The Face: Tournament of Death, Chapter One

It was a sunny, but cold April day. Many months had passed since the Lawson incident. Everything was back to normal for the most part. After healing from my injuries, I went back to work as a regular journalist, seeking an avid interest in covering crimes and controversial murder trials. Nothing was like it used to be. I had suddenly longed for the excitement that I once knew, just a little bit. But I didn’t know what was to come at the time I received yet another unexpected call.

I picked up the receiver next to the computer I was surfing the web on. My ears instantly received an answer. “Congratulations, Benny! You’ve just won a trip to the Hanoi Islands!” It was the voice of an esteemed authoritative figure, my boss. However, I was baffled as to what he was speaking of. His ramble explained everything. “We’ve got word that washed up owner of formerly leading Bell Corporation, Joseph Bell, is aiming to get all his money back, and regain his empire by entering a martial arts tournament off the coast of China!” He exclaimed excitedly. “And you want me to cover it?” I deduced, knowingly. My boss still didn’t think of Tim or I as “professional journalists,” despite the many cases we’ve covered, even though most of the credit went to Samantha. I suspected this to be yet another wild goose chase. “Righty-o, Delman!” My boss began to ramble once again about the long-winded details of the assignment, and I reluctantly listened.

The next day I told Tim of the news, and how I’d be away for a while. “Good riddance, bud,” he said to me. “You been hoggin’ all my computer space.” I sat down in my chair and started my own computer. “The trip isn’t for another three days. Hey why don’t you be of some good use and look up this so-called tournament of the Hanoi Islands?” I asked him. Tim brushed his hand outward in response. “Meh, do it yourself. I’m talking to Sheila. Me and her are hittin’ it off.” I raised a brow in astonishment. “Tim using the ol’ online dating method? Or…hey, you know we’re not supposed to be browsing any questionable sites.” Tim shot an angry look. “Hey, Sheila’s the real deal. Met her in a chat room the other night. She and I are like two birds of a feather.” He explained.

Failing to interfere with Tim’s infatuation with a new-found girl, I decided to wait for the slow computer to boot up. As I searched the web, I found some useful information about the island. “Hmmm.” I said. “Looks like the event is called the King of Iron-Clad Muscle Tournament.” I explained. Tim raised a brow without turning his head from his screen. “You know that’s gotta be a translated Chinese name…no English title is that long.” I continued searching. “Looks like a man by the name Shran Kazuma runs the tournament, as well as the entire island itself. To some, it’s called ‘pleasure island’ for its great entertainment and delightful attractions,” I read off the page. “Heh, maybe I can take Sheila there some time,” Tim suggested. I chuckled to myself in amusement. “Don’t get your hopes up, Tim,” I warned.

Upon the coast of an African island resided a young, blond woman, along with a stout brown-haired resolute man. “You can’t be serious.” She said to him, in a low, skeptical tone. Her hair glistened, undulating in rhythmic patterns to the flowing winds. The sky was cloudy, and unusually cool. The young man held up his fist in mid-air. “They offer a great sum of money. It’ll be good for both of us…if I succeed.” The woman parted her hair to the side and folded her arms. “But there’s no need. In just a few weeks, my anatomical health induction serum will be free of all its faults,” she explained.

The young man raised his brown brow as his eyes stared straight into hers. “It’s too late, I’ve already entered. And I don’t want you to rush this thing. Remember what happened last time? That one reporter was all over the mishaps of the haunting effects of your serum from the first trial. And he ruined me as well.” The blond girl lowered her head and stared to the ground. “I can’t risk you getting hurt, Joseph.” She replied. Joseph consolingly reached out his arm and touched her shoulder. “It’s gonna be all right, Natalie,” He comforted. “Besides,” the man continued. “I’m already heading there myself.”

I reached into my pocket for my trusty cellular phone. I flipped it open and nostalgically took a look at the option called “Taser Mode.” Upon closer examination I read the message that it displayed, “Out of Service.” It had not seen much action since the entire Zandross saga. As I was sifting through necessities I might need for the trip ahead, Tim startled me with some disturbing information. “Hey, buddy, I think you better take a look at this.” I turned to him in astonishment and crept toward his computer screen. “While I was checking out this ‘pleasure island’ you spoke of, I came across this.” Tim scrolled down to some text describing disappearances from the island, constituting a small roster of some well-known martial artists. “Rumor has it that there’s some pretty bad drug-operation down there, but of course, those are rumors.” I looked at the screen with bewildered eyes, no speech coming from my mouth. Tim continued. “Besides, this is a .com website, and look at this amateur layout! He’s got the borders and shading all wrong…hardly a reliable source.”

The information from the website made my head spin. ‘Maybe this could be another opportunity for me,’ I thought. However… it did look like a job for an old friend of mine. Tim confirmed that thought with his helpful advice. “By the way, maybe you should take that old costume of yours, just in case. It could use some of that sunlight.”

To be concluded….