Viper Hoshiwara vs. Thea Paradise [D]

[CaptainL]

Viper was stoic, and even as Thea fought back against her hold, kicking and bludgeoning at her grasping arms, she refused to yield any ground. Her brows narrowed in focus, but she still wouldn't let her opponent go, desperate to fight it out until the very end. At last, though, the girl's struggles grew unbearable even for Viper, and she was forced to drop Thea to the mat, stepping back from her and rising to her feet.

The bruises were beginning to show along the length of Viper's arms where Thea had struck at her, but the green-haired woman was unmoved, barely even acknowledging their presence. Thea might have gotten free, but it was a costly escape for her. Viper knew that, watching as her foe struggled hopelessly on the ground in an attempt to get to her feet. She could tell that the position she'd just been in had done a number on her spine, and the damage was sure to slow her down going forward. Viper saw no reason to worry about her chances.

She did, however, see a reason to be confused - as Thea began to dance around her, going this way and that, with that same stupid smile on her face. Viper tried to follow her, but she was always darting just out of range, never staying in one position for long. Whenever the green-haired girl turned to her and leaned in closer, Thea had already hopped away. And yet, she wasn't even attacking - she was just darting around her opponent quicker than she could keep up with. It caused Viper's brow to furrow as a frown came to her face. She had no idea what her foe was trying to do. If Thea was trying to test her patience, it was working!

"Cut that out-!" she snapped in frustration. At last, she grew tired of waiting, and she went to make her move, lunging closer to Thea as she swung out with her elbow to try and land a strike!

[Monsy]

Her footing danced like flickering lights. Here one moment, then culled, only to reignite a foot away. Like a cat drawn towards a laser, Viper seemed adamant on following. No matter whether no strike or hold awaited when she had her back. No, Thea had learned something. They were stationary, stalked like a predator and presented like a brick wall whenever she charged. It felt like she battled someone who knew her actions two seconds prior. Take that away and… Well, the result was yet to be seen, because the end game wasn’t concrete. All it took was one measly slip or neglect and she’d find herself stranded once more with an impregnable wall. So, she believed to need one more thing.

Her arms, jutted and raised like the boxer, threw a punch, something that struck the air then pulled back before it could dial anywhere near Viper’s reach. “Eeeyah!” Her lithe arms wouldn’t hurt a fly, she reckoned, but, the gesture might’ve been just the touch to goad her opponent’s temper, a theory only founded moments ago. She even stopped, shuffled her feet and threw a series of blows towards the ropes, coupled with exaggerated exhales, then moved again.

Time bore down in weights. First in her legs, then her arms and that treacherous back. She donned a dogged huff and her heart jumped against the ribcage. Someone had to give. And that came in an elbow that tore the air in-between, threatening her face with stiff bone. It just nipped her hair as she tucked and lunged forward, where if she gained her opponent’s back, she’d use the last of her current wind to leap, coil both knees against her chest and explode with a dropkick, fired right towards their back. “Gotcha!!”

[CaptainL]

Back and forth, back and forth. If there was ever a moment that could be called a game of cat and mouse, this would be it - Viper kept leaning in to try and ensnare Thea in her grasp, yet every time it seemed she might actually get her hands on her, the girl darted away, leaving Viper's arms grabbing at thin air. The first time it happened, it was frustrating, but bearable. But Thea kept it up, and no matter how quickly Viper thought she could act, Thea was always a step faster. A few fans even began to giggle at the sight of Thea making a fool of her fearsome opponent. While Viper wasn't normally one to care about what anyone felt, it was still a frustrating reminder of how Thea was refusing to accept her place, and the tension was bubbling up inside her.

Soon, there was no way for it to go but out, and Viper decided it was time to bite the bullet and make her move. She swung her elbow out in front of her, aiming to hit her foe - but just as she was about to strike, Thea threw a jab of her own. Viper had let herself get so rattled from the idol's incessant taunts that she had let down her guard, and when she saw the fist coming closer, she flinched. It didn't hit her at all, but passed by harmlessly - but the damage had been done. Viper had let up the pressure; even her elbow strike lagged before it could hit with full force. That was all Thea needed to dive between her legs. By the time Viper realized what was going on, and where her opponent was, it was too late - Thea hopped up, throwing her legs in front of her to deliver a powerful dropkick to Viper's back!

The force of the impact knocked the green-haired girl off her feet. She fell forward face-first, landing against the canvas with a thud, as she was left in a daze!

[Monsy]

A dance with time; her partner, a dominant predator, baited with finesse. An endless barrage of serpentine and circles, targeted only to undo that unbreakable veil of apathy. That’s what everything counted on.

Then that flying elbow came.
Her instincts harmonized into a perfect tuck, weave and sprint, which gave her Viper’s backside. A moment to crystalize and two feet thrust like pistons. That fall ignited her reserves, adrenaline that pumped her muscles with life and hastened with deep breaths. Joy finally found its refuge in a genuine smile. Hope had not lost her yet.

And as Viper fell flush, Thea landed on her stomach and rebounded onto her feet by whipping around a leg and planting her hand, emerging into a whole stance. She stood over her downed adversary, one foot on either side and bent over to hook their chin with both hands. If her digits could link, she wrenched upward and squatted on their back. Both legs tried to shift underneath Viper’s arms, hook and seal in the camel clutch. All it took was one last step; to wrench back for all she’s worth, so malicious that her arms could strain and her face could scrunch.

"Let's see you hiss your way outta this!"

[CaptainL]

It was a seemingly endless series of fake-outs and false starts. Every time Viper saw a moment of weakness, Thea darted away. Every time she thought she could move in for the kill, her opponent just barely slipped out of her reach. Even given Viper's usual emotionless air, the frustration was beginning to show - she clenched her teeth and looked back at Thea with a scowl. If she could just get her to stand still for half a second, everything would be fine, but Thea wasn't playing by those rules. At last, it got to the point where the deathmatch veteran had to step in herself.

That was a mistake.

No sooner had Viper moved that Thea took control, soon getting behind her and knocking the green-haired girl to the ground. Groaning under her breath, Viper tried to push herself back up, planting her hands and knees against the canvas. She wouldn't get far, though - now that Thea had taken the position on top of her, Viper fell back down, her arms trapped by her legs and her chin caught up in her grasp. And, as the idol leaned back, Viper could feel the pressure of the camel clutch building on her back, twisting her neck and spine into place!

"Rrrgh-!" Viper snarled in both pain and frustration, her teeth clenched in a grimace. She tried to twist her hips from side to side in an effort to push Thea off, as she shoved harder against the mat, trying to unseat her opponent.

[Monsy]

Such a trepidatious course was the path of reward. To struggle so bitter, where sweat licked a forehead into a shine and the shirt stuck onto her back. The muscles that twisted, clenched and spasmed weren’t repaid. From the torture house that cut her pain tolerance to its limits, a mere hold is what she earned. And she loved it.

Upper and lower lips curled inward, bitten and a tightness suffocated her chest, released by fume from her nose. Fingers interlocked as one hooked the chin and wrenched; shuffling feet inched forward an inch to provide the leverage for an added yank. Her back was thrown into an arch, eyes welded shut as the sweat stung beneath the lid. And when thrown by Viper’s rebuttal, Thea’s positioned compromised. Tossed and turned, a throne of stone to jello, mediated only by widening her legs to reinforce balance.

〝Tch…!!〞

She slid back further on Viper’s back, careened and tugged with added zeal, hoping to make the arch more violent. If successful, Thea leaned towards Viper’s right shoulder to marshall an arm to envelop their neck, pinning her bicep against the throat. If secured, the wrench came in a simple back veer where an arm reached behind her back to make a link, thus, resuming the stretch where their back was stretched and neck faced the adversary of time.
A camel clutch, morphed into the sleeper hold. The crowd outta love this. Her beaming smile or stretch upon the death match veteran, where all eyes upon for a response.

[CaptainL]

Both Viper and Thea alike had gone tense in the struggle, putting every ounce of concentration they could into maintaining the effort they fought with - Viper to break free of Thea's hold, and Thea to maintain it. Despite Viper's greater size, her opponent was unshakable in her determination, and she refused to hold back. Viper might have remarked that she had underestimated Thea, and that the idol had respectable skills - but she was never the most inclined to be that charitable to her foes.

Even when Viper managed to force half a centimeter in between her and her opponent, Thea rolled with it. Their position shifted, but she would turn that into an opportunity for herself, using it to set up a new move - as she brought her arm lower, encircling it around Viper's throat! As Thea tightened the pressure, Viper hissed and spat. The veins in her neck bulged from the strain. One of her eyes was pulled into a squint, while her groans were muffled against the force bearing down on her skull.

With how much she'd been through already, Viper's energy was beginning to wane. Thea was determined to wrest every drop of strength she could out of the green-haired girl. But if she slowed down, it wouldn't be for lack of trying. Even if her movements grew weaker, Viper still twisted her hips back and forth, trying to shake off her foe with everything she had.

At the same time, now that Thea had slipped back, Viper felt the tension around her arms slacken. She was able to pull her arms free - and as soon as she gained back control, she was willing to use them to her advantage! She shot up with both hands, looking to grab for the arm encircling her throat, as she pulled down hard, her nails digging into the skin of Thea's arm!

[Monsy]

What waged as a struggle of technique became one of attrition. Adversaries donned their tenacity like a predator’s fangs; each sought to chew the other down to the bone. From the writhes that kept Thea’s position unstable to the minor adjustments that checked any breakthrough. The arm that marshalled to the idol’s call and encircled their throat to put the test of time on this struggle.

This was a gamble as Thea sacrificed the security of Viper’s arms, which bore into her limb to chew the rope that made the noose. Seconds drizzled like wine from a bottle; vital as Thea’s back flexed into the hold, white-knuckle fists leaked with sweat, and she bit down onto her lower lip, eyes scrunched and brows furrowed. Deep huffs fumed from her nose, hastened as the strain mounted, and she shook her head as a silent curse. The hold withered bit-by-bit till it no longer clasped the throat. It shivered as a fleeted struggle, merely a delay to what Thea saw as borrowed time.

Her knees instead hugged Viper’s midsection; legs turned inward in hopes to coil underneath and lock ankles at their abdominals, where they’d squeeze and steadfast. Once the next shuffle came, the idol veered left to collapse against the canvas, sought to drag them with as her free one reached to pry her opponent’s arm away from her own, which flushed red from the pressure and white as the skin scraped to force a wince.

[CaptainL]

Viper might have had an advantage on Thea at first, but now, it seemed the idol was wising up to her tricks - and slowly but surely, she was taking back control. She brought her arm lower, circling it around the deathmatch veteran's throat, and pulling back, leaving Viper hissing and sputtering against the pressure. Even as Viper twisted and turned her body from side to side, fighting to loosen Thea's grasp on her, she was holding firm.

But she couldn't hold on forever, and as Viper grabbed at her arm, she could feel Thea's hold giving way little by little; her muscles eased and slackened. When Viper twisted her hips, she found more range of motion to move in; when she took a breath, her lungs could expand further than before. Viper knew that if she couldn't break Thea's grasp by force, she was going to have to wage a war of attrition if she wanted to get her to let go. But Viper was perfectly willing to do that if she had to. The same cold, emotionless outlook that made her so ruthless also helped her shrug off the pain - and even when she felt it, causing her to grit her teeth and groan under her breath, she would still hold steady, waiting for Thea's grasp to ease. She'd been through worse - and she was willing to stick it out as long as she had to.

Eventually, Thea was forced to let go of her opponent's throat, but she would shift her position once again, intent on keeping a grip on Viper for as long as she could. She squeezed her legs tightly around the green-haired girl's sides, causing her to gag from the pressure. Viper's body shivered, her muscles going tense, but she growled under her breath in Thea's direction. She had no intentions to cooperate.

The idol rolled the two of them over, going to her side and bringing Viper down along with her. There, Viper twisted and turned, her legs kicking at the air, but ultimately finding no purchase. What she did see, however, was that she now had a clear view of the ropes. So too, as Thea at last pulled Viper's arm off of her, it fell loose at her side. Thea thought this would prove an advantage - but Viper had her own plans! Grabbing at the mat, she attempted to drag herself across the canvas, reaching out for the ropes!

[Monsy]

Contested on all fronts, Thea fell onto the defensive. The burn inside her arms left them numbed and useless to resist the sustained fight Viper raged. Her material stamina was outpaced by miles. She withered into a leg grip that connected Thea onto Viper’s lower back, ankle-to-ankle. The leg noose squeezed every muscle from the abdominals and obliques; her knees pushed onto the bottom of their ribs as Thea pushed up on the one hand and torqued her shoulder back to pull the arm.

After the strain bled her legs and shoulder of strength, she sucked in some hair, folded her arm up to weave through her hair and prepared another round of fresh constriction. Her lips rolled inward; eyes clammed to deliver the magnum opus of raw strength; although inferior, she couldn’t show any signs of falter. Not against someone like Viper. After all this, there was no quit. In some miracle, her arm came free. There was no control in her snap backwards, where she thudded flush on her side with only the waist encirclement to bind. And with no tangible obstacle to keep her opponent secure, they slid. Nothing more than her weight stalled Viper’s push for the ropes. She pawed the ground in a vain struggle to find purchase with sweaty fingers, only to hear the referee’s call for a break.

“D-Dammit…”

Her heart sunk into her stomach. This chill coursed her arms, spine and legs. Soon, they’d meet on equal terms.

But if their last exchange was anything to prove, is that there was a chance. So she unravelled and back rolled, pushed the canvas with two hands and came to a stance. An arm slumped over the top rope, hooked, and carried her weight in a three-pace retreat. Through her laboured breath, a grin manifested as her eyes narrowed to ready for the next opportunity. She wanted them to stand and face her head on.