(A/N: Hey guys I'm back, I just wanted to let you know that I added some more to the last chapter, so you might want to read what else I did with it before you read this.)

Chapter Twenty Three: The Great American Bash

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The Great American Bash was live from San Jose California and it was time for the main event. This was a ladder match, so a ten-foot ladder was placed at the base of the entrance ramp. Bobby Lashley's theme music hit and the number one contender came out from the back. Lashley was walking a little slowly and still had his ribs taped but, be he was determined to win the title and nothing Machetti did was going to stop him.

Lashley walked around the ladder and got in the ring, but once he did, Riot Time hit. Machetti came out from the back accompanied by the rest of Chaos Inc. Machetti was wearing his normal black wrestling gear and all four of them were wearing their Chaos Inc sweatshirts. Machetti was had his WWE Championship draped over his shoulder, and was holding hands with Maria.

London and Kendrick, who were walking behind Machetti and Maria were carrying the six foot ladder that Machetti had beaten down Lashley with on Raw last Monday. All four of them went around the ladder, and Machetti finally let go of Maria's hand as he got in the ring. Machetti handed his WWE Title to the referee, then took off his sweatshirt, while at the same time Paul and Brian slid the six-foot ladder into the ring behind Machetti.

The referee had just showed the WWE Championship to Lashley, then he took it and but it on the hook before calling for it to be hoisted up above the ring. Machetti was just picking up the six-foot ladder as the referee called for the bell, then got out of the ring. There was no further need for him during this match. Everything goes in a ladder match, the winner is the one who manages to get the title down.

As soon at the referee was gone Machetti charged at Lashley and went to drive the end of it into Lashley's ribs. But Lashley reached out and grabbed the ladder, then pushed Machetti backwards and away from him. Machetti glared angrily at Lashley, then moved the ladder and held it up and down, then once again charged at Lashley and went to smash the ladder into him.

But Lashley backed away from Machetti and moved to the side, he had decided that he didn't want to get very many shots to the ribs during this match, especially a shot with that ladder.

Machetti turned and faced Lashley, then took him by surprised and threw the ladder at him. But Lashley reached up and caught the ladder, then smirked at Machetti, now he was the one holding the dangerous weapon. But Machetti suddenly ran forward and jumped into the air, then hit the ladder with a corkscrew dropkick, knocking the ladder back into Lashley and knocking Lashley down to the ground, with the ladder on top of him.

Machetti ran forward and jumped into the air, then did a back-flip and came crashing down on top of the ladder for a standing shooting star press, crushing Lashley underneath the ladder. Machetti got up then turned and ran to the ropes, jumped up onto the middle on, then back-flipped off of it with a springboard moonsault. Machetti came crashing down on top of the ladder, and once again drove it down into Lashley.

Machetti rolled off of the ladder and held his own ribs. He might not be injured but his he kept landing full force on the ladder like that he might as well just GIVE the title to Lashley. Machetti got back up to his feet and then looked up at his title, the six-foot ladder wasn't going to be tall enough to reach it. Machetti turned to Paul and gestured to the ten-foot ladder and the base of the entrance ramp. "Get me the ladder before he gets up!"

London nodded then walked around the ring and over to the ten foot ladder. He quickly folded it up then went back to the ring and slid it in for Machetti. Machetti practically ran over and grabbed the ladder, then he walked into the middle of the ring and set it up. But before Machetti climbed up the ladder, he noticed the Lashley had pushed the other ladder off of him and was starting to get up.

Machetti quickly went over to Lashley and pulled him to his feet, then went to whip him across the side of the ring into a corner, but Lashley reversed it and sent Machetti into the corner instead. Lashley took control by running into the corner and driving his shoulder into Machetti's stomach. Lashley held onto Machetti and stood back up, hoisting Machetti onto his shoulder in the process.

Lashley walked into the middle of the ring, then dropped down to his knees for a gutbuster. A look of pain crossed Lashley's face as the rolled Machetti off of his shoulder. Dropping to his knees so quickly had aggravated Lashley's rib injury, Lashley held his ribs then turned to the ten-foot ladder and walked over to it. This wasn't really his style of match, but if he wanted to win the title he'd have to climb the ladder eventually.

Lashley slowly started climbing the ladder, but missed Machetti pulling himself up to his feet. Machetti turned around and saw Lashley on top of the ladder, Machetti ran over to Lashley and grabbed his leg with both hand, Machetti then pulled hard on Lashley's foot, causing him to be yanked down and his ribs to come in hard contact with the top of the ladder.

Machetti looked up at Lashley and smirked then went over to the six-foot ladder and set it up. Machetti quickly climbed the six-foot ladder and stood on top of it, then lunged across the ring over to the ten-foot ladder and hit the side of the ladder with a dropkick. The force that Machetti had hit the ladder with knocked the ladder over, causing Lashley to fall down to the mat with it.

Machetti looked across the ring and smirked at Lashley, who painfully rolled onto his back and pulled himself out from underneath the ladder. Machetti quickly went back over to the six-foot ladder and climbed up on top of it, then Machetti launched himself across the ring. Machetti almost went coast-to-coast and came crashing down on Lashley's ribs with a diving headbutt.

Machetti rolled off of Lashley and held his head, while Lashley thrashed on the mat and screamed out in pain. Machetti slowly got up to his feet while holding his head, then turned to Kendrick, "get me some chairs!" Machetti yelled at Brian. Kendrick turned and glanced at London, then shrugged and went over to the ring announcers corner and after a little bit of pushing got a pair of chairs. Kendrick went back over to the ring and slid the two chairs into the ring for Machetti, then shrugged as he went back over to London.

Machetti quickly picked up on of the chairs and walked over to an empty corner with it. Machetti unfolded the chair and placed it on the ground then went and got the other chair and placed it about six feet away from the first one. Machetti quickly glanced across the ring at Lashley, then went over to the six-foot ladder and folded it back up. Machetti brought the ladder over to the chairs and set it up in between them.

Machetti smiled down at his handiwork then turned to Lashley, who was in another corner and walked over to him. Machetti reached down and pulled Lashley up to his feet, but Lashley suddenly grabbed Machetti and whipped him into the ropes. Machetti bounced off of the ropes and started coming back, but Lashley put on a sudden burst of speed and connected with a… SPEAR! Machetti was out cold as Lashley got up to his feet.

But Lashley wasn't done yet, and he quickly reached down and pulled Machetti up, then hoisted him up onto his shoulder. Lashley turned around and saw the ladder set up on the two chairs then quickly sprinted across the ring, POWERSLAM ONTO THE LADDER! The crowd started chanting LASHLEY over and over again while Machetti rolled off of the ladder and held his back.

Lashley slowly stood back up and walked over to the ten-foot ladder. Machetti glanced over at Machetti, who was showing no signs of movement, then set up the ladder in the middle of the ring. Lashley walked around the ladder so he was facing Machetti, but as he was about to climb the ladder, London and Kendrick hit the ring and took Lashley down from behind.

Kendrick reached down, pulled Lashley up and held his arms behind his back. London quickly ran forward and then connected with a dropsault, right to Lashley's ribs. Kendrick let Lashley fall down to the mat then smirked at London. The two reached down to pulled Lashley up to his feet again, but when they went to whip Lashley across he ring, Lashley suddenly spread his feet out. Lashley shook his head and he pulled back on London and Kendrick, he wasn't going anywhere.

Paul and Brian looked at each other in shock, but Lashley suddenly rushed forward and took them both down with a pair of clotheslines. Lashley reached down and pulled Kendrick to his feet, then ran with him and tossed him over the top rope, and down to the floor. Lashley turned back around and went over to Paul, then pulled him up to his feet, but London suddenly punched Lashley in the ribs, then went to push him backwards. But Lashley suddenly grabbed London and launched him over his head, and over the top rope for a belly-to-belly suplex. London came crashing down to the floor and landed with a loud thud.

Lashley turned back around and finally started climbing up the ladder, but when Lashley was half way up, Machetti got back up. Machetti walked around the ladder and climbed up the opposite side of the ladder from Lashley. Lashley kept climbing until he was only one rung from the top, but Machetti went until he was one rung under Lashley, then punched him hard in the ribs.

But Lashley suddenly reached out and grabbed Machetti's head then slammed it hard down onto the top of the ladder, then brought it back up and slammed it back down again. Lashley reached down a little bit and grabbed Machetti's sides, then leaned him over the top of the ladder and stuck Machetti's head in between his legs. With a loud grunt Lashley lifted Machetti up onto his shoulder, then launched Machetti off of him and off of the ladder, POWERBOMB OFF OF THE LADDER!

Maria let out a loud scream as Machetti plummeted downward and ended up going back-first, ONTO THE OTHER LADDER! Lashley just powerbombed Machetti from ten feet onto a steel ladder! Machetti might be broken in half! The fans in the arena were going crazy and were on their feet chanting HOLY SHIT! HOLY SHIT! Lashley looked down at Machetti, and saw that he had rolled off of the ladder and that Maria was now in the ring checking if he was okay.

Lashley glanced down at Maria for a moment, wondering if it was safe to go for the belt with her in the ring, but decided to go for it anyway and reached up to grab the belt. Lashley's hands were on the gold and were fumbling to pull it out from the large carabinier. But suddenly London and Kendrick were in the ring, and the two of them worked together and knocked the ladder over. Lashley lost his grip on the title and ended up crashing down to the mat.

The fans didn't like that one bit and almost blew the roof off of the arena with the volume of their boos for London and Kendrick. Now both Machetti and Bobby Lashley were down. Paul and Brian ran over to Machetti and Maria to check if Machetti was okay, then the three of them carefully pulled Machetti off of the mat and up to his feet. The three Chaos Inc members checked on Machetti then stepped back and were relieved to find that Machetti could actually stand after what just happened to him.

On the other side of the ring Lashley was moving and had managed to pull himself back up to his feet, then he glared across the ring at Chaos Inc. Machetti looked around him then nodded to his faction, "I've got this." Paul, Brian, and Maria left the ring, leaving Machetti once again, alone against Lashley. The two combatants made their way to the middle of the ring and locked up, but Lashley over powered Machetti and pushed him backwards, then with another hard push, he pushed Machetti down to the ground.

Machetti got back up and glared at Lashley, then he walked back to the middle of the ring and signaled for another lock up. Lashley reached out and locked up with Machetti, but Mahctti suddenly brought up his knee and kneed Lashley in the ribs. Machetti quickly took advantage and planted Lashley with an Impaler. Machetti got back up, then ran, jumped over Lashley, made it to the ropes, jumped up onto the top rope, back-flipped off of it and launched himself across the ring, then crashed down on Lashley with a moonsault.

Machetti got back up and dragged Lashley the rest of the way into the middle of the ring, then went off and got the ten-foot ladder. Machetti took the ladder and set it up so it pinned Lashley down to the ground, then started climbing. When Machetti was about half way up the ladder, Lashley realized what was happening and started struggling, if he didn't get out of this, Machetti would get the title and win the match. Lashley suddenly reached up with his hands and grabbed the sides of the ladder, then with a great effort, managed to lift one side of the ladder up enough to knock it over.

Machetti came crashing down to the mat with the ladder on top of him, and Lashley was able to get up to his feet. Lashley slowly went over to Machetti and extracted him from underneath the ladder, then pulled him up to his feet. But Machetti suddenly punched Lashley ribs, then connected with a second shot in the ribs, causing Lashley to let go of him and double over. Machetti quickly jumped up and landed on Lashley's shoulders, spun around a little, then launched Lashley across the ring with a hurricurana.

Lashley ended up coming to a stop a little bit away from the six-foot ladder that was set up on top of the chairs. Machetti got back up and went over to Lashley, then picked him up off of the mat and placed him on top of the six-foot ladder. Machetti then walked around the ladder and climbed up onto the top rope. Machetti quickly jumped up and springboarded off of the top rope, then did a back-flip while spinning sideways and came crashing down on top of Lashley's ribs for a corkscrew shooting star press.

Machetti rolled off of Lashley and the ladder and held his chest for a moment, then slowly got back up to his feet. Machetti went across the ring and got the ten-foot ladder, then carried it back into the middle of the ring and set it up. Machetti quickly started climbing the ladder in hopes of getting to the title before Lashley recovered. But unfortunately for Machetti, Lashley did recover and managed to roll off of the ladder and climb up the other one before Machetti could reached the title.

Lashley and Machetti then preceded to have a slugfest ten feet up in the air, each of them alternating between landing hard punches to the face. Until Lashley connected with a particularly hard punch to Machetti's face, and Machetti had to grab onto the ladder to keep himself from falling off. Lashley quickly seized the advantage and grabbed Machetti, then droves his own head into Machetti's for a head-butt. Lashley then connected with a string of four punches, then grabbed Machetti's head again and slammed it down into the top of the ladder.

Machetti slumped down against the ladder, leaving Lashley to climb up another rung and reach for the belt. But Machetti saw what was happening and quickly punched Lashley in the ribs, then he brought up his other arm and connected with another hard punch. Lashley held his ribs in pain, and Machetti quickly took advantage and grabbed Lashley's head and pulled him down, causing Lashley's ribs to smash into the top of the ladder.

Machetti smirked then climbed up another rung and reached up for the title, hoping to grab it while Lashley was still dazed. But Lashley recovered quickly enough to blast Machetti in the face with a hard shot. Lashley then grabbed Machetti's sides and tossed him to the side, causing Machetti to fall off of the ladder, and crash down to the mat ten feet below.

Lashley was incredibly winded and took a moment to glare down at Machetti, but that moment was enough time for Paul London to get into the ring and climb up the other side of the ladder. But Lashley took advantage as soon as London got up and connected with a hard shot to the face, and then followed up with a seemingly endless string of punches.

Outside of the ring, Kendrick saw that his partner wasn't going to win this fight, so he quickly got into the ring and took actions into the own hands. Brian backed up against the ropes, then sprinted across the ring, jumped up and shoved the ladder, causing the ladder to tip and fall over, causing both London and Lashley to go crashing down to the mat. Brian knew that he had hurt his tag team partner, but he also knew that Lashley was seconds away from tossed Paul off of the ladder and grabbed the title, and keeping the title around Machetti's waist was the number one priority at the moment.

Speaking of Machetti, Kendrick quickly turned around and went over to Machetti, then helped him up to his feet. Kendrick nodded at Machetti then went over to London and rolled him out of the ring and checked on him on the outside, leaving Machetti once again, alone against Lashley, just as the match was intended.

Machetti crossed the ring and climbed up onto the top rope, then glared at Lashley and waited for him to get back up. Machetti watched as Lashley grabbed the ropes and slowly used them to pull himself up off of the mat, then just as Lashley was turning around, Machetti lunged off of the turnbuckle looking for a crossbody. But as Lashley turned around, he saw Machetti flying at him in the air, and quickly reached up and caught him. Lashley flipped Machetti up so he was laying across his shoulders, then dropped down to his knees for a gutbuster.

Lashley rolled Machetti off of him, then dragged him over to the six-foot ladder. Lashley rolled Machetti onto the ladder, then to the shock of the fans, walked around it and climbed up onto the top rope. But as Lashley was getting ready to jumped off of the top rope onto Machetti, Maria suddenly reached up and grabbed Lashley's leg. Lashley glared down at Maria then 'gently' pushed her off of him, causing her to fall down to the floor.

But as Lashley turned back to Machetti, he suddenly saw him hop up onto the second rope across from him. Machetti connected with two hard punches to the ribs, disabling Lashley, then Machetti lifted Lashley up and held him in front of him. Machetti smirked and then launched Lashley over his head… MACHETE'S BLADE ONTO THE LADDER!

Machetti rolled off of Lashley and the ladder, then went across the ring and got the ten-foot ladder that was still on its side. Machetti lifted up the ladder so it was back up, then walked around it and started climbing. This was it, all he had to do was reached up and get the title, then this match would be over. But Lashley, wasn't done yet! He quickly rolled off of the ladder, then went over to Machetti and grabbed his leg, with one hard yank, Lashley pulled Machetti down the ladder and to the floor.

Lashley quickly grabbed Machetti and lifted him onto his shoulder, then turned away from the ladder and towards an empty corner. Lashley ran across the ring and went for a running powerslam, but suddenly Machetti slipped off behind Lashley and dropped down to his knees as he shoved Lashley from behind causing his opponent's head to smash into the turnbuckle.

Machetti got back up and turned to London and Kendrick, then gestured for them to get into the ring. "We're ending this now!" Brian and Paul got into the ring, and helped Machetti drag Lashley over to the six-foot ladder. Machetti walked around the ladder and motioned for London and Kendrick to lifted Lashley up, which they slowly did. Machetti reached over the ladder and pulled Lashley's head so his ribs were over the ladder, then Machetti turned around climbed up the top rope.

Then with a nod to London and Kendrick, Machetti launched himself up into the air and Machetti came crashing down on Lashley's back, while at the same time, Paul and Brian, slammed Lashley ribs-first, down onto the ladder, causing Lashley to get sandwiched between the ladder and Machetti. London and Kendrick pulled Machetti off of Lashley and onto the floor, then they helped him back up to his feet. Machetti smirked at the other members of his faction, then turned around and went over to the ten-foot ladder.

Machetti slowly climbed up the ladder, knowing Lashley was out cold and couldn't do anything to stop him. But suddenly when his fingers were inches from the title… Machetti stopped, and then climbed DOWN and OFF of the ladder. Paul and Brian looked at Machetti in confusion, but Machetti simply walked over to Lashley, then pulled him off of the ladder and maneuvered him so he way laying underneath it, and so his head was pointing towards the corner.

Machetti then took the ladder and lifted it up off of the chairs, then went over to the corner, and with the ladder still in his hands, climbed up onto the middle rope, and then the top rope. Machetti held the ladder up in front of him, then launched it over his head and did a back-flip, MACHETTI JUST DID THE MACHETE'S BLADE TO THE LADDER… ONTO LASHLEY! The ladder, and then Machetti came crashing down on Lashley's ribs, and Machetti slowly rolled off of the ladder and leaned against the ropes to catch his breath.

Machetti nodded to Lashley, then pulled himself up with the ropes, and walked over to the ten-foot ladder. Then, once again, Machetti started climbing, but this time when he reached the top, Machetti grabbed the title and pulled it free. MACHETTI WINS! MACHETT RETAINS THE TITLE! Machetti moved around so he was sitting on top of the ladder, then spun the spinner on the title and raised the belt above his head. Machetti was met with an extremely loud mixed reaction from the crowd. One half was booing because Machetti had used underhanded tactics to win, while the other half cheered because that match was freakin' sweet!

Machetti climbed down off of the ladder and stood in the middle of the ring, he caught Maria as she ran up to him, then lifted her up into the air and spun her around, while pressing his title into her back. Machetti place Maria back on the ground then hugged both Brian and then Paul, before once again raising the belt over his head.

Machetti may have assaulted Lashley every week, and he may have injured his ribs. The members of his faction may have interfered, saving Machetti many times throughout the match, which was perfectly legal in a no disqualification ladder match. But the bottom line was, when everything was said and done, Machetti was STILL the WWE Champion, and with that the Great American Bash went off the air.

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Well I don't know about you guys, but I had fun with that. Maybe I'll ladder matches for Machetti more often, or better yet, I'll somehow write him into the Money in the Bank match next WrestleMania (if there is one). But until then…

'Till Next Time…

Peace!