Jax In Chants| A flash fiction story
77 of 💯
The warden chugged a large mug of beer and beamed at the makeshift ring built in the yard. Her guards rushed to their chairs, joking and laughing. Guards from other workers’ facilities had traveled the rocky desert in their belters just to see the spectacle, their eyes shining with excitement.
Jax stepped into the ring — a raised platform in the center of the yard, inundated by a searchlight — showered by the shouting of the guards. His eyes were on the warden. He still remembered her expression from all those years ago. “Happy to have you,” she had said with a smile when he stepped into the yard, the same dirty creases on her forehead.
Rick entered the ring and the crowd roared. A chant started in the back and gathered supporters until it filled the entire yard: “Jax! Jax! Jax!” Rick dismissed the teasing with the wave of his hand.
Jax still had his eyes on the warden. He was deaf to the chanting, deaf to the ringing of the bell, blind to Rick stepping toward him.
Rick punched him right across the jaw, sending blood up in the air and making the crowd cheer. Jax’s mind was forced back into the ring, and he tried to punch Rick but the chain held his fist back. He winced at the cuts caused by the shackles on his wrists and the crowd laughed.
“This is stupid,” Rick said before punching him again. Jax stumbled back and Rick stepped on the chains on his ankles, making him fall.
As he tried to pull himself up, he saw the warden. Something had changed on her face. She wasn’t smiling anymore, and the creases on her forehead had a different shape. She looked… sad. No. Afraid? Of him? For him?
Before any of the drunk guards understood what was happening, Jax rolled out of the ring and covered the distance to her in two massive jumps, pushed forward by a sudden will to live.
Maybe the guards were right, Jax had no brains. There was no clear plan here. But they were wrong about one thing: he still had hope.
< Jax In Chains | Jax In Chants | Jax Unchained >
