Fatal Fury Fan Fiction ❯ Fatal Fury - The Vengeful Spirits ❯ Chapter Eleven - The Morning After ( Chapter 12 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

 

 

All characters are the property of SNK/Playmore. I don't own them, the video games or the anime.

 

Chapter Eleven: The Morning After

 

Andy Bogard reached the bottom of the ladder. Terry Bogard passed Joe's wounded body to his brother, then turned and stared apprehensively up at the window the three of them had just climbed down from.

“Hurry, Lily!” He shouted. “Climb down! Lily!” A moment later, there was the burst of blue light from a chi-based attack, the shatter of glass as the body flew outwards, passed horizontally over Terry's head, hung in the air for a second... but it was all wrong. The woman's hair was blond, and she was dressed in a familiar-looking green jacket, blue jeans, and boots.

Mary, he realized. No! Not again! Please, God, not again!

Mary Ryan's body hung in midair for only a second before plummeting straight down, and although Terry raced towards her as fast as he could, he was too late to stop her from striking the pavement headfirst.

Tears were already brimming in Terry Bogard's eyes as he crouched down beside her and gently took Mary's broken body in his arms. “Mary...” He whispered. “This is all my fault.”

Mary turned to face him, gave him a weak smirk. “I don't... blame you, Terry,” she said softly, her green eyes already clouding over. “I... was the one who said... that I... didn't believe in curses. Guess I... should have, huh?”

The tears were starting to overflow from his blue eyes. “No,” Terry said. “It's my fault. I shouldn't have let you get close.”

Mary coughed, bringing up a trickle of blood that ran down her chin and dripped onto the collar of her jacket. “I wanted... to get close. Because you... made me happy. You... can't help it if you're... that irresistible.” She reached up, caressed his tear-stained cheek. “Thank you... for making me... feel something again, Terry. Goodbye...” Her arm slipped to the ground, her body shuddered, and then she was still, her green eyes gazing sightlessly upward.

Tears continued to run down Terry Bogard's face as he closed Mary's eyes. “I'm so sorry, Mary,” he sobbed. “This is all my fault.”

“Keep her body if you'd like, Terry!” Shouted a familiar voice from the window. Terry turned his gaze and saw Geese Howard standing there, grinning maliciously, the scar over his eye making him appear almost ghoulish. “You seem to be collecting them, these days!”

Instantly, Terry's tears were gone, replaced by white-hot rage. He channeled as much chi as he could, readying a Power Geyser that he hoped would level the entire side of the building, and take Geese Howard with it...

“Terry...” He heard a familiar voice behind him. He turned and saw the spirit of Lily McGuire, her lithe body radiating that ethereal blue glow. “Geese Howard didn't kill her. You did.”

Terry's fists relaxed, his mouth fell open. “What...?”

“You knew you were cursed,” Lily continued. “And you still let her get close. You should have known better by now.”

Terry Bogard sank to his knees, suddenly having trouble looking Lily in the eyes. Not that he wanted to. Her eyes shone with something that wasn't love, as they usually did when she visited him. No, now their light seemed to come from something much darker.

“Once again, you failed,” said another familiar voice. Terry raised his head and saw the glowing apparition of Sulia Gaudeamus standing next to Lily. Sulia's golden eyes, normally so gentle, now had the same wicked gleam as Lily's eyes, which definitely did not become her. “Just like you failed to keep your promise to me. You can't protect anyone, Terry. Not even from yourself. You're not a wolf. You're nothing but a dog!”

Terry was weeping now, his face buried in his hands. A few moments later, he felt a sting on his cheek. Somehow, the spirit of Lily had slapped him. He stared up at her, hurt more by the fact it was Lily who had done this rather than by the blow itself “You killed her, Terry!” Lily snapped at him. “Just like you killed us. When you get close to someone, all they do is die.”

Sulia's spirit nodded in agreement. “It's a pity you don't die yourself, and spare the rest of us!” Her spirit stepped forward and slapped Terry's other cheek. It wasn't a very hard blow, but Terry still found himself sprawling onto his side. He made no move to get up. There was no point. Instead, he simply lay there, the tears pouring from his eyes.

“Lily, Sulia, Mary...” He sobbed. “I'm so sorry...”

Terry Bogard awoke with a start, and sat up slightly on the bed. Next to him, he heard Mary breathing softly, still asleep. Still alive.

At least for now, he thought, remembering the dream that had jolted him awake, how real it felt. Small beads of sweat had broken out all over his body. Terry got up from the bed and moved to the bathroom. He ran the cold tap on the sink and splashed some water on his face.

“Why did you do it?” He whispered to his reflection in the mirror hanging over the sink. “Why didn't you just kick her out last night?” The answer was on the tip of his tongue, but he didn't say it out loud: he hadn't wanted to hurt her. Mary had willingly come to him with her defenses lowered, and despite his efforts not to, Terry cared about her. Cared about her enough to give her what she wanted.

“But that's the problem,” he softly berated himself. “If you really did care, you wouldn't have let yourself fall for her. Now you're probably going to lose her, and this time, it's entirely your fault.”

Terry slapped his cheek, then threw another handful of frigid water onto his face and dried himself off with a small towel. He didn't want to think about that now. Right now, what he wanted was to get back in bed.

He left the bathroom, slipped back under the covers, and felt Mary roll over next to him, curling up against his chest. She noticed his skin was still slightly damp from his ablutions a minute ago. “You okay, Terry?” She murmured softly.

“Fine,” said Terry. “I just had a bad dream, that's all.”

She gazed up at him, then, with her green eyes. God, they're like emeralds, Terry thought as he gazed back.

“Want to talk about it?” Mary asked.

Terry shook his head. “I don't remember that much. I was fighting Geese Howard, and... that was pretty much it.”

Mary gave him a scrutinizing look, then, one that was also filled with concern. “Terry, it doesn't matter how strong he's gotten. We'll find a way to beat him. You've done it before, you'll do it again. I'm surprised you'd have a nightmare about that.”

“It's not what he might do to me,” said Terry. “I don't care much about myself, I haven't since I lost Sulia. It's... what he might do to the people who are still in my life.”

Mary propped herself up on her elbow, reached over and gently stroked his cheek. “We're all here because we choose to be. I have my own reasons for going after him, remember? I'm a cop, I know the risks, and I accept them. My choice, Terry.”

Do you really know the risks? He thought. You've never met Geese. You've never actually seen what he can do. He chose not to say this out loud because of the determination in her voice, her eyes. Those beautiful eyes that could be so hard, yet so warm all at once...

Terry put his arm around her and kissed her forehead. “You're right,” he said. But he still found himself thinking about the dream. After several minutes went by, those thoughts were interrupted by a knock at the door.

Joe Higashi glanced at his wristwatch as he stood outside of Terry Bogard's hotel room. He could have sworn that this was the time Terry had given him to meet up for breakfast. He was about to knock again when he heard Terry's voice on the other side of the door: “Who is it?”

“It's me,” called Joe.

“Just a sec,” came Terry's voice again, followed by the sound of some rustling.

A few moments later, the door opened, and Joe nearly did a double take. Instead of his friend, he saw Mary Ryan standing there, wearing one of Terry's T-shirts, and nothing else. Terry was about six inches taller than her, so the shirt kept her decently covered, but still... the shock on Joe's face was evident. “What's up?” Mary asked the kickboxer, looking slightly annoyed.

Joe's mouth hung open, even wider than his eyes. “Mary,” he finally managed to say. “Um... what are you...”

“...doing?” The blond woman finished for him. “Standing here waiting for an answer to my question. What's up? Are you here to put mints on our pillows or something?”

“Well, um...”

“Come on, Higashi, spit it out!”

Terry then appeared behind Mary, dressed in his jeans, and Joe had never been happier to see him. “Hey, Terry,” he said, moving his eyes from the detective to the elder Bogard. “I... just thought I'd check to see if you were ready for breakfast.”

Terry smirked at him. “Thanks, Joe, but you go on ahead,” he said. “We'll meet you down there in about fifteen minutes. Feel free to start without us.”

Joe managed a nod. “Right,” he said, and then Mary shut the door in his face. Joe stood there for another moment, his brain trying to process what he had just seen. As he finally turned and walked to the elevator, he was still trying to process it. By the time he had pressed the DOWN button on the wall, his brain was finished processing, and the kickboxer laughed aloud.

He looked back down the hall towards Terry's room, and shook his head, still laughing. A moment later, the elevator door opened with a pinging sound. “Way to go, Terry!” Joe said out loud as he stepped onto the elevator and pressed the button for the lobby.

After Joe had left, there was a brief moment as Terry Bogard and Mary Ryan stood in the middle of the room with their arms around each other. Mary rested her head against Terry's chest, and asked him: “Terry... what happens now?”

Terry thought for a moment. “Now,” he answered. “We find Geese Howard. And we finish him. And we make sure we do the job right this time.”

Mary looked up at him, then, her brow furrowed. “No, I mean, what happens to us? I really needed last night, emotionally more than physically. You helped me realize that I'm still capable of having feelings for someone, that I still want to have them. You helped my heart begin to heal, not completely, but a small step in the right direction, and I'm grateful for that. I really do like you, Terry. So where do we go from here?”

Why does she have to be so wonderful? Terry thought. Then he said, “Mary, I like you, too. So please don't take it the wrong way when I say that I honestly don't know. And I can't really think about it until after our scores with Geese have been settled.”

Mary stood up on her tiptoes, and kissed him slowly, deeply. After breaking the kiss, she regarded him for another moment. “I guess that will have to do, for now.” She took a step back from him and stripped out of his shirt. “Do you mind if I use your shower?”

Terry shook his head. “No, go ahead.”

Mary walked to the bathroom and shut the door behind her. After she was gone, Terry made his way over to the window, opened the curtain, and watched the sun rise over South Town. He tried to think about what needed to be done today, but the dream still tugged at the edges of his mind.

The first rays of the morning sun began to slant through the cracks of the curtains, casting yellow lines across the floor in the dimness of the hotel room. Mai Shiranui opened her eyes and checked her surroundings. To her great relief, she still felt Andy's warm body spooned up against her own, felt his arm wrapped around her waist, his hand cupping her breast, felt his head resting in the soft pillow of her hair, felt his breath on her neck.

She had been afraid to wake up at first, fearing that last night had just been another one of her erotic dreams. But it wasn't, it had finally happened. And it had been everything she'd hoped it would be, and more. So much more, she thought. I wish I could lay here forever like this, next to him. Unfortunately, I've REALLY gotta pee.

Slowly, she got up from the bed wearing nothing except a satisfied smile, and made her way towards the bathroom. After she was finished, she came back out to find Andy awake, propped up on his pillow.

Andy smiled when he saw her. He'd gotten glimpses of Mai's body before, when she'd practiced her quick-change technique at the dojo, and also because her kunoichi uniform had a tendency to malfunction quite a bit. But seeing her standing there now, in her completely natural form without a single stitch of clothing to distract the eye... took his breath away. Mai noticed the look she was giving him and giggled. Her laughter sounded like music in Andy's ears.

“Good morning,” Andy Bogard said, his smile growing wider. Mai eagerly bounced back towards the bed, slipped under the covers and snuggled up in his embrace. Andy held her close, and breathed in the perfume of her hair.

“Did you sleep okay?” He heard Mai ask him.

“I did,” said Andy. “I dreamed about you again, but it was a good dream this time. How about you?”

“After that workout you gave me, I slept like a log,” Mai said, her head resting against his muscular chest. “Andy, that was amazing. I always figured you had to have stamina, but holy shit, Andy... five times in one night? How did you do that?”

She felt him shrug his shoulders. “Hey, do you tell me how you change clothes in a split second? Or where you hide all those fans? You have your secrets. I have mine.”

Mai giggled. “Fair enough.”

“I just hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me, Mai.”

She turned to look up at him, then. “What? For the way you've been acting lately?” She laughed and started to stroke his cheek. “Andy, you big dummy, after last night, I think it's obvious that I forgive you for that.”

“I wasn't talking about that,” said Andy. “Do you remember when we spent the night at that hotel in Baghdad?”

“Yes,” she said. How could she ever forget that night? The two of them had been forced to share a room with one bed, as it was the only vacancy in the hotel. Mai had just emerged from her shower, her long, dark red hair still damp, wearing nothing but a loose-fitting robe with a neckline as plunging as that of her fighting outfit. She had more or less given Andy an open invitation to climb into the bed with her, spelling it out so blatantly even he could grasp the meaning, and he had chosen to exercise instead.

“Then I don't need to remind you what an idiot I was,” said Andy. “Mai, I'm sorry I was so stupid.”

Mai laughed aloud, which made Andy laugh too. "Andy, you're so adorable,” she said. “You don't ever have to apologize for the way that you were when we first started dating, because you have nothing to be sorry for."

Andy stopped laughing, then. “Really?” He asked.

Mai nodded, her fingers gently caressing the nape of his neck. "Yes, Andy. I mean that. I've always enjoyed just being with you. Just having you there. I knew that you liked me, even though you were still learning how to show it. Although there was a time when you didn't touch or kiss me, you still made me feel special, because you always stood by me, and you've never looked at any other woman the way you look at me. If I could go back and do our relationship all over again, I wouldn't change a thing."

Andy smiled as he stroked Mai's hair. "Not even China?” He asked her.

Mai giggled again."Well, okay, maybe China, but that's it," she replied, and then kissed him tenderly on the lips. After she came up for air, she moved on top of him and straddled his waist with her long legs, her breasts and hips pressing against him. "Also, the way I see it,” she told him. “We're luckier than most couples. You know why?"

“Why?”

“Because,” Mai said with a wicked grin. “We now have a lot of catching up to do.” She pressed herself more firmly against him then, began gently kissing his face and neck.

“While I definitely agree with you, Mai,” said Andy. “Perhaps we should wait until tonight. Terry and Joe are probably already downstairs waiting for us.”

She giggled at him, then playfully smacked one of his pecs. “Fine. I'm gonna go shower.” Reluctantly, she pulled herself away from her lover, and made her way back towards the bathroom. She paused in the doorway, hands resting seductively on her hips, and flashed Andy a wink. “Care to join me?” Then, without waiting for an answer, she disappeared inside the bathroom and started the water. Andy quickly got up from the bed and went into the bathroom as well, shutting the door behind him.

The two of them stepped under the warm spray of the showerhead, and Andy picked up the soap from its sconce in the wall. “Mai,” Andy said as he got behind his girlfriend and started lathering her back for her. “I've told you about Lily, but it's not the whole story about what happened here three years ago. Before we get downstairs, I want to tell you everything else.”

Mai turned to face him, slid her arms around his waist, and softly nuzzled his chest. “Andy,” she said, smiling from ear to ear. “We haven't even had breakfast yet, and already you made my day. Go on. I want to hear all about it.”

Mary shook her head as she glanced from the cantaloupe, toast and bacon on her plate to the food that was piled high on Joe and Terry's plates. “I'll never get tired of seeing this,” she said.

“Hey, the buffet is complimentary,” said Joe, who was working through his scrambled eggs to get at the short stack that he had buried underneath them. “Might as well take advantage of it. I'm sure Terry probably told you that malarkey about how chi burns calories. Truth is, he just likes to eat as much as I do.”

“Because eating was a luxury before I was adopted and then after my dad was killed,” Terry clarified.

Though her expression was neutral, Mary rolled her eyes in amusement. “I need to go find a phone,” she said. “Try not to kill each other while I'm gone.” She got up from the table and made her way towards the front desk.

After she was gone, Terry and Joe spent a few moments eating silently. Then Joe said, “Mary is a pretty nice girl, once you get to know her. Bit rough around the edges, but...”

Terry nodded, drank his coffee. “Yeah,” was all he said.

“I gotta admit, I didn't expect to see her in your room this morning,” Joe went on. “So... what are you two right now? Dating? Friends with benefits?”

“Mary and I helped each other last night,” Terry said simply. “Beyond that, I'm not sure what we are.”

“Okay, man,” Joe said. “I'm just asking because you're my friend. I mean, I've never dated any girl longer than a month, but I still understand what Sulia meant to you. Hell, she was special to each of us, in some way. I can't pretend to know what you've gone through, but I can say that I don't want to see you get hurt.”

Terry reached over, clapped him on the shoulder. “I understand, Joe,” he said. “Thanks. I do like Mary, but I can't think about what we are right now.”

Joe said nothing. He simply nodded, and resumed eating his eggs, having almost cleared a path to the pancakes. A few minutes later, Mary returned and took her seat back.

“What's up?” Terry asked her.

“Nothing good, I'm afraid,” Mary said around a mouthful of bacon. “I spoke to someone inside the 37th who owes me a favor. They said that Inspector Bowers, my boss, is gonna be running security at the tournament.”

“This is the guy who might be in Geese Howard's pocket?” Asked Joe.

Mary nodded. “Which is why I'm definitely going to be there as a spectator. I'll keep my eyes and ears open, and pass along any info I think you might be able to use.” She started working on the rest of her cantaloupe, then. “You'll need it. Especially since Billy Kane is still competing.”

Terry scowled. “I thought we left him unconscious in Hughes's study,” he pointed out.

Mary shook her head. “He was gone when I got there. Guess he woke up and rabbited before the cavalry arrived. According to my guy on the inside, so far, the thugs who were taken into custody yesterday haven't talked.”

“And knowing the type of men Geese employs, they'll never talk, not if they value their lives,” said Terry. “Anything else?”

“Yes,” said Mary. “I also reached out to my informant. I think he might have something for me. He wants to meet me in an hour. So I'd better get going.” She swallowed the last bite of her melon, and rose from her seat.

Terry nodded. “Be careful, okay?”

Mary fished her sunglasses out of her jacket pocket, and slipped them on. “I'm always careful,” she said. “You worry about your own ass. I'll meet up with you at the tournament. Catch you later, handsome.” She kissed Terry on the cheek, then made her way through the tables towards the exit.

Terry's eyes lingered on her as she left, watching as her hips swayed from side to side in her loose-fitting jeans. Then he heard Joe whistle appreciatively, ruining the mood.

Angrily, Terry turned back around and punched Joe on the arm. “Are you ever gonna grow up?”

Joe winced, and then took a sip of coffee. “Probably not. Are you ever gonna share what the game plan is?”

“Yeah, as soon as the rest of the group is down here. I hate having to repeat myself. And speak of the devil.”

Joe turned to follow Terry's gaze, and saw Mai and Andy making their way over to the table. “Um... Terry,” Joe asked his friend. “Are they actually...?”

Terry slapped himself so hard his cap almost flew off. Then he blinked several times, looked at his brother and Mai again, and saw that his eyes did not deceive him. “Yeah,” he said to Joe. “They are definitely holding hands.” And it wasn't only that, but it looked to Terry like the two of them were actually exuding some sort of... glow.

When they got to the table, Andy pulled out Mai's chair for her, and she giggled as she took her seat. “Morning, boys,” she said with a nod to Joe and Terry, who were both too stunned to respond.

“Anything look good?” Andy asked her.

“Well, it's probably too much to hope that this buffet has rice cake soup,” answered Mai. “So I'll settle for French Toast and sausage.”

“Sure!” Andy kissed her on the cheek, and then started towards the buffet.

Terry and Joe looked at each other, neither one of them wanting to breach the subject. Mai seemed oblivious to them as she flagged down a waiter, and got him to fill hers and Andy's mugs with steaming coffee. Finally, as Mai was adding milk to her mug, she noticed them staring. “What, do I have something on my face?” She asked them. “Or have you never seen a ninja drinking coffee before?”

“So, Mai,” Terry managed to say. “Did you... um, sleep well?”

“Beautifully,” Mai told him. “In the rare moments when I actually slept.” She then took a sip of coffee, ignoring the shocked looks on their faces.

“So,” Terry continued. “We are talking about Andy, right? Are you saying he actually...”

Mai grinned like a Cheshire Cat and raised her coffee mug in a toast. “A lady never tells,” she said.

Terry knew Mai well enough to realize she'd said all she cared to say on the matter. He nodded politely at her, and turned his attention back to the small mountain of eggs and hash browns on his plate. Joe was not as quick.

“You mean Andy finally manned up?” Joe asked her. “Or did you have to slip him a roofie?” A second later, Joe felt a sharp pain in his shin as Mai kicked him under the table.

“I said a lady never tells, you giant ass,” Mai hissed at him.

“But, you're not a lady, Mai,” Joe said as he rubbed his shin.

“You do know how easily I could have broken your leg just now,” Mai huffed. “Keep it up, and I'll break twice as many of your bones as Krauser did.”

Joe shook his head. “So, Terry and Mary... and then Mai and Andy... are you telling me that the ladies man of the group is the only one who slept alone last night? How the hell does that happen?”

“Because the girl you picked up wouldn't take a check?” Mai asked him.

“Okay, now I'm convinced you gave Andy a roofie,” said Joe. “It's the only logical explanation.”

Just then, Andy returned to the table with a plate in each hand. He set the one with a large helping of French Toast and sausage in front of Mai, and then took the seat between her and Joe with his own plate.

“An-deeee,” Mai said in that clingy tone she liked to use. “Joe is making fun of us again. Can you kick his ass?”

“Do I gotta, Mai?” Andy responded. Then he smirked at her and added: “I'm pretty sure you don't need my help to do that.” The four of them all laughed, and then spent a long while focusing on their food. It was Mai who broke the silence again.

“So, Terry,” she said as she dredged one of her sausage links through the syrup left on her plate. “Did Joe say that you and Mary...”

“A gentleman never tells,” answered Terry.

“You don't have to,” said Mai. “I can see it in your eyes. Terry, that's wonderful! I'm so happy for you!”

“Thanks,” Terry said with a small smile. He looked down at what was left on his plate, for a moment lost in thought. Last night had been nice. But, now... did he want it to be more than a one night stand? Mary might not believe in curses, but Terry still did, and a part of him kept saying that if he really cared about her, and he did, it would be best if he never saw Mary again after this whole business with Geese was behind them. But then there was a smaller part of him that still wanted to see her.

Terry shook his head and resumed eating. Mai popped the last bite of sausage in her mouth and got up from the table. “I'm gonna see if they have any eggs left,” she said.

“You're still hungry?” Joe asked.

Mai shrugged. “Hey, Andy and I burned a lot of calories last night.” She leaned in and kissed Andy on the cheek. “Didn't we, baby?” Then she picked up her empty plate and started off towards the buffet.

After she was gone, Andy turned to Terry. “Terry, we both know Mai has a tendency to oversimplify these things. How are you really?”

Terry shrugged. “Like I told Mary upstairs, I don't know. And I can't think about it while we have unfinished business with Geese.”

Andy looked at his brother for a moment, and then simply nodded. For a time, they were silent again as the three of them resumed eating.

Then Joe said: “Okay, Andy. You let me down in Baghdad. This time, I gotta know: how was she?”

“How was she what?” Andy asked as he sipped his coffee, the same response he'd given Joe the last time the kickboxer had asked, except now Andy was not as naive. Terry said nothing, simply watched the exchange between the two of them like it was some rare form of entertainment.

“Come on, Andy!” Joe persisted. “You and I go way back! You're like the brother I never had! Gimme something here, man...”

Andy turned towards him. “She makes a LOT of noise,” he said. “And that is all I'm ever going to tell you.” With that, he turned back to his breakfast.

Mai returned to the table a few moments later, rolled her eyes when she saw Joe with his nose bleeding. “For God's sake, Joe,” she said as she pulled a tissue from the pocket of her shorts and offered it to him. “Can't you even wait until after the tournament has started before hurting yourself?” Both Andy and his brother clapped their hands to their mouths, trying their best to hold back their laughter.

“What? What did I miss?” Mai asked.

“Oh, just... me being clumsy,” Joe said, accepting the tissue and dabbing his nose with it.

“So, a typical morning, then,” Mai said with a shrug, then sat down and started on her eggs.

Terry had at last regained enough control to take his hand from his mouth. “Well, I'm glad we're all a team again,” he said to the rest of the table. “Now, let's get down to business.”

Elsewhere in South Town, in a building that had been recently condemned (but still had water, as the slow bureaucracy of the utility company had not yet gotten around to shutting it off), a shirtless youth with spiky black hair rose from the cot on which he had been sleeping. On a second cot a few feet away, another youth with long brown hair scowled as rays of the morning sun filtered in through cracks in a boarded-up window to shine directly on his face.

“It's too early, Chonrei,” the brown-haired teen said with a scowl, speaking in Mandarin.

“No, Chonshu,” said the black-haired teen in the same language. “We've slept long enough. The King of Fighters tournament starts today, remember?” He crossed the dilapidated room in which they were sleeping to a large, industrial-sized sink set into the wall, and turned the tap. He waited several seconds while the rust ran out of the faucet, and once the color of the water turned from brown to clear, he splashed some on his face.

The one called Chonshu sat up on his cot, and looked around with dismay at the state of the room they had been forced to take as a temporary lodging. True, he and his brother Chonrei had slept in much worse places, but still, that didn't mean Chonshu had to like it.

“What does it matter?” The brown-haired youth asked. “That thief managed to evade us yesterday. He has all the scrolls, and their cipher key. What's the point of fighting in the tournament now?”

Chonrei turned from the sink and faced his brother with a look of annoyance. “Because Howard can't use the scrolls yet, not until he's deciphered them. The Lone Wolf and his friends will be competing today, and you can bet that they'll continue to make every effort to try and thwart that xing shi fan. We continue to follow them, as planned, and eventually, they will lead us to Howard.” He went back over to his cot, picked up the blue shirt of his Tang suit, and donned it. “We underestimated him yesterday, we won't make that mistake again.”

Chonshu nodded once, then got up from his cot, walked over to the sink that Chonrei had just been using, and turned the tap. “Do you think the spirits within us will be a match for Qin Kong and Qin Wang?” He asked as he threw cold water on his face.

Chonrei took a deep breath, blew it out sharply through his nostrils. “I don't think it matters at this point. We know where we come from, and we know what's at stake. We really have no choice but to see this through to the end. Whatever that end may be...”

 

To be continued...