A/N: Sorry for the delay. This chapter is pretty long as I couldn't figure out where to break for the next, but enjoy!
Ronda's home was abnormally quiet that night as usually Travis would have been up either watching training tapes or playing video games with her (usually the latter). The silence almost drove her to the nearest convenience store just to get away, but she instead decided to turn on the television and mindlessly flip through channels. Ronda managed to find old reruns of a show Travis and she used to watch when it was running. It was about two men and a woman who worked to find faults and flaws in common myths and practices using creative, sometimes dangerous methods. Her husband watched it since it began and ended up getting her into it. However, all the show did that night was make her think about him more.
"Dammit." Ronda swore to herself before turning off the television. While she had gotten used to the life of them being apart for long periods of time due to her status and rank in the military, she was always the one who left Travis at home. She had not experienced being the one left to their lonesome at home while their spouse was off working abroad and the inexperience showed in her inability to distract herself. Ronda looked at the clock on the wall and saw that it was getting late. She stood up and went to the kitchen for a glass of water before heading into the bedroom to attempt to sleep. Ronda undressed and laid in the bed, looking over at the side Travis slept on all the while. She then looked up at the ceiling and sighed.
"My god." She said aloud. "Trav, how do you do this when I have to leave?" That moment, Ronda heard her government cell phone ring and knew it had to be important. Her mind prepared her for the call about one of her soldiers getting arrested for driving under the influence or fighting in a bar, but it did not prepare her for who it was on the other end.
"Lieutenant Colonel Rousey." She answered.
"General Zodrick here." Zodrick replied. "Project Alpha One has been expedited. The President has instructed that we begin building our force immediately and I want you to be in charge of the force. I'm requesting a change of command and duties for you as we speak."
The news nearly floored Ronda. Though Zodrick announced the existence of the project to her, he was vague with his information and she assumed it was a project that was to be put in place later rather than sooner. She had not spoken to Travis about it yet and she knew that she would not be able to with his mission beginning the following morning. Her brief thoughts were broken up by Zodrick's raspy voice.
"I need you at the address I'm sending to your number in about two hours so that we can leave and head back to DC." He said to her. "I'm not leaving without you, so don't keep me waiting. And don't worry. I'll personally make sure that everything back there at home is taken care of."
"Yes sir." Was all Ronda could gather the wherewithal to say. The call ended and she was sent the address. Without thinking twice, she sat up out of her bed and began gathering her things to leave.
Travis sat with his five team members awaiting the final details and briefing before their mission began. As they waited, Travis began thinking about his wife, Ronda and the weekend at Ronda's favorite amusement park they had planned together. The thoughts distracted him so deeply that he was unable to hear one of his team members call out to him.
"Earth to Travis!" The man said waving his hand in Travis's face. The motion pulled him out of his mind.
"What, Rex?" Travis said with an annoyed tone.
"Just asking if you were ready for our mission, man." Another member spoke up.
"His mind's probably on L-T-C." She said referring to Ronda. Rex looked at her and then back to Travis.
"Is your mind on L-T-C?" Travis looked at the woman.
"Why do y'all call her that, Maki?" He asked her.
"Because that's what she is." Rex said. "Duh." The female team member laughed before a man and a woman stepped into the room. The team collected themselves so they could listen to their mission.
"On behalf of the President of the United States," The man started. "I want to thank you for answering the call to duty." The woman then handed each team member a folder. "In that folder are the details of the mission I am about to describe to you. Please pay attention." The man proceeded with explaining the mission.
"The primary mission," He began. "… Is to assess and repair the downed communication satellite Theta. You will assess all aspects of the satellite to include mechanical and technological components and report your findings directly to the President using communication modules located on the shuttle. You will make the necessary repairs after the assessment and report your progress. Once your mission is complete, you will return to camp. In the event you are unable to complete your mission, you will inform the President and he will deal with you all as he sees fit. The shuttle provided to you will be operated by your team under remote supervision and will fully equipped with the tools you requested. You will begin the launch protocol at 0600 hrs. We will see all of you at camp tomorrow morning. You're free to go to your rooms." With that, the man and woman left the team to their own devices. Rex furrowed his brow.
"Wow." He said. "This is pretty fucking awesome, right?"
"No!" The other female team member said. "Not even! We aren't using Stefan!"
"Really, Sarah?" One other team member said. "You named our practice shuttle?"
"Stefan was simple, but complex. Easy, but not sleazy. What if this shuttle's computer is overworked like most everything else the government gave us to use? Hell, what if we can't rewire the satellite? Do we get fired, because he made seem like we get fired if we mess this up." Travis shook his head at his obviously nervous teammate.
"You're the biggest computer tech we have on the team." Travis said to Sarah. "You can turn an old MS-DOS program and push it to run a fucking train. Nothing they've got on that shuttle is gonna top that." He then slapped Rex on his back. "Besides, Rex and Maki are the ones who have to fly it, and me and Eckers are the ones who are gonna be out there working on the satellite. You and Franklin are gonna be working inside. You'll be fine. We all will." Travis then stood to his feet. "Let's go get some sleep. We got a big day tomorrow."
The night had fallen on the Safe Haven mansion. The designers had gone home earlier that day and Mojo Rawley, along with Rusev and Seth Rollins, spent their time getting Cena fitted into his tuxedo before finally retiring to bed. Triple H and Stephanie spent the night checking on the other facilities in the country. Triple H called Joe Anoa'i, known as Roman Reigns, to check on the Florida facility being managed by him along with Jimmy and Jey Uso, Naomi, Nia Jax, and Charlotte Flair. All of them were on the road driving up to New York to attend John and Nikki's wedding when Triple H had called and he heard them all singing along to the radio.
"H-H-H!" Everyone else shouted after Roman answered the phone. Triple H laughed to himself before speaking to them.
"I'm guessing you guys are on the road." He said to all of them.
"Yeah." Roman answered. "We left earlier today so we could be there early tomorrow morning."
"Good to hear. How's the facility been this week?" Jey spoke up.
"All good, Paul." He replied. "We got a few new students in and nothing broke down."
"We had some of the usual protesters." Naomi added. "We handled it, though."
"Yeah." Charlotte said. "We talked them down and got them outta there before they upset the kids."
"Good, guys." Triple H said to them.
"Galina and Jojo are watching the place while we're away this weekend." Roman said to Triple H. "Everything's covered. Are you coming down next week to see the place?"
"It'll either be me or Steph. Shane's got Cali and Washington this month."
"We'll be ready for ya." Jimmy said.
"Alright. Drive safe, guys. See ya when ya get here." Everyone then shouted at Triple H through the call.
"Bye!" They said to him.
"See ya soon, Paul!" Naomi added before Roman ended the call. Almost as if on cue, Stephanie stepped into the room with two plates of salad and chicken breast.
"Hey babe." Triple H said to her. "How's Brian and the facility in Washington doing?"
"The facility's doing great." Stephanie replied as she sat a plate in front of her husband and took her seat. "Brian's just missing Brie per usual. He's gonna be a great father. The kid's gonna be spoiled rotten, though."
"No doubt. He's coming to the wedding right?"
"That's what he told me. I'm shocked, though. He would normally be here already for events like this."
"I know, Steph. That's why I had to ask." Triple H then looked into the hallway behind him. "Shane not back yet?"
"He's on his way back now." Stephanie answered. "He should be home in a few. You know we're on everyone else's radar because of the rescue missions." Triple H nodded.
"I'm sure." He replied. "We've been making the news as of late, especially after Cali." Triple H then thought about Cesaro. "I'm still kind of worried about Claudio. I know you guys said he's alright, but I don't know. He seems a bit off."
"Trust me, Paul." Stephanie said. "He's going to be okay. He found out his father wasn't dead and his mother not only made up an elaborate story about his past and hid the truth from him, all that in one day, four months ago. I think it's gonna take a bit of time to find some normalcy after all that." Triple H closed his eyes as if trying to process what his wife said to him.
"I guess you're right." He replied. "But that's why I'm worried. He was having issues controlling his powers before all that. How do you know he's able to control them now that he has to deal with it? Are you certain he'll be able to deal with this by himself?"
"He won't be by himself, Paul." Stephanie replied. "He's got us."
"Right, but there's only so much we can do for him." Stephanie contemplated on a response, but Shane stepped inside the room before she could speak. The couple looked at the man as he entered.
"Hey guys." Shane said casually. "Everything okay?" Stephanie nodded.
"Everything's fine." She said. "We were just making some last minute calls to everyone before we headed to bed. There's more food in the kitchen if you're hungry."
"I'm all good, Steph." Shane took his seat.
"How did your visit go?" Triple H asked.
"Same good time as always." Shane replied. "I got to speak with some of the younger crowds this time and they were a great crowd. You guys have to attend one of these events sometime. You'll learn a lot from everyone." Stephanie smiled.
"We usually have things going on here at the mansion." She said to her brother. "But we'll try."
"Speaking of things going on." Triple H said. "This wedding situation."
"I'm glad it's finally happening," Shane said. "But I'm so glad it'll be over tomorrow."
"It's a wonderful occasion, guys." Stephanie said. "Think about how John and Nikki must be feeling. Their nerves have to be torn to shreds."
"I can only imagine." Shane said before standing up and stretching. "I'm gonna go change and head to bed." He hugged his sister and his brother-in-law. "Don't stay up too late." With that, the jovial Shane left his family in the room with themselves and went to end his day. Triple H then nodded.
"I guess that's your cue." He said to Stephanie. "You should go ahead and head to bed, too. I'll wait up for the others. I don't think they have a key yet."
"Are you sure you wanna stay up?" Stephanie asked her husband. "You've been busy all day. I'm sure you're tired. I can stay up and wait for them." Triple H shook his head.
"It's alright. I'm good." Stephanie smiled.
"I know you're tired. I can see it in your face." She then kissed Triple H on the lips. "Go get some sleep. I'll wait up for them." Instead of arguing, the man stood to his feet, leaned over, and returned a kiss to Stephanie.
"Don't stay up too late." He said before leaving Stephanie in the room alone. The woman heard Triple H's footsteps trailing up the stairs and she sighed as her mind reverted back to her friends' words from earlier. Before she could dwell upon them further, however, she heard Cesaro's voice call out to her from the entry way.
"Stephanie?" He said to her. She looked up from her plate of food.
"Claudio." She responded. "What are you still doing up?"
"You know me. I don't need much sleep nowadays." Stephanie sighed.
"Well, I'm glad you're awake. I actually wanted to talk to you."
"Oh." Cesaro then made his way to the table and sat down next to Stephanie. "Okay." The woman took a deep breath before speaking.
"Claudio." She said. "Are you alright?" Cesaro blinked at Stephanie's broad question. Sensing his confusion, Stephanie went on. "Is something on your mind? I noticed you've been a little distant lately." Cesaro looked down at the table before responding, thinking about what to say to Stephanie to keep from worrying her and to keep her from worrying about him.
"I'm fine." Cesaro said simply. "Really."
"Are you sure?" Stephanie asked with a hint of skepticism. "You know you can talk to me about anything." Cesaro nodded.
"I know and I thank you. I'm truly okay. I guess the wedding's exhausting me even though I'm not in it." Somehow, Stephanie felt that Cesaro was not telling her everything. Instead of pressing the matter, however, she decided to lead on the conversation.
"John told me about that." Stephanie said. "Why'd you turn him down?"
"Weddings have always stressed me out." Cesaro replied almost robotically. "I'm not sure why, but the thought of being a part of such a big moment in two people's lives just… I don't know. It makes me uncomfortable. I always felt like I'd mess it up somehow." Stephanie put her hand on Cesaro's.
"There would have been no way for you to mess up your best friend's wedding, Claudio." She said to him. "But I'm glad you'll be there with everyone else." Stephanie then thought about Cesaro coming down to see her. "You're certain everything is okay?"
"Yes, I promise." Cesaro replied. "I was about to get some air until I saw you in here staring at a salad." Stephanie nodded.
"I'm alright." She said. "Just getting my mind ready for the wedding tomorrow."
"Understood. I'll leave you to it." Cesaro then stood up from the chair. "Don't stay up too late." Cesaro left Stephanie in the room by her lonesome once more, the woman growing slightly annoyed with hearing the phrase 'don't stay up too late' as if she were neglecting herself.
The President of the United States sat at his desk with his publicist and advisor standing in front of it. Moments ago, he had instructed him to make the information about the shuttle launch public and, as expected, the news outlets flooded with stories, coverage, and speculation as to why it was being done. Several news stations were asking for information on why the shuttle was launching and why the information was put out mere hours before the launch date. The President sat trying to decide on which of the three responses the publicist offered to him would be most efficient.
"Either decision you make, sir, will bring about more questions." The advisor said to him. "You can glorify the shuttle launch and tell the press that this is simply a test run for the new shuttle system, but you'll have to divulge information about the project. If you respond to why you are truly launching the shuttle, you may open up questions about the satellite program. Lastly, overlooking that information and simply answering why the mention of the launch was put out so late will force you to answer why it was launched in the first place." The President nodded his head.
"I figured all that." He said. "I just needed a second opinion."
"Thank you for trusting mine, sir."
"Yes." The President then turned his attention to his publicist. "I want you to go ahead and tell the press that the shuttle launch is to fix the security satellites for the facilities. They already know about them. We can say it is a communication connection issue that needs to be addressed so that we are able to contact them all over the world. Give them as many details as you can without divulging any classified information. I don't want them to be worried about any of this. We will assess the rest when the time comes." The publicist nodded in compliance.
"Yes sir." He responded.
"Also, please send my congratulations to John and Nicole Cena for me." The man nodded again.
"I'll get right on it, sir." The publicist left the room. The President knew that he would be facing a storm of news requests and questions following the press release, so he decided that it was time to rest for it all. He stood out of his chair and the guards standing outside immediately ran to his side until they were halted.
"It's alright." The President waved. "I'm simply headed to my room. If you all want to do something, though, you can lock up the office when I leave."
Nikki Bella laid in her hotel bed next to Brie staring at the ceiling, her mind slowly being buried under thoughts about John and her big day. Lana had tried her best to subdue the anxious feelings psychically before the quartet went to bed, but they ended up returning as the morning drew near. Through means none other than sibling intuition, Brie woke up to see Nikki wide awake.
"Nikki." Brie called out, sleep riding her voice. "Why aren't asleep? You have to be up early." Nikki sighed.
"I can't sleep." She replied. "I keep thinking about tomorrow."
"We can wake Cat up and she can-"
"No, it's fine. Let her sleep." Nikki smiled to herself. "I'll get some sleep. I'm just excited. Weren't you excited the night before you married Brian?"
"Oh my god, yes." Brie said with quiet enthusiasm. "You were there the whole time. You remember the bachelorette party?"
"You mean the party where you basically played Mother Chastity and didn't do anything? Yeah, I remember."
"Hey. I was sick."
"Yeah, sick of the single life."
"No, I was legitimately sick. The anxiety gave me a headache. I was so nervous about the wedding that I kept obsessing about it in my head and hoping everything went the way I wanted them to go." Brie then turned over to face her sister. "Look, I know you wanna be surprised, but get real. You're nervous. It's okay to be nervous. You're about to get married. Just try to think of it as letting everybody else know what you already know. Isn't that what you told me?"
"Well yeah." Nikki replied. "That's because I never saw myself being where you were then… where I am now."
"Well, you're here. You're getting married in about thirteen hours and losing sleep is not gonna be a good look on you. You might as well get some sleep so you can be up and less cranky than you normally are so we can dress you. Mercedes is in charge of doing your hair and we want her to be able to finish it in time without you changing it every four minutes."
"I don't change my hair that often." Nikki said in an annoyed tone.
"So says your stylist."
"Oh my god, Brie. Go back to sleep." Brie snickered and rolled over.
"No need to tell me twice." She replied. "You better get to bed, too. Good night again."
"Night again, Brie." Nikki almost instantly heard Brie begin to snore, indicating that she had fallen to sleep. She decided to close her eyes and attempt to do the same.
It was six o' one in the morning and the team of Travis, Rex, Maki, Sarah, Eckers, and Franklin were being prepped for their mission. Their nerves were on edge as they were being fitted in their gear. Sarah, most notably, began to tremble which made it difficult for her to be fitted.
"Andrews!" The crew member fitting her said. "Hold still!" Maki noticed Sarah trembling.
"Get your shit together, Sarah!" Maki shouted. "This is no time for a panic attack, ya hear!?"
"Don't scream at her, Maki." Travis demanded. "That's only gonna make it worse." Without moving, he then diverted his attention to Sarah. "Sarah. We're gonna be fine. It's our first mission. We've been practicing for this. We're fixing the satellite and coming back home. Pull yourself together."
"I'm sorry." Sarah pleaded. "I'm trying. I'm just really nervous."
"Calm down. Take a breath and relax. Remember that we're trained to do this." Sarah nodded shakily before attempting to relax herself. The crew member continued fitting Sarah in her gear.
"Look at you being a father figure." Eckers said jokingly. Travis chuckled before the words set into his mind and struck a mild nerve. He thought about several times in the past where Ronda and he spoke about starting a family and a feeling of worry began to set in. He began to worry about whether Sarah's fear of failure was truly warranted. It was, after all, a mission given to them directly from The President of the United States. If they failed, it would indeed be the end of their budding careers as astronauts. To strengthen his sentiments, they were technically going into the mission knowing the extreme least amount of information about what happened to the satellite and how they would be able to fix it. As the team leader, however, he knew he could not allow those feelings to cause him to shirk his duties. He pulled himself together, gathered his thoughts, and continued to prepare with his team.
"Bro… Bro!" John's eyes snapped open to see Mojo, Rusev, Seth, and Big E standing around his bed, the latter arriving earlier that morning ahead of his two friends Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods. John then noticed that all of them were dressed in their wedding garbs. He looked over at his clock and saw that it was a little past seven.
"It is the day of your wife's wedding." Big E said jokingly. Rusev held up the tuxedo John was to wear.
"Yeah." He said. "And we need you to put this on before ten, so get up and let's go!" John nearly groaned at the excitement of his friends after not sleeping well, but quickly remembered his wedding was in a few hours. He shot up out of bed.
"I'm up, I'm up!" He shouted. "What all do we need to do?"
"We don't need to do anything." Big E said. "You need to get yourself together so you can put this tux on."
"Don't you guys have to help me put it on?" Seth furrowed his brow.
"What the hell, John?" He replied. "It's just a fancy tuxedo. You know how to put this on!"
"Alright, alright!" John snapped back. "Get out. Let me get dressed." The four men shrugged and left John's room to allow him to get dressed.
"I'm going back downstairs and wait for Catherine." Rusev said. "Let me know if you need me."
"We got this, Miro." Mojo said. Rusev nodded and went downstairs to the lobby. At the mansion entrance, Stephanie was greeting several guests whom had arrived early and showing them where to place their umbrellas and ponchos (it had begun to rain sometime earlier that morning) and where they could sit while they waited. Stephanie saw Rusev coming downstairs.
"Miro." She greeted him. "How's John doing? Is he okay?"
"The beauty king was just waking up." Rusev replied. "But don't worry. We got him together. He'll be ready." Stephanie nodded.
"Thank goodness." She said. "The girls should be here in about an hour. John will need to be out of the mansion so he doesn't see Nikki before the wedding." Rusev nodded. "We'll let you know when they get in."
"Gotcha." Rusev responded before going back upstairs. Stephanie then heard a familiar voice behind her.
"Steph!" It was Becky Lynch. She, along with Finn Bálor, his brother Ciaran Devitt, Noam Dar, and Sheamus, traveled from the Ireland facility to attend the wedding while Finn and Ciaran's parent Fintan and Leonie stayed behind and kept it up. Stephanie's face lit up upon seeing her friends, each of them carrying a wet umbrella except for Noam who opted to wear a raincoat.
"You're here!" She greeted them all, hugging them each. "It's so good to see all of you again. Thank you so much for being able to come."
"No problem, Stephanie." Noam replied. "Wouldn't miss it for the world!"
"Yeah." Ciaran added before handing Stephanie a beautifully wrapped wedding gift. "Sorry Mom and Dad couldn't come. They said someone needed to be watching the place, so they sent this." Stephanie smiled and took the gift.
"I'll tell them thank you from the newlyweds." Stephanie said. "I hope the trip wasn't too much."
"Nothing we haven't done before." Sheamus said. "I was gonna swim here, but Fergie over here thought I'd soak my suit." He then punched Finn in the shoulder.
"Understandable." Stephanie said with a laugh. "Well, the wedding isn't for another few hours, so go catch up with everyone. You can leave your umbrellas and coat here." The group then left to go mingle with the guests. All of them, except for Finn. He stopped in his tracks and approached Stephanie.
"Uh," He stammered. "Stephanie?" The woman turned to face him.
"Hm?" Finn hesitated before shaking his head.
"Never mind." He said.
"What's on your mind, Fergal?" Finn put on his signature smile.
"It can wait, Stephanie. Now's not the time. I'm gonna go see how everybody's doing." Finn left Stephanie behind to wonder what it was he chose not to say to her. Her thoughts then drew on what her friends in Canada had said to her the day before. As if summoning them, Stephanie heard Peyton's voice call out to her.
"Stephanie!" She said as she ran to greet the woman. Peyton, along with Tye, Billie, Sami, and Kevin, had finally arrived. Sami placed the wedding gift he was carrying on the table with the rest of the gifts.
"It's great to see you all." Stephanie said to them. "You all look great!"
"Don't say that again." Kevin said to her. "Jess took so many damned selfies! I don't think I have the energy to photobomb anymore." Billie huffed.
"You took just as many, Kevin!" She retorted. Stephanie waved her hand.
"Alright, you two." She said before turning to Sami. "The wedding's not for another two hours, so feel free to hang out with everyone until we call everyone to their seats." The five of them left to join the others and almost immediately, Stephanie heard Daniel Bryan's voice call out to her.
"Stephanie!" He all but shouted at her.
"Brian." Stephanie replied with a hug. "Thank you for coming. It's so good to see you." She then threw her hand up. "Before you ask, Brie isn't here yet." Daniel smiled and shook his head.
"I wasn't gonna ask that." Stephanie pursed her lips together. "I was just gonna apologize for not being here last night. I couldn't tear away from the mansion until yesterday morning and I had to reschedule my flight."
"Okay, Brian." She said a sarcastic smile. "Everyone's inside the theater if you want to join them. You can leave your umbrella right here." Daniel placed his umbrella in the bin with the others.
"Could you let me know when Brie and Nikki get here?" He asked Stephanie, the woman smiling while trying not to laugh.
"Will do." She said. "Go say hi to everyone." Daniel turned to go be with the others. Without reprieve, Stephanie was hugged by an emerging Paige.
"Steph!" She yelped. "I feel like it's been forever!"
"It's only been about a month, Saraya." Stephanie replied.
"It feels like that month crept by." Paige then handed Stephanie a gift. "Sorry Mum and Dad couldn't be here. They're back home watching the place. They sent this with me." Stephanie accepted the gift.
"I'll tell them thank you for John and Nikki." She said to Paige.
"Awesome." Paige replied. "I'm gonna go get on everyone's nerves." Paige hugged Stephanie once again before departing to speak with her friends. Stephanie looked outside to see others walking up to the mansion. She then noticed that the rain, along with the clouds they fell from, slowly dissipated. She knew the cause almost instantly. She then saw everyone outside look up at the sky. Stephanie looked up to see none other than Phillip Brooks descending from the sky with his wife April "AJ" Mendez-Brooks in his arms. Everyone applauded the duo as the rain stopped and they reached the ground beneath them. Phil playfully bowed as AJ shook her head and headed for the mansion after seeing Stephanie standing in the doorway.
"Sorry for the entrance." AJ said to her before hugging her. "You know how Phil is."
"It's fine." Stephanie said. "Just glad to have you both here." Stephanie then noticed AJ's attire. She was wearing a beautiful deep blue dress that came down to the top of her knees and matching shoes, and her hair was done up in an African goddess chignon. "Your outfit is wonderful."
"One of the girls at the facility helped me pick it out." AJ said. "You know how bad I am at dressing up."
"It looks great. Keep it in your pocket." AJ smiled.
"I will." Phil joined the two women, hugging Stephanie upon seeing her.
"Good to see you, Steph." He said in a playful tone.
"I see you're still the extra life we all need in our own." Stephanie retorted.
"What? I can't have it raining today, of all days, if I've got something to say about it." He then looked behind Stephanie. "Everyone inside?"
"Yeah." Stephanie replied. "Go say hi. The wedding isn't for another two hours." Phil and AJ went inside, leaving Stephanie to greet the other guests and see them into the mansion. After a while, she saw Lana's vehicle parking. Lana and Sasha stepped out of the ride carrying Nikki's wedding gown and casually walked up to Stephanie.
"Girls." Stephanie said. "Where's Nikki?"
"She and Brie are waiting in the city for the limo." Sasha said. "They should be on their way here now."
"Okay good." Stephanie pulled her phone out and began typing a text message. "I'll let the guys know that she's on her way so they keep John from seeing her before the wedding."
In the limousine, Nikki and Brie sat silently waiting to arrive at the mansion. Brie knew that if her sister was silent, it meant that her mind was focused on something. This time, the something was obviously her wedding. She wanted to ask her if she was okay, but she knew that it would only be given an 'I'm fine' retort and decided to keep quiet and give Nikki time to collect her thoughts. The silence was broken, however, by an outburst from Nikki.
"Geez, Brie!" She yelped. "Aren't you gonna ask if I'm okay like you always do!?"
"Hey!" Brie snapped back. "I thought about it, but I thought you were gonna lash out so I didn't say anything."
"Well, don't do that. We've got another thirty minutes until we get to the mansion and the silence is killing me!" Brie rolled her eyes.
"Okay, Nikki. Okay. Are you okay?"
"Hell no, I'm not okay! I'm getting married in, like, two hours! I'm nervous, anxious, and I think I need a drink."
"Not before the wedding, Nikki!" Brie said.
"Definitely after then!" Nikki sighed. "How many people do you think are gonna be there?"
"I dunno." Brie answered. "All the people, maybe." Nikki sighed again and looked out of the car window. "It's gonna be wonderful, Nikki. Don't be nervous. You literally cannot mess anything up today because it's you and John's day. They're gonna clap for whatever you do out there, so get comfy."
"Yeah." Nikki said as she looked at her sister. "But still. We're actually getting married. I never thought he'd ask me to. We've been together for so long."
"Well, it's happening, so enjoy this moment, sis." Nikki turned back to the window and continued her gaze. Brie then heard something play over the limousine radio that sounded like a news broadcast and spoke to get the driver's attention. "Excuse me, sir?"
"Yes, ma'am?" The driver responded. Nikki turned to look at her sister once again.
"Could you turn the radio up please?" The driver obliged and Brie began listening in.
"… this morning." They managed to catch the broadcast late, missing much of the beginning. Nikki looked at her sister confused.
"What are listening for?" Nikki asked.
"I heard her mention the President and I got interested." Brie replied before continuing to listen.
"The shuttle is set to launch in approximately three hours from now and is set to return home in three days after the repairs to the Safe Haven Facilities satellite have been finished. NASA will provide us with more details as the program begins and is underway. Be sure to turn in on your local news broadcast channel to see the launch live at noon. We'll be back with your top five songs of this decade as voted…" Brie and Nikki stopped listening after that.
"Thank you, sir." Brie said to the driver. "You can turn it back down now. Did you happen to hear the beginning of that?"
"The President is launching a repair team up to one of the Safe Haven Communication Satellites today." The driver replied. "That's all. I think you heard the rest of it."
"Thank you." Nikki said to the driver.
"My pleasure."
"Guys." Mojo said to Rusev, Seth, and Big E as they all waited around in John's bedroom. "Steph said that the girls are on their way back. We gotta keep John from seeing Nikki before the wedding." Seth shrugged.
"Well." He said. "That shouldn't be hard at all since he locked himself in the fucking bathroom!" Seth almost pounded his fist on the bathroom door, but Rusev stopped him.
"Chill out, Colby." He said. "He's having a moment. Give him a sec." The four men then heard John call out from the bathroom.
"I'm fine, assholes!" John shouted. "Just about to get married. You all know how that goes. Wait. No ya don't!" Rusev, the only one out of the men to be married, stepped out in front.
"It'll be over before you know it, John." He said calmly. "Your stomach's probably turning cartwheels and your head's chasing behind it, but that won't last long. You'll be done in no time. Don't worry about it." Rusev's calm demeanor seemed to work as John slowly stepped out of the bathroom, soliciting cheers from his friends.
"Finally, man!" Seth said.
"Why'd ya make your way out after Miro spoke to you and not us?" Big E asked John.
"Miro's been married." John said.
"You have, too, though."
"Yeah, but this one's different. Nikki's different. At least…" John hesitated a moment. "I feel like she's different. Nikki's the real deal. I feel like I want to spend the rest of my life with her, but I feel like she wants the same thing." Rusev put his hand on John's shoulder.
"You'll see she really does want it." He said. "And you're gonna love that feeling as much as you hate what you're feeling right now. Trust me."
Travis and his team stood in their gear waiting in the decontamination area for their cue to enter the shuttle and begin the launch process. Time seemed to stand as still as they did while they waited and while some of them wanted to speak, their nerves did not allow it to be. Travis looked out of one of the windows and saw the massive shuttle standing on its base as a mass of staff prepared it for take-off hours from then. Maki, staring out of the window as well, looked away and towards the hanger that led to the outside. There, she saw a slew of bodyguards enter the room which signaled to her that someone of great importance was entering. They all then heard Eckers speak out.
"Guys." He said. "I think the Pres is on his way in."
"Oh my god." Sarah said in a slight panic. "Don't say that. I'm not ready." Sure enough, the President entered the room along with Baxter, the head of the satellite communications department, and his assistant Cynthia nearly surrounded by the bodyguards and made his way to the team. As they all approached, the bodyguards stepped aside to allow the officials to step ahead.
"Good morning to you all." The President said to Travis and his team. "We wanted to personally come to thank you and to wish you all good luck and good fortune."
The time had finally come for John and Nikki's wedding to begin. Everyone had been seated in their seats in the garden of the Safe Haven mansion and the bridesmaids (Sasha Banks, Lana, Alicia Fox, and Nia Jax) and groomsmen (Rusev, Big E, Seth Rollins, and Randy Orton) were in their places. The garden was designed with various beautiful white, lavender, and pink flowers along with matching decorations across the landscape. Triple H had used his powers not only to decorate the land with the flowers, but also to raise the earth to create a natural stage for John and Nikki to stand on. All in attendance admired the décor and talked amongst themselves until music began to play. They all looked back behind them to see John Cena in his tuxedo walking down the aisle with a smile on his face. He slowly walked past all of his peers with his eyes fixed on the makeshift stage until he finally stepped foot on it. He looked down at his feet.
"Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck!" was all that crossed John's mind, his nerves clearly besting him. He was able to keep his thoughts from turning into audible words, but unfortunately his facial expressions more than gave him away. Randy, standing right next to John, glanced over at him then furrowed his brow without saying a word. John straightened his face and looked out to all of his friends. He, along with everyone else, then heard Triple H speak.
"Everyone." He said. "Please stand for the bride." Everyone seated stood to their feet and John's nerves shot through the roof. Cesaro, standing in the middle of the audience, felt the sudden shift and attempted to calm John.
"It's alright." He said in John's mind, feeling him slowly calm down. "You can do this, John. Just say whatever is in your heart. She loves you." John consciously nodded at his friend's words and looked towards the top of the aisle. There, walking with Brie, was Nikki Bella holding a beautiful bouquet and wearing a magnificent pearl white floral wedding dress adorned with strategically placed diamonds and lace complete with an elegant train, matching pearl shoes, and a headdress with a lovely veil. John watched lovingly as Brie led Nikki down the aisle and, to him, she looked every bit as magical as he know she would. Nikki carefully made her way up the altar and Triple H led Brie to her seat before asking everyone to take their seats.
The repair team had finally entered the shuttle and had quickly taken to their stations after nearly three hours of decontamination and being fitted into their suits. Rex and Maki took their places in the piloting station, the others taking their seats behind them. Sarah looked around at as much of the shuttle that her helmet allowed and noticed that much of it was identical to the test craft that they used in their training modules. A great deal of the anxiety she felt began to subside. They all fastened themselves into their seats.
"This is it, guys." Rex said as he looked back at his teammates. "We're going into outer fucking space!" Maki smiled and shook her head.
Outside in the operation area, Baxter and Cynthia stood over one of the stations that were in charge of the cameras and communication inside the shuttle when General Zodrick and newly appointed Major General Ronda Rousey entered the area. Baxter looked back to see the duo and saluted them before Zodrick waved him off.
"No need for that." Zodrick said. "We're just here so I can introduce Major General Rousey to the tech team."
"Nice to meet you, Major General." Baxter said. "I'm Curtis Baxter. I'm in charge of this portion of the telecommunications department." Ronda shook Baxter's hand.
"Good to meet you." She said. "Just Rousey is fine, though." Cynthia stepped to Ronda to introduce herself.
"Good to have you on board, Rousey." She said as she extended her hand. "I'm Cynthia Mayoli. I'm the lead technician. I kinda oversee all these guys while I'm working on the floor here, but trust me when I say that no one here truly needs to be supervised. We're all just that damn good." Ronda smiled to keep from laughing.
"Glad to hear that." She said to Cynthia.
"I'm kidding, but we are pretty good at what we do down here. That's why we're in charge of keeping up with the International communication satellites and making sure they're fully functional at all times." Cynthia began walking towards one of the stations, the others following behind her. The young man sitting at the station got up from his chair and allowed Cynthia to take his seat momentarily. "We're preparing a repair team's communication outlets for their shuttle as we speak. We'll have the audio running here in a moment." Upon hearing the information, Ronda thought about her husband.
"Do you know their names?" She asked Cynthia. "The members of the team?" General Zodrick chimed in.
"Why would you need to know that?" He asked Ronda.
"I think my husband might be out there on that team." Cynthia blinked as she eyed the computer screen. She put on the headset, pressed a key and held on the keyboard and spoke into the microphone.
"Team." She said. "This is Cynthia Mayoli. I'll be your point of contact during your mission. All of you please state your names for me." Everyone in the shuttle began calling off their names.
"Russell Haas." Rex said.
"Maki Setomura."
"Travis Browne."
"Franklin Greene."
"Sarah Caracciolo."
"Jason Eckers." Ronda smiled upon hearing their names as she knew all of them well, especially her husband Travis.
"Anyone sound familiar to you?" Cynthia asked her.
"All of them do." She replied. "Travis is my husband and the rest are the guys we was in training with. We're all close." Cynthia then got an idea.
"Major General Rousey has a few words of encouragement for you." The team inside the shuttle heard Cynthia say. Rex furrowed his brow.
"Rousey?" he said. "As in L-T-C?" They all then heard Ronda speak, confirming Rex's question.
"Uhh…" Ronda fumbled. "Just make it back home safe. You all got this mission in the bag." Zodrick eyed Ronda with confused eyes. They then heard Travis speak.
"You're still awkward on the microphone, huh, Major General?" He said playfully, making Ronda roll her eyes and blush slightly. They then heard Rex shout.
"L-T-C!" He shouted. "Congrats on the promo! We're all gonna celebrate when we get back!" Ronda laughed at her friend.
"Keep it formal, Rex." She said. "Seriously. Be safe out there. We'll see you all back home." Ronda stepped away from the screen and Cynthia stepped up again.
"We will begin the launch protocol in three minutes. Get yourself ready for take-off." Ronda eyed the computer screen as her husband and friends prepared to be sent into outer space. She then felt Zodrick's hand on her shoulder.
"You'll be able to see the launch from where we're going." He said to her. "Let's go." Ronda nodded as Zodrick looked to Baxter and Cynthia. "Thanks guys. Keep up the great work." Ronda and Zodrick left the area, Baxter eying the two as they made their exit.
"Wasn't she a Lieutenant Colonel?" He asked aloud. "That was a quick promotion." Cynthia looked at Baxter.
"I've learned not to question the ways of the Generals above us." She responded. "Their ways are best understood from far off. Like, very far off."
"We are here on this beautiful day today, to celebrate one of life's most precious moments, and to cherish the words which unite John Mark Anthony Cena and Nicole Stephanie Garcia-Colace in marriage." John and Nikki smiled at each other as the priest continued to speak. "Marriage is the promise between two people who love each other, who trust in that love, who honor each other as individuals, and who choose to spend the rest of their lives together." The priest then turned to the couple. "This ceremony will not create a relationship that does not already exist between you. It is symbol of how far you have come these past few years. It is a symbol of the promises that you will make to each other to continue to grow stronger as individuals and as partners. No matter what challenges you face, you now face them together, and no matter how much you succeed, you now succeed together. The love between you joins you now as one." The priest then looked at the audience. "The bride and the groom would like to share their words." He stepped aside and allowed Nikki to take the floor first.
"John." Nikki began, looking into John's eyes. "We met each other doing what we loved and from that moment, I knew that I would be spending the rest of my life with you. You let me be myself when the world wants to be someone else. You show me that it's okay to cry every now and then, and you are the shoulder that I cry on. You accept me when I'm in the worst and best places. You remind me every day that love exists and that I've found it in you. I am so grateful to have you in my life, to be standing right here in front of you. I'm grateful to be able to say that I will stand by your side as your wife, your support, your strength, your comfort, and your foundation. I love you, John."
John, on the verge of tears, tried to muster the courage to tell her what he wanted to tell Nikki but was taken aback by her declaration. As the audience applauded Nikki's words and soon after, it was John's turn. Everyone courteously halted their applause so that John could speak.
"I…" John began, thinking about the speech he wrote down. He then decided to speak outside of it. "I've done all this before. I've been standing up on a stage in a tux, she told me she loved me and told her that I loved her. But with you, it's different. I can feel how much you love me, how much you support me, how high you stand for me, how close you stand next to me, how bright you shine for me in the dark. I can feel it all standing right here in front of you, Nicole, and let me be the first to tell you that... it scares me. It scares me because I don't know if I can show you how much everything you are means to me. But as long as I'm breathing, I'm gonna be right here by your side with every ounce of me. I'm gonna protect you, support you, give you everything you need. I'm gonna do my damnedest to show you… how much I truly love you." Nikki did her best to keep from tearing up as the audience began to applaud John's words to her. The couple then got ready to exchange rings, Nia handing Nikki her ring first.
"I give this ring to you, John…" Nikki said. "…as a symbol of my love and faithfulness. As I place it on your finger, I commit everything I am to you. My heart, my soul, and my love. Please, wear this ring as a reminder of our vows spoken today on our wedding day." Nikki then placed the ring on John's finger. Randy then handed John his ring.
"I'm giving this ring to you…" John said. "…to show you the love for you that will always live in me. I ask that you wear it, cherish it, and honor it as deeply as my love for you." John slowly placed the ring on Nikki's finger. The two then took each other's hands and the priest proceeded with his next words.
Everyone in the shuttle made sure their suits were secured before securing themselves into their seats as various voices chimed in on the radios; they were crew members communicating amongst each other about the launch procedure.
"T-minus one minute." One of the members said over the line, making Sarah tense up.
"Oh gosh." She said as if she were confirming the events for herself. "We're really headed out. This is really happening."
"You gotta chill the fuck out, Sarah." Franklin said sitting behind her. "Get it together. We can't be shook up there. We gotta get our head in the game so we can work on this and get back here ASAP."
"I'm fine. I promise. It's just that this is all so surreal. I've always wanted to go into outer space and now it's about to happen. I'm just excited!"
"We all are, Sarah." Eckers said. "We all are." At the front, Travis and Maki were preparing the controls for the launch.
"Thrust support controls on." Maki said.
"Backup pilot controls ready." Travis said.
"Charging secondary air supply now."
Inside the launch site headquarters, Zodrick and Ronda walked down a long hallway and stopped at a room with massive windows offering a view of the shuttle.
"I've gotta talk to the press." Zodrick said to Ronda. "You can watch the launch from here without worrying about reporters bothering you for right now. I'll come get you when I'm all done. If you need to step to the bathroom, just use your keycard to get back in."
"Got it, Sir." Ronda replied. Zodrick nodded.
"Enjoy the view and make yourself at home." He said before turning to tend to his duty of addressing the press, leaving Ronda to her own devices. She stepped inside the open room, closing the door behind her. Her eyes immediately drifted to the shuttle outside and thoughts of Travis filled her head.
"Do you, John Cena, take Nicole Garcia Colace to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for the rest of your days so help you God?" John nodded.
"I do." He replied. The priest smiled then turned to Nikki.
"And do you, Nicole Garcia Colace, take John Cena to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for the rest of your days so help you God?" Nikki smiled and nodded.
"I do." She replied. The priest nodded.
"I am certain there will be no objections," He began. "But I must ask that if there are any objections to the union of John Cena and Nicole Garcia Colace, please speak now or forever hold your peace."
"Countdown to launch." Cynthia said over the radio as the team prepared to launch the shuttle. "T-minus ten… nine… eight… seven…" The thrusters of the shuttle ignited and the stands holding the shuttle in place retracted as it prepared to take off. "Six… five… four…three… two… one… Prepare for lift off!" On her call, the shuttle slowly began its successful ascent into the depths of outer space.
"If there are no objections," The priest said with a smile. "Then with the power vested in me… I now pronounce you… husband and wife." He turned to John. "You may kiss the bride." John smiled at Nikki and proceeded to kiss her passionately. Everyone in attendance erupted in joyous cheers and applause for the newlyweds. Nikki then ripped off the bottom of her dress to reveal that it was simply a cover and she, in fact, was wearing an elegant champagne dress. She waved the fabric in the air, soliciting more cheers.
"Yes girl!" Naomi shouted. "Woo!" John took Nikki's other hand and raised it in the air and shouted…
"I love this woman!"
