Chapter 56 (Daily)

Reporters surrounded Sayuri Rogue as she stood on her podium with several wrestlers behind her. They wouldn't stop flashing their cameras and askin various questions. Kanae and Natsuki didn't waste any time getting to the front of the crowd and awaiting the Xtrema CEO's announcement. She cleared her throat just as she addressed the crowd.

"All right, everyone. Settle down. I know you're all excited for the upcoming Xtrema PPV, Supernova, in two nights. I am too. But for now, it's time to just announce who'll be facing who. This took a lot of thinking, but I've made my decisions and they are final. First, for our opening match, we will have our boxing newcomer, Artemis Creed, against our Irish bruiser, Clover."

Both Artemis and Clover confronted each other for the crowd to see.

"I wish you luck." Artemis said.

"I don't need luck when I'm kicking your arse!" Clover replied. "This is my first singles match, and I ain't gonna lose it to an upstart fister like you."

They were separated just as Sayuri continued. "Next up will be Zelda Logan vs Sam Hamilton in a special match called an I'm Sorry match. It's basically like an I Quit match, but the only way to win is to make your opponent say the words 'I'm sorry'."

Zelda and Sam both gazed into each other's eyes with angry glares. Sam wasn't wearing her costume, just a blue blazer. Zelda however wore her traditional wrestling attire.

"You hear that?" Zelda asked. "I'm going to make you apologize to the sport of pro wrestling for your clownish behavior."

"More like I'll make you sorry for acting like the judge, jury, and executioner of my style!" Sam replied.

They growled at each other until the security split them up.

"Right. Next match will be between our only male, Kaito Marx, against our resident cowgirl, Clementine Cirrus!"

"Say what now?" Kaito asked. "When did this happen?"

"Ever since Queen Bee requested this match." Sayuri answered.

"She what?" Kaito asked looking at her girlfriend.

"We'll talk later." Queen Bee whispered.

"Don't worry, sugar." Clementine said. "I'll try not to break you bad."

"Moving on." Sayuri said. "This next match is a tag team match. Things have been heating up between these two teams for weeks, but at Supernova, everything will be settled. Our first team will be Thunder Mana and Carly X. Our second will be the Killer Kitties, Mewlie and Neko Girl."

"You should've just taken your dumpster beating like a big girl." Carly growled at Neko Girl. "Now, I'm going to have you mess you up again."

"That's funny coming from someone who last to an old hag like my mom." Neko Girl replied.

"I'll try not to cripple you like you were before." Mewlie taunted Thunder Mana. "It's a lot of fun to use a wrestling legend as a scratching post."

"Please. I went toe-to-toe with Aoife Leavy, and she'd eat you and your daughter up immediately." Thunder Mana replied.

"Now then, onto our next match." Sayuri said. "It will be our visitor match. All the way from WWE, America, from Alberta, Canada, the Queen of Harts, Natalya! And her opponent, representing Xtrema, the Hitgirl, Charlie Hart!"

The reporters flashed harder than before after seeing the two Hart girls confront each other.

"Heard about your match the other night." Natalya said. "Sorry to hear that."

"I don't need your pity." Charlie growled. "There's no way I'm signing onto WWE, and I'll prove that by beating you!"

Natalya sighed as she returned to her original spot like Charlie did.

"Family drama, am I right?" Sayuri asked. "But moving on. This next match is a highly-anticipated rematch between Eris and Liza Surkova. Only this time, we're making this an Extreme Rules match so there are no calls for flukes."

Eris smiled seductively as she approached the angry Russian. "Can't get enough of me, can you?"

"Don't get cute." Liza warned. "I'm looking forward to finally breaking your pathetic streak."

"We'll see about that." Eris taunted gently patting at her opponent's cheek before leaving.

"Thank you, you two. This next contest will be a mascara contra mascara match between luchadoras La Calavera and Black Swan. Whoever loses will have their mask removed. And surprisingly, these two will have ringside companions accompanying them. La Calavera will be accompanied by Maria Hirano and Black Swan will have Mammy with her."

La Calavera and Black Swan confronted each other with each of their respective partners behind them. Both luchadoras yelled at each other in Spanish before security broke them up.

"Well, I'm sure we don't need a translator to tell that there is some bad blood there." Sayuri said. "Our next match shall be a fatal four-way match between four of our other newcomers. That's right, we will have Electra Sincers, Jun Juli, Hotrina, and Maria Crawford facing each other. First to score a pin or submission wins."

The four girls didn't need to confront each other. The exchanged in their eyes said it all.

"And last, but certainly not least, is the match that you've all been waiting for. Our main event will be our World Champion, Queen Bee, against our TV, 24/7, and one-half of the Tag Team Champions, Diana Diaz in a last woman standing match! If Diaz wins, she will take Queen Bee's world title. But if Queen Bee wins, then Diaz will be forced to vacate all her titles."

Both Queen Bee and Diana Diaz approached each other with their respective belts.

"Ready to bow to the Ultimate Champion?" Diaz asked.

"Please. You're the one who'll lose all her titles at once." Queen Bee said.

"That's all for now. If anyone has any questions, I'll answer on behalf of my girls… and Kaito Marx."

While Sayuri replied to each of the reporter's questions, Kaito pulled Queen Bee away from everyone else.

"What the hell, Dawn?" he asked. "You put me in a match against Clementine Cirrus?"

"I know, but hear me out." Queen Bee said. "You've been training under me for months. I've been watching you slowly grow, and I know you have what it takes to win now."

"But why Clementine?"

"What? Did you think I was going to put you against the Skunk? I hear she's still pissed at you for what happened at the last PPV. If I want you to have your first real win, it should be against someone I trust, and there's no one I trust more than Clementine Cirrus."

"Well, did you at least tell her to go easy on me?"

"Of course not. If there's one type of wrestler I hate above all else, it's a wrestler who holds back and doesn't give it their all. It's why I hate scripted outcomes. Look, would you rather want a win the easy way or do you think it'd be more satisfying to completely earn your win."

"But what if I don't win?"

"Then you can always try again. Either way, you'll finally be a real wrestler."

Kaito sighed before smiling as his girlfriend. "All right, Dawn. I trust you."

Later that night, Jun Juli added in some extra hours to work out at the gym, mostly on her legs and practicing her kicks. Suddenly, she stopped when she heard her phone ring. She opened it and answered.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Jun."

"Mint, is that you?" Jun asked. "What's up? Is everything all right?"

"Not really." Mint answered sounding worried over the phone. "Something happened to Milk. She got appendicitis and was rushed over to the hospital."

"Oh, man. I'm sorry to hear that." Jun said.

"The doctors say she'll be fine, but that's not why I called." Mint said. "Before she fell sick, she and I were scheduled a match against Queen Elizabeth and Payne Fox and it starts in an hour. I need a substitute or else we won't have a match for the fans. Then, I remembered you were a wrestler and…"

"And you're asking me? Now?" Jun asked.

"I know how last minute it is, and I'm afraid I might know your answer, but Miss X wanted me to ask anybody I can."

"Look, Mint, I'd love to help. Really, I would. But the timing is horrible. I've got a double-shift at the restaurant to do in an hour. I can't make it."

Mint sighed over the phone. "I was afraid of that. Sorry."

"No, I'm sorry." Jun said. "Take care." She hung up and sighed herself. "Poor kids. I hope something works out for them."

The other night was a baffling time for wrestling fans who witnessed the main event of the Rookie All-Star Match. Chinatsu Suzumoto had gained a surprise wrestler for an opponent called Blue Panther, a masked competitor from Miyabi who completely decimated the young submission artist. It was clear she had no respect for the Berserk wrestlers.

That same match was replayed over and over again on Jasper Jones' laptop in her home. Her walls were covered with photographs connected by red strings. They all were about different subjects such as GWM, Rumble Roses, and the Street Fighter tournaments. But right now, Jasper's focus was the Blue Panther. She rewatched every bit of the masked wrestler's screen time about fifty times observing every possible angle.

"What does this mean?" Jasper asked. "The way this Blue Panther tightened her submissions… It reminds me of Juri Sanada. But then again, why would the founder of Miyabi interfere in this match? There's no doubt that this is Juri Sanada, but the question is, why?"

After dealing with the last of the reporters, Sayuri Rogue retreated into her office to rest. She turned her head to her assistant. "What have you got for me?"

"Well, Hardkor appears to be a small wrestling federation," Ryuji said, "But it's predicted that they'll be making a big debut in the world of pro wrestling thanks to their performance at the Rookie All-Star Match."

"Jacky told me to keep an eye out for these guys, and after seeing what happened to Charlie, I believe her." Sayuri said. "Anything you might have uncovered."

"Well, they appear to focus mainly on hardcore matches. To them, a low blow with spiked brass knuckles is as legal as a headlock. And according to rumors, they make Diana Diaz's brutal tactics look like a pillow fight by comparison. They have two heads running the organization. One of them is Jessica Jaclyn. Before moving to Japan, Jessica was a wrestling promoter in New York as well as a referee and even a champion at one point for a man's title. Her partner, however, is never seen, but they only refer to him as… Yami."

"Yami?" Sayuri asked. "That can't be the same Yami, can it?"

"You know him?" Ryuji asked.

"I know of him." Sayuri said. "But it's hard to believe he's still alive. He should have been dead years ago."

"Care to fill me in, ma'am?"

"Long ago, a wrestler named Yami took the world of wrestling by storm. He never answered to anybody, he never lost a match, and he capitalized on his wins with the darkest methods imaginable, such as throwing his opponents through a ring floor or even breaking their spirits and minds. Of course, he retired and was never heard from again. But the strange thing is, it was like a century ago. There's no way he's still alive."

"Maybe someone's using his name?" Ryuji suggested.

"But who and why?" Sayuri asked.

But before she could ponder any further, a notification sounded on her phone. She pulled it out and checked out a livestream video she was alerted on. That was when her jaw dropped seeing what was on the video.

Carly X was practicing her kicks on a punching back with Thunder Mana holding onto it. Their training session was interrupted when Thunder Mana's phone dinged. She stopped Carly and pulled it out looking at the screen.

"Hmm. That's weird. I got a video link from Aoife."

"Aoife?" Carly asked. "You've been in touch with her? I thought she was still upset over what happened at Olympia."

"We talked it out the day after. We're cool now... Well, as cool as we can be." Mana said. "Let's see what we…" She clicked the link and widened her eyes watching the content. "Oh, my…"

"What?" Carly asked. "What is it?"

"It's… It's your mom." Mana said. "She's in the ring."

"What?" Carly asked in surprise. "Let me see."

Thunder Mana held the phone so the both of them could see. They saw the wrestling match that took place on the screen. At ringside were the GWM wrestlers, Queen Elizabeth and Mint. Their partners were duking it out in the ring. Queen's partner was none other than Miss X, or X Woman as the announcer called her. She was just about to put the sharpshooter on her opponent, a young girl in a yellow two-piece outfit and wearing a tiger-like mask that showed her eyes and mouth. Her name, according to the announcer, was Spring Tiger.

Spring Tiger stopped Miss X from locking in the sharpshooter and reversed the hold until Queen Elizabeth broke them up. Miss X then bombarded Spring Tiger with a series of elbow strikes before dropping her in a German suplex.

"What am I watching?" Carly asked. "Did you know my mom could wrestle?"

"Well, I knew she worked out in the gym often," Mana said, "But this is a side of her I've never seen before."

By the end of the match onscreen, Mint successfully pinned X Woman in La Magistral which frustrated Queen Elizabeth. Sayuri smiled at what she just saw.

"Well, that was quite a sight to watch." She said. "I didn't think Miss X could wrestle, but then, there's this new talent. It's like a young, female Tiger Mask. They said this is her first time wrestling, but she appears to be a natural."

"You thinking about scouting her, ma'am?" Ryuji asked.

"There's a good chance." Sayuri said. "But in the meantime, let's focus on Supernova. Let's make this a success."

*Xtrema Shorts*

Chibi Monica Everly stood in the spotlight before sitting in her chair. She waved to the readers and smiled. Next to her was another chair which was occupied by a Chibi version of Artemis Creed.

"Hello, everybody! Welcome back to Xtrema Shorts! We've had quite a chapter, am I right? So, this chapter took place in Tiger Mask W episode 18, the wrestling debut of Epiclot214's favorite character. But we all know you're not here expecting to hear favorite characters, so let's get on with the Q&A. Joining us tonight is Xtrema's champion boxer from Puerto Rico, Artemis Creed!"

"Hello, everyone." Chibi Artemis said. "Great to be here."

"Great to have you here. Now, as per usual, I'll be asking a set of standard questions followed by personal questions asked by our readers. You ready?"

"Ready?"

"Great. First question… How long have you been wrestling?"

"Not very long. I've only had one matche so far. Before that, however, I was boxing for eight years."

"Do you have any dream opponents?"

"Jackal Tojo, of course. I mean, I know I don't have a chance against her now, but that's why I'm here. Other than her, I think Sayuri Rogue would be a close second. Also, I think I'd like to face Bunny Bomber. I heard she's also a boxer turned wrestler, so people are saying we'd have a great match."

"How do you feel about your fans?"

"I've always had them having my back now and before, and I'm proud of that."

"What's the toughest match you've had so far?"

"In wrestling, that would be Mercy. That girl does not hold back at all. In boxing, I faced this one girl named Liv Endi. She came closer to breaking my record than any other boxer I've ever faced."

"What do you do for fun?"

"Well, when I'm not boxing or wrestling, I like listening to music, mostly inspirational ones like Eye of the Tiger or Never Surrender."

"What do you think makes a great wrestler?"

"Strong will and stern focus. And of course, rock-solid fists help a lot."

"Do you have any interests besides wrestling?"

"Boxing, if that's what you mean."

"Now, for the personal questions asked by Awesome ax10. Have you talked with Jackal Tojo before and/or after your match with her?"

"Well, yeah. Before my match against her, Jackal came to wish me luck. I went into that match confident in my fists, but as you can imagine, that didn't go so well. After that, I asked Jackal how she beat me. She then shared some words of wisdom about understanding your opponent and not being too confident. That's what inspired me to be a wrestler."

"How do you feel transitioning from boxing to wrestling?"

"I won't lie, it's a challenge. There are so many rules to wrestling that still baffle me when I'm in the zone. I know how to throw a jab or a cross, but sometimes, I still forget that winning means a pinfall. Of course, I always stick to my boxing training, so I don't do submissions."

"Well, that's all we have so far. So thank you for coming. Next chapter, we will begin our Supernova PPV, which will be split into three chapters. To recap the matches on the PPV…

1.) Artemis Creed vs Clover

2.) Zelda Logan vs Sam Hamilton ("I'm Sorry" match)

3.) Kaito Marx vs Clementine Cirrus

4.) Thunder Mana and Carly X vs the Killer Kitties

5.) Charlie Hart vs Natalya

6.) Eris vs Liza Surkova (Extreme Rules match)

7.) La Calavera vs Black Swan (mascara contra mascara)

8.) Jun Juli vs Maria Crawford vs Electra Sinders vs Hotrina (fatal four-way)

9.) Queen Bee vs Diana Diaz (last woman standing for the World Championship; if Diaz loses, she vacates all of her current titles)

"Is anyone else as excited about this event as I am? Who do you think is going to win? Let's have a hell of a time when Supernova comes. Any and all comments are welcome."