The two combatant stand in opposite corners, readying up for the match ahead. Vladimir Strife adjusts his gloves before tucking his Sword of Mars necklace into his shirt and grabbing the ropes in the corner, leaning back while clutching them to stretch and limber up. Coming off of a brutal win over Maddox Paine in which he damn near cracked his skull open, there's little argument that Vladimir Strife fits the King of Xtreme tournament like a glove. On the other side of the ring Akira Kobayashi thrusts his newly won Cruiser-X Division championship into the hands of a ringside official before pulling the black towel he wears during his entrance off his head and draping it over the turnbuckle. After winning the Cruiser-X Division title at Endure 2014 Akira Kobayashi received a fairly mixed reaction, and his style isn't exactly one which best represents a division built on high fliers. This might explain Akira's refusal to even glance at the crowd, and the obvious scowl spread across his face as he adjusts his kick-pads one last time before the start of the match. The two turn away from their corners as the bell chimes to signal the start of the contest, and quickly it becomes clear that the crowd is split almost down the middle. As duelling "KO-BA-YASHI" and "STRIFE" chants fill their ears Akira and Vladimir move towards the centre of the ring, both having bent their knees slightly and put out their hands in preparation for grappling.

Cedar: I hate to ask, Joey, but what do you think this match is going to be like?

Miles: What do I think? It's too fucked up, blood thirsty psychos, stuck in a ring together with no disqualifications. Either of them'll be lucky to come out of this only beaten half to death!

Cedar: That's true, but remember that both men are experienced grapplers, not just brutes. This one's more likely to resemble an underground pit fight than a pro wrestling match, we know that for sure, but they could be smashing each others faces in on the mat or in the aisle!

The two circle around, looking for an opening as the crowd refuse to let up with the chants. Vladimir makes the first move, lurching forward and sweeping a hand down at Akira's leg. Akira quickly backs away, ensuring that he stays out of the range of Vladimir's take-down attempt. As Vladimir pulls his hands back Akira steps back in, throwing a low kick into his opponents leg with enough force to create a sound like a wooden cane cracking against a board as the strike hits home. The Romanian stands his ground, refusing to show anything more than a flinch in reaction to Akira's kick. Perhaps in anger at Vladimir's refusal to show any pain from the kick Akira moves in and again tries to kick his opponent low. This time Vladimir gets the better of it, taking the chance to side step Akira's kick and grab him in a rear waist lock. Vladimir grips around Akira's waist, interlocking his gloved fingers to create a vice that Akira finds himself unable to wriggle out of. The two tussle back and forth, with Vladimir using his strength advantage to keep Akira in the waist lock for a few seconds before sticking a leg out and tripping him down onto his hands and knees. Now underneath his opponent Akira rolls forward and reaches down, grabbing Vladimir's legs to turn the predicament into a victory roll style pin. Ryu Sanu drops to the mat, but before he can even count a one Vladimir rolls his weight backwards to put himself on top and push Akira down into a pinning position. Ryu Sanu slaps the mat for a two count before Akira can jerk a shoulder up, getting a loud reaction from the crowd who thought the match could have been over before it even started!

Cedar: Early near fall here, and I doubt many would be happy to see a King of Xtreme match end like that!

Vladimir gets to his feet but is caught by a lunging Akira, who wraps his arms around Vladimir's waist and powers him backwards into the corner with a shoulder driven into his stomach. Vladimir slams backfirst into the turnbuckle with enough force to make him jerk his head forward, but the impact doesn't prevent him from reaching down and hooking an arm around Akira's head. Feeling Vladimir wrap an arm around him Akira tries to pull backwards from the corner, but The GodKing follows him out while tightening up the front facelock and then leaping up at Akira. Vladimir wraps his legs up and around Akira's waist while dropping his weight backwards, locking in a guillotine choke while dragging Akira down to his knees. As his knees hit the mat Akira reaches his right hand up and starts trying to force it in between Vladimir's forearm and his own throat to relieve the pressure off of his throat. His face starts to redden as he desperately jams his hand up to his own throat, pushing Vladimir's arm away as he plants his own feet into the canvas and pushes up to rock Vladimir backwards. Bit by bit Akira straightens his legs out while pushing up, ending up pretty much in a standing position while bent forward with Vladimir still latched onto him trying to lock the choke back in. Akira tries to tug backwards, but Vladimir only tightens his grip to prevent his prey from escaping. Again Akira tugs, and this time Vladimir responds by releasing one arm from the choke and using it to batter Akira across his shoulder blades with downwards elbow. The strike makes Akira cough as the air is forced out of him, and in a last ditch attempt to escape he is forced to lean as far forward as possible, put his hands down on the canvas, and jump whilst pushing himself up. The result is Akira flipping forward out of the choke, landing clumsily on his behind as his head slips out from Vladimir's grasp.

Cedar: Interesting counter there, Akira Kobayashi may have picked up a few things from Jakob Azazel in their match last Sunday!

Akira rolls out of the ring while gasping for air, staggering over to the time keepers area as he shakes his head to try and clear his vision. He angrily slams his boot into the barricade, showing his frustration at Vladimir Strife being able to out wrestle him in the opening minutes. Instead of waiting for Akira to return to the squared-circle Vladimir Strife climbs out of the ring between the middle and top rope to the floor, prompting some cheers as he starts walking past the front row towards Akira, who is still leant over next to the time keepers area. As Vladimir closes in on Akira The Black Heart Warrior pulls himself upright and grabs an unfolded steel chair out from the timekeepers area. Akira turns and throws the chair at Vladimir, nailing him directly in the face with enough force to send him staggering back into the ring apron as he starts to bleed from just above his eye. Some of the crowd boo Akira's surprise attack, but the majority of those in attendance simply scream and cheer at the sight of blood flowing down the face of The Czar of Scars. Vladimir leans against the side of the ring, his head placed on the bottom rope for support as the streak of crimson trickles down past his eye and across his cheek. With his opponent stationary and unaware Akira charges in and nails a yakuza kick into the side of Vladimir's face. Vladimir drops to the floor like dead weight, not even getting chance to throw out his hands to break his fall as he slams into the ground face first. Akira cracks something resembling a smile as he bends down and grabs a handful of Vladimir's hair, using it to drag him up to his feet. The Barbarian Lord refuses to go quietly though, and as soon as Akira gets him upright Vladimir starts throwing right hands into him. The punches don't knock Akira over, but they do distract him enough for Vladimir to whip his head back and free his hair from Akira's grip. Now fuelled by being busted open, Vladimir starts to show his more aggressive side as he unleashes a trio of thunderous uppercuts into Akira's jaw, followed up with a jumping knee that sends Akira tumbling down onto the floor in a heap. Immediately Akira starts trying to climb up to his feet, but he meets a second knee to the face on the way up. Akira's nose starts to spurt out blood like a leaky faucet as Vladimir's knee strike connects, and Vladimir wastes no time in following up on it by stomping down onto Akira's face.

Miles: This is the Vladimir Strife we saw at Endure!

Vladimir's heavy boot slams into Akira's face like a sledgehammer, pumping blood out of his nose and covering his face with a horrific mask of gore. Leaving Akira to try and recover Vladimir strolls over to the steel chair, which is laid on the floor outside the ring. He grabs it up from the ground and folds it up as Akira grasps the ring apron, pulling himself up to his feet. Akira spits blood from his mouth out onto the floor to some cheers as The Czar of Scars turns to face him, ready to swing the chair. As the chair swings down at him Akira commando rolls away to one side, leaving Vladimir to slam the chair into the ring apron harmlessly. Akira comes out of the roll on his feet and instantly turns to face Vladimir, who has his side to Akira, and drives his elbow into the side of The Barbarian Lord's neck while loudly grunting like a grizzly bear ready to attack. The impact of the strike forces Vladimir to drop the chair and gives Akira the opportunity to lay in two more solid, powerful elbow strikes. Vladimir backs up towards the crowd barricade, clutching his throat as he puts his back up to the wall of screaming fans. Ignoring the chair, Akira wipes some of the blood away from his face and lines up parallel to Vladimir. After glancing down at the blood smearing his hand, Akira unleashes a guttural war cry and then charges headlong at Vladimir, who is propped up against the barricade. Akira launches himself into the air while throwing his boot up, aiming to take Vladimir's head off of his shoulders with a rage fuelled kick. Unfortunately for The Pacific Rim Nightmare, the kick comes closer to hitting a teenage fan in the front row than Vladimir thanks to a last second sidestep. Landing with one leg on either side of the barricade Akira is helpless to defend himself from a vicious back elbow thrown directly into his nose. Another spurt of blood sprays out of Akira's nose, which is now likely either broken, fractured, or just crushed down into nothing. Despite this Akira doesn't fall, instead grabbing onto the barricade to try and keep himself upright. The crowd roars as Vladimir lets out a sinister cackle, followed by a second back elbow. Again Akira doesn't fall, and this time he lets out another war cry before gesturing for Vladimir to try and knock him over.

Cedar: Akira Kobayashi has come to life at the sight of his own blood!

Vladimir throws another back elbow and then grabs Akira's hair, pulling his head down so that he can deliver a jumping knee directly into Akira's face. This combo is finally enough to make Akira slump backwards and over the barricade into the front row, down at the feet of the crowd. Vladimir takes the time to clean some of the blood from around his eye on his t-shirt as he stands by the barricade, waiting for Akira to move. Slowly, the Osaka native pushes himself up to his knees, where he gets grabbed around the head by Vladimir. Vladimir yanks Akira up to his feet, pulling him into position for a vertical suplex over the barricade. The two battle back and forth, with Akira trying to block the suplex attempt as Vladimir keeps pulling up to try and hoist him into the air. It takes a rising knee into the gut of The Black Heart Warrior to finally halt his resistance, letting Vladimir throw Akira over the barricade back into the ringside area with a vertical suplex which slams him backfirst into the floor. Akira's body bounces off of the hard floor, making him squirm and arch his back in pain as Vladimir rolls over towards him, hooking the leg. Ryu Sanu gets a two count before Akira kicks out with enough force to make him roll over onto his front, letting blood trickle down from his face onto the ringside floor. With Akira still trying to recover, Vladimir calmly makes his way over to the steel chair which was earlier knocked to the ground. He picks it up, causing the fans to cheer rabidly in anticipation. Stalking his prey, Vladimir waits for Akira to get up to his knees and come to face him, holding the chair high up above his head ready to strike. Before Vladimir has the chance to bring the chair down and crack it over Akira's head The Last Warlord of Osaka's survival instincts kick in, causing him to dive forward and nail Vladimir with a low blow.

Cedar: That's not what we're used to seeing from Akira Kobayashi!

Vladimir drops the chair and crumbles backwards into the ring apron, grabbing the bottom rope for a second before pulling himself up into the ring. Gritting his teeth, Vladimir spits blood out of his mouth and rolls across the mat as he tries to regain his composure. Akira Kobayashi reaches under the ring apron and fishes out a Singapore cane, to the delight of the gore hounds within the XWA audience. After sliding into the ring under the bottom rope Akira spots Vladimir using the middle turnbuckle to get up to his feet, and The Pacific Rim Nightmare wastes no time in punishing him. Akira steps forward and unleashes a series of two handed swings from the cane, aimed down at Vladimir's back. Even through his blood stained t-shirt Vladimir feels the sting of the wood cracking down into his skin, and after four strokes he is forced to drop down to his knees while bowing his head and clenching his fists. As Vladimir's fans erupt in support of the Czar of Scars, Akira reaches down and tears the shirt from his back. With nothing protecting his bare flesh Vladimir falls victim to a further five more strokes of the cane, leaving a series of thick red welts across his back. Akira pauses as Vladimir drops down to a heap on the corner, still clutching the cane in his blood soaked hands. Vladimir rolls onto his back, looking up at Akira, and to the shock of everybody cracks a smile. "Is that all you've got?" Vladimir chuckles as he reaches up, grabs the ropes and pulls himself up to his feet. Although noticeably slowed down and not holding his head up as high as normal, Vladimir Strife appears completely ready to carry on despite the vicious corporal punishment just dished out by Akira. Wide eyed and with his mouth hanging open, Akira Kobayashi takes a second to recompose himself before wildly swinging the cane at the head of Vladimir, who ducks underneath the attack and dropkicks Akira's leg out from under
him. The kick nails Akira hard enough to flip him forward and face first into the mat, as well as disarming him of the cane. The audience's cheers fill Akira's ears as he quickly pushes himself up to see Vladimir Strife stood over him, chuckling while twirling the cane around in his right hand. Akira tries to get all the way up to his feet, but as he rises Vladimir catches the cane in both hands and hits the Japanese warrior across his stomach, taking all the air from his lungs and dropping him down to his knees.

Miles: Boot's on the other foot now, motherfucker!

Cedar: Turnabout IS fairplay!

Vladimir starts laying in shots, alternating hitting Akira on the left and right side of his body so fast Akira has no way to cover up. The sound of wood hitting bare flesh fills the arena, and in equal parts the fans are disgusted and amazed by the degree of brutality being displayed by The Barbarian Lord. After over a dozen swings of the cane Vladimir stops, leaving Akira to teeter on his knees like he's barely conscious as his shoulders and arms turn a dark shade of red from the blows. After Akira doesn't fall for a few seconds Vladimir winds up, pulls the cane back around his head like a baseball bat, and brings it around to hit Akira across his already mutilated nose with enough force to snap the weapon in two. Blood sprays out through the air in unison with the crowd's "ooo"'s and "aaa"'s, soaking the ring apron as Akira collapses down onto the mat clutching his face. Ryu Sanu charges in and yells at Akira to ask if he can carry on, but it's almost impossible to hear over Akira's screams and moans in pain. Vladimir calmly discards the cane to one side as he watches Akira roll out of the ring, falling down into the crowd barricade as he holds his broken nose and tries to stop the blood pouring down from it. Vladimir exits the ring and strolls over to Akira, watching as his opponent loses composure and blood in equal amounts. Vladimir stomps directly down on Akira's back to keep him on the floor and then goes over to the ring apron, looking for more weapons. Even more than normal the ring is stocked with all sorts of plunder, obviously to make this years King of Xtreme tournament more brutal than any before it. From beneath the ring Vladimir pulls out two chairs and a pane of glass, which he slides into the ring, and then a table. The crowd once again erupts as Vladimir sets up the table in the aisle, not too far from Akira who is now up on his feet using the towel he brought to the ring to clean some of the blood off of himself while leaning against the crowd barricade. After popping the legs out Vladimir puts the table upright and turns his attention back to Akira. Vladimir walks up behind Akira and elbows him in the back of the neck, very nearly pushing him into the crowd again, and then snatches the towel out from his hands. With Akira stunned Vladimir wraps the towel around his throat and starts to choke him out, wrenching the cloth around Akira's neck like a noose as he digs his knee into Akira's back. Showing that he's still got some fight left in him Akira throws an elbow back, hitting Vladimir in the side of the head and breaking the choke. With Vladimir reeling Akira plants both feet and leaps up, nailing him directly in the jaw with a double footed dropkick. The Akira supporters find their voice again as The Black Heart Warrior shows signs of life, and dualing "KO-BA-YASHI" and "VLAD-I-MIR" chants start up.

Cedar: What a dropkick! I wouldn't be surprised if Vladimir Strife needs a trip to the dentist after that one!

Akira crawls hand over hand to collapse on top of Vladimir, getting just a two count before The Czar of Scar's kicks out. While loudly struggling to suck in air through his injured nose, Akira pulls himself up to his feet and grabs Vladimir by the hair, shoving him backwards against the table. With Vladimir propped up Akira unleashes a series of kicks across his chest, laying in the strikes with enough force that the sound is almost as loud as the shots with the cane were. Akira backs up a few steps and goes for a high kick, which Vladimir narrowly ducks and responds to with a dropkick into Akira's back. The dropkick sends Akira tumbling into the table, and it only takes a few moments for Vladimir to roll him over so he's face up and slumped squarely on it, with the table pushed right up to the ring apron. With Akira prone Vladimir makes his way to the ring steps, ascends up them, and walks along the apron. Vladimir slowly lines up, taking his time to ensure he'll land exactly how he wants to. He grabs the rope for support, but before he can drop the Son of a Bitch legdrop down on Akira The Black Heart Warrior kicks a leg up. The boot hits Vladimir in the gut and almost sends him off the apron, with The Titan's saving grace being that he manages to grab onto the top rope. Akira rolls over from the table onto the apron and pulls himself up, coming face to face with Vladimir. The Last Warlord of Osaka and The Barbarian Warlock instantly start trading forearms, blasting each other with shots which threaten to knock somebody off to the floor each time they land. Despite his blood loss and having taken more punishment, Akira gains the advantage through sheer brute force and anger, managing to beat Vladimir back with unanswered forearm after forearm. Vladimir clutches the top rope in both hands as Akira continues laying in forearms, forcing his knees to bend as he gets pressed back into the ring post. With Vladimir dazed Akira wraps an arm around his opponents neck and another down between his legs, hooking the wrist. The crowd instantly comes alive, realizing what Akira has planned. Vladimir, too, realizes it, but before he can work his way out Akira hoists him up, falls back, and drives Vladimir down through the table to the floor with a wrist-clutch exploder suplex!

Cedar: AKIRA KOBAYASHI MAY HAVE JUST KILLED VLADIMIR STRIFE!

The two men lie in a heap on the ground, just barely being too far away from each other for Akira to be able to reach over and cover him. Akira reaches out an arm towards Vladimir, but through the blood dripping down from his face, the punishment already unleashed on him and having taken the fall from the apron to the floor, Akira is unable to crawl the last few feet needed to cover Vladimir. In the front row people are leaning over the barricade, bellowing down support at both men, despite neither having shown any inclination towards the fans. After at least fifteen seconds Akira gets onto his hands and knees, pushes a piece of table debris out of the way and collapses on top of Vladimir Strife. 1...2...th-KICKOUT! Akira Kobayashi can barely believe that he hasn't won, and he shows it by getting up to his knees and throwing an MMA style elbow down at Vladimir's throat. Intent on finishing the match, Akira grabs Vladimir by the arm and helps him up. Using his left arm to hold onto Vladimir, Akira throws a right handed open palm strike directly at his eye, creating a bloody handprint across The Titan's face. With Vladimir barely on his feet Akira rolls him into the ring and follows in himself, ending up next to the two chairs and the pane of glass Vladimir deposited inside the square circle earlier. Akira gets up and pulls Vladimir to his feet, trying to hook his head down in position for a brainbuster. Before he can lift Vladimir up Akira gets nailed with a knee into the gut, followed by Vladimir pulling his head up and biting down on Akira's nose. The crowd roars in disgust, but the move proves to be enough as Akira backs up a few steps clutching his face. Vladimir looks down and grabs one of the chairs, once again going back to his wheelhouse. Vladimir slams the chair into Akira's side, ricocheting the steel off of Akira's elbow and causing him to fall backwards into the turnbuckle, his head resting against the bottom rung. With Akira in the perfect position for one of his signature moves Vladimir discards the chair, charges in, leaps up, and comes down with two knees driven into Akira's chest to hit the Heart Starter. Strife quickly covers, but can only get a two count before Akira kicks out to a loud ovation.

Cedar: It's hard to see anything less than a shotgun slug taking these guys out!

Vladimir leaves Akira down on the mat as he grabs the two chairs, pulls them to the centre of the ring and sets them up facing each other. After ensuring the two chairs are in the correct position for whatever he has planned Vladimir turns to walk over to the pane of glass, but gets cut-off by Akira Kobayashi rushing in and booting him in the jaw. The kick doesn't take Vladimir down, but it does knock him backwards into one of the steel chairs, blood now running down from his lips. Akira sits down on the chair opposite Vladimir and leans in, grabbing Vladimir's hair and pulling his head in with his left hand. With the volume of a cannon Akira's right palms comes across Vladimir's face, slapping the blood off his lips with a vicious slap. Akira lays in three more slaps before letting go of Vladimir and standing up, lining up to fire off some more kicks. Akira stomps his foot down to ensure that he has all the feeling in his leg before throwing a kick at Vladimir, who on instinct alone throws his hands up to catch it. Akira hops on one foot helplessly as Vladimir stands up, tucking Akira's leg in under one arm and using the other to throws forearm strikes into Akira's face. After a few strikes Vladimir trips Akira down onto the mat and discards his leg, instead choosing to walk around to Akira's upperbody and drop the Son of a Bitch legdrop across the length of Akira's body. Vladimir's boot hits Akira's nose, once again restarting the flow of blood. Vladimir doesn't bother covering, instead making a beeline for the pane of glass again. With Akira barely moving and spurting out blood like a freshly stuck pig, Vladimir has the time to set the pane of glass up with one side on either chair. He smiles before turning his focus back to Akira, who is nearly on his feet. "You're fucking done", Vladimir snarls as he drives a knee into Akira's gut, turns him around so he has his back to the pane of glass, and tries to double underhook his arms for the Skesis Driver! The crowd's dualing chants come back in full force as Vladimir tries to finish off Akira once and for all, but finds himself unable to lift The Black Heart Warrior all the way up. After a few heaves Vladimir leans forward, gasping for air. Seeing his chance Akira pushes his way forward, forcing Vladimir back first into the turnbuckle, and then unleashes a series of rapid fire slaps. Trapped in the corner, Vladimir can barely defend himself from the slaps, making it easy for Akira to throw one of his signature headbutts! Vladimir doesn't fall down but instead stumbles forward into Akira, who shoots off a palm strike to the gaping cut over Vladimir's eye before pulling him back towards the chairs. Vladimir's legs tremble as Akira hooks an arm around his head and hoists him up vertically, letting the blood drip down from his open wounds like he's bleeding out an animal carcass. After holding Vladimir upside down for a few seconds Akira drops down, driving Vladimir head first through the pane of glass with a brainbuster!

Cedar: BRAINBUSTER! BRAINBUSTER! THROUGH THE GLASS!

Glass shards fly out in all directions as a "holy shit" chant instantly kickstarts. Vladimir's body folds up like an accordion, his feet almost reaching down to touch the mat as he lies on the back of his neck next to Akira. With no intention of letting the pinfall pass him by Akira rolls over, grabbing Vladimir's legs and pinning him to the mat. Ryu Sanu drops down to the mat and, while narrowly avoiding slapping his hand down into a chunk of glass, counts the three!

As Vendetta returns, live, from a commercial break following the entrance of the new XWA Cruiser X-Division champion, his opponent’s theme strikes up through the P.A., eliciting some mixed responses from the audience. Some hold a grudge against the Barbarian Lord for his brutal performance at Endure, whilst others have come to praise him, in part because of that particular contest. It’s inadvertently worked toward his favor on this particular night as well that both the man he defeated at the pay-per-view and the one he hopes to beat tonight have experienced apparent changes of heart in their opinions of the XWA fans. The GodKing emerges from the back on cue, a divided audience expelling jeers and cheers for the Romanian Legend. He raises his right hand high, revealing what is perhaps his favorite of weapons – a microphone. His music tapers off, the vociferous opinions following suit as it fades into silence. He raises the instrument in front of him, his opponent already looking annoyed by the delay in the action.

“LADIES AND GENTLEMENNNN…. FUCK YOU!”

The tidal wave of cries return at the sound of his catchphrase.

“But more importantly…”

The squalor quells once more, rolling out to take in his words.

“tonight.. Mr. Corned-beef-hoagie..”

Akira’s expression only sours further at the liberties taken with his name. He begins to pace in the ring, having no interest in the antics of the Czar of Scars.

“We've got some business to take care of. And I’m not blind, I can see that you’re dying to get to it. You’ve clearly come prepared for battle… but that was your first mistake.”

Vladimir takes several strides away from the stage, making his way down the ramp before stopping halfway to the squared circle. He glances back over his shoulder, a grin across his mouth.

“Let’s not keep him waiting, boys.”

Crystov Razetti and Spyro, two of the most prominent cogs in the Barbarian Lord’s war machine, make their appearance, emerging from the back. Each man has a shopping cart in tow filled to the brim with assorted weaponry. They begin to wheel them down to ringside, passing the Behemoth on either side as they push them up against the ring and then take their leave.

“I don’t come seeking battle, dear champ. I've come for war.”

TC: Why am I not surprised? Vladimir's not happy with the premise of chairs or ladders or tables. It's not enough for him unless he's got something to practically try to murder someone with!
JM: It's... beautiful.
TC: Oh, come off of it. This man may be a favorite in this sort of environment, but let's not forget that just the other night, he mercilessly beat Maddox Paine and the defenseless Eric Goodman far beyond what was necessary.
JM: Of course he did! He told everyone for weeks that he was going to. That's what he does. Besides, Akira absolutely decimated Jakob Azazel and Dante Cross at ENDURE as well. Did you see that damn.. construction.. they made with those ladders. There was no fucking way that thing was structurally sound and you know it. Those men violated building codes, Ted. They should be in prison.
TC: I don't know if I'd go so far as to sa-
JM: PRISON, I SAY!

Akira stands tall in the ring, unaffected by the sentiments of the Czar of Scars or the collection of horrors he’s brought with him. He raises his title into the air, arm stretched out toward Vladimir to remind him of his status as champion and the struggle he endured to achieve it. There is a smug cockiness about his very movements, his head held even higher than usual, his gaze almost seeming to dare the Behemoth to test him. Strife smiles wider, continuing toward the ring.

“That’s right, you’re a freshly crowned champion. Congratulations. This isn’t the junior division anymore though, Corned-beef. It’s time to get a little violent.”

A round of cheers goes up from the crowd, a particularly blood-thirsty set of patrons having been brought out by the King of Xtreme tournament. Kobayashi scoffs as he puts his belt aside, the Barbarian Lord ascending the steps and entering the ring as he does. Senior official Ryu Sanu stands between the men as they gaze threw him and look one another over for any early signs of weakness. He calls for the bell, stepping back out of the way as the combatants make their way toward the center stage cautiously, deliberate and meticulous in their approach. As they close in on one another, the open palm of the Pacific Rim Nightmare shoots up, batting the cheek of the Romanian with a harsh slap. The fans cry foul at the tactic, their ire falling upon deaf and uncaring ears. The Czar of Scars takes a step back. He realizes that he can’t expect the Black Heart Warrior to rush in and make an early mistake, but he can’t allow himself to be goaded into doing so himself. Instead, the GodKing raises his hands into the air before him, challenging him to a test of strength. Akira reaches up slowly, lacing the digits of his left hand with the Behemoth’s right. He begins to stretch his right up to mirror this, but suddenly and swiftly opts for a stiff kick into the diaphragm, the pounding of the kickpad cutting through the tense environment.

TC: A vicious and perhaps slightly underhanded kick from Akira Kobayashi there. After everything we heard from him earlier and now this, Joey, I have to wonder if perhaps his success hasn't gone to his head a bit.
JM: Absolutely. Akira walked into ENDURE determined to walk out with the title and he did exactly that. He has every right to be cocky after walking out of that war on top.
TC: I can't say that I entirely disagree, but I think he's abusing that privilege a bit.
JM: Come on, are you telling me you don't have a bit of a head full of steam when you win a hotdog eating contest?
TC: I wouldn't know, I've never been in one.
JM: Come on, Teddy... come on... Ted.
TC: What?
JM: Teddy.. come on.

Vladimir, nearly doubled over from the surprise attack, stumbles away, attempting to put a bit of distance between himself and the Last Warlord of Osaka. Akira is hot on his trail, however, and blasts the wing of his boot across the back of the Barbarian Lord’s thigh. The legend turns in toward the assault to defend himself, but he only manages to get another taste of the educated feet of Kobayashi across his ribcage once more. He conceals the affected area under his forearms, hunched forth and grimacing, but the soles of the human Hitmonlee now come roaring forth, careening into his chest and sending him down onto his back. As the Pacific Rim Nightmare rolls back up to a knee, his opponent rolls out under the bottom rope to the relative safety of the ringside area. Some applause comes out for the effectiveness of the Black Heart Warrior, but this garners no more a reaction than their previous disdain for his recently acquired attitude.

TC: A beautiful dropkick on the part of Akira, there. That's what makes the Black Heart Warrior such a dominating presence in ring. This man is fiercely versed in almost every form of combat one could imagine and the discipline and perfection in his execution is second to none. He is one tough cookie.
JM: Yeah? Well, you know what cracks a tough cookie, Ted? A steel fucking chair. And Vladimir has far worse things than that in his war chests, I'm certain.

The GodKing rests against the apron a moment, regrouping and recouping from the barrage of strikes. Inside the ring, Akira rises back to his full height, beckoning Vladimir back into the fray, to which he obliges. The Behemoth no sooner crosses the threshold of the ropes before another right boot arcs up to catch him across the sternum, knocking him back into the corner. As Strife’s trying to catch his breath from the vicious superkick, Kobayashi boldly paces over before brazenly slapping him across the face again. The Czar of Scars, seeing red, grabs the offending arm and pulls it across his body. He raises his knee quickly, planting it in into the solar plexus of the Black Heart Warrior, briefly staving his onslaught. Strife rushes out of the recesses of the ring, swinging his arm for the collarbone of Akira. The combat master demonstrates quick reflexes, ducking below the clothesline attempt and turning in toward the Bambi Killer, pounding the back of his thigh with another punishing punt. The Barbarian Lord’s hand almost instantly darts toward the spot, rubbing it for comfort as he comes to rest with his back against the ropes for support. The XWA Cruiser X-Division champion isn’t too keen on allowing him to recover, though, and steps in, sending another deadly boot for the Romanian’s ribs. The Titan catches a break, and a foot, at last and slips one of his own behind ‘Corned-beef’s remaining support, pushing him back against it and toppling him over. He brings the captured limb down over his patella, pushing the hard top of his knee into the tender back of Kobayashi’s, then lifts them both and stomps down with all of his might. The bizarre tactic seems effective, drawing a grimace out of the stoic Osaka native. Vlad bends down, grabbing the shin of his opponent and pulling it back into the thigh over his knee, straining the joint between them like the hinge of a nutcracker that’s being applied to a lug nut.

TC: It looks like Vladimir is taking a page out of his recipe for success at ENDURE, working over the knee of Akira as he did with Maddox Paine.
JM: Well, it did work, didn't it?
TC: That's true, but just a month ago, we saw Dante Cross take the same approach in this ring against Kobayashi. It didn't work out so well for him, but I do have to wonder if Akira's knee is 100% to begin with after that match and those that have followed.
JM: He'd better hope so. Vladimir has proven that he's more than effective at creating a weakness where he pleases, but if there was already one to begin with before this, this is going to get ugly real fucking quick.

The agony of the Pacific Rim Nightmare is as clear as day, but if does not deter him from his mission. He leans forth, again rocking Vlad’s head with a vicious open hand, which he follows up with a kick of his free leg across the temple. The GodKing abandons his makeshift submission, rising up to his feet and allowing Akira the time to do the same. The Cruiser champion wastes no time in moving in upon his paused prey, ignoring the pain in the connection of his appendage until Strife’s heel pounds down directly upon it, hyper-extending the knee. Kobayashi staggers away from the stomp, but as he finally turns back, the effect is doubled, both boots of the Barbarian Lord knocking the support out from under him as he comes off of the mat with a low-flying dropkick. The Black Heart Warrior drops down onto the pained patella, his visage twisted in misery. The Legend, sensing an opportunity, steps in beside his opponent and wraps his arm around his head, squeezing down tightly with a side headlock. The Japanese warrior shows he is far from out of this fight, pressing back up and wrapping his arms around the waist of the Hardcore King. He lifts him up into the air and tilts him back, crashing down to the canvas and spiking Strife’s skull against it.

TC: What an impact! That will certainly scramble some brain cells!

Akira is quickly up to his feet, consoling his tender joint as his foe wanders around on his hands and knees, disoriented from the signature Back Suplex Driver. He steps in to meet the Czar of Scars as he makes his way vertical too, stepping in front of him and wrapping his arm back across the posterior of the Behemoth’s head. He presses Vlad forward, bringing the Romanian’s sternum against his shoulder, which he uses as a fulcrum, dropping to his knee and leveraging the GodKing over, flipping him onto his back. Strife sits up from the snapmare, but this proves to be a less than wise decision and he receives a punt to the base of his spine for it. The Pacific Rim Nightmare races past him and into the ropes, rebounding before throwing a hard right soccer kick into the midsection of the Titan, sacrificing a small bit of the already hurting limb’s well-being to drive the air from the older man’s body. Almost instinctively, the Barbarian Lord’s arm wraps around the appendage, capturing it despite the fact that it’s already done its damage. His free arm swings up, catching across the inside of the tortured knee before he draws back, jabbing his elbow into the back of Akira’s good knee and buckling it. The Black Heart Warrior gets another chance to gaze at the bright stadium lights, while Vladimir presses the seized ankle against his ribcage and hooks just under the knee, trying to pull it across with all of his effort to torque it.

TC: And Vladimir right back to work on that knee. Vladimir may be a very brash and vulgar and incredibly violent man, but one thing I will say in his favor-
JM: All of that wasn't?
TC: - is that he is an incredibly determined and focused competitor. Time and again now we have just seen him create and home in on weakness, displaying a very keen technical sense that lies under all of his brutal tactics.
JM: For those of you at home who have tuned Ted out at this point, what he's trying to say is that Vlad with fuck a motherfucker up. Ted's words, I swear.

Racked with fresh waves of pain, the Last Warlord of Osaka sits up and brings his open palm down, pounding the edge of it across the neck of the Behemoth. He follows up with another and then another, each one seeming to wear Vladimir down more than the last. It begins to look as though the legend’s grip is loosening until one of the hands crashes across his jaw line with a loud pop. Fury surges in his eyes, burning through the glaze they’d begun to take on and his free hand scoops the back of Akira’s head, pulling it forward and tucking it into the pit of his preoccupied arm. Strife grabs up Kobayashi’s other leg and presses up to his feet, pulling the younger star up off of the mat with him. Once he’s reached his height, he pauses a moment and then flings himself back, slamming the stoic Asian’s scalp onto the mat with such force that it rattles the ring.

TC: OH MY GOD! Vlad just nearly drove Akira through the damn mat with that package DDT!

Vladimir rolls Akira over onto his back and returns to his feet, then presses one down onto the tender knee of his opposition and stands upon it, balancing a moment before stepping off. He looks back to see the pain he’s inflicted, but the soles of the unwavering Pacific Rim Nightmare come up, crashing into his ribs and nearly knocking him back off of his stance. The GodKing doubles over, giving Kobayashi the chance he needs to rise up. He does so, but the effects of Strife’s efforts are apparent, the Black Heart Warrior hobbling around the ring, his every attempt to put pressure on the assaulted joint filling him with agony. The Czar of Scars goes for a punch, but the attempt lacks his usually viciousness due to his sore midsection and his foe is quick to step out of harm’s way before bringing his punished knee into the ribs that are hardly better for wear at the moment. Both men stumble away from the impact, clutching their targeted areas. The Last Warlord of Osaka is quicker to recovery in this instance, stepping in behind the Behemoth and scooping his arm back. He steps over Vlad’s leg with the better of his own and bends him over it, the strain upon the side of the Hardcore King evident by the wince upon his face. Akira raises his aching appendage, balancing the ribs of the Barbarian Lord across his good knee, looking to force him to submit so he can call it a night and get an early start on resting up for the second round. The veteran is writing in pain, but clenches his teeth and shakes his head at the official’s inquisitions, refusing to throw in the towel.

TC: This time it's Akira with a submission locked in as he stretches out that bruised and beaten midsection of Vladimir Strife with an abdominal stretch. After those shots Vlad has taken, this might be all she wrote.
JM: No damn way. Vladimir simply can't give in to this, Ted. He comes in here, boasting about how great he is, strings every along giving just enough to pull out the win in most of his matches and then, finally, at ENDURE, we saw the Vladimir we had been promised all along. He was violent, brutal, unrelenting. That man tore Maddox Paine apart. You can't just do all of that, come out here afterwards and give in to a fucking abdominal stretch.
TC: Well, it may not make for the greatest of stories, Joey, but the fact of the matter is simply that when the pain gets to be too much, there's not anything else you can do. You can't expect a star to risk a serious injury for the sake of foolish pride.
JM: I can and I do. If Vlad taps out here, I'm going to fucking riot. And I'll do it. I've been just looking for a good excuse to riot, damn it. My tv is so blurry that you can't tell a pastie from a pepperoni on it.

The damage beginning to weigh upon him, the GodKing’s head begins to droop, his consciousness threatening to slip under the pressure. The Pacific Rim Nightmare presses down hard, reviving the Romanian, whose eyes shoot open with his mouth, a yelp escaping him. Ryu questions the Behemoth’s resolve once more, but it has yet to waver, an emphatic “FUCK NO!” answering his concerns quite sufficiently. Realizing it will take even more to coax the Czar of Scars into submission, Akira begins to rock side to side, teetering Vlad across his knee to keep fresh wave after another firing off toward his brain. The tormented Titan’s free hand slips through his follicles and he pulls at them, trying to distract himself from the misery enough to remain in the contest. At last, it’s Kobayashi who relents, switching tactics as he untangles himself and fires two sharp blasts of his patella into the side of the Hardcore King, sending him stumbling into the ropes. With Strife in prime position, the Black Heart Warrior stretches his arm out, determination etched into his features. He swings it in as he spins forward, looking for the Rolling Elbow that he delivers better than anyone else. The Barbarian Lord comes out of his resting spot, taking a big step in as the Last Warlord of Osaka’s back turns toward him. He wraps his arms around the waist of the younger man, clutching him tightly before ripping him off of the mat and flinging him overhead. The Japanese warrior is ejected from the squared circle, clearing the top rope and crashing down into one of the GodKing’s war chests with a sickening crunch. The cart topples over, dumping Kobayashi and a plethora of sadistic implements across the ringside padding as a collective chant of “HOLY SHIT!” drowns out all other sound in the building.

TC: OH MY GOD! GERMAN SUPLEX OUT OF THE RING AND RIGHT INTO THAT SHOPPING CART!
JM: YES! That was incredible! Someone go wake Akira up, let's get an encore!
TC: How can you cheer for that? Kobayashi could be seriously injured! He just plummeted right into that damn thing filled with who knows what sort of things!

Vladimir gingerly paces over toward the corner, taking full advantage of whatever time this has granted him to recover. He swings a leg over the middle rope and onto the apron, before following suit with its partner and takes a deep breath, a grimace taking over his features with the sharp pain in his midsection that seems to worsen with each exhalation and inhalation. He opts for the steel stairs to ease his suffering, plodding each boot down heavily, achieving level ground on each step before continuing to the next. As his soles go from steel to the minimal padding, he’s given a hero’s welcome, eager hands stretched out over the barricade looking to get so much as a glancing rub of his shirt to brag to their friends about. The Czar of Scars briefly entertains them, tagging a few hands before turning his attention back to the challenge at hand, who has gotten up to all fours in the gratuitous amount of time it has taken Strife to join him. The GodKing approaches, but before he can close the distance, the Black Heart Warrior shoots up to his feet and does it for him, the Shinai in his grasp little more than an amber blur to Vlad as it swings out and cracks across his ribs. The Behemoth drops to his knees, hugging his torso tightly and gasping at the agony that has replaced his air. Another pop of the bamboo rings out across the side of his cranium as it whips into the edge of the ring, but the deathmatch-seasoned Strife hardly seems to notice this beyond his concern for a possibly cracked rib.

Akira pulls one of the Behemoth’s arms away from his torso, draping it over his own shoulder as he wraps his arm around Vladimir’s neck. He pulls him back up to his feet with the guillotine, then seizes the side of his waistband. The Black Heart Warrior lifts Strife off of his feet and steadies him overhead, his face beginning to redden from the strength required to do so. When the Titan reaches down to intervene, Kobayashi finally lets him fall, dropping the Czar of Scars forward, his torso slamming down across the side of the shopping cart, the steel wire bending under the force. The Pacific Rim Nightmare then takes to the air, leaping high before stomping down across the back of the Barbarian Lord, making certain to let his good leg carry his weight, bowing the metal frame even further before hopping off. The GodKing slinks off of the war chest, clutching his midsection tightly once more as he curls into a ball in the only means of defense he can muster.

TC: A vicious double stomp from the champion following that front suplex and if Vlad's ribs weren't bruised or cracked before from the pounding they've taken, it's a safe bet that they are now.
JM: God, that was just glorious. See, this is what I love about all of this. It's like an early Christmas, Ted. It's all just so heart-warming.

The XWA Cruiser X-Division champion looms over the GodKing, his face rife with the pride he'd exhibited in his interview earlier in the evening. He bends down, taking Vladimir by the wrist and begins to lead him back to his feet. Once the Romanian has his legs back under him, he finds himself pelted with open palm strikes, one after another peppering his body, crashing down upon him without any sort of pattern or rhyme. The relentless onslaught makes the Behemoth start to shy away, but Akira keeps with him, landing punishing blow after another. Strife crosses his arms over his chest and tucks his chin down, trying to protect himself, but to no avail. As he feels the ringpost at his back, he sees an opportunity to interject himself back into the fight. He turns the corner, pacing back and drawing Kobayashi around it before coming out of his shell with a large right hand, driving knuckles across the jaw of the Black Heart Warrior. Akira's head is tilted from the force, but he stands his ground and straightens it, staring down his opponent and daring him to give it another shot. Vladimir is more than apt to do so, slinging another ball of knuckles across the cheek of his foe, but finds no better results. He draws back, looking to see if the third time is a charm on this occasion, but doesn't get the chance as the crown of the Pacific Rim Nightmare fires forth and slams into his forehead. The Czar of Scars topples like a piece of timber, falling flat on his back, stunned from the power of the blast. The Last Warlord of Osaka takes a step back from his downed opponent, then rushes forward, jumping into the air. The Titan raises his feet, trying to protect himself from what he knows is coming, but Kobayashi clears the obstacle with ease, bringing his boots back down aimed for Vlad's visage. The Hardcore King still has some tricks up his sleeve, however, sliding over out of harm's way and twisting his arm up the champion's calve. He rolls himself back, forcing Akira onto his stomach as he comes up to his feet with the leg he's targeted throughout the match in his grasp. As he bows it back, the younger star pounds the mat in frustration and pain, careful to only do so twice as to not be confused for surrender. He covers his head while the legend cranks up the pressure, working over the tender knee.

TC: Half Boston crab and Vlad might have Akira's number here. He has been just utterly relentless in terms of that knee so far tonight and with this match having no disqualifications, I'm not so sure if he'll have any choice but to tap.
JM: There's always an option. Snap or tap, baby. Though I guess the other option is that much better for him overall.

As the Barbarian Lord continues to exert his pressure upon the weakened joint, Akira is beside himself with pain, desperately trying to conceive a route of escape through the mind-numbing waves of agony. Things begin to look bleak and the champion starts to consider his career beyond this contest. The success he's enjoyed thusfar, the tournament, and his title were useless to him if he got injured and couldn't compete. Slowly, his hand comes off of the mat, hovering about it as it considers the unthinkable. The Black Heart Warrior averts his eyes, unable to bear witness to what he must do. The GodKing looks over his shoulder and sees this and instantly relents his hold, setting his catch free. He turns back around to face the confused Kobayashi, yelling at him loud enough that his words are audible throughout the first few rows.

"What the fuck are you fucking doing?"

Akira's eyebrow raises in confusion, though it's uncertain as to whether this is due to the Vladimir's question or his vernacular. The Behemoth throws a short kick against the hurt leg, seemingly to admonish the Black Heart Warrior.

"Things are just getting good!"

The Czar of Scars gives the joint another small nudge, but it strikes back, firing into his stomach with a clap of the kickpad. Vladimir stumbles back into the standing cart and Kobayashi joins him on his feet, still favoring his right after the continuous attacks to it. The Last Warlord of Osaka goes back on the offense, lifting the GodKing's arm and tucking his head under it before gripping him around the waist. Strife, not too keen on being treated to another Back Suplex Driver, reaches into his warchest and grabs the nearest item, raising it up and striking Akira across the forehead with a keyboard. It confuses the younger man more than anything and he steps back, unsure of what to make of it. Unfortunately for him, the next shot has much more power behind it, keys shooting off as it slaps across his cranium. He turns away from the impact, but the Behemoth sticks with him, crack after crack ringing out as he bludgeons the champion with the item as if the goddamn piece of shit kept failing to register the keys he had pressed. After a half dozen shots, the Romanian tosses aside the warped keyboard, turning his attention back to the cart of goodies. In his eagerness to get his next implement of destruction, he has neglected the fact that Akira is far from out of the fight, having never even left his feet in the barrage. The Black Heart Warrior admonishes his ignorance, applying boot to ribs once more and doubling Vladimir over. He sets the Hardcore King's cranium between his thighs, then grabs him around his sore midsection before pulling him up and onto his shoulders. Cautiously, the Pacific Rim Nightmare walks away from the war chests, careful to make certain he doesn't trip over any of the objects that have spilled out. With a few steps, he forces Strife down, driving his lumbar across the top of the guardrail with a powerbomb. The Titan screams out in agony as his body is bowed across the barricade, but his opponent clings tightly to him, then leverages him back into the air before turning and dumping him across the steel ramp with a thunderous clang.

TC: MOTHER MARY IN HEAVEN! Akira just slammed Vlad right onto that guardrail with a vicious powerbomb, then gave him another onto the ramp. That has to be it. I don't know how anyone could get up from that!

Following the array of powerbombs, Akira covers the Behemoth, Ryu hurrying his way over to make the count.

"1!"

"2!"

Before the Last Warlord of Osaka can claim victory, the GodKing rolls his shoulder, raising it enough to break the fall in spite of the fact that his innards feel like a half used tube of toothpaste in this moment. Akira starts raining down blows across the tenderized torso, sharp elbows clawing at the Barbarian Lord’s chest. It begins to look as though the Black Heart Warrior is running out of steam after a moment, but he soon finds whatever was lost, ramming vicious knees into the legend’s side. Once the huddled Hardcore King becomes so withdrawn that his blows lose their effect, Kobayashi goes the for the pin again, hoping he’s convinced the Romanian to stay down. Unfortunately, he has not, the Titan somehow finding the strength and the will to roll Akira off of him so the match may continue.

TC: God Almighty, how is Vladimir still holding on after all of this!? That was an absolutely devastating series of attacks and still, somehow, someway, this man is still fighting!
JM: They don't call him the GodKing for nothing, Ted. This man has wrestled for nearly 8 years, almost 100 matches and suffered only three losses. You don't do that by throwing in the towel.
TC: I suppose you're right, but this level of brutality is just simply inhumane. No man in their right mind would endure this.
JM: Yeah, emphasis on the 'right mind' part there. I think you may have solved the mystery, Sherlock.

The pair slowly make it back to their feet, each showing the intense wear and tear already produced by the showdown between two of the toughest stars in the business. The jack of all trades when it comes to combat, Akira, rises up first, his right side dipping down with every agonizing step on the support beneath it. Behind him is Vladimir, who keeps an arm crossed over his diaphragm, his breathing labored from the assault it’s endured. The GodKing stumbles into the nearby upright cart and his opponent senses blood in the water from his unusual hesitation. He comes in as quickly as his ravaged knee can manage, swinging his arm for the collarbone of the Czar of Scars. To his dismay, his inner arm becomes racked with pain, Strife having swiftly lifted a brick, wrapped in barbed wire, from the cart and placed it into the line of fire. The Last Warlord of Osaka reels back, but the weapon follows, the barbs having sunk into his elbow pad deeply. Looking to make the most of a bad situation, Kobayashi begins wrapping the wire around the pad, discarding the brick as it unravels. The Barbarian Lord winces, realizing he’s just armed his enemy, but the epiphany does nothing to spare him from what happens next. The Japanese native steps back in, rotating himself forth 360 degrees and jutting his elbow out. The protrusion slams across the visage of Vladimir, nearly toppling the cart he’s positioned against as he slumps against it. A series of shallow trenches have been dug into the landscape of his forehead and as he stares out emptily at the audience, they begin to fill with crimson before running over, unleashing a trickling waterfall of the Behemoth’s lifeforce down his features.

TC: Rolling Elbow!! Vladimir is busted wide open!
JM: Finally, some god damn blood! It's about time!

As the GodKing slinks down to his knees, Akira steps in behind him, wrapping his arm around Strife’s head with the interior of his elbow resting against his chin, squeezing tightly to allow the slivers of metal on it bite down deeply. The Titan grimaces, his face twisted in agony as it drips its contents along the length of the Black Heart Warrior’s forearm. Having the Romanian exactly where he wants him, the Pacific Rim Nightmare slips his arm up over the head of the legend, raking the barbed wire up the length of his countenance to gruesome effect. The multitude of slashes strike oil, crimson gold blurring out his pained expression and running down his neck, darkening the upper half of his shirt’s front. Weakly, the Barbarian Lord begins to crawl from his attacker, an arm stretched before him, reaching for a steel chair that poured out of the container he’d thrown Kobayashi into earlier. The younger star, meanwhile, unwraps the wire from his padding, the few streams running out from under it revealing that he shared the Hardcore King’s pain to some extent.

TC: I think I'm going to be sick.. Vlad is just absolutely gushing blood! His face is covered in it!
JM: And here I thought Akira was too good for his own... er.. good.

The Last Warlord of Osaka watches the Behemoth as he takes grip of the steel chair and moves in after him, hardly worried about the classic implement. Vladimir hears a footfall behind him and staggers away from it quickly, turning on his heel as he swings the weapon around. Light glints off of the seat of the chair, the previous hidden side now shown to be covered in thumbtacks, line after line of the pin points meticulously glued to its surface. The showcase of dedicated sadism crashes down across the crown of Kobayashi, tacks flying off and scattering about as they break free from their cheap adhesive bonds, a great deal of them embedding in the flesh of the champion. He collapses into a heap, hands covering his head and the collection of pressboard pins. Akira claws at them, digging them out of his skin as fast as he can to relieve the sting. He presses back up to his feet, revealing a scalp of pock marks, blood beading up upon them.

TC: What the hell was that!? Oh my god!
JM: THUMBTACK CHAIR! AWESOME!!

Vladimir steps in to meet the Pacific Rim Nightmare, who is still trying to understand exactly what hit him, and throws a stiff punch across his wounded scalp, looking to draw more substance from the damage he’s caused. Akira hardly seems to flinch from the hit, causing the Behemoth to shake his head in disbelief. The same shots had brought some of the largest men in the business to their knees, but the well-versed and expertly trained Kobayashi gave no credence to its legacy, barely seeming to even notice that it’d ever even landed. The GodKing doles out another, throwing a bit more power into it, but it fails to even stagger its receiver. While the legend seems transfixed upon this, a swift left boot slams across his jawline, dropping him where he stands. The Black Heart Warrior’s damaged knee is unable to support him, however, buckling under and sending him falling back against the apron for support.

TC: These men are running out of steam, Joey. Vlad is losing blood like crazy and I hate to even think about what shape his ribs, or Akira's knee for that matter, are in.
JM: That's what it's all about, Ted. Two men just beating the living hell out of one another until we have a winner. It's a thing of pure beauty.

As the combatants start to return to their feet, Vladimir digs through his personal arsenal, tossing items out of the way with little regards as he seems intent on finding one particular one. His eyes finally spot it and he grabs it, pulling it out of the heap. The item in question is a steel gauntlet, the metal glove from a suit of armor that is more than certain to give the Hardcore King’s haymakers the extra power they need to overcome Akira’s rock solid jaw. The Barbarian Lord slips it over his hand, holding it up before him with a smile before rising back up. The time he has taken to seek this out has proven fruitful to the Pacific Rim Nightmare as well, however, who swings a doubled over length of steel chain across the open ribs of the Romanian like a baseball star swinging for the fences. The thick links pound across the torso with a deep clap, the excess wrapping around his side and half of his lumbar from the momentum they carry. The Czar of Scars is barely able to muster a whimper as he drops to his knees and doubles over, arms wrapped over his midsection. He stays put a moment, Ryu daring to draw in closer to check on him until the links belt down upon the back of the Barbarian Lord, dropping him flat.

TC: GOOD LORD! AKIRA JUST WHIPPED VLAD WITH A STEEL CHAIN! GOD AS MY WITNESS, HIS RIBS ARE BROKEN!
JM: Holy shit... that is brutal!

A few pathetic sobs escape the veteran as he begins to claw at the padded mats, mustering any strength he can find to put distance between himself and Akira. The Black Heart Warrior stays true to his title, unflinchingly casting the chain aside and taking Vladimir by the hair. He drags him up to his feet, Strife nearly falling back down in his misery, and wraps his arm around the GodKing’s neck. He drapes the legend’s arm over his shoulders and takes him by the lip of his pants once more, lifting him into the air and suspending him upside down. The Pacific Rim Nightmare makes his way around the nearby war chest and begins to ascend the steel steps one by one, still dangling the Czar of Scars over him precariously. He lets his weary legs drop out from under him, plummeting like a trap door has been pulled beneath them. Kobayashi slams down against the top of the steel steps with a picture perfect brainbuster, save the exemption of the Behemoth, who grabbed the nearby top rope and pulled himself over into the squared circle, escaping the clutches of the Last Warlord of Osaka at the last second.

JM: YES! The GodKing lives!
TC: He just barely escaped that brainbuster and if he wouldn't have, that bell would be ringing right now. That brainbuster has knocked so many men before out right here in the middle of the ring. There's simply no way any man, even Vladimir Strife, could take one of those on that steel and still managed to go on!

The Hardcore King’s escape is merely a temporary solution to his problems. He crawls around the ring, still struggling to pull himself up to his full height as Akira begins to stir from his impact with the steps. The XWA Cruiser X-Division champion climbs back up to his feet, using the same steel slope he’d just thrown himself down upon for support. He slips into the ring, rising up to his feet as the Titan finally plants one of his flat upon the canvas. He stalks his prey, his expression stoic and unwavering as he waits for Vlad to get up. The Barbarian Lord at last gets his other limb under him and forces himself up, a quick wince showing that even this basic of a task is hindered by his injuries. When he turns around, he comes face to face with the Pacific Rim Nightmare, who takes the Romanian by his steel sheathed wrist and tucks it between his thighs, clamping them down tightly upon it. Strife quickly steps away from him, pulling hard to free himself. His hand slips out of the gauntlet and without a second’s hesitation, the legend kicks his left leg back, pressing the ball of his foot down firmly against the mat. He shifts his energy up through the stance with a series of contractions and a twist of his body, each muscle lending it’s momentum to the next as it carries up the length of his grounded appendage, through his torso and into his reclaimed arm. The limb snaps forth like a whip, knuckles pounding into the jaw of Kobayashi and snapping his head back. The Black Heart Warrior drops to the mat with a thud, his opponent collapsing on top of him, landing with the offending arm draped over the champion’s chest.

TC: LIGHTS OUT! LIGHTS OUT! HE DID IT! THE GODKING JUST LAID OUT AKIRA KOBAYASHI!!
JM: God DAMN, that thing is monstrous!

The official drops down beside the men, slapping the canvas with each number he cries out, the eager patrons screaming along with him.

“1!”

“2!”



“3!”

TC: It's over! Vladimir Strife has beaten Akira Kobayashi to advance to the second round of the King of Xtreme!!
JM: YES!! You know what that means, Ted?
TC: What?
JM: We get to see even more unbridled violence from the Barbarian Lord in the next round! I mean, sure, it's all Xtreme, it says so in the title, but no one is quite as violent or brutal as the motherfucking GodKing. Slate that shit for a 5 star match right now!

The bell rings thrice, officially declaring the end of the contest as ‘Sumeria’ by the Devin Townsend Project begins to pour through the speakers once more. The GodKing, for whom it signals victory, forces himself to fight through the agony in his abdomen one last time as he rolls out of the ring, sloppily getting his feet planted upon the ground, gripping the bottom rope for dear life as he tries to look out at the cheering crowd through the crimson torrent. Many are risen to their feet in appreciation of the efforts of the men in the contest, who have given their all for the chance to be called the King of Xtreme.

LW: Ladies and Gentlemen, you're winner of this match, advancing to the second round of the King of Xtreme tournament... VLADIMIRRRRR STRIFE!

As the EMT’s arrive at ringside, a few of them familiar to the Behemoth from ENDURE, he allows himself to be helped onto one of their stretchers, being wheeled off into the back as a couple of other attendants check upon the Cruiser X-Division champion.

TC: Vladimir is in awful shape after this incredible match and I wonder what sort of state he'll be in when the time comes for the second round.
JM: Well, regardless of broken ribs, bruised sternum, cracked everything, I think Vlad demonstrated here tonight that absolutely nothing is going to stand between him and the title of 'King of Xtreme' and with the utter power of that Lights Out, I don't think he needs much more than a few more opportunities to fire that off before he achieves that.
TC: You might be right about that. Vladimir took an absolutely beating at the hands of Akira tonight, but again we saw how that devastating move can just stop everything right in it's tracks. One second Kobayashi is about to seal the deal and just like that, Vlad left him out cold right there in the middle of the ring.

Akira takes a moment to come to, but sits up once he does, brushing off the medics. The fans begin to cheer for him as well, but the Black Heart Warrior continues to ignore their opinions, exiting the ring with a look of annoyance and frustration as he collects his title and begins limping back toward the lockerroom.

TC: Well, folks, we have to go to a commercial break, but stay tuned. Up next, we've got a tremendous Main Event for you as the World Heavyweight champion, Danny Diamond, faces off against no other than the newest General Manager of Vendetta, Thomas Barnez!
JM: We'll be back before you know it. Just go take a piss or something!