"Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide, you've got to kill to stay alive…

Show them no fear, show them no pain…"

Iron Maiden: The Mercenary

Chapter 11

The weather was a bit rainy, not like it was at the first streak of dawn. The azure blue sky had grey clouds, the sun couldn't be seen for long hours. Anri Souma (girls #16) was sitting under a lonely cherry-tree in a wide, open field. The field was full of wild flowers in the zone C4. The cherry-tree stood in its full bloom, as the white and pink flowers on its branches seemed like huge fur-balls.

"She's late." said Anri loudly.

Nichie Shiomi was late. Give my message to Nichie! I said them to give my message to her, if she finds that villa!

Anri found that building in zone I6 earlier, which Kinji had also found (there happened the incident with the bat) and said to its inmates, that she, Anri counts on Nichie Shiomi's presence here, in zone C4. And Anri also said, the "rendezvous" ends at latest at 6.00 AM. Well, Anri walked all night until she reached this point - but considering the facts: she felt herself as washed-up as never - walking all the way six kilometres (the distance between zone I6 ans C4) seemed to take great effort.

Souma checked her watch, the timer changed from 5:59 to 6:00 in that very moment. Plus, the text message promised by Moskvin arrived with a short beep-sound. The big envelope icon jumped in the screen as long as the girl opened it. Souma was weak in computer science (however, the Empire of the Rising Sun had the most advanced and modern military technology among the superpowers), she could only use MSN and other chat programs; besides that, she barely used the computer. So it took some time until Souma found those buttons, which opened the message. The whole text contained only a few lines, the list of dead and the upcoming danger zones until 12 am.

The dead people so far: Fukashi Tenzai (boys #16): headshot (Moskvin), Ben Ugaki (boys #10): bear attack, Baku Shoda (boys #11): died by gun - that last one could all the students see beyond question, in the warehouse. Souma realized in that holy moment, how real this game was. She totally shit blue. Shoda didn't die because of Moskvin, it wasn't the soviet. It was someone from the class.

The last of the fallen: Midori Ogiwara and Iyona Tsumura (girls #8 and # 19): wolf attack - the exact story of their passing remained in great mystery.

"Poor souls." Souma thought in herself "how surprising, that the two with big botty."

The big botties - Dan always mocked at them like that. Midori and Iyona were both silent-type and maybe a bit to serious (they didn't get jokes), also nice and kind girls. They liked older guys, they wanted to be much more grown-up as they truly are. And Tsumura... She quite played herself in the presence of the male kind; hair toss, wide smile and speaking in that sickly-sweet voice, from which most girls could scratch the wall. Damn, why Tsumura was always ready to help and that perfect English pronunciation! Madams - beside Dan's nickname, that was the two girls other mark.

Souma couldn't bear to stay without snarl. She stopped, but only for a while then continued reading.

Anri Kimura (girls #4): mine field. Poor Anri! Souma had no problem with her, everybody liked Anri in 3/e. She was kind, but when it came to that, stood up for the right of the others.

There was a last name at the end of the dead-list: Isato Okumura (boys #9): headshot. To be honest, this kid rather went into Anri's nerves with his idiocy.

Then the danger zones came, the thing, the most Anri care. Her life could depend from this information.

7. 00-:A 09, 9.00-:F 05, 11.00-:H 02.

Anri studied this single line for minutes. Those zones weren't in the near, so not to worry. Souma also checked the time, six minutes passed until the text message arrived. Nichie had to be here for that damn six minutes. Maybe she is afraid of me? Or doesn't trust? This made Souma angry, she felt hatred against Nichie. How dare you not to trust me?! Maybe she remained in that ruinous villa with the others. I would willingly cower in safety, too, but I have an important work to finish - thought Souma bitterly.Maybe standing in one place is not a good idea. Or? Souma became completely uncertain. Everything mixed in her head, like fruits in the mixer.Then she caught breath and tried to think clearly. Okay, the most important was to find Norito Royama and kill him, before the boy dispreads everything about Anri.Nobody should ever know, what happened, or else the others will cooperate against her and then... There will be no escape.

The whizzing sound coming up from above, get everything out of Souma's mind for a short time. Soon, those planes with the hammer and sickle crest (which one Sonoko and Rumiko had also seen) arrived in that section of the game field and started to drop down small boxes with parachute. Some of the boxes landed in Anri's near, in a valley cut in half by a narrow brook.

Anri Souma started to run without hesitation. She left the near of the cherry-tree, from where a small chute began. She could see the parachutes as they stuck on the surface of the high grass, only the heavy metal boxes sank into the soil. Into the ocean of the wildflowers, hidden from any eyes. Souma managed to catch sight of another person in time, before that one could see her. The one, who was wandering around the parachutes had girl uniform and skirt and she was about to collect all the stuff she could find in the boxes. Souma ploughed in the high grass, so Yurisa Akera (girls #20) saw only the dancing leaf of grass. It's only the wind - she thought maybe.

Yurisa did her job uninterruptedly and Souma couldn't do anything to interrupt, just followed with attention. And also with a grumpy face. Anri was a bit myopic (physically short sighted person), she needed glasses to see distant, but Yurisa's place was near enough to pick on that gun, what Yurisa Akera possessed.

I have only that bloody pen with my name...

Last Christmas, all of the kids in the student hostel got a pen with their names on it. Souma held her pen always in her near, like a talisman, to bring luck.

In Norito's case everything went bad, but we'll see, how my sweetie is going to work...

By that time Souma was laying in her stomach deep in thought, Yurisa collected all the smaller boxes from the big, metal ones (old Russian custom, like the Matrioska dolls?) and started to open all of them. Before she did that, first took a look around, what if someone was coming.

Yurisa didn't see any sign of another human being, so... Everything happened in the hundredth of a second. Suddenly, Yurisa felt fingers on the neck and these fingers pressed more and more. She tried to set herself free and with a sudden came idea, she scratched the new-comer's hand. Now Yurisa made a good use of the neatly groomed, long nails. The new-comer shouted with pain, then let Yurisa go. Yurisa took a turn and now she stood opposite with the classmate, who attacked. She looked in a stunning gaze at Etsumi Inukai (girls #18), her former FF aka forever-friend.

Look at that, Etsumi is playing in big. So be it!

Yurisa didn't hesitate anymore. She took her security guard-gun from the skirt and aimed directly at the other's chest.

"Didn't you know, that it's a shame thing to stab in the back, even by the enemy?" Yurisa asked angrily.

Only Etsumi's eyes moved. She searched after an appropriate opportunity to distract Yurisa's attention so she, Etsumi can flee. Maybe it was a bold thought to attack her without a plan.

Souma listened from the high grass immovably, with both ears.

"What should I do? I don't have any weapons, because you took away from me!" Etsumi tried to answer as calmly as possible. Sometimes her voice quivered.

"And you would have shot me, if I let this gun to you, right?"

Both of them knew, what were Yurisa talking about. At the attack of Riki Ryusaki, Yurisa left her mate behind, like a coward, and even if Etsumi successfully escaped from Riki, the two girls needed to meet, because the partners could only pass to the warehouse together. No wonder, if Etsumi waited wrathfully in front of the warehouse. They nastily fell out with each other and the friendship lasted until they opened their safe. Where Yurisa quickly snatched the gun and that razor-blade-looking thing away from the safe and quickly run into the next zone. Etsumi remained her own.

"If I knew, you would left me behind again, I get the weapon before you can and shot you into pieces!" Etsumi noticed, that she yelled like a crying baby. Her face was totally red.

"Calm down, I have the gun! I don't wanna hurt you, until you won't let me otherwise." the girl with the gun took a step closer to Etsumi. She was ready to shoot at any time.

"Just tell me instead... How did you find me? You couldn't track me, except if you have GPS."

Inukai didn't answer at first, but later she explained, that the razor-blade-looking thing was indeed an accessory chip into their multifunctional watches. You have to put the chip into the card-reader and then it was ready to use. With its help, the owner could see (not only his or her own) the other student's location on the digital map - those seemed like red, flashing flecks.

"Hm, I can use that. Give me that chip!" Yurisa stepped into Etsumi's very near.

No answer came. Etsumi was just standing and looking into the other's eyes. That "other" girl was afraid a bit, but it was enough to think of the gun in her hands.

"Do you hear me?! Give me that chip!" one second and Yurisa hit Etsumi in the face.

Etsumi fell into the ground, but pull Yurisa down aside herself. Now a small fight began in the high grass.

"I don't know, why the hell was I run around with you before! Was I blind?! You... You whiffler!" Etsumi started.

"Yes, you was blind, from the ton of makeup and eyes shadow you grease yourself with! It's me, who doesn't understand, why could I run around with you!" Yurisa attacked back.

While they were fighting on the ground, the gun fell out of Yurisa's hands. Not only reaching it, she had to hold Etsumi back with his right arm, or else the girl tears her apart. Etsumi was extremely angry. That was the reason, why she noticed Yurisa's empty hands (so without the gun) a bit later. In the other second she searched after the gun with her look and when she found it, she went for it immediately. As Yurisa, too, so they reached the handgun at the same time. No wonder, that the two girl barged against each other and as they recovered themselves, something bad happened. They haven't found the handgun anywhere. It was lost in the high grass. Or in the narrow brook next to them. Maybe they tossed it into the water by the impact? It was too heavy for the water to wash away, but... Where should they look for? Etsumi became more angry for the thought of the lost gun, her face was red again like a shuttle. She was that angry, she wanted to jugulate Yurisa once and for all.

Everything happened in a split second: Yurisa opened her eyes and saw red drops on her shirt. She gazed at Etsumi with wide eyes open - Etsumi's head now rested on her shoulder; the one, who held her body was Anri Souma. Souma had the name-pen in her right hand and the other end of the pen was in Etsumi's neck. Therefore was the blood on Yurisa's shirt. The victim didn't rattle, didn't throw herself about: she just stood sloppy and if Anri didn't hold her, Etsumi would fell into the ground like a bag.

Yurisa simply couldn't believe her eyes, she was in total horror. She was just standing in one place and saw the killing through; as Yurisa recovered her balance, hurled the dead body out of the way. Souma was unable to hold the body alone, so she fell back and sneaking under Etsumi's remains proved to be a hard task. There was no trace of Yurisa, by the time Souma managed to find her feet. The girl stepped into Etsumi and wiped off the bloody pen at the dead girl's uniform.

Mmm... this can be such a useful stuff... She smiled with dark grin. Souma Anri killed a classmate twofold.

Then another thought came to her mind.

Now, another fool knows my secret... I should find this Akera-bitch as fast as possible... What is this GPS chip in Inukai's watch for?

Why Anri Souma eavesdropped the conversation of the two girls before, knew every information about this so called 'GPS chip' and how to use it. She needed circa five minutes (alas, the handicap of the PC-analphabets) to transplant the chip into her watch and top of all: search after Yurisa Akera's red spot on the digital map. Strange to say, Yurisa hid in this zone - Souma thought, because the spot flickered in the same place - she was obviously lurking somewhere in the near.

"Not for long." said Souma. She was good at geography and had a good sense of locality.

Yurisa's hiding was a small lair, the girl herself was sitting and waited until the circumstances settle. All of a sudden, a ribbed, green something rolled along the way to her... a loud clashing sound...

BOOM!

"I had only this one. What a pity!" out in the wild, Souma looked at the pull-ring of a hand grenade with an inquiring look, which she later threw away far.

She found the hand grenade in the parachute-boxes given by the soviets, the box contained more: some bandage, food and water and a small backpack (good for these goods). And there was something else... a... meat-chopper? Souma wanted a fire-arm instead of the chopper, or at least Yurisa and Etsumi's handgun wouldn't had been lost. Such a dumbshits! Souma wished, she just watched more carefully for the two girl's fight, so she would have known then, where the handgun was gone. Never mind, this donate-meat-chopper was better than nothing, and what's more! Souma had something else, the other student didn't. The best, someone could wish for: with the GPS-chip, she could easily avoid the others and expect danger. If she was the attacker, she could work effective and gain extreme success.

Anri Souma left Yurisa Akera's lair at 6:37 AM.

Killing is not that bad - she thought and wide, self-satisfied smile appeared on her face - that handsome villain said the same in Anri's favourite action series.

Nichie Shiomi has chosen wisely not to trust me.

[Number of the students: 27]

Midori Ogiwara eliminated

Iyona Tsumura eliminated

Anri Kimura eliminated

Etsumi Inukai eliminated

Yurisa Akera eliminated