The Bounty

Number Two:

I watch as Thrill Rider first jumps back when one of Baran's henchmen swings his assault rifle. He then charges forward, the henchmen's rifle and Thrill Rider's batons hitting each other.

The two of them struggle to push each other back. While trying to push the henchmen back, Thrill Rider must have seen another one of the henchmen sneaking up on him. Running to him, Thrill Rider ducks under the swing, and I watch as the henchman accidentally hits his own partner. Falling to the floor, Thrill Rider then kicks out the henchman's knee. He too falls to the floor and Thrill Rider finishes him with a punch to the head.

With all the henchmen down, the only ones standing are Thrill Rider and Baran.

"A little sloppy," I say, rubbing my chin, "But I guess it still works. Now, let's see how you handle Baran."

Thrill Rider:

"Just me and you now," I say, pointing at Baran with the assault rifle. "Are you sure you wouldn't rather just surrender? You would be saving yourself from a throbbing headache."

"You're the one who should be surrendering," Baran answers, cracking his knuckles as he starts to walk toward me. "Unlike my men, I have a lot of fighting experience. So don't think your pathetic skills can match mine."

"Pathetic skills," I repeat, "Hey. That's mean."

Baran charges toward me, and I charge toward him. I swing the rifle but Baran raises his arm and blocks it. Before I could do anything else, Baran punches me square in the chest, and I can literally feel the breaths shooting out of my body.

Stumbling back, I let go of the rifle and hold my chest.

"Pathetic," Baran says, kicking the rifle to the side.

"Not pathetic," I gasp, some breaths returning. Shaking myself off, I bring up my hands. "Just some custom-learned skill."

Baran brings up his hands and even before I can blink my eyes, I find myself in a fistfight against Baran.

Baran punches me across the face but when I try to punch him back, he once again raises his arm and blocks my swing. Pulling back his arm, Baran hits me with a straight punch. Once more, hitting me directly in the chest, I stumble back while holding my chest.

While trying to recover, Baran rushes forward and grabs me by the back of my shirt. Pulling and tossing me against one of the vans driven into the warehouse, Baran follows after and grabs me by my throat. He lifts me with almost no effort and starts to strangle me.

Number Two:

Thrill Rider's feet kick wildly against the van as Baran chokes him. Thrill Rider tries to pry Baran's hands away but he isn't strong enough. I guess thinking outside the box, he stops trying to pry Baran's hands away and instead, hits him on both sides of the head.

"Interesting," I say.

Thrill Rider:

Screaming and letting me go, Baran steps away to hold his head. Falling onto my butt, I gasp for air and hold my throat. Swallowing a final lump of air, I look up to see Baran standing nearby. His fists are already up and his eyes are focused. He's ready for round two.

Despite feeling a little light-headed, I shake my head and push myself up. Breathing in and out, I bring up my own two fists. I shoot out one of my hands and move my fingers back and forth.

"Bring it on," I yell.

Charging toward me, a lot like a bull, Baran pulls back his arm. On the verge of punching and possibly knocking me out cold, I move fast and grab the van's door. I swing the door wide open and hide behind it. Baran's arm going right through the window, glass falling onto me, he screams as he pulls his back arm. Distracted by his purple knuckles, I stomp my foot against the van's door and slam it into Baran. Baran falls against the side of the van. He tries to push the door off of himself but I stop him.

Grabbing the door, I slam it against it Baran over and over again. Catching the door before it could slam into him, Baran tries to get away but I kick him back and pull the door out of his grip. Once more, I slam the door onto Baran, finally knocking him out. I step back and watch as Baran slides down the van before falling down onto the ground.

"Yaaayyy," I say, raising my arms but immediately letting them fall down. "Nope. Too tired. Out of energy. Need to catch my breath. Ouch. My chest."

Number Two:

"Well, I'll be," I say, still watching as Thrill Rider bends over to catch his breath. "I figure Baran would win, but I guess I was wrong."

I keep on watching as after Thrill Rider catches his breath, he stretches before walking over to collect his batons. Once they're in his hands, he searches Baran until he finds Baran's phone. While he dials the police, I reach into my own pocket to pull out my cell phone. I then dial a number.

"This is a live feed," my boss asks.

"Yeah," I reply, "This is a live feed. I guess those punks from before weren't lying. I feel a little bad now. So boss, what would you like me to do now?"

"Call them," the boss answers. "Tell them I'll pay whatever it is they want so long as they can get rid of Thrill Rider."

"I understand. I'll make the call right away."

I hang up my cell, close the laptop, and walk over to my limousine. My chauffeur greets me as I approach. She opens the door and holds it for me. Sliding me, she closes and enters the driver's seat. As she starts to drive away from the warehouse, I once more have to dial a number.

"Hello. Yeah, it's me. Yeah. Turned out Thrill Rider is real. Who would have guessed, right? Anyway, my boss wants to hire them. How long before they can get here? Yes. Yes. Okay. That's right. Half a million dollars to anyone who can get rid of Thrill Rider."

I hang up my phone and smile.

"Let's see how you survive this," I say.