Readers, Daiyu Tang here again for you with a review of the recent fight night.
Well, what a disappointment. Scratch that what a bloody disappointment. That’s right, our heavily advertised and reported on fight night between Lt. Landon Fyre and Team Pride collapsed into accusations of cheating levelled at both the officer and Team Pride. Not to mention weapon discharges, stabbing, fighting and all sorts.
I had personally been looking forward to attending the event and covering the fight and although I wasn’t privy to all the issues that had reached a crescendo between Fyre, Zeek and the others it was clear that at the end of the day, the majority of the town (those not in a uniform at least) were betting on Team Pride. If it could simplistically be boiled down to freedom of expression, sexuality and more against bigotry then of course, you’d find me and nearly all within the Pride Camp. Watching people fight in a safe (as much as possible) environment is kind of fun and truthfully, I think the city needs a bit of this to let steam out from everyone. I also am not stupid reader, Landon on the ticket is a big draw so it was going to be a spectacle!
One of Landon’s problems is a problem of perception (and action). His sometimes good deeds are covered by this paper even as recently as today, but he also is known as someone with inappropriate views, a tendency to violence and a perception that he himself projects; that most of Hathian are targets and beneath him.
As far as I could tell from my research Zeek had less, but not no, baggage. Rumours of who he works for (really) rather than who he says he works for come from not just HPD but other sources. But I don’t judge people by what they identify as, only by what they do. We know about Fyre’s problems but if you have anything on Zeek or indeed Yusei, the other member of Team Pride who I interviewed post the fight, feel free to send them my way.
Before we dive into it I guess I should add a special shout out to Zofia though who took the controversial position of being Fyre’s ringside girl much to the annoyance of a fair few Twitter watchers.
Zofia with her poster that she displayed prominently on social media
The fight aftermath
As far as it was reported to me, the balance of public opinion was that Team Pride ‘won’. This was confirmed with the referee with the event, Zariah Scott who apparently disqualified Landon Fyre when HPD colleagues got into the ring with him. Now, he would say this didn’t happen and that’s what you can read about below. Accusations that she is a Reject and biased probably don’t hold weight here.
Other than who ‘won’, we also discuss the potential gang alliance the event exposed. Fun times.
Post Match Interview
Considering what I’d heard on Twitter, I was expecting this to be a shit show. I was sure that Zeek and Team Pride would claim a victory, that the supposedly impartial Reject hosts would support them and that Fyre would claim victory no matter what. Rather than a clear winner or loser it would boil down to ‘he/she/they’ said and in Hathian everyone is often mostly entrenched in their views.
So with a sense of some resignation as to the need to sift through facts, footage or anything else, I tried to reach my own conclusion on who won. Here’s a hint, it won’t be Hathian in the long run.
‘Fyring’ On All Cylinders
Landon spoke to me as part of the basement visit that also features in the paper today. I’m not surprised that an interview in front of a bust made him feel comfortable. Sometimes it’s easier to have a win behind you when perhaps you’re talking about a loss… even if you don’t see it.
Lt. Fyre: “Now in your previous article, there was a bizarre statement made about the children’s race, hosted in June. Some days after my leg injury and against the advice of my physician, I attended the race because I support the Seaside School and the excellent work they do for Hathian’s youths. Did Zeek fail to comprehend this was a children’s race, where adults commonly hold back and allow the youths to enjoy their victory? It’s utterly shameless for an adult to win the race and brag about it too, a new low for Hathian’s gangs. I personally saw Mister Rookswood sprinting ahead of the kids like the welfare buffet was about to open, and you know how his people love free food.”
I… this is why Fyre gets into trouble. Making a joke about Zeek wanting to win to get free food is one you could make against me or anyone. Who doesn’t like free food? But he ends it with what I take to be a racial epithet. It’s just not good policing to drop this into the community.
Lt. Fyre: “Most disturbingly, I’ve learned that on the morning of the race, Zeek and his Bones gang were abusing and torturing a medical professional from HGH held captive in their dungeon. After a morning of abuse, Zeek proceeded on to a children’s event and stole their prizes too. Well he’s about to learn his boyish smiles can only carry him so far, before everyone in town learns he’s a common rapist…”
Daiyu: “I think I quoted Zeek as saying you sulked when he won the race… And Zeek is with the Bones?”
Lt.Fyre: “I know, I was disappointed in the young man too, and he doesn’t deny his involvement. And so, Daiyu, onto the part you waned to hear… As for the fight itself, we’ve all been hearing rumours of a super-alliance comprised of every gang in town. On my desk, I don’t deal in rumours, Daiyu, I want the cold, hard facts. So I lured this alliance out with the promise of my bout. As I predicated, the CU Gym was filled to capacity with everyone coming to see my fight. Let’s face it, no one can draw a crowd like I do.”
The man is a great self-promoter if nothing else…
Lt.Fyre: “During the fight, some treachery was expected from the alliance and it arrived in the third minute, when I had Zeek beneath me and was comfortably knocking out his lights, one of the Yuugen slipped a blade into the cage and their fighter proceeded to stab me in the back. There were officers in attendance whom promptly responded to the stabbing, and if you recover footage from the gym, there’s a clear timeline of the stabbing occurring before HPD’s intervention.”
“On the basis of this treachery, Team Pride cheated before the world and forfeited the fight. It adds yet another title of ‘The Fight Night Champion’ to my collection.”
Lt. Fyre
I informed Fyre that here was quite a lot of contention here. With both the organisers and various other parties stating that he had ‘wussed out‘ / ‘tapped out‘ and so on. Both Fyre and some of these parties asked me to get hold of CCTV from the CU gym, but other than some mobile phone footage things weren’t completely conclusive…
The CU ‘Royal Rumble’
Zeek And Yusei Claim Victory
I also met with two of the team Pride fighters. As with Fyre, I was expecting them to claim victory. I guessed right.
“We did win, but everything went to shit when the popo showed up getting in the way.”
Yusei
Daiyu: “How you feel about what happened and what you want to say to the Police or others who upset the match. I’m interested in what Landon did or didn’t do and how that was handled… And I would appreciate any honesty… Did any of the Bones or Rejects show up and cause issues that might have been a contributing factor? Did Tori ascend from hell and vomit over everyone with another game, or was it just in your view that Landon was losing and he called in backup?”
Zeek: “Pretty much that.. the moment Za yelled ‘FIGHT’, Landon ran for the corner like a bitch to get out of the cage and then the cops started ascending the cage to come in. It was an obvious set up. All I know is the police were climbing the cage and cheating, and that Landon in his leather outfit is clearly having issues regarding his own sexuality. I really think he needs to see someone about it, maybe a Doctor or something would help him accept who he truly is. The cops cheated, then they started firing shots into the crowd and aiming their guns at innocent bystanders. I’m just a Bouncer and Rag Dollar worker, a clean track record and the police and their behaviour was appalling”
Zeek came out strongly, defending the win Team Pride claimed and claiming that Landon had staged the thing. Well readers, this is partly the truth, Fyre states he “Lured Out the Alliance“ with his bout. So, two different views – Zeek alleges the setup was to ensure Landon wins, Landon states it it was so that that Tori, Camden and presumable elements of the Rejects were all present and collectively could be arrested. We’ll come back to this.
Yusei: “We were patted down so that there was no way cheating could be allowed. None of us had weapons. The moment the fight started, cops came in from all around. Two entered the cage with their batons ready, so I was forced to fight one of them. I started hearing guns go off, a mass amount of pepper spray permeated the air and everyone was getting stinging in their eyes and burning down their throats. Landon didn’t seem surprised at all, so he knew what was going down. He let it continue until they were satisfied. To be honest… I’d expect better from people that are supposed to uphold justice in the city. All everyone saw today was police brutality at its best.”
Daiyu: “So this clean fight with no disruption, hosted by the Rejects, was broken up by Police immediately… I mean I can’t say I’m surprised… If Landon agrees to a fight, he needs to fight… you can’t run away after talking shit.”
What I didn’t get readers was that Landon claimed he won the fight and that it was only through treachery he lost, yet Team Pride allege that the HPD started getting involved immediately. Something didn’t add up, maybe people were just not remembering correctly innocently, but anyway, I let them continue.
Zeek: “Yusei here is a fine Doctor at HGH. A man like that, who saves lives daily, including those Police officers that were trying to get in the cage and what? Beat the shit out of gay men? It’s obvious in Hathian, if your a gay man you have a target on your back from HPD. It’s a shame really, and again, just another reason why so many of Hathian don’t trust the law around here. By the way Zariah ran the fight very professionally. We were checked like Yusei said and stripped of any weapons before the fight started. The three of us were in nothing but gym attire. He also said this was for his buddy Mike Foley as he tried getting out of the cage. Fucked if I know who that is!”
“I don’t discriminate against all police officers. I understand there are a few that do have good intentions, but I didn’t see them at that fight. Landon? I have to admit though, for a guy like that to hate the LGBTQ… he was dressed like he was cosplaying the Village People. Strange!”
Yusei
What do I think? Well they paint a convincing argument readers… I’ll conclude below after discussing a final point Fyre raised. Also two innocent young men (according to them) – why do I get the feeling they think I’m stupid? Sure, neither of them were dripping blood or unable to string a conversation together (Hathian’s criminals can be like that sometime) but I would suggest that if they weren’t gang prospects before this fight, they might well be now. They came out swinging.
ReBones / Bonejects / Yuu-Re-Bone
Readers, I don’t know if you’ve been following Twitter, but some (gang and otherwise) allege that the King Street, The Rejects and perhaps even the Yuugen have merged together and it was onto this topic that the Fyre pirouetted. To be honest, any interview with Fyre tends to… be somewhat difficult to manage. It’s a piece of stage craft he manages and he is the stage, camera, lighting and interviewer (some of the time).
Now, funny names aside and the last sounds like some collectible anime game, this is fairly serious news. Not only for Citizens, but also for HPD and the Koga. If Landon was to be believed that he planned this, then the fact that HPD then withdrew doesn’t bode well for HPD if the gangs work together. Know who else it doesn’t bode well for? The Koga.
Lt. Fyre: “I hear the Yuugen alliance has been out in force, shedding their gang tears on Twitter and crying like they’re the victims. It’s for the people to decide whether they will believe the likes of the Rejects, Bones and Yuugen, or the man whom routinely brings them to justice. The fight itself was a means for me to study the Yuugen alliance, and I can confirm the Bones and Rejects have indeed joined them. We drew out the Yuugen alliance and observed their operational capacity, although they’ve tripled in number it’s still a chaotic buzz lacking in leadership. The handful rising to the occasion were noted, and it was interesting to see former members of the Bones and Rejects deferring to Yuugen’s authority, their assimilation into the swarm is complete.”
Reader, while maybe on the day one or other gang might be in charge if HPD is a common target, whether it lasts outside an event seems highly unlikely.
Lt. Fyre: “An estimated ninety percent of Hathian’s degenerates have joined this ‘super alliance’. It’s unprecedented, frankly, the gangs of Hathian’s past would never have surrendered their identity. Yet as of June 2023, there are two gangs operating in our fair city, Kogarashi and the Yuugen swarm.”
I don’t really see it this way… Not from my dealings with the Gangs. I can’t imagine Camden giving up his identity to Tori and the business model of the King Street is substantially different to the approach Yuugen has. It would be easy, seductively easy, to believe Fyre on this. Authority is important and life debts are as well, but reader, I think an alliance is that – temporary and based on promises and pacts. It doesn’t mean that you need to worry about Tori and her horde suddenly putting Hathian in a ‘games’ bubble.
Still, when gangs were more in competition to each other, there was perhaps more cover for the average civilian. Now, if God-Forbid Tori actually gets to sit down and influence the others, it’s going to be tough for all who just want to stay out of the way.
Our Conclusion
Sorry to bore you readers, but what started as a review of a Fight Night in the plan turned into a slog of interviews, a visit to a basement to do another story during this and then various attempts to get footage, witnesses and the rest. About the only sensible thing is probably Zofia fangirling over Lt. Fyre… the rest is just… Hathian.
I spoke with a few community leaders. One, who had taken mobile phone footage of HPD scaling the cage noted that weapons were only provided to the fighters by Tori and another when HPD started this. I would suggest, although as ever proof will be for you to decide that there is truth on both sides…
- Landon did think that lots of gang members would show up and that having his colleagues there was for back-up
- He did likely think that once he won the fight that the HPD would arrest those members
- It appears though that going against three in the ring was perhaps too much for him. He probably honestly thought it wouldn’t be
- And that he was stabbed with weapons thrown in by Tori and others once it became apparent that HPD wasn’t there to just watch and instead would intervene to protect their man
At the end of the day, you’ll take your own views and it’s perfectly possible that I am wrong… but ask yourself… would three guys really have trouble kicking the living shit into someone (even without weapons?) Landon is good, but that good? If that logic follows, combined with Landon’s larger than life confidence in himself, it might well be the case that weapons only appeared once HPD reinforcements got into the ring.
I can’t please everyone writing this, but maybe I’m not meant to. Reader… if it matters to you, you decide. Did the event meet anyone’s objectives? I don’t know… well, Landon can take away that he has flushed the ‘ReBone’ theory into public light and I guess the fighters can take away that they would’ve won if all had been left as planned… Citizens, you don’t win, you just learned some worrying news. Sorry.
