Final stretch, hope you all enjoy.
Darkness and Light, Into the Chaos!
Rio wasted no time getting to the ring, leaping in and charging Noble. The Rose had no time to react before Rio backhanded her, sending Noble staggering back. "Hagiwara, let's de-thorn this rose." the snow-haired wrestler suggested. Sakura nodded, joining her rival in the fight against Noble.
"And it looks like a two-on-one between Hagiwara, Kazuma, and Noble Rose! Will the thorns of justice pierce this deadly combo?"
Meanwhile, Malcom and Moe were still trading blows, neither gaining any ground with the other. Shit. This is starting to really tax my body. Malcom thought mildly, feeling his muscles start to reach their limit. I can't maintain this speed much longer. His prayers were answered in what he could only describe in the most unwanted way possible.
Noble had managed to get a grip on Sakura's arm, whipping her into Rio before powerbombing the former and Irish whipping the latter toward Moe. The two Berserk wrestlers stumbled as they crashed into each other and flew over the top rope.
"And in a surprise move from Noble Rose, Kazuma and Fukuoa have been eliminated! And Winds doesn't look too happy about that fact."
In the ring, Malcom was fuming. "What the hell Noble?" he demanded. "I told you Fukuoa was mine!"
"It was a mistake, it won't happen again!" Noble argued back.
Malcom smirked as he glanced behind the rose. "You're right, it won't." he chuckled.
Noble looked confused for a second before feeling two arms wrap around her middle and lift her off the ground. Sakura threw Noble to the middle of the ring before running forward, picking the purplette up and throwing her again, causing Noble to gasp in pain. Malcom figured now was a good time to intervene as he ran for a clothesline on Sakura. The idol-turned-wrestler ducked under the attack and picked up Noble again, throwing her out of the ring.
"And Noble Rose has been eliminated! It comes down to Hagiwara and Winds in a battle for victory."
Malcom smirked as he turned to Sakura. "So, Sacred Gear or Gift?" he asked casually.
"Sacred Gear, Return Counter." Sakura replied, taking a breath.
"Interesting. Mine is Battle Supremacy." Malcom informed, giving the details of his Sacred Gear like with Moe. "Now your attacks make sense too. Your little trick lets you take all the pain you've endured and slam it right back into your opponent. It's a rather impressive one." the teen admitted, taking his stance. "What do you say we end this?"
Sakura let out a war cry as she attempted to dropkick Malcom, which he ducked before rolling away and leaping for a body slam on the downed ravenette. Malcom quickly stood and switched his position, grabbing Sakura's hair. Sakura was having none of it as she wrapped her ankles around Malcom's head and tossed him away before standing. Malcom got to his feet saw Sakura approaching. "Low Cyclone." he muttered, dropping and performing the same move as earlier, which Sakura leaped away from. Malcom stood and the two grappled for a few seconds. Malcom released Sakura before backflipping onto a cornerpost.
"Well Sakura, this has been fun but I'm afraid stamina isn't one of the stats my Battle Supremacy adds to my own. And looking at you, you're just about finished too." he said to the panting wrestler. "What do you say to letting this last move decide it?" he asked. Sakura, still out of breath, only took up her Sakura Special stance.
"What is going on out there? It seems like Hagiwara and Winds are setting up for their special moves! Will this be the deciding factor?" the announcer wondered.
Yes. both thought as they prepared their attacks. This will all come down, Malcom leaped and Sakura crouched, to our special moves!
"Take this!" Sakura called, pouncing.
"Rain of Blood!" Malcom responded, spinning.
The attacks collided, and both wrestlers fell to the mat. "Both wrestlers are down! In a clash of special moves, both were overwhelmed with the power and have fallen to the mat!"
Damn it, I can't move. Malcom thought angrily, willing his limbs to action. He chuckled dryly. I screwed up. Even as my Rain of Blood hit Sakura, the pain was redirecting itself at me in her own attack. I doubt either of us are going to be getting up before the ref finishes counting.
"1...2...3...4..." the ref counted.
"Get up Sakura!" said wrestler's fan group called from the stands.
"5...6...7...8..."
"Malcom, you can't lose now!" Some girls called from their spot.
"9...10...11...12..."
"Damn it Hagiwara, move your ass!" Rio snapped from the waiting room.
"13...…14...15...16..."
"Come on Miss Sakura!" Moe cheered.
"You can do it Malcom!" the rose sisters whispered.
"17...18...19..."
"Sakura!" Elena cried.
"20." DING DING DING.
"It's over! In a startling turn of events, this match ends with a double knockout! Which means no one actually wins this event!"
"Ref, need a hand here." Malcom called over. The ref helped him to his feet and passed him a mic. "Well." the boy started, catching the attention of the crowd, "That was unexpected." he joked. Laughs were heard throughout the stadium as Malcom continued. "While this isn't what I had in mind for the end of this little event I put together, I guess I'll just have to figure something out. For the wrestlers who competed today, thank you all for coming. This is the most fun I've had in ages." Malcom looked over to Sakura, who was just beginning to struggle to her feet. "And in thanks, I'm inviting all participants to my place for a banquet for a well fought match. My people will give you the address on the way out." the crowd cheered as both wrestlers were escorted out.
...
Later that night, everyone was having a blast at Malcom's mansion. Turned out the kid was loaded with connections to Williams Inc's higher-ups. Sakura was talking with Elena when a maid came over. "Master Winds wishes to meet with you, please follow me." she requested. Both idol-turned-wrestlers followed the maid to a room just off the main dining area where Malcom, Moe, Rio, and Reiko were all waiting.
"Thank you for bringing them, Malva. You can go now." Malcom said casually. The maid curtsied before exiting. "You're probably wondering why I called all of you here."
"The question popped into my head." Rio replied sarcastically.
Malcom sighed and looked at the four wrestlers in front of him. "Truth be told, I had a second motive for setting this event up. We all got orders from the Black Trio to bolster our forces with sub-members. Basically I set this up to see if anyone in this town was strong enough to catch my eye. You four did just that."
"But if it's us four, then why is Reiko here?" Elena questioned.
"Shadow Legion sticks together." Malcom replied with a shrug. "Reiko may be the Ram Gate, Aries, but we're still good friends."
"One of the Thirteen Gates?" Moe gasped. "Miss Reiko's one of King's handpicked Legion members?" Malcom chuckled before nodding.
"Well, what do you all say? Care to join the Legion?" Malcom asked, looking each wrestler in the eye. He was given four determined nods in reply.
And done! This finishes Battle Gears. What did you guys think? I know, kinda anti-climactic finish but I had to do something no one was expecting. Tell me what you thought, no flames, and see you all next time I'm in this archive!
