Page 45 of The Explorer
“Ah, I see.” Aubri nodded her head. “It’s not his size but the hairy chest that gave him that nickname, isn’t it?”
“He’s a great fighter,” Alex assured us. “He and his people are so sure of him that they scheduled him for two fights tonight.”
“Then let’s hope he doesn’t get knocked out in the first fight,” Aubri said with a grin.
The petite woman who had let us in walked over and jumped up to wrap her legs around the hips of the Gorilla. He kissed her before slapping her butt in a loud smack.
“What are they fighting for?” I asked. “Money or something more?”
Banni stood leaning against the table behind us with his hands in his pockets. “They fight for fame and money. Both of them are strong construction workers.”
“And who are the people in here?”
“P’s. We don’t allow A’s in here. They would find it brutal and close it down. They’ve done it in the past.”
I knew from our years with the summit meetings that A was short for Academics and P was short for Practical. These people were workers.
“I’m honored that you let us in,” Aubri said with a smile.
“You’re P’s like us now.”
The tiny frown on Aubri’s face didn’t escape me. As part of the ruling family in the Northlands, she’d led a privileged life with a status worthy of a princess. She might see our time in Old Europe as an adventure, but for them we were working class people now.
A loud whistle sounded, and after gestures and shouts in French, everyone pushed up against the walls leaving the two men in the middle of the room to fight.
The room was boiling from intense heat and a bloodlust I knew from fights at home.
The Motlanders were pacifists, but our affinity for fighting was another thing that bonded us Northlanders to the French.
“This is great!” I exclaimed and patted Banni’s shoulder.
He smiled but kept his focus on the Gorilla, who was now circling his opponent, whose name I hadn’t caught.
Aubri and I were laughing and smiling as the fight progressed. It wasn’t a quick fight but rather a mix of wrestling and street fighting dragged out for the entertainment. The two fighters were strong but untrained compared to warriors like Mason, Thor, and myself.
The Gorilla wore his opponent out by being relentless and in better shape.
When he was declared the winner, he raised his hands in the air and took a bow like he was an actor in a theatre or some shit.
The man with the big ears made a declaration in French that Banni translated for us. “The Gorilla will have a small break before the next fight. He also reminded us to limit our drinking as there are no toilets on this level.”
“Good to know.”
We hung around and talked for half an hour before the petite woman returned and made an announcement. Disappointed boos were heard around the room.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“The second opponent hasn’t turned up.”
I elbowed Banni. “Then you do it. You could easily win against that guy, couldn’t you?”
“Maybe.” He looked tempted. “But I’m scheduled to fight in two days and Alex is fighting tomorrow. The rule is that we can’t fight more than one night out of the week.”
“I’ll do it.”
“Aubri, no.” I turned to my young grasshopper and gave her a stern look. “We didn’t come here to fight.”
“You heard them. The Gorilla is undefeated. Admit it, you want to take him down yourself.” She had that glow in her eyes that I loved so much.
