I finished the second chapter, yay! Please review, I really appreciate it!
Cherub...
Nothing To Lose...
The sky was clear and cloudless, allowing the harsh sun to beat down on the ground. Cherry thought she could actually see the grass shrivelling underneath her feet. Mac walked beside her silently, letting her take it all in. The campus was huge; she couldn't see the surrounding walls. She could see children of all ages around her, some sitting and talking, others walking as if they had a purpose. She noticed there were some smaller children in red shirts playing. Surely they wouldn't use children that small?
"We start their education early, but they can't go through basic training until they're eleven." He said casually, as if he had guessed her thoughts. Shaking her head, she noticed the building they were walking towards was undeniably Japanese.
"The dojo?" She asked curiously, and Mac nodded. He held the doors open for her, and she didn't even have to bend to get under his arm. She grimaced, noticing how big some of the people here were. She was strong and agile, but sometimes you just had to recognise the fights you hadn't a hope of winning against.
"Have you ever been taught anything like this?" Mac asked her, walking up to a skinny boy in the back corner of the dojo.
"I took some self-defence classes before my parents-" She stopped before carrying on. "I got quite good at it, but then I had to stop." Cherry murmured, as if the thought saddened her. No one knew anything about her background, she had been taught since she was little not to stick out in a crowd, never to give away any true information. The home she had been taken in by had found her on the streets, and she had refused to give even her real name, let alone anything about her background. He stopped in front of Bruce, and brought her in front of him.
"Cheryl, this is Bruce, Bruce this is Cheryl." Mac said, and Bruce reached out to shake her hand. When she put her hand in his, he seemed momentarily shaken by the sheer child-like smallness of it.
"Nice to meet you Cheryl." He said, smiling at her.
"Likewise." Cherry murmured, warily returning his smile.
"Your first test is to fight him, there will be five bouts, but there is always the option to submit and try again." Mac said to her. Cherry plucked a small elastic band off of her bony wrists and tied her hair back, out of her face. Bruce gawked at the rough red streak that underlined her cheekbone. She grimaced, remembering how the scar had come to be there. She faced him, sizing him up. He appeared to be doing the same. He had a height advantage, and he weighed more than her, even though he was skinny. He was probably at the same level as her or better in training. She would have to rely on speed and luck. Not the best mix, but all she had.
"Begin!" Mac said. Cherry's fist was the first to shoot out, hitting him squarely in the jaw. She heard a sickening pop as it dislocated. He stumbled back, surprised, and she swept her foot along the ground to trip him up. He landed chest down, and she knelt on the small of his back to prevent him from getting up. She grabbed one of his arms and dragged it round his back, tugging hard. He grunted in pain. Cherry grimaced, she didn't enjoy causing pain, but she did what she had to do. She tugged harder.
"Submit!" Bruce yelled scathingly, voice hard to understand because of his jaw.
"Do you want to continue?" He asked Bruce, who nodded, glaring at Cherry.
"Begin." Mac said again. Bruce was faster this time, his foot connecting with one of her ribs. She fell back, breathing heavily and struggling not to clutch her side. Bruce ran forward, pushing her against the wall. His fist came towards her face and she ducked, tackling his legs and bringing him down. She straddled him across the chest, arms pinned under her knees. She was about to launch another punch when he rolled over. Now he sat on top of her stomach. His fist connecting with her temple before she could comprehend what happened. She lay there dazed while he secured her arms under his knees. She smiled up at him, and he looked slightly confused. Bringing her knee up fast, she connected with his groin, and he rolled off of her gasping.
"Submit!" He yelled again. She noticed others staring at her and blushed self-consciously. Applause rang through the small audience. She smiled slightly, but tried to block them out.
"Do you wish to continue?" He asked Bruce again. Bruce nodded, standing up and walking oddly.
"Begin." Cherry struck first, but Bruce grabbed her arm and twisted it behind her back. She flung her other arm back and hit him hard across the shoulder. Twisting away quickly, she launched a kick to his head. He took hold of her foot and twisted it so that she fell. He used the same trick as her in the first round, kneeling on her back and pulling her arm.
"Yell submit or I'll break your arm." He growled in her ear.
"Submit." She said, annoyed, and he released her. She stood up and Mac asked whether she'd like to continue. Cherry nodded, and Mac told them to begin. Bruce struck her in the chest, but instead of falling back she tried for another punch. He grabbed her fist and launched his own into her stomach. His fist doubled back and struck her in the eye.
"Submit!" She yelled, seeing only grey blurs in one eye. Her breath came quickly, panicking. Each breath hurt her side, and she wondered if she had a broken rib.
"Would you like to continue onto the last bout?" Mac asked. Cherry nodded again, and a silent crowd waited in wonder to see if a new recruit could beat Bruce. Bruce himself looked confident, but something in his eye showed his doubt. Most people didn't generally last so long, especially not girls as small and thin as Cherry.
"Begin." He said, eyes sparkling with curiosity and excitement. Bruce rushed forward, and instead of launching a punch, took her legs put with a sweep of his feet. As she fell, all she could hear was her own heart beat.
What would mum do? Cherry thought, relishing how this fought didn't hurt her to think. Most of her memories left her feeling empty, but this was different. Bruce tried to hold her down with his knee again, but she rolled off of her front and onto her back. Her hands grasped his foot and tugged. She moved out of the way just as he fell, pushing herself up into a standing position. He sprang up just as quickly, and they circled each other. She dived first, but he caught her fist. As she tried to snatch her wrist back, Bruce twisted it. She bit back a yell as it dislocated. Anger shone in her eyes, and a wild glint entered her eye. Bruce looked momentarily scared. She stomped down hard on his foot before smashing her palm into his nose. She head the crack of broken cartilage. Her fist smashed into his forehead, and she brought her knee up to his groin again. He collapsed on the floor.
"Submit!" He yelled again. The wildness left her eyes, and she became aware of the cheering around her. She ducked her head, embarrassed. Offering her good hand to Bruce, she helped him up.
"Nice fight." She complimented him, as Mac came to collect her.
"Here, I'll fix your wrist." Bruce told her. She smiled at him apologetically before handing him her wrist. Maybe if his opponent were bigger and not as innocent looking, Bruce would have been less gentle with her, but looking at her big silver eyes, he felt his anger slip away. Returning the smile grudgingly, he twisted her wrist until the familiar click came, telling him that it was back in place. Besides a slight hitch in her breathing, she looked like she'd barely noticed the pain. Cherry looked at Mac.
"So, what's the next test?" She asked
"Mathematics and English papers." He said, leading the way out of the dojo. The others watched her go silently.
When they reached the other building and Cherry was sat down at a table, Mac handed her a pen.
"You have forty-five minutes starting now; do as much as you can." He said. She nodded, opening the paper and writing in small neat block letters.
The forty-five minutes passed slowly, and by the end of it, Cherry was still a couple of pages away from the end. She grimaced as Mac pulled the paper away from her. Standardised tests had never been her forte. Mac pointed out the way to the canteen.
"We had a few requests to escort you there, but considering the report we were given about you, we guessed you would prefer to make your own way there." He said, beginning to walk off.
Cherry walked to the canteen alone, thinking hard and trying to take in the whole point of the days events. Already she could feel herself warming to this place, and she wondered what would happen if she failed the tests. She didn't think that she could go back to her Lancashire home, not after she knew about Cherub. The big building loomed up in front of her, and she stared in dismay at all of the students in their groups, messing around.