A Lion's Thorn- Kieda vs Carolina!

[SubtleRoar]

"It's about time~" *Her sweetly snarky voice huffed while making the appropriate preparations for her upcoming event- The Cerulean Shadow was hot off of her convincing victory against her longtime frenemy Karbon a mere handful of days ago, bringing into question her ability to perform after such a demanding bout. However, unbeknownst to the less diehard supporters of the one and only Fashion Assassin, Kieda had a penchant for proving her doubters wrong- Anytime she graced the ring, her dazzling performances and stunning acrobatics left any and all who had the audacity to question her proficiency speechless. Tonight would be no different, and as she finished sprucing herself up, she rounded the corner while gracefully bowing towards the riff raff backstage- She was a woman of refinement after all, and believed that everyone deserved her utmost respect, besides anyone that stood across from her inside the ring, that is.*

Spoiler

*Clad from head to toe in her signature turquoise and lilac attire, platform boots and haughty demeanor Kieda sauntered into the spotlight, basking in the outpouring of unwavering support from her overzealous followers. It was always a reassuring sensation when the palpable encouragement washed over her, propelling her forward while extending her hands out to get the crowd involved with her grandiose entrance. Eventually reaching the border of the ring, she suddenly lunged onto the ring apron, slipping her svelte frame through the space between the ropes before cartwheeling towards her designated corner.* "Now that that's all taken care of, let's see who I'm up against tonight~" *Kieda giggled, unable to contain her excitement for what awaited her.*

[ReticentCone]

Being an Apex match, Carolina was prepared for this match to go a considerable distance and for her to use the oppertunity to make a statement. As a middleweight, her qualifying for Apex wouldn't only mean an opportunity to win a final match that'd give her a chance at the openweight title, it would also give her a chance at the since vacated middleweight title.

But that was still some ways down the road, this was one of the qualifiers that she needed to get through first. Strictly speaking, she didn't have to win them for them to count, so there was less pressure than there otherwise would have been. All she and her opponent had to do was make sure she could walk away from this match to the next one, while putting on a good show for the judges along the way.

Spoiler

Carolina exited from backstage as her music began, doing a pirouette and bowing at the top of the ramp before descending it. On her way toward the ring, she could begin to take a look at her opponent. She was tall and slender.

As Carolina made her way into the ring after climbing the steel steps, after handing her hat and weighted gloves to the referee, she couldn't help but point to the woman across her before gesturing as though she were snapping a stick. Those lanky limbs had to go. If Isljoninna had her way, Kieda wouldn't be leaving this ring under her own power.

[SubtleRoar]

*While her attention drifted elsewhere for a fleeting moment, digging her face into the illuminated screen of her phone to catch up on some neglected emails Kieda heard the roar of the audience, signaling the arrival of her competition- She boasted a natural, golden glow with a level of grace and finesse that even The Fashion Assassin herself seemed impressed by, even a tad jealous of. This thought would guide her next actions, as the pair eventually locked eyes from across the ring. Carolina decided to break the palpable tension first, incorporating an intimidating motion with her hands to accentuate her point.*

Spoiler

"Well, I was about to wish you good luck, but it appears as though that's out of the question~" *With a slightly bemused countenance, Kieda casually shrugged off the empty threat- Given her extensive career on the law circuit, trifling encounters such as this were considered commonplace. Plus, it only served as a telltale sign that just her mere presence had rattled Carolina, all of this grandstanding finally reaching a fever pitch when the bell sounded.*

*Bouncing on the balls of her feet to generate a bit of momentum, Kieda suddenly surged forward, zipping towards her intended target in a matter of seconds. She had been deliberating on what type of move would prove to be both effective and memorable to initiate this match with, and ultimately landed on a spinning wheel kick to knock the ego clean off of her face!*

Spoiler

[ReticentCone]

Carolina knew from the moment she'd seen her opponent, that it was most certain she'd be aiming to use her reach advantage against her for strikes. Nowhere could this advantage be deployed more clearly than with kicks, so when Kieda started hoping up and down on the balls of her feet, Carolina had a hunch that a kick was coming, so she kept her guard low to protect her torso.

What came next was surprising, but not disorientingly so. Her oppoent was winding up with what appeared to be a wheel kick. To go for this to open a match, when attacking immediately bell was to be expected and Carolina hadn't yet been slowed or dazed by any previous attacks, was an interesting choice.

Isljoninna would duck under the wheel kick, while attempting to close enough distance to drive a stiff straight punch into Kieda's torso while crouching.

[SubtleRoar]

*While The Fashion Assassin's move may have been considered superfluous to some, in her mind, it was more about the flare and flashiness of the attack itself that mattered most- Sometimes, at the detriment of her own wellbeing. This would, unfortunately, be one of those instances, as rare as it was when Carolina's fist slammed into her exposed stomach, sending her reeling backwards from the blunt force of the impact!*

"Hrrrrhhh!" *Staggering backwards, she felt herself almost lose her footing before catching the top ropes for security, gracefully straightening her poised body out before twirling around, almost as if she were resetting herself and starting anew.* "Nice shot, I'll admit~" *The Cerulean Shadow remarked, stretching across the length of the vertical pillar for support* "But it will take much more than a lucky blow to keep someone of my caliber down~" *Kieda cooed, gesturing for Carolina to close the gap and get up close and personal with her.*

Spoiler

[ReticentCone]

Punching wasn't Carolina's greatest talent, but given her strength, size and overall skill, if she was offered an open target, she could nail it with great effectiveness, like she had just done with Kieda, sending her reeling toward the ropes. The punch had earned a satisifying grunt of pain, but was less satisifying was seeing the woman still have it her to do a showy twirly once she reached the ropes.

Carolina begun to speaking she starting with a somewhat playful tone before concluding with clearly mailcious intent. "That wasn't intended to put you down. It was just supposed to start pummeling the flair out of you. When I really go to put you down, I promise won't be able to leave this ring under your own power, lanky." Carolina said, she started with a somewhat playful tone before concluding with clearly mailcious intent.

With Kieda gesturing for Carolina to come at her, she knew that she had some type of trap in mind, so charging was out of the question. The last thing she wanted was to be dodged and swung into the turnbuckle, or worse yet the ring post behind it. So on her waytoward Kieda she shifted into a sort of boxing stance, so that she could shuffle her way towards punching range, at which point, she'd attempt to drive a shovel punch into Kieda's torso.

[SubtleRoar]

*It was difficult to accurately describe the type of wrestler Kieda proclaimed to be- She was agile, acrobatic, and extremely enigmatic about what her next move would consist of. Given her extensive career, she was more than capable of turning a slugfest or a fistfight into a grappling clinic, and at the drop of a dime, transform a submission exhibition into a buffet of fists. However, there was always one, universal constant when it came to her performances- She would forever command the spotlight, through and through.*

"Oh?" *She tilted her head, allowing a singular eyebrow to elevate before addressing Carolina's snide comment.* "Well, if that's the case, I certainly hope you have something stronger in your arsenal- Otherwise, you won't leave a lasting impression on me, darling~" *If this was a race to see who could be the most condescending, Kieda wouldn't settle for anything less than top prize, gesturing for the audience to shower her with praise with the flick of her fingertips.*

*Once their unconditional praise had reached its limit, The Magenta Mystique decided to switch gears, charging towards her target with a serious intent in her steps- Carolina may have been relatively new to the circuit, but Kieda treated every match with the same degree of seriousness and sincerity to prevent herself from potentially getting rusty. Noticing a subtle change in her stance, Kieda utilized this opportunity to fling herself into her target, bringing her knees inward to try and slam Carolna's face across her shins for a Code breaker!*

Spoiler

[ReticentCone]

Carolina was focusing on avoiding the consequence of charging at her opponent, but she was less prepared for the consequences of Kieda charging her. Before she knew it, Kieda was on to her and pulling her down head first on to her shins. Carolima was "lucky" for her face to end up squarely between Kieda's legs, meaning she largely escaped damage to it, but her head was rattled nonethe less, as when Kieda hit the ground, the force of the drop transfered up into her head, sending Isljoninna tumbling away and dropping to the ring onto her back, holding her head in pain with one hand.

[SubtleRoar]

*As the majestic, magenta-clad marvel smashed her slender legs across the breadth Carolina's maw, Kieda subsequently rolled backwards before popping up onto the balls of her feet, witnessing the efficacy of her ringwork as Carolina tumbled to the ground below.* "Hmhm. Well, I was always told I had the ability to drop people's jaws~" *Kipping back up to her feet with a flashy twinkle in her eye, she strutted towards her fallen foe, blowing the injured Carolina a condescending kiss before snatching both of her upper limbs, tugging them behind her back to setup for the next move she had in store for her!*

"Now, let's see just how limber you are, darling~" *She malevolently snickered before dragging her towards the center of the arena, otherwise known as no mans land before wrapping her sleek thighs overtop of her arms, attempting to stretch them to their utmost limits while casually waving towards the audience- If nothing else, Kieda was a woman of the people, always keeping them enthralled with her every move as a means of converting them into loyal supporters!*

Spoiler

[ReticentCone]

The Code Breaker dazed Carolina enough that that Kieda was able to drag Carolina towards the middle of the ring and put her into a Lotus Lock with realtively little resistance. "Ahhhh, Arghhh, AHHHH!" She screamed, as Kieda harmed her arms and shoulders. But, the pain helped Carolina focus, both due its intensity and her desire to make Kieda feel worse. She needed to make use of her training to escape this move before it did her too much harm. Luckily, that was made much easier by Keida's showboating, as her waving to the crowd mean't that she wasn't properly securing hold.

It wasn't long at all before Carolina decided on a plan to not only escape, but take a shot at damaging the proud woman's face. With that, Carolina quickly rolled herself and kieda over, using the opportunity to pull her arms out from between Kieda's legs. Next, she shoved her head between Kieda's thighs while grabbing on to her legs with both of her hands and in a feat of great strength, stood up, with Kieda hanging by her legs on her back. Carolina then made her way toward the nearest corner as quickly as she possibly could, before swinging Kieda forward for the

Reverse Alabama Slam!

Isljoninna intended to give her foe a face full of turnbuckle.