Silver Ace vs Valley Doll - Under Pressure

Haley was in perfect position for a move Valley had been wanting to do for months. Just the right space, just the right amount of windedness, standing in just the right way. She wouldn't get a second set up like this in the match, and it was the perfect time to show her - to show everyone - just how wrong they'd been. 

Valley ran to the left, bounced off the ropes, then ran back to Haley's side with all the momentum she could muster in such a short distance. She leaped into a cartwheel, looking like she was simply going to pass her from behind, but she wrapped her arms around Haley's legs right at the halfway point of the movement.

The end result? Haley was taken along for the ride, forced into the cartwheel's flip. Valley landed on her knees, she landed on her back with her legs draped over Valley's shoulder, looking for all the world like she'd been powerbombed. A move Valley had practiced with Alaina during their training, something she'd seen done a grand total of once on a Japanese wrestling show - a cartwheel bomb. Or a Valley Bomb, like she was calling it.

She held the position and pressed forward, pinning Haley to the mat as the referee slid over beside them for the three-count.

"One...!"

Ace honestly didn't know what hit her, going from bent one second, catching her breath, to a sudden feeling of disorientation, then a sharp pain in her back and the back of her head as she was slammed onto the mat, head turned to the side, eyes closed, chest rising and falling as she was pinned.

"Two!"

The ref yelled, the crowd counting along with him after the impressive powerbomb variation Valley had pulled off.

"Three...!"

Valley let out a sigh of relief as the referee made the final count. It only meant she was halfway done, at best, but it just felt thrilling to finally pin someone. She hadn't pulled it off in so long, she'd almost forgotten what a rush it could be, and getting it in on Haley after everything they'd been through, was downright delicious.  It didn't matter what anyone said - so long as Valley kept on wrestling, Slamazons was alive and well, and from the crowds cheering she could tell they agreed.

She could have went straight into the submissions from there, but she decided to ease up and take a breather. She pushed Haley's legs away and rolled to her feet, then made her way over to the nearest corner. The rules didn't say she had to let  her reset, but she figured it was the sporting thing to do, especially after hitting that move. This was a wrestling match, not a beatdown. That was what the fans paid for, and she'd give it to them.

She leaned forward and placed her hands on her knees, catching her breath and waiting for Haley to rise.

Pain. Just...so much pain.

Her back was in agony, and now the back of her head was throbbing after that weird powerbomb variation.

Groaning, it took Ace a solid few minutes before she was able to roll over to her front and push herself up to her feet, standing up straight before wincing, forced to bend over a bit to lessen the pain on her spine, looking over at Valley and backing up a step, a different look in her eyes than at the start of the match. It might have been respect, it might have been anger...it might have been fear.

Either way, it was obvious that Ace had realized something: Valley really was playing for keeps this time.

"S...So....you really were faking last time then..."

She said aloud, understanding that Valley had been telling her the truth about letting her win their last match.

Valley expected Haley to still have defiance in her when she got back up. The gauntlet had been thrown down, the challenge was on, no more holding back. Her title wasn't on the line, but this still had to be an important match for her. If she could't win this match, how was she supposed to handle things when she was forced to defend? It was all about respect and perception.

She took a step towards her and stopped when she saw the look in her face. Fear. Was Haley actually afraid of her? Did she really go that far with this?

"I..." A month ago, at another time, she would have answered this a lot easier. But now that she'd taken some time to really think about it... No, I wasn't faking. Not exactly." She rubbed her shoulder and started to pace around Haley. I just wasn't going as hard as I could have, I wasn't pushing myself. I didn't let you win, I just didn't fight it as hard as I could have. It's not like I laid back and let you roll over me or something."

She sighed and moved back into her stance, motioning for Haley to do the same. "It's not that simple. Never is."

Talking was good. Talking meant no hitting. No hitting meant Haley could focus on recovering, rubbing her back to soothe her spine a little, mentally chastising herself for her performance thus far. So this was Valley serious then, the Boss version. Fine. Ace would get serious too.

Straightening herself up, forcing herself to ignore the pain still shooting through her back, she gave herself a small slap to get herself back into it, raising her arms and getting back into her stance, starting to join Valley in circling.

"So....Serious Valley Doll. The Final Boss of Slamazons. I should have made you bring your belt and put it on the line."

Valley started to close in, skirting around Haley's reach, daring her to make a move and see how it went. As much as she hated to admit, submissions weren't her thing, most of the time. She had a few in her belt and she knew how to use them, but Haley was better. She was counting on the damage to even that out. "Final boss?" She swiped Haley's way, trying to psyche her out with a fake. "That'd be Bubbles Burste. But you're close."

Valley flashed a smile Haley's way, the first she'd sent in a long time, before she stepped forward like she was going for a grapple. Instead, she shot her leg out and tried to hit Haley with a hard push kick to the stomach, hoping she could knock the fresh champion off balance.

Ace managed to avoid falling for the fake out, but took the kick to her stomach, causing her to bend over and cough, backing up to try and avoid taking another kick. The woman kicked as hard as Ace did, and was more than happy to deliver them as much as she wanted.

Ace backed herself closer to the corner, turning to the side to make herself look a bit more like a target. It was a long shot, but it was an attempt to bait Valley, lead her in closer, make herself look more hurt than she was from that kick. If she could get her in close enough, reel her in, then Ace would lash out, side stepping and kicking her leg out, trying to Flash Kick Valley, like she had done before!

Another connected kick, driving Haley back. That alone filled Valley with some confidence, and along with the way she'd dominated the past few minutes, she was feeling quite high. All she had to do was take this to the mat and get in one more submission, something to focus on the back stress, and she would score a quick and righteous knockout. Simple.

Maybe that was why she didn't see the Flash Kick coming. Haley looked so meek and vulnerable, it made Valley want to end things quick to ease the pain. Instead, she just ended up with more pain than ever before. In her face.

She took the kick right in the middle of her face and fell hard on her back, rolling around with pain while her legs kicked all about. Her entire face was numb - just one, big mass of pain all over, so bad that she couldn't even tell if anything was broken. Where the heck did that come from?

It worked, beautifully. Ace wished it was still the first round, that kick would have been perfect for a pin fall attempt.

"Didn't see that coming, did ya bitch?"

She quipped, looking down at her fallen opponent while moving to get behind her. Grabbing Valley, she pulled her up to a sitting position, though she noticeably pulled Valley up by her arm, instead of her hair.

Once she was sitting up, Ace moved in behind her, dropping to one knee and wrapping her arm around Valley's neck, pulling back on her head and neck in a Dragon Sleeper hold. It wasn't perfect, and wouldn't be enough to get her to submit this early, but if there was one thing Ace's strikes and submission holds were most effective it, it was working the neck.