Post by kjcasey42 on Apr 22, 2023 11:41:07 GMT
Kanako Akiyama: 
Trixie Decker:
Kate Grimm:
Taffy Black:
Bethany Christian:
The four women sit, each pair eyeing the other uneasily, purposely avoiding making eye contact with FAWN’s commissioner. This was the first time since the already infamous Whipping Post match that the two teams were in the same vicinity together, and while they didn’t believe each other was foolish enough to start something right in front of their boss, each pair nonetheless eyed the other with mistrust. This doesn’t escape Bethany’s notice, as she drums impatiently on her desk. Finally tiring of this standoff, Bethany loudly clears her throat, forcing all eyes on her.
“Thank you, ladies,” Bethany begins, now that she has their attention, “Now, first of all, can we all just admit that what happened at TCS…was really gross?”
“YES!” Trixie answers pointedly. Never one to shy away from the more violent aspects of their sport, Trixie had been uneasy about the way her wife had drastically escalated hostilities with their tormentors.And she wasn’t shy about letting Kanako know about it either.
On the other end of the desk, Kate Grimm simply frowns. Loathe as she might be to admit it, she finds herself actually agreeing with Trixie on this one thing. Don’t get it twisted; Kate still wants nothing more than to see Kanako Akiyama driven out of this business once and for all. But things have gotten way out of hand, with Kanako and Taffy coming close to killing each other a couple months ago. At this point, she wants it all to be over. With her getting what she wants, mind you, but over all the same.
Bethany notices all of this, of course, and she raps her fingers on her desk as she considers her next words. “Alright, ladies. Cards on the table time. After that horror show, that living nightmare…were it solely up to me, I would put an end to this, here and now.”
“Isn’t it up to you?” Trixie asked sincerely.
“Well, it is. But I have a responsibility to our viewers, and, cliche as it may be at this point. to do what’s best for business. The four of you have engaged in a war of attrition for months now. A war that started almost three years ago. Fans are invested, and they deserve an actual conclusion to this sordid saga. So here’s what’s going to happen. Since the two of you,” she points to Kanako and Taffy, “have finally passed concussion protocols, along with the fact that I’ll be leaving for a much needed, well-earned vacation in a couple days and I do not trust Ancilene to keep her nose out of it in my absence, you will have two months to prepare for your final match. And believe me, I do[/] mean final!”
Kate looks up at that, “Meaning?”
“Meaning,” Bethany answers, “that after this match takes place, unless there’s a title at stake, you are not to interact with each other at all. No matches, no backstage brawls, no jumping each other in the parking lot, nothing! If you do, you’ll be looking for work elsewhere. Do I make myself clear?”
The four women all nodded, albeit in different ways. Trixie nodded solemnly, Taffy did so with a smug smirk on her face. Kate’s frown deepened, as did Kanako’s, although she couldn’t help but grumble a little.
“Something on your mind, Miss Akiyama?” Bethany asked.
“Do I have permission to speak freely, ma’am?” Kanako replied, to which Bethany gave a quick nod. “You talked about the fans being invested in…this. But this all started because Grimm wants me out of this sport for good. The main issue is between the two of us, and yet we haven’t faced each other one on one. And now you’re slamming the door on that ever happening.”
“Oh my god!” Kate groaned, throwing her head back, “I can’t believe that I’m about to say this, but I actually agree with Akiyama! With all due respect, Miss Christian, you can not put that kind of restriction on us before she and I have had a chance to settle things, woman to woman!”
Bethany drummed her fingers on the desk, thinking and considering what Kanako and Kate have said. “Very well,” she finally said, “There is truth in what you say. Miss Decker and Miss Black are one hundred percent involved in this sordid affair, but ultimately, the conflict is between the two of you, and it would be wrong to deny the fans that payoff. So here’s what’s going to happen, ladies…A week before Mayhem, on FAWN TV, Miss Akiyama and Miss Grimm will indeed face each other. Since Kanako picked the stipulation for your last encounter, Miss Grimm, I think it’s only fair for you to pick this one, if indeed you want a special match.”
Kate needed no time to deliberate, almost as if the thought had already been in her head. “MMA rules,” she said a beat after Bethany had finished talking. “There’s plenty of ways you could put together a structure like the octagon for us to fight in.”
Bethany nodded in agreement, “Indeed. Any objections, Miss Akiyama?” Kanako shakes her head once to indicate she had none, “Splendid! Regardless of the outcome of that match, the four of you will face off at Mayhem. Now…the last time the four of you faced each other, you two turned tail and ran when the tide turned against you…” Bethany’s gaze was on Kate and Taffy, reminding them of their choice to run and take a countout loss at All Hallow’s Evil last year. “Don’t want to hear it,” the Commissioner said with a hand raised to silence the pair when they started to open their mouths to protest their boss’s characterization of their actions. “My point is that I will not allow you two to similarly rob the fans of a satisfying conclusion to your feud this time. We’re putting this thing inside a steel cage, pinfalls or submissions only; to take it a step further, if any of you do leave the cage, not only will your team lose, but you’ll be fired as well. Am I understood?” All four women nodded in unison, “Excellent! Now, with that out of the way, let’s add a little excitement to the proceedings.”
“Meaning?” Trixie asked with trepidation.
“Stakes, Miss Decker, simply put,” came Bethany’s answer, “Back in the day, when you four were still in elementary school, there was a tag match stipulation called Ultimate Jeopardy. Each participant had to put something on the line, specific to them, should they be the one to suffer the fall.” she explained further.
“Fun,” Trixie said with her trademark sardonic wit, “And I assume you’ve thought up everyone’s punishment?”
“Indeed, yes. Everyone but you was fairly easy, in all honesty, Miss Decker. Should Kate lose, you will get to subdue her and drag her into the parking lot to do as you please for five minutes, much in the way she did to you when this whole mess started. If Taffy loses, well, Miss Akiyama will get a measure of revenge, as she will get to bind her to the cage and administer ten lashes.” That actually brought a sadistic grin to Kanako’s lips, which did not escape either Bethany’s or Trixie’s notice. Nevertheless, Bethany continued, “Kanako’s was easiest of all…Should she take the fall, Miss Grimm will get her wish…Kanako Akiyama will be banished from FAWN forever.” Now it was Kate’s turn to smirk.
“And me?” Trixie interjected, “You implied that my punishment was less easy…”
“Yes, indeed,” Bethany answered, “As is often the case where you’re concerned, you’ve proven to be a bit of a sticky wicket. Any penalty that I could think of was either, frankly, boring, or punishments that I would think wouldn’t matter much to you. And then, as you are wont to do, you surprised everyone and defied the odds by beating Victoria Hackenschmidt. Put simply, Miss Decker, your Intercontinental Title is on the line.”
“Suits me fine,” Trixie said with a shrug, “If I get beat by either of these two, I don’t deserve that title anyway.”
“As you say, Miss Decker. So there you have it! Any questions?” The tense silence gave the answer that there were none, “Excellent! Then, I believe this meeting is at its end. Have a good day, ladies.” All four of them nodded to their boss and quietly filed out of her office and out of the building without incident. They all knew that this was neither the time nor the place for a confrontation. At Mayhem, their last chance to settle things once and for all, they all resolved to save their rage and their malice for the cage. There, they would either destroy their hated rivals…
…or die trying!
Trixie Decker:
Kate Grimm:
Taffy Black:
Bethany Christian:
The four women sit, each pair eyeing the other uneasily, purposely avoiding making eye contact with FAWN’s commissioner. This was the first time since the already infamous Whipping Post match that the two teams were in the same vicinity together, and while they didn’t believe each other was foolish enough to start something right in front of their boss, each pair nonetheless eyed the other with mistrust. This doesn’t escape Bethany’s notice, as she drums impatiently on her desk. Finally tiring of this standoff, Bethany loudly clears her throat, forcing all eyes on her.
“Thank you, ladies,” Bethany begins, now that she has their attention, “Now, first of all, can we all just admit that what happened at TCS…was really gross?”
“YES!” Trixie answers pointedly. Never one to shy away from the more violent aspects of their sport, Trixie had been uneasy about the way her wife had drastically escalated hostilities with their tormentors.And she wasn’t shy about letting Kanako know about it either.
On the other end of the desk, Kate Grimm simply frowns. Loathe as she might be to admit it, she finds herself actually agreeing with Trixie on this one thing. Don’t get it twisted; Kate still wants nothing more than to see Kanako Akiyama driven out of this business once and for all. But things have gotten way out of hand, with Kanako and Taffy coming close to killing each other a couple months ago. At this point, she wants it all to be over. With her getting what she wants, mind you, but over all the same.
Bethany notices all of this, of course, and she raps her fingers on her desk as she considers her next words. “Alright, ladies. Cards on the table time. After that horror show, that living nightmare…were it solely up to me, I would put an end to this, here and now.”
“Isn’t it up to you?” Trixie asked sincerely.
“Well, it is. But I have a responsibility to our viewers, and, cliche as it may be at this point. to do what’s best for business. The four of you have engaged in a war of attrition for months now. A war that started almost three years ago. Fans are invested, and they deserve an actual conclusion to this sordid saga. So here’s what’s going to happen. Since the two of you,” she points to Kanako and Taffy, “have finally passed concussion protocols, along with the fact that I’ll be leaving for a much needed, well-earned vacation in a couple days and I do not trust Ancilene to keep her nose out of it in my absence, you will have two months to prepare for your final match. And believe me, I do[/] mean final!”
Kate looks up at that, “Meaning?”
“Meaning,” Bethany answers, “that after this match takes place, unless there’s a title at stake, you are not to interact with each other at all. No matches, no backstage brawls, no jumping each other in the parking lot, nothing! If you do, you’ll be looking for work elsewhere. Do I make myself clear?”
The four women all nodded, albeit in different ways. Trixie nodded solemnly, Taffy did so with a smug smirk on her face. Kate’s frown deepened, as did Kanako’s, although she couldn’t help but grumble a little.
“Something on your mind, Miss Akiyama?” Bethany asked.
“Do I have permission to speak freely, ma’am?” Kanako replied, to which Bethany gave a quick nod. “You talked about the fans being invested in…this. But this all started because Grimm wants me out of this sport for good. The main issue is between the two of us, and yet we haven’t faced each other one on one. And now you’re slamming the door on that ever happening.”
“Oh my god!” Kate groaned, throwing her head back, “I can’t believe that I’m about to say this, but I actually agree with Akiyama! With all due respect, Miss Christian, you can not put that kind of restriction on us before she and I have had a chance to settle things, woman to woman!”
Bethany drummed her fingers on the desk, thinking and considering what Kanako and Kate have said. “Very well,” she finally said, “There is truth in what you say. Miss Decker and Miss Black are one hundred percent involved in this sordid affair, but ultimately, the conflict is between the two of you, and it would be wrong to deny the fans that payoff. So here’s what’s going to happen, ladies…A week before Mayhem, on FAWN TV, Miss Akiyama and Miss Grimm will indeed face each other. Since Kanako picked the stipulation for your last encounter, Miss Grimm, I think it’s only fair for you to pick this one, if indeed you want a special match.”
Kate needed no time to deliberate, almost as if the thought had already been in her head. “MMA rules,” she said a beat after Bethany had finished talking. “There’s plenty of ways you could put together a structure like the octagon for us to fight in.”
Bethany nodded in agreement, “Indeed. Any objections, Miss Akiyama?” Kanako shakes her head once to indicate she had none, “Splendid! Regardless of the outcome of that match, the four of you will face off at Mayhem. Now…the last time the four of you faced each other, you two turned tail and ran when the tide turned against you…” Bethany’s gaze was on Kate and Taffy, reminding them of their choice to run and take a countout loss at All Hallow’s Evil last year. “Don’t want to hear it,” the Commissioner said with a hand raised to silence the pair when they started to open their mouths to protest their boss’s characterization of their actions. “My point is that I will not allow you two to similarly rob the fans of a satisfying conclusion to your feud this time. We’re putting this thing inside a steel cage, pinfalls or submissions only; to take it a step further, if any of you do leave the cage, not only will your team lose, but you’ll be fired as well. Am I understood?” All four women nodded in unison, “Excellent! Now, with that out of the way, let’s add a little excitement to the proceedings.”
“Meaning?” Trixie asked with trepidation.
“Stakes, Miss Decker, simply put,” came Bethany’s answer, “Back in the day, when you four were still in elementary school, there was a tag match stipulation called Ultimate Jeopardy. Each participant had to put something on the line, specific to them, should they be the one to suffer the fall.” she explained further.
“Fun,” Trixie said with her trademark sardonic wit, “And I assume you’ve thought up everyone’s punishment?”
“Indeed, yes. Everyone but you was fairly easy, in all honesty, Miss Decker. Should Kate lose, you will get to subdue her and drag her into the parking lot to do as you please for five minutes, much in the way she did to you when this whole mess started. If Taffy loses, well, Miss Akiyama will get a measure of revenge, as she will get to bind her to the cage and administer ten lashes.” That actually brought a sadistic grin to Kanako’s lips, which did not escape either Bethany’s or Trixie’s notice. Nevertheless, Bethany continued, “Kanako’s was easiest of all…Should she take the fall, Miss Grimm will get her wish…Kanako Akiyama will be banished from FAWN forever.” Now it was Kate’s turn to smirk.
“And me?” Trixie interjected, “You implied that my punishment was less easy…”
“Yes, indeed,” Bethany answered, “As is often the case where you’re concerned, you’ve proven to be a bit of a sticky wicket. Any penalty that I could think of was either, frankly, boring, or punishments that I would think wouldn’t matter much to you. And then, as you are wont to do, you surprised everyone and defied the odds by beating Victoria Hackenschmidt. Put simply, Miss Decker, your Intercontinental Title is on the line.”
“Suits me fine,” Trixie said with a shrug, “If I get beat by either of these two, I don’t deserve that title anyway.”
“As you say, Miss Decker. So there you have it! Any questions?” The tense silence gave the answer that there were none, “Excellent! Then, I believe this meeting is at its end. Have a good day, ladies.” All four of them nodded to their boss and quietly filed out of her office and out of the building without incident. They all knew that this was neither the time nor the place for a confrontation. At Mayhem, their last chance to settle things once and for all, they all resolved to save their rage and their malice for the cage. There, they would either destroy their hated rivals…
…or die trying!