Like A Dragon (For skip-stop)

Victoria sat in her office and wondered how she could screw up so badly. Until recently, she did not allow anyone to criticize her work because she was more than one hundred percent sure that she was doing her job perfectly. However, now the Englishwoman felt incredibly disappointed. In fact, the relationship between a manager and a wrestler is pretty simple. The wrestler's' job is to win matches. The manager's job is to promote their wrestlers with all their might. And now Victoria simply could not understand how she could allow her most important star not to get into any of the ratings of the past year.

Of course, she was well aware that Astrid did not care much about the media, and therefore she had no complaints about the manager. However, because of all this, Victoria felt like a real insignificance. She organized as many matches for the Norwegian woman as possible, including matches with two former champions and even one unique ppv, and Astrid never let her down. And yet she let Astrid down. It literally destroyed her from the inside.

The system was too strong. She knew that Charlotte was trying her best to change that, but so far the fact was fact. No one took the likes of Charlotte and Astrid seriously, especially when compared to the top stars. They were considered to be something of second-rate wrestlers due to the fact that they did not have a huge number of matches behind their backs. And yet Victoria was sure that at least Astrid would definitely be in the ranking of young rising stars. But that did not happen. The fans loved her, but it wasn't enough. And this only meant that Victoria did not cope with her job.

The Englishwoman sighed and adjusted her glasses. Her gaze fell on the screen, she had just received some kind of notification. And as her eyes moved along the line of text, her pupils expanded more and more. Jumping up from her seat, Victoria grabbed the phone and typed a quick message, then ran out of her office as quickly as her heels would allow. She shouldn't screw up at least with that.
"One beer please!" Astrid said, placing her ass on the chair in front of the bar.

For the first time in a long time, the Norwegian woman decided to allow herself to relax a little. She was always looking for challenges for herself and was ready to take any of them, not caring about the results. She always did not care what they thought of her and how they treated her. It was always enough for her to know that she is the one of the bests, the rest is not important. All people are different, so she was not going to prove something to someone with words. If someone needs proof, she is ready to provide it with her fists.

However, the latest results surprised even her. She was too big girl to cry because her efforts in her first year in the new organization were not appreciated. But it would be a lie to say that she felt nothing at that moment.  Hearing Victoria's disappointed voice apologizing for letting this happen, Astrid decided to take a little vacation. And today she made a reservation at a Kyoto hotel. Of course, in Norway it was also possible to have a good rest on the beach. Yet she always wanted to visit this city after arriving in Japan. Plus, apparently, no one will notice her absence.

The bartender put a bottle of beer in front of her and opened it. Astrid smiled, grabbed the bottle, and was about to start celebrating her upcoming vacation. But... the phone of the Norwegian woman began to vibrate, and given that almost no one knew this number, it must have been something important. Sighing heavily, she put the bottle back on the bar and took out her phone. She slightly raised her left eyebrow when she saw that Victoria had sent her a message. The blonde opened the message and saw the text.

“Get your ass to the arena immediately. Hall number 10. And turn on the live broadcast."

"What?" Astrid didn't understand.

However, she decided to carry out at least the second order of her manager. She turned on the live stream and the first thing she heard was that in a few minutes the former world champion should start her promo. Putting two plus two together, Astrid understood why Victoria had told her to come immediately to the AFW's main building. The long-haired blonde jumped up from her seat. Dropping the payment for the beer, she grabbed her helmet and ran out into the street. In a moment, she jumped on her motorcycle and, lifting on one wheel, like the wind rushed to another part of Tokyo.
"Hey, you can't park here!" shouted the security as he watched Astrid jump off the motorcycle in front of the arena doors.
"So move him aside, but if there is even one scratch on him, even Odin will not protect you from me!" cried Astrid. “Out of my way! Out of my way!”

Getting from the entrance of the building to hall ten was not an easy task in a few minutes, especially considering that there were people everywhere. Half of them stepped aside as soon as Astrid came into view, and the other half had to be pushed out of her way. In parallel with this, the blonde had to look at the screen of her phone. Right now, a woman named Alison was making less than flattering comments towards the Golden Dragon. A flame lit up in Astrid's soul.

“If she doesn't show up right now, we won't let it be turned on at all,” Victoria heard over the speaker of the phone.
“She will arrive in a minute... just...” the manager tried to justify herself, and then she looked ahead, a certain figure in a helmet rushed along the corridor and it seems that this figure did not even plan to stop, from such a sight Victoria almost lost her speech, but then she took herself into hands, “turn it on... right now. She's here."

Entrance Music:

Less than a minute after Alison's speech, the dynamic music began. And if at first the audience was a little confused, then when Astrid kicked doors down, the hall was filled with cheers. She didn't even care that her helmet was still on her head. Although her face was not visible, wild blonde hair and a trademark glove in the form of a metal prosthesis, combined with music, made it clear who had just stepped onto the ramp.

Taking a few steps forward, Astrid raised her hands above her head, joining her palms like a crown. Victoria, who followed Astrid through the broken doors, allowed herself a smile. Despite everything, fans loved this blonde and someday everyone will have to recognize this incredible woman. The Norwegian woman lowered her arms and unbuckled her motorcycle helmet. Taking it off, she shook her head, freeing her long golden hair.

Her gaze was directed to the woman standing in the ring. She wondered how Alison would react to what had just happened. But of course she was not here just for that. Victoria took a step forward and held out the microphone to the Golden Dragon. Astrid's music ended and she received a final round of cheers from the audience. And when silence finally fell, she brought the microphone to her mouth.

Attire:

"How about you tell me that face to face?" she asked without a shadow of a doubt, without taking her eyes off Alison.

It seems the Norwegian woman managed to catch the former champion by surprise. Or at least her manager, who looked much more surprised than Alison. There was no surprise on the brunette's face, instead there was a grimace of irritation, Astrid was sure that this woman did not count on someone to interrupt her tirade today. And she certainly did not expect to see the one about whom she decided to speak out today. Well, the Golden Dragon preferred to think she was full of surprises.

But it was worth giving this brunette her due, even after Astrid appeared in the hall and offered to say everything that had already been said, Alison gathered all her insolence into a fist and did it. The long-haired blonde lowered the microphone and let the woman say whatever she wanted. But Astrid herself wasted no time, she began to go down the ramp, not forgetting to stop several times to give an autograph to the most active fans. Most of this was done for the fans' sake, but she was confident that such a demonstration would not be good for Alison's nerves. In a way, she might think that Astrid hardly listens to her.

Victoria quietly followed her charge, she knew that interfering in Astrid's affairs directly was a very dubious idea. Plus, the Norwegian woman didn't let her down when she arranged a match for her last time. Alison was not the first person to speak out about the blonde in a less than flattering way. That guy had already paid for it and now the manager was sure that Astrid would sort it out the same way. Both women reached the ring and stopped at the commentators' table. By this time, Alison had just finished her speech, which contained almost nothing new.

"You know?" Astrid asked, placing her motorcycle helmet on the table and turning back to the brunette. “I cannot understand what you are saying. I see how your mouth opens. I see how your lips moves. I can even hear some sounds coming from your mouth. But all I can hear is blah blah blah. Only incomprehensible strange sounds from the mouth of a person who can only to talk."

The blonde paused briefly to warm Alison's anger. Astrid was not very knowledgeable in the field of psychology, but she was well aware that few people like to hear the truth, especially if this truth is broadcast to a wide audience and especially if the truth is very bitter. Alison knew that Astrid was right and the Norwegian woman was sure that this pissed off the brunette. The Golden Dragon headed for the metal steps.

“If such a busy former champion like you sees no reason to waste time on me, then I think you will not mind if I save you some time now, go up to the ring...” she said, starting to climb the steps, “and then I will show you who of us is a real fighter, and who is just a chatterbox who can only talk because she has nothing to prove her words with?"

It looks like this time the Norwegian woman's words hit the mark. She saw the anger inside Alison begin to boil, which meant that in a few seconds a stream of steam would come out of her head. And, indeed, this is exactly what happened. Astrid climbed the steps and slipped between the middle and top ropes just in time for the flow of words from the former champion's side.

And everything would be fine if not for one thing. The words didn't matter too much, because now the Golden Dragon had a clear reason to fight. Yet the Norwegian woman's lavender eyes widened slightly when Alison mentioned the Hardcore Queen. This was far from the first time Astrid had been compared to Cecilia Northman in one way or another. For many, this might be an honor, but Astrid was only annoyed by it.

When you are constantly being compared to someone, over time, everyone stops noticing your successes and begins to judge you only by your failures. And because of this, you run the risk of forever being in the shadow of another person. For Astrid, who aspired to go down in history and prove that she is a worthy descendant of her great Viking ancestors, this was unacceptable. She did not even let go of the microphone, lightning flashed in her eyes and she had already taken the first heavy step, preparing to rush to the former champion.

“If necessary, I will crush you all. And you, and Death Bunny, and Cecilia Northman,” she said.

It seemed that the time for talking was over and now nothing would stop the Norwegian woman from attacking Alison. However, between them stood, apparently, the manager of the brunette. Astrid had to stop. First, she was not a supporter of the beating of innocent people. And secondly, this man looked so that one of her blows would be enough to send the poor fellow to the hospital.

The woman raised her left eyebrow slightly as she listened to his speech. People like him were called hucksters, she knew it right away. And right now, this huckster was trying to squeeze the maximum benefit from the current situation. An official match? Astrid hoped to knock all the crap out of Alison's head here and now, not sometime later. The long-haired blonde looked at Victoria, silently asking her opinion. The Englishwoman nodded almost imperceptibly, which made the Golden Dragon smile.

“Well, if Alison needs her former champion ass to be officially kicked, then she’ll get it, huh,” raising the microphone again, Astrid said, “time and place?”

Everything was getting better and better. While Astrid was ready to start the fight right now, an official match is a much more viable option. She had a great winning streak and was going to extend it. And the Norwegian woman saw no better option than kicking the former champion's ass. She hated people like Alison, and therefore the Golden Dragon was ready without hesitation to agree to any conditions of this brunette.

She was more than completely satisfied with the match at the next week. And a smile appeared on the face of the long-haired blonde when she heard the words "street" and "cage", because it was exactly what she needed. The blonde was about to interrupt the former champion, but the brunette started talking about the match in the mud. It was not about the type of match, but about the rest of the words. Does this bastard think the Golden Dragon will refuse? Victoria looked at Astrid's face and took a step forward, realizing that now her ward would make a mistake.

"Astrid," she said, calling out to the Norwegian woman, "Astrid, it's a bite, just a provocation, don't..."

It was too late.

"Do you think I'm scared, huh?" bared her teeth, asked the Golden Dragon. "I will enjoy every fucking second I put my foot on your battered body lying in the mud, bitch. In a week, I will destroy you in a mud wrestling match."

And while the audience screamed in cheer for the long-haired blonde's determination, Victoria snorted in annoyance. It was not possible to say that Astrid is bad in such matches, because in the end, she defeated Daisuke in the oil match. However, she did not want the Golden Dragon to fall for such a provocation. She knew that Astrid was not afraid of anything and was ready to prove it at any moment, but still she did not want the blonde to make rash decisions. But what's done is done.

Astrid looked right into the eyes of her rival, she didn't care what her manager came up with when he heard about the match in the mud, she simply didn’t pay attention to him. Now Astrid could only think that next week she would beat the shit out of Alison and would do it with real pleasure. She was already very tired of being constantly compared to Cecilia Northman. Well, it looks like the time has come to show that the one who was called the Hardcore Queen is a thing of the past. A new time has come. And this time belong to the Golden Dragon.

Astrid took a hard step towards Alison. If this brunette thought that now the Golden Dragon would begin to tremble like an aspen leaf, then she was very mistaken. Without a shadow of a doubt, the woman tilted her head forward in order to collide their foreheads with the former champion. Continuing to hold her microphone, she clenched her free fist She was ready to punch Alison in the face at any second. And Astrid even wanted this woman to give her a reason to do that.

However, the brunette just kept on talking. It seems that she did not expect Astrid to accept this challenge. And she was confident in herself. Whether this overconfidence was justified or not is another matter. But it was good anyway. Since the more Alison was confident in her superiority, the louder the Golden Dragon's triumph will be.

"You're going to regret it, huh" Astrid said, lowering her voice so that only Alison could hear her, "I'll shove your self-confidence down your throat and watch your shame, scum."

Astrid didn’t raise her hand to pick up the microphone that Alison had pressed to the Norwegian woman’s chest. The microphone just fell down, which served as clear evidence that the blonde is not one of those who can be easily manipulated. Baring her teeth, the Golden Dragon pushed her shoulder forward as Alison tried to push her, not allowing the brunette to left the final word by her.

She turned to follow the former champion, but suddenly Alison's manager approached her. Astrid raised her eyebrow slightly as the man took her hand. But so that he understood the seriousness of her intentions, she responded to this handshake by squeezing his palm tightly enough. Alison walked up the ramp, leaving the arena. And Astrid was about to take the final word. Throwing threats in the back, however, was not her style. Therefore...

"See you in a week," she said, picking up the microphone one last time, "there we will find out who is who."

The Norwegian woman rolled out of the ring, going up to Victoria. The Englishwoman sighed but nodded approvingly. She was glad that Astrid was able to restrain herself and, instead of a banal fight, agreed on an official match. The woman went to the commentary table to return the microphone and retrieve the helmet. But before it...

"I hope for your support!" raising the clenched fist above her head, she turned to the audience.

Hearing cheers, she finally gave up the microphone, taking her helmet back. Together with Victoria, Astrid began to climb the ramp, leaving the arena. The match with the former champion cannot be taken lightly, she knew that. Whoever Alison is, but once she earned the right to call herself the strongest in this federation. Well. In a week everything will become clear, it remains to wait just a little more.