At the side of the group I saw a tall muscular adult vampire. He wore a gaudy looking robe with gold embroidery over his wide body, a greased style to his blonde hair, and a smirk on his face. The combination of outfit, hair, and disgusted smile made me instantly not like the man.
“Woo! Look here. We’ve got a room full of little boys pretending they are men,” the vampire said with a sneer.
“I don’t know what you all think you are doing in my gym, but you better clear on out. Yeah. We don’t need any trouble,” Dr. King said as he stepped toward the newcomers.
“You aren’t looking for trouble? Brother, I’ve got too much trouble. It is filling my body with the kind of vengeance that you have never known,” the blonde werewolf said. He had long blonde whisker chops that fell on each side of his face.
“Gene, you can’t be coming around here and interrupting our practice with your showboating and your grandstanding. Save it for the matches.” Dr. King crossed his massive arms over his equally massive chest.
“That’s Giant Gene to you, brother. You forget my title.” The larger werewolf pointed his finger at Dr. King.
“You enter our house without bringing an offering? You seek to anger the gods, the heavens, and the hellspawn that are just waiting to be unleashed. I tell you to go. Go now! Or you shall face your doom at the hands of your BETTERS.” Mr. Hellsig was standing next to Dr. King, and it was kind of hard to see past their giant shoulders.
“Wait just a minute. Woo! Guys, guys, guys,” the vampire said with a much too big smile. “Let’s not make it ugly, okay? Well, ha, not any uglier than you both are already. Woooooo!” The boys standing behind the vampire all burst out laughing. “We’ve just come for our trophy, so if you hand it over, we’ll leave you ladies to continue with your pampering.”
“Which trophy might you be referring to? Are you talking about the state trophy that we won last year? I seem to recall that we won that fair and square inside of the circle last year. Yeah. We beat you. Yeah, we did.” Dr. King nodded over his massive shoulder, and I turned to see a tall trophy display case. The glass was practically bursting at the seams with the trophies inside, and I guessed that there were over twenty crammed in there.
“This year things are going to go a bit different, brother. I’ve been to the mountain. I went there as one man, and then I came back as another the likes of which you have never seen. Let me tell you, brother. I’m coming to take back what is mine. That includes my trophy, and it includes my woman.” The blonde wolf man’s words ended with a guttural growl, and the tension in the room grew thicker.
“Are you still hung up on Lady Bella? She picked me, Gene. Oh yeah. She didn’t pick you. She got tired of all your hot doggin’ and your showboating. Lady Bella wanted to be with the champ, and that is me. Yeah.”
“I’m going to take my belt back also, Mario. It’s been with you for too long, brother, and I’m here to take it all. The trophy, the belt, and my woman. When I am done with you, brother, you’ll have nothing left but your misery and your pain, and the knowledge that Giant Gene took it all from you. That’s right. The man you used to call brother will take it all away, brother. Then I’ll be leading the top wrestling program in the state. That is what the mountain has told me.”
“The gods of the Earth and Sky tell me different,” Coach Hellsig growled as he stepped between the two werewolves. “They say that we will win this next wrestling bout. They say that we will meet the hardness of the universe with our even harder souls. They say that none shall stand in our way, and that all who dare will crumble before us like castles made out of sand before the waves of the ocean.”
“The thing is; your side just doesn’t have the… how shall I say it? Right stuff. Woo! Look at us, for example.” The blonde vampire gestured to the boys standing behind him. “Each of us here practices with the best available equipment in a state of the art gym. You might say that we came from nothing, but while your program has stopped growing, the program that Giant Gene and I have built has continued to flourish! Woooo! We have forty strapping young men on our team, and they have all made the same cut that you’ve established for your program. We have the latest in sports technology, and have profiled each of our team members for optimal diet, exercise, training regiment, and style. It is the perfect combination of art and science.” The boys behind the vampire were smiling, and they looked at the man with adoration.
“More grandstanding and showboating. It is what is inside that counts, not the latest technology or some fancy routine. Yeah. We work with our boys to bring out their full potential. Our victories come from their hearts. Not from science or drug enhancements. Yeah,” Dr. King said with a broad gesture of his arms towards my new teammates.
“Brother, are you claiming that we are a bunch of cheaters that are using performance enhancing drugs?” the larger werewolf seethed the question, and he took a step forward.
“No. I’m saying that any of the boys on my team can out wrestle any of yours with their brains, hearts, and bodies. Yeah. They don’t need no fancy-shmancy technology. Just hard work and belief in themselves. Yeah. Now, we’ve got a practice to get back to, and I’d think you would be better served by less grandstanding and showboating. Cause my boys are going to be able to settle this in the ring,” Dr. King said, and I could tell he was trying his best not to attack the larger werewolf.
“You said that any of the boys on your team can beat any of ours?” the vampire asked with a raised eyebrow.
“I did say that, yeah. Now you all should leave so--”
“Brother, your words are lies that you don’t stand behind,” the other werewolf said.
“What did you just say? You calling me a liar? In front of my team?”
“I am, brother. I’m calling you a liar because you don’t think that any of your boys can beat mine.”
“I just said that anyone can. Yeah. I don’t appreciate your words, Gene. Now get out of here, or your boys are going to see me turn you into a pretzel. Yeah.”
“Fine, brother. I choose…” the giant blond werewolf looked across the gym at the rest of the team, then his yellow wolf eyes settled on me, and he pointed with a clawed finger. “That one. He looks like a lost puppy.”
The boys on the other team all burst into laughter, but my teammates didn’t share any of their mirth.
“Choose for what?” Dr. King asked.
“To tussle against Albert in a friendly match,” Gene said as he beckoned with his furry paw.
A six foot tall human stepped up next to the werewolf. The boy actually looked like Superman. He had thick black hair, a chiseled chin, bright blue eyes, and the kind of muscles that a superhero would carry on their frame. I was somewhat surprised that he was actually human since I didn’t see many of them.
“Sherman is new to the team, and Albert is your star wrestler. That hardly seems like a fair matchup. Yeah,” Dr. King said as he shook his head.
“This is why I think you are a liar, brother. You tell me that I am a hot dog, then you make these claims that you can’t back up. Seems to me that you are the real grandstander. You are the one with the fancy belt, and the trophies that you won’t stop talking about. Then I try to call you out on it, and you make excuses. You’re a liar, brother.” Giant Gene shook his head and let out a long growl.
“You call me a liar again, and your boys will be cleaning bits and pieces of you and your boyfriend off my gym ceiling. Yeah. Now, Sherman is new to the team, but he has heart, and he’s a hard worker. If you bring me someone in his weight class, I’m confident in his abilities. Yeah. But what you are proposing isn’t regulation, and--”
“You said any of your boys could beat any of mine. I choose these two. If you are afraid to see them match, I’d understand brother. Since you are afraid of making false claims,” Gene shook his head, and Albert shot me an evil looking smile.
“The gods will grant us strength and allow us the power of the Earth so that we will crush youuuuuuuu.” Coach Hel
lsig’s voice was an intense growl, and it looked like his body was struggling with the temptation of attacking the other werewolf.
“Splendid!” the vampire said. “So when our boy here submits yours, you will hand over your trophy and belt.”
“That wasn’t part of any of this. The trophy belongs to the school, and my belt belongs to me. Yeah.”
“The gods of Earth and Sky demand equal tribute from our opponents. You can’t have something for nothing! It goes against the will of the gods!” Coach Hellsig pointed at Gene as he spoke.
“My friend makes a good point, yeah. I’m getting the short end of the deal here. So I’ve got a counter offer for you. If my boy Sherman wins, then you two,” Dr. King pointed at both the vampire and the other werewolf. “can’t enter your school into any wrestling tournaments for the next three years. Yeah.”
The boys on the other team gasped and looks of panic flooded their faces. The vampire and blonde werewolf didn’t seem stunned by Dr. King’s demand, however, and I saw the vampire actually smile.
“Ha! Our boy against that?” He pointed his finger at me, and I felt my stomach turn to ice. “This isn’t much of a wager.”
“We’ll take the deal, brother,” Gene agreed with a chuckle.
“Fine then. Now, get out of my gym. Yeah. We’ll settle this a week before the first tournament, that way you have plenty of time to cancel your buses. Yeah.”
“I’ll see you then, Mario. Tell Lady Bella I said hi,” the larger werewolf coughed out an evil laugh, and then directed his boys to exit out the door.
As soon as the other team left our gym, the boys began to shout their questions to our coaches. Dr. King raised his hands to quiet them, and then he took a deep breath.
“I’m sorry about that boys. Yeah. I think that most of you know that Gene and I have a bit of a history. We were both dating the same girl in college, and Lady Bella decided to marry me when I started med school. Yeah. Gene’s a sour grape, and a hot dogger. He’s been trying to get a rise out of me for the last ten years. This is a new low, though even for him. He brought his boys into our feud, and he brought you all into it. Yeah.”
“Don’t worry, Dr. King. We all have your back,” the gargoyle boy that had helped me figure out my ear guards said.
“I appreciate it boys. Ohh yeah. I’m not too worried about my belt, or the school’s trophy. I’m just worried about our honor. The match isn’t fair, and we only have a limited amount of time to get Sherman here in shape. Yeah.”
My teammates and the two coaches turned to look at me, and I felt the pressure of the match fall upon my shoulders.
“I uhhh, I don’t know how I am supposed to beat that Albert guy. He’s twice my size,” I said with a quivering voice.
“Don’t worry about it, Sherman. We are going to teach you everything you need. You’ll have to put in a lot of extra hours. Yeah. But I know you’ve got the cream, and you can pin that guy with no problem,” Dr. King said with a terrifying wolf smile.
“Really? You think so? How long do we have to train?” I asked, but then I recalled that Charlotte was going to murder the werewolf tonight, and then we would be out of the school. None of this actually mattered, and I felt most of the terror leave my stomach.
But I also felt kinda bad for my teammates. They had all seemed nice, and I didn’t know what would happen without Dr. King leading the team. Coach Hellsig seemed capable, so maybe it wouldn’t be that bad?
“First tournament is in four weeks. So we have three to get you in fighting condition. It won’t be easy, but I know you’ve got the pudding to fly like a chicken hawk.”
“Three weeks?” I asked with a wince. “Would you mind starting tomorrow? I’m a little winded from the warm up.”
The group laughed and the gargoyle boy slapped me on the back.
“The Star Champion sees no danger, just an opportunity to mock our opponents! The gods will smile upon his victory and infuse our spirits with the power of the Earth!” Mr. Hellsig said as he raised his arms.
The rest of the boys laughed again, and I tried to bring a smile to my face.
I didn’t want Dr. King to die, but I also didn’t want to wrestle that Superman looking kid. I guess it was good that Charlotte and I were leaving tonight. All I had to do was get the werewolf to where she was waiting, and all the beautiful succubus girl had to do was end him.
I just hoped neither of us would fail tonight.
Chapter 5
“You did good for your first day inside of the squared circle,” the giant werewolf said as he patted me on the aching shoulder.
“Uhh, I did?” I winced. It felt like my right arm was about to fall off, and my left arm was numb. My legs didn’t feel any better, and I was limping toward the locker room. Practice had ended a few minutes ago, and my teammates had already gone ahead so that they could change.
“Ohhhhh yeah! You’ve got the cream, Sherman. I can tell these things. Now, go hit the showers, and come talk to me again so that we can go over the plan for tomorrow.”
“Plan for tomorrow?” I squeaked. I didn’t even think I could lift my arm to turn on the shower, and this guy wanted to train with me tomorrow? He’d just spent the last three hours tossing me around the mat as if I was one of those bouncy rubber balls.
“Ohh yeah. We’ve got to get you in shape for the tournament. Gonna be good. Oh yeah. You’re gonna get the medal for your weight class. I can feel it in my bones, and it makes me wanna howl. Oh yeah!” His last word turned into a wolf roar that made my skull vibrate around my brain painfully.
“Dr. King, I’m not sure that I am the guy for this--”
“Nothing means nothing. Yeah. When you think about nothing, do you know what you get?” he asked as he pushed a clawed finger into my chest. The point dug a bit into my uniform with an uncomfortable sensation, but it didn’t really hurt. Or the rest of my body just hurt so much that I couldn’t tell if the claw was actually doing any damage.
“You don’t get what you want?” I guessed.
“Oh yeah. You gotta have positive thoughts. So don’t think about nothing when you want something. Think about the something instead of the nothing and then you won’t have nothing when you wanted the something. Oh yeah. Now, go hit those showers and report back. I’m gonna talk to the other boys and see how their practice went with Coach Hellsig.” The giant werewolf touched the sides of his ski-goggle glasses and then nodded for me to continue my walk toward the locker room.
The rest of the boys were in the showers, and I grabbed a clean towel from the rack by the door. The sight of them in the water made my stomach do flippy flops. I had always been able to avoid taking a shower in my old PE class since most of the kids actually didn’t bother because no one wanted to be seen naked. My teammates were chatting as they bathed, and they didn’t seem to notice me agonize over taking my uniform off.
“Hey, Sherman! Good job today!” the gargoyle boy suddenly shouted from the water.
“Yeah! You did great! Dr. King was right about you!” the ant boy said.
“Ahhh. Thanks. It didn’t seem like I really did that well. Dr. King just threw me around the ring the whole time,” I said as I took off my ear protectors and placed them in my locker. I kind of wasn’t looking at them because I was so uncomfortable with the idea of getting naked.
“Ha! Modest!” the gargoyle boy shouted with a laugh. “We were watching you. Most of us can’t go for more than a few rounds against Dr. King. You just don’t quit.”
“Ahh. I guess.” I winced as I pulled my aching arms through the shoulder straps of my uniform. Then I gasped as I forced my trembling legs to yank free of the short area. The uniform was tight around my thighs, and I had to actually peel it from my sweaty skin.
“You can throw your uniform in the bin at the back, and they will wash it for tomorrow’s practice,” I heard one of the voices from the shower shout.
I turned to see the bin where the other uniforms were already sitting and made a slow
underhand throw to get it in there. The movement pulled something in my back, and I let out a sigh of never ending agony.
At least this was the only day I’d have to endure this.
I took my jockstrap off and placed it in my locker before I did the same with my glasses. Then I held my towel up in front of my groin and walked toward the back area of the locker room where my teammates were showering. None of the other kids were looking at me, and I found a place to set my towel on a nearby bench before I jumped under one of the unused shower heads.
The water was warm, and I grabbed the bar of soap someone had left on the shelf before I’d really had a good rinse. I went through the cleaning process as quickly as I could, and tried to keep my eyes focused on the tile wall in front of me. I expected one of the boys to make fun of me, or slap me in the ass, or do something else to humiliate me, but no one said anything, and I finished washing myself off in a few minutes.
The other boys all finished about the same time as me, and I scurried back to my locker with my towel around my waist so that I would be able to change quickly.
“Hey, so how did you end up getting hired by that game company?” the ant-boy asked me as he sat on the bench in front of his locker.
“I uhhh. I--”
“He’s gonna talk about it on the podcast! You have to wait until Kristen publishes it tomorrow night,” the gargoyle boy said.
“Ahhh, man. At least I get to hear Kristen talk. Ohhh, she is a hottie.” The ant-boy let out a whistle, and the other boys laughed.
“If we are talking about the student council girls, I’d like to do a solo interview with Rose, if you all know what I’m talking about. Woo-hoo red-heads!” I heard a voice say from the other side of the lockers.
“Lily is so fucking hot!” another voice called from the other side of the lockers. I thought it was the sasquatch-boy.
Werewolf!: Hell High Book 3 Page 5