The Weekend Before...

It was a Saturday afternoon in Tokyo, the first metropolis Caroline had ever lived in. She had only arrived two weeks ago, after living and training in Canada for nearly a year with Kei, her mentor, savior, and to Caroline, surrogate mother. She didn't have anyone else, and being away from Kei and her little family gym really stung. Especially when it meant living in such an alien environment by herself.

Japan was not an easy country to get used to. Caroline had a place to stay, in the dismal but free housing offered by Friction to its talent, but she was still homeless, in the technical sense. She had sacrificed everything for her dream of becoming a Friction wrestler, and if she proved incapable of handling the violence that came with the job, she would be on the streets again, with nowhere to go.

Fear proved to be an excellent motivator, which was why, since arriving, Caroline had spent so much time in the gym that she almost lived in it now. It was a familiar environment for her, a relatively quiet haven where she felt safe from the urban jungle of Tokyo. Shops and nightclubs lined the streets nearby, an isolated community that had grown out of the enormous Friction complex that stood at its center. A lot of the businesses were expensive tourist bait, but a manager who worked here had given Caroline the names of stores that existed primarily to supply the wrestlers, not the fans. She had even found a lesbian club nearby, but working up the courage to go inside would have taken willpower that the young rookie just didn't have right now.

Her courage was needed elsewhere. Two days ago, Caroline had gotten a phone call from the same manager that had helped her to get situated. Her debut match had been scheduled at the start of Friday night's show. Rookies like her usually debuted early in a given set of matches, but her opponent was no rookie. Lucy Stone, the Demon, was a stern, vicious woman, with a relatively short but nearly spotless record to her name. She was a submission specialist, too, a veteran in the wrestling style that Caroline was trying to learn.

With only a few days left to practice, Caroline had spared the expense for a long distance phone call to Canada, to Kei's residence, where she had stayed before. She had thanked her teacher for helping her get this far, but she had also confessed how scared she was. Even though Kei couldn't be there to help her train in person, she had made Caroline a surprising offer. She knew another veteran, one who lived in Japan. Both a rival and a trusted friend to Kei, the woman in question had given her a challenge in the ring that even she had struggled to match. Now, for the sake of the student that she had come to care for so dearly, Kei had decided to call her friend and ask if she wouldn't mind sparring with Caroline on her behalf, to help her get ready for the big day.

Now, Caroline was waiting for her new training partner to meet her, running the ropes inside an unoccupied wrestling ring to warm up for her spar. Today, she had opted to wear the same outfit that she was planning to wear to her debut match, leaving the traditional gym clothes at home. Call it a test run to see how the outfit would hold up in an actual fight, especially considering that Caroline had her fears that it wasn't modest enough.

Caroline's ring attire :

The clothes were comfortable and looked good, with a blend of red, white, and blue to give off a lively appearance. Still, in a promotion famed for promiscuity, Caroline worried that it might be considered too revealing. Her Canadian teacher had been going through a lot of stress lately, frustrated with the environment that Friction promoted, one that she considered insulting to the sport. It would break her heart if her latest graduate got turned into some kind of sex object, so Caroline was determined not to let that happen. Today, she was ready to treat her practice with the same sincere determination that had defined her in those rough days sparring with Kei and the wrestlers in her family. She was ready to push herself hard, no matter how tough her new sparring partner was...

Alaina was on her way to the gym to meet up with someone new. Caroline was a rookie Kelly trained in Canada and asked Alaina to help out once she arrived in Japan. The amazon exit the locker room in her tiger stripe swimsuit attire ahe normally wore in official matches. She figured she would be easier to pick out or more recognizable to Caroline.

Alaina saw a young wrestler running ropes and figured that this was the woman. Alaina was all smiles as she approached and waved. "Hey there!
You are Caroline right? My name is Alaina Sanders." Alaina said extending her hand once she got to the ring. "Kelly asked me to.hwlp ya out and I need to work on my game so I figured the spar would do both of us some good. I am ready when You are,
But how do ya like Japan so far? Do ya need anything?" Alaina asked hoping her talkative nature didn't overwhelm Caroline.

As soon as Caroline heard a voice calling her, and turned to look at the woman approaching the ring, her heart started hammering. Butterflies fluttered in her stomach, and her eyes went wide as she gasped in shock. The rookie had a habit of losing her composure when she met people that she idolized, and she had long been a fan of the woman entering the ring to meet her.

Alaina Sanders. She was Kei's friend and rival. Caroline remembered one of Kei's kids telling her about the spat she'd had with the Amazon, and even cheered her mentor on in their matches, but she had never expected the two to end up so close. Now, she was standing across from one of the strongest women in the Friction arena. And, judging from her greeting, one of the kindest. Struggling to keep her glee contained, Caroline met Alaina's smile with a giddy smile of her own.

“I...it's an honor to meet you, Alaina,” she said, blushing as she extended her hand to shake Alaina's, half expecting it to be crushed in an amazonian grip! “Thank you for agreeing to spar with me. Tokyo's a pretty scary place to live in, but I've gotten settled well enough. Only thing keeping me up right now is my upcoming debut.” With little delay, Caroline hopped back a couple steps to stand in the center of the ring, across from Alaina.

“Back in Canada, Kelly worked me pretty hard during practice. She would put me up against other students, or wrestlers in her family if they were around. They didn't hold much back, either; usually we'd keep going until someone was too spent to continue,” Caroline said, admiring the muscle that defined Alaina's frame. No doubt she could run the rookie into the ground if she wanted, and Carol actually needed a sparring partner like that. Her debut opponent wouldn't hold back, so Caroline needed to get acclimated to the grind before then. “Does that kind of spar sound okay to you? Kind of like an informal I Quit match; no stopping until one woman admits defeat. Maybe more than one round, if we've both got it in us.”

Alaina smiled and nodded. That was Kelly's style all the way. "Sounds good to me, I am up.for anything that you are. If you want me to go all out I will." Alaina said as she stood in the center of the ring waiting for Caroline.

As soon as Caroline climbed in the amazon would begin circling her. "All Right, you are new so you can let me know when we start Caroline." Alaina was not at all sure of what Carolines skills were, and she seemed to know Alaina which put the amazon at a bit of a disadvantage to start.

“Thanks, Alaina,” Caroline said, hopping in place with excitement. “I know my limits and won't let you bang me up too bad, but learning how to take hits and get back up is a big part of this sport.” While Alaina had earned fame as a powerhouse, her strikes and submissions had always been pretty effective as well. Caroline wasn't complaining; it would make for a great lesson to fight a woman that could threaten her from multiple angles.

Once the two women were facing each other with the corners at their backs, Caroline started by doing something that she never would have done in a real match: offering Alaina a lockup. She wasn't going to win in a strength contest against such a ripped opponent, but she had dreamed of testing her strength against the Amazon one day, and this could very well be her only chance.

“Mind if I get a demonstration of what those muscles can do?” Carol asked, bracing herself in preparation for the contest she had provoked.

Alaina stretched out loosening up on as she readied herself. "If you want to lock up, I will happily oblige! I hope you are ready!" Alaina said as she lunged in, grappling with Caroline!

Alaina have it her all, trying her best to drive Caroline straight back against the corner as hard as she could! Alaina wasn't out to hurt Caroline, but she did want to help prepare her son the rookie was getting the full power of the amazon!

“Alright, I'm ready for yrrrggg!” Caroline's bravado faltered along with her body as the Amazon plowed into her with crushing force. Warm to the touch, Alaina's body still felt like steel to Caroline as the two pushed against each other, and one step at a time, Alaina took strides forward as her opponent got pushed back. It didn't help that Caroline was a little starstruck at the moment, feeling flattered that she got to pit her body against Alaina's in person even though the Amazon was probably going to thrash her!

Fun as it was, it was also a moment of stark humility for Caroline as she couldn't even muster the stability to enact a counteroffensive before Alaina pushed her butt straight into the corner. Her curiosity had been satisfied at the cost of letting Alaina trap her in the corner early, and Caroline quickly got her head in the game as she resolved to prove that Kei hadn't misjudged her. Raising a foot, Caroline stomped down on one of Alaina's boots and pressed both of her forearms into the Amazon, trying to maintain some space between the two women. She couldn't stop her opponent from punishing her in the corner, but she was happy to make Alaina work for it, at least!

Alaina felt the immediate success slow down and the stomp on her foot especially! Alaina groaned as Caroline did slow her up bit she did force Caroline back, trying to press her into the corner as hard as she could. Once there Alaina would send a couple hard knee strikes to Carolina's abdomen and back off to the center of the ring.

"Not bad, but show me what you can do now, come on!" Alaina encouraged as she crouched s bit, her arms up as she readied herself. She knew Caroline was going to come fast and hard not wanting Alaina's press to the corner to go unanswered.

Alaina's knee hit Caroline with the force of a cannonball, twice bouncing her against the corner until she was doubled over, coughing for air. It felt like her stomach had been launched up into her rib cage, and she clutched her tender midsection when Alaina backed off. No less than what Caroline had expected, but the Amazon had the strength to make every hit debilitating.

Peeling herself away from the corner, the rookie walked forward with her arms up and a stern expression on her face. Just like her practice matches against Jesse, Caroline needed to play carefully and make her movements deliberate. It looked like she was going to lock up with Alaina again, but as soon as the women were in reach of one another, Carol ducked under Alaina's arms and tried to swivel around behind her. Wrapping her arms tight around Alaina's waist, she sucked in a breath and tried to pull the Amazon into the air, throwing her down to the canvas behind them with a release german suplex. A simple slam, but one that Caroline had given and taken in practice many times.

Alaina moved in and Caroline skipped past her! Before Alaina could react she was lift up into the air. The crash landing on her head and neck shook the ring as the amazon howled in pain, rolling to her side and grabbing the back of her head!

Caroline hammered Alaina and the amazon was on the mat not getting up right away after that suplex!