SAMPLE
This story is about 2500 words.
The man laughed and pushed him back. Joe went off his feet and landed on the floor. What power! Joe wasn't a small man and this one had thrown him up easily.
The crowd booed and Joe stood up. He dusted off his shorts and eyed the black man waiting for him like a panther waiting for an easy lunch.
Joe wasn't worried, but the push had unsettled him. If this one could throw him off so easily, what would fighting him be like? The announcer yelled out Joe's name and credentials. Joe sat back on his heels. Not long now.
"And tonight's challenger. Straight from the jungles of Africa by way of the New World, Madox."
The crowd screamed the unfamiliar name. They were excited and so they should be with two men like this in the ring.
"Madox. Nice name," Joe teased.
Madox looked at him with that 'I will kill you' stare and turned to Joe.
"Shut up, Englishman." It was all he said. Man of few words then.
The bell finally rang and the two fighters came together like a crack of thunder. Joe went left and Madox right. They threw big long haymakers at each other and both connected. Joe came in low for his trademark uppercut and connected. Madox went back and then brought his fists down with him as he came back and knocked away Joe's guard to deliver three blows to the face.
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THE FINAL COMPETITOR
UNCIVILIZED BOXING ACTION SERIES #4
(SMASHWORDS EDITION / Copyright Kenneth Guthrie 2011)
Joe has one more fight to go and it is the monster that started all this. This man has been fighting his way through the world of boxing in the New World and he’s back for vengeance. This is Joe’s last fight. Look forward to an epic read you will not forget!
This was it. He had come to the point in his life where he no longer enjoyed his work and he wanted a change. He had told Sam. Sam had understood and told him to go whatever way he wished. Tonight would be the end.
He stood in the small room in his shorts. His manager, Sam, had strapped on the gloves that they had all been told they needed to wear now. It was a good idea in his opinion. He would be much less scared that he was now if they had these earlier on when he was fighting in warehouses or alleyways full of broken glass. He smashed them together. It would make the fight more fun for him.
Lord Thomson had set up his farewell fight for him. The old man had told him that he doubted this would really be his last, but that he would miss having Joe around. It had been an odd feeling. Thomson was the most evil, despicable human being that Joe knew, but they respected each other. Joe was an excellent fighter and Thomson was good at setting up fights with big money for the winner. They were like apples and oranges: Both fruit, but with two different flavors.
He sat down again. He was amped up for this fight. It would be his last and he had asked Ted to bring his daughter. Jess thought he was just his father's friend to some extent, but she treated him like a second father anyway. He loved her with all his heart and he had decided that after this when she was a little older and more able to handle it he would tell her the truth about her mother and him.
He stood up again and looked in the mirror for a bit. He threw a few quick punches. He had lost weight over the last two years as the champion of both the underground fighting league and the legit fighting scene. Pro-boxing was becoming a major sport now and people were paying attention. Soon the underground would become obsolete and men like Joe would become relics of an older age.
He smiled. Somehow the idea of the young fighters not having to go through the hell he and Ted had to go through to get where they were was slightly comforting.
There was a knock on the door. One of the ring girls put their head in the door and gave him a seductive smile.
"They'll be starting soon, champ," she told him with a wink.
That was another thing that had changed. Scantily clad girls had become a part of the show. Looking at her tight leggings and sexy clinging top with a nice wide front, he could see why it was so popular.
She blew him a kiss and left. He would have to see if she was busy after this. There might be something worth investigating there.
He went back to his shadow boxing. He had no idea who he was fighting today. It was a big secret, but as always he was ready.
He walked out from the side of the stage and nearly fell over in shock. First, the place was full to the brim with people. He knew that this would be a popular fight, but the turnout had people sitting in the aisles of the one story fight arena. Second, he recognized the man in the middle of the ring. He was older, but not so much, but that black skin and those dangerous murderous eyes were the same.
He walked towards the man in the center of the ring and saw Lord Thomson waving at him from above. Ted was in the crowd a few feet off and he gave him a look of concern. This was quite a surprise and not a good one.
Sam ran up to him.
"I'm sorry. I couldn't tell you," he said concerned.
"It's alright. Where has he been? It's been almost two years."
"I know. Trust me, I know. He's been in the new world. He's been fighting on the ships and for a bit overseas. I hear he just got off the boat today," Sam replied.
"That's one mighty fast boat ride. He's going to be ok for tonight?" It wouldn't be good if his first fight back was a short one.
"He beat four men to death at the docks from what I hear on getting off the boat," Sam said hastily, "Joe... Those guys weren't weak. This guy is a monster."
Joe nodded to himself and looked up to Lord Thomson. It was a fitting end to his career. What better place to end than with the man he began with?
Joe jumped through the ropes and came right up to the man. He smiled. He was missing his two front teeth.
"Did you lose something?" Joe asked.
The man laughed and pushed him back. Joe went off his feet and landed on the floor. What power! Joe wasn't a small man and this one had thrown him up easily.
The crowd booed and Joe stood up. He dusted off his shorts and eyed the black man waiting for him like a panther waiting for an easy lunch.
Joe wasn't worried, but the push had unsettled him. If this one could throw him off so easily, what would fighting him be like? The announcer yelled out Joe's name and credentials. Joe sat back on his heels. Not long now.
"And tonight's challenger. Straight from the jungles of Africa by way of the New World, Madox."
The crowd screamed the unfamiliar name. They were excited and so they should be with two men like this in the ring.
"Madox. Nice name," Joe teased.
Madox looked at him with that 'I will kill you' stare and turned to Joe.
"Shut up, Englishman." It was all he said. Man of few words then.
The bell finally rang and the two fighters came together like a crack of thunder. Joe went left and Madox right. They threw big long haymakers at each other and both connected. Joe came in low for his trademark uppercut and connected. Madox went back and then brought his fists down with him as he came back and knocked away Joe's guard to deliver three blows to the face.
Joe went back and Madox chased him. He got him in the corner and repeatedly hit him in the stomach. Joe put his defense up and slipped under the man's arm to strike him hard three times in side.
They stepped back. For less than a minute’s work they had really outdone themselves. Madox was bleeding freely from the mouth and Joe was having real trouble seeing straight. It had been an intense moment of heated battle and both of them left with more than their share of scars.
Joe stepped in cautiously. He couldn't afford to go toe to toe with this man again. Already his stomach was starting to swell up. The man had enough power that if he wasn't wearing gloves then Joe would have been dead on the floor with hits like that.
I have to stay focused. Go in hard and take him down. Joe slipped into range and let loose. Two short jabs followed by an uppercut when the opening presented itself. Madox slipped back into the corner and Joe went to work on his ribs.
Madox looked down at him with hateful eyes. Joe had him on the ropes and he knew it. Madox bent his head back and brought it forward. Joe was looking at the man's stomach at the time and the blow hit him straight in the middle of the head. He went down and Madox fell into a kneel straight on his groin.
Joe pushed Madox over and tried to climb up. Sam jumped into the ring and pushed Madox away.
The new rules banned this sort of behavior, but they were still new. Joe slowly got up while Madox waited and Sam held him at bay. It hurt, but he was ok.
Joe rubbed blood from his head and Sam looked at him. He didn't have the energy to speak, so he signaled that Sam should leave.
Sam left the ring and Madox came in hard and fast. The blows came one after another and dropped Joe to the floor again. He had been hit on both sides at the bottom of his rib cage. He had heard cracks on both sides as his ribs broke. The fight was over and he knew it.
Madox stood over him. He was a big strong man and he would make a good champion. Joe’s eyes slowly closed. He could feel his breath starting to weaken. He was in a lot of pain and needed to rest.
Just as before the voice he had heard screamed at him to stand up. This time he ignored it. It kept screaming and he could hear the count.
I don't want to get up. I'm finished. An image of a young girl calling to him came to him. "Great job, champ!" It had been when his daughter had recognized him.
He felt a warmth in his chest. His daughter was watching him. He had asked Ted to bring her along. He looked over to where Ted was. Everything was so slow. Ted was screaming at him to stand up and his daughter was right beside him.
He stood up then. His face was a mess of blood running down from where he had been cut. His body was broken and he couldn't breathe easily. Everything hurt and any right minded man would have lay down and let go of the world for a time, but Joe was not that sort of man. He had fought his way through hundreds of fights to even get to a position where he could fight a fight like this. He had skill and ability. He was strong, but most important of all he had guts.
He stood and he swung. Madox blocked the first one, but the second took him in the face. His face was shocked as he felt the power of that hit. Joe pushed on. It became another session of blow trading, but with Joe hitting twice as often.