The Black Moon rises

Masako looked once more at the notice she received. From the very start of her career as manager she knew that being summoned to some promo was something that could happen, but having uncertainties appear on the horizon wasn’t something the Ice Queen was fond of. She wondered once more why could she been summoned to the middle of the ring that night. A match was absolutely out of the question since it was well established in her contract that she wasn’t going to fight, so the only thing that could be behind all that mystery was some sort of promo, but not knowing what was in the management’s mind was something that Masako didn’t like. The woman always tried to maintain a firm grasp on every circumstance surrounding any situation, so this mystery made her feel at unease. All the secrets would reveal soon as she was waiting backstage for the announcer to signal her cue to go in in the form of an entrance song she chose for herself. Gulping, the Ice Queen stepped on stage. She would never admit it, but she was nervous.

As she was making her way towards the ring, Masako started having a bad feeling about all that when she started distinguishing a figure standing in the ring. The Ice Queen kept moving forwards since there was no way out of that, a grim omen forming on her mind as she started recognizing who that was. “This cannot be. What’s she doing here?” A redhead in a formal suit was waiting in the center of the ring, her most prominent features the aura of threat she had that. The woman had a katana supported in both her hands, with its sheathed tip resting against the canvas. One look at her was enough to realize that that person irradiated power and threat even with a composed look like the one she had.

Spoiler:

Masako got inside the ring and looked at the woman silently. She had only seen Oboro Harada a couple of times before, but she knew when to talk and when to remain silent. The redhead got a mic from one of the stagehands without even looking at her, and adressed the Ice Queen directly.

“Masako Fujikawa. The Ice Queen.” Her voice was calm and collected, but it had a feeling of sharpness, as if it could cut deep into people or scorch the earth. “Some time ago you came to me with a request. It was a simple one: you wanted some benefactor to kickstart your career as a manager. We granted you that request with one condition: you had to achieve greatness. Time has passed and you haven’t achieved greatness, so I’m here to set things right.”

“I-I had some setbacks but was on a good path!”

Masako’s words were interrupted by the redheaded woman raising one of her hands in a commanding gesture. “As I was saying, not only you didn’t manage what we asked of you, but you sank into the mud and indirectly brought us with you. Just look at your ‘roster’ of wrestlers: most of them just moved on and the ones who stayed are just wannabes. You are a joke, and we made a mistake trusting you. But that ends now.”

With the realization of what that meant, Masako’s face paled as she knew it was over for her. But she wouldn’t go down without a fight. That was her roster, she fought to maintain control over those women and even if she was in a bad moment she would fight to maintain her status, even against all sense in her head telling her to flee. “I- I’m regaining control over everything, I just need some more time!”

“You had your chance and you blew it. Your roster is in shambles. We will pick what can be salvaged of it and discard the rest. I will hear no more from you, Ms. Kujikawa.”, said the redhead turning her back on Masako.

The Ice Queen then made her last mistake as a manager as she stepped behind Oboro. The redhead quickly turned and bitch slapped Masako so hard she went on her butt. Then, the threatening woman got her sheathed katana, which no one was sure wether it was a prop or not, against the woman’s neck. “I don’t need to remind you that you belong to us from the moment you sold your soul to us and failed to pay back. You era is over. If you go now without more protest I will be indulgent with you...” As she said this, the woman whipped her sheathed sword and hit Masako in the cheek, leaving a red streak on it that would surely become a bruise soon. She was over. The Ice Queen got her throne by getting involved with some powerful people and now they had dethroned her. Collecting whatever was left of her pride she wiped her tears and walked off stage.

The crowd remained silent, unsure of what to think of the spectacle they just witnessed, until Oboro spoke again. “The Black Moon has decided to finally make his appearance in AFW. Under our banner wrestlers would find glory and fame, but we won’t just take anyone. We don’t like weakness. We don’t respect weakness. We will only accept those with enough willpower to do whatever it takes to achieve victory. Because that’s the only thing that matters. Those who think they can comply with those conditions expect us. Those who not, learn to fear the Black Moon, since we came here to stay.” Without more ceremony, the redhead walked off stage and let everything sink.

Oboro exited the building just after those events. Her private chauffeur opened the rear entrance of her luxurious car. As she got comfortable, Oboro got a phone and dialed the first number in the memory. Only a couple seconds passed before she got communication. “It is done. … Yes, now everyone knows we are here. … Certainly, I will start with some of the interviews tomorrow morning. Now if you’ll excuse me, I will go get some rest.” She hang up the phone and signalled to the driver to start driving to her home. The next day would be a busy one.

Spoiler:

Shiki was sitting on the middle of a luxurious office fidgeting with her hands. A secretary had invited her in and told her to wait. The pinkette couldn’t remember how much time it had passed since that, but she was growing impatient. Who the hell summoned her there, and why? It surely had to be related to her signing a contract for the AFW recently, but what could it be? And why the hell were they making HER wait?

When an imposing redhead in a suit entered from one of the neighboring doors Shiki straighted herself. All that bratty bravado she had just faded away when that woman sat just in front of the pinkette and looked at her with sharp eyes. A katana was holding in a stand just behind the woman, an instrument of her power? Weird choice for a decoration in such an office. The silence broke.

“So, thank you for coming, Ms. Misaki-Jones.” That woman’s voice was calm and polite, but it hid some threat to her as if it was capable of breaking a wall, and she could be polite but she was also implying that Shiki had no other choice but going there as she was summoned. “You would be wondering why you are here. My name is Oboro Harada and I represent the interests of the Black Moon on the AFW. I am aware of you signing a contract with the federation and the Black Moon deemed you… suitable for joining us. I won’t lose you with details, but we will provide you with the best platform for your career as a wrestler to take off, and the prestige that comes with the Black Moon firm would be your key to open every door closed for those unworthy.”

“That sounds amazing, but what’s the catch? What do you want in exchange?”

“Ms. Misaki, what we want is simple: we want you to take what we give you and achieve greatness at all costs. We want you to step on your rivals and stab your friends in the back if that gives you more power and success. Power is the coin in which we pay, and we hold most of the coin. If there is a wrestler with potential out there and the willpower to take everything we want them under our banner. You have been given a very promising chance. What are you going to do with it? Would you rise among the rubble or just be happy being mediocre?”

That woman really knew how to speak to Shiki, as if she had been studying the pinkette. Oboro had piqued the brat’s interest. She of course wanted to be all important in the AFW, and some statement that Black Moon people made the night before reached Shiki’s ears. They had some power to kick people out of the league, and if they held that kind of power, Shiki wanted her good share. Without saying much more, the pinkette smiled and nodded. “I want a piece of this cake.”