TEKKEN: BLOOD FEUD
Chapter 41: This is War
Inside Violet System's HQ, Kyoto, Japan
With their allies already on Hawaii, Lars Alexandersson and Lee Chaolan were staying back in Kyoto to observe the battlefield from home. But they had other motives for staying at Violet Systems' HQ. With Jin still being unconscious, they could not afford him to leave him defenseless. That's why it was important that someone stood behind with him.
Still, Lee and Lars were willing to keep up with events happening on Hawaii. Right now, they were standing in a hallway while observing a giant screen. This screen was showing them something, and it looked like a fight. It was actually what a satellite from Violet Systems was filming from space. This time, it was focused on Earth, specifically the Hawaiian Islands.
The giant screen was technically showing them the current fight between Kazuya and Heihachi in the crater of Puʻu ʻŌʻō. To see such really stunned them to the fullest.
"Unbelievable. They're literally fighting in the molten depths of Puʻu ʻŌʻō! And to think that they have enough guts to do such things" Lars remarked in what he was seeing. The Swedish man then scowled in disgust. "But I shouldn't really be surprised at this. Both my father and half-brother are misguided souls who have lost any sense of reason" he then admitted, not hiding his distaste for his family.
"Yes. But we must realize that it's too late to save either one of them from one another. They will go at it like rabid hyenas until the other is dead. But on another note, this fight will determine who is the strongest: Heihachi or Kazuya" Lee reminded Lars as he faced the screen. "With that being said, our concern is mainly those who would use this fight to their advantage. We were wise in agreeing to the revered master's request, despite his frail age" he said while thinking about Wang Jinrei and the group of fighters he was leading.
This made Lars reflect on what they had done recently. "For some reason, I keep thinking that this is the finale of the worldwide war. But there's something in my gut telling me that's not it. I fear that this battle on Hawaii is only the beginning of something worse" he expressed his fears.
Lee weakly nodded his head in agreement. "Indeed. But we have already come so far, Lars. There's no reason for us to give in. You do remember your promise to Tougou, right?" the business tycoon wanted to make sure how serious and determined Lars was.
In response, he looked at Lee. "I haven't forgotten it. Therefore, you do NOT need to bring up a dead comrade to remind me. His spirit is one of the many things keeping me alive and hopeful. I would've never been the same leader without his guidance" the Swedish man was getting slightly emotional when recalling his comrade's death.
"Excellent. Now that is the Lars Alexandersson I know!" Lee commended his adopted half-brother.
Seeing this made Lars smile weakly. "So you were engaging in this talk to keep my head up high? Tch…smartass" he lowly muttered.
Lee tapped on a remote. "I've made sure to specifically film everything on Hawaii. Even as we speak, the armies of the G Corp and the Zaibatsu are clashing by Kīlauea" the white-haired man pointed out as the screen showed a picture of the frontline itself. "But I can't help but to wonder how Heihachi plans on winning with Kuma being in command of the Tekken Force squadrons. Kazuya has plenty of assistance from people like that brute Bruce Irvin and that lovely Anna Williams" he continued, starting to gush when mentioning the brunette Irishwoman.
Lars ignored Lee's womanizing thoughts and proceeded to speak on the matter at hand. "Obviously, Heihachi must have planned a dangerous tactic to this final confrontation. But Kuma, Bruce and Anna are perhaps not the ones we should worry about most" the Swedish man explained before facing the screen once again. "You heard those two agents. The loose alliance L'ordine and these secretive Acolytes of Pluton will use this commotion to their advantage. So I can only imagine that Wang, Alisa, Lei and the others will be doing a dangerous thing in confronting them" he started putting the pieces together.
"Of course. And that's why we'll use this satellite to monitor those groups' movements. We may as well give our allies communicational support, assuming that our signals reach Hawaii" Lee tried to reassure Lars about how they were prepared for these challenges.
Lars smiled weakly at this. "Good to know" he told Lee before something else hit in his head. "And that reminds me, has your medics checked on Jin's condition lately?" he asked his adoptive half-brother.
Lee nodded at him. "Yes. But while he remains in an unconscious state, there is something else that has changed with him. You have to come and see with me, Lars. It's incredible" the business tycoon motioned for Lars to follow him.
As much as Lars wanted to rather focus on Alisa and the others that were on Hawaii risking their lives, he felt the need to see just what Lee was talking about. He would gladly check on his half-nephew's current state, despite his personal reservations. As he followed Lee, the Swedish man kept thinking about the people he had started to become better acquainted with so far.
"Alisa…Master Raven….Raven…Lei Wulong…Wang Jinrei… Steve Fox….be strong out there" Lars thought in his mind.
Inside the Hilo Forest Reserve, Hilo, Hawaiian Islands
In the deepest reaches of the Hilo Forest Reserve, one of the big crates that had recently been dropped off had landed there. The moment the crate landed on the ground, it disintegrated. This left the group of girls all stunned in where they had arrived at.
"Woah! I can't believe we made it here alive!" Josie was in full spirits as she was sitting on her knees.
Julia and Leo shrugged off the young Filipina's emotional attitude. "Of course, we did! No way the G Corp or the Zaibatsu would shoot down crates of supplies" Julia said, even giggling at the end of her sentence.
"Are the rest of you girls okay?" Leo looked around and saw something very strange.
Believe it or not, Xiaoyu and Asuka were holding onto each other as if they were scared. But when they realized that they were safe, both girls opened their eyes. At first, they didn't understand why the rest of the group looked at them so surprised. But once they discovered how they were holding hands, Asuka and Xiaoyu immediately withdrew from one another.
"Ah! It's not what it looks like!" Asuka snapped, trying her best to hide her embarrassment.
"Yeah! Don't get any ideas!" Xiaoyu joined in, feeling caught red-handed just now.
Lili giggled in amusement. "Oh my. It appears that you two have started to become more friends than usual. You both were so scared that you actually held onto one another" the blondie spoke in a teasing manner.
"WE DID NOT!" both Asuka and Xiaoyu yelled in unison.
"You two need to calm down. There's nothing wrong with holding onto a friend when you're afraid" Alisa insisted to them.
"She's right. We all get scared sometimes. Heck, I'm still a big crybaby despite us landing here safely" Josie chimed in.
None of the girls bothered opening their moves to protest. For now, Xiaoyu and Asuka took a quick glance at one another. Each of girls wondered whether they had slowly started to develop a friendlier relationship, as well as cease some of the hostilities between them.
"I'm glad we all made it here in one piece" Alisa suddenly spoke up as she took her seat beside Xiaoyu.
"Indeed. But we have to recognize that our survival was guaranteed, frankly speaking" Lili said, taking her seat beside Asuka.
The Japanese brunette facepalmed. "Don't even start, Lili" she groaned in annoyance.
While Josie was finding this amusing, the same couldn't be said for Julia and Leo. They didn't know what their friends were trying to do now.
"What just happened? Am I missing something here?" Leo quizzed.
"Let's not lose our focus here, girls. We got a job to do, remember?" Julia managed to get every member in the team to follow her. They all stood up and watched where they currently had arrived at. "But first, we best know where specifically we've arrived at. I'll check it out" the four-eyed girl reached for her tablet computer.
Leo had to look at some of the bushes. "Considering this level of vegetation, I say we've arrived in a forest reserve. But I don't know which one" the German girl tried to come up with an answer.
"To my understanding, Hawaii has plenty of forest reserves. But perhaps I can use my scanners to locate our current whereabout" Alisa spoke up as she used her sensors while looking into different direction.
Her friends were pleased with the android's effort. "Oh, that's right. You have cybernetics after all. It's good to have someone like you with us, Alisa" Xiaoyu complimented her friend.
While feeling flattered by that compliment, Alisa continued to search for answers. It didn't take long before her database managed to give her one.
"According to my scanners, we're approximately several miles away from the town of Hilo. But I also sense danger from that direction. It must be enemy soldiers prowling this reserve" the pinkette filled in for everyone.
Julia adjusted her glasses as she looked at that direction. "Well in that case, we're in the Hilo Forest Reserve. And Hilo is one of the few towns on this island" she recalled from what she knew.
"But you say there are enemies in this reserve as well?" Josie questioned, feeling very uncomfortable. "Oh gosh, then that means the town is under enemy occupation. I mean, it has an airport, doesn't it?" the Filipina was feeling curious as well.
"Even if there are enemies there, Hilo is not our destination. We're supposed to head down to Puʻu ʻŌʻō. And that is, to my understanding, south our current location" Leo pointed out.
Asuka cracked her gloved knuckles. "Then what are we waiting for? I say we get a move on quickly" she was getting a little impatient.
"Ah, this trip will make a nice safari. A pity that Sebastian couldn't join me to see this" Lili said while stroking her blonde locks.
The other girls were unsure about what to make of Lili's statement. Yet the best way for them was to ignore it and not pay no heed to her misplaced attitude.
"We must hurry. But at the same time, we can't afford to be careless on this island. Both the Zaibatsu and the G Corp will see us as enemies if they ever catch us. Perhaps we could…" Xiaoyu's explanation was interrupted when she and her friends heard the sound of what appeared to be a transport helicopter.
Looking up, they spotted one that was flying above the trees. But soldiers of the Tekken Force were seen climbing down from it. This looked troubling in the eyes of the young fighters.
"Crap! It's a Tekken Force squadron!" Asuka blurted out.
"They must have been sent here to pick up what they believe are supplies" Josie noted with worry.
"Then we can't stay here any longer! We must move deeper into the reserve if we hope to lose them!" Julia informed her friends.
"This way! Follow me!" Alisa showed them which direction to go.
Considering that Alisa was technically a living GPS, the rest of the girls knew they could count on her to find their way around the island. However, this trip would also test their resolve to survive in the wilds with no civilization. They had entered a dangerous warzone.
On the shores of Papio Ocean Park, Hawaiian Islands
Amidst this war for control of the island, a lone yacht had been docked near the shore of Papio Ocean Park at Hawaiian Beaches. The ones who had previously used it, the alliance of fighters calling itself L'ordine, were walking up the road, noticing in how abandoned this neighborhood was. This loose alliance, consisting of Claudio Serafino, Bryan Fury, Sergei Dragunov, Feng Wei, Armor King, Kunimitsu, Shaheen and Zafina, had managed to arrive on the island safely without getting into conflict with the G Corp or the Zaibatsu.
Now, they were about to complete what would be their last mission together.
"Heh. Some resort this is. There ain't a soul around here!" Bryan exclaimed sarcastically.
Others weren't amused by his comments, especially Feng.
"We did not come to this island to relax, Bryan Fury" the Kenpo master plainly told him.
Bryan scoffed at him. "Did I ask for your clarification, dragon eyes? No. So shut your trap!" he rudely replied.
Feng didn't appreciate the tone of Bryan's voice. "Careful whom you insult, demented android" he told Bryan, yet the cyborg didn't take his threats for real.
Dragunov grow weary of hearing this spectacle, yet he could see Claudio walking in front of them. Obviously, he was planning on telling them something.
"Benvenuti alle Hawaii, amici miei. It seems we arrived here just in time" Claudio said to them.
"But this does not make any sense. We are not at Puʻu ʻŌʻō" Shaheen pointed out. He crossed his arms. "Why bother going on land here when there are other places to dock the yacht?" he pressed on with his question.
"Normally, I would. But given the current situation with the battleships across the island, we had to make careful steps" Claudio answered Shaheen. He then faced the distance in front of them smugly. "That being said, this place is not far from our destination. All that we have to do, is just to walk through this neighborhood and proceed through the Puna Forest Reserve until we reach the volcano" the exorcist continued to explain.
"So you are suggesting that we walk our way to that infernal place? Argh, que dolor!" Armor King groaned in irritation of how they would reach the place.
"I don't think that sounds bad at all" Kunimitsu spoke up, her crimson lips turning into a smirk. "This forest reserve is a perfect environment for me as a kunoichi to take advantage of. I might as well use my skills to reach Puʻu ʻŌʻō before you" she added with so much confidence in her voice.
Her compatriots were not as impressed with Kunimitsu's boasting. "Niña molesta" Armor King grumbled lowly.
"Then we all know what we must do, friends. We will head to Puʻu ʻŌʻō and then find and capture….." Claudio's explanation was interrupted by the sound of vehicles driving towards them.
The members of L'ordine were on high alert as several military jeeps stopped before them. Judging by the large G on their doors, they were vehicles of the G Corporation. And out came soldiers of the same conglomerate, armed with all kinds of weaponry. They circled around the group.
"Freeze! Put your hands in the air! All of you!" a captain demanded while aiming his assault rifle at strange fellows.
"Are these people spies for the Zaibatsu?" one of the soldiers asked his superior, who happened to be another captain.
"Don't know! But one thing's certain, they've got some explaining to do. Frankly, they don't look like locals to me" the captain replied. He decided it was time to get some answers out of these people. "You there! Who are you and where did you come from!?" he demanded while pointing his weapon at them.
Despite being in this situation, none of the fighters seemed to be fearful of what they were witnessing. Claudio even smirked confidentially as he raised his hands to make an impression on these soldiers.
"Riposati piano, soldati. We are no more than a humble group of travelers who wishes you no harm. So I implore to you, lower your weapons, and no escalation will ensue" Claudio reached out to them.
His cohorts were only dumbstruck by how Claudio was trying to describe themselves as such.
"What does that exorcist think he is doing?" Zafina wondered, only to watch Dragunov make his move as well.
The Russian soldier raised his hands, yet his gloved fists were clenched for some reason.
The G Corp-soldiers were growing impatient with these people. "You've not given us a straight answer! Tell us who you are, and where you are from!" the captain demanded once again.
Claudio remained smug in face of such harsh demands. "Must everything be solved by violence? As soldiers, I was under the impression that you were trained to not point guns at unarmed civilians. Perhaps I was mistaken" he mocked them, only to nod his head at Dragunov standing beside him.
The captain didn't like the tone of Claudio's voice. "You smug little…" he literally began taking steps towards the group, yet he was in for a surprise.
Dragunov, with his two hands, threw things at the captain and his subordinates. They didn't know what it was, until they exploded. These were stun grenades, and the soldiers were now blinded by the aftershock.
"ARGH! I CAN'T SEE!" one of the soldiers complained, yet his state left himself wide open for Kunimitsu to put him out of commission. A kick to the head was all she needed.
"Tch, child's play" the kunoichi replied, not finding this much of a challenge.
Bryan was taking pleasure in punching a captain straight in the gut before throwing him away. He laughed sadistically afterwards as he approached the unconscious captain.
"You call yourselves soldiers!? Hah! You ain't nothing but a bunch of pussies!" Bryan spat at him, despite his defeated enemy being unable to hear him.
Zafina narrowly dodged a bullet due to another captain, who had not been as much affected by the stun grenade as his subordinates. As a result, she received a cut on her left arm. But that only triggered something the Egyptian woman feared the most.
In anger, Zafina dashed towards the captain, punching him with her left hand. And of course, it knocked him out of concussion. With her enemy defeated, Zafina took her time to look at the little injury she sustained. But as she observed it, an ancient voice suddenly invaded her thoughts.
"KILL HIM!" it called out to the young woman's mind. Surprisingly, Zafina felt rage take hold on her and she looked at the man she had beaten. "DESTROY HIM! LET ME FEAST UPON HIS FLESH!" the voice continued to haunt her.
Involuntarily, Zafina found herself walking towards the unconscious captain. She was still furious, yet she couldn't let go of her anger for some reason.
"What am I doing!? Stop this!" the inner voice of Zafina pleaded to herself.
"NO!" the ancient voice returned. "YOU ARE MERELY A VESSEL OF MY WRATH! I WILL DECIDE ON WHAT TO DO! AND I DESIRE HUMAN BLOOD TO FEAST UPON!" the demonic voice called out to her once again.
Zafina felt her left clawed hand raise itself in the air. She was now beginning to see what this was. Azazel was no using the opportunity to take control of her left hand. She felt herself getting hopeless as the demon inside her was about to deliver the final blow upon the captain.
"No! Please! Let go of me!" Zafina begged him one more time, yet it was too late.
However, someone managed to prevent the killing from taking place. In the nick of time, Shaheen grabbed hold of Zafina's left arm. Zafina watched in astonishment as the Saudi Arabian man managed to prevent her left hand from injuring.
"Calm yourself, Zafina!" Shaheen firmly told the woman, never letting go of her hand. "Fight back the demon's influence!" he added.
As she heard those words, Zafina could only stand and gather her concentration on fighting back Azazel's power. She struggled for a bit. But in the end, her mind managed to overpower the demonic entity living within her.
"NO! DAMN YOU! YOU NEED MY POWER! YOU NEED IT IF YOU HOPE TO….." the voice of Azazel began to gradually fade away.
Once she was back to herself, Zafina fell onto her knees, panting deeply. She couldn't believe what she had just experienced. Looking at her crystalized left hand, Zafina could observe in how it glowed more powerful by the seconds.
"What did I just do…." Zafina uttered out a word of shock. Still, she tried to put on the bandaged quickly.
"So, this is the price you payed for sealing Azazel into your hand, isn't it?" Shaheen questioned her with a deep frown.
But the Egyptian woman was even more shocked when she heard his words. "Wait…..how do you know of this?" Zafina stammered.
For some reason, Shaheen closed his eyes, recalling back to the times he had worked with Zafina. He specifically remembered back to when he had visited her tribe to recruit her on his entry to the tournament.
"My company has been awfully curious about the remains of Azazel. Like you and your people, we knew that a monster like him would never perish, even after being defeated by the likes of Jin Kazama. That is why I have been searching for clues to where the remains could have gone. And my search led to your village in Egypt. Why in the world was there signs of Azazel's activity near your home, even with his tomb in ruins? Or more importantly, who held the Orb of Azazel?" Shaheen explained, much to the sock of Zafina.
Even so, she was starting to see a bigger picture. When she had first been recruited by Shaheen in Saudi Arabia, he had his own motives in doing so. Zafina realized what this meant.
"You…" Zafina spoke with a hint of low hostility towards the humble man. "All this time we have worked together…..you only used me for…" the Egyptian woman felt her trust had been exploited.
Shaheen opened his eyes and they pierced through Zafina as if he was a hawk. "With enough interrogation from your master, my superiors' suspicions turned out to be true. It was your people who had kept the Orb of Azazel. And it was you, who had sealed his power inside of yourself" he spoke, now expressing his own form of antagonism towards Zafina. "I can't believe what you did. Rather than destroying that foul demon's source of energy…you let it corrupt yourself!" he was getting more tougher with the young woman.
But Zafina felt unfairly spoken to. "Ignorant fool! You know nothing! The Orb of Azazel can never be destroyed! I did what I had to do in order to prevent his corruption from spreading further!" she snapped as she faced the Saudi Arabian man in the eyes. "You can condemn me as much as you want! But I will not be judged for this sacrifice! And how are you exactly a better individual!? You broke my trust, mercenary bastard!" she cursed angrily at him.
However, Shaheen remained unfazed by this anger. "Control your anger, Zafina. If not, you will lose yourself to the demon. And I will be left with no choice but to dispose of you" he warned her, not having an ounce of regret in uttering out such.
Before Zafina could retaliate with her own words, Claduio intervened between them. He was as confident as usual.
"At ease, my friends. Neither of you are helping L'ordine in its final mission" Claudio encouraged the two, before glancing at Zafina specifically. "And as for you. You know well how you can stop Azazel from existing for good once and for all. Remember our conversation?" he asked her.
Shaheen glanced at him warily. "What? You say there actually is a possibility?" he wanted some answers out of him or Zafina. "Explain yourselves! Is there a way to completely erase Azazel's existence for good?" he pressed on.
Zafina stroked her left arm, and it stopped with her bandaged hand. "Indeed. As long as Jin Kazama and Kazuya Mishima are roaming in this world, Azazel will still have an opportunity to exist. The blood of the Devil must be eradicated. That is why I must put an end to them both. Only then will Azazel cease to exist" she answered the Saudi Arabian man.
"Then we all know what we must do. This is our only chance of getting Kazuya. And it will also give us the opportunity to find clues about Jin's whereabouts" Claudio told the two Middle Eastern fighters. "Let's do this together, all of us. I can assure you that we will all be doing the world a great service" he encouraged them before walking away to see what the other fighters were doing.
While Zafina and Shaheen had been busy with their arguing, Bryan, Dragunov and the others had managed to hijack the two military jeeps used by the G Corp-soldiers. With the soldiers being knocked out cold, they wouldn't mind if L'ordine "borrowed" their jeeps. Being a military man, it was obvious that Bryan would wanna take the steering wheel of one of them.
"This baby's a fine ride! Now we don't have to walk all the way to that damn volcano!" Bryan exclaimed as Kunimitsu, Armor King and Feng got into the jeep. Kunimitsu sat on the front-row seat beside him. "What's the matter? I thought you said you were gonna use your ninja tricks to find your way there" he sarcastically said to the masked kunoichi.
The crimson-haired woman crossed her arms, not even looking at the sadistic driver. "Please don't speak to me about ninjutsu. It's beneath me to share knowledge with a brutish thug like you" Kunimitsu said nonchalantly.
"Tch…bitch" Bryan sneered back.
"I assume you know the way to this Puʻu ʻŌʻō" Armor King said from the passenger seats.
"You are an American, after all" Feng chimed in.
Bryan irritatingly pointed a finger at what was right before them. "You guys blind or something? There's a GPS hanging here, damnit!" the cyborg rudely responded to them. "Besides, I'm a cyborg. I know where to locate our targets" Bryan then said with a sadistic grin.
Neither Armor King nor Feng were intimidated by this, seeing as how each of them were ruthless fighters in their own ways.
"Bueno saber. Just make sure that you are driving first. The others do not possess the privilege you have of tracking targets" Armor King reminded him.
"Will do" Bryan stuck his head out of the window to see the other jeep.
In the other jeep, Dragunov was taking the steering wheel, with Claudio sitting beside him. Zafina and Shaheen sat on the passenger seats.
"Hey, Rusky! I'll drive first, so you just follow my lead! Just make sure that guido and those two terrorists are with you!" Bryan rudely said before pulling on the pedal.
The first jeep took off, with the other one following suit. With these vehicles, the members of L'ordine would avoid suspicion from soldiers of the G Corp. But the same thing couldn't be said for those of the Zaibatsu. That's why they had to take extra caution when driving on this island.
Dragunov, while offended at Bryan's insult, made sure to stay close behind the other jeep. He was also a military man, and he had plenty of experience of driving vehicles such as this jeep.
"I suggest we ignore the insults spawned by that sadico. We still have our mission to fulfill" Claudio told his cohorts, who didn't really seem to be listening to him. "That being said, this is our final mission together. After we have eliminated Kazuya, we can each go our own separate ways. There is not much for us to do with all that has happened so far" the exorcist reminded them.
No one responded. Shaheen and Zafina couldn't even look at one another, even as they sat in the passenger seats. A brewing animosity had been born between the two, probably because they each had withheld secrets from the other. Whether the mutual trust that existed between them would last longer was now in doubt.
At the Waiakea Pond, Hilo, Hawaiian Islands
The large crate that Steve, Hwoarang, Shuwawei, Miguel, Bob, Rodeo, King and Marduk had hid inside landed on a rather unexpected place. They had landed in a pond in the middle of Hilo. When they had gotten out, the first things they had been exposed to were waterfowls swimming in the nearby pond. But they also noticed the nearby villa.
"What the hell is this? After spending almost an hour getting cramped inside a crate and avoid getting shot like ducks, we end up at a place with so many of them?" Marduk was confused with what he was seeing.
King was observing some of the animals walking on land. "They look like waterfowls to me" the masked luchador remarked.
"Hmmm. Judging by them and this pond, we must've landed somewhere in the wilds. But is that really the case? I mean, what of these fancy villas?" Steve wondered.
The group currently found themselves standing right outside several villas in a fenced property. While most of them were confused, Bob and Rodeo seemed to know where they specifically were.
"Hey. This pond is no ordinary one" Bob remarked before facing the US soldier. "Isn't this the Waiakea Pond? I mean, it has these waterfowls and that fancy bridge people cross over with" he then recalled to what he knew about the place.
"Correct. And that means these villas here are the Waiakea Villas. That being said, we're deep inside urban territory. This is the town of Hilo" Rodeo informed Bob and the others.
Bob was surprised, as were the other fighters in the group. "Hilo? That's one of the few towns that exists on this island. And if my assumptions are correct, the other one lies beyond those volcanos" the plumb man said
Hwoarang looked around. "So that means we're in civilization? Looks peaceful to say at least" he said so casually.
"Not when there are no one inside their homes. Just see for yourself" Steve pointed out to his friend.
The group stood by the fence of the property and could see what appeared to be a poolside. But as they looked at the nearest villas, there was nobody inside them. The windows were dark and not a single soul could be seen.
"Dios mío…" King remarked with astonishment in what he saw.
"You're right. Those villas look empty. There's nobody inside. And I think I know where its denizens went" Shuwawei was speechless with what she was seeing. "Obviously they must've fled the island the moment the Zaibatsu and the G Corp arrived. And that's understandable" the Korean woman concluded in her observation.
"Good for them. Better fleeing for safety than getting caught in the crossfire" Miguel muttered.
As the group of fighters still stood there, they got cautious when they heard the sound of a helicopter coming towards their location. And not only that, they heard the motors of a boat in the pond itself. It made the waterfowls take to the air. Once they turned around to get a glimpse of where the noises came from, they froze.
"Oh no! It's the Tekken Force!" Shuwawei got cautious with what she was seeing.
"They're coming with boats and a helicopter! This looks very bad" Steve was having similar feelings like the Korean woman.
Rodeo could see that the door into the property had a lock on. Without hesitating, he broke it with the help of his equipment. "The only way we have of avoiding getting caught is by hiding at the poolside. Now hurry!" the soldier told them and they all entered the property.
With the helicopter nearing their location, each fighter decided to find cover as quick as possible. But they also had to contend with the incoming boats. The boats stopped, as the soldiers onboard wanted to observe the remains of the crate. They saw no supplies, which left the group confused.
"This can't be right" one of the soldiers spoke up. "HQ told us point blank that supplies were supposed to arrive here. We all saw the plane. But it's all gone now" he added while trying to figure out how the supplies got stolen.
Another soldier, who appeared to be a captain, searched around their surroundings. He even looked over at the fenced property. "Something tells me that there are thieves in the mist" he remarked before tapping on what appeared to be a communication device on his helmet. "No sign of supplies here. Do you see anyone? Over" he asked while looking up to the helicopter.
"Nothing to report so far. And this property doesn't seem to have a single soul living inside. Over" the helicopter's pilot could be heard through the communications device.
The captain was growing mor suspicious as he gathered his subordinates around him. "Damn. Where could those G Corp-thieves have run off to?" he wondered.
"But can we really be sure that it was their doing?" one of the soldiers ranked beneath him asked.
"We're the only ones who are on this island, soldier. All the citizens fled the moment they saw our fleet arrive" the captain pointed out, once again looking at the fenced property. "But I can't help but to wanna go and have a thorough search at that place. Obviously there must've been some….." an interruption came in the form of a message.
"Attention! Three brigades of G Corp soldiers have been seen beaching the Waiakea Stream! A squadron stationed there is requesting immediate backup! Over" it was the voice of the pilot in the helicopter.
"Is that so? Then we're definitely dealing with them now. We'll be there in a minute. In the meantime, you best fly there and give our comrades some support. Over" the captain responded before turning to his subordinates. "You heard me, soldiers. Our enemies are trying to rout our hold on Hilo! Let's show them the error of their flawed plan!" he commanded them.
"YESSIR!" the subordinates saluted in return.
With that being said, they got back on their boats and headed down the pond. They followed the helicopter that already taken the lead.
Now that the Tekken Force were gone, the group of fighters that had hidden themselves at the poolside, came out of hiding. There was no one in sight.
"Looks like the coast is clear. At least for now" Bob remarked while noticing that there was not a helicopter to see in the skies above them.
Steve breathed out a sigh of relief. "Bloody hell. That was a close shave. I was afraid that the helicopter had somehow managed to track our locations" the young Brit admitted.
"Yeah, but why they leave all of a sudden? Weren't those guys about to search this poolside and property as a whole?" Hwoarang questioned his friends.
"I don't know. But either way, it's safe to say that something attracted their attention elsewhere" Shuwawei spoke up about the situation. "Which begs the question, what was the name of that place we were supposed to be at?" the Korean woman then asked.
Bob smiled at her. "From what Wang Jinrei told us, Heihachi and Kazuya would have their fight at the crater of Puʻu ʻŌʻō" the overweight man answered.
"The only problem is that its far south from our current location. Puʻu ʻŌʻō is a long way, especially if we intend on walking there on foot" Rodeo chimed in.
"Maldito sea. How are we gonna reach there now that the entire island is a warzone?" Miguel wondered, himself unsure of what to do.
But as they were confused, Marduk and King had already begun taking a look at the certain vehicles in the parking lot. As with the fancy villas, they had been abandoned by whoever their owners were. Marduk whistled in amazement as he looked at all the fancy sportscars that were parked there.
"Woah…..look at those babies!" Marduk exclaimed as he was looking at what appeared to be a silver Lamborghini Gallardo and a red Ferrari 458. "Ain't no wonder why these people are filthy rich. They live in those villas and have cool cars such as these!" the Vale Tudo fighter expressed his amazement.
On the other hand, King was dumbfounded by how Marduk was so lovestruck by the cars. "Since when did you become such a car enthusiast?" the luchador wondered.
Marduk glanced at him with a somewhat offended look. "Hey! I've always loved good rides! Especially those old, American muscle cars" he claimed, yet King was somewhat doubtful.
The two muscular men were joined by Hwoarang, Steve and the others. "What are you guys doing over here?" the Korean man wondered, yet he had to whistle in amazement as he looked at some of the sportscars. "Woah…..talk about being filthy rich" he exclaimed.
"Yeah! Which is why we should hijack these fine babies and go for a ride with them! Hell, we can use them to take us to wherever this Puʻu ʻŌʻō-place is!" Marduk was beaming with so much enthusiasm.
But none of his compatriots seemed to grasp what he was saying.
"You're joking, right?" Steve quizzed the Vale Tudo fighter, yet based upon his expression, he was serious. "You big knobhead, what are you even suggesting!? Do you realize how crazy that is!?" the young boxer was outraged.
Steve was not the only one. "He's right. And last time I checked, hijacking a car is considering both stealing and vandalism, especially in the US" Bob chimed in.
Marduk felt annoyed by their responses. "Well, it's not like we've got any better options now, do we!? I mean, we're supposed to walk to that place on our own feet!? This island's crawling with Tekken Force and G Corp., for crying out loud!" he made his arguments.
"The drogadicto has a point" Miguel suddenly stated, and all eyes were on him.
But Marduk was angered by the Spanish word Miguel just said. "Hey! Who're you calling a junkie!?" the Vale Tudo fighter roared, yet his outburst was ignored by Miguel and the others.
"I don't understand. Why in the world would we take those two cars?" Shuwawei wondered.
"I believe what both Marduk and Miguel are trying to point out here, is that walking to Puʻu ʻŌʻō by foot takes much more time. And for all we know, we barley even know where that place is. And on another note, being in a vehicle could help us get away from soldiers. Is that why you're suggesting we take those cars?" King summarized it all.
"Correcto, gato grande" Miguel spoke in Spanish while Marduk held up two thumbs in appreciation of his support.
"As much as I as a soldier hate to do this, I understand that we've got no choice" Rodeo spoke up as he looked at the fancy sportscars. "But I'm afraid we won't be hijacking these" he then revealed.
"Really? Then what do you suggest we take, Mr. Action Man?" Marduk questioned him.
Ignoring the jab, Rodeo surveyed the parking lot to find a more suitable vehicle for them to use. Luckily, he happened to see one. Smirking, the soldier pointed his finger towards the choice of vehicle.
"I'd say that one" Rodeo answered.
His compatriots followed him towards the vehicle Rodeo was suggesting. They were surprised. It was a big, blue Ford F-250 Tremor off-road truck. From the looks of it, the truck looked brand new, which would explain why the metal was shining so bright.
"An off-road truck? Not too shabby" Steve remarked.
"We're driving THIS through a warzone?" Hwoarang was dumbfounded.
"I see the logic" Shuwawei admitted. "With an off-road truck like this, it will be easier for us to use the forest reserves to our advantage. Staying on the roads may be too dangerous. Who knows, they could be filled with tanks or any kinds of military weaponry" the Korean woman summarized.
Rodeo chuckled to himself. "You catch on pretty quick, lady. Unlike your impulsive friend here, who's a military man like myself" the American soldier complimented her.
"I heard that!" Hwoarang snapped, yet they ignored him as usual.
"Anyway, I'll be taking the driving wheel on this thing after I've hijacked it. In the meantime, you may as well decide where to sit. My recommendation would be that you three guys sit in the wagon, given your sizes" Rodeo told them, before facing King, Marduk and Bob.
King nodded his head in agreement and climbed up the wagon.
"Good thinking. You know, I'd always wanted to try sitting in an open wagon" Bob spoke in favor of Rodeo's suggestion before joining King.
But Marduk was offended, given that Miguel would not be placed outside as well. "Hey! What about him! Isn't he too tall to be sitting inside!?" the Australian man pointed out.
"I'm not THAT tall! And neither do I take much space inside a vehicle! That's the difference between you and I, drogadicto" the Spaniard hit back.
Seeing this cocky personality was more than enough to lit fuse on Marduk's anger. He got close to Miguel, hoping to intimidate him by staring him down.
"You wanna run that by me again, amigo? Because I really don't like it when the punks like you….." Marduk was halfway through his threat, yet he was interrupted by the sound of the truck's engine.
Apparently, Rodeo had already succeeded in hijacking the truck and was now ready to drive the vehicle. He opened the window to call out to those two.
"Will you two cut the crap and get onboard?! We're running out of time here!" the American soldier barked at them.
Without arguing, Marduk got on the wagon with King and Bob while Miguel sat on the passenger seats besides Steve and Hwoarang. With that taken care of, they were now set to go.
Shuwawei, who sat beside the driver, looked at the GPS that the truck had. "This GPS should help us find the way. But then again, we're in for a bumpy ride if we plan on riding this truck through the forest reserves" the Korean woman noted.
Rodeo stomped on the gas pedal and the truck was now driving in full speed ahead. "Fasten your seatbelts, guys! We're leaving now!" he said as he drove towards the grass and onto the street outside the property.
Those sitting inside didn't have to worry about falling off the truck. But those on the wagon did. Bob, King and Marduk all held onto whatever they could grab on in hopes of not falling off the vehicle. As Rodeo made those hard swings and turns, the three fighters really experienced a rush.
"HEY! EASY WITH THE SWINGING!" Bob called out to Rodeo, yet he could understand that the soldier was not hearing him. The round man held onto whatever he could find. "Great! We've barley begun the tour and we're already being swept around like cargos! This will be a long trip, that's for sure!" he expressed his hesitation about this.
"But it's the only shot we have of reaching the volcano faster!" King replied back, only to notice some soldiers of the G Corp patrolling a street they drove by in full speed. Luckily, they managed to get away from them, as the soldiers didn't have any vehicles to pursue them with. "And fortunately, this truck will help us with getting away from our enemies!" the luchador continued.
Marduk groaned at hearing this. "Then we better not die here! There's still plenty of things I wanna do while I'm still breathing!" the Vale Tudo fighter exclaimed, yet neither Bob nor King seemed to take his words for granted.
In time, the Ford off-road truck began driving into the nearby forest, hoping to use the terrain to their advantage. Hopefully, they would reach Puʻu ʻŌʻō before things would get worse. And they still didn't know where the other groups had landed on the island.
Above the shores of Holei Sea Arch, Hawaiian Islands
Several ships and carriers belonging to the Zaibatsu had been docked at the south side of this island. It was near the Holei Sea Arch, which was not that far from Puʻu ʻŌʻō. The reason for those ships being docked there was because of the ongoing battlefront that had started at the foot of the volcano. Zaibatsu was sending in jet fighters and transport helicopters from the carriers. It was to give air support to their ground forces below.
Right now, several helicopters were flying above the shores and proceeded into the inland. Below them, tanks, soldiers and other forms of infantry marched the terrain, ready to confront the G Corp. From what they had learned, the G Corp's forces came from the nearby Kahauale`a Natural Reserve. That's where they would clash with one another.
Inside one of those helicopters, a squadron of the Tekken Force was sitting, waiting for their orders to be dropped off onto the battlefield. A commander was standing in between the rows, making sure his subordinates were listening to what he was about to tell them.
"Alright, soldiers! According to Commander Kuma, the enemy army is emerging out of the Kahauale`a Natural Reserve. He has reason to suspect that it is Kazuya's most important associates leading it. Our mission to confront them and ambush them on their own territory. That will help us gain the upper hand of this battlefield" the commander revealed what their orders were.
No soldier dared to question their commands. They knew very well what their orders were. They soon noticed the helicopter stop in the air and its backdoor opened. This only meant one thing: it was time for the drop-off. All the soldiers rose up from their seats.
"This is it, soldiers! We're above our destination. Lock and load! And make sure that your parachutes are functional!" the commander said as he stood in front of his subordinates. "Are you all ready!?" he called out to them.
"YESSIIIIRRRRR!" all the soldiers saluted.
With his subordinates behind him, the commander began jumping out of the helicopter. "THEN FOLLOW ME TO BATTLE!" he roared as he dived out in the air.
The other soldiers followed suit. Above them, they could notice the battlefield, with how a front had been formed between the Zaibatsu and the G Corp. But beneath them, they could see the forested area that had so far been unaffected by the war or the nearby volcano.
One by one, the diving soldiers activated their parachutes and began descending towards the ground peacefully. Once they had done they, the soldiers of the Tekken Force began searching through the woods for any potential foes.
However, not every soldier had followed their orders. A trio of them had taken cover somewhere behind the bushes. This could only mean that they didn't want to be spotted by not just the G Corp, but the Tekken Force as well. They even began removing their helmets.
"Droga…..that was close" the male member turned out to be Eddy. He threw away his helmet. "I was worried that we'd ended up getting picked for the frontline, honestly" the Capoeira fighter remarked, watching as his two other friends removed their helmets.
It was Christie and Katarina. "Well, it still was amusing to try out these outfits" Katarina admitted before putting on her sunglasses. "I could do this again if given the chance" she then told her friends.
"Are you kidding me? These outfits are terrible. Heck, the one I borrowed is too small for me!" Christie said before starting to take off parts of her uniform. "It'll be great to take these off, that's for sure" she said with relief.
Eddy was also removing his suit, yet he kept watch over their surroundings. "Better do it quick. There's no telling whether reinforcements from the Tekken Force or the G Corp will show up scouting this area" the man with the dreadlocks told Christie, his eyes scanning around for anything suspicious.
When Katarina was finished with the removal of her suit, she joined Eddy in looking for potential threats. "So, what now, bonito? We've unexpectedly been dragged into a warzone. And I assume getting off Hawaii will not be easy" the young woman remarked.
"I know. But so far, we've managed to survive. Even though this predicament was unexpected, we still need to find a way off this island" Eddy said, suddenly starting to grit his teeth in frustration. He looked up to the volcano that was Puʻu ʻŌʻō. "Look, I know that Kazuya is up there battling Heihachi. I overheard their plans. But as tempting it is to go up there and watch him die…I just can't. No, vengeance is not what I desire the most. That bastardo can go to hell for all I care!" the Capoeira fighter was now struggling to hold back his thirst for vengeance.
Katarina and Christie were worried about whether Eddy would succumb to this hatred once again. Christie even reached out a hand to him.
"Eddy…" she stammered as she watched her friend lower his head in pain.
In time, Eddy managed to lift his head up. He even looked at Christie with a weak smile. "Yes, Christie. There are important things that matters to us now. And that is to return home and bury your grandfather. Even as we're far away here, I too, don't feel at peace within myself. The only way can be that…..is when we bury him together" he told her, only to embrace Christie in a tight hug.
Surprised as she was about this, Christie happily returned the hug. She even struggled to hold back her tears. But those weren't tears of sadness. Indeed, they were tears of joy. Christie was joyful to learn in how Eddy had finally buried his desire for vengeance. It appears that her grandfather's death had also heavily affected him.
Katarina was happy for them. She may have not known Eddy as much as Christie have, but she could tell how they really mattered to one another.
"You two really are something. And I'm seriously not being sarcastic here" Katarina expressed her honest opinion of the two.
Eddy smiled at her. "Well, we'll take that as a compliment" he humorously responded back to Katarina. "That said, we best find a way out of this terrible place before…" he stopped speaking when he and his friends could hear something being thrown at the bush.
Looking down, they all panicked as they saw a grenade lying on the ground.
"IT'S A GRENADE! RUN FOR IT!" Christie yelled as she dashed away.
The three Brazilians each did what they could to get far away from the grenade as possible. In few seconds, it went off, causing an explosion that reduced the bush to flames. Fortunate, they managed to avoid it unharmed.
Watching the bush perish, the three Brazilians caught their breaths, completely stunned by what they just went through.
"MERDA! WHO THE HELL THREW THAT AT US!?" Katarina was furious.
It didn't take that long before the trio discovered who was behind this attack. They looked to their left to see where the laughing was coming from.
"Would you look at that!? Three turncoats of the Tekken Force who's abandoning their comrades!" Bruce exclaimed while blowing off the smoke on his grenade launcher. "And they happen to be some Brazilians we're familiar with! Especially you two!" the black-skinned man added while specifically addressing Eddy and Katarina.
Eddy growled in what he was seeing. "Bruce Irvin…" he spoke with contempt. But he had also taken notice of the other associates standing. "And of course…..Anna Williams, three monsters and that annoying, cosplaying groupie of his" he addressed Anna, JACK-7, Gigas, Alex and Lucky Chloe, respectively.
Chloe was fuming with anger at his comment. "Who're you calling a groupie!?" she snapped.
"This is bad! And what are they doing at a location like this? They're Kazuya Mishima's most trusted associates. Shouldn't they be on the frontlines?" Christie wondered, yet she was feeling distressed about this situation.
Meanwhile, Katarina was freezing, due to the fact she was looking at Gigas. She still remembered the fight they'd had in Tokyo. There was something about this creature that really made Katarina awfully curious about his true identity.
"You…it's you again….." she stammered while glancing at the red-skinned behemoth.
Gigas was repeating Katarina's behavior. His bestial tendencies had died out by just looking at the young woman.
"What do you want with us!?" Eddy angrily asked them as he stood his ground. "We've no interest with getting ourselves involved in this carnage, so you can leave us be!" the told them without holding back.
Anna smirked at his angry attitude. "Oh, really? Then why are you even on this island if you say you have no business with us? Something tells me that you're not being forthcoming with us, Eddy Gordo. Is it perhaps because you don't wish to expose your true motives?" she teasingly questioned him.
"I don't know what the hell you're talking about! As I said before, this war doesn't matter a thing to me nor my friends! All that we wish is to return to Brazil in peace!" Eddy pointed out.
"Or perhaps a better answer would be: I'm here for revenge" Bruce took a jibe at him, much to Eddy's rage. "Come on! Just drop this bullshit-performance. We know what you're really after! You're here to kill Kazuya" he bluntly told him.
Before Eddy could retort back, Christie stood in front of him, much to his surprise. "Eddy could care less about Kazuya!" she exclaimed, forcing their enemies to look at her. The Brazilian girl mustered enough courage and strength to speak up. "That's right! Eddy no longer cares about that son of a bitch! What matters to us more….is to bury my grandpa…..he's gone…" speaking about this subject made her feel very personal.
Katarina got over to Christie and tried comforting her as best as she could. Eddy smiled, seeing a how Christie was now being helped by a friend. He directed his rage towards the group before them.
"You heard Christie. Her grandfather, my master, is dead. Now if you wanna prove you have some decency and standards, I would appreciate if you left us three alone" Eddy told them, his voice carrying a calm rage.
Bruce merely scoffed at this in return. "So that's it? Not even the Mishima Zaibatsu's most advanced medicines could save him? A pretty damn shame, if you ask me" the Muay Thai fighter remarked, yet it was not out of pity. Rather, it was out of mockery.
Christie felt her heart crack at his lack of sympathy. But Eddy was already filled with rage, and he quickly charged towards Bruce with all his might. In response, Bruce threw the grenade launcher away and clashed elbows with him.
"EDDY!" Christie was concerned about this.
But it was too late to reason with him now. Bruce's taunting words about his late master had infuriated him.
Bruce grinned as their faces met. "Finally! You're starting to act like a grown man! I was worried whether you'd grown whimper since the last time we fought!" he noted.
"Shut your face!" Eddy snapped as he tried to use his moves in order to get the upper hand at Bruce. "You can say whatever the hell you want about me! But don't you ever disrespect my master!" the Capoeira fighter didn't hold back his rage.
Still, Bruce was undeterred. "I dare you to make me do that, asswipe!" he hit back and they battled each other for supremacy.
Meanwhile, Christie and Katarina were unsure of what to do. Anna was smiling, seeing this as her chance to fight one of them.
"Well, I suppose you two are all that's left. Now then, which of you young ladies want to die first?" she asked them with zero remorse.
Chloe already took a step ahead of her. "Let me at that girl! She's mine! I'll make her pay for disrespecting my dance moves and J-pop!" the otaku was determined to fight Christie.
"Great…of course I had to be picked by her!" Christie muttered under her breath. She got close to Katarina. "Hey, Katarina. How do you suppose we'll…" the young girl stopped speaking when she could see Katarina approach Gigas.
They were facing each other, yet Katarina was now standing in her fighting position. "You there! Aberração! I dare you to fight me! One on one!" she was surprisingly determined to battle him.
Gigas didn't make any response, as he was still glancing at Katarina.
Anna had to laugh at seeing this. "How amusing! You must have a death wish if you wanna take on Gigas" the brunette noted only to see Chloe approach Christie. "Ugh. And that leaves me with no one to play with" she lamented.
"Make that "someone to get your ass beaten"!" a voice could be heard from behind the forest.
Out of hiding, Nina emerged, still wearing her wedding dress. She appeared before Anna and her associates.
"It's you!" Christie was speechless by the assassin's sudden appearance. "What are you doing here?" she asked her.
"That's none of your business" Nina nonchalantly replied.
"Whatever you say…..cadela" Christie responded, realizing how fruitless it was to converse with Nina.
But Anna was furious about the blondie's sudden appearance. "Nina…just the face I'd hoped to never look at again" her voice bore contempt towards her sister.
"Long time no see, Anna. Did you miss me?" Nina sarcastically asked while taking notice of the dress Anna wore. "And by the way, nice mourning dress. It suits well for someone as melodramatic as you" the blondie taunted her.
Anna was furious, given that she knew well what Nina had done to upset her. "I'll tear you to pieces…NINA!" the brunette snapped as she charged towards her older sister.
"Just go ahead and try!" Nina responded back as they clashed elbows once again. The Williams-sisters were once again engaged in a deadly catfight.
Christie felt worried about whether she could handle Alex, JACK-7 and Chloe at the same time. But a voice from above forced her to look above her.
"So" it belonged to Master Raven, who was standing there alongside Raven. "It seems like the battle has already begun" she was now observing the battlefield taking place.
"True. But neither Heihachi or Kazuya are here. It's just as the data tells me" Raven added.
Chloe was furious with the two agents' sudden appearance. "Where the heck did they come from!?" the blondie teenage girl snapped. She then directed her attention to JACK-7 and Alex. "You two! You'll handle them! Leave that basher to me!" she commanded before charging at Christie.
Christie used her moves to block Chloe's attack. "I've no idea what your deal is! I only said that Samba's my favorite genre of music! How is that insulting J-pop?" she tried to get some answers of her.
"Just shut up and fight!" Chloe hit back at Christie.
In irritation, Christie tried landing a few kicks on the otaku, yet Chloe was quick to counter her attacks. "Terrific. It looks like I'll have to fight if I want to stay alive and get off this island" the young Capoeira fighter lamented at having this match. "I hope Eddy and Katarina realizes the same thing" she thought about her two friends, knowing how they were currently engaged in their own battles.
To be continued…