Description: Adon has fallen on hard times. All his self esteem and confidence are being drained bit by bit as days pass. That is until a strange comes by with an offer that would be hard to refuse. The chance for glory is good enough, but some extra money on the side doesn't hurt either now does it?
Shame.
Adon bursts into his dressing room, dressed in the tattered remains of his Jafar outfit. It was the end of the Saturday Night Fight, between him and Terry Bogard and Ken Masters. It was supposed to be a fight where he, Adon, the Emperor of Muay Thai, would parade out ultimate form of Muay Thai. But instead, the two Americans only made a fool out of him. An ass clown. And that Gilbert Gottfried.
"... Worthless."
Adon murmurs as he plops down in front of the dressing room mirror. Ripping off the fake beard, he stares into the mirror. Old. Washed up. A laughing stock of the fighting world. Not even Sagat would fight him. First the school girl, then the United Nations Armed Forces. Then Kim, then that random boxer on the street. Failure after failure drove into the Muay Thai Master. And here he was. The Emperor of Muay Thai.
Performing TRICKS for DISNEY.
The Emperor screams. Throwing a straight punch right towards the mirror, he shatters it. Hand bleeding slightly, he buries his head between two fists, curling forward. Utterly disgusted at that worn-out fighter staring him in the mirror. This is where he was. A performing PONY of Muay Thai, making ends meet through the money, through the victories. Through the women, the cars, the parties. He was doing everything through Muay Thai.
Except maintaining the spirit.
He certainly hasn't seen better days. It seems time has not been kind to Adon and the lifestyle he has lived is coming back to haunt him. Everyone has moved on with the times and he still finds himself living in the past. Is it his destiny to perhaps end up washed up and easily forgotten? Well that is a possibility. Perhaps not just yet. Someone has been watching the meltdown of Adon carefully and perhaps it is time to see if the Emporer can be of any use.
"Such horrible people, aren't they? Making you prance about in such a manner as if you are just some two bit fighter." The voice is a rather deep and confident one. One that comes from within the room and rather close. Odd, did anyone even enter? Given the tantrum that Adon was given it is a possibility. Sitting in a chair off to the right is a rather well dressed man with long red hair and a well trimmed goatee. "Who are they to treat an emporer in such a way, hmm?"
He has a bit of a smile on his face, an almost wolfish one at that as he just eyes Adon. He doesn't seem familiar at all and even if he is in a well tailored suit it looks like he might be worth his own salt in a fight. "Tell me. Don't you want them to remember how fearsome and great you are? Shouldn't you be reminding them of that isntead of letting them talk you into such foolish costumes."
Someone was in the room.
Adon rises up, pushing the chair back with his free arm. Rage was across his face, but other signs betrayed his intent. Puffy eyes, staggered breathing. He was enraged, yes, but out of fear. Out of shame. Out of the inescapable feeling of time, of weakness. This stranger... this well dressed stranger, with his honeyed words, that winning smile. But he was unknown to the Emperor. And yet, when those words come out, those drilling, sweet offers of renewed glory, a cloud hangs over the emperor.
Adon has played this game before.
He has played this game almost as long as Sagat. The shameful game Muay Thai had long been tainted with, ever since Ryu unleashed the Metsu Shoryuken upon the former Emperor of Muay Thai. The moment Sagat or Adon showed weakness, the jackals would come out. The tyrants, the warlords, the criminal masterminds of the world would slip out from under the rocks where they lurked. It was almost a comfort for the aging Adon; despite all his feelings of weakness, there was one truth.
There was enough power within him for others to exploit.
Forcing a smile, the Emperor shakes off the existential dread, and puts on his Emperor mask once again. "Bah! How dare you enter here without my consent! I am ADON! The EMPEROR of MUAY THAI! I deserve a much greater dignity than some DRESSED UP TURKEY gobbling in here! WHO ARE YOU? And who do you REPRESENT?!" Adon screeches, raising a threatening fist high above his head.
"ANSWER ME!"
That gaze remains fixated on Adon even as he shouts at Johann. He seems unbothered by it and that smile just widens. "Why I am just a man that has always been a fan. Someone who still believes you are the true Emporer of Muay Thai." he says and he rises out of the seat. He is rather on the tall side that Armani suit fits him perfectly enough it does show that if things got rough he could perhaps handle himself. He certainly hasn't shown any signs of aggression.
"Come now. Let yourself calm down. I am not one of the rabble here to mock you or treat you. I am here because I am concerned about your well being." The scary thing is he looks so sincere when he speaks those words. This is not a man seeming to try to intimidate Adon like Vega would. In fact it is vastly different. He is well spoken and unoffending. He steps away from the chair so Adon can have a seat while he himself just moves to stand a fair distance away to allow the Emporer some space.
"We both know you are better than this. This is why I think it is time you show the world that you mean business. Remind them you are the Emporer of Muay Thai. Remind them that you are a Neo League champion." that smile returns and he leans back against the wall. "And I think I know of a way you can do that. Something that would benefit both me and you." Funny how he never did answer what his name was.
Adon does not catch how he did not give out his name. Emotions were running wild through him too quickly to be that aware. Instead, he is lured into the honeyed trap of the charismatic man, his resistences being picked away, piece by piece. This man was less of a Vega, for sure, but much more like a Urien. Urien was sweet in luring Adon into dirty work. But in exchange...
Adon ended up with a very nice suit.
"CONCERNED? FEH!" Came the spit from the Emperor of Muay Thai. "Of COURSE I am better than this! I have ALWAYS been better than this. I have won CHAMPIONSHIPS! I am the ruling MASTER of MUAY THAI! Sagat QUAILS in my presence, weeping with his one good eye, begging me not to SMITE HIM with my ULTIMATE MUAY THAI! I would be sweeping up the entire world with my MUAY THAI might!"
"But HE runs everything now."
Adon points out of the door, eyes burning wildly. "KEN MASTERS! Oh how I LOATH him. Oh how he DISGUSTS me. The IDIOTIC PRETTY BOY runs the SATURDAY NIGHT FIGHTS and the NEO LEAGUE and that stupid, cowardly NEO DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE."The Jaguar of Muay Thai stamps his feet, strangling the invisible Ken Masters before him. "HE! HE is the ONE who so ROUTINELY MOCKS ME! He INSULTS the ART OF FIGHTING by having the weak fight the weak! The WAY of MUAY THAI DEMANDS that I CHALLENGE and DRIVE OFF the WEAK! Ken Masters is AFRAID of ME, so he CLIPS MY WINGS in EVERY INTERNATIONAL EVENT!" The Emperor turns to Johann, rage boiling forth.
"So WHAT IS IT, STRANGER, that makes you think you can SURMOUNT the ALL PRESENT KEN MASTERS?!"
He listens to the ranting and raving intently. He never once seems to lose his compose or even blink as Adon throws a tantrum better than any child could. "Well then you simply must compete where Mister Masters has no influence." is his response when the question is asked. There is competition to be had where Ken Masters doesn't have his hands in it? Is that even possible. "I really don't care to bother with him. He can have all those little games. I am more interested in bigger things."
He isn't sure if he has the Emporer hooked just yet, but he does leave him a few moments to think about it. "How would you feel if you knew there was tournament where many great fighters will test their mettle?" It might actually be a bit of an intimidating prospect given who all that could include. There are some dangerous people in this world afterall. Even more so the one interested in running the deal could be one of the most dangerous of all. "Think about it. What better way to make people remember your greatness than to compete there and win?"
Johann idly turns about and looks at the shattered mirror. He ponders for a few moments as he clasps his hands behind his back. "Even more so what if I were to say I will be willing to pay you to compete? It seems like there is no downside. You were going to compete anyways I am sure. So why not line your pockets with extra money?"
Pay him... to compete?
Adon's senses were coming back to him. For a man who has everything, he knew that more always came with a price. "A tournament without Master's FILTHY PAWS all over it? That is PROMOTED to SUCH a degree that fighters will draw in? BAH! What RUBBISH!" Adon paces across the room, the jungle cat caged by his own thoughts. "If it was TRULY worth any CLOUT then you wouldn't NEED to PAY ME for it! What sort of RUBE to you take me for? Fighting with the WORLD WARRIORS!? I have been SOLD on BETTER LIES, you BESUITED CLOWN!"
The Emperor is starting to scream now.
"WHY! I! ADON! THE EMPEROR OF MUAY THAI! Only will agree to compete in the MOST REFINED and PROFESSIONAL TOURNAMENTS in the WORLD! And if it is so tiny and insignificant that I would be the GREATEST DRAW, then it is CLEARLY not WORTH a MAN of my STATURE to RAISE UP such a PODUNK GAME" Sneering, the Emperor looks at Johann, inviting him to prove him otherwise.
"Tell me, who is running this tournament?"
The response is a simple one. One that Johann allows several moments to sink into Adon's head because it belongs to a rather enigmatic individual that is rarely seen. One that was last seen showing up at Master's Stadium to take on Ken in his home court. "Akuma."
Johann turns back around as he looks to Adon with that wolfish grin of his. "Some thing he might be the devil himself. I must admit I am curious and I want someone with great talents to enter and perhaps find some information on him for me. The better the information the better the payment." he explains and then motions towards the chair he was sitting in. Next to it is a briefcase.
It is a rather hefty one at that if Adon chooses to lift it up so he can open it and peer inside. "Do go on. Consider that a down payment if you accept my offer. There is plenty more where that came from." The inside of that case is filled with gold bars. Sixteen of them to be exact. Could this man be for real? He would seriously offer such a payment for just entering the tournament? "Do you find this agreeable?"
Akuma.
The name knocks the smile clean off of Adon's face. The Emperor's mind was reeling. The legendary demon. The most powerful fighter in the world. The Supreme Master of the Fist. Adon had never met the man, if it could be considered a man. But such rumors always reached the ears of a powerful man like Adon... It was rumored that Akuma was the man who Ryu and Ken both feared. A creature that would only show himself to the most powerful, before testing them for their might. Adon had not even considered meeting the nightmarish legend, to say the least fight him.
But if he beat Akuma himself...
Adon saw his opporunity to put to shame all who had insulted him. All who had mocked him. Forget beating Ken, forget defeating Ryu. If Adon defeated the Great Demon himself, then all would know that Adon was the greatest World Warrior of all time. Capable of defeating a foe that not even the legendary Sagat could hope to touch. Adon would be the greatest. The magnificant. The True God of Muay Thai. No... the True God of ALL Martial Arts.
The grin surges back, tenfold.
Lifting up the suitcase, he feels the weight, leering greedily. Slamming the suitcase on the stand before the dressing room mirror, he pops it open, looking at the gold bars with great hunger. Lifting one up, he hastily turns it into a sneer. Turning his nose up at the vast wealth, he drops the bar half-heartedly into the suitcase.
"What, is this ALL!?"
"Well, I SUPPOSE it will DO for a DOWN PAYMENT." The Emperor sighs, rolling his eyes. "If you WISH for me to PARTICIPATE, I suppose this is the BEST that a NOBODY like YOURSELF can MUSTER." Waving a hand idly at Johann, the Emperor sighs once again. "Yes, yes. I! ADON! THE EMPEROR OF MUAY THAI! Find these terms to be..."
"Acceptable."
It seems that Johann was right in his assumptions. The money was a trivial matter. He could even care less if Adon himself was defeated and left in a mindstate even more shattered that it has been recently. Now he has eyes on the inside. Was that devil of a man really just looking for someone strong enough to defeat him? Perhaps so. If that is the case he isn't really wasting his own manpower. Using Abobo would perhaps draw too much attention and he wouldn't want to risk losing one of his top bonebreakers. Sonia? No, she has far too much better uses than to enter something like that.
"I am so glad we can come to an agreement. I am looking forward to seeing you regain all the respect you deserve." How he can say that without using a mocking tone is rather impressive. That sincere look of his never even fades when he says it. There is no snickering or sarcasm. Only that grin of his may cause some concern when he shows it. Then again that amount of money may even keep Adon from caring aboutt it.
He starts to step out while giving a wave with a hand. "I will see you once you are finished with your business. I look forward to hearing what sort of information you have for me when we meet again." That is it? No phone number or anything? Heck, Adon still doesn't know the man's name and if he goes to give chase and ask he will find Johann is simply gone when he looks outside his room. How quick it seems he moves. It is almost as if he was never there.
For Adon, the money was almost a trivial matter as well. If Johann showed up with just money and a boring podunk tournament, he would have boxed his ears. But this was much more delicious for the Emperor. Shifting his attention back to the box of gold, he does not even notice that Johann slips out. He did not truly care about the man's name. Where Johann was using him to disassociate any connection with him, Adon was content for working for a no-name, no-face.
After all, he can't be responsible when he didn't even know what he was working for, right?
Alone once again, the Emperor's gaze shifts from the gold bars towards the broken shards of glass from the dressing room mirror. Picking up a loose fragment, he sneers at it. How soon ago it was that the Emperor thought he was at the end of his rope, that he had reach the bottom of the barrel. He would enter this tournament, defeat all who took part in it, and eventually face Akuma. Greedily, he fantasized smashing the demon, the praises of all watching him. Adon had only one desire, one goal for this tournament now.
That he would get the glory he truly deserves.
Log created on 13:10:13 04/09/2012 by Johann, and last modified on 15:19:35 04/09/2012.