The Tragedy of Ishmael

Call me, Ishmael. Some years ago, I lost my left arm in a major car accident. The doctor said that my arm was seriously injured and they needed to cut it off or else... I didn't want to hear it, so I just ignored it. Since then, I have never felt happy again. Whenever I touch my wound, I can't stop thinking about it. The indescribable pain, I'll never forget it. Most people that get into a car accident usually lose their sanity, but not me. Right after I was hit by a car, I realized something. I don't know if it was because of the chaos around me or the fact that I might not have been able to use my arm again. Still, I learned that life is short, and I need to do something before I die meaninglessly as a disabled teenager who wastes his parents' money on hospital bills. So I asked myself, do I need to be a millionaire? Or do I need to be famous? Or, do I need to be someone who can stand on his own feet? Which one of those is the determining factor that allows someone to live their life successfully? But, I believe that I need to be someone who other people idolize. I always wanted to be an athlete, but most of the sports out there required a full set of arms. I can't play basketball. I can't play tennis. I can't play badminton. Then, what can I play? When I was young, I always dreamt of being a swordsman, but it's such a silly dream. This is not the Victorian era; you can't just bring out a sword and flick it around like a toy. It's illegal and dangerous, but I've found a sport that only requires one hand and also pursues my dream as a swordsman. I want to be a fencer. A sport with long roots from the old era, the sport of stabbing and flicking a sharp-tipped weapon at your opponent! Fencing it is! 

I was a farm boy from Missouri. But I want to be a fencer. How?! The only fencing school in Springfield, Missouri, is the good old "Stabby Fencing School." Unfortunately, it doesn't suit me. I need to go far from home. To the land that never sleeps. The land of civilization, New York. I'm going to New York. It's the furthest place I've ever gone from home. I'm scared. I'm desperate. I don't have any money. But how much I worry, my family is always supporting me, even though they are not very rich. But they have enough savings for at least one flight to New York. One flight, only one that means that I only have one chance of succeeding. If I don't make it... I don't know. But I haven't decided yet, which styles of fencing I want to learn. There are 3 of them, foil the light one, saber the versatile one, and épée the straightforward one. For me, it's pretty easy to choose. I choose the one that best suits my life, épée; my life is so straightforward; whatever obstacles are in front of me, I dash through it! So, I traveled to none other than Tamir Bloom to study one of the greatest American épée fencers. At first, I didn't know of him, but he got a 5-star on yelp. I don't want to bore you guys with a lot of fencing terms, so I'm going to skip my training part. Although you've kept in mind that I'm a worker bee when it comes to my dream. But I've learned my favorite move from here, 'riposte,' the act that you counterattack when you successfully blocked another attack. It's just like my life when someone insults me or even dares to attack me. I'll parry (block), and RIPOSTE! 

After weeks and weeks of training with Mr.Bloom, I think I'm ready for my first contest. It's not a big contest, but I'm very nervous because it'll be my first and most important step in the fencing world. It's a King of the hill contest. So, you've to fight someone randomly, and if you win, you get the point, then you get to the next person. Until the timer runs out, the person with the most points wins. My first opponent was just a weak boy who had no chance to compete with me. I open first, with only one dash, I hit him. It was so easy with the first 3 people. But after that is where it gets harder. The timer almost runs out, there are only 20 seconds left, and my score is tied with another person, Eli Dershwitz. He's this rookie, roughly my age from the famous academy, but I don't even bother to learn the school name. Unfortunately, I have to fight with him in the last match. I can't lose; there are only 20 seconds on the clock. One of us has to strike. Eli dash directly into me. He's the first person that is fast enough to pass through my guard. He flicks his sword, trying to hit my torso, but... I never got a chance to do this before in this contest. I parry! Then, out of nowhere, RIPOSTE into his throat. I won the contest by one point! 

Normally, when you win a small contest, you climb the ladder to the regional. But not my couch, he said that if he can do it. I can do it. So, Mr.Bloom decided to send me to the USA National Fencing Championship. Unfortunately, I didn't win any of the regional championships. They didn't allow me to join their competition. But because of Mr.Bloom glory as an OG of the fencing community. They allowed me to join their competition exclusively. I don't have enough money to buy a plane ticket to Columbus, Ohio. So, Mr.Bloom will take me on a 9-hour road trip. I think it'll be fun. 

We arrived at the USA National Fencing Championship stadium, and it looks so luxurious. They have a private lounge for me with free meals and drinks! It's like living in a dream! But the contest was about to start. It's a best of three contest. There are three rounds, the first round, semi-final, and the Fi-a-le. The first round was quite easy; I finished him with a straightforward hit to the torso. Then, he slashes me directly into my throat. It's a perfect shot, but, unfortunately, in épée, you cannot slash. You can only slash in saber. So, he didn't get the point. Only one point left, then I'll win. He uses his last strength, as fast as he can, trying to stab my face. But I quickly respond with a 'beat,' which means. I knocked out his sword. Then, I RIPOSTE! I won by 2-0. Next is the semi-final round. I'm terrified and frustrated because my opponent is none other than Mr.Bloom's son. He is too smart for his level. He even outsmarts his own father! The great Tamir Bloom! So, he needs to find another mentor that can really improve him more. But he was a nice guy. He is really polite but, the only problem is he is too good at this. I can't underestimate him. 

The match started. We are staring at each other, waiting for each other to make a move. We starred like that for ten seconds, so the referee had to call out 'no combativity.'...... The fight continued. But, this time, we both are attacking. With no fear, he dashes towards me. So, I did too. But because of my advantage of only having 1 arm, I bow down in a matter of a second. I dodge his attack and then, flicking my sword, then stab directly to his chin. Now it's 1-0. Suppose I can defeat him in the next round. It's over. The match continued; he left no mercy. He dashes toward me fearlessly, like he has some plan but, I don't know. So, I flick my sword directly in front of me but, out of nowhere. He copied my move. He bowed down, then stabbed into my chin. The next round is the determiner, whether I will waste my life playing fencing or actually make a penny out of it. I'm scared and frustrated, but this time is not like others because my life depends on it. My legs are noodles, my tongue is a bristly sponge, and my eyes are like a bag of bleach. I'm frustrated. I'm scared. I'm on an emotional rollercoaster. But the show must go on; I walk out to the stadium, trying to hide my frustration. But I know that he sees right through me. The match started. From this match, I have learned that Tamir Bloom Jr. is a bigger man than an athlete. He did the most embarrassing thing a swordsman can do, to save me from my frustration. He committed a taboo in the fencing world. He turned his back to me. He lost a point immediately, just to let me win. 

My last opponent was this mysterious psychopath named "Alex." No one ever knows his last name. They say that the one that dared to learn his last name or his origin never survived to speak. He is the son of some gang lord called 'El Capitan.' Tomorrow I have to fight this unpredictable psychopath. There is a rumor that his last opponent didn't show up for "a mysterious reason." I'm scared. I'm desperate. I'm frustrated AGAIN! But maybe it's not that bad. Maybe it's just all in my head. AH. Get it OUT! My hands are shaking non-stop, so Mr.Bloom recommended me to go outside and get some air. While I'm walking along the street, I hear a gun triggered. *​GLOCK* ​I slowly look back. That's the first time I ever saw the face of a psychopath. His face is filled with emotion, joyful excitement. It's like he enjoys pointing a gun at others. But in that situation, the only weapon you got left is guile. I pulled out the oldest trick in the book but unexpectedly worked with this psychopath. "What is that!?" At that moment, when he looked back, I rushed back to the hotel and called 911. But who are we kidding? It'll never work with these bastards. 

On the day of the match, I'm so scared that I'm going to die in the match, in some way! The match starts. Alex walks on to the stadium. Suspense is building up. Suddenly, out of nowhere, he pulled a suspicious-looking thing from behind his back. ​*GLOCK* *BANG* .....

It all makes sense now; he is the one in that car. Isn't it? Alex "Kandinsky."' The world is smaller than you think, huh? It's not nice meeting you *giggle*.........