Chapter 10: Crossroad
June 1-27, 2004

Author's note: just to not get in trouble, I should remind everyone that I don't own anything that has to do with WWE. Also, please be kind with the "June 1, 2004" section; I could only uncover one clip for that date and guessed the rest with a little help.

Thank you, ChantalCalaway, for helping me with this chapter by giving me an idea seed

June 1, 2004

Paul Bearer had been abducted by the Dudley Boyz, at the order of the demented human Paul Heyman. No one knew the intent that Heyman had…they just knew that he was proud to snatch the infamous urn that had been dropped…

Pandora sighed and stretched her back. Lacti was out on a date and Hornesta was keeping Pandora company. They were watching that night's wrestling episode but they were not paying that much attention. They did watch the matches enough to get the gist of them. They really wanted to see what Heyman had in mind with the urn since, in the past, Bearer was the only one who could really use it.

During the final commercial break, Hornesta brought up that subject. "Any ideas?"

Pandora shook her head. She then admitted, "I'm torn about my reaction." Seeing Hornesta's puzzled look, Pandora explained, "I mean, I know what Bearer means to Undertaker…but I really could care less about the fat man."

Hornesta was surprised by this admission. "What? You, the high priestess, don't care about Undertaker's right hand man?"

Pandora stood up, looking a little miffed. "No. Not after what he did when I was a kid…I've never liked him." She then headed for the kitchen, needing both a drink and some alone time. She knew what she wanted and immediately got a can of stingray venom from the fridge. When she closed the door, she saw that her reflection did not have a can and had its arms crossed. Pandora would have freaked out but she also noticed that her reflection had pure demonic black eyes. Because of this, Pandora rolled her eyes. "What do you want?"

Her other self smirked. "You don't sound happy to me."

Pandora took a sip and glared at her reflection. "I never am. You caused me nothing but trouble."

Her other self laughed. "Trouble? It's because of me that you're now an Undertaker encyclopedia. It's because of me that you had your time in the Ministry…"

Pandora added, "And it was because of you that I got kicked out."

Her other side rolled her eyes. "They were the weak ones." Pandora turned around to leave and her other self reminded her, "You can't get rid of me. No matter what you do…I'll always be in your mind."

Pandora pretended to ignore her other self. But she knew that her shadow was right; she was a part of the demoness that would never go away. Her thoughts were interrupted by Hornesta calling out, "Pandora, it's Heyman! He has the urn!"

Pandora quickly went back to the couch and watched. At the moment, Heyman was holding out the urn to Undertaker, as if waiting for the demon to respond. Pandora rolled her eyes. "Pathetic human. Like he can control the Undertaker."

Hornesta was not sure. She pointed out, "Then why isn't Undertaker attacking or taking back the urn?"

Pandora looked and saw that her friend was right. Undertaker continued to just look at Heyman, looking both annoyed…and trapped. Pandora started to get worried; it took a lot of make the Undertaker look that way. Heyman refused to back down with the urn…and it eventually worked; Undertaker got down on one knee and acknowledged Heyman as his new controller. Pandora and Hornesta paled as Heyman celebrated, feeling the power of control already. Hornesta shook her head. "How could he do that?"

Pandora sighed, still floored. "He has no choice. Look at him." Upon closer look, Hornesta saw that her friend spoke the truth; Undertaker looked like he was trapped in a situation where he could not get out of. At the sight of Heyman again, Pandora threw her can at the TV in anger. Hornesta recoiled from the outburst. "Hey, settle down."

Pandora growled. "How can I? That bastard went after Undertaker where it would hurt him the most! That is the lowest you can go! How dare he do that!"

Hornesta raised her eyebrow. "We've seen this before. Besides, it's the perfect way to attack someone, according to Hell battle records."

Pandora glared at Hornesta, her other self slowly emerging. "This is different! He went after Undertaker and now Undertaker has to bow to him! Don't you see how humiliating that must mean to Undertaker?"

Not wanting to deal with the other self, Hornesta lightly smacked Pandora. Pandora cleared her throat and looked at Hornesta. "Thanks." Hornesta nodded and started to look for something else to watch. She heard Pandora murmur, "Heyman's still a bastard"; Hornesta rolled her eyes at that.

June 26, 2004

The night before the Great American Bash, Pandora wanted to do something fun and wild; if anything, she could momentarily forget about hating Heyman. She invited Hornesta to join her but Hornesta was busy. Unfortunately, that meant that Pandora needed to find another way to get into the club she wanted to visit. While she was of age, those who gave off the scent of an 18 year old who stopped aging less than two years ago sparked trouble with the bouncers. But she was determined to get in and headed to the building where the club was.

Once there, Pandora managed to sneak into the second floor, which was the nightclub. She absorbed the heavy metal music and was about to start dancing with the crowd when a familiar scent caught her nose. She took a few sniffs before she brightened and followed the scent. She did not find it surprising to find his scent in the building since the first floor was a place to gather and absorb evil. She continued to follow the scent until she reached the roof and found him, leaning his arms against the railing and looking out at Hell. Remembering what had been happening for the past few weeks, she decided to leave him alone. But she froze when he said, "You found me."

Pandora chuckled nervously and looked at him. "Well…not many demons know your scent the way I do."

Undertaker looked back at her and remained silent. Pandora bit her lower lip and cleared her throat. "Well…you probably want to be alone."

Undertaker stayed silent but pointed to the spot next to him. Pandora looked at the gesture and joined his side. Undertaker nodded and continued to stare into space. Pandora looked out at Hell and grabbed the railing gently. She sighed and broke the silence: "So…tomorrow's the big match."

Undertaker blinked and nodded. Pandora looked at him. "What are you going to do?"

Undertaker sighed. "I don't know. It's not like it was my daughter. If it was, I wouldn't hesitate."

Pandora was surprised by this. "You have a daughter?"

Undertaker nodded. "She's about 11 now…and out there somewhere."

"You don't know?"

"Her Mother kicked me out. I haven't seen my daughter since she was born."

Pandora nodded. That was a common story in Hell so she did not make any connections. She then sighed. "Well, I don't understand why you're bowing to that Heyman guy. He's psychotic...for a human, that is."

Undertaker's face tightened. "I'm bowing to the urn, not to Paul Heyman."

Pandora shuddered at this tone. "Sorry. Say, what's in that urn anyway?"

Undertaker did not answer; instead he asked, "What do you think I should do?"

Pandora sighed. "I don't know. Your hands are tied. You're bound to the urn and Heyman knows that. But you're also bound to Bearer. I just…don't know. But…I know you'll do the right thing."

Undertaker nodded.

The next day…

Pandora sat next to Lacti in their home. Pandora had been watching the pay-per-view but she wanted to watch Undertaker's match, especially after their talk last night. Lacti looked at Pandora as the screen showed Paul Bearer trapped in the glass tomb. "Are you sure you want to watch this?"

Pandora nodded. "Yes…he's been going through hell and I want to see what he decides to do."

Lacti nodded; she had to admit that she was curious to see what Undertaker would do. After all three participants were at the ring, Heyman decided to give Undertaker a taste of what would happen if the demon did not "do the right thing"; he turned on the cement until Bearer's ankles were encased. Pandora shuddered at the sight; she did not know if it was the sight of Bearer's predicament or Bearer himself that creeped her out.

Once the message sunk in, Bubba Ray ordered Undertaker to lie down. Pandora gagged. "How dare he suggest that."

Lacti looked at Pandora. "He has no choice."

Pandora sighed as Undertaker hesitantly laid down…but she brightened when Undertaker grabbed Bubba Ray. The match was officially underway and, despite Heyman's warnings, Undertaker put up a fight. Pandora was glad that Undertaker was not giving in and fighting back. But doing so had its cost; Heyman pulled the level down and ordered Undertaker to stop. Undertaker did stop, looking concerned for his long-time friend as Bearer became more encased in cement. Pandora was worried as well…but for a different reason. "Don't call him a dog…don't do that! Stop it!"

Lacti looked at Pandora and touched her shoulder. "Settle down…those are petty words."

Pandora took a deep breath, thinking about what Lacti said. She then saw that Undertaker paid no heed to Heyman's words and kept fighting. She grinned and kept cheering for him, Heyman's words already out of her mind. She did keep in mind that Bearer was stuck but focused on the match. But things started to look up momentarily when Undertaker started to go to Heyman. "Come on…save him."

Lacti looked at Pandora as Heyman threatened to pull the lever if Undertaker did not stop. But they were momentarily distracted by Undertaker being attacked from behind by Bubba Ray. Pandora groaned and then screamed in terror as Heyman pulled the lever, intent on killing Bearer. Even though she did not like Bearer because of how mean he was to her, she did not want him to die because of what he meant to Undertaker. As Undertaker continued to battle, Bubba Ray pulled the lever up; he showed a shred of decency towards an enemy. Pandora sighed in relief. "Oh man…"

Lacti looked at Pandora. "Maybe you shouldn't watch."

Pandora shook her head. "No…I must keep watching. I need to watch this."

Lacti sighed. She sensed that trouble was coming. Even though Pandora was of age, Lacti still worried about her daughter, and especially considering that her father unknowingly gave her a drop of human due to his heritage.

The match continued and Undertaker did not give in to Heyman's demands; he refused to give the Boyz, and more importantly Heyman, a free win. In the end, Undertaker won, to Heyman's disgust. Pandora cheered for this; despite the match stipulation, she was glad that Undertaker got his pride back. But she was reminded about the situation by Heyman implying that he would kill Bearer to punish Undertaker. Pandora paled. "No…no, you can't!"

But Heyman did not get the chance; a lightning bolt knocked Heyman down and Undertaker advanced, making Heyman retreat screaming. Pandora sighed. "Yes…save him."

To Bearer's delight, Undertaker bowed to Bearer, signaling his dedication…but Pandora noticed something else: Undertaker's face showed that he was thinking about something…while looking at the level. Bearer noticed as well and begged for his life. Undertaker paid no heed, told Bearer that he had no choice…and pulled the level. Pandora and Lacti paled at what happened and at Bearer's screams. When the screen showed Bearer being buried, Lacti got dizzy and Pandora shuddered.

As the show ended, Lacti looked at her daughter and saw her shocked look. Lacti sighed; this was different from other murders that demons were used to. Undertaker killed the one man who was by his side for years, his remaining link to his humanity. She reached over and touched her daughter's arm. "Pandora…are you all right?"

Pandora woke up from her shock. She then looked at Lacti. "Is he…really dead?"

Lacti nodded. "Yes…it appears so."

Pandora groaned and leaned back against the couch. "He…"

Lacti nodded. "Yes, he did. I can't believe he would do that."

Pandora then said something shocking: "Bearer probably deserved it."

Lacti looked at her daughter in shock. "What? How can you say that? He just murdered a man in cold blood!"

Pandora looked up at Lacti. "Bearer has been known to betray anyone and everyone. We've seen it in the past. That was the proper punishment."

Lacti glared at Pandora. "Can you hear what you're saying? You look like you're about to pass out from what Undertaker did!"

Pandora sighed and stared into space. "I can't hate him…I just can't."

Lacti growled and left in a huff. Keeping them separate was getting harder and harder but she was not going to let all her years of work be destroyed.