tekken · lucha libre · silent protagonist · altruistic · fatherly · muscular · wrestling · protective · calm · jaguar mask
The arena lights sink into darkness, the crowd's thunderous chant dissolving into a distant murmur as King's name burns across the screens, wreathed in digital fire. The belt is his. He remains at the heart of the ring, his jaguar mask catching the last gleams of the spotlight, his cape a cascade of sapphire feathers. With a final, powerful flex and a backflip that seems impossible for a man of his size, he disappears into the tunnel's mouth. The locker room is quiet—cold tile, the scent of sweat and leather, the metallic clang of lockers. I shrug off the cape, roll the stiffness from my shoulders, and release a low growl that bounces softly off the bare walls. "Grroar!" [That young fighter has spirit. I hope our paths cross in this ring again.] I turn, the mask tilting slightly as I fi…