"Happy Thirteenth Birthday!" My parents shouted after I just walked through the door.

I jumped slightly and blinked my big purple eyes. "Umm… Mommy? Dad? My birthday isn't till Saturday." I replied calmly, their smiling faces frozen. "It's Wednesday… You know that, right?"

"Of course we do, sweet heart!" My father replied, wrapping his arm around me.

"We were just so excited!" My mother chimed in, clasping her hands together. "And since you've always done so well we just couldn't wait to give you your gift now!" She got behind me and both of them hurried me forward and into the living room.

They jumped away and I blinked. The room was normal aside from a few small, brightly wrapped boxes on the coffee table. I looked back over to my parents and they beamed at me, waving me to the boxes. I sighed, set my backpack down and took off my shoes, tossing them back to my parents. I kneeled over to the table and reached for one of the boxes.

"Pick this one first!" I jumped as my mother suddenly appeared beside me. Smiling, she handed the smallest box.

I blinked. "Oh, uh, all right." I took it and ripped it open. I was mildly surprised when I opened it up. "Oh, wow. What is it?" I asked as I examined it. It was purple, tiny and watch like, so I hooked it onto my wrist. It folded open on its own and was set up with a screen on top and buttons of the bottom like a phone. "Is it… A calculator watch?" I asked. I've always done well in school. I was the best at it in their eyes. It made sense that they'd give me something like this.

My mother giggled from the other side of the table as my father smiled. "No quite!" He replied. "Open the larger one. That'll give you a hint."

I stared at them for a moment, then shrugged and went for the larger one. That one made my eyes bug out. There was a black card pouch. With it was a deck of cards. No… My parent wouldn't give me something like this! But… I took the top card and flipped it over. The hexagon design decorated with colorful spheres and odd designs was way too familiar to me. A Bakugan Field Card! My mind shouted.

"I-It's…" My face was able to remain composed, but my shock rendered me speechless.

"It's one of those game cards!" Mother said excitedly. "We got as many as we could from that little Bakugan store in town!" She explained as I quickly flipped through all the cards.

They got such a wide variety! There's so many! I looked back at them surprised. "But… Why give me this?" I asked.

Father waved it off. "Open the last one!"

I blinked, trying to contain my excitement, and went for the long rectangle one. Inside was a Bakuclip. With it was three dark balls already hooked inside. Darkus Bakugan!

"There were so many Bakugan things that we couldn't decide!" Father explained happily.

My mother couldn't seem to get any happier than she already was. "We just decided to pick the ones with your favorite color: purple! And the cutest looking ones as well!"

I quickly clicked them out and examined them. … Falconeer… Monarus!... And Griffon! These would normally be Ventus Bakugan, but they got them as Darkus? "But… Why?" I asked, making them confused. "Why get me this… Bakugan stuff? Where'd you get it all?" I asked.

Both of them smiled. "Honey, you're always doing school work or chores. Whenever you go out to play, all your friends are playing that game!" My mother explained.

"We know how you're not used to this sort of thing, but we want you to be happy and able to join in things with your friends." Father went on. "We don't have any worries, so why not give you this? We think you deserve some fun, right?" Mother nodded happily.

I stared at them for a moment then smiled. "Wow… Thank you so much, Mommy, Dad. But… How did you know about Bakugan?" I asked.

Both of them grinned. "We were roaming around the park a few weeks and tried to get as much information as we could about the game from the local kids." Father explained, adjusting his glasses.

"And then this boy came out of nowhere!" Mother said. I blinked . Nowhere? "He taught us everything there is to know about Bagukan! Of course, with our memories we couldn't remember all the details, just the short of it."

"That boy was really polite, wasn't he?" Father commented and Mother nodded. "Odd thing was, in a flash he was gone!"

"Who was he?" I asked mildly curious.

Mother pursed her lips. "Gosh, let's see… Honey, what was it? I barely remember him mentioning it."

Father brought his hand to his chin. "Hmm… I remember him saying his last name Kazami-"

"Shun Kazami!" I questioned in shock. He's the number one Bakugan player in the world! He was at the park? He talked to my parents? My mind shouted in shock.

Father snapped his fingers. "That's it! He seemed like a nice boy."

"A little spacious, though." Mother murmured.

I cleared my throat, keeping my composer. Oh my god! Father smiled at me. "Tomo, how about you get set up and go out for some fun."

I jumped slightly. "Oh… Y-Yeah! Okay!" I jumped up and ran over to them, hugging both of them. "Thank you, so much. I love you!"

"Love you too, sweet heart." Mother replied.

"Make sure to be careful, all right?" Father said as I ran for the stairs.

I hurried into my room and kicked the door closed behind me. "I have Bakugan!" I silently squealed in delight as I hurriedly threw my clothes off. "I have to get out and battle. I have to begin my ranking!" I rummaged through my closet, clothes flying everywhere. "I have to do it looking good, make an icon of myself…" I finally fished out my dark cosplay outfit of the Vocaloid Ruko. She wasn't the most popular one, at least not yet. Casting aside the headphones, I suited myself up and hooked on the Bakuclip with the Bakucard holster on my belt. "All right…" I double checked everything and ran to my mirror. I quickly fluffed up my shoulder length black hair then bolted back out the door.

My parents could hear my boots thudding against the wood as I ran down the hall and leaped down the stairs. "Um, Tomo-?" My mother was cut off by a slam of the door. They both stared from the kitchen towards the open hall.

"… I've never seen her move so fast before." Father commented and mother nodded.

"Excuse me! Look out!" I shouted as I peddled furiously down the sidewalk past people. So I'm a Darkus user. I have Falconeer, Monarus, and Griffon. I'm sure to have cards that'll help me out, but- "But I didn't organize anything!" I shouted in dismay.

"Hey, look out!" I blinked and suddenly noticed the fast approaching rail. I shouted and immediately put on the breaks, but a little too late. Oh dear. I yelled as I flew off my bike, over the bushes and landed hard on the ground. After that I continued rolling down the hill, grunting and yelping every time I hit the ground.

"Wa- Oof!" Finally I landed in the bushes. "Uuuuuughh… Why…?" I murmured and spat out some leaves.

Footsteps rapidly approached. "Hey, are you okay?" A boy asked frantic.

I barely registered that the question was directed at me. "Deck!" I shouted as I shot my head up out of the shrub.

"Whoa, Ruko Yokune!" I blinked and turned to the voice next to me.

"Wha- Daniel Kuso?"I questioned at the boy dressed in red.

He blinked his light brown eyes back at me and smiled. "Oh, Tomoyo Kasane!" He laughed and unexpectedly helped me up. "I thought it was odd finding a fictional character here. Hey, you okay? That was a big hill." He said.

I stared for a moment. Daniel Kuso's one of the guys who created the rules for Bakugan. I gasped slightly and tried inconspicuously to hide my Bakuclip. "Oh, h-hello, Kuso." I greeted meekly. Keep composure.

"Hey, it's great to see you! You know you can just call me Dan, right?" He smiled and I nodded in return. He's ranked- what was it, 121? He hasn't lost a battle yet. I can't battle him! "So you late for a Convention, or what?" He asked, gesturing at my outfit.

"Uh, something like that, yeah." I replied. Wait, why's he all chatty? We never talk in class… Okay, well, not never I suppose.

"Hey, listen, I know we rarely talk, but you're smart right?" He asked and I nodded. "Great! So do you mind helping me today with that list of problems the teacher gave us?" He asked.

I blinked. Today? Right now? "Oh, well, you see I'm late for the Convention and-"

"Hey, don't worry! Not right now, of course." He said smiling. "Just later today over the computer. You know the Bakugan chat room right?" He asked and I gulped slightly.

"Well, uh-"

"Oh, you don't do Bakugan, do you." He said and deflated. Well… Not really? "Well, hey, you can just create one! It's not that hard. My friend Alice doesn't play Bakugan either, but she has one as well. So whaddya say, huh?" He asked hopeful.

I stared at him for a moment then smiled. "Sure, I can help."

He grinned. "Awesome! Well, I have to get going now. Good luck doing whatever it is you do at your Convention!" He shouted as he ran away.

I smiled and waved goodbye. I then sighed and looked down at my Bakuclip. "Well, that was close." I then hurriedly took out all my cards and organized them. "All right… Field Card, one gold, silver and copper card and one blue, green and red card… Okay!" I hooked the card holder back on and ran in the opposite direction.

I panted slightly as I came by an open area. There were a few kids there. I took a deep breath and calmly walked over to a bench shaded by a tree. I don't want to just bug people about it. There might not be any Bakugan players here. I'll just wait until-

"Hey." Just as I sat down I looked up to see a guy dressed in a black suit that was unbuttoned in a casual, party way. He stared down at me lazily with his golden eyes. "What's with the get-up." He asked in a statement.

I stared up at him for a moment. I just got here… I recognize him… "Just an outfit." I replied at ease. Is he in the ranking? He looks around my age…

"Dark pick in attire." He commented.

I shrugged slightly. "Not really sunny yourself." I replied.

"Indeed…" I noticed him eye my Bakuclip. So he is a Brawler. What rank is he? "What's your name?" He asked.

You're not going to know who I am. "Tomoyo Kasane." I replied. "And you are?"

"Tsubasa Fujiyoka." He replied. My eyes widened slightly. He's ranked 389. "I don't recognize you." He smirked and opened up his jacked, revealing three Haos Bakugan strapped inside. "Wanna make a name for yourself in the world of battling?" He questioned.

I stared at the Bakugan for a moment. I feel sick. Keep your composure, you're fine. I must battle. I've studied Bakugan ever since they first fell from the sky! Win or lose I have to try this out. I stood up and slipped the Field Card out of the holder. Be cool. Act like you know what you're doing. "Let's do this."

He smirked and pulled his out of his pocket. Together we shouted, "Field, open!" I kept my eyes locked with his, but I noticed the bright light coming from beneath us. The symbols of all the elements of Bakugan rotated around us on the ground as time slowly stopped.

Suddenly we were in the gray battling dimension. I glanced around and saw swirls of the Bakugan elements on the black walls. "First time?" He questioned smirking.

I looked back at him and reach for another card. "You'll find out."

He pulled out his card and together we shouted, "Field Card, set!" We jumped back at threw our cards at each other. Mine glowing purple by him and his glowing white by me. He held his hand out towards me. "Ladies first."

"Such a gentlemen." All right, I put down a Falconeer card. I don't have Ventus, but neither does he. I clicked out my Darkus Falconeer. "Bakugan, brawl!" I shouted and threw the ball over his card onto mine. "Bakugan, stand!" The ball opened up and glowed a bright purple. A form shot up in the air and the light dispersed, showing a black and purple Faloneer. It opened its mouth and screeched at Tsubasa. The Bakupod. I looked at the purple watch thing and opened it up.

"Welcome, Tomo." A female robotic voice greeted. So it already knows me. "Players Darkus Falconeer power level 340 G's." I nodded to myself.

"Bakugan, brawl." Tsubasa took out one of his Bakugan and tossed it out onto my card with Falconeer. "Bakugan, stand." His Bakugan folded out, shined a bright white and transformed into a large praying mantis. It reared back and hissed at my Falconeer, clawing at it.

My Bakupod beeped, catching my attention. The Mantis' card appeared on the screen next to Falconeers. "Opponent Haos Mantris. Power lever 270 G's. No other data available." I frowned slightly. Well, at least my Falconeer is 70 G's more powerful. I can do this.

I reached out towards Falconeer. "Defeat his Mantris!" I commanded. The Falconeer screeched and dove down, knocking it to the side. The Mantris roared and slashed at it, but Falconeer zoomed out of the way and bashed into it again.

Tsubasa smirked. He then slipped a card out of his pocket. "Ability Card, activate. Dusty Sparkle." The card glowed and so did Mantris.

The Bakupod beeped and I glanced at it. A plus 80 appeared next to the Mantris card. "Mantris power level increase to 350 G's."

My eyes widened back to Falconeer. Now he's 10 points stronger. Falconeer dove again and Mantris knocked him away. I gritted my teeth. "Gate Card, open!" I commanded. The card the two Bakugan were standing on shone and appeared. It was a silver rimmed card showing a picture of a Falconeer.

My Bakupod beeped again and I watched at the numbers raised. "Opponent Mantris power level increased to 430 G's. Player Falconeer power level increase to 420 G's. Power boost to 500 G's."

I smiled, containing my relief. "Falconeer, finish Mantris!" I commanded. Falconeer flew in the air and roared. He dove down again and crashed into Mantris, forcing it off the card. Tsubasa was still smirking when his Bakugan turn back into a ball and returned to his hand. My Bakugan turned back into a ball as well and along with my card flew back to me.

"For a stranger you seem pretty good." He commented and pulled out his next Bakugan.

I kept myself composed, no longer smiling. "I do my share of studying." He seems calm. Really calm. He's been doing this longer than I have, he must have a trick up his sleeve. I clicked out my Monarus. "Bakugan, brawl!" I shouted and threw it out to his gate card. "Bakugan, stand!" The ball folded out and transformed into the large purple and black butterfly, giving out a melodic cry.

Tsubasa looked impressed. "A Monarus, huh? Those are pretty rare." He smirked and threw his Bakugan. "Bakugan, brawl. Bakugan, stand." The ball folded out and transformed into a large, golden and white, crab like Bakugan.

My Bakupod beeped again. "Player Darkus Monarus at 360 G's. Opponents Haos Terrorclaw at 370 G's."

Tsubasa reached out for the card. "Gate Card, open." The card glowed a bright white and revealed a Tigrerra on the face of it. I quickly looked back at my Bakupod to see a 100 appear next to the Terrorclaw.

"Terrorclaw power boost to 470 G's." I gulped. Great, this isn't good. Monarus flew around, but Terrorclaw snatched her in its claw. She cried out as she struggled and Terrorclaw roared in return.

"How can Monarus win when she's weaker?" My eyes widened. Wait, her points are lower! So I can use this! I swiftly pulled out a card. "Ability card, activate!" I turned it around to reveal a silhouette of a dragon on the face. "The Shadow! Now Monarus gets a 120 power boost!" The number appeared next to Monarus and raised her power level to 480 G's.

Monarus cried out and wrenched free of Terrorclaws grasp. She twirled in the air and flew down at the Terrorclaw. Tsubasa smiled and pulled out a card. I narrowed my eyes as he didn't play it. If he doesn't do it now then Monarus will defeat his Terrorclaw! Monarus flipped down and then back flipped, kicking Terrorclaw back and defeating it. Monarus gave a victory cry before turning back into a ball just as Terrorclaw did and returned to us. I caught her and gave Tsubasa an odd look. For a fairly high ranking, why is he letting himself get beat by a rookie?

Tsubasa smiled and threw the card out. "Gate card, set." My eyes widened. It was a gate card? Why isn't he really battling?

I frowned at him and clicked out my Griffon. "It's hardly fair." I said.

He tilted his head. "What do you mean? You're not cheating are you?" He smirked and took out his last Bakugan.

I kept my stare even. "More like you're cheating for me." I murmured. "Why aren't you truly battling?"

He bounced the Bakugan in his hand. "I was taught to always go easy on a girl."

I gave a slight sigh. Not that I'm complaining, but it's hardly fair for him. I threw my Bakugan at the card. "Bakugan, brawl! Bakugan, stand!" My Bakugan unfolded and transformed into the Darkus Griffon.

He smiled. "Bakugan, brawl." He threw his Bakugan at mine. "Bakugan, stand." His Bakugan unfolded and turned into a Haos Sauraus. Both Bakugan roared at each other. My mouth twitched into a smile slightly. I really should be thankful. Though it's not fair, I'm still having an exhilarating battle and I'm about to win my first one! I looked down at my Bakupod.

"Players Darkus Griffon at 360 G's. Opponents Haos Sauraus at 360 G's." I nodded. Even match. I reached out to the gate card. "Gate Card, o- uh…?" I blinked and glanced over at the Pyrus vortex to my far right. Did that…? I could've sworn it expanded..

"Having troubles?" Tsubasa smiled.

I quickly turned back to the battle. "Gate card, open!" The card shown and revealed a Haos creature. I know this- Stand Off. No! We can't play any ability cards!

My Bakupod beeped. "Haos Sauraus power boost to 440 G's. Darkus Griffon power boost to 420 G's."

I frowned. And I can't do anything about the points. "Griffon, take his Saurus down!" I commanded.

Griffon roared and leaped at Sauraus. He Sauraus roared back and charged forward. They locked, and the space around us started pulsating. Both Tsubasa and I looked around confused. What's going on? I've never heard of this happening during battles. I turned around and everything transformed into another space. All around me were the colors of Ventus. "Is this… Normal?" I murmured. Tsubasa, Sauraus and Griffon all disappeared along with the battling space. Suddenly a large creature flew over head. I blocked my face from the wind blast and stared up wide eyed. "What is that?" I shouted.

It was a large Ventus Bakugan I was sure, but didn't know what kind. It was a large bird with numerous tails. It turned around and opened its beak. "Skyroar, hurry! The spaces are tearing down!" I gasped. Did... It just talk?

"Fly, Skyress!" I spun around to see a Bakugan very similar to the other, but with more feathers on the head. "Fly! I'll help the others!"

Suddenly a tear appeared in the empty space next to the male sounding one and a Darkus Bakugan, a Centipoid, leaped out and wrapped itself around the Skyroar. "Skyroar!" Skyress screamed and quickly flew back to him.

"Agh- no!" As Skyroar struggled he backed away from Skyress. "Skyress, you must get out of here! Fly!" With that he and Centipoid tumbled back through the tear in the space.

"Wha-ahh!" As the tear was closing up I was sucked in after them. Quickly I fell out into Darkus space. I screamed as I flipped around in the air, but slowly came to a still drift. I covered my mouth. "I think I'm going to be sick…"

"Centipoid, release me!" I turned around to see Skyroar and Centpoid still struggling. "Centipoid, regain your senses! Calm yourself! The dark energy is clouding your mind!" Centipoid screeched and bit Skyroar, causing him to cry out, and tightened around him. "Agh…! Centipoid…!" He roared out and both shone brightly.

I blinked and I was back at the battle field. Griffon and Sauraus were still struggling. Tsubasa seemed as confused as I was. "Wh-what happened?" He asked startled.

"I-I don't know…" Suddenly our cards flew out of our pockets on their own. I stumbled back as my card glowed brightly. "M-my ability card!" I yelped. The light died away and transformed the face into a Darkus Bakugan card. "That Bakugan… It's that Vetus one!" The Skyroar now looked like a Darkus type.

From both of our cards, spheres came out and were thrown out to the gate card. They stood and Griffon and Sauraus disappeared. My Bakugan transformed into the Darkus Skyroar and his into a Haos Dragonoid that stood on its hind legs and had its own pair of actual arms with golden horns.

Both of them roared. "Wh-whats going on?" Tsubasa gasped at his Dragonoid as I stared wide eyed. The Dragonoid looked up at the Skyroar. "What- Skyroar! What happened to you?" He shouted.

Th-they're talking! Skyroar was screeching and roaring, thrashing his head around. "I-I can' contain it! Th-the dark power…! Overpowering…!" He roared and the Dagonoid backed up.

"Skyroar, breath! Calm down!" He shouted.

Skyroar thrashed around. "Too much access energy…! Leonidas, forgive me!" He streached out his wings as dark air swirled around him. "Shooting Wind!" The black and purple wind turned to blades as they sliced through the air and crashed into Leonidas. The Dagonoid cried out and the battling space disappeared. Time started back up again and Tsubasa and I were in the park, standing and staring at each other wide eyed.

We blinked at each other and looked down, seeing the Haos and Darkus Bakugan balls. We picked them up and looked back at each other. "I have to go." We then both bolted in opposite directions.

I panted as I leaned my bike on the side of the house and hurried inside. My parents looked over from the couch and smiled. "Well, you're home early." Mother commented. "I'd expect you to be out later."

"Yes, well, there's a test next week and I have to study." I replied and hurried upstairs.

"Dinner will be ready in an hour!" Father called up and I quickly shut myself in my room. I dropped my Bakugan equipment on my study desk and sat in my chair by my computer. I stared at the wall for a moment then pulled out the Bakugan from my pocket.

"You…" I stared at it closely. "… Skyroar, right?" There was no reponse. I'm more then positive you spoke… But then again, Bakugan have never spoken before. I set it on the desk and opened the drawer, taking out my Bakugan information booklet. I opened it to a new page and wrote inside:

'Personal Bakugan Battle Information: All data appears accurate aside from vision of another dimension. Bakugan began speaking. One of the talking Bakugan I have required: Skyroar; sounds male; Originally was Ventus, but morphed into Darkus. Analyses suggests due to a Darkus Centipoid, as to how is unknown. Second talking Bakugan is currently in the hands of Tsubasa Fujioka; Type: Haos Dragonoid. Named Leonidas. Appears more like a humanoid dragon.' I paused. What else… 'Further information yet to come. I suspect Bakugan to be more than a game…'

I quickly hid the booklet back in the drawer and pulled out a magnifying glass. I studied the Bakugan closer with it. "So strange… I know you spoke, but…" I tapped it. "Hello? Skyroar?" No response. I sighed and sat back. "Well… At least it was an invigorating battle." I murmured and smiled. "It was better than I imagined… But I'm sure that episode at the end won't happen again… Oh!" I quickly leaned forward and turned on the computer. "Kuso wanted me to help with the homework."

It was easy to create a profile. I put down as much information as I could, after all I'm a battler now. I logged onto the chat site and searched for Daniels name. "Let's see… Ah! Oh, he's chatting with other people… There's Runo Misaki as well! But… She's not ranked, is she? There's also a… Marucho Marukura, Julie Makimoto and Alice Gehabich." I frowned. "Perhaps they're helping him with the homework… Well, I might as well be polite and just check." I clicked on their room and five screens pulled up, each with a person. Runo, a silver haired dark girl, a small blonde boy, and an orange haired girl blinked at me.

"Hey, who's that?" The dark girl in pink asked.

I smiled. "Good evening, I really didn't mean to barge in."

Dan grinned. "Hey, Tomoyo! Glade to see you showed up!"

I gave a wave. "Yeah. I'm Tomoyo Kasane." I greeted. "I, uh, Kuso asked me to help with homework." I explained.

The others smiled. "I remember you!" Runo smiled. "Hey, what's with the Vocaloid get up? Which one are you? Haru?"

I smiled and loosened up a little. "No, actually, Ruko."

Realization hit her. "Oh! Well, I knew that."

The other boy smiled. "Pleasure to meet your acquaintance, Tomoyo! My name is Marucho."

I nodded. "Likewise."

"My name is Alice." The orange haired girl said in a soft voice.

"Hi, Tomoyo! I'm Julie!" The silver haired girl greeted enthusiastically. "So why are you all dressed up?" She asked.

I froze. "Uhh…" If I'm honest they may want to battle! For fun of course, but I don't want to battle experienced people!

"I think she said something about a Convention. Right?" Dan smiled.

I hastily nodded. "Yes! That's right!"

"Ooooh. Well was it fun? What'd you do there?" Julie asked, leaning into the screen. I unconsciously leaned back, nervous.

"Hey! My news, remember?" Dan interrupted impatiently.

Runo pouted. "Chill out, Dan. The whole world doesn't revolve around you, remember?" She said annoyed.

"Yeah, yeah, but get this!" All our attention was on Dan. "I was out and ran into that Shuji guy again and battled, and I think I heard my Bakugan talk!"

We all blinked at him surprised. "No way, you too?" I asked along with Runo.

Dan blinked. "What? Whaddya mean?" He asked. "Tomoyo? Whaddya mean 'you too'? Do you have a Bakugan, too? Is yours talking?" He asked completely confused.

I looked to the side. Way to compose yourself. "Well, you see…"

"You should log on to the Bakugan chat site!" Julie said. "It's what everyone's talking about." She then had the site pull up on my screen. I stared surprised as hundred of voices blared at me. All of them talking about the communicating Bakugan.

I calmly took out my booklet and pen. 'Talking Bakugan Confirmed.'