"Fucking kill him, Jamie!"
"Stop being such a pussy and get closer!"
"Give him a hook! A hook!"
Amidst the roaring and bloodthirsty crowd, I looked on in shock as I witnessed the violence and destruction taking place in what could only be called a decaying pit that sank four feet down into the floor. Inside of which held Jamie and a complete stranger, each releasing a rain of blows at one another with full abandon. Droplets of blood, sweat and spit flew across and out of the pit, raining down on the exuberant spectators standing far too close to the fight. As I saw this, I wondered how I had possibly got here.
My time with Clark and his friends had started off normal enough. We had gone to a nearby cafe I had never heard of before, located only a few minutes away from where we were. They all proceeded to order their food, with myself only getting a slice of toast, still far too full from my own breakfast to get anything substantial. At the time, the atmosphere still felt slightly awkward, it being clear that none of them really knew what to say with the introduction of myself into the group. But with the help of Clark, and his incessant chatting and charismatic energy, by the end of the meal, the awkwardness had lessened notably, with conversation flowing a lot more smoothly, with it soon reaching a volume that matched what I heard when I first spotted them outside the corner shop.
The longer we talked, the more I got to know them, and I soon realised how both right and wrong my perception of some of them was. When it had come to Jamie, I had first thought he was the strong and silent type, and while I might have been right about the strong part, he most certainly wasn't silent, being as talkative and boisterous as Clark. The only difference was that he was a lot raunchier and violent in his thoughts and topics. When it came to Cindy, even though she looked goth-like in appearance, her attitude and actions were anything but. I swear she swore louder and more often than any sailor ever could.
Regarding Lewis, I had assumed he was a quiet kid, and for the most part, I was correct. That was until fighting or violence were brought up and he suddenly became more passionate than even Jamie, gaining a certain glint in his eyes that frankly scared the shit out of me and made me lean my chair as far away as I could. Lastly, when it came to Alice, while she seemed cold and aloof, which she definitely was, it turned out she was also a lot more humorous and sarcastic than I could have ever expected, jumping at any opportunity to slip in a small joke or retort. Overall, at breakfast, I had a surprisingly good time, something which had become a slight rarity over the past week.
However, it was when we had gotten to Sharky's that things started to become strange. Sharkys itself, actually called 'The Shark Pit', looked to be a decrepit bar that was all but hidden from the world. Nestled down an alley, which in turn was hidden under a veil of pitch-black darkness. The place itself was a large wooden building that seemed to be held up by a combination of grime and hope. The wooden floorboards inside creaked so precariously with each step that it was a miracle none of them snapped underneath our weight.
Inside the room was an old wooden counter spanning half its length on the left-hand side with what appeared to be the world's strongest man standing behind it. A man who made even Jamie seem small in comparison. Along the edge of the room was an array of tables and stools with a surprising number of people laughing and drinking around them already, despite how early it was in the morning. But what drew the most of my attention was what looked to be a large hole dug directly in the centre of the room, spanning three metres in length and width and a little over one metre in height.
However, before I was able to ask any questions, the others had quickly ushered me to a table near the back, completely disregarding the hole. Immediately, drinks were gotten, and rambunctious chatter continued for hours on end until my head was dizzy, either from the constant layer of smoke around us or the plentiful alcohol. Before then, I had only ever had beer a few times in my life, still not entirely used to being tipsy or drunk.
We continued talking until, at around one o'clock, the sound of a loud bell rang across the room, silencing all sounds of conversations and laughter in its wake. Just as I had started to feel wary and maybe a tiny bit fearful of the unnatural silence plaguing the bar, the patrons all but exploded into a symphony of cheers and shouts.
I turned to Alice who was seated beside me in complete befuddlement, apparently looking very funny, going by the way she broke into laughter at the sight of me. After finally calming down and still seeing that I was looking for answers, she leaned closer towards me before whispering in my ear. Her pink lips held in a mischievous smirk. "You didn't think this place was just a bar, did you?"
As I looked towards her, her eyes alight in mirth, I replied, "I can't help but notice that you didn't actually tell me what's going on." To which I only earned a small chuckle in return.
Before I could get further clarification, the man standing behind the bar, who I could only assume was the owner, spoke up. His voice was deep and thunderous, matching perfectly with his dangerous-looking appearance. "Who wants to be first?"
A multitude of voices shouted out, half of them nigh belligerent, coming out closer as slurs than actual words. One of those voices included Jamie, who seemed more excited than he had been all morning, his face a bright red and eyes opened wide; a truly frightening sight. One that only got worse after the owner pointed his arm towards Jamie, causing him to whoop and holler in delight as he jumped up, a rabid smile on his face.
He made his way towards the centre of the room, receiving high fives and pats on the back from the other patrons on his way there, meeting up with the other bloke who happened to get picked. A man who had so much muscle his shirt looked as if it was tearing by the seams.
"Anybody going to finally explain what's going on?" I asked out loud in exasperation to no one specific.
"You haven't worked it out? Damn, you're slow." Cindy smirked.
"I've got an idea. But it seems far too stupid to actually be true."
"If that stupid idea is that people volunteer to get into that pit and beat the shit out of each other for fun, then you're right on the money." Clark laughed.
"What do you mean stupid? It's fucking genius!" Lewis remarked without looking at us, his body leaning forward towards the pit with an intense stare and creepy smile.
"Damn right it is. In fact, why don't you volunteer for the next fight, Adam?" Cindy suggested, making me freeze mid-drink.
Immediately, I wanted to kick myself for my past boasting and exaggeration when I retold what happened with my fight. I desperately tried to think of an excuse to get me out of her insane idea when I happened to look at my left hand, gripping my drink.
"I would love to. But my hands are still fucked. Can't do much fighting in this state." I sighed, doing my best to sound as despondent as I possibly could while showing my still badly bruised and damaged hands. An excuse Cindy seemed to buy as she simply shrugged and went back to looking at Jamie as he entered the pit.
"Nice save." Alice suddenly whispered from my side, making me jump slightly in fright.
"I don't know what you're on about." I replied, looking straight ahead towards the pit as I took a sip of my drink, not making eye contact.
"Sure." was all I heard in a drawl tone before the place was once more encompassed by shouts and screams as Jamie and the other man stood in the centre of the pit; both of whom were still able to be seen due to the slope of the pit. There was no fanfare, no waiting. Just a quick count to three before the two began wailing on each other, throwing hail marys with enough force to cause serious damage.
That was how, for over five minutes, I found myself witnessing the most brutal fight I had ever seen. A fight that finally ended with the other dude being unable to get back up after one particularly strong uppercut from Jamie, with him needing to be dragged out of the pit by two other patrons who led him out the bar and hopefully to a hospital. Though, I seriously doubted it. Jamie, the winner, if you could even call him that, looked just as bad. Covered head to toe in blood with his snake tattoo barely able to be seen under it and looking far worse for wear than I was from my fight. Yet from his attitude, you would think he was perfectly fine as he screamed and cheered in celebration while meandering his way back towards us. Almost getting into a second fight when he saw Cindy flirting with a bloke at the table next to ours. With it only being stopped by Clark's quick reactions.
With the fight finished and the rowdy atmosphere coming to a simmer, I realised how fast my heart was beating, drumming in my chest with such intensity. "For someone who was against it, to begin with, you seemed to really enjoy that 'stupid idea' at the end." Alice said, her hands in air quotes.
Just as I was about to deny it, I realised it was true. Somehow, during that massacre, I went from being completely shell shocked to enraptured, enjoying the bloodbath I witnessed with a passion and fervour I didn't know I could feel. After that realisation, the afternoon sped along in an array of both casual chatting and enjoyment as well as blood-pumping excitement. With five more fights taking place throughout the evening, each just as thrilling and bloodied as the last. By the time it reached eight o'clock, all of us were tipsy, to say the least, Clark having somehow gotten even louder than before, drawing quite a few annoyed glances from the nearby tables.