𝖆𝖓𝖎𝖒𝖆 𝖎𝖒𝖒𝖔𝖗𝖙𝖆𝖑𝖊 ━ 𝖑𝖔𝖌𝖆𝖓 𝖍𝖔𝖜𝖑𝖊𝖙𝖙

𝔠𝔥𝔞𝔭𝔱𝔢𝔯 10

16 years later — Alberta, Canada

A dingy bar, nestled deep in the Alberta mountains, was packed with a rowdy crowd gathered around a cage fight. Shouts and cheers filled the air, fists pounding against the metal of the cage, fueling the chaos.

One woman stood out among the onlookers, her voice loud and clear as she called out to one of the fighters. She looked to be around 25, her black cattleman hat low over her face, casting shadows beneath the brim. She wore a pair of well-worn bootcut jeans over a pair of scuffed boots that had clearly seen better days. A brown belt with a large buckle—fake turquoise and a cattle head engraved into it—sat on her hips. Her burgundy button-up shirt was loosely worn, sleeves rolled up to her elbows, with several buttons undone to reveal the dirt-streaked white tank top beneath.

A pair of silver dog tags clinked against a golden cross hanging from her neck, the sound faint but constant with each of her movements. In one hand, she held a half-empty beer; in the other, a cigarette burned lazily between her fingers—her second of the night. Her fingernails were long and rounded off at the point, a deep red polish coated each finger. 

Inside the cage, the man she was rooting for stood shirtless, his chest heaving from exertion. Sweat gleamed off his muscular body, his mutton chops sharp against the wild, spiked hair that gave him a feral look, almost like the ears of a cat. His dog tags swayed with his labored breaths, and his chest rose and fell as he steadied himself, having just finished his eighth fight of the night.

The bar was in a frenzy, shocked by what they were witnessing—a fighter who had taken out eight men and stood ready for more. As the emcee took the stage to find a worth opponent for the man, the fighter himself squatted down to get eye level with the woman who had been cheering him on. 

"How many fights till we make enough, sweetheart?" His voice was low but loud enough to carry over the crowd.

"Just one more, baby, keep up the good work." She smiles at him and reaches into the cage brushing her hand over his face. He returns her smile with a smirk of his own and returns to his fighting position as the emcee calls for him, sending her a wink before he does. 

A man stands, raising his hand to sacrifice himself, "I'll fight him." The woman scoffs at the man's attempt to seem all powerful. Sure he was a big man, but big doesn't help when fighting adamantium. 

The emcee raises his hand towards the man, "Ladies and Gentleman, our savior!" The crowd cheers at the man's willing sacrifice. He removes his jacket and roughly steps into the ring. The man, king of the ring at the moment, was hanging onto the cage, taking his sweet time. while the emcee discussed the rules, "Just don't hit him in the balls."

"But you said anything goes?" The man asks wearily, and the woman almost laughs out loud, this man just signed up to get his ass handed to him.

"Yeah but he takes it personally, says he's gotta be able to please his lady." The emcee shoves his thumb in the direction of the woman with the black cattleman hat. 

The bell dings and the King of the Cage downs his whiskey. The man, Stu, who signed for an ass whooping, goes for a punch right to the abdomen. The man, looking almost cat-like, doubles over in pain. The woman stays silent while the crowd around her goes crazy. She knows he's waiting for the perfect moment. Stu sends another punch to the man's face, right in the jaw, knocking him completely to the floor. Just to finish it off, Stu kicks him in the balls. 

The woman shakes her head and clicked her tongue. "Bad move."

 When he goes to throw another punch, a fist collides with his, the adamantium bones breaking his hand. Stu cries out in pain and doubles over. The woman finally lets out a cheer at the man's comeback, and he hits Stu once more, sending him into the metal chains of the cage. The woman takes a wild sip of her beer, finally getting hyped for this fight and cheering for the man with the cat ears. The man gets on top of Stu and lets the punches fly, relatively knocking him out.