Nicole took her seat in the VIP section of the arena, next to Vicki. Silverback and Dee arrived a moment later, Dee staggering drunk already.

“Where’s Jack?” Nicole asked.

“He’s not joining us.” Vicki said calmly.

“What do you mean he’s not joining us, Vinn might die and he’s not even going to provide moral support?”

“Trust me, Nicole, he’s providing more support than we are. Just keep it together and be brave.” She whispered cryptically.

Jack, dressed in all black and sitting atop some form of radio tower, adjusted his ski mask, opening the instrument case and removing the rifle. He steadied his mind and peered out to the arena in the distance. 812 yards, windage 15mph. He loaded the round and locked the bolt in place, getting settled in, and clicking the safety on.

Vinn sat in a metal chair, shirtless and covered in tribal paint marking his clan and making it easier to see which one he was from the nosebleed sections of the crowd. He breathed deliberate breaths, thinking about Nicole’s smile as the playlist droned out a soft trancelike melody. He wrapped his wrists in bright green bands, checking the clock, 5 minutes left. The playlist switched tracks, and a Viking mantra began playing. The fur on his neck stood up as the tension built and at the 40 second mark. The track went full Deathcore, the volume jumping up. His pupils dilated and his already light red eyes began to go a rusty dark color. His head began to nod to the beat, his confidence building as the doors opened and the end of the tunnel glowed a soft white, the sound of the crowd building up to a dull murmur entirely drowned out by the barrage of drums and bass rattling his ears. He stomped his way down the tunnel, tossing the earbuds aside and feeling the brisk cold hit his face, and the light of the arena. He peered up at the VIP section.

“I LOVE YOU VINN!” Nicole shouted, hanging dangerously over the rail.

“I love you too.” He muttered to the void as Kraken, wrapped in black and yellow, stomped up to him and stopped, towering over him with a confident stretch compared to Vinn’s nervous slouch.

“After I make you my bitch, your bitch is next.” He growled.

“Stay calm, wait it out.” Vinn said inside his head, looking up into the eyes of the devil and holding his rage. The gong sounded, the crown settled down. The gong sounded a second time. Silence. They took 3 steps backward, leaving the very center circle as the third gong sounded, waiting for the 4th to start. The last gong sounded.

“FUPAAAAAR!” rung out in the arena

Kraken burst into a sprint, locking antlers with Vinn and scrunching him down with overwhelming power, lifting him to his feet with an uppercut to the ribs. Vinn swung back hitting only a blocking arm and taking an unexpected knee to the side, followed by a right hook that put him in the dirt. Kraken chuckled and circled, playing with his food a little.

“Get up little soldier.” He growled.

“Oh, I’m just enjoying the scenery.” Vinn huffed, hopping to his feet and switching positions. Vinn pretended to hesitate and then stepped into the striking zone, taking another hit to the face and turning with it, throwing a back kick that Kraken seemed to just absorb like a wall, barely wincing. Vinn ducked a power swing throwing a few rapid hits to the chest. Kraken held his hands out as if to just let him swing to prove a point, and after several more hits, he grabbed Vinn by the antlers and pulled him down right into a rising knee, rolling him to the dirt again. Kraken beat his chest like an ape as the crown roared with a combination of cheers and boos.

“He is so fucked, isn’t he?” whispered Dee to silverback.

“Don’t think like that.”

“We’re both thinking it.”

“Then just don’t say it out loud.” He said solemnly.

Vinn got back up, shaking it off. He felt a sudden rush of fear, as kraken charged him, knocking him to his back and planting him in the dirt, as he unleashed a wall of relentless right punches. Jacks voice echoing in his sloshing brains. “don’t fall asleep, stay in the passenger seat.” He moved his arms up to take some of the hits and suddenly was lifted up to his feet, only to have his hooves kicked out from him, and sent face first to the ground with an elbow to the back of the neck. Nicole’s eyes welled up and she sunk into seat, trying to block the action with the rail but unable to stop watching.

“Don’t give up on him yet. This half is not his strong suit.” Vicki encouraged.

“No shit.” Sobbed Nicole.

“Jack said he’s an absolute beast with a sword.”

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

Vinn staggered to his feet and stepped back, suddenly he felt heavy. His spine tightening and a rush of cold chill flowing through him, His opponent seemed a bit smaller now, he resisted the urge to smile, waiting it out and taking the next few punches, throwing one back every so often and backing up to stay upright. The sound of a tribal horn roared through the air. Stage 2. A pair of short swords clanked to the ground behind them both as they backed away, picking them up. Vinn glared, holding his ribs and leaning to one side, both pretending to be injured and also actually thinking he might be. That rib seemed softer then it should be.

“Nicole, sit up.” ordered Vicki. She reluctantly did. Vinn stood upright, slamming his left fist into the side of his own head, in a slow repetitive manner feeling his heart rate skyrocket. The crowd began chanting, loving the display.

“Have you accepted death, yet?” Asked Kraken.

“For one of us.” He wheezed, pulling in a massive breath through his nose and releasing it just as the gong sounded. He stepped back, avoiding a strike or two from the blade, the third swing clipping his right antler and sending a few sparks through the air. He met the next swing blade to blade and let his wrist go limp, sending kraken unexpectedly forward into a headbutt and spinning with the rebound. He swung behind his back to lay a gash in kraken’s forearm. The crowd roared up. Kraken looked rather shocked and almost amused by this.

“And here I thought you would never get a lucky hit. You’re dying more honorably than I imagined.” He toyed as Vinn started foaming with hatred.

“Give in to it, Vinn.” Jacks voice whispered. “Fall into the darkness”

Vinn exhaled and put his arms out, falling into the void of his own body, now only vaguely aware of the fight at all, like a dreamer watching a fighter’s dream.

Kraken stepped forward expecting a dodge or a passive sidestep but was met with aggression. Vinn let out a primal roar, sending blood and spit out like a mist and then slashing the mist in half with a series of rapid fire power swings. Kraken held tightly able to only hold his ground as the impacts sparked and chipped both blades. He threw a knee up stop the unrelenting machinegun fire of metal. He connected with Vinn’s bad rib, breaking it completely and instead of hunkering down, he planted a hoof into kraken’s knee and send HIM rolling into the dirt. He lifted his blade to defend and felt it shutter with a strange impact as he lifted up a much lighter sword with a blade about 4 inches long. The rest of the sword was buried broken at a sharp point under Vinn’s hoof. Kraken blocked the incoming killstrike with the guard anyway, and dropped the broken blade to roll to safety.

“He’s got this.” Vicki whispered, hugging Nicole to build her confidence.

“Vinn swirled the blade around trying to place himself between the shard and Kraken so if he went for the VERY short sword, he would be right in decapitation range, and Kraken knew it. Kraken discreetly palmed a small splinter of the broken blade behind his arm, raising his fists like a boxer hiding a razorblade. Vinn rushed in to kill as Kraken went for the sword on the ground, and just before ducking into the death zone he turned and threw the splinter, sticking it in Vinn’s knee and sending him down. Kraken grabbed the shortened sword and kicked Vinn’s hand, sending his full sword flying in the distance.

Suddenly he was kneeling, weaponless and unable to stand or pull out the shard in his knee as Kraken held the only half weapon, stomping the shard in his knee and breaking it off, thus eliminating any chance of removing it. He had the high ground, and the edge, and he stood above Vinn pointing the broken sword at his nose.

Nicole lunged forward roaring with rage as Silverback and Vicki struggled to keep her in the VIP box, screaming violently through snot and tears, read to take on Kraken herself.

“Well done, Vinn. A better performance than I ever imagined. But all good shows must come to an end. You’ve earned a final statement, make it count.”

“Nah, I’m good.” Vinn sighed, looking calmly ready to die. Kraken chuckled taking a knee and grabbing his shoulder, pulling back to run the shard through his heart. He lunged forward, Vinn’s hand grabbing his wrist, and the blade struck his left shoulder instead, he pulled the blade in tighter locking Kraken in close.

“I got a lot more dialogue left.” Vinn whispered darkly.

Vinn let out a banshee cry, and with his free right hand, he grabbed his own chipped antler and snapped it off, plunging the end into Kraken’s eye. Kraken recoiled in pain as Vinn yanked out the antler and stabbed him in the neck, over and over, dropping on top of him and biting his neck, with one ferocious release of rage, he started twisting and yanking, and a spray of orange blood covered him from head to knees. He planted his good leg on kraken’s chest and held up the severed head, roaring to the crowd as they lost control and cheered, several small fight breaking out sporadically. The trumpets sounded and Nicole burst into a flailing sprint, stumbling and running into people on her way down the steps. She hopped the rail and dropped into the arena, barely hitting the sloped section that slowed her fall and rolled her in the dirt. She scampered to her feet and ran to Vinn, still holding the head, tossing it aside as she arrived. She burst into incoherent tears and muttering as she hugged him.

“Ah AH, damnit, broken rib!” he squeaked as she jumped back and froze. “The shit wore off, I feel everything. I’m just faking at this point. Please get a medic.” He half chuckled almost crying. She held his hands and put her forehead against his, now missing a horn nearly to the skull. The medical team slid to a stop examining the blade in his shoulder and the piece in his knee.

“This one’s not that bad.” He said flexing his shoulder as they pulled it out with a sigh of relief. Another medic locked a pair of pliers onto the nub sticking out of his knee, bracing with his boot and yanking it out.

“AAaaaAAAAAhhh, SHITASS!” he screamed. “That one was way worse! That one was so much worse! He said, “UUgh, gonna throw up.”

“Ribs 4 and 5 broken.” Said the doctor holding the scanner.

“NaAaAaw, ya think?” Vinn gasped sarcastically.

“No serious internal bleeding, no punctured organs, superficial lacerations and bruising to the…well everywhere. Shoulder wound missed the artery and tendons, that knee will need surgery. You’re gonna be fine soldier.”

“I’m not a soldier, I’m a married construction worker.” He proudly smiled.

“Holy hell, how are you not dead?”

“I KNOW, RIGHT!?” he deliriously chuckled as the rolled him onto the cart and carried him to the exit, Nicole running beside him the whole way. They wheeled him to the surgical room, as a nurse tugged on Nicole’s arm to move her to the hallway.

“The doctor needs to speak with you privately, nothing bad but quite necessary.” She assured.

“Vinn I’ll be right…oh he’s unconscious. Never mind.” She noted as she followed the nurse. She led her down a hallway and through a pair of odd metal doors that locked behind them.