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King of Fighters II
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King of Fighters '00
Airport...A lone man (Seth) boards a plane bound for China...He checks the seat number on his ticket and arrives in first class.
"Thank you for riding JAR today. This is flight 149...."
The "Fasten Your Seatbelts" sign flashes on with the announcement, and the plane takes off for China.
Shortly after, a stewardess comes over and talks to Seth.
"Excuse me. Sir, would you like to watch a video?"
Seth contemplates turning her offer down but takes the video when he notices a picture of his dog, Chinchilla, engraved on the video she holds in her hand.
He thanks the stewardess and immediately pops the video into the player. A man appears on the screen.
The man's face is digitally blurred out.
"Your mission is to take custody of the individual known as ÔRon.' Naturally I want you to lead him here without him catching on. The fighting tournament known as ÔKOF' will soon begin. Since we have learned NESTS is likely to appear in this tournament and is probably involved, we want you to get inside. Two entry tickets have been prepared for you. The envelope is wedged under your seat."
Looking around to check no one is watching, he reaches down under the seat and pulls out a white envelope.
Seth opens the envelope to find two tickets and a wad of bills. He shoves it into the inner pocket of his suit.
"You are completely free to use any measures and methods you see fit. Should you make any mistakes, this agency will take no responsibility for you. This tape will destroy itself automatically."
The screen goes black, the video begins to smoke, and is destroyed.
China. The Hebei province. Two ninjas streak through the forest like a pair of falcons.
"At last...information about the inner sanctum of the Flying Brigands...!! If we strike them now...!"
The ninja in front drips with sweat and runs at full speed. A pig-tailed ninja with a black band around his arm pursues him. The ninja in front then turns back to toss a dirk at his pursuer. He senses that it hit its mark. Something crashes down in the forest behind.
"Yes...Gah...!!!"
The instant he turns back around he sees the ninja with the black band he thought he had just brought down seconds before standing in front of him.
His black band now covers his hand and glows with a ghostly aura. He lunges but the pursued ninja manages to narrowly avoid the attack. The wound is not lethal, but it leaves a wound on his chest. The ninja tosses down a smoke bomb and flees. The ninja with the black band does not chase him.
Seth walks around asking the locals the way to Hebei province.
But the people turn silent and appear to quake with fear at the mention of Hebei. Seth runs into a kindly old man, and succeeds in learning the way to Hebei. As he follows the road per the old man instructions, he finds himself in a remote area where not a soul stirs.
As he presses further on, he reaches the foot of a large waterfall. Here he finally runs into another human. But the figure totters from side to side. Seth senses something is afoot, and as he closes in while remaining unnoticed, he's able to see that the figure is a ninja. His wound looks shallow, but his face is pallid, drool runs from his mouth, and his eyes stare off into nowhere at nothing in particular.
As Seth looks on behind a boulder, a gush of blood suddenly issues from the ninja's mouth along with a scream.
"!!!...What in blazes...is going on...?!"
The ninja collapses into an unrecognizable mass. When Seth runs to check out the ninja, he notices him breathing slightly and his mouth is gasping for air.
"...P...Poison...Flying...Brigands...Bwaaaagh!"
As he finishes, the ninja heaves up another torrent of blood and expires.
"Flying Brigands! ...I knew it...!!!"
At that instant the man with the pig tail and the black band appears.
"You, too, know the name of the Flying Brigands and thus must die..."
The man, without warning, attacks.
"Hoo, hoo, hoo...You are as fast as they say.... Very well...let's dispense with the pleasantries, eh?"
For a while, the two exchange fierce blows. Seth lets his guard down for a second, looses his balance, and falls flat on his back.
"It's over...."
A magical aura issues from his band and the man aims at Seth's chest.
"It ends here!"
Seth makes a special move of his own and barely manages to evade the attack.
"Hoo, hoo, hoo...So that was the Poison Punch of ÔLin,' one of Four Devas of the Flying Brigands, was it...?"
"...Why? ...Why do you...know my name...?"
"Hoo, hoo. I know of your code, too. All who know anything of the ÔFlying Brigands' must die-that's why no one knows anything of your inner sanctum and the name "Flying Brigands" remains unknown to the rest of the world. You're a real crack band of assassins, you are. It appears that your Four Devas are quite a force to be reckoned with."
Lin is confused by the inquisitive Seth. He cannot fathom how this man knows so many details concerning the inner sanctum of the Flying Brigands.
"...I will not let you live...."
"Just why do you think I know so much about you and your group anyway?"
Lin attacks Seth, ignoring the question, but Seth, unfazed, continues his story.
"Just where is your chief ÔRon' now, anyway?!!!"
Lin's attacking hand stops.
"...How? ...How do you know of Ron, too...?!!! Just who are you...?!!!"
"Wouldn't you like to know?"
"...Enough to wait until I kill you...."
"Very well...You're chief is now missing, isn't he...? I know exactly where your chief Ron is right now."
"...Where...?"
"...Ah, ah, ah. First I want you to agree to a few conditions of mine."
"...Don't mess with me! ...If you don't tell me quickly, you shall die...very slowly."
"Tut, tut, tut...Kill me, and you'll never find out where Ron is. Can you live with that?"
"...Why, you...."
Lin must resign himself to the fact that the inner sanctum of the Flying Brigands is on the brink of total collapse. Just who is this ÔRon' person anyway...?"
"I want you to enter the fighting tournament called KOF with me. Then if we go on to win, you will find out just who Ron is. You'll be able to see with your own eyes."
"...Impossible. ...I will kill you...!"
A few days later, in an abandoned baseball field...there is no sign of anyone and steel girders are strewn all about.
"He should be arriving soon...."
Benimaru glances at his wristwatch as he mutters this.
"Benimaru! Why did you ask me to meet me in this creepy place? This place...gives me the heebie-jeebies!"
"...I've summoned someone for whom a place like this is appropriate."
Benimaru bruskly replies as he lights his cigarette.
"Benimaru...I've been meaning to ask you this, but...is the reason you called me here...could it be?"
Benimaru produces two tickets to KOF and passes one to Shingo.
"So they did come, did they...?!!! But just why are you waiting for K' in a place like this?"
Benimaru exhales a puff of smoke and answers,
"We're not joining up with those clowns this time around...."
"Huh? Then who are the other two members...? Kusanagi still missing, and...."
"This time I'm going to choose the members I want. One of them is an old comrade of mine, and the other is a rather touchy type it seems.... He's the reason why we're meeting here. He seems to prefer...out of the way places."
Benimaru has a bad feeling that something wicked is about to happen.
Crashing scrap metal clatters in the distance. Shingo shrinks back in fear. The figures of two men suddenly appear from behind a steel column.
"Hey, Benimaru...Long time, no see, eh? ...I'm honored to be invited to join your team. Looks like we're going to bust some heads together again!"
Seth extends his right hand, giving Benimaru a firm handshake. Lin stands behind him.
"So this is the guy...?"
Benimaru asks Seth, trying to keep the question out of Lin's earshot.
"...You should keep your distance from him...I told you about him before, but this guy's necessary to find Kyo Kusanagi and crush NESTS...."
"What about Kyo...? Have you come up with any leads?"
"...All I've been able to come up with is that he's probably going to enter KOF as usual...but everything will become apparent once we enter, I guess...."
"I guess so...."
Benimaru shoots a glance at Lin. Just at that moment, Shingo innocently approaches Lin to greet him-he shouldn't have done this.
"Uh...My name's Shingo Yabuki!!! Nice to meet you. What's that band for?"
The moment Shingo tries to touch Lin's band, Lin's eyes begin to glare brightly and he motions to attack Shingo.
"Cut that out...!"
Benimaru quickly snags Lin's attacking hand in the nick of time.
"...Let go...."
u"They call me Benimaru.... Don't be messing with my team. ...Do you got me?"
Seeing Lin all worked up over his interrupted attack, Benimaru senses that he won't be able to avoid a showdown with this clown.
As predicted, a strange aura bursts from his hand and Lin attempts to run Benimaru through.
In an instant, Benimaru zaps Lin with his Electrigger move, rendering him temporarily paralyzed.
"...!!!..."
"...Never get any strange ideas like that again, got me?"
"That was magnificent, Benimaru!"
Seth is impressed at the speed of Benimaru's lightning swift judgment.
"But...a few ticks later or if my Electrigger move was late, I would have been dead. It seems that he wasn't that serious. To take a full-force Electrigger move and still be alive... You sure brought one tough cookie to our little party, Seth...."
As a matter of fact, this is the first time Lin has tasted defeat outside his band of Flying Brigands.
Along with Lin's animus toward him going up a notch, so too does his respect for Benimaru's moves.
"...Hmph...fascinating...."
Lin lets out an audacious laugh.
It looks like this year's KOF is going to be another doozy. An it's about to begin.
...Meanwhile, Shingo, the reason fro all this commotion, stands petrified, alone in the middle of the abandoned baseball field.
"Mr. Benimaaaaaaaru! Help me! I'm scared!"
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King of Fighters '01
He has been followed for a long time.
But that is of no import to him.
If they come, he will crush them.
And that's all there is to it.
"Hmph. What a tremendous presence... Now I know why Benimaru was so on edge."
The man realizes he's been found out. The reason he knows this is because the red-haired man has gradually begun to head for more secluded alleyways.
When he approaches a shadowy blind alley, the red-haired man turns to face him.
"What...do you want...?"
Hearing his target's voice, the word "darkness" comes to Seth's mind. Darkness...the thing all humans fear primordially and continue to hate. Yes, this red-haired man seems to be "darkness" its very self.
Although there is a odious dryness in his mouth, Seth addresses the man.
"Iori...Yagami, is it? I've been looking for you...for quite a long time."
The area surrounding the confrontational Yagami begins to flicker as if it were shimmering with heat.
"Who are you?"
"Forgive me for my belated self-introduction. The name is Seth. It's a pleasure."
"...I don't care who you are...What's your business with me?"
"Pretty harsh ther, Yagami. Do you know that you've been invited to this year's King of Fighters?"
"...So, what's it to you?"
The surrounding space becomes even more violently warped. Seth feels like groaning within but continues to speak.
"If I told you that Kyo Kusanagi will be entering, what would you say to that?"
"Kyo Kusanagi?"
The expression on Yagami's face changes. The surrounding area simultaneously warps as if time and space were caving in on itself.
A normal human would probably have died suffering from these brutal emissions of Iori's psyche...the very power of Iori Yagami....
"...You're entering on my team...Did you know that?"
"...With you...?"
"That's right. And there are two more after that. ...So how about it?"
"...Yeah, I could enter with you...however...."
"What?"
"If you stand in my way, I'll crush you on the spot!"
Just then the wave of energy rushes like a violent gale from Yagami's body, causing Seth to involuntarily kneel on one knee.
An instant later, Seth looks up and notices the form of Yagami is no where to be found. Seth rises, revolves his neck around two or three times, and mutters...
"...Wow, that was intense. Can that guy be human?"
The amused voices of people enjoying themselves with the crashing of the waves can be heard all around.
It appears that it's another crowded day at the indoor pool. A scene that has little to do with combat fills the field of vision of a girl chatting on her cell phone.
"Yeah. I understand. I intend to meet you today, too. See you later."
She sprawls out on her mat after she hangs up.
"Ah, this is the life..."
She lays down her splendid limbs. A group of men begin to gather around her, transfixed by her charms. But she appears to be completely indifferent to their gaze as if dismissing the gaze of these men, and fends off their propositions.
"Wow! Now that's quite a view."
Emerging from the group of men, a single man calls to her in a particularly loud voice. The group of men assume he's intending to claim the girl as his own, but nonetheless scatter and disappear, overwhelmed by the man's well-sculpted physique.
"You've still got it."
"Oh, when did you get here, Ramon?"
The woman rises up and drinks from a glass of juice as she sits down in a chair.
"Well, when Vanessa calls, and we'll always have last year's tournament, too."
"Ooh, it gives me tingles when you put it that way. Well, I know it's a little out of the blue, but we decided on the final member of our team for this tournament."
"Oh, really. Who may that be?"
"Iori Yagami."
Ramon screws up his face when he hears Yagami's name.
"That's quite a big-shot addition...Hope we can handle him."
"Well, I think we'll manage something, don't you? And he does have more than enough of the power we require."
Vanessa purrs, pouring some more juice into her glass as she looks back toward Ramon.
"Well, I don't care...."
Ramon motions to receive the glass.
"By the way, what time is it now...Oh, no! The press conference is going to start! Vaya con dios; until we meet at the tournament!"
Ramon disappears in a flash, without even drinking his juice.
"Oh, you're always in such a rush...Well, so it goes. Things look like they're going to get interesting."
Vanessa gulps down her juice and makes her exit.
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King of Fighters XI
In a certain bar in Southtown, just as the clock struck 6:02, the back door opened. Though the bar had just opened, the refreshing scent of lime and gin wafted through the air.
"...You're two minutes late," said a beautiful young woman, as she sat looking at the clock with her elbow propped on the counter.
Not even a full day had passed since these three agents had been called upon to participate in KOF and investigate it. The actual client was unknown, but since the request had been delivered through Seth, it seemed to be on the up-and-up, and was therefore worth investigating. A few minutes ago, Vanessa and Ramon had arrived, followed shortly after by Blue Mary, a.k.a. Mary Ryan.
Ramon gave Mary a stern look, which looked thoroughly out of place on him. "Come on, now, chica," he said, "We could've been killed in those two minutes."
Vanessa nodded in assent. "I'm not fond of being overly serious, but you're cutting it kind of close, you know?"
Though she was unused to being reprimanded, much less by two people at once, Mary removed her jacket and sat on the stool next to Ramon. "I'm sorry. It won't happen again."
On hearing that, the two both seemed to relax. As free agents, it wasn't their place to interfere with the work of others, but each of them had duties to fulfill. This particular job could prove life-threatening.
Even so, after confirming a few things and a light toast, the conversation slipped into idle chat. Seth had conveyed the particulars of this investigation to each of them earlier. Each also understood the others' fighting styles. They were to participate in the tournament as a team, with the tacit implication that, once the job was done, they would be free to go about their respective business. In other words, they were all adults here.
Vanessa had already had more than few beers, and she had called the bartender over, explaining to him the recipe for a cocktail. It was an interesting sight, since she typically drank nothing stronger than beer. "You take three ounces of gin, one ounce of lemon juice, two teaspoons of sugar and blue Curacao. Then, get the sparkling wine and..."
"That's a ‘Blue Mary,' right?" replied the bartender.
Though she wasn't really listening in, Mary heard it anyway, and she recalled the recipe. Or rather, she more remembered the cocktail itself...
"You know that one?" she asked Vanessa.
Behind the counter, the shaker was already giving off a cool, refreshing sound. Vanessa returned a cheerful smile as she replied. "Yeah, someone taught it to me at school back home. His name was--"
Mary finished for her. "...Butch."
"Yes, Butch," Vanessa continued, slightly startled. "You know him?"
The bartender poured the contents of the shaker into a wine glass full of ice, then filled it to the top with sparkling wine.
"He was young, but he was a great teacher for his age," Vanessa went on. "Always wanted to join the Secret Service, as I recall. I wonder how he's doing these days."
"...He's dead." Mary said flatly.
The room suddenly grew very quiet. The only sound was the faint popping of the bubbles in the wine, leaving the atmosphere dark and cold.
"Butch used to work with my father," said Mary. "They were chief bodyguards of the President."
Mary spoke in a barely-audible whisper, reciting the old newspaper story. The assassination attempt on the President several years ago. The parade where it was almost carried out. How the two Secret Servicemen had given their lives that day. And how close Mary had been to them...
"Oh yeah!" interjected Ramon. "I remember that. It was all over the papers in Mexico." The condensation on the glass in his hand slid down its surface, soaking the coaster.
Mary continued, barely noticing his comment. "Butch was the one who gave me this leather jacket. He taught me Commando Sambo as well. It took me a long time to get over it."
Mary smiled, but even the most cursory glance from a casual observer would reveal that it was forced. The bartender silently continued polishing the glasses behind the counter, but turned an inquisitive ear toward the conversation.
"...I think I've been slacking off a bit lately," Mary muttered after some time.
"Hey, don't worry about earlier," Ramon said. "We're not Japanese, so it's not like two minutes is a big deal."
Vanessa nodded. "Yeah. We were just picking on you... you know, to lighten the mood a bit."
Mary silently shook her head. She hadn't forgotten how to smile like she did back then. But even so... "I think I've still got a little way to go before I'm back to normal."
The front door suddenly opened with a mighty clatter, and several customers came in, filling the place with the sound of footsteps. Gradually, the bar grew ever more crowded. The agents' moods were still just a little too dark from the stories of the evening. The three spoke to no one as they stood up.
As they left, they saw that night had fallen completely, and the street was dark. The walls everywhere were crowded with lamps which lit the way.
"What say we work on getting you back to normal tomorrow morning?" Ramon said. "I know a place nearby where they sell some honest-to-goodness authentic tequila."
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King of Fighters III
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Addes
The host of a garden party of philanthropists at a certain mansion asks Seth, "So, what do you do?"
Seth ponders a bit, and then says:
"To put it simply... I guess you'd say I'm a crime fighter."
"Well that is nice."
Taking Seth's reply as a joke, the lady's pudgy body begins to quiver with laughter.
Seth mainly does work for the good of society. His presence here tonight speaks of that.
This old lady's husband is a drug lord who fronts for Southeast Asian insurgents.
His wife is most likely ignorant of this. If she knew most of the wealth that she's devoted to philanthropy came from poppies, she'd not be acting so naively.
While chatting up the lady, Seth shifted his finger with a camera inside its ring to get proof to put her husband away. If this ample proof, got in the party's confusion were sent to the authorites, she'd never see her kind hubby again.
Seth shakes his head, pressing his temple.
"I guess I've had a little too much to drink."
It was not his head but heart that hurt for this lady who failed to see through his lies.
"Oh, you poor thing."
"Will you excuse me? I'd like to take in some of the evening air to clear my head."
"Go ahead. The night is still young, after all."
He bows to take leave of his credulous conversation-lover and the party-goers and heads for the vicinity of the dark pond.
"Would you like a cool glass of water, sir?"
A tall waiter supporting a silver tray approaches Seth as he stares into the pond. Seth, looking behind him, squints happily.
In the next moment, the two bow to each other meaningfully.
"Thank you."
Gulping down the well-chilled water, Seth removes his ring to toss it in the emptied glass and return it to the tray.
"-One more thing."
"What is it, sir?"
"Please kindly tell the madam I became sick and went home, would you? Also add that I'll make up for any discourtesy later."
"Yes, I will do so."
The waiter bows deeply as Seth leaves him behind and takes his leave of the madam's party.
"Mission accompolished... I guess."
By tomorrow the gardens in which the guests from the world of politics and finance partied wil be filled with police.
Among these will be the waiter with his badge on a frayed suit.
And the madam in a pricey gown who will be staring blankly as her husband's taken into custody.
"Forgive me, madam. This is the cost of social justice."
Seth tears off his tight ascot and slings his tuxedo over his shoulder, looking back a little sadly at the ormented gate.
What had bought Seth closer to Fate, the powerful Southtown boss, was a need to approach the Addes syndicate that led the rising Mephistopheles.
It wasn't as if they had made a contract, but the two had come to a certain understanding.
Seth would provide Fate with information on Mephistopheles he would otherwise be unable to get, and Fate would shakes things up for Mephistopheles in turn.
Fate's objective was to get rid of Mephistopheles and its boss, Duke from Southtown while Seth intended to drive the syndicate to its destruction while and smoke out the upper echolons of Addes in the process.
The two entered a calculated relationship, using and being used by the other, which went well, at least up to a point.
Their only miscalculation was Fate being assassinated before Seth reached his objective.
After the party Seth walks back to his office, buffeted by the evening breeze, and finds a white envelope waiting for him on his office's glass table.
Seth heaves a deep sigh as he looks over the letter with its seal sporting the scythes of the reaper and raptor wings.
Seth, having been once again invited to KOF, surnises Addes is behind this decides to join- this may be his chance.
But those twins may also have arrived at the same decision.
Alba and Soiree Meira, raised by Fate as if they were his own sons, have crossed paths before.
Tossing away his tuxedo jacket, Seth tumbles onto the couch.
"A pro never lets his personal feelings into his mission..."
But this belief does not help him get used to the glare of those two thirsting for revenge.
He knows Alba and Soiree believe Seth used Fate like a tissue, only to toss him away once he was through with him.
This, of course, isn't true, but Seth sees Alba's logic and he's too young to see the truth.
"...I know I will always be in their sights for letting Fate die like that, but..."
He picks up the bottle of bourbon on the table, takes a swig from the bottle, and then takes out a sigh.
Seth looks up at the dark ceiling and begins to mumble.
How can he square thing with those two twins remains a riddle he just can't solve.
It wasn't the first time Seth had to sacrifice something for the sake of the mission.
Even so, he never quite got used to its bitter aftertaste.
Even more, this time a person's life had been sacrificed.
With the death of one, the lives of many had been saved. His life was not wasted.
But, sophisms like this don't hold true for the family of the dead.
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