Two men walk down a lonely sidewalk at night toward some unknown destination. "Look Eddie, why don't you just tell me where we're going. This isn't another one of your get rich quick schemes is it?"
"Afraid not, Joe. But take a look at this. Two tickets to the tournament in town. Not only that, but there's gonna be a bonus match with none other than Ken Masters!"
"You got tickets to a Ken Masters fight? How did you manage to do that?"
"Oh, I have my ways."
"I hate it when you say that. So who's he fighting?"
"Blanka."
"Blanka? Come on, you don't really believe in that thing do you?"
"It says right here, man. Main Event. Ken Master vs. Blanka."
"Wow. I guess it is real. So isn't he suppose to be some kind of alien or something?"
"Alien? Ha. Are you kidding? Aliens aren't real. He's a monkey man."
Legends of the Streets
Ken Masters stood just outside the curtain, jumping up and down, preparing for his match. He threw a few lightning quick jabs in the air, patiently waiting for the fight to begin. Finally, he heard the crowd go silent and the announcer began to speak. "And his opponent. From San Fransisco, USA.....the US martial arts champion.....KEN MASTEEEEEEEEERS!!!!!!!!
Ken stepped through the curtain and his favorite entrance music, Cowboy by Kid Rock, began playing as he made his way to the ring. The crowd immediately went into an uproar. Their cheering and yelling was always enough to get him pumped up for a fight. Ken was by far the most popular street fighter in America, not just for his skill in the ring, but also for his flashy moves and cocky attitude.
The ring looked like a basic wrestling ring except that the ropes were replaced with barb wire. The arena was nothing more than an abandoned warehouse. Most tournaments took place in remote areas such as this. In fact, few people knew that street fighting, as it came to be called, even existed except for those who participated and the bloodthirsty fans willing to pay to see such events. And then there were the greedy men who held these tournaments. This man in particular looked like your basic, stereotype pimp with his expensive clothes and gold tooth. No one can say for sure how or when street fighting began, but those who knew about it, treated it as if it were a way of life.
Ken hopped onto the apron and did a perfect forward flip into the ring. He noticed a few young girls in the front row waving at him and screaming their lungs out. Ken winked and blew them a kiss. Despite being engaged, he couldn't help flirting with the fans now and then. He turned his head to see Blanka pacing back and forth, impatiently waiting for the match to start. Most fighters would be disturbed by Blanka's unusual appearance, but Ken had learned at an early age to expect the unexpected.
At last, the music faded and crowd began to calm down. The bell rang. Ken danced circles around the ring and waited for Blanka to make the first move. Blanka made a downward strike with his claws. Ken dodjed to the side and kicked him on the side of the knee. He tried another swipe with his claws, but Ken ducked and kicked him again in the same spot. Blanka was obviously getting frustrated and neither man moved for several moments. Then Blanka leaped towards him in, what seemed to be, an attempt to bite him. Ken quickly avoided the attack and kicked him one more time in the knee. This time Blanka's leg buckled completely and he went down to one knee. Ken capitalized on the situation and began punching him several times in the face. The crowd roared in appreciation of this violent combination. Ken then put the exclamation mark on the series of blows by swinging his foot into Blanka's face.
Blanka recovered from the attack faster than he expected and raked his claws across Ken's chest. Ken staggered back a few steps, holding his wound. Blanka then tucked himself into a ball and hurled himself at his opponent with incredible speed. Ken leaped high into the air and was just barely able to miss the attack. As soon as he landed on his feet, he heard him coming back at him from behind. Ken jumped up and did a backflip to see Blanka doing the exact same move again. He ran up behind him as soon as the move was finished and put him in a sleeper hold. Blanka struggled for a moment, but then an electric shock was emitted from his body. Ken yelled in pain as he felt the electrical current burn through his body. He let go of the hold and for a moment his entire body went numb. Blanka turned around and slashed his chest again, bringing him back to his senses. Ken went back several steps and found it difficult to hold his arms up in a defensive position. Blanka hopped forward and gave him a hard front kick that sent his back into the barb wire.
The crowd gasped at the bloody sight. Ken closed his eyes shut and let out a loud grunt. For a moment he could only concentrate on the pain, but then he reminded himself that he still had to win this match. He opened his eyes and saw Blanka flying toward him. He rolled out of the way and Blanka fell on top of the barb wire. Ken pressed Blanka's body further onto the barb wire with one hand while repeatedly nailing him in the kidneys with the other. He then pulled him back by his hair and gave him a knife hand chop to the throat. A normal person would've been knocked out, but Blanka shook it off in a moment and jumped high into the air. Ken watched him fall towards him, waiting for the right moment, and then....
"Shoryuken!"
Ken rose into the air with superhuman speed and his fist wrapped in flames in an uppercut-like attack. His fist scraped across Blanka's chest and then the full force of the blow caught him right under the chin. Several ooohs and aaahs could be heard from the crowd. Ken landed gracefully on his feet as Blanka crashed headfirst into the mat. Ken studied his opponent for a moment. It looked like he wasn't going to get up for a while. "Ladies and Gentleman. Our winner for this evening.....KEN MASTEEEEEEEEERS!!!!!!!!" The crowd went into another frenzy. Ken walked around the ring with his hand raised in its trademark victory sign. As he basked in the fans love for him, a sudden thought came to his mind. It was something he hadn't thought about in years. 'I wonder what Ryu's doing right now.'
***
Our story takes us to a vast desert in China. 12:00 a.m. The area is devoid of any life, and for good reason. The air is extremely hot and dry. It's probably at least 110 degrees. And yet one man braves through these elements. The sun's rays pound down on him from above, and he walks along the hot, rough sand on bare feet. With him, he carries a white duffel bag over his shoulder, which weighs over 20lbs. The dry wind occasionally blows sand into his face and causes his red headband to blow in every which direction. This man is, of course, the legendary warrior Ryu. The Champion of the Street Fighters. The man whose skill is so great that many doubt he even exists. Ryu, however, is very real. Where is he going you ask? To a simple tournament in China. One might wonder why someone would put himself through this kind of torment just to fight in a little tournament. The answer is simple really. He's searching for his destiny.
Ryu is a man who would have probably been better suited to the samurai era than today's civilized world. He believes that by perfecting the martial arts he can reach a higher level of spiritual consciousness. Indeed, fighting is the first physical art that man has created. Ryu saw it as the ultimate balance between mind, body, and soul. Not many could understand his way of thinking, but to him it was all he lived for.
Right now Ryu isn't thinking about his future battles or ways he can improve his techniques as he usually is. Right now he is remembering a single incident that happened to him about a year ago. It isn't something he wants to relive, but at the same time it is something he will never forget.
***Begin flashback***
Ryu walked into a dark, damp cave to see Akuma sitting on the floor with his back turned in deep meditation. The only light in the room were the many candles scattered throughout the cave. The room also contained alot of statues of demons that looked like Akuma.
Akuma slowly stood to his feet. "I've been expecting you, Ryu," he said. "Though I must say, I am surprised to see that you came all this way just to avenge that fool, Gouken."
"He was your brother you monster! How could you just kill him like that?!"
Akuma looked over his shoulder at Ryu. "Easily," he said in a disapointed tone of voice. "Almost too easily." Akuma turned around. "But his death is in the past. Perhaps you shall provide a greater challenge. You are the 'so-called' Street Fighting champion, are you not?"
"That title means nothing to me!" Ryu yelled. "All that matters to me right now is destroying you so that my master may rest in peace!"
"You will be joining him shortly." Akuma went into his fighting stance. Ryu could feel his energy rising to unbelievable levels. "That's enough talking. Our fight begins now! Show me what you've got!"
Ryu immediately launched a hadouken blast at him. Akuma glided across the ground, traveling right through the attack in some translucent form. He materialized right in front of Ryu and punched him hard in the stomach. He then gave him a left hook to the jaw. It felt like a brick slamming into his face. Akuma then put a sidekick into his chest and sent Ryu flying into the wall. He quickly dashed toward Akuma, but he disappeared from sight like a ghost.
Ryu stopped and concentrated, trying to feel Akuma's chi. It was more difficult than normal because it seemed to come from all directions. Finally, he was able to lock onto it. He turned around and threw a punch, but Akuma grabbed it and started crushing his knuckles. Ryu yanked his hand free before he could do too much damage, and spun around to do a sweeping kick. Akuma jumped over his leg and kicked him in the face. Ryu staggered backwards. Akuma walked towards him in a casual manner, practically begging him to attack. Ryu punched him several times in the stomach, but none of the attacks phased him. Akuma punched him twice in the face, once in the stomach, and finished him with a shoryuken attack. Ryu fell to the ground, broken and defeated. Akuma walked toward his fallen body and looked down at him in disgust.
"Strongest fighter in the world, indeed," he said sarcastically. "You are pathetic." He reached down and grabbed Ryu by the throat, picking him up and holding him above the ground with one hand. "For this pitiful display, I will kill you, just like Gouken."
"Shuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuun"
"Gokuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu"
"Satsuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
A horrible amount of evil energy exploded from Akuma's body. An eerie white light covered the entire room. From within this light, hundreds of small blue explosions could be seen where Akuma was striking Ryu with the wrath of a million dead souls. After what seemed like forever, the evil chi faded from the room. Akuma was standing over Ryu's lifeless body. The blood red ten symbol was glowing on his back. Akuma turned around and walked away. He was about to return to his meditation, when he noticed something on the ground. It was a single pebble shaking on the floor. Upon closer inspection he noticed there were many more small rocks doing the same thing. Then he could feel it. Some incredible power......it was coming from Ryu!
Akuma quickly turned around to see Ryu standing to his feet. His muscles were bulging and his veins were clearly visible. His eyes were white, almost glowing. His teeth changed into what appeared to be fangs. Small rocks were floating off the ground and swirling around his body. Ryu lifted his head up and let out a powerful roar. He then stomped his foot on the ground and went into his hadouken stance. Particles of hadou energy began swirling around his body and into his palms. They slowly formed a powerful ball of energy. His hands were shaking, barely able to contain this power.
Akuma decided to test his strength. He cupped his hands together and, within 2 seconds, formed a ball of energy of equal strength to Ryu's. Finally, Ryu thrusted his hands forward, unleashing a large, white beam of energy.
"Raaaah!"
Anticipating Ryu's actions, Akuma threw his own giant, purple beam at almost the same time.
"Hmph!"
The two powers collided with each other, causing both men to slide back a few inches. The ground cracked. The statues broke. The entire island shook, as it was unable to contain such enormous power. Sparks of electricity crackled on each warriors body as they struggled to control their hadou. At last, the energy built to a climax and exploded. Ryu was thrown into the wall, while Akuma stood his ground. The dust cleared. Ryu was slumped against the wall on the brink of unconsciousness. Akuma's shirt and beads had been destroyed by the blast, but he was otherwise unscratched.
Ryu slowly came back to his senses. He climbed to his feet but still needed the wall's support to hold himself up. Akuma looked at him with interest. "You surprise me, Ryu. Perhaps, you shall provide a greater challenge than I expected." Ryu looked up at him, still too light-headed to completely interpret what he was saying. Akuma raised his fist into the air and, with a mighty roar, slammed it into the ground. Rocks fell from the ceiling, and the island began to shake once again. "RYUUUUUUUUU! WE WILL FIGHT AGAIN! PREPARE YOURSELF! SHOW ME YOUR TRUE POWER!"
Ryu covered his face with his arms, unsure what was to happen next. He heard a loud crash. When he opened his eyes the island was gone. He found himself floating in the ocean amongst a bunch of rocks and trees. Akuma was nowhere to be found.
***End flashback***
'What really happened that day,' Ryu thought to himself. 'And what did he mean by "true power".' As much as Ryu hated to think about these things, he couldn't help but think that something very bad was about to happen.
Suddenly, Ryu stopped and wiped his forehead. He was JUST NOW beginning to realize how hot it was. He reached into his duffel bag, pulled out a cantine, and took a long drink. He looked back and saw an endless sea of sand. His footprints seemed to stretch on forever. He looked in front of him and once again saw desert as far as he could see. 'Looks like I still got quite a ways to go,' he thought. 'Oh well. I enjoy the challenge.' Ryu put his cantine back and resumed his walking. Little does he know that not all is as normal as it may seem. A storm is brewing beyond the horizon. One that may change Ryu's life forever.
***
Ken was driving back home in his red convertible at night. He wanted to celebrate his victory with some of the other street fighters, but because of Blanka's claws he had to go to the doctor to get bandaged up. Luckily, the guy running the tournament had a doctor set up just in case, so Ken didn't have to explain the claw marks on his chest or the barb wire cuts on his back. He didn't always have that luxury. He smiled to himself as he thought of some of the crazy lies he told doctors in the past.
It was extremely late at night. The doctor's work seemed to take hours. Ken didn't even bother changing out of his red karate gi. He found it difficult to stay awake, despite having the radio turned up full blast. Right now all he wanted to do was go home. After spending many hours on the road, he finally pulled up to his giant mansion. The money he'd won from his tournaments, along with a little help from his rich parents, was enough to pay for this home. Here he had everything he needed, from a gym, to a large swimming pool, and even an exact replica of master Gouken's dojo. Ken hopped out of the car and walked up to the front door. 'Eliza's probably already asleep,' he thought.
He went inside and quietly walked up the stairs to the bedroom. Sure enough, Eliza was already in bed, sound asleep. Ken took off the top of his gi and slowly slipped into bed, hoping not to wake her up. He was unsuccessful. Eliza rolled over and looked at him with sleepy eyes. "Oh, Ken. Where have been?"
"Sorry, babe. The fight was a little tougher than I expected."
Eliza put her arm around his chest. "I've been worried about you." She suddenly sat up and pointed at his bandages. "What is that?!"
"Oh, uh, just a couple of cuts. Nothing to worry about."
"What did the guy have a knife?"
"No, uh, claws."
"Claws?"
"Yeah."
Eliza laid back down and thought to herself for a moment. "Ken, when are you going to stop this?" she asked.
"The day that I die," Ken replied, too tired to think of something better.
"That's what I'm afraid of. Everynight you come home later and later, and I don't know whether you're alive or dead. Why don't you just retire now? We already have enough money to support ourselves the rest of our lives, even if we have kids."
"I'm sorry Eliza, but it's not just about the money."
"How about after we're married. You go fight in the biggest tournaments in the world from now until we're married and then quit. Can you please do that for me?"
"You know I love you, Eliza, but I just don't think I can make that promise. You see, everyone has something they do in life. I fight. It's what I do. It's hard to explain, but there's nothing quite like the adrenaline rush you have in a fight. I don't mean a cat fight or a bar fight, but a real fight. I can't really explain it to you, because you've never had that experience."
"I'm just worried about you. That's all."
"Don't be. You know I can take care of myself."
"Okay," she said in an unsure tone of voice.
***
Ryu stood in the middle of the sand pit that served as the ring for this tournament. The only thing that separated the fighters from the crowd, was a piece of rope made in a circle around the sand. Ryu had easily advanced through the tournament, beating up some local favorites along the way. He was being booed mercilessly. Apparently, fans didn't realize that this was THE Ryu.
Suddenly, the crowd began to cheer. Dan Hibiki rolled through the crowd and into the ring. Then he got up on one knee made a classic pose for his fans. The people cheered and cameras flashed. Sure, Dan didn't have the greatest win/loss record in the world, but the fans still loved him because he was entertaining and always put on a good show.
Dan got up and pointed at Ryu. "Hey what's with the karate outfit? You tryin to copy me, punk? You should know that I am the one-and-only Dan Hibiki! Forever imitated but never duplicated! And know I'm gonna have to kick your sorry- Hey, Ryu is that you?"
"Long time no see, buddy."
"You tellin me. So what've you been up to all this time?"
"How about we fight now and catch up later?" Ryu said while getting into his fighting stance.
"Fine with me." Dan went in to his fighting stance which looked like another pose. He jumped toward Ryu with a flying kick, while making a loud screeching sound that was probably meant to sound like a Bruce Lee cry. Ryu forcefully blocked the kick and punched him in the chest while he was still in midair. Dan fell to the ground. He quickly jumped to his feet and ran toward Ryu, unleashing a long series of punching attacks. Ryu easily dodjed each of the attacks. Dan then tried to catch him by surprise with a spinning kick. Ryu ducked and punched him in the stomach. He punched him several more times in strategic areas and then jumped high into the air and swung his back leg into Dan's face. Dan went tumbling to the ground again. Ryu shuffled his feet closer to him. Dan slowly stood up. "That's it! You asked for it!" he yelled. Dan reached his arm back, and particles of energy began flowing into his hand.
"Gaaaaaaaaaaaaa"
"Doooooooooooooooooooooooooooo"
"Keeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeen!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Dan thrusted his arm forward and launched a powerful blast of energy that........dissolved almost as soon as it left his hand. If you blinked, you would've missed. Ryu waited to see if anything else was going to happen, but then realized that the move was already finished. He knocked Dan's hand out of the way. Then he leaped into the air, spun around, and kicked him hard across the face. He spun several more times with his leg outstretched as Dan fell to the ground, and landed on his feet. The battle was over. The crowd was completely shocked. Then slowly, they began to clap and cheer until they were nearly at a riot. But one of these people in the front row stood completely still. He wasn't really human, but was more of a machine. His purpose was to record the events happening here, and send them to an incredibly evil man.
***
Bison sat in front of a large computer screen while closely observing the fight between Ryu and Dan. Beside him, was Sagat, wearing camouflage pants and military boots. His arms were crossed as he watched just as closely as Bison. "This is him?" Bison asked in a disinterested tone when the fight was over.
"Yes sir," Sagat replied hatefully.
Bison pointed to the scar on his chest. "And he's the one who did that?"
"Yes sir. He did it with some sort of uppercut attack."
Bison turned back to the computer screen and sat silent for a moment. "I see nothing special about him."
"That is because his opponent did not offer him enough of a challenge sir. Had he fought a stronger fighter, you would see just how powerful he is."
"Hmmm. Well he seems like nothing more than a pitiful insect to me. But if he was able to beat you in a fair fight and do THAT with his fist, then he may be worth looking into," Bison said, implying that he may be interested in more than helping Sagat obtain his revenge. "Since he seems to enjoy going to these tournaments so much, we'll have one set up near his current location, and send Balrog to test him out."
"What about me sir?" Sagat asked.
Bison smiled. He was amused by his henchman's sudden obsession with this man. "Don't worry, Sagat. If this ....Ryu is as strong as you say, then he should make short work out of Balrog. You'll get your chance for revenge."
An elderly man wearing a lab coat walked into the room. "Lord Bison, Vega has brought us another test subject. I think you'll be quite impressed with this one."
Bison rotated his chair around and got up to walk into the lab. Sagat followed him a few short steps. "Lord Bison, please!"
"That's enough, Sagat! In case you haven't noticed, I'm a busy man! If this person you're so obsessed with cannot beat Balrog and impress me at the same time, then I will not waste my time with him! Do you dare question my decision?!"
"N...no sir."
"Good. Then I have other matters to attend to. You are dismissed."
"Yes sir."
Author's notes: Well what do think so far? In case you haven't noticed yet, what I'm trying to go for with this fic is to show what I think the street fighters would be like if they were real people. I'm also trying to due away with the ridiculous stereotype that Ryu has no personality. And don't think that these are the only characters that are going to be in this story. By the time I'm finished I'm gonna try to have most of the fighters make an appearance, which should be quite a challenge. Oh, and before I forget, all characters are property of Capcom. The most they could sue me for is 15 dollars anyway.-_- This is gonna be a long one now, so I'm gonna need plenty of reviews to keep me motivated. Jes has spoken.
"Afraid not, Joe. But take a look at this. Two tickets to the tournament in town. Not only that, but there's gonna be a bonus match with none other than Ken Masters!"
"You got tickets to a Ken Masters fight? How did you manage to do that?"
"Oh, I have my ways."
"I hate it when you say that. So who's he fighting?"
"Blanka."
"Blanka? Come on, you don't really believe in that thing do you?"
"It says right here, man. Main Event. Ken Master vs. Blanka."
"Wow. I guess it is real. So isn't he suppose to be some kind of alien or something?"
"Alien? Ha. Are you kidding? Aliens aren't real. He's a monkey man."
Legends of the Streets
Ken Masters stood just outside the curtain, jumping up and down, preparing for his match. He threw a few lightning quick jabs in the air, patiently waiting for the fight to begin. Finally, he heard the crowd go silent and the announcer began to speak. "And his opponent. From San Fransisco, USA.....the US martial arts champion.....KEN MASTEEEEEEEEERS!!!!!!!!
Ken stepped through the curtain and his favorite entrance music, Cowboy by Kid Rock, began playing as he made his way to the ring. The crowd immediately went into an uproar. Their cheering and yelling was always enough to get him pumped up for a fight. Ken was by far the most popular street fighter in America, not just for his skill in the ring, but also for his flashy moves and cocky attitude.
The ring looked like a basic wrestling ring except that the ropes were replaced with barb wire. The arena was nothing more than an abandoned warehouse. Most tournaments took place in remote areas such as this. In fact, few people knew that street fighting, as it came to be called, even existed except for those who participated and the bloodthirsty fans willing to pay to see such events. And then there were the greedy men who held these tournaments. This man in particular looked like your basic, stereotype pimp with his expensive clothes and gold tooth. No one can say for sure how or when street fighting began, but those who knew about it, treated it as if it were a way of life.
Ken hopped onto the apron and did a perfect forward flip into the ring. He noticed a few young girls in the front row waving at him and screaming their lungs out. Ken winked and blew them a kiss. Despite being engaged, he couldn't help flirting with the fans now and then. He turned his head to see Blanka pacing back and forth, impatiently waiting for the match to start. Most fighters would be disturbed by Blanka's unusual appearance, but Ken had learned at an early age to expect the unexpected.
At last, the music faded and crowd began to calm down. The bell rang. Ken danced circles around the ring and waited for Blanka to make the first move. Blanka made a downward strike with his claws. Ken dodjed to the side and kicked him on the side of the knee. He tried another swipe with his claws, but Ken ducked and kicked him again in the same spot. Blanka was obviously getting frustrated and neither man moved for several moments. Then Blanka leaped towards him in, what seemed to be, an attempt to bite him. Ken quickly avoided the attack and kicked him one more time in the knee. This time Blanka's leg buckled completely and he went down to one knee. Ken capitalized on the situation and began punching him several times in the face. The crowd roared in appreciation of this violent combination. Ken then put the exclamation mark on the series of blows by swinging his foot into Blanka's face.
Blanka recovered from the attack faster than he expected and raked his claws across Ken's chest. Ken staggered back a few steps, holding his wound. Blanka then tucked himself into a ball and hurled himself at his opponent with incredible speed. Ken leaped high into the air and was just barely able to miss the attack. As soon as he landed on his feet, he heard him coming back at him from behind. Ken jumped up and did a backflip to see Blanka doing the exact same move again. He ran up behind him as soon as the move was finished and put him in a sleeper hold. Blanka struggled for a moment, but then an electric shock was emitted from his body. Ken yelled in pain as he felt the electrical current burn through his body. He let go of the hold and for a moment his entire body went numb. Blanka turned around and slashed his chest again, bringing him back to his senses. Ken went back several steps and found it difficult to hold his arms up in a defensive position. Blanka hopped forward and gave him a hard front kick that sent his back into the barb wire.
The crowd gasped at the bloody sight. Ken closed his eyes shut and let out a loud grunt. For a moment he could only concentrate on the pain, but then he reminded himself that he still had to win this match. He opened his eyes and saw Blanka flying toward him. He rolled out of the way and Blanka fell on top of the barb wire. Ken pressed Blanka's body further onto the barb wire with one hand while repeatedly nailing him in the kidneys with the other. He then pulled him back by his hair and gave him a knife hand chop to the throat. A normal person would've been knocked out, but Blanka shook it off in a moment and jumped high into the air. Ken watched him fall towards him, waiting for the right moment, and then....
"Shoryuken!"
Ken rose into the air with superhuman speed and his fist wrapped in flames in an uppercut-like attack. His fist scraped across Blanka's chest and then the full force of the blow caught him right under the chin. Several ooohs and aaahs could be heard from the crowd. Ken landed gracefully on his feet as Blanka crashed headfirst into the mat. Ken studied his opponent for a moment. It looked like he wasn't going to get up for a while. "Ladies and Gentleman. Our winner for this evening.....KEN MASTEEEEEEEEERS!!!!!!!!" The crowd went into another frenzy. Ken walked around the ring with his hand raised in its trademark victory sign. As he basked in the fans love for him, a sudden thought came to his mind. It was something he hadn't thought about in years. 'I wonder what Ryu's doing right now.'
***
Our story takes us to a vast desert in China. 12:00 a.m. The area is devoid of any life, and for good reason. The air is extremely hot and dry. It's probably at least 110 degrees. And yet one man braves through these elements. The sun's rays pound down on him from above, and he walks along the hot, rough sand on bare feet. With him, he carries a white duffel bag over his shoulder, which weighs over 20lbs. The dry wind occasionally blows sand into his face and causes his red headband to blow in every which direction. This man is, of course, the legendary warrior Ryu. The Champion of the Street Fighters. The man whose skill is so great that many doubt he even exists. Ryu, however, is very real. Where is he going you ask? To a simple tournament in China. One might wonder why someone would put himself through this kind of torment just to fight in a little tournament. The answer is simple really. He's searching for his destiny.
Ryu is a man who would have probably been better suited to the samurai era than today's civilized world. He believes that by perfecting the martial arts he can reach a higher level of spiritual consciousness. Indeed, fighting is the first physical art that man has created. Ryu saw it as the ultimate balance between mind, body, and soul. Not many could understand his way of thinking, but to him it was all he lived for.
Right now Ryu isn't thinking about his future battles or ways he can improve his techniques as he usually is. Right now he is remembering a single incident that happened to him about a year ago. It isn't something he wants to relive, but at the same time it is something he will never forget.
***Begin flashback***
Ryu walked into a dark, damp cave to see Akuma sitting on the floor with his back turned in deep meditation. The only light in the room were the many candles scattered throughout the cave. The room also contained alot of statues of demons that looked like Akuma.
Akuma slowly stood to his feet. "I've been expecting you, Ryu," he said. "Though I must say, I am surprised to see that you came all this way just to avenge that fool, Gouken."
"He was your brother you monster! How could you just kill him like that?!"
Akuma looked over his shoulder at Ryu. "Easily," he said in a disapointed tone of voice. "Almost too easily." Akuma turned around. "But his death is in the past. Perhaps you shall provide a greater challenge. You are the 'so-called' Street Fighting champion, are you not?"
"That title means nothing to me!" Ryu yelled. "All that matters to me right now is destroying you so that my master may rest in peace!"
"You will be joining him shortly." Akuma went into his fighting stance. Ryu could feel his energy rising to unbelievable levels. "That's enough talking. Our fight begins now! Show me what you've got!"
Ryu immediately launched a hadouken blast at him. Akuma glided across the ground, traveling right through the attack in some translucent form. He materialized right in front of Ryu and punched him hard in the stomach. He then gave him a left hook to the jaw. It felt like a brick slamming into his face. Akuma then put a sidekick into his chest and sent Ryu flying into the wall. He quickly dashed toward Akuma, but he disappeared from sight like a ghost.
Ryu stopped and concentrated, trying to feel Akuma's chi. It was more difficult than normal because it seemed to come from all directions. Finally, he was able to lock onto it. He turned around and threw a punch, but Akuma grabbed it and started crushing his knuckles. Ryu yanked his hand free before he could do too much damage, and spun around to do a sweeping kick. Akuma jumped over his leg and kicked him in the face. Ryu staggered backwards. Akuma walked towards him in a casual manner, practically begging him to attack. Ryu punched him several times in the stomach, but none of the attacks phased him. Akuma punched him twice in the face, once in the stomach, and finished him with a shoryuken attack. Ryu fell to the ground, broken and defeated. Akuma walked toward his fallen body and looked down at him in disgust.
"Strongest fighter in the world, indeed," he said sarcastically. "You are pathetic." He reached down and grabbed Ryu by the throat, picking him up and holding him above the ground with one hand. "For this pitiful display, I will kill you, just like Gouken."
"Shuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuun"
"Gokuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu"
"Satsuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
A horrible amount of evil energy exploded from Akuma's body. An eerie white light covered the entire room. From within this light, hundreds of small blue explosions could be seen where Akuma was striking Ryu with the wrath of a million dead souls. After what seemed like forever, the evil chi faded from the room. Akuma was standing over Ryu's lifeless body. The blood red ten symbol was glowing on his back. Akuma turned around and walked away. He was about to return to his meditation, when he noticed something on the ground. It was a single pebble shaking on the floor. Upon closer inspection he noticed there were many more small rocks doing the same thing. Then he could feel it. Some incredible power......it was coming from Ryu!
Akuma quickly turned around to see Ryu standing to his feet. His muscles were bulging and his veins were clearly visible. His eyes were white, almost glowing. His teeth changed into what appeared to be fangs. Small rocks were floating off the ground and swirling around his body. Ryu lifted his head up and let out a powerful roar. He then stomped his foot on the ground and went into his hadouken stance. Particles of hadou energy began swirling around his body and into his palms. They slowly formed a powerful ball of energy. His hands were shaking, barely able to contain this power.
Akuma decided to test his strength. He cupped his hands together and, within 2 seconds, formed a ball of energy of equal strength to Ryu's. Finally, Ryu thrusted his hands forward, unleashing a large, white beam of energy.
"Raaaah!"
Anticipating Ryu's actions, Akuma threw his own giant, purple beam at almost the same time.
"Hmph!"
The two powers collided with each other, causing both men to slide back a few inches. The ground cracked. The statues broke. The entire island shook, as it was unable to contain such enormous power. Sparks of electricity crackled on each warriors body as they struggled to control their hadou. At last, the energy built to a climax and exploded. Ryu was thrown into the wall, while Akuma stood his ground. The dust cleared. Ryu was slumped against the wall on the brink of unconsciousness. Akuma's shirt and beads had been destroyed by the blast, but he was otherwise unscratched.
Ryu slowly came back to his senses. He climbed to his feet but still needed the wall's support to hold himself up. Akuma looked at him with interest. "You surprise me, Ryu. Perhaps, you shall provide a greater challenge than I expected." Ryu looked up at him, still too light-headed to completely interpret what he was saying. Akuma raised his fist into the air and, with a mighty roar, slammed it into the ground. Rocks fell from the ceiling, and the island began to shake once again. "RYUUUUUUUUU! WE WILL FIGHT AGAIN! PREPARE YOURSELF! SHOW ME YOUR TRUE POWER!"
Ryu covered his face with his arms, unsure what was to happen next. He heard a loud crash. When he opened his eyes the island was gone. He found himself floating in the ocean amongst a bunch of rocks and trees. Akuma was nowhere to be found.
***End flashback***
'What really happened that day,' Ryu thought to himself. 'And what did he mean by "true power".' As much as Ryu hated to think about these things, he couldn't help but think that something very bad was about to happen.
Suddenly, Ryu stopped and wiped his forehead. He was JUST NOW beginning to realize how hot it was. He reached into his duffel bag, pulled out a cantine, and took a long drink. He looked back and saw an endless sea of sand. His footprints seemed to stretch on forever. He looked in front of him and once again saw desert as far as he could see. 'Looks like I still got quite a ways to go,' he thought. 'Oh well. I enjoy the challenge.' Ryu put his cantine back and resumed his walking. Little does he know that not all is as normal as it may seem. A storm is brewing beyond the horizon. One that may change Ryu's life forever.
***
Ken was driving back home in his red convertible at night. He wanted to celebrate his victory with some of the other street fighters, but because of Blanka's claws he had to go to the doctor to get bandaged up. Luckily, the guy running the tournament had a doctor set up just in case, so Ken didn't have to explain the claw marks on his chest or the barb wire cuts on his back. He didn't always have that luxury. He smiled to himself as he thought of some of the crazy lies he told doctors in the past.
It was extremely late at night. The doctor's work seemed to take hours. Ken didn't even bother changing out of his red karate gi. He found it difficult to stay awake, despite having the radio turned up full blast. Right now all he wanted to do was go home. After spending many hours on the road, he finally pulled up to his giant mansion. The money he'd won from his tournaments, along with a little help from his rich parents, was enough to pay for this home. Here he had everything he needed, from a gym, to a large swimming pool, and even an exact replica of master Gouken's dojo. Ken hopped out of the car and walked up to the front door. 'Eliza's probably already asleep,' he thought.
He went inside and quietly walked up the stairs to the bedroom. Sure enough, Eliza was already in bed, sound asleep. Ken took off the top of his gi and slowly slipped into bed, hoping not to wake her up. He was unsuccessful. Eliza rolled over and looked at him with sleepy eyes. "Oh, Ken. Where have been?"
"Sorry, babe. The fight was a little tougher than I expected."
Eliza put her arm around his chest. "I've been worried about you." She suddenly sat up and pointed at his bandages. "What is that?!"
"Oh, uh, just a couple of cuts. Nothing to worry about."
"What did the guy have a knife?"
"No, uh, claws."
"Claws?"
"Yeah."
Eliza laid back down and thought to herself for a moment. "Ken, when are you going to stop this?" she asked.
"The day that I die," Ken replied, too tired to think of something better.
"That's what I'm afraid of. Everynight you come home later and later, and I don't know whether you're alive or dead. Why don't you just retire now? We already have enough money to support ourselves the rest of our lives, even if we have kids."
"I'm sorry Eliza, but it's not just about the money."
"How about after we're married. You go fight in the biggest tournaments in the world from now until we're married and then quit. Can you please do that for me?"
"You know I love you, Eliza, but I just don't think I can make that promise. You see, everyone has something they do in life. I fight. It's what I do. It's hard to explain, but there's nothing quite like the adrenaline rush you have in a fight. I don't mean a cat fight or a bar fight, but a real fight. I can't really explain it to you, because you've never had that experience."
"I'm just worried about you. That's all."
"Don't be. You know I can take care of myself."
"Okay," she said in an unsure tone of voice.
***
Ryu stood in the middle of the sand pit that served as the ring for this tournament. The only thing that separated the fighters from the crowd, was a piece of rope made in a circle around the sand. Ryu had easily advanced through the tournament, beating up some local favorites along the way. He was being booed mercilessly. Apparently, fans didn't realize that this was THE Ryu.
Suddenly, the crowd began to cheer. Dan Hibiki rolled through the crowd and into the ring. Then he got up on one knee made a classic pose for his fans. The people cheered and cameras flashed. Sure, Dan didn't have the greatest win/loss record in the world, but the fans still loved him because he was entertaining and always put on a good show.
Dan got up and pointed at Ryu. "Hey what's with the karate outfit? You tryin to copy me, punk? You should know that I am the one-and-only Dan Hibiki! Forever imitated but never duplicated! And know I'm gonna have to kick your sorry- Hey, Ryu is that you?"
"Long time no see, buddy."
"You tellin me. So what've you been up to all this time?"
"How about we fight now and catch up later?" Ryu said while getting into his fighting stance.
"Fine with me." Dan went in to his fighting stance which looked like another pose. He jumped toward Ryu with a flying kick, while making a loud screeching sound that was probably meant to sound like a Bruce Lee cry. Ryu forcefully blocked the kick and punched him in the chest while he was still in midair. Dan fell to the ground. He quickly jumped to his feet and ran toward Ryu, unleashing a long series of punching attacks. Ryu easily dodjed each of the attacks. Dan then tried to catch him by surprise with a spinning kick. Ryu ducked and punched him in the stomach. He punched him several more times in strategic areas and then jumped high into the air and swung his back leg into Dan's face. Dan went tumbling to the ground again. Ryu shuffled his feet closer to him. Dan slowly stood up. "That's it! You asked for it!" he yelled. Dan reached his arm back, and particles of energy began flowing into his hand.
"Gaaaaaaaaaaaaa"
"Doooooooooooooooooooooooooooo"
"Keeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeen!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Dan thrusted his arm forward and launched a powerful blast of energy that........dissolved almost as soon as it left his hand. If you blinked, you would've missed. Ryu waited to see if anything else was going to happen, but then realized that the move was already finished. He knocked Dan's hand out of the way. Then he leaped into the air, spun around, and kicked him hard across the face. He spun several more times with his leg outstretched as Dan fell to the ground, and landed on his feet. The battle was over. The crowd was completely shocked. Then slowly, they began to clap and cheer until they were nearly at a riot. But one of these people in the front row stood completely still. He wasn't really human, but was more of a machine. His purpose was to record the events happening here, and send them to an incredibly evil man.
***
Bison sat in front of a large computer screen while closely observing the fight between Ryu and Dan. Beside him, was Sagat, wearing camouflage pants and military boots. His arms were crossed as he watched just as closely as Bison. "This is him?" Bison asked in a disinterested tone when the fight was over.
"Yes sir," Sagat replied hatefully.
Bison pointed to the scar on his chest. "And he's the one who did that?"
"Yes sir. He did it with some sort of uppercut attack."
Bison turned back to the computer screen and sat silent for a moment. "I see nothing special about him."
"That is because his opponent did not offer him enough of a challenge sir. Had he fought a stronger fighter, you would see just how powerful he is."
"Hmmm. Well he seems like nothing more than a pitiful insect to me. But if he was able to beat you in a fair fight and do THAT with his fist, then he may be worth looking into," Bison said, implying that he may be interested in more than helping Sagat obtain his revenge. "Since he seems to enjoy going to these tournaments so much, we'll have one set up near his current location, and send Balrog to test him out."
"What about me sir?" Sagat asked.
Bison smiled. He was amused by his henchman's sudden obsession with this man. "Don't worry, Sagat. If this ....Ryu is as strong as you say, then he should make short work out of Balrog. You'll get your chance for revenge."
An elderly man wearing a lab coat walked into the room. "Lord Bison, Vega has brought us another test subject. I think you'll be quite impressed with this one."
Bison rotated his chair around and got up to walk into the lab. Sagat followed him a few short steps. "Lord Bison, please!"
"That's enough, Sagat! In case you haven't noticed, I'm a busy man! If this person you're so obsessed with cannot beat Balrog and impress me at the same time, then I will not waste my time with him! Do you dare question my decision?!"
"N...no sir."
"Good. Then I have other matters to attend to. You are dismissed."
"Yes sir."
Author's notes: Well what do think so far? In case you haven't noticed yet, what I'm trying to go for with this fic is to show what I think the street fighters would be like if they were real people. I'm also trying to due away with the ridiculous stereotype that Ryu has no personality. And don't think that these are the only characters that are going to be in this story. By the time I'm finished I'm gonna try to have most of the fighters make an appearance, which should be quite a challenge. Oh, and before I forget, all characters are property of Capcom. The most they could sue me for is 15 dollars anyway.-_- This is gonna be a long one now, so I'm gonna need plenty of reviews to keep me motivated. Jes has spoken.
