on his training have come together, he’s looked on edge. There’s been no sign of his coach or his wife, leading some to speculate that there might be something going on between them. I understand our Media Relations team is preparing a statement about that. Either way, tonight, there appears to be no sign of the Austin Aquila who has won the hearts and minds of so many over the past several months. Look at his face, Pete, he’s got some vicious ideas going through his mind, I’ll tell you that much for free.”
“But will it be enough to unravel the enigma that is Brenton Southgate? Aquila showed that, like all heavyweights, he can muster up knockout power big enough to take out even seasoned strikers, and that left high kick wasn’t slow, but does he have the toolset to bring down the champ?”
The announcer in the ring nodded again once Austin was in his corner and began to introduce Brenton Southgate. The commentators listened until Brenton started his own walk into the middle of the event center.
“I honestly don’t think so, Pete. If these two met in a jiu jitsu tournament or any kind of pure-submission competition for that matter, absolutely, yes, I give it to Aquila, he’s the better grappler, but what Southgate has is his uncanny ability to defend the takedown and pick apart his opponents with superior striking. That defence, I think, is what is going to make the major difference between this fight and Aquila vs Sanchez.”
“So what’s your prediction, John?”
“Southgate by knockout in… the third I say.”
In the center of the ring, the referee was giving the fighters the instructions to protect themselves at all times and obey his commands. He invited them to touch gloves, but neither fighter made any movements to do so. Southgate, probably because of the face-heel turn Robbie Johnson had him playing out and Austin because he was too on edge.
With the cameras rolling, in the event center and behind me, Enrico pulled his gun out of its holster as the fighters on screen backed to their respective corners. The referee approached the middle of the ring and looked to each side as the mobster reached out and held the barrel against my temple.
The fear was back, blurring my view of the fight with stress and watering eyes. My breath came in short bursts as iron bands around my chest tightened.
I tried to close my eyes, to let myself sink down into some daydream to escape this reality. I tried to feel Austin’s arm around me, calm and strong. Safe.
“Watch it, bitch,” Enrico pressed the muzzle against my head painfully until I complied.
I would have to face my last minute on Earth with my eyes open.
Austin
Pacing back and forth on my side of the ring, barely staying inside my designated area, I was going out of my motherfucking mind. There was no calm confidence in my abilities and no reassuringly familiar anger either.
This was fear and confusion unlike anything I’d ever experienced within the chain-linked borders of this decagon. Although it must have looked something like the old Austin Aquila on the outside, it was completely different for me.
The referee approached the middle of the cage and I started huffing air not entirely unlike Benny had in the office in that construction yard. The closer he got to the middle, the closer he got to signaling the start of the fight.
If Jace hadn’t done what he said he would yet, and I hadn’t fucking heard he had, then that meant Skylar was sitting in a chair with a gun to her head and it was all down to me. One minute to tear apart one of the greatest the sport had ever known.
Of all the fighting assets I needed to do that, the one I needed the most was pretty much fucked. My mind was flickering between the fight, what they’d do to Skylar if I failed, what I’d do to them, and failing to cope with the extremes of emotion that came with it all.
It was a gruesome mess in my head, no matter what.
I’d arrived home late last night to find the front door wide open and Skylar’s shoe rack knocked over, but the rest of the place seemed to be undisturbed. I stared at that small mess for a fucking hour solid, only to find something in the bathroom that brought me to the ground, where I ended up passing out for a few hours.
It was