The Wandering Warrior

by Onomonopia


Beyond the Battle

Evil Ryu swatted away Ryu's strike as if it was nothing, before driving his fist into Ryu's chest and sending him flying across the ground. Ryu cried out with pain as he crashed into the ground, his already broken bones screaming with agony as they were further destroyed. Yet though the blow should have taken his life, Ryu placed a hand on the ground and forced himself up once more.

"Why do you rise? You are beaten," Evil Ryu informed Ryu with a snarl of rage. Ryu said nothing in reply, it took all of his might to remain conscious, yet he still raise his arms up and took up his fighting stance. Evil Ryu growled at the action before he lunged forward and kicked Ryu in the side of the head. Ryu was sent tumbling into the ground once more, where he coughed up more blood onto the already stained grass. Yet once more Ryu pushed himself back up to his feet, almost as if his only intent was to get back up each time he was knocked down.

"Why do you rise?!" Evil Ryu bellowed before he assaulted Ryu, hammering him with furious lefts and rights that tore at the warriors body. The strength of the blows nearly caused Ryu to collapse once more, but before he could fall over Evil Ryu grabbed him by the gi and held him up just so he could continued unload punches into Ryu's face. "I have destroyed you! Your master cannot save you! Not even his power can! You have found your destiny! So why do you not die?!"

Evil Ryu then hurled Ryu into the dirt with so much force that a cloud of dirt was kicked up by the impact. The dark warrior then spat into onto the body of Ryu before he turned back to Tiara. He had only taken three steps towards the filly before he heard the cracking of bones and the pained breathings of a man who was not long for the world. With a snarl Evil Ryu turned to face his counterpart, who was slowly rising once more.

"You...are right," Ryu admitted in a voice that was filled with pain and agony. "I have failed my master. I could not find the strength to defeat you in battle. In the battle between the two of us, you have bested me. I cannot defeat you for my sake."

"But it is no longer about me," Ryu continued as more and more strength filled his voice, a strength that caused Evil Ryu to take up his own fighting stance. "It is about her now. It is about Diamond Tiara. Because she now faces the same battle that I did. The battle against the darkness within ones self. And after today, if I die here, then she will believe that battle to be futile. She will live the rest of her life in fear of her dark half...as I did."

"And she was willing to do so much for me. She sacrificed so much for me despite how selfish and cold I acted towards her," Ryu spat out with disgust as the flames in his eyes died out...and were replace with something far more powerful. "And all this time I have been selfish, I have only cared about myself. But today that changes. Today I fight for her. Today I show her...that that darkness is not unstoppable!"

Evil Ryu roared in response before slamming his hand into Ryu's face once more. But despite the blow being strong enough to fell a mountain, Ryu remained standing. He slowly turned his head back towards Evil Ryu so that the demon could look into his eyes. Eyes that would not give in.

"A nice sentiment, but you cannot win! That has been proven!" Evil Ryu stated before he slammed his fist into Ryu's stomach. Ryu doubled over from the pain, but forced himself back up once again. "The path of nothingness has lead you as far as you can go! It has led you to your destiny! It has shone that you lose to me! And you cannot change that!" Evil Ryu said as he threw another punch, but this time Ryu's fist shot up and he caught the blow before it could strike.

"You are right once more. For my own sake, for my own soul, I cannot best you. I cannot win this battle. My destiny is to lose to you. But as I stated before this is no longer about me. It is about her," Ryu repeated before he threw the fist to the side and kicked Evil Ryu in the stomach. Evil Ryu grunted as he staggered backwards, trying to comprehend where Ryu was gaining this strength.

"But if this is as far as my destiny will take me, if this is where it believes I should end...with the fate of a filly who cared for a fool like me far more than he deserved, then it is no longer the path that I seek to walk!" Ryu bellowed as he closed his eyes, feeling the anger and power within him beginning to build once more. But now he sensed something else behind the power and rage, something even greater that he had never felt before.

"And if destiny constructs walls to obstruct me, to keep me upon that path, then I will tear them down! And if the darkness within me seeks to steal from me all that is important, to leave me only in the shadows, then I will illuminate my own way!" Ryu roared as he crossed his arms, feeling that power crackling with him as power and might flowed through his body. The dark aura of the Satsui no Hado began to flow around his body, but a moment later the white aura of the power of nothingness consumed him as well. And for a brief moment, the power of darkness and light merged into one, leaving Ryu covered in black and white power.

"I am not a warrior of the Satsui no Hado! I am not one who surrenders himself to destiny! I am a warrior who has finally found the meaning to his battle! I am a warrior who shall protect those who believed in me!" Ryu bellowed as the very sky above crackled with lightning and thunder even as the ground beneath him shattered and crumbled, as the Satsui No Hado and the power of nothingness became one within him. And it was a power the likes of which none had seen before. "I am Ryu. And I am a warrior...of the true HADO!"

Lightning erupted from Ryu's body as he hurled his arms to the side, roaring with all the ferocity and strength of the greatest of thunderstorms. His eyes crackled with power while electricity coursed through his veins, fueling him with the strength of a power beyond that of the dark hado or the power of nothingness. Ryu then snapped his eyes towards Evil Ryu and appeared before the demon in an instant, driving his fist into the gut of Evil Ryu.

Evil Ryu howled with agony as he was sent rocketing backwards, smashing through every obstacle that got in his path. He finally came to a stop when he smashed into a massive boulder, with the force of the impact sending chunks of rock in every direction. Evil Ryu pulled himself out of the boulder just in time to receive a lightning filled kick to the side of the head, one that sent him crashing through the earth.

"NO!" Evil Ryu bellowed as he erupted from within the ground, his dark aura burning brighter than the sun. "I will not fall to you! I am beyond you in this battle! I am beyond you!"

With all of his might Evil Ryu swung up at Ryu as the warrior appeared in front of him. Ryu parried the first uppercut, but the moment evil Ryu landed he threw out another one. Ryu parried that one and Evil Ryu launched himself even higher into the sky. But this time Evil Ryu opened his hand and sucked in all of the darkness around them, all of the blackness and shadow that filled the sky. He then channeled all of that power into his fist, before taking aim at Ryu and lunging towards him.

"You are beyond me in battle. But I have gone beyond the battle," Ryu promised as he tucked his fist in close. "Shin..."

Ryu then swung his fist up with a roar that drowned out the thunder that rumbled overhead, driving his fist that crackled with more lightning and power than all of storm clouds combined through the dark sphere that Evil Ryu held within his hands.

"SHO!" Ryu bellowed with the force of the storms as he drove a his right fist into the stomach of Evil Ryu, blasting a bolt of lightning through the gut of his foe.

"RYU!" Ryu roared as he slammed his left fist into the chest of Evil Ryu, shattering the ribs of the demon while sending lightning coursing through his veins. Ryu then placed his right fist under Evil Ryu's jaw, pausing just for a moment so that he could glare into the eyes of his foe. And then he struck.

"KEN!

A flash of lightning tore through Evil Ryu and the clap of thunder that followed hurled the body of the dark Ryu into the ground, where he exploded in an explosion of power. Ryu landed on the ground and rose up once more, narrowing his thunder filled eyes as he saw Evil Ryu rise up once more.

"No..." Evil Ryu whispered as he glared at Ryu with such hatred and intensity that all of the world felt the wrath of the demon. "NO! You are weak! You give in! I will not die to you!"

Evil Ryu then tucked his arms beside him, channeling a ball of darkness and rage that caused the very planet to shake with his power. He then channeled the darkness and hatred of every being in the battle and even the sky itself, sucking all the darkness into a sphere of dark energy that could tear the planet in half. Evil Ryu then hurled the ball forward towards Ryu, shattering the very land they stood upon as the massive hadouken disintegrated everything in its path.

"DDDIIIIIEEEE!!"

Ryu watched as the hadouken sailed towards him, but then he averted his eyes for a moment to glance over at Diamond Tiara. The filly was scared beyond belief and her entire body trembled from the battle she was witnessing. But Ryu saw that deep within her eyes was a strength, a strength that had never left her.

"Thank you...for showing me what it means to truly be strong," Ryu said to her before he turned back to the hadouken, he eyes narrowing as lightning tore across his body. He then clasped his hands together.

"Metsu," Ryu whispered as he created a ball of purple and black energy within his hands, one that was fueled by the hatred and rage he felt towards Evil Ryu, hatred and rage that roared like thunder.

"Shinku!" Ryu roared as the sphere changed from a deep purple and black to a sphere that was pure and powerful, a sphere that held within it the power of the lightning.

"DENJIN!" Ryu bellowed as the sphere was fueled with Ryu's desire to protect Diamond Tiara, causing it to erupt with black and white energy that was superior to the thunderstorm that tore apart the sky. Ryu then channeled that power as the very colors of the world melted away from around him, leaving him surrounded by the crackling of black and white. Then he snapped his eyes towards Evil Ryu and thrust his arms forward.

"HHHHAAAADDDDDOOOOOUUUUKKKKKEEEEENNNN!!!"

The sky itself was torn asunder as the hadouken left Ryu's hands, causing the planet to quake with power as the hadouken exploded forward with a power unmatched. The giant ball of darkness collided with the ball of lightning and for a brief moment the two battled. Then the Denjin Hadouken obliterated Evil Ryu's hadouken and barreled towards the evil warrior, who could only watch with disbelief before he was consumed by the power.

An explosion then followed with shook Equestria to its core, an explosion that was said to also shake the moon and solar system around Equis. Ponies believe that the world was ending and took cover. Dragons hid within their caves and prayed that the end times had not come. A Russian who had been training stopped to nod his head with a smile, understanding what had been achieved. And even the sun and moon quaked from the power they had just witnessed.

But as the explosion died down at the dust began to clear, only Diamond Tiara and Ryu were the first to see the true power of the hadouken. The forest that had been around the two of them had been blasted away, along with the mountain range that had been standing behind Evil Ryu. All that was left now was a barren wasteland...and a single warrior of darkness, who stood smoldering amongst the destruction.

"He's...still alive?" Tiara asked in disbelief. Ryu narrowed his eyes before he walked towards his evil half, stopping when he was closer.

"I am amazed your still alive," Ryu said, his voice carrying further than before due to the entire world having gone quiet after his attack. To the surprise of Ryu, Evil Ryu began to chuckle as he lifted a head that was drenched in blood.

"You...cannot kill me. I am...you. I am your desires...your rage...your drive to win. You will never...be rid of me."

Ryu narrowed his eyes at Evil Ryu's words, but then a moment later he closed his eyes and raised his hands to his chest. He then slowly exhaled while bringing his hands down, causing the lightning that had been covering his body to slowly fade away. A few moments later the lightning had completely vanished, leaving Ryu as he had been once more.

"You are right once more. You are my desire to win, my rage when I lose and the dark part of me that wishes I could just lose control," Ryu admitted.

"Fool...how dare you lower your guard before me!" Evil Ryu bellowed before he began to teleport towards Ryu, the symbol of Akuma flashing on his back as he soared towards Ryu. "Taste the Raging Demon!"

Ryu watched as the attack approached, but he did nothing to move out of the way. He simply closed his eyes and began to practice his breathing. Evil Ryu was upon Ryu moments later and with a roar of victory he reached out with his hands to grab Ryu...only for Ryu's hands to lash out and grab the dark warriors wrists, ceasing the attack.

"What?!" Evil Ryu roared as he tried to break free, but Ryu's grip could not be broken. Ryu then opened his eyes and stared into the eyes of the evil warrior, showing him that he had lost.

"You are those desires. And all this time I have been trying to destroy, trying to be rid of you like you are a cancer or a disease. But now I see you for what you truly are," Ryu whispered as he glanced over at Tiara to make sure she was watching, before he turned back to his evil part. "You are a part of me. You are a piece of who I am. The only way to destroy you would be to destroy myself. All this time the being that I have been trying to push away...was me."

"Release me!" Evil Ryu demanded, but Ryu closed his eyes once more and took in a deep breaths.

"You are my fears, my rage, my desire to win, my hatred towards those who mock me and even those who abandoned me. For too long I have sough to destroy those parts of me, to cast them aside and say that they are not me," Ryu began before he opened his eyes and smiled at his evil half. "But today, thanks to the strength of a certain filly, that will no longer be the case. Today I can admit that you apart of me. That you are me. And that it is time to end this."

Evil Ryu bellowed as he broke free of Ryu's grasp and threw a punch at Ryu's head, but the moment his fist struck flesh the two Ryu's seemed to merge together, with Tiara able to see both of them existing at the same place at the same time.

"I am a warrior of rage. I am a warrior that seeks his own destiny. I am selfish. I am determined. I am a wanderer. I am one who enjoys those closest to him. I hate to lose. I love to learn. I wish to destroy those in my way. I wish to be more than the desire to destroy. I hate that my parents abandoned me...but I am grateful that they did, so that I might meet my true family. All of these traits make up the warrior I am. I accept all of this," Ryu said as he raised his arms over his head, while the screaming Evil Ryu did the same.

"I accept..." Ryu then swung his arms down and Evil Ryu dispersed as if he were mist, vanishing into Ryu once more.

"Me."

For a long moment Ryu stood there in silence, simply existing within the world. He then raised his head and glanced over at Tiara, a large smile crossing his face before he raised a hand and waved to her. She let out a cry of joy as she rushed over to him, tackling him around the leg and tightening her grip.

"You did it!" she practically screamed at him, tears running down her face as she smiled up at him. "You finally defeated your evil side! You found the strength you were looking for!"

"Yes...and I have you to thank for all of it," Ryu replied with a kind smile, yet his words caused Tiara to look up with surprise. "You showed me that there was something more important than seeking to be the best. A strength that lay beyond all of the training in the world. You showed me that true strength can only be achieved...for the sake of another. And for that, I thank you," Ryu began before he got on all fours and bowed his head. "Master."

"What? I really did all that? Wow!" Tiara exclaimed with a nervous laugh as Ryu rose his head once more, but before either could say anything the sound of clapping caused the both of them to turn to the hermit.

"Well done Ryu. I must say that I am impressed," the hermit said with what almost sounded like praise in his voice. "In all my life I have never seen one of you do that. That was...a first. And I see so little that surprises me any more. I must thank you somehow. I know..."

The hermit then snapped his fingers and created a vortex of shattered magic. "This portal will take you back to your world. Consider it thanks for showing me something new. Farewell." The hermit then vanished without a trace, leaving Ryu and Tiara to stare at the portal.

"So I guess this is goodbye?" Tiara asked with sorrow beginning to fill up her voice. Ryu smiled down at her before he crouched down and threw a fireball into the portal, shattering it into thousands of shards. Tiara then glanced up at Ryu with shock on her face, while the warrior's smile grew even larger.

"No, it is not time for goodbye yet. There is still much I have to do in this world," Ryu informed her before he sat down on the barren ground, crossing his legs and closing his eyes. "For example, I made a promise to a young filly that I would help train her to become a fighter and to fight the darkness within her. And I have been lousy with keeping my promises."

A warm smile crossed Tiara's face as she sat down next to Ryu and mirrored his movements, tears forming in her eyes before she closed them and focused on her breathing. For a minute the two of them sat in silence like that, but then Tiara's curiosity got the better of her.

"For a moment there I thought you were going to destroy the planet. But I'm glad to see that all you did was destroy your evil half," Tiara said with a smile, but when Ryu chuckled she cracked open an eye. "What's so funny?"

"I didn't destroy him, Tiara. He is back within me. But in reality he was always there," Ryu admitted. "See, that darkness within us...that is a part of us. It is the anger, the hatred, the revenge filled side of us that we don't want to admit that we have. But it is a part of us all the same. My mistake was seeing it as a demon, as a part of me that needed to be destroyed. And in turn, it manifested itself as a true demon, thanks to me. But in reality, the only way to truly defeat that side of me...was to accept it."

"Wow...that's deep," Tiara admitted before she closed her eyes, a smile spreading on her face a moment later. "Alright, I've accepted that part of myself. And hey, I can already feel it fading slightly."

"Just like that?"

"Just like that."

"Truly there is much I can learn from you. But before I do, I have a question."

"What is it?"

"Do you know where a hospital is? I think I'm dying."