xuri: Hi precious readers. x3 Yes, updating has slowed down... significantly. I kind of decided it would be easier to keep up with. Sort of. x-x Plus, a lot has come up. I'll be leaving for a few days next week, and we won't be around much besides that 'cause of renovations, but I'll do my best. Hopefully this rate is still acceptable for you guys. Only eight chapters to go. ;3
Mew of Fire: Yeah, I do enjoy tormenting her. xD Ichigo's great. I hate her for being a ditz and choosing to love Masaya, but... I love her for being a ditz. x3 Explaining why I exploit that as much as I possibly can. She's fun to get in trouble, 'cause she's so prone to things like that. Hehe.
SamKo: Yes, I have had a lot of fun with Ryou during this series. xD Muchly. Mostly because he's my favourite. x3 -pats Ryou plushie- Yessums, Marzipan is muchly awesome. Unfortunately, I cannot take complete credit for her like I could Ari. Tragedy. T-T And, ha. You have no idea how spot on you are about the Pai and Marzipan thing. xD Just for different reasons than you think, hehe.
EDIT: Forgot to mention. There's a hidden kiss in this chapter. Those of you aware of my rabid fangirl obsessions should have a pretty good idea who it's between, but it's totally only implied based on the reactions of surrounding characters. ;3 -cackles-
--
Blend (chapter eighteen)
..keep alive..
"Uh...nn..."
Light came blaring in as Ichigo allowed her eyes to open. ...dead? Was her first thought, as she squinted against the brightness, ...Am I... dead?
Her eyes adjusted within seconds, though, and Ichigo knew that wasn't the case. Before she could figure out where she was, though, Ryou's face unblurred into her view, his face right up against hers.
"W-wah!" Ichigo screamed, practically jolting from the bed she had been laid on, her heart beating miles a minute from the shock. Then she made what sounded like a choking noise, before looking over at Ryou with an annoyed red face. "Shirogane, what are you doing? You scared me half to death!"
"Thought that would wake you up," he noted in satisfaction, pushing himself up from the chair he'd been seated on and walking over to where all the other girls were, gathered and staring at her with wide eyes. Sitting up in her bed and grumbling to herself, Ichigo noticed they were all looking at her funny, especially Kona, who looked a little dazed. What's their problem...?
"How... long was I out?" She questioned, and looked down at her arm. She was surprised to see it had been bandaged up.
"6 hours," Even though she'd intended to ask the girls, Ryou answered for her, "Really, Ichigo, it was only a little bit of poison. That was a bit of an overdramatic reaction, if you ask me."
"Reaction? I didn't choose to be -- hey, wait, poison?" Her face going blank suddenly, Ichigo looked back at her arm. That's right - Marzipan's arrows had been poison-tipped, and she'd been hit. Once. Barely. She guessed she was lucky, though - would an alien be wielding weak poison?
"Th-thanks for getting it out," she managed, looking at Shirogane. He shrugged, and walked back over. Ichigo blinked. The boy stopped at her bedside, and stared at her in silence, before leaning over again.
"..You IDIOT!" He yelled, nearly sending her flying against the wall, "You know what would have happened if I wasn't out there? We had five minutes to get that poison out of you! Idiot! Idiot! Idiot!"
"OW!" Ichigo screamed back, her hands over her ears, "Well, what was I supposed to do, huh? The alien attacked me! Was I just supposed to stay in the cafe and wait for them to ambush us? Because, that would have been sooo much better! Thank you, Shirogane, for making the lockdown so we all got into this situation!"
"Stop it!" Roxi shrieked, halting the argument. All the girls looked irriated. "Okay, you know what? Ichigo disobeyed the lockdown. Ichigo got poisoned. But Ichigo kept an attack from happening. So what's the point of arguing about it now?" Pause. "That's right. There isn't one."
All the others nodded in firm agreement. Ryou seemed like he was about to protest, prosecute Ichigo a little more, but instead he kept his mouth shut and stood up straight, turning away from the group.
"Fine. I'll let it slide," his blue eyes shifted to glance at Ichigo, "if you tell me what you mean by 'alien attacked me'?"
Ichigo stared at him. And it took a bit of self restrant and brain power to not blurt 'Who's the idiot now?'. That's right, none of them had seen the alien. Sitting up straight, she swallowed and explained the situation about Marzipan, about her fight, about all that, and when she was finished they all were staring at her even more wide-eyed than before.
"There's a..." Kona looked pale in the face, "...third alien?"
Ichigo nodded. "Yeah."
Everyone was too stunned to say anything. Even repeating it made Ichigo feel funny, like a huge weight had been dropped onto her shoulders again.
"And she's with Ari and Hanajima?" This time it was Ryou who asked the question. Ichigo nodded again.
"So," Kikyo spoke up, her arms crossed her over chest, her face reflecting a look of stress, "Now we have two problems: Misfit Mew girl, and Marzipan."
Ichigo's face fell. That's right - she'd completely forgotten about the Dark Angel. Now they really needed her on their side. Just taking on Ari and Hanajima was hard enough. Now there was a third... the odds were against them. Ichigo made a choking noise, burying her face in her hands.
"How are we supposed to take all of them?" She said in a muffled voice, dragging her hand down her face enough to peer over at the others. "We're not strong enough. We were just barely getting by with Hanajima and Ari... but-"
Ryou cleared his throat, and the worried expression Ichigo carried instantly turned to a glare in his direction. "You have a point, Strawberry," he said slowly, taking her by surprise, "It seemed to me like they act more powerfully in groups. Hanajima's illusions enhanced Ari's physical attacks, and I'm sure it'll be more so with the third, whatever her strengths may be. Maybe that's what we need to be doing... splitting them apart."
Roxi, Yumi, Ichigo, Kikyo and Kona looked at Ryou in shock, eyes wide. "That would mean a small group of us going against each of them?" Roxi asked.
"But you were the one who wanted us to stick together!" Ichigo pointed out. Ryou nodded.
"I know. But it seems like our only option at this point," He folded his arms over his chest, "I have no problem with you working together to fight one alien, in small groups. It's just I don't like the idea of one of you going out to face all of them."
"Right. Like we're that stupid," Ichigo mumbled, swinging her legs over the bed and standing up. She was only a little dizzy. After-effects of the poison, she guessed.
Ignoring Ichigo's remark, Ryou held a hand up and started giving orders. There were no protests.
"Roxi, Yumi, you'll be in charge of Hanajima. She's the main one you want to draw away. If physical attacks aren't her speciality, you should be able to take her on alone as long as there isn't a fighter-specialist alien alongside her. Marzipan and Ari sound like they're more accustomed to physical attacks, so Ichigo, Kona and Kikyo can take them. Hopefully they won't be as in-tune to eachother as Ari and Hanajima have been. Under no circumstances are you to split up and have one mew take one alien. That's too risky. Understood?"
Everyone nodded and mumbled their responses. Ryou grimaced; not because of the girls, but because of the situation. He just hoped, for their sake, there were no more aliens. No more enemies to face...
No more lives to endanger.
--
"So, we know the plan," Kikyo said in means of confirmation.
"Yeah." They said in unison. She repeated it anyway, as if she were the only one to take the situation seriously - but they were all very serious about it. How could they not be? Three aliens, one of which they didn't even know the basic fighting style of, could be anywhere. They were hoping they'd have the edge, them already planning to fight and all; but who was to say the aliens didn't have anything up their sleeves?
"We stay together until they come out. Then, Yumi and Roxi divide Hanajima from the other two, assuming they're all there, and we three'll take Ari and Marzipan. Got it?"
Well, considering they already agreed to knowing the plan, they didn't even bother answering. There wasn't much of a point. Right now, they had to walk, to wait. This could take days, even Kikyo knew. They'd just have to wait the aliens out, and when they attacked... well, they had a plan.
"Time check?"
"3 and a half hours," Kona replied with a nod, checking her digital watch. Ichigo sighed. Ryou was making them work even after their shift hours. How was that fair? Maybe they should ask for extra pay when it came to alien-extermination missions. He'd probably just spring them with something along the lines of "You're supposed to save the world. Don't blame me if it crumbles because you have 'something better' to do." Ichigo fumed just at the thought.
"Obnoxious... arrogant... --!" Roxi nudged the mumbling Ichigo to stop her. The redhead frowned and looked up to apologize, but she saw a glint of metal in the distance. Obviously, the others hadn't noticed... but...z
"Wait," she said, but they all kept walking. Ichigo's amber eyes grew wide as the glint came closer, dodging side to side. No. They were - "Watch out!" Ichigo screamed, jumping forward and attempting to tackle the girls to the ground. Her arms span was really only big enough to pull Kona, but Kona's leg sprawled out and caught on Yumi, who grabbed Roxi, who shrieked and stumbled and brought Kikyo to the ground as well. So it had worked. Luckily.
A whirl of flaming daggers passed just above them.
Breathing heavily, Ichigo sat upright, her eyes widening. The girls turned to stare at her questioningly, but froze when they saw the pair of blue-fire daggers hovering just inches away, in attack position. Yumi shrieked.
"G-ghost!"
And there they materialized. All three of them - Ari, Hanajima, Marzipan. Ready to attack and everything. Should the girls have considered themselves lucky, that their search ended so early?
Ari had two flame engulfed knives. Hanajima was already on the verge of an illusion with her staff. Marzipan was idly fingering her bow, though it wasn't doubted she could draw an arrow within a split second, the way her attention seemed to flicker. They were fully armed, fully prepared.
And the girls hadn't even transformed yet.
"Don't tell me. You were out looking for trouble too?" Ari mused, tapping the flat end of her sai against her shoulder, the flame having no effect on her, "What a coincidence. We found you. You found us. Or was it only one way around?"
"Shut up!" Ichigo yelled, staggering to her feet as she fumbled around for her pendant. The other girls weren't so quick. And Roxi, especially, was stunned, her icy blue eyes wide with horror.
"You..." Her mouth seemed like it was too dry to spit out the right words, "You're that customer! T-the creepy one that ordered the chocolate cake and asked who Shirogane-senpai was!"
"You met her?" Ichigo cried, her mouth agape. Kikyo rolled her eyes as she managed to stand to her feet, holding a defensive glare. Did they lose their concentration so easily all the time?
"That's not very nice," Marzipan said quietly, narrowing her eyes. The girls froze. Her lips unmoving, she shifted the bow into her other hand, absently setting the arrow in the correct position. Ichigo was sure she could see it now - the poison coating the metal tip.
Or... is the whole tip made of poison?
Whatever the case - none of them wanted to find out first hand.
"Mew Mew Strawberry!" They were all together, all ready for this. Just because the aliens happened to appear earlier than expected didn't mean they couldn't still carry it out.
"Mew Mew Powder!"
"Mew Mew Framboise!"
"Mew Mew Cerise!"
"Mew Mew Kitsune!"
"Metamorpha-sis!"
All the lights seemed to mesh in with eachother, entangling in an exotic weave of bright and coloured light. It was almost enough to make Ari and the other two shield their eyes with their hands. Almost. It faded instantly, revealing all five of them in their sparkling glory.
"Ready?" Kikyo summoned her Fox Charm weapon, held it out, her voice booming. The girls nodded. They were ready. "Go!"
Of course, the aliens didn't understand what Kikyo had just commanded to commence. All they saw was the five of them suddenly charging, and that was how a fight naturally began, right? They prepared themselves. Unfortunately, they had no tactic in mind; the aliens had strength. That was all they needed. But it would also give the others the advantage, even if they didn't yet know it.
"Raspberry Dazzle!" Yumi jumped into the fray immediately, taking aim right for Hanajima. A swirl of sparklies seemed to engulf her, but Hanajima used to power of Illusion to dip to the side, and cause enough disturbance in her vision to make Yumi stumble. Roxi was on her tail right away, with her Cherry Burst attack. Again, it missed. But that wasn't their goal, not yet - and so far, from what goal they actually had, they'd succeeded. They were starting to force Hanajima back and away from the group.
"I see you've already met our gothic friend?" Ari taunted, flipping her hair haughtily over her shoulders, gripping the daggers in her hand. Marzipan didn't take this comment too kindly; her hand tightened, pulling the arrow back further and more firmly.
"Pleasure to make the acquaintance," Kikyo noted bitterly, holding the Charm out. "Ribbon! Kahidra Blast!"
Ari intercepted easily, diminishing the blow by using her dagger as a shield, flipping it around in her hand and jumping out of the way so Marzipan could take a shot. Kikyo was quick footed, as came with her Fox DNA. She flipped past it, pushing off her hands and landing squarely on her feet beside Ari, trying to knock her physically with the weapon. Ari ducked, and elbowed her in the gut.
Specks of blue light came flashing in as Kona swung her bell viciously, saying the proper words to summon forth the bursts and push Ari away. It was just quickly enough to spare Kikyo of any serious injury, though she had to take a moment to catch her breath. Kona and Ichigo seemed to have it covered. They didn't seem as concerned with hitting them, so much as driving them away from Hanajima.
The aliens hadn't even noticed what was going on...
"Blossom Shine!" Kona repeated, deliberately coming between Ari and Marzipan, making them both jump backwards by instinct. They had this. They had this in their hands...
"Messy today, are we?" Ari grinned, striking a battle stance as all three girls ran up to face them. "You'd better clean up, kittens. Or you'll be punished..."
--
Roxi and Yumi were having luck. As much luck as anyone could get fighting aliens, at least.
"Ribbon Cherry Burst!" Ribbons of red light wrapped themselves all around Hanajima, the force sending the alien back quite a bit without her even realizing it. She snarled, whipping her staff out before her.
"Careful where you step," she saw blandly, and both girls looked down in alarm to see she'd made them feel so much heavier. Roxi tried to remind herself it was only a feeling, not an actual fact, but the mind is a powerful thing... The ability to manipulate it was even more so. They'd had to be careful.
Wasting no time, the alien came zooming in, positioned as if she intended to bash their heads in with one swipe. Yumi screeched and used the weight on her feet to bend backwards as far as she could, dodging the blow. Roxi just allowed her body to fall completely, bracing herself for impact. They'd dodged it, but this was no good. Hanajima was pushing them back now, towards Ichigo and Ari and the others. She was pushing them the wrong way.
"Y-Yumi-chan!" Roxi managed, trying to push herself back up to her feet but finding the task difficult. Yumi knew what to do. Trying to imagine the weight off her feet, she started to run in the right direction, swinging her small bell around almost tauntingly at Hanajima. And Hanajima bit, starting a poor chase, as Yumi could barely run at all. But it was at least something. That was their goal. And they were succeeding.
--
"Strawberry Check!" Quick, simple attacks - that was all Ichigo needed. This one was actually aimed at Marzipan to prevent Kikyo from being hit by another arrow. Ichigo leapt forward at the alien and knocked the bow from her hand, holding her bell out as if she intended to attack. Marzipan leapt back in alarm, drawing out a handful of throwing knives.
"Nuisance," she deemed simply, and with a casual jerk of her arm flung the weapons at her. Ichigo's eyes widened and she hit the ground, having to perform a series of dodges and ducks to avoid being hit. Bent over and gasping, she stopped in surprise when she saw a small trickle of blood running down her leg. She hadn't even felt the hit...
There was a battle cry from the side, and all turned to see Kikyo's eyes as if alight by flame. Fox Charm was outstretched in her hands, and she called out the proper words to unleash a powerful blast of energy, when knocked Marzipan clear over with a faint cry. The alien now law sprawled on the ground - not physically wounded as much as she looked pale and like energy had been ripped from her body - panting for air. Ichigo noticed her blue eyes seemed almost hollow.
She... she can't take a hit...
Ari cursed at this development, glaring down at Marzipan. "You useless creep! Why did I ever let Hanajima talk me into finding you again?" She hissed, digging her heel into the dirt before clasping her own daggers and disapearing into the air.
Ichigo stiffened. She wasn't gone. She was all around... but... where? The girl nervously clutched at her heart shaped bell, pink eyes flicking anxiously from side to side. She'd be the one to be attacked, she knew it. Ari wanted her hurt... she wanted her dead...
An ear piercing scream filled the air instantly, and Ichigo jumped in place, spinning around. Kona was face down in the grass, her arms pinned to the side, Ari holding her down easily. Rage seemed to burn in the alien's eyes. Even her mouth was expressionless, not curved in its usual smirk.
"Neko scum," she seethed, tightening her hold around Kona's neck as if intending to choke her, "You're all worthless. Get out now, stay away from our plans! You've destroyed our lives!" She screamed, the material of her gloves being strained, Kona struggled, but was running out of air. Ichigo could only watch in horror.
"No.." She felt frozen to the spot. "Not... not them... they haven't done anything!"
"Kahidra!" Kikyo was right in there, trying to knock Ari off. Just as she lowered her weapon to blast in Ari's face, something caught strongly on to her ankle and cut it, making her crumple weakly to the ground. Marzipan grimaced, keeping a death grip on her leg so the kitsune-girl couldn't go any closer to Ari's new target. Victim.
"Stop!" Ichigo screamed, but no one seemed to listen. Why would they? They never had. All they wanted was for them to suffer...
Kona's muscles visibly relaxed and she went limp under Ari's hold, the alien's face burning intensely with raging glee. She was getting rid of one of the obstacles. It would be easier now, easier...
"STOP!" Ichigo, unfrozen, bounded forward onto Ari's back, but was easily pushed off. Tears in her eyes, Ichigo got back up, and threw her body weight at Ari enough to at least set her off balance. From there, the cat girl was able to completely knock the alien off, terminating the choke hold she had on Kona. Ichigo couldn't even look back. She had to get Ari away... she had to.
She couldn't see Kona from where she was, but she heard a sputtering noise, signalling she had started breathing again. There was an outcry, a crashing sound, as Kikyo supposedly managed to get Marzipan off to help Kona. Ichigo was relieved. But she couldn't look back. She couldn't let go of her, let Ari out of her sight... She wouldn't let her hurt any more of her friends.
Ichigo remembered what Ryou had said. Under no circumstances do you split up... He wouldn't understand. This was a dire situation. Kikyo and Kona were both weakened, but they could easily take Marzipan together, and Ichigo hadn't been touched. Marzipan seemed less in tune to fighting that Ari was, and Ari, as of now, was a threat.
This would be the second time she disobeyed her blonde employer's rules.
"Huah!" Springing off her feet, Ichigo started to run, intending that Ari follow her. However, hearing no footsteps behind her, she turned around in horror and saw Ari watching the battle with pursed lips. The look surfacing on her face - the where on earth is Hanajima look - made Ichigo realize she had to get Ari's attention. Distract her. Lead her away. She'd worry about the rest later.
"Ribbon Strawberry Check!" Gripping her bell tightly, she aimed to just barely miss a shot at Ari's head. That look disappeared, and golden eyes settled on her before bursting with anger. Ari charged at her. Just like Ichigo wanted.
Feeling afraid all the same, she spun around on her heel and took off as fast as she could. As soon as she heard the light and speedy footsteps behind her, she tapped into her cat genes to bound off even more quickly, the bell on her tail ringing furiously.
"Ichigo-neko!" Ichigo fell her body pulling to the ground, the voice right up against her ear. Oh no. Oh no... Her body hit solid dirt and she coughed, unable to move as as realized there was a heel centered right on her back. The cat girl winced, just barely, knowing if she moved the alien might well crush her spine.
"Trying to be brave, kitten?" Ari hissed slyly, giving a taunting tap on the back with her foot. "I have this theory, see, that bravery killed the cat... want to test it, neko?"
--
"Uwahhh!"
Yumi screamed as she was thrown back through the air by a blow to the gut, landing on the ground with an 'oomph' before tumbling a few paces, grip relaxing on her weapon.
"Yumi-chan!" Roxi cried in despair, and felt the wind picking up around her. Before she could react, a staff knocked her hard against the side as well, practically throwing her to the ground like a rag doll. Groaning, Roxi rolled onto her back, gasping for air. When she opened her eyes, she saw a smug face hovering above her.
"Hello," she said softly, and a wretched grin formed itself, Hanajima's other features melting into a picture of horror; slit red eyes, wide mouth, sharp teeth, pale and inhuman looking. Roxi screamed, rolling out of the way hastily and trying to scramble out of her grasp. Hanajima let her go, surprisingly. She wasn't at all lost in confidence. Two small girls, unable to fight at all...
She grinned. It didn't even matter that Ari and Marzipan were gone now - she'd figured it out a while ago, though she couldn't be sure why. Did it matter? She was perfectly fine on her own. Marzipan, on the other hand... Hanajima couldn't even guess how Marzipan was faring. Ari was obvious enough, but neither of them had been able to exactly fathom how powerful Marzipan was. She always seemed to hold back. Or, maybe she was just weak, underneath it all.
"Ribbon!" Hanajima snapped idly back to attention, seeing the panda-girl feebly holding her wand out, gathering energy at her hand. "Cherry... Burs---!" The alien let her get through a few syllables. Then, she unleashed a wave of thought, of voice, onto the girl, stopping her in mid sentence. Roxi stared back at her in horror, then made a choking noise, her wand clattering to the ground. "S..stop..." She tried, burying her face in trembling hands. Hanajima sighed. The horse-girl was still lying down, struggling just to stay consious.
"This is too easy..." She mumbled and shook her head, lifting her staff, "I'll end this soon. For your sake, kittens."
--
Ichigo found the less she breathed, the less it hurt. The less she could feel Ari's foot digging into her back, that is. That way, she could try and figure out a way to get out of this situation. Find a way to keep Ari away from the others, and at the same time, keep alive...
Keep alive...
"So," she let out a cry as the foot was stomped onto her back. Was that a crack? Ichigo hoped she hadn't just heard a crack. Her body went numb, for a second, and then returned to normal as Ari lifted her foot. Instead of stepping away, giving Ichigo the chance to escape - why would she do something like that? - she rammed her heel hard into her side. Ichigo whimpered, doubling over and clutching at her stomach dizzily. It hurt...
"Still so brave?" Oh, she wanted to enjoy this. Even Ichigo could tell. As Ari stepped in for another kick, or slice, or something, Ichigo hissed and crawl-bounded out of the way, crumpling back to the ground again right after. She felt like she'd been badly bruised, like bones in her body had suddenly gone missing. On top of that, it was becoming hard to breath.
This isn't good...
Groaning, she tried to curl into a little ball, breathing heavily, her cat ears drooping. She was out of energy. Even with the Strawberry Bell in her hand, she felt useless. Useless...
But that wouldn't work. She couldn't just give in - what about Kikyo and Kona? Roxi and Yumi? Ryou, Keiichiro, even the Dark Angel? What about all of them? It was her duty to protect them. Or, at least try. She wasn't dead. She wasn't unconsious. So she could still try.
And she would.
"Ari..."
The alien looked only faintly surprised to see the pink-clad catgirl clambering to her feet, clutching the heart shaped weapon in her hand. Even so, Ichigo looked like she was hanging by a thread. Ari smirked. Snap it, she thought to herself, eyes brimming with battle glee, Snap it, and watch her fall...
"Ri...ribbon...!" It was so hard to form words. The world was caving in all around her, it seemed. And yet Ari didn't charge. She was mocking her, taunting her. Waiting for the peak of hope to strike her down. But that didn't stop Ichigo. She had people to protect.
"Strawberry --- Supri---!" The wind was knocked out of her, by her own exhaustion, and she stumbled, before falling forward. From her cloudy vision, she could see a streak of blue storming towards her, glints of copper swinging back, ready to strike.
That was it. She felt her consiousness slipping away. That was it. That was it...
"Move!" An unfamiliar voice screamed. No, wait. It was familiar... wasn't it? Not like Ichigo could obey. She'd lost all consious control of her body. She just kept falling, falling, waiting to hit ground or feel the sharp blade of Ari's sais pierce through her skin, whichever came first.
She was halted. Not gently, though; her body collided with some form of support, that kept her semi steady and from falling. She didn't know what it was. Not the ground, not a knife; as she opened her eyes, though, she saw an arm. A gloved hand, twisted around, clutching the hilt of a sword. Ichigo's eyes widened.
They trailed up the sword, and she saw the blade interlocking with a pair of bronze sais.
It was that girl. It was the Dark Angel.
"Could you," the girl grunted, tightening the hold on her sword. Ichigo realized what was holding her up now - she'd fallen onto the girl's arm, and was nearly draped across it, "get off so I can fight?"
Ichigo could much less answer, than actually move and obey. But just looking into the blue depths of the girl's eyes conviced her otherwise. Life seemed to come back in her body and she inhaled, staggering back, out of the way, before allowing her body to fall to the ground in sitting position. Watching, and gasping for air, she struggled to stay conscious.
Kona... Kikyo...
As she felt some leftover pain in her gut, Ichigo leaned over, squeezing her eyes shut, trying to clench out the pain. She felt a hand on her shoulder, and looked up, to see the swordsman standing over her, smiling kindly.
"Ichigo." Her eyes widened, he simply shook his head. "Don't try to move. Where are the others?"
Ichigo heard a clash of metal as the angel girl succeeded in pushing Ari back with her weapons, even more following it as a battle ensued. The others...? She felt her stomach give a lurch and Ichigo nearly doubled over coughing, the only thing holding her up the hand supporting her by the shoulder.
"Kona and Kikyo..." Covering her head with her mouth as if that would stop the choking, Ichigo looked up at him pleadingly, "Please, please, you have to help them. They... I don't - " She cut off coughing again, curling up tightly, trying to make the pain of the wounds face away. He nodded and lifted his hand, placing it on the hilt of his undrawn sword.
"Brooke." There was another outcry as the girl managed to push Ari back even further, knocking the alien down so she could catch her breath herself. Ichigo's eyes widened as she reacted to the name, turning her head only slightly to the swordsman. She looked less than pleased, a 'what do you want?' look on her face. Still he stared back at her solemnly. "I'm going. Can you handle this on your own?"
"Yes, I can," She growled, narrowing her eyes at the alien who was beginning to stand back up on her feet. Accepting that as the best answer she could give, the boy slipped past, in the direction Ichigo hoped Kona and Kikyo were right now. She needed to know they were okay, that her chase hadn't been in vain...
Inhaling shakily, Ichigo managed to stay sitting, watching the battle warily from where she sat. As she focused on keeping steady breathing, trying to ignore all the pain, a word rang through her head. Brooke. She looked at the girl fighting, with her shining sword and single black wing, with an icy, hard look in her eyes. Brooke. The way she moved, swiftly, and almost staggeringly, as if she were carrying some heavy burden. Ichigo exhaled.
Brooke.
--
"Kyah!" Kona screamed, leaping just out of an arrow's way. Marzipan stood before her, breathing heavily, looking as if she'd already been severely wounded and exhausted. And yet she was still up on her feet, fighting, so much that Kona could barely keep up. Especially since her neck felt like it was badly bruised, and breathing was hard, and Kikyo was having just as tough a time.
Down on one knee to keep herself steady, Kikyo head her charm weapon out, pointed right at Marzipan, whose attention was still fixed on Kona. "Kahidra Blast!" She called, and tightened her grip, the great burst heading straight for Marzipan. Kikyo saw the alien turn her head drowsily, and then there was a bright flash of impact. She had to shield her arm over her eyes, and when Kikyo could see clearly again, Marzipan was right infront of her.
Her breath caught in her throat. "What?" Before she could react any further than that, a knife was thrown right at her, and she had to dive out of the way, hitting the ground hard with a grunt. Looking up quickly, she saw the the violet haired alien was just overhead, going in for a direct hit. Kikyo cried out and swung her Charm around to intercept the blow, managing to hold Marzipan off, though barely. Both were weakened. Kikyo just couldn't tell if the alien was holding back, or...
"Get off!" In a stunning moment, Kikyo saw a flash of pink and black as Marzipan was shoved to the ground by a panting Kona, who collapsed into a heap soon after. None of them were faring too well. And Marzipan was supposedly the superior one, with alien abilities, but she appeared to be just as wounded. On the other hand, she had poisonous weapons...
"You're..." both girls heard the shaky gasps of the alien as she pushed herself up off the ground, looking at them with glazed eyes. Kona couldn't move - her entire body felt limp, and her head felt fuzzy. Kikyo also felt like she was pinned to the ground by an invisible force even still. "...annoying," Marzipan finished in a breath, slowly and shakily drawing out her bow and notching one of her arrows, aiming straight for Kona's heart. She was helpless to move, only stare in horror, in fear, her mind racing but her body staying perfectly still.
"Goodbye," Marzipan said wispily, seriously, pulling the arrow back as far as it would go before swiftly releasing her grip on the string.
"Honoo Kousa!"
It was too fast of a sequence for even Kona to keep up on. Marzipan holding the arrow; Marzipan releasing the arrow; the arrow flying right at her, and then, just like that, disapearing in a column of flame. She felt the heat almost right against her face, but didn't even blink. It all happened in less than a second. And when she looked toward the source of the voice, the fire bringer, she wondered why she was surprised to see the Elemental Swordsman.
The flame cleared up almost instantly, leaving a calmly infuriated Marzipan standing there, still frozen with her arm stretched out, bow in hand, the invisible arrow no longer even ashes. Quick footsteps approached, and her head slowly creaked around to see the black haired boy standing there, two swords held outstretched, glowing with the remainder of flame.
Marzipan's jaw visibly tightened and she instintively took a step back. It was only now that Kona and Kikyo seemed to regain their senses; the latter climbed to her feet, while all Kona was able to do was sit up and catch her breath. Marzipan didn't even see them. Her dark blue eyes were focused, almost in fear, on the boy.
"You won't hurt them," he said in a warning tone, almost glowering in the alien's direction. Marzipan visibly flinched. The swordsman sheathed one sword quietly, still holding the other out. His eyes narrowed. "Your actions will become as unforgiveable as the others."
Marzipan took another quick step backwards, though the heel of her stiletto leaned inwards, nearly causing her to lose her balance. She held her bow out defensively, but the boy seemed completely unaffected as he lifted his blade, levelling the tip with Marzipan.
"Soyokaze Ken!" The wind suddenly picked up viciously, and from the angle Kona was standing, it looked to her like the sword was gathering air all around it. Marzipan looked like she wanted to run, but stayed right where she was, watching, wide-eyed, her breathing steadily increasing. Then, the swordsman, with one swift movement of the arm, drew the blade back and thrust it forward, sending a flurry of winds in the alien's direction. Kona and Kikyo were well out of the way, but it hit Marzipan almost square in the chest, sending her back quite a few paces. As she struggled to stay standing against the pressing winds, she looked to be in a great deal of pain, like a paper doll ready to be swept away in the breeze. Her skirt, sleeves and hair where whipping around uncontrollably, giving any indication to the amount of pressure being put on her. Finally, Marzipan just shut her eyes and relaxed, letting her body fade from sight and away from the winds.
He stood, warily, watching carefully. Then, when it seemed she was truly gone, he slowly lowered his sword and sheathed it once more, taking a few steps back and turning.
"W-wait," He paused, glancing back to see Kona up on her feet, holding her Bell in a relaxed and lowered position. Her chest was moving a great deal, showing she was breathing deeply, and struggling to do so. He waited as she struggled to speak. Lifting her head, the panther-fused girl swallowed, and then said, "...thank you."
He smiled softly in return. Turning again, he broke into a run, heading towards a different direction, leaving the two girls alone. But they were safe now.
Kona just stared after him, an unreadable expression on her face. Then Kikyo stepped beside her, and glanced sideways at her. "Let's go find Ichigo. She ran off with Ari, I think."
Kona nodded. "Right," They both headed off then, toward where Ichigo had ran.
Marzipan was out of the way. But Ari... both of them had seen how fierce Ari could get.
--
"Cherry Burst!"
"Raspberry Dazzle!"
In a flurry of light, Roxi and Yumi combined their attacks, trying to throw Hanajima off balance. The alien was tricky enough, though; the power of illusion was not one to be taken lightly. She could move where she appeared to be, even where the attack appeared to be, within seconds; it was hard to attack something when you didn't know whether or not it was really there. That shouldn't have mattered - that wasn't the goal. Roxi and Yumi had succeeded in that - they'd driven Hanajima away. And now what? It was becoming hard to just stay standing... would anyone come to help?
"You can't trick me, kittens," She said solemnly, and held her staff out. The girls stiffened. They could feel the world around them changing, morphing to her advantage, "I'm the master of tricks. Right before your eyes..."
Suddenly, there was a flash of white and black, and Hanajima nearly lost grip of her staff, and fell to the ground. The Swordsman landed nimbly after her, and she was back on her feet in a second.
"You!" She hissed, swinging her staff in an arch, "You filthy meddler!"
There was a loud clang as sword and staff intercepted, locked in battle. Roxi and Yumi stared in awe, as if trying to figure out what had just happened, when the swordsman turned to them, a lot of strain on his face.
"Leave, I can take care of her," his response only provoked a cry of rage from the illusions alien for being referred to as a simple opponent, "Ichigo needs you both. Go!"
It took a second for it to sink in, obviously, but once it did, Roxi nodded, and grabbed Yumi by the arm, turning to go. Yumi was the one who started running, though, at such a fast speed that Roxi had to hold on. He could hold this alien off, he knew. As long as he was careful, he'd be fine.
So long as the others were.
--
"Ribbon Mitsukai Ken!" The black haired girl unleashed a cry, her sword emitting a dark and dangerous glow as she swiped at Ari. The alien used both daggers to block, but the aura obviously startled her, made her falter. That wasn't enough, though. Not even close.
"You're nothing!" She screamed, her daggers bursting into blue flame. This mixed with the aura created a devastating explosion, throwing grey coloured smoke all around, clouding the angel's vision. The girl winced and took a step backwards. She couldn't see. She couldn't see a thing.
"Got you!" Before it could clear up, the blue haired alien burst through the smoke, swinging her daggers at her from behind. She couldn't even react --
"Ribbon Strawberry Surprise!" A bright pink light sent Ari flying back just as her blades grazed against the angel's back, doing no more damage than a small trickle of blood. Getting up quickly, the angry alien saw Ichigo up on her feet again, gasping for air, clutching her bell. She looked angry. They both did. The Dark Angel recovered quickly as the smoke faded, and she held her blade out at the alien.
Ari gritted her teeth. This was far from over.
"That's it!" She cried, charging forward with flame-ridden sais, "You're both done!"
"No way! Cherry Burst!" A flash of red light came at her, but Ari dodged easily. Her target was Ichigo. Ichigo.
"Ichigo!" Ari jumped into the air, moving swiftly, raising her dagger to strike quickly. A fresh blast to the side knocked the alien clear out of the path, Kikyo standing off with her Fox Charm held out.
"You guys..." Ichigo breathed, looking around. Kikyo. Kona. Yumi. Roxi. They'd all come. They were all fine. Maybe a little wounded, but alive. On their feet. She smiled, and then turned to Ari, who was struggling to her feet.
"Ari! This has gone on long enough!" She pointed, and then, unable to help herself, grinned. Pulling her hands back, "For the future of the earth, we serve, nya!" she struck a pose. This only served to further infuriate the alien.
"You're mocking me!" She barked.
"Go away, Ari," Kona said bluntly. The alien winced. "You're outnumbered. Badly."
Her throat muscles seemed to constrict upon this realization. Five - no, six - mews standing against her, ready to fight. Hanajima wasn't even here. And neither was Marzipan, the useless thing. Still, she stood her ground, too confident to back down. No matter the odds.
"Fine! We'll take you down ourselves, then," Ichigo said boldly, holding her bell out. The others did the same with their weapons.
"Ribbon -"
"Tsch," Ari just looked disgusted, annoyed. That replaced the look of surrender, Ichigo supposed. Turning her head in irritation, Ari simply glared at them, "Another day. Try to stay alive until then." And she was gone, just like the others.
Right away, the angel sheathed her sword and headed off swiftly in the other direction without a word. Ichigo opened her mouth, as if to try and stop her, but felt Kikyo's hand grip her firmly by the shoulder, halting her.
"Leave her," Ichigo turned towards her questioningly, but Kikyo just shook her head, "She came here with him. That swordsman. Let her make sure he's alright."
Ichigo paused for a moment, and then nodded. Looking around at everyone, she rested a hand on her own head, detransforming in a flash of blue. Turning to the others with a smile, she said, "Come on. Let's go back now. I'm exhausted..."
--
Ryou was sitting at one of the tables, holding a water bottle idly in his hands. Keiichiro had come out several times, asking if he was alright, if he needed anything - of course, being Ryou, he didn't. He just waited. Almost anxiously. When would they be back? It had already been several hours; every minute that ticked by indicated a greater chance of injury. Of fatality. Of loss. But the two men at the cafe waited, unable to do anything otherwise.
After a few more minutes, the door swung open, and he sat upright. There they were. The 'super ladies'. Alive.
"We're back!" Yumi chanted happily. Ryou managed a little smile.
"We managed to find out a bit about the Marzipan," Kona said, and Kikyo nodded in agreement.
Ryou took this as good news. However, Ichigo suddenly looked disturbed, like something was on her mind.
Roxi noticed this. "Ichigo-chan? What's wrong?"
Ryou glanced at her expectantly. Ichigo frowned, then looked up at him. "Shirogane..." she trailed off, and then inhaled,
"...Do you think we could check for reports of a missing person... 'Brooke'?"
--
Next Chapter:
Ichigo's been given a clue - a clue that could lead her and the girls to the ally they've been searching and hoping for. And everyone, especially Ryou, is alarmed when they learn the ugly truth of the Dark Angel's existance. But will knowing be enough? Is there a way to win the icy girl over, even with the aliens constantly on the prowl?