Log:Cycle of Vengeance

2015/06/10 	 Shoro Yulyeong

1

One of the last organized crime busts Shoro was involved with had someone who was willing to talk with minor persuasion. Shoro's reputation is getting around. He told Shoro very quickly that a big deal would be going down on this day, at this time at the port, to solidify an alliance between the Yakuza and the Bratva to shore up against the Triads. He doesn't know what though. Just rumblings he heard, since he's just one of the foot soldiers.

It's ticking on to 1am, and a few black SUVs have pulled up in a maze of cargo containers. Five in total. Two SUVs seem to stand off against the three.

One of the last organized crime busts Shoro was involved with had someone who was willing to talk with minor persuasion. Shoro's reputation is getting around. He told Shoro very quickly that a big deal would be going down on this day, at this time at the port, to solidify an alliance between the Yakuza and the Bratva to shore up against the Triads. He doesn't know what though. Just rumblings he heard, since he's just one of the foot soldiers.

It's ticking on to 1am, and a few black SUVs have pulled up in a maze of cargo containers. Five in total. Two SUVs seem to stand off against the three.

Shoro sneaks atop the containers, and watches below. He keeps a keen ey on the grouping. ((Unusual..) he thinks to himself..

As Shoro watches below, the men in the two SUVs start to climb out. From his vantage point, he can tell they're Yakuza. The soldiers are heavily armed with automatic weapons. The doors to the three cars start to open as well as men start to pour out. They look European. Most likely Bratva.

Just as the two sides begin to walk towards each other cautiously...

The heel of a booted foot cracks into the side of Shoro's head from an opponent behind him.

A kick to the head is nothing to laugh at..not when it was such a big it..it felt like a Meta just kicked him, it sends him flying spinning but just before he flies over the edge, he grabs the ledge and is able to swing back up up on the edge and land on his feet in a ready position..

Facing off with Shoro is a man in a white bodysuit of tech armor with a leather jacket and hood drawn up. He has a featureless white helm that partially reflects his surroundings. He has a reel of monofilament wire on his hip, some cylinder attachments to his feet, and some power bracers. The design is very familiar...

The design marks the man as a Neo-Sung operative.

Things just.got.real...

Shoro steps closer to the Neo-sung pretender, He hisses softly, "Are you Neo-sungs answer to me?"

The opponent's hand goes towards the reel of wiring at his right hip, like a gun-slinger preparing to draw. "A Shin-Sony spy should know the answer to that. But I'm not here on Neo-sung's orders." His english is very good. His accent is faint and causes some clipping with his words. It's like he studied english by watching American films to mimic the accent.

Shoro says under his breath, "I'm not with Shin-sony..your intel is very old. He closes and feints a strike for the head, with a simultaneous ridge hand to the ribs of the man in white.

As he closes his fist finds nothing but air...as the strike flies through the body..."Good trick.." he hisses.

The opponent phase shifts out of reality, becoming semi-transparent at the feint. Shoro's hand goes through his ribs as if they were air. "It doesn't matter if you're with them or not. I'm here to make you answer for the deaths you caused attacking Neo-Sung," he hisses.

There's a familiar popping sound that's a different octave from Shoro's as Yulyeong's fold engine initiates. Yulyeong ports back ten meters and raises his fist towards Shoro. A sparking prong shoots from it towards Shoro.

As the prong shoots out, Shoro easily slaps it away, before it can make any true contact with him. He is on the defensive, but only for a second...

Yulyeong fires off another pronged dart at Shoro.

Another dart flies at him as Shoro spins left blocking the pronged attack again, using the momentum, he fires a spinning low kick towards the knees of the mercenary..

Yulyeong's form starts to become transparent again as he sees the low kick coming for him.

Shoro waits...he's tricky, but its a matter of time..he waits for the next attack..

Yulyeong reaches for the reel at his belt and pulls at the string there. The wire is thin yet weighted, and the reel starts spinning rapidly to unspool it. He suddenly becomes solid again as he ports with a POP and appears another 10 meters back, leaving a twenty meter cap between him and Shoro. The monofilament is swung overhead a few times before released, sending it sailing around in an arc towards Shoro.

The weighted filament wire slices the air just over Shoro's head as he ducks. "I will not rest until you pay for the lives you took!" he growls. His voice echoes down to the meeting below, and the Yakuza and Bratva retreat back to their cars, shouting accusations at each other. At least the truce was interrupted from happening.

Shoro thinks he's working for one of the two..and he decides its time to stay on track, this distraction is just that..and with a POP he's down on the ground...

As Shoro smashes in the vehicle and puts a huge dent in its frame, the engine starts up with a few key turns. It clanks and putters but manages to turn on as the driver tries to prepare to leave.

There's a pop behind Shoro as Yulyeong appears in the middle of a flying spinning kick aimed at the hero. "Don't you dare ignore me, murderer!" he shouts with a rage that is personal.

Shoro shakes his head, "I'm not playing this game..you might have me mistaken for someone else..." he says as he simply turns a fraction of an inch, it looks close, but the two combatants both know how not close it really was. With that he does another strike to the rear vehicle..

Shoro strikes the rear Bratva car once more, and damages it critically. Its not going anywhere...but this tricky Korean Ninja is really pissing him off..

There's a sudden hiss as smoke starts to billow out of the canisters along the sides of his boots. "You're not fooling me. You're using the same fold engine that my wife helped work on!" The smoke soon blankets the immediate area, making it impossible to see through it. But there's the sound of the filament swinging through the air.

Shoro hears the whistling of the filiment wire and falls into the splits narrowly avoiding the filiment that would have struck him in the chest.."I did not kill anyone in that mission.." he says calmly, he won't let the emotions of his assailant affect him.

Still concealed in the smoke, Shoro's words may as well fall on deaf ears as the filament makes a sound of cutting through air once again. Yulyeong will not give away his position by retorting now.

The filiment hits him and Shoro flies a small distance, he bounces of the car, only land on his feet. "We don't have to do this!"

From within the cloud, Yulyeong's words drip with venom. "I'm supposed to believe a spy's word that they're innocent. You left the bodies of my people and yours behind." The cloud...it draws closer to Shoro and envelopes him again. He hears a clacking noise this time as Yulyeong tries to fire another tasing prong at Shoro.

Through the smoke, a prong sticks into Shoro's chest and suddenly discharges a large amount of electrical current, causing his muscles to seize and paralyze him.

Shoro's body locks up..electricity flows through him, and while it doesn't hurt, his muscles wont react to mental commands, and neither will his mental control over his fold device.

Through effort and chi manipulation, Shoro is able to once again exercise control over his own body, the effects of the charge fade, and now he is starting to get angry..

Nothing said yet has convinced Yulyeong of Shoro's innocence in the matter. Give the passion and hatred in his voice, it may take a solid amount of concrete evidence to persuade him of Shoro's innocence. There's another whirling sound of the filament reel...

Shoro is hit by the prong again which sends him flying through the air into a container. He's dazed...and on his side "I..I did not kill anyone that night..."

Yulyeong says something excitedly in korean as he knocks Shoro down, the smoke disappating and lifting. He walks towards his fallen prey, unconcerned with the Yakuza and Bratva trying to drive away, or the broken car. "How can you even prove that you were not responsible for any deaths? There was chaos when you attacked. The rest of your squad dead, so they can't vouch for you." He steps behind Shoro and aims a kick as his kidneys.

Shoro says from his prone position, "Th..they aren't all dead..there's another..."...

Yulyeong hesistates for a moment. "Who? Tell me their name and location," he suddenly asks eagerly.

Shoro says from the ground. "No...You will hear nothing from me until you allow me up..and to finish my business here.."

Shoro see's the kick coming, and while still on the ground, slaps the kick away...he tries to kick to a standing ready position..

Yulyeong's foot is slapped away. He goes with the momentum and arcs around to bring it up, and then down in an axe kick towards Shoro's floating ribs.

"The only business you should be concerned with is me!" Yulyeong snarls.

Yulyeong's heel cracks down hard on Shoro's floating ribs and kidneys to punctuate his rage-filled comment.

Shoro literally bounces off the ground as the impact hits him...it sends him into darkness...one from which he may never awaken.

As the world fades away, he can hear Yulyeong's words drift. "Maybe now my wife's soul can rest..."

The darkness at least provides relief from the pain. An opponent he couldn't even touch? It's like one of Shoro's worst scenarios. When he wakes up groggily, he's home in his own bed, not in his armor, and next to Violet under the sheets.

Shoro blinks.."..Violet..?" he asks as if questioning reality..except dreams dont hurt like this do they?..nightmares maybe, but..then he reaches out and touches her lower back..

Violet is laying on her stomach, her head facing Yutaka. Her eyes slowly blink open as he touches her. She feels warm. Solid. Real. Whatever pain he experienced, he's feeling none now. She smiles as she begins to become more wakeful. "Mmmm? Morning, Yu. How'd you sleep?"

Shoro isn't sure how he slept..he doesn't normally consider unconsciousness sleep..."I seemed to have slept well..you?"

"Really well." Violet stretches luxuriously. "I had a lot of fun last night. Makes me wonder what plans you have in mind for today," she teases as she shifts to lay on her side towards him.

Shoro raises an eyebrow.."What exactly did you do last night?"

Violet raises an eyebrow in return, skeptical about his question. "Maybe you had a little too much wine at that restaurant if you don't remember. We caught an early movie, dined at a restaurant, went for dancing at the Edison and more drinking, then we came back here and had some more fun," she grins.

Yutaka shakes his head, "No..last night I got...no..that's not what happened.

Violet pouts a little. "So it wasn't fun for you? Fine, how would -you- describe what happened?"

Yutaka scoots.."What day is it?" he doesn't answer her question directly.

"Saturday. We went out on a date night last night after work." Violet starts to look concerned. "Are you feeling alright?"

Yutaka lost 2 days..where was he for those two days. "No..I'm not ok. I don't remember last night..we came back here..made love as well I take it?"

Violet's worried look deepens a little. "You probably just drank to much. You were very amorous. I guess I wasn't so memorable," she pretends to look wounded, but makes an act of it. But then she gets a sly, seductive look. "Maybe I just need to remind you."

Yutaka swings out of bed..."No...something happened to me 2 nights ago..I don't remember the last two days." he walks in front of the full length mirror, and looks for signs of bruising..he didn't heal himself. Anything, he looks for any sign of inconsistency..

There's no bruising at all. Everything looks fine. Violet sits up, holding the sheets to herself as she slides out of the bed and walks to Yu's side. "You don't? We had a meeting on Thursday that got interrupted from a minor emergency. Then I was busy all Friday, so you promised to take me out," she informs him as she looks over his reflection. That did happen. But didn't that happen Tuesday? Before his missing days. "You said you couldn't wait to see me last night. And I said the same," she smiles coyly, then steps and turns so she's in front of him and facing him instead of talking to him through his reflection. She momentarily obscures his view, but when he can see the mirror again, even though he still feels like he's in his state of undress, his reflection is Shoro, while looking at himself, he is still Yutaka.

"You always keep your promises," Violet smiles up at him, tracing her fingers from his abdomen up to his chest. "So it's time to wake up." Her hand moves to cup his cheek, but to him it feels like a hard strike.

Shoro returns to the waking world in a dark warehouse, the smell of the sea and exhaust fumes that the port is known for filling his senses. Only a few of the overhead lights are on, and he's tied to a column by heavy chains and one of those paralyzing prongs in his left pectoral muscle, wedged between the mobile plates in his armor. Yulyeong is standing before him, having just struck him to wake him up.

Yutaka's training kicks in, and he keeps his head down as if still out...he needs intel and time to figure out what is going on..

Yulyeong says something irritably in Korean. He paces left and right before Shoro, rubbing the chin of his helm while deciding what to do.

He can make out some of the words. There may be a name, a plea to someone. But what Shoro is familiar with is, he, thinks, Yulyeong telling himself he should just kill the murderer while he still can. It's like he's talking to himself...or someone. His conscience?

Shoro fakes..or perhaps its not so fake, a long pained moan..

Yulyeong is close to coming to a consensus as he debates whether Shoro should live or die before he awakens. But then the choice is is taken out of his hands as Shoro groans and shows signs of consciousness. "So you're awake, Shin-Sony Dog," he says venomously.

Shoro hangs his head..unable to get out.."...I..am no..longer..with...Shin-Sony.." he groans out.

Yulyeong stops a few feet from Shoro, hands clenched into fists and his body rigid. "That...does not absolve you...from your past crimes," he says between clenched teeth.

Shoro continues to gather his strength..but plays the prey.."You are right...it does not. Does the death and loss of the woman I love absolve me? We..." he pauses as if in pain, "We were doing what we were told..but...but it was wrong. You have every right to feel the way you do." he groans and hangs again.

Yulyeong is fooled by Shoro's act, and no longer feels stressed to push an attack. Now...he feels safe enough to talk. His anger still seethes, but it is cooler than before now that he's not in the heat of combat. And Shoro's words do give him pause to consider. "How...can I be sure you even speak the truth? You are, were, Shin-Sony spy. Spies lie to everyone." He just shakes his head. "So you think you should be spared, just because you were following orders?"

Shoro shakes his head. "I was a spy..Neo-sung captured me, used those I loved against me..then killed my fiance. Laura Garrity..in Korea, near the same laboratory your wife..was murdered at." he pauses and feels for this man, "I am sorry for your loss...I do not feel my life should be spared for any rea..." and he spasms, as if the electricity flowing through the prong spikes...

Shoro feels himself free of the paralysis of the prong..but slumps down again..and groans heavily...

"How did you survive when they captured you? If you were a real man, you would have died with your fiance," Yulyeong spouts angrily at Shoro. He could be angry because he believes the words apply to him. "The only reason you are alive is because you said another of your team lives. Tell me about them."

Shoro has played prey long enough.."If you had approached in a differnt way we might have been able to discuss this..you are a good man, I can tell, a good man who has faced difficult times.." he groans again, "I have as well..the same loss, but I have used my power to move on..Neo-sung killed her. I am certain your wife was a brilliant woman.." he pauses..as if gasping in pain..."..and as you are a good man, I am certain she was a good woman. She did not deserve to die that night. I am very sorry.." he pauses again, "very sorry for your loss..please beleieve me." but suddenly there is a blue flash, and the chains are empty, before they can fall to the ground Shoro is behind the korean vengence seeker, and punches him as hard as he can..he may only have one chance at this..

Yulyeong's fists start to slowly unclench at Shoro's words. Maybe some of it is getting through. Thoughts of his wife and grief cause him to lose sight of the goal. Behind the helm, unseen, a tear runs down Yulyeong's cheek as he thinks of her. It's the opening Shoro needs. The empty chains fall to the ground with a loud rattle from the sudden slack caused by Shoro's absence. Shoro's strike hits Yulyeong so hard that he flies forward and cracks his head against the steel pillar Shoro was tied to. Yulyeong half spins in a stagger before landing on his back in an unconscious sprawl.

Shoro walks over and kicks Yulyeong again...

Shoro teleports over to Yulyeong..and starts to try to dismantle his armor and gear..

Yulyeong's body rolls and slides, slamming into a wall with a grunt as air is knocked out of him. He's still unconscious and limp. With some work and time, Shoro can get the armor off of him.

Shoro gets to it, as he does, he looks for tell tell signs of implants or any other tech that may be internal, he cant tell much by looking at the gear, but as he takes it, he puts it aside, At some point teleporting up into the rafters to hide the gear before coming back down. If Yulyeong stirs while doing this, he hits him again. Some times hes a scalpel, sometimes hes a blunt instrument. It all depends on the situation. What he does do is heal the man's broken bones..and internal injuries..so that he doesn't die..

Beneath the armor is a young Korean man, maybe in his late twenties. His hair is styled longer and layered and swept in a modern fashion. All of the tech is in the suit. Beneath is just the body of a normal man who has trained hard. By the looks of it, it's Neo-Sung tech on the inside of the suit, even though the outside looks different. It has a modified version of the fold engine Shoro stole from the company that fateful night. Yulyeong doesn't stir at all through all this. He is in the deepest, most peaceful sleep he's had since he got news of his wife's death. Shoro manages to heal the head wound he gave Yulyeong and the broken ribs and punctured lung from the second kick, but Yulyeong remains unconscious.

Shoro takes the broken man and ties him up with the same chains he had been trussed up with, and while its tight, he makes sure that it is not painful, and has Yulyeong in a sitting position, devoid of any tech, he begins to heal the young man..breathing deeply as he send chi into him, easing any pain in an attempt to raise him from his stupor.

It takes most of Shoro's energy and some time for how wounded Yulyeong is. But eventually, the man does stir with a true groan that is thankfully not as painful as Shoro's act sounded, thanks to the healing.

Even as Yulyeong begins to stir, Shoro continues to heal the young man..even though under his own armor he is sweating and the strain of the healing is taking a toll.

Yulyeong struggles against his bonds, but he is no match for them. Beneath the armor, he is just a man fueled only by grief and vengeance. "I knew...I should not have trusted you," he groans. "What are you doing?" he demands as he looks down at Shoro's glowing hands. Beneath the armor, Yulyeong was wearing a thin long sleeved white shirt and loose fitting white pants.

Shoro takes a deep labored breath in..and says ..."Healing you. I am sorry I hurt you, but you give me little choice...you are too dangerous to give mercy to in a fight. You fought a good fight, and you beat me. I am sorry for your loss, but I have no intention of hurting you. You may or may not want to hear what I have to say, but I hope..I hope you will at least listen."

Yulyeong sinks in his bonds in defeat. He still doesn't seem ready to trust Shoro. He answers, "All I can do now is listen."

Shoro's armor melts away, leaving him in what looks like a cloth outfit, now deeply hooded, with a harlequin mask to conceal his identity. "I am just a man underneath the armor. Just like you. What we did that night..was wrong, but not unusual. We were trained as a team, each of us a special unit that had a specific role. Mine was infiltration, and acquisition. I fought my way through that night, but I did not kill anyone. Just as I did not kill you. I am as responsible as any who were there for the deaths of those who died that night. There is no absolution for that. I work daily to clear the slate, but it will never be clear..." he pauses, the weight of his words heavy, "I have never spoken of this weight I feel, I had hoped that my Karma was clear when Laura Garrity, my fiance, was killed in an attempt to save me from Neo-Sung. I had given myself up to them to save those I cared about from harm. Instead, they invaded United Korean territory, went to the research facility and freed me, but Laura was killed in the process. Yes, She had a name, just as your wife has a name..I would like to know what it is."

Yulyeong listens silently, his face a mask of indifference that does little to conceal the veiled anger at the talk of the infiltration. Some of that hatred eases when the talk turns to Laura Garrity. It's not yet sympathy, but perhaps the buddings of understanding. It's when he asks his wifes name that the mask breaks and he utters a sound of grief. "Joon-yung. Her name...was Joon-yung," he only gives her first name, and even uttering it causes him pain from the loss.

Shoro nods and puts his hands together before bowing very deeply, "I am truly sorry for your loss, and I honor the memory of your wife." he remains bowed very low, his forehead touching the ground. He remains prostrate for a long moment before rising. "I will not pretend to know your suffering, I am certain it's depths cannot be measured. We all suffer differently. Your path of vengence..I ask you, will it bring Joon-yung happiness? She can see this, even as you contemplated killing me, the good in you chose not to. Do not let Love become hate, it will only ruin what is left in your life. Honor her."

Yulyeong is surprised by Shoro's respectful bow. He almost can't believe it. "Not happiness, but peace. To know her killers will not get away with what they have done. And will not do again. I have nothing left without her. This is my only purpose left."

Shoro shakes his head, "That is not her peace, it is your vengence. Do you believe she will rest in peace knowing her husband has become the very thing that you are saying she seeks vengence for? Do you really believe that? I know how love can twist the soul. How tragedy and pain can turn the very light of your life, into the darkest existance. When Laura died, I with drew, it ruined everything good in my life, and I had to leave. Was it not frustrating...that you could not find me for 5 years? I was dealing with my own losses, my own pain. It had twisted me, but I could not go back to what I was. I will never be the Shin-sony Dog I once was. I will never accept their directives or their code. Do not become that which you hate. Do not become an instrument of death and vengence. it is a dark road, and you can never fully return from it. I would not wish this upon you."

"It was. I searched. I trained. I planned. Thought of what I would do the day that I found you. I did not know another had survived," Yulyeong admits. "The past five years...were all spent trying to avenge her. But now...now I don't know what to do. What is left?" asks the tortured man.

Shoro says, in tones that are very sympathetic, "You could use your skills and powers to help others. As I have. To honor her memory, use her legacy for good. For every thought of vengence you have had since Joon-yung died, think if you had turned those into actions of honor. How many lives could you have affected...saved? We are instruments, a wise man once told me that it is God's power to give life, and Man's arrogance to take it. We choose what to do with that which drives us." he stands and walks over to Yulyeong grabs the chain and with a little exertion..breaks the chain. "I am freeing you. I will even give you back your tech, and I will wait. As I said before, we do not have to fight..we do not have to be enemies, but if you feel that dark path is the one you still want to walk...I will await your vengence." he says before teleporting up to the rafters grabbing the tech, and dropping back down to the ground landing lightly. He puts the gear down in the same way he had it, organized and in neat stacks.

Yulyeong stands up slowly after Shoro releases him, turning and leaning against the pillar to help him up. It leaves him with a narrower profile facing Shoro, which could be a defensive tactic. But he doesn't attack. He just stares off ahead of himself, not facing Shoro as he dwells on the man's words. Without his armor, he has no chance against Shoro anyway. "I will consider your words carefully. You have spared my life and given me my freedom." He closes his eyes and turns to face Shoro, bowing low. "If you were the killer I believe you to be, there would be no reason for you to do that," he says in realization. But it's a bitter realization. One of wasted years going for the wrong target.

The armor of Shoro reforms around him, he stands back and gives Yulyeong his space. "It has been a dark road, but you always have the choice to continue or to change the path. I am not your enemy, I can be an ally, if you should ever need me.." he produces a 100 yen piece. "Bend this in half, and I will find you." he says offering it up with an outstretched hand, coin held between his thumb and forefinger.

Yulyeong straightens up and carefully plucks the 100 yen piece, studying it for a moment. "If...you were an ally," he starts slowly, his eyes lifting from the coin to Shoro's helm, "You would tell me about the other survivor in your team. The one who did the killing."

Shoro looks at Yulyeong, "It is because I am an ally that I do not tell you. If you go after him, the road is still the same. Just because I am not the target, you will still end up at the same place. As I said, there is no redemption from that road. There is no going back. What I will tell you is that he escaped, but not with me. I have never seen him since, neither, to my knowledge has Shin-Sony. He was enhanced, like myself, a silent weapons specialist. He was trained to kill...battlelust is what drove him. There is no redemption for him, and I am certain that he will one day, if he survived, face his own penance...you do not need to be the executor of that action."

"I can't believe that karma will deal with a man like that. How many others could he have killed since then?" Yulyeong is still struggling, vengeance still close to his heart. It will take time to change. Some soul searching. But he sounds like a man whose lost his purpose and is struggling for something to hold onto. "How can I live with myself, knowing my wife's killer is still out there, probably still taking lives?"

Shoro nods.."I understand your feelings. But that is what Karma is..it all comes around in the great circle. Justice and Vengence are two different things. They are bother and sister, but not identical twins. Still it is hard to tell one from the other from behind. You have the skill and the power...use them to honor Joon-yung."

Yulyeong just nods in silence. As an answer, he pockets the 100 yen piece. His jaw tenses from clenching and then unclenching before he states, "I wish to honor Joon-yung. With justice instead of vengence."

Shoro bows deeply to Yulyeong, "I honor your wisdom. I am now named Shoro..who I was no longer matters. It is what we do that defines us."

Yulyeong bows again in return to Shoro. "Then I hope you stay on a good path and never return to your old one."

Shoro says as he stands upright. "We both have the same hope. Should I stray..." he pauses for a brief moment, and when he answers, there is deep humilty and sincerity in his tones, "I will expect a visit from you."

Yulyeong straightens up, his identity plain to see without his helm. His eyes are hardened from years of dedication to his cause. "I will not disappoint, should you stray. I think I will expect the same from you." There is some respect there to go with the promise.