Later that night, Persephone sits upon the window seat with it cracked open, waiting for Apollyon to arrive. She looks out to the horizon, thinking about what her uncle had said about her being a target of Mr. McMahon's. There was so much that she hasn't experienced in her life. Maybe her father's worry is a bit more justified than she thought. On the other hand, his worry prevented her from seeing the world. Now, for the first time in her life, the Daughter of the Undertaker is unsure of herself.
Her father and uncle were the only people she's ever known until a couple of days ago. She's being thrown into so much more than she thought she knew. Sure, she knew more than the average fan, such as most of the story lines were either completely false or dramatically over-exaggerated. She's seen the injuries; the cuts, the bruises, even the mental wounds this business causes, but she never gave thought to anyone else in the company. Mainly, because she didn't care about anyone else, but her father and uncle.
As she sits, deep in her thoughts, she should have questioned Uncle Kane more when she had the chance. Persephone always asks her uncle any question she's ever wanted to know. Contrary to televised belief, her uncle in incredibly intelligent, honest, and loyal. He's never lied to her and doesn't sugar-coat his explanations. Physically, she is beyond ready to shoulder her father's legacy, but mentally, she realizes now, that she is in over her head.
With a glance to her alarm clock, the Princess of Darkness knows her uncle is still awake. He makes it a point to always make himself available whenever she either has questions or just wanted someone to talk to. He knew the toll complete isolation can have on the mind. Now that she thinks of it, it has been quite a spell of time since the monster's niece has truly needed to talk to her uncle.
Silently, she rises to her dainty feet and walks with a purpose out of her bedroom, before she stops just outside his door. Persephone takes a deep breath to calm her nerves. Why she was nervous, she didn't know. It is just her uncle, after all. Just as she brings a fist up to knock, the Big Red Machine opens his door.
Kane looks down at his niece and gives her a small smile. "I was just coming to check on you. You've had a lot thrown at you today. I'd bet you are pretty overwhelmed by it." The Devil's Favorite Demon takes a closer look at his niece's shiny, green eyes. "Come on in, Angel. What's on your mind?" He takes her tiny hand and leads her to his oversized, red sofa.
Persephone sits on the end before locking her big eyes with his two-toned ones. "I'm not 100% ready, am I?"
His eyes widen at her question. Well, not the question itself, but her tone. Kane has never heard so much uncertainty, and for the first time, self-doubt. He realizes that in protecting her from the world outside the gates of their home, she is as developmentally stunted as he was when he first began his own career. She's never had to learn how to trust others. She's never seen the evils of human nature. His brother and himself had sheltered her from everything.
He rubs at his chin with a hand. The large man promised his precious niece so long ago that he'd never lie to her, but this time, part of him desperately wanted to. The Big Red Monster sighs as he looks at her. "When it comes to hand to hand, you are ready. But your father and I, well, we didn't prepare you for the ongoings behind the scenes. So, emotionally and mentally, you aren't ready. That's part of why I'm with you, to protect you. Though, I think it's time that I take a step back and guide you. It's time for you to grow."
The daughter of the Phenom blinks at her uncle. That answer wasn't exactly what she wanted to hear, but it's what she NEEDED to hear. It told her that she was right in her self-assessment. Her uncle didn't lie to her when she knew he wanted to. This is why she always went to him. He was lied to for so long that he refused to lie to anyone, unless it was warranted and deserved, and yet he is allowing her to grow, too. Just like now.
Persephone's father has always been protective of his little girl. He's afraid that if she was given the chance to completely grow, she'd leave them. Kane knew his brother still sees the little toddler he met over twenty-five years ago. He, himself, still sees her that way, too, but he never wanted to stifle her.
The princess sighs in relief. As her uncle finally sits down at the other end, she crawls over and climbs into his lap. Just like when she was a small child. "Thank you, Uncle Kane. Do you really think I can do this?"
"With every fiber of my cold, black heart, My Angel. I promise I will be behind you every step of the way." He pauses. "Don't you think you're getting a little old to be in your uncle's lap?" He chuckles down at her.
"Nope. It's the safest place in the world. Plus, I'm literally half your size." She mutters as the big man wraps his arms around her. Persephone did this whenever his brother wasn't home. Kane understood she was a girl and her brain produced chemicals that his brother and himself don't produce. The Devil's Favorite Demon is extremely smart. When he's on the road or winding down at night, you could catch him reading anything he could get his hands on.
Between meeting his niece for the first time and moving in with them, the Big Red Machine became a reading machine. He didn't just like to read for fun, but he loved to learn. Meeting his five year old niece made him want to learn as much as he could about child development and the biology of women. Kane, himself, did not have the best upbringing after his mother and the man he thought was his father perished; so, he wanted to be the best uncle for her and do right by her, and his brother.
There were rare instances where he'd be home and his brother would be on the road. Those times he cherished most with his niece. She's never cuddled with her father because he saw affection outside of hugs as a weakness. Persephone does not want the Deadman to see her as weak.
The Big Red Machine nudges her up. "Go on to bed, Angel. We can't let Apollyon see you on my lap when he arrives. We've got a long day tomorrow. Lot more meetings about your music and how you'll look in the ring."
"Right. Thanks for listening. Night, Uncle Kane." The princess kisses his cheek and ventures out of the room.
As she reenters her room, she locks eyes with fiery, orange eyes. Apollyon had arrived to her room while she was with her uncle. His pale skin and jet black hair made his eyes even more menacing. He is tall, but none of the demons are as tall as her uncle. Kane would joke about his height being the reason why he was the Devil's favorite, but she knew that it was because of his power and intelligence. Apollyon was her best friend, for lack of better terms. He isn't as powerful as Lilith or Loki, but he is the most powerful of the lesser known demons. He was the one who would care for her when both of her parental figures were gone.
Apollyon greets her with a grand bow. "I am at your service, my Mistress of Evil. Command me as you see fit."
Persephone rolls her eyes at his formality. "Stand straight, Apollyon. You know that you don't have to be that way with me. What has my father told you about why you are here?"
"All my Lord has offered for information is my Princess of Darkness is in need of my services." The demon rises with a confused look. "Are you in need of more than a friend, my Lady of Lost Souls?"
"Go to my uncle." She orders. "He will inform you completely and assign your task. All I know is that it's a dangerous situation that I don't fully understand. I know your task involves me and I strongly suggest that you follow Uncle Kane's orders without fail. Go on. I need sleep." She sends him out and closes the door.
She walks to the window and closes it. The lights of the city catches her eye and slowly sits on the bench once again. She quickly does the math; it's been twenty-six years since she's been on this side of the realm. Twenty-six years since her father began to raise her, since she's seen her mother. She barely remembers her, but Persephone DOES remember the only day she has seen her parents together.
It was a Saturday morning and the three year old Persephone didn't understand why only HER clothes and belongings were being packed up. Why did she have to leave Momma? Was Momma sending her away because of the fire she started at Granny's house? She didn't mean to! It was an accident and she told them she was sorry. Momma said she was going to send her somewhere so she could learn to control her powers.
Suddenly, a wolf-like animal approached her, but it wasn't a wolf. It was so much bigger! It's fur was obsidian black with fiery, red tips. And it's eyes! It's eyes were a piercing white. She could smell what she now knows as sulfur on its breath.
Though, Persephone was scared, she doesn't scream or call for her mother. She's tried showing and telling her mother, but Momma never believed her. She's seen other scary creatures before, but not like this one. "Be nice, puppy. You bigger than me."
A throat clearing sounded and the little girl looks up passed the creature to see a really big man dressed all in black. Even his sunglasses and the thing covering his head! "Cynric, give her some room to breath. You can see the creature can't you, Little One?"
Her eyes widened in excitement. "You see him, mister?!" She cries before covering her mouth with her tiny hands. "I'm not suppose to talk to strangers." She whispers.
"My name is Mark. This big furball's Cynric. He's fairly harmless towards children, and I think he likes you." The Undertaker introduces himself to his daughter while Cynric licks at her cheek. "See? What's your name, Darlin'?"
"Persephone." She answers timidly. "Momma calls me Persy, but I don't like it. Momma says I hafta go away for a while." She continues sadly.
"Is that right? Did she say where you're going or why?" Mark was quite impressed with her intonation. He could understand everything she was saying.
"No. But I think it's because I started the fire at Granny's." Persephone looks up fearfully at the tall man. "I told them I didn't mean to. My magic did it without me telling it to."
The Devil of Death Valley knelt down to her level. "Do you remember if you were mad at someone when it happened?" At her nod, he sighed. He had the same control problem after Kane was born, but now seeing her for the first time and hearing her tell him about her 'magic,' he knew. She was his daughter. The twenty year ache in his dark soul was starting to soothe away. Her blood is his blood. "Go get your momma, Baby Girl. I'm who you are staying with. I'm your Daddy and I have the same kind of magic as you."
"You do!? Wait... You're my Daddy!? Are you sure?" She crosses her little arms in disbelief.
"If you don't believe me, go get your mother." The long-haired man chuckles. Young Persephone did as he asked, but not without a touch of retaliation. She stuck her tongue out at him just as she shut the door.
A few minutes later, little Persephone returns with her mother. Natalie Howard exits her home, with her daughter behind her, to greet her one night lover. The Deadman could see that she hadn't changed much in the last four years. Natalie still stood about 5'7", while long, light brown hair flowed down her back. Her sky blue eyes still sparkle, just like the night he met her. She always had a perfectly toned figure, but now it is accentuated with curves more pronounced due to her pregnancy with their daughter.
"Good morning, Mark. I'm surprised you're here so early. Persy, this is your dad, Mark. Mark, this is our daughter, Persephone. Sweetie, you are going to go live with him for a little while. At least, until you learn to control your magic." Natalie says, picking up her little girl and placing her into the Phenom's arms.
Persephone sighs, remembering her mother's words. 'A little while' turned into forever once Hades informed them a year later that Natalie had perished from terminal cancer. Father and daughter mourned for her. As much as the princess wishes her mother were still alive, her father and uncle are all she really needs in her life. They love and care for her. They are endlessly protective of her. They've spoiled her, but she is as prideful as they are, so she never asks for much.
The Princess of Darkness has never questioned if the Undertaker and Kane were proud of her, she knows they are. But for the first time in her life, Persephone wonders if her mother would have been as proud of her. Oh, well. No use losing sleep over something she'll never know the answer to.
She crosses her room and crawls into her bed under the fluffy comforter. "Good night, Daddy." She whispers into the darkness like she has every night since her first night with her father. Soon, the princess drifts of into a dreamless, yet restful slumber.
Uncle and niece wake before their alarms. Kane rises and begins his morning routine. He knew his little angel stayed up for a while after he met with Apollyon. After the fire as a child blinded him in one eye, the One-Eyed Monster developed a sixth sense, you could say. His now blue eye sees what the naked eye simply cannot.
He could see her anxiety. He could see that on some level, his beautiful niece is second guessing herself still. He wanted to reassure her, but the smell of breakfast halts his train of thought. The Big Red Machine decides that he'd think of a better plan on a full stomach and heads out to the kitchen.
Persephone is just setting out the platefuls as Kane sits down to join her. He notices that his Angel of Darkness is avoiding eye contact with him. She has never uttered a lie, but he's learned that she acts like this when she disobeys him or his brother. "Angel, what was on your mind last night? You stayed up a bit late."
The Mistress of Evil jerks her eyes towards him. "I realized how long it's been since I've been on Earth. Twenty-six years, Uncle Kane. I remembered my last day topside with my mother. The day I met Daddy. I lost myself in the memory. I'm sorry for staying up so late." She explains as they eat.
The Big Red Monster nods in understanding. "Wow. I never realized it's been that long. I don't blame you for thinking of her. Come on, let's get some training in. Apollyon is instructed to follow Mr. McMahon, so when he decides to corner you, you will be safe if the need arises. I want you to focus on your goal of dominating in that ring and collecting a few souls for your father's collection. Think you can do that? Apollyon and I will watch your back on everything behind the scenes. Trust us, Persephone."
It's rare for her uncle to call her by her name, so hearing it from him in this moment felt better. She gives her uncle a small smile and nods. "Yeah, I think I can handle that." Grabbing their bags and his mask, the Duchess of Demons turns to smile wider at her uncle. "Come on. We've got work to do."
Kane stands and dons his mask. His niece hands him his own duffel bag and they leave for the training facility. They had a little while to train before the meetings. He still wasn't sure if he'd let her go by herself so soon or accompany her. She'd be safe either way.
Entering the facility after jogging over, they set their bags down and stretch out inside the squared circle. None of the other sports entertainers are in the building this early in the morning. That's exactly how Kane wanted it. An empty building would make it easier for his niece to focus on her training and clear her mind of her worries. As long as she does that, she'll be unstoppable.
Persephone finishes her stretches first and stands in a corner to wait for her uncle to stand and join her. It's a rule back home to never attack while someone was stretching out. The Undertaker and Kane drilled this rule into her head. They explained that if you attacked an opponent while stretching, she could hyper-extend the muscle and injure the other before the satisfaction of the battle. It's also dishonorable.
The older man stands and backs into the corner opposite his younger opponent. He smirks at her and simply says, "Ding, ding, ding."
Both family members stalk each other as they circle, searching for an opening in the other's defenses. Persephone could feel all of her stress from the night before melt away. In her distraction, the Devil's Favorite Demon attacks with a solid right hand, stunning her to attention. "Never take your eye off the task at hand!" He shouts just as she dodges under his big boot, grabbing his supporting leg as she baseball slides beneath.
Poor Kane ends up doing the splits, painfully screaming. "Son of a bitch! Persephone, that was a a low fucking blow, even for you!" The herculean man decides to show his merciless niece exactly why his is still the reigning monster of this company. He rolls to his knees, but as he looks up, she kicks the side of his face.
The Lady of Lost Souls sees an opening as she climbs to the top turnbuckle and watches her uncle stagger to his feet. The sound of a door opening delays her launch enough for him to catch her by the throat. "Focus, Angel." He hisses through clenched teeth. She recovers by driving her thumb into his good eye, resulting in Kane dropping her.
Persephone quickly backs to the ropes and stare the Big Red Machine down. She realizes that they would need to go all out in order to show her competition, along with crew members, exactly what she could do. The large man squares up to her from across the ring. "Kane! Mania Mode!" She demands lowly, so their spectators wouldn't hear.
All she receives as an answer, is a short nod. The Monster tilts his head and adjusts his glove. Once again, they circle each other. The Devil's Favorite Demon flexes his fingers as he watches his niece's eyes harden into a focused glare. There hasn't been many times that Persephone performs a Pay-Per-View worthy match, in fact, he's the only one who's tested her in that ability. Kane was always curious and loved to test her endurance. Mark never did because he figured she'd never need to. They called these testing matches 'Mania Mode' for a WrestleMania worthy match.
He rolls his shoulders before engaging her in a lock-up. "Go on instinct as long as you can. Finish me in Hell's Gate." He instructs into her ear before pushing her away. Immediately, she's on the attack, throwing lefts and rights with speed inherited by her father. Suddenly, Kane grabs her throat with both hands and tosses her into the corner. He throws an uppercut, smirking as he turns his back to her slumped body and walks away.
Persephone smirks evilly, knowing exactly what her uncle wanted to do. She's observed him plenty growing up and watches as he charges at her. She swings both legs up to kick him in the chest. He staggers back in shock, before charging once more, only to fall victim to a drop toe hold.
Kane converges on the canvas as the Duchess of Demons place stomps to various areas of his body. She pounces on top of her uncle with the ruthlessness her family is known for. He grabs his Angel and throws her toward the ropes, sitting up Deadman style shortly after.
The toss catches the princess off guard momentarily, but she recovers quickly with grace all her own. The relatives lock eyes once more and grin sinisterly at one another. Persephone backs off, allowing her uncle to stand. He snarls as his niece runs at him, picking her up into a massive scoop slam. Kane hears her call out in surprise and smirks down at her. The big man grabs the Mistress of Evil by her short, brown locks and drags her to her feet.
The Devil's Favorite Demon lifts his Angel of Darkness above his head and begins to Military Press her high in the air. After five presses, he throws her down, He stalks to the corner to climb on the top turnbuckle, perched and ready to fly. He observes as his niece slowly and gingerly rises to her feet, shaking the cobwebs from her mind. He may have thrown her down a little too harshly.
Little did the monster know, Persephone knew where her uncle is and she knew exactly what he is going to do. She staggers around the ring, pretending to be discombobulated, until Kane launches to deliver a flying clothesline. The Princess of Darkness snaps out of her 'confusion,' jumping up and drop kicking her uncle square in the jaw. The younger Brother of Destruction land on his back, and the Daughter of Destruction lugs him to the edge of the ring by his hair.
Driving her pointy elbow into his throat, Persephone turns towards their audience with a predatory gleam in her eyes. She snarls at those closest to the stairs, making them back away with hands up. Climbing the stairs, she watches him as she runs along the apron, and drops down, her leg catching his throat. Her leg pulls him sliding out of the ring. She quickly slides back into the ring.
The Big Red Monster slowly stands, his niece dives over the top rope. Much to her dismay, he catches her with ease, driving her lower back into the ring post, forcing her to cry out in pain as her spine meets steel. He rolls her into the ring and crawls in after her.
As he crawls up, Kane hooks her leg, panting out a hoarse, "Now." Persephone grabs his arm, wrapping her legs around his trachea and pulls his big head towards her with all her might. Soon, the Big Red Machine taps out, but the Lady of Lost Souls doesn't relent her grip until he goes limp on top of her.
After grunting with effort to roll him off, she sees veteran Rey Mysterio comes to help. The masked man offers the newest competitor a hand up after shifting Kane away. "Brava, chica. You took down mi rival grande impressively. We haven't seen such a petite girl who is so powerful. My name is Rey Mysterio, but everyone here calls me Rey. What's yours?" The WWE's biggest little man sticks his hand out to the Duchess of Demons.
Persephone glances at her uncle, who is still laying on the canvas, breathing deeply. Looking back at Mysterio, she tilts her head. She knew who he was, Kane obsessed over the other masked man plenty when she was a teenager. Instead of grasping his outstretched hand, she crosses her arms. She had never been taught what a handshake was or meant.
The Devil's Favorite Demon steps between the two, glancing back to his Angel before turning back to his masked rival. "Do you have the time, Rey?"
"It's about 8:30 in the morning, Kane." Rey answers, staring up at his fellow veteran.
Kane could see the question loud and clear in the shorter man's eye. He sighs before looking at the others gathered around the training ring. "Everyone, this is Persephone. All of the questions in your minds will be answered soon enough. Just stay out of our way. Now, we need to shower up and go about our day." He turns away from Mysterio and sits on the rope, ushering his Princess of Darkness out of the ring and home to prepare for the endless meetings for weeks to come.