Bad weather should not prevent them from giving the children a comprehensive, very practical knowledge of various fighting techniques.


But while Jeice showed up very punctually and flew out into the storm with Dump, Maiju made no move to show up. Trail waited half an hour, but then it was enough for him. She had probably overslept again - then he just had to wake her up. He knew where her cabin was and immediately went there.


At the door he had to think for a few minutes before he remembered the code. Entered it and went into the cabin. His first impression was: chaos.

The broken sandbag was on the floor, along with her combat suit and boots, a towel and several notebooks. One of them was open. He glanced at it and saw many short notes, written in lively, hard-to-read script. The trainer didn’t waste much time deciphering her hieroglyphs, but sat up, stepped over the sandbag, stood next to the hammock and pulled the blanket away from Maiju. Usually she woke up immediately, but today she didn't. Trail frowned. Something was wrong.


The girl was huddled in her hammock, as always. One hand was next to her face, the other was outstretched. But she didn't seem to be asleep, it was more like she was passed out, Trail found. Her breathing was panting and erratic. When he touched her shoulder, he noticed that she was glowing all over. The touch seemed to hurt her because she winced violently and grimaced.

"Oh, shit, what's the matter with her?" thought Trail, "What am I doing now?"


he wanted to pick her up to take her to the hospital wing, but she winced again and whimpered softly.


"It doesn't help, little one, if I can't carry you, I can't bring you down to the doctor either!" he said, hoping she could hear him. Then, ignoring her groan, he lifted her out of the hammock, left the cabin, and hurried to the hospital wing as quickly as possible.


He stormed through the first door on the right, braked - and then stood there a little lost. Looked around, saw the bed next to the door and put the girl on it. Tried not to let his concern show: In the two years in which he had trained her, he had somehow grown in love with Maiju. But this was not welcomed by the higher authorities.


That is why he turned around to the senior doctor and his patient as casually as possible, who both stared at him in amazement and said at the same time: "Maybe you should take a look at the little one, something is wrong with her!""Then he left the room again, the door closed behind him.


The senior doctor shrugged his shoulders and turned back to Jeice, whom he was sewing up a gaping abdominal wound. The boy sat motionless, only looked with wide eyes at Maiju's face and let the sewing go through him without complaint.


When the doctor wanted to put a bandage on him, he said, "That's okay. I don't need a bandage. You'd better look at Maiju!"


"What you need or not, I still know better than you do. And now stop fidgeting here, then I'll be finished all the sooner!" The doctor grabbed a roll of bandages and wanted to start putting it on Jeice, but he tore the roll out of his hand with a quick movement "I thought you were responsible for it?" he snapped so hard that the doctor took a step backwards.


“Cool off, I'll have a look at it!” The senior doctor went to the door in the next room, opened it and called out another doctor “Put the boy on for me, I have to examine Maiju!"The doctor nodded and dealt immediately with Jeice. The boy sat upright as before and watched the senior doctor placing his instruments within reach.


Maiju continued to lie there apathetically, winced every time she was touched anywhere. And every time she winced, Jeice's eyes narrowed a little.


What's the matter with you, Maiju? You mustn't die, do you hear, I don't want to be here alone!


He was so lost in thought that at first he didn't even notice that the doctor had finished bandaging his wound. Only when he tapped him on the shoulder did he startle "Hmm, what?"


"Done. You can get dressed again. But fighting is no more for today!"


"And what is that supposed to be good for?" Jeice asked while he was putting his battle suit back on.


"If you fight again right away, the seams will tear and we can patch you up again."


"Dump won't like that at all!" he warned.It suited him very well. He didn't want to leave Maiju alone, even if he couldn't help her.


The doctor shrugged his shoulders "Then he was unlucky. You can go, but remember: training is over for today!"


"Then I'll stay here!" Jeice decided.


"Why?"


"If I can't train, I might as well stay here. Then I can't do anything anyway."


"If you think!" the doctor shrugged again and walked over to his superior.


"Did you find out anything?"


The senior doctor hesitated a little before answering, "Well ... nothing specific ... Your pulse is way too fast and your body temperature is worryingly high. There are also a few other little things that I can't figure out. .. look at your hands! "He took one of Maiju's little hands in his own. She whimpered softly.


"Yes, that is also something that worries me: she is extremely sensitive to touch!But please, look at your hands! It looks like the little finger is wasting away, or as if your body is breaking down the outermost hand bones! And dismantle it, not repel it, because that would still be fairly normal! "The senior doctor shook his head:" I am faced with a riddle! "


"And you really don't know what that could be?"


"As I said: it is a mystery to me!"


Meanwhile Jeice had come up from behind, now he was standing at the head of the couch and looking at Maiju's hand, which the senior doctor was still holding up. He saw what the doctor meant: the little finger was bent inward, the whole hand bone somehow shifted. Something occurred to him "Maybe ... is that the mutation?" he said softly.


The doctors looked at him in surprise. A moment of silent reflection followed.


"At least that is a possibility," murmured the senior physician, "which could be checked. A needle and a bowl, please!"He held out his subordinate's hand, palm up.


He spun around and began searching the treatment room for the items he wanted. When he had found what he was looking for, he gave his superior the needle with which that Maiju pricked the little finger and dropped a few drops of blood into the bowl.


Then the two doctors withdrew to the next room and left Jeice alone with Maiju.


The boy wasn't angry about it. He had never been alone with her before, had not even been able to exchange a few words with her without being blown straight away. But he liked her, if only because she was a fellow fate.


He wanted to touch her face, but then he thought better of it. He didn't mean to hurt her.


"What's the matter with you? Don't let me down, please, Maiju, wake up again!" he whispered.


As if on cue, she suddenly moved.Her eyelids twitched, then she opened her eyes. Like everyone else, Jeice looked spellbound into her large, beautiful turquoise eyes.


Maiju's head growled, her whole body hurting. Confused, she looked at Jeice's face, it took a few seconds to understand why this was unusual. Her mind worked as if in slow motion. She screwed up her eyes to get a better view of the area, like a nearsighted man without glasses. Looked at Jeice again.


"You?" she whispered, her voice gave no more, "What is ..... Why am I here?"


At first she thought he wouldn't answer, but then he said, "You ... were unconscious, and ..." he broke off.


"And what?" she tried to prop herself up on one elbow, which she only managed to a limited extent.


"Well ... I just know that Trail brought you here and left right away. And the senior doctor said he has never seen anything like it!"


"Never seen anything before?"


"Well your ..." Jeice played with his hands.He was clearly uncomfortable with the subject.


Maiju's brain was working faster again. She understood, looked at her hands. And gasped for air.


Jeice looked at the floor, embarrassed. he whispered not very tactfully.


"Damn what is that ?!" hissed Maiju.


"The mutation!" said Jeice. Clapped his hand over his mouth, but it was too late.


"What ?! What kind of mutation?"


Jeice wanted to slap herself. What should he tell her now?


"Out with the language! What do you mean?"


He pushed around. Shit again, Freezer would lynch him, she shouldn't find out! But why lie?


"A ... well, that's so ... Freezer ... injected you with strange genes when you were only two. He wanted to make you the ultimate warrior that only he could control. You still had plans should mutate at the age of three, but you refused. Everyone thought you wouldn't mutate at all, but now ... "

Maiju saw the light: "So that's why the syringes! I was always surprised, but nobody wanted to explain it to me!"


"Do you remember that?"


"It wasn't that long ago!"


There was a brief silence.


Then Maiju asked: "Do you know what ... Freezer used for genes?" She suddenly found it strangely difficult to speak again.


Jeice thought for a moment, "I think it was ... Liel-cat and ... and ... the second ... I don't know. Sorry!"


Maiju dropped to one side. She smiled sadly "Well, Liel cat is not that bad."


Jeice didn't know the answer to that. There was another silence, longer than the first. Maiju had closed her eyes again, she felt like she was wrapped in lead.


Something rumbled in the next room, steps and excited voices rang out, but what they were so excited about the two children could not understand. All they knew