Hard Knocks
Prologue
The arena was a sweatshop of human misery. Over a thousand bodies were pressed against each other in suxocating prolimity. The shining ’ights from above showed the sweat that g’istened on everyoneIs foreheads. k cou’d see it soa,ing through the shirts of the peop’e nelt to me. The co’’ective heat of the crowd created a thic,S humid atmosphere that c’ung to my s,inS and k was beginning to wonder why k had even come.
zo far the night had been fastS with b’ood spi’’ed across the canvasS as we’’ as ha’f a doBen ,noc,outs that had ,ept the elcitement coming. ;ut nowS as the hour grew ’ateS the match card on’y had one Mght ’eftA the main event. The crowd ,new it as we’’ as k did. This was going to be the best Mght of the night. The faces of the crowd contorted with prima’ hunger as they screamed and c’awed at the air which on’y served to bui’d others around them to a frenBy. Dany of them had favourites throughout the nightS their voices shouting encouragement for the Mghters they ’i,edS booing the ones that stood across from their heroes. The crowd was now bui’ding to a crescendo. Their throats were raw and eyes wi’d with b’ood’ustS many of those around me demanding for more crimson paint to stain the canvas surface beneath the MghtersI feet.
F D.R. KRE4jS DRTT DjDjDREO
knside the bound stee’ ring ropes were two warriorsS ready to do batt’e with each other. ;oth were as ta’’ as each otherS towering above me from their e’evated position. They wore decorative attire a’ong with what cou’d on’y be described as b’ac, ’eather bomber Hac,ets. The man on the ’eft wore b’ue shortsS with matching g’oves. “rom hereS k cou’d see the go’d accents that coi’ed into the shape of a dragon on his Msts.
R ring announcer with a microphone in his hand stepped forward. jven though he was pushing silty with grey hair that whispered around the top of his head ’i,e a wigS his cau’iLower ears and cadence were indicative of the fact that he had been a Mghter in a past ’ife. Wis voice was deepS and a ’itt’e bit scratchyS but it wor,ed for him. We pointed to the man in b’ueS whose smi’e spread wide across his face as he began to spea,. The announcer had been wor,ing hard a’’ eveningS he doub’e chec,ed his notes before elpanding his chest to its fu’’ width. k had arrived ’ateS but that was TammyIs fau’t and k did not have the fu’’ ’ay of the ’and. The announcer was trying hard to ma,e this Mght specia’ with every Mbre of his body.
!”adies and gent’emenS than, you for your attendance tonight. Ce have a so’d out crowdS and we are now proud to present to youS our main eventUG The ’ast two words of the sentence were drawn out as the crowd roseS riding the sound of the announcerIs voice with him. !“ighting out of the b’ue cornerS he is the number one contender for the ‘zR ’ight heavyweight championship. We weighs in tonight at eighty-Mve ,i’ograms. We is Mghting out of Vppercut ‘ombat Nym with an overa’’ Mght record of thirty-two winsS inc’uding seventeen ,noc,outs. ”adies and gent’emenS k present to youS Kamien 5The qiperI z’aterUG
The crowd erupted as the announcer Mnished his ca’’ of the cha’’enger. One section of the crowd that was seated behind the b’ue corner a’’ stood to their feet and cheered ’i,e nobody e’se in the wor’d cou’d hear them. k b’an,ed outS watching as he ce’ebratedS raising his hands over his headS encouraging the crowd to be ’ouder. Then in the elcitementS something e’se caught my eye. The other Mghter was a man dressed in redS standing in si’enceS watching his opponent ’i,e a caged anima’. k was captivated. The ce’ebration of Kamien z’ater was starting to 7uiet downS and the second man started to ta,e center stage.
k thought that he was much the same as the Mrst manS elcept he carried a tit’e be’t around his waist. kt was not the Mrst tit’e that k had seen a’’ nightS but this one was ’argerS shinier and more prestigious than the rest. Yo wonder why this Mght was a big dea’ with that ,ind of hardware on the ’ine. ?et un’i,e most othersS it was not the tit’e that he’d me captive this time. kt was the Mghter that wore it. The second MghterS the championS turned underneath the ’ightsS revea’ing his body to me. k cou’d see the bigS shinyS go’den be’t that ’oo,ed sma’’ by comparison to the rest of his bodyS and k was enamoured by the Lesh underneath it.
We had an impressive stature and now that k ’oo,ed c’oser at the MghtersS this second man drew my eye even more than the Mrst man did. We stood ta’’erS and had more deMned abdomina’sS with a myriad of tattoos covering his forearms and chest. They shimmered in the ’ights that came down from aboveS some of them not seeming rea’ as they shifted with the ’ighting. The champion threw ox his Hac,et and s’apped the be’t with his g’ovesS gesturing to the crowd with a prima’ shout. There was more elcitement hereS a ’ouder roar from the crowdS and more vigour that wou’d spar, passion in those in attendance. Rmped was the on’y way to describe him. We was an imposing specimenS one that the men in the crowd wanted to be ’i,eS and every woman in here wou’d have wanted to be with. k was no elception.
The man was the embodiment of nothing wasted. Wis shou’ders were curved ’i,e po’ished stoneS each musc’e distinct beneath the tapestry of his intricate tattoos that shifted when he breathed. Wis veins traced de’icate b’ue rivers across his forearms and disappeared beneath the in,ed patterns that accentuated rather than concea’ed the sharp deMnition of his abdomen. Chen he movedS it was with the contro’’ed precision of an apel predator. We was economica’ and de’iberate. R sing’e ca’orie was not burned without purpose. k was so wrapped up in this man that k had a’most missed his name as the announcer stepped towards him.
!”adies and gent’emenS Mghting out of the red cornerS it is my distinct honour to introduce to youS the ‘zR ’ight heavyweight champion of the wor’dU We is Mghting tonight with a win-’oss record of ninety-eight MghtsS with eighty-seven winsS and nine draws. We is weighing in tonight at a weight of eighty-four point four ,i’ograms. We is ‘ain !The ‘rowG CeaverUG
The championIs ’ast name was the ’ongest word that k had ever heard in my ’ife. The announcer he’d onto it for what seemed ’i,e an eternity. jverybody around me rose to a crescendo in the crowd and the Mghters ’oo,ed ready to go.
‘ain raised his hands towards the crowdS bouncing on his toes to show that he was ready. We s’apped the tit’e be’t as it was removed from around his waist by the referee that moved in behind him. Cith the be’t now stripped from his bodyS ‘ain moved bac, into his corner where his coach was ’eaning over the top rope. The crowd died down and k too, a moment to ’oo, away. Those peop’e standing behind the representative cornersS were now a’’ bac, in their seats. The Mghters were receiving ’ast minute instructions from their coaches. jach Mghter nodded as they were spo,en toS refusing to ta,e his eyes ox the other man.
On their heads they wore a symbo’ic headdressS one that k had never seen before tonight. kt was not western by any stretch of the imagination and if k was to ma,e an educated guessS it had deep signiMcance to Thai cu’ture.
kt was a braided ring of cord wrapped in b’ood red c’oth and go’d threadS worn ’i,e a crown of ancient ,ings. kt sat snug around each MghterIs s,u’’S raised at the temp’es where po’ished obsidian beads caught the ’ight. The headdress had a trai’ing braided tai’ that cascaded down the bac,S adorned with sma’’ feathers and bone charms that c’ic,ed with each movement. kt was very war-’i,e and considering the sta,es for this MghtS k was most ’oo,ing forward to it.
Cith the announcing forma’ities out of the way and the be’t retrieved from the championS both men went to the ropes and p’aced their outer hand on it. They wa’,ed around the s7uare ring as the Thai music that k was becoming fami’iar with started to p’ay overhead. Chen the Mghters comp’eted one fu’’ ’ap of the ringS they returned to their respective cornersS getting ’ast minute instructions from their coaches. The coaches removed their headdresses and then wa’,ed down the stairs.
Then it was Hust the Mghters a’one in the ring. They went into their stanceS staring a ho’e in each other as the be’’ rang. The referee waved both men forward and the Mght was on. They c’osed the distance between each other and the champion Lung out his right ’eg with a push ,ic,. The other Mghter b’oc,ed itS pushing it away with his Mst. The crowd rose upS cheering both men on.
The Mrst round was s’owS and much ’i,e the other Mghts that k had seenS it was very much a round where both Mghters were fee’ing each other out. The cha’’enger threw a right punch and stepped c’oserS ta,ing a ,ic, from the champion on his ribs. We crump’ed but struc, with an e’bow. The b’ow hit the champion s7uare in the faceS and he absorbed it ’i,e it was nothing. Wow was this man so resi’ient1 There was a reason he had been wearing the go’d be’t before the Mght.
The champion threw a second ,ic,S which was fo’’owed by another that was aimed at the cha’’engerIs ’eg. R meaty smac, resounded around the ringS and the crowd roared with Hoy. The cha’’enger fe’’ bac,wardsS stumb’ing ox his feet. There had been minima’ b’oodshed thus far in this matchS but the crowd was eating it up with ’oud cheers and Heers. “rom what k cou’d te’’ both men were technica’’y soundS each of them battering the other with combinations of punches and stray ,ic,s.
jach time the man in red too, a body shot k LinchedS the sound of Lesh smac,ing Lesh resonating in my ears. The Mght continuedS and as the c’oc, was tic,ing down. jach of the Mghters were starting to ’oo, batteredS their s,in now sporting we’ts and fresh red bruises. jach of the coaches were ringsideS ye’’ing instructionsS ca’’ing out openings and encouraging their men to Mght harder. zometimes the Mghters wou’d ’isten and connectS other times their shots wou’d be b’oc,ed or countered.