Sirius Chapter 5: Chapter 4: Voice

Read chapter 5 of Sirius by Dealer on NovelPedia.

As night closed in, the noise of voices from outside grew louder, seeping deeper and deeper into the storage room where Li sat. Occasional shouts of excitement or frustration echoed through the hall; probably a few more gamblers losing their money while others cashed in big on the opening fights. Toc Toc Two heavy knocks came from the direction of the door. "Kid, you in there? Let's go; your fight's almost up." Gordon's voice pulled Jihan's mind back from the depths of his thoughts. He was sitting on his cot, staring at the floor, mentally preparing himself. "What is this feeling?" he thought. "Stage fright?... No." Li had never been one to run from a fight; even when things got ugly, his hands had always found a way through. "Whatever. It's just another fight. Right?" Getting up, he went to the door and opened it. The light blinded him, and when his eyes finally adjusted, he was caught off guard by the sheer number of people moving through the hall. "The old man really outdid himself this time, don't you think?" said the man standing beside Li. Thousands of people filled the hallways, waiting for the main event. "He really did," he agreed. "So, Gordon; think I've got good odds tonight?" At nearly six-foot-three, the bouncer made Jihan look small, even at over six feet himself. "Good question..." he replied, rubbing his chin. "What do you mean, wait, seriously? I thought you had more confidence in me than that! What happened?" Li was surprised. When it came to fighting, Gordon, who had worked there a long time, was essentially one of his biggest fans. "I can't say for sure. I mean, Tai Lung must've dug this other guy up from the depths of hell. I've never seen him in my life," Gordon shrugged, not having much else to offer. "Hm... you're usually pretty well-informed. Losing your touch? Age catching up to you, big guy?" Tsc "Don't talk like I'm some kind of city councilman, kid," the bouncer said, clicking his tongue. "Anyway; I'd be real careful if I were you. From the little I know, this guy is seriously dangerous." Still half-disbelieving, Jihan figured Gordon was just trying to get a rise out of him for fun. "What kind of dangerous are we talking? You know I've handled uglier guys than" "The kind that beat up his own driver for braking too hard on the way here," Gordon cut in. "Li... take this one more seriously than usual. I'm not joking." Taking a deep breath, he answered: "Interesting... let me warm up. We'll see what this guy's made of." And he headed off toward the heavy bags in the corner of the hall. "This kid... I might be crazy, but I swear he looks even more pumped up now..." Gordon, a little worried, watched him run off. * * * While Li warmed up, time moved quickly. The hall, already packed, filled up even more. When the climax of the night arrived, a large man stepped onto the stage and grabbed a microphone. "LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!" The crowd slowly went quiet. Every eye in the house turned to the stage. "I hope you've all been having a great time! After a long wait... the main event of the night is finally about to BEGIN!" The moment Tai Lung finished his first sentence, the crowd erupted. "In this corner... the house champion... the untouchable... on a streak of EIGHTEEN... CON... SEC... U... TIVE VICTORIES! The Leopard! LI JIHAAAN!" The screaming exploded again. A young man standing around six feet walked up to the stage, showing off his speed and footwork to the crowd; fast and lethal combinations, a fighter who always aimed for his opponent's weak points. Jihan stepped into the arena. "And in the other corner... the challenger! Unknown in the world of fighting, making his competitive debut! THE BEAST! JI... AN HOOOOOOOOONG!" When Tai Lung shouted the newcomer's name, the crowd booed. But a small, wicked smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. The booing continued until, one by one, as the man climbed onto the stage, the crowd fell silent. The reason for the gradual quiet was the man himself. Standing at wha