Tony woke up on his bed, blood staining the cheap comforter and sheets he had purchased prior to moving to New York. He thought to himself a while and pondered if what had happened was just a really good dream or if it truly happened. Did he really get offered a job by Paul Heyman? Did he really go up against the human suplex machine Taz?

“What the hell is that beeping? What day is it?” Tony asked aloud, gathering his bearings.

It was obvious that he’d been out for a while, but he didn’t know how long. He looked over to his answering machine and saw that he had 5 missed calls, and three new voicemails. He hustled over to machine and pressed the recover button. As the tape was rewinding, he looked out of his window and saw that it was raining outside, and by the looks of it, no end in sight. The voicemail beeped.

“You have one new message. First new message; Hey Tony, it’s Phil. Your boss! You were scheduled to come in and help at the café, but you’re not here. Since you’re new, I’ve gotta let you go. Can’t be a deadbeat in New York, kid” the message played, Tony’s gut sinking. That was his only source of income so far and he needed it.

“Second message; Hey Tony, it’s me Paul. Tommy and I were thinking and we thought you should come by the house so we can discuss a gimmick for ya. We already have one we’re thinking of, and we just need to make sure you can fit in the singlet we already have. Give me a call back and Tommy can come and pick you up.” Well, at least something was going right in Tony’s life. He turned on the TV and found out he’d been out for an entire day. He had completely missed Sunday, and slept directly into Monday.

“I guess working at a place for 2 weeks then not showing up is a bad thing, I’d have fired me too” Tony thought to himself, picking up the phone to call Paul.

“Hey Paul, it’s Tony. Can I get Tommy out to my place today?” Asked Tony, eager to get the ball rolling.

“I can tell ya one thing, kid, I thought you were dead! Haha, Tommy is on his way over. You’ll have to stay over the next couple nights until Friday’s show, so pack up” Paul clicked on the other side of the phone, seeming to be busy.

A couple hours passed as Tony listened to the radio and packed a briefcase. He packed light on his way to New York knowing he didn’t have the room or energy to haul around a lot of luggage from Seattle to Virginia while being at Vader’s school, but he thought he might get a job to help get more clothes. He was just out of the shower when he heard Tommy yelling from the street corner, “Hey kid, I think if wrestling doesn’t work out, you could always be a hooker down here! Half of them already look like men!” Tommy laughed, pointing towards a couple of women on the opposite corner.

Tony ran down the stairs with his briefcase of clothes and wallet, not exactly knowing when he’d be back home. He reached Tommy’s car and saw a familiar face in the front seat, a face he’d seen on TV not just 3 months ago.

“Hey kid, I’m Mick Foley.” Mick opened up the car door and extended his hand to Tony.

“H…hi Mr. Foley” stammered Tony, meeting one of his all time favorites.

“No no, call me Mick. All that formal garbage is for the military” laughed Foley, giving his classic smirk.

“Well Mick, it’s a pleasure meeting you. I used to watch you in WCW. I remember your debut when you clobbered Sting back in ’91!”

“Well, I’m onto bigger and brighter things you know. I’m just on break from the WWF and figured I’d come out and see some friends, and the place that helped me get my cult following” Foley said with a smile, looking back to see Tommy getting into the driver’s side.

“Alright you two, let’s head over to Paul’s and figure stuff out” Tommy quipped as Foley got into the backseat with Tony, expressing his interest to talk the entire way there.

“So, what’s happening in your world Tony?” asked Foley.

“Well, I’m 19, almost 20-“ Tony got halfway out what he was going toy before Foley interrupted

“Good grief! You’re a still a baby. When are you 20?” Asked Mick, his eyes gleaming with interest

“Well, it’s actually in May, so about a week or so” answered Tony, interested as to why Mick was being so genuine

“Well, happy birthday kid. Who knows when I’m going to see ya again, all I know is that there’s something big happening this year in June when I face Mark, I mean… Undertaker, inside that steal cage monstrosity they built. Hell in a Cage or whatever. I forgot the name, too many bumps to the head will do that to you” Foley said with a laugh, punching Tony in the side of the head like a grandfather would his grandson playfully. The conversation went for a good hour before Foley had passed out, obviously drained from his travel woes. Tommy stopped the car and laughed as he pulled Foley’s bags out of the trunk and left them on the side of the road, quickly speeding back onto the highway as he looked back at Tony and put his finger to his lips. Tony fell asleep as well, and a couple hours later was awoken by Tommy with a loud “WE ARE HERE!” chant, obviously going crazy from the lack of sleep or the gallon of coffee Tommy had in his car.

“Hey cut it out, Tommy. I’ve gotta get my beauty rest for Paul” laughed Foley, brushing his hair back and scratching his beard.

“Well hey, if you wanted to do that, we could’ve just picked up one of them hookers back in New York, you resemble each other quite nicely” Tommy said, bursting into full laughter.

“So, we’re here?” Tony asked as he got out of the car, opening up the trunk.

“Yeah, this is Paul’s place. We gotta head into the basement though, so bring everything around the back and we’ll surprise Paul with Mick” said Tommy, holding his laughter from the joke he pulled on Foley.

“Hey Mick, where’s your stuff? I see my stuff, but none of your bags” Tony asked, looking around.

“Look inside your bags, kid” Mick smirked

“Hey! Where’s my stuff?!” Tony screamed, panicking as Tommy looked back.

“Well, I knew Tommy was going to try to rib me on this long trip, so I figured I’d put my stuff in your bags and your stuff in my bags” laughed Foley, grabbing Tony’s bags.

“Damnit Mick, I thought I had you!” Tommy snapped, obviously defeated.

“Well, you gotta try harder than that. You’re like Al Snow; always one step behind me” Foley chuckled and walked to the backyard with Tommy

“So, am I just going to wrestle naked?” Tony asked, half smirking and half serious.

“No no, we couldn’t do that. Wouldn’t wanna give the women in the front row a heart attack” remarked Tommy, motioning for Tony to follow.

They got inside the basement of the house and Tony saw Mick and Paul hugging, exchanging greetings and quick jabs at each other’s weight. Tommy slung his arm around Mick and took him upstairs to the kitchen for some food as Paul pointed to a red jumpsuit on the couch.

“Put that on” directed Paul, closing off the side of the basement with a blanket. Tony grabbed the jumpsuit and put his legs through, reaching back and pulling the shoulder section of him and stretching a little

“Alright Paul, it fits well. Kinda tight, but hey, it’s pretty good looking” said Tony, flexing his arms up.

“Well look at that, if you beat Richards in three days, you might just be able to keep that suit for the roster” Paul smiled his smile and sat down at the wooden table in the far corner of the basement.

“Well, I certainly feel like it suits me well. It’s red and flashy, so what’re you gonna call me for the show?” asked Tony, pulling the straps off his shoulders and lets them fall to around his waist.

“Well, we called you Inferno. I already know that the fans are interested, so we’re gonna keep you as Inferno. And I know I said that you had a try-out for us on Friday, but tomorrow you’re gonna mess around with Tommy in the backyard with Mick watching so we can assess what you’re bringing to the table, seeing as your first step into the ring was disastrous, and Taz thought he had killed some poor jackass who walked through the ropes” Paul said, popping the top off a Sprite.

“Well, that works for me. Really, I’m just in utter shock that this all happened” said Tony, surprise and excitement in his eyes.

“Well, you just happened to be at the right place at the right time and BAM, you’re getting a chance” Paul said, smacking his open hand with his fist.

“So, tomorrow, Tommy and I are just gonna go a few times in the backyard ring? Anything I need to know? Or do?” asked Tony, pulling the suit off his legs and putting his jeans back on.

“Well, the first part will be a straight practice. See if you can move around the ring and take some basic bumps from Tommy. Then, we’ll give you some time to go at it with him as I make jokes about how fat Tommy’s gotten to Mick and somewhat establish your skill between greener than goose shit, or skilled like Van Dam” Paul said, flipping through a Pro Wrestling Illustrated magazine.

“Damnit! Bischoff and those assholes from WCW grabbed up Jericho! He was godsend!” Paul yelled, throwing the magazine to the ground and standing up.

“Alright Tony, gotta make a promise to me since I don’t have contracts for most of my guys. You gotta promise me that if you get on the roster, you won’t leave me without letting me know, hey?” Said Paul, intensity in his eyes.

“Yeah Paul, I’d let you know if I was gonna jump ship” Tony laughed, looking at Paul, who cracked a smirk.

“It’s pretty late, you got the couch down here and we’ll get to it in the morning alright?” Paul said, heading upstairs before Tony could say anything back. Tony sat down on the couch and cracked his neck, pulling his boots and jeans off as he laid down on the couch, pulling a ratty blanket over him.

“Rise and shine, kid” yelled Dreamer, throwing a bag of clothes at Tony, waking him up.

“H…hey, what’s this about? It’s only 8 in the morning, man” Tony said groggily, sitting up on the couch.

“It’s only 8 in the morning, I’m a little girl” mocked Tommy, laughing as he clapped his hands loudly.

“Alright alright, I’m up. These your hand-me-down clothes?” Tony quipped, laughing as he pulls out a pair of woman’s underwear of the bag.

“Very funny, smart ass. That’s just a bag of lost and found stuff we get at the bingo hall. I’ll get you later today for that” Tommy laughs, glaring at Tony. Tommy and Tony head upstairs for some breakfast as Mick’s watching something on TV.

“Morning sleepyhead” Mick says, throwing Tony a box of corn flakes.

“Yeah, morning. That couch kicked my ass last night, man” complained Tony, bending back for a decent crack of his knotted back.

“Yeah, well we’ve all slept on that couch at one point or another” notes Tommy, downing a couple of scrambled eggs.

“Well maybe Paul should get another one” remarked Tony, wincing at how far back he was bending. Tommy put his arm around Tony and guided him to the backyard, a ring that was set was dismantled to the basic parts and Tommy slapped Tony on the shoulder, laughing.

“Alright kid, you gotta put the ring ropes on and tighten the turnbuckles. I’ve done that shit too many times, and now we’ve got someone so I can finally relax” Tommy said, smirking.

“Yeah, Tommy’s no longer the Al Snow of ECW” Mick piped in, laughing and jabbing Tommy in the shoulder. Tony drew in a big breath and got to work on the ropes, pulling and tightening up the sections with wrenches and a couple clamps to keep the mat covering on. The ring was a little smaller than a regulation ring, but that didn’t mean it was any easier to set up. Even though most of it was already put together, Tony struggled with a couple of the ring ropes as he broke a sweat. An hour and a half later, Tony collapsed in the ring, raising one his arms to the sky.

“Your winner, and champion of the backyard ring from hell; Inferno!” He laughed, huffed and sat up as Tommy, Mick, and Paul all looked on, smirking to each other.

“Alright kid, now it’s my turn to break a sweat” Tommy laughed as he stepped down from the back porch, Paul pulling him to him for a second and whispering into Tommy’s ear, “Don’t be gentle, and throw some damned potatoes at the kid. Get him roughed up, and make sure he knows what he’s getting into” Paul said with an evil smirk, patting Tommy on the shoulder as he went to join Tony in the ring.

“Alright kid, are you ready?” Tommy, leaning down and lending a hand to Tony for him to get up, pulling him up and immediately hitting him in the stomach with a knee. Tony doubled over, clutching his stomach, coughing for a breath.

“You gotta learn that we are some sadistic people here in ECW, so let’s get going!” yelled Tommy, bouncing off the ropes and landing an elbow square in Tony’s back.

“Oh man, that’s gotta hurt!” howled Mick, sitting back and sipping a soda.

“Stand up, kid!” taunted Tommy, grabbing Tony by his hair and kicking him in his midsection, grasping his head under his arm and raises his other arm in a taunt.

“Do something, man!” Mick yells just as Tony drops to his knee and pulls Tommy over his shoulder and onto the mat, locking in a shoulder lock, pushing Tommy’s elbow up as his wrist presses against his own shoulder. Tony leaps up and lands a sharp knee to Tommy’s exposed armpit as Tommy groans.

“There ya go, kid!” Paul screams in excitement, eager to see his new potential talent in full action. Tony grabs Tommy’s head and pulls him up to stand him up and pushes him into the corner, quickly attacking with a flurry of fists, landing one last one to Tommy’s jaw and walks away, Tommy flopping to the ground. Tony puts his arms together and grasps each wrist above his head and taunts Tommy as he struggles to his feet, grasping Tommy and putting his head between his legs, lifting him against his stomach and dropping to his knees, crashing Tommy’s head to the mat.

“Holy shit, kid! He might be dead!” Paul laughs as he’s sprung from his seat, running to the ring from the porch as Mick follows.

“Well, what do you say Tommy? Is the kid alright?” Mick leans down and lightly slaps Tommy on the cheek, laughing at him.

“Well, I don’t know right now. Let me pull the top of my skull up from the mat and I’ll tell you when I grab my senses” remarked Tommy, sitting up and looks at Tony with a dazed manner.

“Thanks for the run-around, Tommy” Tony pats Tommy on the back and helps him up.

“I don’t know if you’re ready for Stevie Richards, but you definitely impressed me, kid” Tommy remarked, rubbing the back of his head.

“Well, that wasn’t all that we have for you, Tony. Mick here has agreed to go-around with you later today in that very ring” Paul says, pointing to Mick.

“That’s right, you get to go one on one with the guy who jumped off the top of his roof onto mattresses to prove a point that he could make a living doing this” Mick says, laughing as he pulls out a leather mask from his bag.

“Now, all you gotta do is decide who you wanna face in that ring later today. Dude Love, Mankind, or… Cactus Jack!” Paul cackled as he smiled devilishly, rubbing his hands together.