L.A.W. - League of Anime Wrestling

With every moment that passed, the tension in the room was rising. Astrid could feel the sweat trickling down her brow as the air itself seemed to heat up all around her, and her fists trembled at her sides. Her brow furrowed as she heard what Lyra promised - how she could set her on a new path. A new life. A life where none of her failings and regrets would have to dog her. She heard, too, as she said that the whole company was against her - and to Astrid, it couldn't help but confirm her worst fears; that everyone had turned their backs on her; that they no longer cared now that she had faded from the spotlight, unable to even capture a different title. Lyra was telling her everything she didn't want to hear anyone else put into words; everything she wanted to believe was just a silly little anxiety she burdened herself with unnecessarily. But all the same, Astrid reminded herself, she couldn't let herself be led astray. No, she was stronger than that. She needed to show the world she wasn't weak - and she needed to show that now more than ever!

Coming at last to the edge of the ring, Astrid climbed out of the ring. She got out onto the apron, then down to the floor, so that she and Lyra could meet face-to-face, where Astrid shot a baleful glower straight into her eyes. She had to show she wasn't going to recoil in fear - that she could face such a challenge head-on; that she wasn't going to be silenced!

"I don't answer to threats!" Astrid called back. "And my achievements are my own - I don't need anyone else to uphold me! Whoever your master is...I'm willing to face him! I'll prove who's really in control!"

Side by side, one could see how much bigger Astrid was compared to Lyra. She planted her hands on her hips, and she leaned in closer to fix her glare onto the intruder, her stance unmoving and her stare unwavering. Even just getting down here, to Lyra's level, was a declaration that Astrid was willing to stand up to her. But the hairs were standing up on the back of her neck, and her whole body was rigid. All Astrid could do was to hope that no one saw the shiver that ran down her spine. Nobody could know.

The crowd cheered loudly as Astrid left the ring and came up the ramp seemingly putting her foot down that joining the Selection wasn’t happening. Lyra just shook her head not wavering any even with Astrid’s taller frame coming into the picture. Always the hard way with Astrid and Lyra wouldn’t stray far from that decision. Astrid looked down upon her before Lyra started worming her left arm up to munch on a red licorice candy stick. The crowd was a little confused as to how this was going to include standing up to Astrid, but that’s when Lyra blasted a mouthful of red mist straight into the Norsewoman’s face! The candy was laced with a substance that helped Lyra!

Astrid had had enough. She knew that Lyra was here to silence her and intimidate her, and it was precisely for that reason why she found it so important that she refuse to let her claim the psychological victory over her. Now more than ever, with her loss of the title so close in the public eye, Astrid needed to prove she wasn't past her prime, and that she still had it in her to take her best efforts to the top of the card. Clearly, standing up to Lyra and throwing her threats back in her face wasn't going to work. But if Astrid needed to take matters into her own hands...then she was prepared for that. As she leaned in toward Lyra, her body went rigid, and the muscles up and down her arms rippled beneath her skin as she blew a huff through her clenched teeth. It looked as though she was ready to let her fists fly at a moment's notice. And yet...Lyra didn't even look the least bit intimidated. Not even when she had a larger woman staring her down, and a woman who had been Heavyweight Champion!

In fact, Lyra took a bite of licorice, as though the Norsewoman didn't even register as a threat to her. Astrid sneered. She didn't know if this woman was so convinced of the power of whatever force that aided her that she didn't think Astrid could possibly compare, or if she truly thought that little of Astrid's abilities - whatever the case might've been, Astrid didn't want to dwell on it for long. Her eyes would only narrow in a glare on Lyra. But it was just then that she lifted her head, and a gout of red mist flew straight into Astrid's eyes!

"Gaah..!!" At once, the heavyweight went stumbling backward, her hands flying to her face to try and rub the stinging sensation out of her eyes. She fell against the apron; it was only because it was there behind her that she didn't lose her balance when her head was spinning. But she couldn't see a thing!

Lyra would come down the ramp slowly as Astrid was occupied and she would use the blunt end of her scythe to clobber the stomach of Astrid! She would then disrobe her cloak revealing her natural ring attire and grabbed the blonde’s head sending her straight into the steel steps left shoulder first! The Selection gave her the chance to right the wrongs and she decided to stand against them even at her lowest. Her morale was her last defense before her sanity would be broke into many pieces. It was time for Lyra to try and break through the last mental defense Astrid put up.

“I think some old friends may convince you what they have felt. How the Selection has changed them for the better. Roxanne, Cecilia, reveal yourselves!” Lyra ordered.

Astrid was still reeling from the mist Lyra had thrown into her face, and her eyes were watering even as she tried to shake herself back to her senses. She knew she had to get up, she knew she had to do something - her deepest instincts were telling her as much; to turn her back on Lyra, even to look away from her for even a moment, would've meant disaster. Yet now, she had no choice. Lyra's tricks had gotten the better of her, and when she struck out with her scythe, the shaft was driven deep into Astrid's stomach, causing her to cough and gag as the air was driven from her lungs - and leaving her winded for long enough for Lyra to slam her head down into the steel steps!

An explosion of pain burst through Astrid's head, then and there. Screaming in agony, she dropped straight to the floor, her hands clawing at her head as she tried to rub away the sensation, but to no avail. Writhing and roiling, Astrid would only end up rolling herself onto her back. And when she finally looked up...what it was she saw was enough to make her blood run cold.

Spoiler

Spoiler

How long had they been there? Were they in the crowd - hiding in plain sight, this whole time? It was only when Astrid came to that she noticed them, now that they stood before her and stared her down. Marzia Servelli - or rather, Roxanne Wolf, since she had embraced her new persona in the Selection and all but forgotten who she was after her encounter with the faction - and Cecilia Lombard, who had become their latest victim at Do or Die. She'd known both women, though her tenure as champion had forced her to grow distant from them. She'd heard that Marzia had been different ever since the Selection got to her, but she didn't realize she was quite this different; not until she was seeing her face-to-face after so long.

The woman who was glowering down on her from above was barely recognizable as the shy Italian grappler she knew, and that was least of all from her appearance. Marzia had always been soft-spoken and reserved in public, and she found it awkward to so much as approach new people. Yet here, she was looking Astrid straight in the eye, her stance firm, assured, and unmoving. And Cecilia, by contrast, who had always been confident and dominant and who feared nothing, she was the one who hung back a little behind Marzia, saying nothing, her face sullen and her gaze turned away. What had happened?

"You miss us, Astrid?" Roxanne sneered. "I guess not much, since you threw us aside once you got your hands on that belt..."

Wincing, Astrid shook her head. Fighting against the pain, she started to try and push herself back into a seated position, but she still whimpered from the stabbing pain that shot through the back of her skull. "I...no, it isn't like that-! I had so much going on-!"

"Oh, yeah? Excuses, excuses! Psshaw!" Roxanne scoffed, looking off. "You don't need to make excuses any more! You can be a champion again. You can be strong again. They did it with me. I threw all that old weakness away, and I'm better than ever - thanks to them! Cece's still coming around, but she'll be over it soon. We can all be together again, Astrid. But even better. We won't be weak. We'll be in control. Of LAW. Of ourselves. Isn't that what you want, Astrid!?"

As a shudder ran down the Norwegian's spine, her gaze flitted between Roxanne and Cecilia, but the brunette looked off, never making eye contact with her. Something about what her old friend had said stuck with Astrid. With the Selection...she'd be in control. Of herself. All these nagging doubts if she was good enough. Everything holding her back. Perhaps she'd all be free of it.

For those few moments, Astrid let out a sigh. Such a prospect made her feel at ease...and just moments later, she felt sick to her stomach that she'd even entertained the idea! Her whole body went tense, and she shook her head as she grabbed at the apron behind her, pushing against it to hoist herself up. This wasn't right. This wasn't them. It wasn't her, either. Astrid would never give in like this. She had to prove she was strong, that she was capable, and she didn't need anyone to fall back on!

"I'll never join you-! Never!" Astrid shook her head in defiance, looking past Roxanne so that she could narrow her eyes on Lyra. "You can't trick me. I'm stronger than that! I'll prove it to you-!"

But, at the back of her head, Astrid couldn't help but ask if she really thought that - and the fact she had such doubts at all were what scared her worst of all.

Lyra held her sharper end of the scythe just a few inches away from Astrid’s throat not completely touching her, but within fingertips away if she tries anything. It was clear as day Astrid had been bested albeit not on a fair playing field since Astrid had to endure hell against a Russian Chain Match so Ostberg was definitely not on her full game tonight. It’s clear in the months following the match, the prospect of losing that important match—one that Astrid felt could’ve steered her back in the correct direction-weighed heavily on her mind and made her question every move she has made as a wrestler. If Astrid had only just dethroned her fellow Astrid right as Arvidsson was crowned the inaugural champion, then Astrid could help being prestige to that title in her own way. The LAW Openweight Championship definitely needed a big name to help elevate it into the spotlight and Ostberg deep down couldn’t handle the fact it couldn’t have been her especially when she was never pinned or submitted for her own Heavyweight Championship last year.

Lyra leaned in as she glared daggers straight into Astrid’s skull and spoke with a hiss in her tone.

“Then perhaps you wouldn’t mind testing this resolve further. You and me, Nightmare on LAW Street. I know you have a moral code of never using weapons in a match, but let’s see that help you in a Falls Count Anywhere Match. Prove you can be better than us. When we have free rein to trample you under our boots. If you win, we’ll gladly leave you alone to your own sad pathetic life continually losing and fading away like a bad memory. But lose, you’re ours. You belong to the Anomaly. Which is a great thing as Milord can help you regain the glory you once had as long as you let…her….out,” Lyra explained.

In a flash, the pointed end of Lyra's scythe was just inches from Astrid's throat. That alone was enough to make the Norsewoman lock up, the color draining from her face as her body went rigid. If she moved even a little bit, she thought, that blade could cut her. She was in danger - she was within Lyra's grasp, and that put her within reach of them. Of the Selection - and of the Anomaly, too. Already, they were trying to get their hands wrapped around her. And already she could feel their talons sinking into their soul. When Lyra stared Astrid dead in the eye, the heavyweight quivered just a little in her boots. Not even so much from the threat of the scythe, but from the fact that she was this vulnerable in and of itself. If she let that vulnerability, that doubt in herself, show...then the Selection would've already gotten what they came here for.

She knew it was more important now than ever to put her best and boldest face forward. Her enemy was trying to make her look weak, hopeless, and vulnerable. The Selection was relying on that fact - if the legendary Astrid Ostberg, who had faced every challenge before her with courage and defiance and a refusal to be conquered, was going to shrink away from them, it would all but confirm their dominance would go untested, and that they were strong enough to bend even her to their will. More than that, it would confirm that Astrid herself had finally encountered a foe she couldn't overcome - and that would prove they were right all along. That she really was weak. That all of her worst fears were true.

So it was for that very reason that Astrid couldn't let them win! She hissed through clenched teeth, her eyelid twitching as Lyra looked her straight in the eye, but her fists only balled tighter at her sides. But the tension in her body could only rise with what Lyra told her. There was, after all, another supercard on the horizon. And the Selection saw that as the perfect opportunity to put Astrid's defiance to the test - to see just how far she was willing to take those ideals she lived by. The match they proposed would surely be a brutal one, and one that would force Astrid to confront incredible odds. If she lost, it would be even worse - they would turn Astrid to their perverse will, no doubt taking away her life, her individuality, her very person; everything Astrid held dear. But no matter how daunting a task it may have seemed - or how much Astrid shuddered as Lyra rubbed those past defeats in her face - she knew what she needed to do. She couldn't let the Selection be stronger than her. Not in the ring, and not in the battle of wills, either!

"Nngh..." Astrid groaned, but then she nodded her head. "I accept your challenge!" The fans let out a gasp, once again seeing how far Astrid was willing to push her limits if it meant showing the world how determined she was to live for what she believed in. "Do your worst to me - but I'll show you I'm never going to be one of you-!" She dug her heels into the mat, standing as straight and as firm as she could. Now, she really needed to show the world she wouldn't be intimidated!

Lyra smirked with an evil look of satisfaction as the match was set and Astrid even managed to stand up to prove her point. The Norsewoman was willing to give up the sanctimonious rules of the ring in order to meet the Selection head on no matter what. Even accepting that she herself could potentially join their ranks. Lyra then passed a glance over at Roxanne and nodded her head closing her eyes.

“Roxanne, call your Jackals and trash Ostberg. I’ll pick up the scraps at Nightmare on LAW Street. Claim your revenge,” Lyra instructed as she hit her blunt end again into Ostberg’s stomach.

Astrid had made her announcement - she was going to see Lyra through on her challenge, and face her at Nightmare on LAW Street. There, she was going to prove once and for all that her last few high-profile losses, no matter how much they might've stung, weren't going to hold her back. She had to - there was no other option. If she lost, it would mean she would let down her promises - to all her fans and to herself - to prove that her career wasn't over, and that she could still be the main-eventer everyone had counted on her to be. So too, she would fall under the sway of the Selection, surrendering everything she thought, felt, and believed in to be another one of their puppets. Both prospects were ones that frightened Astrid, and she wasn't sure which was worse. But that wouldn't matter - what mattered was that if she couldn't lose, she would just have to strive even harder not to fall behind. She couldn't dwell on the threat of failure; she needed to hold onto that hope of success!

A few fans had begun to cheer - after the Selection had made their reign of terror known, many were eager to see a fan-favorite like Astrid finally stand up to them. When Astrid heard them voice their support, she nodded her head - it would only serve to remind her all the more that she couldn't let them down. But first and foremost, she was doing this for herself. She had to win this to put her name back on the map, and though she clenched her teeth anxiously at the thought of what lay in store for her, she had to have faith.

But Astrid would never have expected what happened next - that even after Astrid had said her part, the Selection wasn't going to wait to get their hands on her. When she heard Lyra issue the orders to Roxanne, her jaw dropped. "Wait, what-!?" Only a second later, she was answered with a swift smack from the end of Lyra's scythe, causing her to double over forward sputtering and gasping as she grabbed at her midsection to try and shield herself. But that was only the beginning.

"Oh, we'll have some fun, alright..." Roxanne cracked her knuckles, then lifted her head. "Saka? Miza? Why don't you come out and give our friend a hand..."

Miza

Saka

Right on cue, the two Wild Jackals - the women who had at one point been Kyoko Kobashi and Misako Enjoji, but who now obeyed the Selection's will through Roxanne - sprung out of the curtains. Miza came skipping down the ring, eagerly ahead of her partner; Saka followed at a slower and more collected pace, but she did lock a cold and unblinking stare at Astrid as she stayed behind. "Right right! Ya got it, Roxy!~" Miza chirped. "Always happy to help!"

Astrid's eyes narrowed in frustration as she turned toward Roxanne. Was everything she said tonight going to be hijacked like this!? "Marzia, what's going on? What's the meaning of-"

It was at that point, however, that she would be cut off. With her eyes burning in a hateful glower, Roxanne spun back around to face Astrid, her muscles tense and her body shaking. "Shut up! SHUT UP! Don't EVER call me that again, got it!?"

"What-!?" Astrid tried to interject, but it was too late. Roxanne grabbed her by the head and pulled it straight down, ramming the Norsewoman's skull into the ring apron! A loud clang broke out through the arena, and Astrid wailed in pain as she grabbed at her head and dropped to her knees. She was still reeling from the impact, her head throbbing and the world spinning around her - which meant she would be defenseless as Saka and Miza ran up to her, kicking her to the ground and laying into her with stomps that rained all up and down her body! Even if they were witnessing such a brazen attack, the fans wouldn't even boo - all they did was look on in shock. They knew better than to attract the Selection's attention.

Astrid was pretty much hopeless as the Jackals laid their boots into her body and she never stood a chance. Partly due to the fact that she just wasn’t in the mood to fight in the first place and never got into full gear with Lyra blinding her as well as shoving her into the steel steps. She had fully expected to concede her time in the title picture was unfortunately over and pave a new chapter to hopefully climb back up the ladder to retrieve glory one day. That is all Astrid wanted to do and answer for the feelings she has suffered through the last few months ever since losing her Openweight Title match.

However, The Selection saw her at her weakest and pounced so it wouldn’t be a fair fight. They wanted to soften Ostberg up so Lyra could have easy pickings before thrashing her around Baltimore. What’s more is that it was no disqualifications all around so Roxanne and her Jackals could get involved to bring the numbers against the third-generation wrestler. Lyra used her scythe to pull back at the Jackals as she turned to them.

“We unfortunately need her somewhat eligible to stand on her two feet for my match. Although, we’ll leave with one last parting gift. Cecelia, you tended to have the most history with Astrid. Only fitting you take your turn for revenge. Mandible Claw,” Lyra instructed.