HELLCAT

by Michael W. Huard

  Blu gave him wicked smile and pointed at him. “You and me later, us,” she teased. Blu and Mahira watched as he lifted the rising gateway and the pair walked forward.

  Their opponents came out at the same time from the other end of the outdoor field. The crowd was set back in stands all about, and everyone loved watching these crazy fights. This time it was not a usual fight. The odd creatures that came out on the other side were not human.

  The mixing of DNA and the advancements in cloning were on full display here as a twosome strode out, both with the appearance of a horse crossed with a bear. The audience was freaked out but excited to see such monstrosities. Mahira looked to Blu, “How sad is it that the Corp does this shit to animals?”

  Blu replied, “What the . . . how do we fight those big bad asses?”

  Mahira answered, “Stay together, go for the legs, and watch out for their big ass bear paws and teeth.”

  Blu nodded, “Okayyyyyyy.”

  There was no time for formalities as the horse-bears came in very fast, each then circled to different sides trying to confuse the women. Then the things charged and reared up in an attempt to stomp each of their opponents on the head.

  “Drop flat," Mahira yelled to her sister, "then roll away from me.” Blu did just that as the horse-bears kicked out. They missed as each of the women disappeared underneath them. Now about to get up with her axe in hand, Mahira yelled for Blu to come back around to her. One of the horse-bears again came at Mahira, leaning down to chomp on her with its grizzly oversized maw. The fiery gladiator wanted none of that and swooped down to her left, using her big axe to slice the things legs out from under it. The massive horse-bear toppled forward. Blu came around as instructed, but not in time to avoid the other horse-bear as it charged at her, driving to ram her over. It hit her solidly, and she went flying, but Mahira threw her axe down and caught her friend with both hands, swinging her about and trying to pull her to safety.

  However, the nearby downed horse-bear bit out, and Blu got a chunk taken out of her right ankle. “Yowsaaaaaaa,” she yelled, landing near her friend. “That hurt!” she screamed out as she took her sword and punctured the chomping horse-bear in the side of its big head. The beast still kept biting, so Mahira tossed her axe with a great heave and impaled it right into the horse-bear's forehead. It did not move again after that.

  The other big horse-bear was back, biting and kicking at Mahira. Blu started to go around again but Mahira scolded her. “Stay near me, and finish this thing when I am done," she commanded.

  With no axe, the hellcat of a fighter backed up to draw the beast further forward. She took a running leap onto the fallen creature that was up ahead on its side. Mahira held her hand up and yelled to Blu, “Throw me your sword.” Blu swiftly flipped the blade to her sister as Mahira jumped onto the beast's head and neck. A paw caught her in motion and gave her a decent cut on her right under arm, but it did not stop her actions. She had no time to look at it. Taking the sword, she drove its length down into the head of the oddity she was riding. It bucked and reared as it struggled to survive, and Mahira was suddenly thrown from it, landing hard on the turf. The creature also dropped and the victory was theirs.

  Later in the training room, Blu was examining her ankle and digging for IHF in her pack. She sprayed the instant healing formula onto her wound and looked to her friend, Mahira. “Did you even suffer a scratch?” she asked, scowling.

  Mahira showed her the little cut under her arm. “Yeah, one of those bear things got me.”

  Blu frowned, “That’s nothing!”

  Other fighters were in the room, as were their trainers. One such team now entered for the first time with a bloodied fighter who was hanging on his corner's shoulder, barely able to even walk. He was an Asian fellow with tight cropped hair, and by the looks of him, he was almost dead from a neck wound. That’s when Lomax rushed in behind them.

  He hustled to his friends. “Listen, it's going down. Both of you need to get out of here, now,” he insisted, warning that the entire academy could go up at any time. All three of them moved quickly and headed to get out to Blu’s ship.

  Mahira looked to Lomax as they jogged, “Are you sure? We’re not going to get any funds for the sisterhood by leaving like this.”

  Lomax assured her, “I am positive, get us in the air, Blu . . . now! We have no time to spare,” he added.

  They boarded the big hummer vessel and rose up high into the air. In less than minute of them leaving . . . explosions and chaos broke out below.

  Strategically placed bombs exploded all about. Blu looked to her companions, “What the . . . they’re killing innocents, don’t they know that?” More explosions went off, and in no time at all, the entire academy was a burning mess. People scrambled any which way they could, and the Corporation's drones zoomed about the area to look for culprits. The big shot guest of the Y-Wood conglomerate, whoever it was this time, had probably just died in the bombings. This was a major attack!

  The drones shot and massacred anyone and everyone running about, there was no concern over whether they were guilty or not. There was no time to watch anymore, as it wouldn't be long before the drones would start to focus on them. “Go, move out quickly," Lomax called out. "We can’t be blamed for this, or they will come at us too . . . goooooooo!”

  As the sky captain took them to Rhode Island, they all hoped Tyne Gem was safe in a different location. Mahira wanted answers and asked Lomax his thoughts. “What are these people doing the attack really thinking?”

  Lomax was busy texting via his watch as they flew onward at speed. He eventually looked up at her. “They think any attack on the Corporation is a good one, that’s where they are sadly mistaken. Innocent people dying just defeats the purpose of striking out in rebellion,” he explained. “It creates an even a bigger mess to be honest,” he added.

  “It’s a crazy world," Blu announced with a sarcastic yelp. "Hold on, kiddos, we’re going to be hitting turbulence in a just a sec.” The ship rocked heavily but she regained balance. “Rhode Island is just over there,” she pointed out.

  The conversation went on and all agreed Y-Wood had to be stopped. People everywhere were losing their minds. Poverty had revealed its nasty face, and survival of the fittest was taking over the divided country. They sailed the sky for several more minutes with a deep silence between them.

  “I guess I’m with you girls until we get back to underground Boston,” Lomax broke the tension.

  “It’s threesome time!” Blu laughed. Mahira and Lomax just shook their heads at her silly statement.

  “Lots of good Atlantic ocean around here," Lomax pointed out. "At one time, this state thrived on such activity, but not so much today. Where we are heading is called Newport, and as you will soon see, the state is small and pretty much a wasteland now, except for the old Baron’s house where we are flying to.”

  Blu knew the area, but little of the history of the place, much less who resided there.

  Both the ladies listened as he went on. “This ocean front chateau is huge and marveled by many to this day. It was once called The Breakers,” he added as the ship captain’s home came into view. Being a reporter sent Lomax and Raegan to many of the various rich spots across the nation.

  “We’re a few days early," explained Lomax, "but you can see them setting up on the grounds right over by the ocean cliffs. The setting is pretty amazing.”

  Blu said, “Well we can assume one thing, there’s a lot of money here. So we can also assume that Corporation people will be in full force, as will their security.”

  Mahira agreed, adding, “We could use the money after the Connecticut debacle.”

  Lomax tossed out one final thought, “It’s pretty sad if you think about it, for a state that's founded on freedom and respected nationwide, and it's come to this. A single place for the rich and wealthy, and the rest is for the rats that live in the broken down hovels nearby.”

  B
lu zoomed ahead and eventually lowered her hummer ship down onto a safe landing spot. The electric door rose up and the stairs lowered down as she motioned for them to exit, “Ladies and gentlemen, we have arrived at your destination,” she announced with a grin.

  Chapter 10

  The setup around the old sea mansion was extravagant and completely unlike any other random fighting event. The seascape around the arena offered the best of views, not only of fighting, but for all patrons' scenic pleasure as well.

  Once again, Corporation flags were flying all about. The event's special guest, broadcast earlier, was the secretary of the Y-Wood Corporation, Chancellor Tessa. The rich leaders of the various towns and cities were flocking to see the secretary as the three companions disembarked Blu’s ship.

  Chancellor Tessa was accompanied by several bodyguards, company clones, part robot and part handsome man. They appeared strong and were known to be highly intelligent beings. There was no doubt several so-called wealthy businessmen were attending as many aircrafts were seen at the docking station, and some were quite expensive to say the least.

  Everybody would probably be on the road to Boston after this competition for the granddaddy of all combative fights, not to mention the party of the year, one the Corporation spared no expense on.

  It was there in Boston where all the biggest deals went down. The bloodshed was only part of the fun of making money. However, today's event was done with class, but lots of money was to be spent here too.

  The competitors all lined up and were announced to the people before them. There were many different types of competitors, although Mahira was not all that concerned about her opponents. She hadn't earned the money she had hoped for in Connecticut, so this competition's money would be very valuable to the sisterhood. She was going to win, she just felt it.

  One notable difference was that children were allowed at this event, whereas they were not at others. Many had gathered in awe around Mahira and a few of the other contestants.

  With the Corporation birthing restrictions in full swing, it was nice to see so many children out and about. Mahira had a soft spot for the young ones.

  She happily signed autographs for the kids, mostly girls, and hugged each and every one of them as was the teaching of Mother's writings; a hug is the greatest gift you can give someone. One little girl had waited until the very end for Mahira's autograph. She had long brown hair and the face of an angel with eyes that were a unique blend of blue on one side and green on the other. She approached the gladiator and passed her a marker to sign a shirt, one that had a flag on it. The child seemed to be quite shy and reluctant to hand over the shirt, but was obviously keen to talk to her idol. Mahira crouched down to listen to the young girl's whispers. “I can't really show anybody this, but I thought you would sign it, that's why I waited,” she smiled up at Mahira. “I have seen these colors on drawings my friends did of you, and I'm so excited that you're here.”

  Mahira patted the young girl on her head and signed the shirt for her. She then whispered to the little one, “You’re right to keep this shirt and the image on it a secret. Most people don't believe in what that flag stands for anymore, it's been a long, long time since it was recognized.”

  The young girl had a giant smile on her face as she replied, “Yes, it will be our secret.”

  Mahira smiled back. She needed to go and prepare for the fight, but just as she was about to turn and leave, she crouched down again and spoke quietly into the little girl's ear. “What is your name? I want to always remember it.”

  The girl replied, "My name is Ellery Fanning Hope.”

  Mahira scratched her head at that one. “Well, that's an awful long name!”

  “But all my buddies call me Hope,” she chuckled.

  Mahira touched the child’s face, “I see now, that's a beautiful name. I want you to always remember something, young lady. No matter how bad the world appears to be, and no matter how hard it is to believe in something better, just like your name says, always hope, okay?”

  Mahira gave the girl one last hug, and little Hope watched as the woman tuned and walked away. She said quietly to herself, “That’s the type of lady I would go to war with, not against.” She held out hope that Mahira would be the winner of the games.

  When the fighters were all announced, there was one that certainly stood out from the rest. Once the formal proceedings were done with, the large robot in full black armor and a face lit up in red, a certain prodigy, was made note of by Lomax.

  He found out quickly this bot was the Corporation’s multimillion-dollar fighter for today's competition. Unbeknown to Lomax, it was the same robot that destroyed Tyne Gem’s very special friend, Xaltus, and his family back in Delaware. There was no telling what Tyne would do if she saw him again.

  Mahira’s seaside fight got off to a rousing start. A fairly decent-sized woman, showing some pretty thick muscle and a beefy kind of belly to match, came out to battle.

  She had messy, dyed black hair with streaks of blond in it, some seriously ugly snake tattoos on one arm, and a large bloody knife tattoo on the other. For a weapon, she was holding a sword, which was slightly forked at the tip, and it had a groove down the center that could be used to catch other weapons and disarm her opponent.

  Mahira had enough time to kneel and do her customary point to the sky.

  Drums were heard and the beat rose louder and louder until they came to a crescendo and suddenly stopped.

  The tree trunk of a solid woman came towards Mahira, being cheered on by the name of Bertha. Bertha immediately came in swinging her arms like a mad woman. Mahira dodged several of her cuts and circled left. The woman swung again, and this time Mahira knocked the odd woman's weapon to the side.

  This particular crowd, more of a rich crew, was not as loud as some of the smaller events that Mahira had fought at, and the hellcat looked to the stands for a brief moment to see her friends, Lomax and Blu, watching on anxiously.

  To have good friends in this mad world mattered so much to Mahira. The sisterhood and all that it represented meant everything to this warrior girl. She had already come to the conclusion years before, that if she died fighting in any of these fighting arenas, she was dying for a good cause. She found herself thinking about this and yelled to the crowd while looking up at her friends, “Live free, or die!”

  The Bertha fighter could not care less about her rants, and came at Mahira again.

  As Bertha attacked with her blade, Mahira parried it and sliced across the woman's shoulders, cutting a deep gash into her frame.

  The woman screamed out in pain and spun around for some serious revenge. She struck out in sheer anger. But, anger is never the friend of a fighter. A fighter must keep a focused mind and find peace within to be able to stay sharp. Otherwise, it could cause a fighter to do things that are not so skilled and often wind up with the fighter being dead.

  Bertha came in with a mad rage and lifted her sword high in the air, hoping for a downward brain spattering blow on the dirty-blond hellcat before her.

  The gladiator slid left slightly to knock the blow away, she then turned her blade in the opposite direction and whipped it at the woman's neck, slicing through the carotid artery in one expertly smooth swipe.

  The wide lady instantly dropped to the playing surface with a thud as blood poured from the gaping wound.

  The crowd cheered loudly for the woman in red, white, and blue. She was becoming a legend, and they were excited to see her again later on against much stiffer competition.

  Mahira joined her friends for a bit after her victory, and they helped her to relax some in preparation for her second fight. They waited anxiously until the news came in about her next opponent. It was to be a wild beast, a ferocious lion that had won at a previous event and awed the onlookers. However, he had been badly injured and was taken out of the event by his caretakers who wanted to save him for another day.

  Lomax and Blu went o
ut to watch a few of the other matches and study Mahira’s predicted opponent for the finals. Lomax already knew whom she would be facing.

  The black and red robot easily defeated both his opponents within mere seconds. Lomax watched as the last one was snapped in half, and he turned to Blu. She was scrunching her face up in concern. “That thing is nuts,” she blurted out, shaking her head at Lomax.

  Lomax looked concerned too. “Hey, I'm no fighter, I've been training and learned some martial arts and weapons and stuff, but this guy is not normal. You hit him, but he doesn't crack. You try to move him, but he doesn't flinch.”

  Blu scowled, “Shit, she can take him.” Lomax was not so sure.

  This robot had a long metal spear with an end that opened wider and was barbed at the tip. The super robot made his way across the arena after winning his last match and held it high up to the richest of the rich fans up in special box seats. The chancellor looked down on him, and she figured he would be champion later tonight when the lights came on.

  As darkness rolled in, the final match was set. It would be Mahira against the Corporation's expensive powerful robot creation. The drums then began to play, slow and steady at first.

  Mahira was meditating in the back room, and she envisioned herself defeating this robot as she had always been taught in her training . . . one must think and see if one is to become. Next week she knew was the biggest week in the sisterhood’s lifetime. The Y-Wood Corporation controlled the entire nation. They dictated all walks of life, and their army of robots was growing by the day. She had to finish this final match, and with her winnings, she would help fund that last element needed to take down Y-Wood.

  She had always believed in herself, and this time was no different.