A glimpse into the future?

A glimpse into the future?

CLEVELAND -- A faint, evil smile crept across Randy Orton's lips as his vacant eyes burned a hole into a fallen John Cena. He believed he was looking into the future, and that next week, he would walk into Raw as the new WWE Champion.

As the Legend Killer stood over Cena and counted to 10, he envisioned himself looking down at an unconscious Champ again at No Mercy this Sunday. This time, the referee would hand him the WWE Championship as Lilian Garcia declared, "The winner of the match, and the NEW WWE Champion …" (WATCH)

Last week, Orton said he would give a preview of what he would do to Cena in their Last Man Standing Match at No Mercy. He even invited him to bring his father -- whom he brutalized in a match two weeks ago -- to Raw at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland so he could witness it firsthand.

Mr. Cena wasn't at the arena Monday night. But to the surprise of some at first, neither was Orton ... or so it appeared. The Legend Killer appeared to be in Chicago, the site of No Mercy this Sunday. Orton claimed he wasn't scared of Cena, but he also believed that his repeated attacks on his father had driven The Champ crazy and made him unstable. And Orton, being the snake that he is, was not going to put himself in potential jeopardy by being in the same building as Cena less than a week before the most important -- and perhaps dangerous -- match of his career.

Meanwhile, Cena was slightly distracted because he had to deal with another dangerous opponent on Raw -- Mr. Kennedy. The braggadocios Superstar has been driven since he was drafted to Raw. Mr. Kennedy, who lost his Money in the Bank championship opportunity to Edge and was injured for months before emerging on Raw, battled Cena as if he believed he had something to prove. The loudmouth from Green Bay, Wis., pushed Cena to the limit, perhaps in an attempt to impress WWE officials and get a future championship opportunity, but he wound up submitting to the STFU. However, if Kennedy made Cena forget about No Mercy just for a little while, Orton gave him a little reminder -- and a headache, courtesy of an RKO.

Our fans roared in shock at Orton's surprise appearance. But Orton wasn't finished with Cena. He flattened The Champ with ringside steps and TV monitors before RKOing him again on the announcers' table.

As the WWE Champion lay stunned, he was reminded of a few things: Orton is a viper who can strike anywhere, at any time. While Cena will be defending his father, family and the WWE Championship at their Last Man Standing Match on Sunday, Orton is concerned about only one thing -- winning the title any way he can.

To the third generation star, the WWE Championship is life itself, his destiny. Randy Orton will show no mercy to John Cena in his quest to be the Last Man Standing and the WWE Champion. He will do anything to turn what he envisioned Monday night into a reality this Sunday, Oct. 7.

For the full results of this week's Raw, click here.

VOTE: Who has the advantage at No Mercy?

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