A Fighting Man

"Young Percival, no more than 15,

from the safety of the thicket,

watched the knights pass by.

He perceived they served

a higher calling,

a calling he felt

stirring within him.

Percival asked his mother permission

to journey to King Arthur's court

and seek knighthood.

His mother had long-feared

this moment would come," Sailor.

"Nonetheless, she gave her son

blessing to pursue his quest.

But she warned him, he would

be tested beyond imagination.

Be deprived, know pain and sadness.

Perhaps, never become a knight.

Percival traveled to

King Arthur's court.

There, he met rebuke and ridicule.

For he was not of noble birth,

nor did he possess skill of arms.

In secret, he studied the

ways of the knights.

His plight caught the

eye of Sir Lancelot

who began to mentor him.

During Percival's

ordeal, the Red Knight

an incarnate of darkness,

sought to destroy the Grail.

He lay waste to King Arthur's

knights, one by one.

Finally, it fell upon

slender Percival

to face the Red Knight."

And Sailor, "Percival had no fear."

Get up, Sailor!

"His years of hardship had

taught him how to suffer.

He was ready in body,

mind and spirit.

He would prove in life or death,

his worthiness in battle.

Percival went forth

with joy in his heart.

For this was what he wanted:

to be an instrument of peace.

To be able to sacrifice all

in service of God and man."

Lead with your right, kid!

Lay on him. Lay on him!

- Get away from him.

- Let him go, let him go.

Let's see some blood!

Work the body!

Kill him, Sailor!

- Come on, let him go.

- Let's see some blood!

You got him, kid! Take him down!

You gotta throw back

here, let's go.

Break it up, boy. Break it up!

Stop the haymakers. Stop

the haymakers! Double up.

Another fight, then, is it?

Once more into the fray.

Once more into the fray.

You're a silly man.

- It's okay, Mom.

- No, it's not okay.

- I'm not gonna get hurt.

- Yes, you will. You're too old.

- I'm in good shape.

- No, you're still old.

I got one or two fights

left in me, right, Ma?

No, you are used up and broken.

I've never been knocked down.

Heh. See, that's why you're broken.

A man should know when

to go down. You don't.

You never did.

I never should have said it to you.

Said what?

That I want to go to

Ireland before it comes.

You didn't, I did.

You are such a liar.

Anyways, loser's

purse will cover it.

Oh. I see you're aiming high.

Father Brennan wants

to talk to you.

About what? And don't say God.

About what's coming.

I'm not afraid.

You should pass in a

state of grace, Ma.

You still believe, don't you?

Yeah, I do.

How can you after

what he did to you?

Only a monster takes the innocent.

If there is a God, it's a monster.

A doer of evil and wicked things.

I will not seek grace

from a monster,

nor will a monster give it.

Will you talk to Father Brennan?

Maybe. If he takes off his robes

and shoves a crucifix up his arse.

Maybe.

Nice, Ma.

- I'll ask him, see what he says.

- Good.

Have you gone to see Albright?

Will he be there with you?

- He can't be there.

- Why not?

He's busy at Safe Hope.

- I see.

- He's a good man.

If he was a good man, he would

talk you out of this fight.

No one's gonna talk me

out of the fight, Ma.

- Lay it on, Sailor!

- You've already got the game!

It's all you, Sailor. Come on!

Use your jab, man. Use your jab.

Come on, man. Come on! Come on.

Back to your corners,

guys, let's go.

- You're done.

- Yeah.

Hey, kid. Get over here.

Come on, sit down.

Sailor! Sailor!

All right, come on, sit down.

You ain't got all day. Come on.

Sailor! Sailor! Sailor!

You wanna make it 10 rounds,

you gotta listen to me.

You're dropping your

right hand, like that.

Keep your head on his shoulder.

- Can't you do that?

- Yeah.

It's time for you to put this old man

down now. You do it now, hear?

- Yes, sir.

- No more fooling around.

That's enough of this nonsense.

You're young, man, and fast.

Put him down so we can

go home, all right?

Let's take a look,

Sailor. How's that eye?

- Good, doc. It's good.

- Are you sure?

- Yeah.

- All right.

That opens up anymore,

I'm gonna stop the fight.

- I'll do my best, doc.

- Do the best you can.

Oh, great.

Hey, King's fine. You check

that old man over there.

- He ain't so fine.

- Back off, Cubby.

- Looking better than Sailor.

- I'm fine.

Didn't think you

could take a punch.

- I can take a punch.

- You're proving it, kid.

You're gonna get up close so

you can do some damage, okay?

Concentrate.

I wanna have it.

You don't know what that means.

Yes, I do.

- No, you don't.

- It means work.

It means money.

- I can make money.

- How?

Well, I can box.

And I have some modeling jobs too.

We're too young.

- Too young for what?

- To have a baby.

I wanna spend the rest

of my life with you.

- No, you don't.

- Yes, I do.

- No, you don't.

- I wanna marry you.

I wanna marry you right

now. This morning.

And I'll take care

of you and our baby.

I promise you that.

We have a family.

I've never had that before.

Me neither.

Let's have our baby.

Okay.

Okay.

Okay.

But, King...

I wanna give this baby

something besides life.

What?

I wanna give it something

it can be proud of.

You keep him at a distance with

that jab. You dance around, huh?

That man throws some wild

hooks, you know? Duck.

Stop. You cannot win a fight

laying on a guy, okay?

So let's win it. You

cannot outmuscle this kid.

You cannot outfight him

and you can't outrun him.

But you outweigh him and you can

outthink him. You wanna win it?

- Yeah.

- You're the heavier one, lay on him.

Keep your head on the right side of him.

Let the kid get cocky. Listen to me.

Hey. Hey. What are you doing?

What the hell's the matter?

You wanna win the fight?

Keep your head on that right

shoulder. Once you get that rhythm,

setup, he drops down,

you cross him, okay?

Cubby. And what's this

I hear about King?

I'm gonna give the

kid another chance.

- King is a screwup.

- No, no, he's all cleaned up now.

- The kid does have talent. Real talent.

- Yeah, he's always had talent.

I poured a lot of money into him,

and you gotta have it

to go with that talent.

- Yeah, well, he's going to have a baby.

- There's a disaster waiting to happen.

He got married to a

nice, young girl.

He was my fighter before

you stole him from me.

I did not steal him. Hey, look.

You've got that night

coming up at the Lion Head?

- Yeah.

- I want you to get King a fight there.

- Maybe as an undercard.

- No, no, no, main event.

- What? Look, King is no main event.

- Yes, he is.

I'll put up the purse, man.

Ten-thousand dollars.

Ten rounds.

You really think he has

his head on straight?

Yes. Yes, yes, yes.

All right, I'll take

a piece of him.

No, no, no. Ha, ha.

He doesn't like you.

- I'll take 50 percent of him.

- He's not for sale.

Hey, look, you know he was

my fighter before you took him.

I didn't steal him. Hey, you know why

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