Alaina Sanders Vs. Cassie Elliot

It was a risk, but while Alaina recovered her footing, Cassie threw her upper body down, holding tight with her legs and using the momentum to try to flip Alaina down onto her back. She had never executed her hurricanrana with a gogoplata already applied, and especially not when she was as beat up.

When Alaina smacked against the mat, the crowd burst into cheers that far exceeded Alaina's or Cassie's pay-grade. Cassie kept her weight pressing down on Alaina, gritting her teeth and pulling up on the brunette's head while her shin dug deeper against her throat. Her body ached, she was probably in much more pain than Alaina, but that all didn't matter if the girl couldn't breathe...

As Alaina bombed Cassie down, her own finisher only served to set up Cassie's. The momentum of the powerbomb worked against Alaina and she was in turn sent to the mat via a Cassie hurricanrana! She found herself underneath Cassie's shin, held down and being choked out!

"NO way, this can't be happening!" Is all Alaina could think as she had Cassie on the verge of her finishing move only to be caught in Cassie's own! She struggled and flailed in a panic, feeling the hold set in. She wasn't able to breathe, and she knew she only had a small window to work with to free herself from this hold. "I .. can't..." She muttered so meekly that it was barely audible.

Her energy, enthusaism, and confidence were being sapped as quickly as her air supply was. She could hear fuzzy cheers from the crowd as the lack of oxygen kicked in. Part of her wanted to tap out, but stubborn pride kept her from doing so as she reached and grabbed whatever part of Cassie she could in a death grip, if only to prevent an immediate tap-out. Cassie had her held in such a way that she couldn't power out... her air was literally blocked and it was akin to a quick death at the hands of an anaconda or other constrictor snake.

Alaina made a few gasps, still in disbelief. She controlled the match, and now Cassie was going to beat her in one move. One. Damn. Move. Alaina was sure she'd be the laughing stock of the AFW, who loses to someone who can't even stand up in one move? Alaina Sanders does. The crowds cheers became fuzzier and more distant as Alaina's grip on Cassie weakened. Alaina had a few fans, but Cassie's unlikely comeback seemingly turned the world on her. The formerly confident woman now couldn't help but feel like an AFW punching bag, used by veterans to show off or bounce back from a loss. Alaina got the match sheasked for herself, a chance to show people she could hang with a legitimate wrestler. Maybe she did, the the unexpected way this was ending took away any consolation of a "moral victory."

Alaina's last thoughts before the world went black weren't anything coherent as much as it was a jumble of emotions rolling into one odd feeling that was equal parts frustration, shock, disbelief, disorientation and doubt.

Sweat beaded off of Cassie's forehead and rolled down to the end of her nose while she strangled the life out of Alaina. She closed her eyes and hoped to god that she could just hold onto it long enough...

The ref came to check Alaina when she stopped kicking. Cassie knew the hold was deep. She held her breath as well. The ref lifted Alaina's arm and gave it a shake, and when the girl remained limp, she stood up and called for the bell, and in that moment Cassie had ever heard a sweeter sound.

"Haaah!" She moaned, and fell off of Alaina to the side. She flopped onto her back and closed her eyes, an expression of pain on her face, while she waited for the pain in her back caused by Alaina's powerful arsenal to subside. She could celebrate the win later, for now she was just happy to be alive.

The two girls laid still on their backs while the crowd cheered and cheered.

Alaina slowly opened her eyes, partially blinded by the bright lights overhead. She lay on her back, covering her face with both of her hands as the crowd cheered. She was sure Cassie was standing there near her, triumphant in her come from behind... no, her out of nowhere win. "I fucking blew it...." Alaina said with a sigh as she got to her feet.

To her surprise, Cassie was laying next to her, still on the mat as Alaina knelt on one knee. Alaina looked down at her and took a few deep breaths. Whether Cassie won, or Alaina blew it, or whatever she did what she had to in order to pull out the win, and that deserved some recognition. "Hey... that was a really good move. Congrats." Alaina said as she rose up to her feet.

Part of her wanted to just leave Cassie in the ring, laying there. At least if she was stuck laying in pain she got to hear the cheers of an arena full of fans. Still, Cassie looked so pained that Alaina didn't have it in her to just walk away like that. During the match she just did what she thought she had to in order to pick up a win, it wasn't until now that the size difference really hit her. "Are you ok? Can I help you up?" She asked as she offered her hand to Cassie, smiling as warmly as she could. In the back of her mind was Mamouru, and how torn he probably was to see this unfold. Alaina was the one to put him through this, and if this gesture helped ease any inner turmoil he felt then that was just the icing on the cake.

Cassie waved Alaina off and shook her head before clutching her hands together against her chest. Her wrists both had sharp pains that shot down her arms whenever she bent them a certain way. She could feel them swelling. Worse, though, was her back. She wasn't sure she would be able to get up, even if Alaina helped her. She hoped she wasn't really hurt. She had never had a back injury before.

The worst part, though, was that her opponent was the one offering to help while Cassie was laid out on the mat. It was a hollow victory, and it felt like more of a loss. Her dad had always told her "you can't just get frustrated" whenever things didn't go her way, but she was used to having success when she grappled, and she just could not stomach failure. She was spoiled in that regard, as a prodigy, that she had so rarely met failure.

Alaina had manhandled her, had her way with her, pounded her into the mat like she was nothing but a piece of meat, and Cassie couldn't do anything to stop her. She was lucky she had found an opening for her London Pride, but that was all it was. Luck. She had had no control over the match, and more than anything else, it scared her.

"I-I... just need a minute, sorry," she said quietly, wincing from the wedge of pain in her spine.

Mamouru had a stoic face on the entire match, watching as the two had fought. In the end, he had called the match almost perfectly. Cassie had been overcome by Alaina's strength but int he end, she seized an opening and scored the victory. He didn't know how to feel and he could see that both girls were not very enthusiastic about the outcome.

Mamouru hopped over the barricade and then slid into the ring. He looked at Alaina and nodded. he then stepped forward so he was in Cassie's field of vision. "I remember the match against Megumi-chan." Mamouru said. "You've gotten much, much tougher since then, Cassie-san." He said smiling down at her as he held out his own hand. "All the practice and experience has helped you to endure."

"Take your time. Is there any neck pain or is the pain worse in your lower back?" Alaina asked more out of concern than simple politeness as she knelt next to Cassie. Hammering Z.Z was one thing, she was one of two people that essentially robbed her. Cassie was a good person, and clean wrestler. The last thing Alaina wanted to do was cause her any sort of injury. Cassie did kick out of one pin attempt and found the rope on another... Alaina didn't go overboard, did she? "I know you'll hate what I have to say, but if your neck or back is in that much pain and moving is difficult moving you on a stretcher might be a smart, precautionary measure."

As she waited for Cassie's reply, Alaina's mind continued to race in regards to her wrestling career at AFW. Sure, the way she lost still stung and would likely bother her for a while. However, this match showed her that Cassie wasn't the only one who made progress. If she could learn from it, she'd be that much better from the experience. Maybe there would be a rematch one day, but Alaina would have to earn it. She'd had 6 matches in 6 months going 2-4. She would have to go up against the bottom ranks and work her way up the old fashioned way. No more requesting matches, she'd see where AFW thought she was, then she'd do her thing and try to win her way up.

Changing gears yet again, Alaina thought of Mamouru. She smiled up at him briefly before turning to Cassie again. After what she probably put him through as he watched the match she owed him bigtime, although she did have a few ideas as to how to make it up to him...

"I'm fine," Cassie said irritably. She was usually irritable when she'd just been beaten half to death, and that was perfectly reasonable. "I just need a minute."

She looked up at Mamouru and her body seemed stuck to the mat, though she suddenly wanted to stand up. Mamouru didn't need to see her like this, though neither did the thousands of people watching her...

"Thanks, Mamouru," she said, holding out a hand for him to help her up. "But I won't just get lucky every time. It seems like everyone wants to powerbomb me, so if I can just work with that... Or maybe I could just stop getting beat up all the time." She couldn't help but pout, but she couldn't help but smile. The conflicting emotions competed for which would play out on her face.

Mamouru kept a straight face while Cassie grabbed his hand and helped herself up. However, when her smile crept over her face, he smiled as well. "You beat yourself up more than anyone else could, Cassie-san." He said and gave Cassie's back a friendly pat. "The accolades are yours, you should accept them. We'll be off." Mamouru said and bowed politely to Cassie.

Mamouru turned to Alaina and bowed as well, motioning for them to leave as he turned and walked to the ropes to hold them open for Alaina.

Alaina nodded to Cassie and moved towards the ropes, stepping through as Mamouru held them open. She smiled at him and once she was outside the ropes and on the apron she made sure to stop and hold the ropes for him to slip through.

She was silent as they walked up the ramp and into the back. She was beat in the match, and part of her felt like she was second place in Mamouru's heart. Still, it was her thick headed request for the match that sure was difficult for Mamouru to watch. "Babe, I'm sorry for putting you through that. I doubt it was easy to watch." Alaina said quietly as she gently grabbed his hand, lightly squeezing it as the two walked.