Out of all the high-stakes venues and secret events that the Black Hounds had been holding so far, there was one that was larger and more prestigious than any other. This was the flagship event, the one that Darius, the cold-hearted head of the Black Hounds, and his top enforcer Jett were personally attending.
The fighting had been going well for Max and Stephen up until this point. Stephen had won his preliminary fights, and with every round, he was learning how to better utilize his special powers in a live combat scenario. He was beginning to understand his own limits and finding out his weaknesses at the same time, growing stronger with every drop of sweat he spilled.
On top of that, Max had managed to play the political game perfectly. He had brokered a deal with Darius that allowed him to get paid in cold, hard cash directly after every single fight. For a while, everything seemed to be going according to plan. That was until there was a suspicious change of opponent at the last second for one of the main events. Jett, one of the strongest and highest-ranking members of the Black Hounds, had subbed into the fight.
When Stephen went up against him, he tried his best, pouring every ounce of his skill into the match. But Jett was a monster of a different caliber. He was able to completely overpower Stephen with sheer force. Before Jett could make some of the boy’s injuries permanent, Darno had stepped in and joined the fray, turning the match into a desperate scuffle.
It was on Max’s direct orders; he could never let another person who was willing to fight for him get seriously hurt or crippled again. Not after everything they had been through.
With Darno fighting alongside Stephen, there was a glimmer of hope that they could do something to slow Jett down. However, Jett’s overwhelming power, combined with the restrictions of the Vows that Darno had placed on himself, led to Darno being tackled and pinned. He was stuck on the ground, suffering from large-scale hits that threatened to crack his ribs. In a desperate attempt to save his comrade, Stephen had swung his leg at full speed, whacking Jett right in the face and knocking him off of Darno.
In the process, though, the sound of a sickening snap echoed through the ring. Stephen had clearly broken part of his shin bone during the impact. Still, against all odds, they were surviving.
The whole situation had Darius deeply concerned. He realized that this "Bloodline" group was far more resilient than he had anticipated. To end the chaos, he did what needed to be done: he sent the Black Hound members directly after Max, who was watching from the sidelines. Darius figured if they could take down the leader of the Bloodline group, then the mess would be over. He finally had the perfect excuse to eliminate his rival.
The only thing Darius had never thought in a million years was that Max was a highly skilled fighter himself. As the guards closed in, Max took down the men who were ordered to seize him, and he did it in a flash. If someone in the audience had blinked, they would have missed the entire exchange. Still with his signature mask firmly on his face, Max surveyed the room, his eyes scanning for exits.
"This is a tough one to get out of, mostly because we’re on a damned ship in the middle of the water," Max muttered under his breath. "But I’ll get out of here, even if I have to fight my entire way through this whole boat."
"What are you idiots doing!" Darius shouted, his face turning a shade of purple as he punched the arm of his seat and stood up. "He just attacked members of the Black Hounds! You have to get him now!"
The Black Hound members on board this particular ship were elite members, the best of the best. Most of them were part of Jett’s personal "Striking Force." As one of them approached him with a baton raised, Max quickly spun his entire body, using the momentum to land a devastating kick right in the center of the man’s stomach.
Another two came toward him from both sides. As he avoided the first strike with a sharp lean, Max locked his arms with the second guard, pulling the man’s body toward him and using it as a human shield against the others. He then quickly kicked the body into a third individual while stepping back and narrowly avoiding a strike from a heavy metal tray being used as a makeshift weapon by a waiter-guard.
Quickly, Max threw out two lightning-fast jabs to the face, followed by a vicious combat blow to the ribs. He grabbed hold of the metal tray, tearing it from the man’s arms with a violent jerk. He swung it, hitting the man across the face with a metallic clang, and then flung the tray like a frisbee at another member who was running right toward him.
For the audience and the high-paying guests who were betting on the matches, what they were seeing now was far more entertaining than any of the official fights that had occurred so far. It was almost as if they were witnessing a live action movie. Max’s flow of movement was incredibly smooth, and he wasn’t just sticking to one discipline; he was using a hybrid of several fighting styles to dismantle the guards one by one.
The more experienced fighters among the Black Hounds were struggling to adapt because they had no idea what style Max would use next.
One second, Max had his guard down by his side, looking vulnerable as he leaned back; the next, he rapidly swung out his limbs, hitting two men in the face before leaping at another. He tackled the man to the ground and delivered a brutal headbutt.
This was Wolf’s style, raw, animalistic, and efficient. Max had seen Wolf fight so many times that he had naturally absorbed the technique for moments like this. With the hard helmet-mask on his head, the headbutt did a massive amount of damage, instantly knocking the guard unconscious.
As Darius watched the carnage from his vantage point, he could only think one thing.
This person is major, major trouble... he will be a problem for the entire Black Hounds. No, even the other gangs won’t be safe if I don’t get rid of him right now, Darius thought. He began to walk over himself, his eyes locked on the masked leader.