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DON'T TRUST THE GIRL
Lightning crashed outside the window as the gathering walked back into the dressing room. Beulah sat hunched on the floor, her knees drawn up to her chin and her arms wrapped around her legs. Combined with the kilt and sweater she was wearing, it gave her more than a little of a look of a waiting worried school girl. She looked up as the group came in and her eyes lightened. Her impatience had manifested itself in raging angry lightning bolts outside but now that she could see the group were relatively unharmed, it all trickled away.
"How are they?" she asked, lifting her soulful eyes to the group
"Bloody, beaten, left to fume over their fate" listed Raven, dropping down to her side
"Out for revenge soon I'm sure" added Victoria, shedding her jacket and cap and tossing them onto her bag as she spoke
"Which means we have to be utterly aware of everything" Sting concluded
He turned to Undertaker who was stood perfectly still against one of the locker room walls, his eyes staring ahead. He seemed completely controlled, everything in check. Except that his eyes were on fire with something; vengeance, anger, adrenaline. He was aware of everything around him. All senses broke into his consciousness, teeming with life and feelings. Everything attached themselves to him. He could not move without being affected by the atmosphere, so in tune was he with it all. He merely had to identify it and sort it into its proper place. He looked electrified
"Desperado, what do you sense?" Sting asked quietly
"Everything" breathed Undertaker "yet there is something else present, something that has manifested itself which does not belong to this Earth, like ourselves it is made of something entirely different"
"Of the darkness?" questioned Victoria "I thought we were the only ones"
"The only ones presently" corrected Sting "new members are imbued with darkness at different times in their lives, when it is their turn to join the gathering"
"Yet this one is not of the darkness" atoned Undertaker, his eyes looking past them into what he could see and they couldn't "there is something different I cannot discern, not of the darkness as we are but of light, vengeful righteousness and of a desire to see things put right"
"For justice" said Sting
"Yes" replied Undertaker "yet I know not where he came from, who sent him or his purpose here yet his presence is strong but not in this arena, he resides with our Smackdown comrades"
"Any ideas who it could be?" asked Victoria
"There is no one I know of who could possess that strange quality Desperado has described" Raven admitted
Sting was silent, his thoughts concentrated on Desperado's words. There was a different kind of darkness present now. A friend maybe or a foe sent to thwart their plans. He wondered where the place for this new presence was. As the Dark Warrior, Sting was prophesised to walk alone on his path for justice. Yet the Walker of the Night was told to walk with him and Desperado, Hex Priestess and Shadows also felt their calling was to join him on his quest. This new power could be a curse or a gift. It all depended on how they handled it.
"We must leave this new power for a moment" announced Sting, his voice clear "tonight Shadows must join Evolution where they choose to go, Desperado focus on her and make sure she is unharmed, Priestess you shadow her, for now I believe we should leave the arena before Evolution tell Bischoff about our appearance here, we can regroup before Evolution leave for the night"
Undertaker nodded
"There is no one to stop us from leaving, I suggest we leave while we have the chance" he voiced
Sting nodded once, slinging the bat over his shoulder and walking out of the door. Raven helped Beulah to her feet and followed quickly after, followed by Victoria and Undertaker. The corridors were empty; there was almost silence as they walked back out of the unguarded doors. Soon they reached the black pick-up truck and all slid in, Victoria joining Raven and Beulah in the back seat.
"We shall return to my haunting and prepare for this evening" said Sting as he started the truck's engine "be prepared for a certain vicious backlash if we don't play this right"
The noise in the club was a low vibrating hum. This wasn't the sort of place where it was too loud to talk and you had to yell to be heard. This was quiet and seductive, allowing all kinds of conversation to take place. The décor was fancy as well, all dark midnight blues and soft pinks and the lights on the dance floor were soft gold that picked out the beauty of its occupants. Evolution had taken over a whole plush seating area for themselves. Each man was surrounded by barely-dressed women fawning over them and glasses of expensive champagne, as well as an ice bucket of the stuff, littered the tables. Victoria smiled from her strategic position at the bar. They were ripe for information.
"How are they looking?" Beulah asked from her stool beside her
"Ready for your entrance" answered Victoria, hopping down off her own stool "come on"
As the two women began walking towards the seating area, Victoria felt a pounding in her head. A vision was incoming. Quickly she dived around the nearest wall before Evolution spotted her and stood, breathing hard as she gulped in breaths to steady herself. The vision began blossoming in her mind. Beulah had followed her, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"Too much vodka" she said in answer the questioning glances the pair were receiving
Victoria scrunched her eyes closed tightly and concentrated on the vision slamming into her mind. It was a building made of old grey stones, there were candles lit along all the walls. A silver cross stood at the front and a white robed figure knelt before it, hands folded in prayer and lips moving inaudibly in unknown chants. The eyes chilled her. Such a peculiar colour, glimmering and glinting of something unknown. The facial expression was hidden by the hood of the robe. The figure got to its feet and spread its arms out, seeming to implore heaven for something. A voice spoke into the inkiness
"Darkness will consume the light, beckoning his return"
Then nothing
Victoria gasped, starting to shake. Beulah wrapped an arm around her shoulders to try and steady the violent shakes.
"Are you ok Priestess?" she asked quietly in Victoria's ear
"Vision.....the darkness......Desperado" Priestess blurted out, spitting the words she could form vocally.
They stood that way for a few minutes and then the shakes subsided. Cautiously, Beulah drew back from her female counterpart. Victoria's eyes were still wild but her mouth was drawn into a hard line
"What did you see?" asked Beulah
"The new kind of darkness Desperado sensed, a figure robed in white and he was chanting, there was a phrase, a prophecy of some kind" Victoria frowned "it was familiar, I think its linked to Desperado"
They stood for a few moments more. Beulah could feel a slight buzz in her head which she knew to be Desperado, monitoring them from wherever he had secreted himself. Raven and Sting themselves were hidden somewhere in the club as well. She raised her eyes heavenward. She guessed they were roosting somewhere up above, where they felt most comfortable and able to lend a fist or two if necessary. She wondered if Desperado could see Victoria's visions.
Victoria straightened out. There was a sharpness to her movements which energised Beulah and made her smile prettily
"We can figure that all out later, it's your turn" Victoria said with a purpose to her voice
She smiled, grabbed one of Beulah's hands and walked out from behind the corner to where Evolution sat. Triple H was the first to notice them and smiled widely.
"Victoria, what can we do for you?" he asked
Victoria kept a remarkably straight face despite his severe facial bruising. Undertaker had roughed him up well. She also chose to ignore the way his eyes roamed her body, seeming to appreciate her black leather pants and tiny spider-web top.
"I just wanted to congratulate you on your match tonight, you were amazing" she cooed
"Same as every night" commented Flair, a particularly curvaceous blonde snuggled to his chest
"Who's your friend?" Randy asked, eyes focused on Beulah
"Oh this is an old friend of mind, Beulah this is Evolution" Victoria indicated the seated group "and their friends"
"Beulah? That's an unusual name" Randy said intrigued
"I'm an unusual person" Beulah answered, eyes lowered shyly
She was playing the demure nervous girl to perfection. She and Victoria had decided to miss out her surname since it was so distinctive and they weren't sure how much Evolution knew about ECW. Flair had an incredible knowledge of the business and chances were he knew a lot about such an influential company. They had to be careful.
Triple H was eyeing Beulah up in the same way a hawk eyed its prey
"Alright girls pack it up" he said, shooing the girls away who surrounded him "I'll have to keep for another night"
The girls quickly scattered and flocked around Randy and Batista instead. Triple H kept his attentions firmly on Beulah. Victoria squeezed her hand a little
"Got time to spend?" Triple H asked, an arrogant smile on his face
"With you? Of course" replied Beulah, sitting herself down next to him
"I'll see you around Hunter" Victoria said before slipping into the night and emerging at the bar at a place where she could observe them from
Triple H didn't notice. His eyes were locked on Beulah and the way her slim body looked in the pale shimmering dress she wore. She smiled demurely and let him put his arm round her as he poured her a drink. All she had to do was get him to a hotel room or maybe even outside the club. No that was too risky, someone might see.
Soon she was close to his chest, laughing at the joke he was currently whispering in her ear. A quick surreptitious look around confirmed to her that the rest of Evolution had picked out their girl for the night and were looking to get back to their hotel rooms. None of them would leave though until their leader gave the word. Beulah pulled back a little from Triple H and smiled
"I think your boys are desperate for some hotel room action" she said quietly
"They're not the only ones" he murmured
"Well I'm ready if you are" she replied, a teasing smile on her face
With a smirk, Triple H signalled to the rest of Evolution that the time had come for them all to head off to their hotel rooms. En masse they exited the bar. Beulah made sure she didn't even look Victoria's way but knew the tall diva would be following them closely.
Once outside the club, a long silver stretch limo pulled up. It was summoned as though by magic. One by one, the members of Evolution got in with their dates for the evening. Last of all, Beulah followed Triple H in, finding the interior surprisingly roomy. She felt a pulse in her head, letting her know that Desperado was still keeping a sharp eye on her. She was strangely comforted, his comfortable ancient presence somewhat reassuring. Triple H slipped an arrogant arm around her which she allowed as the noise got louder and louder in the limo as the girls giggled and the champagne flowed.
It wasn't long before they reached the hotel. Beulah had managed to keep the conversation about herself to a minimum, knowing that the slightest detail could giveaway who she was. Luckily, Triple H liked to talk about himself a lot so it saved her a great deal of trouble and lying.
"See you tomorrow champ" Ric crowed as the group split ways once inside the hotel "don't exhaust yourself too much tonight"
"Likewise Ric, she might finish you off" countered Triple H, as Ric laughing headed down the hallway with his blonde in tow
Batista and Randy made their excuses and left rapidly with their dates giggling. Beulah felt her heart begin to flutter, not from nervousness but anticipation. This was her key part in the gathering's plan and she was determined not to screw it up. Hunter smiled and slotted the hotel key card in at his hotel room door. He led the way in and watched as Beulah walked in and shut the door after her. The room was as vast as she expected with a king-sized bed dominating the room.
"You're in for quite an evening" Hunter promised, walking towards her slowly seductively "I hope you're prepared to get worn out"
"Something like that"
He ran a hand down her arm and drew even closer to her. Beulah counted slowly in her head. As Hunter lowered his head to her's, she suddenly drew a knee up swiftly to his groin. As he staggered backwards in painful shock, she punched him hard in the face. His face was a curious mix of anger and pain. She knew she had to put him away before he managed to get the upper hand. Swiftly she spun around and landed a hard well-practiced kick at his head. He fell to the floor, knocked out. Quickly, she searched his pockets. She found his wallet and flipped through it hurriedly, finding only casino chips and a few credit cards. Evolution it seemed did not carry cash.
"Nothing" she muttered
She spun on her silver heel and looked around the room, hands on hips contemplatively. There had to be something in this room that helped add another piece to the puzzle. She rifled through the bedside cabinet, for something, anything. There was nothing of interest. Then she found an intriguing thickish envelope wedged between the customary hotel room Bible and a few back issues of Playboy. Quickly she pulled it free and emptied its contents onto the king-sized bed. Inside there were papers, lots of documents, typed and handwritten. She knew she didn't have too long before Hunter came round wanting answers. She began to rapidly pick through the unmarked envelope's contents. There were magazine articles from various wrestling fanzines with certain paragraphs circled, newspaper clippings and most curious of all, lists of wrestlers from both the WWE and the independent circuit. They didn't seem to be written in any particular order but simply written down in a long scrawled mess. Beulah could make out various names but some were unfamiliar to her. She knew that Sting would be able to decipher more than her and Undertaker would maybe know the hidden meanings. Maybe Victoria's vision also tied in with it somehow. Quickly she stuffed the written lists into her bra and packed everything else back into the envelope.
There was a light knock at the door. For a few terrifying seconds Beulah mentally juggled with the concept of explaining how the leader of Evolution came to be knocked out on the floor while she, a supposedly harmless girl, was perfectly alright and raiding his room. Then Raven appeared., closing the door behind him.
"How'd you get in? I have the key card" hissed Beulah, straightening up from where she was tucking the envelope back into the cabinet
"Not many doors are closed when Desperado is around" replied Raven before his eyes settled on the fallen Hunter at his feet "you hit him pretty good, did he touch you?"
"Only on the arms and legs, nothing more" reassured Beulah "I took care of him"
"Lets get him onto the bed"
Between them they heaved the former champion onto the bed, arranging him as though he'd fallen onto it in a drunken sprawl. Beulah removed his expensive suit jacket and unbuttoned his pale blue shirt. Raven placed a hand on the man's scarred forehead
"You had a good night, you don't remember a thing" he atoned in his strange enchanting voice
Beulah quickly scribbled a note on a piece of hotel stationary from the desk and stuck it on the pillow.
"You're so good at that voice" she said smiling "no wonder so many people are enchanted into working for you"
"I speak the words, they follow my spirit" Raven replied, slipping an arm around her waist "I can command them, its part of where my powers lie, the enchantment of others"
"I have a lot to tell Dark Warrior, we should go find him"
"They're waiting in the truck outside"
Together the pair slipped out, carefully locking the door after them. It was hours before Hunter woke up, well into midday. When he did, his head swirled with vague uneasy memories. He knew he'd gone back to his room with a girl but there was no one beside him and most of his clothes were still on. Then he saw the note. With aching eyes he plucked it from the pillow and read it
Hunter
Thanks for a dreamy night
I had to go for an early start at work
I didn't wake you because you looked pretty tired
See you next time you're in town
B
He couldn't for the life of him remember her name.