Barcode: Legend of Apollo (32 page)

I praise Leo for saving my life, again. But my gratitude should direct itself towards the pink lioness I sense intermingling with my data. Something from that brat rubbed off on me, and it’s her push that overrules my desire to give up. The only thing on my mind is:
Don’t die.

While he struggles to remove his hammer from the dirt, I wrap Monte in my chains. They anchor him to the ground, and I rush to my third and smallest ball. Instead of grabbing the chain, I lift the weight as though it were no heavier than three marbles. I palm it in one hand and fire the song of death at his head.

What does Monte see on my face? His startled expression pleads with me to spare his life. Everything within his data fears that I’ll kill him.

A split second before the weight strikes Monte, I tug the end of the chain. The earth explodes and dust surrounds his body. The people wait breathlessly as the debris settles.

Monte’s relaxing in the chains and applauding me with a gentle clap. He smirks with disappointment. On his face I read:
I lost to Apollo. Not bad.

The stadium roars with excitement as I attempt to release him. We struggle with the web of chains. Soon, Professor Gardezi and Arnold appear to assist us.

Thirty Three

Monte and I assist each other off the field. I still have some harsh feelings towards the guy, but it’s mainly because of his brother. When I think about it, Monte’s never been more than arrogant at times, and I’m guiltier of that than anyone.

When we make it to the locker rooms, a commotion breaks out. I hear several men fighting. They’re large security guards, but not quite as large as the man they’re trying to restrain.

Blake.

He pushes easily through as they attempt to force him back. He fights the lightweights, and walks over their unconscious bodies. Monte bows his head in shame. It takes me a moment to understand why he appears repulsed.

Eve races to Monte and holds her son’s face, “Are you alright?”

I sense his deep desire to slap her hand away. With a forced smile, he replies, “Yes mother.”

Eve turns to me and clasps her hands, “And you, Spencer. I knew you’d finally give my boy a challenge. You really are Apollo.”

“Thank you,” I respond dryly, my eyes glued to Blake. He’s staring onto the field. Any light shining around his eye seems to darken as though a black hole were absorbing it. He senses something ominous, and can’t let it go. Blake didn’t come down here to congratulate or punish his son. He’s here to prevent something else from happening.

Eve compliments my battle tactics and welcomes me over for dinner in their chambers. I accept half-heartedly. My attention is on Blake’s face.

As the adrenaline wears off, my body suffers from the after-effects of fighting Monte. My vision blurs for a second, but I make sure to hold onto my consciousness. If Blake didn’t make me feel as though death were right around the corner, I would have collapsed on the ground already.

Thomas’ voice booms over the microphone, and Blake stares up at the announcer’s box.

“Where’s your father?” Blake asks angrily.

“He normally stays in his office crunching numbers.”

“Get him here now.” His tone denotes so much authority, my natural instinct is to resist. But I comply.

I send Dennis a text:
Get to the field now!

Dennis doesn’t reply, which I assume means he’s bolting out of the office. I rarely send him emergency text messages, so I expect him to show up in a few minutes. But it’s too late.

Thomas announces a match between Kode and Arnold.

We watch as Kode approaches the field with a phone in his hand. He pushes a few buttons and the locker room gate in front of us closes. Blake walks to the barrier and rattles it. The sound echoing off the metal makes me think he would have ripped it from the wall if the MMIBS process didn’t strengthen it. The doors at this arena were meant to hold up even against Arnold’s barbaric strength.

The remaining gates close and Dennis texts me from across the field.

Why are a student and a gladiator on the field together?
Everyone is wondering the same thing.

Thomas attempts to clear things up. “It seems that Dennis Colt has allowed one more stipulation in the rules. Just like other arenas, the top student of Colt Academy will now be allowed a genuine sparring match with another gladiator.” The crowd chants Dennis’ name, who seems to have disappeared from his gate. “Yes folks, Mr. Colt really changed things up this year, and I’m happy he’s listening to the needs of the city. But of all the gods, Hercules? This is going to be a horrifically hilarious beating on this scrawny kid.”

Blake is banging wildly against the barrier. I try frantically to contact Leo, but he doesn’t respond to any of my messages. What’s going on?

Monte joins his father in attempting to tear down the gate. Eve watches patiently with a smirk. The two men work until they’re too tired to fight anymore. The metal and surrounding walls are hardly scratched by their efforts.

Though I wish he would, my godfather won’t kill Kode. They can relax a bit. I smile and decide to relish in the moment. My enemy is about to get what’s coming to him.

Arnold shouts from the center of the field.

“Oh? Is this the student with the highest scores? I wish Dennis had told me. I wouldn’t have worn armor today.” The crowd laughs and claps for their entertainer. By “armor”, he means the padded shorts he always wears to the field. He removed his shirt before stepping out of the gate to display his signature X-tattoo that stretches across his chest.

Kode places his phone into his pocket and begins stretching.

Thomas initiates the match in his usual fashion for any of Arnold’s challengers, “Alright runners. On your mark. Get set. Go!”

Arnold swoops in viciously and throws a punch, stopping an inch away from his opponent’s nose. Kode doesn’t budge either way.

“Whoa. This kid has guts. If he can survive on the field with me, I’ll take him in as my own and raise him the way a real man should be.” The crowd laughs again. “I’ve always wanted a boy. Sorry baby,” he teases, turning to Michelle. She rolls her eyes a few gates away from us.

Kode adjusts his gloves as Arnold brags. His nonchalant attitude seems to bother the brute.

I watch as Blake hangs his head once Arnold lands a quick jab on Kode’s cheek. The crowd laughs at their entertainer for lying. He connected such a soft punch, the “scrawny kid” seems hardly fazed. In fact, he stretches his neck and shrugs his shoulders. The big man winds up his fist again and strikes Kode with a straight to the chest. This time, he stumbles back a little.

“Come on kid. It’s called a fight. You’re supposed to hit me too,” Arnold taunts before landing a brutal hook on the left side of Tartarus. He’s done this plenty of times to challengers that thought their defenses were high enough to hold out against him. They’ve all become pets for Professor Gonzales. “Oh. You can take a punch! Well, here’s one.”

The crowd’s laughs fade away and they begin talking about the kid standing up to Hercules. Muscle-head doesn’t seem too happy about losing his audience so he plants his feet, cocks back, and fires a missile that’s probably the strongest blow he can deliver without his barcodes.

The haymaker spins Kode nearly all the way around. With his back facing his opponent, he bounces up and down as though he were just entering a boxing ring. Now Kode seems warmed up and ready to fight back? Yeah right.

No longer in his playful mood, Arnold grips his fist tightly and rolls his neck. Before he can deliver another attack, Dennis shouts over the speakers, “This isn’t a real match. Please head back to the locker rooms. It seems someone has hacked into the computer system as a joke.”

Ignoring Dennis’ words, Mr. Miyamoto focuses his gaze on Kode. “Now if only you could hit hard, I’ll be in love.”

The masked man’s dreadlocks fly as he leans in with a Superman punch that lands right in the center of Arnold’s cheek. Michelle’s shriek echoes across the entire stadium. As if they were frozen in time, the audience watches their hero.

“Is he hurt?” A voice shouts from the stands.

“Stop playing around Hercules.”

“We’re tired of all these fake matches. Just end it.”

“Yeah!”

Arnold spits out what looks like a cup of blood onto the ground. My eyes zoom into the dirt where it landed. Electricity dances in the barbarian’s puddle.

Walking away as though nothing happened, Arnold approaches Michelle’s gate. He forces a smile on his face and whispers a few words. Deep in my heart, I know I’d never have the courage to ask what they said to each other. Michelle seems to downplay her father’s comments, and he walks away. He returns to Kode who seems more energetic than I’ve ever seen him in my life.

Activating the X symbol across his chest, Arnold holds up both of his fists and speaks directly to the scrawny kid, “I’m sorry. Shall we?”

The crowd gasps. I’m not sure if they’re shocked he spoke to Tartarus or that he’s taking Kode seriously, but everyone stands to their feet, and, from what I can see, no one is looking at the hologram. People want to confirm the spectacle with their own eyes. Even I’m wondering if this is real.

Dennis continues shouting over the speakers to end the match until Arnold blares, “If anyone walks onto this battlefield, I’ll fucking kill you.”

Michelle falls off the stretcher. She holds the bars on the gate and stares at the field. His attitude seems to have finally caught her attention.

Kode holds up his fists and Arnold deploys his missiles before the Louisianan can set his feet. He dodges the first punch aimed at his cranium, but doesn’t counter. Instead, he allows Arnold to recover and connect an uppercut that lifts him from his feet. The monstrous barbarian attacks him savagely with countless punches. If Kode nearly falls, Arnold stabilizes him. If he tries dodging, the experienced fighter follows through with a malicious kick.

At the end of the assault, the brute grabs Kode’s leg and flings him into the ground.

“Aren’t you going to try and stop it?” I ask Blake who seems to have given up on the gate.

“Please,” Eve says casually. “I hope he does end his miserable life. Would make things easier for me.” I’m not sure if she’s speaking about her own son or the man killing him. I’m too afraid to ask. I thought our family had issues, but my being ignored seems to be three steps above whatever drama this family has.

The shocked silence from the audience summarizes my own emotions well enough. Kode stands as though he hadn’t been hit at all. The intensity of Arnold’s tattoo increases as he charges his hammer-like fist above his head. The weight comes smashing down on Kode, who hardly tries defending himself.

After registering the pain, Kode shakes off the damage and nods as though he were listening to music. Arnold watches him for a moment.

“Okay little man. Your turn.”

Arnold takes a step back into defense before Kode implants a detonating chambered punch in the middle of Arnold’s chest. He follows through with an elbow to his cheek. My godfather releases a swift cry that causes many audience members to scream.

Suddenly, over half the stadium are on their phones, trying to load data for Kode. When I check Gods&Men, he’s not there. Too many people are rushing to discuss him on MeeToo. The server is overloaded. Others try analyzing his barcodes, but he doesn’t have any. He’s a mystery to everyone, and he’s making Colt’s most feared gladiator fight at the top of his game.

This isn’t the first time Arnold’s struggled at the stadium. He sparred with Dennis when they were students. They were both carried out on stretches with their thumbs held high. Some say Dennis went easy on Arnold because of their relationship, though I’m unsure of what type of bond they have.

Listen to me. I’m comparing a mortal level sociopath to veterans. Arnold is a legend, and a professional gladiator with no losses on his record. Demigods aren’t supposed to enter death matches, but muscle-head always does, hoping that someone will kill him. I doubt Kode can take it that far, but he’s pushing the monster.

The two exchange a series of blows across the battlefield. Every strike from Arnold sounds like a car crash and the ones from Kode are as if lightning has struck. The exchange becomes so gruesome, I notice people standing up to leave the arena. Blood splatters across the ground. Bones seem to crush. Both men are killing each other for no obvious reason.

The two back away from each other and fight to catch their breaths. Arnold’s blood drips from Kode’s gloves. Tartarus crumbles. If the one-sided match continues, I may actually see the demon on the other side of Tartarus.

Taking a break, the veteran huffs, “I was hoping you could kill me kid. I’m really looking forward to becoming a real god, but I don’t know. You seem pretty tuckered out.” Kode stands up straight and rests his hands on his hips. Then, he raises his fists. “That’s the spirit. You know, if you kill me, that’s it. You take my curse. You’ll watch friends and family die without being able to help them. You’ll hate life and struggle to find happiness. And when you do find joy,” Arnold turns around to see Michelle with her eyes glued to her father. “It’ll bring you more worry than happiness.”

Kode takes a deep breath, but doesn’t say a word.

“That’s if you could kill me today. If not, maybe I’ll do you a favor and stop you from seeing what I have.”

Kode nods swiftly.

Like a body launched from a rocket, Arnold explodes with a knee connecting to Kode’s chin. Before he can even register what’s happening, Kode’s flying back into the stadium wall. The strike is so powerful, the Colt Stone actually crumbles and the bricks fall over his limp body. From my view, he’s dead.

I quickly wipe the smile off my face.

The victorious father stumbles back towards his daughter, but he doesn’t make it far. He falls to one knee, clutching his ribs. His legs quiver violently as he fights to stand again.

Thomas announces Arnold as the victor by Official Battle Kill (O.B.K.). He shakes his head in disbelief and coughs up another chunk of blood.