"See the pain, feel the fear, plants of hate sieged frontier, darkest times, hold your ground as the tyrants scream it out "World War Now..." - Kreator

Jin was thrown against the wall of a nearby building for the umpteenth time. Gasping, he tried to get back on his feet, coughing dust and spitting blood. The fight against his hated father was merciless. He couldn't hit him, he couldn't defend herself, he could only cash in as long as his body gave it to him. Kazuya charged him again, continuing to throw kicks and powerful punches, which went one after the other.

"How pitiful you are... There's no fun..." he laughed, while the other desperately tried to catch his breath. Probably he didn't even have a adjusted rib anymore.

"You better surrender Jin, give me what's mine and I will pardon you with a quick death..."

"GO TO HELL," he said.

"No, my dear... You will go first and I will still be there to teach you a lesson."

Kazuya's patience was running out: if Jin died he could no longer recover the part of his missing Gene. However, he was aware that sinning greed in this case would be counterproductive, because with his son out of the picture he would no longer have a single rival on the face of the Earth. He would still be the most powerful of all and would subdue all of humanity equally. It was convenient for him to eliminate the only annoying obstacle as long as he was in a position to do so with extreme ease. Settling or not settling? That was quite a dilemma for the most evil being in the world. However, his sixth sense kept on sensing a threat in the air and it was certainly not Jin, who at that moment lay half dying on a pile of rubble. So what was wrong?

"Yes, I feel it too... It's strange, very strange." commented Devil inside his head. " There's something anomalous and it's close. Exactly what I suspected..."

"What can it be? he inquired, looking around cautiously.

"Troubles..." he replied coldly.

The man did not have time to ask for further explanations, which a silver light dazzled him. Only a moment of indecision had separated him from achieving his goal. And that single moment had cost him dearly: the figure of Devil Jin appeared in front of him, the bruises, the scratches and the cuts completely disappeared.

"NO..." he thought furiously. "How could this happen?".

"It happened because you, IDIOT, underestimated my words!".

"What does that mean?".

"Remember when I told you I sensed an entity similar to us?".

"Yes...".

"Have you ever had confirmation of your doubts, or have you gone straight on your way, completely forgetting it?"

Kazuya silenced. No, he never had confirmation..

"Yeah... Well, you see...Whatever it is, it's here and it's close... And your dear son who was lying half dead, is now standing again, because my counterpart has decided to come out of hiding in front of that!".

And that's exactly what happened. Jin's Gene also felt that presence, that anomaly that should never have manifested itself. Faced with such an event, no matter how much he was waiting for his human vessel to give in to despair and beg for help, he couldn't continue to remain in the shadows.

"What's going on?" Jin muttered, looking incredulously at the steel claws typical of his transformation.

He could distinctly feel the weight of the large black wings on his shoulders and the curved horns on his temples. He saw his sinister reflection in the shards of a broken glass window, the tribal marks on his chest and forehead, the chains, the black lips, the silver and vitreous eyes. The tattoo on his arm was more vivid than ever. Nothing was missing, his transformation into Devil Jin was effective and complete.

"Why don't you tell me?" Devil growled in his head.

There was an unusual panic and agitation in his tone of voice, which put Jin even more on edge.

"What have you done, stupid kid? What have you done?"

"I don't know what you're talking about!" he replied nervously.

"DAMN!"

That curse came out of the mouths of both Devils and Kazuya himself. The latter leaped and flew off at a mad speed in who knows what direction.

"WHAT'S GOING ON? WHERE IS HE GOING?" Jin yelled, completely lost.

"To fix your mess, idiot!"

"What does that mean?"

"You just don't get it? Are you really that stupid?" No reply followed that question. "Originally, your father's gene and I were one. Then, recklessly, Kazuya made the unforgivable mistake of giving in to his human weakness when he met your mother and guess what... You were born, mutilating the perfect being I was and depriving me of some of my powers!"

Jin still couldn't figure out where he was going with this, but he had a horrible feeling.

"Now there is someone else like us. He has learned his lesson. What do you have to say for yourself?"

The awareness hit him like a running train, when he finally understood what Devil was saying between the lines. It was not possible, it couldn't be true. Or not? But then...

"You better move and stop Kazuya before the irreparable happens..." the demon said, more angry than ever.

But Jin didn't need any more incentives, he absolutely had to get rid of that atrocious doubt, which, apparently, was not so much doubt. He flew as fast as he could in pursuit of his father.

"NINA!"

That voice... So familiar... No, it couldn't have been. She was so battered and hurt by that fight that she could barely lift her head and look in the direction from which that unmistakable voice came. And in fact she saw him, with his little brother firmly wrapped on his shoulders, running at breakneck speed towards her. The fight with Anna was very hard and for the first time she had found herself in enormous difficulty in keeping up with her. On the other hand, she had been out of practice for some time and childbirth had undoubtedly weakened her body. This was not how it should have gone!

"S-s-Stev-ve... No..."

"Nina! Oh, thank God you..."

"GET OUT OF HERE!" she yelled, with all the breath she had left in her lungs.

"NO, I'M NOT LEAVING! WHAT DID YOU THINK YOU WERE DOING, HUH?" he replied, shouting in turn, taking her in his arms and helping her up.

Unfortunately, however, the wounds she had suffered were too serious and standing up now cost her an unimaginable effort.

"Wow look at that, I never thought I'd be in a family reunion..." Anna mocked them.

Steve turned his head and looked his aunt straight in the eye for the first time. And strangely, he felt nothing but a great contempt, a sentiment that rarely belonged to him.

"What the hell do you want?" he growled.

"What a temper. Just like your mother's!"

"We don't have time to waste on you, just back off!"

"Now you speak at the plural? You should be the one to get out of the way, little boy, and not stick your nose in things that don't concern you. Nina and I still have a score to settle."

"Oh no, no, no..." replied the blond, standing up and staring proudly at the woman. " I don't care about your fucking score. I don't care if you're my aunt, you chose the wrong side, but I hope one day you'll understand and admit your mistakes. But nobody, and I repeat, NOBODY, can harm my mother, or will have to deal with me!"

Anna remained silent, again in difficulty and again at the mercy of envy and jealousy. Nina had disowned him, treated him badly, knocked him out and still the boxer was defending her with all his might. Against all odds, there was an indissoluble bond between the two. She, Steve and that little boy who was now peering over his brother's shoulder, with the same eyes as her sister and her father Richard. Eyes that had always put her in awe, a look that had always made her understand everything without words. Eyes that had always put her in her place. In the end she had recovered the gun, it really wouldn't have taken anything to kill themall and that fratricidal battle would have finally ended, but something inside of her had blocked her again. SHe observed her hated sister, who in the process miraculously managed to get back on her feet, limping alongside her sons, watching them with eyes full of pride and love. Feelings that in Nina's irises she had never seen before. Had she changed that much? Could she have been left behind again?

"ENOUGH!" she shouted out, pointing her weapon at the three. "I've had enough of you! You could have lived a happy life far away, but you preferred to go facing death, and now I will make your wish come true!"

"No, you won't!" replied Nina, standing in front of Steve and Keiichi, arms wide open. " ou don't want to do that, Anna. You never wanted to, because I was always the only family you had left. You cheated on me multiple times, obstructed me, tortured me, but you know what? You will never be able to kill me. You would never do that to our father and mother's memory. You never really wanted me dead, Anna... And I swear here, in front of them, I never wanted you to die either..."

She was sincere, Nina. She was bloody sincere. Tears began to flow on the brunette's face and she could do nothing to stop them.

"You always had everything I wanted for my life. Fuck money, luxury, power... I just wanted a family that really loved me, never being second to anyone... A companion who loved me as dad loved mom, children to look after, without ever making preferences and make them feel at fault as it happened to me... I so wanted to know love, the real love and feel it on my skin and my heart. I never had any of that. You Nina, you got everything... And as much as I hate and envy you, I can't destroy this..."

"You will, Anna... I'm sure."

Again the maximum sincerity leaked from the words of the blonde. Sincerity that neither one, nor another had ever perceived in speaking to each other with an open heart. Heartbroken, Anna lowered her gun and collapsed on her knees in sobs. Nina wanted to get closer, it didn't seem like the usual fake scene to try to trick her, or attack her behind, but something stopped her. The pale sun had suddenly darkened. She looked up and her blood froze in her veins. The devil himself was there.

"I've had enough of your whining, Anna..." he growled.

It happened in an instant. In less than a second Kazuya was on her sister, lifting her from her neck without the slightest effort. The grip of his hand was getting tighter and tighter as the woman's gasps increased.

"No, Anna!" Nina yelled.

But she couldn't move a step towards her. Kazuya carelessly threw her body to her direction, which landed at her feet like a rag doll. A huge pool of blood began to form on the asphalt and Nina realized with horror that the Devil's claws had sunk so deep that they pierced the carotid artery.

"A-a-a-nna..." she stammered, kneeling next to her, taking her in her arms and trying to tamponade the wound as best she could, but to no avail. " Just hang on, please!"

"I..i...I'm s-s-so s-sorry N-n-ina..." she whispered, looking at her for the last time in the eyes. A tear rolled down both of her cheeks. Then, smiling slightly, she closed her eyes and never opened them again.

Nina remained contemplating her lifeless sister's body, unable to see it, while the blood smeared her hands and clothes. In her head a flood of memories were chasing each other relentlessly: the games they played as children, ice skating with their parents, the tragic accident in the Alps that cost their father's life, the awakening from cryogenic sleep, the tournaments... Anna had always been a constant in her life, omnipresent in front , or behind the scenes, for better or worse. Many of her memories had been lost due to the amnesia, yet she was certain that they had not always hated each other, that once they too had been two carefree girls, two sisters like many others. Then their paths had inexorably divided, Richard's death had been the definitive break and never settled in their difficult relationship. Yet, she realized too late that that hatred was just the simplest, most obvious, most mundane reaction they could feel. She understood this thanks to her children, who had taught her to put aside herself and let themselves be loved. But never in life would she have thought that Anna's envy was not triggered by success and power, but by the desire to have a family of her own to redeem herself. Family that once had and that cruel fate had destroyed and undermined them and that their pride had prevented to rebuild. Only then did Nina realize how lonely her sister's life was. She couldn't believe she'd never see her again.

"Well, well, well..." Kazuya's icy voice suddenly awaken her, making her snap up. "So I wasn't wrong... There really is another little bastard in this world I have to deal with..."

The blonde almost fainted when she realized that the demon's gaze was not on her or Steve... Keiichi was looking back at that terrifying being, without blinking an eye. He was just a baby, yet his eyes so pure and innocent, now glowed with a disturbing light.

"NO!" the woman yelled, again standing in front of them. "STEVE, RUN!"

"Oh I don't think s..."

Suddenly a flash of blinding light caught them in the act, throwing Kazuya ten meters away from them. Nina ran to Steve and took her baby in her arms.

"Are you okay?" the boxer yelled.

The woman nodded her head.

"What the hell was that?"

Nina felt an electric shock sweeping her from head to toe. It was a strange, but familiar feeling... She looked up to the sky and there she saw him.

And he saw her...

The blue of her eyes met the silver of the Devil's.

And the silver of the Devil, of irises now barred, became for a moment liquid amber...

Author's notes: not really sorry to let Anna die. IMHO (no flames here pls), she has been created just to bother her sister and being an obstacle to her. She didn't really help Nina's character to develop either. That's why I tried to explore their difficult past, their relationship and eventually make her reedem before her end. I'm not sure they'd ever get along after everything that have happened. Now the family reunion can move on... Even tho there's still someone missing...Hope you're enjoying so far, just 3 / 4 more chapters and I'll make it to the end.