Doo doo doo, suu, doo-doo. Ryan pounded away at the punching bag. He threw quick jabs while dodging imaginary punches and staying light on his toes. The gym was dimly lit by only a few lights throughout the building. To Ryan’s delight, he had the gym to himself and a spare set of keys his coach lended.

Ryan sent a few more combos into the bag before finishing with a powerful haymaker that sent it flying back. Ryan moved away as the bag swung back-and-forth in the air. He placed his hands on his head to take deeper breaths. After some paces and some deep breathing control, he grabbed his water bottle and took a few sips.

Ryan scanned the uninhabited gym, then said to himself, “Guess I’ll start with the jump ropes.” As he began walking to the jump rope rack, he heard his phone buzzing. Ryan turned around and he barely made out the Emergency Alert taking over his screen. When he picked up his phone, he expected to read a report of a missing child two cities away from him. Instead, he was met with “TERRORIST ACTIVITY” & “SHELTER-IN-PLACE.”

“Well alright,” Ryan said to himself, “Wasn’t planning on going anywhere anyway.” He dropped his phone again and went to grab the jump rope. Ryan flipped it over his head and stood at the ready, determined how high he’d go, then began. The rope spun around him in a blur as he lightly pushed himself off the ground. He counted every time his toes narrowly dodged the windmills of the rope. 34, 35, 36, 37. The afterimages of the rope were almost mesmerizing. Before long he felt completely in-tune with the rhythm. 45, 46, 47, 48. His phone buzzed some more but all Ryan heard was the whirring of the rope. 56, 57, 58, 59. It was all one motion, and once it started, it felt unnatural to stop. 63, 64, 65, 66. He didn’t even hear the front entrance open. 76, 77, 78, 79. A young man around Ryan’s age walked into the gym from the hallway of the front entrance. Ryan noticed him and recognized him without losing count. He had an athletic build similar to Ryan, curly brown hair and tan skin. 82, 83, 84, 85. It was Keith, Ryan’s primary rival. 87, 88, 89, 90. Keith noticed Ryan, so he gestured a greeting as he dropped his keys and phone near Ryan's stuff on the bench. 98, 99, 100, 101. Keith walked further into the gym to the restroom. 106, 107, 108, 109. A toilet flushed and some water ran. Keith came out of the restroom. 177, 178, 179, 180. Ryan spun the rope for the final time and dropped it before letting out a deep exhale. He repeated the practice of placing his hands on his head. Keith called out to Ryan, “You see that crazy alert?”

Ryan breathed a bit before responding, “I think so, yeah.”

Keith started wrapping up his hands, “You wondering what’s going on?”

“I don’t really care to know, someone will take care of it.”

“You know it said ‘Terrorists’ right? There might be-” Ryan noticed Keith’s head fall like he suddenly went light-headed. Keith paused for a moment, then continued, “Might be a shooting or something going on.”

“Yeah, that’d be bad,” Ryan answered nonchalantly, “Did Genesis ever call you back?”

“Nah man, she’s probably with that guy, Evan,” Keith said with a bit of frustration, he finished his wrap with an aggressive tug.

“Dang that sucks,” Ryan sighed. He walked behind the punching bag Keith was standing in front of and held it firmly. Ryan stated, “You can imagine this as Evan if you want.”

Keith chuckled, “If I had a chance to knock out Evan, he’d have it worse than this bag-”

Keith reeled his arm all the way back and slammed his fist into the bag. “Lung shot! Your free trial of air has ended!” He swung his left fist into it next in the same fashion. “HAHH!”

“Woo! Let it all out man!”

Keith reeled his right arm back once more but suddenly slipped and fell to his knee. He grunted as he hit the ground, barely keeping his balance. Ryan looked over, “You good man?”

Keith held his head, “Yeah, I don’t know, I just felt light-headed all of a sudden.”

Ryan walked over and helped Keith stand. “Have you eaten at all?” Ryan questioned.

“Yeah I’ve had plenty, that was weird.”

Keith walked over to his water and took a sip, then stated, “Alright, let’s get serious.”

The two returned to their original positions and Keith started practicing his routine punches on the bag. He jabbed, hooked, uppercutted, and swerved as usual. Ryan threw in words of inspiration for Keith and called out movements Keith slacked on.

“That should all be one motion!” Ryan shouted, as Keith attempted a right jab and weave into a left hook. Keith repeated it, faster, but his foot slipped too far.

“More control, Keith!” Ryan shouted again.

Keith grunted and went for it again, but this time, his duck was slower. “C’mon!” Ryan persisted. Keith went again and this time his sweep and left hook slowed down.

“Keith! What are you doing?”

Keith tried the move once more, grunting in anger. This time, his entire body swayed like he was drunk. His movements became sluggish, to the point he was barely moving at all.

Ryan stopped yelling and just glared at him in confusion. Keith stopped performing the move and just stood there, panting and sweating. He appeared to have trouble even standing. Finally, after numerous long-winded breaths, Keith’s right fist gradually made its way to the punching bag. Then, just as Keith’s fist made contact, he fell to the floor. Ryan jumped to Keith’s aid, exclaiming, “Are you okay man?”

Keith panted as sweat trickled down his pain-stricken face. Keith barely gasped out, “I-I can’t… feel- feel anything.”

“Hold on bro, I’ll call for help!” Ryan reassured him. He rushed over to his phone to call for an ambulance. As soon as Ryan opened his phone, he was met with the social media app he’d left open. The first upload in his feed snagged his attention. It was a video recording of a neighborhood in chaos. The person recording was swinging the camera around wildly, but he could make out everything. Everything Ryan needed to see, to forget about the current situation, was in the first few seconds of the video. There were people screaming and running around in the streets. Puddles of blood all over the ground, staining the grass and the sidewalks. There were no weapons and no gunshots. Just... chaos. Ryan gulped. He suddenly felt like someone had tied an anchor to his heart. He subconsciously swiped up to the next post under that one.

It was a person hiding in a dark room. They whispered into the camera for help. Outside of view, there were clear screams of agony and wailing being made. Ryan kept scrolling, he checked posts, live feeds, anything. The more he saw, the deeper he felt his heart sink. At first he thought it was just some sick joke, but it was occurring everywhere. He moved on to news networks. The first headline to catch his eye was “CHAOS ACROSS THE COUNTRY - RANDOM VIOLENT ATTACKS EVERYWHERE!” He checked his notifications now. He had multiple missed calls and unread messages about what was going on. Ryan couldn’t make a decision on what to do next, who to call, who to respond to, anything. It felt like a waterfall had splashed onto him and all he had to catch it was an empty tuna can. Despite this, he could catch on to one specific detail. Those sounds, the blood-thirsty humans, the mass amount of deaths, what teenager wouldn’t make the connection? “There’s no way this is real,” Ryan said to himself out loud, “I mean, how’d all these articles already get written and published?”

Just then, Ryan’s web surfing was interrupted by the groans of Keith behind him. Ryan returned to Earth and called out to Keith, “Oh my bad, I’m calling them right now!”

Ryan scurried for the dial pad on his phone, typed the numbers 9-1-1 and hit call. The number rang. Ryan expected to immediately hear the standard, “9-1-1, what’s your emergency?” but was met with a buzzer noise. Confused, he tried again. Another buzzer. “Oh no,” Ryan muttered under his breath. Suddenly, a wail of pain came from behind him. Ryan spun around to see Keith convulsing on the ground.

“Yo Keith!” Ryan shouted as he ran over to his friend. Keith’s head and eyes darted everywhere like a ping pong ball. Ryan looked up and down Keith with hands hovering over.

“Um, uh-” Ryan stammered as he searched for any clue on how to help. He’d never seen a seizure or anything of the like. As Ryan struggled to react, Keith regained control of his body and he clutched Ryan by his shoulders, proclaiming, “Make it stop! Make it-” Keith’s face was twisted in agony. Tears were forming in his eyes as he fought to finish his sentence, “Make it go away!”

Once again, his body convulsed and his grip on Ryan released. Ryan fell backwards and scooted away from Keith. Keith yelled again into the air as his back arched up from the floor. Ryan jumped to his feet and backed away slowly from Keith. The images and videos he’d seen on his phone flashed through his mind. Keith rolled over to his front side. He was on all fours with one hand squeezing his head. Keith spoke through the gritting of his teeth to Ryan again, “It’s filling my head…”

“What is?” Ryan called out to him, feigning ignorance. Ryan couldn’t believe it. Ryan didn’t want to believe it.

“I- I can’t… No!” Keith punched the floor hard enough for Ryan to hear the crack of his knuckles. Keith shouted again, “I-” he turned his head to glare at Ryan, revealing bloodshot eyes, “It- It sees you!”

The sight of Keith’s eyes and the words coming from his mouth sent a shiver down Ryan’s spine. Keith managed to tear his glare away from Ryan but continued to grunt and groan in pain. Ryan's mind was still in a whirlpool of thoughts and emotions. Was Keith turning into one of those monsters he saw on his phone? Should he run? Was it safe outside? Should he fight? Would he win? Could he call someone else for help? Who else could he even call? His head… his chest… his stomach, all of it began to ache. Ryan stared at the palms of his hands as they shook. Something wasn’t right. His body didn’t feel like his own anymore. He felt something else. Something more controlling. He had no shackles but his hands felt bound together. Within the mental turmoil, a memory flashed in Ryan’s head.

Ryan was brought back to the time he first started training with his coach. He remembered how he would preemptively dodge his coach’s swings. His coach was upset, claiming Ryan was ducking out of the way too early. He told Ryan the only way to dodge an attack was to use his enemy’s attack against them. To let them fully commit, expecting to land the hit. Then at the last moment, weave out of the way and counter it. He told Ryan that getting hit in the face was scary, yes, but he shouldn’t let that fear control him.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

Fear. That’s what it was. Ryan recognized this overwhelming feeling as fear. This fear was making him irrational. This fear was pushing him to dodge too early. Keith let out a roar that echoed throughout the entire building.

Ryan realized if his fear was correct, this was easily life-or-death. Ryan clenched his fists, took a deep breath, and asserted out loud, “I choose not to die.” As he stated this, he could feel his wits returning to him. He stared down Keith as Keith began to behave more animal-like. He didn’t know if Keith was actually going to turn or not, but his best bet was taking on a single monster rather than jumping into the pandemonium outside. His nerves calmed. His heart pounded, not with fright, but with determination. Ryan’s blood pumped and his energy surged through him. This was another punch he had to dodge. He saw the punch coming, now he just had to counter it.

Ryan scanned his surroundings to find a weapon. There were the jump ropes, no, he could strangle Keith, but it might take too long. A metal chair, Ryan could hit him with it. A wooden stick, why was that there? He thought. Ryan refocused, it would be easier to use, but easier to break as well. He looked at the metal chair again. He’d have to hit Keith hard. Keith snarled and roared once more, now he was on his hands and feet like a feral animal.

Ryan booked it for the chair, folded it and held it up like a bat. The chair was a good distance away, nearly on the other side of the boxing ring, so Keith was out of sight now. Ryan ran back over to fight. And the spot that had been occupied by the rabid Keith was empty. Ryan spun around in a panic, scanning the entire building. Nothing. He couldn’t see Keith, nor hear him. His stomach began to ache again, but Ryan breathed deeply. Ryan remained in control. Keith couldn’t have gotten between him and the exit, so he had to be deeper in the building. Ryan didn’t have to look for him. He determined himself to stand in an open area where Keith couldn’t surprise him.

There was even a chance that Keith was actually okay. It was highly unlikely, but that chance was more desirable than fighting a blood-thirsty, growling version of his friend to the death. He heard a bang to his right. Ryan swiftly turned to the source of the noise. A ladder behind the boxing ring had fallen over. Ryan clung to his optimism and called out, “Keith? You okay?”

No response. Ryan gripped the chair tighter. He tried again, “If you’re okay, you better say something!”

No response. “Aw man,” Ryan mumbled. Suddenly, another metal chair flew from behind the ring and crashed into the wall. Ryan jumped back. He eyed the chair on the floor with shock, then looked back up.

There he was. Keith just lurked in the darkness, glaring at Ryan. Keith’s fingers curled up and down like he was getting a feel for them. It was low, but Ryan could hear a growl coming from Keith. Ryan tried once more, “Keith! C’mon man! I don’t know what’s happening but you gotta snap out of it!”

Keith’s chin snapped up to the right. His eyes bulged out at the ceiling. His arms began to raise and his entire body shook. Then, in a flash, he snapped back to Ryan and sprinted towards him screaming.

Ryan flinched at Keith suddenly charging him. But Ryan’s soul prevailed over his body. His fear would not control him. Ryan reeled the chair back and just before the two met, Ryan whacked Keith in the left side of his head. The collision made a satisfying CLANG as Keith’s body plummeted face-down. The successful exchange elated Ryan, but he knew the human body could take more. And he knew Keith.

Ryan jumped on top of Keith with the chair over his head. His blood coursed through him as he carefully aimed for the head. WHACK. Ryan cast down the top of the chair directly into Keith’s neck. He’d just barely missed, but damage was damage. Before Keith could move, Ryan swung the chair again. And again. And again. Ryan stopped aiming and decided that, as long as he hit him, it was good enough. Another direct bash into Keith’s skull. This time Ryan could see a dark liquid leaking from the back of Keith’s head. Ryan’s desired more. He continued to brutalize Keith’s body. There were cracks of bones in his back, blood streaming from his head, and Ryan only persisted. These were sights and sounds Ryan was used to. It didn’t sicken him, it only encouraged him. So he kept on.

Ryan had lost count of how many times he’d bashed into Keith’s body. There was enough blood on the floor and the chair to paint a canvas. He glared at Keith. Keith laid there still. He waited for any movement. Any breathing. Any sign of life. After half a minute, Ryan couldn’t find anything. He raised the chair over his head one last time. This blow would be the parting gift. Ryan cast down the chair onto Keith for the final time. In a split second, Keith’s arms rose up, his elbows and shoulders popped like firecrackers as his arms bent completely backwards to catch the chair. Ryan’s eyes widened in shock.

Ryan tried to regain possession of the chair, but it didn’t budge from Keith’s grasp. Keith let out a raspy roar and flung the chair away. Ryan flinched, giving time for the battered Keith to spin around and face Ryan head-on. Despite the numerous injuries and the beating Ryan had given Keith, he moved seamlessly. Keith’s arms, with more cracks, snapped back into place, then Keith snatched Ryan by his shirt. Ryan was yanked down before he could react. Keith slammed his skull into Ryan’s face, square in the nose. Ryan doubled back, then immediately recovered. Now Ryan’s blood began to boil.

He reached for Keith’s throat and coiled both of his hands around it. Ryan slammed Keith’s head into the concrete floor, right in the same area he’d already been bleeding from. Keith’s eyes rolled into the back of his head and his grip on Ryan released. Ryan didn’t let up and swung a right hook directly into Keith’s jaw. Keith’s head whipped to the side with blood flying from his mouth. As Ryan felt the skin and bone of his knuckle collide with Keith’s face, he began to feel another surge of power flow through him. He swung a left hook into Keith’s face, knocking it to the other side. Ryan’s nose stung, but he felt encouraged by it. Right, left, right, left, faster and faster. In a matter of seconds, Ryan unleashed an onslaught of punches onto Keith’s head. Right, left, right, left, nonstop. More blood sprayed everywhere. Staining Keith’s teeth and lips. Some of it landed on Ryan. He didn’t care, he continued on and on.

Ryan decided not to let up this time. He wouldn’t give this monster that used to be his friend another chance. He would make it out alive. He would swing until his head turned into a bloody pulp. He would swing until- CLAP. Ryan’s entire motion came to a halt. He could’ve sworn his fist was supposed to connect with Keith’s face again. He looked at where his fist had come to a stop. Keith had caught it. Keith snarled as he stared directly at Ryan with his blood-drenched face. It had become so full of blood, Keith was almost unrecognizable.

Ryan kicked into Keith’s arm. He aimed right for the elbow that had been bleeding profusely. With the swift strike, Keith was forced to release Ryan, who jumped away from Keith.

Ryan stood a couple feet away from Keith now, panting. He glared at Keith in a mix of astonishment and frustration. Keith had shattered bones and torn muscles all over, but not only did he fight on, he nearly overpowered Ryan. Keith began picking himself up. Ryan debated a different plan. He was still between Keith and the exit. He could book it. Ryan shook his head. He had a strange feeling Keith would pursue him to the ends of the world. There was no telling if something could stop Keith at this point. Anything other than tearing off all of his limbs.

Ryan smiled.

The thought of ripping Monster Keith’s flesh apart. The screams of agony and the fireworks of blood. Ryan’s eyes had a wild look now.

He glared at Keith more intently. The monster fixed his posture and returned the glare at Ryan. Ryan chuckled. Yeah, like Keith was going to let him do that.

They both exchanged silent resentment. Ryan took another deep breath and Keith charged him again, this time, more controlled. Keith ran with proper form and flailed his right arm at Ryan as he reached him. Ryan reacted instinctively and blocked the swing with his left arm then jabbed Keith with his right. Keith stumbled back but recovered into a left uppercut. Ryan narrowly dodged it, skidding on his heels to keep his balance. They were in the narrow hallway that led to the exit now. Ryan started to feel more in-tune with these circumstances. Whatever Keith, or this monster, was doing, it wasn’t what Ryan saw on the News, and he relished that. Now Ryan fought how he knew to fight.

Just like Ryan didn’t let up on Keith, Keith returned the favor. He pushed at him again but with a long-winded right hook. Ryan had seen this move a thousand times. He’s countered it nearly as much. Ryan let Keith’s fist near his face just before swerving out of the way. His head slipped under Keith’s arm like butter. BAM. Ryan delivered a powerful blow into Keith’s side, right beneath his shoulder. Keith recoiled back, and as he did, Ryan punched Keith dead in his chin. Keith couldn’t recover. Ryan sent a left hook into whatever was left of Keith’s jaw. Keith spun and flew backwards, landing on his side with a grunt. Ryan chose not to approach him. He reflected on what happened moments earlier, and was not eager to discover what other contortionistic insanity Keith would pull next. Ryan understood his defense was impenetrable right now, so he stuck to it. Keith sprang back up onto his feet with a shout.

Ryan readied himself, put his fists up, and shouted, “C’mon!”

Keith bolted to him, even more cunning than before. The bloodied Keith side-stepped to the right and left, throwing off Ryan. Ryan, confused, made his defense even tighter, trying to follow Keith. Keith suddenly jumped to the wall and ran across it towards Ryan. Ryan immediately backed away out of Keith’s range. Keith pursued him. Keith reached out both hands in an attempt to grab Ryan, but Ryan slammed his arms down then kicked Keith square in his chest. Keith barely budged from it, but it gave Ryan an opening. Ryan propelled himself into the air, just in front of Keith, grabbed Keith by the head, and sent his knee directly into Keith’s face. Keith flew back and landed with a thud.

Ryan could feel it. That natural instinct he’d developed as he grew up. The instinct that someone was going to stop getting up. Soon. Keith slowly but surely rose back to his feet. Ripping off Keith’s arms and legs was obviously not going to happen. Ryan ran a series of ideas in his mind until one stuck.

Keith shook his arms and legs before coming at Ryan again. Ryan waited for any surprises, but there were none. This time, Keith copied Ryan’s form. He put his fists up and slid over to Ryan with caution. Ryan couldn’t help but grin from ear-to-ear.

Victory was his.

Keith threw a quick jab which Ryan backed away from. Ryan waited. Keith tried a double jab with the opposite arm, Ryan dodged that as well. Ryan continued to wait. Keith feigned a jab, which Ryan didn’t fall for, and Keith went for a hook. Now! Ryan ducked under Keith’s arm and slid around him like a snake. In a mere moment, Ryan was behind Keith, with his arms around Keith’s waist.

Ryan’s heart pounded as he shouted, “This ends now!” Keith tried to pry Ryan’s arms off just as his feet suddenly came off the ground. Ryan released a warcry as he lifted Keith completely into the air. Keith’s arms and legs flailed about, failing to regain any leverage. Finally, Ryan flipped Keith upside down and slammed Keith’s neck into the concrete.

B-CRACK! The collision resonated through the entire hallway. Keith’s arms and legs froze before going limp. Ryan released Keith and stood upright once again. Keith’s body just fell flat.

Ryan stood over Keith, eyeing his work like a masterpiece. “That's a TKO,” he boasted. As Ryan expected, there was no response.

Ryan walked past Keith’s body to grab his phone and other belongings. He realized he might be able to call one of his friends to ask what was going on. Just before Ryan reached his phone, he felt a chill down his spine. “No way,” he whispered. Ryan quickly spun around and to his astonishment, Keith stood again.

“Are you serious right now?” Ryan yelled at Keith, “Just die already!” Ryan’s blood boiled in frustration. What else was he supposed to do? How much would it take? Ryan’s blood rushed to his fist again. He couldn’t stand this any longer. Ryan’s anger overflowed him, to the point he could feel it manifesting throughout his entire body. Ryan squeezed his fist harder than he ever had before. His muscles tensed and his teeth gritted.

In unison, Ryan and Keith roared at each other.

Then, Keith bolted at Ryan again with no coordination. Just a wild charge. Ryan yelled at the top of his lungs as he winded back his fist to deliver another blow directly into Keith’s shattered jaw.

The two were in arms reach of each other. In the moment between Ryan pushing his fist forward and it hitting Keith, everything suddenly felt like it was slow motion. His fist soared directly towards Keith’s jaw without fail. Ryan put forth everything into his fist. His anger, his frustration, his confusion, his sadness, his malice, his fear, and most of all, his desire to overcome. Everything. Packed into one punch. And Ryan could feel it. He could feel the energy surging through his arm. In the split second just before his fist hit Keith. His entire hand felt much stiffer. Just as Ryan saw it, his entire hand was covered in a red, metallic coating. The coat reached halfway down his forearm. Then- SPLURGE, his fist collided with Keith’s chin for the final time. No, it didn’t collide. Ryan’s fist completely ran through Keith’s face, bursting it into a firework of blood and bones. Ryan stared in awe as Keith’s body flung backwards with its entire jaw completely ripped off.

It plummeted to the ground and the blood rained down with it. Ryan stood there, stunned. He looked down at his fist, and sure enough, it still had that red coating. Ryan got a better look at it now, it was crimson red with white and black streaks running across it. Ryan was completely unable to move his fingers or bend his wrist. It was like a shell on his arm. Then, it slowly began to split apart and fade away into his skin. He was able to move his fingers and wrist again. Ryan looked from his fist to Keith’s body and back again. What?