SS22 Hardcore 24/7 Championship - Astrid Arvidsson (c) vs. Panther Risako

Someone would surely find it reckless. Of course, it is quite difficult to find something good in a pin. But many people forget about one important thing. Every second counts during a fight. And a pin gave the fighter at least two seconds to rest. Too few? Definitely. But sometimes even this can play a very important role.

The Golden Dragon had the opportunity to rest for a few seconds. And she really needed it, because her opponent's series of attacks was very tough. So why did she decide to break the pin after the first count? She was sure that few people could understand the reason why she did so.

The second Risako decided to pin her, it wasn't the rest that mattered to Astrid. It was important for her to convey a message to her rival. And she was ready to swear that the purple-haired woman understood it well. At least this was indicated by the irritated snort of the Japanese woman, which the blonde heard immediately after Risako was thrown aside.

And it wasn't hard to guess that Risako's mood had slightly deteriorated after this. Once again showing both speed and strength, she immediately pounced on Astrid. The Queen of Queens stuck to the Norwegian woman like chewing gum to a boot.

Risako forced Astrid into a sitting position and then wrapped her arms around the neck. At the same moment, the blonde almost completely lost access to oxygen. The situation was further aggravated by the fact that the Japanese woman wrapped her legs around the Golden Dragon's waist. The descendant of the great Vikings strained the muscles of the abdomen and neck, and also clung to the hands of her rival in order to ease the pressure.

Her physical strength was enough to maintain the ability to breathe. However, the amount of oxygen entering her lungs was clearly not enough for more active actions. Astrid's face rapidly began to turn red.

"Then I'll break your fucking ribs..." thought Astrid, mentally turning to her rival.

She prepared to let go of Risako's hands in order to start sending elbow strikes into the purple-haired woman's ribs. But at the last moment she decided not to do it. She remembered their recent training session with Charlotte. The Frenchwoman often said that despite all the talent, Astrid too often works only with her muscles, forgetting that sometimes it is necessary to work with her head.

Ironically, there really was some truth in this. The fire that the blonde carried with her often blinded her. Even now. She could really start hitting her opponent's ribs. But was it really the best way to get free? The left corner of Astrid's lips lifted slightly, despite the tension on her face.

Releasing her opponent's hands, she wrapped her arms around Risako's legs. But she wasn't going to try to pull them apart. Conversely. Astrid pressed Risako's legs to her waist even more. Suicide? No, not this time. The Golden Dragon intended to strain her legs and then abruptly lean back. In this way, she intended to make Risako fall on her back. And, if successful, she would have risen on her toes, forming a bridge.

Thus, she wanted to put maximum pressure on her opponent. And if someone else didn't understand why she did it, then the referee was happy to give them a hint. After all, in this position, the shoulder blades of the Queen of Queens were securely pressed to the mat and in fact it was nothing more than a sudden attempt at a pin. Yes, sometimes you need to think not only with your muscles, but also with your head, that's right. That's why Astrid pressed Risako's legs closer to her waist, she didn't want to let her rival escape.

"ONE! TWO!!"

Maintaining self-control in such a situation is quite difficult, especially for a woman like Astrid. Of course, she was used to difficulties, but for the first time in a long time she found herself in a situation where her affairs steadily got worse and worse. Most of the time after the bell rang, she had to receive blow after blow, and each attempt to respond was unsuccessful. The Golden Dragon couldn't even remember if something like this had happened to her before Risako, who seemed to be made of unshakable stone.

This was one of the reasons why the blonde refused the idea of starting to beat Risako's ribs. If, as it was in previous attempts, these blows had no effect on her opponent, then most likely she would have lost consciousness. A sudden pin was a more reliable way because even the Queen of Queens would hardly be able to ignore what the referee would start counting.

And it really worked, at least to some extent. Realizing the situation she was in, the Japanese woman jerked to the side, simultaneously breaking the pin and releasing the Golden Dragon. As soon as the grip on her neck disappeared, Astrid coughed due to the sudden rush of oxygen. And although at the same time she tried to take at least a small distance, as expected, Risako immediately continued the offensive.

Grabbing Astrid's head, she forced her up to her knees. The Norwegian woman wanted to hold her breath and try to push Risako away from herself, but the purple-haired woman, anticipating this, hit her hard between the shoulder blades, not giving Astrid the opportunity to gather her strength.

The next thing Astrid felt was Risako pulling her again and forcing her to her feet completely. And one moment later, the Queen of Queens pushed her hard, forcing Astrid to head for the ropes. Considering her not the best condition, she understood that she would not be able to force herself to stop. Therefore, she had to turn around at the last step and press her back to the ropes.

"You're annoying me..." came a voice in her head and it wasn't Astrid's voice.

Bouncing off the ropes, the Norwegian woman, having gained even more speed, began to return to Risako. And as much as she didn't want to believe it, the voice in her head was right. Now Astrid was angry with herself and the beast living inside her reminded her of this. For the last ten minutes she has been playing the role of a punching bag for her rival and it was really a pitiful sight.

The realization made her take a deep breath despite the pain. Astrid knew perfectly well that Risako intended to meet her and send her down again. Considering everything that had happened in this match, the Golden Dragon was no longer sure that anything could work against her opponent. But even that didn't mean she wasn't going to try.

Therefore, when there were no more than four steps between them, the blonde rigidly put her left foot forward in order to find a foothold. This was necessary because at the same time she intended to raise her right leg, bent at the knee, and then straighten this leg right into the face of the Queen of Queens. Risako has already managed to demonstrate real miracles of strength, speed and reaction. But now Astrid hoped that the speed with which they were moving towards each other would be enough for this big boot kick to work.

Unable to keep her balance, the Golden Dragon fell to one knee. Chest pain and heavy breathing was a clear explanation for this. No matter how strong a fighter is, the body can't just forget about the damage it received. Astrid was no exception, especially considering that after the start of the match, she received continuous attacks from her opponent most of the time. And yet...

Turning her head to the side, the blonde made sure that her efforts were not in vain. The Queen of Queens was lying face up on the mat after the devastating kick. Her arms and legs were spread. Her eyes were wide open, but there was a void in those eyes. And the only sound that came from the purple-haired woman was a soft painful groan. It seems even the Queen of Queens was not invulnerable.

This thought made the Golden Dragon smile. Pushing her hair back, she rose to her feet to the loud cheers of the audience. In fact, it was her first serious attack, which did not end in failure, because this time Risako was in no hurry to jump to her feet as if she did not feel anything. Astrid was well aware that even now she was still far ahead her opponent regarding the damage she had received. And she has to fix it.

The descendant of the great Vikings raised her fist above her head, urging the audience to create more noise. And they did it because those who followed Astrid's career closely enough knew what it meant. So she showed that she was going to move on to what she was really good at. To hardcore.

The Golden Dragon intended to take a step to her opponent and bend down in order to close the fingers of her right hand on Risako's throat. The blonde was going to squeeze the Japanese woman's throat as if she was going to strangle her in this way. But in fact it was necessary for another thing.

Counting on the fact that Risako was now stunned enough, Astrid intended to lift her up, demonstrating her strength, because she was going to do it using only one arm. And as soon as Risako was at least partially upright, the Golden Dragon intended to grab Risako's leg and press her shoulders against the front side of the purple-haired woman. Straightening up to her full height, she wanted to put the Queen of Queens on her shoulders in a fireman's carry position.

It was worth admitting that Risako was far from the lightest woman and Astrid, even despite her strength, experienced some difficulties due to the considerable weight on her shoulders. However, if she wasn't used to the difficulties, then she would never have ended up here. Therefore, the Golden Dragon began to walk forward. It took her four steps to reach the ropes.

The noise in the hall began to increase, because it was clear that the descendant of the great Vikings was up to something. And she wasn't going to disappoint them. Taking a deep breath, she intended to tense both arms and then lift Risako over her head with an overhead press, showing off every muscle of her arms.

"Hell in a Cell..." she would mutter with a smile on her face.

And with those words, she intended to throw the Queen of Queens forward with a gorilla press drop! If it was a classic match, Risako would have just collapsed on the concrete floor. But today was not a classic match. And therefore, before meeting the concrete surface, she would have collided with a metal cage, into which Astrid intended to throw her!

Damn. Astrid would hardly be able to explain how she felt about her rival. On the one hand, she admired both Risako's skills and the strength of her spirit. Despite a very hard kick, which she received right in the face, she still began to resist the moment she was on the shoulders of the blonde. Not everyone would be able to resist at such a moment, Astrid knew that. When you are stunned, your body in most cases literally refuses to obey the orders of the mind.

And although the Golden Dragon admired her rival, on the other hand it was quite annoying and she couldn't help herself. When she took the first step towards the ropes, the elbow of the purple-haired woman crashed into her head. Astrid hissed painfully. It hurt, but she understood that if she let Risako go now, she would have to start all over again. And so far, she wasn't ready to go through the devilish series of the Queen of Queens attacks again.

So she gathered her strength and, despite two more elbow strikes, reached the ropes. Gritting her teeth, Astrid lifted Risako above her head, demonstrating her strength. And at that moment, everyone had time to guess what exactly she was up to. The Golden Dragon threw her opponent forward. Risako's body first crashed into the metal with a crash, and then with an even bigger crash collapsed on the concrete floor between the cell and the ring.

Grabbing the top rope with her right hand, Astrid put her left hand on her head. She felt a throbbing pain from the elbow strikes. However, there was a smile on her face. The descendant of the great Vikings from the very beginning had no doubt that Risako approached her challenge with all seriousness. This purple-haired woman really fought like it was the last fight of her life. The realization made the Golden Dragon's heart beat faster. At least for the reason that she wholeheartedly wanted to let the Queen of Queens know that she was no less serious.

Having dropped to the mat, Astrid intended to roll under the bottom rope and be outside the ring. As soon as her soles touched the concrete floor, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Some kind of a wave seemed to pass through her body. Oh, that feeling. She preferred to think that she didn't choose hardcore, but hardcore chose her. All her life she has been striving to test what she is capable of and whether she really deserves to make her ancestors proud of her. She was used to showing her maximum in any match, but only hardcore was a real test for her.

"Push it to the limit..." she thought.

Immediately bending down, she intended to lift the fabric hiding the space under the ring. And without the slightest hesitation, she intended to pull out a folded metal chair. At that moment, a new wave of noise filled the arena. Yes, the audience was right. In a sense, the real match is starting only now.

Astrid was about to take a step towards her rival. Someone might have thought that she intended to start hitting Risako lying on the floor with the chair. But Astrid had other thoughts about it. She was going just to put the chair on Risako's head. And she could have sworn that some of the spectators who were closest to the cell raised their left eyebrows slightly. But Astrid wasn't going to keep them confused for long. Instead, she intended to raise her right leg, bent at the knee, and then abruptly lower that leg directly onto the chair in an attempt to turn Risako's head into mincemeat with a simple, but definitely tough stomp!

When Astrid's boot landed on the chair, some viewers covered their faces with their hands in order not to see the result. Although it didn't help them much, given the loud sound of metal colliding with the skull. Risako's head was caught between the concrete floor and the metal chair. The impulse that passed through her skull was so great that the Japanese woman jerked to the side in agony.

The first thing the Golden Dragon noticed was the blood on the chair and the place where her opponent's head had been a second ago. Looking at the Queen of Queens, she realized that her attack was even more effective than she expected. Risako covered her head with her hands, but even so, it was clear that the scarlet liquid was actively flowing out of the wound that appeared after the blonde's stomp.

Of course, Astrid's goal was to weaken the purple-haired woman. But she chose this attack for a reason. Risako showed her what she was capable of. This woman was dangerous. And the descendant of the great Vikings was fully aware that if she treats Risako lightly, she will not have a single chance in this match. And although the match was far from over, the Golden Dragon was convinced that Risako was the strongest of those she had to face in the AFW ring. Therefore, she chose this attack in order to keep the Queen of Queens in a stunned state.

And she had no doubt that the bells were ringing in the Japanese woman's head, not to mention the wild pain. Astrid took a step towards her opponent. A real fighter should be able to plan several steps ahead. Standing from Risako's left side and facing her feet, Astrid intended to bend down and wrap her arms around Risako's waist.

"Pfff..." Astrid breathed out loudly the moment she strained her arms.

She was going to squeeze Risako's waist so hard, but even that could be considered an attack. However, this was only the beginning, only preparation. Having distributed the force throughout her body, the Norwegian woman intended to straighten up to her full height, thereby lifting Risako parallel to the concrete floor. At that moment, the audience would be able to understand what she was up to.

"Victim for the dragon! Victim for the dragon!!" They started chanting.

That made Astrid smile. Yes, indeed, they were right. The Golden Dragon intended to pull Risako up in one sharp movement in order to turn her over and put her on the shoulders. But only for a moment. Because as soon as the Queen of Queens would be on the shoulders of the descendant of the great Vikings, she intended to turn to the side and fall into a sitting position, sending her rival's body down. Right on the metal chair that made the Japanese woman's head bleed a few moments ago. Many people knew it as a gutwrench sitout powerbomb, but Astrid called it the victim for the dragon!