KONG....MY NAME IS KONG! finale.

Keep your guard up!"


Richard's arms were heavy, his shoulders ached. Sweat stung his eyes.


"Again!"


He hit the  bag with two quick combos. A hard slap rocked the back of his head.


"Hey...!" He protested.

"Too slow," Strongface's voice yelled.


"I would be faster if I wasn't in so much pain."
Another slap.


"What the---?"




"Face d bag!" Strong face urged.


"I'm tired!"


"You too do like woman,"  Ugo was standing a few feet away.


"Ugo if I hear your voice again eh?" Richard panted.


"Advice na cuss?"


Another slap.  This time, he turned around.


"Are you trying to cause me brain damage  or something?"


"Eh....?" Strongface asked. "Which kine English b dat?"


Another slap.


"I no know oh," Ugo shrugged. "Na wen Beast land am betta blow Wey dis  oyibo go stop."


And so it went, Richard's days were spent jogging about five miles a day, sparring with Mr strongface, lifting weights, punching bags and pads and having the crap being beaten out of him. Most nights, he couldn't even sleep due to the pain. Strongface insisted that he stayed away from pain killers which meant most days he could barely standup straight.


The frustrating thing was he didn't feel like he was getting any better, he didn't feel stronger or faster. He didn't feel like the training was working. All he had to show for it were numerous of bruises, a swollen eye and several unstable teeth in his mouth. And if that wasn't bad enough, he had to contend with Ugo's constant bickering.


"Which kine punch b dat?" Ugo yelled during one of his morning drills.


"Ugo, I swear if you don't shut up."


 "Guy, u dey fall ma hand !"


That was it. Richard turned away from Strong face and advanced towards his best friend.


"Hold am o! Hold am o!" Ugo yelled retreating. Mr Strongface's arms grabbed Richard from behind.


"Let me go!" Richard struggled. "All he does is yap yap yap....can't he see I'm doing my best?"
"Which kine best? Harmattan breeze   strong pass ya blow."


Richard fought to free himself. But Mr Strongface held on tight.


"Fight Na three days time, and u still dey do etigi."


"Oya, fight Beast yourself!"


"Hian!" Ugo shrugged. "Dat one no b suicide? U b my friend at all?"


"Oya, e don do!" Strongface shoved Richard aside.  "If u no wan train again, tell me make I go find Kai-Kai step-down dis morning!"


"You call this, training?" Richard spat.


 "All I do is sweat and cry. The fights in three days time...I still don't think I can beat Beast."


Mr Strongface stared at him in shock.


 "Beat Beast ke?...who tell u say u go fit beat am?"


It was Richard's turn to be shocked.


 "Wait, so I've been wasting my time here?"


"Bros..I dey train u to survive the brushing."


Long silence.


Richard turned to stare at Ugo. "Did you know about this?"


"...well em....." Ugo stammered avoiding his friend's eyes.


"Jesus!" Richard placed his hands on his head. "Are you guys serious??"


"Guy relax first----."


"Don't tell me to relax," Richard snapped at Ugo. " You guys have got me  killing myself when all you want is for me to lose like ....like Strongface here."


"Correction, I no lose. Na faint I ----."


"I don't bloody care anymore!"


"The two of you have been wasting my time. I'm likely to get killed in the next few days!"


"I dey teach u how to endure---."


"I don't bloody want to endure, I want to fight and beat that monster!"


"Even Tyson no fit beat am." Strongface said softly. "But Beast no get mind, if u look am for eye, him go fear u."


Long silence.


Richard stared at the two of them in silence for a long time. Then he stormed out of the field.


Ugo was about to call out after him when StrongFace gestured for him not to.


"Leave am," he said taking off his boxing gloves.


"But him neva finish training."


"I no get wetin I wan teach am again."
Ugo placed his hands on his head.


 "Chei, my own don finish o!"


"Ur guy no dey hear word!"


Ugo wasn't even listening. "God ehhh, which kine life I come o?"


" Make I heard word abeg!"


"Leave me o!" Ugo sobbed. "Dem go soon read my obituary!"


"This ya guy bodi strong---."


"Na dat one I wan hear?" Ugo yelled. "U sef wey dey talk  no b faint u faint?"


Strongface grabbed him by the throat and hoisted him off the ground. "I bin don beat Beast finish," he said grinding his teeth. "Na small tin remain, but one of him guys rub pepper for my towel wey I dey take clean face."


Ugo fought back against his grip. But it was pointless.


"Beast sabi say I get asthma," Strongface continued. "Naim make him blow my chest. Na dere I come faint."


Ugo was making choking sounds.


"People dey laugh me becuss I faint,....becuss dem say I no get mind. But I see one tin dat day,....Beast dey fear pesin wey no dey fear am...no eva talk to me like dat again."
Strongface let him go. Ugo fell to the floor still choking and holding his throat.


THREE DAYS LATER.




"BEAST!BEAST!BEAST!"


The turn out was massive. It seemed the entire neighbourhood had shown up for the fight.
"BEAST!BEAST!BEAST!"


Beast's cronies were everywhere; casting bets within the crowd, intimidating people and generally just being a nuasance.


"Just relax," Ugo said "Forget wetin we talk, u go fit beat am. Notin wey God no fit do."


Strongface was silent.


Richard looked away. He still wasnt talking to either of them.


A wild cheer ran through the crowd. Beast had arrived.


As always, he tore off his shirt with a loud roar. His gargantuan biceps glistened in the sunlight.


Ugo gulped. "Sha....if u run, God sef go understand."


Beast threw his hands into the air and the crowd cheered louder.


"BEAST!BEAST!BEAST!"


"Remember," Strongface said as Richard took off his shirt. "No fear the ---."


"I'm not interested in anything you have to say."


"BEAST!BEAST!BEAST!"


Strongface stared at him in shock "Dis guy fit kill u."


"Since I have you for a tutor, I'm not surprised."
"Wait, wait, wait!" Beast said suddenly.


The crowd was silent.


Beast took a few steps towards them. There was a strange combination of shock and amusement on his face.


"Na Strongface b dat?"


Strongface looked awkwardly looked away.


"Na lie!" Beast exclaimed. "Na dis guy wey bin faint o!"


An uneasy swept across the crowd.


Richard tried to seem as confident as he could standing next to the giant that was Beast.


"So na dis guy train u?" Beast was standing within spitting distance of Strongface.


"Nshi man," Beast sneered. "U don cure ya sickness, or u wan make I land u for chest again?"


Long silence


Strongface met his gaze. "Kong go beat u today," he whispered.


Beast's expression flickered, then he turned to stare at Richard. "If u like ansa King Kong, today u go die." He turned around and threw his hands into the air again.


"BEAST!BEAST!BEAST!"


Strongface leaned into Richard's eye, "I kno say u dey vex, but guy focus. Beast no get mind and him no get stamina---."


"Just leave me alone," Richard whispered. "This is my fight." He walked into the small circle and started flexing his arms.


"ROUND ONE!" roared one of Beast's men.
And it was on.


Richard had barely put up his hands when a fist like a handgrenade blasted the side of his face. He was flung back into the crowd.


"BEAST!BEAST!BEAST!"


He was thrown back in. His legs were suddenly unsteady. He was a little dizzy. If a single punch could disorient him so.......


A series of punches crashed into his body like a tsunami. One caught him in the chest knocking the wind right out of him.


"Keep your guard up!" Came Strongface's screamed from behind him. His ears were ringing and his blurry vision was getting worse.


"BEAST!BEAST!BEAST!"


The large fuzzy figure came at him again. He managed to block a savage blow to the face but that only made room for an uppercut that knocked his feet off the ground. He felt himself sailing through the air. He thought about Esther, he thought about her smile, he wondered if he would see   her again. Then the ground rushed to meet him. He felt two fingers snap upon impact. Every muscle in his hand screamed.


"BEAST!BEAST!BEAST!"


"Beast go kill am o!" Ugo cried with his hands on his head. Strongface wasnt even listening. "BROS, GET UP!....GET UP!"


"BEAST!BEAST!BEAST!"


Richard's body felt like it had been run over by a mini-van. He struggled to his feet ignoring the pain in his hand and everywhere else.


The hazy figure came at him again. Micheal threw a quick jab...but missed. Something like a sledge hammer bashed into his nose. For a heartbeat, the sudden burst of agony cleared his vision. He staggered backwards as another fist knocked him to the ground.


"END OF ROUND ONE!"


He felt himself being lifted off the ground.


Then cold water splashed into his face.


"Wetin dey worry u?" Ugo's voice screamed. "U no sabi block?"


"Allow d guy drink water na," Strongface sounded agitated. "Dis na juss round----."


"D guy look like say him fit stand?"


"Listen,"Strongface's voice said. "If u no fight back, dis guy go kill u."


"Leave me alone!" Richard snapped. "None of dis matters if I can't beat him! I wasted my time believing that I could win but all this is bullshit, the guy's unbeatable."


"I no say----."


"No,shutup!" Richard's bloodshot eyes were furious. "All these people here believe I will lose....what's the point believing I can?"



"ROUND TWO!"


Richard was already on his feet again. Moving was difficult. The parts of his body that didn't ache felt heavy.


"BEAST!BEAST!BEAST!"


He tried to focus---he tried to remember the combinations Strongface taught him. There were too many blackholes in his head.


Beast charged again. Several battering-Rams crashed into Richard's  ribs. He tried covering his side, but a vicious elbow clobbed the side of his head, he staggered but remained on his feet.


"BEAST!BEAST!BEAST!"


"Ah-ah?"Ugo exclaimed. "Elbow follow?"
"U no go close ya mouth?" Said a muscular guy a few feet away. "Abi, make I give u ya own?"


Ugo gulped.


"BEAST!BEAST!BEAST!"


"Make I finish work,"Richard heard Beast yell as he charged again. Richard had heard of Beast's three-punch combo. He knew he'd lost and he didn't care any more. Strongface had lied to him and so had Ugo. All this was pointless. He stood there waiting for the inevitable oblivion of unconciousness that would come with the end of the match. His ribs were rocked by blows --so hard they might as well have been bags of cement thrown at him, then an uppercut followed and once again he was sailing through the air. He saw faces in the crowd; chanting his oponent's name, praising beast. But just as he hit the ground and slipped into darkness, he realised something; the eyes he saw were all afraid. They were terrified of the name they chanted. In the moments before he closed his eyes, he saw Esther's tear-filled face in the crowd.


"HAH!" Beast yelled. His hands were in the air like a true boxing champ. "Una no fit do me ANYTHING! Na me get una....YOU HEAR?"


The crowd had stopped chanting. Many of the faces were down cast as they stared at Kong's motionless body.  Ugo fell to his knees by his friend's still form. All hope had left him. He began to cry.


"NOTIN DEY HAPPEN!!!" Beast shrieked. "Na me b Oga! Una send dis monkey to fight me...NO BODI FIT FIGHT ME!MY NAME NA TONY ALIAS BEAST!!!"


"No call am monki again," Ugo sobbed softly. Beast and the rest of the crowd turned around in shock.


Ugo was still on his knees. He looked like a man that had nothing else to lose.


"Wetin u talk?" Beast said advancing towards him. "I SAY WETIN U TALK???"


Ugo rose to his feet with tears streaming from his eyes. "I say....him name na Richard. No call am monkey again."


Beast froze. He stared at Ugo then the rest of the crowd as if seeing them for the first time.


Long silence.


"Mtcheeew!" Went Beast. But there wasn't alot of conviction in his voice. "Oya na, I don beat your Richard....wetin u go do?" He turned away  and started to leave.


Then something happened.


Richard's body twitched,.....then twitched again........then he slowly......rose to his feet.


Every face in the crowd bore the same expression of shock.


Beast was already walking away when ......
"Hey Beast,"Richard's voice called out. The Giant of a man froze in his tracks."The fights not over."


Beast turned around slowly. He wore the same expression as the rest of the crowd.


"Richard.....u still wan fight?"


Richard gave Ugo a friendly smile. Then he stared into the crowd. Stella's face caught him.


Like everyone else, he realised then that he was their hope. They WANTED him to win but were too scared to say so.


"Richard.....," Beast stuttered. "U wan fight?"


In that moment, Strongface's words played back in his head: 'Beast no get mind......Ur bodi strong....'


Richard felt a surge of energy through his body. All the pain had faded away.


"Kong," Richard said softly. "My name is Kong."


Long silence.


"Kong!" Strongface echoed. "Kong! Kong!Kong!"


Ugo joined in, "Kong! Kong!Kong!"


Then Stella, "Kong!Kong!Kong!"


Soon everyone was chanting.


"KONG!KONG!KONG!"


Beast and his looked around with fear in their eyes.


"Quiet!" He screamed.


"KONG!KONG!KONG!"


The crowd's energy seemed to be growing.


Richard walked towards Beast. "Round three."


"KONG!KONG!KONG!"


There was pure terror in Beast's eyes.


"Bros," one of Beast's men stammered. "D-de-de-dem go g-gather us o!"


"Quiet!" Beast snapped.


"KONG!KONG!KONG!"


"Big bros, na only me my mama born o--"
"Quiet!"


"KONG!KONG!KONG!"


Richard raised his hands and the crowd quietened. He grabbed Beast's head and in one swift motion, gave him a flying head-butt. Beast staggered backwards and screamed. He brought his face down again to reveal a bloody nose and eyes the color of crimson.


The crowd expected Beast to charge--to come at Richard guns blazing. Instead he stared at them in disgust and spat on the ground."I no even...like dis place again sef" He turned away.


"Guys, make we dey go!"


Richard and the rest of the neighbourhood watched them go. He couldn't believe it. He'd half expected Beast to kill him after that headbutt. But to think he'd actually scared him....


"KONG!KONG!KONG!"


He felt himself being hoisted into the air. The entire neighbourhood celebrated.


BEAST and his cronies never returned to the neighbourhood again. Rumor has it, he was gunned down by Police Officers during an armed robbery attempt.


RICHARD and Stella are still dating and his phone business is doing very well. And his blog is getting lots of traffic.


UGO and STRONGFACE struck a partnership to open a boxing school. At first it was just a handful of students, but now they have over a hundred pupils.


.....and Strongface stopped drinking kai-kai. He's been sober for close to a year now.


....the end.


I AM A WRITER
MY MIND IS MY WORKSTATION
#Opustjk
ENOUGH SAID