"Will LWC be able to survive at least until the end of this year?" Rob asked bluntly.
Rob’s question made Mr. Wolfe cough up in surprise. However, Mr. Gibson didn’t even blink. However, Rob could see his features harden a bit.
"Rob, what are you..."
Mr. Gibson’s raised hand cut off Mr. Wolfe’s words abruptly. Mr. Gibson looked at Rob with an inscrutable gaze as if he was looking for sothing. Rob didn’t flinch. He t Mr. Gibson’s stare without dodging. Rob couldn’t afford to be complacent at this mont. So, he stared back without flinching to indicate his seriousness.
After what felt like an eternity, Mr. Gibson spoke.
"If the situation remains at this state, then it would be fine. However, if more wrestlers, especially those who haven’t resigned the contract walk out, then we are screwed."
"How likely are they to buyout?"
"The chances are high. They only have less than two months left on their contract. Their buyout fee will not be big. The way the contract is worded, the buyout fee will depend on their card position and the length of their remaining contract period. Even if they are in main event scene, with less than two months left, so might take a chance."
"While the buyout fees for wrestlers in the main event scene is quite hefty, it is nothing compared to the losses we will acquire due to that. This week will be the breaking point. If they walkout, then we will be in big trouble."
"What kind of trouble?"
"Contract breach," Mr. Gibson exhaled slowly and leaned back in his chair.
"Contract breach?" Rob asked in confusion.
"The PPV that is happening next month," Mr. Wolfe said slowly from the side. "We have already made arrangents for the event. From venue to equipnts to advertisents to every fucking damn thing. We have made arrangents, signed agreents and stuff."
"If those guys walk out, we won’t have the necessary roster depth or pull to do that PPV," Mr. Gibson exhaled slowly. "We are four weeks away from it. They are the main event and semi-main event wrestlers. If they walk away, we will face serious issues. Without them, doing a PPV would be pointless. We won’t be able to sell enough tickets to justify the amount we will be putting into it."
"It won’t kill us directly," Mr. Wolfe whispered softly. "But, it will kill us slowly. We would encur huge deficit in our accounts if we pull out of that PPV. The agreents we made have hefty penalty for breach of contracts. It will also kill our credibility. We can’t pull out. So, we will be forced to go through with it."
"And if we go through, the loss will be even bigger," Rob said as he realized how tricky the situation was.
"Right," Mr. Gibson grunted. "Without our top stars, we will not be able to fill that deficit anyti soon. Whoever remains will also be gone by the end of the year. That small window won’t be enough to fill that deficit. Trying to fill that deficit using trainees, heh, I don’t need to tell you, right?"
Rob felt his head begin to throb. It was a no-win situation. LWC didn’t have much of a chance. Now, their entire fate rested on the top stars. If they walked out, then they will be screwed.
"Who hamred those contracts?" Rob asked in irritation.
"Robin. Grant."
Mr. Gibson’s gritted answer was enough for Rob to realize what the final trap was. If it was Robin who crafted those contracts, Rob was relatively sure that sothing will go wrong within the next week. His stomach turned uneasily.
"What about bringing in talent from other promotions?" Rob asked, grasping at straws.
"We can forget about it till the end of the year. By then, we are most likely to have our accounts in deficit," Mr. Gibson sighed. "How can we bring soone good enough when we are already struggling to stay afloat?"
"Is there anything else we can do?" Rob asked in a defeated tone.
"Pray," Mr. Gibson’s answer was short. "Pray that these bastards have so conscience and stick to their contract end. Apart from that, prepare for eventualities."
"We didn’t call you in here to put such pressure on you Rob," Mr. Wolfe sighed. "These are our troubles. We will handle them. We had other things in mind for you."
"Like what?"
"We need you to pick so promising trainees and coach them regarding their presentation in these coming days. They should be ready to debut in the coming weeks. They should at least not fumble badly in the initial stages. We need to leverage what remaining tv ti we have to build up their value," Mr. Gibson spoke bluntly.
"If they have good potential, we will push them hard. Our hope is that at least one or two have so star potential," Mr. Wolfe added. "We feel that the won’s division can carry the main event scene for a month or so after new year. But, we can’t depend on them to carry it throughout the year."
"In this way, if any of them had potential, we aim to push them to main event scene in two or three months. We are just a low tier promotion, we won’t have tv ratings to worry about either. So, it could be done. Once they have such capacity, they can share the main event scene with the won," Mr. Gibson explained his idea.
"That sounds good," Rob nodded as it felt like a solid plan to him. "Eh, just one thing, my vision of soone with potential might vary from your usual standards. As you know, my mind works a bit differently. So, should I select as per usual standards or by mine?" Rob asked a bit sheepishly.
"We all know how crazy your mind is," Mr. Wolfe snorted.
Rob shot him an embarrassed grin and looked at Mr. Gibson. Mr. Gibson didn’t reply imdiately. He seed to be mulling about things. After a few monts, he let out a loud exhale and spoke.
"Make it even. I thought Dacey needed a bit more polish before entering the title picture, but you saw sothing in her and it worked out well."
"Granted, your thods were different, but it still worked. And worked well. The sa goes for Alanna. You haven’t changed much in her booking. It is the way you have presented her. She is sowhat popular as well. If any of the trainees beco as popular as her, I would count it as a win."
"Then I might be stepping on Head Trainer Michael’s toes a bit," Rob sighed.
"Michael will survive," Mr. Gibson said nonchalantly. "I don’t have the patience to cater to other people’s egos these days."
"I will speak with Michael if things beco awkward," Mr. Wolfe assured Rob, causing him to nod.
"Coming back to the seven who bought out their contracts, they will be working this week’s show due to so legal issues. This will be the last show they will be on. I don’t plan to use them however," Mr. Gibson spoke in an annoyed tone.
"But, I know you had planned to use Marie as an integral part of your buildup to the second won’s match for the PPV. So, I will leave the decision upto you."
"Well, my plan is now in shambles," Rob huffed. "Without Marie, it will be hard to implent what we were originally going for. I will have to improvise."
Mr. Gibson rely grunted in reply.
"I will shelve that idea for now. It has good potential, let’s not waste it on this PPV. If we co out on the other end, we will need so aces up our sleeve to keep the crowd’s interest. I am sure it will make for a fun main event storyline for months down the line," Rob spoke thinking aloud.
Mr. Gibson’s brows furrowed slightly, before he nodded.
"We could use to push the trainees as well. It is a good platform to elevate them to the main event scene," Mr. Wolfe added.
"We can create a PPV based out of it even," Rob said with a small smile. "Moreover, Dacey would be absent for a while after new year. I am sure she has inford you of it. I have Diana’s part prepared. But, without Dacey it won’t pack the punch. At least not at the main event level. This idea can be used to cover for that."
"Let’s cross this hurdle first," Mr. Gibson grunted. "If we do co out on the other end, then it would be a great idea to implent."
Rob nodded.
"Will you be able to manage? Especially now that we are shelving your idea. You know that the won have 40 minutes allocated to them, right?" Mr. Gibson asked in concern.
"Worry not, I will pull sothing out of my hat," Rob assured.
"Then I will leave you to it," Mr. Gibson nodded. "Let’s hope nothing bad happens this week. If not, things will get tricky."
"Don’t worry Andy, we will survive. LWC will not fall. We will weather this storm and co out of it alive," Mr. Wolfe spoke optimistically.
"Well, I hope so as well," Mr. Gibson smiled a little and shook his head.
Looking at the duo, Rob felt that only Mr. Wolfe had so optimism left. It was clear to him that Mr. Gibson was already bracing himself for the worst. Rembering the events of the past 10 days, Rob sided with Mr. Gibson’s assessnt more.
The big question was, what was he going to do about it?
Rob knew he had already made a decision as to what to do if the worst possible situation erges. But, the reality was, he was still hesitant about taking that step.
Booking a show and running a promotion were entirely different kinds of beasts. He really wasn’t sure about becoming a promotion owner yet. That doubts in his mind made him reluctant to take that step. He felt that it was a huge leap that would lead him to capsize completely.
Still, it looked like he would be left with no other option. Whether he was ready or not, if the situation beca that dire, it would beco his only option. And he knew deep down that things would change irrevocably for him after he took that step.
Shaking his head to drive those complex thoughts, Rob stood up and bid his farewell. Things weren’t that dire yet. He will cross that bridge when he reaches that point.
For now, he had a show and PPV to replan and select a few trainees with potential. Rest can be left for later.
*****
A/N: Hey folks!
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