Ninja Gaiden III The Fury of the Dragon Written by Jeff Nussbaum deuce@scsn.net ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Chapter Nine Ryu's sleep was filled with dreams, some pleasant, others not. He remembered when Ken was born... he had never imagined he could be so happy or proud as on that day. It had been a difficult birth, and Irene had lost a substantial amount of blood. That day had been the last time in fifteen years that he imagined what his life would be like if he lost Irene. And even then, the thought had been unbearable. She was forced to remain in the hospital for several days, and Ryu almost never left her side. He swore to her long ago that he would always do his best to protect her, and he kept his word. When the danger was past, life returned to normal... or at least, as close to normal as life gets when one is a new parent. Ken was a strong, healthy baby, and Irene was well again. But the complications during labor had caused permanent damage... they would never have another child. This bothered them, but they found they truly could not complain.... They were all alive and happy... what more could they ask for? "Hey, Hayabusa?" came a voice. It was Caldwell. Ryu awoke groggily and looked up at his companion. "Yeah?" Caldwell nodded, satisfied that Ryu was at least partially awake. "We're at the airport... time to transfer to a helicopter." The ninja looked at him quizzically, to which he replied, "There are no airstrips in the heart of the Brazilian jungle, remember?" Ryu chuckled. "Oh yeah... silly me." "Feeling better, I take it?" asked the pilot. "Like you wouldn't believe." "I doubt that... trudging around through the sewers can't be fun. I saw that manhole belch fire a minute before you came up... I don't even want to know WHAT caused that," said Caldwell. "Lack of foresight." "Ah...." *** The two transferred to a helicopter, Ryu scanned his surroundings. Yup, this was definitely Brazil... the signs gave away that much. But this Caldwell person was still a mystery. Was his story on the level? And if so, how far would he go to help? And in the more likely case, that he was lying, when was he going to turn on him? Still, if he was lying, he'd had countless opportunities to kill him already... why hadn't he? Sighing, Ryu followed Caldwell to the helicopter and strapped himself in. As much as it galled him to admit it, he was stuck. If he chose not to trust this man, he was stuck in Brazil with no money and no transportation. And if he did, he opened himself up more than he was comfortable with. It wasn't much of a choice. He decided to sit and let this man take him where he would... he had very little to lose at this point. Caldwell put on his flight helmet and checked the helicopter's equipment with the speed and efficiency of a trained professional. Seeing everything in working order, he fired up the engines. "Ready to go?" he asked. "As ready as I'll ever be," said Ryu. The pilot nodded as he got his signal to takeoff. A moment later, they were on their way. "I can only take you as far as a clearing about one and a half miles away from the ruins," said Caldwell. "Why is that?" "Well, remember, I'm on contract," he replied. "I can't take you straight there, or else Foster will literally have my hide." "Tell me something, Caldwell," said Ryu. "What?" "The truth... why didn't you attack me when you had the chance?" Caldwell laughed. "You still don't trust me. I'm not surprised. Basically, Ryu, I'm not a murderer. I don't want you dead... Foster does. I'm doing enough to earn my pay, nothing more, nothing less. And I'm trying to lend you a hand in the process." Ryu shrugged, "I suppose I'll have to trust you." Caldwell smirked. "If you want, I can try and push you out of the helicopter." He looked visibly annoyed and somewhat offended. In spite of himself, Ryu laughed. "That's okay, I'll pass... or at least wait until we land." "Aye aye, cap'n," said the pilot. A few minutes later, Caldwell brought the helicopter down in the clearing he had mentioned earlier, and Ryu got out. "Hey Caldwell?" he said as he checked his possessions to make sure everything was where it was meant to be. "Yeah?" "Thanks... for everything," said Ryu. Caldwell chuckled. "Don't mention it... you'll see me around, have no doubt. But you'd better get going... and good luck to you." Ryu nodded, his expression growing grim. "I think I may just need it," he said. "I'm sure you will," said Caldwell. "Be careful out there." The Ninja Dragon replaced his mask and nodded. "I always am... I'm getting too old for this though." And so, the two parted company, Ryu finally concluding that he was best off for having trusted the mysterious man. He could certainly do a lot worse when it came to allies. He watched the helicopter rise into the air and fly off, then looked into the jungle, and he could see the flat plateau of the solitary mountain off in the distance. He knew he had no time to waste, so he immediately set off in that direction. The battle was not over yet.... *** The trek through the jungle was no easier than he remembered it. Within ten minutes, he was stifling under his mask, and was occasionally tempted to take it off. Eventually, he compromised with himself, and covered only his mouth and nose, leaving his hair free. This, he found, was considerably more comfortable. Shortly after entering the jungle, Ryu found himself set upon by a group of knife-weilding men. "Well, well, look what we have 'ere!" said the first in a heavy Australian accent. Foster had evidently gotten his hired help from all over the place. Ryu drew his sword and scowled. "I don't suppose there's any chance you gentlemen would let me pass without a fight, is there?" he asked, stressing the word "gentlemen" enough to turn it into an insult. "Not fucking likely, jap," said a second man. The Ninja Dragon chuckled, and would not allow himself to be goaded into making any rash moves. "Delightful," he said. "I wasn't aware neanderthals were capable of bigotry as well." The man who spoke tried to respond, was was too flustered to do anything more than stammer out, "Son of a bitch! Kill him!" And so, the battle began once more. The first of the five men rushed forward, stabbing precisely at Ryu's stomach. With the ease of a master, the ninja batted the hand away and dodged aside. In a lightning-quick movement, he brought the blade up to the man's neck, and slit his throat effortlessly, then turned to face his opponents. They were standing there, somewhat dumbfounded. They were told that Hayabusa was a weak-willed man, who would never kill another human being if it were at all possible to avoid it. What had changed? But money is money... and they were more afraid of Foster than of the ninja. So, they rushed in to attack as well. Ryu expertly dropped to a low crouch, sweeping the first's legs out from under him, and hopped up immediately. In another display of surprising brutality, he stomped on the neck of the fallen man, and twisted his heel, breaking the man's neck. The three survivors pressed onward. One sneaked up on him from behind, and put Ryu into a full-nelson. "Come on," the man cried, "I got him! Kill him!" Ryu growled and attempted to break the hold, but to no avail. The other two men came up slowly, brandishing their knives and grinning. The Dragon Sword lay powerless on the ground, out of its master's hands. "Now, jap, it's time for you to die," said the one who held him. The other two men looked at each other, as if trying to decide who would get to make the first cut. A moment later, the one on the left grinned, and took a step forward, brandishing the knife. With a surprising burst of energy, Ryu kicked up both legs, wrapping them around the stunned assailant's head. With another twist, this man also fell, dead before he hit the ground. The ninja used his momentum to pull the man who held him of his balance, and deliberately fell forward, ducking forward to roll. The man tumbled forward, over Ryu's shoulders. The ninja stood behind him, the hold broken, and immediately slid over to collect his sword once more. The sword glowed a bright red... unlike the blue Ryu was so accustomed to. But he could take no notice of it. He still had two more opponents to deal with. Reaching into his ninja outfit, he withdrew two shuriken, preparing to throw them. The last man who still stood charged at Ryu as his companion got to his feet shakily. The hunting knife in the man's hand whistled as it cut the air. Ryu attempted to dodge once more, but the blade bit into his arm, cutting into his bicep. It was not a bad wound, but it would slow him down... so he had to make sure to finish this before his opponents could regroup and begin their attack anew. He grabbed the man's wrist with his free hand as his momentum carried him forward. He spun the Dragon Sword up beneath the man's barely-existant guard, and it slid cleanly between the man's ribs, puncturing a lung. The man could not even scream. Grimacing, Ryu withdrew the blade from the man's body, and frowned at the blood which covered it... matching the red glow it was emitting. Was the sword protesting in some way? No... the spirit of the Dragon was with him. This he knew. He turned his attention to the man who had been holding him. He held his knife out in front of him, but he had lost his nerve. He was shaking like a leaf, and when he spoke, his voice shook even more. "K-k-keep away from me!!" he screamed. "D-don't come near me!" Ryu's eyes narrowed. "Then run." The man took the hint. He scrambled to his feet, turned tail, and ran as fast as his feet would take him. The Ninja Dragon felt his rage building up once more. "And tell Foster that when I find him, I will kill him as well!" His voice rose to a scream of unbridled hatred. "NOTHING WILL SAVE HIM!!" He looked around at the trees surrounding him. "And any more of you that are lying in wait for me!" he screamed. "You will die too, for aiding that monster! I will kill ALL OF YOU!!!" He fell to his knees, and cried out incoherently. The red aura from the sword burst into flame, and it covered him, bathing him in a familiar heat. "FOOOOOSSTEEERRR!!!!!" he screamed again. The Fury of the Dragon had almost reached its peak... the fire reflected his emotions. Uncontrolled and uncontrollable. When the anger subsided, the flames died away, and he sat on the ground, crying despite himself. "Irene... Ken... wait for me...." He heard a sound behind him. Instantly, he sprang to his feet. "Foster?!" he said, turning around to face the source of the noise. "No," came a mocking voice. "I'm not Foster." And a flurry of shining steel-like needles, each one about a foot in length, came flying at him out of nowhere. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ TO BE CONTINUED ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ninja Gaiden, Ryu Hayabusa, Irene Lew and all characters, with the exception of Caldwell, 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).