A Warm Welcome in the Locker Room

The AFW federation was well known for its beautiful competitors, unique rivalries, and match types the likes of which is never seen in any other federation! There were dozens of shinning stars the company loved to show off as the face of the company, from Cecilia Northman to Yukina, those were the faces on every billboard and every flyer that was sold or passed out to caring fans.

No one outside would ever know the truth that lurked behind those locker room doors. The corruption and rot that infested the core of the company like an ugly, festering disease. Many people in charge of the company were twisted individuals, only interested in their own gain caring little for anyone they had to step on to achieve their goals. The little man would always be little in a place like this, unless they could find a way to shine through the darkness…or become just as spiteful as everyone else in the company.

Chelsea had learned all of this not long after she had signed a training contract with AFW. She was a young girl, starry eyed and excited what the world of wrestling could be like. She had grown up on wrestling, and even took it as a club all throughout high school and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Her aspirations led her to want to compete professionally, and try to make a name for herself in the circuit. So, when a company like AFW first opened up a training program were new up and comers could train with real pros, she was ecstatic to sigh up and learn from the very best!

She quickly learned that this “training program” was little more then just being a test dummy for the pro’s finishers. All of the newbies in the program were constantly berated and beaten by the cruelest of the heels, and discarded by most of the rest. It was simply a way to get jobbers in the ring for some light practice for the pros, something to get their heart pumping without being too much of a strain on them. Chelsea was no different, already having her head smashed against the ring canvas three times that day, and had to be carried out of the ring thanks to the last move.

Honestly, she was considering joining this program to be the worst decision of her life. She should have read the damn contract that woman pushed in front of her, and now she was paying the price. Chelsea didn’t get a cent out of any of this...it counted as “volunteer work”, even though she would be held with a breach of contract if she ever tried to leave before her time was up.

The day was finally over, she put in her four hours. It was finally time to go home, wash up, and maybe get some sleep before her work shift started.

She knew how hostile this place was, how cruel it could be…and yet, somehow, she let the scene in the locker room take her y surprise.

All of her things…her work clothes, her gym bag, her drinks and personal items! All of it was thrown onto the floor without a care. All of that stuff was supposed to be in her locker, but she would find her lock broken on the floor as well, and a woman digging through it all, tossing stuff out as though it were all trash.

“Hey! What do you think you are-“

She wouldn’t even be able to finish the sentence before a pair of hand suddenly seized her shoulders and THREW her against the lockers! Her head bounce off the meta, irritating her already sore noggin from the days earlier blows and actually giving her a small bout of vertigo. When she finally laid her eyes on her assailant, she really wished she hadn’t walked in to train today.

Nothing about this girl brought up any good feelings. She was taller than Chelsea, and much stronger by the looks of it. Her attire looked as though it were some devil inspired costume, with a bat winged pattern costume a violent red streak cutting through her hair!

Spoiler:

“Huh…lookie what I found Maxene. Looks like someone took a wrong turn and walked in on something she wasn’t supposed to~”

The woman’s friend, apparently named Maxene, was the one throwing Chelsea’s stuff all over the floor. The woman peeked her head out, not at all concerned about the violence on display, and instead hatched a cunning smile.

“Oh, you must be the previous tenant. Well, good news. You get to explore a brand-new environment…somewhere else! I have taken quite a liking to this particular locker, and as a friendly gesture, moved all of your things out for you. Isn’t that nice of me?”

Maxene began to approach the pair, still smiling a gleeful smile, looking just as bad as the first girl. Her outfit was just as cruel looking, though she came off as a heartless queen then the cruel punk that held the jobber in place.

Spoiler:

“Elektra, doesn’t she look happy for this new opportunity?”

“Yeah. Ecstatic even.”

“Hey wait…I don’t know who you think you two are, but I-“

WHAM!

No sooner had Chelsea started speaking then Elektra and Maxene struck! They were fast, quicker than the jobber realized! In the span of a few seconds, Elektra had pounded the girls face with a savage hook, while Maxene’s knee rammed into her stomach, practically impaling the poor girl. Chelsea was knocked out instantly, and her unconscious, twitching form was left to fall into her own pile of belongings as the two punks loomed over her body.

“Smart-ass.”

“Yes, indeed. Though that was fun~”

Cicilia let out a soft groan of contentment as she headed back to the locker-room after a short, but difficult fight... Wars of attrition always left someone exhausted, even if they ended rather quickly. The poor woman thought she could go head-to-head with a juggernaut, to be the immovable object to her unstoppable force... But immovable did not mean indestructable... and so she went down as fast as she came at her. Whatever pride that woman took in her ability to take a hit was gone now, shattered along with her body. Content with the speed and difficulty of the match, the German walked backstage with a light sheen of sweat upon her pale skin, her sanguine eyes actually warm... happy for once. She felt good, better than usual at least, something she couldn't say for some time. She felt like today was going to be a good day... maybe she'd even flash a smile or two at a random passer-by, express how thankful she was she woke up on the right side of the bed...

...How arrogant she was to believe that manifestations of her demons would allow her this moment of sunshine.

Cicilia heard arguing even from outside the locker, three separate voices going back and forth harshly, the sound of clothes crumpling on the floor along with other objects radiating out into the imminent hallway.

"What the hell...?" Cicilia muttered, brushing a few strands of hair out of her face. Her expression hardening, her muscles tensing in anticipation, the boxer entered the locker-room... just as one woman... was being assaulted by too others! It was as if time slowed down... The German's sanguine eyes flicked between all three people, the two attacking having the darkest, perverse smiles upon their lips, the grins of bullies who LOVED picking on the weak... The other girl looked COMPLETELY shocked, her eyes wide, her body contorting in unfortunate angles as she was broken from two angles as she was attacked...

...One could practically feel the temperature in the room increase exponentially from behind the two bullies... as the rage of the German BURNED quietly behind them. Without a word, the Cicilia approached the two women as their victim crumbled before them, the boxer GRABBING a FIST-FULL of the brown-haired girl's locks YANKING her back! With a quick follow-up motion, she would THROW her forward into her partner, aiming to CRASH her face into her pink-haired friend, to crash their heads together in such a way it would sent them sprawling back into the lockers themselves! If she managed to get the two girls AWAY from their victim, Cicilia would instantly move to attend to her, scooping the poor girl up in her arms as if she were nothing but a child!

"You bastards..." Cicilia growled, her sanguine eyes BURNING with hatred as she bore HOLES in the woman she stared at. "WHAT the actual HELL is your problem!?"

The two thugs didn’t gloat too long over their misdeed. Maxene was actually turning around to throw the rest of the girls stuff out of her locker when Elektra felt a strong grip cinch her hair. The punk didn’t even get a chance to yelp in surprise before her scalp was painfully pulled to knock her sense of balance off, then her body thrown against the space where her friend’s skull was currently residing. The two crashed into one another, the surprise enough to catch them off guard, but not quite enough to take them to the ground.

Elektra’s skull bounced off of Maxene’s, eliciting an annoyed growl from the pink haired punk, and a surprised hiss from Elektra. Both of them turned to face the instigator, finding a raven-haired woman with scars all over her face, arms, and even her body. Her red eyes were blazing in rage, apparently concerned for the woman both Elektra and Maxene had already lost interest in. Her show of concern earned her a look of disgust from the both of them, but they were already growing more and more hostile by the second as they realize their clear advantage over this woman.

Elektra leaned down and snatched the woman’s metal thermos off the floor, moving it around in her hands to check the weight. As soon as she figured it out, she didn’t hesitate to throw the hefty thermos full of liquid at the intruder’s head. Should Cicilia move out of the way, the container would cause a loud BANG to erupt from behind her as it smashed against the wall.

“Why don’t you come over here and find out, bitch?!”

Of course, being the more ill tempered of the two, Elektra didn’t give Cicilia the chance to refuse.

The boxer might have made a mistake picking up the unconscious woman, because the hostile team was quickly advancing on her, With the red and black attired brawler taking a strong lead in front, already bringing up her fists to square of against her latest opponent. Maxene wasn’t far behind, and while she was certainly there to support her comrade, she stopped a few feet away, curious to watch the certain slaughter unfold.

It appeared they weren’t interested in repenting for their deeds.

Elektra moved in, her footwork giving her good balance and decent speed as she threw another right hook right at Cicilia’s face, this one looking far nastier than the one she used earlier on the jobber. This hook had Elektra’s entire body backing it up, and it burned through the air as it looked to plant itself in her opponent’s cheek!

“Drop dead, Loser!!!”

Bullies...

Fucking Bullies...

Two against one was always a coward's tactic, an acknowledgement of their own weakness without ever needing to admit it verbally. These two women would beat down on some woman, toss around her things judging from the mess nearby... and now they would try to attack her now that her hands were tied...? Fools... If they think they have any kind of advantage because of their numbers, they were WRONG! Two ants were just as dangerous as one... which was to say, a pest to be stomped into sticky paste! Cicilia stared at the two women with the intensity of a demon from hell, the monster in the Juggernaut flaring within her heart as every muscle in her body tensed up to fight!

"You're both morons." Cicilia growled, Moving to try and protect the woman she held from oncoming attacks! She didn't want her to take any more damage than she already had... Cicilia tried to turtle herself around the girl, to make herself more of a target than the girl she was holding.. and she would pay for that... the Bullies would make sure of it.

"Urgh!" Cicilia groaned as Elektra's fist SLAMMED into Cicilia's cheek... the force of her attack not at all moving her face! It sunk into her jaw, distorted her lips and face... But the German's body didn't move an inch in response! Cicilia only stared, her expression darkening as she would let lightly lower the woman down onto the bench that rested between the lockers... Cicilia then lashing out with a punch of her own!

Cocking back her fist like the firing mechanism within a mortar cannon, Cicilia THREW her own punch right back into Elektra's cheek in a downward-angled punch, aiming to send her SKIDDING back along the floor in a brutal attack, hopefully burying her head into the steel of the lockers that would await her at the end! Should her attack connect, the boxer would then turn to Elektra's friend, throwing an EQUALLY brutal uppercut into her stomach, intent on splitting her in HALF and leaving her in tears on the floor... She envisioned her breaking like cheap, rotted wood beneath her superior German might, the woman let gasping, breathless... WEAK!

"Took the words out of my mouth..." Cicilia would mutter, cracking her knuckles in each hand with the opposite palm! "But I'll actually make sure it happens."

Elektra actually clicked her tongue as her hook did little to phase her new found foe. The red riot took a step back to collect herself, waiting for Cicilia to finish setting the jobber down. It was by some miracle that nether of them attacked her as she took set down the innocent she was protecting, but when Cicilia finally did lash out, it was in a big way.

The brawler wasn’t as dumb as she acted. She was cocky sure, but she still put up a guard of some sort even in a fight she thought was one sided. It was how she was taught, and really a basic in any type of combat. It was only thanks to that guard that she remained conscious after the juggernauts rage fueled punch. The red riot didn’t slide across the room, but it certainly sent her back a few feet, and made one of her arms cramp up in pain.

“Argh! Who the fuck are you supposed to be? Her fucking mom? Her girlfriend? Go suck a dick, whore!”

Elektra looked as though she would go in again, like a shark focused on its prey, but Maxene moved in front of her. The pink haired woman blocking her path, Elektra began to growl and her friend, who only glanced over her shoulder.

“Let me try. I’ll have her on her knees in no time~” She said with a smug grin. She seemed to totally believe in herself, so Elektra simply scoffed, and backed off a bit.

No sooner did the succubus turn back to face Cicilia did the German throw a crushing uppercut aimed for Maxene’s stomach. Her cold eyes looked shocked, but the smile on her face spelled out a different emotion.

“Impressive…for a weakling.”

The brutal uppercut that would have surely left Maxene gasping for air sadly hit only that! The powerful fist would meet nothing as the succubus’s cruel smile was now only in the boxer’s peripheral vision. Maxene’s movements were quick and fluid, like a snake. If Elektra was the hammer of the group, that easily made her companion the blade, as her leg suddenly flicked out towards the boxer’s foundation. Maxene’s powerful legs sliced through the air, looking to lash the back of Cicilia’s knees and drop her to the floor, a twisted way to try and fulfill her promise to Elektra about having their foe on her knees Then again, such cruelty was well within believability for these two.

Cicilia's punch connected with Elektra's arms rather than her stupid face, the force of her downward strike sending the smaller, more loud-mouthed woman STUMBLING back, her arms trembling like over-exerted metal. The raw POWER imbued into the blow was enough to utterly DESTROY smaller women, sending them CRASHING into the floor with enough force to CRACK it... But not this girl. Elektra's punches were weak... but she had enough strength in her body to withstand hers well enough... To bad for her. It would've been over faster if she simply took her punches with stride. Cicilia actually SMILED as the woman cried out in utter protest, screaming like a child who got punched for being the bully she was... The way her face contorted when she screamed, how her voice cracked ever so slightly as she cried out in protest... It was all so very AMUSING.

"You're pathetic." Cicilia responded with a short, sharp and cruel laugh, Cicilia's sanguine eyes turning cold... cutting, the flames within hardening into volcanic glass. "One little punch and you whine like a bitch... Come here. I'll CRUSH you."

It seemed Elektra was gonna rise to the challenge, the Juggernaut stepping forward to scramble her... only for the pink-haired girl to step up and take her place! Without mercy, Cicilia would cock back her strongest punch, RIPPING it up into the woman's stomach so hard, one could SEE a MASSIVE pulse of air blast out from the other side! It was a wonder how Cicilia didn't simply RIP into the woman's stomach past both skin and muscle from the amount of power she put into the blow, how the girl was still on her feet and not hanging off her fist like clothes set out to dry. A punch that could rend apart the simulated-leather fabric of punching bags... was stopped by the twisted, smiling woman before her....

"What did you say...?" Cicilia asked, her voice a low, sharp whisper as she dug in her fist deeper and deeper, preparing to LIFT the woman off the ground and PLANT her into the floor... at least, that was the plan... but the pinkette struck first, SLASHING at her knees with a sharp kick, forcing one of the boxer's legs inward, topping her over!

"GAH!" She'd his... feeling her worldly directions tilt, the woman's hands suddenly shooting up to grab Maxine's hair... and DRAG her down with her! Thinking fast (thinking for once), Cicilia would attempt to drag the woman's jaw to SLAM upon Cicilia's shoulder, CRACKING her hard in a brutal counter attack!

“I said…”

Maxene’s foot lashed across Cicilia’s tendons behind her knees, forcing the woman to begin her decent to the floor in the span of a single second.

“You’re a weakling~”

The grin on Maxene’s face was cruel, cold, completely filled with a sense of glee! Cicilia wasn’t a person! She was a plaything! Something to hold her interest for a while until she moved on to the next thing. There was no opponent standing in front of her, no challenge to rise up against, nor vengeance for her friend. Just a pound of flesh to take her inner demons out on. Perhaps there was too much pride in her work, because she didn’t even think that this woman was even capable of catching her. She would only realize it when her long, pink hair was suddenly pulling her down next to the fallen German. Her smile quickly disappeared as her chin impacted against Cicilia’s strong traps, the shock travelled through Maxene’s jaw and into her neck.

The surprise sent Maxene reeling, falling on her back and smacking against the locker room floor. It was a miracle she didn’t hit her head against the bench that was only a foot away.

Were it not for Elektra, Maxene was sure that this woman would have pounced on her form and gotten a very nice advantage right off the bat. Thankfully, the red riot wasn’t content with seeing her friend be smacked around. The woman dashed forward, looking to seize Cicilia’s skull in her hands, her own ruby eyes blazing in the German hellfire pits. Then, she thrusted her knee right into her face, looking to cave in the woman’s face.

Maxene quickly rolled away, letting her friend get her hits in while she took time to recover.

Cicilia sent Maxene reeling just as she had done her stupid friend... but she wasn't quite doing all the damage she wanted. Each blow she landed was enough to send them recoiling, falling back in surprise and in pain... but it wasn't ripping them to shreds! They were withstanding her awesome strength well enough that... that Cicilia might be at a disadvantage... Her track-record of two-vs-ones wasn't especially great in the first place in a ring where there was only ropes and turnbuckles to be thrown against... Here there were all sorts of obstacles from the benches to the lockers... The area so tight and bottle-necked that the dynamic of the fight was entirely unfamiliar! Cicilia, when she entered this stupid fiasco, was hoping that she would be able to end this fight quickly before she could be seriously hurt... It looked like that wasn't going to happen.

As soon as Maxene was sent FLYING back from that shoulder-drop, Elektra was RIGHT back in it, replacing her as soon as the opportunity arose! With the German on her knees, trying to get back to her feet, it was only trivial for the bully to sieze the boxer's head in her hands... and DRILL her knee hard into Cicilia's JAW! The sound of bone cracking against bone could've been heard from several meters outside of the locker, the woman's knee-cap SLAMMING into the German's cheek with enough force to actually stun her! The Juggernaut's eyes widened, dulled sightly from the shock of the blow, her body seizing up in pain as her thoughts scrambled to right themselves!

"....Uhgh..." She grunted softly... Before the flames in her eyes reignited! Cicilia STARED into the little fire-crackers Elektra called "eyes" as she stared back in anger, the German's rage glaring back... twin flaming pits that burned FAR deeper than callow frustrations this girl dared to throw back in challenge! She thought she was mad...? What, that she was hurting...? That she was caught assaulting someone? That someone would actually stand up to them? Oh, the mere idea of what could make this girl mad only added to the German's rage! Even as the smallest trickle of blood ran down the corner of Cicilia's lips, they curled upwards into a snarl, baring the teeth that hid right behind! With a low growl, the Juggernaut's hands would SHOOT up to grab Elektra's wrists! If she managed to take hold, her fingers would CLOSE around around them tighter and tighter in a VICIOUS vice-grip, the German slowly rising up like a monster from beneath the waves! While their heights were comparable, the German would LOOM over Elektra, twisting and crushing the woman's wrists in her grip, intent on FORCING her to her knees... If Cicilia was able to do so, she would cock back her leg... and SLAM her knee BRUTALLY right into the center of Elektra's face, eager to punch a FUCKING HOLE IN IT!

Elektra felt the satisfying feeling of a strike connecting dead on with its target! The bitch in her hand jerked with the blow, a soft grunt escaping her lips as the red riots knee retracted itself from her prey’s cheek. She was hoping to see some desperation in Cicilia’s eyes, some desire for comfort or even some pleading to make the pain stop! For god sakes, tears should have been rolling out of this girl like a faucet if she was still awake!

But that was far from what Elektra got. Rage, determination, and hatred were still well within this girls’ eyes. She glared at Elektra like she was garbage, earning a scowl from the red riot. If she was going to look at her with such a nasty glare, then Elektra would make her face nice and nasty to go along with it! Already, she was preparing to throw another knee into the raven-haired woman’s face.

A sharp pressure would stop her in her tracks, two vice like grips squeezing her wrists like the pincer grip of a crab. The pain was fast and sharp, steadily growing and climbing up Elektra’s arms. The hole forced the tensed muscles in Elektra’s hands to relax, releasing Cicilia. The two’s red eyes blazed at each other, but even as mad as the red riot was, the fire in her eyes looked like a cheap imitation of the inferno the swirled in the Germans, but to her credit she didn’t back down even an inch. Even as Cicilia was raised from the floor, Elektra simply pushed on, putting up a decent resistance with an angry glower.

Something would catch Elektra’s eye, something that made her scowl turn into a smile. A cold feeling would crawl up Cicilia’s back for a split second. Maybe Cicilia would understand what it was, but if she didn’t, all she would get for her troubles was a blow to the head so severe, it would be like someone had it her with the broad side of a hammer. Maxene’s specialty was her kicks, and on an unsuspecting victim, they could be rather…deadly.

Cicilia wrenched Elektra's arms DOWN and away from her, her brute strength seemingly overpowering the twisted, short-haired bully at first... but as they both struggled for dominance, it became clear that their power was more equal that it first appeared! The German actually worked up a sweat struggling with this woman, their mutual hatred for one another seemingly giving each other the strength they needed to fight on... to RESIST the agonizing force they struggled against! While Cicilia was obviously stronger, gradually pushing her weaker, more sinister opponent down, it wasn't nearly as fast as she desired! She couldn't STEAMROLL her the way she wanted to! She couldn't just flatten this girl under her boot and deal with her friend so easily... Why wouldn't she just BUCKLE!?

Bullies were usually weak, people who only had enough strength to flaunt over weaker fellows. Cicilia, in her own right, was a strong woman, one of the strongest in AFW by pure muscle-power but even SHE was struggling to overpower this girl outright! Perhaps this was something she should've been afraid of, something that she should have foreseen and acted to protect herself against... Trained harder, lifted heavier weights, fought smarter... Anything that could've made it easier to just run this woman over...

...Her righteous anger burned through her mind too strongly this day... seeing another girl being beaten so brutally and brazenly by a pair of thugs... Images of herself being throttled by her older sibling, crushed under her boot-heel merely because she didn't measure up... She couldn't stand it! It had to end!

Something caught her eye, however... the look on this woman's face changed from one of struggling indignance... to a confident smile. She was grinning! AND HER FRIEND WAS BEHIND HER! with a growl, Cicilia would SHOVE Elektra away with a MIGHTY push before quickly ducking low, her instincts serving her well as a boot SHOT right over her head where the base of her skull once rested! Cicilia's eyes widened as the long, pointed heel of the woman's boot cut through her night-sky-dark hair, the German's sanguine eyes narrowing as she whirled around, extending her leg in a BRUTAL roundhouse kick of her own! Should it connected, her foot would SLAM into Maxene's jaw, hopefully sending her spiraling into the lockers nearby, the German's movements falling less into intelligence and more into it's own natural processes, instinct dominating over reason as she whirled back to deal with Elektra!