Song Recommendation# 'Playground' by 'Bea Miller'

"The Death Match"

It felt as if they could touch the ink of the night sky if rose a hand, high like a mountain, the death ring on top of the sky scrapper was enough to make faint-hearted flee. Open roof, glass walls with one end open for a free fall anyone willed for. The glass floor underneath was as strong as the steel itself but looked as fragile as the ticking clocks of their lives who dared to stand on it. Same magenta lights with fire torches around the place added just the perfect spice, renowned names from all around the underworld had gathered to witness the death match that was scheduled for tonight.

~Who told you what was down here?
Come along if you wanted a peek
I've seen your face around here
Come alone, tell me under the table
What do you seek?~

The one to reward the winner stood at the gods' tier, the she-devil. Hazel eyes glowed in the hues of magenta lights as they scanned through the ring, spotting tonight's players.

Deadshot.

Ripper.

Black knight.

And-

Her brow crooked up to the unfamiliar yet striking face standing in one of the four corners of the ring.

Who is that?

She pressed her tongue against the insides of her cheek, her attention oozing with the stoic and unforgiving gaze of hers as she fixated on the new face.

"Who is that, Jungkook?"

Jungkook followed the direction of her gaze, his eyes landing upon a man with imposing broad shoulders. The man worked on tying the ribbons around his hands. As he flexed his muscles, his face came into view, revealing black hair, large eyes, a distinct Roman nose, and full lips. His tall stature and broad shoulders exuded strength, while his smooth skin highlighted the well-built muscles that lay beneath.

"I don't know, never saw him before" She raised a hand signaling the need for assistance to which Arrow hurried his way toward the gods tier section, yet he never came alone. His hassled moves earned the attention of the new face in the ring and his gaze followed where the French man went up to.

And there he saw that one pair of honey eyes over the half-masked face that stole his breath and focus. Their eyes met as he watched the girl with hazel eyes bore holes already through his existence with her piercing gaze. He turned towards her facing his full appearance to the former's eyes with an intent stare observing the she-devil. Venom felt a strong force coming out of that gaze, it was strong, daring, and held a potential, the two held a strong gaze without a blink until Seokjin broke it first as the buzzer was pressed.

It was just a glance away that returned and when he peered back to her, she caught a fleeting glimpse of a small smirk on his lips, a glimpse that disappeared as quickly as it had emerged. Intrigued, she sensed that this man held a depth beyond what initially met the eye. Her curiosity piqued, she found herself eager to uncover the secrets behind his audacious nature, considering his courage to play her deadly game.

"You want to play with the devil pretty one? Let's see how good you are"

~Welcome to the playground, follow me
Tell me your nightmares and fantasies
Sink into the wasteland underneath
Stay for the night, I'll sell you a dream~

With the press of the buzzer, the players were propelled into the enclosed cage, the door sealing shut and the chains locking them in. There was no turning back now. Seokjin judged his surroundings, his gaze shifting to the three other individuals who stood in the locked space with him. And all he saw was their faces oozing wildness like animals. They huffed and glared at each other as if desperate to tear the other apart limb by limb. Meanwhile, Jungkook returned and took his seat by Venom's side.

"He placed his stage name as 'nameless', the rest he thinks is not required to tell" Her brows knitted together hearing him.

Right! Nameless it is then, Let's see if you die ignored too, or not.

There is no referee or anyone to stop or instruct the players, so it is really a death match huh? Seokjin thought.

The doors were sealed shut with bars that slid past one press of the button under her finger and just like that the match began.

Oh boy! It surely was not a child's play, no matter why it's called the death match. In the far corners of the cage, the two burly men engaged in a fierce brawl, growling and roaring at each other. Meanwhile, the man next to Seokjin lunged at him aggressively. His eyes widened in response, and he swiftly ducked to evade a massive fist that was aimed at his face. However, the man's relentless assault didn't cease, as he skillfully swung his leg between Seokjin's feet, causing him to fall hard onto the ground, face first. The force of the fall burst Seokjin's lip, and blood spurted from the injury.

As the man mounted him, grabbing his hair and pulling his head back, Seokjin let out a groan of pain. A snort slipped past as she spectated the sight of the pretty man being floored in a mere one kick. It left the hazel-eyed girl to look away obviously not pleased. Seokjin glanced up, noticing the person he had come here didn't even recognize his presence, clearly bored by his frail start of the game.

Who the hell does she think she is to give me a blind eye? She needs to look me in the eye when I grab her men one by one by the neck and kill them just like how she will end up in my hands after them.

This left a surge of anger within him, adrenaline coursing through his veins as he was reminded of his purpose for being there. He huffed with resolve and pushed himself to fight back against his assailant.

"Not today" Reaching back and tightly grasping the long hair of the man atop him. With a powerful yank, he pulled the man forward, causing him to crash to the floor with a resounding thud. The man, now revealed as the Black Knight, let out a groan looking staggered at the guy's sudden counterattack.

The former wasted no time, latching forth to gain the upper hand. He swiftly grabbed the Black Knight's arm, twisting it behind his back and popping his arm out of the socket of his shoulder. As the other writhed in pain, Seokjin landed a series of well-aimed punches to his face, causing blood to gush from the ripped cheek of the man. The screams of agony only intensified, drawing her attention once more, to the hazel-eyed devil, as she glanced down at the unfolding spectacle.

Glancing up he found her hazel gaze bestowed on to him, he could clearly see the pinch of curiosity causing a spark in her fiery eyes. Seokjin couldn't help but smirk, reveling in the satisfaction of having the attention of the one, he came here for. Oh, it's always satisfying to know your enemy is watching you have your way past their filth, right? The adrenaline pumping through his veins fueled his determination, pushing him to keep fighting with all his might.

His little distractions could cause him much, he never knew until he saw a smirk crawl up her beautiful face and soon, he knew why. An arm being wrapped around his neck, Seokjin found himself being held in a headlock when Ripper latched from behind grabbing him. The latter wheezed and let go of the one he held. Ripper tightened his grip and totally cut off Seokjin's oxygen to which his face turned red and veins popped out of his temples. No matter how hard the boy tried to throw a punch to his face, Ripper would dodge it easily and squeeze his hold tighter around the boy's neck. By now, Seokjin was seeing spots in his vision, wheezing and gasping for air while he could clearly feel the bones of his neck at the edge of being crushed with how the man behind showed no mercy. Swinging his arms around, the latter clutched his fist tight and with all his might he swung it with force and threw it on the former's crotch leaving the one behind to groan biting his lip hard he loosed his grip and Seokjin gasped loudly, he swayed around in his grasp and snaked his arm around ripper's neck, the latter rolled him around and while slamming him down to the floor, he placed a bent knee in the way leaving the latter to land over his knee, crackling of his spine was audible enough followed by his whimpering and screaming right afterwards.

Now, this just got amusing. Venom watched pleased.

"Adding a light spice to the night, enjoy" She muttered to the two men sitting beside her and Jungkook saw her pressing the buzzer once again.

Deadly weapons rained down into the cage. Daggers, blades, thorn chains, and a katana. The glint of the shining metal caught her eye. Crossing her arms over her chest, she watched with anticipation as the injured men, driven by arrogance, lunged towards the weapons, each grabbing their chosen one to slaughter the other. Seokjin, well aware of the dangerous turn events had taken, glanced up at the girl, meeting her sinister grin. He understood all too well what awaited them now. The atmosphere in the cage became even more charged with tension, as the fight for survival escalated to a new level of ferocity.

Feeling the sudden shift of air with the brutality of violence, his steps shrunk back and Seokjin found himself being cornered in the opposite portion. Now, seeing his vulnerable state the three men latched forth towards him and swung their weapons. No matter how hard Seokjin tried and dodged most of the attacks, he still earned deep cuts over his left shoulder, chest and gashes around his back. Heavy breaths turned into huffs with his existence dripping blood yet his gaze seemed avid. Ducking down and swinging his leg in between the feet of three men forth making them trip and fall on their faces. Seokjin took the chance, jumping against the cage walls he dodged the opponents and landed on the other side. The skillful abilities of the handsome male earned him many eyes in awe including the hazel ones and now a weapon in his hand, she could already see the future, The men got up and latched forth towards him. Seokjin pulled the sharp katana up, hands curled around firmly, he swung and lashed it in response, the fight was quite amusing with the cheering applause from around.

One by one he sliced their arms and limbs off huffing at how his body burned with the sting of wounds on his existence, With a stern gaze he curled his fingers around the blade tightly, and swung it around, the slicing sound erupted with gurgles of dying men on display. The three most known men were lying dead with a nameless holding their souls in his hand. He looked up towards the she-devil with the most forbidding gaze ever earning a lazy smirk from the honey-eyed girl.

She reached her hand forth, eyes stuck to the blood-drenched existence down there pressed the last buzzer that had never been pressed ever to date.

Beware. She mouthed to him with an intensifying eerie malice in those honey orbs.

"He gets to live? he gets to not?" She mumbled while the insides of the space filled with boisterous applause and cheers, the excitement reached a fever pitch. The crowd seemed to revel in the brutal spectacle unfolding before them, some even cruelly taunting Seokjin, considering him to be nothing more than a piece of "dead meat."

Despite his sore and aching muscles, Seokjin tightened his grip on the katana, his eyes scanning the surroundings. The bars slid open with a whistling sound, and the door to the cage opened, drawing his attention. The clamor in the room grew even louder leaving the boy to shrink his steps back. Turning his gaze towards the entrance, he finally set his eyes on a pair of glowing eyes, standing out like beacons in the dimly lit arena.

Seokjin frowned and tried to look at it clearly when all of a sudden the creature stepped out. A white Siberian tiger, its steps so powerful so intimidating so intense as its eyes, so beautiful luring the prey into its trap.

The tiger stepped forth gracefully as the cheers in the room swelled even louder. Seokjin's eyes widened in shock, stumbling backward. He found himself staring into the fierce eyes of the tiger, feeling a sense of fear wash over him.

A thick aching gulp forced itself past his throat but he wrapped his hands firmly over the handle he raised the katana but before he could act, the tiger swiftly lunged at him, knocking the katana out of his hands, leaving him defenseless. In one swift motion, Snow's claws raked across Seokjin's face, sending him hurtling backward to collide with the cage's wall. Seokjin fell to the ground, groaning in pain from the brutal impact. The once eager and adrenaline-fueled atmosphere of the room now turned tense and silent, as everyone watched the intense confrontation between man and beast already smelling the arrival of the man's deadly fate.

Seokjin whimpered, his hands clutching at the deep gash on his stomach, as he groaned in pain. Struggling to move, he tried to crawl away, but the tiger leaped over him and pinned him down. Seokjin screamed in agony as the weight of Snow's paws pressed down on his arms, leaving him helpless.

With his eyes closed, Seokjin braced himself for the inevitable, expecting the beast to chop off the boy's head. But to his surprise, the pressure lessened, and when he cautiously opened his eyes, he saw the beast stepping back with its head hung low, almost as if bowing to him.

Confused by this unexpected turn of events, Seokjin sensed a shadow behind him. Craning his neck, he saw the familiar face of the hazel-eyed girl peering down at him, standing in the ring behind him. Her enigmatic presence added another layer of intrigue to the already intense situation.

Averting her gaze from the former, she stepped over his body and walked forth to the beast, raising her hands to it to which the beast instantly leaped in.

"Snow, my boy Calm down"

Seokjin watched how the girl let the beast feast on the dead bodies lying on the floor, seeing its pure animalistic nature, he felt lucky to not end up the same as them. The doors to the cage were unlocked and pulled open. The men grabbed the last survivor and threw him out of it.

"Receive your prize and leave"

"Wait, I have demands" The said leaving the two men sniggering with laughter.

"Count yourself as the luckiest man to still be alive, now get out"

"I said I have demands, is your master such a coward to listen to them?" The room fell into a hushed silence, all eyes now fixed on the mysterious figure who had been pulling the strings from behind the scenes. The tension in the air was palpable, as his words struck her ears and she raised her hand. It had become a showdown between the fearless contender and the hidden puppeteer, with their motives locked in a high-stakes battle.

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ℑ𝔶𝔞𝔫𝔨𝔶𝔬𝔲 𝔣𝔬𝔯 𝔯𝔢𝔞𝔡𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔳𝔬𝔱𝔢 𝔠𝔬𝔪𝔪𝔢𝔫𝔱 𝔞𝔫𝔡 𝔞𝔡𝔡 𝔱𝔬 𝔶𝔬𝔲𝔯 𝔯𝔢𝔞𝔡𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔩𝔦𝔰𝔱𝔰.
𝔜𝔬𝔲𝔯 𝔟𝔢𝔩𝔬𝔳𝔢𝔡 𝔞𝔲𝔱𝔥𝔬𝔯
𝕍𝕍

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