Disclamer: Ela does not own gakuen alice, although it's one of her wishes (that will probably not come true…sigh)=(

To PureSakura1999 – thank you for pointing out Ela's mistake regarding the name of Uncle Kazu. Hehehe ( I had change it already).

Anyways, on with the story…

Enjoy=D

Chapter 2: The Chase

It's been three hours since they left the safety of the Fortress. Mikan and her guardian Sir Shiki is currently running for their lives. Shiki knows that there are at least thirtyfive soldiers pursuing them, and he cannot let them catch the Princess or the sacrifice of the Queen and the others will be for nothing.

He urge Mikan to run faster "Hayaku Mikan-sama, we have to run faster. We're almost there."

"Where...exactly…are….we….going….Shiki-san? She answered between mouthfuls of air.

Shiki looked at her with concern, but before he can answer her back, he felt an ominous aura approaching their current location. He looked back in time to catch a glimpse of the person walking casually towards them. Shiki grabs Mikan and half carried half drag her away from the dangerous person he knows to be Person himself. He put his hand to her mouth to stop her from uttering any sounds that might alert the person of their hiding place. While trying to silently get away from Persona, Mikan tripped and fell, Shiki silently cursed and tried to help her up.

"Ouch! I think I may have sprained my ankle Shiki-san" she looks up at him with tears in her eyes.

He looked around him and he spotted a rabbit hole beneath a fig tree that was covered mostly with shrubs and grass. He carried her to opening and placed her neatly inside the rabbit hole safely hidden behind the shrubs and the grass.

"Stay here Princess. I will be back. I just need to finish something. Don't go out, ok?"

She looks at him but did not argue. She knows that Shiki will risk his life to save her. "Uhmm" she nodded. "Please take care of yourself."

"Don't worry, I'll be back" he said before standing up and silently run in the direction where they come from.

Mikan's POV:

Where are you Shiki-san? It's been more than two hours since you went out. I even healed my ankle with the healing stone that mother gave me for my seventh birthday, so that I will not be a burden to you when you get back. But you're still not here. What am I going to do now? Shiki-san…please….

DUM DUM DUM DUM

Gasp! What was that? I think there is someone outside. I better look….but Shiki-san told me not to go out. Demo if I stay in this hole, I'm technically not going out right? I'm just going to listen.

"Hey! Have you found her yet?"

What the?! Aren't those Berserkers? What are they doing here? It looks like they are looking for someone. Wait?...HER?...Could it be their looking for me? Oh! Sir Shiki, where are you?

"No! She's not here."

"Persona will skin us alive if we don't find her."

"Good thing the 1st knight was out of the way. If Persona was not with us, we might be dead by now"

Shit! What could they have done to Sir Shiki? I won't forgive them. But first I have to know if Shiki-san is alright. What to do, what to do…Urghh.

"That's why he assigned us to look for that Princess, because he knows that it will now be easy to look for her."

"Yeah! But, we've been looking for her for two hours and we still haven't found her yet. Shit! We better head back and report that she is not in this area. Then ask for some reinforcements. This is place is huge, she could be anywhere."

"Sigh! Good thinking. Let's go"

This is my chance! Wait for me Shiki-san, I'll save you.

Normal POV

Mikan followed them silently. She was confident that the Berserkers will not find her; after all she was trained by the greatest Knights of their Kingdom ever since she was born. Even Natsume acknowledges the fact that she is strong and capable of holding herself against enemies.

When she saw the soldiers entered their base that looked like a campsite, only it was barricaded by steel gates, the tents around looks like it was made of Dragon Skin, and worst of all the center bonfire burn with black flames. She shuddered at the sight. She knows that there will have to kill hundreds of her kind to be able to make those tents, she almost vomit with that thought. However, the black flames in that bonfire troubled her more, there is only one way to light a black flame and that is if someone has gain the title of a 'Black mage', since black mages are the only one capable of conjuring such flames. They are capable of inflicting pain, that can break the most tongue tied Warrior to submission. They can even flip someone's feelings and make them think that he/she really belongs to their side. This is not good for her, seeing that they have held hostage Sir Shiki.

"Oh! God, please be alright Shiki-san" she uttered atop the tree that she's currently in. She waited patiently to see what was happening inside the base. It looks like there was some kind of gathering. Soldiers are gathered near the bonfire, at the front of the largest tent. There was a long pole situated in front of it then she saw that there was a human who was tied to the pole, kneeling in the midst of the standing Berserkers. He was covered in blood and visible marks of suffering from torture can be seen all over his body. Worst of all, his hands up to his shoulders was turning dark, like a curse creeping along the length of his arms, eating him up slowly. Mikan saw him and she realized who that was. Her eyes grew big at what she saw; she cannot believe that Sir Shiki has been put into such a state by the Berserkers.

She almost cried looking at the sight of him, but she knows that it will do no good if she cried there. Worst case scenario, the Berserkers will find her and tied her along with Sir Shiki. She shook her head to clear her thoughts and silently prayed to Kami for guidance.

"I must endure. I promised Mama that no matter what happens, I have to stay strong. Kami-sama…Mother…please help me" as she remembers the last conversation she had with her mother 5 years ago.

Mikan my love, promise me that you will do your best to be a good student to Sir Shiki. Follow his orders and be a good girl. Ok?

Don't do reckless things, don't go out of the Fortress alone, and don't fight with Natsume-kun or to anyone else.

Don't be sad when I'm gone, eat lots of healthy food, make friends with the children, play to your hearts content whenever you can, but don't forget to do your lessons.

Always smile that genuine smile of yours. Be the light to everyone. You will have to be the back bone that will support everyone. Who will endure no matter what happens. Mikan, Promise me.

….

I….I promise mama.

Back then she was still young and naïve. She cried when she heard what happened at the citadel. All of them cried, because their parents had risked their lives to protect them. After that incident, the children rarely disobey any orders from Sir Shiki. It finally dawned on them how serious the situation was, and as the last surviving generation of their race; it is up to them to stop the war.

It's been five years since then, she might still be considered a child at twelve years old, but she was not that kid anymore. She was forced to grow up early for the sake of their race. She stood up from the branch that she was perched and eyed the base of the Berserkers. "Shiki-san, please hold on. I'm coming"

On the other side of the Island, two figures can be seen running for their lives, like Mikan and Sir Shiki, it seems that they had their share of pursuers. One of them is a 20 year old lad with dark long hair, which flutters behind him while he runs. The other one had also equally dark hair, not as long as the older one but equally beautiful, maybe even more beautiful. They stop near a tall tree to catch their breath.

"Remind me again why I was paired with you Tono-hentai?" huffed the younger one with ruby eyes.

"Look Natsume, it's not my fault that they nearly catch us. If I didn't drag you out of the Fortress, we might be minced meat by now. A little appreciation can't hurt now, would it?"

Natsume didn't even bother looking at him when he responded, "Whatever. Where are we going anyway? We've been running for a few hours now."

"Sigh…Tired now, are we? We should probably work with your endurance once this is over." When he saw that Natsume glared at him at the mention of his endurance, Tono only smirked and added "You know you're not allowed to ask questions regarding our destination right? Let's just say that where we're going will make me a happy man." He sighed with anticipation.

Natsume looked at him with disgust, knowing Tono he is probably thinking about THAT. He shook his head and muttered an audible "Tch." He climb up the tree to observe their surrounding, when he say about more than ten figures going to their current location.

"What do you see up there kid?"

"Nothing really, there are trees all the way to the eastern side, then there are about ten to fifteen men running here to our location. They might spot you there if you don't climb up here" he said as if the situation there in, is of no importance to him.

"What the!? You should've said that first. Damn you brat!" as he clambered up the tree with haste.

"Shut up, do you want them to find us here?" Natsume whispered to him.

Tono whispered back "This is your fault."

"Can you see them? I thought I saw them stop near this place."

"You Idiot! Don't waste our time; Persona-sama wants all of us at the base by midnight."

"But….I really saw them here. Maybe they climb the trees?"

At this, our two DS climb up further like a cat so as to hide from the berserkers.

"Don't kid your self! Just look for them here. Six of you accompany him, the rest of you come with me. Persona-sama wants us to attend with the execution of the 1st knight by midnight. Move out."

"Yes captain"

As the soldiers slowly move out to the direction of their base camp, Natsume and Tono decided that it is time to move out as well. "Did you hear that? Shiki-san will be executed by midnight?" asked Tono. "That is simply not possible. What do you think?"

"I think that the soldiers are too keen to follow the orders of Persona to be at their base to have noticed us here. Maybe they are telling the truth. Impossible or not, there's only one way to find out."

"I guess so. Then, what are we waiting for? Let 's go"

They jump from tree to tree avoiding being seen by the soldiers who were looking for them, following the other soldiers to their camp. They hope that what they heard was wrong, because if that were true; then Sir Shiki and Mikan are in danger right now.

"Shiki-san, please hold on. I'm coming"

Mikan jumped high from the tree that she was hanging from. She dash towards the left side of the base where the food was being held, entered an empty tent and peered outside. "Good, I will wait here until everyone is asleep."

One by one, the crowd that was surrounding Sir Shiki dispersed. Some of them went inside the largest tent; some went out to gather firewood to supply them for the night while some simply walked out in pairs to patrol the area. Finally, she saw a girl, slightly older than her with shoulder length hair. It was grayish blue in color that was mesmerizing to look at, especially when the wind caught it. She was simply beautiful; Mikan was curious why a beautiful girl like her was with the berserkers. But, she had to put the thought of the girl aside; her first priority is to save Sir Shiki. After twenty long minutes, Mikan moved out from her hiding place and tiptoed her way to him.

"Shiki-san…shiki-san…" Mikan quietly woke up Sir Shiki who seemed to have lost his consciousness. That was probably why the Berserkers left him alone.

He slowly opened his eyes and exclaimed "What are you..…uhmmmp!"

"SHHHH.. Shiki-san, please be quiet." She looked around them to make sure that no one has heard Sir Shiki. "Now, stay still so that I can untie you."

"No"

"What do you mean no?"

"I can't let you risk your life to save me, now go before they find out that you're here. Please Mikan-sama."

"NO WAY IN HELL Shiki-san. You know me, and I've decided. I will untie your hands; get you out of here, even if I have to drag you as long as I can get us away from this sick place. Now, are you gonna let me untie you quietly or do I have to put gag on you?" she inquired a little pissed off.

He sigh, he does know her. He practically raised her with the help of some of the older and wiser DS. But, all in all, he was the one in charge of her well upbringing. He silently shakes his head and looked at her sadly with a tinge of pride in them. "You are so like her. Fine, but…if something happens, you will leave me here alone. Understand?"

She rolled her eyes before she answered "Sure, whatever", then proceeded to cut the ropes untying his hands and helped him to his feet. They walked – scratch that - Mikan half carried Sir Shiki to the gates of the Berserkers, since his legs seemed to have becoming darker as well, she did not notice, but the dark color creeping in his arms earlier has reached his torso which was slightly bleeding since his clothes has been ripped by some kind of animal claws. She gasp, the creeping thing did not start at his arms, but rather it started at his chest. Who ever made that mark in his chest was also the one who made the dark creeping thing eating his body and turning it lifeless. Sir Shiki noticed that Mikan was looking at his chest. He looked at it and cringed. "Sorry Mikan-sama…..Persona was…vicious with his...fighting style… I was not….able to….dodge his attack…with the mark of death..." he informed her weakly.

"Mark of Death? So that's what it's called..Its making your body weak. We have to get that out of your body and fast. Let's get out of here."

They were almost at the gate, when they heard the drumming of the gongs. The enemy has found out that their prisoner has escaped and probably still in the area.

Sir Shiki cursed silently and let go of Mikan who was supporting most of his weight and willed his legs to stand on its own. "Go!...Mikan-sama….huff….I will hold…..huff….them off…"

"Shiki-san, don't be reckless. You taught me to use my mind and not my feelings when it comes to these things. So No, I refuse to leave you behind. You can't even stand alone in your current state, let alone fight." She grabs a hold of him and helped him sat at the edge of the wall. "There, stay there. Rest for a while and watch your student put into action the things that she learned" She added with a smirk.

Sir Shiki doesn't like the Idea of the Princess facing off the Berserkers alone, but he cannot do anything to help her now. His body won't listen to him. He was too weak to even stand alone.

"Don't let them catch you. They're using cursed weapons so you have to be fast and avoid making contact with your body. Use the elements to counter. Lastly…be careful."

Mikan was startled to hear him say all those words to her without moving his lips. Looks like Sir Shiki has kept some of his powers from them over the years. She slowly looked at him and smiles her radiant smile. "You don't have to worry. I'm one of your best students, remember?"

Mikan walked away from Sir Shiki, he looked at her with pride and watched one of the most entertaining battles he ever witnessed. For starters, Mikan looked ready, she was confident, and for the first time she was not tripping or making all of those crazy behavior she does before sparring. Sir Shiki was afraid that she might end up hurting herself, but it looks like he might be mistaken: especially when he saw the look on the faces of the Berserkers. They're underestimating her. They might have fought and killed many DS before, but they haven't fought someone walking towards them with an air of confidence even though she is clearly still a child. They are not ready to face someone like her. They thought that they can easily beat her up, but what they didn't know is that she is one of the strongest DS of her generation.

Shiki's POV

She looks confident. That's because she is confident. Now, what will the Berserkers do? Hmmm…it looks like this might be their first time facing someone like her. 60 against 1, I don't like the odds but she can beat them all, I just hope that she doesn't trip accidentally.

Interesting…It looks like Persona is curious about her abilities and will only stand at the sidelines. Much better, though I better watch him carefully or he might strike when the Princess is not looking.

Normal POV

Mikan took a large gulf of air before shouting to the Berserkers who were waiting for her to attack "I WON'T LET ANY OF YOU HURT ANY OF MY FAMILY EVER AGAIN!" Then she rushed to their ranks. One by one, they took out their weapons, as Sir Shiki stated; their weapons had been cursed. So, she avoided every swipe of the enemy. She had stolen the element and weather control when she was younger. Those are her favorites when sparring during their training session at the Fortress.

She jump in midair and used the element of air to hold her suspended. She used her hands to open a big fissure with the use of the earth that engulf half of the Berserkers alive. She dodges the on-coming attack of a big man with a mallet; she used the wind to push him away, and then raises her hands to call on lightning. The man was crisp even before he reaches the nearest tent. All around was chaos, the Berserkers had realized to late what she was capable off. It only took her 45 minutes to take down all of the remaining soldiers. She runs immediately to Sir Shiki to look at his condition.

Persona only looked at her with wary and suspicion. He was still uncertain about the girl, but he knows that she is the Princess. He walked towards her who has her back on him; she was busy attending to Sir Shiki who has lost consciousness during the fight due to fatigue. He was going to grab her, when fire suddenly broke out. Everywhere he looked; there is fire – crimson blazing fire. He was startled. Only the 2nd knight can make that kind of fire.

"Get away from her, you monster!" shouted a boy just outside the gate.

Back to the Valley of the Witches.

"And that was how we found Shiki-san and Mikan-chan at the base of the Berserkers. Almost all of them were wiped out by her. She is really strong." He continued to praise the Princess, while nodding his head for effect. "Then Persona run towards us when he saw us emerge from the burning gates, so we grab Mikan-chan and drag Shik-san out of there. I changed into a Dragon, and I carried the two in my back. Mikan-chan insisted that she has to make sure that Shiki-san is ok. So Natsume and I flew all the way here"

They were sitting at the great hall with Hii-sama and Chief Kazu while Sir Shiki, Mikan and Tono recount their story after the siege at the Fortress (Natsume went out in the middle of the story). Chief Kazu learned that Hii-sama had known about the siege and contacted Sir Shiki days before the planned siege; the reason why he was able to form a plan regarding the safety of the children. They spent the whole afternoon filling in the Chief of what had happened to them during the 2 weeks that they had stayed in the castle. Sir Shiki had recovered from the ordeal all thanks to the Princess. She was able to 'steal' the curse that Persona has put into his body. Gradually he has regained his strength to be able to walk with out any help from the others. It was also later revealed to Mikan and Natsume - 5 days since they had arrived at the witches; that the guardians are to bring the children in the Valley first before mingling with the Humans.

In the course of the two weeks, the children with their guardians came, one after the other. Nine children and nine guardians have returned. However, a pair is still missing and they are yet to hear their whereabouts - Aoi, Natume's sister and Hijiri Goshima her Guardian. Hii-sama has tried locating them but something was blocking her from tracing their location. They are now sure that something might have happened to them. What it could be is still a mystery. The children; especially a certain raven haired boy are getting anxious each passing day. So, far everything seemed peaceful, but only on the surface since there is that concern about the missing pair and the looming confrontation with the Berserkers.

At the castle of the Berserkers in the North.

The girl that Mikan saw back in the base of the berserkers entered a dark room, "He has arrived. He brought her; the daughter of the Fire Dragon."

Persona smirked at what he has heard. Now, it's only a matter of time before he came to him; the boy with the crimson fire. He will bargain a deal that he won't be able to refuse.

He silently laughs and looked darkly towards the directions of the south; where the castles of witches stand. "Soon my little Fire Dragon. You will come and I will change your will."

Please share your thoughts. Also, just want to say that I had fun, writing this one. I just hope that you had fun reading it as much as I had fun writing it. Hehehehe..I would also like to take this opportunity to thank those who are favorite/following this story. I would like to request to please leave a review before following/putting on your favorite list it, I just want to know if you liked it or not (and what are the things that you do like and don't like). Since I didn't even expect it to be followed, I was shocked to see that you're interested to know more about the story; but it would make my day if I will hear from you guys, I hope that it's soon rather than later though..

So don't hesitate to push the button below, ok?

Till next time.

Ela=D