Hello I am back after a long Christmas break, and I have a lot of new ideas. I will be updating some of my stories soon, so don't worry.
Garland sat on the bench, watching as the first match of the BEGA world tour got under way. They were in Russia, and as expected, the Blitzkrieg Boys has wasted no time in challenging them to a four on four match. Brooklyn was still in hospital after the incident in Gotham, so the match was even, with all of the bladers having a match. Bryan stood by the dish, a huge black surface covered in tunnels and ramps. His opponent was nowhere to be seen. Suddenly, a yell of excitement was heard, and all eyes were drawn to the open roof of the stadium. Mystel was falling from the top of it, grinning as he approached the floor. He remained rigid all the way, before spreading his legs, and landing gently on his feet. He looked up into Bryan's glaring face, and laughed.
"Good to see you. I'm really looking forward to our battle." Then Mystel did something Garland was not expecting. He stuck his hand out to the Russian opposite, smiling at the stormy face of the Falcon. Garland winced. Bryan still blamed the BEGA team for the damage Boris had done, and was not in a mood to play nicely. After a minute, Mystel lowered his hand, and shrugged.
"Oh well." He drew his launcher, and faced off against Bryan, his legs loose, and his head bowed. Bryan smirked. Garland realised he had seen Mystel's chirpiness and youth as inexperience. This was a mistake Garland had made, and would never make again.
One Year Ago...
Garland stood in the dining room of his family manor, staring out of the window. It had been two days since Mr Balkov had called him, and had put forward his proposition. Now, he was meant to be coming here with one of the bladers he had recruited to prove how effective BEGA could be.
And he was late.
3 minutes had passed beyond the point where he had expected his visitor. Then he saw a large black limousine pull up on the drive by the front gate. He watched as two figures climbed out, and walked up the gravel driveway towards the huge mansion. One was the size of normal man, while the other looked like a child. They arrived at the front door, and he heard the old bell ring through the house. He watched as the door was opened, and the two figures entered. He began to walk towards the door as he heard the butler guiding the two people towards the drawing room. He stopped outside the door to the room, and adjusted the tie on the formal suit he was wearing. He didn't want anyone to think he was some child acting as a man. He stepped through the door, and froze. A boy in white was sitting on the back of one of the large, black, leather sofas that were the main piece of furniture in the room with a huge grin on his face, for no apparent reason. Garland glanced at the butler, who looked uncharacteristically shocked. Mr Balkov was standing in the corner of the room, watching with an amused smile on his face. Seeing Garland, he marched over, extending his hand in greeting. Garland accepted it, as Mr Balkov started to speak.
"Mr Siebold, so good to see you again. I would like to introduce you to Mystel." At the sound of his name, the boy jumped off of the sofa, flipped in the air, and landed directly in front of Garland, the huge smile still plastered across his face. It was almost infectious. Garland felt like he wanted to smile, despite the seriousness of the situation. It was only now that he was near to the boy that Garland realised that the boy was wearing some sort of jewelled mask, which was promptly removed and tucked inside the voluminous kimono that the boy was wearing. The boy stuck out his hand. Garland reached down, and accepted the handshake, and resisted the temptation to ask how old the boy was. Instead he motioned for them all to sit down, and nodded to the butler, giving him permission to leave. Mr Balkov sat down on a sofa, and "Mystel" bounced down next to him. Garland lowered himself onto an armchair opposite the two, and looked Mr Balkov straight in the eye.
"I have considered your offer, and am tempted by it. However, I must ask, is "Mystel" one of your bladers, and if so, how is he meant to persuade me to join you?" Mr Balkov smiled, and nodded.
"I admit, Mystel might not look like much, but he is one of the most powerful bladers I have met."
Garland looked doubtfully at the boy, who was now gazing around the room in boredom, as though he did not care at all about the meeting. Garland took a deep breath, and cleared his throat to get the boy's attention.
"May I see your blade, if you are a blader?" The boy looked at him for a second, glanced at Mr Balkov, and then reached into his kimono and withdrew a turquoise blade, with a large bit-beast in the centre of it. Garland accepted the blade, and examined it. The blade was low and well balanced, but it was the bit-beast that intrigued him. It was a large reptilian looking thing, with a large red crest. A long tail snaked behind it, and all of the beast seemed to suggest power, with incredible poise and control. Garland realised why the boy appeared to be powerful. He had a strong bit-beast, and had not been tested against proper opponents, so seemed powerful to someone who was inexperienced in blading, like Mr Balkov clearly was. It took maturity to use a bit-beast properly, and that was something this undisciplined boy clearly lacked. He felt a sense of regret. This was not a proper professional league. It was just a game, and attempt to gain some of the success the BBA had made, by using powerful bladers who did not have proper skill. He handed the blade back, and as he did, he felt Apollon move slightly inside his pocket, as if it sensed a challenger.
"I'm sorry Mr Balkov, but you are not what I had thought. I respectfully turn down your offer. But thank you for taking the trouble to come out here, and thank you for the chance." Mr Balkov frowned, but rose to leave. Suddenly, the boy spoke.
"Before we go, how about a battle? I know you have a blade, and I want to face someone new."
Garland looked at the young face, and decided to teach this rookie about real blading.
Now...
Garland remembered how he had accepted Mystel's challenge, and how the boy had used incredibly acrobatic moves to knock Apollon out of the ring without even using his Bit-beast He remembered how he had gone back on his decision, and joined BEGA. Then he was pulled out of his musings by a loud shout from DJ Jazzman.
"3, 2, 1, LET IT RIP!" He watched as Mystel jumped into the air, and launched Poseidon. Falborg leapt from Bryan's launcher to meet it's opponent in the middle of the dish. After one clash, Falborg retreated to circle the edge, while Poseidon remained in the middle. Bryan smiled even more. He had identified Poseidon as an attack bey , and like many opponents saw this avoidance of combat as another sign of weakness. He did not know what Garland knew. Mystel was building up a huge spin-rate before he attacked, intending to deny Bryan a chance to use any special moves. He called out across dish, attempting to draw Mystel into reacting.
"Do you just stay there, or do you actually fight when you blade?" Mystel took a deep breath, and Poseidon trembled. Bryan saw his chance, sprinted through one of the tunnels, and slammed into Mystel, before retreating back into the maze of tunnels and ramps that made up the dish. Mystel remained silent, his eyes shut, waiting for the critical point where he could begin his attack. Bryan attacked again, and this time stayed there, grinding into Mystel, pushing him towards one of the black tunnel's walls. Garland tuned out Jazzman's commentary, and focused on the match, willing Mystel to make his move. Suddenly Mystel looked up, his mask reflecting the blue light that had begun to shine from his blade.
"POSEIDON, GO!" The huge sea god leapt from the blade, spiralling towards the sky as its blade jumped over the tunnel, and accelerated towards one of the largest ramps. The move took Bryan by surprise, and it was a few seconds before Falborg joined Poseidon in the sky above the match. But this was enough. Poseidon shot off of one of the ramps, and shot up. Falborg began to follow, and had reached the top of the ramp, when Poseidon reappeared.
"POSEIDON, AQUATIC LANCE!" Mystel's new move, which he had first used in defence of his life against Brooklyn, began to form. Poseidon copied his master in perfect unison, as Mystel flipped into the air, then landed, one fist touching the ground. A bolt of white water formed around Poseidon's snout, as it smashed into Falborg, and just as Bryan's blade left the ramp, Poseidon collided into it, crushing it into the ground. Mystel straightened up, as he smiled at Bryan. He caught Poseidon, then strode around the ring, and extended his hand, removing the mask as he did. His face was exactly the same as Garland remembered from that visit a year ago, and he smiled as Bryan grudgingly accepted the handshake, before doing something Garland had never seen. He ruffled Mystel's hair, before turning around towards his own team. Garland was certain he saw a smile flit across the Russian's lips, before Bryan was walking away towards his seat. Garland smirked. Mystel did that to everyone.
And there it is everyone. Next one will be focusing on Ming Ming, when she forces Garland to foot her shopping bill, and he makes the mistake of wondering what she actually spends it on...