Rookie

Prologue

No one should enjoy this. No one should take pleasure in taking hit after hit and being beaten down time and time again, but I did. My body was bruised, my nose on the verge of breaking, my lips busted, my arms weak, and the taste of blood was forever present on my tongue. The only sound I could hear was my heartbeat pounding throughout my body. My vision was blurred and weak, and at best, I could only really see the blinding lights and the black figure in front of me. They were dancing around, left and right, trying to keep me on my feet while simultaneously trying to knock me off them. The figure lunged forward; their right fist aimed for my left cheek, a hit that would end the fight if I couldn't dodge it in time. With one of my last ounces of energy I stumbled back, praying for the ding of a bell that would save me. Yet I knew it wouldn't come. This was my last chance to prove I wasn't worthless, to show him I wasn't weak.

"Look at me... Can't nobody stop me. Look at me... Can't nobody stop me! Look at me! Can't nobody stop me!" I chanted under my breath over and over again, each time getting louder and more confident till I was yelling it out. Muhammad might have gotten hit in the head a lot but he wasn't a stupid man, he was a champion, and I was going to be one too. When I caught my second wind my vision cleared up, my heart calmed down, and my arms stopped feeling like the pasta I had for lunch yesterday. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Hank, my trainer, standing outside the ring. He was performing his nasty, nervous, little habit of biting his nails as he looked at me with wide, fearful eyes. I knew what he was thinking because he knew what I was feeling. I was on my last leg, my final bit of strength quickly diminishing and he knew. But when I turned to look at him fully and smiled a bloody smile he stopped biting his nails and grinned back.

"It's time kid! Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee! Knock her ass out!" I could barely hear his words over the screaming crowd, but he always knew exactly what to say. I turned back to my opponent, my eyes glaring into hers and in that moment she knew that my persona had changed. I straightened my back, brought my fists up in front of my face, and slowed my breathing. Surveying my situation I saw that she was waning, after throwing all her energy into trying to take me down I knew that she had just about ran herself dry. With one good hit I could pull a K.O., take the title for myself, and she wouldn't even see it coming. My fighting style always changed throughout the fight, never the same. Hank and I had found out that I had a rare talent, I could observe the person I was fighting, learn their tactics and moves, and then adapt my strategy as I went so I came out on top. But at the end of every match I reverted to some of the oldest, most simple moves, a risk that never failed.

She threw a left hook at me that I blocked with my right arm while I used my left glove to throw her back. All I needed to do was block her attacks for the next few minutes and she would wear herself out, then I would strike. It was clear now that she was getting angry, I don't blame her either. Just moments ago it looked like she was going to be the victor and now I'm starting to fight back. Any normal person would be mad in a situation like this, and that was good for me. The angrier she got, the more she was going to slip up and the faster she would burn her energy, that's exactly what I waiting for. Her trainer, Mikey, was screaming at her in Russian; I couldn't understand what he was saying but I could take a guess based on his tone and the fact that he was furious I was fighting back. Mikey had a rep for losing it when he and his fighters were put under pressure, especially since his current fighter, Viktoriya, had been the raining champ for three years in a row now. She went this whole season undefeated and she was so close to keeping her title for a fourth year. All that stood in her way was a girl that had come out of nowhere, someone who had barely made it to this fight, a rookie. A rookie that, unknown to them, was about to steal Viktoriya's thunder and title.

After seven minutes of blocking her throws I knew Viktoriya was done. She was mine and so was this fight. One hit was all I needed, a classic move that so many people had used in the past that no one knew who originally came up with it. I lead with my left foot so that my right hook would have more power behind it, but she saw the hit coming and moved both fists to block it, just like I had planned. Viktoriya was good at throwing a punch but when it came to blocking she had to put everything she had into it. So as both her firsts moved to throw my right hook away I re-positioned my feet, this time pushing forward with my right to power my left fist to drive upward. I felt my glove connect with her chin and couldn't help but grin deviously as I stepped back to watch the aftermath of my hit. In those seconds as Viktoriya fell to the ground in a cold knock out the crowd went dead silent, as if no one could believe that the new girl had made such a huge comeback. Not only had I made a comeback, but I had just taken the title. Then, out of nowhere cheers and applause erupted throughout the arena as if people realized what I had done. Hank ran into the ring and picked me up from behind, spinning me around in a circle as I lifted my arms up in victory, showing me off to the crowd. My eyes closed and I lifted my face to the sky while confetti rained down, I had done it. I had beat the undefeated Viktoriya and become the new champion while I was at it. As Hank set me back down I opened my eyes only to be pulled to the center of the ring by the announcer,

"Ladies and Gentlemen! For the first time in boxing history an undefeated, three time champion has lost to a rookie! I give you the new WBA Woman's' Featherweight Champion, Aubrey "The Silent K.O." Johnson, the youngest boxer to ever win a WBA title!" At the end of my name he lifted my left arm lifted high by him so all could see the fist that won the fight. I spit my mouth guard into my right glove and flashed the camera my biggest smile, after all I wanted to look good the first time I looked at the camera as a winner, a champion. Hank took my guard from me as they brought over THE belt, the belt that only a victor could wear, The Championship Belt. I grabbed it, kissed the buckle five times, and lifted it in the air as far as my arms could reach. The yelling, the screaming, the clapping, it was all fantastic. I could have stayed in that moment forever, but I didn't. Hank fit the belt around my waist then untied my gloves, and even though I had just done the unthinkable, I knew I wasn't done yet. I walked over to where the now conscious Viktoriya lay and waited until she and Mikey noticed I was there. Mikey grinned and stood, shaking my hand then pulling me in for a hug before we knelt down and helped Viktoriya up. She looked at me with hard eyes then smiled and pulled me in for a strong hug. The Russian girl held me close for a minute or two and then pulled back, the smile still present on her face. Camera's were all around us, reporters asking us questions and practically shoving their microphones down our throats.

"Viktoriya! How do you feel about losing your title to a nobody?!" One reporter shouted out, his camera man getting up in our faces, trying to get the perfect shot of the three of us. Viktoriya gave him a look of repulse and responded in a heavy Russian accent,

"A nobody? Didn't you hear?! She's Aubrey "The Silent K.O." Johnson! And since I had to eventually lose to someone, I'm glad it was her. She's an amazing fighter and a great girl. Next time I'll be the one wearing that belt though!" Her words were said in a teasing manner but I knew there was a real threat in it, after all, she didn't go undefeated because she couldn't fight. We both laughed it off and shook hands again before going our separate ways, half the reporters following her to her corner while the other half followed me to mine. Hank and I answered a few more questions before he put my robe on me, handed me my gloves, and we walked out of the ring, his hand on my shoulder. Before we turned the corner into the hallway I looked back at the ring and smiled again.

"Until next time."