Chapter 3

  Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to our channel, the Monster Channel, where we will be broadcasting the greatest fights of our world!

  -I am Tony Hurmman and I am accompanied by my partner Patrick Connor.

  -Thank you Tony, today my dearest spectators saw a new fight at the top with the goal of a place in the quarter finals of the European Cup of Monsters.

  -The fight will be terrible, but let us introduce our two challengers.

  -Coming straight from Portugal, this creature to terrify the waters of the Atlantic of its size could believe in the return of the kraken, known under the nickname of monster of the depths I named Cyclopouple!

  -Cyclopouple is not the most beautiful of the participants but his power and his endurance against frontal blows make him a formidable opponent in close combat.

  -With his tentacles, he is a terrible threat to any unwary opponent in close combat.

  Willy only half listened to the TV and was interested in monster fighting when he was younger, but unfortunately work and life kept him busier than ever. After a heated discussion with Emma about his decision, he decided to follow Mr. Woodmill's advice and watch the game because the outcome of the game would determine the deal.

  On the screen Cyclopoulpe appeared as a creature of the monstrosity category. As far as he knew, there were three categories: natural, mythical and monstrosity. The categories present themselves. Natural for creatures found in reality but augmented, Mythical or legendary, creatures from fairy tales and finally the monstrosities or abominations of creatures that are alive but should not exist each being unique creations.

  Cyclopoulpe was strange, but vaguely resembled a cross between a human and an octopus, standing on two feet, the creature slowly moving its tentacles acting like dreads locks and arms hanging behind it like hair. Having no visible mouth, Willy was baffled as to how the creature would fight. Without a head, its torso sported a huge black eye between two pectorals. Frankly, it looked like nothing, especially with what was in front of it.

  -His opponent is the great, the supreme, the undefeated! The Storm Dragon!!!

  The image passed a completely different animal, it was literally a giant lizard that was given large wings, the head of the dragon had black horns on a body covered with marine blue scales, his belly had a pearly white but the same layout as his back a thick skin covered with scales. Four even allowed the creature to move four legs has four sharp claws just to see from the lounge. A long tail ending in a crescent-shaped appendage promised a vicious blow if it hit.

  -Storm dragon is undefeated this season with his weight and strength, he has established himself in the circuit as a versatile fighter, adapting to any occasion.

  -Sponsored by the UK Riverser company, no expense has been spared to create this monster of power who I personally think has the means to dominate the competition.

  -But it still has to prove itself and climb the ladder of the ranking.

  -We've already talked about that...

  Willy stopped listening to the commentators, clearly Mr. Woodmill's client belongs to one of the two teams. And if he lost, he would probably lose his job. But as he thought about how it was going to go down. Punching sounded from the gym. Coming out of the living room and down to the door. He discovered Greg with a smile on his face.

  -Well, isn't he coming to work?

  Greg was a muscular black man, his bald head and his black glasses had been the terror of the scum in the club. Even if he didn't need to. His smile and his muscles were imposing, but for him "it's easy to kick ass, the important thing is to do it with style". Clearly it was his day off, jeans and T-shirt wide to breathe, he removed his iconic glasses to give a good hug to Lucas who even if he wanted it could not escape. Inviting himself inside. He took a deep breath.

  -Ahhh, it's been a long time since I've been here. I miss it you know, lifting the cast iron while the doors are wide open. Letting the wind in while the music hypes you up in your show. Anyway, I saw you weren't here so I came to see.

  -The boss gave me the day off.

  -Go ahead and explain.

  -And he told you to watch the game.

  -Yeah.

  Back in the living room, Greg and Willy share a beer in front of the TV. Lucas had told him about the interview and Greg was surprised at how it turned out.

  -You ask me, once your guy gets here, talk to him and make a deal, if he's on the monster circuit, there's a lot and I mean a lot of money to be made.

  -I don't know anything about freaks, I just know that this is our new weapon of mass destruction and we turned it into a freak show.

  -No, man, it's much more than that, it's ethical death fighting. No guilt, no judgment, the bug dies time worse, trauma? It's going to take decades if not longer to establish if there is any health and justice to be done. The only ones who are complaining are the environmentalists and the religious people who say that we are creating abominations or creatures with souls and that we are forcing them to fight.

  -You seem to be... pretty well versed on the subject.

  -You know, since sports lost popularity after the war, we had to move on. And what better way to do it than with giant monsters like Godzilla vs. King Kong.

  -Yeah, but I don't see the point of making them so big, I mean, and look at these ones, they look like they came out of a child's imagination.

  -That's the thing about genetic modification and nanotechnology, you can make almost anything nowadays, if you have the money for it. Take Storm Dragon for example, it's a pure product of capitalist industrial creation. I can see here the marketing campaigns of Storm Dragon.

  -And the other one, cyclopoulpe?

  -Edible.

  Willy looked at Greg in shock.

  -Seriously?

  -The principle is simple, in addition to fighting in the arena his meat is regularly collected for x or y reasons but usually it's for food or other things like ink. Did you know that he can throw liquid ink on his opponents or in the water to make a surprise attack?

  -So even if he dies there is a profit to be made?

  -Of course, nothing should be lost, it will suck, for the one who controls the beast of course, but the company that sponsors it has already planned to recover its commission. Look at it this way, the more Cyclops wins, the more people will be stupid enough to ask for products directly from his body. Hence the demand, hence the money to be made. And what does a company have to do?

  -Make money.

  -You see. It's as simple as that. We're not at the level of wrestling or entertainment, we're not there yet. Even though more and more fighters like to show off. But that's being held back by several factors.

  -What's that?

  Greg raised his hand and counted on his fingers.

  -War veterans who are still at war and still want to fight. Those who like the thrill of fighting to the death, and finally those who just like to kill. Add to that the showmen and you get an idea of who controls the creatures in the environment. If they decide what to do.

  -The creature answers to the controller, right?

  -You work for Mr. Woodmill, he pays you your uniform to work in the establishment to get your salary, if you don't want to wear the uniform, you can walk out and keep your skills.

  -If the creature controller is sponsored by a company he does what the company wants, ok I get it.

  -It's a personal choice, I'm sure that Cyclopouple for example is much more free than Storm Dragon. But both controllers made their choices when they signed their contracts.

  The TV was playing news about the tournament and both of them were drinking in silence while the previous games were playing.

  -So expert, give me your prediction.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

  -Storm Dragon, no question. He's a steamroller, the only chance for him to lose is to let himself be strangled and Cyclops must have the strength to do that while totally immobilizing the lizard.

  In the picture Lucas could see the dragon fighting a sort of cross between a praying mantis and a spider, Aractomantis. Instead of mantis fangs, they were real knife blades. Not sure if genetics explains this. The spider moves away in the arena, jumping on the walls and projecting a visibly sticky web in order to slow down or bog down the dragon. The dragon didn't care and charged the spider, who was running away from the fight and didn't realize the dragon's tail. This last one was so violent that the spider fell from its web to stay on the ground. The dragon then charged with its claws, its jaws open, ready to bite the insect.

  The spider got up and dodged using its limbs as blades and trying to inflict as much damage as possible, the two blades were a barrier as the dragon used its arm as a shield moving on two feet. Using the wall of the arena, the dragon cornered the spider into a dead end, and the spider ended up sticking one of its blades deep into the dragon's arm. The spider then seemed to open the dragon's guard by using the blade in the arm to twist it. opening a real boulevard to the dragon's face. The second blade plunged through the opening with surprising speed and Willy thought the dragon would become minimally one-eyed. But the pierced arm returned to guard and the second blade joined the first, impaling itself on the scales.

  With no means of attack left, the dragon took advantage of the spider's limbs being stuck in its skin to pivot and take it with it, its second arm caught the spider in the neck and in a violent jawbone strike Storm Dragon decapitated Aractomantis.

  -Ouch.

  -And yes, such is the fate of the loser. Worse, it seems that some psychos get off on dying. Their death is directly transferred as if it were real, a real adrenaline rush.

  -If I were ever in their shoes, I think I'd do everything I could to not die.

  -You know... there are smaller models... you could use them to cheer you up.

  -No, no Greg I don't think so, let's say I prefer not to think about it.

  -Okay, I won't. But borrowed creatures are being studied more and more. Even if it is still forbidden to the general public. Professional circles have them, one more thing to ask your future partner.

  -Easy, I don't even know if the deal will be done.

  -For that, just watch.

  Another fight and Willy watched as Cyclops lifted a giant turtle above him before smashing it into the concrete floor of an arena.

  The turtle was like the other titanic creatures, its shell made of a block was chipped in many places, acid, claw and fang impacts covered many points. Standing on its hind legs it was terrifying to see, against nature even, two small legs supported the entire weight of the beast while its arms sported black claws longer than a man, its skin was a mix of scales and bone protuberances resembling horns that would have grown at the knee and elbow level for the scales was visibly larger. Its head was flat and could clearly extend in a rush, Willy had already seen videos where turtles ate a watermelon but there, the gore that he would get out of it will not be at all to his taste. The black color of its shell was only the echo of the whiteness of the scales which tended, more towards a dark gray and the white protuberance pearly bone.

  Facing her Cyclopoulpe of his official name or Poulpo Boss for the intimates

  This mix was a mixture between a man, an octopus or a kraken. It was hard to tell. His whole body from his feet to his torso was pretty much normal except for a huge eye in the center of his torso, muscled like a bodybuilder, no arms or head, wonder where the brain was. Instead he had tentacles growing from where his collarbones should have been and continued to grow in his back, his back was framed by two huge tentacles serving as arms, from what he could see there was a third of the same size in the back covered by the other smaller tentacles. Just like the turtle, Poulpoboss had scars worthy of Moby Dick except that unlike the turtle, it was the flesh itself that had suffered the torments. Large white scars covered his pectoral muscles and his two largest tentacles. Having gray skin, the white of the scars almost blended with them. At his pelvis a large and thick cloth served as a belt. Its bright red was decorated with several rings that kept it in place and gave a certain aesthetic. Of course, the pants which he carried resembled a kind of baggy extra broad, seeming to float so much it was broad. Willy thought that it was used to absorb water for the duration of the fight and to maintain the colossus in life. His theory rested on the fact that the belt and his boots were ultra tight. The latter were made of a kind of waterproof oilcloth and similar to the black baggy that with giant laces compressed no doubt the feet of the creature. To finish the panoply, the boots also had a front that seemed to be made of iron, or steel like safety shoes.

  The turtle's head was trying to bite or charge Cyclops, but Cyclops was much more agile and stronger than the creature affectionately named Snapper. From Willy' point of view, it was just a giant turtle. Cyclops used his small size and Snapper's momentum to gradually break through his shell. The match was a one-sided slaughter, clearly the turtle was not made for fighting. The fight ended with Cyclops lifting the turtle above her one last time, the tentacles wrapping around and grabbing with their suction cups to the shell and limbs of the struggling turtle. Before a sickening crack was heard as Poulpoboss threw the turtle to the ground with all his might. Paralyzing Snapper to the ground and leaving the octopus triumphant. Willy was impressed by the strength of Cyclopoulpe.

  A brief pause and the commentators resumed their fake argument on who will be the winner, Greg went to get a beer.

  -Tell me Willy, where is the little M?

  -She's not so little anymore, we have our rules and it suits us both. She must be in town with her friends. As long as she's there in the evening when I get home, I don't make any comments. She has my number, Madame Louisa's number and the club's number in case of extreme emergency.

  -Oh? So you're not afraid of a boyfriend?

  -We had the talk. You can't imagine what I went through when she had her first period.

  Greg laughed.

  -Ah, goodness. I wonder who was more freaked out.

  The laughter made Willy smile and he realized it was true.

  The screen now gave way to a large space, the arena was not enclosed but on a large island. Green hills stood out against the blue ocean and white cliffs as camera drones flew over the island to record the fight.

  -Here we are live from Scotland. Where the fight will take place the island has known the tranquility but now will live a fight of anthology.

  -From the depths, its sovereign rises the one and only king of the abysses, Cyclopoulpe!

  The image came closer to a cove, at first nothing seemed to move, then without a wave what seemed to be a rock had surfaced and while one could wonder what it was. Cyclopoulpe came out in full size revealing the colossus that he was.

  Willy looked at the screen intently, realizing something strange.

  -Wait a second. He...

  -Straight from the tales of our ancestors, a creature from legends, ready to fight to defend his honor as the most powerful creature, the storm dragon!

  Descending from the heavens, the dragon landed creating an impact on the ground, even slowing its fall with its wings, it did not prevent a huge cloud of dust from rising. When the dragon finally appeared in the picture, it was to roar in defiance of his opponent.

  -This, you see Willy, is an entrance.

  -It's stupid, I would have laughed if the dragon had broken his face when he landed. And don't you notice something about Cyclops?

  -Now that you mention it.

  The fight began, Storm Dragon spread his wings and gave himself a boost, rising into the air to jump on Cyclops. The latter with surprising agility rolled to the side, using his tentacles in the movement, finding himself crouched and staring silently with his single eye. He was facing Storm Dragon who had impacted the sand with the violence that can be attributed to its weight. The dragon's long neck was always facing the octopus, his eyes completely absorbed by his prey. Turning slowly to face each other, the dragon's tail entered the ocean. Now on all fours, Storm Dragon was almost at the same level as Cyclops. Something was wrong and made him cautious.

  Yet something was bothering Willy, Greg was on the edge of the couch watching the fight intensely.

  Cyclopoulpe sprinted towards Storm Dragon who also ran towards him, both of them got up and collided. Storm dragon's two front paws and head tried to tear off pieces as Cyclopoulpe lashed out with his tentacles, despite the violent blows from Cyclopoulpe, Storm dragon continued to approach, making great gestures as the tentacles flew in all directions, both to strike and to destabilize, the game of feints and blows had an unprecedented violence as a blow from Cyclopoulpe hit Storm dragon in the head. Pretending to fall, Storm Dragon stood on three legs, closing its wings to let its tail pass through and impaled itself in the mollusk's skin with its hook.

  But as the tail went back, Cyclopoulpe went into a full-on close combat mode, having only two attack options left - his mouth and a claw. Storm Dragon was destabilized, and this may have been Cyclops' only chance to gain an advantage over Storm Dragon's superior weight and stability.

  Using his grip, Poulpoboss let himself be brought back with his tail to direct contact with the storm dragon, the latter raised his claw in order to impale the octopus, bringing his legs the claw impaled on the boots of Cyclopoulpe. Held in place by the tail and the claw, the dragon's head began to move and bite into the flesh of his opponent. Cyclopoulpe's right foot was caught in the claw and he struggled as best he could when the jaw closed on him. Contorting himself in an unnatural way, his left leg swung out, hitting the head of the approaching dragon.

  More than a leg, a whip, Cyclopoulpe's body was now twisted, one of his legs static, as the dragon's tail continued to tear his opponent apart, Cyclopoulpe's tentacles began to move at his belt.

  Storm dragon finally got to his feet, releasing his hand from the ground and putting his mouth back on the octopus that dared to challenge him. Pulling both his foot and the tentacles around his tail Storm Dragon was in perfect position. As if to illustrate the difference in strength, Storm Dragon literally lifted Cyclopoulpe off the ground. But as the claw went against Cyclops' belly, his belt gave way.

  Suddenly the grip on Cyclops' foot was released, the dragon's tail held Cyclops up, but instead of hanging in the air, the tentacles that had been pretending to be legs all this time wrapped themselves around the dragon's neck. Twice as wide as his arms, the pressure immediately brought panic to the dragon's side.

  He struggled as he could totally unprepared his tail had finally been released but having no contact with the ground no stability was provided to the dragon, one of his claws still had the boot stuck in his claws while the other planted and scratched with more or less success the back of the opponent. His mouth was also trying to bite but could not.

  Cyclopoulpe in its purest form. It wrapped itself around its prey, with all its weight it stuck to the dragon, wrapping as many tentacles as possible around its limbs. The largest were on the neck, the others were evenly distributed on the upper part of the body, when the octopus realized the situation he gave up the grip of the arms to lift one of the legs of the dragon making it fall into the water of the bay.

  Storm Dragon finally came to his senses on impact. Having gotten rid of the boot, at last, he began to slash at the tentacles one after the other. Planting his claws everywhere he could, trying to turn around, to topple over, to take the ascendancy, to let go. But nothing did, the large and powerful tentacles having rolled up to the base of the head his jaw was now, unusable. Cycloupoule even took the opportunity to hit it in the water and sand as the embrace finally began to suffocate the dragon.

  The tentacles suffered greatly from the onslaught of blows, the sharpness of the claws turning against what could have been its own body. Shreds of flesh were being ripped off every few seconds decreasing the pressure they could use when finally one of his arms was freed, Storm Dragon grabbed one of the tentacles around his neck, or rather planted his claws where he could cutting deeply into one of the larger ones and his own throat in the process. More tentacles came loose to hold back the recalcitrant limb which left the other claw with less brake, taking its chance the second claw broke free in turn and dug itself deep into Cyclops' side.

  Storm Dragon stood up. Using his tail, he finally crouched down, the bonds that were now blocking him diminishing his two free hands finally managed to untie the octopus, which left more easily than one would have thought. The body of Cyclopoulpe found itself in the water and did not move anymore. The body of Cyclopoulpe remained motionless, floating. Storm Dragon wanted to continue to fight, but stopped in his tracks, towering over his opponent's body.