Chapter 101 - Goodnight Forever

Announcer: AND WINNER VIA KNOCKOUT IS JOSEPH ZYALUS!!!

Joseph stood proudly in the ring, claiming yet another win to his winning streak. In every fight he has had in the boxing ring, he has stood undefeated. The goings-on of his life behind the stage was unknown to the world, but on the stage, Joseph was known as the undefeated super middleweight class champion. In his entire career, he had dominated in every boxing match. His skill and power were unlike anything the world had seen before. His seat as the undisputed champion was about to be contested, as the legendary boxer once known as "Barry Williams" entered the class once again. In his time as a super middleweight, he shared Joseph's title of undisputed super middleweight champion. Some even questioned if he was even human. But in the end, Joseph dominated the old champion.

It had become common knowledge that Joseph had become too powerful for the public eye. His strength was beyond anything anyone could comprehend. So before long, Joseph had gone on a hiatus of his boxing matches. No one had known where he had gone, but an unknown group did. They watched as he entered the Eclipse, gaining several victories and tasting defeat for the first time in the underground. Joseph had aimed to make the underground his new home… and to dominate it the same way he had dominated the public eye.

…

Abraham's helmet bobbed as his breathing became impaired. Joseph smirked as he entered a flicker stance, staring at Abraham's weakened state as he clenched his fists.

Joseph's thoughts: You just made the biggest mistake of your life, kid.

Joseph charged in, throwing a quick left jab at Abraham, Abraham immediately responding by dodging only to take a quick right hook.

Kuro: The fucker just juked him!

Tico, Moll, Midori, and Hamadeen all watched the monitor from behind Kuro. Moll and Midori glanced at each other before speaking in a low voice.

Midori: You've mentioned that you noticed something off about him, right?

Moll: Yeah. Joseph is skilled, but something about him has always seemed off to me. You probably noticed it too.

Midori: I only have a clue, but that's just a hunch. It's hard to deny that Joseph is strong.

Joseph dodged punch after punch. Each of Abraham's punches looked like a skilled fighter to the average person, yet Joseph saw through it all. Between each hook, Joseph landed a punch to the side. On the side of each failed uppercut, Joseph landed a heavy hook, however, no matter how much damage he took, Abraham refused to bend a knee.

Abraham's thoughts: I… can't lose…

Joseph threw a right straight, Abraham dodging it and threw his own right straight, grazing the side of Joseph's face, a cut following. Joseph looked shocked before focusing again and following with a flurry of quick punches. The audience was blown away at the speed Joseph delivered each blow. Abraham kept his guard up, trying to survive through the onslaught before his eyes began to twinkle. His body, being pushed to the brink, saw an opportunity. Joseph threw yet another quick right straight, but Abraham ducked right below and delivered a heavy uppercut. Joseph staggered before Abraham maneuvered behind him aiming for another suplex. Abraham's helmet shook with shock as he noticed hands grab onto his wrists before he looked up to see Joseph peering over his shoulder. An indescribable anger laid behind those eyes, Abraham could sense it.

Zachary: How on earth?! Joseph was able to prevent Abraham from successfully grabbing onto him!

Zenzo: His senses must be off the charts!

With a swift throw, Joseph opened distance between himself at Abraham, disorientating Abraham for a split moment. When Abraham finally caught his balance, he looked up before feeling a heavy sensation on the left cheek of his helmet. It felt as if a wrecking ball had crashed into him. Bending the light metal of the helmet, Joseph's punch sent Abraham flying back as his back slammed into the ground. Abraham's breathing became heavier, feeling the intense pain from the blow. He firmly placed his elbows on the ground, attempting to push himself back up, his eyes blurry from the strike. Before his eyes could see it, his body felt something beginning to mount him. His eyes corrected themselves before looking up to see a shadowy figure loom above him. Those hate-filled eyes felt scorched into his mind. Abraham had felt as if he were facing death itself.

Joseph: Say goodnight… forever.

Joseph raised his fist before slamming it down hard on Abraham's helmet. His left fist raised into the air, slamming down on Abraham's helmet again. Carrie placed both of her hands over her mouth as she heard the metal of the helmet being damaged. Before anyone could react, Joseph's punches began to rain down on Abraham's head and chest. Each of Joseph's punches were filled with his hatred, but his face showed a relaxed smile. Blood began to seep from Abraham's helmet as the referee watched in horror.

Man 1: Ref, stop the match!

Woman: He's dying!

Man 2: Don't just watch, do something!

Referee's thoughts: I want to… But I can see Abraham's arm twitching. He's trying to do something, and as long as I can't see his face… I can't intervene!

Zachary: What is with this brutal onslaught?!

Zenzo: This is unlike the Joseph I know!

The cracking of bones could be heard from Joseph's punches, but they were not his own. Blood flew into the sky as Joseph's fists raised into the air once again before coming down on Abraham's body once more. Abraham's helmet began to bend beyond recognition and his ribcage did not seem to defend him as it once did as Joseph's fists seemed to penetrate deeper than they should. But in an instant, Joseph felt both of his fists grabbed and noticed a knife raised to his throat. Gonzalez tightly held onto Joseph's lower left fist as Carrie held a knife to Joseph's throat with a tear going down her cheek. Theodore's face was solemn, tightly holding onto Joseph's right fist which was high in the air.

Theodore: Get off him. Now!

A strong sense of anger washed over the audience. They were left in fear and shock as they all could sense the anger that was hidden behind Theodore's expression. Joseph turned his head back to look at Theodore, a calm look on his face.

Joseph: Alright.

Gonzalez and Theodore roughly pulled Joseph up before Joseph pulled his hands away. He brought them close to his face before looking back at Theodore and Gonzalez.

Joseph: I really thought you were going to rip them off, but that's against the rules, ain't it, ref?

Joseph turned back, walking away with a calm kick in his step. Zachary shook his head before bringing the mic to his mouth.

Zachary: After such a brutal finish… The winner of this match is Joseph Zyalus!

The audience was left in silence, Carrie placing a hand on Abraham's neck before looking back up at Theodore.

Carrie: He still has a pulse. It's weak, but he still has one.

Gonzalez: From what I can tell, he has several broken ribs and his organs are heavily damaged. It seems that the helmet didn't help much either as several bones in his face are heavily fractured. It may be possible that he has some internal bleeding as well.

Theodore turned to the referee, the referee looking at him in fear.

Theodore: Can you not do your job competently? Were you just going to sit there and let another death happen in the ring? If this is the quality of the referees in this organization, I must say I'm disappointed.

Theodore turned away before crouching down next to Abraham, grabbing his hand. Abraham barely had any strength in him, Theodore looking at him with sorrowful eyes. Paramedics ran into the ring, immediately putting Abraham on a stretcher before confirming what both Gonzalez and Carrie had told Theodore.

Paramedic 1: In the state he is in now, his chances of survival are low…

They walked through the halls, hurrying as they moved to the closest infirmary.

Paramedic 2: I don't think any of us are prepared to handle injuries of this caliber!

Theodore: Is there anything we can do? It'll take some time before my medical team can reach this location.

Jason: I think I know someone that can help.

Coming from around the corner, Jason walked up to the paramedics, looking down at Abraham before looking up at Theodore.

Jason: We can work on specifics later, but there's only one man I know that can help him. Follow me, we're going to Xavier's personal infirmary.

Theodore stared at Jason before nodding, the paramedics following Jason.

Gonzalez: It seems things have taken a turn for the worse…

Carrie wiped her tears before looking at Gonzalez with hatred in her eyes.

Carrie: Gonzalez… Please win your match and then teach that bastard a lesson!