Ninja Gaiden III The Fury of the Dragon Written by Jeff Nussbaum deuce@scsn.net ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chapter Twelve A bolt of white energy shot from the Light Statue at Irene, and as it struck her, the bonds holding her and Ken in place vanished. Ken fell to the ground, and Irene quickly followed, the strange energy being more than she could handle. Her last thought before she slipped into the murky depths of unconsciousness was that she prayed for her family to still be alive when and if she ever woke up.... The clouds above churned in agony, anticipating the finale which was soon to come. The barren-faced Foster glared at his longtime enemy, Ryu Hayabusa... and both knew that when this night had reached its end, only one would be left alive. "And to the victor," said Foster, "go the spoils." He waved a hand off in the direction of Ken, who lay on the ground bleeding. "That is, if you still think they're worth keeping." Ryu's anger grew with each passing moment. He didn't know if Ken was even still alive, or if he had a chance of surviving. But Irene lay on the ground as well, knocked unconscious by this bastard. He could at least save her... but Foster had to die. Or else he would never know peace. But how? Even the newfound power within the spirit-charged shuriken had been of no use against him. The Demon Statues rotated around Foster's superhuman form. "It was simple, really," he said. "You really should have killed me when you had the chance. These past fifteen years have been well spent, learning the ways of the Demon Statues and unlocking their mysteries. "They have given me all the power I need to destroy you. And I didn't even need it to kill your pathetic son." He snorted derisively. "I wonder what your ancestors would think if they could see what you've been reduced to." Ryu's grip on the Dragon Sword tightened. "Your blood has thinned, Ninja Dragon. At least your son will never see your greatest shame." Ryu could stand no more. With a herculean effort, he broke free of the state of emotional shock which held him in check. He raised the Dragon Sword aloft in the air, its aura of energy pulsating like a heartbeat. The Ninja Dragon screamed, and the sky answered with thunder. "Foster, know this!!" he shouted. "Today, you DIE!" He brought the sword to bear on his most hated foe. Foster chuckled, fully expecting this. "We shall see, Ryu... we shall see. I am pleased that you still have a bit of fight left in you after all." The Demon Statues began to glow brighter, and bolts of black lightning passed between them, through Foster's body. Ryu charged. Foster waited for him to approach calmly, building up his power all the while. He floated gently above the ground, and when the ninja got close enough to swing, he flew out of range. "Damn you, Foster!" cried Ryu. "Fight like a man!" "Oh, but I am more than man now," said Foster, and pointed down at Ryu, sending two arcs of deadly black lightning down at him. The ninja backflipped, narrowly avoiding the bolts. They seared the rock where he had stood only moments ago, and charred it black. Ryu concentrated a moment, and summoned the power of the Art of the Fire Wheel. He hurled the twirling flames upward, and they flew with deadly accuracy at their target. Foster winced as the fireballs struck him, noticing that the energy shield could only block a small portion of the flames. "Very good, Ryu," he said, "Indeed, you are stronger now." "Strong enough to kill you, you bastard!" Ryu leaped up and swung his family blade at Foster's chest, and connected. But the hit was minor, barely cutting through the tough organic armor which the self-proclaimed sorcerer had grown. Even a minor wound, however, hurts the recipient. Grimacing aside the stinging pain, Foster pointed once again. "Die." Two more bolts of black lightning seared through the air at the ninja, one catching him fully in the shoulder. He screamed at the pain, and glanced at the wound, noticing that it had cauterized itself instantly from the magical heat. Ryu barely lost his stride, however, and charged like an enraged bull at his opponent. He reared back, and stabbed the sword at Foster's black heart. Foster dodged to the side, but not quickly enough, for the blade pierced the armor in his shoulder, and then the flesh, cutting through to the bone. Elated, Ryu drove the sword deeper, trying to make the hit count as much as it possibly could. Foster growled, "Get AWAY from me!!" The statues glowed more brightly again, and suddenly, Ryu felt the sharp pain of both bolts of black lightning searing across his chest. He fell back and collapsed on the ground, clutching at his fresh wound. With the ninja prone on his back, Foster knew he had every opportunity in the world to kill him. "The poor little ninja breathes his last today," he said. He raised his hands high above his head, and the energy from the statues began to collect in them. He was preparing a blast that would not only kill the ninja, but incinerate him. Ryu rolled painfully off to the side, hoping to find some cover. The only cover to be had in the short distance he could travel was a slight rise in the rocky ground, barely a foot high. But it would have to suffice. He huddled behind it, and concentrated as best he could. He had only one shot at surviving this, and it would be close, no matter what he managed to pull off. Foster glared down at his cowering foe and said, "I had hoped you would prove more worthy, Ryu." Without another word, he pointed two open palms at him, and unleashed a blinding blue flash of unholy energy. It sped on toward the ninja, and when it struck, the area was obscured by flying rubble and blue smoke. "The spoils go to me," said Foster. He chuckled and waited for the smoke to clear, so he could have the pleasure of seeing Ryu's burnt, broken body for himself. When the smoke cleared somewhat, he saw three pinpoints of orange light spinning through the air. "What on earth...?" he wondered out loud. This was something entirely new. Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his chest, which was quickly followed by three more. He grimaced and looked down, and saw shuriken protruding from his body. Ryu was alive. "AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!" came the cry, and Ryu tore out of the stinking cloud of smoke at Foster, the flames of the Invincible Fire Wheel circling his body. With a vicious arcing slash, he brought the Dragon Sword down across his opponent's chest, carving through the weakened armor. He immediately spun around, following up with a powerful kick to Foster's shell-like stomach. Foster was dumbstruck. "H-how did you survive that? It's impossible!!" he screamed. Ryu did not answer, but stepped forward, and thrust his blade through the crack in Foster's armor... right over his heart. He pushed as hard as humanly possible, until the sword simply could go no further. "It's over, Foster," he said quietly. Foster rasped, "N... no... it can't be... not like... this...." He fell silent, and his body fell to the ground, immediately followed by the two Demon Statues. He attempted to reach for Ryu, but the life left him before he could utter another word. The organic armor began to crumble, revealing Foster's true body. It was weak, scarred and broken. Ryu watched intently until all of the rocklike substance had crumbled to dust. "Is it over?" said the ninja aloud. He turned around and ran over to his son. "Ken!" he said. "Ken, speak to me!" The boy was alive. As it turned out, he was not even that badly hurt. The shot had been a rushed one, and he was only hit in the thigh. Fortunately, it had gone right through. He opened his eyes weakly and saw a pair of very familiar, caring eyes staring down at him through a charred mask. "Dad...?" Ken asked. "Is that you?" Ryu hugged his son tightly. "Yes, son, it's me... I'm sorry for all you've been through...." Ken hugged him back, and after a quick moment passed, Ryu set to using his scarf as a bandage for the wound. "I'm glad you're all right, son." "I... I knew you'd come for us, Dad." Maybe now, the nightmare would finally end.... What Ryu had failed to notice, however, was that the Demon Statues were still far from inert... and their energy poured into the lifeless body of their master, initiating a gruesome transformation. A transformation with which Ryu would become acquainted, very quickly.... ------------------------------------------------------------------------- TO BE CONTINUED ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ninja Gaiden, Ryu Hayabusa, Irene Lew and all characters are the sole copyright of Tecmo. This document is meant for public distribution in its ORIGINAL FORM ONLY, and should not be sold at any price. All events portrayed in this story are the inventions of Deuce, and do not reflect the "proper" story as shown by Tecmo (even though Tecmo screwed the pooch on the NG3 story).