Chapter 124 (Match)

*Mercy vs Liza Surkova*

After Eris and N-Bomb stormed out of the ring, the crowd awaited for the next match. First, Mercy appeared on the stage. She gave an aggressive salute before entering the ring. Liza Surkova followed. She sent jabs and knee strikes into the air before she went down the ramp and climbed on up inside the ring.

"All right, ladies and gentlemen! After that unexpected end to the last match, we should hopefully have no more surprises in this second match in the Yin-Yang Tournament heel bracket semi-finals! We have Mercy, who defeated Willow Powell, and Liza Surkova, who's filling in for Mewlie after her injury at Xtrema Against the World! Which one of these rough brawlers will be able to go against the Skunk next week? Let's see for ourselves!"

DING-DING!

Mercy and Liza locked arms at the center of the ring. Each girl fought for control.

"I'm going to hurt you real bad for calling me a stepping stone." Mercy threatened.

"You and what army?" Liza returned.

"Me and this army!" Mercy answered raising her arm and swinging it to punch Liza backwards. She punched again driving Liza closer to the ropes. One last punch was enough for her to be leaning on the ropes. Mercy turned her around and pressed her neck on the top rope. She pushed her with her leg until the referee counted to four and Mercy was forced to let go.

After Liza recovered, Mercy ran to clothesline her, but she stopped her by tackling her stomach. She stayed on top of Mercy's body and shot her knee repeatedly into her ribs. She then picked her up only to apply a guillotine hold. Mercy gritted her teeth, but gathered enough will to punch at Liza's ribs. Liza grunted before countering by pounding on Mercy's back. The two exchanged blows until Mercy managed to break out of the guillotine hold and blow a headbutt onto Liza sending her down. She hooked her leg for the pin.

1… 2…

Liza kicked out. Mercy then grabbed her legs and rolled her over. She sat on the MMA fighter's back and pulled her legs back in a Boston crab. Liza yelled out in pain while Mercy bent her back some more.

"You give up?" the referee asked.

"Never!" Liza shouted. She pushed herself up a bit and began crawling. Mercy tried keep her in place, but Liza kept getting closer to the ropes until he gripped the bottom one. Mercy bent her some more until she was one second away from being counted out.

After a brief scolding from the referee, Mercy retured to her opponent. However, Liza reached out quickly and grabbed her by her arm. She pulled her down and dropped her onto the ropes. She then rolled her back pressing her shoulders down on the mat.

1… 2…

Mercy just barely broke out. But Liza didn't stop moving. She wrapped herself around Mercy and trapped her in a sleeper hold and bodyscissor combo. Mercy reached her arm out for the rope, but Liza rolled the both of them to the center of the ring without letting her go. The army girl attempted to power out, but Liza coiled tighter and tighter. Mercy began to lose focus in her eyes.

"Go to sleep, you sorry excuse for a soldier." Liza whispered. "Let someone else use you to rise like what always happens."

The MMA fighter's words filled Mercy with anger. Despite her dizziness, she kept on struggling until she made enough room to move her head and swing her head back to strike at Liza's face.

Once Liza released her arms, Mercy wrapped one arm around her legs and the other around her head. She then stood back up carrying Liza over her shoulders. Once she was up on her feet, she then lifted Liza high above her head in a military press. She marched around as if she was carrying a trophy for everyone to see. Mercy then dropped down onto her back and bend her knees up. When Liza fell down, her head made sudden impact with Mercy's knees and she collapsed backwards. Mercy crawled over at Liza and lifted her leg for the pin.

1… 2… 3!

DING-DING!

"And the winner is Mercy! This back-and-forth battle was a sight to watch when… Hang on! It looks like Mercy's got something to say!"

After getting off of Liza, Mercy demanded for a mike. Once the referee gave it to her, she made her statement.

"Listen up, maggots! For too long, I've been overlooked because of so-called 'A-listers' like Thunder Mana, Diana Diaz, Scarlette, and especially that teenage upstart, Queen Bee! I've endured this disrespect for too long and I'm sick of this crap! I've already started my rise through the ranks here, and I will continue to do so next week when I put the Skunk in her place! And I don't care who wins the face bracket! Whether it's Amazon Aqua or Cleopatra, I will defeat them and become the first ever Yin-Yang Champion! Then everyone will bow down flat on the floor for me, and then give me 50! Because I am more than just an army brat! I am the Combat Specialist!"

After making her proclamation, she dropped the microphone and marched out of the ring without looking back. It's clear that everyone should be looking out for her.

"Whoa. Looks like Mercy's not playing around this time." Kaito said straightening up his outfit. He turned to see Queen Bee standing beside him in the locker room. "Well, it looks like my match is up next."

"Remember to be careful." Bee said. "I know you're stronger and braver now, but you just got out of your losing streak and Poison is no pushover. She's undoubtedly going to use this match to show off her skills for potential new partners."

"I understand, so I won't be underestimating her." Kaito said. "Besides, you'll be in my corner, won't you?"

"Of course, I will." Bee said before kissing him. "Now, let's get out there."

*Kaito Marx vs Poison*

Kaito Marx was greeted with more cheers than ever when he appeared on stage. He was accompanied by Queen Bee who wore her old gym's jacket. She followed Kaito as he headed to the ring and climbed through its ropes. Queen Bee stayed beside his corner to watch the match.

When Kaito's entrance was done, Poison appeared onstage. Her theme music played as she swung her horsewhip beside her. She headed to the ring and jumped over the ropes. When she landed, she posed for the crowd before readying herself to wrestle Xtrema's only male wrestler.

"For the penultimate match of the night, we have our resident male wrestler, Kaito Marx, against the Mad Gear gangster, Poison! Both these fighters have had great changes in Xtrema Against the World! Kaito broke his losing streak and Poison broke her ties to Diana Diaz, and now, both are fighting to move forward with their careers!"

DING-DING!

Kaito Marx held up his guard as he approached the center of the ring with Poison who raised her fists at him. Kaito shot out his arms to grab her, but Poison ducked down and countered with a strong jab into his gut. Kaito gritted his teeth, but managed to wrap his arms around Poison and throw her in a belly-to-belly suplex. He hooked her leg for the pin, but Poison kicked out instantly.

Kaito grabbed Poison's leg ready for a submission move, but all of a sudden, the pink-haired fighter shot her other leg to kick him in the chin. She then jumped back up to her feet and hit him with a clothesline sending him down. She then ran to the ropes, and when she returned, she jumped off and landed both her knees on his stomach. Kaito let out a loud gasp of breath from that attack.

Poison brought Kaito in with a headlock gripping her arm tightly around his neck. Kaito gritted his teeth, but he managed to return to his feet and run backwards until he crashed Poison to the corner. His tough back made it extra hard for the Mad Gear girl to endure. He then stepped away from the corner until he came to the center of the ring. He ran right back at Poison crashing his back into her.

After ramming his back at her, Kaito grabbed Poison's wrist and threw her to the opposite corner. He attempted another backwards charge at her, but she ducked out of the way. He bounced off the turnbuckle only for Poison to use her legs to trip him. She then grabbed him by his arms and pulled them back while pressing her foot onto his back. She grinded her heel for extra bit of pain.

"Come on, Kaito!" Bee ordered seeing her boyfriend grit his teeth. "You can beat her!"

Hearing his girlfriend's encouragement, Kaito attempted to power out of the hold. However, Poison released his arms and stomped his face hard on the mat. She grabbed his head and held him up to be on his knees before raising her leg above his head and send it crashing down on his head with an axe kick. She then covered him for the pin.

1… 2…

Kaito rolled out of the pin. Poison picked him up to his feet only to bend him over and place his head between her legs. She hooked her arms around his and readied her for a pedigree.

"Say hello to your new losing streak, buster!" Poison cried out before jumping up.

Poison was surprised, however, when she didn't fall down. Kaito managed to raise himself up and lift her up. He then grabbed her ankles and swung them down to crash onto the mat. He then hooked both of her legs for the pin.

1… 2…

Poison kicked out. She got up along with Kaito, but they were both exhausted at that point. Poison threw a punch at him, but she was too slow and Kaito managed to duck under it. Instead, she accidently punched the referee in the face sending her down. Poison was so surprised by this, that Kaito took his chance and wrapped his arms around her from behind. He launched her backwards in a German suplex, but he didn't let go. He picked her up and threw her in another German suplex. He did it one more time before releasing her and letting her lay on the mat.

Kaito smiled to Queen Bee and exchanged a nod with her. He then climbed up the nearest corner and posed for the crowd. Everyone knew that he was ready to dive down with his new finishing move, which he called Marx the Spot. Kaito was just about ready to spring off the top turnbuckle…

…until music played at the entrance stage. He turned his attention at the titantron when it played demonic music and the screen showed black wings flapping. Feathers fell from those wings which were attached to a black silhouette with a feminine figure and red eyes. Beneath the silhouette were a pair of black words that were outlined by black fire: "Fenix Malvada". Kaito was unsure what to make of what he was seeing until he felt something strike the back of his head and knock him onto the mat.

The audience was shocked to see that the person who struck him was a woman who dropkicked him while flying a glider that was made up of black feathers. When she revealed herself, everyone recognized her as Black Swan, but although her attire looked somewhat similar, there were some differences as well. Her black bird mask was outlined with a brighter shade of black that illuminated like it was on fire. The same could be said for the rest of her outfit. She also had a set of black fingernails as sharp as talons, a black tattoo of a bird on fire on her stomach, and an soot-colored shade over her shoulders as if she just emerged from ash.

After seeing the luchadora attack her boyfriend, Queen Bee climbed up to the apron. "Hey!" she shouted. "What's the meaning of this?"

The attacker said nothing. She just ran over at Queen Bee and surprised her with a dropkick. She then picked Kaito up before running to the ropes and running back with a high kick to his head. That's when she finally left the ring.

Poison got up and saw Kaito flat on his back just as the referee was getting back up. Poison picked Kaito up on his feet and he was nearly unconscious. She then jumped up to kick him before landing on his shoulders. She then threw him backwards with a poison-rana. It was her finishing maneuver: Love Me Tender. She hooked Kaito's leg just as the referee regained her senses.

1… 2… 3!

DING-DING!

"Whoa! What a show! I don't know what all that was about, but we have our winner, Poison! It looks as though Black Swan returned with a new look and a new way of wrestling! Let's see what our backstage reporter can get out of that!"

The titantron turned on just as Queen Bee recovered from the dropkick. She looked up to see Monica Everly catch up to Black Swan backstage.

"Hey! Is that you, Black Swan?"

The luchadora stopped and turned slowly at Monica. She got close to her to make sure she was heard through her microphone.

"Not anymore. Black Swan was a loser who risked too much. She flew too close to the sun and got burned too many times. Well, unlike Icarus, I have risen from the ashes as an evil phoenix. So from now on, I am Fenix Malvada. And consider this a warning for Queen Bee. This is only the beginning. Very soon, you will be dethroned."

Fenix Malvada walked away from Monica. Back in the arena, Queen Bee sneered angrily before taking Kaito backstage.

*Electra Sinders' Initiation*

The entire arena went dark. For a full minute, no one could see a thing. Just then, a red spotlight shined in the ring right on top of Midnight and Electra Sinders. Midnight was rearing a black, hooded robe and holding a large, medieval-looking book in her arm. With her other hand, she held the microphone to her face.

"Good evening, my children of the night." She said with a sinister grin. "Tonight is a very rare occasion. Tonight, I hereby welcome our newest Daughter of Darkness, Electra Sinders, into our arms. It's a shame that my partner, Azraella Bloodstone, couldn't be here, but I'll welcome our newest member on her behalf." She turned to Electra and passed her the book. "This is the Tartarus Grimoire, the sacred tome in which the Daughters of Darkness live by. To make it official, you must sign your name inside the cover with your own blood."

Electra raised her eyes. She didn't expect to hear that, but she was so close to being part of a team, so she wasn't going to let anything stand in her way. She opened up the front cover and found a black feather pen resting next to two names written in the book: Midnight and Azraella Bloodstone. She picked up the pen and pricked herself with it drawing a small drop of blood which she used to write her name down.

"Electra Sinders"

Midnight smiled and took the book back. She held it up to show everyone.

"She is one of us!" she declared before putting the book down. "Now, before we get to the next match, I'd like to make a little announcement. As you know, the winning team of this four-way tag-team match gets to battle us for the Tag Team titles at our next pay-per-view. Rightfully, the belts belong to myself and Azraella Bloodstone, but since she is likely going to still be in the hospital at the time, I have no choice but to invoke he freebird rule and have my newest member, Electra, fight in her stead. So Electra, will you prove yourself at Dynamix?"

Electra grinned overly excited about this proposal. She took the microphone and gave her answer.

"No matter who wins tonight, we will destroy them."

She and Midnight exchanged a nod and exited the ring. They went backstage to make way for the four teams that would be wrestling next.

*Team Spirit vs the Galaxy Twins vs the Thunder Ligers vs Scarlette and Clover*

First, Team Spirit made their way to the ring while blowing friendly kisses to their fans. Then, the Galaxy Twins sprinted to the ring and flipped themselves over the top rope. The Thunder Ligers arrived next. Both Carly X and Thunder Mana arrived at the ring with the most focused faces. Lastly, Scarlette and Clover arrived onstage before heading to the ring. All four teams achieved loud cheers during their respective entrances.

"And now, for our main event, a four-way tag-team match! Whoever wins this match will battle the Daughters of Darkness at Dynamix for their Tag Team Championships! Now, the rules for this are different! Only two wrestlers are allowed in the ring and they're allowed to tag anyone in, whether or not they're from the same team! The first team to get a pinfall or submission wins the match! Let's see who's going to Dynamix!"

DING-DING!

Thunder Mana and Clover started the match off while everyone else waited in different corners of the ring. Gradually, they gripped each other's hands and attempted a test of strength. Both these powerhouses stood their ground while trying to push their opponents off. Although it was a close match, Mana thrusted her hands aside and threw Clover down on the mat.

Thunder Mana picked Clover up only to bend her over, grab her by her waist, and lift her upside down over her in the middle of a vertical suplex. She was about to finish the suplex, but Clover broke out and landed right behind Mana. She gripped her in a rear waistlock and tossed her in a German suplex.

Clover turned around, but just before anything else, she gets tagged from behind. It was Carina. She entered the ring and Clover was forced to return to her corner along with Scarlette.

Thunder Mana picked herself up on her hands and knees, but Carina jumped on top of her and slammed her back down with a double-foot stomp. She then rolled her on her back and hooked her leg for the pin.

1… 2…

Thunder Mana lifted her shoulder up. Carina grabbed her foot, but before anything else, Thunder Mana kicked her away. Once she was free, Mana reached her arm out and tagged in the closest wrestler: Starla.

Once Starla and Carina stood face to face with each other, they locked up in a collar-and-elbow tie-up. They fought for control until Starla pushed Carina into Team Spirit's corner. Isebella tagged herself in and entered the ring. Starla kept herself pressed on Carina until Isebella ran toward them. At the very last second, Starla sidestepped just as Isebella jumped for a dropkick. It connected and Carina dropped to the mat. Starla returned to the apron while her partner continued the match.

Isebella climbed to the top of Team Spirit's corner and waited for Carina to stand back up. When she did, Isebella leaped up for a crossbody splash. Sadly though, it didn't connect all the way. With her raw power, Carina caught Isebella in midair and countered her attempted splash with an exploder suplex. Isebella rolled away and got herself tagged by Scarlette.

Once Scarlette entered the ring, Carina knew she was too tired to take her on while she just started, so she went over to her corner and tagged in Luna. She entered the ring to confront Scarlette. The two of them locked up, and Scarlette pulled Luna in with a side headlock. She headed to the ropes and Irish whipped the Galaxy Twin to the other side. Once both of them were on the ropes, both Scarlette and Luna had their backs slapped by the new legal girls, Carly X and Clover.

At first, Carly was nervous about facing a girl as big as Clover, but she eased herself as she was reminded of her sparring sessions with Thunder Mana. She approached with confidence, which Clover chuckled at. She tried to grab Carly, but the Stylish Tiger dodged and slipped behind her. She then kicked the back of her knee, but Clover didn't fall. She swung her fist with a backhanded blow, but Carly gained some distance to avoid getting hit. She then returned at Clover for a dropkick, and although she was nudged a bit, she focused entirely on staying up.

Seeing her chance, Clover grabbed Carly X and held her over her shoulders only to slam her down with a powerbomb. She stayed on top of her for the pin.

1… 2…

Carly X kicked out. Clover lifted her up to her feet and wrapped her arms around her squeezing her with a bearhug. Carly gritted her teeth and struggled, but it was tight. Seeing her partner in trouble, Thunder Mana went into the ring and kicked Clover's back before getting forced out of the ring by the referee. Clover eased the bearhug, which gave her the chance to put her in a front facelock and crash her head down with a DDT-X. She hooked her leg right after.

1… 2…

Not wanting someone else to win, Carina entered the ring and kicked Carly X off. Thunder Mana entered the ring and speared Carina crashing her to the ground. Luna springboarded from the ropes and dropkicked Thunder Mana as soon as she got up. Team Spirit decided to join in and hit Luna with a double clothesline. While all this was happening, Clover headed over and tagged Scarlette in.

While Scarlette was in the ring, she immediately reached out both her arms and clotheslined both members of Team Spirit. They rolled out of the ring like the rest of the outsiders. The only ones left in the ring were the two legal competitors, Scarlette and Carly X.

Although the two were on semi-friendly terms, they knew better than to let that divert them from their desires. At the moment, they stood in each other's way to a tag-team title opportunity. So they immediately locked up and wrestled for control.

First, Carly X went behind Scarlette and held her in a rear waistlock. Then, Scarlette reversed their situation and slammed her down in a belly-to-back suplex. Carly X quickly responded by wrapping her legs around Scarlette, but she broke out and reversed with her Scarlette Lock. She constricted the hold tighter and there was no escape for the Stylish Tiger. By the time the rest of the wrestlers recovered, Carly X had already tapped out.

DING-DING!

"There we go, ladies and gentlemen! Come Dynamix, we are going to have the tag team title match between Scarlette and Clover and the Daughters of Darkness! These two must be pretty excited for each other!"

They were. After releasing Carly X, Scarlette stood back up and Clover joined her in the ring. They raised their hands up before pointing backstage knowing that the Daughters of Darkness, Midnight and Electra, were watching.

This was a very eventful night. Streaks were broken. Wrestlers were renewed. Resolves were hardened. The crowd loved this great show that came after Xtrema Against the World, and they awaited for what comes next.

*Xtrema Shorts*

Chibi Monica Everly headed to the stage and sat in her chair. She sat right next to Chibi Scarlette who waved to the crowd with her host.

"Welcome to Xtrema Shorts! I'm your host, Monica Everly, and tonight, we will be interviewing a red-masked fan favorite, Scarlette! Thanks for being here, Scarlette!"

"Thanks. It's great to be back." Chibi Scarlette said.

"Fantastic. Now, we will be asking you a set of questions. Some will be standard questions we ask anyone. The rest will be personal ones asked by our readers for you exclusively. Are you ready?"

"Of course. Go ahead."

"Great. Now, first question… Who was your debut opponent?"

"Glad you asked. I actually competed in the first ever Visitor's Challenge. My opponent was a dancing luchadora named Masked Misty. Now, she was tricky and I was still green when it comes to wrestling, but I managed to get the hang of the match and pull off a win."

"What's it like facing Kaito Marx?"

"Last time I fought him, it was pretty easy. I didn't have any strong feelings about that. Now, I don't know. He seems stronger now. Maybe I'll have another go at him in the future."

"What do you think of Sayuri Rogue?"

"Pretty cool girl. Glad she was able to keep my secret."

"Who's the easiest opponent you've ever faced other than Kaito?"

"Black Swan. She's always been hounding me for a mascara-contra-mascara match which I always won."

"Okay then. Now, for the personal questions asked by our readers, mainly Awesome ax10. First, what do you think of your son's attraction to Carly X?"

"Well, as a protective mom, I worry for Jason. But I'm not going to stand in their way if they do decide to be a thing. Although, if she ever hurts him, I won't hesitate to powerbomb her through a table."

"After your XAW win, and reconciliation with the family, did you forgive yourself?"

"Sort of. It's a slow process. It's not like I can just forgive myself overnight. This isn't a movie, you know."

"Will you ever want to take your TV title back from Clover?"

"Maybe. It'll be tough though, not just because she's a tough wrestler, but also because she's my friend. Still, if she's fine with no holding back, then so am I."

"Well, that appears to be all. If anyone has any questions they'd like to ask our remaining wrestlers, feel free to ask. Seriously, we're out of questions. Our remaining characters to interview are Eris, Mewlie, Kyoko Natsumi, Team Spirit, La Calavera, Mercy, Jasper Jones, Sam Hamilton, Platinum Mask, the Galaxy Twins, Jun Juli, Artemis Creed, Electra Sinders, and Kaito Marx.

"We hope you all enjoy the story so far and our first step in setting up the next PPV. Any and all comments are welcome."