Tempest Tournament Round 1: Gabbie Desjardin Vs. Neske Alapo

Whatever mercy had kept Neske from getting pummeled on the ground earlier seemed to be gone now, as her opponent yanked her arm away from the rope and pulled her leg back into a twisted and contorted position, her bare foot wrenched painfully to the side. An initial, instinctual verbal cry was Neske's first response, but soon she repressed that to a low groan as she tried to figure out what to do. A rope break was the most obvious choice, something she had learned about in her first match, but she needed to press what advantages she had for the long term. And, for as much trouble as it got her into, her big mouth was probably the only weapon she had that Gabbie didn't. Besides, this girl was already looking to knock her lights out, so what's the worst that could happen?

"That the best you got, blondie?" she grunted, trying not to let the amount of pain she was in be too clearly apparent. The blondie nickname could be more original... then again, she did seem to have a splash of obnoxious pink here and there, like some sort of perky cheerleader. Maybe that would make for something more memorable. "Er, sorry, I meant pinkie."

Gabbie felt like her hold was solid. As long as she could keep Neske from reaching the ropes, she figured she could probably even make the girl submit. She didn't seem to have the fortitude to fight back much at all.

She applied more pressure just as Neske turned and looked at her. Gabbie understood that there could be a certain amount of trash talk in a fight, but when Neske spoke, her eyebrows knit more in confusion than anything else. Her grip slackened a little bit as she tried to comprehend what Neske was trying to get at. The 'best you got' comment barely even registered as Gabbie looked down at Neske.

"What are you talking about?" Gabbie said, the faintest bit of her Canadian accent coming out to make the 'about' sound a little more like an aboot. Hers definitely wasn't that bad, certainly not compared to her sister, but it was there ever so slightly.

For once, this taunting thing was working. While it certainly didn't have her free and clear, she could feel the grip on her foot loosen up a bit, enough that it was worth more prodding. "C'mon, you heard me," she continued to tease, "a brick like you should have had me- gah- put out by now! Instead you're giving me a damn foot massage!"

With her free hand, she reached out for the rope, intending to get free and back on her feet while they still kept her afloat. Assuming she could pull it off, she add a bit more taunting to keep what weird type of momentum she had going. "I just thought, you know, you were going to take this seriously is all."

Gabbie's hand tightened as Neske began to taunt her more. Saying that Gabbie already should have won the fight was true enough for Gabbie, but having Nesek say it was... bizarre. It stalled Gabbie and when Neske mentioned a foot massage, Gabbie recoiled and tossed Neseke's bare foot to the canvas.

She took a step back and opened and closed her fists while she tried to will the heat in her flushing cheeks away. She hoped Neske wasn't one of those perverts that lurked around!

"C'mon!" Gabbie said and motioned for Neske to rise. "Get up so I can put you down again!" The proud kickboxer demanded.

This was either very good, or very bad for Neske. It looked like she had succeeded in getting under Gabbie's skin, stirring the blonde boxer up into the start of a rage. This meant that she'd be sloppier, more unfocused... at least Neske thought so... that's how it works in the movies, right?

Okay. Very bad it is.

Still, maybe she could make something out of this. Using the rope to prop herself to her feet, Neske tried for a right hook towards Gabbie's face as soon as she turned around. "Just try me!" she added, hoping that this semblance of an advantage she had was something she could keep going.

Gabbie was definitely expecting Neske to stand, turn and face Gabbie before she went for an attack, however, as she turned throwing the punch, Gabbie's eyes widened. Her reflexes were good enough that she was already backpedaling away from the hidden fist, but it caught the side of her cheek enough to tilt Gabbie's head and send her reeling.

As Gabbie backpedaled, she swung her leg out and aimed her foot at Neske's belly, trying to keep the girl from following up by smacking the top of her bare foot into Neske's much softer tummy.

All things considered, Neske was pretty pleased when her blow almost landed, the skin of her hand grazing the blonde's cheek. She might even have landed a really decent hit if... well, if she didn't suck at fighting in general.

Still, as it was, close was only so good, and Neske paid for her misstep with a well placed kick landing straight into her stomach. Neske's plan, and what breath she had in her body, went with that kick, as she bent over and let out a harsh retching sound in response.

Gabbie used the opportunity to regroup and touch her cheek. Getting hit like that would have made her even more angry than she was by nearly falling for it, but as Neske bent over and wretched, Gabbie took a deep breath and bounced back towards the heaving girl.

As she closed, she once again, got close enough to where she thought she could land a good kick. She planted and then snapped her foot forward, aiming a sharp kick at Neske's head as it was bent over.

While this type of attack was certainly not new for Neske at this point, it never really lost it's "oomf," and this little ball of muscle really packed a punch (or kick, as it were) where it counted. Coughing and wheezing, Neske had just about regained her composure when a second kick went flying into her head and sending her spinning off her feet. With the two of them so close to the ropes, she nearly fell out of the ring in her bent over position, catching the middle rope just in time to land on the outside of the apron. Neske would try to use what time she had to pull herself back up to her feet and possibly into the ring, but she was definitely in a bad spot now if she wasn't already.

Gabbie's eyes widened a bit as Neske was sent careening into the ropes. She had just expected the girl to be knocked out from the kick, but even still, she didn't mean to kick the girl out of the ring. More surprising, however, was that Neske was still conscious and fumbled enough to avoid falling out of the ring.

Normally, Gabbie tried her best to keep things in the ring as much as possible, and as Neske slowly began to step up, Gabbie thought she might help her out with that a bit. The blonde moved to grab Neske by the back of her neck and pull her to a standing position on the other side of the ropes. Gabbie would then try and throw a knee between the ropes and into Neske's gut to keep her stunned.