Wretched Hive of Scum and Villainy

After their '[url=http://afwrpg.informe.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=10558:333d6br2]match[/url:333d6br2]', River led the hardcore champion backstage. Way backstage, to the parts they only dug into for the obscure matches, where they kept the equipment for cool things like cages or the electric ropes or the lame things like the pudding ring. It was a storage area people hardly screwed with these days, which meant she didn't have to worry about too many prying eyes. Much better that way, less people to threaten with grievous bodily harm. As it was, she only had to punk out two janitors to make sure her secret hideaway stayed a secret.

"Okay, so I'm hanging around backstage a few months ago, just catching a smoke after a match with this uber-bitch." She did a little explaining as they walked. "Place is actually a no-smoking area. Like I give a shit, right? But the stagehands are waving their dicks around and I just don't want the headache, so I come back here with a pack. Puff puff. And all of the sudden I feel this breeze, coming from somewhere..."

Speaking of which, she could use a good drag. Even if that wasn't a real match, it was still enough of a reason for an after-match smoke. In her book, anyway.

River strutted over to a broken down old ring near the edge of the storage area, rusted and sagged, the sort of thing that really ought to be thrown out but nobody cared enough to bother with. Perfect cover. "This way." She ducked under the apron and slide into a little hole in the wall it was covering, getting down on her knees to make it through. There was a dim light coming from the hole, her lamps still running. "You'll fucking love this."

Libertyâ€s grey eyes cast around as they descended into the increasingly-dingy warren of corridors and storage. “The ass end of AFW” she muttered to herself as she glanced around the various items and gimmicks stashed away. It did seem pretty deserted, a good place to come if you wanted to fetch barbed wire ropes and use them on someone without being disturbed. Not that Liberty was in the least bit worried about her safety, she trusted Styx and was looking forward to hanging out.

“Haha, this place is no smoking? Like, theyâ€ll pay to have girls fucked or electrocuted, so long as they preserve their lungs while doing it? Fucking hypocrites!” she laughed at the absurdity.

She watched with interest as Styx approached the rusted old ring. She wasnâ€t sure what the hell could actually be under there, or whether she did want to crawl on her hands and knees behind River to find out, but she had to know now.

“Ok, now Iâ€m curious…” Liberty grunted a little as she crouched down and followed her guide into the dim light.

"Yeah, the official line is that they care about employee health and want to promote a positive lifestyle." She slid on through the hole and crawled over a few pipes as they went through. "But it's really insurance bullshit, just them covering their own asses with the companies. Your lungs can explode for all they care, just don't do it on their dime. Anyway."

The hole finally opened up to reveal what River affectionately liked to call 'home', but what most would have called 'a gigantic fucking hole in the wall'. Both descriptions were accurate - it was an open space, surrounded by four degrading walls and all sorts of plumbing. It was about the size of small apartment, which was fitting, since that was what River used it as.

There was a leather couch off to the side, a mattress with some blankets strewn over it, a big screen plasma TV that still had the manufacturer labels on it and looked like she'd ripped it straight from a Best Buy display...because she had. The walls were adorned with posters from some of her favorite bands - the NERD, Samhain, Black Sabbath. Wires crisscrossed along the floor, hooking up the TV, the lamps, and the mini-fridge off to the side, which was what Styx headed straight for.

"Welcome to my little place in the cracks. Make yourself at home, take a load off." She hopped over the mattress, pulled the mini-fridge open with her foot, and crouched down to look inside and inspect her stock. "Been a while since I restocked, but I should have the good stuff..."

Crawling through the hole and into the den beyond, Liberty slowly stood upright and cast her eyes around the grimy little cave.

“This… is…. Awesome!” she declared, smiling as she took in the rough-and-ready living arrangements. Few people would have made that statement without sarcasm, but Liberty was being genuine.

“I love that youâ€ve set up shop right under the AFWâ€s nose. If those fuckers arenâ€t using it, then somebody should, right? I like your style.”

Liberty stepped over to the leather couch and sat down. Her head swam a little bit, and it was only by stopping that she realised how hard she had been pushing herself. She stretched her legs out and rubbed her sweaty, sore face.

“Iâ€m not fussy,” she replied to Styx. “Anything that will cancel out what you did to my head is fine.”

Styx reached all the way to the back, where she kept the good stuff. She had a guest, after all. She would be a thief, a conwoman, a bootlegger, but a poor hostess? Heaven forbid.

"A Tylenol would do that." She tossed a half drunken bottle of Smirnoff on the couch. "But Tylenol doesn't kick like that. Drink up."

She closed the fridge and sat on top of it, popping out a pack Camels and a light. "And yeah, the place has a certain 'fuck you' appeal to it. But my rap sheet's too rough to get a place anywhere in this city, so I either live here or nowhere. And I gotta put my shit somewhere."

She lit her cigarette and took a quick drag, before holding the pack out. "Smoke?"

“Cheers,” Liberty grabbed the vodka and held the cold bottle against the side of her face, enjoying the cooling of her hot and bruised skin. The real recuperative effect was inside, though, and before long she unscrewed the cap and took a healthy slug straight from the bottle.

“Mmm, needed that,” she sighed, wiping her lips. “So yeah, I know what you mean about staying off the radar. I came to Japan with some people who were good at keeping stuff quiet, so Iâ€m not exactly friends with the authorities either. If there is anything you need they might be able to hook you up,” she added.

Liberty smiled at the proffered cigarette. “Yeah, go on then. I cut down a bit since I left Europe but why not.”

She took the cigarette then pulled a lighter from her back pocket. “Er, yeah, even though I stopped, itâ€s still handy to have a lighter,” she grinned before sitting back, lighting up and inhaling deeply.

“You drinking vodka or you on something else?”

Styx watched the bottle go down with a little sadness - she'd been saving that swig for a special occasion. But, hell, this was about as special an occasion as it ever got for her, might as well let it go now. She could always get another bottle easy enough, no trouble, and she was starting to get used to this strange 'sharing' concept she'd heard so much about.

"I'll get wet in a minute." She stuffed the pack back in her pocket and enjoyed a good, long drag, savoring the taste before she let the smoke billow from her mouth. "Like a cigarette after a good match, want to wind down."

She stepped over her clothing pile and dug out her boombox from beneath it, then took it with her as she sat down on the mattress. "Europe, you said? The fuck were you doing in Europe?" She started thumbing through the station, trying to get a signal. Little hard through a structure like this. "Hell, for that matter, how'd you wind up in the AFW? Munchkin Land doesn't seem like your style, no offense."

Liberty sat back and blew a cloud of smoke out thoughtfully. “I donâ€t know, when youâ€ve got that adrenaline high from giving someone a righteous kicking, it can be fun to keep it going. The high, I mean.”

Still, the black-haired girl was finding herself settling into these environs quite nicely, the cigarette and the spirit helping to relax her tense, aching body, as she incrementally spread out on the sofa.

“Thatâ€s why I was in Europe. They had all the best riots, for a time. If youâ€re looking to give someone a righteous kicking, canâ€t find better than a fascist with a plastic shield. I know we had that Occupy shit back home, but it never felt as real. At least in Europe, the countries are so small, you feel like you actually have a chance to kick their entire Governmentâ€s ass.”

Liberty smiled wistfully. “Fun, yeah, but doesnâ€t keep you or your friends fed. So I ended up going down the road of pleasing crowds and punching pretty girls in my spare time. Which seemed to end up here, eventually. Iâ€m gonna be able to turn it to my advantage, though,” she added a little defensively, suddenly realising she was sounding like a sellout and trying to rationalise a string of random choices.

“How about you, anyway?”

That was a good question. What about her?

River managed to hone in on a pirate station playing some metal - Einherjer, Odin Owns Ye All. Not her first choice for the mood, but it would do. She turned it down enough for them to talk and made her way back over to the sofa, sitting down on an arm and letting Liberty have most of the space. "Me. Me." She took a moment to blow, putting some actual thought into the answer. She lived in the moment so much, it was easy to forget about her past.

"Never really fit. Anywhere. Never in school, never out of it. I just sort of go places, do things, make trouble. I'm good at starting shit and ending it, found myself in a lot of fights, got some experience with that." She stretched her arms out and cracked her knuckles. "A lot of experience. But I always wanted to go after something bigger, and that's what brought me here, I guess."

She leaned back, practically straddling the chair. "This place sounded good on paper, you know? You can get away with so much shit in a match here, it's crazy. It could be the harder than backyard wrestling, but they spend most of the time fighting on beds or fingering each other. Not that I mind a good fuck, don't get me wrong, but that ain't what a fight should be. Totally squandered potential." She shook her head. "And most of the girls are stuck-up little bitches, just showing off for the crowd."

“Yeah, I know,” Liberty nodded in agreement. “I never get what the hentai girls are thinking. Iâ€m not a prude, but how can you enjoy that shit with a paying crowd breathing down your neck? I donâ€t think sexfighting is exactly a healthy way to pick up people,” she chuckled while shaking her head. “Renting out your pussy to the highest bidder is no basis for a relationship.”

“Iâ€ve been having a little fun putting those stuck-up bitches in their place, but youâ€re right, it can be more. Youâ€re onto something there. Going after something bigger!” Liberty enthused, holding the cigarette between her lips for a second as she punched her fist into her open palm to emphasise the point.

Liberty was certainly enjoying herself, especially since she sensed the potential for some kind of anarchist plot. She took another healthy swig of vodka as she chatted to Styx. She was in danger of starting to rant.

“The suits at the top piss me off. That German and the other managers, swanning about in designer clothes like theyâ€re better than everyone else. When they just profit off the other girls†blood. I want to take them down, eventually,” Liberty confided.