Chapter 26: The power inside
Outside the huge brawl between rebels and Ryoma's army continued, at one moment, Robert and Rock were teaming up taking down some armed men while protecting their own army
-Raging Storm!- as that, the young Howard defeated a big group incoming -Robert, Look out!
The Kyokugenryu student roundhouse kicked someone coming behind him -No problem, good job on the fight Rock, are you planning to enter on the next tournament.
-Terry says that I'm ready, so yes- another kick for an incoming enemy
-It's good to hear… Haou Shohouken!
At on one moment, the Kyokungeryu representatives were being outnumbered, not a real problem as Ryo, Robert, Yuri and Takuma are very strong, but the numbers forced them to separate a little
-We need to help the citizens to not get shoot or hit by the soldiers- Ryo launched a soldier using his back as a catapult
-The Zuzocks cannot protect all of them with their shield forever- Robert continued kicking an enemy on the jaw
-And we need to try and enter to the fortress, Haou Shohouken!
Takuma got rid of some enemies by his own, getting distracted with that, Yuri was beating some enemies, but then someone jumped at her with a metal bat
-Die Bitch!
-Oh no!
But then he got destroyed by a staff attack directly to the guts, being relived for that, Yuri sighed
-Miss Shina, thank you for saving me.
It was Mai's mom who was the savior -You're welcome.
-Behind you!- Takuma yelled at Shina, fortunately she was fast enough to hit the enemy on the head -I didn't expect you to be that strong.
-Thanks for the flattery mister Sakazaki, but is not time to be distracted!
While Yuri went to kick another enemy on the head, Takuma and Shina attacked incoming enemies coming from the back of the other one
….
But on the battle arena, in which the most important battle was happening, Mai was covering from Ryoma attacks as much as she could, but due to the previous attack, she was pretty weak, the mafia boss was hitting her with really fast punches and kicks
-Don't disappoint me like that, fight back!
Mai threw a punch but Ryoma avoided, punched her on the face and then on the jaw, then a slap on one side of the face and an elbow hit to the chest, but she was not going down
-So, are you going to resist my attacks like that? Fine for me!
One of his punches was blocked, she wanted to punch back but Ryoma covered, and used one knee to hit her again on the guts
-Gaaaaggghh!
And with a kick to the same zone, send her some meters away from him, even if she was some seconds on the floor, Mai wanted to come back to fight
-Whoa, if I have to admit something, is that you surely have a spirit of a warrior, you don't know when to give up.
-For everyone that wants this city freedom… I won't step back…-Mai was gasping on that moment, her entire body was showing signs of the beatdown she was receiving -Give me what you got.
-Fine then, Bushin!
Mai looked how she was getting surrounded by energy clones, it was like on her fight against the spirit of her father, and she knew how to counter it
-Go…
-Koramu!
Mai jumped to avoid the electricity ball but following her, the clones surrounded her on the air, trying to attack her on that position, but on that moment she knew, she had to fight back
-Fukuaku Ougi!
The explosion got rid of the clones and sent Ryoma to the ground
-Dammit!
And from the roof, Mai used her jet in order to give more power to her incoming punch
-Boxing Day!
As fast as he could, Ryoma avoided the attack, just for his opponent to clash her punch against the floor, making a hole on it and went through it
-That crazy bitch!
And she jumped back from the 3rd floor, and went immediately to charge against him, sending Ryoma against a statue and breaking part of it, then another one, and another one, his back was receiving too much damage
-Go to the hell!
And kicked her to one side but again, Mai resisted the attack
-Get the fuck down!
And using his electric power, shoot some lightining to her, electrocuting Mai and making her scream
-Aaaagggghhhh , Damn it hurts!
It stopped for some seconds, but again he repeated the attack, then again and again
-For god sake, why don't you go down?!
On one moment he stopped the attack, Mai threw a fire ball to him, but of course Ryoma avoided it, turning himself into an objective for an elbow strike directly to the face, he stepped back but not so much, Mai was getting weaker with each attack coming from Ryoma
-It didn't hurt too much, don't tell me…- and he smiled -Your energies are fading away finally.
Hard to admit but he was right, she tried to land the previous attack but after failing, Mai started to feel out of air… and even more after another punch to her stomach
-Gaaaggghhhh!
Even worse as Ryoma started to punch her entire body like crazy, face, arms, stomach, no zone was safe for his lightning speed
-Jajajajajaja, jajajajaja, I expected a lot coming from you, and you did better than other warriors, but the end is the same, you will fail on beating me!
Then a kick to the jaw and a thunder ball blast… but she didn't want to go to the floor
-You're getting more annoying…
And he wanted her to go down, charging to her in order to attack
-Aaaaahhhhhh!
…
The battle on the downside was getting wilder on each second, but from the 3rd floor, another explosion happened, King and Mary destroyed a window with their bodies and were going directly to the ground
-Oh shit!
King tried to use her new ice power to create something that can stop them to get injured by that, launching an ice stream to the ground, created a little mount that kind of stopped them, even with that, both were injured, just not so badly
-Damn… That Laura is a nightmare!- Mary said while trying to recover
King then looked to the upside, Laura was coming and pointing them with an explosion attack
-Move!
And barely avoided it, coming from the blizzard produced by it, Laura was looking even angrier, it was not like she was invulnerable, in fact her face and suit showed that the battle was a really tough one
-You will never beat me.
-Damn, what can we do now?
While Laura was preparing an explosive attack, Mary and King looked really worried
-Are you ok?
Everyone there was surprised, but Laura would be the most surprised one
-BUSTER WOLF!
Terry appeared outta nowhere, sending Laura to a wall and breaking it with his explosive attack
-Terry!- Mary yelled
-Thank god, it means that you beat that big man- King said
-Kind of, Andy and Joe are helping the rebels to continue the fight, so I decided to try and help you and Mai but I heard something coming from here.
-So, are we moving now or what?
After what King said, the blondes went to help the rebels but before arriving to the main area, Terry was surprised of what he was looking
-You again?!
Guldo appeared and took Andy and Joe before sending them to a wall
-Is your turn… son of a bitch.
-You will regret it.
After Terry said that, an explosion came for the three, yes, Laura survived the attack, but she and Guldo were really injured
-This is for our master…
Being surrounded by the two monsters, the group was on the floor trying to recover, Andy was the first one
-Why are you two doing all of this? Ryoma is a horrible person, he has to be on jail.
-It is because he gave us a new chance of being useful- Guldo said
-He saved us from poverty, he recognized our abilities when others told us that we were dangerous- continued Laura
-And gave us the chance to become what we are now.
Joe, Terry, Mary and King recovered but being badly injured by the attacks, not knowing if, even being 5, could stand a chance against those 2 monsters, Terry continued
-And using those abilities for something that is wrong, submitting an entire city.
-So what? We are fine, this is what we are doing now, our loyalty is with our master and he will rule this city forever! - Laura finished
-Yeah, forever, until Mai beats the crap out of him…!
But before Joe could finish what he was saying, everyone heard how certain female was yelling on pain, it was so loud that some were surprised by it, and for those who knew who was suffering, broke their hearts
-Mai!
Andy tried to escape, but Guldo punched him on the face
-Go and try to help your friend if you can- the big guy said
-But you have to surpass us if you at least want to try to help her- and Laura was ready for the upcoming fight, frustrating the 5 opponents that had in front of them
On another side of the battlefield, Shina and Yuri were heartbroken after hearing that
-My daughter!
-My friend!
But the enemy soldiers were too many and some were shooting at them, the Zuzocks tried to protect them, but some shoots injured the protectors, in front of the two ladies, lots of enemies
-Get the fuck out of here!- Shina yelled
…..
Ryoma was giving Mai a really painful bearhug, using all of his strength, trying to getting rid of what was left of her energy, the only thing that Mai could do on that position was to resist the pain
-I will break your bones Mai Shiranui, do you realize that? I will beat the crap out of you until you finally go down and die!
But on her spirit, she didn't want that -Ne… never.
Her arms were covered on fire so Ryoma had to free her, but before she could try something, he took her from the throat
-That was close ¿Anything else to say?
Getting out of air, Mai had only one option… -Ry…Ry… Ryu Eiran!
Surprised by the fire breath, it landed directly on Ryoma's face and part of his body, so he had to set Mai free
-GAAAAAAGGGGHHHHH, my face!
A big part of his red hair was burned, his face, his shoulders and his entire gi
-YOU BITCH; I WILL KILL YOU FOR THAT!
It was her opportunity, if she didn't land her attack, it would be game over
-Chou Shinobi Bachi!
And she did it, landing a tremendous fire elbow attack on his chest and then she gave him an uppercut, sending Ryoma very high
-It's now or never, Shiranui Ryu, Kyubi no Kitsune!
1, 2, 3, 4 attacks and then using her Kacho sen, made a tremendous combo that, when she landed the final blow, produced a fire explosion that was noticeable from the outside, the body of the mafia boss bounced from the floor while Mai was landing, gasping, injured, but satisfied of what she did
Once the fire was gone on its majority, Mai turned herself on Ryoma's direction
-That was the best I can do- she was gasping heavily, even if that fight was shorter than her one against Terry, it demanded her a lot more -Hopefully it is the end of… No.
Like a deadman, Ryoma was getting up, pissed off, totally burned and his suit ruined, but it didn't matter for him, the pain, he could stand it, the only thing that mattered was…
-I will beat you into a bloody pulp!
Totally astonished of what happened, Mai didn't realize when Ryoma kicked her to the roof and then he jumped to give her an elbow to the back
-Nobody, and I mean, nobody made me go this far, not even my father!
Using his punches engulfed on thunders, punched her on the face with absolute violence, and then he prepared another one
-But you, YOU MAI SHIRANUI; YOU ARE THE FIRST ONE THAT MADE ME THIS ANGRY!
She avoided the attack, but only for her attacker to prepare an even worse one
-You will not survive the second, you will finally fall…- and he landed it -CHOU SHIN; IKAZUCHI KEN!
It was even more powerful than the previous one, that impact affected her entire body, at such point that a generous amount of blood went outside of her mouth, to Ryoma's body and to the floor
-Aaaaaagggghhhhhh…
And then silence, Mai arms went downside, she was quiet, totally immobile, once Ryoma realized it, checked her throat to detect any pulse, there was almost to no one and these were fading away, but after he went some steps back, she was still standing, it pissed him off but sighed
-Rigor Mortis effect, even on death a body can stand some moments on the same position it died, and you Mai… you're fading away.
But no answer was coming from her, she was just standing, her eyes were totally lifeless, Ryoma was satisfied
-You earned my respect Mai, as a fighter, but not as a master or the heroine that you though that you would be... it is over.
The rain started to appear on Kyoto, he wanted to wash the blood on his body with it and maybe to ease the pain a little, the roof didn't covered the entirety of the place so he went to the uncovered part, as of it, everyone on the downside were able to watch him, even his most loyal henchmen
-The boss is badly injured! - Guldo yelled
But Laura realized something -But it means… it means that he won, he defeated the Shiranui on a really difficult battle, he's victorious!
Looking at that, everyone of the rebels were totally heartbroken, Shina couldn't believe her eyes
-No… no it can't be, my daughter.
Terry clinched his teeth but Andy put his knees on the ground -Impossible, I can't believe it, Mai…
Ryoma then smiled -People from Kyoto, is that the best that you can do? Realize it for good, no one can stop me now!
And because of it, the enemy soldiers started a comeback, continuing the attack and forcing the rebels to step back
-Now… no one can stop me for expanding my empire for the entirety of Japan… it is my destiny now.
But she couldn't believe it, her heart was stopping, were energy was fading away, would it end like that, with her defeat, dying?
-No… please not like that, not after all what happened… it was just one fight, only to win one fight and then everything would be fine, everyone saved, everyone happy, the citizens, my friends… my family…
Images of her past were coming, since arriving to South Town, the battles against Wolfgang Krauser, the first meeting with Yuri and King, the King of Fighters tournaments, every battle, every money earned, then a period of peace, the need of having a job, and then what changed everything, her grandfather asked to follow a bigger destiny
That destiny that changed everything, before she was smiling but, was she really happy? No victories, no real strength, she was trapped on an endless cycle, failures after failures, not wanting to watch the reality of her situation, just smiling…. It was the only thing that she could do, trying to make everyone to believe that everything was fine for her, but it wasn't, it isn't now
-If only… if only my body could stand it, is the only way and I was unable to activate it properly, why… Why I have to be always the loser, why I can't be like my friends?!
It is something so strange, yet sometimes it can happen, as on her hands, the temperature was rising, her heart, that was stopping on a moment, in fact stopped for some seconds, started to beat again, and fast, and even faster
-I want to be like Terry, like Andy, like Joe… no, even better, stronger than them… I want to win a King of Fighters tournament with Yuri and King, I want to have a family with my dear Andy, to manage my own dojo, and I want everyone to know that I was able to beat Ryoma Suzuki, to free this city... to be a heroine.
And smoke started to appear from her skin, her teeth clinched
-There is a lot more to do before dying… And I won't fall down until I achieved all of that!
Everyone was surprised when, coming from behind, Ryoma received a fireball attack on his back, he opened his eyes in awe, surprised on a bad way
-Impossible- he said
Downside, Joe yelled -Is Mai, she's still alive!
-What? - Andy stood up rapidly -How?
-No way… Boss, get rid of her now! - Laura yelled
And on the arena, Ryoma clinched his teeth -Is that how you want to die, eh, Mai Shiranui…! - But once he turned his sight on her direction, something caught his attention -What the fuck…
Smoke, lot of smoke was getting out of her skin, and she was still on the position in which she shoot the fireball
-Fine, you asked for it- and he used his speed and covered his punch on electricity -Die!
And it was avoided, barely but avoided, after that a powerful blow to the stomach, that stopped him, and a fireball that sent him various steps back
-How… how is this possible?!- He didn't want to waste more time, he would use his deadly blow once more -Try to stand the third one!
Before landing it, she punched him so hard in the face, that sent him against a statue, Ryoma could only realize something
-That punch was hot, really hot…- and then the fire was starting to appear, surrounding the kunoichi, the energy was so strong that he could feel it -What in the world are you…?
She realized it, why she failed on her first attempt, that power, not only her feelings, but her body had to be at the maximum of their limits, she had to fight in order of her body to stand the pressure correctly as the adrenaline was filling her entire body
-And like that, I can finally use it…
The explosion of energy was massive, hurting Ryoma in the process but not so much, as because of that, everyone on the downside totally stopped, just to watch that orange light coming from the rooftop, no one could believe that
-Holy shit, that energy is massive- Ryo said
-What, what the hell is happening? - Takuma asked
-Who is doing that, is that Mai? - Joe asked
King smiled, she was able to feel it before -Yes, she is, is her energy.
Yuri yelled -That's it, is her power, is rising a lot!
Andy was totally speechless, but Terry clinched his teeth and smiled -Goddamit, she has turned into a really incredible person, this energy, is something that we have never felt before
But only Ryoma was able to watch it in horror, how that energy turned everything in orange, like she was a little sun because of her power, it changed her, her body was a little more muscular and her skin tone was darker, her hair was moving so much that destroyed the tie that maintained it on a ponytail, and most of the blood that covered her was burnt off
-You… you are a monster…
Downside, Takuma decided to ask Shina, as she was smiling and paying a lot of attention
-Miss Shiranui, do you know what is happening?
And the lady was smiling while looking at the roof -Is my daughter, she finally did it, there was a prophecy of a power that was hidden on a Shiranui and she was the one to awake it…
And the prophecy was fulfilled, looking totally different as how she was months ago, from a beauty to a powerful warrior that scared his enemy, imposing her strength just with her presence
-… She completed it, the final connection, is complete!
And she opened her eyes, looking at the reaction of his opponent she knew it, victory was on her hands