Beyblade Fan Fiction ❯ Silent Tears ❯ Waiting for the end ( Chapter 9 )

Summary/Disclaimer: check the prologue, I don't repeat myself.

“...” speaking

`Italics' thoughts

:: … :: bit beast talking

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Chapter 8... Waiting for the end


In the early morning of the semi-finals, we found the BladeBreakers in the City Park, running like there was no tomorrow. Of course that Chief was still in the hotel with Dizzy, also with Hilary, who had arrived by plane two hours before, along with Mr. D.

First we see Kai, relaxed, as if he was only walking, Iris beside him, also not tired at all. On the other side of the BladeBreakers' leader, there was Tala, also running with no problems. A few feet behind, we have Ray, starting to slow down, his breathing a bit ragged and sweat all over his face. Then, our dear Max, trying to keep up and keep his eyes open, gasping for air, and lastly, a bit behind from the rest of them, we have the great World Champ, almost stumbling over his feet, panting for breath and one hand holding his side, which was aching.

When they finally stopped, Tyson fell to the soft grass, rolling about, before entering in a fight with Max, throwing grass and small acorns at each other. Ray climbed to a low tree branch, glancing at the big deep lake in front of him, the tip of his ponytail grazing the water. Kai was leaning against said tree.

Whilst Chief, who had just arrived, was finishing his breakfast he brought along from the hotel and speaking with Dizzy (trying his best to miss the acorns thrown occasionally), Iris walked to the lake, watching ducks and swans swimming here and there. She was still thinking about her sister's diary. And still, she did not have the courage to open it.

The reason was quite simple. Right on the first page was written, boldly and clearly:

YOU ALL SHALL DIE FOR THE CRIMES YOU HAVE COMMITTED. I WILL LEAVE NO WITNESSES AND THE WORLD YOU KNOW WILL NO LONGER EXIST.

Once she read that, she closed it again as quickly as she could. She couldn't lie to herself by saying it didn't affect her.

It wasn't the fact that the sentences were threats. It wasn't the fact that they seemed to be written in blood either.

It was the fact that they were written in Sarabela's precise calligraphy that left her speechless. And that led her to more unanswered questions.

`Why would she do that? She does not have anything against me... why? Why is this happening? And how could she have done this if she didn't know about the location of my house, let alone the existence of my sister's diary...'

««Flashback»» ;
“Wow, Iris! You're the best!!!” a little girl, no older than five exclaimed, pale eyes shinning brightly in awe. She looked up to another girl, four, maybe five years older.

Despite the years of torture making her seem older and all the pain and beatings and rape she had been through, Iris smiled at her, “I still have a lot of learning and perfecting to do, `bela. I'm far from being the best.”

“Nah, you're the best there is! Only the elites can defeat you! And just when they're lucky! Even my brother!!” Sarabela hugged Iris's waist tightly, rubbing her face against the girl's clothes. “And ya know what?”

She looked down at her, trying to smile through the pain the small hug was causing. Boris was everything but gentle with her this time, “What, kiddo?”

“You're my best friend! Ever!!”

“Really?”

The child looked up, her eyes reflecting complete trust and the innocence that all young kids have. An innocence that Iris had lost long ago. “Hu huh!”
««End Flashback»»

:: Have you ever thought... Black Dranzer may be behind all that. :: Dranzer's soothing voice calmed her thoughts, :: The responsible of changing her behaviour towards you. ::

`I don't know, Dranzer. Maybe. But what can all this mean? My dreams, the pain, the threats... I don't understand..'

:: Everything will turn back to what it used to be. In time. ::

Looking up to the sky, she murmured to the soft breeze, “I just wonder when that's gonna happen...”

Strong arms encircled her waist, startling her, “What's gonna happen?” Kai rested his chin on her shoulder gently.

“You're aware that they'll probably see us, right?”

“No, they won't. They're too tired to even think of us...” his lips caught her earlobe, “So, no need to worry.” he nuzzled her neck, tickling her with his hair slightly, “You seem... far away lately, if you know what I mean.”

“Why do you think that?” she tried to turn, but his arms kept her in place.

“You've been distracted, off in your own world. Looking over at something, when your mind is on something else completely different. What's bothering you?”

“Nothing.”

“The semi-finals?”

“No, our opponents are weak for what I've heard and read... Compared to the Majestic's, at least...”

This time he whispered softly at her ear, “Then, what is it?”

Leaning back and resting her head on his shoulder, she replied in a husky whisper, “Well, I was just wondering what a certain sexy, drop-dead gorgeous Kai Hiwatari was doing at the moment....” she rubbed her cheek against the silky material of his scarf; glad her voice kept that tone. `He doesn't need to know what's going on... Not for now. No need to worry about it, my beautiful one...'

He blinked once. Twice. `That was unexpected...' “Yeah...” he cleared his throat, pulling back slightly, “Right... We should go; they should be starting to look for us...”

“I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!!!”

The couple separated quickly, but as they turned, no one was looking at them or even near them. Instead, they found the BladeBreakers looking surprised, a confused Hilary and a flabbergasted Tala. Glancing in the direction where they were all looking, they saw the reason all the shock in the form of three boys, no older than themselves.

The tallest one was blond, pale blue piercing eyes lightening his pale features. The second one was a pale boy, with an unwavering emotionless light lavender stare, straight lavender hair grazing his jaw. The shortest was a purple-haired guy, playful looking, a smirk on his lips, looking at his team captain with amusement.

At seeing them, a smile was glued to Iris's face immediately, “What are you guys doing here? And how did you found us?” They all turned to look at her.

Spencer smiled softly, “Hey, kid! Didn't know you were here.” as she got close, he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into a tight hug, “We didn't even know if you had survived or not.”

“Well, you know me... Being small has its advantages sometimes.” she chuckled as he put her down, before looking at Bryan. Knowing he didn't like hugs and stuff, she just embraced him quickly.

“Don't you do something like that ever again, do you hear me?” he said sternly, albeit looking at her in a kind way, a ghost of a smile on his lips.

“I needed to get out of there... It was the only way.” her stare lowered to the ground, “Sorry.”

“Hmph, sorry... You didn't even say good bye properly. I thought Tala was going to commit suicide or something...” Ian muttered while frowning at her.

The girl sent a look at the redhead at hearing that, “Hn...” Walking up to the short boy, she ruffled his already unruly purple hair. “Hu huh, it's nice to see you too... Glad you were there to stop him from succeeding then.”

After some time, the group started to walk back to the hotel.

“So, you're in the semi-finals.”

Tyson puffed up his chest at that, “You bet we are!! No one will bet us!” Everyone rolled their eyes at that.

Ian snorted, “If I were you, I wouldn't be so calm.”

The naïve boy looked confused, “Huh?”

“What do you mean by that, Ian?” Iris turned away from the conversation she was having with the three remaining Demo-Boys about the Shadowed Blades. Obviously, Bryan was pissed off by knowing that his younger sister was in it.

“Duh, you're the ones in the tournament, and it's me who knows what's happening?”

“Just say it already!” Kai snapped at him, frowning.

Ian also frowned, crossing his arms over his chest. But at seeing his captain's and Kai's faces, he restarted speaking, “Err you see, the team that was going to battle you guys, got some problems with their beyblade's. So, BBA decided that that team should switch, since the next semi-finals is two days after yours. Meaning, you're going to battle the Dark Equestriennes. And the other team, the Shadowed Blades.”

“And if they're as good as they sounded when we met them that day, the finals should be between us and those Shadowed losers.”

“Uh oh...” Chief sat down on a nearby bench, opening Dizzy on his way. As the match's page finally appeared, it proved Ian's theory correct. He adjusted his glasses, clicking on the name of their opponents, “We've been training to combat The Tempest team, not this one... Okay, so they're all Portuguese, they're five girls, they all have bit beasts... by this data, they seem good.”

“Guess what that means, guys...” Iris looked at the rest of her team, a smirk on her lips.

“NO!!! If THAT means MORE training, count me OUT!!!” Tyson started to run away, but Kai quickly grabbed his collar. “We were going to eat! I'm hungry!!!” the World Champion whined. “No fair!” As if on cue, his stomach growled loudly.

“Do I seem like I care?”

“Kai, the hunger you have is forbidding you of thinking right! You can't possibly be thinking of training WITHOUT a good tasty lunch!” Tyson's eyes turned to a dreamy state, as he started thinking of all the delicious food he wanted to eat right about now, “Mmmmm, lasagne... or maybe a nice spicy roasted chicken! Or, or PIZZA! Ahhh... or even hamburger!!!” the young teen started drooling.

Everyone rolled his or her eyes at him, as they returned to the hotel, cringing while Tyson suddenly remembered more of the “YUMMY JUICY MARVELOUS FIRST-COURSE!!!!” he could have, as he put it. They finally arrived their destination and only with much, much pressure and after a fruit salad, did they manage to convince Tyson to train some more.

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After the complete lunch Tyson was complaining so much about, they all retired to the hotel room to rest before they battled in the afternoon.

And it was only now that Iris found enough courage to check out the diary again beyond its first page. Closing the door, but not locking it (in case she found another disturbing thing on the book...), she threw the notebook nonchalantly onto her bed, letting her body collapse right beside it. Rolling onto her stomach, she picked it up, eyeing it carefully.

“You better not have done anything else to it, `bela..” She took a last deep breath and braced herself for the shock. Her hand opened the cover, showing that boldly written phrase to the world to see, as usual. She turned the page, closing her eyes and opening them slowly again. The neat calligraphy of her sister, Miranda, greeted her, as she let out a breath she didn't knew she was holding. Even if the text there wasn't happy, it was somewhat of a relief.

Before she began reading, her head tilted to the side. Soft footfalls were heard. The bed squeaked as the mattress gave in to more weight. “What does that say?” Tala looked over her shoulder, startling her.

“Yuriy! Don't do that!”

“Sorry. Mind to translate it, please?” Tala looked at her, in a way she couldn't really refuse, “For me?”

“Oh fine! Who says no to a look like that one!” half heartedly, she glared at him over her shoulder, rolling her eyes as he grinned back at her playfully, “ `They found out about my sister. I don't know what they want from her. But something's wrong, Lugiohan feels it and so do I. They are pressuring me into training more and more. They also presented me to what they call “Experience Double - Black Dranzer”. Once more, it was another one of Boris' experiences. For what I've heard, it was created by him, but its original power was from the Phoenix of Fire, Dranzer, I think it was the name. Of course that that freak couldn't duplicate a bit beast's power, no one can' and bla, bla de bla...” turning to the last written page, she found it to be full of small drops of blood here and there. Miranda's calligraphy was slightly wobbly, as if she was drunk or maybe even.. hurt.

Biting her lower lip, she ignored that last thought. Gulping down the lump that was in her throat, she started reading to herself first, then out loud, noting a bit of nervousness and eagerness in her own voice, “ `Now I know. It's not me who they want. As I realized too late, they can kill me anytime they want. Nor do they want Lugiohan, or want her with me for that matter. No, it's Iris who they're after. I can see the interested gleam in Boris' stare every time he talks about her. It scares me. I'll have to do something, get her out of here. Anywhere, but in Europe; she's not safe. But I'm afraid they'll kill me before I have time to say this to her. You need to keep Lugiohan safe, sis. But above all, keep yourself safe'...” Iris's voice trailed off, cracking in the last few words as her hold on the book slacked, making it fall to the ground. She let her head fall against the mattress, as Tala's arms wrapped around her form, hugging her close to him, not saying a word.

The silent tears came, blurring her sight, the weight of her past and her fault for her sister's death struck her like a tone of bricks, now more than ever. `So that is why she told me to escape with Lugiohan... It was an alibi to keep me safe... She told me to find Mr. Dickenson... But it was just to run away from Europe... And even before she was killed, Boris already knew about her ability, about me... She already had connections with them.' Memories appeared, playing in front of her mind's eye like an old film passing slowly... painfully. Aging thoughts screamed louder than any shout, pulling her down, down, into the abyss of darkness that is your sub-conscious.

`She's dead... She died, and I couldn't do anything to stop them!'

`It's all my fault, MY FAULT! It always was... It won't stop, not now, not ever. No one can help me; you should know that by now...'

`No! I don't remember! I'm sorry, I just can't! It's too painful!!'

`I can't go on like this... It's breaking me apart. I won't live much longer, he'll kill me if he keeps this up... Which I know he will.'

`What if I just died? All I need is something sharp and slice my throat open. No one would notice that. After all, what's my purpose here? Boris' personal whore? No thank you. I'd rather be up there, sis... With you... And Mom... And Dad... It would be for the best...'

`It hurts... It hurts... Stop it! Please, that's enough... please.. please... please. Even Death is better than the life I have...'

Quiet sobs made her shoulders shake, as she absently heard the ripping of her mattress, her fists fisting it too tightly. In the background, Iris heard a gruff voice over the loud thoughts in her head. Faint, but it was there. Kai's.

“What happened?” She did not lift her head as she felt Tala pull away from her slightly.

Said redhead glanced over at the book discarded on the bed, then at her and back at Kai, slight concern and helplessness shining in those turquoise blue pools.

Silently, the slate haired teen nodded. He sat down beside Iris as Tala stood up. It took one or two minutes until the girl completely let go of his hand and only then did he leave the room, sending a warning look over at the other boy before he did.

Settling himself against the head board of the bed, Kai made no move to approach her, opting to wait. While she was lying on her side, arms hugging herself and facing away from him, he had one of his legs pulled up to his chest, one arm draped over the knee, while his other leg was outstretched in front of him; in distance, they were barely a foot apart.

A couple of minutes later, the silence still stretching between them, Iris's grip on her own clothes at her sides loosened as she slowly lifted the upper half of her body off the mattress. Turning her head to glance at him, a mocking smile curved her lips. Not mocking him; mocking herself. “You must be thinking at how weak I am. Crying over something that was written over seven years ago.”

“To cry is not being weak.” Reaching over, his finger lifted her chin up, mahogany hues locking with clouded silver ones, sparkling with tears that were being held back as though her life depended on it. “To think so, is being weak minded.”

A ghost of a smile curved the corners of her mouth up as she blinked once. Once, and that was it. The thin crystalline rivers of her tears rolled down the trail already made by the former ones.

It seemed so right. She felt... What, safe, wanted? Even loved? Probably. With him, she was ready to believe everything. If he said she was capable, she'd trust him. If he said it wasn't worth it, she had no doubts it wasn't.

Barely three weeks ago, she would call herself crazy for even thinking of such a thing, but here, now... Moving about a bit, she laid back down again, her cheek resting comfortably against his ribcage, her arms shyly wrapping around his waist.

Letting out a silent sigh, he sent a glare in the book's direction before his eyes drifted closed. Even with her change of position, he didn't move. By unspoken words, he knew she didn't need anything else, but his mere presence. To let her know that she wasn't alone. Not anymore.

They were soul-mates, and nothing could change that. Both their respective bit beasts left a knowing glitter in their bit chips, as that fact became more and more apparent. And still, in the stillness of the moment, they weren't the only ones.

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Iris had fallen into a light sleep a few minutes after, if the regular pattern of her breathing was an indication. With a small smile, Tala noticed that when he re-entered the room.

Kai glanced over at him, pausing from his observance on Dranzer. His bit chip shined in recognition as Tala felt Wolborg do just the same, the sudden cold feeling in his pocket could only mean one thing. The faint white glow under Iris's chin brought out Lugiohan's presence also, coming from her owner's necklace.

“Half an hour, semi finals. Wake her up.” Nodding towards the slumbering girl, the redhead whispered softly, before exiting the room again.

The slate haired teen let one finger trail down since the back of her neck to the small of her back, following the slight indentation her spine caused. Still not glancing away from his beyblade, he felt her arch her back at the touch, a quiet growl escaping her.

“Is it time already?” her voice had a hint of annoyance and maybe a slight hope that that wasn't true.

“It is. Get up, you have twenty minutes.”

“Twenty...” she sat up beside him, frowning sleepily at him, “I don't get ready in twenty minutes; I need a shower and-”

“Passing to fifteen minutes.” As a response, he smirked, getting up himself. “I suggest you to hurry up.”

To his amusement, she glared at him. Muttering something under her breath, she stomped angrily to the connecting bathroom.

Around half an hour later, both the BladeBreakers and the Demolition-Boys arrived to the dome-like building that was hosting the tournament.

“HELLO, AND GOOD AFTERNOON TO ALL FANS OUT THERE!!! I PRESENT YOU THE SEMI-FINALS OF THE EUROPEAN TOURNAMENT! FROM THIS MATCH FORWARD, THERE WON'T BE PAIRS COMBAT, AS YA KNOW! AAAAAAND NOW WE HAVE THE CURRENT WORLD CHAPIONS, THE BLADEBREAKERS, AGAINST THE DARK EQUESTRIENNES!! PLEASE WELCOME BOTH TEAMS!!!”

While the BladeBreakers sat on their respective bench, the Demo-Boys sat on the stands. Tyson would go first, then Max and finally, Kai.

“But then, I won't battle in the finals!”

“T., the world doesn't spin around you. It's not anthropocentrism all over again with you being the supreme one. You are the ONE who gave THE TITTLE of World Champions to THE TEAM, remember? You didn't defeat Tala all by yourself and just like that.”

Silence.

Looking up, the black haired girl saw Tyson sulking. “Did you even hear me?!”

“...Yeah, yeah, yeah!”

“Good.” Iris smiled happily at the younger teen, as he walked to his side of the dish. `He has improved a lot ever since I started training him myself. At least, he's not as smug and he actually pays attention to his opponent's moves. All he needed was a few smacks at that back of his head.'

“ALRIGHT, IN THIS FIRST ROUND, WE HAVE TYSON VERSUS MARIANA! THEIR TECHNIQUES ARE QUITE ALIKE! LET'S SEE HOW THEY WORK THEIR WAY TO VICTORY! SOO, 3...... 2............... 1!.................................. LEEEEEEEEEEEEEEETTTT IT RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIPPPPP!!!”

“Dragoon!”
< br> “Finish him off, Kiarah!!”

Tyson looked up at the girl in front of him. She made him remember Emily. Her style, her attitude... Hmmm, maybe her weakness is the same... Thinks she can do everything by herself, using way too much energy... Then she'll be too weak to dodge Dragoon. An uncharacteristic smirk came to Tyson's lips. “You're in for it...”

Mariana looked up, “That's what you say...” she shrugged casually, a smirk of her own on her lips, “But you boys... you talk too damn much, but you can't do a thing. Roar a lot, but no biting, ne, little dragon?”

“Oh yeah? I'd like to see you try!!” the navy blue haired teen shook a fist at her, “But remember; after you lose, don't come back and say you're sorry or that I cheated, it was your own fault!”

Ray and Max sweat-dropped at the overconfidence of their team-mate, Kenny groaned, rubbing his face with his hand. Both Kai and Iris, sitting in opposite sides of the bench, rolled their eyes in perfect unison.

He was doing so well, why did he have to go and act all arrogant and darn smug? Grr, stupid Tyson... Getting up from her seat, Iris walked up near the bey-dish, “Tyson! Make it quick, stop wasting time!”

“But-”

“No excuses! I'm your coach and you will obey me!!” her angry façade almost fell as the blond and the black haired blader chuckled at that.

“Grr, fine!” Tyson looked back, and beyond her, probably to send a look over at Max and Ray. Childishly, he stuck out his tongue at them.

“Tyson...” she really had to resist the urge to smack him, “Get on with it!”

“Ok, ok, chill... Sheesh, sorry for breathing...” grinning nervously, he turned back to the battle. The white beyblade started spinning faster slightly faster, making a circle around the other beyblade, giving Mariana no time to react. With a brilliant flash of bright blue light and a clashing of metal, Dragoon kept his ground, spinning vigorously as Mariana's beyblade was found undamaged, but out of the dish.

“ANNNNDD TYSON DID IT AGAIN, FOLKS!!! NOW, IT'S UP TO MAX TO WIN ANOTHER ROUND TO THE BLADEBREAKERS OR LET THIS MATCH BE TIED!!! GOOO, MAXIE!!!”

Tyson and Max made a high-five, as the hyper teen took his former place. The navy blue dark pools of the World Champion lowered as he passed by Iris, muttering a quiet but bitter “Sorry...”

“No need to say it if you don't mean it, kid.” She rolled her eyes, “Next time, be sure not to question me again.”

“I didn't mean to disappoint you, or anyone else. But so what if I snapped back at the girl?! Is it that much of a big deal to you? What if I took a bit more time to beat her? Is there a time limit in this country?” angrily, if not also childishly, his arms crossed over his chest as he glared up at her, eyes lit with desire, desire of not wanting to be treated like so, desire she herself possessed, “Who are you to give me orders? Kai's the captain. He named you to help me, not order me around and do your bidding!”

Iris blinked once, looking at him in a somewhat surprised way, as did Ray and Kenny. It wasn't for Tyson to snap at anyone. Though the fact made her smile. Unconsciously, her eyes ran over the crowd, stopping when she found the four boys that she had grown up with. All of them, in some time, had snapped at her in a similar fashion, whether to make her see reason or just for the fun of it; they knew she enjoyed verbal matches as much as she enjoyed beyblading. Not to mention that she, more than once or twice, had done just the same thing.

Smiling ever so softly, her hand rested on his shoulder as he glanced over at it, his anger forgotten for a moment, “That's right. I've no right to give you orders whatsoever, T. Not me, not Kai, not your grandpa, no one.” Despite the anger in his voice, hers was soft, almost with a sense of a carefree tone in it. Patting his shoulder once, she turned around, sitting back at her spot on the bench.

“AAAAAAANND 3............ 2................. 1!..................................... LEEEEEEEEEEEEEEET IT RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIPPPP!!!”

Draciel gave quite the performance, dodging every attack his adversary tried, keeping his defence up. In a quick fluid motion at Max's nod, the Metal Turtle sent the other beyblade out of the dish, unharmed.

“YAY!!!” Max caught Draciel, punching the air and showing it to everyone around as a wave of applause was heard. He ran down the steps, hugging Tyson, who was the closest, forcing him to jump along or he'd fall over, “I WAN! IWANIWANIWANIWAN!!!” it didn't take much for the other blader to catch on.

“WE WAN!!! WEWANWEWANWEWANWEWANWEWANWEWANWEWANWEWAN!!!”

Shaking her head at them both, Iris looked sideways at Kai as he approached. He nodded once at her, before walking up the stairs. Smirking behind his back, she leaned comfortably against the post of the bench.

Dranzer was launched swiftly, as the captain of the Dark Equestriennes did the same with her own beyblade. She was pale, named Carina, almost deathly pale, but she seemed to be the strongest of the team. A small smirk danced upon her lips.

The boy simply lifted his eyebrow. Dranzer advanced towards the reddish brown blade spinning in the centre of the dish, grinding against it a couple of times. As his adversary jumped back from a harsh clash, it suddenly vanished.

Most of the crowd gasped, looking everywhere. His maroon eyes ran over the whole stadium, still not spotting the other beyblade. A sharp stinging pain in his left arm made him look towards a newly formed wound, dark crimson blood slowly dripping. His blood.

“Kai, look out!”

Glancing at the battle at hand again, a beautiful reddish brown stallion had risen, standing on its hind legs and neighing loudly. Galloping, the beyblade crashed harshly into Dranzer, sending it a few feet away, the Fire Phoenix dazed for a brief moment. Having free way, the horse's dark eyes looked at him, a soft snort coming from it as its mistress's smirk widened.

It galloped in his direction, head lowered and ears pulled back. The slight pain in his arm was soon forgotten, as the stinging in his cheeks, torso and arms appeared right after.

“Wind.” From the stands, Bryan let out a small chuckle, “Clever girl, using a connecting element of her bit beast for her own gain.”

“Still, she copied you.” Ian pointed out, snickering.

“Yeah, I thought your attack had author rights.”

“Shut up you three.” The icy tone of the red haired captain stopped the mocking, “It might be fun for us, but she caught Hiwatari off guard.”

“That's correct.” The lavender eyed boy nodded, “He needs to counter attack quickly or he might run out of energy soon.”

Crossing his arms in front of him in a blocking motion, Kai narrowed his eyes. `Dranzer, he's distracted. You can attack him now.'

Black eyes snapped open, the bright scarlet and golden wings opening wide as the phoenix rose from the ground, unnoticed by the stallion. Clicking his beak in anger, Dranzer screeched, obviously not having liked the coward way he was pushed to the side. His attack soon followed, blinding everyone for a couple of seconds from the bright light and the sudden rise of the temperature. The horse neighed one last time, as it returned to its bit chip, Carina glancing over at it, her lips set in a thin line, not looking pleased.

The slate haired teen frowned at her behaviour as Dranzer disappeared into his own bit chip, returning back to him afterwards. He turned around on his heels, heading for the bench, eyes closed.

:: I apologise for not having protected you, Master Kai. ::

`It's just a couple of scratches. We were caught by surprise, Dranzer. Don't worry about it.' A soft glow was given from the blade in his hand instead of a reply. A persistent tug on his scarf made him turn around, ready to glare at whomever it was.

Iris was already ahead of him on that, frowning, “You're hurt.”

One slate eyebrow lifted in amusement, “I never thought you cared, Blanchett.”

The slight concern in her eyes was immediately replaced. Her frown was still in place, though for other reasons, “Ungrateful bastard.”

“That, coming from the girl who refused help the day we found her.” They both started to walk away towards the changing rooms, the rest of the team snickering behind them.

Muttering something under her breath that was probably in her native language, she glared at him, obviously stopping herself from swearing in front of the younger teens. Under her breath, a growled “Damn you.” was heard though.

DJ Jazzman tried to make his voice higher than the crowd's cheer, “AAAAND YES, IT'S THE BLADEBREAKERS!!! THEY WAN, AND AS YOU KNOW, THEY'RE IN THE FINALS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

The BladeBreakers did their best to escape the crowd by exiting the building quickly, as the fans ran after them, screaming their heads off.

“Yeah, yeah, YEAH, that's it! Oh, they love me, they love me!!!” Tyson shouted to the crowd, as he was dragged away by the others.

“Tyson, shut up!!”

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The five days that followed the semi-finals were used to train, as usual, despite the injuries the captain still had. But nothing could ever forbid Kai Hiwatari from training. Let's not forget: he was a perfectionist, and there was nothing no one, no one, could say to make him think otherwise.

“Kai...” Iris's patience was by a thread, like it usually was in the last few days with the dual haired teen, since he kept insisting he should train, “Some may bleed if you do something rash. They'll open and it won't be pretty when you're in the middle of your match.”

“Honestly, do I look like I care?”

“Umm, no, not really, but-” at his smirk, her eyes narrowed to small slits.

From the wall, Ian snickered, “Oye, that was never a good sign, you know, Hiwatari. And I know that first hand.” The boy's snickering soon stopped as the female glared daggers at him.

“That's beyond the point... Hiwatari.” The amused look in the slate haired teen's features was replaced by the quirking of his eyebrow.

“Since when do you address me by my surname?”

“Since now. And it's your own fault. Anyway, go back to bed, now, I'll take care of the training today.” One could almost see the electrical sparks crackling all around her, her eyes flashing with annoyance.

“I also need to train, and I will. That's final.” Stubbornly, Kai crossed his arms over his chest, head turned slightly away from her.

“No, it's not!” she suddenly stomped her foot childishly, making most of the bladers watching the scene sweat-drop. “Hey, get back here!”

He had begun to walk away, a slight swagger on his steps. Thin ice he was walking on, he knew. Not that that minded the youngest Hiwatari, of course. “Make me.” Kai looked over his shoulder at her, challenge shinning in his eyes, a challenge which she was way too angry to care about. She was mad...

The elastic that normally kept her hair up in a tight, almost painful looking ponytail, which was obviously harsh for her poor hair, had long fell to the ground, the dark locks framing her face, bringing out her slightly tanned features in just the right way. Her hands were balled into fists at her sides and, despite the glaring, her glinting eyes were alluring.A smirk tugged at the corners of his mouth, knowing he was the cause of all that.

`No words...there're simply NO WORDS! He's having fun with this... He's amused, he's downright SMIRKING, he's MOCKINGme...'

:: And with all due respect, Mistress, you are losing it. :: her bit beast added in an innocent tone, though Iris picked up the amusement behind it, triggering her even more.

“Kai Hiwatari, if you don't get your ass back into that bed, I swear I'm going to strangle you with your scarf!” her speech had changed from insulting and vain reasoning to real threats.

“No.” the smirk was still in place, “You would, if you were able to catch it. Which you aren't.” His cue. He exited the room quickly. `1, 2, 3 and let it rip.'

“AAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH HHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

Even from the end of the stairs, he flinched at the loud sound. Letting the amused smirk make its way to his lips, his eyes closed softly as the cold wind from outside hit him. The temperature was nice enough to sun bathe, still the wind was always cold, since they were close to the mouth of the Atlantic Ocean.

The rest of his day was spent training in the Old Meadow, not that he was aware of that. He had found it once when he was walking around the city and his curiosity got the better of him. “Dranzer!”

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That night, the BladeBreakers retired early to bed; the next day would be a long one. Everything was quiet, except for Tyson's loud snoring in one of the rooms. But in Ray, Kai and Iris' room, the female couldn't sleep peacefully. Turning and breathing raggedly, her pupils dilating, the dream was haunting her.

««Dream»»
Her panting was everything she could hear, her sides ached, her throat was dry. Yet she kept running, she couldn't stop, not now, and not ever. That same nightmare was repeating itself in the last few nights and not once had it failed to scare her to death. But this time... This time, it went beyond Kai's murder.

Iris was running along a long corridor. One of the countless the Valkov Abbey has, that much she knew. The silence was getting to her, it always had. If this kept up, she'd probably break. She couldn't, wouldn't allow that. `This place has haunted me too much as it is. A simple memory of it won'tsuccess in what Boris tried to success!'

Finally stopping to catch her breath, she was careful to do it when she spotted a darkened hallway that led to the side, in case any guards passed by. Her gut told her she was alone here, but she didn't want to risk it. She leaned against one of the walls of said alley, calming her thumping heart, forcing the air into her painfully thirsting throat and into her heaving lungs. Her eyes closed as she reached out with her mind, trying to feel the comforting presence of her faithful bit beast.

A strangled gasp was forced out of her abused throat. `Lugiohan...' Where she was supposed to be there was a void, an empty space which wasn't supposed to be there ever since she was six.

Her eyes slowly focused on the dark environment around her. They soon widened as she took in what was in front of her.

YOU ALL SHALL DIE FOR THE CRIMES YOU HAVE COMMITTED. I WILL LEAVE NO WITNESSES AND THE WORLD YOU KNOW WILL NO LONGER EXIST.

The bold letters greeted her, glistening on the wall mockingly, eerily, making her remember something else. Blood. Still wet and dripping onto the wall.

One hand came up to her mouth in an uncharacteristic horrified way as she took a step back, away from the message, away from that corridor, though her eyes didn't left it.

Before she could do anything, the scenery changed all around her. After the feeling of dizziness had passed, the girl found herself in some kind of a high point of a dome-like building. Her ears picked up cheers and loud whistles, comments being said somewhere, which she was too confused to even start listening. Leaning over the railings of the high corridor she supposed she was in, she looked down as soon as her eyes had adjusted to the bright lights of the place. Her eyes widened.

Her silvery hues spotted a large crowd, not an empty seat in sight. Listening with more attention, she could clearly understand. Portuguese, no doubt, that was the language they were using. In the middle of the whole thing was a big round ordinary bey-dish. In one of the sides of it, there were the BladeBreakers and herself, which did nothing more than confuse her even more. She could see them speaking quietly among themselves, Kai and her dream form only commenting once in a while. Opposite to them were the Shadowed Blades, Sarabela already taking her position to battle, staring calmly over to the other team, a smirk on her lips. Iris shivered inwardly. `Why am I dreaming with the finals?'

Finally, seconds that seemed to take hours passed by, and her double-self stepped forward, climbing up the stairs to the bey-stadium, the younger girl's smirk widening with every step she took.

Both blades were launched, just as the dizziness over came her sight again. Once her eyes opened again, she noticed she was on the first row of the same combat, though in a more advanced stage. Both bit beasts were out of their chips, eyes shining in respect and hatred, their owners glaring daggers at each other.

Black Dranzer charged forward again, heading first to Lugiohan but at the last minute, his direction changed as he flapped his black wings once. Sharp dark feathers headed to her dream form instead of the Thunder Phoenix, most of them hitting their target.

Eyes wide and confused, Iris watched as her other self fell to her knees, her arms fisting her hair, the ponytail undone from one of the feathers. The stadium was deadly quiet, as her team-mates started to run towards her, Tala and the others doing the same thing, jumping over the railings of the stands.

As they were almost reaching the fallen blader, Lugiohan rose from the ground she had been thrown into, her white and red wings letting out a strange silver glitter as she flapped them. A last, sad desperate cry was heard from the phoenix, a single large tear falling from one of her bright emerald eyes as she completely disappeared. Not into her beyblade. Into the sky and out of the building.

No one moved but Black Dranzer, who moved forward, his claws giving out a metallic sound as they clenched over the edge of the stadium. Behind him, Sarabela fell, no longer moving, a thin trickle of blood pouring from her mouth. Lowering his neck, the beak of the phoenix touched Iris's side, a dark aura spreading all over her body starting with that same contact point. Lifting his beak again in the direction Lugiohan had gone to, his wings opened wide.

:: YOU ALL SHALL DIE FOR THE CRIMES YOU COMMITTED. I WILL LEAVE NO WITNESSES AND THE WORLD YOU KNOW WILL NO LONGER EXIST. ::

With the booming voice of the Dark Phoenix, panic was installed. People running everywhere, giving her no visibility towards the end of the battle or what was to happen.

When she finally managed to lean over the railings to jump over them, the surroundings changed once more, the dizzy feeling returning to her tenfold...
««End Dream»»

Iris woke up with a start, sitting upright on the bed immediately, gasping for breath, trying to calm down her overloading senses. `What kind of a bloody nightmare was that?'

Looking around quickly, both boys in the beds beside hers were still asleep. `At least I didn't scream this time...' Frowning lightly, she got up. 2.06am, the digital clock read.

Filling a cup of water, her feet took her to the balcony. Pulling the delicate chain that connected both ends of her necklace, she lifted Lugiohan's bit chip up to her eyes.

:: Your mind is troubled, Mistress. Tomorrow will be a complicated day; you should go back to sleep. ::

`I know, my friend, I know. It's just that... That dream.'

:: Dream? ::

`Fine, a nightmare.' There was a pause.

:: That is odd... I did not notice any dream... ::

Shrugging to herself, her head tilted back, her eyes reflecting the bright stars above, `I'm sure it's nothing to worry about...'

:: If you say so, Mistress. Have a good rest, I bid you good-night. :: despite the motherly tone, Iris knew her bit beast was still puzzling about the said `dream'.

Wrinkling her nose at the thought, she went back inside, sliding the doors of the balcony shut a bit more harshly than she should. Her shoulders tensed as the bang resonated, but no sound of waking up was heard. Actually, it was all silent. The exception being the frequent rustle of the blankets and of course, Tyson's snoring.

Iris sat at the edge of her bed, her feet on the slightly warm wooden floor, still lost in thought. The rustle and movement in front of her snapped her back to reality, as Kai turned to lie on his other side, now facing her.

A smile curved her lips upwards as she looked at his calm features. Eyelids closed softly, the dark thick lashes brushing the skin of his cheek bones ever so lightly. The slate hair was spilled messily over the pillow and covering part of his features, even spikier than it usually was.

Kai's eyebrows furrowed together for some seconds before relaxing again, as she slide on the bed next to him. She snuggled close to him, both her hands tucked neatly under her chin, too scared to touch him instead. Wide eyes looked up to his still sleeping face before she allowed them to close.

A soft sigh left her lips, tousling a few of his bangs, not that anyone noticed that. Tiredness overcame her a few minutes later as she finally let the darkness take over her consciousness.

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Kai woke up as one particular sun ray decided to hit his eyelids. Opening his eyes sleepily, he looked over his shoulder. 6.17am. `I wake up at exactly 6.30... Damn the sun light...' Only then did his half-asleep senses let him know he wasn't really alone in the bed. Looking down, a mass of reds and blacks mixed messily met his eyes. Iris had her back to his chest and from the looks of it, was comfortably asleep.

Quirking an eyebrow, he reached over, his hand running through her hair gently before settling on her shoulder.

“Mornin' to you too... I'm... awake...” one of her hands lifted somewhat lazily, waving over her shoulder in a dismissive fashion.

“And why exactly are you in my bed, by the way?” his hand fell from her shoulder, twirling a wisp of pitch black hair between his fingers.

The reason suddenly came back to her, her sleepiness vanishing, “Couldn't sleep. Had a glass of water and decided to come here instead.” Course that the reason as to why that happened wasn't included.

His eyes narrowed immediately, the twirling stopping abruptly, “And why couldn't you sleep?”

“It was just a stupid dream.” she shrugged in what she thought was a casual way, getting up before he decided to question further. Questions which required answers she had not. Picking up her clothes for the day and taking off her overly large t-shirt, the female headed to the bathroom.

She let out a quiet gasp, leaning against the wall suddenly, a blue blur passing right beside her left eye. Landing on the ground with a quiet metallic click, Dranzer spun on the same spot a few feet away from her. Looking down, standing out against the whiteness of the tiles underneath her bare feet, were a few of her hairs, cut due to the fastness the top passing by her. Looking behind her sharply, she glared at the responsible, “What do you want to do, injure one of your bladers? Or worst, kill them? What if I turned my head?”

“You wouldn't.” casually, the boy leaned against the opposite wall of the corridor, “Why couldn't you sleep?”

Iris's eyes looked away from him, “Please... I don't want to talk about it.”

Rolling his eyes and muttering “Women..” under his breath, he picked up Dranzer, who was now spinning near his feet, “Some time, you'll have to. The truth will come around anyway. Why not now, when no one's around to hear it?”

“Because. I'm not ready, ok? Sorry...” she couldn't bare to look at him for long. The sight of him dead was still haunting her. Nothing that a cold shower couldn't take care of.

She closed them. “Yes, it was. But this time, it was far worse.” Walking to the shower, she turned the water on, “I need some privacy, Kai.” She sighed, not looking at him. So little time has passed, and she trusted him like no other. But right now, the memories of his lifeless body were still too fresh on her mind. Iris only moved again when she heard the door closing softly. `Was I too hard on him? He only wanted to help...'

After a refreshing shower, she painted her black triangles again, letting her hair loose. Changing into her usual black pants, black and white boots and a tight black sleeveless top, she was ready for one of the most important matches of her life. She came out of the bathroom and headed to the couch, where most of her friends were. Worriedly, she noticed Kai wouldn't look at her. Her head lowered to the floor, `I just hope I'll have some time to apologise. It wasn't his fault...'

“Can anyone just put this thing right!” Ray's irritated voice pulled her out of her thoughts. Said boy appeared at the door of his bedroom, trying to smooth down his long dark hair, which seemed to be in a lot more than the usual tangles.

“Sit down on the couch; I'll see what I can do.” Doing so, Iris did manage to help him out after ten long minutes of light hissing and yelping from the Chinese boy.

The morning passed quickly, and soon enough, it was time for their battle, at 15.35pm.

As they were leaving the hotel room for breakfast, Iris leaned against the wall, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, feeling a sudden pain inside her head, which was soon turning out to be almost unbearable. Hissing quietly and reaching up to rub her temple, she slowly fell to her knees, crying out from the sharp increasing of the pain the motion brought.

“Iris?”

“Say something, Iris!”

“Iris, what is it?” Kai.

“Iris... Rin, what's wrong?” Tala.

“Kai, Yuriy... Make it stop, make it stop!” she repeated over and over again, the pain steadily getting stronger. And just as suddenly as it appeared, it was gone. The girl opened her eyes gingery, seeing everything blurry, slowly being able to make out colours and faces.

Everyone was looking at her while she was kneeling on the floor. Her tensed up muscles relaxed partially as she waited for the strength to get up.

Tala seemed aware of that and stretched out his hand to her, pulling her to her feet gently, masked worry shining at the back of his electric blue eyes, “What happened?”

Mahogany eyes took in her oddly pale skin, their owner not speaking though. She could tell Kai would say something else if they were alone, other than this.

The girl suddenly reminded herself of her best friend's question, “I don't know, just a sharp pain in my head. I'm fine now.” Everyone was still staring at her, as if waiting for her to break down again. A frown formed on her normally relaxed features.

“Umm, are you sure?” for once, she noticed Tyson was actually concerned about something else other than food.

“I. Am. Fine. I said I was fine, so I am! Stop worrying over me already.” The last part was a mere annoyed hiss, her arms crossing over her chest.

“It never happened before, Iris.” The redhead spoke up quietly, giving her a look. He wouldn't stop until he had an explication, she was sure of it.

She sighed, “First, I thought it was that thing of getting drained again, it felt like that. But then, pain shot through my head. Nothing more, nothing less. You can drop the subject.”

Rubbing her temple, she tried to ignore the head ache that was starting to form. Glaring at them all for their meaningless concern, she headed towards the stairs. It wasn't their fault, she knew, but she just wasn't used to. In the Abbey, it was everyone for themselves; that was how she was raised, the rule number one.

:: Mistress, who are you trying to fool? Why not telling them the truth, little one? ::

`What truth, Lugiohan? Not even Iknow what the hell's wrong with me, let alone them! What good would it do, anyway?'

:: They only want to help- ::

`They can't, my friend. No one can.' Iris turned the corner, heading for the canteen, interrupting the Thunder Phoenix; `You know that as well as I do.'

Lugiohan had lifted questions she was tired of asking herself. `The truth...' Why was she tired? All her life she has done the same thing time and time again and this had never happened before. And what was this draining all about? And why the pain? Why now, just before the finals?

:: Maybe it has something to do with the Shadowed Blades. Maybe someone or something wants you to lose concentration, child. :: a deep different voice echoed in the recesses of her mind, its presence trying to be comforting.

`I don't know, Dranzer. Maybe... I'm just too confused right now.'

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After a good breakfast, a walk through the labyrinth like older part of the city and lunch, the BladeBreakers, Demolition Boys, Majestic's and the White Tigers met just outside the BladeBreakers' hotel, and made their way to the stadium together.

“Feel alright for today's match?” Tala caught up with her, eyes not leaving the ground.

“Yuriy.” Her voice held annoyance, hoping he'd get the picture, “I'm not nine years old anymore, I can take care of myself.”

“I don't doubt that.” He finally glanced at her, “But you cried out. Something I rarely ever saw you doing, Iris.”

“You can change, though. You don't have to battle today.” Kai appeared on the other side of her.

“No!” she snarled through clenched teeth, almost daring them to say otherwise. Her eyes had changed to a vibrant red colour, glinting dangerously. Both boys quirked an eyebrow at her. She had never spoken to either of them quite like that before. “I want to battle, and I will! Don't you two dare stopping me.” She took Lugiohan's bit chip out of her pendant, putting it back on her blade. Her grip on her beyblade was so tight the sharpened edges actually cut through the skin, “I will defeat Kuznetsov along with her damned team!” `And then, Boris will know who he's dealing with. I'll destroy the Abbey with my bare hands if I have to, but that thing's going down. Even if it's the last thing I'll do.'

Tala slowed down, rather leaving her alone than trying to change her mind; he knew her well enough to know that it was a waste of time. The bluenette walking alongside of her didn't, but kept quiet through the rest of the small walk.

After the other teams left them to go back to the stands, they all surrounded Chief, facing Dizzy, revising their stronger and weaker points and their adversaries', last warnings and advices.

As they all started to leave the changing rooms to head towards the bey stadium, Kai glanced over at her, locking their eyes, glaring at her just as she glared back. The others got the picture, as they kept going; those two needed to sort a few things out first. Alone.

None of them wanted to give in, stubborn by nature as both of them were. The matter at hand needed to be discussed though, and with that in mind, did Kai close his eyes, looking away from her.

The boy leaned back against the door frame, his unruly bangs sending his eyes into shadow. A silent sigh escaped from his slightly parted lips.

“Just promise me you won't stop me. Please.” She asked quietly, the simple request echoing in the almost empty room.

“If I do, I'll lose you. Lose you to them.” His head lifted just a fraction, just enough to let her see the anger mixing with reluctance and hurt in his dark eyes, “Do you think I will let you do that? You're everything I've left. Boris took everything I once had, innocence, happiness, the sense of love. Even that was beaten out of me. And now, I'll promise I'll just stand by and let them take you?”

She dared not to look into his eyes as her feet crossed the short distance that separated them. Afraid to see what was in his eyes after that sentence. Her hand reached up, fisting the front of his scarf, bringing his head down. Her lips brushed over his as she spoke quietly, her voice holding a confidence she was sure she didn't truly feel, “You won't lose me. That much, I can promise you. I just found you, yet I know I can't be happy without you.” Her other hand rested over his chest lightly, as she repeated, “You won't lose me.”

The feeling of her lips against his own sent a shiver down his spine. His hand rested over the small of her back, pulling her closer, his lips capturing hers in a kiss. Not a gentle but harsh one, desperate, wanting. As they parted for lack of oxygen, the last contact of their lips left unaccomplished promises of what was yet to come. Of what may not be accomplished after today's battles.

“I promise.” The two whispered words took a couple of minutes to make sense in her fogged mind, and a couple more for her to understand what exactly was he talking about. A small smile curved her lips. “It's time.” they nodded in unison, before exiting the changing rooms, meeting up with the rest of the team at the end of the hall.

“HERE WE HAVE THE BLADEBREAKERS' CAPTAIN, KAI HIWATARI! NEXT, WE HAVE OUR FAVOURITE CHINESE `BLADER, RAYMOND KON! RIGHT AFTER HIM, THE CRAZY BLONDE AMERICAN MAAAAAAAAAAAX TATE!!! THEN WE HAVE CHIEF, THE ONLY INACTIVE MEMBER AND TECHNICIAN, AND AFTER HIM, OUR WORLD CHAMP, TYSON GRANGER!!” taking a small pause to let the newest wave of fans' screaming, Jazzman cleared his throat lightly before continuing, “AND LAST, BUT CERTAINLY NOT LEAST, WE HAVE THE NEWEST FEMALE `BLADER, IRIS C. BLANCHETT!” this time, boys' whistling was also heard, along with the usual crude comments too, “I'VE HEARD RUMOURS THAT SHE'S WITH TALA IVANOV, WONDER IF THAT'S TRUE... MANY BOYS HAVE THEIR EYES ON THIS FEMALE SPIT-FIRE, YET THERE'S NOT MUCH KNOWN ABOUT HER!!!”

As she finally entered everyone's field of vision, the whistles and clapping got louder. Her fringe kept her face in the shadows till almost her chin, and despite her admirers' and fans' cheering, she didn't bother to lift her head. Black pants gave her all the movement she wanted and the black sleeveless crop top completed the outfit. Of course, always with her black and white and black gloves up to her elbows. Iris came to a stop at the BladeBreakers' bench and sat down, quickly folding her arms and legs.

“Hmm...” Tyson's elbow poked her on the ribs in a teasing way, “You, with Tala?” He leaned over her shoulder, voice quietening in a conspiring way, “Nah... You're hanging out with Mr. Sourpuss over there, that right?” his index finger scratched the skin under his nose, his midnight blue eyes glinting knowingly, “Hehe, I know, I know, he may be all I-don't-care-about-girls-and-I-don't-have-time-for-girlfriends-like, but in the end he's as soft as- OUCH!” Iris never knew the end of Tyson's sentence, as a well-aimed can of coke connected with the navy-haired boy's temple.

“Kai, I was only joking!! Ah, that hurts!” Tyson massaged the spot gingerly, muttering under his breath, the words “Kai” and “stupid”, the more used ones.

Kai leaned against one of the two posts of their bench, his mahogany hues sweeping over Iris. She was nervous, he could tell. If crossing and uncrossing her legs over and over again, and the quick tapping of her fingers in her forearm were any signs of such. Her face was hidden by her hair, but her rosy lips were pressed into a thin line, proof of her apprehension. `She's nervous because of him.' His head turned to the other side of the stadium, looking over the stands, his stare stopping at the smirking face of a certain purple haired scientist that called himself Boris. And right beside him, was his Grandfather. Voltaire was looking their way, but for once, Kai had the feeling he wasn't looking at him. His fists clenched, his eyes returning to look at the girl behind him, `You'll neverhave her. I don't care about what happens to me, but she will be safe from you, Boris or anyone else.' His lips curled back from his teeth in a silent snarl.

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Tala sat two rows behind Boris, along with Bryan while Ian and Spencer were in the row behind Voltaire, watching their every move. 'BIOVOLT, your pupils will be the death of your whole damn corporation...' the red-haired teen smirked to himself.

“Think she's able to win?”

The boy looked sideways at the other's question. Slowly, he shook his head negatively, replying in a hushed whisper, “I don't think Lugiohan has that much power. Black Dranzer is fully using your sister. In Kai's case, he was conscious of what he was doing, hence the reason why he left it. Sarabela isn't. If Iris does win, she'll probably pass out afterwards.” A flicker of denial flashed through his bright blue orbs; if one blinked, they would miss it, “Or even die while trying.”

Bryan nodded curtly, “And.. what if they try something?” his light eyes glanced over at Boris, then at Voltaire, “You noticed all the scientists around the place as good as the rest of us; they're up to something.”

Turquoise eyes closed, “I know. But if they do... I don't think I'd let them get away with it again. Not this time. She's all I have left still.” His lips curled back from his teeth, “I let them have her. Look what happened. They broke her, raped her, tortured her. Then, I let quite the same happen to Ten. And now, the past is repeating itself. I won't allow that.” Hardened eyes snapped open, “No way. Not again.”

The lavender haired youth nodded to himself, glancing over at the silver eyed girl in question. His hues ran over the crowd, catching sight of the scientists again, If they're hoping they'll do the same to her as they did to Tala and let them get away... You've got another thing coming, Boris.

As the crowd quietened considerably, everyone's heads turned to look at the Shadowed Blades. They paid the multitude no mind as they walked over to their bench, sitting down. Only Chad kept standing, arms crossed over his chest, looking at Jazzman.

“AND HERE THEY ARE, FOLKS! ONE OF THESE TEAMS WILL LEAVE THE STADIUM AS THE NEW CHAMPIONS OF EUROPE! TO DECIDE THAT, WE'LL HAVE THREE MATCHES, EACH ONE WITH THREE ROUNDS!!! FOR THIS FIRST BATTLE, WE HAVE BOTH CAPTAINS. CHAD AND KAI, PLEASE STEP FORWARD.”

Chad climbed up the three steps, reaching his side of the stadium, his eyes flicking over to Iris's restless frame, a knowing smirk suddenly forming on his lips. Kai stepped in front of him, readying Dranzer on his launcher, blocking his view from her.

“You don't know what really happened to her...” the boy's head tilted to the side mockingly, the smirk still in place, “Do you?”

A light grey coloured eyebrow lifted in question, a question shining in his usually emotionless hues. True, he had never asked what exactly happened to Iris; every time the other bladers had tried, she curiously went deaf and mute until the subject was changed. But... Had it been even more than rape and torture?

Chad chuckled quietly, giving out the feeling he knew something they didn't even dream of. Slowly, he shook his head softly, “And here I thought you knew Boris. You do know what happened to Ivanov, or don't you know about that detail either? Better saying, Cyber Tala.”

“Who wouldn't? Trained from a young age to be a top beyblader, being genetically enhanced to ensure victory, courtesy of Boris. What does that have to do with anything?”

Dark eyes rolled, “You mean a light bulb hasn't gone off yet even after I said that? Do I even need to remind you?” the smirk returned, “Boris likes pretty faces, ne...” he paused for effect, seeming to enjoy every second of the bluenette's realization he hadn't wanted to even start to imagine as possible ever since he knew she grew up at the Abbey, “But you should know he adores experiences as well. Even more, maybe.” He shrugged almost carelessly, “Who knows?”

Ever so slightly, his eyes widened, “You mean... She.. he-” He looked at the boy unbelievingly, then back at Iris and finally, over at Boris. `No.' No, no, no, that was all wrong, wrong! He couldn't, wouldn't dare... `Would he?'

Laughter escaped Chad's parted lips, plain mocking, aiming to irritate him even more, “Are you really that blind? I mean, all of you? How could she be just a normal human? With all the powers she possesses?”

Kai was starting to lose the thin patience he had had until now. “What powers are you blabbing about, damn it?” he growled through gritted teeth.

The other teen shook his head, still smiling teasingly, “Who in the world do you know that is able to talk to other bit beasts that aren't their own? Even their owners find it difficult to have such a strong bond that actually allows them the ability to speak, let alone allow her to speak as well? Who else do you know that can use the pure raw energy that only a bit beast is capable of using and controlling it?” the smile was replaced by another wicked smirk, “Who the fuck is able to control every damn bit beast in the universe, by sheer force of her own will and whim, other than Iris Catherine Blanchett?”

Every head turned to look at the black-haired silver-eyed young woman. She was wide eyed, her lips slightly parted, as the information sank into her now numb mind.

`I can speak with Dranzer, for example... And I do use Lugiohan's energy when I was too weak from the beatings I received, using it to my own benefit...'

:: And you are able to control me if you so wish to so, little one... ::

The mysterious dark voice echoed over her mind, making her flinch slightly as its presence let her slowly know of everything she was really capable of doing, of everything she was able to control, of everything she could destroy. She shook her head softly. `No. It's not possible! No! Gods, please let this be a nightmare...'

:: I-I apologise, Mistress... :: the sad tone of her bit beast's voice clearly confirmed her worst fears. Unfortunately, it was all true.

Her knees hit the floor hard, her whole attention concentrated on the information that was given to her to even notice the slight pain. So that's it? Boris did this? These... `powers' I have? I didn't even know they were powers! I thought anyone could speak with other bit beasts... How... How was I supposed to know... Why... Why me?

Her head snapped up as five presences made themselves known in her mind. Looking to her friends, Kai, Tyson, Max and Ray had taken out their beyblade's, their respective bit chips shining brightly, as was Dizzy's monitor.

:: You are the Chosen One,
The One the stars speak of,
Praeceptrix, you are called,
Spreader of peace,
The one whom will bring
Back the lost Balance. ::

“AAAAANNND 3........... 2.........................1!!....................................... LET IT RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIPPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” DJ Jazzman shouted loudly, waking everyone out of their thoughts.

Both beyblade's touched the dish at the same time, clashing together once, before separating due to the two opposite elements; Water Serpent versus Fire Phoenix.

Kai turned his attention to the battle, opening his mind to Dranzer as he felt the familiar sensation of being one with the mighty bit beast. Shaking off the shock of the sudden knowledge about Iris's past, his eyes hardened, a light frown etching on his features.

“If you're just going to stand there... Szykraft, chase him; I don't have all day.”

An intimidating hiss was heard as a large serpent came out of the dark and light blue `blade, letting its forked tongue slide out menacingly at the crowd, before ebony slits eyes rested on the boy in front of it. A glint was soon seen shining in their depths, gleaming with unspoken threats.

`Dranzer, he's planning something. Be careful.'

:: Do not worry, youngling. ::

Szykraft advanced on Dranzer, chasing him around as the phoenix did his best to escape the sharp fangs. “Catch him.” The serpent's tail suddenly leapt in the air, taking a tight hold on Dranzer's neck, making him crash on the ground hard, letting out an indignant screech.

Its head pulled back, seemingly to finish him off, but other than that, it turned backwards, looking over at Kai. The tongue came out of its mouth again, tasting the air, the attentive slits not leaving the teen.

`Dranzer, slam and attack with Fire Arrow.'

The dark blue beyblade sped forward, slamming head on, on its opponent, as Dranzer's talons cut right through the tender reptilian skin, before retreating and finish it off with his trademark attack. Szykraft hissed and spitted everywhere, writhing on the floor before finally returning to the beyblade it belonged to. Chad caught it, frowning at it, then at the other boy. “Plain luck.”

“Whatever.” Dranzer landed on his outstretched hand, as he placed it back on the launcher, “Let's just get this over with and be ready to lose again.”

Chad's devious smirk returned again, “So sure of ourselves, aren't we? I wouldn't count on that if I were you.” Once more, the blades landed smoothly on the stadium after the countdown for the second match.

Both bit beasts didn't lose any time in attacking each other; fangs, tails, talons... everything was being used to cause harm on the other, the hatred, dislike and rivalry from each blader growing at each passing second.

“Szykraft!”

“Dranzer!”

The beyblade's spared with one another, unwilling to submit to the other's power. And as one last blow struck, the serpent finally left the neck on neck position, starting to do laps around the dish instead. Dranzer, feeling trapped inside the circle the other was performing, followed suit. Suddenly, the other made a sharp U turn, crashing heavily into the navy blue beyblade's side, making it wobble slightly, the snake's fangs making two large gashes on Dranzer's side. One of his hands covered his side, a faint ache felt there; his dark hues hardened. Looming over the hurt phoenix, and standing over twenty feet tall in all its size, the dark slits rested over Kai's form again. The glint returned as its mouth opened, some sort of daggers coming from it.

“Daggers of Death, Szykraft!”

“Kai, get out of there!”

“Watch out!!”

“Please, Kai, move, do something!!!”

Just as everyone was sure the multicoloured daggers would touch his skin, a barrier was formed right between him and the bey-stadium, vivid red in colour, almost as if bathed in a light sheen of endless fire. Dranzer rose, wings flapping powerfully, the silky looking feathers of the tips of them seemingly brushing over Kai's shoulders, as the bird looked down at the Water Serpent, hatred and power shining in his dark eyes. :: You've committed a very grave miscalculation... You should have never attacked young Kai; this battle is between us. ::

Tilting his head back, Dranzer screeched loudly, flying higher. Stopping just as he was going to hit the ceiling, he flew back towards Szykraft; his sharp talons cutting through the fragile skin of the snake, making the bit beast disintegrate bit by bit. Screeching one last time, now more melodically, the phoenix looked once at his guardian, dropping his head in a silent nod before returning to his beyblade. Still spinning vigorously, Dranzer clashed forcefully onto the other beyblade, successfully destroying it, the little pieces falling near Chad, who looked at the disaster in front of him with disbelief. The dark eyes of the boy narrowed almost immediately, “Meh. I'll have my revenge soon enough. And it will be served cold...” an odd glint was shining in his eyes as an eerie smile curved his lips, “Very, very cold.”

The Phoenix simply lifted an eyebrow at him, his curiosity picking, wondering what the other was talking about. But still, he said nothing. Maybe it was better.

Or maybe not.

“UMM, YEAH, AND... AS KAI KINDA.. ERRM, DESTROYED CHAD'S BEYBLADE, THAT MAKES HIM THE WINNER OF THIS FIRST ROUND, MAINLY BECAUSE CHAD CANNOT REPLACE HIS BEYBLADE IN THE SPARE FIVE MINUTES TO DO SO! CONGRATULATIONS TO KAI, AND OF COURSE, TO THE BLADEBREAKERS!” clapping and whistling were heard as Kai descended the few stairs back to the bench, lifting his arm to retrieve Dranzer as he flew back into his hand.

“That was a great battle!”

“Yeah, excellent!”

“Yup, you can say that again!”

“Excellent!”

“Err I was only kidding, Max...”

“Oh.”

The captain sat back on the bench beside Iris, eyes closing, “Your turn, Ray.”

The Chinese blader nodded, standing up, Drigger in his hand, launcher in his other one.

“PLEASE, RAY AND KYO, COME FORWARD! THE SECOND COMBAT IS ABOUT TO BEGIN!!”

`Kyo... That's the guy who challenged me that other day.' Dark eyebrows furrowed together, his amber eyes, usually sharp but soft, hardened. The two following matches were short-lived, rough and unexpected. A simple gesture of Kyo's hand, and his beyblade disappeared from sight, confusing both Ray and Drigger and knocking the grey blade out of the dish twice in less than five minutes. The ex-White Tiger returned to his seat, looking disappointed and defeated. The sharp edge of the White Tiger's attack rings cut the boy's fingertip as he traced the blade, not that he noticed.

“What was that all about, Ray?!” Tyson stood over the older boy, frowning. Receiving no answer whatsoever, the Dragon growled, “Were you even paying attention up there? How could you let that guy pull you down like that?! You're the fastest of us!”

“Tyson...” Kai decided to intervene. We don't need problems right now., And certainly not in a time like this. “Just shut up, will you? Ray did his best. What matters is that we're still on the tournament, still fighting for the title. We're tied. Do us all a favour and shut your trap.” His mahogany hues turned to glance sideways at the girl beside him.

Iris turned her head to look at him ever so slightly, nodding. Getting up, she saw Sarabela do the same from the corner of her eye. The younger girl looked quite calm, almost even relaxed. Black Dranzer was held in her hand, a black dot between such a pale skin, temptation tainting innocence, and as the girl looked at it, the bit chip shined, as if he knew something she didn't. Iris climbed the small steps and stood in front of her opponent, eyes narrowed.

“Why, Blanchett, nice to see you again...”

“Shut it, Kuznetsov.”

The girl ignored the comment, “I see you are being cautious. Not unusual of you; I'd forgotten that trait of yours.” She gestured to the stands, “My brother, Ivanov, Spencer and Ian... though it's useless. I'll defeat you, and just because your friends and boyfriend are here, that doesn't mean a thing to me. Black Dranzer will possess you and I will be able to control the most powerful bit beast of this planet and as he'll be controlling you and your powers...” her pale light eyes flashed a dark colour, adding in a hiss, “I will control every other bit beast. And all because of you. Don't you feel honoured?”

Closing her eyes tightly, the black haired blader blocked her voice from her mind, “Shut up! I don't want to hear it! It's a stupid damn lie!! I won't let it happen, I won't, I won't!”

“AAAAAAANND 3......... 2.................... 1......................!! LEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEET IT RIIIIIIIIIPPP!!!”

The beyblade's brushed against each other before landing on opposite sides of the stadium, Lugiohan losing her balance for a second.

“Uh oh...”

Everyone in the BladeBreakers' bench turned to look at Kenny.

“For as long as I lived, no `uh oh' was ever good. What's happening?” Tyson looked away from the battle, sitting down, watching it carefully through Dizzy's recording.

“I forgot... Black Dranzer is an exact copy of Dranzer, whether in the bit beast and in the design of the beyblade. Which is why Kai managed to control it so quickly.” Reaching over and taking the Fire Phoenix out of its Master's grip, Chief held the blade to the light, “Lugiohan's base is just the same.”

“...So?” the World Champion lifted an eyebrow, “How's that a problem? They're symmetric. But Dranzer is more powerful than Black Dranzer. He was defeated once. He can be defeated again. No one is unbeatable! And, even though it pains me to say it, not even I'm unbeatable. And everyone thinks that's impossible!” Most people gave him a look, which the boy promptly ignored.

“It's not that, Tyson.” Kenny dismounted the attack ring, pulling out the weight disk. “Here.” He placed it on the navy blue haired boy's hand. Picking up a small box, which everyone knew to be the one that had every possible tool and parts in it, the young genius took out another weight disk, putting it on Tyson's other hand, “This one is made of the same material of Iris'.”

“Umm, it's pretty lighter. That's good, isn't it?”

“Depends on the situations.” Kai spoke up, eyes still locked into the battle up ahead, a light frown on his features, “Take that match between her and Tala for example. She lost because Wolborg was heavier. The easiest way to defeat her would be pushing her against the wall or clear off the dish. Her base or weight disk are designed to give her speed, not to give her balance or a larger endurance level. Remember her stats, three stars at attack, one at defence and two at endurance. For opponents that put her on the defence, her chances of wining with a few harsh attacks, which is her usual style, diminish quite a lot.”

“Exactly. Meaning, she's in a disadvantage.” Kenny bit his lip worriedly, “If Sarabela makes her go into a defensive style, I don't know how much she will be able to take.”

In an instant, Black Dranzer attacked Lugiohan head on with such intensity that some parts of her weight disk actually melted, the small glints here and there giving away the fact that it was practically useless.

Other than the subtle twitch of her eyebrow, Iris's features gave nothing away about the emotions running just beneath the soft layer of her skin, the uproar tumult she was going through, the fear inside her. `Lugiohan?'

:: I'm fine, Mistress. But my defence is damaged. :: came the soft reply, calmness that was not her own invading her worried mind.

`I thought as much.' The girl took a long breath; this round needed to be finished as soon as possible. She had to change that disk, she just had to. Black Dranzer played much on the attack. `Hn.. Maybe I can use that to my advantage. Maybe.'

“This is not over yet, Blanchett... In fact, far from that.” Sarabela's strange smile returned, her arm extending, “Or then again, maybe not.” Black Dranzer shined once, before a beam of light shot up into the sky. The Dark Phoenix rose, screeching loudly, flapping his black wings in an attempt of showing his power, making several people from the audience gasp in shock. The cheers of the crowd died right there, as wave after wave of dark power, even if it didn't hurt them, was swept over them; they still felt the silent threat dancing just over the surface of their skin.

:: Greetings... Iris Blanchett... We meet once again. ::

Iris's lips curled back from her teeth in a snarl, her foot taking a wise step back. “Stay away from my thoughts, do you hear me!? Don't you dare entering my mind!” An amused chuckle sounded, not caught by her ears, but sounding deep and dark in her own mind.

:: You do not have enough control over your powers to stop me from doing so, child... Even if you are able to do that. ::

Before she could even think of summoning Lugiohan, the other attacked with pure raw power. The blades continued grinding together, sparks everywhere, until the slightly larger one pulled back to deliver a sharp harsh blow, sending Lugiohan out of the stadium, the defence ring completely destroyed. Iris turned her face to the side, a small bit of metal passing just beside her cheek, a scratch appearing a few seconds after, one or two drops of blood slowly falling.

“...THE BLADEBREAKERS ONLY HAVE FIVE MINUTES TO FIX THE DAMAGE, THOSE ARE THE RULES...”

Kneeling, her pale hand picked up the still fuming top. Locking her eyes with the emerald green stare of the phoenix on the bit chip, Iris took a deep breath, `I promised I wasn't going to give up. And I never go back on my word. Therefore, I refuse to do it, to admit defeat. Lugiohan, are you with me?'

:: I've always been, I always will be, Mistress. I am ready when you are ready, little one. ::

Giving a small short nod, she turned around, icy blue eyes stopping on Kenny's frame. `So be it.' “We're still in.” walking up to the younger boy, she placed the blade in his palm, “Do what you can, Chief.”

Grinning lightly, the genius knelt beside their bench, immediately starting the repairing, Max and Tyson assisting him in what they could.

Four minutes...

Chad smirked lightly from his seat, “Heh, luckily, we won't even need to win this last one...”

“Hn..” the only girl's haunted gaze rested on Kenny, “The boy's pretty smart. He might be able to do it. Or not.” Another out of character smirk curved her lips.

Three minutes...

From Chief to Iris, the bright amber hues looked to and fro, Drigger being twirled fast and absently in their owner's palm, “C'mon...”

“You're more nervous than I am, and you've already battled. Calm down, Ray, I'm fine. If the Chief can't repair Lugiohan in time, I'll battle all the same.” Iris's voice sounded almost vacant, her eyes glaring in the direction of the Shadowed Blades.

“What?! With no defence?” the ex-White Tiger gave her a look, an ebony eyebrow shooting up. “There's no way you'd last for more than three minutes out there. Not against Black Dranzer, that is. Or against that girl.”

Two minutes...

“You're forgetting that she knows `bela's moves, since she was her teacher.” Kai spoke up, getting up to stand in between the two other teens. His reddish orbs turned to look at the girl at his left, “You're underestimating Blanchett here, Ray.” That single sentence brought out a light smile from said female.

One minute...

“ERRM... WILL IT TAKE MUCH LONGER?” Jazzman glanced down at his wristwatch, his other hand scratching the back of his head, “IT'S ALMOST-”

“FINISHED!!!” wiping his forehead, Kenny held out the beyblade up high, the polished metal catching the light and reflecting it, making certain angles twinkle gently.

The base wasn't as slender as it was before, two red marks on it as well, the tip that made contact with the surface of the stadium was now as sharp as a needle. The weight disk, or what was left of it, was replaced by a thicker one, made of what seemed to be the same material as the other one. The attack ring now had two long edges, practically touching the blade itself, sharp and dangerous looking, the same two red marks there as well, while around the bit chip, there was a silvery part.

“I present you Lugiohan D-3. Dangerous, deadly and devilish!” Tyson grinned, draping an arm around Iris's shoulders, who lifted a fine dark eyebrow in question. “Gave the name to her myself!”

“It will be called Lugiohan D, that's more like it. Stands for `two'.” Picking up the heavier top, the girl measured its weight on her hand and launcher in a short testing.

“Err... D stands for... `two'?” the young World Champion tilted his head to the side in confusion, “Shouldn't that be a `T'?”

“One, people would've thought that T stood for Tyson... Second, `two', in my language is spelled D-O-I-S, `dois'. And thirdly, the blade is mine!” a glare sent his way made him scratch the back of his head sheepishly.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAANND 3..................... 2.................................. 1....................................... LEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEETT IT RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIPP!!!”

Once more, just like a replay, the beyblade's crashed onto the dish, colliding in the centre, sparks flying all over the place. Rounding each other as if checking every angle of the attack rings for flaws, they both separated and started to do laps in opposite directions, occasionally grinding and trying to push the other out of the dish.

Even though everything seemed alright and balanced, a drop of sweat trickled down Iris's temple. `I'm not used to this style... Everything had to be changed in the design, I need more time to get used to it and let my mind be one with the beyblade...' Much to many people's amazement, the intense blue orbs closed softly, the dark lashes brushing over the pale cheek bones lightly. She relaxed her pose visibly, her back straightening, feet apart at shoulders' length, which were pulled back in a somewhat petulant way. Her head was tilted forward, the long, chin length dark bangs of her hair covering her now calm features.

A blow on the underside of the base... Pain on her lower abdomen...

Grind on the side of the attach ring... A burning sensation on her upper arm...

Clash onto the weight disk... Pressure on her ribcage...

The closed eyelids snapped open, dark pupils dilating and the irises growing, the icy blue background mixing with the ivory white. Once they focused, the sight of a calm, confident frame came to view, a shorter girl, eyes completely devoid of emotion, right in front of her. Her friend... Her enemy.

Another mocking smile was on the pale lips, “Ready?” `Now is the time, my pet. She is weak; she has no real control over her own beyblade. You can have her now... She will be yours with no resistance in her part. It's just a matter of time now...'

:: Yes, yes, yes... :: The amused voice of the Dark Phoenix sounded quietly, dismissively.

“Black Dranzer!”

“Lugiohan!”

At the same time, both shouts sounded as if both girls were aware of each other's thoughts. Both bit beasts were summoned, one through a white beam of light, and the other through a black one: the combination of all colours of the electromagnetic spectre in one case and the lack of colour all together in the other. Screeching loudly, they flew into the air, while the beyblade's below crashed hard and powerfully. As the anger of both bladers grew, the power of their respective bit beasts grew along with them. Everything that could be seen was the two bright lights clashing together, the energy obscuring any detail and form, and everything far too bright to be supported by the fragile human eyes.

And just as suddenly at it all started, it ended. The lights were slowly extinguished for no real reason, the brightness decreasing till everyone could open their hues again with no fear of getting blind. And it wasn't just the lack of light, but the lack of the tell tale spinning of the beyblade's.

Everyone held their breath and leaned forward on their seats. The Shadowed Blades got up, following the BladeBreakers' example and walked as close as they could to the dish. Jazzman glanced at the still smoking stadium, and finally broke the apprehensive silence. Now, if after his speech, they should be happy or sad, they never knew the answer.

“YES, BOYS AND GIRLS, IT REALLY IS!!! A TIE! THESE EXPECTAAAAAAAACULAR BLADERS HAD A WELL DESERVED TIE! SEEMS LIKE THE THIRD MATCH IS GOING TO DECIDE WHERE THE VICTORY TRULY LIES!!!”

“Pff, deserved tie... With all that energy, they could as well have died. If something had distracted them, there would be such a discharge of power, everything could've gotten blown to bits including everyone present...” Kai growled quietly at the back of his throat. “And by the way this is going, it won't get pretty.”

And for the first time, no one, not even Tyson, could say something to lift the captain's mood. For they thought and knew the exact same thing.

“THIIIIIIIIIIRD MATCH, TAKE IT OR JUST LEAVE IT! THIS IS IT, GIRLS! READY?” at the girls' glares, not that he cared much, DJ Jazzman continued, “AAAAAANNNDDD... 3.....................................” Both girls readied their blades quickly, hearing the small click that said they were in place.

“2....................” They crouched into their launching poses, Iris with one foot back, legs wide apart, one arm almost completely stretched out and the other bent, following the outline of her own body as she scowled deeply, fire and hatred shining in her icy hues, making eye contact, not willing to lose, while Sarabela almost knelt, arms completely stretched out and tense, features calm.

“1!!......” Her fangs glistened to the bright light from the spotlights as Iris snarled defiantly, Sarabela simply giving her a mocking smirk and a shake of her head.

“LEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEETTTT IITTT RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIPPP PPPPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

A nd from that point onwards, there was nothing no one could do. Only God knew what would happen, which side, Light or Dark, would come out the winner.

As soon as it touched the dish, Black Dranzer anticipated all of Lugiohan's movements and attacks at trying to push him clear off the dish, making her unable to attack, just allowing her to keep her defences up. Which was awfully difficult, since that was completely opposite to her style. The phoenixes were released once more, bathing the atmosphere in white and dark, not even waiting to be summoned.

Sparks flew everywhere, and the hope started to fly with them as well. A quiet hiss coming from Iris had the BladeBreakers' attention away from the intense combat for a moment. One of her hands came up to rub her temple.

:: Please be careful, little one.. He is trying. ::

`I know...' As Iris looked back at her opponent, she frowned lightly.

Sarabela's breathing was laboured and a hand over her heart showed that she was running out of energy even to keep her heart beating, the most basic of functions. Pain in her chest - compassion -, that should not be there in a time like this, could not be avoided. “Please, `bela... Stop this. Can't you see? You're not like this, this isn't you, you don't battle like this! Black Dranzer is just using you! Once he has what he wants, he'll leave you to die!! Do you want that happening?”

Even through the obvious pain she was suffering, the younger girl narrowed her eyes, snapping right back, “Shut up! You know nothing!! None of you do! I'm the only one that understands Black Dranzer, the only beyblader he obeys! Me, only me!! He'll help me if I need to, he always has. You... You abandoned me! My own parents abandoned me, and my brother, who promised me he'd always be with me, left me there as well!! You only think of yourselves; you don't deserve to live!!!” her tirade finished with a loud screech from Black Dranzer's part as he shoved Lugiohan against one of the walls of the stadium.

“No!” tears came to her eyes, “I didn't! I didn't leave you! I-I did, but I didn't mean to! Please, you have to understand, Sarabela, you-” she sighed. How could she explain such a thing? Not she, not any of the Demolition Boys had a choice... “Please trust me. He's just using you, all he wants is a body to live in and then walk free in the universe and destroy everything while being the eternal rival of his double, Dranzer! That thing is the Dark part of Dranzer, for crying out loud! And for being a cybernetic bit beast, created by Boris, it can't leave his bit on his own! The only ways to do that is to possess his or other blader or to fuse once more with Dranzer! But if the latter happens, Dranzer will manage to control him and use his power for the Light and for himself, like he did before Black Dranzer was created. That's the reason why he fucking wants me!!” she shut her eyes tightly, blocking the rest of her tears away, “Because of these cursed powers everyone keeps saying I have...” opening her eyes, not a single trace of tears in them now she continued more securely, voice rising along with her reason, Lugiohan flying up and pushing back the Dark Phoenix with more power by the second, “Why can't you see it? That he doesn't want you. He'll let you die as soon as he has me... He'd kill you himself if he thought that would get him closer to me, without second thoughts! You're alone. Alone. But you won't be, if you just let him go.” A hand was stretched out towards the pale girl, who looked at it unsurely, “Come with me... With us... I'll help you. We'll all help you. Please.”

For a single instant, she seemed like she would give in, but a glance from Black Dranzer's part made her stop immediately; the power he had over her was indeed incredible. Sarabela narrowed her lavender eyes at Iris, “You're gonna regret saying that, mark my words, Blanchett. I am NOT alone!” she lifted her arms, in some sort of an adoring, submissive, pose to the Dark Phoenix, “I am never alone!!” her eyes suddenly changed to pitch black, shining unnaturally, her body growing tense.

The black haired girl inhaled sharply. `Something's happening... Like...' A quiet gasp left her lips, `Oh my God... In the vision... That bloody vision...' Her stomach lurched, `No...'

««Flashback» »
Black Dranzer came forward, as Sarabela fell to her knees, no longer moving. A trickle of blood poured from her mouth, the only sign that confirmed she was dead.
««End Flashback»»

`I'll be damned if I back down now...' From the corner of her eye, Iris glanced back to her team. She did not want to hurt any of them while making her decisions. This was her choice. Hence, it was her life and hers alone; she could very well kill herself if she so wanted to and not give anyone a reason. But.. That kind of situation, that only two months ago sounded so logical, now seemed selfish... Coward. Weak. And weaknesses, she had not.

Tyson and Max, wrists clenched, were held back by Ray. The younger bladers were throwing threats and swearing in ways Iris would have never thought they would. Ray was looking directly at the Shadowed Blades, baring his fangs, frowning. Kenny was sweating; looking to what she supposed was the replay of the previous match.
Slowly, almost mournfully, her stare rested on Kai. Her eyes widened slightly.

His hues, unwavering, were locked with hers, seemingly not aware of anything around him for the first time since she knew him. The boy actually seemed... mesmerized by something. Or as if some mystery of the universe was finally being explained to him and the realisation dawned. He was standing, beside Ray, completely still, hands clenched into fists. In the fraction of second their eyes locked, time seemed to cease. `He knows... He knows what I'm about to do.' The usual dark emotionless orbs were not covered by the masks normally hiding the true feelings behind them, the fears, the weaknesses... They betrayed him, showing her his concern. She could have sworn she had heard him shout “Don't!” in her head. Almost. `Kai... I willdefeat her. But I'm sorry if I can't back down now, I just can't... I didn't want it to be this way, but I've no choice. I'm sorry, so sorry. But I can't let her get away with this... Let Black Dranzer loose.'

Turning her head to focus on Sarabela again, her eyes narrowed, the outline of her frame radiating a dim white aura, glowing stronger and stronger, contrasting with the black power engulfing the other girl. “Maybe you're right. Or not. More like the latter. But I'm not alone either, you can be sure of that. I don't know what happens from now on and really, if you want my sincere opinion, I don't care. But know this... I won't let you be a pawn to BIOVOLT's cause. And Black Dranzer is too damn dangerous for you...” pointing her index finger to Lugiohan, the aura slowly concentrated into a small ball on the tip of it, “You're going down, Kuznetsov, and if I go down with you...” her eyes turned to a complete dark red colour, “So be it. At least I'll have the satisfaction that I saved everyone from the Armageddon that is sure to come. Safe from you... And from Black Dranzer.” The energy shot into the Thunder Phoenix, penetrating her. Her emerald eyes shone brightly, her neck pointing to the sky. A beautiful song came from her, echoing from everywhere and nowhere. The power grew, suddenly released in a tremendous explosion of raw power, controlled by a calm looking Iris. And then... everything went black.

:: Mistress! No!!! ::

:: There is nothing you can do about it. ::

The last thing she remembered was a blur of black coming in her direction. The crowd went deadly silent as everyone looked over at the dish in complete awe and dread to what was still to come.

“NOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” a shout was the only thing that broke the thick silence.



TBC....