Chapter Eighteen: Race Against Time

Author's Note: Hey everyone! I'm back and am now legally certified to sell beer and alcohol in the USA! So that's pretty awesome! Oh, and sorry for the late update, but my internet connection is down at the moment so bear with me please! Oh, and don't worry, next chapter will have another round of fighting! Oh, and shadowsin, bro, I'm so sorry I didn't respond to your last review…but this whole computer trouble must be spreading around like a dirty STD at my old highschool…anyway, that's so awesome that you're getting a new computer! I'm so happy for you! And I'm sure that everyone can't wait for your next chapter cuz I know I can't!

Karisan: Hey, great story! Thanks for the review and I hope that you like this one!

JunKing: Ugh…yeah…the dead are disgusting…let's hope that Jamie and the others take them out in time!

Thunderxtw: I know that this isn't what you expected this will actually be the last appearance of the zombies LOL anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter! Yeah…honestly, in the battle of good and evil I really don't see Christie or Steve getting too serious even though they're my fave. Characters!

DevilBilly: Hey! Thanks for your review! What's up with you?

Astral Slayer Asuka: My friend Gabby has Chaos Bleeds I've actually never played it…she gave me the idea for this chappie so I didn't know that was one of the levels…I'm gonna have to borrow that game from her…I played the x-box Buffy game…the first one I think…I liked it!

Gotta shut the gas off…gotta shut the gas off…gotta shut the gas off…

Kim Sueng Mina's thoughts flashed wildly through her sub conscious as she, Julia, Christie, Kaori and Xiao, dashed passed the headstones and shambling monsters.

"Okay…so where's the shut off valve?" Christie asked in a frantic tone.

"My guess would be that it's near the generators." Julia answered.

"Right…so where are they?" Xiao asked.

"We'll just have to keep looking until we find them I guess…" Mina said with a sigh.

"We'd better hurry though…we can't let Kyo's mother come back…" Kaori said with a shudder. "I don't know what I'd do if I was in the same situation."

"Okay…think Julia think…" Julia muttered.

They stuck to walking behind graves and mausoleums…the zombies were shambling along the dirt trail…and there were way too many to fight, but if they kept quiet, the undead wouldn't notice them. Besides, their mission was to be as discreet as possible…with the Mishima-Kazama's hunting Dragonuv down, Jamie tracking Grey and Lili, and Steve and Hwoarang guarding the gates, the girl's couldn't be bothered with pointless fights.

Mina didn't feel like she was bragging when she thought that she and the other girls had one of the more important missions.

"Okay…think Julia…think…" Julia continued.

Mina turned and glanced at the trail to her left and shuddered…some of the dead stood still…unblinking eyes gazing emptily at the moon as if they had never seen it before. They gurgled or moaned quietly before continuing their grim pilgrimage towards the gates. Suddenly, a sharp crack was heard…and a loud curse from Christie. To her horror, Mina realized that the fetching, Capoeira master had stepped on a dry branch!

The deafening snap echoed through the trees, and the zombies immediately turned and their gaze immediately shifted to the girls.

"SHIT!" Mina cursed.

"What're we gonna do! What're we gonna do!" Kaori stammered.

"What we need to…fight!" Came Xiao's honest answer.

The cold, undead fingers clambered at the girls…and although Mina was disgusted she managed to gain her composure and fight. Xiao, all tricked out with her Hakke Ken let loose a flurry of kicks and punches…and in no time at all had taken out three of the creatures. Julia and Kaori had been cornered by four of the walking dead but seemed to be doing alright…this left Mina and Christie together to take out the remainder of their pursuers.

They groaned hungrily as they lunged at the two…Christie had managed to take out the shins and kneecaps of three of them…but that didn't stop them from crawling towards her.

"Ugh…JUST DIE ALREADY!" Christie said in an annoyed tone before squashing the creature's skull in with her expensive heels. "God, the things I do for the world…these shoes were soooo cute!" She wailed.

"A shovel!" Mina said happily as she snatched for it. "Who said diamonds were a girl's best friend?" She asked.

Holding it as if it were a baseball bat, Mina flung all her weight into swinging it through the brittle necks of three zombies…without heads to function with, the zombies disintegrated in a cloud of dirt, bone a gristle.

"Oh…that was disgusting…" Julia said.

"We don't have anymore time you guys…we need to get going!" Xiaoyu said firmly.

"Okay…good idea lets-" Mina didn't finish before a rotted hand shot from an open grave and snatched for her ankle. "AAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" She screamed.

"MINA!" Everyone called.

Everything happened in a blur…caught off guard, and because she was wearing heels, Mina didn't have time to get out of the dead hand's vice grip…she shuddered when she realized that the hand was completely stripped of flesh…suddenly, she was thrown off her feet, and dragged down into the ground.

This is it…I'm dead…

The dirt fell into her hair and face…but didn't obstruct her view of the glazed over, cataract infested eyes that stared at her…running on pure panic, she found herself in an open, rotting, wet coffin…she was vaguely aware that she kept screaming…and struggling in the creature's grip…but she heard something else…a low, dull creaking noise…and suddenly, the wet, linen and wood bottom of the coffin gave way…and Mina and the zombie fell.

As they plummeted, Mina noticed cold, pipes and cement floors…she didn't notice much else when she landed. She survived the fall with only a few bruises, and a headache…her undead companion exploded…quickly, she got up, and scooted backwards with her feet and hands until she had backed into a steel pipe.

"Okay…good…not dead…not hurt…get to live another day…" She breathed…then looked dismayed at her foot…one of her heels had snapped off. "Oh…these were really cute too…guess that's the price I pay for wearin' five incher's to fight demons." Mina brushed a strand of hair out of her eyes she stared straight ahead letting her eyes adjust to the darkness.

A smile slowly began to creep across her face as she saw it…the generator right in front of her…and…a switch for the sprinkler system!

"MINAAAAA!" Kaori called.

"Oh crap," She muttered. "I'm here you guys!" She called up.

"Are you hurt? Can you move your arms and legs!" Julia called.

"Yeah…never better! Now let me shut off this bastard gas, and see who I can talk too about getting out of here!" She said triumphantly.

New Scene…

"Oh Goddammit!" Billy Kazama screamed as a zombie slashed at his arm.

The actual attack could have seriously injured him, but by blocking it, he had only been minorly scratched. Angrily, he decked the creature across the face…knocking it's jaw off, before elbowing the rest of it's head off.

"Cool…it's kinda like a punching bag."

"Yeah, except with claws and an insatiable appetite." Kyo said sarcastically to his cousin.

"So basically, it's Asuka when it's the time of the mon-"

"SHUT IT BILLY!" Came Asuka's brusque reply.

"What's taking Xiao and the other's so long…we're at mother's grave…but the zombies keep coming." Jin wondered.

"If it comes to your mother rising…" Kazuya began.

He didn't finish before two wrought iron gates busted open and two vampires and Dragonuv appeared.

"Just wait patiently and it will come to that." He said with a smile.

"I'LL…I'LL…I'LL KILL YOU!" Jin exclaimed, lunging towards Dragonuv.

A fight broke out, but with a legion of zombies, an accomplished fighter, and two strong vampires…the family was vastly outnumbered. Each second ticked by, and with each one, Kyo's heart thudded madly in his chest, and he couldn't help but stare at his mother's grave.

He waited with baited breath for his mother to rise…and he realized that if it came to it…he secretly hoped that Jin or Kazuya would handle it…he…he couldn't…

No…no stop it Kyo…Kaori will take care of this…have faith…you need to have faith…

And suddenly, he was treated to a roundhouse kick to the temple by one of the vampires. He wheeled around quickly, and saw that Asuka was being grabbed by one of the vampires.

"ASUKAAAAAHHHH!" Kyo wailed.

"Shut it kid!" The creature snarled, as he picked Kyo up.

And with the others dealing with Dragonuv and the zombies…no one had time to worry about him and Asuka…and suddenly, before he knew it would all be over soon…his super sensitive ears picked up the sound of a crossbow arrow whistling through the air…and into the heart of the vampire who held him…as it exploded into blue flames, a second arrow shot through the sky and hit the one who held Asuka.

Kyo quickly turned to see Jamie standing atop one of the many mausoleums. He held the crossbow in one hand and still held it aimed where Asuka's vampire had been. The wind had picked up and blew blonde tendrils across his face. His jean jacket whipped silently through the sky and his eyes stared down at the scene.

For a second, with his serious expression, and classic, moonlight backdrop behind him, Kyo thought that Jamie looked seriously like the warrior he was supposed to be.

"Thanks!" Kyo called, before joining in the fight with Dragonuv.

"Welcome!" Jamie called back with a smile…and gone was warrior Jamie…replaced with regular 19 year old that Kyo had befriended. "Need help?"

"Nah we're cool!"

"'Kay! See ya later!" And with that the Nephilim leapt through the air, to fulfill his end of the mission.

As soon as Jamie left Kazuya kicked Dragonuv hard…so hard in fact that the remote control he had used fell from him jacket pocket…and into Kyo's waiting hand.

"NO!" Dragonuv screamed.

"Oops…" Kyo said as he dropped it to the ground and stomped on it. "Guess you won't be raising the dead anytime soon."

"This…this isn't over…" Dragonuv said.

"Insert villain cliché here." Asuka countered.

"Tell my father that he'll have to try harder then this if he wants to take me down." Kazuya stated.

Dragonuv didn't say anything else as he leapt over the wall.

"So…mother won't rise." Jin said with a sigh of relief.

"It's not over yet…we need to be the clean up crew." Kazuya replied.

"What about Jamie?" Asuka queried.

"Screw him…he's half angel he'll be fine." Billy replied.

"He'll be alright…after all, he's got that sweet crossbow." Kyo agreed.

New Scene…

"Ah…dammit" Jamie groaned angrily as he dashed passed several of the mausoleums…his crossbow had jammed! For some reason, the string had snapped and the trigger was stuck.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH HELP ME!" A voice screamed.

"Calvary's coming!" Jamie called back as he ran towards the noise. "Don't know why the cavalry has to tramp through a graveyard…but the cavalry is coming." He finished in a softer note.

The voice came from a mausoleum at the end of a cul de sac…Jamie ran towards it and kicked down the door. Standing in the center of the tiny room stood Grey and the terrified Lili; her already pale skin awash with fear.

"I don't know what he wants but-"

"I told you to shut it bitch!" He said angrily before he threw her roughly against the concrete wall…and Lili sunk against the wall in a daze.

"Hey!" Jamie said. "You should NOT have done that!"

"Why?" Grey asked. "You barely know her…hell I don't know her and I don't give a shit."

"So…what's the motive for this little outing? I'd think that it would be a plot to lead me into a trap that failed miserably…but…my second guess is that this is all a desperate cry for attention right?" Jamie asked.

"Neither," Grey said with a smirk, his two lip rings glinted in the pale moonlight. "I just wanted to make sure that you'd come to my party on Saturday."

"Really? That's it huh?"

"Don't be so surprised…I've invited everyone at the tournament."

"And I'm so special that you had to deliver my invitation in person huh? Y'know, I'd think that with those six holes in your face more oxygen would flow into the brain and make you smarter…but I guess when those holes are clogged with pieces of sharp metal…" Jamie trailed off.

"I guess we'll see."

Quickly, Grey dropped into his fighter's stance and lunged at Jamie…the Nephilim dodged as many of the attacks as he could, and even dished a few out of his own…he faked a low kick to the shins, which Grey blocked…leaving his head open…with Nephilim speed, Jamie picked up the leg he faked with, and focused all his strength in kicking Grey in the temple.

When the attack connected, Jamie had visions of Grey's brain exploding in his head…or shattering his skull like an egg…instead it only stunned the young emo kid.

"Is…is that all you got?" Grey choked.

"Nah, I got this too," Jamie cocked the crossbow and attempted to fire…he hoped that it would have been one of those moments in all the movies and comic books where miraculously an arrow would have fired…more specifically in Grey's face…instead, it didn't work, and rather then Grey getting a faceful of arrow…instead, Jamie got a faceful of steel toed combat boot.

Jamie fell to the floor.

"So, did I break your jaw?"

"Nope." Jamie said as he leapt up.

"Damn…I was hoping to shut your motor mouth off for a little while." Grey said as he attempted to punch Jamie.

"Not gonna happen!" Jamie blocked the punch, and smacked Grey in the face with the crossbow.

While Grey reeled from the blow, Jamie did a lightning fast 360 spin, and hit Grey in the jaw with his outside crescent kick. Grey stumbled backwards spitting out a tooth and blood. Jamie flashed a grin.

"That's how you break a jaw buddy."

Grey spat some more blood and glared at Jamie angrily. "Take your fucking invitation…this isn't over between us…I will KILL you for what you did!" He said through his fractured mouth, he reached in his pocket and chucked the envelope on the floor.

The mausoleum had an iron gate…he opened it and ran through…Jamie was going to follow him, but ran immediately to where Lili lay.

"Oooohhh…" She moaned.

"Hey," Jamie said soothingly, he checked her over, and realized that she wasn't seriously wounded. "You're gonna be okay…can you stand?"

"I…I think so…" She stood shakily and brushed off her outfit. "Did that street trash realize how expensive this outfit was! My shoes and my skirt are absolutely ruined!"

"Well," Jamie chuckled. "He'll pay for his awful crimes don't worry…hey, you wanna come with me and my friends? We'll make sure you get home alright."

"Thanks," Lili laughed haughtily. "But I really don't think that my kind hangs out with the likes of you…I've partied with Paris and Nikki Hilton! I've dated heirs to shipping empires, and hot actors! I don't really plan on lowering myself to your standards."

"Hey," Jamie said defensively. "I don't normally throw this around but I'm Jamie Parker…my brother's Justin Parker, the famous international skateboarder, and he dated Paris Hilton, those were the craziest three days I've seen in awhile."

"Oh," Lili scoffed. "Okay." She rolled her eyes. "Anyway, thanks for saving me, but I can take care of myself."

"Yeah well," Jamie said with a smile. "If…stuff like this happens again…I'm always around…"

"Yeah thanks," Lili said as she walked outside with dwindling interest. "Thanks again for your help Jimmy."

"It's Jamie!" Jamie called back.

Author's Note: Sorry it took so long to write this…but I've been taking a lot of work classes and a few projects to do…and my internet connection was sucky here lately…but I do hope you enjoyed this chapter…sorry I couldn't resist giving Jamie one of those cliché hero poses…and actually, despite what I write, I like Lili a lot I figure she's like, the Tekken version of the Mean Girls…anywho, I hope you enjoyed this chappie! PLEASE READ AND REVIEW!