Red Stitch Report: Episode 2

Episode 2 of Red Stitch Report, and first episode of the Summon Insidious Deal arc.

## Summary

The party detox in a sauna and reports back to Mr. Hunter Palm. He suggests they go to the Absurd Beef Initiative Wrestling Foundation to find more information. After talking to Leianne, they head to the ABIWF. They meet Zelda McCain, daughter of the owner of the ABIWF. They enter into the current wrestling tournament as jobbers.

## The Details

Following the events at Marco’s apartment, the group return to the Hunter Palm Insurance Society and proceed to detox themselves in the sauna. Leianne, too, has been left quarantined in her own sauna room, instead of being seen to by a healthcare professional and having her wounds properly addressed. The group, in their room, report the events of the day to Mr. Hunter Palm himself - strategically omitting the part about them murdering a world famous wrestler, claiming that they merely managed to shake him off during the car chase. Hunter Palm, with his unmatched intellect, suggests that the group should pay a visit to the Absurd Beef Initiative Wrestling Foundation - after all, they’re most likely to find answers about why such an unusual character attacked them if they go straight to the source. As they leave, having now sweat out any lingering chemicals from Leianne’s attack, the group decide to talk to Leianne (via a phone) to see if she’ll give them any more information. Leianne, at this point, had come slightly more to her senses - but was still mostly unhelpful, making comments about how much she wished she was dead rather than offering any actionable revelations. So, with only one clear path forward, the group made their way to the Wrestling Foundation.

Making their way through the gaudy halls of the establishment, the group are quick to meet Zelda McCain, the daughter of Vice McCain, and hence the daughter of the owner of the ABIWF. Hunter Palm had signed the group up as participants in the fights of the day, as their way to get an in, and Craigor wasted no time discluding himself as a potential combatant by introducing himself as their agent. Given Cadmus’ history with wrestling as “The Freedom Fighter”, something he was not particularly enthused about returning to, he attempted to try his best to hide behind the others and not be recognised, an ultimately fruitless attempt given that he was the physically largest of the five. Zelda informed them that she was unable to pencil them in to the contest at such a late moment, but luckily, one of the contestants was unable to find 2 team members to aid them in a triple threat match - so they would be able to fill in there.

As Zelda escorted the group to Vice’s office, she made some small talk with Cadmus, discussing his old rival “Soccer Moses” - the wrestling nemesis that also contested him for the governorship, and ultimately beat out Cadmus in both combat sports and politics. Soccer Moses had supposedly not returned to the Absurd Beef Initiative since winning the election, calming Cadmus’ nerves somewhat. The group are told to wait outside Vice’s office for a moment, giving them the opportunity to chat with two nearby reporters, Vick Elye and Daisy Base. Vick, feeling a kinship with Florence, offers to scratch her back if she scratches his. Vick needs a letter snuck into the record room, something he’d struggle to do discretely while he is expected to be reporting from the ringside. In return, Vick said he could assist in getting them somewhere they needed to be - especially if it involved vertical traversion. Vick revealed his epithet to be ☆Elevator☆, one that was very commonly guessed. Daisy, who was better suited to getting her hands dirty, and offered to help make distractions, also asked Florence to guess her epithet; showing off the ability to float using an umbrella. Florence guessed incorrectly, and Daisy did not reveal the correct answer. After this discussion with the reporters, Vice’s previous visitor, K. Fabulous, the dedicated announcer for the matches, exited the room; only to be smacked by Zelda opening the door moments later, who finally invites the group inside.

The discussion with Vince is fairly brief, with him mostly echoing what Zelda had told them about the upcoming match. However, they finally get to meet their mysterious third who had trouble getting a partner: Johnny “Haymaker” Pagoda, a mismatched scarecrow in boxing gloves, and clearly no-one's favourite to win.

As the group take off to the locker room, getting a chance to prepare for the upcoming fights, they become acquainted with a puppet-esque competitor by the name of Nyx. Friendly enough, Nyx gives the group a basic rundown on the rules of the upcoming matches, highlighting the insanity that awaits them, and firmly confirming that all wrestling is real and that none of it is faked. Vice also quickly catches up to them and informs the group of one last detail - their contract to be here is only valid for as long as they’re still participating in the matches, so if they’re knocked out at any point, they’ll have to leave the building immediately. The group also takes a moment to talk to Haymaker and get to know their new partner a little better. Haymaker also reveals his new gimmick that he’s betting it all on: to set himself on fire during the match. Additionally, Haymaker admits that they’re a mundie, hence the need for a gimmick to make up for the lack of superpowers. Overall, the group quickly come to terms with the fact that they’ll need to be pulling the weight in the upcoming match.

Just by the locker room is the infirmary, maintained by Shelly, a face that Cadmus recognises; with a voice that Craigor does. She is responsible for patching participants up between the matches, and will be attending to them between their fights for the day. After a brief meeting with her, Zelda arrives to escort their group to the main event, with everyone finally ready to rumble.

Vice and Zelda introduce the show to a crowd of roaring fans, with K. Fabulous introducing the two sides: Haymaker and the Harmless Hillbillies (or “The Scarecrew”, as Craigor dubs them), and, from Nagareboshi Combat Dojo, Robin Stardancer and the Shooting Stars: a trio led by the titular Robin, who Isabelle used to be a big fan of. With Vice using a mysterious purple gem to transform the blank arena into a dynamic stage tailor made for their battle, the match commences.

Cadmus immediately attempts to take the fight to Robin, a mistake that effectively results in him being removed from the fight right at the start. Robin’s two partners find themselves on the opposite ends of the spectrum of usefulness, with Tsubaki throwing herself in front of attacks that had already been evaded, and Mushi Nagareboshi destroying pretty much every target that she sets her sights on. Craigor attempts to carry some first aid supplies to the other end of the ring to assist his team, but is stopped by Robin’s manager, Hitogata Nagareboshi, a powerful ninja who uses a shadow clone to inflict as much pain outside of the ring as the combatants are feeling on the inside. The Scarecrew focus their efforts on Robin, taking her down, and ensuring Cadmus’ ill-planned sacrifice was not entirely in vain. Haymaker also appears to go down quickly, but rises up at a vital moment, and manages to take Mushi down with him. With just Florence and Tsubaki left in the battle, Tsubaki - who is in the business for the ratings, hoping to grab the attention of a figure from her past, the long-lost “Rover” - dramatically gives in, letting Florence take the win for her team. Hitogata finishes up dispatching Craigor before Isabelle is able to interfere, and Hitogata bonds briefly with Isabelle, due to the two having reality warping epithets (even if they can’t properly control them). A fight well fought, Hitogata invites the group back to Robin’s room for an after match party - once everyone is finished patching themselves up, of course.

Back in the locker room, Nyx “congratulates” the group on their victory, commenting that their inexperience was clear, but wishes them luck on the next match. Shelly quickly manages to patch up Craigor, but requires more time on Cadmus, and mostly neglects Haymaker. With some time to themselves, and Ian nowhere to be found, Florence privately discloses her mission to get into the record room to Craigor and Isabelle, while also claiming that they should try and find Ian before he gets into too much trouble. With the group now accustomed to illegal activity, they all opt to focus on the record room mission first, and search for Ian after.

Unfortunately, attempts to get into the record room were initially less than fruitful. Attempting to pick the lock only caused the member of staff on duty to answer the door, and the terrible trio gave three (very conflicting) reasons to want access to the room, getting them nowhere. Attempts to wrangle more leads on the Marco business fell through when they learned that Heartthrob Hutch was his own manager, and the guard has enough wits about himself to not let three random weirdos into the room. Hoping to chance a clue, Florence reads the letter she is trying to sneak in, but unfortunately garners nothing; she’s doing this for a “Doozy Oz”, and there’s nothing inherently illicit to be gleaned from it, as they merely seem to want to skip out on some paperwork.

When all hope seems lost, the group are graced with the reappearance of Ian, who had spent the day obtaining a vast number of autographs (alongside swiping an official-looking lanyard, which, coupled with his confidence, let him walk around unquestioned). With the group struggling to enter the record room, Ian proceeds to knock on the door and then spit in the staff’s face before running, giving them a quick moment to explore while he’s being chased down. Not wanting to stay for long, Florence places the letter inside, while Isabelle sneakily takes a donut from an apparently communal box. With Florence’s mission complete, the trio immediately leave the room and make their way back to where they’re supposed to be, and prepare themselves for whatever lies ahead.