Ominae: I'm not sure yet if Maki will come back. The Final Fight characters are not a part of the Street Fighter II storyline, the same storyline that this particular fic revolves around. So I don't see myself including them anytime soon.
Bushin Guy: Yes, I received your email, and thanks for your support. Sorry that my reviewing has been kinda off lately. I always read the chapters, but sometimes I forget to review. And I know how authors love their reviews. But since my last one, I notice you haven't updated. So what are you waiting for! ;)
Vammy: Oh, it's incredibly not over between Cranky and Cammy. There will definitely be a round two, and a lot of drama between them to work on. I'll be sure to continue what you've started to the best of my ability, as I'm aware that your fic is ending soon. But just so you know, I'll be hounding you to write yet another sequel.
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Through the bright stadium lights that half-blinded him, it was difficult for Guile to get a good sense of his surroundings. He could hear the sheer energy from the spectators, all crammed into the tiers that surrounded the arena. Camera flashes arbitrarily went on in the masses, but they weren't as bad as the lights the illuminated the fighting arena.
Just a few meters in front of him, Guile thought he could hear the hollers and hoots from some kind of animal, the prospect actually insulting him a little. So Shadowlaw was going to test his fighting skills in the tournament by pitting him up against a dog? Guile scoffed, as he took out a small comb from his back pocket and ran it upwards through his hard.
"Bring it on," he said.
And a split second later, he ate his words. With a deafening howl, the creature leapt at him – or did something, he couldn't quite figure it out as the next thing he knew, he was seeing stars and found himself lying flat on his back on the mat. The world suddenly became blurry as Guile forced himself to sit up, struggled to get his vision to readjust.
He didn't want to admit it, but he could've sworn his opponent was some kind of hulking green, furry creature with long red hair. Deciding that his vision would take a few seconds too long to clear up, Guile threw himself forward blindly, ducking down low to kick the creature once, twice in the shins, temporarily stunning it. The opportunity bought him a few precious seconds to cancel into a special move – the Sonic Break. Guile swung his arms across his body leaving a trail of spinning chi behind, catching the creature in a twenty two hit combination attack. It howled in pain as it was thrown to and fro from the attack, as the last hit sent it sprawling into the canvas.
Guile was seeing alright now, and he was definitely seeing the creature. What the hell happened to it? There were human characteristics in the face, and in its muscularity but the amount of hair – no, it was so thick it might as well have been fur, it was green!
Deciding to keep the pressure on the creature, he continued his offensive, dashing forward and tucking his body into a roll to deflect a painful looking claw swipe. He extended a fist to attempt a punch, but was immediately met by an electric shock that face planted him a few feet away.
This was impossible. Was it not one of the tournament rules that weapons were forbidden during the match? Looking at the creature again, he could see no electric device of any sort strapped to it. So then where did the shock come from? It wasn't like it could channel electricity through its skin, on top of its freaky appearance, could it?
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"Guile's really taking a beating out there," Chun Li said, sipping from a cup of hot tea in her hands. Ken's face was pressed up against the window of the viewers box, silently cheering Guile on, not really paying attention to her.
"He'll be alright," Ryu assured. "I've seen the man take care of himself before." His eyes looked almost closed, as if he were replying to her in the middle of meditating. Ken and Ryu were dressed in their traditional sleeveless karate uniforms – Ken's being red and Ryu's being white. The colors somewhat matched their personalities. Ryu was always more reserved, more neutral then Ken, who thought with his heart more than his head. And that was probably why Ken had landed a girl first …
"He probably wouldn't remember Blanka from the Alpha tournaments," Chun Li continued. "I know some top Shadowlaw scientists would love to get their hands on him, maybe dissect him and figure out the genetic makeup of one of nature's flaws."
Ryu awoke from his meditation. "That was a little uncalled for, don't you think?"
"It's not necessarily a bad thing." She was quick to defend herself. "But it's the truth. If nature had intended for him to be this way, don't you think there'd be others like Blanka out there?"
"His appearance shocked me initially too," Ryu admitted. "But what concerns me more is that Shadowlaw might take advantage of his uniqueness and use him as another of their test subjects."
"That's why we're here," Chun Li said, "to put a stop to their practices, and to get our friends back."
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Cammy stood in the winner's circle now, at least in the newcomer's category and her body was aching with the fresh wounds. She sat down in the side benches watching the current fight unfold between Guile and some green beast. Cammy's heart grew heavy as she watched. The official tournament had already started and assuming she was one of the four warriors chosen to join the ranks of the tournament, she could begin on her real mission - to find Julian, Wagner and Kenny.
Why had Shadowlaw chosen to torment her of all people? Julian was a dear friend. Wagner was her brother, and Kenny was practically Cranky's little brother. She never knew him personally, but she knew how important he was to Cranky. These three people, all very dear to her circle of friends and family had been chosen by Shadowlaw and for whatever reason, she had no idea. And knowing the antics of the criminal organization, she was afraid to even consider the possibilities.
Cammy wiped her brown with the back of her hand, never taking her eyes off the fight between Guile and the beast. She understood that human or not, the thing was no different than any of the other tournament participants. But she knew that Guile, just like she did, had a vendetta against Bison that he needed to settle. Not to mention that his son was one of the missing people allegedly kidnapped by Shadowlaw.
"You look tense."
She turned her head to the man sitting beside her, arms folded tightly across his chest as he stared straight ahead. He was a unique looking character, short black hair, narrow chestnut eyes and a permafrown.
"I am," Cammy replied simply.
"I have a feeling you'll make it in," the man continued. As Cammy took a second glance at him, she found herself stifling a smirk. He was a short man, around her height - but considering Cammy was female, this guy was a little one compared to his testosterone producing bretheren.
"Heh, then you're more sure than I am."
"The arrogant ones usually get cut from the tournament. They make the mistake of judging their opponents before they can be tested in the arena. You, I've seen you fight. You're careful. And you don't go on the offensive until you're sure you can recover if you miss. Otherwise, I notice a respectable space between you and your opponent."
"How observant." Cammy nodded her head. She had to agree with him. That was the way her mind worked in a fight. Don't stick your neck out if you can't save it yourself. Now if she only followed that same motto in life, it would've saved her alot of hardship ... namely theat Cranky ... foul thoughts began to fill her mind, but she shut them out, knowing that if her emotions got in the way so far into the rounds, there was a good chance they'd cloud her judgement in the arena and get her kicked from the tournament. With what was at stake, there was no way she could allow that.
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"Please, T. Hawk, you can't go!" Juli tugged at her brother's arm, but with her petite size, could never physically force the much larger, muscular man away from the arena grounds. He looked down from a great height at the young woman and his eyes immediately filled with tears of love.
T. Hawk looked at his sister and noted what a fine lady his sister had turned into. She had only been a child when Shadowlaw had taken her from him and their family. During the time she spent with the organization, she had surely matured - physically speaking. But her mind, due to the memory wipe she'd undergone as an agent of the Doll Program, her mentality was still that of a fourteen year old girl, the age she was when she'd been taken.
"I don't want anyone I love to have anything to do with Shadowlaw anymore," she insisted, never releasing his forearm from the grip of her delicate, porcelain hands. "I thought we were through with them after the Alpha tournaments!"
"Juli ..." T. Hawk began regretfully, "You know we need to overthrow the masterminds behind this tournament. They may no longer have you, but as long as they continue to exist, other families like our own will be in danger."
"Don't you think we've suffered enough!"
"Our land," he said, more sternly this time, "has been abused by their organization for the last time. Our tribe has been displaced. So yes, I believe we've suffered enough. And I'm here to end it."
"We can go," Juli pleaded, "we can run. For God sakes, T. Hawk, we can live anywhere we want as long as its away from Shadowlaw."
"You're willing to run from your boyfriend?"
Juli didn't answer the question, but her face told T. Hawk everything he needed to know. The way she looked down at the ground, the way she released his arm and started rubbing her hands together as if to comfort herself, he knew that the boy had done something to hurt her.
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Kenny limped down the hallway in an orange jumpsuit, his wrists chained together in front of him. The tall, intimidating Shadowlaw goons that flanked him on either side stayed silent, looking straight ahead, their faces not showing a trace of emotion. Kenny's heart thumped in his chest. This was to be the end of his life and he knew it. The long walk had given him a lot of time to reflect.
He couldn't remember the first six years of his childhood, due to a supposed memory wipe. He'd always wanted to know before he died but the way things were looking, he wasn't going to. Who were his parents? How had he attained the Shadow Technology that was now crucial to Shadowlaw's scientific advancements? How did he ever get involved with Uncle Ken and Aunt Eliza and why did they choose to give him money but let him live on the streets?
Kenny didn't want this to be the last thoughts on his life. There were so many questions that he would never be able to answer. And from the little that he could remember, he wanted to make the best of it and see the good that has come out of his life. It was a challenge, Kenny admitted, traveling to different places over the course of his life with the funds that Uncle Ken had provided him with.
The first city in the United States that Kenny had ventured to after his supposed memory wipe was Angel Grove, California, a small city running rampant with all sorts of creatures that supposedly came from the moon. There, he'd met a friend by the name of Adam Park who turned out to be one of the chosen guardians of the city – a guardian chosen by forces that weren't exactly mortal. Kenny had been caught up in the succession of attacks that assaulted the city and deciding that all the action was too much for him, decided to pack his bags and leave for the mid-Western town of Raccoon City.
Raccoon wasn't much of an improvement either, run by the likes of the Umbrella Corporation – a pharmaceutical company that illegally dealt with bioorganic weapons of mass destruction. The term didn't accurately reflect what it was exactly those weapons did. They turned people into the living dead. The worst part of it was the accidental leak that spilled through the entire town turning the quaint mid-western community into a living nightmare of survival horror.
His escape from Raccoon City and the entire Umbrella Corporation nightmare had only happened a mere three months ago. Hoping to continue his life in peace, Kenny decided to return to Osaka when all of this started happening. He didn't want to die. He didn't live through all that hardship to perish here at the hands of Shadowlaw. As he continued along the corridor to God knew where, the realization that there was nothing he could do sank in, causing tears of sadness, disappointment and frustration at the helplessness of the situation to sink in.
Uncle Ken, Aunt Eliza, thank you for making sure I always had food to eat and a good school to go to. Cranky, thanks for taking care of me even though I probably pissed you off more times than I can count. Ryu, thanks for taking me off the streets and teaching me not just to be, but to live with honor. Adam, Chris, Claire, Leon, everyone …
And the hallway abruptly ended in what looked like a dead end, until a set of metallic sliding doors opened up to reveal the outside world. Kenny stood on a rocky ledge that stretched out by only a few feet. Beyond that, the vast, cloudless sky stood overhead, cotton ball clouds parting to reveal the sun's brilliant rays shining upon the earth. Below, a thick forest stretched out as far as the eye could see.
The click of guns caught Kenny's attention as he spun around to face the guards, who now had the barrels of their firearms aimed at him. He gulped and hesitantly considered the alternative. The only control of his life now … was how to end it.