After Dark 8: JAC Versus Berand

JAC sat in a room alone again, as he cut his promo, all while something baked in an oven. "A few weeks ago, I had a very bad day. Swillow had been a not so good friend, but I still baked this cake."

JAC smiled as he stood up from the stool. "You can't let everyone get to you, you can't let life get in your way. If someone pushes you down, get back up. Do something for a while."

The oven dinged, and JAC pulled out the cake. "For instance, I've been baking up a surprise!"

He got out a butcher knife, and sliced the cake open, only for the inside to reveal several crimson eyes, with their cat pupils still moving around. They popped out by the dozens.

JAC laughed.

***

Richard Littles: Damn, he gets dumped once and this happens?

Richard Biggs: And he was the saner of the two. What do you think would have happened if Swillow was the one who got dumped by him?

Richard Littles: Well, JAC and Berand is our main event, for the... Darkest Belt?

Flame jets blazed as Cyras ran up to the ring, and slid inside. "Greeting ladies and gentleman, it is the lovely lady Cyras here to meet you right now." She flashed a grin.

Ahmond, the little wolf coyote, walked up to the ring, before climbing in.

"Anyway, I am here to announce that I am getting a match on After Dark. Since it's off the records for Beast Games, I don't need to worry about my record-."

"When the fire flies

The water falls

Won't drown the world

Just trust in me

While light may fade

The dark won't harm..."

Cyras' ears twitched, and she stared at the new entrance music. "Who is that?"

Mosor walked in on a limp, having had her leg broken by Harper-Jay. "My family seems to be gone, but now I see Ahmond's running around with some snot nosed brat."

"The spirit of empathy," Cyras said with sarcasm. "I suppose you're here to turn me good by giving me therapy?"

"No, I'm giving myself therapy by giving you a good old fashion behind whooping!" Mosor said.

"That's for this Monday, technically," Ahmond said. "Spanksgiving is just around the corner."

"Oh yeah," Mosor said. "Isn't the week after Thanksgiving though?"

Cyras said, "Apparently there's some sort of food tournament coming up. Didn't you get the invitation?"

Mosor shook her head.

Cyras said, "Yeah, apparently Thanksgiving gets two weeks, so we're in for a very special week. Anyway, JAC's cooking us our Thanksgiving dinners, so we'll be eating like kings, and you'll be eating like..." She stared down at Mosor, and smirked.

Mosor said, "I may not be able to fight, but I can still play. And I challenge you to elements."

Cyras growled. "Let's."

Both began by pulling out a deck of eight cards, and filled their hands with the four elements from the Deck.

Richard Biggs: Here we are, with elements.

Richard Littles: Such an underrated card game. It seems we do a lot of fighting, but very little strategy.

Richard Biggs: But now two of our smartest are going at it.

Richard Littles: Are they really our smartest?

Richard Biggs: I don't think of Inari as particularly intelligent, and if JAC was any dumber he could be a high school cop.

Richard Littles: What about Swillow?

Richard Biggs: Why she's so dumb, she'd teach the class!

Cyras said, "I'll go first, and I play fire." Without any opposition, the flames licked at Mosor's feet, but she wasn't down.

Mosor's hearts: 3 - 2.

Richard Biggs: Remember, you win either by breaking all your opponent's hearts, or by summoning all four elements and fusing them.

Mosor drew a card, and said, "I use Wind, to push your flames back!" A gale rushed back, and Cyras gasped as her own scorch ashed her.

Cyras' hearts: 3 - 2

"Oh yeah?" Cyras asked. "Here's my own wind to push my flames right back!" Again the wind pushed flames back into Mosor.

Mosor: 2 - 1.

Mosor played water. "Hope you like getting washed out, shrimp." The water and wind fused into a cloud than rained out the flames.

Cyras: 2 - 1.

Richard Biggs: Intense back and forth struggle here right now.

Richard Littles: One more hit and its over!

Cyras said, "I play Earth." Some earthen barrier surrounded her. She had earth and wind, but had lost fire because of Mosor.

Mosor said, "How about some fire?" It added to the cloud to make lightning, and it shocked the earth barrier. Still, ground didn't conduct electricity so it was safe.

Richard Biggs: Earth can't attack, really, but it's best for defence.

Richard Littles: Yeah, gives you time to think.

Richard Biggs: Neither at a heart disadvantage, but if Cyras won't attack, Mosor wins.

Cyras thought about how her cloud would rain on anything, or blow things away, or strike them with lightning. Still. "My wind attacks your cloud, and freezes it."

The wind merged with the water the cloud, freezing it all, and forcing it to come down as hail.

"So?" Mosor asked with a smirk.

Cyras said, "Go ahead."

Mosor said, "I play earth." An earth pillar rose. "I win."

But she didn't. Mosor ordered an, "Attack," from thundercloud.

Cyras said, "Lightning is made by ice hitting ice in thunderclouds. But you don't have any ice left in your clouds, do you, right?"

Mosor realized Cyras froze the entire cloud, and made it run out of materials.

As the cloud dissipated, Cyras said, "I play water." All four elements fused into a bright light, which would flash and Mosor would lose.

***

Richard Biggs: This may be the greatest Beast Game ever coming up.

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Richard Littles: If you've forgotten the rivalry between these two, let's recap.

Richard Biggs: Back around the start of this company, JAC was busy wrestling with the entire SOS, but it was Berand who kept throwing him into ice cream. He stole the ice cream truck of the Ice Cream Pack, and kept attacking JAC with ice cream. It seemed to head to a culmination with the Hedon facing off against Berand in a Steel Cage Match, but Hedon won by slipping his way out. Afterwards, the two met at War, but during their collision, neither man pinned the other.

Richard Littles: And that remains true to this day. JAC and Berand have yet to earn pins.

Richard Biggs: As per request of JAC, there is a barrel of root beer in one part of the arena so he can get a winner's drink.

"It's a miracle..."

Jesus theme came on as he walked into the ring. "No rules, no regulations, no laws. Just you and I, Berand." He got into the ring. "I am the Hedon, and it's time you and I have our final match." He paused.

"I understand some of you may be disappointed to see us end this amazing rivalry in this no holds barred environment, but I promise you, I will be your next Darkest Champion. I promise you, I swear to you, beyond the shadow of a doubt, this is no illusion, it is a revelation!"

An ice cream truck rolled in, before Berand stomped out towards the ring.

JAC held a hand out. "Before we get this started, Berand, why did you do all this? What's the point of working with the SOS?"

"They paid me."

Berand rose his arms to the sky, he roared in defiance of the heavens, "IN HONEY!"

JAC stared at the barrel of root beer. "Don't worry, I'll let you have some once I'm done beating you."

"The only thing you beat is your eggs like you're baking a cake," Berand said.

"At least I have eggs to beat, you don't even have a frosting dispenser," JAC said.

"If I don't have a frosting dispenser, you don't have a bun in the oven!" Berand said.

"I don't think that means what you think that means... And I don't know what you think it means in the first place."

The bell rang.

Richard Biggs: Folks, this match is underway.

JAC ran at Berand, and began with a King Arthur, the spinning back elbow, to Berand's snout. Berand staggered backward into the ropes.

He rammed into JAC, clotheslining him. JAC flipped over, and fell onto his back wheezing.

Richard Biggs: Almost like being hit with a club.

Richard Littles: Clubs aren't that big. Berand is four hundred pounds of black bear, and none of that is cuddly.

JAC struggled to his feet. While JAC was on his knees, Berand stomped on his back. JAC rolled over, and idly kicked at him, before scooting over to the ropes.

Berand grabbed JAC's legs, and twisted them around, before dropping into the figure four leg lock. JAC screamed, revealing his teeth. Some audience members could see his uvula dancing around.

Richard Biggs: We've seen JAC have some success with the figure four leg lock, but same with Berand.

Richard Littles: First submission.

JAC grabbed at the ring ropes, but Berand scooted back, so JAC was just a hair breadth away. As JAC sat up, Berand threw a hammering blow at JAC's head, knocking him back.

Richard Short: One, two-

JAC sat back up again. Berand threw a second punch, but JAC grabbed his bicep to intercept the attack, before hitting him in the snout. Berand slackened, and JAC leaned over to get a hold of the ropes. He pulled himself up.

Richard Biggs: As a reminder, in After Dark rules, the rope won't initiate a break. JAC has to break the submission in some other way.

Richard Littles: This is no disqualifcation, meaning anything goes.

JAC felt sweat boiling through his forehead as he pulled up on the ropes, but Berand released the leg lock.

JAC sat up on the ropes, dazed, and Berand shot up, and punched JAC so hard in the face, he dropped from the perch.

As his back hit the ring apron, JAC felt the metal of the sides of the ring. It almost rattled his spine, as he fell to a clump on the outside.

Berand climbed the corner post of the ring, and raised his arms to taunt the audience. Meanwhile, JAC snuck back into the ring, and cut it up with some box cutters.

Richard Biggs: What is that maniac doing?

Richard Littles: It seems he's cutting up the ring, to expose the wooden guts! Without the mat... It's going to hurt.

Richard Biggs: JAC has no mercy.

JAC sliced up the ring. Berand turned and jumped towards JAC with a flying elbow job from the top ropes, but JAC stepped to the right.

The ring shattered from the force of Berand elbow dropping it. He fell into a hole.

Audience: Holy shit! Holy shit! Holy shit!

Richard Biggs: The obese fatass just broke through the wood!

Richard Littles: He made the wood implode!

Even JAC looked shocked as Berand was trapped in a hole. Still, no reason to look a gift horse in the mouth, so as Berand struggled to free himself, JAC ripped the ring apart more and more.

A clawed hand ripped up through the wood. Berand had traveled under the ring to find JAC. JAC just stabbed at his hands with the boxcutter.

Richard Littles: Oh my word.

Richard Biggs: The savagery.

Berand burst through his own hole, ignoring the blood running down his paws. "You'll be going down to hell first, get the point?"

JAC said, "No."

Berand raised an eye, and ran at him, but JAC jumped onto the ropes. The bear grabbed the ropes as well to swing himself onto the ring apron, but as he was getting in, JAC got him in the headlock, before swinging around to diamondcutter him.

Richard Littles: Revelation!

Richard Biggs: One of JAC's more fatal moves.

JAC stood up, and ran at the ropes, before going to Berand. Berand's face, having just met wood, was a lot similar to a ketchup sort of mess. Then JAC's boot hit the back of his head, and curbstomped Berand into the ground again.

The wood of the ring shook. JAC fell backwards, and just focused on his breathing.

Richard Biggs: Welp, JAC's done for the count now.

Richard Littles: You have to admit, JAC is one of the better fighters out there.

Richard Biggs: Yeah, he makes everyone else look good.

Richard Littles: Of course he makes others look good! If JAC was any uglier, he'd be the missing link!

Berand rose first, and grabbed JAC's leg, before pulling it down into the exposed wood of the ring. JAC punched at Berand, but Berand tanked the blows.

As JAC tried to unstick his leg, Berand stood, bounced off the ropes, and did a flying drop kick into JAC's face.

Teeth flew with splatters of blood as JAC leaned back against the ring. The metal underneath the ring crashed against his back at a velocity of hundreds of miles per hour.

Audience: This is awesome! This is awesome! This is awesome!

Richard Littles: That was...

Richard Biggs: I don't think even when JAC jumped off onto an inverted chair that we've seen such brutality in one of his matches. Or even when Berand threw JAC over the steel cage into the ice cream truck windshield.

Richard Littles: This is so far beyond the normal.

Berand pulled JAC out from the hole, and picked up him up horizontal, held above his head.

JAC slipped from his back, but couldn't keep his footing as he fell back again.

Richard Biggs: JAC can't stand up from that amazing flying drop kick.

Richard Littles: Are you kidding me? After a drop kick like that, I wouldn't even be alive, much less still kicking.

Berand ran, and somersaulted over JAC, before grabbing onto the top rope, and doing a frogsplash.

JAC got his knees up, and Berand landed on the spikes. He fell on both kidneys.

As Berand rolled over, JAC rolled back out of the ring.

Richard Biggs: What an amazing counter. Berand was about to splash onto him, but JAC got the knees up.

Richard Littles: But think of what putting Berand's weight on his knees, all so suddenly, did to him and his legs. He may be injured.

Richard Biggs: May be?

Berand rolled out of the ring to walk to JAC, who had just gotten to his base. JAC threw a haymaker at Berand, catching him off guard as the punch hit his cheek. But Berand roared, and backhanded JAC on the chest, hitting hard enough that JAC flew almost a foot in the air, and landed on his back, on unforgiving concrete. JAC crawled on his hands and knees, but Berand grabbed his shirt, and threw him back into the ring.

Richard Biggs: This isn't falls count anywhere. JAC has to be pinned in the ring if Berand wants to win.

Richard Littles: Or be submitted.

Richard Biggs: If JAC hasn't submitted yet, he never will.

As Berand got into the ring, JAC ran at him, with a second King Arthur elbow. Berand dodged to the side, but fell into the hole.

JAC paused. Did this fool just run himself into a hole?

Richard Littles: Berand is not our smartest competitor.

Richard Biggs: I sure hope any kids he has inherits his mother's brain.

Richard Littles: If Berand was any dumber, he'd win a game show.

Berand came out from beneath the ring, but went into the ice cream truck. JAC retreated onto a top post, figuring he may get ran over. Instead, Berand came out with some vanilla ice cream before going to the root beer pump.

Richard Littles: Is he focused on food right now?

Richard Biggs: Big guy's gotta eat.

Berand got out a mug, and filled it up with root beer, before dropping the ice cream in. JAC growled.

Berand sipped at the drink, and realized something incredible. He ran into the ring with the mug, only for JAC to spear Berand.

Richard Littles: Lancelotus!

As JAC speared, his spread his legs out, so he'd land with either leg on either side of Berand. He crossed Berand's arms into an X. Then he pushed himself up in a diamond push up to make the pin harder to kick out of.

Richard Short: One... Two... Three!

The audience gasped, or held their heads.

Richard Biggs: That little shit.

Richard Littles: He won the Darkest Belt?

Berand lapped at the spilled drink on the ground, but JAC prepared to stomp his hand. However, he paused, and realized what Berand had just done.

JAC rolled out of the ring, grabbed some ice cream for himself, and put it in the root beer, and drank.

Richard Biggs: JAC is drinking the root beer float.

Berand came out of the ring, and JAC said, "I finally understand you now. I think we've gotten off to the wrong foot. You are the most impressive person in this roster."

"I am no mere person. I! Am! Bear!" Berand said.

"In my fight against Swillow, I need a new friend."

"Oh alright, I'm up for another fight."

"Towards adventure?"

"Towards the land of milk and honey!"

Cyras and Ahmond ran up to support their two new team mates, as Richard Short wrapped the Darkest belt around JAC.

Audience: Boooo!

Richard Biggs: End of the greatest title reign of either After Dark or Beast Games.

Richard Littles: But how long will JAC hold the belt?

JAC swung the belt around, even doing a quick session of jump rope with it, but it was so short, the metal part busted him mouth. He fell over, blood gushing from his maw.

Richard Biggs: That JAC is dumb enough, he could be the idiot of his team if it weren't for the fact they added Ahmond and Berand.

Next Week:

-Who will be JAC's first challenger for the belt?

-What's next for Berand?