The Midas Touch, Episode 12: The Young Lioness

[SuckerPunch]

Theme

(Start at 1:21 for replays)

The sudden pounding of music brought with it lights that flared in time with the beat. The song was instantly recognizable. Music that had become synonymous with the League's Self-proclaimed Ace! Every pump of bass brought on another flicker of gold stage lighting. And with it another brief vision of the Venomous Vixen herself!

And when the beat dropped, the gold-toned lights flared fully to life! Gold confetti rained ceremoniously down from the ceiling. It refracted the light in a dazzling display of gaudy gold. And at the top of the stage stood the Lightweight Champion!

Spoiler

Rose Gold once again stood at the top of the ramp... Radiant. Her trademark golden hair was tipped with brilliant pink. Her lips were painted as black as her intentions, highlighting her alabaster skin and the soft blush upon her cheeks. Her eyes were swept with black liner, angular and sharp. It made her honey-gold orbs glitter, 24kt.

A spade-shaped hairband made of her namesake, rose gold, pulled her hair back and exposed her face. Her attire was more complex. Sleeves and Leggings were both speckled with shiny rose gold highlights. A collared top with a window that exposed the valley between her firm, perky breasts. Like her hairband, this too was cut to the shape of a spade, though this one was inverted. Both symbolic of her status as Ace.

Her bottoms were practically lingerie. Barely there at all. So high-cut were they that the muscles of her kissable inner thigh were bare to the world. A centimeter or two from indecency. The back was cut like a thong, allowing her round, athletic backside to bounce with every step she took. Every aspect of her femininity was accentuated. One look at her was enough to make even the most vigilant of opponents feel their heartbeat hasten.

And lastly, she carried the symbol of her reign. The crown that made her Queen. The Lightweight Title. It hung over her shoulder, clutched by one hand. Its face was showing, her name embroidered prominently upon it.
--

Unlike last week, Rose Gold was all smiles again. There was no shortage of smug bravado as her nearly bare hips made their way down the LAW Ramp and towards the ring. One hand kept the belt on her shoulder from wavering, the other held a microphone. She mounted the apron and slipped into the ring with feline grace. With a flourish, she rose and turned to face the ramp and her expression then curled into a dark smile as she put her lithe, sensual body on display for the audience.

She brought the microphone to her lips, black as her heart. "LAW!" She demanded attention! "Welcome your ACE!" She threw the hand that held the title skyward and allowed the lights to shine upon it! And the baying hordes obeyed their mistress.

"Mmmnn. You can't even cheer correctly. It's no wonder that you're up there, unwashed and desperate. While I'm in here. Pristine and invincible." She chirped the insult into the microphone as if it was a compliment. The crowd erupted again. A chorus of boos and cheers. They all sounded the same to her. The sound of money.

"Speaking of desperate and unpolished, I have a very special guest for tonight!" She grinned wide as tapped her lips with an index finger. Who could it be?

"It is a champion's duty to enrich those -below- her. And though I have continually strived to do so, each and every week, on this show! Some say that I have not delved deep enough!" She continued without a hint of shame.

"Very well then!" Her lips curled into a wry, serpentine smirk. "LAW! Tonight's guest... Is an open challenge to -all- of the Young Lioness Program! Which one of you upstart cubs has the heart to stand in the ring with me!? The guts to try to take what's mine!? I doubt a single one of you... But... I am sure at least one of you is -stupid- enough to try! So come out. Come and receive -my- Midas Touch!"

[CaptainL]

Backstage, Rose Gold's announcement was being broadcast on a screen - and the current Young Lioness class was packed tightly around it, their eyes fixed on the feed coming from the ring. None of them said a word, or even looked away from the screen - not even to blink. None of them could believe what they were hearing.

LAW's Young Lioness Program had taken off since its inception, and it had already produced a few rising stars that some speculated could shape the future of the company. Those enrolled in the promotion's in-house training program had themselves been garnering more and more attention lately, thanks to their talent being highlighted in a few standout matches against main roster members. However, those matches were the exception, not the rule. They were still trainees, after all. They hadn't perfected their in-ring style yet and had to stick to the basics until they could prove they were worthy of branching out, and if they were to appear before a crowd it was typically in the pre-show matches that didn't make it to TV. The thought of any of them being drawn into the main event scene was unheard of.

That was, until now.

Rose Gold, perhaps both the most respected and the most feared woman in all of LAW, had made her offer known. The next challenger to the Lightweight Championship would come from their ranks. To say that the girls were speechless was an understatement. None of them could have anticipated anything like this would happen - or that it even could. They weren't ready to develop their own finishers yet, and now they were being offered a title shot? Against the Ace?

After the initial shock wore off, a few whispers went between the Lionesses. Some were quick to accuse this of being a trap - after all, they couldn't possibly stand a chance against a woman who was at the top of her division, and had earned her reputation by force. Others decried the champion for both her cruelty and her cowardice, for only someone with plenty of both would dare to challenge someone so far from their level. Still more pleaded with their classmates not to take the challenge. Whatever glory and attention they might gain could never be worth the danger - not after what had happened to Aoi Fukiwara. What they could agree upon was that no one wanted to go anywhere near Rose.

Except for Meiyun Lai.

The restauraneur's daughter had committed herself to being the strongest fighter around, and to prove it in everything she did. Though she was still learning the ropes, she had seen a respectable rise in her career as of late - whether it be from a few good showings in the ring or the newfound attention that came from the LAW Magazine article that made her name known to many new fans. Whether she was training, wrestling, or just facing the challenges of day-to-day life, Meiyun always gave it her all, and always committed 100%. And so far, it was working. Her trainers might have thought she was getting ahead of herself, but her experience showed otherwise! If anyone was going to stand up to Rose, she decided, it would be her!

As Meiyun stood up from the crowd, another girl jumped closer, throwing her arms around her as she looked up with tears in her eyes. "Mei-chan, please! You can't do it, you'll get hurt!"

But Meiyun shook her head. "I'm doing what I have to! If no one shows up, the Young Lionesses will forever be those who didn't go for the title when it was right in their faces! If no one else will come forward, let it be me!"

The brunette shook off her would-be savior, marching to the door - and moments later, appearing atop the entrance ramp with her hand to her mouth, projecting her voice to Rose and to all in attendance. Tonight, she wasn't a young rookie still to learn her place in the world. Tonight, Meiyun was going to be the hero those rookies needed. It wasn't about her, or about the Lai family name any more. Tonight, she was standing up for the Young Lionesses!

Spoiler

"ME! I'll do it!"

[SuckerPunch]

Rose Gold waited in the middle of the ring with a cocky, self-satisfied smirk. In truth, she'd lied. She didn't believe that there really -was- a member of the Young Lioness class who was stupid enough to stand up to her. Unlike regular fans, these trainees were made aware the dangers of the job. They studied tape. They watched the event. They knew who she was and what she was about. And most importantly... What she could do to them.

And yet...

She nearly dropped the microphone when Meiyun called out. Gripping it extra tight, she whispered into it. "Well I'll be..." She cleared her throat and replaced her cocksure grin. It even grew two sizes as she tried to catch sight of the woman who responded to her. No. Woman wasn't right. Girl.

"Okay, Me. Come out here!" She signaled to the referee to come by her side. They were holding a clipboard and pen. Whoever the representative was would have to sign a waiver, as they were not yet a member of the main roster. Whenever and however Meiyun approached, the referee would stop her before she could enter the ring and extend the documents to her. She'd need to sign before she could enter.

"How bold of you." She said bluntly. "Are you truly this ambitious? Or have you recently taken a bad bump. I know how clumsy you trainees can be. Especially when the one's training you aren't even half my caliber." She smirked. A dig meant to be caught by the especially invested fans. It was only this past weekend that the current Heavyweight Champion, Astrid Ostberg, had visited the Young Lioness program to provide training and insight. This was in no small part the inspiration for tonight's plot. She wouldn't let another woman show her up!

When the paperwork was done, the referee would step out of the way. And Rose Gold would take her place. She took a seat on the middle rope, weighing it down, and rested an arm upon the top one. She looked pointedly towards the center of the ring rather than the volunteer. "You do understand that the moment you step into this ring, that you belong to me. Don't you?" She allowed for a pregnant pause. For Meiyun's answer should she wish to give it. It would be difficult to hear without a microphone, especially over the roar of the degenerate crowd.

"And I do whatever I want to the things that belong to me. I break them. I make them scream. I expose them for what they really are." She looked back to Meiyun. "How do you feel about being exposed in front of the whole world, Kitten?" The look that followed her question could freeze a volcano. It dripped with venom and promised life-altering consequences.

She didn't say another word. She simply waited. Waited to see if the Young Lioness had a reply. Or if she would step into the ring through the makeshift entry Rose Gold extended to her.

[CaptainL]

Keeping her head held high and her back straight, Meiyun marched her way down to the ring. A defiant look stuck to her face all the while. On the inside, she was nervous, yes - her heart was pounding, and she wasn't sure what might await her when she arrived. She was, after all, about to face off with her most dangerous opponent yet, and it would be the greatest challenge of her career. But she couldn't back down. She had pledged to stand up to Rose, for the sake of her own honor and that of her fellow Lionesses. She couldn't fail them now.

She took the paperwork from the referee without a second thought, and even as Rose continued to taunt her from the ring, Meiyun wouldn't let herself be moved. She fixed her eyes on the champion with a glare, never letting her gaze slip from her except to see where she needed to sign. "I'm Meiyun Lai! And believe me, I know what I'm doing! I've been training with the best, and they believe in me - and I have the faith in my heart that I can beat you!" That wasn't entirely true. Meiyun's trainers, while impressed with her potential, knew her biggest downfall was how headstrong she was and how she could bite off more than she could chew when it came to picking fights. Even Meiyun herself still had her reservations. But it was what she needed to do.

After she passed the clipboard back to the referee, the brunette paused. She looked up at Rose - and, for a second, it was enough to cause her to waver in her composure, however briefly. Her eye twitched, and she bit at her lip. The look on Rose's face told her enough about how her opponent wouldn't go easy on her - not by a long shot. Meiyun hadn't expected that, of course, but she also hadn't expected, in this moment, to be frozen where she stood, staring down Rose, with second thoughts budding in her mind. She was far more intimidating up close than she had been on recordings - and even there, one could see how well-earned her reputation was. The rookie saw that look on her face, and it spoke of all the torment and misery Rose would put her through - that she had already done to so many before her. For the briefest of seconds, Meiyun wasn't sure if she'd made the right choice.

But it was too late to turn back. Meiyun had started something, and she was going to finish it. Sucking in a breath, she ducked through the hole in the ropes, pulling herself into the ring, where she walked to the center to face her foe. The leer on Rose's face once again caused Meiyun to take in a gulp. But she straightened her back nonetheless, letting her eyes narrow into a glare.

"For what I really am?" she said. "I think you'll find out that I'm a bold-spirited, hot-blooded warrior! I'll rise to any challenge, no matter how daunting, if it's what it takes to prove that! That's the side of me I want the world to see, and I'm gonna make sure they do!"

[SuckerPunch]

"Oh? So this Kitten has claws, does she?" Rose Gold smirked as she looked Meiyun up and down once again. Analyzing and evaluating her. The look of disdain she gave in the wake of her efforts told Meiyun all she needed to know. She'd been found wanting.

"I hope you have nine lives as well." She smirked. "Because I'm going to take every single one of them." She passed the microphone off to the referee as they took the clipboard from Meiyun at the same time. They did a rather precarious, but satisfactory job of managing them both and passing them off to the timekeeper.

The world might have expected Rose to attack Meiyun as soon as she got in the ring. To ambush the inexperienced Lioness and make this mountain she had to climb even steeper. But she didn't. She waited. Feet planted in the center of the ring.

"A bold spirited warrior hm? Is that what this get-up is supposed to be?" She gestured to her attire. She shook her head dismissively and clicked her tongue. "You don't deserve it. I'm going to take more from you than your pride, Meiyun Lai. And you'll thank me for it. I'm going to make you famous. And you'll thank me for it. Because that's what I do here. Elevate pissant talent like yourself by allowing you the privilege of sharing the ring with me." She cracked her knuckles as she finished demeaning the young wrestler.

She lowered her stance and squared her hips. Her arms extended in front of her and her fingers spread. She was showing Meiyun the respect of taking an actual stance. Rose Gold stood across from the Young Lioness ready to wrestle. Whatever game she was playing... Was a dangerous one.

"Noone will ever look at you the same after I'm done with you!" The bell rang shortly after her ominous double-edged promise.

[CaptainL]

As Rose continued to taunt Meiyun, it was growing more and more apparent to the rookie that in her eagerness to get in the ring, she hadn't looked over the terms and stipulations of the contract. She'd been quick to sign her name without asking any questions; all that mattered to her was getting to face Rose. For a second, she bit at her lip, the concerns brewing in the back of her mind that she might be getting in over her head. She didn't know what loomed over her - or what awaited her if she lost. But she shook her head, and she sucked in a breath as she stood up straighter. It was far too late to turn back now.

Rose was certainly a menacing woman; every word out of her mouth was a pointed threat, one aimed right for Meiyun's heart. Despite her small stature, she had her own way of filling the room, and her very presence told Meiyun all she needed to know, even before any blows had been thrown - that this was going to be the toughest battle of her life. To Rose, Meiyun was so far beneath her level she couldn't even be called a bug. Her very existence was insignificant. Meaningless.

And yet, Meiyun didn't shy away. She puffed out her chest, a proud and defiant look crossing her face. Her hands coiled into tightly-clenched fists at her sides. No one believed she could win - not Rose herself, and no one in the audience either. But in all the stories she'd read, lived, and breathed over the course of her life, one theme held true. That anyone, if they tried hard enough, could power through even the most insurmountable of obstacles - and the more the villain boasted of their own invincibility, the harder they would fall when they underestimated their foe, and their pride came up short in the face of determination! Everything was set up for such a tale. Tonight, Rose Gold would be that villain. And Meiyun was more than a young and brash trainee in over her head. She was the unlikely hero everyone was counting on to prove Rose wrong!

Jabbing a finger in the blonde's direction, Meiyun shot back at her. "Go ahead, just try and take whatever you want from me - but I'm not going to lay down and give it to you without a fight! I know your type, and I know you're never as tough as you think you are! You want to give me a stage, fine - I'll show you I deserve to be in this ring just as much as you do, when I show you how wrong you are! This is a promise I'm going to make - by the end of this match, everyone will know Meiyun Lai, the strongest in LAW!"

No sooner did Rose adopt a stance that Meiyun followed suit. She nodded her head to the champion, in recognition of the match to come, and the challenge to which she'd rise. Perhaps their intentions were different, but Meiyun wanted to go down in history just as much as Rose wanted her to. And when the bell rang, she was the first to make her move, coming charging toward the blonde with her arm drawn back to throw a lariat at her she was in range! "HAAAH!!"

[SuckerPunch]

Meiyun was eager to attack. Nerves. The bell rang and not a second later did she come out of her corner swinging! Her arm was drawn back, telegraphing her attack. An amateurish, arcing attack. A lariat. She appreciated the courage of the trainee. It would make their performance all the more dramatic.

Rose Gold changed levels and disappeared from Meiyun's vision. She slipped under the attack, turning on the point of one of her knees to wind up behind her. Her hands swept inwards, catching her ankles and attempting to pull them outward! To dump the young lioness onto her belly.

And if she did, she would slide up behind her, pressing hips against Meiyun's! One of her arms would loop around her belly, holding her tightly. It was a suggestive position. But more importantly, it was technically sound. She controlled her body from behind. The worst possible scenario against a grappler. From here Rose Gold could maneuver her into all sorts of dangerous submission holds.

"So cute." She mused as she slid her hips just slightly. Just enough to reveal half of Meiyun's backside. And then her palm cracked against it! Her fingers curled inward, a grope in the wake of the stinging pain. Once. Twice. And on the third, she released her! She got to her feet with a sinister, condescending cackle.

"Is that what they're teaching you over there? Come on. Fight for real!"

She retook her stance and beckoned Meiyun to her feet. Cruelty.

[CaptainL]

Meiyun's first move, swinging in with a lariat right out of the gate, could leave an analyst with much to say. It showed her fearlessness and confidence, in how she was making a proud and defiant move to open the match. It was the kind of move that, if it missed, could offer the advantage to her opponent, putting her off-balance and vulnerable. And yet, even when Meiyun was squaring off with no less than the feared and renowned Lightweight Champion herself, she was still going for it! It stood as a testament to her confidence in her skills and her belief that all would pay off.

And that, some might say, stood as a testament to Meiyun's naivete and inexperience. She thought nothing of challenging a woman who was at the top of her division, and she thought nothing of using a move that could hinder her as much as harming her. And, sure enough, Rose ducked down as Meiyun passed overhead, her arm only swinging and striking at the air. Her mouth dropped open in a gasp, only moments before she felt the blonde pull her ankles out from under her. In a split-second, the proud look on her face turned to one of shock, just as she fell forward and slammed into the canvas!

"Ooof-!!" Meiyun gasped as the mat rippled under her landing. She grimaced, her arms splayed out at her sides. Now, she was vulnerable - and Rose was keen to take advantage, as she mounted the Young Lioness's hips, weighing her down against the mat. Meiyun hissed as she sank into the canvas - and moments later, when Rose smacked her palm against her rear, she let out a yelp, her hips bucking up from the aftershocks and her cheeks jiggling beneath the fabric of her leotard!

The smack landed again and again, and the intent was clear. Rose was in control, and to her, Meiyun was nothing more than a naughty child being punished. She didn't even deserve dignity or respect. A few of the fans laughed, and others wolf-whistled at the display. But, as Rose let her opponent go, Meiyun looked up at her, and her brows narrowed. She rolled to her side and reached behind her, rubbing at her sore behind. Rose wasn't going to get away with this - every cruel taunt and punishing attack would only inspire Meiyun more and more to defeat her!

The girl hopped back to her feet, pushing off the mat with her hands and knees. She wasted no time in falling into a stance, holding up her fists. "You're facing every wrestler and trainer who gave their teachings to the Young Lioness Program!" she boasted. "Every blow I land was taught to me by the greatest of their time! And I'm gonna make them proud!" With that, she took off running once again - this time, kicking up one foot as she stood on the other to try and deliver a crane kick to the champion's sternum!

Spoiler

[SuckerPunch]

Rose Gold flexed her fingers as she waited for Meiyun to put herself back together. She could still feel the sting of her spanks on her palm. The gentle throbbing was a pleasant reminder of how the subjugated wrestler's backside had felt against it. Fit and full. She might not have been the best wrestler, but she had a great ass. Meiyun was a gift that kept on giving.

"You sound ridiculous." She stated plainly. "You should spend less time reading comic books and more time in the gym." Her eyes rolled so hard she thought she might lose them.

It was at the exact moment Rose Gold took her eyes off Meiyun, that she dashed into action! Another charging attack. And though Rose Gold's low stance was appropriate for countering her, she wasn't prepared.

She struck with a kick straight down the middle. An attack coming from below rather than above. Perhaps she was learning. Meiyun's boot sank into the Champion's torso. Her expression twisted into a mask of pain. But her hands snapped to the girl's calf, even as her own boots slid back a bit from the impact.

"This... Is what they taught you?" Her eyes shifted to meet Meiyun's. Her blow had landed solidly. It'd done some damage.

Rose Gold's fingers grasped powerfully upon Meiyun's bare calf. The Lightweight Champion was a dainty woman. But her cute appearance belied a lifetime of combat sports. Grappling specifically. And Meiyun could feel it now, as her fingers felt like the teeth of a bear trap. Cinching down on the muscles of her lower leg. Unmoving, even if she tried to jerk it free.

"I hope they're all watching. All the wrestlers and trainers who gave their 'teachings' to you." Her words were spoken cruelly. Her lips pulled up in a sinister grin that looked more feral than human.

"I hope they watch as I drag you into the deep waters and drown you. Pride is a poor substitute for skill. But an excellent garnish for my feast!" She spun then, pulling Meiyun forward just a step!

She dropped her foot, leaving her off balance as her hips rotated! And all of the momentum of her spin was put into a turning side-kick. The point of her heel was a spear driven into Meiyun's guts. A blow meant to reach her spine and hobble her!

[CaptainL]

The taunts that Rose threw at Meiyun were, perhaps, predictable given the circumstances. But they weren't going to slow the spirited young rookie down, as she jumped back to her feet, her fists clenched and her body coiled as she prepared her next strike. "Bad luck for you, because I spend plenty of time in the gym too!" And sure enough, she took off, swinging her leg up to meet Rose's chest!

Meiyun felt the crack of the blow connecting, and the give of Rose's body as she teetered back. She'd actually hit! Meiyun had been determined to give her best shot against the champion, but even she hadn't anticipated getting such a solid blow off so soon. Though she gasped, the corners of her lips soon curled up into a smile. If she'd had this much success so far, she just might be able to walk out of here with the championship around her waist!

Meiyun didn't consider how unrealistic her aspirations were, of course; after all, it had just been one hit. Nor did she realize the precarious position she had put herself in. Although the crane kick delivered force and momentum against her opponent's core, it also left her in a raised stance - one foot off the ground, with only the other to hold her up. It wouldn't take much to send her toppling over - and in fact, that was just what Rose had set out to do, as she grabbed a hold of her leg!

At once, Meiyun's proud grin dropped into a gasp. "W-What..!?" she said. All of a sudden, her moment of triumph had turned to one of terror; she was vulnerable to Rose's counterattack, and she could only imagine what was in store for her next! Though the trainee tried to pull away, she couldn't even get Rose's fingers to budge. Her foot was anchored in place, and the pressure on her calf was steadily growing, causing her to wince and whine. And Meiyun knew Rose - she knew the worst was yet to come.

Putting her judo training to good use, Rose pulled forward on Meiyun's leg. The girl's eyes went wide as she teetered unsteadily on her one foot, her arms waving through the air. "W-Whoah, whooooah-!" she cried. Even as her foot hit the floor when the champion let go, Meiyun was doubled over, frozen in fear. She was tense in anticipation of the impact of her next move, even before it hit - when Rose swung herself around, driving a powerful thrust into Meiyun's abdomen!

The Young Lioness cried out in pain, the impact throwing her back through the air. Her tailbone struck the canvas as she dropped into a seated position, her teeth locked in a grimace, and she clutched at her gut; it felt like she was on fire!