In the Crosshairs - Samiya Kusanagi vs Valley Doll (Non-Title)

Samiya indeed cared not a bit whether Valley lost to knockout or lost through submission. To a point, making the Entropy Champion – newly crowned and barely into her reign – submit would be a massive benefit to her. It was possible to write off a KO win as bad luck or something along those lines but a submission? That had a very definite cachet and part of Samiya was heavily invested in making Valley Doll do just that. Tap.

The rest of her, however, was taking the view that a knockout win was better than a loss, particularly one she could have won but got greedy.

As a result, if Valley tapped that would be perfect and Samiya would have been sure to thank her. If she just sat there and got knocked out though, that would work too. She was happy either way.

Particularly if the blonde’s best idea of escaping was to pull her thighs apart with her arms. That was never going to end well. Samiya’s legs might not be long but they were thick and solid with powerful muscle, built from lifting weights – there was a lot of strength there, despite her short stature. Maybe not Alicia Wells levels of leg power but the effect she was having on Valley was undeniable.

Leaning her head back, Samiya went to double down, doing her best to get her inner thighs to touch despite the fact she had a skull locked between them.

Valley had a fairly deep arsenal of moves to choose from, having worked in the business for a decade and logging more time than most women on the AFW, save for some of the older Wrestle Angels. There weren’t too many moves she didn’t know how to do in theory, even if she would have a hard time getting a normal opponent up for them.

But she was wracking her brain trying to figure this one out, and the sad fact was that she needed a counter. She ground hard on her teeth until it hurt and pushed up to her feet, but that would only get Samiya’s hands off the ground at best. She couldn’t hope to make it to the ropes like this, knowing that, regardless of whether or not she could make it, the energy cost would mean Samiya could simply lock in something worse. She could try kicking Samiya, but the angle was bad for it.

She dug deep, thought hard, until she found what she was looking for. A move she’d never had the opportunity to use before, but one that had taken her out when she was about Samiya’s age. She just hoped  it was every bit as effective now as it had been back then.

Now fully on her feet with Samiya hanging like an albatross around her neck, Valley took two steps forward, putting her legs in front of her opponent’s arms and trapping them there. She gripped the legs hard, said a quick, silent prayer, then leaped up and fell  forward at the same time, flopping down towards the mat with Samiya’s body as her cushion.

The belly-to-back inverted mat slam. Better known as the Styles Clash.

It was a temporary inconvenience to have her hands pulled off the mat and Samiya fancied they both knew it. She could still grab on to Valley’s legs or just hang off her neck, which meant that the blonde had to deal with 140 odd pounds of muscle as well as the pressure of the vice around her neck.

That would if anything make the hold worse. And she was running the same calculations as Valley and coming to the same conclusion. Regardless of what Valley did or how she got out, the amount of energy she’d have to spend to do it would swing the odds decidedly in the younger wrestler’s favour. Samiya’s stamina was almost as impressive as her raw strength; with this advantage in her court, she’d definitely be able to outlast Valley.

Still, she expected Valley to try something. Nobody was just going to limply give in but that didn’t mean Samiya expected what Valley tried. No, she didn’t see it coming at all.

She didn’t have much time to think about it either. All she got by way of warning was Valley pulling herself up straight, then finding her arms trapped.

And then she was falling and it was too late, far too late.

There was absolutely nothing for Samiya to do. Nothing at all except stare at the rapidly approaching canvas and the sure knowledge that she’d just lost this match.

Then she hit the mat face first and that was all Samiya knew.

The crowd, of course, went wild, totally taken by surprise with the the wild, unorthodox counter. Valley was probably more surprised than anyone, but that she was crazy enough to even try that and that it had worked in the first place.

The results were undeniable, though, as she laid there in a growing puddle of their mingling sweat. She couldn't see Samiya from her position, but she could feel the younger wrestler’s body well enough and could tell that she wouldn't be getting up for the next three seconds. Maybe the next ten.

The great thing about the Styles Clash was how easily you could get to a pin from it. All Valley had to do was flop over to her side, flip Samiya along with her, lift the legs and instantly be in the right position.

The referee promptly dropped to her knees and started counting, with the audience joining in.

”1…!”

Samiya came back to something vaguely resembling consciousness very quickly. She’d not been dropped on her head, after all, the force of the impact having been spread out across her whole body.

And she was aware enough to recognise that something was wrong. Her legs were up, her shoulders pressed to the mat and a weight rested on her. Dazed as she was, she was beyond anything as concrete as thinking she was being pinned. All she knew was that this was wrong.

This wasn’t how it should be.

With that, the young wrestler did her best to throw the foreign weight off her.

But her body refused to respond, the Styles Clash on top of the rest of the moves Valley had hit her with all finally catching up with her. This time, Samiya’s limbs would respond to her command not at all, leaving her helpless and stunned as the ref’s hand slapped the canvas for the second time.

”2…!” She certainly wouldn’t be kicking out of this one, and Valley could likely have got a full ten count if she so wished.

”3…!”

Valley would be lying if she said that was the most released she'd ever been to hear a three count - it was hard to beat her championship match or the battle with Julia or even her bouts with Haley. But that was likely in the top ten, especially if you kept it to AFW matches. The title hadn't been on the line officially, but in a way it had. A champion who loses her first match since getting the belt can't really call herself much of a champion, even if she gets to keep it.

The crowd was clapping, just happy to see a good match, but Valley didn't pay them much mind. She was far more focused on the woman she was still folding up, and the awkward moment that was starting to creep up between them.

She pushed Samiya off to the side, letting her lay there, as she groggily made her way up to her feet, looking at down at the woman who’d been ringing her bell for three minutes straight. She’d been a little brat, there was no getting around that, but there was a part of Valley that could respect that. Samiya was a sneaky one, but there was big difference between being cunning and cheating.

”Good match.” She turned away for a moment to take her belt back from the referee. ”If you ever want a rematch, let me know.” Valley let the belt rest on her shoulder and started out of the ring, keeping her face calm and cool despite her racing heart. ”Just don’t wait too long. I’m not getting any younger.”

And she’d lost. Just like that.

Samiya lay there, first in the pin Valley was still holding and then flat on her back, listening to the fans cheer. Of course they cheered. A match full of twists and turns, ending with the valiant champion slaying the wicked serpent in a last ditch throw of the die.

Great theatre, and it wasn’t even on the main card.

Her lips curled in a sneer. Sheep. If either of them had deserved that win, it was her. The big, bad champion in her first defence and she nearly loses to a rookie a decade her junior?

There was no way Valley Doll deserved that win and they both knew it.

And she fully expected it to be rubbed in her face, in the finest traditions of prowrestling. Perhaps that would have been out of character for what she’d seen of Valley but, in Samiya’s eyes right now, she was back fighting Jessika as much as she was up against Valley Doll.

So it was a surprise when, as Samiya pulled herself up to a knee, breathing hard, it was to congratulations and not further abuse.

The Schoolgirl Assassin just sat there at first, watching Valley go.

It wasn’t until the blonde was half through the ropes that the younger woman spoke up.

”Don’t worry.” She managed a thin smile, ”You won’t be waiting long. Don’t get too comfortable, Valerie, next time you won’t be sneaking a win.”