To Thine Own Self Be True

It had been too long since Anesthesia had done a good old fashioned promo. She’d missed them.

That might have seemed odd, given the way the crowd was reacting to her at the moment. She stood in the middle of the ring, with Sista A pacing about on her left while Black Belt Demon leaned in the corner to her right, one hand on her hips while the other held a microphone in hand, and all the crowd had for her was hate. Pure, visceral hate. The funny thing was, she hadn’t really done much to deserve that hate...in the AFW. Compared to her previous antics, her footprint on this company had been a small one, barely worth anyone’s notice up till this point.

No, the malice coming her way was more for her actions in Rumble Roses than anything, a fact she wore with unabashed pride. Her actions there had earned her a reputation with these unwashed masses that still revolted them, a testament to her impact. How many women could say such things on either side of the spectrum? How many could claim to be truly infamous.

The thought brought a warm smile to her face as she stood there, and she wished she could bask in the hate she had cultivated all day. Given half a chance, she would have with glee. But there was certainly no time for that, now - she was here on business. Important business.

”Oh, my, my.” Anesthesia brought the microphone up and spoke with a pout, making a mockery of an ashamed face before her real, crueler grin came back to the surface. ”What’s wrong? You’re not all happy to see me?”

The crowd only responded by booing even louder, which she had thought impossible before. Anesthesia had a slight chuckle and looked off to the side, just in time to see Black Belt Demon flipping off a particularly loud woman in the seats nearby. Growing up so fast, that one was. ”It’s quite all right, I understand the reaction. You’re sheep. Sheep love to spend their time bleating at every little thing. It’s your nature - whenever you see a woman like me, a woman free of the inhibitions that shackle you, you simply do what comes natural to you.”

With a chuckle, she began to take a walk around the ring, swaying her hips with every step, controlling the moment. ”What you see in this ring, now, are three women who know who they are. What they deserve out of life. Who know what belongs to them and are willing to do what you’re all too afraid to do: Seize it.” Black Belt Demon nodded at that and Sista A gave her a quick clap, both in rare agreement. ”It’s a beautiful thing, to know yourself. A rare thing. And one of the worst things a woman can do, ever, is forget that. Which brings me to the reason I’m gracing you all with my presence, today.”

After taking a deep, satisfied breath, she finally turned on a heel towards the entrance, closed her eyes, and spoke. ”Jessica Wright? Dear? I know you’re in the building today.” The crowd finally stop booing and broke into confused murmurs, not at all sure what the game was, here. Anesthesia had never crossed paths with Jessica before so far as anyone knew, leaving the imagination to run wild for what her business could be. Thankfully, the Dark Nightingale wouldn't’ be leaving them in suspense for long.

”Come out, would you? I’d like to have a quick word with you. Heart to heart.”

Jessica was in the building. The Violent Violet really hated to be pigeonholed into anything really. Unpredictability could help win you matches, and in a greater sense it made people tune into what she was doing in the first place. She had won the hardcore title by cutting a swath of destruction through AFW, the likes of which haven't been seen in a long time. And now she had lost the belt. But she had regained a new sense of purpose. As she stood there, looking up at the monitor, she thought about what Anesthesia was saying. Apparently, there were a few women there who knew what they wanted out of life, and knew how to get it. Jessica found herself at a crossroads now. She thought she wanted to go straight, to work her way into the heavyweight conversation without breaking anyone's bones or taking a woman as a prisoner of war. Wrestling had a funny way of testing you.

Well, that wasn't entirely true. Wrestling had its own peculiarities that made it unlike anything else on the planet, but that was because it was filled with wrestlers. Mean men and women who were willing to put their bodies on the line to come away with fleeting victories that could compound upon themselves to culminate in gold or fizzle out in a week thanks to some horribly embarrassing loss. The woman on the microphone knew that more than anyone, because she had handed more than her fair share of those losses out to women back at Rumble Roses. When Jessica was first cutting her teeth in dingy gyms that stood in the middle of a cornfield, Anesthesia was lighting up women and then degrading them in front of the entire world.

Jessica was in her wrestling outfit. Her manager had told her not to bother, because there weren't any matches for her on the slate tonight. But that didn't seem right. There was now a lot of buzz around her, to see what she would do. The Violent Violet had earned quite the name for herself while she was here at AFW, and many had a hard time believing that she could change tacks just like that. Truth be told, that was a long time coming, but no one could see Jessica staring at the belt, trying to wrest meaning from it as she dealt with existential dread.

But that was the last thing that she would be feeling right now. Jessica burst out into the arena. They barely had time to get her new music going before she stood still, up at the top of the ramp.

"I strongly suspect that you are not calling me out here to have a heart to heart," Jessica joked. The crowd roared. They didn't like her, but they definitely enjoyed the fact that her presence was an augury for a hell of a match. "But I am feeling sweet enough to let you say your piece. But if you say the wrong words, I will not hesitate to snap you in fucking half," she threatened. Just because the Violent Violet said she was going straight didn't mean that she wasn't a badass.

Anesthesia sneered, irritated when she heard the music start up at first. She knew Jessica’s entrance theme, well enough to know that wasn’t it, which could only mean that some meddlesome troublemaker had decided to come out in Jessica’s place and complicate matters. Normally, that wouldn’t have been too much of a problem - this was the sort of thing she had lackeys for, after all. Black Belt Demon and Sista A were more than sufficient to trounce any meddlers and dissuade future ingrates from making similar mistakes. But she wanted things to go smoothly tonight. Just a word with the former champion. That was all.

So her delight quickly returned a second later, when Jessica came storming out, all full of fiery fury. The Violent Violent seemed particularly perturbed, and Anesthesia couldn’t blame her. Losing a title tended to sour the mood.

Straight and to the point, Anesthesia stood her ground as Sista A moved to her side, sizing her up the hardcore wrestler with folded arms. She was doing a similar thing herself, only for different reasons. While she’d seen that body on the computer often, this was her first time getting a personal look. 1080p just did not do this body justice, she had to say.

”Well, well, aren’t you a specimen?” Anesthesia took a step to the side, leering at those fine breasts from another angle, undressing the muscle mountain with her eyes and not caring to hide it. ”No stranger to the gym, are we? I approve.”

She bit her lip, then straightened up to face the woman. ”I’m sure you don’t want your time wasted, dear, and I feel much the same way...and yet, that’s precisely what you’re doing, isn’t it? This little game you started playing at Avalanche. This facade.” She wagged a finger at Jessica and stepped to the side, starting to circle her, as Sista A held her position and Black Belt Demon moved to join in. Creating a subtle circle around the giant.

”How long do you plan on playing nice, Ms. Wright? Come on. Spill.”

Jessica was being watched. It was one thing to have all of the eyes of everyone in the arena to be on you, but it was another thing entirely to have a woman like Anesthesia size you up right in front of you. The Violent Violet had come out here to be examined, in a sense, but this was not the particular means that she wanted to be looked over. Jessica was incredibly comfortable with her body, but under the medical and precise gaze of the former Rumble Rose, it took everything that she had not to wither. There was no longer a shiny belt around her waist, but she knew what she was about.

Or at least she thought she knew. Jessica held the microphone up to her mouth, and paused for a second. A few months ago, she had emerged from the back to deliver a sermon from the mount, and now she was being called upon to see if those words rang true. The next words that came out of her mouth would set the tone for the rest of the evening. And potentially for the rest of her life. "Ain't no jokes, ain't no playing," she said. She paused for a second. "And if you have any intent to see if I can still kick ass without hitting anyone in the crotch, well, I'm right here, bitch."

Jessica took a step forward. She tried to time it so that she would get Anesthesia when she was right in front of her. That circle that she had made around Jessica had made her nervous, the same way that the two goons next to her made her did. The Violent Violet knew that this was going to become a match, which meant that two incredibly strong women would be lurking around like sharks patrolling a reef.

"I am still the best. And if you want me to prove it, I would be more than happy to. I don't need to swing a baseball bat to knock someone the fuck out, and if you want to see how true those words are you can keep talking. These folks paid a lot of money," she gestured to the crowd, "to watch someone get beaten the fuck up. Unlucky for you, that bitch is going to be you. Or I will let you apologize and go on my merry way." Jessica upped the ante even more by taking another step forward so that their breasts were pushing together now.

When Jessica moved into her personal space, Sista A and Black Belt Demon both took steps forward, ready to intercept. She’d trained them both quite well in that regard - they knew what their place was, here, that their responsibilities were to protect her. Good little doggies, eager to attack at her every whim. The Violent Violet was a colossus, a titan of wrestling, but between the three of them, she would wither in no time. She had to know that, and was likely banking on Anesthesia to keep the other two at bay.

In this case, it was a safe bet. Anesthesia raised her hands as Jessica neared and pushed against her in turn, letting their breasts mushroom against each other. The Naughty Nurse cooed, chewing on her bottom lip as she savored the sensation. Such a luscious pair on this one. Her nipples were already perk, poking into Jessica through the fabric. She closed her eyes and let a blissful sigh escape her lips.

”Mmm. Such a prize, this one.” She muttered and looked back at Jessica through half-lidded eyes. ”Such vim and vigor. A wild mare, begging to be tamed.”

”Pfft.” Sista A snorted and stepped forward, coming at them from the side. ”Don’t even bother. Let me at this bitch, I’ll send her and her fatass udders packing.”

Anesthesia merely stepped back and shoed her minion away. ”While I appreciate the initiative, there’s no need. It’s been too long since I’ve had a proper match. And I can hardly miss the chance to feel this body against mine.” She shivered at the thought of it, muscles tensed, before she waved them both away and spoke with more bass in her voice. ”To ringside, both of you. I doubt this will take too long.”

Sista A and Black Belt Demon exchanged glances, then shrugged and made their way to the ropes, taking up positions on opposite sides of the ring. A referee was already making her way down the ring, but they would have a little time to chat before she arrived. ”I have high expectations, Ms. Wright. Do try to live up to them.”

Jessica was acutely aware of her situation. Earlier in her career, she had become a specialist in going into handicap matches and coming out with a victory. Those matches were against women who weighed slightly more than a sack of flour, and were just about as effective when it came to wrestling. The women that were arranging themselves around Jessica were trained killers, veterans of the sport who had more wins than most women had matches.

But Jessica was no slouch either. The odds were going to be overwhelming, but Jessica thought of herself as someone who could take on the world. In large part because she was so incensed at the udders comment. The Violent Violet made a face to show just how pissed off she was, and wanted to swing on Sista A, who in Jessica's opinion didn't seem like she was missing that much in the chest department. But before she could sate her urge for violence, Anesthesia called the dogs off. Her purple eyes swung back to the woman whom she was now pressed up against. She scoffed when Anesthesia said that it wouldn't take long. In Jessica's mind, this was going to take exactly as long as she wanted it to, and not one second less.

"You're going to feel that body against yours when I shove my ass in your face," Jessica threatened. "And I am going to show you what a world fucking champion can do against a has-been like you." Her head was tilted to the side, showing that she was all business. "Do you think this is some fucking game? Where you get to just do whatever you want? Because I am about to show you what it is like to taste real pain."

Jessica didn't know when the bell was going to ring. The only thing that mattered at the moment was tearing her opponent apart, which Jessica was primed and ready to do. She was already in kill mode, and every second that passed by was excruciating to her as it meant that she could not show Anesthesia the power that she had within her. Jessica decided to pass the time the best way she knew how, which was to say issuing horrible threats and insults.

"You were washed up five years ago. And it is good that you have high expectations, because I am the fucking best. And I would never want to disappoint my fans. Do you want an autograph, too? Because I was thinking that it would be fun to write my name across your fucking forehead."