakfast in Max’s suite at the Waldorf. Max presented Joey and Goliath with their scripts for Monday’s show. Joey would cut a promo toward the end of the show, interrupted by Goliath. They would further the story from their video package. The crowd was certain to go apeshit.

  Then it was back to Centersound studios for video shoots. They recorded closeups, head-shots, and silhouettes to be shown on Riot, as well as two television commercials. After lunch, they did a photo shoot for the newest Apocalypse poster and T-shirt.

  Every minute was planned and organized. This was a far cry from the publicity tour he did in Houston for GWA. Max Zeffer was a man who left nothing to chance. It was exhilarating to work with him.

  The flight to Toronto left at six on Monday morning. From the airport, Joey and Goliath were picked up and taken directly to the arena. Their driver took them through a side entrance to the parking garage and pulled right to the performer’s entrance. As soon as the car stopped, a slim black man appeared out of nowhere and opened the door for them.

  “Good morning gentlemen,” said the man. “I’m Sam. I’m your travel buddy for today.”

  “What’s a travel buddy?” said Joey.

  “On the day of every show, you’ll be assigned a travel buddy when you arrive at the arena. There are six of us. There’s me, Claudia, Daniel, Aaron, and Naomi. Today you’re both on my list. It’s my job to answer your questions, keep you on schedule, and be your gopher.”

  Joey and Goliath looked at each other in surprise.

  “You’ll get used to it,” said Sam. “Follow me please. You two have first crack at the ring today.”

  They followed Sam into the arena and through the backstage area. It wasn’t yet eight in the morning, and the place was already brimming with activity. Cameramen were running lighting checks, electricians were inspecting power strips with Ohm meters, set builders were erecting wooden scaffolding.

  “You two are the first performers here today,” said Sam, leading them up a short stairwell and into the arena.

  “Wow,” said Joey, in awe of what they had done to this place.

  “It’s something, isn’t it?” said Sam. “Tonight’s show is going to be huge.”

  Indeed, thought Joey. He had seen Revolution Riot’s set, and this wasn’t it. This far surpassed anything he had ever seen. The entrance ramp was made of glass, underneath which were massive lighting rigs. From the rafters hung two giant sculptures of wrestlers, idealized in form, as if flying at each other over the ring on the floor. Above the ring entrance was the largest teletron he had ever seen, easily forty feet in height. That alone must have been worth tens of millions of dollars.

  “Joey, Goliath, what do you think?” It was Max, who had been talking to two other men by the ring. He was now approaching the ramp to talk to them.

  “This is fucking amazing,” said Goliath.

  “Better be,” said Max. “Cost twenty times as much as the old set.”

  “Well it’s...impressive,” said Joey.

  “Glad you dig it. We need something special to establish the new Revolution Brand Name, now that we own the old GWA.”

  “Gentlemen, I’m going to turn you over to Max now. I’ll be back at ten to answer any questions you have about your schedules for the day,” said Sam.

  “Thanks Sam,” said Max. “So guys,” he said to Joey and Goliath, “you’re here to run our sound checks and practice your promos. You wanna get started?”