Chapter 17: Genkai

Sunday, June 15th, 2005

"Why are you smiling at me like that, Botan?"

Botan just giggles, and evil glints in her eyes. "I'm taking you to a very old friend of yours."

"Well, who is he?" I gingerly stand and she sits me on the end of her paddle.

"She." Botan corrects. "I think you'll remember when you see her." Her smirk widens, and she mutters something remarkably like, "You'll get what you deserve."

She accelerates on her paddle. I almost lose my grip before I feel the air rushing past my face in an instant. I shut my eyes and prepare myself for a long journey when she just stops dead, jolting my neck, not having flown even thirty seconds.

"Here you are." I let go, and fall only four feet onto the stone floor to land in front of nothing more than a doorway. From what she told me, I sort of expected a cavern. But it is pretty unusual—it isn't brown, or even rainbow colored. It's made of pure, black, stainless steel. It doesn't look like anything could get through it, not even a bomb.

Botan gets off her paddle and raps on the wall next to the door. "Genkai? Genkai, open up! I have a new charge for you!" We wait a few seconds, and she adds, "You'll get to pick on someone!"

Genkai. The Dragon. That's where I've heard her name, Kurama said something about her once, how her power is astronomical, she can defeat almost anything—

"UH!" I yelp. "Botan, why exactly am I here?"

"So you don't go through any more walls or burn yourself up." She says. "Shhh!"

I hear a grunt in approval followed by an ominous creaking. Oh. It's the door. But what's opening it? It's slowly inching open, back into the pitch-dark room. I've sure I've seen this in a horror movie before. The door opens into a black room and the stupid heroic main character goes inside and gets eaten by a huge snail. No, not snail…slug? No…something else that's slimy…a clam? Why does my mind keep settling on clams?

As it creaks open, I can hear more and more creepy music playing inside. It's the kind you hear when something is about to rush out and dismember you. Crap. I won't even be able to run away in this goddamn kimono, and I'm so sore from throwing myself through the wall…

Finally, with a bang, the door hits the wall behind it, momentarily rattling the floor. I shiver, and try to see inside for any giant clams with fangs that bite your ears off. Where is all this clam shit coming from? No…no, it's too dark to see anything. It's completely dark and it's playing that odd music. I glance at Botan. She looks like this is perfectly normal.

"Genkai! Genkai, can you turn on the light?"

A creepy voice calls from within it, "I'm resting. What do you want?"

"With all that music on?"

"It calms my nerves. Again, what do you want?"

"Botan…" I whisper, grabbing ahold of her kimono sleeve. "What exactly is Genkai? A vampire?"

"That's actually up for debate. She has this hunger…well, I shouldn't say." She says calmly, and turns her attention back to the thing in the shadows. "Come on, Genkai, please turn on the light."

I hear an exasperated moan, and all of a sudden the lights flick on. I gasp at what's inside. It's an incredibly huge room. Every single piece of exercise equipment that was ever invented is in there. Seven types of treadmills, 18 pairs of arm weights, and a million other things that probably exercise some weird little organ like your pancreas. They're all arranged in a circle around a huge shiny square of bare wooden flat floor, which takes up most of the room by itself. This is a true training gym.

Okay, so she's not a vampire. She's some kind of juggernaut or giantess…I scan the room, and in the corner, hidden behind a treadmill, is a sheet hanging from the ceiling. It's very long, so she must be a giantess. Oh God. I can see the sheet moving. It wiggles (GENKAI IS COMING OUT OH GOD!) and writhes, and then, something really, really short makes it's way out from behind it. It's a…it's a…

It's a little old lady?

I can only stare. Botan pulls my arm cheerfully into the room. As we get closer and closer, I can see that she is part of the weird hair group as well, with graying pink hair and a wrinkled face. She's ten inches shorter than Hiei, and she's wearing a little red-green-white tunic, and her face looks like it was carved out of stone.

This is the feared beast? No, no, maybe one of her minions…after all I've heard of the fearsome and beautiful warrior Genkai from Hiei and Kurama, this has to be her serving maid or something.

"How are you doing? Did you sleep well?" Botan chirps, sweeping into a low bow and dragging me into a bow as well.

"I was…"

She smiles genially. "I've brought you your pupil! We've decided, against Melita's orders, that the training really can't wait. Surely you understand…?"

I slowly bring my eyes up from the floor to her eyes. She looks at me evenly. Something wriggles free from my memory…I hate this woman.

"She really has forgotten, hasn't she? For you to get her into a kimono…" She chuckles evenly.

"Well, it was a real pain. Keiko can tell you. You see, she can still access her spirit power."

"Is that so…? I'd expect nothing less from Yusuke, let alone this one." She meets my gaze. "Well, in that case, Katrina, let's get started. I am Genkai, and I specialize in training the spirits of young people to become great warriors."

"Like you?" I grumble. "I mean…"

"Ugh." Is all she says.

Botan suddenly laughs. "Well, bye!" She jumps back on her paddle and flies out the door, which slams behind her.

I turn my gaze back to the old woman. She nods at me.

"I'll let you have a look around while I go finish my roast turkey. If you really have forgotten everything, that is."

She turns away, and I'm left standing in the same spot while she comes out with a bowl of something hot. She sits on the edge of one of her mysterious exercisers and eats it, right in front of me, staring at me so hard that I feel my eyes dripping out of my head.

It takes me almost ten minutes to work up the courage to squeak out, "So you're Genkai."

"Indeed." She nods, finishing her turkey.

"I have heard so much about the beautiful and fearsome warrior, the first female Dragon, the woman so quick with a sword she made knights fall to their knees in seconds. And you're—you're—"

She gives me a look devoid of emotion. "Apparently, stupidity is not reduced with a memory transfer. A pity. Katrina, even the best are not immortal. I was the Dragon, and still am."

I glare at her, trying to seem as intimidating as possible. "Why am I here?"

"First off, we want you to control your power so you don't consume the spirit world in flames."

"…I'm that powerful?" I stare at her, this little old woman.

"Of course not. I said that for dramatic effect. Now then, to business. As Botan so vulgarly put it, I'm to be basically your governess for a few months."

I stare at her in shock, and a smile shoots across my face. "Are you serious?"

She blinks, a little wary. "Yes…"

"THIS IS AMAZING! I don't have to be taught by Botan anymore! A little old lady is going to teach me how to serve tea! Oh, I love tea! And I love sewing and being polite and being taught by a nice old governess! Thank you so much!" I scream, and bend down to hug her.

She teleports away almost instantly, so that she's 5 feet away from me. She just stares at me, and says one word. "Eww." She pauses. "What made you think I'd be your governess?"

"You…just said it…"

"I did not say governess. I said animal trainer. And—"

"You totally said governess." I mutter.

A huge vein suddenly stands out on her temple. "You'll be QUIET—" Suddenly, her hands flare up in a bright golden fire, in two perfectly round spheres, and in some kind of Kung Fu, she whirls her arms in a circle and shoots the fire directly at my head. "—WHEN I'M TALKING TO YOU!"

I scream and duck, and naturally lose my balance and fall flat on my back. The fire passes above my body and fizzles out when it hits the wall.

I pant, fighting off shock.

"The fighting style of Bagh-wa." She says, walking to my side and standing over me. "Let's start over, shall we? You wanted to know what I teach?"

I just glare at her. She seems to take that for a yes.

"Now this is going to be fun to explain. Katrina, the kimono you're wearing is an amazing work of modern engineering. I myself made it."

"You really are going to teach me to sew."

"DON'T YOU DARE SPEAK!" She summons up the golden fire and aims for my head. I whirl my body of the line of fire and try to stand to no avail. I hear the flame hit and obviously make a huge soot mark.

She walks next to me and holds the fire in front of my face as a very eminent threat. "Anyway. The kimono had a third underlying purpose as well." Genkai says with a wicked smile. "It's actually impossible to walk in."

I stare at her in shock. "So then…all those lessons…"

"SHUT UP!" She fires again, and I finally get the hint as I just manage to dodge.

"No one alive can walk in it without tripping. I made it with a super-heavy rough fabric, for discomfort, 3 more under-robes than the usual so that your legs are useless, a very long hem, for further tripping purposes, and an obi that's about 20 feet longer than usual, so you can't get up if you fall. It's the perfect machine for impaired movement."

I can't say anything. I just stare at her, boasting the night away.

"I'll come back to that. Spirit Power. Do you know what that is?"

I stare dead ahead like a statue.

"I didn't think so. There's four powers—Nether, Spirit, Human, and Demon. I specialize in spirit power because I am neither human nor demon and certainly not a Nether. Spirit Power is your mental energy converted into a solid light. Whenever you need something badly and can't do it with your human/physical strength, the spirit power takes over and does it for you. Follow?"

Still in marble-statue mode.

"Now, you, by birth, have a lot of spirit power. It's in your genes. And you were a very impressive wielder of it before that fool Melita erased all your knowledge. But when Melita erased your memories, she didn't even consider if she'd erased your aptitude for spirit power as well. So, I made the kimono. If your spirit power was still accessible, something would have happened to make you walk. Do you wonder why we were starving you?" I say nothing. "Oh, talk, you dimwit."

I was on my way. "Wait. Hold on. You didn't let me walk and didn't feed me to see if my inner magic would kick in and bring me there. All to see if I was still working."

"Wow. That's actually a very good way of explaining things, considering how much a dimwit you are. Or at least, were."

I stare at this evil woman in confusion. "Why not just explain to me right up front what it was, and try to explain to me how to do it?"

"Frankly, because Melita said not to, for whatever reason. I certainly wanted to. I didn't want to wait for you to destroy yourself." She smirks. "And look! I'm right."

"Who is this Melita everyone keeps talking about? Why does she carry such authority?"

"She's an old friend of Koenma's and mine, and an expert of the human mind. We are careful to consult her according to your affairs. But that's none of your business. Shall we start? I've told you all that you need."

"Are you kidding me? No way! You still haven't told me what you're supposed to be doing."

"SILENCE!" She screams, and throws more fire at my face. "YOU'LL DO AS YOU'RE TOLD!" I open my mouth in protest, and she adds menacingly, "Or I can have Botan make you try to walk in that kimono for the rest of your days."

I pull on a fake smile. "What are your rules, Master?"

"Master. I like that. Call me Master. You are made to serve me and only me. Should you ever—"

"I'm a student, not a slave."

"You're a slave. Definitely slave. Who said anything about being a student?"

"You did!"

"Well, you're a slave. That's why you shall refer to me as Master. First on the list is don't touch any of the equipment unless I tell you to."

"Wait! I mean…oh, come on, let me speak! I don't even know what I've signed up for. What training?"

She suddenly shoots out a small beam of electric light and it rapidly affixes itself to my face. My mouth specifically. In a second, I feel a burning pain run all through my body. I almost scream before it stops in an instant.

"Stay silent. You are to report here every day after breakfast so we can train you. I am going to teach you to control your aura. Apparently, from what Botan says, you still have a knack for it. You managed to fly through a wall after using a bubble of sorts?"

I answer the question with the full knowledge she'll kill me. "That was the spirit power?"

"Well, what did you think it was?"

"Bright…blue…fire?"

"Idiot. You haven't changed a bit. I'm going to teach you to be able to do that at will, along with numerous other techniques."

"Why?"

She gives me a look. "Because I rather feel like it. I've been getting a little bit bored…"

Why is she eying my neck?

"I'm training you to become a weapon, at Melita's order. So, you have to take this seriously. Otherwise, I'll shoot you."

"Yes…Master. Think of me as a goddamn rock to hit people with…"

"Good girl. Let's start. Go to the middle of the floor. But be warned, this is some rigorous training. Not at all what you might be thinking."

"I can take anything you throw at me."

"As you wish, stupid. Let's start with throwing things."

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"AGH!" I scream, as she chucks yet another deadly shuriken throwing star at me. Oh my god…oh my god…oh my god…YES! I get out of the way just in time, and the blade sinks its teeth into the floor behind me. I rub my left arm, which has 8 cuts in it from preventing eight of them from hitting my face. Thank God the kimono is taking most of the hits.

"My, have you been practicing?" She asks sardonically. "That's the second one out of ten that you've avoided successfully."

I refuse to rise to the bait. She throws another one at me when I'm least expecting it and one careless move on my part sends it digging into my calf. I scream a horrible scream, as theatrically as I can, and barely manage to stay upright.

"You stupid child. Katrina, if you can't even make it through the first day, than you don't even deserve to be here. Katrina, the kimono has another purpose…"

"JUST HOW MANY PURPOSES DOES IT HAVE?"

She hurls a shuriken at me in punishment. "Well, it's so incredibly thick that it cushions you from many of the blows that you would be receiving. Look at the shuriken stuck in your leg. I'm willing to bet the tip didn't even touch your skin. That's because of all the layers of under-robes. The same with your sleeves. See?" She teleports over to me and wrenches the blade out of my calf. I scream as loudly as I can, but I actually feel no pain.

"Shut it, dimwit." She says, hitting my leg with the force of a bus, and I cry out of real pain this time. "Show no fear or pain in a battle."

"You know, how about you wear the kimono and I try to annihilate you."

She throws a spirit fire at me, and I lunge out of way, falling down again. "I'm not the one that needs practice. It's you. You're doing horrible at dodging."

"It…is really, really, really, really, really, REALLY hard to dodge when one is in a dress."

"Having constricted legs forces you to keep your balance perfectly. It's great in the long run. If you ever are let out of that thing, you'll have perfect balance. No joke. Although, I don't know, maybe you're just too stupid…"

Rage consumes my heart, and I shut my eyes. Bring the fire…glow, glow, glow…make light go to my hands…

I feel heat in my hands, and I push it with my mind, making it bigger and stronger. When I feel two fireballs, I press my hands together to make a big one. I open my eyes, and there it is. If she can throw magic, so can I. I bring my hands back and throw it at her, a huge ball of molten blue flame—

Then, she disappears and does such a blindingly fast move that all I feel, in one second, is a searing pain in my stomach. She…she's grinding my own spirit power into my body. Somehow, she caught it. My eyes flutter and I fall face first onto the ground.

"That was amazing…" I mutter.

She steps over me. "And it all begins with simple dodging."

I slowly pick myself up. "What was that?"

"That was the Hung Gar style of Kung Fu. It's an amazing technique with strong transitions, and brute force to match. Really a beautiful art."

"How will dodging shuriken help me to do that?" I grumble. "I can't catch magic or—"

"Stop calling it magic."

"When do I get to work with the spirit energy, then? The blue stuff?"

She just chucks a shuriken at me, and it hits me, being at such close range.

"That was totally unfair! What did I do?"

"YOU TALKED, YOU STUPID NITWIT!"

Another shuriken is hurled right at my face.

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Author's Note: Take your pick of what happens next: reviewer that gets it gets 2000 dollars

A. We find out about the mysterious Melita-who-messed-with-Kat's-memories (hint: NO)

B. Hiei finds out about her memory loss

C. Genkai places a well-earned shuriken between Katrina's eyes

D. Katrina gets run over by a bus

E. I tell you that you don't actually get 200 dollars and you're just required to review.

E!