We're Keeping Her | #Wattys2021

A Cup of Tea to Soothe the Pain

Three small explosions rocked the ground beneath him. It felt like his legs were being shredded by the jagged teeth of a million piranhas. Though his fingers were frigid, his ankles were being warmed by the fresh blood trickling down his shins. He quickly ducked behind one of the turned-over metal tables. His racing heartbeat worked overtime adding oxygen to his red blood cells. The past three days had been amazing. It felt like years ago since the broncing bull had been pushed to his limits. "Not bad, Bo. Been a while since I got a workout like this."

The archer drew back three more arrows, "Are you implying this battle is only training?"

"That depends, you tryna kill me?" Another volley of arrows collided with the metal circle. "I'll take that as a yes." Bull fired a few suppressing shells in Bo's direction. In return, Bo ripped the wood beside him with another volley of explosive arrows. The sharp chips peppered his meaty legs.

Their back-and-forth exchange made no signs of progression. Bull couldn't help but grin wildly; This was so much fun. A few daggers fell at his feet, followed by drops of blood. He strained his eyes to see into the dark rafters.

He could vaguely make out the figures of the two assassins clashing. Leon was currently dangling from one of the support beams. Crow's attempt at stomping on his hands was skillfully thwarted by Leon's impressive agility. Bull chuckled when he saw Leon kick the bird square in the chest. Then as soon as he saw them, they vanished once again. 'Damn that looks cool.'

Another explosion landed beside him. He caught Bo making a slow approach. Another burst from his shotgun sent the chieftain dipping behind a set of overturned chairs.

Bull took the opportunity to reload his shotgun. The brief pause in the action allowed him to catch his breath. He again cracked a childish smile as he marveled at his current state. His eardrums were banging louder than a bass drum in a marching band. He hadn't had this much fun in years.

Before he could peek again a body slid towards him. Rosa's dark hair and purple clothes caught his eye.

She quickly slid behind the table, clutching her head as she groaned, "Bloody hell. Gonna have a proper tumor of a headache tonight." Bull could see a few growing bruises across her forearms and midsection. He assumed that her fight with Bibi hadn't been going so well.

She peeked over the edge muttering, "Who the hell are these people? First, I fight a damn demon bird with poison daggers. Now I gotta deal with this crazy bint." She slowly rubbed her neck, "Bout took my head off my shoulders." She blew an exasperated breath, "Haven't even dealt with that dodgy bloke Bull yet. A freak of nature that bastard is."

"Well, that's rude." Rosa flinched from his voice, quickly snapping her head in his direction. The larger man watched her from the corner of his eye as he casually finished reloading. "Freak of nature? I'd say I'm more of a force of nature."

The two silently stared at each other. Rosa's potted plant growled like a feral dog. Her gloved fists were balled up so tight that her gloves started to stretch around them. Bull smoothly rolled a shell between his fingers. Though they were intently focused, their deadly staring contest did not distract them from the action around them.

On the other side of the table, Bo continued his careful approach. The archer was unaware of Rosa's current position. A brash voice screamed from the side, "Get your ass back out here and take this beating like a woman." He found Bibi walking around in a blind rage. The woman's left eye was swollen and a large bump had formed on her right cheek. "You wanna take my baby girl?" She cupped her left breast, "You ain't got the tits to do it."

Bo slowly shook his head, "What a strange woman."

Bibi's ears barely picked up the sound, "You!" She pointed her bat at his skull, "I almost forgot about you."