CHAPTER 48: CHAPTER 48: JAVIER VS WELLS IV- THE FINAL BELL

The bell cuts through the noise like thunder. Both fighters walk toward center ring with nothing left to hide. Wells took the first round clean. Javier clawed back in the second. Round three decides who goes home and who fights Monday for the quarterfinals.

No dancing around this time. No testing jabs or careful footwork. Wells drives forward immediately, his pressure training kicking in. Javier meets him halfway, Vicente’s coaching burning fresh in his mind.

Wells throws rapid combinations to Javier’s body - jab, hook, jab again. His form stays perfect even at full speed. Javier responds with his own work, double jab to Wells’s chest guard, then a left hook that thumps into his ribs.

[JAB SKILL +0.1, CURRENT: 22.4/100]

[HOOK SKILL +0.1, CURRENT: 17.6/100]

[ENDURANCE: 10/100 → 9/100]

Vicente stands at ringside, his form solid as before. "WORK THE BODY! STAY BUSY! MAKE HIM CARRY YOUR WEIGHT!"

The ghost’s voice reaches Javier through the chaos. Following the instruction, Javier increases his output. More combinations, constant movement forward, leaning his weight into Wells whenever they get close. Short hooks to the body, quick jabs to keep Wells guessing.

Dr. Vasquez leans forward in her seat, hands pressed together. During the first round, she’d looked ready to climb through the ropes herself. Now her face shows something different - belief starting to build where fear used to live.

Wells answers with textbook pressure work - a steady four-punch combination that lands mostly on Javier’s guard. Hook, cross, hook, jab. All thrown with proper form, feet always moving. But Javier doesn’t panic like he did in round one. Doesn’t cover up and wait for the storm to pass.

[ENDURANCE: 9/100 → 7/100]

[DEFENSE SKILL +0.1, CURRENT: 16.7/100]

Javier fires back immediately. Jab, hook, cross - staying active, making Wells carry his weight in the clinches. Two shots connect solidly with Wells’s ribs and chest guard.

Kevin grips his glittery sign so tight the edges crumple. When Wells was dominating early, the kid’s face had gone pale. Now he’s bouncing in his seat, starting to believe his sign might actually mean something.

[CROSS SKILL +0.1, CURRENT: 19.8/100]

[HOOK SKILL +0.1, CURRENT: 16.8/100]

The pace turns vicious. Both pressure fighters unleash everything they’ve learned. Wells maintains his form while throwing rapid sequences - jab, hook, cross to the body. Never stopping, always working. Javier matches him punch for punch, hook, jab, hook combinations that keep Wells on his toes.

Working behind constant jabs, Javier sets up something beautiful. Quick jab to get Wells’s attention. Another jab to the body. Then, as Wells ducks low, a perfectly timed right uppercut that catches him flush under the chin.

The shot lifts Wells to his toes. For the first time all fight, his legs betray him. He grabs Javier instantly, using proper clinch work to buy time while his head clears.

The Marcus Garvey section loses their minds. "FINISH HIM! FINISH HIM!" Dr. Vasquez stands on her chair, screaming. Tommy pounds the barrier until his knuckles bleed.

Even the neutral fans who’d been watching politely start getting loud. This isn’t the mismatch they thought they were seeing. The group home kid is actually fighting back.

[UPPERCUT SKILL +0.2, CURRENT: 14.5/100]

[JAB SKILL +0.1, CURRENT: 22.5/100]

[CONFIDENCE: HIGH]

The referee breaks them apart. "Box!"

Wells’s balance looks better, but his eyes show new respect. He’s no longer the dominant fighter from round one.

Javier presses forward with intelligence, not desperation. He works Wells’s body with quick combinations - hook, jab, hook to the ribs. Never giving Wells time to set his feet. When Wells tries to tie up, Javier pushes him off with his shoulder and gets back to work.

Wells fires back with steady combination work that shows his training. Three-punch sequence to Javier’s body - jab, hook, cross. All landing on the chest guard and ribs. But Javier stays calm and answers right back.

[DEFENSE SKILL +0.1, CURRENT: 16.9/100]

[CROSS SKILL +0.1, CURRENT: 19.7/100]

Wells, sensing the fight is even, increases his work rate. His experience shows as he throws constant, busy combinations while keeping proper form.

Wells unleashes the kind of volume that wins fights. Quick four-punch combinations to the body - hook, jab, hook, cross, followed immediately by jab, hook, jab. His combinations are sharp, technical, constant. Pressure fighting designed to overwhelm through work rate rather than power.

David’s mouth hangs open watching the exchange. The younger kids had never seen this level of violence up close. Both fighters throwing punches faster than they could count.

[ENDURANCE: 7/100 → 5/100]

[DEFENSE SKILL +0.3, CURRENT: 17.0/100]

Javier covers up smart, using his defensive skills. He rolls with combinations, absorbs shots on his arms and chest guard, waits for Wells to slow down between flurries so he can fire back.

As Wells finishes a five-punch combination to the body, Javier immediately counters. Quick hook to Wells’s ribs, jab to his chest guard, another hook that catches Wells as he resets his feet. The shots stop Wells’s momentum cold.

[HOOK SKILL +0.2, CURRENT: 17.9/100]

[RING IQ +0.1, CURRENT: 13.1/100]

Vicente’s voice cuts through everything: "STAY BUSY! MATCH HIS WORK RATE!"

Following the guidance, Javier unleashes his best boxing of the entire fight. Constant combinations - hook, jab, cross to the body, jab, hook, jab to the chest guard, quick uppercut when Wells drops his head. He matches Wells’s work rate punch for punch, proving he belongs at this level.

Wells responds with his own high work rate, but both fighters show the fatigue of constant combination throwing. Their technique stays sharp but the pace is draining them both.

[ENDURANCE: 5/100 → 4/100]

[JAB SKILL +0.1, CURRENT: 22.6/100]

[HEART +0.1, CURRENT: 15.1/100]

With ten seconds left, both fighters empty their tanks with pure boxing volume. Wells with jab, hook, cross, hook combination. Javier with hook, jab, hook, uppercut sequence. Multiple punches landing at once, both fighters working at championship pace, both refusing to slow down.

The final bell rings just as both fighters load up for more punches. They fall into each other’s arms, completely spent, having given everything they had.

[ENDURANCE: 4/100]

[CONDITION: COMPLETELY DRAINED]

[PERFORMANCE: CHAMPIONSHIP LEVEL]

Javier and Wells lean on each other for support, too exhausted to stand alone. Sweat and blood mix on the canvas beneath their feet. The crowd gives them a standing ovation that shakes the building.

Both fighters show the wear immediately. Javier’s hands start swelling from the volume of punches thrown. Wells blinks hard, still feeling that uppercut behind his eyes. The kind of bone-deep fatigue that hits when adrenaline starts fading settles over both of them.

The entire venue erupts in appreciation for the fight they just witnessed. Even Wells’s supporters applaud Javier’s heart and improvement. This was boxing at its finest - skill, heart, and determination on full display.

Miguel rushes into the ring with ice and towels, his face beaming with pride regardless of the outcome. But even through his emotion, his coaching mind is already working. He’s cataloging what Javier did right - the body work, the combination punching, the way he stayed composed under pressure. Notes he’ll need for Monday’s preparation.

Across the ring, Wells’s corner works to cool him down. Both fighters have given everything.