Post by hawkeye on May 9, 2022 22:35:33 GMT
INTERCONTINENTAL OPEN CHALLENGE
Here we are again. Victoria Hackenchmidt, the young, stoic veteran from Germany, puts the FAWN Intercontinental Championship on the line against anyone who dares step into the ring with The Knight. Unlike the last two months, the fans have no idea who’s aiming to take down Victoria and take the gold title belt and the accolades that come with it, but it's safe to say the Challenger will have most of the crowd's favour. Despite her stellar record, good reputation and professional conduct, the American fans seem to hate the totality of Victoria Hackenschmidt. Speaking of, a cheer fills the building when the lights go out; the champion is about to make her entrance.
TURNADOT- FINALE
www.youtube.com/watch?v=XoTa-b7cUw0
The air fills with a full orchestra playing alongside powerful, classically trained singers. The audio of Giacomo Puccini’s three-stage opera feels perfectly appropriate with the sight of the stage illuminated with blinding white spotlights. All focused on the towering sentinel that is the Intercontinental champion.
VICTORIA HACKENSCHMIDT
Victoria drinks in the uproarious response the FAWNatics give her; most to all of them will change their attitudes once the bell rings, but they always love her when the music’s playing. Hackenschmidt takes a calming breath through her nose and sets down the ramp. The German giant stands tall and armourless for the second time in her career, except for her head. She wears her usual silver Corinthian helmet that protects the back and sides of her skull but leaves her high-boned cheeks free with a strip of metal stretched down from the center opening to cover her nose. The helm is smooth other than an artful etching that circles the top of the skull resembling a bejewelled crown. The most crucial thing on Victoria’s person is around her waist, the Intercontinental Championship belt. Under the spotlight, it shines as the brightest beacon to any potential challenger, employed by FAWN or not, to try and pry it from The Valiant One’s grasp.
Head bowed in silent prayer; her hands clutch a cross-hilted broadsword nearly four feet in length, a replica of a family heirloom that hung over the fireplace in her family estate in Hesse. One of two, the other now in possession of the World Champion, Dayna Erza, having defeated Hackenschmidt for it last month at March to War. That loss haunts Victoria’s quiet moments, family ties have become strained, and the hordes harassing her have found a new angle to make Victoria regret having a computer.
She WILL wrest her honour from Dayna’s grasp, but that’s something to think about on a different night. Shaking off negative thoughts with a mighty roar, Victoria flexes her powerful arms and hefts the replica blade up to a cheering audience, then onto her shoulder before beginning her march towards the ring, the spotlights following her every step.
"Standing at 5 feet 11 inches and weighing in at 152 pounds!! From Phoenix, Arizona, by way of Hesse, Germany!! She is The Valiant One!! The Intercontinental Champion, Victoria “The Knight” Hackenschmidt!!!”
Constant bedevilment from a toxic wrestling fanbase and upheavals in her personal life led Victoria to make some changes to ease the pressure on her soul, such as removing most of the armour from her entrance. The IC champ marches to the ring in her white halter top, revealing miles of lightly toned, pale tummy with matching boy-cut shorts that cling to her tight hindquarters. White boots and knee pads looking newly shined, and an elbow-length fingerless white glove on her right arm; all her gear has thin black lines that weave and intersect to resemble the plate armour she usually wears to the ring.
Before the bell, Victoria tries to keep her mind on the match ahead, but she still reaches her free arm out to Hi-Five FAWNatics, leaning over the guardrail. The Valiant One briefly detours to a set of steel steps where a solid-looking metal box with a small slit cut into the top sat by the ring apron. Hackenschmidt takes the sword off her shoulder and swiftly swings it in a broad circle before plunging it down into the box with one smooth motion.
As her music dies down, the entrance euphoria dies along with it. A switch flips for the Orlando audience, and the air fills with a cacophony of noise; the majority of the FAWNatics boo and jeer the Towering Teuton. The feral fans want a champ that shows a little more skin or has a colourful demeanour. Since splitting from her tag partner, Danica Dadal, the audience dislikes Hackenschmidt’s ‘boring and prudish’ personality. At least, that’s how they describe it in the hate mail sent to the arena, the league's headquarters, her home, and on every social media platform.
As she finds her corner, Victoria scans the crowd and sees a few more pockets of support amongst a sea of jeers than usual! Some signs bear her name or image, many of them displaying a new moniker she has mixed feelings about, Blood Knight. She shrugs to herself, “Well, support is support. Better this than the usual hate or gleeful insults on my bra size.”
While Victoria tries to focus on the little love she has, the lights go down, save for the twinkle of flashbulbs and cellphones. The smoke machines go into overdrive as the entire entrance area becomes obscured by a hazy fog. Spotlights shine into the oblivion, creating an ominous aura. A dark, haunting, digitally distorted voice speaks through the darkness via the arena speakers.
"We are The Revenant."
www.youtube.com/watch?v=VvKjpGP6P5Y\
The crowd comes alive! Most of this Florida crowd recognizes this entrance, which has not been seen in Florida for nearly a decade. Slowly, "Young Men Dead" by The Black Angels builds through the speakers.
"We are The Rider."
An intimidating figure steps out from the fog. 5’11 in black workers' boots, this brutal icon of deathmatch fame is at the same time formless and distinctive in a pulled-up dark hoodie and a skeletal bandana that obscures her face. The powerhouse of the violent, mysterious trio known as The Revenant stares out with cold eyes at the top of the ramp, her hands tucked in the pockets of her tight blue jeans.
"We are The Revenant. We are the horror you made."
"We are The Revenant. We are the evil you courted"
The FAWNatics cheer The Rider like she’s a babyface they support every week! Since their brief stint in 2012, The Revenant has been out of FAWN and made their home in the major leagues of Mexico and decimating in hardcore matches wherever they roam. In recent months, The Revenant went viral last year after winning a trios tag title in a stellar performance in a 10 000 light Tubes Hell match in Nagoya, Japan. As for The Rider's reputation as a singles competitor, she's become notorious for putting women on the injured list and ending more than one career.
Champion and Challenger stand and stare at each other from across the building. Victoria silently scans the Destroyer of another flavour, searching for some kind of weakness or character trait to exploit. The Rider gives her nothing. Her dark eyes glare from under the shade of the hoodie, promising untold violence the moment the opportunity arises. The Rider takes her hands sheathed in skeleton finger gloves out of her pockets and pulls down her hood, revealing her hair is tucked and hidden under a black watch cap. The Rider draws her thumb slowly across her throat to a big pop from the crowd. Victoria has no visible response, but the champ is insulted on the inside. Not by the gesture but by The Rider herself and the fans' reaction to The Revenant’s legbreaker. This person is a disgrace to professional wrestling. Violence and intimidation for the sake of violence and intimidation, this is the example detractors bring up when they paint the Hackenschmidt family’s chosen profession as tawdry, mindless fights. She's not even wearing wrestling boots, for goodness sake!
The lights go out. The music stops.
"We are The Revenant. We have suffered at your hands. Now you will suffer at ours."
When the lights come back on, The Rider is standing in front of Victoria, a scant 12 inches between them! The German doesn’t back down from the silent challenge and issues her own, glaring at the pseudo masked wrestler like a beautifully intense statue. The referee, having an astute sense of self-preservation but a strong sense of duty, visually checks the urban warfare psychopath for weapons while stepping between the two dangerous women. Victoria's tired of challengers with outgoing personalities trying to show her up and steps out of the corner to chest up to The Rider, the hapless ref awkwardly ping-ponging between them as the two square up.
The sweating official tries his luck resetting order, "Ladies! Please go to corners so I can start the match properly!" Victoria glances down at the zebra braying at lionesses- SMACK!
The Rider nails Hackenschmidt in the face with a Discus Backhand when the IC champ takes her eyes off The Revenant's big gun.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5103xLLrnM
Victoria drops like a bag of dirt! Her body follows her head’s trajectory and she lands in a sprawl on her front, eyes swimming at the whiplash with drops of blood trickling from her mouth and staining the canvas. The bell hasn't even rung yet, and the match already has some colour!
The Rider walks to her fallen prey, ready to leave an imprint of her sole on Victoria's skull, but the professional yet foolhardy official spreads his arms out wide, acting as a roadblock. "Get to your corner, Rider, the match hasn't officially started yet-aAAH!!"
The Rider grabs him by the lapels of his shirt and lifts him into the air! The Rider carries the sputtering official all the way across the ring and manhandles the official into a seat on the top buckle, where no ref dares tread. The Rider stares into his soul with a dark fury; the official nervously raises his hands placatingly and tries to de-escalate the situation before he gets thrown over the top rope like it's a Royal Rumburr match,
"Whoawhoawhoaholdon!! If I don't start the match, you can't win the belt!"
This gives The Rider pause. She must punish the interloper must…. But that can wait until she's handed the gold. She sets him down safely on the canvas to the referee's great relief. While these tense negotiations are going on, Victoria is regrouping on the ring floor. Waves of anger and embarrassment wash over The Knight as she rises to her fours. The fact that this thug got a shot in and put her on the canvas is galling to Victoria, and fills her with bubbling anger that's become disturbingly familiar since debuting in FAWN.
That bubbling turns into a full frothing when The Knight's ears pick up the crowd's chanting. About three-fourths of the building echo a crude motto of….
"SMACK-THAT-BITCH-UP!!" CLAP! CLAP! CLAPCLAPCLAP!!!!
"SMACK-THAT-BITCH-UP!!" CLAP! CLAP! CLAPCLAPCLAP!!!!
Now that his shirt is finally free of The Rider's claws, the ref motions for the bell to start the match officially. The Rider turns her attention back to the new meat holding the Intercontinental title and stomps toward the vulnerable Victoria. To the shock of everyone watching, the kneeling blonde activates like a bomb! She explodes from the canvas into a full run and Spears through The Rider like there's no tomorrow!
youtu.be/Oml_t2rbpWM?t=319
DINGDING!!
The bell rings as Hackenschmidt's shoulder collapses The Rider's hard and like a battering ram! The gigantic challenger ricochets off Hackenschmidt into a clumsy backflip, landing hard on her head and shoulders, then tumbling into a seat a tilting over onto her side. Shocked, breathless and holding her compacted middle. The champ rolls with the impact of her NFL-worthy tackle and falls on her perky cheeks, then performs the biggest Kip Up the audience has ever seen. Victoria moves like the wrestling machine she is and drops a series of brutal elbows onto Rider's head before she has a chance to get up. Once she’s fed the challenger a good quartet of the simple yet effective move, Victoria works her head under The Rider’s arm and forcefully helps the now far less intimidating figure to her feet. The pair look like some gal pals heading home after a night on the town. Right up until Victoria loops her arms high on The Rider’s sider and throws herself back into a perfect bridge, The Rider is driven onto her head and shoulders for the second time tonight in a short and brutal fashion!
SAITO SUPLEX
youtu.be/BH5lS9utuns?t=221
There’s a collective shout from the FAWNatics followed by impressed silence; it’s rare for The Rider to leave her feet; it’s unthinkable to see her being womanhandled! Victoria pays the positive reinforcement no heed; the Destroyer floats out of the bridge into Lateral Cover like a skilled Lightweight half her size and pulls in the far leg for the….
ONE!!
TWO!!
The Rider kicks out with a second to spare, ripping her shoulder up with enough force to turn onto her side under Hackenschmidt, who secures a tight Front Facelock and raises the challenger to her feet. Victoria’s about to slip into position for a suplex when The Rider charges forward, backing The Knight hard into the buckles and piling on with a barrage of Shoulder Thrusts when Victoria's grip loosens.
THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!
The subtle creaking of the corner post has the ref worrying the corner post may buckle and break from the ring if Victoria isn’t mashed into a fine paste first. After the perfunctory warning to take it out of the corner he starts a 5 count, The Rider slowing to mark each number with a deep lunge into Victoria’s tummy, the champ bleating after each compression.
“One! Two! Three! Four! Five!”
The Rider halts her tackling without a word, she takes Hackenschmidt by the back of the head and forces her out of the corner; The Rider's nails somehow dig into the blonde's scalp through the skeletal glove. A spaghetti limbed Hackenschmidt is led by the hair along the ropes, looking much greener than before thanks to The Rider using her as a tackling dummy. She throws back an elbow back that hits the opposing giant on the cheek, The Rider takes it without a sound or break in her stride; a few feet from the corner The Rider heaves Victoria forward. The Knight hits her forehead on the leather padded steel with a Bwung!
Victoria teeters back unbalanced with eyes crossed and church bells going off between her ears. The Rider grabs her by the shoulders, turns Victoria around and shoves her into the corner. The Rider points a shoulder at her prey and hurls herself into Hackenschmidt, crushing her with a truncated splash as she slams a back elbow into the champion's face. Victoria starts to slump forward and lean on her attacker but The Rider shoves her straight and traps her defined arms behind the top ropes, taking the middle ropes in her powerful gloved hands, The Rider continues pummeling the gut by pulling herself into heavy broadside kneelifts. The Rider’s denim encased thigh beats into ivory tummy like she’s trying to tear Victoria into the slow way; there’s no indication The Revenant’s big gun is aware of the ref’s pleas or the rising count after, but she stops tenderizing just before the point of disqualification.
She puts a controlling hand on Hackenschmidt’s chin and cranes her head up, exposing her exquisite neck to the returning Alpha female that is The Rider. Victoria’s arms are freed from the ropes, she tries to bat away The Rider with flailing slaps but the heel brushes them off and starts strangling Victoria with her free hand. The Knight chokes out a protest as she tries to pry The Rider’s curled digits off her throat while the ref starts pitching a fit and threatening to throw the match out. The Rider pulls Victoria to the center of the ring by the neck and PUNTS the blonde between the legs!
“GRauKK!!”
The FAWNatics cringe and groan in sympathy while Hackenschmidt gives an anguish-filled squawk, she isn’t the most popular wrestler but they don’t think she deserves a boot to her tender bits. Victoria's legs wobble and a shudder runs through her body, her gapping face takes on an uneven hue; normally she’d go pale from the low blow, but the choke is keeping the champ’s face flush. The Rider pulls Victoria close as she takes one of her now noodle-like arms and throws it over a shoulder, and takes a handful of the champion’s shorts by the hip, The Rider goes into a deep crouch and shoots up, lifting Victoria several feet in the air and slams her belly up on the canvas with thunderous force!
CHOKESLAM
youtu.be/U2n4hZT0ulI?t=53
The entirety of the Squared Circle shakes with the might of The Rider using 152lbs of German hardbody as a SuperBall! Finally free of the steel grip around her neck Victoria rebounds into a stooped seat and flops back to the canvas spread eagle, her belly and modest chest heaving with precious air. Victoria’s head listlessly sways with the reverberations of the mat, there are small marks on her throat threatening to blossom into a deep bruise later on as a reminder of this moment in the match. The Rider Kneels by The Knight’s side and palms Victoria’s right breast, treating the mammary like a stress ball while the referee makes the count.
ONE!!
TWO!!
Victoria kicks out! Saving the match and keeping the pin count an even race within two seconds. As she gets a shoulder up Victoria slugs The Rider in her obscured face and knocks the thug on her ass. The official chides the Intercontinental champ as the women rush to their feet, "Watch the closed fists, Vic." And gives an exasperated huff when The Rider pastes Victoria with a meaty left hook. The Valiant Victoria is unsteady and seeing double from oxygen deprivation and that bad Chokeslam, but there’s definite training showing in her stance as she puts The Rider’s head on a swivel with a one-two combo, The Revenant’s Giant is all power, no grace as she lobs a big swing back at Victoria that dings off her forehead making her stumble back. It’s an all-out slugfest for a good twenty seconds that has the crowd on its feet!
Hackenschmidt starts to steel up and attack with more accuracy, the pain from The Rider's fists acts as a natural smelling salt and brings Victoria back to her senses. She dips under a left jab and rattles The Rider's braincase with a very legal European Uppercut, backs the bandana'd bitch up with forearm shiver after forearm shiver to the sternum. Victoria changes targets after doubling The Rider over with a belly blow and brings her elbow down on The Rider's dome. The Challenger seems staggered, she's wavering where she stands and her eyes seem glazed in the sliver of territory between her toecap and bandana.
The second wind flowing through Hackenschmidt also fans the flames of her rage, making her faster, stronger, meaner…. but also a little sloppy. Victoria makes a speedy retreat and hit the cables and recoils back to The Rider with a high-powered Lariat on deck, leaving her open for The Rider’s face flattening Pump Kick that stops her comeback dead.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ul71EPgYCM
Victoria's head whips back and her arms lower to her sides. She's unsteady and dazed but it takes more than that for the Knight to leave her feet. The Rider hints at her unknown past by intertwining her hands behind Victoria's neck and pummeling her chest and abs with some Muay Thai knee strikes. The champ bleats each time one of The Rider’s bent legs plows into her body "Oof! Gughh! Eregh!"
The Rider backs Hackenschmidt into the ropes with a storm of kneelifts, and she braces a leg back for a potential stomach buster of strike when Thunk! "Rargh!" The Knight interrupts the flow with a savage headbutt, making the silent Rider actually verbalize her pain! An EXTREMELY unusual event. Hackenschmidt flinches and shakes her head free stars while The Rider is dead on her feet watching galaxies; Victoria closes in and takes the taciturn titan by the wrist as she switches their positions. Taking a big step back, Victoria drops a hip and yanks The Rider close, then throws her away with an Irish Whip- The Rider stops cold and reverses the Whip! Victoria’s sent hurtling to the other side of the ring.
The Rider readies her right leg for a big boot on Hackenschmidt's return but is left wanting. The Knight wows the crowd and leaves her opponent in the dust simultaneously; Victoria baseball slides under the bottom rope and lands running on the outside! The Rider darts to the corner to head off whatever Victoria has cooking, but she’s too far ahead; The Knight latches onto the post with both hands to help her turn as she accelerates, seamlessly rolls back into the ring and pops to her feet, behind The Rider! Victoria throws herself into a clothesline, but The Rider’s no slouch and ducks under the German’s bicep, letting Victoria crash into the turnbuckles. Hackenschmidt has the ring sense to turn with the miss and take the pads with her back, meaning she can see an oncoming Rider and force-feed her a bootsole! Hackenschmidt leans against the corner and whips up her leg, forcefully kicking The Rider in the face as she’s about to jump into a Splash. The Revenant’s bruiser negates some of the blow’s force by turning with the hit; The Rider spins to face the champion only to see a flash of her bicep inches from her fast before she’s knocked head over heels with a Lariat!
youtu.be/_5G8AI0FQTk?list=PLeRPsdtvusXiROvHPBxh0BXVkuPhU_QUs
The silent giant is blown into a spin cycle by the mighty Knight’s drive-by Lariating. The Rider flips and corkscrews in the air till she lands with a Thump! on the canvas. There's a loud, echoing cheer in the air from the FAWNatics at the sight of this Hackenschmidt-run! The young veteran may be a divisive figure to some, but no one can deny her talent, especially The Rider at this moment. The masked monster barely moves when she’s flipped belly up by the champion’s boot, and lets out an audible groan when Victoria drops across her chest in a Standing Splash. Victoria presses The Rider’s wrist to the mat and braces a forearm against her cheek to keep her beaten foe flat while the ref confirms her victory.
ONE!!
TWO!!
T-NOOO!!!
The Rider shows resolve she’s never had the need to use before and bucks the blonde off her chest. There's a sizable pop for the returning oddity's escape; the fans are not yet ready to see this match end! Victoria, however, is very ready for this to be over, and audibly cusses to herself as she beats the mat in frustration, "Verdammt!" The Valiant One stays on the ball, drags The Rider to her feet by her hoodie, and boots her in the gut.
Hackenschmidt pulls The Rider into a snug headscissors, then bends over and wraps her strong arms around The Rider’s waist. Hackenschimdt attempts to raise the urban beast and fails; The Rider bicycles her workers’ boots the moment they leave the mat and tenses for a Backdrop when she’s back on solid ground. The Knight feels The Rider's muscles steeling for a reversal and cuts off the maneuver by crossing her ankles and giving the challenger a melon-crushing squeeze with her thighs while Victoria raises her grip and disrupts The Rider’s breath with a Heimlich. The Rider’s caught between a shiver and wretch and turns to clay in The Knight’s grasp, resistance destroyed. Victoria hups her sister Destroyer upside down with relative ease and waddles to face the hard camera, so all the future challengers considered ‘hardcore’ or a ‘powerhouse’ can see what aaits them when they face the champion. Victoria growls with her face framed by The Rider’s long legs, "Let's see her get up after this!"
The Intercontinental champion drops back into a seat, spiking The Rider headfirst into the covered plywood that is the ring floor.
SIT-OUT PILEDRIVER
youtu.be/mjmA4U3vsMM?list=PLeRPsdtvusXiROvHPBxh0BXVkuPhU_QUs&t=66
Like a horrific slinky, The Rider bounces off her skull into a seat beside Victoria, her head bowed and hands plopping onto her lap. To the surprise of everyone, Victoria doesn’t go for the pin; The Knight’s been targeting The Rider’s head all match to drain her strangely deep reservoir of stamina, and she’s riding that plan all the way to the finish. Victoria shifts on her knees in front of The likely concussed Rider and pulls her into what starts as a Triangle Choke and turns into something more eclectic. After The Rider suffers a few constrictions inside the Triangle, Victoria pushes the rumpled Revenant's head out of the submission and then grips the top of her head through her watch cap and pulls The Rider's neck down against the base of the Triangle, choking the Challenger with her left shin.
GOGOPLATA
youtu.be/xlOLnKFwrnw?t=1120
The crowd’s fickle tonight; they’re chanting “RI-DER!!RI-DER!! RI-DER!!” They’re hoping the violent challenger can turn this around. Even with her brain firing off every panic signal and her body flailing like an animal caught in a trap, The Rider remains silent in her desperate struggle. Victoria, by contrast is nearly motionless but is screaming out her anger at The Rider and the world. She raises the pressure of the choke in measured degrees while ordering her enemy, “Quit! Quit, damn it!!”
The Rider does not quit, but her movements are getting slower and slower. She tries to claw at Victoria’s chest to bid for freedom, but it’s too late. The Rider goes limp and still in The Knight’s clutches, and the official swiftly motions for the bell.
DINGDINGDING!!!
"Your winner…..and still Intercontinental champion, Victoria Hackenschmidt!"
As the bell rings, Victoria eases the tension on Rider's head and nudges the unconscious woman out of the hold onto her side, a husk of the monster that entered the ring just a few minutes earlier. Breathing heavily, Victoria sits up and takes a moment to collect herself and let the red haze fade from her mind.
The Victorious Valiant One is handed her championship title belt as she labour's to her feet. Victoria's hand is raised to a loud, if mixed reaction from the Orlando audience. Once the adrenaline rush of the Destroyer duel is over, the fans remember they’re not supposed to like the ‘boring’ champion, and half the building begins booing The Valiant One.
Victoria takes this in with a detached, pragmatic optimism, thinking half of them hating me is a vast improvement over all of them hating me. She glances down at The Rider, who's rolled into her back, but still in the peaceful oblivion of forced unconsciousness. Victoria tightens her fist and considers ripping off her bandana and exposing The Rider's face as recompense for the people she's hurt…. Then pointedly steps on her belly as she walks to the ropes and steps out of the ring. Victoria Hackenschmidt raises the bar, she doesn't lower herself to it.
Hackenschmidt walks up the ramp with the gold over her shoulder. As she passes a camera, she speaks through it to management, “I want a real wrestler for my next opponent, not a violent thug.”
The Knight supporters of the crowd build a chant as she breaks through the curtains; Victoria has very mixed feelings about it, so she tries not to enjoy it too much. The cameras scan the crowd for a long beat before going to the next segment, allowing those watching at home to see the fervour they worship this new iteration of The Knight.
BLOOD KNIGHT!!
BLOOD KNIGHT!!
BLOOD KNIGHT!!
BLOOD KNIGHT!!
Here we are again. Victoria Hackenchmidt, the young, stoic veteran from Germany, puts the FAWN Intercontinental Championship on the line against anyone who dares step into the ring with The Knight. Unlike the last two months, the fans have no idea who’s aiming to take down Victoria and take the gold title belt and the accolades that come with it, but it's safe to say the Challenger will have most of the crowd's favour. Despite her stellar record, good reputation and professional conduct, the American fans seem to hate the totality of Victoria Hackenschmidt. Speaking of, a cheer fills the building when the lights go out; the champion is about to make her entrance.
TURNADOT- FINALE
www.youtube.com/watch?v=XoTa-b7cUw0
The air fills with a full orchestra playing alongside powerful, classically trained singers. The audio of Giacomo Puccini’s three-stage opera feels perfectly appropriate with the sight of the stage illuminated with blinding white spotlights. All focused on the towering sentinel that is the Intercontinental champion.
VICTORIA HACKENSCHMIDT
Victoria drinks in the uproarious response the FAWNatics give her; most to all of them will change their attitudes once the bell rings, but they always love her when the music’s playing. Hackenschmidt takes a calming breath through her nose and sets down the ramp. The German giant stands tall and armourless for the second time in her career, except for her head. She wears her usual silver Corinthian helmet that protects the back and sides of her skull but leaves her high-boned cheeks free with a strip of metal stretched down from the center opening to cover her nose. The helm is smooth other than an artful etching that circles the top of the skull resembling a bejewelled crown. The most crucial thing on Victoria’s person is around her waist, the Intercontinental Championship belt. Under the spotlight, it shines as the brightest beacon to any potential challenger, employed by FAWN or not, to try and pry it from The Valiant One’s grasp.
Head bowed in silent prayer; her hands clutch a cross-hilted broadsword nearly four feet in length, a replica of a family heirloom that hung over the fireplace in her family estate in Hesse. One of two, the other now in possession of the World Champion, Dayna Erza, having defeated Hackenschmidt for it last month at March to War. That loss haunts Victoria’s quiet moments, family ties have become strained, and the hordes harassing her have found a new angle to make Victoria regret having a computer.
She WILL wrest her honour from Dayna’s grasp, but that’s something to think about on a different night. Shaking off negative thoughts with a mighty roar, Victoria flexes her powerful arms and hefts the replica blade up to a cheering audience, then onto her shoulder before beginning her march towards the ring, the spotlights following her every step.
"Standing at 5 feet 11 inches and weighing in at 152 pounds!! From Phoenix, Arizona, by way of Hesse, Germany!! She is The Valiant One!! The Intercontinental Champion, Victoria “The Knight” Hackenschmidt!!!”
Constant bedevilment from a toxic wrestling fanbase and upheavals in her personal life led Victoria to make some changes to ease the pressure on her soul, such as removing most of the armour from her entrance. The IC champ marches to the ring in her white halter top, revealing miles of lightly toned, pale tummy with matching boy-cut shorts that cling to her tight hindquarters. White boots and knee pads looking newly shined, and an elbow-length fingerless white glove on her right arm; all her gear has thin black lines that weave and intersect to resemble the plate armour she usually wears to the ring.
Before the bell, Victoria tries to keep her mind on the match ahead, but she still reaches her free arm out to Hi-Five FAWNatics, leaning over the guardrail. The Valiant One briefly detours to a set of steel steps where a solid-looking metal box with a small slit cut into the top sat by the ring apron. Hackenschmidt takes the sword off her shoulder and swiftly swings it in a broad circle before plunging it down into the box with one smooth motion.
As her music dies down, the entrance euphoria dies along with it. A switch flips for the Orlando audience, and the air fills with a cacophony of noise; the majority of the FAWNatics boo and jeer the Towering Teuton. The feral fans want a champ that shows a little more skin or has a colourful demeanour. Since splitting from her tag partner, Danica Dadal, the audience dislikes Hackenschmidt’s ‘boring and prudish’ personality. At least, that’s how they describe it in the hate mail sent to the arena, the league's headquarters, her home, and on every social media platform.
As she finds her corner, Victoria scans the crowd and sees a few more pockets of support amongst a sea of jeers than usual! Some signs bear her name or image, many of them displaying a new moniker she has mixed feelings about, Blood Knight. She shrugs to herself, “Well, support is support. Better this than the usual hate or gleeful insults on my bra size.”
While Victoria tries to focus on the little love she has, the lights go down, save for the twinkle of flashbulbs and cellphones. The smoke machines go into overdrive as the entire entrance area becomes obscured by a hazy fog. Spotlights shine into the oblivion, creating an ominous aura. A dark, haunting, digitally distorted voice speaks through the darkness via the arena speakers.
"We are The Revenant."
www.youtube.com/watch?v=VvKjpGP6P5Y\
The crowd comes alive! Most of this Florida crowd recognizes this entrance, which has not been seen in Florida for nearly a decade. Slowly, "Young Men Dead" by The Black Angels builds through the speakers.
"We are The Rider."
An intimidating figure steps out from the fog. 5’11 in black workers' boots, this brutal icon of deathmatch fame is at the same time formless and distinctive in a pulled-up dark hoodie and a skeletal bandana that obscures her face. The powerhouse of the violent, mysterious trio known as The Revenant stares out with cold eyes at the top of the ramp, her hands tucked in the pockets of her tight blue jeans.
"We are The Revenant. We are the horror you made."
"We are The Revenant. We are the evil you courted"
The FAWNatics cheer The Rider like she’s a babyface they support every week! Since their brief stint in 2012, The Revenant has been out of FAWN and made their home in the major leagues of Mexico and decimating in hardcore matches wherever they roam. In recent months, The Revenant went viral last year after winning a trios tag title in a stellar performance in a 10 000 light Tubes Hell match in Nagoya, Japan. As for The Rider's reputation as a singles competitor, she's become notorious for putting women on the injured list and ending more than one career.
Champion and Challenger stand and stare at each other from across the building. Victoria silently scans the Destroyer of another flavour, searching for some kind of weakness or character trait to exploit. The Rider gives her nothing. Her dark eyes glare from under the shade of the hoodie, promising untold violence the moment the opportunity arises. The Rider takes her hands sheathed in skeleton finger gloves out of her pockets and pulls down her hood, revealing her hair is tucked and hidden under a black watch cap. The Rider draws her thumb slowly across her throat to a big pop from the crowd. Victoria has no visible response, but the champ is insulted on the inside. Not by the gesture but by The Rider herself and the fans' reaction to The Revenant’s legbreaker. This person is a disgrace to professional wrestling. Violence and intimidation for the sake of violence and intimidation, this is the example detractors bring up when they paint the Hackenschmidt family’s chosen profession as tawdry, mindless fights. She's not even wearing wrestling boots, for goodness sake!
The lights go out. The music stops.
"We are The Revenant. We have suffered at your hands. Now you will suffer at ours."
When the lights come back on, The Rider is standing in front of Victoria, a scant 12 inches between them! The German doesn’t back down from the silent challenge and issues her own, glaring at the pseudo masked wrestler like a beautifully intense statue. The referee, having an astute sense of self-preservation but a strong sense of duty, visually checks the urban warfare psychopath for weapons while stepping between the two dangerous women. Victoria's tired of challengers with outgoing personalities trying to show her up and steps out of the corner to chest up to The Rider, the hapless ref awkwardly ping-ponging between them as the two square up.
The sweating official tries his luck resetting order, "Ladies! Please go to corners so I can start the match properly!" Victoria glances down at the zebra braying at lionesses- SMACK!
The Rider nails Hackenschmidt in the face with a Discus Backhand when the IC champ takes her eyes off The Revenant's big gun.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5103xLLrnM
Victoria drops like a bag of dirt! Her body follows her head’s trajectory and she lands in a sprawl on her front, eyes swimming at the whiplash with drops of blood trickling from her mouth and staining the canvas. The bell hasn't even rung yet, and the match already has some colour!
The Rider walks to her fallen prey, ready to leave an imprint of her sole on Victoria's skull, but the professional yet foolhardy official spreads his arms out wide, acting as a roadblock. "Get to your corner, Rider, the match hasn't officially started yet-aAAH!!"
The Rider grabs him by the lapels of his shirt and lifts him into the air! The Rider carries the sputtering official all the way across the ring and manhandles the official into a seat on the top buckle, where no ref dares tread. The Rider stares into his soul with a dark fury; the official nervously raises his hands placatingly and tries to de-escalate the situation before he gets thrown over the top rope like it's a Royal Rumburr match,
"Whoawhoawhoaholdon!! If I don't start the match, you can't win the belt!"
This gives The Rider pause. She must punish the interloper must…. But that can wait until she's handed the gold. She sets him down safely on the canvas to the referee's great relief. While these tense negotiations are going on, Victoria is regrouping on the ring floor. Waves of anger and embarrassment wash over The Knight as she rises to her fours. The fact that this thug got a shot in and put her on the canvas is galling to Victoria, and fills her with bubbling anger that's become disturbingly familiar since debuting in FAWN.
That bubbling turns into a full frothing when The Knight's ears pick up the crowd's chanting. About three-fourths of the building echo a crude motto of….
"SMACK-THAT-BITCH-UP!!" CLAP! CLAP! CLAPCLAPCLAP!!!!
"SMACK-THAT-BITCH-UP!!" CLAP! CLAP! CLAPCLAPCLAP!!!!
Now that his shirt is finally free of The Rider's claws, the ref motions for the bell to start the match officially. The Rider turns her attention back to the new meat holding the Intercontinental title and stomps toward the vulnerable Victoria. To the shock of everyone watching, the kneeling blonde activates like a bomb! She explodes from the canvas into a full run and Spears through The Rider like there's no tomorrow!
youtu.be/Oml_t2rbpWM?t=319
DINGDING!!
The bell rings as Hackenschmidt's shoulder collapses The Rider's hard and like a battering ram! The gigantic challenger ricochets off Hackenschmidt into a clumsy backflip, landing hard on her head and shoulders, then tumbling into a seat a tilting over onto her side. Shocked, breathless and holding her compacted middle. The champ rolls with the impact of her NFL-worthy tackle and falls on her perky cheeks, then performs the biggest Kip Up the audience has ever seen. Victoria moves like the wrestling machine she is and drops a series of brutal elbows onto Rider's head before she has a chance to get up. Once she’s fed the challenger a good quartet of the simple yet effective move, Victoria works her head under The Rider’s arm and forcefully helps the now far less intimidating figure to her feet. The pair look like some gal pals heading home after a night on the town. Right up until Victoria loops her arms high on The Rider’s sider and throws herself back into a perfect bridge, The Rider is driven onto her head and shoulders for the second time tonight in a short and brutal fashion!
SAITO SUPLEX
youtu.be/BH5lS9utuns?t=221
There’s a collective shout from the FAWNatics followed by impressed silence; it’s rare for The Rider to leave her feet; it’s unthinkable to see her being womanhandled! Victoria pays the positive reinforcement no heed; the Destroyer floats out of the bridge into Lateral Cover like a skilled Lightweight half her size and pulls in the far leg for the….
ONE!!
TWO!!
The Rider kicks out with a second to spare, ripping her shoulder up with enough force to turn onto her side under Hackenschmidt, who secures a tight Front Facelock and raises the challenger to her feet. Victoria’s about to slip into position for a suplex when The Rider charges forward, backing The Knight hard into the buckles and piling on with a barrage of Shoulder Thrusts when Victoria's grip loosens.
THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!
The subtle creaking of the corner post has the ref worrying the corner post may buckle and break from the ring if Victoria isn’t mashed into a fine paste first. After the perfunctory warning to take it out of the corner he starts a 5 count, The Rider slowing to mark each number with a deep lunge into Victoria’s tummy, the champ bleating after each compression.
“One! Two! Three! Four! Five!”
The Rider halts her tackling without a word, she takes Hackenschmidt by the back of the head and forces her out of the corner; The Rider's nails somehow dig into the blonde's scalp through the skeletal glove. A spaghetti limbed Hackenschmidt is led by the hair along the ropes, looking much greener than before thanks to The Rider using her as a tackling dummy. She throws back an elbow back that hits the opposing giant on the cheek, The Rider takes it without a sound or break in her stride; a few feet from the corner The Rider heaves Victoria forward. The Knight hits her forehead on the leather padded steel with a Bwung!
Victoria teeters back unbalanced with eyes crossed and church bells going off between her ears. The Rider grabs her by the shoulders, turns Victoria around and shoves her into the corner. The Rider points a shoulder at her prey and hurls herself into Hackenschmidt, crushing her with a truncated splash as she slams a back elbow into the champion's face. Victoria starts to slump forward and lean on her attacker but The Rider shoves her straight and traps her defined arms behind the top ropes, taking the middle ropes in her powerful gloved hands, The Rider continues pummeling the gut by pulling herself into heavy broadside kneelifts. The Rider’s denim encased thigh beats into ivory tummy like she’s trying to tear Victoria into the slow way; there’s no indication The Revenant’s big gun is aware of the ref’s pleas or the rising count after, but she stops tenderizing just before the point of disqualification.
She puts a controlling hand on Hackenschmidt’s chin and cranes her head up, exposing her exquisite neck to the returning Alpha female that is The Rider. Victoria’s arms are freed from the ropes, she tries to bat away The Rider with flailing slaps but the heel brushes them off and starts strangling Victoria with her free hand. The Knight chokes out a protest as she tries to pry The Rider’s curled digits off her throat while the ref starts pitching a fit and threatening to throw the match out. The Rider pulls Victoria to the center of the ring by the neck and PUNTS the blonde between the legs!
“GRauKK!!”
The FAWNatics cringe and groan in sympathy while Hackenschmidt gives an anguish-filled squawk, she isn’t the most popular wrestler but they don’t think she deserves a boot to her tender bits. Victoria's legs wobble and a shudder runs through her body, her gapping face takes on an uneven hue; normally she’d go pale from the low blow, but the choke is keeping the champ’s face flush. The Rider pulls Victoria close as she takes one of her now noodle-like arms and throws it over a shoulder, and takes a handful of the champion’s shorts by the hip, The Rider goes into a deep crouch and shoots up, lifting Victoria several feet in the air and slams her belly up on the canvas with thunderous force!
CHOKESLAM
youtu.be/U2n4hZT0ulI?t=53
The entirety of the Squared Circle shakes with the might of The Rider using 152lbs of German hardbody as a SuperBall! Finally free of the steel grip around her neck Victoria rebounds into a stooped seat and flops back to the canvas spread eagle, her belly and modest chest heaving with precious air. Victoria’s head listlessly sways with the reverberations of the mat, there are small marks on her throat threatening to blossom into a deep bruise later on as a reminder of this moment in the match. The Rider Kneels by The Knight’s side and palms Victoria’s right breast, treating the mammary like a stress ball while the referee makes the count.
ONE!!
TWO!!
Victoria kicks out! Saving the match and keeping the pin count an even race within two seconds. As she gets a shoulder up Victoria slugs The Rider in her obscured face and knocks the thug on her ass. The official chides the Intercontinental champ as the women rush to their feet, "Watch the closed fists, Vic." And gives an exasperated huff when The Rider pastes Victoria with a meaty left hook. The Valiant Victoria is unsteady and seeing double from oxygen deprivation and that bad Chokeslam, but there’s definite training showing in her stance as she puts The Rider’s head on a swivel with a one-two combo, The Revenant’s Giant is all power, no grace as she lobs a big swing back at Victoria that dings off her forehead making her stumble back. It’s an all-out slugfest for a good twenty seconds that has the crowd on its feet!
Hackenschmidt starts to steel up and attack with more accuracy, the pain from The Rider's fists acts as a natural smelling salt and brings Victoria back to her senses. She dips under a left jab and rattles The Rider's braincase with a very legal European Uppercut, backs the bandana'd bitch up with forearm shiver after forearm shiver to the sternum. Victoria changes targets after doubling The Rider over with a belly blow and brings her elbow down on The Rider's dome. The Challenger seems staggered, she's wavering where she stands and her eyes seem glazed in the sliver of territory between her toecap and bandana.
The second wind flowing through Hackenschmidt also fans the flames of her rage, making her faster, stronger, meaner…. but also a little sloppy. Victoria makes a speedy retreat and hit the cables and recoils back to The Rider with a high-powered Lariat on deck, leaving her open for The Rider’s face flattening Pump Kick that stops her comeback dead.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ul71EPgYCM
Victoria's head whips back and her arms lower to her sides. She's unsteady and dazed but it takes more than that for the Knight to leave her feet. The Rider hints at her unknown past by intertwining her hands behind Victoria's neck and pummeling her chest and abs with some Muay Thai knee strikes. The champ bleats each time one of The Rider’s bent legs plows into her body "Oof! Gughh! Eregh!"
The Rider backs Hackenschmidt into the ropes with a storm of kneelifts, and she braces a leg back for a potential stomach buster of strike when Thunk! "Rargh!" The Knight interrupts the flow with a savage headbutt, making the silent Rider actually verbalize her pain! An EXTREMELY unusual event. Hackenschmidt flinches and shakes her head free stars while The Rider is dead on her feet watching galaxies; Victoria closes in and takes the taciturn titan by the wrist as she switches their positions. Taking a big step back, Victoria drops a hip and yanks The Rider close, then throws her away with an Irish Whip- The Rider stops cold and reverses the Whip! Victoria’s sent hurtling to the other side of the ring.
The Rider readies her right leg for a big boot on Hackenschmidt's return but is left wanting. The Knight wows the crowd and leaves her opponent in the dust simultaneously; Victoria baseball slides under the bottom rope and lands running on the outside! The Rider darts to the corner to head off whatever Victoria has cooking, but she’s too far ahead; The Knight latches onto the post with both hands to help her turn as she accelerates, seamlessly rolls back into the ring and pops to her feet, behind The Rider! Victoria throws herself into a clothesline, but The Rider’s no slouch and ducks under the German’s bicep, letting Victoria crash into the turnbuckles. Hackenschmidt has the ring sense to turn with the miss and take the pads with her back, meaning she can see an oncoming Rider and force-feed her a bootsole! Hackenschmidt leans against the corner and whips up her leg, forcefully kicking The Rider in the face as she’s about to jump into a Splash. The Revenant’s bruiser negates some of the blow’s force by turning with the hit; The Rider spins to face the champion only to see a flash of her bicep inches from her fast before she’s knocked head over heels with a Lariat!
youtu.be/_5G8AI0FQTk?list=PLeRPsdtvusXiROvHPBxh0BXVkuPhU_QUs
The silent giant is blown into a spin cycle by the mighty Knight’s drive-by Lariating. The Rider flips and corkscrews in the air till she lands with a Thump! on the canvas. There's a loud, echoing cheer in the air from the FAWNatics at the sight of this Hackenschmidt-run! The young veteran may be a divisive figure to some, but no one can deny her talent, especially The Rider at this moment. The masked monster barely moves when she’s flipped belly up by the champion’s boot, and lets out an audible groan when Victoria drops across her chest in a Standing Splash. Victoria presses The Rider’s wrist to the mat and braces a forearm against her cheek to keep her beaten foe flat while the ref confirms her victory.
ONE!!
TWO!!
T-NOOO!!!
The Rider shows resolve she’s never had the need to use before and bucks the blonde off her chest. There's a sizable pop for the returning oddity's escape; the fans are not yet ready to see this match end! Victoria, however, is very ready for this to be over, and audibly cusses to herself as she beats the mat in frustration, "Verdammt!" The Valiant One stays on the ball, drags The Rider to her feet by her hoodie, and boots her in the gut.
Hackenschmidt pulls The Rider into a snug headscissors, then bends over and wraps her strong arms around The Rider’s waist. Hackenschimdt attempts to raise the urban beast and fails; The Rider bicycles her workers’ boots the moment they leave the mat and tenses for a Backdrop when she’s back on solid ground. The Knight feels The Rider's muscles steeling for a reversal and cuts off the maneuver by crossing her ankles and giving the challenger a melon-crushing squeeze with her thighs while Victoria raises her grip and disrupts The Rider’s breath with a Heimlich. The Rider’s caught between a shiver and wretch and turns to clay in The Knight’s grasp, resistance destroyed. Victoria hups her sister Destroyer upside down with relative ease and waddles to face the hard camera, so all the future challengers considered ‘hardcore’ or a ‘powerhouse’ can see what aaits them when they face the champion. Victoria growls with her face framed by The Rider’s long legs, "Let's see her get up after this!"
The Intercontinental champion drops back into a seat, spiking The Rider headfirst into the covered plywood that is the ring floor.
SIT-OUT PILEDRIVER
youtu.be/mjmA4U3vsMM?list=PLeRPsdtvusXiROvHPBxh0BXVkuPhU_QUs&t=66
Like a horrific slinky, The Rider bounces off her skull into a seat beside Victoria, her head bowed and hands plopping onto her lap. To the surprise of everyone, Victoria doesn’t go for the pin; The Knight’s been targeting The Rider’s head all match to drain her strangely deep reservoir of stamina, and she’s riding that plan all the way to the finish. Victoria shifts on her knees in front of The likely concussed Rider and pulls her into what starts as a Triangle Choke and turns into something more eclectic. After The Rider suffers a few constrictions inside the Triangle, Victoria pushes the rumpled Revenant's head out of the submission and then grips the top of her head through her watch cap and pulls The Rider's neck down against the base of the Triangle, choking the Challenger with her left shin.
GOGOPLATA
youtu.be/xlOLnKFwrnw?t=1120
The crowd’s fickle tonight; they’re chanting “RI-DER!!RI-DER!! RI-DER!!” They’re hoping the violent challenger can turn this around. Even with her brain firing off every panic signal and her body flailing like an animal caught in a trap, The Rider remains silent in her desperate struggle. Victoria, by contrast is nearly motionless but is screaming out her anger at The Rider and the world. She raises the pressure of the choke in measured degrees while ordering her enemy, “Quit! Quit, damn it!!”
The Rider does not quit, but her movements are getting slower and slower. She tries to claw at Victoria’s chest to bid for freedom, but it’s too late. The Rider goes limp and still in The Knight’s clutches, and the official swiftly motions for the bell.
DINGDINGDING!!!
"Your winner…..and still Intercontinental champion, Victoria Hackenschmidt!"
As the bell rings, Victoria eases the tension on Rider's head and nudges the unconscious woman out of the hold onto her side, a husk of the monster that entered the ring just a few minutes earlier. Breathing heavily, Victoria sits up and takes a moment to collect herself and let the red haze fade from her mind.
The Victorious Valiant One is handed her championship title belt as she labour's to her feet. Victoria's hand is raised to a loud, if mixed reaction from the Orlando audience. Once the adrenaline rush of the Destroyer duel is over, the fans remember they’re not supposed to like the ‘boring’ champion, and half the building begins booing The Valiant One.
Victoria takes this in with a detached, pragmatic optimism, thinking half of them hating me is a vast improvement over all of them hating me. She glances down at The Rider, who's rolled into her back, but still in the peaceful oblivion of forced unconsciousness. Victoria tightens her fist and considers ripping off her bandana and exposing The Rider's face as recompense for the people she's hurt…. Then pointedly steps on her belly as she walks to the ropes and steps out of the ring. Victoria Hackenschmidt raises the bar, she doesn't lower herself to it.
Hackenschmidt walks up the ramp with the gold over her shoulder. As she passes a camera, she speaks through it to management, “I want a real wrestler for my next opponent, not a violent thug.”
The Knight supporters of the crowd build a chant as she breaks through the curtains; Victoria has very mixed feelings about it, so she tries not to enjoy it too much. The cameras scan the crowd for a long beat before going to the next segment, allowing those watching at home to see the fervour they worship this new iteration of The Knight.
BLOOD KNIGHT!!
BLOOD KNIGHT!!
BLOOD KNIGHT!!
BLOOD KNIGHT!!