Episode 14 – Finding Truth (The investigation continues)
On the last exciting episode of Street Fighter II – Deep Core Crisis; Chun-Li had found the secret documents that may hold the key to Vega's past, all while Guile and Cammy pursued the terrorist who had connections to Shadowlaw. Will Ken and Ryu's presence in Barcelona help to uncover Shadowlaw for good? Find out in this episode – Finding Truth (The investigation continues)
- Central Park, Barcelona 17:12 PM -
A tumultuous fight was underway; people fled from the scene and tried to avoid getting involved in what seemed to be a fight for life and death. Guile pinned Balrog to the ground and started to assault him with his fists, yet Balrog succeeded in freeing his one arm and swung back at Guile forcing him to fall on his back.
"Dis is the last time you mess with Shadowlaw's business!" Balrog got up on his feet and kicked to Guile stomach, inflicting great pain on his adversary. Yet Guile skillfully grabbed a hold of Balrog's leg and pulled it towards him, forcing Balrog to lose balance and fall to the ground. From this position Guile swung with his elbow into Balrog's chest, blood escaped his lips.
"Sir, use these handcuffs!" Cammy threw a pair to Guile who caught them in mid air he quickly used them on Balrog who was now struggling to regain control.
"Get up you slime!" Guile pulled on him and took a hold of him, making sure he couldn't escape. Cammy rejoiced at the sight of Guile apprehending a known Shadowlaw terrorist, yet Balrog seemed unaffected, he started laughing.
"What's so funny?" Guile frowned.
"Dis!" Barlog snapped the handcuffs with ease and proceeded to run.
"Hold it!" Guile took out his desert eagle and fired a warning shot.
"Take one more step and you will leave this place in a body bag." Guile exclaimed while aiming at him. Meanwhile in a helicopter not far away, Ken and Ryu were looking over Barcelona, no words were exchanged with Logan, and still Ryu seemed more at ease by his presence than Ken.
"There was a huge explosion not far from here this morning; apparently a terrorist had left a bomb in a briefcase at a local diner." This grabbed Ken's attention.
"Any word of who was behind it?" They locked gazes.
"The local investigation has not come up with any clear finds, but my gut feeling tells me it's Shadowlaw. The chance that the attack was instrumented by another terrorist group other than the one present in this very city is close to zero." Logan reasoned.
"Instrumented?" Ken asked and looked intrigued.
"Sir! We've just been informed that the local police have arrested a possible Shadowlaw terrorist! This happened just minutes ago at the central park!" The pilot informed Logan.
"What!" Logan was baffled by the news, all while Ken giggled.
"Looks like local police have done a better job than the specialists themselves." Logan grid his teeth at his remark.
"Impossible! They must have had some aid in their capture?" Logan crossed his arms and looked down for a moment, contemplating the possible scenario. Meanwhile…
- Unknown mansion at the outskirts of Barcelona, 17:43 PM –
The mess hall was as always silent, and lifeless. The only sound came from an antique master clock, the ticking was the only thing she could hear from below, the hallways were almost endless entities with an unlimited potential for hiding, yet she found herself sitting on a chair in the room she had been accustomed to. She laid the heavy book on the desk in front of her and blew the dust from the hardcover. It was indeed a rare find, not in a million years would she had thought that she would find Dr. Raul Julia Salgado's diary in the home of Vega. While she skimmed through it, she found other documents, medical examinations and newspaper sections; it became apparent to her that the doctor had an obsession with Vega. She began reading an article from 1976; it documented a murdering of a high ranked lord, while he was asleep. Chun-Li quickly found a side note which pointed to a specific page in his diary, here an interview had been written down which had taken place the fifth July 1990.
"Vega, do you have any recollection of you father?
None… (The subject is fairly calm, and seems to have anticipated my question. Somehow this does not surprise me.)
What about your stepfather?
Very little my dear doctor… (Finally I have gotten a reaction, the subject seems more aggravated, and displays it with specific body language. He no longer stares me in the eyes as before, but is now looking away through the window at the right, which oversees the gardens; he is trying to flee from his emotions.)
It says here that your stepfather was murdered, how did you cope with such a loss?
I did not try to cope with it. It was heart rendering, find out that my dear papa was no longer among the living. (His sympathetic tone confirms his denial, he is lying.)
Vega, please be honest with me we both know that this is not true.
Why do you think that I am lying? (I cannot confront him with the evidence I have, this would certainly entice his deviation.)
Because you have never spoken about him in the past. Why would you now begin to show affection for him?
Do you want to know what I think about Nurse Isabella? (This caught me completely off guard.)
Her stockings that latch on to her slender yet firm legs are easy to spot right away, and when she bends over to take out the trash bin she reveals more of herself. I love confronting her while she checks up on me every afternoon, her blushing when looked upon, shows her lack of experience with men. She might have had a rough upbringing with her father being the dominant figure in her life, restricting her contact with boys throughout her youth, but now she has come of age. She trembles at my touch; she looks away as I lick the top of her nipples. When she bends over and lets me trail my fingers down her labia, it amuses me. (This is completely outrageous, how dare he predate on our staff?)
Last weekend I let her kiss me, she was gentle and handles herself very professionally, taking care that my bodily functions were all healthy; her soft lips encircled my manhood. I saw the willingness in her eyes, the passion that ran through her. I positioned her face down a pillow while I proceeded to thrust in to her opening.
That is enough! (I couldn't control my anger; he was degrading her with each detail he revealed. I had to make sure that he did not mingle with female personal, knowing his history I should have been more careful to begin with.)"
Chun-Li stopped for a moment and took a deep breath, Vega the man of her dreams and the tormentor of her existence was beginning to disgust her more than ever before, yet she felt compelled by the information at hand, and needed to know more. She couldn't understand her craving; it was as if her inner demons were getting her excited about Vega's predatory nature. `I can't… This is not me…´ she closed the dairy, and looked away for a moment, before reopening it.
- Local police station, Barcelona 19:22 PM -
"You two are already dead… you just don't know it yet…" Balrog laughed out loud while sitting in his cell. Cammy and Guile were keeping a close eye on him.
"Well thanks for informing us…" Cammy sighed and went outside. Balrog stood up and grabbed a hold of the bars separating him from Guile who displayed his disgust for the prisoner.
"Dat bitch has a fine lookin' ass. You fuckin' her?`I would…" Balrog grinned manically, and spit on Guile's boots.
"She and I we go way back…" Guile looked puzzled at Balrog.
"What do you mean?" Guile asked.
"You army boyz… You ain't got no dicks, you like to get it up di ass don't ya!" He was met with silence.
"You really think that you can hold me in here!" Balrog asked aloud, a police officer came with a food tray, and proceeded to slip it through to Balrog.
"I ain't gonna eat dat shit!" Balrog kicked to the tray sending all its content flying into the officer, he then proceeded to laugh, this did not sit well with Guile who grabbed Balrog by the shirt and pulled him into the bars, smashing his face against one of them.
"Fuck! My nose! You motherfucker!" Guile only smiled lightly before exiting the room. He caught up with Cammy who was about to go outside, he took a hold of her arm and went out with her.
"Sir?" She looked at him.
"The guy tells me, he knows you?" Guile asked with an impatient expression.
"I have no idea what he is talking about? He is just trying to mess with your head, sir." Guile breathed out and sat on the stairs leading up to the station.
"It's been a long day sir, what do you say I get you some coffee?" She smiled to him, and he nodded back to her. Cammy proceeded to go inside and found her way to the cafeteria, inside she overheard a conversation which included the word "Interpol", and before she knew it an emergency door opened right next to her which lead to a back alley, she could see numerous figure appear out of a dark prisoner truck. As she stepped forward she bumped into Logan Karenina who wore a stylish suite, he caught her hand before she landed on the floor.
"We meet again." Logan smirked to her, while still holding her hand.
"I would like to have my hand back, please…" He blushed for a moment before letting go.
"Of course!" He had a serious expression painted on his face; she could still see his embarrassment. He proceeded onwards, a dozen of special operatives were behind him, and last but not least Ken and Ryu followed along. Ken spotted Cammy who was holding two cups of coffee, and grabbed one out of her hand.
"Thanks! Very thoughtful of you." Ken smiled to her and took a sip.
"Ryu do you want some coffee?" He asked, but Ryu refused.
"Gentlemen! There is no time to lose!" Logan interrupted them.
"Okay, okay! Geez…" Ken and Ryu continued to follow suit. Logan opened the door to the chief's office, his men gathered around the chief's desk. The chief looked baffled at them.
"Hello, my name is Logan Karenina and I have come to take your prisoner to a more secure facility, the paperwork has been taking care of. If you have any question please contact Interpol for further information." Logan then selected a few operatives and ordered them to follow him.
"The rest of you search this place! I want all relevant reports and the suspects personal belongings confiscated." The chief stood helpless bye as his office was dismantled.
"Don't you think this is a tad too harsh?" Ken asked Logan while they were walking down the hallway.
"Nonsense… The quicker we get to him the better." They entered the detention room; Logan made his way to the cell and observed the prisoner.
"You must be Balrog… My name is…"
"The bitch!" Balrog started laughing.
"You can't possibly comprehend how happy we are to have you with us." Logan exclaimed.
"Fuck yourself…" Balrog countered.
"No thanks I am tired of fucking your fat mamma." Some of the operatives smirked to Logan's remark.
"How da fuck you know my mom, ho!" Balrog asked.
"I met her in the cornfields." Logan replied elegantly, provoking a reaction from Balrog.
"You racist motherfucker! When I get out of here, I will personally…" Logan nodded to one of his men, who proceeded to open a briefcase, it contained a dart gun.
"Calm this gorilla down! So we can escort him to his new home." Logan went outside together with Ken and Ryu, leaving his men to handle Balrog.
"This is the best scenario so far! When we get him down to the Interpol station, we'll pump him up with the latest and greatest truth serums, this guy will even tell us where Shadowlaw keeps their underwear stacked." Logan took out a cell phone and began talking with his superiors. Ryu spotted a known figure standing at the end of the hallway, he approached him and introduced himself.
"Sir, do you remember me? My name is Ryu we fought against shadowlaw many years ago." The tall figure revealed itself it was none other than Guile.
"Ryu! It's good to see you. I wish the circumstances were better though." They shook hands, and Ryu led him to Ken and Logan.
"Well I'll be damned!" Guile crossed his arms while catching Logan off guard.
"Déjà vu! What are you doing here? Let me guess you are together with that girl, aren't you?" Logan put his cell phone down went inside to supervise Balrog's escort.
"If it weren't for me and Cammy this suite wouldn't have gotten to Balrog." Guile proclaimed angrily.
"Calm down, so you apprehended the terrorist?" Ken asked, and Guile nodded.
"And who are you?" Guile asked.
"I am Ken Masters." Ken replied.
"Thee Ken Masters? You are one the wealthiest men alive." Guile continued.
"What are you doing here?" He looked at Ken bewildered.
"I am searching for Chun-Li."
"Welcome to the club." Guile added.
"You must be Guile, Barrac mentioned you earlier. You were sent to Barcelona to aid Chun-Li in her investigation on Vega Fabio La Cerda?" Guile looked down on the floor.
"Things didn't go as planned." Ryu spoke for Guile
"And that is why I am here." Cammy surprised them.
"Cammy White. At your service." Cammy saluted and stood beside Guile.
"Cammy has been sent by the English secret service, she has experience in tracking Shadowlaw terrorists." Guile commented.
"You two have been doing a much better job than we have." Ken's praise helped their moral.
"Heh, but it seems that were outsiders as long as the suite is having a say." Guile concluded.
"Not at all! Barrac trusts you Guile. Karenina might be a federal agent, but he still serves underneath Barrac." Ken reasoned. "I'll talk to him personally about this when we get back to Interpol headquarters." They watched as Balrog was dragged aboard the prisoner truck, Guile and Cammy tagged along. While they were driving Logan noticed the new passangers.
"I knew there was something fishy about you two." Cammy smiled to him knowing that he had another side to him.
"Mr. Karenina we would like to aid you in your search for Shadowlaw." Cammy approached him on the subject.
"It's Logan sweety." He gave her a warm smile, which she returned.
"Even if I said no, you would still continue investigating; I might as well put on the team." Logan held out his hand in front of Guile, but he soon found that he wasn't interested in formalities.
"You look like shit lieutenant!" Logan proclaimed.
"Well let's how you will look when you are escaping a bomb explosion, or getting almost run over by a car." Guile fired back.
"Hah! You've done a great service to your country, but this shit storm is far from over. Believe me I know. I've been to many battles myself." Guile looked at him with disbelief. Meanwhile…
- Secret underground Shadowlaw base, Barcelona, 20:36 PM -
Two massive sentry guns were being constructed at the damp entrance, engineers worked overtime to complete what would be an impressive feat. The entire world was against them; their sole survival was in the hands of these machines. M. Bison overlooked the operation while holding a glass of wine in one hand. Sagat stepped forward.
"Balrog has been caught as planned, and is transmitting his beacon." Bison grinned at the news.
"Excellent, and what about Vega, has he been located?" Sagat shook with his head.
"We are running out of time…" Bison concluded and sat on his chair.
"You know Sagat, this world once used to make sense…" Sagat took a seat.
"Existence is punishment, only we can save this world from further harm…" Sagat nodded in agreement. While Shadowlaw was preparing their bastion underground, above their sanctuary laid Barcelona, still filled with life, but disturbed by the recent events. Meanwhile at the Interpol station the team gathered what information they had, and held a staff meeting. Karenina launched a projector onto a white screen, and established a communication link to New York. They all waited patiently for Barrac to appear on screen.
"Good news sir, we have apprehended Balrog, the fourth most important terrorist in the Shadowlaw ranks." Logan confirmed.
"Good news indeed, has Agent Chun-Li been located?" Barrac looked for answers, but could see even through his computer screen that Logan did not have the answer he wanted.
"Negative sir… But I am certain that we will gather enough information from Balrog. Right now Balrog is being prepared for interrogation." Logan showed a slide of the interrogation room and proceeded to display details concerning the damage that was produced from the bombing incident, and the covert operation.
"As you can see sir, the civilian death toll is rising with 68 percent, and since our operation at Menorca didn't yield much useful information, it is safe to say that Shadowlaw is hiding their assets better than we had expected." Barrac informed them.
"The data sent by agent Chun-Li has been analyzed, and it appears to be a micro chip." Barrac transferred the laboratory images of the chip to the team.
"This resembles the chip that Shadowlaw used before." Guile remarked.
"That is absolutely true Lieutenant." Barrac confirmed.
"But this chip is smaller, and much easier to conceal. In fact it is undetectable by any sensors whatsoever. The manufacturing process has also gone from 90 nm to a staggering 32 nm. Which means the chip can last twice as long on its fuel cell, and be much smaller than the previous generation. Our scientists have concluded that this new chip is 55% smaller than the old models." Barrac began showing a 3d model electronic range of the chip.
"As you can see the chip transmits electric impulses, but they are very minute, yet yield much better efficiency, we know that these chips somehow transmit signals to the brain, thus manipulating the subject's thoughts and actions. A perfect way of controlling human beings, at this time we cannot decipher the signals or understand them, but if do not act quickly Shadowlaw could infiltrate us from within; this is why new precautions will be taken. From now the entire team will move together at all time, and will undergo an evaluation testing their mental awareness, this program will start tomorrow, I have already sent my scientists to aid you in this, stay together and report as soon as you find anything." Barrac signed off, and the team was left speculating.
"Alright everybody stay put, until our scientist staff arrive." Logan ordered. Ken stood up and left the meeting, with Ryu trying to catch up with him.
"Where are you going?" Ryu asked.
"Outside, I can't stand it in here. You coming?" Ken gave him a pat on the back and Ryu accepted his offer. They walked the streets of Barcelona, the air was cool and yet refreshing at the same time. For a period they didn't bother talking to each other, they only observed the marvelous architecture on every corner, some from the gothic ages others Victorian.
"This city brings back old memories doesn't it?" Ryu spoke with a hesitant voice.
"Yes it does, but at a troubling time." Ken acknowledged.
"We'll find her." Ryu stood in front him and they both locked gazes with while smiling, Ken took a look at Ryu's outfit, he was wearing a white t-shirt coupled with his usual jeans and sneakers, he noticed the bracelet on his left wrist, it was Rinko's good luck charm, he had never seen him take it off.
"You haven't changed one bit Ryu. You are still the good-hearted and honorable Ryu I knew from the very beginning. You give me strength old friend." They locked fists while displaying their fondness for one another. Suddenly Ryu noticed a poster behind Ken.
"Impossible!" As Ken turned around he recognized the figure portrayed on the poster, it was the Asian action prodigy himself, Fei Long. The movie was titled: "Enter the Power!" - Ken and Ryu chuckled a bit before realizing that the movie held its premiere in Barcelona that same night, they quickly called a cab.
- Comedia, Paseo de Gracia, Barcelona, 21:45 –-
Ken and Ryu arrived at the scene, journalists and cameras were already present, and celebrities were walking down the red carpet, one of them was Fei Long who wore a black tux and answered all reporters' questions about his upcoming sequel which was already in the works. As Fei Long was about to enter the movie theater he spotted a blond man waving to him in the distance. Long waited for the press and the other actors to proceed to the entrance before approaching.
"Ken?" Fei Long approached him and immediately gave him a friendly hug.
"It's been years!" He continued.
"Long! How's it going?" He turned around and met Ryu who he was equally delighted to see.
"Guys, it's so great to see you, come on in let's watch my new movie." Fei Long insisted.
"I am sorry old buddy, but we have bad news." Ken explained.
"She is missing? How could this be? She is like a sister to me." Fei Long started walking in circles.
"Believe us we feel the same way." Ryu said leaned up against a wall, Fei Long continued.
"Master Dorai would have expected us to honor his spirit and protect his daughter from any harm, guys I'm in!" Fei Long clinched his fists in determination.
"But wait, if you want to help us, use your influence to make the public aware of Shadowlaw and the kidnap." Ken handed him a picture of Chun-Li.
"I will be participating in a TV show tomorrow; I will inform the public about this crisis at hand." Fei Along put the picture in his pocket.
"This will mix things up, and might just buy us more time." Ken concluded.
"But shouldn't we follow Logan's orders?" Ryu asked.
"We will, but this might pressure Shadowlaw into revealing themselves and their motives." Ryu nodded in agreement. The friends parted ways, Ken and Ryu headed back to the Interpol station while Fei Long returned to the premiere.
- Unknown mansion at the outskirts of Barcelona, 23:01 PM -
Chun-Li looked out the window, she could hear the waves that thrashed into the cliffs not far from the mansion, and she knew that Vega's hideout was near the ocean but she did not have specific coordinates to verify its exact location. She sat on the bed and thought for a moment, Vega's word repeated themselves; "You are free to leave my love…" She could flee, but something else was holding back. She had read most of the documents written by Dr. Raul Julia Salgado, yet the macabre details within these pages had not surprised her. She took out the hefty book from the nightstand and looked through it; she came upon a section that she hadn't read, entitled: "The beauty and the beast".
"I have kept the beast in my facility for over 4 months now, for each day that passes by my anger and frustration grows. I have tried everything in my power to move him to a closed facility, but no one wants to listen, Vega's attorney is the root of this madness. I wonder what he has on his consciousness; no doubt that it is equals to Vega's. They know about this sociopath, countless eye witnesses describe this macabre being, the women he raped and cut to mark his presence have dropped their charges against him. What is it that this man possesses which makes others want to love him? It is true that Vega's bullfighting fame has alleviated him from public humiliation, but this man is not a man, he is an animal a sexually motivated predator, which sees only the flesh. I can see him loathing me from the distance, from the corner of his eyes when he sees me pass by he does his best to demoralize me. I have been forced to fire almost my entire staff; more than eight of my best nurses have succumbed to the beast, I don't know for how longer my own daughter will last. I pleaded her to leave for another job, she as a doctor should know that better and safer opportunities are to be found, she is everything to me, all of her life she has followed in my footsteps, but now she has found interest in Vega. I have seen her relaxed posture, her provocative grin after every session with him. What are they doing? All my attempts to install surveillance cameras in Vega's living quarters have failed, but maybe there is still some hope. I believe that I have found the beast's weakness. A young beautiful Asian girl seems to be his Achilles heel. I have found several pictures of her and even paintings painted by the beast himself. If I can divert his attention to focus solely on his obsession with this girl I might just save my own child."
Chun-Li suddenly stopped reading; footsteps could be heard outside of her room.
On the next exciting episode of Street Fighter II – Deep Core Crisis! Logan and his team are preparing their next move all while Shadowlaw is planning another attack! Will Chun-Li confront Vega and his demons? Stay tuned for the next episode! – Dancing Lessons – (Training to become Cinderella)
GONNA BURN SOME MUSCLE!