Yukino Fuyumi vs Gabriel Vinlee - (Apex Qualifier Match)

[CaptainL]

Yukino knew she was in trouble. The more pressure Gabriel held down on her throat, the more she could feel her airways narrowing, squeezing the air out of her lungs. The edges of the world had begun to blur and grow indistinct, and she was teetering in and out of consciousness. She knew she couldn't put up with this much longer - if she gave in now, and passed out, then this match would be over before it began. Worse, there wasn't much else Yukino could do - Gabriel had her held down, and in the position she was in she couldn't get a good strike in. The only option she had was to kick her legs up, aiming for the blonde's sides. She wasn't in the best position to do so - but it was the only option she had!

The white-haired girl bit at her lip, muttering a silent prayer that her efforts would pay off. She didn't have much faith in it, but it was better than admitting defeat. But as would soon be proven, what little faith Yukino had in her moves wouldn't be misplaced. As more and more strikes hit, Gabriel began to shrink backward, the pressure on her hold loosening. Yukino's heart quickened - this was when she realized she actually was doing something; that she actually stood a chance! It gave her hope!

Emboldened by her success, and with Gabriel's hold on her starting to slip, Yukino reached up to grab at her opponent's ankles, attempting to pry them apart in oder to free her throat. But just then, Gabriel let go. As soon as the pressure was off, Yukino dropped back flat against the mat, panting to regain her breath. But a moment later, she looked up to see it was her chance to take the lead - and she wouldn't waste it! Pushing her palms up against the mat to brace herself, she kicked her legs up to try and ensnare Gabriel's waist in a bodyscissor!

"Now let's see one of mine!"

[Hagen-Autem]

Gabriel rolled a few feet after releasing Yukino only to extend a distance between them while she intentionally turns her back to her in her recomposition. Gabriel didn't need to turn around, she already took it for granted that Yukino received the brunt of the submission in these first two minutes unquestionably. Maybe the idol was on the verge of seeing everything black because of that headscissor if the queen hadn't let her go. And by that presumption, the haughty-eyed blonde assumed that the other would need a few minutes to stop throat-clearing and get on with they business. She did not foresee that the idol would pounce on her from behind, barely giving her time to react, and seize her waist with a pincer firmly in place by hers legs; squeezing her waist even tighter with hers knees before the Viper's hands could do anything to stop it.

"Mhgh!" The blonde bit her lips to stifle the pout. It was hard not to bend her back backwards from the tension in her abdomen. Gabriel had been taken sitting on W - before, she was able to react in time to turn around and find herself in front of Yukino's manoeuvre because she saw her coming out of the corner of the eye, yet was unable to take action against this move and was absorbing damage. "You're not...mgh holding any...thing back." She tried to accompany that taunt with a glance over her shoulder plus a whimsical smile. "Go on," she added, , noticing a piercingly creepy gleam in her haughty eyes. It was getting interesting. Gabriel's going to admit only to herself that Yukino was doing well, but that's all; so the Viper confronted that by taking in a lot of air as she can - still being arched - to widen her abdomen even more while planting weight with her hands on Yukino's knees in order to start thrusting towards her hips. "keep-it-up..., let's see... mhgh... what you've got."

[CaptainL]

The crushing pressure of Gabriel's headscissor had all but taken Yukino out of the competition. But she had managed to slip out of trouble just in time - and now that she had her chance, the white-haired girl was more determined than ever to come back firing on all cylinders to show her opponent what she was really capable of! A defiant glare crossed her face as her eyes narrowed in focus, and her legs shot out to encircle her foe's sides. If Gabriel wanted to go up against her with a scissor hold, Yukino could do the same, and she wanted the blonde to see for herself how the two could compare!

Gritting her teeth, Yukino fought to put forth as much pressure as she could manage; her legs squeezed even tighter together, the muscles in her thighs bulging as she tried to all but cut off Gabriel's airways. Her fingers dug deeper into the canvas as she fought to hold her position, unwilling to slip even a little to one side lest she lose her grip in the process. When she heard her opponent's comments, Yukino smiled just a little bit. Indeed, she wasn't holding back. She knew she needed to show Gabriel - and Kira - every bit of what she was made of, and she had to make everything count.

But then, Gabriel looked back a little further over her shoulder, staring Yukino dead in the eye. She realized then that her comments weren't being made from a place of frustration, or even one of admiration at the idol's efforts. Her tone was expressionless; the look in her eye was that of someone who wasn't even bothered. Yukino was trying all she could, and even when she thought it was working, now Gabriel had planted the seeds of doubt in her mind. If she was trying her best and Gabriel could still stick it out through it...what was it going to take?

At first, Yukino's jaw dropped open in a gasp. For just a moment, in her shock, her hold on Gabriel began to ease, letting up ever so slightly. Then, though, she saw what the blonde was trying to do - how she turned her hands to her knees and pushed down, attempting to counteract the pressure. When Yukino felt the balance between them teeter, with Gabriel threatening to overtake her, her heart began to race. She couldn't allow her to take control - not now!

Groaning under her breath, Yukino tried to twist and turn her own hips from the side, trying to shake Gabriel back and forth in the process. She was still holding down as tightly as she could, but now she was hoping she might be able to keep her dazed, preventing her from fighting back.

[Hagen-Autem]

Gabriel could witness firsthand how her comments pierced the other's cloud of comfort, and the disgust in her eyes at that vulnerability was tangible. She herself likes to crumble the confidence of her opponents, of course; but that it only takes a little bluff to do so shows her that she is not dealing with a novice, but a child.

So, pushing aside the bad memories this brings up, she leans towards Yukino to take advantage of hers mistake. Gabriel's plan was still the same: lift her hips and push down at hers knees to escape, but the idol seemed to come back from her hesitation in time to hinder her from that, locking her knees back together tightly to constrict the other's waist and make it difficult for her. "Guh."

And before the blonde could play one more card, the white-haired girl began to rotate her hips from side to side, compounding the damage of the submission and making Gabriel groan in pain! However, the snake was no rag doll, biting her lips to mitigate the pain, she made a point of lifting the leg opposite the direction in which she was being jerked while hooking both of Yukino's legs to raise them to chest level, all in order to slow the swings - she still has a lot to give, so, burning at the waist, she'd affirm, "You know it won't be that easy," with no emotion in her voice; and sending a hook to Yukino's waist.

And that she would do! She would hook the leg corresponding to her right arm under her armpit, and send more hooks to the waist but now with her left fist. Assuming that would hurt her badly, both psychologically and physically, she herself would take the opportunity to turn around to face the audience, keeping that leg under her armpit in order to turn Yukino upside down and lock her in a single-leg boston crab.

"You doubt too much." She said disappointed.

[CaptainL]

A chill ran through Yukino's spine as the realization set in. She was fighting her hardest, she had Gabriel under control, and she was putting as much pressure as she could into her bodyscissor, forcing the air out of her lungs...and Gabriel didn't even flinch. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't so much as cause her opponent to wince! Yukino was still determined to fight; she was still eager to show her skills and to prove that she had a place in the wrestling ring. That was why she was here, and she wasn't about to waste such an opportunity. But when it didn't even seem to work, it still made the questions rise up at the back of her mind. What if, even when she was doing all she could, it wouldn't be enough? What if Gabriel was simply too strong for her?

She bit at her lip, her eyelid twitching as a cold sweat ran down her brow. She didn't want to believe this. She kept trying to tell herself that she could still win - she'd come this far in all of her other matches, and she was more motivated than ever to make a difference now. But the doubts were still there. And they were holding her back, slowing her down - just enough for Gabriel to fight against her hold all the more, until at last, she was able to get her arms around Yukino's legs, prying them apart.

As she felt the tendons in her legs pulled out to the sides, Yukino shuddered - but the physical pain was nothing compared to the fears that ran through her mind. Gabriel wasn't even the least bit convinced she had a chance of winning. And what was more, she knew every fear, doubt, and concern going through Yukino's mind - and she was willing to use that very fact against her. The white-haired girl didn't want to believe it. She wanted to believe she had a chance. But when her opponent knew how worried she was, she felt weak, vulnerable, exposed. She felt like Gabriel already knew everything she needed to bring her low.

With each punch that Gabriel landed against her sides, Yukino shuddered and winced, her legs drifting apart an inch at a time. But perhaps what slowed her the most was the all-too-uncomfortable knowledge that Gabriel already knew her inside and out. Either way, the blonde was soon able to free herself enough to flip Yukino over on her stomach - and only moments later, Yukino felt the pain rip through her body as she twisted her leg back for the Boston Crab!

At first, Yukino screamed in pain, the sensation shaking her back to her senses. She sank lower against the mat, panting for breath. But then, she stopped to shake the thoughts out of her head. This wouldn't do - she was better than this! She couldn't concede now, and give Gabriel exactly what she wanted! Gritting her teeth, Yukino reached out to grab for the canvas in front of her. If she could get a good grip, she would pull herself forward, trying to inch toward the ropes. She shuddered and hissed with each moment she was caught in the hold, but the last thing she wanted was to prove Gabriel right - and she shook her head in a show of defiance to her taunts!

"No..! That's...not true-!!"

[Hagen-Autem]

"As you say," said the blonde, sitting upright on hers back. Yukino had tenacity and dread in equal measure, the younger woman was able to lift her chest on her palms and crawl to the side of the ring in order to look for the rope break, with Gabriel on top of her! The girl truthfully seemed to be hiding a lot of inner demons than one would see with the naked eye, unfortunately Gabriel noticed it too. Not only because she was so perceptive when her attention was properly caught, but because the idol wasn't doing much to hide them. And sadly, lifting her weight on her arms, plus Gabriel's, and moving towards the rope would not be enough.

She was not here to comfort her rival or to give her approval, Gabriel had an oath to take all rivals as her equals, and she could not afford to waver for mercy. The viper was going to get the better of this girl, even if it hurts tomorrow what it will do to her today.

Gabriel was adept enough at her role to lift her hips off Yukino, just as the idol had her hands a few feet away to reach the rope and drop down sit on the girl's shoulder blades to force her to stop trying that. And as icing on the cake: Gabriel accentuated the boston crab even more, leaning even further back, until it was a C and even looking upside down at the audience. "C'mon, it's not going to end like this..., is it?" She blustered with her hair curtaining Yukino's head. The effort of overextending the other's leg is not easy. Yukino proved to have strong legs and and the only thing Gabriel was doing while she was overextending her like that was trying to accommodate her pugilistic efforts with her words to use it to her advantage.

"Keep.. trying," she chirped.

Spoiler

[CaptainL]

Yukino couldn't slow down now - and she couldn't give up. She knew that Gabriel was trying to test her, but she was determined to survive. She needed to make a point - she needed to justify her existence, and to carve out a place for herself in LAW. It simply wouldn't do if she was going to let herself be laid low by the Boston Crab. She needed to fight back, and she would fight with every bit of strength she had in her to make it to the ropes, even if she had to claw her way there an inch at a time!

But Gabriel wasn't going to make that easy for her. She torqued on Yukino's legs all the while, straining her all the more through the punishing pressure of the hold. The Winter Idol could feel a shudder running through her back as she was forced to bear all of Gabriel's weight, and she knew her own body was threatening to break down on her through it! Even as she twisted and turned from side to side, desperately worming her way to safety on her stomach, her legs and back were still being strained to their limits, and she didn't know how far she could go. There was only one thing she knew - if she still had any fight left in her, she needed to draw on that. She couldn't give Gabriel the pleasure of knowing she could take her down.

As she drew closer, Yukino looked up to see the ropes just barely out of reach. She sucked in a few haggard breaths, looking at them through a face that was contorted in pain, but she knew that escape was just within her grasp. She just needed to push things a little further. Extending a trembling hand, she tried to reach out to grab the cables. When she felt Gabriel's weight lift off of her, it made a smile come to her face - maybe, she thought, this meant she was surrendering. Already, she was being let free. She could do this!

That was what Yukino thought, anyway. Just seconds later, Gabriel dropped straight down, ramming her hips right into the white-haired girl's back! At once, the air was driven out of Yukino's lungs, and she let loose a hoarse scream. She fell flat on her face, plastered to the mat beneath her opponent. There, she sank lower into the canvas, her body twitching and trembling and her limbs limp. And things would only get worse from there - as Gabriel cranked back even harder on Yukino's legs, throwing her own body into an arc in order to strain her opponent's spine even further!

With her whole body rocking with the agony shooting through her spine, Yukino's eyes squeezed shut in an attempt to stifle tears, and she let loose a scream. She couldn't help it any more. For just a moment, a thought ran through her head, wondering if she might need to tap out. But a second later, she realized she couldn't. It was far too early in the match for giving up. She couldn't betray her cause like this - she needed to prove that she was stronger than this; that she wouldn't be laid low! She heard Gabriel's words, calling out to her. Whether they were meant as a taunt, or as genuine encouragement...it didn't matter. To Yukino, they were a cue to action!

With Gabriel bent back as much as she was, Yukino had an idea. It would hurt - it would put more pressure on her already strained back. But she didn't have a lot of options! Gritting her teeth, she attempted to lift her hips off the mat and roll her weight forward, straining all the while. Hopefully, now that Gabriel's center of balance was shifted, Yukino could roll the two over!

[Hagen-Autem]

Gabriel's sitting drop to Yukino's back seemed to be effective enough to sap the Winter idol's strength. The crowd gasped anxiously. Yukino was so close..., just a little more and her hand would have been able to reach the bottom rope. So close and so far at the same time... and Gabriel didn't even push her away. The Royal Viper was dominating her in front of the ropes; twisted the hers leg, overextending her groin and secured more tension with the boston crab as if she didn't care that the girl might escape her.

That sums up everyone's perspective of the situation. Yukino trembling in pain while Gabriel folds her like a pencil about to break between two hands.

So arched she that they were already expecting the the crunch or tapping. Oh good...

Nobody expected the white-haired girl to have the willpower to cope the pain and trembling to swing her hips upwards with the help of her other leg and thus upset Gabriel's balance!

"Uh-wow!" The Brit tried to correct the roll, straighten up and loosen the submission so as not to slide off her back to the canvas, however the reckless manoeuvre collapsed her with no chance of getting a foot hold and plummeting over the bottom rope, Her arms hooked on this rope to hold herself up while As Yukino's body swivelled forward, culminating in sitting astride the blonde's abdomen like a hammock! Yukino was free to retaliate if the count to 5 is not given in time or if she intentions are not that.

"Tch! hehe..., not bad."

[CaptainL]

It was a last-ditch effort for Yukino. She didn't think she would be able to make it to the ropes, but she knew for sure she wouldn't be able to endure the pressure of the Boston Crab much longer before her body broke. Even as she tried to worm her way across the ring, she sank back down with a squeal as her spine creaked beneath the weight of Gabriel's body, causing a few in the crowd to wince. If she was going to make this work, she was going to have to use the leverage of Gabriel's body against her. She wasn't even sure if it was going to succeed. But the alternative was to tap out - and when she was this early into the match, with so much on the line, and with the ever-present threat of Kira Kusangi breathing down her neck, Yukino couldn't bear the thought of that. She was in this to prove she was capable, and she couldn't condemn her career to failure before it had even begun!

Luckily, as Yukino braced herself against the mat and tipped herself forward, she managed to gather just enough momentum to fling Gabriel over! The two of them tumbled over the mat; even Yukino herself gasped as she went up and down from the momentum, not expecting that she in turn would end up on top of her opponent! The two of them went head over heels, and before Yukino knew it, she was straddling Gabriel's back, while her foe hung from the ropes!

Still dizzied from the sudden reversal, Yukino needed to pant a few times to collect herself. But as she was getting herself recentered, she could hear the referee counting with Gabriel on the ropes. "One! Two!"

"Sorry-!" Yukino let go, hopping back from Gabriel. She didn't know why she felt as guilty as she did taking advantage of the leverage, considering that her opponent would surely show no mercy to her if she was in the same position. But when she thought back on what Kira had done to her, she shivered with fear. Even something as simple as keeping the position through a rope break felt as though she was on the same path that Kira had sunken to, ignoring all semblances of decorum and honor in the pursuit of domination, and she had no intentions of letting herself stoop that low. But even if Yukino didn't keep on the hold, there was still plenty she could do. When she looked back down at Gabriel, she had a plan.

Ducking down, the Winter Idol went to throw her arms around Gabriel's waist. Sucking in a breath through her clenched teeth, she would lift with her knees to hoist her opponent off the ropes and into the air. If that was successful, she'd throw herself back, aiming to throw Gabriel head-first into the mat with a German suplex!

[Hagen-Autem]

The cartweel with which Yukino countered was worthy of an on-screen replay. Gabriel even bounced her arms off the ropes as the smaller girl ended up riding her for a few moments. The Winter idol didn't do anything to her though, just gasped to recover and the count for the rope break was enough to knock her off the top to give the other woman her space as well.

That wasn't unexpected, but still, it was disappointing for the blonde. The idol didn't look like, she was a full-fledged Lewfull Face, and those are boring... unless you harass them too much and get them to show their other sides (just as Gabriel likes to do).

"Pff... Of course..." She got back on her feet with the help of the ropes and turned her back on it for a moment, just a moment, to shake off her skirt and, before she knew it, she had someone hugging her back! "But whaaaaahhhh-!" Gabriel was unceremoniously lifted off the ground - couldn't hold on to the ropes and the manoeuvre flipped her world over to conduce the back of the blonde head against the canvas! "Guohg!" And shook the ring with a thud that left leaving the Queen was stunned shallowly and staring at the ceiling between her legs. "*Sigh*... Ah... huh. . ."