Chapter 3: The Sleeping Child Awakens

"What shall we do with the girl?"

"It's obvious what we should do. We should send her back and retrieve the true fighter."

"You know well that that is impossible."

"Yes…especially since a cursed embodiment brought her here..."

"How exactly did this happen without us knowing?"

"Be quiet! There is only one solution to this problem."

"…"

"Make her the replacement! Everything is already prepared for…even her sacrifice is here…"

"Gasp!" Asami hurriedly took a large intake of breath; hastily opening her eyes. Still lying on the ground, she stared upward towards the ceiling, remaining still on the concrete. She slowly rose from the ground, her back arched and arms lifted to the sky; stretching out her untrained muscles. Asami glanced around the room; promptly allowing herself a sigh of relief. (There's no one here.) She examined the room again, trying to find anything that caught her eye; admittedly tired of the same dubious routine. The pristine room was spacious and seemingly empty, filled with boxes and dust. ("At least it's better than that hallway full of freaks…" She thought carelessly.

"…co…h…re…" A whisper quietly drifted through the room; echoing against the walls and storage. Questioningly, Asami started to gaze towards the direction from whence the soft voice came from. There laid a door, slightly opened, at the corner of the room. "Is…someone there?" Asami asked uncertainly. "…th…is…way…" The whisper persistently continued, alluring her to follow. "Hello?" Asami, exhausted of the unanswered questions, lifted herself up from the floor. ("Something…seems different…") She glanced downward to the floor to see that the bandage on her leg was gone. Crouching back on to the floor, she skimmed her hand along side her leg; where her wound was supposed to be. Asami quickly looked back up at the door once again, now even more curious of who was watching over her. Cautiously, she paced herself toward the exit, cracking the firm door open. Eventually she slowly found the courage to look through.

She glanced left and right noticing that there was no one in the hallway. "H…ello?" Asami murmured softly. The whispered voice from earlier didn't respond to her. "Creepy…I wonder who said that…?" She asked herself. She quickly shuffled out of the enclosed room, quietly shutting the door behind her. She looked around the hallway that she was in, spotting shut doors along the walls. ("Which way should I go?") Before she herself could think of anything, she began to hear something to the left of her. Stepping forward a little she heard the sounds getting louder. Further along the way, the noise gradually became more rowdy and blaring. While listening to the strange clatter of, what seemed to be voices, she noticed a lighted room near the end of the corridor. When Asami was close enough to the rigid door she leaned against the nearest wall to her, to avoid herself being seen. She squatted on to the floor near the barely opened door and slowly began to peer into the lighted room. Groups of men were standing around inside, seemingly waiting for something to happen.

"It's strange. Knowing that in any moment, one of us is going to have to be first." Said one man; his back facing the door.

Another man turned to face him with a serious look in his eyes. "Do we have to talk about that now? I feel sick enough as it is." He seemed strangely nauseous and upset by the earlier comment.

"Aww…poor you." Began another individual; his voice, callous and uncaring. "Let's all take pity on the man that signed up for this!" He gritted his teeth from frustration and continued to stare back at the upset man with his dark blue eyes.

"C'mon Hamacho-san..." A blond haired man stepped forward, confident and poised securely. "You know you're thinking the same thing as the rest of us." He motioned the others in the room to settle down so that he could continue to speak. "So let's calm down, shall we?"

The blue eyed man shrugged and sat down in stubbornness alongside the other men in the room. Asami continued to listen in, her curiosity taking over. Her eyes slowly browsed through the room, which she could barely see, catching sights of several bookcases that were placed alongside the walls. She stopped to notice a black haired man holding a stick in his mouth near the shelves. His posture seemed to show that he was lacking in any enthusiasm or willingness of, or for, anything.

"When is that guy supposed to get here? The black haired man started, yanking the stick out of his mouth, to continue with his banter. "We have been waiting for a whole day."

The blond individual, from earlier, coincided with the other man. "Yes…it is strange that The Council would actually wait this long. I wonder what's wrong?" His eyes, glanced up at the ceiling of the room, trying to search for an answer.

"The later it is the better, I think." This time a young boy responded, holding a book in his hand. "Gives me a good chance to read up on the books around here." He begins to skim through the pages of the book he was clutching, displaying his interest greatly.

"Looks like we got ourselves a learner here." The blond headed man exclaimed, smirking in amusement. Everyone began to chuckle, easing whatever stress was in the room.

"Shut up Keiji!" The boy yelled; not proud of the whole statement presented. Everyone continued to laugh, even the ones that never seemed to talk.

"I heard a little while ago that The Council-" Everyone immediately stopped snickering and turned to face the speaker with unending curiosity. The man, that was addressing the issue stopped in surprise, but continued with the concern at hand. "-finished with their discussion and that the fighter will be here soon." The green haired man began to adjust his headband awkwardly; finished with what he had to say.

"Well thank god! I'm totally riled up for this competition." Another man stood up from the floor, holding his fists up in the air.

"Are you kidding? You must be retarded." The man kept his arms to his sides, sneering back at the guy that was inspired to fight. "No! I'm not!" Soon the room became loud and deafening with voices as it did before.

Asami continued to eavesdrop on them, wondering if it was safe to actually talk to them. ("They did talk about the council…which isn't really good…") She thought, still a little discouraged. All of the sudden the door, that she was looking through, opened immediately and swiftly. There stood in front door was a young man, his hair colored dirty blonde and his eyes were bright and blue. He appeared apparently stunned of her suspicious behavior, after all, she was crouching near the entrance of the room; suspiciously. He gained his composure back, in a significant amount of time, and revealed a considerate grin on his face.

"Why…hello…" He said reluctantly, his hand still on the door's handle. Asami looked up at him, stunned at his laid-back reaction. However she wasn't as gifted as him to stay as calm and collected as he was.

"AHHHHHH!" She screamed in withdraw, and jumped from the ground. Staggering, she headed down the hallway from where she started from originally hurriedly. The man, estrange by her reaction, calls out for her to stop.

"Hey! Wait a minute!" He rushed from his room and began to pursue her. She ran for what seemed like ages, through corridors and passageways trying to lose him. Finally, Asami turned a corner and unluckily found a dead end.

"Who made the blueprints for this stupid place?!" She shouted in disbelief and fury. She hastily turned around, still panting from running, and found the nameless man right at the other end of the hallway. She started to back up to the wall, keeping herself pinned there.

"Stay back! Get away!" She shouted. He raised his hands above his head, trying to signal her that he wasn't going to try anything.

"I'm not going to hurt you so just relax, ok?" He calmly spoke to her to keep her at ease. Asami tilted her head in puzzlement, checking to see if he was telling the truth or not. He became aware that she was starting to settle down, so he slowly paced forward to her.

"Listen…I was wondering…" He took another step forward, testing to see if she would try anything else. "If I may?" He asked hastily. Her eyes narrowed at his words. "Ask you a question?" He continued to walk to her, but with more assertiveness. Asami thought about it and nodded her head with, of course, a bit of uneasiness. The man, understanding her fear, kept his hands in the air.

He stopped about a couple of feet away from her. "Who are you exactly?" His face filled with interest and skepticism.

"My name is…Asami…Hayata…" She responded reluctantly.

"Hello Hayata-san, my name is Keiji Nishimura. Now…how in the world did you end up here?" He asked in a thoughtful tone.

"I'm…not really sure..." She began. "I mean…I don't even know where the hell I am, you know…?" She laughed uneasily. He relaxed his arms back to his sides but, carefully, reached his hand out to her.

"Would you like to come with me?" He asked vigilantly. She glanced at his hand cautiously and looked back up to see the man's blue eyes watching her intently. Sighing warily, she conscientiously made her decision.

End of Chapter 3: The Sleeping Child Awakens