Chapter 9
The air on top of the volcano was heavy with humidity and the sky was darkening from bright orange to navy blue as the sun slowly began to set. The two remaining fighters of The Iron Fist Tournament were standing opposite each other, their expressions grim but determined and onlookers found safe places to watch the ultimate battle. All the defeated fighters were present. There were Yoshimitsu and Michelle standing under a skeletal looking tree, trying to stay out of the scorching sun. Paul, Marshall, Lei and King were off to one side and Jun was sitting on a rock by herself.
Kazuya stood in a typical pose, his arms crossed over his chest and body turned slightly so he was looking at his opponent sideways. It made him look more intimidating. He was dressed simply in his karate pants and black belt but the heat was still almost unbearable. A bead of sweat ran down his forehead and he wiped it off irritably.
The other fighter was none other than Heihachi Mishima. He was showing off by flexing his arms and making lightning sparks jump around his fists, but no one seemed to be interested. He was confident about this fight and a knowing smirk spread across his face. Heihachi chuckled to himself so low that only he could hear, his son looked strong but he could sense Kazuya's fear.
The atmosphere was tense and the onlookers were all watching warily, the announcer signalled the fight to begin. As Kazuya charged at his opponent he couldn't help but notice the absence of a certain someone in the small crowd.
Anna had spent a long and sleepless night and finally she fell asleep in the early hours of morning, her dreams were troubled and twisted but she slept heavily. After a long time she managed to force herself awake again, she lay silently staring at the sun setting on the horizon. She blinked and sat up quickly.
"Oh no," She whispered "I'm late."
Remembering the important day she pulled on some jeans and a white tank top, put on a small amount of makeup and rushed out the door heading for the volcano arena.
It was barely half an hour later when Anna arrived. As she hiked to the volcano's peak she found it suspiciously quiet, the air was smoky and smelled of sulphur and the only sound was the wind rattling dead branches on the trees. A few figures came into view, blurred slightly by smoke and as Anna passed them she saw that they were all staring in the same direction. She halted beside Jun who was standing now, her hands clasped in front of her and her eyes looked red, maybe it was from the smoke, or something else…
From deep inside the volcano came a fiery glow. It lit up their surroundings and Anna watched eagerly to catch a glimpse of Kazuya but she was shocked to find there was only one shadow against the sky. As if Jun had picked up on Anna's confusion she spoke, without any other movement apart from her lips.
"He's gone."
She stared at her in disbelief and Jun turned away slowly, finding her own way back down to the place they had been calling home for the past month.
Anna looked around, everything seemed hazy and she was finding it difficult to breathe. Her world started to move in slow motion as she tried to figure out what she had just been told.
"How could this have happened, he was so young and strong he can't be dead. If he is then where is his body?" She thought, but had already guessed the answer.
Looking up she saw the victorious Heihachi strut past, a nasty grin hid the pain that had been inflicted during the fight and as he passed closely by Anna he smirked at her evilly, seeing the sadness in her eyes.
Now back in her room Anna stared blankly out the window from across the room, she was leaning back on the closed door with her arms folded tightly across her chest. There was an empty feeling inside her and she just felt numb, she squeezed her eyes shut, willing herself not to cry but it didn't work. Lowering her head, she let her hair fall over her face and tears spilled down her cheeks, hands trembling slightly as she tried to brush them away.
With the tournament finished, Anna felt even worse about having to go home. Without her sister or her friends she was alone again and suddenly her life seemed pointless. But there was one way to make it better. Determination flared in her slightly reddened eyes and she wiped furiously at her damp cheeks as she ran back outside into the garden. She searched for the metal door to the lab and finally found it half hidden in some overgrown bushes. Pushing the foliage aside she pounded her fist on the door, a loud echo sounded inside and, knowing that someone would come unless they wanted to be found out, she kept pounding until the door slowly opened. Anna came face to face with an armed guard, he recognised her and reluctantly let her pass, closing the door again once she was inside.
She marched up to the Doctor, who was tapping away at his computer in the corner of the room. He smiled faintly when he glimpsed her and signalled for her to wait then continued to stare at the screen, furrowing his brows in concentration. Anna crossed her arms impatiently and looked around. Beside the dull light shining off his computer screen the room was washed in a strange bluish glow, Anna's eyes searched for the source of the light and her gaze fell upon a few strange looking compartments behind large windows. Walking uneasily toward the window she let out a small cry when she saw behind the glass were two lifeless bodies surrounded with freezing liquid. The first was Nina, her hair floated limply around her pale face and Anna noticed with relief that except for being frozen she looked unharmed and strangely peaceful. In the chamber to the left of her sister was another young woman around the same age as Anna, she looked at the girl being unaware of who she was. The girl appeared to be tall and her body was strong and toned, her face was quite delicate and fine boned, with a ragged scar running from her right brow down to the middle of her left cheek. Her long red hair, darkened by the cold liquid, looked familiar to Anna somehow and she looked down to read the name "Kunimitsu."
Anna took a few staggering steps backwards, shocked that she had finally seen her friend's face but without even knowing it. Her thoughts were interrupted by a frail, old voice and she turned back to the Doctor.
"Why have you come back Miss Williams?" He inquired with his brows raised curiously.
"I… I want to be part of this… Cryosleep." She stammered nervously and the Doctor smiled, his eyes glinting in excitement at his newest test subject.
"Very well, come this way."
Bosconovitch led Anna through another door and gave her an "outfit" for the freezing which looked just like a grey bikini, like the ones Nina and Kunimitsu were wearing. Anna looked at the clothing doubtfully but he showed her to a small cubicle and she changed into it.
She shivered as her warm skin was exposed to the room temperature, but an amused smile crossed her lips as she knew she was about to get much, much colder. Back in the room, the Doctor had prepared her sleep chamber and when Anna came back he explained the procedure to her and assured her it was safe. Anna was told to lie down on what appeared to be an operating table, she tried to stay calm even though she felt like running away and hiding all of a sudden. A clear mask was lowered over her nose and mouth and the other end was hooked up to something which Anna couldn't see.
"You will soon start to feel drowsy, then fall asleep." The Doctor explained, seeing the fear in her expression.
Almost as soon as he had spoken these words Anna felt her eyelids drooping, they seemed too heavy to stay open and her vision blurred slightly. She took a deep breath and slowly her surroundings turned dark, the only sounds she could hear was her breathing and she fell into a long, deep sleep.
The air on top of the volcano was heavy with humidity and the sky was darkening from bright orange to navy blue as the sun slowly began to set. The two remaining fighters of The Iron Fist Tournament were standing opposite each other, their expressions grim but determined and onlookers found safe places to watch the ultimate battle. All the defeated fighters were present. There were Yoshimitsu and Michelle standing under a skeletal looking tree, trying to stay out of the scorching sun. Paul, Marshall, Lei and King were off to one side and Jun was sitting on a rock by herself.
Kazuya stood in a typical pose, his arms crossed over his chest and body turned slightly so he was looking at his opponent sideways. It made him look more intimidating. He was dressed simply in his karate pants and black belt but the heat was still almost unbearable. A bead of sweat ran down his forehead and he wiped it off irritably.
The other fighter was none other than Heihachi Mishima. He was showing off by flexing his arms and making lightning sparks jump around his fists, but no one seemed to be interested. He was confident about this fight and a knowing smirk spread across his face. Heihachi chuckled to himself so low that only he could hear, his son looked strong but he could sense Kazuya's fear.
The atmosphere was tense and the onlookers were all watching warily, the announcer signalled the fight to begin. As Kazuya charged at his opponent he couldn't help but notice the absence of a certain someone in the small crowd.
Anna had spent a long and sleepless night and finally she fell asleep in the early hours of morning, her dreams were troubled and twisted but she slept heavily. After a long time she managed to force herself awake again, she lay silently staring at the sun setting on the horizon. She blinked and sat up quickly.
"Oh no," She whispered "I'm late."
Remembering the important day she pulled on some jeans and a white tank top, put on a small amount of makeup and rushed out the door heading for the volcano arena.
It was barely half an hour later when Anna arrived. As she hiked to the volcano's peak she found it suspiciously quiet, the air was smoky and smelled of sulphur and the only sound was the wind rattling dead branches on the trees. A few figures came into view, blurred slightly by smoke and as Anna passed them she saw that they were all staring in the same direction. She halted beside Jun who was standing now, her hands clasped in front of her and her eyes looked red, maybe it was from the smoke, or something else…
From deep inside the volcano came a fiery glow. It lit up their surroundings and Anna watched eagerly to catch a glimpse of Kazuya but she was shocked to find there was only one shadow against the sky. As if Jun had picked up on Anna's confusion she spoke, without any other movement apart from her lips.
"He's gone."
She stared at her in disbelief and Jun turned away slowly, finding her own way back down to the place they had been calling home for the past month.
Anna looked around, everything seemed hazy and she was finding it difficult to breathe. Her world started to move in slow motion as she tried to figure out what she had just been told.
"How could this have happened, he was so young and strong he can't be dead. If he is then where is his body?" She thought, but had already guessed the answer.
Looking up she saw the victorious Heihachi strut past, a nasty grin hid the pain that had been inflicted during the fight and as he passed closely by Anna he smirked at her evilly, seeing the sadness in her eyes.
Now back in her room Anna stared blankly out the window from across the room, she was leaning back on the closed door with her arms folded tightly across her chest. There was an empty feeling inside her and she just felt numb, she squeezed her eyes shut, willing herself not to cry but it didn't work. Lowering her head, she let her hair fall over her face and tears spilled down her cheeks, hands trembling slightly as she tried to brush them away.
With the tournament finished, Anna felt even worse about having to go home. Without her sister or her friends she was alone again and suddenly her life seemed pointless. But there was one way to make it better. Determination flared in her slightly reddened eyes and she wiped furiously at her damp cheeks as she ran back outside into the garden. She searched for the metal door to the lab and finally found it half hidden in some overgrown bushes. Pushing the foliage aside she pounded her fist on the door, a loud echo sounded inside and, knowing that someone would come unless they wanted to be found out, she kept pounding until the door slowly opened. Anna came face to face with an armed guard, he recognised her and reluctantly let her pass, closing the door again once she was inside.
She marched up to the Doctor, who was tapping away at his computer in the corner of the room. He smiled faintly when he glimpsed her and signalled for her to wait then continued to stare at the screen, furrowing his brows in concentration. Anna crossed her arms impatiently and looked around. Beside the dull light shining off his computer screen the room was washed in a strange bluish glow, Anna's eyes searched for the source of the light and her gaze fell upon a few strange looking compartments behind large windows. Walking uneasily toward the window she let out a small cry when she saw behind the glass were two lifeless bodies surrounded with freezing liquid. The first was Nina, her hair floated limply around her pale face and Anna noticed with relief that except for being frozen she looked unharmed and strangely peaceful. In the chamber to the left of her sister was another young woman around the same age as Anna, she looked at the girl being unaware of who she was. The girl appeared to be tall and her body was strong and toned, her face was quite delicate and fine boned, with a ragged scar running from her right brow down to the middle of her left cheek. Her long red hair, darkened by the cold liquid, looked familiar to Anna somehow and she looked down to read the name "Kunimitsu."
Anna took a few staggering steps backwards, shocked that she had finally seen her friend's face but without even knowing it. Her thoughts were interrupted by a frail, old voice and she turned back to the Doctor.
"Why have you come back Miss Williams?" He inquired with his brows raised curiously.
"I… I want to be part of this… Cryosleep." She stammered nervously and the Doctor smiled, his eyes glinting in excitement at his newest test subject.
"Very well, come this way."
Bosconovitch led Anna through another door and gave her an "outfit" for the freezing which looked just like a grey bikini, like the ones Nina and Kunimitsu were wearing. Anna looked at the clothing doubtfully but he showed her to a small cubicle and she changed into it.
She shivered as her warm skin was exposed to the room temperature, but an amused smile crossed her lips as she knew she was about to get much, much colder. Back in the room, the Doctor had prepared her sleep chamber and when Anna came back he explained the procedure to her and assured her it was safe. Anna was told to lie down on what appeared to be an operating table, she tried to stay calm even though she felt like running away and hiding all of a sudden. A clear mask was lowered over her nose and mouth and the other end was hooked up to something which Anna couldn't see.
"You will soon start to feel drowsy, then fall asleep." The Doctor explained, seeing the fear in her expression.
Almost as soon as he had spoken these words Anna felt her eyelids drooping, they seemed too heavy to stay open and her vision blurred slightly. She took a deep breath and slowly her surroundings turned dark, the only sounds she could hear was her breathing and she fell into a long, deep sleep.