The underground fighting arena was lively as ever, the familiar scent of sweat and blood mixing with the metallic tang that came with the city. There was a large box ring in the middle of the great hall and the sound of loud cheering and applause could be heard from the instant you enter from one of the many entrances. On the outskirts of the hall were a number of stalls and betting stations along with a number of stage rooms for fighters who were to participate for that day.
Atlas walked into the entrance of the hall and was met with a familiar sight and scent as he walked past familiar faces, fighters, and spectators alike. Some nodded in recognition, while others gave him wary glances as his dad was well-known as a coach for a number of boxers and some of the fighters that he had coached had ended up getting some form of success in the ring.
Nevertheless, Atlas simply walked past them while waving at those he knew.
"Atlas, get in, you barely made it," the guard at the entrance backstage as he recognized Atlas making his way towards him.
"Hehe. Still made it though," Atlas laughed with a goofy smile as he gave the man a fist bump.
"Room 6 as usual," the guard informed as he pushed open the door and let him through.
Upon arriving at Room 6, Atlas took a quick pause as he breathed in and fixed up his attire as he pushed the door open.
His father, Darren Orin, was sitting in front of a man who was sitting on a bench as he helped him wrap his hands in boxing tape. The young man had a slender build with a clean buzzcut and his clear blue eyes had confidence and resoluteness exuding out of it.
Upon hearing the door open, the heads of both people turned towards the door.
"Yo pops," Atlas called out as he gave a nod to his father.
A weary smile spread across Darren's face as he replied, "Atlas, you made it."
"Yup," Atlas smiled back, "How could I possibly miss it?"
He then turned to the fighter and reached out his hand, "Nice to meet ya, I think my dad's already told you about me."
Seeing the hand, the man reached out with his own and accepted it. A slight spark of surprise appeared on his face as he saw Atlas's grip strength.
"He sure has," the man replied, "The name's Benson, 22."
"22?" Atlas asked in slight surprise before calming down, "How are you feeling for the fight?"
"Haha!" Benson laughed, "Ready as I'll ever be. I'm gonna make sure I win this tournament."
"Aiming for first place, eh?" Atlas remarked before turning to Darren, "He got a chance, pops?"
"I don't train no losers," Darren replied as he finished wrapping up Benson's hands.
"Remember your strength and strategy. Stick to it for the first round so we ca-"
Before Darren could finish, there was a brief knock on the door that caught everyone's attention. Not waiting for an answer, the door slowly opened as a man in an expensive suit strode into the room. A cocky smile was pasted on his face as he carried an air of authority that made all three in the room instinctively tense.
"Darren Orin," he called out as his gaze fell on Darren who got up, warily staring at the man.
"Who might you be?" Darren asked as he did not recognize the man at all but he was a little confused at the man's brazenness to just walk in and just call him out, not even taking a second to recognize the people that were beside him.
"No one of your concern," the man flatly replied as he raised his hand and reached into his inner pockets. He then pulled out a thick envelope which he offered to Darren.
Instinctively, Darren reached out and took the envelope. Opening it, he found a large stack of cash inside.
"What's this?" he immediately asked cautiously the man.
The man then put his hand into the opposite side of his chest and pulled out another envelope, this time it was a lot thinner.
Upon handing the second envelope to Darren, the man in the suit simply turned around and walked back towards the door and exited, not even stopping to look back at them but he did leave a message as he went out of their sight, "Don't disappoint me..."
Upon seeing the man leave, a strong silence permeated the room as Darren slowly opened up the envelope which revealed a letter with a short message on it. Immediately, Darren's eyes shot wide open in alarm as he let out a complicated sigh.
"What did it say?" Atlas asked while Benson warily stared at the letter, feeling that the message in the letter must have been something fishy.
"They offered us cash..." Darren began, "The person that Benson is fighting today... His father is an important client to a businessman. The cash they offered is for Benson to lose the fight."
"WHAT!" Benson immediately shouted, bewildered by what he had just heard.
"They feel that you will easily defeat him and that's why the father came in and tried to bribe us," Darren told Benson.
"Huh? Why would they bring in a man in a suit for this? They could have just given it to us directly," Atlas questioned.
"It's an intimidation tactic," Darren explained, "In getting a man in an expensive suit to come, it shows that the businessman is willing to get involved over this. This puts us in a more difficult situation because if it was just the father then we probably would've just rejected him."
"What you just said," Benson spoke up, his tone suddenly turning cold, "Are you suggesting that I intentionally lose this fight?"
Hearing this, Darren's face showed a difficult expression as he answered, "Benson, it might just be bet-"
"FUCK NO!" Benson angrily barked. As he threw the envelope across the room, the dozens of Lumin notes flew all across the room, scattering all over the place.
"When you decided to train me," Benson spoke, "You told me that I was going to win the tournament and that you would support me no matter what."
"I know I did," Darren immediately replied solemnly, "But you need to see things from the overall picture. In winning the fight, we could all get hurt."
"THE FUCK DO I CARE ABOUT WHAT HAPPENS TO ME!" Benson immediately sparked in anger as he huffed in anger and stormed out of the room.
Silence permeated the room as Atlas and Darren stood there in the room, not speaking a word for a few seconds.
"Atlas, help me pick up the cash," Darren broke the silence.
He and Atlas then began to collect all the cash that had been scattered all across the floor.
"That's fifteen thousand Lumins in total," Atlas counted as he put all the notes back into the envelope, "Enough for anyone in District 7 to live happily for the rest of the year."
"What are you going to do with this, Dad?" he asked.
"We don't have a choice but to keep it. Look's like we can splurge a bit on dinner tonight," Darren spoke as he forced out a smile, "Mom's going to be happy."
"But can we just take this money?" Atlas asked.
"We got no choice, Atlas. In giving us the cash, they are basically presenting us with no other option than to accept it," Darren replied difficultly as he sat down.
"Couldn't we have just shared the cash with Benson? I don't see why he would be so vocal about it," Atlas asked another question as he also sat down.
"Don't you think he's a little to young to be fighting in these rings?"
"Yeah, but I thought that was cos he just liked to fight"
"Haha. It's not just us that are struggling in this life, Atlas..."
"I know that, father. You've told me many times"
"Benson wants to win the tournament because he needs the money"
"Huh? Then why didn't he take the money?"
"It doesn't even get close to what he needs... He has an older sister who is currently sick and being kept in the hospital. He wanted to win the tournament and get the prize money so that he could pay for her treatment"
Hearing this, Atlas was silent.
"You told me, a man's worth is measured by the strength of his resolve and love for his family. I thought you would reject the offer and help him win."
At this, Darren did not reply and instead, reached out and handed Atlas the second envelope, "Look inside"
The envelope was made of regular paper but as Atlas looked inside, he saw that there was a picture of a broken mirror.
"Who's that?" Atlas asked as he could not understand what the broken mirror was supposed to signify.
"That's the symbol of Mirage, a famous mercenary and gang leader in Neon Haven's Lower Districts. He is known to take any job as long as it pays. In using his symbol in the envelope, they are telling us that they have his backing and that if we decide to go against this, he may come for us."
"What the fuck..." Atlas blurted out, "All this just for his son's fight?"
"People who are well off, don't care about integrity. He's probably spoilt his son and doesn't want to see him lose either," Darren answered.
"What do we do then, Dad?"
"Try to convince Benson to lose the fight," Darren answered before grabbing one of Atlas's hands, "You know that you and your mom are my number one priority in life. I will do anything to protect you guys."
"So how are you going to deal with Benson"
"In bringing Mirage into the picture, means that they want nothing to come out from this. They want this dealt with in silence. This means that even if he ends up winning, it's not just us that they will silence but also him and his sister,"
Hearing this, a visible disgust and frustration appeared on Atlas's face as he was reminded of how little and alienated poorer people were seen, "Of course, they would resort to something as shitty as that too."
Darren took in one more deep breath as he recollected his emotions, "I'm going to go find him. You stay here and delay if the people come in to inform you that the fight is starting."
Darren proceeded to walk towards the door but before he could reach the door, the door suddenly slammed open and Dweck charged in.
"Darren! We need you at the ring, stat!" he informed before holding the door open, urging the two to follow him out quickly.
"What's happening?" Darren asked, confused as to why Dweck would suddenly intrude.
"Your fighter... He's charged into the ring and the fight has started earlier than expected..."
"SHIT!" Darren broke out as he immediately ran towards the ring with haste with Dweck and Atlas following him closely behind.