Tekken Fan Fiction ❯ Canto ❯ Chapter 18

Chapter Eighteen

Lee was curled up in Kazuya's bed, still clad in the clothes he wore the day before, and he stared over at the window as he gripped a pillow and watched the cloudy sky lighten; the sun had risen behind those clouds, casting a deceiving gentle blue glow over everything. However, the voices of Heihachi and Kazuya arguing had kept the boy awake all night, though muffled by the closed door.

Suddenly, the quarrelling was silent. Lee strained his ears and listened for what felt like an eternity before sitting up slowly and looked over his shoulder at the door as he still clung to his, or rather, Kazuya's pillow. Again, it was several minutes before he shifted, set the pillow down, and stood up. He crept over to the door and opened it to peek out.

It was still dark down stairs, and Lee slipped out of the room and cautiously proceeded down the hall, until he heard, "I'm going to fucking kill you." He paused, shocked, and the boy sat down a few steps short of the top of the stairs, giving him a very limited view of the family room below.

Of course, Kazuya had been the one to make the threat. It was already uncharacteristic of him to say something of that nature, but it was how he said it. It was a calm, very matter-of-factly manner that sounded more like Kazuya than the embittered man Lee heard yelling throughout the night, then there was the bothersome silence that followed. Lee held his breath when he heard footsteps coming towards the stairwell, and soon the older Mishima brother came into view and trotted up the stairs. He stopped halfway, however, when he noticed Lee seated on the floor staring wide eyed at him.

"What?" Kazuya asked as he started back up the stairs; his face was, like his voice, calm despite all the yelling he had done all night.

"Nothing," the younger brother replied softly, his eyes still fixated on the older man as he finished going up the stairs and pushed past Lee. Lee cranked his head around, "Kazuya?"

The dark-haired man turned back, "Now what?"

"Is everything okay?"

"Everything's fine." Kazuya began walking to his room. "Go back to sleep."

The bedroom door opened and shut.

Lee stood up slowly and went down the stairs.

The bright morning sunlight was hidden behind blank clouds and softened. Heihachi had went into the dojo and waited. He was sitting cross-legged and watched the back of the house, upset. The world beyond the glass walls would lighten and darken as clouds pass over the sun, then finally dulled as the sky was covered completely in a sheet of grey once again.

He rubbed his temples and sniffed once; he was finally starting to feel tired after not sleeping over the past two days, and he did his best to keep from nodding off.

"I'm going to fucking kill you," Kazuya had to him for the first time in ten years. That had ended the arguing that morning, and the older man became silent at the threat. It wasn't what he said, or even how he had said it, but Kazuya's eyes.

Bright, glowing red irises, like they had been the day Heihachi had left Kazuya for dead. But the younger man had stopped himself after he said that, and he realized that it was happening again when the color drained from his father's face. Kazuya left and quietly went upstairs.

Heihachi found that he was worried about Lee of all people now, and the older Mishima stood up slowly and popped his back painfully and turned around towards the door. However, he quickly spun around as he heard a shot ring and echo outside, he stared out at the garden, alarmed.

The front door was open. That was the first thing that Heihachi noticed when he came back into the house, and he cautiously made his way towards the cloud filtered sunlight that poured into the living room and the sounds of song birds.

Kazuya was standing in the living room, and he stared at the opened door, his back towards Heihachi.

"Where's Chaolan?" Heihachi asked softly.

"I...I don't know," Kazuya turned around slowly. Heihachi shook his head and looked away when he saw his son's face.

His eyes were glowing again, however this time, a third eye was opened sideways in the middle of the young man's forehead, also glowing. Kazuya's blank expression, however, indicated that he wasn't aware of the transformation he was going through.

"Kazuya...maybe you should get some sleep."

"No, I'm fine..." His voice sounded feverish.

"Trust me, you need your rest. I'll go look for your brother." Kazuya nodded once stiffly, then turned fully around to head back upstairs. Before he left the room however, he stopped in front of his father, gently grabbed the older man's hand, and pulled it open. The Mishima boy dropped something in Heihachi's open palm, then numbly made his way up the stairs.

Heihachi stared down at the item in his hand: a single bullet.

Lee could see the city limits finally as he walked down the middle of the highway, barefoot. Occasionally, a car would speed past him and honk. He, however, ignored most of the warnings he was given, as he tried to walk as far away from that manor as he could.

He guessed that it was probably past noon now; the sky had went from grey to a nearly blinding white, and it was humid again. The silver haired boy was sweating a bit, but he wasn't particularly bothered by the weather as he walked closer to town.

Just another half mile or so... He stopped when he noticed another figure running towards him.

It was Anna, still clad in her nightgown, and like Lee, she was barefoot. She stopped to lean over and catch her breath, then started running again. As she ran, her right arm was folded against her stomach, and her face brightened up as she recognized Lee and pushed harder towards him.

When she reached him, she fell into his arms, crying, "Oh God! You're okay! You're okay!" and she clung to him and wept into his chest. He was silent and let her cry, completely confused about what was going on. She pulled way and looked up at him, "Is your brother alright?"

"Yeah, he's fine..." Lee frowned down at her and brought a hand up to her cheek; there were bruises on her face and around her neck, "You look terrible."

"As if you look any better," she smiled wearily at the boy, noting his busted lip and the bruise he had on his face that was similar to hers. He chuckled once and pulled completely away to wrap an arm around the girl, and she leaned onto him. The two turned towards the city limits and slowly walked back.

"I'm glad I ran into you this morning," said Jun as she poured Nina another cup of tea. "I know, things are just getting worse for you lately. I'm sorry."

They were sitting in Jun's dining room at the small dinette set she had. Nina stared down at her cup, frowning to herself.

Her gun case sat next to her feet.

"...Don't be." Nina nodded once as to thank Jun. "Everything in life happens for a reason," the blonde added softly. From next door, the two women could hear laughter, and someone strummed a guitar clumsily. Jun and Nina were silent for a moment and listened before starting up conversation again.

"I guess," Jun smiled a bit. "That almost sounds like something Wulong would say."

"Wulong?"

"Don't worry about it." Jun's smile softened as she thought about Lei briefly. Nina lifted a brow then let out a soft chuckle at her friend. She glanced over at the clock then back at the blonde. "By the way, where were you coming from early?"

Nina took a sip of her tea, "I, um, needed to leave the house. Just for a little while."

"Had to get your mind off things, huh?"

"Yes..." Nina nodded weakly. "I feel terrible that Anna has to put up with me this way."

"I'm sure she understands."

The sounds of the guitar next door faded out as more people began laughing and talking over the soothing, yet muffled, music. Nina managed to crack a small smile, remembering the nights when she, Jun, Liz, and Paul used to sit around in the biker's apartment, and he'd play his guitar for them. The three girls would still be in their sweats and leotards from skipping dance or not going home when they were supposed to afterwards.

Jun always sang along softly. She had a beautiful voice, though Liz often teased her about her singing. Paul always encouraged Jun though. He would smile and say, "It makes my shitty guitar playing sound great." Nina would just laugh and layout on the floor. Secretly, though, she had always been a bit jealous of how close Jun and Paul were, but it was nights like those she could put it aside and listen.

"You never know when it's all going to end," Nina replied finally, setting down her cup.

"That's true," Jun smiled. "I remember you saying that once before. I think it was..." Her forehead wrinkled up as she tried to remember.

"The summer before you and Liz left. Before..." Nina sighed heavily, "you stopped talking to Paul."

"It was, wasn't it?" Jun frowned and poured herself another cup. "It just seems like it was so long ago."

Nina didn't answer but continued to stare down at her cup and listened.

The laughter and music had ended.

It had been ten years since he had been out there. Heihachi stood near the edge of the cliff and stared out at the wasteland before him. The feeling of fear he had then as coming back, and lump formed in the back of his throat.

Kazue had been dying, holding on to what little strength she could then. She acted strong for the children, though, especially for Lee. She knew that losing another mother would be hard on the little boy. Kazuya, however, the ailing woman suspected always knew about her illness, even as a small child. He had a good sense about when people were suffering and always blamed his father for the misery surrounding him.

It had been a last resort, Heihachi knew, to get him to stay by her side. His staying at the office later and later as the days passed had been an obvious sign of adultery; other woman was a redhead that had been widowed three years previous that worked at Mishima in place of her late husband.

"You didn't have to die!" he shouted at barren world before him. His voice echoed, and the man listened, as if the dead woman would reply.

"You got what you wanted in the end, didn't you?" he added in a harsh whisper. "I'm miserable, the boys are miserable, and I have to deal with that...that demon you brought into the world!" Heihachi laughed a bit at himself.

He always knew this would come. The evening he came home after he and Kazuya and went away to the hills, Heihachi was met by his wife, who was barely able to walk then, at the front door, and she led him to their eldest son's bedroom to show him the wounded boy. She didn't speak to Heihachi the entire night; Kazuya had told her nothing, yet she knew.

He looked up as he felt a raindrop on his forehead, and soon he was being pelted with rain. He closed his eyes and let the water beat down on him. It wasn't long before sky faded from white into a bright rose, indicating that it was nearly sunset. He opened his eyes and looked out again.

The world looked beautiful, the way it was intended. The warm gentle pink glow that was over everything and the soothing sounds of water drumming over the rocks below and on the grass. The image of it all burned itself into him, into the back of his mind, and his memories. He could see Kazue's gentle smile infused in it all.

Maybe she had loved him.

Heihachi turned around to see Kazuya standing and staring at him. He looked normal again, however, he glared coldly at the older man, his hands resting at his sides in loose fits.

"You said you were going to kill me," Heihachi chuckled.

"I will." Kazuya's face stayed the same as his father took stance. "You won't hurt anyone else in this world."

"You don't get it, do you?" the older man laughed; Kazuya slipped into the same stance. "You're a monster, Kazuya. A monster. You'll hurt far more people than I ever will."

"Shut up."

"Your mother knew damned well what you were going to be long before you were born--"

"--Shut up!--"

"--She knew that bringing you into the world was wrong. She knew you weren't human--"
"--SHUT UP!" Kazuya slammed his fist into his father's jaw that sent him stumbling back; the heel of the older man's foot hung off the edge of the cliff, though he solidly went back in the stance before charging at the boy with quick upper cut that grounded Kazuya. The younger man promptly kepped back to his feet then hit Heihachi with a scissor kick that him in the shoulder and brought the older man to his knees.

Heihachi winced in pain, but in his state managed to sweep Kazuya's feet out from under him. But before the younger man could touch the ground, Heihachi grabbed him and threw him over his shoulder, flinging the boy over the cliff.

Kazuya grabbed the edge and clung desperately for his life.

"Well, now," Heihachi said as he walked up to the edge. He stopped and peered over at his son, who struggled to hold on to the rocky edge; the boy's fingers were slipping. "You're were saying something about killing me?" The older man lifted a foot and dug down into Kazuya's injured right hand; his knuckles started bleeding again, and he screamed out in pain. His fingers flailed out as he tried to free it from underneath the sharp heel of his father's shoe.

"You're no stronger than you were then!" The elder Mishima's foot lifted up again and again, as he bashed down repeatedly on the bloody hand. "Maybe this time, you'll stay down!" One final kick and the hand flew backwards, violent swinging Kazuya's body to the left as he hung on with on hand now. The sky darkened as the sun set, turning the clouds nearly black, and the rain began to beat down harder, making it much more difficult for younger Mishima to hold on.

Heihachi stepped casually over to the hand that was keeping the boy from falling and slowly lifted his foot.

He smiled down fondly at his son, "This is for the best," and smashed down on Kazuya's knuckles.

Kazuya gritted his teeth, and with all his strength, swung his right hand up and grabbed Heihachi's ankle. He yanked hard, pulling the older man off balance and sent him falling forward, and Heihachi out a sharp yell as Kazuya held him up by the leg then released his grip and swung to safety as the older man fell down on to the rocks below.

Kazuya didn't look down as he pulled up his right hand near his left. He dragged himself to up to the top of the cliff and collapsed from exhaustion. It was a few minutes before he stood and numbly walked away.

It was well past midnight when Kazuya came home, soaking wet, and he found Lee, smoking in the breakfast room as usual. The boy was shirtless and wearing his pajama bottoms, and sat looking at Heihachi's books with a perplexed look on his face. He looked up at his brother then glanced down at the older boy's bloodied fists before he went back to his reading.

"You know, I don't get how you and Dad can do this every night. It's so fucking boring," Lee commented, not looking up as he took the cigarette from his mouth, and smoke escaped from his nostrils.

"Yeah, it is..." A grin came across the younger man's face as he flipped a page in the large leather binder.

"By the way, Anna says call her. She's worried."

"Thanks," Kazuya replied flatly.

"No prob."

"You came back." Kazuya pulled out a chair and sat down slowly. "Why?"

The younger boy finally looked up, still smiling, and he let out a chuckle. "A few reasons. Met this cute girl a few days ago, only have a semester left..." His voice trailed as he leaned back in his seat and took a long drag from his cig. Kazuya sat rigidly, his hands resting on the table.

Lee's smile softened, "...You."