"How's the jaw?" Wong asked Abomination backstage of the ring once their fight was done. The monster grunted back in response. "Maybe you'll start controlling those punches like we practised?" Wong commented before they both moved through a portal to leave.
"Love that guy." Jon Jon points to them while they walk away, taking Shang backstage to get ready for his fight. "Now take your shirt off." Jon Jon ordered with sudden seriousness while looking to Shang.
"Do you think he'll be okay?" You asked Katy as you moved through the crowd to find a good view.
"Yeah, Shaun will be fine" she waved it off casually, not worried for her friend. "Why? Are you worried?" She teased you with a sly smirk.
"It's Shang" you corrected.
"Same thing"
"And I'm not worried" you crossed your arms and looked away from her.
"Here he is!" She pointed up to the cage. Turning your head to look up you watched as Jon Jon gave an announcement.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the fight we've all been waiting for. The incredible viral sensation, all the way from San Francisco, USA, it's Bus Boy!" People cheered in the crowd as Shang looked around for you and Katy, relaxing a bit once he saw you watching.
"What happened to your shirt?" Katy called up to him to which he shrugged, not catching the deep blush setting on your face at the sight.
"And his opponent for tonight, it's Macau's own fearsome killer... Xu Xialing!" Jon Jon shouted out as a woman stepped out with a hood over her head.
"Sister." Shang spoke in mandarin at the sight of her, shock setting on his features. She dropped the cloak, stepping forward to reveal her face. The woman sped towards Shang, kicking at him as he swiftly dodged it. She swung a leg over his head and then kicked him in the leg.
"I can't watch" you told Katy, covering your eyes as Shang let out a groan of pain from getting hit.
"Wait, wait!" He tried to stop his sister. "What are you doing?" He asked her in mandarin once again. She swung her leg to kick at his head, but he dodged it by dropping onto his back and dodging a stomp on his head when he pushed himself back up. He was caught off guard by her relentless behaviour when he got kicked in the chest, knocking him back. You had winced at what you had witnessed and Katy pulled you in for a side hug, knowing how hard it is for you to watch Shang get beat up.
"I know you're upset. But can you hear me out?" He asked her as he stood up carefully only to be tackled by his own sister. "We don't have time for this." He snapped at her, annoyance urgent in his tone. He flipped her onto her back and she pulled him down with her both of them rolling to stand quickly. She kicked him between the legs, causing Shang to wince in pain, but grow more tired with the fight continuing on.
"Ooh, that's gotta hurt." Jon Jon commented into the microphone.
"Can you please stop hitting me?" Shang questioned with annoyance to his little sister. She held him in a head lock as they both laid on the ground. She punched him in the face and continued to punch him in the face until he pushed her off harshly and they both stood to their feet. "Stop it! I'm trying to help you! Dad's coming for you." He told her honestly. She stormed towards him in a rage of violence. "I'm not fighting you." Shang tells her.
"You shouldn't have come back." She walked past him, pausing momentarily before swinging her foot around and kicking him across the face, ending and winning the fight in one hit.
"Xu Xialing, you're amazing! We love you, Xu Xialing! Whoo!" Jon Jon cheered as she walked off calmly.
"Oh my god" you gasped seeing Shangs face, blood coming from his nose and bruises starting to form. Katy sent him a thumbs up and continued her drink while you gave him a look of pity.
~~~
Shang-Chi sat in an office, guards around him as he tended to his bloody nose from the fight. Xialing walked in with a proud smirk set on her face from her victory, Shang lowering his hand from his nose.
"You run this place?" He looked up to the sister he had left behind years ago, leaning against her desk proudly.
"I own it." She replied. The door opened with a beep and Shang looked over his shoulder to see you and Katy being escorted into the office by Jon Jon.
"Where'd you get all that money?" Shang asked Katy who was busy counting a large stack of money. She froze momentarily and he continued in realization. "Did you bet against me?"
"No." She lied while putting the money in her Fanny pack to hide the fact that she did bet against him.
"If it helps, I didn't bet at all" He gave you a small smile of appreciation. "Are you okay?" You asked him directly as if he was the only person in the room.
"Yeah, I'm fine" he promised with a nod, eyes focused on you.
"Hi, Xialing. I'm Katy. You're, like, such a badass. Everything that you do is, like, so cool. That was really cool." Katy rambled with excitement while you both sat on the couch with Shang.
"I like your pants." She tells Katy, taking notes of the bright lime green sweatpants that Katy wore.
"Thank you. Thanks. Yeah." Katy replied happily. You held your head in your hand as you couldn't believe how calm Katy was being and Shang rolled his eyes at her.
"What do you want?" Xialing got straight to business, turning her attention back to her brother.
"The Ten Rings ambushed us in San Francisco."
"I saw the video." She replied blankly, not caring.
"They took my pendant." She looked up at those words. "They're gonna come for yours next. I don't know what he wants with them, but we both know it can't be good." Shang said as she reached up to hold her own necklace in her grasp. She leaned back against her desk before speaking again.
"You know what he said to me when he left?" Xialing looked to you and Katy with her words. "'I'll be back in three days.' And after three days, I went to our mom's shrine and waited. Three days turned into a week, a week turned to a month, and a month turned to six years. That's how long it took me to realise I didn't need him any more." She told you both the true story. "I built this place on my own. I didn't need you then, and I don't need you now." She looked to her brother as she spoke her final words.
"Then why would you send me the postcard?" Shang asked in confusion.
"What postcard?" She replied, not understanding him. He stands from the couch, pulling out the folded postcard from his pocket and handing it towards her. "I didn't send you this." She stated, confused as to why he thought that. The pair looked to each other in realization before screams sounded from the fighting ring. The lights flickered as you and Katy stood up urgently, panic flowing through your mind for the second time today. Alarms blared throughout the place as people screamed out in fear for the ten rings. Xialing pushed the postcard back at her brother harshly before getting ready to leave.
"Is there a back exit?" Shang asked looking around for his sister only to catch her and Jon Jon escaping through the secret passage. Jon Jon flips you all off before locking the door hidden in the wall behind them.
"Shaun." You pointed out the escaping duo.
"Hey. Hey! Hey, open up!" Shang pounds violently on the door, but it is too late.
"She's gone, Shaun." You tell him sadly, looking to the security footage to see the pair enter the elevator. He rushes over to where you are watching the computers when you all turn to look back into the fighting ring, witnessing the horror of the ten rings attacking everyone in sight.
"Woah" you gasped in horror, blinking in fear as your heart rate sped up rapidly. "What do we do?" You panicked, backing up towards Shang and Katy.
"What do we do?" Katy urged him again after he stayed silent in thought.
"Uh..." he thought for a second before jumping into action. Grabbing a metal artifact from the desk he threw it out of the large glass window and jumped onto the scaffolding outside, reaching a hand to you and Katy.
"No" you told him sternly, mind already made up.
"Come on!" He urged, holding his hand out to you further. Katy looked down at the fall before looking back at the men attacking everyone.
"I don't know about you, but if rather risk that than fight them" Katy told you before joining Shaun, jumping onto the poles and holding on tightly.
"No, I'm not doing that" you panicked to Shang, fear evident in your tone.
"If we make it to the elevator, we can hop in on the next floor" he explained his plan.
"Come on, y/n" Katy tried. You looked back at the sound of more people screaming in the building.
"Y/n, we're out of options. We have to go now." Shang told you, looking straight into your eyes with his words. "I promise I won't let you fall" you looked up to him and nodded along reluctantly, fear still shining in your eyes. "One, two, three." Shang counted down, grabbing your hand and pulling you outside with him and Katy. Stepping onto the scaffolding you lost your footing and slipped, eyes closing as you awaited the fall.
"Whoa." You gasped. You felt Shang's strong grip holding you close to him as he kept his promise. "Thanks" you nodded to him after meeting his eyes briefly.
"I told you I wouldn't let you fall" he reminded.
"This is really sweet but we have to go" Katy urged to you both, Shang taking the hint and helping you to regain your footing.
"Just head straight for that elevator." Shang tells you both, looking down the tunnel of scaffolding to where the elevator will be. "You got this." He told you specifically as Katy had already started to go.
"What about you?" You questioned why he wasn't coming along.
"I'll buy you some time. Just keep going." Shang told you urgently, looking up to see ten rings assassins drop down from above.
"Shang" you tried to convince him one last time.
"Go!"
"Come on!" You heard Katy call out for you. With a deep breath you turned your back on him and ran along the wooden pallet to join Katy in your escape attempt.
One assassin landed in front of Shang, kicking him down. He managed to swing around one of the poles and land on the level below to meet with two more assassins. They both jabbed at him with tasers and Shang pushed through the pain to kick them both back and off the building. Shang swiftly swung and climbed between the levels of scaffolding to fight back against the assassins of the ten rings while you and Katy escaped their wrath. Shang had been pinned to the glass wall of the building, a taser coming closer to contact his face when he decided to hold it back with his hand, fighting through the pain of the electric sting. Suddenly he had fallen through the wooden plank, landing a few levels lower with a thud.
"Katy, I don't think he's going to make it" you stopped your friend suddenly with worry, looking down as they followed Shang. You jumped back when an assassin landed in front of you and Katy. You stood close to your friend as she stared down the man, both of you frozen in fear.
"On a dark desert highway. Cool wind in my hair" Katy started to sing the lyrics to hotel California as you shook your head at her idea, silently praying it would work. He quickly swung his weapon at you both, you quickly pulling Katy out of the way of harm. You two were about to run off when he grabbed onto your shirt, pulling you back.
"Katy, go!" You shouted at her. She looked back with horror in her eyes, but nodded and started to run. The man forcefully pushed you back towards the edge of the scaffolding. You thought quickly, grabbing onto the pole when he suddenly cut the tie and pushed the bamboo pole away from the building, you going with it. You let out a heartbreaking scream as you dangled from the bamboo. Shang looked up with fear in his eyes and determination flowing through his blood.
"Shang!" You called out for him desperately. He looked up, noticing how the bamboo started to split and break. "Shang! Shang Oh, my God! Ohhh!" You cried out with fear of dying. Shang jumped into action, swinging from level to level as fast as he could to save you in time, kicking back and knocking down any assassins who got in his way.
"I'm coming!" He promised, sprinting towards you.
"Shang!"
"Hang on." He called out, knowing you wouldn't be able to make it much longer. The pole snapped and you were falling, eyes closed and waiting for the crash when Shang caught your hand.
"Gotcha." He promised, straining to hold onto you as he laid with his back on the scaffolding.
"Shang!" You pointed above him in warning. A man electrocuted him, causing him to let go and drop you.
"Y/n!" He cried out in fear as he watched you fall once again, knowing that he couldn't save you this time.
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Question of the day: who do you think will save y/n?