Memphis Kramer stood in front of the full length mirror and took one last look at her reflection. She was satisifed with what she saw. Her black slacks and fitted striped referee's shirt had been starched and neatly pressed. It fit her sleek figure perfectly. She had added more dramatic touches to her normally more sublte make up job but the night was a special occasion. Leaving her dark brown hair down and loosely curled, she blew out a nervous but excited breath. It was a moment she had been waiting for…it was her chance to officiate the main event at a WWE pay per view and she was beyond thrilled. What had made it even more exciting was the change in her peers and the fact that they had been more accepting. She felt like one of the gang and it was a nice feeling. The only thing missing was her sidekick, Punk. His conspicuous absence on her big night had affected her more than she thought it would but the phone call she received right on cue brought a huge smile to her face.

"Hey you," she answered cheerfully.

"Why so chipper? You act like you're about to live a lifelong dream and referee one of the biggest matches in pay per view history…oh that's right…"

Memphis laughed out loud.

"You are so silly, you know that? I was waiting for you to call."

"Sitting around with bated breath pining away and missing me?"

"Not exactly but you get the point."

"I take what I can get, Dollface."

"How was your MRI?"

Phil's travel schedule had been pre-empted by a trip to the doctor to further access the damage to his injured hip.

"Not too bad. It was just like being stuck in a really noisy coffin."

"Yikes."

"But the doc says it looks a lot better and all the rest and rehab has certainly made it feel better so we'll see. They'll have the results in a few days and we'll take it from there."

"Well good luck. You will be at RAW tomorrow night, right?"

"With bells on. I fly out at nine in the morning."

"Awesome. And you'll be watching tonight?"

"Got the remote set. The best $44.95 I ever spent for a 20 minute peep show featuring the world's hottest ref."

"You're too sweet, Punk."

"Oh you thought I was talking about you? Actually, I was referring to Justin King but…"

"Oh shut up. Listen, I have to run. I have to get to the Gorilla. I'll send you a text when everything is over. Wish me luck."

"Knock 'em dead."

She smiled as she hung up and hurried to her position. On the way, she bumped into Charles Robinson one of the senior referees. He had just finished officiating one of the other matches and was still in his gear.

"On your way to the Gorilla, huh?" he looked her up and down with a frown.

"Yeah," she cleared her throat. "It's time for the match."

"Main event, triple threat Barrett, Cena, and Orton at Survivor Series. That's a pretty big deal, you know? Matches like that are usually reserved for the refs that have been on board for a few years."

"Yeah, well, Vince makes the decisions so I guess he decided to take another route."

"I guess so," he nodded. "But just know because he asked you to do it, you didn't have to accept."

"Excuse me?"

"You could have declined and gave the match to one of the other guys. That would have been the respectable thing to do."

Memphis folded her arms.

"You mean give it to you?"

"Well…"

"You know what, Charles? That's not going to happen. This is a huge opportunity that was given to me because Vince McMahon believes in me. This is what I've worked so hard for and I would be a fool to have turned this down or given it away. And for what? A bunch of guys that still don't like me or respect me, that view me as a useless novelty and pair of tits and ass in referee stripes? That's crazy. I'm here and I'm not going anywhere. I'm working hard still trying to pay dues and I hope one day that you and the rest of the other referees back off and accept me. If you don't, well, I realize I can't change that but instead of hating me because I'm a threat to you, you could drop the nonsense and we could all be mature and co exist and life backstage would be a lot easier."

He said nothing and Memphis had nothing else to say. Instead, she kept walking to where the guys were waiting for her. She found John Cena in his trademark jean shorts, sneakers, and the purple and yellow colors of the Cenation on his hat and tee shirt. He was bouncing around and grinning, a bundle of nervous energy that couldn't wait to be out there in his element in the middle of the ring. To his left was Stu Bennett, better known as Wade Barrett. He wore a Nexus tee shirt over his black wrestling trunks. He was a brooding and quiet presence who kept to himself as he tried to mentally prepare for his matches. And creeping up to John's right was The Viper. With an icy stare and a cocky approach he strolled his perfectly tanned, muscled and baby oiled body to the Gorilla. A senior Production Manager came over and went over last minute notes and instructions and then it was time.

"Alright everybody," Cena nodded. "Let's get it done. Time to kick some ass."

He put his fist out and bumped it with Stu's and Randy's and the trio waited for Memphis to join them. She smiled as she enjoyed that single moment with her co-workers, cringing slightly as she and Randy Orton made awkward physical contact. The lights came on as the officiator, Memphis made her way down the ramp first to cheers from the fans. To up the stakes and make the matchup even more thrilling, the powers that be had decided last minute to surround the ring with a steel cage. Then one by one, Barrett, Cena, and Orton were introduced each to an incredible reaction from the thousands in attendance. Orton being the Champion, was afforded the final entrance and smirk on his face, he strolled down the aisle as Voices played in the background. He entered the ring with a blatant confidence that followed him all the way to the second rope where he raised the title belt in the air before throwing both arms back in that classic RKO pose.

Memphis found herself staring, studying his every move almost. He was a beautiful specimen of a man and a multi talented athlete. He had an aura about him that drew people in like moths to a single burning flame. There was something about the way he strutted around that ring that was intriguing. It was her only opportunity to see the other side of the man who for months had tortured her. The ring was his home and there he was king and those fleeting moments gave her a unique insight into why Randal Keith Orton was so revered. She looked at him and he turned his head, blue eyes meeting brown. Memphis quickly looked away and then the bell sounded signifying the beginning of the match.

There would be no pin falls or submissions, the only way to win was to escape the cage by climbing over the top or walking out the door with both feet planted firmly on the floor. Sizing each other up, the three men stared at one another contemplating their first move as Memphis stood nearby. Wade Barrett decided in the first few minutes to go for an easy exit by quickly scaling the cage. Cena and Orton would have none of it and chased him and pulled him down roughly. Each man took their time wailing on the cornered Barrett, trading between vicious punches and kicks. When Barrett was incompactiated on the mat, Cena and Orton then turned their attentions to each other. Randy had managed to take down Cena with a beautiful text book clothesline only to receive a boot to the skull out of nowhere from a fully recovered Wade Barrett.

Barrett remained on the offense attempting to crush his opponent with his finisher Wasteland but Orton countered and ran to the cage, quickly scaling up the side. He'd almost made it to the top before Wade grabbed him by the ankles with some help from John Cena. There came the moment of truth where Barrett and Cena, two bitter in ring enemies would have to make the decision to work together to put away their very formidible opponent. Reluctantly they launched an assault on Orton who lay crumpled in a corner as the fans chanted the name Randy over and over again. Barrett tried with a boot to the throat which Randy sold perfectly. Keeping up the kayfabe of it all, Memphis sternly warned Barrett and began the count before he released with a smirk. The Viper wouldn't be kept down for long. He fought his way back trading blows with John Cena which allowed Barrett to try to make his esacpe. Cena chased him while Randy used the chance to rest in the corner.

"You okay?" Memphis asked.

"I'm good," Randy answered before hopping back up and joining in the action again.

He quickly regained supremacy even as his foes cornered him. After a brutal fight, Randy once again climbed to the top of the cage swinging his long legs over the side. John Cena was hot on his heels and with the help of Wade Barrett, pulled the Legend Killer back into the ring. Immediately Randy countered Cena and took him down with a drop kick. But with three of the top Superstars in the ring at one time, chaos took effect as the upper hand seemed to change over every other minute. Brief alliances came and went as the bottom line was that every man was there for himself. The scripted ending for the match after an intense 23 minute showdown would be for Randy Orton to battle his way through John Cena and Wade Barrett and end it with two back to back RKOs rendering him the option to walk out of the front door like the proud and dominant champion he was. The match was progressing nicely and the fans were really into it. It was almost over and after receiving communication through her earpiece from production, Memphis subtly let the the three competitors know that they were good on time. Barrett made his last attempt for escape over the top as Cena lay crumpled in the opposite corner. As planned, Randy Orton chased him. Randy was supposed to scale the cage after him and pull him down but in an instant something went terribly wrong. It was a simple accident, a miscalculated move that could have happened to anyone. Randy's boot slipped on the rope and he lost his footing. Even though he was new to the business, Stu Bennett knew how to improvise and save a match when things went off script. He sold the punches that Randy had given him and doubled over insinuating that he couldn't hold on to the cage any longer. But saving the match was the least of their worries.

The fall wouldn't have been as bad if it hadn't been from such a distance. He cursed to himself as he toppled to the ground but when he finally landed, it wasn't the mat that he hit. Instead something else broke his fall. Temporarily disoriented, Randy shook his head then recoiled when he saw what lay underneath him. In a crushed heap on the floor of the ring was Memphis Kramer. Wrestlers ran spots all the time where they accidentally "injured" the referee but such spots had not been planned for this match. And looking at a motionless Memphis, Randy instantly knew that she was really hurt. The three men exchanged uneasy glances unsure of how to proceed. When Memphis did not answer Prouction's feed on her earpiece, they immediately knew something was wrong and in a jiff Jack Doan was running down the ramp and headed for the ring. The match resumed and the Champ, obviously distracted had to go on as if there wasn't a woman lying still and hurt because of him, just a few feet away. They finished the match in under four minutes as planned but there was little time to celebrate. Breaking character, the Apex Predator slid back into the ring and hovered over Memphis. Her eye had started to blackened and there was a trickle of blood on the bridge of her nose. It was obvious that she had caught his boot on the way down.

"Memphis! Memphis!" he whispered a little louder when she did not respond.

She was breathing and her pulse was strong so he had no reason to fear the worst. She had simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time and had been knocked out. She would be okay but medical attention was still a necessary.

"She okay?" Cena joined them.

"We need a medic and tell them it's not a work," Stu instructed to Doan.

All the while Randy was frozen as he kneeled over the woman he had accidentally hurt. He had already caused her so much mental and emotional anguish and now because of him she was now hurt physically. Everything around him…John and Stu, the fans, the noise, and the chaos suddenly didn't matter. All that did matter was the young woman crumpled beneath him. Even with Stu and John and Jack looking on in concern and trying to help, Randy felt an urge, a responsibility to protect her. His facial expression and body language told them in no uncertain terms to back off.

"It's gonna be okay," he said softly as he looked down and cradled her in his strong arms.

And all he could do was pray that it would be. If something more serious was wrong with Memphis, Randy would never be able to forgive himself.