Chapter 14: The Huntress and her Prey

Morrigan Aensland had experienced many odd phenomena in her life. She was the reigning queen of the Makai, a demon realm found in a separate dimension with connections to many different worlds. Amid the mass who lived and fought within its borders werewerewolfs, merman, catgirls, vampires, bee monsters, and countless other races who battled each other for dominance day in and day out. She had been to the Majigen, a world of insanity that birthed gods; she had been on the doom train that had heralded the souls of the damned to hell. She had fought against little girls who wore red, loved money, and were the cruelest beings Morrigan had ever known. Still, even after all she had experienced and went through she had never once felt this feeling, a feeling that both excited her and filled her with unbelievable amounts of dread. Standing at the highest peak of the castle in which she lived, her stiletto heels barely fitting on the tiny amount of space available on the peak of the highest tower, she looked up at the yellow moon with curious eyes.

"Should I or shouldn't I" she whispered to herself, it was difficult to make a decision whether or not to explore this. On one hand, hell yeah she should explore this; Morrigan Aensland lived for this sort of thing. Makai was so boring and being almost immortal forced her to starve off boredom by grabbing any sort of adventure she could. On the other hand she was the queen and thus had a duty to her people, a duty she had a history of neglecting thanks to her love of fun. It was ever politically turbulent in Makai, the noble houses were always looking for some kind of reason to dethrone Morrigan. Since force could never work with the succubus, her long streak of flawless victories as evidence to her remarkable battle prowess, the ruling houses could try a coup of some kind if they found out she had disappeared for a while to play in the human world. She had also promised her father, the last king of Makai, to do her best to be a good ruler but he had so much patience when it came to dealing with boredom, unlike her. Amid her thoughts she didn't notice an interloper until they cried out to her "Hey, Your Highness!" Looking down she spotted one of her subjects waving one comically large arm up at her perch, it was the jiangshi Hsien-Ko. While Morrigan didn't really have "friends" per say she did have acquaintances and one of her closest ones besides her sister Lilith was Hsien-Ko. The zombie was quite strong and had participated in many of the wars that had ravaged Makai in order to learn of ways to save her human mother's soul which had been claimed by the darkness.

Leaning coquettishly from her perch Morrigan peered down at her fellow warrior "What is it" she asked. Using her lanky arms the jiangshi effortlessly clambered up to the closest tower to Morrigan which was a few feet away from where she was standing. "The nobles are looking for you again" she informed her queen "They're pestering everyone to help them in the hunt, I'm, surprised I was the first to find you. What are you doing up here?" Not that it would have been inconceivable to be standing her for no reason, the moonlight illuminated the wastelands that surrounded the castle offering a picturesque gothic view of the landscape. "Don't you feel it" Morrigan asked returning her gaze to the moon "The wind is bloated with it." Furrowing her eyebrows Hsien-Ko looked about "I don't really sense anything out of the ordinary, you Highness" she stated before a second voice chided her "Here Sis, let me help you. I swear, you can be so oblivious to these sorts of things." Above Hsien-Ko a ghost appeared, it was her sister Mei-Ling who formed an important portion of their jiangshi body.

Mei-Ling disappeared while the talisman on Hsien-Ko's hat began to glow with a golden height "I still don't see what you two are-oh….wow, how could I have missed that? It's freaking huge" The jiangshi's eyes also began to stare up into space "So; I guess you'll be taking an extended vacation then?" "It's…not that simple" Morrigan replied frowning which got a look of mild bewilderment from Hsien-Ko "What do you mean it's not that simple? I haven't known you for that long but even I know that our esteemed leader is going to be stepping out into the human world without so much as a toodle-loo. It's just what you do." Morrigan smirked "Well, believe it or not I am trying to be a good girl for once in my life. I don't want the nobles to try and take over while I'm out having fun." Hsien-Ko sighed and waved her hand dismissively "Even if they did try something as bone headed as that you'd just kick them out when you returned. It's not like the wars in Makai are going to intensify even more if you decided to go gallavanting about the human world." Morrigan sighed and shivered a bit which traveled up her entire body "Don't tempt me like that Hsien-Ko, just the thought of breaking out of this place is giving me goosebumps. I'm really trying to do the right thing here." Those were hollow words though; she could feel the fire in her veins tingling at the thought of fun that would await her if she decided to ditch all of this for a while.

"If it makes you feel any better your Highness, we sisters can watch over Makai while you're away" Mei-Ling suggested reappearing behind her sister "If anything comes up we'll come and get you. Just leave the portal to the human world open and be sure to have a good time." Morrigan hesitated for a split second before shaking her head at her behavior; restraint would never be one of her strong suits. "I'll bring you back a souvenir or something" the queen of Makai said as she spread her bat wings out in preparation for flight "Watch carefully, I'll show you where the portal is." With a jump she flipped into the air and began to dive off the side of the castle, her wings stretched out to help her control her velocity. About a mile down from her position an inky black and violet vortex opened its maw briefly allowing the succubus inside before it imploded shut with no more than a whoosh. Above them Hsien-Ko shook her head "Sheesh, couldn't you have placed it within easier reach? We don't have wings you know."

The feeling of weightlessness was brief as was the dizzying effect Morrigan felt as she watched the walls ebb in flow in an electric blue light before the portal opened on the opposite side. Gracefully she landed on a tree branch in Central Park while her eyes blinked rapidly as they adjusted from the sudden transition from moonlight to sunlight. 'It's as I suspected' she thought stroking the air with one of her hands 'The energy is quite palpable here. This is much more dangerous than I thought, some of the higher beings are out to play and it seems like I've just crashed their game board.' Gazing about she noted several humans walking through the park trying to stave off the summer heat using the frozen treats that were being sold along the sidewalk. Tapping her chin Morrigan pondered the situation at hand 'If I were a cosmic being mucking around with mortal lives where would I hang out?' Bouncing up and down on the branch she hopped into the air taking flight above the canopy of trees. Careful to keep hidden from human eyes she began to scan the area 'There should be some kind of portal or dimensional crack or…or…oh my.' Inevitably she spotted something that caught her attention, something that looked very familiar. In a secluded glen of the park a man in a white outfit was punching the air practicing his martial arts techniques.

Grinning wolfishly Morrigan quickly alighted on a nearby branch overlooking the man; this particular human had managed to gain her interest awhile back. "Hello Ryu, it's been some time hasn't it" she greeted from her perch. "Huh" Ryu said looking around the glen for whoever was talking to him. "Up here you big stud" she called out crossing her arms so her boobs became more prominent. The man looked up and spied Morrigan "Oh, it's you Ms….uh…um" sighing the queen of Makai shook her head "It's Morrigan, Morrigan Aensland" The man nodded "Ah, right, I'm sorry about that . How are you doing today?" With a flip she jumped off the branch and landed right next to Ryu, a coy smile on her lips "Much better now that you're here" she said while wrapping her arm around his waist "Having you here makes me feel much more secure." He quirked an eyebrow "Ms. Morrigan, you're stronger than me. I doubt you need a bodyguard." Ryu replied looking confused which only made Morrigan's smile widen "You flatter me, but even then it's nice to know you're still around."

"I…suppose" Ryu said still unsure about exactly what was going on "So, um, what brought you here to the human world?" Internally Morrigan debated with herself if she should talk about the cosmic forces that were waging war in this world, it would be good for Ryu to know this beforehand so he could be prepared for coming hazards. Then again now that she was here she would make sure to put a stop to their activities, while she wasn't a protector of the mortal plane by a long shot she did hold a fondness for it and would hate it if something came along and destroyed humankind. "Boredom, really" she said doling out a half truth "Makai gets so stuffy at times I want to scream. The human world is so fascinating which is why I just can't seem to stay away for very long. There seems to be so many…distractions here." Slowly the index finger of her left hand wormed its way under his karate outfit massaging the muscular chest underneath. "Ahhh, I,I see" Ryu replied clearly caught off guard by her touching "Plan to enter any tournaments like the last time?" "Oh, I don't know. Performing in front of so many people at one time can feel so impersonal. I was thinking of something with a much smaller audience." The finger began to descend down Ryu's chest slowly, the edge if his shirt was pushed off to the side revealing more and more of his amazing body.

"I was thinking about some kind of venue that's a bit more private, exclusive really" she breathed into his ear as her finger trailed the ridges of his well defined six pack "Something really intimate where one can really let it all out and come away deeply satisfied by the encounter." Her finger hooked the hem of his pants and slowly began to pull downward but before Morrigan could so much as yank them down an inch Ryu wiggled out of her grasp. "So,so…um, would you like to spar" he asked as a small blush graced his cheeks while he pulled his pants back up and wrapped his shirt back around his body "I'm, n-not in your league but, um, I'm always looking to improve." 'Damn if he isn't cute' Morrigan thought, mused at his antics before she checked herself. "She really couldn't afford to get distracted with Ryu for two very important reasons. One, she was on a mission to find out what the hell was going on in the human world. She could feel a massive amount of energy saturating the very air of this plane meaning that whatever forces were rubbing elbows here were about to do something big and possibly devastating. She didn't have the energy or time to invest with playing hank panky with anyone, even someone as sexy as Ryu. On that note, reason number two was the fact that she was a succubus and her modus operandi, which was written into her very being, was to have sex with men and convert them into her bat followers. A few centuries ago she had been young and naïve, mortal women called this phase their party girl days, she had no hesitations on pursuing her sexual conquests. It was inevitable, after the big climax men would come under her glamour and serve her forever in eternal bliss as one of her retinue. Age had given her a modicum of restraint and empathy for the men who shed their mortal shells to be with her for eternity which fueled her reason to switch her interests from sex to fighting in order to alleviate boredom and to feast on the energies she so enjoyed.

Taking a breath she tried to calm the excitement exploding in her veins "Alright, I'm up for a little one-on-one, so what do you wager?" she asked crossing her arms. "Wager" Ryu repeated in confusion "Can't we just spar?" Morrigan bent over slighty "Oh, come on Ryu. Don't you want to sweeten the pot just a little? It'll be more interesting that way." Ryu shrugged nonchalantly "I don't see the point but if you really want to then I guess it can't hurt." "Ok, then, what do you bet" Morrigan asked with a devious smile "What does your opponent get if they win?" Ryu, who had previously gotten in his battle stance for the upcoming spar, took a step back "What do I bet? Well, to be honest I don't really have anything you'd be interested in" The karate master glanced over at his duffel bag which contained his few worldly possessions, nothing the queen of Makai would be interested in. "I disagree but for the sake of ease why don't we bet anything" Morrigan replied cutting right to the chase "If you lose then your opponent gets to take anything from you." Naturally this little statement, innocuous on its own, was loaded with sexual torque coming from Morrigan's mouth sending a massive shiver up Ryu's spine "I suppose" he conceded with hesitation but before he could get in one more word in edgewise Morrigan readied her stance. "In the interest if keeping this fair and fun I won't use any of my powers" she assured him "Ready when you are."

His turbulent thoughts and emotions were mercifully shut off as Ryu's mind entered battle mode. There was not room for anything else but you and your opponent, only amateurs got distracted by wandering thoughts during the heat of battle. Taking a meditative breath Ryu hunkered down into his stance for a second before rushing toward his opponent. He feinted a shoulder charge before sliding into dive that knocked her flat onto her face. Jumping up he pivoted and tried to finish the battle with a heel drop to her back but the sole of his foot met bare ground as his opponent rolled away. Rallying her resolve Morrigan pushed off the ground with her hands flipping around Ryu's back allowing her force him onto the defensive. Her hands swiped the air, rending it with her nails, as she tried to find purchase on his skin. Shuffling back he kept his arms in front of him allowing them to get lacerated with some shallow cuts but preventing him from performing some sort of reversal. Taking advantage of his inability to return any blows Morrigan grabbed him by the arm and supplexed him. With a small giggle she stood above him, stomping on his prone chest "Get serious" she chided him.

Grunting he took a particularly nasty blow to chest but forced his way onto his feet grabbing Morrigan's calf along the way. He tossed her away giving him some much needed to space to regain his breath. Morrigan on the other hand used one hand to recover from her free fall using the momentum to back slip onto her feet, completely uninjured from the toss. "Don't hold back because I'm a woman." Her jab was baseless, Ryu had learned the hard way how foolish it was to factor in gender when fighting your opponent, courtesy of his friend Chun Li. The first time they had fought, Ryu had consciously held back, he had only fought men before facing the Chinese Interpol agent and his gentle nature had erroneously judged that going all out on a woman would be rude. Chun had taken this attitude badly and the next thing Ryu remembered was waking up from the sound thrashing Chun had subjected him to. The relationship between the two of them had been frosty until Ryu had learned his lesson and beaten Chun Li in a fair contest between the two of them with both opponents using all of their strength. The outcome had been a tally of wounds for the both of them; some memorable ones had been a busted shoulder for Ryu which still occasionally twinged every now and then, a few lost teeth for Chun that had required extensive dental work to repair plus matching black eyes for both of them. Still the lesson Ryu one was an invaluable one, gender has no place in the ring, in addition to breaking the ice with Chun Li, who had become one of his dearest friends.

Stepping closer, the pair feinted for a bit before Ryu managed to pivot around Morrigan and send her sprawling with a jab to the back. Switching their previous positions it was the succubus who was on the backstep as Ryu continued to alternate blows from her head to her midsection. After a few more body blows he used a palm strike to open her guard before launching into one of his signature moves, Tatsumaki Senpukyaku. Morrigan went bouncing back across the ground while Ryu took another deep breath opting not to chase, he knew she was ready with a counter attack upon standing back up. Undaunted by the beating she had just received Morrigan picked herself up with a smile; her lip had been cut during the barrage causing her to wipe her face. "That's more like it" she commented "I hate it when men want to be soft and caring; it saps the fun out of everything. I much prefer it to be rough and angry." Jumping up she grabbed a branch above her head and used it to fling herself up into the air where she spun about at an incredible velocity. Ryu barely dodged her bicycle kick but left himself open to her tackle which sent them sprawling onto the ground. The karate master took several punches to the face as he struggled to get her off of him; her blows came too fast and furious to allow him to use his arms to toss her away.

Borrowing one of his best friends' moves he tucked his legs, binding Morrigan with his knees before rolling backwards and using both feet to kick her off of him. She flipped about in midair landing on her feet without being damaged but the follow up haymaker sent her to her knees. "Are you done" Ryu asked watching her struggle to regain her breath. "Trust me, I'm just getting started" Morrigan assured him before getting back up "My stamina is legendary you know." The pair gave themselves some room before beginning again, Ryu flung a Hadouken at her, hoping to force her jump into his Shoryuken but the succubus had other ideas. Swaying back she let the projectile glance off her side and without flinching she dashed forward into a series of kicks. Ryu jumped over her initial low one before ducking under the cross up when she chained it with a high kick. He blocked the mid one launched at his waist but when he sent her spinning in place she used the momentum to launch a kick from his blind side which caught him unaware. As he staggered back she stepped in and grabbed his shoulder in order to spin him like atop. At a precise second she stopped him with his back toward her allowing Morrigan to smack him in the neck with a karate chop sending him onto the ground unconscious. "Looks like I win" she commented to herself using a burst of Makai energy to heal her wounds.

"My, my, so prone, so…vulnerable" she commented as she bent down to examine the sleeping warrior "A pity I can't stand it when they lie there like a sack of potatoes, I'd be all over this one in an instant." Realizing she was going to keep herself entertained until Ryu awoke Morrigan looked around the glen for something to do. A nondescript white duffel bag caught her eye piquing her interest. Ryu was rootless; he wandered from one continent to the next looking for powerful opponents for him to improve his skills against. It was an infuriatingly manly romantic concept, one that made Morrigan reassess her opinion on molesting the unconscious. The moment passed without her changing her opinion on the matter while a new idea implanted itself inside her head, one that gave her goosebumps. 'I wonder what's in that ratty old duffel 'she pondered as she stared at the thing 'I wonder if it's something naughty? Girlie magazines perhaps, or maybe some adult toys?" Her giddiness soured into disappointment as she drew the contents out of the bag 'Underwear, underwear, underwear' she thought nonplussed as she laid the clean white boxers onto the grass 'All clean as well, someone took mother's advice to heart.'

A few hours later Ryu roused himself from his stupor grimacing at the nasty neck ache that sent pain slamming up and down his spine. Slowly getting up into a sitting position he looked around curiously, where had Morrigan gone off to? The answer soon came to him as the queen of Makai strolled out of the brush with some provisions in her hand. "Good morning" she greeted him s she jaunted over to him "I'm sorry that you were out for so long, I always forget how fragile humans are" Any hurt feelings evaporated as she handed Ryu the food she had procured for him, fast food that had probably been bought from one of the food vendors that rimmed the park. It was hardly the healthy stuff he was used to dining on but he had not eaten for a while so he accepted it without reservation. After gobbling it all down he waited patiently for her to finish before he quizzed her on what had happened while he was out. "Oh, this, that, and something else" Morrigan replied vaguely with a whimsical smile "But I won't bore you with the details, how is your food?" "Adequate" he remarked standing up "Where did you get it? I can't imagine that you just walked up to the vendor and paid for it." Morrigan quirked her head "Oh, and why not, isn't that how you mortals do such things?"Ryu bit his tongue as his next statement nearly leapt from his lips, had she really walked up to a poor soul wearing those clothes? "Well, in actuality I didn't pay for these. I stole them from the vendor but he had so many I doubt he would really care if he knew." She confessed finishing the last bite of food "I have a question for you by the way."

Standing up she crossed her arm and gazed at him critically "Do you remember where you woke up this morning?" "That's an odd question" Ryu remarked furrowing his eyebrows "I think it's back this way, I didn't wander away very far before you showed up." "Can you take me to it" Morrigan asked "It's very important." Shrugging Ryu gestured to her to follow her and after some bush whacking they emerged at a small pool of water with waterfall feeding into it. It was a very peaceful place for the ignorant but for Morrigan she found herself wincing at the amount of power concentrated in this place. Pursing her lips she swiped her hand through the air causing small ripples of energy to bounce around the area in front of them. "What the hell" Ryu said watching as Morrigan walked about adding more and more energy ripples "What the hell are you doing?" "It will be easier to show then tell" Morrigan replied "All I need to do is find the weakest point in the dimensional barrier and…aha!" Triumphantly she thrust a hand forward; the ripples she had been creating had found a spot where they disappeared for a second as they were consumed by the Void. Her hand entered this spot which Morrigan popped open by using her nails as a lock pick. The hole gave a clanking sound, similar to how a lock sounds when opened by a key, before widening a considerable amount. It was like a scar on the ensuing space, a hole big enough for a man as large as Ryu to walk through without his shoulders having to touch the adjacent walls of reality. "We got lucky" Morrigan commented as she flitted closer to the Void "You arrived here recently so the dimensions haven't shifted back to normal. I wouldn't have had the power to break it open myself through brute force."

"Where does it lead" Ryu asked edging closer to the space-tie anomaly only for Morrigan to grab him by the collar of his gi and force him back. "Who knows" she said "But what I do know for certain is that something very powerful lies beyond it and wherever it's nesting is no place for mortals like you to tread." She stepped forward, ready to join whatever party was brewing behind the curtain, but a giant hand landed on her shoulder. "I want to come too" Ryu pleaded looking grimly at the tear "My whole life has been about finding tougher and tougher opponents to fight. This will be the perfect test of my abilities to date." Morrigan gave a slightly condescending smile "This isn't some blood tournament against men who have slaughtered children for a negligible boost of power. Whoever these cosmic beings are they've managed to create a massive board with many pieces. Such effort wouldn't have been used if there wasn't something at stake here, something precious. I highly doubt they'll roll out the tea and cake when we crash their party."

Realizing that Morrigan was being serious Ryu's mind raced to find some sort of logic he could use against her. He didn't understand half of what she had said, boards and beings or something like that, but he knew that he wanted to tag along. Sadly he had never been great coming up with quick solutions so he faulted to the old standby, using his body language, Typically this resulted in fist fights which would translate into the feelings he wanted to convey to his opponent, Chun was always rolling her eyes whenever he explained this way of communication commenting it was such a caveman way to talk. Unfortunately for Ryu he couldn't default completely to his modus operandi because there was no time to spar with Morrigan before she disappeared into the Void entirely so he winged it. Unconsciously his body recognized a pattern and instead of grabbing her shoulder or hand Ryu wrapped his arms around her waist gathering the queen of Makai up against his muscle bound chest. Blushing like crazy Ryu fumbled with his words for a bit before settling on a soft "Please". Unseen by his eyes Morrigan had a matching blush, something that surprised her more than the fact Ryu had suddenly broken his single minded focus on improving his karate to try and sweet talk her into letting him come with her into the Void.

"My, my Ryu" she commented trying to recover her smug confidence "I really like this new side of you." With a spin she wriggled her away around so she could face him, her lips lightly brushed up against his bushy cheek. "There are three conditions if you want to come along with me" she whispered into his ear causing a mysterious shiver to hammer down his spine "First condition, you'll stay by my side at all times" To demonstrate her point she grabbed Ryu's waist and somehow managed to bring her closer to him despite the fact they were already in a bear hug. "Similar to this, the second condition is that when I tell you to get out of there you're going to run like a 100 Shin Akumas are on your six." Morrigan couldn't help but smirk a little "Having second thoughts?" "No" he replied, the refusal was not only evident in his voice but also his eyes which burned into her with such unshakable resolve she could feel her face an her blood heat up again. Forcing herself to cool down Morrigan leaned in so her lips were mere inches away from his earlobes "The third condition is that you pay me for ferrying you across the dimension, not to mention babysitting you while we're there." Ryu drew his back so he could face her again "I'm sorry Ms. Morrigan but I don't have any money to pay you."

Morrigan smiled widely "It's not money I'm interested in, I take alternate forms of payment, and luckily for you I see something in you possession that I will take in exchange for my services." Before Ryu could even get an word in edgewise she squirmed her way out of his grip with such a speed and ease that he might as well have been trying to grasp the wind. The only thing that notified him of her escape was the lusty feeling of flesh flowing through his fingers for a brief instant as well as the rustle of cloth in the wind. Morrigan stood before him in the blink of an eye with a smirk on her face; she was bent coquettishly with one hand raised with the top half of Ryu's gi hanging from it. Realizing she had stripped him Ryu reflexively covered his massive chest with a powerful blush blooming from his face to his navel and most likely a bit farther south than that. "Could, could you give that back please" he asked which only made Morrigan chuckle "I suppose but the only thing I'll take in exchange is the bottom half, or you could skip following me in there, your choice really." Ryu didn't even have to debate with himself for a second, calmly he let down his arms, revealing his chest which was bulging with row after row of perfectly sculpted muscle, and nodded "Let's go then." Morrigan paused only for a second to place the gi on before saddling up to Ryu "Very well then, remember to stay close to me and hold on as tight as you can. By the way, I consider your payment to also cover that bet you lost. I'm feeling generous today." Her hand snaked down to his thigh and she pulled him close to her making Ryu blush but before he could pull away she pulled him into the dimensional tear.

Heading through the Void was a crazy sensation, all five of Ryu's senses were assaulted by every possible sensation he had experienced and a few that were completely alien to him. The only constant amid this ocean of chaos was the feeling of Morrigan's hand on his thigh, actually it had inched over a bit sometime after they had entered the hole, and it was more like she was grabbing his ass. Both hours and an instant passed simultaneously before the pair exited into the opposite side, neither had suffered any serious ill effects of traveling between the dimensions. While Morrigan was alert and scanning the place they had emerged with paranoid vigil Ryu was bent over trying to cross his breath, the strain of travel had gotten to his mortal body which never should have experienced such a thing, still aware that Morrigan's hand was firmly planted on his ass. Yet despite the amount of time that had passed, several minutes at least, he was unable to catch his breath leaving him as exhausted as before. "What…gives" he asked as he continued to heave for breath "It's an effect of this space" Morrigan explained "We need to get moving, it won't be long now that they'll notice our breaking and entering." Helping him straighten back up, she placed one of his arms over her shoulder and the pair began to walk deeper and deeper into the space. Idly Ryu looked around; it sure wasn't what he expected when he pictured a space within a dimensional tear. They were currently traveling down a hallway; the end of it contained the dimensional tear they had entered through and the other end emptied out into a dead end lobby.

The walls were crafted of pure white marble that gleamed with an uncomfortable sheen from the ambient light that had no source. The only decorations were small blocks of marble that lined the corridor that had ornate roses carved on their surfaces. The lobby emulated the hallway with its materials and accessories save a small spiral staircase that rose up so far into the air that Ryu couldn't see where it stopped. While he was gazing around the room he began to feel…strange. Not the frentic strange he felt around Morrigan, whose hand had still not left his ass or the dangerous strange he felt whenever he was around people with murderous intent like Bison or Akuma. The longer he stared at the walls the more disoriented Ryu felt, it was as if the walls were ebbing and flowing like water. Sometimes it felt like the room was as wide as the ocean and in the blink of an eye the walls had drawn in within few inches of where he stood giving him a bout of claustrophobia. Sensing his disorientation Morrigan hoisted herself in front of the karate master "Focus on me for a bit Ryu" she instructed him "Physic doesn't exist in this plane so the mortal mind can easily get overwhelmed by this space." He nodded weakly before taking some deep breaths, absentmindedly he noted that merely walking down the wall had exhausted him enough to cause sheen of sweat to coat his entire body.

Once he had regained his bearings the pair began to hike up the stairs at a slow and steady pace, Ryu had to be careful to maintain his strength since he wouldn't be able to recover it in this weird place. As they climbed he did his best to keep his gaze rooted firmly on the stairs themselves, they seemed pretty safe to look at and getting vertigo now could be lethal with the railing being only waist high. Morrigan had taken her hand off his ass for the time being, not out of any sense of respect for his personal space but because the stairs were too narrow for more than one person to ascend them at a time. Instead she led the way with one hand on the railing and one hand clasping Ryu's. "Why is this place here" he asked "Does it have some connection with why I fell asleep in Africa and ended up in America?" Morrigan nodded "Believe it or not you've been transported to another world." "This isn't the first time its happened" Ryu admitted scratching the back of his head "But you make it sound like I was transported here on purpose." "You were" Morrigan said "There are two beings with unbelievable powers playing a game and you've been selected as one of the pawns." "Why me?""Why not you? You're strong and skilled; you're a great choice to be a piece in this game. But you may not have been chosen specifically, they might have simply picked the pawns at random." Morrigan said "This is merely speculation of course but I'll be getting answers soon enough." Ryu nodded in agreement "Right, let's stop them" but instead of agreeing Morrigan grabbed his chin and forced him to look up at her.

"Hate to break it to you stud but I'm planning on joining the game, not breaking it up." Morrigan said with a smirk before letting go of his chin and continuing her trek up the stairs. "Why would you do that?" Ryu asked her frowning "These people are playing with the lives of others and you want to join them in their twisted game?" Undaunted by his disapproval Morrigan shrugged "Fun is fun is Ryu and if there is one thing I love it's fun. So maybe a dozen or so mortal lives are extinguished because of this game, a small sacrifice to assure my entertainment and trust me when I say that avoiding boredom is worth any sacrifice." Ryu would have argued vehemently with this but then the world decided to spaz for a second before the stairs disappeared leading into a huge space in the span of about a second. Surprised by the sudden special swap Ryu back stepped out of reflex only to return to the stairwell they had climbed with his foot dangling precariously off the top of the stairs. He was about to take a tumble backwards which most likely would have sent him smacking up against the small railing sending him off the stairwell entirely plummeting to his doom. Luckily Morrigan had meant it when she said she would babysit him, in a flash she materialized at the top of the stairs and pulled him right when his potential energy became kinetic energy sending them both back into the giant arena.

"Glad you paid me now, aren't you" Morrigan asked rubbing the top half of the gi "Stick closer to me, ok?" He half expected her to grab his ass again but she chose to examine the new area they were in instead, the scenery had changed from blandly spectacular to mind blowingly out-of-this-world, literally. They were standing on a platform that seemed to extend for miles; it was made of the same kind of shiny white marble the corridor and stairs had been crafted of. Above them lay the sky where countless stars could be glimpsed as they passed by at an amazing speed; constellations formed and dispersed, white and blue giants formed from the vacuum of space aging into red giants which decayed into supernovas that began to cycle again by birthing more stars. It took a slap from Morrigan to wake Ryu out of his stupor "Don't get lost in it" she warned him in a dangerously low tone "You might not be able to get back if you get wrapped up in the splendor." "How is this possible" he asked trying his best to stop his mind from racing "Who could possibly be able to do this?" "Like I said, these beings are godlike. This is basic decor for anyone with even a smidge of omnipotent power."

The queen of Makai smirked as she spotted the only other feature left on this plane, a giant door at the very end of the arena. She began to quickly make her way over, Ryu followed behind her cautious of whatever else this immaterial space hid within its scenic depths. The door was grotesquely beautiful in a way that transcended mortal art, it too was white like marble but instead of stone it had been crafted from skeletons. Adoringly they gazed into each other's eyes, like if they were sharing some sort of great honor that had been bestowed upon them all, while their bodies were twisted at odd angles in order to form the door. Hands grasped hands, bony fingers interlocking like the branches of a birch. Feet tangled themselves about bodies; toes poked their way into random spaces such as ribs or eye sockets and mouths. With ghoulish grins they pressed their faces close to each other so their beautiful ivory cheek caressed beautiful ivory cheek as a few select ones stared down at the interlopers with empty eyes filled with immaterial mirth. "Worshippers" Morrigan commented as she surveyed the door with nonchalance "Their lifetime of faithfulness was rewarded by becoming building materials for their gods."

Morrigan strolled up to the door with one hand raised "Knock, knock" she said "Let's see what's behind door number one." Before her hand could hit the door the queen of Makai looked up sharply "Shit" before flipping backwards as a shower of lightning blasted the floor where she had been kicking up a sheet of opaque dust. With a huff she landed next to Ryu "Should known there'd be a bouncer." The bouncer descended from above, heralded by streaks of light, looking like anything but a bouncer. It was an angel, tall and graceful, with beautiful white wings that barely flapped as she landed from her flight in front of the door protectively. With piercing gold eyes she glared at Morrigan "Vile creature, how dare you profane the land of gods. You were not summoned into this world, you shall return from whence you came or suffer the consequences." Snorting in amusement Morrigan swiped a hand in front of her dismissively "Crashing parties is what I do. You aren't the first bouncer to try and keep me away and you won't be the first to send me away with my tail between my legs." Turning her gaze away from the queen of Makai the angel studied Ryu instead "A mortal? Why dost thou follow such a monster? Return to the world and continue to serve the gods who have summoned thou here. Mayhap if you make haste I will stay my hand permitting you to live to fight another morrow."

Shaking his head Ryu settled into his stance "No thanks, I carve my own path with these hands that have faced mighty foes before. I've faced cowards before, cowards who have manipulated lives on order to further their own ends and if these are the kinds of people your gods are then I'll put an end to their scheming." Sighing the angel shook her head in disappointment "Poor, unfortunate soul, the mortal mind is unable to comprehend the differences in power between us. If you wish to stand and fight me then you will be judged all the same." Lifting her hand she grasped a strand of sunlight which materialized into a staff with an ornate head "Last chance mortal, run back and serve in bliss or die here. As for you, demon, you will be expunged from the board." "Oh, I don't think so" Morrigan replied stretching her wings in anticipation "Though I do have to ask, would you happen to have sort of male counterpart or something. Fighting women is so boring, men are much more exciting." The angel shook her head "You face Marietta: The Gatekeeper. You shall not pass into the land of the gods!" Prepared to throw down Ryu took a step forward but Morrigan thrust a hand in front of him "Nice try but if there was one thing that winged bitch got right it was the fact she's got you beat in terms of power. Be a good boy and wait over there for a bit, this will only take a second." Frowning Ryu grabbed her wrist "I've never backed down from a fight and I never will." Rolling her eyes Morrigan turned her head towards Marietta "I don't know about you but it's been a long time since I've gone all out. Since there aren't any hot men to take your place in this fight is going to be a drag otherwise. Mind showing me a little mercy and keep the mortal out of this fight? I can't fight at full power while worrying about ruining my shoes if I step on him by accident."

Marietta shrugged "Consider this my last act of mercy" she slammed her staff onto the ground while Morrigan pushed Ryu back a few feet. "I'll make it up to you" she promised him as a giant gilded cage enveloped him "Be a good boy and wait for me here." He shot her a betrayed look "Let me out, Morrigan" but she ignored him to focus on her winged foe. "Whenever you're ready" she said leaning back into a casual battle pose "Do try to make this interesting." Sweeping her staff Marietta summoned balls of holy light that flew at Morrigan at blistering speeds ready to reduce her to little more than a malevolent pile of ash. Not wanting to get pinned down the demon queen took into the air, her wings transforming into her signature rockets to give her a boost of power, dodging the bullets with quick flips and twists. In between volleys Morrigan transformed her wings into salvos which shot a barrage of missiles at the angel. Marietta didn't even flinch as the ballistics impacted around her, when the smoke cleared the gleam of a transparent blue force field could be seen for the blink of an eye before it disappeared. "Cheating" Morrigan said crossing her arms "You're just set on letting this battle drag on and on aren't you?"

"My entire existence is based entirely on guarding this door" Marietta stated "If you're going to stand before me and fight then you will do so knowing thine life is forfeit should you lose." "Alright, alright, stop having fun guys. I get it." Morrigan replied pouting "This is why I hate fighting girls; they don't get the concept of a fun fight. It's all life or death fight club style." As if to prove her point the angel suddenly raised her staff above her head while her wings stretched out to the zenith of their span "Heavenly light take flight through the air as my wings" she chanted as her wings began to glow "Angel Feathers!" Enough feathers to fill one hundred beds molted off Marietta's wings, hung in the air for a second before blasting forward at unbelievable an unbelievable velocity. Morrigan didn't even bat an eyelash, the feathers were merely a cover, and as she raised her wings to deflect the attack she placed both her hands onto the floor and channeled the power of Makai. In the midst of the storm Marietta swooped close knowing perfectly well that her opponent couldn't see her. Whirling her staff about her body she easily spied Morrigan's dark clothes being barraged by the white feathers and curved to the right allowing her to smash her opponent in the head. The joke was on her though; the staff phased completely her opponent's body impacting the floor with a loud crack. "What in the name of the gods" she whispered as the feather storm cleared revealing the demon was nowhere in sight. A nasty kick slammed into her back, the sharp stilettos Morrigan perpetually wore slashed the skin leaving lacerations in their midst. "I see that shield is far from perfect" Morrigan remarked as she pushed her opponent to the ground then proceeded to stomp on her adding some stab wounds to the lacerations "Want to give up now?"

"You'll have to kill me to stop" Marietta replied swatting Morrigan away with her staff before escaping into the air. Blasting off in pursuit the queen of Makai summoned several of her bat entourage to aid her in aerial combat. Arcing through the sky Marietta swiped her staff through the air sending ribbons of light in an effort to drive off her pursuers, a couple of the ribbons were able to tag the bats disintegrating them immediately. Corralling together in a tight formation Morrigan began to twist in the air with the bats spiraling beside her allowing her to send out a truly massive beam of energy that overwhelmed her opponent. For a second Ryu was certain the angel's shield hadn't been able to cover her in time but his hopes were dashed when a flash of vivid blue could be easily seen from within the midnight black that swallowed the air. Fluttering back towards Morrigan the angel slammed her staff into the demon sending her to the ground. With a grunt Morrigan got back up just in time to see the rest of her bat retinue get finished off with short swipes. "I'm sorry" she whispered to them as their souls that she had claimed for her own disappeared from her glamour into the icy blackness of death "This is personal now you winged bitch."

Hovering in the air Marietta glared down at her opponent with utter contempt "Crying over the souls you dragged into hell with your sexual traps? Are you having fun yet?" Instead of replying Morrigan coolly placed her hands down on the floor which was so shiny Ryu could see his reflection in it. Pushing off she summoned another mirror image that stood next to her, completely indistinguishable from the original save for a patch of transparency that roved across the image's body in a random pattern. From previous fights with the queen of Makai Ryu knew that even if the image looked fake it could hit as hard as the original and Morrigan often summoned it to allow her to flank her opponent. With a smirk the pair launched into the air flying serpentine to avoid the bolts of lightning the angel summoned. Undaunted by the death striking the air about them Morrigan gave last barrel roll which swung perpendicular to her the way her clone was heading before engaging in melee. 'Let's see if my hunch is right' she thought wryly as she launched a kick at her opponent's chest with her heels that had turned into a pair of wicked looking blades. Her attack clanged uselessly against the staff but her doppelganger struck gold as it slashed at the angel's unprotected back. Grimacing Marietta tried to smash the demon away only to have the strike parried again and again by a smug Morrigan.

"It's a pity all your power lies in range, you're making this too easy" the demon queen remarked as she once again kicked the staff away but her confidence was dented as her mirror image piped up "She might have noodle arms but damn if she doesn't have thick skin." Despite the fact her heel blades could routinely slice through steel the kicks she had been launching at Marietta had bounce off her skin save for a few shallow cuts that bled white ichors. "Someone's been eating their Wheaties" she remarked "Or is this your force field at work?" Instead of replying Marietta let her guard down taking several strikes to the face which failed to so much as jar a single flake of skin loose before using the opening to pump Morrigan full of heavenly lightning. The pair fell to the ground, the image vanished the moment it impacted the floor but Morrigan left a small crater from which a few tendrils of smoke from her charred body wafted out. Deciding that there was no kill like overkill the angel blanketed the area several times with more lightning bolts to insure that her demonic counterpart would not be rising anytime soon.

"Ms. Morrigan" Ryu shouted pounding the bars with his fists; he hated it when he was forced to witness some great injustice while he stood their helpless from the sidelines. Satisfied she had nuked the unholy shit out of her opponent the angel began to descend on outstretched wings with a look that could freeze the oceans. "You have been, weighed, measured, and found wanting" she announced as her bare feet touched the floor "Look upon this body, mortal, and know what it means to defy the gods." But Marietta had proclaimed her victory too soon and paid a steep price for her arrogance, a horde of winged blackness shot out from the smoke with the horrible clatter of shrieks. The darkness circled the defenseless angel who shrieked as it tore at her body in a rabid frenzy. It took Ryu a while before he could identify what the black crowd was; it was a full troop of Morrigan's bat that assaulted her with nasty bites that drew blood. Every now and then the demon queen materialized within the bat horde to launch nasty swipes at Marietta's face. Relentless to the end Morrigan only saw fit to stop her attack when her opponent sank to the ground unconsciously. Giving her one last nasty kick the demon queen sauntered over to the gild cage that Ryu was trapped in and picked the lock with one for fingernails.

"That was so boring" Morrigan groused "I hope the gods who employed her are not as incompetent as their guard dog or there will be hell to pay." Ryu had no sympathy for his succubus companion choosing to resolutely loo away from her with an angry frown plastered on his face. Sensing his ire at her choice to lock him up Morrigan turned on the charm "Don't be mad, stud. I know you wanted to fight and all but a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do." A devious little smirk cut its way onto her face and with small jump she latched onto his bare chest, her arms around his back while burying her face into his muscular pecs. Taken aback Ryu backpedaled a bit with a blush beginning to bloom on his face "What are you.." He was too conflicted to put together anything that could have resembled a complete sentence, he wasn't sure if it was her that was inciting this feeling within in his gut but something akin with the passion he felt whenever facing down a powerful foe began to grind through his veins, something that seemed exhilarating and a bit forbidden at the same time. Coyly Morrigan extracted her face from his chest, where she had been enjoying the scent o0f his skin, and looked up at him with the best bedroom eyes in the entire world "How can I make it up to you? If you stop being mad at me I'll consider the fact that I kept you from the fight to be something of a debt, a pretty big one considering how powerful she was. I'm going to have to pay you back in a big way, aren't?" She leaned in till her lips were a mere inch away from his trembling ones "I'll give you whatever you want" she whispered to him in a sultry voice.

Ryu was too busy dealing with foreign new feelings to notice the faint shaft of light that had fallen upon Marietta's body. Likewise Morrigan was too busy trying to seduce the karate master to pay attention to anything else save for a brief flash of power which stopped her advances cold. 'That power…what in Makai was that?' Decades of experience took the form of unconscious action as the succubus pushed the object of her affection to the floor before pivoting on her foot with her wings raised to block the attack.

O gatekeeper

of the sanctified realm...

Retribution awaits

those who defile thy home."-Words of the high seraph Flauvel, The First Guardian of the gates of heaven

Despite her guard the flood of holy lightning filled the entire space leaving only Morrigan's weak shadow as the only spot where the cleansing light did not reach. Curled up within its safety was Ryu who couldn't move, his eyes were overwhelmed by the intensity that flowed around him like a raging river. He wasn't sure how long the attack lasted but when the holiness faded from the surrounding the first thing that filled his vision was Morrigan who stood there unflinching. Had her last minute guard spared her from the devastation? Concern turned to worry as Morrigan collapsed to the side revealing horrid three degree wounds that had grafted themselves onto her body. Her clothing was gone but instead of nubile flesh Ryu was subject to a horribly malformed corpse that was the shade of old charcoal briquette from top to bottom. The body gave off tons of smoke but the smell of cooking flesh did not waft into the air at all despite the condition of the corpse. Stunned, Ryu fought for a while in order to find his voice "Morrigan" he whispered, his voice barely more than a whisper. The question shook him out of his stupor and the karate master crawled over beside the former remains of the demon queen "Morrigan" he screamed, desperate to do something to help her but he was afraid that if he touched her body it would crumble into ash.

In the midst of his hysteria the angel landed back on the ground and walked over beside him "Now do you understand the fate of those who defy heaven?" she asked nonchalantly, her body showing no signs of the damage Morrigan had inflicted before "Despair at your folly or blame the gods; that seems to be a recurrent action among your kind." Raising her staff above her head Marietta prepared herself to execute Ryu "Now that I am merciful, dost thou have any last confessions of sin before thou art expunged from this world forever. I shall listen to thy trespasses and you shall leave knowing that your soul's burden had been lifted a mite." Silently Ryu clenched his fists, words would never be his strong suit, and yet the two perfect words for this situation leapt from his lips. "Fuck you" he snarled as he launched an attack from his position crouched by Morrigan's side "Shoryuken!" His flaming fist contacted with Marietta's chin, for the rest of his life Ryu would always consider this Shroyuken to be the best one he had ever thrown. Yet despite the power behind it the angel's chin didn't budge, not even an inch. She simply glared at him through the fire that coated his knuckles until it died before peaking to him. "Such is the mark of a man" she sighed before launching a puny lightning bolt from her staff. Even though it was weak by Marietta's standards it was more than enough to send a simple mortal like Ryu onto the ground screaming for dear life. Convulsing madly he twisted and turned about to somehow escape the pain, a pain that did not dull the senses after a time but was as sharp and painful as it had been when it first touched his skin.

While he rolled about like a worm Marietta couldn't help but comment "Your heart is surprisingly pure. There is very little violence or lust hiding within its depths." Even while she commented about it a small but steady strand of darkness began to filter out of Ryu's body. "But I see you have been tempted by the forces of darkness and conceded to their destructive contract. The potential to use the Satsui no Hadou burns in your veins, it is only the spiritual purity that you have devoted your life to that has kept its will at bay for so long." Suddenly she looked up as if to heed someone who had called her name "Very well Master, I exist to do your bidding" she said after a few moments. Relinquishing her attack she knelt down next to Ryu and gripped him by the hair "Dost thou want to walk out of here alive" she asked as she forced his face up so she could see his tear streaked face "All that is required is thine permission, permission to unlock the chains that bind thine heart." Unable to comprehend her words through the pain Ryu simply looked at her cluelessly as his pupils dilated in preparation to faint.

Shaking him Marietta asked again "Dost thou relinquish thine restriction to me or shall I finish the judgment?" Somewhere in the back of his mind Ryu was able to reason that the pain would stop if he shook his head, he complied at once. Satisfied that this was conscious consent the angel placed him back on the ground and turned him over so his chest was facing up to the sky. Placing the butt of her staff slightly left of his breastbone where underneath his heart pumped tirelessly.
As light and darkness are different sides of the same coin so too are they potential keys to unlocking the potential for good and evil inside a man's heart. Using a wash of light Marietta remembered the words of her master "The closer you get to the light, the longer your shadow grows." This principle lay dormant within any being capable of both sin and salvation, Ryu's heart was no exception. The tiny stream of darkness that had emanated from his heart began to ebb in an increasingly aggressive way. The darkness slowly began to make its way down Ryu's skin tainting it with an ashen black pigment. Once he was covered from tip to toe in the darkness Marietta eased off of him noting the faint sound of children laughing in her ears. Her work done she waved her staff over Ryu's body healing the wounds she had inflicted and locking away the darkness till a time when it suited her master's purpose to unleash it from its dormant state.

The karate master came to a bit later, his mind was blank save for the feeling that he needed to return to the world from which he had entered this place. He took several steps towards the stairs before a pair of thoughts interfered with the need to flee. First he looked around till he saw Morrigan's body; it had been left where she had been smote earlier. Carefully he gathered up what remained of her in his arms, the heat from the Angelic Thunder attack was still searing hot but he ignored the pain. Secondly he looked around for the angel who attacked him; he came up with nothing which made him feel slightly more relaxed than he had before. With a deliberately slow pace he began to descend the stairs to avoid jostling the corpse of the queen of Makai. His head disappeared for several moments before the door Morrigan had wanted to enter groaned as one of the occupants' stuck their heads out to scope the area. "What the hell are you doing" Player Two asked gruffly, annoyed at the delay in their game "Are you gonna finish your turn or what?" "Give me a second" Player One barked back "Forgive me if I thought I heard something out here. It could have been that bastard." "It's clearly not so you best not jinx us" Player Two responded which caused Player One to role his eyes "A little caution never hurt anyone." Happy that it hadn't been that overpowered player the god returned to his game unaware that Marietta had floated back down the minute he had left so she could continue to guard her post in front of the door.

Meanwhile Ryu stepped out of the portal, the previous vertigo he had felt during the first crossing failed to distract his numb mind. The dimensional tear closed without so much as a sound leaving the karate master and the corpse alone in the small glen with the tiny waterfall. Setting the body down on the green grass Ryu sat next to it with his legs crossed. Behind him the sun had begun to set, much time had passed while they had traversed the world where the gods played their games. Glumly Ryu stared at the corpse, for some reason his entire mind had shut down to avoid being overwhelmed from the rage he felt toward the being who had struck her down. Potential, it was the word that Ryu felt best grasped the feelings that were threatening to explode inside his gut. The loss of potential, the potential for what he wasn't sure, most likely it was the loss of Morrigan as a sparring partner. And yet it wasn't the sparring match he had with her earlier that continued to replay in his mind, it was when she had hugged him in apology for excluding him from the fight against Marietta. The way she clung to him allowing her body to mold onto his like a second skin, the way her nails had felt as they lightly trailed their way down his spine in the direction of his pants, the feeling of her tongue licking his nipple as she buried her face into his chest, it made no sense whatsoever that he was thinking about this and why he had gotten so enraged at her passing but he couldn't deny the veracity of these emotions.

He was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he didn't notice the miniscule rising of her chest till a small, almost inaudible, moan waft from her lips. Startled Ryu realized that Morrigan had not yet kicked the bucket despite her charred appearance and yet even within this small spot of hope he began to despair once again. Where the hell could he take her to get treated for her wounds, if they were even treatable, and would she be able to handle him picking her up and transporting her to the nearest hospital? Panicking Ryu began to lightly punch a tree, his version of a stress ball, when it suddenly came to him. His master had told him how one could use the chi inside their body for minute healing purposes. Practitioners of chi healing who devoted their lives to the art could cure first degree burns or fix an erratic heartbeat with a single touch. Sadly Ryu had never studied this technique; it took too much time away from his martial studies for a benefit that was too small to use effectively in combat. But he was out of options for now; even though he had a higher reserve of chi than most folks Ryu doubted that his roughshod try might do more good than harm he decided that doing something would always be better than sitting around helplessly. Placing one index finger on the middle of her chest and one on her head Ryu began to channel chi as best he could. His experience with chi usage was spectacular, his Hadouken was proof of the experience he had with drawing optimal amounts in lightning fast time he had to constantly monitor the amount he was pumping into Morrigan. Too much and it would turn it into a destructive force which would harm her while too little wouldn't be the least bit effective.

For a while nothing happened, Ryu just grunted as he applied the chi into Morrigan which did not rouse her in the slightest. As his body began to sweat from the humidity of the evening coupled with the concentration he was exerting, one particularly fat droplet rolled off his brow and snaked its way down his face, through the forest of bristly stubble that had accumulated over the course of yesterday and today, and down his neck. Its path continued down his chest where it zigzagged through the lines of muscles which were well defined as they strained with the efforts of the body before the droplet before circling past the navel and into his pubic hair. Unbeknownst to Ryu the hem of his pants had been slowly lowering during his trek down from the door, the white material was just barely preventing Ryu from exposing himself to the world. While he was unaware of how low they had wriggled down he suddenly became intensely aware of the sweat drop which had entered the untrimmed forest of his pubic hair, oozed its way through bringing forth an electric feeling which intensified as it shimmied down his long shaft before humping the head before dropping onto the crotch of his low hanging pants.

This jolt of lust, rarely felt before by the battle focused warrior, was the catalyst he needed to help Morrigan out. Unable to drain the emotions of duty that bound his heart the chi that was being pushed into her chest was as impotent as hell. With the lust acting as a much needed key to make the chi absorbable by the succubus which she drank greedily. With a sharp exhale Ryu felt a sudden tug as his chi began to flow rapidly out of him, with a small smile he realized his roughshod method was working against all odds. His brief spit of relief turned to curiosity when he realized the volume of the chi being drained from his system along with the speed by which she was snatching it from him. A few minutes later Ryu was fighting to keep his chi levels up, the sweat of his brow began to intensify as his concentration peaked. Yet even while he fought to keep steady in the back of his mind something was screaming at him to cut the connection, a voice he heeded as best he could. Horrifyingly he found that he could not pull away from Morrigan, somehow the succubus had managed to place him under a glamour strong enough to mentally paralyze him in place.

Chi was a very important force in the human body, for practitioners it was considered corporeal energy in direct contrast to the celestial energy that was exuded by the soul. Most humans would never tap into this energy in their life times and as such they would never run the risk of overspending their chi. One of the first things any budding martial arts practitioner learned was how to tell when their chi was at its limit, often before they learned to harness the energy at all. Ryu's body was approaching chi exhaustion at the speed of a bullet train and the effect could be seen on his body. His chest heaved with powerful gasps as he pulled in as much oxygen as he could into his lungs. His muscles tensed to their maximum while the new wave of sweat that had washed over him thanks to the strain covered him in a shiny sheen, his nipples in particular had adopted a much rosier color. Unconsciously he began to moan with each breath as his eyebrows furrowed in concentration. "C'mon Morrigan" he pleaded "You…you…gotta stop, I can't t-t-take-!" His heartbeat quickened as the drain kicked into overdrive, the area where his hands were situated began to glow white as the chi was sucked into Morrigan. "Ah..ah.."Ryu groaned as he felt the last vestiges of his chi begin to slip through his finger

"No…no...Ah, ah, ah ,ah…Oh Morrigan" he cried out as both the last drops of chi flowed into Morrigan while the erection he had been unconsciously nursing the entire time he had been tending to Morrigan suddenly erupted into a geyser of liquid white which splashed back onto his head since the hem of his pants was pressed tight up against it. Stunned into silence Ryu's mind was reduced into a pleasant feeling void as the warrior collapsed onto his stomach. While he faded into unconsciousness the charred body that had been Morrigan lay next to him, despite the energy drain it had inflicted on Ryu its color had not faded at all. A few hours passed allowing the moon to prematurely climb into the sky; it was a full moon that glimmered strongly even though the sun had not yet faded past the horizon. Underneath its rays the bloated, ashen black body began to shake, a butterfly was beginning to emerge from its corpse cocoon. Flecks of burnt skin began to crumble around the right hand of the former succubus until a large enough crack formed to allow one to glimpse at the bone white skin that lay hidden beneath. Pulsing with life the hand shook of what it had once been comprised off until it could lift its arm up unto the moonlight. The perfectly manicured fingers flexed experimentally before reaching down and breaking off the shapeless mask that had previously been the face. Morrigan lay underneath the ash, a satisfied smile plastered on her face.