It took over a year, but here is the story I have been working on. New chapters will hopefully be out weekly, as I only have to edit the drafts, not write the whole thing from scratch. Just a note: italics is used for flashbacks, regular print for everything happening in present time.
Disclaimer: I do not own Beyblade Metal Fight.
The earth was rocky and desolate save a few habitable spots of land scattered here and there. Barely enough for one traveling alone to live off of the fruits of the land. Still, Nemesis needed its servants and underlings to survive in this new world. After his initial angry release of energy resulting in the demolition of great cities and good land he reigned in his wrath, for what fun would the desolation of the earth bring him after all its inhabitants had perished? No, better to leave them be for now and watch them all suffer from afar, for he himself had suffered for a long time. His servants Rago, Pluto, Johannes and the others would have their reward for their assistance in his return. One great city he would bestow upon each of them to govern. Nemesis' children – the shades of the black sun – would roam freely throughout the earth, bringing terror into the hearts of those surviving humans. And in other cases, death.
The days too were changed. For twelve hours the sky was darkened by the black sun, while for the other twelve the regular sun was allowed to shine. For without the light of the normal sun, Nemesis realized that all life on the planet would quickly die. It simply would not do for his fragile little playthings to perish so early in his rule of darkness. No, better to pick the loners off slowly, one by one when they strayed too far from their safe havens scattered across the earth and were left outside during the twelve hours of darkness. That would be a far more entertaining way to punish all of them for his years of imprisonment. And thus it was during the age of the reign of the black sun.
xXxXx
Night was falling quickly upon the earth. The black sun was appearing on the edge of the horizon. Madoka was worried. Gingka had not yet returned from his most recent supply run into the nearest town that had not been completely destroyed by the initial takeover of Nemesis, but was too ruinous to live in.
The bushes near the entrance to the camp area that had been set up rustled. "Gingka?" she asked quietly, in case it wasn't him.
"Not Gingki, sorry Madoka," came the answering voice of Yu, who stepped into the clearing that housed the mobile home which had been scavenged by the group just after the final battle with Nemesis.
The Libra blader was followed by Tsubasa, who carried stacks of firewood. "This should last us the night," he told Madoka confidently. "And Yu even found some wild blueberries. They'll make a great treat after all the dried food we've been having."
Madoka smiled. The two of them along with Gingka always worked so hard and yet had the energy to make her smile still too.
"That's good news. We all need to keep our strength up." This came from Yuki, who had just exited the camper. "Kenta and Hikaru are just finishing up the last touches on the radio. We should be able to broadcast to anyone else out there soon." Yuki glanced around. "Gingka's not back yet?"
Everyone looked around. "Nah, but you know Gingki. He probably was trying to find a grill and the fixings so we can cook up some burgers," Yu joked.
The others smiled, but it was strained. Where could he be, thought Madoka.
xXx
Pant pant. "Aw man, they've never come out this early in the evening," gasped Gingka to himself. Looking up into the nearly starless sky, the sun's light could still be clearly seen, though the shadows grew long and the black sun approached in the east, bringing darkness with it. Still, the shades of the black sun were after him, regardless of the fact that there was still daylight. They grow stronger, the Pegasus wielder thought. He glanced over his shoulder and shuddered to see two shades – made of dark energy yet humanoid in form – paused not far from the rock Gingka hid behind.
Unfortunately, that glance cost him. One shade spotted him and raced toward him. There was no escape though. The rocky landscape behind Gingka would leave him wide open for an attack if he tried to make a run for it. The rock he hid behind was far too heavy to push over for sure. I guess there's no choice, he thought. He spun and pushed off of the rock, opting for the 'run for it' option.
The shade was gaining ground on him. Gingka could practically feel its malevolent force behind him. Come on, come on! He put in a desperate burst of speed and before he knew it, the shade was far behind him as he zigzagged back toward where camp was set up, still toting the supplies he had scavenged. He slowed and entered the camp, trying to look as casual as possible, which wasn't too difficult. He was somehow barely out of breath.
"Hey guys, I think something's up..." Gingka trailed off, puzzled by what he had just done.
xXxXx
"In the end, this is the limit of your power. Now the power of the god will squash you. That is the fitting end for a worm. Ha ha ha! Is this hard for you? Tell me, what do you have to say in worm words?"
"I will... not lose! Even if my opponent is a god, I will defeat anyone who stands in my way; do you hear me! My name is Ryuga. I reign over this world as the strongest, the Dragon Emperor himself! Ultimate Move, Dragon Emperor Life Destructor!"
"Nemesis!"
"Ha ha ha! Ha ha ha! This is so great, this is the best feeling in the whole world!" Doji laughed even while falling to his death. "Ah ha ha ha! This is the best!"
"You have done well to last so long against Nemesis. This is your reward: take it! Special Move, Armageddon!" cried out Rago.
And then we saw him fall. The Legendary Blader of Summer. The strongest of us all. Had he worked with us, things would not have ended up like this. Zeus' Barrier could have been completed and the evildoers and their god of destruction put away forever. But that's not how it worked out. We arrived too late, and one of our number vanished into thin air along with his summer constellation, Ldrago. Yes, not only his bey vanished but also its very stars from the sky. The eight of us carried on the fight to the bitter end, aided by Yu, Tsubasa, Masamune and Kenta, but in the end, Nemesis overpowered us as well. When we each woke up, many of us were separated, and all our beys were gone. The sky was dark save the constellations of the bladers who fought on Nemesis' side. Is it the will of the heavens that Nemesis win after all? No, I refuse to believe it. Though we live under a darkened sky, though our beys are no more and the stars of their constellation have vanished, I refuse to believe it. There must be something more for us to do in this world, or else why and how did we survive the battle?
"It seems our work is not yet done, Tithi," Dynamis spoke to the Legendary Blader of Venus. Somehow, after the battle was over and all those who had fought Nemesis were defeated, the two of them had ended up near the Mist Mountain temple in which Dynamis had stayed for so long. Traveling through the maze, which Dynamis had memorized, the two of them had met the treasure hunter Ryuto, who joined up with them. Being alone in the new world Nemesis had created was dangerous after all. Safety could be found in both groups and shelters. That was about it.
"You've seen something in the sky?" Tithi asked the older teen, coming over to see what was up.
"No." Dynamis sat there looking up. "The stars do not shine, save those of the constellations whose bladers fought alongside Nemesis. Our own are still dark."
"Oh," was all Tithi said, kicking a small rock along the ground. "Say, when do you think Ryuto will be back? He's been away in the maze forever!"
Dynamis smiled. "Not forever, less than a week. And he should be back soon. He said he'd check all the hidden caches in the maze for food and other supplies."
"And now he's back!" The treasure hunter strode into the room loaded down with supplies. "Man, there are tons more out there too. I had nearly forgotten how many people trekked into that maze hoping to find treasure and then either ran out without their supplies after the first trap caught them or never returned. We should be set for months!"
"Hooray!" the excitable Tithi cried, racing to help Ryuto put stuff in its proper place.
"I wonder how the others are faring," Dynamis murmured under his breath, too low for the other two to hear.
xXxXx
Friends. I hadn't had friends for years. And now that I do, I remember what I missed all those years ago. Why I took the hardest job with the highest pay. Why I gave myself over to my profession – to being a blader for hire. Chris was now alone with his thoughts once more, as he had been in the years between his friends abandoning him and his meeting Gingka and the others. "What use is a blader for hire without his bey?" Chris muttered, this time out loud. His voice was hoarse and scratchy from disuse.
Without bothering to look for shelter, Chris flopped down on his back, eyes facing the sky, though there was nothing to see except the constellations of the bladers who supported and helped raise Nemesis. And of course, the black sun, which stood out even blacker than the empty depths of space around it.
"Orion." Chris murmured the name of his constellation. He missed seeing its ever-present light in the skies. "If only you would shine again. Why did you leave me all alone?"
Chris sighed and rolled onto his side. He had grown used to sleeping on the barren ground of this new world, not needing any extra comforts in order to find rest. But before he closed his eyes, he saw a light that started seemingly from him and led off into the distant southeast. Shocked, the winter blader blinked, and the light was gone. Still, it had been there, Christ was sure of it. It seemed to be... showing him the way! Abandoning his attempt at rest, he started out in the direction the light had pointed, not hesitating as he walked out into the darkness.
xXxXx
Pluto's city: Hong Kong, China.
Two cloaked and hooded figures walked down the crowded streets. People were hustling home, wanting to be in the relative safety of their houses before it grew dark and the shades of the black sun congregated to drain the life-force of stragglers out on the streets. Almost every night an unfortunate soul would be caught out, and their screams would echo through the streets. But recently, namely just in the past week, things had changed. The shades were appearing in greater numbers, for it seemed now that they had an enemy in the city: someone was taking them down.
"I just don't understand, Dashan," Mei-Mei said from the safety of the building occupied by the four members of Team Wang Hu Zhong. "How can the shades be destroyed? Aren't they made of dark energy?"
"That may be true, Mei-Mei, but everything has a weakness," Dashan thought logically.
Then Chao Xin joined in the conversation. "I was out and about today-"
"Flirting," interrupted Chi-yun.
Chao Xin sent him a glare. "And I heard people saying they heard rumors that if you 'disrupt the form' of a shade it has to return to the black sun in order to regenerate. Basically they go up in smoke, or in this case, dark flames of energy."
"But you've never seen it firsthand?" Dashan wanted all the information, not just rumors.
"And how do you 'disrupt its form'?" questioned Mei-Mei.
Chao Xin ran his hands through his hair with a sigh. "I don't have the answers to everything."
An hour later, it was pitch-black outside. Almost all the electric lights were turned off after dusk. Wang Hu Zhong always unplugged their lights to save their limited night time ration of electricity for more important things, like keeping their refrigerator and freezer running. Candles lit the way around their house instead.
Mei-Mei dared to peek out the window and saw a mass of shades marching through the streets. She shuddered and was about to close the blinds completely when she saw a light in the distance. It was a red light, coming closer and closer until it was clear something was coming over the roofs of the Hong Kong houses at an extremely fast speed. "Guys, come quickly!"
Dashan, Chi-yun and Chao Xin crowded around the slight gap in the blinds and had various exclamations of surprise as the light took a sharp turn and was now traveling across the roofs on the opposite side of the street that their house was on.
"The shades! Look!" Chi-yun pointed excitedly. The shades of the black sun were turning to pursue the red light, though at a much slower speed. Shades were pouring in from other side streets, all congregating along the road in front of the house of Wang Hu Zhong.
"I hope this does not become a problem for us," Dashan commented as Chao Xin muttered that he had never seen so many in one area before.
By this time, the red light was traveling back toward them, still along the same rooftops, so fast it seemed only to be a red blur. Then, just as it reached their own residence, it leaped across to the next street, now running directly away from Wang Hu Zhong.
Suddenly, the earth began to shake.
"Wha... What is happening?" wailed Mei-Mei, grabbing the windowsill in order to stay upright.
Then, before four pairs of amazed eyes, the very road they lived on split in two so suddenly it seemed to be swallowing up the shades upon it, which fell to their doom. The ground then sealed up behind them, leaving no escape.
"Does that count as 'disrupting their form'?" Chao Xin asked as a joke. Everyone face-palmed.
But the show outside was not yet done. Now that the shades were disposed of, the red light reappeared, this time jumping to the ground for the first time. When it came to a halt and stopped shining red, there seemed to be complete and utter darkness.
"Did it just... disappear?" Dashan asked rhetorically. The four squinted their eyes and could just barely make out a medium sized humanoid form standing in the place the red light had disappeared. Dashan was about to comment on it when a larger form stepped out of the shadows and into the not-quite-as-dark middle of the street, which now had a jagged but not dangerous fissure down its middle where the earth had opened and then closed. The larger figure put a hand on the shoulder of the smaller one, who turned to face it. The two of them exchanged words which Wang Hu Zhong could not make out, and then the smaller figure pointed directly at their house. The larger figure turned to look, as the four Chinese former bladers quickly closed the blinds completely.
"Chi-yun! Why did you bring that candle so close to the window?" hissed Mei-Mei.
About to come back with a nasty retort, Chi-yun swallowed his anger at the sound of a strong knock on their door.
None moved to answer it.
"Open up or I'll bust this door down!" shouted a vaguely familiar voice that none of Wang Hu Zhong could quite place.
Chao Xin sighed and moved to open the door a tiny crack. It was then shoved open by the larger of the two figures, both cloaked and hooded.
"You guys, huh?" asked the smaller figure, squeezing in the door and closing it behind him.
Dashan frowned as he unhooded himself. "Bao... and Aguma, I suppose."
Aguma, the larger figure, then unhooded himself as well. "I am afraid we will have to put aside our differences. The hundred schools of Beylin Fist and the Beylin Temple now have a common enemy."
"Work with us to fight back against the shades of the black sun and free the city!" Bao finished.
"Fight the shades? Are you crazy?! We aren't superheroes!" argued Mei-Mei.
"But you can be," Aguma said mysteriously. "Let us help you find your own special abilities, as we found ours."
Bao then took over explaining that soon after the defeat of the Legendary Bladers, he and Aguma – who had somehow ended up with each other after the battle – discovered while fleeing a pack of shades that Bao had superspeed of sorts.
"A crimson flash, like my bey," Bao explained.
Aguma then picked up the tale: "After I saw Bao quickly outdistancing me, I felt something inside. I can't really explain, but I just knew I should turn and face the shades. Barely knowing what I was doing, I stretched out my arms with a yell and the earth began to shake and split in two, swallowing up the shades. I made a gesture and the earth closed back up around them."
Bao continued, "By that time I had doubled back to find Aguma and came to the conclusion that our powers were somehow based on the powers our beys possessed."
There was a moment of silence as the members of Wang Hu Zhong soaked all of this information in.
"So how would we begin to discover our powers?" Dashan asked slowly.
Bao and Aguma considered for a bit before Bao replied. "The best way is to go out and fight some shades." Seeing the freaked out expressions on their faces, he quickly explained his theory. "Aguma's and my powers didn't come out until we were in a tough situation. My current guess is that the stress and presence of the shades' dark energy causes the trigger that releases our beys' powers from us."
Team Wang Hu Zhong considered this proposal.
"It sounds risky, but if that is the only way..." trailed off Chao Xin.
"Then it is agreed." Aguma stepped back toward the door, one hand poised to turn the knob and exit. "We meet here at curfew tomorrow to clear again."
As he walked out the door, Bao explained the term. "We call our method of shade disposal 'clearing', because it eliminates them from the city. Though more of them just return to figure out who got rid of their brethren in the first place," he ended bitterly.
As the door shut behind Bao; Dashan, Chi-yun, Chao Xin and Mei-Mei sat in thought for a long time before getting some sleep. Just what had they gotten themselves into?
Another note: At this point, the timeline for the story is semi-ambiguous, but eventually things will come into alignment.
Please let me know what you think so far. :)