That Fateful December
"Witness my limitless power!" Upon uttering those words, the android Seth, whom Decapre's scans had shown was on the verge of defeat moments ago, flared back to life. She found herself faced with replications of moves from fighters that she had faced prior to the fight, from Guile's Sonic Boom, to Dhalsim's extending arms.
Preliminary analysis did not indicate that prime objective was capable of such feats; alternate tactics are required. Must reassess tactics.
"Ughn!" Her attempt at a diving kick was countered by a pseudo-Shoryuken, making her land hard on her back. Extending her gauntlet-claws, she charged forward, cutting several gashes in Seth's body. He caught her arm on the fifth strike and threw her to the ground once again. A sickening snap and a bolt of pain told her that her left wrist had been dislocated. With an anguished scream, she snapped it back into place and continued her assault, ignoring the throbbing thuds in her head.
Previous tactics have been rendered ineffective. Personal damage output decreasing; accumulation of injuries is impairing output. Target's defensive status is decreasing at a slower rate than personal vitality. Must increase output.
Finally managing to break his guard, the Shadaloo assassin forced him back with a Spiral Arrow. Her follow-up blow however was negated; Seth countered with a spinning pile-driver. Decapre felt her chest tighten and strain, but she managed to roll away and get back on her feet.
Error! Error! Any further blows to body will result in total shutdown. Chances of victory have decreased to 3%. Must complete primary mission.
She had only one chance left and began focusing Psycho Power into her right arm. The android noticed her change in strategy and moved to intercept.
But he was one second too late.
A massive burst of purple energy slammed into Seth's chest and poured itself into the wounds he'd received. He staggered backwards, jerked around for a few seconds, and then collapsed in a heap, his power source depleted.
Decapre felt herself over. Her injuries were significant and, with too much exertion, might even be life-threatening. But none of that mattered. Seth had to be destroyed.
"Ready to complete termination of prime objective."
But before she could dismantle the machine, her ears caught the distinct rhythm of footsteps approaching. She turned, placing Seth's body between herself and the entrance.
"Decapre!" Into the room came another woman, with blond hair and a green leotard. The look on her face showed fear and concern. But Decapre saw none of it. With the new arrival, all thoughts of health and mission vanished, replaced by sheer fury.
"Killer Bee! AAAGH!"
Abandoning all pretense of skill, she attacked, activating her gauntlets again. Killer Bee blocked the clumsy blows but refused to strike back. And this only made Decapre angrier.
"I'll end you. I'll destroy every part of you, KILL YOU!"
"Decapre, it's me. It's Cammy. Please stop it."
She didn't stop. That name had no meaning to her. Her own name didn't even have meaning to her. All that mattered now was killing Killer Bee.
Her body's reserves had long given out, and only adrenaline kept her on her feet. Despite that, she kept attacking.
"Please! You're going to hurt yourself. Just stop fighting, I'm begging you."
"You don't know anything." came the hissed retort. "You liar. I hate you. Hate you! HATE—urk!"
It was too much. The pain was too much. With a sharp gasp, she crumpled to the floor; her heart giving out from all the strain. Still cursing Cammy's name, she clutched her arms around herself, willing the pain to go away.
Her heart aching to see her sister in pain, Cammy slowly reached down and took off Decapre's mask.
She found herself staring into her own face, heavily burnt, but hers nonetheless. But before the shock could set in, she heard a familiar voice from above.
"This was never a coincidence."
Bison. The evil she'd endured at his hands still sickened her to this day. She moved in front of Decapre, fully prepared to defend her fallen sister.
"Don't bother. The failsafe has already started."
"What do you mean?"
"When the dolls were first programmed, countermeasures were created to prevent the possibility of betrayal. Should one ever be released from my mental control, their brain functions would rapidly deteriorate until they died. By my estimate, she only has a few minutes left."
"I escaped from Shadaloo, and I'm still alive. And I can save her too."
The sneer on his face made her blood boil. "I find that unlikely. But on the off chance you manage to get her to a hospital in time, her violent tendencies would make her too difficult to treat. Despite her similar appearance, she is not like you at all. Merely a damaged prototype who could not withstand her programming."
While they had been talking, Decapre's struggles had subsided. With a glazed expression, she reached towards Cammy.
"Does it h-hurt? I-It's all right. It's…all…right."
"There's not much time left." Bison continued. "But I can still save her."
Her fist clenched and jaw set, Cammy tried to hide her growing desperation.
"What do you want, you monster?"
His reply was only a single word, but Decapre couldn't hear it. The last thing she saw before unconsciousness swept her away was the sight of tears streaming down Cammy's face.
The stench of Shadaloo felt all too familiar to Cammy. It wasn't that long ago that she too had been under Bison's control, and she'd told herself before that she would rather die than return.
"As promised. The healing tank will restore her to proper physical and mental condition. And now, it is time to fulfill your end of the bargain. Kneel."
Biting back her disgust, Cammy forced herself to her knees. Defiance would do her no good now. With one order, Decapre's treatments would be halted, and the poor girl would be left again to die.
You're doing this for your sister. You're doing this for your sister. You're doing this for your sister.
"Who do you serve?"
It was a struggle to choke the words out. "I serve you."
"'I serve you' what?"
Guile, Chun-Li, Juni, please forgive me.
"I serve you...Master Bison."
He placed his hand on her head and began forcing his Psycho Power into her. To her credit, she did not even scream as the evil energy tore through her body and tainted her mind. The pain was horrible, as if all the pain receptors in her body were activating at once. But even then, she struggled, hoping beyond hope that she could somehow power through it.
But it was not to be.
Once he was finished, the once formidable Delta Red agent lay crushed and broken on the ground. Her eyes glowed bright purple as the Psycho Power took hold. She was Killer Bee once again.
One of the technicians stepped forward. "My lord, do you want us to put her with the other subjects?"
Bison allowed himself a chuckle in his moment of triumph. "No. She was so determined to be reunited with the others. So, she and her 'sister' will remain together. Put her in another tank, and take both to the secondary lab."
As they strapped her into the tank, Killer Bee turned towards the adjacent pod. As she caught sight of the other girl, her mind recalled something the other had said long ago. Killer Bee found no significance in them, but one last piece of Cammy did, and a single tear rolled down her cheek.
It's all right. Your big sister is right here.
A/N: This was actually sitting on the back burner for almost a year. I played Decapre's scenario in Ultra IV and was very distraught by her ending. Especially since Cammy's my favorite character and seeing Bison force her to turn evil again (apparently, I have conflicting sources on that. Some say he just took Decapre back with him but that doesn't explain the two tubes) was just heartbreaking after all she's been through. So I wrote this to translate my thoughts into words.
I hope you enjoy.