Heavyweight Championship Match: Astrid Ostberg (c) vs. Dana Ashford

[CaptainL]

When Astrid lifted her head from the ground, her teeth were clenched in a snarl as her eyes settled on Dana with a glare. Despite the veteran's calm voice, Astrid knew she was taunting her - and she was not about to let herself be humbled. But although Astrid was defiant, Dana had no problems with making her move - and she easily had the strength to do so. She grabbed the champion by the head, and Astrid's groans were muffled against the embrace of her bicep as Astrid was dragged on her front across the canvas!

From there, Dana guided Astrid's head between her legs, and the Norwegian could feel the pressure clamping down around her temples, causing her to let out a muffled groan. She tried to twist her head back and forth to try and loosen the hold, but it was no use - Dana was holding on too tightly. And soon, her arms came down to loop around Astrid's waist, hoisting her up to her shoulders to set up a powerbomb! The crowd - and Astrid herself - had enough time to draw in a gasp in anticipation of what would happen next, and all the Norsewoman could do was brace for impact.

Sure enough, it hit - Astrid came crashing down into the mat, letting out a cry as she descended through the air, before she landed with a thud, and all went still. The ring shook in the wake of her collision, and she lay out flat on her back, her arms and legs spread around her in a heap. Her head rolled to the side, her hair tousled and tangled around her, and she gasped and panted for breath.

And yet...Astrid still found it in her to turn her head, looking back at her opponent. She was weary, and her face was red and breathless. She didn't have the strength in her to move. But she could tell what Dana wanted. She knew how this woman worked - she wanted Astrid to feel powerless, dominated, and hopeless to fight back. It was a strategy she knew well thanks to her previous match against Selket - and thanks to that match, Astrid knew that the greatest way to fight back against Dana was to deny her what she wanted! Peering from behind sweaty strands of hair, and panting between each word, Astrid nonetheless shot back at her foe. "Is that...the best you've got?"

[Arjuna]

Sending Astrid down into the mat with the ring-shaking powerbomb, Dana observed her opponent and saw that despite her clearly in pain, the champion still had that defiant look in her eyes, and Dana just let out a giggle as she shook her head.

"Now, now, there's plenty to come for you. We're only just starting, okay?" Dana said in her usual housewife-like tone as she would bend down to grab Astrid, pulling her up. She was planning to keep Astrid under control in order to weaken her, and she would not give her any opportunity to recover and restore her strength.

Once she brought Astrid up onto her feet, Dana would keep her hold on her head as she would twist around, yanking at that head before she dropped back, looking to flip Astrid over with a snapmare, once again sending the champion down onto the mat, back first.

[CaptainL]

Even when she had been slammed hard into the ring, landing with enough force to knock the air out of her lungs, Astrid still wasn't about to let Dana get the upper hand on her - not physically, and she wasn't going to let the Smiling Demon get away with thinking she had her beat, either! The glare on her face said as much - but even still, Dana was unmoved. She regarded Astrid with the same dismissive air as always, pulling the Norsewoman to her feet. Astrid was still trying to find the strength in her legs, and she tried getting her balance under her, but she teetered from side to side as her feet danced around the canvas. But she wouldn't have much time for that, when Dana immediately dropped down to sling the champion over her shoulder!

As she landed with a thud, Astrid let out a groan. Her back was already sore from the last landing, and the pain of this one on top of that caused her face to contort into a wince. But she knew, above all else, that Dana was out to tear her down before she moved in for the kill - and Astrid wanted to prove that she wouldn't be messed with that easily! Throwing her weight to the side, Astrid attempted to roll out of the way of Dana's path. From there, she would push up against the mat, looking to lift herself back to her feet. She knew she couldn't stay down for long.

[Arjuna]

Throwing Astrid down with the snapmare, Dana watched as the champion rolled herself to the side before she attempted to rise up. Still retaining her smile, Dana would straighten herself up and go after the younger woman, approaching her while she was still trying to get back up onto her feet. Once she was there, Dana would grab Astrid by her head, pulling her up a little as she would hold onto her head with her left hand while she brought her right arm up in preparation for a strike.

Then, like a vengeful hammer of god, Dana would swing her forearm down, hitting Astrid right at the top of her head with a forearm club, looking to send her down into the mat once more. She was planning to chip away at her opponent's strength, stamina and endurance before she could go for the kill. It was clear here what the veteran was trying to do. She was planning to maintain her dominance before she finally put the champion out once and for all and seize that title for herself.

[CaptainL]

For a moment, Astrid lay where she had fallen. Her teeth clenched as she tried to bear the pain - but what was even more important to her was the knowledge that she couldn't let Dana win. She was fighting for her title, and she had sworn to give every match no less than her best effort to live up to what being a champion was all about. That was no exception here, and soon she bit her lip and clenched her fist, shaking the aches and pains out of her thoughts. She could still get to her feet, and that was all that mattered!

Astrid rolled over onto her front, getting her hands and knees beneath her to push herself back to her feet. She bent at the knees, starting to lift herself to her feet - but before she could make it there, Dana struck. She suddenly closed in on Astrid, one hand clasping around her scalp to force her head back. The Norsewoman's eyes went wide, and her jaw dropped in a gasp as she looked on at what her opponent was about to do. Dana wasn't playing games any more, that much was for sure.

Everything passed quicker than Astrid could keep track of. Barely a second after Dana had hoisted her arm high, an elbow swung down and connected with a crack against Astrid's skull. Her ears ringing from the blow, Astrid threw her head back, letting out a loud cry of pain. Her footing gave out from underneath her, and she dropped to her knees, where the world kept spinning around her. She knew she needed to get back up, and to defend herself, but her temples were throbbing from the pain, and the most she could do was clutch at her skull to dull the sensations, her fingers wrapped tightly in her hair.

[Arjuna]

Hitting Astrid's head with her forearm, Dana looked at her opponent and considered her next move. Grabbing Astrid by her head, Dana would forcefully pull the champion back up onto her feet, making sure that she was standing up in preparation for her next move. All the while, Dana flashed her signature smile as she prepared to throw her next attack.

Once she got Astrid up on her feet, Dana would then swing her arm upwards, hitting the champion right under her chin with her forearm, executing the European uppercut! But Dana wouldn't allow Astrid to stagger away or fall down as she would immediately grab her head again and make sure that she was on her feet before delivering another European uppercut! Like before, she was planning to ensure that Astrid would have nothing left in her by the end of this match, and the only one left standing in the ring would be her, Dana Ashford.

[CaptainL]

Astrid might have gone down, but it wasn't long before she was up again. Before the Norwegian had any time to process what was happening to her, she felt the strong grip of Dana's fingers wrap around her temples before she was hauled up to her feet, her boots finding an unsteady ground beneath her. She reached up to grab for Dana's arm, looking to pry it off of her - but by then, it was too late.

Dana lashed out with a swift uppercut to the bottom of Astrid's jaw, knocking her head backward! She let out a groan, spittle flying from between her clenched teeth as her body bent backward in an arc. But Astrid didn't go far before Dana followed that up with another uppercut much like the first! Astrid's teeth rattled as her head was jostled, the world around her spinning out of control as a throbbing sensation took hold of her temples. She knew she was going to have to do something about this - if she let the damage build up enough, any errant blow could be enough to take her down!

Her muscles flexing as she willed the strength into her body, Astrid lifted one boot from the ground, planting it against Dana's stomach to push off of her with a boot to the gut. If Astrid managed to break away from her opponent, she would fall to her back in the process, the force of the kick pushing her footing out from under her. But at least Dana would, hopefully, let go!

[Arjuna]

After hitting Astrid with two consecutive European uppercuts, Dana was planning to follow it up with a much bigger strike, but Astrid managed to bring her foot up and plant it against her stomach before pushing her backwards. "Nnngh!" Dana staggered back, almost losing her balance but she managed to plant her feet and prevent herself from falling backwards. Still, Astrid seemed to have fallen onto her back after shoving her back with her foot, and at the moment, Dana was still the one on her feet.

"W-well... at the very least you're still giving me quite a resistance there..." Dana said as she would make her way back to where Astrid was. She was planning to make her way next to Astrid's head before she bent down to grab her opponent by her head in order to pull her up. From there, she would position herself right behind her opponent as she would get her arms under her armpits, bringing her hands up and clasping them together on the back of her neck, trapping Astrid in a full nelson, causing pressure around her shoulders and forcing her to push her chest forward.

[CaptainL]

Taking two uppercuts from Dana had certainly thrown Astrid for a loop. Her head was spinning, and she had to suck in a breath to focus herself in order to get back into the game. But she knew that Dana was only building up to something greater, and the most important thing she could do was to prevent the challenger from putting her in further trouble! Trying to buy herself some time, Astrid shoved her foot out from under her, driving it into the Smiling Demon's midsection. In doing so, she slipped off her own footing, falling to her back as her one remaining foot couldn't bear the sagging weight of her body - but the momentum had been interrupted, and Dana had been left stunned. If she was to close in on the now-prone Astrid, the Norsewoman would be left open. Thankfully, Dana actually seemed to have been slowed down, enough to stall her next move.

But, unfortunately for Astrid, not enough to stop it altogether. The Norwegian panted for breath, sucking the air back into her lungs as she rubbed at her temples to try to dull the pain. She rolled herself up to her knees, but before she could get any further, Dana snared a hand under her chin, getting a good hold on her - and yanking her to her feet!

Astrid groaned under her breath as she found herself teetering on unsteady footing. As Dana circled behind her, things only got worse - her arms laced around Astrid's own, pulling them back to bend her back and shoulders inward, and straining her spine in the process! Astrid threw back her head, crying out in pain. Her chest was thrust out toward the stands, while Dana's curvaceous body rubbed up against her from behind. The crowd's reaction was split - some booed Dana for her treatment of the champion, while others were eager to see the veteran do what she did best!

Astrid, however, wasn't going to have it. She clenched her teeth, her brow furrowing in focus as her face grew red from the strain. She looked back over her shoulder at Dana with a glare of defiance, letting her know that she wasn't about to go down so easily - and then, she swung a kick behind her, trying to drive the sole of her boot into Dana's knee!

[Arjuna]

Now holding Astrid in the full nelson, Dana was having the time of her life as she would keep her trapped in the hold, making the whole experience as unpleasant as possible for the current heavyweight champion. The crowd seemed to be split, with one camp booing her and the other wanting to see what the Smiling Demon had in store for Astrid next.

But before she could carry out her next move, Dana suddenly received a kick right at her knee from Astrid, who drove the sole of her boot there. "GHH!!" She grunted, almost losing her balance. She had no other choice but to let go of the full nelson and pushed her opponent away as she staggered backwards, trying to regain her footing and prevent herself from losing her balance.