On Pheonix Wings Ch. 3 - Of Unsure Futures
By Elaine

So many times, so many places... Faces and names converging at one single point...

She saw through the eyes of so many, and still she did not understand..

Sometimes she succeeded and could recollect the peices of her old life...

Sometimes she failed and her last dying breaths were spent contemplating her failure...

There were too many memories...

Too many keepsakes that were not hers... Too much... Joy and sorrow... Comfort and Pain... Love and Hate... Good and Evil... Light...merciful light... Dark...unending dark...

Chun Li woke in a sweat, the pale flowered sheets clinging to her body. She noted, with slight annoyance that it was 3 in the morning, 4 more hours till her meeting. The important one. The one that would decide her future at Interpol.

D*mn, of all the days to have that nightmare, of all the times, it had to be now. She sighed and tried to rub away the dark circles under her eyes, a result of the dreams that had hounded her for weeks now. Weeks...how long had it been since she had been able to sleep in peace. Way too long... she swung herself off the bed and walked to the bathroom. Something told her that sleep was not going to come again...she might as well start getting ready...Rubbing away her weariness...she glanced outside her window at the beautiful moon giving away to the light of day, a sight she'd become all too familiar with the last few weeks. She sighed again. This was not going to be a good day... she could tell.

"Welcome my brothers and sisters,"

Syrena's voice boomed through the room, her monstrous mask amplifying her voice. She smiled slightly under the mask, sharp teeth biting down on sharp teeth. She lifted her beautiful human hands to silence the room and bowed to each of the four corners.

The West - the Ones of the Ash, a clan that dwelt in the shadow, who's base was here in Osaka. Their leader was a boy named Huo, the 53rd rendition of the King of Ashes. He nodded back arrogantly, dark gray eyes flashing. The East - The Akadela Clan. Ninjas. Their base was off the coast of Nagoya. The twin leaders had yet to be found. The tutors, the ones chosen to integrate them into the Akadela were waiting anxiously. Regin, the high tutor, looked slightly nervous as she bowed and glanced around the room. The South - The Avataruu...He was a man of many faces...and more power than what anyone could wish for. He walked freely over his master's kingdom, going where he wished and when he wished. For now, he had taken the shape of a blond, young man with glasses. He went by the name of Charles Nash.

And The North - She faced the small shrine that symbolized her presence in the four and bowed. There were two empty chairs beside her, waiting to be filled with the worthy few who would serve as her right and left hands.She faced the room again and addressed the other members. "Welcome Brothers and Sisters..." she repeated. "It has been too long since our last meeting and unfortunately, We have suffered quite a lot of delays. The initial sacrifice in Rio de Janeiro was postponed under mysterious circumstances..." The Ones of the Ash shuffeled nervously. "And one of the seven has already been contacted...reports say that three are already in place and waiting..."

A loud murmuring echoed through the room.

"And what do you suggest we do about it?" Huo, the King of Ashes asked.

"First, let those who are responsible for the initial sacrifice actually do their job," Shanaya, one of the other Akadela tutors, replied, glaring at the boy King.

"At least we have found our leaders, where are those precious twins of your's?" Huo shot back.

"Insolent boy, do you dare go against the Akadela?" Regin growled, drawing her katana.

"You actually believe that you can go against the King of Ashes? Foolish woman, you shall die for that..." Huo replied, twin swords appearing like smoke in his hands.

"That will be enough," sighed a voice from the South. The Avataruu stepped out into the light.

"I am sure the High Lord of Chaos does not wish for his factions to be at war with each other, or at least not for now." He gestured toward Syrena. "We have been falling behind so far, let that stop here, or we may be are overwhelmed by the Seven before the portal can even be opened."

Syrena bowed in thanks as the room went quiet again. "Our course of action is simple. We have already lost the gaijin boy. I need to see the japanese girl killed as soon as possible..."

Huo bowed and left. His followers whisked away behind him.

"May the Akadela have thy master's help in finding your leaders. I suggest you double your efforts..."

Regin nodded and in a flash, the Akadela had dissapeared from the room.

"Avataruu, I request your help. My Yazuka have failed in retrieving the secret bases of those who oppose us," Syrena began.

"I shall see to it that this information is yours," Charles Nash replied, grinning slightly.

"See to it that your right and left hands are found, I believe you shall be needing them soon." and he was gone.

Syrena was left alone. She treasured the silence for a moment, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. It wasn't long before a small, insescent ringing plagued the sweet solitude. She sighed and took out her cell phone. "Yes?"

"Hullo? Miss Syrena? This is Birdie... I've got a few buggers who might wonta join you," She smiled. "Perfect, come...I'll meet you in my Osaka residence,"

*~*~

Sometimes she wondered why she even bothered. It was so tiring, staying up all night in order to present one little request, only to have it rejected. Working to death on a case, only to have it handed to someone else. Risking her life almost daily, only to watch her peers get promoted.

"D*mn it, somebody up there hates me," Chun Li muttered to herself.

It had been the day from h*ll. The day she was supposed to present her work on the Shadowloo. Thinking back, she must have sounded like a lunatic. After all who would've believed half the things she had talked about. Psycho Crushers, hovering maniacs, mind control, mutants, the succubus, vampires...who would've understood any of what she had been through during the past few years? The board hadn't. They had forced her into a three month vacation, claiming she was too stressed out to continue the case. And because of all the stupid nightmares she had been having, she had been too tired to argue her side better.

She sighed again, feeling extremely weary. Perhaps all she needed was a cup of coffee. She ducked into a nearby tea house and sat down in one of the quaint chinese style seats. Almost immediately, someone sat down right across from her.

"Mind if I take this seat?"

Yes. In fact I do mind. Leave me alone. "No,"

"Thanks,"

She studied the person out of the corner of her eye. He seemed to be in his early twenties, with long dark bangs covering most of his well defined face. He wore the traditional chinese garb that sort of reminded her of Wong Fei Hong. Weird.

"So," he said, apparently trying to be conversational. "Do you come around here often?"

"Yeah," Dumb kid trying to hit on her, couldn't he see she was way out of his league.

"Hmmm, seems to be a rather nice place. The drinks are okay," he glanced around, "But it's rather lacking in privacy,"

You're one to talk. "I suppose,"

"I would rather we converse in another place, if you don't mind,"

She looked at him. Very handsome kid, but way too forward. "I'm sorry, but I'm trying to order my drink,"

His eyes narrowed warningly. "Look Chun Li, I'm not really giving you a choice,"

What? "How the h*ll did you know my name?"

"I-I can't tell you right now," He said, grabbing her wrist. "There are too many of THEM here, and I am afraid of them hearing..."

Who in the world did he think he was? Chun Li suddenly realised that she could be talking to a raving mad lunatic...a stalker even...she seemed to get a lot of those these days...

"Let go of me," she growled. She tried to twist her arm out of his grip. He was very strong.

Uh oh...

"Chun Li, please...we have to go..." He now had both her arms locked in his hands.

"Let GO of me,"

"No, Chun Li...trust me,"

"Trust you? I don't even know you!"

He released her arms and put his hands on her face, forcing it upwards. "Look into my eyes, do you know me now?"

She grimaced. There wasn't much choice. Slowly, she brought her eyes up to meet his...They were brown and crystal clear, not a sign of madness in them. In fact, they seemed so familiar, so warm, so ancient...

"Gen?" Ohmygod. All went black.

*~*~*~

It couldn't be. It couldn't be. It couldn't be. Things like this just didn't happen...of course, she had thought that things like Psycho maniacs bent on getting all the warriors of the world brainwashed didn't happen either, but that wasn't the point. Rejuvination was different. Rejuvination was a thing that all people wished for. And wishes like those never come true. Yet there he was, looking younger than her and as powerful as ever...she shuddered.

"I'm sorry, I should have come up with a better reason for you to go with me," The young man with Gen's eyes said as she came to. He was a tenor, his voice rich and soothing to hear."It was stupid of me to think you'd just come along." She shuddered once more. How long had it been since she had fainted. Probably a few hours now. She had spent the last hour or so staring at him. The time before that was blank. She had probably entered a state of shock. Stop staring. It's very rude to stare. She closed her eyes and slowed down her breathing. Slowly, she opened them again to observe her surroundings. They were pretty bare, she was sitting on a futon propped up against the wall. In one corner was a desk and a book. In the middle was a slightly shattered stone. And right in front of her, the young man with Gen's eyes was fidgeting nervously.

"Where are we?"

"The training hall, a room you've never been in." He answered, seemingly relieved that she was speaking.

"Why?"

"I'm afraid THEY'LL hear if I was in any other room. This is the only place I know of that is protected..."

"They?"

"Servants of the Lord of the End,"

"What?"

"Look, you're tired. Perhaps we should talk about this later," He headed for a pressure point on her neck. She caught his hand just in time. After all, he was strong and fast, but so was she.

"Gen, or...at least I think you're Gen," she said, moving his hand away from her shoulder.

"You look like you're twenty, you talk constantly of a 'THEM' and now you're trying to put me to sleep?" she sighed. "Can't you at least tell me something? Don't I at least deserve that?" Gen withdrew his hand and sat down quietly next to her and chuckled. "We never get what we feel we deserve. It's another sad fact of life," He stared down at his hands for a minute before continuing. "Still...How should I begin...Remember when you were young, I used to tell you stories of people who controlled wind, water, fire and earth?"

"Yeah," she smiled slightly at the memories. How long had it been since she had last heard them? It seemed so distant now...

"How much do you remember?"

"Well, there were seven of them. Four of the first ones died fighting evil...um...The sun..."

"The daughter of the sun,"

"Yeah, she lives somewhere in Japan, um... under the misty mountains or something," she breathed in deeply, trying to refresh the memory of something that had been told to her so many years before, "The son...of the moon resided in...China. Under the Valley of the Waters,"

"The Three Gorges," Gen clarified.

"Hundreds of feet under it, I used to be worried that the dam the government was building there would destroy his home, but nothing has happened to him so far..."

"Wait a minute, what do you mean the dam would destroy his home?" She asked . "It's not like it's real or anything..."

Gen sighed quietly. "I believe that the future events will challenge what you hold real. It did that to me when I was your age,"

"You are my age," Chun Li put blandly.

"Why, so I am," He chuckled and looked down at his hands again. Not a trace or wrinkle on them.

They tightened into fists. Gen laughed sadly and stood up next to her. "You forgot to mention the child of earth. The one that would call the seven together," He took her hands and held them close to his chest. "It's name is the raven and it has told me that the Dark is coming, and you are being called..."

"Oh please," Chun Li rolled her eyes. "Let me guess, next you're going to tell me that YOU'RE the raven,"

"No," He shook his head solemnly. "I am the Son of The Waters, And I have been that for as long as time itself..."

As Chun Li stared up into his unsmiling face, one thought crossed her mind. Today was not a good day, she could tell.