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#Post#: 1203--------------------------------------------------
Driven To Win - Chapter 1 - Secretly Annoyed
By: RampageSports Date: March 4, 2015, 10:13 pm
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Note: This is obviously positioned a few weeks before the Open
Fight Night event. I know that's like, forever ago, but it
couldn't be helped. Dragon and I have been committed to the
joint story (which I have thoroughly enjoyed :) ), and I didn't
want one of my individual stories to interfere with that.
That's getting close to the end (of this phase, at least), so
it's safe to start posting a few of my own.
This story is meant to describe the pre-event training for one
of RSI's most popular fighters. This will eventually lead to a
chapter that will basically be a play-by-play type thing
describing the fight itself. However, that account won't match
up with the fight that the simulator generated for the event.
This all stems from a fan request I received over on FCF. The
fan wanted to see a fight done from the first-person
perspective, similar to what I've written before.
Unfortunately, the simulator didn't give me enough to expand
upon, so I'm going to create my own fight from scratch. The end
result will remain the same, though. :)
One other note... I've played around a few times with telling
stories from the point of view of other characters, but this is
the first time I'm trying a true first-person narrative from the
viewpoint of someone other than Richelle. So, when I use the
words "I" and "me" in this one, that's not Richelle talking.
It's... well, you'll see. ;)
Oh, yeah... and one other, other note... I'm going to be putting
the character reference section at the bottom of the stories
from now on. I like to sneak in different, unexpected
characters from time to time. I'm even thinking of pulling some
non-UMMA characters into a few of my stories. So, I don't want
to announce all of the characters at the beginning, anymore.
But, if the suspense is simply too much for you, you can always
scroll down and sneak a peek. ;)
[hr]
Driven To Win - Chapter 1 - Secretly Annoyed
Thump, thump!
I hit the bag with a quick one-two. Brought my guard back up
and kept moving... dancing to my right. Doubled-up on the jab,
stepped back and unloaded a middle round kick that caused the
bag to fold in half around my leg. I got my feet under me and
moved in for the kill. Hooking my hands around the top of the
bag as if it were an opponent's neck, I drove my right knee into
the center of the synthetic leather surface. One... Two...
Suddenly, everything went black.
"Hey!" I called out. "I'm still in here!"
The lights snapped back on. I reset my stance and started
hitting the bag again. A moment later, Richelle Winterfeld's
head popped out from behind the unused bag to my left.
She spread her hands out wide. "Emma?" she asked. "What the
hell are you still doing here?"
I pivoted and put my weight into a crisp right that thudded
heavily into the bag. Then, I stopped and came out of my
stance.
I had been at it for a while, and my legs burned from the
constant bob and weave movement so crucial to staying alive in
the cage. My arms were heavy with fatigue... a fatigue that
weighed on my whole body. I rolled my shoulders, unconsciously
trying to loosen the tight, exhausted muscles. Every inch of me
was slicked with sweat... I could feel it running down my face
and dripping from my chin.
It had been a good workout.
I had draped a towel over the support bar of the bag stand,
expecting I would need it when I was done. I grabbed it and
mopped my face.
"What does it look like I'm doing?" I said.
Richelle narrowed her eyes. "You know, your little smartass
routine is very different from the image you project for the
public."
"I don't have to worry about that here, right?" I said with a
smirk. "I believe you told me I could feel safe here."
Richelle nodded. "Yeah... safe from prying reporters and
withering public opinion," she answered. "But you're not safe
from me slapping you upside your pretty little head."
"I'll take my chances," I said.
She didn't reply, but she gave me a look that said I was going
to run out of chances, one of these days.
"So, what gives?" she asked.
"Just trying to get a little extra work in," I said.
"A little?" she said as she looked down at her watch.
"Everybody else has been gone for hours."
That caught me by surprise. "What time is it?"
"Almost seven-thirty."
I shook my head. "I'm sorry. I hadn't realized it had been
that long," I said. "I'll go shower up and get dressed."
Richelle looked a little annoyed. She would have to wait for me
to finish before she could lock up. But, she let it pass
quickly.
"Okay," she said, "just give a knock before you go."
I cleaned up as quickly as I could, and it was about a half-hour
later when I stopped into Richelle's office.
"I'm outta here," I said. "Sorry again for making you wait."
"That's alright," she said, "but I still don't understand. Why
are you here?"
"Just trying to get a little extra work in."
"Yeah, you said that already. I'm asking you why."
I shrugged. "Just felt like I needed it."
"Right," she said, "because your recent results show you've
clearly lost your edge."
I shrugged again. She slipped her coat on, and we made our way
out to the parking lot together.
"Emma, c'mon," she said. "You're one of the best there is.
There isn't anyone you can't beat."
"There's one," I chirped.
Richelle raised an eyebrow. "Who?"
I didn't say anything, sorry that I'd opened my mouth in the
first place. But, Richelle knew what my next event was. It
didn't take her long to figure it out.
"Kristen Stewart," she said.
I gave another shrug. She correctly took that as confirmation.
"Are you serious?" she said. "She's two weight classes above
you. Of course you're going to struggle against her."
"Doesn't seem to be a problem for other people," I said.
"Ah, geez," she said. "I hate this Open Fight Night crap. You
know I do."
"That's great," I said, "but I still have to fight."
Richelle stopped for a moment, then nodded.
"You're right," she agreed. "You're absolutely right.
Sometimes, I look at things a little too 'big picture.' But
I've been the one taking the punishment. I should know better."
"Don't worry about it," I said. "I understand."
"So, what's your plan?" she asked as she pushed the front door
open.
"I don't know," I said. "I just... I need to beat her, you
know?"
She latched the door, removed the key and gave a firm tug. The
door didn't move. Satisfied, she slipped her keys into her coat
pocket, and we walked on.
"I didn't realize you hated Kristen that much."
"I don't hate her," I said. "I don't have any problem with her,
really. I just..."
We stopped beside her car.
"You know how I feel about you. I expect the best from you, and
I always get it. But, it's not like you never lose."
"She doesn't just beat me, Richelle."
I looked her straight in the eye as I gave voice to what was
really bothering me.
"She kicks my ass," I said. "Nobody does that to me. Ever."
Richelle smiled. "My little perfectionist," she said.
"Kiss my ass," I said.
Richelle kept smiling, but I could see in her face she knew what
I was feeling.
"Well, standing around hitting that bag isn't going to make you
better," she said.
"It's all I've got," I said. "I get my work in with Tiff and
Steph during the day. But, once everybody else is gone... I
can't just stop. I'm not going to feel comfortable unless I'm
putting everything I have into this."
She nodded. "Go home. Get some rest. We'll talk about it
tomorrow."
I nodded back. "Okay," I said.
It felt good to know she understood me, but I really didn't know
what there was to talk about. What kind of training could I do
when I was in the gym all alone?
[hr]
Character Reference
HTML https://aade768506dacb303a01a361d3dc0d27209a5ec4.googledrive.com/host/0Bz8YsEjMxOhMMXhVcF82aG5SXzA/Emma_100x120.jpg
Name: Emma Watson
Nickname(s):
Background: Reigning FAC featherweight champion, training
partner and romantic partner of Tiffany Mulheron
HTML https://aade768506dacb303a01a361d3dc0d27209a5ec4.googledrive.com/host/0Bz8YsEjMxOhMMXhVcF82aG5SXzA/Richelle_100x120.jpg
Name: Richelle Winterfeld
Nickname(s):
Background: Owner of the RSI stable, former underground fighter
#Post#: 1213--------------------------------------------------
Re: Driven To Win - Chapter 1 - Secretly Annoyed
By: Dragons Den Date: March 6, 2015, 1:42 am
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She sure is determined, that Emma. If only my girls would take
the same hardworking philosophy, haha. But hey, that's why
Emma's the champ!
Great work as always, Richelle. Looking forward to more. Was
cool getting a first person perspective from a different
character, too! Although I will admit it took me a couple
paragraphs to get used to thinking of "I" as Emma and not
Richelle, haha. Just force of habit. But I welcome more first
person character stories, absolutely. It's fun to mix it up!
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