Chapter 20: Round two
Vaughn sat through round two, watching the fights become more entertaining. The fist round had weeded out the weaklings, and the second was proving to make sure only the best moved on. Vaughn was watching the other fighters, how they moved, how they struck, any weakness he could find.
One fighter in particular caught his interest. A lanky beast, maybe seven feet tall. Long black dreadlocks hung from his head, and his body was covered in muscle. His skin was a deep purple, almost black color, and he looked surprisingly human with the exception of his height, and his face. His face almost reminded Vaughn of a reptile, narrow eyes, thin lips with tiny razor sharp teeth behind them, and two tiny slits in the middle of his face the must have been his nose. It was easy to tell that this being had encountered many opponents in his time, for he was covered from head to toe in thick purple scars. He wore black tattered shorts and his feet and hands were wrapped with thin leather straps, making him resemble a kind of alien kick boxer.
Vaughn stood and readied himself as the dark fighter walked back to the waiting area. Vaughn began to walk out, and the fighter slammed his shoulder into Vaughn's. He was almost knocked off balance and he spun to look at the beast. "You dink you wanna dake Rhal?" The fighter bellowed in a deep and distorted English. "If you make it too the finals, then ill meet your sorry ass there." Vaughn said as he turned and walked out into the arena. "Rhal da champion mon, you little ooman gonna be da sorry one." Vaughn's showboating in the first round had won the crowd over, and made him a fan favorite. He entered the arena to chants of "ooooooman!!! Oooooooman!!!" Over and over as the crowd cheered for him.
This fight started much like the last, two predators wheeling out the weapon carts, and the fighters arming themselves. His opponent this time was a large brute. It was big, and not so smart. Maybe seven and a half feet tall, bulky muscles covered it, and it had a neck the size of Vaughn's waist. Its head hung low off of its shoulders, a head that closely resembled that of a hairless bulldog. It was a dark brownish color with spots on its shoulders and back. It wore only a gray kilt/skirt type garment. Vaughn again opted for the wrist blades, while this bulk of flesh chose a large axe. The fight was over almost as if it had never started. The beast swung once and missed, its blade swinging high above Vaughn's head. It could have caused some serious damage; maybe even cleaved a man in half (which the thing had done in its first round fight). But it was much to slow to even nip Vaughn, a fatal flaw. Vaughn dodged the mighty axe as it slammed into the ground behind him, sending up a cloud of dirt. He ducked in close and the creature let out a roar as Vaughn swiped once backhanded across the creatures stomach, then leapt back as the intestines poured out of the gash along with gallons of dark blood. The body fell with a dull wet thud as it landed in its own innards. The crowd roared its approval and Vaughn walked back after his quick fight, stopping for a second as he passed the body. "Ugly, dumb, and slow, you must get all the ladies" then continued on with a smirk on his face.