Editor's Note: A friend wrote and illustrated this story for me. Hope you like it.
Becky’s desire to be a better wrestler drove her to train on a regular basis at her local gym and she progressed to the point where she was doing very well amongst the girls she was paired against. She even signed up to participate in a promotional tournament against the wrestlers from another gym. As (bad) luck would have it, she was randomly pared against the best wrestler from the opposing gym.
Allison, the ring announcer, started thing off with a flourish pointing to the first combatant. “Ladies and gentlemen, to my right, the current Pantheon Gym Champion… here is Jeanette Lansdale!”
Jeanette, the fit, blonde beauty, threw both hands in the air before turning into a modest pose. She held it maybe a fraction too short… frankly she had no idea if it was long or short. Her job was to wrestle, modelling wasn’t really her thing. She stepped back to her corner and nodded to Allison.
“And on my left, her opponent for this round one matchup the one and only Becky Walker!”
Becky took a couple steps forward and had no issue striking up a pose. While not exactly an exhibitionist she had no issues at all showing off what she had and that was plenty. The curvy redhead made show before hitting her own pose and holding plenty long enough.
Then she strutted her way back to the corner to await the match
“Ok ladies, best of luck to you both. You are aware of the rules, which are few but to enforce them from is our referee, Laura. When I leave the ring and my feet hit the floor you are welcome to begin.” With that Allison climbed through the ropes and off she went.
The two circled, each boring their eyes into the other trying to anticipate the others opening move. Unlike many ladies here, these two had little prior knowledge of the other making this battle a bit of an unknown. It’s certain they each did a bit of homework on the other, but one can only glean so much in the little time they had.
“Best of luck.” Jeanette said opening the conversation, polite but firm. She was looking for a good match but wasn’t sure what she was going to get.
“And to you, Jeanette… or is it blondie?” Becky said, a bit of sass as she added that last bit. Not exactly an insult but not exactly a compliment either.
“Ok… if this is how it’s going to be then.” Jeanette replied, all signs of a smile gone from her face replaced by a determined scowl.
Jeanette was still thinking about how bold it was for Becky to make a blonde comment before the match even started. She shook the thought out in time for the two to come together in a lock up and Jeanette moved in for the classic collar and elbow.
Becky was anything but ‘classic’ however. She knew better than to dive right into Jeanette’s wheelhouse and get into a grappling match with her. Becky had her own strengths, but she was keenly aware that Jeanette was likely better inside this ring than she was. That didn’t mean she didn’t have other means of getting to a victory.
Becky hinted at a lock up but stepped back the minute it looked like Jeanette was ready to engage. Her long, strong legs lashed out and connected with a solid kick right to the unprotected ribs of her foe.
It was a great start.
So good she managed to grab a handful of Jeanette’s hair and ponytail and throw her backward, slamming her to the mat.
Jeanette couldn’t shake the cobwebs fast enough as Becky grabbed her by the locks again. Becky was sure that staying on her and staying aggressive was going to be her path to victory. She twisted Jeanette into a quick wristlock before quickly sending her for the proverbial ride into the corner.
The blonde champion nearly escaped danger with a slide to her right but Becky was too swift in following Jeanette in. Leaping toward Jeanette with as much vertical as she could get coming down with her forearm smashing her again before Jeanette’s move freed her from danger.
Jeanette was pinned in the corner and Becky again hit her hard again with a close quarters knee to the abdomen. Becky was unleashing herself with the early salvo against an early foe that suddenly was looking more beatable than she’d looked a minute ago. Becky was gaining momentum and confidence.
Jeanette Lansdale had been through many wars, some in places far from a wrestling ring and getting it taken to her was not new. She had an ability to find another gear and did just that. She gritted her teeth against the pain and slammed her own forearm into Becky’s exposed stomach.
Becky had all the early momentum but maybe let up just enough to leave an opening and the surprise blow caught her just enough unaware. Against a wrestler like Jeanette ‘just enough’ was often times a much bigger opening than it sounded. She backed Becky off further with another short forearm, doubling the redhead over. That bought her enough time to snap on a headlock and hiptoss her down to the mat.
Now Jeanette had seized control of her opponent and the match, even if only for a few precious moments. Jeanette was an outstanding wrestler. She could shift from brawler to power wrestler, to highflyer, to grappler in any moment during a match.
Her mat skills went to work grinding on Becky’s head, laying high on her chest and shoulder to keep the danger from behind to a minimum and yanking the head uncomfortably. Then she started to reposition her hips a bit higher and in one flash move she opened her legs and captured Becky’s arm. With a little bit more work she’d get a kimura type move on that elbow, bending it the wrong way and no amount of work was going to save her foe then.
“Oh no you don’t.” Becky said through gritted teeth anticipating what Jeanette was up to with the move.
Becky smartly turned her arm into Jeanette’s leg and rotated her shoulder back just enough before the blonde clamped down on her fully. Her arm was indeed trapped but she’d managed to diffuse much of the threat with the little move she’d performed. At least now Becky had her arm in a position to bend at the elbow as it was intended if Jeanette wanted crank the arm, instead of being bent painfully backward. If Jeanette wanted to reposition the arm, she was going to have use her hands and that meant giving up the headlock. For the moment Becky had dodged disaster.
Becky refused to let Jeanette seize control of her arm and maybe even caught her napping. The tried and true pony tail yank may not be the most sporting of maneuvers but it was both successful and effective.
Jeanette had no choice but to loosen her headlock grip when Becky gave her blonde hair a violent tug. Worse yet she knew what was about to happen and couldn’t prevent it.
The flexible Becky was able to shift her hips and bring her legs up and snare Jeanette’s head, even as Jeanette desperately tried to keep control of Becky’s arm with her own legs.
Becky succeeded, Jeanette did not. Soon the strong legs of the redhead once again went to work, this time squeezing and torquing Jeanette’s head while adding her own arm stretch to compound the hold.
“Give it up Jeanette!!” Becky demanded.
However even in her awkward position, Jeanette wasn’t done. She planted her feet and amazingly rolled herself over on to her stomach. This move caught Becky unaware and, try as she might, she couldn’t readjust her legs to clamp down on Jeanette and the blonde had completed her narrow escape.
As the two came to their feet it was Jeanette who was quicker, perhaps her more seasoned ring game playing a big part of the reset. Becky seemed a bit frustrated with her ability to do more damage with her headscissor maneuver and paid the price with rising too slow.
Jeanette had already planted herself and dropkicked Becky square in the chest. It was a masterful move in that Jeanette didn’t even fully rise and leap for the dropkick. She essentially sprung upward with the move using her rising momentum to enhance the blow rather than from a standing position.
It knocked Becky back and off her feet, landing squarely on her back with limbs akimbo.
Once again, the match had changed gears and now it was Jeanette who had regained the upper hand. Now the Pantheon champion was increasing the speed and intensity of the match. She was on Becky before she could completely rise. Jeanette slammed a knee into her to keep her folded up before tucking Becky’s head under her arm.
When Becky felt her leg get trapped, she knew the Fisherman Suplex was coming but was in no position to do much about it. As with Jeanette earlier with the hair pull, she could only brace herself for the inevitable.
“Here we go….,” Jeanette paused before adding “… Red.” a clear dig at the blonde dig earlier.
Jeanette squatted and exploded her lower body up, bringing the cradled Becky with her as she did. She didn’t even stop her progress for a moment as she slammed Becky to the mat, then bridging in the usual fashion.
Laura moved adjacent to the combatants and began the count. “ONE…TW….” but that was all Jeanette got as the gutsy redhead powered her way out of the pin with a combination of fear, adrenaline and waning strength.
“Damn you!” Jeanette shouted before moving to the next hold. She folded her prone opponent’s legs before locking her own arms around the legs to tie them together. Then she began to bend the facedown Becky into a painful inverted cloverleaf.
“That’s it!! GIVE UP!!” she demanded.
“NO…” Becky replied before howling in pain.
“How about it, Becks?” Laura asked sure the answer was coming based on the incredible bend Jeanette was applying.
Becky screamed a more emphatic, “NO!”, this time.
“COME ON!!!” Jeanette screamed, a little anger and a little frustration seeping through her serious façade.
Becky put her forehead on that mat, gritted her teeth and fought the pain. Jeanette bent her further.
“Whaddya say, Becky? Submit the match?” Laura asked again.
“GIVE IT UP!!” Jeanette demanded right on top of the ref’s query, but her best efforts could not get a submission from the stubborn redhead.
“NO” Becky howled and slammed her fist in the mat both as a denial and to reinforce that she could take a lot of pain.
“You’ve GOT to be KIIIDDDING ME!!” Jeanette screamed but still no submission, her own frustrations starting to take over even more.
Jeanette was understandably frustrated at not having put away the stubborn redhead by now and it was beginning to show through. She couldn’t get the win with the cloverleaf, but she was seasoned enough to know she was close. Jeanette released Becky from the cloverleaf, but she did not relinquish her grip on her legs. She flopped Becky over onto her back, only to step through her legs and wrap them around her own. All it took was a relatively easy turn, which a greatly weakened Becky was powerless to resist, to lock in her own signature Sharpshooter finisher.
Jeanette bent a howling Becky once again, really digging it in as deeply as she could. She felt her ass touch Becky’s back and shoulder blades. This has to be it! Jeanette thought. It was her favorite and possibly best move and she had it locked in tightly.
For Becky this was the worst. Bent in half and helpless. Still, she fought.
“Give it, Becky!! C’MON!” Jeanette shouted.
“How about it, Becky? Do you submit?” Laura asked.
Becky again held fast. “NO, I DON’T!” was what her mind shouted out, but it came out of her mouth as a feeble whisper.
“SUBMIT!” Jeanette demanded, and found a way to sink the hold in deeper.
Becky whimpered feeling the hold bending her even further. Jeanette was the consummate professional in the application of this hold and Becky could feel every inch of unnatural bend and twist.
“Becky!” Laura yelled. “Do you give?”
“SAY IT!” Jeanette demanded, but a little bit of pleading was starting to creep into her voice.
This time Becky said nothing. Her eyes locked on Laura, the referee, as if by some force they would communicate that way.
“BECKY?!” Laura asked again.
Becky again didn’t reply and only stared at Laura hoping, somehow, she’d survive again, her voice abandoning her. She wanted to say the words, but her brain wouldn’t let her body do it.
Laura looked into her eyes and recognized she was done. The fight had gone from her but for whatever reason, stubbornness or good old fashioned ‘I’ll never give in’ perhaps, Becky wasn’t slapping the mat or giving a verbal surrender.
“Is she giving?” Jeanette said plowing the hold as deeply as she could. Her base was true, her strong legs wide and putting force into the hold, bending her torso to fold her foe as far as she could.
Laura looked again, Becky was pleading with her face, pain etched, surrender close.
“Becky!!” Laura’s voice rose higher.
Nothing. Just glassed over eyes peering into the distant at the ref.
“That’s it!! Jeanette she’s finished! Let her go! I’m calling the match, you’ve won.” Laura shouted as she moved toward the victress.
Laura’s job wasn’t just to officiate but to protect the fighters and the gym. Fighters didn’t need to be permanently hurt and the gym certainly didn’t need that sort of publicity.
Becky didn’t quit, she didn’t tap out, she didn’t get pinned but there was no doubt she’d given it her all, but it just wasn’t enough. She’d have likely been seriously injured if Laura hadn’t called it.
Jeanette released the hold and moved to the side; Laura was on Becky in a second.
Becky didn’t complain or whine or argue at the result, she just laid there on her stomach. She’d been defeated but kept her pride. Her body had failed her and nothing more. She'd lost to be sure, but it wasn't because she was weak.
Jeanette was beside her as well.
“You are one of the stubbornest girls I’ve ever faced. You put up a damned good fight and barely gave me an inch. You should be proud. I hope I never have to go through that again.” Jeanette patted her on the back before moving away again.
Becky acknowledged the compliment but still hadn’t risen. She’d gotten put through the ringer at the end and lost but it would be hard to say she hadn’t won on some levels.
Respect is the hardest thing to earn, and Becky would never have to worry about that again once word began to spread.
