Chapter Twelve
Forest of Mishima Island
In the seclusion of the dense forest on Mishima Island, a silver portal appeared from thin air. The moment was brief as only one person came through it and entered Earthrealm. Once the person's feet landed on the green grass, the portal shrunk until it disappeared completely.
Liu Kang had witnessed this. He arrived on the island right on time as he knew that two portal would be appearing within a few minutes of each other in different locations. After sensing their chis, he went to this one first as he realized that its strength was the strongest. He knew that he would have to be quick if he was to go to the other portal's location on time.
"You must be Ivy Valentine," Liu Kang greeted, his voice grabbing the Keisei woman's attention.
Ivy simply stared at him brief before she nodded in confirmation. "And... you must be the one Fujin talked about. Liu Kang."
"That I am," the God of Fire replied. "He told me of your requests and I've agreed to heed them."
"Good," Ivy said as she gazed at her surroundings. "So... this is Earthrealm? It doesn't look much different from Keisei."
"That's only because you're one mile away from what we call 'downtown,'" Liu Kang explained. "Once you see more, you'll immediately know the difference."
"I see," the woman uttered. "Now, at this point, I'd like to be informed of what this is all about and why I, of all people, were chosen to fight... whatever this threat is."
"I've planned to gather the other chosen ones and tell them everything tonight," Liu Kang said. "However, as part of the agreement that was made with you, I can tell you everything right now."
From there, Liu Kang told her the story - the current war, the two 'evil stars' legend that Jin and Kazuya represented and how their personal vendetta threatened to reawaken the demon Azazel, and what would happen if the demon got out of his prison due to the reawakening. He also explained that the reason for all the chosen ones attending the Shikoken Tournament was because this would be a few steps closer to stopping these threats. More importantly, they would be a few steps closer to stopping the threats from spilling over to other realms, like Keisei.
"This... is worse than I imagined," Ivy said once Liu Kang was finished. "Fujin mentioned that these events would threatened Keisei, but... I didn't realize it was this bad."
"And that's why we need to stop this before it's too late," the Protector of Earthrealm reminded her. "It is why we're asking for your help."
Ivy nodded at this. "It... well... I mean..." She frowned as she shifted her blue eyes to the ground. "Perhaps this is a way for me to redeem myself after what I've done..."
Liu Kang managed to smile at her. "You did that when you helped destroy Shao Kahn last year. Think of this as a way to further prove your loyalty despite your previous actions. If I recall, Fujin mentioned that not everyone was convinced the first time. Maybe this might convince the skeptics this time around."
The woman sighed a little before she shrugged. Though she wasn't feeling too confident, she was at least grateful that not only Liu Kang and Fujin were giving her a chance at all, but were also willing to let her be part of this fight against this threat on her own terms. If the dynamics of the chosen ones were to remain as it was in the past, it was better for her not to be too involved in their affairs unless it absolutely called for it. Either way, she knew it wouldn't be perfect, but at least she was choosing the lesser of two evils.
"I suppose," was all she said after a brief pause.
Liu Kang nodded. "There's a cabin I personally have reserved to you located about a half mile north from here. It's part of a camping ground that's usually used for tourists. It's secluded enough that I believe it'll be to your satisfaction. Rest up for now. I'll be in contact tomorrow before the tournament begins, which is two days from now."
Ivy nodded to him before, without saying any more, turned to the direction he mentioned and began to head into the direction the God of Fire mentioned.
One down, Liu Kang thought to himself. Now for the remaining Keisei natives. A burst of flames surrounded him as he began to teleport to the second location...
A few minutes later, at the edge of the forest up on the hills that overlooked downtown below, another silver portal appeared. Unlike the first one, this one lasted a little longer as the group that consisted of Hwang, Seong Mi-na, Cassandra, Kilik, Xianghua, Maxi, Siegfried, Hilde, Yunseong, Talim, and Ashrah came through one by one. Once that was done, the portal disappeared behind them.
Maxi faced towards the direction of the forest at first, so he did not notice what was behind him right away like everyone else did. "Oh yeah, Seong Mi-na, this is sooo shocking!" he called out with sarcasm. "This place looks just like Keisei! The trees and sky are similar. I don't know about this 'tech' you're talking about, but I'm not all that-"
He then felt a tap on his shoulder and he turned to see who it was. He then noticed Kilik next to him and he nearly gave him a perplexed look, noting how his friend looked... shocked. He the turned to see what Kilik was all wide-eyed about... and his face quickly changed to mirror Kilik's upon seeing the buildings at the bottom of the hill.
"...Wow..." was all Maxi managed to uttered. What he and everyone else were looking at was a sight they've never seen before. Sure, some of the buildings were made of wood like their homes were, but there were other buildings that looked more... solid and much more sturdy to them. They also noticed the ships out in the ocean beyond these buildings... none had sails nor built with wood, but... metal? Steel maybe? They seemed to move much faster too! And there were something else moving about, but much smaller, in between the buildings too. They were like carriages, but with no horses. None of them could figure it out.
Cassandra and Seong Mi-na nearly giggled upon noting the similar, shocked faces from everyone else (except Ashrah of course, who simply smiled at what she thought was a beautiful sight). "Just their faces alone are priceless," Mi-na said.
"Too bad we don't have a camera to make this last longer," giggled Cassandra.
"What's a camera?" asked a confused Talim.
"I'll explain later."
Hilde turned her attention to Siegfried. "So... this is what you saw last year?"
Siegfried pointed behind him with his thumb. "My time here was... more like what's behind us. I've... never seen this part of the world until now..."
"This... is Earthrealm?" uttered Hwang, unsure of how to take in the view.
"It is last I checked," a new voice, laced with some humor, suddenly said from behind them. Startled, the group quickly whirled around and soon saw a man standing a few feet behind him. He gave them a warm smile to let them know that he was not here to harm them.
"Um..." Kilik started, still trying to get his bearings. "You... you must be Liu Kang, the one Fujin mentioned."
Liu Kang nodded. "I am. And how did you know that?"
"Well to be honest, you are wearing the same outfit Raiden used to wear," mentioned Maxi. "Except your vest thing is red instead of blue."
"Exactly," Kilik said.
Liu Kang nodded again as he tried not to think too much about his former mentor. "Well let's get started. First, I'd like to welcome to you all to Earthrealm... and a welcome back to those who have been here before."
"It's good to be back," said Ashrah.
"Are the others here yet?" asked Xianghua.
"Not quite yet," Liu Kang said. "You see the ships out there? They'll be arriving here shortly on this island soon enough."
"An island, huh?" spoke up Yunseong. "And I thought an island is supposed to be... deserted or something."
"Not all islands are deserted, or tropical for that matter," mentioned Cassandra. "Oddly enough, I learned that little lesson during the Universal War."
"So did I," said Mi-na.
"I was in some place called the... Rocky Mountains?" Siegfried brought up.
"That's over on the other side of Earthrealm," Liu Kang explained to him. "If you like to, I can provided you a map of what Earthrealm looks like."
"Maybe once we get a little used to our surroundings," said Hwang. "Let's try to figure this island out first."
"I agree with that," said Talim.
"Once everyone is settled," Liu Kang proceeded. "I'll be informing you of tonight's meeting place for all the chosen ones. Dinner will be provided."
"Now I wonder what kind of food there'll be," wondered Yunseong.
"I remember someone from here mentioning the food is similar to ours," said Xianghua.
"Well, that's good news then," replied Maxi.
"Until then, head down to that building over there," continued Liu Kang as he pointed towards a five-story building just at the end of the forest. "That's where you'll be lodging during your stay here. Ashrah, Cassandra, Seong Mi-na... since you've had the most experience with basic Earthrealm customs, all I want you three to do is to help guide your allies and answer any questions they may have. If you can't answer them, just let me or anyone else from Earthrealm know."
Ashrah nodded to the God of Fire. "That won't be a problem."
Maxi turned to Kilik then and whispered, "If what we're seeing is crazy to us, I can't imagine what it looks like on the inside."
Kilik swallowed nervously at that thought. "Something tells me this introduction may be a little too much at once..."
Mishima Island Port
The fifteen ferries that initially waited in Senzaki Bay back in mainland Japan were thankfully enough for every fighter who planned to attend the tournament as well as their companions who were there to spectate the event. As scheduled, the ferries left port at nine o'clock in the morning and arrived at Mishima Island five hours later.
The port was similar to the docks of Senzaki Bay, but had more sand that represented the beaches that surrounded the island. Just beyond the port was what was considered downtown. It was filled with shops, restaurants and bars, and other places of entertainment that made such a place considered a resort island. Many of the buildings, though fairly new, were built to look like old school Japanese architect with their thatched roofs, wooden walls, and sliding doors that led into an establishment. There were also some buildings scattered around that were Western influenced, mainly the Vegas-style casinos that were around downtown. The streets were narrowed to where you either had to walk, or rent a golf cart for faster transportation.
Upon exiting the ferries, each visitor, after they stated their names to soldiers of the Tekken Force, were given a pass, which indicated that they were visiting the island for the tournament whether they were watchers or participants. The passes also indicated that they would be staying at the Mishima Hotel and rooms were at first come, first served bases. However, if that ended up being filled to capacity, the alternate would be the Kazumi Hotel.
The group that consisted of Guile, Wagner, Juli, Abel, Cammy, Lita, Steve, and Juni were one of the first to leave port and started heading through downtown. Initially, they were with Jax, Sonya, Cyrax, Fei Long, and Johnny Cage, but at one point during the ride, Johnny 'needed fresh air' and bolted before anyone said anything. Cyrax had followed Johnny seconds later as though he was playing a game of cat and mouse (and everyone could only wonder when the yellow cyborg would 'strike' after their last conversation back in Nagato). Fei Long left then to make sure things didn't get violent. Afterwards, Sonya announced that she needed a drink and Jax went with her mainly to make sure she didn't have more than she needed before they reached the island. That left the other eight to stick together since.
"You know," Juli started once they got a good view of downtown from the docks. "This almost reminds me of Avalon on Catalina Island back in California, only the architect here is Japanese instead of Spanish."
"I'm just hoping that we can figure out where our hotel is," mentioned Lita. "They didn't exactly give us a map of the island to figure that would."
"You think they would've," added Steve. "But then again, we're probably just a herd of cattle to the sponsors right now."
"Sounds about right," agreed Wagner.
"That, or the invention of the GPS app on your smartphones makes handing out maps useless," Juni mentioned. She had her phone out as she pressed a few commands on the touch screen. Cammy looked over her shoulder and saw that her comrade's phone showed a picture of a map.
"You're looking up where we need to go?" Cammy asked in which Juni answered with a nod.
"It's amazing what technology can do these days," said Abel.
"I say that to myself all the time," Juni chuckled.
"Yeah, back in Guile's day, cell phones weren't even a thing everyone used," Wagner joked as he pointed his thumb at the Brigadier General.
"I'm not THAT old, Scott," Guile grumbled.
"Well either way," said Cammy. "It's quite convenient considering how we couldn't do this when we were in Outworld two years ago."
"Hell," Wagner started. "I recall we couldn't even use our phones during the Universal War."
"Yeah, that was a nightmare."
"You kids think today's tech is amazing?" Guile stated. "I personally think it's amazing how much we now rely on them to get through even a typical day."
"You know, I quite agree with that," said Steve. "But you have to admit, they do make them quite convenient."
"I suppose."
"Here we go!" called out Juli as the GPS app on her phone gave her written directions to the hotel. "We're currently on Main Street and we just have to keep going forward until we get to the end of the street. From there, we make a right on Mishima Boulevard, and that will take us to the hotel."
"Good, maybe I'll take a nap as soon as well settle into our hotel rooms," said Lita.
"Yes, we do deserve it," mentioned Guile.
G-Corp Headquarters, Nepal
With the Shikoken Tournament two days away, the arrival of Quan Chi and the Outworld Forces happened right on time. Even though the current Emperor of Outworld had the ability to create his own portals to take them through the realms, Quan Chi insisted on taking G-Corp's man-made portal from Outworld to their headquarters as a way to guarantee a 'direct route.'
Kazuya Mishima, his second-in-command Bruce Irvin, and a few members of G-Corp's military – Stryker and Hotaru included – met with the forces in the portal room. It didn't take long for the portal to develop a purple energy right before the members of the forces came through. As expected, they contain all of the Generals; Motaro, Rain, Tanya, Reiko, Skarlet, Kunimitsu, Vega, Mavado, and Kira. Another, Anna Williams, was someone Kazuya remembered from years ago when she briefly worked under him when he was CEO of the Mishima Zaibatsu. Aside from her face and name, the only other thing he remembered about her was her bitter rivalry with her sister, Nina Williams... who was ironically working under Jin Kazama at this time.
Quan Chi was the last to come through the portal before it closed behind him. He immediately approached Kazuya. When they were two feet away, the two of them stared at each other in silence as they waited for the other to speak up.
While this went on, Stryker kept calm over what he was witnessing. He knew going into this wasn't going to be easy to begin with. However, one thing he thought was that spying on G-Corp was going to be as simple as trying to figure out their true motives. Whatever it was, it was going to be much worse than he anticipated with Outworld in the cards.
This is bad! REALLY bad! Stryker thought to himself. I wonder how long it'll be before I can report this to Briggs... Luckily, for now, he was safe as he didn't recognize anyone in the Outworld group from Shao Kahn's first Earthrealm invasion years ago.
After a long silence, it was Bruce who spoke up. "We'd like to welcome you to headquarters," he greeted. "You're currently in the country of Nepal, where we'll remain until the tournament is underway in two days."
"I thought your reports mentioned that the tournament would be taking place in Japan," mentioned Reiko sternly.
"It will be," Bruce replied. "But Kazuya feels that it's best to remain here rather than stay on the island like the other participants. Each of you will be provided a transporter that will be set between here and Mishima Island, where the tournament will be taking place. This way, you can come and go at your own free will."
That's convenient, Stryker thought to himself. Now it's just a matter of exactly when he'll receive those transporters... probably not for another two days.
"The only rule I'm suggesting," started Kazuya. "Is to keep off the island in between the tournament matches. This way you're not any more detected as you may be during the matches."
"Surely you realize that our presence will not be missed even by the average civilian," Quan Chi brought up as he folded his arms in front of him.
"Of course... but with this method, none will realize your association with us." A ghost of a smirk came over the CEO's face. "It's best to leave everyone guessing why you're at the tournament to begin with."
"The idea of messing with people's heads like that sounds like fun," chuckled Tanya.
"In the meantime," Kazuya continued as he addressed everyone in the room. "The primary plan is to advance as far enough into the tournament as possible, preferably as the winner of the tournament. I do have a backup plan if that doesn't happen, one that I think will satisfy you all... you'll know that plan if our advancement fails. Kazama hasn't made any announcements about how the tournament will work just yet, but I imagine he will do so within the next day or two."
"Just be patient until then," Bruce finished for him.
"Speaking of Kazama," began Motaro as he took a step forward. His four hooves pounded heavily against the marbled floor. "We also plan to look out for the Outworld rebels who joined with the Mishima Zaibatsu. A spy of ours informed us that they joined with the Zaibatsu to help further their goals. He'll remain with them and report back to us when needed."
Kazuya gave him a single nod. "You do what you must. All I ask is to leave Kazama alone. I plan to take care of him myself."
"Sounds fair enough, as long as I get my hands on that wretched sister of mine," said Anna.
In the back of his mind, Stryker began to realize that his mission wasn't going to be as easy as he thought he would be. At the same time, he was glad to be here for this development. Who knew how much longer it would've taken for his allies to find out what was going on behind the scene with the Mishima Zaibatsu, the war instigators, and G-Corp, the supposed 'saviors.'
Mishima Island
After arriving at the Mishima Hotel, Ryu, Julia, and Ken were lucky to get two suites next to each other once they signed in at the lobby. Located on the fifth floor, or rather the top of the hotel (save for the deluxe suite), they took the elevator up to the floor and only had to go a few doors down to reach their rooms.
After she unlocked the door with her card key, Julia entered her and Ryu's suite first with the latter following while he carried both of their luggage (which only contained Ryu's duffle bag, a large rolling suitcase, and a laptop bag, the last two belonging to Julia). Julia couldn't help but stare in awe at their suite. The door led them immediately into the small kitchenette, which contained all the essentials. Beyond was the large living room-dining room combination that contained a skylight on the ceiling with the bright sunlight shining through.
The dining room had a low table with olive-green velvet cushions set on each side, and the living room had two western-style couches and a recliner in an olive-green color with satin throw pillows colored in beige and decorated with black hand-sewn kanji symbol for 'peace.' Each of the furniture were separated by a dark wood nightstand that matched the color of the low dinner table The room had very minimum decorations, mainly statues and faux plants, and only contained two painted pictures opposite each other; one with a scene of a samurai battle, and another with three geisha women walking on a bridge over a river seemingly chatting with each other while they held a folding paper fan as though they were cooling themselves off from the warm weather.
Beyond the living room was a sliding door made of paper that led into the bedroom. Inside the bedroom were two set of doors; one to the bathroom, which had a second door that led to the living room, and a sliding glass door that led out to the balcony that overlooked the island's forest.
"I feel so... inspired," Julia uttered just after she took her shoes off at the entrance. She then took the single raised step up into the kitchen. "It almost makes me want to redecorate my apartment when we get back to Arizona."
"Does that mean you can finally get rid of that realistic-looking tarantula model you own?" Ryu asked with some hope in his eyes.
Julia chuckled at that as she shook her head. "Sorry, not in a million years."
Ryu could only sigh at that in defeat.
"If you don't mind," Julia began as she headed towards the sliding paper door. "I want to get a look at the view on the balcony."
"Sure," Ryu said as he went into the living room. Briefly, he stopped to drop off the luggage near the loveseat before he followed Julia to the balcony passed the bedroom. Briefly, the wandering warrior noticed the room. He spotted the king-size bed that was covered in olive-green sheets and five large white pillow that laid against the dark wood headboard, and matching nightstands on either side. Both tables contained tall black lamps with white shades covering the bulbs. Only the left side of the bed had a digital alarm clock while the right had the hotel phone.
After entering the balcony, Ryu saw that it only had two wooden chairs (covered with olive green seat cushions) and a matching small table, but it left plenty of room to walk around on. Two concrete walls on either side gave them privacy while the one opened side gave them the view of the hills and forests of the island as well as the sky above them. Ryu could imagine how it would look at night.
"It's quite a sight, isn't it?" Julia asked him as she turned to face him. "I wonder if this forest has a hiking trail. I'd love to see what kind of species of plants they have growing here."
Before Ryu could answer, they suddenly heard the familiar voice of Ken. "Hey lovebirds!" he called out. "Come check out what I discovered."
"I thought I locked the door behind me," Ryu wondered aloud.
"You did," Ken said as his two friends entered the living room. He then pointed his thumb behind him and the couple soon noticed the open door in the dining room area. "Turns out our suites have a connecting door. When I opened it, I thought it led to a closet."
"Huh," Julia said. "The clerk wasn't kidding about our rooms being adjacent to each other."
"Well," Ken continued. "The good news is that the door's lock is on your side of the room, which will be convenient for you once Eliza and Mel get here. I'm sure Mel would want to try to figure out what's behind this door and, well... I want to make sure you two get your 'alone time,' if you know what I mean." He ended that last sentence with a wink.
In reply, Julia looked down at her feet as her cheeks flushed red, while Ryu rubbed the back of his neck with a little embarrassment. "Eh... thanks?" he uttered aloud.
"No problem," Ken said. He then showed them an envelope that contained his name. "Weirdly enough, I think someone is magically sending us these the second we get our rooms. I found this after I settled in. Did you get one?"
Ryu gazed around the room. "I... I don't know."
"There it is," Julia announced as she found an envelope with both hers and Ryu's name on it on one of the living room nightstands. She didn't hesitate to open it before she read the contents on the single piece of paper aloud.
"This letter is to cordially invite you to a reunion dinner at eight o'clock this evening," Julia read. She raised an eyebrow and turned her attention to Ryu and Ken. "Eight o'clock? That's pretty late, isn't it?"
"Not really," Ken replied. "We'll just have a late lunch after this since it's almost three o'clock. That will hold us over until then."
"True," Julia said before she continued to read the letter. "The reunion will take place two miles Northeast of the Mishima Hotel. A trail that begins a half mile from the hotel going in the same direction will lead you straight to the dinner location."
"There's that hiking trail you wanted," Ryu mentioned.
Julia chuckled in response. She then went to finish the letter. "A feast will be provided to those who attend. Those whose names appear on the invitation's envelope are welcomed to the reunion dinner. During the feast, all will be explained. Hope to see you tonight. L.K."
"L.K.? Must be Liu Kang," Ryu guessed.
"That would explain how he magically sent us these invites so soon after we get our assigned rooms," Ken reminded him. "Anyway, with all this food talk, I'm starving. Should we order in, or go to a sit-down place downtown?"
"Order in," Julia replied. "I just want to relax for a few hours before we head to the reunion dinner tonight."
"Strangely enough, I agree," Ryu admitted. "It's been a long journey."
"That is weird coming from you," Ken agreed with a laugh. "But anyway, hope you two don't mind Thai food... well, actually, just hope that we can actually find a good Thai place on this island that delivers."
Meanwhile, on the second floor of the hotel, Paul, Marshall, and Forest settled into their shared room. The room, like every other, had olive-green sheets on the bed and matching curtains, furniture with cherry wood tables and dressers, and beige carpeting. Their room in particular had two queen-sized beds, a TV on top of the dresser, a mini-fridge, microwave, and a bathroom with a whirlpool tub. It was only slightly more high-end from what they were used to, but they considered the whirlpool tub a great treat.
"Good thing we took that clerk's suggestion to have a cot delivered to our room," Marshall mentioned. "At least that will eliminate it from one of us sleeping on the floor or one of the two armchairs in the room.
"Even though that's twelve hundred and seventy-four yen out the window," grumbled Forest.
"Thank goodness that actually means ten dollars or I'd be in the corner crying right now," said Paul. "Ten dollars is nothing. We practically got this room for free!"
"Too bad the suites filled up before we had the chance to reserve one," Marshall said.
"Yeah, that is a shame," Paul said as he flopped himself onto one of the beds. "But hey Marshall, you and I get our own nice, comfy beds, AND a whirlpool tub! What more could us everyday-men ask for?"
"Hey, wait a minute!" Forest suddenly said as he pointed at Paul. "Who said you got the bed?!"
"Because you're getting the cot."
"Why?!"
"Because here's the thing, Forest," Paul started at he sat up in his bed. "Your Dad and I... we've seen a lot in our day and all this physical fighting we've done over the years... it can take a toll on a man after a while. Don't we deserve a nice, comfy bed at the end of a rough day while a strapping young man such as yourself makes the sacrifice for us old guys?"
Forest's eyes widened in annoyance at that. "Paul, you're only fifty-one years old! And Dad's fifty! You're not THAT old!"
"Dawww I appreciate you mentioning that I'm not THAT old." Paul pounded his chest lightly just above his head. "It's a good feeling to hear such beautiful words for this old sag."
"Same here, son," Marshall said. "Besides, despite that, do you really want to put our backs out, especially since we're at a tournament of all places? You're young, you can handle injuries just fine. Us? Not the way we used to. So it would be a shame if we didn't have the bigger, comfier beds to rest our weary bodies in just because some young nincompoop was too selfish to respect his elders."
Forest sulked in defeat then as he suddenly felt guilty. "Fiiine... I'm sorry, Dad. I didn't think of it that way..." He then turned on one heel and headed to the bathroom. The second he closed the door behind him, Marshall and Paul snickered. They covered their mouths with their hands in an attempt to not be loud enough for the young man to hear.
"Nice speech, Paul," Marshall chuckled.
"Thanks, I was cooking it up the second you ordered the cot," Paul replied. "Your words were pretty good at convincing him though, I admit."
That was when Marshall noticed a white envelope on the nightstand in between the two beds. He walked closer to the table before he looked at the envelope that was addressed to him, Paul, and Forest.
"What's that?" Paul asked as he got off the bed and looked over Marshall's shoulder.
"It's for the three of us, that's for sure," Marshall mentioned after he unfolded the letter. He read the invitation to tonight's reunion aloud and eventually realized that the letter was from Liu Kang himself.
"Huh," Marshall said. "I wasn't expecting to reunite with everyone tonight."
"Same here," Paul agreed. "But hey, let's think of it this way... this might be the closest we'll get to a 'Chosen Ones Reunion' that doesn't involving fighting, that's for sure."
Marshall could only nod in agreement.
A few rooms away, Crimson Viper just settled into her room, which had two queen-sized beds, a bathroom with a whirlpool tub, and a mini-fridge. The decoration was minimal, though she did briefly admire the painted cherry blossom tree portrait that hung over the single nightstand between the two beds. The room also had a balcony where her daughter Lauren was gazing at the view of downtown and the sea beyond it.
After placing a suitcase on her bed, Crimson Viper began to pull out some of the paperwork she took with her as well as her company-issued laptop. She was just taking out a USB port from the pocket of her suitcase when she heard footsteps approaching. She didn't have to look up to know that it was her daughter behind her.
"Mommy?" Lauren uttered as she entered the room, which caused the older woman to gaze up. It wasn't hard for the older woman to notice the frown on the young girl's face. That caused Crimson Viper to frown as well as she wondered what was upsetting her.
"What is it, sweetheart?" the older woman asked with a little worry.
"We just got here," Lauren replied. "Are you really going to work now?"
Not expecting that answer, Crimson Viper was hesitant for a moment, unsure of how to reply at first. She knew that work had to be done, but at the same time, her daughter was right. She suppose she could start getting some of her work done after Lauren went to bed later tonight.
"I'm just organizing my papers, that's all," the agent replied. "The only thing I have to do right now is contact my boss to let him know that we made it here. safely" An idea came to her. "Are you feeling up to walking around, or do you want to read for a little bit before dinner?"
Lauren's eyes lit up with excitement as she had a quick answer. "Walk around!"
"Okay," Crimson Viper said as she put her paperwork and laptop away before she closed her suitcase. "Let me get a couple of things organized, call my boss, and then we'll head to downtown to see what we can have for a light lunch."
On the first floor of the hotel, Hugo and Poison were able to get their own modest rooms with connected doors to the other. Both rooms contained a king-size bed, their own bathroom, and a shared balcony.
Poison met with Hugo in his room after she entered through their adjacent door. "So big guy, I'd say we got some nice rooms here compared to the shitholes we've been provided in the past. What do you think?"
Unsurely, Hugo gazed up at the ceiling, which he could almost touch with his face. "I'm not quite sure if I like it, Poison," he admitted. "I think I'm too big for the bed, and I can smell the paint on the ceiling."
"Just try not to jump up in fright and you'll be fine," Poison suggested. "We've been in worse places, like those roadside motels, remember?"
"I guess," Hugo replied as he looked around his room. "At least this room doesn't smell like dead rats. And they don't have cockroaches crawling on the floor."
"That's the spirit!" Poison called out as she slapped the wrestler's arm, which felt like nothing more than an annoyed itch to him.
"But I think the bed still might be too small for me," Hugo mentioned again.
"The clerk said that it'll support your weight at least," Poison reminded him. "I'll see if we can get a cot for your to rest your feet on. Now, I don't know about you, but I'm starving. I was thinking we can go find a sushi bar and-"
She noticed the frown on Hugo's face... and realized why. Still, she went ahead and inquired, "What's wrong, big guy?"
Hugo was almost hesitant to answer, but soon replied, "I was hoping we'd have cheeseburgers for lunch."
"Ugh!" Poison groaned. "Those things are disgusting! Well, hot dogs are worse, but... ugh, I still don't understand how you can eat that."
"Because they're delicious, especially when it's smothered in cheese and steak sauce" Hugo declared. "Besides, we always go where you want to go. Why can't I pick where we go this time?"
"Because last time you picked, we went to the Heart Attack Grill in Vegas. I couldn't even eat any of my food because it was the grossest thing I've ever had! They even ruined my love for French fries that day... I mean, who cooks it in lard! And you know what happens when you don't finish your food there! I'm still feeling sore from that, you know!"
"What if we got take-out and ate our food here in the hotel?" Hugo suddenly asked.
Poison thought about that for a moment before she nodded to his suggestion. "I wanted to explore the island, but... I suppose ordering in wouldn't hurt. Guess that's a compromise we can both take. Now I just have to hope I order from a good sushi place."
"I wonder if they have a McDonald's on the island," Hugo pondered.
Poison almost wanted to throw up over that... even though the fries were pretty good.
Meanwhile down the hallway, Armor King sat in his single room at the edge of the bed. Despite the bright, afternoon light outside, the mysterious wrestler chose to cover the balcony's sliding glass door with the heavy, olive-green curtain, which made the room dark like it was almost night time.
Even in the darkened room, he gazed at a picture in a photo frame that he brought on the trip with him. The picture in question was taken six years ago, and it was in a moment of what he considered 'happier times.'
Those days were long gone now... all because of Craig Marduk.
Speaking of whom, he knew that Marduk was staying in this hotel, but it was a question of exactly what room he was in. However, the masked wrestler knew that it might not be too easy right now, especially since those attending the tournament were still trying to settle onto the island after the five-hour boat ride from Nagato.
Not wanting to waste any more time, Armor King decided to go and try to find out what room Marduk was staying in.
Making sure he still had his card key with him, Armor King headed out of the room. After he closed the door, he turned and nearly ran into a man dressed in a blue hoodie and black pants, but he managed to stop himself before they bumped into each other.
"Hey, watch it!" a disgruntled voice shouted in annoyance.
Simply staring down to see who he almost ran into. It took him a second to recognizer the former boxer, Balrog.
Armor King didn't follow the boxing world very much, but it wasn't hard to hear about the glory of Balrog from the boxing industry back in the day. Last he heard, the former boxer disappeared a few years ago, though the masked wrestler wasn't sure why, only that he had been part of a world-wide criminal organization after his downfall. The downfall had occurred years ago, and it was why Balrog had been kicked out of the boxing industry. Armor King remembered that day well... the day when-
"Nice mask," Balrog suddenly said, his voice disrupting the wrestler's thoughts.
Armor King wasn't sure whether or not Balrog was being sarcastic. Either way, unless he was Marduk, he was not in the mood to fight. He barely uttered a 'thanks' just as Balrog walked away. From there, Armor King went in the opposite direction to begin his hunt...
Mishima Zaibatsu Headquarters, Unknown Area
Having been a chosen one, let alone one of The Four, Jin Kazama had the opportunity to meet Smoke, Matrik, and Cyrax, two former humans-turned-cyborgs who were changed against their will in the past. He never really asked much about their tech, but he can only imagine how much of an advantage it was to them, especially in combat. Once, he chuckled to himself over the thought of his adopted uncle, Lee Chaolan, possibly developing interest in their tech for his own gain.
Until today, Jin didn't realize that there were more of them.
Standing before him in his office was the leader of the Tekunin clan – Sektor. The bastard had managed to sneak into his office almost similarly to the Juri Han had a few months ago, only the red cyborg managed to get in undetected and without any of his soldiers of bodyguards knowing of his presence. Jin was sure that had a lot to do with Sektor's tech.
Sektor didn't waste time getting down to business after Jin demanded to know who he was. He initially thought that Sektor was an assassin at first. "We are impressed by the ruthlessness of the Mishima Zaibatsu during this war," the cyborg said. "As the leader of the Tekunin clan, I offer our temporary services to you during this tournament. We can offer to be additional bodyguards to you and your most trusted allies."
Jin raised an eyebrow suspiciously. "Why haven't I heard of your clan until now?"
"We are a fairly new clan, only formed in secret three years ago," Sektor explained. "Our only enemy at this time is the Lin Kuei clan, who I'm sure are currently helping to fight against you."
Now an old memory clicked in Jin's head at the mention of the Lin Kuei. His former ally, Sub-Zero, had said something about fighting against two enemies who were working together; one of them had similar tech to Smoke, Matrik, and Cyrax... and Jin wondered if it was Sektor the cryomancer was talking about this whole time.
Jin realized something as his amber eyes widened over the thought. "Suddenly, I remembering something that happened in Outworld two years ago... weren't you the one who fused himself with a demon and attacked a camp filled with Raiden's heroes?"
Sektor confirmed this with a nod. "An invention made with my own tech made the fusion with my former ally possible."
A small smirk came over Jin's face as an idea came to him. He nodded to Sektor. "I accept your offer, in exchange for learning more about your tech."
"This exchange is fair," Sektor agreed. "We have the kind of tech that would benefit your cause in this war."
Like with every other newcomer since this war began, Jin could only wonder if Sektor had other motivations... but like with everyone else, he would keep an eye on them. Besides, he only needed them just long enough for the entirety of this tournament... and that's if all goes according to plan...
Meanwhile, on the other side of the office door, while the entire exchange was going on, Bryan Fury had two machine guns, one in each hand, against two soldiers who were initially guarding the office. The two stood as still as possible as they did not want to die at the hands of the lunatic in front of them.
Personally, at this point, Bryan just wanted to throw a grenade at something, but this was what Sektor wanted in order to negotiate the alliance between the Zaibatsu and the Tekunin. Whatever... he was sure he'll get to have his own fun sooner or later.