Something nudged me, hard. Slowly I opened my eyes.

"Yu...mi?" I yawned.

"So much for volunteering to take the watch.

You could have us all killed during your sleep." Yumi said looming above me. Her long black hair shielded me from the sunlight like a curtain, thank goodness. I was not really the type of person who likes to start the day with sunlight in his eyes.

"My bad, I am going to get up now." I said as I rise to full height.

Which reminds me the fact that a person is taller in the morning then in the night. The spinal column gets compressed throughout the day, making you possibly millimeters shorter.

"Breakfast?" she asked.

"Let me brush my teeth first." Which I did, I got my daily necessities pack and walked over to the stream and brushed my teeth. Hopefully no animal on the upper stream took a piss in it. Afterwards I returned to camp circle and had some "breakfast". Berries collected by Charlotte apparently, we were going to die from eating poisonous berries. We decided to sit down and talk.

"So when are we breaking up the camp?" asked Yumi.

"Now, if possible...but." My chin nudged in a certain direction. There was one problem with moving the camp, Stainless Steel. Killing him wouldn't be humanitarian; but, if he managed to escape he kill every one of us. So the only other option was to transport him with us.

"Alright, I will make it quick." she snapped. For a moment I thought she was able to read my mind, but apparently she took it the wrong way.

"Yumi I thought we had this conversation before." I said tiredly.

"I was only suggesting." Yumi closed her eyes and her expression was unreadable once again.

"I was thinking if we could transport him, with you personally escorting him. Silk and I could carry the supplies."

"I don't like that idea."

"Well let me hear yours."

"We kill him and move on."

"Terrible idea, so mine it is."

"What about me?" Charlotte piped up.

"Uh...you can go on picking berries once we get to our new camp site."

"I don't want to pick berries! It's boring!" she yelled in complaint.

"Talk to rabbits or something." I dismissed her.

"I don't see any rabbits!"

"I am sure you would find tons and tons of them in wonderland. All you have to do is find a rabbit hole and go through the other side." I said.

"It's obviously a trick again! There is no wonderland!"

"How would you know something is impossible till you tried? Well find a rabbit hole, find the candy house, whatever, my lady."

"I don't have to listen to you! I will do what I want!" she yelled storming off.

Yumi and Silk cast me a glance.

"Don't worry she'll be back, all you have to say is that we are leaving her to the wolves."

"Ling I never thought she was your type." Silk said sorrowfully.

"I don't know what you are talking about. Let's just get ready already." I snapped. Yumi went to deal with Stainless Steel while Silk and I put all our supplies in the silver case. A minute later we had everything packed and ready to go.

"Charlotte!" I yelled. No reply, which I expected.

"We are leaving you to the wolves!" I yelled. A moment later there was a figure moving towards us with inhuman speed. I had to step to the side the last moment, to avoid being run over. The figure hit a tree and fell on her rear.

"Our plan almost worked if you were a little bit slower." I said looking down.

"Am I...in wonderland?" Charlotte asked in a daze.

"Don't worry just follow us, we are taking you to wonderland. My lady." I said. I bend down and lend her a hand up.

Even though she was in a bit daze she eventually took my hand and I pulled her to her feet. Yumi came out from behind the trees with Stainless Steel. His hands were tied behind his back.

"Try anything funny, and this will be the last thing you see." Yumi threatened and Stainless Steel said something too muffled to make out.

He had another fruit the size of apple in his mouth. Yumi walked behind him, in one hand she held the knot and in the other she held a stick. Somehow it resembled a Katana. They took the lead as we moved camp. Silk and I were in the behind them each holding one end of the case, making little progress. Behind us was Charlotte. She was singing some sort of nursery rhyme. We traveled like this for about two hours before reaching destination. By the time we got to our new campground it was already noon. We gathered around in a circle after setting up.

"Alright, I am leaving for a hike in a few minutes hopefully I will be able to get a grand idea of this place from highland. Ladies you all remember your jobs right?" I asked.

"I will go set up the traps at once!" Silk said with enthusiasm.

"I don't like the sound of this plan," Yumi said.

"The idea of Ling going alone on a hike is bad enough. Since he even fell asleep on his watch." Yumi said. And I painfully admit that is true...

"So what are you trying to suggest?" I asked.

"That I will go with you." Yumi said.

"But what about your job?"

"Silk can you keep my job covered. I am just trying to keep him, from killing himself."

"If you put it that way..." Silk gave a queasy expression as she tapped a finger against her chin. None of us said a word, as we all waited in silence for her to make her decision.

"Then very well. I will take up the guard duty, but next time I will be taking the romantic walk with my Cherie!" Silk's lips curved into a smile.

"Give me a few minutes, my current clothes won't do." Yumi said as she got up. She went to the case and grabbed her jumpsuit and disappeared behind the trees.

"She's right, I really can't do with these clothes either." Silk flashed a smile as she went to the case and grabbed her set of jumpsuit disappearing behind the trees. All of a sudden she came back and said:

"I don't mind changing together!" Silk smiled.

"I do." I snapped.

"What a shame." She sighed and disappeared behind the trees again.

You should be the one be ashamed for saying something like that. I thought. I turned around and saw Charlotte. Charlotte was still wearing her dress, as tattered as it was she still looked pretty. Probably because i was staring so long, Charlotte turned to me and asked:

"What's wrong Ling?"

"They went to change into the jumpsuit, aren't you going to change too?"

"No! The jumpsuit is ugly! It wouldn't befit a lady like me to wear such a thing."

"I guess you are right. Though your dress is becoming tattered. " I was surprised I said it.

"I hate you Ling!" she screamed at me in a very childish way.

"All up to you." I grinned. Then a voice calls out to me.

"Ling!" It was Silk. I turned and looked at her.

I couldn't tell if she was wearing the original jumpsuit or not, since she did so much customization on it. She cut her top with a low v-neck and she cut her pants to the length where part of her butt was showing.

"Do you like it Cherie?" she leaned forward. I turned away.

"What can I say its..."

"Ling." Yumi interrupted. Compared to Silk she hadn't customized her jumpsuit much. She only cut her top sleeveless.

"I am not going to comment on your outfit." I said.

"I never asked you." Her voice snapped, cold and hard this time and I took a step back nervously.

"Ok, let's just go grab our backpacks and get started." I said.

We had to wait around an hour before Silk got the animal traps set up, and the security trap for Stainless Steel.

"Ling." Yumi finally spoke. We were out of sight of the camp.

"Yes?" I answered.

"Who do you think sent us here?"

"I have no clue. I once speculated it was Stainless Steel and his gang, but that just seems crazy now."

"Why?" Yumi asked.

"Because Stainless Steel doesn't need those supplies to survive in the wild. I've seen him fight before, he's no armature."

"But consider: the sick bastard he is, and the skill he has. It might just be a game to him..."

"A game huh...but that still doesn't explain his share of supplies in the case. If this was set up by him, then why did he put his supplies with ours? He is certainly not our ally, and combining his supplies with ours just seem like...we are meant to work together."

"Ling you don't mean..."

"Yes, we were brought here by a third party."

"Another competitor?" she asked.

"likely. And perhaps that is the answer. But there are still 6 of them out there. Seven if you count Henry, since he is still alive."

"I saw Henry in the court, he doesn't have the guts to go to the washroom by himself."

"Then 6 suspects. But that still doesn't narrow down the list much. They are equally suspicious."

"That, I can agree on."

We walked a little further in silence.

"Ling."

"Yes?"

"What do you plan on doing next?"

"Accumulate food and look for ways to get out of this place."

"No, I mean. What would you do after we get out of this place? Return to the game?"

"That seems to be the case..." I doubted my answer, a lot.

"Do you plan on winning?"

That hit a soft spot.

"No. But I will do my best, no, better than my best if I have to prevent the game from having a winner."

"So you are not planning on marrying Charlotte?"

"She deserves better than the competitors, including myself."

"Then what about after that?"

"You mean after the game...I really don't know. Honestly."

"Look for a job, and perhaps start a family?" she asked, facing me this time.

"Look for a job...things will never be the same; it all sounds like a fairy tale to me now."

"Then let me help you." She sounded sincere which surprised me.

"Alright, I am listening."

"You could come to Japan with me after this is all over, you will have a job in my office as my secretary."

"Thanks for the job offer, but I don't know if I could..."

"You can surely manage."

"No it's not about the future, it's that I might not even have one."

She stopped in her tracks and stared at me.

"I never had a normal life before, so how would I know what a normal life would be like?" I stopped in my tracks too, turning away facing downwards.

"Ling." Her voice snapped.

"What?" I said with my head still facing.

"Look at me." I looked at her in time to see a full force karate chop smash into the side of my face, knocking me to the ground.

"I want you to look at me Ling." she spoke sharply. I looked her in the eye.

"You need to stop being so pessimistic about your life for once. I have seen many people whose lives are miserable, and I couldn't care less, especially for a Baka like you. But what I cannot tolerate are people who lives are miserable and all they do is sit around and complain not considering the future. You would rather do nothing and get nothing, you try harder to make the most out of life"

I stood up shakily and literally screamed at her: "THEN TELL ME WHAT I NEED TO DO!" Tears began to form around my eyes, not only from the pain but also from the anger.

"Ling, this is not like you at all."

"NO! This is what reality has made me!" Tears were all over my face mixing with dirt.

"The Ling I knew would never say things like this. The Ling I knew would say, SCREW THE REST OF THE WORLD, I will just keep on doing what I need to do."

"...have I ever said that?"

"You absolutely would. And so far, you did anything you pleased, and gave no concern for others. That's because you are the master of your own choices, at least." she bent forward and extended a hand towards me giving me a rare smile.

I considered for a moment then took her the hand and said:

"I guess you are right, it's about time for me to be the master of own choices once again."

We walked for about another two hours before we reached a mountain and it took four to get to the peak.

"I guess I was right, it is an island." I said looking down. The island stretched for about ten kilometers. The waters nourished around the island like a gentle mother with the rest of the sea stretching endlessly across the horizon. In the distance, the sun was setting creating a vast crimson ark over the waters.

"Considering the view I say we are couple hundred kilometers from mainland if you consider luck, but thousands of kilometers maybe the case too." Yumi said.

"We need head back to the camp right now before it gets too dark."

"Agreed." She said, and we began walking back to camp.