Chapter 7 - We All Win

Seth and Dean wasted no time in putting Roman's plan into action. The very next day they went to Triple H and Stephanie and requested a tag team title shot against Cesaro and Tyson Kidd. Their request was granted, and the match was soon scheduled for the main event of Monday Night Raw.

"I should have joined the Authority ages ago," Dean remarked as they were warming up for the match. "Title shots, wrestling in the main event, tagging with my brother: this is great!"

Seth grinned at Dean's enthusiasm. "You know that you saying that is kinda ironic, seeing as we're actively working toward getting out of the Authority, right?"

Dean shrugged, unbothered. "Might as well enjoy it while we can. We're gonna be out again before you know it."

"Let's not get too excited," Seth warned. "We haven't even won the tag belts yet."

"Relax, man. We have it in the bag," Dean assured him.

Seth didn't relax - this step was too essential to their plan to be anything less than vigilant - but Dean turned out to be right just the same. The match was a hard fought, back-and-forth affair, but ultimately Dean and Seth walked out victorious.

"You know, man, I really think you should trying relaxing a little," Dean suggested again as he and Seth were driving back to the hotel after the show. "It looks like you're trying to strangle the steering wheel with your bare hands."

Seth loosened his grip on the wheel and glanced quickly at his friend. Dean was sitting with both Tag Team belts and his Intercontinental belt lying in his lap, grinning from ear to ear. "I guess I'm just stressed," Seth explained. "I really want everything to work out."

"Don't worry. Everything's gonna be fine. Phase one is already complete. Everything else is going to go smoothly. And if it doesn't, we'll figure something else out. You're not by yourself anymore."

Dean's words caused a wave of relief to flow through Seth's body. I'm not alone anymore he marveled. If things did go wrong, he had two people by his side to help pick up the pieces. Seth smiled and turned his attention to Dean. "How are you feeling? That dropkick Kidd hit you with off Cesaro's swing looked nasty."

"Eh, I'm alright. It's nothing a little time won't heal. To tell you the truth, I'm more worried about being crushed under all these belts."

"You could have put them in the trunk like I suggested, you know."

"The trunk!" Dean looked horrified. "I'm not letting these babies out of my sight. In fact, I plan on giving them a good buffing when we get back to the hotel. It is obvious that Cesaro and Kidd had no idea how to take care of a championship belt properly."

Seth chuckled a little but turned serious again as he asked, "Do you feel bad at all? For taking the belts from Cesaro and Kidd?"

"Why should I feel bad?" Dean asked, genuinely confused. "No one interfered. We didn't even cheat. We won fair and square."

"I know. But we only got the shot because we're members of the Authority."

Dean looked at Seth shrewdly. "We got the shot because we're awesome. Besides, I thought that was what you liked about being a part of the Authority: the opportunities it affords you?"

"I do," Seth agreed hesitantly. "But I guess I also want respect, you know? Right now everybody just sees me as this whiny cry baby who runs to mommy and daddy all the time to get my way."

"Well, I'm pretty sure that you earned Cesaro and Kidd's respect tonight. Really, you were fantastic," Dean offered reassuringly. "But it's a good thing we're working to get you out of the Authority. You might think you want to embrace your inner villain, but I think you're too good to be a bad guy much longer."

"What can I say? You bring out the best in me," Seth replied teasingly.

Dean's eyes glinted happily. "I know," he said. "It's a curse."


The next week at Raw, Seth and Dean watched the monitor nervously as Roman initiated phase two of their plan. As the show kicked off, Roman purposefully made his way to the ring amid the routine mix of cheers and boos that followed him from arena to arena. When he reached the ring, he demanded a microphone and began to speak. "I've had more than my fair share of people telling me I can't lately." The crowd jeered. "And from the sound of things, a lot of doubters are right here in the arena with me tonight." Roman paused, allowing a chorus of boos to wash over him. "I've decided to turn those doubters into believers. Now, I can't face Brock Lesnar. He's not here."

"He's never here," Seth muttered irritably, eyes glued to the screen.

"So I've decided to challenge the next best thing: the unpinned, unsubmitted Bulgarian Brute, Rusev. Rusev, I'm calling you out. Me and you tonight for the United States championship!"

Rusev's music began to play as Rusev and Lana made their way to the top of the ramp. "You stupid man," Lana said derisively when the music stopped playing. "Why do you think Rusev, the hero of the Russian Federation, would risk his United States championship tonight when he already has a title match with John Cena scheduled for WrestleMania?"

"It's very simple, sweetheart," Roman answered smoothly, "I'm willing to offer you something even better. I want to prove myself at Rusev's expense? Well, there's no reward without risk. You give me this title shot tonight, and if I lose, Rusev can take my place in the WWE World Heavyweight title match with Brock Lesnar."

An audible gasp arose from the crowd. In the back, Seth chewed on his thumb nail nervously while he and Dean watched Rusev and Lana confer. "This was a bad idea," Seth worried aloud. "Roman shouldn't have put his title shot on the line. We would've been alright without the U.S. title."

"He'll be fine," Dean replied confidently.

On the screen, Lana and Rusev broke from their huddle. "You're on," Lana said.

Dean pumped his fist in satisfaction. Seth felt like he was going to throw up.

It was hard for Seth to make it through the rest of the show. He wanted to be at Roman's side, offering moral support, but he couldn't. In public, they had to pretend to still hate each other for the sake of the plan. By the time Roman entered the ring for the main event, Seth was a complete wreck. He wondered how Roman was holding up under the pressure.

"What's the problem?" Dean asked. "You don't think he can do it, or what?"

"It's not that. I just hate for him to take such a big risk for me."

"It's for all of us, you goofball," Dean said, slapping Seth on the back. "All of our jobs are on the line here."

"But if I stay with the Authority, our jobs are safe."

"So it's okay for you to make sacrifices for us, but we can't do the same for you?" Dean asked, raising his eyebrows. "I don't think so, buddy. I know Roman hasn't said this to you directly yet, but he feels bad for not figuring things out earlier. For some reason, he thinks he's responsible for looking out for us or something." Dean rolled his eyes. "Anyway, this is his way of showing you how important you are to him."

"Being in the Authority has had its benefits, you know. It wasn't all sacrifice," Seth protested.

"And when Roman wins, he gets to be United States champion. It's not all sacrifice for him either," Dean said pointedly. They turned their attention back to the monitor. Rusev had joined Roman in the ring. The bell rang.

The match was brutal. Even Dean began to look worried as the match progressed.

"You think we should go out there?" Seth asked worriedly.

"And have Roman kill us for ruining the plan? I don't think so," Dean answered, but he looked unsure.

"If things keep going like this, Ro won't make it to WrestleMania," Seth muttered.

"Well, look at the bright side. If he goes down, he's definitely taking Rusev down with him," Dean countered.

Finally, the tide began to turn. Rusev tried to walk away from the match, declaring it not worth his effort, but Roman stopped him with a leap over the top rope. He tossed Rusev back into the ring and hit him with a Superman punch. Seth and Dean held their breath as Roman prepared for the spear. Spear to Rusev! One, two, no! Rusev kicked out. Seth groaned, but on the screen Roman got up, undeterred, and prepared for a second spear. This time Rusev failed to kick out. Dean and Seth hugged each other joyfully as Lilian Garcia announced Roman as the new United States champion. Phase two was a success.


Roman, Seth, and Dean had to wait all the way until the last Monday Night Raw before WrestleMania to enact the third phase of their plan. Seth was much less nervous this time around - not because this phase was less difficult; if anything it was more prone to failure than either of the two previous steps - but because this time he was an active participant. He always felt better when his fate was in his own hands.

When Brock Lesnar's music hit, Seth nudged Dean. "Game time," he said. Seth and Dean each grabbed a metal chair and hurried to the ring. They didn't want to give Brock enough time to find of a weapon of his own once he saw them coming. When they hit the ring, Dean immediately turned his attention to Paul Heyman. Paul may not be a wrestler, but he was wily and experienced and needed to be dispatched in order for their plan to be successful. Left alone with the Beast, Seth managed to get in several solid chair shots before Brock was able to disarm him. Brock was only able to get in a couple of punches, though, before Dean entered the fray. As Dean began to land several chair shots of his own, Roman's music rang out through the arena.

Seth did his best to look properly surprised. He tried to arrange his features into a good 'Oh no! My evil plan might be foiled!' look. As Roman descended through the crowd, Seth couldn't help but imagine what the announcers might be saying.

"There's Roman Reigns!" Michael Cole would yell.

"What does he think he's doing?" JBL would grouse. "He has no business being out here!"

"No business being out here?" Booker T would argue. "That's his WrestleMania opponent being destroyed in there!"

"But, what's he going to do?" they would all wonder.

The crowd was on its feet in anticipation. Roman entered the ring, sliding under the bottom rope. Seth and Dean halted their attack on Brock, whirling to face Roman, allowing Brock to rise to his feet. The brief stare down between the three former Shield members ended when Roman unexpectedly speared Lesnar. Brock tried valiantly to get up, only to be curb stomped back to the canvas by Seth. Then Roman signaled for the triple powerbomb, and the crowd erupted. Roman, Dean, and Seth lifted a still struggling Brock Lesnar and powerbombed him to the mat. Unsatisfied, Roman called for a second triple powerbomb, then a third. Finally, the Beast lay motionless.

Seth retrieved his briefcase from the corner of the ring where he had dropped it when the attack began. "I'm cashing it in," he announced urgently as he shoved it toward the timekeeper. A referee quickly ran to the ring, and one, two, three, the bell rang and he was being announced as the new WWE World Heavyweight champion. Dean jumped into the ring and gave him a huge hug in celebration. The referee handed him the belt which he took dazedly. He felt like he was in a dream. The noise in the arena was ear-splitting. The crowd wasn't sure if they were happy about what just happened, but they were overjoyed at being able to witness it.

As he exited the ring, Seth noticed Paul Heyman beginning to stir. Paul looked around in horror as Roman entered the ring, microphone in hand. "Paul," Roman stated, "I told you time and time again that I don't like people telling me I can't. I tried to warn you, but you just wouldn't listen. You kept on and on, telling me again and again that I can't beat Brock Lesnar, that I can't beat the Beast. I know that I can, but that is beside the point now. You miscalculated, Paul. You went and pissed me off. So even though I can beat Brock Lesnar, I won't. I won't, because your client is no longer WWE World Heavyweight champion. You and Brock can just sit this WrestleMania out, because I will be facing the new WWE World Heavyweight champion and sell-out extraordinaire, Seth Rollins."

At the mention of his name, Seth held the title high, trying to look smug and arrogant though he actually felt quite disoriented. Dean put his arm around Seth's shoulders and pointed at the belt, happily mouthing off at Roman.

"But Seth," Roman continued, "if we're going to do this thing, we should do it right. I think we should make this a little family reunion. So what do you say? Me, you, and Dean. Triple threat for the WWE World Heavyweight title at the main event of WrestleMania." Roman pointed at the WrestleMania sign as the crowd exploded in approval. "I think even mommy and daddy in the back would agree that that would be 'best for business.' But make no mistake, Seth, your reign as champion is already on borrowed time. I'm going to walk out of WrestleMania as WWE World Heavyweight champion. Believe that." And he dropped the microphone.

Phase three complete.


WrestleMania was scheduled to begin in exactly one and a half hours, and Seth was pacing restlessly back and forth in the out-of-the-way area near the loading docks that they had chosen to wait in to meet Roman.

"This'll work, right?" he asked, nominally to Dean but mostly to himself. "I mean, it has to work. They would have to be idiots to disagree. It will definitely work. Right?"

Dean leaned against a wall, watching Seth pace. And people think I'm twitchy, he thought. Dean had long since given up trying to offer his friend reassurances. It was useless. He pushed off the wall as he saw Roman approaching. "I guess we're about to find out," he said.

Roman, Dean, and Seth marched to the temporary office Triple H and Stephanie had set up at Levi's Stadium, the home of this year's WrestleMania, and barged in without knocking. Stephanie looked up in surprise when Roman slapped a thick stack of papers down on her desk. "We have some revisions to our contracts that we need you to sign," he told her bluntly.

Stephanie looked at the papers disdainfully as Hunter walked up behind her and put his hand on her shoulder. "I don't know who you think you are," she said, "but we have the biggest show of the year to put on in a little over an hour. Whatever this is about, it will have to wait."

"It can't wait," Seth said as he slouched down casually in the chair in front of her desk. To his left, Dean followed suit, and Roman pulled a chair from the corner and joined him on his right.

"What do you think you're doing?" Stephanie sneered at Seth. "Do you know what I could do to you? To you career? To your brothers' careers?"

"We know exactly what you can do," Roman stated calmly, "hence the need for revised contracts. These new contracts state that we cannot be fired for any reason, that we are protected from unfair retaliatory practices, and that any disagreements that arise between us are to be settled by an unaffiliated, third-party mediator. They also state that we do not have to appear on WWE programming while such disputes are being mediated, but that we will be paid twice our normal rate during mediation."

Stephanie sputtered in disbelief. "You have to be crazy. There is no way we are signing this!"

"Oh, we think you will," Dean sing-songed, smiling evilly.

"If you fail to meet our demands," Roman continued, still perfectly calm, "we are prepared to walk out right now and not return until our demands have been met."

"What!" Stephanie shrieked, looking at Hunter in consternation. "You can't do that. We will sue you for breach of contract! We will sue you for every penny you own!"

"You can do that," Seth said, matching Roman's cool tone, "but that's not going to help you at WrestleMania tonight when you are left without a main event. And I don't think it is going to look so good to the fans, not to mention the stockholders, when your Intercontinental champion, your United States champion, your Tag Team champions, and your WWE World Heavyweight champion all decide to walk out right before your biggest show of the year."

"So you're planning on holding our championship belts hostage, are you?" Hunter asked icily.

"Yep," Dean answered. "Every single one."

"It's kind of like you've been holding Seth hostage these past ten months," Roman added.

"Hostage?" Stephanie screeched. "I don't know what kind of lies he's been feeding you, but he wanted to join the Authority. He liked it. You liked it!" she screamed, pointing at Seth.

"Are you going to sign the contracts or not?" Roman asked coldly, ignoring Stephanie's shrieking.

"No! No, we're not going to sign your contracts," Stephanie answered shrilly.

"Okay, then," Roman answered, irritatingly casual. "I guess we'll be going then. Good luck tonight." He rose from his seat and started to head for the door. Seth and Dean quickly followed his lead.

"Wait," Hunter called. "We'll sign the contracts."

"What?!" Stephanie wailed.

"They won," Hunter replied frankly. "You have to know when you're beat, and we're beat. We can't let them walk out on WrestleMania with every title this company has in their possession. They know that, and we know that. They outsmarted us. They won. Get Barry on the phone."

"Barry?" Dean asked as he sat back down.

"Barry is our in-house lawyer. He will review the new contracts before we sign them," Hunter explained wearily.

"He better be quick," Seth noted. "WrestleMania begins in less than an hour."

"Don't worry," Hunter replied resignedly. "All of your demands will be met."

Dean, Seth, and Roman looked at each other in triumph. Their plan had been a success. They had won.


Sierra. Hotel. India. Echo. Lima. Delta. Shield.

The crowd erupted as the once familiar theme song for the Shield reverberated through the arena once again. Seth made his way down through the crowd, the WWE World Heavyweight Championship belt slung proudly over one shoulder and the Tag Team Championship belt hanging across the other. Across the arena, he could see Dean and Roman descending toward the ring, championship gold glinting from their shoulders as well.

As he entered the ring, Seth smiled broadly at Dean and Roman, his opponents for tonight but his brothers for life. Seth knew as he handed his belt to the official, that there was a good chance that he would not walk out of WrestleMania as WWE World Heavyweight champion. But he didn't care. He had successfully cashed in his briefcase. He had outsmarted the Authority. He had reunited with his brothers. It simply didn't matter whether he won or lost the match. No matter whose hand was raised in victory at the end of the night, Seth was sure of one thing: He had already won.

The end.


Thanks for reading, everybody! Enjoy WrestleMania!