Chapter 6

In an instant, the zipper to her bed was ripped open.

"Ichigo! Are you alright?" Berry gasped, immediately coming to her aid.

Ichigo shook her head breathing heavily.

"What happened?"

"N-Nightmare." She gasped, wrapping her arms about herself and shivering as she gazed wide-eyed at the room at large. She couldn't get rid of those images! Every time she blinked she saw Zakuro's dismembered body, Pudding's wide, fearful eyes, Lettuce's desperate escape to no avail, Berry's chest splayed open, and worst of all, a talon creeping out from within Mint's chest cavity.

Ichigo shuddered as her stomach gave an unpleasant lurch.

"Berry!" She gasped.

"What?" The other girl questioned, hovering over her, but looking at a loss as for what to do.

As the contents of Ichigo's stomach jumped into her mouth, she pushed Berry out of the way quickly, and vomited onto the floor.

Whether it was from years of seeing her mother work with patients, or if it was just something that didn't bother her, Berry didn't jump out of the way, or look in disgust at the mess Ichigo had made. Instead, she continued to stand over her, and ran a hand soothingly down her back as she continued to be sick, speaking to her in a soft voice.

"Don't worry, just let it out. I'll get something to clean it. There you go. Easy. Deep breaths."

Ichigo gasped, her throat burning from her stomach's acid as she allowed herself to fall back into the bed. Berry stayed with her the entire way, stacking the pillows so that Ichigo was in a reclined position before pulling up her blankets and tucking them in around her.

"No," Ichigo groaned, throwing the blankets off and wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, "I need to wash this off."

Berry nodded and helped her climb out of the bed, careful to avoid the puddle of vomit, and guided her to the bathroom.

The lights instantly flickered on when they entered, casting shadows across the lavatory and basin.

Ichigo turned to the sinks, which were aligned with a number of buttons, each labeled in the waulrinswi's language.

Picking randomly, Ichigo pressed a light green button that sent a quick jet of water straight into her face. Sputtering, and spitting out a mouthful of water into the basin, Ichigo wordlessly accepted the towel Berry passed to her.

"I'm going to go get some cleaning supplies from one of the closets I found earlier." Berry told her, "Are you going to be alright?"

Ichigo nodded, wiping her face clean with the towel.

"I'll be right back."

Ichigo glanced shakily into the mirror. She looked as sick as Mint had in her dream before… Her stomach lurched unpleasantly again. With a groan, she slumped against the counter, pressing the damp cloth to her forehead as she tried to suppress the images from her dream, but it was of no use. They continued to linger in the forefront of her mind, lurking like a creature of the night, waiting for its chance to strike. She was definitely not going to be able to sleep the rest of the night.

She heard the door slide back open as Berry returned, so she dropped the towel back in the sink and left the bathroom to help her clean. However, before she could kneel down to help, Berry waved her off.

"You're as white as a sheet and you're shaking." Berry said, pulling on some gloves she'd found with the cleaning supplies and searching through the materials provided, "Go get something to eat."

"I can help you first." Ichigo insisted.

"Go." Berry ordered, pointing a gloved finger at the door.

Sighing in defeat, Ichigo turned on her heel and left.

She wasn't exactly sure where she was going, but by the time she recognized the area she was in, she'd found herself at the main entrance. The lights were still on, casting the room in a warm glow.

Taking in her surroundings, Ichigo realized she wasn't the only one awake.

Kish sat in the furthest corner of the room in a plush armchair, a book propped open in his lap. He looked exhausted with dark circles under his golden eyes, heavy lids, and the way he sat, slumped in the chair with a mug full of a steaming drink on the table in front of him.

He glanced up as she approached.

"Hey, couldn't sleep?" She asked, taking the armchair next to him.

Kish marked his place and set aside his book before answering.

"No, you?"

"No," Ichigo confirmed, trying to read the title, but again realizing it wasn't in her language.

"Are you alright?" Kish asked, golden eyes scanning her sickly parlor.

"Fine." Ichigo said dismissively.

Kish narrowed his eyes.

"Fine," Ichigo conceded, "I woke up with a nightmare and was sick. Happy?"

"Thrilled." He replied sarcastically.

"Why are you up?"

"Same reason." He told her, rubbing his eyes.

"Oh."

A silence fell between them as Ichigo sat there fiddling with the skirt of her dress. Kish took a drink out of whatever he had in his mug. It smelled fresh, almost with a hint of mint, yet it also had a strong odor she couldn't quite place.

"Would you like something to drink?" Kish asked suddenly, breaking the silence.

"Oh, um, sure. What do you have?"

Kish shrugged, "Just about whatever you want probably. Do you want tea or hot chocolate?"

"What are you drinking?"

"Garralanta. It's from my home planet, Hope. It's made from the roots of the glarrook plant. You won't like it though. It's an acquired taste."

"Garralanta." Ichigo repeated, "Is that a word you made up?"

"No, it's the name of this drink." Kish scowled.

"Let me try it." Ichigo grinned, reaching towards the mug.

"Try not to spit it everywhere." Kish replied, handing it to her.

Ichigo stared at the clear brown liquid in the mug. It looked enough like tea. Thinking it couldn't be all that bad, she took a small sip.

"And that would be spitting it out every where." Kish commented dryly. The liquid had barely even touched her tongue before she'd immediately spat it out all over Kish and the coffee table. It was one of the foulest drinks she had ever tasted. It tasted like burnt rubber hiding behind the ill disguise of mint.

"That's awful!" Ichigo exclaimed, trying to scrub her tongue out with her fingers.

"Not as awful as that cotton you tried to make me eat." Kish shot back, using his pant leg to wipe off his arms.

"For the last time, it's called cotton candy, and it tastes loads better than this stuff!"

"I'm going to have to disagree." Kish replied, "So, hot chocolate or tea?"

"Hot chocolate." Ichigo stated immediately. There was no way she was taking tea if that's what it tasted like.

Kish floated over to the bar, placed what looked like a large ice cube in a clean mug, followed by chocolate powder. He then poured water inside, and in an instant, was handing Ichigo a steaming mug of hot chocolate.

Ichigo thanked him and immediately took a sip to wash her mouth out. The hot chocolate, thankfully, tasted like the instant mix she was used to.

"Do you want to talk about your dream?" He asked her.

Ichigo froze, the mug only inches from her lips before she set it back down on the table feeling troubled.

"I don't know what to really say about it." She confessed.

"Did Masaya visit you again?"

Ichigo shot him a glare as he smiled coyly at her.

"It wouldn't have been a nightmare then would it?"

"If your brain was replaying how he died it would." Kish reasoned.

Ichigo rolled her eyes, "True," she admitted, "but that wasn't even close to what happened."

"Well what did?"

Ichigo hesitated a moment. She didn't want to sound crazy or paranoid, but meeting Kish's golden gaze, she knew he wouldn't judge her so she told him. She described everything as vividly as she could remember: the forest, the sounds, the scents, the mysterious creature stalking her, Mint's screams, then all their deaths. Her breath hitched as she tried to describe what happened to Mint, visibly shaking enough that Kish took her hand and squeezed it, waiting patiently for her to finish. However, as she began to describe the creature trying to escape from Mint's chest, his face paled.

She paused, "Kish? What's wrong?"

He shook his head and gestured for her to continue. So, Ichigo continued, telling him how Mint's chest had burst open, spraying blood everywhere, and how something had been moving inside.

"I woke up screaming when this talon came out of her chest." Ichigo sobbed, "And… Kish? Really, what's wrong?"

She gripped his hand tighter, getting more worried by the second. His eyes were as wide as dinner plates.

"Kish –?"

He pushed a finger against her lips to silence her, breathed in deeply, then forced a smile.

"I'm sorry Kitty Cat, I was just shocked."

"About what?' Ichigo asked.

Kish took a deep breath.

"I haven't been able to sleep for months, Ichigo." Kish told her looking weary, "Ever since I lost my scout team, I haven't been able to close my eyes with out seeing these flashes. I… I think they're memories but I can't be sure. I remember being terrified; I heard screams and cries, and most disturbingly," He looked her straight in the eye, "I dream the same things you dreamed. One night it's Tart, the next it's Pai, and the next it's someone else I care about." He finished bitterly.

"What does it mean?" Ichigo asked, wide eyed.

Kish shook his head, "I wish I knew."

"Kish, is that what's waiting for us?"

"I'm sorry, I don't know the answer to that either. I don't remember anything. It's like every time I try to recall what happened, I get small snippets that disappear like wisps of smoke into thin air."

Ichigo shuddered, pulling her hand back and picking at her skirt again in a nervous habit.

"Ichigo." She looked up to see him gazing at her intently, "I'm not going to let anything happen to you." He promised.

Ichigo opened her mouth to respond, but fell silent when he leaned forward and kissed her forehead tenderly. She hadn't realized how cold she'd felt until the warmth from the kiss seemed to radiate across her skin.

He fell back in his chair, picking up his book as he went.

"Would you like me to read to you a bit?"

"I don't understand your language." Ichigo replied with a blush. She never really understood, until now, how beneficial it was to be multilingual.

Kish glanced at the cover, "Ah, I can try to translate it as I go."

"What's it about?"

"History."

"History?" Ichigo repeated incredulously, making a face.

"Hey, don't be so quick to knock history." Kish laughed, "Some of our most valuable lessons come from the mistakes of others, plus, some of the most crazy stories come from history, and the best part is, they're all true!"

"So, what part of history are you on?"

"Well, about a century before the end of our first world, a revolutionary war was initiated by clones. Half a century before that, cloning was legalized to obtain body parts to replace those that were damaged or failing. A great idea in theory, but the removal of any organ was almost certain death for the clone."

"That's horrible!" Ichigo gasped.

"I know." Kish agreed, "They were also not treated with the same respect as their waulrinswi counter parts. You see, each clone had a symbol that marked them as being sub-waulrinswi." He flicked through the pages of the book and came across an image of a group of clones. To Ichigo, they looked like a normal group of waulrinswi: large ears and vibrantly colored hair and clothing. She wouldn't have noticed anything if it weren't' for the arrows pointing towards their eyes. She pulled the book onto her lap to get a closer look. The pupils were shaped differently. They were not feline like Kish's, but rounded. Her eyes trailed to the following picture, which was an enlarged image of the eyes. There was an insignia inscribed into the pupil, featuring a large, lizard-like creature with a multitude of heads, a hydra. The hydra was twisted around itself so that it was difficult to tell which neck connected to which head, but put together, they hydra formed a shield shape. All of this, Ichigo noted, was inscribed in a faint triangle.

"That's the symbol of the cloning capital." Kish informed her.

Ichigo made a face in disgust, "They were branded so others knew they were different?"

Kish opened his mouth to reply when the craft suddenly shuddered. The two of them jumped to their feet as the floor shook beneath them.

"What's going on?" Ichigo yelled over the rumble.

Without warning, the craft suddenly flipped. Ichigo found herself suspended comically on the floor (now the ceiling), before she fell, plummeting to the ground. However, her fall was cut short when she landed on something soft.

Ichigo groaned, pushing against something that felt like skin. She gasped, leaping back, a hand flying to her mouth as Kish groaned, rubbing his head from where he'd hit it on the edge of the coffee table.

"Gosh Ichigo." He sniggered, cracking open an eye to look at her. She was still on top of him, accidently straddling him, "I know you were anxious, but don't you think this is a bit soon?"

Ichigo gaped at him, "What?"

"Well, he just passed away didn't he? But I suppose you couldn't resist my charms for too long eh?" Kish smirked, winking at her.

Ichigo's face purpled in rage.

SMACK!

Kish's face was slammed violently into the floor, the left side of his face sporting a flaming red handprint.

"Whoa! Ichigo! Hold up!" Kish called after her as she stomped towards the stairs, "I was just kidding! I'm sorry!"

Ichigo stopped short, her small hands fisted in rage, "I can hardly breath from laughing." She snarled over her shoulder, before storming up the staircase.

Everyone met in the training room at six sharp the next morning. Besides Kish and Ichigo, everyone else looked well rested after a good night's sleep.

"Ok," Pai began, standing in the middle of the group of Mews, "Today we're going to focus on survival skills. There are six major components to survival. Do any of you know them?"

"ME!" Pudding exclaimed shrilly, jumping into the air and waving her hand back and forth as if worried Pai wouldn't see here.

For a moment Pai looked like he'd love nothing more than to push her through the air lock and let her suffocate in space, but quickly pulled back his stoic mask and nodded for her to answer.

"Shelter, food, water, fire, candy, and money!" Pudding recited happily.

Zakuro slapped her palm to her forehead.

"Not quite." Pai replied, "You are correct with four of them. Shelter, food, water, and fire are essential to a human's survival, however, when stranded in the middle of uncharted territory, I hardly think candy and money will come in handy. No, the other two are attitude and naturalist skills. Ironically enough, those are the two your group would find lacking." His eyes rested on Ichigo accusingly as he said this. AS their leader, it was her fault that they didn't know this. Ichigo merely glared back. She was not going to put up with Kish's crap, and she was most certainly not going to put up with Pai's piss poor attitude, "As such, we will split into groups of three. As you know from your tour, each door leads into a different type of environment. Your teachers: Tart, Kish, and myself, will instruct you in each terrain in how to survive. Teams are as follows: With Kish, Berry and Ichigo. With Tart, Pudding and Zakuro, and with me, Lettuce and Mint. Pay attention, and no goofing off." He sent a warning glare in Tart and Pudding's direction, "Any questions?"

Pudding's hand shot into the air.

"What?" Pai ground out through clenched teeth. Ichigo had to muffle her laugh. She could practically see his veins throbbing in annoyance.

"When's breakfast? My tummy's rumbling."

"When I say so. Dismissed."

Laughing heartily, Pudding followed swiftly after Tart into one of the doors, followed, rather reluctantly, by Zakuro. Pai opened another door, and bowed respectfully to Lettuce and Mint as they entered. When everyone had left, Kish cleared his throat.

"So, I guess we're all in a group." He grinned, approaching Ichigo and Berry.

Ichigo glared daggers at him as he approached. She still hadn't forgiven him for his jab at her disloyalty to Masaya.

Kish's ears drooped.

"Are you still mad about last night?"

Her eyes narrowed.

"I'll take that as a yes…" Kish sighed, while Berry glanced back and forth between them looking hopelessly confused.

"Look, Ichigo, I said I was sorry." Kish tried.

Ichigo cleared her throat; "I believe you're supposed to be teaching us something right now." She said coldly, her gaze never faltering.

"Fine." Kish replied, equally as icy, "Follow me." He started across the training room. Ichigo waited for Berry to take the first step before following.

"What happened?" Berry whispered, falling into step beside her.

"Nothing." Ichigo muttered, still glaring holes through the back of Kish's skull.

"I can tell." Berry snorted sarcastically.

"I don't want to talk about it." Ichigo replied, stopping a fair distance away when Kish halted before a door. He entered a sequence into a keypad by the door, which blinked green, then slid open with a soft hiss.

Kish stepped aside, gesturing for the two girls to enter first.

Ichigo stalked past him into a room that looked like an exact replica of the forest in her dreams. She stopped dead in her tracks, her anger evaporating instantly as her wide eyes soaked in the dense forestry covered by a dense canopy. It was exact down to the detail of the sponginess of the floor, the hum of the insects, and even the call of the fauna that drifted through her ears on a non-existent wind.

"So, as Pai was saying, one of the most major components to survival is attitude. When you find yourself stranded it is imperative that you do. Not. Panic." Kish emphasized as the doors slid closed behind them.

Ichigo immediately crossed her arms, doing her best to look annoyed rather than panicked at his choice of room.

"Your attitude in such situations can be remembered by the three I's: I can. I will. I did. It is completely possible to survive off the land around you, and it's important to know what you can do in order to be efficient in such situations. So, you must be wondering why I brought you here," He gestured towards the room at large, about to answer the exact question Ichigo had silently been asking, "Firstly, this room is most like the environment we'll be encountering when we land." Ichigo's heart froze. She had never been to a tropical rainforest. Why had she dreamed she was in one? What's more, how could she have possibly been able to subconsciously dream of a planet she'd never been to or hardly even seen? "Secondly, a forest bares the most adequate tools for survival. Pudding already named off four of the major components in the training room. Look around, and tell me what resources you think…Ichigo, are you alright?"

Ichigo quickly whipped the panic look from her features.

"Fine!" She replied, hoping to sound dismissive.

"Ok… well, look around and let me know what resources you think you can use to your advantage."

Forcing herself not to relive her nightmare as she glanced around, Ichigo surveyed the area. The large, leafy plants offered amble shelter, twigs, wood, and dead objects that littered the forest floor could be used as fuel for a fire. However, looking around, she did not know what kinds of plants were edible, nor did she see any sign of water. Great, she was already fifty percent dead.

"The leaves can be strung together to make a shelter." Berry said slowly, "And in a rain, some of those should collect and hold water…"

"Good." Kish complimented.

"The twigs and dead vegetation should be flammable enough to create a fire." Ichigo added.

Kish nodded, slowly for a moment, then shook his head.

"Yes and no." He explained, bending down to pick up a twig. He held it out to Ichigo, "Try to break it with as little force as possible."

Ichigo took the twig, careful not to brush her skin against his. Already she could tell why her theory wouldn't work. The wood was damp. She bent it slightly, and pliably it followed. The twig, though dead, was saturated with water.

"If the wood is saturated with water the fire will not be able to burn."

Ichigo nodded, but she hadn't really heard him. She was staring at the twig, eerily reminded of what she had told him about her dream. The twigs had been soaked in water, yet easily snapped by the creature that followed her. She suppressed a shudder and forced herself to keep listening.

They listened for over an hour as Kish explained to them the advantages and disadvantages of surviving in a tropical forest environment. The most important was that water was everywhere, collected in the leaves, stored in the trunks of trees, the ground, and how to find a source of water by following the abundance of moss. For food, in which neither of them had been able to offer an example, Kish showed them certain flowers in which they could drink the nectar, chew the petals, and various fruits and vegetables that were safe to eat. He also compared these with the poisonous vegetation, including sweet looking flowers that caused the throat to swell, plants that, when touched, resulted in a nasty rash, and explained the toxicity of some small brown plants they found that looked like mushrooms, except they consistantly opened and closed behaving more like plants from the coral reef.

Once Ichigo and Berry were feeling more confidant in what was safe to consume, he showed them how to position leaves to provide a temporary shelter.

"However," he told them in a warning tone, "Most predators find their prey on the ground. If you're able to, taking shelter in a tree offers several great vantage points. The leaves will shield you and, if you're lucky, a lot of predators cannot reach you. Even if they tried, you'd have plenty of warning before they can actually get to you."

"So, you're telling us to sleep in a tree?" Ichigo asked for clarification.

"Yep."

"What happens if we move in our sleep and fall out of it?"

"You won't have to worry about being eaten alive." Berry teased, cracking a smile; "You'll be dead when you hit the ground."

Ichigo and Kish laughed, until Kish pointed back at the trees.

"See those vines? If you don't have a rope you can use vines to tie yourself to a sturdy branch."

"And if there's no vines?"

"You either A, don't sleep, or B, don't sleep in a tree." He replied. He then continued on with explain how to collect firewood, and even demonstrated how to start a fire. After instructing and overseeing both of them make a fire, Pai popped his head in and informed everyone that it was time for breakfast.

Ichigo's stomach growled at the mere mention of the word. Upon asking Kish for the time, she was surprised to find that they'd been at training for over three hours. How had she not noticed?

Unlike the night before, breakfast was a rather small spread. Presented on the table was a large basket of muffins, a jug of water, cups, and another steaming beverage that had a slight hint of mint to its scent. Ichigo's nose wrinkled as she recognized it as garralanta. Next to the muffins were fruits, thankfully, ones she recognized, and a bowl full of a sickly looking green, Jell-O substance. She eyed it curiously as she took her seat at the table.

"Eat quick." Pai instructed, "After this will be hunting and scavenging instruction."

"How many things do we have to learn?" Ichigo muttered under her breath to Berry.

"Probably a lot." Berry replied, "If you think about it, all of what we're learning now was second nature to our ancestors."

"But why do they think we need to know the basics? Assuming Kish wasn't lying when he was telling us about the waulrinswi's history, then they should have a far superior, advanced nation."

"Not necessarily." Kish interrupted, squeezing into the spot in between them, "True, on our home planet, we were much more advanced, but with the planet's apocalypse, we lost its valuable resources and all the advancements that couldn't fit onto the ships. Therefore, finding a new planet was like starting from scratch. In other words," he spoke over Ichigo's attempt to interrupt, "you're learning basic survival skills because there is no civilization to go to."

"No civilization?" Ichigo repeated dumbstruck, "Then how are the waulrinswi living?"

"Like what your race would call nomads." Kish explained, "Everyone is currently on the move since the last ship, aside from this one, was destroyed. The problem is, whatever's out there has also been following."
Ichigo gulped, the shadow of green flashing through her mind's eye.

"Do you really think our abilities will make much of a difference?" Berry asked in a soft voice.

"Of course we do." Kish smiled reassuringly, "We wouldn't have returned to earth and bothered training you if we didn't."

True to Pai's word, they spent the remaining hours until lunch learning hunting and scavenging. This time they had switched teachers, so now Berry and Ichigo were under Pai's instruction. Though short and cynical, Pai worked on teaching them how to tie snares, set traps, as well as how to use an old hunting trade: the bow and arrow. However, when he instructed them to shoot and kill simulated rodents, both of the girls flew into hysterics. Pai, not understanding what had them so worked up, took the bow from Berry and shot a fake rabbit straight through the eyes. Ichigo and Berry screamed in horror, even as it disappeared.

"Your turn." He said flatly, handing the bow back to Berry.

Berry took it, her hands trembling, looking close to tears.

"You eat meat don't you?" He asked when the arrow Berry had tried to grasp slipped through her fingers.

"Ye-Yes, but I've n-never h-had to k-kill it." Berry whimpered, bending down to retrieve the offending object.

At Pai's look of confusion, Ichigo haltingly explained to him how animals were raised and taken to slaughter houses, then went through the meat packing industry. Hunting, now a days, was for sport.

Pai swore under his breath, muttering words that sounded like "despicable" and "no honor".

After over an hour of trying to get the girls to actually hold the arrow up and hit the target, Pai gave up and started teaching them to scavenge for food, that way they could take comfort in the fact that they killed a plant rather than an animal. However, he quickly gave up on this endeavor when the two of them were to frightened to even taste the food for fear he was mistaken and giving them something poisonous. He hated having to constantly explain how he knew what was edible.

It wasn't until late in the evening that all of them were called together to begin their weapons training.

"Aside from your basic survival skills, this is going to be your most important means of survival. Whatever is out there will kill without blinking an eye. You need to be prepared to be just as lethal.

"However, we will not begin with weapons just yet. A weapon is useless if you do not have the power of your body behind it… yes?"

Mint lowered her hand, "Yeah, I was just wondering, what happens if the ship flips and we have all these dangerous weapons out?"

Pai opened his mouth to respond, then closed it looking stumped.

Ichigo glanced at all the waulrinswi in time to see them exchange a guilty shrug.

"Never thought of that before." Kish chuckled sheepishly.

"So what happens?" Lettuce blanched.

"Hope you're good at dodging!" Tart exclaimed, pouncing on Pudding and sending the pair of them tumbling to the ground in a fit of hysterics.

"Enough!" Pai roared, causing them all to jump. He addressed Mint, "Normally this ship does not have the gravity on, not to mention the majority of our species has the ability of flight. In light of the present circumstances, everyone's just going to have to be extra careful when handling the weapons."

"The ship will generally shudder before it flips too." Kish supplied, "If Pai, Tart, or I feel that, we can intervene immediately."

Ichigo surveyed her teammates. All of them looked far from being reassured.

"If you normally don't have the gravity, why is it on for us?' Zakuro asked.

"As I said last night, to make you feel more at home."

"But why would you normally not have it on?"

"Because it uses up a lot of energy!" Tart exclaimed before Pai could respond, "Geez, I thought you were the smart one."

Mint, Pudding, and Ichigo shouted him down at once.

"Shut up Taruto!"

"She is the smartest!"

"Don't talk about Zakuro that way or it will be the last thing you ever do!"

"Enough!" Pai repeated, rubbing his temples in an aggravated manner.

Everyone instantly fell silent, but Mint was still glaring heatedly at Tart.

"I'll sort out the problems with the gravity and the weapons another time. For today, we'll be focusing on hand-to-hand combat. It's just as important to be able to fight with out a weapon. Split into your groups and get started."

They split up, Berry and Ichigo following Kish, who led them a little ways through the room to another door. This time, when he opened it, Ichigo was greeted with the welcoming arms of a pleasant meadow, seeming to stretch beyond the dimensions of the room into rolling hills. The artificial sky was somehow able to capture the warmth of a brilliant summer day, and the tall swaying grass brushed against her hands as she ran her fingers through it.

"Ok, let's begin."

Kish patiently lead them through the basic martial arts stances, taught them how to block, dodge, and attack. Ichigo wasn't sure if it was her cat like reflexes or experience in battle, but she moved through the exercises Kish planned for them with ease. It was easy for her to predict his strikes and lunges, to avoid, then counter attack with a strike of her own.

Berry, however, seemed to struggle a lot more. Her reflexes were extremely undeveloped, bordering on being too late. She couldn't maneuver easily between offense and defense, and a lot of the time; she didn't even realize when she had been given the upper hand. After trying, unsuccessfully, to get her to be more aggressive and put power into her strikes, Kish settled on giving her punches and kicks to work on, and sent her to practice on her own with a small shrub as a punching bag. He watched her for a few minutes, checking her form, and tweaking her approach until she began to show improvement. When it looked like she was getting the hang of it, he told her to keep practicing and returned to continue the lesson with Ichigo.

"Ok, are you up for some sparring?" Kish asked her.

Ichigo nodded eagerly.

"Alright, the rules are, no weapons, physical strength only."

Ichigo frowned.

"That already puts me at a disadvantage then." She remarked, "You're way stronger than me."

"Good." Kish nodded with a smile, "Find out how to use my strength against me."

Ichigo opened her mouth to exclaim, "That's not fair!" But quickly had to block a punch Kish had aimed for her abdomen. The force knocked her backwards, sending her toppling to the ground. She instantly rolled out of the way as Kish landed heavily on his heels where she had been only moments before. Ichigo quickly regained her footing, leaped, twisted in the air, and caught Kish with a sharp kick to his shoulder blade. Absorbing the blow, Kish wrapped his hands around her ankle and used her own momentum against her, sending her flying into the grass. Ichigo groaned upon impact.

"Think. Come up with a plan." Kish instructed, waiting patiently for her to get back up.

Ichigo stood back up, clenching her fists.

Kish moved first, teleporting directly behind her and kicking her harshly in the small of her back.

Ichigo cried out, falling forward, but then turned her fall into a handspring. She landed stealthily, then pushed off from the ground, fists raised. She closed the distance between them with ease, bringing her fists down on Kish's nose, only to be blocked instead with a quick defense from his forearms. Kish instantly turned the tables, punching her squarely in the shoulder. Ichigo gritted her teeth, allowing the punch to spin her around were she was then able to return the favor with a straight on kick into his rib cage.

The two of them leapt apart, Ichigo breathing heavily; Kish only looking slightly winded.

Ichigo shifted her weight on the balls of her feet. Now she had a plan.

She dashed back in. Kish instantly brought up his arms to defend. As she suspected, he blocked her first three strikes, and by the fourth, retaliated with one of his own. Ichigo feigned to the left, were Kish instantly struck. Ducking beneath his fist and closing the distance between them, Ichigo threw all her force into an upper cut to Kish's jaw. The force of the blow sent Kish staggering backwards until he tripped over his own feet and fell to the ground.

Ichigo smiled triumphantly.

"How's that for forming a plan?" She jeered.

Kish didn't respond. In fact, he hadn't moved.

Ichigo crossed her arms still smirking.

"Well?"

Nothing.

Now she was getting worried. Her smile faded from her face. He couldn't be that sore of a loser could he?

"Kish, what's the matter?" She asked, walking over to him, "Cat got your tongue?" She tried to joke, placing her hand on his shoulder.

Kish's hand shot up with inhuman speed, fastening around her neck. Without a chance to even exclaim in surprise, she was flipped roughly onto her back, Kish straddling her as his grip on her throat tightened.

Ichigo coughed at the impact, her hands gripping at Kish's, trying to loosen his vice-like grip.

"Kish… what the hell?" She coughed, her nails digging into his flesh as his grip got impossibly tighter. She cracked her eyes open, only to be frozen in fear at what she saw.

The bright humor had left Kish's eyes. Instead, they were cold and humorless, his slit like pupils barely recognizable. His teeth were bared like a feral dog's, and a low rumbling growl emitted from his throat.

"Kish?" Ichigo squeaked.

He only raised his hand in response, fingers poised in a lethal manner.

Ichigo's eyes widened. As his hand came down, aiming for her face, Ichigo barely managed to bring up her legs and knee Kish in the groin. Instead of connecting with her face, Kish's hand sunk into the ground, dislodging its contents.

Ichigo's heart shuddered in her chest as she stared in terror at the fist just inches away from her hand. He had been aiming to kill her!

Ichigo brought up her fist and punched him across the face, followed by freeing her legs and kicking him off of her. She rolled over coughing, filling her lungs with oxygen. Catching movement out of the corner of her eyes, she quickly pulled her feet under her and jumped out of the way as Kish landed where she had been seconds before, breaking the ground and uprooting the vegetation.

"Kish, what are you doing?" Ichigo shrieked, falling into a defensive stance.

Kish merely straightened jerkily, his eyes narrowed in concentration.

Ichigo's heart thundered in her ears. She had to get Berry and herself out of there.

Ichigo shot off to her right, making a beeline for Berry.

Kish snarled and followed in quick pursuit.

Ichigo glanced back, adrenaline coursing through her veins. Reaching Berry, she grabbed the girl by her upper arm, ignoring her questions and protests at the sudden action.

"Shut up and run!" Ichigo yelled to her.

Berry spared a glance behind them to find Kish in hot pursuit looking deranged. Her eyes dilated in fear and she no longer tried to slow down.

"What happened?" She screamed.

"I don't know! He's gone crazy!" Ichigo exclaimed, sprinting for the door. If they got out of the door in time, they could lock him in.

Upon reaching the door, Ichigo slammed her hand against the button to open it. It hissed as it slid open. Ichigo all but threw Berry out of if, following close behind. She jabbed at the button on the other end to close the door immediately, and watched with baited breath as Kish got ever closer. He was barreling towards them like a deranged bull. Just as Ichigo prepared to run again, the door closed instantly and Kish hit it with a sickening thud.

Both girls stared at the door wide-eyed and gasping for air. They made it. They actually made it.

Ichigo breathed a sigh of relief, only to tense in panic as a loud bang from the door shook the entire floor.

"What's going on?" Berry cried, staring in horror at the door.

Ichigo shook her head in bewilderment.

"I have no idea." She whispered mortified.

Both of them shrieked when a hole was suddenly blasted through the metal door, followed by a clawing hand that groped for its victims. A feral growl emitted from the other end before the rest of the metal door was blasted from its hinges.

Ichigo and Berry dropped to their stomachs as the door flew over their heads and crashed into the opposite wall with a resounding bang.

As the debris settled, Kish appeared smiling with insanity. His eyes zeroed in on Ichigo.

Terrified, Ichigo leaped to her feet, fingers reaching into her dress pocket to retrieve her pendant.

She dodged again when Kish leaped at her, his impact leaving a dent in the floor. Flipping over his head, she kissed her pendant, instantly transforming into Mew Ichigio.

Feeling braver in this form, she pushed off the wall, and slammed full force into Kish, sending him crashing into the opposite wall.

"Berry run!" Ichigo yelled, positioning herself between the deranged alien and her friend.

"What? And leave you alone?" Berry shrieked.

"Yes! Get help!"

Kish leaped for her again.

Ichigo brought up her forearms in defense, but the blow still sent her careening into another door, which bent upon impact. Ichigo cried out in pain, feeling a wet, sticky substance sliding through her hair.

"Ichigo!" Berry yelled.

"What's going on here?" Pai exclaimed, emerging from a door down the hall.

"HELP!" Berry and Ichigo both shouted, before Kish rammed into Ichigo again, resuming his chokehold.

Ichigo coughed, reflexively head-butting him since he was within close proximity. He staggered back letting go. Ichigo followed, preparing to punch him when he grabbed her by the fist and threw her against one of the weapons racks. The barrier repelled her from it, sending her sprawling to the floor.

"Kish stop! What are you doing?" Pai exclaimed, instantly running forward to subdue him. He teleported behind him grabbed his wrists and held them tightly behind his back as Berry ran to Ichigo's aid.

"You're supposed to be teaching them, not trying to kill them!" Pai screamed.

Kish snarled in response, throwing his head back and hitting Pai in the nose. Taking advantage of the distraction, Kish ripped himself out of Pai's hold and backhanded him, as if swatting away an annoying insect, sending his friend crashing into the rock wall.

"What's happening?"

"What's going on?"

Ichigo heard her team mates yell as they appeared from their perspective rooms.

Kish swiveled around at the sudden noise, growling deeply.

Ichigo scrambled to her feet, shrugging off Berry's offered hand. She had to lead him away before any one else got hurt!

Kish's eyes instantly flickered to her as she moved, his growl deepening.

"That's right." She thought savagely, "Come after me." And with that, she took of at a wild sprint. As she expected, Kish tore after her before any of the others could stop him.

Ichigo skidded around the bend, punching a random door as she did, and threw herself into the room it provided. It must've been another training room, for large metal walls seemed to section off the area like a maze. A cold, metallic maze.

With out spending much time to drink in her surroundings, Ichigo tore into its interior, taking turns at random and keeping low to the ground.

After it began to feel like she couldn't go any farther, Ichigo slumped against a wall breathing heavily. Her cat ears swiveled back and forth, listening, waiting. Then she heard him, hissing and snarling like a cat as he bashed against the maze structure, sending parts tumbling or ripping them apart with his bare hands until the room echoed with the sounds of screeching metal.

Ichigo's heart thumped against her chest as she pressed her back against the cold, hard, wall. A cold sweat stuck to her like a second skin. Her black tail curled in apprehension between her legs. She'd never seen Kish like this before. She'd never seen him so insane, so violent, so… intent to kill. Especially when that aggression was directed at her! What had she done?

He was getting closer. She could hear him, as well as the shouts of her friends who had finally caught up.

Ichigo gulped as several walls behind her trembled and fell. She flexed her fingers, summoning her Strawberry Bell to her aid. It instantly appeared, settling in her hand with an unfamiliar weight. Shocked, Ichigo's attention slipped from her current predicament and landed on a crystal white katana. Even though she knew next to nothing about swords, she could tell this one had been made with superior craftsmanship. The blade was slick and cleanly polished, shimmering despite the overcasting shadows of the room. The handle of the sword fitted her hand perfectly. Near the base of the blade were delicately carved strawberries cut into its pristine surface, and, dangling from the end of the handle, like a small phone charm, was her Strawberry Bell.

Where had the katana come from?

Before she had more time to ponder the sudden appearance of such a magnificent blade, a hand wrapped around her trachea and slammed her against the wall she had so recently taken refuge against.

Ichigo coughed, instantly loosing her grip on the sword, which clattered to the ground.

Kish stood before her seething.

Ichigo brought her fist up to sock him, but he deftly swatted it out of the way, snarling at her. He brought up his own fist meaning to impale her.

Ichigo squeezed her eyes shut, preparing for the end when suddenly, Kish froze.

Ichigo cracked her eyes open to see him blinking. The hand holding her by the throat disappeared, going for his own where a small dart stuck out of his neck. He blinked again, his eyes returning to normal, though he looked highly confused.

Kish glanced at Ichigo, who was rubbing her throat where the bruise of a handprint was beginning to make itself known. She was staring at him with wide, fearful eyes.

Kish's own eyes widened in horror before the sedative took effects and he fell against her into a troubled slumber.

Ichigo caught him sliding to the floor. What was happening to him?


A/N: I'm not going to even apologize for the lack of updates with chapters any more. I already warned on my profile that they would take a while to be posted. If you're wondering why though, I just started college, and I'm on the premed route. Between homework and classes, I don't have a lot of time. I was happy I was able to get this chapter out.

Any way, I'm going to shoot for a new goal, and that is to have a chapter out once a month. Don't get your hopes to high, but hopefully that'll make updates more frequent ^^"

Also, thanks to Hisoka1021 on DA for editing this chapter and I hope phanphan1 likes this new one.