“Havoc you should take better care of your woman, or should I say my woman.” The tall fiendish man smirked and Havoc’s eyes narrowed at the man who was responsible for he and Donnie meeting. Her ex-boyfriend Sam. “Hey Donnie, you missed me?” Sam asked then licked Donnie’s cheek making her cringe. Infuriated, Havoc broke from Nature’s grip then dropped to his knee from a sharp blow behind the head.
“Wha-what are you doing here Sam?” Donnie managed to ask.
“The same as everyone else baby. To see your boyfriend die. And reclaim what’s mines! You should have never left me Donnie.”
“No, she should have just stayed with you and allowed you to continue beating up on her!” Havoc snarled.
“Shut up! If I want your opinion I’ll beat it out of you! Matter’a fact why ain’t that son-of-a-bitch dead?” Sam asked Nature.
Havoc spun at Nature. “So now what? You gonna kill me?”
Nature cut an eye at Sam but continued speaking to Havoc, “No…him!” he raised his gun and blew Sam’s brains out. Donnie screamed hysterically as Sam’s head exploded and she was doused with blood and brains. “Oh for Crying out loud! He’s dead!” Nature said to Donnie then shot Sam’s twitching corpse again causing it to stop moving. “See? He’s dead!” the Shaman shouted this time shooting another lifeless body. “And so’s he!” Nature said and shot a dead body playing possum that screamed then writhed and twisted before expiring for real. Nature looked up at Donnie and Havoc, “…Well the mothafucka’s dead now!”
Chapter 38
“This a’way!” Nature directed with the hand that held his gun as they headed past a boarded-up Nathan’s restaurant.
Donnie walked quietly wishing she had listened to Havoc when he told her to shoot Nature. But she knew there was no way she could have done that. She wasn’t a killer. Perhaps Havoc knew that as well, which is why he shot her a warm smile that told her he wasn’t upset with her.
“Where the hell are you taking us?” Havoc stopped and demanded to know.
“All in due time.” Nature said waving his gun for emphasis.
Havoc began walking again and kept a worried eye out for his sister and dog but neither was anywhere to be found. He looked over at Donnie and cursed himself for bringing her into his problems.
“Stop!” Nature said when they reached the boardwalk. He blasted the lock off of the ticket booth of a children’s roller coaster then waved at Donnie. “You-inside.”
Donnie looked at Havoc who nodded for her to go ahead and assured her that everything would be okay. Keeping his gun drawn on Havoc, Nature tipped over the large ten-foot smiling caterpillar statue outside of the booth’s ride and barricaded Donnie inside.
“Proceed.” Nature instructed as he led Havoc down a long flight of stairs towards the beach.
After walking a short distance Nature stopped. “This is far enough. So, you’re probably wondering why I brought you all the way down here.”
“The thought crossed my mind.” Havoc said.
Nature yanked off his jacket to display a beautifully designed shirt with green, yellow and red horizontal stripes of equal size across his chest. At the center was a mighty gold lion marching east carrying a cross and wearing a gold crown.
“You see this? This is the Imperial Flag of Ethiopia. Inside is The Lion of Judah, which symbolizes the Emperor of Ethiopia and represents the king of kings.” Nature said proudly then paused and let out a heartfelt sigh. “I am the son of a tribal chief. A great leader who sat in a circle with other elders at tribal meetings and because his opinion mattered most, was always the last to speak! I’m a descendant of royalty! But, whenever I look at this I do not think about all the power and greatness this emblem represents. All I see is your face mocking me! Because thanks to you, the closest I will ever come to my homeland again is this blasted shirt!”
“Cheer up Buttercup. At least you’re not stuck in Jersey” Havoc smiled
“Funny guy,” Nature bared his sharp teeth with disdain. “The first time we fought, Trouble Consultant, Po Po interrupted us. The second time, we were disrupted once again before we could learn who between us is the superior fighter. I’ve been in countless combative situations. All effortless victories. But you my bloody dressed friend are the only opponent who’s ever made me ask myself, what the fuck, if we would have gone the distance. So, I think it’s high time we separated the men from the boys and find out who truly is the baddest. Just you and me. No dogs,” he said then held up his gun and flung it over the boardwalk. “And no weapons.”
“Works for me,” Havoc said calmly as he removed his hat and stripped down to a red wife-beater. Nature’s eyes instinctively widened at the Ashanti tribal tattoos on his muscular arms.
“Those fraudulent markings won’t help you here boy. Not today!” Nature laughed.
“Let’s find out!” Havoc said jumping into a fighting stance fists raised.
With hands raised combatively and eyes locked, the two circled one another like hungry wolves looking for an opportunity to strike. Nature’s nostrils flared and his eyes winced as he set off the match with dirty tactics by kicking sand into Havoc’s face and pouncing onto his back, digging his claws into his back like a wild dog. Havoc tossed him off and the two went at each other like a couple of alley cats, almost like a hockey fight, not aiming punches, just keeping them fast and furious.
Nature hauled off and belted Havoc hard in the jaw. The Trouble Consultant took a couple of steps back and shook it off then bounced right back with four-and five-punch combinations making Nature a staggering wreck and he collapsed forward onto Havoc clutching him into the fold. As the two wrestled, Nature reached behind his back then in a flash something sharp raked across Havoc’s chest cutting him deep. Havoc jumped back clutching his chest and strained at what appeared to be a claw-like apparatus with four razor sharp talons in Nature’s grasp.
“First rule of the beast, always strike when you see an opening!” Nature said with a devilish leer then rushed Havoc slashing at him from all angles.
Havoc moved like lightning, flipping, dipping, dodging every razor-sharp swing by a fraction of an inch then lifted Nature four feet into the air with an awesome uppercut putting him on his back in the sand.
“And the second rule, Dance with the Devil and you pay for the tunes!” Havoc smugly retorted.
With an embarrassed snort, Nature rolled his knees into his chest then performed a kip up and landed on his feet. He spit blood onto the sand then smiled at Havoc impressed. “I see you are well trained in the art of hand to hand combat and quite disciplined. Excellent! This means I’ll have to earn my victory. But fighting out here in the open is for amateurs, which it appears neither of us are, so let’s make this interesting.” He said then spun on his heels, yanked open a rusted gate and disappeared beneath the boardwalk.
Havoc reached the entrance and stared into the pitch black beneath it. He was about to step in when his logical side asked, “Man are you crazy? I know you ain’t about to step foot under there where that deranged lunatic went. Just look at what he did to your chest!”
Havoc looked down at his wounds. They weren’t life threatening, but they were deep enough that he’d have more ugly scars to add to his collection. “Imagine what that freak’ll do to you under there where its cramped, dark and hard to maneuver!” His illogical side quickly reminded him that if he didn’t go after Nature now he’d have to face him later and with his sister still missing, it might be too late. After a few moments of debating, he listened to his logical side removed his dog whistle from his shirt and blew into it hard then he pushed open the creaky gate sighed and entered the dark unknown.
Beneath the boardwalk the air was musty, thick and damp. Havoc could hardly see his own hand in front of his face because the only sources of light was the moonlight faintly peeking through the wooden slats overhead. Remembering his trusty lighter, he flicked it on then creeped past old splintered beams covered in seaweed. A
s he moved cautiously, herky-jerky movements reached out from the dark looking as though something would jump out and grab him at any minute.
“Yea, though I walk through the valley in the shadow of death I shall fear no evil…cause I’m the meanest son-of-a-bitch in the motherfucking valley!” Havoc muttered to himself then something moved behind him and he spun around and smashed his fist into a wooden beam weak and pulpy from sea water, shattering it into matchsticks. He cursed out in pain then froze as diabolical laughter echoed over the distant roar of the crashing waves.
“This country, what a joke it is!” Nature’s voice cut through silence and darkness. Havoc waved the lighter all around unable to locate the source. “Here, rites of passage mean having your first underage drink of alcohol then passing out intoxicated in a puddle of your own waste only to wake up next to a woman whose name you can’t recall much less the events of the night before. But in my country that phrase takes on a far more significant meaning. At sixteen the chief of your clan chooses 3 rituals for you to undergo that test your mind, body and courage before you can truly be considered a man. The first test was based on my studies, understanding and comprehension of my beloved homeland and ancestors to instill self-pride and knowledge of thyself. The second was trial by combat which I had been preparing for since birth, training in multiple fighting styles like Musangwe, a South African form of bare fist fighting and Nuba Wrestling, popular in South Sudan. Both trials I breezed through with ease, as I was the best and brightest student and most fiercest fighter in my age group. But for my final task I had to go out into the underbrush alone for three days and nights without any supplies, weapons or food to track down and kill a lion. The killing of the beast signifies the final test of manhood and by drinking its blood it is said that you are endowed with supernatural qualities of the beast itself. Of course, it is always customary to bring back a souvenir.”
Havoc rubbed the fresh claw marks on his chest courtesy of Nature’s souvenir as he listened trying to pinpoint the source of his voice. His eyes flashed around the shadowed space where every corner of darkness held lethal promise. “Damn, all that by sixteen? I guess they don’t have social services where you’re from huh? Well my story’s a tad bit different. I honed my skills and earned my stripes on the streets of Brooklyn where we do things a helluva’ lot different. Cause in case you didn’t realize this ain’t the jungle,” The Trouble Consultant called out as he moved about in the darkness.
“No, but it is the concrete jungle. So the same rules apply!”
Something wet dripped on top of Havoc’s head and he paused to wipe it off. He held his lighter to his hand and winced at his palm. It was red. It was blood. Blood that didn’t belong to him. Blood that dropped down, from up above. ‘Shit!’ Another drop hit his shoulder then ran down his arm. And slowly, he lifted his lighter. Looking directly up, he strained at the darkness. “What the fuck?” he whispered. Something was up there. Hiding. Something large and scary. And it was staring back at him. Was it smiling? He squinted then his eyes stretched wide in astonishment as he made out Nature hanging directly overhead from the wooden beams. But before Havoc could react, three hundred and fifty-three pounds of solid muscle fell out of the sky and washed over him like a tidal wave. Then two extremely different fighting styles collided!
The two enemies wrestled like wild animals, struggling, growling, snarling and roaring as lethal hand to hand techniques and spinning kicks were viciously traded. Throughout the barbaric exchange the fight escalated further beneath the boardwalk, resuming at a visually better location near the shoreline and beneath the moon. All the while, Havoc mindfully remained calm breathing deeply through his nose and exhaling from his mouth so as not to tire out unlike Nature who was sucking wind and already in the early stages of fatigue.
Havoc bobbed and weaved a tremendous punch and followed up with his own making Nature’s knees buckle. Nature snarled then charged forward slamming Havoc’s spine against a beam. Refusing to give him a chance to recuperate he angrily headbutted Havoc stunning him then followed up with two powerful face numbing right and left hooks. Taking advantage of the moment he threw back his head, jaws stretching wide and sunk his sharp teeth deep into Havoc’s shoulder blade. The Trouble Consultant yelled out in pain then moved Nature off of him with a stinging punch to the ear. Havoc slid halfway down a beam and grabbed his wound then looked on in disbelief as his enemy licked his blood from his lips.
“I’ve tasted the flesh and blood of many foes. Man, and beast. But yours Trouble Consultant, is by far the tastiest.” Nature said with a lascivious red grin.
“You sick fucking bastard!” Havoc shouted repulsed clutching the bite mark on his shoulder while using the beam behind him to help keep him on his feet.
“Never a truer word spoken.” Nature taunted and laughed.
Havoc suddenly felt off balance and slid to the floor. He looked at his wet red palm through blurred vision. Then at Nature for answers. “What the hell?”
“No, my fangs aren’t poisonous. But there is a mild tranquilizer drop in each I’m immune to, that’ll temporarily take the Trouble out of the Consultant.” He laughed pointing.
Havoc struggled to stand and stumbled forward tossing feeble punches as his enemy taunted and mocked him. Underestimating his foe and overestimating himself, Nature got too close and was socked in the face. Furious he grabbed Havoc’s shoulders and pulled him towards him kneeing him in the gut then began raining punches into his ribs and kidneys. When he was done punishing him he hoisted Havoc into the air and body slammed him onto his back. When the Trouble Consultant fought to get up a sharp knee was planted in the center of his chest pausing him.
“Look at you, you’re as pathetic as a band-aid on cancer.” Nature shook his head then leaned forward and brandished his lion’s claw. Holding its razor-sharp talons inches from Havoc’s face he sneered. “Tell me, do the ladies dig those hazel eyes of yours? I bet they do.” Feeling the effects of Nature’s fang toxin coursing through his veins, Havoc squirmed trying to escape but felt helpless.
“You…said…no weapons!” Havoc whispered struggling beneath his weight.
“I say lots of things. Few are true.” Nature said and grabbed Havoc’s face forcefully holding his head still. “Now calm down. I’m not greedy. I only want one eye. For a souvenir.”
“No!”
The sudden creak of a gate being pushed open ceased everything and was followed by a nightmarish snarling growl. Nature and Havoc both turned then observed a pair of glowing yellow eyes staring back at them floating in the darkness. Havoc let out a sigh of relief as Mayhem stepped out of the shadows, erect, legs bowed and feet widened in a muscular development patiently awaiting the four words that would set her off.
Havoc smiled at a shock-faced Nature, “You’ve got your weapons and I’ve got mines.” he then turned to his dog and shouted, “ALL-BETS-ARE-OFF!”
When his devoted dog heard the in case of emergency-break-glass command, eyes winced and teeth dripped saliva as something snapped and there was only one thing on her astute mind, attack! And don’t hold back! Then in a flash, Havoc and Mayhem were all over Nature attacking from every angle as a powerful team.
In a blurred ballet of lethal moves Nature used the amazing abilities and fighting skills he was force fed since exiting the womb to successfully defend himself against the furious man and his dog. A round housed kick caught Havoc high on the chest lifting him cleanly off his feet. Mayhem picked up the slack and leaped onto Nature’s chest biting him about the shoulders and arm. Exhausted and strained to the limit Havoc laid in the sand as Mayhem and his enemy tussled. Nature fell onto his back then forced an elbow against Mayhem’s throat trying to keep her at bay then with his other hand he reached back furtively and pulled his lion’s claw and buried it deep inside of her rib cage.
“Mayhem!” Havoc yelled as Mayhem let out a painful yelp.
Nature stood laughing sinisterly and maliciously kicked her th
rough the air with a metal-toed boot. Havoc stared at his dog writhing in the sand then looked at Nature and literally saw RED. His face twisted with hate and he felt a charge in his belly as he was engulfed by total and complete rage. He sprang to his feet like a man possessed, no longer under the influence of the toxin and charged. Nature met Havoc head-on, dropping into a low kick and sweeping the Trouble Consultant’s legs out from under him then opened fresh claw marks across Havoc’s back. Havoc was so high off of vengeance that he felt nothing. Gritting his teeth, he proceeded to paint Nature with powerful punches and combos. A devastating overhand left fractured his enemy’s jaw. A bone crushing right cross loosened his teeth. Then the Trouble Consultant moved downtown and unleashed rib shattering blows to painfully remind Nature that regardless of how much agony he was already in, it was possible to experience so much more.
Bloody, bruised and swollen with starry vision, Nature turned to run. “Oh no you don’t!” Havoc shouted as he grabbed the coward’s dreadlocks wrapping them around his fist. He then snatched him back and swung him wildly through the air crashing into a wooden beam face first. Down on his back defeated, Nature twitched in the sand, his nose a geyser of blood. Havoc tossed the fistful of dreadlocks ripped from his enemy’s skull to the sand and rushed to his dog’s side.
“Thank you for having my back.” He said and kissed her on the head stroking her head as she made a whining sound managing to wag her tail. A few feet away Nature sat up woozy with a concussion. He spotted Havoc and remembered he had one last trick up his sleeve. He reached into the small of his back removing something that would work. Havoc was nurturing Mayhem when she began growling and the Trouble Consultant looked up to find himself staring into the black muzzle of Nature’s semi-automatic. “You never planned on us fighting a fair one, did you?”
Havoc and Mayhem Page 45
