Chapter 20

"How's work," Xiaoyu asked on the other end of the phone.

Miya sat on her hotel bed, "Great! Really great in fact. I've progressed so much. I think I've almost come to a conclusion in what I've been aiming for." The antidote I've made I think will work. Then maybe I can end this curse.

"Wow, sounds like you're having fun working. How strange of you, Miya."

"Ugh," she groaned, slumping to a laying down position, "I'm exhausted. I stay up half the night at the labs. Most of the time I end up alone there, but during the day I'm not. All of the scientists rush around and there's always one sitting still seeming like he's just-waiting for me."

"Who?"

Miya smirked, "Just an old friend of mine." Suddenly she heard a loud knock on her door. Miya looked up and said into the receiver, "Xiao, it was great talking to you, but I got to go."

"Okay, Miya. Bye."

"Bye, Xiao." She then hung up.

They knocking again.

"Coming!" Miya rushed to the door and opened it to find Emma Kliesen with a card board box in her hands.

"Kliesen-sama!" Miya was surprised.

"May I come in?" the woman asked, "I have something for you." Miya nodded and opened the door more, letting Emma walk past her.

"What do you want?" Miya asked, closing the door.

Emma set the box down on the bed, "Richard never cleaned his desk out when he left. He seemed in a real hurry and forgot all about it."

Miya walked over to the bed as Emma continued, "He had a lot of notes in here and I thought they might be helpful toward you"

Miya rummaged around in the box, full of papers and folders, "Wow thanks, Kliesen-sama." She discarded some papers on the bed and picked up a certain one. Subject: Mishima, Kazuya

Emma frowned, "I've been watching you and him. I can tell even through his listless attitude that you two seem close…"

Miya looked at her from the corner of her eye, "Yeah, I guess you could say that. When I helped them back in Japan he always seemed to like me better than Richard."

Emma eyed the paper, "He's been with us for twenty years now. We've recorded his behavior and ideas, actions. He's d-"

Miya snapped, "Dangerous. I know! But guess what Kliesen," she turned to her fully, "I don't give a damn. He's my friend and I owe him my life. I don't care if he's the Devil. I don't care if he's Jesus, hell I don't care if he's Santa." She turned back to the box with a stubborn, troubled look, and with a sad voice, "He's my friend."

"And does he believe that?"

Miya grimaced and bent down pulling something out from under the bed. There was a little box in her hand. She opened it revealing the old sash. "If he wasn't then why did he take such good care of this even after you got the information you needed. This was my mother's. And while he had it, it doesn't look it aged an day. It's not faded or stained. It's perfect." She closed it and hugged the box to her chest, looking away at the ground. Emma's eyes saddened, "Miya, I know it's hard. You've lost so much over the years and you feel as if you don't hold on tight to him you'll have nothing left."

Miya looked up, eyes wide.

Emma smiled, "I've felt the same way. I lost my husband a long time ago. But my child…I hold her close as if it's our last day. But I know if I hold her close she can't grow and learn from her mistakes. I won't let go, but I can release."

Miya lowered the box and set it on the bed, turning back to the other box. She saw the edge of wood inside. Her eyebrows raised and she unearthed it seeing it was a picture frame. The picture was of her at three riding her father's shoulders at the zoo, a red balloon in her hand. She had snatched his glasses off and plunked them on her face. He was laughing.

Emma saw Miya's pained expression towards the photo and began to speak in English, "Miya, your father loved you."

"How do you know that. How was I supposed to know that. I didn't believe it," she hissed in her language, words shaking from their nonuse, "Emma, you didn't know him. He was so obsessed with his work and dragged me into a world I didn't need to be in!"

"He did love you, Miya. He just didn't know how to show it," Emma said, "He talked about you all the time. Nonstop. But he seemed to change when he and Violet separated. It was a very hard time for the both of you." She put a hand on Miya's shoulder, "I wish I could have been there for you both."

Miya looked down at the picture, "You said you have a daughter right?"

Emma nodded, "Yes, she's a few years younger than you. Eleonore."

Miya looked up, "Make sure she's knows how much you love her."

Emma grinned and nodded. "Well, I have to get going."

Miya nodded, walking her to the door, "Thanks for stopping by-and for bringing his stuff."

"It was no problem," she then turned to Miya, "Oh and be careful."

Miya nodded, "I will," and closed the door. She walked back over to the bed and picked up the picture. "Look at me Daddy, I'm just like you now! I got your glasses!"

The picture's glass shattered when Miya threw it into the trash.

Miya put the head phones on ears and clicked play. She kicked her feet up on the counter. It was well past ten or eleven at the lab's break room and Miya was alone. She lifted the chopsticks to her mouth dispensing the noodles carefully. Took in a few more bites and swallowed, beginning to sing along with the Japanese pop song and then began to hum along with the rest. She picked up back her bowl, singing some more, when her head phones were pulled out and let go, slapping her ears painfully.

"Hey!" she exclaimed whirling around in the spin chair. Kazuya stood there with an amused smirk. Her face flushed red as she pulled the headphones done to her neck, switching the music off.

"Could you sing any louder?" he dug in her his ear with a finger, "Because I can barely hear you."

"Kazuya!"

He straightened his posture, "No, really, stop it. You sound like a cat falling off the Empire State Building."

She smacked her lips, "Oh whatever."

"And eating at the same time? That's-disgusting."

She shrugged, "I haven't ate all day! So, you caught me in one of my bad habits. Talking and or singing and eating at the same time. Don't tell me you don't have any weird habits-heh, other than throwing people off cliffs."

"Not funny," he pointed a finger at her, eyes narrowing.

"No seriously," she set her mp3 player on the table and now held the bowl close to her face, chopsticks in hand, taking in a full bite, "No habits, maybe a hobby?"

"Chew your food."

"I am!" She then swallowed, "Come on, you've got to have some sort of hobby. Mine is dancing. You-?"

He rolled his eyes, "…Sneakers."

She arched an eyebrow, "Sneakers?"

He crossed his arms and looked awkwardly away, "I…collect…sneakers."

Her face was blank a moment and slowly the corners of her mouth began to turn upward.

He looked flustered, "Wha-what!"

She laughed, 'That's so cool!"

He rolled his eyes, "Grow up."

She shook her head holding up a hand, "Hey, I don't collect shoes-and I'm the chick here. But that's cool. Hobbies are healthy-can be addicting-but most of them are healthy."

He cocked a head with a 'are you sure' look.

She laughed nervously, "As long as it's not-I don't know-stabbing-" he began to grin as she stuttered, "o-or killing-but that's not the point!"

He smiled, "And I'm the screw up. You can't even make a good point."

She sighed kicking back again, "So. Hey, have you ate today?"

"Not-really," he admitted.

She held the bowl out, "Here."

He shook his head with a disgusted expression, "No."

"Come on. It's goood."

"I said-"

She saw the clock on the wall in the corner of her eyes, "Shit!' and shoved it into his hands, shooting up from her seat. She sprinted towards the door. He picked up the noodles with the sticks, "Where are you going?"

She looked back, "I forgot to shut the systems down! Be right back, Kaz!"

He ate a mouth full and swallowed, "Not-bad…she called me…Kaz?" My grandfather used to call me that. He felt content a moment then suddenly slammed the bowl down on the table, "Damn it girl! Don't call me that!"

She barely heard him as she ran down the hall, keeping a steady jog. She suddenly heard windows shattering and began to run faster towards the main lab. Footsteps echoed around her and appearing out of the dark were soldiers of the Tekken Force.

"Oh-Kazuya! Kazuya!" she began to yell, but slid into a fighting stance arms out in front of her, ready. They circled her. Cameras were attached to all of their helmets. One focused on her.

"Hello, Myriah," Heihachi leered watching from the other end.

One stepped toward her but she slung, punched, and jerked the other way, striking another. She kicked high, striking one at the jaw, twirled her leg around, her heel hitting another's torso. She kicked up, while jumping, slinging her other leg up as well, kicking twice into one. One tried to kick her down but she caught his leg and pushed him back into another.

When she stood she realized she had beat all of them. She ran over them, have to secure the system or…!

She ran through sub levels and through hallways. It was darker in this area but she was getting closer. She heard heavy clanking foots steps coming her way and grimaced. Several swarmed out in front of her, this time with guns. She charged straightforward, palms flexed and knocked one down, quickly kneeing up to the next one after that. However, they closed in around as she made her way through them. One kicked her from behind sending her to the ground.

She looked up eyes wide to the gun barrel in her face. "Kazuya!"she screamed as loud as she could

A pair of hands grabbed the soldier's neck and pulled him up and over. Kazuya slammed him to the ground and resumed position, ordering Miya, "Go." She scrambled up and slid behind him under his protection.

"You're still alive?" Heihachi grabbed the screen, looking at Kazuya with surprise.

Kazuya looked one straight in the eye and launched his fist into the soldier's stomach, knocking him back. Another one came at him with a machete but Kazuya grabbed his arm, preventing him from stabbing him, then grabbed him leg, slamming him into the wall. Miya watched as another came at the man but Kazuya kicked his foot at the man's head to one side, knocking him one way, and slung his leg back the other, sending the soldier to the ground.

Oh! she winced, I've felt that one before and it hurts.

One came straight at him with a gun but Kazuya quickly grabbed the back of his head and shoved it to the wall, denting and cracking the cement.

Kazuya almost gasped seeing the girl leap past him and give an uppercut right to the jaw and sending one up in the air and delivered a powerful kick, him flying back into two others.

As one ran at her she punched him in the shoulder, slung her other fist around to punch him in the face and then kneed up and bent her leg back. "Agh!" She kicked out with such a great force it sent him into the very back wall.

She turned to Kazuya, "Go where you said?"

A grenade clanked to the floor rolling in-between them. His eyes widened and he jumped at her, "Move!" and tackled her out of the way. It exploded, filling the air with an intense heat. All Miya could see over Kazuya's shoulder was bright blasts of orange and yellow. She felt his heavy weight on top of her and groaned, eyes closing. When she opened them again he was rising off her. Everything seemed so slow, moving poorly in her blurry vision. There was a faint ringing in her head. It went away as she clambered up looking out to see him taking on a few more.

She ran out as he slung one back to her. She jumped, feet pounding into his back, causing her to flip and land in a crouch. The soldier hit the ground and out ran another one, but Kazuya grabbed his arm and slugged him in the face, sending him to the wall.

They had kept fighting and fighting until Miya was almost completely out of breath. She fought fearlessly, as Kazuya had admired, but he…he was like a mindless machine full of rage. She was caught up on watching him she didn't notice a soldier coming at her shoving her up to the wall. Kazuya grabbed the back of his neck and slammed him into the other wall. The soldier hit it hard and slumped down, still conscious.

Kazuya was huffing hard, teeth clenched. Miya pushed her self up against the wall behind him, watching him, breathing hard. His red eye glowed bright as he pulled a pistol out. Miya saw that Kazuya was glaring at the camera attached to the soldier's helmet.

"Heihachi," she said slowly.

"I'll-" he growled and a fist flew a the camera knocking him out, "-get everything back!"

Heihachi grimaced, "You deluded fool."

Miya stepped forward and grabbed his hand. He slung her off turning to her, gun in her face. As soon as he actually saw her his angry expression disappeared and he lowered it.

"We've-we've got to go," she said grabbing his sleeve this time. He swallowed and nodded, trying to regain his breath.

Sorry for any bad grammar! I was in a hurry editing this-while cooking at the same time. Yeah, I have a bad habit of multitasking. Not as bad as Miya's habits, of course. I hate when people talk with their mouths full.

Honestly this chapter was another link into a more complicated plot trying to stick to the Tekken 4 cannon story line. I was also trying to show how Kazuya would have a conversation with an older Miya. Miya is exceptionally nice to him and he's...well he's him so it was decent. I admit conversations with Jin were at least a bit more interesting.

And the fighting scenes are fun but with all the commas I'm afraid it might seem jumbled. That's only because the actions being written about are happening very fast and I'm trying to make it appear so. Also it's so annoying having to write and portray actual moves from the game. So if you recognize any moves Miya or Kazuya uses while in combat from the games give me a shoutout!

I hope you enjoy and if you have an criteria!