Chapter Thirty: One Step Closer
Author's Note::sigh: well I've been through a lot since I last updated. School's out for me again and that means that I'm back to san Antonio, where, my parents are moving houses, which means that I didn't have the internet for about two months…then I got in a real bad car accident, some jerk sideswiped me off the overpass and I dunno, I must have Nephilim skills lol or somethin' because I only broke my arm…but now my arms better, and I have internet so I'm going to try to set all this up again.
To those who's stories I haven't read in awhile I'm sorry, but I'll try to catch up and review this week.
Tokyo looked beautiful at sunset...the sky was dipped in beautiful hues of gold, pinks, and light blues as the twilight set in. His fight against Paul wasn't until early evening, so Jamie spent most of the day training and catching up with his friend Robbie.
He still wore the clothes he had trained in…he honestly felt there was no point to change anyway. Baggy, black, knee length basketball shorts, and a white tank top…he had trained barefoot, but he did put on a pair of white and black Vans shoes.
The tank top read "I'm kind of a big deal", which was his favorite quote from one his favorite movies.
Julia and the others were still hard at work trying to crack the mysteries of the disk…which at this point, had been blown to mythical proportions. The way Julia carried on about this disk Jamie figured that in addition to revealing how he was going to bring about the world's destruction; it would also reveal the meaning of life, the exact location of Atlantis, and hey, while we're at it, where that Ark of the Covenant's been hiding itself.
Mina was off fighting Xiao, so she couldn't come and watch the fight…neither could anyone else, as Kazuya wanted everyone going over attack plans on how exactly they were going to attack Heihachi.
But Robbie snuck away, and came with Jamie.
Everyone else sent their support though…he'd never gotten so many text messages in such a short amount of time.
So here they stood, on the roof of a dilapidated building in a Tokyo ghetto watching the sun set...they were talking earlier…but the conversation had died, and the two friends had lapsed into a comfortable silence…finally, Robbie spoke up.
"So where is this Paul guy anyway? He's late!"
Jamie flipped open his phone and checked the time…and it was true, Paul was fifteen minutes late.
"Isn't there a rule or something that if someone's late then you'll win the fight?"
"Yeah…but Paul gets special treatment 'cause he's been in every single tournament." Jamie replied.
"Wait…is he the one who gels his hair into one big spike?"
"Yup; that's him." Jamie replied.
"And he doesn't quit? God, how old is he?"
"I think he's in his mid forties…he kinda reminds me of those old washed out rockstars…y'know, the ones who were in all those hair metal bands in the eighties?"
Robbie chuckled. "Yeah…I've seen him on TV before…I think he really wants to be the next Chuck Norris or something."
"Yeah…I don't see that happening." Jamie responded.
"So okay…you'll thrash this guy then what?" Robbie asked.
"Well…then next I'd fight Grey…a fight that I'm definantely not looking forward too…and if I manage to survive that fight then I'll take on Kazuya…and if I happen to live through that one too, then I fight Heihachi." Jamie replied.
"Okay…so one pissed off emo kid who traded the ability to cry and write crappy poems for super powers…the guy who used to be Devil who you killed anyway…then some guy who wears his diapers out in public?" Robbie named them off so flippantly that Jamie had to laugh.
"So what're you gonna do when you win? You get that huge corporation and enough money to make Paris Hilton wanna date you…so what're you gonna do with all that?"
"You mean IF I win right? There should be a humongous IF in that sentence."
"No," Robbie said seriously. "I want to know what you're going to do WHEN you win."
For once, Jamie was at a loss for words…he…he had never thought about what he was going to do if he won…the thought had never crossed his mind really…and it hadn't in the last tournament either. Last tournament his mission was to keep a low profile and kill Devil…this tournament, his mission was to stop Heihachi.
The Via de Angelus never told him to win; they just told him what he needed to get done…in fact, that prospect had never even turned up in the thirty page dossiers he'd received for both missions.
Now, for the first time, Jamie Parker was seriously thinking about what he'd do if he won…giving the corporation to Kazuya and Jin seemed like a no brainer…he would have done that anyway…if he was in charge, the Zaibatsu would probably have been run into the ground within a month.
And honestly, the idea of running it didn't seem that appealing to him anyway.
As for the money…he'd probably give some of it to various charities…and then to friends who needed it…the idea of helping Mina's dad out and helping repair his dojo occurred to him.
The rest he'd probably share with his brother and put in his savings account. He knew his brother didn't mind at all…but Jamie felt bad that Justin's money from skating and endorsements were mostly going to him rather then his older brother.
He told Robbie his plans for the money.
"I mean I really don't need all that money…Justin makes plenty of it skating…and…as for me, it's not like I can really enjoy it anyway…remember my sacred duty? I'll be dead before I-"
"Hey! You're not dying on my watch!" Robbie interrupted.
"Thanks," Jamie replied. "I don't know what I'd do without you Mina or Maureen."
"Well-"
Suddenly, someone cleared his throat. "Sorry, didn't mean to interrupt the Lifetime movie moment."
Jamie and Robbie turned to see Paul Phoenix standing behind them. His arms were folded across his broad chest…he wore a pair of leather pants and a matching leather jacket…his hair stood straight up in one solid spike.
"You can stick around if you want kid," Paul grinned towards Robbie. "Me an' Goldie locks here have a fight and I guess he'll need someone to carry him to the hospital. I'm going to prove that I am the strongest fighter in the world…not even aliens could stop me!"
"That's it," Robbie asked with a chuckle. "That's all you want out of this tournament? What an ass-tard goal."
"None of this concerns you kid…it's between me and you're friend."
"Now Paul, if this is about you're hair then I think it concerns all of us." Jamie replied as he dropped into his stance
Paul dropped into his stance as well. "Your friends got quite a mouth on him…after I'm done with you, I might just have to kick his ass."
"You won't get that chance!" Jamie snarled.
"Fine…this time we fight to the end…those Combots interrupted last time. So bring it on Goldie locks."
"Alright Bart Simpson!" Jamie replied.
The fight was called, and the two lunged at eachother.
Meanwhile…
The fight took place deep inside the Mishima Zaibatsu labs. Grey walked through the garage door like entrance and felt the temperature drop about ten degrees. Mist covered his ankles, soaking through his black jeans…and the cold air clung to his tight black and white striped sweater.
His heart thudded in his chest as he noticed his opponent standing at the other end of the short hall…despite the cold he wore no shirt, army pants with boots. He turned, and Grey felt his cold blue eyes bore into his.
"I'm gonna destroy you." Grey snarled.
Bryan Fury smirked, then gave a low chuckle. "You? I was warned about your powers…I have my own too, why don't we just see who's stronger hm?"
Grey didn't say anything…his jaw was firmly set as he stared Bryan down…he'd been waiting for this moment all through out the tournament…he'd fought countless opponents and won each time…and now it was time to exact vengeance.
"You…you burned down my home! You killed the only family I've ever had! You…you burned down an orphanage for Christsake…in one night you killed twenty people! But you made one mistake." Grey said.
"And what's that?" Bryan asked calmly.
"YOU SHOULD'VE KILLED TWENTY ONE YOU BIO ENGINEERED SACK OF SHIT!"
Grey's voice reverberated through the cavernous room and the echo came back and he heard for the first time the…anger held within…and for an instant…just an instant…he wondered what had he become?
What had happened to him?
He'd always been an angry kid before but never like this…he was never this bad.
That kid is dead…he died with the others in the fire…the fire that THIS MAN STARTED!
The fight was called, and with a roar that came from deep within, Grey leapt at Bryan.
New Scene…
"Whoa!" Jamie yelped in a voice that sounded to stereotypically surfer for his tastes.
He quickly sidestepped from Paul's rushing tackle, and managed to get a light roundhouse kick to Paul's back.
The attack didn't hurt Paul…Jamie hadn't exerted enough force in the blow, and he was off balance while doing it…something to which Paul took immediate advantage of.
The biker got his balance back faster then the Nephilim could, and Paul punched Jamie hard across the face. Jamie bellowed in pain as he landed in a corner, sending pigeons flying.
Paul grinned and walked towards Jamie.
"So this is the kid who keeps me safe from vampires huh? I feel sorry for the rest of mankind!"
Paul picked up a tire iron and walked over to the Nephilim's dazed form.
"How many hits does it take…" Paul began as he swung the tire iron down.
Jamie only had a second to react or it'd all be over…he looked around desperately and found a discarded shovel lying in a heap of tools. Jamie quickly picked it up and blocked the tire iron's blow…and quickly swept Paul off his feet.
"Ooohhh snap; you're screwed now! Jamie, show this guy the ancient art of shovel-fu!" Robbie called.
Jamie held the shovel tightly in his hands and grinned…quickly backing away from Paul as he stood.
"Remember last time we fought Paul? You were trying to teach me all those lessons right? Well here's Nephilim Rule number six: When in doubt, try a garden implement!"
"I will so enjoy wiping that smarmy grin off your punk ass!" Paul said angrily.
Weapons were typically not allowed in the Iron Fist Tournaments…it was called Iron Fist for a reason…however, there were some instances when the rules were wavered…especially in the middle of a good fight…which was exactly what Jamie and Paul were giving.
If Jamie had to pick one weapon out of the endless canon of offensive implements known to man there was one that never let him down; The shovel. Bo staffs break, swords shatter, guns caused more harm then good…but not the shovel.
The shovel was one weapon as silly as it sounded that Jamie was the best at using…many a denizen of the night had fallen underneath it's spade…and now, so would Paul.
Jamie swung the shovel around in broad, sweeping gestures as if he were swinging a baseball bat…mostly to get some distance between him and Paul…several blows connected to the biker…and while the attacks were clearly hurting him, Paul would not give up.
In fact, it seemed that the more Jamie hit him, the more worked up into a fury Paul seemed to get. The tire iron Paul held also landed a few blows on the Nephilim as well…already his ribs felt cracked…and the blow to his chest still stung.
Paul faked to land a blow on Jamie's skull, which the Nephilim moved to block…only to find that instead of careening towards his head, Jamie saw the tire iron zooming towards his kneecap, and as he saw it happen in slow motion, Jamie wasn't fast enough to prevent it…and the end result was catastrophic.
The blow hit, and fireworks exploded behind the Nephilim's eyes and he screamed in pain as he fell on one knee.
"Jamie!" Robbie screamed.
His friend moved to help, but a burly tournament official held him back. White hot, electric pain soared up and down his throbbing, now shattered knee cap.
"Time to end this!" Paul said.
He moved to crack the tire iron over Jamie's head but Jamie quickly, and desperately brought the shovel over his head in defense...and suddenly, Jamie heard another crack as he felt the shovel break in his hands…and something cold and hard hit him over the head.
And suddenly…everything was black…was he dead?
No…no he couldn't have been…because he still felt…things…he could smell the rotted garbage down on the street below…he could hear Robbie scream for the tournament to stop…but what had…
Blind!
Jamie panicked.
Paul struck me blind!
He couldn't see anything…he could just smell and hear…hear…
Robbie was saying something…but Jamie's mind was blurry as panic set in…one of his worst fears…and he was now living it!
"…he's gonna…that super punch…Jamie jump…"
That's all Jamie had to hear, and that's exactly what he did…he jumped towards the sound of Robbie's voice…screaming in pain as the loose bones in his kneecap shifted as the Nephilim did.
Jamie expected to be hit with Paul's infamous punch anyway…instead, he landed in a roll on the ground…and suddenly, the darkness was replaced by light…blurry light and faces that gradually started to get clearer.
"Are you okay…can you still fight?" The tournament official babbled.
But Jamie was fixated on Paul…he had punched where Jamie had leapt out of the way…he had punched into the concrete wall that housed the stairs to the roof…and on top of his little concrete hut lay many cinderblocks…three of which fell on Paul, among other things, along with an assortment of bricks, and a bag of cement.
Jamie would have laughed if he hadn't been in so much pain…Paul was knocked out cold…the official apparently, hadn't seen the fact that Jamie had broken his kneecap, and assumed that he had only sprained it…with Robbie's help, Jamie stood shakingly and had to blink back the tears of pain.
Jamie had won by default since he was the last one standing, and considering that Paul needed medical attention badly.
"You need medical attention pretty badly too my friend." Robbie said as they watched Paul get carried away.
"Nothing that some rest and an ibuprofen can't fix." Jamie winced as they watched.
"Paul's gonna be pissed when he finds out what happened." Robbie said in a cautionary voice.
"Then let's not be around when he wakes up then." Jamie replied as he (supported by his friend) left the fight scene.
New Scene…
Bryan swung a punch, lightning fast, Grey dodged the attack, and planted his combat boot against the wall, quickly, he launched off and struck Bryan hard in the temple. Bryan stumbled backwards and Grey let loose a fury of punches…each time, another image flashed through his mind.
Punch: The smell of burning leaves as he raced through the forest
With that punch, Grey had shattered Bryan's nose.
Kick: The sight of the building being engulfed in flames
Bryan's kneecap was broken, the whole lower half of his leg was twisted at an odd angle.
Bryan stumbled backwards, but Grey headbutted him in his broken nose…Bryan didn't cry out in pain…didn't cry out in agony…and this only made Grey angrier.
"WHY…WHY WON'T YOU CRY OUT…WHY CAN'T I HURT YOU!" Grey shouted as he kept pummeling.
"I'm no longer human," He chuckled. "Neither are you…look at what you've become…Heihachi's little lap dog…"
In the next instant, Grey had shoved Bryan against the wall and lifted him off the ground in a chokehold.
"Who…who do you think wanted me to start that fire?" Bryan gasped.
"SHUT UP!" Grey screamed, tightening his hold.
"You've been played this whole time little boy…"
"I SAID SHUT UP!" Grey screamed.
He flung Bryan against some pipes and they smashed, the next thing Grey knew he was on top of his enemy pummeling him into the pavement.
"HATEYOUHATEYOUHATEYOUHATEYOU!" Grey screamed until his voice was hoarse.
Bryan only laughed as he was being literally beaten to a bloody pulp…Grey's salty tears mixed with the blood spilled on the ground…and then, Grey felt himself being lifted off by tournament officials.
"Mr. Greyson, you will be disqualified if you keep this up."
Grey only stared weakly at the bloody pulp of a man who lay there…he was spent…exhausted and tired…and weak…so weak.
He let himself be carried off by the officials…he heard words around him but he wasn't listening. Heihachi himself came to congratulate him…but all Grey could think of was the words Bryan had spoken…and Grey wondered, if he had been played this whole time…