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“And we are back after a short break, we at No Mercy Wrestling want to thank Enterprise for the use of their arena here in Saint Louis tonight. Enterprise, ‘We’ll pick you up.’”

Dan Rich, Brent Christi, and Rhonda Pierce sat in their usual spots at the announcers table, Dan Rich in the middle with Rhonda and Brent to the right and left of him. While the three commentators were always well-dressed, tonight was a particularly special occasion what with it being NMW’s first tournament and the beginning of the turbulent road to crowning the first champions of No Mercy Wrestling. Dan Rich was wearing a tan colored suit with a dark brown cowboy hat, Brent wore a wine colored suit complete with a light green bow tie and gold cufflinks, and Rhonda had a dark blue pantsuit on and thick, red rimmed glasses.

The Enterprise Center was at capacity and security was working to keep the mob of rabid fans that were stranded in the tunnel at bay. The opening match of the night, the first of the Rubicon Gauntlet, had ended by pinfall and the fans were still hyped up, seats rumbling from stomping feet as shrill whistles and air horns cut through the air. Jay Wyatt, who was back from his injury, had made a dramatic entrance complete with mesmerizing pyro effects and an energy that could not be compared. Jay had just defeated the eleventh seed, Zeik Channing, a new signing that had been recruited by Antonio Deguara - which made Zeik’s defeat satisfying for many. The Astro Kid’s return was something that the NMW fans had needed and Wyatt’s comeback performance being a tournament win that was part of a championship bid had morale high in the stands.

“Boy, Dan,” Brent smiled next to his fellow commentator, “this place is [i]still[/i] rocking after that fiery intro and subsequent win by Jay Wyatt!”

Dan Rich nodded, “The NMW fans had all been left in wonder about Jay Wyatt after his crushing defeat at the hands of Mihailo Vasić and to see Jay here tonight like he was [i]and to see him win and advance towards the championship[/i] lit the fans’ souls on fire.” 

“Well put, Dan.” Rhonda grinned. 

“Well, we have only just begun tonight,” Brent said, “we still have five matches left tonight including the highly anticipated main event between Uberto Cafrune and Ryuzoji Daigo.”

“And our next match I think will just further stoke the flames because next up we have Fiona Chevalier versus the recently signed… [i]Shin Choon-hee[/i]!” Dan Rich said straight into the nearest camera, his eyes wide behind his glasses.

“A longtime rival of Fiona Chevalier,” Rhonda followed up, “these two were both signed to No Mercy Women’s Wrestling and faced each other twice.”

“And both times Fiona [i]lost[/i] to the Korean prospect,” Brent interjected, “the first time in Fiona’s hometown of Seattle and the second time Fiona lost the NMWW rookie award to Shin Choon-hee.”

“Well, the second time can partially be accredited to interference by the Beatifics.” Rhonda said, leaning around Dan to  make direct eye contact with Brent. “I saw the match.”

“We both did,” Brent retorted, “I-…”

“[i]No,[/i]”, Rhonda interrupted, “I saw that match live as a fan of NMWW, you watched clips from it on your phone three hours ago at the hotel.”

Brent was about to say something else when Dan Rich raised both hands in a “quiet down” gesture, saying, “This is a match fans have been eager for with real ‘big screen drama’ implications. Shin Choon-hee had returned to South Korea late last year where she won the women’s tag team championship for Pro Wrestling Society. She is in fact [i]still[/i] one half of the reigning women’s tag team champions for PWS. Shin is due to return to Seoul tomorrow after this match and relinquish her tag team title in a symbolic fashion.”

“And then there is Fiona Chevalier,” Rhonda said, “a former NMWW member that has grown and developed so much over the past year and a half, who now finds herself with the opportunity to be the first to raise the NMW women’s championship belt high over her head! But, unfortunately for her, the first obstacle in her path is a woman that has beaten her [i]twice[/i].”

“The stakes are high but so are the risks,” Dan Rich nodded, “I have been calling Fiona’s matches for almost two years now and I know how much she wants this. I know how much she wants to be on top of the mountain. And I know that she has a real fire inside of her and a ‘never give up’ attitude. I think if she can win here tonight she will have the momentum needed to press on ahead.”

“Well, we’re about to find out!”