SHANE. If this prick thinks he has me figured out, he’s dead wrong.

C’mon, you big son-of-a-bitch.

Mc Claskey approached and held his gloves close to his face. From what I could see in the first rounds, he didn’t have much to counter my speed. Ripp, Kelsey, and Kace probably thought I was crazy in the first four rounds. I had to see what this big fucker was made of.

He’s strong as fuck.

He’s soft.

And he’s slow.

I stepped in close and switched to southpaw.

Here’s where I belong, big boy.

Coming at ya with…

This.

I swung a right hook into his ribs. As he exhaled what little breath might have been in his lungs, his face had a look of surprise his eyes couldn’t hide.

I swung a left cross and caught the bottom of his jaw. As he turned to try to take me to the ropes, I stepped in close and clenched him, holding him still.

What, you big muscled up prick? You don’t like fighting? You wanna wrestle?

He should have known I didn’t like to push and shove. I let go and pushed him off.

I came here to fight.

I unleashed a series of punches to his mid-section - an unanswered barrage of hooks and jabs which would have dropped any previous fighter in my career.

I swung an uppercut, and barely missed his jaw.

Shame…

On.

Shame…

On.

The crowd cheered my name. I have never been a vain person, but an entire arena chanting my name was something I had never heard before. I hated to admit it, but I liked it. The chanting provided me a reason to show Mc Claskey why I chose boxing as a career.

He attempted to get me off of him with a right jab. An uppercut followed. Both were dodged without much effort. I stepped to his right, and swung a left hook into his ribs.

Oh shit, that felt like it cracked.

I’ve always said the eyes don’t lie. And his didn’t. He was hurt.

I knew what was next.

Lord. Prevent me from…

I swung a right-left hook combo into his torso.

Killing…

I threw a series of jabs to get him off balance.

This big bastard.

I threw my signature left hook into his ribs. He body twisted to his right, and both gloves came down for a fraction of a section. A fraction was all I needed.

I swung a right uppercut that connected directly with the bottom of his jaw. I followed with a left jab and landed solid on the front of his chin. His chin came down just a touch and his gloves dropped completely.

Everything went to slow motion for a moment. I heard the crowd cheering my name. I heard Kelsey pounding the mat, indicating the end of the round being only seconds away. And I heard, clear as day, Mike fucking Ripton scream.

You got this, Dekk!

A few times in my career, I have thrown a punch and regretted it. After they’re thrown, it’s impossible to stop, especially by someone with my speed and strength. The right cross I threw at Mc Claskey’s temple was one of those punches. As soon as I threw it, I realized he was already unconscious. The punch connected on the left side of his temple. His head looked as if it was going to snap off of his neck.

He fell to the mat.

And he did not move.

I vaguely remember seeing the referee step in. I turned toward the crowd. Everyone was on their feet, cheering. I looked at Mc Claskey.

And he did not move.

The referee waved his hands.

And I realized I had gone the distance. Not in this fight, but in my career - and with Kace. The Heavyweight Championship of the world was next. If what I had read was correct, several million people should be watching Mc Claskey and I fight on Pay-Per-View. Without a doubt, I would be a household name overnight. The title fight would bring tens of millions of dollars, even if I lost the bout.

Mc Claskey moved his head.

Thank you Lord.

When they finally got Mc Claskey to his feet, I heard the announcer before I noticed all of the people gathered around me. And it sunk in.

I had actually won.

“…of the sixth round. By knockout. The winner, Shane Shame on Dekkar.”

As Kace stepped into the ring, my dog tags dangling from her clenched fist, I saw the look of pride in her eyes. As I stared at her I further realized - not only had I won the fight - I had clearly won at the game of life.