mutated

chapter twenty one: run, devil run run, devil run run

Cannibal.

"I guess the first winner of this tournament is Alyssa! Congratulations, designation X-19. The next match will be in 15 minutes, so Lia Kim and Jade Wong, please get ready at your respective areas." Chase pointed to two rooms, and I hefted myself onto my feet.

"Good luck Jadie!" Cam called, and I waved back to her, before hurrying into the room. There was an assortment of muscle tape in there, a punching bag in the corner, and a couple of hairbands. I ignored everything but the punching bag, before starting to warm up.

I punched the bag, delivering a couple of punches before kicking towards the bag as it swung back. I heard footsteps approach, and after realizing it was Lily, ignored them. "Most people rest and stretch before they fight."

"I stretched already. I need warm up, or I'm gonna end up pulling my thigh if I deliver a kick." I replied, not taking my eyes off the bag as I delivered a series of jabs and punches at it. "Plus, any more training is always worth it."

"You're going to tire yourself out."

"I'm always tired. Hopefully, I don't need my stamina for this match." I answered, twisting my body so that I wrapped my legs around the swinging bag, and continued to pummel it. I momentarily stopped in my attack, and hung backward, looking at her upside down. "It's Lia. She's trained. Probably more than me. So if I want to win, I'm going to make it short and snappy."

"You're right she's trained. Good luck, Viper."

"Oh, not you too." I groaned, and I flipped neatly onto the ground, giving her a mock salute. "Thank you, Owl."

She grinned, before sauntering out the door, and I glanced at the other exit. The clock above the door began to count down from 1 minute, and I cracked my neck in anticipation.

Showtime.

I walked out of the door, standing to meet Lia on the other side. I heard the murmuring of bets being called out, recognizing that the odds were probably even. I stood ready, knees locked but legs bouncing, back hunched forward slightly. She mirrored my stance and winked at me. "No hard feelings?"

"You never know. I'm extremely petty." I smiled at her, and Chase dropped his raised hand.

Knowing that it was no point to stall with an opponent like her, I punched her, and she ducked under my fist, launching a kick towards my chest. I stumbled back, before flipping backward, dodging another kick being launched with her other foot.

Caught off balance, she stumbled forward as well, allowing me to deliver a high jump kick to her face, flipping neatly behind her as she stumbled backward now, and then spun my leg as I ducked under her flailing arms, knocking her onto the ground.

She rolled back to her feet and recovered faster than I expected, and we soon began a fist fight, delivering jabs and punches towards each other, trying to minimize contact and maximize accuracy. I gripped her shoulder with my left and pummeled her stomach with my right, and she absorbed the blows for a while, before sagging forward.

Her weight transferred to me, and I collapsed under her weight, rolling under her collapsing body as she rolled to her feet as well. As she came to kick me again, I caught her foot and twisted, slamming her into the floor, making her yell in pain and clutch her leg as she landed.

"Yield." She said through gritted teeth.

"Thank you." I smiled at her, and she gave me an 'are you serious' look.

"The winner of the second fight is Jade Wong. Congratulations, designation X-20! The next match is in 15 minutes, so Abby Tang and Sophia Li, please get ready at your respective areas." I crawled to the edge of the rink, and rolled onto the crash mat under the raised area.

"How much did they bet on me?" I said, panting and holding my stomach.

"I got 15 puffs." Camellia supplied helpfully, and I grinned painfully, slowly shuffling to a sitting position.

"Let's see how many more puffs we can get, shall we?" I asked her, and she gave me a cheshire cat smile.

"Yes! More food!" She squealed, and we leaned back on some cushions, and watched the next match unfold.