Narcissistic Cannibal
WARNING. The characters in this fanfic have their original names, given by Takao Aoki himself. So, Tala is Yuriy, Boris is Bryan, Sergei is Spencer, Ivan is Ian, Balkov is Boris, Souchirou is Voltaire, Takao is Tyson, Mr. Daitenji is Mr. Dickenson and the team Borg are the Demolition Boys.
To come to a point where I can barely look at myself and be proud of what I do... I can no longer live with this frustration crushing me from the inside, making me hate every bit of flesh in my body. This is my turning point.
Some might say I have unresolved issues with myself and the world that surrounds me due to my past. I had a tough childhood, but never I let it take over my head. Some small fragments of memory may float through my thoughts from time to time. Memories of when I could find happiness, or at least what I think happiness is... When mother would arrive home with fresh-baked bread, still warm, and would cut a slice for me. And I would sit there in the kitchen watching her put away the groceries and clean the floor. No matter how poor we were, she was always put together and smelled so sweetly and her hair was so clean and shiny. And Father was a hero, fighting in the war, so brave and strong. I looked up to him. He was the kind of man I wished to be when I grew up.
But those are gone. They never lasted time enough for me to properly enjoy them anyway. Father drank, Mother left and I stayed. Became a slave to that alcoholic demon, who would so happen to be hungry and out of vodka whenever the stores were closed. Still have the scars, expect they don't mean anything anymore. Even though I eventually ran away, sometimes I wish I never did. Dying in the snow would've been easier.
Meeting Boris in the streets made me realize I wasn't alone. Never picked up the details about his life, but we were in similar situations. We were always a good team together, coming up with schemes to rob tourists and bakeries. Eventually more kids joined us and I don't know when, I became their leader. It was never a conscious decision but I guess it was in me. But the more the group grew, the more problems we got. Soon after, the police got me and Boris stealing meat from a butcher. We were foolish hungry kids, but they were prepared to trial us like adults. Russia's winter is a deadly one. Being held captive was actually a blessing.
After a couple nights in prison, a man took pity on us both and bailed us out. On one condition: we would stay under his care, doing what it was asked, in Balkov's abbey. I've heard about that place before. Lots of kids in the street talked about it, some in fear, some in admiration. Either ways, I had nowhere else to go, so how could I say no? Arriving there, we meet Balkov again and hear his inspiring words. We, lost children, with nothing to fight for, are motivated to become someone in life through a sport: Beyblade. Balkov claims he will do anything he can to turn us into better human beings. I never knew the "anything" meant severe work-out schedules, violent punishments and inhuman experiments, but when I realized it, it was too late to back off.
Like in the streets, my leadership qualities and rational thinking were notorious and soon I was among the best players and so was Boris. Soon we were called by Balkov himself, to be praised. "These are our greatest beybladers. Let them be an example for you", he said. Even though I was young and wanted to burst out in joy, for finally doing something good in my life, emotions were something we weren't allow to show. It would weaken us, he claimed. We were young, but not children anymore. Our childhood was dead. We were soldiers.
There was one person who this would not apply... The grandson of our actual boss, Souichiro Hiwatari, from Hiwatari Enterprise. Kai Hiwatari. This kid was born with a silver spoon on his mouth, a spoiled brat whose grandfather had to lock him up with us to man up. I was ready to tear him down, until I saw his power. His attitude may be annoying, but he had good beyblading technique. Balkov was thrilled. If he could turn Kai into the best soldier than abbey ever had, he would be a rich man.
Seeing this would be a great opportunity for myself as well, I stepped in and would help this boy as much as I could. His arrogance and snob attitude was intolerable. Soon he began to show less and less to the training room. Balkov would often catch him walking around the halls, looking for secret passages and rooms. He only warned him. Kai was never punished for his actions. The poor 'princess' couldn't bare what we, regular children, have been put through. Tch..
After a while, Kai disappeared. Balkov told us he was sent far away for his behaviour. Word was that he found the room where Black Dranzer was held and tried to control his power. I laughed loudly when I heard of this. He was here for a few months and thought he could manage a beast which none of us, experienced ones, never even dare to try. I was glad he was sent away. Even though he had promising power, his way of acting got the best of him.
Years passed and a team was formed by the best of the best. We (Boris, Sergei, Ivan and me) were Borg, the national representative team and I was its leader. The pride in me grew. I was at the highest point in my life. I knew if mother was watching me, she would've said "that's my son." with tears in her eyes. And at some point, I even wished I could spot her in the stadium, watching and waving at me, with joy. Foolish thoughts. Impossible ones. There was no need for me to held to those feelings, that wasn't my life anymore. Borg was my life now. There was one person I truly wished that he would see me. Kai. So he could see what a real beyblade team looks like. So that he could see what he was loosing.
And Russia cheered for us. We were national heroes.
There was a team that echoed in the rest of the world, though. The japanese team, who I soon heard Kai was part of it. They were beating every tournament, from Asia to America. And they were coming to the European one, held by Balkov and Hiwatari Enterprise themselves. We were predicted to win. And I Kai knew that too, because after that, he came to us. Poor Kai wanted to win so bad, he just wanted to be among the best. If he himself was the best, we wouldn't need to be surrounded by the best to have confidence in himself. His self-esteem was probably broken to pieces. Eventually, Balkov allowed him in, but what followed was way beyond my imagination.
He was given Black Dranzer and was now the new Borg leader. I was declared as "the second best". Years being held captive, locked in dark rooms, long days of workout, injected with things unknown to us, put inside tubes, having our lives being put at risk everyday. For nothing. He was untouchable, like royalty. The only time I let my emotions get the best of me, I was corrected by Balkov exactly the moment after. None of us had any choice. We were force to accept this.
After he had his fun and went back to his team, we were all put up to tests and were physically and mentally enhanced for the battles that were up. Most of our emotions were paralysed. Only hate and violence ruled our minds. As for the matches, Boris lost but sent his opponent to the hospital and Sergei avenged us by defeating Kai. As for me, I unleashed all my power but was defeated still. A true man can recognize a victorious opponent. I gave my best and failed, but I did not feel bad about it.
Shook Takao's hand. Hiwatari and Balkov were uncovered and sent to jail. No more abbey torture. No more experiments. We were finally free. And yet, a sense of loss was gained. We had no place to go.
Mr. Daitenji took care of us for a while. Gave us a place to stay and food to eat. After Balkov's trial, he requested him to pay us and other kids in the abbey enough to get our lives put together. Most of them were sent to orphanages. Me and the rest of the team stayed in the place Mr. Daitenji gave us, paying the bills with the scholarship he gave us due to our beyblading talents. Life wasn't so tough anymore and, since a long time, I could set back and relax. But somehow I couldn't. There was something inside me that wouldn't allow me to. As if something was haunting me.
To keep my mind busy, me and the guys kept a training schedule, to keep up with the expectations people had for us. And when Russia's national tournament arrived again, we were champions once more. There was no need for international representation that year, but we were still proud of the job we did by ourselves. This is what we were raise to do anyway.
A year as passed and the tournament was held again. The rules were different this time. We were to form a team of four but only 2 of us was needed to compete. We decided that, whoever won, would call the others back for the team. We were like family after all. But then he came...
Without a warning, after a year not laying eyes on him, there he was. Kai Hiwatari. Taking advantage of his half russian blood to enter the competition. His presence made Ivan get kicked out of the team. Once again, everything served with a silver spoon. But this time it was different. He was determined. And this time, he was the one who came to me for help. "I want to beat Takao and you're the strongest I know.", he said. A compliment is always flattering. But maybe I should have paid more attention. Little did I know I was being used.
His presence by itself made me more nervous than I thought it would. Nervous with rage, at times. His cockiness and arrogance were still present. We were suppose to be equal and yet he treated me as if he was far more superior. And that reflected in the way we fought. Being around him made my blood boil. Knowing he was watching every move I made would only make it worse. As much as I tried to distance myself from these feelings, it would still find its way to affect me. It was probably the 1st time I lost so many times in a row. I have to admit, if it wasn't for him, we might have got eliminated right from the beginning... But it was thanks to him that we were in that position in the first place.
After the finals, I tied with Takao's partner, Daichi, and Kai got defeated by Takao. Everyone celebrated but soon we found out an old enemy was back. Balkov. He was back and wanted to take over beyblade again. This time with a different team, made by "the world's best beybladers". Such an idiotic man. I pitied those kids, in a way. But this time, it was their own fault for putting up with him. But then I saw he was after Kai... I got sick to my stomach. Once again, Kai was the favourite. He didn't have to endure half of what I did, and yet everybody loved and wanted him by their side. This time, though, I channeled my rage and frustration to punish the man himself. Everything was his fault after all. Boris and Sergei were of the same opinion. We gathered and headed for his headquarters in Japan. Takao and his team tried to talk us out of this, but we had our minds set.
As soon as we got there, a wall of bodyguards surrounded us. We fought our way through, but they were too many. But Balkov got cocky and invited us to test our skills. Proud as we are, we accepted. We wanted to rub on the man's face how we could be stronger without his drugs. We defeated his first team. Amateurs. But what came after was out of anyone's grasp. He sent a guy from his main team to get us three at the same time. His power was so intense... Last thing I saw was a white light.
For brief moments I woke up, in a hospital. My body was numb. Tubes all over me, to help me breathe. Mr. Daitenji was sit next to me. The TV was on. Kai was part of BEGA, Balkov's new main team. What a cynical bitch... I closed my eyes and passed out again. Everything I do. Everything I say. All in vain. He had such potential and let it all to waste due to his ambition of becoming superior to everyone else. Come to think of it, he was exactly like Balkov. Sometimes I hate the life I made. Everything is wrong every time. Everything that comes my way is haunting me, taking its sweet time...
At some point, I don't remember when, I felt this crushing feeling inside me. But this time, it wasn't anger nor frustration anymore. It was sadness. Pure sadness. I felt my cheeks getting wet. Somehow all those raging feelings I had about Kai vanished. I couldn't feel his presence anymore. His spirit was gone. Soon after that I woke up.
I was alone in my room. Turned the TV on, Takao was fighting against a guy named Brooklyn, from BEGA and the stadium was being smashed to pieces. There was no word on Kai. I turned it off. Got dressed and, as I was about to sneak out, Mr. Daitenji appeared. He just smiled. He knew what I was gonna do and nodded in approval. "I'll take you there by car", he said with a calm voice. As much as I try to deny it, Kai is someone who had a bold role in my life. I may have wished him bad things, but I never wished him death. That was a wish I reserved for myself only... Got inside the car and Mr. Daitenji drove to the stadium where the battle was being held. I had to see if he was alive and well. I know that, even though he brung me down multiple times, we were partners and he would have done the same for me. I wouldn't be surprised if I found out he came to visit while I was in the hospital.
Arriving the place, there was no stadium anymore. Everything was a mess, but everyone was gathered around in circle to see the match that was still being held. It looked like a street match. Beyblade was back to its old glory. Balkov was finished. And then, on top of a column made of wreckage, there he was, watching the match as well. Even now, he has to stand up higher than anyone else. But his expression is different. He is now at peace with himself and smiles to me. I smile back at him and we both keep watching the match. It doesn't matter who wins anymore. He understands now and respects me. Everything I've done wasn't in vain after all. All is well.
After this I'll go back to Russia with Sergei and Boris and reunite with Ivan. And we shall defend our tittle yet again. For Mother Russia.