The puppet master

Puppet master/noun: A person who manipulates an object to create life.

"Justice and truth are empty concept that leads to cancerous history. People have died through absolute truths. People mistake their greed as their truth and eat up the world. They chant democracy and freedom as though they were religion."- Heihachi Mishima

He is sitting in his dojo located near a rushing river. The dojo lay between two snow-capped mountains that brought a cold breeze that he could never feel. The place is quiet; it's away from the city full of false freedoms, hopes and dreams. This magnificent dojo overflowed with only reality.

His frayed gi pants and his unusually spiked hair sway against the wind. His hair use to be grey but now it was white. This place is too quiet. This was not the kind of place for him. The mountain breeze always brought whispers from the city. He tries to drown them out but they whisper loudly. [Training to become stronger. Exiled by his grandson. Driven out of his company. Too weak. ]

Too weak. He grunts and it makes his moustache twitch. Impotent idiots.

He stares at an elaborate chess game laid in front of him – the black and white chess pieces stood tall and proud on the chessboard. The formidable opponent was invisible. Mastering others is strength. Mastering yourself is true power. Tao Te Ching. He moves the black bishop into a square. He thinks back when it was his and he beams. Heihachi Mishima was Tekken. Tekken was Heihachi Mishima. He then moves the white bishop to counteract his previous move. He thinks back when Heihachi Mishima became synonym to fear. When his very own voice sent shivers down people's backs. You see what power is – holding someone else's fear in your hand and showing it to them. Lincoln. He grins much wider this time.

They think of him as someone who craves power (who will do anything to get power). Only a mad man will wake up a Aztec fighting God like Ogre (only a mad man will try to combine his power with Ogre. What a lucky, Ogre). His successors had it easy and he hates them for it. They are weak. Them and their Devil Gene. But he is much clever than they are as he always he had a plan and a tactic. He was always one-step ahead – thinking about the next move, always the next move.

He stares at the files that a security guard tentatively drops near the fallen chess pieces. Names like Eddy, Phoenix, Law, Williams, Fury and Fox stare back at him. He studies them carefully and plans his attack. He smirks. They don't know what hits them – only that they will be reacquainting themselves with the floor.

They don't know it but he is controlling each one of them. [All pawns being moved on the chessboard]. All of them, fighting, dancing, falling and moving to his plan. Their every step and every move were planned. They will fall when he wants them to fall. They will throw a punch when he wants them to throw a punch. And the beauty of all this? They don't know. Unaware fools. They don't know that he planned their lives and each of them falling into the stage of Tekken. They always come back to Tekken.

He picks the top folder and smiles at the name.

His ex-ward. [Enter pawn one]

His little project.

She made life more interesting when she was 15 and bouncing around the mansion. He still laughs at the memory of her trying to paint one of the dojos pink - that dojo is still pink.

Again, she's part of the plan. She always comes back.

He smiled at the photo attach to the report. Short. Pigtails. Annoyingly bright bracelets. Cheesy grin.

He did have a weakness for the Chinese heritage [Enter pawn three: Lee]

To tell you the truth, Heihachi thought she was going to fail and maybe, he wanted to see her fail. He doesn't know. The girl was good but not that good to win Iron fist. She wasn't a liable investment and he still not sure, what made him say yes. The girl was unfocused and the one thing that Mishimas prided themselves is their ability to focus. Without focus, they weren't able to harness the lightning energy, without focus, they wouldn't be able to win Iron fist, without focus they will not be able to run a Zaibatsu.

But.

But there was something about this girl. Many have told him the girl was careless and inability to concentrate. (Xiaoyu! Pay attention! Drop that candy, young woman! Where have you been? I said left not right! No, don't go with Panda. – you have to practise….) But, he wondered sometimes.

He wondered when she knocked out one of the toughest martial artist in the world.

He wondered when he found her training late at night in one of the dojos.

He wondered when she stared him and demanded the location of Jin Kazama.

He wondered when she abandoned her family.

She abandoned her family to get an amusement park. It was a sacrifice she made.

That. Heihachi can relate to that. (He thinks back to when he threw Kazuya down the cliff, sacrifices had to be made - he had to be stronger. He can't afford to be soft). (So you threw your son down a cliff? You didn't want to be soft. )

Holding someone else's fear in your hand and showing it to them.

Maybe, that's why he wanted to train her. Maybe he wanted a challenge and see if he can focus this girl. He knew that she could fit into his plan. But he doesn't know how.

No.

He's lying. He knew how.

He chose her because of Jin. (Enter the fourth pawn).

Back then, Heihachi could feel it. Jin is too much of a Kazama to admit that he thinks he's one of the best fighters out there. His grandson is a good fighter no doubt about it (he is a Mishima after all) but he has his weaknesses.

He was slow. She was quick.

He was focused. She was erratic.

He thought of his every move. She was impulsive.

She was perfect sparring partner.

She was strong he knew. Truth to be told, he has grown fond of her. He knows she will be hurt. Again, sacrifices had to be made. He's sure she will understand that.

He scans her page and snorts. Jin Kazama was littered all over her report. (All part of the plan).

He shakes his head as he thinks of his grandson's father. What a waste. Batting eyelashes and a few kind words by a floozy in a white dress easily influenced Kazuya. That's all it took his child to lose focus and forget the bigger picture. A floozy he could not control or intimidate.

His grandson was growing too much like his father. (Perfect, he inwardly smirks).

He thought of that too. In case, his grandson is exactly like his father - he was ready. Enter pawn one (Ling Xiaoyu meet Jin Kazama). He can control this one. All it takes is kind words and promises of amusement parks. If Jin happens to lose focus, he has Plan B. He can control Plan B if he has to. History will not repeat itself. He will not let it happen.

IF Jin loses focus.

Jin was much stronger. Yes, Kazuya was stronger physically but Jin was stronger mentally. The child was able to focus better than anyone he knew (well, besides himself).

He knew he had two options – groom him or kill him.

Back then, he chose to groom his grandson. This one will speak, fight and think like him. He is getting old now and he knows he cannot live forever (not that he won't try of course). He didn't make mistakes on this one. He thinks.

Jin will follow his plan.

Heihachi was powerful man with a plan for the world. His wrinkles hid what was really underneath. But he still needed more. He has to have more. He needed the world.

His moustache twitched. Correction, the world needed him. They're all begging to be saved from themselves. Prejudice cloaked as justice. Democracy decorating economic gain. What did it get you? He thinks back when he lost her. Kazumi. (That name sounded foreign in his head).He refuse to admit it but he was weak back then. (Too weak to say no, dear don't go out tonight. The city is unsafe; you know there is industrial action taking place. The strike is on…..).

Those thoughts are for the weak.

They needed a new world. The only way to do that is to destroy the current world. He made a mistake on his son, he won't (didn't) make a mistake on his grandson. The perfect heir.

It was going perfectly. The boy trained, talked and fought like him. It was going according to plan and then it happened. There was a small flash in Jin's eyes during training. The flash shouted Kazuya and he knew. He knew he had to kill his grandson. (One bullet. He couldn't find a cliff at the time). Nevertheless, Jin was a Mishima. Jin survived. Jin lived. Jin fought. (For once, he relied on the Kazama blood being stronger).

Heihachi drops the folder on the ground and moves the white queen near the king on the chessboard.

When he hears Jin bombing half of the world, he laughs.

Checkmate.

(According to plan).

Next chapter: Forget-me-not

In Germany, it was believed that those that wear forget-me-nots would not forget their lovers. According to legend, a knight and lady were walking by a river when he picked up a bunch of flowers. The armour he was wearing was so heavy that he fell into the river. As he was drowning, he threw the flowers to the lady and told her "Forget me not". To this day, the flower symbolised faithfulness and enduring love.