Opening Scene – Seven Days
The show opened with a black screen. A single voice cut through the silence.
Jaxon Cross, low and hoarse:
> "Seven days since WarGames… and already the empire's cracking."
Clips flashed across the screen—Jaxon standing tall over Seth, Kai taking the mic, Orton watching, Judgment Day reloading.
> "This isn't about legacy anymore. This is about survival."
Cut to the announcement screen:
> MAIN EVENT TONIGHT:
Jaxon Cross vs. Kai Maddox
No Disqualifications. One Fall to Finish.
---
Backstage – Saint in the Middle
Early in the show, Saint sat between two locker bays, headphones in, bouncing his leg.
Talon Creed leaned nearby, arms folded.
Saint took off one earbud and asked, "You think they're really gonna go through with it?"
Talon nodded. "Kai's got something to prove. And Jaxon? He never backs down."
Saint sighed. "It ain't gonna end clean."
Talon didn't answer. Just stared at the floor.
---
In-Ring – Kai's Promise
Later, Kai Maddox cut a pre-match promo backstage.
No music. Just a dark corridor.
"I gave Jaxon my loyalty. My blood. My respect. And he gave me silence. Tonight, I stop being the soldier… and start being the one they talk about."
He looked directly into the camera.
> "No more shadows. Just fire."
---
The Match – Jaxon Cross vs. Kai Maddox (No DQ)
The arena went black.
Jaxon's music hit—slow, gritty, rebellious.
He entered alone. No coat. No pyro. Just fists taped and face tight with tension.
Kai entered next, staring holes through Jaxon as he stormed down.
Bell rang.
They met in the middle. No lock-up. Just fists.
Straight rights. Elbows. Knees.
Jaxon tried for a clothesline—Kai ducked and swept the leg. Mounted punches. He roared at the crowd, raw and unhinged.
Kendo stick from under the ring. Kai cracked it over Jaxon's back three times, then used the splinters to dig into the stitches above Jaxon's eye.
Jaxon bled instantly.
He powered through it. Suplex onto a chair. DDT onto the steel steps. A steel chain from his boot—he wrapped it around his arm and used it for a discus forearm to Kai's face.
1… 2… kickout.
The fight spilled outside the ring—through the crowd, over barricades. Kai countered a powerbomb with a hurricanrana through the announce table. Jaxon barely beat the count back in.
Then—he smiled.
Not mockingly.
Almost… proud.
They staggered toward each other, bloodied and breathless.
Jaxon said something off mic.
Kai shook his head.
Then—
The lights cut out.
---
The Viper Strikes
When the lights came back—
Randy Orton stood between them.
Saint and Talon were at the top of the ramp, staring in confusion.
Orton grabbed a chair.
Swung at Jaxon.
Jaxon ducked.
CRACK.
Chair caught Kai in the skull.
The crowd exploded.
Orton stood still. Emotionless.
Jaxon looked down at Kai—out cold.
He dropped to a knee.
1… 2… 3.
---
Aftermath – No Victory Lap
Jaxon didn't celebrate.
He sat next to Kai's body, breathing hard.
Saint slid into the ring, trying to check on Kai, but Talon blocked him.
Orton just walked away.
No words. No smirk. Just the calm of a man who'd just pulled the pin from a grenade.
---
Backstage – Fallout Brewing
Later, Talon approached Jaxon in the locker room.
"You let him do it?"
Jaxon stood, still sweating, chest rising and falling.
"I didn't know."
Talon didn't believe him.
"He's not us, Jax."
"He is now," Jaxon said flatly.
Saint entered. "Kai's in the trainer's room. Concussion protocol. He asked for you."
Jaxon looked at the floor.
Didn't move.
Didn't speak.
Saint scoffed. "So that's it, huh? Win the war, lose the brother."
He walked out.
Talon followed.
Jaxon sat down.
Alone.
Again.
---
Final Shot – The Broken Crown Burns Again
The episode ended with Orton in a dark room. No throne. Just the old crown from Seth's kingdom, resting in a fire barrel.
He dropped a lighter in.
Watched it burn.
Then looked at the camera.
> "You can't build anything new…"
> "…until the old is ash."
---