Chapter 29: Josie vs Arturo

 “This will be your suite Miss Abigail.”

One of the tournament organizers, a gentle insect beastling, assisted Abigail along with her group of doctors to enter their viewing suite. It sat high atop the arena, looking down at the ring itself. There were chairs, tables lined with snacks along with a lighting box on the wall that gave a closer look to the ring.

“Thank you.” Abigail said with a smile, rolling her wheelchair over to the large window. “But please call my Abbie.”

The beastling gave a smile with his maw and nodded. “Of course Abbie. As you see you’re equipped with everything you and your medical staff will need to keep you comfortable. The opening ceremony will be starting in about twenty minutes so please make yourself at home”

The organizer then pointed to a bright red Bellphone positioned on the wall next to the window. 

“And if you need anything,” the beastling continued. “That phone will reach us directly, please don’t hesitate to use-”

“Where are you ya’ damn pest!” An older voice called from one of the other suites. “I asked for my drink fifteen minutes ago.”

“Apologies,” the beastling said to Abbie with an awkward smile. “But I must be going, please enjoy your time here.”

With that the organizer quickly shuffled out of the room, shutting the door behind him. Abbie and her team of seven medical assistants looked out at the arena. The crowd was filling into their seats, human and beastling alike. At the same time other organizers were working to get the arena ready for the festivities. Abbie glanced over at doctors and nurses who were chattering about a chance to be at such an exciting event.

“Please, go eat. I’m fine for now.” Abbie told them with a smile.

The medical team all thanked her as they quickly made their way to the prepared smorgasbord. While they ate Abbie reached into her bag, pulling out a brochure given to her upon arriving at the arena. It was filled with information about the tournament, sponsors and an itinerary of what to expect over this three day event.

“I wonder who made it out of the last chance qualifier.” Abbie thought to herself as she read the profiles for the other seven competitors who made it into the quarterfinals.

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“Man, I haven’t seen this many people since the Millenia Derby.” Josie said to herself, watching more and more guests pile into the stands.

After winning her qualifier Josie was brought into a room with other competitors and their ‘teams’ as they waited for the opening ceremonies to begin. Josie paid no real mind to anyone there but the other teams were whispering to themselves about her.

“Josie!” 

Peg called out, entering the waiting room while holding a pair of keys.

“Looks like we’re eligible for a free room for as long as we’re in the tournament. I was able to get one before they fill up with last minute guests.”

“Great!” Josie replied. “I could really use a nap after today.”

“Well don’t think about sleeping yet, you have a long way to go before the day’s over.”

Peg now looked around the room and unlike Josie noticed the different teams staring at them. She paid no real mind to this and instead focused on all the different things she learned about the remaining competitors. She was ready to give Josie a debrief of her thoughts but was interrupted by the voice of a ournament organizer entering the room.

“Good morning everyone!” The human organizer spoke. “The opening ceremony will be starting soon. I’d like to give everyone an order of events and today’s match ups.”

Behind the organizer shuffled in two more beastlings who unfolded a giant piece of paper, fixing it to a nearby wall. The paper showed a bracket for the tournament matches with each competitor’s name penciled in.

“Ok so first we will have remarks from Prime Minister Guernsey and this year’s sponsor MiMi. Then Lester will come in and after his preamble the matches will begin.” 

The organizer tapped his finger against the paper. “First match will be Josie vs Arturo, then Lunagi vs Nyobi, Claus vs Barby-Ann and the closing match for today will be Nagala vs Hugh. Any questions?”

To Peg’s surprise, Josie raised her hand. He pointed to Josie who quickly spoke.

“Is there time for breakfast? I’m starving!”

The other competitors and their teams laughed. Peg felt her skin grow hot with embarrassment. The organizers all looked at each other before he answered her question.

“No, there will not be time for that. I apologize. Now, any other questions?”

Everyone else kept quiet, choosing to instead whisper to themselves about the ‘hungry kid.’

“Good, Lester will go over the rules once he enters the ring so please pay attention. And of course, best of luck to everyone here.”

The organizers bowed their heads before exiting, leaving behind the paper with the tournament brackets. The other teams continued their last minute preparations while Josie and Peg walked over to look at the paper.

“Arturo? That’s him right?”

Josie pointed to the corner of the waiting area where an ant-eater beastling stood alone. His shoulders were hunched and he wore a vacant stare that traveled for miles. Peg slapped down Josie’s finger.

“Don’t point at people Jo! And yes, that’s him.”

Peg reached into her bag and pulled out her little book, flipping through its pages.

“I couldn’t find a ton of information on him. All I really know is that this is his first year entering the tournament and he’s won all of his matches without laying a finger on his opponent.”

“What’s his ability then?”

“That’s the thing.” Peg replied, closing the book. “No one seems to know, he’s a man of very few words as well so it’s not like he’s going to spill the beans.”

Everyone’s attention was drawn to the large lightning box showing footage from the ring while a voice crackled from the loudspeaker.

“Ladies and gentlemen.” The voice spoke, landing on the ears of the crowd and competitors in the waiting room. “Welcome to the Annual Tournament of Wishes opening ceremony, please rise to welcome Prime Minister Guernsey and Inter-Stalk musical sensation MiMi!”

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The crowd cheered as the two entered the ring. The Prime Minister wore a sharp pinstripe suit, and his gray hair was slicked back, raising a waving hand to match his warm smile. To his right was MiMi, a popular singer throughout the stalk. She wore a pink and blue dress with frills and her hair twisted in ringlets that bobbed while she walked.

When the two entered the arena, a microphone was handed to MiMi by one of the assistants. She raised her hands with a smile, doing her best to quiet down the crowd before speaking.

“How are we doing out there everyone?” She asked with a sweet tone.

The crowd screamed, yelling out how much they loved MiMi and she had to quiet them down again before speaking.

“I just want to say that I am honored to be part of such a historic event. When Prime Minister Guernsey asked me to be the sponsor for this year’s tournament I couldn’t be more excited. As a beastling being part of this rich history has been such a humbling experience. We have three days of exciting matches planned along with a small concert by yours truly at the award ceremony, so sit back and get ready for some exciting match ups. Now without further adieu, Prime Minister Peter Guernsey!”

MiMi handed the microphone over to the Prime Minister, who was still smiling. She quickly exited off the stage as Peter took to addressing the crowd.

“Hello everyone! I just wanted to give my deepest gratification for all of you being here. Events like this wouldn’t be possible without the support of humans and beastlings so before you cheer on these incredible fights be sure to cheer on yourselves and-”

“The tournament is a distraction! A distraction from the Ministry’s destruction!”

Cutting off the Prime Mininister, a canine beastling in all black stormed the stage. He continued chanting the same words over and over before snatching away the microphone from Guernsey.

“If you knew the true history behind this event, there’d be nothing worth celebrating!” The Beastling continued. “Worst of all they use this event as a way to distract from their atrocities. While we watch Beastlings dance like puppets for our entertainment, cities of Beastlings are being massacred. I have proof that today they are-”

A man in a suit of silver armor with a sharp blade appeared on the stage almost instantly. He slashed across the beastling, causing him to drop the microphone and fall to his knees. The knight, assisted by two others dressed in similar gear, detained the beastling and dragged him away from the arena. The beastling, while coughing blood repeated over and over ‘this isn’t right’ until he was pulled away out of the sight of the crowd.

Guernsey patted down his suit before reaching to grab the microphone. He took a deep breath before smiling and once again addressing the crowd.

“How about cheering for our boys in Silver huh?”

The crowd erupted, cheering and screaming as Guernsey continued to smile.

“In my last twenty-five years as Prime Minister, my leadership has not only pushed more funding into our Silver Knights than any other before me but I’ve cracked down on dissident from those ‘Get Back’ terrorists. You’ve seen first hand how I continue to protect the stalk from the lies and rage of these savages who choose to ruin such a unifying event with their hatred.”

The crowd continued to cheer as Guernsey raised his hand to silence them.

“As I am once again uncontested for this year’s upcoming election I promise to not only continue the work but also to create a path for the next person in line to lead the stalk into further prosperity. That is why I need you all to come out and make your voices heard at the ballot with a vote of confidence in three months. With my vision, when the Great King returns we will be more than prepared to return to Paradise. Thank you for your support and Leopold be praised!”

The crowd repeated the mantra in unison, cheering again for the prime minister.

“Now, enough of me talking let’s get this show on the road. I am proud to announce the master of ceremonies for today’s event. A beastling who has been commanding the air waves for over a decade. A man who needs no introduction, please welcome Lester Night!”

Guernsey pointed high above and the crowd followed. Flying down from the clear blue sky was a man in a black suit, wings and the face of a fly. He flew down with intense speed before landing right next to Guernsey, shaking his hand before receiving the mic and addressing the arena.

“Thank you Prime Minister, I am Lester Night The Nightfly, Hello Guernsey Fair!!!” 

The crowd cheered, yelling Lester’s name.  Even Josie clapped and cheered, once again to Peg’s surprise.

“You know who that is?” Peg asked.

“Yeah! He’s on the radio all the time at work. He’s pretty funny!”

The organizers guided Guernsey out of the ring as Lester took center stage.

“I know you love me, but you ain’t here to see me. Let’s get right into the Quarter Finals of The Tournament of Wishes!”

The crowd, not even close to running out of energy, stood to their feet and cheered as they knew it was finally time to start what they’ve been waiting for. 

“Each of these competitors fought hard throughout the year and more than deserve their chance at a wish.” Lester continued. “But! Only one will be walking away with their deepest desire granted! So let’s get started! From the city of Quell on the Leafland of Bluevein, a man of mystery, please make some noise for Arturo!”

The doors of the waiting room swung open as organizers called out to Arturo to exit. He stood motionless, while everyone stared. After a few moments he moved very methodically, like a poorly oiled machine and walked towards the organizers and out into the ring. The crowd cheered but it was the most middling reaction so far.

“And as for his opponent, our youngest competitor who just squeaked into these Quarter Finals by winning our three-hundred and sixty-four man ‘Last Chance Qualifier.’ This powered up pipsqueak hails from the city of Thalahassa of this very Leafland. Give it up for Josie!”

Josie and Peg shared another quick fist bump before she bounced to the door and out into the arena. She soaked in all the admiration as she waved her hands, and tail at the crowd. Her smile was wide and her eyes bright, not looking at all like someone who fought over a hundred beastlings merely an hour ago. 

With Josie and Arturo now in the ring, the remaining competitors and their posses found separate spots in the waiting room to watch. Peg decided to follow suit, finding a chair and retrieving her branch earpiece while everyone else wasn’t looking.

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Lester once again went over the rules but Josie could only focus on her opponent. She stood tall, trying to stare him down but he just returned a blank expression. She honestly wasn’t even sure if he was looking at her. She didn’t want to play into any mind games and luckily Peg wasn’t going to let her.

“So like I said Jo, I don’t know much about him.” Peg whispered, covering her mouth with her book. “But I can follow everything on the lightning box and I’ll tell you if I notice any weak spots.”

“Roger that Peg.” Josie replied, bouncing on the balls of the feet to warm herself back up.

“With all that being said!” Lester spoke, gripping the microphone as his other hand came down in a chopping motion. “Begin!”

Two organizers rang a nearby gong as Lester quickly flew out of the ring. Josie pushed a little of Kinto under her heels and lunged at Arturo with incredible speed. While she tried to not show how exhausted this morning’s brawl made her, she still wanted to end this fight as soon as possible. While jettisoning towards Arturo she noticed him wiggling his stubby fingers in her direction. Then she fell down to the ground, hard.

“And down Josie goes!” Lester yelled into his microphone. “Looks like she fell without even being hit. Maybe the kid isn’t ready for the big stage!”

Josie rubbed her head, before she could think about what happened Peg was already giving her own feedback.

“What happened? Are you getting tired? I didn’t even see him hit you!”

“Yeah I don’t know either.” Josie replied, rubbing at her arms. “It’s like something made me tense up and I dropped.”

Peg thought to herself about what little she did know about Arturo. She didn’t have much in terms of weaknesses but he did have interesting phenomena around his fights. They would never last longer than five minutes. His opponents would be left incapacitated with convulsions and even vomiting.

“Just…Just be careful Jo. He’s doing something, we just have to figure it out!”

Josie didn’t respond but was now just standing, staring at the motionless Arturo. She heard the sound of fluttering as Lester flew up to her side of the ring, keeping the microphone away as he spoke.

“Hey Kid, this guy ain’t moving so you need to do something. I know it’s your first time on the big stage but you can’t piss off the crowd with the first match of the day, dig? If you want a wish you gotta’ go after it.”

Josie was frustrated but Lester was right. She couldn’t win without attacking so it was time to be back on the offensive. She knocked her fists together and ran full speed at Arturo.

Her tail whipped around like a propeller, helping her running speed. As she rushed towards him he once again wiggled his fingers as they hung at his side.

“You ain’t dropping me again long nose.” Josie thought, noticing his fingers and bracing herself.

This time however she wasn’t just slammed to the ground. At only a few feet away from Arturo she felt sharp pains all over her legs. The pain made her yelp as she dropped to her knees.

“Josie’s down again!” Lester yelled into the mic. “Folks, maybe it isn’t Arturo who’s causing Josie trouble. It sounds like her real fight today is with gravity!”

The same crowd that only minutes before cheered for Josie was now sneering and laughing at her plight. She tried moving her legs but they were quite numb. She hit them a few times to awaken but then noticed Arturo moved into a different stance. His hands were no longer at his side and instead gripped around his elongated snout, holding it like a rifle.

“I don’t like this, get out of the way!” Peg said into Josie’s ear.

Josie kept hitting her legs but it wasn’t enough to make her move in time. Arturo took a deep breath and as he exhaled small bullets shot from his nose at incredible speed. Unable to move Josie took the full attack and doubled over again.

“Folks if you’ve been following Arturo throughout the year you’ll know that what he just did is a fight ender!” Lester called out.

Josie writhed around in pain as the crowd cheered, finally seeing some action. Peg flipped through her notebook hoping to find something she may have overlooked. The other competitors have stopped watching, instead focusing on their next match ups. Josie was all but presumed finished as the countdown began.

As Lester counted, Josie lay writhing in pain gripping her teeth. Peg racked her brain over and over until something came to her that made her stand to her feet and blurt out;

“Josie! Steam room!”

Josie's cloud ears twitched as Peg’s voice broke through the pain. She heard the words and immediately understood the reference. As Lester grew closer to reaching the end of his ‘Ten Count’ Josie yelled for Kinto. Thick clouds erupted all around Josie, enveloping the entire ring like a sauna.

"Looks like she’s not done yet folks!” Lester said as he waved his hands through the thick clouds. “About time our little lemur showed off what those clouds could do!”

With Kinto surrounding her, Josie finally had the moment she needed to regroup. Sitting for a moment she looked down at where she was shot by the nose bullets. 

“Jo! I can’t see anything.” Peg whispered, now sitting in her chair and embarrassed from her outburst. “How are you feeling?”

“I think I’m good…” Josie replied.

In her fingers she held one of the ‘bullets’ that was still lodged against her skin. When she tried to pull it off she noticed that the bullet seemed to have a grip. Almost like claws from an animal attached to her skin. With a good yank she was able to pull it away to examine up close.

“Ow! What the Hell?” Josie yelled.

“What!? What happened!?” Peg asked.

Josie realized it wasn’t a bullet, but a bug, an ant to be exact. Josie rolled up the legs of her overalls and found even smaller red ants gripping at her skin. Many of them were squished from when she was hitting her legs but a few were still wriggling on her body.

“It’s ants Peg.” Josie said as she stood to her feet and shook, trying to remove any that may be left.

Peg slapped her hand against her forehead. “Of course, of course it’s ants. He must control him with his ability.”

Not a moment of thought later Peg had an idea. She brought the book up to her face, covering her mouth movements. She whispered and as she spoke Josie’s eyes widened, understanding the plan.

“Alright!” Josie yelled. “Let’s give it a shot!”

Josie called out for Kinto and as she yelled the clouds that obscured the ring dissipated. Josie and Arturo were once again standing opposite each other.

“Looks like Josie’s smoke show is over folks!” Lester said.

Josie stood with her feet apart and her fists up. Arturo raised his arms, ready to summon more ants to attack her. Josie’s clouds swirled around her body and she pushed off the ground, catapulting herself at Arturo once again.

“Josie tries the rocket! Will she go down again!?”

Tiny ants were blasted in Josie’s direction but she didn’t go down. Arturo, still expressionless, raised his snout to fire again. Even with the onslaught of three ant streams Josie didn’t go down and her fist slammed right into Arturo’s midsection.

After the attack she rolled a few feet but caught herself before falling out of the ring. She stood, hands on her hips and smiling proudly. Kinto swirled around her body in a figure eight motion and inside the cloud streams were the ants. 

“It worked! It worked!!” Josie boasted proudly. “They can’t bite me while floating around! Now I just gotta’ finish pummeling him.”

Peg didn’t respond but Josie could hear the hushed whispers of others in the waiting room. She looked up and noticed a similar reaction from everyone in the crowd, staring at her with disgust and horror. Josie began to feel uneasy and Peg finally spoke.

“We…we have a big problem Jo.”

Josie finally turned around, expecting to see Arturo on the ground finally showing some emotion from the pain. Her heart sank when she laid eyes on him. She hadn’t just hit Arturo, she punched through him like a wet paper bag. Kinto stopped swirling and the captured ants fell, crawling away in all different directions.

Josie was frozen in shock, just like everyone else watching. Lester flew into the ring, slowly landing next to Arturo’s motionless body. He looked down but after a few moments brought up the microphone to speak.

“As…As per the rules.” Lester said, trying to hold back being sick. “Arturo has clearly died from the last attack so Josie, you are disqualified.”

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To Be Continued