CHAPTER 186

Two sides; two dojos; two different groups of people; two different outcomes; two different reactions. In the aftermath of the blockbuster final fight, marking the end of that year's mammoth Sekai Taikai tournament, everything that Miyagi-Do did after the fight, Cobra Kai did the opposite. They left early to go to their locker room to celebrate and meet up with their family and friends who had flown in; Cobra Kai stayed on the empty mat for an eternity. While they sobbed tears of joy, for Cobra Kai it was tears of despair. While they stood tall and lifted trophies into the air; Marcos curled up into a fetal ball on the corner of the mat. And even after both sides retreated to their respective locker rooms, the stark similarities and contrast continued.

Miyagi-Do were boisterously loud when they returned to their locker room, continuing to sing and dance in celebration of winning the tournament. "We are the Champions" was played on loop at full blast through Demetri's speaker, echoing around the walls of the large room. A whole year of training for this moment, but it was more than that… they had been building up to this for years. This climax, this winner-take-all battle with Cobra Kai… they had prayed for this moment for years. So much turmoil, so much pain, so much misery inflicted by the hands of Cobra Kai, and finally, at long last, they were no more. Kreese was going to be forced to shut down, and his students were forced to split up now that they had no dojo to meet at. They took thousands of photos together in the locker room, wanting to capture this moment forever. Robby and Johnny, the father and son duo that was 17 years in the making, had managed to bring the championship to Miyagi-Do. The two of them had finally gotten the wins that they so desperately craved. Life couldn't possibly be better…

Meanwhile, Cobra Kai wanted nothing more than to forget this tournament, put it behind them forever. There was no blame going around within the dojo, as they were stronger than that, but there was one person who blamed Marcos: himself. His whole life, he had always been harder on himself than he was on anyone else. No matter the circumstance, he often found himself shouldering all of the blame himself, and this time it was no different. He had every right to do that. He had lost them the final, choked and stumbled on the very last step, and for that now everyone was going to suffer.

Nobody said a word in the Cobra Kai locker room, the only sound in the room being the dripping of a tap in the distance. There was nothing Marcos wanted more than to just be alone, and thankfully his team allowed him this, at least temporarily. They were all gathering their stuff from all over the arena, preparing to return to the accommodation and spend their final night in Tokyo. There was so much on his mind, so many thoughts piling into his head as he came to terms with everything that had happened. He saw the punch over and over again, an unrelenting replay of the single strike that had lost him the fight. Why hadn't he listened to Kreese and just backed off for the final round? If he had, and he hadn't pushed too hard for a knockout, there was a good chance that he'd be holding the trophy right now.

Marcos thought long and hard about everything, the empty locker room providing him the opportunity to be alone with his thoughts, until suddenly he heard footsteps echoing around the locker room walls, getting louder and louder. He looked up to see Robby slowly walking into the room, before looking down again, unable to even look his opponent in the eye. It wasn't because of anger, but because as soon as he looked at the Miyagi-Do's face, he was reminded of the agonizing defeat.

Robby limped over to him, clearly still feeling the effects of their encounter, sitting on the bench beside him, not looking at the Cobra either. The two both stared at their feet, sitting in silence for what seemed like an eternity, before Robby finally spoke.

"I know how it feels." Robby slowly murmured. Marcos didn't even look up at the sound of his voice, but he visibly grimaced in pain as he was forced to relive his loss over and over again at the sound of Robby's voice. "I know it won't seem like it now, but you've got to know that you're more than just one fight. We both are."

Today had proven to Robby just that. He hadn't let his first All-Valley loss define him, or his second, and it had all ended with him raising a trophy aloft earlier that night. Marcos couldn't bring himself to see that though. Not right now. Not while the wound of defeat was still so fresh.

At that moment, Kreese walked back into the room and the two boys looked up and saw him. Robby slowly rose, wincing in pain and clutching his still sore ribs as he did, heading towards the door. As he did, he walked past Kreese and stopped for a moment, slowly nodding at him with gratitude. Whether Miyagi-Do liked it or not, Kreese had indeed played a part in Robby winning tonight. He had taught him for 6 months, 6 months worth of offense, some of which Robby had incorporated during the fight. There was too much bad blood for Robby to verbally thank him, but a nod… a silent nod said a whole lot too.

Kreese nodded back and watched as Robby left the room, before turning to his student and walking over to him. Just like Robby, Kreese initially didn't say a word to Marcos, sensing that the boy didn't want to talk. He merely sat down beside him where Robby had, and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. He sent a silent message to Marcos: that no matter the result, he had done Cobra Kai and himself proud. That it wasn't over for him, despite how it might seem at that moment.

All of a sudden, Kreese looked up and quickly stood up, moving into the corner of the room, blending into the shadows. Confused, Marcos looked up and he immediately saw why his sensei had quickly retreated. Entering the room was an ex-professional fighter, not McGregor (why would it be him, as Marcos had failed to live up to his expectations), but someone arguably better than that. One of the greatest UFC fighters of all time, a fellow Brazilian compatriot, Anderson Silva, walked over to Marcos, a faint smile on his face as he saw him.

Despite the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity this was to meet one of the "GOATs" of the UFC, Marcos couldn't even bring himself to smile back. He couldn't bring himself to be excited, despite watching the man's entire career and idolizing him for a lot of his childhood. He couldn't think about anything but the loss, anything but the punch that he had failed to block, the punch he knew would probably haunt him forever.

"You put in a great performance tonight." Silva said to him, switching between Portuguese and English as he spoke. "You dominated the fight. If not for the mistake at the end, then you definitely would have won."

"Yeah, well, there's no trophy for that, is there?" Marcos murmured back, not really caring how he spoke, not really caring who he was in the company of. "I still made the mistake. I still lost."

"Keep your head up." The former professional, who had recently retired after an incredibly illustrious career, advised him. "You think I didn't lose before I made it to the UFC? I lost more times than I could count! Probably hundreds, if you include competitive sparring in training as well. I've definitely lost more fights than I've won in my lifetime. But it's not about how many times you lose. It's about what you take from each loss."

Marcos sighed, really not in the mood to hear this right now. It didn't cheer him up at all. In fact, the borderline patronizing and condescending tone made him feel even worse.

"Look, I'm really sorry, but can I help you with something?" Marcos muttered quietly. Silva nodded.

"I heard in an interview of yours that you wanted to be a professional fighter. In the UFC." Silva commented. "Well the first thing I'm going to say to you is that if you crumble after one loss, if you quit now, then this definitely is not the right profession for you. You don't belong anywhere near an MMA ring.

"Gee, thanks." Marcos snapped.

"You did your team proud tonight, Mr. Oliveira. No matter the result. You did Brazil proud too. You united our country to support you in a way that I have seen UFC fighters not even able to achieve. You brought to the Brazilian fans genuine excitement and joy with your fighting. And for a reason too: you are an incredible fighter for your age. Definitely better than I was back then."

"Thanks." Marcos repeated, this time in a more sincere tone, his words still filled with pain.

"I see a lot of potential in you." Silva told him. "And you're in luck. I happen to be opening a new MMA gym back home in Sao Paulo. I've sorted everything out: hired world class coaches; built a state-of-the-art facility; connected us with a professional MMA competition in Brazil. There's only one thing missing from that gym, and that's an exciting prospect, a champion that can be our figurehead as we burst onto the scene. I want that to be you. You'll train and compete with our gym in amateur and professional MMA competitions. And if you work with us, I guarantee that in less than a few years, you'll be in the UFC."

Marcos didn't say anything for a while, as he processed what he was being told, the massive, potentially life-changing offer he was being given. He didn't respond for a while, so Silva continued to speak.

"The gym is in Brazil, so it would involve you permanently moving back home." Silva told him. "It's a huge decision to have to make, so feel free to take some time to think about it. I'll give you my cell number, and whenever you come to a decision either way, give me a call. Okay?"

Marcos still didn't say a word, though he nodded in acknowledgement, writing down the number he was given by the former UFC fighter. He had a little while to think about it, though he didn't really need it. He already knew his answer…

Anderson Silva left the room a few moments later, and after he had, Marcos realized that the rest of Cobra Kai had entered the room while the fighter was talking. They had heard most of what he had had to say to Marcos, and their faces were all filled with delight for Marcos. Sarah was the first to rush over to him, throwing her arms around him and embracing him tightly.

"Marcos! That's amazing!" Sarah exclaimed. What Marcos said next, his first words in almost half an hour, stunned everyone in the room.

"I'm going to tell him no…"