A Tale of Murder, Vengeance and Love

by Delirium3000

AN: Just another chapter. Sorry to keep you waiting.

Disclaimer: No, I still do not own Tekken or any of its characters, Namco does.

change of perspective (3rd person always, following either Bryan or Nina)

"text" Dialogue

text Thoughts

«text» Writing

You know the drill. Please R&R.

Chapter 3: Preparations

"Sit down, Nina. We have more time than you think."
Bryan pulled out a chair for his 'guest', like a true gentleman. He wasn't really sure why he did that, but he didn't mind whatever was making him do this. The catsuit creaked when she sat down. Bryan sat himself down on the bedside, facing Nina. He pulled out a pack of cigarettes, and offered Nina one.
"Thank you Bryan, but I don't smoke."
"Oh well. You're at least somewhat more alive than me. Worried about lung cancer?"
"To some extent, yes."
"Anyway, let's begin with your story. Why are you here?" Nina was a bit perplexed by Bryan's hospitality. She wasn't used to hospitality at all, and now, Bryan used it to turn the tables. She was the one who was supposed to be calm and keeping cool here, and now she was socializing with her partner.
Snap out of it! You gotta be calm here!
Eventually, she got herself together, and told Bryan the story as she knew it. The cryosleep-induced amnesia, Anna Williams, the woman claiming to be her sister, her unknown son, her current mission. Bryan just sat there, looking at her while she unveiled her story. After she was finished, Bryan sat still for a short while. Then, he broke out of the trance he apparently was in.

---

Holy sh... she's beautiful...wait a minute! Do not think like that, Bryan! You gotta keep it cool now. Deny your impulses... deny your impulses... that's it...
Now, it was Bryan's turn. His story, as we know, was filled with death, betrayal and anger. She was as good a listener as Bryan was, almost entranced. When Bryan was finished with his story, they both got up.
"Now, shall we?"
Nina walked towards the door in a rather seductive manner. And Bryan responded like any other male would: he followed. They went outside, and when standing in the street, Bryan had to ask: "Where are we going?"
Nina looked at him, and said: "We're going shopping."
"What!"
This sounded stupid, and Bryan had no objection with stating it. Nina chuckled at his response, yet again.
"Not in the way you think, though..."

They walked towards a small video store, hidden away amongst the various shops littering downtown Tokyo. Nina walked up to the counter and whispered something to the store clerk before giving him a small bunch of cash. From a few feet away, Bryan saw that it was a rather small amount of yen. After the money switched hands, the clerk opened the back room. Nina waved at Bryan to enter the back with her. Bryan just shrugged and followed, unaware of what was hidden behind the innocent store. "Welcome to the best assassin store in Tokyo, Bryan!" Nina knew this place very well, apparently. Bryan just stared in amazement at the equipment laid out here; garottes, knives, swords, pistols, sub-machine guns, sniper rifles, explosives, everything.
"I know that you're out of money, but I'm not, so anything here's on me. But remember, I'm not an infinite pile of cash, so be sensible."
Bryan grinned deviously. "I'm not a very sensible man, but I guess I can make an exception in your case..."
"You'd better..." Nina scowled at Bryan, but he was looking at the weapons.

After a while, it turned out that Bryan picked less weapons than Nina. When they got to the counter, Bryan had picked out an HK Mark23 with silencer and laser targeting module, two .50 Desert Eagles, a Rambo-knife and an MP5-N with silencer and attcable scope. Nina, on the other hand, had picked an SG-P226 with silencer, a silenced PSG-1, a garotte, two Beretta 92F's, a Glock G18 with a pack of extended clips, a pack of benzodiazepines, a pack of throwing knives, and a small stack of ammunition. Looking at Bryan's modest selection of equipment, she had to ask.
"Do you really think that will do? And why are you not buying ammunition? You have got to keep your eyes open if you're..."
"Ahem..." Bryan pointed towards a large sign over the counter, saying: «TODAY ONLY: Two free packs of ammunition for each handgun!»
Nina simply replied "I knew that, I was just testing you..." "Testing...yeah, sure."
Bryan could not resist teasing Nina with the fact that he saw something she didn't. "Let's just pay for this, shall we?"

Back outside, Bryan had to tease again: "Gotta keep your eyes open...heh..."
"All right, so I was caught off-guard at one moment there. Pray that I won't be again, Bryan!" Nina snapped.
"Jeez, sorry! It was just amusing to see you miss something like that."
Nina didn't respond. Her mind was drifting.
Why do I react this way? Is it because of...No, it can't be...it must not be...!
But she knew the answer. Although she wouldn't admit it herself.
Finally, Bryan pierced her train of thought.
"What now?"
"We're going to pay a visit to my informer at Mishima Zaibatsu. He's off work today, but it may nott be easy for us to get something sensible out of him. Can you help me with that? Sometimes he just gets distracted when around me."
"I can understand that, and yeah. I'll help you squeeze out the info."
"Good." Nina smiled at her dead companion.

They arrived at a block of flats in the worst slums of Tokyo.Bryan looked at the deteriorating building in front of him. This reminds me of New York, back at the undercover op in Hell's Kitchen...God, that was beyond even my standards...
Nina turned towards Bryan.
"Well, here we are. I'll ring the bell and enter. If I need you, I'll whistle."
"Great. I'll follow you into the hallway and wait by the entrance until you are in, and then I'll head up and listen in."
"You know what you're doing, Bryan. I like that..." It was apparent that Nina was flirting with him.
"You would..." Bryan chuckled.

Bryan got by the door when Nina rang the doorbell. The intercom asked who it was, and Nina replied: "It's me. Let me in."
Then a buzz was heard, and Nina opened the door. As according to plan, Nina went straight up, while Bryan waited by the door. When he heard that Nina was let in and the apartment door was shut, Bryan walked up.

"Ah, it's you, Nina-san. Come in." The informer was a thin man, looking like he hadn't slept in a year. Nina walked into the tiny apartment and sat down on a chair, surprisingly not equipped with a set of sour socks. The man brushed some clothes from one chair onto the floor and sat down on the chair.
"So...you want info, ne?"
"Yes, I do." Nina crossed her legs. "Dr. Abel... You know him?"
"Not personally. No one does. But I hear stories. He was new a week ago, but he had worked for Mishima before."
"My client wants him out of the game."
"That will be tricky. Abel himself is not heavily guarded, but he works in high-security areas, and no one has ever seen him leave one. I myself do not know what you can do. I have never seen him eat nor sleep. He works like a machine. Some says he even works in a secret lab way below the compound."
"Do you believe it?"
The informer shrugged.
"I'm not sure. It sounds like a poor 70's secret agent flick. You know, the 'underground lab complex and enemy hideout' thing. But then again, you hear of stranger things and get them confirmed around the Zaibatsu compound. So I wouldn't be surprised if it was true."
"Well, then...anything else?"
"Errrr...yes, there was one more thing. If you want to get to Dr. Abel, then you'd better get on the good side of Heihachi's son."
"Kazuya?"
"Hai. That's all I know."
"That's all I need."

Back outside, Nina was smiling triumphantly. Of course, Bryan had to ask.
"We have a lead. A good lead, and it might even cooperate!"
"What kind of lead is that, then?"
"Not what, but who. We need Kazuya Mishima."
Bryan placed a hand on Nina's forehead. She promptly removed the hand from her face and snapped at Bryan:
"What was that for!"
"I thought you were sick there for a moment."
Nina put on a pair of shades and said: "Why should I be?"
"Kazuya Mishima? He's not an easy man to get."
"I know, I know..." said Nina,"but he is vital to this mission because, as you know, he too is a thorn in Abel's side. The only Mishima trying to keep Abel out of the Zaibatsu. We need his help."
"Great..." Bryan stuffed his hands in his pockets and followed Nina.

G Corporation. Normally, a sleek towering monstrosity of a skyscraper, housing one of the world's leading biotech firms. After the raid initiated by Tekken Force, the building was sealed off, and it was crumbling slowly. Inside the building it was worse. Looked like the entire place had been nuked. But that wasn't what scared Nina or Bryan. They got scared when an almost inhumane wail was emitted a few levels above them. The two rushed up the source of the scream, being a scarred man, looking like he was growing wings and horns, levitating in mid-air while electrical currents ran through his body. An electrical current sent Bryan flying into the wall. It didn't take long until Bryan was on his feet again, though.
"What...are you?"
The creature landed, and turned into a human again. He was badly scarred, having, most notably, a large gash on his chest, and several lesser scars in his face. He opened his eyes, revealing one normal, brown eye, and one with a glowing red iris.
"Kazuya... Mishima... Kazuya."

To be continued...

AN: Whew! Sorry again for the wait. I will try to be quicker with my next chapter. Now I'm considering to settle for seven chapters. I think I only need that to finish the story. Review. 'Til next time, sayonara.