Chapter 11: A Higher Plan

Jun tossed and turned as she continued to experience a dream that she could not escape from. Her sheets were everywhere and by the time of the next morning they were soaked in her sweat. She sat up immediately as soon as she could open her eyes. Her breathing was quite erratic. She had to sit there for almost half an hour before it subsided and even then she was still a bit winded.

It was that person again—the one who she had tried to forget. This had been the first time in a long time that something like this had happened. She thought she had gotten over the loss of Kazuya from her life, but now all the emotion had come back anew as if she had made no progress at all.

"Jin," Jun breathed to herself.

She climbed out of bed and went to his room to check on him. Something felt wrong. When she opened the door, she grew a little panicked—he wasn't in his bed.

"Jin!" Jun called out loudly. "Jiiiin!"

When there was no response, her heart skipped a beat. She tried the bathroom, but he was not there. In fact, she looked all around the house and he was not there.

"Jin!" Jun called out even louder. "You better stop hiding! You come out right now, boy!"

The only thing that answered her was more silence.

"Oh, no," Jun whispered. "No, he has to still be here—maybe he's in the woods."

Jun scrambled out through the front door and ran off towards the dense forest around them. Really, it was an astonishing sight. She hadn't run like that in a long time. She hadn't even been sure if she was capable of such a pace anymore, but she found herself running and running. All the while she was calling out his name like a battle cry. She knew the woods better than most so there was hardly any chance that she would get lost. She called his name out until her voice became hoarse after so many hours of screaming and running. Her energy left her at some point and she lethargically made her way back to the clearing. She at least made it there, but she could move no further.

Whether it was emotion or physical weakness that made her drop to her knees was hard to say. She did so at that moment trying to hold back her tears—she didn't feel like crying right now. She had done so much of it before yet here she was just as weak as ever unable to find strength from anywhere. Then she finally crumbled to the ground in a fit of tears.

"Jin…where are you?"

She depleted her store of pent up anger and sadness just when the sun was at its highest. It was the afternoons, but she still had tears to spare. Maybe she would never move from her position. Suddenly, she felt a hand on her shoulder. She didn't look up immediately because the touch felt strange but familiar. It could not have been Jin, his hands were much smaller and she could not sense him near.

"Who…?" Jun croaked.

"Jun, what's wrong?"

Her eyes grew wide as they still stared at the ground. It couldn't be possible. There was something very wrong, maybe she was still dreaming. That's what she kept telling herself at least, but she couldn't resist looking up and seeing his face again this time wrought with concern.

"I know you can't be real," Jun said weakly, "You're too young. You're just as I remembered you from before."

"That is how I remember myself as well. I'm sure I must be older by now."

Jun blinked back tears so as to get a better look at him. He looked so solid, so real, but when the sun hit him at the right angle, she could see that he was indeed translucent. If she was going crazy, she didn't care. She was so desperate now that even an apparition was enough to console her even if he wasn't real. She grabbed hold of him and cried onto his chest. By this time, he had dropped down to his knees so as to be at her level. This hadn't been the first time she had seen him like this as clear as day. All those other times, she hadn't cared either. She would carry on with him as if it was perfectly fine, but she knew that it wasn't—she knew that it was dangerous to keep on seeing him like she did.

"Jin…where did he go?"

"I'm sure you already know the answer to that. You can sense that he's no longer here."

"But he has no leads."
"It seems that he is quite the adventurous one."

"Kazuya, or whoever you are—I know you aren't real. So please, just do me a favor and leave me. I'll be okay."

"No, you won't."

"Please just go this just isn't right."

"This is the only place I'd rather be."

"Stop saying things like that."

"I've never fought with you on this point, but why do you continue to believe that I'm not real?"

"You're an apparition, don't you get that? A ghost. A figment of my imagination. A nothing."

"I could be all those things if you want. I've been in your dreams before, but I could not comfort you there."

"Then what are you?"

"A spirit perhaps. You can sense spirits, can't you?"

"No, I mean yes, but not you. Just not you."

"Is it too convenient?"

"I don't know who or what you are. I don't know if I should just walk away or just keep pretending everything's alright. You couldn't be Kazuya because he's older than you and…he's dead."

"No, I'm alive. My body has been made alive."

"I don't understand."

"I wouldn't be here if that wasn't true, if my body was not still here, I'd have no right to be on this plane of living."

"Are you saying…that you're alive?"

"Yes, my body is in the process of being completely revived whether it was ever supposed to be or not."

"Then why are you here? Why are you not with your own body?"

"I was drawn here, Jun. I wanted to see you again. You're the one person who would appreciate that."

"You have someplace to be, don't you? A body cannot be alive without a spirit."

"I am not wanted there any longer. My father defeated me and in that moment, my once whole spirit became quite fractured. Devil had taken its toll upon me while I was at my weakest. Even Devil's spirit was fractured. Its other half still roams very close around here. While I'm here, no harm will come to my son."

"Devil," Jun said quietly, "You told me about it. I…believe you now."

"Devil came for him, didn't it?"

Jun could only nod.

"I came too late. I was lost for a while until I was able to sense your spirit. You've suffered no further confrontations with Devil, have you?"

"I thought since I defeated it once then it would never come back."

"No, Devil is quite tenacious."

"You've been here this whole time?"

"For a while."

"Then it was you. You sent him those dreams. He wasn't unconscious, was he? He was trapped in some dream world that he couldn't wake up from. All he ever mumbled about was you. Your name was all I heard. You were all he could talk about once he woke up. It was you."

"I sent him those dreams. I sent you the same dreams, but they became poisoned with your anger—it was impossible for you to see. However, Jin is far more innocent, less corrupt."

"You bastard! You knew what would happen if you did that. You knew he'd run off like this!"

"Kazuya wants to see him."

"Wait, you're Kazuya."

"I am, but not really. Don't worry; no harm will come to Jin. He will be led to him."

"But why? I don't understand."

"Shouldn't a father want to see his son? That was his dying wish, but he is alive now. You told him that you were pregnant and that was all he ever wanted ever since. Some small fractured part of him wants to see him and his want was transferred to me."

"If you're not Kazuya, who are you?"

"I am what you see before you."

"Wait a minute," Jun said as she began to realize something. "You're his good side. You're the part of him that allows him to do the right thing."

Jun watched the other smile at her, "Mostly. I am the part of Kazuya which resonates with you the most."

"And you're still fighting against Devil."

"I am only fighting against a portion of Devil and I will lose that battle."

"You can't lose hope. You can't give up just like that."

"It is a fact. I grow weaker every passing day. My body no longer wants me—I have been disposed of. That I'm still here surprises even me."

"What do you mean disposed of?"

"Even a fraction of Devil's presence is enough to take over a human. Devil disposes of all that contradicts its will."

"Please, you have to stay. You have to stay alive for Kazuya."

"If I wasn't constantly fighting Devil, I may stay longer."

"Is there something I can do?"

"You must purify yourself, Jun. Then you may help others."

"How can I do that?"

"Eliminate the hate and anger in your heart."

"That's easier said than done."

"I understand all too well. But I'm here, Jun, and I will help you in any way possible."

"No, don't spread yourself thin. You said you fight with Devil constantly. I can't ask for any help from you. Save your strength for surviving."

"I will, if it would please you."

"It would."

Jun looked directly at him then and it was as if a message was sent between them. She closed her eyes as she felt his cool lips on hers. She wanted it to last longer, but soon he faded away perhaps off to another battle with Devil. If she listened close enough, sometimes she could hear it.

/

Jin had never been on a bus before. In fact, had the bus driver not been so charitable, he probably never would have been on one in the first place. He dared not go to the back. Getting onto a vehicle full of complete strangers was intimidating enough; he didn't want to push his luck. He stayed in the very front where he was sure the bus driver could keep an eye on him. He had asked the bus driver to take him to the nearest library and he had been assured that in three stops if he got off at the stop and followed the road behind him, he'd arrive at a library which was located directly beside a police station. So far so good.

That morning when he had left, he had had no idea where to even begin looking, but when he saw a bus stop sign on the sidewalk he had been walking on an idea came to mind. It was working out just fine for now. He looked around himself nervously. His eyes passed from one passenger to the next. Not one of them was even close to his age. Jin began to wonder if kids were even allowed to ride the bus. He counted to himself each time the bus came to a screeching stop.

One.

Two dirty old men climbed on the bus and made their way to the far back. A woman who must have seen better days followed in suit

Two.

Three teenagers climbed on and took the first seats they could find. Another old lady who looked far more dignified took her sweet time finding a suitable seat in the front where Jin was.

Three.

There was no one at the bus stop, but the bus driver had stopped on his behalf.

"Thank you, mister," Jin said respectfully to the driver.

"Don't mention it, son. Now you just make sure you keep yourself safe. Here's some money," he said lifting up Jin's hand and placing it in them securely.

"Oh, no, I can't accept this."
"Trust me; you'll need it more than me. You just make sure you find a telephone booth and call up your folks. A kid like you shouldn't be traveling alone."

"Alright, sir, I will," Jin lied as he placed the money into his pocket.

Jin took his leave off the bus before the man could think of anything else to give him and waved goodbye as the bus took off down the narrow street. There was still a lot of forestry. Jin had yet to even make it to the nearest town, but he was at least far enough that his mom would not be able to find him. He walked at a quickened pace down the long, winding road behind him. For some reason, he thought that he might find something at the library, but he didn't know what or even where to begin looking. When he finally made it to the library and passed through the sliding doors, he felt drawn to the magazine section.

He had never been to a library before, but the glossy, bright pictures of the magazines grabbed his attention. Of course, Jin knew enough that books were at a library, but not those kinds of "books". He only vaguely remembered that the thin, glossy books were called magazines. The first one he picked up was one that had a familiar name on it—Mishima. The main story in this magazine was about the Mishima Zaibatsu. On the cover was a man named Heihachi Mishima.

"That name…" Jin said to himself.

He flipped through the book, sometimes becoming sidetracked by other pictures but finally arriving on the feature story, and read to himself. He read through it twice expecting to find some mention of Kazuya, but there was none. All that he had discovered was that the Mishima Zaibatsu was one the of the most largest and lucrative business empires in Japan—it was interesting to say the least, but it gave him no leads.

"It's not often I see a kid these days reading the Business Intrigue," a woman said from behind Jin.

Jin turned to the lady and smiled politely to her. "The feature story was interesting—I thought I saw the 'Mishima' name somewhere else before."

"You probably have. It's a bit of a family corporation—it's been in that magazine three times now. It was Jinpachi Mishima that first made the corporation so huge; it's practically a household name. Then it was passed to his grandson, Kazuya, after tragedy struck—then in an odd turn of events to Kazuya's father after another tragedy. I tell you, the Mishimas sure know how to draw a lot of attention. The CEO changes so much, it's hard to keep up; they even have a tournament that basically decides who the next CEO will be—a strange, but effective method in running a business. A phenomenon like that will be sure to garner a lot of news coverage."

"You know a lot about the Mishima Zaibatsu."

"Honey, all you have to do is turn on the television. Here, let me find you a more reputable magazine—it'll give you the whole story."

Jin followed her a little ways down the aisle to another magazine whose feature story was the Mishima Zaibatsu except this time the picture on the front was that of a very large building.

"While you're at it, since you're so interested—here."

The librarian handed him another magazine called the Science Informer.

"What's that for?" Jin questioned.

"The best way to get all the information about a corporation like the Mishima Zaibatsu is to look at its most formidable competition. You wouldn't happen to be doing a report on this for school, are you?"

"Uh…yes, as a matter of fact, I am," Jin replied realizing that he could possibly get more information out of her this way.

"As a matter of fact, there is a book that has the biographies of all the previous CEOs of the Mishima Zaibatsu—it's pretty interesting."

Jin found that he had dozens of books to read through. He thought he might tire of reading so many books, but he was there for hours reading what everyone else thought about the Mishima Zaibatsu, conspiracy theories, why the business was so lucrative, what exactly did the corporation do, suspicions of murder, and even the "Mishima curse" that was often attributed to the fact that since the corporation's birth the CEO's have died one by one and Heihachi was next. He read books about the The King of Iron Fist Tournaments and how they had turned out thus far. Despite himself, he found himself dozing off as he read about the many experiments that G Corporation and Mishima Zaibatsu had in common. He was jolted back to wakefulness when the intercom instructing that the library would close in five minutes came on. On this cue, Jin quickly gathered his books and put them back up as neatly as he could.

He knew the next place he was going to be visiting—he only wished that he had a more assured plan of getting there. He would take it one step at a time. For the time being, he needed to take the bus to the nearest airport. From there, he had no idea what he was going to do. Even with this knowledge, something drove him—he wasn't quite sure why, but he felt as if had to keep going and that eventually he'd be at his destination wherever that might be.

/

AN: Finally an update. I've been meaning to do it, but never got around to it partially because I had no idea where I was going with this, but I at least have some inkling now.