Chapter 2 : Red Fury

Behind those walls was a world different from the silence in the alleys. The atmosphere was filled with intense energy from the roar of engines and the chaotic cheers of a crowd.

This was the Arena. At first glance, it seemed like a sprawling cavern illuminated with harsh neon lights buzzing ominously, yet it was Sicily's largest illegal racing track. 

The air reeked of oil, sweat, and expensive cologne. This venue, carved under the city, was an exclusive haven for society's most powerful. Money couldn't buy entry here—membership was earned, often through blood and grit.

Every member would sign a Non-disclosure agreement, before being allowed to participate.

Back to the excitement of the night; it was different;

Red Fury was back. 

Two seasons ago, the reigning champion, Venom—a top racer and international figure—had been dethroned in the most dramatic fashions.

The race had taken place on The Devil’s Tongue, the most treacherous track in the Arena. This section was a nightmare: narrow paths skirting the edge of a yawning cliff, sudden dips, and razor-sharp bends. It was a death trap disguised as a racecourse.

…………..

Two seasons ago

“Go home kid, this is no place for whinny little Mama's boys” the racing referee spat at the frail-looking rider beside him. 

The rider had soft features, with tiny arms like twigs_ resembling a Willow tree standing in a storm. But his eyes were different _ those honeyed eyes were filled with an undeterred will.

“Hey, Romano who is this lad” The voice was filled with a hint of cockiness and laced pride. The voice belonged to no other than Venom_ the undefeated star of the track. 

“Just some lad with wishful thinking” Romano's tone this time was filled with respect as he gave face to Venom.

He turned to the frail-looking rider and scoffed, thinking to himself that the young lad was probably a second-generation rich lad with connections to get into the arena. 

“If I compete with him and win, will I be allowed to race” the frail rider inquired

“Hahaha”

“Look this young lad wants to defeat Venom” Romano shouted out tauntingly, sneering at the rider.

The arena shook with laughter and jeers

“Aye lad, be a good boy and come sit with Mummy,” said Paula, a rich widow infamous for sleeping with young riders. 

The crowd burst into jeers of agreement. 

Venom was taken aback and looked at the frail rider with a mix of shock and amusement.

“Don't tell me you are scared to compete with a newbie like me” the frail rider said, sending a sharp taunting look to Venom.

‘This is getting interesting’, a voice came from the VIP section of the arena. 

“ Aah I bet you Venom will crush this one like powder” someone shouted 

“That's a very predictable wager, let's bet how long this one will last before Venom crushes him” another called out 

“Aye! I say 2 seconds, with his twig-like arms, he probably hasn't driven a race bike”

From the VIP section

“I bet $1,000,000 on the new rider,” the previous man said in a commanding tone that silenced the booing crowd. 

“Aaahhhhh”

“Is that not willingly losing money?” the others in the room thought but no one dared to voice that opinion. 

The one who placed the bet was Leornado Morano, the Devil himself.

…………..

 The riders approached the selection board. The Arena had four tracks on the display: The Arch, The Typhoon, The Scythe, and The Devil’s Tongue. These four tracks were arranged in order of difficulty

The Arch was very smooth but filled with curvy roads and trails yet it was the easiest racecourse and was usually reserved for amateur riders who were merely testing out their control.

The Typhoon was windy and had rough terrain

The Scythe was a smooth road but with terrifying sharp bends.

The Devil's tongue was the most dangerous of them all, located on the cliff. It was a path filled with rough, windy roads and sharp bends. 

“Since you are new, let's compete on the Arch” Venom said flashing a megawatt smile 

The crowd sighed at how thoughtful Venom was to the spoiled brat.

“I choose the Devil's tongue” the frail rider called out.

The arena seized for a millisecond, the crowd was unsure of what they heard. 

“Are you sure,” the Track master said, the frail lad just nodded in acknowledgement and hopped on his bike.

The crowd was thrown into an uproar

The only person who had completed the Devil's Tongue in one piece was Venom. The rest were either dead or bedridden. The last rider had ended with a brain aneurysm from crashing down the cliff.

“I must say that young lad is brave” 

Leonardo Rossini looked at the frail rider below and their eyes met.

He felt a strange familiar feeling staring at those honeyed eyes. 

The race gun went off 

…………..

Venom went off at an ungodly speed leaving the frail rider in dust. 

“Not bad for the top rider” the frail rider thought and stepped on the gas pedal. 

A few minutes into the race, the crowd went wild...

The cheers were drowned with a mixture of disbelief and excitement.

Venom felt something was off, but it was too late, the frail lad had overtaken him with break-neck speed on the track.

“That guy's form is perfect, his control.. he is not an amateur” Venom realized with horror and immediately sensing the danger, he followed in hot pursuit.

Venom tried to execute his popular move where he pretended to block his opponents so that when they tried to divert, he would go back to the same position, causing the opponent to momentarily lose control. 

The crowd watched in anticipation as Venom did his trick. But the frail rider didn’t swerve. Instead, he crashed head-on, his manoeuvre sending Venom skidding off his lane.

The arena was stunned. 

Venom's recovery came quickly, but his confidence was shaken.

They got to the famous devil's tongue and the crowd held their breaths, 

Every rider that crossed this path, slowed down and relied on skill and control to get through. 

Venom neared the path, trying to overtake the Frail rider but he noticed something was off_ the lad wasn't slowing down

He was …he was accelerating! 

Venom thought “ The foolish rider will end up dying here” 

The crowd had mixed feelings, some gloated at the stupidity of the young lad, while others who were somewhat impressed by his performance were unhappy that he was going to end up dead. 

Only one man observed closely and noticed something about the little rider, 

He adjusted his body weight to different directions at each bend allowing his weight to act as a balance to the force so he could accelerate without crashing. 

The crowd waited for the moment he would crash and fall off the cliff but the frail rider didn’t crash. Instead, he shifted his weight fluidly with each turn, mastering the bends with precision. His technique was like an intricate dance of physics and intuition.

There was heavy Chaos in the arena,

The frail rider had successfully crossed the devil's tongue at such a ridiculous speed yet came out unscathed. 

The myth was born…

Red Fury was born that night…

…………..

“You are not a lad” the voice came out from behind the drawers as the frail rider was changing.

She turned her face to the intruder,

“I never said I was and who the heck are you and why are you in this restricted area” She barked back.

Leonardo Morano was amazed when he discovered that the frail rider was his Little Topolina. He now realized why those honeyed eyes felt familiar to him. 

“She didn't recognize him”, he realized

The fearsome daredevil had the nerve to enter the most dangerous arena in the whole of Sicily. 

…………..

Present Day

Alessia made her way with ease through the underground arena. As she passed, She was acknowledged with respect by the staff and many members cast an impressive glance at her.

Here she was not Alessia Rossini, she was Red Fury_ the frail rider that defeated Venom.

Yes, nobody knew she was a Lady

Except the strange man that she met in the locker room on that fateful night and the arena manager, Enzo Morrelli who happened to be her very good friend.

“There you are," Enzo's buttery voice rang out.

Speak of the devil.

Enzo Morrelli was what you could define as a ladies' man, standing at an impressive 6’4 with slightly darkened skin, a chiselled well-proportioned figure and a killer smile. The best thing about Enzo was his charming smile. 

He could get ladies to cream their panties by flashing them his famous smile.

But not her; Enzo was family and they grew up together. Alessia could remember him as the dumb chubby kid, who was always hiding behind her skirt even though he was five years older. 

“Your match starts in 30 minutes, as much as I love you, you have lots of money to make for me” 

That was another trait of Enzo, for a guy who spends so much money on ladies, he works to make it more.

…

From the same spot as the previous two seasons, he watched the little daredevil conquer grown men in the racing arena. 

Soon Topolina Soon …