Falco, the Brave General of the Source Star!
There Lies the Shadow of Raoh...

The North Star army see, far away in the distance, the imperial capital. Bat says that if they don't eliminate the celestial emperor, there will be no peace for them. Ein tells Asuka to watch him -he'll show her what a hero is, and she'll see the courage of a lone wolf.

Rihaku then arrives, and tells Kenshiro that it's time. Meanwhile, at the capital...

...the slaves are working. One older guy falls down, so a soldier goes to whip him. But before he can, his whip is destroyed by an energy blast.

Falco appears, and assists the old man. Another soldier walks in, and tells Falco that Jako wants to see him. As Falco starts walking up some steps, the slaves can hear his knee creaking. They think that Falco is crying -whilst Falco himself does not cry, his right leg is crying.

Outside, Bat asks Rihaku what the celestial emperor is like. Rihaku says he doesn't know, as everything about the emperor is shrouded in mystery. But he does know that the emperor has given viceroy Jako full control. But the one to fear is the Source Star's ultimate warrior, golden general Falco. Kenshiro recalls seeing Falco before, and how his own men sacrificed themselves to protect him.

Bat recalls what one of the soldiers said -that Falco is the light that moves their hearts. Rihaku recalls something, from the time Raoh was calling himself the Fist King...

Raoh and his army appear at the Source Star village. He knows of Falco, and tells him to make a choice: fight, or surrender.

Falco says he chooses neither -he would just like Raoh to ignore this village. One of the villagers asks Falco if he is afraid to fight. Falco says he could defeat Raoh now, but it would be as the cost of his own life. If Raoh falls here, his army will succumb to anarchy, which will likely result in this village being massacred. He then tells Raoh he won't ask for this for nothing, and decides to make an offering: his leg.

Falco cuts one of his own legs off, and tells Raoh that he doesn't want one drop of the villager's blood spilt.

Back in the present, Rihaku says that Falco's right leg is likely a prosthetic one. Bat asks why Falco is under the control of the celestial emperor, and Ein asks why Falco doesn't just kill the emperor. Rihaku says Falco would never kill the emperor, as it would be against his own principles.

Inside the capital, Falco sees Shoki. He sees that Shoki has a cut one his face. Shoki says that Jako gave him this, for letting Kenshiro go. He tells Falco not to go to Jako, but Falco says he must -being called by Jako is the same as being called by the celestial emperor.

Falco enters the room, and sees that in addition to Jako, Boltz and Taiga, Myu is also there. Jako asks Falco why he didn't wipe out the rebel troops. Falco says that an unexpected enemy got in the way. Jako asks him if he's caught some of Shoki's cowardice.

Jako walks down to where he is, and tells him his head is too high -he is to kneel before him! He kicks his fake leg, and Falco kneels.

Jako doesn't like the look in Falco's eyes, and reminds him that the celestial emperor has given him full authority. He asks Boltz and Taiga about this, and they say, in union, that Lord Jako is the celestial emperor's most highly trusted viceroy. His words are the celestial emperor's words, and his fists are the celestial emperor's fists.

Jako asks Falco if he heard that, and hits him on the head. He then starts striking him repeatedly, and tells him to destroy the North Star. He's ruined the South Star, now the North Star is the root of evil. Suddenly, Shoki bursts through a wall.

He tells Jako he can't stand this any more, and calls him the root of evil. He says he can die, and goes to smash him with a rock. But Falco destroys it with an energy blast.

Shoki asks Falco why he has to go this far being their slave. He says that Jako fears the North Star, and he's using the celestial emperor's name to give out fake orders. Jako thinks back to the time he encountered Raoh...

Raoh says that he accepts Falco's offering. But he then senses something, and throws out an energy blast at a building. Jako stumbles out.

Raoh grabs him, but Jako says he'll give him the entire fortune of this village, if he spares his life. Raoh tells him his eyes belie his wicked heart. He tells Falco to kill Jako now, otherwise, he'll become his worst nightmare. He tosses Jako to the ground, as he and his army leave. Jako swears he'll never forget this.

Back in the present, Jako thinks that as long as the North Star continues to threaten him, he has no future! Shoki says they've been fighting for Falco, but he's had enough. He goes to kill Jako, but Falco asks Shoki to forgive him. He uses an attack...

...which strikes Shoki, and kills him. As Shoki falls, Falco picks him up, and tells Jako that Shoki is also a general of the celestial emperor -he would like to relieve him with his own hands.

As Falco leaves, Jako says that Falco can't defy him. He asks Myu if she still has any feelings for Falco, and she says she doesn't. Jako says Falco is a coward, who can't defeat the North Star. He thinks Myu is much more suited for himself, rather than Falco. Meanwhile, Falco takes Shoki down to a canal, where the corpses of dead workers are placed. Shoki is not dead -Falco had used a technique that made it look like he'd killed him. Shoki asks Falco why he bears Jako's abuse of power. Falco says that the celestial emperor has already fallen to Jako. If Jako is killed, the celestial emperor will be killed.

The source star is the star destined to protect the celestial emperor, and he can't let the 2,000 year history of their clan by overturned by his generation. He tells Shoki he's already dead -he doesn't have to show his loyalty to the celestial emperor any longer, so he can live freely. He sends Shoki down the canal, but a little later, a spear hits Shoki.

Taiga says it's just as they thought. Jako says he can see right through Falco's foolish tricks, and as soon as he defeats the North Star, he'll be executed. He tells Boltz and Taiga to watch over Falco, and not miss a thing. Outside, bodies of many dead slaves float down the river, away from the imperial capital.

The North Star army arrive, and see some objects floating down. Rihaku explains that these are dead bodies, of the prisoners who were taken to the imperial capital. Ein then sees that one of the bodies has a spear in it.

He opens up the bag, and finds Shoki inside it, barely alive. Kenshiro sees him and realizes who he is, and recalls how Shoki had helped him and Yuria in the past. Shoki tells Kenshiro that the root of this evil is viceroy Jako.

He asks Kenshiro to defeat him, but then dies from his injuries. Ein looks at the blue spear, and Rihaku says it belongs to Boltz, the blue general of the Source Star.

Kenshiro takes the spear, and tells Shoki that, for his help, he swears to avenge him. At the capital, Boltz and his men watch as the North Star army approach the capital. Boltz has the North Star army's flag raised.

Boltz then hits it with an energy blast, causing the flag to catch fire. He yells out to the North Star army, telling them that this is their fate. Bat sees that their flag is burning.

Kenshiro throws the spear towards Boltz, which strikes through his cape...

...and pins him to a wall. Boltz realizes this is his own spear, and thinks it's impossible for it to have been thrown that far. He pulls it out and curses Kenshiro.

Kenshiro walks towards the capital, and says that the blue general, Boltz, will not be forgiven.

NEXT EPISODE PREVIEW

Falco, who's prepared to die for the celestial emperor, uses his Source Star imperial fist to challenge the North Star. Next time, on Fist of the North Star 2: "The Emperor's Cries Echoes Through the Imperial Capital! Where Is Falco..."