Rob X Punzel ~ Twenty-Two!

The bustle of the underground arena washed over them as they stepped into a large basement that had likely been illegally excavated to be larger. Goldie’s heart rate increased as the cheers and complaints from a lively crowd rose and fell, punctuated by the sounds of fists meeting flesh. The scent of sweat, blood, and anticipation overwhelmed the gentle perfume washing off her hair, clogging her nostrils enough to force her to sneeze.

“What is this place?” Bob looked around the poorly lit chamber, which was lined with chairs for the wealthier patrons, makeshift bleachers for the less fortunate, and plenty of standing room for those without the coin to afford even those meager accommodations. “There's no sand to collect the blood, no mirrors to see your form as you fight.”

“What kind of arenas do you frequent?” Goldie pulled him through the dense crowd around the raised platform arena in the center of the room. “I've seen a couple of these over the years. Doesn't matter if it's in the slums or here, it has the same look and feel. People excited to see other people hurt other people. A bucket of water sloshed across the floor at the end of the night is all the cleanup they really care about.”

Goldie had her eye on a short line of people wearing a familiar, gaunt expression—slum dwellers here to compete. She knew that if they were standing in that area, the person putting together the matches must be near as well. “I'm going to get you set up to fight. Are you ready for this?”

“Despite the inadequate outfitting of the arena, I foresee no issues.” Bob’s voice was stiff, but his eyes swept over her before he shifted his focus to the arena, trying to stretch and loosen his muscles despite being pressed in on all sides by others. “Just keep doubling down until they make a big deal about someone they're going to bring out to fight me. After that, it's going to be an actual gamble for you.”

“Sounds good.” Goldie rolled her eyes with a teasing smile, but just as she turned to step away, his hand reached out, gently catching her elbow. 

Their eyes met, and his hand dropped away as though he had been burned. “Goldilocks… thank you for your help, and… giving me plenty to think about. Look, at some point, someone’s going to recognize me as the person the guards are searching the districts for. When that happens, this place is going to be swarmed. Make sure you're gone when that happens. I don’t want you to get caught up in it.”

Simply offering him a soft smile, she stepped away from her new friend. “It was nice meeting you, Bob. I hope to hear about a river of coins flowing toward the orphanage in the near future. Combat Charity! Woo! Um… goodbye forever, I suppose?”

“Same to you!” he called after her, a grin breaking through his usually serious expression as the excitement of the fight edged closer. Even with his attention shifting to the crowd, he cast one last look her way as she pushed through the press of spectators.

After she flicked a silver coin toward the man taking names and indicating Bob, he gave her a token to bring over to the betting booth. She made her way across the room to where a bookie was standing with a trio of brutes, handing him the token and waiting impatiently as he took his time before updating the odds with the newcomer's name.

As soon as they were posted, she pulled out every last coin she had—about thirty silver in total, thanks to the densely packed room of wealthy patrons, not to mention the generous contribution of the door guard who had allowed her into the underground arena. Without a seeming care in the world, she put it all on Bob. The bookie glared at her but still handed over a token showing Bob's assigned number and her wager.

Goldie stepped away, worried she’d just made a major mistake. Then she saw the next man throw a fistful of gold coins on the table and realized why she had received such a glare. The paltry amount of silver she’d been able to muster up wouldn't be enough to make a dent in this man's proceeds. “Ah. That makes more sense. My bet was practically pocket change for anyone in the citizens’ district: the bookie was annoyed I was making such a small bet. All arenas might seem the same, but I can’t keep forgetting I’m basically in a different world right now.” 

“Next up we've got a fresh-faced young citizen looking to bloody his knuckles for the first time in our house!” a voice pitched to carry over the crowd called out, drawing all eyes back to the arena. “Let's see how well he does against someone who's desperate to win: Drex the Wonder Slummer!”

The crowd murmured in anticipation, though by the ramping down of excitement, it was clear no one expected much from the new challenger. Goldie pushed her way closer to the ring, unable to peek over shoulders until her hair came to her aid—it wrapped around her ankles then pushed against the ground, lifting her six inches in the air as stably as if she were standing on a stepladder. “Oh! Uh… that’s new. Thanks.”

Someone smacked a bell, and the two young men, one in clean garments, one in rags with a face that denoted him as one of Goldie’s neighbors, closed in on each other with their fists raised. Drex charged across the small arena, going from the opposite side to looming over his opponent, huge fist pulled back to land a devastating blow. Goldie's eyes went wide as the rapid blow closed in, but Bob swayed away from the strike easily. 

Her jaw dropped as Bob stepped forward, pure fluidity and economy of motion. His fists shot forward, calculated strikes slamming into Drex's abdomen. The larger-framed man stumbled back, gasping for air as he tried launching a counter attack, though the powerful, wild, wide swings looked nearly childish in comparison. Bob casually dodged each blow, returning the attempts with perfect punishing punches. 

“Look at the technique our newcomer brings to the ring!” The announcer's voice radiated out as Drex collapsed, gasping for breath while struggling and failing to get back to his feet. “Muscle alone isn't enough to take down this contender! Someone sweep this trash outside, and don't forget to place your bets for the next round!”

Goldie looked on as Bob was offered a cup of water, silently applauding him when he refused it without a second thought. “Glad he knows better than to eat or drink something a random person hands him… especially in a place like this.”

She made her way back to the betting booth as the next fight started, another few random people that had managed to do well enough in the slum arenas to earn a chance here. Her small pile of silver had tripled in value, so the thief happily replaced her bet on Bob once more, though she noticed that his odds had shifted significantly. This time, her paltry sum wasn't glared at, though it was still a casual swapping of money for a token, instead of the respectful exchange of goods between a bookie and the high spenders.

Fight after fight went the same way, a blur of blood, sweat, and screaming crowds. As Bob continued his bouts, it was clear his technical skill was undeniable. Even without obviously showing off any of his system skills, he quickly rose through the different tiers. Each quick victory brought him closer to fighting against the headliners of this underground club and rapidly grew the amount of coin Goldie managed to bet on him. Finally, he had done well enough to be placed against one of the headliners of the night.

“That's eight in a row for Bob-and-Weave the Bruiser!” The announcer howled over the shouting crowd as Bob stepped away from another beefy man who was left trembling on the arena floor, unable to move. “We're going to take a short break and let him take a rest before trying his mettle against Judge Judo, Judgernaut of the Jury!”

“Whoo, boy. Judge-er-naut. Wow. With a name like that, he'd better be pretty strong. Otherwise, someone would’ve slapped the stupid out of him by now.” Goldie tallied up her winnings for the night so far, an astonishing seventeen gold. She hesitated and decided to simply slip the coins to her hair instead of letting the money ride as a wager.

As she stepped away from the bookie’s table, the man glared at her, practically foaming at the mouth now that she wasn't tossing her money back on the table once again. “That's it? Don't you know how much you'd win if your little bruiser managed to succeed against the Judgernaut? You'll triple your money again!”

“No, I'm really happy with this amount.” Goldie let out a sweet chuckle, trying not to let on how she noticed the hired muscle around the bookie tensing up. In an effort to misdirect, she casually stated, “I'd rather place it on a sure thing during the next fight. It's going to be the winner of this versus…”

“Goresplatter the Guard Captain.” The bookie calmed down slightly, a smile on his lips, though his eyes remained hard. “I look forward to seeing you back at the table shortly.”

The bell rang at that moment, giving Goldie the opportunity to slip into the crowd without looking like she was sprinting for the exit. True to his name, the Judgernaut bellowed and charged like a bull, thundering across the small arena with his arms held wide to scoop Bob into a crushing tackle.

Goldie winced with sympathy as Bob narrowly avoided the grapple, only to get clipped hard enough to send him stumbling away toward the edge of the podium. He barely managed to regain his footing, the crowd shouting and screaming as he almost went over the edge—being right on the edge of their seats themselves. But the young man managed to adjust his stance, dropping into a crouch and tightening his core.

Judo raced toward him once more, slightly more carefully, so as to not fall off if he missed. Bob jumped at him with a burst of speed, throwing out a series of quick, precise strikes. His opponent grunted in pain but didn't go down, instead retaliating with a powerful overhead swing and catching Bob on the neck with an open-handed slap that sent him to the ground so hard that he bounced twice.

“Moment of truth! Did Judo snap his opponent’s neck like last time?” The announcer’s words made of Goldie's eyes go wide, and she leaned forward with as much interest as anyone else in the crowd and certainly more concern. For a long moment, it seemed like Bob was out of the fight… but to her astonishment, he rolled over and pushed himself off the ground, landing on his feet and moving directly into throwing punches.

He hammered his fists into Judo's gut, and the huge man stepped back and coughed out a light spray of blood and spittle. The Judgernaut let out a rage-filled bellow, closed his hand into a fist, and swung an uppercut into Bob's stomach that sent the man a few inches into the air. His other hand came around, letting out a *crack* as it met Bob's face. The young man spun to the ground with blood trailing through the air behind him. 

“Just stay down… you've got enough proof by now,” Goldie whispered softly, trying not to think about how smart she’d been to save her money. Her head moved in a gentle sway, not quite believing what she was seeing as Bob clamored back to his feet, half his face already swelling from the massive bruise forming on it. 

*Bang.* The soft warning from her hair caused Goldie to turn her gaze away from the combat, her eyes narrowed as she saw a subtle ripple among the guests at the edges of the room. One man adjusted his stance slightly, and the cloak covering his body moved to the side—showing gleaming city guard armor underneath. 

“Whoops… time to go!” She started moving toward the door, only to notice movement on the other side. “They've already got this place surrounded, huh? Nowhere to go but up.”

Trying not to catch anyone's eye, Goldie hurried over to a set of stairs that had a hired fist blocking the way. She sauntered close to the man, smiling charmingly and beckoning him in. The leering thug leaned in, but his goofy smile fell away as she whispered, “City Guards are in the building. I can't go upstairs without you if I don't want to draw attention, and you need a good excuse. If we go now, we both might be able to get out of here.”

“I'm going on break!” The huge man called without hesitation to one of his partners, who let out a wolf whistle and nodded vigorously as the duo went up the stairs, hand-in-hand. Goldie looked over her shoulder one last time as Bob and Judo wailed on each other.

As droplets of blood scattered through the air with neither man appearing even close to surrender, a piercing whistle cut through the noise of the crowd. The doors to the basement burst open, and armored guards swarmed in with their weapons drawn. The others, who had mingled with the crowd, wasted no time in rushing up into the ring, tackling Bob to the ground and dragging him to the edge of the arena before he could even register what was happening.

“Go, go, go!” Abandoning all attempts at stealth, Goldie and her new friend raced up the last few stairs, slamming the door closed behind them and bolting it. “That'll buy us a few seconds; do you know a way out of here?”

Her hair let out a sharp *bang* as they coiled into curls, and Goldie threw herself into a forward roll across the ground without hesitation. The guard she had come upstairs with let out a grunt of annoyance as he pried his hand out of the wall where his attempted sneak attack had landed, turning to kick her before she could get to her feet.

“Look, lady! I'm hired to be here. Right now, you're a trespasser. Yeah, I know a way out of here—handing you over.”

Before he could fully extract himself, Goldie was on her feet and racing through the elaborate estate. The sound of the man running after her soon reached her ears, so she threw herself around a corner, only to find herself at the bottom of a set of servants’ stairs. She quickly began pounding up them, his footfalls mirroring hers moments later. Sharp whistles joined in the cacophony as city guards rushed in to secure the building.

“Gotcha!” the thug called out triumphantly, grabbing a fistful of her hair.

As he pulled her to a stop, Goldie closed her eyes and felt a pang of remorse as she breathed out, “Elemental Infusion of Grappling.”

Instantly, she felt her hair twist. The man holding onto her hair was slammed into the wall, the ceiling, the railing, then the stairs before being dropped as the infusion faded. The instant his grip on her failed, she burst out of the stairwell into the second floor. 

Goldie started running down the longest hallway she had ever, for her entire life, been in, even as the groaning guard forced himself back to his feet and resumed his chase. The straightaway ended in a huge glass window overlooking the street. She sprinted toward it without hesitation, preparing herself for pain. 

“Get back here! Intruder!” the guard bellowed, clearly hoping to be able to sell his story. He came closer, closer, and just as his fingertips brushed against her hair, Goldie threw herself at the glass. For just a heartbeat frozen in time, Goldie saw herself on the other side of the window—left arm glowing with the notification of a skill increasing—then she was there, her temporal trap door allowing her to phase through the thick glass without needing to smash it.

*Thud.* The deep sound of a heavy body rebounding off of–but not breaking–the glass rang out behind her.

As she fell toward the empty street, her hair already swirling around to cushion her fall, Goldie sent a cheeky wave at the guard behind the window, who was glaring after her while blood poured from his nose and busted lip. 

“My hair is sometimes cold to me, sometimes gets me into situations that are too hot… but tonight it worked out ju~ust right.”