Carnival Cavalcade Wrestling
CCW Chaos, episode #12: Corrections and Resolutions
In the commissioner’s office…
With Duke Derringer standing, arms crossed, to one side of his desk and Zehra, in her ever-present beaded black bra top and harem pants, sitting on the other side of the desk, legs crossed. Hollander grins up at the three women — Gothica, Jessica Kelly, and Chloe Suzuki, all dressed to wrestle — standing opposite.
HOLLANDER: “Ladies, I was disappointed in all of you last week. The main event was supposed to be between Tiana Miles and Cassie Rae. It was not supposed to be a Pack reunion.”
GOTHICA: “It was a Hardcore Match (shrugs) No DQ.”
CHLOE: “Yeah, also, aren’t you glad Tiana is finally gone for good?”
HOLLANDER: “Tiana was a ratings boon for this company, Ms. Suzuki. Cassie Rae, on the other hand, does nothing but give you underneath girls bad ideas.”
JESSICA: “What does that mean?”
GOTHICA: “It means he wants us to be cute and sexy and get killed in all our matches. And Cassie knows we can be more.”
HOLLANDER (laughs): “Is that why, Ms. New Underneath Contract, you’re 0-15 in CCW, with your last humiliating defeat coming at the hands of the very Cassie Rae you helped bail out last week?”
GOTHICA: “That loss saved me in ways you’ll never understand, commissioner, exactly because it was Cassie Rae who beat me.”
HOLLANDER (licking Gothica’s body with his gaze): “Well, you sure looked good losing to her, my little slave girl.”
Zehra, Chloe, and Jessica stiffen. Gothica, her voice even, holds Hollander’s lascivious gaze.
GOTHICA: “I’m not your slave anymore.”
HOLLANDER: “Yet I can still put you wherever I want you on the card. Make you wrestle whoever I’d like to see destroy you…humiliate you.”
The other three girls exchange uncomfortable glances. Even Derringer shifts his weight, uneasy.
Gothica, folding her arms, doesn’t blink.
GOTHICA: “Go for it.”
HOLLANDER (sitting back): “Tonight, you will go one-one-one with The Iron Maiden. (grins) Maybe she’ll make you her slave.”
Chloe and Jessica look to Gothica, whose gaze remains locked with the commissioner.
GOTHICA: “Anything else?”
HOLLANDER: “No, you’re dismissed. I look forward to seeing you go to 0-16 tonight.”
Gothica turns on her heel and leaves. Hollander’s gaze, and grin, zero-in on Jessica.
HOLLANDER: “I think you all should be…corrected tonight, so, Ms. Kelly, I will assign you a suitable partner and you will face the CCW tag team champions — All-American Amy Steel and BRICKHOUSE — in a match tonight. Non-title, or course.”
JESSICA (nodding): “I look forward to the opportunity. Thank you, commissioner.”
Hollander’s jaw clenches.
HOLLANDER: “You’re dismissed.”
Jessica shares a quick hand squeeze with Chloe, then heads out.
The commissioner smiles at Chloe; hands folded over his domed belly.
HOLLANDER: “Ms. Suzuki.”
CHLOE (nods): “Commissioner…”
HOLLANDER: “I understand the company has paid for a procedure to remove the Pack symbol that was…marked on you?”
CHLOE: “Yes. (she pivots, showing him the spot above her hip crest) There’s still a mark there, but you can’t tell what it was…or how bad it was.”
HOLLANDER: “And… (he gestures at Chloe) those marks where Outlaw Annie Hook whipped you.”
Chloe looks at the floor in front of her toes.
CHLOE: “I know you can still see them.”
Derringer shakes his head. Zehra looks at the empty chaise lounge in the corner of the room.
HOLLANDER: “I can indeed. You’ve been through quite a lot, even for a CCW underneath girl, Ms. Suzuki. Whipped, kidnapped, branded, and that’s to say nothing of the matches you’ve lost.”
CHLOE: “I still want to be here.”
HOLLANDER (smiles, eyes rolling): “Oh, the Cassie Rae of it all. All right, Ms. Suzuki, tonight, you will face the former tag team champions, The Coal Miner’s Daughters, who I understand have been furious ever since they lost those titles.”
CHLOE: “OK… (her toes curl into the plush carpet) Do I get to have a partner?”
HOLLANDER: “Of course. As a matter fact, you get…her.”
Zehra, realizing Hollander is pointing at her, sits up straight.
ZEHRA: “Me?”
HOLLANDER: “Of course you, my little dancer girl. You think I didn’t see you in there too, helping Cassie Rae keep her pathetic career alive? Go stand over there with your partner where you belong.”
Zehra slides off the desk and, hands clasped in front of her, shuffles around the desk to stand a yard from Chloe.
HOLLANDER: “Look at them, Duke. Our exotic, sexy little underneath girls teaming up against the very American, very angry Coal Miner’s Daughters. Don’t they look beautiful?”
DERRINGER: “Of course.”
HOLLANDER: “Mmmm, yes, sexy little girls from far-off lands. The crowd is going to love it. And so will I.”
In the underneath locker room…
Melora O’Brien, Riley Slade, and Josie Myer are gathered around the bench away from the lockers, locked in conversation. Shauna Carson is just outside the circle, listening to everything.
Across the room at her open locker, Teresa Salazar pulls her black singlet up past her taped ribs with a minimum of grimacing and grunting.
The others steal a glance at Teresa here and there, Melora shakes her head at one point. Josie, after a longer look, walks across the room in her ring gear and flip-flops. The others watch her, eyes and mouths wide open.
JOSIE: “Hey.”
Teresa looks up, already sneering, and rolls her eyes.
TERESA: “I’ve got a contract that says I dress in here. So, until I can get the hell out of the here, I’m gonna dress in here, whether the clubhouse kids like it or not.”
JOSIE: “I came over because I want to talk to you for a second. May I sit?”
TERESA: “I don’t really care what you have to say, so no.”
JOSIE: “OK, I’ll stand. I wanted to tell you, while I’m not sure what you did in Sunny’s match with Scarlett is something I’d do, I also know I’m not you, I haven’t lived your life, and I know you did what you did because you felt you had to. And I don’t blame you for that.”
TERESA (fixes Josie with a look): “I don’t give a shit if you blame me or not. Go back to the sewing circle.”
Teresa waves her away, but Josie straddles the bench and sits near Teresa instead.
JOSIE: “This is wrestling. And I know you want to be a star here. I do too. I don’t think you need anyone to forgive you for what you did. And I’m not even sure I’m saying what I want to say clearly. I just…I have a lot of respect for you, Teresa. Still. Because you’re a strong, passionate woman who loves this sport. And I know that’s why you did what you did in that match.”
Teresa stares at the open bag between her legs, then steals a glance at Josie.
TERESA: “Three weeks ago, after Jessica and I beat the Russians, they sent you out to get buried by what looked to me like a fucking Nazi. And she buried you.”
Josie, feet sliding in and out of her flip-flops, stares at the bench between them.
JOSIE: “Yeah…”
TERESA: “I know a lot of girls, women, who would never set foot in this building again after that match. After what they did to you. But you’re here, and you’re wrestling tonight.”
JOSIE: “Yeah.”
Teresa turns toward Josie, who meets her gaze.
TERESA: “So maybe you’re right, you would never have nailed Sunny with those knucks and cost her a Tri-County title match. But if you’re saying you see me for the woman I am, and you respect me, well…maybe I’m saying the same thing about you.”
JOSIE (smiles): “That means a lot.”
TERESA: “So did you crossing this locker room.”
They share a nod, then Josie goes back to the group, where Melora meets her with a furrowed brow.
MELORA: “What did you say to her?”
JOSIE: “Basically, that I still respect her.”
The others throw incredulous glances around.
RILEY: “Jo, how could you respect her, after what she did to Sunny?”
JOSIE: “You guys ever think about what you’re gonna do the night you’re standing across the ring from Sunny?”
Now it’s an uneasy look that jumps from face to face.
JOSIE: “I’m gonna try to win.”
In the arena…
Chloe Suzuki and Zehra are already in the ring for the opening match. Chloe stretches, trying to psyche herself up, get ready to compete. This is her first match in five weeks, and her first match since getting the Pack symbol — later discovered to be Tiana Miles’ initials — removed from her belly above the hip. Chloe soaks up the catcalls and wolf whistles from the crowd, something she’s always loved.
Next to her, Zehra is miserable.
ZEHRA: “I will say I’m sorry now, Chloe.”
CHLOE (freezes mid-stretch): “For what?”
ZEHRA (shrugs): “When I wrestle, I’m always the loser.”
CHLOE (head tilted, almost smiling): “That’s…probably not going to change in this match. We just have to try to do our best. But these girls just lost the tag straps, so…”
ZEHRA: “Also, I’m sorry for what was done to you by The Pack. I’m…ashamed I was part of that group.”
CHLOE (shaking her head): “I remember enough to know Tiana was the reason for what happened to me. (lays a hand on Zehra’s back) Right now, we’re a team. We have to try to survive this match, OK? I’m gonna need you.”
ZEHRA (nods): “Yes, OK. We will try to win.”
CHLOE (chuckles): “I didn’t say win. I said survive.”
The Tale of the Tape
Chloe Suzuki is 20, 5’, 115lbs with black hair and hazel eyes. An underneath girl with a 1-6 record, she wrestles barefoot in a red bra top, red booty shorts, and red wrist and ankle tape. Zehra is 25, 5’6”, 130lbs, with dark brown hair and green eyes. She wrestles barefoot in a beaded black bra top and black harem pants. She’s 0-8. The Coal Miner’s Daughters, a star team, have matching 7-2 records. Shannon is 25, 5’8”, 150lbs, with brown hair and hazel eyes. She wrestles in gray denim overalls, a red bra top, and black work boots. Brianna is 23, 5’8”, 150lbs with brown hair and hazel eyes. She wrestles in gray denim overalls, a blue bra top, and black work boots.
Ring announcer Jimmy Swift gives The Daughters a big star intro, and Shannon and Brianna, pretty, powerful, make their way down the aisle. They get a good reaction, but this is the first match for the Daughters since they were decisively defeated for the tag team championship and they are all business as they climb into the ring.
If ever there was a classic mismatch, this is it. Though she’s easily the fastest wrestler on the roster, and one of the most agile, Chloe is also the smallest CCW girl, and her lack of ring time lately has left her slightly soft around the edges. And Zehra has always been more about sex appeal and wild-girl sensuality than wrestling ability or fitness.
Two “sexy little girls from far-off lands,” as the commissioner put it, served up to two determined, angry ex-champs from the American heartland. This is CCW at its traditional, sadistic best/worst.
Referee Jessie Motley calls for the bell.
The Coal Miner’s Daughters vs. Chloe Suzuki & Zehra
The underneath girls try — Chloe with her speed, Zehra with her nails and kicks — but this is a pure showcase for The Coal Miner’s Daughters and they know it. They also know enough not to take anything for granted, so they treat their overmatched opponents with respect, but then Shannon picks Chloe out of the air when she comes off the second rope with a cross-body block at 1:43 and drives her into the mat with a standing powerslam.
Chloe, all the air driven from her, gasps and writhes on the canvas and it’s all Daughters from there. But, in a departure from their past adherence to earnest competition and down-home fair play, something changes.
Shannon and Brianna take their time with Chloe and Zehra, casually picking them apart, twisting and bending them to make them scream, torturing them with big power moves that could easily defeat then, only to pull their shoulders from the mat after the two-count, much to the referee’s frustration.
By the 4:02 mark, Chloe and Zehra are defeated ragdolls, bellies heaving, moaning, whimpering, helpless to defend themselves, much less muster any offense. And though Brianna and Shannon have taken their time, dismantling and humiliating their victims, they’ve never smiled, they’ve never laughed.
By 4:52, Chloe and Zehra are both in the ring, flat on their backs, barely conscious. Shannon pulls Chloe to her feet, makes the tag, and holds the beautiful, defeated Okinawan up for Brianna to demolish with the Coal Miner’s Clothesline, the Daughters’ finisher. Not satisfied, Brianna yanks Zehra up by the hair, holds her up, then tags Shannon back in for a second Coal Miner’s Clothesline, this one knocking the sexy Turk out cold.
With Zehra dead weight on the canvas, Shannon grabs Chloe’s wrists, drags her across the mat, and drapes her, face up, across Zehra’s stomach. Laid out spread-eagle, head hanging back, long black hair spread in a halo on the canvas, Chloe looks like the ritual sacrifice she is as Shannon presses a black work boot to her bare belly.
Chloe groans — her fingers and toes curling, then relaxing out — as Brianna stands alongside Shannon, brawny arms folded, completing the tableau of overwhelming conquest. Referee Motley counts a quick 1-2-3 and calls for the bell at 5:51.
Emphatically re-establishing themselves as a power team, both Coal Miner’s Daughters improve to 8-2. Not so much defeated as destroyed, Chloe and Zehra fall to 1-7 and 0-9 respectively.
Some in the crowd, the old-schoolers who love the degradation of the old CCW, give The Coal Miner’s Daughters a standing ovation. For the rest of the crowd, it’s a cold, quizzical buzz as the referee raises their hands and Shannon and Brianna leave the ring, never having said a word or cracked a smile, even in victory.
In the underneath locker room…
Teresa remains at her locker while Melora, Josie, and Shauna watch the monitor, where referee Jessie Motley and a ring attendant are helping Chloe and Zehra slowly roll out of the ring.
MELORA: “Jesus, I’ve never seen Shannon and Brianna act like that.”
JOSIE: “They did just lose the tag titles. (shrugs) I’m not surprised they’re angry. If that’s what it is…”
SHAUNA (sliding her hands down her sides): “They looked really hot though.”
MELORA: “You thought so? They’re pretty girls, of a sort, but they’re always out there in those overalls. I never thought they looked especially s-”
JOSIE (smiling): “She means Chloe and Zehra. Don’t you?”
SHAUNA: “Yeah. I know they got beat up pretty bad but, all piled up like that? (shivers) Wow.”
Josie, hand over her mouth, smiles at Melora’s furrowed brow.
SHAUNA: “What?”
In the commissioner’s office…
Hollander and Derringer watch their monitor, where referee Motley and the ring attendant help Zehra up the aisle with Chloe staggering under her own power behind them.
HOLLANDER: “Go make sure Zehra is brought back here. No trainer’s room. I want her in here…weak.”
DERRINGER (hides his rolling eyes): “You got it.”
He heads out.
HOLLANDER: “And Duke…”
Derringer turns.
HOLLANDER: “Have your guards sweep the arena for Jules Moreno. I have a feeling she’s not here. (clenches his fist) And I have a worse feeling I know where she is.”
In the arena…
Jessica Kelly and Riley Slade are already in the ring for the next match. Jessica is determined, ready, stretching. Riley looks like she’s about to take her driver’s license road test to the dentist.
RILEY: “I swear to God, I feel like the office is still punishing me for beating Tiana. It was a dang month ago. And Tiana doesn’t even work here anymore.”
Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.
JESSICA: “We’re all getting punished tonight. With Cassie and Sunny given the week off and Deputy Commissioner Moreno not here either, it’s basically open season on the rest of us.”
RILEY (rubbing her tight little belly): “Living that underneath life…”
JESSICA: “Yup.”
The Tale of the Tape
Jessica Kelly is 23, 5’4”, 125lbs, with light brown hair and blue eyes. She wrestles in a backless blue singlet, blue knee pads, and white boots. An underneath girl, she is currently 2-8. The youngest wrestler on the roster, Riley Slade is 19, 5’4”, 115lbs, with light brown hair and hazel eyes. An underneath girl with an 1-8 record, she wrestles in a tee-shirt knotted into a crop top, cutoff booty jean shorts, and white Skippy sneakers. They are the opponents for the tag team champions. All-American Amy Steel, a star, enters with a record of 16-3. She is 26, 5’8”, 160lbs, with dirty-blonde hair and blue eyes. She wrestles in a garish, patriotic-themed bra top with matching short shorts, knee pads, and boots. BRICKHOUSE, a brawling star, is her partner. She’s 28, 5’9”, 160lbs, with dyed dark-red hair and green eyes. Her record is 20-4. She wrestles in a black, sleeveless bodysuit with a brick pattern down the front and red & black boots.
Amy Steel’s obnoxious music is already blaring when Jimmy Swift introduces the tag team champions, who come to ring without a care in the world. They soak up the contempt most of the crowd is giving them, but BRICKHOUSE pauses along the aisle to pose with one older guy who’s way into the tag champs…and what they’re about to do.
In the ring, Jessica stares, hand on her hips, and shakes her head. She’s a good, strong, skilled young wrestler…but this is a tag match and her partner is a developing rookie. Plus, neither she nor Riley can match power or size with Steel or BRICKHOUSE. Jessica puts her arm around Riley and gives her a little squeeze.
With the champs in the ring and Steel salivating at their opposition, a wolfish grin in her pretty face, referee Clark Sierra calls for the bell.
Non-Title Match
All-American Amy Steel & BRICKHOUSE vs. Jessica Kelly & Riley Slade
Jessica starts with Steel, and it’s clear immediately this isn’t going to the be the night for an underneath miracle. Jessica barely resists as the All-American monster takes over on her and wears her out with power moves and a few tight holds designed to make Jessica scream.
And she does.
Bored, Steel makes the tag, and BRICKHOUSE assumes control of Jessica, battering her to the mat with fists and sledgehammer forearms. Jessica fires a few shots to BRICKHOUSE’S midsection as she’s pulled to her feet. They’re weak, ineffective punches from a weakened girl, but BRICKHOUSE makes Jessica pay nonetheless with a hard knee lift to her solar plexus that leaves Kelly red-faced and gasping.
In the corner, Riley tries to fire Jessica up to fight back, then begs for a tag, but people are starting to use the match to hit the restrooms.
Steel wants the tag back in, but BRICKHOUSE doesn’t see the need. She hoists Jessica up, parades her around a bit, then buries her in the canvas with a running powerslam, a BRICKHOUSE classic.
Jessica, belly heaving, splattered out spread-eagle, offers nothing as BRICKHOUSE, on one knee, presses four fingertips to her chest for the 1-2-3 and the annihilation victory at 2:03.
The effortless win makes Steel 17-3 and BRICKHOUSE a company best 21-4. Jessica falls to 2-9. Riley, standing on the apron, drops to 1-9.
The tag champs, happy enough with the easy victory, get their hands raised and head out as Riley kneels over the defeated Jessica, a hand on her stomach.
RILEY: “Breathe, babe. Why didn’t you tag me? You didn’t have to take all that.”
Jessica, grimacing, writhing, manages a smile between breaths.
JESSICA: “This…was never gonna be…our night….”
She gets her hand up off the mat and offers it to Riley, who grabs it with both of hers.
JESSICA: “Living that…underneath life.”
In the commissioner’s office…
Duke Derringer comes through the door, his gaze immediately goes to the far corner, where Zehra, still in her gear, is lying on her side on the chaise lounge facing the wall, knees and feet together.
Behind the too-big desk, Hollander traces the security chief’s line of sight.
HOLLANDER: “Did you find Moreno?”
DERRINGER (still looking at Zehra): “No, my men have been everywhere. She’s not in the arena. I haven’t seen Cassie Rae or Sunny Austin either.”
HOLLANDER: “Moreno wanted them to have the week off. I was fine with it, but now I wonder if maybe they’re not all in the same place.”
DERRINGER (nods at Zehra): “What’s with her?”
HOLLANDER: “She was still pretty beat up when they brought her back here. I let her lay down and I think she fell asleep. (shrugs) I can still look, though. That’s some ass on her, huh?”
DERRINGER: “Right. Anything else for now, Hollis?”
HOLLANDER: “No… (eyes narrow, fingers steeple) But I do wonder, Duke, you don’t know where Deputy Commissioner Moreno is tonight, do you?”
DERRINGER (smoothing his broad mustache with two thick fingers): “Of course not. If I did, I would tell you.”
HOLLANDER: “You would tell me because we go way back.”
DERRINGER: “Of course.”
HOLLANDER: “You would tell me because I gave you this job when you couldn’t get booked as anything but a one-off underneath opponent anymore.”
DERRINGER (hands on his hips): “Yes. I would.”
HOLLANDER: “OK. (smiles) Nothing else for now.”
Derringer leaves. Hollander waits until he’s sure the security chief is gone, then hits the intercom on his phone.
HOLLANDER: “Ms. Nepperhan?”
NEPPERHAN [filtered]: “Yes, Commissioner Hollander.”
HOLLANDER: “Get me Bob Axelrod at the state athletic commission, will you? Tell him it’s…semi-urgent.”
At the Sideshow Stage…
In front of the new CCW interview backdrop, Wink McLean, already shaking his head, which dislodges zero hairs, stands between The Coal Miner’s Daughters, who, despite their dominant win in the opening match, still aren’t smiling.
MCLEAN: “Shannon, Brianna, you cruised to an easy victory tonight, so congratulations for that. But I have to ask, what is with this new harsh, uncompromising attitude in the ring? You didn’t just defeat your opponents, you demolished them.”
BRIANNA: “Well, Wink McLean, you said the word just then; uncompromising. My sister and I have been compromising the entire time we’ve been in CCW. We’ve compromised our values. We’ve compromised what our daddy taught us growing up, and we’ve compromised what we’re capable of doing in that ring. (fixes him with a glare) But no more.”
MCLEAN: “When you say compromising your values, what exactly does that mean?”
SHANNON: “Listen, we know Chloe Suzuki has been through a lot in this company. We’re not saying she deserved to be kidnapped or branded by The Pack, but I got my neck slashed by The Pack, anybody still remember that? No? Maybe that’s because Brianna and I aren’t running around this place seven-eighths naked.”
MCLEAN: “That’s what you’re angry about, the way some of the wrestlers here dress?”
BRIANNA: “We’re angry about the distinct lack of morality in this place, especially in that underneath-girl locker room. Seems like everything in CCW is about them. And why? Because girls like Chloe Suzuki and Sunny Austin are running around with no clothes on. Have any of those girls ever been champions, Wink?”
MCLEAN: “No, they haven’t.”
SHANNON: “Well we were tag-team champions for this company, for a long time, and it seems like these fans out here have already forgotten that. So, yeah, maybe they’ll remember what we did to Chloe and that belly dancer, or whatever she is, for a while.”
MCLEAN: “Coal Miner’s Daughters, you’ve always been stalwart, upstanding wrestlers in this company. Isn’t it possible you’re just…upset you were defeated for the tag team titles?”
The Daughters stare McLean down until he steps from between them and out of the shot. They both look into the camera.
BRIANNA: “No more compromise.”
In the arena…
Teresa Salazer is already in the ring for the next match. Her ribs wrapped in a wide swath under her singlet, Teresa bounces and dances in her corner, stretching, trying to psyche herself up for her first singles match since Scarlett Jackson defeated her for a chance at the Tri-County Championship.
Scarlett won the title, then gave the first shot at it to Sunny Austin.
Teresa flexes the fingers of her right hand and allows herself a little smile. She took Sunny’s title shot away with some well-placed brass knuckles but, with a 2-7 record, Teresa knows she won’t get anywhere near a title shot herself without some more wins.
No matter what it takes.
Tale of the Tape
Teresa Salazar is an underneath girl. She is 44, 5’8”, 135lbs, with brown hair and brown eyes. She wrestles in a backless, black singlet, cut high over her hips, black knee pads, and black boots with a blood-red flame pattern embroidered in them. Hannah Hammer is a star with an 9-2 record. She is 23, 5’7”, 160lbs, with brown hair and hazel eyes. She wrestles in short denim overalls, a yellow tee, and brown work boots.
Hannah pinned Teresa decisively in Salazar’s CCW debut, so there’s no lack of confidence as she makes her way to the ring, smiling, shaking hands, her usual jovial self. After losing to Sunny Austin in Sunny’s first singles win, Hannah rebounded by crushing Shauna Carson in less than two minutes.
Looking as stout and strong as ever, Hannah gives Teresa a nod as she moves to her corner. Teresa, breathing deeply, gives it back.
Referee Randy Hickman calls for the bell.
Hannah Hammer vs. Teresa Salazar
Despite a 21-year age difference in Hannah’s favor, Teresa is faster than Hannah and a far more skilled wrestler, but she can’t come close to matching power with the strapping Hammer, who shrugs off the few holds Teresa tries to apply.
By the 3:33 mark, Teresa is getting winded. Hannah isn’t. By 4:33, Teresa’s cracked rib is giving her trouble, slowing her down. Hannah’s ribs are fine.
At 5:03, Hannah corrals Teresa in the corner and drives fists and knees into her stomach, highlighting the one thing Teresa dreaded making its way around the locker room since she arrived: She can’t take it in the belly.
Yes, Teresa’s abs were shredded by a sloppy C-section 20 years ago, but no one, even gladhanding Hannah Hammer, can be expected to know that, or take it easy on Teresa’s midsection if they did know. So, Hannah pounds away and Teresa cries out with each blow, the blunt force a series of stabs in Teresa’s tender middle.
The referee warns Hannah to get Teresa out of the corner, then starts a DQ count. Hannah, smiling, looks to whip Teresa the other corner but, concentrating through the fire in her stomach, Teresa reverses and it’s Hannah who hits the buckles hard.
Staggering, Teresa returns to the corner and unties the top turnbuckle pad. The referee is on to her immediately.
HICKMAN: “Come on, Salazar, what’re you doing? Get your hands off the pad. One…two…three…”
Teresa works the pad off and drops it on the mat.
TERESA (shrugging, grinning): “Ooops.”
The referee, sneering, snatches the pad from the canvas and starts retying it.
Teresa, contorting her arm, reaches behind her back.
Shaking her head, Hannah gets a head of steam and charges in, looking to spear Teresa right in the gut.
Grimacing with the effort, Teresa barely clears Hannah with a leapfrog. Hannah hits the ropes as Teresa slips on the brass knuckles she pulled from under her rib wrap and drills Hannah in the face with her loaded right hand, laying her out on the mat. Teresa slips the knucks off and heaves them into the rafters while the crowd is still reacting to what she did.
Referee Hickman, satisfied with the replaced turnbuckle pad, turns around as Teresa falls across Hannah’s chest and shoulders. He counts the 1-2-3 and calls for the bell at 6:15.
Her abs burning, her eyes tearing, her lips pulled into a big smile, Teresa rolls off Hannah and out of the ring and trots up aisle as Jimmy Swift announces her the winner.
Teresa steals one, she’s now 3-7. Hannah has lost two upsets in her last three matches. She’s falls to 9-3.
In the underneath locker room…
On the long bench away from the lockers, Chloe and Shauna, both in their ring gear, are in close conversation.
Melora and Josie watch the little, cracked monitor, where the referee is trying to revive Hannah Hammer, clearly wondering how she got knocked out in the first place.
MELORA: “Teresa strikes again. And she got away with it again.”
JOSIE (kind of smiling): “Yep.”
MELORA: “I can’t imagine what’s got into her. She was such an ally to Cassie and Sunny for a while there.”
JOSIE: “I don’t think anything’s got into her. I think she’d tell you she’s still Cassie and Sunny’s ally.”
MELORA: “She would? Is that what she told you in your little meeting earlier?”
JOSIE: “Mel, we’re not all coming at this from the same angle. Teresa does things differently than you or I would, but that’s because she’s lived her life. Y’know?”
MELORA: “I’m keepin’ my eye on her, that’s all I can tell you. (hands on hips) What about you, babe? You ready for Scarlett tonight?”
JOSIE: “I’m ready to learn from her. That’s exciting.”
Over on the long bench, Chloe stretches her back, groaning, her face twisted with residual pain. Shauna’s lower lip puckers.
SHAUNA: “Ugh, poor baby. That high-impact stuff kills me too.”
CHLOE: “Sometimes it really sucks being this cute and small. (chuckles) Especially the small part.”
SHAUNA: “I hope it’s OK if I say, but I think you’re so beautiful. And the crowd loves you.”
CHLOE (twisting, trying to get comfortable): “Heh, well thank you, but the crowd loves to see me get killed. There’s a difference.”
SHAUNA: “I dunno… (grins) Is there?”
In the arena…
A table draped in a lovely red cloth between two chairs is set up in ring. A clipboard with a document on it is perfectly centered on the table.
Wink McLean, as tuxedoed as men get, and Commissioner Hollander, all smiles, thumbs hooked in the pockets of his suit vest, stand in front of the setup.
MCLEAN: “Ladies and gentlemen, it is now time to sign the contract for the Carnival Cavalcade Wrestling Championship steel cage match. Joining me to preside is the esteemed commissioner of CCW, Hollis Hollander.”
Hollander bows as most the crowd pillories him with boos.
MCLEAN: “Introducing first, the challenger, Outlaw Annie Hook!”
With her gravelly western theme playing and The Cowgirl Sisters flanking her, Annie Hook makes her way down the aisle, sneering at most fans, smiling at a few. The group now formally known as The Posse climbs into the ring, where Diamond and Platinum pick and poke at McLean while The Outlaw exchanges pleasantries with the commissioner.
MCLEAN (swatting the Cowgirls’ hands off him): “And her opponent…she is the CCW champion, Betty Magnum!”
Big reaction for Betty as she strides to the ring, all business in her denim-patterned bra top and leggings, with cowboy style wrestling boots and the title belt around her waist. She hops through the ropes, stares her way past Hook and Hollander, then walks right through the Cowgirls, who try to block her path to the corner. Betty climbs to the second turnbuckle and soaks it up from the crowd as Hook and McLean move Diamond and Platinum away from her.
With The Posse to one side of him and Betty on the other, Hollander steps forward, mic in hand.
HOLLANDER: “Ladies, you can take seats or not, it’s up to you. We’re here to make the steel-cage match for the CCW championship official. And I would remind you both, in this match, escaping the cage is not a path to victory. In order to win, you must pin your opponent or make her submit…in the ring.”
Hook sidles up to Hollander and takes his mic.
HOOK: “Thank you for making this match as I requested it, Commissioner Hollander. And thank you for the wonderful job you do running this company. (she steps past him) Betty Magnum, you heard the man. You won’t be able to run away from me. Your friends won’t be able to screw me and help you win. Come that cage match, it’ll be you…and me. One fall to a finish. (grinning) Sorry about your luck, darlin.’”
Betty, smiling, looks at McLean, who hands his mic over.
BETTY: “Annie Hook, you’re a joke. You talk about fairness and takin’ me on one-on-one, but you’re the one runnin’ around with these busted Barbies. You’re the one who’s gotten DQ’d in both our matches so far. You’re the one who stole this belt from me and defaced it. (she pulls the title off and holds it up in Hook’s face) I went through three tough, strong women to earn this championship, and if you think the four walls of a cage are going to keep me from getting help to beat you, you’re dead wrong. (she steps into Hook’s face) Those four walls…are gonna trap you in this ring with me.”
The crowd cheers as Betty, smiling, lays the title on the table and picks up the contract. She signs it.
Diamond makes a grab for the belt, but Betty pulls it away from her. Platinum comes in from behind, but Betty turns and smashes her face with the CCW title.
McLean and Hollander bail as The Outlaw charges. Betty drops the title and belly-to-belly suplexes Hook through the table.
The crowd roars as Magnum picks up her championship, then the clipboard. She slings the former over her shoulder, then drops the latter on what’s left of The Outlaw, crumpled in a heap in the ruins of the red-draped table. Betty stares a hole into Diamond, kneeling next to her KO’d sister, and heads up the aisle, smiling, laughing, holding the CCW title aloft.
In the underneath locker room…
Melora, Josie, Jessica, Chloe, Riley, and Shauna celebrate what Betty Magnum just did. Across the room, Teresa sits in front of her open locker.
Josie, in her gear and flip-flops, breaks away from the group and, still smiling, heads for the door.
TERESA: “Hey.”
Josie stops.
JOSIE: “Hey. (smirks) Good win.”
TERESA: “Thanks.”
JOSIE: “Y’know, Sunny got her first singles win over Hannah Hammer.”
TERESA (smiling all sly): “I do know.”
JOSIE: “Can’t imagine it wasn’t that win that justified Sunny’s Tri-County title shot to the office.”
TERESA (sits up): “Bitch, you’ve got your head screwed on right. Anyone ever tell you that?”
JOSIE: “Actually, no. (smiles) But isn’t wrestling fucking amazing?”
TERESA: “It is.”
Smiling, Josie turns to the door. Teresa stands.
TERESA: “Josie.”
With Melora and Jessica watching from the monitor, Teresa steps over the bench and draws close to Josie.
TERESA: “I know you’ve got your head right about wrestling Scarlett…but this is your first match since that fucking Nazi they fed you to, right?”
JOSIE (warm smile): “It is. But I’m good. Not gonna say that wasn’t a horrible night for me, it was. But, between us, I think the office, at least part of it, knows that match went too far.”
TERESA: “All right, babe. I won’t keep you. Go get ready.”
JOSIE (smiling, little salute): “Yes, ma’am.”
TERESA: “Hey, one more thing? Scarlett is a great fucking wrestler — don’t tell her I said that — but she can be outsmarted.”
Josie gives Teresa a quick hug then heads out the door.
Teresa turns back to the lockers just in time to catch Melora looking away, returning her attention to the others. But Jessica accepts Teresa’s gaze, holds it a moment, and gives her a nod.
In the arena…
Gothica is already in the ring for the next match, her first under her new underneath-girl contract.
Last seen in a CCW ring getting pinned and humiliated in a black string bikini, Gothica is wearing an amalgam of her previous looks as she stands in her corner, shifting her weight from foot to foot. She’s in a backless black singlet with the middle section shear and black knee pads. On her feet are the black, strappy, knee-length gladiator sandals she last wore when she wrestled as Aubrey Blackburn.
She’s still Gothica. She’s still in her dark makeup with her hair in a high ponytail. And she’s still determined to re-start her CCW career the right way. But for this match, she also knows she has a debt to pay, and the pain of paying it is going to be as intense as it is inevitable.
The Tale of the Tape
Entering with an 0-15 record, Gothica is 22, 5’4”, 135lbs, with dyed black hair and green eyes. A towering, powerful star, The Iron Maiden is 35, 6’, 175lbs, with dyed silver hair and gray eyes under mushroom cloud contacts. She wrestles in a black & silver, sleeveless, full-length bodysuit, a silver-studded black belt, and chunky two-tone black & silver boots. She’s 10-3.
Jimmy Swift gives Maiden a big, booming intro, and her big, booming music and pyro lead her to the ring. This is the first match for The Maiden in six weeks. She was last seen destroying Russian Farmhand Olga in short order. As she climbs through the ropes, Maiden fills the arena with her presence. She stares a hole through Gothica’s heart.
Gothica, small and cowed in her corner, grips the top rope in both hands. The last time these women were in the ring together, Gothica, then The Pack’s high priestess, drove a cattle prod into both The Iron Maiden’s arms, knocking her out.
Referee Roger Clayton, with a deep breath of his own, calls for the bell.
The Iron Maiden vs. Gothica
The wrestlers meet in the middle of the ring, Gothica looking up, but neither of them circle.
GOTHICA: “I owe you. I know that.”
MAIDEN: “More like I owe you.”
GOTHICA: “I’m sorry. That’s all I can say. I deserve whatever you want to do me.”
Rolling her eyes, Maiden drives her thick boot into Gothica’s soft belly, doubling her up, then splatters her on the mat with the Fallout Powerbomb. Shaking her head, she plants her boot on Gothica’s chest and gets the 1-2-3 from the referee, who calls for the bell at :44.
As everyone in the arena expected, Maiden is now 11-3. Gothica drops to 0-16, the worst record in the company.
With the crowd cheering her near-instant victory, The Iron Maiden gets her hand raised, gives the flattened Gothica a final glance, then heads up the aisle.
At the Sideshow Stage…
Wink McLean is with Jules Moreno, perfectly squared away in her blue power suit and heels.
MCLEAN: “Deputy Commissioner Moreno, you’ve been absent to this point in the show, but now you say you have a special announcement. What is it?”
JULES: “Wink, I’ve just come from-”
Hollander and two security guards burst into the frame.
HOLLANDER: “Where the hell have you been all show? That’s dereliction of duty, Ms. Moreno. I have a good mind to go to the board of directors and-”
JULES: “I’ve just been to the board of directors, Hollis. Tonight. In an emergency meeting.”
HOLLANDER: “What was…why wasn’t I…”
JULES: “Next week, you and I are going to appear in the ring for an evaluation from the board.”
Jules walks out of the shot.
MCLEAN: “An evaluation from the board of directors? That’s a major development. Commissioner Hollander, your reaction?”
Still glaring after Jules, Hollander shifts his gaze to McLean, fixes him with a nasty look, then walks out. The security guards follow.
MCLEAN (looking into the camera): “Fans, when was the last time you looked forward to an ‘evaluation’ from your bosses?”
In the arena…
Josie Myer is already in the ring for the next match, her first main event. She steps back out of her flip-flops and slides them under the bottom turnbuckle with her foot. Her breathing even and strong, her body toned and pliant, Josie stands, feet apart, hands on her hips, waiting to compete.
The Tale of the Tape
Josie Myer, an underneath girl with an 0-6 record, is 24, 5’6”, 125lbs, with a curly mop of dark brown hair and brown eyes. She wrestles barefoot in a plain, black sports bra and cuffed, gray, low-rise sweatpants. The current Tri-County Champion, Sizzlin’ Scarlett Jackson is a star with a 13-3 record. She is 26, 5’5”, 130lbs, with dyed bright-orange hair and light-brown eyes. She wrestles in a shiny orange & white bra top, shiny orange booty shorts, shiny white knee pads, and orange basketball sneakers with white highlights.
The crowd pops big for Scarlett’s music and intro, and the Tri-County Champion makes her way down the aisle with rhythm and smiles. She bounces up the ring steps, vaults over the top rope, and hands her title to referee Jack Blake.
Scarlett smiles across the ring as she adjusts her knee pads.
SCARLETT: “Kinda been looking forward to this.”
JOSIE (smiling, nodding): “Me too.”
SCARLETT: “Well all right, girl. (stretches, bounces in her corner) Let’s go.”
The referee calls for the bell.
Non-Title Match
Sizzlin’ Scarlett Jackson vs. Josie Myer
They circle, they bounce, they feint; two of the most agile wrestlers in CCW are going to work. But Scarlett is stronger, Scarlett is more skilled, Scarlett is a few steps faster, and it’s not long before she starts to wear Josie down with quick, hard strikes interspersed with a series of power moves. A body slam, a vertical suplex, and a gut-wrench suplex jar Josie’s spine, drive breath out of her, and drain her will to fight.
By the 3:43 mark, Josie knows she’s outclassed. In every way Josie is good, Scarlett is better. It’s only a matter of time; she is going to lose.
Unless…
At 4:02, Josie gets her arm up to block a right hand and, with a screeching scream, rakes Scarlett’s eyes.
SCARLETT: “Fuck…”
Screaming her throat raw, Josie uses her fists and feet to drive Scarlett into the corner, where she continues the barrage with everything she’s got left. Scarlett covers up, but the effects of Josie’s vicious eye rake leaves her unable to see what’s coming and the wild-haired underneath girl scores strikes at will.
Her breath getting ragged in her chest, Josie shifts gears. She works a perfect monkey flip out of the corner, sending Scarlett crashing to the mat on her back. Her body flush, surging, Josie jumps to the second rope, gets her feet set, and leaps. She lands a sharp elbow into Scarlett’s chest, driving air and a guttural groan from the Tri-County champion.
Scrambling, Josie snares Scarlett’s far leg and hooks it for the pin.
Referee Blake is in perfect position.
1…
2…
Scarlett bucks hard, using her free leg and abs, and gets her shoulders off the mat.
Unleashing another feral scream, Josie mounts Scarlett and looks to pound her head and chest, but the Tri-County champ uses her compact, muscly legs to hook Josie’s arms and take her over backward into a pinning combination. Before the referee can count, Scarlett rolls backward out of the pin, bounces to her feet, and blasts Josie in the face with a basement dropkick.
Josie sprawls on the canvas, stunned, dazed, her breathing shallow and labored.
Staggering slightly, Scarlett makes it to the corner, climbs to the top rope and soars, crushing Josie square with her SuperFly Splash. Josie has nothing left as Scarlett mounts her hips and pins her wrists to the mat over her head. Scarlett arches her back, pushing her hard abs into Josie’s toned, smooth stomach.
Josie groans her surrender, her head lolling to the side, as the referee tolls the 1-2-3 at 5:20.
The win moves the Tri-County champ to 14-3. Valiant and wily in defeat, Josie falls to 0-7.
The crowd cheers as Scarlett is announced the winner. She releases Josie and sits next to her on the canvas, forearms on her knees.
SCARLETT: “Goddamn, girl.”
Josie, panting, belly heaving, pulls her feet up to rest flat on the mat.
JOSIE: “I had to try…something. You’re…better than me.”
Scarlett shakes her head, smiling.
SCARLETT: “Lucky me.”
Scarlett gets to her feet and offers a hand to Josie, who takes it. The Tri-County champion pulls her defeated opponent to her feet, gives Josie a quick hug, then hops up on the second rope and gets her glory.
Referee Blake gives Josie a nod.
BLAKE: “Good match, Myer.”
Josie returns the nod, steps through the ropes and drops to the floor. She gathers her flip-flops from her corner and heads up the ramp, smiling, eyes glassy.
Fade Out
