Chapter 23: Breakthrough

After the break, the final three combatants took to the stage. Each with determination in their eyes. Leona and Cole walked to opposite ends while the tiger woman stood on an end between them. The announcer hopped off the stage, turning on his microphone. “FIGHTERS READY? BEGIN!!!!” Both Leona and Cole exploded into their awakened state while the tiger crossed her hands over her mouth, eyes darting back and forth. The two rushed at the woman, Leona going for a kick while Cole went for a punch. The woman moved her hands out, grabbing their attacks and throwing the two away. She really was fast. Leona dug her claws into the stage to stop herself, she put her gaze back on the tiger woman. Just as she was about to go on the charge, she quickly dodged an attack from Cole, his fist whizzing past her face. He went for a kick, but she blocked it and was sent sliding back. The two became engaged in a back-and-forth, and the tiger rushed in to join the fray.

Leona noticed her coming, so she maneuvered her and Cole so he would have his back turned and take the oncoming attack. The woman jumped to deliver a kick, Cole ducking out of the way and letting Leona take the hit. She flew to the side. Cole turned around to see the woman going for a jab, he quickly blocked it and was put on the defensive. He managed to block most of her attacks, but some were still connected to his stomach or face. Leona got back up and made her way toward the fight. Cole managed to grab both the woman’s hands and bashed his head into hers, then kneed her in the stomach. Leona lunged forward, socking the woman in the right cheek, sending her back and rolling across the stage. Leona and Cole locked eyes, the two going back to fighting each other. However, Leona quickly changed her fighting style from her normal street brawling to Muay Thai to defend herself and think of a strategy. 

These two were stronger than Venus, but not Leona or Ferral. Ferral was in a league of his own, she shouldn’t even put him into the discussion. However, having to face the two at the same time makes it more difficult than in one-on-ones. Leona struggled to think of a way to beat them both, she knew the tiger woman would get up and jump in, but who would she attack? She couldn’t figure anything out. “.....You’re still weak…..” Ferral’s voice rang through her head. She still didn’t forget those words, how they were etched into her skull…..

Leona scoffed, going back on the offensive by blocking one of Cole’s punches and uppercutting his chin. Left hook, right hook, uppercut again, then grabbed the side of his head and threw him behind her. He crashed into the tiger woman who was making her way toward them. Leona turned around, her body filled with vigor. “I WILL win this,” Leona declared. “And then I’ll surpass the awakened state, just you watch FERRAL!!!!” She shouted, the crowd was a bit confused at first but cheered at her passion. Cole and the tiger woman got up, Cole jumping back to put distance. The tiger woman looked at Leona, “Ferral?” She muttered under her breath. The three eyed each other, seeing who would make the first move, and in an instant, they charged forward at the same time. As they fought, the crowd watched in awe at their speed and ferocity.

Cole dodged and backhanded Leona away, the tiger woman elbowing him in the gut and kicking him across the face, Leona jumping back in and smalling the woman’s face into the stage. The three seemingly were evenly matched, each one taking attacks from the others. Their brawl put them close to the edge of the stage. Cole used one of his tails, wrapped it around the tiger woman’s ankle, picked her up, and started slamming her repeatedly against the stage while he and Leona fought. During one of the recoils, the woman slashed off Cole’s tail. He screamed in pain, distracted, Leona punched him across the face and spun kicked him away. He fell off the stage, sighing in disappointment as he lay on the ground, but he sat up to watch the rest of the fight. 

It was down to Leona and the tiger woman. She got up and the two got into fighting stances. They stared each other down, the crowd on the edge of their seats. “Who is this Ferral?” The woman asked, confusing Leona. “Huh?” “You mentioned someone by that name. Who?” “He’s my best friend and rival. Stronger than me, you, and everyone else here. He’s known as the Hellhound, and if he were in this fight you’d know why.” The woman didn’t respond but gave a small smile. Leona rushed at her, the woman going into her defensive stance. She blocked each one of Leona’s attacks before doing her quick strikes, catching Leona with one to the face. She slid back, the woman going on the offensive but Leona was ready for her assault. She was able to study her moves during this fight and the fight against Venus. Leona was able to come up with a defense for her fighting style that utilized quick jabs at near-fatal areas and knocked her opponents out with their pressure points. She blocked and dodged each one of her attacks, waiting for the right moment to counterattack.

Some of the strikes did graze Leona, her hand-eye coordination wasn’t nearly as perfect as Ferral’s. But once Leona found the opening she was looking for, she went for the attack, catching the woman with a right hook. However, the woman was able to land a powerful blow into Leona’s stomach. She coughed, and the two walked away from each other. They panted from exhaustion, neither one ready to make another move. Leona scoffed, her opponent was stronger than she thought, and she was seemingly getting stronger as the fight went on. She needed a way to end the fight quickly, otherwise, she would end up losing. But something that Leona still could figure out was this woman’s current state. She was transformed the same as any other experiment, but this woman only had her hair, eyes, ears, and a tail. Her hands were normal aside from the longer nails, her feet were normal, and she had no fur anywhere other than her tail.

Was she holding back? No, she didn’t have a reason to. So why didn't she look like this? Leona didn’t have any more time to think because the woman came at her. However, her speed had increased, it caught Leona off guard and she was struck with a sharp blow to the face. The woman rapidly fired punches, putting Leona on the back foot and slowly pushing her toward another edge. She couldn’t get her guard up, there was nothing she could do. “.....You’re still weak…..” That same quote rang inside Leona’s head. It angered Leona, those words made her blood boil. Even after all the training she had undergone, She was still going to lose again. “.....You’re still WEAK…..” Leona clenched her fists as she was put right at the edge of the stage. “.....YOU’RE STILL WEAK…..” For only a fraction of a second, Leona’s sunset-colored eyes gained a swirl of light purple as she blocked one of the tiger woman’s attacks and smashed her fist into the woman’s face, and sent her flying all the way off the stage. Leona huffed and reverted back to her normal transformed state. “THE WINNER IS NUMBER 10!!!!!!” The announcer called out. The crowd cheered and applauded.

“WOOOO!!!! GO LEONA!” Loni cheered. “THAT’S OUR GIRL!!!!” Zuri hurrahed. “It wasn’t how we wanted things to go, but at least we still got the grand prize.” Venus commented. As everyone cheered, Leona began walking off the stage. She made her way toward the tiger woman who groaned as she got up. “I wanna talk to you in private.” Leona said, standing over the woman. She nodded, Leona helping her get up. Cole walked over and patted Leona on the back, making her quickly turn around. “I’m not gonna lie, I’ve never met experiments who were stronger than me. You two are good.” Leona smirked, “Trust me, I know someone who’s miles stronger than us.” “You’ll have to introduce me to them sometime, I’m always up for a good fight.” Cole walked off, waving the two goodbye…..

Meanwhile, at the main facility, Ferral ran his hands through his hair as he laughed with joy. All the scientists sighed with relief and joy. Ferral’s father walked over to him and patted his son on the back. “We did it, my boy. Soon, your dreams will become a reality.” He told Ferral as a red liquid was being poured by a machine into a small tube. They had done it, the cure was complete.