A-O Bomb Squad 4: The Final Blow

Knock Out

The next morning I found Mom in the weight room, beating the crap out of an old punching bag. The seams slowly came undone from the years of use. I watched Mom punch the bag with her bare hands for nearly an hour. When she was done, she turned around to take a drink from her water bottle; that's when she saw me.

"For fuck's sake, Maxx, you scared me!" she said. She immediately noticed her language and apologized, "Sorry, honey, Mommy's been on edge lately."

"I know," I replied. "Because of Loud Speaker and Coach..." I trailed off. My eyes started to tear up, so she came over and wrapped me in a hug. The top of my head just reached the bottom of her chin. I was getting taller.

"I'm sorry, sweetie, but at least they didn't suffer." I knew she was lying. Loud Speaker was half eaten before we got to him. Even Fire Muffin had to have suffered that one second his head hit the ground before he died. However, I allowed her to stand there and hug me. We stood there for awhile, just hugging each other. I let my tears just fall out of my eyes. I didn't sob, but I was crying. After a few minutes, Mom wiped my eyes and said, "C'mon, it's almost time for Physical Training." Physical Training was basically PE. Since Fire Muffin had died yesterday, Mom had taken over as my coach. But I didn't call her Coach; I still called her Mom.

That day was the day that would mark whether I passed or failed PT. I had to fight my own mother. I originally was supposed to do this with Coach, but...you know. Everyone in the Bomb Squad was required to come down and watch the fight. No one was allowed to interfere, but they were allowed to cheer. We were in the larger gym. I looked around before the fight. I absorbed the memories I'd made with Coach as well as the memories that had been made by my family. To my right, were the bleachers Boss Man and Coco had their first physical fight. On my left, were the bleachers I sat at when Fail Face came to get me.

The rules of the match were relayed by Boss Man, the referee, before we were allowed to do anything. If you were knocked out, you lost. If you get pushed out of the boundary lines, you lost. If you got pinned to the ground for three seconds, you lost. No guns allowed. No knifes allowed. Any modified foot apparel or weapons were not allowed (we actually had to fight bare foot). If an interference is called, the person who was helped lost. The challenger may challenge to a rematch at anytime. Obviously, I was the challenger, but I was still a little nervous.

We met in the middle before the fight. Boss Man told us to fight fair and not hold back. Mom and I shook hands, then returned to our corners. I looked up at Dad in the stands. He was staring at Mom. I figured this fight might be harder on him since he had to watch his wife and son fight each other. I never caught his glance before the bell rung, which signalled the beginning of the fight.

I snapped back to face Mom, who was already charging at me. I observed her speed, where her eyes were looking, and what shape her hands were in. She was dead-on charging at me, which signalled to me to think quickly. She was looking me dead in the eyes, but this didn't help much. And her hands were shaped into fists, indicating she was going to punch me. I responded by charging at her as well. I saw the look in her eyes; she was also observing my movements and deciding how to respond. She pulled her right fist backwards and aimed for my head. All of a sudden, everything went into slow motion. I slid onto my back and slid right between her legs. Mom turned around just as I raised my leg to kick. I landed a successful blow square in her lower back.

Then everything returned to normal speed. Mom tumbled twice before jumping back onto her feet. Everyone cheered and clapped at my accomplishment. I quickly looked over to Dad; he still had his eyes on Mom. I spent too long pondering why Dad was so focused on Mom to see that she had swept me off my feet. I seemed to fall back into slow motion. I landed on my back with a loud thud. My head hit the hardwood floor, causing me to lose focus in my eyes for a few seconds. I could barely make out that Mom was about to pin me. I raised my legs to her waist, wrapped them around her, and used all my strength to flip her off me. She slid just in front of the boundary line. Time went back to normal again. Mom shook her head and got back on her feet. I marvelled at how fast she recovered.

My eyes darted around the arena, trying to figure out my next move. We were provided some small weapons to use, but Mom hadn't grabbed at one yet. She watched my eyes look to the grappling gun, which was invented by Mamasita when I was two, and we both charged for it. Fortunately, I got to it first and shot it up towards the ceiling. It pulled me up over everyone. I dangled, literally, by a thread over the arena. I saw Mom charge up to Boss Man, "Foul! He's out of the arena!"

"He wasn't pushed out of the boundary lines. I'll allow it," Boss Man ruled. I sighed with relief as he ruled in my favor. I looked down and saw Dad finally had his eyes on me. I must have been hanging for over two minutes. I observed that Mom was looking for another weapon that could possibly cut me down, but I knew Mamasita would be pretty pissed if someone destroyed our only grappling gun. I noticed she picked up a discus. I watched her gain energy, then she chucked the discus up towards me. It hit my right hand, so I was stuck holding onto the grappling gun for dear life. I saw Dad nodding in approval for Mom. It was then made clear to me that Dad was taking Mom's side. I was filled with a small anger that cause me to raise my right hand back up to the grappling gun.

Then I felt the blow of the discus hit the same hand, causing it to feel twice the pain, but I didn't let go. Suddenly, I remembered something Buzz Kill had told me. "You're your mother's life. She'd die if you got hurt." It came to me what I had to do. I turned to Mom. I watched her hurl the discus at me a third time, but this time I caught it with the same hand she'd injured. I threw it out of the arena onto to the stage where she couldn't get it. I pulled myself up all the way to the ceiling. I detached the grappling gun from the ceiling, and threw it at Mamasita in the stands. She nodded because she understood I didn't want it back in the ring. I shimmied down the beam I was holding onto. I dangled just above the center of the arena. Mom was staring straight above her, trying to figure out what I was doing.

I looked at Dad, who was also staring up at me with the same look Mom was. I glared at him before taking a deep breath. Then I allowed myself to let go of the bar. I fell, once again, in slow motion. Everyone gasped as they saw me fall. I felt myself being caught in my mom's arms, but her knees quickly gave out from the high speed I was falling at. We both fell the the ground. The last thing I remember, Boss Man came up to Mom and I, picked me up, and raised my arm in the air. "Sylvan wins!" Then I blacked out.

I woke up in the nurse's office, a.k.a Coco's office, with a pair of crutches next to me. She was sorting pills when she saw me wake up. "Hey, Maxxie, did you enjoy your nap?"

"What happened?" I asked groggily.

"Well, after you dropped down from the ceiling, smart and dumb move by the way, your mom caught you, but you both ended up falling to the ground. The fall knocked your mother out, and you sprained your left ankle, but you'll be fine in a few days," she explained.

"So how did I win?" I asked after I woke up more.

"You knocked your mom out, and pinned her for three seconds. Therefore, you won."

"Where is she?"

"Upstairs with your dad. She hasn't come down in three days."

"I've been asleep for three days?!" I exclaimed.

"Yeah, but hey, you won. Be happy about it. Now get on your crutches, it's almost time for dinner," she instructed.

"Hey, you're not my mother," I joked.

"I'm your godmother, close enough. Now get up!" she smiled.

As I hobbled my way to the lunch room, I couldn't help but feel as if I was going to pay for beating my mom.