Jack stepped out into the corridor, closed the door behind him and looked at Monica. The vampire stared back at him in surprise, almost looking as if she’d seen a ghost.

“Y-You’re walking!” she stammered as Jack walked across the hall to join her.

“Yes,” he said. “Were you expecting I might have trouble?”

“N-No,” she stammered quickly, squinting at Jack, trying to figure out how he’d bested the drug. “I just… never mind, follow me. The entrance to the arena is this way.”

Monica turned, and they began their ascent down the sloped walkway. Jack followed after her, a few paces behind her position, trying to stretch the fatigue out of his muscles. He should have known better than to blindly take the Draught without watching it be prepared first. He was certain he’d taken Widow’s Draught a few times before in his life, so he knew what to expect, but Monica’s concoction was something else altogether. If Ellie and the servant hadn’t saved him just now, there’s no way he’d be standing.

They made a turn at the end of the hallway, sloping down further toward the center of the arena. Vampire guards were posted along the corridors at regular intervals, their eyes focused squarely on Jack as he followed Monica to the gate up ahead. He still felt light headed and weak from whatever amount of the Draught remained in his body, but it was enough to fight.

Monica stopped just in front of the gate and turned to face Jack, a broad grin across her face. Jack looked through the bars at the blank arena ahead of him, listening to the roar of the crowd and the music outside. “I must admit you’re stronger than I thought,” the vampire said plainly. She walked past Jack, her heels clicking on the floor behind him and stopped, turning back to face him. “Oh, one last thing. There’s been a change of plan to the fight.”

Jack clenched his jaw and a snarl curled at his lips, but he didn’t turn around to look at Monica. The Draught had already been a nasty enough surprise. Ellie had warned there would be more to come, and now, here they were. “What?” he said, pushing the word out as a growl.

“You’re still fighting against three. But we couldn’t find suitable regulars for a vampire of your caliber. You’re against three Supers.” Monica let out a heartless chuckle. “Good luck!”

Jack turned back and saw a gate slide from the ceiling, separating him from the female vampire. There was no turning back now, no running. Monica raised her hand and waved her fingers condescendingly, a knowing smile plastered on her face. There was an evil glint in her eyes that said, Find your way out of this one vampire boy.

One vampire against three Supers? Jack had been in bad scraps before, but he’d struggle with that even on the best of days. He’d have an even harder time in his weakened state. The gate in front remained closed, and the announcer’s voice boomed across the arena and down the hallway toward Jack. He approached the closed grate and saw the door on the opposite side as it lifted, releasing his three combatants.

The crowd met their entrance with a blood thirsty roar, whooping and screeching as the three vampires bounced across the stone circle, eyes wide with black, eyes that were ready for violence. Jack’s own gate opened, and he stepped out of the tunnel and into the arena without much hesitation. Three Supers against one. He didn’t like those odds. He didn’t like them at all. Still, there was no telling just how strong the vampires would be until he fought them.

“And in the red corner we have our visitor! A mysterious Super travelling to the North. Ladies and gentlemen, I present Jack. The feral from the south!” the announcer’s voice echoed across the arena, and his announcement was met with booing and hissing from the crowd.

Jack wandered into the stone circle, stopping just short of the center. The gates shut, closing them in.

“Now let me take a brief moment to explain the rules of this fight!” the announcer said, his voice echoing over the cold air. Jack remained standing still, eyeing his three opponents who were still skipping about, servicing the audience and building atmosphere. They were topless, just like him, and at quick glance at their bright red eyes confirmed they were Supers. “This fight is a three against one. Team blue verses… the solitary vampire.”

The audience broke into a chorus of booing again at the announcement. Jack didn’t know what the announcer had said before the fight, but he was clearly the villain in this situation for some reason. “Normally only one man can leave the arena, but in this instance the circumstances are different. If Team blue wins—and they probably will win—they can all leave. The only way that handsome Jack can leave is for him to defeat all three opponents. Are you ready for carnage?!”

More roars for blood. More screams for action. The three combatants stopped their galivanting now and circled back to the center of the arena, bringing their attention to Jack. He twisted his bare feet into the bare stone floor, clenched his fists and sized up his opponents.

The vampire in the middle was tallest, with black hair that was spiked up. Interesting haircut for a fight, Jack thought. He looked like he was ready for a night on the town, not a fight to the death. The vampire on his right was shorter, but the widest of all his opponents. He looked back at Jack with death glaring in his eyes. He was bald, covered in tattoos and he looked to have a proper fighting stance. Keep an eye on that one. The final vampire, the one on the left, was also bald, but he held a weapon in his hands. A barbed spike. Gee. That seems fair.

The announcer stepped forward on the platform to the right, raising his microphone to the audience. Jack looked over in the direction of the barred window where Ellie remained with the servant girl. Pulling off a win was going to take everything he had, but he had to do it for her. Walking out of here alive was the only way he could make sure Ellie would remain safe.

“Are you ready audience?!” the announcer wailed, his voice screeching from speakers high above them. The crowd wailed back in response. He pointed over to the three Supers stood across the circle from Jack and spoke. “Are you ready Team?” The three vampires looked up at the announcer and signaled they were ready. Finally, he turned to Jack and locked eyes with him from across the arena. “Vampire, are you ready?”

Jack gave a solitary nod of his head and looked back to his opponents. The announcer swung his microphone through the air on its cord, screaming as it smashed against the gong to his right. “Then let’s fight!”

* * *

The three vampires ran across the circle toward Jack within an instant of the gong ringing out. Their faces twisted with rage, their legs pumped at full speed. Spiked hair in the middle was the closest. Jack squared his fists in front of him, not daring to move an inch. The kid in the middle was clearly keen to make an impression, so Jack went along with it.

“Die motherfucker!” the vampire roared as he jumped into the air, leg stretched out in Jack’s direction. Jack caught the kick in both hands, stopping the foot just before it hit his chest. The momentum pushed him back against the stone wall behind him, but he was in a good position to counter.

Thrusting his arms up, Jack flipped the first vampire up and into the air, flipping him backward to land on the ground in a disheveled heap. The audience gave a roar of approval at the move, and the other two vampires paused a second before making their assault.

Jack cracked his knuckles and jumped up and down, adrenaline coursing through him. “Come on then,” he said with a wide smile. “Which one of you wants it next?”

The attacking vampires wasted no time conferring with each other and they both launched forward at the same time, catching Jack off guard. The tattoo-covered fighter made the first strike, sending a powerful, yet slow, fist through the air, just glancing Jack’s rib cage. Jack span away from the blow, feeling slightly winded, and circled around on his feet just in time to see the spiked club swinging down at him from the other vampire.

Jack caught the blow again, moving into the weapon to reduce its impact, but the hit was still a lot to take, and it sent him reeling back onto the floor.

“It’s a great team attack!” the announcer’s voice said, echoing in the air somewhere above him. “Could the fight already be over?!”

Jack rolled back onto the floor and smashed against the wall behind him from the momentum of the blow. Blood poured from shallow nicks on his chest were the barbs had cut his skin. He’d barely time to look up when he saw both vampires were jumping at him again. The armed vampire came first this time with fury etched on his face, and he swung the club around in a wide arc, determined to knock Jack’s head clean from his shoulders. Jack twisted his body to the right and ducked, springing up to his feet just in time to block a barrage of blows from the vampire covered in ink.

Fists flung, arms blocked, feet scurried across the floor quickly. The fighter was clearly experienced in combat, his powerful blows driving Jack back across the arena as he blocked each hit. He got a few good blows in, smashing Jack in the ribs and glancing him a few times on the side of his face. Spiked-hair was also back on his feet now but holding back, seemingly waiting for the other vampires to finish the fight for him.

Spinning around, Jack could see the armed vampire was trying to pull his barbed-spike from the wall, which must have got trapped on his second attack. Well, at least that’s one thing in my favor. His brief entanglement with each of the men now had given him a fairly good idea of their strength and speed. As Supers went, they were all pretty weak, but Jack was barely able to match them in strength in his weakened state. Luckily, he still seemed to have some of his speed, so he’d just have to make do with that. Taking out the real fighter would be his first challenge. After that the other two would topple.

Dodging another blow from the fighter, Jack scurried back, throwing his arms up and trying chance blows as the other vampire pushed him around the arena. “Stop! Moving!” the attacker grunted as he swung for Jack with blows that were growing more desperate with each passing second. The man’s face was already turning red with exhaustion, and he clearly wasn’t in the mood to drag this out any longer than he had to.

He can fight but he’s out of shape. Jack thought. That was good. It gave him another chance. Jumping up, Jack cleared the air just above the fighter’s head and landed on the opposite side of him, smashing his feet into the back of his opponent’s legs. The fighter crumbled to the floor with the blow. Jack was just about to send another kick into his back when something crashed into him, sending him to the floor.

The crowd roared as the world turned to its side. Jack hit the rough stone with a loud smack, and felt a heavy weight crushing against his ribs. Looking up, he saw the vampire with the spiked hair, clutching a stake, thrashing it down through the air toward him. Motherfucker threw a sucker punch. And it wasn’t even a good one.

Jack caught the strike, stopping the stake before it could hit his chest, twisted the arm of his attacked around and launched the vampire onto his back as he jumped to his feet. The crowd roared again in approval as Jack countered the deadly attack, screaming for him to deliver the kill as he snatched the stake from the trembling hand of the inexperienced fighter.

“Stop!” the vampire roared from the ground. “Please!”

Sympathy wasn’t easy to muster when someone had just tried to kill you. Jack thrust the stake through the back of the vampire, and he burst into a well of violent red flame.

“One down ladies and gentlemen!” the announcer hollered with delight over the speakers. “Two remaining!”

Cheering vaulted across the arena as the flames and ash from the first vampire dissipated into the air. Jack had little time to celebrate or to appease the audience, for the remaining two vampires had returned and were now attacking in full.

“No more messing around!” the tattoo-covered vampire shouted to his team mate as they began their next assault. “Kill the bastard!”

The vampire who’d had the spiked-club nodded, swinging for Jack wildly as he made his attack. The other vampire swung too, attacking at the same time, driving Jack back once more. Fuck, he thought. He could just about hold off the fighter when he was on his own, but there wasn’t a chance he could take both of the vampires at once.

The joint assault was a problem, but there was also the ailing strength in his body. Ellie and the servant might have helped him to escape the effects of the Widow’s Draught, but whatever remained inside of him was starting to take its toll. Block after block, punch after punch. Jack ducked, rolled and jumped as the fight spiraled across the small arena, feeling his body drain with every move. The audience roared its approval all the while, screaming for the next kill, begging for more.

A hard fist came up through the air, catching Jack off guard and smashing into the underside of his chin. The blow knocked him back and sent the world spinning, Jack faltered on his feet, trying to keep his footing. He knew that going down would mean certain death. Staying on his feet was crucial, so he held his arms up to block any blows and focused all his energy on standing until the world stopped spinning.

The next minute was a wild and disorientated exchange of blows. Jack attempted to stop the world from spinning while twisting his body around the stakes that were being thrust in his direction. Both vampires were armed now, and they looked as if they wanted to end the fight.

“Just die already!” the ink-covered fighter roared. Blood streamed, bruises formed, fists flew. The fighter was done physically, but he also knew that giving up wasn’t an option. Jack dodged another blow as the other vampire attacked from behind him. He jumped back to dodge the surprise attack, span on his feet and sent an elbow into the face of the fighter as they both stumbled back, delirious from fatigue. They crushed against the wall, the fighter wrapped his arms around Jack’s neck and pinned him there, calling at the other vampire to finish the job.

“Do it!” he roared. “Do it!”

The other vampire clutched a stake from the stone floor and ran toward Jack, hand stretched above his shoulder to deliver the killing blow. The strength of the fighter was too much to escape, and Jack couldn’t get free of his grasp. He clawed at the strong arm pressing against his throat, he sent elbows back into his ribs, but none of it seemed to matter. Looking up he saw the end was nearly there. He glanced to his left, right, and then he saw an option.

Reaching his right hand out, he stretched with all his might to reach the club that was still embedded in the wall. His fingers seized around it just in time and he yanked it from the stone, swinging it forward and spearing the approaching vampire through the chest, causing him to erupt in a wall of flame. He yanked the club from the fire, turned it around and thrust it back into the chest of the vampire choking him from behind. The fighter released his grip on Jack immediately and Jack fell forward, rolled across the floor and turned around to face the remaining vampire.

Jumping to his feet, he swung the club up above him as the ink-covered fighter fell to his knees. The vampire clutched the deep wound at the side of his chest, looking up at Jack with tired red eyes that screamed defeat. The roar of the crowd all around was deafening. Jack’s head was lighter than ever, breath racing as black slipped in around the edges of his vision.

“Do it fucker,” the vampire growled, flicking his eyes to a stake on the floor between them. “You haven’t got the balls.” The fighter fell forward using his last ounce of strength, hand reached out to clutch the stake from the floor. He froze midair as the spiked-club speared his chest, turning into a fountain of flame and ash a moment later.

Jack dropped the club to the floor, stumbling around in a daze as the deafening roar from the crowds blared all around him. He brushed a hand down his blood-soaked body, stumbled to the center of the arena and held a hand up, looking at the announcer on the platform, who was screaming something into his microphone.

He turned on tired feet, trying to blink away the stars in his vision and looked over in the direction where he thought Ellie was. He squinted hard trying to make her out from across the arena, but it was too far to see from where he was standing. He had won the fight. It was over. For a few moments the stress lifted from his shoulders completely, but only for a very brief moment.

“What do we say?” a familiar voice rung out across the arena. Jack looked back up at the platform and saw that Monica was now standing there and had taken the microphone from the announcer. This couldn’t be good. “He’s taken on three and won. What about three more?! Do you want to see a real fight?! Do you want to see what these Red men are made of?!”

Red men?

The crowd roared their approval. Jack felt all of the hope drain from his body and collapsed to the floor, struggling to keep himself stood upright. There was nothing else in him left to give. Another fight was death. They would keep him going until he was dead.

Blood poured down Jack’s arms, ran over the backs of his hands and seeped into the stone floor beneath him. He looked up one more time at the announcer’s platform and saw another vampire had come to join Monica. It was the blond-haired male from earlier. Her brother. Rourke.

Jack struggled to keep his eyes open as he watched as some sort of argument unfolded between the two vampires. Rourke pulled the microphone from his sister’s grasp and shouted something indecipherable, rage etching on his face as his hand pointed outward. A heated disagreement of some sort unfolded between them, and a minute later Monica left the stage looking less than pleased. Rourke took a moment to compose himself, brought the microphone to his mouth and started speaking.

Jack blinked slowly as he attempted to take control of his breath again. If he had to fight again he needed to summon his strength, but it was no good. There was nothing left. Black encroached his vision and Rourke’s voice echoed around him as a distant blur, announcing something to the audience. He tried to listen for the words but couldn’t make them out.

Turning, he collapsed onto his back and looked up at the bright floodlights overhead. He’d tried his hardest to win for Ellie, to protect her, but it was no good. He just needed to rest briefly, and he could fight again. He doubted he could win this time, but he’d try for her. He had to. There was no other choice.

Closing his eyes, his arm dropped to the floor as the last of his consciousness left him.

The world grew black and everything went quiet.