Raging Storm Raging Storm
Chapter 3: Until You Crack
By: Jay Winger

Note: this is set the Monday after "Chapter 2: Billy F'N Rose."

To recap: on Thursday, Rain arrived at the arena with Stone Cold and told Mick Foley and Mr. McMahon that she hadn't seen the Storm since Monday. She further warned Foley and Vince that the Storm wasn't going to cool off very quickly. The Storm stalked the arena, knocking out the Big Bossman -- who was guarding the VIP room where Kurt Angle and Billy Rose were -- before attacking Angle and Rose. Angle and Rose, however, managed to put a pair of handcuffs on him, just in time for Foley and Vince to show up. After separating Rose and the Storm, the Force of Nature explained that he had once been part of the wrestling fed that Rose had owned -- CIW -- and that Rose had put the Storm through cruel and demented "training" during his tenure. Now the Storm wants nothing more than to pay Rose back for it, but Vince and Foley won't have it. So instead, Foley's booked the Storm and Lone Star against Angle, Rose, and Edge & Christian -- which is "a start," according to the Storm.

Teaser: The Storm manages to get in the ring with Billy Rose, but the charismatic newcomer says he's going to push him until he cracks.

Rating: R - for violence and profanity

Disclaimer: All things WWF are property of Titan Sports. The characters of Matthew "the Storm" Skinner, Rain, and Billy Rose are completely fictional. I do incorporate a few traits from existing WWF wrestlers, but for the most part, they're my creations.

MONDAY: RAW is WAR, 5 June

Kurt Angle entered the McMahons' VIP room with his fellow wrestlers, Edge and Christian, and found Billy Rose pacing about. Shane was trying to calm him down. "Listen, man, you have to focus. If you lose control in this match, my Dad might have to suspend you."

Rose, who was wearing a loose, unbuttoned red shirt and crimson red tights and boots, turned to him with a snarl. "Hey, I've told you my philosophy when it comes to fighting in the ring. Skinner fucked me over last week, and he's got payback coming." He checked the tape on his wrists and hands, then looked up to see Kurt and the Canadian brothers. His snarl instantly melted into a grin. He said cheerfully, "Hey, Kurt, guys."

"Hey, man," Christian said, "we just wanna tell you that what Storm did to you totally reeks of heinosity!"

"Yeah," Edge echoed. "And there's so gonna be ramipercussions for it. We got your back."

"Guys, please," Angle said, gesturing calmly. "Billy's a man of three I's, just like I am. He's a man of intelligence, integrity, and intensity." Behind his back, Edge and Christian rolled their eyes at this little remark. Angle went on. "Now, he may not have any gold medals like me, but if he can run an independent wrestling federation and hold his own in the ring, then he's Olympic gold medal-worthy as far as I'm concerned."

"Thanks for the pep talk, Kurt," Rose said, "but tonight, when I get in the ring with Skinner, it's not about integrity. It's all about the other two I's -- intelligence and intensity. I trained Skinner and I made him what he is today. So when I'm in the ring, I'm gonna break that sorry son of a bitch down." He slapped his fist into his palm. "I'm gonna keep pushing him and pushing him and pushing him, until he cracks, and then..."

He paused and looked up. His piercing dark eyes glinted with a predatory shine. "Well, then, the Storm will have passed."

* * *

In the Lone Star dressing room, things were in a similar state of tension. The Storm was pacing around, swinging his arms and stretching, generally limbering up for the upcoming match. Rain, the Acolytes, and Stone Cold all watched him as he muttered under his breath. They could only catch snippets of what he was saying, but much of it was in language that would have made sailors blush -- or made Right to Censor see red.

"Storm, you need to calm down," Rain told him. "If what you've told us about Billy Rose is right, then getting all worked up like this is playing into his hands."

"For five years, I've had nightmares about the sick stuff this bastard did to me," the Storm growled, "and you want me to calm down? This is the first real chance I've had to get this guy. If you want me to be at anything but the top of my game, then go to hell."

"Relax, man," Faarooq said. "Have a beer, cool your temper."

"No," the Storm said, pushing away the proffered can. "I don't want to be making mistakes `cuz I'm drunk. I'm staying sober. Once all's said and done, then I'll drink myself sick."

Stone Cold, who was leaning against the wall, looked at a clock. "It's time, fellas. Let's go." The Storm and the Acolytes looked up, nodded, and then started to leave. Rain followed, but Austin stopped her. "Listen, Rain, I don't think it's a good idea for you to be at ringside, tonight. I gotta bad feelin'."

"Someone needs to be there in case Storm loses it." Rain shook her head. "I'm the only one he listens to."

"That didn't work last week, Rain, and I don't think it's gonna work this week either," Austin said. "Just stay here."

Reluctantly, Rain let her arms drop to the sides and sat sullenly at the APA's card table. Austin nodded to her, then swung on his sleeveless leather BMF jacket as he followed the others to the gorilla position.

* * *

"The following is an eight-man tag-team contest and is scheduled for one fall," Lillian Garcia announced.

The patriotic horns of Kurt Angle's theme started playing as he walked out on the ramp. He smiled and gestured grandly around, tapping his gold medals on his chest. Edge and Christian grinned and waved to the fans as they walked alongside him. Edge was wearing green tights and a Reeking of Awesomeness t-shirt tonight, while Christian wore blue tights. Behind them, Billy Rose was also grinning and waving to the crowd. Beneath his open red shirt, his body was finely toned and muscled. They all turned around and faced the TitanTron as Kurt's pyros went off. "Making their way to the ring, weighing in at a combined weight of 920 pounds... the team of BILLY ROSE, EDGE and CHRISTIAN, and KURT ANGLE!"

Kurt, Edge, and Christian all entered the ring as Billy climbed up the steel stairs. The newcomer paused on the apron, facing back toward the ramp, and posed before ducking through the ropes and joining his teammates. Edge and Christian removed their t-shirts and Rose removed his shirt as their music trailed off.

Techno-esque music started in as the faces of the six members of Lone Star flashed on the screen along with a slowly spinning silver star. The music segued into hard rock before launching into the chorus of Union Underground's song: "So come on, come on, come on, get up, get up. South Texas Deathride, you mother----." (The WWF had obviously censored the lyrics before playing the theme.) "Come on, come on, come on, get up, get up. South Texas, man, I'm livin' it up!" The word LONE STAR flashed on the screen as clips of the Texans doing various moves to people played. (The Stunner, the Clothesline from Hell, the Dominator, the Southern Lightning, a Tornado DDT, and the Downdraft to name a few.) Stone Cold, the Acolytes, and the Storm all walked out on the ramp. The Storm was wearing his GeT SeT To GeT WReCKeD t-shirt tonight, and he'd picked up his black baseball bat -- with the word UGLY stenciled on it -- along the way to the gorilla position. "And their opponents, from the Great State of Texas, representing Lone Star, weighing in at a combined weight of 1,051 pounds... the team of THE STORM, Faarooq and Bradshaw -- THE ACOLYTES -- and STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN!"

The four Texans stopped at the bottom of the ramp and looked up at the other four men in the ring. They looked at each other, and then the Storm shouted, "Everybody pick a target!" With that, Lone Star charged the ring. Stone Cold went after Angle, the Acolytes after Edge and Christian, while the Storm chased Rose out of the ring. The Storm ran after his bitter nemesis around the ring, only to eat a superkick as Rose stopped after ducking around a post. The Californian smirked at him, then stomped on his gut for a minute. When the Storm showed signs of recovering, Rose slipped away back to his corner of the ring while referee Earl Hebner pointed the Storm back to his corner.

While that had been going on, Angle had suffered a big Lou Thesz press by Austin and ate a few of Stone Cold's "homemade knuckle sammitches." The two Canadians were getting their bodies punished brutally by the Acolytes. Bradshaw caught a charging Edge and lifted him up, then threw him hard down to the mat with a one-handed slam. Faarooq caught Christian as he charged, swung around, then gave him a Texas spinebuster. Angle fell to a vertical suplex as Edge, Christian, Bradshaw, and Faarooq vacated the ring. Austin dropped an elbow on the Olympian's head, then stood him up for another move, but Kurt raked Austin's eyes and jumped over to his corner, tagging the first person he saw -- who was Billy Rose.

Rose stepped into the ring and moved toward Austin, who had staggered back toward the Lone Star corner. The Storm saw Rose, then made the blind tag to Austin and stepped into the ring. He charged at Rose, who monkey-tossed him down. The Force of Nature was back up almost instantly, only to get a hard clothesline by the Californian. Rose looked down at him a moment, then tagged Edge. The Storm got up, saw Edge in the ring, then scowled at Rose, who merely smirked at him.

Edge tried to take advantage of the Storm's momentary distraction, but he blocked Edge's right hand and lashed out with a furious punch combo that drove Edge down to the mat. The Storm gave him no respite, mounting and delivering punches to the face with piston-like right hands, then finally pulled him up and threw him hard into the hostile corner. He looked straight at Rose, then pointed a finger. "Tag in, goddammit!" he growled.

Rose took his hands from the rope and folded his arms, his lips set in a defiant line. The Storm scowled and kicked at Edge, who was trying to get back up. "Tag in!" he shouted again. Rose smirked and made no move to do so. Christian made the blind tag to his punch-drunk brother, then charged at the Storm, who monkey-tossed him toward the Lone Star corner. He stomped over there, kicked Christian in the head, and tagged in Faarooq.

While the black Acolyte was busy doin' "bidness" with Christian, the Storm and Billy Rose looked across the ring at each other. Rose had a fairly blase expression on his face, but his eyes showed thinly-veiled derision in them. The Storm's eyes, on the other hand, were not their usual cold indifferent blue-gray. Now they blazed with a fury unparalleled, a rage that needed an outlet, an outlet which it could not find. Kurt Angle glanced at the Storm briefly, saw this fire, and quickly looked away. Rose, on the other hand, did not seem perturbed.

Faarooq brought Christian back over to the Texan corner and tagged in Bradshaw before pinning the Canadian's arms back. Bradshaw dished out a hard arm chop across Christian's chest, then whipped him into the ropes for a big boot. Such was Christian's momentum that he continued to move across the ring after the boot, near enough to the other ropes that as he climbed up using them, Rose tagged himself in and vaulted over the ropes. He ducked Bradshaw's clothesline and swiftly kicked him in the gut, doubling him over. Rose ran and shot off the ropes, coming back in a dropkick to the crown of Bradshaw's head. The white Acolyte fell over and shouted in pain, allowing Rose to drop an elbow into his ribs before wrenching in a headlock.

The Storm leaned over the ropes and yelled at his comrade. "C'mon, `Shaw! Kick his ass!" He clapped his hands a bit and yelled again. "C'mon!" Rose kept on the headlock, but stood Bradshaw up, then jabbed his fist up into the Texan's nose. Bradshaw staggered back as the headlock was released, then grunted as Rose kicked him in the gut again. The Californian grabbed his wrist and whipped him toward the Lone Star corner, but before he could get close enough for anyone to tag in, Rose yanked him back and whipped him into the hostile corner. He smirked at the Storm, who was muttering obscenities under his breath, then went over to tag in Angle.

The Olympian and Rose both kicked away at Bradshaw's chest, and then Angle pulled him out for a death suplex. He kicked away at Bradshaw, but then made the mistake of pausing to whoop and pose in a premature celebratory pose, during which time Bradshaw got to his feet and introduced the gold medalist to his boot. He hurled Angle into the corner and followed up with a hard clothesline, then repeated the process in the other neutral corner. Bradshaw dragged Angle over to the Lone Star corner and tagged in Austin.

The fans immediatley started cheering as Austin began stomping a mudhole in Angle. Kurt managed to rake Austin's eyes again and go for a vertical suplex, but Austin caught his leg on Angle's ankle, then hooked up the Olympian for a suplex instead. He went for a cover, but Edge dashed out of the corner to drop an elbow on Austin's back. Austin got up and smacked Edge in the jaw with a fist, which prompted Christian to run out to avenge his brother. Austin punched him as well, then turned around and socked the rising Angle again.

The littering of bodies in the ring prompted the Acolytes and the Storm to charge the ring. Canadian faces became close personal friends of Texan boots and clotheslines. The Storm stalked over to the hostile corner, but Rose quickly hopped off the apron and out of his reach. The Storm leaned over the ropes and pointed a finger at Rose. "Get in the ring, you gutless bastard, or I'll come out there and knock your teeth out!"

Rose was scowling now and pointing right back. "You keep your distance, you raving psychopath, or I'll have to repeat some of my lessons."

That prompted another apoplectic fit from the Storm, who stepped through the ropes and dropped to face Rose. Rose, however, smashed the Storm across the face, momentarily distracting him long enough for the Californian to shove the timekeeper out of his chair and scoop it up. As a furious Storm turned back to face him, Billy Rose brought the chair down on his head hard. The Storm staggered, his eyes disfocusing for a moment as he wavered, and Rose smacked him again from the side. The Force of Nature fell to the side against the apron and slumped to the floor.

In the ring, Edge had been taken out with a Clothesline from Hell lariat and Christian suffered a tandem powerbomb from the Acolytes. Angle had a mudhole stomped in him and was almost out on his feet as Austin gave him a Stone Cold "salute," then a swift kick in the gut and a Stunner. Cameras flashed all over the arena as Angle flailed and flopped onto his back, whereupon Austin hooked up a leg as the Acolytes cleared the ring of Canadians. Referee Earl Hebner saw Austin with the cover and fell to the mat to make the count. 1... 2... 3! The fight bell rung and "South Texas Deathride" began playing again. "Here are your winners, LONE STAR!"

As Hebner raised Austin's hand, however, Rose slid into the ring behind them, shoved Hebner away and booted Austin in the gut when he turned around. The Californian followed this up with a wicked chair shot, which sent the Rattlesnake to the mat. He dropped the chair and raised his hands in the air, a vicious grin on his face. Bradshaw and Faarooq rushed to their drinking buddy's aid, but Rose ducked their double clothesline and slipped away as Edge and Christian returned to the ring, chairs in hand. A chair shot each for the Acolytes staggered them enough for Rose to slip back in and scoop up his chair. He shouted to the brothers, then all three wound up and delivered a vile triple chair shot to Bradshaw. Faarooq attempted to save his partner, but Edge pasted him with a chair, then Christian hooked him up for the Unprettier.

The Storm was struggling to his feet and starting to crawl into the ring, but then Angle ran over, kicked him in the head and snared him in an anklelock. His face contorted in pain as he grimaced and hissed in agony, but -- true to form -- refused to scream. From his position, the Storm was able to see Edge and Christian stomping away at the prone Acolytes and see his nemesis Billy Rose step over to Austin and grab one of his arms for an arm wrench, then lock his legs around Austin's head and wrench in a Triangle Hold variant. Austin shouted in pain as he kicked his legs helplessly as the Storm growled in frustration and fury while Angle twisted his ankle.

Hebner was trying in vain to get the heels to release the Texans, but Rose merely laughed as he wrenched in the hold and shouted, "How d'ya like this, Skinner?! Just like old times, right?!" The Storm roared at him, and kicked his legs, managing to shake Angle off of him. The Storm launched himself at Rose, who quickly released Austin and rolled out of the ring.

Leaning against the ropes and keeping his injured ankle off the mat, the Storm shouted at him, "I'm gonna kill you, Rose! I swear to God, I'm gonna break you in two!"

Edge, Christian, and Kurt Angle quickly vacated the ring as the Acolytes showed signs of recovery, and retreated up the ramp with triumphant smirks on their faces as the Storm fumed in the ring.

* * *

Rain and Jackie both looked up as the men returned. Bradshaw was being supported by Faarooq, and EMTs were following. The black Acolyte set his drinking buddy down in a chair, and the EMTs shined lights in his eyes and checked him for a concussion. Behind them came Austin and the Storm, the latter limping noticably. Austin was holding his neck and rubbing his shoulder. The Storm took one look at the EMTs, then roared, "Get outta here!" He grabbed the nearest one and tossed him toward the door, then shoved the rest out of the room. The rest of Lone Star looked at him as he limped to a chair and sat in it, wincing a bit as he bent forward to rub his ankle. "Son of a bitch," he muttered.

"Storm, are you all right?" Rain asked, coming over to him.

"Yes, I'm fine, damn it!" he shouted, pulling his arm away from her as she tried to lay a comforting hand on his shoulder. "It's just a sprain. I've had worse."

"How's your head?" Rain asked, reaching gingerly toward the spot where Rose had walloped him with the chair.

The Storm smacked her hand away and glared at her. "I said, I'm fine." He grabbed a beer out of the cooler and held it against his ankle, then sighed a bit as the coldness numbed the pain.

"What the hell was that he used on me?" Austin asked, wincing at his neck.

"One of Rose's trademarks," the Storm growled. "He calls it the Deadly Blossom hold. I saw him use it once or twice in CIW, and -- tell the truth, I've been in the Blossom once or twice. Hurts like hell -- almost as much as the Crossface, or the Walls of Jericho."

"The Necksnapper too," Austin added.

"Well, I wasn't gonna say," the Storm said, taking the beer away from his ankle and popping it open. He downed a mouthful of foam, then grimaced as he stretched out his legs. "Rose has himself in thick with the McMahons and their buddies -- and that means it's gonna be hard as hell getting to him."

"Storm," Rain said, trying to touch his shoulder again, only to have him snap it away. She sighed. "Matthew," she said, using his real name. The Storm turned his head slightly to look at her. "I've never seen you like this. I'm not sure this obsession you have with hurting Rose is healthy."

"I'm not sure it's healthy for Rose, either," Faarooq said.

"You got it wrong, Rain." The Storm's blue-gray eyes gleamed. "I don't want to hurt Rose -- I want to break him. I want to beat him so bad that he never gets back up. I want to cripple the bastard. And if I can't do that, then I'll tear through anyone in my way until Rose faces me like a man in the ring."

-more to come-

Next: Billy Rose continues to expertly evade the Storm's hunt, driving the Force of Nature "Closer to the Brink."

If you have any ideas for who you think the Storm, Rain, or Billy Rose should team up with or go up against, drop me a line at jay_winger_2k@hotmail.com.