//------------------------------// // Issue 4.0 - When Times Start Changing // Story: The First Wonderbolt // by Essay Jay //------------------------------// Rainbow Dash gasped as she rolled to the side, nearly sprawling from the force of impact. She instinctively tried to flex her wings, and she was reminded or the umpteenth time that they had been bound minutes before. How many minutes, she couldn’t even tell anymore. Only that she needed to survive. And win, of course. Rainbow wiped her mouth and grinned. “Got anymore?” She front-rolled and a resounding crack was her response, the place where she had just been now occupied by a thick hoof. She could tell her words irritated him, and she hopped from hoof to hoof. “How long have we been at this, eh? Still haven’t touched me, but I’ve definitely touched you.” With those words, she leapt forward, a buck coming straight for her. She pushed off his hind leg, somersaulting over his whole body before rolling backwards and kicking both of her own hind legs into his stomach. The impact was enough that he went flying, and hit the ropes of the ring. With one last groan, he flopped to the floor, splayed on his back as he blinked. “Woah there, take it easy! Come on, Rainbow, did ya really have to do that?” Rainbow blew some bangs out of her face and quirked an eyebrow. “Well, Jaydock wasn’t exactly going easy on me, Puff.” In response, Jaydock wheezed and lazily waved a hoof. Rainbow pointed to him and shrugged. “See?” Puff sighed, patting Jaydock as he shook his head. “Ya could’ve been easier on him.” “That was easy!” “I think he meant be an easier target.” Ember Wing chuckled at Jaydock’s expense. “You certainly showed how fast you were.” Rainbow huffed as she started to undo the wrappings around her wings. “It’s not my fault everypony’s so slow. Besides, I even handicapped myself for this round!” All the while, the cheering of two little fillies finally reached her ears as said fillies ran up to the edge of the ring. “That was epic, Rainbow!” Firefly exclaimed. “You just went woosh and wham and pow and fzzzaow and you didn’t even get hit!” Skylark nodded vigorously in agreement. “And it looked like you weren’t even trying! Dock was just crash and bang and slam and you never even flinched!” “Hey, Small Fry, Sky. What are you two doing here?” Rainbow glanced at Ember, who shrugged and smirked. “What? We come back to Equestria for a small reprieve from the war after saving an entire platoon, as well as protecting a neighboring nation, what better way to blow steam off than to have fun at a boxing ring?” “They’re just kids, Ember.” Ember snorted. “Didn’t stop you from bringing them to the frontlines, Dash.” Blinking, Rainbow tipped her head. “You got me there.” “But wait, Rainbow!” Firefly said, causing the mare to pause just as she was holding on to the ropes. “You still haven’t gone up against Deseret.” “Yeah. I heard she’s great at wrestling!” “And where’d you hear that, Sky?” Rainbow asked curiously. “Me,” Puff said, puffing up his chest in pride. “Taught her a few things. Course, she’s already got me beat in any CQC, but I was able to get a few shots on her.” Rainbow hummed thoughtfully. “So she’s good, then?” “Why don’t you ask me yourself, Rainbow Dash?” A distinct voice piped up from the sidelines. “I see you have yet to be taken down for doing something rash.” “Hey!” Rainbow cried, everypony around her chuckling at her expense. “I do not do rash things.” Ember raised a hoof as he grinned cheekily. “Like leaping off a cloud and doing a whatsit— sonic flash-bang?” “Sonic rainboom!” Guffin chimed in, laughing heartily. “Or, or how about facing the leader of friggin’ Hydra in a one-on-one!” “Okay, okay, fine!” Rainbow grumbled, “You’ve made your point.” “Well, now that that’s out of the way, it’s time to see how you’ll make me pay.” Deseret was smirking as she gracefully flipped into ring. Slipping on some boxing gloves, she began to crack her neck. “I hope you’re as good as me in CQC. Surely, I’ll show you how much you do not see.” “Whatcha mean?” Rainbow asked, starting to hop from hoof to hoof. “Well, I’ve trained as a Panther all my life.” As Deseret popped some joints and stretched, Rainbow winced. “I guess you can say… I’m as sharp as a knife.” In that moment, Rainbow saw something change in the air. In one second, Deseret went playful and jovial to deadly and unpredictable. Of course, if Rainbow had enough time, she could probably figure out a pattern, but as it stood, she had no idea what she had just gotten herself into. Tensing up a little, she reminded herself that she needed to relax, else she lock up when her life depended on it. Deseret still held her smile, shy as it was, staring down Rainbow Dash. They prowled around the ring, Deseret’s smooth and fluid, while Rainbow was cautious and anticipating. In an outstanding flash of black and white, Deseret lunge forward. Rainbow barely had the initiative to dodge to the side before she had spread her wings to steady herself. So they went back to staring each other down, moving in a circle as everyone around them held their breath. What was more: Rainbow could see the glint in Deseret’s eyes, as if she was no longer just a zebra. Something more. Rainbow licked her lips and blew her bangs back. She would not start sweating now. Finding in herself the incentive to strike first, Rainbow dashed forward. Deseret gracefully bounced backwards into the ropes, using them to propel herself over Rainbow. Flaring her wings to stop her own collision with the ropes, she spun on one hoof and flapped her wings once, letting them settle back against her sides. Deseret used this moment of recover to her advantage, silently pouncing forward. Rainbow brought up her hooves as she blocked two powerful blows. She quickly returned them with a roundhouse kick, narrowly missing Deseret but striking close enough that she was put off balance. Flicking her wings, Rainbow torpedoed forward in one smooth motion. Her wings brushed Deseret’s legs, and Deseret stumbled, planting face-first into the ground. A collective gasp resounded around the ring, but Rainbow paid it no mind. Her opponent was getting back up. Deseret once again stood on fours, her poise clearly showing she did not appreciate her fall. Deseret’s resulting grin was amiable, but Rainbow could see the feral twinkle behind her white teeth. Deseret bounded forward, and Rainbow rolled to the side. Feeling a blow in her side that crunched a part of her wing, she yelped and finished, sliding to a stop just in time to see Deseret’s hoof coming at her face. Rainbow flexed backward, planting her fore hooves into the ground before bringing her hind legs up and kicking Deseret’s uppercut up. Rainbow ground to a halt, quickly spinning around to keep her eyes on the danger of the ring. Deseret had fallen backwards, not having expected such an unorthodox way of dealing with a punch. Scrambling to get up, Rainbow charged and found her punch get blocked by a hoof. In its stead, a leg kicked her in the gut. Grimacing, Rainbow gripped the leg just as it was retreating. Twisting it, she heard the yelp of Deseret, and her whole body followed her leg. Rainbow almost blocked the other leg in time. Almost. The blow left her falling to the ground in shock as she hadn’t seen it coming. Before she knew what was happening, a set of hooves had wrapped it’s way around the crooks of Rainbow’s forelegs and clasped under her neck. Immediately, Rainbow was alarmed by the strength of the one choking her. Already, spots were beginning to form in her eyes. Rainbow needed to do something! Grunting and struggling as she gritted her teeth and ignored the pressure around her neck, she planted her forehead into the ground. As her vision began to fade, Rainbow yelled as her wings tore from their sides and flapped once, enough for Rainbow to get her hind legs underneath her and flip forward. The world exploded into colour. Rainbow gulped down as much air as she could, rubbing her neck as she struggled to her hooves. Forcing her gaze forward, she could see Deseret picking herself up from her throw, and already she was moving towards Rainbow again. Coughing once, twice, Rainbow met Deseret’s blow. She was fast. Almost unbelievably so. A jab here, a punch there, kick from the side, a dodge from her hit. It was one thing after the other, and it was almost like they were dancing. Deseret moved like a cat, with such elegance and grace it was almost mesmerizing. A cat looking for blood, as each hoof came as if bearing a claw. Each kick was like getting winded. Each scratch as deadly as a needle. Rainbow Dash worried. Where had she learned these kinds of moves? As she moved her head to dodge a hoof, she grabbed said hoof and spun, throwing her weight forward, and eliciting a yelp from Deseret before she was slammed into the ground. Flapping her wings once, Rainbow gained air, and she slammed straight into the ground. Deseret had rolled away. A kick to her wing was enough to get Rainbow to stifle a scream. She folded her wings in and glared at Deseret. Deseret shrugged. Rainbow jumped towards her. Deseret rolled under and kicked her in the gut, before coming back up gracefully. Rainbow sprawled, rolling until she used the momentum to side flip up. Deseret was already coming, a hoof hitting Rainbow straight in the chest. Rainbow broke swatted the next punch away, swiftly uppercutting Deseret. Deseret responded with a headbutt that dazed Rainbow. Dodging a swipe, Rainbow spun on her hoof and roundhouse kicked Deseret in her shoulder, and she swung into the ropes. Bounding back, Deseret came at Rainbow’s neck, and they both fell to the ground. So it was that they found themselves in each other's chokehold, neither willing to yield, and both unwilling to let go of their grip. Tangled in a mess of each other’s limbs and sputtering for air, a resounding bell clang, and hooves all around began clapping. Taking this as a signal, they found themselves nodding to each other before they both released their holds. The heavy silence that followed was only broken by the thundering of hooves as everyone who had watched had been awed by their speed and precision. Rainbow panted, greedily gulping in as much air as she could to bring herself back into working order. She chanced a glance at Deseret, seeing that she was doing the same. “Nice one, stripes,” Rainbow croaked out, massaging her throat and pulling herself up. “I thought I was a goner there for a second.” Deseret winced just as much as Rainbow, grinning mischievously. “I would’ve gotten you there, my colourful friend. I am not disappointed, for it was certainly a surprising end.” “I’ll agree with you this one time.” Rainbow smirked before shaking Deseret’s hoof and then pulling her into a hug. “No hard feelings, right?” “Of course not,” Deseret breathed. “But I’ll get you next time. ‘Til then, give it all you’ve got.” Pulling away, they smiled and began to wave away the spectators. They both rushed to their corners, grabbing their water bottles and gulping down the cool life-giving liquid. After doing so, they exited the ring and were almost instantly mobbed by two fillies leading a squad of baffled soldiers. “Woah, that was so cool, you just went whack and slam and punch and kick and flew into the air like fwoosh-!” Firefly began. “And Deseret just dodged and rolled and it was like I couldn’t even see your hooves-” Sky continued, jumping up and down. “-And then you both just grabbed each other and we couldn’t even tell who was going to win!” Firefly finished. Sky beamed up at them, grinning widely. “It was so crazy!” “You got that right, sister!” Firefly shouted, and they began to dance around with each other, striking the other’s hooves occasionally as they sang loudly and off key. “The Wonderbolt is here to stay! Deseret will bring them pain! We will win the war with might! The future’s filled with hope and light!” “Okay kids, that’s enough of that.” Ember chuckled, reining in the two hyperactive fillies with his wings and locking them in place. Sky and Firefly squirmed in his grasp, but they soon found their attempts were futile. Still, that didn’t stop them from shouting at each other, trying to get the other to hear their words. Guffin eyed Ember’s wincing and sighed in amusement. “Honestly, Ember, I’d say let them loose and don’t look back.” “Or let Deseret handle them,” Puff suggested with a smile, earning him an annoyed glare from Deseret. He shrugged and tilted his head. “Hey, Des, you have a sibling. I’m sure you have more knowledge on how to deal with this stuff. ‘Sides, it’s clear to me now that you were just going easy on me.” Sighing he patted Deseret on the shoulder and smiled. “Fool me once, shame on me. Fool me twice…” Ember piped in, grinning as he grabbed Puff in a one-leg hug. “Shame’s still on you Puff. You thinking you’re so great and all! Hah!” Everyone had a good laugh at that, giggles and chuckles filling the group with mirth. After a bout of shoving where Ember and Guffin began pushing Puff around, the fillies calmed down somewhat and approached Rainbow again. The sly smiles on their faces put Rainbow Dash off, and she wondered what they were planning. “Done messing around, Small Fry?” Rainbow asked, but they only smiled wider. Frowning, she suddenly sensed a rush of wind from above just as- “Heya, Dash!” Rainbow backflipped and flared her wings, stopping her momentum in an instant and allowing her hind leg to jab straight into her attacker’s back. She watched the pony crumple to the ground with a groan before Rainbow quickly realised who it was. She furrowed her brows and asked “Sharp Spark?” A wheeze erupted from the mare’s mouth as she nodded her head. Rainbow frowned, turning her attention to the two shocked fillies in front of her, their eyes darting between the two mares. Relda rushed from where she had been observing, tutting around Goldeneye before the latter waved Relda off and picked herself up. “Wow, Dash,” Goldeneye gasped. She rubbed the small of her back before stretching, wincing all the while. “You certainly know how to take a surprise.” “Goldie, what the hay?” Rainbow said, grimacing at Goldeneye’s pain. “Where the tartarus were you this entire time?” “Up there!” She bobbed her head upwards, a catwalk spreading above the rafters and lights. Goldeneye tried to smirk. “Nice moves, Dash. Nice and limber for an unofficial captain.” She then turned to Deseret and winked at her. “You too, Stripes. You looked like you were dancing! If I didn’t know you, I would’ve thought you were some zebra-cat hybrid or something!” At that, Goldeneye giggled, wincing once more at her back. “Boy, you girls can hit hard.” Deseret giggled a little nervously at Goldeneye’s comments, but she was relieved to see no one seemed to notice. “So, Sharp Spark, Goldeneye to friends, what brings you to us on this fun-filled weekend?” Ember nodded, asking her “Yeah, Sharpie, what’s happening?” “‘Goldie’ is fine,” Goldeneye growled, “You know how I hate ‘Sharpie’.” “Sorry, Spark, I was just trying to help.” Rolling her eyes, she smiled patted a pouch on her barrel. “Looks like we’ve got another mission! We’re set to head out tomorrow morning, oh-seven-hundred hours. We’ll meet up at the dock to ship out.” “Sweet!” Firefly exclaimed, fluttering her wings in excitement. “A mission! Is this your first real one since Wakanda?” “Ooh! Ooh! Are you going to infiltrate an enemy base and find out their secret plans?” “Or ambush them while they’re looking for you and make them POWs?” Firefly turned in confusion at her friend. “What the hay is a ‘pow’? “A Pee-Oh-Double-Yu is a prisoner of war, Firefly.” Sky rolled her eyes as if it was common knowledge. “See? The letters of each word make it-” “I’m not that stupid, Sky,” Firefly grumbled. “I know what an acronym is.” “I never said you were,” Sky argued. “Did so.” “Did not.” “Did so.” “Did not!” “Did so!” Ember rushed up to them, breaking them up before the argument could escalate. “Girls, girls, calm down now! Today is supposed to be fun, so don’t ruin it. It’s probably one of the few holidays we’ll be getting, and I only showed Cap over there the place because it was where I learned how to fight.” “Hey, Firefly, Sky, just take a chill pill and relax!” Rainbow said. “Besides, Goldeneye didn’t come here just to deliver the message, right?” “Nah, I came for the entertainment.” Her eyes darted from the glaring fillies to the sweaty hoof-wrapped forms of Deseret, Jaydock, and Rainbow Dash. “Gotta say, not disappointed yet! Who wants to have a go against me?” “I think I will sit this one out,” Deseret said, trotting to a bench and gulping down a substantial portion of her water bottle. “My fight with Rainbow Dash was a particularly stressful bout.” “You can say that again, sister!” Rainbow grinned, getting and gulping her own water bottle as well before splashing the reminder against Deseret. “Nothing like some nice cold water to freshen us up!” Rainbow remarked above the loud and shocked yelp from Deseret. Her smile became a little nervous when she saw the glint in Deseret’s eye. “I’ll get you for that one, Dash,” Deseret smiled evilly, drinking the remainder of her water and capping it slowly. “You might find yourself hoping I don’t do something rash.” “Hehe, uh, sure, yeah, gotta go bye!” Rainbow said, flapping into the air and rushing to the mare’s lavatory. All the while, the group watched them in amusement, bursting into giggles as Rainbow left ear-shot. Goldeneye smirked. “Well, one thing’s for sure.” “And what’s that?” Jaydock spoke for the first time in minutes. Goldeneye raised an eyebrow and grinned. “Rainbow might be awesome, but she’s got nothing on how terrifying Des can be.” “Damn right!” Puff proclaimed, and everyone laughed once more.