AV 20 Alaina Sanders vs Charlotte Ravel

It's hard enough to define your own limits. However, the pink-haired woman knew for sure that the first and most important sign of approaching the border of her own capabilities is the moment when the fighter can no longer hold his hands high. And now the martial artist realized that her endurance was starting to fail her. Even just keeping her fists at chin level began to turn into torture. The Sand Lizard felt her muscles groan in pain, trying to force her to drop her arms. She needed at least a short break.

And when a thunderous clap made her rival stagger back, the young woman's hands involuntarily dropped lower. Whoever Alaina was, the Frenchwoman was sure that she had at least a few seconds for her muscles to rest. But even that was not a reason to stop, just standing and waiting for her rival to return to normal was an impermissible luxury.

Therefore, the martial artist took a step forward, intending to pursue the Amazon. And just then, her rival rushed forward, making Charlotte flinch. She was confident that after her knife, the advantage returned to her side. But Alaina's fist approaching her unprotected face was ready to challenge it. Realizing that she simply cannot defend herself, the Frenchwoman decided to use her long arms in order to at least try to smooth the situation. Taking a step forward, instead of taking a step back, she sent her left hand forward, hoping that her left uppercut would reach the Amazon's liver.

Bam. The Sand Lizard's head tilted backward with such force as if it had just been fired at by a large-caliber sniper rifle. The hair tie fell onto the mat and the long pink hair was loose. Charlotte took two wobbly steps back, and then her body moved to the side. The martial artist began to fall, and only the fact that she grabbed the top rope with her right hand saved her for complete fall. Her knees touched the mat and now she seemed to be hanging on the top rope, pulling it. She didn't even know if her own blow had hit its target. Now she was groggy.

She saw almost nothing in front of her, only a strange fog. But even through this fog, she was able to make out that there was some strange spot right below her. And with each passing second, this spot only gets bigger. Without realizing it, Charlotte raised her left hand, placing the palm on her face. Only later will she realize that her nose was broken by the bestial blow of her rival. So far, she could only understand that two streams of thick scarlet liquid flowed from both of her nostrils.

If she could think now, she would like to sink under the ground. Once Karen told her that during the second match with the Englishwoman she lost the competition in boxing. And now Charlotte could say that now she understands the disappointment of her student at that moment. Punches and kicks were her best calling card, she was sure that no one could surpass her in this. And yet she was now below, completely lost in space. Missed a blow bacause of lowered hands... the Frenchwoman was ready to shoot herself in the head. And this once again showed how far she was from Alaina and women like her.

Even the sounds were now reaching Charlotte's brain with a certain delay. Due to the fog in front of her eyes, she did not even quite understand where she was and what was happening now. Only the memory, which contained the memories of all the fights she went through, made her understand something. Hearing heavy footsteps, a distant corner of the still working consciousness sent a signal to the Sand Lizard that her rival was able to keep moving forward. Either Charlotte's retaliatory strike did not find its target at all, or the strike was so useless that the Amazon simply overcame it.

However, the problem was that even though the martial arts master realized that Alaina had stepped forward again, breaking the Frenchwoman's nose, she could not do anything about it. The pink-haired woman tried to find the strength to concentrate, but every time she ordered herself to get up, her body did not obey. Continuing to cover her nose with her hand, she could only bleed, barely holding her body with her other hand, gripping the ropes. She heard a voice somewhere nearby.

"Can you continue?" the girl referee asked, but Charlotte did not answer. “If you can't clench your fists, I'll stop the match.”

Even if it is a match with hardcore rules, it seems that the referee would prefer to avoid a situation in which the fighter would harm her health too much. In boxing, this was normal practice. When a boxer gets hit hard and falls into a groggy state, he only has eight seconds to bounce back. If a boxer is not able to pull himself together, then the blow was so powerful that there is a risk of serious injury without timely medical attention.

"I'm starting to count!" said the striped shirt.

If she had the strength now, the Sand Lizard would snort in annoyance. Even in this state, it was clear to her that there was no need to count. Since Alaina wasn't beating her like a whipping girl right now, it just meant that right now the American woman was headed to the top of the cage. And if the martial arts master does not pull herself together, then the Amazon will be on the other side faster than the referee complete to count. For the second time, the Frenchwoman was forced to bite her lower lip in order to at least slightly concentrate the pain in one place.

The salty blood on her lips turned those lips into a dry desert and now every breath was something nasty. Charlotte could no longer breathe through her nose, and every breath through her mouth caused her to gag reflex due to the salty taste. Her right hand shook and tears began to pour from her eyes. The combination of simply unbearable pain and disgusting salty taste in her throat literally turned the woman inside out. And yet she got to her feet even before the referee girl began start counting. The Sand Lizard almost fell back down, but then she removed her left hand from her face. She raised her right hand and clenched both fists in front of her chin. That should have been enough to convince the striped shirt that she was okay.

Even though the streams of blood were no longer running from Charlotte's nose, moving towards the ropes, she left behind a red line of many scarlet drops of blood. Her vision was not fully focused, she only managed to clear her gaze for short periods of time. Even so, however, she only knew one thing. If she does not do everything possible in order to give more than her maximum, she simply cannot live on. Even if she had to be only number two for the rest of her days, the Frenchwoman was not going to sell her pride.

The Amazon was already high enough, trying to just overtake her was stupid and useless. In a sense, it was very ironic and very reflective of the current state of affairs for Charlotte, not only in this match. But that didn't mean she shouldn't try. Stepping between the middle and top ropes, the pink-haired woman paused for a moment, trying to take a deep breath through her mouth. The salty taste of blood was terrible, but she needed oxygen. Trying to ignore the pain, the Sand Lizard jumped in place, grabbing onto the cage wall. There were ropes behind her and she used them to make another jump up. She hoped that she would have enough strength to at least grab Alaina by the ankle, slowing down or stopping her movement.

Charlotte was even afraid to imagine how awful she looks now. Disheveled long pink hair combined with a broken nose and a bloody face didn't make her a world beauty just now. Although now she had more important concerns besides her beauty. This was loudly said by the fact that she managed to grab the ankle of her rival, upsetting Alaina's balance. The mighty Amazon was now supporting her weight only with her hands. And although the Frenchwoman was sure that Alaina would be able to cling to the wall of the cage with her free leg again, this was no reason to stop.

Knowing that she would not achieve anything by being so low, the martial artist raised her left hand up in order to grab the bars of the cage and pull herself up. Even at the end of their second match, she didn't feel as bad as she did now. The heaviness in the muscles and the maddening pain in the chest was only aggravated by the throbbing sensation in the nose. The blood was still dripping onto her sports top. And yet she continued to move up.

Not wanting to be kicked in the face by her rival, breaking her nose in second place, the Sand Lizard struggled to pull the Amazon's leg closer to herself. Thus, Charlotte wanted to limit the space for her rival as much as possible, moreover, this would not allow Alaina to start moving up again. Another jerk and now Charlotte was at the level of the American woman's torso.

Expecting that her rival would first of all decide to hit her in the head, the pink-haired woman let go of Alaina's leg, this was no longer necessary, and then she tried to cover her head as much as possible, bending her arm at the elbow and putting it in front of her head. More than anything, her body now wanted only one thing. Charlotte's body wanted her to just give up. The body wanted the Frenchwoman to let go of the cage wall and simply collapse down. It would surely have finished her and the match would have been over. However, Charlotte's mind wanted the exact opposite.

"I won't lose... I will surpass you..." Charlotte thought.

She needed to climb a little higher. But to do this with just one hand, covering the head with the other hand, was almost impossible. She had to take the risk. The Sand Lizard clenched her jaws and threw her right hand up, hoping to grab the back of Alaina's head. Indeed, if successful, she only needed to push off with her feet, raising her left hand up. If she succeeded, then she would be able to reach the same level as Alaina. At least in terms of being at the same level of the cage.

If she were not almost completely exhausted, she would probably have heard the screams of the audience. Even though she was now far from her natural beauty, they could at least appreciate the efforts she made to be here. There was only one thing left. Now she needed to throw the Amazon down. Releasing the back of Alaina's head, the Sand Lizard intended to clench a fist and send it straight to her opponent's left cheek. This punch couldn't even be named. It was just a banal punch with a fist, in which the Frenchwoman tried to put what little she had left.

Charlotte's right hand dropped almost lifelessly after her fist slammed into her rival's cheek. Just like the time she missed the blow that fractured her nose, the Frenchwoman was now almost unable to hold her arms high. She gripped the bars of the cage with her fingers while her mouth gulped for air. The only consolation was that her hit was good. Even feeling that she had almost no strength left, she was able to put in this banal blow more than just muscle. For a moment, it even seemed to her that now the American woman would simply fall down, unable to keep herself on the cage wall any longer.

Charlotte only closed her eyes for a moment, exhausted. It seemed to her that each exhalation brings her closer to loss of consciousness, and each new inhalation was given to her with incredible effort. The Sand Lizard was now clinging to this metal wall only because it wanted to achieve at least something. Reality and dreams were diametrically opposed things. And the pink-haired woman understood that even if she managed to snatch victory from her rival's hands today, the next match can return everything to square one.

Although, as it turned out, she was still so far from victory like from the moon. As soon as Charlotte opened her eyes a second after she closed them, she saw the Amazon regain her balance. But instead of grabbing the cage with her free hand, she grabbed the martial artist's hair. Even if she had enough reaction to raise her own hand, given Alaina's wild strength, she would not have been able to stop her. Charlotte could only feel in all its glory how first Alaina took her head back, and then directed the Frenchwoman's face directly into the metal bars.

“GGGgggghhhhhh…” a muffled sound escaped her mouth.

While the bloodied martial artist's face was pressed against the metal, her gaze was clouded over. Blood and saliva dripped over the metal, oozing from her mouth and nose. Charlotte's feet turned into cotton wool and slid off the cage wall. Many at this moment thought that now the Frenchwoman would simply collapse down. And this assumption was fair. Only muscle memory combined with willpower made her cling to the cage wall with her fingers. Charlotte's body hung almost lifelessly in her arms, as if she was about to start pulling up on the horizontal bar. But besides short breaths through the mouth, there were no other signs of movement.

Hair... hair again... how she hated it when someone touched her hair. Even in those distant times, when she did not care about methods at all, she never allowed herself such things. And even though this match was cruel almost from the first second, especially for her, she even managed to forget that hardcore rules are applied today and that Alaina can do whatever she sees fit without remorse.

"C'est inutile..." Charlotte thought.

Or not? Reality and dreams were diametrically opposed things. She dreamed of showing and proving that even beginners can stand on a par with veterans. Believing in her principles, Charlotte was sure that it doesn't matter how many matches you have behind your back. What matters is how hard you strive to win and how hard you work for that victory. This could be called a dream. But the worst thing was that if you win today, you will take a small step forward. And tomorrow you will lose and they will throw you ten steps back. This could be called reality.

Charlotte's bare feet rested against a metal wall and she strained her arms, letting out a choked groan of pain. The pink-haired woman opened her eyes. It was hard to tell if it was the fire in her gaze or if it was just a spark of despair. It didn't really matter that much. The important thing was that even knowing that she, like everyone else, would have to remain in the shadows for many years in a row, she was not going to stop today. She intended to pull her body up using her arms. And then she was going to do something that she had never done in her life. Even at the moment when her first rival in this ring made her fall into a rage, Charlotte did not dare to take this step. But given the circumstances... it looks like it's time to forget about at least some of the principles. At least the media will have a reason to write that the first the Sand Lizard threw her code into a dark corner.

Returning one level with Alaina, the Frenchwoman was determined to throw her right hand at her opponent's head. At first it might seem that she was going to just punch the Amazon on the cheek again. But this time it was different. She shouldn't have felt it, but even now Charlotte wasn’t sure if this was the right decision. Honor was above all for her. And now, when her palm was about to grab the roots of the hair on the back of Alaina's head, she experienced a real prick of conscience. However, this did not stop her. It was too late to stop. Like her rival a moment earlier, Charlotte intended to pull that brown hair back to move the Amazon head away from the cage wall. And then the martial artist was determined to change direction and push Alaina's head into the metal bars, hoping that at least that would be enough to finally make her fall.

Releasing Alaina's hair, Charlotte grabbed the cage again. As much as she wanted to re-send the head of her rival into metal bars, she realized that her strength was already at the limit and even a simple attempt to hit the Amazon could lead to a fall. This should not have happened, so the Frenchwoman decided to play it safe. Especially considering that she clearly saw the blood on the face of the American woman. It looks like it's not just the Sand Lizard will get new scars. Contrary to expectations, Charlotte has never broken her nose in her life. She could only hope that after all she won't look like a homunculus with a terrible square nose after the fracture healed.

Plus, the pink-haired woman was willing to swear that this time her rival would fall. Charlotte should have remembered a long time ago how incredible Alaina was, who, even in the most desperate moments, could find the strength to return. And every time the Frenchwoman was sure that she was finally able to take a step forward, the Amazon found a way to prove that Charlotte will have to work on herself for more than one year to reach the same level. And that's how it turned out now.

Instead of falling down, the Sand Lizard felt Alaina grab her shoulder. And less than a moment later, Alaina's leg wrapped around the young woman's leg. Charlotte clenched her jaw, she knew it didn't bode well for her. Her body was weakened almost to the point of complete exhaustion and she didn't want to check what the Amazon was up to. She let go of the cage wall, intending to send a few elbows to Alaina's left side. But Charlotte did not even have time to check whether it had any effect or not.

But this was inevitable. Alaina pulled Charlotte back. If she had fresh strength, she tried to grab onto the cage wall, but now she could not even try to do so. Her fingers let go of the metal bars and Charlotte began to fall down. A chill ran down her spine. It looked like death was approaching. Exhaling all the air in order to at least slightly reduce the effect on her ribs, Charlotte tried to get ready. But it was impossible to prepare for this.

The ring shuddered as both women fell from a catastrophic height. Charlotte didn't scream in pain, but her eyes were about to pop out of their sockets, she was ready to swear that she felt new cracks in her ribs. The young woman's body bounced off the mat and she collapsed onto her right side. Instead of a scream, a cough came from the pink-haired woman's mouth. And every time a dull sound came out of her mouth, saliva mixed with blood fell on the mat. In many situations, pain can help to stay conscious. Right now, however, the Sand Lizard had to do whatever it could just to stay here.

Lying on her side, she felt that she simply could not move. And every time she tried to move, she began to cough up blood. Charlotte's gaze was clouded and she looked like a broken, bloody doll. Her muscles were literally torn apart, otherwise she could not explain why she felt pain even just trying to move her hand.

"It can't end like this..." she thought.

Charlotte put her trembling left hand on the mat. Closing her eyes, she got up on all fours, after which she coughed up blood again. Her whole body began to tremble, she was ready to just fall on her stomach, unable even to support her own weight. Through the fog in her eyes, she saw the silhouette of Alaina. She had no idea how the fall ended for her, but it didn't matter. Cursing everything in the world, the Sand Lizard knew only one thing. She can't stop. The young woman clenched her right fist and raised her hand. Diving forward, she aimed her fist at her rival's head. But even before that fist reached its target, a convulsion gripped Charlotte's entire body and she collapsed onto her stomach. Her face was pressed against the mat and she just stared into the void while blood was flowing from her mouth and nose, her body was too damaged to continue now.