Disclaimer: I do not own GI Joe: Rise of Cobra or its characters, or any characters owned by Hasbro. I'm not profiting on this in anyway. I'm just playing with thinky thoughts while waiting for Retaliation to be released. (Nooo~. Please move the release date. I want to see Storm and Snake this year. Change the date again, and tell us, "LoL. Just kidding!" 2013 is too far away!) Original characters created for this story are mine.

Rating: M

Warnings: Contains (or will contain in future chapters) non-explicit violence, romance, drama, angst, some language, OCs, slash, and het.

Title: Daybreak

Chapter 1: Prologue

Year: 2010

At the Arctic...

~sss~sss~sss~

Storm Shadow was angry.

Angry at Snake Eyes' superior display of throwing skills. Angry at the silent offering of a choice to surrender. His overcoat was shredded by warning cuts, and he tore it off in defiance, daring to pit his bare flesh against sleek combat armor. Snake Eyes let the lull in battle pass, and Storm Shadow was insulted at the obvious second silent request for surrender. He vindictively mocked Snake Eyes' vow to avenge their master's death, claiming that Snake Eyes will never fulfill his promise.

He wasn't lying. Snake Eyes couldn't. How could he, not knowing the truth? That his side of the feud was empty and false.

Vindictiveness fell away to shock as a bladed tonfa pierced his chest.

For a moment, he can't comprehend that it happened; that Snake Eyes executed a fatal blow.

He's lost to Snake Eyes. Again. But even after all this time hating this man, Storm Shadow never actually believed he would die by his hands.

And now it was over.

His knees wanted to give out, but he managed to stay upright through sheer force of resentment for the man before him. Amidst the shock, conflicting feelings crashed against each other, warring for attention and demanding a reaction. The part of him that wanted to spite his killer told him to fall down at Snake Eyes' feet. He wanted his death to haunt Snake Eyes, once he uncovered the truth. Another part warned him against it, urging him to get away. That he couldn't best Snake Eyes in his condition, and he needed to run now because… he … he wanted to stay… so he had to run? In that moment of confusion, a deeper instinct pushed between the two emotions, pushed at him to stay with Snake Eyes. Tinges of relief and hope crept through, and… pain … it's over, please, please be over-

- and then there was all this HATE and BITTERNESS-

And he's disgusted at himself for being so weak to come so close to feeling grateful.

Pride won out. He will not die in an undignified heap at Snake Eyes' feet. Won't give him the satisfaction of having a body to mourn. He glared at Snake Eyes, the unspoken words that conveyed that he knew Snake Eyes would be happy that the splinter that was Storm Shadow would be gone. Defiant, he winced as he pulled the bladed tonfa from his chest, and he lets the momentum push him over the edge.

… Storm Shadow was falling.

Yet time seemed to have slow down around him.

Distantly, he saw Snake Eyes hesitantly make a grab for him...

- and his chest hurt and he wanted to reach out to that hand-

… before aborting the gesture.

Rage gripped him, chasing and berating his momentary lapse of pride. It was Snake Eyes' fault -it was always Snake Eyes' fault-, it had been Snake Eyes' fault that the clan would blame him as Hard Master's murderer, it was Snake Eyes' fault that he became a lowly street rat, and he was going to prove himself to all of them and find the killer FIRST and BY HIMSELF, and now he can't fulfill his sole purpose in life because he was DYING, and yet again Snake Eyes had taken something away from him. Again Snake Eyes got what he wanted. Over and over again. He hated- hated, that man for besting him again. For taking away everything that was his and for getting everything that he never had. Hated the Hard Master for being the one doing it. Became bitter enough and wanted to take away something important from Snake Eyes, wanted to make it stop-

- and he did make it stop, didn't he? … he HAD made it stop when he killed their master and everything would have been fine if Snake Eyes hadn't been there. Snake Eyes ruined everything. And he hated himself for his own failure; for the fact that he couldn't do the same in return- couldn't keep Snake Eyes from successfully fulfilling his vow of finding Hard Master's killer. That Snake Eyes did not fail. His pride stung because he needed to run away and recoup because-

And the cold water bit into him; can hear the resounding slap in his ears when he had hit the surface. He's still alive enough to feel the stings but he can't move.

The impact stunned him and there was nothing but blackness, and he thought he had finally died. Dazed, he floated in the darkness and he could almost swore he tasted his own blood in the water. But...

At the edges of his mind, something in him was cracking. Clawing and banging to be let out. He shied away from it, instead turning his thoughts to his environment. The height of his descent had plunged him deep enough to be caught by the strong currents that provided assistance in managing the base's generator's electrical needs. The undertow dragged him through the tunnel route that connected to each of the base's three generators. The motion of being pulled by a greater force was alarming. He imagined that a perpetual fall would feel something akin to this. The helplessness and lack of control; a stagnated existence, yet always in motion.

He relaxed and let himself be carried. It was cold, yet wasn't cold.

He wasn't sure if he was dead.

But he was starting to see the blue of the water behind his eyelids. Can feel the light.

He wondered how he could still be alive.

A thought whispered in the back of his mind and he strained through pain and dizziness to acknowledge it. Trying to remember and… he may lived yet.

Nanomites.

Elation lifted his spirits and he opened his eyes. It wasn't over yet.

Oddly... a part of him is afraid.

He shook off the fear and calmed himself, forcing his body to move, twisting to better allow the current to carry him. He will need air soon. He didn't bother to swim, he knows he'll reach the next generator chamber soon enough. Waiting, he finally saw the fluorescent lights that illuminated the generator chamber. He swung his arms and kicked his feet, pushing himself to the surface. He emerged, choking and gasping for air. Ice has formed along the sides of the wall that encircled the generator and Storm Shadow grabbed a nearby edge. His fingers didn't feel the cold, and he pulled himself along the ice edge; kicking and fighting against the water current that threatened to suck him back under; until he reached the emergency ladder built onto the wall. He gritted his teeth and begins the ascent, hauling his body that felt far too heavy. It wasn't far, but felt longer than it was, and then Storm Shadow was lying on the floor, catching his breath.

He can still live another day.

His breathing was still raggedly loud and each breath drew sharp pain, but with firmly resolved will, he staggered to his feet. He had a vendetta to pursue. To be alive and able to haunt Snake Eyes with the fact that he failed. His master's killer still lived. He wanted to hurt Snake Eyes for forcing him to run from the clan. He held Snake Eyes responsible for that. If Snake Eyes hadn't seen him, he wouldn't have been blamed. But everyone would have believed anything Snake Eyes said. He was the favorite child after all. So he ran. Fear replaced pride and he blamed Snake Eyes for it. Feelings of bitterness and hate seized him as he remembered that day. Remembered running when the large iron bell was rung in warning. Remembered looking back at Snake Eyes holding the Hard Master's body.

Storm Shadow stopped his stumbling steps and frowned; tried to force himself to stop thinking. Right now, he didn't want to think about what he did as a child that day. Reflecting upon those moments always brought up feelings of guilt and disgust at himself.

Because he remembered; he had fled in fear.

Afraid, he had run when he should have stayed behind to help find the murderer. Should have stayed to mourn his master and help perform the burial rites. He had dishonored himself and the clan by running away. He didn't deserved to be part of the clan after that. And he'd been trying to make up for his disgrace by searching for the murderer, going so far as to associate himself with criminals. That was why he became a mercenary, wasn't it? To prove Hard Master's spirit wrong; that he wasn't so inadequate compared with Snake Eyes. Even though he held their master in contempt…

… hadn't he? That was why he killed the man after all. He loathed him and Snake Eyes…

... and maybe he had been wrong; he'd made a mistake and wouldn't have been accused…

… maybe it was his own fault after all… he didn't need to run after Snake Eyes discovered that he murdered their master… he doesn't think Snake Eyes would have run…

Confusion twisted Storm Shadow, with it- pain, and he's brought down to his knees. Teeth and claws tore at that back of his mind, scrabbling to widen the cracks and get through. It hurt and he didn't understand it. Strangely, he felt a part of his mind starting to clear… something long buried leaped and wildly risen… and he's bewildered by the immense sense of being untethered from himself.

Suddenly, he's not sure why he hated Snake Eyes so much. He reached for the venomous emotions that drove him all his life; they felt distant, and out of reflex he tried to summon them forth.

A wave of darkness passed over his eyes, and he toppled onto the metal floor. His mind lurched to a stop then-

Images, sound, smell and feelings; all blurring and intersecting with each other; unable to discern where one ended and where one began.

They were memories. It felt like reliving them simultaneously, and he can't understand anything from the overload; barely making out pieces of imagery that flashed through his mind. They churned with violence; shattering everything he knew, that he wasn't sure was his, and in their wake he saw the downpour of fragments of himself all at once and yet nothing at all. Storm Shadow was suddenly so intensely aware and overwhelmed by it all; he's almost swept away in the mental torrent.

But there were tremors running through the underwater base. He sensed that they had lost the battle and he needed to escape. He wanted to live and finish-

"Fear is a powerful motivator." Light glinted off sharp edges-

"-never get caught dealing with both -"

- a large cell. There was a hearty meal before him. The steak smelled wonderful and the colorful salad-

And like the tide, the waves of memories came and went. He pushed himself to his feet, nearly tripping as he broke into an unsteady run, blocking out the shooting pain in his chest and ignoring the light bleeding that seeped from his wounds that his movements caused. He steadfastly bore the tsunami of memories that crashed into his vision, blinding him with different images, and kept moving. They can wait. He can't make sense of them right now. He knew he was in luck. He's at the far side of the base in Generator C and there was a moon pool with backup emergency escape subs nearby. He concentrated on getting there, tuning out the blaring alarms and flashing lights that signaled the impending destruction. The dangerous creaking of-

-metal and the sharp crack of glass shattering. There was crying and he could smell blood. He reached out, searching in panic for Yuehua and the others. He coughed as the dust and plaster-
"Kid! Help the children. Keep them calm. The man repeated his urgent request in Cantonese, then Mandarin. He shouted over his shoulder. "Wilkinson! Lee! It's gonna collapse and we got injured people trapped!" The man turned back to him-
-he was holding the other end of a gurney.

All the emergency escape subs were there and he rushed to the closest one, nearly falling over the short flight of steps-

-and rubbed his ankle. He had landed incorrectly at the last spin and he could feel twinges of pain. He will have to-
-watched Snake Eyes execute all three katas perfectly. The observing masters all murmured in approval. Another master remarked to Hard Master that he had made a good choice. More quiet comments were exchanged and-
The next class was about partnership and he had been assigned to Snake Eyes again. He suspected this was going to be a long term arrangement and he was not happy about it.

Blindly, he hit the controls to seal off the door as he moved toward the pilot chair-

-rotting stink of trash. Two voices argued quietly with each other. He must also be concussed; his head hurt and he felt like retching and it wasn't because of the smell. Remains of unfinished meals and disposable eating utensils rolled off of him as he's picked up and carried out. Instinctively, he tried to lash out in defense. All it did was elicit a chuckle.
"You're completely out of your mind. This is a stupid idea. Thomas works for the other side. Put him back!"
"I was impressed."
"Goddammit, Dimitri Dragunov, you're really going to take him back with us."
He can make out a wolfish smile and steely green eyes looking down at him. "I can find a use for you."

Hands, moving of their own accord out of muscle memory, flipped the switches-

-he notched three arrows to his bow. The first bomb had gone off and he needed to corral the fleeing troops to the escape routes that had been rigged with explosives. He took aim at the fleeing mercenaries and let his arrows fly. Quickly and neatly reloading, he continued unleashing arrows at an almost impossible speed.
Another explosion rocked the compound. It was time to move to the next location.

Coordinates plotted to a randomly familiar number-

-studied the symbol of a moon, the wavy stroke beneath it that could be mistaken for a silhouette of a snake, all drawn in red. He traced it with a finger.
"You've been looking at that for a while, Thomas."
He didn't turn to look at the speaker, and doesn't give an answer to the question being asked. He knew he was dangerously flaunting etiquette. He was not sure he had an answer to give anyway.
"Here, these are for you." Gentle thuds as items were placed on the table. He recognized one of the sounds as a sheathed katana and at that he does turn to look. A trio of blades rested on the cherrywood; a katana, a wakizashi, and a tantou.
But he thought he maybe could stay here.

The escape sub dove into the sea, and the ethereal sensation of transition engulfed him-

-she brushed her hair out of her face. Black hair was growing out, pushing the blonde dyed hair to the fringes. She decided her natural color was better and had stopped dyeing it. "To-mi-sa-bu-rou?" She rolled the first syllable of his name around her tongue, getting use to pronouncing the first long 'o'. "Tomi, tomi, tomi."
"Now lock yourself in the bathroom and say my name three times in the dark, in front of the mirror," he smirked. "I'll appear right behind you."
"Bloody Mary doesn't suit you," she laughed. "You're so attractive. I should just call you 'Tomi'. Like that girl, Tomie. You can pretend to be her brother."
"What?"
"Tomie. Evil beauty who can regenerate from a single cell. Boys kill each other over her before turning on her. C'mon. You have to had heard of it. It was pretty famous back in Japan. They even made seven movies."
"Again. What?"

Setting the sub to stealth mode-

-the quiet hum and beeps of machinery woke him. He felt mellow, almost blissful, but he could barely move. There were two men with him. He didn't recognize them, but they were familiar. The taller man stood beside him, smelling of leather and gunpowder. Spoke to him in Japanese, the language that was his first tongue, had rusted in disuse, and he could suddenly understand. Thomas wondered how it was possible he could have forgotten it at all. The man asked him who he was.
He struggled with himself; wasn't sure which answer to give; didn't want to answer. Instinct warned him- he was in danger.
The man repeated his question.
This time, he couldn't stop himself from answering. "I'm Storm Shadow," he replied in Japanese.
"But what's your name?"
"Tomisaburou Arashikage."
"You understand Japanese."
"Yes."
They both appeared displeased at that. Storm Shadow wondered why.

White-blue of the Arctic ocean; the light reflected and refracted by ice and water-

-metal never seemed so cold and bright. The red sigil of the Arashikage clan stood out on the white handle of the blade. Red on white, a sharp contrast that was unable to match the stark red of blood that pooled before the Hard Master. He stood frozen. Dimly, he heard running feet and the great bell ringing.
Storm Shadow turned to look-

-and then it was all laid out before him.

The truths-the lies-and the truths that became the lies- and exhaustion finally set in and his battered mind huddled in on itself in silence.

He gazed out into the open ocean. It was a beautiful sight and he allowed himself to drift in a limbo of peace.

The pain from his injuries was gone and the encompassing cold had disappeared.

He felt warm.

… and darkness embraced Thomas Akatsuki.

~sss~sss~sss~

Author Notes: Prior to Paramount getting movie rights to GI Joe, Storm Shadow's real name in comics and toys was Thomas Arashikage, because he's a US citizen. (Served in the military and met fellow soldier Snake Eyes.) Afterwards, they gave him the name Tomisaburou Arashikage. I'm presuming because they've changed him to a Japanese citizen (new continuities seem to follow the film) or to give Thomas a Japanese name too. (Pretty common practice.) I debated whether to make Storm an US citizen who's moved in with his relatives in Japan because both parents are dead, but decided against it for plot purposes. And in keeping with Storm Shadow's live action actor's ethnicity, I'm leaving Storm Shadow of Korean descent, so he's Korean Japanese. (Common for Koreans who are Japanese citizens to NOT have Korean first or last names.)

'Akatsuki' means daybreak/sunrise/dawn in Japanese. It's also a homophone for the noun phrase 'red moon.'

'Tomie' is the name of a Japanese horror manga and films. Story is by writer and illustrator, Junji Ito. Warning: His art is rather gruesome and can stick to you long after you put the book down.

Next time: Storm Shadow's past.