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Kendra Snipes stepped out of the elevator into the interior of the illustrious Madison Square Garden. The sounds from the arena carried through the thick cinderblock walls of the winding tunnel, the raucousness of a hyped up crowd. It had been over half a year since Kendra had heard any of this in person; the cacophony of thousands of wrestling fans gathered for a main event, the echoing voice of an announcer over a PA, the feint thuds of bodies being pounded down on a mat. The familiarness of it all was very comforting considering.

Kendra stepped to one side as a pair of staffers rushed past her, clipboards clutched under their arms as they pressed their headsets close to their ears to hear better over the noise. The tunnel while not overly crowded was abuzz with busy crew members as well as a handful of wrestlers who lingered about, some just mingling while others waited for their upcoming matches. Kendra did not recognize anyone in the mix though she knew that several of the other women from No Mercy Women’s Wrestling had transferred over to the new franchise.

A male wrestler in blue and red tights strolled past with a smile and Kendra felt a self-conscious wave roll through her as she awkwardly smiled back. She had wrestled “with” men before - namely in Japan during NMWW’s showcase in Tokyo - but that had been a one time event. It was going to be quite the adjustment to work full time in a company that had a mixed roster. Not that Kendra was “against” it per se, it would just be a big change. One of several big changes from what she knew.

Kendra adjusted her gym bag on her shoulder. It had her “after the show” clothes for when the night was over and she hit the showers. Today had been a great first day with the new brand. Kendra had shown up early for the No Mercy Wrestling grand opening event, helping the gorilla crew with setup that afternoon and then participating in a triple threat dark match with a pair of jobbers in the parking lot ring setup. It had been a nice icebreaker with the crowd and some of the new staff as well as helping Kendra get the feel of being back in a “proper” match after so much time. Still, Kendra had been in her ring gear for five hours now and had spent most of the day out in the sweltering summer sun meeting and greeting. A hot shower and a nice, comfy hotel bed sounded great right now.

Kendra turned a corner and skidded to a stop, eyes wide, as she had almost walked right into someone - namely Fiona Chevalier, her tag team partner and the lead half of The Defiant Dream.

“Fiona! There you are.”

For Fiona, July 5th had taken forever to arrive, but somehow in the last week or two it managed to completely sneak up on her. From Fall of 2024 to Summer of 2025 the now 21-year-old wrestler hadn't been able to do any actual wrestling, consigned to simply training and keeping herself in shape after injuring her tag team partner just before the end of No Mercy Women's Wrestling. It did her image no good to have that match in the minds of fans for more than half a year, nor did it do her any good to keep thinking of it while she was trying to train.

She was as nervous as she'd ever been for a match tonight, that annoying butterflies-in-her-stomach feeling refusing to go away, and only ramping up with the noise of the fans as the time for her fight drew near. Fiona felt like she was starting all over again, only this time on a bigger stage, with bigger expectations and bigger stakes. Some fans would have followed her from the old NMWW, but for many, tonight would be their first impression of Fiona Chevalier. She was keenly aware that she'd lost all three of her fights in New York City so far, and tonight she faced another difficult test in the form of Ada Eberhard.

The Neon Diva was a CSW hot shot, a fan favorite, just a little older than Fiona, coming off of an injury of her own and no doubt looking to make a statement in the NMW Women's Division at Fiona's expense. As a newly formed brand, the championship belts were all up for grabs, but you had to prove you deserved a shot at them first. An upset win against Ada Eberhard would be an excellent way to start. On the other hand, if Ada dealt with Fiona like many expected...

I'm overthinking this again. Damn it! I just need to get out there already. She'd changed into her gear early, making her NMW debut in a cross-strap bra top and mini shorts with a leather studded belt, knee-high pads over her wrestling boots and short fingerless gloves to go with it. Purples and blues were normally her colors, but to differentiate from what she expected Ada would wear, Fiona went with a light lavender color with black trim. Her raven hair reached down to between her shoulder blades now, left loose, and over her gear she wore a cropped long sleeve leather jacket, giving her a little extra style for her entrance.

Pacing the halls nearly led her right into her tag team partner, Kendra, prompting a somewhat shaky laugh from Fiona. They'd spent more than enough time together for Kendra to be able to see how jittery Fiona was.

"Hey! How'd your match go?" Kendra looked to be in good spirits and not all beaten up, so Fiona had to assume she'd taken care of business easily enough. Fiona would've loved to have a lower stakes fight to help her get back up to speed, but that wasn't to be. She'd have to play with the hand she was dealt, and hope for the best.

Kendra’s half-smile faded, replaced by an expression of slight confusion even as she nodded her head slowly, “It went well. I took the win by pinfall after nailing one of those jobbers with a boot to the chin. The other had gotten caught outside the ring and wasn’t fast enough to stop the count.”

Kendra looked Fiona up and down as she adjusted her gym bag on her shoulder again. Kendra had set aside her singlet and high boots aesthetic from late last year and now sported a more common brassiere and tights look with shin-high boots. Her gear was colored the typical blue she donned as one half of The Defiant Dream and her boots were a solid black. Usually the two would match but Fiona had taken her outfit in another direction for the grand opening.

“I like the fresh look tonight.” Kendra gave Fiona a right handed thumbs up though her tone was rather unsteady as she seemed hesitant in some regard. After a few seconds of awkward eye contact between them Kendra raised both hands in front of her and asked, “You were talking about my dark match from earlier today, right? Because I am not wrestling tonight for the grand opening. I was not put on the card.”

Before Fiona had a chance to reply to Kendra a raspy, monotonous voice ripped through the air nearby turning both women’s heads. “There she is, Miss Fiona Chevalier!” A heavyset man in a charcoal grey suit paired with a striped blue necktie came rushing up to the two women from behind Fiona. It was Gordon McKinney, the assistant producer of No Mercy Wrestling and one of Fiona and Kendra’s new bosses as it were. Kendra had met Gordon already and while he was pleasant enough at face Kendra sensed that he was the archetypal slimeball executive to be mindful of. Gordon hastily brushed stray strands of dark brown hair from his glistening forehead and adjusted his glasses as he stopped in front of Fiona.

“Welcome to No Mercy Wrestling!” Gordon smiled broadly as he extended his right hand to Fiona, his sweaty fingers like miniature sausages straight from a steamer.

Fiona shook Gordon's hand, a little thankful she was wearing gloves, and a bit annoyed at meeting with anyone from NMW management right before her match, but she absolutely did not let that feeling show. Gordon McKinney was at least part of the reason Fiona was on the card for the grand opening in the first place, though she couldn't say for sure how things were being orchestrated behind the scenes at this early stage. She'd always appreciated the way Mark Trenton ran things, but now she felt like she was in uncharted waters.

"Thank you, Gordon," she replied. "I'm grateful for the chance to compete on our opening night. I won't let the fans down." Fiona really wanted to be preparing herself mentally for the fight right about now, but she also wasn't about to brush off one of her bosses at her first day on the job. Wonder if he paid Ada a visit, too...

“That would be Mister McKinney, if you please.” Gordon maintained his smile as he released Fiona’s hand after the shake. “And that’s great, wonderful to hear! I have no doubt that you and Ada will raise the roof tonight. I watched some of your matches from your time with NMWW and I can definitely attest to Ada’s ability to fire up a crowd having seen her compete in person at CSW. I expect the two of you to give us all a great show tonight and wrestle like there is a title on the line!”

“Fiona goes in to every match with a winning mindset, Mister McKinney!” Kendra said looking to Fiona with a grin.

“Great.” Gordon nodded flashing two thumbs up. “Well, Fiona, head on to the stage entrance, you and Ada’s match is next and that crowd is hungry. Which is how we like it!”

“Uhm, Mister McKinney…” Kendra quickly held up one hand indicative that she had something to say, or ask rather.

“Yes?” Gordon raised one brow as he straightened his suit jacket.

“Will I be joining Fiona in the arena tonight? I did request that maybe Defiant Dream could go out together here on opening night and that I be ringside. You know, so…”

“Ah, yes,” Gordon nodded, his facial expression now not a favorable one, “well, unfortunately Kendra, no. Not tonight anyway! Tonight the focus is on Ada Eberhard and Fiona Chevalier, two high energy competitors fighting for a win to establish a foothold here at the start of a new franchise. And a… third wheel, pardon me, would distract from that. Don’t worry you and Fiona will have your big entrance as The Defiant Dream very soon!”

“I understand.” Kendra nodded, fighting like hell inside to keep the disappointment from her face and voice. Kendra had really hoped to make a ringside appearance with Fiona as an announcement to the fans that The Defiant Dream was back in action and ready to conquer a new brand. But management decided it was not the right approach for tonight so who was she to argue?

“Good, good.” Gordon nodded with a very plastic smile as he turned his eyes back to Fiona. “Any questions? Like I said, you should get ready for your entrance!”

Well this got awkward as fast as I imagined it would... Fiona was mentally kicking herself for not giving Mr. McKinney the same amount of respect she'd given Mr. Trenton the year prior. A subconscious error, for sure, coupled with the fact that her mind was all over the place at the moment.

She'd been about to follow Gordon's advice when her partner asked to join her in the arena, giving Fiona yet another thing to think about. She didn't know that Kendra wanted to be ringside, and it caught her a little off guard. They were a team, yes, but Ada wouldn't be coming out with backup tonight, as far as Fiona knew. Fiona wanted to stand on her own two feet for her NMW debut, and if the roles were reversed, she wouldn't want to take any of the spotlight away from Kendra, either. Thankfully, Gordon saved her the need to tell her best friend to stay behind.

"No questions, Mr. McKinney. I'm ready to get out there." She gestured for Kendra to follow her down the tunnel towards the arena entrance, waiting until they were out of earshot of Gordon. "We'll get our moment to shine as a tag team soon, I know it. And when you're up for a singles fight, I want all the eyes to be on you, because you deserve it, too." She said that earnestly. Kendra had come a very long way since those first few months as rookie wrestlers. Fiona wanted the crowd to see her as more than just "Fiona's tag partner" or "Fiona's friend." And honestly? It was probably better for her first appearance in the arena to not be just ringside, supporting Fiona.

They arrived at the entrance, where there was nothing to do but wait. Fiona's match was in the middle of the card tonight, but for a grand opening with a name like Isabella Cadiz on the card, she'd take whatever spot she could get.

She exhaled a deep breath, shaking out her hands. "I'm nervous," she admitted. "Lots of new fans out there, and only one chance to make a first impression, right?"

“You’ve got this, Fiona,” Kendra said with a meaningful nod, “I mean… we owned it in Japan in front of a completely foreign crowd. I promise that you have thousands of fans out there to support you what with NMWW being folded over. The fans follow the product! Or… something like that.”

There was a surge in the energy out in the arena, a low rise of shouts and stray applause from the nearly twenty thousand assembled people. The last match had ended about fifteen minutes ago with a pinfall and the crowd was eager for more. “Hungry” as Gordon had put it. Next on the card was Ada Eberhard versus Fiona Chevalier and everyone was eager to see it.

“Well, I’ll be back here watching the match. The next best thing to being by your side, I suppose.” Kendra smiled, gave Fiona a quick one-armed hug, and headed back down the tunnel leaving Fiona to a few final seconds of solitude before her match.

---

Madison Square Garden was electric this Saturday night, the No Mercy Wrestling opening show proving to be a success. The first match of the night featuring Isabella Cadiz had been one for the books with a climatic finish to a back and forth bout and the guarantee of a bitter rivalry in the future. The second match had been more lopsided with former Crash Syndicate Wrestling heel Silas Dane mercilessly pulverizing a young prospect amid endless boos. After the winning pin Dane helped himself to the mic at ringside, stating that he planned to take the NMW men’s championship in the coming months and that anyone that stood in his way would be “ground into the dirt beneath his feet”. After a few more scathing remarks a smug Dane left a riled crowd in his wake for Ada and Fiona to feed with their performance next.

Sitting at the announcer’s table on the eastern side of the ring were the three commentators for No Mercy Wrestling. Former NMWW commentator Dan Rich, former CSW commentator Brent Christi, and the freshly hired Rhonda Pierce. Each with their own perspective and tendencies to be offered forth during commentary through the night - which was the idea. Dan Rich was a portly man in his fifties easily recognizable by his oversized black suits and always accompanying black cowboy hat. Brent Christi meanwhile was a younger man in his early thirties with slicked back dark brown hair and a handsome face that dimpled up when he smiled. He was known for his brightly colored wardrobe, sporting a grass green three piece suit with a red necktie for tonight. Rhonda Pierce was a shorter woman with auburn hair that was tied in a tight ponytail and unlike her male counterparts kept her choice in wares more modest. In lieu of a flashy appearance she was proving to be one for witty remarks and barbs.

Dan Rich, who sat between Brent and Rhonda, adjusted his headset and cowboy hat as he looked between his two new colleagues. “Let me tell you, that Silas Dane knows how to stir up a crowd, boy just listen to that!”

“That’s Silas for you, Dan,” Brent Christi grinned, “he knows how to get people good and mad!”

“Well, maybe people will be cheered up here soon because next up we have The Neon Diva, Ada Eberhard, facing off against none other than Fiona Chevalier!” Dan Rich said excitedly. “Like with Isabella Cadiz I had the honor of calling for many of this young ladies’ matches back in NMWW! Fiona is an energetic and driven young woman and let me tell you she has a bright future ahead of her if she keeps going at the rate she is.”

“And I will say the same about Ada Eberhard,” Brent interjected, “Ada’s picture is right next to the definitions of the words ‘athlete’ and ‘ambitious’. She went undefeated during her time with Concrete Jungle Pro up until her lost title challenge and she also made an impact at CSW. And after recovering from her injury and getting her feet back in the ring she plans to start strong with this new brand. Quite frankly I’m saying she takes the match tonight.”

“I’m going to disagree with you there Brent,” Rhonda piped up, “I’m saying this match goes to Fiona Chevalier.”

“And I shall remain impartial,” Dan Rich laughed aloud, “and it looks like we are ready to for our next entry.”

Kendra's words of encouragement helped quite a bit, as did the pop from the crowd when Fiona's entrance music started blasting over the speakers, her name coming up in big glittering blue letters on the big screen over a reel of some of her best highlights from the year before. She made her way out of the tunnel and onto the entrance stage with a spin and a smile, holding the inner edges of her jacket and playing it cool, looking a lot less nervous than she was.

"The following contest is scheduled for one fall!" came through the speakers from the ring announcer. "Making her way to the ring now, from Seattle, Washington... Fiona Chevalieeer!"

Fiona made her way down the ramp with a steady stride, taking in Madison Square Garden and giving out high fives to the fans reaching for her. It was a warm reception, better than she'd expected, enough to put some more energy in her step as she reached the steel stairs and jogged up them to the ring apron. She turned, putting her back to the ropes and throwing the horns to the crowd with a grin, before ducking through into the ring and going to do the same to the other side.

She shrugged off her jacket and set it aside for a staff member to take, and soon after her entrance music faded out. Fiona took another deep breath to fight the nerves, rolling her head back and forth to loosen the neck. Not a rookie anymore, it's time to show everyone what I'm capable of. No matter what happened, Fiona was resolved to fight with all the heart and energy the fans had come to expect from her, and give everyone a great match for her NMW debut.

There was a lull in the arena as Fiona’s theme ended and the noise level dropped notably compared to moments before. A deafening cacophony of cheers, whistles, stomping feet, and the applause of thousands of wrestling fans was replaced by stray adorations and individual shouts as Fiona stood in the ring ready for her opponent . This did not last for long though as the lights dropped darkening the arena and a rhythmic thumping began echoing all around. The fans stirred again as electro music poured from the speakers and the overhead lights, LED banisters, and titantron flashed a brilliant shade of pink. The music began to build, quickly culminating in an intense frequency as a man’s voice counted down.

“Three… Two… One…”

When the count reached “one” the lights all stopped flashing, turning solid as a shrill whistle, a chain of explosions, and a flurry of sparks came from the stage. The crowd went berserk as the unmistakable figure of Ada Eberhard appeared from within the pyrotechnics, standing in an statuesque pose with her arms spread at her sides. Clad in her signature pink and dark purple sleeveless bodysuit, Ada also wore a pair of purple tinted sunglasses with pink trim and a pair of solid pink Air Jordan sneakers. Her pink and purple dyed hair completed her look in full bringing to life The Neon Diva.

“And her opponent, from Augusta, Maine… Ada “The Neon Diva” Eberhard!”

Ada slowly raised her arms up in a basking pose as another round of explosions erupted behind her, then lowering them back down after a moment and without further delay began her descent down the ramp from the stage. Ada strutted along, bopping her head and pumping her right fist high in sync with her still playing theme. As she neared the bottom of the ramp Ada spun around on her heels and moonwalked flawlessly across the floor coming to a stop near the ring apron.

“The energy in Madison Square Garden is palpable right now!” Brent Christi shouted over the fans. “The Neon Diva is in the house!”

Ada slowly turned to face the ring, reaching up and plucking her sunglasses from her eyes in a casual manner and tossing them into a nearby group of fans who all scrambled to catch them. Ada’s bright blue orbs were shrouded by dark purple eyeshadow and her mouth was accented by a pink glaze of lipstick. Ada climbed up onto the apron and then vaulted over the top rope with ease. She never made eye contact with or in any way acknowledged Fiona when she landed in the ring, instead walking in a full circle around the mat making spiraling motions overhead with her index fingers before coming to a stop in the northwest corner. Ada’s theme slowly faded away and the pink lights were replaced by the NMW red and white lights that illuminated the arena. The company logo, a menacing red-eyed skull, marked the center of the mat between Fiona and Ada.

Fiona could only watch and wait in her corner of the ring as Ada's entrance upstaged hers by quite a margin. The Neon Diva was just an inch or two taller than Fiona, but looking at those arms and that build, Fiona figured she'd be at a strength disadvantage as usual for her. She found herself wishing she'd made her entrance second, so there'd be less time for the upcoming challenge to sink in. The crowd gave Ada a better welcome than Fiona got, giving her a fresh sinking feeling. She fed off the crowd's energy, using it to bolster her offense and push through the pain when momentum was against her. If she couldn't get them behind her... Come on, got to get it together! I've fought bigger mismatches than this and won before. The crowd support will come, just have to show them what I can do.

She let the referee check over her gear, holding up one leg and then the other, offering both gloved hands as well. The crowd settled in, a low buzz of excitement filling the air as they waited impatiently for the action to kick off. For Fiona, about nine months of training, waiting, and uncertainty had led to this, her No Mercy Wrestling debut at Madison Square Garden.

Ding, ding, ding!

The referee stepped out of the way after signaling for the bell, and the match was underway. Fiona moved out of her corner steadily, meeting Ada in the middle of the ring. Rather than lock into a grapple up high with her, Fiona slid low, slicing her legs together at Ada's knees and ankles, going for a low scissor takedown. If she could trip her up and get her down to the mat, Fiona would immediately try to secure a side headlock to start wearing her down.

Ada was ready however and when The Neon Diva saw the sweep attack coming she immediately went aerial, performing a standing backflip with a flawless upright landing that was as much a statement as a dodge. A low wave of ovations for Ada and jeers at Fiona rose up from the stands. While it could have been a worse result for Fiona a miss like that with a performative counter by the opposition was an embarrassing spot to be in.

“And we are starting off with an impressive dodge by Ada after a botched takedown attempt by Fiona!” Dan Rich stated.

Ada surged forward, not to attack Fiona but instead going over her in a high stride as she made for the ropes on the announcers’ side of the ring. Ada came off the ropes fast and went for a dropkick on Fiona wherever she could connect.

Fiona was left a little stunned on the mat despite not being struck by anything. She considered herself an acrobatic wrestler, but she'd never even thought to try dodging something with a standing backflip. Ada pulled it off flawlessly, leaving Fiona more than a little embarrassed, wondering if her sweeping kick had been that easy to see coming.

Fiona wasted time preparing to defend herself when Ada simply hopped over her, apparently unable to read her opponent nearly as well, and she'd only just gotten to her feet by the time Ada rebounded off the ropes at her. Her dropkick connected solidly into Fiona's torso, throwing her backwards to a harsh landing on the mat where she tumbled over once.

Her momentum put her back on her feet, where she stumbled backwards until she hit the ropes, hooking one arm over the top to halt herself. Fiona didn't want to have to defend herself with her back to the ropes like this, so she ignored the fresh ache in her core and charged back at Ada, looking to clothesline her and avoid losing control of the match early.

Fiona’s clothesline connected, catching Ada just under her throat across the top of her chest. Ada had not gotten her feet under her in ample time coming up from her dropkick and was flattened on her back sending a quiver across the mat.

“And a clothesline from Fiona in response to a dropkick from Ada!”

“This match is going to be intense,” Rhonda finally chimed in, “both of these women want the win and are not going to be backed down easily.”

Ada kipped up and instead of turning to face Fiona she made a second dash for the ropes, flying off the opposite side like a rock from a slingshot right at her opponent. This time Ada looked to execute a hurricanrana tossing Fiona into the center of the ring.

“And here comes Ada off the ropes a second time…” Dan Rich’s tone raised in anticipation.

Fiona was relieved she'd put Ada on her back, but it didn't last long. The woman had kipped up to her feet by the time Fiona had stopped her forward momentum, shrugging off the clothesline well enough to immediately sprint for the ropes again. It was looking to be a fast-paced match right out of the gates.

Fiona's defense was nowhere to be seen, as she was caught flat-footed and uncertain how to counter Ada's sprinting attack. The Neon Diva's legs snapped shut around her head, flinging her up and over to slam down on her back in the center of the ring. She grimaced, her hand finding her lower back. Damn it, she's quick...

She made another sweeping kick from the ground, swinging her leg around to try to take Ada's feet out from under her. Expecting her to jump again, Fiona coiled both legs up to her chest, preparing to lash out with both boots to either Ada's chest or face.

Fiona’s prediction was on point. Ada had closed in on a downed Fiona and when she saw the second sweep attempt she jumped straight up - this time opting out of a flip - and came down gut-first onto the bottom of Fiona’s boots. Ada was then kicked back onto her rump, the crowd reacting with a collective “Ooh”.

“And Ada is thrown onto her backside by a hard double kick from Fiona as Ada tried to capitalize on a hurricanrana!”

Ada got up onto her feet again, this time in a slow, steady rise instead of an instant pop-up. She rubbed at her gut with a short grimace as she sized up Fiona. Ada was undeterred and intent on taking early control of this match and what better way than to keep up the constant pressure? Ada leapt backward, bouncing off the ropes for the third time in less than two minutes and raced toward Fiona aiming to drive a low dropkick right into Fiona’s knees.

Fiona got to her feet at about the same pace, both wrestlers having traded some decent hits back and forth to each other to open the match. This time, however, Fiona was ready for Ada's charge, jumping up into the air as the dropkick made Ada fall to the mat right beneath her. Fiona twisted sideways and came down with an elbow drop right into Ada's gut, easily the strongest hit she'd delivered to her so far, and enough to secure her some control of the match. There we go! I'm pretty quick, too.

She grabbed Ada's wrist and pulled her up to her feet, sending her running into a corner and letting her slam her back against the turnbuckles. Lining up her shot, Fiona sprinted forward at her, going into a cartwheel to generate a lot of power on a hammerfist attack that bonked Ada on the top of her forehead. That was enough to drop her to her rump in the corner, so Fiona followed up by grabbing the top rope on either side of the corner, and lifting herself up into a handstand position. She then dropped down feet first for a double-footed stomp to the Neon Diva's center mass.

She rolled backwards to her feet, flipping her hair over and out of her face. Might not be able to match her entrance routine, but my wrestling's got just as much style. Now to top off this sequence. She paced forward, grabbing Ada by the ankle and dragging her a short distance out of the corner to set her up as a target. Taking her place in the corner, Fiona got up to the middle ropes, then launched herself forward, aiming for a big splash landing into the first pinfall attempt of the match.

Fiona dropped down across Ada with a bang that fired up the crowd. Fiona went for the pin and the official was down in less than two seconds for the count.

“Fiona for the cover!” Dan Rich sat upright in his chair.

“One!… T-…” Ada bolted upright breaking the pin, the official rising to his knees and holding one finger high before standing back up.

“And Fiona Chevalier for the first pin of the match, Ada freeing herself after a one count,” Dan stated, “Fiona has taken control now on a routing - an elbow, followed by a cartwheel strike in the corner, followed by a double stomp to the chest, and then a splash across a downed Ada!”

“Ada isn’t done yet,” Brent said next to Dan, “Fiona better keep up this stride and end the match quick. All that pin attempt has done is motivate Ada and she is going to try to turn this around.”

Ada wobbled up onto her knees, arms dangling awkwardly in front of her. She was in a vulnerable state and Fiona’s fans were urging her to keep up the offense.

Things were going well for Fiona so far, but only keeping Ada down for a one count meant she still had a lot of work to do if she wanted a win for her debut. Keep focused and keep the pressure on, she encouraged herself, getting up as Ada wobbled to her knees. Fiona took off for the ropes, coming back with another clothesline, sliding down this time to connect again with Ada just under her throat. She loved hearing support from her fans in the crowd, even if they were a little outnumbered tonight.

She ran a hand through her hair from her knees, indecisive for a brief moment on whether to go into a submission hold or another aerial attack, and in the end decided to keep things on the move, feeling like the crowd was responding well to the high energy and pace of the fight.

Grabbing Ada under the arms and pulling her back up to her feet, Fiona sent her running for the ropes this time, giving Fiona the space she needed to wind up for a full spin and a forearm strike aimed right at Ada's face.

Ada ricocheted off the ropes back towards Fiona, however, just as Fiona swung her forearm The Neon Diva ducked and rolled under the strike attempt. Ada came up and around fast behind her opponent. Before Fiona could react Ada wrapped both arms around her midsection, then lifting Fiona off her feet and falling backward slamming her headfirst onto the mat.

“A dodge by Ada and a German suplex!”

“What did I tell you?” Brent asked rhetorically as Ada’s fans broke into cheers.

Still holding onto Fiona, Ada rolled from under her and then slowly stood - hauling Fiona up with her. Ada re-secured her grapple and then lifted and tossed Fiona backward a second time for another hard slam into the center of the ring.

“A second German suplex!”

“Are we about to see shades of Eddie Guerrero?” Rhonda wondered aloud.

“Doesn’t look like it.” Brent observed as Ada let go of Fiona, sliding from under her and standing up. After a quick intake of breath Ada ran for the north side ropes, bouncing off them and striding right over the downed Fiona. Ada then connected with the southern side ropes and, with momentum built, ended her counter sequence with a running senton straight across Fiona’s torso. With a confident look on her face Ada reached around and took ahold of Fiona’s left leg and raised it as she lay her back across Fiona’s midsection for the count.

“Ada now for a cover!”

The crowd continued to enjoy the energy and pace of the fight, although now it was Fiona on the receiving end. Either she'd hesitated too long or simply hadn't softened Ada up enough to go for a move like that, but spinning to generate power on her strike was a mistake. She lost sight of Ada, missed her target, and found herself snared around the midsection before she could recover, lifted up and over backwards to slam on her head and upper back to the mat.

She struggled to free herself, but it wasn't good enough to stop Ada from repeating the move, slamming her on her head again. Let go by Ada, Fiona tipped over onto her side and then her back, the white and red lights swirling overhead like a maelstrom from the sudden dizziness. Can't stay here, she thought, but getting to her feet was impossible for the moment, and all she could do to fight off the daze was cover her eyes.

That was another mistake. She felt the mat rumbling beneath her with Ada's steps, but didn't see the senton coming until the Neon Diva's back crashed across her body. Fiona tried to curl in on herself, but Ada stayed on top of her, seizing her leg and using her weight to keep her down for a pin.

"One! Two-"

Fiona kicked out right at two, getting a hand up into the air to take her shoulder off the mat, and the match continued. Fiona rolled over away from Ada, finding the ropes nearby to help her start to get back up, but she was still dazed and vulnerable, the momentum in the match swinging in Ada's favor.