Chương 15: The Fight
A/N: At last the fighting scene is here, hope you enjoy it! Let me know what you think of it. I don't know if I'm going to much in detail about how the fights go, but sometimes I'm reading and it's like "They clash fiercely" and I'm like, 'What does that even mean?' But if this style is awkward to read please lmk and I will adjust accordingly.
*Song of the Day: Returns to Dreamland 4 by Tzooki Mars
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The screams of the crowd were so loud it shook the very sand Marcus stood on. Marcus let the familiar sounds wash over him as he glances towards the VIP room.
Marcus moved near to the left of the portcullis slightly in front of the wall and looked at his daughter as she looked back at him with a bright smile on her face. For a moment she seemed nervous which struck Marcus with a pang of worry, before she smiled, relieving Marcus.
He turned away and look at the crowd and took a deep breath. The arena smelled of iron, salt, and blood. It smelled of nostalgia to Marcus. The giant globe light above the arena cast a bronze glow over Marcus's skin. The noise of the crowd died down slightly as the announcer began to speak again.
"TONIGHT THE OLD CHAMPION WITH FACE ONE BATTLE AFTER THE NEXT. HE WILL FACE CHAMPIONS FROM EVERY ASPECT OF FIGHTING. HIS GOAL. CRUSH. HIS. ENEMIES! BUT BEFORE HE FIGHTS ANY HUMAN OPPONENTS, HE IS GOING TO FACE A KING. THE KING OF THE BEASTS! THE LLLIIOOOOONNN."
'A lion? Damn, I'm better at fighting humans. And I don't have a weapon.' Marcus was broken out of his thoughts as the floor beneath him trembled. He looked at the other end of the arena where a section of the ground opened upwards like a trapdoor and a platform was raised from beneath the floor.
An enormous black box broke through the ground level as it was raised on the platform. It shook violently as a loud battering noise came from within. Thin slits at eye height around the box reflected the growls that came from within.
"OF COURSE THE LION IS THE KING OF THE BEASTS, BUT THAT'S WHAT THEY FOUGHT 2000 YEARS AGO. ARE WE THAT BORING?"
The crowd screamed out a resounding "NOOOOOOO".
"THAT IS RIGHT. THIS IS THE 21ST CENTURY. WE ARE BETTER. WE NEED MORE! THE LION THAT THE REAPER WILL BE FIGHTING TODAY WAS GENETICALLY ENGINEERED TO BE BETTER. FASTER. STRONGER. AND OF COURSE-"
The door of the massive black box blew open as a beast launched its way out. A massive mane of hair covered its massive bronze, muscled shoulders. Saliva dripped out of a massive mouth filled with teeth the size of daggers, designed for killing. But was set it distinctly apart from other lions was its size.
"BIGGER! NO MATTER WHAT ANYONE SAYS, BIGGER. IS. BETTER. DESIGNED TO BE STANDING 6FT TALL THIS BEAST HAS BEEN UNVEILED FOR THE FIRST TIME TONIGHT."
The pitch-black eyes of the lion met Marcus's gaze evenly as it turned to him before letting out a tremendous roar that silenced the arena for a moment before the entire crowd went ballistic.
'That's a big boy right there.' Marcus thought. How the hell do a beat a lion in combat? With no weapon. Marcus looked at the spear-lined walls. Maybe he could use those? But he didn't want to kill the poor beast, not in front of Jaya. But did he have a choice? A lion was already an Apex predator, not to mention a genetically altered one. An armed human would have trouble killing a normal lion, not to mention an unarmed person like him.
Marcus was broken out of his thoughts as the lion darted towards him tearing across the sand. You would think that bigger equals slower, but if anything the lion was almost twice as fast as it's cousins from the wild.
The lion was in front of him in a flash and pounced. Marcus wasn't in a fighting position and especially wasn't position enough to jump over the lion, so he did the one thing he could do.
Marcus fell backward, flat on the ground, and the momentum of the leaping lion carried it on a course over Marcus's head. Marcus then used the momentum from falling backward and kicked both his feet as hard as he could into the lion's center of mass as it flew over him. The lion lost control as it flew up and away from Marcus behind him.
Marcus sprung up and faced the lion ready to fight and was shocked at the sight in front of him. The silence of the crowd reflected his thoughts. 'Shit. I didn't mean to do that.' The lion had hit the wall behind Marcus, positioned almost upside down. The giant lion was pierced cleanly through the neck, one leg, and several through the torso. 'So much for not killing in front of Jaya.'
"W...Huh... We... WE HAVE A WINNER IN THE ARENA. IN LESS THAN TEN SECONDS FROM THE START OF THE MATCH, THE REAPER HAS SHOWN WHY HE WAS KNOWN AS UNDEFEATED. SWIFTLY USING THE LION'S SPEED AGAINST IT, THE GRINNING REAPER HAS WON THE FIRST FIGHT OF THE NIGHT!!!!!"
The voice of the announcer sparked the crowd as the entire crowd erupted violently as the very arena itself trembled at their bloodlust and excitement.
Marcus felt like it was anticlimactic. The announcer had hyped it up, just for the lion to die just like that, but oh well.
"BUT THAT DOESN'T MEAN THIS IS THE END OF IT! THE REAPER HAS ANOTHER CHALLENGER! THE MAN WHO CARVED HIS WAY ONE BATTLE AFTER THE NEXT! WITH A BATTLE SCORE OF 153-2, THE CURRENT REIGNING CHAMPION OF THE UNARMED DIVISION, MIKE MILLER!"
As the announcer spoke the black box that held the lion sank back into the ground as the opposing portcullis at the end of the arena slowly raised. At first, covered by the shadows a man slowly made his way to the light and reflected off his shining bald head.
The light of the arena reflected off his gleaming muscles, barely restrained by his dark skin. He looked as if he was a statue made of volcanic rock. His sharp white grappling gloves splattered with dried blood contrasted the rest of him.
Unlike the lion and Marcus, this man was not wild or unrestrained in any fashion. Marcus could not tell what the man was thinking. His face was stone cold, no emotion flashed as he walked to the middle of the arena.
Marcus began to walk away from the wall of the arena and towards the center.
"AS YOU ALL KNOW, MIKE IS A MMA FIGHTER WHO QUIT DUE TO IT BEING BORING. HE WANTED NO RULES. AND WE HERE AT THE TRIUMVIRATE TOURNAMENT PROVIDED IT. GET READY FOR A FIGHT BETWEEN AN RETIRED MMA CHAMPION AND THE UNRESTRICTED MMA FIGHTER."
The crowd grew more and more ecstatic as the two men approached each other slowly from across the arena. Mike got to the center of the arena and dropped into a high guard stance and Marcus kept a steady pace, ensuring to stay on his toes to react to any movement.
But his opponent just stood in front of him rocking on the balls of his feet, back and forth in a steady and controlled manner.
Marcus knew from his stance that he was most likely a boxer of some sort. Marcus kept his arms down, open palms as he circled around his opponent. It didn't mean that he wasn't ready for his opponent. Under his relaxed mask, Marcus was like a compressed steel spring, ready to strike at a moment's notice.
Then his opponent struck out with a quick jab. Marcus observed the punch and simply leaned back slightly. He had judged the length of his opponents arm and ensured that he was at the edge of his opponent's reach.
However, Mike was a smart opponent, the jab was not meant to be painful or deal damage, it was a jab to determine where his striking range was in comparison to his opponent.
After Mike sent that first jab out, it seemed to spark the initiated the conflict between the two opponents.
Marcus after leaning back, moved his weight forward and snapped his right foot against his opponent's side.
Mike grabbed Marcus's foot as it hit him, absorbing the blow. Marcus went with the momentum, turning with the motion, jumping up, and snapping his other foot toward his opponent.
Mike turned away from the foot and tucked his head into his shoulder as he ate the kick. (Not literally)
Marcus caught himself with his hands and flipped back up to his feet. Marcus looked at his opponent who was still like stone, with little change in his expression as he faced him. Then Mike spoke up for the first time in a gravelly, deep voice,
"There is a reason I left MMA," Mike patted his side with his hand, "I don't like pain, but I like fighting. You can't take pain dampeners in MMA, but you can here. No matter what you throw at me, no matter how hard you throw it, I won't feel a thing. You, on the other hand, will feel every punch I throw. This fight has one end. Your defeat."
Marcus's grin didn't let up as he laughed softly, before saying, "Just means I have to throw them harder. You might not feel it, but your body will eventually."
Finally, Marcus's opponent showed a crack in his stone exterior. A single glimpse of worry, before it was back to a stony face.
Then Mike moved forward getting into striking range. Marcus just narrowed his eyes, getting into a guarded stance.
Mike's punches flew at Marcus as Marcus parried the lightning-fast jabs, slipped under an overcommitted cross, and hit Mike with a heavy liver shot.
Marcus then retreated fast out of Mike's range. Usually, a heavy shot to the liver would put even the best fighters out of commission for a few minutes if not the fight itself. But Mike just approached Marcus undaunted, seemingly unaffected.
'Damn, those drugs really do be working huh,' Marcus thought as Mike approached.
Marcus finally took the initiative. He quickly moved forward, and Mike threw out a jab Marcus turned with it grabbing the jabbing arm, going into a kneeling position, and throwing his opponent over his shoulder and onto the ground.
If Mike was good on his feet and with his feet, Marcus would bring him to the ground. Marcus sprung on top of a now prone Mike and tried to set in a rear naked choke. But Mike tucked in his chin, so Marcus did his next best move and just flex his bicep and began to crush his opponent's jaw.
Mike grasped hard at Marcus's arm, but it was like a steel cord wrapped around his neck.
'At least I didn't take much damage to this fight either, if the rest of these fights are like this, it's going to be a-' Marcus was snapped out of his thoughts as his entire body began spasming out of his control and Mike slipped out of his hold.
As soon as Mike slipped out, the pain stopped, and Marcus rolled away and clumsily got to his feet. Whatever Mike had done just now hurt like hell. All of his muscles felt like he had done a three-hour workout.
Marcus looked over at Mike who was kneeling on the ground, gasping for air and rubbing his jaw. Then he saw it, Mike's right hand was sparking with electricity. He had a taser installed in his gloves.
'That made the fight a lot harder.'
"I told you. You can't beat me. I have watched your fights. Hundreds of them. You are an honorable fighter who follows the rules. But I am a man who is willing to do anything at all to win." Mike said as he got up to his feet once more.
Marcus grit his teeth as he looked across at his opponent. Who knew what else the man had in order to win? What other drugs or hidden weapons? The man in front of him couldn't feel pain, was skilled at fighting, and shored up his weakness on the ground with a Taser. On the other hand, Marcus had over an hour of fights left and needed energy. On top of that, Marcus couldn't allow himself to be hit once lest he be hit by a taser once more.
'How exciting.' Marcus thought as that bloodthirsty grin stretched across his face.
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A/N: 2.1K words! Hope you enjoy it. I will try and post Wednesday but my week is looking a little hectic, but I will without a doubt post by Friday evening.
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