The Fighter

Chapter 55

The sound of fists hitting the bag echoes throughout the room. Chains rattle with every hit. The sound of the sparring poles hitting one another stab my ear drums and bodies hitting the crash mats fill the place. Grunts and groans are the result of a hit being made as the session drags out.

The air whooshes over my head when I throw myself onto the ground and roll. A foot comes towards my face but I grab it, slam it to the ground and use it to bring myself up into a handstand and my legs hook around their shoulder. I bring myself up, my stomach crying in protest. I quickly jolt myself backwards, my hips jerking. I catch myself on the ground and my opponent comes down with my legs. I let them go before they crash to the ground and they fly into the ropes around the arena. I swipe my leg out and it catches the back of someone's knees.

My lower arms work like shields as I lift them up at right angles to my face and block hooks and hands coming towards my face. My elbow works like a fist as it hits chins and noses. My knee hits stomachs while my foot hits chests and my fist hits heads. I spin around and my wrists are caught by hands, holding them away from their face.

"We're going to run out of warriors if you keep beating the crap out of them" Austin tells me with a smirk. I let out a deep breath, feeling a small bead of sweat drip from my temple.

"I've only been fighting for two hours. They offered when I broke three more punch bags" I tell him, feeling my shoulders drop. I'm wearing only a green crop and black knee length running shorts with my stomach completely bare. The love bite that Austin made on my hip bone yesterday is on full show but I don't care. The other one on my collar bone is darker but not as big. Isaac's mark is hidden as it should always be.

"Why are you training so hard?" Austin asks me, adjusting his hold on my wrists so that our fingers interlock. The fighters I've just defeated climb stiffly to their feet, clap my shoulder and move to work on weights and to jog off the defeat.

"Red Blood are coming. I've got to be ready" I move to pull away but Austin holds tight. He pulls me towards him, crossing my right arm over my head so I have to twist and my back hits his chest.

"I could use some training" Austin tells me and I smile as I look to the opposite wall. I buck my hips and spin around quickly, untwisting my arms. I jump up, slipping from his grip and grab his shoulder with my hands. I push off, turning around as I do and I land behind him before kicking the back of his knees.

"You should know by now not to let your opponent distract you" I tell him as he stands back to his feet and faces me. He swipes his arm out and I duck easily. When he lifts his leg, I spin beneath his legs, rolling on my hips on the ground before pushing back up. My hips rotate as I lift my own leg up and he catches my ankle. He pulls me forward and I stumble into his chest.

"You should know to stand balanced on your feet." He counters, keeping me flush up against him while his hand trails up from my ankle to my hips, his fingers skimming my skin. I curl my leg around his; pulling it so his leg slips between mine. As he falls to the ground, I pull away and kick his chest not too hard but hard enough to make him lose his balance and land on his back.

"12-6, Your Highness" I tell him, remembering that we're keeping count on each other.

"We're still doing that are we?" Austin asks, grunting as he rolls to his elbow. "When do we stop counting?"

"When one of us reaches one hundred" I answer, walking backwards as he nods his head.

"Right" his foot catches my ankle but I manage to stop myself from falling but he uses my loss of balance to his advantage by kicking my hip. I drop to the ground on one knee and catch his fist in my hand. I pull him to the ground towards me before bashing my shoulder into his. This continues for several more minutes until I end up on my back with him kneeling above me with my wrists held by his hands. "I win. 12-7"