Natasha Han vs. Valley Doll - It's a Long Way to the Top

A bath. No, a shower. A hot, steaming shower.

Valley realized how wholly unprofessional it was to just let her mind wander like this before the bell rang, but after such a gruelling, long match, she couldn't help it. She'd earned the repreive, and after she found exactly why Natasha Han was so hell-driven to beat her, she swore she was taking a week off. Her career could endure a little sabbatical at this point, and her legs certainly would benefit from it.

She was ready for a nice, long nap. Ready to sleep for a solid day. She could picture it...and then Natasha rose her shoulder and shattered the dream.

If you could even call what she did 'raising her shoulder'. It was more like a spasm, and if it hadn't been for the timing, that would be exactly what Valley would dismiss it as. But no - she'd broken the count with only a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of a second to spare. Natasha Had wasn't finished. She could still go.

Valley banged her fist against the mat as the audience cheered, letting out a quick growl of annoyance. No, not the most sportsmanlike behavior, but most sportsman never met an opponent this stubborn. Valley's nerves were officially frayed.

Fine. If that was the way it would have to be, fine. Valley had one move left, and she knew how to spend it: by unleashing the WMD of wrestling kicks. If this didn't end the match, then nothing would.

Valley made her way over to the nearest corner and hopped up, taking a perch on the top rope and overlooking the carnage. She'd watch and wait, keeping a close eye as Natasha started to rouse. As soon as she stood up and turned her way, Valley intended to leap into action - she'd jump up, fly rigth at her, and bring the heel of her boots into Natasha's chest with the best missile drop kick of her entire live. No more games, no playing around.

Natasha couldn't believe it. She couldn't believe that she had managed to break the pin. Somehow she was still in this and she honestly couldn't figure out how. Her head was absolutely murdering her (though, thankfully, her vision was starting to clear) and her body didn't feel like it had anything left in it. She felt defeated. She didn't think she could go on, and she was just waiting for Valley to try and pin her again.

But...the second pin never came. The Russian felt the Slamazon sliding off of her, could hear the footsteps of the blonde walking away from her. What was she doing? It was puzzling. The woman had victory, why wasn't she taking it?

Natasha remained on the mat, staring upwards, towards the bright, burning lights of the arena, as her vision slowly but surely cleared up. Whatever Valley's reasons for leaving her here, Natasha wasn't going to complain. She was getting some much needed rest, a final chance at gathering her strength for the remainder of the match. It sounded crazy in her head, that this match was still going. She couldn't believe it, but she wasn't going to complain, not when she was being given one final chance to turn this around.

She stayed there on the mat for as long as she thought she was safe, drawing in what little strength, what little energy she could muster. She wasn't going to rush things, but she didn't want to risk staying down for too long. When she felt like she was finally ready, she took a deep breath, inhaling sharply, then began sit up. It was slow going, but she couldn't rush herself, couldn't push herself too hard. She sat up, and shook her head, clearing out what cobwebs she had left, then began to struggle her way up to her feet. It took her a moment, and her legs were shaky, but she was standing. Now she just had to find Valley and find out what she was up to.

That didn't take long at all.

Natasha raised her head up when she finally got back to her feet, and just happened to look towards the turnbuckle, just in time to see the Slamazon leaping off of it, jumping towards her with outstretched legs, the missile dropkick to end all dropkicks.

Shit!

The moment she saw Valley leaping towards her, Natasha's body exploded into motion, the Russian acting fully on instinct again. She threw herself to the side, out of the way of the deadly attack, and collapsed against the ropes, turning to head to watch as the Slamazon's attack missed her completely!

The Missile Dropkick. Mother of all aerial moves. The end-all, the be-all, the absolute best Valley could throw at any wrestler. How long had it been since she had the chance to break this one out? Years, at least. The last time she did, it was against Rachel Skye in a hellacious Hell in a Cell match. Valley had been working her over near the end, but the girl simply would not stay down, no matter how many hurricanranas or high kicks were shoved down her throat. But the missile dropkick did the trick. The missile dropkick always did the trick.

Rachel Skye had been fresher than Natasha was now, and she was a good six inches taller than the Russian. This would annihilate her and give the fans the sort of finish they deserved. No question in her mind.

Natasha was rising, and Valley watched on like a hawk in the sky, eying her prey. Timing was the key, here. Valley had to launch herself in the golden moment after Natasha turned around, but right before her brain registered the situation enough to do something about it. People always acted like the high-risk style of wrestling was all about gambling, and maybe that was true - but, even in Poker, there was skill in reading your opponents. No different, here.

"That's right." Valley muttered as Natasha started to stand, gathering what little bearings she could. The crowd called out warnings, but they were lost in the sea of noise. No help. "Turn around. Turn around, let me see those big, gray eyes..."

Her patience was rewarded and Valley took flight as soon as Natasha turned around, flying through the air like a blonde bombshell. She twisted her body, brought her legs in, and came careening straight towards the Russian's impressive chest with the last move of the match.

Her last move, anyway. Natasha might be able to get in a few more, because when Valley's attack was missing one, crucial detail - a target.

"No-" Valley had a half-second to scream before she crashed and crashed hard, right on her butt. The momentum sent her tumbling so far that she might have fallen out of the ring, if not for her flopping legs crashing against the ropes before she did. Shame, too, because getting out of the ring would definitely be a good idea, now. Valley was on the canvas, she was staring up at the ceiling, she was in a world of pain, and she was suddenly feeling quite vulnerable.

This was amazing. This was perfect. Natasha had been given one more chance, one final shot at finishing off Valley. She couldn't have asked for a more perfect setup. The Slamazon was down, and Natasha was standing, and she knew, she absolutely knew that this match belong to her.

She pushed herself off of the ropes, the mighty Russian stumbling towards Valley's fallen body, sheer determination burning in her eyes as she approached the buxom blonde. She dropped to her knees (or rather, fell onto them) near Valley's legs, and reached for the two long, toned limbs. With a tired grunt passing through her lips, she lifted them up, trying to turn Valley over, trying to put the woman onto her belly against the mat.

As Natasha began to do this, the crowd began to roar again, knowing what was coming. They had seen Natasha end many matches like this before, and they were eager to see her do it again. The Russian forced the sound of their cheers and yells out of her head though, trying to focus on Valley, trying to focus on what needed to be done. She didn't have the time or the energy to waste, not after the exhausting, grueling fight that she and Valley had just been through.

Once the Slamazon was on her stomach, Natasha let go of one of her legs, still holding onto the other. She went to bend it backwards, towards Valley's back, then leaned forward, sliding onto the woman in the process, tugging on her leg to trap it firmly between her own thighs. Then, her arms slipped forwards, around the blonde's head, her hands clasping with each other in front of Valley's face.

Then, she simply began to pull backwards on the woman, trying to pull Valley backwards, working the woman into her finisher, the deadly STF known as the Honorbound!

Valley had seen enough of Natasha's matches to have a fairly good idea of what was coming next, though it wasn't as if knowing would help her one bit. While she'd thought of a few ways to escape this move, all of them involved having enough energy to move and escape the hold before it was properly locked in, stopping the process before it could really begin. She hadn't had that much energy for a good little while in this matchup

That didn't stop her from trying, though. After Natasha turned her over, Valley tried to crawl forward, hoping in vain that she might be able to roll out of the ring to safety. No. No such luck. She'd barely even started before she felt Natasha's oppressive weight coming down on her back, pinning her down to the mat. There'd be no escape, at least not like that. Valley was going to have to suffer through the STF.

It was a move she'd become very familiar with in the AFW - her ex-girlfriend, Silver Ace, loved doing it, and she had her own 'special variation', where she nibbled on Valley's ear in the process. Somehow, she doubted Natasha would throw in that little addition, but all the same, she was fully aware of how devastating this hold could be. When she screamed as Natasha cranked the hold, it was a real scream. Full-blooded and deafening.

Haley could lock in a great STF, but Valley had to say that Natasha's was worse. Maybe because they were both so desperate at this point, maybe because Valley's body was failing, maybe because Natasha was just plain stronger. Whatever the reason, the hold was excruciating, and she had to fight against every ounce of reason in her body not to tap out. Not yet. Not like this. Something about Natasha's defiance spurred defiance in her, as well - if the Russian was going to be so stubborn, thenshe could, too.

"No..." Valley reached out and started to crawl foward as best she could, forcing her free leg to aide in the effort and push against the canvas behind them. Every inch was pure torture, every twist from Natasha brought out a new shriek. But she could reach the ropes. She knew she could.

The moment Natasha had her hold locked in, the moment that she had Valley wrapped up in her arms, she began to yank back on her, pulling on the blonde as hard as she possibly could.

Every muscle in her body was on fire. Every part of her was screaming at herself to stop. She didn't have the strength to do this, she didn't have the energy, but somehow, she was still carrying on, still straining as hard as she possibly could to hurt Valley, to force the stubborn woman to finally submit.

Her muscles flexed and bulged. Sweat dripped from her tall, toned form. Growls and groans of pain and determination passed her lips. This was it. This was her one chance. Valley had to submit. She just had to! There was no way for her to escape from this!

Even when the Slamazon began to tiredly try to crawl towards the ropes, Natasha refused to relent, trying to pull back harder, trying to punish the woman for her defiance. She grit her teeth, staring at Valley as she strained herself, trying to force the submission from the woman.

"Come on!" she screamed, her body aching as she desperately waited for Valley to admit defeat. "Submit!!"

Natasha had been going at Valley like they'd restarted the Cold War, almost since the bell rang. God, how long ago was that? Ten minutes? Fifteen? Valley had completely lost track of time. It felt like hours. Her body was crying like they'd gone on for days.

She'd wondered what drove Natasha so hard, why she was wrestling like a woman possessed, but now that they'd come down to the wire, now that they were so close to the end, Valley decided that she just did not care. Not right now. Maybe, when the dust settled, she'd start wondering enough to pop the question, but right now her mind was singularly focused, and the intensity that Natasha brought had rubbed off. She couldn't let the Russian win. She wasn't sure why that was so important, but it was. It undoubtedly was.

Valley's hand started to raise, like she was going to tap, and the audience gasped as they expected it. She wasn't sure where that came from. Maybe a reflex, her body working against her will and doing what it knew she was supposed to do. Whatever the case, she overrode the command and slammed her fist into the canvas, then dug her nails in and continued the slow trek. Her shrieks and screams were becoming a garbled mess, but, all the same, she was moving.

Some of the crowd cheered her on, other demanded that she submit. Valley ignored them all. The only voice she cared about what the husky Russian accent bellowing in her ears.

Valley buried her face into the mat and barked right back at Natasha. "Not. Happening. Han!" Valley reached out for the ropes, stretched her arms to the fullest...and still couldn't quite reach them. A foot away? Two feet? It hardly mattered. It felt like a mile.

"Yes. It. IS!" Natasha roared back at Valley with her own defiance, as she tried to crank Valley back further, trying desperately to force her submission. How the hell was she managing to pull herself towards the ropes like this?! It didn't make any sense! She was beaten down, she was just as tired as Natasha! The Russian had done everything she could to stop Valley! There was no way she could be dragging herself to the ropes like this!

It was frustrating, but Natasha could deal with frustration. She channeled it into fury, and used that fury to pull back harder on Valley, trying as hard as she possibly could to stop the blonde. "Just give up!" She screamed, her arms clenching tighter around the Slamazon. Then, suddenly...Valley stopped. There were so close to the ropes, but the blonde had stopped. She was trying to reach the ropes, but they were still out of her range. This was it. This was perfect. Natasha knew she had her now, she just knew it!

<Just give up and submit to me!> she screamed, fury and rage and desperation in her voice, her words falling back into their native Russian tongue. She was so close, and she just knew that Valley couldn't escape her now...

Just when Valley didn't think it could get any worse, it got worse. It got exponentially worse.

Valley's screams were so harsh now that they tortured her throat, adding that bit of annoying pain to the ever-growing heap. Her body felt like it was on the edge of failing, and she just kept pushing it on, knowing that it would mean three weeks out of the ring, at least. She didn't care. If that was the price she had to pay, so be it.

Closer...

Valley didn't understand a word of what Natasha said next, but the tone was enough for her to get the gist. She'd watched enough Rocky and Bullwinkle episodes to have a fairly good idea of the best way to respond, too. "Nyet!"

Closer...

Valley pulled herself and Natasha along, banged her fist into the mat in an act of pure rebellion, and reached out for the ropes, stretching her arm so hard and far that she almost thought she might dislocate it.

Natasha held on, as tight as she could. With every single last ounce of strength she could muster, she pulled on Valley. She felt her muscles straining, her body stretched to the very limit, as she struggled to make the persistent Slamazon give in to her. The seconds rolled by, the blonde's screams filling her ears, the Russian desperately thinking with each moment that this is it, she's done, she has to be.

That was why, when Valley's hand finally reached the ropes, grabbing onto it, the Russian absolutely could no believe. It just didn't compute in her mind that Valley had really, truly, actually made it to the ropes.

She stared at Valley in shock, in complete and utter disbelief, and didn't even realize that she hadn't let the hold go yet until the referee was in her face, yelling at her to let Valley go. Natasha quickly released her at that moment, and rolled off of the Slamazon and onto her back, lying beside her and staring up towards the ceiling again.

This was stupid. This was insane. There was no way that Valley could have escaped. It was impossible. Natasha struggled with her thoughts, fighting to make sense of the last few seconds of the match, and when she was unable to think of an answer, she sat up, shaking her head and vowing not to worry about. At least, she wouldn't worry until after the match, when she could watch the footage and see what had gone wrong for her.

She started to pick herself up, slowly, a little bit at a time. Once she was back on her feet, she was even more shaky then before, the Russian barely finding the strength to stand. She stepped away from Valley, and let out an infuriated, downright pissed off growl at the woman.

<Come on!> she barked at her, keeping her tired gaze on the blonde, waiting for her to get back up to her feet. <Get back up! If you want to keep fighting, then we'll keep fighting!>