SUMMARY: Bladebreakers are lost on the streets of Russia when a group of street-bladers blocks their way. Kai as their leader decides to take up the challenge for his team. His covered up enjoyment to battle outside the stadium again after so long is just a bonus. Once a street-blader ...
A/N: Okay, 1st of: no I'm not back into fanfiction. Yes, my writing MUCH improved in the last few years. I'm still writing my story on Fictionpress (check my bio) and that will not change. I read fanfiction, I read it a lot (every. single. night. for at least 2h to be honest - Kindle ROCKS, I can pretend that I'm sleeping while reading under the covers. I pretend so hard that even I count those 2h as hours of sleep - I am not wasting my time, I am SLEEPING! HA!), but not write it. I save that creativity for my own thing.
Now that that's out of the way ...
So last week I decided that I missed Kai. In the middle of the day I was like: I miss that sourpuss. I miss his attitude, I miss his confidence, I miss his brutality, I miss his skill, I miss his history. And next thing I know, I downloaded all three seasons of the old Beyblade again (yes, even 2nd one *sigh*). I will not talk about the new Beyblade, whatever it is, coz I haven't watched it, coz forever there will only be Bladebreakers and their bit-beasts for me. Without them, it's just a silly kid's anime. I've been a teenager when I first saw Beyblade (the first episode I ever saw was when Kai reunited with the Abbey and that was the scene that sucked me in. I bet that if I started from S01E01, I wouldn't be interested half as much). Now I'm a 'grown' woman with barely any time for herself. I watch Beyblade while I'm working in Photoshop, so that's my lucky break.
I always adored songs from Beyblade. They are upbeat, their lyrics were sorta relateable to my imagination and my stories (original ones). But as I started watching Beyblade again, and on my way to my 2nd job, Always be in the Game came up on shuffle and I had a vision of this scene in my head. It's how it always happens, just it usually goes away if it's not from my story. But it was so detailed, that I decided to write it up. This was created.
You will see that there are elements of the song in it. Lyrics in the writing - this is not a songfic, so there will be no pause from the story just to tell you people where we are in the song. Song is too short for this entire scene. Song is in the story of this scene. If you know the song as well as I do, you'll see it. If you miss it, you didn't miss much. You'll still know exactly what's going on, you will not be bothered by it because you don't know the beat or whatnot.
End of rant.
Song (written over the): Always Be in The Game - Jason Dean Bennison - EngDub Beyblade OST
STREET-BLADER
Once a street blader ...
Russian streets. No place for a kid. Danger occupying every corner – drunks, robbers or just regular hard-skinned Russians. And beybladers. Like everything in this cold country, they are rough creatures. Predators in their own environment. Battle to win and take their chosen rewards, be it your money, clothes, dignity or blade.
Russian streets. No place for a kid. Home of a certain member of a certain group, called Bladebreakers. Who were lost because of the other certain member. Again. Maps were always a mystery to Tyson. And he never let anyone else hold them when he was frustrated as right now. It wasn't as if Bladebreakers always ended up in tight spots because of the same guy, but it certainly was a large percentage of times.
Chief was arguing with the 'world champ' to stop and let him check the map on his Dizzy-laptop. Max checking around every corner to make sure if that one leads to the main street. Ray informing the Chief that it was a long shot he would find any internet connection in this remote place.
Kai? Kai was just tagging along. A couple of steps behind the buzzing group.
No, he didn't know where they were. He never visited this part of the city. But he did recognize the layout as the one that could hide some unpleasant surprises. With him having an eye on the whole of group from the distance, and the senses of experienced and supposedly physically abused – even though he'd admit he never saw it as anything more than extremely intense training – nothing would sneak up on them.
And now Tyson suddenly went quiet.
Strange.
Kai looked over the guy's head, noticing the barricade of four teenagers in the alley in front of them. War paint on their faces. They didn't sneak up on them, so he couldn't really blame himself. Tyson just ran into them.
Wonderful.
While Chief and Max tried to make a conversation, asking the shady kids for directions, Tyson just stared on dumbfounded. Kai lifted his eyebrow at that visage.
Ray took a step back so he was standing next to the leader of his group, not taking his eyes off the locals. "I have a feeling we're in trouble," he said from the corner of his mouth.
Give the guy a medal. Even as Ray's presence never annoyed him as much as others' and he sometimes even had short, but still casual conversations with the youngster, sometimes the tiger could be a bit … obvious.
"Hn." Shorter answer of 'whatever'.
Ray frowned and tore his gaze of the statues that blocked their way, to look up at the blue-haired boy. "Kai?"
"Hold on to that feeling," he simply said to shut the tiger up. He noticed movement and stepped forward just as Tyson started arguing with now chuckling Russians.
They were bigger and older than Bladebreakers. Well, not all of them. One was short and looked younger than Kai, but he seemed no less in control standing in that wide-legged pose.
When Tyson came too close, the big bulky one shoved him back. Roughly. 'World champ' ended up in a pile of trash. There was irony in there somewhere. Max, Chief and Ray gasped with shock over the rudeness of the locals.
Tyson was getting up, yelling obscenities. Kai was hoping he won't go his usual too-far. They really didn't need to riot these bunch up. One sentence struck out, "You wanna go at it, huh?!"
Kai sighed, rubbing his nose-bridge. Of course he had to … Frankly, this was good. It was progress. The subject would come up sooner or later. Kai recognized the stance, the looks, the smirks of the ruffians. Street-bladers. A smartass that Tyson sometimes was, would say Takes one to know one. And sometimes Kai couldn't exactly disagree with the boy. It was years ago, but Bladesharks were still a strong memory. A dirty work his own grandfather sent him to do. Fight bladers, find bit-beasts. Make granddaddy proud. Kai never liked the man. He had this 'family love' for him, something that he thought he was obligated to have unconditionally. During the Russian tournament, he learned that he should know better. But even so, Kai didn't hate his time with the Bladesharks. He didn't get beaten with them – physically or in blading. His word was law. His name was feared. He had respect.
Now he had four, sometimes more, teammates to watch over. He didn't hate them either. Actually, if he admitted it to himself – even as that was rarely the case – he kind of liked them. They were family. Not grandfather-family but family that protects each other. Tyson was a loudmouth and Kai wanted to strangle him half of the time, but in rare moments – especially in battle, he saw him as an equal. Max was a sugar addict; hyper, happy, jumpy, sometimes insecure, and he was the glue that kept them together in worst of times. Chief was annoying, but full of ideas and common sense, not to mention his precious data. Ray was … well, Ray; adaptive, determent, friendly and sometimes too much of a goody-goody-two-shoes.
And these miserable four were currently in it to their throats. Tyson especially, seeing how he was being strangled by the bulky dude who had enough of his talk.
Kai sighed again and stepped forward. "Stop."
Dead silence from the Bladebreakers. Even the ruffians seemed startled at the control he had over his own team. His voice wasn't particular loud, no real energy in it. But it was an order they obeyed.
"Let the idiot kid go."
Surprisingly, even with a hand around his throat, Tyson still managed to croak out in outrage, "Wh-gah … calling-cough … idiot?!"
The tall one stepped forward. He was a foot taller than Kai. Kai stared at the older boy, making sure the guy wasn't taking his advantage of height to look down on him. "You are bladers." Heavy accented voice.
It was a statement. Something Tyson might have blurted out, but who could follow everything the Dragoon-wielder said in any short minute.
"So are you," Kai said, making sure not to drop into Russian the boy would clearly rather be speaking. No need for them to know who we are. Who I am.
Kai knew what would be said next, even as it was said by the youngest member of the Russian group instead of his leader. "One match."
He lifted his eyebrow at the short kid, feigning just a bit of surprise. "Sure." And the game keeps coming to me on its own.
"Uh, Kai …" came a warning from Ray. His blade was still being repaired from the last match.
"They are clearly raptors, trying to take all of your blades," Chief nodded. "And my laptop."
"They must have something up their sleeve." Max sounded frightened.
Tyson gurgled. The bulky one let him go. The 'champ' coughed and immediately, "It's a deal," flew out of his mouth. "I can take you on any time."
Kai rolled his eyes. "No you can't. You won't fight."
"But …"
"You. Won't. Fight. None of you will." Kai glared at him. Tyson opened his mouth, but clearly something came across and he found that bit of intelligence that was always slipping through his proverbial fingers.
He pouted. "But why not?"
"Because I said so." Because you need to guard your blades. Because you're all too crazy fast in showing your bit-beasts. Because we don't need any dramatic scenes you sometimes randomly pull. Because you don't know the unwritten rules of street-blading in Russia.
"Hey, you wanna get out of 'ere," the last member of the street group – a tall but scrawny thing – said, "you 'ave to fight all of us."
"You lose, we get your blades," the leader, that was currently smirking down at Kai, said. "And your laptop."
"Oh no," Chief whined from somewhere behind.
"Fine by me." Kai shrugged.
"Which means you better call in your friends, since unless there are four against you."
Kai smirked and stepped back, pulling out Dranzer and his launcher. "I try to make it fair, but you're all there is."
The bulky one laughed. "A tough-guy, huh? I'm going to enjoy beating you."
Kai flinched, the close proximity of the Abby and actual beatings tugging on his mind. He covered up this annoying feeling with a glare.
He big one stepped forward, clearly wanting to go first, but was stopped by his leader.
"If he wants four against one, let's give it to him. All at once. Destroy his blade while we're at it. See how he cries then."
"All at once?" Max squeaked. "But … but … No! Kai!"
"Oh, you wanted to do it any different way?" Kai simply asked, not really planning to take it up one at the time. Too wasteful. He didn't have all day.
"All four, against you. At the same time," announced the tall fellow.
"Kai?" Ray. He sounded worried.
"Never underestimate the power of one," Kai simply stated. This is something that came up in one of their short conversations just last time as they were talking about his intense training under Boris Balkov. He just hoped Ray understood his meaning and wouldn't push it further.
"All right, then. If you're really sure."
Good. Kai knew he would win. Now Ray believed it as well. With that simple truth on his side, he never had to even consider running in cases like these.
Tyson and Chief got busy cleaning up Tyson's clothes of rotten trash. Chief trying to help without letting go of his laptop that he was forcing to his chest as if trying to absorb it to safety of his own ribcage.
"Is he serious in taking them all at once?" he heard Max ask behind him.
"Is Kai ever not-serious?" Ray countered a question with a rhetorical one.
I'm the one who carries the weight. As I should. I am their leader.
The four Russians pulled out their blades and aimed towards the dirt floor. No fancy dishes out here. Just cold, hard and half-frozen ground.
Kai felt his team watching intensely. The things I do for you people. He didn't understand why they were worried about him. Never did. He went through hell and back and accepted it as life. Sometimes he hated it, but he wouldn't trade his history if he had the chance. He smiled reassuringly nonetheless, not looking away from his targets. At least he could make them think he understood.
He measured every face of the opposing team, reading their strategy even before anyone actually launched their blade. Two defences, two attacks. Two predictable, two not. The bulky one will stick to the middle, and the youngest one will be all over the place.
Snapping back to the current moment, he smiled for real. Staring down at his own blade and the bit of his phoenix. Back to conquering with you, Dranzer.
He loved street blading. He missed it. The rules were simple. No winners, losers. Only those who finished the game.
"You guys better keep up," he taunted as they all launched at the same time. "Come on!"
He aimed for the little dent in the ground. Perfect for defence and if these ruffians had any skill, they would know it as well. Kai wasn't one to use much of hard shielding however, and he aimed there for a simple reason that one of the others would as well.
Sure enough, the big Russian's blade barely entered the small dent as Kai's Dranzer slammed into it with full speed, sending it back from whence it came. With the force behind it, the street blader was lucky to duck as his blade went flying at his person.
One down, three to go.
A gasp from the muscly man. A yell of "Not fair!" as he went to fetch his blade, while still keeping an eye on the match.
Kai chuckled. "Nobody said that life would be fair."
Dranzer was still kept on a leash, now only using half its speed, saving strength as it went after the little guy's blade. Something slammed into it and both of them bounced back, Dranzer being lighter, bouncing a bit higher before settling.
I will never not enjoy this.
The mysterious scrawny one was obviously an offence blader. Kai forced Dranzer to back up, escaping the hot-headed blade. As if he was frightened. As if he tried to take cover. Self-learned rule number two in street-blading: lie.
Dranzer had a surprisingly small power in actual defence. He didn't need it. Even as Kai's philosophy has always been offense is the best defence, it wasn't that he never expected to actually defend. Times came where he couldn't avoid it. But he never actually pushed back. Not his style. He went with the flow, that is why he was always so good at it. He could be thrown out of the ring, but he wouldn't be out of the game. He'd just make sure to land back inside. Ray's strategy was similar, but Ray had speed on his side, while Kai had agility. His blade sped around some, zigzagging between the enemy.
But he had to wrap up his twisted front before the people here discovered the truth of what he was doing. That ending of this battle was already in his sight. He mentally stopped himself before he could think a Thank you to Boris and his grandfather. No, this wasn't their training. Their training consisted of their own ambitions that Kai should achieve for them. This was Kai and what he learned himself. Kai of the Demolition Boys, Kai of the Bladesharks, Kai of the Bladebreakers. There was no Boris or Voltiare in this. He used to think so, but now he knew better. I'm never going back to be your model of greed.
Dranzer dodged an attack and sped away.
"Ha ha, scared that we're too big of a competition?!" the young one laughed, jumping on the balls of his feet, grinning and staring at escaping Dranzer.
Kai couldn't stop the sparkle in his eyes or the smile that was almost a laugh. "You ain't competition," he stated, rearing Dranzer up.
The blade stopped on spot, the younger's blade catching up to it fast as a bullet. He could see the boy furrow his brow in confusion and surprise.
"You ain't even in the same league."
Dranzer shot backwards towards the other's blade, slamming it head on. The defence ring broke, showering fragments all around. The whole blade fell apart in the air, before pieces scattered over the frozen ground behind still speeding Kai's blade. Well if this isn't nostalgic, I don't know what is.
A gasp from the opposition. A rain of Russian curses.
Kai couldn't help but let Dranzer go have some fun and the blade's bit glowed red. The phoenix stayed inside though, obeying her Master. Always so well mannered. She needed a push. "Yo, Dranzer, come out and play!"
"Dranzer?!"
That got some reaction. Kai was a name that you could come across anywhere. A group of bladers used all sort of styles including Kai's usage of war paint. The opposition's smudges were black and dark green, but it didn't faze them that Kai had his face marked as well. But name Dranzer wasn't something one would meet anywhere else.
And Dranzer was known. As was the information of who had it.
"Kai?" The scrawny one connected the dots loudly. "You're Kai Hiwatari, of the Abbey."
Kai almost chuckled at the faces of horror they all made. They realized their mistake. This was Russia. Abbey was well known, especially among beybladers. And Demolition Boys were a legend. And Hiwatari was one of the most influential names in whole of Russia. Kai was involved with them all, making him almost a demigod to these losers.
He could hear Tyson muttering disapprovingly. Kai was better known than him around these parts. It wounded the boy's ego. Just another plus. The tiger tried to cover up his snicker with coughing. Nice try, Ray, but everybody can tell that you're laughing your ass off. And Kai, surprisingly for once, wasn't even bothered by their reactions. Chief and Max were now cheering him on loudly, annoying but bearable.
The opposing leader's eyes hardened. "I can still take you. Everyone knows that what they say about you is exaggerated. You got soft. You ain't so tough! You're gonna lose here!"
Doesn't matter. In the end it's all the same. And Kai repeated a long known lesson. "You're a street-blader. You know the only real rule: No winners, losers. Only those …"
"… who finished the game," the tall blader completed. Universal saying. Also written on the large plate anywhere where the Pits exist – usually underground places where street-bladers come to compete against each other.
Kai smirked as he noticed Dranzer rotating on the ground, drawing a large circle in the hard dirt. She really misses this as well. They became so close that the bit-beast knew his mood and when she could act on her own and when only as Kai ordered. A circle on the floor. With flourish, the blade centred itself in the very middle of it. Spinning on spot. Taunting.
Kai chuckled for real and looked up at two confused faces who stared down at the blade and the circle around it. "Get into the ring. If you dare, that is."
The leader of the team frowned and glared. Not taking the bait.
The scrawny one broke under pressure. "Dat's it! No one, not even an Abbey bit-beast mocks us!"
Abby bit-beast. That was an insult. Kai wanted to retort to defend his phoenix, but just as the guy's blade cockily entered the ring, Dranzer rose in all her glory and replied on her own.
Well, the ground inside the ring – and a bit around it as well – was frozen no more. The defeated blader downright screamed as he saw what was left of his beyblade. That was until his leader thumped him on the head. Then he collapsed to his knees, blissfully silent.
And then there was one.
The opposing blader wore a mask of a hard glare, but Kai could easily see the fear in his eyes.
Dranzer shrunk back and just floated overhead as the blade that contained her lazily drew patterns on the ground. She could take the enemy out immediately, but she knew better than to act without Kai's order when it came to the last blade in the ring with her. It was an unspoken rule between them since Kai first launched her against someone. She was the bit-beast and Kai was her blader, he always claimed the last kill. It was for selfish reasons as much as for her safety. There was often a slaughter when in the ring with him, but it was never a mindless one.
Cheers from behind him finally settled and Kai felt more of his own silent pride. Pride at Dranzer, pride at himself. Something nobody would ever take away from him. In this moments of quiet just before the end of the fight, he felt at peace.
Calm before the storm.
"So, attack!" The Russian barked. "I can evade you easily!"
Pondering just how full of bullshit the guy was, Kai twitched a smirk. It was there only for half a second. Then dead seriousness.
He called Dranzer's final attack.
The blade was incinerated. Ash blown away by the strong wind as Dranzer retreated with the final glow.
Silence from both sides.
"Hn." He opened his hand and Dranzer returned to him as if nothing ever happened.
They stood there for a minute, just watching each other. Beaten Russians, the scrawny one still on the ground, others with open mouth. Bladebreakers stood behind Kai in a small group, clearly ready to bolt if the locals decided to take their revenge for their destroyed blades.
These are street-bladers, not Abbey rats. They have a code of honour. Kai didn't tell them that though. Silence was a bliss, even if just for a short time. Also, admiration could be felt in the air. For the next few days, he could run them as hard as he wanted to and they would obey. Two days. Then Tyson will start complaining again.
But back at the matter at hand. "So, which way to the main square?"
"Uh …" the big one said. The first one out. The only one that still had the blade in relatively one piece.
The scrawny one sobbed.
The leader pointed right. "That way. Third alley turn left. Then right again."
The youngest one bounced closer. "I'll show you!"
Eager to get us out of here, much? Kai's eyes flashed in amusement, but he stayed quiet. He put Dranzer away back in his pocket-pouch, and followed, waving his team to do the same.
"Wow, Kai, that was some show," Max said running to catch up.
Kai shrugged.
"And I thought I had some street-blading skills from back in China," Ray. Poor innocent ignorant Ray. Fighting few times in an alley doesn't make one a street-blader. Fighting in your home village with your friends doesn't really come close to what it really is. A slaughter, every time.
"You really had some penned up aggression in there, huh, Kai?" Tyson. Surprisingly perceptive at rare random times.
"These Russian street-bladers are much more scarier than those in Japan. I'll need to do the research when we came to our hotel. Try to map their locations." Kenny, still holding Dizzy in vice-grip.
Yeah, as if one could point down locations of every rat in the sewers. Kai could help. He knew the local Pit not far from the Abbey. Actually, he knew where Pits were in every major city he ever visited. But it was just something he didn't want to taint young innocent Bladebreakers with. They were too curious for their own good. Too ethical. Another piece of his past that he would rather keep to himself.
"Any tips if we ever get in such trouble and you're not around?" Ray asked, honestly interested.
"Yeah. Don't." Silent pause as they followed their newly acquired guide through the narrow streets. It clearly wasn't the answer they wanted, and Kai knew that they would pester him later if he didn't relent now. He sighed in his first defeat of the day. "If you must know: don't' get thrown out. Always stay in the game and keep spinning."
... always a street blader.