Blair Yuen vs. Suzan Hinyanko [D]

[CaptainL]

Suzan was able to block the jabs Blair sent her way, her fists glancing off the blonde's forearms. That made her brow furrow as she grumbled under her breath in frustration - but still, Blair wasn't about to let that keep her down for long. Suzan was still boxed into the corner, and as long as she was stuck there, she would still be vulnerable - so that was exactly where Blair needed her to be! Besides, even if the jabs hadn't worked, they were only a setup - a means for Blair to take back some momentum for herself as she psyched herself up to deliver something even stronger. That would come next, as she whipped around to slam a roundhouse kick into Suzan's side!

The fans cheered such an impressive move from the Canadian girl, which made Blair smile a little wider. No matter how much Suzan tried to block, a good roundhouse kick would still hurt! Not just that, if all went according to Blair's plans, it would also surely leave her winded and reeling to regain her bearings. It might even get her to double over forward - which would put her in line for Blair's next move; a rising knee she kicked up straight at her foe's chest, as she pushed herself off the mat with one foot before swinging her other knee straight up! To Blair, everything flowed naturally from one move to the other; it would be effortless to land such a strike. Everything up to this point had set it up just right. Little did she know, it was exactly what Suzan was waiting for.

[ClockwerkSamurai12]

Suzan doubles over from the kick, but then smirks as she rolls forward to avoid the rising knee. Suzan would then sweep the leg, if successful she’d be able to put Blair in a rear naked choke in the center of the ring.

[CaptainL]

Blair's strikes were hard to beat, and the precision with which she could throw them was unmatched. She might have been small, but her slighter frame had given her the manueverability she needed to work her way around larger, tougher opponents that might otherwise have proven to be a challenge. If she had a weakness, it wasn't one that came from her martial arts training, but from her own attitude. Blair was a consummate perfectionist. She was stubborn, she was determined to show her best at any contest, and she could get cocky if she felt things were starting to turn her way. Normally, it was her ability to stay focused and alert that won her success. But after so long and frustrating of a match it had been, with Suzan seemingly outsmarting her at every turn, now that Blair had managed to score a few good hits against her, she finally felt like things were turning around. That was enough for her to get caught up in her own head, already convinced that her victory was assured - but Suzan would make her pay for that.

Just then, as Blair swung her knee upward, Suzan rolled out of the corner! In an instant, the confident look on Blair's face turned to a wide-eyed stare of shock; the color drained away from her face, and her jaw dropped in a gasp. Suzan knew enough about Muay Thai to expect Blair to strike with her knee. She had been waiting on an attack she could avoid - and now that she had dodged the blow, she was in a perfect position to ready a counter. Now Blair was off balance, teetering on one foot. She was still reeling from the shock of having her dominance denied. She wouldn't realize the danger she was in until a moment later - and by then, it was too late!

Suzan kicked at Blair's ankle, causing the dark-haired girl to lose her footing. She dropped straight back, letting out a gasp as she fell. Blair's teeth clenched in a grimace as she landed on her back - but it would get even worse a moment later, as Suzan once again grabbed her by the throat and squeezed down hard, wrapping her arms around her neck from behind! The Muay Thai fighter knew this was bad - she had seen plenty from Suzan's holds to tell her that once she got them locked in, they spelled trouble. Coughing and wheezing against the encroaching pressure, Blair's eyes squeezed shut, her teeth clenched in a grimace and her face contorted into a scowl of pain. As her face grew red against the pressure, she tried to twist herself back and forth, but Suzan held firm. The best she could do was to grab for Suzan's wrist, once again trying to pry it off of her. She'd escaped once before. But by this stage in the game, it was all up to if her stamina would last her the second time around. And Suzan had tested her stamina...

[ClockwerkSamurai12]

Suzan: Last chance kid, you can either tap out or pass out! Which one’s it gonna be?

[CaptainL]

Blair's eye twitched as she felt the crushing pressure of Suzan's hold come down around her throat. Her body had grown stiff, and every time she tried to take in a breath, all that left her was a hollow rasping cough. Her fingers were wrapped tenaciously around Suzan's arm, using all the strength she could muster to try and wrest herself free...but even though she had stretched herself to the breaking point; even when her face was red and her teeth were locked in a grimace, Blair simply couldn't find it in her to move Suzan. Against what little resistance Blair had in her, her arm wouldn't budge! The sweat began to bead on the back of her neck as the realization set in. She has already used up all her stamina in her desperate struggle to break the guillotine choke before - and now, she simply didn't have anything left. That escape had been a bold one, but afterward, the Muay Thai fighter was on borrowed time. And now, it had caught up to her.

The very thought that she had lost to a rookie sent a shudder down her spine. She was supposed to be better than this. She knew she was better than this! But, in the end, it seemed she had underestimated what Suzan was capable of, and paid the price. There was just one thing Blair knew, though - she wasn't going to give Suzan the satisfaction of knowing she had forced the Little Dragon of Muay Thai to tap out. It was humiliating enough that she had actually lost to Suzan. But she would rather let herself be knocked unconscious than to admit defeat to her. And if those were her options...she would take it in stride.

As the last gasps of air were wrung from her, Blair began to stiffen, and her movements slowed. Her eyes glazed over before rolling back into her head, and at last, her body went slack, deflating in Suzan's arms. She was unconscious. But there was one thing Blair knew - at least she had gone down fighting.

[ClockwerkSamurai12]

Suzan: *Releasing her* I prefer the former over the latter.. just hope she doesn’t hold a grudge.

Announcer: Here is your winner by submission, Suzan Hinyanko!

[CaptainL]

With that, it was over. Blair had fought long and hard, doing her best to stay in the game no matter how steep the odds grew, or how much she struggled to keep up with her opponent. But in the end, her stubbornness could only take her so far - and when the sudden reversal of her fortunes left her growing cocky, Suzan was quick to remind her she had acted too soon. Now, as Suzan tightened the rear naked choke, the color drained away from Blair's face before her body at last went limp, and her vision went black. When the blonde let up on her hold, Blair tumbled limply and lifelessly from her arms before falling in a crumpled heap on the floor. The referee went over to check her, but it wasn't long before everyone's suspicions were confirmed. Blair was out - and Suzan had won!

The bell rang, signaling the end of the match - and with it, the arena burst into cheers! This had been a worthy showcase of Suzan's abilities, proving her expertise in martial arts, and she had exceeded everyone's expectations of what a Young Lioness could do, standing up to a former champion in her own right! But as she celebrated, all Blair could do was let out a long, low groan. Slowly she began to stir, but all she could manage was to roll herself up onto her side before dropping onto her back, clutching at her ribs with a pained hiss. When she heard the sounds of cheers, and looked over to see the fans rejoicing Suzan's first win in the company, it only made her eyes narrow into a glare and her teeth tighten in a grimace before she glanced aside. She wasn't in the mood to be reminded of her own failures.

[ClockwerkSamurai12]

Suzan: *Offers her hand to help her up* Don’t beat yourself up over on a loss.. you did your best, I know you can do better in the future.

[CaptainL]

"Huh..?" Blair was still on her back, fighting against the pain in her side. She clenched her teeth to try and bear through it, but every time she breathed, she could feel the strain on her neck and her ribs, causing her to let out a cough. But when she looked up, there Suzan was, offering a hand to lift her to her feet. She wanted to help her - not even to gloat, or rub it in; she was praising her.

Blair didn't know what to think of it. She was so caught up in her head about what had just happened - how she had lost so easily to a rookie, how she should well have done so much better, and how her failure was her own fault after the reckless tactics she had used - that she could see her efforts as nothing less than an utter embarrassment. But that wasn't how Suzan saw it. Suzan saw that Blair had worked hard, and that she had even gotten the blonde on the ropes for a time. To Suzan, she had put up a good fight. But to Blair, it was something worth being buried in shame.

She looked out with a sigh, turning her head away from her opponent. Still, she grabbed for Suzan's hand and used it to hoist herself back to her feet - but at the same time, she stared down at the ground. "My best...yeah." The crowd was cheering for them both. Blair had done her best, and for a moment it looked as though she might stand just as much of a chance as Suzan at taking home victory. But all she heard was them celebrating Suzan for taking down a former champion in her first outing. They were cheering for something that had only been possible because Blair had made a foolish mistake. She hadn't even been able to get back up without relying on someone else for it. And when Suzan wished for her to do better in the future, it just made Blair's eyelid twitch nervously as she hugged her arms closer to her sore sides. Sure, she could. But she should have done better now.

[ClockwerkSamurai12]

Suzan: Sorry for putting you to sleep back there, if it makes you feel better.. you gave me quite a workout!