Ninja Gaiden III The Fury of the Dragon Written by Jeff Nussbaum deuce@scsn.net ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Chapter Five Years went by, and Foster was mentioned no more within the confines of the Hayabusa household. But within the mind of the Ninja Dragon, Foster roamed free. He pondered his wisdom in allowing Foster to live so many years ago... but what was done was done. Brooding over it only made him nervous and irritable, and it alienated his wife and child... the very ones about whom he was so concerned. Ken was growing up to be a fine young man; courteous yet willful, strong yet gentle, he was a son Ryu could indeed be proud of. At times, he seemed far older than his tender 15 years. At the thought of his son's age, he pondered his own. He would be thirty-nine in only a few short months. He looked at the life he had built, and hoped that his father could see him now, and would be proud. Ryu felt certain he would be. He had fought and worked his way through life to provide for his family, which was no less than his father had done. And in the shadows, a long-lost ghost of the past prepared to surface once more. A tangible ghost, one which would distort the lives it touched... this time for good, it hoped. *** Ryu and Irene sat calmly in the backyard of their peaceful suburban dwelling. As was very common, Ryu was in his ninja uniform, and Ken was off by himself, practicing his katas as his father had shown him, sword in hand. Irene was lying down on a sunchair, sunbathing. To Ryu's eyes, she was still just as lovely as she was when they'd first met... and she had shot him with a traquilizer. He chuckled slightly to himself at the thought and told her that he would be right back, as he was going to get another drink from inside. He went inside and began rummaging through the refrigerator for the drink he sought... and caught notice of a few other tempting things as well. Cold roasted chicken. He took a drumstick and ate it, then noticed the sound of a helicopter. Nothing too unusual, as there was an airfield not too far from here. But it did seem a bit loud, and that set him on edge. Actually, it seemed VERY loud. He quickly towelled off his hands, and came back outside with his drink in hand... but not for long. What he saw made him drop it almost instantly. Four men were surrounding his family... The helicopter buzzed only about 15 feet overhead. They were wearing masks of some kind, which allowed Ryu to see only their eyes. They all were weilding small automatic weapons. Uzis, Ryu guessed, being unable to inspect them closely. The guns were trained on Ken and Irene. Ryu screamed their names, and suddenly two guns were pointing at him. "What do you want?" demanded Ryu, his heart pounding fiercely with fear and anger. The thug's eyes narrowed. "You must be Ryu," he said with contempt. "We're going to just take your family here on a little joyride. They're going to be kept as collateral." "Collateral for what?!" Irene had the barrel of a gun pressed against her throat, and Ken had apparently been knocked unconscious. Irene looked at him pleadingly... and with a hint of shame. "Someone wants to meet with you... and wants to make sure you don't back out of the meeting," the man continued. "Who?" asked Ryu, his fists clenching. "Fellow by the name of Foster. He said you'd know what to do." Ryu's heart leaped into his throat. Foster... it couldn't be. But before he could ask questions, his wife and child were hoisted into the helicopter. "WAIT!" he yelled. The man shook his head. "No waiting. Follow us if you like." He grinned under the mask and slammed the door shut to the helicopter, which began to take off. Ryu couldn't believe what was happening... his life had suddenly turned upside down. In a rush, he ran over to where they had been, and picked up the sword with which Ken had been practicing, and wasted no time in donning a mask. Steeling himself for battle, he charged into the street, with a sword strapped to his waist once more. He had not done this in many years... and now more than ever, it was a necessity. *** The street was strangely deserted. Any neighbors who might have wanted to investigate were staying inside. Wise of them, thought Ryu as he ran past, approaching the more urban section of town. When he reached the point at which the suburbs stopped, everything seemed deathly quiet. And so, he proceeded, looking still for the helicopter which had vanished from the skies. He was working purely from memory. He felt certain the copter had come this way. Still, the emptiness of his surroundings made him uneasy. Alas, they would not be empty for long. Suddenly, a gunshot pierced the night. He looked around, and found the sniper sitting in a window, grinning down at him. Unable to reach him, he felt compelled to call upon the Art of the Fire Wheel. But he soon realized, he had no such option at his disposal. The Dragon Sword was gone, and it provided him with his focus. Those arts were lost to him... perhaps forever. And now was when he needed them most. As it was, he was forced to run... he dodged and weaved past the bullets of the sniper and a few friends he'd evidently brought along. As he ran through the streets, he came across a few more of what were apparently Foster's hired thugs. Since he had not allowed his training to slip in his years as a father, he had minimal trouble dispatching them. But his heart and mind were in agony at the thought of having to kill again... and at the thought of what that maniac might to do his family. Focusing his mind, Ryu took his sword in hand with all the skill of a true ninja master. And none he faced survived long. He was working almost on instinct, trying to remember the direction he'd seen the copter heading. The men he faced seemed to be edging him in a certain direction anyway, so he allowed himself to be led slightly. In a dark, smelly alley, he found himself facing off against four of the men at once. They surrounded him, circling him, all of them wearing grim smiles. Ryu took advantage of the lull in battle to ask some questions. "Where is my family being taken?" he demanded. One of the men laughed. "You're asking the wrong people, old man. We're just here to make sure you dont' have an easy time while playing this little game." Ryu flushed hotly under his mask. "You think this is a GAME?" "To the man paying us, yeah. But with us, it's business." With a simple gesture from the man speaking, the other two men charged at the ninja. Each was weilding some sort of weapon; one had nunchaku and the other was much more matter-of-fact about fighting. He weilded an aluminum baseball bat. As the thugs approached him, Ryu ducked down and swept the bat-weilder's legs out from beneath him, and delivered a nasty shot to his jaw, which put him out like a light. Two more to go. The nunchaku- weilding man used them decently, but with a noticeable degree of clumsiness. He had obviously not been properly trained. But if Ryu wasn't careful, he could end up with some nasty injuries. The young man dashed in, swinging the nunchaku in a vicious arc at the Ninja Dragon. Ryu nimbly stepped back, barely avoiding the bonecrushing force, and countered with a quick open-palm strike to the solar plexus. His opponent immediately gasped for air and fell back, ducking underneath Ryu's followup knifehand. He got his nunchaku back into place and rolled off to the side, preparing to mount another attack. While Ryu was still recovering from the force of his missed blow, the young man was able to get in a rushed strike at the back of his leg. It wasn't as powerful as it could have been, due to the awkward angle, but it hurt. Ryu would not be so easily defeated, however. In a lightning- quick motion, he brought his sword to bear and slashed backward, opening a huge gash in his opponent's chest. The young man was unable to continue the fight. He fell onto his rear, clutching at his wound. The Ninja Dragon looked around quickly for the other two men, but they were nowhere to be seen. Evidently the man who had spoken before had dragged his unconscious friend in the confusion of the fight. He looked down at his defeated opponent and looked into his eyes. "Where are they?" he hissed. There was no response. "Where ARE they?!" he repeated, more urgently, anger welling up within him. The man groaned, seemingly at death's door. His eyes opened slightly, and a bubble of blood burst on his lips as he tried to speak. "Foster... took them away...." Ryu nodded patiently. "Where?" "... to... to...," the man stammered, then fell silent. Ryu would get no information from him now, nor ever. The ninja growled to himself, "Damn! Where do I go now?" He crouched down in the dimness of the late evening, and thought of his family. For the first time in many years, Ryu wept. *** The darkness had become almost complete. Ryu sat, deep in thought, until an unexpected interruption came about. A bright, soft light penetrated the gloom. Suddenly, he heard a soft voice speaking. "Rrryyuuuuu...," it said. It was barely audible, but it was there. He looked up, his hand resting on his sword. He would not be ambushed. Suddenly, he found the source of the light, and saw a face he had never dreamed he might see again. It was his father. He was transparent, surrounded by the soft glow which brightened the night somewhat. On seeing him, Ryu felt a mild sense of peace, which helped to soothe his nerves just a bit. He started to speak, but his father held up a hand to stop him. "Ryu...," he said. It was he. The voice was the same, the tone, everything. "This is a time of trial in your life. I fear you will have no chance...," he drifted off, lifting his hand to his chin thoughtfully. Ryu's heart sank. So his own father was telling him to give up? This couldn't be. But the spirit continued. "Not at present... you will need this." A shining object appeared in his glowing hands, a long and slender blade, with a Chinese dragon engraved near the hilt. "The Dragon Sword!" breathed Ryu. He accepted it from his father's outstretched hands, and looked at it in amazement. His eyes journeyed back up to the image of his father. He had so many questions to ask... and he was afraid he might never get another chance. "Ryu, no...," said the elder Ken Hayabusa. He had read his son's mind, it seemed. "Those questions are for later, not now. You have more important things to do. Save your family... I know in my heart that you can do it." And the image began to fade into the mist. Ryu reached a hand out toward the vanishing apparition. "Father! Wait! Please don't leave me!" he screamed, but it was too late. Ken was gone. Ryu was practically in shock. A visitation from his late father, dead for years... and the blade of his family returned to his hands. But it had been sacrificed to save Irene's life! How could it be in his hands now if Irene was still alive? Maybe she wasn't. With a shudder, Ryu cut off that line of thinking. Irene must be alive. His father had told him to save his family... he had to believe they would both live. He looked at the Dragon Sword, glowing with a soft, but harsh white light. He thought of the trials he had endured with it... and because of it. But his father had been right. He had no chance without it. Silently, he discarded the sword which his son had been using for practice, and held his family's ceremonial blade in his hands for the first time in years. And it felt natural. He felt twenty years younger. One question remained: where to go now? As if in answer, a metal spike embedded itself in the wall next to him, missing him by inches. He looked in the direction from which it had come, and saw the man with whom he had spoken earlier. The man gave a lopsided grin and motioned for him to follow. "Come on, Hayabusa!" he called. "Your family's waiting for you!" Without another word, the man vanished into a subway stairwell. Ryu wasted no time in giving pursuit. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 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).