Chapter 5: Prepared To Kill

Starcain watched as Craig Marduk trained vigorously for the upcoming tournament. The manner in which Marduk was fighting just cried murder. "I hope that Peter and King can take care of themselves in the tournament." Starcain glanced down at his watch with his hazel eyes and remembered that Peter was coming to see him again in a half hour. With one last glance at Marduk, Starcain turned around and left the dark rooftop from which he'd been watching.

Elsewhere, Peter drove with a little bit of anxiousness. King, Julia, and he were leaving for the tournament tomorrow. Though the three of them were entering as a group of friends, each individual had their own particular goals in mind. Along with the title and cash prize, the actual Zaibatsu was up for grabs. This of course motivated each fighter to train harder. King of course wanted revenge on Marduk. Whether or not he'd kill him, Peter didn't know. If he won, then he would use the Zaibatsu fortunes to help the many unfortunate children of the world. Julia wanted to reforest her homeland. It was a harsh desert now, and Julia wanted to make it green again. The Zaibatsu would aid her research greatly if she won. Not to mention how upset she was when she found out that all of her research had been destroyed in a huge burglary attempt where she worked.

Peter was entering the tournament to keep a close eye on King and Marduk, with the help of Starcain. That's what he told Julia anyway. For some reason, she felt that there was something else that he wanted, he just wasn't saying it. He told her that if he won, that he would use the Zaibatsu to have Marduk thrown away for life. Peter said that as long as Marduk was wasting away somewhere, that King would be happy. King had changed so much. He had let his depression get the best of him, so he temporarily let his orphanage be run by a friend of his until he finished Marduk. He had grown long hair, something that was unusual for him. He also began drinking a little more than he should have.

This all upset Peter because he felt as if he should have been able to prevent any pain to King. As it is, he already felt guilty for Armor King's death. But now, he felt that he would be able to make a difference. This is because he definitely wasn't that scared emotional train wreck that he was two years ago when he first met King.

Starcain stood upon another rooftop, waiting for Peter to arrive. Sure enough, Peter opened the rooftop door and walked over to Starcain. "Hey, any news?" He asked him. Starcain replied "He's training like a madman. It seems that he is prepared to kill." Peter shook his head at the reply. In his mind, he already knew that if Marduk went too far, he was going to kill him at first chance. He was not letting King be slaughtered by this man. Starcain stepped forward and asked Peter a question that he wasn't prepared for. "Peter, why are you pursuing this so much? I know that you are hiding something from me." Peter stepped back and got defensive. "What's it to you? Just do what I'm paying you to do." After saying that, he turned around and began to leave. "The tournament starts in three days; I trust that you'll be there."

Starcain didn't like doing a job that he didn't know everything about. He needed to know everything that Peter was hiding. As Peter was about to open the door, he felt a strong hand grab around the back of his skull. For some reason, he felt absolutely powerless to move. His body was frozen as Starcain held onto him. Starcain said "I didn't want to do this, but you left me no other choice…Now again, what is it that you're hiding from me?" Peter could no longer speak; just whimper quietly as Starcain entered his mind. Starcain closed his eyes and observed what was in Peter mind.

He saw many flashes, things that he did not intend to see. He saw Peter's thoughts jumbling at rapid speeds. He saw a younger Peter. He watched as he hung by his wrists shirtless, being beaten by a tall man. He resembled Marduk in many ways. He watched as Peter fell to the ground, bloody and unconscious. Suddenly, an older Peter appeared. He saw as a beautiful Asian with black long hair, red mixed in as well. She mocked Peter, fought him as well with an unknown fighting style. Starcain could feel hatred radiating off of the young girl. Peter aged again and this time, he saw him meeting King for the first time. What fear he felt in Peter's mind.

Now, Starcain saw an Asian woman in a white dress. She had a white headband in her hair as she smiled in front of Peter. Peter's mind began to feel peaceful, although remorseful at the same time. 'She's dead' Starcain thought. Now, an image of a tall green monster came to view. 'Ogre' Starcain thought. He already knew plenty about him. Peter's thoughts sped even faster now as Starcain watched. He saw Ogre bringing him to near death, other fighters being outraged at the fact. Suddenly, a terrible image flashed into view. King above Peter with a bloody hand as Peter's eyes closed.

Starcain snapped out of Peter's mind, not wanting to see anymore at all. Once he released his hold, Peter collapsed to the floor. Starcain knelt down to Peter and picked him up. He couldn't just leave him here like this. "Whatever's going on, I'll make sure that nothing happens to any of you." He said.

An hour later, Peter woke up sitting in his car. He was in front of his house. "How in the world did I get here?" He asked himself. He honestly did not remember what happened. The last thing that he did remember, was talking to Starcain when all of a sudden, he felt a massive headache. Then, nothing at all. Confused, Peter unbuckled his seat belt and took the keys out of the ignition. He opened the door and began to walk inside. Once he got inside, he saw Julia and King sitting down at the table eating dinner. "Where have you been?" King asked. Peter shook his head and answered "I-I don't know…I think I need to sleep. We're leaving for the tournament tomorrow and we really need to be ready. See you in the morning." As Peter closed the door, Julia and King looked at each with concern.

The Next Morning…

King warmed up in Peter's weight training room. His injury was feeling a lot better and he was ready to brawl in the tournament. In the corner of the room, Julia and Peter sparred with each other. 'Peter's definitely improved a lot' King thought to himself. As he lifted a pair of heavy weights, King watched Peter's fighting moves as they were executed against Julia Chang. Julia also improved, her physical appearance even looking like it had matured much. As for himself, King was working on coming out of his deep depression. With Peter's help, King was slowly recovering. To King's surprise, Peter had been busy during those two years that they were apart. Not only had he learned first aid, but he also started a psychology course. Peter was generously sharing his knowledge with his down-hearted step-father. Together, they were slowly working through their traumatizing experience. Whether it was just the two sitting down and talking about it, or Peter reassuring King that killing him was the best way to end his pain. However, it no longer mattered because Peter was alive and well again.

They had to catch their plane in three hours, so King stopped lifting and took a shower. As the water hit his body, he felt as if he was about to melt away. Yes, depression was still getting the better of him. As he turned his back on the hot stream of water, he thought about his whole life. What was his purpose? Why was he that person that always gave, but never received? Why did HE have to lose his step-father, both of them? Why didn't he have a fair life? Why wasn't his childhood happy? Why did his parents abandon him? Why did he have to carry such large burdens? Why couldn't he be happy for once? There were no answers for his questions. These thoughts saddened King greatly as the water began to slightly turn cold on him. Once he realized, he reached for the shower knob and turned off the water. Whatever was going on here, he would be fine and he would be back to his old self again. Or at least that's what he thought.

Well, soon King, Julia, and Peter were on their way to the airport. Little to King and Julia's knowledge, Starcain was also following. After all, Peter and him had a deal. As they boarded their plane, Peter looked around behind him until he spotted Starcain. Knowing what kind of mission the two were on, they both knew that they couldn't even smile at each other. There was to be little to no suspicion at all. So without even the slightest acknowledgment, the two looked in two totally different directions. As Peter turned around, he knew that they were all in for a wild ride this time around. Again.