It was business as usual on RAW the next week. Shelton Benjamin was wrestling Kane when a shadowy figure moved through the crowd.
"Hey!" screeched Jerry Lawler. "That's Sting!"
The Stinger hit the ring hard and fast. His bat was introduced to the head of Undertaker's brother.
"He should not be here" proclaimed Jim Ross. "That man is a SmackDown talent!"
As usual, wrestling announcers were masters of the obvious.
Sting continued striking both men with his bat. He then showed Shelton how it felt to be on the receiving end of a Stinger Splash. As the ring was cleared of the beaten competitors, Sting grabbed a microphone from Lillian Garcia and began to speak.
"I hope that The Undertaker is watching, because that was just a sample of what I'm going to do to him. And if I don't get to do it to him very soon on SmackDown, I'm pretty sure Eric Bischoff has a place on Raw for Sting!"
It was blackmail at its best. But Steve Borden didn't care. He wanted to face the best competition in the world. If he couldn't do that on SmackDown he would simply do it on Raw instead. So long as he was being challenged well, Borden didn't care who he faced.
That was good, since he was about to be challenged by Evolution.
"WOOO!!!" exclaimed Ric Flair as the foursome made their way down to the ring.
"Sting, on behalf of Evolution, let me say welcome to Raw. I haven't seen you in three years now, and I don't know if you've been following the business since then, so let me fill you in on something right now. This is RAW BROTHER, WOO!! And nobody that isn't already on Raw is going to take air time away from Evolution pal! So, as a guy who respects you, as a guy who traveled up and down the roads with you making history, I'm telling you Stinger. I'm begging you. Leave the ring now, or else."
Triple H was the next to take the microphone when Borden didn't move.
"So this is the man they call Sting huh? Who're they anyway? You know who they aren't? They aren't the ones on Raw calling the shots. They aren't the guys that have dominated this show for months. They aren't Evolution! And they sure as hell aren't The Game!
This is our show jack. We run things around here! And all of us in Evolution have a major problem with the idea of a SmackDown guy coming on our show, especially just to make demands of SmackDown and The Undertaker. You do that on your own time! NOW, GET THE HELL OUT OF OUR RING!!"
Sting responded by punching Hunter in the face. Evolution attacked, and Sting fought them off as if they were the New World Order from 1997.
The temptation for a one time only big ratings match was too great. Within minutes, Sting versus Triple H was announced as the Raw main event.
It was ten minutes of back and forth action. A Stinger Splash was blocked by a knee to the groin. A Pedigree was countered with a back body drop. Hunter's sledgehammer dueled with Sting's bat. Finally, Triple H attempted a suplex. Sting wriggled free and hit the Scorpion Death Drop.
And that was when the chaos ensued.
Evolution hit the ring to protect their leader from yet another loss. Shawn Michaels and Chris Benoit followed, but their dislike for Evolution took priority over brand loyalty. It was three against four however, and the numbers soon became too great.
And then the lights went out.
The Undertaker was watching Raw that evening. In fact, he was there. 'Taker made his way into the ring where the post-match brawl was continuing. Batista went after him out of instinct, but was quickly fought off. Calloway ignored the other fighting going on around him. He didn't come there to attack Raw brand members. He came there to get his hands on his real enemy.
In one quick motion, Sting was hurled out of the ring. The Dead Man followed him out of it and grabbed a chair from ringside, nailing Sting in the head as hard as he possibly could. The white paint on Borden's face soon turned red with blood.
Sting was dragged up the Raw ramp while Evolution continued their dominance back in the ring. Paul Bearer and some druids made their way out to greet Calloway and his fallen adversary at the entranceway. They were holding a large cross, or as Jim Ross politely referred to it "a symbol." The Undertaker and the druids hoisted the dazed Sting up on that "symbol", tying his arms to it.
Calloway looked deeply into Borden's eyes. They still weren't filled with any fear. But thanks to Steve's religious beliefs, they were now filled with anger. They were filled with very large quantities of anger.
This made The Undertaker smile. It was just the reaction he was hoping for.
"Hey!" screeched Jerry Lawler. "That's Sting!"
The Stinger hit the ring hard and fast. His bat was introduced to the head of Undertaker's brother.
"He should not be here" proclaimed Jim Ross. "That man is a SmackDown talent!"
As usual, wrestling announcers were masters of the obvious.
Sting continued striking both men with his bat. He then showed Shelton how it felt to be on the receiving end of a Stinger Splash. As the ring was cleared of the beaten competitors, Sting grabbed a microphone from Lillian Garcia and began to speak.
"I hope that The Undertaker is watching, because that was just a sample of what I'm going to do to him. And if I don't get to do it to him very soon on SmackDown, I'm pretty sure Eric Bischoff has a place on Raw for Sting!"
It was blackmail at its best. But Steve Borden didn't care. He wanted to face the best competition in the world. If he couldn't do that on SmackDown he would simply do it on Raw instead. So long as he was being challenged well, Borden didn't care who he faced.
That was good, since he was about to be challenged by Evolution.
"WOOO!!!" exclaimed Ric Flair as the foursome made their way down to the ring.
"Sting, on behalf of Evolution, let me say welcome to Raw. I haven't seen you in three years now, and I don't know if you've been following the business since then, so let me fill you in on something right now. This is RAW BROTHER, WOO!! And nobody that isn't already on Raw is going to take air time away from Evolution pal! So, as a guy who respects you, as a guy who traveled up and down the roads with you making history, I'm telling you Stinger. I'm begging you. Leave the ring now, or else."
Triple H was the next to take the microphone when Borden didn't move.
"So this is the man they call Sting huh? Who're they anyway? You know who they aren't? They aren't the ones on Raw calling the shots. They aren't the guys that have dominated this show for months. They aren't Evolution! And they sure as hell aren't The Game!
This is our show jack. We run things around here! And all of us in Evolution have a major problem with the idea of a SmackDown guy coming on our show, especially just to make demands of SmackDown and The Undertaker. You do that on your own time! NOW, GET THE HELL OUT OF OUR RING!!"
Sting responded by punching Hunter in the face. Evolution attacked, and Sting fought them off as if they were the New World Order from 1997.
The temptation for a one time only big ratings match was too great. Within minutes, Sting versus Triple H was announced as the Raw main event.
It was ten minutes of back and forth action. A Stinger Splash was blocked by a knee to the groin. A Pedigree was countered with a back body drop. Hunter's sledgehammer dueled with Sting's bat. Finally, Triple H attempted a suplex. Sting wriggled free and hit the Scorpion Death Drop.
And that was when the chaos ensued.
Evolution hit the ring to protect their leader from yet another loss. Shawn Michaels and Chris Benoit followed, but their dislike for Evolution took priority over brand loyalty. It was three against four however, and the numbers soon became too great.
And then the lights went out.
The Undertaker was watching Raw that evening. In fact, he was there. 'Taker made his way into the ring where the post-match brawl was continuing. Batista went after him out of instinct, but was quickly fought off. Calloway ignored the other fighting going on around him. He didn't come there to attack Raw brand members. He came there to get his hands on his real enemy.
In one quick motion, Sting was hurled out of the ring. The Dead Man followed him out of it and grabbed a chair from ringside, nailing Sting in the head as hard as he possibly could. The white paint on Borden's face soon turned red with blood.
Sting was dragged up the Raw ramp while Evolution continued their dominance back in the ring. Paul Bearer and some druids made their way out to greet Calloway and his fallen adversary at the entranceway. They were holding a large cross, or as Jim Ross politely referred to it "a symbol." The Undertaker and the druids hoisted the dazed Sting up on that "symbol", tying his arms to it.
Calloway looked deeply into Borden's eyes. They still weren't filled with any fear. But thanks to Steve's religious beliefs, they were now filled with anger. They were filled with very large quantities of anger.
This made The Undertaker smile. It was just the reaction he was hoping for.