Author's Notes: This is the longest introduction to a story that I've ever written. And it's just a little four part type deal that doesn't exactly sum up much or tell you where I'm going. I love it. Hopefully you will too and you'll keep reading!

Disclaimer:The only thing I own is the plot line. And my Oc. The rest of it, obviously isn't mine.

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Codes Of Honor- Prologue

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"Come on, push it a little more, Tala, you're almost there."

"I'm going, Rissa, I'm going."

She nodded and set her jaw, biting her lower lip for just a second, then threw out her hand and the beyblade before her spun faster. "And so am I, so come on, you can do it."

He clenched his hands together and closed his eyes. "Wolborg! Come on!"

She smiled as the bit chip in his white beyblade glowed a chilling blue color. "Stay in control, don't get angry."

"Humph."

She turned and looked at the lavender haired boy whose arms were crossed as he sat against the wall impatiently. "Chill out Bryan, I told you that you were next, didn't I?"

"Yeah, but I don't want to-"

"Wait your turn! I'm going to beat her, then you can fight her!"

"Tal, Bry, guys, chill out."

"Come on, please Wolborg!" The cool blue color began to pour from the bit, rising up at a slow, but steady pace. "Novae Rogue!"

The blue took shape as a wolf and sent ice daggers straight ahead as it surged at the girl opposite him. "Dodge it, let's go." Her beyblade took a sharp turn, coming up around the white beyblade so that it was now in front of her own. Her own beyblade, one of a metallic bronze color, surged up toward his and tapped it ever so slightly so that it's spin was disrupted. She smiled jokingly at him. "Tag, you're it."

His beyblade recovered faster than she anticipated and rammed back at her own, sending it back a ways. "Now you it, Muhrissa" he said, stumbling over his words. She smirked, knowing full well that the four-year-old was trying his hardest. Somewhere in her own five-year-old mind, she registered that there was something morally incorrect about the man watching them, though she didn't use those types of words just yet.

"This is not childsplay," The man said, his violet hair pulled back into a greasy ponytail. His beady little eyes were hidden behind red lensed glasses whose frames were black and covered most of the upper part of his face. "Now stop playing around and someone finish this!"

"Wolborg!" Tala called and Marissa noted his fear in the attack. Boris did as well, as she had seen him cracking the whip that he typically attached to his belt. It was now in his hands. She drew in a deep breath and held up her hand, the metallic beyblade spinning ever faster. She quickly took advantage and removed his beyblade from the arena, without so much as a blink of her crisp and bright blue eyes.

The man with the greasy hair and long green jacket sauntered over to Tala. He lowered himself to one knee as the child picked up his beyblade and met his reddened gance. The man removed his glasses and Tala could see amber colored eyes.

From Marissa's end, she grew angry, and just a touch protective. She didn't know what it was, but as a group leader, she knew both of what was coming, and of the fact that this man could do whatever he wanted to them.

"Now then," The man said, looking Tala in the eye. The four-year-old did his best to cover up whatever fear he had of the man. "Tala, how old are you?"

He looked over the man's shoulder to Marissa, who nodded. He took a quick breath. "Four, sir."

The man smiled cruelly, his teeth displayed like pearls amongst the darkness the rest of him gave off. "How many days until your fifth birthday?"

Tala looked up at him and shuddered. "Four, Boris, sir."

Boris nodded accordingly. "Thank you. Now you and Bryan stay here. There's something we should show you." Marissa's blue eyes hardened quickly, as she knew what was coming. "Now Marissa, how much is four times four?"

She growled her answer. "Sixteen."

"Sir?" He asked her back. She looked up and realized her mistake. "Inevitably," he said with a yawn of boredom, "What is sixteen times two?"

"Thirty-two, sir."

He smiled. "Good. Rudolph, come here." A scary looking man in armor and a large cone-looking hat came into the light and cast his steely gaze to Boris.

"Yes sir?"

"Hold Miss Tatibana still. We all know what the penalty is for poor training and bad mouthing."

"Yes, sir." The man came toward Marissa, picking her up and holding her, so that her chin rested on his shoulder, and so that her face was also within plain sight of both Tala and Bryan. She met their eyes and smiled gently at them.

Both Bryan and Tala's faces turned to ones of horror, despite their previous one, in which two pudgy little fists held up one thumb each. She closed her eyes and bit her lip. After five times of being hit with the whip, feeling the blood trail down the back of her biovolt uniform, she looked up at them and smiled, trying to reassure them. she closed her eyes when the whip's crack once again meant her body had been hit.

By the half way mark, she felt numb and the sensation of unconsciousness tugging at her. At thirty one, she opened her eyes to see them crying, and she felt the coolness of salty tears on her face as well. She hadn't even realized it. The final lashing came fairly quick and lingered for a second to long, causing her to bite her tongue to keep from crying out. Any more lashings could probably kill her if the ones she had on her wouldn't already.

"There, now you'll think twice before you dare mouth off. Rudolf, you may let her go." The guard and stooge dropped the girl without so much as to realized that she had just landed on the cobblestone ground with a dull thud, and a slight splash, as the blood that trailed from her pooled at the man's feet. And while you're at it, send in the doctors. She'll be needing a few transfusions, if I'm correct."

Tala and Bryan waited for the two men to leave, which they did within a few minutes. They both hugged each other, clinging together for dear life, out of fear and out of sorrow. They gathered up their courage and approached the unconscous girl, dragging her out of her blood and over to a less dirtied up area. "Muhwissa?"

Her eyes opened, though they were hazy and slightly out of focus. "Hey guys," she said, in a voice not so much above a whisper. "You okay?"

"Fine," Bryan said, though clenched teeth. Tears were gathering up in their eyes, but he blinked them away, unlike Tala. "You need-

Before he could continue, Boris emerged from the shadows again, to see the two children hovering over the girl. "Now, now, have you not learned anything? Compassion is for the weak. Emotions will get you nowhere, so harden up." He placed a hand to his chin as Marissa propped herself up. "I think I have an idea. Bryan, you first. Kick her."

"What?"

"Do you want to end up the same way? I said to kick her. In the side. As hard as you can or else you will do it a hundred times over."

Bryan looked down at her, but she didn't seem afraid. She nodded, her eyes beginning to clear up a bit. Her fist was clenched in a thumbs-up position, and he drew back and wailed her in the side. She made a loud 'oof,' as his foot knocked the air out of her, and Boris cackled. The satanic man knew that Bryan had been with her the longest, since she was three and he was two, so he had grown up to know her as family. This hurt him the most.

"Tala, take the other side. Bryan has done a fine job on her right."

Tala's blue eyes magnified more emotion, but a glare from Marissa told him to mask it. He hardened up, his eyes still bright, but not as meaningful. He drew back, and kicked her so hard that she skidded into Bryan's foot. The sight made him want to cry, want to scream. The guard went to her, a different one this time, and picked her up, throwing her carelessly over her shoulder. She moaned and looked up at them, whispering in quiet Russian, "Don't worry, I'll be fine."

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Three years had passed. The consequences for losing had become much more horrific, and beatings like the ones mentioned previously were considered light. Tala looked over at the girl, who had, like she had said, been fine. She was eight to his seven years of life, and her brown hair was held up in a ponytail. She looked at him, polishing her beyblade in the process.

"So," Bryan said, looking at her, "Do you know what we're wanted for?"

"I don't," she said. She looked around at the office. "This is Voltaire's office though."

Tala was sitting on one side of her, Bryan on the other. "No, really? We've been in here hundreds of times before," Tala growled.It was the truth, as all warrants of updates, notices of punishments, and other things had been declared in this room.

"We haven't done anything, have we?"

"Our team has done nothing but win," Bryan said curtly.

Marissa began whistling.

"Squirt, what did you do?" Both boys asked, with accusing looks in her direction.

She giggled. "Nothing, I'm just screwing around."

"Sure, Cap'n, sure."

She shrugged. The Abbey's structure had allowed for the creation of teams. There were typically five members and one captain, so six per team. Marissa was the captain, as she was the oldest, and despite her 'inferior' gender, she did wonders with a beyblade. Whenever people would come around, she'd be hidden, since she was not techinically supposed to be in an 'Abbey,' for 'Monks.' It was more like a 'Hell' for 'abused children.'

Their team, Demolition, was stronger than strong, despite it only having three members total. She had personally wondered why no one else would join their team, but figured it was because of her gender that she would be pushed twice as hard.

"Well what did you think I did? There's nothing around here I haven't done, so let's just move on, okay?"

Both boys nodded. The door creaked just a little as it opened, revealing two elder men. Three sets of eyes narrowed. Boris and Voltaire; Voltaire and Boris, either way, it was the two people they wished would just die already.

"Hello gentlemen," Voltaire said calmly, before looking between them. "And Miss Marissa," He said, with a wave of his hand, "You're looking lovely."

She gave him a look that anyone would note to be dull, bored. "Hello, Sirs," she said in response to the two of them, though she wished she could tell them to eat shit, jump of a cliff, or both. As long as there were pointy rocks at the bottom of said cliff.

"We have been giving your present situation some thought, and we've decided to outfit you with some new players."

"Of course, Marissa, you will be required to take full responsibility for them. And you will have to be very firm. Can you handle that?"

She laughed for a moment. "Can the rest of this place handle that?" She looked at Bryan and Tala. "These two misfits practically run the place, and I take full responsibility for them, despite how horrible they are." She was elbowed twice and responded by swatting two Russians upside their heads. "Bring them in," she said, leaning back into the leather couch.

Voltaire sent Boris away with another wave of his hand, and turned exclusively to Marissa. "I am assigning you my grandson. He is talented, but he lacks the submission and respect that both Tala and Bryan give to you. I would like him to be trained as you train these two." Voltaire paused. "He's the spitting image of his father and needs to be broken of his ways."

She nodded seriously. "So I shall be beating him up until he listens because he's defiant?"

There was a nod. "I have made his father abandon him, and I expect you all to treat him like the scum of the earth he is. I wish my grandson to be strong. Emotions cannot get in his way."

She nodded again. "And the others?"

"One is a trigger-happy child, two years your junior. He is very quick to fly off the handle, but can be a very strong starter. The other is a large boy, a golden retriever type. Very loyal and devoted to those he serves. And very willing to stand for a powerful individual who takes charge. He will worship the ground you walk upon if given the chance."

"Alright." She looked at the boys on either side of her. "They will be welcomed... accordingly," she said, with a smirk to both of them. It was returned. Despite their status as team mates, the trio could be both vicious in the ring, and mischevious outside of it. They were known for trouble, though they stuck together and were only open to their team mates, despite everyone else's twenty-four-seven-three-sixty-five mask. "You two, I want Tala on the trigger-happy twerp, and Bryan on the big one." She looked at Voltaire and noted his approval. "I will trash your grandson myself. Show him the ropes and what-not."

A nod was given from the superior man, who smiled evilly. "I like your idea, Miss Tatibana."

"No one joins my team without a proper welcome and a good test. Especially since no one has joined since the beginning anyway." A malicious smirk spread across her face. Tala nudged her. "What?"

"Don't look now, we have new recruits."

She smirked as a tall and bulky blonde walked in, his eyes hard and dark but deeper, they revealed some form of attachment, or need therefore. A nod was extended his direction by Bryan. Behind him was a short, violet haired individual, a very short one at that. The rifle in his hands was about the same size as his small body. Tala gave him a once over, raised an eyebrow elegantly and looked to Marissa, who gave both of them the same smirk that put them in their place. She noted that they were nervous. Very nervous.

Then the final recruit came in. A carefree look graced his face. She looked to Bryan and Tala, raising her eyebrows. The resemblance between the boy and his grandfather was not very noticible. However, she could tell by his stance that he trusted no one. His two tone slate and navy hair was pulled back, so that the front, the slate spiked out around his face, and the navy was pulled back into a pony tail with a short end.

She stood up as he faced her, rather than his grandfather. "You've got to be kidding," he said, looking at the girl.

"Show some respect, boy," Bryan said angrily.

A hand was extended before the lavender haired boy as he stood up. "Hold up now," Marissa said, and Bryan remained still. She extended her hand to him and he didn't shake it. She nodded. "Oh, so you're stubborn, are you?"

She looked to Voltaire, who began to speak. "This is Kai, my disobedient grandson, Ian," The violet haired boy with the large nose and rifle's eyes narrowed, "And this is Spencer," Voltaire finished, extending a hand his direction.

Marissa looked at all of them, giving them each a once over. "Well now, I suppose proper introductions are in order for us as well. This welp on my left is Tala, and on my right is Bryan. I'd watch how I'd cross them if I were you. But you'll see that in a moment when you get tested." She looked at Voltaire and Boris once more, then back at the three boys standing across from her. "I'm Marissa," she said, with a quick glace over all of them. "And I'm your captain."

Kai snorted. "This is your brilliant idea, Grandfather? A girl training me?"

"I'll tell you what," Marissa said, not bothering to let anyone else get a word in, "We'll battle in about two minutes, and if you win, you can be captain. Work for you?"

Tala and Bryan looked at each other, then back at her in shock. It wasn't that they didn't have faith in her, but this was Voltaire's flesh and blood, as in, the evilest guy they knew's grandson. They didn't know his strength, not one bit.

The boy pulled out a blue beyblade from his pocket "You're on."

She nodded. "Just what I hoped to hear." She turned around to walk out, Bryan and Tala getting up to follow, before she turned to the rest of them. "You two, Ian, Spencer, come on. You're up when he's done. As for Bryan and Tala, don't scare them too much until you're in the arena with them."

Marissa, with Tala and Bryan on either side of her, led the three newbies to the main arena setting of the Abbey, complete with cobblestone floor and beydish. "Alright, Kai, is it? You're on, get your ass to the dish."

Bryan and Tala both nudged her as she passed, making it look like she had run straight into them. She pulled out a launcher and rip cord, using her mouth to hold the rip cord until the beyblade she had pulled out from her other pocket was locked firmly into place. She then slid in the rip cord and held the launcher out.

"Tala," she commanded, "Start the count."

Tala nodded and stepped up. "Alright, Three... Two... One... Let it rip!"

"Go Dranzer!"

"Let's get it on," she said, with a smirk as the boy began a fiery assault on her own blue beyblade. She dodged multiple attacks, using a series of fluid attacks and quick thinking.

His darker blue beyblade surged toward hers and hit its mark, however, her beyblade shoved his back using the force of his own attack. "Fire arrow!"

"Think defensive-" She began.

"I don't need your help!"

She nodded her head, and followed his attacks. He launched multiple ones, some of which she put up no defense. She looked back to her team mates and to the two other newbies, who seemed slightly intimidated. While Kai was getting winded, she was absorbing his style, his methods, and his emotions, which she could clearly read through his beyblade.

"What're you thinking, Bryan?" She asked.

The lavender haired boy laughed. "What do you want me to say? He needs work."

"Angry?" Marissa asked. Kai looked up at her, the anger and rage apparent. She immediately knew it's source. It had been what Voltaire had said about his father's abandonment. That type of thing was common for a source of anger, as demonstrated by countless others.

Kai nodded. His eyes hardened, and just before they iced over, she saw his true self. A broken little kid, a kid dying to be loved. Something they all wanted. "Dranzer, finish this!"

The flames that encased her caused both Bryan and Tala to grow extremely defensive and cry out for her. She threw out a hand and the flames ceased, his bit beast, a mighty phoenix still in the air. "Interesting," she said aloud. "Dranzer huh?" He nodded, his eyes wide with shock. "I'll let you see mine then."

She held up her arm and a glowing gold color warmed up her bit. "Vyora!" Without a second's notice, a creature with bright blue eyes that slid the length of the room appeared, a sabretooth-looking creature with a golden coat. "Pulse attack!"

A series of shock waves was emitted from the creature's body as she surged toward Dranzer. The blue beyblade opposing the sabretooth began to crack upon repeated hits, and the phoenix squealed out of rage. She was becoming trapped.

A slight look of remorse crossed her features. You shouldn't cage a phoenix, she thought sadly. Her eight year old mind pushed that away. "Come on," she said gently, "Don't just give up."

"Dranzer!"

"Call that bird's name all day, it won't do you much good," Bryan said. "Rissa's already got your number."

"Vy, finish this up! Tidal pull!"

Without a second's hesitation, the cracking beyblade of the younger Hiwatari ended up in Marissa's hand, the Phoenix returning down to it's bit. Kai stared at her.

"Give it back."

She looked at him, raised an eyebrow and looked unimpressed. "Twenty push ups. Now."

"What?"

"I'm not playing you, Hiwatari. Get your as on your knees and start going." She nodded to Bryan. "While Tala fights, go get my kit. I don't know what the hell this beyblade is made out of, but it's about to dissolve." She looked to Tala."Tala, Ian, get going. I want to hear beyblades crashing against each other in less than ten seconds."

Kai looked at her. There was no way she was going to boss him around. Who the hell did she think she was?"

"If you're not going to do this, then you can't have Dranzer back."

His eyes widened.

"I'm not kidding you. Get going."

Grudgingly, he got down on his knees, then his hands, and began the motion. It was half hearted, and without mercy, she kicked him in the side, knocking him over. He looked up at her again.

"I said push ups. I might be a girl, but I'll be damned if I take anything like this from you."

"Aren't you a little young to talk like that?"

"No, I'm older than you, kid. Now get going."

Bryan walked back in, and while Kai finished his set of push ups, which he did slowly, Tala beat Ian to a pulp. Meanwhile, someone else was bery busy. Kai stood up when he was finished and sauntered over to the bench, next to the girl who had just beaten him senseless.

"Where's my blade?"

Bryan gave her a strange look. She threw some parts back into the kit and handed Kai his blade. Well, it was his bit, anyway. The blade was not his. It was brand new.

"Welcome to hell, population, well, too many. If you want to beat anyone, I suggest you use this."

He snarled and took it from her. Thus was the beginning. And they had a lot to learn.

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"What the hell was that?"

Kai looked up at Boris fearfully. Things were not good. Not at all. Tala and Bryan looked at their two newbies, aside from the one in front of them. "God help us all," Spencer said quietly.

"What were you thinking?"

Marissa stood up as he collected his beyblade off the floor. "I've got this," she said quietly, pushing Kai toward Bryan and Tala. "Get the hell out of here," she said quietly.

"Not so fast."

The group behind her turned to Boris. "I don't believe Kai has ever been punished properly. Come back here, weakling."

Marissa blocked his way again. "Boris, we both know that it's my fault for not training him effectively. You'd never beat him anyway. He's his Grandfather's heir, we can't have him all beaten up, can we?"

Boris licked his lips. She felt a sickening sensation in her stomach, attributed to the man, who would probably rape her if given the chance. "You, my dear, have a point." He pulled at the whip on his belt and whistled. It was the common sign for a guard to come. "Though, I have permission to beat the young Hiwitari up as much as necessary."

"Tala, Bryan, I'm dead serious. Get them out of here before someone makes them stay."

"You're going to let them run? Well now, I guess we'll have to go over multiplication again. What is ten times five?"

She gave Kai a cool glance as he looked over his shoulder. Bryan nudged him forward so he couldn't see her anymore, before the lavender haired boy turned around himself to look at her. She nodded to him, knowing full well that he'd be back. He always came back.

Kai looked at Bryan. Bryan looked back at him. "Whaddya want, Runt?"

"What's going to happen to her?"

The crack of a whip made Bryan clench his fists and snarl. "She was only going to have ten, until she decided to protect you and tell us to leave. Now she's got fifty."

"That's what she said."

"She's going to need some help, even if she doesn't loose blood like she used to."

Tala nodded, leading the way to their bedrooms. It held the entire team and their meager amount of things. Since none of them had family, they received nothing other than what they could scrape together themselves. Kai looked at Tala, who went to the sink in the bathroom joined to their room, washed his hands, then moved out of the way so Bryan could do the same. Ian and Spencer watched.

"What's going to be so bad?"

Bryan felt angry, but Tala butted in as to stop the boy from starting a fight. "How about she let you get fifty lashes? But no, none of us are allowed to take punishments."

"So she's trying to be the hero?"

Ian looked up at Kai, resting his rifle next to him on the bed. "Have you ever been hit by a whip?"

Kai said nothing.

"I didn't think so."

A scream resounded from down the hall. People began to rush by their room. Bryan and Tala immediately looked at each other, knowing that this was no ordinary punishment. "Since when does she scream?" Voices began to ask, as the group inside their room began to make their way to the door. Bryan grabbed Kai and began to pull him alongside himself.

"You want to see what happens when you screw up?" He asked viciously into Kai's ear. Kai felt sick, but nodded.

Tala came up along his other side. "Can't say we didn't warn you."

Without a second's hesitation, Kai, Tala, and Bryan had broken through the crowd and were standing in front of it. Bryan heard Kai gag and admitted personally that he felt sick. Not aloud however. He'd be strong. "Maybe next time," Boris said, a coat of sweat covering him as he waved the whip around proudly, "You'll stay and watch and I won't have to do twenty of these."

"No," Bryan whispered.

Kai looked at him.

"What?"

"That whip," Tala said quietly. "It has a spike on it."

Boris snickered. "It's surprising she's still conscious, but it'll go. This is the last one. She's been counting, I'm sure she knows, even if nothing we say is registering in her head."

"I can hear you," she said darkly, her voice heavy and pained. "Just finish it."

A maniacal laugh echoed from behind her. "As you wish."

Kai watched, his mind and body frozen with horror, as the whip snapped in mid air. The guard stepped away from the girl, who stood up rigidly on her own. That was a shock in itself. No one that he had ever known would've withstood that and still be standing. Much less alive. The whip suddenly recoiled at it's owner's request and snap of the wrist, colliding with her back, staying there as the spike dug into her skin. It was a big spike and she quickly turned toward them all, her face void of tears, but her lips bleeding from being bit.

The crowd, and Boris cleared out almost instantaneously, leaving the group alone with their bleeding captain. She had made her way to the nearest pillar that supported the rock structure and was holding herself up with it.

Kai stared at her for a moment, before speaking. "W-why'd you do that?"

She smiled, her teeth radiant pearls. "Because," she said, taking a shaky, shallow breath, "I'm your captain. That's what a real captain does. Protects their team."

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Marissa's eyes were as wide as saucers. "Wh-what are you doing? Bryan! I never taught you that!"

"I learned it while you were at that competition." He paused. "Stroblitz!"

She felt a severe pain in her right arm. "Vyora, restrain him-"

"Oh, I don't think so."

"Kai?"

"Black Dranzer-"

"How could you?" She felt a trace of fear but pushed it down. "What are you thinking? You have to fight it! Don't let them control you!"

Tala smirked from her left. "No one's controlling us. They just told us to harness our true talents. You've been holding us back. Why haven't you told us that we could be better?"

She blinked, her eyes hardening. "There's a hell of a lot of difference between having power and being insane. And I think the latter of the two describes it. What the hell did they do to you while I was gone?"

"They just opened us to the truth. Wyborg! Attack!"

"Don't do this," she whispered. Viora's bit glowed defensively. "Take them down!"

"The only thing going down," Spencer threatened, "is you."

"Black Dranzer, fire attack!"

"Stroblitz!"

"Novae Rogue!"

She closed her eyes and felt tears pulsing down her cheeks. "I won't," she said defiantly. "I won't fight you."

She recalled her beyblade and took off. "That's what your weakeness is. You don't understand that you can't count on anyone. You're just as pathetic as the newbies."

"I protected you from the darkness," she retorted.

"This place is darkness."

"Then I choose the light."

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Author's Notes: How's that as a prologue? Sets us up for just about anything, heh? Well, you'll see. It's going to be rather interesting.

So please review, and I'll get on the Next Chapter!

Distant Storm, signing off!