SFU's Fan Fic Archive

� Mama�� His voice quivered, his tearful eyes looked on reluctantly as he shook his mother�s form. She didn�t respond to his action at all; she just lay still, her form lying on her husband with her arms draped around him, as if she was protecting him. The expression on her face was a peaceful one; her eyes were closed as if she was sleeping, experiencing a wonderful dream in the process. Her mouth formed a slight but sweet smile, somehow expressing a happiness that was only known to herself. Her long raven hair covered her face slightly, enhancing the glow of her snow-white skin, her fair complexion con- trasted with the specks of blood.

He moved his gaze towards his father. He saw the face of a fine man, around his mid 30s, a beard adorning his chin as it enhanced his features. Even as he lay un- moving, his father still had an air of greatness surrounding him. His determined expression clearly showed that he had never faltered in whatever he did, even until his demise. He had lived as a warrior, loving father and husband, mentor, friend, leader, and he had died as all of them too. The boy knew he had every reason to be proud of his illustrious sire, but the grief he felt overwhelmed him at that moment.

He touched his father�s cheek, hopeful that he would respond to his touch. But he didn�t.

Breaking into sobs, the boy looked up and faced the clear blue sky. He didn�t know what to do, what to think. He could only do one thing.

His heart-wrenching scream filled the coliseum with his anger. It was the scream that drove him to emerge as one of the world�s most feared individuals.

She quickly dispelled the memory from her mind.

Mature sighed as she looked around, her blue eyes scanning the immense crowd for the person she was looking for. She knew that he was supposed to be here by 12 p.m., but an hour had passed since that time. She cursed him under her breath not with words of malice, but with a slight expression of nuisance, irritated that he wasn�t punctual enough. The thought of having wasted some of her precious time was not agreeable to her, but she kept on waiting for him. Because he was worth it.

As she walked, Mature could see the abundance of shops that lined beside her path. Chocolates, magazines, perfumes, clothes, trinkets; the items were arranged meticulously behind the glass windows that stood beside the entrance of the stores. Definitely things one would always find at an airport which were indeed tempting, even to Mature. Especially the choco- lates.

After a while, Mature decided to take a seat since she was beginning to get tired of walking around aimlessly like an idiot. Spotting a seat not far from her, sauntering over as quick as she can, for an empty seat in crowd is like a glass of water in a hot day; everyone will be aiming for that soon.

She managed to beat her rivals, though, gracefully landing herself on the empty seat with ease. she thought to herself, caressing her slightly sore ankle,< I should�ve waited for a phone call like everyone else>. In her annoyed state she knew that she wouldn�t do that even if her life depended on it. It was important to her to welcome him with her presence, as true friends always do. But not before she boxed his ears first.

She sat patiently, adjusting her navy blue dress occasionally. She noticed that some eyes were watching, most of them belonging to males. That was the norm when one is beautiful, and Mature had got used to them through the years. But to those whose stares were more of lust than admiration she will not hesitate to stare back grimly with her cold eyes that manage to make them divert out of unknown fear.

Mature looked at her wristwatch again and frowned to dis- cover that another fifteen minutes had been added to her wait. She was about to curse again when an arm suddenly covered her neck.

� Did you wait long, luv?�

Mature was actually about to smack the person who surprised her, but his voice had stopped her from doing so. Instead, she turned to look at him with a smile.

� Ryuhyo! You�rogue! Don�t do that; I might have clobbered you!�

� Ah, but you didn�t,� Ryuhyo grinned, kissing her fair cheek lightly,� How are you then?�

With his hold loosening, Mature stood up to face him. He was clothed in a dark green coat over a pale brown shirt and beige pants; he could�ve look like a perfect gentleman if not for his dark unruly hair which he displayed proudly to the world. Beside him was Akshay, his secretary, who dressed casually in a white T-shirt and blue jeans. A black tie hung from his neck, and suspenders kept his jeans in place instead of belts. His light-colored apparel contrasted with his dark skin, successful in invoking a pleasant sight.

� I�m fine, Ryuhyo, and so is Vice. Why were you both so late? I was starting to get a bit worried.�

� Just a flight delay, Mature,� Akshay said,� They couldn�t take off because of heavy rain, if I�m correct.�

� Well, the important thing is that you�re both here,� Mature smiled,� How about we go for some lunch first before we move?�

Ryuhyo nodded slightly in agreement.

� Yes, we should do that,� he said in a voice that had a grim tone to it, � Before we�start.�

Kyo took another big gulp from his can of cola. It was a heavenly feeling for him as she stood beneath the large tree, taking shelter from the afternoon sun that hovered in the German skies mightily. He had just led his team to victory again around half an hour ago, de- feating Kim Kaphwan�s team. It was a narrow victory, for Kim was a formidable opponent, but luck had been smiling upon Kyo all this while, blessing him with winning streaks that boosted his team�s morale in striving to achieve the final victory at the end of the tournament. Kyo could hardly wait for that moment; he was eager to know the answers to the mysteries that led him there in the first place.

Why did Ryuhyo, the enigmatic Orochi, gave him the invitation to the tournament? Why did he chose Kyo, of all people, to attend it again? What was in it for both of them? Will this benefit Kyo or Ryuhyo, or both? He could still remember their exchange of words when they first met, especially the words that caught him off guard;

(You might get your questions answered, such as why that nasty dream of yours have resurfaced again.)

The image of Ryuhyo�s sinister smile appeared in his mind again; how did he know that deep personal secret, something that Kyo had never revealed to anyone at all since that incident that cost his sister�s life. It was something that had plagued him for quite a while, appearing in his dreams constantly since childhood into his adolescence; in other words, it was a never-ending nightmare for him. He couldn�t stop blaming himself for his loss since he was the target of their pursuers. He should�ve done something, maybe even surrendering himself. But he didn�t, and instead hung onto his sister like a coward, too scared to even move. His folly came with a price, and it was a heavy one indeed.

Depression entered his life after that, drowning him in a long bout of sorrow. It was a bleak chapter of his life, where he viewed everything with hopelessness; he couldn�t find joy in things he used to love doing, because most of them involved Mika. He remembered the good times when they both would sit together in their garden, in the park, or anywhere at all, and composed poetry. It was fun to create something toge- ther, co-operating with each other to produce beautiful and meaningful verses of words that touched both of their hearts. Although Kyo�s poetry were more sim- plistic, being mere childish scribbles after all, Mika had never belittled or ridiculed him, because she knew he always tried his best, and encouraged him to do better. How could he go on with his life without her?

But he did, for the wounds of his loss gradually healed in time. By the time he was 16, he had come to grips with what happened in the past and accepted the death peacefully and willingly with the support of his family. He had to go on with his life and strive to better himself and his clan, for he knew it was something Mika would have wanted. And by that time, the nightmares had stopped, blessing him with the tranquility he had longed for.

But as Ryuhyo had said, why had that nasty dream resurface again? And how did he know about that?

Kyo took another gulp of cola, and subsequently crumpled the empty can easily in his palm.

(Whatever that Orochi has planned for me, I�ll be ready and I will prevail. That, I promise you, Mika!)

� One scotch for me.�

� Coming right up. And what about you, Herr Kane ?�

� Huh?� Billy turned to face the bartender, looking at the middle-aged man in puzzlement. Billy�s attention was formerly directed at the beyond the glass window of the void bar, watching the citizens of Munich walking by in the crowded, bustling street. He had been Munich once, but it was a long time ago when he was a young lad, and that was the reason for his fascination in observing everything around him; every- thing was like deja vu.

� What do you want for a drink?� The gruff bartender asked Billy again in his thick German accent, his pepper-white eyebrows twitching as he waited for an answer.

� Urm�a beer will do just fine, mate,� Billy responded, not particular over his choice of drink.

The bartender, satisfied with the answer, quickly went about his way to prepare the beverages. Billy noticed that the medium-sized man limped as he walked, and he wondered what might have caused that. Was he a soldier back in his younger days who got caught in a crossfire? Or did he mess with a local hoodlum boss on an unlucky day? Or did he have an accident while on the road? So many questions can just appear by observation, making even the simplest of things a mystery. Maybe Billy should ask the bartender for the answer�

� Pretty quiet today aren�t you, Billy?�

Billy looked to his left, setting his eyes on the man who sat beside him. He was blonde, his fair hair slicked back neatly. He had clear blue eyes that could penetrate deep into anyone�s soul, their gaze as intimidating as their owner�s personality. With sharp features etched in his face, he was clearly a good-looking man, and his appearance was further dis- tinguished by his choice of apparel in the form of a greyish-blue Armani suit; it clearly showed that he was a man of fine tastes. A man named Geese Howard.

� Guess so, Boss.� Billy grinned sheepishly,� Just looking at how different Munich is since the last time I was here.�

� Things change with time,� Geese said with a slight but noticeable sigh, not as concerned with his surroundings as Billy did.

� Uh, Boss,� Billy spoke, noticing that the subject did not interest his employer, for he knew Germany held a lot of painful memories for him� I�ve been wondering about this for sometime already, about the tournament. I mean, Krauser I understand, but why have Mr. Big join the team? We know how the pimp is hardly a fine team player, and frankly, I would gladly fight alongside you��

� You know very well why you shouldn�t be in the tournament in the first place,� Geese interrupted abruptly in a firm manner,� Iori Yagami is participating this year.�

� All the more reason I should be in the team!� Billy exclaimed, slamming his palm on the counter,� When I get my hands on that bloody little arse, I�ll beat him up so bad that he�ll be grovelling at my feet for mercy.� Billy could still remember the cause of his aversion of Iori; back in the 1995 tournament, Iori thrashed both him and Eiji Kisaragi like punching bags with much brutality in his part. It wasn�t much of a bad experience for Billy for he�d had worse before, but still it would feel mighty damn good to kick the upstart�s teeth in.

� Precisely my point. You�d be so focused on trying to hurt him until you forget what we�re really here for.� Geese said,� Besides, Mr. Big is much easier to dispose of later when everything�s done.�

� You�re going to waste him?�

� No, that�s not exactly the course of action that I had in mind�but suggestion noted.� Geese grinned evilly.

� Whatever you say, Boss,� Billy smiled similarly, knowing exactly what his employer was thinking. As the bartender approached their section of the bar with their orders, Billy turned his attention towards a couple of newspapers that laid beside him on the counter. Most of them were printed in German which he didn�t understand a damn word of. As he sorted through them, he managed to find an English publication. He smiled, satisfied that he had got hold of something he could comprehend. He decided to go through the sports section, curious on how Manchester United is doing in the soccer scene back in Good Ol� England.

As he went through the various new items in the section, his eyes chanced upon a picture spread, a considerably large one at that. It was a montage of scenes from the KOF�96 preliminaries back in San Francisco. (Interesting) Billy thought as he casually looked at the collection of pictures until� �he saw that particular one.

� What the�� Billy exclaimed in surprise, hesitating his discovery for a moment.

� Here�s your scotch, Herr Howard,� The bartender spoke in his husky voice as he handed over a small filled glass to Geese.

� Danke,� Geese smiled slightly, thanking him as he took his scotch.

Billy, distracted for a moment, anxiously brought his gaze back at the newspaper again. His eyes scanned feverishly for�

DAMN!

�Billy.�

Billy startled in surprise. His employer had called him. Turning to look at him, a nervous feeling appeared in his heart, knowing that what he had seen�

� Why do you look pale?� Geese asked, remarking on Billy�s noticeable change of mood. He didn�t sound concerned by that, but Billy knew that he was. A good employer would always notice.

� Uh, nothing, Boss.� Billy responded as calmly as possible,� It�s the change of air, I think. Affects my system.�

He could see Geese hardly believed that pathetic excuse for an explanation, but he seemed to have accepted it anyway. � Better get used to it, Billy. We�re going to be here for a couple of days, and we have work to do.� He said as he turned his attention back on his scotch.

� Yes, Boss.� Billy replied, somewhat relieved that Geese did not choose to pursue the subject. He diverted his eyes back to the item that had surprised him, and knew that he had to be careful from now on, for the picture in the newspaper could come across Geese�s eyes , and he would be truly displeased if that did happen. But still, what Billy saw�it mustn�t be true. He scanned the picture carefully again, and came to the conclusion that his sky blue eyes had not lied�

It�s going to be a busy week for Billy Kane.