The Strength of Friendship

Chapter 6 "The First Victory"

The P.W.O. mares continued to laugh and give brohoofs to each other over Pinkie's defeat. Claiming easy victory over an opponent called the Ultimate Pony made them think that the mares on the other side of the ring really were losers and unfit to fight them. The mood of the Elements of Harmony was uneasy.

"This ain't a good start," spoke Applejack. "That's one down fer us."

"Pinkie was ready for this. She did train hard, but became just a little overconfident and wasn't thinking straight," Twilight said to her team. "We might have lost one, but there's still five of us."

"Looks like I'll give it a go now and take it to them," Rainbow Dash suggested, ducking under the ring ropes and entering the squared platform.

"Go on, Rainbow! We're counting on you," said Twilight.

Rainbow Dash stared down her opponent like the barrel of a cannon. She knew Stormer was waiting for her to make the first move. Charging the enemy head on proved not to be a wise decision and Dash knew it. Either way, the blue pegasus swept her hoof against the canvas. Her body placed itself in a charging stance. As in a repeat action earlier, Rainbow Dash bolted straight towards Stormer. Her own friends watched on in helpless disbelief. It was as if Rainbow Dash was doing the same mistake a Pinkie Pie. Was she? Stormer grinned at the sight of the stampeding pegasus coming towards her. The other heel ponies smirked at the scene as well. Another victory was coming their way as it looked. Unlike before, Stormer took a page out of the Elements' handbook and charged towards Dash. She extended her front leg to collide Rainbow Dash with a clothesline. But to a change from Pinkie's mistake, the rainbow pegasus leapt overtop of Stormer. Stormer turned around and was met by a hard hoof to the face.

"This pony won't make the same mistake as the Ultimate Pony," Rainbow Dash proclaimed to her opponent.

The blue earth pony jumped towards Dash for a punch of her own only to miss and receive another hoof jab to the head. The pegasus took control of the fight against the P.W.O.. Forwarding punches with her front hoofs and kicks with the rears. The two pony enemies battled it out in one of the unoccupied corners. Stormer regained some footing in the fight; it didn't matter much for the moment as Dash counterattacked. Rainbow Dash didn't keep the fight all to herself. She dragged Stormer over to the opposing corner and tagged in Applejack. The two allies worked together on the lone World Order pony with a double clothesline. The amount of tag exchanges between the Elements of Harmony gave the girls plenty of shared time to show off how much they had prepared for this wrestling match; Fluttershy opted out of being tagged in though. Despite their display of teamwork and performance abilities, the P.W.O. weren't bowing down. They fought back furiously. Not showing any shed of compassion for their actions against the little ponies.

"Well it's now Whiplash in there with 'Applemazing' Applejack. It be may five against six, but The Elements of Harmony have been giving the P.W.O. a gallop of a match so far," Michael Colt called out into his microphone.

"Absolutely, Michael. The Pony World Order must be thinking of some new strategy right now as these ponies have already demonstrated some excellent abilities and wonderful teamwork," Fancypants agreed beside the other unicorn commentator.

"You're right on that," a young female voice spoke next to Fancypants. Both commentators turned to the source of the vocal agreement and seated next to the blue-mane unicorn was Pinkie Pie wearing a microphone headset. No longer colored in the rainbow of face paint or her wrestling gear. She was also completely awake; not a sign of injury or after-effects due to her defeat earlier.

"Ultimate Pony?!" Colt surprised at the sight of the pink pony.

"No no no no. She was eliminated. I'm Pinkie Pie and I'm joining you guys for the play-by-play to cheer on my friends," Pinkie quickly explained to the confused stallions. "Come on, girls! Beat those bullies!"

Slam! The impact of Applejack's body hitting the ring canvas after a powerslam rippled through her whole body. For the moment, the wind was knocked out of her. She could feel the weight of Whiplash on top of her as the tan pegasus laid for the pin. The referee pony counted. Applejack kicked out at the count of two. Whiplash displayed her frustration by coming down with her front hooves on the orange earth pony's stomach. With quick action, Applejack avoided the assault and rolled back to her corner. She held out her hoof to tag another member of the team. She connected with another hoof; Fluttershy's hoof.

"M-me?" a shocked Fluttershy asked.

"It's your turn, Fluttershy," said Twilight standing beside her. "You can do it."

"Um, okay," Fluttershy quietly spoke.

Applejack exited to the other side of the ropes with Fluttershy slowly entered into the ring. Her heart was racing. She was scared. Her legs trembled. Fluttershy was unsure what to do; fight or retreat. Her friends rooted for her from behind. She knew her teammates were counting on her. Like what Rainbow Dash told her in the locker room before the match, she had to be brave.

"Okay, I can do this," Fluttershy muttered under her breath.

Whiplash evilly grinned at the yellow pegasus in front her face. Last time she met her, Fluttershy was cowering and scared of her. A perfect match-up in Whiplash's mind. Fluttershy slowly approached the P.W.O. pony. She tried to look intimidating, but unfortunately, her kind-hearted nature seemed to always get in the way.

"Um, would it be okay if you lied down and I pin you to win this match?" Fluttershy politely asked.

Twilight bonked her hoof to her own face and simply grunted, "Ugh!" The other ponies also showed their displeasure at their companion's approach to the situation. Fluttershy's action was something the girls kind of expected. Fluttershy was use to be kind and caring; rarely aggressive.

"I think it would be a better idea if you didn't do anything so that I can beat you up," Whiplash laughed at Fluttershy's suggestion.

Whiplash swung her leg at the yellow pegasus for a swift strike. Fluttershy speedily ducked under the attack. The aggressive pony raised her front legs up and brought them down in an attempt to strike Fluttershy on the top of her head. Fluttershy rolled out of the way of the second assault.

"Couldn't we just--you know--sit and--have a kind and friendly--cup of tea--and become--," Fluttershy tried at negotiating with Whiplash. The frightened pegasus backed herself into one of the two empty ring corners. She was shaking with fear. She was trapped. Her friends could only watch on; unable to step in and save her without consequences. "Help!"

"Guess those stories about you wrestling bears were just horse tales," said Whiplash as she walked closer to Fluttershy recoiled in the corner. "A frightened little pony like you could never be a serious threat to anypony and certainly not to me!"

Whiplash tried again with her front hooves attack on the trembling pony. Once again, Fluttershy avoided the sudden attack and darted past the enemy. The heel pony quickly gave chase. Whiplash galloped after Fluttershy all around the inside of the ring like a wild cat trying to catch its' prey.

"Will you just hold still!" Whiplash shouted to the pony she was pursuing.

Like a command switch in her brain, Fluttershy abruptly stopped and sunk to the canvas, placing her front hooves over her eyes. Whiplash collided with Fluttershy's motionless body and tripped over her. Whiplash rolled across the ring floor and stopped head first into the lower turnbuckle in the opposing corner. Fluttershy uncovered her eyes to see what had happened. Whiplash regained to her legs.

"I--I'm sorry," Fluttershy apologized to her opponent.

Whiplash slowly turned her head. Her teeth were gripped together. Her eyes dipping into deep anger. A growl hissed out of her mouth. Her whole body turned in the direction of Fluttershy. Fluttershy's face became painted with immense fright. The P.W.O. pony in front of her was angry. Whiplash let out a loud roar of anger and charged the scared pegasus. Fluttershy was frozen for a second. She then escaped through the ring ropes and scurried underneath the ring. Three Count immediately began to count Fluttershy's presence outside the ring.

Rainbow Dash came to over to where Fluttershy was hiding. She dove underneath the ring apron to see Fluttershy laying on all fours, shivering all over her body. "Come out, Fluttershy. You have to get back in the ring," Dash told her teammate.

"No! I'm not coming out."

"Fluttershy, you're going to get counted out and will be eliminated."

"I'd rather get counted out than fight that meanie. She's really, really, really, really mad at me."

"Okay Fluttershy, just get back up there and tag one of us in. We then won't tag you in for the rest of the match."

"But what if I'm the last one?"

"Then you'll have to fight on."

"No!"

"Come on, Fluttershy. We need you."

Rainbow Dash grabbed a hold onto Fluttershy's headgear and began dragging her out from underneath the darkness. Fluttershy continued to protest.

Fluttershy's pet bunny rabbit, Angel, observed from the side of the ring as Dash tried to coax his owner to return to the ring above. The little rabbit watched the whole match so far and seen what happened to Fluttershy against Whiplash. He wasn't going to stay by as his master acted like a coward. The white bunny hopped onto the ring canvas and entered into the ring. Upon approaching the heel pony, Angel put on a mad face and put up his paws in a fighting stance. This bunny seriously wanted to fight against a pony? Whiplash looked down at the mad rabbit and could only laugh out loud at his attempt at acting tough.

"Aw, the little bunny rabbit wants to fight and stand up for the little cowardly pony? Are you her pet or is it the other way around? Ha ha ha ha!" Whiplash laughed childishly.

Angel suddenly leapt at Whiplash and clutched onto her leg, sinking his teeth into her flesh. Whiplash screamed in pain. She shook her leg in every direction to try to remove the rabbit. Angel refused to release his bite.

"Let go you stupid little bunny!" Whiplash screamed at the attacking furry mammal.

Rainbow Dash finally pulled Fluttershy out from underneath the squared platform. Fluttershy was grabbing at anything with her hooves in an effort to refuse re-entering the ring.

"No, Rainbow Dash. I'm not going back in there. It's too dangerous and scary," Fluttershy protested once again to her friend while grabbing onto the ring apron.

Shooting across the air, The Elements of Harmony team witnessed Angel go flying after finally being kicked off of Whiplash's leg. The little bunny landed with a hard thud on the exposed concrete floor. Fluttershy's eyes expanded at the sight of her pet hitting the ground.

"Angel!" Fluttershy rushed over to his aid.

Angel grabbed onto his right leg with his paws and wailed in pain. The sight of an injured animal always made Fluttershy broken with sadness. Angel being her pet was more painful. Laughing ran through Fluttershy's ears. The laughter was from Whiplash in the ring.

"Stupid little bunny. Got what it deserved," Whiplash chuckled.

Rainbow Dash ran over to her friend to see if she was all right. No response came from the yellow pegasus as her head was arched down towards the injured rabbit. Dash felt Fluttershy's hoof press her away. The pegasus gently laid Angel down on the floor. She stood up on four hooves. Her teeth grinded together. Her eyes slowly opened. Anger was seen in her. A sight not often seen by Fluttershy. She stared directly at the laughing Whiplash in the center of the ring.

"How dare you. How dare you!" Fluttershy yelled at her opposite. "You make me strain, I'll bring you the pain!" Fluttershy rushed back into the ring and tackled Whiplash so abruptly that it completely caught her off guard. The enraged pegasus stomped her hooves as hard as she could on Whiplash's body and head. Whiplash tried to fend off the complete assault. Fluttershy wasn't going to let her be the aggressor any further.

"That's the Fluttershy we needed. Give her a feel of nasty Fluttershy!" Rarity called out from the ring corner. The other girls also cheered on the change reversal of Fluttershy. So did Angel appearing on the edge of the ring canvas, hopping up and down. But wasn't Angel injured? The girls concern for him diminished when he shook his leg at them and winked his tiny eye. He faked it.

Whiplash regained her defense and struck back. Fluttershy easily countered and scoped Whiplash into a bodyslam. Fluttershy grabbed Whiplash and flung her into the ring corner. The yellow pegasus galloped towards the corner and rammed into Whiplash with a charging clothesline. Jabs from Fluttershy's hooves impacted the P.W.O. pony's face and stomach. Fluttershy grabbed her again and swung her to the opposite corner of the ring. This time, she leapt onto Whiplash and flipped her back with a monkey flip wrestling throw. Fluttershy screamed out, her voice echoing throughout the stadium. The reaction from the audience brought return screams of excitement.

"Wh--What happened to you?" a frighten Whiplash muttered as she tried to slowly slide back towards her own corner.

"Oh no you don't!" Fluttershy spotted Whiplash crawling to tag in one of her partners. "You cross my line, victory shall be mine!"

Fluttershy grabbed Whiplash by her back legs and dragged her to the middle of the canvas. She turned the tan pegasus onto her back. Whiplash's eyes were buried with fear. She thought Fluttershy was going to be easy pickings for the match. Now she was looking into the eyes of one very angry pony.

"I'm not a pushover as you thought I was, did you? When you hurt somepony that's important to me, you get the feel of new Fluttershy. Now new Fluttershy is going to make you feel the same pain as Angel does," Fluttershy asserted at the now scared Whiplash.

Holding her hind legs up, Fluttershy stepped between them with one of her own. She proceeded to wrap Whiplash's legs and flipped her over onto her stomach. Fluttershy had placed Whiplash in the professional wrestling submission hold known as the sharpshooter. Three Count rushed to Whiplash's side. He watched and listened to the locked pegasus for her call of submission. She struggled with her energy to break free, but with her back legs out of her control and Fluttershy holding on tightly, Whiplash wasn't going anywhere. Pain waved through her back and spine. It was unbearable. Whiplash could no longer withstand the stinging feeling travelling through her. She repeatedly tapped her hoof against the canvas. The first P.W.O. pony surrendered. The crowd of onlookers cheered at Fluttershy's victory. Her friends in the corner brohoofed and yelled congrats to Fluttershy. On the opposing side of the ring, the P.W.O. looked on with disbelief over their first loss of the match.

Despite getting the victory over the bullying opponent, Fluttershy remained a firm hold on Whiplash. She had refused to let go of the submission hold. Whiplash bashed her hoof repeatedly, screaming back towards the pony still applying excruciating pain to her.

"I'm tapping! I'm tapping for feather sake! Let me go!" Whiplash screamed out.

No response came from Fluttershy. Anger was still plastered all over the yellow pegasus' face. It was like she was frozen and unable to move. Three Count yelled at Fluttershy and demanded she release the submission hold. He received no reply as well. Fluttershy's friends called out also, but no help came of it. The remaining P.W.O. shouted at the referee to do something for their trapped partner.

"Fluttershy, let her go now. She has submitted. If you do not release the hold by the count of five, I'll have to disqualify you," Three Count threatened. If Fluttershy was listening, she was showing no indication of it. The referee pony made clear on his threat and counted down to five. By the time the fifth digit was spoken, Fluttershy still had not opened up the release on Whiplash's legs. The trapped pegasus was now shedding tears and was at the point of crying and begging for release. Three Count clutched onto Fluttershy's hooves and pulled with his might to release the grip of the yellow pegasus. No avail. Time and patience had run out for Fluttershy. Three Count called for the bell and informed Mic Check of his decision on Fluttershy.

"Fillies and gentlecolts, 'Nature's Wonder' Fluttershy has been disqualified!" Mic Check declared to the entire mass of ponies around the ring. The response was an unison of boos.

Fluttershy still refused to release the hold despite the announcement of her ejection from the match. Three Count once again grabbed Fluttershy's hooves and like before, he couldn't get her let go. Both wrestling teams yelled at the referee and Fluttershy. Frustration was building among them all. Rainbow Dash hurried into the ring. She and Three Count worked together to get Fluttershy to release. Dash looked into the center of Fluttershy's eyes and said to her, "Fluttershy, snap out of it! It's over! Let go of the hold!"

Fluttershy's eyes dipped. Her angered grin faded. Her strength died down. Her strong grip on Whiplash disappeared and the release was done. Fluttershy was escorted out of the ring by Rainbow Dash as Whiplash was met by her concerned teammates and helped out of the ring. Two nurse ponies were waiting to attain the injured pony.

"Rainbow Dash, what happened?" Fluttershy asked, confused on the whole ordeal that had occurred moments earlier.

"You got yourself disqualified, Fluttershy. Whiplash submitted, but you refused to release that submission hold."

"Oh my," Fluttershy shocked by the reveal of her doing. "I'm so sorry, Rainbow Dash."

"It's okay. We'll be all right." Rainbow Dash left Fluttershy's side and raced back into the ring and began to face off against Ice Cold.

Fluttershy's pet, Angel, hopped to her side. He rubbed his soft paw against her coat. He leapt up onto her back. His paws brushed through her mane. He also gave a tiny smile to the sadden pony. Fluttershy glanced back at him and returned the smile. She slowly walked down the aisle towards the entrance that was now her exit.