The tears blurred her vision as Mari sprinted aimlessly through the forest her body overcome with feelings of fury and embarrassment.  She was really going to go through with It if Kitty had not stayed her hand the next words out of her mouth would have been.  

Crimson Mantis Blades and it would have been her greatest pleasure to carve her flesh with her blades.  Mari had told herself that she would place her feelings aside for the sake of successfully completing their field assignment.

Her lack of stamina meant that Mari did not get to far away from the campsite but still far enough to get lost in dark labyrinth of the forest.   She collapsed against a tree, sucking air while her lungs burned, and her muscles throbbed.

The number of tears she had cried in her short time in this world was rather amusing since she could not recall the last time, she had a single tear in her past life.   Being a woman was turning out to greater challenge than Mari had anticipated.

Periods, cramps and having to squat to take a piss was uncharted territory not to mention the prospect of becoming pregnant.   Mari’s half-heated attempt at distracting herself proved fruitless as her mind quickly returned to the matter at hand.

A rustling in the shrubs snapped Mari back to earth and put on high alert, she knew something was watching her from the safety of the bushes.  She pressed her back against the tree so that she could not be taken from behind and prepared to cast a spell.

                                                                                             “Show yourself bastards!”  Mari screamed.

A chorus of guttural grows sang from the darkness as her enemies crept into view it was a pack of hellhounds six in total.   Their mouths were caked in blood and fragments of flesh was still caught in their maws.

They were probably hunting nearby when Mari’s screaming caught their attention, oh well none of that matters this was a blessing in disguise, they were the first beasts she encountered in this world and they did nothing but cement memories she would rather forget.

                                                                                                                “Hellhounds? Wonderful.”

                                                                                                     “I’m going to enjoy this” Mari laughed.

The hellhounds encircled Mari and lunged towards her from all directions their speed and agility was tremendous, but Mari wasn’t the same weak girl she was in Shikishima village she wouldn’t be the one bleeding tonight.

                                                                                       “Let’s go!”

                                                                                      “Void Magic Second Form:  Crimson Mantis Blades”

With one great motion Mari sliced two of the hellhounds in half painting herself in their blood as the beasts fell to the ground with a yelp, the other Hellhounds came to a grinding halt reassessing the situation.

In a frenzy of pure violence and spurred on only by her darkest impulses Mari mercilessly massacred five more of the dogs until only the leader remained.  The leader squared off against Mari and the pair raced towards each other. 

The desperation has made the beat predictable in the final exchange Mari slid beneath the best and sliced it clean in half with relative ease.  In her heightened state a voice started to speak inside her mind.

I am Shinobu and what is your names miss no legs?  “Wakey, Wakey Mari, it’s morning and you know what that means.

Images of Shinobu flashed inside her mind like strikes of lightning each memory more vexing and painful than last, Mari turned her blades against the trees surrounding her hacking that them in a ferocious flurry.

                                                                               Fuck” Mari howled collapsing into exhaustion.

She was spent she scarcely had the energy to move so if there was anything else that felt like a snack in this forest, she had basically served herself up on a silver platter.    Like clockwork confirming her thoughts a shrill hissing sounded from deep in the darkness of the surrounding forest.

Four Milicents slithered into the clearing their mouths salivating at the prospect of a meal this forest was proving to be on colossal pain in the ass.       

Her blades vanished as she felt her strength ebb leaving her body as little more than a sitting duck, Mari was angry, angry at everything but most of all her poor decision making.   The nauseating pests slithered closer.             

Mari’s heartbeat grew faster until it was pounding inside her chest and filling her ears with it's rhythm it grew so loud that she could not hear the chattering of the beasts as they fell on top of her Maybe this was okay Mari thought her body weary and her eye growing harder to keep open.      

In a moment of clarity, a single thought drifted into her mind and she realized that her proclamation for vengeance was little more than a childish dream.  And more importantly if she joins the ranks of the dead there is a chance, she might see her again.

                                                                        “Whatever…I’m done” Mari whispered.

Sealing her eyes shut Mari waited patiently for the sweet release of death she could feel their breath upon her it, it smelt like weeks old, curdled milk mixed with a thick scent of decaying meat.

Mari felt hot blood splatter her face and she could not help but crack a smile.

                                                                                     “See you soon, Shi.”