HL: “The following match is our main event of the evening and is scheduled for one fall!”

 

::”Cold” by Static-X began to play as Aurora and Kelsia stepped out onto the stage, taking a moment to look out over the masses before making their way down to ringside.  Kelsia, for the most part, shunned the fans save for a scant few that either cheered or held signs signing her praises.  Aurora, on the other hand, was a bit more approachable, but looked quite focused on the match ahead of her.  Both rolled into the ring and the champion removed the title from her waist, holding the belt up into the air as the fans cheered her on.::

HL: “First, from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania…Kelsia Vector!   And her partner, from Dayton, Ohio, the ACW Women’s Champion…Aurora Jansen!”

 

RJ: “That they’re coming out together might seem strange, but to me it says that they’re dedicated to getting a win tonight.”

MS: “Might be a façade, but they’ve done a lot of effective training over the past week…and we’ve not heard much from the former champion.  And nothing from her partner.  So…these two might have a shot.”

 

HL: “And their opponents…”

 

::”Phoenix” by Vanden Plas played heavily through the PA as Aurelei came out on stage with Xena in tow.  The latter was her usual unapproachable, effeminate self, but Aurelei’s eyes were on the ring and the ring alone.  Since the opening of the show, she’d been more of a ghost than her opponent, not accepting any interviews or guests…not even her partner.  But they nonetheless walked out together as Aurelei stalked her way into the ring and stared down Aurora first, then Kelsia.  This wasn’t the stony impassiveness of Roric that she was affecting…this was overheated, over-focused rage honed to fine point.  Xena would step into the ring from behind her passing a smirk to Kelsia and blowing a kiss to Aurora.::

RJ: “Is it me or is Aurelei looking…homicidal right now?  Is she aware of anything but her opponents?”

MS: “Personally, I like the change.  I don’t know how long she’s been holding back what she said earlier tonight, but I’m glad it’s out.  Now she can get down to business.”

 

RJ: “There’s more to all that than meets the eye…I’m sure of it.  But there’s the bell and we’re underway!”

 

::Kelsia briefly spoke with Aurora before the latter stepped out onto the apron, leaving her partner to start the match.  Aurelei, after coaxing Xena out onto the apron, had turned to face Kelsia as the bell rang.  But before they could lace into each other, a familiar form came striding down the ramp towards the ring.  Snake, leather trench and all, came down to ringside and looked over the participants with an unreadable smirk across his pale features.  When his eyes met Aurelei’s, a bit of smugness crept into his expression while the former champion narrowed her eyes sharply in his direction…but nothing was made of the eye contact.  Kelsia, seeing the chance for an early advantage, rushed the former champion and drove her into the corner with a few hard shoulders to the stomach before laying in a few chops across Aurelei’s chest.::

RJ: “What’s Snake doing down here?!  What possible reason could he have for being at ringside during this match?”

 

MS: “Obviously it has something to do with Aurelei, because she took her eye off the ball and is getting what-for from Kelsia because of it.”

 

::Aurelei wasn’t in the mood to be shown up, though, and quickly switched places with Kelsia, lighting up her chest with stiff chops of her own.  Grabbing Kelsia’s arm, Aurelei flipped her to the mat with an Oriental toss then pushed her up into a sitting position before nailing a seated dropkick to her back.  Pulling Kelsia up by her hair, Aurelei fiercely whipped her into her own corner’s turnbuckles and pointed at Aurora.::

 

::Taking the hint, Aurora tagged herself in and went face to face with Aurelei.  The two locked up and tried to bully one another back only to reach a stalemate.  Breaking the lockup, the former champion laced into the new champion with a hard forehand chop that almost immediately reddened her opponent’s chest.  The champion retaliated with a European uppercut that jarred Aurelei, who fired back with another hard chop…and so it went for a few more exchanges before Aurora caught her opponent’s arm and brought her up into a fireman’s carry.  Aurelei was quick to wiggle out of the hold and lock her arms around the champion’s waist, attempting to take her over with a German suplex.  Landing on her feet, Aurora drove the air out of Aurelei with a lung blower but only managed a two-count.::

MS: “She’s getting what she wants, but she’s not doing very well with it, is she?”


RJ: “That’s the problem with too much anger, Mitchell.  Usually Aurelei can control her rage, but when it goes out of control it doesn’t do her any favors.”

 

MS: “It’s only a matter of time before she cuts loose and wastes these two.”

 

::She needed to make a tag, but Aurora was having none of it no matter how much she wanted a piece of Xena.  Pulling Aurelei up, Aurora rocked her with another forearm uppercut before rocking her with a pair of hip tosses, an inverted atomic drop and a spinning heel kick.  The flurry of moves didn’t give Aurelei much of a chance to counter or catch her breath, but the punishment wasn’t enough to keep her on her back, either.  Each pin attempt resulted in a two-count, and when Aurora brought Aurelei up to continue the punishment, the former champion surprised her with a headbutt across the nose.  While the champion reeled, Aurelei planted with her left leg and spun clockwise, bringing her leg up and around with a hook kick that drove Aurora hard to the mat.::

MS: “Vicious strike by the former champion!  No way Aurora saw that coming!”

RJ: “Like her sister, Aurelei is well-trained in martial arts…and while she doesn’t delve into it much, she’s known to surprise people with it.”

 

::Aurelei kept up the pressure from a front stance as Aurora got up, tagging her in the chest and head with a pair of flamingo kicks before nailing a back leg sweep and a flipping leg drop, though she only earned a two-count.  Kelsia broke up that pin before it could hit three, but Xena was quick to head in and tackle Aurora’s partner into the corner where they scuffled briefly prior to the referee separating them.  Both Aurora and Aurelei, as they were likewise separated during their newly-begun scuffle, were the victims of blind tags, with Kelsia and Xena not desiring to wait before tearing into one another.  They collided mid-ring over the surprised glares of their partners, trading fists and forearms for several moments before a ducked blow from Xena led to her getting spike DDTed by Kelsia, who almost scored a surprise pin through it.::

 

::Snake, wandering around ringside taking in the action, looked a little surprised when Aurelei lapsed into an expression of her previous training…but it quickly passed.  He seemed more interested when Aurora was taking control, as though the carnage was pleasing somehow.::

 

MS: “And just when it was getting good, the second string has to barge in and break the momentum!”

RJ: “They’re going at it pretty hard themselves!  Even someone like Xena wants to get her licks in now and again!”

 

MS: “Snake looks like he’s enjoying himself, too…”

RJ: “That doesn’t make me feel very secure.”

 

::Slaps and chops echoed throughout the arena as the two fiery beauties tore into one another.  Still shaken from the sharp DDT, Xena found herself drawn into a hard body slam by Kelsia, who followed up with a few pointed elbow drops before going for a pin.  Kicking out at two, Xena rolled back and caught Kelsia’s head between her legs, locking in a head-scissors.  Quick to try and roll out, Kelsia flipped herself straight up into the air, then arched backwards and popped her head free.  When she rushed in, though, Xena easily caught her chest with both feet and flipped her over and onto her back.  Rolling backwards into a pin with her knees atop Kelsia’s shoulders, she was thrown off at two.  Both rose to their feet and a charging Kelsia was drilled to the mat with a belly-to-belly suplex for another two-count.::

 

::Not appreciating being shown up by someone who hadn’t competed in nearly five months, Kelsia went on the reckless offensive, ducking a back elbow and nailing a variation of the pele kick before backing off and getting a running start, driving Xena back to the mat hard with a modified shining wizard.  Aurelei’s sudden entrance and a boot to the skull stopped the pin from reaching three, and Kelsia’s counterattack attempt saw her whipped hard into her corner, whereupon Aurora was knocked off the apron…and right into the suddenly-waiting arms of Snake.::

 

MS: “What the…did he do that on purpose…?”

RJ: “Don’t ask me!  I’m not crazy enough to guess!”

::Aurora looked more surprised than anyone else as for a few seconds Snake had her cradled in his powerful arms…before setting her back on the apron.  Even the participants in the ring and on the far apron were caught by surprise, with Aurelei shooting a deadly but unseen glare to Aurora.  Xena, the first one to get her head straight, shook off the cobwebs from Kelsia’s headshots and charged her from behind, shoving her chest-first into the turnbuckles near the woman’s own corner.  An attempt at a roll-up was thwarted as Kelsia held on to the ropes and tagged in Aurora.  Still shaken from that catch, she charged Xena and drove her to the mat with a spear, grabbing her by the head and driving it several times to the mat.::

::The referee’s count nearly reached fight, but Aurora managed to break off her assault before drawing a DQ.  Xena never had a chance to really use her regained vertical base as Aurora caught her around the middle and heaved her into the air and hit a spin-out power bomb for a long two-count.  Pulling Xena up and whipping her into the ropes, Aurora gave a slight pause as her target caught herself against the top strand.  A blind tag went unseen by the champion as she angrily charged the rudely gesturing Xena who swatted her rear end on her way past.  She’d obviously felt the tag, and the too-familiar touch was counted on to rattle Aurora further.  It did the trick as she didn’t see Aurelei coming until it was a second too late.  Springing off the top rope, the former champion landed on her rival’s shoulders and whipped her to the mat with a snapping hurricanrana, going for the pin.  Only a two-count, which frustrated the former champion.”::

 

RJ: “Should have known that Xena’s tendencies would come into play.  And you’re just ecstatic aren’t you?”

MS: “Quiet…I’m watching the replay.”

RJ: “I figured…”

 

::A pair of snap suplexes rocked Aurora further as Aurelei brought her back over to the corner of the ring, tagging in Xena and having the woman lock Aurora in briefly.  Off a sharp Dragon Fang, Xena whipped Aurora over with a release German suplex.  The pin was, again, broken up by Kelsia who was hustled from the ring by the referee.  Xena, not wanting to let the interference slide, went after Kelsia and left herself open in the process.  Groggy but fueled by rage, Aurora snatched hold of Xena and drove her to the mat with the Killswitch.::

MS: “Out of nowhere she nailed the Killswitch!  Looks like Aurora wasn’t as jarred as they thought!”

RJ: “Wait…did Kelsia just tag herself in?”

::She most certainly had, and Aurora, leaned back against the ropes, watched in surprise as Kelsia dragged Xena up, nailed a KV Bomb for added damage, and gained the three-count.  Aurelei, on the far apron, almost tellingly made no move to assist her partner…and simply looked on disgustedly while the referee called for the bell.  A visibly perturbed Aurora tried to snatch hold of Kelsia as she bailed from the ring but was denied, staring a hole in her now-former partner as she made her way to the back with “Sickness” playing in the background.::

RJ: “Kelsia stole that one for her team…but a win’s a win.  Aurora, though, doesn’t look like she agrees.”

 

MS: “She got shown up and she probably should have seen it coming, Robbie.  Kelsia isn’t the sort to play nice with anyone except her boys.”

 

::Snake, by this point, had already vacated the ringside area and Aurelei, fuming, left the ring and headed out herself.  Aurora was already making a beeline for the locker rooms by now, and a camera was in hot pursuit.::

RJ: “Bet you she’s after Kelsia…”

MS: “No bet.”