Chapter 10: Not Worth It
It happened.
Lesnar turned in the sample they needed to conduct the drug test.
The office tested Lesnar's urine... More precisely, they tested Tyler Breeze's urine, and made sure it was clean, and there hasn't been a use of steroids.
And it was clean, of course, for Tyler Breeze hadn't been using steroids.
Though, to the office, it looked like Lesnar was the clean one.
Because Lesnar's apparently clean, he is allowed to compete in the Hell in a Cell match tonight.
He plans on giving Strowman, Styles and Cass hell... And roughing Breeze up another good time, just to really hammer in how much trouble he'll be in if he slips up. Perhaps he'll give the others a good kick in the nuts, just to foreshadow that there's something coming for them... Something worse than they expect.
At the start of the event, Ambrose, Shane McMahon, Fandango, and Lesnar's four victims wait backstage for their entrance. The three of them are pumped up, ready for a good match tonight; the anxiety gets their hearts racing so they're ready to fight. With no idea what's going on in the background of it all, they have no fear of the forthcoming fight.
Strowman, Styles, Cass and Breeze are feeling anxiety too. However, it's not that excited adrenaline the others are getting. They're really anxious. Scared, even. Every so often, they look around backstage, seeing as one of their opponents is missing: Lesnar. Where the hell is he? Probably hiding someone... He could totally jump the hell out of nowhere and kill them if he wanted to. He probably does want to... After finding out his secret, there's no doubt he wants them dead to keep it from spreading throughout the entire WWE Universe.
The four of them stand extremely still, except for the occasional scan of the eyes, or maybe bracing themself while they look over their shoulder to make sure Lesnar really isn't there. Styles, Strowman and Cass also notice that Tyler Breeze has a section of blonde locks styled to cover his left eye... They don't question it, but they have a feeling he ran into Lesnar, just as they ran into Heyman.
Dammit, if there was a way out of it, they'd take it immediately.
But they hear JoJo Offerman's announcement of the event, and they've no choice to go ahead: "Ladies and gentleman, the following contest is a Hell in a Cell match for the chance at the Universal Championship!"
Each superstar walks down the ramp and into the steel cage, where they'll undeniably meet their death if they come into contact with Lesnar. Oblivious, Fandango, Ambrose and McMahon are loose and ready to go, like it's any other match with any other superstars. Everyone else, however, is totally stiff... The cheering of the surrounding WWE Universe sounds like the horrid screaming of prisoners... And the steel cage is their personal trap in Hell. Breeze even retreats to the corner of the cage, crossing his arms tight in front of his chest and shivering.
It feels like a totally different planet.
The arena nearly transforms to Hell when they hear Lesnar beginning to enter... Next Big Thing blares over the speakers, and everything falls apart right in front of them. In front of the entire WWE Universe, who the superstars love, and would never want to disappoint.
But in this moment, a bit of a disappointing match seems like the better option than having their skulls bashed to bits by Lesnar.
The second Breeze sees the mere shadow of Lesnar beginning to come onto the stage, he loses it. He begins to hyperventilate, breaking down in a panic attack as he begins to cry, his bodily quaking becoming ten times worse than it was earlier.
Everyone looks towards Breeze to see what's the matter. McMahon, Fandango and Ambrose are worried, completely unsure by what's suddenly made him start panicking this uncharacteristically.
"Hey, Ty-Ty, what's the matter?" Fandango asks softly, knowing this is probably connected to what was bothering him the other day at practice. "Everything okay dude? Is this about the other day?"
Ambrose takes a step towards him. "Everything's alright, man," he reassures him. "It's just like any other match. Are you hurt or something?"
The pressure makes Breeze cry out helplessly, beginning to bawl in fear. "I can't do it!" he cries out. "I can't make myself do this, I'll get killed!"
No other questions asked, he pushes past Fandango and Ambrose, and bolts out of the ring. But instead of running to go backstage to the dressing rooms, he makes a break for the Emergency Exit.
"Hey!" McMahon tries calls after him. "Hey, it's okay! You can tell us if something's bothering you, man. What do you mean 'you'll get killed?'"
But he doesn't get an answer from Breeze... He's already far out of earshot.
Even Lesnar notices something off about the scene, pausing in confusion in the middle of the ramp.
Oddly enough, Strowman, Styles and Cass break into a panic attack of their own. Tears run down Strowman's face... Cass begins hyperventilating and pulling his hair out of its ponytail, a complete expression of terror replacing his stone-faced one. Styles becomes choked up, taking off his gloves and desperately clawing at his neck, leaving long, pink marks behind.
"He's right," Strowman tells them, voice strained and choked out. "It's not worth it. Not worth getting killed..."
McMahon, confused, shakes his head, just plain concerned now. "What does that mean, guys?" he asks. "Is there something going on? I can tell my father about it if there's something dangerous."
Cass squeezes his eyes shut, swallowing air and struggling to keep his own tears in. "We can't!" he cries. "We can't... You'll die too. Just being near us could get you killed."
Styles lets out a sob, burying his fingers in his hair and beginning to cry just as hard as Breeze had been. "We gotta go," he sobs. "We can't do it... We just can't."
With that, the three of them run out of the ring too, and towards the same exit that Breeze left out of. And not one of them looks back.
Fandango knits his eyebrows. "You guys too?" he questions. "What is going on here?"
And just like that, the music shuts off, and the whole audience begins to murmur with confusion. Even the announcers seem to be baffled by everyone just up and walking out like that.
"What? Where are they going?" Corey Graves asks the others. "Is this supposed to be happening?"
"I didn't hear about any sort of strike," Byron Saxton tries to lighten things up. "Maybe we were left out?"
Reneé Young, too confused to try to keep it all in good spirits, shakes her head, staring at the screen. "No. No, they wouldn't just run off like that," she tells her coworkers more than she explains to the audience. Sitting up, she points in the direction of the screen. "Look. Shane McMahon, Dean Ambrose, and Fandango have no idea what's wrong. This isn't staged."
Finally, Saxton notices what's going on, and gives up the act. "You're right," he says. "Something's actually wrong here."