Chapter 7:
The following morning all the fighters got ready for the first day of the tournament. Ken had a big breakfast feast prepared for them in the penthouse. They had choices from tom laud moo, joke, omelets, rice and curry and other typical breakfast dishes of Thailand. As everyone was eating, Chun Li walked in in her robe and pajamas. "Coffee, please!" she asked one of the waiters.
"Make that decaf!" Ken added.
"Hey!" Chun Li protested.
"Not too much caffeine! Think of the baby!"
Chun Li mocked Ken by mouthing "think of the baby".
"Well, grow a human and then we can talk," Chun Li said as the waiter handed her a cup of hot coffee.
"Sod off, mate!" Cammy told Ken, "it's hard business growing a wee one." Chun Li turned to Cammy and mouthed thank you. Cammy continued, "How many milligrams of caffeine are in that cup anyway?"
"Traitor," Chun Li joked. Everyone at the table laughed except Ryu. Deep down, he was still hurting thinking that Chun Li had moved on in her life.
"I'll be meeting everyone later at the tournament, normally spectators aren't allowed in the commons for the fighters but thanks to Ken, I'll get special access," Chun Li said.
Guile cautioned her, "Remember, Chun Li, the boss only wants you to gather information about the fighters, where they're from, their past, history of fights, etc. Don't go snooping off looking for trouble in your condition!" Chun Li knew he was right, but she also knew about some fighters linked to Shadowlaw were going to be at the tournament.
"Wouldn't dream of it." She grabbed a bowl of joke and left the table to go sit on the couch where it was more comfortable. She didn't want anyone else making comments about her pregnancy. Ken watched Ryu looking at Chun Li as she got up from the table. He knew he was longing to be with her, so Ken nudged Ryu's arm as if to say "go sit with her". Instead, he got up from the table and left out the door to go to the tournament. As everyone finished their breakfast, the shuttle to the tournament arrived. Everyone left and Chun Li was alone to concentrate on her work.
A few hours later at the tournament, Chun Li was in the commons room where all the fighters took breaks in between matches. She looked at the roster and saw many familiar names; E. Honda, Zangief, Balrog, Blanka, Dee Jay, Adon, Birdie, Maki, and R Mika to name a few. Chun Li kept scanning the list for Rose's name but it wasn't there. Damn! She then heard a familiar voice and turn around to see Fei Long.
"Fei Long! What are you doing here? I thought you were filming a movie?" Chun Li was so happy to see him as she hadn't seen him in a few years since she last went to Hong Kong for the anniversary of her father's death.
"Look at you!" he exclaimed and gave her a big hug. "Where's my niece or nephew, I can barely tell anything is there." He put his hand on her baby belly.
"Well, this trench coat helps hide it," she chuckled. "I can't tell you how happy I am to see you. It's like having a piece of home with me."
"It's great to see my lil sis. We miss you at the dojo. So, we have a film break in our shooting schedule. I broke the arm of another stuntman. They can never get quality ones. I thought I'd pop over here and watch some of the fights."
"Great! I was going to keep working on an assignment of mine, but I can't get much access to the fighter's files right now since it's still opening day. Would you like to watch the fights for a while with me?"
"Sure!" The two walked off the spectator stands and sat in a special box Ken had reserved for her and his staff. When it was Ryu's turn to battle his next opponent, he looked out into the crowd and saw Chun Li with Fei Long. Maybe he is the father of Chun Li's baby? If his memories were swiped too, then maybe he would have pursued her? But he's like her bro….Ryu wasn't paying attention to his opponent when he attacked and knocked him over.
"Ryu!" Chun Li yelled. He knew he needed to get his head back in the match, so he pushed away Chun Li from, his mind and finished the fight rather quickly. The crowd cheered for him. Continuing to watch more matches from the day, Chun Li and Fei Long watched Cammy, Guile, Ken, and Ryu battle to higher ranked matches with more challenging opponents.
After day one concluded, all 6 fighters went back to the Master's hotel. As everyone boarded the shuttle, Ryu was last to walk on, there were no empty seats except next to Chun Li. He was reluctant to sit next to her but the door to the shuttle closed so he had to sit down.
"Great work out there today. I got to watch a few of your matches." Chun Li said.
"Um, thanks. I bet you feel pretty bad you can't fight in the tournament?" Ryu said.
"It's horrible," she laughed. Chun Li felt relaxed next to Ryu, as did he. A moment he did not expect to share with her. She continued, "there were some guys out there I knew I could take on, pregnant or not!"
Ryu smiled. "I wouldn't want to get in a match with you, you'd have me shaking in my gi," he teased. She lightly punched him.
"I'm so exhausted though. All that walking around and investigating. I think when I get back, I'm going to take a nice nap by the pool."
"Sounds relaxing, it'll be just what you need to refresh yourself."
On the drive back to the hotel, Chun Li fell asleep. Ryu stared at her and revered her beauty. Bumps in the road caused Chun Li's head to move onto Ryu's shoulder. He couldn't resist putting his arm around her to make her more comfortable. He longed to have her in his arms again and he felt joy. As they sat together, Ryu felt her belly move. Fascinated, he put his hand on her belly and felt the baby move inside. As he touched her belly, a vision came into his mind, his reoccurring dream. Immediately, he let go of her belly and back away from her. Why did I see my dream again? I thought that was over. Something is coming.
Later that night after dinner, Chun Li was standing outside by the pool drinking a cup of tea. She pondered the fate of her unborn child as she felt it move. What am I going to do with you? She continued to look out at the city. Cammy, Guile, Ken, and Fei Long had gone out to tour the city, but Chun Li didn't want to do too much walking as she had some swelling in her feet. She thought about Ryu, hoping that he was OK. As she was thinking about him, he walked out to the pool area where she was. As much as he wanted to keep his distance, he also longed to be with her.
"Looking out at the city, I see," Ryu said. He knew she loved landscapes.
"Always. You know me,' she smiled.
"You didn't want to go out with everyone?"
"With these legs, no thanks! I'm perfectly fine here going over my files with my cup of tea…Ouch!" Chun Li put her hand to her belly.
"Is everything ok?"
"The baby keeps putting their feet into my rib cage. Not even born yet and they're already kicking"
"A fighter, just like mama, no doubt. Ready to be a mother?" Ryu asked.
"Quite honestly," she paused, "No. There's so many things I want to do still, I have my work, I'm still in the middle of investigations with Shadowlaw, I wanted my revenge on Bison. I can't do all that and be a mother."
"What about your boyfriend? He'll be there to help?"
Chun Li sighed, "I lied". She put her head down. "I don't have a boyfriend. I'm not even with the father. As a matter of fact, I don't know if he even wants a family."
"That's ridiculous! Who wouldn't want a wonderful person like you? You're smart, you're funny, an exceptional agent, driven, hardworking…what else could a man want?" Ryu wanted to tell Chun Li of their past, but knew he shouldn't.
"Thank you. You always were so kind." Chun Li wished she remembered more of her relationship with Ryu but the fog still clouded her mind. All she knew is that she loved him deeply. She put her head into Ryu's chest and began to cry.
"Chun Li! What's the matter?" Ryu put his arms around her.
"I don't know how I'm going to be a mother. At times, I still feel like an orphan myself."
"I was an orphan too, Master Gouken raised me, I feel your pain. We both have lost someone, a parent, to a evil people." Ryu sympathized with her.
Chun Li looked up into Ryu's eyes. She wiped away her tears, "I'm sorry, must be the hormones…Thank you for comforting me. You always were so comfy to lay on." Chun Li said.
Ryu thought about what she had just said, always were so comfy to lay on. He wondered, had she recovered a memory. He let it go. In their embrace, Chun Li's belly was right against Ryu's, he felt the baby move again. "Wow, the baby moves a lot." He let go and moved back.
"Must be all the spicy food I'm eating here. Baby always perks up after that." She put his hand to her belly and he felt light kicks and movement. Suddenly, Ryu had the vision again of his dream. He was stunned and began to sweat and his body stiffened.
"Ryu are you ok?" Chun Li asked.
Stammering, "I-I'm fine. I need to go prepare for tomorrow's fights. Goodnight." Ryu went off quickly inside. He left the penthouse. Chun Li wondered what was wrong with him. He left in such a rush, I hope something isn't bothering him. Maybe it was too much to have him feel the baby move?
"Chun Li," a voice from behind her said. She turned around quickly.
"Rose! You! You took my memories of Ryu and me. I want them back!" Chun Li yelled.
"You were supposed to forget for a reason! That fool Ken could mess up the balance of the natural world." Rose bellowed. "But, there have been a change in my cards, something happened to change the future. The empress card. I had to see for myself and now I see it is true! You are carrying Ryu's child."
"Yes, I am. How does that affect anything?"
"If Ryu finds out he has an offspring, he will cease his training to stand by your side. He must continue to control the dark hadou or he will end up dead!" Rose warned.
"He won't find out! Give me my memories and I swear I won't tell him anything." Chun Li pleaded.
"Perhaps one day, but I cannot have you as an unnecessary risk. You already know far too much, it's only because of the baby I will let you keep what you already know. Heed my warning, let Ryu go. If you want him to live, you'll let him be." Rose disappeared.
Chun Li sank to the ground. She put her hands on her face and cried. I'll have to forget him.
Over the next few days of the tournament, Chun Li kept her distance from Ryu. She immersed herself in her undercover work and focused on what needed to get done. While Cammy, Guile, Ryu, and Ken battled their way to the top of the rankings, Chun Li continued to find any ties to Shadowlaw. It wasn't until the last day of the tournament she discovered a grisly sight. Dead fighters from the tournament were piled high in a room, ready to be thrown into an incinerator. She heard two men walking toward her way. She hid behind a stack of boxes. In walked Vega and Sagat looking fierce, big, and scary as always. She knew she had to keep quiet or her cover would be blown. After throwing some dead men into the fire, Sagat and Vega left. Chun Li was relieved, and she came out from the back of the boxes. She walked out of the room and felt two gigantic arms grab her. Oh god, Vega! She struggled and fought to get out of his grasp, luckily he didn't have his signature claws on.
"Come with me, little bunny. Bison has asked for your capture." Vega said.
"Eat dirt, creep! I'll kick your ass like I did before!"
"In that condition, I'd like to see you try!" Vega laughed evilly and charged her. He threw his punches and kicks. All Chun Li could do was try and block anything from connecting with her stomach. She felt it tighten up, it felt like a rock.
"Vega, you idiot! Stop attacking her. Bison wanted her unharmed." Sagat yelled. "Just grab her and bring her in."
Chun Li knew she was in a tough spot, she tried thinking of every way to escape but any attempt was futile. Sagat was able to reach her and knock her out. He caught her before she hit the ground.
"Come on, let's head back to the jet." He said.
The final battle of the tournament was between Ken and Ryu. Before they were to fight, they were in the commons room. Most everyone had cleared out due to losing in the tournament. Only Ryu, Ken, Guile, and Cammy remained of the original fighters.
"Has anyone seen, Chun Li?" Cammy asked. "I haven't seen her since she went to the loo a few hours ago."
"I haven't seen her. Maybe she went back to the hotel, she could have been tired," Guile suggested.
"No, luv, I don't think she would go off and not say anything to anyone."
Guile put his hand on his hips, "I bet she went off looking for anything suspicious."
"You think she's alright?" Ken asked.
"If I know Chun Li, she never quits." Ryu added.
"We're about to have our match, they're expecting us, Ryu. Cammy, Guile, will you go look for her?" Ken looked toward them and asked.
"We'll come to the spectator box once we've found her," Guile replied. He left with Cammy to look for Chun Li. Ryu and Ken went off to fight their match. I hope Chun Li is alright, Ryu thought.
To be continued…