Karina Northman vs Cicilia De'Reignhardt, No Holds Barred: Over the Edge

Stunning? Yes. Feeling one of Cicilia's favorite techniques used against her? Humbling. Stunning? No. It wasn't. Cicilia gained her title of "Juggernaut" for a reason. While she wished it was because of a spotless record of unstoppable devestation that made her own sister's squeaky-clean win-loss ratio shatter like cheap ceramic, it was more along the lines of a testament to her durability. The German's life was one of brutality and pain and the only reason Cicilia stood here today against someone like Karina was because she was stronger than ANY pain she'd ever felt. Gangs couldn't kill her, psychos couldn't beat her. Karina...? She could respect her but the result would be the same. Cicilia was simply tougher than any run-of-the-mill woman... and there was no way any one move was going to put her down!

Karina would use her foot like a shovel, scooping it under the German's body and flipping her over on her front. From there the older, taller lookalike would set herself in position, getting into a near-sitting-squat over Cicilia, moving one arm over one of her thighs... and this was when the German would strike! Letting out a defiant roar, Cicilia would SHOOT UP, throwing her head back in an effort to SLAM the back of her skull DEAD into Karina's face, aiming to BLAST IT FLAT in one mighty BLOW! A great deal of upper-body strength went into this attack and, if she was even as remotely as tough as Cicilia, she'd have a damn difficult time staying on after that! Should Cicilia have managed to knock Karina off of her, perhaps even stun her, the German would quickly get back up and back away, huffing and puffing, a single eye shut in pain... the other staring down her foe angrily.

Pain always had a way of bringing out rage, so much more than fear or threats ever did. She could feel it bubbling in her throat, a scream of utter hostility and power, recirculating within her blood and flowing out through her fingertips, searing it all on the way back. It was always a fight with her demons as much as it was a fight with someone else, Always a two-verses one with only a single opponent able to be hit. Cicilia didn't like pain... Hated it... brought out the worst in her much too often... Even in fights she's supposed to enjoy, treat as a competition, it all came back to her conditioning from back home:

Anger worked.

Anger made you strong.

Pain invokes your anger.

Pain gives you strength.

It was reflexive, as if Cicilia was covered in big red buttons her opponents couldn't help but press with every attack. Karina should've been able to spot the profane blazes arching and writhing through the sanguine gems that were the German's eyes, how her body began to flex and surge with adrenaline.

There was no fun in this.

Karina's plan was simple. All she needed to do was keep Cicilia down, locking her up and then make sure she stays down until her back burned enough to get a good lead over her! Karina straddled her opponent, which was a good start and she was confident that she could trap her once everything was done.. But that chance never came since Cicilia suddenly slammed her head back right into her face! That was unexpected but it bore the fruit Cicilia wanted, forcing Karina off her and in a quick roll away, just a few feet of safety distance so she could get up and rub her own face, gently grip her nose and wiggle it a bit to see if it was still on there and if she had broken anything.

She tasted blood inside of her mouth, she bit into her lip after all during that and it wasn't exactly a taste she wanted, so now she was rather pissed off! She pushed herself up and onto her feet, rubbing the side of her neck and would glare right back at the woman, licking her own lips to get the blood away from the corner of her lips before she spoke. " Alright, the gloves are coming off. "

That was the only thing she said, rubbing her face one more time before she surged forward, aiming to close the distance quick enough to suddenly jump off her feet and curl her right leg so her knee was pointed forward, aiming that powerful knee straight towards Cicilia's chest in an attempt to send her stumble back towards the ropes or perhaps even back on the ground!

With Karina repelled for the moment, Cicilia scrambled back to her feet, attempting to put some distance between herself and Karina. The german was already angry with herself before, having given up the mental battle to her opponent near the freaking start. She let herself get mad, for this woman's appearance and brutality to grate on her as if she were Elfrida, to let her rage boil over to the point of her having to fight herself to keep in control... But now she was actively losing the physical struggle as well! She could feel herself losing ground, even if it were inches, the sensation of being pushed back, the weakening of her position more monumental than it appeared to the audience. What enraged Cicilia the most... was that she KNEW she could beat Karina if she just... stopped flashing back to those days, if she could just keep her head in the game. It wouldn't be easy... but at least it would be a victory! Knowing that her sister was here now in Japan, looming over AFW like the shadow of a malevolent behemoth, ready to crush everything Cicilia had built... It was like she could feel her insidious fingers digging into her from all directions, taunting her with the power of a being capable of ripping her apart with a mere twitch.

Just as the wound had started to heal and relief was beginning to set in, her tormentor returned with more salt to pour into it... and now the German's focus was worse than ever.

As if to drive that point home, Karina would RUSH down the Juggernaut as she struggled to put some distance between them, the larger woman bringing her knee up to CRASH into the boxer's chest and drive her back further! Direct impact was narrowly avoided as the boxer's arms folded over her chest like a bulwark, taking the brunt of Karina's strike and deflecting the rest! However, the power of that attack still pierced the German's guard, SHOVING her back further than she wanted and forcing her near the corner! She still had space, not fully in the grasp of the turnbuckle, but it wasn't nearly enough to maneuver.

There was that childish impulse again... to complain and ask why it had to be this way. Why couldn't things be better, why couldn't she be left alone to pursue her passion, etcetera and so-on. It was like a compulsion in her gut, rising whenever she was on the back-foot. She had been asking these worthless questions so long that they had become a sort of mental tick, a mental block activated by her own fear and weakness...

...And she was only now starting to hear herself... and how damn pathetic she sounded.

"Screw this..." Cicilia growled just loud enough to hear herself, dropping down into her boxing stance. "I'm done acting like the pathetic little sister."

Suddenly, the Juggernaut would SPRING forward from the corner she had been thrust into, bringing her arm around in a MONSTROUS hook aimed at Karina's jaw, aiming to CRASH through her guard completely (if it even rose) and destroy the person behind it!