AV 17 Rookie tournament: Zoey Jao Oh vs. Eliza Morgan

She wasn’t moving. She wasn’t moving. She wasn’t moving.

Zoey had this. She fucking had this. Once she took off, there was no stopping her. The crowd held its breath as she neared her target, anticipating the strike that could turn this whole match around in the blink of an eye. They were about to see their golden girl faceplant on the canvas. All she had to do was make this kick connect, and the match was as good as hers.

To be honest, Zoey kind of needed this. Even if she did somehow end up losing this thing, she hadn’t had many moments thus far that would end up on her highlight reel. She was hoping to walk away with at least couple after fighting in the biggest match of her career. This move would more than makeup for it. For all the losses up to now. For all the lost momentum. For all the humiliation. For everything.

Until it whiffed.

Fuck you, Universe.

Her jumping spinning backward roundhouse kick rarely missed out of the two other times in her life that she used it. It was usually quick enough that most people couldn’t track it. Guess Eliza wasn’t as much of a musclehead as Zoey first thought. She slipped out from under the kick with just the right timing, earning Zoey an uncomfortable snag on the ropes as she fell onto her side against the floor. Wasn’t a serious tumble though, she stood right back and up and got ready for a follow-up.

She was met with a fucking stampede.

Eliza's shoulder rushed her harder than Vlad the Impaler. It dug into her abdomen and she immediately went horizontal, slapping into the canvas with a sickening thud. Something cracked. She swore it did. A rib or something, but all that muscle shot right through her. For the moment, she was a painting, sweaty mess, rolling left and right on the canvas. The entire Russian audience winced, then let out a collective cheer as the match had clearly entered the home stretch. The All-American had just come soaring ahead of her on their race to the peak. But Zoey wasn’t done. She could still fight back. In the one way she could.

Talking.

“You...you got fucking-” She let out. “You got fucking lucky.”

Eliza had gone through enough from Zoey, all the taunts, the dirty hits and the humiliation tactics…needless to say, the All-American was far less than charitable to give the Korean-American her moment. She had many chances to have that.

She waited for the right time. The exact moment. And once she saw that window opening, she went for it. It was a close call though, slipping under the kick and making a break for it to the ropes. Building up speed and momentum, she came back on a massive collision course towards the TKD chick. And what a collision it was. Not just that, it was like she was impaling the young girl, driving her shoulder deep into her abs, Eliza delivering a spear that would make Goldberg proud. Eliza might make do well at football perhaps. Football. Not Soccer. And definitely not the lingerie stuff either.

The Texan panted, looking down at the Korean-American. She knew that had to hurt like a bitch, going through another massive crash in the demolition derby. Was it enough to shut her up though?

Hell naw.

Much to the annoyance of Eliza, but she turned the tables, the crowd cheering her on, loving the high impact move that they had seen. Victory was oh so close for the Texan, she could just taste it. Sitting on her butt, her right fist clenched tightly, shaking it as the Russian audience cheer on for their American hero.

Wow, that last part of the sentence was weird, wasn’t it?

But it didn’t matter, the crowd was cheering. She wondered if that was how Goku felt when he made that spirit bomb. It’s such a nice feeling to have people on your side supporting you.

“Man, do you ever shut up?” She shook her head. Eliza had no time to waste, the opportunity was there for her. She had to take it. Rising up to her feet, one knee first then both feet next, the sweat sheened on her toned body, the young Texan brushing back her short blonde locks. She had an idea once she looked at the turnbuckle. It was a risk but she could pull it off and have her own moment. Eliza still had her chances.

Reaching down and grabbing Zoey’s head once more, this time remembering to be aware of any low blow opportunities as she looked to bring the TKD Maven up to her feet. Once she got her up, Eliza channelled most of her strength to lift up the Korean-American, hand hooked on the back of her legs and hopefully have her seated on top of the turnbuckle.

Holy god damn, where was the fucking truck that hit her?

That spear felt more like a javelin being shot into her gut after being launched across a field at 50 MPH. She knew Eliza was strong, this match made sure to clue her into that very early on, but damned if she didn’t know how to make that strength work. Zoey wouldn’t have been surprised to hear that she made the big bucks as a linebacker before all of this. Fucking Texans, man.

That’d probably make a lot of sense too. Why not take up wrestling when your entire career revolved around getting knocked around anyway?

Whatever. Footballer or no, this match still wasn’t over. She was already thinking ahead of what she would do once she got up to her feet. Maybe go for another low bow if she could distract the referee somehow. Lure Eliza in and take her down once she thought she had her. The blonde looked like she was approaching her limit too. The next pin attempt would totally be the last one.

Guess this was no time for wishful thinking, though. It was a bit too early to be dwelling on something like that since her body clearly had its hands full as it was trying to put itself back together. The blonde sent a shock straight through her system, forcing a reboot. She was just starting to get her breathing back in order when she felt the need to retort. Her mind clearly had its priorities still in check.

“Nope...sorry. Doctor says it's chronic.” She said, trembling as she moved to stand back up. “Just like..your fucking head’s gonna be in-gah!”

Zoey thought she’d have a bit more time to protest than that, but she braced herself all the same. What was coming next? A gut punch? A slam? Maybe throwing her out of the corner and flat on her ass?

Nope. None of those things. She felt an arm snake around underneath her leg and hoist her up from off the ground. Gravity started going to work on her head the next second after, trying to pull her back down to the canvas and not at all helping her already blistering nausea. In spite of her sickness, however, she still managed to put on a perplexed expression as Eliza seated her on the top turnbuckle. The crowd seemed to rise to life, flashing cameras in her face as her opponent no doubt got set for something big. Something that the TKD maven was not going to forget anytime soon.

“Hey..hey! What’re you-”

While the Korean-American was thinking ahead on what she would do, Eliza was taking action. It was clear which wrestler had their priorities straight.

Eliza got the girl up to her feet again, only this time there wasn’t any low blows or any other tricks. Smooth sailing going on between them. All’s well and good so far. Zoey’s mouth doesn’t seem like it would shut up any time soon but with what she has planned, it would keep her quiet for a long while. Though she can’t get too ahead of herself. There was still a match to be won.

She got the TKD maven up on the turnbuckle. That was one battle she succeeded in. Once she did that, the Russian crowd looked on with anticipation, their smartphones coming out as there seems to be something big that is about to happen. For the All-American, it was. And they weren’t going to wait too long to find out what it is.

Climbing up on the ropes, one step at a time, a bit crowded with two women on top of the turnbuckle now. Zoey was still in her reboot phase. Good. She doesn’t want anything going wrong now. She would place the Maven’s chin on her shoulder. Still nothing. So far so good.

Considering the Pay-Per-View is called Avalanche, the All-American had something special for the crowd as she raised her hand in the air, her index finger pointing to the skies. All before she would stand up, hop off the turnbuckle, the crowd excitement levels growing as Eliza attempted the Avanance Shiranui. Befitting for a PPV like this…

This wasn't going to be good.

Granted, there were few things that were when you were standing this high up with a severely pissed-off Texan cowgirl on your heels, but Zoey was clinging to the slightest hope that something would see her out of this situation. Maybe Eliza would slip on the way up. Maybe Zoey would catch her second wind and knock her down first. Maybe she could throw a wild hook and knock this bitch flat.

Wishful thinking, really. She did her best to struggle against Eliza’s hold on her. She wiggled this way and that, and every second she was on this turnbuckle the faster her heart beat. Hell, Eliza may have been the only one keeping her upright with

What killed her most though was the guessing. She had absolutely no idea what the All-American had in store for her, but every inch of her body was telling her it was something big. Something she was going to be feeling for weeks after this, not counting the emotional damage. Eliza was quick, powerful, and a bit of a risk-taker. What could she do that summed all of that up in one swift movement?

This. Whatever she was doing. Zoey didn’t keep up on wrestling. Wasn’t familiar with a lot of the moves, how they looked or how they were done. But whatever Eliza was doing now? It was the crown jewel on the mountain of pain she’d been delivering this entire night. A highlight in the making for the tournament.

And Zoey was the black sheep. Her ticket to fame.

“Whoa! No!” She kicked and bucked as Eliza leaped back and she felt her feet leave the top rope. Down she went, the Texan’s arm hooked under neck, and speeding them both straight towards the ground in one majestic flip.

“Nononononofuckyoufuckyou-”

Black. Just...black. That was all that came to her in the next instant. She’d heard the crowd roaring, the cameras flashing, and both their hearts beating as her and Eliza stood at what felt like the top of the world. Then she did something crazy and after all that...everything just came across as echoes. Like she was hearing something far in the distance but just couldn’t make it out. She was down for the count, dead on the canvas as her sweat-drenched body remained still under the stage lights, save for the steady rise and fall of her chest.

You shouldn’t tell the person what the surprise is, that would ruin it. It’s good when you keep them guessing. Makes it all the more worthwhile.

Though this wasn’t like coming to a surprise party. The surprise in particular wasn’t a pleasant one. Well, at least to Zoey that was. For the fans, it would be eye candy. The Russian crowd waited with baited breath just wondering what it could be. When Eliza moved to prepare, some hardcore wrestling fans could immediately guess what it is, evident by some cheers before the move even began. The All-American hasn’t fucked up yet, all the while the Korean-American’s chances would grew very small by the second.

"Here we go!!"

And then the move would be performed. Admittedly, Eliza had performed the normal variation of the Shiranui, this was to be the first that the Texan actually had done it while on the turnbuckle. The motion she was used to, just leap back, keep holding on and let god’s gift that is gravity do the rest.

Eliza did leap back and over. Check. The crowd began to yell at that point and the many white flashes that came from the audience’s smartphones fluttered in the stands.

Eliza held on. Check. Bringing Zoey with her for perhaps a ride that she would not forget.

And Eliza stuck the landing. Well, not traditionally speaking. The Texan didn’t land on her feet. But it was still a perfect ten rating in the minds of the thousands in attendance.

The audience gave a raucous cheer at the amazing display as she landed the move well. Eliza didn’t have to wait till she gets to the finals, if she does at all. The All-American, Texan Cowgirl already has her Avalanche Kodak moment right here. It was oh so exhilarating! Like doing skydiving! Adrenaline pumped though her veins and her heart beat fast.

Thank you Universe.

Eliza got what she wanted right here. Zoey not talking for once and unconscious and a flashy showy move that got the crowd cheering out of their seats! All that would be left is just the pinfall.
Crawling on top of the TKD Maven, Eliza moved just to reach and grab a hold of Zoey’s leg, pulling it up, breathing in and out as she closed her eyes, just waiting for the outcome she desired as the ref moved down towards them. The hand slapping the mat hard...

“ONE!”

She was getting sick of this feeling. This sinking feeling. Like there was a giant weight on her back that was dragging her down after something really bad had happened. Usually because when she woke up, and the darkness went away, there was nothing good waiting for her on the other side.

Sometimes it was the end of the match. Sometimes it was just more beatings. Sometimes it was a mixture of the two. Either way, she was sick of coming here. This was her goddamn moment and Eliza had stolen all the glory from her in one fell swoop. She couldn’t see it, but the Texan was probably riding high right now as the crowd cheered their applause in a language neither of them understood. Zoey just hoped she wouldn’t be awake to see any of it

TWO!

No such luck, it looked like.

She stirred a bit underneath the All-American, her eyes fluttering open to the hazy lights and muffled roar of the audience as they counted along with the referee.

THREE!

And that was it. The hand came down and the match was over. The referee called for the bell as she stood up to raise Eliza’s hand and cement her victory in stone. Even in her half-conscious state, there was a turn in the Korean-American’s stomach when she felt that final tap hit the canvas, and a hardened resolve followed suit.

She wasn’t letting this go. She’d come back at Eliza one day, and she’d make this Texan princess get down and eat the fucking dirt all over national television. She’d bring her down the same way she brought the TKD chick down today, and she’d do it a million times better.

For now, though, this Eliza’s moment clearly. She’d snatched the first victory of the first ever Rookie Tournament in AFW. The crowds shouted their appraisal and the bell heard round the world rang out. All the while, Zoey stayed lifeless underneath her body, just barely hearing the excitement breaking out around her.

Eliza had got what Zoey wished she had. Her picture perfect moment. The Avalanche Shiranui couldn’t have gone any more better. Her heart still pumping with how exhilarating that was, even as she rolled the Korean-American up for a pin. The referee rushed in, and the official’s hand slapped the mat starting the pin count. Eliza’s heart waited in anticipation. She was sure that she had done enough to put her down, but you never know. The crowd roared with each count, getting closer to three.

Everyone held their breaths, apart from the unconscious Zoey that laid under her. The referee got to two and it was at that moment when Eliza felt her opponent’s body stir. Come on, not now. Not now. Just one more….

THREE!

She won.

Holy moly, she actually won!

An overwhelming, gratifying feeling to actually snatch victory in the first ever Rookie Tournament in AFW, Eliza sitting up almost instantly after the referee slapped the hand down. Proud, excitement, jubilation, a thousand of positive feelings is what she is experiencing as she pumped her fist in the air. “WOOOOHOOOOO!!!” A big smile on her face as she got up, brushing back her golden locks as the official raised her hand in the air, naming the victor and the one who will advance to the next round.

Climbing up the nearest turnbuckle, funnily enough it was the same corner where she performed the match winning move, Eliza relished in the cheers of the Russian audience, cheering her name, the noise in this arena is deafening. Throwing her hands up like the texas rattlesnake idol, celebrating with the crowd. This was her moment. And for the All-American, Ass-Kicking Texan…

The only way is up.