Colosseum Clash: E'isa "The Endless X" Vs Bengal "The Blaze Tiger"

[Monsy]

Power meets agility in this battle of hyper-cocky foes, liberating themselves from pesky things like RULES to go NO DISQUALIFICATIONS! I don't know what will happen, but I know the stubbornness between them guarantees it won't be pretty. This match is won by Pinfall, Submission or KO. Best of luck.

[BengalTheBlazeTiger]

Bengal, the Blaze Tiger

Spoiler

Ever since E'isa had defeated the Blaze Tiger in their last encounter, Bengal had been desperate for a rematch. She'd harassed LAW management for months, repeatedly urging them to book her in another contest against the Endless X. It wasn't an easy sell, given the difference in weight class, and the way E'isa had dominated Bengal with her X-Cit body scissor at the end of their last bout. The higher-ups at LAW probably figured that the rivalry between the two was already settled; no one would want to watch them fight again, if the outcome was already a forgone conclusion.

But Bengal kept at it, and the suits finally relented, if only to shut her up. Now, she had a chance to redeem herself, to get back the win that E'isa had so rudely stolen from her. The Tiger could never have imagined, however, that the venue for her comeback would be as grand as this. Instead of taking place in one of LAW's established arenas, her rematch would be in the Colosseum, on the same ground where ancient gladiators once fought and died. As Bengal stepped through an archway leading into the stadium, and stared at the soaring limestone columns all around her, she could hardly believe her eyes. The Romans used to bring tigers in here too, right? she mused to herself, as she strutted down the ramp, headed toward the ring in the center of the Colosseum's sandy floor. I guess everything comes full circle, eventually...

Even the bravest gladiators must have felt their blood run cold, facing off against those wild beasts. Ironically, this Tiger felt much the same way about stepping back into the ring with E'isa. After all, this was the woman who'd put her in the most brutal submission hold she'd ever experienced. The X-Cit had left her body crushed and aching, with bruises still striped across her neck and torso for weeks after the match. But worse than that, the Endless X had broken her spirit, humiliating the Tiger by making her promise to "be good". As if she was a common housecat...the indignity of it all! Bengal could still remember the way the tears stung and burned her eyes as she was forced to tap out.

She pushed those unpleasant memories away, willing herself to focus on the match at hand. She had wanted this, after all - she'd practically begged for it. And even if she'd failed before, there was no guarantee that today would go the same way. She had come so close to putting E'isa away, the first time they'd fought. And I've gotten stronger since then...right? Bengal thought to herself, wishing she was more sure about the answer to that question. Another query crossed her mind. But what if E'isa has gotten stronger too?

She maintained a confident smirk, determined not to let these doubts show on her face as she neared the ring. The structure was regulation size, but it looked strangely small against the vast, foreboding backdrop of the Colosseum. There were some other noticeable differences from a typical LAW promotion. While most of those took place at nighttime beneath overhead lights, this event was happening in the middle of the day. A fiery golden sun blazed out of a cloudless summer sky, while a pair of eagles circled high above. The stadium lacked any form of shade, and it was already impressively hot. Luckily, that didn't bother Bengal. She even tried to convince herself that it would give her an advantage, since she was more accustomed to such conditions from her childhood in Kolkata. Deep down, however, the Tiger knew that was unrealistic. A woman like E'isa wouldn't be put off by a little heat.

Her usual entrance music was being piped in through speakers mounted on the walls, though it sounded strangely faint in the open-air Colosseum. The jeering from the fans sounded more distant too, but that was actually a welcome change. Bengal sprang up onto the ring apron, kicking up a cloud of sand from the stadium floor as she did so. The announcer's voice boomed out, heralding her arrival: "Ladies and gentlemen, the following contest is a Colosseum Clash! No disqualifications, no mercy! Introducing first...standing five feet seven inches, and weighing 140 pounds...from Kolkata, India...THE BLAZE TIGER! BENGAL!" The Indian woman leaned back in her corner as her name was mentioned, trying to look nonchalant. Inwardly, she was relieved that the announcer's introduction hadn't brought up her previous loss to E'isa.

It suddenly dawned on Bengal that today's match could be a chance for her to "flip the script", so to speak. I can't go back in time. I can never undo that defeat, the Tiger reflected. But what's more memorable: a loss in some boring LAW arena? Or a win in the COLOSSEUM? This place is one of the wonders of the world. If I win here, that's all people will talk about. That'll be my legend! She frowned, correcting herself. No, not IF I win. WHEN I win. I have to win! She put her hand up to her eyes, shading them from the sunlight as she watched the archway. Bengal was standing guard like a Roman sentinel, vigilant for any sign of the Endless X.

[XXVV]

Hitting the Arena for the second time this week. E'isa was overcome with thoughts and emotions. She had put on an amazing match against Ambre. They had both put it all on the line and tried to reach for a moment, a potential once-in-a-lifetime moment. A chance to be legendary in Rome, yet her story in Rome was still far from over. She had not one but two matches, and she would again be met with the potential to bring down the house for a second time. Another chance to make a statement, make a surreal moment, and be etched in history.

"WHEN IN ROME, YES?"

She'd hit the parking lot and swiftly move through the backstage crowd. It was still a surreal experience to prep for a chance to steal the show yet again. But these circumstances would be different, slipping into the locker room and making her way to the back. Settling down before she'd do her breathing and stretches once more. A bit sore from her last bout, two matches in one week, in Rome nonetheless. The stakes were high last match, and they would remain the same for this match.

"I WILL WIN.. Honor and pride walking side by side, my only friends, the only ones I need."

She would look at the tape on Bengal. It had been a bit since their last fight. E'isa had overcome all the funny business, dirty tactics, and shenanigans. She would take hold of her fate and claim victory in what some would argue felt like a NO DQ. The amount of pain and torment each went through, the difference this time was that it was officially a NO DQ match, and both women would be left to fight with no restrictions.

Most would think this might favor Bengal, who never shied away from being dirty and calculated. Yet E'isa, who was dangerous with limitations, would also feel like the chains were off. Slipping on her gear, she'd pop out of the locker room and await her entrance at the curtain. Her entrance blared as the crowd would pop, but to her surprise she'd hear less boos? Excited to see her this time, after the match they'd recently seen her put on with Ambre. Looking left to right before walking down the ramp.

Spoiler

Spoiler

Eyeing Bengal, who looked comfortable and calm? E'isa was not worried as she'd hit the end of the ramp and immediately leaped to the ring apron. Looking Blaze up and down before she'd hit her split and slide under, the crowd was excited as E-Mac popped up with ease and stepped to her opponent, no stranger to who she was face to face with.

"You asked for this.. I was going to move forward after almost snatching all 9 of those lives. But now you tempt fate. So what happens next will be up to the gods because a DOG is off the leash, IS NOT SOMETHING TO PLAY WITH.. ALL 9 LIVES WILL BE TAKEN TONIGHT!"

[BengalTheBlazeTiger]

There she was, after a seemingly "Endless" wait. Bengal had heard it said that all roads led to Rome, but for her, the journey wasn't about any particular place. It was about this moment, returning to confront the woman who had humbled her: E'isa. She struggled to control her breath, and quiet her suddenly racing heart.

Squaring off with her larger opponent, the Tiger found herself grateful for the extra time she'd had to train and prepare while the tour was in Malta. It was convenient that this was her only match on the FTL card. Her opponent had not been granted the same luxury. E'isa had already wrestled earlier that same week, against fellow heavyweight "Black Pearl" Ambre Brault. Bengal wouldn't know that, of course. Ever the arrogant one, she refused to show up at any LAW event unless she was paid to do so, and was therefore badly underinformed about recent matchups. The only battles that mattered to her were her own.

E'isa seemed impatient to start, and had already launched into a tirade of trash talk. Bengal rolled her icy blue eyes, hoping that the exaggerated gesture would hide the anger building within her. As per usual, she tried to mask her true feelings under sarcasm. "Nine lives, nine lives, yak yak yak," she mimicked cruelly, moving her hand like a flapping jaw. "Why don't you get a life yourself? Anyway, the whole nine lives thing is for housecats. Not tigers."

Bengal took a bold step toward her adversary. "You think you 'snatched' my life? You must've done a pretty shit job of it. Because I'm still here. I'm still standing. And now, I know all your tricks." She stepped forward again. "I don't believe in gods, or fate. But if you do, start praying now, because this is the last chance you'll get!" She bared her ivory teeth in a silent hiss, waiting with a predator's poise for the imminent sound of the bell.

[XXVV]

E'isa would continue to eye Bengal. The Latina had finished what she had to say. But she'd notice all that Bengal shenanigans yet again, the mocking, the disrespect, the talking back. Either this woman had something up her sleeve, or she was truly unaware of what NO-DQ meant.

"She must not understand.. Or is she just this stupid?"

Provoking an animal, but this animal no longer had restrictions, the chains were off. There was no cage, no gate, or trench in between them. Once the bell rang, E'isa could literally break this woman in half and not get in trouble for it. Confused if Bengal remembered what happened last time, or if E'isa had beaten her up so badly that she had suffered memory loss. Regardless of the reason, E'isa's reason to lay waste to this feline was clear as day.

"To continue my march forward, my march to X-Cellence, you will fall.."

Cat, Tiger, Lion, Cheetah.. E'isa did not give a singular fuck about what Bengal was. What Bengal was about to be was a shell of her former self, if anything of her remained after the match, the only thing that could truly stop E'isa was herself. She was stepping back to stretch in her corner before the bell rang, and she'd waste no time charging in. Looking to test how Bengal would react, E-Mac would aim to lower her head and attempt to take her along for a ride into the corner turnbuckle. E'isa felt like there was no reason to lock up this time, this just wasn't that kind of match. Eyeing to get things started right away and quickly pick Bengal apart.

[BengalTheBlazeTiger]

As soon as the bell rang, E'isa lowered her head like an angry bull and charged. Bengal wasn't entirely sure if the Latina was trying to tackle her into the corner, or just flatten her against the canvas like roadkill. In any case, she had predicted this kind of explosive opening. It was the exact same way that E'isa had begun their last match. Had she been correct about knowing all of the Endless X's tricks, or was it merely dumb luck?

The other woman's sheer speed and power were still terrifying, either way. This time, however, the Tiger was more prepared. She waited until her opponent was so close that she could feel the rush of air from her furious motion, then dodged to the side, whipping E'isa's arm and shoulder as she hurtled by to increase her wild speed even further. The Endless X had been hoping to slam Bengal into the turnbuckle, but now she could be the one taking a surprise trip to the corner. If the Tiger's reversal worked, she'd follow up with a running drop kick aimed at Eisa's spine, while the Latina braced herself against the ring post.

"Huh, that's funny. You don't seem too X-Cellent to me," Bengal quipped, pursing her lips as if she was thinking hard of other options. "Maybe you could go with...X-Ecrable? X-Asperating?" She began sprinting forward, getting into position for the dropkick. "Or how about...X-TINCT!"

[XXVV]

Charging in rather recklessly to start the match. E'isa would feel like her quick step was something beyond what someone Bengal would be able to predict, let alone dodge. E-Mac felt like she was miles ahead of this woman in every metric comparable. Closing in fast, she felt this woman was either caught off guard or too slow but to her surprise, at the last second, she'd dodged? Her arm and shoulder whipped, leaving a side view of the woman, the dodge timed nearly perfectly.

"Huh?"

Left to ponder what had just happened, trying to brace before she'd crash into the corner turnbuckle. Hearing the words that Blaze would say after, a slew of "X" themed jokes, this woman sure knew her way around a corny joke. Yet as she'd finish bracing herself, her back turned, Bengal would use the opening to close the distance with a hard running dropkick that would send E'isa crashing back into the corner. Hitting her cleanly in the spine, E'isa grunted as she looked back, annoyed and angry. Bengal still enjoyed baiting people in and E'isa wanting to immediately run her over would fall for it.

"This sneaky fucking feline.. Ughhhh! She still wrestles like this?"

Taking a second to gather herself in the corner, the dropkick hurt for a moment, but it wasn't something she couldn't handle, especially so early in the match. Trying to turn around and at least get a better view of this so-called tiger. E'isa wanted to disregard the last dodge. Thinking it was just lucky, wanting to pop out of the corner and immediately charge again, yet remembering how this woman fought. The best way to break her down was to wait for her to get too close. Chasing her was what she wanted.

"Is that all you got, Tiger? That dropkick was light.. Come try again, I dare you.."

Signaling at Bengal to come and try her luck again. Calling for it, begging for it! It took E'isa a moment to remember who she was dealing with, but now she remembered clearly, trying to focus and not allow her emotions to control her.

[BengalTheBlazeTiger]

Bengal's dropkick landed perfectly, and she grinned with satisfaction. The sensation was short-lived though, as the attack didn't seem to have left a scratch on E'isa. The Endless was still hurling out cocky taunts, clearly none the worse for the blow to the back she'd taken. The Tiger's heart sank; she was hoping a hit like that would have knocked the wind out of her opponent, at the very least. Still, she tried to remain positive. It was important to take things one step at a time. In the same way that Rome wasn't built in a day, a fighter like E'isa wouldn't be defeated by a single move, however impactful.

The larger woman was daring her to try again, but Bengal saw right through her ploy. She wasn't going to let E'isa bait her into reckless behavior, like she had before. She had something else in mind, a special alteration to her usual "white tiger" outfit, recently added by a tailor in Malta. Unbeknownst to the LAW staff, Bengal had ordered special patches of reflective fabric to be sewn into the wrists of her gloves. Now, she held them up at just the right angle to catch the light from the sun, shining it into her opponent's eyes! The cunning Tiger had predicted the sunny conditions of the outdoor match, and prepared accordingly.

A few sharp-eyed fans began to boo, as they realized what she was doing. The referee, unfortunately for E'isa, remained oblivious. Besides, even if the officials had noticed, there was little they could do. Bengal was hardly the first wrestler in history to wear a shiny costume. If she'd been asked, she would have claimed that she'd added the patches for a touch of style. And if the glare from said style "accidentally" blinded the Endless and cost her the match...well, that was only a coincidence, right?

Bengal kept playing the bright beam of light across E'isa's stern face, watching the sky for clouds. The Tiger's plan here all hinged on what her opponent did next. If the Endless was dazzled enough by the light, that might allow Bengal to move closer in safety. On the other hand, it was just as likely that the short-tempered Latina would become enraged by the provocation, and charge again...

[XXVV]

E'isa would turn and gather herself. The dropkick would leave anyone else open for more offense, but THE DOG, THE HOUND, THE ENDLESS ONE! Would just brush it off, looking over at the trickster, wanting Bengal to take the call to action and step into range. All E'isa wanted was a moment to be face to face with her again, confident that she could put this cheating feline down. If she could get her on the ground once, just once, SHE WOULD MAKE SURE THIS CAT HAD NO WAY OF ESCAPING HER!

Confused why this hot-tempered feline would refuse to close the gap. The opening was there, she must have thought the dropkick did something, but then E'isa would see Bengal raise her wrist, and then..

AAAAHH!!

The sun's glare was unrelenting, and though E'isa was built for any weather, she would not expect a move like this. Bengal with another trick up her sleeve, had added some kind of reflective properties to her gear. E'isa was left blinded for a moment, dropping down, reaching for her eyes, trying to alleviate the sudden loss of vision. Her perception of where she was or what was going on was lost for a moment. Confused and frustrated, did the official not check this woman before the match? She understood it was NO-DQ, but trying to blind her felt a bit insane. Her subconscious stepped in, feeling E'isa's blood begin to boil again. The voice in the back of her head was trying to calm her down and remind her it was okay and that tricks like these wouldn't work in the long run. Yet E'isa was now not only annoyed with this woman's disregard for honor. Now she also felt locked into a match with another clueless referee.

"I'M SOOOO, FED UP WITH THIS SHIT!!"

The voices in her subconscious would collectively sigh and figuratively roll their eyes. This woman just didn't listen. She wanted to do it her way, and as much as they wanted to advise her. E'isa ran the show and made the calls. Left only to watch as she rushed in again, but this time visually impaired to a degree. E-Mac with enough vision available to lock onto Bengal, would plant her feet and charge forward again. But this time, the end goal has changed instead of just charging in blindly like last time. Now actually blinded to a degree, E'isa would charge in similarly to the last time, but instead of aiming for Bengal's torso to try and get her into the corner again. If she got close enough, the moment Bengal would try to react, she'd drop and aim for the legs. Eyeing an opportunity to get Bengal on the ground, she still felt that gap closing was her best option to not only get going but begin to toss this feline around. Ready to punish her if the attempt was successful.

[BengalTheBlazeTiger]

E'isa blasted out of the corner, howling like a banshee as she bounded at Bengal. With all the noise she was making, at least there was no risk of her sneaking up on the Tiger. Seeing the way the Latina's knees bent as she approached, Bengal could tell that her opponent was targeting her knees. She had just the solution for that.

She leaped back nimbly, kicking her own legs behind her out of E'isa's reach. Still in midair, she attempted to trap her opponent's arms, folding them above her spine. If everything came together, she'd end up dropping the Endless flat on her face, countering her tackle with a surprise Pedigree!

"Fed up with me already?" Bengal asked, lowering her gloves. The reflective patches wouldn't be useful at close quarters, but maybe they would come in handy again later. "Too bad, honey! We're just getting started!"