Last Shot (for Winner3)

[Vc0m]

An orchestral piece from a video game played as Melody made her way down the entrance ramp, gathering a bit of a positive response, but not as loud as for some of the other women in LAW. The company has grown in the past 5 years, to the point where some of the original talents were lost in the shuffle. Of course, it wasn't true for everyone. Alaina, Tina, Karen, Eirina, Kyoko, Clara Gaster... Katherine Hart...

A lot of the women who debut with or close to the company's inception found massive success, and were massive superstars both in Japan and worldwide...and the fact that Melody belonged to the former category angered her. Immensely. Outside a few matches, post 2018, she wasn't used as much in the televised product, mostly brought around for taped or dark matches used to pad TV time. The greenette was far...FAR from a title contender. She wasn't even offered a chance to compete in LAW Apex for the Openweight belt, such an afterthought Melody Serperior was. Not all of that was company's fault. She had a bad falling out with her best friend, barely contacting her as she left Japan...and seemingly wrestling, for good. She was hit with quite a bit of demotivation...

And tonight was her declaration of the last shot to do something about it.

Spoiler

She walked in in her usual attire, walking with a purpose as she ascended the steps and stepped inside the squared circle. She raised her hand, requesting her theme would quiet down, before she raised the mic up to her lips:

"Being quite honest...the fact that even as many of you still cheer for me means the world to me...and I know that as many fans that I have, I have disappointed you all. I have fallen out with my friend, missed opportunities and shows that might've brought me success...I let it all fall by the wayside. To not bore you with a speech, I need to get out of the hole I dug for myself...or simply let someone else bury me in the dirt..."

"Kat...", Melody would say, before shaking her head. She remembered there were now multiple Kats in LAW, including Clara's girlfriend:

"Katherine Hart. I know you are backstage..."

Her face morphed...from slight worry and determination to anger: "Get the fuck out here. Now."

[winner3]

To say the landscape at LAW had changed from what it looked like when the company first started up would be a massive understatement. With the help of several talents both on and off screen, LAW had grown to international prominence, having major shows, events, and media presence in various places around the globe. Not to mention tremendous revenue.

Promising wrestlers were being signed nearly every day. Many of the originals had risen up to become the cornerstones of the company, all the way up at the top of the card. But time to wasn't a kind mistress to all of them. Some talents weren't so lucky. And one such woman among them was Melody Serperior....

At the very same time that Melody had made her entrance, Kat was backstage with a few of the applicants hoping to join the Young Lioness program. On a TV in the background, Melody's entrance was being broadcast live! And yet, as Kat offered advice and instruction, she hadn't even noticed!

"A lot of things are gonna depend on the proctor you get. But generally, good cardio will help you go long way. There's a few physical assessments, so-" Her gaze turned towards the monitor as she heard her name called out by the familiar voice. The level of vitriol in that voice sent a shiver up her spine! She recognized the voice immediately. The memories came rushing back all at once!

When Melody told her to get out there, Kat nervously canceled the impromptu lessons.

"I... I'm sorry guys...I gotta go." The group of aspiring wrestlers gave looks of concern and bewilderment as Kat took off! She gave the production crew the green light as she sped through the Go position.

The Super Kitty's theme song hit! She came out with a mic in hand. Her title belt was fastened around her waist. The crowd broke out into song, practically yelling the tune of the theme! The energy was electric!

Entrance Music

Kat Hart

And yet....as Kat stood there, she couldn't wear her usual confident, toothy grin. She couldn't smile. Just one look at the audience's reaction to her arrival, one look at her World Tag Team Championship Title was enough to tell the whole story. As her theme song faded, nothing could be heard but the sounds of the crowd reacting to Kat's arrival! The noises grew more generic as Kat directed her attention down to the ring. She lifted her mic to speak, but in a rare moment for Kat Hart, someone that's usually upbeat and chatty....she simply couldn't find the words.

"....." Kat held her mic to her face. She opened her mouth, but no sounds came from it.

The commentators spoke at length on this moment. One look at Kat and Melody told the whole story. For the past 5 years, the two of them really have been living in separate worlds, despite the fact that they were in the same wrestling company! While Kat had been main eventing the biggest events at LAW and defending titles, Melody had been sitting in catering halls and wrestling dark matches. While Kat had been getting featured in company adverts and promotional material, Melody had been losing contact with her best friend Navi. Kat was already qualified for Apex and had a match lined up for the big wrestling tour. Truly, after Kat and Navi's feud, things had gone nowhere but downhill for Melody- Navi's best friend. You wouldn't see Melody unless you specifically went out of your way to. And the world didn't see Navi at all!

All these thoughts and more were discussed by commentary as Kat reluctantly made her way to the ring. All these thoughts swirled inside Katherine's head. Slowly, the legendary luchadora made her way up the steel steps. The entire time, she could feel Melody's unpleasant gaze. Hart cautiously ducked through the top and middle ropes. She joined Melody in the ring, standing just a few feet across from her.

"Melody...Serperior....." Kat spoke. She let out a slow, measured exhale as she tried to calm herself.

"It's....it's been a while..."

Kat stood there, a decorated wrestler in good standing with the fans, with management, an inspiration to aspiring wrestlers and veterans alike. Many had even taken to calling her the face of the company, the very face of LAW. But every wrestler with a legacy had a past. And her storied rivalry with Melody Serperior and Navi Florges seemed like it was finally, finally catching up to her!

[Vc0m]

There she was, the crowd exploding for the Super Kitty's arrival, even with her not having the usual fire and confidence that Katherine Hart usually wore on her face. The brightest thing shining on Kat's body was, in fact, her tag team title belt. Melody quietly growled at seeing that. Not that anyone could notice. She was supposed to have fought for the belt...but when her partner lost the match for the Middleweight title, she disappeared, Melody having no way to try and challenge for any belt. She didn't have the worst win/loss ratio in LAW, but in wrestling, being particularly good or bad didn't mean everything...

Kat tried to speak, but couldn't...and the heart in Melody's chest was pounding out of control. She couldn't believe that she was about to ask what she wanted...

"Yeah...since the very first Last Woman Standing tournament I believe..."

Melody grew angry at remembering how she lost in the second round...but dashed those thoughts away:

"It's a thing of the past now...", she would lie, more to herself than Kat or people in the arena: "I know me and Navi gave you a great deal of trouble here and in other companies...but I need to ask you one last thing, and both of us will be out of your hair forever."

"Hart... I want to fight you one last time. Hardcore match, preferably. Nothing in it for me if I win...but for you, if you win... I will leave wrestling for good."

At this point, the crowd started to whisper and talk. Surely it wouldn't be permeant? Barely any retirement in wrestling ever was...

But the Brit meant all of it.

"More than that, I will be out of Japan, and you will never hear the whiff of me or Navi again. Simple enough, right? Surely you accept?", Melody would say with a kind smile as she awaited Super Kitty's answer.

[winner3]

As she shared the ring with Melody, nothing but uncertainty was running through Kat's mind. It was one thing to revisit an old rival. It was another to look someone in the eye whose career has simply not been the same since with her and those close to her. Ever since Katherine and Navi feuded many years ago, ever since their rivalry ended with Melody forcing Kat to solemnly swear never to come after her best friend again, Melody's and Navi's careers as wrestlers were simply not the same.

Navi had faded into obscurity in the present day. And Melody had struggled to hang onto a semblance of something that she could call relevance. All the while Kat was perhaps one of, if not the most prosperous and successful wrestlers in the world's premiere wrestling promotion. And now that she was standing face to face with Melody, Kat felt like she was being made to answer for it.

Kat eyed Melody curiously, pushing past the memory of the first Last Woman Standing Tourney. The Super Kitty was victorious in their last singles match so many years ago. But Melody was focused on the present. Kat's eyebrow raised when she heard the greenette say she had something to ask of her. "One last thing" as she so put it. Katherine waited patiently to hear Melody out on what that might be.

But Kat was in no way, shape, or form prepared for what she heard next.

"W-what?!" The luchadora stammered in shock. A confused and bewildered expression formed on her face. Her eyes narrowed. Her brow furrowed into a shape and a countenance that conveyed her sheer confused and saddened state.

Leave wrestling? Kat was still stuck on those words. And yet, it got worse! Melody doubled down! Kat shook her head after hearing the rest. The whispers and the murmurs from the crowd would raise to a volume well behind white noise! The commentators at ringside would wonder what Serperior was playing at as laid out a challenge with such grave stipulations...all with a warm smile on her face! Like it was any other match!

Kat would hold her head for a second. She held her mic in one hand. She raised the palm of her free hand up towards Melody and turned it to and fro to convey not denial, but the fact that she simply couldn't process all of this.

"No, I couldn't. I couldn't. I -ck" Hart got choked up for a second. She brought her hand to her face and quickly found some small shred of composure!

"No, let me get this straight! It's been some time since you and I were involved so let me recap for everyone watching! You, Melody Serperior stood by your best friend Navi as she did everything she could to make my life in our old league a living nightmare! We beat each other to a bloody pulp in my last match there! And when push came to shove, when you had the opportunity to de-escalate, you hit my old manager Mina, a civilian, with a Cutter that put her in the hospital!" The emotion in Hart's voice was palpable! The crowd rallied behind her as she laid her feelings bare!

"They called the match because I knocked that girl's lights out....they called it a DRAW between us even though I knocked her clean out! And what did I get for protesting?! They FIRED me, Melody...!" Kat let the gravity of this part of her story hang there for a second before continuing.

"I guess I really was naive back then. Because in that very same hospital, behind closed doors YOU made me make a promise! YOU asked ME not to step up to you and Navi ever again! And I agreed! I agreed, Melody!"

"Navi came after Tracy! We did nothing! She came after Tina! She came after some of my very best friends! Ladies I love and respect in this business and I held up my end of the bargain with you and stood idly by!"

"And for what?! So that you can risk your wrestling career against me in a match?! Why?! Why would you want that?! And why would I agree to that?!" A single tear welled up in Kat's left eye as she shouted these words at Melody, demanding an answer!

[Vc0m]

Melody was actually surprised at Kat being confused and shocked at her request. She actually believed she wouldn’t care…maybe even be happy that she would finally get rid off the 2 worst women in her life. But it didn’t make her happy in the slightest! Kat, in her confusion, wouldn’t be able to find the words to convey the situation.

Kat would compose herself via a rundown of her, Navi’s and Kat’s histories. It was bizzare to remember all of that. She almost forgot about attacking Mina during her and Kat’s fated match…but in all honesty, it was a blur to her now. After they came to LAW, they tried to make way as middleweights of their own and as a tag team…sadly, to not much success. She was thankful to Kat though, she did hold her end of the bargain right up until Navi left after losing the match for the middleweight title…

Kat actually teared up from her talking about the past 6 years, with Melody bringing a mic to her lips:

”Yes. You did everything as I asked you. You left Navi out of your hair even after she tried to get in your way…But me wanting this match, this is a separate matter to me. I have almost lost the passion for this business. I’ve seen my friends rise if not to championship level, then very close to it, while I, an early favourite for LAW TV main events, just slid further and further down the card. I barely appear on the internet matches nowadays…and I want this one last match as a test to myself. On whether I truly belong in wrestling anymore. As much as we dislike one another, I consider you to be a damn good wrestler, and if I can’t hang with the best…what’s the point anymore. I truly believed that maybe you wanted me out of the company, so I guess it doesn’t really work as a “Bargain” for you, but then I want to ask this as a favour, if possible…”

[winner3]

Kat was all out of sorts still. But she reigned herself in enough to go over the hows and the whys of her emotional turmoil here. The idea of being the one to retire Melody when she clearly had more than enough years left in her brought The Super Kitty no sense of solace or satisfaction- it was quite the opposite, in fact!

No matter how much Melody and Navi had put her through, no matter how personal things were at one point, Kat didn't have it in her to end either of their careers. In spite of the rivalry they still had and the business they still needed to settle someday, it was clear that The SWAT Cats had reservations.

"Out of the company?!" Kat gasped.

"We don't like each other, yeah. But I don't hate your guts. I consider you a great wrestler, too. And as good as you are, the idea of you not wrestling anymore just strikes me as a waste of talent more than anything else." Kat would scratch her head.

"But I think I get it. You'd rather fall on your own sword than fail to live up to your potential. You think you're good enough to hang with the best and that's why you want me in a match with the highest stakes possible....I get that..." Kat's eyes narrowed. She struggled to keep her gaze on Melody. She avoided eye contact.

"But I've done plenty for you already. We both know that I don't owe you a thing! Retire you?! You're out of your mind! I don't want you out of this sport! There's no way I c-." All at once, Katherine stopped talking. She lowered her mic for a moment. She gave pause. It was as if something had just dawned on her.

"Wait a minute...." Kat said, thinking on the fact that Melody had pitched this as a bargain and was now asking for a favor, appealing to Katherine's bleeding heart (pun intended) just as she had done when she made Kat promise to stay away from Navi. Kat sensed a feeling of desperation emanating from Serperior. It was finally beginning to click for her why Melody called her down to the ring with the tone that she did at first.

"Melody what happens..... what happens if I say no...?" Kat asked with a grave tone, realizing that Melody very well may have had no intentions of letting her leave without forcing her to accept!

[Vc0m]

Melody listened carefully to Kat’s words, but she still disagreed with them. If she had any potential, LAW would’ve already booked her for a big match already. This was a final test to confirm with herself whether she had that potential or whether everything said when she joined LAW, by fans, by management…whether it all was a lie or mistake from them.

This was then the realization hit Kat. She could’ve said no. This segment would’ve been for naught, management would’ve been angry for Melody wasting their time…and likely keeping her around for a bit before dropping her contract after a while.

Melody took a deep breath, as she brought the mic to her lips…

…before she shot a vicious slap against the Super Kitty’s face first!

”Yes. You could say “no”, you fucking coward.”, Melody would start roughly: ”But then, I am quitting…as loudly as I possibly can. I will cost you the tag belts. In fact, I will cost you every single one of your matches going forward. I will destroy your legend until you either fight me…or the management fires me, at which point you will cement your legacy as a coward. Someone who wouldn’t fight an opponent when she wants to fight you more than anything else in the world…”

This finally got the crowd to boo at Melody, as she gave the crowd an angry glare…

[winner3]

The sudden slap across Kat's face echoed off both of their mics! The luchadora's head snapped to the side! Immediately the crowd would begin to boo! Kat didn't turn toward Melody as Melody doubled down.

Commentary disparaged Serperior for her threats. The fans in attendance vehemently booed and jeered this change in character and attitude from her! But Melody talked over all of them. She did not stutter. she did not yield. Melody would commit herself to either proving herself or going out in a blaze of selfish self-destruction, and taking The Super Kitty and her famed legacy at LAW down with her!

Kat's hands had lowered to her sides. She still couldn't look Melody in the face. Her brow furrowed. She closed her eyes in anger.

"Please don't do this, Mels..." Kat didn't speak into her mic. She continued looking to the side after being slapped. She didn't look Serperior in the eyes. Hart's tone was soft but she spoke loudly enough that her voice could be heard off the mic in her hand.

Melody was bent on forcing Katherine's hand. The tag team champion stood there stoically. Kat balled the first of her free hand. She was welling up with emotions just beneath her toned heavyweight exterior. She didn't move even after being hit. It was plain to see that Kat genuinely didn't want it to have to come to this.

[Vc0m]

”Do not call me that!”, Melody screamed with mic away from her lips, furiously looking at stoic Super Kitty. Kat did not want to indulge her in her potential final request for the company. Composing herself, she tried to convince Kat:

”I need this…I am nothing right now. And if I lose, I either go on to be nothing or quit while I am still young. While I still can try myself in another career. I do not understand why you can’t help me. I could’ve chosen anyone else with this request, Alaina, Clara Gaster…but I picked you, because you are the biggest wall that I haven’t ever climbed…”, Melody would finish her explanation.

”But make no mistake. If you refuse, I will drive myself to quitting the company, via management or through an official match with you. There is no other way this ends.”, Melody would selfishly say, the crowd and commentators firmly on Kat’s side in this, finding the greenette’s demands incredibly selfish…

[winner3]

Melody was never particularly friendly with Kat, but this level of aggression was new. In truth, Kat did see some good Serperior. Part of her had always hoped that they could one day see eye to eye, become every bit as much friends as they were rivals, it was written on her face. But when Melody pledged to take Kat down with her on her way out, to tarnish The Super Kitty's legacy at the cost of her own career in wrestling...Kat was far from the only one upset!

As Melody went off, the luchadora let out a deep, frustrated sigh. She looked down at her own feet. Boos rained down from fans all over the arena. No doubt people watching at home were throwing their own shade at Melody as well. Heck, there were even those in the arena that were vocal about their desire to see Kat commit and retire Melody in this match! And yet despite that, up until this very point, The Super Kitty struggled.

Hart continued to wear a stoic expression and demeanor. Her fists shook with ambivalence and inner conflict. After just a couple of seconds, Kat found it within herself to raise her head and then her mic.

"Fine...." Kat answered while looking at the greenette in her eyes. Her expression was something of a frustrated scowl.

"You're right....fine..." She assured herself.

"If you really are speaking from the heart, if that really is the way you wanna do things, then yeah, you're right. There is no other way this ends." Kat took a step closer to Melody.

"I'll accept your match. But not because I like the idea of giving into your demands. I don't."

"I accept because if it wasn't gonna be me, then you were gonna pull this crap with any of the best wrestlers in this company. If it wasn't gonna be me you went after, it'd be Alaina Sanders, it'd be Clara GASTER, it'd be Honie Bea, it'd be Tina Armstrong, my tag partners, what have you." Kat would nearly get nose to nose with Melody. Her beautiful, intense blue eyes would continue to meet Serperior's ember ones as she did some doubling down of her own!

"You didn't come to them, you came to me! Not just because we have history! But because you think that if you can't beat me, then you shouldn't even be here! You think that you need this so bad that you need to tank my career alongside your own just to get this match....heh..." Kat cracked a half-smile, not out of any positive emotion, but from sheer disbelief.

"I would never want to force anyone into retirement....but Melody, if you're truly this far gone....if you're willing to go out in a blaze of reckless abandon and self-destruction, without a care in the world about who you hurt on your way out...then maybe LAW...maybe the world of wrestling really is better off without you..." Hart's eyes narrowed. She let her thought hang there for a moment, and then she turned around to make for the ropes to begin making her leave.

"I'll see you at Martial LAW, Melody. Everyone will...and it'll be for the last time."

Kat would begin to make her leave. Not once would she turn around to look at Melody. How did things come to this? That would be the question on everyone's minds, Kat more so than anyone else. It was the question the commentary team would ask over and over. This change in Melody's demeanor shocked Kat more than anyone.

Were we really seeing the beginning of the end for pro wrestler Melody Serperior?!