Page 134 of Psycho Beasts

He hit the deck, but so did my face as he used his momentum to slam me into the mat.

Fist in the groin.

He released my hair, and I scrambled to my feet. He followed closely behind me, throwing quick jabs.

Punch his kidneys.

I barely registered my nose breaking under his leathery fist and obediently slammed my knuckles into his back.

He grunted but didn’t stop throwing punches.

The leathery edges of his knuckles protected his skin and inflicted maximum damage on my flesh.

My cheekbones cracked, and I used my momentum to punish his kidneys.

Hands up; protect your face. Only thirty seconds left. Move backward. Dodge.

I placed my hands in front of my face, and the bones in them cracked as he peppered my face with unrelenting punches.

His size had me pinned in ring’s corner, and there was nowhere to dodge.

Fifteen seconds left, just last.

A fist glanced across the side of my face, and I tried to make myself as small as possible.

The blows kept coming.

Slamming against my face, the alpha gave everything he had to break me.

My biceps shook, and I choked on blood as he rocked my protective hands back into my broken nose.

Ten seconds left.

I widened my stance, girded my loins, and took the blows.

Five seconds left.

Stars exploded behind my eyes, and I focused on surviving.

My opponent’s eyes were mostly swollen shut from my own hits, and his biceps bunched and slammed like a madman’s. He was desperate to break me.

Two seconds left.

His leathery fist slammed into the other side of my head. I ducked my neck lower and held my arms steady.

The bell rang, signaling the end of the round.

My opponent stumbled back, panting as he stared down at me with wide eyes.

Back straight. Stare him down. Assert your dominance.

I dropped my aching biceps and straightened my back. Instead of gasping for air, or crying from the pain, I gave him a haughty sneer.

He stumbled and reached out his hand to grab my shoulder.

I didn’t flinch, just arched my eyebrow at him.

“I’m sor…” He ran his bloody knuckles through his hair, embarrassed. “What’s your name?”

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