From Handbook of the Union Universe

The Next Round...
Author: Lykos Argondas
Genre:	Action/Thriller
Age Rating:	Some strong language and violence
Characters Involved:	William Breaker
Date Written:	Aug/Sep 2007
Story Timeline:	Some point in 2004-5
Blurb
William Breaker, now Headbreaker, has recently joined the Chinese Superhuman Fighting Ring, an illegal underground competition for super powered individuals to fight each other for money. For the while, William is doing well, but one fight puts him to the test and shakes his faith on ever beating Statesman
IC Accessibility of Article
No-one knows of his activities in China, only if some-one was at the fights might they know
Tags
Headbreaker, China, Chinese Superhuman Fighting Ring, Fighting, Arena

The story is complete! I have changed quiet a lot of dialoge and structure added a new, but small, part. Hopefully i have made better, it's fundementally the same...just different. Enjoy The Next Round... Riled.

Contents 1 Part 1 2 Part 2 3 Part 3 4 Part 4 5 Part 5 6 Part 6 7 Epilogue

[edit] Part 1

William moved his head backwards narrowly avoiding the punch; he rose his fist up into his opponents ribs and caused him to rise off his feet and the air to explode from his lungs. As his opponent landed he hunched over fighting for air against the pain in his chest. He tried to hold some form of stance, but the pain was too much. This gave Will the chance he needed. He brought his fist up into the bottom of the man’s jaw sending his head upwards. As his fist rose past the jaw, he span on the spot, bringing his other around and threw another punch into his opponent’s chest. Ribs broke under the strength of the blow and air and blood sprayed from the fighter’s mouth as his whole body flew away from the blow and crashed into the cage wall. He tried grabbing for the bars as he fell but his strength had been sapped with the lack of oxygen. His crashed to the floor and lay there for a second before slowly trying to rise up onto his knees. Will came to stand over him, waiting until he had risen on both his hands and knees. Then William rose his fists into the air and lowered them with force. His infamous Haymaker landed upon the fallen mans spine causing him to yelp in pain, his arms and legs buckling under the blow. His body hit the ground and went limp though the pain. There was a long silence as William waited to see what his opponent would do. His hand slowly rose, then dropped flap against the floor, effectively tapping out. He gasped desperately for just a little piece of air to refill his battered lungs. The bell rang and William threw his arms up in celebration. The announcer shouted into a microphone, his American-Chinese accent rang out across the whole ring,

"...THE WINNER AND CURRENT CHAMPION! THE BRUTAL! THE MONSTROUS! THE INDESTRUCTIBLE! HE-ADBREAKER!!"

The crowd roared wildly in what was the dark and grimy basement of the Superhuman fighting arena. William’s journey had taken him here by accident at first, he stayed and watched a few fights and had made a little bit of money. After a few days, and a few well placed bets, he decided it was the perfect place to test out his ever growing abilities. He signed up and immediately looked for one of the strongest competitors there that day and challenged them outright. His first fight was over before the crowd could even blink! Instantly William became a fan favourite. He had beaten back each opponent and as he did each one became more powerful that the last. Every-one wanted a piece of him! He fought with every-thing he had and refused to loose even one fight, his future against Statesman depended on him never loosing.

One fight that was well remembered had been a fight against a Triad boss known as Mr Gank. He was one of the most powerful Triads in the world, owning most of Hong Kong’s shipping industries the largest prostitution ring in the whole of China; he was a man to be feared! No-one dared challenge him in or out the ring, William however was not afraid. Gank had been tough! He had even given William a few bruises and sore ribs to remember him by. Eventually Gank was defeated through the sheer brute strength that William could deliver with each blow. The fight had earnt William a lot of respect from Gank’s Triads, and it had also made him the star fighter of the ring

The cage door eventually opened and Will spat a globule of blood at his fallen opponent. He left the cage to meet his adoring fans of criminals, gamblers and general misanthropes. Grabbing his shirt from the back of a chair outside the cage he slipped it on, covering up the newest bunch of bruises and cuts. Looking through the throng of people, all moving to collect their winnings, he noticed an oriental man sitting on the benches clapping slowly. He was the arenas owner, a powerful super criminal from Japan, a man known as The Imperial Dragon. The rumours were he had moved to China to hide from the growing number of capes in his homeland. Japan, a country already obsessed with a comic book culture, saw an influx of heroes’ before the Rikti War and days after the Rikti had been defeated they were quickly back on their feet before crime had a chance to prosper like it had in Paragon. Dragon had started the fights when he discovered the large super criminal population in China compared to the capes. He instantly exploited it. William knew he was a Japanese Yakuza boss. He was not a man to be messed with. The Yakuza and the Triads, while not necessarily having bad blood, were on edge at first. Both distrusted the other. Dragon, in a clever move, aided the Triads in several business ventures. This began a line of trust and soon Dragon was respected by them. In doing so he had been able to ally himself with other powerful gangs and soon he effectively ensured his survival in the criminal business world.

Dragon stood up slowly and adjusted the tie on his suit as William approached him. In a Japanese-American accent he spoke;

"You were defiantly the correct choice of bet Breaker san," he extended his hand and offered William a cigar which was quickly accepted "You have brought much interest and money to my little ring…” he went to place a cigar in his mouth but stopped short and smiled “…and you know how much I like money do you not William san?"

Headbreaker, whose cigar was now lit, waved out a wooden match and took a long draw nodding his head; he held in the smoke for a moment, then exhaled slowly, letting a thick black cloud escape his mouth as he began to talk,

"Speaking of money...” he extended his palm “…my winnings?" Dragon chuckled as he placed the cigar in his mouth yet kept it unlit. With his spare hand he clicked his fingers and a Yakuza, covered in the trademark tattoos, produced a brief case. Dragon clicked his fingers again and the Yakuza lay the brief case flat across one of his arms and popped the locks. He opened it slowly showing Headbreaker its content, William smiled,

"Your winnings William san…” He gestured the money in the briefcase “…I believe you opponent put in sixteen thousand American dollars, am I not correct?" William grinned as he took another long draw on the cigar; he nodded to the Yakuza, who shut the briefcase.

"It was actually ten thousand, but who's going to miss an extra six, eh?" The two men laughed for a moment “Thank you my friend.” William bowed slightly, Dragon returned the gesture. Dragon then became serious. He quickly looked towards the back of the arena and snapped his fingers. The woman known as Daze slowly walked over. William knew this that Daze was Dragons partner. She had long, flowing raven hair that hung close to her face masking her eyes. As she swept it back she revealed eyes of bright sky blue. They were impossibly bright and almost glowed in the dark arena. Her skin was smooth and flawless and her body was one of perfection. She wore a long red kimono, laced with a golden weave in the shape of a dragon. She was so stunning that William, and several of the gathered Yakuza, could not take their eyes off of her. It was as if they were drawn to her and, no matter how hard they tried, they could not look away. Many rumours surrounded her but none had ever been answered. She came to stand next to Dragon and bowed her head at William, she had never spoken to any-one and many people assumed it was because he voice was that of an angle and Dragon demanded that only he was allowed to hear it. Dragon merely gestured the cigar in his mouth and Daze slowly rose her hand to the end of the cigar. She opened her hand into a flat palm and, without warning, a small flame erupted. Dragon placed the cigar to the flame took several puffs. Soon his cigar was smouldering and he took a long well deserved draw. He snapped his fingers again and Daze snapped shut her palm, extinguishing the flame. She bowed again and then shut her eyes and vanished in a cloud of smoke. William shook of a strange feeling that lingered for a moment after she had left and was finally able to concentrate on Dragon again. He took a draw on his own cigar and began to chuckle,

“She really is some-thing isn’t she?” Dragon only nodded, before changing the conversation completely,

"Do you like the cigars William san; I do not believe you have tried Cubans?" William took a long draw on the cigar, then nodded as he blew out a smoke ring,

"No, no I haven’t! They aren’t half bad!" Dragon grinned as he moved towards a small room in the back of the arena; people greeted him as he passed them,

"I have a supplier if you would like me to fix you up?" William nodded as they entered the room, having the door quickly shut behind them. Will glanced quickly about the small dusty ‘office’. In it sat a table with two chairs, a safe and on top of that, a tubular shaped object covered by a white sheet. Behind the desk stood one of the two chairs, and beside that stood Daze, who merely bowed as they entered. The seat before the desk was gestured to William as it was larger than the other and had been reinforced as to not break under him, this brought laughter from Will who sat in it heavily. Dragon gently sat behind the desk and Daze began slowly rubbed his shoulders. He ran his fingers over his neat beard, then clapped his hands together once,

"Onto business Breaker san…” he started “…you’ve done well here at the ring but I am afraid it is time for your last fight with us.” William looked hurt

“How come?” Dragon took a draw on his cigar,

”There is no competition any more William san, you win all your fights and the bets have all turned in your favour. We no longer gain from your fights. But fear not for we are not just going to let you go, oh no!” he began to grin “We have found a rather powerful...how shall I say…beast. One that I believe will make an excellent presentation fight and will also be an ultimate test of your newfound abilities, Plus an excellent sending off show! Will be a good crowd pleaser too…” he went to take a draw on his cigar, then smiled “…if I do not say my self. If you agree I will fund your prize money, fifty thousand American dollars, no questions asked…” he went to take another draw and again stopped short “…That is if you win of course..." he finally placed the cigar in his mouth, William laughed and did likewise,

"Quite an increase compared to usual don't you think Dragon..." Headbreaker knew some-thing was up "...what's wrong with this beast? It’s Captain Mako isn’t it?" Dragon chuckled then gave a dark grin. He placed his cigar to his lips and took a long draw; he blew the smoke into the air, then raised two of his fingers and started slashing at the smoke. Before Williams very eyes the smoke began to shape it into Japanese Calligraphy. “Fortitude William san, something you have plenty off. This beast is a very powerful creature, and I do mean powerful. We believe he is a Mutant rather than some-thing created naturally. My hunters found him in the wild lands of Africa, living with a clan of lions. We affectionately have named him Lionheart! We quickly learnt he was a beast guided by the hunt, nothing more than an animal..." William interrupted,

"What powers does he show?" Dragons, while not happy he was interrupted, obliged. He lent on his desk and moved closer to William half whispering, Will became concerned

"The locals said he was a god, other said he was a demon. We say he was just lucky! Brute strength William san! Sheer brute strength that can tear a man in two. To add to this his body is almost invulnerable…” he stopped himself short “…almost, my hunters did land a few good blows! However he is guided by instinct and pain does not seem to slow him down. I was talking to the others about his abilities and we all felt that if we ever let it go toe to toe with that Capitalistic, self-proclaimed 'father of heroes,' he and Paragon would lay in ruins!” his mood turned dark for a moment “The price on catching it was twelve of my men William san, twelve of my super powered hunters." his mood shifted again to one more sober "...he killed Cerberus...one of my strongest, tore him in two..."

"Not that big guy who use to watch the door?" Dragon nodded and Headbreaker was absolutely stunned,

"Getting him back was not easy either, since catching him we have had to keep him unconscious while we decide if we use him! Do not think THAT has not been a problem either!" William laughed, but it was not filled with humour,

"Don't pull my chain Dragon. If you had some-one that powerful you’d have already wiped out what’s left of the Phalanx! You hate them as much as Recluse do-" Dragon slammed his fist onto the table, interrupting William,

"Dare you mention his name in my house William san! You know the 'spider' is not welcome here!” he calmed for a second, then stood up and pointed to a map of China, “I am one of the most powerful super villains in both China..." then to another of Japan "...and of my homeland. My father ruled the Yakuza before I killed him with my bare hands and took them as my own. I am one of the biggest suppliers of drugs in this regions and surrounding countries. I have faced many foes and over come many challenges in my life, especially...” from his pocket he removed a strip of blue material and chucked it on the desk, William reached over and picked it up “…Statesman William san! Neither of us could beat the other in combat and eventually though honour, I let him live..." there was a long silence as both men looked at each other. Dragon adjusted his tie, then took the last draw of his cigar and stumped it out on his desk "...I know what he is capable of and I can tell this beast would kill him, the Phalanx and would not stop until he had killed every last man, women and child!" There silence was deafening. A long moment went by until Headbreaker finally placed the cloth back on the desk,

"…How on earth do you expect me to battle it then Dragon? Why the hell do you want to put me in a cage with it?" Dragon returned to his seat and reached into his pocket again, he removed his hand and kept it as a fist not showing William what he had removed,

"Because Headbreaker san, I want it destroyed! If I am going to do such a thing I may as well put it on display and make money! This beast powerful and yes, I probably could use it to wipe out Statesman...but that is not profitable! Especially when you are making deals with the Tsoo in Paragon. The beast is feral but I fear it may soon realise its own potential and would destroy every-thing in its path...” the silence grew “…need I continue William san?" Will shock his head,

"You paint a bleak picture...” he took a draw on his cigar and held the smoke in for a moment “…again it begs the question, how do you expect me to beat it, if it is indeed that strong?" Dragon placed the item in his hand on the desk. It was a vial filled with a golden liquid,

"Because we will stunt its ability!" Headbreaker reached over and picked up the vial studying it "…This is my new drug, a chemical that some of my scientists have been working on day and night.” William merely stared at the vial as the light hit it, causing a shimmer to reflect across it. “The real reason for this fight William san is to show off this new drugs potential to future buyers. The world is changing Breaker san, the Rikti nearly took it from us and that has changed us all. In one way I thank the invaders, they nearly wiped out the capes, Japan was unfortunately luckier than the rest of the world, but now the Rikti are gone heroes are flocking back into the world. For our kind that is bad news.” He reached over and took the vial from William “The drug ,hopefully when completed, will stunt super powers by up to fifty percent, in some rare cases it has suppressed super powers completely…" he put the vial back in his pocket and then sighed "Unfortunately the drug has had its fair share of problems…” William’s face was drawn with concern “…but it will be complete for when and if you face Lionheart. You will have more than a fighting chance!" Dragon moved towards a covered item, "So my next question is...will you fight?" William sat pondering the fight, he weighed all the odds and factors in his mind and then he eventually nodded

"I will fight it. But that drug better be ready for when I do or I will not be getting into that cage wit it!" Dragon smiled and clapped his hands gleefully

"Excellent William san, excellent!" he looked back towards the item "However I must inform you of some-thing. If you fail and this beast..." he chose his words carefully "...defeats you, we have devised a way to destroy it for good! But hopefully we will not come to that eventuality..." he pulled the cover off the item on the safe and William realised that sitting there was a bomb, a small nuclear bomb. William threw himself to the top of his chair,

"JESUS CHRIST DRAGON...WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!" Dragon only smiled,

"I only intend to use this if you fail! I would rather destroy the beast and every-thing in one hundred miles if it means it is destroyed! If the bomb goes off I will be miles away watching every-one can fry. I care not for this place as much as I do for my own and Dazes safety. Every-one can die for all I care William san..." William was stunned by the brutal honesty "...so William san, the thing is...how shall I say this without sounding rude..." his eyes met Headbreakers and a chill shot down his spine, he had not seen this side of Dragon before "....do NOT loose...William san!"

[edit] Part 2

Will looked into the room and could see the beast known as Lionheart. It lay on the table completely dormant. Drugs were constantly being pumped into it keeping it under. Headbreaker looked at its body, a walking mountain of muscle; it even made himself look small in comparison. Every-where he looked he could see thick dark brown hair, razor sharp claws, teeth and one hell of a fight ahead of him. Will ran his hand over his face and contemplated what he had gotten himself into. A powerful beast that could probably destroy Statesman, one that Dragon felt he had to make a nuke to destroy if he failed. He swore quietly! What was he thinking? This beast was clearly powerful if it scared Dragon, and William knew he didn’t scare easily. He left the room and headed back upstairs to the main arena.

William had been on a winning streak ever since he had entered the cage. Most, if not all, bets were usually in favour of him winning. He had beaten some tough foes and had almost even lost a few times yet had always managed to beat them back. Will was glad the implants and the months of gruelling enhancement therapy had shown great improvement but he still wasn't happy, he knew he could get better. Maybe fighting this beast was a good idea! Hell, if he could beat it then maybe he was ready to face the big man, finally make him pay for the hurt and the pain and the anger. William nodded to himself and finally agreed, he would fight the beast and he would beat it!

The next day a new competitor had come to the cage and was showing promise. He had already beaten The Back-Hander, Crimewave and Ironface. Headbreaker sat in the audience and watched as he now faced one of the better fighters; General Pyromaster, a pyrokenetic whose excellent manipulation of fire made him a deadly foe. He was able to shape fire into objects such as weapons and tools. The newcomer however had no real abilities, but as William watched he could see that he was skilled in several forms of martial arts. He noticed he wasn’t actually fighting, more letting his opponent wear themselves down to a point were he could unleash a barrage of chops, kicks and punches at weak spots and pressure points upon the body forcing them to submit. Will watched as he quickly moved around Pyro, avoiding a fire-whip he had manipulated. Pyro turned and cracked the whip with little regard to where the kid was and just lashed about, hoping to hit some-thing and then attack with his famous fireblade. Pyro’s rage was getting the better of him and he threw his arms out. Fire spewed from his palms, engulfing the stage. It flowed out in waves until eventually the whole cage was surrounded in roaring white flame. He laughed loudly knowing the kid was some-where amongst the blaze-

The newcomer suddenly fell atop of Pyro, his knees landing into his shoulders. Pyro struggled as the kid resting on top of him holding his balance perfectly; slowly squeezing his knees into Pyro’s neck, causing him to chock. Fire began to spew uncontrollably as Pyro began to loose concentration. Eventually the newcomer decided to end it. He raised his fists above his head then smashed then both down on top of Pyro's skull. The added pressure from the kid’s knees caused his neck to snap. William stood up from his bench rapidly as he watched the body of General Pyromaster go limp. The kid leapt nimbly off and landed on the floor with grace as the body slammed to the ground. The fire around the cage ceased and instantly, every-one knew Pyro was dead.

"AND THE WINNER...” Started the announcer “…KID SPEEDSTER!" The audience clapped and cheered as the kid paraded around the body of Pyro. He kicked his fallen foe and as he did, the anger slowly rose up within William. He had promised Dragon he would not partake in another fight as him winning all the time was actually loosing him money. He couldn't stand for this display though “WHO HAS THE POWER, THE STRENGTH, THE WILL TO CHALLENGE THIS MARVEL OF THE ANCIENT ARTS?”

"I'LL FIGHT HIM NEXT!"

The kid turned to see Headbreaker standing up. The kid looked at his challenger for a long moment before he whispered to the announcer, who had entered the ring with several men. As they removed the body of Pyro the announcer shook his head at the kid and almost seemed to argue with him. Headbreaker slowly walked down towards the cage holding a large wade of American dollars in his hand. He entered the cage and removed his jacket chucking it to the side. He chucked the money at the announcer and started cracking his knuckles.

"Five thousand American dollars is what I wager kid, you got that kinda dough?"

"Ugh...I'm not really ready for another fight just yet big guy, so what say you back up and I'll just..." the kid began to move towards the door but Will just raised a hand and placed it on the kids chest,

"No kid! See...the rules in this place clearly state, if you are challenged, you accept! Now, you got five big ones or do I have to inform Dragon you are whimping out...” The announcer stepped up to the kid and spoke in a hushed tone,

“The mountain here is right, you entered the cage and became bound by its rules for as long as people challenge you kid. You were told that before you entered!” The kid looked at Headbreaker’s hand on his chest and sighed

"I see...” he moved back and spoke loud enough for the rest of the arena to hear “So the big guy wants to get his ass kicked by little ol’me does he? Well then that is fine. I accept his wager of five thousand!" William just laughed and waved off the announcer, who quickly took Speedsters money and ran out of the cage, slamming the door behind him. William looked at the crowd and shouted,

"ONE PUNCH, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, ONE PUNCH IS ALL I WILL NEED TO TAKE DOWN THIS....KID! ONE PUNCH TO SEND HIM TO WHERE HE SENT PYRO! THAT…” he looked at the kid “…I PROMISE!" Speedster was now laughing,

"You have got to be joking! I move fast big guy! REAL fast. I’m not called Kid Speedster for nothing! You’re never going to get your one punch!" The kid moved to his end of the cage and William likewise, the kid looked backwards towards Headbreaker "He's going down like a pound of meat!"

“LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! PLACE YOUR BETS FOR THE NEXT FIGHT! KID SPEEDSTER HAS BEEN CHALLENGED BY YOUR FAVOURITE…THE WALKING MOUNTAIN, THE EARTHQUAKE OF 1906…” this caused William to smile, he always enjoyed the announcers random comments “…HE CAUSED MOUNT VESUVIUS TO ERUPT WHEN IT HEARD HE EXISTED…LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, IT IS THE ONE, THE ONLY…HEAD-BREAKER!” the crowd roared and the kids face fell an ashen white, he pointed and his voice shook as he spoke,

“Y-you're Headbreaker?!” Will just nodded. "Awww shit!"

The bell rang...

William walked towards the centre as the kid began darting left and right. William already knew he had this fight in the bag; the kid was scared and was looking for the quickest way to end the fight and that meant he would be sloppy, he would rush and not think about his actions and their consequences. Both competitors began to circle each other and for what seemed forever nothing happened

"T-take your best shot!" William half laughed, half grunted

"Stop dancing about like a fairy and let me hit you! I’ll make it quick!"

"Big words for a big man!" Headbreaker smiled at the fear on his voice,

"Tell you what kid, I’ll let you pound into me for a bit. That way I won't feel bad about humiliating you!" The kid wasted no time. He flew at William and started trying to hit weak points and pressure points but each blow the kid tried to land, William simply blocked. Wasting no time, Will threw his hand out and grabbed the kid by the forearm and pulled it upward. The kid’s whole body rose up off the ground, his defences were completely opened up and then, with a single blow, William punched him square in the face. Headbreaker released the kids arm with the punch and watched as his body flew backwards. He had hit him with such force that when the kid hit the cage wall.

A deathly hush fell over the arena as the body stayed upon the cage for a second. Slowly it began to fall forwards until it left the wall completely and hit the floor with a thump. The bell rang but Headbreaker showed no sign of celebration, the crowd roared with the sound of the bell and instantly were up on their feet, going for their winnings. William looked around the audience and saw Imperial Dragon sitting the back with Daze by his side and two tattooed Yakuza either side of them. The cage was unlocked and Headbreaker left as 'the cleaners' went in to fetch the body. Will climbed over the benches until he stood before Dragon who merely chuckled

"Slightly unnecessary William san, do you not agree?" The Yakuza to Dragon’s side moved across to make room for Headbreaker, who then sat beside him and shrugged,

"He killed Pryo, I killed him. What more should I have done?" Dragon chuckled again,

"Nothing, you challenged him, he had to follow the rules and paid the price. One punch was pretty impressive though. I did not actually believe you when you said it."

"Kid Speedster, was a pompous American tourist. Some kid with a little bit of power and delusions of grandeur. He was one of those people who thought they were invincible…Statesman syndrome! One punch brought him back to earth." There was a long silence until Dragon started to chuckle,

"Six feet under the earth to be more precise William san…” both men laughed. “I do believe I forebode you from entering the cage until your match? William swore playfully, he swore he saw Daze smile though he couldn’t be sure. "You were lucky that people actually thought the kid had a chance at beating you. I've actually made some money from your fight, not to mention the money the Kid and Pyro had won and are....unable to claim" Dragon smiles cruelly. He then lent closer to William and began to whisper,

“…are you sure about your fight Headbreaker san?" Will didn't say any-thing at first then simply nodded,

"Yeah I'm sure. But I don't know if I can beat this thing..."

"Of course you can Breaker san! That is why I am choosing you! Once you beat this beast you will need not stay here any longer. You will have proven you self ready to face what you wish to face and can continue with the journey that brought you here in the first place..." Headbreaker laughed,

"Like you will want to give some-one like me up!" Dragon chuckled again...

"We shall see after the fight Breaker san, if you can beat my beast without causing too much damage, I will not stop you. Wreck my arena and I will expect you to stay for a few more fights to pay it off!" Both men laughed, but neither found it funny. William knew this fight would be one of the most problematic he would have ever faced. This thing he feared the most was Dragon, would he flee at the first sign of trouble? Would he use the devise only when he knew all hope was lost? William was troubled Dragon’s patience would get the better of him.

Headbreaker was on the ropes, and he knew that Dragon knew this. The next round was just around the corner...

[edit] Part 3

The phone rang causing William to jump up out of bed. He looked about his grotty apartment and realised it was still dark. Reaching over he picked up the phone looking at the screen. It was a withheld number. He waited for a moment, then flicked it open, effectively answering it,

“Hello?” there was a long pause,

“…Dad?” William sat strait up in bed,

“Laura? How on earth did you get this number? I’ve told you that I will call you! You can’t get into trouble that way!”

“Sorry dad…” she started “…I just wanted to talk to you. One of the kids in our class is a hacker, some kind of met-human brain thing going on. Any-way, he hacked the directories and he got me your number. I kind of broke the rules huh?” William started to laugh lightly,

“No it’s alright sweetheart, it’s actually nice to hear your voice. It’s difficult waiting for your birthdays to come rolling by.” He could hear her giggle. He thought about how she was going to be twelve in a few months. Each year since he left he could hear her getting that little older, his heart sank slightly. “Just make sure this is the only time okay?” he looked about the cheap apartment, objects sat misshapen in the darkness, “What time is it over there? It’s really late here…” He could hear her scramble for a watch

“Uhh, it’s about two in the afternoon…how about you?” he quickly figured it out

“Roughly two over here too…in the morning though. I’ve ended up in China!”

“’’China? What you doing there?’’”

“I’m on a journey of self discovery. It’s really a long story baby so don’t worry about it!” he was silent a moment, “…what’s this call for then?” there was another long silence, this time from her end,

“I just…’’” she sighed “’’…I just missed you dad. Things are still pretty crazy around here. The Rikti have been making the occasional pot-shots at Paragon, it’s really scary. I mean okay the capes are slowly flocking back here but no-one really feels safe yet. I mean a friend of mine got cornered in Atlas by several Hellions, they roughed her up and she said to me that even when some guy in a cape flew down and kicked ten tones of crap outta them she still felt vulnerable and had to get taken home because she was too afraid to go by her self! I guess another negative for you is that it is getting busy here with capes and soon your gonna find it hard to...well you know...Kill Statesman!” William said nothing. There was a long silence between them and eventually she began to laugh at some-thing, then changed the topic altogether, “Heehee, I spoke to Gran the other day” William started to chuckle,

“How is the old bat?”

“’’She still can’t believe you turned to super crime, she said that was typical of you, kept showing me the newspaper with that photo of you in,” she began to laugh harder “Then in a senior citizen moment she asked when will you be sending her money so she can buy a new fridge!” They both laughed for a short while and as the laughter died she spoke “…Dad?”

“Yeah?” William replied,

“I don’t care if you’re a criminal…y-you know that right?” William chuckled lightly,

“Yeah I know honey…” he knew his Daughter had never judged him or anyone for the things they did, she always was able to see the good in people, no matter how dark their path got or how far of the path they came. He always tried to make sure she would not copy him, start down a path she could never escape. He was afraid that if she did, she would loose sigh of her own goodness within. He started getting thoughtful and quickly added, “….just don’t start glamorizing me okay? What I do…what I do isn’t a good thing, okay? I don’t want to be watching Paragon tonight and see you robbing Kings Row Bank in a mask. Y’hear?” Laura laughed,

“Mum would kill me long before any-thing like that happened Dad! The point I’m making is, while you’ve probably made some bad choices you’re still my father and I still love you and I always will no matter how many banks you rob!” William smiled to himself,

“What happened to my little girl hey? I can’t believe you’re going to be a teenager soon! Where did that time go?”

“I’ve heard only bad things about being a teenager. Being one…urgh, it’s going to be so weird!” She giggled, then went silent a moment, “…Are you alright?” William was a bit struck back,

“Yeah, why’d you ask?”

“You sound offish about some-thing.” William chucked,

“Just some-thing I gotta do. I’m a little worried about it…”

“Ohhh robbing a bank? Be sure to send me an early birthday present!” She sounded far too excited for her own good,

“No, and even if I was NO! It’s some-thing else, some-thing you missy do not need to know about.” Laura groaned,

“Spoil sport!” He smiled to himself and then started to yawn,

“I should really go now it’s so late here.”

“’’Oh alright. I suppose I should let you sleep!’’”

“Remember to delete your phone history, if your mother found out you’d…” she interrupted him,

“Don’t worry, she won’t. Plus I’ve just penned a suitable story for why I ‘accidentally’ called China!” William laughed,

“You know your phone bills going to be through the roof!” he could hear Laura giggle

“Mum’s…phone bill. And I feel recently she has been rather unreasonably so I think she personally deserves it!” they both laughed

“…Laura?” he asked

“Yeah dad?”

“I’m sorry for the way things turned out…” there was another long pause and then,

“I don’t blame you; every-one makes bad choices. It’s how we deal with those choices that make us, right?” William felt proud of her,

“You know, your going to be a much better person than I ever was Laura, just keep making me proud alright?” there was no reply, he could only imagine she was nodding,

“Love you dad.”

“Love you too Laura” he replied “…g’night!” He waited for a second and then…the phone light went out. William sat on the bed for a long moment before reaching across the bedside table and picking up a photo of himself, Laura and her mother, Sarah. He sat looking at it for a long while, then sighed and lay down to sleep.

---

The next day a loud knock at the door caused Headbreaker to jump up in bed; he looked about the room and saw it was dawn,

“William san, are you awake?” Will recognised the voice as Dragon’s and jumped out of the bed. He stumbled around the room looking for clothes,

“One minute!” Eventually he found his trousers and heavily jumped into them, causing the floorboards to creak. Doing up his belt, he moved towards the door and opened it slightly and looked out into the corridor. Dragon stood with Daze to his side and two henchmen, covered in Yakuza tattoos, stood just behind them. Daze stood was wearing a revealing red dress that was cut far too low on her chest and too far up the leg to be practical. Her hair was tied into a ponytail, revealing her blue eyes to the fullest. William felt drawn towards her again. She looked as stunning as she always did and William fought to look away. He felt some-thing probe at his mind and suddenly he was able to draw his attention away from her. A familiar feeling lingered in his mind yet he shook it off. Dragon gained his attention and chuckled,

“You sleep on a day like today William san? The sun shines and you wish to stay in limbo? Dear me…” William opened the door fully and watched as the two Yakuza bodyguards looked him up and down, then took a step backwards, this caused Dragon to laugh slightly “…I see even with the bed hair you can strike fear into even the most hardened of my gang. Kudos Breaker san, kudos” William looked at the gathered faces,

“What do I owe the pleasure Dragon?” Dragon smiled

“I wished to show you some-thing I am working on Breaker san, you know of my new drug?” William nodded,

“The stuff you’re trying to make right? The stuff you wish to use on Lionheart if I’m no mistaken?” Dragon nodded,

“It is indeed. Get the rest of your clothes on William san, we have much to do!” as soon as Dragon was done he and the two Yakuza went down the hall, Daze however remained, William looked at her and for a second he thought he saw her smile, “He always in that much of a rush?” she did not answer him and moved to the side of his door and waited. William started finding it difficult to pull his gaze off her again, but he fought the urge and went back into his room. Gathering the rest of his clothes he was soon ready to go.

---

Dragon had a limo prepared for William’s size waiting outside. The doors were opened for them as they arrived and they piled in. The interior was extremely well done, leather seats, tinted windows, oak panelling. Within the mini-bar sat champagne, wine, scotch and other expensive drinks for Dragon’s expensive tastes. Dragon poured William a large glass of scotch for himself and William as the car started off and headed for the motorway.

They raced amongst the cars for at least an hour before they turned off and drove on down into country lane. Will could see rice fields and farmlands in the distance; this made him hungry for the breakfast he had been denied. He marvelled at how quaint and secluded rural China was. A land stuck in time almost never progressing with the rest of the world, they didn’t need too.

Soon they rumbled off onto a dirt track and bounced around, the drinks in the bar rattled uncontrollably and several of the smaller bottles nearly fell to the floor. They eventually came to what looked like an abandoned factory sitting in the middle of no-where. William however knew better than to trust his eyes. The doors to the limo were opened and Dragon rushed out. He headed strait for the factory door and swung it open

“Come William san…” Will stepped out of the limo, shortly followed by Daze.

They were rushed inside and after moving through the empty corridors and empty offices they entered the main factory floor and William’s jaw dropped. Vats of the golden chemical he had seen the other day sat brewing and bubbling away. Scientist busily moved about, checking dials and clipboards. Whiteboards had been erected every-where with scribbles of all sorts of different equations and problems covering them. Tables and benches covered in microscopes were constantly being looked into. It had every-thing a lab should, though a little more unorganised.

“Welcome William san…” shouted Dragon “…to Fort Knox…” He grinned widely as Headbreaker chuckled nervously “…Here is where I am making the newest weapon the world will know! A super-powered suppresser! We have named it Knox, mainly due to its ability to hold onto super powers better than its namesake. It will sell for thousands Breaker san, millions even!” He lowered his voice “Could you imagine Statesman weak as a baby…a super powered baby but weak none the less! Recluse becoming as powerful as a money spider! This will revolutionise the criminal world! We can take the world and show the Rikti how it is done!” his voice was filled with childish excitement!

“Sounds…interesting,” William hesitated for a moment and started to think back to some-thing Dragon had said the other day“…you said it has had its fair share of problems?” Dragon’s excitement faded, he lent on the railing and observed the factory floor,

“Yes I did, did I not? Knox has had…problems. But so do all new drugs. It seems to only be effective against those with the mutant genome, and the rare few at that.” He clicked his fingers and Daze handed him a file, he looked through it quickly then slammed it shut “We’ve tried Knox on those with a magical orientation, scientific accidents and enhancers such as your self, even captured Rikti and other Extraterrestrials…but only natural born mutants seem to have any real effect and that is not definite either. About a quarter of all mutants we give Knox to loose their abilities, which is good! Every one else however seem to just die of a total system failure!” He ran his hand over his face, “I have a lot riding on this drug William san. If it is a failure then…” he handed the file back to Daze “…well I would have wasted a lot of time money and I will be answering to a lot of people. You do not really want to know what I will have to do.” William looked around the factory quickly,

“You are going to try and get a working sample for Lionheart right…” Dragon nodded,

“Yes, yes, yes, our studies show that he is one of the odd few…” Headbreaker sighed in relief. He gestured the folder in Daze’s hand. She handed it to him and he looked through the notes pretending to not understand what was written down. He studied the notes and was impressed at the way the drug was structured. There was nothing wrong with the drug its self, just the way it worked. William became concerned that Dragon was not actually sure if it would work on Lionheart,

“It is almost as if Knox is only able to target strong mutant genomes…if it can not find it or the genome is not strong enough then it attacks every-thing else.” Headbreaker handed the folder back and shook his head slightly. Dragon was silent a long moment “What the problem is…it is beyond me…but be sure William san, by the time your fight rolls about next week we shall be ready and Knox will be ready for ‘commercial’ release…” he quickly changed his tune “I have shown you what I needed to show you…Come! Let us enjoy Hong Kong. I will show you what this country has to offer! I might even let you have the beautiful Daze tonight…if she will allow it…” William looked about at Daze who had simply looked away; William swore he could feel her sadness at the comment. Dragon span on his heels stormed out of the warehouse, Daze waited for a moment and then following close behind. Headbreaker just looked back at the vats of Knox…

In one way he was glad it was failing, in another way he was terrified. Lionheart would be too strong for William to handle if the drug was not a success. But on the flip of the coin, If Knox was perfected and went public; the world would quickly become a terrible place for any-one with an ability. William turned and headed out of the factory.

[edit] Part 4

The crowd roared in anticipation.

Word had spread through the criminal community and slowly people flocked to the arena. Warlords, Super Criminals, Mob Bosses, Thugs, Mercenaries & even one of China’s generals had shown up to watch the match and were already placing obscenely large bets. It was common knowledge that each other criminal hated the other, but Dragon’s rules were simple, this was his house and any rivalries and squabbles were left at the door and was not to be brought inside. This however caused tension, the air felt charged with static and each harsh remark, scowls and glare was felt by all.

Dragon rubbed his hands together greedily. The bets swung nicely and no matter who won, he would make a fortune! Knox was no-were near ready for sale but this fight was all he needed to demonstrate its potential. He felt bad lying to William; the truth was he had no idea if Knox would actually work on Lionheart! The test had all proved negative and his blood showed no change. Some-thing within Lionheart was rejecting Knox and for once it was not killing the blood cells. Dragon would wait till they were both in the ring before he would reveal the deception to William! He would still inject Knox into the beast publicly regardless. Hopefully William would be able to beat the beast regardless and impress the buyers. Then it was down to Dragon to delay them long enough to figure out what was wrong with the drug! By that point he would be in the money and the super community would crumble in its own selfish stupidity! Dragon smiled to himself and walked towards his office and entered. Within sat William with his feet up on the table. He took a long draw of a cigar in his mouth and blew out a thick smoke ring,

“Noisy out there isn’t it?” Dragon chuckled slightly,

“Yes it is, is it not?” Dragon moved to the window that faced out onto the cage “They are just excited. We shall encourage that excitement by bringing up the beast soon.” He turned to face William “Are you sure you are ready for this William san?” Headbreaker took a long draw on his cigar and chuckled,

”As long as your wonder drug works and those tests are accurate then yes, yes I am!” Dragon shifted his weight nervously for a second and then regained his composure,

“Of course it will Breaker san.”

The door opened slowly and entered a large Chinese man. He looked at Headbreaker for a moment then bowed quickly, his hands by his side. He spoke in a deep gruff voice,

“William! It is good to see you again!” William rose to his feet and walked over to the man and shook his hand

”Mr Gank. You old son of a bitch! Come back for a rematch?” Gank chuckled as he and Dragon exchanged bows

“One day William I will beat you and then we shall be even” Gank smiled slightly “I heard you were jumping into the deep end and I had to come see, you cannot die before I have had my rematch!” Dragon smiled

“We have the utmost faith in Breaker san Gank san. He is the strongest fighter in the cage to date!” Gank smiled and looked about the office

“Tell me Dragon my friend, where is that Beautiful Daze?” Dragon shook his head

“You know she does not like you Gank san. She refuses to be in the same room as you.” William grew suddenly interested

“Why won’t Daze see you Gank?” Mr Gank looked to Dragon, who nodded once,

“Daze was one of my girls a few years back, my youngest. She was a large earner due to her beauty. Unfortunately a few…jobs…went sour and she was roughed up very badly. She lost faith in my ability to keep her safe and tried to escape. We tried to stop her but the incidents had triggered her unique heritage and she vanished before our very eyes. Dragon found her here and has given her a better home then I ever could offer. I have given her to Dragon but she refuses to stand in the same room as me…”

“Unique heratige?”

”Yes! She is a siren William, a demon of types. Why do you think you can never take your eyes off her? She controls it though, hence why some-times you can look away and other times you are completely mesmerized. She is a rare thing William, and any man who has her is very lucky!” he looked to Dragon who bowed deeply at this comment. Suddenly one of the Yakuza poked his head around the door and Dragon went up to him. They whispered for a moment and as the Yakuza left, Dragon stepped up to his window and tapped the glass, “They bring the beast!”

The two men moved to stand beside Dragon and watched as several large men pulled a large trolley behind them. The item on top was covered by a large sheet that dragged below the wheel level. They pulled it slowly up a ramp and eventually rested it in one corner of the ring. They crowd had fallen silent while the men went to the covered item and grabbed a hold of several handles. They lifted the item and placed it on the floor, before charging out of the arena. The crowd watched every motion with keen interest. The large cage door was swung into place and locked several times over. One of the men walked over to what looked like a junction box and pulled heavily on a lever. The air filled with a loud hum, and then, the cage surged with electricity. William suddenly shouted,

”YOU’VE ELECTRIFIED THE CAGE?!” Dragon and Gank both jumped at the booming sound for a second. Gank nodded to both men and left the room. Dragon looked towards William,

“I have to keep him within the cage some-how. Why William san? What is the problem with this?” William swore quickly

“Electricity has the habit of causing some of my implants to short. They shut down to prevent damage and I’m vulnerable! I’ve told you this before Dragon…”

“Ahh…” was his only reply, “…I apologise Breaker san, but I must take precautions…”

William cut him off and pointed to the covered item in his office,

“You mean like the bomb in the corner?” Dragon looked at William eye to eye,

“Then you know what you must do, do you not Headbreaker san? Do not lose the fight and I will not have to use it! I believe I have made my self clear. I will no let that beast loose upon the world again…” William shook his head,

“Christ…How long until its time Dragon?” he looked at his watch,

“Ten more minutes William san. Sit down, enjoy your cigar, I will have some one come get you when it is time…”

---

Before long one of Dragons Yakuza’s burst into the room and started shouting in Japanese

”それは行く時間大きい人を動かすためにである!” William looked at him and shrugged

“I don’t understand!” the man belted out at him again,

“移動を、それあるあなたの戦いの時間が得なさい” William got up and moved over to Yakuza, as he towered above him he merely lent down slightly and over exaggerated his words,

“I don’t speak Japanese…” the Yakuza muttered some-thing in Japanese to himself then spoke in a broken American

“You…come…fight!” William grunted and shunted the small Yakuza out of his the way as he left the room,

“性交しなさい!!!” William could only guess he had been sworn at, but he couldn’t be sure.

He left the office and walked into the main arena where suddenly his ears were bombarded with cheers as people saw him enter. Dragon moved over to him, he had to shout over the noise,

“Into the cage Breaker san, appease your fans!” William went up the stairs and entered the cage; he walked to the centre and threw his arms up. The crowd doubled over in excitement. Slowly the cage was shut, locked and electrified once again. Headbreaker looked at the covered Lionheart; he could the chains that connected to a metal base. He was secure, as long as he was asleep.

The air broke with the noise of the loud speaker,

“LA-DIES A-ND GENT-LEMEN! TONIGHT YOU ARE TO WITNESS ONE OF OUR FAMOUS EXHIBITION FIGHTS! WE HAVE A TREAT FOR YOU THIS TIME AROUND. YOU HAVE SEEN HIM RISE AND RISE AND RISE IN THE FIGHTS. HE HAS BROKEN MANY OF YOUR OLD FAVOURITES! HE WAS THE ONE WHO BROKE UP PANGAEA, HE MAKES THE HIMALAYAS LOOK LIKE MOLE HILLS, HE’S THE RUTHLESS, THE BRUTISH, THE ONE STATESMAN FEARS, THE ONE, THE ONLY…HEAD-BREAKER!!!”

The crowd burst into cheer, they whooped, they screamed, they roared; Here, William was king.

The commentator then changed to his opponent,

“YOU HAVE HEARD OF THE DEVIL, YOU HAVE HEARD OF RECLUSE, YOU HAVE EVEN HEARD OF THE IMPERIAL DRAGON…” the crowd laughed “…BUT YOU HAVE NEVER HEARD OF A BEAST LIKE THIS ONE! HE ROAMED THE WILD LANDS OF AFRICA, FIGHTING ALONGSIDE THE LION CLANS. IF WE EVER LET HIM LOOSE ON THE CITY OF HEROES HE WOULD DESTROY IT WITHOUT A SECOND THOUGHT. HE CAN GIVE KING KONG A RUN FOR HIS MONEY THEN WEAR HIM AS A FUR SKIN COAT. I PRESENT TO YOU OUR PRESENTATION MONSTER! WE HAVE HAD TO KEEP HIM SEDATED TO KEEP YOU SAFE WHILE WE PREPARED FOR THIS DAY!" the crowd were on the edge of their seats "...AND NOW WITHOUT FURTHER A DUE…THE LIONHEART!”

The cloth was pulled back and the beast was revealed. The crowd roared in horror as it sat, chained to the deck, its head resting on its chest, tubes pumped chemicals into its body constantly, keeping it under. Resting near by was the vial of Knox.

“I HEAR YOU ASK HOW CAN A MAN LIKE HEADBREAKER BEAT SUCH A BEAST! WELL WATCH AND LEARN AS WE ARE ABOUT TO ADMINISTER A NEW UP AND COMING DRUG KNOWN AS…KNOX! THIS DRUG WILL SUPPRESS HIS SUPER ABILITIES BY UP TO FIFTY PERCENT! IT WILL WEAKEN HIM TO A STATE EASIER TO COMBAT!”

The vial slowly emptied and several of the tubs began to run with the golden liquid.

Suddenly Lionheart began to twitch as the chemical hit his veins. Snorts and growls rolled from his unconscious form and slowly he began to wake. This cause unrest amongst those controlling the chemicals and they began to shout in desperation. Dragon charged down towards them and started shouting

”What is the problem?!” One of the engineers turned to him

“He is fighting against the chemicals keeping him under; we have are loosing control over him!” One of the other engineers pushed the first out of the way,

”Knox is entering his blood stream. The system is only showing a ten percent reduction in his power. It is not working Dragon san! Knox has failed again!” Dragon looked to the cage,

“God help you William san…”

The beast was now fully awake.

It began to pull against his restraints. He slowly started pushing his body upwards causing strain on his restraints. They began to stretch and groan as he slowly rose to his feet. The chemical tubes were being pulled from his body as he stood; spraying their content over the arena floor and onto the charged cage causing sparks and bolts of blue to arc across the bars. The crowd fell silent. William stared in disbelief as the beast finally reached its full height and then threw his arms out, completely destroying the chains that bound him.

There was a long silence as the beast’s arms dropped to its side. It relaxed for a moment, standing stationary, breathing deeply attempting regaining its thoughts.

Then it roared! A terrible, blood curdling roar that piecing the very souls of those who heard it! The very foundations of the building shook. The crowd covered their ears, fear creeping into their hearts.

William merely stood, watching it as it settled and finally made eye contact with him,

“…aw crap…”

Lionheart, without warning, charged Will. Mere seconds was all the time Headbreaker had to brace for the impact. Throwing himself forward, he dived under the first attack and quickly rolled to his feet avoiding a second. William threw himself to the left and then immediately had to jump forward as Lionheart’s attacks were coming thick and fast. He avoided the beast as best he could, he wanted to see how fast he was and how he attacked. William was thankful that it was using a closed fist rather than an open palm; its claws were sharp and deadly. He jumped back quickly and narrowly avoided an uppercut. Lionheart was fast! William could hear the cries from outside the ring and he chanced a glance at Dragon who merely gave him a thumb down sign. William knew what the gesture meant. Knox had failed and it had failed badly! William suddenly felt fearful; he knew he was in danger. But more to the point he knew what it would mean if Dragon lost patience. He avoided another blow and rolled around so he was back to back with Lionheart. The beast’s arms flayed about as William used the position to look about the crowd.

Dragon was disappearing into his office; William knew he was probably arming the devise he was not going to take any chances.

Suddenly Lionheart stepped forward and threw his elbow into the back of Williams head! He had hesitated and he had lost concentration on Lionheart’s movements! He had managed to land a single blow, but the angle horribly wrong and Will did not feel any pain. Instead he was able to use the attack to his advantage. He fell forward with the blow and went into a roll. He came out of it and leapt to his feet. He twisted so he could see what Lionheart was doing and grinned as every-thing had gone to plan. The beast had not expected the move and had half stumbled backwards. It fell onto its backside and was snarling as it tried to right itself. Will ran towards the edge of the cage and waited as Lionheart struggled back on to his feet. It turned to face William and roared once more before charging forward. Its eyes were wide with hate and the primal instinct to kill its opposition.

The beast got close and William smiled. He used his superior leg muscles to throw himself over Lionheart. He soared through the air, narrowly avoiding the top of the cage and eventually fell back to earth. He hit the ground with his hands and pulled himself into another roll. He was able to land on one of his feet and his knee and used his hands to stabilize himself. He half twisted to see if his plan had worked as he expected. Lionheart’s momentum could not be stopped and the beast fell headfirst into the cage wall.

The air filled with electricity. Blue light flashed and flickered, lighting up the arena as Lionheart roared in pain, his body going ridged as the electricity coursed through him. William smiled as the smell of burning hair assaulted the senses. He watched as hair began to peel away and burns appeared over the beast’s body.

Suddenly Lionheart’s arms flew up and grabbed the cage with both hands. Williams smile Began to fade as Lionheart purposely began to pull himself closer to the cage. William watched as the electricity began to surge towards the beast, bolts of electricity arced from the cage into Lionheart’s body. His fur fell off in chunks and the burns became worse, slowly spewing blackened blood.

Lionheart then released the cage and stepped backwards, his body coursed with the electricity he had absorbed. Bolts leapt from his body, arcing back to the cage and towards any other piece of metal that lay about. William simply stared with disbelief, he was burnt beyond recognition, and snarled through the pain, almost relishing in it.

”You have got to be joking!”

Lionheart looked at his scared hand and watched as a charge jumped from finger to finger and then surged down his arm, William swore he could see the beast smile. Its eyes, now blood red, looked towards him and then it started to snarl louder. Its feet scraped along the ground as it prepared to move and William readied himself.

“Come on you son of a bitch! You wanna play dirty…we can play dirty! COME ON!”

A roar singled the attack and the beast threw itself forward again. William clenched his fist and did likewise, they both charged towards the centre, screaming in rage, staring into the others eyes!

The beast stuck…

[edit] Part 5

The beast stuck…

The crowd roared as William flew backwards from the attack. Air exploded from his lungs as the blow had taken him in the chest. Lionheart hit like a freight train! Each punch, attempted punch and even standing near him were causing sparks of electricity to explode from his body. He had turned himself into a living battery! William soared for a second and then crashed into the ground a halt just before the cage wall; he could feel the static on his neck. Several of his implants were already trying to shut down. He didn’t know if he could take many direct hits, let alone touch the cage wall! William fought for air as dared looked up. Lionheart was charging towards him without a second though. William rose his foot up and kicked the beast’s stomach. Electricity raced into William but the force he had put it had already caused the beast to howl with pain. He then rose his fist upwards, rocketing upwards like a piston in an engine. The blow with Lionheart’s jaw with a deafening crack as teeth and blood sprayed from its mouth. Headbreaker shook off the charge that had just hit his hand and was now on his feet ready to fight. He began to unleash a volley of blows connecting them left right and centre. The beast jerked and howled as each landed. William began to shout, half through the pain of the electricity and half through triumph as Lionheart slowly fell to his knees. William then rose his fists high in the air. He was going to deliver a powerful haymaker to either side of its neck, he would end this now and he would end it quickly.

He rose quickly!

Lionheart rammed its shoulder into Williams’s stomach and rose to its feet. William left the floor as the beast half carried him on his body. The beast had risen but Headbreaker still moved from the force of the blow. Lionheart was able to grab him by his shirt with one hand and twisted on the stop, throwing William into the one place he didn’t want to be, the cage wall.

Electricity raced through his body as he slammed into the metal frame, one by one his implants shut down to protect them selves and he could feel his strength rapidly being sapped. How did it go wrong so quickly, he had him!

William wasn’t on the wall long before Lionheart grabbed him again and pulled him to the floor. Headbreaker lay on the floor twitching as the last of the electricity ran into the floor. Smoke rose from his body and he coughed as he gasped for air. Lionheart came to stand over him watching him for a second. William looked into its eyes, they almost seemed to say to him

“Doesn’t feel very nice does it?” It looked at the gathered crowd for a second, snarling and barking at them, the it’s attention returned to William

Without warning he slammed his foot down into William’s stomach. Electricity washed outwards as blood sprayed upward from Williams’s mouth. He bellowed out in pain. Lionheart rose his foot again and once again he dropped it down. More blood sprayed upward and William could feel his ribs breaking, his lungs begging for breath, his body begging for the pain to end. Lionheart blows felt like the weight of the world coming down on him all at once. Once again Lionheart rose his foot, it snarled at William who lay there, blood drenched and gasping for air. It dropped its foot again,

William rose his hands and caught it as it fell!

He pressed against Lionheart with all his might and suddenly the beast was flown into the air, time almost seemed to slow down as William stood as Lionheart began to fall. Several implants were coming back online, yet he was still weakened from the shock.

Lionheart hung in the air as William now stood upright.

He drew his fist back and then fired it forward like a bullet out of a gun. Lionheart had still not reached the floor as the impact hit him. The air was pushed outwards in a large shockwave that erupted into the audience. Lionheart catapulted backwards into the cage wall with such speed that his body embedded itself into the metal framework. Bars blasted outwards showering the crowd with shards of metal. The cage lent with the blow and began to buckle to the point of collapsed. The electrical generator began to wine as electricity spewed from the cage uncontrollably. Lionheart’s added charged added impossible amounts of stress to the generator. Eventually it exploded causing golden sparks to shower the surrounding area.

William looked towards Lionheart who was stuck within the cage. It struggled wildly amongst the wreckage. Shards of metal pierced its skin and one whole bar was rammed into his side causing a waterfall of blood to gather in a crimson pool. It roared and thrashed desperate to get loose wounding itself further. William pointed at it and began to shout,

”YOU ARE GOING DOWN! THIS ENDS NOW!” William hunched over and began to summon up the anger within his body, the hate he felt inside, the suffering he had been forced to feel, the pure uncontrollable evil that bubbled away in his soul. He dove down deep and only scratched the surface of its potential. William then pushed down with his feet and threw himself at Lionheart.

The cage exploded and finally collapsed completely!

Both competitors flew from of the cage in a shower of metal, blood and dust. They soared for a second before crashing into the audience! The Chinese general, who sat were the two flew, was only able to let out a quick cry before he was killed by the weight and speed of these two monsters landing on top of him. Both hit the benches causing wood to blast outwards showering those who stood nearby along with a shower of blood from the man recently crushed.

The crowd screamed, shouted and ran from the incredible fighters. They charged to the other side of the arena and tried to stay as far away as possible. Thick dust, thrown up from their impact, blinded the senses and confused the eye. Shadowy silhouettes of the two fighters were all that could be seen. Even that did not give enough indication of who was winning. The dust started to settle and both competitors rolled about the benches exchanging blows. William looked to have the upper hand at first, then the tide changed and when Lionheart grabbed him and began to stand. William could not break his grip! Lionheart rose William up above his head and then with all his might, threw him towards the bar at the back.

The bar broke in two.

William crashed to the ground in a shower of glass, whiskey and beer. He lay there groaning and tried to rise up. Mr Gank ran over to him and helped him up slightly.

”Are you okay William?” he nodded slightly and rose his hand to his head, he took it away and saw that it was blood soaked,

“H-he is too strong…I don’t know if…if I can beat him!”

”Of course you can William. Recover! I shall hold him off for you!” then without warning, Mr Gank ran towards Lionheart. William’s cried for him to stop, but it fell upon deaf ears.

Mr Gank reached the beast and threw his fist into Lionheart’s ribs, followed in quick succession by several others, Gank was doing well enough, but as William rose he could see that Lionheart was not fighting back. Gank landed several more hits when suddenly he was pushed back by Lionheart, then he lashed out. Instead of a fist however Lionheart attacked with open palm, its claws visible. Gank could not even scream as the claws dug deep into his neck. Lionheart pulled outwards shredding Gank’s throat. Blood sprayed outwards from the large wound and Gank merely tried to swallow and could not. His eyes showed his disbelief as he began to fall backwards. Lionheart writhed in the shower of crimson that spewed from Gank’s wound, almost seemed to laugh the sight.

“NOOOOO!” William roared as Lionheart slowly turned to face him. This gave Gank’s men time to pull him away to safety. The floodgates opened, after this moment…no-one could stop him…William’s anger was too terrible to describe.

William raced forward from the bar, his fist clenched so tight that his hands bled. He moved through the wreckage, screaming with pure hate. Fresh blood dripped from his wounds and was carried away from his body by his momentum. He crashed into Lionheart sending both falling to the ground. The whole building shook as crashed to earth. Both fighters skidded upon the ground through the speed and force to which Headbreaker crashed into him. They came to a rest amongst the destruction and William started pounding at Lionheart’s face, fresh blood pouring as each blow reduced his face to a fleshy pulp,

“WHY…”

He hit again,

“…WON’T…”

He hit again,

“…YOU…”

He hit again,

“…FUCKING…”

He hit again,

“…DIE!!!”

William then grabbed the beast by the chin and tried to grab the top of its head. Lionheart weakly tried to struggle but William swatted his hands away and with a cried he twisted.

Lionhead’s neck snapped with a deafening crack! William angrlly twisted until Lionhead’s face was the other way around. He then pulled; making sure his head came completely away from his spine. He released the head and it dropped heavily onto the ground. Lionheart’s body twitched for a moment, and then finally went limp.

William breathed out the fire in his lungs. He fought to control the anger and started to look around the arena. It was completely destroyed, and he felt like how it looked. William felt like he had lost a fight to a bulldozer, he was covered in cuts and scraps and his muscles hurt like nothing he had felt before. He spat blood at the fallen body and slowly rose.

The arena held and eerie silence.

He looked about the faces of the audience, gathered on the far side of the arena. He merely nodded at them. He then heard a cry for help and looked around to see the blood soaked Gank, fighting for life,

“William! Quickly!” William ran over to the gathered gang and fell to his knees, grabbing a hold of the back of his friends head and placing his spare hand on the wound. Blood oozed between his fingers as he fought to hold the wound shut. Gank looked up at William and smiled slightly, he tried to breath but each time he did, fresh blood oozed from the wound.

“Hold on my friend, we’ll get you to a doctor! GET ME A GOD DAMN DOCTOR!” Gank rose his hand and placed it upon William’s, he started to mouth some-thing and William watched intently, no sound escaped his lips,

“I – will – wait – in – the – next – life – for – when – we – next – meet – I – will – be – ready – for – that – rematch…” Gank smiled again before his eyes fell dark.

William screamed as his friend died there in his arms. Tears threatened to overwhelm him. The rest of the gang bowed to their fallen leader and muttered a quick prayer. William looked towards Dragon’s office and then slowly rose to his feet. He had one last thing to do…

[edit] Part 6

William kicked the door open and watched as it fell to the ground. He half walked, half limped into the office. Dragon sat at his desk drawing on a cigar while Daze sat on the table holding the devise. Upon it sat a countdown that had reached 2:30

“I added the counter for effect William san…”

”Stop the devise Dragon, the beast is dead!” Dragon looked at the clock, now reading 2:00

“No, not just yet William san, we have enough time for me to explain my reasons…”

”STOP IT NOW!” Dragon looked at William with a dark gaze

“…no…” He took a draw on his cigar and stumped it out on his desk “Why do you think I did this William san?”

”I have no idea…STOP THE GOD DAMN BOMB!”

“Do you not see William san? Do you not realise what you have accomplished? You are ready; you are ready to continue with your quest! You need to train any longer; you are ready to face Statesman!” the clock now read 1:00

”DRAGON! STOP IT!”

“You are the most impressive fighter I have seen in a long time and one who I feel may actually do what you claim! Statesman should fear you William san…”

10, 9, 8,

“DRAGON?!” he sat back and took another draw on his cigar

7, 6, 5, 4

“DAMN IT!” William ran and grabbed the top of the devise off of Daze’s lap, who merely jumped back in surprise,

3, 2, 1….

William eyes went wide as the device read zero and began to beep loudly. William hugged the bomb close, in the futile hopes his body would do some-thing, he screamed loudly…

Then nothing…

Dragon exhaled a thick black cloud of smoke and started to chuckle. William slowly rose his head and looked down at the device, the clock now flashed the words END. William looked to Dragon with a hurt look on his face,

“You believe I would risk my reputation because of some beast. We had ways of stopping Lionheart William san; we just needed some-thing that would encourage you to fight your hardest.” William dropped the ‘bomb’ and he fell towards the ground. He landed heavily on his backside and shuffled backwards slightly so his back rested against the wall,

“You son of a bitch…”

“Let us face it William san, you have got what you have wanted! A chance to test your abilities to their fullest. My self on the other hand, I have vats of a failed drug that is does nothing but kill people. The world has enough drugs like that William san; I wanted some-thing unique! I will have to inform my buyers that they will not be getting their wonder drug. You can leave this place now William san and know you have fought a foe that even Statesman may have fallen too…”

William wiped blood from his brow and flicked it against the floor. He looked to Dragon,

”You lied to me…you told me you’d tested it…” Dragon interrupted,

“I lie, I cheat, I exploit William san. I tell people a lot of things that are not true! If you have not learnt that during you time here then you are a fool!” Dragon’s tone slowly changed

“I’ll be keeping your prize money…might help rebuild my arena, but I will give you another gift, one that will benefit you more in your long road. Good day William san…” with that note Dragon bowed deeply and left the room.

Daze sat upon the table looking at William. She wore her revealing dress that William though may as well have been a towel it covered up so little. She nimbly leapt down and moved towards him. She knelt and placed her face before his. She closed her eyes and William felt some-thing probe around in his mind until she opened them again and slowly began to talk. Her voice was like two together, yet the both sang in unison. Her every word was hypnotic and as she spoke her eyes glowed uncontrollably. Her skin shone and her hair waived in a non-existent wind,

“William Breaker, I give you the gift of my foresight. I can see things in a person’s future but none are definite. I will see objects, people, but I cannot see the paths you will take. I offer you this because you are different from the other men I have met in this world. Unlike other villains I can still feel goodness in your heart, a connection to a person in this world, one who keeps you human. A daughter?

Yet one day you will find she will no-longer be able to help you, you will have to find other people to connect that goodness to, to hold the rage and pain at bay until you need it. But do not cry for her, she will not be gone forever. I see the head of a shark. I see a man who you shall call brother. I see he is a man who desires power and whose body holds power within. I see trust for you in his soul. I see a fist that holds a laurel. I see a vampire. A hammer and sickle. A pyramid with a golden hew. I do not see Statesman in your mind but I see doubt concerning him. I see the face of a demon, crushed under shoe…

Your future holds many things William Breaker. Relax, enjoy your life, one day you may face your foe and I cannot tell you if you will beat him but know this. He will one day hear of you, and when he does he will become concerned, possibly frightened of you. But nothing is definite in the sea of time William Breaker…”

She wiped a large amount of blood from his forehead with a white cloth. She then lent forward and kissed him upon the cheek before leaving a large bottle of scotch by his side. She rose slowly, bowed and left the room.

William sat there for a long moment contemplating what had just happened. He looked down at the bottle of scotch, before unscrewing the top and drinking heavily from it.

He sighed.

[edit] Epilogue

William sat in the departures lounge at Honk Kong airport. He sat watching the people walking past, their eyes gazing at him in causious ways. He wasn' doing anything wrong, he was use to his size intimidating people.

Getting a seat on the plane had, at first, caused some troubles. he had to shift his departure time to one a little later, the superhuman age had caused many changes in the world, planes had to be be changed to accommodate for ‘larger then normal’ people. The day before he had attended Gank's funeral. It was full of culture and traditions and William, stood before the coffin and bowed deeply, and whispered,

"I'm looking forward to our rematch...

He sat patiently waiting for the boarding call when a man came to sit beside him,

“Leaving William san?” Headbreaker smiled slightly,

“I didn’t think you were coming to say goodbye…” Dragon chuckled,

“I was not at first, then I decided I would come and apologise…” William looked past him,

“No Daze?” Dragon shook his head,

“She dislikes the idea of metal can’s flying…” his face went deathly serious “…I was not lying when I said I exploit every-one William san. I daily exploit the most beautiful woman in the world. She loves me with every-thing in her heart and all I use her for is so I may have a trophy wife. I care not for love or companionship. I was some-one who I can take to my bed at night and show off to my business partners. Her abilities help me so greatly William san…” William looked confused,

“What is the point of this Dragon?”

“The point is I am the fool, not you William san…you were my greatest fighter and I wish you well.” he placed a briefcase before him. Dragon then stood and bowed. He slowly walked off into the thong of people and dissapeared. William waited a long moment before picking it breifcase. He popped the locks and opening it slowly,

He started to laugh…

[Credits Roll, Fade to black]