Escape

Angel sat restlessly on the foot of her bed. Anxiety had been her bunkmate since she had conceived the notion that she would betray her lord and master. Blotting her sweaty palms on her pants legs, she performed a series of breathing exercises to calm her nerves.

The lone warrior ascended the side of one of the steeper cliffs in the mountain range; his powerful hands easily gripping the sparse foot and hand holds left by other intrepid climbers. Where he found none, he created his own using the knife edge of his hand.

Minutes later, he stood on the summit of the two mile high formation. Standing erect, the powerful winds whipped at his white gi and tousled his dark brown hair. His demeanor remained serene and sparse dots of perspiration on his brow were the only evidence e had exerted any effort. Staring down over the rolling expanses of grass lands, he sighed contentedly.

As if executing a line of programming, Angel flawlessly marched in time with the rest of her unit while her active thoughts focused on her escape plan. A whistle shrieked loudly to signify the end of the exercise. Her ears barely registered it, but her body instinctively headed towards her quarters.

The ki of all creation. That is what the monk Dhalsm and his late master Gouken had called it. And now, Ryu, attuned to this incredibly deep reservoir of power, drank from it.

Cupping his hands to his side, he slid one leg back until he has assumed a horse stance. Sapphire energy began amassing against his palms. Each strand of ki added its own power to the sphere rapidly growing between the two hands.

Thrusting his hands downward, he yelled "Hadoken!" and releases the orb into the ground at an angle. The ki sphere chewed away through the solid rock and exited somewhere near the middle of the mountain. As it was not his strongest version of the technique, the sphere dissipated once it escaped the interior of the cliff.

Tucking the disc into the tight waistband of her uniform, Angel allowed part of it to protrude so as not to have it fall down her pants leg and risk damaging it. Fastening some lightweight armor around her midsection, she completed the ensemble by pulling on her jumper top. It fit snuggly around her breasts, as these jumpers had a tendency to shrink after every third or fourth wash.

Removing the fourth drawer of her dresser, she revealed three energy pistols she had seduced out of the Supplies' Officer. Strapping one to the side of her ankle, she placed the other two inside the twin holsters within her top.

Grabbing the small backpack, she slung it over her shoulder. As her plan prescribed, she waited for the patrol outside her window to give the "all clear" to the security tower before launching herself out of the third story window.

Somersaulting at the last moment, she landed with a soft thud next to the patrol.

"What are you doing out of you quarters soldier?" Her reply was a swift kick to the shin. As the patrolman began to lose balance, she spun and slammed her elbow into his temple then shoved him against the wall. As the body slumped to the ground, Angel dashed across the courtyard.

His training done for the moment, Ryu had since returned the small cabin serving as home for the time being.

On the stove was a half eaten pot of rice. Devoid of his gi, the warrior meditated in the corner of his living room. Being connected to the earth's ki, during his meditations he could sense peril; and not just danger that threatened him.

If nearby, he could sense an impending danger threatening to consume another. In extreme cases, such as with the four people closest to him, he could sense their uneasiness hundreds and even thousands of miles away. Tonight however, what he sensed was near by.

Her escape plan gone awry, Angel maintained her outward composure as she battled with the panic slowly threatening to manifest itself. Tucking her body into as tight a ball as she can, she rolled past a hail of gunfire. Without missing a step, she came out of her roll and returned fire. Her ammo however had a shorter effective range missed by several inches. Ignoring that disappointed, she pressed forward towards her goal.

Ryu, once again outside, walked along the trodden paths of the forest, his senses informed him of the looming jeopardy. Having rested before beginning his journey, most of the amount of ki expended during his training had been restored. Prepared for anything, he continued his trek through familiar territory.

She heard the mobilized skimmers buzzing over head. Fortunately, the mud, leaves, and other debris kept her heat signature below tracking levels. Cursing how out of control her plan had gone, she hoped she can maintain her concealment until the morning. Until then she just had to wait.

The mechanical buzzing instantly betrayed the skimmers collective presence to Ryu as he rushed in that direction.

"We have a heat signature. It's not her though," remarked a pilot as he noticed how much larger the body image on his screen was.

Suddenly, a blue light ripped off one of his engines before engulfing said engine in flames. Leaping to safety, the pilot watched as his skimmer crumpled like tinfoil against a tree.

The sound of the crash nearly caused Angel to give away her location. What the hell is going on out there! her mind screamed as another skimmer was reduced to scrap metal.

His facial features, honed to a perfect mask of indifference, Ryu waited for the four downed pilots to initiate an offensive.

The first drew his gun and fired. Ryu effortlessly slipped past the bullet and rammed his palm into the man's stomach. Doubling over, his collar bone snaps as Ryu drives his fist into it.

Leaping over the fallen soldier, he twisted in mid air and slammed his heel into another's jaw. The man collided with a tree as Ryu diverted his attention the remaining two men whom had decided to attack in tandem. Both their efforts were thwarted as Ryu either swatted their punches away or avoided them completely.

A roundhouse to the throat ends the assault of the first, and a jumping hook kick to the temple finishes off his partner.

Mysteriously, the sound of soldiers and skimmers had ceased. Arguing with whether or not it was merely a trap to for her from hiding, Angel decided to chance it and made her way through the foliage.

A few meters ahead of her, she was shocked to see the unconscious bodies of the soldiers sent to retrieve her.

"What happened to them?" she wondered aloud. Although just above a whisper, her query was answered.

"I did."

Drawing one of her weapons she leveled the barrel in the direction of the voice.

"I mean you no harm. I felt that you were in danger."

"I could have handled it just fine on my own," she replied harshly. However, after replacing her weapon, her tone softens. "But thanks anyway."

"Mind telling me why these guys are after you?"

"I can't right now. I'm sorry, but I have to leave now. Thanks again."

Ryu watched as she disappeared into the darkness of the forest. Funny thing is, I think I know why already. Seems as if the rumors of Bison's demise were exaggerated.