The competition heats up to decide who will join Kairi Sane in the NXT Women's Championship Fatal 4-Way Match at NXT TakeOver: WarGames. Video courtesy of the award-winning WWE Network.

ORLANDO, Fla. —  More shots have been fired in the ongoing war between The Undisputed ERA and SAnitY. And the most recent crossfire resulted in collateral damage and an unexpected beneficiary, as Nikki Cross, Liv Morgan and Peyton Royce all found out during their action-packed NXT Women’s Title Qualifying Match.

Their three-way battle, contested under no-disqualification rules, reached a fever pitch after Cross powerbombed Royce just as Royce superplexed Morgan, resulting in a massive pileup inside the ring.

Just then, The Undisputed ERA appeared at the top of the entrance ramp alongside former Mae Young Classic competitor Taynara Conti. At the encouragement of Adam Cole, Bobby Fish & Kyle O’Reilly, the black-belt judoka distracted Cross and prevented her from scoring a pin, ensuring the unhinged SAnitY member wouldn’t advance to the NXT Women’s Title Fatal 4-Way Match at TakeOver: WarGames.

Cross gave chase after Conti, but as they raced through the ring, Royce wiped out Cross with a spin kick before snaring her in a fisherman suplex to win the match and move one step closer to the vacant NXT Women’s Title.

Though Conti helped The Undisputed ERA execute their plan to perfection, her complicity might have been ill-advised. As WWE.com cameras later revealed, The Undisputed ERA played dumb when Conti asked them to make good on their end of the deal, suggesting that she had been nothing more than a pawn in their game all along.