Message #21862

[Adam Grant]

Kat: The following match is scheduled for one fall to a finish!

Zack: This is the first of two Global Wars matches you are going to see tonight here at Velocity. Team Canada could really shoot ahead here, but Valentina’s got a difficult chore ahead of her.

Mai: It’s just a good thing Savannah isn’t in Global Wars. She was terrible last year, and didn’t deserve to come back this time.

Zack: They came in second by one point!

here was silence; the lights began to fade away slowly. A soft instrumental echoes out across the audience. It starts slowly, a beautiful sound that contrasts the heaviness of the world. Like feathers, it glides among the waiting audience. The lighting fixtures produce a gentle spotlight upon the stage, offset by the occasional flash here and there. As 'Just Close Your Eyes' by Waterproof Blonde continues to play, a woman’s words begin to come through. Her voice is tender, not raising upon a whisper.

"Deceived by my eyes and all I was told I should see
Opinions not mine, the person they taught me to be
One night in the dark, a vision of someone I knew
And in the darkness I saw, a voice say, I'm you."

On the stage, a feminine figure appears. Her head lowered to everything. People cannot make out who it is. As she stands there, the flashes briefly illuminate her figure. It only gives small clues on who stands at the gate. She stands in the spotlight, her shadow cast large and proudly among the stage.

"Inside me a light was turned on…"

The instrumental picks up again. An electric guitar now joins the progressively exciting instrumentals of before. The singer’s voice suddenly intensifies.

"Then I was alive!"

In the light, it is revealed that it was Savannah Taylor. She stands at the gate, a robe of obsidian and ivory hues. The hood of it shadows her eyes, but the intensity of the final EXODUS World Champion remains clear as day. She starts off down the ramp, with a serious aura radiating from her body.

Kat: Ladies and gentlemen, making her way down to the ring....weighing in at one hundred twenty pounds.....from Las Vegas, Nevada.....Savannah Taylor !!!

"If you close your eyes your life,
A naked truth revealed
Dreams you never lived,
And scars never healed"

Savannah makes her way up the ring steps. She looks out towards the audience for a moment before entering the ring. From there, she heads for a turnbuckle. She stands there, taking in everything. She then lifts her up on top of it. She peers out in nothing, then takes off the hood with a flashy flourish. Her blonde locks fly up in the air. They descend, shaping her face as they famously do.

"In the darkness, light will take you to the other side
You'll find me waiting there you'll see, if you just close your eyes."

While she stands in her corner, she closes her eyes and takes a heavy breath. When her bright eyes open, Taylor is completely composed. There is nothing more than the heat of battle awaiting her. She takes off her robe, giving it to a stagehand. She stretches her wrists before devoting her mind to the war upon the horizon.

Zack: Savannah looks as ready as ever here. She’s no stranger to her opponent in the least, and ran afoul of her practically the day she appeared in FFW back in 2015.

Mai: Yeah, because she was a biased referee in a match involving Valentina. Tell the whole story if you’re going to tell it at all.

The lights go out in the arena.

Suddenly, on the screen, the following video is being played….

A pair of boots is shown walking across the screen. As they stop and turn to face the camera, the intro of "This Time I Want It All" by Pea McGee plays, with the camera pulls back to reveal Valentina Lozano, dressed in her wrestling gear and standing in a dominant pose. Before long, Valentina begins to “levitate” upward, as if she is flying, just as the song drops, ending up…

…rising from beneath the stage, with the lights of the stage and the ramp illuminating in gold while the spotlight focuses on the stage. She’s still standing in a dominant pose, hands on her hips and squinching at the crowd in a look of detest, but nonetheless, ready to take care of business.

Kat: Making her way to the ring, representing The Privileged Circle, hailing from Toronto, Ontario, Canada, weighing one hundred and thirty-five pounds. She is “The Latin Goddess”…

VALENTINA LOZANO!!!!!!

Valentina then confidently strides her way to the ring, with the spotlight completely focused on her and the arena erupts with a thunderous array of boos from the capacity crowd showering down on her, Valentina is soaking up the reaction, even though she ignores it. Meanwhile, while she’s walking down, Valentina's entrance video is shown on the big screen, profiling her likeness and footage of her in action.

As Valentina reaches the ringside area, she walks up and walks across the edge of the ring. She looks around the arena, not directly seeing the crowd through the darkness, but knowing that they’re out there as she sees the consistent flashing lights of the cameras and the still boisterous reaction from the crowd.

After wiping her feet on the apron and entering the ring, Valentina strides towards two opposite ring posts in where she climbs up and extends her arms out, looking on with a smirk and posing to the crowd with complete confidence. She’s taking in the atmosphere while the crowd reaction continues and the cameras flashing.

After going through her ritual, Valentina climbs down and makes her way towards the corner to take off her robe and then readies herself as she waits for the match to begin.

Zack: Valentina Lozano won Global Wars with her previous partner last year, and has about as much camaraderie with her partner this year.

Mai: That’s because poor Valentina is doing all the work. She’s clearly the more talented one, plus she’s taller.

Kevin Fisk called for the bell to get the match underway and the two wrestlers came out of their corners, circling around each other for a moment before the pair locked up in a collar and elbow tie up. Lozano, thanks to her slight weight and height advantage, slowly started to get the upper hand forcing her opponent backwards a half step. Savannah tried to push back only for Valentina to force her to take another half step in reverse before Taylor countered, breaking the tie up and taking her foe down to the canvas with a drop toe hold. The Canadian quickly came back up to her feet only to find Savannah waiting for her as the blonde caught her in the midriff with a raised knee. A second and third knee followed it before Taylor caught Valentina with two European uppercut to her jaw that caused her to stagger back a step.

Mai: Savannah’s not gonna win a striking match against someone with Valentina’s power, Zack. She’s not going to win anyway, but you get my drift.

Zack: I’ll let you tell her that at your leisure. I wouldn’t bet against either one of them personally.

Taking hold of her wrist, Savannah sent the Latin Goddess in for the ride, catching her on the return with a standing dropkick to the chest that sent Valentina to the canvas once more. Quickly she tried to rise yet again only for Taylor to get her in a standing side headlock. The former No Surrender Champion wrenched the hold on tightly as her opponent tried fruitlessly to pull her hands apart in a bid for freedom. Changing tack the Toronto born wrestler reached up behind her opponent’s back and took a handful of hair, pulling on it as she walked her backwards into the ropes, ignoring the referee’s reprimand and only letting go as she tried to shoot Taylor across the ring. The Las Vegas native, however, had different plans as she kept the hold locked in tight, dragging Lozano along with her for two steps before she dropped down to one knee to stop her momentum.

Zack: We both know Savannah wanted to come back for the Global Wars series again this year, but running afoul of management around here tends to prevent opportunities.

Mai: Look, she lost last year’s series. The glorious Team Canada won! The USA deserved better talent representing it, end of.

Almost immediately Valentina forced her back up to a standing base while still trapped in the headlock and fired off a chop into the American’s stomach. She followed it up with another as she looked to secure her release but didn’t get a chance to land another blow as she was swept off her feet and taken down to the canvas with a headlock takedown; the blonde tightening up her grasp on her foe’s head and further wrenching in the hold in the moments after they landed. Valentina kicked her feet against the canvas in frustration as much as anything before she started to fight her way back up to her feet. As soon as the Torontonian managed to get her feet underneath her, Savannah took two steps forward and transitioned the headlock into a bulldog, planting Valentina into the canvas.

Mai: It’s just a shame that Valentina couldn’t get a partner she liked. I know Isis isn’t from Canada, but I’m sure there could have been others who were better than Artemis.

Zack: Artemis is the No Surrender Champion. Exactly who do you think would be a better choice for a partner than a reigning champion?

Rolling through to her feet, Savannah took off towards the ropes, bouncing off them and caught Lozano with a running knee strike to her get as soon as she got her feet underneath her. Taylor didn’t give her opponent a moment to recover as she spun around, grabbing hold of her arm and snapped Lozano backwards to the canvas with a side Russian legsweep. Quickly the Las Vegas native floated over into a cover.

One…

Mai: Yeah, beating Valentina with a leg sweep. Those are the miracles you pray for, sweet cheeks.

Valentina kicked out and Savannah didn’t even bother to look at the referee as she moved behind the Canadian and locked in a rear chinlock as she sat up, pressing her knee right into the top of her spine as she interlocked her fingers around her jaw and pulled backwards.

Zack: Seems like Savannah’s trying to aggravate Valentina with all these holds. We both know that Lozano likes to ground and pound, and it’s just not happening so far.

The Canadian clawed at her opponent’s fingers, trying to pull them away from her face only for Savannah to drive her knee into her spine once more and pull back further on her jaw in the chinlock. Valentina kicked her foot against the mat again as Taylor delivered another knee strike into the back of spine before she started to push upwards. As Lozano got her feet underneath her, Savannah jumped backwards, using the chinlock to deliver an reverse sitout facebuster that slammed the back of her opponent’s head into the canvas. Once more Taylor rolled over her to make the cover.

One…

Tw--

Mai: You know what’s funny to me? She’s going to be facing Bianca at Global Wars, and here she is practically copying Bianca.

Zack: Which Bianca Salvador matches have you been watching that this is copying what she does?

Once more Valentina kicked out of the pinfall, holding the back of her head as she sat up. Again Savannah didn’t even bother to look at the referee as he confirmed the count, coming quickly to her feet instead and began to fire off kicks to Valentina’s body, catching her with three rapid fire kicks to her chest that caused her to lay back down on the mat. Taylor glared down at her as she pressed her boot against the jaw of the Latin Goddess telling her that she should kiss her boot before she delivered a stomp to her chest. Valentina stayed flat on the mat following the stomp as Savannah darted towards the ring ropes, bouncing off them and leaping into the air with a leg drop… that only found mat as Lozano sat up at the very last second.

Zack: Ouch! That’s like giving yourself an atomic drop, and Valentina had excellent presence of mind.

Mai: Well done, Valentina. You know if Artemis had jumped up for that leg drop, she wouldn’t have gotten more than about three inches off the ground.

Savannah froze up for a second before she rolled to the side and popped up to her feet at the same time as Lozano returned to hers and started to fire off kicks aimed at the Canadian’s body. Three strikes connected before Taylor went for a roundhouse kick aimed at Lozano’s head that saw Valentina catch the flying foot, trapping it under her arm. Savannah hopped on one foot, measuring up her opponent for an enzugiri only for Lozano to jerk her forward and take her down to the canvas with a lariat. Savannah rose quickly once more only to turn into a series of stiff kicks to her body before she was Irish whipped into the nearest corner by the Latin Goddess who followed in close behind her to catch her with a running forearm to the jaw. Quickly Valentina followed it up with four more stiff forearm shots driven into the side of the blondes jaw. Fisk ordered her to let her out of the corner, starting his count as the forearms landed and got his wish granted on four as Valentina pulled Taylor out of the corner and into a sidewalk slam, driving her downwards into the canvas.

Zack: A lot of Valentina’s arsenal works over the back, and she’s staying true to form here tonight in Sacramento.

Mai: Now if Artemis will listen to her guidance, they could win the series again this year. It’s so clear to me who the better half of Team Canada is.

Lozano returned to her feet after delivering the move. Her opponent was also rising which saw Valentina step quickly towards the ring ropes, jumping onto the middle rope and into a springboard roundhouse kick. Taylor managed to get her arms up to take the brunt of the kick on her forearms, yet still stumbled backwards a step, slightly off balance that Lozano immediately capitalised on as she moved quickly once more and drove a knee into her midsection. The blow doubled the Las Vegas native over and allowed Valentina to feed an arm between her legs before she lifted her upwards and slammed her into the canvas with a pumphandle slam. Dropping to her knees, Valentina quickly made the cover on her foe, pressing her shoulders against the canvas.

One…

T-

Zack: Not enough to keep the Siren down. I’ve just been informed that the next Velocity is gonna feature the two top teams in Global Wars going at it! Team Japan will face Team Canada on the last show before Global Wars!

Taylor kicked out of the pinfall. Lozano giving the referee a contemptuous glance as he confirmed the count while she pulled the former Franchise member up to her feet with two handfuls of hair. Fisk immediately cautioned Valentina about the handfuls of hair and started his count when she refused to release her grip as she drove knees into the blondes chest instead before delivering a  hair pull mat slam on the count of four. Lozano took a moment to play to the fans, getting jeered loudly by the sold out arena, bringing a smile to her face as she told them they were all beneath her.

Zack: This Sacramento crowd is letting Valentina know how they feel about her. And they’re in good company with pretty much every crowd I’ve heard.

Mai: What do they know? They’re fans of the Kings.

As the crowd booed her again, Taylor rolled over and sat up before she pushing up to her knees at which Valentina turned her attention back to her foe as she spun around and delivered a stiff kick across her spine. She followed it with another stiff kick - this time across Savannah’s shoulders causing her to fall forward onto all fours. The Latin Goddess didn’t waste any time as she circled around to stand in front of her downed foe and stomped down on her hand, trapping her fingers under her boot as she presented her other foot towards Taylor, telling her that she was in her rightful placing, kneeling to a Goddess and encouraging her to kiss her boot. There was a look of amusement on Valentina’s face when the kiss wasn’t forthcoming and the Canadian unleashed a front kick into her foe’s chest before she circled back around her opponent once more.

Mai: Did you know a good boot right in the numbers like that is good for clearing up congestion? Stand up, I’ll show you, Zack.

As Taylor came back to her knees, Valentina wrapped her arms around her waist and jerked her upwards into a release German suplex that sent her flying backwards into the corner; her back hitting the middle turnbuckle as she landed in a sitting position against the pads. Savannah tried to use the ropes to bring herself back to her feet and get out of the corner but she’d barely started pulling herself upwards when Lozano began to mudhole stomp away at her chest viciously. The referee used the count once more, forcing Valentina to back up at four only for her to dart across the ring and come back with a running boot to the side of her face. Valentina held her position after she delivered the move and demanded that the blonde kiss her boot this time before she landed one final stomp to her face against the bottom turnbuckle.

Zack: Valentina’s trying the referee’s patience here. A disqualification is not going to help heer team get any further ahead.

Mai: I think it should. She’s clearly dominating the match, and I think that should be worth some points.

Kevin Fisk immediately reprimanded Valentina given that her opponent was in the ropes only to be ignored once more by the Latin Goddess as she reached forward and used a handful of hair to bring the blonde back to her feet. Irish whipping her across the ring, Valentina caught her on her return and drove her down into the canvas with a spinning spinebuster. Immediately the Toronto native rolled over and hooked the leg to make the cover on her foe.

Zack: Chiropractor city for Savannah, and Lozano’s looking for the win!

One…

Two…

...T-

Mai: Savannah must feel right at home, Zack. On her back is how she’s been getting where she’s at in FFW lately. Just ask Bianca!

Savannah kicked out of the pinfall as the two count was made and Valentina quickly took up the mount position and began to hammer away at the former No Surrender Champion with her fists. Taylor covered up and Kevin Fisk insisted that the Latin Goddess allow her up from her feet. Lozano complied with his demand as she pulled her opponent to her feet only to knock her straight back down again with a heart punch, enziguri combination. Savannah rolled to her side and began to rise once more only to get cut off as she got to one knee by Valentina who hoisted her into the air for a suplex, followed by a stalling vertical suplex and then finished off the sequence with a slingshot suplex. As soon as the Las Vegas native hit the canvas, Valentina floated over into a cover, hooking her leg once more.

Zack: I think Valentina senses she’s close to the win, and she may well be right here!

One…

Two…

...THR-

Mai: Just keep pounding on her more, sweetie. Some people are too dumb to know when to quit.

Again the blonde kicked out before the three count and Valentina came to her feet, telling Fisk that should be a three count only for him to shake his head and show the two count. Lozano shook her head dismissively of the official as she set off across the ring and came back into a low dropkick to the blonde’s body sending her onto her back once more. Valentina came quickly back to her feet as Taylor rolled to her side, pressing a foot against her cheek, demanding that her opponent recognise her better; the crowd booing her loudly as she did so that once more made the Latin Goddess smile. Stepping backwards Lozano waved away the crowd reaction for a moment before she stooped down and brought the Las Vegas native to her feet before scooping her up onto her shoulders into position for a Samoan Drop. Savannah suddenly began to kick her feet and squirm in Valentina’s grip, shifting her weight as she did so and pulled Lozano downwards into a crucifix pin attempt.

Mai: Look at her trying to fight out of this, but Valentina’s totally----NOT GONNA GET PINNED!

One…

Two…

...THRE--

Zack: Valentina nearly coughed up the win for Savannah right there! They don’t get much closer than that.

In the nick of time Valentina escaped her clutches and stopped the pinfall count just before the three. Lozano rolled back to her feet and quickly moved towards her foe only for Savannah to catch her with a jawbreaker that caused the Canadian to reel backwards. The former Femme For All finalist recovered her balance and once more stepped towards Taylor only for the blonde to stop her advance with a front kick to her gut. As Valentina bent forward, Savannah hooked her head and drove her down into the mat with a snap DDT.  Taylor rolled away, taking a couple of moments to catch her breath following Valentina’s attack before she rose back to her feet at the same time as the Canadian, catching her with a number of Muay Thai kicks to the body, staggering her before she hooked her head and took her down with a snapmare. As Valentina landed, Savannah dropped down behind her and applied a sleeper hold.

Mai: Ironic, isn’t it? Here Valentina is using a sleeper on someone whose matches tend to have that effect on the viewers. She’s also probably terrible in bed.

Zack: What exactly does that have to do with what’s going on right now? And more importantly, why do you care either way?

Lozano struggled against the sleeper hold, pulling at Savannah’s arms in a bid for freedom but found the hold locked in tight. Valentina continued to fight against the hold, trying to rise to her feet only for Savannah to wrap her legs around her waist for a body scissors as she turned herself into a dead weight, causing the Team Canada to fall back onto the mat. Valentina refused to give in as Fisk asked her the question, crawling slowly and reaching for the ropes instead but found them out of reach as she began to fade. Fisk asked her if she wanted to quit again, getting a ‘No’ once more as she tried to pull herself across the canvas towards the ropes, making it another couple of inches. Valentina’s hand wavered in the air, her fingertips grazing the ropes before it fell to the canvas. Kevin Fisk checked on the Canadian once more and started to raise her hand in the air only for it to drop back to canvas. Fisk lifted it into the air once more and watched as it fell to the canvas a second time.

Zack: I think Valentina’s not far from the end right here, and there that arm falls once more.

Mai: Please! It’s just Valentina trying to lull Savannah into a false sense of security.

ZAck: I’d say it’s a genuine sense right now.

Once more Fisk raised the hand into the air, it dropped as he released it but this time Lozano lunged towards the ring ropes and managed to wrap her hand around the bottom rope. The official called for the break and when it did come immediately he began his count, reaching four before the Las Vegas native rolled away to her feet. The former Franchise member waved her opponent upwards, watching her as she used the ring ropes to pull herself up to her feet before she took off, springboarding off the middle rope and snapped off a reverse frankensteiner to the Privileged Circle member. Lozano bounced up onto her knees and sat back on her heels as Savannah came to her feet and started to unload on Valentina once more with a series of Muay Thai kicks to her body, finishing off the barrage with a roundhouse kick to the side of her head that knocked her down to the canvas. Taylor quickly moved into position and left her feet to come crashing down across Valentina’s chest with a standing corkscrew moonsault. She hooked the leg as she made the cover.

Zack: There’s one for the highlight reel right there! Taylor isn’t letting Canada go up tonight!

One…

Two…

...THRE-

Mai: The power of the almighty Maple Leaf compels Valentina to continue. It’s very moving really.

Lozano kicked out of the pinfall and found herself pulled to her feet only for a hard open handed slap to rock her, sending her back down to one knee before Taylor darted towards the ring ropes and came back with a leg lariat just as the Canadian got back to her feet. The Privileged Circle member pushed upwards, trying to get to her feet only for Savannah to jerk her downwards into a sitout facebuster. Taylor once more rose to her feet and headed towards the corner, pushing up the inside to the top rope as Lozano rolled onto her back and started to sit up only for Savannah to deliver a diving double foot stomp into her chest. The Canadian writhed around on the canvas, holding her chest in agony only to be brought back to her feet by Taylor who quickly snapped off a dragon suplex that she bridged for the pinfall.

Zack: Look at that bridge! Taylor’s three seconds from the win!

One…

Two…

...THRE-

Mai: I’d say she’s a lot farther away from it than that.

Valentina managed to roll her shoulder on instinct before the referee could complete the three count. Savannah came to her knees and looked at the referee who held up two fingers to confirm the two count even as Taylor asked for the three count. Taylor nodded her head and came to her feet, the crowd rallying behind her as she began to wave Valentina to her feet. As the Privileged Circle member came to her feet, Savannah darted towards her and took her down to the canvas yet again with The Gamble corkscrew neckbreaker. As Lozano hit the mat she rolled to her side, towards the ropes, holding her neck. Savannah headed towards the corner once more and climbed to the top rope. She perched there, waiting for Valentina to come to her feet before she launched herself into the Welcome to Sin City dragonrana and held on for the pinfall.

Zack: WELCOME TO SIN CITY!! That ought to do it!

One…

Two…

...THREEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!NNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mai: Isn’t it wonderful, Zack?! Savannah can’t get the job done, and that’s pretty well par for the course if you ask me!

At the last possible moment, Valentina rolled her shoulder to break up the pinfall a heartbeat before the referee could complete the three count. Kevin Fisk confirmed the two count to Savannah as she asked the referee for the three as she looked at him in disbelief. She shook her head as he confirmed the two count while Lozano rolled to the ropes and began to pull herself upwards. Taylor shook her head but accepted the referee’s decision as she came to her feet. She measured up Valentina as she came to her feet and when the Canadian turned and stepped away from the ropes, Taylor spun around into the Ultimecia uraken...only getting air as Valentine ducked underneath the blow with a matrix style evasion. Before Taylor could spin all the way around, Lozano reached around grabbing hold of her wrists as she jerked her downwards into a straight jacket neckbreaker slam.

Mai: There was a big time whiff right there, and look how quickly Valentina followed up on Savannah’s stupidity.

Zack: Valentina has always had excellent awareness of what’s going on, tonight is no exception.

Once more Lozano rolled away and slowly tried to come to her feet once more; pushing up slowly as she was showing the effects of the match. Taylor made it to her feet first and launched herself at Valentina, peppering her with stiff shots across her shoulder blades before Lozano could straighten up only for Valentina to shove her away and lash out, catching the Las Vegas native square in the windpipe with a throat thrust. Taylor stumbled backwards a step and her opponent came after her, delivering a front kick into her stomach which she followed up with a double knee facebreaker. The former No Surrender champion bounced off the Canadian’s knees and fell backwards into the ring ropes, bouncing off them and straight into a spinning facebuster from Valentina.

Mai: Don’t you just love watching Valentina do her thing?! She really is tremendous, and you also know that Bianca is somewhere munching popcorn enjoying the show. And I always think the world is a little bit better of a place when Bianca is happy.

Zack: Go buy a calendar, and you can look at her all year long.

Again the Privileged Circle member rolled away and started to push upwards, getting into a three point stance as she once more saw Savannah rising to her feet a little quicker than her. As Taylor got her feet underneath her, Valentina let out a roar and charged towards her, catching her with a spear to the midsection. Quickly the Toronto native dropped down and covered the blonde, hooking her leg.

Zack: That spear could have split Taylor in two, but Lozano would much rather have the win!

One…

Two…

...THRE-

Mai: Like I say, some people are too dumb to know when to quit.

Savannah’s shoulder came up from the mat and Valentina looked over towards the referee who showed her the two count. Lozano didn’t bother to argue the call this time around, pulling Taylor upwards with a handful of hair that she kept hold of as she began the Peasant’s Demise, ramming her head face first into her knee. She delivered a second knee strike to her face before jerking her into a swinging neckbreaker. Lozano forced herself up to her feet and hit the ropes as she delivered two quick, powerful leg drops, rolling back to her feet and this time stomped down on Savannah’s face.

Mai: I think I heard Savannah begging Valentina to have mercy on her, Zack.

Zack: Get your hearing checked.

Taylor rolled away holding her nose and scrambled to get to her feet, turning to face her opponent only for Valentina to skip forward and catch the former No Surrender Champion with the Priceless Kiss bicycle kick to her face. Lozano dropped down on top of her and made the cover, hooking the leg as she did so.

Mai: I love that move, the PRICELESS KISS!!

One…

Two…

...THREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!

Zack: It almost sealed the deal for Valentina, but Savannah continues to fight back and not stay down.

Taylor’s shoulder came up a moment before the three count could be completed and Fisk immediately waved it off, holding up two fingers to show everyone including Lozano. The Canadian pleaded with the referee for the three count only to have him shake his head, showing her the two and the roll of the shoulder. Anger appeared on Valentina’s face as she advanced on Fisk, telling him that it was a three count; demanding the the three count only for the senior official to stand by his original two count. Throwing her hands up in the air, Valentina turned her attention back towards Savannah who had managed to come back to one knee. Quickly Valentina hooked her arms into a double chickenwing and lifted her upwards into the air.

Zack: Uh oh, I know where this is gonna lead! Bad ride, worse landing! And Savannah’s body met the canvas at a high rate of speed.

She held her there for a moment before she dropped her forward, looking to slam her face first into the mat and complete the Crash of Inferiority only for Taylor to tuck her head and counter by picking her foot and rolling through to her feet as she Lozano faceplanted on the canvas. Taylor took a moment to get her bearings before she started to try and apply the Ace of Spades double leg muta lock only for Valentina to kick her away. Savannah stumbled before she got her balance, turning back and advanced towards Lozano as she got to her knees. Taylor attempted to drive a knee into her jaw only for Valentina to lift her upwards, coming to her feet before she drove her down into the canvas with a flapjack. The pair came back to their feet simultaneously and Lozano immediately halted her foe in her tracks with a rake of her eyes. As Taylor staggered backwards a step, trying to clear her vision, Valentina grabbed hold of her head and pulled her into an inverted stomp facebreaker, followed by a rolling cutter that drove her into the mat and completed Divine Intervention. The Latin Goddess made the cover hooking both of Savannah’s legs as she did so.

Mai: DIVINE INTERVENTION!! YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!

One…

Two…

….THREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Fisk called for the bell as he completed the three count; Savannah rolled to the side, holding her face in pain as Valentina slowly pushed up to her feet.

Zack: You want to talk about a hard fought win, that was it for the “Latin Goddess!” And now Canada moves ahead in the leaderboards.

Kat: Here is your winner, by way of pinfall…. “THE LATIN GODDESS” VALENTINA LOZANO!!!!

Mai: I don’t care what else happens tonight, my night has been made! Valentina had a brilliant gameplan and executed it flawlessly! You should go kiss her boot in appreciation.

Zack: Don’t hold your breath. Canada moves up by three, and the main event is next!

As she got her feet underneath her, the Canadian wiped the soles of her boots across Savannah’s face as she demanded the referee raise her hand. The crowd booed loudly as Fisk acquiesced to her request, raising her hand in the air in victory. As she began to celebrate the crowd booed louder still while the Global Wars standings appeared on the video wall and showed the three points added to Canada’s total.




The Elusive Gold

The next image we see is that of Leona Vega with Amber Carano on one side of her, and her manager on the other side right behind her. Before Amber can begin, Christian does it for her.

Christian: Before you start, Amber, I think there’s something that needs to be brought up about this woman right here.

Amber: What’s that?

Christian: How 2018 has been one of the best years of her career. Look at the facts. She finally became FFW Champion on the biggest show of the year, Unstoppable 9. And just last week, she finally got the Jo McFarlane monkey off her back when she defeated her at Breaking Point in the main event. She continues to prove what I’ve said about her for a long time now. And I could not be prouder of her.

The Aztec Warrior has a soft smile on her face, but her head hangs low.

Leona: There have been bumps and blocks along the road, but… I don’t think I’d have the right to call myself a warrior if I let those obstacles stop me in my way, would I? I definitely think 2018 could’ve gone much, MUCH better, but we have to make the best we can out of the hand we’re dealt. And I’ve been blessed with the chance to keep playing my hands as best I can. And for that I’m immensely thankful.

Amber: How did it feel after four attempts to finally get the win over Jo at Breaking Point? It seemed like at times you were convinced you couldn’t do it.

Leona: It’s... relieving. Jo has insisted that maybe I shouldn’t be in the FFW Championship scene. And I’ve been adamant in making sure I was someone people could see as the FFW Champion. If you told me there’s this particular wrestler that has never defeated this other particular wrestler no matter how many times they’ve faced one another before, I’d start to be a bit wary. That was me. Every time I stepped in the ring with Jo McFarlane, it would be Jo leaving with her arm raised, and that… cast a cloud of doubt above me.

Leona sighs and smiles.

Leona: That cloud was lifted last Breaking Point. I tipped the scale in my favor. By no means it should be said I’m suddenly superior to her… But wrestling… As any sport, wrestling is all about the moment. And at that moment, I was better than her. At that moment, I showed that nobody will ever be better than me at all times. At that moment, I proved why I was once the FFW Champion and why it was right for me to have been the FFW Champion. It’s a moment I’ll hold close to heart, so to remind myself that no matter how high the mountain is… I can climb it.

Voice: I applaud that mindset.

It was at this point that the COO entered the shot, shaking hands with both Leona and her manager.

Seth: I never doubted that you could be the FFW Champion, and I don’t doubt that you will be again. As a matter of fact, it could be sooner than you think.

Christian’s eyebrows rose at that.

Christian: What do you mean?

Seth: I mean that I’m going to Leona here her rematch for the FFW Championship two weeks from tonight on the next Velocity against Emma.

Leona and CK look at one another, and while the manager has a big smile on his face, Leona is, as usual, humble.

Leona: It’s… a great honor. One that I will not take for granted. I guess I would be allowed to enjoy a rematch clause anyway, but to be able to cash it in this soon is rather satisfying. Mr. Star… You will not be disappointed.

Christian: I couldn’t agree more. Leona will be more than ready for her rematch. The only thing better than being a one time FFW Champion...is a two time FFW Champion.

Leona: But better than being a one-time or a two-time FFW Champion… Is to be THE FFW Champion. And I want that belt around my waist again. Even if I have to go to war for it.

Leona smirks, as the cameras focus on the skull whistle hanging from her neck.



The Midnight Hour

After a brief commercial for Global Wars, we find Robby backstage with Adam. The Future Shock Director shakes his hand as he approaches.

Adam: You wanted to talk with me?

Robby: I did. Earlier tonight, we found out that Tara Cortez was going to be in the spotlight match for Future Shock coming up at Global Wars. She and her manager would speculate on opponents, but I figured you’d know best who it would be.

Adam rolled his eyes as he nodded his head.

Adam: Oh I remember, apparently it’s the Tara Cortez Spotlight, not the Future Shock spotlight match. Yeah, I heard what she was saying. And all those names she and Christian were rattling off would have been great choices, but none of them are who I have in mind to face her at Global Wars.

Robby: Okay, are you prepared to enlighten all of us on who it is you do have in mind then?

Adam: I’ll go you one better than that, Robby. I’ll introduce her to you personally. You just saw her on the charity event 2 weeks ago, and she was busy two nights before that at Future Shock. And now she’ll be competing at Global Wars too, so she’s been a busy busy girl lately. C’mon in here, please.

He waved to someone off camera before they joined him, and got a pop from many in the crowd.

Adam: She’ll be facing “Midnight” here, Mila Martin.

Mila gave a brief smile to both Adam and Robby before plunging her hands into the pockets of her black jeans.

Mila: I’ve gotta say I’m liking being so busy lately. And another chance to perform on the big stage so to speak, especially at a PPV like Global Wars. Whooo boy. I think you’ve just made my year, Adam.

Adam: Didn’t want you to feel left out.

Robby: Mila, congratulations on being selected for this match. I’m sure you are familiar with “10 Star” Tara Cortez. I mean she’s not exactly a shrinking violet among your fellow Prospects.

Mila: Thanks Robby. And you’re not wrong on her not being a shrinking violet. If anybody is unfamiliar with her, they’ve obviously been under a rock, or just not paying attention. It’s a privilege to be picked for this match, and I’m sure I can give Cortez a good run for her money.

Robby: How do you feel about the fact that she’s already decided this match is the Tara Cortez spotlight before she even knew who her opponent was going to be? I’m sure her confidence didn’t come as much of a shock to you.

Mila: Nah, that wasn’t a shock at all. If she thinks this is going to be purely a spotlight for her, she’s going to be disappointed. No doubt she’ll not be concerned by facing me, and honestly I hope she does have that attitude, because it will make it even sweeter when she realises she’s wrong.

Robby: It would be quite the achievement if you were the first one to end her talking point of being unpinned and never submitted since arriving in Future Shock. She likes to remind people of that frequently, you’ve likely noticed.

Mila: I’ve been racking up quite a lot of firsts recently. Being the one to shut her up about being unpinned and never made to submit, well, that is one I will gladly add to my resume. I think there would be quite a few people glad of it, to be honest.

Adam: Good luck to you, Mila.

We cut to a graphic for the match just added for Global Wars. And then the show heads back to commercial.