Karl Bock looked around himself at the students passing in the bitterly cold afternoon. The sensible ones were dressed for the weather. The rest, mostly young women, just had to make a fashion statement. Heels and open toes were not the order of the day. Shaking his head at such foolishness, like a sensible German NCO, even if he had been frocked as an officer, Karl was wearing several layers with a knit cap, long water repellent overcoat and water proof boots as the last barrier against the sub-freezing temperatures.
The history textbook he was holding had been bought second hand at the off-campus used bookstore. It was the same textbook his contact had been carrying earlier. Bock had spotted his contact entering the history building with his blond teammate. After their history class, the two would part going to different classes for the rest of the afternoon. According to the schedules hacked from the school computers, the other members of Team Possible were tied up at other functions while Sagara had his lunch break.
While he was slightly older than the average freshman, the history class was one of those core classes that had more than a few Juniors and even some Seniors bouncing around in the room. Seeing Sagara and Stoppable exit the building, he watched as they headed in opposite directions. Since he was sure Sagara was going to the Student Union, he paralleled instead of following him and approached the door at about the same time.
Holding the text in plain sight he said, "Sousuke Sagara, my I talk vith you."
While the expression was neutral, the question and tone was suspicious. "Do I know you?"
"Not personally, und vhile never on opposite sides, ve have crossed paths professionally. Ve are in a very public place, und while I could be carrying any number of veapons under my coat, as you can plainly see, it is securely closed. I suggest ve get our lunch, zhe largest cups of coffee zhey have und eat out on zhe patio. In zhe sun, out of zhe vind, in plain sight of everyone in zhe cafeteria und since ve vould be on zhe other side of zhe glass, outside of eavesdroppers."
"You apparently want to have a secure, yet private conversation. Very well. I will meet you there in a few moments. Right after I collect my lunch."
Once the two of them sat down, they started eating. Sagara asked, "You said professionally. When?"
"Vhat is zhe most important factor on zhe battlefield, Mr Sagara?"
"Information. If you lose the information battle, then you can't win the war."
"Correct. Und I have a great deal of information, Mr. Sagara. I know a great deal about you. You have been in Combat many times, unlike zhe rest of zhose children in zhere." Bock pointed to the cafeteria. "Und I already know zhe answer to zhis quesvtion. Have you ever been forced to do something on zhe Battlefield you didn't vant to do?"
"As you say, you already know the answer. Your accent is Germanic, but not likely to be Swiss or Dutch. What do you want of me, Mr...?"
"My name is Karl, first name only please."
"A security precaution. I approve of those. Without the last name it would be much harder to find you. I noticed you put the wrapper from you sandwich in your pocket. I suspect you will take your coffee cup with you. To prevent leaving a DNA sample?
Vade Lode has a reputation. Rather not make it eazier for him. May I reach unto my pocket?"
"Carefully."
"Of course." Bock pulled out a device the size of a pack of cigarettes. "Very powerful, short range jammer. Doesn't last very long zhough, battery issues. I don't need you calling zhe rest of your Team. Some of zhem can be rather tense on certain issues."
"Issues, such as?"
"Vhat happened un Senior's Island." Sousuke's eyes suddenly looked like the turrets that were once mounted on the IJN Yamato. At 18.1 inches, the largest naval rifles ever put to sea and all business. Completely flat.
Bock continued, "Is information vorth more zhan your emotions?"
"Talk."
"To prove to you I know vhat happened, near zhe end, zhe Senor's man held us off vith an M60. He varped zhe barrel. Senior himself was armed vith an Americian Thompson. Ve laid zhe both of zhem out und covered zhem with zhe Spanish Flag. It might interest you to know, zhat both I und my Commanding Offizer attended Senior's funeral."
"Why would you do that?" Sousuke's voice was a flat as his eyes.
"In 1918, who buried Manfred von Richthofen?"
"The Allies."
"Just so, he vas an enemy, but he vas respected. I'm sure you understand?"
Bock figured the curt nod was the best he was going to get.
"Mr. Sagara, vhat is zhe greatest threat to zhe free vorld? Forget zhe communists, sooner or later, zhey are doomed by zheir own policies. Vhat is zhe greatest threat?"
"Radical Islamics."
"Vhat would you say if I told you, zhey vere assembling a self-guided, self-motivating, completely undetectable von hundred kilo gram bomb. Und zhat zheir supply is only limited by production issues."
"I would ask you to explain and where you got your data."
Bock pointed to the text, receiving a nod, he carefully pulled it closer. He gently fanned the pages, then held it up. "As you can see, unless I have been very careful vith an antidote, I have not contaminated zhis vith a toxin. Inside is a memory card. It contains everything ve know or suspect to date. To be brief, you have read zhe mission logs of Team Possible?"
"Not in detail."
"Do you remember Synthodrone nine-oh-von or Erik as it vas called?" Getting a nod, "Zhey have discovered a vay to turn zhem unto binary bombs."
Karl was treated to a sight not many have ever seen. A look of horror on the face of Sousuke Sagara.
"Zhey valk und talk, look und sound human, right up until zhey meet zheir mission objectives. Zhen, Boom! Imagine vhat von hundred kilos of PETN vould do inside zhat room right now. Zhey could valk right unto zhe dormitory und no von vould know. Boom."
Karl looked at the young NCO and said, "Is zhat not vorth setting aside zhe issue of Senior Island, at least for zhe time being?"
"I'm not going to be able to make it to my next class. I need to make a call."
Karl flipped a tiny switch on the side of the jammer.
Insert Break
After Bock explained the Synthodrone threat in detail, he went on to tell Sagara something else.
"Zhere is something else. Sometimes zhose on top issue bad orders, orders zhat zhe rank and file might not like or agree vith. Vhen zhat happens, vhat's a junior Soldier to do?"
"Improvise."
"In a small flat in zhe city, von of your Teammates greatest enemy's vill be vaking up soon. One zhey have not seen for a vhile. He is a total madman. I vanted to blow his head off, but my orders vere clear. My overall mission vas to get him here. But I do not like zhe orders, zhey are wrong, for a number of reasons. For my own security, zhat is all I can tell you."
"I understand."
When he awoke, his mouth felt as if it was stuffed with cotton and his vision was fuzzy. He could feel the aftereffects of some kind of sedatives. He sat up to found himself in a serviceable, slightly rundown flat. He looked down to see puncture marks on the veins at the inside of his elbow.
Groaning and holding his head, he tried to figure out where he was and what had happened. The last thing he remembered was his feet and hands turning to stone as the Yono drew the life out of him after that humiliating defeat at the hands of a toddler. Horrific images flashed through his mind of his time as a statue.
Tortures of the Yono.
His loyal minions at the behest of Amy Hall digging him up.
Her inane simpering and cooing that was almost worse than the Yono.
Gunfire flashing.
Living Cuddlebuddies being torn apart by small arms fire.
A dark room.
The Yono again.
Then...
Here.
The first coherent question was, "Where am I?"
On the table beside the bed was a note.
The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Or at least my ally
We have freed you from your captivity for our own purposes.
That doesn't mean they are not YOUR's as well.
You are in the home town of Ronald Stoppable.
Stoppable has been a hindrance to us as much as he was to you.
You will find food, clothing, services and the quarters more than adequate for short term residence. Even a laptop and internet.
We suggest you research the target before you make your move. Things are not as you might remember them.
Do as you will.
The note was written in a blocky scrawl to prevent handwriting analysis
The Pretender. He growled. He stood shakily and made his way to the bathroom. Seeing himself in the mirror was a bit of a shock at first. Before he had been a man with simian-like features. Now he looked like Nero from the movie 'World of the Monkeys'. A Simian with man-like features. Laughing exposed his even more pronounced canines.
"I think I can work with this!"
He drank some water to get rid of the cotton-mouth left behind but what ever drugs were left in his system. Moving around and stretching a bit it felt like he had only been laid up a day or so. He figured within a day, two a most, he would be back even better than he was before.
"Just you wait, Pretender. First I'm going to take the Han from you. Then your parents. After that, the Cheerleader. And then, then you will fall, making me the True Monkey Master."
Sousuke called a team meeting immediately upon returning to base. The news was not taken well. Ron in particular was not amused.
"What do you mean that was all he could tell you? Which one of our enemy's was he talking about."
Since it was a more long term problem Sousuke had decided to put off explaining about the Synthodrone threat in favor of the more immediate one.
"When you have a well placed agent in an enemy hierarchy, you don't threaten them needlessly. To do so would risk not only losing the information, but possibly costing them their lives. More than likely, if we resolve this situation too swiftly or easily, it would point a finger right back at Karl. I do know he did not want to do it. He openly stated that he would have terminated the threat if his orders didn't force him to do otherwise.
"Our clues are this: the target is male, a total madman, he has been absent and one of" your greatest enemy's. That should help us narrow it down."
Kim said, "OK, that leaves out all the women, Shego, Camille Leon, Adriana Lynn and all the rest." While she was talking Wade was using a huge virtual screen with names of all their enemies. Removing them as they were discarded.
"The B-listers can go, Francis Lurman, Jackie Oates, hell, pull Hank Perkins off."
The three original team members kept pulling names off until they were down to a select few.
Ron quipped "Motor Ed might have been missing a couple a plugs in the block, but he was never a total madman. I think until the Nazi sitch is finished, we can safely forget about him."
Looking over the list, Kim said, "Same thing with Drakken. And Dementor is still in Germany."
"Monkey Fist!"
"But he's a statue."
"Is he. Last we heard anything of him, DNAmy had been hauling his statue around and she was killed back at Fiske Manor."
Wade jumped in, "Kim he fits the profile. Male, Psychotic and he's been missing."
"HANA! KP, he's gonna go after Hana!"
"Ron, call your 'rents."
Standing near the door Fukushima stopped him. "No! The Han must remain where she is."
Ron couldn't believe what he'd just heard. "That's my sister you're talking about."
"Did you think that when she defeated the Yono that the destiny of the Han was finished? There is much more to her destiny than just that, and if you uproot her now the consequences could be very grave."
"I don't give a damn about consequences or destiny. That's my sister."
"Sensei was right. He's always right. I hate that sometimes. Letting her be raised in the home of your parents ensures that not only will she have a loving family, but she also has you for an Onii-chan, a big brother. The Mystical Monkey Master that would roll over any threat to her like an avalanch. Not because of what she is, The Han, destined to help save the world, but because of who she is, your sister, Hana Stoppable.
"But, you can't put her in a coocoon. To do so would be to do her a disservice later in life when she needs to know danger."
The ninja continued, "There's something else you have to realize. I'm not saying to just toss her at Fiske. But when you set a trap, you must use a bait that your quarry wants to bite. This will be our best chance to catch Fiske unprepared. If he realizes that the Han is not there, he could retreat and attack later when he is better prepared and we are not as alert."
Looking the rest of them, he said, "I will guard the Han. The rest of you should search for Fiske. Load-sensei, if I could please get one of your communication devices? Gakusei, please call your parents and let them know I will be arriving soon and will explain the situation to them."
"Look Dude..."
For the very first time, Fukushima used Ron's name, "Stoppable-san, I give you my word of Honor, Fiske will only reach the Han or your parents over my corpse."
The internet is both a wonderful and terrible tool. If one knows how to look, the amount of information one can glean is immense. Especially for a former archaeological professor. Digging for small clues and pulling together coherent data from the small scraps of information was second nature to the man.
After stumbling across the report by the tabloid TV and finding out that Stoppable and Possible had moved out of their parents homes for college, complete with the names of their roommates and the fact they were Japanese, an educated guess that they probably weren't renting and were using the place as a base of operations for Team Possible, you couldn't store a DUKW just anywhere, with a bit of luck and a bit of hacking in to the County Clerks Office database to search for the names of the people living there led to a hit for a small former warehouse listing a 'Sagara Sousuke' as the owner. Knowing Japanese naming conventions, Fiske knew he had the right location.
After spending the less than 5 hours on various rooftops overlooking the site, Fiske had seen all four members of Team Possible there. Smiling to himself, he pulled back to prepare. A quick break-in at a pharmacy was child's play. Another at a sporting goods store was as well. Then it was off to Smarty-Mart. After collecting the items he needed, Fiske returned to the flat to prepare for the next phase.
Stoppable's death wasn't the plan just yet, but he needed the Pretender down for a few hours. Certainly since he had felt the Lotus Blade nearby. The feeling moved with Stoppable, that meant he was carrying it with him. And Fiske knew that he had no chance of taking Stoppable awake, aware and with the Blade in hand. That meant Fiske would have to take him unaware. He was certain that once he had the Blade, not even the Pretender could stop him.
The first part included finding out their class schedules. Cracking the database for the university was harder than the Clerks office, but not impossible. A map of the campus and some research students paper of the pedestrian and vehicle traffic patterns showed several promising sites to take the boy.
In the small kitchen, he took the drugs taken from the pharmacy and carefully measured out what he needed. He had to be careful because he didn't want the boy dead, yet. First he had to suffer. The drugs weren't to knock him unconscious, but to disorient him a bit and paralyze the voluntary muscles, leaving his autonomic reflexes alone. You can't taunt someone when they're knocked out.
A mortar and pestle ground the drugs, a gram scale measured the dosage and tranquilizer darts were the delivery method. Firearms were too conspicuous, a blow gun on the other hand was nearly invisible and more importantly, silent.
The following day, Fiske arrived at the chosen location seconds before the boy was to show. Dressed in khaki pants, oxford shirt and tie, sweater vest, sports coat, a fedora and a muffler to hide most of his face while carrying a battered briefcase, holding a paper and grumbling about the grade, he was the image of an Arts professor. He should have it down, he was one for years.
Right after his History class, the boy had a business statistics class. After that he took his lunch and a comparison of the schedules suggested he would have it with Possible and Chidori and Sagara taking his during the previous hour. The shortest route from History to Statistics led between a pair of dorm buildings. And these would be mostly empty during the day. There would be a few students shuttling around, not many and he would have to take a few risks. The time factor was on his side though. He figured he would need less than 75 seconds to finish the job.
Hit Stoppable with the dart, once he falls approach like a concerned professor, take the Blade and any cellphones or that blasted Kimmunicator and taunt his victim for a moment. If anyone else was close by have them call for help and go get something to help keep the victim warm and prevent shock.
Stoppable appeared right on time. A knit cap and a jacket with no hood left the neck exposed. A quick puff and Ron slapped the side of his neck.
Ron was taking his regular route to his business class. It would probably be as much of a disaster as History had been. His mind just wasn't on his classes. 'Where the hell was Fiske?' Wade had been hammering away trying to find a clue. But since the freak wasn't likely to use a typical lair, that left everything else, from condos and hotels to daily and weekly rooms to rent. Wade could get into the computers of the larger chains and upper class places. As for the lower end of the spectrum, most of those not only didn't use computers, often they didn't even require a real name, just cash. 'Where was he?' It was driving him to a distraction.
He felt a stinging in his neck and thought to himself, 'It's too early for bee's.'
In seconds, he started to crumble to the ground. Just before he hit, a pair of frighteningly strong arms caught him.
A concerned, accented voice called, "Get in there and get some blankets or something, then call 911, Hurry."
Ron felt a surge from the Mystical Monkey Power and the Lotus Blade was ripped from him. Patting on his pockets revealed his Kimmunicator and his cell.
Then the same voice, this time nasty and mocking, "First the Han and your parents, followed by the Cheerleader's family. Then her! They're all going to die. And there's nothing you can do to stop me. Just like the two of you took everything from me, I am going to take everything away from you. Before I kill you, Pretender. Then I will be the True Monkey Master."
A sharp blow to the back of the head sent him into darkness.
In three different classrooms across the campus a four note tone sounded. All three recipients instantly grabbed their stuff and bolted for the door. In recognition of the much more difficult curriculum in college, there was a change of procedure from high school, during classes, Wade wasn't to call anyone unless it was a for real, right now emergency.
Each Kimmunicator screen was split to show the faces of each Team member. Normally in this sitch, there would be four faces. Now there was only three.
Kim was all about the missing face. "Wade where's Ron?"
"He called me a minute ago. Monkey Fist hit him with some sort of paralyzing dart and took he's Kimmunicator, cell and the Lotus Blade. You can meet him at the campus clinic. Hurry, Fist threatened his family and yours Kim."
All three took off running toward the clinic, while Kim asked, "How's Ron?"
"Other than being a bit groggy, He's OK."
"Kaname, Sagara, you guys head over to my rent's house. Keep 'em safe. Wade, I'm heading to the Sloth, have Ron meet me there and we'll go to his rent's."
"On the way Possible. Sagara out."
"We'll get there as soon as we can, Kim!" Then she signed off.
"Ron's on his way Kim, hurry!"
Insert Break
Wade overrode the accept on the Kimmunicator and forced open a connection. "Fukushima! Hey man where are ya?"
"Load-sensei?"
"Fist just ambushed Ron and said he's on his way there."
"Gakusei?"
"Ron's OK. Monkey Fist left him alive because he wanted Ron to suffer first. Ron and Kim are on the way there right now. Say 25, maybe 30 minutes"
"Then it is time to set an ambush of our own."
"Be real careful, Man! Monkey Fist took the Lotus Blade from Ron."
"That is a problem. Never the less, Fiske will not get past me."
Closing the connection, he went to the Stoppables and said, "Go upstairs and lock the door. Stay away from the windows."
Gene asked, "Are you going to be able to stop him?"
"No. But I don't have to. I just have to slow him down. Go."
Fukushima peeked out the windows around the house. It wasn't long before he spotted a nattily dress man approaching the front door.
'Fiske thought he was just going to be able to walk up to the front door did he? We'll see about that!'
Because of the close confines of the entryway, Fukushima didn't draw his weapon. Standing slightly to the side of the door, he waited. And when the door crashed off the hinges, he pounced.
watch?v=9SKFwtgUJHs
One second he's entering the house, the next he was ducking, then flying 15 feet back out into the yard from a kick to the chest. A black and white blur was right behind him when he landed. The blur tucked into a diving roll to shed the momentum. He tumbled to a stop closer the house then Fiske, snow falling as he stood tall, facing Fiske and he had his sheathed swords at his waist. His appearance so surprising, Fiske didn't know what to make of it.
"Fukushima?!" No one could have suprised Fiske more.
The two fighters started to circle each other.
"What are you doing here?"
"The Han is unharmed and she is going to stay that way."
This ain't a song for the broken-hearted
No silent prayer for the faith-departed
I ain't gonna be just a face in the crowd
You're gonna hear my voice
When I shout it out loud
The young man stood in front of the surprised genetic mutate. Instead of the normal shozoku and single sword of the Shinobi, Fukushima dressed in the black hakima and white dogi and carrying the two sword of the Samurai. His face was cold, calm yet his eyes blazed with total fury.
The mad Englishman taunted the young ninja, "Do you really think you have a chance of defeating me, boy?"
Using his right hand, Fukushima drew his Katana and a matching Wakizashi with his left. saying, "I don't have to defeat you. I only have to do one thing, Bakemono!" (Monster)
It's my life
It's now or never
I ain't gonna live forever
I just want to live while I'm alive
(It's my life)
My heart is like an open highway
Like Frankie said
I did it my way
I just wanna live while I'm alive
It's my life
Fisk laughed, "And what's that, Yoji?" (Toddler)
"A gai... Iye, not gaijin, an American movie said it best. 'You shall not pass'. She is not here, nevertheless the Han shall remain safe from you." Fukushima led with his left side, holding the Wakizashi in his left parallel to the ground in front of him and the Katana in his right, rising vertically with the tsuka at the level of his head.
"You lied to me.", he spat. "You promised me that she would be mine. I love her! Now she wants to spill my life's blood!" The ninja launched a series of strikes designed to drive the madman back and gain fighting room.
This is for the ones who stood their ground
For Tommy and Gina who never backed down
Tomorrow's getting harder make no mistake
Luck ain't even lucky
Got to make your own breaks
"Not only have I lost any affection she might have felt for me, worse I have lost her respect and trust."
Fukushima darted to the side and rebounded of the tree in the yard and launched himself over the madman and parried the Blade with the Wakizashi while trying to land a decapitating strike by the Katana. Fiske barely dodged the strike that would have removed his head. Fukushima tumbled over Fiske and landed in a crouch both weapons at the ready.
"She would protect the Han at the cost of her life, if needed. I will honor her! By doing no less if that's what it takes."
Fukushima never let up. He kept feinting and probing with the Wakizashi while trying to land a killing blow with the Katana, but his face never lost the calm expression it had.
But while he was breathing harder, he never raised his voice. That concerned Fiske.
It's my life
And it's now or never
I ain't gonna live forever
I just want to live while I'm alive
(It's my life)
My heart is like an open highway
Like Frankie said
I did it my way
I just want to live while I'm alive
'Cause it's my life
Blind rage would pass an advantage to Fisk. Cause the ninja to make mistakes. This wasn't blind, unstoppable, Rage. As far as Fiske was concerned, this was much worse. This was that stage beyond Rage where the mind enters Mushin, without thought. That same state of mind had earned more than one man the Medal of Honor, posthumously.
Fukushima was caught in the grip of Tranquil Fury.
Fukushima never lost that serene, tranquil expression. Fiske knew he had to rattle the young warrior.
Bridge
"You're going to die here if you stand in my way. Don't force me to take your life, Boy."
Better stand tall when they're calling you out
Don't bend, don't break, baby, don't back down
"It's my life. And if it costs me my life today to regain, at least, her respect by slowing you down, then so be it!"
Fukushima charged again, deep in Mushin, letting his trained reactions and reflexes guide his body in battle. Parry, thrust, deflect, twirl, slash. It was here on a completely different continent, far away from his homeland that the full flower of all his years of training, discipline, meditation and hardships at Yamanouchi coalesced it to the Warrior standing before Montgomery Fiske.
He was blocking strikes he didn't even see. He could hear the whistling of the Blade as it sliced through the air, the grunts of Fiske, the crunching from where the mutate placed his feet in the snow. And he knew, like you knew that the sun would rise in the morning, he knew he had arrived at the place of his death.
It's my life
And it's now or never
'Cause I ain't gonna live forever
I just want to live while I'm alive
(It's my life)
My heart is like an open highway
Like Frankie said
I did it my way
I just want to live while I'm alive
At this moment, nothing mattered to him. Not Redemption nor Atonement and not even Survival. Nothing mattered, but stopping this Oni from advancing one step further and the vision of silken, ebony hair pulled back by a red band, framing an oval face and eyes of the deepest brown. And the hope that, someday, somehow, maybe those eyes would find the compassion to forgive him for his transgressions.
"Don't you realize it, Boy? You have no chance of defeating me!"
"In that you are correct, Akuma! (Fiend) I can't defeat you, but I can hold you here." He lunged at the dodging monkey man aiming at his over-sized feet and plunged the Wakizashi a foot in to the frozen ground, pulled the Wakizashi and drove forward with the Katana to force his Enemy back. "I can nail your feet to the ground until He arrives."
Until who arrives, Boy? Fiske deflected a flurry of strikes.
"Eraba reta! He's coming."
"The Chosen? And who is this Chosen, this savior of yours?"
"You know him well. And he has defeated you every time."
"The Pretender?! He's your great hope? Hahaha, If he's the one you're waiting on, then nothing can stand in my way now!"
It's my life
And it's now or never
I ain't gonna live forever
I just want to live while I'm alive
(It's my life)
My heart is like an open highway
Like Frankie said
I did it my way
I just want to live while I'm alive
'Cause it's my life!
They were grateful to the Tweebs for the Sloth and its enhanced traction on the slick streets. Kim was driving while Ron was talking to the Chief of Police.
"Look Chief, I know you guys are good, but if you send your guys in there, you'll need a bunch of body-bags. We've got someone there to slow 'em until we can get there, but for Yahweh's sake, keep your men back until we call ya'. But have them and the paramedics standing by"
"I don't like this, Son. I have two cars that can be there in less than a minute."
"Chief, could any of your guys take KP hand-to-hand?"
"No."
"Well this guy can fight me and KP to a standstill, and he's armed. You get close enough to use handguns and he's fast enough to take you down. You would have to use a sniper to get 'em. And not only would that take too long, you wouldn't have any sightlines to draw a bead. Please. Let us handle it. We'll there in, KP, what, fifteen minutes?"
Siren wailing and the light bars flashing bright enough to cause a person to blink, Kim roared through an intersection. Catching the light, she grimiced as she oversteered into a left hand turn. "If the Chief can get the road cleared for us, ten."
"All right, I'll see what I can do."
watch?v=SPv3VJu2PJE
The mistake was infinitesimal, almost microscopic. He struck, bringing the Wakizashi to the left while parrying the Blade with the Katana across to the right and for an instant, less than the blink of an eye, exposed his center.
In that instant, Fiske shifted the Blade into a Naginata and thrust it into the belly of the Warrior facing him. With a sneer on his lips, he said, "I warned you, Yoji."
With a cruel twist, he withdrew the Blade and started to turn back to continue his mission of killing the Han.
Some instinct, maybe from his mutated genes or the MMP that coursed through him, maybe even something leftover from his time with the Yono made him leap and twist to dodge as the Wakizashi whistled through the space he had occupied an instant before and passed beyond him to bury itself literally to the hilt in the side of the house. He looked back.
"We're not finished yet, Akuma!" Fukushima was on a knee, holding his left side to keep his organs in.
Blood flowed over his hand, down his side and leg as he planted the Katana to assist himself up. He shifted the Obi he was wearing to act as a crude bandage. Then he gripped the Katana with both blood-slicked hands.
"What part of 'You shall not pass.' escapes you? I am not dead! I warn you, while I live, turn your back on me at your own peril."
Shriek the lips
Across ragged tongue,
Convulsing together.
Sing violently, Move the jaw
Cry aloud. Bound up the Dead
Triumphantly
"Bollocks! Boy, after I replace that fool of a Headmaster, you could have a place in my counsels. As the new Headmaster, I could easily order the stupid girl to your side."
The instant he said it, Fiske saw the fury in the younger mans eyes and realized he'd made a mistake.
The ragged they come and
The ragged they kill!
You pray so hard on bloody knees.
The ragged they come and
The ragged they kill!
Down in the cool air I can see.
"If I can't have by her own free will, then I DON'T WANT HER!" For the first time, Fukushima vented his full raging Fury with a sudden, screaming charge. Hacking away almost insanely.
Fukushima drove the madman back and back, then back some more. Past the side of the house and into the backyard. On the way past, he retrieved the Wakizashi bringing it back into play.
Hey, Yeah - I'm the one that you wanted
Hey, Yeah - I'm your Superbeast
Hey, Yeah - I'm the one that you wanted
Hey, Yeah - I'm your Superbeast
It was only Fiske's enhanced reflexes that kept his head on his shoulders. He didn't try to block the attacking ninja. The blows were too powerful even for him, so he parried and deflected the strikes instead.
Fukushima wasn't after Glory or even Penance. He was here because it was it was expected of him and it was what She would do.
Blood poured from the stricken side of the enraged ninja, but he never let up. It was taking every bit of the skill etched into his being to counter the shifting of the Blade, but with his paired Katana and Wakizashi, he stopped everything the madman could throw at him.
Stir the limbs across the wrist,
Full possession of memory.
Bury me as a dog,
Icy hands surrounding me.
Every time Fiske tried to duck out of battle past him and towards the house, Fukushima redoubled his assault. He was dying and he knew it. He thought to himself, 'I will drive this demon back into Hell, no matter the cost! For Yori-chan's sake!'
The ragged they come and
The ragged they kill!
You pray so hard on bloody knees.
The ragged they come and
The ragged they kill!
Down in the cool air I can see.
And he tried to do exactly that. He hammered at his enemy driving him back further from the house with every swing. Even with his enhancements, Fiske was at a slight disadvantage because of Fukushima's skill wielding the Wakizashi in tandem with the Katana.
Hey, Yeah - I'm the one that you wanted
Hey, Yeah - I'm your Superbeast
Hey, Yeah - I'm the one that you wanted
Hey, Yeah - I'm your Superbeast
Fukushima had succeded in one of his objectives by driving Fiske into the backyard. The eight foot high privacy fence surrounding the backyard wouldn't stop the monkey man, but if Fiske tried to escape over it, it would slow him down enough that Fukushima would cut him down when he did. Tempered steel clanged against tempered steel as they continued the deadly dance in the snow.
Bridge
Blood dribbled from his Obi as he parried a Naginata. He trapped an English Longsword with both blades. The Katana clanged off of a shield, then the Wakizashi whistled millimeters from Fiske's face
Shriek the lips
Across ragged tongue,
Convulsing together.
Sing violently, Move the jaw
Cry aloud. Bound up the Dead
Triumphantly
In the distance, he heard a squealing of tires. He didn't know who it was but it couldn't be for anything but the battle. He heard the screech of brakes and a pounding of feet into the house with a voice screaming, 'HAAAANAAAA?!"
Crashing into the house, Ron and Kim her Escrima Sticks at the ready met the Stoppables Barbara holding Hana, Dean said, "The backyard!"
The ragged they come and
The ragged they kill!
You pray so hard on bloody knees.
The ragged they come and
The ragged they kill!
Down in the cool air I can see.
Ron thundered through the house and crashed out the recently repaired sliding glass door. Glass exploded and a voice thundered, "FIIIIIIIIISSKE!"
When Ron crashed through the patio doors Fiske leaped backwards 20 feet to give himself space to react to the unexpected threat opening the distance between himself and Fukushima.
The dying Warrior backed off a few steps, released the Wakizashi to grab his wounded side, dropped to a knee, supporting himself with the battered Katana.
He smiled, blood coating his teeth, "I told you all I had to do was hold you here. Now you die." His eyes rolled back and he slowly fell to the side, never letting go of the weapon in his hand.
Hey, Yeah - I'm the one that you wanted
Hey, Yeah - I'm your Superbeast
Hey, Yeah - I'm the one that you wanted
Hey, Yeah - I'm your Superbeast
Ron ran to the side of his Sensei, "Fukushima? Talk to me. Fukushima?"
Ron stood and advanced a bit to put the fallen Warrior safely behind him. "KP?" Holding his position blocking Fiske, he asked, "Are they OK?"
"They are now, Ronnie. Nothing that a few days of Ronshine for Hana can't cure."
Still looking at Fiske, Ron pointed to Fukushima and said, "He's still alive. Call the paramedics." Then he growled, "This won't take me but a minute."
Ron started to slowly advance on Fiske, to put the wounded further behind him and away from Fiske. Ron glared at the lunatic and in a deathly quiet voice he said, "Fiske, you're in front of me now. Hitting me with a trank dart and clubbing me in the back of the head with a sneak attack isn't gonna work this time. And I'm tellin' ya right now, you have two choices, just One Chance. You make the wrong choice and I'm gonna kill you where you stand."
"I have you now, Pretender! DIIIEEEEEE!" Monkey Fist swung the Lotus Blade, arcing it around wide trying to cut Ron in two. But what he still didn't realize was that this was NOT the same Ron Stoppable that he faced every time prevously.
After the years of freak fighting with Kim, months of training, meditation and confidence building with Sagara, endless weeks of Swordsmanship training with Fukushima, almost killing Dementer and his goon squad in a fit of Rage, the outright killing two sentient beings in the defense of Kim Possible and nearly single-handly laying waste to not only an entire WWEE strike force, but the total decimation of an entire terrorist training camp, this Ron Stoppable had taken a couple of levels in Badass and was a completely different person than the one who faced Fist and the Yono back at Yamanouchi nine months ago.
For Kim, it all happened in a instant. But for the two combatants it seemed like slow motion. Fist swung the Blade in a powerful arc. Ron, to Monkey Fist's shock, didn't scream, run away, cower or tremble. He simply stood there and placed his hand in line with the Blades path as if he was trying to block or catch it. What happened next shook Fist to the core of his insane, stony soul.
As the Blade came around, recognizing its true Master, the tip of the Katana morphed, shifting to a Tsuka that matched the one Fist was holding. Ron caught the Tsuka as it slapped into his right hand and spun clockwise inside the arc of Monkey Fists swing, pulling the Blade around in a new arc.
For Fist, the worst part two fold. First was the fact the instant Rons hand grasped the second hilt of the Blade, the end Fist was holding flashed to the razor sharp, chisel tipped, business end of a Katana. The second part the Blade blazed hot enough to sear the skin of his palms a crisped black.
When Ron began his spin, pulling the Blade from Fists hand, he took most of Fists hands with him. Fingers went flying. Unfortunately for Fist, Ron wasnt finished. While he was staring dumbly at where his fingers used to be, Ron reversed his swing, with the Blade perpendicular to the ground, completing the removal of Monkey Fists hands at the wrists.
Arcing the Blade back, it flashed just below knee height. Before Monkey Fist knew what was happening, he found himself falling to the ground because his feet were no longer there.
Ron completed his second stroke, crouching low, arms wide, Lotus Blade on fire behind him in his right hand with his left hand extended in front of him. His face completely blank.
This all happened so fast that Fists heart hadn't had time to beat twice before he was down. It was only the fact the Blade had cauterized his wounds prevented the mutated monkey-man from bleeding out.
When his brain had finally caught up to the fact that he had suddenly and violently lost one of his major defining characteristics, his Monkey hands and feet, he did what anybody would do in that same situation. Lord Montgomery Fiske screamed. Then the pain of the severed limbs and burns registered and his screams redoubled.
When the screams sounded, Ron, still blank faced, twisted the Blade in his hand and started to bring it up in an overhead strike. There was no doubt this was meant to be a killing blow. The Blade clanged against a set of titanium Escrima sticks. It was only the flash of red hair that prevented him from turning the Blade on the person that stopped him from permanently removing a thorn in his side.
They loaded Fukushima and Fiske into a pair of ambulances. A cop rode with Fiske, weapon drawn ready to fire in an instant, if he tried to escape.
"Why'd you stop me, KP?"
She had tears standing in her eyes, "Because of the Lowardians, and North Africa. Seeing you go through that's enough. As bad as those were, at least the bad guys were able to fight back. He was down and helpless. And if you would've killed him... I don't wanna think about what it would've done to you, Ron."
"Thanks."
"No big."