Chapter I: The Venom Strikes Your enemy forever, Viscera Venom's eyes filled with tears, and he dropped to his knees. He ripped the paper to shreds, and threw the pieces to the floor. He climbed to his feet and thew his door open. He slammed it shut behind him, and grabbed his gym bag, pulling out his fighting attire. He then began to change into his attire. * * * *
The next morning, Venom got up quickly when the sound of a gong came booming through the palace. He got out of bed, took a shower, and was told to go into the Dining Room. He spotted Anaconda, Nukum, Phantom and another man in a light purple/brown ninja outfit. Venom walked over to their table, and sat across from the ninja. "Where do I go to get my breakfast?" he asked Nukum.
"Oh, go up there. The lines pretty long, but I'm sure you could find a place in front," Nukum said, pointing over to a very long line. Venom got up and walked in front of a big man with a foot long goatee and scars covering his bare chest and face.
"Excuse me, but I don't appreciate your puny ass coming in front of me like that, boy," the man said, shoving Venom out of his way.
"Well, I don't appreciate your fat ass pushin' me around like that. Now you either let me in front of you or there'll be Hell to pay," Venom threatened.
"Oh, did I make the little boy cry?" the man said in a "baby talk" voice, and then laughed.
"You keep that shit up and you'll do more than cry when I'm through with you," Venom snapped, tightening his fists.
"You want some trouble, boy? Well, you just happened to find it," the man said, swinging a fist towards Venom's face. Venom ducked, and executed a leg sweep that knocked the man on his back. The man got up quickly, and swung again, and Venom blocked the punch, and grabbed his arm, pulled it behind the man's back, and pulled upwards, breaking it. "Ah damn it! Let go of me you little shit!!" the man pleaded, trying to break free of Venom's grip, but to no avail. The man's eyes began to water, and he tried to hold back tears, and Venom shoved his arm up even further, causing the bone in the man's arm to literally rip through his elbow. The man screamed in pain, and blood squirted from the fracture.
"Now who's cryin' you fat bastard?" Venom joked, shoving the man to the floor. Suddenly Venom was pulled around by a rather tall, muscular man, who seemed to be one of the guards at the palace.
"Wait until the fights start. Next time I catch you doing something like this, I'll have you executed on the spot," the guard threatened, turning around and walking off. Venom shook his head, and saw the man he was fighting a few moments ago get up and walk off towards the guard. The guard shoved the man off, and the fat man bumped into another man, who slammed a fist into his jaw. The fat man staggered sideways, blood seeping from his shattered jaw. The fat man then fell to a knee, then face first into the ground. The man who killed the fat man was immediately killed, on the spot, by one guard, who withdrew a sword and decapitated the man. Every single one of the people in the room had their heads turned towards the action, and then began eating when the guard held his sword out to a group of five men beside him. Venom turned to the line, and shoved a man back, and got in front of him.
When he had finally gotten his breakfast, he walked over to his table, and sat beside Nukum. He grabbed his carton of orange juice, and popped it open, and quickly swallowed it down. He grabbed his fork, and began eating the sausage on his plate. He grabbed a small bottle full of syrup, and squirted a three inch blob on his plate beside the pancakes, and then some on the pancakes. He took a small piece off the pancakes, and bit it off his fork, and swallowed it. Suddenly a loud banging sound was heard, echoing throughout the Dining Room. He turned around to see Thunderblood standing atop a large platform. "Ladies and gentlemen, you all now should be leaving for the Arena. I know it's kinda early to leave, but the Titles Event has gotta start early. Now go to the Arena outside. You have one hour," Thunderblood said, walking down a mall flight of stairs and then out the door, along with two other guards.
Soon Nukum, Venom, and the others followed the crowd out the door and outside. Venom looked around him, and saw many flags with the Ministry of Blood symbol in the center of each. The flags were set on wooden poles, which were stuck in the sandy ground. A man shoved Venom to the side, and walked passed him. Another man shoved Venom to the other side, and Venom started walking again. He ran up to Nukum, who had gotten a little ahead of him, and soon saw a small structure in the distance. "How long do you think it'll actually take us to get to the arena?" Venom asked, brushing a bug off his shoulder.
"Well, the arena is a few miles away, at least twenty or twenty-five, so I'd say maybe an hour and a half, an hour and fifteen at the least," Nukum replied, spitting a blob of saliva towards the ground, which hit another man's foot.
"Hey you little shit! Wipe that off my foot before I break your scrawny neck, boy," the man threatened, grabbing Nukum by the shirt.
"Let me go you ugly son of a bitch," Nukum commanded, breaking free of the man's grip. Nukum shoved the man off, causing him to trip over his own feet.
Come on Nukum, man, let's go," Venom said, waving signaling Nukum to follow. Nukum started to walk forward, but the man on the ground grabbed his leg and kicked him in the kneecap.
"I'm gonna kill you, boy!" the man said. He pulled Nukum up, a big mistake. Nukum quickly backhanded the man, and followed up with an almost immediate uppercut that shattered the man's jaw. The man's eyes filled with tears as he staggered back and fell on his back. Nukum smiled, and dusted off his ninja garb.
"Don't you ever touch me again, bitch," Nukum snapped, kicking a pile of sand in the man's face. He smiled again, and began walking with Venom.
At least two hours later, they had finally arrived at the arena. Torches were set upon many wooden poles, giving the arena a nice orange glow, along with the sun high in the sky. Palm trees aligned the outside of the fighting area, allowing a bit of shade. There were many rows of bleachers aligning the sides of the fighting area, which gave the onlookers and fighters a place to rest and watch the matches. The same flags from before were set beside a large granite throne, which Thunderblood sat upon. Two guards stood beside the throne, looking over the crowd.
Venom walked over to where Nukum was sitting, and sat down beside him, and beside Phantom. He quickly realized he wasn't wearing his normal fighting attire, and stood up, getting ready to go back to the palace and get his stuff. "Where you goin'?" Nukum asked, noticing him leaving.
"I'm going back to get my stuff, I forgot my ninja garments," Venom replied.
"Oh, well hurry up man, the first event is about to start," Nukum informed. Nukum nodded, and quickly ran off. Thunderblood stood up on his throne, and walked over to Nukum.
"Where's Venom going?" he asked Nukum.
"He forgot his fighting garments, he'll be back soon, I hope," Nukum informed.
"Well, I'll try and hold off the match for an hour, and if he doesn't show up in an hour, then I'm gonna go back and see what's wrong," Thunderblood said, walking back to his throne.
* * * *
Less than a half an hour later, Venom was at the palace doors, and he quickly shoved them open. He looked around, and forgot which way to go to his room. He ran to the left hall, and soon realized he was lost. "Damn it, I should've went to the right," he cursed, looking around. He then noticed he was in the Throne Room. "Damn, this place is huge," he said, looking around the room. The room was dimly lit, and many shadows were aligning the walls and floor near where the torches did not give off light. He heard something behind him, and spun around. "Who's there?" he asked, looking behind him. He then heard a voice, and then another deeper voice. He spun around, and saw a human shadow near the throne, and another near a row of stone statues. "Is anyone in here?" he asked again, knowing someone was indeed in the room.
"The question is, who are you, intruder?" said one of the figures.
"None of your damn business. Come, show yourself. Don't be a coward," Venom said, looking in the direction of the voices. Two figures walked out of the shadows. They were twins. Venom stepped back when one of the withdrew an axe.
"You will die for intruding in our palace," said one of the men. This one wore a dark blue ninja garb with the design of flames covering his torso. The opposite one wore the same ninja garb, except his was bright green. The dark blue one withdrew an exact duplicate of the bright green ninja's axe, and they both charged Venom. Venom ducked, and slammed his fists into each one of the ninjas' backs, and spun around, quickly getting into a stance. The blue ninja quickly kipped up, and threw the axe forward. It flew over Venom's head, and quickly turned direction, and flew back towards his knees. Venom flipped back, and grabbed the handle of the axe. He ran at the blue ninja, and sliced open his chest, spun around, and executed a hard roundhouse to the ninja's head. The ninja dropped to the floor, got into a pushup position, and sprang forward, landing on his feet.
The green ninja charged at Venom, and blindsided him. Venom hit the floor hard, dizzied from the impact. Venom slowly got up, spun around, and executed an axe-kick to the green ninja's shoulder, knocking him down. The blue ninja quickly took advantage and kicked Venom in the back hard, causing him to drop to his knees. The green ninja got up, and backhanded Venom, and slammed an elbow into his shoulder.
"What the hell is going on in here?!" yelled Thunderblood from the hall.
"He was--" the green ninja started.
"This is a very good friend of mine, and I do not want you two ending his life here, which I doubt very much you would have done," Thunderblood snapped. "Now get back to your guarding stations, and do your Goddamn jobs for once," he ordered. "And for your information, this is Venom, one of my best friends, and he is supposed to fight in the Titles Events here," he said, helping Venom to his feet. The two ninja walked off, talking to each other.
"Thanks for showin' up before they killed me, Thunderblood," Venom thanked, rubbing his shoulder. "They probably would have if you didn't come here."
"I doubt it. They aren't very agile, and their strength ain't that great either. You probably would have killed them before they got the upper hand," Thunderblood stated.
"Well, they sure did team up pretty good," Venom said, smiling slightly. "Well, I guess I better hurry and get changed," Venom said, walking off.
"I'll hold off the first match for ya'," Thunderblood informed.
"No, just get it started, I'm sure everybody's waitin' and wonderin' what the hell is taking so long," Venom said, turning to Thunderblood. "See ya'."
"Okay, well bye," Thunderblood said, walking through the main doors in the Throne Room, and back out to the arena.
Venom was soon at the hall near his room, and noticed a note hanging from a nail on his door. He pulled it off, and began to read it.
You fool; it is I, Viscera, your long-hated foe. I had a feeling you would show up here. Well, I wish I could fight you, and make you suffer at my hands, like so many of your friends and relatives have suffered. I wish I could watch your pathetic corpse rot before my eyes.
Oh yes, and one more thing. I am here fighting some pathetic human female. I guess I shall just have to steal her little Titles, and bring my newly formed Raptor race back to the top, where it belongs. Well, I better get back to my messenger, who just informed me that your brother is going to be beaten again for not obeying the second-in-command's orders. Have a nice day.
Soon, he was done changing, and he was indeed ready for his match. He threw his gym bag onto his bed, opened the door, and began his journey back to the arena.
Nearly an hour and a half later, Venom was at the arena again, and everyone was looking at him. His fists were pulled tight together, and his teeth were clenched tightly. He saw his foe in the corner, talking to Damage. He looked over at Nukum, and Nukum noticed the evil glare in his eyes.
"What's the matter, man?" Nukum asked. Venom shook his head slightly, which told Nukum automatically that he was enraged. Nukum watched as Venom took his place in the arena.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the next Titles Event to be taken place is the Interrealm Championship. Damage, Venom, take your stances," Thunderblood said, also noticing Venom's facial expression. Damage got into a stance with his legs spread apart, one in front of the other. He had his arms in front of him, hands open, palms facing at one another. He swayed back and forth, and his eyes were watching Venom's every move.
Venom crept into a wide stance, his knees bent, his legs spread apart, and his arms in front of him reptilian style.
"FIGHT!" Thunderblood cried.
Venom immediately leapt into the air, attempting at a jump kick, but the skilled Damage sidestepped the attack, and executed a roundhouse. Venom fell face first into the sand, and he rolled sideways, and kipped up. He growled with anger, charged at Damage, and slammed his shoulder hard into Damage's ribcage. Damage moaned with pain, and the wind was knocked out of him. He rolled to the side, holding his stomach in pain. Venom took advantage, and pulled Damage up, grabbed him by the arms, and kicked him in the back, knocking him face first into the sand. He spun around, kipped up, and attempted at a spinning hell kick, was easily blocked. Venom retaliated with a hard axe-kick to Damage's left shoulder, knocking him to his knees. Venom quickly backhanded Damage, knocking him sideways into the ground. Damage climbed to his feet, and got into a stance.
Venom attempted at a high kick, but Damage immediately ducked, and leg swept Venom. Venom landed hard on his back, and he immediately kipped up, withdrawing his sickles. He slashed at Damage, causing the blade to slice open his belly. He then slashed with the other sickle, slicing open his chest. Damage backed away, and stood straight up, hands in front of him, palms facing one another. Green energy began forming in the center of his palms, forming a ball of glowing green gases. The ball then lit up into large green flames, and Damage threw it towards Venom.
Venom tried to dodge it, but it was too quick, and slammed hard into his left shoulder, throwing him to the ground. He kipped up quickly, only to catch a punch to the jaw. He staggered back, and started to get annoyed. He let out a loud war cry, and charged at Damage, slammed a fist into his gut, then into his jaw, and then slammed him hard onto the ground. He slammed a foot towards Damage's head, but missed, and Damage leg swept him. Venom dropped onto his back, kipped up, and blocked a series of high kicks and low kicks, and retaliated with a roundhouse followed by a spinning air kick. Damage staggered back, and Venom ran forward, and jumped towards Damage, leg extended. He executed a very painful flying kick into Damage's jaw, which threw his head to the side. Blood flew from Damage's mouth as his head spun violently to the side. He staggered back, and shook his head. Venom clenched his teeth underneath his mask, and a red aura surrounded his body. Seconds later he was perfectly blended in with the surroundings. Damage shook his head again, and saw a slightly blurred spot in the atmosphere to his right. He was immediately hit with a very powerful sidekick, and he fell to the ground. He tried to get up, but he was kicked in ribs. He moaned with pain, and suddenly Venom reappeared. He removed his mask, and emitted a thin green mist from his mouth, which dissipated within a matter of thirty seconds. Damage began coughing, and clutched his throat. He was barely able to breathe, and started choking. Venom pulled his mask back on, and watched as Damage started to catch his breath.
He slowly climbed to his feet, and his eyes were bloodshot. Venom then ran forward, and landed a sidekick into Damage's chest, knocking him back to the ground. Damage got up once again, only this time to be immediately hit with a very, very powerful high kick, which snapped his head back violently, causing him to be knocked unconscious. Venom turned to Thunderblood, and then walked off, his fists still tightened. Nukum got up, and ran over to him.
"What the hell is the matter with you, man?" he asked, stepping in front of Venom.
"Nothing, I-I just need to be alone for a while," Venom replied, shoving Nukum to the side.
"Fine, go whine about your problems, hold your emotions in. It won't be my fault when you go off on somebody and end up getting yourself killed," Nukum called to Venom, who was already about ten feet away. Venom turned his head to face Nukum, and cocked his head, signaling him to follow him. "Okay, good.," Nukum said. He ran over to Venom, and they began walking. "What's wrong, man?"
"Well, I-I got another message from Viscera today. He's here, in Cenetal," Venom informed, looking towards the ground.
"Damn it, I was hopin' you wouldn't find this out. Now don't you go and kill that sorry piece of trash, or you'll end up getting killed, like that guy in the Dining Room this morning," Nukum said, smiling.
"Well, I will try my best not to kill him, but it will be hard. That note said that my brother is going to get beaten Nukum. Beaten!" Venom cried out, throwing his arms out in frustration.
"Damn man, that is bad. But you should be glad you're the Interrealm Champion, and that you've beaten Damage, a man admired by millions," Nukum said, smiling slightly. Venom looked to his right, and saw a robed figure. The figure's eyes glowed a bright red. "What are you looking at?" Nukum asked.
"There was someone over th--" when Venom looked at the spot the figure was in, the figure was nowhere to be seen. "Never mind. I'm just gonna go to the Training Room. You can go watch the matches," Venom said.
"Are you sure you're gonna be all right man?" Nukum asked.
"Yeah, I'll be fine," Venom said, walking off.
Next Chapter: "The Search for Viscera's Palace"