Thunder Ryuko and Emily Nelson vs. SA-KI and Zero Kotobuki - Stand Tall

[Underdoggo]

Emily, for her part, had never cared much to know SA-KI either. You could tell, both in the locker room and outside of it, which ladies in a federation were the true heels: the bullies who lived for the thrill of stomping other people in the ring, of asserting their dominance, of humiliating their foes rather than simply defeating them, and SA-KI had always seemed to be in that category. Not nearly as cruel as Freia or as arrogant as Beauty Ichigaya, but definitely mean-spirited. For that reason alone, Emily had never cared to associate with her, and had never had a match with her. Until now, that was.

Showing off some of her formidable strength, Emily lifted SA-KI up, tilting the Japanese woman upside down in the sparing seconds before the suplex...but, crucially, had left her face unguarded. It was mistake that SA-KI was quick to capitalize on, and Emily cried out as several punches suddenly crunched into her face. Stars exploded across her vision, and Emily toppled backwards, crashing to the mat and dizzily clutching at her face...not knowing that she had successfully delivered her suplex in the process.

At that moment, both ladies were down, sprawled on the mat, the crowd going wild at the increased tension of the battle.

[BlackAkuma]

Was fucking up Emily’s face satisfying? Yeah.

Would that do anything to keep SA-KI from crashing into the mat? Nope.

She hit, and she hit hard, slamming down on her upper back and bouncing a little after the impact for good measure. It was a hellacious blow, but what would expect from a wrestler like this? Emily’s pedigree preceded her. The two of them were both cut from similar clothes, hard-hitting wrestlers who knew their way around the technical side. The big difference was that one of them was a stuck-up Highlander with the idea of nobility, while the other wasn’t about bending the rules to get her way when the occasion called for it.

That difference allowed her to buy some extra time where others would’ve been vulnerable, as Emily struggled to clear her face. As much as SA-KI was hurting from the suplex, she knew this wasn’t an opportunity to be wasted - if there was ever a time to take advantage of the situation, it was now…

SA-KI flashed a quick glance to Freia, then turned towards the referee and began to writhe around on the mat, kicking her legs and hissing. ”Ref! Ref, my back!” She gritted her teeth and shook her head, milking the moment for all it was worth. ”I think…I think something’s wrong, it feels like something is out of whack…”

The referee gave SA-KI a curious look, skeptical, but her professionalism won out and she made her way over, turning her back to Emily in the process. It was all the opening Freia needed to get up and sneak towards Emily’s side, coming at her from the side while she cleared her face. The Silver Wolf reached through the ropes, grabbed her by the head, and tried to pull the Noble Fighter’s neck against the ropes, looking to choke her until either the referee smartened up or her partner intervened.

[Highfly]

Ryuko watched SA-KI skeptically when she saw out of the corner of her eye Freia doing what she did best. "Oh hell no!" Ryuko shouted as she hopped down off the apron and immediately ran around the corner at Freia! Ryuko was looking to round the corner and absolutely blast Freia with a running clothesline looking to outright smash into the woman whom Ryuko had always disliked. This was going to be satisfying and she had a little plan of her own to get Freia out of the picture for a little bit provided she did crash into the vile woman with the intended effect.

[Underdoggo]

Emily was clutching her face now as she rolled on the mat, her violet hair splaying around her as she tried furiously to blink away the stars in her vision. Damn her...she had thought SA-Ki had been on the ropes, figuratively speaking, but her canny opponent has managed to sneak in a brutal barrage of punches that had left her dazed and reeling on the floor. This wasn't good. Dazed as she was, Emily would be open to a further sneak attack from SA-Ki.

From SA-KI, or...

Emily forced an eye open, just in time to see a familiar, white-haired face looking in at her from the ringside, grabbing at her head. Yanked forward, Emily suddenly found the bottom rope pressing tightly around her windpipe. Pain gave way to panic as her breathing was cut off, and she flailed, her arms pawing furiously at Freia's wrists as her boots kicked frantically at the mat...

[BlackAkuma]

Freia was getting into punishing Emily - perhaps a little too much. So much so that she almost forgot about her partner. She’d thought that Ryuko might try a response, but she hadn't expected it to come so soon or be so fierce - before she knew what was happening, Ryuko had rounded the corner and laid her out with a fierce clothesline, dropping her flat on the mat.

Of course, the damage had been done, and SA-KI fully intended to take advantage of the opening her partner had created. Once the coast was clear, she pushed past the referee, dashed across the ring, and tried to hit Emily with a boot to the head at full speed, looking to knock the sense out of her before she could fully recover.

[Highfly]

Ryuko couldn't do much at the moment for Emily, and she would make her way back to her corner... but she had business to attend to. Ryuko pulled Freia up by the hair and grabbed hold of her, scooping her up and slapping her backside as she walked to the barricade. Ryuko wanted to slam Freia down on the other side on the concrete as hard as she could before running back to her corner, ready to go back in the match if Emily needed her!

[Underdoggo]

"GGGHK...GGHFFF..." Emily could only rasp wordlessly as Freia cruelly strangled her against the ropes, causing the proud Scotswoman to flail about like a dying fish on the mat. A part of her started to wonder where the hell the ref was, and whether or not SA-KI was distracting them, or whether or not Ryuko would be doing anything to help out...

Her answer came as she saw Ryuko suddenly storm into her field of vision, slamming hard into Freia with a brutal clothesline. The white-haired fiend released Emily, allowed her to topple backward, gasping hungrily for air as she collapsed onto her back. No sooner had she done so, however, when she heard rapid footfalls approaching her. Still gasping, she turned, just in time to see SA-KI running at her, foot extended as though for a European football kick.

"Oh, you cu--"

Her invective was cut short as SA-KI's boot crunched into her face. Pain erupted in her skull as Emily was sent rolling by the blow, clutching her face as she went toppling over onto her front, blindly kicking at the mat as her senses were left rattled by that brutal kick...

[BlackAkuma]

”Let go of my hair, let go-”

Freia protested as Ryuko yanked her around on the outside of the ring, this little diversion not quite going the way she’d pictured. She bought time for SA-KI, that was good, but she didn’t want it to be at her own expense, getting manhandled by an enraged Ryuko. She was picked up before she even knew what was happening, and the next thing she knew, she was tossed over the barricade and found herself tumbling into the audience, leaving a mess in her wake.

SA-KI only caught a glimpse of the chaos as she drove her boot into Emily’s face, and she winced, knowing she’d get an eyeful from her partner when this was over. If she went ahead and won this match in decisive fashion, though, that would do a lot to smooth things over, and she liked her chance at the moment.

With Emily Nelson thoroughly rocked, SA-KI grabbed her by the ankle, dragged her away from the ropes, dropped down to hook her leg, and leaned in for the pinfall. ”Better stay down if you know what’s good for you, bitch!”

The referee slid over and started up the count, slapping the mat beside them. ”1…!”

[Underdoggo]

Pain flooded everything. Pain, and raw, discordant color overhelmed Emily's senses as SA-KI's boot connected hard with her skull. The blow sent her crumpling to the mat in a dazed heap, one leg kicking weakly at the mat. Past the ringing in her skull, she was barely cognizant of the roaring boos of the crowd, or of the scuffle between Freia and Ryuko at ringside.

She did, however, slowly become aware of the fact that she was being dragged, of the ring sliding beneath her. Past the dizziness, she felt another body on top of hers, her leg being hooked in a classic pinfall. Oh no.

"2....!"

Emily twisted her whole body to the side, narrowly getting a shoulder up. She was still dazed, but not so dazed that she couldn't break out of a near pinfall like this. SA-KI would have to try a lot harder than this.

With a sick certainty, Emily knew she would.

[BlackAkuma]

Surprise, surprise. Emily didn’t know what was good for her.

SA-KI grumbled as her opponent raised her arms, breaking the hold at the last second and robbing her of an easy victory. She supposed she shouldn’t have been too surprised, knowing how stubborn this woman could be, but it didn’t make the defiance any less irritating.

”You want to get rough, Scottie?” She gripped Emily by the hair and stood up, dragging her along for the ride. ”All right, we’re getting rough.”

As soon as Emily was straight, SA-KI launched into her, throwing a stiff punch square in the center of her chest to send the woman stumbling back towards the corner where Zero was waiting. She didn’t just want her hurt, she wanted her up against the wall, trapped, where she and her partner could pile on the damage.