Tales of the Lorekeepers 01 - Rise of the Red Dragon

replied the bully without even looking at Samuel.
    “Yeah, stay down, butt-worm,” echoed one of the cronies.
    “Yeah,” added the other.
    Before Samuel could react, Danny hit Lucian a third time with all his strength, sending the poor boy to the ground, where he clutched his nose and gasped for air. Before the bully could deliver a kick to the side of his friend, Samuel launched himself at Danny, hitting him in the torso with his shoulder and pushing him back a few feet.
    Both boys stood up and stared at each other for a moment.
    “You’re dead, Sam,” whispered the bully.
    “You don’t scare me, Danny. You’re just a stupid bully who got left behind by his friends, because you were too dumb to pass your classes like they did.”
    Samuel was five foot ten already, and weighed a hundred and thirty pounds, a little above average for his age. Danny, however, was already over the six foot mark, with broad shoulders. A crowd of onlookers was quickly growing in size. “I’m going to break your shitty little face,” he said.
    “In five years, Lucian and I will be in college, chasing college girls and preparing our future, while you’ll still be stuck here with kids.”
    “No girl is ever going to want anything to do with the fat carrot over there.”
    Danny pointed at Lucian, who was still writhing on the ground.
    “And I’ll make sure they don’t want anything to do with you, either,” added Danny, looking at Samuel. “I’m going to rearrange your face, you just wait.”
    “They’ll still prefer us to a loser like you, who’s still trying to learn how to spell ‘butthole.’”
    The reference to his intellectual abilities, or lack of them, sent the bully over the edge. Samuel barely had time to notice the squint of Danny’s eyes, before ducking to his right, avoiding a right-handed cross, which would have certainly knocked the senses out of him. Without wasting a moment, Samuel retaliated with a hook of his own to Danny’s exposed ribs, hurting his fist at least as much as he hurt his opponent’s side.
    Danny gasped for breath, and Samuel, now standing a little behind his nemesis, refrained from hitting him in the back, content to simply put his guard up and wait for Danny’s next move.
    Once Danny had regained his composure and caught his breath, he tried to surprise his opponent with an uppercut as he turned. However, he had taken a peek over his shoulder to locate his target, giving away his intentions. Samuel easily slid to his left to avoid the strike. From his new position, he could have jabbed at Danny’s head and delivered another painful blow, but again, he opted to wait and defend himself.
    Danny, however, was not about to let this weakling out of his grasp indefinitely. He may have been a little slow in the head, but he had a lot more fighting experience than Samuel. When you are a professional bully, you develop certain reflexes that can prove useful in situations like this particular one.
    Without providing any warning, his right elbow swiftly pulled back and connected with Samuel’s stomach, before the latter could react and lower his guard. The blow sent every ounce of air out of his lungs and brought a taste of bile into his mouth. Samuel fell to his knees, his legs suddenly powerless.
    Before he could catch his breath, he felt Danny grab hold of his hair and pull his head back. He could see that his face was about to meet Danny’s right knee.
    He braced himself for impact, still hoping to catch a merciful breath of fresh air.
    “Danny, Mr. Seymour is coming!” yelled one of the two scavengers.
    At the mention of the principal’s name, the crowd quickly scattered.
    Samuel felt Danny pull harder on his hair, bringing his head back even farther.
    “If I were you, I’d change schools and never come back here,” said Danny, before letting go of his prey and running away.
    Samuel sat panting. He felt someone’s hands on his shoulder.
    “Come on, Sammy,” said Lucian. “Let’s go before Mr. Seymour gets here and finds us lying on the ground.”
    Samuel struggled to get back to his feet, but with the help of Lucian, he was able to grab his bag and make his way to the bus before the principal caught them. He would have hated to get in trouble after his parents had congratulated him on his excellent grades the night before.
    A few minutes later, the bus filled with students was on his way out of the parking lot.
    “Thanks for standing up to that idiot,” said