He was back home, back in the forests of Yaku-shima. It had been so long...
Everything was exactly like it had been six years ago, when he had last truly felt comfortable.
Where was his mother?
She's gone, he thought. And I'm dreaming...
He remembered the last time he had returned home, the apparition in the forest; a hazy amethyst blur that made his head buzz...it had branded him with a tattoo that resembled two lightning bolts intertwining. He had no idea what it had meant.
He still didn't.
Last time he had been here, his experience had been tainted by fury, and a desire to punish the being who had taken his mother from him, Toshin...the God of Fighting.
The sky above him darkened.
Jin moaned in his sleep, moving his limbs in jagged convulsions. Moved by an uncomfortable sensation in his back, he rolled onto his stomach as his flesh began to split-
Jin! JIN!
His mother was screaming. Looking around wildly, he tried to find her-
There she was, standing on the other side of a chasm that had torn the ground asunder. Leaves and branches whipped around her as great wind began howling. Her mouth was moving, her expression desperate, but Jin couldn't hear a word she was saying.
I'm coming mom, he called after her, running towards her. He kept running but, inexplicably, the distance between them became even greater. He stumbled, falling to the ground. Somewhere, someone was laughing.
A cold fury ignited in his gut, and the world around him seemed to flex. He walked slowly, deliberately towards his mother, and everything else seemed to shy away from his presence. Even his mother slumped to the ground, propped against a cedar, her head bowed.
The triumphant grin he didn't even know he had been wearing slipped from his face, as he vaulted the gap, kneeling at his mother's side.
Mom? Mom! he cried.
After a long moment, she looked up at him weakly, tears in her eyes.
That's enough, Jin. Please...that's enough-
That's enough! What are you trying to do, kill her?
Jin stumbled, trying to reorientate himself. He broke loose of the restraining grip around him, and took in his new surroundings. Waxed wood beneath him, frenzied crowds arranged in elliptical tiers around him...and a bloodied and bruised woman lay at his feet.
Tournament medics rushed around her, and Jin felt bile rise in his throat. An uncontrollable trembling shook his body.
I did this, he thought in mute horror. What the hell have I done?
Don't you even think of going back for seconds, a voice said, in English. It took Jin a few seconds to comprehend what the foreigner was saying. Bloody beating the crap out of a woman...what sort of animal are you?
Jin looked round in bewilderment, still trying to make sense of his situation. How did he get here, and-
The winner of this fight, Jin Kazama, the extremely nervous commentator announced. Everyone around him was nervous, he realised. Nervous, or just plain terrified.
Of him.
The nausea returned, and he swayed unsteadily.
Broken arm, crushed ribs, possible skull fracture...we need to get this woman to a hospital now! one of the medics shouted, as others laid down a stretcher. They pulled a photo out of the patient's wallet, and looked up at the blonde foreigner.
she said in mangled but understandable English. Are you her boyfriend?
Me? No... His brow furrowed. I've never seen her before in my life.
Walking briskly, he followed the medics. He would, he decided, go to the hospital with this mysterious woman. The head medic abruptly pushed the woman's wallet into his hands, deciding that he was obviously related in some way and in shock. Hold this. Saves us filling out forms and putting it in the safe.
Steve Fox nodded as he climbed into the ambulance.
******
In the Yamada residence, Hwoarang and Dai sat silently in front of the television. Hwoarang had hardly imagined it possible, but Dai was even paler than usual. She blew air through her bridged fingers.
she said, breaking the silence. What did you make of that?
Hwoarang eventually replied. Very weird.
Dai raised an eyebrow. How so?
Hwoarang looked astonished. How so? How so? You saw him - he went far beyond what was needed to secure his win. He carried on beating the hell out of her, like, like...
Like he was enjoying it, Dai finished softly.
It's not him, Hwoarang said emphatically. Kazama is an amazing fighter, but he's never vicious. And look! He pointed at the screen. Look at his face now-
He looks confused. Lost, Dai said sadly. Like he's not quite sure what just happened.
And he's fighting wrong, Hwoarang said flatly. Dai turned sharply.
He's fighting wrong. I saw his fight against Yoshimitsu on TV - he had abandoned the Mishima style karate, and fought more traditionally, Hwoarang explained, rewinding the footage.
He's gone back to his old style? Dai asked. Hwoarang shook his head.
No, that's the funny thing. His old style was based not only on Heihachi's teachings, but on his mother's teachings too, plus he threw in some new stuff-
You know a lot about it, Dai smirked mischievously. Let me guess, you're really his fan club's president-
I'm being serious, Hwoarang scolded. But look at how he's fighting...it's like watching Heihachi fighting - pure Mishima style combat. Not just the technique, but the brutality, too.
The sins of the father'... Dai murmured. She stood up. I have to find Jin Kazama. And soon.