The Martial Arts Prodigy

Chapter 17

Song up above Superstar by Saliva

"The weak are meat; the strong eat." - Japanese Proverb

The day of the tournament has arrived, as the sun rises over the New Jersey skyline, each of the fighters arrives at the school lobby. Laura wonders where the location of the tournament will be, just as many others do the same.

"So, I wonder where the party is?" Vanessa asks Laura.

"No clue girl, I'm just as curious as you to be honest." she replies. Danyelle arrives through the entrance door, dressed in a jet black combat bra, with black battle pants and black combat boots. On her left leg is the symbol of a Jade Dragon, breathing green flames from its nostrils.

"Oh... my... god!" Laura exclaims, in awe of how Danyelle looks.

"Dani? Is that you?" Johnny asks and Danyelle nods in response.

"Is this how you usually look for a tournament?" Laura asks.

"More or less." Danyelle says straightforwardly.

"It's a good look for you girl!" Laura compliments. Carly looks at how Danyelle is dressed and she is partially impressed.

"You look exceptional, I must admit. But, I will still take you down princess, count on it!" Carly boasts.

"I so look forward to beating her ass all day long!" Laura says, fed up with Carly's arrogance. Asia walks through the front door, excited to see the fighters ready to participate in the tournament.

"Hello fighters, if you will follow me, I will take you to where the tournament will be taking place." the fighters follow Asia to the parking lot area, where they stand puzzled as to where the tournament will be held.

"So hold on, we are fighting in a parking lot?" Aaron wonders.

"As entertaining as that may be, that is not the case." Asia tells him. Asia presses down on her bracelet gem, making the ground beneath the fighters move down. As the ground descends downward, the fighters are amazed and shocked to see an arena, packed with fellow students.

In the center lies a large octagon ring, where a caged fence surrounds the edges of the ring. As the crowd of students quickly begin to fill the arena with cheers of excitement, the fighters are led to their seats by Asia.

"Your school has an arena here?" Danyelle asks Asia.

"Yes, we would have tournaments here every year. It's one of the things that separates us from other Martial Arts schools." Asia answers.

"So I guess the one who drew the lowest number will go first right?" Laura wonders.

"Actually, there has been a change of plans..." Asia says.

"What do you mean change of plans?" Carly asks nervously.

"Your numbers will now be called at random, whichever two are called will fight. If you win, you advance. If you lose, you are eliminated." the fighters all appear shocked at the changes made to the tournament, Danyelle however, looks prepared to fight as if her life depends on it. Moments later, Dean Cole Michaelson enters the caged ring, with a microphone in his hand. He looks at the crowd with a smile, as they go into a frenzy.

"Welcome students, to the Jade Dragon stadium. Today, we are here to find out, which fighter is the best in the world. It is now time to wage war!" as the crowd roars, the fighters look at Michaelson, who hypes up the crowd for the tournament.

"I wonder who is going to fight first?" Draca wonders. On a giant screen up above the ring, the fighters are shuffled at random. As the fighters await the first match, a woman in a black robe sits in the audience, staring at an unsuspecting Danyelle.

"Fighter number seven! Vanessa Urban!" as the announcer calls Vanessa's name, she cracks her knuckles, ready to fight.

"Fighter number one! Black Mamba!" Vanessa tries to hold back a laugh, upon hearing the fighters name.

"Kick his ass girl!" Laura says.

"Don't worry, this will be over faster than you can say, 'holy shitballs!' Let's do this!" Vanessa jokingly says. Vanessa and Black Mamba get into the cage, awaiting the sound of the bell. While Vanessa waits, she thinks back to the past nine months of training with Danyelle and Laura.

"Wow Dani, you really are the best fighter out of all of us." Vanessa says while catching her breath.

"Don't sell yourself short, your speed is really key to your offense, there were times where I couldn't predict your next attack." Danyelle admits.

"If there is one fact about combat, it's that speed kills. The faster you move, the more you wear your opponent down, that was how you were able to last against Danyelle." Asia explained to Vanessa.

"She has a point, Vanessa, if we work on your speed, you will be like Sonic The Hedgehog if he had the speed force." Laura says.

"You are such a geek!" Vanessa says.

"What can I say, being a geek is the new sexy!" Laura says. Back in the school arena, Vanessa stands face to face with Black Mamba, a boxer with very quick hand speed. The bell rings and Vanessa blocks a right cross from the arrogant boxer.

Vanessa hits the boxer with a hard knee strike, connecting with his nose. Black Mamba tries to maintain his footing, but his equilibrium gives out and he falls to the ground. Vanessa casually walks over to him and she crouches next to him.

"I'd stay down if I were you dude, you don't want another ass kicking from me, do you?" Black Mamba passes out from pain, making Vanessa smile. "Good..." she says.

"Oh my god! A destructive knockout knee to the face, that was some gnarly shit right there! Vanessa advances to the next round!" Danyelle and the others cheer, along with the roaring crowd, over her amazing and brutal knockout.

"Damn girl! That was a nasty knee! That is how we do it!" Laura exclaims with joy, giving Vanessa a high five.

"I think you may have broken that guys nose, nice work babe!" Aaron congratulates Vanessa with a kiss, while Danyelle bows to her, showing her respect.

"I knew you could do it Vanessa! That was awesome!" Vanessa hugs Danyelle, making Danyelle smile. Moments later, the entrant numbers begin to shuffle once again. The fighters await the reveal of which two fighters will fight next. Dean Cole Michaelson reemerges in the cage, microphone in hand.

"Well, that was a spectacular finish by Vanessa Urban! Congratulations on making it to the next round! Now, this next match is going to be a spectacle for you all because we will now involve, three competitors at once!" the crowd roars with excitement over this sudden announcement.

"Well, this just keeps getting better and better!" Johnny says sarcastically as the entrants continue to shuffle.

"Tell me about it, it seems like were in for a very unpredictable day!" Draca says.

"Fighter number eight, Aaron Zhang!" Aaron gets up from his seat and he takes a deep breath.

"You're up baby." Vanessa flirts with Aaron who smiles at her.

"Fighter number nine, Danny Gurrerro!" as Danny gets up from his seat, he looks at Zoella and he winks at her.

"Fighter number six, Johnny Orion!" Johnny rises from his seat and he gets a good luck kiss on the cheek from Draca.

"Good luck babe, don't hurt Vanessa's man too badly, he is still our friend," Draca says to Johnny who chuckles. As the three fighters emerge inside the cage, they stare each other down. The bell rings and three fighters throw a punch at the same time, connecting their fists together. A shockwave vibrates the stadium for a brief second, upon the three fighters clashing fists.

"Nice, now the real fun begins!" says Danny.