RAW is WAR

With intent to truly kick some ass in his heart, Mike takes advantage of a momentary lapse in Rain's footwork by charging straight for him! Despite Rain seeing it coming and trying to get into position to roll with the tackle and flip him ninja-style, that purple boi gets barreled straight to the mat with a satisfying -thud-! The crowd gives out some scattered 'ooh's and 'yeah's, as they always enjoy the sound of a body slamming down onto canvas! Mounted atop Rain from the tackle, Mikey the Mikester takes advantage of positioning to do what any average joe would do in the situation – pounding pummeling punches – Lous Thesz press style!

“Ladies and Gentlemen, give it up for Mike!” Michael Cole was addressing the fans at home, since commentary was not piped into the arena. “This is his very first fight, and he's starting off dominating one of our veteran fighters!”

A sour and obnoxious voice countered Cole's tone of professionalism, saying, “Cole, this guy sucks!” It was a young woman with blonde hair and a pretty green hat speaking – Toon Jink, from Hyruje! “I literally can't even pick out a single distinguishing characteristic on him! What is there to even give it up for, a tackle and a few punches?”

Good question – because at the moment, Mike had been blasted off his tackle target by what felt like a heated jet of air! Sent up into the air above Rain with a little bit of sting on his chest, Mike had to figure something out. He would be landing soon – most likely still in the ring, and from what he could see, Purple Rain had kipped up, and was back on his feet charging some kind of energy in his off-hand.


Glossary:
Lou Thesz press - an attack performed against a foe who is flat on their back.  the assailant mounts them (not in that way you pervert) and delivers punches to their head or chest

Kip Up - a fancy way to get back to your feet from an on-your-back position.  See attachment

Well, it seemed that Ninja Magic was indeed the source of what was going on, as just around the time Mike was about to land, Rain fired off an orb of what looked to be real water through the air, straight for Mike! Perhaps his intent was to catch him off guard, but as he hit the ground, his karate chopping arm blasted the nearby air straight at Rain's projectile, sending it not just away from Mike, but into Rain! The ninja happened to be quick enough to block his attack, but as Mike explained his magical situation, his opponent just kind of glanced from him, to the crowd, and back before throwing up his arms. He wasn't speaking, but apparently he was trying to gesture something along the lines of 'are you serious?'. After all, the crowd had emitted a cheer of glee when Mike had delivered his landing-air chop, and Rain clearly felt as if the fight was getting away from him.

"Rain looks like he barely grasps what's going on! Get it together, man!" Michael teasingly spoke about the opponents before being 'shh'ed by Toon Jink.

"Cole, first of all shut up. Second of all, Rain is a serious badass! Can't you tell from the fact that he wears the same thing as Sub Zero or Scorpion but in purple? Who could be bad at fighting and wear that outfit? Well, maybe if you put it on." She snickered, as she watched the fight develop.

Rain, for his part, had decided to try firing off a few more of his water orbs. They didn't seem tremendously powerful, so Mike ended up doing the exact same thing. Once, twice, three times did Rain additionally attempt to fire his pressurized H20 spheres, and each time not only did M-I-K-E's air chop knock them away, the crowd was happy to see it again each time. They were clapping for the rookie competitor by the time he deflected the third, which he sent flying into the purple and black ninja's shin! The Prince-themed killer stumbled off his stance and onto the mat, and as he tried to recover to a standing position, he fired once again! However, though Mike was one again ready to deflect, he was not prepared for what Rain sent towards him - a sustained bolt of lightning, which made enough contact with him to fill his body with some volts! That doesn't exactly feel good, and as he was trying to muscle through the sensation, a desperate Rain dashed to him as fast as he could. Just as Mike had regained full mobility, he received an uppercut to the chin! It was both a painful and jaw-jacking experience, and the generic man hoped he wouldn't be concussed or anything like that. The sheer impact delivered even sent him backwards a few steps. Miche could feel his body pressing against the ropes, and knew that he could at least use them for leverage or to get some momentum. He had to figure something out quickly, as Purple Rain looked to be coming in for another uppercut!

Oh yes, Mike is ready. True, he'd been caught a little off guard by the switching of projectile functions, but he's still prepared to beat down Rain with every bit of gusto that he had coming into the fight. This is the beginning of his career as a Pit fighter, and after bouncing off the ropes, he buckles down for a tackle straight into Rain's midsection! Though the ninja had been hoping to uppercut Mike once again, the young man smashes straight into him, knocking all of his wind out! The diverse crowd sounds pretty glad to see this, and Mike had full advantage over his opponent.

“Is this gonna be enough?” asks Michael Cole, as the referee begins to count a pin thanks to the position Rain was in.

With a smack to the mat accompanying each number, a skinny young lady in a black and white striped shirt says, “1! 2!” The ref doesn't get to three, as the purple bastard gets his shoulders up and tries defending against Mike.

“Get up, dork! Use your kung fu grip or some shit and send the noob packing!” Clearly, Toon Jink isn't exactly a fan of faces. Not one bit. But most people are, as evidenced by 'Mike Mike Mike' chants springing up!

There is just one problem with Toon J's suggestion. Rain doesn't seem to be in a good position to blast with magic, and instead seems to be trying to get his legs up to kick Mike's back or head! This is the act of a desperate fighter trying to escape a bad situation, for sure! To the ordinary guy, this could be a golden opportunity to take down the Kombatant, but the rookie must capitalize on it or risk the lithe shadow warrior getting a chance to go on the offense. Which would be bad as hell, since Mike's a little more worn down.

In-Ring

Mike presses down the full weight of his body onto Rain, using every pound he's got for leverage. Taking full advantage of his position, he grabs the nin-man's lithe legs and holds them as immobile as he can. Rain's shoulders are down, which means that try as he might to struggle, he may be screwed! The ref once again dives to the mat, slapping against it and making a sound repeatedly, with a measured gap in between each smack. Counting as the mat is hit, both the referee and the crowd yell "One! Two! Three!" before the bell is rung! Mike's taken the fight, and as he lets Rain go to start his celebrating, the latter's hands shoot to his head. He looks quite like he's both frustrated and embarrassed, but rolls out of the ring and hauls ass straight out before he can be confronted or anything. Mike flexes his arm for the camera and the fans, who seemed to have accepted him fairly well despite his lack of significant traits!

Michael Cole and Toon Jink, on the other hand, could not be further in terms of reaction. They're still at the desk, and while Cole seemed professionally pleasant, Toonie was slumped in her seat. "I hated that fight," said the young girl, but added, "though I doubt the rest of the show will be as disappointing. According to the brass, later on we'll be seeing another fight featuring our clean-cut dork of a champion, as well as another debuting superstar who is nearly guaranteed to be a little bit better than what we've had so far.”

Backstage

Chilling amidst a bunch of lockers is the exceptionally fit young lady known as Twintelle. Though she is sitting in place as the camera caught her, her hair is swinging around as if it was shadow-boxing. You see, this particular competitor is known for having two oversized and luscious locks of ribbon curls, and they're both packing the strength to knock out practically any opponent. Sadly, there isn't anything for her to punch with them, which makes it impossible to take out the aggression she'd built up since failing to capture the top title belt at the previous show. Thankfully, she at least receives the distraction of a wiry interviewer in a suit appearing to ask her some questions.

“Twintelle, how do you feel after your defeat at the hands of Goku?”

This question clearly annoys the glamorous brown-skinned woman, despite some people in the crowd laughing as they see this play out on the titantron. “Narrow defeat.” She corrects the interviewer before giving her actual answer. “That's what you would call a fluke. I've beaten that spiky-haired man before, and there's really nothing stopping me from doing it again. That means there will be no obstacle left to block Queen of the Silver Screen from taking the gold, so don't even worry about that.”

“There are rumors that you won't be wrestling tonight – that you're as they say 'shook'.”

Laughing haughtily, Twintelle answers, “Well, it's true that I don't have a match tonight.” Big pop from the crowd! “But I actually have two on the next show.” The crowd boos just as hard, clearly having strong feelings about this superstar. “This bores me, though. I'm gonna need you to get out of here.” As she winks and gives a simple wave, the camera also leaves the room.

Back in the Ring



Some badass horn-based music kicks in over the arena's speakers, and a simple pattern of stone adorned with flames appears on the Red-Side titantron. The reaction from the members of the crowd that happened to be things like Goombas, Magikoopas, general Troopas, Touch Fuzzies, Bullet Bills, Bob-ombs, Boos, Chargin Chucks (suprisingly populous) and other assorted species is basically that all go ballistic with positive reaction. “Bow-ser! Bow-ser!” they start chanting before he is even properly announced. They may not know the entrance, but they knew the music.

All full of muscle and some fat, the King of Bruisers walks out onto the ramp. No, that's not an adequate description. He isn't walking, he's swaggering like he owns the place! Obviously pleased at the reactions of his sycophants, lackeys, cronies and jerks, he lets the boos mixed in amongst the non Koopa Troop species roll off his back. Sometimes you get a mixed reaction when you enter in the pit, and that can work out too! As long as the crowd is loud, that's what matters! This king's pumping his arms into the air and has just about reached the ring.

“Making his way to the ring, weighing in at 2 tons, he is the King of the Koopas, introducing... BOWSER!” As usual, the announcer girl is in fine form.

Bowser, being one hell of a combatant, uses his massive size to step straight up onto the ring from the outside, first hoisting one mammoth leg up onto it and then another. From there, he just pushes the top rope down and steps over, asserting his dominance over the very ring in which he is expected to fight. Once inside, he stares straight into the main camera and breathes a jet of fire, just barely missing it (and the poor cameraman!). However, rather than waiting for anything else, he grabs the mic out of the announcer's hand, tapping it to make sure that it's functional. It is, which means he is free to cut as long or as short of a promo as he wants. Of course, he'd agreed to Triple H that he was ready to issue a challenge to whoever had the guts to accept, but he can talk to the audience first or basically do as he wanted. He has the microphone, after all – not anyone else!

As soon as Bowser says "Showtime", someone's theme music hits.



Turn the beat back!

Accompanied by his chilled out song and a drastic positive crowd reaction in contrast to the mixed one Bowser was getting, a man equally as muscular as Bowser but lacking entirely in chub takes a stroll down the Blue-Side ramp. Wearing a tight, short haircut and work pants with a single strap over his chest, this would-be badass face is introduced by his titantron - shots of a city that definitely wasn't the one they were in, full of graffiti and other street culture. In between these images is the name 'Mike Haggar', which identifies him as a pretty classic superstar! While Bowser had almost certainly expected something more along the lines of a fair fight, it seems this heavy brawler of a man was carrying two things - a microphone, and a hard, thick lead pipe. The crowd had already 'oooh'ed when he enters the frontstage area, but that has transitioned to moderate cheers as he poses simply, staring down Bowser from right outside of the ring. The red-haired king ain't in the mood to screw around, so he gestures for MH to walk right in.

Of course, the smaller, but still very big man walks straight into the villain's lair, saying nothing but staring. That doesn't really last long, as he begins speaking into his mic before it gets boring.  And his voice is booming and delish. "Great to have you in the pit, Bowser. No, really, I've always wanted a shot at someone like you. Maybe not exactly like you. They might have, oh I don't know, been a little older, or a little less dynamic. But here you are - King of all Koopas! The question is, can you actually handle someone who's been wrestling in this fighting pit since before your counterpart was inviting heroes to his castle as a trap? Because you may be a King, but I'm Metro City's fighting Mayor, and I-"

As the word 'I' escapes from his mouth, Mike Haggar swings for the fences, throwing down the mic he was carrying and smacking the metal pipe into the Koopa King's stomach! Damn bastard, attacking before he even finished talking. It looks like he's ready to try beating on the King even before a fight has officially begun! Why would the fans cheer that, which they are? I have no clue, personally. The fans are fickle, and they clearly like Mike.

Aye, pain be a cruel mistress. For Bowser, it's taking hold, but because the king of the Koopas is really quite beefy and solid, he has no problem just staring Mayor Haggar down. With a villainous look on his face, he opens his mouth before Haggar can keep swinging, and blasts the fire straight at him! It's one hell of a torch, with the orange flames licking out at the muscle man's face for just a moment before he throws out his arm in front! Despite the brief contact, it looks like Haggar's in some pain, too!

"Yes folks, that is real fire, straight from the mouth of Bowser! What more could you ask for from a debuting superstar?!" Cole sounds excited as he announces, but someone else pops in with some commentary as well, having nabbed a headset!

"Holy cow, look at this! Someone get me this guy's phone number, stat!" These words are spoken by a sultry and deep-voiced woman, specifically the lithe and beautiful Poison, also from Metro City!

Bowser, on the other hand, is not focused on phone numbers. He's focused on keeping the stream of fire going, but Haggar isn't a sitting duck! Working through the pain of being burnt, and ignoring the yelling referee telling them to cool it down so their match can begin, Haggar swings that big ol' pipe straight at Bowser's mouth, the source of the fire! It stops as the spiked king roars in pain, with some blood also flowing out of him as his lip is busted open. However, by the time Haggar has started swinging wildly, not caring what he's hitting, Bowser has already started blasting even more fire straight towards the brawler! He adopts as dominant of a position as he can during this, and the crowd is really getting into it! However, as the two ignore all subtlety in their attempts to take down their foe, the ref orders for the bell to ring! As it sounds out, the cute announcer girl speaks over the mic.

"Ladies and gentlemen, this match has been cancelled!" That's all she says.

Of course, Haggar isn't exactly happy about this, and he throws his pipe aside, and, wincing from the pain of patches of his skin that have been burnt, starts throwing body shots at the Koopa King! Of course, these are returned, as Bowser throws a few punches of his own, not to actually attack but just to stop from being overwhelmed! Multiple security toads are coming down both ramps, and they surround the two bruisers as they deliver basic blows to one another. They're trying to get Bowser and Haggar to break up! Damn, the fans were really blowing up in a good way!