Chapter 1:
Extreme Rules
Sponsored by Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows - thanks in large part to the supporting role of Sheamus as Rocksteady in the film - the 2016 edition of Extreme Rules was airing live from the Prudential Centre in Newark, New Jersey. It was a crowd of close to sixteen thousand people, all of them ready for the self-proclaimed "night of the year where the WWE goes extreme." The card was stacked from top to bottom, featuring Charlotte Flair and Natalya in a submission match for the Women's Championship, Dean Ambrose and Chris Jericho in the first-ever Asylum match, and in the main event, Roman Reigns and AJ Styles were set to collide for the WWE Championship.
Once again, Jory found herself standing alone in the interview area, watching the main event on the monitor, her arms crossed over her chest and her eyes narrowed. Two weeks ago she returned after fracturing her collarbone training with Sonya Deville. It had sidelined her for nine months; the fracture had been so bad that every time she moved she re-broke her collarbone. With her first match back on WWE TV, she found herself on the pre-show against Dana Brooke with no advertisement, no fanfare, no anything. She had won, but it was clear she was going to remain as frustrated and disillusioned with her career as she was before she got hurt. It had only been two weeks before her injury that she had been denied her request for a release; it was made clear that she was under contract until they grew tired of her. She had no idea how long that was going to take; the only thing she could do was keep her head down and keep getting shoved around.
Despite her mean girl persona, Jory liked Dana. She respected Dana's tenacity, her offense, her look, and her gymnastic ability. She saw a bit of herself in Dana, who had been thrown into the fire by being yanked out of NXT too soon. Dana was one of the first girls to unfreeze her following her ejection from The Authority, though neither of them would consider the other a friend. Jory winced, thinking about the time she spent trying to be everything that Hunter and Stephanie wanted. She was begrudgingly allowed into the locker room, but she had found her bag sabotaged a time or two. Even after a year and a half removed, Jory still found herself on the outside looking in. It appeared nothing was going to change.
Pursing her lips into a narrow line, Jory shook the dark memories of her past - and kind of present - out of her head and focused on the monitor. We picked up right where we left off, didn't we? Getting hurt fixed nothing. You're still an outcast. Nobody likes you. Nobody trusts you. Why should they? Say goodbye to the main shows, honey - they're never going to let you near anything important ever again. You'd be better off in Ring of Honor or Impact. That's if they don't drive your name down so low that you won't be worth anything when they finally pull the...
"Hey, girly! Great match out there tonight!"
Turning her head, Jory wasn't surprised to see Renee take her place beside her, dressed in a loose-fitting black and gold spotted top, her short blonde hair in beach waves around her face. Jory offered her a tight, bemused smile. "Thanks."
Renee examined Jory from head to toe. She had already showered and cleaned up, dressed in black pants with silver buckles and her favorite Blackcraft hoodie that was beginning to show signs of wear and tear. It was at least three sizes too big for her petite frame, hanging off her almost comically. Renee always joked that Jory looked like a child inside of it. Her hair, dyed back to its natural shade of mocha brown, was pulled back into a high and messy ponytail. Renee found herself thinking about the week after she was thrown out of The Authority, at all the stares that came with Jory dyeing her hair back to its natural color. Management had a conniption because Jory hadn't gotten anyone to sign off on it. She didn't think they would have; not for Jory. To say things were tense on the two sides would have been the understatement of the century. In the end, Jory won out - they weren't going to fire her.
Renee's eyes followed Jory's to the monitor. "Have you had a chance to meet AJ yet?"
"In passing. He seems nice enough." She sighed.
"Are you okay, Jordana?"
"I'm fine." Her tone was clipped and curt and gave Renee the impression that things were not fine. She knew better than to ask any follow-up questions. She flashed Jory a reassuring smile and crossed her arms over her chest, the two standing in front of the monitor in twin positions. The interviewer was aware that she was the only real friend Jory had backstage, that forgiveness was a very long and hard process between the women's locker room and the former Princess of the Authority.
"Things getting any better with the girls?"
"A bit, I guess. At this point, I've kind of lost hope that it will ever be normal." Renee placed a reassuring hand on Jory's shoulder. Since leaving The Authority, it had been a lonely life for Jory. Inside the Authority she had been the proverbial bird in a gilded cage; outside of it, with no friends or allies, she did everything alone. In all of it, she had never spoken a word of complaint to Renee, instead opting to keep her head down and push through it. Some of the girls were dragging out their punishment. Renee knew that some of the girls backstage would have killed for the profile being in The Authority would have brought them. Even though Nikki Bella had temporarily replaced Jory - a neck injury brought her down only months later - she had been carrying a torch and a pitchfork for Jory, calling for her head in the name of the twin sister she herself had betrayed. "I mean, it's fine. It is what it is. There's a small handful who are starting to think I'm not the devil incarnate, so I guess there's that." Renee laughed.
"I've never thought that about you," Renee assured her. Jory smiled. "Who did you come with tonight?"
"I came with Bayley."
"You should tell her you're riding back with Dean and me tonight." Jory shot her a look.
"I don't know. You two probably want some alone time after that Asylum match..." Jory didn't know Dean Ambrose very well, but her first impression was that he was a little on the strange side, but not enough to be labeled completely eccentric. She thought he was aloof, quiet, and maybe a little stuck up. The way he looked at her with those intense blue eyes made her feel like he didn't trust her. She was sure that her time in The Authority had caused him to write her off in the same way he had written off his former Shield mate Seth Rollins. It seemed like a good idea at the time, Jory, but it left your entire world in ashes, she thought. She had done some vile things during her time with them. She had no idea how to even begin atoning for it. But she was trying.
"Nonsense. He's fine with it."
"Is he? I don't think he likes me very much."
"Oh, don't worry about it - he's like that with everyone." Jory shot a skeptical look at Renee. "He is! Roman will tell you the same thing. Come on, Jory - why not ride with us to the next town?"
"Because I'm with Bayley."
"Are you scared to rearrange with her? I'll do it." She pulled her phone out of the waistband of her pants and shot a message to Bayley. Jory felt a twinge of frustration, but she kept herself in check. "I'm not taking no for an answer tonight. I even told Bayley it's my idea. See?" Renee held the phone up so Jory could see the screen. Jory shook her head.
"You are impossible."
"Dean says the same thing. He got used to it. You will, too."
"Great. I guess that's that, then. I'm going to get a coffee. Did you want one before you have to report for the after show?" she asked. Renee shook her head. Jory left the interview area, holding in her frustrated sigh until she was out of Renee's earshot. Her friendship with Renee was a strange bedfellows situation; the two women were polar opposites, but for some undefinable reason they seemed to click. Jory was still trying to figure it out.
Turning the corner, she narrowly avoided getting knocked over. "Hey! Whoa..." she trailed off. Turning, she caught a brief glimpse of black and blonde hair running towards the black curtain that led out into the crowd. Her eyes narrowed at the figure, but he disappeared from her view quickly. Fascinated, her quest for coffee was abandoned. Well, I don't think I want to miss this, she thought to herself. She made a beeline back to the interview area, where Renee was still standing.
"That was fast," she commented. Her eyes flickered down to Jory's empty hands. "Where's your coffee?"
"Never mind the coffee - I think I almost got mowed down by Seth Rollins."
"What? Shut the front door." Their discussion was cut short by the sound of the bell ringing on the monitor. Roman Reigns had defeated AJ Styles. "Are you sure?"
"I didn't see his face, but I can't think of anyone else with the black and blond hair." They kept their gazes on the monitor. Roman was standing in the middle of the ring, holding the title high over his head.
Despite being in The Authority at roughly the same time, Jory had never exchanged a word with Seth. If people thought she had received the rock star treatment from management, it was nothing compared to what Seth received as the Golden Boy. Seth liked to call himself the architect of The Shield, and he liked to take credit for the faction's success. At one time they had been in The Authority pocket, and when they left, Hunter vowed to get them in line. It was just before she had made her debut; Hunter had recruited his old stablemates Dave Batista and Randy Orton to reform three-quarters of Evolution to take them out. When it failed, Hunter somehow used Seth to blow up The Shield from within. If people thought she got everything in The Authority, it was nothing compared to the resources Hunter threw behind Seth, even giving the man his own security team. He didn't interact with anyone besides Hunter, Stephanie, Jamie, and Joey. Everyone else was beneath him.
While the last two years of her life had been awful, 2015 had undeniably been the year of Seth Rollins. As WWE Champion he defeated every handpicked opponent put in front of him. He got to appear on The Daily Show and received preferential treatment everywhere he went. Everything came up roses for Seth until he blew out his knee overseas against Kane. And just like that, he was gone, banished to a life of surgery, scopes, rehab, and physical therapy. Like clockwork, she watched as J&J Security disappeared and Randy Orton seamlessly took Seth's spot as the Face of the Company. She wasn't at all surprised by the development, or even by the choice; Randy was Hunter's go to. At one point, Hunter had tried to set the two of them up, thinking they could take over the way he and Stephanie had in the early 2000's. It was the one time Jory put her foot down with Hunter - she found him repulsive.
While she wondered if Seth would be insulted to come back and find himself replaced, Seth slid into the ring and attacked Roman from behind. The crowd roared in approval. Jory watched, stunned, as Seth set Roman up for a Pedigree. Renee and Jory exchanged bewildered stares at the new development. "Well, that's unexpected," Renee mused. They both turned back to the screen to see Seth holding the WWE Championship over his head, standing over Roman's prone body while AJ still stirred on the canvas.
"That's not," Jory pointed out.
"You're right about that. I gotta get out to the table. I'll see you in a couple hours."
"I'll meet you in the parking lot." It was Renee's turn to leave Jory alone at the interview area. She studied the screen, watching Seth closely. She didn't understand what was happening, what his motives were, but she was sure all of the answers would be found on Raw in twenty-four hours.
It was just after midnight when Jory left the building. She was surprised to see Bayley, dressed in blue jeans and an "I'm a Hugger" T-shirt, her hair down around her face and her bag hanging over her shoulder. Renee stood with her, taking selfies with fans. Jory approached. There were some boos and some catcalls. The girls turned to her, Renee flashing her a giant smile.
"What's going on?" Jory asked.
"Jory, you fucking suck, bitch!"
"Watch your mouth - there are kids like right there," Bayley chastised, cocking her head. The three of them walked away from the fans behind the barricade.
"Change of plans," Renee told her. Jory wondered why nobody bothered to message her about it. "It's the three of us tonight. Roman and Dean need some guy time. You know how it is."
"They're off to drink beer and bitch about Seth." Renee tapped her nose twice with her index finger and the three of them broke into a fit of giggles. "I'm not at all surprised about that." Bayley hit the FOB on her key-chain and Renee opened the hatchback to put her luggage inside. Jory followed behind. Renee looked at the padlock on Jory's bag and shook her head. Jory didn't see it. Bayley put her bag in the car and shut the door. She handed the keys to Jory, who rounded the hood of the car to the driver's side.
"So, on a scale of one to ten, how mad is Dean?" Bayley asked, buckling her seatbelt in the passenger's side.
"About Seth? Oh, God, twenty." Renee shook her head. "I love him to death, but wow, can the man hold a grudge."
"Are you mad at Seth?" Jory asked, backing out of the parking space. Traveling with Bayley, the two women learned they had similar musical tastes. Jory genuinely liked Bayley, who was sweet and accommodating and didn't seem to judge her at all for the things she had done.
"He did a really shitty thing, but I get it, I guess. It doesn't make it right, but I understand." They came to a stop, waiting for security to wave them through. Fans were yelling and shouting at the car. Jory could hear some verbal abuse directed at her, but she kept her window up and chose not to acknowledge it. "I've known Seth a long time. I know that he's been Mr. Egotistical...well, he's always been that way...but I think there's still some good in there." They slowly drove through, waved on by one of the security guards, a large man with white hair. "In all your time with The Authority, you really didn't talk to him?"
"No. I found him really intimidating, especially after Jamie and Joey joined him. Hunter and Stephanie were always on me about staying focused, and after that whole thing with his ex...they were really adamant that I stayed away from him. They said they didn't need another scandal."
"I've always wondered what Hunter offered that was so good that Seth was willing to turn his back on the guys," Bayley jumped in. She shook her head.
"I know people think that Dean is this tough, crazy guy, but he's surprisingly sensitive. He takes things so personally. Seth really hurt him, doing the things he did. I haven't heard the end of it since the night Seth swung the chair."
"I don't doubt that," Jory murmured. She fell quiet, thinking about her own path of destruction that she had paved during her stint as Hunter and Stephanie's hired female hand. Bayley and Renee talked about something Sasha Banks had said on the road the week before, but Jory drove in silence, thinking about Seth. She found that she felt sorry for him. She knew that his days in The Authority were numbered the second his knee gave out, and it seemed like he was the only one who had yet to figure it out.
