Issue 01: Coalescence Of Worlds - Part 1
(Pai's time: 1995)
"That was great everyone!"
Came the extremely proud cry of the director of the film that Pai Chan had starred in. She took on the character of a skilled young lady trained in Mizongquan, who'd been looking for her master-turned criminal overlord all over the world for a fight to the death. In this particular scene she had been forced to use her combat skills when approached by a group of said overlord's men while walking down the street. The lead movie star helped all of her downed co-stars to their feet as a crew member tossed them all water bottles. Pai greedily sucked the tasteless and refreshingly cold liquid down her throat. As she finished the water, Pai thought. Life was good. The movie she'd been working on was going wonderfully, not to mention her fanbase was growing rapidly, letters from her millions of millions of fans across not merely China anymore, but as of this year, all of Asia still coming in her mailbox what seemed to be daily. An easy smile graced Pai's beautiful features. Everything just seemed to be going perfect for once.
The young movie star started on her way across the set to the changing rooms inside, as she was still in her costume for the movie, a red tank top, ripped, and faded jeans, and a pair of scuffed red Converse sneakers. In a way, she was looking forward to getting out of it. She didn't mind wearing such clothes, and the ruggedness of the outfit was corespondent to the movie's character she was playing, but she just naturally favored the things that came out of her closet—as in things not falling in with the whole 'worn' look. Nothing wrong with something that was fashionable in its own right, it just wasn't her style of dress.
The set had been conveniently placed outside the studio, so she would not have much walking to do. As she entered the doorway, she chuckled. Everything looked somewhat busy on certain spots of the large room, with people discussing details of the movie and such, while other spots looked calm and empty. Pai took the quickest route through the room as she could to get to the changing rooms. Before she could reach her destination however, she heard a voice ring out.
"Oh my God! I don't believe it! Tzar Nicholas II is in Hong Kong!"
Pai froze upon hearing that. Her head instantly snapped toward where the voice came from, which turned out to be in a far corner of the room where an enormous TV monitor was mounted on a wall. It displayed the news, and turned up loud enough that the everyone inside could hear. Her ears quickly tuned in to the newswoman's voice as she jogged over to the crowd of people that formed under the TV.
"We have breaking news-the deceased Russian emperor none other than Tsar Nicholas II is somehow back from the dead. He was seen walking down the streets of Hong Kong when a bystander saw the emperor and made a scene concerning the sighting, gaining the attention of our news crew. Our reporters are now trying to determine how the phenomenon occurred from the horse's mouth, at this time."
Much to her utter shock and surprise, it was indeed Nicholas II. The last emperor of Russia, before he was shot. Alive and well on the 9pm news. He was speaking Russian franticly at the reporters who were eagerly talking, shoving their mics and aiming their cameras at him. No. No way. This couldn't be real. This had to all be some kind of publicity stunt. But who would do something like that? Impersonating a historical figure in such a way could be considered morally incorrect. . .and there was something else about 'Nicholas' that caught Pai's attention. He was looking in every which direction at the people that surrounded him. He seemed terribly confused as to what was going on. Almost as if he'd never seen a news microphone or a professional video camera before. Pai's eyes widened and she gasped slightly. Maybe this was the real Nicholas. . .but how? He was supposed to be long deceased, and yet here he was on live TV. Having no idea what to think next, the young movie star decided to consult Sarah, one of her closest friends. She just needed to talk to someone after making such a discovery. Sarah was currently studying at San Francisco State University, meaning that she was 12 hours ahead of Pai due to the 12 hour difference between America and China, so Sarah would most likely be lounging around in her dorm, waiting for her classes to start up at 10:00am. While Opening up the 'Contacts' list on her phone and scrolling through her many numbers with haste, she walked at a brisk pace away from the crowd of shellshocked people to a neglected corner of the studio. When she finally found the contact titled 'Sarah B.', Pai hit the green phone icon on the phone. As it rang, she paced anxiously, awaiting the sound of the blonde's voice.
"Hey Pai." Sarah greeted with a smile in her voice.
"Hey Sarah.", the Chinese movie star greeted back, relieved to hear the voice of such a good friend at a time like this. "I'm so glad you're available right now. I have to tell you something, but you won't believe me."
"Well, what is it?"
"You know Tzar Nicholas II?"
"The Russian emperor that died, what, forever ago? Yeah. Why?"
"He's alive."
Sarah was able to audibly pin down most of her laugh at Pai's statement, instead letting a tiny chuckle escape through the speaker. "Actually, that is a little hard to believe, Pai."
"I know it is. But it's true! He was on the news just now. They say someone just saw him walking down the street, and made a ruckus about it. Soon after, the news crew showed up, and started practically flinging themselves and their mics at him, trying to get a story out of him."
"Oh yeah? What'd he say?" The ex-assassin inquired, still not convinced.
"I couldn't understand a thing of what he was saying.. He was speaking Russian. But he seemed pretty overwhelmed by all the people and technology being thrust at him." Pai replied, wishing she could have been her usual good mood to chuckle. "Sarah, please, I know you think I'm losing it, but I can prove it. Just give me a minute, and I'll take a picture of the TV and send it to you. They're replaying the footage over and over so I should still be able to get it on camera."
"You do that, and I just might believe you on this whole thing." The blonde stated, willing to keep up her end of the deal if Pai kept hers. She still thought it was absolutely ridiculous, but if Pai could get visual evidence that Nicholas II was in Hong Kong, she was willing to consider it.
"Thanks. I'll need just a sec." And with that Pai ended the call, intending to resume it very soon. She weaved her way through the crowd that formed near the massive TV, and opened her 'Camera' app on her BlackBerry phone. It wasn't supposed to come out for a number of years, but BlackBerry Limited felt so inclined as to give the Virtua Fighters an early taste of their technology that would sweep the nation. Being one of the world's greatest fighters had its perks, and the company had obviously been impressed with what they'd seen of the Fifth World Fighting Tournament—even if they were unaware of its true intentions. She aimed the lens at the TV and took several extremely clear pictures, and sent them to Sarah. They had a few people in the way of the shot, but you could still make out Nicholas on the screen in all of them. Several seconds later, as she returned to the corner away from the noisy crowd of people engaged in conversation concerning the mysterious matter, her phone buzzed in her hand. Knowing it was Sarah, she answered immediately.
"My God. . .you're right, Pai." Sarah said as her baby blue eyes widened in pure amazement and shock. "I just can't get over the fact that the real Nick is somehow alive and walking again as we speak. . .this is crazy." It appeared as though she'd recognized that same. . .lost look in the Tsar's eyes as that news crew overexcitedly shoved cameras at him.
"It's probably one of the most confusing things I've ever heard of. Why do you think that he chose to reappear here in Hong Kong, though? I would imagine that if he were dead for so long, he'd be first sighted in Russia, given the fact that that's where he used to rule before he was killed."
"No idea, but I think the real question here is how something like this could happen. I mean, dead people just popping back up on the streets? That's unnatural. The body should have decomposed for sure after all these years. . ." Sarah trailed off. She sounded like she hadn't the slightest damn clue as to how the supposedly deceased emperor could be alive at this moment. And Pai didn't blame her. Maybe there were supernatural elements at play here. . .who knew? Pai could sense that the college student was still a bit bothered by this news, so she decided to give her some more time to process it all.
"I'm sorry to dump all of this on you. I guess I just needed someone to talk to about all of this." She earnestly apologized as she shifted her weight onto her right leg.
"Pai, don't apologize. I'm fine, really." The 25-year old assured with that confident smile in her voice that she always had, though Pai could hear a cryptic quality to it. "I just wasn't expecting to hear something like this, is all. I'm actually interested to get to the bottom of how he could've just. . .reappeared. I've got some stuff to do before I hit class, but we can talk later. Promise. See ya." Sarah bade.
"Bye, Sarah." Pai answered back with a relieved smile. And with that, the two young women hung up, leaving Pai to finally change into her everyday clothes, and leave the studio, bearing in mind the conversation she and her friend just had. As she got into her red, convertible Ferrari F50 and drove off into the night, the shocking news broadcast attached itself to her long-term memory. It then replayed itself over and over in her mind, like a deep and meaningful song stuck on repeat. Pai narrowed her eyes in determination. She would sort this out. At that moment, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of anxiety, with a sixth sense whispering that danger was up ahead.
Suddenly, in her headlights, she caught view of four men standing dead in the middle of the road. The human barricade they'd created stretched across both lanes, so Pai couldn't have driven around them if she wanted to. She brought the car to a stop. Examining the men, having gotten closer, she frowned. They were garbed in matching outfits—namely pitch black sleeveless gis. Anyone would've acknowledged the signs and immediately jumped on guard, and Pai was no exception.
She stepped out of the vehicle, and walked at an even, unrushed pace to meet the men, who were coincidentally walking to meet her. The mere fact that they took some initiative confirmed her suspicions. The men were bad news. She knew these men were with Judgment 6.
J6 must've set their sights on me. Pai thought, readying herself for battle as she stopped several feet in front of the impeding group of presumed J6 thugs.
"Pai Chan, you must come with us. Do as we say and don't attempt to resist us." One grunt demanded. His tone was all business, and it was clear that he and his associates weren't taking 'no' for an answer. Still, that didn't mean Pai was going to even consider backing down. No.
"And why would I do that?" She retorted defiantly, a frown etched onto her youthful face. The spectacle on the news was pushed to the back of her mind for the time being. THIS took priority.
He growled. "You WILL come with us!" And with that, the men rushed her. She sprinted fourth as well, leaping as she threw a graceful, yet extremely powerful midair kick. It nailed one of the men in the face and he was sent sprawling onto the unforgiving concrete, knocking him out. Unfortunately, a heel smashed into her temple upon her landing, sending her stumbling. A fist to her cheek followed. As did another foot to her gut.
With a mighty battle cry, Pai stopped the next fist that sailed toward her face, and threw him over her shoulder. She spun to face the next fighter, just in time to turn aside his punches and return with her own. He went down.
Only one left. She thought, gnashing her teeth as adrenaline continued to pump through her veins. She advanced onto the last remaining one, but he was faster than expected, and thrust his palm into her gut. The pain was unimaginable, but she didn't dare flinch. Ignoring the urge to nurse her toned stomach, she grabbed him and knocked him out with a spinning kick to the back of the head.
"Damn." Pai rasped, trying to catch her breath between pained coughs. She'd won, and it was a short fight, but a tough one. The right side of her face, her ribs, stomach and jawbone were all killing her. These were no ordinary fighters indeed. These men were trained warriors. She'd have to kick her training routines into overdrive now if this is what J6's newest endeavors for gathering fighters were. She suddenly noticed the weak groans of one of them. She marched over to him and knelt down next to him.
"When you wake up, you can tell J6 that they'll never get their hands on me. Or Sarah for that matter." She intoned. The man gave a short, dry laugh.
"We're not with J6. . ."
Pai blinked, letting that quickly sink in. The young movie star certainly hadn't been expecting that. She refocused her attention toward the half-conscious mystery grunt lying before her. She needed answers.
"If they didn't send you after me, then what's your affiliation?" She interrogated. The underling squeezed his eyes shut, probably in attempt to stay conscious, before giving his reply in his last breath.
"We are the Koenkan."
With that, her attacker fell unconscious, no longer a threat. Yet Pai remained frozen in a kneeling position. Koenkan. . .undoubtedly the name of an evil fighting force. A Chinese one at that.
So there was a new sinister organization around. First Judgement 6, with their sending of assassins into their World Fighting Tournaments and stealing combat data for their Dural Project, and now this Koenkan, who apparently had their eyes on her. Why exactly? What did this new organization want with Pai? Were they following J6's example and trying to create the perfect 'super-soldier' using her as a base? Or was it something deeper? And why did she get a particularly nasty feeling whenever she recited their name? Truthfully, she'd already been frazzled enough about the bizarre Tsar Nicholas II sighting, and now she had the Koenkan to worry and wonder about.
She finally found it within herself to rise to her full height, and make her way back to her Italian supercar. It's motor was still idly running, but it was only due to the intensity of being spotted by the Koenkan fighters that she'd forgotten to shut it off. Grateful that the car hadn't gotten damaged during the actual fight, she climbed in, and pulled off down the road. The opposing warriors had fortunately all landed on the sidewalk area, meaning she was able to continue straight home without having to detour. Now doing about 35 down various streets, Pai made a slight change in her resolution. She would sort out the Nicholas II and Koenkan incidents. . .all in due time.
Author's Note: Hello, everyone. You've just seen the first issue of what I hope will be a long, and enjoyable story. Now, some things written in this chapter may warrant an explanation, and that's what I intend to do.
Fans of the main Virtua Fighter continuity will wonder why the Koenkan is being included at all in a crossover drawing from the game series' canon. For the sake of taking a liberty with this particular crossover, I've decided to very loosely build certain events of the first season of the Virtua Fighter anime around VF's main canon (things from season two won't get featured since there was no English dub). Now since this is building off of what the games have already long pre-established about its universe and characters, I won't be changing personalities to fit the anime versions of any of the characters. Something I personally feel is that the game's character portrayals were superior to the anime's, and that will show here, as I portray the Virtua Fighters and their universe as if it was "Virtua Fighter 6" rather than an episode of the show. For the same reasons, I plan to do the exact same thing with the Eternal Champions-verse—whose comic adaptation universe will be built around its main videogame one for this story. Main universe first and foremost—adaptation elements secondary.
Now onto the companionship of Pai Chan and Sarah Bryant, as shown here. Canonically, there's no relationship between the two of them, so one would fundamentally assume the two of them would have no involvement with each other. For me, that changed upon seeing how they fought side by side in Dead or Alive 5 and its re-releases. Since then, it was my headcanon that they were super good friends based on their tag attacks, and especially their victory and battle-ready formations when paired together in Tag Arcade. As a result, expect Pai and Sarah to be working together somewhat often, and always being closely informed of each other's endeavors when not playing a direct role in assisting those exploits. It's a really great dynamic in my opinion, as these two would both make great friends and combat partners.
The type of BlackBerries that are used by Pai and Sarah in this issue did in fact wind up in their hands due to being two Virtua Fighters. Not only does this help the girls keep in touch somewhat more easily, them being in possession of these phones is pretty realistic in my opinion. I imagine the World Fighting Tournament garnered alot of attention from moguls and companies worldwide, and I didn't consider it to be out of place for its participants to be rewarded in such a way for their second-to-none combat prowess.
Those are all of the points I wanted to address for this installment, and I'll have author's notes at the bottom of every issue that will hopefully serve to give you guys a look into my train of thought while writing what you would have just read. A 'behind the scenes' view, if you will.
Hit that arrow and find out what happens next in Hand in Hand!
-Stefan422