LAW Apex Match: Tina 'Tigress' Armstrong vs. Kathleen Hendricks - Steel Cage Match

[TickTock]

Already, this match was a lot more strenuous on Kathleen than their last one-on-one contest, in which the Queen lost to that roll-up. The cage, the stakes, the build... all of it meant that the two were putting far more into this match than a typical singles match. Not to say that they weren't trying before, but on the stage they were, they were putting in their all. And in the first time for forever with Kathleen, she was having... questions on if her best would get her through this. A whisper in the back of her head. Yet she knew she couldn't allow herself to feel such feelings. Such emotions beneath herself.

Yet the Queen's body wasn't as adamant as her mind. Seeing Tina charge towards her, she wanted to meet her, to smash her across the face with a boot or an elbow, but her body felt at home leaning back against those ropes, relying on that support to keep her standing. A moment of panic came, seeing the momentum the Tigress built up, before her instincts kicked in within a blink of an eye.

She wasn't going to last long standing without the ropes' support... so she just wouldn't. Kathleen stayed in that spot, luring Tina in, before eventually pushing herself to the side, abandoning the ropes and collapsing to her hands and knees in the process. And, hopefully, such a dodge would make the former middleweight champion smash against the cage wall, to give the Queen a chance to regain more of her energy.

[Highfly]

Tina went charging in and was full bore into Kathleen... or full bore into the spot where Kathleen was! Tina was moving with everything she had and now it was painfully used against her as she crashed hard head and shoulder first into the cage! Tina's shoulder exploded in pain and her head was bust open! "ARRRGHHH!" Tina howled as she stumbled back a step then collapsed onto her back! Her blonde hair was starting to turn red and she kicked the mat in pain looking to have damn near knocked herself out!

[TickTock]

Kathleen wasn't used to feeling so weak. Most of her matches, she was either dominating, or at least had control for a good portion of it. But the sheer anger of Tina, and the effort Kathleen was putting in was both playing their part in making the Queen sweat buckets. So much exertion, that her legs gave out as soon as she abandoned the ropes, in a vulnerable position if the Tigress was able to stop herself on her charge.

But she didn't.

Instead, crashing face-first into the unforgiving steel of the cage, her howl echoed for a moment, and Kathleen glanced over to see her opponent collapse to the mat. Bleeding. No one said this was going to be a clean match, and now, Tina had technically fired first blood upon herself, a gash on her head was beginning to bleed bad. In a typical match, one might assume that the referee would check on her.

But inside the cage, there was no mercy. No rules.

And Kathleen knew that too well, as she crawled over to the downed Tina and mounted her. A hand grabbed her hair and lifted her head up, just to throw down a punch right atop that wound. Repeatedly trying to bash it with her fist and target that new weak point on the babyface. It wasn't the first time Kathleen had struck blood in LAW, but she was fixating on it now. Tina had made her feel weak, and now, Kathleen was set on making her a bloody mess for it, even ending off her striking barrage with a sharp, bare elbow thrusting down atop that wound!

[Highfly]

Tina groaned sash was pulled and rolled feeling Kathleen mount her and begin hammering her! The first couple punches jarred an already dazed Tina who let out a long groan before her arms came up to cover her. Tina kicked and thrust her hips trying to roll the two of them back over! She knew she had to stop the attacks so if she could dismount Kathleen that was good enough but if she could roll over onto her and swing back that was better but right now Tina would take what she could get.

[TickTock]

All of Kathleen's frustration so far was put into those punches, trying to beat down and destroy the very woman who has imposed that self-doubt into her mind--embedded it into her skull, just as much as she was trying to bash Tina's skull in with her fists. But for as much as she tried to do that, the Tigress wasn't willing to become a speedbag, and put up resistance. First blocking those punches eventually with her arms, preventing a straight line down to her head, and then pushing and twisting her body as to throw Kathleen off-balance.

Eventually getting the Queen to tumble and collapse to her side, rolling over and away from Tina, preventing her from getting her own ground-and-pound in, but now leaving the two at a standstill. Kathleen was kneeling, staring a hole through her opponent across the ring. Her body was glistening with sweat, face still a bit red from rage, and her bangs stuck to her forehead. It was no glamorous sight of the middleweight, but she didn't much care. She came prepared for war, and while her muscles screamed for relief, she wouldn't grant them it.

Not until she had put the Tigress down once and for all.

[Highfly]

Tina was hurting and her own head smashing the cage at full speed really rattled her. The blood was in her hair and on her face. The tigress staggered up and wiped it away trying to blink away her daze. She hoped she hadn't really messed herself up for the rest of the match but her skull smashing steel like a battering ram was going to play a role in things.

Tina didn't care though, she wasn't going to let that stop her. She rushed Kathleen and jumped up trying to dropkick Kathleen in the face if she could! Tina was hoping to catch Kathleen off guard because if this attack was dodged then the tigress would be in poor position once more with Kathleen able to act.

[TickTock]

Kathleen was on one knee when she saw Tina running towards her, eyes widening in panic for a moment, before she saw her leap and throw her feet forward. Shoving her foot against the mat, the Queen just managed to get herself to the side and avoid that dropkick that would've crushed her face, and making Tina land hard against the mat without her attack being successful. Kathleen was putting her body through Hell to try and regain a firm advantage, but the Tigress wasn't making it easy on her. And now that she potentially had an opening, the Queen was going to take it.

With Tina likely on the mat, Kathleen rushed over to grab her head and shove it between her legs, before lowering her arms down to wrap around her waist and lifting her up. Not for a Powerbomb, but instead holding Tina upside down, and then leaping and sitting out, to try and deliver a Jumping Piledriver!

Hopefully spiking Tina's head and neck against the mat in sickening fashion, the Queen then rolled Tina over onto her back, eyes shut tight and an arm hooking one of her legs for a pinfall.

"One!"

[Highfly]

Tina jumped up and aimed he dropkick, hitting nothing but air! Before she could react she was grabbed and lift having her head spiked down hard to the mat! Tina let out a long low moan as her body seemed to go limp. Her skull driven to the mat by a pile driver so soon after her own miscue smashing her head into the steel cage at full speed was absolutely devastating. The lifeless, limp tigress was down and being pinned.

"TWO!"

Tina was still motionless until the referee's hand was on the way back down to the mat and Tina thrust hard to the side lifting her shoulder off the mat t break the pin!

[TickTock]

And just for a second, Kathleen thought the match was done. She had beaten foes with that very Piledriver before, yet just before the referee's hand could count three... Tina kicked out. The force of which kicked the Queen back off of the Tigress, onto her knees, in which she remained, stunned. It was one of her best shots, spiking her head against the mat in such brutal fashion, and yet the bleeding blonde somehow managed to kick out!

Yet, despite her obvious shock, Kathleen did her best to remain calm. There was still one more move she could hit to put Tina away, and it'd surely put a finish to this match if she managed to hit it. The Queen's hands grabbed a hold of that yellow and red hair of the Tigress's, pulling her up slowly.

And with Tina's head in her hands, Kathleen began to turn around, until she was back-to-back against the fellow middleweight, setting up the back of her head and neck just above her shoulder. It was a telltale sign of a move that had put away so many, and it was going to be the one that wins Kathleen the Openweight championship.

The Culmination. And with a thrust of her legs, Kathleen sat out to deliver it, hopefully spiking the back of Tina's skull and neck against her hard shoulder. And if it did connect, the Queen of Domination would lay atop of her prey, hooking a leg for the pin.

[Highfly]

Tina was in a haze as she was pulled up by Kathleen and lift up before she went crashing down hard to the canvas! Tina was so dazed she wasn't sure what happened but that impact sent pain jolting through her entire body it seemed leaving her barely conscious as she flopped her limbs about letting out a loud howl of pain before she went silent, laid out motionless on the mat. Was Tina about to be beat and appear as nothing more than a mere stepping stone for other women in LAW?