Author's Notes –
I guess no one reads FMP fiction anymore…
Here I am, watching the Tekken Movie on G4, and I just can't get past the movie's intro. I know that most people don't care about plot/story when dealing with fighting games, but seriously? They completely mangled the Tekken (game) cannon. The fighting's good, but I've seen better. The plot is just, eh… I find myself switching back to NCIS and only tuning in for the fights.
Why Tekken doesn't suck – Fights to the death, girls in spandex… Okay, I'm hooked.
The long, sleepless night he'd endured had prompted him to skip homeroom in hopes of catching some additional shut-eye, but the scene he'd witnessed at the school gate had changed everything. A surge of adrenaline helped him push the wiriness out of his mind and body, replacing them with focus and clarity. 'Rei, I have to get to Rei!'
"Komuro ! What do you think you're doing? First it's skipping class and now interrupting my class!"
Takashi barely registered his former homeroom teacher's words as he barged into class 2-D's homeroom. "Rei, you have to come with me!"
The urgency in his voice wasn't lost on the younger students, several of which snickered and a few who joked that he was going to confess to her.
"What's going on?" his former best friend and classmate demanded as he stood between Rei and Takashi.
By now a third of the class was standing, most because they wanted a view of the show, others because they wanted to give the two boys room in case something physical was going to happen. Though Rei and Hisashi were both new to the class everyone knew who they were. The pair were the only seventeen year olds to not become third years, though speculation as to why had been unconfirmed everyone knew that the two were an item.
"Something happened outside," Takashi whispered as he locked eyes with the taller Hisashi. "There was an incident with a killer at the front gate."
"Are you serious? What happened?"
"I don't know for sure," the senior replied. "But what do I have to gain by lying to you like this?"
Years of friendship did what words couldn't as Hisashi relented.
"What are you two saying?" Rei demanded.
"Not now," Hisashi interrupted. "Just listen to what I have to say. Something bad happened at the front gate. If you want to stay alive, we'll have to run away."
"Something at the gate?" the ever astute Saya repeated.
He'd barely noticed her there before, but Takahashi glanced at her before returning his attention to Rei. "There was someone at the front gate, and some teachers went to see what was going on…
"Then something happened, and now… they're all dead."
"That's such a ridiculous"
"Fine!" he shouted, cutting Rei short. "Go and get yourself killed if you want to go check it out!"
"We should go," the puggy Kohta suggested. "This isn't the place to talk."
Takashi blinked. 'I just wanted to get Rei.'
By now the students around them were very curious, some looking out the window despite Mr. Shido's attempts to get the class back under control.
"Sorry Mr. Shido," Hisashi apologized even as he ushred Takashi out of the room with Kohta's assistance. "Komuro's not feeling well. I think he's got a fever."
"Take him to Miss Makirawa's office," the well-dressed teacher ordered as he turned his attention back to the rest of the class. "That's what you get for sleeping on the roof during winter."
Following Hisashi's lead, Takashi allowed his friends to guide him out into the hallway and close the door to the classroom.
"We should get out of here," he urged.
"Hold up," the ever cool Hisashi said as he opened a closet. "If your story is true then we need these."
"Broom handles and bats?" Kotha remarked as he eyed the assortment of wooden weapons.
"What about you?" Takashi asked.
"I have a black belt in karate so I'll be fine with my fists," the second year junior assured them. "In any case, let's get out of the school."
"First of all, we need to call the police!" Rei proclaimed. "My dad's a detective, so he'll come right away!"
"I can't believe you didn't think of that sooner," Saya sighed. Though weaponless, the petit yet busty pinkette shook her head disapprovingly at the boys.
Reaching into his pocket Takashi extracted his phone, offering it to Rei. "Here, give it a shot."
Glad to finally have some say in what they were doing, Rei hastily accepted, dialing the number before putting the device to her ear. Expectantly the others watched and waited.
"No way…"
"What's the matter?" Hisashi asked as he noted that his girlfriend was trembling.
Seeing that Rei was effectively frozen, Saya quickly plucked the phone out of the older girl's hand before pressing down a button to turn on the speaker function.
"…Repeat. This is a recording. We at the 110 emergency line are held up at the moment. If after calling again, we still can't receive your call, please wait and call again later."
"Wow," gasped Saya. "There must be a lot of people calling 110…"
"I repeat. This is a recording"
Ending the call, Saya hit redial before putting the phone on speaker once again.
"I'm sorry," the electronically recorded voice apologized. "Due to the number of emergencies we at the 110 emergency line are held up at the moment. If after calling again we still can't receive your call, please wait and call again later. I repeat. This is a recording."
Again she ended the call before handing Takashi back his phone. "So what do we do now?"
"Attention all students and teachers!" the PA cut in suddenly. "At the present time, there is a violent struggle occurring on the premises. Students stay with your teachers and follow their instructions!"
The quintet looked up at the speakers, unsure of what they were to do.
"I repeat! Students stay with your teachers and…"
The audible pause allowed them to hear the confused chatter from the classrooms around them.
"I wonder if it has anything to do what what Takashi was talking about?"
"No way!"
"A murderer at school?"
"Quiet!"
"No!" the voice on the PA cried out. "NO!"
An audible hush filled the school as everyone listened to the still live PA.
"Somebody please help!" the speaker pleaded. "STOP!"
The sound of the microphone hitting the floor jarred the listeners even as the atmosphere in the school grew tenser by the second.
"OW! That hurts!"
"This way!" Takashi ordered as he lead the others down the hallway.
"Shouldn't we try to get out?" Rei objected as she glanced towards the stairwell."
"The classroom building is full of people trying to get out!" Saya stated. "We're going to escape through the administration building!"
Takashi nodded in confirmation as he led the others. Behind them students were bursting out of their classrooms in a mad rush for the stairwell they'd just passed.
Turning the corner they quickly lost sight of the hordes of students fighting to be first to the stairs. Though the other students were out of sight they could still hear their cries and screams as students began pushing and fighting to get to the doors.
Rushing past the empty classrooms on the third floor they turned another corner only to slow down as a figure approached them.
"Is he going to stop us?" Rei asked between breaths.
A second rush of adrenaline sent Takashi's heart pounding as he noted the bloody footprint the approaching figure left as the teacher hobbled towards them with a noticeable limp.
"Run!"
"Attention all students and teachers! At the present time, there is a violent struggle occurring on the premises. Students stay with your teachers and follow their instructions!"
Saeko Busujima could feel her heart pounding in her breast as she and her classmates listened to the announcement.
"I repeat! Students stay with your teachers and…"
All around her the others froze. Just like her they were fixated on the attendant's voice.
"No!" the voice on the PA cried out. "NO!"
An audible hush filled the school as everyone listened to the still live PA.
"Somebody please help!" the speaker pleaded. "STOP!"
The sound of the microphone hitting the floor jarred the listeners even as the atmosphere in the school grew tenser by the second.
"OW! That hurts!"
Panic consumed the others as evidenced by the mad dash that her peers made as the sought to escape the same fate that the school's attendant endured.
Calm and collected, the president of the kendo club avoided the chaos and turmoil at the door. She knew that her words would have fallen on deaf ears. Already the logjam at the door caused those behind them to kick and hit those before them.
As quickly as it started it was over as the remaining students crashed through the hallway windows, ignoring everything in their efforts to flee. Several were knocked to the floor only to be trampled upon by the others, some causing others to fall to the ground as well.
She could hear the chaos in the halls as her fellow students pushed and fought in the halls. Screams and shouting drowned out the PA system, not that anyone seemed to care.
With her way virtually unimpeded, Saeko grabbed her bokken before exiting the classroom.
"Help me!"
Looking down she eyed the broken body on the ground. The small boy before her had been in her class. It looked bad, very bad. His right arm was bent at an impossible angle, and there were over a dozen footprints on his back.
"Kenji Nakajima," she called out his name. "It looks like your arm's broken."
She glanced around, examining the hallway. There were others laying on the ground, over a dozen at least. Though the rest appeared to be unconscious at the least.
"We should get you to the doctor's office," she finally said.
Kenji pushed himself off of the ground with his good arm, "Yeah."
Rather than rushing for the stairs, the pair made their way towards the administrative wing and the doctor's office.
"It doesn't look like anyone came this way," she stated as she lead the way. Licking her lips, she felt her heart pound as she heard the screams coming up from the stairwell. If the lower floors were anything like this floor than the stair were probably a death trap as the entire student body rushed to escape the building. By now they were probably fighting and pushing on the ground floor, those who made it that far at least. From the looks of things at least a third of the students had been trampled just leaving their classrooms. Who knew how many more had fallen at the stairwells.
Just as she'd suspected the administrative building was empty. Few of her peers had the foresight to take the longer and less crowded path out of the building rather than risking their lives in the human stampede. "Just a little further," she said as she glanced at the pale boy. "Does it hurt?"
Gritting his teeth, Kenji shook his head.
"NO!" someone cried out before them.
"It must be the killer!" Kenji exclaimed. "He must have gotten into the administrative building!"
Now that she thought about it that did make sense. The school attendant was in the administrative building and from the sounds of the last broadcast the killer had attacked the attendant. Maybe running to the administrative building hadn't been the smartest thing.
Cautiously she led Kenji down the stairs to the second floor.
"NO! Someone, please help me!"
Turning the corner Saeko quickly assessed the situation. An injured girl, a first year by the look of her outfit, was beset upon by a handful of assailants. "Let her go!"
Only the closest of assailants seemed to take notice of her, turning his head to look at her. The others continued to walk, no, limp towards the girl. Thinking nothing of their apparent injuries, Saeko charged the group.
The hard wooden weapon in her hands connected with a sickening thud, unleashing a spray of blood as she caved in the man's head.
"Let me go!" one of the girls cried. "AHH!"
The large man held her firmly, sinking his teeth into her calf even as his victim kicked him repeatedly in an attempt to free herself.
Trusting in her skills, Saeko moved onto the next closest assailant, a swift blow to his ribs then to his arm, both breaking bone though the second knocking the man over. Pain was often incentive enough to discourage a pervert from attacking, but clearly these men were crazed.
A third attacker went down with a blow to the back of his head, cracking his skull. Moving on she bashed the head of the last attacker, allowing the first year to escape his grasp.
"Thank you," the hysterical girl gasped.
Taking a deep breath, she surveyed the hallway.
"You'll need to get that looked at," Saeko stated as the first year scrambled to her feet. "Come on, we're going there ourselves."
"Run!"
The loud shout drew the hobbling figure's attention, prompting it to shuffle its feet all the faster as it rushed them.
Years of training failed to save Hisashi as the taller boy reflexively sought to shift his feet before delivering a straight punch. The moment's hesitation threw off his aim, his punch connecting with the bloody killer's chest rather than his sternum.
Undeterred by the punch, the attacker rolled with the force of the blow before latching onto the karateka's arm, sinking his teeth into the second year's flesh.
"Arh!"
"Hisashi!" Rei shouted, forgetting her own safety as she rushed to save her boyfriend. Only Saya's hand on her arm kept the buxom brunette from reaching him first.
With the tiny window provided to him, Takashi reacted, bashing the attacker's leg and knocking him off of his feet. Blood sprayed the hallway as the killer ripped out a chunk of Hisashi's arm before falling to the ground. With Hisashi free of their attacker, Takashi was now free to swing for the fences. The sickening sound of dense bone breaking forcefully filled the hallway just as a second spray of blood erupted.
"Hisashi!" Discarding her weapon, Rei rushed over to Hisashi.
"Use this," Saya suggested as she pulled out a handkerchief. "Shit! It's not enough!"
"Here," Takashi said as he handed the bat to Rei. His hands free, he quickly unbuttoned his shirt and slipped out of it before ripping it in half. Using a sleeve, he wrapped it around the other boy's bloody arm then wrapped it tight.
"Thanks."
"You should get it looked at," Saya suggested.
"What about the killer?" Rei objected.
"Takashi just took care of him." Offering a weak smile, Hisashi fought throught he pain. "I probably should have it looked at. Maybe he had rabies, that's why he wanted to take a bite out of me."
"Or high on drugs," Saya quipped. "Good thing we're already in the administrative building."
Leaving Rei to assist Hisashi, Takashi led the way. Grateful to have the others' focus off of him he tried to stay calm. 'I just killed someone. I can't believe I just killed someone.'
"Here." Saya's voice nearly caused him to jump as the pinkette appeared at his side. "You alright?"
The feel of the rubber grip in his hand did little to sooth his nerves. He wanted to throw it out the window, to never see it again, but he knew he couldn't let it go. He hated lying to her, but what was he to do? "Yeah."
Nursing, it had always seemed to be a good career choice. She loved helping people, but with her scores she'd been regulated to school nurse. Yes, the hours were much better and consistent than what her fellow graduates endured, but there really wasn't as much for her to do as a school nurse.
A typical morning consisted of her dealing with the multitude of horny teenage boys as they either sought to skip class and/or hit on her. But today was anything but typical as the previous broadcast indicated. For once Shizuka was dealing with something other than delinquent boys.
"It hurts!"
"I think my arm's broken!"
"AAHH!"
Scurrying around the normally vacant room, the buxom nurse scrambled for the necessary medical supplies. "Put this on the wound," she instructed, hoping that someone who could get around would be able to help. "Make sure you're wearing gloves if you're dealing with a bloody wound."
For once all the beds in the office were occupied, most with more than two students. The human stampede that followed the broadcast was to blame. The number of injured was actually more than her office could contain.
The first injuries were simple bruises, though a good number of sprains and even a dislocated shoulder had appeared. Then came a handful of concussions, the more serious ones demanding the use of the handful of beds as the still unconscious students needed to be evaluated.
With the number of injured piling up, Shizuka barely had time to examine the injured, much less address every injury that came in. "Concussions over by the bed, lacerations by the window, everything else stay by the door."
"Um, okay," the new arrival replied. "What would a bite be considered?"
"Are you bleeding?" she asked, not even bothering to check the student over.
"Yes."
"Lacerations," she clarified. "Busujima has the iodine and gauze, make sure you clean the wound. And use gloves!"
"That's the fifth bite wound," Saeko remarked as she eyed the new arrival, a second year boy. "Where?"
The boy held up his left hand. "He just came at me out of nowhere."
"Where?"
Again he held up his hand.
"Where in the school?" she clarified as she dabbed at his wound with a cotton ball soaked in iodine.
"First floor, Tenkawa-sensei's room," he replied. "There were a few of them, they broke the window and were trying to force their way inside. One of them bit me, but I got away."
"Concussions over by the bed, lacerations by the window, everything else stay by the door."
"Have a seat," Saeko instructed. "Megumi has the gauze pads."
"Okay."
"Busujima."
Reflexively she looked up. The group of four wasn't unknown to her, three of them actually lived close to her. "Takahashi? What are you doing here?"
"Hisashi's hurt," he explained. "He was bitten by the killer."
"You saw the killer?" the kendoka asked. "That's impossible, I saw them. Well, I saw a few of them actually."
"There's more than one?" the brainy pinkette interjected.
"Apparently, though I'm not sure if they're together or not," Saeko replied as Rei removed the bindings on Hisashi's arm.
Saya nodded. "It's possible that the chaos has just made everyone go mad. Just look at all the injuries."
"Where were you attacked?" Saeko asked as she eyed Hisashi's wound.
"The administrative building," Hisashi replied weakly.
"Throw those in here," Saeko directed Rei. "How much blood have you lost?"
"Not sure," Hisashi replied shakily. "But I am feeling… a little lightheaded."
Placing her hand on his forehead, Rei scowled. "You've got a fever. Maybe you're right, he was probably sick and whatever he had he's passed onto you."
"Miss Marikawa!" one of the other students cried out. "It's Misa – she's lost consciousness!"
Rushing over to them, the buxom nurse examined the injured girl. "She's burning up!"
"Can't you do anything for her?" Saya asked as she watched on.
"We don't have any acetaminophen or antipyretic left," the nurse replied. "All the blankets are being used, and there's no ice left."
Unable to do anything else for the boy, she turned to the other students. "Continue to monitor them, I've got a broken arm to set."
Groans and moans filled the room. All around him the injured were trying to gather themselves, none of them sure of what exactly was going on.
"We're the only ones not injured," Saya stated.
Takashi nodded. "I can't believe how bad it was out there."
Leaving Rei to tend to Hisashi, Saeko opted to join them. "We were attacked on the second floor of the Administrative building. I found Kenji" she leaned her head to the side to indicate that he was with another group "and we stumbled upon her. She was being attacked by a group of men. I dispatched them, but not before she was bitten."
'She's had to kill someone too,' mused Takahashi. "Is there any water?"
"To drink or wash up?" Saeko asked.
"Drink."
"I've got a bottle just for drinking," the kendoka stated as she reached for her bag. "If you don't mind that I've already drank out of it."
"That's fine," he replied with a forced smile.
Reaching into her bag she extracted the large plastic bottle. Unlike most of their peers Saeko owned an actual bottle rather than just buying pre-bottled water. "Here."
The lukewarm water felt refreshing, quenching his thirst and calming his frayed nerves. "Thanks."
For a moment he allowed himself to relax.
"She's stopped breathing!" the girl tending to Misa cried out.
The peaceful interlude gone, Takashi fixed his gaze on the pale girl on the floor. Reaching out he grabbed the bloody bat even as everyone else focused on the first year.
Shocked by the recent turn of events, the others froze, unsure what to do. After what seemed like an eternity, the nurse called out, "Check her pulse. I've got to set this arm."
Tentatively, the other first year grabbed Misa's arm, attempting to find some sign of life in the still body beneath her. For a few frantic seconds she moved her fingers up and down the other girl's forearm and wrist. "I can't feel anything."
"Listen for her heartbeat," Saya suggested.
Gulping, the girl lowered her head to the other girl's breast, placing her left ear to Misa's still chest.
Suddenly Misa's eyes opened, startling the others. Her caretaker was caught unprepared as she still sought to listen for a heartbeat. Slender arms wrapped around the girl, pulling her to Misa before Misa sunk her teeth into the back of the girl's neck.
In a flash he struck, pushing past the startled spectators before swinging the bat and connecting with the side of her head.
"Takashi!" Rei cried out still not comprehending what had happened. "What are you doing?"
"She was attacking her," Saeko explained.
"Why?" the now hysterical first year cried out as she touched her bloody neck. "Why would she do that to me?"
"It's going to be alright," Saya lied. "Why don't we get you cleaned up?"
A/N
I think I'll leave things there for now.
Dreamingfox