She punched him so hard that blood ran down his face. I watched my friend stagger away blindly, trying to shield himself. Tina sank her fist into his solar plexus and finished him off with a roundhouse kick that knocked him cold. “Three, two, one!” the crowd yelled.

The referee jumped into the ring and held up the tiny, blonde girl’s hand. “Winner! Tina the Terror!” The audience roared their approval as I did my best to hide my disgust. What was wrong with these people?

I made my way to the ring and knelt by Bryan’s side. “Hey man, wake up.” I shook him and lifted an eyelid, but he was completely out. Sighing, I maneuvered him onto my shoulders and tried to hoist him up so I could carry him out of the ring. It would’ve worked, but a shove from behind knocked me over. Before I could catch him, Bryan fell and his head cracked loudly against the floor.

“What did you do that for?” I spun around angrily and faced the girl who’d just creamed my friend.

Tina gave me a vicious smile and said, “Just wanted to see if you were as much of a pushover as your friend there.”

Not taking my eyes off her, I backed towards Bryan and started dragging him out of the ring. If she wanted a fight, she’d have to get it from someone else. She was pretty good, but she still had a long way to go before she could take on someone with my level of training.

Once I dragged Bryan out to the spectator area, I hefted him onto my back and got him to the fight club’s infirmary. He’d probably have a bit of a concussion when he woke up, but nothing too serious. I went back out to the arena and headed towards the door. Bryan could get home on his own when he came to, so I figured I could leave now guilt-free. He and I had struck a deal, but on hindsight, it probably hadn’t been worth a concussion. Live and learn.

As I was leaving, my hands reflexively checked my wallet for bus money and I stopped short. Where was it? I scanned the floor for my wallet, but I hadn’t dropped it. My shoulders tensed and I started to worry. I needed that money to get home, there was no way I was walking 30 miles to my house. I took a deep breath and tried to think rationally.

The last time I had it was right before I’d walked into the ring to collect Bryan. No one could have pickpocketed me when I was carrying him because they would’ve had get past 180 pounds of dead weight to reach my pocket. The doctor never got near me; he was too focused on my friend. Who else had touched me or bumped against me between now and then?

A loud voice rang through the room. “Would anyone else like to challenge our undefeated victor?”

Tina waved to everyone excitedly, looking like a perky high-school cheerleader. That ditzy blonde act had fooled many people in the past, but everyone knew her now as the ferocious fighter she really was. Very few people had the courage to challenge her anymore.

The ref called again. “Anyone?”

I squinted. Tina had something in her hand. Her eyes met mine and she held it up. My wallet. Great. Usually, I fought only out of self-defense, but it looked like tonight I’d have to make an exception.

“I challenge her!” I shouted, stepping forward.

Before I knew it, I was stripped down to my shorts and manhandled into the ring. All fighters wore as little as possible so their clothes wouldn’t slow them down, but brawling half-naked always seemed rather ridiculous to me. I tried to ignore my face growing hot, knowing that I was blushing.

“Awwww,” Tina cooed, “is the little boy embarrassed? It’s just a little skin.” She moved her own body flirtatiously and got a couple cat-calls from the audience. My irritation grew.

The timer counted down. Three… two… one… The bell rang and Tina shot toward me, hoping to score a rapid take-down. Too slow. I moved imperceptibly and sent her flying over my shoulder. She crashed to the floor and didn’t move. I peered at her; was it over already?

Any disappointment I felt vanished as she got up again, a little unsteady. “That all you got?” she yelled. She flew at me again, but I easily dodged her attack and chopped a vicious hand to the back of her neck, careful not to apply enough force to kill her. The supposedly terrible Tina fell to the ground again. Right now, her vision would be filling with so many stars that she couldn’t see straight. I knew this because my own master had chopped me dozens of times before I’d finally learned how to defend myself.

The crowd started chanting. “Three, two-”

“Wait!” Tina cried, getting up to her knees. “I’m not done yet.”

I waited patiently as she regained enough balance to stand. I’d have to hit her harder next time if I wanted to take her down. Still, our skill levels were so far apart that this battle had basically ended before it had even begun. She faced me and I crouched into my defensive stance again. Something caught my eye. What did she have in-?

Ice ran down my spine. I leaped as far away as I could, trying to avoid her knife. Blood drained from my face and I started shaking.

Tina grinned maliciously and started weaving her butterfly knife through her fingers. “Oh, didn’t you know?” She walked towards me slowly, casually. “Blades no longer than six inches are allowed in the ring.” She slashed at me without warning and I put up an arm to cover my face, jumping back for the second time in as many seconds. A warm, red liquid drenched my arm, and my fingers felt slippery.

That’s all I could register. No pain, no exertion, just my mind screaming at me to get out, to get anywhere else, to get away. My reflexes moved my body, responding automatically to her attacks, but fear crippled my thoughts. After a minute, my wordless, silent scream focused into a single thought yelled over again: KNIFE-KNIFE-KNIFE-KNIFE-KNIFE!!!!

I snapped. A guttural cry ripped from my body and I barrelled toward her. The last thing I remember before the tranquilizer dart hit me was breaking her bones over and over again.