Mortal Instruments: Demons of Japan

Chapter 5

I eventually got to sleep after going back down the destroyed stairs and then climbing back up them. When I had gotten back up, Kita was still sitting up in bed. I got undressed, but with my back turned to her. All she did was giggle and finally went to sleep. I put on some shorts and a tank top and crawled into bed. Today had been exhausting.

Morning came too soon. I was having an awesome dream of walking in a field of cheeseburgers. I was about to take a bite out of a cheeseburger when Kita shook me awake. I rubbed my eyes to see who it was. She was already dressed in Shadowhunter gear.

"I'll be training you today." she smiles, "Dress warm for the mountains can get cold this time of year."

She walks out and shuts the door. I open a suitcase and pulled out a long sleeve shirt and some pants.

The mountain air was extremely cold. I was unprepared for it. Kita must be used to it. The cold wind didn't affect her at all. To add on to the dangers of freezing to death, we were on a very thin path that looked only wide enough to just hold a bike. Every now and then, my foot would slip and my heart would skip a beat. Down below, lay an endless expanse of clouds.

"Nobody has fallen off of here right?" I ask Kita.

"If you mean if anyone has survived a fall... then no." She answers me.

"That doesn't make me feel any better." I say wiping sweat off my forehead.

"Don't worry," she says looking back her black hair swirling around in the wind, "we're almost to the clearing where we train."

I look forward for the first time and notice the path getting wider. I let out a sigh of relief as I was able to walk straight. Kita moves a large boulder out of the way and reveals the largest mountain clearing I've ever seen. Weapons of all sorts were hung neatly against the mountain wall. Hundreds of Shadowhunters milled around the clearing; most were training while some were taking a break. I see Ghenn bouncing around a river. Stepping stones had been placed in it to see how far one could jump and how fast. He looks over and gives a scornful look.

Kita leads me over to some bamboo. Above, people were balancing and jumping from pole to pole. Kita points up and I shake my head. She nods and grabs my hand. The same tingling sensation went up my arm just like last night. I shake my head to clear it and tried to stand my ground, but Kita was still able to pull me up to where we could get onto the poles.

She jumps and lands easily on one of the poles and stands on one leg. She hold out her hand and tells me to grab it. I grab her hand and jump to the nearest pole. I get on one leg and try to balance. After a few seconds, I feel like I'm balancing and Kita lets go of my hand. I instantly fall to the ground in the mud pit below. People began laughing, but Hitoshi waves a hand and they all stop. I get up and try again and again. Again and again, I keep falling, but each time I'm staying on a bit longer. Kita sits in one spot the entire time. I wonder if her legs tire after such a long time.

Finally, after the last time I fall, Kita lands next to the mud pit and helps me up. As soon as I get up, she flips me over onto my back. I land with a big thud, the air in my chest leaves my body leaving me breathless. I slowly get up and Kita offers me her hand again. Foolishly I take it and she flips me again. Why do I keep doing that!? I quickly get up and Kita lands a kick to my jaw. I stumble to the side and hold my jaw. That hurt! She leaps into the air again and I grab her leg and fling her to the ground. She then sweeps my legs out from under me. My head hits a rock on the ground and my vision gets a little blurry. I let my body relax and let Kita look over me. I take her by surprise and tackle her to the ground. She tries to get up, but my grip on her wrists was too much. I let her up and she goes to one of the weapon racks and grabs a bamboo staff. She throws one in my direction and it fumbles in my hands.

She flips the staff in her hands so fast that my eyes couldn't follow it. She flashes forward and strikes my shoulder. It felt like a whip striking my bare skin. She hits me multiple times before I actually was able to block it. I smile at my accomplishment, but I celebrated too quickly because she whipped around and smacked the back of my neck. I fall to the ground and don't get back up. She leans down and lends her hand. I grab it and she again flips me over her shoulder.

"It's time for a break." she says smiling.

"How long have we been training?"

"Only an hour." she giggles.

"Feels like a lifetime!" I laugh, "Are you going to let me up now?"

"Oh yeah sure." she says getting off me. She helps me over to the river and we sit in the shade of a tree. Even though it's colder than the devil's heart, sweat was rolling off my head. I try to catch my breath.

"Damn," I say taking a breath, "training's only begun hasn't it?"

"Yep," she says leaning on my shoulder, "Yes it has."