The Training of Pain*********************Jaden woke up to the sound of chains and shouting.The air was thick and hot. The smell of sweat, blood, and old food filled his nose. Around him, other men sat in cages—some sleeping, some staring blankly at the ground.He had hoped it was a dream. But when he moved, the pain in his ribs reminded him it was real.He was still here.He was still a slave.A loud whistle cut through the silence. A guard walked in, carrying a whip. Behind him was Kael, the man Jaden met yesterday.“Wake up, worms!” the guard shouted. “Training starts now!”One by one, the cages opened. Men stepped out slowly, their chains clinking with every move. Jaden followed, not knowing what else to do.Kael’s eyes met his. “You’re still alive,” he said with a half-smile. “Good. Let’s see if you can stay that way.”They were taken outside to a large open yard surrounded by high stone walls. The sun was already burning hot. Wooden dummies, heavy stones, and weapon racks were

The Birth of a WarriorThe morning came too soon. Jaden’s body still ached from the fight, but Kael didn’t give him time to rest.“Get up,” Kael said, kicking the leg of the bench where Jaden slept. “You think one win makes you strong?”Jaden groaned and sat up. The smell of blood still clung to his hands even after washing them the night before. He didn’t answer.Kael threw him a short spear. “Today, you train with this.”Jaden caught it clumsily. The wood was rough and heavy. He stared at it for a moment, then looked at Kael.“What’s the point of this?” Jaden asked.Kael walked around him slowly. “The point is to stay alive. You’ve learned to kill one man. Now you must learn to kill ten.”Jaden frowned but said nothing. Kael pointed to a group of fighters across the yard. “They’re from the north. Strong arms, quick feet. You will fight them — one after another — until you can’t stand anymore.”Jaden’s chest tightened. “What if they kill me?”Kael smirked. “Then you’ll die a warrior,

The Fighter ReturnsJaden stood outside the MMA gym, staring at the large sign above the glass door.It read “OctaFight Training Center.”The same place he used to train before everything changed.He touched the scar on his arm — except, there was no scar anymore. His skin was clean. Still, when he closed his eyes, he could feel the pain from the battles in the other world.The sound of swords. The smell of blood. Kael’s voice.He shook his head. “It was just a dream,” he whispered to himself. “Just a dream.”But it didn’t feel like one.When he opened the door, the smell of sweat and rubber mats filled the air. Fighters were training inside, punching bags and sparring. Some stopped when they saw him.“Yo, Jaden! You’re alive!” one of them shouted.Another guy laughed. “Man, we thought you were gone for good! What happened to you?”Jaden forced a smile. “Just… needed rest.”They welcomed him back like an old friend, but he felt strange. Their faces looked the same, their voices sounde

Who am I?The honking sound from the cars and the loud noise from the street sounded more like being in the arena where he was caged and he had to fight for his life. Jaden's legs felt calculated. His vision was sharp, it was as if he was being haunted. Each man walking past him felt like every opponent he had to take on. Every man he had to beat the hell out of. For him, they were all fighters. He shook his head one more time trying to balance reality with whatever was going on inside his head but it was too late. Jaden collided with a man in his early forties. His face was having marks and his jaws were uneven. " Watch where you are going boy!" he snapped in anger.But Jaden's fighting mode kicked in. He grabbed the men by the shirt and threw a jab at his face. The man was slow, too slow. The blow landed on his face with a loud thud sending him back to the ground in a flash. Many of the ongoing lookers stopped. Their gaze darting back at the man whose whose was broken and Jad

The Beast InsideJaden knew he was losing himself little by little.He could barely focus anymore, and whenever he was alone, his body felt weak and tired. Yet the fire inside him — the desire to prove himself, to show the world he wasn’t the loser they thought he was — kept burning.He remembered the night he fought Park. The way Park’s body fell, broken. Park had been one of Damon’s best fighters. The memory made Jaden sigh heavily as he slumped into the soft chair in his room.Everything had been good since he joined Riker. He had time to train, time to fight — no one holding him back. No coach shouting at him. No one telling him to stop.The rage kept him going, even when his mind wandered.“Get your head in the game!” Riker shouted from the stands one night when Jaden froze during a fight.That voice dragged him back — back from wherever his mind had gone. Maybe he needed someone like Riker. Maybe he needed an anchor to stop him from falling too deep into that strange world again