by Night, H. T.
“There are no bunkers in this arena,” Tommy answered. “The only thing that’s underground is actually right below where we are standing. There is a storage room right underneath the ring. It’s big enough for people to walk and store things in.”
“Store things like a body! Tommy, do you think there’s a chance they’re keeping her right below where we are fighting?”
“It fits Romero’s sick profile,” Tommy said, now he was coughing up blood. “It’s the kind of sick, twisted shit he gets off on.”
“We need to tear through the floor!” I said.
“How do you propose we do that?” Tommy couldn’t even stand up straight, let alone rip into the ring floor.
I looked around the arena and saw multiple fire extinguishers at each exit of the arena. Next to each fire extinguisher was an axe in a plastic case.
“Tommy, there are at least four axes in the arena.”
“How do you suggest I pick up an ax with my claws, Josiah?”
“Trust me, you and I need to sell this fight. We will take turns beating each other up so it looks like we have the leverage. We need to tear through the ring floor and get to Lena. In my heart, I know she is underneath us. What is the floor made of?”
“This whole place is made of wood. Romero is too cheap to make it out of anything else.”
“We need to trade off taking the advantage. I’m going to knock you down, go with it and just take my lead.” I backed up and came at Tommy. I flew up in the air in my Mani form. The crowd cheered, they loved it when I did that. I was about twenty feet up and I shot my body into Tommy’s werewolf body, feet first, absolutely laying him out. My contact was pretty ferocious. Maybe too ferocious, I was trying to sell it, but I think I injured a ‘battered’ Tommy even worse.
“Holy shit, Josiah that freaking hurt!” Tommy said, as he laid in the middle of the ring.
“Just stay down,” I said.
I flew back up and circled the arena in the air. At all four exits were a fire extinguisher and an ax. Only Romero would leave a weapon like an ax out in the open in this primitive, Third World arena. The more I thought about it, this place was a piece of shit. It only gave the illusion of being an upper world-class arena. I flew down and punched a hole in one of the plastic cases that was holding an ax. I grabbed the ax from the inside. I held the ax in my right hand. I flew to the other side of the ring and did the same thing to grab a second ax.
Tommy wasn’t doing much of anything in the middle of the ring. He was just lying there in absolute misery. That poor guy was in a hell of a lot of pain. Hopefully, this would soon be over. I flew back into ring with an ax in both hands. The crowd roared and stood up. They were bloodthirsty. You would think they had seen enough. But the nature of man is an animalistic one. It is kill or be killed. And, unfortunately, there is something spectacular about watching two men fight it out to the death.
I dropped one ax on one side of the ring. “Okay, Tommy, move to the middle of the ring.” Tommy then rolled to the center. “When I count to three, move out of the way! I’m going to strike the ring floor with everything I have.”
“One, two, three…” I counted in my head and Tommy rolled out of the way. I struck the ax as hard as I could into the ring floor. The ax made a three-foot gash right smack-dab down the center of the ring. I looked down at the damage and I could only imagine that we would have to do this about thirty to forty times between the two of us to make our way to Lena.
“You ready, Tom? You’re going to have to transition to your Carni form and grab an ax. It’s time for us to shred through this motherfucker floor and get to Lena!”
Tommy transitioned, to the delight of the crowd. He went to the other side of the ring and grabbed his ax. This must have looked like the most barbaric thing anyone had ever seen. Two grown men having a good old-fashioned ax fight. Not switchblades, but axes.
“Let’s take turns dominating,” I said. “Let’s do the one, two, three, count.”
So, Tommy and I proceeded to take turns dominating one another. We tore through that floor with everything we had, each of us taking turns. We started in the center and worked our way out. The crowd was going absolutely berserk with excitement as we wrecked the place. It was a spectacle to behold. We took turns beating each other up. We would pretend to be so hurt we couldn’t get up, and then the other one would annihilate the stage with the force of the ax. This went on for about twenty minutes. I was exhausted. I could only imagine how insanely tired Tommy must have been. He was reaching deep into a place that I never knew he had. It was fight or flight, and my boy was fighting to the bitter end.
Then, it finally happened. I whaled down so hard with my ax that I cracked right through the ceiling of the storage space and we both fell into the storage space, a couple of feet from where Lena was being held.
There was one of Romero’s goons with a knife to Lena’s neck. In a split second, I broke the goon’s neck. Tommy and looked around and apparently, he was the only guard in the storage space.
I then turned to Lena. She was tied down and gagged. Tommy quickly transitioned to the werewolf and ripped through her knots with his claws and got her free. She seemed real weak, almost as if she didn’t understand what was happening to her.
“Tommy, jump up,” I said, “Make it look like you have the advantage over me, as far as the audience is concerned.”
Tommy nodded and as the werewolf, he climbed out slowly. He was absolutely exhausted.
I took the gag out of Lena’s mouth. She was sweating and very dirty. She had bruises all over her arms and legs. These guys are going to pay for what they have done to her.
“Are you okay?” I asked. I held her in my arms. I looked up at the ceiling and I could see Tommy in his werewolf body parading around as if he had killed me.
“It’s been a rough couple of days, Josiah,” Lena said, weakly. “I’m not going to lie.”
“Is everything okay? Regarding the pregnancy?” I asked, holding my breath.
“I’m pretty sure everything is still okay,” Lena answered. “I just need to get out of here.”
“I know you do, sweetheart. Listen, Tommy knows this place better than I do. Stay here. Tommy will be back down and he’s going to get you out safely.” I kissed her forehead.
To everyone’s surprise, even Tommy’s, I flew back up into the ring. Once they saw I was still alive, the audience stopped chanting Tommy’s name.
“You couldn’t let me have my little moment, could you? Josiah?” Tommy joked. Even in his painful state, he had his sense of humor.
“You’re going to need to transition back to your Carni form. I’m going to throw you back down to Lena and you’re going to get Lena out of here. You’ve been through more than enough tonight. This fight isn’t over. Romero and his men are going to pay for what they have done. There’s a safe place near here. Get Lena outside and she’ll take you there. Just tell Lena to take you to the Deity.
Tommy nodded. “How do you want to kill me? Let’s make this good!” Tommy said, always the showman, even in his exhaustion.
“All right, just go with it,” I said.
Tommy transitioned back into his Carni form. We were once again and for the last time, squared off. He and I traded punches, allowing each other to land blow after blow at our faces. I definitely took something off my punches, but Tommy was letting me have it, full on.
“Now,” I said. I uppercut Tommy and he flew back onto his back and played it like he was completely passed out.
I went over to him and threw him through the hole in the floor. I grabbed the ax and Tommy and Lena moved to the side as I jumped in with the ax over my head and came down with a furious chop. I slammed the ax in to the left of Tommy and Lena. It made a frightening sound that could be heard all throughout the arena. It appeared to the crowd that I had just obliterated Tommy. I rose out of the hole in my Mani looking down, as if I had just killed my friend and couldn’t stand the thought of it. The crowd chanted my n
ame as I pasted a sick and remorseful expression on my face. As far as they were concerned, I was the victor.
Now, it was time for phase two of my plan.
Chapter Thirty-two
I motioned to the announcer to bring the microphone up to me. My name was being echoed throughout the arena. I motioned for the audience to be quiet.
I looked around the arena and stared at all four corners of the audience and said, “I want every person or immortal to be out here to hear what I’m about to say. I need every fighter in the holding area to come out here!” I yelled into the microphone.
I looked around.
Where’s that piece of shit Romero?
Within a minute, the entire arena was filled with members of the crowd, soldiers and fighters. I looked out to everyone and I knew what I needed to say: “Tonight, some of you spent a lot of money to watch people eliminate one another from this earth. And others of you came down here out of curiosity. And there are still others of you who had no choice. You had to be here. The blood bath that you all witnessed was a primitive one. It was no worse than purchasing a ticket to watch Christians get eaten by lions.”
I paused and looked out to the crowd. I looked at Romero’s soldiers and they seemed real jumpy. I knew I had better say and do what I wanted to, and quickly!
I continued my speech: “I stand before all of you tonight. Not victor of anything worth a damn. I defeated a man who fought until he was bloodied to the point of his own insanity. He was destroyed both physically and emotionally.”
I made my voice even more serious. “If any of you are under the illusion that any fighter in this room got paid tonight or any other night, you are sadly mistaken. No matter what you have been told, no fighter has ever been paid in this arena at any given time. Each one of us is paying off a debt. And some of us have been told that our families would be killed if we didn’t fight! I was one of them!”
Now, Romero’s men were scrambling around. Guns were drawn, I knew they wouldn’t shoot. There would be no way that Romero would give them the green light. I was more valuable to him alive than dead. There were far too many important people in the crowd. The soldiers began to spread out. They were anticipating something would go haywire and they were damn right.
“Immortals! I am now speaking to you! You may have owed a debt to Romero, to this underground society. I’m telling you tonight, if you fought just one fight, you have paid him back in full. He is making you pay him back pennies on the dollar!”
Now I had the attention of all the fighters. if I hadn’t already had their ears and eyes.
I continued, “Tonight it ends! Tonight, this underground dungeon that he calls a prize arena is finished! Join me, fighters! Join me! It doesn’t matter if you’re Carni or Mani! Tonight, we fight together! They might have fire power! But we have something far greater! WE HAVE IMMORTALITY!”
I dropped the microphone and all hell broke loose. The fighters turned on the soldiers and all-out war erupted inside the arena.
It was the beginning of a battle for the ages. I wish I could tell the tale that it was a massacre in favor of the fighters that were being exploited. But it wasn’t. It was a massacre, nonetheless, but for both sides.
Yes, the fighters did prevail, but not without a serious number of casualties. In less than a half hour, hundreds died in that arena. Most of millionaires and billionaires got out alive. No one had any beef with them. They were just bloodthirsty fans. Some didn’t make it out, and that was unfortunate.
Mani and Carni fought aggressively alongside one another on this night. It was a beautiful sight to behold. Within minutes, we turned the arena upside down. Fires broke out and nearly every soldier died. The ones who didn’t fled like cowards. When all was said and done, only one hundred and twenty Mani and Carni survived. We lost more than half our men.
In the end, the only casualty that mattered to me was Romero’s life. He was going to pay for all seven of his deadly sins and whatever other ones he had committed in his lifetime.
He had made it out to his helicopter. He was about five miles just outside the compound, flying the helicopter by himself.
I got word that he had taken off out of there. I had never appreciated being able to fly more than I did at this moment. I took off in the direction of the helicopter and I caught up to him shortly.
He was zigzagging the chopper across the sky, trying to avoid me, but he knew his fate. I flew above the helicopter and looked him in the eye from outside the window. I wanted him to see my face. I got to the open doorway of the copter and grabbed him and ripped him from his seat. I held him in my arms, 5,000 feet in the air.
“Please, Josiah. Spare me! At least let me become one of you. Please don’t let me die,” he screamed, as he dangled in the sky.
“Romero, you’re the worst human being, or immortal for that matter, that I have known. You don’t deserve to live your life as either.” With that, I dropped him and watched as he fell to the ground below. It was finished.
I flew back to his compound. By this point, the entire compound was set on fire, Waco style.
To the left of the compound, the remaining fighters stood in an open field, watching the place blaze up. I flew over and landed in front of them.
The one hundred and twenty Carni and Mani who stood in front of me no longer had any direction or purpose. I was about to give it to them.
As Romero’s compound went up in flames behind me, I stood in front of these amazing warriors who had fought for something tonight that was as great as any human or immortal could ever fight for. Tonight, they fought for their freedom.
“Warriors!” I yelled to the men, “Tonight, you have proven that you could stand and fight alongside enemies. Tonight, I ask you to join me in one more battle, a battle greater than even your freedom, a battle that will free all of us from the bondage of hate. Will you join me against an enemy even worse than the man we defeated tonight?”
“We’ll follow you anywhere, Josiah,” a Carni man yelled out.
“So will we!” a Mani man yelled, too.
I looked around the group. These were the toughest men in the world and they were now on my side.
I finally had my army.
Chapter Thirty-three
Before we went home, I went to the Deity to see if Lena and Tommy had made it there okay.
When I arrived there, I went down into the bunker myself. I made my way to the back room where I had previously met the Deity. Both Tommy and Lena were lying on the floor being cared for by the Deity and some children.
Tommy looked up at me and smiled. The children had done a pretty good job cleaning him up.
“You did good tonight, Tommy,” I said.
He nodded his head and smiled. “We good?”
“We’re good,” I said. “Romero won’t be exploiting any more immortals. Romero won’t be doing much of anything.”
I looked at Lena and she seemed to being doing okay. The children were giving her food and water.
“Are you okay?” I asked Lena.
“Yes, I am,” she reached her arms out to me.
I knelt down and hugged her. “I am so sorry that this happened to you,” I said.
“Josiah, it had to happen,” Lena said. “Everything had to happen for all things to come to pass.”
I looked over at the Deity and said, “She is starting to sound like you.”
The Deity smiled and said, “You have an amazing woman, Josiah.”
“I know I do.” I looked over at Tommy and said, “I have an amazing best friend, too.”
“Josiah,” the Deity said. “You’re going to need to take Lena back and get ready. You will have more challenges to come not to mention a couple of bundles of joy.”
I smiled. “I can’t wait.” I sat down in between Tommy and Lena and just collapsed.
“Are you okay?” Lena asked.
“Yeah, Josiah,” Tommy said. “What about you?”
“I’m great guys.” I paused an
d then said, “Oh, by the way. We are going to have a few more houseguests, one hundred and twenty to be exact.”
They both looked at me, surprised.
I leaned back on the ground of the bunker and knew from this moment on, my destiny and my family were one. I was forever going to live by one strict code to defeat Krull: That strict code was ‘One Love.’
To be continued in:
One Love
Vampire Love Story Book #5
Available in ebookstores everywhere
Return to the Table of Contents
WEREWOLF LOVE STORY
Part One
Published by H.T. Night at Smashwords.com
Copyright © 2010 by H.T. Night
All rights reserved.
(Author’s note: All characters depicted in this work of fiction are 18 years of age or older.)
Dedication
I dedicate this novel to my family.
Acknowledgment
Special thanks to Eve Paludan J.R. Rain, April M. Reign and Sandy Johnston for all their help.
Werewolf Love Story:
Part One
Chapter One
Practice was a bitch. Mo, my trainer, kicked my ass. These five-hour practices would have to stop once I was champion. That was a long way off, considering that I only had one professional fight behind me. I knocked out the poor guy in less than a minute; I had a long road ahead of me until I got to the top.
I’m a mixed martial arts fighter in the state of California. I was a collegiate wrestling champion for Arizona State, and after college, there wasn’t much I could do when my only skill was wrestling other guys on a cold, hard mat. So, I went into mixed martial arts training and got quickly addicted to the sport. So much so that I decided to make it my career.
