| Part 13 Part 12 - Back to writings "I see my reputation precedes me. But allow me to introduce myself properly. I am Kazuya Mishima, father of Jin Kazama and former CEO of the wretched Mishima Financial Empire. In other words, I�m the cold-blooded bastard that everyone talks about." His grin grew wider and Kechara could see his eyes dancing in the flickering light. Allison had been silent throughout the exchange of words; Kechara could see out of the corner of her eye that the dark girl was studying Kazuya intensely. His eyes never wavering, Kazuya slowly approached Kechara until he was inches from her. "From what I know, you�re a very nice girl, Kechara," he said quietly. "I don�t want to harm you in any way. But please but sensible about your decision whether or not to tell me what I want. A few scars on the body and mind can make more of a difference than you think. I�m not so much of a bastard to touch you sexually, but there are a million other ways to inflict pain." "Kazuya," Allison breathed suddenly. "You..." She clenched her eyes shut and gritted her teeth. "My... Kazuya..." Allison�s head suddenly threw back and Kechara heard her scream. Both her and Kazuya turns their heads toward her. Kechara saw Kazuya�s face harden and his mouth twist into a sneer. "Come out, you bitch!" he shouted, crossing his arms. "Come out then call your master!" Allison�s screams suddenly became guttural then inhuman. Kechara saw her mouth expand and a black snout poke out. A dark shape with the same yellow eyes as the girl slowly tore itself out of Allison�s being. It had the distinct look of a wolf, with giant claws and no legs. Kechara watched in terror as her friend went back to normal but slumped to the ground, not moving. The demon lowered its gaze to Kazuya, who looked nonchalant. Hundreds of tiny frightened whispers came from it; little faces of lost souls were etched in the creature�s midriff, pain and terror being the sole expression of each. Then the monster spoke, through a voice full of whistles, rumbles, and other odd noises. "Today you will die, Kazuya." "Where is your master, demon?" Kazuya demanded. "I have matters to discuss with him." "He is busy," the creature growled. "He will not see you today." Its lip curled, showing many straight, sharp teeth. Kazuya snorted. "I�m more of a priority than you, dog. Tell him I�m here." "Kazuya-" the creature broke off suddenly, turning its head toward the far doorway. Kazuya and Kechara followed suit. A very surprised Jin Kazama stood at the end of the hall. The rumblings of the ancient stone heads once again dominated the sound in the temple until Jin called out, "Kechara!" "I�m here!" she shouted, trembling. She heard his footsteps as he cautiously approached the group. A sudden wash of cold fear came over Kazuya. "Jin! Don�t come any closer!" he called, and Kazama�s footsteps stalled then stopped. The wolf demon suddenly turned toward Kazuya with a look of pure rage and disbelief on its face. "No," it rumbled, clenching its fists. "You can�t know... It�s impossible..." "I�m not the easiest person to keep a secret from," Kazuya muttered, and suddenly threw a heavy punch at the demon, succeeding in knocking it silly. The Mishima advanced toward Kechara with the sudden glitter of a knife in his hand. "This is your fault," he growled, raising the knife. Kechara screamed then felt the pressure around her wrists disappear. Kazuya quickly cut the bonds around her ankles and shoved her away from the wall. Kechara tripped but caught herself, feeling a bit dizzy. Kazuya grabbed her wrist before she could run. "Find the sword," he whispered fiercely. Do it before you do anything else. The Lives of four people depend on it." The demon had begun to rise from the floor. "Go now!" He threw her away from him as the wolf swung a heavy paw at his head. He ducked and countered while urging her on. Kechara glanced down the hall at Jin, who had started running to her. Kazuya�s cold words filled her mind - The lives of four people depend on it. Cold-hearted he might be, but he was far from stupid. Kechara dashed towards Jin and shouted a quick "I�ll explain later!" as she passed him. Kechara stopped as she reached the first dragon head of the hall. She winced as it blasted her with heat then prepared to try her plan. "Looking for something?" a voice suddenly rang out over the din of the rumbling and fighting. Surprised, if not a bit panicked, Kechara glanced at the top of the head. Kunimitsu executed a graceful backflip to the stone floor. "Quite a predicament we have here," she said, nodding to the group of men, woman, and demon farther down the hall. "Yes," Kechara said, relieved. She saw Kazuya smack the wolf in the jaw before Kuni spoke again. "It�s the fourth Tournament." She pointed. "To your left. Do what Kazuya says." Kechara looked at the fourth set of dragon heads. "Kuni-" She turned to face her, but the ninja was gone. "Kechara!" Jin came up behind her and wrapped her in a hug. "Are you alright? Did my father-" He broke off. She shook her head. "No, he didn�t. But I need you to help him." She looked up pleading with her eyes. He was silent for a moment, then nodded slowly. "Okay." He gave her a quick kiss on the forehead and ran toward the fight. Kechara jogged to the fourth dragon head to her left. She timed the lag between flame spurts then took a deep breath. She waited for the fire to retreat then stuck her hand in the mouth, despite the intense heat. Her fingers connected with a hilt and, wrapping her hand around it, she quickly withdrew the sword. The head belched fire just as the tip of the sword left its mouth. Kechara�s hand burned but she held the enchanted weapon tightly in her grasp. She had fetched the Manji sword. A sharp yelp of pain and fear erupted from the battle. Kechara saw Jin rise from the floor, his body swathed in electricity. Kechara recalled hearing Kazuya shout, "Leave!" and then the sound of flesh against flesh. Jin moaned and the wolf demon giggled with glee. "Master approaches!" it grated, panting. Kechara saw a dark ooze running down all sides of the creature and realized Kazuya had been winning. Why wouldn�t he have wanted to defeat this demon alongside his son? Jin�s moan turned into a scream, and bolts of energy started flying from him. Kazuya took a worried step back and the wolf rested nearby. Kechara watched as Jin�s body twisted and grew bulkier. She was close enough to see his bangs and nails grow, and the dreaded black marks appear on his forehead and chest through his recently torn shirt. A blinding red beam shot down the hall as a third eye opened on Kazama�s forehead. Jin stopped. He stood slightly hunched over, breathing heavily. Kechara watched, terrified, as he swung his gaze to Kazuya. In a much deeper voice than his own, he growled, "And now it is time that the son succeeded his father." He lunged at Kazuya, hands going for his neck. "Kechara!" Kazuya shouted. He was tired from his battle with the demon and wouldn�t be able to hold his own for long against his possessed son. He hit the ground with a thud and wrestled to free his neck from Devil Jin�s hold. "Use it!" he choked. Kechara stood, disbelieving. Use the sword on Jin? She couldn�t; she loved him too much. She heard Kazuya gasp for breath. She remembered Kuni�s words to do what Kazuya told her. She trusted Kuni but� stab Jin? A war of feelings waged in her head. A sudden jolt on her shoulder almost sent her sprawling. She turned and saw the wolf demon preparing a punch for her face. In one quick movement, she whipped the sword around and cleanly sliced off the beast�s head. A high squeal echoed through the temple. Devil Jin released his grip on Kazuya�s neck and looked over at the beheaded demon and Kechara still standing in the same position she had finished off the demon in. Kazuya coughed and choked, rolling out from under Devil Jin�s form. Green ooze littered the floor, walls, and Kechara. The demon�s arms flailed helplessly as it began to fall forward. Tiny silver lights began to erupt from the creature�s severed neck, and Kechara could hear sounds best described like bells flying past her. She felt thousands of tiny fingers reach out and caress her face as the sparks passed. The tortured souls absorbed by the demon had been released. Kazuya hadn�t been referring to Jin but to the demon. Kechara had never even considered it. "Noooo!" Jin again shook violently and moaned. Kazuya stumbled to his feet and ran over to where the still-bound Allison lay. He hefted her up on one shoulder and staggered over to Kechara. "Untie her," he ordered; his knife had been lost in the battle with the wolf demon. Kechara obeyed and began working on the knots. Kazuya stood and faced the trembling Devil Jin. "I don�t know why I ever trusted you," he shouted. "I should have known you would turn to new blood when it became available." "You turned on me!" the deep voice hissed. "You�re out to destroy me! But it won�t happen, I can assure you." A cruel, thin smile passed Jin�s lips. Kazuya narrowed his eyes. "You didn�t even keep your end of the bargain. My father survived that fall!" he snarled. "He was supposed to die!" Devil Jin shrugged. "He was a tough old codger. I didn�t think he would survive. I miscalculated. Even entities make misjudgments, you fool. After I realized that I had made a thing you humans call a mistake, I made up for it." Kazuya started to say something but Devil Jin held up a hand to silence him. "I saved you when you were thrown into the volcano. You haven�t aged a day since then. I�ve prepared you for when you would again meet your father. I�ve taken good care of you, Kazuya Mishima, and you can�t deny that." He smiled slightly. "As for your sweetheart�" Kazuya froze. "I had more to do with that than you, demon," he sputtered. "It was my power that actually did it though. She wouldn�t be her if it wasn�t for me." He grinned wickedly. "My brother thought he could handle the soul of a half-angel. I salvaged her soul from his wreckage. He thought if he kept hers in a deep dark place, she would never see light. And she wouldn�t have. She would�ve remained trapped in the special basement of his invisible soul forever. "But I broke his soul. I saved her." Kazuya was speechless. The Devil had saved his sweetheart. The last silver spark flew out of the wolf demon. It brushed up against Kechara�s cheek, tickling her. Then with a voice of faint music, whispered in her ear, "It�s all in the heart�" then flew off. "My son-" Kazuya mumbled. "I didn�t think you�d mind if your son was trained by me. By the way, he was the one who ended up destroying both your father and Toshin. He has a strong soul, though there are still some places I haven�t unlocked yet, being that he inherited some of the angel his mother had. I trust that he will be a dominant figure of the world in ten years, maybe less." Devil Jin pinched his own arm. "He is almost perfectly tuned physically; I just need to concentrate on his mind and soul." "Evil..." Kazuya muttered. "But powerful," Devil pointed out. "He would be taking the same path you did. Except this time, I will succeed." Those last two sentences did it. Kazuya ran for Devil Jin, shouting a battle cry. Kechara had finally gotten Allison�s ropes off but wasn�t in time to grab Kazuya and stop him. A smile passed Jin�s lips. His body jerked violently then crumpled to the floor. The same purple mist Kechara had seen in Jin�s office launched itself at Kazuya, and stopped him in mid-lunge. Kazuya was held suspended in the air for three full seconds until he was pushed backwards onto the floor. Kechara shrieked and moved herself and Allison out of the way. "Feel the power," Devil�s voice came. "You can have it again. Rule the earth and sky with your son." Devil Kazuya ripped one of the stone heads out of the wall and heaved it down the hall, watching it crash at the far end. "Strength... do you remember?" "Yesss..." Kazuya�s normal voice trailed off into a hiss. He clenched and unclenched his hands, leaned his head back and closed his eyes. He was going to do it. |