Fight, Flight, or Freeze: The Healer's Story
Chapter 122: Look At Me

Chapter 122: Look At Me

"Is that so?" asked the small man as he walked further into the locker room. It smelled like blood and sweat, but the man in the custom-made suit didn’t seem to mind, acting like he was walking through a boardroom or something.

"Yes, Sir," replied Bai Long Qiang, keeping his head down. He didn’t know the actual name of the man, other than simply ’The Boss’. The mountain behind him, his muscles so big no one could see his neck, was called Wu Ze Min, and he was a fighter superpower.

Bai Long Qiang had seen what had happened when one of the fighters got out of line, and Wu Ze Min had to get involved.

The man was thrown through a brick wall and never got up.

That was not a fate that Bai Long Qiang was interested in, so he toed the line like any good military man would.

"And you, Yu Peng. What do you have to say for yourself?" asked the Boss as he turned his attention to the Oompa Loompa.

If it was possible, the other man paled even more under the undivided attention of the boss. "Well—" he started, looking around the room as if someone was going to pop out of a locker and help him.

"You see—" he continued, his words tripping over each other. "I didn’t—"

"You didn’t... what? Know that the Dragon was my fighter? No, this is my club; all the fighters here are mine. Well, except his opponent. He is yours, isn’t he?"

The boss stood still in the middle of the room, not a hair out of place, and not a single finger moved without purpose.

"Yes... well... yes... The Undertaker... you see... I wanted to introduce you to him. If you liked what you saw, you could buy him...."

Bai Long Qiang continued to sit on the bench, his eyes down on the floor. He could feel the Boss’ attention drift over to him every so often, but he didn’t react.

"And you thought I would like him better if he managed to beat my number one fighter, is that it?" hummed the Boss as he adjusted the cufflinks on his dress shirt. The man was at least two feet shorter than Bai Long Qiang and Wu Ze Min, but he was much, much more intimidating.

"Well..."

"That was a bad idea," continued the Boss, not once raising his voice. "You see, I try to have standards. I want my guests to know that I don’t cut corners when it comes to my operation, and I definitely don’t fix the fights. Could you just imagine the repercussions of something like that?"

Yu Peng once again looked around the room, this time searching for an exit that wouldn’t require him to try and get past Wu Ze Min.

"In these past few months... seven months to be precise... the world has fallen into disorder. Snakes in the grass who originally knew their place are trying to make money, and people are now willing to slit throats for a loaf of bread. The outcome of enraged men inside of a small building like this... well, it would be a slaughter."

The boss’s voice came out as an almost hum as he mused the outcome of a riot in his club.

"Dragon."

"Yes, Sir," responded Bai Long Qiang immediately.

"Look at me."

Slowly, Bai Long Qiang raised his head until he was looking the boss in the eyes. "Tell me the truth. Did you contemplate throwing the fight for even a second?"

"No, Sir," responded Bai Long Qiang. The answer was pulled out of him, the need to tell the truth, a compulsion that he couldn’t deny.

"Thank you," responded the boss with a nod and released Bai Long Qiang from his power. "Now, Yu Peng. Tell me the truth, what were your plans?"

"I wanted to get Dragon to throw the fight so you would be willing to take the Undertaker into your club. He was going to raise the ranks until I had the ability to take over this fight club and any other businesses you have in the city." The words were forced out of the man’s mouth as he started to tremble.

Why would he confess? This was a plan he had spent months working on, and it was flawless.

Yu Peng tried to close his mouth, but the words continued to come out like they had a mind of their own.

"After I had taken over everything, I was going to torture you, rip off your arms and legs, and let you be a human-pig for me. I was going to use your name to open doors and your body to—"

"That’s enough. I think I get the picture," smiled the boss as he looked over his shoulder. "Wu Ze Min? If you don’t mind taking him downstairs until I have a bit of time to deal with him?"

"Sure thing, Boss," grunted the mountain. Walking over to the sniveling man, he grabbed him by the throat and dragged him out of the locker room.

"Such unpleasantness," muttered the smaller man as he went to sit beside Bai Long Qiang on the bench. "But thank you for that. It is nice to see that type of loyalty from a fighter. And you are loyal, aren’t you?"

"I am for now," replied Bai Long Qiang, unknowingly meeting the other man’s eyes. "I need to find a man called the Recruiter and go fight for him once I prove myself in this club."

"And why on Earth would you want to do that?" continued the boss as if the two of them were having a conversation over tea. But just like Yu Peng, the words were being pulled out of Bai Long Qiang’s mouth without his permission.

"The Recruiter brings fighters to one particular place outside of City I. The love of my life is going to be there in two to three years from now,, and I need to go save her."

"And you know this how?"

"Wang Chao’s woman told me."

"Ah, Wang Chao. The prince of this city. The one we are all waiting on to step up and claim the throne," murmured the boss. He stared into Bai Long Qiang’s eyes and slowly blinked.