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Chapter Two

"So you guys ready?" I asked Dean and Roman in their locker room toward the end of the show. They were going out to talk about their win, but we were still missing a member.
"Yeah," Roman answered, tying his shoelaces again.
"It might just be you and me, Ro," Dean stated before turning to me. "Wanna go out there with us?"
"Sure," I answered.
All conversation ceased once the door opened and Seth stepped through.
"Well, look who decided to show his face," Dean growled.
"Calm down," I whispered.
"No," Dean replied simply. "So, where've you been?"
"Is that really any of your business?" Seth snapped, readjusting his black gloves.
Dean opened his mouth to retort, but Roman cut in. "Dean, just leave it alone," he mumbled.
Dean clamped his mouth shut and laid his head on my shoulder. Seth glared at him.
"You guys need a vacation," I told them. "Like, right now."
"Can't," Dean said. "Too much publicity to go absent now."

The guys and I made it to the top of the stairs, hiding behind a black curtain.
"Our main event," Cole started to say as Randy and Roman's faces appeared on the TV screen on the side of the curtain. "Randy Orton says despite Batista quitting earlier tonight, he and Triple H are 100% on the same page and to prove he's still Face of the WWE, Orton vows to take out Roman Reigns of The Shield. Our main even is next on Raw."
When the commercials came on, I looked at the guys. Roman and Dean were talking in hushed voices while Seth stood a little off to the side, looking lost in thought.
"What are you thinking about?" I whispered in his ear.
He turned his head and stared at me, exhaling a deep breath. "Doing the right thing. What's best."
I smiled, giving him a hug. "That's great," I told him. "We all love you...you know that, right?"
He shrugged with a small smile. "I guess," he mumbled.
The 2 minutes of commercials finally ended.
"What a night it's been tonight on Monday Night Raw," Michael Cole said. "And the night kicked off with Evolution, Triple H, Randy Orton, and Batista in the ring."
"Well, you're right," Jerry Lawler agreed. "After Evolution lost last night to The Shield, I mean, Triple H was about to make a rematch for tonight when this happened."
A video appeared  with Earlier Tonight printed at the bottom left hand corner:
"You will get everything that you have been promised," Triple told Batista and Randy. He was back in his corporate suit that did not match the purple tinge around his left eye. "Everything you have ever dreamed of, but until that time, no one is getting anything.
You could tell Batista didn't like that statement, but Randy's expression was unreadable. You couldn't tell if he was upset about what Hunter declared or if he was taking what had been said into consideration.
"I understand," Batista said calmly. "And I quit." He dropped his mic and waved to the fans.
"Triple and Randy Orton were stunned," Cole said. "Triple H, well, he would blow up and become livid. And then we had the opportunity to catch up with Batista on the WWE app moments after this."
The screen transferred over to Batista's interview with Tom Phillips:
"Ever since I came back, I've been nothing but lied to. Everything that was promised to me, nothing, all crap. So I'm done with it, man. Empty promises, I'm done." Then he stalked away.
The Shield's music played once the video came to an end and Dean grabbed my hand as we walked out behind Seth with Roman bringing up the rear.
"So, Batista walked out on Evolution. And now, we get set for our main event..."
Cole's voice died away as we clomped farther away from the TV. The staircase was already narrow without the fans pressing in on us from the sides. I found myself wondering how much damage would be done if I were to trip and fall right now with still 45-50 steps to go. People in the stands kept slapping me, rather roughly, on my bare arms and shoulders. The guys seemed unfazed by it, though. I wouldn't be surprised if I had nothing but red handprints all over me. I gripped Dean's hand tighter.
"This contest," Justin Robert, the ring announcer, started to say, "is set for one fall! Coming down the aisle representing The Shield, weighing 265 pounds, Roman Reigns."
Seth leaped over the barricade and Dean grabbed my waist, hoisting me over before he switched sides himself.
"You talk about a career night, what The Shield did last night, a clean sweep over Evolution is unbelievable," JBL stated as the guys and I slipped into the ring. Seeing the guys in Shield mode for the first time in months was exciting yet intimidating. I stood a little off to the side near Dean, nervously fixing the cowl neck collar of my black sleeveless dressy top.
"Well, that was a great night for The Shield," Jerry said. "But I can tell you this, they cannot be 100% tonight. All three of these men have to be hurting."
Dean gave a small smile to the cheering crowd. "How do we look?" he asked. "Because we feel great, bruised, beaten up for sure. Because last night, we faced our biggest challenge to date, a No Holds Barred elimination match against Evolution. When the napalm settled, we did exactly what we said we were gonna do, a clean sweep. We eliminated every single member of Evolution without suffering a single casualty. Now that is what I call domination."
The crowd cheered again as he dropped the microphone with a booming thud.
"Adapt or perish," Seth proclaimed. "That was the whole deal, right? Last night at Payback, The Shield adapted while Evolution perished. And earlier tonight, the whole world was a witness to their implosion." He chuckled. "And the reason Evolution perished was because even though they are three of the greatest superstars in the history of this industry, last night, they were not one like The Shield. In the end, they were just three strangers who happened to be standing on the same side of the ring."
Roman clapped his hand on Seth's shoulder and rose the mic to his lips as Seth lowered his.
"They weren't brothers," Roman pointed out. "The men standing in this ring are brothers." I smiled as Roman and Seth looked squarely into the other's eyes. Dean slapped Seth on the back. "This is Evolution," Roman opened his hand and spread out his fingers, "This is The Shield," he made a fist. "So Randy Orton get your butt out here and let me break your jaw with the symbol of excellence." He threw the microphone over his shoulder.
"Roman Reigns is ready for our main event-"
"He better be ready," JBL interrupted.
"-against the Viper Randy Orton," Cole said.
"His opponent," Justin began, "representing Evolution, from St. Louis, Missouri, weighing 245 pounds, the Viper, Randy Orton."
Roman pointed at the sledgehammer resting upon Hunter's shoulder making Seth climb out of the ring, coming back in with two metal folding chairs.
"And Triple H is a smart man. The Cerebral Assassin realizing, 'Oh, so Batista quit, I'm bringing a sledgehammer out with me tonight.'," Cole said as Randy and Hunter slowly made their way down the ramp. "And Seth Rollins realizing after No Holds Barred last night, it's gonna be another battle with Evolution here tonight."
I backed up into the lines of ropes on the commentary side.
"The Architect of The Shield is loading up with the toys as well," JBL observed.
"Well, you got to fight fire with fire," Jerry explained.
The two remaining member of Evolution stopped a good distance away from the ring. "In case you haven't figured it out yet, what I do better than anybody is adapt," Hunter stated. "Last night was Plan A. Tonight," he looked at his sledgehammer with a smirk, "Plan B. There's always a Plan B."
The Shield exchanged looks before Dean and Roman stepped forward while Seth took a step back and raised the chair over his head. My eyes widened and I tried to warn the others but my throat closed up on me and the words. The chair slammed into Roman's back and he fell forward, his neck draped over the bottom rope. The crowd gasped.
"Oh, my God," Cole exclaimed.
Dean gawked at Roman's motionless body, then drifted his gaze to Evolution before finally locking eyes on Seth. He ran at his "friend" just to be hit in the gut and back. I cringed.
"Are you kidding me?" Cole questioned in disbelief. "Rollins now, he's assaulting Ambrose." Triple H smirked as Rollins hit Dean on the back continuously. "What is going on here?"
"Those guys are on top of the world. Why the world would Seth Rollins do this?" JBL wondered.
It's as if my feet were glued to the stop. I was frozen, not being able to even twitch my fingers.
"My God, Rollins is destroying," Cole observed.
Shut up Cole! I thought.
Seth hit Roman-who was starting to stir-again before laying out Dean again. Next thing you know, I got feeling back into my body and ran up, kicking Seth in the back, the chair clattering to the mat. I looked at a spot over his shoulder, not being able to look him in the eye as he spun around and got in my face. I glanced into his face for a split second. His expression was guarded but there was a plea for understanding etched subtly into his features.
"We'll talk about this later," his said quietly but it was more of a request than a demand.
I shook my head. "I don't have anything to say to you," I whispered back. "And I don't want to hear anything you have to say. Have fun with Evolution, Sellout." I shoved him away from me, his heel touching Dean's arm as he stumbled back.
He stayed there. "Go!" I screamed.
He clenched his jaw and started to climb out, but he quickly jumped back in and tackled me. "What are you doing?" I grunted as I tried to push him off.
I rolled over on top of him and smacked him across the cheek. He winced as grabbed my hand when he saw I was going to do it again. He quickly go to his feet and twisted the ropes around my wrist.
"What. Are. You. Doing?" I repeated as I tried to pull my hand free.
"I'm sorry," he said as he turned around and picked the chair he dropped back up.
"No!" I shrieked. "Seth, stop!"
Seth started to hit Dean-who was still laying on his stomach, his eyes glazed over-in the back again. The sound of each impact rang in my ears. It's as if he was doing it harder out of frustration. After a couple of shots, the chair broke. I pressed bottom of my shoe against the ropes and pushed but they wouldn't budge. I banged the canvas with my free hand in irritation.
Seth loomed over Dean for a moment then glanced over his shoulder at me, guilt written all over his face, before finally climbing out of the ring for real, grabbing the second chair in the process.
"Guys," Cole finally said, "Triple H kept saying earlier tonight that, "There's a plan, there's a plan.'"
"How did the game accomplish this?" JBL asked as Seth stood alongside Hunter and Randy, examining the chair in his hand. I shook my head and shot daggers at him. He looked straight at me as he handed the weapon over to Randy. The Viper licked his lips before jumping onto the apron. I reached for Dean with my free arm and was only able to graze the skin of his arm. Roman was in the corner on the other side of the ring, making slight movement.
"Dean, come on, you got to get up," I told Dean. "You have to. Get up!"
I reached out for him again and got my hand stomped on by the bottom of Randy's wrestling boot. I saw Seth lurch forward a little, but Hunter had a firm grasp on his shoulder. I recoiled and nursed my stinging hand in between my thighs as Randy hit Dean once then went to work on Roman. He ripped Roman's best off and hit his bare back and chest with the curved part of the chair. A tear slipped down my cheek that I quickly wiped away. My hand was rose red.
Once it looked like Randy was finished, Seth and Hunter slipped into the ring. Seth was looking straight at me, concerned. He tried to walk over, but Hunter pulled him back and draped both of his arms over Randy and Seth's shoulders with a grin. Randy raised the chair over his head in satisfaction as Hunter's music played.
"The beginning of the night, I said we had seen the end of Evolution," Jerry said. "But now, I think we have seen the end of The Shield."
"The prophetic words from Triple H earlier tonight, 'This won't be over until The Shield exists no longer.'," Cole quoted.
Once Raw went off the air, referees descended upon the ring to carry Dean and Roman out. Seth, Hunter and Randy stayed where they were in the ring, watching as the refs rolled the remaining members of The Shield out. One of them came and released me from the ropes. I rubbed my wrist; they cut off blood circulation, turning my hand purple.
"Where's Chelsea?" Dean asked groggily as two officials slung his arms over their shoulders.
"I'm right here," I told him, slipping out of the ring, not once looking at the men still standing in it.
I rested a hand on Roman's back as he was hoisted to his feet.
Once the guerrilla curtains swished back into place behind us, Roman and Dean shrugged the officials away and started to walk off.
"Uh, guys, the Trainers' Room's that way," I said, pointing in the other direction.
They ignored me and continued to limp toward the Locker Room area. I thanked the referees and followed. They burst into their locker room, Dean easing himself down onto the couch, Roman gingerly sitting in a folding chair behind the wooden cubbies.
"Does anyone want to tell me what happened out there?" Roman questioned, rubbing his bruised chest, his vest at his feet.
Dean sighed. "We've been played, my friend," he replied, burying his head in his hands. "Downright played." Then, he did something that scared the crap out of me: he laughed. Roman and I exchanged worried looks.
"I'm gonna kill him," Dean said calmly. Pain seemingly seeped from his body as he jumped to his feet. "I'm going to kill him."
"No, you're not," I stated firmly, pushing him back into the cushions.
"Says who?" Dean challenged.
"Says me," I retorted. "Can we use our money for other things besides bail?"
Dean folded his arms across his chest with a huff as I pulled my normal colored hand through my hair. "It's been a long night," I told them. "Let's get back to the hotel. Roman, you can crash on our couch."
"Chelsea! Chelsea!" Nikki and Brie shouted as they caught up with me in the hallway, the guys and I with our duffel bags slung over our shoulders.
"Are you okay?" Nikki asked, worriedly.
"I can't believe Seth would do that," Brie said.
"That was crazy out there," Nikki stated.
"Is there anything we can do?" Brie questioned.
I shook my head. "No," I answered in a tired voice for both questions. "I gotta go. I'll talk to you guys later."
"Do you want me to drive?" I asked the guys as we walked out into the parking lot.
"No, I'll drive," Roman grumbled as he lowered himself into the driver's seat, wincing.
Dean laid in the back seats and closed his eyes while I climbed into shotgun. Sighing, I laid my head on the headrest as Roman pulled out of the lot and onto the road, head, street, and stop lights blurring past. I glanced over at Roman. His back was ramrod straight, jaws clenched, fingers gripping the steering wheel until they turned chalk white. I looked around the seat at Dean. He was laying on his side, staring hard at the back of Roman's seat, his eyebrows connecting in a V. I faced forward. Where do we go from here?