I wasn't sure how the night would turn out but something always brought me aroused enough to stand again, wiping the blood from my mouth with a grin, bringing my hand into sight with the vivacious and sickly looking liquid I figured might already be there. I couldn't bring my mind together until the last moment when I saw huge knuckles crash into my vision throwing me under once more. Times like these remind me of all the fighting rings and underground boxing matches I've had the pleasure of participating in after the fall, the time I knocked that first rookie with a haymaker just under five seconds into round one, the very honorable grapple I managed to hold for what might've seemed like forever until the referee had to split us with a grip that reminded me of a crowbars prying power. The few scant times somebody got me down were legendary and the one vicarious fight where I was thrown around like a rag doll, all still with the same maniac grin I carried into tonight's brawl.

That's how the night looked like it was ending with, a good old fashioned brawl, standing up and locating the knuckles that snuck up on me I grabbed the arm, pulled and twisted until I knew the arm wasn't supposed to be in the direction it was and let the fumbling idiot drop. Grabbing a stool, I threw with a huff at a pair of drunkards grappling each other, leaving the two to themselves for a nightly ending; after this was all over. I couldn't pin point him until I saw the ridiculous hat bobbing in and out of the largest crowd as if a dog were hopping around in those grain fields you keep seeing videos of but don't have the capacity or animal to enjoy yourself. Norm wasn't a normal kid.. gracing reflexes, quick wit and a chipper attitude. As soon as I spotted the hat he so adored I felt a rush of wind as he sped up on me and started his normal gushing. The kid could fucking talk! Talking too much and way too fast for anyone under the pretense of adhd, parental issues and a lot of bugger sugar, the guy loved the stuff telling me this and that about how

mellow

he felt while induced in his antics and sniveling. Norm wore a hat most would compare to a cowboy hat, but if you ever told him that I've come to expect fury and fists unseen, the kid could fight but to me his punches always felt like a fly buzzing around; annoying, dirty, noisy but always around. He's reliable and that's what I've ever needed in these relationships.

“A real shiner if I ever saw one. What heavy hitter left that mark?” Chirping with glee and a crack grin suddenly full of shock, as I grab the slim jim around the neck with my arm and scrub his scalp with my hand.

“See for yourself.” I remarked while I pointed his cranium towards the big motherfucker on the ground snoozing like a mule.

“What’d you get him with?” Norm asked a little sheepishly; he knew I only gave him that punishment when he was squawking a bit too much. Mimicking grabbing norms arm I did a little twist and bend motion and gently let him go feigningignorance to his horrified eyes. He must’ve done what he was here for because he immersed himself into his “persona” straightening up Norm gave me a look only shark like professionals had down pat. “Mickey got us in.” holding up a card and shifting it in his fingers revealing a second card and slipping one my way.

Taking the sturdy and stiff piece of board into my hands made my whole body reverberate as I read the letters engraved in what appeared to be literal gold. [The Thunderdome] read in beautiful calligraphy almost giving me a start as I felt jolts and tingles going up my spine all the way to the back of my skull and throbbing of what would indeed be a shiner in the morning.

Looking up at Norm I must’ve looked all the more sharklike as I imagined he did every morning getting his persona ready to face the day looking in the mirror, toothbrush in hand. I put my hand out and we celebrated like any two dudes should, slap on the inside for a slap on the outside, followed by two bumps up and down and finally ending with a fist bump down the middle. “When?” I grumbled. He followed up with a dip behind me and a hand on my shoulder and muttered, “Now.”

Guiding me to the set of stairs I’d noticed on my way in and a door at the end of the flight well. Chittering away happy as his rodent counterparts, Norm might as well have flew to the door knocking about 20 times almost to a beat I couldn’t get and stood stock still until an eye slot opened fast with a ~SHUNK. Two beady eyes roamed us, up and down left to right finally lingering on myself for what might’ve been a few extra beats of my slow heart. Norm pulled up his parchment. Seemingly satisfied, the eyes closed the door and opened it wide while motioning his open palm sweeping us along inside.

Walking the corridors gave me a stirring feeling that my long dead heart hadn’t felt for a long time. Hearing the jeering taunts and echoing laughter as love and death rode the waves only emotions know how brought my steps almost side by side with Norms, both of us vying for speed headlong towards the commotion. Swinging open the set of doors my eyes open and my blood pumping the hallways opened up to reveal [The Thunderdome] a huge expanse of a brawlers love child. [The Thunderdome] was excitement incarnate along with broken bones, teeth arms and legs. There were stands for food all over the joint, along with seating up high and down low for people who just liked to watch and for others who had a hankering to join in. The middle was just a simple raised platform; four roped off corners and a slew of corpses adjourning the effect. Some sloughed off the edge onto the floor just to be swept up and others in piles barely pushed out of the way of the actual action.

I had a One hundred percent premium ticket and a chance to join the utter chaos that people only had nightmares of while I couldn’t contain my grin and a bubbling laugh on the tip of my tongue. I felt a slight pull on my arm and looked around until I saw the ridiculous hat again and stepped after Norm who continued to lead me to where he’d set up shop.

He dealt mostly with bet placing and the likes. Only a few scant times did we pull off any tricks when he’d bet just about all he could on me losing did I throw a fight, every other time he’d only bet on me as his race horse. I was built for this he told me always and often, and I really was. Memories flash by of me standing on a hill hem adjourned and spear in hand looking out over mobs of the- shaken aroused of my stupor Norm brought me around to the lists. The lists were always the center of attention for all of us, it dictated who died, what bets were made and if the buffet would have extra chicken out or not. Looking over it all I had to mutter “Death..” before getting the knowing look.

“Another one, Hmm. ‘What was your name again?’” Looking at the list girl (as we referred to them all as such) I did a flourish of my hand around my face in askance as if saying you don’t recognize it? She shook her head in a negative.

“Wrath, my name is Wrath.” Followed by her wide eyes as I watched on at the others gathered around looking on with a feral manic grin.