The next few minutes consisted of mostly insults and snaps from the man who dubbed himself the Rap Devil. When the Bitch lowered his hoodie, the Rap Devil drew a crooked smile across his face, bearing witness to a bearded older man twice his age. More ammunition for the fight.
The Bitch reached into his pocket and pulled out a silver dollar. "Call it, indie heir."
"Tails," the Rap Devil growled before downing the last swallow of his poison. It warmed him just right.
The coin flip caught glints of lingering twilight and the glow from below. The Bitch allowed the coin to fall on the stump. It bounced a few times with woody knocks before coming to rest near the edge. The Bitch waved the Rap Devil over to see it. Heads.
"So what's it gonna be?"
The Bitch elegantly rotated a palm as he said, "Babies first."
The Rap Devil extended the shovel to his opponent. "You should probably start digging right now."
The Bitch didn't make a move or respond to the slight. "Stakes. We need to decide on the stakes first."
"Fine. When I win, you stop rapping or whatever it is you call yourself doing these days. If I lose, which I won't, I put down the mic for good."
"That's a little too basic for me," The Bitch said as he pursed his lips. "Tell you what, I'll fade into obscurity if I lose. You'll also inherit all of my fame, fans, awards, and money. But if you lose." The Bitch's gaze practically pierced the Rap Devil's inner being. "If you lose, you get this." Reaching behind the stump, he pulled out a flat rectangular object wrapped in a smudged, blue bandanna. It looked like it could be a book.
"OK. Da fuck is that?" The Rap Devil tried to pretend he wasn't curious. "Wait. Why do I still get a prize if I lose?"
"This prize might be a gift, or it might be a curse. Regardless, it stays with you for life." The Bitch's stone face offered no indication of his intent. The Rap Devil reached for the package, but the Bitch pulled it away. "Nuh-uh. After the battle." He gently placed the parcel back behind the stump.
The Rap Devil frowned. "Whatever. If you think being all mysterious and shit is gonna rattle me, you got another thing coming." The two men shook hands to seal the pact.
"Start whenever you're ready," the Bitch invited as he folded his arms.
YOU ARE READING
The Rap Devil Went Up to Ohio
FanfictionThis is my highly stylized, fictionalized, specialized version of the petty beef between Marshall Mathers, aka Slim Shady aka Eminem and Colson Baker, aka Machine Gun Kelly aka Kells. You don't have to be familiar with that backstory to enjoy this l...
