_________________________________________________

Back in the women's locker room, Amy let out a more than audible gasp. One of her hands flew up to her mouth in horror as she witnessed her boyfriend's plight.

"Adam!"

The redhead bolted up in the intention of running out there to the ring to help, but Dawn Marie grasped her arm tightly, holding her back.

"No! Amy, you can't-"

Amy turned anguished hazel eyes in the brunette's direction.

"But he looks unconscious! There's no telling what Matt will do!" she cried frantically.

"Even so - you *can't* go out there! How do you know he won't attack *you*, too?!"

"Dawn is right, Amy," Nidia said from her other side. The little brunette's face wore a look of worry that mirrored her own, only not to the same extent. "Maybe... maybe John will go back out and help Adam," she offered.

"I can't take the chance of waiting around to find out!" With that, the redhead wrenched her arm out of Dawn Marie's grip and ran for the door. She ignored all the excited calls from both of her friends, her mind set on one thing and one thing only - getting out there and helping the man she loved.

*

"Oh, no!"

John Cena's gaze followed that of Stephanie's to the television monitor in her office. And he saw why the General Manager was suddenly so upset - Edge seemed to be unconscious.

Matt Hardy seemed to be just getting his bearings after being clobbered by the blond man and after being the recipient of an Edgecution. The referee was knelt by Adam's side, checking on the Canadian.

And then, things seemed to go from bad to worse - a view of the entry ramp showed that Lita was running her way to the ring.

"Holy shit..." Cena swore softly.

"Oh, my God!" Stephanie exclaimed. "She's not cleared for this kind of action yet! Even if she *was*-" The brunette cut herself off as John rose and started for the door. "John, would you go out there and help?"

"Right ahead of you, babe," the dark-haired man replied, offering her a wink before he bolted through the door.

Stephanie shifted her blue eyes back to the monitor, refusing to let out a sigh of relief just yet. She would only allow herself that luxury once John was out there to protect the redhead and her fallen boyfriend.

*

"Matt, no!!" Amy cried defiantly, her hands stretched out before her in a defensive, protective fashion. She was kneeling before Adam's prone form, trying her damndest to protect him. Now, if only the asshole would comply.

The Hardy Boy wore a look of near maniacal glee as he glared down at the diva, a sadistic grin stretched across his facve. He was wielding a steel chair and crept steadily closer. In by inch, he got closer, and Amy could feel her stomach lurch. Did Matt really have it in him to strike her with a chair?

Her hazel eyes widened as the man raised the steel high up above his head, then she ducked, her eyes squeezing tightly shut as she awaited the blow.

It never came - at least not to herself and Adam, anyway. She looked up quickly, her heart nearly stopping in the relief she felt. John Cena had come to the rescue, the man now clutching the chair Matt had been threatening her with seconds earlier.

Version 1 put up a hand as though in a placating manner not unlike the way *she'd* begged *him* for mercy moments ago. John seemed to merely glance at him for a beat, his blue eyes wide with rage. Then, his right hand left the chair to perform his famed 'You can't see me' gesture. And then, in one swift move, Cena brought the chair up, smashing it down on Matt's head. The Hardy brother went down like a ton of bricks.

John was gesturing to Amy to move, and, uncertainly, she did. It was then that the throwback-clad man grabbed hold of the unconscious Edge, positioning the blond man so that he was pinning his nemesis. To Amy's shocked eyes, the referee began to count. One... two... three - it was over.

In moments, there were medical personnel swarming the ring, attending to Adam. Amy's eyes had filled with tears, but she was soon relieved when the blond man, though still groggy, regained consciousness. The Canadian looked up at her.

"What happened?"

"You won, baby... you won!"

"Oh... that's good." With those words, Adam blacked out again.