GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra

Chapter Thirty-Six

Snake Eyes walked into the main auditorium as silently as a shadow. His boots made no sound on the tile floor, and his equipment and weapons were carefully strapped down or padded to avoid the sound of metal clinking together. He came in like a breeze and swept to the middle of the floor, looking casually around at the wide open room and at the huge Cobra emblem painted on the wall above the ceremonial throne.

The room was empty now, although he could tell that it had been packed to capacity not very long before. This was the heart of the compound; he knew it as clearly as if it was labeled on a map. Whatever secretive words the leader of Cobra had given to his followers, he had given them right here.

Snake Eyes stood still, arms at his sides, and waited.

He didn't have to wait very long. Barely a minute after he came into the room, another figure entered from a concealed doorway behind the front platform and walked across the stage, head obscured by a large white hood, hands casually stuffed into the pockets of his long white trenchcoat.

He stopped in front of the throne and faced forward, looking at Snake Eyes with his head tilted down, only his eyes visible from underneath the hood and facemask.

For several long seconds, the two ninjas faced each other silently. Snake Eyes, in black, and Storm Shadow, in white. There might have been a war going on over their heads, but neither of them seemed concerned with the outside world.

Storm Shadow broke the silence.

“Good to see you again, Snake,” he said. “Or should I call you Snake Eyes?

When Snake Eyes did not respond, Storm Shadow smiled underneath his face mask and said, “Still not talking? You really have to stop being so self-conscious, Snake. Who cares if your voice sounds funny? Of course, you never talked much to begin with, so I guess it's no big loss.”

Storm Shadow stepped down off the platform so that he and Snake Eyes were on even ground. He flipped back his hood and pulled down the cloth face mask to reveal his appearance, running a hand through is uncombed hair. Keeping his eyes on Snake Eyes the whole time, he began to walk across the floor in a wide circle. Snake Eyes turned almost imperceptibly, moving so that he faced Storm Shadow at all times.

“Why don't you take off your mask, Snake? Afraid to show your face to me after all these years? Don't tell me you still haven't gotten plastic surgery to cover up those scars?”

He shook his head with a chuckle and continued walking around the edge of the room, tracing a wide circumference with Snake Eyes in the middle.

“I can't tell you what a big surprise it was to run into you the other day. Small world, huh? I go on a mission to kill an Army General, and who do I run into but some old teammates from my squad in Iraq? I'm sure that Stalker meant to tell me that you were there, but I'm afraid he didn't have much to say when I ran into him.”

Snake Eyes clenched his fists and squared his shoulders, gradually slipping to a martial arts stance, as Storm Shadow continued on his circular path. Storm Shadow came around and began walking closer, so that his path took him on a spiral toward the center of the room. He made no moves, at least nothing overt, and seemed completely casual as he walked and spoke to himself.

“How is Stalker doing, by the way? I assume he's still alive, since he was alive when I left him. You're welcome for that, by the way.”

As he approached the front stage again, Storm Shadow slowed down and sighed theatrically, turning to face Snake Eyes. “Oh well, it's been great talking to you again, but I have to confess that I don't have all day. So how about we get on with it?”

He swept his coat back and slid his foot back across the floor, easing into a defensive stance, his hand held out in front of him. For the moment, his wakizashi blades remained in their sheaths. He narrowed his eyes and tilted his head forward, a faint smile on his lips.

Snake Eyes crossed the distance between them in the blink of an eye, leaping into the air and aiming his outstretched foot at Storm Shadow's throat. Storm Shadow dodged expertly and Snake Eyes altered his landing, spinning around and launching his fist forward, where it was met by Storm Shadow's waiting arm and deflected. A flurry of rapid punches blurred the air in between them, each one blocked and swatted aside, and they leaped apart momentarily, staring each other down like wolves eyeing their prey.

Storm Shadow attacked, his hand moving like a thrown knife, missing Snake Eyes' neck by inches as he backed away and swung his leg up to strike at Storm Shadow's midsection, but the ninja turned his body, the boot sliding off his hip, and ducked under a fierce chop by Snake Eyes, only to strike a solid blow to Snake Eyes' stomach.

He went in with another punch to the throat, but Snake Eyes dodged and struck the arm out of the way with one hand, swinging his other hand up to hit Storm Shadow with an uppercut. The punch barely grazed Storm Shadow's cheek as he arched back and his leg shot out, nailing Snake Eyes right in the chest.

They flew apart from each other like magnets of the same polarity. Storm Shadow retreated to the center of the floor, while Snake Eyes took a deep breath and stalked around the perimeter of the room, rhythmically clenching and unclenching his fists. He headed back to the center of the room and hesitated momentarily, watching carefully as Storm Shadow braced himself once more in a defensive stance.

Leaping forward in a rush, Snake Eyes shot at his opponent like a missile. They collided and battled across the surface of the auditorium, arms and legs a nonstop barrage of movement as they fought for an advantage. Snake Eyes chopped and slashed the air with his fists, seeking a weak spot in Storm Shadow's excellent defense, but each one of his attacks was effortlessly blocked or countered.

Storm Shadow fought back with attacks of his own, which were also blocked or dodged by Snake Eyes, who swung down repeatedly to block fierce kicks, his elbow slamming down on Storm Shadow's legs and feet to block the attacks. A ruthless strike at Snake Eyes' face was knocked aside, a brutal kick to his ribs was deflected, another counter-punch aimed at his neck missed the mark.

Snake Eyes tried to find some break in Storm Shadow's defense, but every punch he threw, every chop he attempted, every well-aimed kick, was shrugged aside as if they were nothing. The only sound in the room seemed to be the rapid whoosh of air from their flying fists, and the slap of those fists against forearms and elbows.

In a frenzy of movement, Storm Shadow swung his arm down, blocking another desperate strike, knocking Snake Eyes off balance. His other hand launched up and slammed into Snake Eyes' chest, making him gasp. He stepped back defensively and another perfect punch slipped under his arm and got him right in the ribs. Before he could readjust his defense, Storm Shadow struck him across the face with an overhand right hook, and then swung his leg up to slam into Snake Eyes' solar plexus, knocking him straight back.

Storm Shadow spun around in a roundhouse kick which sailed over Snake Eyes head, and when Snake Eyes rushed forward to take advantage of Storm Shadow being off-balance, he realized he walked right into a trap. Storm Shadow leaned over in a continued circular movement, his leg sweeping around again, as Snake Eyes intended blow hit nothing but empty air.

Storm Shadow came back around and connected with the roundhouse right in Snake Eye's face, the impact of the kick almost cracking his goggles. His head snapped back and he staggered under the force of the blow. Stars swam in front of his eyes and he desperately tried to regain his footing, but it was far too late.

Storm Shadow came in like a shark smelling blood in the water. Snake Eyes barely managed to deflect the first few punches before Storm Shadow broke past his guard and struck him at will, his fists slamming into Snake Eyes like hammers striking a nail.

Snake Eyes backpedaled, trying to deflect the onslaught, but Storm Shadow jumped up and kicked him across the face and then spun back and hit him again when Snake Eyes' arms slipped down. His head rocked to the side and he stumbled a few steps before crashing to the floor.

He rolled onto his stomach and managed to get his legs under him, then pushed himself up onto his hands and knees. His head rolled back and forth dizzily, his breath coming in short, painful gasps.

Storm Shadow backed away, breathing heavy but otherwise unharmed. But there was no smile on his face, no gleeful expression of victory.

“You can't beat me, Snake,” he said hollowly. “You never could. You might have been my uncle's favorite student ...” He gritted his teeth and pounded his hand into his own chest emphatically. “... but I was his best student.”

Snake Eyes said nothing, but slowly got to his feet. When he was steady, he reached up and slid his katana from the sheath on his back. The blade made a thin scraping sound as it cleared the edge of the sheath, with a note of finality.

Storm Shadow eyed the blade and reached up to grab the handle of his own sword.

“Are you sure you want to do this, Snake?” he said carefully. “You know there is no going back after this. I am not going to go easy on you like before.”

Snake Eyes responded by slashing his sword through the air with a whoosh, symbolically cutting the conversation off.

Storm Shadow gritted his teeth and gripped the handle tighter. With a resigned breath, he pulled the sword free. He then slid his arms out of the white trenchcoat and tossed it onto the floor, the coat would only get in his way in a sword fight. Underneath he wore a white long-sleeved shirt.

He held the sword out and pointed the tip at Snake Eyes.

“Come on, then,” he whispered.

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