ã€ŠRings of Hellã€‹


 Chapter 1: Welcome To Hell

    ¡°Beowulf! Beowulf! Beowulf! Beowulf!¡± the crowd chanted. A dark-skinned man stood in the center of the ring, taking all the glory. He was shirtless, which showed his well-defined body. Whoever said the eight-pack was a myth would be proven wrong when looking at Beowulf''s abs.

    He had the body of a warrior, with muscles showing everywhere on his top half. There was no fat at all. On his bottom half, he wore jogger pants with a wolf drawing on the right side, and the name Beowulf was also on them.

    This man the crowd kept cheering for was called Beowulf¡ªat least, that was his wrestling name. His real name didn¡¯t matter; it was too mundane, too normal. But Beowulf, now that was a name. It signified strength and dominance, and it was linked to his favorite animal.

    ¡°Howl! Howl! Howl!¡± the crowd cheered. Beowulf had a large grin on his face. ¡°You wanna see me howl!?¡± Beowulf asked the crowd. ¡°YEAH!¡± the crowd screamed. ¡°I don¡¯t think I can hear you. I said, ''Do you wanna see me howl!?''¡± Beowulf asked.

    ¡°YEAH!¡± the crowd screamed, this time louder than the first time. Beowulf shook his head in disappointment. ¡°Either I have tinnitus or you¡¯re not screaming loud enough. I SAID: DO YOU WANNA SEE ME HOWL!?¡± Beowulf screamed.

    ¡°YES!¡± the crowd answered. This time, the arena of twenty thousand people began to vibrate when they screamed. It was like a small earthquake had just occurred.

    Beowulf grinned, all his teeth showing. ¡°That¡¯s better!¡± Beowulf said. ¡°If you wanna see me howl, then I guess I got no choice, do I? I gotta give the fans what they want.¡±

    With a microphone in his ear, Beowulf bent his upper body back so much that it almost reached the ground of the arena, and he let out a large howl. ¡°AWUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!¡± Beowulf howled.

    ¡°AWUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU! the crowd began howling as well. The symphony of howls was almost indescribable. It was perfect. Every one of those howls was admiration for Beowulf, and he loved every second of it. He almost wished it would never end. But sadly, his voice gave out, and his howl ended.

    He got back up. ¡°Now, that¡¯s what I¡¯m talking about! Now that was a howl!¡± Beowulf exclaimed. The crowd roared with cheers. ¡°We love you, Beowulf. You¡¯re the man! You better win; I bet my life savings on you.¡±

    The last cheer was pretty awkward, but Beowulf pushed it to the side. He wouldn¡¯t let that ruin the awesome moment he was savoring. Beowulf began speaking to the crowd through his microphone. ¡°Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, my loyal fans¡­ Nah, you¡¯re not my fans. YOU¡¯RE MY PACK!¡±

    The crowd roared once again. ¡°You are! You are! You guys are my pack. You¡¯ve had my back since the start of my career in the W.W.U. (World Wrestling Universe).¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s it been? Fourteen years?¡±

    ¡°Fifteen!¡± a fan yelled. Beowulf looked in the direction the shout came from. He saw a middle-aged man, wearing glasses, a bit overweight, wearing one of Beowulf¡¯s merch shirts. Beowulf smiled. He knew the man¡ªnot personally, but he knew him. He always came to Beowulf¡¯s matches every time he fought in WrestleManiac, the huge fighting event that happens once a year, which fans all over the world would come to see. This man hadn¡¯t just come to all of Beowulf¡¯s WrestleManiac matches, but he also managed to get front-row seats every time.

    Beowulf didn¡¯t know how that was possible. Tickets were hella expensive, and everyone rushed for them faster than a kid who hadn¡¯t had ice cream for a whole year.

    Beowulf approached the ropes of the ring and pointed at the man. ¡°Thanks for reminding me. I¡¯d say the reason I forgot was because I¡¯m getting old, but it¡¯s more likely that I got brain damage from all the punches, body slams, and chair slams I¡¯ve taken for the past fifteen years.¡±

    The whole crowd began to laugh. There was no harm; Beowulf did mean it as a joke, after all. But the doctor did warn him to avoid any more head injuries. ¡°Do you know how every time I got knocked down it felt like I couldn¡¯t possibly get back up, but I did so anyway?¡±

    The crowd fell silent. ¡°It was you. You and you, and you and you,¡± Beowulf said as he pointed to different people in the crowd. ¡°It was all of you! And when I take on Draco, The Irish Giant, I want all of you¡­¡±

    Music started playing in the arena which cut off Beowulf. The arena was also flashing with orange lights, and fog was starting to appear in the area. At the edge of the arena, orange lights formed a pathway, turning orange one after another, leading to a platform.

    On the platform stood a man 3 meters in height. He was shirtless like Beowulf but was not as muscular as Beowulf was, except for his arms. He had a red goatee, no top hair, and wore a green kilt while holding a large sword on his shoulder.

    Yeah, a sword. The large man was Draco, the Irish Giant, the unbeatable champion of the World Wrestling Universe. He was the tallest man in the history of the world, and he was Beowulf¡¯s opponent.

    A large grin appeared on his face. He used his right arm and pointed his sword towards Beowulf, who was far away in the ring. It was his provocation move. Every wrestler in the W.W.U. had one. Well, all the known ones did.

    As soon as the crowd saw this, they began to boo. Draco didn¡¯t seem to mind this. In fact, he invited the boos by waving his left hand in a to-and-fro motion.

    He walked to the ring slowly, with his music playing and the loud booing in the background. The crowd didn¡¯t hate Draco because he was a bad guy. In fact, they didn¡¯t hate him at all.

    They were just so damn tired of seeing him win. Every. Single. Time! It was unbelievably frustrating. During Draco¡¯s first years in the World Wrestling Universe, the fans were fascinated by him. Hell, they loved him. The world¡¯s largest man being a wrestler in the W.W.U. was quite entertaining to watch.

    How he would defeat his opponents without much struggle was amazing. But as the years went by, and Draco kept winning again and again and again and¡­ again, the fans just got bored of him.

    The entire point of wrestling was expecting the unexpected and still getting something you didn¡¯t expect. The thrill the fans got from seeing someone struggle and push past their limits to defeat their opponent was an inspiration that resonated within all of them.

    Draco never struggled to beat his opponents, so he had no fans in the arena cheering for him. But Beowulf¡­ Beowulf was a different story. Beowulf was an underdog during his first days in the W.W.U.

    He was pretty bad at first, losing most of his matches during his first year. But then something unexpected happened. Beowulf started winning his matches. He was getting better and better, defeating all the champions in the W.W.U., and the fans started to take notice of him. Beowulf had defeated all the champions except for one: Draco.

    Beowulf wasn¡¯t just the fans¡¯ champion. He was their beacon of hope. They believed that he could change the outcome they had been seeing over and over again for the past two decades¡ªthat of Draco defeating his opponents with very little effort.

    Draco reached the outside of the ring. There were metallic stairs that a wrestler would use to climb up to the elevated ring, but Draco wouldn¡¯t be doing that.

    He grabbed one of the ropes at the end of the ring and used its strength to jump into the ring. He landed in the center. Beowulf felt the vibration move all over from Draco¡¯s spot on the ring to his feet.

    Despite his towering size and his inferior body build compared to Beowulf¡¯s, Draco was quite an athlete. One needed more than their own body advantages to succeed in wrestling.

    Draco walked over to Beowulf, and Beowulf walked over to Draco. They both met each other at the center of the ring. Beowulf looked up to Draco¡¯s green, ferocious eyes, and Draco looked down on Beowulf¡¯s steady eyes.

    It was hard to tell what Beowulf was thinking or feeling. His facial expression turned stoic when he came face to face with Draco. What Beowulf felt was simple. Beowulf felt absolute terror.

    ¡®Holy shit! Holy God! Holy mother of God! What the hell am I doing!?¡¯ Beowulf screamed internally. ¡®This monster is twice my size!¡¯ Beowulf was one point nine meters in height, while Draco was three meters.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

    "So, it wasn¡¯t an accurate calculation. But still, Draco was pretty damn big. ¡®No! No. I can¡¯t be thinking that way. Not when what¡¯s about to happen¡­¡¯ Now you might be thinking that Beowulf meant fighting, but no.

    What was about to happen was something almost as important as fighting, if not more. Something essential that every wrestler had to master if they wanted to succeed in the W.W.U.

    Smack talk.

    ¡°Well, well, well. Look at what we have here,¡± Draco said. He had a microphone in his ear as well, so the whole crowd could hear him. ¡°Little wolf thinks he can take me on?¡±

    Draco let out roars of laughter, and the crowd¡¯s boos got louder. Beowulf began walking in circles around Draco, looking down on him. ¡°You know? I remember the first time you came here. I remember the first time you got your butt handed to you by the most pathetic wrestler. Now look at you. These idiots keep screaming your name, and you¡¯ve become deluded enough to believe that you can defeat me.¡±

    ¡°ME! DRACO THE IRISH GIANT! DRACO THE UNDEFEATED! DRACO¡­. THE BEST DAMN THING TO EVER HAPPEN TO THE W.W.U.¡± The crowd continued to boo.

    ¡°YOU ALL KNOW IT¡¯S TRUE! YOU ALL HATE ME BECAUSE I¡¯M THE BEST! WELL, GUESS WHAT?¡± Draco turned his back to Beowulf and faced the crowd that booed him. ¡°I¡¯m not going anywhere, you talking pieces of shit!¡±

    The crowd booed once more, this time far louder than before. Some threw drinks and food at Draco, but none of it reached the ring. ¡°That¡¯s right! That¡¯s right! Boo all you want! It never stopped me before! It won¡¯t stop me from making a bloody mess of your champion!¡±

    ¡°You wanna know how I¡¯m gonna do it?¡± Draco turned to Beowulf, walked toward him, and pointed his sword at him. ¡®He¡¯s not going to use that, is he?¡¯ Beowulf thought.

    The entire crowd turned silent, with only a few mutters being heard, thinking the same thing. The sword that Draco held was supposed to be a prop¡ªsomething that his wrestling character played with.

    The action in the W.W.U. was very real. But something that sometimes wasn''t the same with wrestlers themselves. Wrestling was meant to be something extraordinary, and the truth was that most of its wrestlers¡¯ origins were pretty normal.

    The W.W.U. couldn¡¯t have that. So a lot of its wrestlers came up with their own fake origins. Lying was fine as long as it was entertaining and spectacular.

    Draco¡¯s made-up origin didn¡¯t matter. What mattered was that the only time Draco had used that sword was over a decade ago against one of his opponents.

    Everyone remembered that night. It will always be remembered in W.W.U. history as Bloody Wednesday. Once was enough. Draco was almost banned from ever wrestling again, but luckily for him, he was let off with a warning and a condition to never use his sword on any of his opponents.

    Now the fans in the arena were wondering if they were going to see a repeat of Bloody Wednesday. Draco placed his sword close to Beowulf¡¯s face, not making contact with his skin.

    ¡°I¡¯m gonna mess up those eyes. Make those eyes turn a bit purple. And those ears won¡¯t stop bleeding when I¡¯m done with you,¡± Draco pointed to all the facial parts he had mentioned.

    ¡°And those teeth.¡± Draco pointed at Beowulf¡¯s jaw, and this time his sword made contact. A drop of blood dripped onto Draco''s sword. Beowulf¡¯s eyes looked defiantly at Draco while Draco¡¯s grin kept getting wider.

    ¡°I¡¯m gonna feed you your own teeth. Then let¡¯s see how you¡¯ll keep making that annoying howl.¡± Draco stopped pointing his sword toward Beowulf and backed away. The crowd continued to boo.

    Draco had delivered his smack talk. Now it was Beowulf¡¯s turn. He began to wave his hand in front of his nose. ¡°Whew! I didn¡¯t think it was possible, but your breath¡¯s gotten worse,¡± Beowulf mocked.

    The crowd burst into laughter. ¡°Draco, buddy, you gotta do all of humanity a favor. Take a mint, ¡®cause it seems to me that your bad breath is relative to your size. And if that¡¯s really the case, you must have the worst breath in all of human history. Now THAT is a real accomplishment.¡±

    The crowd couldn''t stop laughing, which put a frown on Draco''s face. ¡°You know why you¡¯re going to lose tonight, Draco? It¡¯s because I have them.¡± Beowulf waved his hands to the crowd.

    ¡°My pack! It¡¯s because of them that I beat every arrogant champion that looked down on me. It¡¯s because of them that I made it this far. And it¡¯s because of them that I will make history tonight at WrestleMania by beating you, taking the belt, and becoming the new champion of the W.W.U.¡±

    Beowulf pointed to the belt that Draco was wearing. It was made of black leather and had golden metal embedded with indents that spelled W.W.U. It was a belt that only the best wrestler in the W.W.U. wore, and it hadn¡¯t been taken away from Draco for twenty years. But Beowulf planned on changing that.

    ¡°My pack, show me your support.¡± Beowulf bent backward and started to howl, and so did the entire crowd. ¡°AWUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!

    Cheers erupted from the fans. Two people then entered the ring. One was a beautiful blonde woman in a red dress, wearing white gloves that passed her elbows. The other was a man in black and white clothes.

    It was obvious that the woman was the announcer and the man was the referee. The woman in red got in between Beowulf and Draco. She held a microphone in her right hand and began to speak into it.

    ¡°Ladies and gentlemen. Tonight is a match for the W.W.U. championship by pin or submission. Here are your contestants. The first, the world¡¯s largest man, the undefeated champion for twenty years. Introduucccing¡­ DRACO, the Irish Giant!¡±

    Draco raised both his arms in the air as the woman introduced him. The boos continued. ¡°The next, a rising star, an underdog, the wolf, the alpha. Introduucccing¡­ BEOWULF!¡±

    The crowd erupted in cheers, as they had been doing. The referee went over to Draco, took the championship belt, and raised it to show the crowd. The woman was starting to leave the ring when the match was about to start. But before she did, Beowulf gave her a wink. She¡¯d probably been hit on by many wrestlers before Beowulf, but he had to shoot his shot. She didn¡¯t seem to mind the seductive wink.

    In fact, she did something even bolder. She blew Beowulf a kiss. The crowd gushed and snickered after seeing this. The woman in red left the ring, Beowulf and Draco backed away from each other, and the referee stood at the side. They were preparing for the match.

    The bell dinged, signifying the start of the match. Draco immediately used the ropes from his side of the ring to launch himself at Beowulf. Beowulf, seeing this, reacted by rolling out of the ring, making Draco hit nothing.

    ¡°One! Two!¡± The referee and the crowd started counting. If they made it to ten, then Beowulf would be disqualified, making Draco the default winner. Beowulf rushed to the other side of the ring, climbed the metal stairs, and got on top of one of the ring posts.

    ¡°Four!¡± The referee and the crowd stopped counting as soon as Beowulf re-entered the ring. Beowulf remained on top of the ring post, waiting for Draco to approach him, which he did.

    Then Beowulf leaped toward Draco, hoping to make him fall by using his weight. Draco, seeing this, grinned. He caught Beowulf by the neck with his right hand. An amazing feat, but considering his inhuman size and physique, it wasn¡¯t that unbelievable.

    Beowulf jumped in the air and slammed Draco¡¯s body into the ring. As he did, every fiber of Beowulf¡¯s body vibrated in pain. Thank God it wasn¡¯t concrete, or Beowulf might have been dead.

    Draco didn¡¯t let Beowulf rest in his pain. He began stomping Beowulf over and over again. Every time he did, Beowulf felt a rush of pain that he had never felt before during his entire time wrestling.

    He had been stomped before, but he had never felt this amount of pain. Draco stomped Beowulf for the last time, this time jumping as he did, which caused Beowulf to yell in pain. ¡°AAAHHH!¡±

    Beowulf breathed heavily. He lay on his side with his hands on his stomach because that¡¯s where Draco had been stomping on him. Draco turned Beowulf to lie on his back and pressed his right foot on Beowulf¡¯s chest. He was going for a pin.

    The referee quickly dove to the side of the two wrestlers and started to tap the floor. ¡°One!¡± The referee started to count. Then Beowulf broke out of Draco¡¯s pin by kicking out.

    The crowd cheered, glad that their champion wasn¡¯t out of the match yet. Draco let out a scream of frustration. He expected the match to be over quickly.

    "Draco went for another stomp, but Beowulf quickly grabbed his right ankle before he could. This caused Draco to lose balance and fall on his back. Then Beowulf used his leg to interlock with Draco¡¯s tight leg and started twisting Draco¡¯s right ankle.

    ¡°AHHHHH!¡± Beowulf screamed in pain. Beowulf had gone for an ankle lock. This had been his plan from the beginning. Winning by pinning Draco was impossible given his size; Beowulf knew that.

    So he planned on winning by submission. Eventually, Draco would no longer be able to take the pain and would be forced to tap out, making Beowulf the winner and the new champion.

    Draco continued screaming in pain and rolling over the floor of the ring; it was clear that he was in agony. But he wouldn''t give up. He used his left leg to repeatedly kick Beowulf in the face.

    Beowulf tried his best to hold on, but the kicks coming from Draco were just too powerful. Beowulf let go of Draco¡¯s ankle and got pushed off Draco¡¯s leg.

    Draco needed some time to recover from the painful pressure placed on his right ankle, and Beowulf needed some time for the pain from Draco¡¯s kick to wear off.

    Both wrestlers lay in the ring for a few moments. Draco was the first to get up; Beowulf got up a few seconds later. Both wrestlers stared intensely at each other. The fans kept screaming Beowulf¡¯s name.

    Draco charged at Beowulf, successfully hitting him against one of the metallic poles. The sound of impact was loud, and the sound of a few bones cracking was heard. The crowd fell silent. Many thought that this was the end.

    Then suddenly, Beowulf wrapped his left arm around Draco¡¯s neck and his right arm to lock the choke. Beowulf was using the Guillotine Choke, another type of submission.

    The crowd''s cheers increased when they saw this. Draco tried to break free from the choke, but Beowulf jumped and used his legs to interlock himself with Draco.

    Draco struggled, trying to break free but with no success. Draco felt flat against Beowulf; he was losing oxygen but still conscious. Moments passed with Beowulf still holding his submission, and then something amazing happened.

    Draco brought out his right hand. He was going to tap out! The crowd screamed in joy, far more than they ever did. It was finally happening. Beowulf was going to be the new champion of the W.W.U.

    Draco''s hand was almost on the floor when Beowulf closed his eyes and opened them. He was no longer in the arena. He was in a place that looked like a cave, and his body was chained to a wall as he knelt.

    ¡°What the hell!?¡± Beowulf exclaimed. ¡°Buddy, you have no idea how right you are,¡± a voice said. Beowulf looked up to where the voice came from, and he saw a man. No, not a man. Its skin was bright red, it had yellow glowing eyes, and a pointed tail resembling an arrow.

    ¡°Where am I? What are you?¡± Beowulf asked in fear. It showed as his voice trembled and cracked.

    ¡°What I am isn¡¯t important. But to answer your first question, I¡¯ll give you a hint,¡± the red-skinned creature said.

    ¡°What?¡± Beowulf asked, confused. ¡°You¡¯ve already said it,¡± the creature repeated itself. The creature crouched and smiled at Beowulf, revealing its frightening pointed teeth. ¡°You¡¯re in hell.¡±

 Chapter 2: Im In Hell

    ¡°You¡¯re in hell,¡± the red-skinned creature said with a sinister smile on its face. Hearing this, Beowulf froze due to shock. ¡®Hell, did he just say Hell?¡¯ Beowulf thought. Beowulf looked at his surroundings.

    Rows of chains wrapped around the backs of his hands and were nailed to a stone wall behind him. The same was true for his stomach and legs. Beowulf knelt down, and the stone walls in a dimly lit room scared and confused him.

    Then he started to smile. ¡°Oh, I see what¡¯s going on. This is one of those pranks,¡± Beowulf said.

    ¡°Pranks?¡± the red-skinned creature asked.

    ¡°Yeah, pranks. You know? The pranks the W.W.U. does,¡± Beowulf answered. ¡°Where are the cameras? How did you knock me out? What you¡¯ve done here is really cool. I almost believed I was truly in hell.¡±

    The ¡®pranks¡¯ Beowulf was referring to were staged events that would be set up and recorded to make fools out of the W.W.U. wrestlers. It had nothing to do with wrestling, but it was entertainment, and entertainment was what the W.W.U. profited from.

    Beowulf had seen many of the pranks done to his fellow wrestlers, and he assumed that it was his turn, but he was wrong. So very, very wrong.

    ¡°You almost had me, but I figured it out. So what do you say? Unchain me. This position I¡¯m in¡ªit''s really uncomfortable.¡±

    The red-skinned creature stared at Beowulf. ¡°Well, denial is a common emotion people get when coming here,¡± the red-skinned creature said. The red-skinned creature got up from its crouched position.

    ¡°Listen, buddy. This is no prank. You¡¯re in hell.¡±

    Beowulf laughed. ¡°Hell? Seriously? There¡¯s no such thing. But I gotta give you props for going on with the act. That''s some killer makeup, by the way. You gotta tell me who put it on you,¡± Beowulf said.

    He was still in denial about his current situation. He couldn¡¯t believe what the red-skinned creature said, even for a moment. Hell was just a made-up place to make people pretend to be good. It wasn¡¯t real; it couldn¡¯t be real.

    These were what Beowulf truly believed.

    The red-skinned creature let out a cynical laugh. Beowulf started to laugh as well; he still thought what was happening to him was a prank. But as the creature¡¯s laughter continued, Beowulf started to have an unsettling feeling.This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

    The creature¡¯s laughter wasn¡¯t like a regular laugh one would normally hear. It continued far longer than it should have, and it sounded like the creature was mocking Beowulf and deriving pleasure from his confusion.

    The creature finally stopped laughing and placed one of its hands on its stomach as it gasped for air. ¡°Oh, this is my favorite part. Seeing the look of confusion and disbelief on a new resident¡¯s face when they first arrive in hell. I can¡¯t wait for the next time we see each other. Then I¡¯ll see your despair and misery when you¡¯ve truly accepted your fate,¡± the creature said.

    ¡°Haha. This is all very funny, but seriously, get these chains off me. I¡¯m starting to get really annoyed. This isn¡¯t funny anymore,¡± Beowulf said.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to have to disagree with you there. This is VERY funny, and it¡¯s going to get even funnier,¡± the creature said. ¡°I can see you¡¯re still not buying the whole ¡®you¡¯re in hell¡¯ thing. Don¡¯t worry. A couple decades in here, and it will sink in.¡±

    The creature began walking away from Beowulf. ¡°Hey, get back here!¡± Beowulf called out to the creature. ¡°Seriously, get these chains off.¡± The creature arrived at a wall. It pressed its hand on it, and the wall started to move sideways, revealing a path outside the cave.

    The creature turned back to Beowulf and smiled, revealing its pointed teeth to him. ¡°I¡¯ll see you in a few decades,¡± the creature said. It walked out of the cave, and the cave wall slid right back, trapping Beowulf inside.

    Beowulf was alone. ¡°I know the W.W.U. loves entertainment, but this is going too far,¡± Beowulf said. ¡°Come on! Seriously, I have an itch on my nose I can¡¯t scratch.¡± Beowulf shouted but got no response.

    The creature had left, and it didn¡¯t seem like he was coming back soon. ¡®How long do they plan on keeping this prank going? Hopefully not too long.¡¯ Moments passed, and the red-skinned creature still hadn¡¯t returned.

    Beowulf screamed and screamed, hoping for someone to hear him and rescue him, but neither happened. He screamed so much that his throat got sore, and he had to stop.

    Moments that felt like years passed, and then Beowulf started to feel hungry¡ªvery hungry. So hungry he felt like his stomach was eating itself. He hadn¡¯t eaten anything in¡­. ¡®How long have I been here? It feels like years. But that would be impossible. I¡¯d be long dead if that was the case. Unless? No, that¡¯s impossible. There¡¯s no way I¡¯m in hell. I can accept this isn¡¯t a prank. That means I¡¯ve been kidnapped. Yeah. That¡¯s the only logical explanation.¡¯

    Moments passed that felt like years, and years passed, and Beowulf suffered in his solitude and hunger. ¡°AAAAAAHHHH,¡± Beowulf screamed in pain and frustration. Then the cave wall slid open, and the red-skinned creature walked in.

    He saw Beowulf, who had his head held down. ¡°It¡¯s been a long time since we last saw each other. Over fifty years now,¡± the red-skinned creature said. Beowulf slowly raised his head to look at the creature, revealing his baggy red eyes and a defeated look on his face. The red-skinned creature smiled.

    ¡°There is that despair and misery I just love seeing.¡± The creature crouched down. ¡°Now, do you know where you are?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. I do,¡± Beowulf answered.

    The creature''s smile widened until it reached the edges of its face. ¡°Good. Now I want you to say it,¡± the creature said.

    Beowulf hesitated. It was like the words were stuck in his throat. ¡°Say it!¡± the creature screamed.

    Beowulf let out a huge sigh. ¡°I¡¯m in hell.¡±

 Chapter 3: Wanna Wrestle Again?

    "I¡¯m in hell," Beowulf finally admitted to himself. He had accepted long ago where he was. What had once been an impossible situation became the only logical explanation. It was either that or he had gone totally insane. The red-skinned creature began laughing.

    "Good. Very good. I just love the sight of seeing you completely broken," the red-skinned creature mocked.

    "Screw you, you bastard," Beowulf cursed. His eyes showed rage toward the creature that seemed to derive pleasure from his suffering.

    The red-skinned creature stopped laughing and gave Beowulf a soft smirk. "Oh, come on now. Is that any way to talk to the demon who¡¯s going to get you out of this cave?" the red-skinned creature asked.

    When Beowulf heard this, his eyes widened, and his whole body propelled forward. "What did you just say?" Beowulf asked in disbelief. "You¡¯re saying you can get me out of hell?"

    "Whoa, buddy, slow down. When I said get you out of here, I meant out of this cave that¡¯s been your cozy home for the past five decades," the red-skinned creature said.

    "And as for getting you out of hell¡­"

    Beowulf anxiously waited for the creature to finish. "It¡¯s never gonna happen. You¡¯re here for eternity, buddy. Accept it. Or don¡¯t, and continue to be crushed by the hope that you might get out of hell. The latter would be more fun for me to watch."

    The red-skinned creature began mocking Beowulf with his laugh once more. Beowulf gritted his teeth and turned away from the creature.

    "Hey, chin up, buddy. Hell ain¡¯t so bad. Especially with the deal I¡¯m about to give you."

    Beowulf turned his head back to look at the creature. "You called yourself a demon, right?" Beowulf asked.

    "Right-O," the red-skinned creature answered.

    "Every story I¡¯ve ever heard regarding making deals with demons all ends the same way, with the person taking the deal being screwed in every possible angle. So I¡¯d have to be pretty dumb to take whatever deal you want to give me," Beowulf said.

    "Maybe? But I¡¯d say you¡¯re pretty dumb if you want to remain here in the cave," the red-skinned creature said. The creature started to walk away from Beowulf.

    "Where are you going?" Beowulf asked, panicked.

    The creature stopped and turned to look at Beowulf. "I¡¯m leaving, of course," the red-skinned creature answered. "You know? I¡¯m pretty hurt. Here I am, trying to make your eternity of torment a little more tolerable, and you spit in my face. That¡¯s just so mean."This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    As the creature spoke, it faked a sad face¡ªnot a very good one. Beowulf saw right through it. He wasn¡¯t sure if the creature was trying to make him feel bad or just mocking him some more. Scratch that, it was obvious to Beowulf that the creature was mocking him.

    "Anyway, have fun being here for all eternity." The creature turned away and resumed its walk away from Beowulf.

    "Wait!" Beowulf screamed. The creature stopped in its tracks and grinned.

    "This deal you mentioned. What if¡­ what if I considered taking it?"

    The creature turned to Beowulf once more, revealing its stuck-up smirk. "Considered? You must not be taking me seriously," the red-skinned creature said.

    "Yeah, well, what do you expect? I haven¡¯t even heard this deal you¡¯re talking about. So how am I supposed to know that it doesn''t lead me somewhere worse than here?" Beowulf said.

    "Fair enough," the red-skinned creature said. The creature approached Beowulf, crouched, and placed its hand on the chains that wrapped around Beowulf. The chains started to burn, but they didn¡¯t hurt Beowulf. Then the chains turned into ash.

    Beowulf was free. Well, kind of free. For the first time in decades, he wasn¡¯t chained to a wall. Beowulf got up slowly. He then rubbed his wrists and elbows.

    He smiled and started to laugh. They say people don¡¯t know what they have until they lose it. Well, Beowulf had lost the ability to move for five decades, and now that he was no longer chained, he would enjoy every second of it.

    "Don¡¯t start celebrating now. You still haven¡¯t taken my deal yet. Meaning you could get chained up again very soon," the red-skinned creature said. Beowulf was snapped back to his grim reality.

    "Right," Beowulf said. "So, what¡¯s the deal you want me to take?"

    "First, let''s get you out of here. You must be starving," the red-skinned creature said. The creature walked to the wall of the cave. The possibility of getting food made Beowulf drool. He quickly cleaned, wiped his drool, and followed the creature.

    The creature placed its hand on the wall, and the wall slid right open. Beowulf followed the creature into a stony hallway. The sight disappointed Beowulf. They were still in a cave. After decades of isolation in a cave, a huge part of him was hoping to see a different scene.

    The creature walked to another cave wall and placed its hand on it. This time the walls slid open on two different sides. The creature walked into a compartment. Beowulf recognized the compartment the creature had walked into. "Is that an elevator?" Beowulf thought. He hadn¡¯t seen one for so long, but he was sure it was an elevator.

    "They have elevators in hell?"

    "Hey, buddy, you coming or what?" the red-skinned creature asked. Beowulf joined the creature in the elevator, and the creature pressed a random button. The elevator doors closed and took them up. A few moments later, the elevator doors opened, revealing a well-furnished hallway with tiles and furniture.

    The creature walked out of the hallway. Beowulf followed after him. They walked straight ahead for a while. Everything looked so normal, Beowulf started to question once again if he was truly in hell.

    "We¡¯re here," the creature said. They had arrived at a door. The creature opened it, revealing what was beyond. Beowulf saw an office. But not a regular office. It was an office that seemed to belong to a wrestling fanboy.

    There were wrestling belts hanging from the walls, wrestling costumes folded in many areas, and posters of wrestlers Beowulf had never seen before.

    The creature sat behind a huge desk and gestured for Beowulf to take the seat in front of him, which he did.

    "About that deal I was talking about. How would you like to wrestle again?" the red-skinned creature asked with a smile.

 Chapter 4: A Handshake is a Contract

    "How would you like to wrestle again?" the red-skinned creature asked. To say that this question had shocked Beowulf would be a massive understatement. Before he could answer the creature¡¯s question, he had a question of his own.

    "Why? Why would you want me to wrestle again?" Beowulf asked.

    "Why? Because it¡¯s the entire reason I brought you down here," the creature answered.

    "What do you mean you brought me down here?" Beowulf asked.

    "Hold on. I¡¯ve got something to show you," the red-skinned creature said. The creature opened a cabinet under the desk and kept going through rows of papers.

    "Ah, there it is." The red-skinned creature brought up a white paper with some words and a handprint next to it. "Let¡¯s go for a walk down memory lane. Remember when you first started at the W.W.U., and you just couldn¡¯t stop getting your bottom handed to you?"

    "I mean¡­ I wouldn¡¯t put it like that, but yeah," Beowulf answered.

    "Well, I would. You were the laughingstock. No one took you seriously. All your matches were only fun to watch because wrestlers would embarrass the hell out of you before beating you," the creature said.

    Beowulf remembered all of what the creature had mentioned. It was a hard time in his life, and he didn¡¯t like to look back on it. "What are you, a fan?" Beowulf asked.

    "You could say that," the creature answered. "After all, I¡¯ve been watching you since the very beginning."

    "Do you also remember one day at the training facility of the W.W.U.? You were flipping some gigantic tires, and you met a dashing man who said he could make you a better wrestler in exchange for your soul."

    That was an odd question. "No, I don''t¡­" Beowulf stopped mid-sentence. He DID remember that day. He had met a man who looked like a crooked salesman offering to help him become a better wrestler. When the man said he wanted Beowulf¡¯s soul in return, Beowulf thought the man was referring to a life contract that would make him Beowulf¡¯s personal trainer.

    The man offering the deal looked crooked from top to bottom, but Beowulf was desperate. He shook the man¡¯s hand and never heard from him again.

    "Yeah. Yeah, I do. Never heard or saw him again after that day. Calling him dashing seems too generous. If I remember correctly, his looks were beneath average," Beowulf said.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

    The creature frowned at Beowulf. "Did I say something to offend him?" Beowulf thought. The red-skinned creature cleared his throat.

    "As it just so happens, I was that dashing man," the red-skinned creature said.

    A tornado of flames surrounded the creature and quickly disappeared, revealing a man¡ªa human with not-too-attractive features. "I¡¯m guessing you¡¯re pretty shocked. This is quite the twist, isn¡¯t it?"

    Beowulf didn¡¯t say anything and had a blank expression. Sure, it was kinda cool how the creature managed to turn himself into a human, but Beowulf had no idea if this was the same man who had approached him all those years ago.

    Beowulf had only met him for a few moments. That wasn¡¯t enough time to register someone¡¯s face in his memory. Although his face did look unattractive, like the man he had met.

    "Wait a second," Beowulf said, realizing something. "When I shook your hand, you¡¯re telling me that¡¯s the reason I¡¯m in hell?"

    "Right-O," the red-skinned creature replied.

    "That¡¯s insane!" Beowulf exclaimed.

    "Insane? How do you think you got better at wrestling?" the red-skinned creature asked.

    "Because I worked really hard and never gave up on my dream of being the top wrestler at the W.W.U.," Beowulf answered.

    Hearing this, the creature burst into laughter.

    "Do you¡­ do you have any idea how you sound?" the red-skinned creature asked, mocking Beowulf. "I¡¯ll tell you. You sound like one of those anime protagonists I keep hearing about."

    The creature wiped a small tear from his eye. "No. You got better because of the deal we made." The red-skinned creature showed Beowulf his left palm, and a downward pentagram symbol that looked to be made of flames appeared.

    "Hell magic. This thing can do a lot of crazy stuff. Make a hot girl fall madly in love with you. Make some loser who doesn¡¯t know the first thing about politics into president. And it can make the worst wrestler in the W.W.U. into one of its best."

    Beowulf glared at the red-skinned creature after hearing the last example.

    "Look, there¡¯s been some kind of mistake. I didn¡¯t know what I was getting into. You were super vague," Beowulf said.

    "What¡¯s vague about selling your soul in exchange for making you a better wrestler?" the red-skinned creature asked. "I made the deal crystal clear to you."

    "No, you didn¡¯t, and you know it!" Beowulf exclaimed. "Maybe if you had given me a contract to sign, I would have known what the deal really was."

    "A handshake IS a contract," the red-skinned creature said. "It¡¯s the oldest type of contract in hell, and we demons respect it."

    "That¡¯s bullshit!" Beowulf exclaimed. "You¡¯re telling me that a handshake was the only way you could have made that deal? Really?"

    "I mean¡­ I could have also sealed the deal with a kiss, but you don¡¯t look like you swing that way," the red-skinned creature answered.

    Beowulf wanted to say something but couldn¡¯t. He knew that arguing wouldn¡¯t get him out of hell. This realization made him depressed, causing him to slump in his chair and bow his head.

    "Oh, come on now. Don¡¯t be Mr. Grumpy. Remember when I brought you here? I want you to wrestle again. Sure, you¡¯re in hell, but when you were on Earth, you had a blast wrestling, didn¡¯t you? It¡¯s all because of the deal we made. Now I want you to have that very experience here. So, what do you say? Wanna wrestle again?" the red-skinned creature finished.

    Beowulf slowly raised his head to look at the creature. "Fine," Beowulf said.

    The red-skinned creature grinned. "Great. Let¡¯s prepare you for your first match."

 Chapter 5: I Am Lenny

    ¡°Right now?¡± Beowulf asked.

    ¡°Yeah, got somewhere else you gotta be?¡± the red-skinned creature asked.

    Beowulf¡¯s stomach began to growl loudly. ¡°Oh, I forgot, the whole starving for decades thing. Hold on.¡±

    The red-skinned creature searched through one of his cabinets and brought out a plastic bag. Beowulf could smell the food in the bag. He grabbed the bag from the red-skinned creature and quickly opened it.

    He found a large burger and a large can of soda. When Beowulf was on Earth, this type of food was a no-go area for him. He was on a strict diet, but now, after not eating anything for so long, Beowulf couldn¡¯t care less. He grabbed the burger with both hands and devoured it.

    He drank the can of soda until it was empty. Not a single drop remained. ¡°Ah.¡± Beowulf rested on the chair. He was surprisingly full. He thought after decades of starving, he wouldn''t be satisfied, but that burger and soda really hit the spot.

    ¡°You full?¡± the red-skinned creature asked.

    ¡°Oh, yeah,¡± Beowulf said.

    ¡°Good. Let¡¯s get going,¡± the creature said as he got up.

    ¡°Hold on,¡± Beowulf said.

    ¡°What?¡± the red-skinned creature asked.

    ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± Beowulf asked. ¡°In my head, I¡¯ve been calling you ¡®the red-skinned creature,¡¯ but something tells me that isn¡¯t your real name. So what is it? Something tells me you and I are going to see a lot of each other, and I want to know the name of the bastard that got me into hell.¡±

    The creature sat back down. ¡°You want to know my name? Very well,¡± the red-skinned creature said. ¡°My name is so terrifying that uttering it will cause a chill in your bones. Do you still wish to learn it?¡±

    Beowulf felt a little uneasy after hearing this. ¡°Sure?¡± Beowulf answered, reluctantly.

    ¡°Fine, come closer,¡± the creature ordered.

    Beowulf did as the creature said. He leaned in closer and was now face-to-face with the creature.

    ¡°My name is¡­¡± the creature whispered.

    Beowulf began to sweat lightly, waiting for the creature to reveal his name.

    ¡°Lenny.¡±

    Beowulf''s facial expression turned blank. He was clearly disappointed.

    ¡°What did you say?¡± Beowulf asked.

    ¡°My name is Lenny,¡± Lenny whispered once more.

    Lenny acted like saying his name was a big deal when it clearly wasn¡¯t. Beowulf didn¡¯t know if Lenny truly believed his name was terrifying or if he was just messing with him. If it was the former, then Beowulf was talking to a very delusional demon.

    ¡°Now that you¡¯ve learned my truly, truly terrifying name, as the teens say, ¡®Let¡¯s bounce.¡¯¡±

    Lenny walked out of the wrestling fanboy office, and Beowulf reluctantly followed him. They passed through the furnished hallway, and back into the elevator.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

    Lenny pressed the elevator button and selected another random floor. This time, the elevator took them down. The doors opened, and Lenny walked out, but Beowulf didn¡¯t.

    He had no idea what he¡¯d be walking into. He was in hell, after all. Sure, starving for decades was pretty terrible, but he could be walking into a worse form of torture. The person leading him was a demon¡ªa delusional, tricking demon responsible for damning him.

    ¡°Hey. You coming or what!?¡± Lenny yelled.

    Beowulf took a deep breath and walked out of the elevator, not knowing what he would find. After walking out, Beowulf found a city.

    ¡°Welcome to the Pride ring,¡± Lenny said.

    The city was filled with creatures that didn¡¯t look human at all, so Beowulf assumed they were demons. He also saw people like him¡ªhumans, but they looked¡­ lifeless.

    Beowulf approached one of them, a man with a mustache who looked to be in his forties. Beowulf was right in front of him, but the man didn¡¯t react at all. Beowulf snapped his fingers and waved his hands, but no reaction came from the man. He remained inactive.

    ¡°That isn¡¯t going to do anything,¡± Lenny said.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with these people?¡± Beowulf asked.

    ¡°A lot. They¡¯re in hell, after all. So, I¡¯m sure they weren¡¯t very good people, and this is the Pride ring, reserved for the worst of humanity. Narcissists. Douchebags. Karens. You name it,¡± Lenny answered.

    ¡°But¡­ I¡¯m here,¡± Beowulf said.

    ¡°Yeah, you are,¡± Lenny said.

    If this place was really reserved for the worst of humanity, Beowulf thought maybe it was time for some self-reflection, but he would have to do that later.

    ¡°Why are these people frozen?¡± Beowulf asked.

    ¡°Oh, that. These poor fellas are unclaimed souls,¡± Lenny answered.

    ¡°Unclaimed souls? What¡¯s that?¡± Beowulf asked.

    ¡°I really wasn¡¯t planning on giving you a lecture, but screw it,¡± Lenny said. ¡°Unclaimed souls are sinners who ended up in hell without a form of contract, like you did. Right now, this sorry lot is experiencing their own personal hell. They can¡¯t move or do anything. But that can change if someone finds a use for them. Then they¡¯d have to form a contract like you did. Until then, they just stand and suffer for all eternity.¡±

    ¡°You know how you starved for those five decades? Trust me when I say you had it easy. I¡¯ve taken a look at some of the things that go on in their minds, and trust me¡ªit isn¡¯t good.¡±

    Beowulf looked at the unclaimed soul in front of him. He could hear the man groaning in agony. Beowulf felt sorry for him, then he noticed something about his environment. The atmosphere¡ªit looked¡­ purple?

    Beowulf looked up and found a downward pentagram. Its lines gave off a purple glow, which brightened the entire city.

    ¡°What is that?¡± Beowulf asked.

    ¡°An indication,¡± Lenny said. ¡°It¡¯s purple, which means we¡¯re in the Pride ring. Its color will change when you enter different rings. Remember that.¡±

    Lenny walked away, and Beowulf once again followed him. They arrived at a wall in an alley. Lenny placed his hands on the wall. Beowulf expected elevator doors to slide open, just like the previous times.

    That didn¡¯t happen. Symbols appeared on the wall and began to glow brightly.

    ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± Beowulf asked.

    ¡°Just shut up, will ya?¡± Lenny replied. ¡°You¡¯re about to experience something awesome.¡±

    The symbols on the alley wall began to glow brighter in the color of flames. The light engulfed both Beowulf and Lenny. Beowulf shielded his eyes. When he opened them, he noticed the atmosphere had hints of grey. He looked up and saw the downward pentagram glowing grey.

    ¡°It¡¯s now glowing grey. What does that mean?¡± Beowulf asked.

    ¡°It means we¡¯re now in the Sloth ring,¡± Lenny answered. ¡°The first and lowest ring of hell. Let¡¯s not stay outside for too long¡ªyou might start to feel a bit lazy.¡±

    ¡°What are you¡­¡± Beowulf wanted to finish his sentence, but it felt like something was stopping him. He wanted to move but didn¡¯t have the energy. No, he did have the energy¡ªhe just couldn¡¯t be bothered to use it.

    In fact, why was he even standing? It would be better just to lie down. But he was standing on hard ground. If he were to lie down here, it would be quite uncomfortable. Maybe he could find a bench to lie on. Nah, that would be too much of a bother.

    He would just have to do with the hard floor. Beowulf was in the process of lying on the floor when¡ª

    ¡°Hey!¡± Lenny said as he slapped Beowulf in the face. He grabbed Beowulf¡¯s face close to his.

    ¡°Snap out of it! We need to get inside now!¡±

    ¡°Inside?¡± Beowulf asked as he yawned. ¡°Inside where?¡±

    Lenny turned his head to the side, and Beowulf did the same. Beowulf saw the front of a large arena with the words "D.W.E." on top of it.

    ¡°D.W.E.? What does that mean?¡± Beowulf asked.

    ¡°Damnation Wrestling Entertainment,¡± Lenny answered.

    ¡°This is where you¡¯ll be having your first match

 Chapter 6: Lets Rumble

    Beowulf started at the arena. It looked like a pretty normal wrestling arena, a lot similar to the one that belongs to the W.W.U, but it was very different. It was composed of two colors: black and flaming yellow.

    Flames constantly went in and out on top of the arena. It felt like the arena was breathing. When Beowulf saw this, he thought it was pretty cool. The D.W.E sign on top of the building was made completely out of flames. There were no burners under the flame signs.

    Some of the walls of the arena looked to be constructed out of bones. This choice of design for the arena sent a chill down Beowulf¡¯s spine. ¡®Maybe they''re fake,¡¯ Beowulf thought. That¡¯s what he hoped, but this was hell, so there was a pretty good chance that those bones were real.

    It just appeared on top of the building like magic. Beowulf noticed something else about the arena. There were creatures flying around the top¡ªnot creatures that looked like Lenny.

    These creatures were bulkier and far taller. Beowulf squinted his eyes, trying to get a closer look at the creatures. Their skin looked to be made of stone. They had wings similar to a bat.

    ¡°Are those gargoyles?¡± Beowulf asked. He had seen many on Earth, but they didn¡¯t fly. ¡°What did I just say? We need to get inside. Come on, move your lazy behind,¡± Lenny said.

    Lenny grabbed Beowulf¡¯s hand and dragged him along as he ran inside the arena. When entering the arena through its glass doors, Beowulf felt his laziness leave him. It wasn¡¯t completely gone, though. If Beowulf were to guess, he¡¯d say about 90 percent of the laziness was gone, leaving the remaining 10 percent still present.

    ¡°The effect of being in the Sloth Ring for souls like you,¡± Lenny answered. ¡°Each ring in hell affects souls like you according to their name. We were in the Sloth Ring, so it made you incredibly lazy. If you were in a different ring, like Wrath, your rage would be like the Hulk¡¯s.¡±

    ¡°The effects lessen a lot when we¡¯re inside. It won''t completely leave you, but it''s manageable.¡±

    ¡°Wait!¡± Beowulf said. ¡°We were in the Pride Ring, but I didn¡¯t feel anything.¡±

    ¡°Yes, you did. You just didn¡¯t notice it because you feel like that most of the time,¡± Lenny said.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Beowulf asked.

    ¡°Do I have to spell out everything for you?¡± Lenny asked. ¡°The Ring of Hell affects claimed souls based on their name. You were in the Pride Ring, but since you have such a huge ego, the effects wouldn¡¯t do much.¡±This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    Beowulf understood Lenny¡¯s explanation. ¡°Oh, that makes sense,¡± Beowulf said. He felt a little embarrassed. ¡°Don¡¯t let it bother you too much. A lot of wrestlers have too much pride in themselves. Well, the best ones anyway,¡± Lenny said.

    ¡°Come on.¡± Lenny walked further inside the arena, and Beowulf followed. They arrived at two red doors. On guard was a large humanoid ox demon with a ring in his nose and a heart-shaped tattoo on his left arm.

    He wore a leather vest and jeans. ¡°Hey, Lenny,¡± the ox demon said.

    ¡°Hey, Ox,¡± Lenny said. Lenny and the ox demon shook hands.

    ¡®An ox demon named Ox. His parents must not have been very creative when thinking of baby names,¡¯ Beowulf thought.

    ¡°This your new wrestler?¡± Ox asked.

    ¡°Yeah. Are the others already inside?¡± Lenny asked.

    ¡°Mmm hmm. You¡¯re the last,¡± Ox answered.

    ¡°Well, last or not, mine¡¯s going to win,¡± Lenny said.

    ¡°Win or lose, it don¡¯t matter. They¡¯re all damned,¡± Ox said. ¡°So is he ready?¡±

    ¡°Gimme a minute. I wanna tell him what to do,¡± Lenny said. Lenny walked back to Beowulf. ¡°Listen, this match you¡¯re going to wrestle in, it¡¯s not going to be a normal match.¡±

    Beowulf raised an eyebrow. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Beowulf asked.

    ¡°It¡¯s going to be a Royal Rumble.¡± Beowulf had mixed feelings about this.

    A Royal Rumble involves many wrestlers. It starts with two wrestlers, then a new wrestler is called every few minutes. The goal of the match is to throw off every wrestler over the ring. The last wrestler remaining is declared the winner of the match.

    Beowulf¡¯s mixed feelings about the match were because Royal Rumbles were extremely difficult to win. The best chance of winning would be by being called last; then you could attack the fatigued wrestlers.

    Another thing that worried Beowulf was how many wrestlers would be taking part in the Royal Rumble. The maximum number of fighters that would take part in a Royal Rumble match was thirty. If it was that amount, then Beowulf wasn¡¯t sure he could win.

    ¡°It¡¯s going to be a match of ten wrestlers, including you,¡± Lenny said. Beowulf let out a sigh of relief. His chances of winning went slightly up. ¡°Don''t relax yet. You haven¡¯t won yet,¡± Lenny said.

    ¡°I know. I know,¡± Beowulf said. ¡°Oh, and one more thing,¡± Lenny said.

    ¡°What is it?¡± Beowulf asked.

    ¡°Don¡¯t lose,¡± Lenny said.

    ¡°I don¡¯t plan to,¡± Beowulf said.

    ¡°I know that, but you really, really don¡¯t want to lose this match. If you do, you will regret it,¡± Lenny said.

    Beowulf stepped away from Lenny and glared at him intensely. ¡°Is that a threat?¡± Beowulf asked, trying to look intimidating.

    ¡°A threat?¡± Lenny asked. He burst into laughter. This put a frown on Beowulf¡¯s face. He had had it with that annoying laugh. ¡°No. It¡¯s not a threat. Just advice. That¡¯s all it is. You¡¯ll understand when you enter the ring.¡±

    Lenny walked past Beowulf and tapped his shoulder. ¡°You and I must part ways for now. I hope I see you again after the match is over.¡± Beowulf watched Lenny leave the arena.

    Beowulf started to think about Lenny¡¯s last words. ¡®What did he mean when he said he hopes to see me after the match?¡¯ Beowulf asked.

    ¡°Hey, wrestler,¡± Ox called out. ¡°Get in.¡±

    Beowulf glared at the ox demon. He didn¡¯t like being ordered around. ¡°I will, but not because you told me to,¡± Beowulf said.

    ¡°Yeah. Yeah. Whatever you want to tell yourself,¡± the ox replied. Beowulf walked past the ox. ¡°Hold on,¡± Ox said. Beowulf stopped. The ox demon handed Beowulf a ticket.

    ¡°You¡¯ll need this.¡± Beowulf looked at the ticket, and it had the number 5 on it.

    ¡°I guess that¡¯s my number,¡± Beowulf muttered. Beowulf walked through the red doors.

 Chapter 7: Royal Rumble

    Beowulf walked through the red doors and found other damned souls. They were all wrestlers based on what they were wearing and how they carried themselves.

    Beowulf still had the tracksuit pants he wore when wrestling with Draco. The other wrestlers wore different things. One wrestler wore only black underwear and black boots.

    Another wore a black singlet that covered his entire torso. This wrestler was also quite fat, and Beowulf imagined that even breathing must have been hard for him.

    Beowulf spotted another wrestler wearing tights with lightning on them. This wrestler seemed jittery and unstable, constantly running around.

    Beowulf also spotted another wrestler who was fully dressed. He wore a denim jacket, jeans, and Timber boots, and, for some reason, had a guitar on his back.

    ¡°Well, looky here. It seems the tenth person¡¯s here,¡± the wrestler with the guitar said. The nine wrestlers all turned to look at Beowulf. It was time for Beowulf to introduce himself.

    ¡°Greetings, lower wrestlers!¡± Beowulf yelled. ¡°My name is Beowulf. I¡¯m the winner of the Royal Rumble, so when I throw you over the ring, try not to feel too bad. You were all destined to lose to me.¡±

    Beowulf waited for a response. After hearing Beowulf¡¯s claim, some growled, some glared, but none ignored him, which was what he was aiming for in the first place.

    The man with the guitar chuckled. ¡°Is that so?¡± he asked. ¡°Well then, since you''re an annoying piece of crap, I guess me and the boys won¡¯t feel a thing when we toss you over the ring.¡±

    ¡°You can all try,¡± Beowulf said. ¡°Oh, try and we will succeed,¡± the man with the guitar replied. ¡°Hey, quick question. How are you going to make everyone here your enemy? You never know how the rumble may go. You might need to form some temporary alliances to survive till the very last moment. But you¡¯ve made that impossible for yourself.¡±

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. I¡¯ll win. I always do,¡± Beowulf replied. The man with the guitar smirked. ¡°We¡¯ll see about that. Since you introduced yourself, I reckon I should do the same,¡± he said.

    ¡°I am The Song. Remember that.¡±

    A screen appeared above the wrestlers. It caught all their attention. ¡°Let¡¯s get ready to rumble!¡± a voice said from the screen, followed by a fire effect. The screen now showed two demons sitting at a desk with microphones in front of them.

    The demon on the left was dressed in a black suit with a flaming skull head, and the demon on the right also had a flaming skull head, but his flames were blue, and he wore a dark blue suit.

    "Good day, citizens of hell. My name is Daryl," the demon with the yellow flames said. ¡°And I¡¯m Jensen,¡± the demon with the blue flames said.

    ¡°And we are your commentators for today¡¯s match,¡± Daryl said. ¡°Tell me, Jensen, what type of match are we having today?¡±Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

    ¡°I¡¯m glad you asked, Daryl because today we are having a qualification match by¡ª Royal Rumble!¡± Jensen said. A lot of fire effects appeared on the screen.

    ¡°Today, in this arena, ten wrestlers will compete in a royal rumble to determine if they are worthy of being a wrestler in the D. W. E. If they aren¡¯t¡ª I feel sorry for the nine wrestlers who won¡¯t win.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s take a look at the arena. What do you say, Jensen?¡± Daryl said. ¡°That sounds like a good idea, Daryl,¡± Jensen said. The view on the screen shifted from Daryl and Jensen to the entire arena.

    ¡°I¡¯m seeing a lot of empty seats here today, Jensen,¡± Daryl said. ¡°Well, what do you expect? This is a qualification match. No one''s going to show up to watch this. Let¡¯s look somewhere else,¡± Jensen said.

    The view on the screen switched to the roof of the arena, which was covered. ¡°The roof seems closed today,¡± Jensen said. ¡°Of course it¡¯s closed. We don¡¯t want the ring¡¯s power to affect the wrestlers. It¡¯s too much for a qualification match,¡± Jensen said.

    ¡°Damn. A part of me was hoping to see them fight with the roof open. That would have been quite the show,¡± Daryl said. ¡°Daryl, we see wrestlers fight with the roof down many times; we just won¡¯t see it today,¡± Jensen said.

    ¡°Never mind that. Let¡¯s take a look at the wrestling ring." The view on the screen switched to the wrestling ring. ¡°Ain''t that a beauty, Jensen?¡± Daryl said.

    ¡°That it is, Daryl. That it is. Unlike the wrestling rings on Earth, this ring is five times bigger and a lot more durable. It would take a lot to even leave a dent on it,¡± Jensen said.

    ¡°Five times? Isn¡¯t that too much?¡± Daryl asked. ¡°Not at all, Daryl. Some rings are ten times the size of Earth¡¯s wrestling rings. Besides, wrestling down here is a lot more fun and crazy,¡± Jensen said.

    ¡°Ain¡¯t that the truth,¡± Daryl said. ¡°I¡¯m bored of exploring the arena. When does the fighting happen?¡±

    ¡°Patience, Daryl. Patience. The wrestlers will begin their match in¡­¡± Jensen looked at his watch. ¡°Thirty minutes.¡±

    ¡°Thirty minutes?¡± Daryl asked as he groaned. ¡°That¡¯s forever from now. I wanna see some action now.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m eager to see some action too, Daryl. Don¡¯t worry, it won¡¯t be long now. I hope those of you watching have more patience than my co-commentator. Join us in thirty minutes for the Royal Rumble qualification match.¡±

    The screen stopped showing the arena and displayed a timer counting down from thirty minutes.

    While watching the commentators on the screen, Beowulf realized it was also a form of explanation for the wrestlers. The commentators explained that the arena roof would be closed so the wrestlers could fight without the effects of the ring''s power, and that the wrestling ring was five times the size of a wrestling ring on Earth and extremely durable.

    Beowulf also recalled one of the commentators saying he felt bad for the nine wrestlers who would lose the Royal Rumble. ¡®Why would he say that?¡¯ Beowulf thought. ¡®Lenny also warned me not to lose the match. I didn''t know demons were so compassionate. It must be because the losers will return to their torment. Yeah, that¡¯s gotta be it.¡¯

    Moments passed, and the screen showed five minutes remaining. Beowulf wondered how they would be called out. They had their tickets. Would they be announced like he was when he was on Earth in the W.W.U.? If that was the case, he had to prepare for his entrance.

    One minute remained. Beowulf guessed the first wrestlers to be called would be the ones with the number 1 and the number 2 tickets. He didn¡¯t know who they were. He would have asked, but he had made more than half the room hate him.

    Five seconds remained. Five. Four. Three. Two. One. Beowulf expected the first two wrestlers to be announced, but that wasn¡¯t what happened. Two wrestlers in the room were suddenly surrounded by a tornado of flames and disappeared.

    The screen stopped showing the timer and switched to the large wrestling ring. The two wrestlers who had disappeared from the room appeared in the ring after a tornado of flames swirled around them.

    ¡°The Royal Rumble has begun, starting with¡ª The Song! Aaaaand¡ª Lightning Mike!¡± Daryl announced.

 Chapter 8: One Helluva Guitar

    The Song and Lightning Mike were a few feet away from each other. The remaining eight wrestlers were watching the ring on the screen. ¡®That¡¯s disappointing,¡¯ Beowulf thought.

    He was hoping to be called into the ring like he was when he was on Earth. He had already planned how to move through the walkway. Thirty minutes of practice down the drain. The summoning by fire was cool too, but it didn¡¯t have the flair that the former did.

    The Song and Lightning Mike were several feet apart from each other. Lightning Mike was fidgety, constantly moving around in circles and muttering to himself.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to¡­,¡± Lightning Mike muttered. ¡°What was that!?¡± the Song asked, bringing his ear forward. ¡°I¡¯m going to destroy you!¡± Lightning Mike exclaimed.

    He ran towards The Song at a great speed. He was really fast, faster than the average person. ¡®I guess I now know why they call him Lightning Mike,¡¯ Beowulf thought.

    Lightning Mike ran in a zigzag and finally reached The Song. Lightning Mike jumped and attempted to hit The Song with both of his legs in the air. The Song, seeing this, grinned. He brought out his guitar and swung it at Lightning Mike¡¯s ribs in mid-air.

    Lightning Mike flew several feet away from The Song but got up quickly. Lightning Mike didn¡¯t show any sign of pain. He quickly rushed The Song once more, performing the same dropkick, and The Song used his guitar to hit Lightning Mike away once again.

    Beowulf, seeing this, had his jaw dropped. ¡®What is that guitar made of?¡¯ Beowulf thought. He had never heard of such a durable guitar, able to survive being smashed into a person.

    He had also never seen someone knock another human being so far away from themselves so easily. The match went on, with The Song reacting to Lightning Mike by hitting him with his guitar before Lightning Mike could get a hit on him.

    If this was wrestling, it was a type of wrestling that Beowulf had never seen before. The feats that The Song and Lightning Mike were displaying seemed superhuman.

    The match went on with The Song knocking Lightning Mike away. It seemed it would go on forever if something didn¡¯t change. Then the screen showed a mini timer for ten seconds. Three minutes had passed when the mini-timer appeared. It seemed to be the interval to summon a new wrestler.

    Ten. Nine. Eight. Seven. Six. Five. Four. Three. Two. One.

    The timer was up. Then another wrestler disappeared from the room and reappeared in the ring, engulfed in a tornado of flames. It was the very fat wrestler with the singlet.

    He appeared in the middle of the fight between The Song and Lightning Mike. Lightning Mike came straight towards him, aiming for The Song, but instead hit the fat wrestler.

    Lightning Mike crashed into the fat wrestler, but the fat wrestler didn¡¯t move an inch. Lightning Mike, on the other hand, fell on his behind, surprised to find the fat wrestler standing above him.

    Lightning Mike quickly got up and went for a spear. The fat wrestler hardly moved. Lightning Mike used all his strength trying to move the wrestler, but it didn¡¯t work.

    Lightning Mike gave up and stopped the tackle. Sweat was running over his entire body, and he was panting heavily. The unmoving fat wrestler grabbed Lightning Mike by the throat.

    Lightning Mike tried his best to break free. He pried and hit the fat wrestler¡¯s wrist with no success. The fat wrestler grinned. The fat wrestler jumped about five times his height in the air and slammed Lightning Mike on the canvas of the ring.

    The whole ring vibrated, and Lightning Mike lay on it, unmoving. ¡°What an entrance for the third wrestler of the Royal Rumble! Am I right, Jensen!?¡± ¡°Yes, you are, Daryl! The Hippo appeared at the right time, and thank Satan he did. I thought that game of whack-a-mole going on between The Song and Lightning Mike would have gone on forever!¡± Jensen commented.

    Meanwhile, watching the fight on the screen, Beowulf had his jaw dropped. ¡®What in the actual hell am I seeing!?¡¯ Beowulf thought. ¡®This can¡¯t be real, can it? There¡¯s no way. It has to be some type of special effect I wasn¡¯t in on. That has to be it. There''s no way humans can do what I¡¯m seeing.¡¯

    Then a thought occurred. Were the wrestlers he was watching human? Was he? Beowulf was technically dead, so he was a soul. So could he still be considered a human?

    He had to be, right? If he wasn¡¯t human, what was he? He looked at the screen once more. Seeing the three wrestlers perform such incredible feats gave Beowulf a smile.

    ¡°If being in hell means I can do crazy shit like those three, hell might not be such a bad place after all,¡± Beowulf said.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

    The Hippo carried Lightning Mike on his shoulder and walked to one of the ropes in the large ring. ¡°Oh my god, Jensen! He¡¯s gonna do it! He¡¯s gonna throw Lightning Mike off the ring. We¡¯re going to have our first elimination,¡± Jensen commented.

    The Hippo had Lightning Mike on his shoulder. He then carried Lightning Mike with both of his hands. He was about to throw Lightning Mike off the ring. Then he felt a strong shock which caused him to drop Lightning Mike.

    ¡°Hey, fatty, don¡¯t you dare forget about me,¡± The Song said. The Hippo turned around, and The Song whacked him with a guitar, causing The Hippo to stumble away from the rope.

    The Song hit The Hippo with his guitar on his head. ¡°AH!¡± The Hippo screamed in pain. The Song hit The Hippo in the head again and again. The Hippo screamed each time.

    ¡°He is not letting up against The Hippo, Jensen!¡± Daryl said. ¡°Well, he can¡¯t afford to, Daryl. Look at the size of The Hippo! The Song has to do whatever it takes, no matter how brutal it may be, and I''ll tell you something, Daryl: What The Song¡¯s doing seems to be working.¡±

    The Song attempted to whack The Hippo one more time, but The Hippo caught the guitar with one of his hands. It caused his hand great pain, which showed as he gritted his teeth.

    The Song tried to take back his guitar, but The Hippo¡¯s grip was too strong. The fingers were embedded into the guitar. The Hippo pulled in the guitar, causing The Song to jerk forward and lose his guitar.

    The Hippo threw the guitar several feet away from them. Now The Song and The Hippo were very physically close to each other. ¡°Hold on, fella. Let¡¯s talk,¡± The Song said with his hand up.

    The Hippo grunted and charged towards The Song. The Hippo grabbed The Song by the waist and carried him along as he aimed for one of the wrestling poles. The Hippo crashed The Song¡¯s body into one of the poles. The Song scoffed. The Hippo backed off and let go of The Song, causing him to fall and rest on the pole.

    ¡°Oh no, you don¡¯t,¡± The Hippo said. The Hippo lifted The Song up by the scruff of the neck and rested The Song¡¯s hands on the ring¡¯s ropes. Now The Song stood unmoving, with both of his hands behind the ring¡¯s ropes.

    The Hippo moved backward to build up momentum and charged at The Song, crashing into him with his shoulder. The entire ring vibrated. The Song felt such pain vibrate through his body that he couldn¡¯t even speak; he just clenched his teeth.

    The Hippo backed away. ¡°Let¡¯s see how you like being hit again and again,¡± The Hippo said. The Hippo backed away, charged, and hit The Song over and over again. Each time he did, the whole ring would vibrate, and The Song would experience unimaginable pain.

    ¡°Well, Jensen, they say karma is a bitch, and seeing what The Hippo is doing to The Song, I have to agree,¡± Daryl said. ¡°The Hippo is just giving The Song the same treatment he gave to him! Fair is fair, Daryl,¡± Jensen said.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think I can agree with you when you say ¡®the same treatment,¡¯ Jensen. Look at The Song! Just look at how much pain he¡¯s in. Just look at how The Hippo is crashing into him! Look at the power! The fury! This is NOT the same treatment The Song gave to The Hippo! It''s far worse!¡±

    The Hippo continued crashing The Song into the wrestling pole with no signs of stopping.

    That¡¯s when the mini-timer appeared on the screen once more.

    Ten. Nine. Eight. Seven. Six. Five. Four. Three. Two. One.

    Another wrestler was teleported to the ring with a tornado of flames. The wrestler was bald and muscular. He wore only a leather vest, wrestling tights, and leather boots.

    The fourth wrestler approached The Hippo. ¡°Oh oh! It looks like The Wrecker has joined the match and is walking to The Hippo.¡±

    The Wrecker stood behind The Hippo, wrapped his arms around his waist, leaned back, and threw The Hippo several feet behind him. The Wrecker had performed a suplex.

    The Wrecker rushed to where he had thrown The Hippo and performed another suplex on The Hippo. The Wrecker performed suplex after suplex until they reached one of the ring''s ropes.

    "Suplex City! The Wrecker performed Suplex City on the Hippo, and he¡¯s about to use it one final time to throw the Hippo off the ring!¡± Daryrl announced.

    Then the mini timer appeared.

    ¡°Seems it¡¯s my time to shine,¡± Beowulf said with a grin.

    Ten. Nine. Eight. Seven. Six. Five. Four. Three. Two. One.

    Beowulf was teleported to the wrestling ring with a tornado of flames, just like the four previous wrestlers. Beowulf was at the center of the ring. He saw the Song on one side of the ring, with his arms behind the ropes and his head down. Beowulf saw the Wrecker about to perform another suplex on the Hippo.

    The Wrecker went to grab the Hippo¡¯s waist, but the Hippo slapped his hands away and rolled to safety. ¡®He managed to counter the suplex. Impressive,¡¯ Beowulf thought.

    ¡®Those two will keep themselves busy. I can go for the Song or Lightning Mike.¡¯ Beowulf could see where the Song was, but he couldn¡¯t find Lightning Mike.

    ¡®Where the hell is he?¡¯ Beowulf looked all around the ring, and then he felt a pain in his ribs. He skidded across the canvas floor but quickly got up.

    He looked in the direction the attack had come from and saw him: Lightning Mike. ¡®When did he recover from the Hippo¡¯s attack? It couldn¡¯t have been long, or he would have attacked the other wrestlers. Or was he pretending to be more hurt than he actually was? Was he waiting for an opportunity like this?¡¯

    Beowulf looked behind him and saw he was dangerously close to the ropes. ¡®Damn it. That dropkick got me this close to the ropes. I knew it. These guys definitely aren¡¯t human.¡¯

    Lightning Mike charged at Beowulf, going in for some sort of tackle. ¡®I¡¯ll just step to the side and dodge this.¡¯ But Lightning Mike was quicker than Beowulf expected.

    ¡®Damn it, this guy¡¯s fast, but there¡¯s no way I¡¯m letting him throw me over the ring.¡¯ That¡¯s when Beowulf felt his entire body slowly starting to go numb like electricity was traveling throughout his whole body. He struggled to move.

    Lightning Mike, seeing this, smirked. Still using the body tackle, he lifted both of Beowulf¡¯s legs and threw him over the ring.

    Lucky for Beowulf, he grabbed a rope before his feet touched the ground. ¡°Phew. That was a close one.¡± Then something that Beowulf could only describe as a ghost burst through the floor outside the wrestling ring and attempted to grab him.

    Luckily, Beowulf dodged. ¡°What the shit!?¡± Beowulf exclaimed in fear. That¡¯s when he noticed what was outside of the wrestling ring: a pool of white liquid filled with ghosts that moaned in agony.

    Beowulf¡¯s face grew pale. ¡°What is this?¡±

 Chapter 9: Not Claw Boy

    Beowulf stared into the white glowing liquid while holding on to one of the ring¡¯s ropes. He saw ghosts swimming in the white liquid. He heard their moans of agony, which made him sick to his stomach.

    ¡°What is this?¡± Beowulf asked. ¡°Look at that, Jensen. It seems that the fifth wrestler to join this match, Beowulf, has discovered the sea of suffering!¡± Daryl announced.

    ¡°It looks like it! For those of you who may not know, the sea of suffering is a form of torture here in hell! Souls in the sea of suffering are trapped and experience unimaginable, constant, unending anguish. Anyone who comes close to the pool is dragged down by one of the souls to join them in their never-ending torture!¡± Jensen announced.

    ¡°Fun Fact! Every soul trapped in the sea was a wrestler who was thrown off during a royal rumble match.¡±

    Beowulf¡¯s eyes widened after hearing what the demon Jensen last said, and so did the wrestlers in the ring and the wrestlers who were yet to be called into the match.

    ¡®What did he just say?¡¯ Beowulf thought, horrified. ¡°You heard right! On earth, when a wrestler gets thrown off the ring, they just get disqualified, but that¡¯s just soooo boring! So here in hell, we spice it up! Any wrestler that gets thrown in a royal rumble becomes one of those poor souls.¡±

    Beowulf looked at the souls in the sea of suffering more intensely. He saw them swim aimlessly. He heard the nonstop groans, and he witnessed some of the souls trying to drag him down.

    ¡°If I fall from this ring, will I become one of them?¡± Beowulf said to himself. ¡°Hell no! Whatever it takes, I¡¯m going to win this match.¡± Beowulf looked back towards the ring and started to climb back. Only one problem¡ªLightning Mike. He was still there. Beowulf was now standing outside the ring. Lightning Mike quickly placed both his hands on Beowulf¡¯s shoulders, and then Beowulf felt electricity traveling through his entire body once more.

    This time Beowulf felt pain. Scorching pain. Despite the incredible pain, Beowulf held onto the ropes. The pain worsened every second, and his body screamed for Beowulf to let go of the rope. But he wouldn¡¯t do that. He refused to become trapped in the sea of suffering. He held onto the ring¡¯s rope for dear life.

    In the midst of Beowulf¡¯s resilience and defiance, he felt something other than the electricity that was constantly passing through his body. He wasn¡¯t sure what it was. It felt dark and warm. He wasn¡¯t sure what it meant to feel something dark, but he was sure it felt like the right word for whatever he was feeling.

    It was some sort of energy radiating through his entire body. It made him endure the pain from the electricity, and it gave him strength. ¡°AAAAHHHHHHH!¡± Beowulf screamed.

    He swiped one of his hands at Lightning Mike. Suddenly Beowulf could no longer feel the electricity passing through his body. He rested on the ropes of the ring and panted heavily.

    ¡°That¡­¡­ was intense.¡± Beowulf looked forward to where Lightning Mike was. He saw him, bleeding from his chest. Lightning had lines of wood around his chest, which he grabbed. He knelt down and winced in pain.

    ¡®What did that to him?¡¯ Beowulf thought. Beowulf looked at the hand he used to attack Lightning Mike and was shocked by what he found. His fingernails were elongated and turned solid black.

    There was a little bit of blood dripping from them. Beowulf looked at his other hand that was on the rope. His fingers on his other hand were also elongated and turned solid black.

    They were like¡­.. ¡°Claws,¡± Beowulf muttered. Lightning Mike was getting up. Beowulf saw this, squatted, and jumped over the wrestling ring.

    His jump reached quite a distance before he landed in front of Lightning Mike. ¡®How did I do that? How did I know how to do that?¡¯ Beowulf thought.

    Maybe he figured since the other wrestlers could do something like that, maybe he could too. That was his first theory, but it felt like it was something else.

    When he swiped at Lightning Mike, he didn¡¯t know he could bring out claws, but he did anyway. He had done it out of instinct, just like how he leaped in front of Lightning Mike. It felt like he could always do this.

    Whatever the answer was, he would have to look for it later. He had a match to win.

    Beowulf swiped his new claws at Lightning Mike, but Lightning countered by slapping his hand away. Beowulf swiped his claws again, and Lightning Mike countered once more.

    This went on for a while. Anytime that Beowulf tried to scratch Lightning Mike with his claws, Lightning Mike would always slap them away.

    It seemed that Lightning Mike was not just fast but also had great reflexes as well. Beowulf went for one swipe, but this time Lightning Mike caught Beowulf¡¯s arm, pulled him forward, used his body to lift Beowulf, and slammed him on the canvas.

    Lightning Mike stood above Beowulf. He grinned and shook his head violently. This creeped Beowulf out. ¡®What is this guy on?¡¯

    Lightning Mike stomped on Beowulf¡¯s belly. As he did, Beowulf felt electricity move from his center to his entire body, causing him to jolt. Lightning Mike stomped on Beowulf again and again. Each time causing Beowulf to jolt from the electricity Lightning Mike somehow generated from his body.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.

    With the amount of electricity that kept shocking Beowulf, he was surprised that he wasn¡¯t dead. ¡®Oh wait, since I¡¯m in hell, I guess I¡¯m already dead. So I guess I can¡¯t die.¡¯

    Lightning Mike was about to stomp on Beowulf one more time, but when he was about to make contact, Beowulf grabbed Lightning Mike¡¯s ankle, rolled over his back, and was now in a standing position. He then dived towards Lightning Mike in the process, slamming him into the large canvas floor. Beowulf had performed a single-leg takedown on Lightning Mike.

    Beowulf¡¯s claws dug into Lightning Mike¡¯s legs, and Lightning Mike kept shocking Beowulf with his electricity. The two wrestlers were in pain, but Beowulf was in a lot more pain.

    The strange energy within him was somehow making him endure the constant electricity passing through his body. But he couldn¡¯t keep this up forever. He had to think of a plan, and he had to think of it fast.

    Something heavy landed on both Beowulf and Lightning Mike. It was the Hippo. Beowulf felt smothered. He was already having enough trouble handling Lightning Mike, now he could hardly breathe.

    It seemed that the electricity that was coming from Lightning Mike and shocking Beowulf was also shocking the Hippo. It showed as the Hippo was constantly vibrating. The Wrecker appeared in front of the three stacked wrestlers. The Wrecker prepared to charge into them. It seemed he was unaware of Lightning Mike¡¯s electric ability.

    The Wrecker charged at them and dove, landing on the three wrestlers. Now Lightning Mike¡¯s electric ability was also shocking the wrestlers.

    Leaving the four wrestlers in a tangled and unmoving state. ¡®For the love of God, someone get me out of this,¡¯ Beowulf said, groaning.

    Beowulf¡¯s prayers were answered. He was flung away, and so were the other wrestlers struck by Lightning Mike¡¯s ability. They all lay on the ring, separated from each other.

    ¡°What happened?¡± Beowulf asked. Beowulf slowly got up and saw The Song with his two hands on his guitar, and he was in a swinging position.

    ¡®He must have knocked us away with his strong guitar. It¡¯s wood, so the electricity didn''t pass through him. He¡¯s the best person to take on Lightning Mike. I should find another wrestler to deal with. The Wrecker seemed pretty normal compared to the rest of these guys.¡¯

    Beowulf turned his head, looking for The Wrecker, and found him still lying on the canvas floor. ¡®Perfect.¡¯ Beowulf approached the wrestler, but before he could reach him, he felt a heavy blow at the back of his head.

    ¡°AHHH!¡± Beowulf screamed in pain. He touched the back of his head and turned around. He found The Song behind him with his guitar held out.

    ¡°Where do you think you¡¯re going, claw boy?¡± The Song asked with a smirk on his face. ¡°Listen, go after the electricity guy. With your wooden guitar, you have a better chance of beating him than the rest of us,¡± Beowulf said.

    ¡°That¡¯s true, but I plan on throwing you out of the ring first. You said some things that really irritated me. I¡¯ll make sure you¡¯re the first wrestler to get thrown off the ring,¡± The Song said.

    The Song swung his guitar again, aiming at Beowulf¡¯s face. Beowulf took the swing to the head, causing him to fall a few feet away from The Song. ¡°Is that thing really made of wood?¡± Beowulf asked.

    The guitar on Beowulf''s face felt like it came from a titanium bat, not a wooden guitar. Beowulf, on the canvas floor of the ring, tried getting up, but The Song swung his guitar at Beowulf¡¯s ribs, causing him to skid several feet away from The Song.

    Beowulf groaned. He tried getting up once more. He was on his knees. Still feeling a little numb from Lightning Mike¡¯s electricity and the hits from The Song, he had to take a small break.

    Unfortunately for him, The Song quickly approached him and swung his guitar at Beowulf again. It was an upward swing hitting Beowulf at the chin, causing him to fly upwards and close to the ring¡¯s ropes.

    ¡°Here I am again,¡± Beowulf said to himself. ¡°I can¡¯t believe this. I knew this would be tough, but not this tough. It¡¯s not fair. I¡¯m fighting freaking superhumans, and it seems they already knew about their abilities. I¡¯m just figuring it out. One guy¡¯s got a super strong guitar, another has electric powers. What do I got?¡±

    Beowulf looked at his two hands. ¡°Freaking claws! Is that it?¡± Beowulf heard a screeching sound. He turned his head to find out where the sound was coming from.

    He saw The Song slowly approaching him with a smirk on his face, dragging his guitar on the ground. It seemed that The Song was trying to be intimidating.

    All this did was annoy Beowulf. ¡°Stop whining. You¡¯ve been in many unfavorable situations before, and always come out on top. Just add this to the list,¡± Beowulf said to himself.

    His body felt sore and numb, but he did his best to ignore it all. He mustered his remaining strength to get up by holding on to the ring¡¯s rope. As he did, he took one more look at the sea of suffering. Souls were erupting from the sea, trying to drag him down.

    He looked back into the ring. The Song was close to reaching him. ¡®Shit. How am I going to get out of this?¡¯ Beowulf thought. Beowulf then suddenly had an idea. ¡®I can only think of one thing, but I have to find the right opportunity.¡¯

    The Song had finally reached Beowulf. He was only a few inches away from him. The Song slowly brought his guitar on his shoulder. ¡°It¡¯s been fun, claw boy, but I said I¡¯d make sure you were the first wrestler thrown out of the ring, and I intend to follow through,¡± The Song said.

    The Song then grabbed his guitar with both hands and was now in a swinging position. ¡°Have fun in the sea of suffering.¡±

    ¡°Jensen, we have our first elimination in this match, and it¡¯s the Hippo!¡± Daryl announced. The Song turned around after hearing this. What Daryl had said was true. It seemed like the Wrecker had somehow found a way to throw the Hippo out of the ring.

    The Hippo was seen swimming in the sea of suffering. He tried to swim back into the ring. But over dozens of souls rushed towards him. They all grabbed him, preventing the Hippo from re-entering the ring.

    The Hippo¡¯s skin slowly turned pale white, his eyes became lifeless, and he slowly sunk into the pool. He had become one of them.

    The Hippo¡¯s transformation into one of the souls of the sea of suffering was so haunting that the wrestlers in the ring all froze out of horror. ¡®Now!¡¯ Beowulf said to himself.

    This was the moment he was waiting for. Beowulf ran to the ropes, rested his back on them, and pushed himself backward. He used the ring¡¯s rope elasticity to launch himself forward.

    The ring¡¯s ropes in hell seemed far stronger and more elastic than the ropes on Earth. Beowulf was launched at The Song very quickly and strongly. It took both him and The Song by surprise.

    In the midst of his launch, Beowulf''s body tackled The Song. They both flew to the middle of the wrestling ring. The Song had his back rested on the canvas, and Beowulf knelt on top of him.

    The Song attempted to use his guitar on Beowulf, but Beowulf held The Song¡¯s head down and punched him over and over again. ¡°AAAHHH!¡± Beowulf let out a scream.

    He stopped punching The Song and grabbed The Song¡¯s guitar. Beowulf got up, grabbed The Song¡¯s guitar with both of his arms and slammed it on The Song¡¯s face.

    ¡°My name isn¡¯t Claw Boy. It¡¯s Beowulf!¡± Beowulf declared.

 Chapter 10: Beowulf Vs Grappler

    Beowulf held The Song¡¯s guitar in his hand as he stood over him. ¡°This feels nice,¡± Beowulf said, swinging the guitar in his hands. ¡°No wonder he had so much fun hitting me with this. Now it''s my turn.¡±

    Beowulf lifted the guitar over his head and was about to slam it into The Song once more. Then he was body-tackled by The Wrecker. Beowulf fell on the wrestling ring¡¯s canvas and lost his new guitar.

    ¡°Damn it!¡± Beowulf cursed. ¡°No one can get anything done without being interrupted in a royal rumble.¡±

    The mini-timer started.

    Ten. Nine. Eight. Seven. Six. Five. Four. Three. Two. One.

    A new wrestler appeared in the wrestling ring engulfed in a tornado of flames.

    The sixth wrestler didn¡¯t seem to have anything special about him. His height was below average, being close to a dwarf, and he wore wrestling trunks with no boots.

    Lightning Mike still lay on the canvas after the guitar hit from The Song but was slowly getting up. As he did, his head shook violently and his whole body jittered.

    The sixth wrestler saw what would happen if he touched Lightning Mike, so he chose to ignore him. He decided to search for someone else to wrestle with.

    The Wrecker was about to stomp on Beowulf when the sixth wrestler jumped on The Wrecker¡¯s back, interlocking his fingers on The Wrecker¡¯s chest and his legs around The Wrecker.

    "It looks like the sixth wrestler, Grappler, has found his first victim, The Wrecker!¡± Daryl announced.

    ¡°Oooh, it seems so, Jensen. I kinda pity The Wrecker! When Grappler gets a hold of someone, it¡¯s near impossible to get him off!¡± Jensen announced.

    Grappler held on tightly to The Wrecker, causing him to move away from Beowulf.

    ¡°Get off me!¡± The Wrecker yelled. He tried to break the lock Grappler had on his chest, but Grappler quickly moved his hands from The Wrecker¡¯s chest and put a headlock around The Wrecker¡¯s neck.

    Now The Wrecker was struggling for air. He tried grabbing Grappler¡¯s face but failed. Grappler kept evading The Wrecker¡¯s grabs. The Wrecker knelt on the wrestling ring¡¯s canvas and rested his hands on it.

    His face was starting to change color due to the lack of air he was getting. He looked around him. The ring¡¯s poles were too far to reach. He wanted to slam his back on one of them with Grappler still on his back, but that didn¡¯t seem possible.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

    He was starting to see black and would soon lose consciousness. If he couldn¡¯t use the poles to get Grappler off his back, then he¡¯d just have to use the ring¡¯s canvas.

    He got up on his feet, which was no small task with Grappler still giving him a headlock. He jumped and landed on his back. He couldn¡¯t feel Grappler on his back anymore.

    ¡®Did it work?¡¯ The Wrecker thought.

    No, he should have still felt Grappler on his back. The Wrecker then felt pain in his right ankle. He looked at his feet and was shocked by what he found.

    He saw Grappler clung to his right leg, twisting his ankle.

    ¡°AAAHHHHH!¡± The Wrecker screamed in pain.

    The Wrecker tried using his other leg to kick Grappler, but Grappler jumped from The Wrecker¡¯s right leg and jumped to his left one. Grappler began twisting The Wrecker¡¯s left ankle just as he was twisting his right.

    The Wrecker slammed his back into the canvas. He clenched his teeth, veins popped on his head, and sweat continuously ran down his face. It was obvious Grappler¡¯s twist on The Wrecker¡¯s ankle was excruciating.

    The Wrecker tried reaching Grappler with his left hand, but Grappler grabbed The Wrecker¡¯s hand, used his legs to interlock The Wrecker¡¯s arms, laid on the ring¡¯s canvas, and pulled.

    ¡°AHHHH!¡± The Wrecker screamed.

    ¡°It seems Grappler is using the armbar on The Wrecker! That looks mighty painful, Jensen!¡± Daryl announced.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure it is, Jensen! I would not want to be The Wrecker right now! I bet he is in a world of pain!¡± The Wrecker continued screaming; the pain was unbearable, it felt like his arm could tear off at any moment.

    Then Beowulf kicked Grappler off The Wrecker¡¯s arm. ¡°Sorry, little guy, but in a royal rumble, it¡¯s every wrestler for themselves,¡± Beowulf said.

    Beowulf carried Grappler by his trunks and grabbed his neck. Beowulf ran to one of the ring¡¯s ropes and reached it. He was about to throw Grappler off the ring, but Grappler broke off Beowulf¡¯s grasp, moved to his back, and gave him a headlock just like he had done to The Wrecker.

    Beowulf knelt and struggled to breathe. He went to grab Grappler with both of his hands. Grappler tried to evade Beowulf¡¯s grab.

    ¡°Oh no, you don¡¯t,¡± Beowulf said with a muffled voice.

    Beowulf¡¯s fingernails elongated and turned solid black, becoming claws. His claws dug into Grappler¡¯s ribs as he grabbed him. During the match, Beowulf had unconsciously made his claws disappear from his fingers.

    It took a while for him to recreate the feeling of how he had first brought them out. It was hard at first, but he was getting the hang of it. Grappler tried to wiggle his way out of Beowulf¡¯s grasp, but with Beowulf¡¯s claws embedded into him, it proved to be impossible.

    Beowulf slowly got up with Grappler still giving him a headlock. Beowulf slowly walked over to the ropes and used all his might to get Grappler off his neck with his claws embedded in him. He succeeded. Beowulf now held Grappler above his head.

    Grappler tried to escape, but Beowulf didn¡¯t let him. He held onto Grappler with his claws still in him.

    ¡°AAHHHH!¡± Beowulf screamed as he hurled Grappler out of the ring.

    Grappler landed on the Sea of Suffering, and what had happened to The Hippo happened to him. The souls grabbed him, his skin turned pale white, and he sank into the Sea of Suffering.

    After throwing Grappler off the ring, Beowulf turned to The Wrecker, who was in a sitting position.

    ¡°I¡¯d say you¡¯re welcome, but you¡¯re next,¡± Beowulf said.

 Chapter 11Human Paddle Ball

    Beowulf looked at The Wrecker, and The Wrecker looked right at Beowulf. The Wrecker jumped to his feet, and Beowulf charged at him.

    Beowulf went for a body tackle and crashed into The Wrecker. Beowulf succeeded, but both only moved The Wrecker a few feet back. The Wrecker didn¡¯t fall onto the canvas; he didn¡¯t even show any indication of pain or that he was struggling.

    There was something else that Beowulf noticed about The Wrecker when he tackled him. His body felt hard, really hard. It was like Beowulf had run into a metal wall.

    The shoulder he used to tackle The Wrecker felt dislocated. ¡°AHHH!¡± Beowulf grunted. He looked at The Wrecker¡¯s abs, and his eyes widened, shocked by what he saw.

    ¡°Metal?¡± Beowulf muttered, confused. The Wrecker''s abs had turned metallic. It was no wonder Beowulf felt like he had hit a metal wall because he had. Well, technically, he had run into metal abs, but it was still the same thing.

    The Wrecker grabbed Beowulf by the waist of his joggers, lifted him over his head, and slammed Beowulf into the wrestling ring. Beowulf¡¯s body bounced on the wrestling ring¡¯s canvas.

    ¡°That hurt. That hurt a lot,¡± Beowulf muttered. The Wrecker lifted his boot and was moments away from stepping on Beowulf. Beowulf saw The Wrecker¡¯s foot turn metallic before stomping on Beowulf¡¯s shoulder.

    The same shoulder that Beowulf used to tackle The Wrecker. If it wasn¡¯t dislocated then, it was dislocated now. ¡°AAAHHH!¡± Beowulf screamed in agony, but that didn¡¯t stop The Wrecker from continuously stomping on his shoulder.

    The Wrecker was about to stomp on Beowulf one more time, but Lightning Mike appeared in front of The Wrecker and gave him a side kick to the face. This caused The Wrecker to move away from Beowulf. Beowulf used this opportunity to keep rolling to the side, getting away from Lightning Mike and The Wrecker.

    The Wrecker regained his footing after the kick that was given to him by Lightning Mike. The two wrestlers stared at each other. Lightning Mike shook in multiple directions while The Wrecker¡¯s face was now metallic.

    Beowulf used the ring¡¯s rope to get himself to stand. His left shoulder, which he used to tackle The Wrecker, was still dislocated. As he rested on the ring ropes, he looked at both Lightning Mike and The Wrecker.

    He noticed something interesting about The Wrecker. Only his face was metallic¡ªnot his abs, which Beowulf had tried tackling, or the boot that he used to stomp on Beowulf¡¯s injured shoulder.

    ¡°Can he shield only a single part of his body at a time?¡± Beowulf thought. Using his incredible speed, Lightning Mike landed a barrage of attacks on The Wrecker.If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    A variation of kicks, punches, and even slaps, but The Wrecker remained mostly unharmed. Every time The Wrecker was hit by Lightning Mike, a layer of metal would appear on a specific body part before Lightning Mike made contact.

    But The Wrecker was shaking a little. ¡°I guess even if he can protect himself with metal, Lightning Mike¡¯s electricity still affects him,¡± Beowulf said.

    The mini-timer started.

    Ten. Nine. Eight. Seven. Six. Five. Four. Three. Two. One.

    A wrestler with a leather jacket, pants, and boots, with a chain wrapped along his side, appeared in the wrestling ring after being engulfed in a tornado of flames.

    ¡°It seems the Seventh wrestler to join the Royal Rumble is The Tough Guy!¡± Daryl announced.

    ¡°The Tough Guy?¡± Beowulf repeated as he scoffed. ¡°I swear these names just keep getting dumber and dumber.¡± The Tough Guy set his eyes on Beowulf and grinned.

    Beowulf, seeing this, had a very bad feeling. ¡°Relax! He''s at the center of the ring, and you¡¯re way over here. We can easily avoid him,¡± Beowulf said, trying to assure himself.

    The Tough Guy slowly unwrapped his chain from his side, holding onto one of the ends with his hand while the rest of it lay on the floor. The Tough Guy whipped his chain toward Beowulf.

    ¡°There¡¯s no way that¡¯s going to reach me. What¡¯s he thinking?¡± Beowulf thought. Something began happening to the chain that The Tough Guy whipped at Beowulf. It started to elongate. No, more like new chains were appearing on its end during its trajectory toward Beowulf.

    Eventually, it reached Beowulf, wrapping around Beowulf¡¯s dislocated shoulder all the way to his wrist. ¡°Oh crap,¡± Beowulf cursed. The Tough Guy lifted Beowulf with his chain up into the air and slammed him into the wrestling ring¡¯s canvas.

    Beowulf groaned in pain, and The Tough Guy kept lifting and slamming Beowulf over and over. He eventually stopped, and Beowulf felt pain all over his body; he had taken quite a beating. Not just from The Tough Guy, but from The Wrecker and every other wrestler in the wrestling ring.

    Unfortunately for Beowulf, he didn¡¯t have time to rest. The Tough Guy pulled Beowulf with his chain with incredible force. Beowulf flew toward The Tough Guy.

    The Tough Guy brought out his other arm to the side, and when it seemed that Beowulf was about to crash into The Tough Guy, The Tough Guy slammed his extended arm at Beowulf¡¯s neck, knocking him down onto the wrestling ring¡¯s canvas.

    Beowulf bounced off the canvas and started coughing nonstop. ¡°Getting hit by a lariat is never fun,¡± Beowulf muttered.

    The Song appeared above Beowulf and slammed his guitar with both hands on Beowulf¡¯s stomach. Beowulf held onto his gut tightly. The Song grabbed Beowulf by his arm and got him to stand up.

    The Song then slammed his guitar into Beowulf¡¯s face, causing him to fly far away from him. But the attack didn¡¯t stop there. In mid-air, Beowulf was pulled back by The Tough Guy using the chain still wrapped around his arm.

    When Beowulf came close to the other two wrestlers, The Song slammed his guitar into Beowulf¡¯s face once again, causing him to fly away from them. The Song and The Wrecker repeated this process; The Song would slam his guitar into Beowulf¡¯s face, and The Tough Guy would pull him in with his chain, over and over again.

    It was like Beowulf was a human-sized paddle ball. When it seemed like The Song was about to send Beowulf flying again, The Song slammed his guitar downwards on Beowulf.

    Beowulf crashed into the ground, and his body became unmoving. The Wrecker grabbed one arm, and The Tough Guy grabbed the other. They both dragged Beowulf to the ring¡¯s ropes and carried his body. They were about to throw him over the wrestling ring.