Entropy Championship Title Match: Valley Doll (C) vs. Emily Nelson - Better Angels [FWC]

For what felt like an eternity, the ringing sang in Emily's head as she lay sprawled on her back. Her eyes remained stubbornly closed as she lay flat on her back, Valley draped across her like the mourning lover out of some opera. Slowly but surely, the still-Entropy champion began to stir.

Emily, however, remained unresponsive. Up close, Valley would see the gash that the cutter had widened in her forehead, painting a red streak down her face that narrowly missed covering one eye. For a moment, some in the crowd harbored the fear that the Noble Fighter might have been concussed by that brutal finisher from Valley.

Thankfully, Emily finally showed signs of life as Valley poked her. "Whaa..." she groaned, her eyes fluttering groggily at her opponent's question. Her head turned slightly as she blinked up at the ceiling, though she still seemed completely dazed by that blow to the head.

Valley knew all too well how devastating a properly executed Cutter could be, having suffered through quite a few in her career and taking more than a few from her girlfriend. All the same, she was a little distressed when she didn’t get much response from Emily. Injury and serious damage was a possibility in every match, but she’d led a more blessed life than many wrestlers in that respect, having never sustained nor caused anything serious. She really hoped Emily Nelson was not the woman who broke that streak.

”Hey.” Valley kneeled by her and looked down into her eyes as the referee rolled out to get some first aid. The Noble Fighter was leaking from her forehead - not too nasty, in Valley’s opinion, but it needed some serious attention.

”You okay in there, Em?” Valley held up three fingers, made sure Emily could get them into view. ”How many am I holding up?”

Slowly but surely, the ringing in Emily's ears began to fade, and with this fading, awareness began to creep back in. In particular, Emily gradually became aware that she was lying flat on her back in the middle of the ring, that her head was throbbing like a drum, and that Valley was kneeling over her, a look of genuine concern on her face. With this awareness came the slow and painful realization that she had just lost.

No, not lost, lost badly. In two decisive moves, Valley had countered what Emily had thrown at her and KO'd her in the centre of the ring. She had come into this battle to fight Valley for the Entropy belt, and more importantly, to avenge the Wrestle Angels by ending Valley's win streak against them...but instead she had just become another notch on the American's belt. Here, in front of this wide audience, she had been left battered and bleeding in the center of the ring.

She wanted to swear and curse, to leave the ring almost immediately and be alone. She had been beaten before, true, but never when she had been so determined for victory, and never when the rewards of victory and the price of defeat had been so great. She had been so close, so close to winning the Entropy Belt, and if she had fought smarter instead of going for another lockup like a bloody idiot...

She forced her eyes closed. No, she wasn't going to go down that road. She had seen what the agony of defeat had done to Natasha, after her own repeated losses to Valley. She remembered the cripply self-doubt that had almost made the Russian abandon her career entirely and dragged her through the depths of depression. Emily was not going to go down that road. As much as this defeat stung, for her own sake, she was going to put it behind her.

She opened here eyes again. Her vision was a lot less blurry now. She told herself that that had been genuine dizziness, not welling tears. "Three," she said wearily. "I'm fine. That wee kick o' yours wasn't as bad as ye thought."

She tried to get up. Dizziness, and an aching back, quickly prevented her from doing so.

"Although," she added weakly, "I won't say no to a hand up."

Valley sighed, relieved, as Emily spurred back to life. While looks could always deceive, the Wrestle Angel was okay as near as she could tell - wozzy, sure, but that was the sort of thing that happened when you repeatedly took shots to the skull. Went with the job.

”Tch.” Valley scoffed and gave Emily a little shove on the shoulder, shaking her head at the jab. ”You insult my kicks and then you want a hand up? I see how it is.”

With a hint of a smile still on her face, she stood up and took Emily by the arm, helping her back to her feet. It wasn’t the easiest task, given the size difference and the fact that both their bodies were battered, broken messes, but she pulled it off. When she did, she kept hold of that hand and gave it a solid shake, as she looked up to meet Emily’s eyes.

”Great match. Almost had me a couple of times…” Valley chewed her lip and let her head slant to the side. ”Maybe more than a couple being fair. A lot more. Rematch, sometime?”

Emily accepted Valley's hand and her help up. It was difficult at first-- a combination of weariness and dizziness made it hard to stand initially, and she nearly lost her balance and fell into Valley. Somehow, though, she managed to stand to her full height and accept Valley's firm handshake with one of her own.

"Absolutely, lass," she said with a smile. "Any time, and any place." She winced a little, and clutched her head. She was going to need stitches, she realized with dread as her palm came away wet and slightly red. "Just...if I ever again say I want a falls count anywhere match, please shoot me."