章節 30: Match 6

Match 6 Maxwell Beckett vs Sigfried "Blood" River

Nobody in the audience believed what had just transpired on that very ground in front of them. They were lucky they had just watched a fight worthy of all their life. Meanwhile on the stand just above the spectators seat, Terry Jackson and Qi Ling were watching over the match.

"Whoahahahaha, what a tremendous display of strength! I promise you won't be disappointed when it's my time to shine! Hahahahaha!" exclaimed the giant gleefully while patting Ling on the back a little bit too hard. Ling felt that but instead of expressing how annoyed he was, he looked at the bottle of whiskey on his right hand and smiled.

"Sure, everybody wants a piece of that glory. But me, and my honey bunny" said Qi Ling as he took a chug on his bottle of whiskey. Terry's wide eyes and furrowed brows were enough of expression to show how surprised and creeped out he was to the man next to him "Why is he hugging and kissing that bottle?" said himself in his mind.

"Alright ladies, I'll see you soon.." entered Yaju with a flock of girls around him. They hadn't left his sight since last night after arriving on the island. Not long after they left, he continued his sentence "..If that's all I need to get you all off me. I told them I already have my eyes set". "Hey Ling, get a load of this playboy" Terry tugged Ling like a schoolboy trying to get an ally in teasing a classmate. "Heheh, lucky for me, my honey bunny here is the very definition of loyal" he continued chugging it empty. After he was done with his bottle, he flung it to the nearest trash bin.

"Alright boys, I'm off to warm myself up. Try to get along while I'm gone, yeah?" Ling walked away wobbly, he sometimes stopped for a second to check his footing. Terry and Yaju laughed in unison as the drunken fighter bumped his head into a wall. "Someone bumps their head to a wall and your first reaction is to laugh? Am I the only one sane here?" grumbled as he continued walking to his designated locker room.

"So who is fighting next? Another small fries shitshow?" asked Yaju. "I don't think they were weak at all, but this one might quench your thirst" replied Terry.

Meanwhile in the waiting room, Sigfried River limbered up as Sakura Ibuki was watching him from the seat behind River. Sakura wanted to make sure of his fighter to be on top condition before going to his first Kengan fight. He then stood up and fixed his Italian custom fitted suit.

"Your opponent is not some punk you usually beat up back in your mercenary days. You better have a solid plan on taking him down" said Sakura seriously. "He might look like a sloppy primate, but he knows his shtick. I've seen his matches and they always end in bloodbath"

"Don't get so tensed up, boss. I've fought against even bigger guys than him" replied River to his employee as he took off his shirt revealing tank top of his favorite anime picture on it, Zatch Bell.

"Alright then. Unless you want to realize that, I just need you to come back in one piece. I can't face Mr. Metsudo with your arms ripped off." It seemed the fighter and his employer have a mutual goal in their minds. "Jeez, no need for gore stuff" replied River. River continued warming himself up. After several minutes of stretching he took off his tank top revealing a lean muscular body, thanks to his king's bloodline and countless hours worth of battlefield experience.

Everybody still couldn't believe what they had just witnessed. After all, this is the Kengan Annihilation Tournament. Gradually, the arena's lights dimmed and the spotlight shined on the silver haired Katahara Sayaka who once again showed no signs of exhaustion as she took her breath deeply.

"And now! This next fight is not for the faint of heart! Both fighters are no strangers to the underworld of killing combat! From the right corner, he's a former member of Denmark's special forces, with 387 confirmed deaths in the span of 3 years before going as mercenary! Towering at 191 cm and weighing 93 kg, representing Sakura Enterprises, bow down to 'The Prince of Hela', SIGFRIEEEEED RIVEEEEER!"

His theme music roared loudly as the audience cheered from all side chanting "PRINCE! PRINCE! PRINCE! PRINCE!"

"Huh, look at that. Another royalty wanted to prove himself to the world." said Yaju, looking down on the danish fighter. "I don't know, it might just be an entertainment factor." commented the floral shirt man as he rubbed his chin in curiosity.

"A prince? So that's who he is. I thought my radar is getting dull." said Vlad Voiculescu. Just like David, he also has the ability to sense a fellow royalty blood. The Bloody Highness sensed that in River, but he couldn't put his head out and ask the question up front just like the convict did in the ship.

"How did they get ahold of my record? The database is one of the toughest in the world" muttered River as he walked out looking around him. The spotlight was shining on him, showing the Born to be Mad tattoo on his back. It followed him for a while until his theme music stopped. Although it was his first time to be under the spotlight, River showed no signs of inconvenience. He was about to wave at Sayaka until he felt someone glared at him with a freezing cold stare. It was her brother Restudo.

"And from the left corner, his opponent, towering at 198 cm and weighing 115.5 kg! This man has the thickest neck in the world, and he's very brutal he will literally maul every opponent in front of him! Will this tower of a man topple in the face of our prince? Representing Aloha Games, hailing from The U S and A! 'The Massacre Ape', MAXWEEEEEELL BECKETT!"

Beckett's theme music was even more deafening than the already thunderous cheering of the audience for both fighters. Then came out a broad shouldered man with a neck so thick, it was almost fused with his shoulder. You could tell his torso bore so much experience just from one glance. He was hopping both his hands in the air, as his ripped up jeans followed suit. His glee smile revealed his excitement. Despite this jolly gesture, Beckett was no beginner when it came to hurting people, the scar on his face said so.

"Hello hello everyone! I will give you even better performance than what you just saw back there! And nice to meet you, your highness, may we have a great fight" He reached his hand out for a handshake. "You don't have to call me that" said River as he chuckled lightly and replied with his right arm stretched out reaching Beckett's.

Yaju commented as he was watching them giving handshake to each other, "This better be good, or I'm going back to the ladies"

After the manly handshake, both fighters quickly jumped to their designated spots before Yamamoto Koishi, the referee, walked to the middle, dividing two monsters about to clash. He put his right hand out and he asked "Are you two ready?", both nodded in agreement. "Take your stance!" he sliced the air as he shouted "BEGIN!", starting the match.

Both fighters stayed on their sides as they were observing each other. A full minute had passed, everybody in the spectators seat were in deep silence as if the calm before the storm. Breaking the long silence, Beckett sprinted towards River in high vigor. Prepared, River took orthodox boxing stance ready to counter the charge.

"BECKETT IS CHARGING RIVER AT FULL SPEED! BUT WAIT, RIVER STANDS HIS GROUND AND PUTS HIS HANDS UP IN A COMPACT BOXING STANCE!" Sayaka yelled as the audience was roaring in excitement for what was about to unfold.

River shot a quick double jab followed by a heavy low right kick to Beckett's left calf. Slightly winced in pain, Beckett grinned wide and said "What a heavy kick, try harder".

Beckett was trying to grab River's arms as The Prince threw multiple solid combinations and swerved around The Ape like a world class outboxer, but to no avail. River kept his cool and was keeping his distance well.

But there was no slight frustration in his face at all. Beckett knew his opponent was nothing like his victims back when was still on gouging ground. He slowed his pace to take River off his momentum, and did a straight low kick to River's left knee. The kick was revealed to be a feint and Beckett tried to tackle him down in a swift fluid-like movement. He almost got his target, but River was already out of the way.

"WHAT A TREMENDOUS SHOW OF SKILLS! NEITHER FIGHTER GIVES IN TO EACH OTHER!" yelled Sayaka as she slammed her hand to the commentary table, roaring the crowd wild.

Not missing a beat, River kicked straight to Beckett's neck but he didn't flinch even a little bit. Instead he was the one wincing in pain, he estimated several bones of his toes were broken by the impact. River felt the neck he just kicked was not made of flesh at all. It was too big to be called a neck. Massive, thick, and heavy. Indeed, it was like a heap of raw iron.

"Nice kick, but everyone has nice kicks. It'll take a thousand times stronger than that to even get my neck slightly budged" Beckett laughed as he then grabbed River's leg and threw him to the ground [Mauling Counter]. That slam made a huge rumble inside the arena. River tried to curl himself up in order to protect his vital points, but Beckett's kick was so powerful it almost cracked his skull.

"OOOOOOHHH! THE MASSACRE APE HAS FINALLY GET AHOLD OF OUR PRINCE OF HELA! WILL WE WITNESS THE PRIMATE BLOODBATH ON THIS GROUND?!" Sayaka's words really riled up everybody on their seats.

"Now how's that? If it doesn't get your blood pumping I don't know what will" Terry looked over to Yaju in excitement, only to be replied by his bored face. "Really? I can get better show at a gorilla documentary" said Yaju.

Meanwhile at an open bar, CEO of Aloha Games, Sane Moray, took a sip of gin tonic in front of him. The bartender who was serving him looked visibly confused as of why he was sitting here and not watching his own fighter's match.

"Pardon me, sir. Your fighter's match has already begun" said the bartender as his voice slightly shaken due to fear of unintentionally uttering the wrong word.

"Yes, I can see that" Moray looked up from his seemingly bottomless glass to said bartender in a serious face. Yet, he didn't seem to be mad at all. His eyes looked empty, it was almost like a pity. He continued "It's not that I am not aware of it. I am here to pray for his opponent, and of course to celebrate my first victory." as he raised his glass. "Besides, I can watch the broadcast from here" he pointed to his left with his thumb, indicating the existence of a television near him.

"Hey kid" he called the bartender "Do you know anything about gouging martial arts?" asked the CEO. "Uhh… " it was clear as day that the young bartender's face looked confused as he was frantically looking for an answer. "It's okay, I'll answer it. You should've seen your face" he laughed, followed by the bartender's awkward laugh.

"You see when you hear the word gouging, your mind will think of someone's fingers forcing their way to its victim's eye sockets, popping the eyes out and possibly crushing them in the process. But the martial art itself is more brutal than that, and I've seen them from up close" he stopped briefly to drink his beverage.

The young bartender was waiting patiently as he was curious of what he was about to learn from the CEO. After he was done drinking, Moray continued.

"When I was in US looking for a fighter to represent my company, I heard of a rumour going on about a reigning gouging champion who was so strong nobody in the area dared to challenge him in one-on-one match" "So I came to one of his rare matches to see if the rumour was true or just full of shit" his face began to turn pale, his hands were shaking, but at the same time he couldn't contain his joy.

"Maxwell is not a careless man, he never was. He calculated his opponent's movements and maul them when they thought they had won. Not just the eyes, he can gouge any vital points as long as he has the chance to" Moray's grin widened as he said "I knew at that time, I've found my champion"

Back at the arena, River still felt heavily dizzy from the kick. Beckett quickly assumed top mount position. He pummeled River several times until he put his hand up to prepare for [Fang of Hand]. The pummeled River felt an ominous intention coming from that right hand and his reflexes kicked in. River blocked it in a nick of time, sacrificing his left arm in the process. He then countered with mean right hooks in attempt to pry off the grip. The first and second ones hit Beckett in the head, but that didn't stop the wild beast from sinking his fingers deeper into River's arm and forcing his way to rip the flesh off. Finally Beckett moved his head and body to lower the impact for the third one, releasing his grip and the top mount position.

Now both fighters were on the ground, blood pouring out of the prince's flesh and heavy bruises on their body were on display. Both were still recovering from damages inflicted upon each other.

All of the audience shouted both Beckett's and River's names "BECKETT!" "RIVER!" "BECKETT!" "RIVER!" in turn over and over.

"WHICH ONE OF THE TWO FIGHTERS BE THE LAST MAN STANDING?! THE DANISH PRINCE HAS HIS POWERFUL SUPPORT! BUT! BUT! BUT THERE'S ROARING CHANT FOR OUR MASSACRE APE AS WELL!" This time, Sayaka was also caught into the current intense vortex filled with excitement.

"I guess it's a double defeat. Better get on with the next match" commented Yaju. "Wait, one of them gets up" said Terry as he leaned himself to the stone railing in front of him, looking over the fight akin to a kid invested to a baseball match from his seat. While Yaju stood next to him with his arms crossed, hiding his own enthusiasm. He thought "I wasn't wrong to sign myself into this!", and for a split second a slight grin passed through the assassin's awareness before he came back to his senses.

Surprisingly, River was the first to get up but not to attack Beckett. Instead, he circled around the Ape as he was slowly trying to shake the pain of [Fang of Hand]'s wound. Becket on the other hand just sat there watching him skipping around.

"You are one tough man, you know that?" Beckett complimented River as he was still circling around Beckett. "I'm trying to give you a good fight, remember?" replied River. Beckett's laughter was heard loudly throughout the building. He stood up, cracking his fingers one by one. It seemed that Beckett already knew what kind of damages he inflicted upon River's arm.

"And you gave me a deep sinking wound. Thank God, not a single nerve fiber is damaged. It's gonna take a while to recover from that" in River's mind as he tried to move his fingers. He realized that his employer was right about his opponent.

"I can't take this any longer, I don't want to put myself in that state again" River's memory suddenly flashed before his eyes. Back in his time in special forces, he was known as The Peaceful Butcher. He was ashamed of that nickname not due to his confirmed kill number, but because he wasn't conscious for over half of it. His [Berserk Fury] nullifies his pain receptors and sets him loose to demolish everyone in his way, be it friend or foe. He can't see reason until he tires himself out, or until he dies. The record was then stored inside Denmark's database, sealing away his guilt over those who have died because of him.

Blood was gushing out as River still skipped around Beckett in circle. This time, Beckett was visibly confused as of what his opponent was thinking. "Is he marking a border? Am I now in disadvantage?" thought to himself. River's blood dripped, slowly forming a border like a literal fighting ground. River stopped and tilted his head for a second. He looked at the stage he just built from his own blood dripping from his arm, of course it was still bleeding.

River shouted to the large man in front of him "I see you're missing your hometown, so I made this makeshift gouging stage for a little taste of it" "Hahahaha, there's no such thing as makeshift gouging stage. Every place in this world can be its fighting stage!" The two fighters exchanging words seemed like a pair of longtime best friends bantering to each other. Not long after it, River darted over to him in high speed.

River shot several rapid right jabs and kicks while Beckett retorted with a few shots of his own. "So it comes down to a striking contest between a wounded prince and a caged beast" commented Talon Hiragi in his mind from a spectator seat. He had been watching from that very seat since the first match. He did this none other than to study his every potential opponents for next matches to come.

"THE PRINCE HAD MADE HIS DECISION! WE WILL BEAR WITNESS THE END OF THIS LEGENDARY FIGHT! WILL OUR BEAST BE CONQUERED BY THE PRINCE?! OR WILL OUR PRINCE COLLAPSE BEFORE THE MIGHTY AAAAAPE?!" her words did nothing but stirring the boiling pot of bloodthirsty spectators. "IT'S IMPOSSIBLE TO KEEP CALM DURING THIS! THUNDEROUS CHEER AND FEET STOMPING LOUDLY, EVEN THE VERY GROUND OF THE ARENA IS SHAKING IN EXCITEMENT!" Sayaka continued her commentary in visible excitement.

Hiragi noticed something fishy in River's movements. None of the his strikes were reaching Beckett, it almost seemed that he was on defensive. It became clear he was focused on avoiding Beckett's counters. "Are those just decoys?" Hiragi thought. The Prince's attacks weren't meant to beat the man in front of him down. Instead, a small cloud was formed within the makeshift border, and it was slowly growing larger and thicker. River's kicks and footwork were meticulously calculated to build this cloud made of the arena's ground dust.

"Hahaha. Not bad, O Prince" for the first time, The Quiet Man's voice was heard.

Beckett was slightly perturbed to the apparent River's plan. At this moment, he realized two things. One, the stage which River had set were meant for an estimation of area to build the smokescreen. Two, he was too tired and weak to continue. River wanted to finish the fight as soon as possible. Luckily for the young prince, Beckett was not to drag the fight. Beckett let out a small chuckle, noting his respect for his opponent.

Not a single body in sight as the smokescreen made by the arena's ground dust increasingly thickened.

"The Prince had formed a smokescreen to confuse Beckett! Is this the moment of truth?! Who will come out victorious?" This time, Sayaka's voice volume was lowered to bait suspense from the audience. The once ear-piercing cheer suddenly quieted, not the faintest of sound was heard. You could drop a pin there and ruin the whole experience for everyone.

This was not the first time someone tried to strike The Massacre Ape from blind spot. Back in his gouging days, he was one of the "special" 100 fighters to participate in a 24 hours of carnage in an abandoned mansion. He knew he'd win, so he slept for the most of it. Some looked at his snoring sleep to be an opportunity to take out a contender and lunged to him at full speed. Half a second later, the assailant's face was disfigured like a car accident victim. Beckett on the other hand, revealed to had flicked a rock which was once next to the sleeping beast. Somehow he knew what was coming to him and react accordingly.

"If that was your best, then you should go back to the alley where you all belong!" said Beckett while still laying down, with his neck propped by his coarse left hand. Four hours later, 'The Massacre Ape' was born to the world.

Back to present, Beckett waited on his opponent's next move. Every fiber of muscle in his body tensed up in anticipation which angle River would come out. Like on cue, River bolted from Beckett's right side, stretching a superman punch. Beckett dodged it narrowly by a hair and quickly grabbed River's neck. His own momentum and The Ape's grip made River out of breath, struggled and gasping for air. "For the first time after my last defeat years ago, you're my greatest opponent yet. And fighting you brings back dear memories!" said Beckett to the struggling River.

Suddenly a sharp gust of wind ripped through the air, setting Beckett's ponytail loose. It brushed his dusty and spiky brown hair to the air. The commentator and the audience didn't expect a gust so strong, it was as loud as a whiplash. Even the arena ground itself was taken by surprise. River was then revealed to had kicked directly to Beckett's chin.

Unfortunately, Beckett had already known of River's plan of action. He had more than enough of experience to figure out what would happen if someone was choked hard enough. The Ape's left hand showed itself blocking the desperate prince's final endeavour. "I tip my hat to you, Siegfried River. You never cease to amaze me. If I hadn't had experienced this before, I would've been kissing the ground by now"

Bullets of sweat ran down River's face, realizing nothing could be done more to bring down the massacre incarnate. That was the first time in his life that he felt fear aside from himself. Was it a cold wind blowing his way? Or was it a scorching heat eating his insides? He only struggled to get himself off the hook but to no succession. He thought he could ignore the pain and bring [Berserk Fury] to life but that'd mean his hard work suppressing it in his life up to this moment to be all in vain.

David King was watching the fight from his room, gritted his teeth in anger. He wondered why a royalty descendant would submit himself to mere animal. "I thought you were stronger than this embarrassment, Prince of Hela" his voice trembled with a slight hint of irk. The chains which bounded the uncrowned king gradually tightened as his blood boil to the sight of disgrace. He asked Carmilla to turn the television in front of the man in red jumpsuit off. She then continued tending his wounds. He winced a little to an alcohol soaked gauze as it touched an open wound, he felt a stinging ache.

Meanwhile, Vlad wanted to check in on his newly founded friend's condition after his fight. He almost reached his left hand out to knock on the door, before he suddenly heard a particular sound. This is not what a television would sound like, he thought. It sounded like.. a moaning. But it wasn't a female moaning, it was instead David's own moan. "Oh hohoho, nice going boy!" said the transylvanian shepherd in an almost audible voice. "But how could he do it, though? He's now wearing handcuffs bound to each limb by chains. There's no way he.." the dirty scenario that formed into his mind went even dirtier as he was thinking to it further. He ultimately decided not to interrupt the young king's "good time".

"Heheheh, don't break your back while you're at it. Don't wanna be like me when you get older" said Vlad as he walked away from the door, tapping the crooked scepter to his shoulder.

Beckett dragged him by the ground and slammed him to it, creating a small crater. The sound of skin ripping off his back and several ribcages cracking were the ones keeping the prince's consciousness stay afloat. He held both River's arms as he bit his neck, ripping the flesh out [Gorilla Drag].

"I guess it's finally my time to go" River thought. "I've done my best, for now I want to rest my body". Suddenly he heard a loud and raspy voice "Young leaf, your time has not up yet" It came from an old man with long beard, wearing chieftain clothings. He walked up to River, who was at that moment clean of his wounds. River had not met this man his entire life. As he was recalling his memory, the man put his hand on the young man's shoulder and said "Rise, descendant of Rurik, run wild and conquer with your might!" the touch sent an electric shock. Suddenly his mind wandered to the people he had killed before, he was slowly losing his balance of sanity [Berserk Fury].

Like a cornered beast, River's body reacted to Beckett's sharp bite. He grabbed Beckett's sweaty head easily despite his arms were secured by The Ape's, and headbutted it. Beckett lost his dominance over River. What Beckett saw wasn't the opponent he was supposed to fight.

His face was crimson red by sheer adrenaline rush, he was breathing steam, and most importantly he looked more feral than Beckett. River rushed to Beckett while letting out a huge roar. He threw many strikes seemed capable of killing to The Ape's vital points, but most were deflected by Beckett. Little by little, his movements went slower and he finally collapsed before the equally bloody gouger.

River was slowly losing himself in a pool of his own blood. His last view before losing consciousness was looking up to the Arena's lights and Beckett's rough face looking down to him. River could tell Beckett's gaze didn't mean underestimation, a part of his sanity felt proud of himself for putting all he's got on the line.

Having enough of the brutal spectacle, the chubby referee ran between Beckett and the mauled River and frantically waved both his hands in the air as he announced the winner "Fight's over! The winner, by total knockout at 6 minutes and 46 seconds, 'The Massacre Ape', MAXWELL BECKETT!"

The crowd went wild as Maxwell Beckett grinned wide, with the remaining piece of meat in his sharp fangs. He spat it out, and said "That was a great fight, Your Highness. I hope the best for your health so we can have a drink someday together" as he walked out of the warzone with a newfound esteem respect to the prince. River had to be brought to the infirmary by a full team of paramedics immediately.

"Sir, your fighter just won the match!" said the young bartender as he pointed to the live broadcast from the television near him. "See? I told you he'd win" replied Moray as he once again raised his glass in the air, this time he asked for more drink.

In his designated locker room, the drunken fighter was taken aback by the scene he just witnessed from television up by the wall. "Holy shit, that was wild" said Qi Ling as he drank his fifth bottle empty since we last saw him.