Spitting mouthful blood into the sand, Rob stood trembling as if a breathing would just blow him down. 

"Get up, you stinky son of bitch!" heaping curses on the other man who was unable to put himself together after days of training and fighting, the drillmaster whipped the man. The whining died down with the wind, Rob knew the man could never stand up and his body was cleaned out to feed the wolf in the wild. 

It has been six months since he was kidnapped to this hell and became a slave. Together, there were 100 slaves at the very beginning. Everyday, they get up when the sun rise to take the training and stayed alert at night to avoid sneak raids by other slaves. At the bottom of food chain, the 100  died one after another, and decreased into 5. Only the best four can survive and get out of the camp to become an assassin.  And Today is the day. Without swords or internal force, fist and brain are the only weapons. 

"I don't want to kill others, but I have to go back home. My parents are waiting for me. I have to win and get out of here" Rob talked to himself. With the arm bleeding badly, he torn a stripe of cloth to bandage the wound.

"Watch out!" dragged to the corner of a mound, Rob found himself covered by the other slave. 

"No need to thank me. The other three have united and would terminate us first.  I have observed you for a while. Maybe we can cooperate temporarily" The man whispered, with his eyes looking around vigilantly. 

"why me"? Rob kept a close watch on the strange person whose face was masked by mud and sand. But he could tell this man belonged to the west for the typical western look. 

"I have observed for a long time. You are strong and capable, but never take the initiative to attack anyone. " The man murmured "I have no choice since the other three have pulled together".

Before Rob could answer, someone came nearer. 

"Come out" a deep sound reached through the air "you two can fight each other, and whoever survive the duel would be our person."

A single peep alarmed Rob that the three guys were physically strong and fit, while he and the western lad were wounded. There was little chance that they two could defeat those three.  

The step came even nearer. Looking into the western pal's eyes, Rob jumped out and pulled one of them down, while the western pal immediately broke his head. 

Both of them  burst into laughter and collapsed.