Disclaimer: I do NOT own the following wrestlers, or any of the events that actually happened on camera, or anything remotely recognizable.
I respect the actual beliefs and sexualities of the following wrestlers.
Thanks for the reviews, all. They always put a smile on my face. This one's for you, Taker's Dark Lover.
Warnings: Violence, angst, and some sexual content.
When we last left off, the dreamworld's gone, but, unfortunately, so is Jeff. What'll happen next?
Chapter Fourteen: Desires and Memories
Mark woke up from the dreamworld after Matt destroyed it. He saw Raven standing over him and he immediately pushed Raven out of his way. "Let me guess, things didn't go your way," Raven said.
"I'm warning you, you little asshole," Mark said. He disappeared and Raven shook his head. Of course they didn't. You know, maybe if Mark just killed Adam and Christian personally, maybe it'd be easier to get to Matt. Why did he spare Adam on the roof anyway? The old one was losing his touch.
He heard a giggle, and he turned around. A blond female demon was now in the room with him, crossing her arms. "You would think the Demon Master could handle a single child."
"It wasn't one," Raven said, "A Nightstalker and a Tulpa were in there as well."
"But I'm sure you could've done it, no problem." She moved away from the wall and smiled cruelly. "You wouldn't have let them stop you from dragging the poor child home."
"Watch how you talk about your Master," Raven snapped, although he was guilty of similar thoughts as well. She laughed and said, "Well, we're all a little guilty of treasonous thoughts at times."
She walked over and said, "We don't need him anymore, not now that this Matthew child has shown up. He's a bungler, and we could start a new world order..."
"Leave before you betray yourself," Raven said, turning around. He would not be linked with someone wanting to dethrone Mark.
"But you don't want me to leave." Raven's eyes widened, the voice no longer the woman's. No, it was a voice he knew all to well. He swung around and there stood Robert Szatowski, looking like his usual golden boy, head of the class self. "You never wanted me to leave. Remember?" Soon, there was barely an inch between him and Rob. Raven could feel Rob's breath on his skin, and he nearly crumbled. He and Rob had never been this close... well, except after he found out the tattoo wouldn't stick.
"Remember when the tattoo bubbled? I ran after you first, didn't I? And I tried to get you to come back with me."
"You knew what the bubbled mark meant," Raven said, "You knew everything, even then. You knew I was a demon, but you still tried to save me..."
"What did you say, Scott?" Rob asked, his voice still as seductive to Raven as ever, "What did you want me to do? What was the only way you'd agree to return with me to the other Originals?"
"If you submitted to me..."
Rob dropped to his knees and looked up at him. "I'm here to do just that." He kissed Raven's pants-covered erection and then began unbuttoning his jeans. Then, Raven grabbed Rob by the hair and pulled him up. Suddenly, Rob was gone and the girl was back.
"How do you know about Rob and me?" he asked angrily, "Who are you?"
She winked. "I know all about your little secret crush on Rob Szatowski, Scott Levy. I know everything about that."
"Who are you?"
"Someone whose tired of taking orders from a buffoon." She smiled. "And I think you are, too."
Raven grabbed her by the throat and lifted her. "I swear, you answer me..."
"I'm Maryse," she said, "And I'm the Lust Demon. And the one who will show Mark that he has something to fear." She hit Raven's arm, making him drop her, and she stood up. "Looks like the Master's on a temper tantrum. His reign is almost over, Raven. I just wonder whose side will you be on when he's finally on the ropes." She winked, and her eyes briefly became Rob's, making the simple gesture all the more powerful. "It's up to you, Raven."
And she disappeared, leaving the Nightmare Demon stunned.
********
"Stupid! Can't even talk to me?" Another fist hit Evan's face, and he fell to the floor. The kid was only eight and, after an accident when he was three, he was left completely mute. Something kids have made fun of for as long as he could remember.
"He can't even scream," the bully's friend chuckled.
The bully grabbed Evan by the collar and lifted him up. "Come on, shit stain. Say your name and we'll let you go."
A tear came down Evan's eye. He opened his mouth and his lips formed his name, but no sounds came. "What was that?" he asked. Evan tried again, but, of course, he remained mute. His head was bounced against the concrete and they laughed.
"Evan Bourne," the bully said, "Is that so hard to say? Eh-van Bourne. Three simple syllables. Say it."
I can't! Evan mouthed. Please.
The bully's friend laughed. "Baby Bourne wants us to stop."
"Yeah, see, he tried to say please." The bully smirked. "Maybe if we heard a little bit of that, just maybe we'd let you go. So, come on. Beg. Let us here you."
Evan got up and immediately tried to run, but the bully's friend grabbed him and pulled him back. He was punched in the face, and, then, he heard a scream. "You leave him alone!"
The bullies ran, and then Evan felt a pair of warm arms around him. His mother's. "It's okay baby," she said, "I'm here for you."
He put his arms around her. He remembered trying to find out why he couldn't talk, laugh, scream, or make any sounds like other kids, and each time, his mother tried her best to make him understand. But he never could. Why should those bullies get to speak, but he couldn't? It wasn't fair. It just wasn't fair.
"Come on," Mrs. Bourne said, grabbing Evan's hand, "Let's go home." He held on tightly and let her walk him home. No one understood him. No one but his mother. Mrs. Bourne was an angel to her son; she was infinitely patient and kind.
When they got home, Evan watched as he mother prepared a pot roast for dinner. "Hey," she said, "Evvy darling, how about you and I make some cookies?"
Evan nodded eagerly, and she smiled. "Choose the kind."
Evan went to the pantry and pulled out the batter of peanut butter chocolate chip cookies; his absolute favorite. He held them out to his mother and smiled his all-too innocent smile. "Of course, love."
They began rolling the dough into cookie shapes, and his mother kissed him on the forehead. Evan gave her a small peck on the lips, and she braced herself- this is what made her child different from everyone else.
She saw a picture of Evan standing in the school garden, pointing at the flowers excitedly. She loved flowers, and she never got any, not since her husband died in the same accident that left Evan mute. She smiled and ruffled his hair. "Only you would be so thoughtful."
They put the cookies in the oven, and Mrs. Bourne took out the pot roast. "It needs some time to cool, so why don't you go wash your hands and get ready?" Evan smiled and ran to the bathroom. As he washed his hands, he thought about how everything would be alright... so long as he had his mother.
Just then, he heard his mother whisper to him urgently. "Evan, stay in there. Stay in there until I come to get you, okay? Just... stay in there."
Mama? Evan heard his mother's footsteps moving away from the door, and he wasn't sure what was going on. Then, he heard a crash. He sat on the toliet and hugged his knees to his chest. He hoped she was okay.
He was getting too impatient to continue waiting. He needed to know what was going on. And he needed to know now.
He opened the door a peep and, suddenly, the door slammed open, Standing above him was a man with angry gray eyes, large teeth, and way too much hair. He looked past him and there, on the couch, and on the floor, and on the coffee table, and in the man's mouth, was his mother. Ripped to pieces.
His eyes widened in fear and, if he could scream, he would have let out a blood curling shriek to put the rest to shame. "Can't scream, kiddie?" the man asked, "That's too bad. I always likes it when they scream."
Running on instinct, Evan ran over past the evil creature to the couch. There was his mother's head, eyes glassy, and blood and tendrils hanging out of her neck. Evan bit his lip and gave into the dark inspiration. He bent down and kissed his mother's lips, absorbing her final memory... the memory of being ripped apart.
The demon went over and bent down so he was eye level with Evan. "Ooh, sick. You're kissing a decapitated head... weirdo."
Evan spun around angrily and pushed his lips into the monster's. His eyes widened, and he was filled with the memories of being ripped apart by himself over and over again. He felt his life fade disgustingly over and over again. He tried to pull away, but Evan held on. He continued until the demon died so many times mentally that he actually died.
Then, his memories went into Evan. So many memories of him ripping apart people like he did his mother. It was only right, this demon feeling the same pain he bestowed on so many. Evan's hair grew as he did, and he grew taller. He looked at the window, and the person reflected at him was at least twelve, not just eight.
He touched his face, surprised. His hair was long like he never cut it in the four years he suddenly grew, and his nails were also long. The clothes were too tight now. Something happened to him... and he was able to avenge his mother. He smiled and laughed... and then covered his mouth. He laughed.
He jumped happily. He was never able to make a sound before, and he laughed. Somehow, he was able to laugh. He then caught sight of his mother and frowned. He wished she was here to see it. And he felt guilty that he was so happy for himself while his mother lie in pieces.
But not too guilty to stop celebrating his newfound voice.
The door opened, and Evan turned around. Two men stood at the door. "Dear God, we're too late!" One cried.
The other looked around. "What the hell happened here... holy shit, Tom, the demon's dead!"
The man, apparently Tom, walked inside. "Holy crap." He walked inside and then said, "Hey, kid? Are you okay?"
Evan nodded. The man at the door crossed his arms. "This stinks, Tommy. How is the demon dead... and how is the boy alive? Something's going on here!"
"What are you trying to suggest, Jim? Look at him!" Tom said, "He's frightened. He must be the woman's son." He walked over and hugged Evan tightly. "Can you tell me your name?" he said kindly.
Evan didn't like Jim and all his accusations, but he liked Tom immensely. He wrapped his arms around his neck and the completely unaware memory demon said his first word ever. "Evan."
*************
Matt rolled around in his bed, trying to exhaust himself. But no matter what he did, he never went to sleep. It just never came. He closed his eyes and snuggled up in his blanket, trying to fall into dreamland. It didn't work.
"You're one strange fellow." Matt opened his eyes and saw Adam crossing his arms. Adam wasn't willing to try to go back to sleep after the whole fiasco, but Matt was. Matt wanted to see if he could find Jeff again. And Christian, who got no sleep at all that night, told them he had to sleep or he'd die. "You've been spending the past few days trying not to sleep, and now here you are, trying to sleep."
"You should understand better than anyone," Matt said, sitting up, "You're an older brother too. What if this was the only connection you had with Christian?"
Adam sat down next to Matt and said, "Christian's still alive, Matt. And Jeff's been dead for about a year now. I assure you, you can't keep trying to get back in touch with Jeff. He wasn't even the real Jeff."
"I don't care," Matt said, "He's my brother. He helped me everytime things got hard. I need him."
"Always keep in mind that, when you chase shadows, you could lose what's real." Adam said.
Matt looked down, upset. "That's what Vickie said."
"Don't you see? If you keep trying to go after your brother's ghost, you'll lose yourself. You'll get more and more upset everytime it doesn't work. And you're after something you created," Adam said.
"I wish you weren't right," Matt said solemnly. Adam put his arm around Matt and held him close.
"Don't worry," Adam said, "Everything will be alright. Jeff... Jeff would want you to go on. And we do have to get back into action soon."
"Every time I think I'm over it, it turns out that I'm still stuck in that night..."
"I can't imagine seeing Christian... or you... dying in front of me," Adam said, "I don't think I would be able to take it. You're a better man than me." Adam tugged Matt up. "Come on. Christian promised to take you out to the city, remember? To get that DVD." He shook. "I swear, if Evil Dead 2 is anywhere near as fucked up as the first one, I swear I'll kill you."
Matt grinned. "Don't worry, it's not... as fucked up. And I know you won't kill me. You love me too much."
Adam sighed. "You have learned my deep dark secret, haven't you?" He stood ip. "Let's go get that other idiot."
**********
Christian was walking on a beach. He recognized it well; he used to live near by here, when he was younger. Before demons meant anything to him. When he and Adam were raised by David Heath in the orphanage. David brought them here for picnics, and Christian would come here everytime he was mad. It was the most calming place in the world to him.
He heard his name called out, and he looked down. Sitting in the sand, the waves hitting his feet every time they moved forward, was Matt. He smiled broadly and walked over. "It's so beautiful," Matt said, "Thanks for bringing me here."
"You remind me of here," Christian said.
Matt laughed. "Why?"
"Because, you have the same effect on me this place does." Christian sat next to Matt and grabbed his hand. "You're so beautiful."
"You're so corny," Matt said, but he didn't pull his hand away.
"Christian!" Adam shook his brother. "Damn him for sleeping soundly."
"Maybe we should carry him into the middle of the swamp," Matt offered.
"He'd like that," Adam scoffed. Matt laughed and shook Christian.
"Come on, Christian, time for wakey," Matt said.
When that didn't work, Adam sighed. "That's it. Dogpile on Christian!" Suddenly, Matt was on top of Christian, sandwiched between him and Adam. Christian's eyes snapped open and he screamed. The scream made Matt scream, and then Adam screamed, and all three of them ended up on the floor.
Christian breathed. Oh God, he had the corniest dream ever. About Matt. And him. And then Matt was pressed against him. Did God hate him or something? That was just cruel.
"What the hell?" Adam said, hitting Christian.
"Nightmare?" Matt asked.
No. I loved it. "Totally," Christian said.
"After seeing the kind of nightmares Matt has, I doubt yours was any bad," Adam scoffed.
"Why the hell were you bastards in the room anyway?" Christian asked.
"Remember?" Matt said, "You promised. Evil Dead 2. I want it."
"When did you become a child again?" Adam asked.
"Leave him alone," Christian said, "You were the one who initiated a dogpile to wake me up."
"We're all overgrown children," Matt reasoned.
"Sad thing is, this is so very true," Adam sighed. "Christian, get dressed. Let's go."
"But we haven't had breakfast yet!" Christian pouted.
"We'll pick something up," Adam said.
Christian looked at Matt, who was picking himself up. Maybe one day he could bring him to that beach. Even if he couldn't tell him every thing, he wanted him to see it.
********
They ended up pulling over at a 7-Eleven. Matt and Christian got slushies and some chips, despite it being breakfast time. Adam shook his head as he got lemonade from the machine. "You two are lucky you're not fat."
"Only one of us is fat," Christian said, laughing at Adam.
"Go to hell." He looked at the cup. There was some blond wrestler on it. "Really? This is what they call a wrestler nowadays? I thought they were supposed to be big and beefy and scary. He looks fragile as shit. He should be fronting a band, not wrestling. And what's with the cheesy sleaze grin? Is he a rapist or something?"
"Stop being mean to the guy on the cup," Matt said.
Christian grabbed Matt's sleeve and tugged it. "Uh... Matt, Addy, I think you need to check this out."
"What?" They followed his gaze and saw the TV. They gasped... it was a breaking news report, and it was about the sudden destruction of the west coast.
"Holy shit," Matt said.
"You don't think..."
"I don't. I know it was Mark," Adam said, "He's lost control. This is not good."
"All those poor people," Matt said, "Why would he do something like this?"
"It has no purpose," Adam said, "Matt... I think he just did it because he was pissed off." They watched, sickened, by the entire spectacle's backlash: who knew the exact body count? California was the most populated state of them all- and it was totally leveled. The news anchor described the incident as a 'horrible earthquake'.
"How stupid can they get?" Matt asked, "An earthquake can't do all of that."
"You'll be surprised what the mind will make up to explain the unexplainable," Christian said.
"That's it," Adam said, "We have to get to Orton's house. Someone has to know what this means for us."
"Besides that we're all fucked?" Christian asked. He drank from his slushie. "Damn it, it's even souring this delicious drink."
Adam went to pay, and Christian breathed in. "I really hoped we wouldn't be seeing Randy for a while."
Matt thought about how nice it'd be to see Mickie again, and he just nodded. "Whatever it takes, huh?"
"Yup. Fucking earthquake..."
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