A Meetup at the Gym (for ClockwerkSamurai12)

[CaptainL]

"I mean, I...guess so..." Lacey nodded her head to what Arizona was describing. It wasn't without some hesitation, and she still bit a little at her lip, however. At the end of the day, she was still volunteering to put herself through holds that were designed to hurt and disable opponents, and she was doing that when her back was already sore. While she hadn't been on the receiving end of a camel clutch from Arizona, she knew full well how much one could hurt, and she had gained a good appreciation for the cowgirl's grip strength after their match. All that told her this wouldn't be easy. But then...Lacey wouldn't be here in the first place if she wasn't prepared to be tested, she reminded herself. It wouldn't come easy, but she wouldn't get anywhere without good old-fashioned hard work! She just had to bear it as best she could...

Sucking in one last deep breath, Lacey lay down on her stomach, facing Arizona. "Okay...I'm ready! Just, uh, don't go too hard, okay?"

[ClockwerkSamurai12]

Arizona nods before preforming the hold on Lacey.

[CaptainL]

Lacey had to work herself through this, psyching herself up. She took deep breaths in and out, clenching and unclenching her hands at her sides, and she held her eyes closed so that she wouldn't need to think too hard about what was going to happen to her. She didn't need to worry - she had this. Yes, it would hurt, but that was the point. She needed to get stronger, and that meant she needed to be able to get through this.

When Arizona got down on her back and cupped her chin, Lacey could feel the sharp pull back on her head, twisting her spine into an arc. She hissed and shuddered through her clenched teeth, and deep furrows formed in her brow as she tried desperately to hold back the urge to cry out in pain. "O-O-Owww..." she moaned. But she bit at the inside of her cheek, regardless. This couldn't get to her. She had to be stronger than that! Arizona was her friend, and she was determined to make her proud. If she gave up now, she asked herself, what would the cowgirl think?

[ClockwerkSamurai12]

Arizona: Lemme know when ya had enough..

[CaptainL]

Arizona was giving Lacey the opportunity to throw in the towel now - and for a moment, Lacey actually considered it. With the way her muscles and her spine were being stretched so far, alarm bells were going off in her head, telling her that her back could snap at any moment. At the very least, it would make her feel a lot less sore if Arizona let go now. But just as soon as those thoughts came to her, Lacey grit her teeth, trying to power through the pain, and she gave her head a shake to clear those thoughts from her mind. She couldn't stop now, she thought, even if it hurt. No, especially if it hurt! The whole point of this exercise was to get her accustomed to this sort of pain, and to make sure she could grow stronger than it! She had to be better than this. She'd been through worse, anyhow; her mind was playing tricks on her - she just had to hold on to that!

"D-Do your worst-!" the green-haired girl called back in defiance. 'I need to be able to take it!" Not that she could take it - she wasn't quite sure of that yet. But that was the problem.

[ClockwerkSamurai12]

Arizona: Alright, if ya say so.. (She increases pressure on her)

[CaptainL]

Yes, Lacey had quite literally asked for this. If she was going to build up her endurance and do better when it came to fighting her way through holds, she didn't want her sparring partner to feel the need to go easy on her - she wanted her to put her through the sort of pressure she could expect to be up against in the ring. But it didn't take more than a few seconds after she'd made her request that Arizona quickly made her start to reconsider her actions. As the cowgirl cranked back even harder at Lacey's spine, stretching it to its limit, the green-haired girl could feel her back creak, and with every inch she was pulled, an even harder sting of pain rippled through her system. She was doing her best to stick through this and endure, but now, she couldn't help it - she threw her head back, letting out a scream of pain! Tears were running down her cheeks, and her spine shuddered under her own weight! It didn't matter that she should well have known that Arizona didn't want to hurt her, and that she was only doing this to help with her training. In that moment, panic took over, and Lacey could've convinced herself she was in danger!

At last, she had no choice. Her hand flailed out, slapping at the mat to signal her surrender. All Lacey had on her mind was how much she hurt, and how much she needed to be free - before it was too late! "GAAAAH!! Let go! LET GO!!"

[ClockwerkSamurai12]

Arizona releases her on cue.

Arizona: You okay? Sorry if I went a little rough on ya..

[CaptainL]

It felt like it was over as soon as it started. Lacey had fought valiantly to bear through the pain and the pressure, no matter how hard it got - she needed to, in order to prove that she had what it took to go places. She couldn't let the pain stop her. But she had her limits - and it seemed that the worst Arizona was capable of was too much for Lacey. Before she knew it, her back felt like it was about to split in half, and she couldn't take a moment longer. Her survival instincts kicked in - she had to be free!

As soon as Lacey tapped out, Arizona let her go, and the moment she was released from her clutches, the green-haired girl sank down onto her face, her teeth contorted in a grimace. "O-Owww..." she moaned, starting to push herself back up enough to rub at the aches and pains in her back - but as soon as she did, she felt the sharp, piercing pain in her spine come back as intense as ever, and with a yelp she fell flat once again. Still, she looked back at Arizona over her shoulder. "No, it's...it's fine. I mean, I asked for it..." she muttered in between pants for breath.

But even still, Lacey looked back down, her body deflating as she let out a long sigh. As she came back down to reality, she realized what she'd just done. And how pathetic it was. She was supposed to be training with Arizona to improve, and yet she was barely managing to do any better than she had in their match. If she couldn't make any progress here, how could she expect to do any better in her matches?

"...I'm sorry," she sighed, sinking a little bit lower against the mats as she did. "I know I should be better at this..."

[ClockwerkSamurai12]

Arizona: Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea..