"No," Lita said, pushing Hunter away. She turned away from him, shaking her head.
Hunter wrapped his arms around her waist. "Come on, Red. You can't see it?"
"No," she said, trying to pull away from him. "First off, you tried to kill me. Secondly, I know exactly how faithful you can be." Lita was glad she couldn't look at him; afraid the saddened look in her eyes would give her away. "No. I have to get things straightened out with everyone right now. It's just too much."
Hunter let go of her. Lita heard him walk away. She turned around to glance at him, maybe say something. But she couldn't think of any words to explain what she was feeling, couldn't think of anything to tell him but the truth.
And she couldn't let herself do that.
"Whenever you're ready," Hunter whispered. "I'll be here. I promise."
"Well…well…well…commissioner Regal," Jackie smirked as she circled the bound man. "Looks like I get to ask you a couple questions here."
Regal struggled against his bonds and seethed. "Untie me right now!"
Jackie leaned into Regal's face, blowing a large cloud of cigar smoke into his face. "What was that?"
Regal coughed and choked.
"That's what I thought you said," Jackie puffed her cigar again. "Now, there's the easy way to do this…and the fun way. Let's try the easy was first. Where are you holding Jericho?"
Regal grimaced. "I will NEVER tell you."
"Alright then, the fun way." Jackie withdrew a dangerous looking Bowie knife from her waistband. "Now, I'm going to ask you again. If you give me the answer I'm looking for, I leave you tied up here. If you don't…well…" Jackie smiled at the knife before holding it up against Regal's left cheek. "Well, then I start chopping off body parts."
Regal gulped, glancing sideways at the knife.
"So, Commissioner…Where are they holding Jericho?"
Regal whimpered, looking as if he were close to answering but some deep source of self control kept him from doing so.
Jackie moved the knife from his cheek to his crotch. "Do you know exactly how much a man bleeds when you cut his balls off? 'Cause I've been dying to know for YEARS."
"THEY'RE ON NEO-LIASA!" Regal screamed.
Jackie put the knife back in its sheath. "That's more like it."
"They have an underground headquarters. They're working on some new technology down there, Jericho was chosen as a test subject. I can draw you a bleeding map, just don't do that again!"
"Thank you very much, Commissioner. Now, just so you don't get on my nerves…" Jackie forced a ball gag into Regal's mouth and left him in the dark room.
"So…Tori…three guys, who do I go with?"
Tori looked up from where she was perched on her bed to see Lita standing in the doorway of the bunk she shared with Jackie. "Who's the best in bed?" she asked completely straight faced.
"I don't know," Lita replied, incredulously.
"Well, sleep with each of them and figure out who's the best in bed," Tori advised. "Go with him."
"Tori…no."
Tori rolled her eyes and sighed. "Alright, since you require a personality with your guys…"
"How did you end up with such a jaded view of men?" Lita asked.
Tori raised her eyebrows. "Um…hello? I watched them drool over my sister for years and ignore me. The few I did go out with treated me like shit."
"Like who?"
"Test…did him a few times. He was good in bed, but he dumped me for Steph," she reminded.
Lita looked unsurprised. "And then?"
"Forgot about guys for a while, went out with Ivory. Then she got jealous because I was showing my body off and she's kinda…"
"Possessive," Lita interrupted. "When she had a crush on Chyna she acted the same way. Same with Kat. Passed it off as morality."
"Right. That didn't exactly work out. So, I move on to Kane…but by that point all I wanted was a body. I didn't care whose. And unfortunately, burnt boy couldn't handle me," Tori smiled smugly. "So I moved on to a group with a bunch of bodies."
"DX? The wild bunch?" Lita asked, sounding like she already knew.
"Right. But then…I dunno. It was like, I had bodies, but I was just a body. Worse," she said, the smile finally fading from her face, "I was my sister. So, I left 'em. Ended up here. Love it."
"And you and Jackie?"
"Purely platonic, hun," Tori assured her. "Jackie likes boys. I'm a surf and turf girl myself."
"Good to know," Lita said.
"You should consider it, Red. Girls are saner than guys."
"Um…and you're using Ivory as a reference for this fact?"
"Okay, bad example," Tori winced. "But you get the idea."
"No, I don't," Lita confessed. "Tori, I can't just go with my gut instinct with this. It's…dangerous."
"Relationships are always dangerous, Red," Tori said. "Being in love with the wrong person could get you killed." She softened a bit at that, looking almost wistful.
"Don't I know it," Lita said, turning to leave her alone.
"Neo-Liasa." Jackie told the assembled crew an hour later as they gathered on the bridge. "They're underground."
Stephanie brightened. "So, we're going?"
"You want in Princess?" Jackie asked.
Stephanie nodded. "If I can help, I want to. They…dammit Jackie they have Chris."
Lita looked at Steph. "What do you know about medicine?"
"Basic first aid," Steph shrugged. "Why?"
Lita smiled. "We need a medical officer. You have the authority to appoint yourself medical officer. I'd do it if you want in. Otherwise we're going to get into protocol problems."
"Which leaves Hunter out as well," Matt observed, smugly.
"Not true," Lita countered. "We're short a crew member as it because of Chris's disappearance. We can equal everything back out when the trainee gets out here. For right now, I want a full crew, so Hunter's on the team."
Both Matt and Edge looked concerned. "Red, are you sure?" Edge asked.
She started both of them down. "I'm sure. Look, he proved that he's on our side. He risked his life for us against Austin. We can trust him. So, we've got a full crew, and a destination. I say we get some sleep."
Edge walked by Lita's quarters an hour later only to hear her muttering loudly inside. He entered her quarters. "I thought you were getting some sleep."
"Yeah…well this is more important," she was sitting in front of her console watching the ship's view of the battle they'd lost Chris in. "I think I figured out where they got him."
Edge stood behind her as she rewound the series of events leading up to the LionSault. She played it back in slow motion for Edge. "Okay…right…NOW!" she paused the screen right after Chris fired off the final shot. The entire screen was caught in a flash of light for a split second, unnoticeable if it hadn't been in slow motion. "That's it, I think."
Edge looked unconvinced. "But how did they do it?"
"Still not sure," Lita stretched her arms over her head. "Transport beam…possible. But I'm not really concerned with how…more why. Jackie said something about an experiment. I wanna know what's going on."
"You think Shane'd know anything?" Edge asked.
"Shane-O-Mac? Even if he does he won't talk. Regal's easy, terrified of Jackie. However Shane doesn't scare that easy. So…we'd need time that we don't have for that." She yawned. "I need sleep."
Edge looked down at her, almost guiltily. "Look, Red…Lita…about the other day. I…I'm sorry. I just…"
"Just what? Felt like that would be your last chance to tell me how you felt? Wanted to get things out in the clear? Don't sweat it, I've been getting a lot of it lately."
"What do you mean?" Edge asked.
Lita ran her hand through her hair. "Look, Edge, I now have three guys telling me they love me. Flattering, but not easy to handle in this situation."
"Three? Who?"
"Um…Matt…you…and Hunter."
"Hunter?"
"Yeah. Hunter."
"Well, that's definitely interesting," Edge said.
Lita bit her lip as a look of worry crossed her face. "Not quite what I'd call it."
Edge looked less amused than she did. "Me either, really. Are you going to be okay?"
"I have to be," she told him. "I don't have another choice."
Stephanie shifted uncomfortably as Hurricane played with a strand of her hair. She could sense that something was about to be asked that she wasn't really comfortable with answering.
"So, Steph, what happens when Jericho comes back?"
Swearing to herself, Stephanie rolled over. "Shane, I was hoping to avoid this conversation."
"Because you're using me?"
"NO! Shane, you're a wonderful guy, I can't even begin to tell you. And to tell the truth, I LIKE you more than I like Jericho most of the time."
"So why not just be with me?" Hurricane asked. "It makes no sense."
"Because as much as I hate to say it, I LOVE Chris Jericho. As mean as we may be to each other, it's our way of saying 'I love you.'"
"That's kinda sick Steph."
Steph stared him in the face, unflinching. "Maybe. But it's what works for us. It's how we are. Nothing can change that."
"When he comes back I'm gone then?"
"Hurricane, I…I…"
"You don't have to explain Stephanie. I understand." Hurricane rose from the bed and walked away from her. "You know, I thought I meant something to you. I thought I was someone special. I was a re-bound. I was a way to get over an ex. That hurts."
With that, Hurricane Helms left Stephanie McMahon Helmsley alone in her bed.
Hunter Hearnst Helmsley tossed in his bed as he relived those last few moments with her. The horrible fight, her last words to him…dear god, what had he done. Then, that night when…when…
"CHYNA!" he screamed, sitting up in bed. He breathed hard, telling himself that those were not tears falling down his cheeks.
"So…that is who you were dreaming of," Edge smirked at Hunter.
"What the hell are you doing in here? How did you even get in here?"
Edge smiled widely. "I've got my ways. And I wanna talk to you. About Red."
"What about her?" Hunter snarled
"She says you said something about loving her. And now I find you in here dreaming of your ex," Edge's smile faded.
"Dreaming of my ex who disappeared without a trace," Hunter defended. "Did it ever occur to you that I might have some left over issues because of that?"
Edge was silent, but the look on his face was clearly confused.
Hunter continued. "You know, she was on her way back to the main base and she just vanished. Gone. They accused her of stealing the ship and running off. Couldn't have blamed her, they treated her like shit."
"We never heard about that," Edge told him. "We heard she was gunned down."
"But they…" Hunter stopped. "So, they lied to at least one of us."
"Seems that way," Edge agreed.
Hunter dropped his gaze from the other man's. "I feel so responsible for it. I feel like if I hadn't dumped her it'd all be okay, we'd still be together and she wouldn't have gotten canned. I'd still have her."
"So, due to massive guilt you've just transplanted Lita into Chyna's place?" Edge asked. "How romantic."
Hunter's head snapped back up. "NO! Dammit Edge, I love Lita for who she is. But I'm always going to love Chy. That's how it works. Do you understand that?"
"Understood," Edge shrugged his shoulders. "Oh, and just so you know, if you are just using her to replace Chyna, you break her heart, and I find out, I will rip your trachea out with my bare hands," he punctuated this statement by smiling as dangerously as possible.
Hunter watched Edge walk away before he spoke up. "Oh, Edge?"
"Yeah Hunter?"
Hunter's expression hardened. "If I find out you're just trying to make her feel better about this whole Jericho mess, and YOU break her heart, I will break your kneecaps with a sledgehammer."
Edge opened the door and started to walk out when he came face to face with Matt. "If either of you breaks her heart…you don't even wanna know what I'll do. What is it with everyone wanting to sleep with my girlfriend?"
"First off," The boys looked behind Matt to see Lita leaning against the opposite wall. "I'm your ex-girlfriend. Or wasn't that made clear when I called you a son of a bitch and went for your throat?"
Hunter and Edge snickered.
Lita ignored their amusement. "And secondly, what is it with everyone wanting to sleep with me all of a sudden?"
The boys were all silent.
"I mean, last week I only had one guy to worry about, suddenly I've got three. I'm not liking it. And if you three are going to bicker and fight over me, don't bother. That caveman like behavior is only going to get your asses kicked by me, then by Tori who hates it just as much as I do, then by Jackie who just needs a good ass kicking every now and then." Lita stood up and stared all three of them down. "Don't fuck with the ladies of this ship unless you know what you're getting into."
And yet more silence. Lita continued.
"Now, we are landing on Neo-Liasa in less than two hours. Once there, we are going to have to stock up on supplies at a base and then head underground to the Alliance labs. Anyone messes with me before or during that, I will personally let Jackie do to each of you what she did to Regal earlier. Any questions?"
The three men shook their heads.
"Good, I'll see you later," Lita turned and left.
Halfway down the hall she stopped and simply said, "I love this captain thing."
"We're there!" Rob screamed around 4 AM. "Ready to dock?"
Lita rubbed her eyes after her wonderful hour of sleep. "Can you be less cheerful?"
"No. We're there," Rob was practically bouncing. "I'm looking forward to a fight."
Lita massaged her temples. "Docking procedures. Land the ship. And get me some coffee."
On the surface, the crew headed into what was the equivalent of an Arabian market for supplies. They dragged along Shane McMahon, Regal, Austin, and Trish to keep them from trying anything stupid on the ship. Lita did have to stop Stephanie from trading Trish for a new pair of boots, telling her "I want to too, those are really cute boots. However, we have to keep her safe in case of a hostage exchange, got it?"
Stephanie pouted, but agreed.
As they were heading down a street looking for bigger canteens, Lita caught site of a sign.
Madame Luna, Tarot Cards.
"Hey, guys, I'll catch up," she yelled as she headed into the shop.
The blonde woman inside greeted her and urged her to sit. "I'm glad you came, I've been waiting for you all day Captain. Sit down."
Lita did so. Luna dealt the cards and hunched over them.
"This one is you," she pointed to the Queen of Swords. "Fiery, strong, powerful, passionate. A warrior."
She pointed to three cards underneath her. "These are three who are vying for your love and affection, the Page of Pentacles, the King of Swords, and the Page of Wands. The Page of Pentacles is steadfast, somewhat boring to others, seems to lack depth of character. The King of Swords has a love of power and a brutal attitude. The Page of Wands is humorous, yet has a purpose."
She laid down three more cards, then looked at Lita as she flipped them over. "In your past there was great pain," she said as she laid down the five of cups. "You overcame it and took away something, but you lost a great deal in the process."
The second card was flipped. "In the present there is power and conviction on your part," she pointed to the Emperor. "You must stick to these if you wish to accomplish your goal."
"Finally," she turned over the High Priestess. "Your future is unknown."
"WHAT?" Lita cried. Luna held a hand in her face to silence her.
"You have not yet made all the choices that will define your future. In coming times you will determine your own destiny. It is in your hands, Lita. Make your choices well."
Luna piled the cards up again, and then laid down three final cards. "As for you lovers, one will betray you," The Moon, "one will be with you," the Lovers, and one will…"
"Death…" Lita shook as she looked at the card.
"Death does not necessarily mean mortal death. One will change. Forever."
Luna looked at Lita one last time. As she laid down the Queen of Swords again. "And you are in control of their destiny's as well. None of this is set in stone."
Lita was silent for a moment. "How much do I owe you?"
"Trust me, you'll pay up later. Go find your crew."
"You guys have everything?" Lita asked when she caught up with the crew.
"Yeah, just about, except for those boots…"
"Steph…no."
"But they're cute boots! And you know Scats and Merc would do it!"
"You keep those two out this, they're back at base!"
"Well, dammit."
"All right everyone, I want you to stick together. Nobody do anything stupid," Lita looked over at Jeff. "Watch the hostages. I don't wanna lose anyone."
"Got it, Captain," Rob tugged on Austin's cuffs and smirked.
"Jackie, where are we headed?"
Jackie held the knife against Regal's neck. "Where we headed shit for brains?"
"Three miles east. There's a back door."
Jeff dropped into the empty underground chamber with a THUD. He pointed his laser-targeted rifle around the room before motioning to the rest of the team. They dropped into the hole behind him. Lita joined Jeff at the head of the party. She motioned with her head and they all headed into the inner recesses of the Alliance labs.
Half an hour later they still hadn't found anything. Regal gulped as Jackie tightened her grip on his collar. "You wouldn't be leading us astray, would you Regal?"
Just as she said this, a light hit them from the other end of the tunnel. They shaded their eyes from it as a familiar voice cut through the silence.
"Well, well, well. Who do we have here?"
"Heyman," Steph growled.
"Good to see you too Steph. How's everything going for you lately?"
"Where's Chris?"
"Jericho? Oh…he's around."
"I wanna see him NOW!"
"If you wish, Princess," The light cut to reveal a horde of Alliance soldiers facing the team.
"Angle," Hunter acknowledged.
"Christian," Edge growled.
Matt and Jeff were busy eyeing up the Dudleyz who returned the favor.
"Ivory, good to see you," Tori smirked at her ex.
"Happy to see me?" a voice from the back of the group made Tori gasp.
"Sable?" she whispered as her sister pushed her way through the gang surrounding her.
"The one and only. Anyone ready for the grind?" She held what looked like the handle of a laser whip over her barely covered breasts.
"I'll grind you good, bitch!" Jackie warned.
The stare down continued for several minutes before Heyman let out a short laugh. "This isn't getting us anywhere, is it?"
"You have a suggestion?" Hunter asked.
"Yeah," Heyman snorted. "A hostage exchange."
Trish and Shane perked up.
Heyman motioned to Lance Storm, who quickly began to drag a nearly unconscious Chris Jericho towards his boss. Heyman smirked as Jericho nearly choked from the collar around his neck.
"That's sick," Lita spat.
Steph shifted uncomfortably. "Uh...Red?" she whispered.
Without looking over her shoulder, Lita whispered, "Don't tell me he likes it when you do it. I don't wanna hear it right now."
Heyman held Jericho's lease and smirked at Lita. "Now, the exchange."
"You can have them all back if you give us Jericho," Lita offered, gesturing behind her to the Alliance members.
There were excited sounds from behind her from the hostages.
Heyman gave a short laugh. "I don't want them! They're the fuck ups!"
Lita closed her eyes, a pained expression crossing her face. Behind her Trish, Austin, Shane and Regal gasped.
"Besides Red," Heyman continued, "I think we both know what I want."
Lita turned to Matt. "You remember a couple years back when we made a deal? If you ever meet some girl who looks like me but tells you her name is Angelica?"
Matt blinked, looking confused. "Yeah, I kill her as soon as I get the chance. Why? She here?" He looked past Lita to the assembled Alliance.
"Not yet," Lita whispered. She faced Heyman again. "Go ahead," she said clearly and defiantly.
"I want you Captain Dumas. You know why." A sick smile spread across Heyman's face.
"And you'll let Chris go. For good?" Lita asked.
"I promise. I'll let your crew alone after they've left here." Heyman jerked the chain in his hand. "Or, you can leave now and I'll continue to try and break the Captain here."
Lita handed her gun Hunter, who looked at her in shock. "Then it's settled. Send him over."
"What the hell are you doing?" Hunter asked.
"What I've got to do," she told him.
Heyman shook his head. "Half way. So you don't try to run." He tossed Jericho's chain to Ivory who began to lead him.
Lita stepped away from the group, slowly. She stopped when she met Jericho and Ivory. "Let's go."
Ivory took the collar off of Jericho and fixed it around Lita's neck. Jericho slumped to the ground as Ivory pulled Lita to Heyman.
"Long, long time kiddo." Heyman smiled at her in that disgustingly evil way. "Let's see what we've got."
Raven grasped her chin while Justin Credible forced her forehead back, opening her mouth as wide as possible. Heyman motioned to Christian, who quickly handed him something small enough to be placed on the tip of Heyman's finger. Heyman shoved his finger into the back of Lita's mouth. The crew heard her gag, and then watched Heyman's hand withdraw. Lita collapsed into a pile of limbs and red hair.
The Alliance backed away from her, leaving her there. The crew had by now moved to Jericho, who was being cared for by Stephanie. After seeing Lita collapse, Matt edged towards her. He looked up to see if the Alliance was going to challenge him. When they didn't, he bent over her. "Lita? You okay?"
She groaned. "Matt?"
"What is it baby?" he asked as he helped her stand.
"There's…there's something I have to tell you…" she was on her feet, but doubled over, hugging her stomach.
"What baby?" he stroked her hair.
"It's…" she gagged again, sounding as if she were going to be sick.
"Shhhh…" Matt soothed her. "Listen, Red, it's okay."
"Stop…" she choked out. "Stop calling me Red."
"Why?" Matt asked, softly.
"Because…" her voice was suddenly strong again. "My name's Angelica," she hissed as she elbowed him in the chest.
Jericho stood up from where he had collapsed and grabbed Stephanie by the throat. She squealed in surprise as he held her.
"It's a fucking trap!" Tori screamed as she drew her weapons. Her sister's whip cut across the room and disarmed her.
Hunter aimed his gun at the Alliance and was set to shoot when Austin nailed him from behind with a body blow. He dropped his weapon and lay on the floor not moving.
Hurricane ran to save Steph, but found himself entrapped by Lance Storm. "Hurricane, it could work out. You, Alliance. Sounds right."
"Storm, you're a dweeb. What up wit' dat?"
He was rewarded with being knocked clean out.
Matt was slowly trying to recover from both the blow and the shock. He tried to stand up, gasping "What in the hell?"
Lita…Angelica, was removing the collar. "Your girlfriend never told you about me, did she? Huh, we had such a close relationship too." Matt had by now stood up the whole way. "Well, just for that, I'll do you a favor." She spread her arms to her sides. "One clean shot. Point blank. Kill me."
Matt drew his gun and aimed, remembering his promise to Lita…
"Come on Hardy. You got what it takes to kill your ex?"
Matt gulped. She was still Lita…she still had those eyes…what in the hell was going on?
"Come on Matthew Moore," Lita…Angelica…taunted. "Pull the trigger. Or can't you?"
"Maybe he can't," Angelica turned around to face Edge. "But I keep my promises. Sorry Red."
There was a shot fired.
And a long pause…
Edge fell to his knees, grasping Angelica for balance as he looked at her wide-eyed. Everything went into slow motion as he felt the blood gather in his mouth. He looked at her again as his eyes glazed over. She took a step back, letting him fall to the floor. She elbowed Matt in the face, knocking him back into the waiting arms of the Dudleyz.
Christian smirked from behind the body of his brother as he stroked the still smoking gun. "Oops," he shrugged.
"Wow," Angelica stepped over the body. She smiled at Heyman who had been joined by Jericho, who was still clutching a shocked Stephanie.
Angelica joined them. "Well, dying will definitely ruin your day, won't it?"
Steph looked at her, confused.
"Aww, Steph doesn't know what's going on, does she?" Angelica smirked. "Huh…I guess I'll have to explain to everyone later on."
"I thought you were gone," Jeff whispered from Rhyno's clutches. "I thought you'd gone for good."
"Yeah, well, that's because you're an idiot," she said to him, a huge smile on her face. "I'm back. And poor Matty never knew about me. How sad."
Matt was groggily waking up. Angelica approached him. "She still knows what's going on Matty. And you know what she's saying?"
Matt looked at Angelica, eyes half open.
Angelica whispered. "She's screaming…'you betrayed me…'"
"And who the fuck is Angelica?" Jackie asked later on in the holding cell.
"She's Lita, obviously," Rob observed. "Our fearless leader turned on us. That bitch."
"No," Jeff broke in. "It's not Lita. At least, it's her body, but it's not her mentally."
"You're saying Lita's bipolar?" Shane asked.
"No. What I'm saying is that there are parts of Lita's past none of you guys know about."
"Well, who does?"
"Me, Steph, Edge, a few select others. Matt…"
"I didn't even know." Matt sighed from a corner of the room.
"Where is Hunter anyway?" Jackie spat.
"Probably with her," Jeff said. "She would have wanted him."
"Lita?"
"No. Angelica," Jeff corrected.
"You feel like explaining this yet?" Jackie asked.
Jeff sighed. "Lita was a poor kid, down on her luck. Well, Heyman picked her up, offered her a job. She turned him down, he hunted her and brought her in here, I guess. They fucked with her mind, used drugs and brainwashing techniques and made her into what you guys saw out there. Created a whole other personality, a separate person inside her skull. A remorseless killer known as…"
"Angelica Congeniality," Matt broke in. "I'd heard of her before, but nobody would show us pictures."
"Because she's Lita, in reality," Jeff clarified. "They made her an assassin. Had her go after some top ranking officials, take down some big wigs. Finally, they sent her after Chyna.
"The hit took longer than she'd planned. She and Chyna beat the hell out of each other and it wore her down. The drugs weren't working as well. Finally, Angelica faded and Lita came out again. The medical staff at base figured out what was done to her and helped her recover as best they could. Well, Angelica was gone as far as everyone else was concerned, but Lita would every so often be afraid she was surfacing again."
"And now what?" Rob asked. "Edge is dead. Angelica's loose, Jericho's turned on us and he has Steph."
"They probably did to him something similar to what they did to Lita," Jeff suggested.
"How do you know all this and Matt doesn't?" Hurricane finally asked.
"Her hit on Chyna was right around the first TLC mission. I was hospitalized for a pretty long time after that, remember? Well, I ran into Lita as she was recovering. I recognized her from when were kids, before Heyman got to her. She told me her story and she made me promise not to tell Matt. She didn't want him to know what she was."
"And Essa?" Matt asked.
"Didn't know anything about her past, that's why they dated," Jeff said. "And I think part of her felt like she deserved to be punished for what Angelica had done. Until he started to beat her, that was. Then…"
"She went running to me," Matt observed. "And I betrayed her trust twice."
"You didn't betray her!" Rob argued. "I mean, just because you couldn't kill her."
Matt punched at the wall. "That's the point. I should've. I promised her."
"So, Hunter…" Angelica was smiling at him as he woke up strapped to a chair. "Sleep well?"
"Fuck you," Hunter spat. "Where's Lita?"
Angelica tapped her head. "All locked up. Gone forever."
"How?"
"You really wanna know?" Angelica straddled Hunter's lap. "Or should we just get on with the important stuff?"
Hunter turned his face away from her.
"What's wrong? Don't want me anymore? You wanted her."
"You're not her."
"You're damn right," Angelica stood up again, her pleather pants crinkling. "I'm back. And it feels sooooo good." She smirked at him. "You don't like me better? I'm more your type."
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"Bitchy. Evil. In a position of incredible power at the moment," Angelica picked a cherry out of a bowl and held it between her front teeth.
"Exactly. And I don't want that, ever."
Angelica bit into the cherry, chewed, and swallowed it. "But you were that. You know, there was only ever one time when I was close to popping up again without the drugs."
Hunter stared at her.
"You remember the night you and Austin were beating on the Hardys? You remember how the bitch…their bitch, I believe you called her…threw herself across Matt and begged you not to hurt him? Then you let Austin hit her over and over again across the back? I was close enough to the surface that I nearly stood up and kicked both your asses." She smiled fondly. "Then, I receded. Hoped you'd keep it up until I could come out again and maybe play with you. After all, you'd come a long way from the guy that clobbered me from behind when I was trying to kill your girlfriend. How is Chyna these days, anyway?"
Hunter hung his head.
Angelica continued. "But that night in the bar? That was the night, Hunter, that I fell for you. You were everything I wanted in a man."
"And that's why Lita didn't want anything to do with me." He whispered.
"On the nose. She was afraid that she'd turn into me again. Which happened anyway." She smiled. "It was pretty much inevitable, wouldn't you say?" She paused for a moment to let it sink in. "So, what do you think? You. Me. Alliance. We overthrow Austin, work our way through Heyman and begin a reign of terror around here."
"Chris?" Steph whimpered as her lover stared at her, breath heavily. She had found herself in a dimly lit room, on what appeared to be a bed covered in satin sheets.
"Right here, dearest." Chris's eyes were hooded as he sat in an armchair across from her. He smiled at her in a cruel, twisted way.
"Chris, what did they do you?" Stephanie asked, helplessly.
Jericho continued to smile at her. "Made me better. I'm not a screw up anymore Steph. I'm good enough for you. I'm a tough, heartless SOB now. Isn't that what you go for in a man?"
"No," Stephanie pleaded. "You know I married Hunter for show. It didn't mean anything."
"It didn't? Really? Well, that's very good to know," Chris said. "And did we mean anything? You never even told anyone about us."
"Because it was dangerous!" Steph cried. "I was still married."
"And a little danger was too much for you?"
"I didn't want you hurt!"
"Love is pain!" Chris screamed at her. "That's what it's all about! It's pain, hurt, and heartache. That's all it is!"
Stephanie looked at him. "What did they do to you?" she repeated.
"Let's not talk about that," Jericho stood over her. "Let's talk about us."
"So, you have a thing for me," Hunter nodded at Angelica. "Well, as flattered as I could be…I'M NOT."
Angelica rolled her eyes. "Whatever you say, Hunter."
"You're a coward," Hunter yelled at her.
"What?" Angelica asked, coldly.
"You're a coward," Hunter repeated. "You knew Hardy couldn't shoot you. Then, when Edge took his chance, you had Christian kill him. You never gave anyone else a clear shot."
"Anyone…like you?"
"Exactly."
"Hunter, you could never shoot her. You love her too much," Angelica rolled her eyes. "Sentimental bullshit. I'll have to beat that out of you."
"Then hand me the gun and take your chances," Hunter challenged.
Tori pulled her hand back into the cell. "There's no way to pick that lock. It's useless. I can't do it."
The door swung open. Shane MacMahon was standing on the other side.
The crew looked at him in amazement. Shane began tossing their weapons back to him. Off of Matt's stunned look he shrugged. "I'm not a fuck up."
Jackie retrieved her knife and looked forward to what was to come.
"What did you say to me?" Angelica asked.
"Hand me the gun and find out," Hunter repeated. "If you don't think I'd kill her, give me the chance."
Angelica laughed, throwing Lita's red hair out of her face. "Fine, you want that, you can have it." She untied Hunter carefully, then tossed him a pistol. "Go ahead," she stood right in front of him. "Shoot me."
Inwardly, Hunter prayed that he knew what he was doing. He aimed the gun at Angelica's head…
Then swung it and nailed her in the left side of her face.
She recoiled from the blow, pausing to run her tongue over the roof of her mouth. Hunter watched her play with the implant Heyman had put in.
"What did they do to Chris and Lita?" Jeff demanded of Shane.
"Remember how Lita used to need the drugs? Well, Heyman developed an implant that maintains the same hormone levels without the injections. It's a more permanent solution."
"Unless the chip comes out, right?" Hurricane asked him.
"Let's just hope Steph and Hunter figure that part out."
"You knocked part of it out!" Angelica growled at him.
"Part of the plan," he admitted.
She started towards him, when suddenly her right fist nailed her in her own jaw. Hunter watched as she tried to use her left arm to hold it down to no avail, she punched herself again. As she gasped for breath, he noticed that the chip was coming further and further out.
"What the FUCK?" Angelica yelled.
Then, her mouth opened again. "Heyman didn't plan for anyone to hit us in the face hard enough and often enough to knock the chip out."
Hunter stared in amazement. Lita had just answered Angelica. She was regaining control.
"Well, bitch, it ends here!" Angelica reached in to replace the chip, when the right side of her mouth clamped down, drawing blood from her left hand.
Angelica screamed. Lita stumbled towards Hunter. "Hit me again. Harder!"
Hunter paused for a second before obliging her. He watched as the right hand reached up in and yanked on the chip, pulling it out completely.
Lita motioned for the gun. Hunter threw it to her and watched her throw the chip in the air and blow it to smithereens.
Lita sank to her knees, hugging herself. Hunter moved to comfort her.
"I killed Edge!" she sobbed.
"No…Christian killed Edge," Hunter told her.
"I…I'm not her…"
"No, you're not." Hunter hesitated, then leaned in and kissed her.
Lita let him just love her. Let him love her after he'd seen her dark side, her deepest secret. After he'd found out she had her own secrets, her own evils. And he still loved her. No matter what he loved her.
Lita gasped a few more times after they broke the kiss. "We've gotta to Steph and Chris."
"You want me in the Alliance?" Steph asked Chris as he sat beside her. "Why?"
"McMahon's little girl and his heir, both against him? How wonderfully evil would that be?" Chris chuckled. "Besides, if you don't agree to it, they'll kill the crew. Including that Hurricane kid. So, did you like sleeping with him while I was gone?"
"I thought you were dead…"Steph protested. "I thought you were gone for good."
"You were wrong."
"I KNOW THAT!" She screamed. "I've been wrong about a lot of things. I was wrong to marry Hunter when I didn't love him. I was wrong to try and hurt my father the way I did. I was wrong to keep us a secret. I was wrong to sleep with Hurricane. But Chris, I'm trying to fix things. Hunter and I are getting divorced. And Hurricane knows that I'm in love with you. It's all okay…"
"Not quite," Chris snickered. "You're still on the wrong side."
Stephanie sat up. "Let me fix that," she whispered as she dove for his lips.
He felt her tongue invade his mouth, her soft arms wrapped around his back. He responded, pulling her closer to him, dueling her tongue with his. He ran his arms up and down her back as she kissed him, then started running his fingers through her hair.
He was so busy doing this, he didn't feel her tongue working on the chip until she had it mostly out.
Suddenly, he stopped and withdrew from her. Steph gasped as he reached into his own mouth and pulled the implant out, throwing it across the room. He turned back to her. "Missed you, you dirty skeezy brutal bottom feeding trash bag ho."
"Missed you too, choke artist," Steph gave into tears as she embraced Chris again. They sat together, embracing until the door to the darkened room swung open.
Hunter and Lita were silhouetted in the door frame. "Chris?" Lita called.
"Angelica?" he asked, cautiously.
She shook her head. "Lita."
"How do I know?"
Lita opened her mouth, showing Chris the implant was gone. "Now, your turn."
Chris returned the favor.
"Good to have you back…Captain," Lita smirked at him.
"Good to be back…Captain," Chris saluted her.
"Good to see you're both back…Captains," The four looked out into the hall to see Shane and the rest of the crew ready for battle. "And I am NOT a fuck up."
"Never said you were big brother," Steph and Jericho got off of the bed and each accepted a weapon from Shane.
"Heyman's gone too far. He never mentioned brain washing. If people come over of their own free will, that's one thing. But if he's gonna do this shit, that's just wrong."
"So what do we do?" Rob asked.
"Take out this place first," Lita looked around.
"Um…excuse me, I'm back!" Jericho pointed out. "I can be in control again. Two days and you're already used to it."
"Look, this is personal," Lita said. "We don't destroy this place, they have the drugs. They can shoot us up. I want Angelica gone for good."
"I'll agree to that," Jeff backed her up. "I want that bitch gone too."
"I can agree to that," Matt said.
"So, anybody have a plan?" Jericho asked.
"I've got a plan!" Jackie busted in. "Let's kick their asses 'til their heads fall off, then let's kick their heads until they scream."
Silence.
"I like it," Rob finally said.
"We need a real plan," Matt looked at Lita.
"Don't look at me," Lita said. "Heyman's one of the things I can't…I just…"
"How about we all just pick a friend and keep them busy while one of us figures out some way to blow this mother?" Jericho suggested.
"I like it," Rob smirked.
"Alright, who's your friend?" Jericho asked.
Rob's smirk grew sinister. "Austin."
"Dudleyz," both Hardyz suggested simultaneously.
"Trish 'I'll fuck whatever moves' Stratus." Steph looked down at her boots and smiled.
"I want my sister," Tori announced.
Hurricane was silent. "Don't you think someone should get to the ship, just in case?"
"Good idea," Jericho smiled at the kid. "You do that. And do it well you get your wings."
Jackie removed her knife again. "Regal."
"Anyone who didn't see that one coming?" Shane asked. "I'll go after..."
"You're blowing this place," Lita told him. "You know it better than the rest of us."
"Right."
"I want Angle," Hunter told them. "He's mine."
"Christian," Jericho pushed hair out of his face. "He killed a crew member."
"Under my watch," Lita protested.
"Yeah, but I know who you really want to hurt. And you'd better take him."
Lita sighed. "You're right. I've got Heyman."
"Do you know what my watch is saying?" Austin was asking D-Von and Bubba Ray Dudley as they stood in the open area in the central section. "Do you?"
"Um…you're about to get your asses kicked?" The three looked up to see Matt, Jeff, and RVD on the floor above them.
"What the hell?" The three Alliance members watched as the boys smiled at them. "Why don't you come down here and say that?"
"They had to ask, didn't they?" Jeff shrugged, then made the guns with his hands.
BAM!
Christian barely had time to realize what had hit him before Jericho had thrown him across the room.
"So, you liked killing your brother?" Jericho asked. "You get a little wood when you did that?"
"What the FUCK?" Christian asked, wiping blood from his mouth.
"Just a question. Did you get off on killing your older brother?"
"Yeah, it was a fucking religious experience!" Christian growled.
"Love thy brother," Jericho responded, coming after Christian again.
"Angle…." Hunter growled softly when he finally found his target.
"Triple H, wow. The Game." Angle approached him without fear. "We go back pretty far, don't we? I mean…we shared missions, shared tips, shared your wife."
"Not gonna work," Hunter drew his pistol. Angle dodged the first shot and rolled away. He drew his own weapon. "Now, this is what I've missed."
"Getting your ass kicked?"
"Nah," Hunter laughed. "You crying for mercy."
"I'm not crying for mercy."
"Yet."
"I knew you'd be here, sooner or later," Heyman said without turning around, watching her in the mirror behind his desk. "I knew you'd come."
"You've done things to me that are unquestionably evil," Lita told him. "You toyed with my head. You made me into a monster. And you did it all for your own little perverse pleasure. You liked seeing me hurt, kill and maim people. I want revenge."
"What you want is her gone," Heyman corrected. "I could do it."
He gasped as a shot fired right past his ear, shattering the glass. He spun to see Lita holding her gun, her body shaking with rage.
"Liar," she said.
"Caught ya sleeping, didn't I?"
Regal woke up in his office, tied to a chair, with Jackie standing over him. "Now… that little question of mine…"
Regal struggled again, realizing he'd already been relieved of his pants and underwear.
"Nope. You're not getting out. No questions this time." Jackie smirked as she held up her Bowie knife and a rubber band. "Well…one question. Let's get the answer."
Regal's scream sounded through the entire complex.
"What the hell was that?" Trish asked, standing up from her microscope in the drug lab.
"That was Regal being relieved of a set of balls he didn't use anyway," Shane informed her.
"Yeah, and we thought mom was the only one with grapefruit slicing abilities," Steph shrugged.
"How is mom, anyway?" Shane asked his sister.
"Pretty good. Misses you. Wants you home for Thanksgiving this year."
"I'll have to see if I can get the leave. I'd like to."
"It'd be nice to have the whole family together. But should I tell about Jericho before or after dinner?"
"EXCUSE ME!" Trish screamed. "Is everyone forgetting I'm here?"
"Right, sorry," Steph fired a dart at the girl.
Trish slumped to the floor.
"You didn't kill her, did you?" Shane asked.
"Nah, are you kidding? I really want those cute boots."
"MERCY! MERCY!" Angle screamed as Hunter put more pressure on his lower arm.
"Told you," Hunter reminded him as he fired a shot through his head.
"And that would be mine," Rob took Austin's watch off of the dazed man. He put it on and held it to his ear. "You know what this watch is saying to me?"
Austin blinked his eyes.
"It's not saying anything. It's a watch you stupid fuck."
There was a crashing noise, signifying that both Dudleyz were now disposed of.
"Let's get outta here," Matt suggested.
Sable raked Tori's eyes, then kicked her in the gut, taking her to the ground. "Tisk, tisk, sis." she punctuated this with another kick to her sister's stomach. "You've gone soft."
Tori shook her head. "You know, they say you can't teach an old dog new tricks." She pushed herself into a handstand and wrapped her legs around Sable's neck, then snapped it in one smooth motion.
"And you're one of the biggest bitches I've ever known."
Lita stared down Heyman, her chest rising and falling steadily. "Liar," she repeated.
Heyman slowly stood up. "Now, Red…"
"DON'T CALL ME THAT!" she screamed. "I was never Red to you. I was never even Lita to you. I was Angelica…"
Heyman reached beneath his desk and slowly opened the hidden case containing a device that looked like a gun loaded with a syringe. "Lita…I wanted what was best for you. I gave you a purpose."
"SHUT UP!" she ordered. "What was best was making me a ruthless killer? That's what was best?"
"No…that wasn't what was best." Heyman drew the gun and fired it at Lita, landing the syringe in her shoulder.
She pulled it out after it hand only injected halfway. Heyman watched as her face twisted, a dark smile spreading across it. "Baaaaaad idea."
She charged him, gun firing madly. He replied by drawing his gun and pointing it at her.
It came down to a standoff. Both had a pistol in their right hand, held against the other's temple. "Face it, you can't beat me." Heyman growled.
"Yes, I can," Lita smirked at him. She looked him in the eye and smirked. "Because you gave me a purpose."
In an inhumanly fast movement, Lita grabbed Heyman's right arm and before he could fire at her she had him turn around and gasping in pain. She kneed him in the back, then bent down and picked up a large shard of extremely sharp glass from the floor. When Heyman turned back around she swung out and slit his throat, then thrust the glass into his stomach and slash upwards, cutting him wide open.
He fell over…dead.
She heard a gasp behind her. Turning to face her crew, she wiped the sweat from her face.
"I didn't know you could do that," Hunter protested.
"I can't," Lita stumbled towards them. "Angelica could."
Shane and Steph suddenly ran towards the group, Stephanie carrying an unconscious Trish on her back. "We've gotta go now! This place is gonna blow!"
"How did you…?" Jericho asked.
"Trish had all the makings of a bomb in the lab. Just took some reassembling. Let's move!" Shane ordered.
Just as the last person, Jericho, climbed out of the entrance way, there was a huge BOOM that shook the entire ground.
When everything had settled down, Lita heard her radio going off. "This is Red. Over."
"Red? Hurricane! I'm back on the ship! And guess who I ran into on my way out?"
"Who?" Lita asked, assuming it was Storm and she was about to hear about the ass kicking Hurricane had handed him and…
A gasping voice interrupted that thought. "He ran into me."
"EDGE!" Lita screamed as she recognized the voice. "HOW IN THE HELL?"
"Ask Shane."
Lita looked at the dark haired heir apparent. "I'm not a fuck up." Shane smirked at her.
Hunter placed one arm around her waist as they looked over the seemingly harmless ground. He suddenly heard her say "Hunter?"
"Yeah Red?"
"Remember when you told me when I was ready, you'd be there?"
"Uh-huh."
"Well, I think I'm ready."
Co-Captain's Log, supplemental;
Everything's been going pretty smoothly since we all ended up back here. Jericho and I were made Co-Captains of the ship after a long and arduous debate and several rounds of rock-paper-scissors. Edge is expected to make a full recovery, though he may have breathing problems. Turns out, the son of a bitch had body armor on we didn't know about. He had a back up plan the whole time, which included a blood capsule and a few squibs, however since me becoming Angelica wasn't included in that plan it kinda never happened. He's currently recovering on main base until he's ready to return to action. Though he may be seeing some action there, if what I'm hearing about him and Merc is all true…guess I was just a phase.
Oh, yeah, there was a special ceremony back there for all of us. Every single one of us was promoted two ranks, and as a special bonus we get our old post back and never have to deal with an inspection again. Hurricane was also presented his wings, which apparently impressed Scattia and has the two of them sending mail back and forth. This could help him get over Steph, if it hasn't already.
Speaking of Steph, she transferred out here as medical officer until a more permanent solution can be found. She and Jericho are getting along great, especially since she told her parents about their relationship, and since the divorce papers went through. Plus, she looks great in those boots.
As for me…well, Hunter and I are getting along wonderfully. Matt was kinda weird to us at first, but he's calmed down considerably. Though Hunter and I still fight sometimes, it's good fighting and we know it's only because we love each other. I think we're perfect for each other because we each have seen the other's dark side and are willing to put it behind us.
I figured I'd let the crew give one final word as to what they learned through this whole ordeal.
Chris Jericho- I learned that love is the most powerful weapon in the universe. Well, love and Steph's tongue.
Steph- I learned that everyone has a good side and a bad side. Someone can be a horrible person, but can still be the key to a funky pair of boots.
RVD- I learned that I can stand up to people who talk to their watch. "Do you know what this watch is saying?" What an asshole.
Jeff Hardy- I learned that there's just something about Lita…OW! Matt!
Matt Hardy- I learned that sometimes it's not just enough to love someone, you have to respect them as well, or else you'll lose them. Like I did.
Tori- I learned my sister's taste in music still sucked. And that I need to change my call name again. And that sometimes life is more than just a series of one night stands and sometimes what we really want is someone who knows us and loves us for who we are…or not.
Jackie- I learned that when you cut a man's balls off it leaves one hell of a mess. I'm still trying to get the stains out of that uniform!
Hurricane- I learned that patience pays off, and that when your heart is broken it's a sign that you need someone else to help you put it back together.
Shane- I learned that I am not a fuck up.
Hunter- I learned that sometimes the person you want has been there the whole time, you just never knew it. Facing the past is more important than feeling bad about it. I also learned that Lita gives killer head.
Hunter felt a slap across the back of his head as he was typing his response. He stopped and erased the last sentence.
