Lita felt as though she were actually near tears as she made her way alone down the ramp to the ring.  Edge would be following her, and then the Dudley Boyz would be announced.

Damn it... She ran both hands through her hair as she stood in one corner of the ring.  She quickly exchanged glances with Lilian Garcia, and the little blonde gave her a look of tender concern.  God, this was not right...

A few minutes earlier, Eric Bischoff, Chief Morley at his side as usual, had come out to the entry ramp.  On the mic he'd held, he'd announced that there would be a 'very special' match taking place that night - that the intergender tag team of Edge and herself would be facing the Dudleys in a table match.  The fans had booed this news with considerable loudness.  Obviously, they disapproved of the GM's brilliant idea that was this match.

The strains of Rob Zombie's "Never Gonna Stop" blared throughout the arena following the seductive female voice uttering, "You think you know me..."  The redhead kept her gaze trained on the curtain separating the entryway from the backstage area - and after a few seconds, she saw him.

Edge stepped out from the back, and, even from this distance, Lita coudl see that from the expression on his face, he meant business.  The blond man didn't bother with his usual entrance, forgoing playing up to the fans.  Instead, the expression of concern still on his handsome face, he walked directly to the ring.

As he approached her and came to stand directly in front of her, the Canadian placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.  His eyes were still filled with tenderness and concern as he spoke softly to her.

"Don't worry, Lita - I swear, I won't let them hurt you..."

The redhead swallowed hard, then nodded.  Although she trusted and believed him, and although D'Von and Bubba Ray were her friends, she still couldn't help her feeling of unease.  What if Bischoff came out to be at ringside, or sent Morley to do that?  Either way, there would be a 'cheerleader' around to bark orders to the Dudleys, no matter how much they didn't want to harm her.

Lita swallowed hard again a moment later when, as Lilian announced them, the half-brothers from Dudleyville made their way out from the back and rushed to the ring.  Her breath caught in her throat as she spotted Chief Morley and Eric Bischoff right behind them.

Edge stepped protectively in front of the redhead as Bubba neared them, and the tall blond stared the man down.  D'Von came to stand beside his brother, a look of concern on his face.  It was evident that he, at least, didn't want any part of this match.

Bischoff came to stand on the apron behind the Dudleys, a microphone clutched in his left hand.

"All right, boys..." he began, a smug grin plastered to his face.  "You know what you have to do..."  Then, he hopped down to the arena floor to stand beside Morley in the Dudleys' corner.

The bell rang, and no one moved a muscle for a beat, but as Lita gripped Edge's arm from behind, she felt the tall blond man stiffen somewhat.  He was definitely ready to strike if either Bubba or D'Von made a move to attack.

The Dudleys appeared reluctant to do anything.  Both Edge and Lita were friends, not foes.  The four wrestlers stared at one another in silence for a moment as the fans yelled and screamed from their seats.

Lita prayed that the Dudley Boyz would see the situation the way she did - that all of this was sheer madness.  It crossed her mind what a terrific thing it would be if she, Edge, Bubba and D'Von teamed up to physically turn on Bischoff and Morley.  Was it possible the Dudleys weren't quite as loyal to Eric and his manipulation that they might listen to reason?  She decided to find out.

Shocking everyone, especially Edge and including herself, the daredevil redhead stepped forward and eyed each of the brothers, a nearly pleading quality in her hazel eyes.

"Guys...Can't we be on the same side here?  Those men," she said softly, pointing toward the two jerks on the outside, "are evil!  We should fight them..."

"What the hell is going on?" Bischoff suddenly snarled into his mic.  "Now's your perfect opportunity - grab her, damn it!"

D'Von turned to glance over his shoulder at the demanding General Manager while Bubba Ray kept his intense gaze on Lita.  Nothing happened...

But then, suddenly, with her guard down, the redhead was shocked as Bubba grabbed her by a handful of her hair.  Her eyes went wide and her jaw dropped in all the surprise she felt.  Edge, on the other hand, sprung into action and rushed to pummel the larger Dudley Boy, who, unfortunately, didn't release the diva just yet.

After a beat, D'Von finally got into the action and hit Edge in the back with a double axe-handle.

Eric Bischoff's laughter resounded throughout the arena as the chaos continued.

To Lita, it was the loudest sound she'd ever heard...