Prompt(s): Black eye + Split lip; Backhandslap + Losing a tooth
Warnings: Minor swearing, Blood, Mentions of drugs
Published: 19. February 2021
Word Count: 2429
Checked with Grammarly.
a)Black eye + Split Lip
Chapa did just fine on her own.
And she certainly didn't need anyone.
At least that's what she told herself.
Chapa shifted against the brick wall, trying to find a more comfortable position.
"De Silva, es la hora!"
Chapa opened her eyes, pushing herself off the ground and coming face to face with Sergio Ramos*. Sergio was a young man of average height with coal-black hair and one of the biggest assholes in Swellview. He was a drug dealer, who used his contacts in Mexico to get the drugs into the country. He was a money-loving, selfish and cruel asshole without honor. He would do anything to make a profit.
Chapa despised him.
But she owed him money.
And after hearing, that she was back on the streets, it hadn't taken long for him to call in a favor.
There had been an inconvenience with one of his deliveries.
In English: Someone had stolen a box full of cocaine. And Sergio wanted it back at all cost.
He and Chapa left the warehouse they had been waiting in and started walking down the street.
This wasn't Chapa's first not-so-legal job. It may sound brutal, but kids being involved in stuff like drugs or robbery, wasn't exactly unusual in Swellview. The city had a huge homelessness problem since Captain Man and Kid Danger had blown up the Frittle Factory. Many people have either lost their job or all their money at the stock market. Besides the city hadn't even tried to help them.
The crime rate on the streets was high, since Captain Man didn't bother with such tiny things, and the police simply didn't give a shit or had the resources.
"Where are we going?" Chapa asked.
"Homeless shelter. Those bastards live there. We're going to pay them a visit and ask some questions."
"And you can't do that yourself or sent one of your goons because?"
"Well, you got herself quite a reputation by putting those two boys in the hospital. I heard the one whose leg you broke will never walk normally again."
Chapa didn't like the way Sergio answered. She had a bad feeling about this. It was too easy.
They entered the homeless shelter. The young man leads her towards the last room on the ground floor.
Sergio forcefully opened the door, the sound of it crashing into the wall, echoing through the hallway.
Two young boys, probably not older than Chapa herself, looked at them with a mix of shock and fear in their expression.
Sergio stomped forward and grabbed the taller boy by the front of his shirt, slamming him against the nearest wall.
"Where is it?" He asked in a low, threatening voice.
The boy gulped. "I-I do-don't know wh-what ya talking about, man."
"Don't lie to me, peinabombillas!"
"I swear I-!"
Sergio punched him in the gut. The boy doubled over, coughing and spitting.
"Okay, okay. I stole the drugs! But I don't have them anymore! I'm sorry!" He cried.
Sergio tightened his hold. "Why do I find it so hard to believe you, hm?"
"No, no! Please! I sold them! I needed the money for me and my brother!"
At once a sick grin spread across Sergio's face. "De Silva... Why don't you show my new little friend here how life on the streets works?"
Chapa's face hardened. She knew what he wanted her to do and there was no way she was following his wishes.
"That's not part of our deal."
"I think that's for me to decide."
Chapa glared at him. "Forget it. I'm not beating up an innocent kid." She took a step forward. "And I'm not going to watch you do it either. Just let them go. There's nothing you could gain from this."
To her own surprise, Sergio actually loosened his hold. "You're right. This is a waste of time."
Chapa inwardly sighed in relief but kept her face neutral. "Let's go-"
Suddenly Sergio let go of the boy and whipped around.
Chapa had no time to react as his fist connected with her left eye. She bit down on her lower lip. Hard.
The metallic taste of copper filled her mouth, her lip throbbing in pain.
"Don't ever cross me again." Sergio hissed, walking towards the door,"Oh, and your dept is not paid off."
He stomped away, but not before glaring at her one more time.
The younger boy immediately ran to his brother, hugging him tightly.
Chapa forced back the tears, that threatened to escape her eyes. Blood dripped onto the floor, but the former hero really didn't care right now.
She turned towards the boys. "The café at Justice Lane is looking for waiters. The payment is not mutch, but it comes with a small room and three warm meals a day."
The older boy looked at her. "Thank you."
Chapa nodded at him. "If we ever meet again, I hope it's under better conditions. Take care of each other. And stay away from Sergio."
Chapa left the homeless shelter, ignoring the looks she received.
Sergio would pay for this.
b)Backhand slap + Losing a tooth
"If you wanted to walk with me, you could've just said so," Chapa stated, stopping in her tracks.
"Pardon. I didn't want to be rude." A female voice said behind her.
Chapa turned around, meeting her eyes. She was unusually well dressed for this kind of area.
"Looks like you got into quite a fight," the woman continued, pointing to Chapa's black eye and split lip.
"Your point?"
"You look like someone who fights back."
Chapa started to feel uneasy.
"What do you want?" She asked, her body and mind preparing themselves to fight.
"I have an offer you might be interested in... but first I need to see for myself, what you can do."
Suddenly two men jumped out of nowhere, but Chapa was ready, having felt the presence of various electrical devices they carried with them.
Chapa reacted quickly and flung her backpack at the first man, hitting him in the head. He stumbled to the side, blood already dripping from his temple. The second man tried to strike her from behind, but Chapa bent her back backward, his arm missing her completely. The girl straightened again before pushing her left leg off the ground, her right foot aiming for his jaw.
Chapa smiled in satisfaction when a cracking sound followed her well-performed roundhouse kick. The man howled in pain, protectively cradling his now broken jaw.
Chapa twisted, turning her body to face the man who had attacked her first. Out of the corner of her eye, Chapa saw the back of a hand swinging at her head, but it was too late.
Chapa had always had incredibly fast reflexes, but ever since she had gotten her powers they only seemed to have increased.
The girl tried to turn her head away, but there just wasn't enough time. The man's fist collided with her jaw and without Chapa's inhuman reflexes it would have most likely been broken in two, like the one of her second attacker.
Although she hadn't been hit at the proper angle, the momentum was still strong enough to knock her off her feet. The way too familiar taste of metal filled her mouth, and blood dropped down from her now reopened lip.
Chapa's face hardened as she realized what else was in her mouth.
The former hero pushed herself off the ground and glared at the man, who had just landed a hit on her. The man was caught off guard by its intensity and unconsciously took a few steps back.
The second man had meanwhile sunken to his eyes. He certainly wouldn't be a threat anymore.
Chapa spat on the ground, red salvia and a tooth landing on the concrete with a klink.
She shot the man in front of her a bloody grin. "You shouldn't have done that."
He gulped but held his ground.
Chapa started walking towards him, the grin never leaving her face, and cracked her knuckles. He tried to look unimpressed, but the fear was clear in his eyes.
The mysterious woman watched from a few feet away and seemed to enjoy the scene unfolding in front of her.
Suddenly Chapa increased her speed and ran towards the man. He threw a left hook at her, but Chapa ducked away under his arm and threw herself athim. They fell on the ground, but before the man could push himself up again, Chapa was on top of him, repeatedly punching his face, only stopping after he had stopped moving.
His face was a bloody mess and his nose definitely broken, but he would live.
Probably.
Chapa got off him, as the woman started clapping. "Impressive."She said, holding out Chapa's backpack.
The girl ripped it out of her hands and glared. " Who are you? What do you want?"
This was the first time, Chapa got a proper look at the woman. She had shoulder long blond hair, a round face, and was only a little taller than Chapa herself. She also wore a long black coat, but Chapa was sure that she had somewhat more of a more athletic figure.
"My real name is none of your concern, but people call me Fate."
"I hate to break it to you, but fortune cookies aren't great namegivers."
The woman laughed drily. "Have you ever heard of the 'Veil of Shadows'?"
Chapa's eyes narrowed in suspicion. Of course, she heard of it. Everyone on the streets had. Apparently, there was a secret fight club underneath the city. It was called the 'Veil of Shadows' because no one knew where it was or if it even existed at all. It was more of a myth than anything else, although you could hear its name being murmured wherever you went.
"That's just a myth."Chapa finally answered.
Fate's lip twitched slightly upwards as if she had expected that answer. "Is it? Or is questioning its existence not exactly what you want for a secret fight club?"
She has a point, Chapa thought.
Fate had certainly spiked her curiosity.
"Prove it," Chapa demanded, crossing her arms.
"Follow me," Fate turned and started walking, Chapa cautiously following her. Whatever happened she had to keep her guard up.
They walked for a while until they eventually reached Hip-Hop-Pureé. The two women crossed the street and stopped in front of a brick house.
"Now what?" Chapa asked slightly annoyed. Maybe this was all just a huge prank and someone was watching her over a hidden camera, laughing their asses off, while she kept following a woman, she had literally met seven minutes ago, like a lost puppy.
"We're here." Fate said.
"We are standing in front of a brick wall," Chapa exclaimed angrily."This was a giant waste of time."
The girl turned on her heels and was about to walk away when Fate roughly grabbed her arm.
Chapa ripped herself out of her grasp. "Get your hands off me!"
"Don't be so impatient!" The woman snapped, turning back towards the wall. "There is no better place to hide something like a hidden entrance than in plain sight."
Fate fished a gold coin out of her pocket and leaned against the wall, signing Chapa to do the same.
Fate put the coin in a deformation on the wall.
Suddenly the wall gave away behind them. Chapa stumbled but avoided falling on her face or ass.
Chapa's eyes scanned her new surroundings. They were in a small chamber with a spiral staircase, which leads downward.
"The coin activates a mechanism, which turns the brick wall," Fate explained.
"Granting access to this chamber," Chapa concluded. "The brickbuilding we were looking at has two walls."
Fate whistled. "Wow. You are smarter than you look."
"Says the blond woman."
Fate snorted in displeasure and started walking down the staircase. Chapa followed but kept some distance between them.
At the bottom was a thick metal door, which Fate opened, revealing something Chapa thought to be a myth only 10 minutes ago.
They were in some sort of underground cave, sharp rocks hanging from the ceiling like spears ready to impale their bodies. The cave was filled with people, their eyes locked on the big cage at the center of the cave. Inside were two men, who were fighting each other with unbelievable brutality.
It was beautiful.
Chapa continued to look around and spotted a bar and a booth where the betting seemed to take place.
"Come on." Fate said and walked through another door, into an office. Fate sat down in a leather chair behind the wooden desk, taking a piece of paper, a burner phone, a pen, and a black box out of one of its drawers.
Chapa sat down in front of her, looking at the woman expectantly.
"I want you to fight for me, but you should know that there are no rules in this place. The fights go until one of the fighters is giving up, unconscious, or dead."
"You're a broker," Chapa said, verbally confirming her thoughts.
Fate nodded. "I would sponsor your first fight and we would split the profit 30/70 if you win. And if you make a good impression...well maybe I'll continue to sponsor you."
Chapa crossed her arms. "That 70% better be my share."
Fate gave a short laugh. "You are joking, right? I'm the one with all the connections and I have to fill out all the paperwork for your fights."
"And I'm the one doing the actual work. 60/40, my way."
"I'm risking my reputation and my own money. 60/40 my way." The broker said.
"And I'm risking my life. 50/50 even," Chapa retorted in annoyance. "And you'll say yes, because A, you saw what I can do, and B you have to be pretty desperate if you recruit a fucking 12-year-old."
Fate paused for a moment and Chapa smirked, knowing she was right.
Finally, the woman admitted defeat. "50/50 it is then."
Fate filled out a few gaps on the piece of paper, before pushing it towards Chapa, who took the pen offered to her. The former hero carefully read the contract and eventually signed it.
Fate's lip quirked upward as she looked at the signature. "I guess El Diablo isn't your real name either?"
"My real name is none of your concern," Chapa replied, taking the black box from Fate's hands.
Inside between black velvet laid a gold coin.
*reference to the Spanish soccer player Sergio Ramos, who is quiteknown for his aggressive and not always fair game.
Future Updates:
*26. February 2021: Snippets from the Streets (Part 2): Broken Nose
*5. March 2021: Snippets from the Streets (Part 3): Bruises; Broken rib(s) + kick them while they are down
*12. March 2021: Concussion + Slammed into wall