The next morning's breakfast at the Asia House was awkward and divided. Im Yong, Li, and Sathaya sat in the living room while Kiku sat at the kitchen table alone.

"I know; I'll seduce Nataliya and get her to persuade Ivan to quit!" offered the Cambodian.

Li looked annoyed. "Just because you're cute and you think you're some kind of 'stud', she still wouldn't go for you. You cant get through to her creepy head just like that." She snapped her fingers for emphasis.

"I think we should charge at them and hope for the best. You know, a lightly-planned, poorly-executed surprise attack." Im Yong suggested.

"That's actually not a bad idea," Li said. "But the best martial artists around here are Yao and-" She lowered her voice to a whisper. "Kiku. But I don't think he's on our side anymore."

"How could he just betray us like that?" said an enraged Sathaya.

At this, Kiku dropped his plate in the sink and walked out the door, in search of Heracles, his safe house, his refuge.

When he found him in his mother's ruins, he was digging around for some more antiquities. He watched him for a while as e excavated a clay discus and a javelin with bloodstains still on it (apparently the thrower needed to work on his aim). He dug heartily, wiping the sweat accumulating on his brow and laying his Atlas cross on the ground next to him.

After Kiku politely interrupted him, he asked if they could talk for a minute. They walked over to their favorite bust of Zeus and Kiku began the story. He hoped he would give him some good advice, because he really needed it right then.

Ivan slammed his fists on the kitchen counter.

"How?" he screamed. "How could we just let her puck him up and leave?"

Nataliya just stared past him, looking either dazed from the pressure point or in deep thought about something.

"They're going to retaliate," she muttered

"What?" Ivan asked.

"They're going to come back at us. I don't know when, or how, or even who they'll team up with, but what you've done will have a consequence."

Ivan stared at her with a frown on his face full of contempt and confusion. "Well what do we do?"

Nataliya shifted her gaze from over his shoulder to look him eye. She blinked once, twice, shrugged and walked away.

What is she talking about? Ivan thought. With Yao out of the picture, what are those fools going to do?

"But you said-"

I said 'Why worry, why get involved, if there's nothing to worry about?'. But, Kiku, there is something to worry about, Yao, the leader of your household, is an trouble and you're taking the side of his torturer? Not only that, but you're leaving Li, Sathaya and Im Yong to fight Ivan all by themselves." Heracles became driven and spoke about defending family with a strong, powerful voice. "Isnt that in some samurai code or something? 'Never leave family behind". It should be."

"Well, I know, but I'm so passive; I don't want to get involved. Its not my business when its between Yao and Ivan." Kiku explained.

"Look. If you won't do it, then who will?" Heracles looked Kiku in the eye and sighed. "Im willing to help, but I don't know how much I can do."

"Arigatou, but… I just need to go." Kiku stood up and walked to the bottom of their hill. He turned to look at Heracles, but couldn't bear to make eye contact.

Sathaya had suggested that they become stronger in order to beat Ivan. So for days they trained to strengthen themselves. They fought harder, thought quicker, and moved faster than they ever had before. Li was the best at kicking, and, being a girl, was more flexible. She could probably lodge her foot in someone's right nostril. To get extra practice, Yao made her kick almost everything; boards, doors, random projectiles, and even a shoe salesman (he was being snappy and got on Yao's nerves).

Sathaya was good at getting close to people, so Yao trained him in close-combat fighting. Surprise punches in the nose, quick taps behind the ear and in the crook of the neck that put you to sleep, and throws across the room became frequent events in the house. His reflexes became almost inhuman, and he made sure that a simple-minded westerner wouldn't be able to keep up with him.

Im Yong got better at using weapons; no one in the household got near him unless they were sure there was nothing he could use against them. Formal weapons, like kendo sticks, swords and even a bayonet, were objects he wielded with an unsettling and threatening grace. Make shift weapons such as window panes, lamps, bats and pipes he handled with an abusive care; abusive on the receiving end, that is.

After weeks of intensive training of both body and mind, and avoiding ivan and Nataliya, Li voiced the thoughts of everyone in the house.

"I think we're ready."