[FWC] Peace Of Mind - Mikoto Kusanagi vs. Chris Morgan

Mikoto clutched onto the chokehold for dear life after finally taking the phenom off her feet, the crowd cheering at the sight as the Japanese girl may finally be making some headway. While it may not have been a well advised maneuver to get so close and personal to a woman with such immense strength, Miko was banking on the surprise factor to give her an edge in hopes that the takedown would also shift the momentum back in her favor. Sometimes fighting smart meant taking risks, and if Miko was too afraid to take a chance then she wouldnâ€t have challenged Chris in the first place.

Gritting her teeth as she wrenched in the hold as tight as she could, she heard the effects of the chokehold wear her down with the sound of Chris†exasperated breaths, feeling the heavy pants roll down her neck. Mikoto draped her left leg around the phenoms abs as she pulled them closer together, her arms locked behind Chris with her neck and left arm caught in the hold and seemingly incapacitated for all Miko knew…

Although the Japanese woman was nowhere her size and had maybe a fraction of her power, Chris was well versed on the dangers a properly applied chokehold could bring. She fought down the natural panic that being deprived of air brought on, instead measuring out her air the same way a miser measured out coins.

The veteran got her bearings. Although her arm was neatly bound up in Mikoto's hold, Chris still had the other arm and her legs.
Her very long legs, attached to her very tall body.
She began to push with her legs, turning her body about, each breath of effort leaving her body in a ragged gasp. Once she was sufficiently turned the blonde used both her legs and arm to pull and push herself along the mat, respectively.

Ignoring the fact that her vision was getting alarmingly blurry, with a final surge, Chris draped her foot onto the ropes. The act brought on a chorus of boos from the crowd as the ref began to call for a rope break.

With every squirming movement from Chris towards the ropes the priestess tried to wrench in the choke hold even further. The Phenomenon used every part of her freed body to masterfully maneuver both of them the shortest distance across the ring, making use of every breath she had and staying calm despite slowly being deprived of oxygen. Even though Mikoto by now was more than familiar with the strength of her opponent,(That power bomb was going to give her nightmares, she knew it), to feel the Californian power on through what would normally be a debilitating choke hold in the middle of the ring...it was unreal. *Please....please....stop moving....please*, Miko kept her eyes shut and shifted as much weight as she could on Chris until she felt the ref tap her shoulder for the rope break.

Miko reluctantly released the hold with some frustration and took a few steps back to give them both some time to recover, Miko herself especially, wanting to soothe her aching back but standing tall so as not to show weakness. For all of the contempt Chris stirred up in the priestess, to have that much mat awareness and the strength to make use of it, Miko really was facing a former champion.

When Mikoto released the hold Chris took a deep breath into lungs that burned for lack of air. Once the ref forced the separation and the Japanese miko stepped away, the blonde rolled out of the ring, looking to get the distance and time she needed to recover from such a hold.

*'Strikes, slams, throws. You can harden your body and muscles through training to take the impact of moves like that. But chokeholds....those are different. You can't tell your body to simply stop breathing. No, that's where guts comes into play. All you can do is calm your mind and find an escape...quickly.'* Chris remembered the words of her trainer, spoken long ago during her early days as a wrestler. Of course, then she was chosen to be the chokeout victim, supposedly to demonstrate that size of the victim didn't matter. But Chris knew it was simply because she was the foreigner, the outsider. Still, the lesson held true.

The crowd booed Chris's course of action, even though a more objective person might say it was a wise one. She would pace about the perimeter of the apron, drawing the referee to begin the ten count, shaking her head to clear it, continuing to catch her breath....

Chris†seemed to have a knack of earning the ire of the audience as there was no shortage of disgruntled audience members due to her decision to leave the ring, booing her now even more than before. Mikoto herself would start to get irritated by the Chris†actions, witnessing the phenom retreat for a much needed respite. Although it was a smart maneuver on Chris†behalf, now Mikoto had to risk pursuing the Californian outside or risk all her work wearing down Chris be for nothing.

While it bothered Mikoto immensely not to immediately press her advantage, every time she acted with her emotions that night she was summarily countered and put in her place by the Colossus. But this time she decided to act strategically and finally continue to put her deadly strikes to good use. Sliding outside soon after Chris, Miko would as stealthily as she could approach her opponent from behind and clutch her right shoulder to steady herself before delivering a devastating strike to the phenoms lower back to hopefully bring her down to her knees.

Chris leaned on the apron, her vision clearing as air circulated once again through her frame. The ref was still counting, but was barely at four. She looked up into the ring, wanting to gauge Mikoto's reaction to the American's escape. What she saw gave her cause for alarm.

Mikoto wasn't in the ring.

One of the lesson's she had learned the hard way was 'If your opponent has mysteriously vanished, it's only to waylay you. Or has decided to flee to the back.' And somehow, Chris doubted Mikoto had retreat on her mind.
She had begun to look over her shoulder when pain exploded in her back, making her cry out sharply. Mikoto had struck her hard from behind, the crowd cheering Mikoto's tactic as the force of the impact dropped Chris to her hands and knees.
For her part, Chris was always amazed by the crowd's loyalty for those they had chosen. She viewed striking an unaware opponent as something of a gutter fighter's tactic. But the crowd threw their support behind it with a loud roar.
She brought a hand to her pained back, trying to soothe it as the crowd cheered on.
"Coward...I'll...get you..." she gasped out, wrath and pain battling in her voice...

What the phenom said struck a chord with the priestess, a perplexed look on her face as she took a step back while Chris crumbled to her hands and knees from the precision strike. Although no one could fault Mikoto for taking advantage of every opening her opponent gave her, especially against a competitor of Chris†caliber, was her maneuver so underhanded that a woman as unethical as Morgan saw it as shady?

Snapping herself out of her contemplation, she ran to the phenomâ€s side to yank her up by her hair and pin her to the side apron with her forearm against her collarbone. Mikoto raised her clenched fist in the air with a look of utter contempt for her opponent, prepping herself for her next assault…….but instead stalled for several seconds while the audience echoed their support for Miko. Her internal conflictions could be seen by anyone with eyes. She FINALLY had the Californian in a possession of vulnerability…an opportunity she may never see again….and….yet….

“……No.” Mikoto instead took several steps back and allowed Chris the time she needed to regain her composure, some of the crowd for the first time that night voicing their disapproval with the priestess. “I….Iâ€m not afraid of you Chris. And if Iâ€m going to be the last Wrestle Angel to defeat you…..then I want there to be no doubt that I was the better competitor that day, and not because of a shady maneuver. ”

With that Miko would walk over to apron and slide inside the ring to sit on the middle rope, offering Chris a way back inside so the two cold continue the match proper.

The crowd roared as Chris was forced back against the apron, with the Miko's forearm at her neck. The sight of it should have been funny, the much smaller girl having someone as big as Chris at her mercy, but the humor was lost on the American at the moment.
*Now, the beating will start.* she thought as Mikoto's fist came up. She knew her being in the league, as well as her choice of words was going to take the Wrestle Angel to a dark place, and was ok with it. Chris didn't come asking for quarter, mercy, or even forgiveness and was ready to deal with the consequences of that. She raised her gaze defiantly to meet Mikoto's.

However Mikoto lowered her fist after a moment, drawing a loud boo from the crowd. Chris had to strain to pick her words up over the noise as the woman spoke.
Watching with an eyebrow raised in astonishment as Mikoto went to the ropes, allowing her back in. Slowly, cautiously, she began to make her way back into the ring, ready for betrayal.
She paused before climbing back in. If Mikoto didn't attack, she'd speak, softly, words meant for Mikoto alone.
"For what it's worth, I didn't come back to make anyone fear me." she said. "But, you won't stop me." she added determinedly.

Once back in the ring, Chris readied herself.
"Alright then, I'll make you one promise." she said loudly. "I won't leave this ring willingly, until the match is done."
She paused, thinking about her actions after the scandal of the Wrestle Angel's collapse. Chris had run then, shocked and outright frightened of the accusations and outrage flung her way. She had returned to her family, who were more than eager to hear their daughter give up on being a wrestler and instead develop her other accounting and business management talents. Chris had done well in that regard, but she had always felt like something was wrong, something was missing. Here, now, facing a Wrestle Angel in the ring, Chris began to put her finger on what it might be.
*I should've stayed. I was afraid. My dream of being a wrestler, a champion, had turned into the punchline of a bad joke, and just about everyone at the league looked at me with accusing eyes. But I should've stayed anyway. Faced all of the accusations head on, looked the other wrestlers in the eye and explained myself. If I did, maybe things would've been better. No, I'm the real coward. But I can still face the accusers. Head on. No more running.*
"I should have never have left it." Chris added, her voice thick with emotion before she readied herself.

Mikoto could hardly blame anyone for thinking her noble act of fair play was an idiotic and nonsensical decision that had no place in the wrestling ring against a competitor of Chris†caliber. Every advantage not taken was an opening gift wrapped to her opponent, whose immense strength and experience made her the world champion over so many other talented Wrestle Angel competitors. Probably every other wrestler back there would have taken Chris apart at that point, and with so much of the crowd cheering for the phenomâ€s downfall they would have been justified to give the people what they want.

But this wasnâ€t their fight, and Mikoto knew that simply squeaking by with a win over the colossus may not curtail any plans she had for the Wrestle Angel survivors. But defeating the phenom in a fair manner and show of superiority may discourage her enough to put a halt or slow down any plans she had for her friends.

The phenomâ€s contrasting statements made Miko raise an eyebrow in confusion, still laying against the ropes with one foot on the bottom. What did she have planned that didnâ€t involve making herself come off as a threat if she already made it clear her intention to take this life away from Miko and every other former wrestle angel? All of her vague, bold declarations at Mikoâ€s weakness and inability to oppose her almost made her fall back into that pit of blinding rage, but she kept her cool with a deep breath and responded coldly, “Then let me make you one promise to you……to never give up or back down against you long as I draw breath.”

With that Miko dashed forward bouncing off the ropes for an extra speed boost. Once a few feet from her colossal opponent the priestess would drop down into a slide and spread her legs while on her side hoping to trap Chrisâ€s ankles between them and trip her to her side once she scissored them together.

*Well it's good that she's went and found her courage.* Chris thought to herself after Mikoto spoke. *She'll need it if Hibiki comes looking for her. Granted it's focused on me...but it's fine.*
At the same time, Chris knew she had to win against Mikoto, no matter what her feelings were on the matter. It was the only way to get and hold Hibiki Izayoi's attention.

She readied herself and when Mikoto ran at her, Chris stayed on guard. As the Asian dropped low into the slide, Chris widened her stance and crouched slightly, bracing herself. She was going to use her greater mass to resist the force of Mikoto's legs trying to scissor close and take her feet out from under her.
Of course, that would leave Mikoto directly under her, in close proximity. Once she stabilized herself, Chris would reach down with both hands, one hand grabbing the miko's arm. The other would curl under the small of Mikoto's waist. Once the handholds were secured, Chris would give a loud shout as she would try to deadlift the Japanese woman from the mat, up into the air, the blonde standing up straight, before suddenly bending sharply back down to drive her opponent backfirst to the mat in a harsh spinebuster!