MAXIMUS: System Of The Underdog

Chapter twenty three: Never Give Up

Kael’s grip tightened like an iron vice around Max’s leg. Before Max could react, Kael dragged him across the floor, the tiles scraping his back raw. Then, with a guttural roar, Kael swung him overhead and hurled him into the ground. The impact rattled Max’s bones, forcing the air from his lungs in a choking gasp.

Dazed, Max struggled up on trembling arms. His vision swam, but Kael was already there, moving like a predator.

WHAM!

A fist slammed into Max’s ribs.

BAM!

An elbow cracked against his jaw.

THUD!

A knee drove into his stomach, folding him like paper.

Each strike tore deeper into his body, leaving him staggering like a puppet barely holding its strings. His breaths came ragged, blood dripping down his lip, his legs unsteady.

Kael sneered. “What’s wrong, boy? You slowing down?”

Max’s body screamed for rest. His swollen eye barely opened, yet he refused to drop. Step after step, he forced himself forward—toward Kael.

Then, with a weak grunt, he threw a punch.

It barely grazed Kael’s chest.

Kael froze, staring down at him—then burst into cruel laughter. “That’s it? That’s all you have left?”

But before the laughter could finish—

BOOM!

Kael’s body launched backward, sent flying across the room as if struck by a sledgehammer. His boots skidded against the floor, carving lines into the tile until he slammed into the far wall, coughing.

Max wobbled, lips twitching into a bloody grin. A faint system notification flickered across his vision:

[Critical Hit Activated]

His swollen eye narrowed. “Still think it’s funny?”

Kael dragged himself up, shaking his head, actually gasping for air. The punch—weak as it looked—had crushed into his core. “What… was that?”

But Max didn’t give him time.

With a sudden roar, Max sprinted, ramming into Kael with all his weight. Both fighters crashed through a railing and tumbled down the wide spiral staircase.

As the world spun in chaos, Max’s mind slipped to a memory—

He was small again, no older than seven. Sitting cross-legged on the floor with a controller in his hands. On screen, a giant boss monster towered over his tiny character. No matter how many times he tried, he lost. Again. And again.

Frustrated tears rolled down his cheeks. “I can’t do it, Mom… it’s too strong…”

Amanda Johnson’s heart ached. She left the room for a moment, returning with a cone of ice cream to cheer him up. But when she entered, she froze.

Little Max was smiling, eyes gleaming. “Mom! Look! I did it!” He shoved the screen toward her—the boss monster lay defeated.

Amanda blinked. “But… how?”

Max sniffled, still teary-eyed but glowing with pride. “The stun slam wasn’t just to knock them down. It was to throw them from high up… the harder the fall, the faster they break.”

Amanda set the ice cream aside, kneeling beside him. She ruffled his hair, pulling him close. “Max, listen to me. Strength isn’t everything. Sometimes, you’ll fight someone stronger. But if you never give up… if you keep going even when it hurts… you’ll always find a way.”

Her smile, warm and unshakable, etched into his soul.

The memory shattered as Max and Kael slammed together down the stairs, rolling, smashing into edges, trading blows mid-fall.

Kael snarled, fists hammering Max’s back. “You… can’t… win!”

Max’s arms locked around Kael’s head. His aura burned hot, blue sparks of lightning snapping across his body. His mother’s words echoed in his heart like a battle drum.

“Never give up…” he whispered, blood running down his cheek. His grip tightened.

Then his roar split the air.

“STUN SMASH!!”

Blue lightning erupted, wrapping Max like a storm. He wrenched Kael’s skull downward with impossible force, slamming it against the edge of the final stair.

The world shook. The staircase cracked apart. Kael’s body cratered into the ground with an earth-splitting BOOM. Dust and rubble rained around them.

The system chimed in Max’s ears.

[Elite Monster Defeated]

Kael’s body twitched once, then stilled.

Max slumped to his knees, chest heaving, his vision darkening. Relief, exhaustion, and disbelief washed over him all at once. A broken laugh escaped his lips. “I… I did it…”

But joy didn’t last long.

He staggered up, wiping blood from his swollen face, and turned his eyes toward the upper floor. His heart squeezed.

Jacob.

He forced his battered body to climb back up, each step agony. When he reached the rooftop, the sight froze him cold.

Jacob lay sprawled across the floor, blood pooling beneath him. His chest rose and fell shallowly, barely breathing.

And towering over him

Victor.

A cruel grin spread across Victor’s face as he wiped blood from his knuckles. “Oh, look who finally crawled back.”

Max’s relief shattered into dread. The real nightmare had just begun.