Hard Knocks

"I will seize my destiny for myself in this new world. I will obtain the freedom I seek, or die in it's pursuit."

Eric Zakhele Xolani-Xing, 29 years old- Protagonist

African/Chinese American

Former underground cage fighter, Olympic boxer, wrestler and mixed martial artist.

Born in a small town in Northern California, USA, to a Zulu African father and a Chinese mother from Hong Kong.

Brother to Aaron Jabulani Xolani-Xing.

Parents died in a car accident when he was 17, resulting in him taking care of Aaron from then on. The deaths had happened the day after he had won a gold medal in Olympic wrestling and before he won the gold in boxing, the news only reaching him the day after.

He would go on to college on a full ride scholorship for wrestling, getting a degree in finance by the time he was 20. Served in the military on active duty until he was 22. Joined the UFC, with Aaron as his manager/coach, and swept 3 belts from their respective weight classes until he was 25. Having a perfect record, he sought out for more challenges and found an underground fighting league.

He went around the world fighting in cage fights against all kinds of opponents, some if whom even used weapons. He fought them all bare handed, rarely receiving a scratch. It was then that his brother Aaron was approached by a man who simply went by Mr. Long. He informed him that Eric was to lose his next fight, with a reward of 4 times the normal prize money, and that failing to comply would not in his "best interest".

Aaron told Eric, they agreed to leave the underground, which lead to them being brought before a Yakuza boss that served as Mr. Long's superior. He held Aaron hostage while Eric went to the next fight where he was to take a dive in the second round. The option was stolen from him in the first round however, when his opponent fell over from a heart attack after attacking him wildly for 2 minutes.

The boss actually took the loss with grace and allowed the two brothers to leave with no repercussions, believing Eric to be a bad omen for him and his men. Mr. Long however, had been siphoning money from the organization and had taken a much larger loss than anyone that fight. In a rage, he found Aaron and shot him in the back of the head in broad daylight outside of a grocery store in Amsterdam. Eric, who had been out on a morning run, returned to find his brother being taken away on a stretcher. CCTV and eyewitnesses revealed who had done it. And so Eric began his rampage in pursuit of the man.

After 3 years of chasing him around the world, he eventually concluded his revenge. Followed immediately by his own demise.

Only to awake in a new world, in a younger body, and with a new mountain of adversity before him.

Now he seeks freedom. For that he will need status. For status he will need power. For power... he will need to fight.