Revamp of something I wrote over three years ago. Not entirely sure when its set, but probably the '05/'06 era, which was when I stopped watching, with potential characters from a little later on. Enjoy.

The Shadow Master vs. The Deadman. Fights with supposed powers, and then with very real skill and aggression. For two and a half months, they battled, almost every week, in a variety of matches. Neither was willing to quit, or to give up, despite matches lost. There was always the chance that they'd win the next one, and, usually, that was what happened. Other Superstars were brought into the story, but they were only to keep things interesting. The fans were interested, and had no idea exactly what was going to happen in the end.

The Line Between Black and White. He was shafted down the card, after losing the final match to Taker. They dropped the "mythical powers" from his bio, instead simply allowing his mortal powers to be on display. They flickered the lights when he walked through corridors, but, apart from that, he was like anyone else. Despite his good showing against The Undertaker, they had decided against boosting his career and giving him a title run, instead telling him he'd need to earn his way, and earn his fans. There were too many other Superstars in the division, and they all had fans who bought merchandise. The Shadow Master wasn't earning the company enough money and therefore wasn't worthy of a title shot just yet. Two and a half months fighting Taker hadn't been enough, and six weeks were spent trawling through the midcard, defeating all comers, but still not getting the fans he needed.

The Shadow Master vs. The Rabid Wolverine. For three months, he'd gone to bed battered and bruised, but in the ring, he'd felt more alive than any other time he'd walked through the curtain. Against Taker, it had been all about the power, but with Benoit, it was all about the skill. Punches and heavy duty grapples didn't cut it. Submission holds, technical moves, they were what mattered. He hadn't trained to get here, only to pretend that he wasn't as good as he actually was. Fighting with Benoit changed that. Fighting with Benoit meant that there were more signs for the Shadow Master. It meant that more people paid attention to his matches. More people bought his merchandise. Suddenly, he was worth it. Suddenly, it looked like he actually belonged in the WWE, with a title around his waist. If three months could really be considered as suddenly. He lost, then won, once, then lost a hell of a lot more. It was too easy, too convenient, to have them facing each other. A growth of skills, for the both of them, and the fans enjoyed it, so why not? Somehow, just by fighting each other, they started to rise up the rankings.

The Shadow Master and the Royal Rumble. He drew number thirteen, after an unscripted chat with Candice that had the rumour mills running for months to follow. Neither of them had realised that the cameras were rolling, and instead had just been joking around. It was only the third time they'd met, and their shortest meeting, but it was enough. Enough to show everyone that the Shadow Master could actually be human. He wasn't playing up some gimmick, and it was because of that one thing that the fans reacted the way they did. Suddenly, Candice Michelle was bringing out the soft side of one of the few men in the industry who walked in the grey area when he was in the ring, and even when he wasn't. Sometimes the bad guy, sometimes the good, sometimes the guy who flirted with both. It was because of that flirtation that he managed to make it to the final three inside the ring.

The Shadow Master and The Animal. After the Rumble, recently dethroned champ Batista tried to tear his way through the roster to earn the title shot at Wrestlemania. Unfortunately, for him, when he hit the Shadow Master, he hit a brick wall. At No Way Out, they were in a triple threat match with Benoit to decide who would face the champ at Wrestlemania, though who it would be remained in question, as Mysterio was battling him that very night. Benoit pulled off the victory, forcing Batista to tap, and giving the Shadow Master a single word that he could use, indefinitely, to describe the Animal: weak. It sent Batista into a frenzy. He'd tapped out, and he'd hated himself for it, but now he had someone taunting him with the fact every single second of every single day. At Wrestlemania, both names secured a match, together, and, thanks to the matches with Benoit, he was allowed to show off. Power loses when your opponent is just as powerful, and twice as skilled. The Shadow Master won the match, and had the pleasure of reminding the Animal for as long as he could that he'd just won. Beating the former champ catapulted him right up to the top of the pile. From up there, the ground looked very far away, and there were only two, maybe three people, who were sharing that kind of height with him.

Into the Shadow Realm. He enjoyed life at the top, but he didn't abuse it. He didn't challenge for the title straight away. He didn't stake his claim at Judgement Day, but he did rub salt in the wounds when the Animal got his ass kicked, once again, by the champ. The man wearing the gold was getting good at that. He did have a contribution at Judgement Day, though. All titles were on the line, as usual, but it all started with a Diva match, which changed... well, it changed everything. Melina was fighting Ashley, and Ashley looked set to win. Suddenly, Mercury and Nitro were down in the ring, knocking out the ref. Ashley was backed into a corner, but suddenly... suddenly Melina had a change of heart, and tried to call off the attack. The crowd applauded, and Ashley bailed out of the ring, leaving Melina to try and calm down 'her boys'. But the boys had a different idea. They started yelling at her, shoving her, and they looked about to hit her. About to hit her, and then the lights went out. When they came back on, Mercury and Nitro were knocked out in the middle of the ring, and the Shadow Master was standing on the stage, arms folded across his chest. Later that night, Mercury and Nitro defended their titles against London and Kendrick, and, yet again, the Shadow Master interfered, attacking the champs after they knocked out the ref, again. It helped them secure the titles, and, after that, London and Kendrick were rarely seen from the Shadow Master's side, earning themselves the title of the Shadow Minions.

The Shadow Master and the Legend Killer. At Summerslam, the Shadow Master challenged for the title, but found the chance slip through his grasp at the final second. This loss was not the first, and was not the last he received at the hands of Randy Orton, the reigning champ. The loss only encouraged him, though, and he battled through opponents, successfully defending his claim as the first and only true contender to the title. He proved his ability to see the whole board, though, continuing to assist London and Kendrick, as they began to follow the way he lived and operated, walking the line in the same way he did. It was almost too easy for them to win, and retain their titles. Together, they walked into No Mercy at the top of their game. For the past three weeks, the Shadow Master had faced the Legend Killer in a series of matches, and, each time, he'd been the only one left standing at the end of the night, and No Mercy was no different. At the end of the night, the Shadow Master stood tall in the middle of the ring, London and Kendrick raising his arms into the air, with the title clasped firmly around his waist. It was the beginning of a new era.

The Shadow Ministry. Now that he was holding the Heavyweight Title, he and London and Kendrick were the most powerful faction on Smackdown!. From then on, they were referred to as the Shadow Ministry, both in jest and in all seriousness. There was no change in their attitudes, or their fighting styles, and they were seemingly unstoppable. The Shadow Minions were the first selected by their Master to join the Survivor Series team, battling against RAW's team for brand supremacy. No matter who he fought in the ring, or what kind of match it was, the Shadow Master remained champion, leaving many wondering who might have the power and the ability to stop him. Some old names appeared again, but none were successful, Batista taking his shot at the Rumble and falling within minutes. It meant that there was time for another quick chat with Candice, but it was different this time.

The Shadow Master and his Queen. By Survivor Series, it was impossible not to see that there was certainly something going on between the Shadow Master and Melina, but there was certainly nothing definite until the Rumble, when, following his match, she joined him in the ring and kissed him. That particular storyline was the worst kept secret in the WWE at the time, all thanks to a few "accidental" sightings of the two of them together, in the background of other people's air time. Quickly, Melina adopted the same code as the rest of the Shadow Ministry, and, under the Shadow Master's tutelage, became a formidable opponent, making No Way Out a night of victories for the Ministry. The Shadow Minions found themselves having to vie for time with the newly dubbed Shadow Queen, but they didn't falter in the ring, and never doubted their mentor and leader. The only possible upset for the dominating faction was the possibility that Melina may be traded to RAW, in order to compete for the Women's Title, but the draft was so far away, and it was unlikely that the Smackdown! GM would want to break up the team when they were earning the WWE so much money.

The Fall of The Shadow Master. Batista qualified for the title match at Wrestlemania, but lost the preview match, two weeks before, and therefore lost the chance to make the stipulation. When the Shadow Master chose an Ultimate Submissions match, it seemed obvious that he would walk out of Wrestlemania with his title still around his waist, and his Ministry intact, but that was not to be. Melina won her challenge against reigning Women's Champion, Mickie James, and was immediately transferred to RAW; London and Kendrick lost their titles to Mercury and Nitro; and as for the Shadow Master himself... he found that Batista had picked up a few things in their previous matches, amongst them a few submission holds. Despite his best efforts, the scores were level in the final minutes of their match, both men scrambling to lock something in, and force the other to tap out. In the final moments, the Shadow Master saw his chance, forcing Batista onto his back with a Power Bomb, then locking in the Shadow's Embrace, his knee pushing heavily against the Animal's chest and diaphragm, while his arms locked around the man's neck and arm, the Shadow Master twisting his body in order to fully secure the headlock. Batista tapped, with two seconds remaining, and thus the Shadow Master retained his title. Before he could even lay eyes on the belt, though, he was under attack; former champion Randy Orton appearing in the ring, armed with a chair, Mercury and Nitro in tow. In the onslaught that followed, the Shadow Master felt something go horribly wrong, something that would end his career in the WWE, cost him the title, and, most importantly, cost him revenge and retribution.

"This reads like a Wikipedia page. Actually, it's probably less descriptive than a Wikipedia page."

Tobias dropped the sheets back down onto the table, eyes flickering to the other people sitting in the room, then finding the text again, rereading what he already knew. Why they had given them to him in the first place, he did not know, but there was sure to be a point to it all. Unfortunately, no one seemed to want to reveal that just yet, instead just watching him read. They'd scheduled this meeting, and now they were wasting away the time remaining by staring at him, whispering to each other when they thought he might not hear them, scribbling notes on the sheets of paper in front of them, even when he hadn't said a single word.

"It's just a rough draft," Stephanie said, softly, as if he had been offending her, though, he would admit that it had probably sounded like a shot rather than a statement. Those thoughts were quickly shifted, though, when he realised exactly what she'd said. A rough draft? Why the hell would they want to write a rough draft on the history of the Shadow Master?

"A rough draft for what?"

Stephanie shared a look with her father, Vince, but his expression was unreadable. Desperately, Tobias turned to Caleb, the only other person in the room, but he remained just as silent. They had started all of this, and had approached him, and now they wanted to remain silent. He could feel the fury growing, and the impatience, but he'd dealt with all of this before.

"How's your shoulder, Toby?" Vince grumbled, though his question did very little to ease the growing tension in the room.

"Healed, and stronger than it used to be."

"The surgery was a success?"

"Very. I cut two months off the recovery time, too."

"How long was it, in total?"

"Seven months."

Another moment of silence, while notes were made, but, for whatever reason, Tobias was sure that they were getting closer to the point. Who knew, maybe Vince would hurry up and tell him what was going on.

"We want to release a DVD," Stephanie finally announced, "about you. The Shadow Master. We need you to supply commentary, obviously, but we also need all the paper work signed."

"Why would you want to release a DVD about someone who hasn't been seen in association with the WWE for eight months?"

Another shared look. It wasn't entirely uncommon for these kinds of DVDs to be released, what with the amount that Tobias had achieved in such a short space of time, but there was something more to this, and they all knew that. These three were hiding something, and he was just going to have to wait for them to be secure enough to tell him. It may take seconds, or hours, or, hell, knowing Vince and Stephanie, it may take a few weeks.

"Three polls conducted since your final match show that you are still someone the fans remember," Caleb said, at last actually speaking up, though his eyes were on the laptop screen in front of him. "Two months after Wrestlemania, you were one of seven names supplied with the question: 'Which former champion would you like to see return to the WWE?' You received 62% of the vote. At No Mercy, we asked: 'Out of all champions to win a title at No Mercy, which was your favourite?' Once again, you led in votes. Finally, last week, we asked: 'Who was your favourite champion of the last 12 months?'. You won. People remember you, and, considering that there are still a few Shadow Master signs at each Smackdown! show and Pay Per View, I get the feeling they wouldn't have an issue with seeing you again. Even better if you had a title around your waist."

He leaned back in his chair, folding his arms across his chest. What else were they playing at? Hell, why were they even including his name in the polls? His suspicion was growing, to the point where he was considering leaving the meeting. They'd stabbed him in the back before, in a meeting rather similar to this one, and their silence wasn't convincing him that this was going to be any different. Hell, if he walked out with even a third of what he should have been receiving in royalties, it would be a miracle.

"You're in a rather unique situation, Mr. Cale. You're one of the few champions in WWE history who successfully defended his title at Wrestlemania. You're one of the few Superstars who has never actually been defeated for their title. And, most importantly, your final match was at Wrestlemania. All together, you're very unique, and, therefore, very memorable."

Vince's words did little to appease Tobias, since the Chairman was the reason he'd left in that particular situation, but getting angry now wouldn't do anything to help him. There was something more to this, that much he knew, and only patience would reveal exactly what that was. Money, certainly, but he was pretty sure that he hadn't heard the end of their offer just yet. So far, everything could have been discussed through emails, or over the phone, so asking him to come in for the meeting meant that there was more. Whether or not he wanted to hear it, though, remained to be seen.

"Have you kept in shape, Tobias?"

He may have been offended by the question, but, yet again, he refused to rise to the bait, fixing his eyes on Stephanie before letting out a sigh.

"To the best of my ability."

"Are you in fighting shape?" Caleb jumped in, a second later, still not looking up from the screen in front of him, but his fingers had ceased their movements on the keys, if only for a moment.

"I haven't been in a ring, or a fight, since Wrestlemania, so I don't know."

Silence, again. Vince, Stephanie and Caleb shared a look, before the latter went back to whatever it was he was working on. Obviously, that wasn't the answer that they'd been hoping for, but at least it was an honest one. Why would they care if he was in fighting shape? Well, no, there was a simple answer to that. No doubt they thought that he'd been contacted by TNA, in which case they'd be right, but he wasn't going to sign up with them. Somehow, no matter how talented you were, you never remained champion for long. Might have had something to do with one of the owners being a Superstar, or whatever they called themselves.

"How long do you think it would take for him to be up to standard?"

"Might take too long. Especially since..."

He'd been so lost in thought that he didn't quite pick up on what they were saying until Stephanie paused. Getting him back up to standard? What the hell was that all about? Were they still under the assumption that he was jumping ship? No, that didn't quite work. In that case... no. That was equally ridiculous.

"What's going on? Why are you so interested in my physical fitness? More importantly, why is there a time limit involved?"

Caleb didn't say a word; in fact, he pulled on a pair of headphones, eyes still trained on the screen, though now his fingers were motionless. Obviously, this was out of his department, so he didn't need to have any further input. Vince and Stephanie shared yet another look, silently arguing with each other, and, finally, Vince bit the bullet.

"We were hoping to release the DVD in order to help hype your return to the WWE at Wrestlemania."

Tobias couldn't help but he stunned, but kept his face blank, almost bored. His return to the WWE? At Wrestlemania? Were they insane? Very few people made a debut at a PPV, and no one made them at Wrestlemania. It was reserved for people who could really sell the merchandise, not to mention Superstars who actually deserved to get that kind of prestigious air time. Even if he wouldn't be debuting, it still seemed absolutely ridiculous.

"Why?"

Not the reaction they'd been expecting, and this time it was the McMahon's turn to look a little surprised, but they recovered a lot faster than he had.

"I don't say this very often, so I'm not going to repeat it. I don't like the way we parted company, and I regret that it occurred. Stephanie approached me on behalf of the writing team, when they hit a bit of a road block. As an exercise, Stephanie had them write any storyline they wanted. Essentially, they were allowed to do what every fanfiction and wrestling roleplayer does every day: resurrect careers and Superstars and go to town. Instead of bringing Eddie Guerrero back to life, or reforming Evolution, or, hell, turning people gay, they chose to write you back into the WWE, starting with Wrestlemania."

Certainly not what he'd been expecting. He got his bearings even faster than last time, unfolding his arms and leaning forward against the table.

"As, what? A whipping boy?"

"Try the winner of the Money In The Bank ladder match."

Money In The Bank. That would explain why they'd need him in top shape. The simplest of matches could lead to serious injury, but this kind of match could end careers, and that was with people who hadn't taken a year off. To win the match, though, took twice as much, and a hell of a lot more care in the match itself. An accidental injury would be the end, and then everything would go to hell.

"Winner? That's a stretch. What, am I just gonna run in there as a late entrant, scale a ladder and grab the case?"

Stephanie almost laughed, but Vince was far from amused.

"You're going to enter the match, fair and square, and you're going to win the match, fair and square. How does that sound?"

"Too good to be true. What's the catch?"

"Who says there has to be a catch?"

"Don't answer that."

Stephanie cut him off before Tobias could answer, and it only took Vince a few minutes to work out exactly why. They'd screwed him over in the past, and he certainly wasn't going to trust them to play fair in what might be his return. Unsurprisingly, he didn't trust them as far as he could throw them, and therefore wasn't going to sign anything until he knew the full deal.

"What's the long term plan? I screw someone out of their title, then drop it a few weeks later, and go back to living in the midcard so you can fire me the second I get injured?"

"You seriously think that our creative team were given the option to do whatever the hell they wanted, and decided on some piece of crap storyline like that? Give them some credit, Cale."

"Credit where it's deserved, Mr. McMahon."

"Writers need muses, Mr. Cale."

They stared each other down, then Vince laughed, surprising everyone at the table, except Caleb, who was still absorbed in his computer, and whatever it was he was watching. Tobias couldn't argue with what he was being told, though. He'd glanced at RAW and Smackdown! infrequently throughout the last year, and there was a certain lack of spark in what he was seeing. It was the same old faces, the same old champions. In short, everything was stale and overused.

"That they do, Mr. McMahon. That they do. So what do the writers see in my future, if not a three week title run?"

"They didn't get far enough into the storyline to decide when you were going to win the title," Stephanie answered, after a quick glance at her father. "You were still holding the briefcase when I went back to see what they'd come up with the next day. At that point, they'd written eight weeks worth of storyline."

"And which Shadow Master was I, exactly? The one with powers to rival the Undertaker? Brute force with no technical substance?"

"They were writing the same Shadow Master you were when you left. Is that a problem?"

"It's better than what I expected, to be honest."

That earned him yet another smile. The tension that had been so evident in the room before had completely dissipated, to the point where things were almost warm. Of course, he knew better than to get too comfortable. That would be when the other shoe dropped, and they revealed exactly what they had planned for him, regardless of how much it humiliated him, or made him look incredibly idiotic.

"You're going to start training. We would send you to OVW, but too many people will recognise you, so we'd rather do it in private. That means we'll need a copy of your schedule, so that we can work around it."

"I haven't agreed to this yet."

"But you will. This is an offer that no one would refuse."

He picked up on something in her voice, something she'd been hoping to hide with the pace of her words. Desperation. Why would they be desperate, though? Sure, the writing team had hit a wall, and in their free write had come up with a storyline that involved his return to the ring, but there was no reason for them to really need it. They made enough money off their current rosters; he wasn't going to make that much of a difference. Unless...

"You already started hyping me, didn't you? Throwing in a line, here and there? How long has it been going on for?"

"The week before Cyber Sunday. Cena made a comment, about everything being black and white."

"The fans started chanting 'shades of grey'," Vince cut in, not exactly looking all that pleased with the outcome. "Drowned out the opposing Cena chants, too."

"Since then, we've thrown in several comments, here and there. Some, the fans pick up on. Some, they don't. Either way, they're pretty ready for you. If you choose to come back, that is."

He was about to answer when something else clicked into place. Everything that they were saying was layered, in true administrative fashion, and, whether intentional or not, they were still trying to keep things from him.

"Cena's on RAW. Why are you... RAW? You want me to be on RAW?"

Caleb had finally removed the headphones from his ears, just in time to hear the final comment, and his face immediately turned guilty. Was that the final secret? He'd covered most of the other potential trips that they might have laid in front of him, but that didn't mean that there weren't any others. Still, though, you didn't show that amount of guilt from something small.

"The writers..." Stephanie began, looking to the two other men for support before continuing, "wanted, ideally, to put everything back the way it was before you left. To do that, you needed to be on the same show as the former Ministry members. Melina's been there since she won the title, Mercury and Nitro went with her. London and Kendrick are there, Orton's even made the shift over. The only person from your old feuds who isn't there is Dave. You wouldn't really be able to seek revenge on the ones who injured you if they were on a separate brand, would you?"