Several blades of grass were clipped off at the roots as a powerful force channeled below the ground. The soil churned and then softened, moving a little to allow an energy charge to move downwards. Once more, the flowing power jolted from the soles of battered sneakers. Faded red on top, white shoelaces neatly tied into twin butterflies on either one. Those shoes glowed with a summoning force which was quiet and reflective in nature. As the meditation reached a conclusion, the blue aura sank back into its owner. The ground became still and without conflict to wait for another to come into contact with its serenity.
Terry Bogard eased his aching legs out of their stance and wiped a few drops of sweat out of his blue eyes. His practicing was finished for the day. It was peaceful out on the hilltops where he could just let everything go. To call upon his teachings and use the last technique of his martial arts school to heal the earth. Just minutes ago, his power wave had swept through the land. Overturning trees, blasting apart rocks and exploding into a pond miles away. It had been necessary to release that power to hone it and keep it fresh in his mind and body. But afterwards, Terry always took the time to revive what had been damaged, to rebuild what he had overthrown. When he returned to this spot, everything would be as it was and should be. Preserved for his next meditation session.
Hefting his meager bag of belongings over one shoulder, Terry began to walk towards his destination. Across the short distance of grass which took him to the roadside and then down that trail to the city a few miles away. Soon, he would be fighting again but this would be different than the battle he waged inside himself. It would be against an actual person, one that could fight back and present a formidable challenge. Terry looked forward to winning yet another match in the King of Fighters tournament. Not so much a match as the whole tournament. He felt the heaviness in his sac of worldly possessions, knowing that the added weight was from a solid belt. A symbol of his title as the World Champion of the King of Fighters tournament.
*You’re coming back with me,* Terry mused to himself. For him, fighting was everything but he didn’t approach it without some enthusiasm. He loved to fight, the sheer excitement of the screaming crowds and his next worthy opponent. But this never got to his head. He remained very humble in both his personality and way of life. But…that didn’t mean that he would relinquish his cherished title so easily. He would fight with all of his heart and spirit to see that it stayed in the center of his other keepsakes.
Five hours after Terry had passed through the area, another person followed in the same path that he had taken. He touched the ground where Terry had stood rigid for over an hour and frowned. Not warm enough. He was still far behind Terry. This made the man incredibly angry. *Never close enough. Always behind by a day. An hour. Five blasted minutes!* And he took his anger out on the ground beneath him, smashing it with a downwards elbow strike which shook its very foundation. A tiny crack appeared and traveled quickly towards the pond which shook with the impact. Along that fault line, more jagged lines fenced out from it, collapsing trees and sinking the ground in on itself. When it became silent again, the destruction which Terry had fixed was back again tenfold.
This man was far from happy.
**
It was always an awkward thing for Andy to be interrupted in the middle of his dates with Mai. First, he had to apologize to her, swearing on his honor that it was none of his doing. Why would he intentionally sabotage their evenings together? Of course he was too much of a gentleman to do such a thing. But, he did find her to be incredibly annoying and very loud. Whenever something threw a wrench into their plans, he felt relieved. Mai made him feel like a trapped man, one that was no longer a bachelor. She purposely warned (threatened) every female he came into contact with that he was already taken. Who would dare mess with a ninja woman like Mai?
And now, here was Joe standing outside of his apartment, waiting to be invited in. His friend sure had the best timing imaginable. Andy would have to repay him behind Mai’s back for his convenient appearance. It wasn’t that he didn’t like Mai because he paid her the highest respect. But he didn’t appreciate her unwanted advances and the way she fawned over him in public. Once, the woman had the gull to pretend she was his fiancee in a public setting. How embarrassing!
"What are you doing in California?" Andy pretended to act surprised. He was caught off guard but not necessarily in a bad way. If it hadn’t been Joe, Andy would have prayed for someone else.
Over by the couch, Mai sat up straight and crossed her legs. So much for their quiet evening alone. This always happened. Every single time she got him back to the apartment something went wrong. Whether it be pizza delivery or best friend Joe, they always wound up with a third wheel.
"Aren’t you gonna invite me in?" Joe pushed past Andy to peer inside. "Hey! Why’re the lights so low?" Then he noticed Mai who was gradually beginning to simmer over, her sharp fan weapons gleaming underneath the candlelight. "Oh…sorry guys, I didn’t know you were getting it on."
"Joe!" Andy hissed and elbowed him hard in the stomach. "Shut up and come in," he muttered under his breath. "If you leave now, I’ll kill you never mind Mai."
That was all the coaxing Joe needed. He hurried inside, shutting the door behind him and hanging his sweater on a hook. "It looks real comfy in here. Do you mind if I raid your kitchen?"
"Help yourself." The second Andy flopped down beside Mai, he had ten sharp fingernails digging into his arm. "Mai!"
"You said this was going to be our night. For us. Why is Joe here?" As she spoke, her politeness vanished to be replaced by hostility. Mai appeared to everyone as a sweet, beautiful woman who knew how to dress and act in public. She smiled, shook hands and even feigned flattery. Anyone who got on her bad side got to meet Ninja Mai, banshee woman. Not only would she yell and scream until her victim’s throat ran raw from pleading, she would also knock them senseless. The lady had one wicked, unapproachable temper. Interfering with her pursuance of Andy was high on her list of provocation.
Andy twisted out of her grasp to flash a phony smile for Joe’s benefit. His friend was gulping down a can of cold beer while balancing a bowl of peanuts under one arm. He began to stuff handfuls of peanuts into his mouth, washing them down with the beer. "So, what’re you guys up to?"
Before Mai could comment, Andy jumped in. "Not much. Are you visiting or just passing by?"
"A little of both." Joe waited, letting the silence creep into the room before he spoke again. "I heard that Terry is going to be in the next King of Fighters tournament." It came out as a casual statement but the delivery was wrong. Joe sounded as if he wanted to challenge Terry. The way that things usually turned out he never did end up fighting Andy’s brother. They fought with two different styles; one being Joe’s Thai kick boxing, another was Terry’s Hakkyoku-seiken martial arts. But even with their similar skills and strength levels, a match between them was still far from realization.
Andy and Joe had sparred a couple of times but not seriously so no major damage was ever done. However, it was Terry, not Andy, who possessed the title of world champion fighter. Even though they were brothers, neither of them had ever battled with the other. It would be only a matter of time before one of the three got a chance to see who was the toughest of them.
"Yeah. You know Terry, he can’t let the title go to anyone else. So long as one of us gets it. Although I think that I’m a better candidate this year. I’ve been practicing very hard."
"With me," Mai added. She had just a hint of satisfaction on her face. Neither Joe nor Andy chose to pick up on that suggestive topic.
"So, when will Terry be in town?"
There was that odd tone again. Joe obviously didn’t want his hidden agenda to be discovered but Andy knew better. The man was up to something… but what? "Why do I get the feeling that you didn’t come to see me? Are you and my brother scheming behind my back? Because if you are…"
"No!" Joe laughed nervously and finished off his beer. "I just haven’t seen him in ages, ya know?"
And then the doorbell rang.
A peculiar expression entered Joe’s face, as if he had been anticipating it. When Andy opened the door to find Terry lurking in the hallway, he nearly sprang out of his seat. But he remained there, acting all cool and composed. "Hey Terry! We were just talking about you."
"You were?" Terry patted his brother on the back and wandered on in. He witnessed Mai growing angrier at this new intrusion but only smiled. "Hello Mai, nice to see you again."
"Likewise." She gave Joe a dirty look when he motioned for Terry to sit next to him. Was Andy ever going to get it as soon as they were gone. She would take him by his bleach blond hair and nail him to the wall with her fans. The rest of his punishment would depend on how well he treated her.
"Are you all psyched for the tournament tomorrow?"
Terry grinned slyly at Joe, nodding. "This will be the third year in a row where I’ve won."
"Don’t look so smug!" Around came Andy to give his brother a friendly punch to the shoulder. He handed Terry a beer and one refill for Joe’s empty can. "I won’t be so easy to defeat this year. You’re in for a long workout."
But Terry only shrugged. "If you say so."
"Where are you staying?"
Once again, Terry shocked everyone by revealing that he had nowhere to stay. He hadn’t bothered to book a hotel room and planned on visiting the bar across the street later on. His priorities needed to be readjusted to include rest and relaxation among them. Andy could think of nothing more revolting than spending a night drinking away one’s sorrows in a bar. Full of smoke and brawls, hookers and even rowdy gangs. It was no place for a world champion martial artist.
Andy was on the verge of offering Terry the extra bedroom when Joe beat him to it. "I have plenty of space in my hotel room. It’s the penthouse suite and the hotel is only a block from here. We can watch movies and get drunk all night."
"Sounds fine to me. Except for getting drunk." He glanced at his younger brother. "I promised that I wouldn’t end up in gutters anymore. Sorry."
"No problem. If you’re going to stay sober then so am I." Joe was already getting up as Terry finished off his beer. "We should be going now. Tomorrow is a big day and a fighter needs his sleep. Besides…we interrupted the two love birds’ honeymoon." He winked at Mai.
"Pervert!" Mai folded her arms across her ample chest, blushing bright red after realizing she had been leaning over too far.
"Shut up, Joe!" Andy gave his friend a solid punch to the ribs and it was anything but friendly. He glared at Joe and pushed him towards the door. "If you ever make a joke like that again, I’ll kick you where the sun don’t shine." This threat was made quietly so that Mai would not hear.
"See ya tomorrow Andy. And here’s a little present from room service." He pressed a condom into Andy’s pocket, running to the elevator down the hall. His laughter had Mai confused, Andy pissed off and Terry neutral. Terry wasn’t one to cause trouble in relationships, his brother’s especially.
Andy shut the door behind them and swore under his breath. "Sorry Mai, you know that Joe can be a little childish at times. I think all the fame and popularity has gotten to him. Inflated ego." He made a wild gesture with his hands but gave up when he saw Mai’s face. "We can microwave our dinner…I’ll still eat it."
"I spent half the day frying in front of that stove. I even baked cookies! And you want to microwave it?!!"
*I’d rather feed it to the cats in the alley.* There was not a man alive who had sampled Mai’s cooking and not run away screaming. When was the last time Andy had gotten food poisoning from her sushi? *We had burnt chicken on Friday so…* Just four days ago. How he wished that Mai had offered the food to Terry. His brother was so afraid of offending her that he would eat it without any fuss. Joe, on the other hand, would insult her until she came a hair’s width away from castrating him. "Okay, we’ll eat it cold," he relented.
**
"Can you imagine what Mai is going to do to poor Andy?" Joe erupted into fits of hysterics as he poured Terry a glass of champagne. "He’ll be so terrified of her that he won’t even enter the tournament. When I win, I’ll be spending the afternoon scraping him out from under the bed."
"You’ve got to stop getting on her nerves." Terry took a sip of the champagne and frowned. "Where did you get this? It’s too sweet."
"Come off it! You’ve never had imported champagne before?" His hand shook as he refilled Terry’s glass from behind the bar. "Why don’t you try this one." He uncorked a small, unmarked bottle away from Terry’s view and dumped the contents into the glass.. Then he dropped a cherry in, watching it sink and then bob back up. "Here."
"Thanks." The liquid was warm and tingled the back of Terry’s throat as he swallowed it down. He could hold his liquor quite well and was going to be in bed soon so there was no harm in drinking Joe under the table. They had a bad habit of competing with each other, mostly when it came to alcohol. It was like some macho contest which neither of them had really grown out of.
Joe retrieved a glass and made himself comfortable on the stool beside Terry. "How are you holding up?" His question sounded too eager but Terry was feeling kind of tipsy. Only two glasses of champagne and his head had begun to pound. When Terry’s sea-blue eyes raised to Joe’s brown ones, his level of awareness was announced. The man was already wasted but Joe had to be certain. "Terry?" Joe reached over and moved his hand dangerously close to Terry’s face. He got no response, only a drowsy questioning murmur. So he used that hand to touch the baseball cap on Terry’s head. Still nothing. Clutching the cap with two fingers, he tugged it off and flung it over his shoulder.
"The room…it’s spinning." Terry’s words were slurred, his speech barely comprehensible.
"It’s your imagination." Joe shifted closer, ignoring the glass which slipped from Terry’s fingers and shattered on the floor. He cautiously placed one hand at the back of Terry’s head, feeling soft blond hair beneath his fingers. Those fingers curled to grasp Terry by his hair and pull him over to Joe’s waiting lips. The kiss immediately broke off when his friend attempted to shove him away. But Joe was not in a merciful mood. The penthouse suite had been booked months in advance. And his mixture of alcohol and sedatives had cost him plenty on the black market. He had gone to a lot of trouble to get Terry into his suite and intoxicated. This night would not turn into a failure. "Terry!"
"Wait…" Everything was swirling in front of Terry’s eyes. He knew that something was amiss and wanted Joe to back up a few paces.
"I’m sick of waiting." Joe grabbed Terry by his arm, roughly sealed Terry’s mouth with his own and kissed him again. There was no escape, not when Joe seized his friend’s neck and held him still. A part of him rationally explained away his unacceptable behavior. *Terry feels the same way about me. I know he does.* Still, there was a nagging voice at the back of his head which disagreed. *In the morning, he’ll be thanking me.* His tongue lunged into Terry’s mouth, greedily exploring it. There was no resistance now, only a sluggish response. Until Joe broke his resolve for air, Terry remained calm and detached. But only until then.
The first opportunity Terry got was used to tear his arm out of Joe’s hold. "We’re friends…" He shook his head frantically to clear the cobwebs but could not do so. "Just friends."
"NO!" Once more, Joe snatched Terry by his arm and would not let go. "You gave that bitch Sulia a chance and she didn’t have anything to offer you. And what about Lily? Nothing but one of Geese’s little whores. So why can’t you just admit that I am what you want? I’m better than those weaklings that just died on you. Admit it!"
Terry cleared his head fractionally and dug his fingers into Joe’s wrist. "Don’t Joe. You have no right…" He couldn’t fight the images which came to his mind. Both of his former girlfriends dead, buried deep within the ground. Each had died tragically, first Lily and then Sulia. It wasn’t safe to love anymore. One thing about Terry which shocked anyone who didn’t know him was his ability to shake off any drunken state. If his survival depended on being sober or someone else needed his aid, he would increase his level of awareness. This was one of those times. "You have no right to say those things about the dead," he growled. "I loved both Lily and Sulia…"
"You’re wrong, Terry. I have every right. I’m going to have you whether you’re drunk and unresponsive or struggling beneath me!"
That shot Terry’s mind out of the darkness and into a worse place. He grabbed Joe by his neck and slammed him face first into the bar. "You must be more far gone than me to be saying those things. I know that you’re my friend so I won’t hold it against you. But, I’m not going to stay here tonight…not after what you said." *I’m going back to stay with Andy. I should have done that in the first place.*
But Joe moved one of his feet back and hooked Terry’s ankle, pulling sharply to trip his friend. Terry only lost his balance for a millisecond but in that time, Joe had managed to twist around and grab both of his wrists. Nearly all of Terry’s fighting moves relied on his hands being free. The most common one was his burning knuckle which also happened to be very convenient and effective. Joe knew this and would use his knowledge of Terry’s fighting prowess against him. He kept Terry in front of him, refusing to release his grasp. "Did I say you could go? I made plans for us…special plans which means that you aren’t going to bail on me."
The tone that Joe used was dangerous as was the amount of pressure he applied to subdue Terry. His thumbs bit into soft flesh, coming very close to damaging the veins which were ground down under his nails. If he wanted to, he could slice those nails across the flesh and cut Terry’s veins with it. He would bleed to death but that was not what Joe desired.
With startling ferocity, Terry wedged one of his knees between them and struck Joe in the chin with it. When Joe’s teeth clashed together, an echoing pain throbbed up into his head, making everything dim. But he didn’t let go. He knew his opponent to be an incredibly good fighter. Maybe the best. This was one time where Terry would not come out on top. Joe had an edge on him, something which his friend had never trained for. This was not a fight but a struggle for supremacy. In such close quarters, neither of them could strike out with punches and kicks. There was hardly enough room to move with their given proximity. And Joe knew that Terry depended on his speed and agility just as much as his strength. If deprived of those things, the man was as good as dead.
"What’s the matter, Terry?" Joe whispered into Terry’s ear, watching his friend’s fingers grow numb from lack of circulation. "Aren’t you supposed to be a big, bad fighter? Show me your moves."
And Terry did just that, taking advantage of how close Joe was by sinking his teeth into the man’s shoulder. It phased him momentarily but Joe still held on. "I don’t need any special moves to defeat you." Terry prepared to use Joe’s greater height and weight against him. If he could goad him into losing his temper, Terry could turn him into a clumsy giraffe.
"Not those moves." His breath was coming in short gasps now as if he was having trouble inhaling.
*Keep him distracted.* "I was always better than you…even now. You should never underestimate your opponent." Terry pulled Joe towards him, calculating a throw maneuver as he did so. Suddenly, one of his wrists was released to drop limply at his side. The arm throbbed with the flow of circulation but he couldn’t get it to move.
"Is that so? I never figured you to be the boasting type. You must be trying to trick me. Nice try." And then Joe had his hand pressed to Terry’s jeans, snagging one finger on his zipper. "I’ve always wondered what you have that I don’t. Now I’m going to find out."
This was about jealousy? Terry moved his hand to Joe’s to stop him but found himself falling before he could do anything. Before he knew what was happening, Joe was straddling his waist and grinning. "This has gone too far!" Terry jerked his whole body upwards but couldn’t dislodge Joe. His hands were trapped above his head by one of Joe’s while the other worked on his belt. Unfastening it, pulling it free to work on the zipper of his jeans.
"We’ll decide what ‘too far’ is after I get these off." He stilled Terry’s legs by leaning back onto them. "I always did like the way you dress. It leaves little to my imagination." It was only partially true that Terry was most comfortable in tight jeans and form fitting shirts. They never showed more than the vaguest outline of his body. But Joe seemed to be getting off on his attire. "I prefer to see you without your clothing."
Terry was humiliated at that suggestion, at the sound of his zipper tearing and the hard part of Joe which stabbed into his thighs. "Get off of me now or I’ll…"
"You’ll what? Fight me? I don’t think you can. Prove me wrong but I believe that you just walked into a situation that you have no control over. Or maybe you want to scream. Go right ahead. Think of how it will look if someone comes in here to see you lying on the floor without your pants." Joe laughed quietly but there was no humor in his voice. His free hand began to slide beneath Terry to ease off his jeans, having difficulty getting them off without the use of both hands. "Besides, we’re on the top floor, the penthouse has only one suite and this is it. No one else has access to this floor besides me, the paying customer. Unless you call room service, we are going to be spending the night together."
How long had Joe been planning this? Terry had never noticed anything odd about his friend’s behavior in the past. Surely no visible signs of an attraction for him. Why was he doing these things? "Joe, listen to me. I think that you need help. Maybe you’re suffering from a nervous breakdown or something. I can help you…just let me go." That plea turned out to be very unconvincing.
"If you want to help, try keeping your legs together so that I can get your pants off. There will be plenty of opportunities to spread them later."
Terry turned a crimson red color and nearly screamed at his friend right then and there. "I’m warning you…either get off of me this instant or you will be extremely sorry for doing this to me. Don’t think that we will still be friends in another five minutes. If you don’t stop this nonsense, I won’t be responsible for my actions."
At that moment, Joe succeeded in yanking Terry’s jeans down to his knees while moving a bit to shift higher. "Do you like tight clothing?" Joe smiled as he slid a finger under the elastic of Terry’s briefs. "That’s one part of you that isn’t shy, huh Terry? You like to show it all off."
"GET OFF!!!" Terry tugged at his restrained hands and feet but could not gain an inch of leverage. "I’ll KILL you…I swear it!" His thrashing came to an abrupt end when Joe’s large hand covered him inside of his briefs. Pulling the material down with the descent of his hand, stroking the light curls with a finger before grasping Terry. And he grabbed Terry’s flesh roughly, immediately beginning to close it in a fist. Terry let out a low, terrified moan, unaware of the arousal which spread throughout his body.
"I thought that you would be familiar with the touch of a lover. Lily…Sulia…but then you never did have much time with them. They died so young but I’m sure that Lily had her fair share of men. Why you took to that slut, I’ll never know."
"Why are you doing this?" A single tear slid from the corner of his eye to fall onto the carpet which rubbed against his bare skin.
As Joe quickened his harsh stroking, he began to explain. "Because I love you."
"This isn’t love!" Terry continued his rebellion, trembling all over as an unwanted reaction began to build inside of him. "Joe…we can talk about this…please."
"Talk? You want to talk? It’s too late for that now. Why are you fighting this? I can tell that you want it as much as I do. You’re really enjoying this. See for yourself." With one tug, he had Terry half sitting, his arms wrenched above his head. Joe forced Terry to witness his own erection, to see how his body betrayed him. "I can make you feel things that you’ve never felt before. When I’m done, you’ll be begging for more."
"I don’t love you!" More tears fell from desperate eyes, searching for an exit. A way out of this mess which he had stumbled into. He never cried, ever, not even in front of Andy. It made him sick with guilt and embarrassment. Just when he thought it couldn’t get any worse, Joe’s fingers tightened. They squeezed almost painfully and Terry let out a sharp cry from that action. Then, he was writhing on the floor, hips rising off of the ground to release his essence. He lay there, panting, dizzy from his exertion and the building turmoil within him.
"Are you sure you don’t want to be with me?" His index finger circled Terry’s wetness lazily. "We can make your first time a night to remember." A shadow fell across Terry’s tear streaked face. "Did you think I wouldn’t know? You can’t fool me, Terry. I know more about you than even Andy. Never forget that." Then his finger found Terry’s lips and forced itself into his mouth. "Ever taste yourself before, Terry?" He laughed when Terry reacted violently, throwing his head to one side. But the taste still touched his tongue before he could eject Joe’s finger. It was both sweet and salty at the same time but he did not welcome it.
Terry shut his eyes to block out Joe’s taunts and seductive lures, to prevent himself from listening to the perversions whispered to him. When he squinted out to avoid Joe’s maddened gaze, he found himself flat on his stomach. His legs were being pushed apart as he was pulled back to be impaled by something very hard. Terry didn’t need to see to know that Joe had just penetrated him. Shoved his large cock inside to immediately begin to thrust in and out. Terry snapped. His eyes flung wide open, back arching agonizingly as he screamed out. The hands on his thighs pressed them open, holding him still for the next thrust. Keeping him accessible by positioning his buttocks upwards for the driving shaft which shot into him. Again and again. Terry’s mouth opened to voice a plea for mercy which turned into another scream. He felt as if he were being split in two.
When he found his hands were tied together with his own belt, Terry surmised that he must have blacked out. For how long? And what did it really matter? Nothing in the world could be worse than Joe violating him repeatedly. Making him accommodate the length and thickness of Joe’s organ by opening his legs further. But it didn’t help or soothe the fire burning along Joe’s path. The sensation of something so big and lethal rubbing inside of him, without lubrication or consideration. Joe was raping him as if he were no more than a wasted prostitute on the street. Expecting him to just lie there and take it. To keep his mouth shut as his entire being was shattered. But Terry couldn’t hold back his anguish and let it loose in one, long drawn out cry. In the same instant, Joe came, nearly destroying Terry with his final lunge into the depths offered to him.
All Terry saw after that was the belt, showing a distorted image of Joe’s face which was full of pleasure. It slowly faded into nothingness.