One two three.

One two three.

One two.

One two.

Move out.

Move in.

Dodge.

Punch.

A figure clad in a pink hooded jumpsuit let his feet dance by themselves on the floor, his two green boxing gloves endlessly attacking a large punching bag. He lived his life boxing. The feeling of victory, and the recognition as a champion made it all worth it for him.

Left jab.

Sidestep.

Quick shoeshine combination.

Sidestep.

One two three.

Repeat.

He had once lost the title as a champion, and that had truly motivated him to reclaim the title. And so he did, after a grueling effort involving a series of training sessions that toughened him up. The day he became champion once more after losing felt great. Awesome, even.

Jab.

Jab.

Jab jab jab.

Two hooks.

Final set of jabs and hooks.

He was a man who bested the odds of having a short height, small frame, and a face that would not have struck fear in other boxers had he not trained hard enough to become the world-class champion.

Star Punch.

The hooded man delivered a powerful uppercut on the punching bag he had been beating down relentlessly, causing the thing to get smashed off. With the bag lying down on the ground, the boxer took a moment to catch his breath.

A new tournament had caught Little Mac's interest.

Something about this particular tournament was... interesting. First things first, it did not seem to be an official tournament held on planet Earth, but rather, in a more "isolated" location. Whether it was just an invitation to an underground boxing tournament, Mac did not know of. Doc Louis, however, seemed to know a bit about the tournament.

That was where the second unusual circumstance came into place. The tournament was not a boxing tournament; it was a fighting tournament.

Little Mac was no ordinary boxer, but that did not mean that he was the most extraordinary human being in the world. Aiming to be the best was one thing, but being the best was a completely different story. Mac certainly wanted to be recognized as a great boxer who had held an extremely long career before retiring with a bang, but nearly right after he had quit, a different kind of battle invited him to join an undefined brawl.

Needless to say, he was no one to say the entire situation was not interesting. And despite claiming that his boxing career should have come to an end, the boxer wondered what would happen if his top-notch boxing abilities were placed next to the best of other kinds of fighters. Who was he to decline such an interesting turn of events?

Though, he did find it odd that the tournament apparently used a "mock-up version" of him to assist the fighters, which he, even now, could not comprehend fully. Mac did not want to imagine seeing a clone of himself confusing him by utilizing the same exact moves he was using. Then again, Mac knew himself best; perhaps he could defeat a mere copy of himself, even if he could not defeat anyone else.

Mac walked out of the small, dark gym, picking up a chocolate bar lying on a nearby bench on his way.

"Remember, son; today's a real big day, ya hear me? You're gonna be goin' places. Lots of places!"

Mac nodded, sitting with his hoodie over his head. New York seemed to fly by him, for Mac could not remember taking one last look at the Statue of Liberty.

Doc Louis was both Mac's best friend and mentor. He never seemed to change: he still boasted a fair amount of chubbiness, a red athletic jacket, blue training pants, and a humorous face. The boxer had no problems with the Doc not not seeming to change.

Much to his surprise, Mac was apparently going to the tournament by car. He initially thought that he would take a plane, but apparently, the location of the tournament was nearby. Doc Louis had been going over and over about how the tournament was so different, and that made Mac feel tenser and tenser as each second passed by. Still, he had no intentions on backing off. Whatever the tournament was, he would see to it that it fit his interests and make good use of his judgment.

Perhaps the tournament was not too much of a big deal. Maybe it would take just a few weeks, or maybe even just one week. Maybe even one day, if everyone felt like getting knocked out by a single contestant. He just hoped that whatever the competition was, it would not be too out-of-hand.

Mac did have the guilty pleasure of feeling excited about beating down those who unfairly attempt to win.

Soon, Mac found himself standing at a cliff nearby an ocean. The orange of the sunset painted the world with its bright colors. It took over approximately one hour to arrive.

"You seem all tensed up, son! Don't worry; this Doc right here looked just like you did when I first saw this thing myself."

"..."

Doc Louis laughed at Mac's nervous look as the two stood before what appeared to be a...

...portal.

A portal.

A portal.

Little Mac felt his eyes twitch out of sheer amazement and confusion. If smacking his own face did not wake him up, then bashing his head onto the ground would have seemed like a great alternative for the shocked boxer.

His time at the tournament had not even begun, and he was being overwhelmed. Meanwhile, Doc Louis simply looked at the portal, happily eating a chocolate bar before commenting,

"We ain't seeing this in the WVBA, Mac. It ain't no joke, I can tell!"

The swirling hole in front of Little Mac think one thing.

This was way too crazy to be a joke.

Out-Smasher

.