***Warning: This fic contains MAJOR spoilers for the Fatal Fury series. By reading this, you will probably ruin the ending of the movie, unless your one of those people who open their Christmas presents BEFORE you're supposed to, then, please, go ahead and read. You like to ruin things anyway. =P***
Second Chances: (Prologue)
By Miki Robasu
Rating: PG 13, for swearing, minor violence, and fatalities
Three warriors stared off the edge of a cliff, pained expressions written across their beautiful faces. A young man in a red jacket and trademark hat looked out over the horizon at the wreckage of a temple. There, he had fought the most difficult battle of his life, and lost, although he was victorious. The man closed his eyes as memories of only moments before filled his mind...
* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *
A silver haired man, clad in body armor fought with the power of a god...
"Terry! Be careful!" a voice called. Terry's face held a slight smirk.
"Don't worry about me, Andy. I've made a promise, and I don't intend to break my vow." Terry turned to his younger brother and saw his eyes quivering with adoration. Andy opened his mouth to speak, but was silenced by a high pitched scream. The brothers whipped around to where the cry had come from, as a young girl was violently thrown toward the wall.
"MAI!" Andy jumped up and caught the falling brunette as a powerful ball of energy shot toward the pair. The younger blond cried out as it grazed his side, and fell to the ground, still cradling the girl in his arms. Blood poured from the wound in his side, but he didn't care. He looked down lovingly at the small frame of the girl. "Mai, are you okay?" Andy's voice was thick with emotion.
Mai opened her eyes and gazed tenderly at him. She raised a hand up and brushed a blond lock away from his face. "Andy, you and I are a team... don't you dare get killed on me." With that, she fell unconscious in his embrace.
Andy held her close and whispered softly in to her hair, "I love you, Mai."
"Insolent fool!" a voice scoffed. It was a young masculine voice, that nearly seemed to echo on it's own. Andy turned to see Laucorn Gaudeamus hold out one of his armor clad hands, as energy began to form in his palm. Andy held his arm out unsteadily, gathering a yellow light in his own outstretched palm.
Terry, who was supporting a short haired, muscular brunette man in kick boxing attire, gaped in horror. Suddenly, Laucorn's arm faltered, just as Andy's did. Laucorn cried out as electrical pulses shot out from his armor.
"DAMN YOU...SULIA!", he screamed.
Terry held a blank expression and stumbled back a bit. "W...what does he mean?" he stammered. He looked around and saw a shadowy figure slowly step into the dreary light of the temple. "Oh no..." Terry's breath caught, and his heart fairly stopped as he gazed at
the figure.
She was a young girl, perhaps 17 years old, with shortly cropped purple hair above a long ponytail. Her normally wavering hazel eyes were hard and determined, and a small feminine hand was clasped tightly around her arm. She held firmly onto a small jagged piece of stone, as small streams of crimson leaked between her fingers.
"Not again," Terry muttered. "Sulia..."
Sulia held her head high, her eyes set on the image of her twin brother. "You are not the only descendent of Gaudeamus. The Armor of Mars has only strengthened our bond." Her voice softened. "Please, my brother, let us end this *now*." Once again Laucorn gathered a bright, red light in his palm, and aimed it toward his sister.
"Sulia-," the echoy voice dragged out her name, as smoke circled around his body. Sulia's eyes quivered as she pointed the jagged end of the stone toward her chest.
"Farewell...Terry," she whispered as she closed her eyes, ready to except her fate.
"NO! SULIA-!" Terry yelled, as Laucorn shot the gathered light forward. She prepared herself for the violent blast, her eyes squinted tightly shut. At the sound of a pained grunt, Sulia's eyes flew open to see Terry standing in front of her, blocking the blast.
"Terry!" she cried as she held him in a standing position.
"Wha...what happened to our promise?" he sputtered as blood trickled from his mouth. He looked up at her, his sparkling ocean eyes lightening as he looked into wavering hazel. "We promised that we'd get through this together."
"T...Terry?"
Suddenly red light screamed through the air toward the pair. "Diiiiieeeeeee!" the evil voice screamed. The couple snapped to attention, eyes wide with fright. Terry yelled out as he was blasted from his position in front of Sulia. "Diiiiiiieeeeee!" Laucorn screeched again, focusing more power on his attack.
Sulia gaped in shock for a moment, than rose to a standing position. Her eyes narrowed as she held the jagged stone at arms length, before plunging it into her breast. Laucorn faltered with a scream, as energy pulsed out from his chest.
"Sulia!" Terry caught her as she slipped toward the ground. "Why did you-"
"Forgive me...Terry," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "I made the decision for you...I can't let the one I love be hurt. Promise me, strike my brother through the breast plate...it's possible now."
Terry gazed tenderly at her, tears threatening to spill over. "No, I cant! I won't do it!" he yelled.
"It's my fate...to be the one who breaks the curse of Gaudeamus. Only *I* can take that bitter hatred, and bring it to God Himself," her eyes opened, glittering with crystalline tears, but they held no fear. "I have no regrets. After all, Terry, I was able to meet *you*." Sulia closed her eyes, and paused to catch her breath, before she began to plead with him. "If you love me, even a little...please...*please*..." The urgency in her voice died on her lips.
Terry pulled her close, her shallow breathing echoing in his ear, as his tears were soaked up in her violet strands. He pulled away and placed her gently on the hard temple floor. He rose to his feet, glaring with venom at his enemy. Laucorn simply laughed at the angry blond.
"Worthless fool! How can you ever hope to defeat me," he scoffed. "The next time I strike you there will be nothing but stinking meat."
Terry clenched his fists, knuckled white with rage. "Don't you *dare* underestimate me you arrogant bastard!"
"Enough! You *DIE*!" Before he knew it, he was engulfed in a burning red light. Terry crossed his arms infront of himself, trying to shield himself from the pain, till an image of Sulia crossed his mind. With newfound determination, he raised his fist and it began radiating with blue energy. "BURNING KNUCKLE!" he cried as he struck the armor-clad man in the chest.
Laucorn gave a choking cry as he fell to his knees, the armor clunking down into six golden coins around him. Terry glared at the scene, than turned on his heels and ran back to where he laid Sulia down. He gently lifted her up and softly asked her, "Is that...enough?" Sulia nodded slowly.
A quivery voice pulled Terry away from Sulia. "What in God's name have I done?...Sulia..." Two tears fell from Laucorn's eyes, dropping to the temple floor in two, shining droplets.
"He's back! Thank you...Terry. You kept your promise, even though you didn't want to." Her voice was shaky, but held a hint of relief, as well as pain. The two were joined by the other three warriors, all looking disheveled and teary eyed. "And Joe," she directed toward the kickboxer. "Thanks for *everything*...we had an adventure, didn't we?" Joe clenched his fists and squeezed his eyes shut as he fought tears. "And Mai...don't be so hard on Andy, okay?" Mai began to weep openly, and Andy put his arms around her, his own eyes shining.
Sulia opened her eyes, her lashes parting as gently as butterfly's wings. She looked up, her eyes unseeing. "Terry...Terry where are you?" she asked urgently, holding up a hand. Terry clasped her small hand with his own, and brought it up to the side of his face.
"I'm right here...sweetheart," he said, his voice thick with emotion.
"I need to tell you...I...I," she choked, not able to form the words she wanted to say for so long.
"Shhh, don't talk." Terry lowered his head to hers, and lightly brushed her lips with his own. A solitary tear trickled down her cheek as she fell completely limp in his embrace. Terry held her close as he wept with out tears. "Shhh, sweetheart. I know...I know...I love you too, Sulia... but why did you have to *DIE*-!"
* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *
Terry could still hear the dreaded word as it echoed throughout the temple. He remembered the armor melting together, and the fiery body of Mars, The God of War, as he fought with all the life and love energy that bonded him and Sulia.
"This means, it's all over, right?" Mai's quivery voice broke Terry from his trance.
"Yes," Andy replied. Andy, Joe, and Mai turned their backs to the wreckage, and proceeded to walk away.
Terry took a deep breath as a tear splashed on the ground. "Goodbye, Sulia..." he whispered as an unseen wind whipped around him. He turned, pulled off his hat, and threw it sadly behind him.
Disclaimers- Fatal Fury/Garou Densetsu is (c)Masami Oobari 1993/Viz Video (bless their little hearts. . .sigh.), and a bunch of other people that I'm not too sure of, but I have absolutely *nothing* against . . . I just don't know who you are. So, please don't sue me. . . I really don't have anything you'd want, and even if you *did* find something, It would be in pretty crappy condition!)