<center>
The Majestic Cup 2007 Semi-Finals
The winner of this match will face off later in the show to determine the winner of the Majestic Cup tournament.

William Shamrock vs Inferno vs Atomic Welfare
Inferno and Welfare were given byes at Havoc by Commissioner Stern, allowing him to continue into the semi-finals without their matches even ending! Shamrock advanced by defeating Jason Dante, with an assist from the big man, Cage.</center>

Alex Dragonslayer couldn't help but smile when he tapped on Shamrock's door after his victory over Jason Dante. The Great British Hero had somewhat left his tag partner in the lurch after their debut tag match and his short holiday to concentrate on his wedding. However he was back for the time being (especially after learning that the enigmatic FWRFed Champion Malaki joined had TCW for the Majestic Cup) Of course, his partner would have to come first.

Will Shamrock opened the door with a wide smile. Through foul play or not, the former TCW world Champion had been pinned by him and the Majestic Cup was 2 matches away, and his first opponents didn't technically win! Shamrock was wearing a sharp black suit, complete with a Dollar shaped pin on his lapel. He had a couple of bruises but Shamrock looked picture perfect.

"Dragonslayer, What a surprise, I thought you would be busy in Canada."

"And miss the biggest match of your career, I'd pay $1000 to see Dante kick your ass!"

Both men laughed, although Shamrock wasn't completely sure that Dragonslayer was joking. He eyeballed the large bottle of French wine the British Wrestler was carrying, and promptly opened the door:

"You always know the best wines. As good a time as any for a glass..."

"Didn't think you'd ask."

***

Atomic Welfare strapped another band-aid onto his forehead. He knew that it was pointless with his regenerative powers, but he wanted to give the impression that was a normal guy (albeit a 300 pounder with arms the length of some people's waists). He sighed slightly as he looked around. His dressing room was the smallest in the arena, cramped, grimy and humid- befitting a man who had been overlooked until the tournament. But now was his time to shine. He knew that nothing would soothe him more then winning the cup and the respect of the crowds.

The boos at the end of the match with Freya Green still seemed to cut underneath his skin, prickling his soul. He knew deep down he was in trouble, she was extremely talented, and had the crowd behind her. He was just some prick who nobody would want to meet. Many times people asked if he used steroids, of course they would never believe is denials, even with every negative test there was always a seed of doubt. They would never believe the truth. Who would?

A knock echoed through the warm air, sounds bouncing off the damp walls and into Atomic's ears. He moved to the door, his fists clenched- it was probably Freya ready for a rematch of sorts. The door swung open and a familiar face appeared. Anthony's fists dropped down. It was Melissa. His heart jumped a beat and he felt blood rush to his cheeks. Melissa was wearing an Atomic Welfare T-shirt ([i]This shit actuallyi] he found himself thinking), her long red hair was let down and was perfectly straight. Her emerald green eyes sparkled. The gloomy dressing room seemed to shine with light.

"I thought I'd go see your match..." she began, but rest of the sentence never came out.

She instead leaned back as Anthony Smith's lips pressed against hers.

***

Inferno loved to embrace the darkness, it was a warm blanket he wrapped himself around. It kept him out of vision, and hid him from Chi. The manifestation of life, the light. Inferno hated it, he struggled to extinguish it. His eyes focused through shadows. Could this masked man see through the night? He returned the mask to his face, careful to ensure it stayed clinging to his face. No-one should see his face...

His mind drifted calmly to the next match. He wouldn't dwell on Darkness, the time would come they would cross paths. Until then, there were other challenges. Other Victories...

***
Stern smiled as she stared straight at the figure in front of him.

"So you want the chance to lift the cup. Well Smith, Inferno and Shamrock did leave a lot to be desired at Havoc...
You can still do the job correctly?"

The figure nodded, its face obscured by shadows. Stern moved a strand of red hair from in front of her eyes. She couldn't help not to smile:

"Good luck then..."

Inferno stepped further in the room, and Blackjack suddenly struck, the dog pouncing towards Inferno with his mouth wide open. But Inferno was prepared, and his gloved hand thrust out with incredible speed, catching the dog in midair by the throat. He forced it down to the ground, thrusting the weight of his body down, pinning the dog roughly to the ground. Then Inferno's head snapped back up to look at Stern once more, head twitching, shoulders and arms shaking with rage as the poor dog let out whimpers without a sound. There was no need for words, the threat was clear.

"You are not to ever stop a match with me in it, ever again. When the bell rings, the business is between me, and my opponent."

Stern remained calm, not intimidated by the threat, but allowed Inferno to continue. Her finger hovered over a button on her desk which would summon security to her office in a minute...

"You could never understand the high of destroying somebody...ripping their being apart...a high you took from me...and if you ever take it from me again...you're going to experience the absolute low, the nightmare of being crippled...I won't just destroy your body, I will destroy your thoughts. I will destroy everyone connected to you. Do you think I need your help?" he continued. "Do you honestly think I couldn't have gotten the job done on my own, you miserable woman? You're all the same...do you all think I need HELP?!"

Inferno's body continued to shake in a barely controlled rage. He spoke through gritted teeth, "Now, name my opponents for the next match."

"Shamrock and Welfare....and someone else." Stern said, after a long pause.

"Who?"

"You'll find out." Stern insisted.

"One more thing....a rematch with Darkness. I want it booked ASAP."

"You win the Cup, you can choose that match," Stern reminded him.

"I will." Inferno finally released his grip on the dog, turning away, and closing the door. He didn't pay attention to the sounds of the dog weakly scratching at the door. Or the bloody, twisted, moaning group bodies he stepped over.....

That had happened right after the last show, but now the man was brooding in the darkness once again, where he felt safe. He only ever left that safety when it was necessary, and for a brief moment, he felt at peace, but not even fueling his rage could keep his mind at bay. It wouldn't be long until his thoughts began to self-destruct once again...

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Suddenly, a man handed Shamrock a few papers, who turned and gave him a look of annoyance. "Now why would you be interrupting me and my partner, when we're in the middle of sharing a drink together?"

"Sorry, Mr. Shamrock, but you did ask for information on your opponents in your next match..."

"Whatever." Shamrock once again looked at the card he had been given earlier that displayed his opponents.

"Shamrock vs Inferno vs Welfare vs ???"

He scoffed. They couldn't have put him in a more insulting spot. He was the only one in that match who had actually scored a pinfall and earned his place to fight for the Majestic Cup. The only other thing that bothered him were the three, mysterious question marks at the end. They stared him down in their bold, black print, tauntingly concealing their mystery from him. Unfortunately, there was no profile on his third opponent. Well, nobody kept secrets from William Shamrock.

"I thought I asked for all of my opponents' background information? You don't do your job very well."

"I apologize, Mr. Shamrock, but..."

"That's coming out of your paycheck. Go, and don't come back until you've got the name of my opponent, as well as any and all details on his background."

"As you wish, sir." The man walked away without a fuss.

"Wonderful service, right?" Shamrock said, laughing.

"You'd think they'd be a little more motivated with the money they're getting," Alex said. "So, what about the other opponents?"

Shamrock set his drink aside and looked at the other two papers he had been handed. Brief profiles on both of his opponents. He skimmed them over quickly. The gist of it was that Inferno was a masked psycho, with formidible size and strength, and very prone to violence. Atomic Welfare seemed no better, listed as a 'roid-raged freak', rumored to have attacked his opponent before the match.

"Wonderful, I get to wrestle two psychos," Shamrock said, reclining in his seat. "And perhaps a third."

"TCW seems to attract a lot of crazies, eh?" Alex chimed in. "You'll end up being carried out of the ring at this rate, with those two monsters in the ring," he said, laughing.

"Not if they cancel each other out." Shamrock said. Perhaps if he played his cards right, he could get those two raging animals to take each other out before the event even started. Their names didn't even belong next to his on the card. He once again lifted his cell...

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The kiss replayed over and over in Atomic Welfare's mind as he sat in the gym, the warmth of her lips still fresh on his own. He wondered what she would think of him, if she ever learned the truth about his ever-changing, inhuman body. Would she freak? He wouldn't blame her...No, the worst thing in the world that could happen is if he ever lost control of himself...in front of her. Forget about her reaction, if he struck her down in that state, he would never forgive himself.

He was already having trouble forgiving himself, for lying to her. Betraying her trust every time he told her he was going to the gym. It was not the lie about where he was going that bothered him directly, since he always did come here, it was the lie that was implied. He was telling her that his muscles came from hours and hours of training...and she believed him. And he sat in the gym, not to exercise his body, but to reflect upon himself.

So many times he wished he had been brave enough to tell her before, but he hadn't, he'd told himself he could live with the guilt. And then the lie grew and grew, until he felt like he couldn't turn back any longer. Every time he even though of opening his mouth and letting the truth escape, the stinging image of her form, walking away from him forever returned to haunt him. And then he'd be alone again...the fans would never take pity on a monster like him.

The cell phone rang a few times before being picked up.

"Stern!!! All I did for you and you put some mystery opponent into my match?" Shamrock demanded.

"Well Will, I did have a mystery opponent lined up, but I guess we could change that. But if you're going to hold this over my head, I can do this another way." Valerie Stern replied before hanging up on Shamrock.

"Well at least I've only got two opponents left. Let's take a look at these files." Shamrock said, opening the file labeled "Inferno".

"Hmm.. no known address, big shocker there." Shamrock flipped to a picture of Inferno.

"Holy shit, this dude must be pretty ugly to wear this freaky mask. Hmmm.....it says he is unsure of himself.....that could work very nicely.... Parents Unknown.....Damn I feel like I've seen this before like 1,000 times. Next." Shamrock said, turning to the file labeled "Atomic Welfare"

"Ok, Anthony Smith is the real name and."

Shamrock stopped reading when he got the feeling someone was standing in front of him. He looked up, and found himself staring at the chest of a large man. He looked up at the man's face, seeing a mask he had just recently seen.

"Ah Infero. The big guy. How can I help- Holy Crap, look behind you!" Shamrock said, and the big man turned around. Shamrock kicked Inferno in the back of the knee, dropping the man to one knee. Shamrock then took a step back before kneeing the man in the back of the head. Inferno dropped to the floor.

"Buddy, I'd really like to talk, but I've got a house to go look at. I'm liking the Canadian real estate market" Shamrock said, walking over the fallen man, shuddering as the cat-like eyes seemed to follow Shamrock.

************************

"Here it is." The woman said, gesturing to the large house that Shamrock and she now stood in. "10 bedrooms, 9 ½ bathroom, indoor and outdoor pool, tennis court, 6 hole golf course, marble foyer, 2 private studies and balconies with 4 of the bedrooms. You've said you've looked at the house online, I'm just gonna stay here in the foyer and let you take a look around."

Shamrock feigned a smile. "Thank you." He said before ascending the staircase to the upstairs. Shamrock ran his hand over the wooden paneling covering the walls as he stepped into the master bathroom. The room had a high ceiling, and marble tiles running a path to the king sized bed, which was positioned on a low stage off the floor. Shamrock saw a door to his left, and opened it, seeing now that it was a walk-in closet the size of a normal room. Shamrock took a few steps into the closet, admiring the dark oak shelving..

"Shamrock" A voice said, and Shamrock spun turned around, seeing nothing from his point of view. Shamrock walked out of the closet, and turned to close the door.

"Shamrock." The voice repeated, and Shamrock quickly closed the closet door. He turned around.

"W-who said that?" Shamrock said.

"Ah, nothing to be scared of Will." The voice said, and Shamrock thought it was coming from the dresser. Shamrock walked to the large dresser, and looked into the mirror. He jumped back, seeing Jason Dante in the reflection. He looked over his shoulder, seeing no one in the room besides him. He looked back at Dante in the mirror.

"How- How are- Is this real?" Shamrock stuttered.

"Yes Will. It's very real. Did you really think that our match would settle everything? That I would let you kidnapping my pregnant wife just drop?"

"Well, you did leave her defenseless." Shamrock said, regaining some of his swagger.

Dante's eyes burned at Shamrock, who rubbed his eyes, still refusing to believe what he saw.

"You're not real. It can't be real. Even if you are real, I beat you in the ring, I won, you wanna rematch about, go talk to Stern." Shamrock said.

Dante shook his head. "So angry, just like I used to be. A rematch is so concrete, so contractual. I'd rather just torment your mind."

Shamrock again shook his head. "You can't be real. I'm just imagining this."

Dante smiled. "Welcome to hell on earth, William" Shamrock shook his head again before rearing back and punching the mirror. Instead of the mirror fragmenting into millions of pieces, one crack started up the mirror, etching a pattern into the glass. Shamrock watched in disbelief as the glass stopped cracking. Shamrock stared at the pattern.

"No.. No...that's impossible." Shamrock said. Before him, etched into the glass, was the shape of a chess piece, a king specifically. Just then, Shamrock's phone rang.

"Shamrock! You attacked Inferno??" Stern screeched into the phone.

"I-I -I I"

"Just get back to the arena, we need to talk." Stern said before hanging up. Shamrock stared up at the chess piece one last time before hurrying out of the room and down the stairs. The real estate agent stood in the foyer.

"So, what did you think?" She asked, and Shamrock continued towards the door.

"I'll call you later." Shamrock said, rushing out the door and into the back of the limo.

"Get me to the arena as fast as possible." Shamrock said, and the limo sped away from the house. He looked out the back window, watching as the house grew further away. Shamrock's phone chirped, signifying a text message. He flipped open the phone, and a white chess piece appeared on the screen. Shamrock quickly put the window down and threw his phone out the window. He then reached for the bar.

"God damn do I need a drink."