FLAMBERGE vs. RIA NIGHTSHADE
Our scene fades in from backstage and the MGM Grand goes black before being bathed in neon green lighting as the synthesized drum beats of “Tonight (Well Make Love Till We Die” by SSQ fill the arena. After about 40 seconds, guitars and vocals join the drums.
♫ In darkness you will find me
I dance among the dead
But very soon I’ll need to hunt the scent of blood instead
Rising from your earthbed
It thickens in the air
A smell both sweet and rancid, I know that you are near ♫
As the chorus begins, Ria Nightshade finally saunters out from backstage. As she stands near the entranceway, she drinks in the crowd while wearing her usual smirk. She confidently strides down to ringside, stopping at the apron. She swings her right leg up, her heel resting on the apron. She turns her head back towards the crowd, giving a wink before swinging her left leg up into the apron.
Vince Howard: Hailing from PIIIITTTSSSBUUUURGGGHHHH… RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIA NIGHTSHADE!
She stays in the split for a second before sliding under the bottom rope. Ria then sits up on her knees before bouncing up to her feet. She picks a random corner, sashaying over that way. Once there, she leans back against the turnbuckles in a seductive pose, waiting for the match to begin.
FLAMBO’S GONNA KILL YOU
FLAMBO’S GONNA KILL YOU
FLAMBO’S GONNA KILL YOU
And then, the lights fade.
I AM dangerous
Dangerous
Dangerous
Dangerous
And across the PRIMEview?
FLAMBERGE
The arena lights come back to life, and out comes the prodigy, the man of the hour, FLAMBERGE. He saunters from the back with a cool casualness, loudly chomping on a wad of gum, “Dangereux” by IAM blaring as the fans cheer the newcomer. The anticipated debut comes with an expectation toward greatness, and to say the Frenchman is cocky confident would be an understatement. His powerwalk carries with it a weird charisma, and as he takes his lap around the ring, he refuses to look up toward his opponent, despite natural male instinct. Genie isn’t making it easy, seemingly pushing out her ample chest to try and get his attention, but the Strasbourgis native refuses to get caught up in the sexuality fueled mind games. He, instead, rolls into the ring, standing opposite of her, his head bobbing the entire time.
Vince Howard: And her opponent, from Strasbourgis, France. He is… FLAMBERGE.
Nick Stuart: Flamberge looks like he’s ready tonight.
DING DING
FLAMBERGE steps out of his corner and raises his fists, ready to scrap. Ria regards him with a bemused evil half-grin as she slinks out of her own. As they slowly circle the center of the ring, Nightshade quietly taunts her opponent. Then a smirk forms on FLAMBO’s face as he pushes forward on the balls of his feet and becomes a moving volley of rights and lefts that connect as quick and painful as snakebites.
Ria spills through the top and second ropes, prompting the break. FLAMBERGE obliges, backing up and hopping impatiently between both feet. Nightshade now regards him with revulsion as she takes her time stepping out of the ropes. FLAMBO comes at her again with another flurry of jabs, but she quickly goes low when he goes high and seizes him around the waist, digging her claws into his lower back!
FLAMBERGE yells in pain and anger before throwing her down with a side rolling legsweep. Nightshade rolls back to her knees, grinning savagely.
Nick Stuart: I have a feeling we’re going to see an usual clash of styles between these two, with Ria’s tendency for playing mind games tasked to break up the straightforward, no-nonsense style of FLAMBERGE.
Richard Parker: I love FLAMBERGE being managed
Both opponents again begin circling one another for a beat, before Ria springs back to avoid a low sweeping kick. Seeing her chance to make a move, she rushes in clinches FLAMBERGE by the head and gets in a few good knees to his face! FLAMBO’s legs wobble, and she takes him down the rest of the way with a snap DDT before hooking the legs to cover!
ONE!
TWO!
KICKOUT!
They scramble to their feet, and Nightshade locks up the Frenchman’s arms before he can get to swinging them again. FLAMBO pivots, sweeps, and takes Ria back down to canvas, going right into the mount and relentlessly pounding away with rights and lefts!
Nick Stuart: FLAMBERGE finally on top, whittling down Ria Nightshade’s defenses!
Richard Parker: You could say he’s… CHIP-ping away at her?
Nick Stuart: Hardy-har, Rich.
Nightshade can only cover up and weather the storm until the official makes it to the full count and orders FLAMBERGE to break it up. The young Frenchman obliges and pops back to his feet, confidently running his hands up his elevated hair.
Ria shakes it off and quickly gets back to her feet, cranking her neck and wiping her jaw as she readjusts her gameplan. A sneer forms on her face before she unexpectedly charges at FLAMBERGE with an insane barrage of clawing rights and lefts of her own that put her opponent on his heels!
FLAMBO deflects a left and pops Ria in the cheek with a straight jab of his own. Nightshade reels… and bites back with a headbutt! FLAMBERGE reels, and Ria pounces, bouncing him off the ropes and yanking him into a sit-out uranage slam! She makes the cover…
ONE!
TWO!
SHOULDER UP!
FLAMBERGE is up quickly and fires off some right hands into Ria, Irish whipping her into the ropes. Nightshade hits the buckle hard but ducks an attempted Pele kick by FLAMBERGE. Ria spins to the middle of the canvas, waiting for her opponent to come at her. FLAMBERGE races over, Ria jumps up and connects with a sit down uranage! She doesn’t go for a pin. Instead, Nightshade bounces off the ropes and lands a leg drop. She’s about to pop back to her feet when FLAMBERGE grabs her arms and turns it into a backslide pin.
ONE.
TWO.
KICKOUT.
FLAMBERGE and Nightshade are on their feet. They exchange a fury of punches and kicks, neither backing down but also neither of them gaining the advantage. Nightshade ducks a lariat attempt, bounces off the ropes and hits FLAMBERGE with a springboard elbow smash. She tosses FLAMBERGE into a corner and races in with a handspring elbow smash and then a bulldog to get out of the corner. Once again, Ria tries to keep things going. She finds the ropes, FLAMBERGE leaps to his feet and nails a Pele kick under Nightshade’s jaw.
German suplex follows. Bridge. Pin.
ONE.
TWO.
RIA ROLLS THROUGH.
Nightshade kicks FLAMBERGE but he blocks it. He finds a high angle hip toss, then tosses Nightshade into the ropes and performs a roundhouse kick. FLAMBERGE waits on his opponent to rise…
Nick Stuart: I think the Frenchman is looking to close things out here.
He races towards Ria with the axe kick but she moves! Nightshade tries for a suplex but FLAMBERGE blocks it, standing switches and lands another German suplex. He pops to his feet and rifles a fury of kicks into Nightshade’s skull. This is followed by dragging Ria up and knocking her back down with a hard out headbutt.
FLAMBERGE slides into position for the guillotine choke!
Richard Parker: Does he have the hold applied!?
Nick Stuart: No! Ria Nightshade is in the ropes!
FLAMBERGE lets go of the half submission he wasn’t able to lock in yet. He waits for Ria to turn around and then dropkicks her in the shoulder. Nightshade bounces off the ropes from the impact and right into an exploder suplex!
FLAMBERGE looks for a triangle choke but Ria’s in the ropes again. The France native slides back to the center of the ring but the moment Nightshade is up…
He boots her with another roundhouse kick.
Nick Stuart: That knocked the spit out of her!
FLAMBERGE follows with a judo throw… followed by another… and another…
Nick Stuart: He’s totally overwhelming Ria right now!
But Nightshade is showing fight. Each time she’s tossed across the ring, she gets back on her feet. Ria, eventually, escapes a judo throw, looks for a kick of her own but it’s caught.
Nick Stuart: There it is! Just like that, FLAMBERGE has the guillotine choke applied!
Nightshade falls to the mat but she refuses to submit. FLAMBERGE has her dead to rights in the center of the ring. She’s fading… fading… fading…
She moves an inch closer to the ropes! FLAMBERGE’s eyes go wide as he tries to reposition so she can’t move anymore.
Richard Parker: Only so much time you can spend in a move like this!
The color commentator is right. There’s only so much time… and Ria Nightshade is running out of it.
She reaches forward. She’s nowhere near the ropes. The referee slides into position and checks on her. He raises her arm.
Nick Stuart: Ria is out!
DING DING DING
Vince Howard: The winner of this match via submission… FLAMBERGE!
Nick Stuart: Solid win by FLAMBERGE but a hell of a fight put up by Ria Nightshade!
FLAMBERGE’s arm is raised as ReVival goes to commercial.