Chapter 36:

Enter the Dragon

"Mother, I don't believe this…" Mei Li was watching her other half through a glided mirror that allowed her and Rageku a view of the world of the living. "She is giving Long what he wants!"

Rageku placed a hand on her back to calm her daughter. "She is doing it out of desperation. Envy and jealousy is what is driving Long. Perhaps if she gives Long what he desires, he will calm down."

Mei Li turned away from the mirror. "I can't watch this anymore." She was disgusted that her other half would just disregard all Long had done to them both and go back to his arms… especially when she had Retsu, devoted and loving, waiting for her… as he waited the chance to be human once more. "She's making me sick."

Rageku sighed. "Mei Li…"

"Mother, even out of desperation, I could never go back to Long."

"She is not you." Rageku scolded her daughter. "She may be part of you, but the two of you are no longer one body. Do not forget that. "

"How could I, Mother?" Mei Li asked. "I'm DEAD!"

"And now you understand why she is doing this."

Mei Li froze. "What do you mean?"

Rageku sighed and changed the scene so that Mei Li could see Rio, staring out a window at SCRTC, still dressed in his leather, but he didn't look at all like his usual self. "She is doing this so no one else knows the pain that Rio knows… the way you saved Ken from knowing the pain of loss."

Mei Li approached the mirror and touched it, her fingers tracing over Rio's face and body. He seemed almost close to her. So close… but so far away from her. "She doesn't want anyone else to die…"

"Exactly." Rageku watched as her daughter stare longingly at Rio's image. "And she wants no one else to suffer… even if it means sacrificing more than she wants to pay."

Silvery tears emerged at the corners of Okamio's eyes. "I can never be with him again… what if he never finds someone else to love?" She sighed. "Mele has already moved on… he has no one now…"

She bent her head over the mirror and wept, her tears making the image of Rio ripple.

"I am so glad you decided to see sense, Okamio." Long murmured as he caressed Okamio's body, ignoring the fact that his touch made her shiver in fear. "Welcome back. I have missed you so much."

"And I have missed you…" Okamio's stomach twisted. "Long…" She felt like she was going to throw up. She prayed for Rageku's venom to work swiftly and get rid of him, but somehow she knew that she would only be rid of him if the others finally figured out a way to silence his voice forever.

He chuckled. "Darling, relax… you are so tense. " His fingers ran up her spine and she had to force back the urge to do him severe harm. Her dignity was well worth preventing anyone else from losing their lives.

"You look like death." Okamio remarked, noting that a bit of his skin had begun to turn an odd purple color, probably a result of her mother's venom. "Has my mother's parting gift been easy on you?"

Growling, Long grabbed her by the throat. "You insolent brat." He hissed. "I give you the world and you repay me by killing me?!"

"As though my other half was going to stand idly by and let you slaughter the love of her life." Okamio shot back. "Long, for all of your foresight and power, you forgot to take in the big picture and remember something important: love is unpredictable. How else would you explain me… and Gou?"

"He didn't deserve you." Long growled. "He treated you like dirt, forcing you to hide because he was too ashamed of you and who you truly are to admit to his beloved Sha-Fu that he had fallen in love with Rageku's daughter. He was too afraid of the price. You and I both know by now… love is worth any price."

Okamio snarled, baring her teeth. "Like you would ever know. You, who manipulated just about every aspect of my entire life to suit your needs for world destruction… you who lied to me for thousands of years just to ensure I would never leave, you who flew into a jealous rage because my other half finally saw you for what you truly were: a manipulative, disgusting, egotistical demon god with too much time on his hands and left you for the very person you wanted to destroy the world for you."

Long's eyes narrowed and began to turn a golden color. "I should have killed you both when I had the chance, but that is not my concern now. You came back of your own free will… but I am going to make sure you never leave me again… at least not alive. Gengi! Dragon Entrapment!"

The last thing Okamio remembered doing was screaming.

Dark Retsu was frustrated. After stopping Mele from going on what was tantamount to a suicide mission, he'd come so close to finally admitting his love and adoration for her, only to be stopped by the fire and then by Rio-sama (although he had to admit it was a relief to see him alive). Since then, in the three days since Okamio had gone missing and since Rio's return, Retsu had tried many more times to admit his love.

But every single time, he was stopped. It was like the universe was conspiring against him. But he knew that passing up a shot would be counterproductive. He wasn't sure who would survive the fight with Long if he did and Mele did not, he didn't want to spend the rest of his existence regretting never telling her the depths of his love for her.

So, he tried and tried. But to no avail.

"Retsu… is something bothering you?" Mele had asked one morning. "You seem a little upset."

Before he spoke, he looked around and made sure no one was around. "Mele… I have something to tell you."

She raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Yes, Mele, I…"

"Retsu, how can Okamio have been missing for three days and you not know where she went?" Shiwa interrupted.

Dark Retsu's head slammed down on the table. "I don't fucking believe this…"

Mele's ears perked up. "What are you talking about, Shiwa?" She asked.

"Okamio has been gone for three whole days. She vanished the same day Rio came back. I only didn't say anything because this was once considered normal, but she usually at least made an appearance at least once…" Shiwa bit her lip. "I wonder what she did."

"Who knows?" Mele replied.

Retsu's eyes shot open as he realized he had an idea of the whereabouts of Okamio. "Shiwa-san…I think she mentioned something about holding up her end of a bargain with Long. Something about her desire… for his desire… do you know anything about that?"

Shiwa turned white. She DID know something about that, but Okamio had never told her all of the details. "When Okamio and I were in our late teens, Long approached Okamio with an enticing offer. He promised her power… more than she had ever imagined before… but for a price. The problem is that she never told me what the price was."

"What could it be?" Retsu asked.

Mele suddenly had a very good idea of what Long had desired from Okamio and her stomach dropped. "I think I have an idea…." She remembered the rather unsettling encounter that had left her and the darker Okamio in Long's bedroom, naked, marked with dragon-shaped scars, and unable to remember what had happened. She knew just how much Long had lusted after Okamio… and now, she knew for how long. She shuddered. "I don't suppose either of you ever got to see him look at Okamio in a lustful way… and in such a way that it made your skin crawl…"

Retsu had been subjected to such scenes between the hakaijin and his mistress more times than he cared to admit. There had been a time when Okamio had enjoyed Long's affection but that had been before it had been revealed just how evil he was. Now, she reviled him. But the problem was that Long still had a very deep and twisted affection for her. That affection, the desire to make her his, had turned into a very dangerous jealous rage. And now, in the hopes of keeping Long from destroying more lives, Okamio had returned to him.

But Retsu knew that Long, now on the warpath, would never, ever stop.

He opened his mouth to say more, but then Ken entered the room. "Shiwa-chan!" He greeted her warmly. "Get up, you're coming with me."

"Ken, where are we going?" Shiwa asked.

"You and I are going to an onsen." He told her with a big smile. "You need to relax! I know you're stressed and worried about Okamio and everything, but all this stress is bad for your Geki. So, I got permission, as long as we come back ASAP if something goes wrong, to take you someplace where you can relax. So, we're going to an onsen."

Shiwa had never been to a hot spring in many years and the joy in Ken's eyes made her weary heart soar. A chance to relax did sound wonderful. "Ken…"

He scooped her up into his arms and carried her off. He wasn't listening to her protests.

Retsu and Mele looked at one another.

Mele sighed dreamily. "It's amazing how much Ken's love has changed Shiwa-san." She said. "It's like she's completely transformed. She's never smiled so much before."

"Mele-chan…" Retsu blurted out. "I…"

"OI! Zowazowa Retsu!" Jan burst in, loud as usual.

Retsu groaned. I don't believe this!

Was he ever going to get the chance to tell Mele how he felt?

When Okamio awoke, her entire body felt heavy. She groaned as she sat up, taking notice of the rather elaborate golden dress she'd been outfitted in… and the chains that had bound her to the bed. Now she knew that Long had lost his mind… whatever was left of it at this point.

He's gone mad. She thought to herself as she tried to move. He's finally lost whatever sanity he had left… and that's considering if he had any to begin with. She found she could move, but not very far, thanks in part to the dress and also the chains. She managed to sit up as much as she could, her eyes focused solely on the door. Long had not gone far. His scent still lingered. She died a little inside. This had been a huge mistake. What the hell had she been thinking, going back to Long? Like that was going to stop his rampage.

But she had been desperate and tried to appease him to get him to stop, hoping his fury had been inspired by jealous rage. How wrong she had been. Long was never going to stop.

Hindsight is always 20/20. Came the thought.

Okamio was doomed.

"Ah, you're awake." Long smiled approvingly as he came into the room, each word dripping with triumphant arrogance. He knew at last he'd won. "How do you like your wedding gown?"

"Wedding gown?" Okamio asked, raising her eyebrow. Thank god Retsu hadn't proposed to her yet. "You mean to tell me you're forcing me to be your wife?"

"I've wanted you for my wife since you were seventeen. Is it any wonder I let you live so long? I figured once your precious Rio was finished being my destroyer, you and I would be married. I've been cultivating you with the intent to make you mine forever and now, that time as come."

Yeah, he's lost it. Okamio thought, paling.

"You see, I was originally going to marry your other half, but since I killed her by accident, that God form is hard to control you see, I have to settle for you. But I'm sure you'll be as much fun." Long smirked, approaching the bed. If he'd been more careful, he'd still have Mei Li with him. "And just as tasty."

"You sick little…." Okamio struggled only for the choker she wore around her neck to glow and her body was racked with pain. She shrieked and froze.

Long smiled. "This is my new Gengi…Dragon Entrapment. Since you are the mirror image of Mei Li, I took the liberty of making sure that you received a hit of her power…. And I bound our Gengi together forever so that if you ever try to leave me of your own free will… well, you'll die."

"What the fuck is wrong with you!?" Okamio screamed. "Are you so consumed with jealousy because Mei Li left you for Rio that you'll go this far? I am not Mei Li! I may look like her, sound like her and have all of her memories, BUT I AM NOT HER! You killed her! YOU! No one else! YOU!"

"And I'm going to regret that forever, I admit." Long made her look up at him. "But don't worry, darling. I'll make sure you have every luxury and comfort. You can never say, either of you, that I didn't at least try to treat you well despite the lies. I gave you everything you could possibly want."

Okamio winced. He was right. Long had loved her in a way she'd never known before. He'd showered her with affection, attention, praise, gifts… anything she desired, even power; he'd gotten for her. She could understand why he'd flown into a rage.

But that was no excuse for him keeping her here…. But considering the alternative…

Better his prisoner for the rest of time than dead.

"That doesn't excuse you from taking my free will from me." She hissed.

"Oh, it's only temporary darling. Now that Rio is broken, he can be my destroyer again. His attachment is dead, after all."

"Lovely way to talk about my other half, you know… the woman you claimed to love." Okamio had to relax… getting angry would prove pointless. "I figured why kill Rio when you could kill her?"

"Her death, while tragic, I admit, has proven to be quiet convenient."

"Because you knew Rio would never become the hakaijin if he still had one attachment in his heart." Okamio growled. "Unfortunately, that person was the very woman you loved and nurtured and cultivated into the Gen Jyu Jo Oh. So you had to face an agonizing choice: Kill Rio and lose your destroyer or kill Mei Li and lose the love of your life."

"Darling, you know me so well." Long purred, crawling on top of her and stroking her cheek. "I didn't want to kill my beloved Mei Li, but do you really think I was willing to wait another few millennia for someone with such potential to show up?""

Over your dead body. She thought, trying very hard to not to cringe at his skin on hers. The only thing that was consoling her was that Long wasn't going to kill her himself. He "loved" her far too much to do that. Instead, she'd be his prisoner until Rio destroyed the world and then they'd get married.

She'd much rather be dead.

On the verge of tears, feeling helpless and isolated and more alone than ever, Okamio tried to ignore what Long was doing now, wondering to herself:

Why did I fall in love with him to begin with?

He'd been charming, he'd been kind, and he'd been everything Okamio had ever desired. He gave her everything she wanted, but not without a price that didn't seem too steep at the time. He loved her in a way she'd never experienced, been her constant companion during the thousands of years that had made up her exile. He'd been everything she desired…. At least until now. Until he split them.

She knew her other half had wound up desiring Rio because Rio did something that she had not been expecting… he completed her. The way Retsu, even though he was stuck in his jaguar body, did for her. They'd known then that Long was not for them.

And then, upon revealing his treachery, they'd both suffered. Mei Li was dead and Okamio had become Long's captive bride… given everything but her freedom.

Ran lay on her side, feeling slightly guilty. She hadn't quite forgiven Okamio for all that happened, but now in the after math of Mei Li's death… she felt like she should. But why? Why should she apologize? It was Mei Li who'd gone on the warpath after Gou had left her. It was not her fault.

It is your fault and you know it. You seduced Gou and essentially stole him from Okamio, who'd just woken up. That wasn't fair to her. You're not completely innocent. The little nagging voice, which sounded a bit like her mother, made its presence known in the back of her mind.

Ran knew that the little voice in her head was right. Okamio/Mei Li wasn't the only one who'd done wrong. She'd had a hand, seducing Gou and essentially convincing him to leave Okamio. Enraged, Okamio had had her curse broken and sought revenge on them both.

She didn't care if Long had been pulling the strings. Ran still could have said "no."

But she hadn't… and look where they were now.

Honest heart, my ass. She thought, bitter and angry with herself.

The door opened and Gou poked his head in. "Ran? Are you okay?"

"I'm an idiot, Gou." She muttered. "This entire damn mess with Okamio was my fault. I could have said 'no' to Long and prevented it, but I didn't and look where we are now. Mei Li is dead, Okamio's missing and everybody's fighting." She looked up at him. "I don't deserve to be with you. I seduced you and took you away from someone you loved. That wasn't fair to her. Okamio was looking forward to being in your arms again."

"Ran… I was never fair to Okamio." Gou said down on the bed beside the Cheetah-ken, stroking her back. "She wanted me to admit freely that I loved her and at the time, I couldn't do that. She was angry with me because she thought I was ashamed of her… and it pained me to admit to myself that she was right. I was ashamed. What was I doing with a Rin Jyu Ken?"

"Perhaps it was the allure of a forbidden romance." Ran suggested. She could understand how Okamio was alluring. Even she felt the attraction.

"It was… and the allure of finding someone else who practiced my fist." Gou chuckled. "She and I were sparring partners by day, lovers by night. She knew every move, but she helped me become so much stronger. It was in part because of her that I achieved Shigeki." He sighed. "But even though I wanted to be with her forever… I couldn't bring myself to admit that I loved her publicly… in front of Master Sha-Fu and Miki and Dan… I didn't want them to think I was betraying Geki Jyu Ken…"

"But Gou… you shouldn't have let your fear override your heart." Ran murmured. "You did love Okamio, right? Why would you let your fears dictate how you treated Okamio?"

"Because I didn't want to end up as she did… exiled."

She could understand that. But she also knew that Master Sha-Fu would have been forgiving.

Ran sat up and looked into the Wolf-fist eyes. "Gou… you should have just been honest with her."

"Oh, you mean like I was with you?"

"Yes! You came out and told me you liked me, you should have come out and…"

Gou kissed her then, shutting her up. She was right. No need to let this go further.

Ran relaxed in his arms, wrapping her arms around his broad shoulders, losing herself in the warmth of his embrace.

But when she pulled back, she thought, just for a moment, that she saw Mei Li's golden black stare.

Ran was surprised when Mei Li had come down to her prison cell and opened the door.

"Don't get your hopes up." She said. "I'm not setting you free."

Somehow, Ran had already figured that out, but she slowly got up. "Have you come to break me?"

"Break you? No, no…" There was a dangerous, almost lustful shimmer in her eyes. "Come here… I want to find out just what it was that made you so alluring to Gou."

Feeling somewhat uneasy, Ran gulped. "I… I don't swing that way."

"Honey, this is not about you." Mei Li gave her a look. "This is about me… and I do swing that way."

Ran took a step forward, tentative, and scared, but she was equally scared of Mei Li's wrath. She had to force herself to keep going.

When she was in front of Mei Li, Mei Li grabbed the Cheetah-fist by her ponytail, yanked her head forward and kissed her.

Ran's eyes shot wide open. The kiss was rough, bruising and demanding… but strangely arousing. Mei Li pulled the much younger girl against her, holding her in such a tight grip that she could not move.

Mei Li smirked. This girl had a good taste and a sweet smell. She could certainly see how Gou had been so drawn to her. She was sweet, almost demure, but strong willed.

How strange. Mei Li thought. She's just like me.

After a moment, Mei Li let Ran go and put her back in her cell.

Their eyes locked for a moment before Mei Li strode away, leaving Ran alone… and very, very confused. But she knew she would never be able to shake the lustful stare of those golden black eyes.

The memory almost caused Ran to break he kiss, but for some reason, she felt comforted. Was Mei Li telling her to seek happiness with Gou from beyond? She decided to take it as Mei Li giving Ran her blessing.

Please take care of Gou… and treat him well… Mei Li's voice echoed in Ran's mind and internally she agreed, vowing to give Gou all the love and attention he deserved.

Gou pressed her gently back against her bed, taking out her ponytail, remarking how beautiful she looked with her hair down before kissing her again, and proceeding to lavish her with all the love and attention she could hope for.

And for a while… Long was forgotten.