Esther Savato-Howell vs Mai Nagasawa

Standard Match
1 fall
Winning Condition: The first wrestler who wins shall be the victor

Esther's theme blasted over the speakers as she strode out with purpose, clad in her usual MMA-styled trunks, tank-top, gloves, and toe-less shoes. She purposefully chose not to dress like a traditional wrestler to make a statement: She was here to break faces, and limbs too, if necessary. Arms wide, she brushed her blonde hair back and smiled, basking in the adulation of her fans, at least the ones who recognized her from when she terrorized the boxing circuits. The ones who did not? They would soon revel in her greatness.

She climbed up the apron and wiped her feet gently on the edge before sliding into the ring and resting on the corner, awaiting her opponent.

Mai curled her gloved hand over the microphone attached to her headset and sighed. She was facing another rookie. Some might call it a slap in the face but Mai always tried to look at things with optimism in her heart. The first one was too weak, the second one was too strong. "This one will be just right." She said and smiled. She gave her tail a little shake with the wiggle of her butt, checked her ears one last time and closed her eyes as she was given the signal.

He music began to play and from the backstage area, she began to sing. The crowd cheered instantly but Mai didn't appear until a few moments in, busting from the backstage area and raising her fist in the air while she beautifully belted out the words to her biggest hit, "NOtaku no Love!" She skipped down the ramp, waving, winking and slapping hands with her fans. She stepped up the chrome steps and swung her body in between the ropes while she finished her song. When she was done, she handed off her head set and looked to her opponent for the first time.

Esther did indeed seem to be what Mai expected. She did not look nearly as feeble and hapless as Molly nor was she an overwhelming giant of a woman like Iron Maiden. She looked sturdy and experienced in some form or another. She thought her clothes looked like that of a martial artist or kick boxer but she wasn't sure. They looked good though. Esther looked good. Mai took a step forward and bowed deeply to the woman before standing up.

"Onegai, let us have a good match!" She said and flashed Esther a V whicle cocking her hop and smiling widely.

Esther's lips curled and a haughty smirk as she watched the idol make her way to the ring. "Ooh, nice fox ears." She said with the most sarcastic tone possible. She rolled her eyes and tossed her hair to the side just a hair to also convey her disdain. In case that was not enough, she added, "Loser."

She cracked her knuckles and began to hop back and forth from foot to foot. "Please, girly, the only GOOD match to be had here is the one where I give your cutesy a bloody makeover. With my fists." She chuckled a bit at her crack before raising her left fist to her face, letting the other hang loose down low. "Come on then," she sneered, "Put up your dukes. Let's get this show on the road."

Mai raised her eyebrow at the woman's insulting words. Her smile faded and she retreated to her corner and stretched. As Esther spoke again, Mai lowered her head. "Please forgive me if I gave you the impression that I did not intend to take this fight seriously. Let us see if your fists can reach me, Savata-Howell-san."

Mai clenched her fists and danced lightly on her toes, not nearly as much as Esther, but enough to stay loose and limber. When the bell rang, she skipped forward, not quite charging but not walking either. Her hips swayed from side to side as she looked Esther up and down. When she felt like she had a good range, she stopped quickly and rose her foot up into the air, straight in front of her for an arcing kick that aimed at Esther's face, looking to kick off her head at the chin, while her endlessly long leg stretched until it was almost parallel with the leg she had planted on the ground. Her brown eyes held fierce determination in them.

Esther scoffed as the bell rang. "Hmph!" When the fight started, Esther moved to meet Mai. Her eyes focused, her lips curled in a bit of a smile, her mind was in the fight. Her stance kept her moving with the grace of a trained fighter, but her eyes were not focused on Mai's feet. She reacted, but not fast enough. Mai's kick struck like lightning, clocking the boxer in the jaw and knocking her off her feet. Esther rolled, to her knees almost immediately, clutching her face. Her reaction was one of shock, "Why, you! I'm going to punch those stupid ears off your stupid face!" She shouted, but once she made her way back to her feet, her movements gave no hint of rage, apart from the brief blinking shaking of her head. As much as she did not want to show it, that kick hurt, but she was not anywhere close to done yet. She assumed the same stance and closed back in quickly, throwing a few jabs with her loose hand to try to get into range to pop Mai with a hook from her coiled hand.

Mai felt it when her kick struck and she let her lithe leg linger in the air while Esther growled and threatened, slowly and eloquently bringing it down with a bit of a smirk on her face. She was about to speak, to tell Esther how she shouldn't underestimate the idol, but she found the woman was up and already harassing her with her boxer's stance.

Mai backed away quickly while Esther tried to throw her jabs and she held up her hands just to try and deflect any blows that might get to her. Mai then took a leap back, landing on one foot and hopping awkward and off balance and tried to push her foot into Esther's stomach and shove her away, falling against the ropes and leaning against them for support.

Esther could not quite close the gap with the kicker, and ended up catching the idol's foot in her stomach for her trouble. She tried to grab Mai's foot but she was shoved back too quick for that. Esther slid back but caught herself and regained her balance. She threw her fists down as she fumed. "Grrrr!" She resumed her stance and approached Mai once more, staying just outside of range of her kicks. She aimed to keep her pressured up against the ropes. If she tried to break out, Esther would try to catch her foot or dodge a higher kick and move in with a punch of her own.

Mai succeeded in keeping the boxer away from her and the woman knew exactly what kind of reach Mai had. Now the two were at a standstill as Mai felt her back literally into a corner. She looked at the sleek boxer's body and wondered just how much she had trained at actual wrestling. At the moment, it seemed a little minimal and while Mai wasn't normally one for long grapples or inside fighting, she might might actually have the experience advantage in that department for once.

Mai decided to try something. She feinted a kick and then dropped down into a crouch and tried to swing a leg out to kick out Esther's legs out from under the woman and put her onto the canvas. Maybe then she could grab hold of Esther's legs and use the control to get in a good position. However, it might be risky if she couldn't get Esther to the mat.

Mai shifted, aiming a kick at Esther. In a flash, Esther pivoted back to dodge it and to try to catch her fast feet, but Mai was quite a bit faster than Esther expected as she was not actually kicking at all. Esther adjusted, she saw the leg sweep coming, but she just was not quick enough, still recovering from that kick to her face. She was down once again, but not out. Instincts kicked in. Mai got her hand around one of Esther's legs, but that told Esther where she would be. The other would kick fiercely at the idol as Esther sought escape to roll back to her feet.

Mai was pleased with herself whens he toppled the boxer tot he mat. She knew she was quick but Esther had proved herself to be quite quick as well. However, Mai thought when it came to groundwork, she might be a hair faster. She was and quickly scooped up one of Esther's legs. She was hoping she could pull her to the middle of the mat. Maybe work in a submission or something like that to really create a gap in speed between the two. However, Esther proved as cunning as she was quick.

Esther's heel slammed into Mai's head and the dazed idol let go of Esther's leg immediately. She flopped onto her butt and rested with her back against the ropes, cradling her head and frantically trying to get her bearings and Esther's location.