PROLOGUE

The 31st Radiance City Youth Martial Arts Tournament was drawing to its epic finale. Dozens of young martial artists from around the city have competed in hopes of winning the trophy and, for most of them at least, dethroning the previously undefeated Demolition Devils Dojo, who'd been winning for the past five tournaments in an undefeated winning streak! Despite doing the best they could the various fighters fell by the wayside until there was only two left on the mat.

The Demolition Devils' Griffith Richardson and King Alyx Himura from the new up and coming Terazawa School run by Sensei Terazawa Sawako. The fight is a choreographed dance of destruction with Griffith pushing King with his ferocious but tempered offensive while King focuses on simply defending and redirecting his attacks, flowing against them instead of crashing against him, allowing him to direct his attacks away without expelling much energy. Griffith was incredibly good but his offense was nullified by King simply misdirecting his attacks away. All that power was useless if he never landed an attack. He continued to use this style until he finally threw Griffith off balance and then he would strike him in a vital area and throw him to the mat. Griffith would recover and switch his style up, adding more aerial attacks and switch ups but King would see through his attacks and calmly focus on defending himself, throwing him off balance and striking again. He dodged an attack and pushed it away while adding his own force to it to throw him off balance and then drove an elbow into his chest and struck him in the face before hitting him with a crescent kick. Griffith stumbled away but caught himself.

Griffith wiped his mouth and discovered some blood on his lip. Enraged, he turned right back around, gripped his wrist with one hand, took a horse stance, raised his palm up and surrounded his body with red hot heat that was soon all channeled down into his hand where it swirled around and then took a spherical shape! Laughing, he pulled his arm back like he was throwing a pitch and then he stomped forward and threw it at him like a 100 MPH Fastball!

"Not this time." King replied and calmed himself while he waited for the fireball. Griffith had nearly fried him with that attack twice before during their street encounters and he was not about to let him land it this time! Once it was close enough he shielded his own hands with Ki, sidestepped the fireball before sliding his palm against it, grabbing it, turning and throwing it right back at him! Griffith rolled out of the way and the ball exploded against the barrier cage. Griffith looked back at it, back at King and back again before getting back up to his feet, gritting his teeth and performing the technique again, this time forming two spheres and throwing one straight at him and the other at his feet! King was able to catch the first one for redirecting but he was forced to let it go so he could jump out of the way of the second one. Once it exploded against the ground it released a brief cloud of smoke which obscured King's vision. That was the opening Griffith needed. Surrounding his body with heat again he jumped towards him, flew across the ring, through the smoke and kicked his foot out! Finally catching King off guard he drove his burning hot foot into his right leg at the knee! King cried out and fell to the ground but Griffith wasn't done yet! He landed on his feet and kicked King up into the air against the barrier cage! As King's back struck the barrier, Griffith drove his red hot fist into his stomach! Once! Twice! Then he began pummeling him repeatedly before hammering him to the ring floor!

"You're dead, Alyx! You're dead! You're nothing! You're nothing! You've always been nothing! You're a loser!" Griffith shouted while repeatedly kicking him in the ribs.

Sensei Donovan chuckled as he watched this. "That's my boy, Griffith! That's my boy! Finish him off!"

Griffith sneered and took a step back. "It's over, Alyx. I win. You lose. Get used to it! This is for my teammates! IT'S KICKOFF TIME!" He brought his leg back for a final powerhouse kick and swung his leg out towards his head only for King to suddenly reach up and grab it and throw his leg up into the air so hard he threw him off balance again!

"Seriously..." He grimaced through the screaming scorching sizzling pain his body was in. "Do you ever shut up?" He got up, wincing at the pain and stepped forward and hit him in the chest with a double palm strike to throw him backwards through the air! As he was flying away, King stepped in, grabbed his ankle, still using his own Ki to shield his hands and swung him around  and slam him against the barrier cage this time! Griffith gasped in pain and King tossed him away to the center of the ring. The burning mad martial artist hit the floor and slid across it. He got back up, a little unsteady this time and shook it off and turned around to see King already approaching him. Griffith attacked him but King just slipped and redirected his punches and then he drove his elbow into him again, struck his chest and kicked out his knee. He fell to one leg and King crouched down, glared at him and stood up again while delivering a powerful uppercut that launched him into the air! Griffith was thrown up into the air and King jumped in the air after him and kicked him across the ring! He smashed into the wall and dropped to the ground.

King allowed him just enough time to get up to his feet before he rushed him down, flipped over to him, landed in front of him, placed a fist against his chest and pulled back the other one like it was a pulley and he focused his Ki.

"It's over, Griffith. Give up."

"Like hell." He tried to swing at him only for King to begin rapidly speed punching him to the point where his fists became blurred! Griffith's body jerked around rapidly while King pummeled him into the barrier cage. A continuous high speed beatdown from which there was no escape! The barrage beatdown continued for a minute with the punches going faster and faster until he finally mercifully stopped and ended with a final powerhouse punch to his torso that lifted Griffith up into the air! King turned and threw him down on the mat hard enough to make him bounce off of it! Griffith bounced across the ring a couple times before he landed on his hands, pushed off of them and landed on his feet again. He turned around to look for King who was leaping into the air and delivered a series of spinning roundhouse kicks to his face! The revolving kicks certainly did their job as King was able to land multiple hits this way and Griffith was left stumbling away, still on his feet but stumbling around now and clearly getting worn down.

King landed on his feet and paused for breath. Both of them were sucking in air but it was clear that King had more stamina to spare and regained his composure quickly. Griffith meanwhile rested with one hand against the barrier cage as he powered down. His pretty boy looks were now covered up with bruises and sweat and he was breathing heavily. King simply waited for him to make his next move while Griffith caught his breath. He looked over at his Sensei who was giving him a look that instilled pure terror in his heart. He nodded in response, regained his composure and attacked him again with a series of powerful punches and kicks all aimed to destroy but King just flowed around them like water or redirected them away from him in a constant loop until Griffith finally began running out of fumes and he had to pause to catch his breath. At which point, King resumed his attack with a series of punching body blows and jaw strikes before ending it with a powerful spinning kick to his stomach. Griffith smacked against the wall and dropped.

He tried to push himself up and nearly got up to his feet one last time and then he fell to his knees and then fell on his face.

The fight was over.

King Alyx Himura had won and Dethroned the Demolition Devils.

The crowd, the fans and the opposing dojos went wild as King pumped his tired fist into the air!

Griffith rolled onto his back and stared up at the ceiling until King walked over and offered his hand. Griffith stared at him for a minute before he weakly grasped it. It was a triumphant moment of action, excitement and true sportsmanship that would forever be remembered as the beginning of King's thrilling career.

And the start of Griffith's life going downhill.

Rico stopped the car outside of Griffith's house's gate. "How are you holding up?"

"Still feeling like crap." He sighed and laid back against the seat. "Holy hell what was that punch?"

"Are you referring to that machine gun punch of his?"

"Yeah...crap I think he broke something. Dammit what kind of training did that lady give him?"

"Some kind of magic, man. It had to be. Don't worry about it though. You just rest up okay? We'll get him next time."

The gate opened and Rico drove him to the front door where the house staff was waiting for him. "Next time. Thanks man."

"Anytime. I'll swing by tomorrow with the car if you're up to it."

"Yeah, cool. Just...keep an eye on her okay? And bring her back with a full tank of gas."

"Yes sir!" He saluted. They fist bumped and Griffith groaned while dragging himself up and exiting the car. He waved goodbye as his friend drove off. Griffith walked up to the steps and handed the trophy to Layton.

"I'm sorry about the match, Master Richardson. You fought well."

"I'm okay, thanks." He replied and walked up the long staircase and pushed open the doors. "I'm going to sleep. I'll see you in the morning."

Layton snapped his fingers and a maid hurried over to help walk him inside and through the mansion to his room where he finally got himself into bed. "Thanks, Lilly."

"Of course, sir. Sleep well." She bowed her head and walked out of the room.

Griffith sighed and closed his eyes. "I don't think that'll be a problem..." He collapsed, deflated and passed out as sleep took him.