Last Time: Li and Sakura went to confront Tao, one of the main heads of the Li clan. In the presence of the other clan members, Tao bluntly stated that he felt Sakura was unworthy to hold the Clow Cards and was unworthy to be a part of the family. While Kero tried to defend Sakura, Li went on the offensive, demanding why Tao sent the assassin. But Tao seemed confused. Meanwhile back at the Li family home, Madison was having a heart-to-heart with Shiefua until…Vega busted in uninvited.


Plucking a Cherry Blossom: Part 5


Scene: The Li Family Home

Perspective: Madison Taylor

Madison was ducking back when she saw the sinister figure come forward. He menacingly ground his metal claws together. By all means, Madison should have been paralyzed with fear, but something inside her made her speak up.

"What do you want with Sakura?!"

Upon hearing that, the masked man came forward. Shiefua tried to stand in front of her, but the masked man grabbed her and tossed her through the glass window.

Madison gasped. "Shiefua!"

Madison tried to move, but the masked man cornered her. Then he held one of his razor-sharp metal claws right under Madison's chin and alarmingly close to her throat. When she gulped nervously, she could feel the metal point poke at her neck. It made her shudder.

"You know where she is, don't you?" the masked man growled. "You'd better tell me where she is." The man took off his mask, revealing a flawless, beautiful face. "Because if you don't, this will be the last face you see. The face of perfection. The face of Vega!"

"Hey!"

Vega put his mask back on and turned his head, with his claw still within centimeters of Madison's throat, to see someone else had just come in.

It was Meilin.

"Get away from her!" Meilin shouted. "Or else someone will have to get hurt…namely YOU!"

"Meilin…" Madison squeaked. "Don't…"

"You want a piece of ME?" Vega chuckled. He pulled his claw from under Madison's chin and faced Meilin. "You don't know what you're getting into, little girl."

"I think it's you who don't know what you're getting into," Meilin shot back. "I'm giving you one more chance to leave before you get hurt!"

Vega let out a loud laugh. "I'm not leaving without the Clow mistress. So I'd advise you to either tell me where she is…or step aside and let me find out from this little violet over here."

"You're not getting anything out of me or Madison," Meilin said, getting into a fighting stance. "If you want anything out of us, you'll have to beat me."

Vega shrugged and ground his claws together. "Anything you say."

Vega rushed Meilin and slashed with his right metal claw. Meilin ducked, but Vega sliced a coat rack into several pieces. Meilin swept her leg and tripped up Vega. She tried to drive her fist into his masked face, but he rolled out of the way and got back to his feet. Meilin moved forward and began to throw rights and lefts, with Vega covering up to block them. Meilin tried a roundhouse right kick, but Vega jumped straight up into the air. Madison looked up to see the masked man was hanging by the chandelier.

Vega sliced the chain holding the chandelier and it fell, shattering on the ground. It distracted Meilin while Vega bounced and hung on a wall behind her. He then jumped off the wall and tried to slash at her, but Meilin was seemingly ready and used the masked man's momentum against him. Meilin grabbed his wrists and tossed him hard onto the ground. Madison gasped, though, when she saw that Vega had gotten a piece of her. Meilin had a red slash mark on her left cheek.

Meilin tried to bounce back. She rushed Vega while he was down, but that turned out to be a mistake. Vega bounced to his feet in the blink of an eye and slashed the incoming Meilin right in the stomach. She fell to her knees and clutched her stomach.

Madison was almost in tears. "Meilin, no!"

Madison ran over and put herself in front of Meilin. Vega continued to inch forward, clashing his metal claws together, making that eerie sound of metal grinding metal. Vega held his right claw up, threateningly pointing it at Madison.

"You know what I want. Where is she?!"

"VEGA!"

Someone else had walked in through the front door. Vega turned his head and took a step back. Madison didn't recognize this person, but it appeared that the masked man did. One of this man's most distinguishing features was his blonde crew cut. He wore a green tank top and camouflage pants and wore a chain around his neck. He looked like he worked for the military.

"It's you," Vega said. "There's no way!"

The army guy shrugged. "I don't believe it…but she was right. I didn't think you'd be around, Vega. But now that you're here…you'd better leave!"

"I came here for a purpose, Guile," Vega shot back. "And I'm not leaving!"

Guile grinned. "Then I'll make you leave."

Hearing that, Vega lunged forward and tried to attack. Guile seemed to have Vega scouted, though. He blocked each of the masked man's kicks and ducked each slash. Vega jumped up and tried to kick Guile in the face, but Guile flipped upwards with a fierce kick that created a forceful wind that nearly knocked Madison over. It was like nothing she had ever seen.

Vega was taken by surprise. He staggered to his feet and Guile went for the big blow. He ripped the mask off of Vega and gave him a stiff kick to the face. Guile grinned while Vega held his face.

Vega trembled angrily. "My…FACE! You dare strike my face again! It was only recovering from the last time! You'll pay for this, Guile!"

The unmasked Vega lost it. He tried to stab Guile repeatedly, but Guile was composed and he avoided each lethal lunge. With every open opportunity, Guile got in a punch to the face, infuriating Vega further. Guile finally stopped playing and gave Vega a stiff sidekick. Vega briefly fell to one knee, but then he tried to charge Guile again. Then Guile waved his arms forward and created an extremely powerful wind.

Madison tried to hold on to something with one hand and the aching Meilin with the other. The winds nearly blew the two girls away. But it was Vega who was knocked away. He was knocked out of the broken window. Vega looked like he was out.

Guile walked over to Madison. "Are you two all right?"

At this time, Shiefua had finally recovered and crawled back inside and crawled towards Meilin and Madison. Guile looked at Meilin and saw her still clutching her stomach. He briefly removed her arm to find a serious wound that nearly punctured her stomach. Madison grimaced when she saw the near- mortal blow.

"She needs a doctor," he said. "Someone had better call for one."

Then Madison began to hear something. It sounded like something flying overhead…a jet. Guile looked out the window and Madison turned her head. Vega had gotten up and was looking up at the sky.

"He's here," he said. As soon as he said that, Vega leaped into the air and started bouncing out of sight.

Guile's eyes grew wide. "No…it couldn't be." He took out a walkie talkie. "Hey! You were right! He's here! I'm going after him!" At those words, Guile rushed out the door and started running out. Madison tried to ponder the meaning of this.

~* A jet? 'He's here'? And that guy who was looking for Sakura…OH, NO! SAKURA! *~

Madison put it all together and realized that her best friend may be in serious danger. She quickly got up and rushed towards the door.

"Madison!" Shiefua called out. "Where are you going?!"

"Call a doctor for Meilin!" Madison told her. "I have to go! Sakura might be in big trouble!"

Madison didn't wait anymore. She ran out the door and looked up at the sky to see a jet approaching slowly. Then she found Guile running. He had to know where Sakura was, so Madison followed him…praying that Sakura would be ok.

Scene: The Li Family Courtyard (A few moments before)

Perspective: Sakura Avalon

This argument wasn't going their way. Tao was a stubborn man and no matter how much Li tried to argue, Tao continued to protest. And he continued to believe that Sakura was unworthy.

Tao shook his head. "I don't know where you're getting the idea of imaginary assassins, Shoran. But thus far you haven't said anything to convince me that this…outsider is worthy of holding the Clow Cards. Therefore, she is unworthy of becoming a part of our family. Your relationship MUST end!"

It was Kero who tried to stand up for Sakura. He used his own magic to have the Clow book float in the air. The book opened and the Clow Cards began to circle around Kero (a trick he usually did), all except Li's cards, which floated over to him.

"I'm willing to let Sakura give you a demonstration if need be," Kero said. "She can prove to you all that she knows what she's doing and she's become a very powerful magician. She is far from unworthy."

Tao shrugged. "If you truly insist, then give us a demonstration. I warn you, though…it will take a lot to impress me."

Kero nodded and the Clow Cards flew over to Sakura. The Clow Cards were so much in quantity that she had to pocket them.

"Go ahead, Sakura," Kero encouraged her. "I know you haven't done this in a long time, but it never really goes away. You can never really get rusty. Come on…you know what to do."

Sakura was a little reluctant. But she wasn't just reluctant, she was also very nervous. The very relationship between Li and his family was riding on this demonstration. She had to do it right. So she slowly reached in for her magic key. Then she started to hear something.

"Li…do you hear that?" Sakura asked.

Everyone looked up to see what looked like a rusted jet flying above. The jet slowly descended down upon the courtyard. The clan seemed confused and so did Sakura and Li. Sakura had no idea what was going on. Then the jet finally landed. The back of the jet opened slowly and two figures emerged. One of them was a dark-skinned boxer. The other was a very tall, bald man with an eye patch and a huge scar across his chest.

"Who are you?" Tao demanded. "How dare you come into our grounds unannounced!"

The two imposing men stayed quiet. Then there was a bright flash coming from inside the jet. Sakura took a step back when she saw a menacing figure float out, surrounded by a bright aura. He wore a red general's uniform, a black cape, and he had an evil grin on his face.

"Unannounced?" the general chuckled. "My apologies. Perhaps you don't recognize me. My name is Bison and I mean you all no harm. All I want…is HER!"

Sakura gasped when she saw this 'Bison' was pointing right at her. Bison was a scary figure. His entire aura was electric and sparks began to fly out. His grin grew wider and he started to come closer.

Li stepped right in front of Sakura. "No! What do you want with her?!"

"Get out of my way!" Bison roared. "You don't know what you're dealing with! Step aside and let me take the Clow mistress!"

Sakura was shocked. He knew exactly who she was. She couldn't understand how. There was no way. She had never seen this person before in her life. Sakura stood behind Li as he daringly tried to defend her.

"I'm not moving!" Li shouted.

"Then I'll move you!" Bison sneered.

Bison's aura glowed brighter and Li began to float up. Sakura realized he must have had psychic power. Li was moved out of the way and he fell to the ground. Li quickly got up and took out his jade charm, from which he called on his sword. Bison was quick, however, and he extended his arm out. A small purple sphere flew out of his hand and began to fly towards Li.

"Bah, nuruiwa!"

The sphere approached Li and exploded. Li was engulfed by electricity and he fell to the ground.

Sakura looked on in horror. "LI!!"

Bison then stood there as members of the Li clan began advancing towards him. But he casually tossed each one aside. Then he continued to approach Sakura.

"W-W-What do you want with me?" Sakura stammered.

Bison smirked. "That's a surprise."

Kero suddenly flew into Sakura's pocket and stuck his head out. "Sakura! Don't just stand there! Use something! Use a card!"

Sakura suddenly realized she wasn't unarmed. She had her Clow Cards. So she quickly reached for her magical key, but Bison worked some of his magic. Sakura felt frozen. She couldn't move. Then Bison threw that same purple sphere at Sakura. She couldn't even let out a scream before the sphere exploded and left her unconscious.

Scene: Same Scene

Perspective: Madison Taylor

Madison finally got to the courtyard. But she saw that she was too late. The many members of the Li clan had fallen and he found that Sakura really was in danger. There was a man in a red general's uniform and a black cape floating up in the air and he had Sakura over his shoulder. Li was down on the ground, groaning in pain. The red general was accompanied by two other henchmen: a tall, bald-headed man with an eye patch and a scar across his chest; and a dark-skinned boxer. Madison desperately looked around for Guile, but it looked like he hadn't made it.

"BISON!"

Madison was relieved to see that Guile had finally shown up. He looked ready for another fight, but the two henchmen headed straight for him. Guile tried to fight with a jumping split kick that staggered both men, but the numbers soon took over. Guile was outmatched by what looked like two skilled fighters. The red general casually made his way towards his jet…with Sakura still over his shoulder. Madison desperately wished she could do something, but she couldn't stand up to this guy.

"Hey, Bison!"

Someone had come out to confront this 'Bison'. Out of nowhere, a strong-looking woman with a blue costume, loincloth, and stockings came out. She immediately got in a fighting stance and stood in front of Bison.

"How did you know I was here?" the shocked Bison asked.

"I knew you weren't really dead," the woman scowled. "I wouldn't believe it until I saw your dead carcass in person. I knew you had to be alive. And now that I found you're alive…it's time for me to kill you once and for all! Now put the girl down!"

Bison never let go of Sakura. He only stood there as someone ambushed the woman from behind. It was the same creep who attacked Madison and Meilin. It was Vega. The mysterious woman was caught by surprise and when she tried to defend herself, she was caught by an exploding purple sphere that came from Bison's hand. The woman fell and she struggled to get up.

Bison nodded at Vega. "We're leaving! Get in the jet!"

Vega ran into the jet followed by Bison, who was still carrying Sakura. The two other henchmen tried to make their exits, but Guile was still fighting valiantly. That's when Madison started to get an idea.

~* Nobody's getting up. And this guy's trying to take Sakura away. I can't let that happen. I have to find out where they're going. *~

Madison made a daring move. Without anybody looking, she sneaked over towards the jet and got inside. Once she was inside, she ducked behind a crate where hopefully no one would find her.

She looked on as the two henchmen were getting more shots in on Guile, who had run out of steam. They finally tossed Guile into the bushes and ran into the jet, right passed the hidden Madison, and the jet closed. Then the jet began to take off.

As she felt the jet taking off, Madison had so many questions. Where were they going? Who were these people? And what did they want with Sakura? Why were they doing this?

Scene: Inside the Shadaloo Jet

Perspective: Sakura Avalon

Sakura was finally coming to. She woke up to find herself standing inside a huge jet. Her arms were being held by a strong, slender masked man. Sakura raised her head to see the face of the sinister man called Bison.

"Nice to see you awake, Sakura," Bison grinned.

Sakura tried to catch her breath. She felt tired. "H-How do you know my name?"

"I know who you are," Bison said. "I've learned about you; studied you. I know exactly who you are."

"But how?"

Bison nodded as a small robot flew over towards him. Bison took the robot and pulled out a video tape. "This is how I know you. My mini-cyborgs have gone all over the world spying on the populace, trying to find the one who wields the legendary Clow Cards. After years and years of searching, they finally stumbled upon…you."

"You wanted to find me?" Sakura asked. "But how did you know where to find me? How did you know I was in Hong Kong?"

"I arranged the whole thing," Bison grinned. "My clever plan lured you and your friends there. My mini-cyborgs have enabled me to learn a lot more about you than anyone thought. I learned about your loving relationship with one Li Shoran. And I also learned that his family was against your relationship from the very beginning. So I arranged to have your boyfriend confront his family. But I also knew it would take a lot to bring him out here. Something like…an assassination attempt."

As soon as he said that, someone emerged from the shadows. Sakura couldn't believe it. "Katrina!"

It was true. It was the same girl who tried to kill Sakura. The same girl who said she was sent by the Li clan. But it was all a lie. That whole explanation was all a ruse. Katrina was working with Bison the whole time.

"Katrina is one of my assassins in training," Bison continued. "I sent her to lure you and your friends to Hong Kong as a test of her mettle." He turned to Katrina. "You passed with flying colors. Congratulations, Katrina."

Katrina bowed. "Thank you, Lord Bison."

Sakura was still shell-shocked. But she had another question. "What do you want?"

Bison chuckled. "I simply want the power you hold. I want the Clow Cards. That is why I had Katrina lure you to Hong Kong. And that is why I had her 'advise' you to take the Clow Book with you. You hold very powerful magic, Sakura Avalon. Magic I want to use to resurrect my organization of Shadaloo and take over the world!"

"But you can't!" Sakura protested. "The Clow magic can't be used by just anybody! Only those who have magic in their blood can use the Clow Cards! And that DOESN'T include you!"

"A minor technicality," Bison sneered. "But I have a way to fix that."

"Y-You do?"

Bison smirked. "You'll see. Soon you shall see."

Sakura didn't like the sound of that. This evil man had something in store for her. And she just knew that it couldn't be any good.


Next Time: Li finally wakes up and, needless to say, he wants answers and he wants them from those two strangers on his courtyard. And what does Bison have in store for Sakura? Will Madison get caught inside the jet? If she doesn't, where can she go from there? There are a lot of questions and they can only be answered in the next parts. Come back next time!


Any comments so far? I'm liking where this is going! But…do YOU?! That's why I need you all to review below and tell me what you think! Because feedback rules!