Side Quest: Evil Has Many Faces

“Teruya Isao. I did my homework on him,” Rose said, showing her laptop to Jackie, dressing up for the night. She showed a picture of the Japanese thug. Shaven head, mean stare into the camera in his mugshot. He had brown eyes, and tattoos from head to toe. Literally. “He’s part of the Japanese Yakuza. Not an important guy but he’s here for a reason. But he has a temper. He’s a sex fiend. Stories of him forcing happy endings at massage parlors, arrests made for sexual assault, everything.” She clicked through to show a picture of his house, a penthouse on the nice side of New York. “He lives here. As for which one, I don’t know. You’d have to find out once you get there.”

Jackie nodded, wearing his bandana the normal way firstly and equipping his wool gloves, cut fingerless. His nose was still crooked but free from the bandage. His shoulder wasn’t wrapped, just a cute little bandaid left. “Of course. Wouldn’t have it any other way. I love a good hunt.” It was like a switch flipped. The last upgrade for his tool kit was a military grade knife he found in his closet. After sharpening, it was ready for repurpose. He left for the night, the tech jacket hiding his body armor and pistol. The benefit of a bandana is it can be pushed up, allowing him to hide the eye holes as he wore it the typical way you wear a bandana. As he got on the late bus, feeling the cold due to a lack of heating he wondered why Yakuza would show up here. For decades the Italian Mob ruled NY. For now, he worried about completing Rose’s favor.

One he reached the penthouse, with many floors to different houses, from 1-10. After walking inside he looked at the mail boxes. Isao was seen, next to the number eight. Jackie smiled, lowering his mask to allow Ultraviolence to take form. He entered the elevator, hit eight, and rode up. The hallways were quiet. It reeked of high-end. Marble floors, spotless. The smell of vanilla. He walked down the hall, reaching the end where the door was. Pulling his knife out, he knocked twice then waited on the side away from the peephole. A few moments later, Teruya opened the door.

He was wearing just pants, looking half out of it. Jackie rushed in and tried to jam the knife in his throat, but Teruya blocked it, the two stumbling into the oriental penthouse, filled with Teruya’s legacy and heritage. Too bad there was a line of coke and a screaming woman hopped up on heroin screaming as the two fell, with Jackie on top. He tried to thrust the blade again, but Teruya was staying strong, holding the knife in place as they struggled for control. Teruya was high off his ass, his manic eyes and stunted breathing dominating the sound. Other than the panicked noise of a girl smart enough to not call the police.

Teruya wrestled the blade away, skipping across the floor. He kicked Jackie off and kipped up, wiping his nose. They clashed, Teruya throwing a fast punch too fast for Jackie to block, followed up with a spinning kick that sent him flying to the wall. Teruya tried to punch again, but Jackie dodged it, letting him punch the hard concrete wall. The sickening crack of bone echoed through the apartment, but Teruya was too high to care. Jackie countered with a knee to the gut, bending him over. Jackie then grabbed Teruya’s head and rammed it through the glass statue of old armor. His body crashed and collapsed as glass rained down on him.

But Teruya was far from done. He rose slowly. blood from little cuts on his body, the feeling of glass entering his bare feet, he ignored it all. He charged Jackie relentlessly with repeated punches, blows he couldn’t see, as they hit his face repeatedly. Jackie’s lip was busted wide, but he finally was able to block a blow intended for the head. Teruya immediately countered with a shot to the legs and repeated punches to his sides. Teruya kicked Jackie in the gut near the wall and slammed his head against it. His head leaking blood. He was properly stunned, slumped over. Ears ringing, double vision. But he had to clear it as Teruya hauled him up. He was going for another punch, but Jackie stepped on his foot. The glass already wedged in there went deeper, blood pooling from his soles.

The pain was too much to bear as he yelled and fell over, holding his right leg. Teruya struggled to get up, hopping on barely one foot. Jackie proceeded to step on the other one. The squishy sound of a boot crushing a foot, glass ripping through flesh was loud enough for anyone to hear. Teruya finally went down. Jackie took advantage by stomping his head, mashing the glassed bottom on his face.

Teruya was subdued. He grabbed the man by the foot and dragged him over to the couches. He looked at the woman. “Go.” he simply said, panting, blood from his lip and nose. She listened, running out. Jackie looked at the man, unfortunately still breathing. He awakened the man, with slaps, coughing blood, pooling around his mouth. “Wake up, fucker.”

Teruya laughed weakly. “Fool. Do you know who I am?”

Jackie sighed. “No. Don’t care too much. I only care about what you did to Rin.”

Teruya struggled to get up, but the drugs were wearing off. His feet were too ruined to walk. He couldn’t even feel his legs. “I know thousands of girls, that bitch got what she deserved. It was quick. One shot to the head. I usually strangle them.” He was leaning against the couch, still on the floor. Blood pooling on the cushion.

“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure you get what you deserve.” He walked over and grabbed a glass shard.

“Violence.”

Jackie rammed it through Teruya’s head, scrambling his brain, killing the thug once and for all. After, while Jackie retrieved the knife, Ashley’s words echoed through his head.

You should be a symbol.

Symbol. What would Ultraviolence’s symbol look like? Jackie grabbed a marker and drew a simple yet effective symbol on the wall with Teruya’s dead body leaning next to it with the glass still in his head.

The letter U. Followed by the letter V. overlapping.

The symbol of violence.