Chapter III: The Stars of Salvation
In the face of adversity, people resort to many things to keep trouble away, one common example being to band with others, even if it may seem futile.
Manaka was practically in that situation, except she was missing one key thing.
The people to work with.
She couldn't, wouldn't,work with Jin at the moment, for more reasons than one, and as far as asking friends goes, well, she didn't have any. In fact, the closest thing she had to a friend was the thing she was fighting against.
She sighed. I need a break...
In desperate need of rest, she slinked into a quiet cafe on the outskirts of town. She winced a little as she sat down; she was still in pain from her encounter with Devil Shion the other day.
She tried to still her racing mind and enjoy the brief moment of peace that she had as she sipped at some coffee, but she kept noticing that someone was eyeing her from across the room; namely the psychic woman, Zafina.
Please don't talk to me, please don't talk to me, please don't talk to me...
"Manaka?"
Dammit...
"Yeah?" she asked, turning to face her.
"I am afraid that I must ask a... rather large favour of you."
Manaka sighed. "Okay, if this favour involves the words "Devil Shion" then the answer is, uh, NO."
"Please, listen!" Zafina pleaded. Manaka could see the visible panic in her eyes, so she decided to at least hear her out.
"Where I come from, there is a prophecy."
"Yeah, Jin's explained that to me. The evil stars, the destroyer, and the devil girl?" Manaka asked. There's a sentance I never thought I'd say... she thought.
"Yes. You see, from a young age, I have been told that it is I and two others who must fight against these threats. I am asking for your help in the matter."
"Sorry, sweetie," Manaka said, "but I can't help you out. I've already had a run-in with Devil Shion, and she's incredibly powerful. And brutal. And possibly schizophrenic. If that thing under the temple awakens, well, I don't know about you, but I know that I'd be slush in two seconds flat. I'd be no use to you."
"But we could stop Devil Shion before the creature awakens, if we all come together."
"Yup, that's my current job. And you know, I've been thinking of quitting that, so I'd be a bit of a hypocrite if I halped you."
"Please, Manaka. With your Devil Gene, you have more of a chance than anyone else. We need you for this to work."
Manaka sighed exasperatedly. "Two syllables for ya, hon - dor-mant."
"Yes, dormant. But you still have it, and it can be activated. We need someone with the Devil Gene - active or not - to have a chance at destroying this being. Please, help us."
"...Okay, I'll help," Manaka relented. "But if we all get creamed, I'm blaming you."
Zafina's formerly bleak expression instantly turned to sheer joy.
"Yes, yes, you can blame me for anything!" she announced, before grabbing Manaka by the hand and coaxing her to her feet.
"Come, you must meet the others! Or, rather, the other..." Zafina trailed off.
"Hold the bus. There's only three of us?"
"Well, when I told them everything, not many people were very willing to help..."
Manaka facepalmed.
"Well, I guess it's worth a shot..."
Not even ten minutes ago, Manaka was sat in a cafe, all on her own, trying to get some peace and form a solution to the current problem at hand. Now, she was in the hotel room of a slightly crazy woman who she barely knew, about to meet another person who may or may not be just as crazy, or worse.To make things just that little bit worse, she was all on her own again, as Zafina had run off to get the other person, who Manaka had discovered was another girl.
How the heck did I ever get here...Manaka wondered.
A while later, Zafina arrived back, with another girl in tow.
"Manaka, this is Star. She will be helping us in the battle against the destroyer and his minion. Star, this is Manaka, the girl I was telling you about."
"Hi, Manaka!"
"Hey, Star," Manaka greeted, looking at the new girl. She had platinum blonde hair with black streaks through it that reached her shoulders, wearing a long, black dress.
"So Zafina told me that you're gonna help us with the... uh... things!"
"Um... yup?"
"Great! We'll have a way better chance at beating 'em with a big demon on our side!"
"Um... sorry to burst your bubble, but... I can't. Well, maybe I could, but... it's complicated. All I know right now is that at this point in time, I can't. Sorry," Manaka apologized again.
"Um..." Star looked confused and disappointed at this news.
"Oh, well. We can still try! I mean, we're still all really strong!" Star announced.
"Hells yeah," Manaka agreed, smiling, leaning back on the bed a little. "So, what's our game plan, then, Zafina?"
"Well, first of all, we must dispatch Devil Shion. She is far less of a threat than the beast under the temple, but she is causing havoc here and must be dealt with."
Manaka's expression darkened significantly, her eyes meeting the floor.
"Also," Zafina continued, "at least one of us must be on constant watch, to ensure that the two evil stars do notclash. Manaka, I will put you in charge of this," she finished, sympathy evident in her voice as she looked at Manaka.
"Thank you," Manaka smiled, though she was still clearly sad.
"Um, evil stars? Weren't we supposed to make sure that two guys didn't fight?" Star asked, her head tilted a little to the side.
"It is a metaphor," Zafina sighed. "Manaka, you actually have to be on the lookout to make sure that two certain people come nowhere near each other."
"Which people?" Manaka asked.
"Two that you of all people should know rather well - Jin Kazama and Kazuya Mishima."
"Ahhh, I see..."
"So, to sum up: Keep Jin and father - ha- away from each other. That'll be easy, seeing as how I work for Jin, or rather, I probably still work for Jin..." she trailed off, realizing that Jin hadn't got in contact with her.
"Um, Manaka? If you don't mind me asking... what's the 'ha' for?" Star piped up.
"...I never knew my father. Not really. I lived in an orphanage for all of my childhood. When I met Kazuya, we ended up in these huuuugefights. I don't care though. His loss, right?" Manaka laughed.
"...New subject," Star said, rather swiftly. "All we have to do is beat up this chick, right, Zafina?"
"Um, Star, bear in mind that this is no regular "chick"..." Zafina reminded.
"Yeah, she's a big devil chick," Manaka added.
"Big woop! We can take her!" Star proclaimed, very enthusiastically.
Yeah, ignorance is bliss,Manaka thought. She was still doubtful that the three women would be able to take on Devil Shion, let alone this other thing that was seemingly Devil Shion times 1000.
"Now," Zafina said, interrupting Manaka's train of thought, "we will put our plans into action tomorrow. Manaka, you will follow Jin and make sure that him and your father do not engage in battle, while Sasha and I work on finding and destroying Devil Shion. Okay?"
The other two nodded their heads.
"Okay then, now that that's sorted out, you two can go home now. After all, we'll all be all the rest we can get for this one..."
On the way home, Manaka checked her phone for what had to be the billionth time. No missed calls. She checked her messages, and noticed that there was one unread message sent earlier on today.
You win. You don't have to go after the girl, just keep your position as my bodyguard. I expect you back to work tomorrow.
- J.
Her heart leapt, then promptly sunk. She had gotten out of one person's plan to kill Shion, and straight into another's.
She sighed.
Looks like we just can't win, Shi... she thought.
Looks that way, huh?
Manaka stopped dead in her tracks. That voice wasn't her own, but she knew it all too well.
...Shion?
A laugh.
It's dangerous to stop dead in the middle of the road, you know.
What-?
You should get some rest, Manaka.
But-
See you later!
Wait, Shion!
Manaka never got a reply. She continued on her way home, tired, confused, happy, sad, and almost every other emotion you could name.
She entered her house and headed straight for bed, direly needing a decent night's sleep. She tossed and turned for what must have been a good few hours before finally drifting off to sleep, dreading the next day.
Her dream, though, was the best thing that had happened to her in ages.
A/N: And what happened after that? Well, you'll just have to wait and see! Muahahaha... *evil face*
Feel free to review and tell me what you thought of the chapter, feedback's always more than welcome! I'm always looking for ways to improve, so if you can think of anything, feel free to tell me. I won't bite~
So, thanks a bunch for reading! =)