• S I X •

"I needed a hug but all they gave me was a box of matches and a knife."

• • •

Rage's POV

• • •

With a sleepy groan, I wake up and stretch, reluctant to get out of bed. Thankfully, I don't have to go to school today. That doesn't mean I can sleep the day away, though. Climbing out of bed, I quickly change into a pair of jeans and a white t-shirt before making sure my butterfly necklace is still on.

My feet hit the cold floor of the tiled hallway, helping me wake up more as I head into the small kitchen to get a hard-boiled egg out of the fridge for breakfast. Popping it into my mouth, I look around until I find my shoes.

Ten minutes later, I am leaving the house with my black backpack and heading to the restaurant from yesterday, Chess. I didn't understand the name at first, but since the owner is named Rook, it makes more sense. Besides, the place has black and white checkered tiling like a chess board and there are a few tables in the back for people to play chess at. I head to the desk where a new person is standing.

"Hi, I'm Rage," I tell him. "Alyss said to come back today to drop off my number."

He looks up from the computer and freezes a bit when he sees me. I probably startled him and my eyes only made it worse.

"Okay, she did mention something about a new employee," He replies, recovering quickly. "My name is Thorne."

"Here's my number," I announce, handing him a piece of paper with my number on it that I retrieved from my backpack.

His green eyes widen comically.

Giving him a funny look, I say, "So you can enter it in the system? Ring any bells?"

A blush spreads over Thorne's face as his brows lower into a frown. "I'll put it in now."

Nodding, I say, "Bye."

Turning on my heel, I stride out of the restaurant and decide that I need to work on my combat skills. And what better way to do that than in an underground ring?

I head toward the dangerous part of town, my neighborhood. A shiver of excitement runs down my spine.

Turning the corner, I spot the same man I did yesterday. He is lurking around, just like he was yesterday. Today, though, he sports a black eye and clearly broken nose. Chances are, he has at least a clue as to where the ring is.

"Excuse me?" I call, trying to be polite. "Where is the ring?"

"What ring?" He says, his voice scratchy and harsh.

"The underground fighting one," I reply, quickly losing patience as I get closer to him.

"Please," He scoffs. "A little girl like you doesn't need to know that. Shouldn't you be in school?"

I grab him by the throat in an iron grip.

"No, I got suspended for violence," I hiss, a dangerous gleam in my eye. "Now, tell me where the ring is."

He gasps for air and, after I loosen my grip a bit, chokes out an address.

Dropping him, I snort, "Was that really so hard?"

Stepping over him, I walk to the address, a bounce in my step. It doesn't take long before I find the gym. The ring is most likely in the basement. This certainly isn't the first fight club that I've been to and I've found a few consistencies in them.

I pull open the door and find the person working there.

"What time are the fights?" I ask in a bored tone.

Unlike the first man, he is accepting and informs me, "Fights start at six this evening and continue until three in the morning. You can train in the gym until then. Free if you fight, otherwise we'll discuss the payment."

"I'll be fighting, don't worry," I say with a dangerous smile.

"Do you have a fighting name?"

I hesitate. I've never had a name before; nor have I ever needed one. Everyone knew me and feared me for what I've done. But do I really need a name? I have no family, no one to worry about beside myself. Plus, my eyes are a dead giveaway and I don't have any contacts.

"No, I'll just go by my name," I decide finally.

"Which is...?" He says, raising an eyebrow.

"Rage."

His eyebrow rises further, almost to his hairline.

"Sure. Come when you're ready to fight. We'll have a few spots saved for people who aren't scheduled in yet. Name's Flynn, by the way."

I nod and set my bag down on a bench and pull out a pair of red hand wraps. Slipping the loop over my thumb, I get started wrapping them around my tensed hands. I walk to the punching bag, a lighter one than I have, and begin with simple combinations to warm up. Once I am warmed up, I notice that a heavier bag is free now. I quickly switch to that bag and throw myself into the training. It's nothing that I wouldn't do at home, really, but I can hit it as hard as I want without worrying about breaking it.

Ignoring the stares of those around me, I increase my power and hit the bag harder and harder, picking up speed and force with each hit. Finally, I use my stone power instinctively and strengthen my arm as I throw the last of my strength into a punch that sends the bag flying back with a hole in it.

This is all too cliche...The girl comes in and surprises everyone with how strong she is before doing something even better and scares them all. It's a cliche, not too bad of one, but still a cliche.

And I hate cliches. I glower at the thought.

"Rage!" Flynn calls. "I expect you to show up for the fight!"

My glare morphs into a grin.

Oh, good. I do love to fight.

• • •

I slip into a pair of joggers and a tank top. It reveals a few of the scars on my back, but the rest of them are covered, thankfully. I am now at home, getting ready for the fights that start in about an hour. I grab my bag and head to a store, realizing that, like the idiot I am, I forgot something huge.

The elemental fights. In a normal fight, it wouldn't be that big of a deal to know it is me. But, in a fight using powers, it would be a bit of a giveaway who I am. I don't have much money left at all, but I plan on winning it back tonight. I'm not being cocky or conceited, I have been trained to fight.

I slip into the store, a tiny costume shop in the middle of town called Hollyweird. There are clothes displayed in the front window, a long white dress with a leather jacket, a shredded blood red skirt paired with a white blouse and combat boots, and green leather pants accented with scales and a lacy purple top and a long red wig.

"Hello, I'm Holly," A voice calls.

She is tall and blonde with lots of makeup on, but her makeup is done tastefully so it looks amazing. Holly is tan and appears to be healthy and her green eyes sparkle

"And I'm Weird," Another voice declares flatly.

This girl has pitch black hair and powder white skin. Her eyes are dark and her cheeks gaunt, the opposite of the lively, golden girl.

"I need a new look," I say with a slight grin. "Nothing permanent, but something I could wear again. I need to be completely unrecognizable."

Holly beams. "You definitely came to the right place."

Weird disappears as Holly sits me down at a table.

"Is the look casual or for a special event?" Holly asks thoughtfully.

"I need to be able to move around it in, but definitely badass," I explain.

Weird comes back with a deep green wig and a pair of black contacts.

"Take your contacts out and put these ones in," She directs flatly.

"I'm not wearing contacts," I correct her, carefully placing them in my eyes and ignoring their stares of disbelief.

They help me pin the wig into place and show me how so I can do it on my own. Then Holly gets started on my makeup. When she is done, I look completely unrecognizable. My cheeks are sharper and my nose is longer. My forehead looks a bit rounder and my eyes and lips look huge. Straight green locks fall just above my shoulders and black eyes stare into my own.

"Wow," I breathe, turning my face in different directions to see the full effect of the changes.

Holly laughs and continues, "Do you have any tattoos, birthmarks, or distinct markings?"

"My torso and upper legs are covered in scars," I reply absently, still distracted by the stranger in the mirror.

After a moment, Weird decides, "Let's give you a few tats. People will look for those, not recognizing that they are fake."

I grin at the thought. I definitely have thought about getting a tattoo or two.

Holly dresses me in pink camo joggers and a form-fitting, black tank top while Weird applies a kind of tattoo that I haven't seen before. She presses a sheet of clear paper with pictures on it to my arm and wraps it around. When Weird pulls it away, the artwork stays, leaving me with gorgeous tattoo sleeves. She does the same to the back of my neck, informing me that she is putting a raven on there.

When Weird is done, she hands me a few of the sheets of paper.

"You can use these in the same way. Water won't take them off, but they'll come right off with rubbing alcohol. Come back if you need more."

Holly then has me slide on a leather jacket and a pair of converse.

Then they lead me to a full-length mirror.

"Perfect," I declare with a dangerous smile to match my dangerous look.

I quickly pay and thank the odd pair for their help before heading down to the gym.

Sometimes, you just gotta beat a guy up.

I yank open the door and stride in, a confident sway somehow working its way into my steps. I make my way to Flynn, ignoring the stares and remarks of those around.

"Flynn," I say to get his attention. "Put me in under the name Raven. We spoke earlier about it, but I decided to go under a different name after all so I can participate in the elemental fights."

His eyes widen as realizes just who I am and I can see the moment that it registers to him that I have powers. Flynn is huge, not quite as big as Darkon, but close. And he is scared of me.

"Of course," He agrees quickly. "When would you like to fight?"

Leaning closer, I smirk and answer, "As soon as possible."

Turning around and walking away, I set my bag down and shed my leather jacket. Quickly, I wrap my hands and head to the punching bag to get warmed up. Once I am done, I dip into a few stretches until I am ready for the fight.

"Raven!" Flynn calls at exactly six o'clock. "We want you to be in the opening fight."

"Powers or no?" I call back.

"Not yet," He answers. "Those don't start until later."

I nod and follow him down to the ring. It is clearly not the one used for powers, but I figure that one is on a lower level or something. An elemental fight would completely demolish a simple ring like this.

Removing my shoes, I step into the ring and face the announcer and my opponent. He is just barely taller than me and wearing only shorts, revealing his strong physique. His hand wraps are dark blue, the same color as his shorts.

"In this corner, we have Panther, and in this corner, we have the newcomer, Raven!" The announcer booms and the people crowding the large room burst into cheers.

The announcer steps out of the ring and the fight starts. Panther draws near and I study him closely, looking for a weakness to exploit. It is next to impossible to spot, but he has a slight twitch in his leg. It appears he has been injured in the past. I grin wildly, loving the fear that etches in his copper eyes at my smile.

I throw a jab at his head kick his leg, causing it to buckle. Dropping to the ground, I use my hands to steady myself as I sweep his legs out from under him. I straddle him and quickly throw punches, mostly toward his face. I would end the fight in one punch, but I know that this is a show, the fight would be over too quickly for that. Panther tries to fight back and block the punches, but I am in the zone and merely ignore his meager efforts at retaliation. I bring my fist back and deliver a hard throat punch, knocking him out.

The announcer climbs into the ring with a grin on his face.

"And the winner is Raven!"

Applause fills the crowded room and I step out of the ring, my lips curled into a feral smile. I stride over to Flynn.

"Good enough for you?" I ask, cocking my head.

Flynn nods with a goofy grin plastered to his face.

"How many fights are you up to? And how tough?"

"The hardest you got," I laugh. "As many as you got."

No, I'm not an adrenaline junkie. Well, that's not completely true. My point is, I need the money and experience. The harder the fight and the more of them, the more money and training I get. The more money and training, the better.

Flynn nods and leaves to go schedule me in and speak with another fighter.

"Hey," A voice calls behind me. It is the waiter from the cafe that Kolton and I went to.

I clench my fists. I knew that guy was suspicious. Now, he is wearing a pair of shorts and a muscle tank. His lack of shoes tells me that he is here as a fighter as well.

"What's your name?" He asks, far more confident than he was the other day.

"Raven," I say curtly. "You?"

"Zeus," He answers, puffing up his chest a bit.

"Who's the champion?" I ask sweetly.

His eye twitches as he responds, "Wolfgang. But I'm number two."

"We'll see about that," I laugh as I leave him to go see if my fights have been scheduled yet.

A tap on my shoulder stops me and I whirl around and spot my new friend.

"I love your hair!" She exclaims, inspecting my green wig. "Oh, and you did great in your fight."

I grin at Victoria. "My name is Raven and thank you."

"Nice to meet you. My name is Victoria," She says with a matching grin. "As you can see, I'm not a fighter, but I do love to watch them.

I laugh, "Nothing wrong with that. Certainly safer."

Victoria laughs as well and asks, "So are you going to be fighting some more?"

"I certainly hope so," I reply somewhat dreamily.

"Well, I hope I see you in the ring," She informs me.

"Thanks. I have to go see about my schedule now," I say.

Victoria gives a small wave and I grab my shoes as I go. Walking up to Flynn and another man, I overhear them speaking.

"Wolfgang is scheduled to fight Zeus," Flynn argues.

"They've been fighting, over and over!" The man roars. "Zeus loses every time! The audience is getting bored with it. He needs a new opponent."

"I'd love to fight him, thank you for asking," I tell them in a honeyed voice.

They turn and look at me, annoyed by my interruption.

"You?" The other man scoffs.

"Yes, me."

Flynn studies me carefully. "You really think you can take the champion, Raven?"

"Well, I can certainly put up a hell of a fight," I answer.

I can't honestly say that I can take someone who I have never seen at all.

"You can't possibly be considering it!" The man exclaims. "Look at her!"

"You got a problem with the way I look?!" I roar, getting incredibly close to him.

"No," He hisses through clenched teeth. "But I don't want to be responsible for your death."

Flynn intervenes saying, "How about this? Raven has a couple fights before then. If she wins them all, she fights Wolfgang. If it comes to a matter of life and death she can use her powers, but only to save her life. Deal?"

The man studies me with intelligent blue eyes. "What power do you have?"

"Powers," I purr.

"Excuse me?"

"You forget the s," I inform him. "I have more than one."

"Multiple powers?" He says, his eyes taking on a new gleam.

"Yup," I confirm.

Not taking his bright wolf eyes off of mine, he nods. "Deal."

"Excellent," Flynn says with a matching nod. "Raven your next fight starts after this one. We're short a couple fighters so I was able to get you in more. You will have an elemental fight in the other ring next."

"Perfect."

Flynn leaves to go talk with another fighter and I decide to find Victoria and tell her.

"Hey, Victoria," I call over the noise of the crowd. "I'm going to be in the next elemental fight if you wanna watch."

Victoria grins. "Great. My boyfriend will be coming just in time to watch as well. Let me guess, flora powers or poison?"

"What makes you guess those?" I laugh.

"The hair," She answers with a shrug.

"You have green hair too," I argue. "Do you have them?"

"Well, no..."

"Here, I'll give you this one answer. One of them is flora," I say with a grin.

Remarkably, I have been smiling and laughing a lot lately. I guess, now that I am away from that town, I am getting better. Not to mention, I've been learning to just not care, a useful skill.

Victoria's eyes widen as she realizes that I have more than one power.

Before she can react, though, Flynn tells me to get downstairs for my fight.

"Bye!" I call to Victoria as I head down a staircase into an even more crowded room. It is divided in two with a thick wall of strong glass to separate the two.

The crowd is yelling and cheering them on as a man with fire in his hands fights a woman who appears to be standing on the air. The man is winning and the woman seems to be afraid of the flames. She looks like she knows what she is doing, but the man is clearly in her head. She is terrified of the flames.

Sure enough, the man throws a huge blast of fire at her sending her flying back and crashing into the wall. She lies unconscious as her clothes and skin burn. A team of people quickly enter to put out the flames and bring her to safety.

The announcer, a different one than from my fight, calls, "Ember wins the fight!"

I follow a sign to a small hallway that opens up into a room where another fighter waits. She is small with white hair and is clad in white leather, telling me that she is most likely an ice elemental. She looks sweet and innocent, but a certain look in her frosty blue eyes tells me that she has a certain steel to her.

We enter at the same time and the announcer calls our names, Raven and Dove, a cliche pairing. The crowd loves it, though.

She strikes first, sending a wave of chilling ice to me. I grin, not at all fazed by the cold and clench my fists. A wave of fire spreads down my arms as they ignite. I pour the fire out of me and use the air powers to fuel it, setting the room on fire. The metal walls shimmer with the orange and white heat that spreads through them in a mesmerizing pattern. Frantically, Dove creates a dome of ice. Laughing, I turn my fist into stone and throw a powerful punch at the dome, shattering it with one blow.

Manipulating the shadows, I shroud her in darkness. I take my time striding up to the panicking girl who realizes just how powerful I am. Knowing what lies in the dark, I plunge a hand in and grab her by the throat. The shadows drip back into me and turn my skin completely black before disappearing. I apply just enough strength to quickly knock her out. Dropping her to the ground, I turn to face the crowd.

They are silent, stunned by the display of so many powers.

I dip into an exaggerated bow, a wild grin on my face.

The announcer startles and tries to call out that I am the winner, but the crowd is roaring too loudly for anything to be heard.

One common word is discernible, though.

Raven.

It seems that I am the new crowd favorite.

• • •

Yes, Rage is cocky and arrogant. Yes, she is a (more or less) realistic character with realistic character flaws.

• • •

Q: Which metallic do you prefer, gold or silver?

A: Silver, both to wear and in general.