Summer Splash 2020: River Styx Hardcore Title Open Challenge

Styx’s footsteps were so loud and thunderous it felt as though a small earthquake had been approaching the GraveKeeper. Christie couldn’t help but imagine the announcer’s drinks ripple and shake with every stomp of the Champion’s boots, the scene reminiscent of a famous movie she had seen once long ago. Styx had a presence that few could replicate, that much was for sure. Too bad it worked against her in this sense, as she was easy enough to pinpoint even without the glance that came over Christie’s shoulder. Seeing her target approach with such a relaxed gait actually excited the Crypt Keeper! Styx was so content with her weapon, she didn’t even bother to run Christie down costing her the advantage of being properly armed. Had she done that, the chances of finding the shovel would have dropped exponentially!

The adrenaline pumping through Christie’s veins dulled the pain in her bruised leg. Already, she was up on her feet and rushing down the Hardcore Champion, who eyed Christie’s weapon choice with a hint of curiosity before preparing her weapon. Perhaps Styx had thought the two would exchange blows by clashing against one another like so many of Hollywood's films. The drama that often came with those clashes would certainly excite the crowd around them, but if Christie gave half a shit about that this fight would already have been radically different. No, she wanted to break Styx. The woman had really pissed Christie off, and she wanted Styx to pay for every punch and trick she pulled. Interest included.

“What’s that? Dig my grave? How are you going to do that, when I plan on burying this shovel in your ass!”

Christie had read about spears being one of the deadliest weapons in the old ages due to their length surpassing almost all weapons of that era, as well as their adaptability. A shovel was nowhere near a spear, but it had length over the bat. As well as a metal tip and a long body. So, rather than smash against the Champ’s weapon like two swords clashing in a dual, Christie opted to thrust her shovel at the behemoth, striking her dead on in the center of her abdomen and knocking her center of gravity off balance.

The satisfied expression on Christie’s face as Styx went tumbling into the announcer’s table was practically glowing! If it were not for the malicious atmosphere Christie seemed to naturally exude, she might have been mistaken for being genuinely happy for a  second. Of course, that all went away as she pushed her advantage. Styx was held up by her lack of oxygen and the surprising support of the announcer’s table. Little else, judging by her face. The Grave Keeper would not grant the Champ the mercy of rest. The glint of the shovel caught the overhead lights as Christie attacked Styx once again! The jab was effective, and as Christie descended upon Styx, the Crypt Keeper spun on her heel and adjusted the grip to her weapon!

Now the flat side of the shovel was coming down towards the champ’s skull! There was such a great amount of force packed into the blow, the tool seemed to cut the air as it descended towards its master’s opponent! The only mercy Styx would receive was the fact that should the attack land, it would simply be blunt force trauma rather than a splitting cut that she would suffer. But, if she managed to escape, then the Announcer’s table would receive the force, likely crumbling under the intense pressure of Christie’s killer swing!

Getting the wind knocked out of her sails wasn’t exactly brightening her day, but she supposed she had no one else to blame for that, really. She’d come in a little too strong, she could admit that, and this was the price she was going to pay for it - Christie had read her and made the smart move. She had to give the woman credit, what she lacked in size, she made up for in cunning and ingenuity. Important traits for any hardcore wrestler.

That she could acknowledge her mistake didn’t make her less furious, though. Far from it. As she leaned against the table, she was a seething wreck, gripping her stomach as the pain coursed through her abdominals. That one stung, deep, made her feel like her lunch was sloshing around in ways that it shouldn’t, and it was a small miracle that she didn’t puke out right then and there.

She’d just started to push away, wanting to stand on two solid feet, when she saw Christie coming, though she didn’t have to look to know what was about to happen, really.  The two of them seemed to be working on the same wavelength when it came to violence, and she knew too well what she’d do if her opponent’s back was up against the proverbial wall. She had incoming. Heavy incoming.

River Styx was not known for her blazing speed and agility, but it was amazing what the threat of having your head caved in could do for your reflexes. When Christie brought the shovel down, Styx dove to the side in just the nick of time, avoiding what would’ve been, at best, a knockout blow to her skull and a guaranteed concussion. The table behind her, however, wasn’t so lucky. AFW management wisely made these tables cheap and destructible, and the poor craftsmanship showed as it split apart on impact, sending papers and plastics flying in every direction.

A close call. But one that put her in a rare situation, at least by her usual standards - here, she could counter.

It was an opportunity she seized on, too, as she lashed out and swung the bat at Christie’s side, making sure to hit with the tip, where most of the barbed wire was concentrated. She wanted to take off a little skin on this one…

The quiet whistle that came with the shovel parting the air was easily drowned out by the fearful and excited cries of the surrounding crowd! The sheer brutality on display blurred the lines of friend and foe as allegiances seemed to shift back and forth every passing moment! It appeared there were a few in the crowd that suddenly wanted the head of WAR to have her skull caved in! Despite having a thunderous amount of jeers when she had entered, no one would have suspected so many were against Styx, or standing with Christie at the moment.

But that was only if one viewed the cries on face value alone. To anyone able to dig further then that, it would be obvious what they were truly cheering for. Like a gladiatorial arena, there was one fighter on the ropes and one in an advantageous position rushing forward with a weapon. They weren’t cheering for Christie specifically, but rather, the killing blow she brought with her! While she hated it, she would oblige their secret request. Ending Styx was her goal, and while she had no real problem with the fake champion, Christie didn’t mind putting her in serious condition!

But just as the shovel came down, the embarrassingly large target managed to dodge out of the way! Christie hissed as her eyes tracked her fleeing target, feeling the announcement table get totally obliterated with her downward swing! The table cloth kept the splinters from flying anywhere too far. But papers, pens, and what few things the previous occupants had left went flying into the air! It was as if a firework stuffed with office supplies had gone off as papers gently began to float around Christie and Styx, the former pulling her shovel out of the rubble in a manner similar to an old school executioner would retrieve his axe from the chopping block.

The first attempt failed, but judging by the look in Christie’s eyes that wouldn’t be the last one.

As to be expected, Styx retaliated! Thrusting her bat forward, the leader of WAR was all too ready to use the barbed wire to its fullest and get Christie back for her earlier transgressions! Well, Styx wasn’t the only one who could dart away with the proper motivation! It helped that the Grave Keeper had a similar mindset to Styx, and could just about guess what the champion would do next by putting herself in the same situation. Unfortunately, Styx had better aim with her weapon. As Christie jumped to the side, the barbed wire grazed her stomach, creating a small cut across her abs, small beads of blood slowly exiting the wound. The Grave Keeper hissed, more in surprise than pain. Unlike her shovel, Styx’s bat didn’t have a huge chunk of metal at the end, other than the wire. Her thrusts were quick, something she would have to keep in mind.

But at that very moment, Christie just wanted to make Styx scream. The champ had gotten enough noises out of the Grave Keeper tonight!

"Fucking Bitch!!!"

Without waiting for Styx to recover and attack her again, Christie rushed up to her bigger opponent! Her speed was her asset in this fight, and the bruise on her leg was growing numb due to the constant adrenaline and use she was pushing it through. What Christie had planned would become apparent as she shifted her grip around her weapon from an offensive hold to a more defensive position. Now, one hand was towards the handle, and the other directly  under the metal tip. The body of the shovel was perfectly horizontal, and Styx would soon learn why.

Christie moved in quick, shoving her weapon forward in hopes of catching Styx’s as well as her weapon with her shovel and pushing them against the nearby ring! If it worked, she would manage to pin Styx just long enough to use the Shovel’s grip as a blunt object, quickly moving the weapon across the champs chest and smashing the handle across her jaw!

It wasn’t quite what Styx had been hoping for, if she was being honest. She wanted a clean hit with the bat, and it was far from that. Experience told her that you generally wanted to land a blow with the middle of the instrument. Get that center mass. It would be especially good on Christie, since the woman had made the questionable decision to come to the hardcore match dressed like she was set for a Suicide Girls photo shoot. Not that she was unpleasing on the eyes, far from it, but it gave her very little protection from blunt objects, sharp ones, or things that combined both elements - the weapon Styx wielded being a textbook case.

But hey, some impact was better than no impact. She left a little cut, one that wasn’t going to go away anytime soon, and it was going to be the first of many. A decent start, and it had another effect, too - pissing Christie right the fuck off.

It took no small amount of self control - a rarity for Styx - to keep from laughing out loud at the way Christie responded, spewing curses her way while her eyes burned. It was the little nicks that could drive you crazy, sometimes, and while that cut hadn’t done much to her physically, mentally it was a different story. The woman was raging, looking to even the amount of blood lost between them, and she was welcome to try.

She started to move in again, but Christie was quicker on the draw this time, getting into her striking range fast and pushing with the shovel. It was all Styx could to do get her own weapon up, holding it vertical to clash against the smaller woman as she bum rushed her. The surprise of it all was enough to drive her back, step after step, until her back was on against the apron.

Pinned, but only for a moment. That was all the time she would need to draw on her superior strength and bust her way out, or so she thought. That idea, sound as it was, got challenged when the woman improvised and used the handle to crack her upside the jaw. Rude, really.

The blow had her seeing stars, left her dizzy, had her tasting blood, but it could’ve been worse - she couldn’t taken a hit from the metal end. As it was, she was hurting, but not so much that she couldn’t retaliate, and she had some strong ideas on that front.

Styx wasn’t in the best position to push back, but she didn't need to make all that much space between them. All she wanted to do, in this instance, was to make a gap with a hard shove, and once that was done, she’d fill that space with her leg, as she brought her knee shooting hard into her opponent’s stomach.

CLUNG~!!!

The strange impactful noise of metal and wood meeting flesh and bone in a single and powerful instant seemed to flow out towards the front row of the audience. The swift and violent way Styx’s head jerked to the side after being smacked across the face with the weapon was a sight that made many wince in discomfort, the teleprompter above the arena showing the blow once again playing at half the speed to show every detail of the brutal impact! If one was vigilant, perhaps one could see some scarlet droplets be flung from the hardcore champions mouth in the slow moving replay.

But the action going on in the ring was far more enrapturing than a slowed down video! The action was fast paced, the two competitors tearing into each other as though it was a life and death battle! Christie Myers didn’t even wait a second to see how her first smack with the handle of her shovel affected her opponent. As soon as she finished her swing, the Grave Keeper was already pulling the weapon back in preparation for another strike! The shovel gleamed in the overhead light for a split second, capturing the lethal imagery of a guillotine’s blade about to descend onto its victim! Neither woman was holding back in this fight, and the Crypt Keeper’s rage seemed to push her into a territory that was…discouraged, even in the Federation's twisted arena.

But the Champion was capable of handling herself. No sooner did Christie bring about her weapon did Styx suddenly lurch forward! The Champion’s knee was like a battering ram backed with the power of fifty men! The knee slammed into Christie’s abs, the force plowing through her abdomen’s muscles and actually lifting her feet off the floor as she became draped over Styx’s leg! A surprised gag escaped Christie’s agape maw, the woman only remaining on her feet thanks to her shovel acting as a support.

And yet still, despite the direct blow Christie’s snake eyes glared at Styx with a burning hellfire behind them! Even as she refilled her lungs, Christie was straightening herself up! As though she were trying to close the gap once more and continue on with the bloody fight! But no one could have taken a strike like that and not be stunned, even if it was only for a few seconds.

But in a match like this one, a few seconds may as well be a lifetime...

Outwardly, Styx was all confidence. She was hurt, yeah, but she carried herself as if it wasn’t too much of a bother, as if this was just any day at the job. That was part of the deal that came from being the champion, after all - the belt didn’t mean shit if you didn’t carry yourself like you deserved it, and she intended to do just that.

Inwardly, though, she was breathing a sigh of relief when her attack managed to made some headway and push Christie back. This bitch wasn’t as big as she was, but she had good stamina, fought hard, and was too crazy to know when to back off. That could make up for a lot of things. That knee would’ve dropped quite a few people, no question, but this woman was just standing there and glaring her way, all kinds of pissed off.

Rage really was a great anesthetic.

”What’s wrong, you little shit?” Styx spat back as she pushed forward. ”Things not going your way?”

WIth the advantage on her side, Styx pushed hard, shoving Christie away and making some distance - but not too much, because she wanted to follow up quick. Rushing in, she swung the bat low, aiming at her foe’s legs,looking to trip her up and maybe take off some more skin in the process.

Oh the things Christie was going to do to Styx…

Those crimson, demonic eyes practically burned in Christie’s skull as she glared over at the Champion’s impressively calm form. The Grave Keeper had smashed that dumb mug over and over, and none of it seemed to stick for very long. Styx just seemed to keep on coming, which made her opponent wonder exactly what she was doing wrong. Apparently unaware that she herself was doing something similar to the champ herself. Both had earned some blood from the other, but not enough to be satisfied. Christie’s goal had shifted from proving Styx was a fraud to simply taking her down. A challenge that she was willing to take on even then! Despite her injuries, she still wanted to take the champion down and prove herself the superior fighter! No longer was there a point to be made! This was a fight to see who would come out on top!

Christie’s grip tightened around her shovel until her knuckles turned white. She never took her eyes off of Styx, finally straightening back up to her full height as the Champ goaded her, challenging the new girl by prodding her anger. Christie could only sneer at her, pulling her shovel’s head off the floor with a loud audible scraping noise! The irritating sound of metal dragging against concrete.

Styx would be the one to break their staredown. She moved suddenly, Christie’s eyes tracking the woman’s open hand rushing her in an attempt to shove the smaller fighter over. The attack was immature, and Christie’s own arm moved inside of Styx’s reach before roughly swinging against the champion’s broad arm in order to knock the attack off track! As she did so, her other hand that gripped the shovel with a dead man’s hold came about! The metal head made another painful appearance as Christie moved to thrust it into her foe’s rib cage, catching Styx’s real attack at the exact same moment!

Styx’s barbed bat came in quick but made a vile impression even quicker than that as it’s metal teeth took a vicious bite into Christie’s already bruised leg! A vile growl clawed its way out of the Sadistic Succubus’s maw, audible enough to demonstrate that the bat was a very painful experience indeed. The limb moved to the side suddenly, making Christie fall into her attack, adding an unexpected bit of momentum to her shovel’s thrust! A fact she didn't seem to mind at the moment.

"Shut up and fight, you fucking whore!"

Christie could feel the barbed wire stuck in her leg, the sensation of blood running down her limb inside her boots as a slicing, burning pain raged through her thigh and calf. It hurt to put pressure on it, especially with the bat still somewhat stuck to her boots material. Christie could only hope her attack would hurt Styx’s as badly as the champ had hurt her...because the pain in her leg was starting to get unbearable!

Styx’s intention had been to trip Christie up and bring her to the floor, wanting to get on top of the woman and dominate from there. A solid goal, another step in this war of attrition. What wound up happening, though, was a bit more than that.

It was a rush of primal pain. As Styx pushed forward, her foe went on the attack, as well, the two of them trying to dominate in the limited space afforded to them. On her end, she wound up taking a hard shot from the shovel into her ribs, one that she knew did some real damage. Busted ribs? At least one, and another one might’ve been straight broken. It was this searing pain in her guts, a churning feeling that spiked with every movement she made. Something she would be feeling for weeks to come.

As painful as it was, though, it would’ve pissed her off if she didn’t have anything to show for it. Styx was accustomed to agony, but she wasn’t a masochist, just wanting to take it. No, she liked to share her pain, give as good as she got. So, needless to say, the sound of her opponent crying out in anguish from the attack to her leg was sweet music, and the sight of it, well…

Blood. Blood was good. But Styx was greedy - she wanted a little bit more.

Christie’s response made her smile widen even further, loving the rage coming out of this woman. It was a little refreshing to see, if she were being honest, with her getting so used to the lame-ass taunts from many of the women in the AFW. With this one, however, all she received was rage. Raw, bubbling rage, rising up like a furnace. It honestly reminded her a lot of herself. Seeing a lot of qualities she could grow accustomed to, maybe even use if they were properly focused…

Focus, focus. Something about nearly being impaled on a goddamn shovel was making her mind wander. The blow sent her down to her knees, left her cluthcing her abdomen in pain, but the sight of the bat stuck to Christie’s knee added on a little smirk to her grimace. It wasn’t much, but she gave it a hard yank, pulling her weapon free, knowing how much it would suck on her opponent’s end.

The cold barbed wire was still stuck into Christie’s leg, refusing to be freed no matter how much the two women moved. While the points on the metal were small, the sheer force Styx had put behind them was more than enough to bury them completely in the Grave Keeper’s leg. It wouldn’t have been too far-fetched to think that if either Styx or Christie released the weapon, it would have just hung against her leg thanks to the support of those tiny pins of metal. Such a disturbing thought didn’t even enter Christie’s mind though. She was too busy trying to relieve some of the anger she felt toward her opponent by making her writhe about in agony and forcing her to scream just as Styx had managed to do to her.

Sadly, Styx’s blow had managed to rob any satisfaction Christie might have gotten from her attack on the Champions rips.  Even as the giant seemed to fall to her knees, she still had a sick smirk on her face! Styx was enjoying herself! She loved the fact that she was pissing Christie off, that each hit was slowly knocking more steam out of the Malevolent Marauder! Even after taking a direct hit with a shovel, she still had the energy to smile.

It was absolutely disgusting!

Christie’s face scrunched up even further in anger! There was something about Styx that really got on her nerves. It took her a moment to realize exactly why that smug face pissed her off so much. It was because she had seen that very same expression before. At the very start of this match, Styx wore that same stupid smile when she was playing with the toy that was now slung over the masked woman’s shoulder.

Christie’s bloodied fangs bared at her enemy in a direct contradiction to Styx’s smile as she once again pulled back her fist in order to slam in across the woman’s jaw, looking to turn that self satisfied grin into a distant memory!

No sooner did her swing complete its arc when a fresh ripping sensation came from her leg. All she felt was a tug, and the Grave Keeper’s leg suddenly gave out underneath her. Immediately, she could hear droplets of blood hitting the floor, feel the torn skin and sticky leather of her boots clinging together as she fell to a single knee!. The pain was immeasurable, with Christie’s eyes focused solely on the floor as she growled in agony and tried to remember to breathe!

Slowly, her eyes trailed down to the very source of the wound. A sick, bruised and blood covered gash was what ended up greeting her. Bits of fabric from her boots were stuck to the blood, making the wound look absolutely nasty and worse than it really was. Of course, there was no mistake that it was bad. The leg had gone numb, and even as Christie knelt there, a small scarlet pond was beginning to grow around her knee.

That Bitch!

Her mobility was cut off! Her greatest advantage gone in a burning, painful tug from her opponent. Christie wasn’t sure about moving it, but she was certainly going to make Styx pay for it! The Grave Keeper growled one final time before pushing off her good leg, throwing herself at Styx like a cobra striking out against its prey! Cocked with a sharp headbutt, Christie was determined to end this fighting! Through tooth and nails, no matter how much blood it cost her, Christie seemed willing to pay it all, no matter the toll on her body! All just for a few minutes of consciousness and the chance to throw another punch!

Most people knew to stay away from barbed wire, but they had never seen the exact reason why. Oh, they could look at it and know how much it would suck to get caught up in the spikes, imagine what the harsh metal could do to the human body. But seeing and feeling were two different things, wide apart, and there was simply not substitution for watching the results firsthand. The way it could rend flesh and the distinct pattern it made, the way it could make the blood vessels weep and leave you dripping in record time, was like nothing else. Styx had jumped more than enough fences in her teen years to know that bite, and empathize with what Christie was going through at the moment.

And that made it all that much more delicious to observe. No matter who won this match or how things ended up, Christie would be looking at the scars on her leg and remembering the hell she went through for years to come, and that realization just warmed her soul.

Getting this to happen didn’t come without a price, naturally, and that price was a good blow to the jaw, one that had Styx staggering. It sent her back a few steps and brought her down to a knee, a testament to how much this match had worn on her reserves. Normally she would’ve been shrugging the blow forward and keeping her momentum going, but this hit had her reeling even more than usual, enough to bring her down to a knee.

Her vision was a bit hazy, too, but she could see the growing pool of red through the fog clear enough. Christie was bleeding bad, and it would only be a matter of time until her time ran out. Perfect for her purposes.

Styx started to push her way up, thinking she would have time to move in on her opponent. A safe assumption, but that didn’t mean it was right, and her opponent proved her wrong fast enough. Instead of waiting for the fight to come her way, Christie did the poucing, leaping towards her on the one leg that was still worth a damn with a ramming headbutt.

It was enough to catch Styx off guard and leave her falling flat with Christie on top, stunned for a moment. Shaking her head, she pressed her palms on the floor and began to try and push up, a sluggish attempt to unseat her foe before she could capitalize.