The teams went to their respective homes. Rinna suggested Avryn could stay with her since he had none. He reassured her he had plans, much to her worries but she let it go. Avryn made his way to the slums. He felt uneasy from the glances from its residents. He moved forward and met with his contact, Haley.

  “I was surprised you got my number,” he told her.

  “Well, I worked hard to get it. Can you do me this favor or not?” she was looking around all worried.

  “Don’t worry, I always fulfill my favors in full,” he reassured.

  She lead him to a nondescript building. She introduced two people to Avryn.

  “Big man is Rags Boggins, skinny guy is Stink Eye Samuels. Hired muscle is Avryn Starbright.”

  “Oh that semifinalist?” Rags chimed up.

  “The very same,” Avryn posed.

  Haley explained there was a notorious figure that came to the slums and dubbed himself The King of the Streets. He had hired muscle collect protection money from its residents and threatened to beat them if they didn’t submit. Monthly beatings turned into weekly, then turned into daily because of what the King saw as the people being too uptight about him. He basically wrestled control of the slums with his brothel and personal army.

  That’s all Avryn needed to hear to make it personal to him. He didn’t liked such kind of people. He told Haley he was all in on the plan and she just needed to direct him on what to do. She was taken aback on how forward he was but thanked him nonetheless. She let him in on the plan. Rag’s role was to lay the trap to destroy the building. Stink Eye would serve as lookout. Haley would distract the King while Avryn fights off the King’s henchman.

  Haley emphasized that The King was giving her some looks and knows that pretending to want to be his girl would help with the plan. She asked Avryn to help save her afterwards. That was no problem to him.

  “It’s almost storybook in a way, huh? I fight the minions, your friends set the trap, then I save the metaphorical damsel in self-made distress,” Avryn commented.

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  “Just do your job, alright?” Haley emphasized.

  “Yeah, a semifinalist of the Battle Festival should be able to take care an army of street punks,” Stink Eye chuckled.

  “Consider it done,” Avryn replied. “Let’s get to it.”

  Haley went and prettied up herself to serve as the bait. She went into the King’s building. Expectantly, the guards let her in, but not before giving her behind a slap which surprised her. She bit down her tongue and just rolled with it.

  Rags clenched his fist but Avryn managed to calm him down.

  “You’re the clincher in this. Use your anger to plant the explosives in the building’s weak spots.”

  The man and went on his way to sneakily plant the bombs onto the weak side of the building. Nothing short of ten minutes later, Stink Eye gave Avryn the go signal. The plan has begun.

  Meanwhile Haley was in The King’s “bed chamber of love” and was playing her role.

  “Oooh baby, I knew you’d look so smokin’ hot with that dress I bought ya,” drool escaped his bottom lip. “You look so scrumptious.”

  Haley tried her hardest not to gag from his advances.

  “I only did this…so you won’t harm anyone else,” she exclaimed.

  “Of course, baby, of course. Anything for an angel like you, lovely Haley. Such an angelic name,” he leered at her.

  He was looking at her at all angles he could reach from the bed. He was like a little kid examining a doll. His stare disgusted Haley to her core. One of the King’s heavies barged in.

  “Sir, there’s a guy down there attacking us. It’s real bad, what do we do, sir?”

  “Ah just get rid of him. I’m in the middle of getting my groove on,” he dismissed him.

  The guard remained, seemed that answer was not enough for him.

  “Fine, double pay for anyone who takes him down.”

  Meanwhile, Avryn was mopping the floor of every grunt that was set on him. An easy fight like this was a good way to relax after fighting in a tournament. He danced around the floor with Lerosa at the lead. Concussion-inducing shots and slashes sounded off in the halls. Avryn was having his fun playing with these goons.

  An explosion was set off from Avryn’s left. None of those mercenaries were in it. Good, Avryn thought. He was forcing them away from the explosions. The leader of these mercs had come down.

  “Boss says double pay to whoever takes that kid down!” he exclaimed.

  “Double? Why didn’t you ask him to make it a triple?” Avryn taunted him on.

  The captain answered his challenge and jumped down. The two shared an intense staredown. They attacked each other. Blades clashed around. The captain lost the exchange as Avryn beats him to near unconsciousness. That was when he realized something.

  He looked around. His men were just beaten to unconsciousness, not killed. He looked to the explosions and none of his men were caught in it. They only meant to go for the King. He made a decision that day and called for a retreat.

  “We’re not serving that tyrant any more,” he commanded.

  “But sir, what about the contract--”

  “No contract is worth the lives of my men. Let’s leave, already.”

  The captain turned to Avryn,

  “You’re a good kid,” he patted him on the shoulder before he left.

  The rest of the mercs aided the injured before helping them fully exiting the building. That was one job done, now for the other: rescuing the damsel. Stink Eye had arrived and told Avryn Haley was taking too long. Avryn went up to the bed chamber room and saw Haley was down unconscious with some visible bruises. The King was busy beating up Rags in the moment. Rags fell down on his knees as he crumpled from a gut punch.

  Rage came over Avryn as he absolutely assaulted The King bare handed. Swift punches to the head were given.

  “You cowardly piece of shit! I’m gonna kill you!” Avryn howled.

  He threw the King to the ground.

  “Get outta here, and don’t come back. You hear me?!”

  The now beaten up King nodded, packed up and left running with tail between his legs. Avryn called up Stink Eye,

  “We have injured, get over here now.”