Page 5 of Medusa

Don’t roll the dice tonight.

Jaden pondered as he huffed and puffed away at the leg press, the weights set to only three hundred pounds. He was planning on doing a high rep to make up for the low weight.

Ugh.

I would know.

And I would feel guilty if I didn’t roll.

But what if I roll a one?

He left the leg press and moved on to the squat rack, his mind still on his ethical conundrum.

If I don’t roll tonight, why would I ever bother to roll again?

That’s not fair to Augustine or Finley.

After his workout, Jaden headed back to the ready room, intent on a shower and a quick protein bar before his match with Pollux.

The bright blue die in the bottom of his bag mocked him as he pulled his towel out. Without thinking about it any further, he scooped it up and rolled it on the table.

A one.

Fuck.

A cold shower was just what the doctor ordered after that. Jaden rubbed down quickly with soap, his skin rippling with goosebumps under the frigid water. He dried off just as quickly, trying to figure out how to go about this fight. Pollux had a strong arm, but he tended to overreach with his left. If Jaden had been allowed to win, he would take advantage of that, but now he knew he had to keep the fight close, with lots of grappling. Not that he particularly minded grappling. It was his preferred method of fighting, a lot like a bar brawl. But it meant that he’d probably get pretty hurt, maybe even a concussion. Jaden was grateful for his quick healing, so something like that wouldn’t be a problem after a few minutes.

He grinned. Just because he had to lose, didn’t mean he couldn’t rough Pollux up a bit first. The demigod could take a hit. Jaden grudgingly gave him that.

He put on an athletic cup and yanked his shorts on overtop. He grabbed a sweat towel and draped it over his shoulders, and then he was ready.

“Let’s get this over with,” Jaden muttered to himself.

When he got backstage, he saw that there were fifteen minutes left on the clock for the fight ahead of him. He felt limber, after his workout, but still went through the motions of the necessary stretches. Even though he could heal quickly, a torn muscle would still hurt like a bitch.

“Hey Princess, are you ready to lose?” Pollux greeted him, putting his foot on Jaden’s back while he was stretching in the splits.

The sudden added pressure made his groin muscles spasm and he sucked in an involuntary breath.

“Get away from him.” Another of Odin’s security, a woman this time, stepped in, and Pollux backed off.

“Hey, if he can’t take the heat, maybe he should get out of the oven,” Pollux sneered.

Jaden slowly shook out his muscles. The added stretch hadn’t hurt him, thankfully. “If you can’t fight fair, maybe you shouldn’t be here at all,” he said evenly.

“Aww, are widdle Pwincess’s feewings hurt?” Pollux said in a baby voice. “Face me like a man, J-Star.”

The bell signaled the end of the previous fight, and the volume of the applause increased, even backstage. The two fighters, dripping sweat and blood, walked slowly through on their way to their ready rooms, arms slung around each other in support.

Jaden looked after them longingly. He wouldn’t get that tonight. He refocused on Pollux. “Well, that’s where you’re wrong. I’m no human.”

Pollux snorted. “Even if you were, you won’t be after I’m through with you.”

“That makes no sense,” Jaden grumbled, bouncing a little on his toes as they stood, waiting to be called into the ring.

“I’m going to rip off your manhood and feed it to you,” Pollux hissed.

“Dramatic, much,” Jaden replied mildly. “Maybeyou’rethe princess.”

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