Fracture (or, Ashers to Ashers and Creed to Creed)

I see the multiverse as a mirror representing the very beginnings of the universe, inexplicably shattered by what is typically known as the Big Bang. As the cosmos grows and shrinks, it tries to heal itself…but every fracture that remains simply separates very different worlds with an underlying origin.

~ A.K. Freeman, The Multiverse: A Compendium

12.17.24 Red Army Base Moscow, Russia Earth-PRIME Colossus weekend proved fruitful for the Red Army as a whole courtesy of a Ivan Stanislav win ensuring Rose joined the ranks as a member and nothing more, but the thought of not competing at all was still sticking to Kenny’s craw upon their return to the Motherland. Disappointment, anger, plenty of emotions running through the mind of the Red Army’s (formerly) junior member as he stares out the window of his living quarters. All of that goes out the window real quick, replaced with sheer confusion as he looks up to the sky…where a bright streak of light cracks through the dark of night. Kenny raises his arm, covering his vision to stop from being blinded, but the moment passes quickly…but not quietly, a loud crash pulling his attention to nearly a mile out. “Randall, get up!” Kenny exclaims, rushing over to his friend’s bed to wake up the Entertainer. “There’s something out there, and I wanna go find it.” “Kenny, it’s…” Randall responds, trailing off as he rubs his eyes to wake up. “Wait, what time is it, anyway?” Randall is pulled out of bed before he can check his phone, however, leaving the specific hour up in the air as the Masters of the Moscowverse quickly make their way outside following a very quick conversation with one of the security guards, explaining as best as possible the situation at hand in a matter of minutes. The trade-off from them being allowed out of the building is that the guard tags along as they head down the main road in a service vehicle, making it to the crash site within minutes. What they find leaves Kenny in astonishment: a hole drilled firmly into the ground, a crevice untouched by the snow surrounding it…and at the bottom of the hole, a green hardcover book with gold etching. Before the guard can get a look at the finding, Kenny calls his attention away to check on the fuel in the vehicle before carefully grabbing the book. He places it underneath his coat, his body hunched over to hide the fact he’s smuggling something as the trio make their return to the base. Thanking the guard for his help, the Masters head to their quarters as Kenny examines the object of his excursion. “The Multiverse, a compendium,” Kenny reads aloud, scanning the front cover of the book. “By A.K. Freem--oh, dear.” “What the hell is that?” Randall asks, as confused as he is curious about what Kenny has in his hands. The Entertainer’s friend just looks at him, his brows furrowed. “Something that Ivan can’t get a hold of,” Kenny replies. “We saw what happened when he took a trip through the multiverse…I don’t think he can be trusted with this.” Kenny drops the book underneath his bed, covering up to try and get some sleep…but the sight of several light streaks in the night sky force him right back to a state of alertness he could do without. His jaw drops with every new streak, as if cracks are forming in the heavens above. Deep down, Kenny knows exactly what this is…the thing he’d hoped would never happen on his watch. He had been warned about this, and yet nothing could prepare him for what is to come. The multiverse being pulled apart, splintering before his very eyes. “It’s happening.”

Freeman Mansion Los Angeles, California Earth-227 Elsewhere in the Multiverse, we find a chaotic scene outside the home of one Kenneth Freeman, Esquire. This take on a familiar face wakes up from his luxury bed, staring out the window at a white light growing in the night sky. His jaw drops at the sight, rushing out of his bedroom to find his best friend, Randall Schwartz…who we quickly discover is a butler on this world. “Randall, call up the driver post-haste!” Kenneth exclaims, grabbing his coat from the nearby rack. “Whatever’s going on out there, I want no part of it.” “Understood, sir,” his hired compatriot replies with a nod. “Which vehicle shall Robert prepare for your trip?” “Something fast. I must get out here as quick as possible.” With that, Kenneth goes through a long and laborious process of packing a suitcase with some of his belongings. This is a man in a full-on panic as he clasps the case shut, hoisting it up before stepping out the front door…only for everything to fade to white.

Base Camp Outside Los Angeles, California Earth-914 It has been weeks since the Wildman variant of Kenny “disappeared” on a routine scouting trip, and Randall Schwartz has reaped the benefits of becoming the new leader of the pack. As the wolves surrounding him begin to enjoy the evening’s meal, Randall finds himself distracted by the night sky turning nearly as bright as day. He growls at the sight, but cannot respond any further before disappearing into the void.

12.18.24 Red Army Offices Moscow, Russia Earth-PRIME “I don’t care about all that.” After a strange, strange night for the Masters of the Moscowverse, Kenny finds himself dealing with an unenthusiastic Alexei Ruslan scoffing at what is being described to him. “Are you kidding me, Alexei? Everything we know is about to…” Kenny is interrupted by Ruslan raising a hand to him. “Starshy Praporshchik made it very clear after your…excursion, that all this multiverse babble needs to die down immediately. You have much to prove to the Red Army now, comrade, and we are set to put your skills to the test.” With that, the Masters are directed to leave Ruslan’s office, Kenny grunting in frustration as the pair head down the hallway. “What’re we gonna do, Kenny?” asks the Entertainer, looking distraught as Kenny just shakes his head in response at first. “Not much we can do, bud,” Kenny finally replies, the pair arriving at their living quarters. “If the world goes to shit because Ivan wanted to get a peek at something, that’s not on us. Otherwise…” Kenny trails off, looking up at the ceiling of the room as he contemplates. “...Alexei’s right,” Kenny admits with a heavy sigh. “Unless whatever happened last night comes knocking at our doorstep, we need to focus on Red Army business going forward. I have goals for 2025, and the first and most important one is proving I belong in the ranks these days. With a new member among us, I need to step it up…lord knows I don’t wanna end up stomped out like Arthur Pleasant, ya know?” Randall nods in agreement, as Kenny reaches under his bed to pull out the book he found…only to open a cabinet drawer, tossing the book inside before closing the drawer shut. “As for this compendium, well…we didn’t see shit last night, did we?” Randall shakes his head, complying with the denial as Kenny plops himself on his bed, eager to forget the whole incident ever happened.

New year, new me, new challenges. I’ve been tasked with knuckling down and keeping a sharp focus going into 2025, even with everything I care about falling into disarray. It’s a lot to take in, and a lesser man would crack under the pressure..but I am not a lesser man. I am Kenny by-golly Freeman. I’m more than capable of rolling with the punches, and one look at who I’m set to face to kick off the year tells me those punches are coming in hard and fast. Welcome to PRIME, Asher Creed. There’s a lot to take in as you start your journey in the world of graps…and if the business of pro wrestling is one big door, consider me the man holding the keys. Staring up at the rest of the PRIME rankings from where I’m at is tough enough as it is, I’m not about to let some hotshot from Duke take away my chance to bounce back from a rough 2024. I am ready to defend my honor, and that of the Red Army, by taking on a hot new signing for the company and putting him down for the count. Get my hand raised high by the ref, as sports pundits cry over the fact a Blue Devil has let them down once again. Starshy Praporshchik wouldn’t have it any other way, ya feel me? Finishing out the year with a win alongside Ivan Stanislav was thrilling, but not being in the picture for Colossus was a real eye-opener at the same time. I have seen my career and my spirits shattered, but I am picking up the pieces and putting them back together. I refuse to be anything less than my absolute best, and a man calling himself the “Guiding Light” is about to find out the hard way just how bright I can shine. Sydney, Australia is about to be the epicenter for the comeback of a century, and Asher Creed is about to be torn asunder by the aftershock.

01.01.24 Somewhere in Moscow Earth-PRIME Ignoring major incidents such as the night of December 17th does not prevent the consequences. Such is the case out far from the immediate radar of the Red Army base, deep inside the Ural Mountains…where a strange, glowing orb seems to power down after being lodged in the snow for well over a week. The orb eventually cracks open like an egg, releasing a very familiar feline that steps out into the cold and immediately begins shivering. “Good lord, is it cold,” remarks Kitty Freeman, just as quickly leaping back into the orb from whence it came. “What lives out this way, anyhow?” The line of questioning stops for a moment, as Kitty peers down a ways to find a man lying in the snow, his coat keeping him as warm as possible given the circumstances…and his suitcase open next to him, the contents sprawled out as we notice a change of clothes and papers that are dampened by the moisture of his surroundings. He finally wakes up, noticing the orb and its feline passenger as the man gets to his feet. “You there!” exclaims the kitten, its voice echoing in such a manner that the man picks up on it from that distance. “What is your name?” “It’s…it’s Kenneth,” replies the man, a perplexed look on his face as he quickly realizes he is basically talking to an animal. The possibility that the cold has driven him insane is not lost on the esquire, but he hasn’t any time to dwell on it. “Wonderful, another Kenny!” remarks the feline. “Mind helping a kitty out? I don’t wanna walk in all this snow.” Kenneth ponders this for a moment, reluctantly nodding in agreement to the proposal…but this turns out to be a response Kitty seems less than pleased with. “I can’t see your face this far away, ya goof…is that a yes or a no?” “Oh!” exclaims the confused gentleman. “Uh…yes! I’ll be right there!” With that, Kenneth grabs his clothes to shove back into the suitcase, leaving behind the ruined paperwork before he hobbles through the snow toward a potential new ally, all the while missing a very feral Randall Schwartz trying to claw his way out of a massive snowpile as we fade to black.

All the pieces of the mirror still show the same basic reflection, but from piece to piece that reflection looks just slightly different. Every possible outcome only further cracks the mirror just a little more, leaving us to ponder when a breaking point might occur.

~ A.K. Freeman, The Multiverse: A Compendium