[Pre-Show] Contract Signings

[Karl Jak]

Occurs just before everyone was goaded/guided into the Barracks

Everyone was either on their way to the Barracks or in the process of tying up their loose ends.

That left Karl with an hour or so to tie up any loose ends before he had to start coordinating all the various streaming services that would provide the denizens of the Omniverse with a look at the drama and action as it unfolded in the Barrack and the Island. With his thoughts to himself, the executive producer made his way back toward the private part of the facility, where he could go over schematics and make certain all of the hardware and software would work. As much as he loved the unpredictable nature of Dante’s Abyss, Karl wanted to make sure everything else ran well within operational parameters.

Unfortunately for the producer, he opened his office only to find that there was someone waiting for him. And not just any random person—no… this was a giant, hulking mountain of a man in a sleeveless shirt and torn up blue jeans. Upon hearing the door open, the bald figure spun around and lifted a single eyebrow at Karl Jark. In one hand, this new figure grasped an already signed contract, and in the other, he had what seemed to be a very late breakfast.

“May I help you?” Karl asked as the man stood up and it became quite obvious that he was nearly six and a half feet tall.

“Someone told the Rock that you were hosting a fighting competition… and you didn’t think call to Rock?”

“I—”

“It doesn’t matter what you think!” The fighter shouted, his mouth turning into a smirk as he dropped the contract and the pastry on Karl’s desk. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to layeth the smacketh down on all these candy asses…” before the executive producer could protest, the man stepped up in his face and produced a microphone from seemingly nowhere. He brought it up to his mouth, leaned back, and let loose: “If you smeeeeeeeellllll—” Karl watched in confusion as the man used his tongue to drag out the syllable a few more times. “—eellll… What the Rock. Is. Cooking!”

The mic hit the ground with a dull thud as music began to play from the PA system. The bulky man shoved passed Karl Jak, leaving the producer still trying to understand what the stranger had just said… let alone what the Rock had done that warranted smelling.