Will Kane's Fellow Freaks Still Be There for His Comeback?

The months had been long and cruel. Every morning, Kane reached for his injured bicep muscle, squeezing it, flexing it, wondering if it would feel the way it did when he'd been at the top of WWE. There were days when he was ready to quit, convinced that he'd never be the man who'd held the WWE Championship in 1998. Pain shot up and down his arm, from the wrist to the shoulder blade, and Kane would scream in agony, frustration and anger at his inability to get back in the ring and trample his foes.

At night, he would sleep restlessly, sometimes imagining that he was back at full capacity, crooking his arm under and adversary's chin and clamping on the pressure, wringing an opponent's head until their mouth hung open and the blood vessels burst above their eye-brows.

Then there were the other dreams, the ones in which Kane was ambushed by his enemies, his arm draped around the ring post or through the gap in the center of a folding chair. Always his opponents would yank his arm, stretching the tendons until they tore. They would lay his elbow on the ground and come down on it with both boots, or lift the ring stairs aloft, plunging the steel steps onto the injured area.

At times, the dream seemed like a movie, with Kane observing his own ruin as part of the audience. The clamor of the crowd would dissolve into numbed silence. The only noise would come from the objects smashing against his own body, the grunts and whoops of his attackers, and the primal cries emitted from his throat as Kane felt his career slip away from him.

Kane would howl like an animal caught in a trap in the middle of a forest. The other Superstars would be in the back for the arena, watching from the other side of the curtain, and monitoring the carnage on the TV screens positioned in the dressing room. As Kane gritted his teeth and endured the thrashing, he'd look beseechingly down the aisle, waiting for rescue-from a former tag team partner, an athlete of lesser proportions, or any of his "fellow freaks," who he had aided during a time of distress. But the aisle would remain empty, and Kane would have to suffer his fate the way he always had--alone.

The bedroom would be dark when Kane sprang awake, the blankets one the floor, the sheets drenched in sweat, the pillow cases torn off. He'd leap from the bed, thrashing about trying to grab the opponents from his nightmare and fight them off. Then he would steady himself on a dresser or the edge of a chair, and understand what was happening.

All his life, he'd lived in fear, but always fought through it. Now, the pattern was recurring. While his fans awaited his return form injury, his foes-and even some men who publicly claimed to be his friends-were gleeful. At night, their dreams were the same as Kane's, except when they arose each morning, they felt refreshed and overjoyed, believing that once the former WWE Champion returned to action, one coordinated assault might eliminate him from the Sport of Kings forever.

But Kane knew that he could never be eliminated. There was too much fight in him for even an army of rivals to defeat. During his waking hours, he'd summon up the dread that invaded his nightmares and channel it in a way that strengthened him. He dutifully attended physical therapy, pushing himself even harder than he was advised, knowing that he would never rebound to his former status by simply going through the recommended motions.

As his injury healed, he returned to the gym, testing the bicep muscle by pressing and curling astonishing amounts of weight. When that goal was met he'd spread mats on the ground, and lock up with a number of sparring partners. Sometimes, they exchanged fundamental holds; other times, he encouraged them to gang up and jump him.

Kane would fight back with the fervor of a man about to lose his life. He cracked one sparring partner's knee, and broke another's jaw. And still, he hired more to come after him, like hunters in the jungle. It was the only way he'd be prepared for the treachery that an athlete of his stature encounters after a long layoff in WWE.

When Kane finally returned to WWE, he was clearly a man transformed by his long exile from the ring. Immediately, both fans and fellow Superstars noted that he looked different. His body was stronger, and his mask had changed. Those brave enough to inquire about his new appearance were initially met with stony silence.

According to people in Kane's camp, at least one of his advisors suggested that the gargantuan shed his camouflage completely, exposing his countenance to millions of followers who've always wondered about the true appearance of the man they’d some to romanticize. But Kane dismissed the idea immediately, refusing even to indulge the advisor in a conversation.

Apparently Kane needs his mask as a barrier form the rest of the world. To show his face would be to affirm that he was human--a declaration he is not ready to make.

Close associates have explained that Kane realizes he's on his own more than ever before. Never one to mix easily with other Superstars, Kane has reverted further into himself. To this day, he is periodically haunted by gruesome dreams that characterized his time away from the mat and each nightmare has reaffirmed the suspicion that lay at its core.

Privately, Kane has stated he never intends to trust anyone or anything other than his own drive and ability. In times past, he's cautiously opened himself up to others: family members, tag team partners, women who claimed to see something special beyond his scarred facade. Rather than finding fulfillment in these relationships, Kane was punished for revealing what others interpreted as weakness. Later when these confidants turned against him, his emotional vulnerability allowed them to wound him in ways that went far beyond the physical.

Yet anyone who has spent even a few fleeting moments with the Superstar understands that his actions notwithstanding, he desperately covets the approval of the fans. When they've rejected him, their jeers formed deep abrasions in his spirit. And when they've accepted him, Kane has admitted to feeling an emotion that has evaded him for most of his life: contentment. Even during his most grueling matches, Kane is known for looking out in the crowd and locking eyes with certain types of people: children from dysfunctional families who've never felt settled in one place; tall powerful men branded "oafish" rather than mighty; overweight fans who have endured teasing by their peers and yearned to achieve a measure of revenge.

Since his emergence in WWE in 1997, Kane's followers have kept track of every development in his career his World title reign, his acquisition of the Intercontinental and Hardcore Championships, his six WWE Tag Team crowns. Every time he chokeslammed or piledrove an adversary, or put his life at risk in a ring surrounded by fire or a casket match, these enthusiasts were convinced that a small part of Kane was battling for them.

During his last run in WWE, his fan approval rating soared to unprecedented levels. Grateful, Kane began referring to his supporters as "Kanenites." After a victory, he'd hearten them with a declaration of "Freaks rule!"

But during his sabbatical, Kane wondered whether the Kanenites would wait for him, or move on to performers like Rob Van Dam, John Cena, Rey Mysterio, or other dynamic personalities who eclipsed him in his youth. No matter what Kane might say in public, there is no question that he wants the Kanenites to remain behind him. Still, after a lifetime of misfortune and disillusionment, he understands he can't solely depend on them to sustain him.

Ultimately, Kane will have to-once again-make it on his own.

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