I'm Not that Evil — ( For CaptainL )

[Monsy]

Tis’ been a little while since Angelina heard her own

. That fucking opening pedals that dropped into a head-bangah of a rhythm. Angelina loved it while waiting in the back, movin’ and groovin’ to its 90s nu-metal bounce until it hit that opening line.

“COME ON”

Then the music wound down just half a notch. Angelina returned, fresh from Apex with both legs now able and good. She skated across the stage, tic-tacing for speed and just to maneauvre around in a semicircle at the stage’s lip. When she reached the ramp, she stopped. Foot stomp the tail. The nose went up. Angelina stood like its a perch, then shaded her eyes to look out at the arena.

And what of the fans? The pirate punks? The snakes in the pit? The old rebels and new generation of defiance? The trees in her burnable forest? Well -- some remained. But they boo’d. As did a lot of other people in the arena. She heard it. So she peered to the back and swiped her hand up with a smug face. Her music got louder.

A finger-gun pointed at the ring. One eye closed, her free-hand grabbed the aiming wrist.

“Boo-ya.”

She hit the ramp with a kick-turn then bent her knees. Speed doubled her descent, elbow in front, smiling, challenging the ring to try and get in her way. Of course, perfectly-timed, Angelina executes a powerslide and slows her down enough to lean and carve out of danger. She pushed around the ring on her board. Then she stomped the nose and the board flicked into her grip as she went up the steps, and entered the ring.

Afterwards, she set the board on the top turnbuckle pad, balancing it. She hopped up the ring ropes, from bottom, middle, then onto the board—visible to the world over. Camera flashes and the signs. A crossed out pirate symbol, another saying ‘FUCK A.T’ and a third. ‘LOCK HER UP’. Angelina grinned even more, then crossed her arms middle-fingers up and leaned towards the ground, pivoting slightly to show just how many fucks she gave in that particular moment.

Then she backflipped, landed sound in the middle of the ring and gestured for a mic. Her music died off. Now, she was left with the hostile crowd.

“Hell-o, my beloved fans.” The crowd groaned.
“Fan-girls. Fan-boys. Fan-dorks. Fan-sticks. Fan-bitches. Fan-sluts.”

Angelina held her arm folded up, counting per word.
“Did I miss anyone?” The crowd murmured in response.
“Cool. Now, I hope ya all missed me more than OJ missed his wife.”
“Because I sure missed ridin’ around the arena on a board, with uh…”

Her once broken leg was held out. “Two functional legs, thank ya very much.”

Crowd: YU-KI. YU-KI. YU-KI. YU-KI.

“You… Key?” Angelina smirked, arm folded up, palm-up like a half-shrug. She leaned to the side. “Yo, ya ARE the key to me returnin’ tonight. If there were no butts in these seats, then how could I come out to tell ya, just how much I miss ya? Huh??” Angelina said the last part loudly and the crowd kept up.

Crowd: YUUU-KI. YUUU-KI. YUUU-KI.

“Huh?? Oh, I’M key.” Angelina put a hand over her heart. “Look, pleasah’s all mine. Seriously. I entah-tain myself more than anyone else. Ya girl A.T gets a kick just by appearin’ and doin’ flips for pops.”

Ahem. Deep breath in, big ol’ smile. Act 2 Miss Pirate. “A while ago, this journey started with a fuckin’ race and a promise to make some waves. Ya may remembah my challenge to Cecilia Northman and how that turned out. I said… Ya ain’t know me, and I ain’t know you. But somethin' tells me, when we’re through, you’ll be callin’ me a superstah. Win o’ loss. Ya will celebrate with me the stupidity of my fuckin’ endurance. Because what ya don’t know is how deep my well truly goes.”

The crowd rumbled. Angelina went over and grabbed her board off the top buckle, then placed it in the middle of the ring and sat on it. Her arms went up in a shrug.

“Apex. I won. Looks like that group celebration part became a joke, huh?” She snickered.
“But I know ya all saw parts of a fake me that… really… unsettled.”

She put a thumb to her eye and made a mouth ‘pop’ noise before cocking her hide to the side. Then she looked down.
“It unsettled me too, honestly. Deepy, unsettled me.”
“Apex to me… Was just one piece of gold I needed to win. So—very—badly. I put so much into being ready, then it slips away and I panic, then… Things… Happened.”

Crowd: WE WANT YU-KI. WE WANT YU-KI. WE WANT YU-KI.

“To Shimmah.” ( Page Ten and Eleven )

Crowd: WE WANT YU-KI. WE WANT YU-KI. WE WANT YU-KI.

“And yes, Yooks.” ( Page Twelve and Thirteen )

The crowd’s popped. They at least silenced a bit of their rumbling.

“Durin’ the match, at the end... Yooks…” Angelina looked down, as if struggling to put this into words. She wiped an empty tear duct. “G-Got cut on the throat, right across. And bled so badly, she wound up in shock. Passed out right in front of us. And I… Just couldn’t look at her. At all. I was… scared.”

She looked out at the crowd. “Everyone now thinks that I really tried to hurt her like that, and I know that’s just NOT me. It's not!” Her lower jaw shivered through a voice crack. “I was at the end of a knife attack once. I was… fuck, I don’t know… maybe sixteen… Walked home from school post graduation, came upon an incident goin’ down. I tried to help, but… Well, that ended poorly. Point is… I’d nevah, EVAH, use such methods on someone. I’d nevah use a sharp edge to get my way. It’s just not me.”

Her eyes over the course of the speech were worked up to be glossy. “I’m not that evil.”

She wiped her nose, then held the mic with two hands.

“But Yuki doesn’t think so. And it hurts me on the inside, deeply, knowin’, that someone as tough and as good as her, as kind and role model like, could think of me capable and intentful on such things — that now, she wants nothin’ to do with me.”

Somehow, she managed the crowd to go quiet. Angelina turned towards the ramp.

“I want ya to know Yuki, despite all ya know of me. Despite our differences and headbutting, and our competin’ place in the wrestlin’ world. What ya saw at Apex wasn’t me. And if ya just give me one shot. I can make it up to ya. Please. Come out, Yuki.”

[CaptainL]

Spoiler

Yuki was still reeling from what had happened. And really, could anyone blame her? She had just borne witness to a grisly spectacle that was by all means an attempted murder more than it was a wrestling match, all there in the ring, on full display for the voyeuristic pleasure of anyone watching - and with no one, not even the people who were supposed to be watching out for the health, safety, and well-being of the wrestlers doing nothing about it. That was enough to shake Yuki's faith in LAW, and how much trust she could put in it to do the right thing. But what had shaken her even more was how Shimmerlace Snuggleblossom had turned around and attacked her - the person who had come to the ring in a match she wasn't even in, all but risking life and limb considering how psychotic things had gotten, who by all accounts was the only reason she wasn't blind right now. She would side with the woman who had worked such mayhem against her, over the one she had opened her heart to? Yuki had stepped up wanting to be the hero - all she'd gotten for it was a slice to the throat that was just a hair's breadth off from severing a major artery and leaving her dead in seconds.

She had been rushed to medical attention once again, receiving several stitches and a tube in her throat for a day or two. But - and she hated the fact she was even saying this - she had suffered worse. Yuki had never felt as close to death as she did at that moment, before or since. But at least she could still breathe. At least she could still wrestle. At least she was still able to work. And, as the saying went - the show must go on. To Yuki, a girl who thought about wrestling the way she thought about breathing, who could never imagine herself in any other line of work, that meant twice as much as it meant to anyone else.

She wasn't booked to wrestle a match tonight. She still had to wear a bandage around her neck while the hole healed. The medical staff had argued for her needing more time off - but Yuki was fighting against the thought of fading into irrelevance; of going out with a whimper. She couldn't let that be the end. She still insisted on being present, at least as reserve talent. If someone no-showed, or couldn't make it, or got hurt, she would be there to fill in. Her parents had tried to talk her out of it, but her mind was made up. Whatever she had to face out there, she couldn't be in bad enough shape to have to sit out of it. She could do it, she thought.

At least, she thought she could do it. There was one woman in particular Yuki couldn't bear to face. And that was Angelina Tarrant. The woman who had caused all of this. Who had threatened Yuki at every turn, who had driven a wedge between her and Shimmerlace in the first place - and who had done this to her.

And now, Angelina Tarrant was demanding an audience.

Yuki was standing backstage when she heard the sound playing over the speakers. When she turned to the nearest monitor, what she saw there made her face grow pale and her heart sink, and her whole body froze. There she was. There was Angelina - there was the Marauder.

And she was calling her name.

A chill ran over Yuki from head to toe. Her body felt clammy, and it was like goosebumps had risen over every surface of her skin. Angelina wanted her. And she was...trying to apologize? But no matter how meek and sorrowful the redhead seemed, Yuki couldn't believe her. Not after all she'd seen. Not after all Angelina had done. Not after what she was capable of. Yuki had no doubts that Angelina was willing to do whatever was available at her disposal in order to claim an edge over Yuki. Even, here, if it was lulling her into a false sense of security, waiting to strike.

Was that what was happening now? Yuki couldn't say for sure. But she didn't want to take her chances - she couldn't bear the thought of what might await her if she got involved. And yet, she couldn't step away, either. She just stood right where she was, rooted to the ground. Every muscle was stiff, and everything was still. She couldn't even look away.

[Monsy]

Absolutely—fucking—nothing.
Angelina’s eye gained a twitch. Her teeth ground while twine held up her pitiful frown. All that shit for not even a faked out fucking entrance from the one person that owed her a thousand apologies. Her smile flipped around like a switch. She mused about it, then concluded: it was just so in-fucking-character for the Yooks she knew. Absolutely self-focused with no empathy for her tribulations. She was just the welcome mat for these crazy bitches.

“I guess ya think I deserve that.” Angelina said with a shrug.

So, what now? That’s something the crowd was dying to know, as Angelina’s story now floundered into a pit of dead radio, with its static creating a void for people to listen to, waiting for it to change. They expected music. The original call for Yuki brought a short cheer. That long since passed. Now, Angelina flipped the microphone in her hand, looked down at her lap and the nose of her board's used black grip-tape.

“This is the third time I tried to solve our issues, only for it to fail.” Her smile piqued more.
“But it’s the first time I got simply ignored.” Angelina stood up, stomped the board’s tail which flicked it into her hand.

The crowd’s interest was lured. Not like they had anything better to listen to, and Angelina knew this. They wanted something to entertain, like the trees that they were. Stationary-minded until the wind moves them. Angelina licked her lips. “The other two times, Yuki assaulted me.” She stressed the words between Yooks, assaulted and me. “I was invited to her home, sat at her table and enjoyed tea with her folks. Kind folks. And you know what she did once we got to privacy? BOOM!”

Angelina punched towards the ground. “BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!” Punch. Punch. Punch. Punch. She dragged her set of fingers down her face. “And I bled. So-so much. I was so surprised after my head hit a mirror and I hit the ground. I feared for my life. That my face would nevah be the same, and that I’d choke on my teeth because Yuki kept clubbin’ me, even as her parents watched their daughtah be a little monstah.”

Now for act 2. Angelina was walking around the ring again. Her expression was demure and vulnerable. Eyes widened, like the words coming out were full of trauma. “But, I didn’t believe that. Maybe I said somethin’ wrong. Touched a nerve. Maybe she’s just sick and forgot the princess pills. I don’t know. So I decided to try again, this time on public transit. And I thought, maybe, she’d have enough shame to not start a fight with cameras and people watchin'.”

She laid her forearm across the top rope, then leaned on it. “Boy was I wrong. Because even when I tried returnin’ somethin’ she lost, she accused me of blackmail. Then, once again, BOOM!” Angelina mock punched her jaw and snapped her head in the direction, stumbling a step. Her hair slightly disheveled by the action. “She punched first again. And this time, she used my head to break a train window. I got fuckin’ concussed and pulled GLASS out of my body. Thank the pirate gods that I was willin’ to fight, that my fear wouldn’t win. Otherwise, I may not have been here today.”

Now, to make this all sync together into a perfect motherfuckin’ bomb. Angelina laid her head on the top turnbuckle pad, seemingly about to cry as her shoulders raised and came down. A camera shot from ringside caught her face, with a cold bottom lip.

She straightened up, wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and then continued. “I didn’t want to share any of that. As we say-- Hope for the best, prepare for the worst. And that I did. Here, watch.” Angelina gestured to the screen.

The first scene was a montage of Angelina inside Yuki’s home, chilling with her parents, talking about rabbits. ( Page 1 of Welcome Home! )

“Sanrio store. I got him like his own private militia of henchmen. The Thistlecorps.” — Thistlebros stay winning.

The video continued showing their otherwise wholesome conversation through talking to Yuki about her upcoming BIG match. Shimmerlace. Sanae. Collei. Angelina, the huge Yuki fan, replying with…

“Ya wanna give them their big match, huh? Show ‘em what it’s like to rumble with a future world champ!” — Angelina being a huge-huge Kazikura-stan!

It goes to Yuki abruptly yelling, then parting. Angelina, full of concern, would get up and add…

“If ya folks don’t mind, I’m gonna go see if she’s alright.” — Angelina's compassion shinin' through!

It shows what that resulted in. ( Page 3 of Welcome Home! )

Angelina was getting fucked up. Her camera was about chest-height, hidden in her cross necklace. You can hear the glass break. So very well. The next moment, Yuki is on-top, full-mount, the face of a monster that reigned down fist after fist and Angelina was squealing and not responding.

“I’m sorry for bein’ a bad guest.” — Angelina being supah supah sorry for no reason at all.

"Are...are you okay, Angelina..? Do you need something? Here, I can get something for your bleeding-" — Yuki's mom being best mom and host... unlike SOMEONE.

And ends off with Angelina racing for the exit, hurried breath. Scared for her life.

Pretend its only a countdown from three plz.

!

The time on the train! ( Page 2 of Catching a Ride )
Angelina, holding the yearbook. Free and friendly, showing it to Yuki like a pleasant exchange. Of course, no audio. This was CCTV from the train that Angelina sooooo happened to get her hands on through means that didn’t matter.

Yuki punched first.
They wrestle. The traded strikes. Yuki pinning Angelina against a post. Of course, the one-off kiss being cut out for obvious reasons because — BOOM! Angelina's head went through the window. ( Page 4 of Catching a Ride! )

It ends off with Angelina kneeling on glass. Yuki backing away from a crowd of onlookers, where the camera gets a good look at her face: pale. The video ends.

Angelina sighs. Internally, she was happy with the product. This was the Yuki she wanted everyone to see and know about. That evil Joshi Angelina has been dealing with for a year now. A fucking psychopath with no regard for Angelina's life! The crowd, faced with now hard evidence, was a little more open-minded to Angelina’s truth and didn’t quite know how to react. So, Angelina would tell them exactly how to think.

“Listen, Yuki. I get remorse might not be rooted in ya head, but now they know too. This was ya shot to make it good, and ya fucked it. So — I’m sorry I had to do this. I really am. I am sorry for everythin' that happened between us and how it turned out. But if this ain’t enough to get ya to come out. Then I got an offah for ya that ya can’t refuse. So, again, please, come on out Yuki.”

[CaptainL]

This whole time - ever since Angelina had began stalking her, really - she'd used that word. Psychopath. For what reason, Yuki never truly understood. Surely everyone could see that Angelina wasn't anyone to speak on such matters. It wasn't Yuki who tracked her down in her own home, just to make her feel unsafe. It wasn't Yuki who had stolen her mementos of better times, just to get under her skin - just to make sure the girl knew she would be hunted to the ends of the earth. It wasn't Yuki who had tried to gouge a woman's eyes out in the middle of a packed arena, and expected to get off scott-free from it. No, Yuki had always been polite, upstanding, and dedicated only to her own advancement - she prided herself on her skills in the ring, and it was those skills she wanted to be remembered for. She didn't brag, she didn't cheat, and she wouldn't do anything that would sour the story of her success. If anyone compared the two, and had to call one of them a psychopath, it seemed obvious who would deserve the appellation more.

But tonight, suddenly, it all made sense. Now, as Yuki watched the action playing out on screen, she understood everything. The way Angelina framed her statements; the way she spliced in the footage of her previous encounters with Yuki - encounters Yuki wasn't even aware she had recorded, let alone that she was going to use this way. It put it all in a horrible, stark context. Angelina Tarrant was playing the long con. It wasn't enough for her to merely beat Yuki. She wanted to take her entire reputation and her good name down with her. She wanted everyone to think she was the psychopath she claimed she was - and she was going to take charge of the narrative to make sure that was what Yuki would be remembered for. Not her prodigious talent, which had shone through from a young age. Not her choice to live a modest lifestyle and distance herself from the excesses of many a wrestling superstar, preferring to let her actions speak for themselves. If Angelina had her way, Yuki would be the girl who beat her senseless for no reason, when she was only over for tea with the family.

The realization hit her like a ton of bricks; just thinking about it made her feel like she had come crashing into a wall at top speeds, and with it, something dropped in the pit of her stomach. Suddenly, everything made sense - and it made sense in the worst way possible. For a moment, Yuki stood there, frozen in terror. But then, her muscles began to tense. Her body went firm. Then, her fist trembled. Not with shock, any more, but with anger. Angelina had done this - Angelina was out to ruin her life. She would dare to go to such brazen lengths to do so, without even the slightest hint of shame, and she actually thought she could get away with it! Yuki couldn't take it any more. No, it was settled - she had to do something. She didn't care if it meant meeting Angelina face to face any more - if she didn't confront her, then it meant Angelina had won. And Yuki was not about to let Angelina Tarrant win.

Her head turned to the curtain. She knew what she had to do.

In the arena, the fans had begun to murmur amongst themselves. It didn't seem possible - could Yuki truly be so cruel? Was it possible that the modest, dignified Dynamite Schoolgirl they had all come to love and admire was this vindictive, this ruthless? Angelina hardly seemed like the most reputable source, but what if she was telling the truth - what then? Yuki certainly wouldn't admit to such a thing.

Consumed as they were in such thoughts, some of the fans wouldn't notice at first when the curtains spread ever so slightly, and Yuki's face peered from behind. She looked back and forth - first one way, then the other, scanning the crowd. At first, she hesitated. Her eyes lingered on Angelina, and she bit her lip; the color drained away from her cheeks. If she stepped forward, it would mean confronting her, face to face, knowing all she was willing to do. Yet...if she didn't...it would mean this story would be Angelina's alone to tell. Was that really any better?

At last, Yuki sucked in a breath and squeezed her fists tight. Yes. She couldn't run any more.

"Angelina - stop right there!" she shouted. She swept the curtains aside with one swoop of her arm, and took a defiant step out onto the ramp! She was driven by her own determination to stand up for herself and make a difference, now - it had led her through the motions; she didn't even consciously make her move, but she was already taking those steps. She couldn't think about it. If she thought about it for too long, her own fear would lock up her joints and glue her in place where she stood. But this was too important to let sit. No, she had to do it. Whether she liked it or not.

Every eye in the arena turned to Yuki as she stormed closer, her foot falling against the ramp with the sound of a stomp each time. Some of them cheered, but Yuki wasn't concerned with their response - her gaze never dropped from Angelina, and her fist balled tightly as she looked her right in the eyes with defiance. "You can call me a psychopath all you want, Angelina - but what I'll call you is a liar! Or do you not want to address how you were the one who tracked me to my home - that I didn't even know you were going there? How you stole my high school yearbook? How about the train - are you not going to bring up that you threatened me; that you tracked me down - that you almost threw me head-first into the tracks, or that you destroyed that yearbook in front of my eyes? This could have just been one match, Angelina - one match you won." Yuki grit her teeth at that - she didn't like to dwell on the fact that she had lost that match, but here, it was necessary to make her point. "You didn't have to do all of this. And you did it, anyway! Why is that? Were you not happy with taking down a main-eventer? Did that not accomplish what you set out for?"

[Monsy]

By the look on Angelina’s face, she seemed ready to listen.
She was standing by the ropes, holding them. Tall, but not stiff. One hand for the mic and the other for the rope. Kazikura made her way. To the ramp, only. Which was fine. Because if Yuki was any bit closer right now, after saying all that, she might have had the impulse to…--Nothing.

There she is again. LYING to their faces. If anyone was listening correctly, she’d come to the same conclusion, she was certain. She had faith. Liar. Liar. Liar. Fucking liar.

Angelina’s face turned sour. Her eyes sunk deeper into her head. She held the rope tighter and for a moment, was flat-faced before she found her groove. A growl went under her breath, away from the microphone, and then she huffed with both shoulders.

“Did that not accomplish what you set out for?"

“Not even close.” Angelina said. Her reply was abrupt. Then a pause to collect. She pointed a finger. “The only honest word out of your sick mouth is that I won that match.” A hand touched her chest. “Yet you forget that about a week aftah, ya called it a sham.” Angelina smiled gently.

“But I’m ovah that. Remembah on the train, when ya weren’t bein’ wild, I told ya about how things glow to me? If ya evah cared to understand, because I got somethin’ new that glows to me. And it has been since the start.” Her mountain, and the rock pushing up the hill. Never satisfied.

She scratched her head and back to step back away from the ropes, taking a more central approach.

“It’s exactly what I told ya on that train already. That two-zero.”

She took a moment. Her arm went up into a shrug. Like the pitch she’s offering was like a last resort, gambling with bravery: no going back.

“Ya nearly destroyed me at Apex, Yuki. Get that? Do ya undahstand the scale ya operate on? Arrested? Fuckin’ hell.” Angelina wanted to giggle. So what? Her smile flashed but quickly returned to its determined frown. “If ya wanted me gone so bad, then why don’t you and I get ourselves a cage? Then, ya can put two hands on my neck and everyone can see just what a monstah daddy's little prodigy is.”

[CaptainL]

On her way down to the ring, Yuki felt strong. She felt like she was finally taking back some confidence and control - that she was done running away from her problems; that Angelina had finally pushed her to the point where she was ready to make a change. But the lord giveth, and the lord taketh away. And the moment that Angelina opened her mouth again, Yuki froze. Her foot fell rooted to the ramp; her other foot was still raised in the air, but she didn't take a step further. Instead, she stared back out at the redhead, her eyes wide and her face pale. Yuki could confront the danger and the threats and her own inner fears as long as she was doing it from a distance. She could even psyche herself up enough to think that she had a chance to make it work. But the moment the reality of what she was going up against, and what she was dealing with, asserted itself, everything was thrown back into question - and suddenly, she felt alone and powerless again. All those times she and Angelina had crossed paths. All the times she'd been threatened. All the times she'd lost something at Angelina's hands. They were all flooding back to her now - and they reminded her how much she really stood to lose.

For a moment, she was silent. But she knew just as well as Angelina that it was too late to go back now. She'd already put herself out there. She'd already faced this threat. If she turned and ran, it was only confirming everyone's worst fears - that she really was hopeless; that she really didn't stand a chance, and that she herself knew it. She had to finish what she started. Her brow furrowed as her body went tense; her fists clenched at her sides as she took in a few slow, deep breaths to try to ground and center herself. But she couldn't run away. The challenge had already been thrown out there, and she had to meet it.

"A...cage." Yuki took in another deep breath. Just stay calm. Don't think about it too much. She had already faced plenty of daunting matches that had left her bloody and wounded, all in the name of proving she wouldn't run away from them. This would surely be the same. But if she had to make that case for herself, the last thing she needed was to run away. The cameras were running. The world was watching. They all needed to see she believed she had it in her.

"...So be it, then! If you want to face me in a cage...I'll face you in a cage-!" Yuki blurted out the words without even really thinking of what she was saying. She couldn't slow down and think about it too hard - that invited hesitation to creep in. And right now, Yuki couldn't hesitate. "You want a rematch that badly - I'll put myself up to any stipulations I need to. If it's in a cage...then fine! You really want to call me a psychopath? Maybe I'll just have to show you what that would really look like! But after all you've done, I can't just let you get away with it. And after all you've said about me...I need to prove you wrong."

Yuki's breaths quickened. Her body tensed up. But her eyes still narrowed on Angelina as she took one step down the ramp, and then another, coming closer and closer to the ring. But she had to rise to this challenge. She couldn't shy away any more. That just wouldn't cut it.

[Monsy]

God, she wanted to rip her tongue out.
So fucking badly.
Fry it. Then put it in a rye-bread toasted sandwich for Miss and Mister Kazikura.

All this pretentious courage.
The fake bravery. And not enough apologies for Angelina’s suffering throughout this entire feud. She was sick of it. If feelings could make her nauseated, then this would be it. The kind of horror movie beat where the villain’s actions make your tummy squeeze and shift in the seat. She imagined this is what it was like.

And it was enough for Angleina’s face to finally melt from tears of sympathy, grins or even agitated frowns. Her expression was dead, watching Yuki like a drone, standing in the middle of the ring. Blank. Then when Yuki was getting close to ringside, Angelina grabbed her wrist behind her back and let the mic drop. The lights went dark. On the outer-bowl. A loud click. Then more lights. Closer to them. Spotlights, killed at once. Then, finally, with the last vestiges of light illuminating Angelina in the centre of the ring, died. Everything was dark.

The crowd’s white noise picked up with shock and a bit of fright. Like everything had powered down, even the commentator’s desk had lost its feed and their microphones didn’t work on the TV broadcast.

...

The only lightsource was the grey it was giving off.
9…
8…
7…
6…
5…
4…
3…
2…
1…
Lights returned.
Some of them, at least. The ring itself was illuminated with no pirate to be found. The Titantron video was a black room with a wooden chair in the middle. A creaky door on oil-starved hinges opens out of view, then closes. The door’s click is an echo. “Aahh… Hell of a run that was! Hahaha, yeahhh…" Angelina comes into view with mostly her midsection in the shot. She sits down then looks directly at the screen, then downward to stare directly at Yuki.

“Bet ya thought I would attack ya, then. Huh?” Angelina’s smile propped up. Clearly a fake one. Her voice was carried through all the speakers, ear-pieces and headsets backstage and on commentary. Her video on all the TVs in the back.

“Or, really. That’s what you want THEM to think. The cameras. Since, what is provin’ anythin’ wrong than a clevah camerah shot, right? Well. I AM the camera now.” Her legs crossed.

“So you’ll have to prove ya-self to me. And I got just the perfect frame.”

She made a rectangle with her index and thumbs and held it over her purple snake eye. “Fight the LAW 3. Losah… Leaves… Town…”

The crowd reacted vividly and immediately. A loud roar from a gladiator arena crying for blood and guts. The noise carried to even be heard from her video feed. Livestream. So she finished.

“What say ya, Skybeast? Wanna put ya-self on the line? With all that gusto and macho ya prance around as a proud professional wrestlah. This is all ya have, and nothin’ would make me happiah than to see what’s left once it's dead.”

[CaptainL]

Every step that Yuki made, getting closer to the ring, was made with caution. Her heart was pounding in her chest, and her body was tense and ready to strike at a moment's notice. For as meek and apologetic as Angelina made herself out to be, Yuki didn't believe a word out of her mouth. After the carnage the Marauder had wrought, the very notion that anyone would believe she was actually sorry about what she'd done was a farce. Surely Angelina had to know that too. This wasn't about making amends with Yuki - it was far too late for that. No, as she crept closer and closer to the ring, Yuki was on guard. She knew that Angelina had to have been trying to get her to come closer so that she could spring a trap. And even though she was wary of whatever trap she had to spring, Yuki couldn't stay back. She couldn't show any fear - she knew that Angelina, that everyone, would tear her apart at the first sign of weakness.

Even then, though, when the lights went dark, and the countdown started playing, that still made Yuki start. She jumped back, her eyes going wide as her muscles tensed; she settled into a defensive stance out of instinct, yet she still let out a yelp, a yelp that she immediately regretted. She knew perfectly well that Angelina was going to ambush her when she came close - what she didn't expect was for that ambush to look like this. That she would have the lights under her control - what else, then, did she control? With the screen counting down, Yuki knew that Angelina was building to something. And when that something came...she didn't know what to expect.

But whatever she might have expected, she didn't expect Angelina to just be gone. She stood there, blinking a few times, as the realization set in. At first, it was with confusion. Then, she began to stiffen as frustration took over - then anger. Angelina had set her up. Once again, she had slipped through her fingers, before Yuki so much as had the chance to stand in her way. Yuki might have been afraid, but now, she realized, she might have been able to actually do something about Angelina. Now, there was no chance of that.

And of course, Angelina had to be smug about it. Practically reveling in the frustration she had left Yuki with. Mocking her. Bragging about how all of this was under her thumb. The Japanese girl's teeth clenched in a grimace and her fists balled at her sides. Yet, before she could say a word, Angelina made her challenge - and the words that left her mouth made Yuki's eyes go wide.

Loser leaves town.

Those were her terms. And they were terms that were stacked against Yuki. One thing that Yuki had long maintained was how important wrestling was to her. She wasn't in the business for the money, or the glory - she was in it because wrestling was what spoke to her. She was in it because it was the one place she truly felt like she belonged, and she couldn't imagine herself anywhere else. She'd confided that in plenty of people before. Satsuki Hayano. Shimmerlace Snuggleblossom. The one thing that perhaps scared Yuki most of all was the thought of losing wrestling - and, consequently, being left without a purpose in life.

And now, Angelina was threatening her with just that. The color drained from Yuki's face as something dropped in the pit of her stomach. If she lost this match, she knew, her career would be over. Her career in LAW, at least. But even losing LAW would be a terrible blow. LAW had given her a purpose in life and a reason to exist. LAW had given her the motivation to achieve great things. Without it, she wasn't sure where she'd be - and now, Angelina was forcing her to confront that very question.

But then...Yuki reminded herself again; she couldn't be afraid! She knew full well that Angelina had done this to intimidate her. To make her feel small, and weak, and powerless. She wanted to show the world that was what she really was. To get into her head and break her down. If Yuki showed fear now, it would mean Angelina had won. More than anything else, Yuki wasn't going to allow that! She took in a deep breath - then, she spoke!

"Fine-! Loser Leaves Town it is!" Yuki stomped her foot against the ground, drawing a gasp from some onlookers. "It doesn't matter if it's Loser Leaves Town. It doesn't matter if it's in a cage. Whatever stipulation you name, whatever you need me to go up against...I'll do it! Because I'm not going to run away from you!" There was no hesitation in her voice. Everything came through, loud and clear - Angelina had stirred that will to fight back in Yuki! And with her eyes narrowed in a glare, she jabbed her finger toward the screen, accusing Angelina with her very presence!

"If that's what I need to do to stop you once and for all...to get you out of this company...then I'll do it!"

[Monsy]

The final words get a cheer.
Their hearts clenched by sheer fucking false bravery. Angelina knew not to trust their voices, as they were always more wired to listen to one of their own. Always a hivemind. And as seconds faded after the declaration. What was only an isolated cheer became a steady rumble. Then a chant.

“YU-KI.” “YU-KI.” “YU-KI”
“YU-KI.” “YU-KI.” “YU-KI”
“YU-KI.” “YU-KI.” “YU-KI”

Angelina took a deep breath. She nodded slowly, then brushed her tongue over her top row of teeth.

She was so bored of them. Her eyes said that much. For some reason, they kept voicing in on this exchange like they somehow mattered other than listening to her pleas here. To chastise Yuki. Hate her. Turn on her. Anything else, like this, was just bugging her ears and she was sick of it. Sick of Yuki, too. But in a different way. Yuki had starved her of release for so very-very long up till this point. She also starved herself. So to finally have it, in range; she was balancing so many itches not to explode and reach through the screen to pull Yuki to her right now.

She had to wait.

“Finally.” She closed her eyes, then ran a hand through her hair. She let in another deep breath, relaxed back into her seat. Arm over the back. Legs slightly spread. “Just remembah…” She settled her gaze on the screen again. “That this is my war too. Not just yours. And there are worse things to lose than ya home here, Yuki…”

She reached into her pocket and pulled a painted eyeball. Brown.
It rested in her palm, partially presented to the camera. Mostly for herself to look at it.

“We have these. Little orbs to participate and witness everythin’ around us. Universal. What do ya think the world is like--what could ya still achieve, here, or anywhere else, if they suddenly disappeared one day? Ya won’t just be out of a job, nah-nah-nah, but potential. Unable to see ya own hard work or the road ahead. What mattahs then, even if ya still have somethin' to offah? Sweat, blood, tears, smiles, frowns. They won’t mean shit. Then, everything, and everyone, from all angles, can come and take what they please from you.”

Her smile went faint. As if docile. She turned the iris around to face the lens. “Brown eyes, right?”

Angelina tossed it up, made a fist and let the eye sit on her thumbnail tucked against her curled index finger. She popped it back and caught it on her tongue. After letting it sit there, she curled her tongue in, closed her mouth then got up to walk away. The camera shot ended.

Angelina was gone.

[CaptainL]

Even after she'd said it, Yuki's heart had all but leaped into her throat. Answering the challenge, and putting the question to rest, didn't do a thing for her nerves. Quite the opposite, in fact. Yuki was perfectly well aware what she had just committed to, and that just made her more nervous. She was going into a match with Angelina Tarrant - an Angelina Tarrant who had proven herself to be more dangerous than ever before, who had shown just what sort of lengths she was willing to go to, who now had a history with her; who was out for something more personal than mere chaos - in a steel cage, with her entire career laying in the balance. If she lost here, she would be forced to confront the very question she had been afraid of all this time - the question of where she would be in her life without wrestling; without LAW. That fear of not knowing what to do if she got injured or if she couldn't compete any more wouldn't be a hypothetical any more; Angelina had forced her to confront it face to face. Even after she'd already agreed to the plan, Yuki wasn't at all prepared for it. What would she do if she lost? Get a job somewhere? Pursue college? She didn't have an answer. Wrestling was all she'd had. It was all she thought she would ever have. And now, she found herself staring into a cold and uncertain future, confronted with a question she didn't know the answer to.

All of that hit her at once. Her skin felt clammy, her teeth chattered; the hairs rose on the back of her neck. But Yuki knew that as bad as this was, the shame of running away, of admitting she couldn't do it, was worse. Sure, she might still have a career if she turned this match down. But it wouldn't matter. Everyone would see her for the coward she was. Yuki had found herself drawn to wrestling because of how it made her feel powerful. Brave. Strong. Successful. And whether she had a career or not, how could she have still felt that way if she knew she'd shied away from a match where everything was on the line?

In fact, as far as Yuki knew...everything very well could be on the line. Angelina made sure she was aware of that when she pulled up a model of Yuki's eye, tossing it into her mouth and swallowing it. It might have just been a model. It might have been a display that, coming from anyone else, would have looked like an overly ambitious edgy threat. But coming from Angelina, Yuki gasped, her face going pale as she held a hand to her mouth. If anyone could have possibly done this and meant it, it would surely have to be Angelina Tarrant. She'd left Yuki with no room for doubt when she tried to do the same against Shimmerlace Snuggleblossom, in that very move that pushed Yuki over the edge and told her she had to get involved.

If she did end up blinding her, she wouldn't just take Yuki's job away. She would take away any hope she had of returning to a normal life. She'd be left with scars she would curse for the rest of her life. She'd be every bit as weak and hopeless as she had tried so hard to convince herself she wasn't. Angelina knew all of that - Yuki knew she did. And she didn't even care.

Angelina Tarrant wasn't merely a wrestler any more. Angelina Tarrant was a danger to society. She knew it, and she reveled in it.

And now...this was the woman Yuki was going up against.

When the video feed cut, Yuki remained where she was, staring out into the distance with glazed-over eyes. She didn't say a word. The seconds ticked by, and she was motionless. Eventually, though, she stopped, blinking the shock out of her eyes, and she drew in a gulp. Whatever happened now...she had already made her pledge.

She couldn't run away now.