"Serena! Serena!"
A voice called through the mists of the graveyard. Serena struggled to
see the tall, dark figure in the shadows. She neared closer and saw
the figure reach out its hand. "Help me, Serena. You've been
chosen. Help me be free, so that we may fulfill our destiny together..."
The voice quickly faded, as well as the figure.
"Wait! Tell
me who you are!" She shouted. Suddenly, she felt something
cold pour itself over her.
She spat what
it was out as quickly as she could, then woke with a start to see Midian
sitting next to her. The rag on her forehead slipped into her lap.
Midian let out a cry of relief as his sister came to.
"Serena, you're
alright!" He squeezed her again. She looked around to see the
familiar uniform furniture of a hotel room.
"Den, what -
what happened?" She asked weakly.
Midian frowned.
"Too much. Oh, the Undertaker will have my head for this!"
He took the rag from her lap. "You were attacked in the parking lot of
the arena. They about got you - but I got you away from him."
Serena was about
to play 20,000 questions when a large black man entered the room and looked
relieved to see Serena sitting up. "Oh, good, you're awake."
He placed a bag of McDonald's food on the table. Midian smiled at
the man.
"Serena, this
is Viscera. Viscera, this is my twin sister, Serena."
"Pleased to
meet you." Serena said politely.
"Pleasure's
mine." Viscera said. He looked at Midian and sighed. "We gotta
come up with a game plan fast. The Undertaker will have every god damned
person he can think of looking for us."
"Then we'll
just have to stay three steps ahead of him."
"Uh, excuse
me for being the one, but WHAT IN GOD'S GREEN EARTH ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT??"
Serena yelled. Midian put his pointer finger to his mouth, telling
her to keep it down.
"It's a long
story, Serena, put to put it in simple terms, our 'employer', the Undertaker,
is seeking you as the next addition to the Ministry of Darkness, not only
as a Dark Power, but as a bride as well." Viscera said in an official
tone.
Serena gave
him a confused look. "But why? Wrestling's fake, right, Dennis? Dennis?"
Her question met only silence. She frowned. "Are you guys part
of this 'ministry' too?"
"Yep.
Charter members, actually." Midian said shamefully.
Serena's eyes
widened. "You mean you joined a cult and didn't tell us?! Mom and
Dad would freak!" Midian's gaze silenced her again. She looked
down. "What's so special about me? I don't have any 'powers' or things
like that."
"But something's
there, Paul Bearer felt it, Taker felt it, and they're the true power behind
the organization." Midian said. "We're gonna find out what this is
all about, sis. But we can't let you go back to the house - that's the
first place they would look for us." He looked sadly at her.
"Me and Viscera won't let you out of our sight. You gotta travel with us,
until we get things together."
"But, I can't
just get up and leave! I don't have clothes or anything..."
"We'll take
care of that." Viscera said with a smile. "Don't worry, the
first thing we'll do is go get what you need. I suggest we drive at night
and stop during the day. They'll try to find us at night rather than
in broad daylight. We better get moving now. I got this food
for the road."
Serena sighed.
"Can I take a shower?"
Midian nodded.
"We'll pack while you do that."
Serena dragged
herself out of the bed and into the bathroom. She ran the water in
the sink and splashed the cold water over her face. She dried her
face and looked at herself in the mirror. "What have you gotten yourself
into this time, Serena?" She asked the reflection in the mirror.
She sighed. She knew she could trust Dennis and Viscera, but how
long would this last? Serena began the shower, and a tear slid down
her cheek. She wiped it away and would blame her red eyes on the shampoo.
"They were here."
The Undertaker surveyed the hotel room with concern. "I can smell
her - she was here."
Paul Bearer
frowned. "They must have just left a few minutes ago. There
is still steam on the mirror in the bathroom."
The Undertaker
laughed, and Paul and the Acolytes looked at him strangely. He turned
to Paul. "She's got Midian and Viscera as her guardians. They
know all my secrets - of course they know to leave at night. No problem,
though. We'll still be able to track them, and we can meet them in
the next event town."
He motioned
for them to leave. He stood in the threshold and smiled. "I'll
find you, my dear. And your brother will be the first to be destroyed."
"So this book
that the fat guy has can tell us what my ordeal is all about?" Serena
asked with interest as Midian drove down the lonely highway. "How
can an ancient book tell me about my future?"
"It was cursed
by the Undertaker's ancestor. It is prophecies that tell about all
the stuff that the Ministry is to do. I'm not quite sure if the book
says anything about you, but I've got a hunch that it does. Every
move the Ministry makes is based on that book." Midian said.
"All we have to do is get it from Paul Bearer."
"That's all?!"
Viscera said sarcastically from the back seat. "We can't possibly
do that alone! You know good and well that the Ministry has always
protected that poor excuse for a textbook with its life. How do you
expect us to get it?"
"We make really
strong friends with some of the other wrestlers." Midian said.
Serena sighed.
"Well, nobody ever said this was going to be easy." She said in a
frustrated tone.
"Don't worry,
Serena." Viscera said with pep. "A LOT of people want to get
back at Taker. They'll join our cause in a heartbeat."
"I think ultimately
that this thing will come down to just the Undertaker and you, Serena."
Midian said with concern. "We need to teach you to defend yourself,
physically as well as mentally. So hold on, we're gonna give you
a crash course in professional wrestling."
"Gee, can't
wait." She said without interest. She turned her gaze back
to the empty road ahead of them. She closed her eyes, drifting slowly
to sleep and hoping she would have the dream again. She knew it was
linked to the situation before her, somehow.
Copyright 1999 by Lady Destiny