Warfare didn't go quite like EXP had planned. It was bad enough having lost out on the opportunity to compete for a Title after only one match, but the Dixon attack served as a rude reminder that people in this business NEVER forget the things you say............. OR do. And while Eobard was still in the process of learning the ins and outs of everything, Cooper knew better than to expect someone NOT to retaliate to an attack.

"So THAT was wrestling, huh?" Stone questioned, removing a bag of ice from his shoulders to one of his knees.

"Yeeeeeeah, that was wrestlin'," Steven replied, disappointment in his voice.

There was an awkward silence, which Eobard broke with a joke. "Well, you know what they say: First is the worst and second is the best!"

Cooper chuckled at the absurdity of what his partner just said. "I'm pretty sure nobody says that," he responded, reaching into his locker for something to wear.

"Sure they do!" Stone argued. "First is the worst and second is the best! Third is the nerd in the..............." Eobard stopped himself upon witnessing Cooper's wardrobe choice, eventually finishing it slowly. "Polka.................... dot................. shirt......................"

Eobard made a cringe face as Steven looked down at his own polka dot shirt, unable to see a problem. "What?! It's my lucky shirt!" he declared, causing his partner to turn around and begin changing, himself. "Can't a guy have a lucky shirt?!?"

"Do I even WANT to know the story behind that?" Eobard asked, putting on something he found a bit more fashionable: a Reverse Flash t-shirt with a faded pair of Wranglers.

"Probably not," his partner shrugged.

The two of them stood there for a minute, neither man saying anything to the other. After a while, though, Cooper spoke with a more serious tone. "I'm sorry I let ya down, kid."

Eobard was a bit caught off guard by the statement, unsure as to how exactly Cooper let him down. "You didn't let me down,"he declared, patting his partner on the back. "If anything, I let YOU down. I should've been there to break up the pin, or taken it myself!"

"Don't be ridiculous!" Steven exclaimed, getting in Stone's face in a loving parent kind of way. "You have your ENTIRE CAREER ahead of you! There's no reason for you to be taking blame, or falls for that matter, when you're just starting out. You've still got ALOT to learn."

"I don't need a lesson in accountability," Eobard insisted, lightly shoving his mentor aside. "We're a team. It doesn't matter who has more experience, or is the better looking one; we split shit 50/50. Win together, lose together. Agreed?"

Cooper was surprised by Stone's upbeat attitude. Despite losing to a team who's entire career had been made up of masturbation jokes, Eobard hadn't been discouraged one bit.

"Agreed," Steven concurred with a nod. "Boy, you'd never have guessed we just lost to Baphomet's bitches by the way you're taking the result."

Stone shrugged. "Well, it's not like I took the fall." Cooper stared at Eobard with a blank expression, confused by his partner's sudden flip from taking the blame equally to pinning it on his mentor. All of a sudden, the Game Master burst into laughter causing Steven to chuckle and shake his head.

"You're somethin' else, kid," The Trooper insisted.

Eobard wasn't done with the jokes. "Says the nerd in the polka dot shirt."

Cooper gave Stone a playful punch on the arm, though the amount of force put behind it might say otherwise. "You'll be thanking me when we win the Titles because of it!"

"After what happened tonight, you'd be better off burning that shirt," Eobard stated. Steven began to laugh, pointing at his partner in acknowledgement of another fine joke, completely unaware that Stone was dead serious. "That wasn't a joke."

"Like hell it wasn't!" Cooper responded, grasping tightly at his favorite garment. "50/50 means you don't HAVE to like my choice of clothing, but you damn sure are gonna ACCEPT it!"

"Guess I better accept that we're gonna be losing alot more, too," Eobard mumbled loud enough for Steven to make out a few of the words.

"What was that???"

Stone was quick on his feet, a trait Cooper had always admired about his student. "I said 'I can't wait to get the next Title shot!'"

Steven stared at his partner, knowing full well that was NOT what he just said. "You've got some strong opinions for someone who blatantly ripped off another man's costume." Cooper pointed to the Reverse-Flash on Eobard's shirt, causing Stone to look down. Upon doing so, Steven brought his finger up and flicked his partner in the nose. "I got jokes, too, kid."

Eobard laughed, amused by his usually uptight partner's playfulness. "I think we're gonna be alright."

The Trooper nodded in agreement, preparing to leave the lockeroom with Stone. Before either of them could, though, XWF's resident interviewer, Steve Sayors, walked in.

"Sayors!" Cooper burst out, nearly causing the reporter to piss himself. "This better be good! I've got a big ole t-bone waiting for me back at the hotel!"

"D-don't worry," Sayors began, on edge as usual. "I'm not here for an in-interview, just to give you t-this............."

The broadcast journalist handed a piece of paper with EXP's next match assignment on it over to Cooper, who looked it over in a very intrigued manner. "This legit?"

"Straight from the top," Sayors insisted with a nod. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have somewhere less frightening to be!"

And, just as quickly as he arrived, Sayors was gone, leaving Cooper standing there staring at the paper. "I like that guy," he admitted, purposely waiting for him to be out of sight before speaking.

"I can tell the feeling's mutual," Eobard sarcastically remarked before turning his attention to their next match. "Well, what's it say???"

Cooper knew what it said, but he didn't quite believe it. He read the short statement to himself over and over again, trying to make sure he wasn't just imagining it. After what had to have been the fourteenth reread, Steven finally gave his partner the note. "Welcome to the big time, kid."

Stone took the piece of paper, and looked it over, his mouth dropping open at the sight of their next opponent's name: Thaddeus Duke.

"Is this legit?!?" Eobard asked, repeating his partner's question for Sayors.

"If Steve Sayors says it is, it HAS to be!" Cooper replied with a shrug.

Stone looked over the details of the match: EXP, Thad Duke, Handicap Match. "Is this supposed to be some sort of punishment?" Truthfully, Eobard wasn't quite sure who was actually being punished, them or Thad, but he knew this match wasn't something that was booked to be a competitive showdown. They were trying to send a message to someone.

"Yeah............. for DUKE!" Cooper insisted, convinced the team of himself and Stone should be more than enough to deal with the former Universal Champion. Eobard wasn't so sure.

"What about us?" Stone asked, concerned XWF management was trying to write them out of the picture.

"What ABOUT us?" Cooper repeated, concerned by Eobard's sudden lack of confidence.

Stone looked down at he paper and slapped it with his hand. "I may be new to the business, but I've seen enough behind the scenes to understand what's going on here!"

Steven crossed his arms and lifted an eyebrow. "Oh yeah?" he responded, curious as to what his partner has in mind. "Please enlighten me."

"They're feeding us to Duke!" Eobard proclaimed, receiving a chuckle from Steven. "What's so funny?!"

"YOU," The Trooper replied. "They book a match, kid, that's it. I've been around the block and, if I didn't know any better, I'd say our dear leader is on a collision course with the former Universal Champion; likely sooner than later. And in order to hype said showdown, they've got to book the shows leading up to it accordingly."

"Makes sense."

"SO, what better way to do that than to have Thad fight an uphill battle against two of the Nefarious One's most trusted allies?"

Even though the logic behind Cooper's words made sense, there was still one thing about the match that didn't add up for Stone. "But why a HANDICAP Match?" he asked, trying to wrap his head around the decision. "They could've booked Dean Rose against him if they wanted to make it fair."

Steven stepped forward and put a hand on Eobard's shoulder, readying to say something that, as a good teammate, one probably SHOULDN'T say, but needed to in this situation. "Dean Rose would get eaten alive by Thad." He looked at the floor uncomfortably, preparing to deliver even worse news. "So would you."

An offended Stone shrugged Cooper's hand off of his shoulder. "Fuck you!" he exclaimed. "Like YOU would do any better???"

"Better? Absolutely," Cooper boasted, although with a bit of reserve. "Win? I don't know. Honestly, I'm not even sure Ned can beat him.............."

Stone was shocked to hear his partner speak so candidly. "You don't think so?"

"I'm not saying he CAN'T," Steven wanted to make clear. "I'm just sayin' there's a reason he's a former Universal Champion."

"But he lost to Big D."

"And we just lost to the Leftover Hand," Steven reminded Stone. "You can't judge someone based off a single match; if you do, you're gonna end up with ALOT more matches for others to judge you on."

Eobard understood exactly what Cooper was saying. "You're right," he agreed. "It's no different than all the people who judged ME based on a single football game in high school..............."

"Exactly!" the Trooper replied, happy to see his partner was finally beginning to get what he was saying. "Had I been like everyone else, you'd still be stuck in that shitty game store!"

Eobard was a little offended. "I still own the game store, Steve," he said with a glare.

"Yeah, but you're not stuck there," Cooper emphasized. "The world's your oyster, kid. You have opportunities popping up around you left and right. Me? The world's my shell."

Eobard wasn't willing to accept his partner's bleak outlook for himself. "Hey, 50/50, right? How 'bout we share the oysters?"

Steven threw his bag over his shoulder and grinned. "I'm more of a steak guy."

Stone burst into laughter, followed shortly by Cooper. "Speaking of which," Eobard began, throwing his arm around his partner's shoulder. "Heard you got a t-bone with our name on it!"

Cooper removed The Game Master's arm from his shoulder, giving him a rather intense stare as he did so. "Kid, there's 2 things I'll NEVER split with you. Women............................ and food. Got it?"

"Got it."

"Good," The Trooper affirmed before exiting the lockeroom, leaving Eobard behind.

"Guess that means I better cancel the hooker, then." He said to himself before following his partner out.