SF: A Warrior's Path Ch. 1 - The Beginning
By Gouki

Ryu ducked as Ken made an attempt to attack him with a roundhouse kick. "This is too easy" Ken thought as he leapt backward as Ryu attempted a sweep. Ryu stood up and was forced to block as Ken attacked with a series of kicks. Ryu took the time to observe the pattern of Ken's kicks, eventually finding a way to advance. He crouched under Ken's roundhouse kick and used that opportunity to grab the front of his gi "What the.." was all Ken could say in surprise as Ryu placed one foot on his stomach and rolled onto his back to throw him over in a roundhouse throw. Landing on his feet, Ken attacked again. Again, Ryu parried his blows and attacked whenever he saw an opening. In due time both fighters leapt back and stood facing each other, waiting for the other to attack.

Bringing his hands together, Ken could see the circulation of Ryu's chi that emerged between them. Ryu held the sphere of energy as he brought his hands back and he threw it forward…

"HADOKEN" he yelled. The ball of chi soared towards Ken, who leaped over and forward. However, that was what Ryu had in mind…

"SHORYUKEN!" Ryu yelled again. He rose into a rising uppercut just as he done a week before, but Ken had angled his jump so that he just missed Ryu as he landed.

"Nice try Ryu" said his friend from below. "But you won't trap me this time. Now see what you think of this… SHORYUKEN" he cried as he rose into a similar dragon punch. Yet, Ken had improved his technique so that he wielded flames with the internal chi he released along his arm, up to his elbow. He connected with the falling Ryu, who was unaware of Ken's new style of the move and was helpless to the attack. Ken fell and landed on his feet and watched as Ryu fell and rolled to safety before he went into a defensive stance.

"Not bad chum" Ken spoke.

"I know" replied his comrade. "But your dragon punch needs work."

Ken chuckled. "That Hadoken then Shoryuken trick is getting pretty old now. I'm surprised you still do that seeing as you never connect."

"That's enough" Gouken said, who was watching. "Ryu, he is right yet you do need work on your dragon punch, Ken. It needs strengthening." Ryu and Ken stopped and turned to look at their master before they gave a bow. "In the years I have taught the both of you, you have both excelled higher than I anticipated." he continued. "Perhaps better than I did when I was your age. However, you both have more to learn. You now need to discover where your real strength lies to become true warriors. This will be a difficult task, but I have my faith in the both of you."

"Thank you sensei" they replied in unison before they bowed and left. Gouken gave a broad smile before he suddenly felt a chill down his spine. This was no ordinary chill, it was an evil one. Gouken turned around and prepared himself for his adversary, a look of readiness on his face.

"Show yourself Gouki!" Gouken said aloud. A strong wind blew as Akuma appeared from behind.

"Do not believe me to be that weakling of that brother of yours!" he replied. "Now it's time to meet your fate." He immediately went into a low horse stance, whilst Gouken did the same except his extended hand didn't close and no aura emanated around him.

Akuma attacked first. Striking out with a hook to the right side of Gouken's face, he continued with an uppercut to the chin, a palm strike to the abdomen and a leg sweep. Gouken leapt up but didn't attack. "Please brother," he said "Stop this path you have chosen. Your desire for ultimate power will be the cause of your own death."

"Eventually we will all die." Akuma replied as he hit Gouken with a roundhouse kick. "Death is what ends our fate in life. Until that happens, I will strive to perfect this technique in my quest for absolute power." Again Gouken got up and continued. "I don't want to do this brother, but if this is what you desire, then so be it!" and with the speed of a tiger, he attacked. Starting with a jab, a palm strike to the abdomen, then a hook to the jaw, kick to the shin and an elbow to the gut. He continued his barrage of blows all over Akuma's body, almost a blur to the eyes of an ordinary human. As Gouken brought his hands to the side of his torso, the atmosphere around both fighters became shrouded in darkness except for the intensity of the chi Gouken held.

"Shinkuu… HADOKEN!!" he bellowed. The sphere of energy flew at speed and connected with Akuma with deadly precision. His body soared through the air and landed with a sickening thud. Gouken looked at his brother's body and gave a breath of exhaustion. It wasn't enough, though. The demon who enslaved his brother's soul leapt up with ease as if he felt nothing.

"No human attacks can harm me brother" he said with contempt. "Now feel the true power of Messatsu!" In saying this he took the low horse stance, this time the symbol of Messatsu hovering above his head to disappear the same way it appeared. Before Gouken could react, Akuma began his onslaught.

Starting off with a couple of straight punches to the face, Akuma continued with elbows, jabs, palm strikes and hooks. Gouken being exhausted from his assault on Akuma, could only take the abuse. Akuma now changed his strategy to kicks, including a low shin kick into a knee into a crescent kick to the solar plexus and into another knee to the stomach with each one connecting with accuracy to finally finish his combo with an axe kick to the skull. Gouken leapt up only to receive a hurricane kick to the midsection. The speed and power of the hits were too great, seriously weakening him. A dragon punch came next launching Gouken higher into the air. Going into his low horse stance, Ryu and Ken who had arrived to witness the fight could see the chi that circulated within his enclosed fists. The sky began to turn red as Akuma unleashed the deadliest fireball technique that Messatsu could ever deliver…

"MESSATSU GOU HADO!!" he growled. The immense sphere of evil energy flew and met with deadly accuracy on the falling body of Gouken. Ryu and Ken could only look in horror as his body flew through the air a final time, engulfed in flames and give a thud as it met the ground.