CHAPTER 7: First Meeting and Setup

John's POV

24 Hours before the tournament starts

Me and the boys were part of a 3 vehicle convoy with one destination in mind: The Jade Palace. Never in a million years thought I would say that, but after being invited there to perform for the Furious 5, we couldn't say no to this.

The convoy consisted of me and the band in the first truck carrying mainly the instruments excluding the drums. Those were in the van behind us. In that van were Heather and Hutch's cousins Candu (real name Corey) and Diggs (real name Diego). They are the front of house team. Having done gigs in venues that had no PA system and front of house guys in the past, we decided to recruit them to help us out and they've been a part of our crew for 8 years now. Finally in the last vehicle we had our other crew guys (bass, guitar and drum techs). They consist of Mooch (real name Paul), Salty (Chris) and Shaky (Adam). Humphrey first met them in high school and quickly became a band of brothers. As for the nicknames, don't ask, I myself have no clue.

"So, if I remember correctly, we're picking up Roman at his place right?" Hutch asked

"Oh shit that reminds me, I need to let him know we're on our way. Thanks Hutch." I answered as I began to dial up Roman's number.

"Hello?"

"Hey Roman, it's John."

"Oh hey John, you on your guys' way I'm assuming?"

"Yep, where do we pick you up? We're about 5 minutes away from the village."

"Oh, just in back of the shop is fine."

"Perfect I'll let Humphrey know where to go."

"No problem, see ya in a bit."

"Yep, bye." I hung up.

"He said we can pick him up behind the shop. If you need I can guide you to it."

"No problem Captain" Humphrey said.

We got there in no time and arrived where Roman wanted us to meet. We decided then to take a quick piss break before making our way up the mountain.

"Heh. Thank God they got this road built alongside the mountain. Imagine how much of a pain in the ass it would be to carry all of the shit we're bringing." Garth said. We all laughed at his remark. He did have a point though.

"That is true Garth. However to counter that claim. There is the cable car we could have taken too. They built it specifically for carrying heavy loads to and from the Palace so that not only the 5, but also anybody who would bring anything big or even fragile could use it. That way it makes everyone's life much easier and pain free." Roman added.

"Oh where is it located? Cause I didn't see when we picked you up?" Garth asks

"Well we can't actually see it since the road we're taking circles around the mountain. But you will see once we get to the top that the cable car starts from the village entrance, all the way to the top where the Palace is located." Roman answered

"You would have seen the thing if you hadn't passed out in my lap." Hutch cheekly added.

"Fuck off dude. I didn't get much sleep last night you know!" Garth annoyingly said. We laughed it off. We sure know how to get on one's nerves, but that's the beauty of our friendship. We love each other enough to piss each other off.

After 20 minutes of driving we made it up to the courtyard entrance. When we all got out of our trucks/vans to stretch our legs and take some quick pictures of the view, I decided to briefly say a few things to the band and crew before walking in.

"Alright guys can I have your attention please for a couple minutes. This is something I wanna say before we go in and start setting up."

The others came and gathered around.

"Ok, firstly, I would like everyone except for myself, Humphrey, Garth and Hutch to stay here until I give the all clear. The reason for that is because as far as I know, the Furious 5 aren't aware that we are bringing a full crew with us today. Therefore they might think of us as intruders and proceed to beat the shit out of us and throw us off the mountain. That is why I am asking you guys to wait here until I give you the all clear."

"And how will we know when we get the all clear?" Mooch asks.

"I will simply give you a call. I don't wanna resort to hollering for nothing when there's this wall possibly blocking out my voice." I answered back

So with the crew being briefed, me and the boys made our way into the courtyard. We were in for a rather unexpected surprise.

We walked and to our surprise, it was empty. Apart from the decorations and boxes filled with different contraptions that were to be used for the ceremony the next day.

'Hmm, they aren't here.' I thought to myself.

I turned back to face the others and was about to say something when I noticed their eyes go from casual to all of a sudden becoming wide.

"Umm guys, are you ok? Y'all look like you saw a ghost or something" I asked.

"John. I don't want you to panic but-"

"Humphrey, you saying that will most definitely make me panic so just spit it out already." A pet peeve of mine that really gets to me is when someone says "don't panic but…" You just know something is about to go down, and normally not in a good way. So I knew something was about to go down.

"Ok then, don't say I didn't warn you. Turn around." He answered back.

I turned around and I almost jumped out of my shoes. The Furious 5 were there right in front of us. Well 4 of them were since Viper was nowhere to be found. Quickly regaining my composure I decided to introduce myself to them.

"G-Greeting Furious 5. Allow me to introduce myself and the boys behind me. We are-" Master Tigress didn't even allow me to say my name when she just pins me to the ground outta nowhere.

"If you don't drop that weapon of yours in the next 3 seconds. Your friend here is being thrown off the mountain with you three following shortly after!" She roars to the boys.

"WAIT WAIT WAIT, WE'RE NOT ENEMIES. WE WERE INVITED HERE ON BEHALF OF BOTH-" Now Garth decided to sign his death wish by throwing Master Tigress off of me. Hutch then was able to pull me away. However fearing that WW3 was about to erupt on the courtyard floor, I quickly jumped in front of both groups in an attempt to stop the approaching conflict.

"STAND DOWN! THEY ARE NOT ENEMIES" Three voices rang out.

I gave a quick look over my shoulder to see both Viper and Master Shifu standing back to back with me.

"Hey Viper, been a hot minute." I said

"Yeah, sure has. You alright?"

"Just fine." I said before finally getting my nerves cooled before confronting the boys.

"Ok fess up. Who the HELL took their gun out?!"

Immediately Garth and Hutch both point at Humphrey.

"WHAT, WAIT A MINUTE I DIDN'T EVEN TAKE IT OUT. I only put my hand on the holster. I swear to god!"

"And how did that turn out? We nearly got tossed off the side of the mountain. Remember these guys will fuck you shit up if you so much as even LOOK at them funny." Frustrated as I was, I couldn't be mad at him for long since he's one of my in-laws.

"Look, Humphrey as much as I love ya dude. You can do some really dumb shit sometimes. So for next time, THINK BEFORE YOU DO." We shared a brief hug to calm each other down before I then returned my attention to the 5 and Master Shifu.

"Well, since we are now all here. Master Shifu and Furious 5, it is our honor and privilege of being in your presence today and for tomorrow's big ceremony. Allow me to introduce you to the band. We are the Soldiers from Hell. As for each individual member, I will go through them briefly. I'm Captain John Dunn, I am the drummer and occasional back up vocalist. Trigger Finger over there is Lieutenant Humphrey Rogers, our lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist. To his left is Dr. Hutch Stevenson, lead guitars and back up vocalist. Finally our lead bassist and back up vocalist, Lieutenant Garth Anderson." I introduce the boys to the 5 and Shifu.

"Uh wait. Aren't we missing 2 people?" Viper asks

"Ah right, I was just about to get to that. What Master Viper is talking about is the fact that 2 of our members are currently not here. They are my sisters Kate, who is our second lead guitarist, and Lilly who is our second bassist and keyboard player. They couldn't make it for today's setup/practice session and tomorrow's ceremony because they come back from their respective tours of duty in both Iraq and the Gulf of China tomorrow just before sunrise. However they both gave us their blessings of pushing forward and doing the show without them."

Everyone gave a small nod of understanding. Master Shifu then chimed in.

"Well Captain, I would first like to thank the 4 of you for accepting the invitation that we have given to you for today and more importantly tomorrow. Master Viper has given you praise for your ways of giving the villagers a show. Allow me to introduce you and your band to the Furious 5. Of course you all know Viper. going on from her left we have Master Monkey, on his right shoulder we have Master Mantis, then we have Master Crane and finally the leader, Master Tigress."

We all salute/bow in acknowledgement.

"I hope you all enjoy your stay at the Palace for the next 2 days. If you need anything at all, don't hesitate to ask either one of us or the staff and we will gladly come to your assistance."

"Thank you Master Shifu. I also forgot to mention, I will be the only one spending the night here." I said.

"Oh, and the reason behind this is…?" Master Mantis pops in

"Mantis! That's kind of not your business." Viper slaps him in return.

"Oh no Viper it's alright, he didn't insult us asking that question. Me and Garth would like to see our wives before the show tomorrow." Humphrey said in Mantis' defense

"As for me, my wife needs me to help her out with a few small things before the show. We will be able to show up tomorrow an hour before the doors open." Hutch added.

"Well that settles it then. I will get one of the workers to set up a room for you Captain Dunn for whenever you are ready to turn down for the night."

"Thank you Master Shifu. And one more thing."

The 5 who were just leaving turn back to see what I had to say.

"Us 4, we didn't come alone. Our crew members are outside the courtyard right now. I wanted them to wait before coming in case the 5 would see them as a possible threat." I said

"Oh, there is no need for them to wait. They can come in now."

"Excellent!" I then got my phone out and gave the guys the green light.

We then started bringing all of the equipment in through the main doors. One thing about the set up that we liked was that it was all hands on deck. Meaning everyone, including band members, would help set their instruments up where they needed to go.

For me I had my drum kit in 4 different cases. One for the actual drums themselves, one for the cymbals, one for the pedals and lastly one for the rack that holds the kit together. Mooch and Roman gave me a hand putting my drum riser in place. I would be located towards the back of the podium/stage the band would be performing on.

TIMESKIP 3 HOURS.

After finally setting up the gear, sound checking each member and rehearsing for a couple hours. We decided to call it a day.

"Well, I don't know about you guys, But I'm starving." Salty said.

"Yeah me too. Say I heard there's a new bar and grill restaurant that just opened in the village a couple months ago." Mooch replied.

"Oh yes. I just went not too long ago. The BEST BBQ I have ever eaten." Roman chimes in

"Sounds like we have ourselves a date with food planned." I joked. We all laugh as Viper comes in after finishing her training session.

"Hey guys. How did practice go today?"

"Oh hey Viper. It went very well. I think we are more than ready for tomorrow." Garth answers.

"Say we are just about to get some food. Wanna join us?" I ask

"Glad you asked. I'm pretty hungry myself. Where are you guys headed? I heard about a new restaurant that just opened."

"Yeah we're actually going there for dinner. Trust me, the food is the BOMB" Roman replied.

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go eat, shall we?" Viper asks back

We proceeded to head down the mountain with the vehicles because we knew we would go our separate ways after eating. Little did we realise that there was one more little surprise waiting for us at the restaurant.