I must be hallucinating, Lee told himself as he continued to stare at the armor-clad female figure that had just ran up the side of the Mishima tower and climbed onto the roof where he and his two companions Jun and Kazuya just defeated the destroyer Azazel. I watched her get impaled by Kazuya just last night! How is it that she's still here?
"I suppose I should thank you for missing my vital organs," Nagalya turned to Kazuya and nodded her head to him in gratitude. "I don't mean to offend you or anything, but dying at your hands isn't the end that I had in mind."
"I thought that you would bleed to death anyway, so I didn't bother checking your body," Kazuya replied as he folded his arms. "However, you have come too late: we have already defeated your precious Azazel. If you surrender now, then I might decide to make your death painless."
"That's enough, Kazuya," Lee interjected before he started walking over to Nagalya. "Nagalya, words cannot describe how happy I am to see that you are still breathing." Outstretching his hand, the still-armored warrior continued his words of joy. "This is our chance to put this mess behind us. Come on: I'll show you the best time of your life."
"That sounds tempting, Scrumptious," Nagalya said quietly as she reached out to take his hand. "I would love to have some fun with you…"
It's actually going to happen, Lee thought happily while he watched the masked succubus walk closer to him so that she could join hands with him. All of my hard work is finally going to be rewarded. It's about time that luck started to fall in my favor!
Just when it seemed Nagalya and Lee would join hands and put the brutal battles they had fought against one another behind them, the succubus suddenly let out a piercing scream and clutched her helmet-protected head in pain. "Nagalya, what's going on?" Lee reached out the object of his desire just as she turned away. "Are you in pain?"
"That's…sort of why I came here," Nagalya struggled to say as she suddenly lowered his body and assumed a hauntingly familiar fighting stance. "See, while you might have gotten rid of one voice in my head, there's still another voice I have to deal with! This voice tells me to maim and kill everything that breathes, and to not stop until everyone is dead!"
She must be talking about her suit, Lee reasoned as he pondered whether or not to walk over to the battle-ready Nagalya anyway and try to comfort her. Maybe if I can remove it from her, this nightmare will be over and I can get my happily ever after!
"You're probably thinking that if we got rid of this suit, the problem would be solved," Nagalya said, causing Lee to turn his head in surprise. "It's not going to work like that, Scrumptious. The suit is my life force: if you destroy it, I go down with it…but at the same time, I don't want to follow its orders."
"What do I have to do?" Lee asked, ready to follow Nagalya's slightest whim.
"I want you to kill me for real," Nagalya answered bluntly. "While I was lying there waiting for my wound to close up, I was thinking about what a shame it would be if this world was destroyed. I've grown very fond of this land of the living, and I do not want to see it turned into a cauldron of blood thanks to this suit."
"You want me to kill you?" Lee repeated, not entirely sure what he just heard. "How do you expect me to do that!? I don't see you as my enemy anymore, Nagalya: you are the woman that I love…the woman that I want to spend the rest of my life with! Do you think that I am just going to let you die!?"
"I know you will, because you love me," Nagalya nodded her head slightly while her body started to shudder as she felt the evil influence of her Soul Ripper persona begin to take over. "You know full well that I can never live with the guilt of what I did to those kids, not to mention all of the other nasty things I did in the name of Azazel. Would it be very nice of you to let me live while there's still the possibility that I'll turn right back into the Soul Ripper…much like I'm about to do now?"
"That guilt is proof that things aren't hopeless, Nagalya," Lee countered Nagalya's grim outlook with a brighter one. "There has to be a way to fix this: I bet someone like Yoshimitsu would know how to do it! He's the one who told us about this Soul Edge and Soul Calibur mess anyway!" Seeing that Nagalya was now shivering uncontrollably, the silver-haired martial artist called out to her. "Nagalya…say something!"
"…I'm the Soul Ripper, the angel of death," she hissed as her body stopped shaking and began to walk towards the battle-damaged Lee. "I am the brutal enforcer of all divine laws, with a mystic voice in my head." Slowly but surely, the slow walk evolved into a full run, and Lee had no choice but to assume his fighting stance and defend himself as the possessed succubus dashed at him with murderous intent. "I'm the Soul Ripper, the bringer of death. So you better never ever meet me, because then you'll take your final breath!"
Oh no, Lee thought in horror as he moved his head to the side so as to avoid the slasher's forward hand thrust. She's turned back into that killer! What am I supposed to do now? Grabbing onto the outstretched hand and using it hold his lover still, Lee reared back his fist and prepared to strike her. I guess the most I can do is fight, until she's back to normal!
Before he could throw a punch, the Soul Ripper used her exceptional athleticism to jump into the air and strike Lee just under his chin with a backflip kick, forcing him to release her and allow her to land gracefully a couple of yards away. Of course, this is assuming that she doesn't kill me first, the silver-haired warrior thought grimly as the Soul Ripper charged at him once again. I'm not trying to kill her, but the same can't be said for what she intends to do to me!
Ducking under the mad succubus' horizontal slash, Lee rose back up to strike his lover in the head with a rising somersault kick, returning the favor done to him moments earlier. With the attack launching the Soul Ripper several feet into the air, Lee capitalized on the opportunity given to him and knocked her further away with a second, high-arcing somersault.
The Soul Ripper landed on her feet and again charged at the martial artist in front of her. With a wild shout, the mad succubus raised her fist and applied it to Lee's chest, forcing the silver-haired warrior to stumble backwards. The Soul Ripper immediately followed with a second punch to the chest, stepping forward with the blow so that she could keep up with the reeling Lee, and finished the assault with a snapping side kick that knocked him off of his feet.
Lee landed on his hands and knees and rose back up just in time to keep himself from being vertically bisected by a cut from his possessed lover's elbow blades. With his hand moving faster than the Soul Ripper's eyes could keep up, Lee struck the woman in the chest with a quick jab. The jab was immediately followed by a second jab, and a spinning backfist sent the Soul Ripper stumbling backwards.
The Soul Ripper quickly recovered, however, and resumed her fighting stance with such swiftness that Lee stopped advancing so to avoid falling into a trap. His hesitating, however, was just the reaction the Soul Ripper was hoping for as she leapt forward and knocked Lee down with a jumping side kick.
Before Lee could get back up, the Soul Ripper reached down and grabbed him by the throat, hoping to strangle the life out of him. She's so powerful, Lee thought as his leg shot up to kick the mad succubus off of him, forcing her to loosen her hold enough for him to break free and catch his breath. However, I can't go all-out: not when there's a chance to save her!
The two fighters resumed their stances at the exact same instant, and waited for the other to make their next move for a couple of moments. After the couple of moments were over, Lee let out a shout and knocked the Soul Ripper over like a bowling pin using his jumping Silver Sting technique. After he did that, he mounted the fallen succubus and raised his fist.
However, he could not bring himself to punch the woman. Instead, he grabbed onto her shoulders and pressed his helmet against hers. "Open your eyes, Nagalya," Lee said to her, hoping that his words would help break the spell that the suit had on her. "You're being controlled like a puppet! Don't let the suit tell you what to do!"
Mercy, however, had no place in this fight, as Lee quickly learned when the Soul Ripper once again latched onto his throat. Silenced by the stranglehold, the armored martial artist gasped for air as the mad succubus stood back up with his neck still in her grasp. After a few more seconds of breathless gasping, Lee was lifted into the air and then slammed back into the ground.
Not relinquishing her hold on Lee, the Soul Ripper ran forward as fast as she could while dragging Lee along with her. The friction caused by metal grinding against pavement was made apparent by the sparks that shot from Lee's suit as he was pulled across the roof like a rag scrubbing a floor. Once she felt that she had built enough momentum, the Soul Ripper let go of Lee and watched as he crashed into an antenna.
This would probably be a lot easier if I wasn't so tired from fighting Azazel, Lee reasoned as he slowly stood back up and lifted his head to see the Soul Ripper charge at him with violent intent. Then again, it would also be a lot easier if my goal were to actually defeat her!
Like a matador that was using his entire body as a lure, Lee jumped straight up, performing mid-air splits as he did so. By doing this impressive athletic maneuver, the silver-haired martial artist hurdled over the charging Soul Ripper. With nowhere to go but forward given the speed she had charged Lee at, the Soul Ripper crashed head first in into the same antenna that her prey had been tossed into.
Seeing his opportunity, Lee pulled the Soul Ripper away from the antenna by her head and placed her in a side headlock. Once he was sure that her head was secure, Lee leapt into the air and landed in a sitting position while driving the mad succubus' face into the ground with a Bulldog grapple. Standing back up before the Soul Ripper could recover, Lee lifted his leg in preparation for a punishing stomp to her back.
Unfortunately for him, Lee's adversary rolled away before the boot could be driven in her body. "I'm the Soul Ripper," she reminded the silver-haired martial artist as she sent him sliding across the pavement like a hockey punk with a standing pirouette kick, "the angel of death!"
Chasing after her prey using her inhuman speed, the Soul Ripper actually managed to get behind Lee just as he finished sliding. This quickness, combined with her greater desire to inflict pain as opposed to her adversary, allowed the Soul Ripper to again grab Lee by the throat and lift him high into the air only to slam him back into the pavement.
However, Lee was quicker to recover now that his adrenaline was back on the rise. Flipping back onto his feet and kicking the mad succubus in the process, the silver-haired warrior's right leg clipped the Soul Ripper in the shin with a low kick. This kick was immediately followed by another one of its kind, and another and another. These low-striking attacks were quickly put to a stop, however, by Lee's horizontal high-striking kick that struck the Soul Ripper in her visor and knocked her off of her feet.
All I have to do is keep on attacking the visor like last time, Lee strategized as he chased after the Soul Ripper with his fist raised. If I can shatter that, then Nagalya should be able to regain enough control of herself to suppress the voice of that suit! I should have been doing this from the get-go!
With that battle plan in mind, Lee spun around and struck the Soul Ripper with a 360-degree hook punch. The punch was delivered with such force and precision that a small fissure appeared in the area of the visor she had been hit. Stunned from the powerful attack, the mad succubus was left open to another series of punches: two crosses followed by another spinning hook punch.
Not willing to give the Soul Ripper any respite, Lee continued targeting the visor by grabbing onto the back of her neck and driving his knee into it with great force. The knee was so powerful that it knocked the mad succubus off of her feet and caused her to land on her back while leaving a small crack in the pavement.
Lee mounted the object of his affections once again, but this time he did not hesitate to strike her while she was lying prostrate. Lifting his fists and letting out a loud shout, the silver-haired martial artist pounded away at her head using wild and desperate punches. "Come on, Nagalya, you can beat this," he shouted as his hands rained down on her protected face. "Give me a sign that you're still there!"
Instead of receiving a sign, however, he received a headbutt to his head that rattled him enough for the Soul Ripper to launch him off of her with both of her legs and stand back up with her fist raised once again. Returning the favor done to her moments before, the Soul Ripper grabbed onto the back of Lee's head and rammed her knee into it with such force that it left a crack in his helmet.
It's getting worse and worse, Lee mumbled as he focused his ki into his legs while jumping back onto his feet. It's time to do this before I lose her forever!
Without saying a word, the Soul Ripper once again went for broke and charged at Lee with her arms raised. Lee's timing would have to be precise, or he would be at a serious and possibly fatal disadvantage. However, Lee's age and experience were more than enough to make sure that his attack would fly true, and he effortlessly ducked under the mad succubus's high slash. Rising back up while letting out a piercing shout, Lee shattered the Soul Ripper's visor, and her entire helmet, like an eggshell using his Silver Cyclone technique.
"I did it," Lee exclaimed as he looked down to see Nagalya's beautiful face free of the helmet that masked it. Leaning down and outstretching his hand once again, Lee smiled as he heard the woman groan in pain: something that she had not done when she was the Soul Ripper. "Come on, Nagalya: we'll call it a draw and plan our rematch for a later date. Right now I'm tired."
When Nagalya slowly turned her head to face the armored playboy, however, Lee let out a gasp of shock. Even though the helmet was gone, the rest of her suit was still remaining. Furthermore, it went beyond merely covering her body: from the neck down, it looked like it had been grafted to her body. What the hell is this? Lee wondered as he Nagalya grabbed onto his arm and pulled it towards her so that she could strike him in the head with a leg lariat that knocked him flat on his back. I destroyed the helmet; this should be over by now!
As Nagalya reached down and grabbed Lee by the throat once again, however, he soon learned that this was not the case. Upon seeing her glowing red eyes that were devoid of any sort of compassion or mercy, the silver-haired martial artist realized how much trouble he was in as Nagalya tossed him into the air and sent him spiraling away with a jumping roundhouse kick just before he hit the ground.
Quickly getting back onto his feet as soon as he hit the ground, Lee took a moment to regain his bearings as the mid-air spinning threw off his balance. However, the dizziness did not go away quick enough, and the moment it took for him to figure out where he was the same moment that Nagalya put him in a headlock and brought him to the ground with a Bulldog of her own.
Lee grunted as he pushed himself off the ground and returned to his feet, and turned around to see Nagalya rush towards him with her elbow blades raised. With no time to evade, he said a quick prayer, hoped that his arm guards would hold up against the blades, and threw his arms up in a block. If I'm wrong, then getting dressed the morning is going to be a lot harder!
To his good fortune, the armor on his forearms were able to block Nagalya's blades. However, the two armors colliding together created feedback strong enough to send the two of them sliding away from each other like magnets. While the mad succubus remained on her feet, however, Lee fell right on his buttocks the moment he stopped moving.
The time it took for Lee to stand back up and rub where he had landed was more than enough time for Nagalya to run up to him and knock him down like a domino using a running side kick. With her opponent down, she lifted her foot and the ground the bottom of her high-heeled boot into Lee's back. Smiling upon hearing his cries of pain, she removed the foot only to kick him away like a football.
Getting rid of the helmet was my plan to end this without hurting her, Lee thought as he gripped his midsection and slowly stood back up. I have no idea what to do now: it's infected her entire body!
Even though Lee was losing his will to fight, Nagalya was nowhere close to losing hers: warping in front of Lee using her inhuman speed that made it seem like she teleported, the mad succubus launched the man into the air with a somersault kick, and then propelled him further upwards with another one.
Not even willing to let him fall to the ground, Nagalya ducked down and then sprang upwards to hit Lee with yet another somersault kick. This kick, which was embedded with her crackling dark purple ki, sent Lee crashing headfirst into the pile of crystalline debris that used to be Azazel, and that didn't make for a soft landing.
I was beaten senseless less than ten minutes ago at the hands of a giant monster, Lee moaned as he stumbled back onto his feet only for Nagalya to again warp in front of him and ram her knee into his sternum, forcing him to crumple down like an accordion. There's no way I can stop her when she's like this, and Kazuya and Jun are probably too tired to help me.
In an act of merciless savagery, Nagalya lifted Lee back up by his throat and then completely shattered his helmet like an eggshell using a devastating half-knuckle blow. Too tired to even scream in agony, the silver-haired playboy fell onto his back and took deep and shallow breaths. I want to save her so much, but my body just isn't compatible with my will right now. I've never felt so helpless…so alone…
"You are not alone…"
I know that voice, Lee muttered as Nagalya picked him up and threw him over her shoulder to send him crashing into the ground: she wasn't about to let him fall over the edge of the building and let him die in that manner. That's the voice of the Soul Calibur. What does it want?
"Remember that you are not alone this time, Lee Chaolan," the soothing voice told Lee as he lay on his stomach struggling for air and life. "When you fought the specter, your brother and your friend did not believe in your cause. That is not the case now, and that bond can make you stronger…"
That's not relevant to the situation at hand, Lee retorted as he heard Nagalya's footsteps slowly become louder and louder as the mad succubus made her way towards him. Even they cannot help me after they spent all their energy fighting Azazel. Right now it's only me…me against the woman I love.
"Even she is with you now: she has entrusted you with a task that no man or woman should ever entrust to someone who they didn't care for deeply," the voice explained. "The woman has become the wielder of the evil blade, the devourer of souls. However, she no longer wishes for this to be a burden to her or anyone else."
"She wants me to kill her, and that can't be the only solution," Lee said out loud with a strained hiss while he struggled to get back onto his feet. "I made a vow that I would show her the error of her ways by devoting myself to her entirely. Do you have any idea how hard it was for me, a playboy who loves women in general, to devote myself to a single lady?"
"That selflessness is what drew me towards you," the voice replied. "However, denying her of her wish is very selfish. The sins she has committed are too great and too numerous for her conscience…a conscience that you helped polish with your bravery and kindness. She knows that if the killing is to stop, and the world is to be at peace once more…she must die today, by the hands of the one she treasures most…"
"…but I'm hurt and tired," Lee complained before falling back down on his face upon failing to remain standing after getting back onto his feet. "I exhausted all of my energy fighting that freak, and this suit of ours been turned into scrap metal. What can I hope to do now?"
"I will devote the last ounce of my energy into one final attack," the voice assured Lee as he again tried to get off the ground before Nagalya came in close enough to decapitate him with her lethal elbow blades. "It will be up to you to pierce her armor in one deadly strike, and I will completely crystallize the Soul Edge that acts as her puppeteer."
"…I understand," Lee quietly submitted to the voice's will as he stood back up and groggily assumed his fighting stance, causing the approaching Nagalya to stop walking towards him and raise an eyebrow in curiosity. "However, I have onerequest to ask of you: I want you to make her death as painless as possible when I use my this attack."
"That is very noble of you, Lee Chaolan," the voice complimented Lee as he reared back and focused the last bit of his silver-tinted ki into his right hand in preparation for the most devastating and lethal attack that his unique brand of martial arts had to offer. "I shall do my best and make sure that her last moments are not agonizing ones."
Looking up to see Nagalya's body crackle with her own ki, Lee took a deep breath and let out one final battle cry before charging towards her. The moment he took a step forward, Nagalya attempted to bring an end to his life by unleashing multiple streaks of dark purple lightning. "Critical Finish," she voiced her attack with her tone dripping with insanity, "Ripper Thunder!"
However, not even this most lethal of attacks could stop Lee's advance, as he ran through the volley of lightning as what was left of his armor glowed fiercely like a star. The loud and fiery explosions that erupted behind him with each bolt that hit the ground did not faze him, nor the maniacal laughter that came from Nagalya's mouth. All that mattered was that his last attack struck true.
Once he was within striking distance, Lee unleashed his attack: a fingers-first thrust to Nagalya's solar plexus that pierced her armor, and her flesh within. That mad succubus did not scream, however, as her armor suddenly became cold and crystalline from the point of impact. Within moments, her armor fell off of her and shattered upon hitting the ground, reduced to a mess of glass.
All that was left now was Nagalya's naked form, and a thin smile that formed on her lips. "Nagalya," Lee whispered as he flooded the wound with the silver ki that he had gathered previous. "I am so sorry, beautiful. All I can do is hope that you forgive me, and wait for me when my time comes."
Nagalya did not respond with words, but placing her hand on Lee's cheek and gently pressing her lips against his. "You gave me the time of my life after all, Mr. Lee Chaolan," she told her through her telepathic powers as the two of them shared a deep and tender kiss. "My only regret is that we can't go farther than this: I'm sure it would have been a wild and wonderful experience…"
Feeling the crystallization effect take hold, Nagalya deepened the kiss even further and wrapped her arms around the silver warrior: an embrace that Lee returned in kind. Despite his nickname of the Silver Devil, Lee had become her angel of light, and he wanted nothing more than to make her last moments heavenly.
Once the effect head reached her sternum, Nagalya slowly broke this kiss and gently pushed him away. "Tell your friends…that it was a good war," she whispered with a smirk as her arms and neck became frozen. "Maybe the next time we meet…we'll be able to have a real duel…"
Returning the smirk with a thin smile of his own as the crystallization effect finally reached the top of her head, Lee felt a tear roll down his eye. He felt like bursting into tears and sobbing on the ground, but a part of him knew that there was no point of mourning: he had made Nagalya's final moments happy ones, and that was what mattered.
"The deed is done," he heard the Soul Calibur's voice say as his suit dissipated in a flash of light, leaving only the shards around his neck. "I must be leaving you, brave warrior: perhaps we will meet again, in another form and name." With those parting words, the shards ceased glowing and lost their shimmering properties to become a solid blue: Lee could no longer feel their power soothing him, signaling that the shards were now useless.
After a good five minutes of silence, he heard the sound of footsteps closing in behind him. Turning around, Lee wiped away another tear and outstretched his hand so that the approaching Kazuya could shake it. "I…am sorry that I was about to take own my frustrations on you, brother," he said as another tear fell down his cheek. "You did what you had to do in order to stop her, and I realize and respect that…"
"Do not get sentimental with me, Chaolan," Kazuya hissed as turned back around and headed to where Jun was still sleeping. "If you had a problem with me, then you were free to voice it: there is no need to hide it behind a veil of forgiveness and understanding…"
Feeling the warmth of sunlight, Lee turned around to see that the clouds that had hung over the city since last night were finally beginning to part to reveal the sun coming up on the horizon, ready to usher in a brand new day. Upon seeing one ray of sunlight shine upon the statue of Nagalya, Lee sniffed the air and let out a quiet laugh. "You know what the best part about all this is, Kazuya?"
"Enlighten me," Kazuya said unamused as he crouched down and scooped Jun up into his arms so that he could carry her towards the elevator.
Lifting his hand into the air and striking a dynamic pose, Lee let one final tear roll down his cheek as his smile widened while the sun shone behind him. "We saved the world, and we did it with class!"