TEKKEN: THE COLD AND THE WARM
ACT 17: Stairway to Heaven
Behind the St. Peter's Basilica itself, between the Vatican and Rome, Italy
This location could perhaps not be classified as a cathedral, but it was still called Duomo di Sirio. The reason why was simple. This secret hall, behind St. Peter's Basilica, was the headquarters of the Archers of Sirius. This order of exorcists had existed throughout the centuries, hunting demons and other evil spirits by the light of Sirius.
The interior of the headquarters itself was a marvel to behold. Everything inside looked so antique, from pillars of marble to wondrous statues and paintings. Needless to say, this was a place fit for an order such as these exorcists.
Right now, two exorcists, dressed in marble white while wearing masks with long beaks, wandered around in this hall on patrol. As they did that, they engaged in a conversation.
"Everything here looks clear so far" the first exorcist remarked as he surveyed the hall.
"Indeed. Good thing nobody besides us know the entrance to Duomo di Sirio. The Holy See is doing a great job covering our operations" his partner agreed, yet found himself needing to address something important. "But as the young Maestro says, we must always be vigilant when it comes to the security of this place" the other exorcist then pointed out.
This made the first one sigh, and he shook his head as a result. "Mio Dio. When is he coming back? He's been away on that wretched hunt of his for too long" he complained of their master's absence.
"Non aver paura. We are brothers devoted to fight against the shadows. Any interloper foolish enough to waltz into this place will regret doing so" the other exorcist tried his best to encourage his comrade. "Besides, we both know the great importance of the Maestro's hunt. Those blasted devils lurking across the world must be terminated" he then went on defending Claudio's actions.
His partner nodded with understanding in return. "Capisco. Then I believe none of us have no reason to question his plans. We will fulfill our duties to the letter as…" the exorcist stopped speaking once he and the other one could hear steps inside the hall.
It sounded like heels, indicating that it was perhaps a woman. Even so, she didn't appear to be affiliated with the Archers of Sirius. For as the exorcist turned to their left, they spotted someone who had been hiding in the dark at that corner of the hall.
To their shock, it was a female vampire with horns approaching them. Her seductive smirk only hinted to the plans she had for these men.
Unbeknownst to these exorcists, this was a vampire who had entered the Duomo di Sirio for a good reason. It was Eliza, her appearance so youthful one would mistake her for a young woman rather than a centuries old vampire.
"Good evening, Archers of Sirius. Mind if I stay here for a little while?" Eliza asked them in a voice so seductive that it sent shivers throughout the hall.
Neither of the exorcist could fathom what she was, yet they spotted her horns and fangs, the latter when she opened her mouth to speak.
"Capsita! What is that creature!?" the first exorcist asked out loud.
"Is it a demoness!? A succubus!? A vampire!? I cannot tell what that thing even is!" his comrade was just as horrified. "How did it even get in here!?" he then asked.
In a few seconds, they both pulled out their weapons, eager to put this vampire out of her misery.
"Either way, we must dispose of it at once! No foul being shall set foot in this holy soil!" the first exorcist responded.
Eliza chuckled, amused at seeing how gutsy these exorcists seemed. "Now, now, you wouldn't want to hurt a poor lady like me, would you?" she tried to play with their feelings, as well as use her feminine charms to sway them.
Despite her horrific exterior, Eliza had quite the body for being a vampire. Her curves and bosom were perhaps the most noticeable parts of her body. Yet even as she tried to seduce them, the exorcists still held out their weapons.
"D-don't come any closer! We will shoot you!" the other exorcist aimed his pistols at Eliza, even as he was backing away a little further.
The vampire was having so much amusement in this. "You want me to come closer? Very well then" Eliza replied before dashing towards the pair of exorcists.
Neither of them got the chance to pull their triggers, and Eliza dug her claws into their bodies before pushing them against the nearby wall. The impact was so strong that it left both men losing their consciousness. With them out of commission, Eliza took her time to study the blood dripping from her clawed fingers. She even tasted some of it.
"Hmm, it may be blood, but not celestial blood. These exorcists truly are deceivers" she noted, only to look around the hall.
Apparently, her taking out those two guards had roused suspicion inside the hall itself. Because down the stairs came many exorcists, all of them dressed in white garbs and beak-like masks. They created a wall of protection, as I they wished to prevent Eliza from going up the stairways.
Eliza yawned, yet she did so out of boredom rather than sleepiness. "How neat. More worms for me to dispose of" she remarked, saying like this was all too easy for her.
One of the leading exorcists stepped forward, both hands holding a pistol aimed at her.
"Explain yourself, creature! How dare you set foot into our sacred domain and harm our brothers!?" he wanted a clear answer from her.
The vampire smirked. "Sacred domain? This silly hall? My, that's quite presumptuous of you to say, exorcist. As for these two fools, they were in way" she answered, only to take slow steps towards the blockade before her. "Unless you want to share their fate, I suggest you call upon your precious leader. Bring me Claudio Serafino!" Eliza then demanded, pointing a finger at the group as a whole.
There were gasps coming from the exorcists. In fact, some of them even started to recognize Eliza.
"By the light of Sirius…it's her!" one of the exorcists exclaimed.
"Sì. She's that wretched vampire we sealed underneath the De Rochefort estate years ago! Questo è assurdo! How did she break free from the seal!?" another exorcist was in disbelief.
Eliza yawned and this time, it was actually due to tiredness. "I wouldn't necessarily say that I broke free from your spell. More like: I awoke" she told them, only to show these men her claws and fangs. "But enough of this meaningless chit-chat! Either you bring me your leader, or I'll claw my way through you to get to him!" Eliza tried to persuade them.
Despite seeing her monstrous appearance, none of the exorcists seemed intimidated. They remained on their posts. The leading exorcist seemed to be the one most determined to stand against Eliza.
"Miserabile vampira! You think we would sell our own leader and brother to the likes of you!? Assurdo!" he exclaimed while reading his pistols. "The only thing we will give you is a one-way ticket to whatever hell you came from!" the exorcist went on rallying his subordinates.
Realizing how meaningless it was for her to reason with these exorcists, Eliza decided to give everything she had. As such, she would gladly demonstrate her abilities to these lowly humans.
"Very well. Then I shall harvest each and every one of your lives…NOWWW!" her devilish power was on full display for her enemies to see.
But as the exorcists started opening fire, Eliza sent a wave of dark energy towards them. Many of the exorcists got swiped off, yet some of them managed to avoid it. Even so, they were too late to mount a defense against the charging vampire. Eliza was just too quick for them to read.
One by one, Eliza took out her foes, relishing the spilling of blood that occurred in the process. When she noticed that the leading exorcist was the only on left standing, Eliza walked towards him. He was wounded, barley holding onto a pistol. Still, the vampire easily swatted the pistol off his hand, and she proceeded to dig her claws onto the masked man's throat. Her claws cut right through the fabric, so she managed to stab him in a way.
"Now then. Since your pitiful brothers are now sleeping with the fishes, I'm going to give you one last chance to cooperate" Eliza smirked, yet it quickly changed into a fanged scowl. "Tell me where Claudio Serafino is or you'll die!" she didn't even hide her killer instincts.
Even as he was bleeding and bruised, the exorcist suddenly found the need to chuckle bitterly. This made Eliza wonder what could possibly made him think like that.
"The Maestro will not be coming…considering that he is not here as of now!" the exorcist revealed through his deep breaths.
This made Eliza's demonic-like eyes widen. She even went as far as to rip off the mask on this exorcist, thus revealing his bloodied face.
"What do you mean by that!? Do not try my patience, knave!" Eliza snapped at him.
Even as he was coughing out some blood, the exorcist was still acting all defiant towards the vampire he was at the mercy of.
"That's because he has better things to take care of now. He's dealing with threats…threats far worse than the likes of you….succube!" the exorcist retorted with an insult.
In anger, Eliza threw him against the wall, only to put the claws on her right hand near his face. She was clearly determined to get some answers out of him.
"So where is he then? Give me a location or I will send you to hell quicker!" Eliza threatened him.
No matter how powerless this exorcist seemed, he still refused to give into Eliza's demands. "It is you who will go to hell, puttana!" he usurpingly swore at her before spitting at her face.
Feeling that her toying with him had reached its limit, Eliza decided to just finish him off in an instant.
"Then say your prayers!" Eliza was about to deliver the final blow on this man.
"ELIZABETH!" that voice quickly stopped the vampire from killing the exorcist, and she dropped him.
She looked to her left to see where that voice came from. The moment she saw who it was, she quickly scowled.
Believe it or not, Emilie "Lili" De Rochefort and her trusty butler, Sebastian, were standing in the same hall as Eliza was. The very sight of those two filled the vampire with both shock and outrage at the same time.
"You again!?" Eliza was mortified of seeing them in this hall.
Lili found herself smiling after saying this. "Sure. Come now, sister. I did say that I was never gonna quit on you, didn't I?" she replied, treating the vampire with such generosity.
But that only angered Eliza further. "I am NOT your sister! How many times must I say that!?" the vampire snapped back at Lili. "Now speak up! How did you fools find me here!?" she wanted some answers out of them.
Sebastian seemed more than willing to answer, giving the coughing sound he just made before opening his mouth.
"To tell the story short, we just followed the trail you left for us. During our previous encounter in Siena, you did say something about finding Monseiur Claudio Serafino. Therefore, we drove down here to Rome. The rest involved me and Madame Lili in doing some little investigation around the city" the elderly man explained all the details.
Lili clapped her hands for him, giving her butler some well-deserved applause.
"Bon résumé, Sebastian. I appreciate your initiative to do this for me" the young blondie commended him.
Sebastian responded with a formal bow. "Mon plaisir, madame" Sebastian responded in French.
Even after hearing Sebastian's explanation, Eliza was far from pleased. She even took several steps towards the pair. Her bloodied fangs were on full display for them to see.
"You shouldn't have come here" Eliza spoke up, her voice only hiding the wrath that existed beneath it all. "Because I will make sure no one stands in my way of obtaining celestial blood!" she was THIS close to dash towards Lili and her butler.
Yet Lili remained firm, not moving an inch. "I won't let that happen!" she declared while taking several steps towards her cursed sister. "Because deep down inside you, there exists traces of your humanity. Don't you feel it, Eliza? It's your humanity calling out to you. There's no reason for you to deny it's will!" the rich girl tried to reach out to what was inside the vampire.
When Lili said that, something happened with Eliza. She froze, both eyes widening up. Clearly, it was her mortal side calling to her. Lili could see that, so she moved closer to that she was standing a few inches away from the vampire.
"I feel…I feel…something….I feel…..something….." Eliza uttered out those words repeatedly.
"Yes? What is it you feel? Please tell me!" the blondie encouraged her, even going as far as to hold her hands.
"I feel…I feel so…sleepyyyy" Eliza dozed off once again, falling into deep sleep while standing. Her head hung down completely.
Lili, completely taken aback by this, let go of Eliza's hands and watched her with a huff.
"Falling asleep while we're having an important conversation? Êtes-vous sérieux?" she asked her aloud, upset that Eliza had just ruined her own chance of digging into her mortality.
Sebastian had to chuckle, making sure his young ward didn't hear any of it. He got up to Lili's side.
"Well, she has two spirits fighting each other in one body. I can only imagine how much this affects her body" Sebastian spoke up his opinion. "But fear not, madame. I am confident that Mrs. Elizabeth will soon wake up from her sleep like she did in Siena" the butler tried to reassure Lili, only for something to happen.
Believe it or not, Eliza fell onto the floor. Even so, it didn't seem to hurt her at all. She remained asleep, even after falling.
Still, it made Lili frustrated to see her sister in a state like this.
"Bon chagrin. This is why I told her to drink more coffee instead of blood" she shook her head while facepalming.
With that said, Sebastian moved over in order to pick up Eliza's sleeping body.
"Well, we best get hold on the poor dear before….." the butler was stopped when Lili quickly pulled him back.
"Sebastian! Attention!" Lili pulled him back before an arrow of light managed to hit him.
With tough luck, Sebastian had been saved by his young ward. And he let out a sight of relief.
"Bonté moi! That was very close!" the old butler remarked, bowing towards Lili in a formal manner. "Merci beaucoup, madame" he thanked her.
Lili, glad to see her butler still standing, turned her attention to their right. They both saw a group of exorcists standing in the hall. One of them in the middle was readying another arrow of light, using the mystical technique Claudio was known for.
"I don't believe it. That exorcist is capable of using the same technique as Claudio Serafino does. Remarquable" Lili noted, standing in her fighting position with Sebastian beside her.
The exorcist with the arrow of light stepped forward. "You there! How dare you enter our sacred domain uninvited!" he demanded, his comrades joining up with him. "Identify yourselves, intruders!" he called out to them.
Hearing this made Lili furious. "The nerve! Me and my butler were just to do something important, only for you to fire an arrow towards us!? Such disrespect!" she expressed her displeasure of them meddling.
None of the exorcists could fathom what Lili was saying. They didn't take her words seriously enough.
"It is you who express disrespect here! All those who disturbs our sanctity will be brought down to justice!" the leading exorcist pointed out. "I miei fratelli, attacco!" he gave the orders to his men in Italian.
With that, the group of exorcists started charging towards them. Realizing the pointlessness in speaking with these men, Lili and her butler charged towards them
"There's no use in try reasoning with them, Sebastian! We're just gonna need to take them out before we proceed with Eliza! Are you up for getting your hands dirty?" she told him.
Sebastian chuckled. "Avec plaisir" he mused in return.
The pair then proceeded to charge at the group of attacking men. The young girl took care of the one who tried firing holy arrows at her. Frankly, the other exorcists were stunned by how she managed to do it.
Despite her small size, Lili was quite a fast fighter. With her quick wits, she dashed towards one exorcist to the next one without even breaking a sweat.
Once the fight was over, Lili and Sebastian took their time to assess their work. All the exorcist lied on the floor defeated.
"There! That should take care of those exorcists in this hall" Lili clapped off dust from her hands.
Sebastian smiled. "Excellent combat. Your young fighting spirit never ceases to amaze me, madame" he commended the young girl.
Lili giggled. "Oh Sebastian, you are a natural talent in flattery" she joked, although she did so to hide her reddening cheeks.
"Si tu le dis" Sebastian responded in French, turning around to look at Eliza. The eyes behind his glasses widened. "Sacré bleu! Eliza is not there!" he exclaimed out in disbelief.
"What!?" Lili looked, and she too saw that Eliza was no longer there.
The pair was shocked, seeing as the vampire had been asleep on the floor. But now, she was gone.
"But I don't understand! She was asleep!" Lili couldn't believe her own eyes. Then something hit in her head. "Bien sûr! She probably woke up from her sleep, then used our distraction to get away from us. How stupid of me to not pay attention" she threw a tantrum.
Sebastian rushed to her side. "Do not blame yourself, Madame Lili. My negligence is also to blame for her getting the chance of fleeing unnoticed" he insisted he was partly to blame. "I humbly apologize for my inadequate effort" he apologized with a bow of sham.
But Lili gently patted her butler on his shoulder. "This is not the time for a blame game, Sebastian. Eliza can't be far. We're going upstairs!" she declared and proceeded to run up the stairway.
Caught completely by surprise of Lili's determination, Sebastian followed her, eager to see whether her hopeful spirits had been lifted.
"Attendez! Madame!" Sebastian called out as she chased after her.
When heading upstairs, Lili had arrived at what appeared to be a hallway. Everything here looked quite antique, from the walls to the lights hanging by them. Even so, it mattered little to the young girl and the butler. They proceeded moving.
"There are so many doors here, but which one?" Lili wondered as she looked at the many doors on each side.
"Considering her objectives, I am confident that Madame Eliza must be searching for the room belonging to….." Sebastian stopped speaking when he and Lili could hear the sound of glass shattering.
Looking ahead, they realized it came from the door at the hallway's end. This could only mean one thing.
"That must be Claudio Serafino's personal quarters! She must be there! Suis-moi, Sebastian!" Lili was already ten steps ahead of her butler, who followed her shortly.
Barging through the door, Lili and Sebastian were given the way of Claudio's fanciful bedroom. It looked quite nice, almost as if a royal prince resided here. But what they also caught sight of was Eliza, who had gone out to what appeared to be a balcony. The pair ran straight after her, not minding trespassing into someone's bedroom.
"ELIZA!" Lili's voice was loud enough for the vampire to look over her shoulder.
She growled at their presence. Obviously, she had hoped to not be followed by them.
"Stay away from me, foolish humans! I do not need your nuisance in my hunt for Claudio Serafino's blood!" Eliza snapped at the two.
This made the pair confused. "What do you mean? You're standing on the balcony near his bedroom! Surely, he must be here!" Lili responded as she took several steps towards her sister.
Eliza smirked. "Silly girl. You really do believe everything people tell you, do you not?" she insulted Lili before holding up what appeared to be piece of paper in her right hand. "This letter here clearly states that he is no longer in Rome, let alone Italy. Yes, I have discovered a secret lair where he and his followers are conducting some exorcism" she revealed.
As he adjusted his glasses, Sebastian noticed that something was printed on the paper itself. From what he could tell, it was a coat of arms, yet it hailed from a different century. Specifically, it was a cross consisting of four arrowhead shaped concave quadrilaterals.
"That cross…could it be…." Sebastian quickly tried summarizing what that cross itself symbolized, let alone it's country of origin.
But all three was interrupted in their conversation when somebody came barging into the room. It was another group of exorcists, who had noticed Lili, Sebastian and Eliza out on the balcony.
"There they are! Slay these intruders!" one of the exorcists commanded his comrades.
Eliza scowled. "Damn! They are onto me!" she cursed, preparing a wave of dark energy at Lili, Sebastian and the exorcists inside. "Begone from my sight! ALL OF YOU!" she yelled as she delivered her wave of dark energy.
This attack caused quite a commotion, not to mention how Lili and Sebastian were forced back inside the bedroom. The exorcists inside had also been taken by the dark wave, yet they were already knocked out cold.
With that taken care of, Eliza proceeded to fly to the air, using all her strength to get out of the Vatican. She then proceeded towards the rooftops of Rome.
Back at the balcony, Eliza's attack had caused some destruction. There was even a large hole in the wall itself. Fortunately, Lili and Sebastian seemed to be alive still.
Lili groaned as she got up on her feet. "No…..she's making her escape…she's gone again!" she was distressed.
"Fear not….madame….." the young blondie looked to her butler, who was brushing off dust on his suit while coughing. "I…know…where she might be heading…..next" Sebastian told her before letting out another cough.
"What?" Lili wondered. "But how would you know?" she wanted some answers out of him.
"Because that letter…what I saw there….was a Maltese cross" Sebastian revealed.
That's when something hit inside Lili. She looked towards the direction her sister had gone off to. It became clear to here where their next destination would be.
"So that's where you're heading for, huh?" the rich girl noted.
Once the duo could hear the noises of exorcists running down the hallway, they decided it was time to escape. There was no point staying inside this Duomo di Sirio when they knew where Eliza had heading off to next.
Inside a hall, somewhere in the Mediterranean
This secret place, hinting to what appeared to be an old centuries fortress, was currently being used by the enigmatic Archers of Sirius as a base of operations.
Right now, there as a large gathering of exorcists taking place inside a large hall. Several exorcists, alongside white hooded monks and clerics, were gathered in a ring, surrounding someone.
"It is happening again" one of the exorcists in the gathering spoke with those around him. "Another poor innocent soul has been taken over" he went on.
That was the truth indeed. A man was being held in the middle by two masked exorcists. But there was something else to this man. The way he yelled and screamed only hinted to something.
"Die! Everyone must…DIE! DIEEEEE!" he kept repeating those words.
The pair of exorcists holding him were getting frustrated by this.
"Accidenti! He keeps getting rougher and rougher!" one of them complained.
"Perhaps we should….." his partner stopped when a loud voice called to them in the long distance.
"Hold him still!" this familiar voice was more than enough for the exorcists to keep holding onto their captive.
Amidst this insane display of killing intent, Claudio Serafino approached the captive man. He directly faced him, activating his mysterious ability. With his magical eye, he managed to spot something.
"You cannot hide from me any longer, monster! Mostrati!" he pointed his right hand towards the captive man.
That's when the unthinkable happened. An evil spirit suddenly emerged out of the captive men, exposing itself for everyone to see. It roared like the dangerous beast it was.
Claudio smirked, realizing that his target was now withing sight. "At last. You have shown the courtesy to come out of hiding. For that, I shall reward you with my greatest gift: a one-way trip to the afterlife!" he declared loudly.
He quicky readied an arrow of holy light, aiming it directly at the evil spirit.
"Il mio potere!" Claudio shouted before firing the arrow straight at the flying thing.
It was a bullseye for Claudio and the evil spirit quickly disintegrated after getting hit by the arrow. With the evil spirit dead, the Italian exorcist, as well as the other followers inside this hall, took their time to pray for it.
"Riposa in pace" Claudio and the others said, as a means of parting ways with the evil spirit, and wishing it a better afterlife.
With the evil spirit gone, Claudio approached the man he had just freed from the evil possession. Ever since it had left his mind, the poor man had slowly started to regain his senses. Still, he managed to catch enough breath, weakly looking up to see Claudio standing there with a confidential smile.
"Grazzi….." the man stated in Maltese, only to bow down to his knees while lowering his head. "Grazzi ħafna, Maestro! I cannot express my gratitude with words alone! How could I ever repay you!?" he was literally crying as he said those words.
"Raise your head, friend. There is no need for you to feel indebted to me" Claudio assured the poor man, which made him look up at the exorcist. "After all, it is our duty to ensure that evil spirits and demons are exterminated for their sins. Such is the reason why the Archers of Sirius exist" he went on trying to soothe the man's mental pain.
Even after hearing those words, the poor man was still crying with happiness. To hear him speak of protecting vulnerable people was relieving to hear. Then again, who else would stand up for the downtrodden in these troubled times.
"Now, go and get some rest. Our clerics will see to you receiving your treatment" Claudio told him and the poor man was escorted by the exorcists who'd previously held him while he was possessed.
With that taken care of, Claudio turned his attention to everyone gathered inside this hall. He wanted to rally them, and was more than happy to give them some encouragement.
"Brothers and sisters of the Archers of Sirius! Even as the world continues to fall into despair, we will never forget our quest. For as our enemies try force the global population into submission, we fight back, with the light Sirius at our side!" he began this speech as everyone listened.
They all chanted their support for Claudio, eager to sing praises of him. But that didn't happen, seeing as their leader had more things to say.
"In time, we will deal with the remaining devils on this world. And in doing so, we will preserve humanity and ensure its continued existence. Long live the Archers of Sirius!" he then boasted loudly.
All exorcists chanted, with the hooded people starting to sing praises of Claudio, as well as their order. For some reason, they were singing those songs in Latin instead of Italian.
Claudio took his leave, turning his attention on a certain woman who had been watching the events unfold from the sidelines. He smirked, even as this woman didn't show any emotion towards him in return.
"I apologize for the long wait, Zafina. But this exorcism was something that required my full attention" Claudio told Zafina.
Even as he apologized, Zafina's serious expression never changed. That and her arms bring cross only hinted to this slight level of dispassion she held towards Claudio.
"Then let us get on with what you wished to show me. I am not the type of woman to be kept waiting" she sternly stated the obvious.
Shrugging off this cold reception from Zafina, the Italian man led Zafina down a stairway. It was dark in these dungeons, yet Claudio used a lantern to guide them through. Zafina was slightly curious about what place he was taking her to.
Eventually they stumbled upon a room where there were many ancient bookshelves standing. They seemed to contain many books and scrolls. This certainly caught Zafina's interest.
"Impossible. There exist no records of a library in this fort" she uttered out, facing Claudio. "Is this something you exorcist have done?" the assassin then asked him.
"Precisamente. Considering how this fort is our most southern outpost, it's only natural that we do something to accommodate ourselves. Besides, containing excusive knowledge like these is all part of being an exorcist" he answered and started walking inside. "But I did not take you here so that you could see just this. I have something to share with you, Zafina" Claudio then revealed.
Zafina followed him, both of them approaching one of the shelves that seemed to contain several ancient books. Claudio picked one book, blowing and brushing off dust from it.
"Ever since I began this demon hunt, I have been anxious to learn more about the origins of those wretched Mishimas. How were Kazuya and Jin able to acquire the Devil Gene? Or more importantly, what is their curse's background?" Claudio showed Zafina her book and lead her to a nearby wooden table.
Claudio had already placed the lantern on it, and he immediately opened the book before putting it on the table. Zafina watched the pages of the pictures closely.
"By the Gods….." she exclaimed in astonishment. "This book tells how the history of how the Devil Gene affects humans…as well as how they are able to use its power….." Zafina couldn't believe her own eyes.
Indeed, there were pictures and drawings of human beings exposed to the Devil Gene. They were completely transformed. Their bodies, their eyes, as well as the addition of wings attacked to their backs.
"Yes. Throughout millennia, mankind had toyed with the arts of the Devil to their own ends. Civilizations across the world were given access to such power. From Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas, those desiring power abused the Devil Gene for their own selfish ends. But considering how dangerous it was, those humans were eventually hunted down to extinction in their respective civilizations" Claudio started explaining.
"Of course. The curse was not exclusive to just one group of people" Zafina agreed with him.
Claudio looked at the page. "Still, there has something that has been on my mind. With such widespread influence, who could have possibly been behind it? That is why I have tried to search for some clues" he revealed, only to browse some pages until they stopped at a certain page Zafina was all too familiar with. "Now, I seem to have discovered the origins" the exorcist then told her.
These pages showed them the pictures of Azazel, let alone the markings of the Devil Gene. Furthermore, there was plenty of information about this evil entity from Egypt.
"Azazel….." Zafina said the name of the being whose spirit and essence she was carrying inside her left hand. "But how….I thought….." she was almost rendered speechless.
"When the world was young and the early human civilizations had barley taken shape, the Gods of Old watched over the very thing they had helped create. However, among these ancient beings, there was one who stood out in terms of a lust of power. That God was none other than the Rectifier of All Things himself: Azazel" Claudio explained the history. "But there came a time when the Gods of Old felt that the Earth was no longer a place worthy of their design. So they left, but not before placing a steward to watch over the world in their absence. Azazel was chosen for this sacred duty" he went on.
Zafina stood and listened closely. "I believe I have read some of this before. To my knowledge, the Rectifier loathed the duties he was given by the Gods, so he plotted a way to defy them. However, this ended up with humanity imprisoning him for his insolence" she summarized something she had learned from her master when she was just a girl. "But clearly there is more to Azazel's betrayal than just defying the Gods of Old, is it?" Zafina then asked Claudio.
He nodded. "Indeed. Because unbeknownst to even the Gods themselves, Azazel had in secret started sharing his cursed blood with a group of devoted followers. These followers become the first humans to be infected by the Devil Gene. After Azazel was imprisoned, they spread across the globe, hoping to expand the influence of their deity beyond Egypt. This was also done as a means of helping him break free of his chains" Claudio informed the woman beside her.
"Then all of this…everything makes sense now!" Zafina was shocked. "Azazel has done this…to plot his revenge against the Gods of Old! It was never to punish humanity. His true grudge lies against them!" the Egyptian woman exclaimed.
Just then, the light inside the lantern was blown off. Both Claudio and Zafina were surprised. They didn't understand how something like that could happen.
"Cos'è questo? There was not a single wind in…." Claudio was interrupted by a deep laughter.
This laughter sounded quite demonic. It came from none other hand Zafina's bandaged left hand. She scowled, knowing very well who this laughter belonged to.
"CONGRATULATIONS, CHILDREN. YOU HAVE MANAGED TO PUZZLE ALL THE PIECES TOGETHER. AND TO THINK YOU MANAGED TO LEARN IT ALL IN SUCH A SMALL PERIOD OF TIME. I AM IMPRESSED" it praised the two.
"Azazel!" Zafina hissed, realizing that her bandaged hand was glowing with purplish light once again. "Damn you! Go back to whatever hell you came from!" she cursed at him while holding onto her left wrist, but it was no use.
Azazel chuckled, clearly finding amusement at watching Zafina struggle to hold his essence back.
"YOU ARE ONLY WASTING YOUR BREATH, FOOLISH WOMAN. AFTER ALL, THIS PITIFUL RITUAL IS IMPERFECT. BECAUSE EVEN NOW, THERE IS SO MUCH NEGATIVITY EMERGING FROM THE DESPAIR THIS WORLD IS IN. THEN THERE IS ALSO MY MAIN SUPPLIER OF IT" the ancient entity went on expressing his longing for freedom.
Claudio tried his best to intervene. "Stop talking nonsense! Whatever plan you have set in motion, it will not come to pass. I will make sure that by eliminating your trusted servants: Kazuya Mishima and Jin Kazama!" he spoke to the demon.
"THOSE TWO? MY TRUSTED SERVANTS?" Azazel sounded rather dumbfounded, yet he soon laughed out loud, this irritating both Claudio and Zafina. "YOUR LACK OF INSIGHT IS ASTOUNDING, EXORCIST. FOR IT WOULD BE DOWNRIGHT FOOLISH TO EVEN CONSDER THOSE DEFORMED HUMANS AS THE GREATEST CONTRIBUTORS TO MY REVIVAL!" he rebuked Claudio's words.
"What do you mean by that?" Claudio asked, feeling awfully suspicious.
"CAN YOU NOT FEEL IT? IN THE DARKEST DEPHTS OF THE WORLD, WHERE SHADOWY CULTISTS LINGER, THERE IS SOMEONE WHO POSSESSES THE STRENGHT OF A THOUSAND WARRIORS! ONE WHO CRIES FOR VENGEANCE, JUST LIKE ME! BUT IN TIME, HE MUST BE AWARE OF MY PLANS. SO HE WILL COME FOR US ALL. TOSHIN IS THE GODS' FAVOURITE MARIONETTE AFTER ALL" he told them about a certain individual.
Zafina's eyes widened. "Shadowy cultists…he is talking about the Acolytes of Pluton!" she remarked.
"Now who is this Toshin? Is there another demon that still lingers on this world?" Claudio wanted some answers, and he even activated his powers. "Tell me who he is before is personally extinguish your voice!" he threatened Azazel, even though he couldn't be seen.
Even though they couldn't see him do it, Azazel was probably grinning in delight as he watched them becoming confused over the unanswered questions they were given.
"THE ANSWER TO ALL LIES RIGHT BEFORE YOU, MORTALS. BUT NONE OF THAT MATTERS! SOON, I WILL BREAK FREE FROM THIS PATHETIC PRISON, AND TAKE MY RIGHTFUL PLACE IN THIS WORLD ONCE AGAIN! ALL MY ENEMIES WILL BE DESTROYED, ESPECIALLY THAT CURSED DEVIL-CHILD! THEREFORE, NOTHING YOU FEEBLE HUMANS CAN DO ANYTHING TO OPPOSE ME! FOR MY RETURN IS ONLY SUNSETS AWAY FROM BECOMING A REALITY!" those were the last words from Azazel before he laughed.
In time, his laughter vanished as well. Yet that did nothing to help ease the concern taking light in both Claudio and Zafina. The Egyptian woman even fell down to her knees, holding onto her left hand as she sweated. She tried her best to regain her composure.
"Zafina!" Claudio quickly got down to her level, reaching out an arm around her. "Are you alright?" he lowly asked.
After taking a few deep breaths, Zafina closed her eyes. Claudio could tell that she was already in pain, both mentally and physically.
"It keeps getting worse, Claudio Serafino. With each passing day, Azazel's resurrection draws near!" she expressed her deepest worries. "We must make haste if we are to slow down his emergence! Make haste with the proceedings!" Zafina told Claudio directly to his face.
Surprisingly, Claudio showed understanding towards it in return. He got up on his feet, but not before helping Zafina doing the same thing.
"Of course. I will deliver a message to Jin Kazama and his allies. They will be informed of our current whereabouts. Once they do, they will without a question set their course to our current location" Claudio said while taking Zafina's right hand.
He led her up and out to the open air. In time, they were given a view of the sea. It was also clear what kind of place the Archers of Sirius were using as their lair.
This was Fort St. Elmo, a star fort located by Valletta, the capital city of Malta. Its position was so close to the sea, as well the harbors of Valletta. Needless to say, the fort was very close to the Mediterranean itself. Then again, Malta was Europe's southernmost country, not far from either Italy nor Tunisia.
As the winds blew in the air, both Claudio and Zafina gazed out towards the distance. Zafina felt like she needed some fresh air, so she could take her time to asses her thoughts.
"Azazel also mentioning this "Toshin". For some reason, that name sounds familiar. Who could it be?" she asked him.
"I do not possess the correct information. But whoever he is, he must be a powerful demon or whatever. Regardless, him being stronger than both Kazuya and Jin combined does not bode well for us. But how could we fail to detect him? We Archers of Sirius have always been good at locating evil energies" Claudio remarked, lamenting their inability to locate Toshin.
Zafina narrowed her eyes as she watched the distance. "Maybe…..because Toshin may not even be a demon. I fear he is something much worse" she admitted her fears.
Claudio closed his eyes. "We can speculate all we want later. None of this changes our plan" he said, once again activating his power which resulted in his left eye changing. A smirk crept on his lips. "First, we deal with the sole demon who we know will take our bait: Jin Kazama" the exorcist called out their next target.
Onboard the cruise ship called the Amphitrite, somewhere in the Strait of Malacca
This large cruise ship was sailing in a strait between the Southeast Asian countries of Malaysia and Indonesia. Once it had passed through, the Amphitrite would be sailing straight into the Indian Ocean. However, the cruise ship was going rather fast. This had probably something to do with its motors.
Inside the main hall of the sip, all sorts of activities took place. People were either getting drunk or engaged in some serious socializing. This was after all, a floating Mecca for not just Kometa, but also their allies and contacts in criminal underworld. It was clear that in wake of the ongoing warring between the Zaibatsu and the G Corp, Kometa had only received new allies.
Right now, one of the organization's infamous executives, Enrique Ortega, was now sitting on a lounge. He was being surrounded by women of all sorts of nationalities. That was obvious, seeing as how Enrique considered himself a great Casanova, as well as God's gift to women all around the world.
It appeared that Enrique was now telling the ladies a story, and he was showing some skills with his katana while doing so.
"So there I was, chicas! Right there at the harbor slashing down all those nasty fighters who had attempted to kill me, Lana and the others. They fought dirty, yet we managed to hold them off, mostly because of me" he explained with so much arrogance in his voice. "And after I'd sliced them in half, we threw their mangled corpses down the river. How cool is that?" Enrique continued to woo over the women.
Not surprisingly, they giggled and fawned over every word that came out of the Cuban man's mouth. It was as if they'd been hypnotized by Enrique's story, which of course was untrue and greatly exaggerated.
"Oh, Enrique! You are so brave!" one of the women said while holding onto his left leg.
"Mmmm, and sexy too!" another woman said that while laying herself upon his right shoulder. "I really like that in a man" she said that in a quite sultry manner.
"Because Enrique is the best man a woman could ask for!" another of these lovesick ladies exclaimed, leaning over Enrique while moving her hand near his crotch area.
Enrique chuckled, not having an ounce of shame in accepting these women's advances upon him.
"Mmm, take it easy, mamacitas. There is enough of me for everyone here" he assured them, only to reach his hand around the women closest to him. "But since I'm to be the lucky meat in this sandwich, you better play your part. Gave me every inch of ass I request of you! Is that clear!?" Enrique vulgarly demanded.
Despite using such demeaning language, none of the woman seemed to take offense to it at all. As a matter of fact, they all just giggled and kept encouraging him to talk dirty to them.
"Yes, hon! We'll happily do it for you!" one of the woman responded.
"You can touch me anywhere you like!" another one was offering herself to him like some food.
The more these women expressed their desires to get closer to him, the more satisfied the Cuban man seemed. Not every man was lucky enough to have such devoted followers.
"Esta es la vida!" Enrique murmured in Spanish, feeling proud over having charmed these ladies over to his side.
Just then, he noticed someone approach them. Judging by the outfit, this person was on of the many waiters working onboard the Amphitrite. He had black hair and wore a deep thrown. Despite this, there was nothing which indicated to Enrique that he was familiar. Yet there was something about those eyes of his.
"Yeah? What is it? Can't you see I am busy here!?" Enrique rudely responded, only for the waiter to put down his dish on the table around the lounge.
He and all the other woman were stunned. There were so many glasses of margarita on it. Things got more clearer to Enrique, and he even slapped himself in his face.
"Ah, claro. I did ask for some margaritas! How stupid of me to forget!" he admitted, before picking a glass for himself. "Alright, chicas! This is it! All these margaritas are on me! Drink them to your heart's content!" Enrique told them.
Each woman stretched out a hand to grab a glass. They all laughed, with some of them even starting to drink it.
"Thank you so much for the drinks, señor, I was starting to get a little thirsty" Enrique thanked the waiter.
The calm man responded with a formal nod directed towards him. Once finished, he turned around and left the lounge, returning to the bar and the surrounding lounges.
As he watched the waiter leave, something popped into Enrique's mind. "That man looked awfully familiar. Where have I seen him before?" he wondered, yet soon brushed away any suspicions. "Whatever. Not my problem. Because this night, it's just me, my margarita and all those girls!" he grinned cheekily, deciding to give into his lecherous tendencies rather than worry about some random waiter.
Unbeknownst to Enrique, this random waiter was not just any ordinary man. Although he wore some make-up to cover his scar, this was none other than Sergei Dragunov, the Spetsnaz-member who had during the fight in Bangkok Port, betrayed his "compatriots" in order to infiltrate the Amphitrite alone. Even though he and the fighters had been through a lot of stuff, the Russian soldier felt no sense of loyalty towards them.
After getting onboard the ship, by disguising himself as one of Kometa's soldiers, Dragunov had successfully gotten eliminated one of the many waiters working on the ship, throwing his corpse off the ship. In other words, he had stolen that waiter's identity. Since then, Dragunov had played a silent servitor, hoping to gather some information onboard this ship, especially with regards to the executives of Komta.
Once he neared the bar, Dragunov's eyes caught sight of two all to familiar men sitting near it. It was Bryce Adams and Shin Kamiya. This made Dragunov pay careful attention towards them, yet he noticed a nearby table where lots of empty glasses and plates stood.
Coming up with a brilliant idea, he decided to pretend he was picking them, all while secretly eavesdropping on whatever conversation that those two men had.
So far, Bryce was not pleased with what he saw Enrique doing.
"There he goes again. Thinking himself all high and mighty just because some golddiggers are falling for him. Pfft, freaking smartarse" the gunman noted with his arms crossed.
Shin took as sup from his glass of water before answering. "Don't tell me you're jealous, Adams" he tried to get under his cohort's skin.
"Piss off, Kamiya. You don't know me" he rudely responded before drinking his bottle of beer. "Anyway, I was told you were called to a meeting with Lana at her suite. How did it go?" Bryce then asked him.
To appear nonchalant, Shin shrugged his own shoulders. "It went fine, I guess. She only asked me a couple of questions about whether I was loyal to her and Kometa. That's pretty much it" he responded, only to give Bryce a smug look. "Why, you thought she'd planned on ditching you for me?" he threw a jibe at him.
This didn't sit will with Bryce, so he forcefully grabbed Shin by the collar of his shirt. He was clearly becoming more aggressive by the minute.
"Ya want my fist shown down your throat, wanka!? Because I can….." Bryce was stopped once Shin showed his arm away, thus loosening his grip.
"I was only being sarcastic. God, you really need to take chill pill or something!" the Japanese man rebuked him. "Besides, there's no way I would've dated Lai. She may appear sexy and all, but her attitude is a huge turn-off for me" Shin went on explaining his reasons for not finding Lana attractive.
Bryce was still angry with his cohort. "So what did you talk about then? Answer before I change my mind about….." the Australian man didn't get to finish, seeing as Shin hushed him.
"Try to use your brain a little. Because you really don't wanna make a scene here. Especially when "he" is watching us" Shin tried to speak this lowly for Bryce to hear.
But the pink-haired man was far from convinced. "The hell does that even mean? Who's he?" he wanted some answers.
Shin then leaned closer. "You wanna know what me and Lai talked about in the suite. Then you best wait until Ortega is not in the same room as us. Because we talked about plenty of things with regards to him" he revealed as he briefly pointed his finger towards the man sitting by the lounge getting drunk.
"Why?" Bryce was actually being curious.
This made Shin smirk on the inside, seeing as how he could perhaps use Bryce to his advantage. That's why he decided to come up a huge lie that was sure to make the gunman antagonize Enrique further.
"Because Ortega is favored to succeed her as leader of Kometa. That's why Lai's planning on slowly elevating him to the position" he revealed.
That's when Bryce really got ticked off, yet he did nothing aggressive towards Shin. Still, he did turn his resentful look towards the Cuban man sitting at the lounge. The very sight of him infuriated Bryce to the fullest.
"Why that son of a…" Bryce felt tempted to go over there and put Enrique out of his misery.
But Shin made a coughing sound to get his attention. "Look. There is a great chance of you to get rid of him. Believe me, Adams. I also think he's unworthy of Kometa's leadership" the Japanese man pointed out, only to put form a cocky grin on this face. "In fact, I could help you get rid of him. If you want to, that is" he offered assistance.
At first, Bryce looked at him with almost no confidence. True, he disliked Enrique, but he had even less love for Shin. Still, the desire to be Lana's favorite weighed heavily upon the Australian gunman.
Sighing deeply, Bryce decided to agree to this cooperation.
"Fine. We got a deal. But I reckon you'll keep this secret between ourselves, right?" Bryce wanted some assurance.
Shin quickly nodded his head. "For sure. I have no interest in whoever succeeds Lai, so I'll be happy to inform you about what her plans are" he said.
And so, Shin filled in for Bryce. He learned what Lana had told hm. In the meantime, Dragunov tried his best to catch every detail of the nearby conversation without getting caught.
But as all of this took place in the hall, someone was observing everything taking place from above. Because at the ceiling glass above the hall, three individuals had paid close attention to these persons of interest.
"I can't believe it" Raven, one of the agents from the UN, exclaimed by seeing Dragunov down in the hall. "The White Angel of Death himself is down there dressed as a waiter? I haven't seen anymore disturbing than that" he commented while tapping onto his sunglasses.
Master Raven, his sister/superior, shook her head at him. "Quit overexaggerate so much, Raven. There are plenty of things you have seen that are way worse than some Russian spy" she rebuked Raven, only to look down and see what Dragunov was doing. "Judging from his current position, it is clear that he's trying to eavesdrop on those two men: Bryce Adams and Shin Kamiya" she noted.
"But for what reason could someone like him have for infiltrating this ship?" Yoshimitsu, the agents' ally, wondered. "Is he trying to eliminate Kometa and its leadership?" the cybernetic swordsman asked the agents.
"If he wanted to eliminate them, he would've done so right now" Master Raven answered, looking down through the glass ceiling once again. "There must be other motives in mind. The Russian authorities is seeking to learn more about Kometa's plans" she summarized what Dragunov's reasons for being on this ship was.
The three agents, having traveled undersea via a stealth jet, had secretly gotten onboard it as it was passing through the Strait of Malacca. The moment they had gotten onboard, they started spying through the glass ceiling. But they had yet to explore the rest of this ship.
"Alright. What is our next move?" Raven asked his comrades. "Do we also start our own infiltration of this ship?" he went on.
"Yes. But we must at the same time learn more about their next move. Given their satellite's currently active, I had expected them to at least be calm and not do anything in wake of the ongoing war" Master Raven replied. Only to look behind in order to see the horizon they were leaving behind. "Dr. Hayes told us he'd helped build some hypersonic motors near the propeller of this ship. According to him, Lana Lai only activates them when they're sailing out in the largest oceans" she then remarked.
"Meaning that once we've sailed past this straight, we'll be going faster through the Indian Ocean" Raven couldn't believe what he was hearing. "I find it hard to believe that someone so meekly like him helped create that on an enormous cruise ship. It's absurd" he then remarked.
"Whether he is bluffing or not, the information he shared with his will be of great importance to our allies" Yoshimitsu pointed out Lukas' usefulness. "I assume it's already been sent to Lars Alexandersson and Lee Chaolan" he faced Master Raven.
She nodded. "Affirmative. Still, it will be hard for us to get into contact with Yggdrasil while we partake on this infiltration. After all, Lana Lai and her cronies control everything onboard here. That's why we will have to do everything in the shadows from now on" she answered.
"In the meantime, Dr. Hayes will assist the UN to make up for his wrongdoings. He'll do so at the UN Office in Nairobi, where he'll be safe" Raven spoke up, only to realize something. "Now that reminds me, both Lee and Lars would benefit from the knowledge about one of Kometa's secrets weapons on Earth" he pointed out to Master Raven.
"That information has already been sent along with the other details" she responded. "Now the only question is…..whether the Komteta-executives are willing to cover up not just our infiltration, but Dragunov's as well" Master Raven then noted.
Yoshimitsu crossed his arms. "I do not see how any of this is true. Far as I am concerned, all these executives are equally dishonest and untrustworthy. The only reason they have leaked information is to strengthen their positions in the power struggle" he bluntly stated the obvious.
"On that, I agree with you fully on" Master Raven said as she stood up and looked out towards the distance. "It would be best if we all found another place to be at right now. Because we appear to be nearing the open ocean" she suggested.
Both Yoshimitsu and Raven got up to her level. As they looked forward, there was no doubt that she was right. The strait began widening itself more and both the land areas of Indonesia and Malaysia were dragged further away from each other.
With that, the trio vanished from their spot, hoping to find a place where the dark would give them cover.
Unbeknownst to them, someone had been watching the trio from the shadows. Once they were gone, this person appeared on the exact same spot above the glass ceiling. This was indeed a woman.
As soon as the moonlight glowed on it, it revealed her appearance.
"So, that's what you're doing now, Sergei Dragunov?" the female voice came from none other than Kunimitsu.
That's right, she had been watching Yoshimitsu and the agents ever since they got onboard and had been following their movements. Even so, Kunimitsu had not shown herself out in the open.
The young kunoichi looked down to study Dragunov, a deep frown forming on her mask.
"I had originally planned on assassinating you as payback for your betrayal back in Bangkok" Kunimitsu admitted, only or her lips to turn upside down into a smile. "But considering the unpredictable circumstances, I have other things I need to prioritize. That's why I'm postponing your demise" she declared, even though she knew not even Dragunov would hear her say that.
When Dragunov had betrayed his "cohorts", the Thai military had arrived at the harbor to attack all enemies, Kunimitsu herself included. With her impressive ninjutsu and incredible speed, she had managed to escape from getting caught. However, she was separated from the other fighters, who too had to flee on their own.
Angered at such betrayal, Kunimitsu had pursued him, even infiltrated the Amphitrite on her own. And of course, she had done so without getting noticed by anyone, not even Kometa and its forces.
Since then, Kunimitsu had secretly moved around the ship, plotting on how to confront Dragunov and make him pay for not living up to his promise. The Russian soldier had indeed promised her and the other fighters about Spetsnaz helping them with whatever they desired. But now that Yoshimitsu was onboard the Amphitrite, Kunimitsu felt that seeking vengeance was a waste of time.
She had a good reason for going after Yoshimitsu, who had once been her mother's superior while as a member of the Manji Party.
"That sword of yours…..which is rightfully my grandfather's, must be returned to its original owner. My mother needs it" Kunimitsu recalled back to her most devoted mission in history. "They say that sword is the one capable of not only cutting down evil, but also illnesses. Given mother's current state…..I can't afford to let you wield that sword, Yoshimitsu" she expressed her desire.
With Yoshimitsu now onboard the same ship she was, Kunimitsu was determined to get her hands on her sword. But she knew getting it away from Yoshimitsu's hands would not be an easy task. He was the infamous leader of the Manji Party after all.
"I must wait until he's alone. Those two agents from the UN will not meddle in shinobi affairs. But I must try to predict which place he will be at. I can't afford to let any of them see me" Kunimitsu tried to come up with a strategy. "Once he's alone, I will personally confront him. He may be an experienced shinobi, but my speed surpasses him still! Then I will take his sword. Then the only thing remains on how to get off this ship" she was struggling to come up with an idea.
That's when something hit in her head. Yes, she wouldn't just show herself before Yoshimitsu straight away. Rather, it was better to wait for perfect opportunity. Kunimitsu recalled back to some conversations she'd eavesdropped on between security guards working for Lana.
"According to what they said, their next destination was the Mediterranean. But that means…" the more Kunimitsu pondered, the more she managed to find a perfect solution to her dilemmas. "The Red Sea…the Suez Canal…perhaps this planning isn't so hard after all. I think I know just on how to proceed with this!" she declared with pride.
Having figured out a plan on how to retrieve Yoshimitsu's sword, Kunimitsu returned to the shadows, disappearing from sight. As desperate as she wanted to get her hands on the ninja's sword, Kunimitsu knew she had time on her side to prepare confronting her family's hated enemy.
Getting back at Dragunov could wait. Right now, she had the opportunity to cure her mother's illness with that magical sword. There was no way Kunimitsu would let that opportunity slip away from her hands.
To be continued…
