A Perfect Professional Performance: Akari Ito vs Edith Una (D)

[Misfit_Alien]

The Sea Turtle softly cursed under her breath, disappointed to have failed at driving in what could have been the last nail in the coffin for her pink-haired foe. She wasn't upset with Edith, however. To be honest, that level of resilience and professional passion was beyond admirable, even if it was quite a nuisance to deal with as a competitor.

Akari lay across Edith's side, slumped over on top of her, with the two taking heavy, exhausted breaths to desperately replenish their stamina. In just one hectic battle, the two had exhausted another minute and a half, leaving them with barely five minutes to spare in this uphill battle to eek out the slightest advantage over one another. With the clock ticking down, every breath counted for something, and Akari tried to muster up the energy to pick herself back up first, grabbing hold of Edith and bringing her in for a tight Bearhug, looking to see if she could maybe squeeze a bit of life out of her foe. Even if she didn't tap or pass out, maybe this little bit of pressure would exhaust the Hidden Gem JUST ENOUGH to give Akari the upper hand later on...

[SweetHeart]

Edith's eyes widened as she suddenly felt Akari’s arms cinch tightly around her, the Sea Turtle locking in a grueling bearhug with all the strength she could muster. “Nnnngh—!” Edith grunted as her ribs compressed painfully, her arms flailing slightly before instinctively wrapping around Akari’s shoulders to steady herself. Her breath hitched with every pulse of pressure, her back already tender from the earlier powerbomb now screaming in agony as Akari tried to squeeze the wind—and the fight—right out of her. Edith knew full well what Akari was trying to do. Drain her. Wear her down. Strangle the rhythm out of her just when she’d found her stride again. But Edith Una wasn’t about to give her the chance.

Through grit teeth and gritted nerves, the Hidden Gem narrowed her eyes, gathering what strength she had left. Her body trembled, her breath shallow, but her mind was sharp. And with a sudden cry, she raised both arms and clapped them together against the sides of Akari’s head—a bell clap sharp and precise, if it hit, the sound of palm on ear echoing with a meaty POP!

If this was able to break Akari’s grip, Edith would drop down to her feet and capitalize. “Hhaaah—!” Edith gasped, wasting no time. Her knee bent, body coiling like a spring before she snapped a sharp kick right into Akari’s gut, Edith followed up in the blink of an eye with a palm strike straight to the side of the head, aiming directly for the ear she had just clapped to rattled Akari’s balance, then to cap off, she'd pivoted on her heel and snapped a solebutt kick to Akari’s midsection, kicking into her abs. The Hidden Gem’s eyes sparked to life, heart pounding in her ears as she suddenly reached out, grabbing Akari by the arm and whipping her toward the ropes. As the turtle was sent running, and just about to rebound, Edith was already behind her. The moment Akari’s back touched the ropes, Edith was already sprinting full-tilt, adrenaline surging through her battered frame. She leapt to the middle rope and sprang into the air with smooth, practiced precision. The crowd gasped as Edith twisted in midair, wrapping herself around Akari’s head and spiking her into the mat with a dazzling springboard tornado DDT!

Spoiler

[Misfit_Alien]

As Akari squeezed tighter and tighter, she could feel Edith fighting against her, writhing around while stuck in the clutches of the Sea Turtle's crushing grasp. However, no amount of pressure would cause this Gem to crack, as demonstrated by Edith's unyielding resilience and quick thinking. Even while running on fumes while enduring the most stressful of situations in the ring, the Hidden Gem continues to turn coal into diamonds, making an advantage for herself however she could by nailing Akari upside the head with a Bell Clap, immediately forcing the woman to release her hold over her pink-haired foe as the Sea Turtle suddenly staggers backward, her equilibrium thrown off for moment before...-BAM-...a hearty, desperate kick to her stomach leaves her doubled over and gasping for air, all before another smack to her ear leaves her stunned and writhing in pain, clutching her head with both hands, and leaving herself wide open for that follow-up Solebutt Kick.

Akari drops to one knee, nearly tripping over herself before Edith pulled her back into the mix, tossing her to the wayside and forcing her to rebound off the ropes, only to met by a DAMNING Tornado DDT, delivered with such fluid swiftness, Akari couldn't have countered this if she had tried. The moment was too sudden. Edith was behind her one second; the next, she and her purple-plaid-pants were twirling through the air, SPIKING the Sea Turtle face first into the canvas!!! A portion of the crowd wince while the other is left in awe, the clock still winding down as the pair continue to slug it out, the balance shifting heavily into Edith's favor as Akari lies face-down on the mat, drenched in sweat and thoroughly exhausted.

[SweetHeart]

Edith staggered slightly after landing the DDT, her own vision swimming from the exertion, but she refused to let the moment slip. Shaking her head to clear the haze, she forced herself upright, her chest heaving as she locked eyes on Akari’s motionless form. She had to get the lead! With a surge of adrenaline, Edith turned and sprinted toward the nearest corner, her muscles screaming in protest but her will overriding the pain. She jumped over the ropes, skillfully scaling the turnbuckles with practiced urgency, perching herself atop the top rope as the crowd’s cheers swelled into a chorus of anticipation. Balancing precariously, she took a deep breath, steadied herself—and then launched into the air, her body twisting into a perfect rotation as she aimed to crash down upon Akari with a devastating 450 Splash!

Spoiler

The arena held its breath as Edith soared—would this be the move that finally put the Sea Turtle away? Or would Akari find one last gasp of defiance to keep her in the fight? The seconds stretched like eternity as gravity pulled Edith downward, her body a pink-and-black comet ready to strike its target!

[Misfit_Alien]

As Edith took to the skies, Akari opened her eyes, seeing her brilliant opponent flipping through the air, stuck in motion. Like a comet coming down from the heavens, this seemed like it would certainly be the final nail in the coffin, but the Turtle demonstrated her unyielding stubbornness yet again. She didn't need her whole body to listen to her, she just needed to be able to move her damned legs. And so, as she clawed at the canvas, chest heaving up and down with every heavy, labored breath, she forced every signal she could muster down from her brain to her legs, tucking them in and turning Edith's would-be crashpad from her abdomen to her knees, gut-checking the Hidden Gem with the surprise, last-ditch counter while taking some recoil as recompense...Edith WAS still crashing down atop her body, after all-...

this but, like, imagine she did a bunch of flips too

[SweetHeart]

Edith crashed down like a meteor—but instead of the satisfying impact of a clean hit, all she felt was white-hot pain as her gut smacked against Akari’s raised knees.

“GGHHNN—!!” The Hidden Gem bounced off them with a guttural gasp, her body folding mid-air before she tumbled away, her momentum sending her rolling violently across the canvas. She came to a stop a few feet away, landing facedown, arms sprawled, her breath completely knocked out of her. Her mouth hung open in a silent gasp, eyes wide as the pain bloomed in her abdomen like fire. For a moment, she didn’t move. Then—slowly, desperately—her fingers twitched, clawing toward the ropes. Her legs kicked behind her, her boots scraping the mat as she dragged herself inch by inch toward salvation.

Her arm reached out—caught the middle rope. Edith gritted her teeth, sweat dripping from her brow as she hauled herself up onto one elbow, then another. Her body trembled, her stomach still screaming from the counter, but she refused to crumble. She pulled herself up using the ropes, rising from her knees to one foot, then the other, staggering and swaying with each movement. She was left kneeling enxt to the ropes clutching her abs in agony after the brutal impact.

[Misfit_Alien]

Akari did it, just barely managing to get her legs up in time to leave Edith in shambles after a much rougher landing than she had anticipated...unfortunately for the Sea Turtle, she was far too exhausted to get up right then and there. Even if she had the energy, her legs were aching as waves of agonizing pain shot through her lower body after taking the recoil from the 450 Splash. It was arguably debatable as to who got the worst of that exchange, as both women were now worse for wear and nearly completely helpless. As Edith tumbled away, Akari slowly rolled herself over onto her stomach before dragging her nearly limp body over to the ropes. She was starting to feel numb as the adrenaline was wearing off, and she could barely get up to her knees, much less stand, without the assistance of the ropes...

She eventually got to her feet, and then she glanced at the clock...her eyes widened with shock and desperation. Where had the time gone? How long did they space out for? Everything started to seem like a blur. Now that she thought about it, the deafening roars of the crowd had fallen so low...not quiet, but insanely muffled. Everything around her was spinning, and the only thing that she could make out was Edith and her bright pink hair.

There were barely three minutes left on the clock, and the slow realization was settling in as the Sea Turtle caught the gaze of her acrobatic adversary, chest heaving up and down as she took in every bit of air she could between her labored breaths. It was now or never, and there could be no doubt, no hesitation...It would all come down to this...Akari slowly sauntered over to the center of the ring, looking to tackle Edith head-on, saving her stamina until she got in close enough before trying to lock up with her...one final clash to decide how this would end!!!

[SweetHeart]

Edith’s fingers tightened around the top rope, her arm trembling under the strain as she dragged herself upright. Her body screamed in protest, her stomach still raw from the crash landing, her limbs heavy with fatigue. But she didn’t care. Not now. Not with less than 3 minute left on the clock. Not when she could see Akari rising too, across the ring. Gritting her teeth, Edith shoved off the ropes and stumbled forward, barely catching herself as she rose fully to her feet. Her legs wobbled. Her breath was ragged. Sweat dripped down her face in thick rivulets. But her eyes locked onto Akari’s—and didn’t blink.

The two wrestlers stood across from each other, the air between them heavy, charged with tension. Their bodies were broken. Their stamina spent. But their spirits? not even close to broken. Akari moved first, stepping in with a sluggish, deliberate pace—and Edith met her head-on. The moment they collided, their arms snapped out—locking up in the center of the ring. Their boots scraped against the canvas as they pushed against one another, teeth gritted, muscles flexed through the fatigue. Edith’s eyes flared with a desperate fire as she suddenly shifted, slipping an arm low and grabbing Akari by the wrist.

“Nnngh...!” she grunted, attempting to drag Akari’s arm down and between her legs, stepping over and wrenching her up into a pumphandle hold. Her free arm wrapped around Akari’s midsection, and with a battle cry, Edith dug deep—deep into the last reserves she had left—and began to lift.

[Misfit_Alien]

Akari struggled and squirmed against the Hidden Gem, fighting her with all her might as the two engaged with one another, pressing her whole body up against Edith's, looking for the slightest advantage that she could take...but there was nothing for the Sea Turtle to latch onto. For the far more technically gifted Hidden Gem, however, there was a brief moment of opportunity. Edith went to scoop her up for quite a bombastic slam, locking Akari into a pumphandle position, stressing her body to its very limit as she readied herself to lift the Turtle off her feet.

However, Akari just barely managed to reverse her way out of it, denying Edith's attempt by keeping herself low to the ground, almost going as limp as a sack of potatoes to make it as inconvenient for the Hidden Gem as possible. It helped that a lot of Akari's body already felt like dead weight being held up by a pair of jelly legs, so what's a few pounds more tacked on to keep Edith struggling? With her quick thinking coming in clutch for what could be the final time, Akari dropped down after grabbing hold of Edith's collar and leg, pulling her along with her into a Small Package Roll-Up, attempting to steal a point from her!!! However, the two would scramble and clash even on the canvas, rolling around as they tried to one-up the other, trading positions as their shoulders repeatedly grazed the mat, for a few one-counts, a couple of two-counts, and even some VERY close near falls as they battled it out for superiority. All this ragged, desperate effort to cross the gap that barred them from victory...a mere three uninterrupted seconds, a goal that seemed to slip further and further away with every passing moment as their bodies grew weaker and weaker.

Spoiler

[SweetHeart]

The ring had become a whirlpool of desperate motion—limbs entangling, shoulders slapping against the mat, breathless grunts and gasps blending with the fever-pitch roar of the crowd. Akari and Edith rolled over and over, locked in a series of frantic pin attempts, each more desperate than the last. They kept on rolling around, seeing which would eventually run out of steam, as this was beyond exhaustion. This was raw willpower, instincts honed from years of training, but Edith knew she couldn't do it forever.

Finally, Edith growled through clenched teeth and forced the roll-up into her favor, wrenching her hips and breaking the loop of momentum with a burst of strength. She kicked her legs out and planted them, rolling backwards onto her feet, then with a burst, she locked to yank Akari up with her in one fluid—but labored—motion. Akari’s arms hung loose as Edith hooked her leg and shoulder, ducked her head under, and lifted. With a guttural roar, Edith twisted—and slammed the Sea Turtle down with a brutal Fisherman Buster, the impact rattling the ring!

Spoiler

Edith didn’t even pause to soak in the moment. She was burning seconds—seconds she couldn’t afford to lose. Her hair clung to her sweat-drenched face as she gritted her teeth and grabbed a handful of Akari’s gear, dragging her up again. The Sea Turtle sagged in her grip, most likely just as dazed as she was, legs barely under her—but Edith wasn’t done. “Nnngh—hhaah!!” she screamed, shoving her near-limp opponent toward the nearest corner and sprinting after her, every muscle threatening to seize up as she ran. If Akari bounced off the corner like Edith hoped, Edith would grab the buckle, feinting a springboard and instead twisting around, looking to twist through the air—

—CRACK!!

Spoiler

A flawless, explosive Ruby Queen Kick smashed across the side of Akari’s skull, twisting her head sideways with a snap as the crowd gasped in shock! Edith landed hard, stumbling forward but catching herself just barely glancing at the clock

Two minutes. That was all that was left.

Edith turned back, chest heaving, her heart pounding so hard it was bordering on being painful. She couldn’t let this be for nothing. Her teeth clenched with resolve as she yanked Akari up one last time, hooking her opponent’s arm again, trying to thread it between her legs. She twisted Akari onto her shoulders in a powerful scoop. Desperate beyond belief she tried one more time to hit it!