Author's Note: Updates will be slow down even more as the department of education dumps more and more work on me until I finally slam into mid-term exams at the beginning of April but I'm 5 weeks away from more holidays. However, thanks to my poor immune system, I'm stuck in bed and able to pump out another chapter. I'm hoping that there's no mistakes, my head is killing me and I'm not totally with it.

Ryou: Still you find it important to write a chapter?

Note: I am Australian, and we have alternative ways of spelling certain words from America. Eg. Mum/Mom, -ise/-ize etc.

Every artist needs opinions and loves to listen to them. Please, leave behind constructive criticisms and/or thoughts on the chapters. If you think there is something wrong with the chapter, I implore you, please explain why and even suggest options and ideas for me to improve the next chapter. Even though I love writing and this is truly just writing down a world that is playing out in my head, I do want to improve my skill and see that people enjoy themselves.

Thank you.

Chapter 36: Insurmountable Struggle

The Mews stood still, frozen, the city's peaceful composure crumbling away as Keiichiro's words echoed through their mind. They tried to wrap their heads around it, tried to grasp, to comprehend the situation that they and the rest of Tokyo had been plunged into.

"Carbon monoxide? What? What is that?" Mew Ichigo asked through her Mew Pendent. She opened her mouth, breathing in deeply, her nostrils flared to pick up any scent in the air but she could only pick up the earth, thick smell of the uprooted soil, the thin yet tickling aroma of pollinating trees with the harsh, sharp smell of burning metal faintly at the back of her throat, "I can't smell anything,"

"Listen to me girls!" Keiichiro pleaded, for a second, Mew Ichigo swore that his voice shook, "Carbon monoxide is a extremely toxic gas in high concentration, it is deadly since it is colourless, tasteless and odorless. Without specific detectors and equipment it is virtually impossible to pick up! Once you breathe it in, it reacts with the oxygen in your blood and the red blood cells. It makes your red blood cells useless, unable to absorb oxygen and turns your blood acidic. In a sense it is draining all of your oxygen from the inside out! We have to find what is making the carbon monoxide and fast girls!" Keiichiro explained.

"We are going to choke to death!" Mew Mint exclaimed as Mew Pudding covered her mouth in a desperate attempted to prevent more of the odorless gas from entering her body.

"What are the more severe symptoms Akasaka-san?" Mew Zakuro asked, she was still in a strong stance but her purple eyes were slightly contracted, her fur standing up as if a chilly breeze ran up her spine. There was a bit of a pause, an uncomfortable silence. A prick of fear rose in Mew Lettuce and Mew Ichigo's gut, wondering if something had happened to Keiichiro.

If he was gone, they would have no chance.

"Nausea, dizziness, fatigue, severe headache however…" He paused for a second, taking a breath to even himself out, "The more you are exposed to it, you're heart rate will be uneven and you will experience convulsions all over the body. You have higher chance of respiratory arrest as your lungs desperately try to oxygen and you perhaps… May start to hallucinate until you fall unconscious…" The Mews went silent, each heavy word dragging down their spirits as they grasped the idea that in less then an hour, they would die.

"However, oxygen and medication will reverse the whole process…" Keiichiro added as Ryou shifted in his chair.

"Why? Why did they attack back with such a plan suddenly? This plan would have taken months to plan and carry out by those two…" Hitomi murmured, "The Mews, they… They just defeated them!" Hitomi's voice grew as she paced around the lab, still in her café uniform. Keiichiro's head sunk lower, bring up a hand and slipping it under his thick rimmed glasses to rub his eyes. His blurry brown eyes flicked back up to the screens and screens of information and various news clips as the media covered the assault. Keiichiro shook his head, half towards Hitomi but also to show pity on the masses.

'They have no idea what is going on… At this rate, things will get worse…' He thought. He glanced over at Hitomi who was just pacing around, her eyes flicking to the door as if she was wondering about running out to help before she went back to pacing. His gaze swept over Ryou who was blank, looking forward as his expression was attempting to be unreadable but Keiichiro knew him to well.

Much to well.

Ryou's eyes were glued to the screens but his mind did not register anything around him. He bit down softly on his lip as his mind ran through hypotheses of what was happening, what had happened and what might possibly happen next for them.

'They tried to eliminate the Mews quietly, one by one while using Para Para as tools however we hacked into the radio network, we defeated every Chimera Anima they threw at us and the Mews are together, able to watch each other's backs. So have they turned desperate? We have only seen two of them so far,' He thought back to the name that was carved into the strange communication device, 'Keeki… Was she in charge of the Mews? Of their base? Lettuce said that she let them out… What was her motive? What was her role…? Not to mention… Where is she now?'

Ryou's thoughts were interrupted as a swelling light enveloped Hitomi. Ryou frowned as Seeker Hitomi appeared before them. Ryou stood up, leaping almost to block the doorway.

"We don't need more of us to be in danger," Ryou bluntly stated. Seeker Hitomi have him an intense stare, her strange eyes burning him.

"You haven't stopped me before… You let me go to the Zoo that day, you let me go and find the Mews when they were captured. What is so different right now?" She asked him sternly. Ryou lowered his shoulders and head, his bright blue eyes staring her back.

"Because those times were nothing like this, you see that!" He threw his arms around the room, the screens of information and news reports under his hands, "That is what is happening, you have no way to protect yourself and once you leave the lower levels of this Café, you will be breathing in carbon monoxide," Ryou said, "You will be risking your life,"

"I knew that from the day I agreed to help you! You think I would just help you find Mews and then hang back here and not do anything? You have been sacrificing everything! You even sacrificed your humanity!" The Seeker pointed out.

"Stop it," Keiichiro called out, pulling his 'I'm the mature adult here' card out on them, "Arguing won't solve anything! Seeker Hitomi, if you wander around, without an attack to defend yourself, you will be putting more pressure on the Mews. Ryou… Help me with this please," Keiichiro's voice softened up as the blonde teenagers stopped bickering to look at him, "Seeker, see if you can see anything through television screens… The city is totally covered by film crews, see if your powers work…" Ryou, without another word sat back down in his chair, his blonde bangs settling over his eyes has he watched the screens. Seeker Hitomi kept her place, for a second, Keiichiro wondered if she was just going to ignore his words and storm out anyway but she relaxed, her arms dropping to her sides as she walked over to them, her eyes glancing over the screens.

"Yes… They do work… I can see auras of living things through the footage…" Seeker Hitomi mumbled.

"See if you can find anything strange…" Keiichiro asked her, "Anything out of the ordinary,"

"Apart from everything happening? Okay," She replied dryly. Keiichiro hoped that this task would keep her occupied while he tried to source the carbon monoxide.

'She has an amazing ability, its just her downfall that she so independent and rash. Before it was okay, rouge Chimera Animas and she could be easily protected but now we have aliens, trained warriors… What is their purpose?' He thought to himself when a news flash appeared on a few of the television screens.

"This has just come in, strange monsters, similar to the ones in Aquis-Tokyo have appeared all over Aquisfera!" A male reporter blared through the screen, trying to keep his composure as mobile phone footage of various Chimera Anima appeared and by the architecture, the language and the climate, they knew it wasn't Aquis-Tokyo but many other countries.

"What!" Seeker Hitomi gripped the back of Ryou's chair, flinging her body forward to the screen. Ryou moved his head to avoid her small bust, grimacing a little at the screens, "That… That can't be possible!"

"No… I thought this would happen eventually…" Ryou hissed as he watched the assault in the Southern Hemisphere, beyond the International Date Line. The whole planet, not just Tokyo, was under full assault.

"How are they attacking other cities on the other side of the planet? There is only t-"

"How do you know how many of them are here?" Ryou cut into Seeker Hitomi's sentence. She looked at him, panic scribbled all over her face.

"W-We have only seen-"

"Seen. We have only seen. Who knows how many they are,"

"But I've only picked u-"

"This is a totally difference race to us. They have evolved differently than us. They live and think differently. It is clear, after all, they have attacked us instead of being diplomatic," Ryou mumbled, "Who knows how many are on our planet now…"

"So what do we do? We can't fly around the world and solve all their problems. We aren't miracle workers. We aren't goddesses. We can't protect every patch of land of this planet!" Seeker Hitomi hissed.

"I know that!" Ryou snapped, "You aren't Tokyo Mew Mew for no reason. Don't worry about them, the rest of the world will be fine. We have to worry about Tokyo first," Ryou pointed out.

"How? How will they be fine?" She asked, confusion and anger stirring in her strawberry and green mint gaze.

"Seeker Hitomi," Keiichiro stepped in again, turning back to look her in the eye, "I give you our word, they will be fine. Trust us," Keiichiro smiled and it hit her that they were hiding something but as Ryou pointed out earlier, they couldn't sit still. She nodded, just accepting it like a small child before going back to her job. The Seeker's eyes then caught something, it zoomed by in a second but it flared up, screaming out to her. It gave her a sudden chill, as if death itself had his bone-cold grasp around her throat, choking her, absorbing her life.

"THERE! IN THE PARK!" She yelled, "THE CHERRY BLOSSOM TREE!"

"So, tell me why I have to wear this annoying thing?" Kish hissed, pointing to a strange green coloured metal chip that clung near the back of his teeth and to a matching one on his wrist. His finger slid over it, the strange slimy texture of it made his lips paused together in slight disgust, "I hate it when you keep things from me you know?".

"Okay, a few days ago I heard from home that they were going to send your brothers down here," Sasujiro started, resting his long rifle against his shoulder. Kish smiled at this before looking up at the sky, knowing that in mere seconds, Pie and Tart would finally be with him again.

'And I swear that I'll never let anything happen to them…' He thought to himself.

"I heard that Tart is great at manipulating Para Para to infest plants," Sasujiro smirked. Kish froze at this statement, slammed with pride and amazement for his little brother, "So I gave it a try and it worked to some extent… Instead of turning into a Chimera Anima, it did something different. It became a normal parasite to the tree. You probably know that plants use photosynthesis, turning carbon dioxide into oxygen, pumping it out for animals to breathe but do you know that plants need a slight fraction of the oxygen? Only pumping out what they don't need,"

"I feel like I'm being taught except my mind finds the idea of attack humans more interesting… Blame it on my upbringing," Kish smirked as he watched the Para Paban causing chaos, crushing the fleeing civilians like a bully playing a vengeful god with ants.

"Anyway," Sasujiro coughed, trying to get Kish's attention. The older Kaerufan was at least glad that Kish's attitude was starting to peel through the layers of grief, "The Para Para needs oxygen, so it is taking the tree's oxygen instead, forcing it to take in more and more carbon dioxide to get the nutrients it needs. The Para Para then uses the tree's available nutrients but since the Para Para didn't infuse properly, it is producing carbon monoxide,"

"So you are poisoning everyone here, why isn't it affecting us?"

"That chip is covered in small photosynthetic bacteria, in short, it is feeding us oxygen to combat the carbon monoxide poisoning," Sasujiro said as Kish stared at the little green chip in wonder and disgust.

"So in short, you screwed up, its pumping out toxic gas instead of becoming a proper Chimera Anima and you smothered a clip in bacteria that could give me a disease?"

"It is harmless," Sasujiro sternly moaned, "Or would you rather breathe in the toxic gas?"

"Tough choice," Kish laughed.

"Kish, long time no see," A voice cheered from behind the two. Kish spun around to see Pie and Tart teleport behind them. Tart smirked as he bounded over, dressed in thin, puffy, dark blue shorts with long ribbons whipping around with his bouncing gait. His small, skinny frame was extremely obvious in his small red, sleeveless shirt with a strange split up the middle, as if he ripped it open himself. Kish didn't doubt that since he was comfortable at home, adapted to the cold temperatures while it was normal temperatures here. Pie still had the grating serious expression on his face, still wearing his purple vest and long pants, covering up his midriff and his lower arms with thin material. As they approached, Kish noticed a strange metal objects clipped around their ears. Pie bowed to Sasujiro, who returned the formal greeting.

"These are the your own Transmission Information Scanners, T.I.S for short," Pie said, pulling the strange ear device and a metal ring from his pocket. Kish and Sasujiro observed the strange devices as they put them on. The ring slipped around their middle finger and had a strange purple circle while the ear piece clipped in perfectly, "The ring is in control of the teleportation. By pressing the circle with your finger, it reads your fingerprint and then teleports you to your destination. The ear piece will feed you information in and out to our comrades around this planet,"

"Amazing, its good to have another intelligent Kaerufan to talk to," Sasujiro said and exchanged some of the Photosynthetic Chips and the Anti-G anklets, "You know our plan right?" Sasujiro asked the two as they equipped themselves. Kish sighed, frowning at the boring formalities as he floated up to watch the city below them. Humans fled for their lives, vehicles tried to grip the road as they screeched around corners as witnesses clung desperately to their phones, filming the event.

"So, these are humans?" Tart asked as he floated beside Kish, enjoying the Anti-G anklets. Kish lazed back, it had been over half an hour yet he hadn't seen Mew Ichigo. He frowned as his thoughts from earlier popped into his head. He just scoped out the surrounding area, trying to get in the moment when a small speck of pink ran across the park.

"Hey! They are here! The Mew Mews are heading towards the park! Is that where your tree is?" Kish called out.

"Yes, it's there. Damn, let's go and intercept. We just have to stall them for around two hours," Sasujiro called out when a strange, speeding helicopter swirled over them, circling them like a hungry vulture.

"What's that?" Tart asked, watching it curiously. Pie observed the helicopter, it was large, not just in size but it appeared to have thick, reinforced metal 'armour'. Kish watched it when hot streaks of air rippled by his body, something like a semi-molten rock grazing his hip before it continued through the air until it dug into the roof of the building.

"It's this planet's army, my educated guess is that they have identified us as an invading species and are now reacting with violent hostility," Pie explained. Kish looked at the red blooming burn mark on his hip, it throbbed sickly, making his fingers claw into his palms.

"Just say that we are under attack and to retreat!" Kish hissed at him.

"Yeah you moron!" Tart stuck out his tongue when another clip of ammunition was fired at them. A bullet smacked into Sasujiro's rifle, ripping it from his grasp. He and Pie dodged the raining bullets as the endless whirl of the helicopter intensified. Tart spun around to see another armoured helicopter approaching them.

"Kish! Head to the tree! I'll back you up Kish! Sasujiro commanded.

"Tart and I will scope out the area and the remaining Chimera Animas," Pie replied and then his body turned into wisps of purple light before disappearing. The rest of them quickly dissipated, leaving the two helicopters confused, searching the area.

"Masaya! Masaya! Where are you? Please! Come to the south evacuation!" A distressed voice blurted out of Masaya's mobile phone. He watched the chaos unfold from the sidewalk, ignoring the rough bumps as panicked people slammed against him, trying to get home, trying to get to a safe zone or just plain running away from the threat.

"Don't worry, I'll get to one," Masaya replied, surprisingly calm in the midst of chaos.

"Masaya! Listen to me! Please!" The woman pleaded on the phone.

"Mum, I'll be fine! Trust me!" Masaya yelled back as the volume around him rose, booming with a loud screech. Masaya shut the phone off, stumbling off the sidewalk, allowing people to rush by as a large rat Chimera Anima skidded to a stop, snarling at the running people. Masaya stopped, frozen as the familiar image of a drooling, idiotic monster, its two yellow eyes flicking around the panicked bugs that swarmed away from him. The way his eyes sparked, lighting up as it watched, it reminded Masaya of his dog Rau as he watched birds. Each flap of their wings, ruffle of feathers excited Rau, her tail wagging with excitement.

'Where have I seen that before?' He thought to himself, backing into the safety of the park as the large, icy blue eyes opened on its forehead, the pupil contracting to the size of a pinpoint. At that moment a foggy memory peeled away, revealing itself. He could see Ichigo in front of him, that common yet beautiful blush on her cheeks but something didn't feel right, she seemed preoccupied, troubled. Just behind her, seemingly appearing from nothing but thin air, that same monster appeared behind her.

Then everything went blank.

Masaya took a few more steps back, overwhelmed with the feeling of déjà vu. He spun around, looking for a long branch, anything to arm himself with encase the idiotic monster were to find him. His body trembled with anxiety as his movements began flighty, biting on his lip. Without a weapon to defend himself, he felt naked and helpless.

'Wait… Why am I looking for something to defend myself? I'm not going to fight this thing am I? I should just be getting to a evac…' He told himself as a strange explosion of pain erupted inside of him. His arms wrapped around his stomach, fingers digging into his skin to anchor it down while pain roared, fighitng its way to the surface. The pain ripped up to his lungs, two hot claws sinking into them as he fell to the ground. He clenched his teeth to prevent spluttered groans from escaping. It felt like something was trying to surface, to rip him apart. He tensed himself up, fighting back however he then felt a strange feeling, like someone was watching him intensely. That seemed to subdue the outbreak of pain inside of him, calming the beast inside of him in seconds. Masaya lay on the grass, trembling from the aftershocks of this 'attack', his breathing harsh and deep.

"Are you okay?" A voice of a young boy asked him, stopping Masaya in his tracks. He looked up to find a little young, red-headed boy staring at him. Masaya gave him a look of disbelief, after this attack hit the city, not one person had spoke, nor paid any attention to others. The boy was calm, extremely calm to the point that it was creepy.

"Yes," Masaya replied, standing up and resting his hand on the little boy's shoulder, "We have to find an evacuation zone fast, we aren't safe here," Masaya explained as he tried to look for the boy's parents however the boy just walked by him, running deeper into the park, "Wait! Wait up! You're going the wrong way!" however the boy took no notice, disappearing in the maze of trees and shrubs. Masaya bit his lip, his mind pumping out all the options he could take.

'I don't really have to look after the boy… He isn't my problem and having to look after him will put us both in danger but I can't just abandon a little kid like that!' with those few words he took after the kid, catching up to him quickly. The boy had made his way back to the large cherry blossom tree that he was at a few hours ago. Masaya walked up to the boy, a fly attracted to a bright light, staring at the tree.

"Do you see it…?" He boy asked, looking around wildly. Masaya then felt the atmosphere change, shift from the chaotic pace.

"I'm surprised, you two haven't collapsed yet…" Kish stated as he floated down behind them. Masaya paused, feeling Kish draw his Dragon Swords up his spine, spreading the feeling of dread and a chill of ice across his body, "I think its time for you to sleep forever…" Kish hissed.

"I can't believe it! I thought it was just a strange thing…" Mew Ichigo puffed as she ran through the dark and isolated park. Mew Ichigo's feline-like pupils expanded to absorb the poor moonlight. She propelled herself over the undergrowth, dodging each tree perfectly when her left calf muscle twitched, as if a puppet master pulled a string that was anchored into her muscle tissue. She jolted to a stop, wavering and stumbling to the side as the throbbing and pulsating muscle started to slow down. Mew Ichigo looked down in horror before shaking her head.

'We are at the place this stuff is being made… Once we stop it, we'll be able to breathe in oxygen and we'll be all better then…' She told herself although her words could not calm down her heart that hammered in her ears. She let out a wide and loud yawn, her body trying to expel the excess carbon dioxide in her body, screaming for oxygen, 'I wonder how much more time I have left?' She wondered to herself but to her surprise, it wasn't such deal. It wasn't the worst thing that echoed in her mind, 'What's wrong with me?'

"Wait up, I can't see so well in the dark," Seeker Hitomi huffed from behind as she caught up. She nudged Mew Ichigo on the shoulder, trying to push her along, "We have to keep going, we are running out of time," She said, Mew Ichigo gave her ears a flick in response, the slightest movement to her head sending the gripping headache into overdrive, "I'm learning that anything strange now is something caused by them," She laughed dryly.

"You're taking this pretty well…" Mew Ichigo pointed out.

"No, I'm not…" Seeker Hitomi replied. "Believe me… It's on my mind but right now… I jus-" The Seeker paused, "We are here but… Kish is here too!" She said. Her words instantly created a deep growl in Mew Ichigo's throat and she pushed forward, her ears flattening and lowering her body as she sprinted to the Cherry Blossom tree, "Wait!"

Mew Ichigo ignored her, sprinting forward into the clearing, the large cherry blossom tree's branches sprawling above her.

"Hello my little cute kitten… It took you a while to find Sasujiro's mistake," Kish chuckled, flipping his Dragon Swords playfully yet expertly in his wrists as he turned to face her. Mew Ichigo froze as she found Masaya kneeling on the ground, protectively clutching a small child in his arms. He slowly moved back, the child glaring at Kish. Masaya's brown eyes tore away from Kish and landed on Mew Ichigo's large pink eyes, his expression changing.

"Shall I finish off the dirt first?" Kish's smile intensified as it landed on Masaya and the child. He turned his sais around, the blade staring down the two humans. The child spun around, hiding from the blade as Masaya glared at Kish, grunting in hatred.

Before Kish could charge forward to attack the two humans, Mew Ichigo's rage exploded, adrenaline and other strange chemical reactions taking place.

She felt like she was made of nothing but air, moving weightlessly and effortlessly as she charged forward, her eyes locking onto her target as her left foot slid over the grass. Her boot dug into the ground, anchoring her as she swung her right leg under her and all of her strength. Bracing every tissue in her body. Springing her leg up with lightning speed, kicked Kish's groin. Kish clutched his precious jewels as pain spiked, soared, his body crouched over, balling up to protect his sensitive area from anymore pain. His blood was on fire, a burning inferno on his balls that throbbed, twisted and bawled in agony. However he knew that he was extremely vulnerable, any man knew that. He floated up into the air so he could safely seethe in torturous pain.

"Dirt? Are you talking about yourself? I'll be happy to finish you off!" Mew Ichigo jeered as she crouched, her body rocking back and forth. She summoned her Strawberry Bell and held it in her mouth, long canines locking it into place. Her body curled up, preparing her as Kish tensed up his body, hissing in pain in the air. Mew Ichigo jumped, springing up into the air and her hand clasped around Kish's ankle. He jolted into the present, feeling her fingernails turning into unsheathed claws, tearing at his brown boots. She then slammed him down to the ground, throwing her pray to the ground. Kish's back slammed into the ground but the grass and soft earth didn't hurt him as much as concrete would have. Mew Ichigo spat out her Strawberry Bell, taking it in hand and as her legs braced her body for a landing. As soon as her feet slammed into the ground she aimed.

"RIBBON STRAWBERRY CHECK!" She yowled with a wild tone and blasted Kish with the pink coloured beam. It dug into the ground, creating a furrow as it pushed Kish out of the clearing and into the trees.

"That was incredible! That was amazing!" Seeker Hitomi cheered, watching the fight like a child watching a morning cartoon. She ran up to Mew Ichigo, pulling her into a tight hug, her grip almost suffocating as Mew Ichigo trembled with adrenaline. Her cheeks quivered as she smiled triumphantly like she just came back from winning a game, proud at her achievement. That's when her large eyes fell on Masaya, who was observing everything, staring directly at Mew Ichigo. She jumped at little, shocked at her sudden actions before she put on the smile.

'No one recognised me from the television show, so I'm safe,' She thought to herself. She and the Seeker ran over to them, however Masaya tensed a little, making them approach them slowly.

"We are here to help you, you should get out of here and get to an evac zone…" Mew Ichigo smiled professionally. Masaya stared at her blankly as Seeker Hitomi smiled, kneeling down to look at the little boy, trying to calm him down and distract him.

"Don't worry, he is gone now, you-" She stopped as the red-headed boy squirmed out of Masaya's arms. He then spun around to look her in the eyes, giving her an amazed and shocked glance, which she could only return. Mew Ichigo froze, noticing how Hitomi's red and green eyes fell on the boy's red and green eyes.

"What… What was that?" Kish asked himself as he stumbled to his feet, bruised and battered by Mew Ichigo's sudden outburst. He floated up, starting to make his way back to the cherry blossom tree. He smiled, preparing his counter attack. His skinny frame rocked with excitement, with sheer joy. This was better than training, better than dueling with others. He could feel the urgency in her quick movements, the anger in her brute strength and her animalistic movement, cat-like groans and hisses. Kish chuckled like a teenager that just got a kill streak on a video game.

"This is amazing! Truly amazing! She has more strength than I thought!" She chuckled in hysterics. He used the cover of the tree's canopy to stealthy approach them. His eyes fell of Mew Ichigo as she helped Masaya to his feet, showing the two the way to the closest evacuation zone. Kish's smile disappeared, clenching his fists as he watched them. He was having so much fun with the two, the way they pulsated with fear, glared him down as he played around with his blades. Kish knew it was no matter though, since they would all have to be feeling the toll of the carbon monoxide. It would be only a matter of time before they all fell down, unconscious, never to breathe again. He watched Mew Ichigo, she was clearly feeling the effects. Her shoulders rocked with her abnormal breath and every now and then she rubbed her growing headache but then he noticed something else. She was smiling, through the pain she was suffering she was smiling shyly, honestly at Masaya. Kish raised his eyebrows, never seeing that side of the pink Mew Mew. He crept forward more, she flicked her ears, her tail moving to ring its bell in response to a question of his before she blushed.

It clicked.

It made sense.

'This human means something to her… He is precious to her…'

"What… What are they doing?" Keeki asked aloud as she watched the chaos below unfold, "Don't they know the consequences of such a move?" Paru nuzzled into her neck more, diving into her long, white locks, away from danger. She stood up, running over the roof to scan the city.

'I wonder, Tokyo Mew Mew… Are you protecting everything? All life and this planet or are you just like them…?' Her eyes landed on a large, armoured truck that skidded to a stop. The back opened up to reveal a few soldiers that jumped out, herding people into the safety of the vehicle. Keeki watched them, observing the uniform, the symbols and the colour scheme that was painted all over the vehicle and their uniform. As quickly as the truck appeared, it roared to life and sped down the street, out of site to a safe zone. She slid down from the sloped roof, jumping onto a nearby balcony before continuing down the blocks, slipping in and out of shadows. She jumped onto a rusty ladder and pushed herself unto another flat roof. She stopped for a second, her lungs heaving when her muscles twitched, throbbing uncontrollably. She sat down, staring at the twitching under her skin, as if a cockroach squirmed around, spreading sickness as its body slid through her blood. She smacked her leg and pressed a finger gently down on her eyelid.

'This can't a natural sickness I've picked up, I haven't been feeling unwell… Could it be something Sasujiro planned?" She wondered as the strange symptoms left as quickly as they appeared. She stood up, rubbing her forehead as she scanned the city again. Her eyes then picked up a flash of yellow. She ran forward to the edge of the building, her eyes landing on Mew Pudding. Keeki looked around, trying to find what the Mew mew could be aiming for or heading towards.

As she scoped the area, her golden gaze then flicked over a familiar sight, making her pause. Hidden by a satellite dish on the next roof was Sasujiro, his hair sprawling on the ground and his shoulders, hiding his face as he aimed his rifle towards Mew Pudding. He looked into the scope, following Mew Pudding every movement, he was frozen, his finger resting on the trigger as he lined up the perfect shot.

"Thank you for your kindness…" Lettuce's word echoed in her head as she questioned saving them.

'Why did I save them? What if it dooms us? No! We are in the wrong, they weren't doing anything and we attacked them but then… they might have… Argh! What they were doing wasn't right… I knew that… It isn't!' Keeki shook her head. She knew that she should just lay low, not do anything if she wanted to continue her research. She wasn't restricted, she was independently finding out the truth but the green Mew Mew's words came into her head. She couldn't keep her mouth shut, she could stand by and watch the world fall around her. She dropped down onto windowsills, her feet scrambling to get a foothold on anything to break her fall until she dropped down on to the sidewalk. She sprinted out onto the street, her heart hammering in her throat. Mew Pudding felt, she could hear and sense that someone was running after her. She stopped, spinning around to see a hooded figure running toward her. She was unsure of her, trying to identify if it was a threat.

Yet, it was perfect for Sasujiro.

She was a sitting duck now.

"DON'T STOP!" Keeki yelled out at the Mew. Keeki jumped forward, sliding in front of Mew Pudding, her body covering the shot. She stopped still yet it felt like her body was crawling, moving uncontrollably with uncertainty. Her body shivered with her powerful heartbeat as her mind raced, repetitively asking herself why she acted on pure instinct. She then pulled back her hood with a light, shaking hand, revealing herself to Sasujiro as she protected Mew Pudding. Sasujiro froze, his wide red eyes on Keeki. He hissed in disbelief as he heaved himself up, staring down at the girl he presumed was dead.

"You protected Mew Pudding? Why na no da?" Mew Pudding asked, her expression full of confusion until a smile tugged at her lips.

"I'm asking myself that question honestly…" Keeki replied, Paru clicked, hiding himself more as he trembled in fear.

"You're really a good guy aren't you na no da!" Mew Pudding cheered as Sasujiro jumped off the roof, gracefully floating down to the ground due to his Anti-G anklets.

"Go! Or he will get you!" Keeki hissed quietly. Mew Pudding's smile dropped before her gaze fell on the long-haired, blood red eyed Sasujiro. She nodded, bowing in gratitude before sprinting away. Keeki dropped her arms and closed the gap between her and Sasujiro, swallowing her nervousness.

"I thought you were dead…" Sasujiro said, dropping his gun to the ground as he observed Keeki. She was surprised by his reaction, circling her like a parent would after their child got in a fight but it was slightly aggressive, "Kish was very upset…" He said as he came to a stop, "What happened?"

"Why have you done this? A full out attack? We cannot study them now, they will hunt us all down!" Keeki started, her eyes wide as her body still trembled.

"Did humans find the base?" Sasujiro asked, his face made of stone as Keeki blinked, "Is that why you weren't there?"

"No…" Keeki replied, "I'll explai-"

"Lord Furaro said that you have a soft heart, you jump to conclusions and are extremely smart," Sasujiro reported with a deadpan voice. Before he took another breath, his palm slapped Keeki across the cheek. It felt like a whip, without warning and cracked over her skin, leaving behind a red mark. Keeki stood still, fear creeping up her spine as her hand softly covered her cheek as her eyes grew glassy, "He said that you are too smart, too perceptive and a danger to this mission…" He continued as he raised his hand. The ground trembled, the atmosphere growing thick and dense. It was murderous. Horrible and it was killing Keeki. A shriek pierced through the air, revealing an armoured Para Paban. Keeki took a step back, Paru shivering against her as it roared and hissed before approaching Sasujiro, it's master.

"What…" Keeki stumbled back more as the beast approached her, her feet tripping over a large crack in the ground. Sasujiro turned his back on her, kicking up his gun and started to walk away.

"I'm sorry but this its Lord Furaro's orders…" Sasujiro reported, teleporting away as the Para Paban turned on her, its mouth opening to let out a hot breath. Keeki snapped her hand over her nose as she smelt smoke, burning flesh and death.

This was a death sentence.

ZoeyHoshi: It took my boyfriend and I ages to figure out the chemistry and the biology behind the tree and the infection. It took a while but we were so proud at the result. Since I was giving a realistic and biological explanation for The Mew Project, I knew that all the large events that happen, the tree, the moth, the ocean bloom, the dome etc. all have to have a realistic reasoning.

Hitomi: You're not commenting on the cliffhanger?

ZoeyHoshi: … I can get so much stuff done when I have a flu, I can write like a boss =^.^=