Friday Morning

3rd Person POV

Like usual, Caleb is the first to wake up. He looks down to his right to see the Wicked Witch of WWE sleeping, her head on his chest and her right hand resting over his heart. He reaches out with his left hand and moves some of her hair out of her face. Meanwhile, his right hand gently moves up and down her back. He smiles down at the gorgeous woman, who wakes up a few minutes later. Lexi looks up at him and smiles.

Lexi: Hey.

Caleb: Hey.

Lexi: What time is it?

Caleb: If I tell you, you're gonna say it's too early and try to go back to sleep.

Lexi: You know me so well.

Caleb: Yeah. Now, we gotta get up. You can take the shower first. If you wanna come workout with me, you're more than welcome to.

Lexi: I could use a good workout. I'll make some coffee and meet you down there, okay?

Caleb: I'm starting the workout up here. You go ahead and get your drink. I'll still be up here by the time you finish.

Timeskip

After they workout, shower, and eat breakfast, Lexi and Caleb, who has reverted back to his alter ego, leave the hotel and arrive at the arena. Even though Lexi doesn't wrestle on SmackDown, she came along with her boyfriend because it wasn't as boring as waiting at the hotel for him. She doesn't focus on any of that as she heads to catering to get caught up with some of her friends. Meanwhile, "M" uses hallways and corridors no one really knows about to get to his locker room. After setting his stuff down, he decides to go somewhere he knows no one will find him. Well, almost no one.

With Lexi

Lexi sits down at a table with one of her closest friends: Adam Scherr aka Braun Strowman. He greets the Five Feet of Fury with a welcoming smile. Sitting across from them are Dori, Pamela, Leah Van Dale aka Carmella, and Matthew Polinsky aka Corey Graves.

Adam: So, Lexi, how's the week with the mystery man been?

Lexi: Pretty good. I already figured out who he is.

Everyone except Adam: You did!?

Adam, laughing: I heard you got speared into a pool 'cause you looked through his phone.

Lexi: Who told you that?

Adam: He did. I called him to see how life's been and he told me that you found out that it's him under the mask.

Lexi: Of course you knew it was him. How many other people know?

Pamela: Who is he!?

Adam, ignoring her: Not many. He kept the circle pretty small.

Lexi: Why didn't you tell me?

Adam: He made me promise not to tell you.

Lexi: And you listened?

Adam: He's a scary guy.

Lexi: I'll give you that one. He can be a little intimidating sometimes.

Pamela: Who!?

Lexi, ignoring Pamela: Now, I've got a bird to find.

Adam: The crow's in his nest.

Lexi: Thanks.

With that, she stands up and runs off. After constantly searching for a door leading to the place she needs to get to, Lexi finally finds the correct door.

Lexi, mumbling to the door: Found ya.

She opens the door, then closes it behind her as she enters the room. Lexi walks up a case of metal stairs that lead up to the man she's looking for, who's sitting on the metal floor, looking down at everyone setting up for the show. As she gets closer to him, she hears him humming to himself.

Lexi: For someone who hates being high up, you sure are comfortable up here.

Caleb, smirking: What can I say, I'm a complex individual.

Lexi: What song were you humming?

Caleb: "A Grave Mistake" by Ice Nine Kills.

Lexi, taking a seat next to him: What's it about?

Caleb: The Crow.

Lexi: Really?

Caleb, nodding: Their songs are about horror movies. "Stabbing In the Dark" and "A Grave Mistake" are my favorites.

Lexi: I'm guessing the other one is about...Halloween?

Caleb: Yeah. Good guess, Lex. Who told you I was up here?

Lexi: Adam.

Caleb: That's the last time I tell him something.

Lexi, laughing: You're a lot quieter up here. Everything okay?

Caleb: This is where I come to clear my head when I've gotta work. Knowing no one can see or hear me is...freeing. It helps me think.

Lexi: What are you thinking about right now?

Caleb: "M".

Lexi: Not gonna lie, I was expecting a sarcastic remark.

Caleb, smirking: I thought of a couple, but decided against using them.

Lexi: That sounds more like you. Now, what about "M" are you thinking about?

Caleb: I want to incorporate my uncle somehow. The only problem with that is the Crow isn't a villain. The Undertaker, Kane, the Firefly Family; they're all based around evil. The Crow isn't.

Lexi: You'll figure something out, you're a pretty smart guy.

Caleb: Thanks. Why'd you come up here anyway? I thought you'd be happier catching up with Adam and them.

Lexi: You make me happier than anyone ever could. I didn't want you to be all alone.

Caleb: I'm not entirely alone. Logan comes up here every now and then.

Lexi: That's nice of him.

Caleb: Yeah, but every time he comes up here, he says "don't jump!".

Lexi, laughing: He's a funny guy.

Caleb, smiling: Yeah, he's pretty great.

After they share a good laugh, Lexi wraps Caleb's arm around her shoulders, cuddling up against the Dark Destroyer. Lexi closed her eyes for a moment, enjoying the peace she always finds when she's in his arms.

Lexi: How long do we have until the show starts?

Caleb: A few hours. What do you wanna do until then?

Lexi, smiling: Stay up here with you.

Caleb: That's fine. We'll stay up free for a few more hours, but then I need to get warmed up.

Lexi: What's the plan for tonight?

Caleb: You remember our little talk about The Crow?

Lexi nods.

Caleb: Let's see how good I am at this "vindicator" thing.

Timeskip

After spending some time in Caleb's hiding spot, he and Lexi went to his locker room. From there, they watch the show. While taking note of the SmackDown superstars they'd each like to work with, Caleb warms up for his segment. Lexi listens to the Ice Nine Kills songs he mentioned earlier as Caleb does varying stretches and exercises.

[There should be a GIF or video here. Update the app now to see it.]

[There should be a GIF or video here. Update the app now to see it.]

While they're listening to "Stabbing In the Dark", there's a knock at the door. Lexi looks back at her hooded boyfriend, who's doing handstand push-ups, with a questioning glance. From his upside down position, a maskless Caleb shakes his head, silently telling her that he has no idea who's outside the room.

Lexi, over the music: Who is it!?

???: The sexiest man alive.

Caleb nods at Lexi, silently telling her it's okay for her to open the door. She opens the door and walks back over to the couch in the locker room. As she walks away, Logan Kenway and Destroyer enter the room. They close the door behind them, then follow her over to where Caleb is.

Caleb: Huh, had no idea I could be in two places at once.

Logan: Who said you were the sexiest man alive?

The Dark Disciple lifts one hand off the ground and points at Lexi.

Caleb: She did.

Logan turns and looks at Lexi, who smiles and waves their way from the couch.

Logan turns back around to face Caleb, who now has both of his hands on the floor again and has gone back to warming up.

Logan: I...I don't know what to say.

Destroyer: Finally speechless, huh?

Caleb gets down from doing his handstand. He isn't on his feet long before he gets down on his knuckles and proceeds to do more push-ups.

Caleb: Thanks, Lex. Now, what can I do to help you two gentlemen?

Logan: How are you doing that on this type of floor? It has to be hurting.

Destroyer, ignoring Logan: We wanted to make sure you're ready for tonight.

Caleb: Why wouldn't I be?

Destroyer: It might keep the character from being completely evil.

Caleb: That's the plan.

Logan: I thought you were "the Emperor of Darkness". Aren't you supposed to be evil?

Caleb: Darkness doesn't always mean evil. And I'm not the Emperor yet. That comes later.

Destroyer: What're you supposed to be right now?

Caleb: A guy doin' push-ups on his knuckles.

Timeskip

In the ring

After cutting a promo against the Universal Champion Roman Reigns, Logan is attacked by the Usos and the Tribal Chief. While the numbers game isn't in his favor, the Alpha manages to hold his own against the Bloodline. Eventually, the numbers game gets the better of him and he is met with a Superman Punch. The force from the punch causes him to turn around into a double Superkick from Jimmy and Jey. Their boots colliding with his bottom jaw forces him to turn around once more, this time, into a Spear from Roman.

Roman trash talks the fallen Englishman before releasing his tribal roar, signaling another Spear. Just as he goes to run at the Alpha, a song that has quickly become a fan favorite echoes throughout the arena.

[There should be a GIF or video here. Update the app now to see it.]

Roman looks over at the ramp to see an angry Destroyer making his way to the ring with a barbed wire steel chair in hand. While the Bloodline is distracted, Logan takes the opportunity to hit Roman with Wolf's Fang.

Jimmy and Jey make the mistake of turning their backs to the King of Destruction as they go to attack Logan once again. Destroyer slides into the ring, then drives the chair into Jimmy's back first. Unfortunately for Jey, he isn't fast enough to dodge the chair heading right for his spine. Both of the Usos drop to the mat where Destroyer continues his rampage, driving the chair into Jey's back, then Jimmy's, and then back to Jey's. He continues his malicious assault on the twins, but he wasn't ready for Roman's brother Ronin, who sneaks behind him. Destroyer is unaware of Ronin's presence and raises the chair over his head to continue his attack. Ronin takes the chair out of his hands and, when Destroyer turns around, slams it into the King of Destruction's face.

Ronin turns his attention to Logan, who is barely standing in the corner. The Samoan Gladiator hits Kenway with a huge uppercut, knocking the Alpha's head back. Logan doesn't have time to retaliate as Ronin hits him with a barrage of clotheslines in the corner before Irish whipping across the ring hard. Logan hits the corner hard and bounces out of it. Ronin catches him, hoisting him on his shoulders and hitting him with a Samoan Drop. The masked Spawn of Cerberus looks around at the destruction he's caused before hitting the ropes and driving his elbow into the heart of Logan Kenway with the Conqueror's Elbow.

The rest of the Bloodline make it to their feet and proceed to dissect the weakened Alpha and Destroyer. Every now and then, the two wounded men would start to fight back, getting in a few good shots here and there, but it wasn't enough to stop the overwhelming combined might of the Bloodline. Before they could finish their opponents off, the Tribal Chief and his family are caught off guard by the sound of an all too familiar gong.

Roman and his family look all around for where their attacker could be coming from. The lights shut off, leaving them in darkness. The lights come back on to reveal "M" standing in the center of the Bloodline. They slowly turn around to face the cloaked man.

(A/N: "M" is wearing the attire he made his debut in.)

The large man looks to his left, then to his right. Jimmy and Jey decide to take their shot and attempt to attack the large man. They run at him, only to be knocked down by a right hand to the jaw. "M" looks down at the fallen men, then at Roman and Ronin. Ronin runs forward, but is knocked down with a clothesline. Before Roman has a chance to launch an attack of his own, his skull is shattered by a big boot from 'Taker's Disciple. The Usos make it to their feet and drive their forearms into "M"'s spine. Their attack only angers the large man, who turns to face them and wraps his gloved hands around their throats. His grip tightens as he lifts them up and hits them with a thunderous Double Chokeslam.

Ronin runs at "M". "M" kicks him in the stomach, picks him up, and hits him with a Sit-out Last Ride. Roman makes it to his feet and tries to catch "M" off guard with his Guillotine Choke, but "M" proves too strong for him and reverses it into a Tombstone Piledriver. "M" looks over and sees the mangled bodies of the Alpha and the King of Destruction. The sight fills him with rage. The anger begins to drive "M" mad, as the crowd closer to the ring and those watching at home (thanks to the cameramen being close enough to the ring) hear the sadistic, twisted laughter of the Dark Disciple.

(A/N: Ignore Eve Torres in the background.)

Now that the Bloodline is decimated, "M" walks over to a recovering Destroyer. Destroyer tries to use the ropes to stand, thinking "M" is here to destroy him and Logan too. Rather than burying them alive, "M" reaches his hand down to the King of Destruction, who looks at it skeptically before cautiously taking it. "M" helps Destroyer to his feet, then looks over at the Alpha, who is struggling to make it to his feet. "M" repeats the process, reaching his gloved hand down. Logan takes it, not caring that the man it belongs to might be here to take his soul.

"M": You two alright?

The two nod in response, breathing heavily and holding their ribs.

"M": Good. You are champions in your own right, but you could be so much more. You have seventy-two hours to make your decision.

The Dark Disciple turns and the lights go out again. After a few seconds, they come back on and "M" is no where to be found. Logan and Destroyer look at the damaged bodies of the Bloodline, confused as to why "M" of all people helped them tonight.

A/N: Thank all y'all for reading. A special thanks to JackRyan658 and Logan-Kenway for letting me use their OCs once again. I highly recommend you guys go check out their stuff. Just a little FYI, Destroyer and Logan Kenway will be reoccurring characters throughout the story. Anyway, thanks for reading and I'll talk to y'all next time.