Collision Course! Bast vs. Stone [Apex Qualifier]

[BlackAkuma]

Had Bast ever been tripped? She couldn't remember. Most likely, she’d been in enough fights that it was inevitable.

Had she ever been tripped by a clothesline? No. She was about as confident of that fact as you could hope to be.

It was a testament to Stone’s power that she could do with her arm what most would've been able to do with their legs. It was only with a little luck that she managed to land that kick on her way down, and it was a good thing she’d managed it - she didn’t want to contemplate what would’ve happened if she’d been on the floor with a woman like this looming over her. The exact last thing she wanted was for Stone to get on top and show just how apt her namesake was.

The two of them were working their way up after that exchange, with Bast rolling to her feet while her opponent pushed off from the knees. Bast wanted to push in and close the gap herself, but Stone was quick on the draw this time, surging forward at an alarming pace and catching her before she could get a solid foundation.

It was the Hammer of Africa’s turns to backpedal now, as Stone forced her towards the corner at a steady, unrelenting pace. She would’ve succeeded to, but Bast ducked down before she could be sandwiched against the pads, whipping around her opponent and getting behind her.

She was quick to make the best of this position and wrapped her arms around her opponent’s waist, pulling her in for a tight hug. With her feet planted and her back tensed, she jerked upwards and prepared to launch Stone with a German Suplex, attempting to send this juggernaut flying.

[thesteedman]

The crowd began to rise to their feet, watching as Bast managed to secure a waist lock upon the larger Stone after cleverly countering her advance! There was no way she could do a German Suplex though... surely? Yet all at once, Bast began to hoist Stone off her feet, and her stance and positioning looked perfect. The momentum was there, and Bast certainly had the power! The crowd began to stamp and cheer, wanting to see such a move between such heavy opponents, but that anticipation would turn into outright rage and near riots! Where Bast was about to build momentum and go for an impressive German Suplex... it seemed Stick had other ideas!

The manager had leapt to the outside of the ring, before reaching in to wrap both arms around one of Bast's legs! Though she did not have the power to trip Bast, it was still enough to throw her stance and position, and all at once, Stone began to use her own weight against her, coming crashing downwards thanks to the interruption, managing to hip drop down onto Bast's midriff. The slight had not gone unnoticed by the referee who noticed the leg grab, shouting serious warnings towards Stick. Regrettably such threats of dismissal seemed like white noise to Stick. Her attention was upon the crowd, her arms widened as if she was getting energy from such a terrible reaction. The crowd naturally felt robbed of what would have been an amazing display, but Stick did not care. She simply climbed back up to ring side after the ear full from the ref, her sights upon Cersei as she wore a shit eating grin on her lips.

By now, Stone was rising upwards in a slow menacing manner, pressing down against Bast as she did so to crush her against the ground a little more. Grasping her by her neck with both hands once she was up, Stone began to deadlift her upwards, revealing her own seemingly impossible strength, as for a moment she made Bast look like she was a lightweight wrestler. The crowd were still raging on, still not over what Stick had robbed them of, but the attention was back on the match. Once Stone had Bast to her feet, she slowly continued to lift, bringing Bast up off her feet into a choke hold! The ref began to warn and threaten Stone, beginning a countdown for holding an illegal choke. Three seconds into the count, Stone would soon toss Bast downwards, in an attempt to slam her brutally!

[BlackAkuma]

It might’ve seemed like an impossible task, and it would’ve been for around 99% of the LAW roster. But Bast was reasonably sure of herself, here - she could do this. She could lift this woman. Stone was about as heavy as you would expect a woman with that name to be, but she knew her own strength, knew what she was capable of, especially with her legs and lower back. The poster was perfect, the muscles were primed, she’d even taken a deep breath for that extra ‘oomph’. She could pull this off, and for once, she was actually looking forward to slamming someone.

Then she felt the arm around her leg, and it all went downhill from there.

It might not have seemed like much, but a momentary diversion was all that was needed to mess everything up. It made her stumble for a second, and it was a second too long - Stone came crashing down on her stomach, and as hardened as her core was, even she couldn't take that kind of pressure in that kind of way and shrug it off. Her cry of anguish filling the arena, its loudness only matched by Cersei on the sidelines.

”Hey!” She slapped the apron and pointed Stick’s way. ”Hey, skinny bitch! Watch that crap, or Bast’s coming for you next!”

For once, Bast was inclined to agree with her sister - she would’ve loved to show Stick what she thought of her interference in a rather physical way. But she had other concerns over revenge at the moment. Like, for instance, the way Stone was rising up, gripping her by the throat, and hoisting her high in a tight chokehold, using her obscene strength to lift her off the mat. It was brief, only a few seconds of the torture, but that was more than enough to leave Bast gasping.

She was hurled to the mat a moment later and hit with a resounding impact, enough to make her bounce up after the landing. She stayed on the floor, too, coughing up a storm while she writhed, with one eye open and glaring towards Stick.

[thesteedman]

There was still anger in the crowd after Stick's interference, and it seemed that same rage was very present within the confines of the ring. Cersei was letting her thoughts be known, and Bast made no effort to hide her feelings, giving the smaller Brit a look that spoke more than a thousand words. With Stone standing between her and any potential threats, Stick did not seem to care. She just wore that detestable smile of hers. It was a shame her personality was thus, as Stick was actually a beauty to behold. Her hair was a near unreal shade of deep red, her figure divine to gaze upon as she wore a somewhat revealing black outfit. She could have been a world class model if she wanted... but instead she was a manager to Stone, and an absolute nightmare to all who faced her and her wrestler.

Stone herself was a menacing sight, so tall and broad and seemingly made of muscle. There was not so much of a sign of sweat upon her yet, even after hurling Bast as she had. Stick called out to her... and like some kind of machine she responded. With Bast still on the ground, Stone would once again approach, grasping her whilst she was down, pulling her up once more with frightening ease. This time, Stone wrapped her massive arms around Bast for what looked like a gutwrench position, before she began to hoist her upwards, managing to heave Bast until she was placed back first across Stone's broad shoulders. Securing a hand against her chin, and wrapping a powerful muscular arm around one of her legs, Stone soon locked in a torture rack upon Bast, holding the fellow heavyweight on both her shoulders.

With a gruelling pull of her chin and leg, she began to contort her spine, as the crowd could not help but gasp out at the brutality of the hold. No doubt this would be a true test for Bast, to see what she could endure.
"That's it Stone... break that bitch in two!" Stick would call out, leaning on the ropes and clapping her hands. Her eyes were more on Cersei then they were Stone and Bast right now, no doubt playing mind games and trying to irritate the rival manager. Stone in the mean time continued to clinch the hold tighter, slowly pacing around the ring with Bast bent into a C like shape over her own powerful frame!

[BlackAkuma]

”What the hell, referee!” Cersei’s cries rang out across the ring, and for once the crowd was in agreement with her. ”Are you blind, woman?”

In her mind, it was a legitimate question. In all the time she’d been at her sister’s side, she had never truly interfered with one of her matches, at least not on purpose. It wasn’t out of some sense of morality or fair play, nothing so pedestrian - she simply didn’t need to. Bast was always capable of handling business on her own, and aiding her would’ve cheapened her capabilities. Cersei wanted the world to fear her, to think of her as a monster, and monsters didn’t need help.

Stick seemed to subscribe to a different philosophy. And while Cersei could applaud a woman who liked to get business done at all costs, she was less impressed when it happened at her expense. She was starting to reach the point where she would do something about it, too, and she warily eyed a nearby chair.

Bast had her opinions about Stick, too, but her foremost concern was the encroaching mountain that was Stone. She had only begun to rise with the mammoth woman ‘helped’ her along, forcing her up and pulling her into the gutwrench position. The crowd looked on with awe as she was hurled up and placed on the giant’s shoulders, and she might’ve shared in their looks of astonishment if her face wasn’t occupied with a rictus of pain.

Gritting her teeth, grinding them hard, she flailed about as Stone’s torture rack bent her at an obscene angle. Flexibility had never been her strongest suit, and that was made obvious as her body was torqued and twisted, pulled down into a position it had never come close to experiencing before. Painful as it was, all she could do was endure for the moment, holding on while she waited for the right opportunity to present itself.

[thesteedman]

It was certainly a display to witness, as Stone continued to pace with Bast spread and contorted over her powerful frame. It was a testament to Bast's own fortitude that she was not screaming out. Many lightweights would have virtually perished, a good amount of middleweights too. To see a heavyweight curved over those shoulders though was a marvel to behold, but respect was massive for Bast who bit down and endured. Her body could be seen straining, and now doubt a few muffled creaks and clicks would no doubt be sounding from her back by now, but it was clear this move would not put Bast away. As trapped as she was, she there was no sign of surrender in those eyes despite the initial surprise from being locked in such a hold.

For a few agonising moments, Stone continued to press down against her, bending her in such a way that Bast's feet began to near her own head, a display of terrible brutality. Stick was aware that Stone did not have the greatest of grips upon her however; having perhaps over tossed Bast onto her shoulders just a little. If Bast did not break out, the sway of balance would steadily become a tax on Stone that she need not endure. Still, Stick let the display continue for a few moments longer before she whistled to Stone. Despite having Bast on her shoulders, pulling down on her chin and her leg in the process, she turned to Stick.
"I think she wants to get down... how about you help her out?" Stick would sing in an arrogant fashion.

Stone soon bent down slightly, before throwing her form upwards, looking to send Bast up off her shoulders. In another display of strength, Stone would cast Bast downwards, letting her decend towards the ring surface with heavy impact. The entire ring shook from the impact, leaving Bast in the centre of the ring on her back as the crowd were left in awe. Despite the earlier antics of Stick, there was still certainly support for the more docile Stone who did not know any better. As such there were cheers soon ringing through the arena, and a second distinct whisper sounded out from Stick... another command it seemed for Stone. The behemoth of a woman began to take off, moving okay for a woman of her size and build as she went straight towards the ropes... where Cersei might have had to get out of the way, rebounding before advancing on the downed Bast.

It was then the woman leapt upwards, tucking up her legs, going for what looked like a big leg drop towards Bast's chest and neck area, no doubt to try and further crush her fellow heavyweight!

[BlackAkuma]

Bast couldn't help but feel a great swell of pity for any woman in the lower classes who had to contend with Stone. At least when she fought smaller women, she tried to hold back and only do what she needed to do in order to win. She got the distinct impression that Stone - or rather, Stone under Stick’s urging - would continue beating on an opponent until she was satisfied, and was more about showing off than anything else. The agony she found herself in on this woman’s mighty shoulders would’ve snapped most women clean in half.

As it was, she was just holding on, suffering in silence as Stone exerted her will with each bounce, testing her flexibility. It made her wish she’d invested some time in yoga - her body was strong, but those muscles came with the price of a certain stiffness, and it was something she’d need to remedy.

Her time in the rack came to an abrupt stop, once again at Stick’s urging, as she dropped for a rough crash on the floor. She came down hard on her back, hitting with an impact that made the ring quake and Cersei jump back. It wasn’t every day that she saw her sister womanhandled, and while she knew that this was bound to happen sooner or later with Stone’s pedigree preceding her, expecting something and actually seeing it come to fruition were two different things.

”Bast!” She gripped the apron and leaned in. ”Samira! You have this! Don’t let her bully you around!”

Bast would strongly object to the idea that she was letting Stone do anything, but she understood the general sentiment. Even she wouldn’t survive long if this woman laid into her too much. She had to do something to slow her down, and as her opponent hit the ropes and came rumbling back her way, she saw her chance.

When Stone leaped up for the leg drop, Bast sat up and rolled out of the way, moving as if the descending limb was a guillotine - an interesting visual, given what the plan was. Her foe came crashing down for what had to be an uncomfortable impact, and she sprung into action in the next second. She pounced like the pantheress many took her for, making her way onto Stone’s lap and wrapped her legs around the woman’s thick midsection. At the same, she pulled the woman’s head down and trapped it under her shoulder, securing it with a crushing choke.

A guillotine choke. Basic, but effective. Even monsters needed to breathe.

[thesteedman]

The crowd could not help but share the dismay of Stone when she thumped down hard against the ring surface. The impact shook the entire structure they wrestled on, and whilst Stone did not make a sound, the look upon her face said it all. She did not look pleased about missing, and it was clear that it hurt her. She barely had time to register anything else, as Bast was quick to take advantage, deftly pouncing before she wrapped herself around Stone's body, managing to get her powerful legs around the broad frame of Stone's exposed and colossal looking torso. Where the danger came was the choke hold that Bast was able to secure upon her neck, wrapping an underarm around Stone's air passage as well as around her head.

As powerful as Stone was, Bast's inner assessment proved to be quite valuable, she did indeed need to breath. The grip virtually began cutting off Stone's air supply, making her grimace as she began to grip at the arm. Though powerful, Bast had power of her own that was capable of matching Stone's strength, but more than that, right now she had leverage. The monster of a woman slowly began to shift onto her knees, able to still move despite the weight of Bast upon her... the bigger concern was the chokehold right now, and Stone was seemingly struggling to deal with it. She rose up to one knee, but did not seem to do all that much past some feeble prying. Naturally the strong bodyscissors around her core did not help matters, helping to constrict her whilst the choke hold was applied.

"Stone! Get up and slam her you dumb brute!" Stick would command, stamping her foot against the ring surface as if to stress her point. However, there was no sign of a response from Stone. She was not even standing fully, allowing Bast to clinch the hold tighter. Stone remained on one knee, but she leaned forward onto one arm, allowing Bast to hang in place, wrapped around her tightly as the ref came to inspect, making sure Stone was still active. Stick swore under her breath, moving around the ring to get closer to the action. She could see how Bast's arm was hooked around her head, covering her ears whilst choking her windpipe. Stick shook her head in dismay before placing her hands by her mouth as if it would amplify her voice. With a loud scream however, she put the cheering crowds to shame, as she leaned right over the ropes to call to stone.

"GET UP AND SLAM HER!!" Stick bellowed... and alarmingly, Stone began to move. Despite being choked, she began to rise in an impressive manner, grasping at Bast's hips with a strong grip, before hoisting her upwards. It was then she would drop, looking to try and Spine Buster slam Bast right down against the surface of the ring in an attempt to break the hold!

[BlackAkuma]

The guillotine choke wasn’t one of Bast’s go-tos, but she’d used it on occasion, and it always produced results when she did. People rarely tapped to it, because they almost never had the chance - the hold was capable of rendering them unconscious in seconds, to say nothing of the pounding pressure that her arm could bring down on their skull. Her larger-than-average muscles practically enveloped her foes’ skulls, putting them in a harrowing situation.

But as Bast was learning more and more, Stone was an exception in many ways. Not only did she manage to stay awake and alive in the hold, but she was moving, writhing around despite the heavy weight hauling her down from an awkward angle. Even with her own power, the Pantheress wasn’t certain she could do the same if the situation was reversed, which all the more reason to make that never came to fruition - she absolutely could not find herself trapped in this woman’s grasp. Ending the match this way might’ve made for an unsatisfying conclusion to the audience, but she would gladly take the chance if it came her way.

She was so wrapped up in the moment that she could scarcely hear Stick’s voice, coming to her like a distant cry, mixed in with the din of the crowd. Cersei, on the other hand, was given no such blessing. ”Does this woman ever shut up?”

She kept those muttering words to herself as the woman yelled towards her fighter once again, giving her basic, obvious instructions. She would’ve brushed them off as little more than fanfare, until the redhead, feeble cries to her dullard of a wrestler, until the woman moved around the ring and screamed again, cursing the world with her shrill voice.

And then Stone started to move. Only after Stick’s bellowing. Immediately after, in fact. Cersei had been joking to herself about Stone being a Pokemon earlier, but the longer this match went, the truer that seemed to be.

Bast, on the other hand, was too occupied by her current concerning situation to make much note of it, as she was hauled up and summarily dropped down with another resonating crash, this time with a spinebuster that more than earned its name. Her hold flew open after the impact and freed Stone, but she knew that being under such a powerhouse was a death sentence - she couldn't leave her without a response. Bast swung her arm, lashing out with a mix of defense and desperation, as she attempted to clock Stone in the face with her elbow before the bestial woman could press her advantage.

[thesteedman]

It was a sign of good quality to LAW rings that they were able to withstand such impacts. The whole thing shook, leaving the fans in awe once again as both heavyweights plummeted downwards to the centre with massive impact. Bast naturally could not maintain the hold, flopping back and releasing her death grip. The moment she did so Stone brought herself upwards, her chest rising as she naturally took in a huge breath that had been denied. How she had not collapsed was unknown given how well Bast had locked on the hold, but it was another tale unto itself how Bast was able to tank the slam as well as she did. Both women were revealed to be of unreal fortitude, and despite being hurt, Bast was not about to let Stone take advantage of her position.

With heavy arms she began to brawl with Stone, managing to throw out a few big strikes that clashed with Stone's own form. A few shots landed well, clashing against the taller Stone's form, catching her head a few times. Stone began to retaliate with a look of dismay, clearly not enjoying being hit as both women began to exchange blow for blow in a brutal clash. The crowd were naturally cheering loudly, seeing that there was no sign of slowing down between these two impressive heavyweights. It went on for a good few moments, but it was clear Stick was not into this style of wrestling. Though Stone was getting strong body blows and some head strikes of her own, it was looking like Bast was getting in more shots in faster succession. As such, Stick wanted to bring the fight back to Stone's level, giving a quick whistle towards her wrestler.

After a few more harsh clashes of fists and elbows between the two, Stone began to rise up to her feet, getting away from the brawl. The giant of a woman was still breathing deep, clearly catching her breath still after enduring such a hard choke hold. For once she did not appear so stoic as she usually did, looking a little dismayed after being hit a lot. Stone did not look all best pleased in truth and it seemed Stick noticed this. It might have been dangerous to allow Bast to recover, but Stick knew she was still very active. The dangerous foe had already proven she could stand toe to toe with her own Stone, capable of evading potential leg drops and also capable of taking Stone with counters if she was not too careful. Whilst on the ground Bast was clearly dangerous... but Stick was confident Stone could take her with the two standing.

As such, Stick whistled again, making Stone back off a little. It gave Stone time to regain her breath, and wait for Bast to rise off the ground. The moment she would however, Stick would lean forward and slap Stones arm, prompting her to advance again. For the second time in the match up, Stone would attempt to grasp at Bast in an attempt to begin a tie up and test of strength!