A/N: For those that want to know what happened to my story, it got deleted because, apprently, I did not follow certain rules that I had no idea even existed. I will try to comply with these rules now and hopefully this mess won't happen again.

Prologue

The cold shrill of the nightly rain weather cascaded over a quiet mountainous area. A malicious voice squealed out to the white moon, aching in unbearable pain, screaming even louder as the weather intensified with colder showers and stronger gusts of wind. Nevertheless, no matter how hard the owner of the voice yelled, no one could hear the wounded cries.

"I'm alive! I'm alive!" it kept saying. "This pain will not take me."

The nightly weather soon disbursed and the raining ceased, pushed aside by the coming of dawn. Daylight, never felt better, and with this, the loud cries had stopped, and no longer could the owner of the voice feel any pain or remorse from the blade that cut deep into it. A hideous roar of unforgiving laughter then came echoing across the mountains and whizzing through the streaming rivers of water, scaring the birds off and frightening any other animal close enough to hear its joyous sound.

Chapter 1: Rivals meeting

The golden shine of the morning sun glossed itself across the beautiful horizon of Beijing, China. It was the cheery season of summer with warm temperatures in the high eighties that brought the energetic children outside for playing. Alone and no longer sleeping deep in the confines of her serene courtyard house, an awakened Lei Fang steadily and exhaustingly stepped out of bed, with the lower portion of her red silk robe dragging beneath her wobbling heels after throwing it on. The aroma of the house reeked of fresh scented lemons, lingering in each room to draw away the unpleasant odors that sometimes came in unwanted. Everything from the furniture to the appliances used was well sanitized, polished, and kept in the finest condition possible. Not a spec of dirt or dust existed anywhere, having the house retain a look of overall decency.

Before going out to greet the pleasurable morning, Lei Fang made herself some breakfast, consisting of steamed dim sum and a fresh cup of green tea. Strolling outside, she sat down, in front of her luscious garden, eating peacefully. The delicate wind pushed her long, hanging auburn loose hair backward wildly while she sat with her subtle legs folded into a gratified cross. As she nibbled at the remains of her tasty meal, she began reminiscing about last year's outcome of a popular fighting tournament known as Dead or Alive. Nearly, she was close to winning the event, but was defeated in her fifth match. She would remember it like it was yesterday, her legs swaying apart into a defensive stance, the crumbled sounds of stones breaking, glass shattering, and wood chipping, from every area she fought her opponents in. Victory smelled so good Lei Fang could almost taste it, feeling the sensation caressing itself across her juicy tongue. She had trained so hard for this moment not to lose, and wasn't looking to do so. Her beating heart drummed with excitement, ready to carry out the next attack that would knockout her opponent.

Using a number of evasive counters, her dominance in the tournament went unrivaled, sending positive massages through her mind that she could indeed win. On the contrary, it was Lei Fang's cockiness and underestimation of her opponent's abilities that got the best of her and led her down to the road of defeat. Her opponent managed to get a second wind and turn the outcome of the match around, punishing Lei Fang's foolish thinking with a volley of attacks. Before she knew it, she was defeated and bumped off the tournament brackets. Feeling a little distraught from her loss, she saw and accused herself of being too overconfident and taking the fight not as seriously as she should. Never again, she felt she would make such a foolish mistake. Everyday a heavy layer of guilt would cloud her mind of the defeat she suffered. Ever since that time, Lei Fang thought to have lost a piece of herself. In school her grades were slipping, her mind unnaturally wandering off the point. At work in the restaurant business, she expressed difficulty in staying awake. It was clear she just didn't feel like herself anymore, which was strange for someone like her, always being cheerful, positive, and so full of life. To ease the frustration, she turned back to intense Tai Chi training for comfort and to hone her skills, in hopes of making sure another mistake like the one made before would not befall her again if she were to enter another Dead or Alive Tournament.

Her main rival, Jann Lee, also came close to claiming dominance and winning the competition, but was also defeated. After his crushing defeat, Lei Fang has not seen Jann Lee since. Rumors being spread around suggested he was training forcibly at an undisclosed location, perhaps even harder than he had ever done. Surpassing his own current power to a greater level, completely escalating past his rivals seemed to be his goal. He was never truly satisfied with his training efforts, though he believed he was more of a greater contender than any fighter could ever become.

The memories then disappeared with Lei Fang returning to reality, finishing her meal, and getting ready to wander back into the house for an extra cup of tea she had prepared. As she turned facing the door to go inside, she could hear the sounds of footsteps pounding the dirt behind her.

"Oh good, a visitor," she said to herself.

She spun back around, moving a strand of hair from her eyes, seeing the visitor's face to be a familiar adversary from last year's tournament. The visitor was young, a comely faced teenage girl with long flowing brown hair that ran past her slim shoulders and covered part of her face, clad in a pair of denim jeans, a tight yellowish tank top and black tennis shoes. Her crystal blue eyes were set into a cold, serious stare that had Lei Fang catching her attention. It was Hitomi, a girl of Japanese and Germen ethnicity, and one of the very few fighters that came close to defeating Lei Fang in battle.

"Ah, Lei Fang. I knew we'd meet again," she said, in a low but serious tone. "I've come here requesting a fight with you. Do you accept my challenge?"

"Hitomi…" came a slithered whisper from Lei Fang's lips that expressed surprise.

During the events of the last Dead or Alive Tournament, Lei Fang had scored a victory over Hitomi, one that she would not forget. After that day, Hitomi endured countless hours of training with vigorous determination. Now, she stood eye to eye with the same girl that had beaten her months ago, looking forward to the chance of having a rematch.

Lei Fang boldly accepted her rival's challenge, taking a few short minutes to dress for battle. She stepped in the court house and walked back outside shortly, wearing her usual long flowing sleeveless dress with the slits cut in the sides to reveal her bare tender legs, adding to the outfit a pair of her trademark high heeled sandals. Her auburn hair still hung loose down her back, waving around from the flow of the wind.

"Are you ready? It took you long enough," Hitomi scoffed.

"I have always been ready," Lei Fang said, confidently.

Lei Fang brought a leg out in front of her and stood with the other slightly bent behind her. She controlled the breezed flow of her breathing, inhaling and exhaling through the nostrils of her nose, as she moved and stretched her petite arms around in a slow formation. Her dress flapped up slightly from the air pressing against her, exposing a part of freshly white panties.

Hitomi jutted out her arms and hands, placing them a few inches away from her chest, separating her legs and feet. She restored her look of seriousness and began to strike without warning. A closed fist shot forward to Lei Fang's face, but with a swift duck, she avoided its touch from reaching her. Another hand came from the opposite side and nearly made contact, but again, another duck caused the attack to miss. The punches thrown from Hitomi were fast and fierce with Lei Fang telling she had been training hard for this moment. However, Lei Fang had her own great attributes as well.

Lei Fang caught an incoming jab from Hitomi and swatted it aside as if it were nothing but an annoying fly. The two circled each other, kicking up rocks and dirt with the brims of their feet. Hitomi had to do something, for Lei Fang was making her look foolish by repelling all the strikes she launched. Thinking quickly, she grabbed at the waist of her foe's body and flipped her over into a twisting slam.

Hitomi skipped backward after elevating herself from off her opponent's body and opened the palms of her hands to guard her face. Lei Fang admitted in thought that she was not expecting that kind of move from Hitomi and sprung up from the ground on the heels of her feet. A little dirt smudge had gotten on her dress, but it was no big deal because it was expected. She glared at the German girl, who was coming toward her, and kicked her in the ribs. Hitomi held her stomach as she fell with one knee sunk in the dirt, giving Lei Fang a chance to capitalize. Although Hitomi appeared hurt, she was merely playing possum, waiting the moment out. Lei Fang drew in closer and took a tag in the stomach by an underhanded fist. She backed away, but returned with curled punches that led Hitomi to cry out faintly once they touched her ribs.

Soon began the flurrying war of punches and kicks, neither being able to a land a quick blow. Lei Fang would swing with her legs, missing Hitomi as she danced around her with prowling speed. Even though she became successful at dodging her foe's attacks, success did not strike as much with breaking the barrier of Lei Fang's parries. The girl of Chinese decent was an expert at blocking and evasive counters, and every punch or kick thrown missed contact with her body, failing to land in any devastating hits.

In the end, they had learned their advantages as well as disadvantages against each other, but neither seemed to be winning the battle. The fight ended with both fighters smiling, putting their hands together, and taking an honoring bow of respect.

"That was fun," said Hitomi, using a hand to shield herself from the sun's glare.

"It sure was," Lei Fang stated in agreement.

The fight was a test to determine the nature of their abilities and how far that had progressed on the course of training physically and mentally. Instead of hating one another, they had come to admire each other's traits and fighting spirit.

Hitomi fell to one knee, taking a breath. "Hey, do you have anything to drink? My throat is very dry. I do not care if it is warm or cold, I will take it."

Her elegantly dressed rival answered with a nod and hand gesture. "Sure, I have something."

Lei Fang went back into the courthouse, returning outside seconds later with a fresh cup of tea in hand she had made for herself. The boiling steam from the cup shot into the air as she handed it into Hitomi's open palms. Grateful, the girl from Germany drank from the cup while propping her body down on the ground. Lei Fang sat next to her, stretching her legs out in front of her with a grin.

"That was a good battle indeed. You were very convincing with your acting."

"Funny you should say that," Hitomi laughed, "I told you I could act. You really thought I came here to beat you up, didn't you?"

"I'll admit, I was slightly fooled, slightly," Lei Fang said, winking.

"Sure you were," came a tone of sarcasm. "Anyway, how have things been going with you? Have you still been training, and what about your job?"

"Not as much as I used to. I have not had the time to practice. Everything else is going great though. I like being a waiter, it's fun, you know? You get to meet some nice people. What about you?"

"Well, lately I have participated in small tournaments, ones quite not as big as Dead or Alive. I have won a couple and lost some, here and there. Right now, my dad and me are on vacation here. He is staying at the hotel as we speak."

"Why did he pick here as your vacation spot?"

"It was mostly my choice to come here. I wanted to be here and hang out with you, since I know he is going to do a lot of wandering around alone. He does that all the time when he comes to some place new."

"Hey, that wasn't a bad idea. I could use some company. My parents are rarely ever home anymore and this summer looks to be a dull one. With you, it should be more fun."

A sudden rumbling noise interrupted the conversation.

"What was that?" Lei Fang asked.

"That was my stomach," Hitomi responded, covering her tummy. I am hungry. I have not had anything to eat since the plane ride."

"You are? Why didn't you say so? There is a restaurant not too far from here. You want to eat there?

Hitomi gave a nod.

Lei Fang rose to her feet, straightening her hair and smoothing out the wrinkles in the dress she wore. The two left the front of the courthouse and proceeded toward the city district of Beijing.

Hitomi looked around in astonishment at the streets, people, and buildings. The country was far different from hers, beautiful yet alien. She currently lived in Hamburg, Germany, one of the largest cities in the country, a place filled with landmarks, historical gardens, and park areas for playing and resting. The buildings, language, and people of China gave sort of an uncomfortable feeling for Hitomi, as if she would not fit in to this new world, but Lei Fang reassured her that such a thing would not happen.

Entering the restaurant, Lei Fang and Hitomi sat down at a table, greeted by a polite, young female waiter with short length hair that fell behind her ears. As she parked herself down in a chair, Hitomi scanned the menu with her finger, but could not make out any of the words printed.

"I can't read this," she said.

"Don't worry. I'll order something for ya," pardoned Lei Fang.

The waiter returned with Lei Fang relaying the orders to her. Minutes later, she came back with a few plates, sitting them gently on the table, warning that they were hot. Hitomi reached a finger into a plate and examined the piece of food.

"What is this?"

"Noodles. Try em."

"Where are the forks?"

"We don't use forks."

"What?"

Hitomi was confused, for it seemed odd to eat without pronging silverware, but there was an explanation behind it.

" You see," Lei Fang began, "in China, forks ruin the good nature of eating, therefore being barred from the table, it is the same way with knifes. We like to take our food very seriously, believing that a meal table should be a place of peace of harmony. If knifes were available, they could be used as weapons, thus disrupting the harmony of the table. Because of this, the knives, and anything else that could disrupt the peace, stayed banned from the table."

It was a little complicated for Hitomi at first when Lei Fang explained it, but she later came to an understanding.

"It's ok, though," she added. "For newcomers, like yourself, if you want, could ask the waiter to bring you a fork if you cannot get used to the chopsticks."

"No, I am fine," confirmed Hitomi. "I like trying new things."

Eating their meals, the two listened to the comforting vocals and instrumental sounds coming through the speakers built in above. The music played from the ceiling had a relaxing flow and set the mood perfect to go along with the food. The slow beats of the drums and soft squeals of the bamboo pipes were so peaceful to Hitomi, and it made her want to relax even more.

"So, have you seen any of the other fighters, lately?" Hitomi said, digging into a bowl of soup with her spoon.

"No. I have not, to be honest. I normally see Jann Lee every now and then, but not since the day of last year's tournament have I seen him."

Lei Fang ate her stir-fried rice and Hitomi did the same with her La Mian noodles. Just then, before taking another bite of her meal, Hitomi peered out the window, noticing something going on outside.

"Hey, is there a marathon happening?" she asked.

"What? Where?" Lei Fang said, wiping the stains of food from her mouth with a closed hand.

"Those people outside, they're running."

Lei Fang gaped out the window and suddenly dropped hold of her chopsticks. Something had frozen her stiff in place, something horrible. Leaving the bill money owed on the table, she dashed outside, leaving her guest alone by herself.