Chapter 9! Thanks for keeping up with this story so far and for the reviews! I'm going to update more often so that it'll be completed before the release of the new game (because we'll all be busy playing it lol).
Disclaimer: I do not own any characters. They are all property of Namco.
After a busy morning running errands, training, and collecting vital intel on her next target, the assassin finally found the time to fit a meal into her schedule. She ended up grabbing lunch in the one place she never thought she would, the employee cafeteria. Though she had given the food there a fair chance, she just loathed the environment, noisy and overcrowded. At least she was able to grab a table to herself so that she could somewhat enjoy her meal. The only thing on the menu that somewhat appealed to her was an old fashioned hamburger with a side of fries. It wasn't her usual go to meal, but she did like to indulge in American cuisine from time to time. The area she sat in wasn't overly occupied with the company's employees, so she had no qualms about stuffing her face with the burger. Besides, she only had a little time for a break since she would quickly resume her work afterwards.
"Didn't expect to see you down here," a man's voice spoke to her.
Nina looked up in surprise as the intruder caught her cramming food into her mouth. She said nothing as she chewed in silence, not wanting to speak with food in her mouth. 'Damn it, Eddy...he snuck up on me real good this time, I didn't even know he was back at headquarters today,' she thought whilst eating.
The Brazilian man took a seat across from her with a bottle of cola in hand. He had returned from the base where his division was stationed after going over some important drills with his men. He didn't know exactly what Jin was planning, but he was adamant about making sure every division was prepared. Perhaps he was expecting another attack from G Corp. He looked across the table at the blonde and tried not to chuckle when he noticed that she had ketchup in the corner of her mouth. She must've been starving. "Don't you and Jin usually order out? The food down here is usually hit or miss," Eddy remarked with a small grin. "I guess that burger is good with the way you're going to town on it."
This is why she preferred to eat without an audience, but because it was only Eddy she didn't mind too much. He actually humored her a little on some occasions, and in these times they could all use a little good humor. With a napkin, she wiped her mouth and was surprised that she had that much ketchup on her lips. How embarrassing. "Pretend that you didn't see any of this," she joked, dryly. "So, anything new going on?"
"Nah, same shit, different day," he said plainly while drinking his cola. He glanced around the room and noticed a group of soldiers taking a seat together at a table not too far from them. "Hm, looks like Lars and his men are back as well."
Nina followed his eyes and noticed the table full of soldiers dressed in their civilian clothes. She looked up at the spiky haired, blond man and noticed how sullen he looked. She didn't know him well, but she hadn't seen him this way before. "Alexandersson…do you know much about him?" she asked the man across from her.
Eddy shrugged. "I mean, I've seen him in action on the field, he's pretty good at what he does, but lately...I don't know. He's been different," he answered. "I know Jin wants us to keep a look out on the soldiers and report to him, but I feel weird spying on folks."
As per Jin's new policies, she and Eddy were supposed to be his eyes and ears around the soldiers to report anything suspicious, but really they'd just be professional snitches. "Well, regardless, if we notice anything we should report it," she said as she looked over to the table again and paused when she noticed the Tekken Force captain looking directly at her. "It seems that we've been spotted."
Eddy looked over to the table again and now most of the men were looking their way, some with cold, indignant stares. "I can tell you now that we're not well liked amongst some of the soldiers. They think we know everything about what's going on, but I don't know shit, I'm just following orders," he muttered, slightly upset by the judgment he received from his peers.
The blonde woman took a sip from her bottle of water and completely disregarded the looks they received. Unlike Eddy, she didn't give a damn about what they thought, and she knew everything they wanted to know. She could care less about how they felt as long as they did as they were told. "Don't worry about it, just keep them in line," she suggested to her comrade. "I have other things to worry about besides those incompetent morons."
"Oh yeah, I almost forgot, you're going after that maniac, Fury. I'm sure Jin will have you take a few squads with you for assistance," he assured. Sure she had skills, but preparing to deal with a foe like that must've been a little unnerving.
"I don't need them," she said quickly in response.
Eddy's eyes widened slightly. Did she have a death wish? There was no way he'd face that guy alone without a shit ton of backup. Did she feel like she had to prove something? He wouldn't waste time trying to convince her otherwise. Once she had her mind set to do something, it was nearly impossible to deter her from achieving it. "Well, good luck and be careful, Nina. I wouldn't want to lose my only friend in this place," the capoeira fighter told her with a faint smile as he stood up from the table. "See you around."
Nina watched him leave with a small glimmer of sadness in her eyes. He was such a kind man, too kind to be engulfed in a situation like this. She wished that she didn't know everything, then she wouldn't feel sorry for him. However, due to her loyalty to her employer, she couldn't say a word or let that knowledge or any other secrets she knew interfere with her judgement. It was out of her hands. She cleaned up her quick lunch and disposed of it.
As she strode by the group of soldiers, she glared at them icily with her usual cold expression. Once, they were so bold to stare at her from afar, but now they uncomfortably averted their gazes from her, shifting in their seats and looking downwards like the cowards that they were. Pathetic. She expected more from Alexandersson, or 'Prince Valiant' as she secretly dubbed him. Now that Eddy brought it to her attention, his odd behavior was rousing her suspicion, and now he was on her radar. However, this wasn't her most important task at hand at the time, another matter took precedence over this at the moment. 'So much to deal with…so little time,' the assassin thought to herself as she left the cafeteria.
Boredom was his worst enemy, especially since being bored and being alone left him vulnerable to his dark thoughts. Lately, he had found that without the help of pills, he would have to find other ways to occupy his mind and his body. So, he trained and trained hard, and when he wasn't pushing his body to its limits, he trained his brain. He had found some interesting new reading material to keep his mind active so that he could broaden his knowledge of the world while keeping his thoughts focused on anything besides the things that robbed him of sleep for countless nights. The routine of a corporate grunt really bogged him down and stifled him, so he was glad to be doing things that came more naturally to him.
After training in his personal dojo, he returned to his office to resume his day as a professional businessman. Plus, he had to check his messages, another thing he loathed doing these days. The young business mogul sat down in his large leather chair and took in the sight of the city before him. It was close to dusk and he figured he'd wrap up his last few tasks before nightfall. Due to his time in the dojo , he actually felt exhausted enough to go to sleep earlier than he normally would. Jin picked up his cellphone from his desk and checked his messages. He had no missed calls and no messages or voice mails, but he did have several emails to sort through. As he read through his emails, he saw more of the same threatening messages from disgruntled businessmen who wished death upon him and cursed his family's name. It was nothing new, and most of them were empty threats made by old cowards who already had one foot in the grave.
A smirk pulled at his lips as he scrolled through the rest of his unread emails. 'Pitiful, ' he thought with disinterest as he finally set the device down. If they were bold enough to come for him, they'd surely regret doing so once they encountered his ruthless assassin. A beeping noise was heard from his office doors and the devil herself walked in.
Jin looked up at the fair haired woman with restrained delight as she sauntered in casually. Her style of dress was more relaxed than usual, the sleeves of her blazer were rolled up and her blouse was one button shy of covering her now exposed cleavage. Fortunately, he succeeded in keeping his mind from wandering off wantonly.
"You look relaxed, despite all of this havoc going on. What's your secret?" Nina commented as she approached his desk. Her employer seemed calmer than usual, but it was a natural calm not induced by sedatives. She was relieved that he actually heeded her words.
"I had a busy, but less stressful day than my schedule usually allows for me," he answered smoothly as he clasped his hands together. "You, on the other hand, look like you've had a rough day," he added with a smug smile tugging at his lips.
"Hmm, I'd bite my tongue if I were you, Kazama. I've been running myself ragged to prepare to intercept the next person trying to claim the bounty on your head," Nina revealed. She pulled her phone from her blazer pocket and began pulling up the messages on her phone. She had tried to sway the man from pursuing her employer, but he was persistent, and he even left some rather crude messages on her phone. "In short, he claims that he's "going to have fun fucking your army up the ass with hot lead", then he goes on to say a lot of other sexually explicit things in regards to what he's going to do to me if I try to stop him," she read the message in a monotonous tone with a straight face. Sure she was disgusted, but she was never perturbed by threats, especially not by the words from an unbalanced creep.
Jin was slightly disturbed yet amused by this man's insolence. He narrowed his brown eyes as he thought about the maniac's threats. Who the hell does he think he is? He will be humbled very soon. "You think you can handle him?" he asked in a serious tone as he stared directly into her eyes.
She flashed him a confident smirk as she took a seat in the leather chair in front of his desk. "Of course, I've been preparing for this jackass, besides I could use a little shake up in my normal routine. He's nothing to worry about," she reassured as she rested her head against the back of the chair and closed her eyes for a moment. It had been a long day of running around to several different facilities to gather the things she would need to aid her in taking her next target down should things go awry.
His curious eyes slid over her form as he watched her silently, observing nothing but the steady rise and fall of her bosom as she relaxed in the chair. He didn't understand it, but she had this strange magnetic lure that captivated his attention from time to time. He was partly intrigued because he almost deemed it dangerous and too risky to stare at her for too long, for if he were caught he'd surely suffer the wrath that he'd seen her unleash unto others who deigned to gawk at her boldly. His aforementioned apprehension was realized when she finally opened her eyes and locked her gaze with his. Jin was normally skillful at averting his eyes before this occurred, but this time he failed at masking his strange habit from her.
Nina said nothing as she caught the raven haired young man staring at her once again. She had grown accustomed to it, in fact, over time it had become their 'special thing' so to speak. It was neither discomforting nor was it particularly pleasing, it was just one of many Jin's eccentricities that she had learned to accept. Their silent staring match continued on for another minute or so before she had become bored of the game and shifted her eyes elsewhere, like the small stack of books on his desk. This was a new addition to his office. The blonde woman sat up and skimmed over the titles and authors with her eyes. The Prince by Niccoló Machiavelli, Beyond Good and Evil by Friedrich Nietzsche, and The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka. 'So, is this how he's going to save the world?' she pondered sarcastically.
He noticed that the books on his desk had caught her eyes and supposed it was a good way to distract themselves from whatever they were doing beforehand. "Have you read any of them?" he asked, finally breaking the silence.
"Yes," the assassin answered with a small nod.
"Which one?"
"All of them."
"So, you like reading in your free time?" He had once again found out something new and interesting about his bodyguard without resorting to trickery or perusing through her old files.
"I do, but I read them so long ago," she started as a reminiscent smile graced her lips. "In my father's study, he always had books like these laying around, and when I was bored I always found myself hiding away with one of them to pass the time." Whenever her father was away on missions, she would ease her fears for his safety by sitting in his study to be near him even in his absence. The aroma of his imported cigars mixed with his musky cologne were still alive in her thawed memories of a life she'd nearly forgotten.
It was the first time he'd ever heard her speak of her father. From her files, he learned that her parents were deceased, but a therapist's report from long ago regarding her mental state after her cold sleep suggested that she was permanently traumatized by the death of her father. He had tried not to read through some of the things transcribed about her that seemed too subjective or invasive into her private life, it just felt wrong. He observed her and was surprised that she seemed quite amiable and at ease, so he asked one more question on the subject. "Your father must've been a deep thinker to understand these works. Do you understand them as well?" It wasn't as if he were incapable of understanding the material, but sometimes the message in old books like these were often lost in translation. There were so many footnotes on each page that he could barely grasp the meaning and intent of them.
A thin smile appeared on her lips at his inquiry. She understood them well, that is, with her father's diligence to make sure she could thoroughly interpret any book she touched in his study. "Are we having a little book club together?" she joked with a slightly mocking laugh. She could see the bookmark in Machiavelli and wondered if it was the culprit in his change of tactics in running the company. "I suggest that you read Nietzsche first, it's easier to grasp and it might appeal to you more, and I would save Kafka for last," Nina advised, leaning back into the chair once more.
Jin was intrigued. He wondered what other kind of secrets lied beneath her cold and enigmatic exterior. There was definitely more to her that met the eye, and even if it was in small increments, he was interested in every new discovery about the assassin. 'I thought that reading books like these would help me make more sound decisions to cope with starting this war, but maybe I should just seek counsel from her since she seems well versed about these things,' he thought as he reached for the book pile and picked up her top suggestion.
"He who fights with monsters should look to it that he himself does not become a monster. And when you gaze long into an abyss the abyss also gazes into you," the blonde recited cryptically.
He remained silent as her words resonated within him. 'Become a monster? But I already am,' he thought gloomily with a sullen expression. His attention was pulled to the woman in front of him as she stood up and turned away from him. "Where are you going?" he asked curiously upon immediately seeing her attempt to leave.
Nina looked over her shoulder with a blank face. "To my quarters," she answered plainly in a tired tone. She longed for a nice soak in her tub and, since books were now on her mind, she wanted to snuggle up with a good book before she retired to sleep. "I'm leaving early in the morning to prepare to take out that foul-mouthed maniac. Good night, Jin."
"Good night, Nina," he responded. He noticed a small smile on her face before she finally turned away to leave. He, too, had a smile secretly forming on his usually frowning face as he watched her go. He was feeling a little tired before she visited, but now he felt a little more energized after their conversation. Perhaps he would knock out a book tonight, but somehow he became a little curious about this next target of hers. It hadn't peaked his interest before, but after hearing those messages, he wanted to know more about that depraved degenerate before she left for that mission tomorrow.
The rest of her night was shaping up to be pretty relaxing and full of the much needed solitude she desired. After a long, luxurious soak in a hot bubble bath with a glass a wine, she was finally ready to turn in for the evening. The blonde assassin pulled back her plush comforters before climbing into bed, dressed in nothing but a white tank top with matching underwear. She hadn't either bothered to blow dry her hair before bed, it'd be dry in the morning anyway. Her weary body sunk into the soft, warm bed and she knew she would be able to get a full night's rest. She deserved it considering the long day she had ahead of her.
She closed her eyes with a small sigh as she thought about her next mission. 'Fury...that rabid madman. I wonder who hired him to take out Jin. I wouldn't be surprised if it was indeed his father. What a crazy, dysfunctional family,' she thought as she felt herself drifting to sleep.
The sudden sound of her phone beeping loudly immediately jolted her from her would be slumber. Nina sighed heavily in annoyance. She hated that damn phone, from the stupid company emails to the invasive technology imbedded in it. She reluctantly reached over to her nightstand to glance at the device. It was a text, from Jin surprisingly, and she wondered what was so urgent that he had to send it so late. She hoped it wasn't something she had to reply to immediately, she wasn't a big fan of texting. She opened the message and read it, and a scowl began appearing on her once peaceful face. "You've got to be kidding me!" she exclaimed angrily as she threw the comforters off her and ran to her closet to throw something on quickly.
It was rather late nown, and he finally figured he'd return to his quarters to rest. He had gotten thrown off course by the last minute research he conducted and the hours just flew by. Too bad he hadn't done it earlier, he could've made his final decision to save everyone precious time. By morning, he would sort everything out and hopefully she would understand that he had her best interests at heart. As he approached the door to his office, he was surprised when he heard the lock beep as someone gained access to his domain. His heart rate increased slightly when the door opened to reveal a livid woman dressed in a grey track suit and sneakers with a deep frown on her lips.
Once the door opened she immediately stepped closely towards the taller raven haired man with a score to settle. "What the hell is the meaning of this, Kazama?" she questioned irately as she took another threatening step towards him. "Why are you pulling me from my mission and handing it over to another unit of soldiers? I prepared long and hard for this and it makes no sense for you to force me to sit it out! What's going through your head?"
Jin, almost intimidated, took a small step backwards away from the fuming assassin. Even if she was slightly shorter without her heels, she was still very threatening when she was angry. She was firing a barrage of questions at him and he didn't know how to answer her exactly. Did she want the truth? He couldn't tell her, she'd only become more upset with him. "It's for the best. That target is far too destructive and dangerous for you to face alone. I know you didn't want to work with a small team of soldiers, so I decided to let my secret service handle him. It's much safer this way," he reasoned with her calmly, hoping to ease her anger. The look of betrayal in her eyes made him feel a pang of guilt.
Nina shook her head in disbelief at his drastic change of mind and wondered if he realized the major error he had made. "You're sending those men to their deaths. He'll rip through them with ease...then he'll head here and destroy everything!" she warned as she paced around her employer hotly.
"You underestimate the power of my soldiers, they're not incompetent."
"Oh, really? Well, I think you're underestimating me, Jin, " she said tersely with a look of disappointment painting her features. She stopped pacing and folded her arms across her chest as she glared daggers at him.
This conversation was now making him slightly uncomfortable. He felt guilty for making this decision, but after doing research and reviewing articles and news clips of the destruction Bryan Fury was capable of, he couldn't let her face him alone. She was a very skilled assassin, but her opponent was a complete wildcard and a violent sociopath. He would never knowingly place her in immediate danger, especially not to save his life. He was not known to reverse his decisions and he wouldn't start now, even for her. "I'm sorry, but I'm just doing what I think is best," he said brusquely as he tried to walk past her. She blocked his path boldly and continued to glare at him. He looked down at her with a small grunt of impatience.
Nina wouldn't let this issue go so easily. She was a little offended that he didn't think she was capable of doing her job effectively. "Why am I here, Jin?" she asked, boring her icy eyes into his. She was beginning to feel like she was wasting her time with this job. Who in their right mind would hire an assassin for the exorbitant price he was paying only to have them doing nothing besides babysit all day? Her determination was inflexible as she attempted to understand her employer's motives.
"You don't think an army of soldiers are capable of stopping him, but you are?" he belittled, almost insultingly.
That stung her pride, especially hearing it from someone who supposedly hired her because he was impressed by her skills. She wanted to slap him across the face, or worse, but she restrained herself from being too rash. Instead, she turned away from him sharply and prepared to leave. She had no more words to speak to him at the moment.
When she turned to leave, he instinctively reached out and placed his hands on her shoulders. He could feel her tense up under the grey hoodie she was wearing. "Wait," he spoke in a softer tone to diffuse the tension between them. "Nina, I'm sorry, I just don't want you to get hurt, especially if it can be avoided. Please understand, " he said sincerely. He still held her by her shoulders to prevent her from fleeing prematurely.
She was beyond upset with him at the moment, and the fact that he was holding onto her did nothing to relieve her anger. He could say sorry a thousand times and it would mean nothing to her now, not after he failed to have faith in her abilities. She glanced over her shoulder to look back at him briefly, doing her best to prevent any of the whirlwind of emotions swirling within her from surfacing through her aloof expression. "I don't need to be protected, I'm not a helpless little girl, but suit yourself, you're the boss," she spoke with a hint of snarkiness clinging to her tone. She wriggled from his grasp and exited from his office.
Jin was left alone again, feeling conflicted and low about what had occurred between them. He didn't know what to do to make amends with her now. He was only doing what he felt was right. 'Why is she here, if not to protect me?' He recalled her previous question to him. The question stumped even him as he left his office as well to turn in for the night.
With her newly cleared schedule, much to her chagrin, she decided that she would do absolutely nothing. Hell, she probably wouldn't even leave her quarters for the day. Since she started working for the Mishima Zaibatsu she hadn't had a single day to herself, but since she was stripped of her mission she would relish in a little alone time. Due to her mood, she wouldn't even bother checking in with her employer, she needed a break from him most of all. She would answer no calls or pages from him today, and she definitely needed to cool off before seeing him face to face again.
Nina laid in her bed lazily and did nothing but stare up at her ceiling in complete boredom. She still felt very bitter about the situation, but maybe she should have been grateful. Was Jin truly so concerned for her safety that he didn't want his personal bodyguard to do anything besides stand by his side all day? She definitely didn't sign on to be a prop by his side. He barely left the Central Tower, so why was he afraid? His plans weren't even in full motion, yet he was hiding away like a recluse prematurely. Whatever his reasons were, she didn't agree with them, not this time. In her bitter mood, she had maliciously hoped that his little secret service failed. She wanted them to get demolished, and when the infamous "one man army" was toppling over his empire, Jin would see the great error in his judgment. She smirked at her dark thoughts for a moment before coming to her senses. She was angry, yes, but that shouldn't force her to sway her loyalty to be in favor of the enemy winning.
Her phone beeped and she sighed heavily in annoyance. It was most likely Jin summoning her to his office, undoubtedly to apologize or explain himself. She would take a gander at it, but she wasn't leaving her room; she did not want to see him. The blonde assassin reached for her phone and skimmed through the message. Her eyes widened slightly. 'Oh, well it looks like the ball is back in my court. I'm sorry, boys, but you'll thank me later,' she thought as she finally got up from her bed to prepare to do what she did best.
Phew! Another long chapter! Looks like there's a possible showdown between Nina and Bryan on the way... R&R!