It has been a very long time since I've updated this story. I want to thank everyone who reviewed my story and sent me encouraging messages to continue during the time I was on writing hiatus. I've been through a lot of ups and downs during that time, but I never stopped thinking about finishing this story. (T.T) It is a goal to finish this and hopefully get an artist to help with possibly turning it into a graphic novel. My writing style has changed a bit since my last going, but this chapter meant a lot to me as it was the first chapter I made using no context from the Tekken database.
Chapter 5 Prequel: Hachijo Village
There is a small village hidden among one of the many mountain ranges in Japan. The inhabitants of this village have lived here in secret for over a millennium. If you know of them, then you would be considered a person of high intelligence and power. The only members of society who have ever met with them are either the highest level of international intelligence or the influential players of the criminal underworld. This clan specializes in assassinations, explicitly taking the lives of those with influence to change the world for the worse. For centuries they have, in secret, killed men and women who have the potential to change the balance of the world's progression. All the while maintaining the obscurity of existence from the world. They have toppled governments, destroyed gangs, and even prevented wars with contracts they have taken. However, there is a secret that even those who know how to hire their services are unaware of. They are, in fact, cursed with demon blood. They can change by tapping into this curse to enhance their strength and change their appearance. At one time, this power was used to destroy demons back when monsters roamed the lands of their home. Their true origins have been lost through countless years of war and battle, but the practice of exorcising demons has not.
Chapter 5: The Prophecy of the Tragic Myth
A young raven-haired girl is slowly dragging a stick on the ground outside of a beautiful traditional Japanese home surrounded by lush exotic trees, flowers, and a large koi pond. She plays near the Tsubaki bush that is growing around the garden of the house. While walking, she slowly sings the tune of an eerie nursery rhyme.
Demon Begone!
Demon Begone!
Playing in the crimson river,
in the mouth, he lies.
How long will his playing go on?
Demon Begone!
Demon Begone!
The children want to play.
Only one can play with him,
Which child will play with him?
Her skipping stopped at the only fully bloomed Tsubaki on the bush, and she plucked one of the flowers from the bush. Her admiration for the flower is distracted by the smells of some of her favorite foods being made. She tucks the flower, places it on the inside of her kimono, and then makes her way towards the aroma. She slyly approaches the kitchen, where a few women are preparing a large meal for what looks like a special occasion. She peeks around the corner of the kitchen's back door, so she is not seen by the people working. The women take their aprons off and step out of the kitchen together. The young girl waits for them to be entirely out of earshot before sneaking in and spotting her favorite snack, daifuku. She quickly grabs the prize when she hears one of the women making her way back to the kitchen. She stuffs the treat in her kimono and sneaks out of the kitchen without being seen.
She walks around the large veranda of the house to find a quiet place where she won't be seen eating her stolen goods. She finally finds a semi-quiet location where her Grandmother is rehearsing a ceremonial Buyo dance near the Koi pond in the garden. The elderly woman moved with precise graceful movements that accented her long silver hair, shining in the sunlight.
The little girl assumes her Grandmother is too busy to notice her spoiling her dinner with the sweet treat, so she sits down and pulls the dessert from her kimono. Right as she's about to take a bite, her Grandmother calls out to her.
"Kazumi dear, do you plan on sharing those sweets you have?" After that, the elderly woman never stopped rehearsing her dance.
Kazumi froze.
"How'd you know Grandma Hina?"
"You smell even sweeter than normal, my child. I knew you were smuggling the good stuff in your kimono." She continued her graceful movements while speaking. The young Kazumi made an annoyed face and pouted.
"Are you going to tell my father?" Kazumi asked. Her Grandmother stopped dancing and opened her eyes, showing her grayed-out pupils. She walked over to where Kazumi was sitting and sat down next to her.
"Well, that depends. Was it given to you?"
"..No." Kazumi hung her head in shame for admitting to stealing.
"Such an honest child." Her Grandmother smiled and gently patted her cheek. "Has anyone ever told you about our clan's greatest shame child?"
"No?" Kazumi being a curious child, looked up at her Grandmother as though she was about to receive a great secret.
"Then I suppose it's time someone told you." She paused for a moment to gather her thoughts. "There was a great thief a long time ago that stole something significant to our clan. They were scrolls to a powerful martial art that could eradicate any of your enemies... It was called "Satsui no Hadou!" Your great ancestor was gifted the Satsui no Hadou by a legendary general* (Minamoto no Raiko) to deal with the many demons that ravaged the land during his time. Several hundred years after Kintaro's passing, a greedy lord heard a rumor about the insane power the scroll carried. He then hired the greatest thief around to steal the scroll from our clan. The thief infiltrated our village and nearly lost his life, but he managed to escape with the scroll. When he finally stopped to look at the prize, he feared it. He immediately recognized the power that the scroll held. He knew better than to bring something so dangerous back to a greedy black-hearted lord. So he hid the scroll. Unfortunately, the greedy Lord figured out that the thief had no intention of returning the scroll to him despite being paid in advance. This angered the greedy Lord, and he sent all his soldiers to find the thief. The thief feared for his family's life, so he thought ahead and sent them to safety before turning himself into the greedy Lord. He was tortured for weeks to give up the scroll, but he never revealed where he had hidden it. Finally, the Lord had given up and had the thief executed in front of hundreds of people; they boiled the honorable thief alive." Kazumi gasped. "The important lesson is this..." She paused for dramatic effect. Kazumi was entranced by her words. It was the first time she had heard this story. Hina leaned in close and very quickly said, "Never steal, or you will be boiled."
"I'll be boiled?! Waaaahh!" Kazumi started to sob.
"Ooooh Ho Ho Ho!" Her Grandmother slapped her own knee as she laughed at her granddaughter's fear. Then, a young teenage boy came from around the corner where Kazumi and her Grandmother were sitting.
"You're still telling those fairytales, grandma. There's no such thing as the Satsui no Hadou Kazumi. It's just a fairytale to scare kids." Kazumi's brother, Kenshiro, was eavesdropping. Kenshiro was a few years older than his sister. A brash, reserved boy who was very well built for someone just entering his adolescence.
"And here comes my handsome, buzz-kill grandson... So tell me, Kenshiro, if the stories are not true, why did you wet yourself when I told you them, hmm?"
"Huh?! N-no, I didn't!" Kenshiro looked at his sister, who was snickering at finding out her brave brother used to wet himself. Kenshiro sat next to the right side of his sister and held out his hand. She broke him a piece of the pastry.
"I'll have you two know that the Satsui no Hadou is very real. I've seen it with my own eyes."
"How'd you see it grandma, aren't you blind?" Kazumi asked innocently.
"I was not always blind, child. It was a long time ago when I was our best warrior. There was a man who saved my life before I lost my sight. After the war with the Russians, they came to us to help clean up some of their officials who had more power than they would have liked to allow. One such man was Grigori Rasputin. They claimed he came back to life through every attempt they made on him and did not know where else to turn. After some delegation, the elders decided that he possibly flirted with the dark arts. I was tasked to cut his strings of power by making sure he did not come back. I had finally gotten the opportunity to kill Rasputin. Still, he was far more powerful than we had thought him to be. After a long fight with him, he left me inches from death when a handsome young man stopped the final blow. His entire body was cloaked in immense dark power, far more than any I had ever seen. It swirled around him like a tornado, but he was not possessed. He was in complete control of the energy."
She paused in thought as she remembered the man who saved her life. Both kids looked at each other then back at their Grandmother.
"Then what?" Kenshiro asked. She snapped out her daze.
"He defeated Rasputin with ease and left as quickly as he came without so much as even giving me his name. I tried to follow him, but he disappeared without a trace. I tried to tell the elders what I witnessed when I returned, but no one believed me. Everyone dismissed my encounter as a hallucination. They said that my encounter with death made me imagine child-like things... but I know what I saw just as sure as I know you two are my grandchildren." The two kids stared at their Grandmother, who blankly gazed off into the distance. They could tell that this was not one of the many stories passed around by the village. "Come now, it's almost time for the ceremony to begin."
Kenshiro jolted to attention. "Oh no! We'll be late, Kazumi!" He immediately took off around the corner. Kazumi dusted the crumbs from her kimono. Just as she was about to follow her brother, her Grandmother grabbed her by her elbow.
"Child, I'm very proud of you for being brave during your training. You are so strong, stronger than your Grandmother could have ever imagined being. You'll bring great honor to the Hachijo clan. I just know it." Kazumi leaned in to hug her Grandmother tightly. "Go now, child. I'm sure your father is waiting for you." Kazumi nodded and followed behind her brother's footsteps.
She made it to the main hall, where handmaidens frantically greeted her and dressed her in the ceremonial garment. When she entered the hall, it was dark. There were several candles lit throughout the building. She could see her father, Daigo, on the other side of the long room, centered, symbolizing his status amongst the other attendants. Next to him on his right was Kenshiro and Kazumi's mother, Mezumi. In the middle of the room were two people Kazumi didn't recognize. One was an elderly woman who was kowtowing. Next to the elderly woman was a young man tied from his shoulders to his ankles in an iron chain. He seemed to be squirming in pain, and he would let out feral growls and snorts every few seconds. Any other girl in their village would have been frightened by this eerie scene, but not Kazumi. She had witnessed supernatural possessions like this one since she was old enough to walk. She made her way to the empty space next to her father and knelt in place.
"Now that my daughter, the heir to the Kintaro bloodline, is here, we can begin the ceremony." Daigo's voice boomed.
The elderly woman raised her head, revealing her tears of joy. "Oh, thank you! Thank you! Bless you and your family. I had nowhere else to turn. I just want my son to be himself again."
Kazumi gazed at the squirming young man. Through her eyes, she could see the dark aura smoking from his body. "How long has he been fighting the possession?" Daigo asked. He gave an intense stare to the elderly woman who was too afraid to look into the man's eyes.
The old woman immediately kowtowed, "It has been 5 months, 2 weeks, and several days since my son has encountered this demon." The room became filled with whispers of the long possession by all the attendants. Kazumi has never heard of possession that lasted this long, and it somewhat made her nervous. Daigo knew better than to show concern.
"As the heir to the Kintaro bloodline, my daughter will certainly have no issue containing and thwarting your son's predicament." His words eased Kazumi. "However..." He continued, "This will be her first time exorcising a possession of this length. I cannot say for certain your son will survive what comes next." The elderly woman let out a whimper of fear, but she would dare not back out now. Kazumi's heart was broken by Daigo's words. She knew that her family believed that eradicating evil takes priority over preserving one's life, but she had never killed anyone before. She swallowed her nerves back into her stomach. "Kazumi." Daigo calmly spoke her name, signaling her to start the exorcism.
When she arose from her seat. The possessed young man began to laugh.
"Kekekekekekekeke...KHEHEHEHEHEEEE!" The room fell silent, and Kazumi stopped in place. "You fools send a child to destroy me! KHEHEHEHEEEEE! I will devour her and destroy this accursed clan. Your clan has had no real power in centuries, and you would send a child to do your work! Laughable!" Kazumi looked back at her father, who nodded at her to proceed. "FOOLS!" the demon yelled; his aura exploded in the room, sending a frightening chill to those attending. He began struggling to break from the chains. "RAAAAAAARGH..." He let out a loud bellowing scream to assist with his struggling to break free. Kenshiro grabbed his short-sword and began to move in to protect his sister. Daigo raised his hand, blocking Kenshiro from moving forward. The hesitant Kenshiro looked at his father, who never took his eyes off Kazumi, and he knew this meant to have faith in your sister. Kenshiro took his hand off the blade and remained in place.
Kazumi continued to move towards the young man until she was standing over him. The cold air around the room couldn't stop her from sweating from her nerves. She knelt down next to him and looked at his frightened mother, who was sobbing. She gently smiled at the elderly woman, who lay in shock at the bravery of such a small child.
"I do not fear you, demon," Kazumi said as the demon continued to strain.
"Then you will die bravely." His words were immediately followed by the chains snapping and breaking around his body. Kazumi nimbly jumped back from her kneeling position. The elderly woman ran out of the hall screaming. No one else in attendance moved.
Kenshiro began to sweat as he watched his younger sister prepare for the biggest test of her power yet.
Kazumi took a martial arts stance as the demon stood to his feet. The heavy iron chains slid off his body as he moved. He tilted his head to stretch his neck, making loud cracking sounds on each side. His cold black eyes intensely stared at the child in front of him, and he jolted at her.
Kazumi jumped over his lunging body, and she kicked the back of his head, causing him to fall forward. She immediately got back in position to defend against another attack. The demon turned around and snarled at her. Her heart was pounding hard and fast, but not from fear. She was excited. The rush of being able to use her full potential made her happy.
The demon rushed her again, this time stopping short to throw a flurry of wild punches. While they were untrained strikes, the power behind them would possibly shatter her petite frame. So she dodged each strike, carefully awaiting the perfect counter to strike.
Then it happened. One of the punches was wide enough for Kazumi to counter for a one-punch victory. She used the demon's momentum and swatted the trajectory of the strike to overextend. Then, she lowered her base and prepared to strike the pressure point below the navel in the same motion. Her eyes began to glow red and black lines appeared in a pattern on her face as she made her move.
"Hiya!" She yelled. The strike circulated a slight breeze throughout the room. The demon stays stuck in a position for several seconds before falling over backward.
Kenshiro, who nervously watched, let out a sigh of relief and peeked at his father and mother, who had very stoic faces. Then, he looked at Kazumi, who was now standing over the body of her defeated foe.
She knelt over the demon again, who was still conscious but unable to move.
"Blurgh," the demon coughed up a small amount of blood. "Khehehehe... Blurgh... you may have vested me in combat child, but the boy's body belongs to me now. You cannot remove me without killing him..."
"I don't exorcise demons with my power. I make their power my own." Kazumi then placed her hand on the heart of the boy's body. The demon's eyes grew wide as he realized who had defeated him.
"No. You are the descendant of Kintaro!" Then a sudden rush of pain made him arch his body unnaturally. "Aaarrgggh!" The demon's power began to transfer towards Kazumi, whose eyes were closed as she focused on controlling this new power. Black vein patterned lines made the way through the demon's body to Kazumi's hands and dissipated the further it went upwards her arm. In his last moments, the devil made an eerie statement. The sound of the voice was different from the original demon, and it boomed loudly throughout the room.
THE CURSED CHILD WILL GROW INTO THE TRAGIC MYTH. SUCH IS THE PATH FOR THE CHILD OF PROPHECY. IN THE END, ALL THEIR HEARTS DESIRE IS TO BE TAINTED BY DARKNESS.
The demon's arch went flat, and it was evident that he had been exorcised. Kazumi, visibly sweating from taking in power, didn't have the luxury to hear what was said. However, everyone else in the room did. She looked at her family, who had confused reactions to the demon's final words. Kazumi's mother had tears in her eyes. Her father closed his eyes to prevent any response, and her brother Kenshiro looked lost. He hadn't seen an exorcism end the way this one had.
"Father?" He looked toward his father for some clarity on what was said, but his father was lost for words. Then, suddenly, their Grandmother came in tears running down her face. She had been outside listening to the commotion. She slowly stepped toward Kazumi's direction and got on her knees before gently feeling her look.
"Oh, my child. I'm so sorry." She quickly embraced her with a loving squeeze. Kazumi was confused by the embrace, but she hugged her Grandmother back anyway.
"It's okay, grandma. I'm fine."
The mother of the possessed young man slowly and cautiously entered back into the room. She stared at her son's sprawled body, whose temperature made steam of the sweat on his body.
"My son?" She spoke out for anyone to answer. Daigo opened his eyes and looked at the body as it lay still in the dirt. He nodded, and one of the attendants quickly approached the young man. He hovered his hands over the heart of the victim.
"The evil has been expelled from his body. I hear him breathing, but I believe he will not awaken for a few days." The old mother sighed with relief and fell to her knees.
"Oooh! Thank you, Lord Hachijo! Thank you! You saved him!" She wailed in joy.
Kazumi had a brief moment of happiness, knowing as she thought she made her father proud. The moment passed as she looked toward her father, who showed the same stoned-face expression he always gives. Shortly after seeing his face, her vision rotated the room 90 degrees. She stumbled to the ground.
"Kazumi!" Her Grandmother yelled in fear. The rest of the room changed their attention towards Kazumi.
"Kazumiiii!" Kenshiro yelled and sprinted towards his sister. Their parents got up as well, but only their mother, Mezumi, ran to her side. Daigo stood up and watched in concern from a distance.
"Kazumi, my child!" Mezumi gently approached Kazumi and touched her face. Kazumi, slightly trembling, looked at her mother weakly.
"Mama… did I make Daddy proud?" She passed out as the words were passed through her lips.
"Kazumiiiiiiii…" her brother's voice faded as he drifted to unconsciousness.
While unconscious, she had a nightmare. She dreamt of herself back at the ceremony. Only everyone but her was frozen in the moment of the demon's last statement. There was an immense purple aura pouring out of the body of the boy possessed. It lit the room in a fluorescent hue. This wasn't the same energy that she felt before; it was eerie. It was so thick that you could feel it, like floating mist. It made the air heavier than she remembered, as well. She walked closer to the awkwardly arched body of the demon. Why is there so much darkness? She thought. She walked around to the face for an examination.
The iris was red, and the sclera, pitch black. She was sure she had never seen this kind of eye color before, but somehow it felt familiar to her. She got up and scanned around the room. She wanted to see all of the things she didn't notice before when the exorcism was performed. Everyone's face was stricken with concern, fear, or confusion. Kazumi walked around the room slowly while running her hand through the purple mist. It's pretty. She looked up towards her father. His was the only face in the room that was stoic and unreadable. She hoped to see any kind of emotion from him. She looked around the room and noticed there was something even more different. Her brother was holding a mirror. It was small and circular in size. Some of the aurae seemed to gather around it. She walked towards it for a closer look. She had gotten close enough to see her own reflection. She looked like a ghost, her hair and face completely white. The reflection smiled at her, and the purple aura ignited, lighting the room on fire. Kazumi jumped back in fear check to see if she was on fire. She was not, but everything else in the room was.
"Ahhh ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haaaa!" A shrill laugh echoed from the room. Kazumi looked to her family, who was on fire. The flames consumed their silk-woven garb and began melting their flesh.
"Everything you know will be consumed, and it will all be your fault!" The reflection in the mirror began speaking to her. "I found this place in your memories. So easy to travel in your mind."
"Who are you?" Kazumi said shakingly.
"I am the darkness that will consume you. Give in to the darkness, and I will prevent this from happening."
It was hearing this voice that made Kazumi realize this had all been a dream. A time in her past that she both cherished and feared. Realizing she should be in control of her thoughts, she took a deep breath and focused on appearing in her current body. "You are a clever demon. You brought me back to a time when I was most vulnerable and attacked there. It almost worked." She smirked at the reflection. The demon gritted its teeth and banged on the mirror, cracking it with its fist.
"YOU ARE WEAK! It is only a letter of time before you fail. Every day I find another way to exploit your openings, and when you fall, I will come out of the shadows and unleash my wrath in everything you love." Kazumi's family turned toward her and screamed in terror.
"Why?!" Her mother yelled. Her brother grasped at her clothes and dropped the mirror.
"Sister, help me!" Kazumi stepped back in fear. Then, she heard her father scream out.
"You did this, Kazumi! You betrayed us all!" She stepped back and tried to focus on controlling her mind, but the screams of her family distracted her. She tightened her eyes to at least remove the visual of her family's death. Through the cries, she heard a whimper that sounded like Kazuya.
"Mommy.." the whimper came from directly in front of Kazumi. She opened her eyes, and Kazuya lay in front of her in demon form, bleeding from a giant hole in his chest. The visual broke her strength in fighting the illusion. Kazuya reached towards her slowly.
"Kazuya!" She screamed only to find herself in her bedroom on the Mishima estate. Her hand outstretched, reaching for that last vision from the dream.
"Ha ha ha ha ha haaa!" The voice echoed in her head. At that moment, Heihachi opened the door to the bedroom, holding a warm bucket of water and several towels. He saw she had awoken and dropped the bucket.
"Kazumi?! You're awake!" He rushed to her side. She got up slowly. Her body felt sore as if she had been through a rough week of sparring with Master Jinpachi. Heihachi assisted her up. He placed the back of his hand on her forehead. "The fever has gone down. Good."
"How long?" She softly ached the words out. Heihachi paused, and then his face visibly changed from concern to the scowl he was best known for.
"3 days. I found you passed out in front of the dojo after our match where you nearly killed me." He sternly looked at her. Kazumi looked away in shame.
3 days?! Oh no, they will be here at any moment.
"Kazumi, tell me what's going on. Are you sick? Should I be worried?" Heihachi's words scratched Kazumi's eardrums, and she responded in irritation.
"I'M FINE!" She yelled. The yell took all of her energy, and she began sweating and breathing hard. Heihachi stood up disappointed.
"Kazumi, I've watched over you for 3 days, worried and fighting the thought of losing you. Wondering if I caused this. You're my best friend, Kazumi. I know when something is wrong." He paused, hoping she would take that moment to confess what ailed her. Instead, she looked away from him. "You won't tell me what it is. Then I trust you to figure out this matter on your own." He made his way to the door and stopped. "By the way, your brother said he would visit today. He should be here shortly." He walked out of the room. Kazumi knew that this was not a simple family visit. He was coming to check what was delaying her mission.
"So they sent Kenshiro."
