And WELCOME to my third story on Fanfiction. I am pleased to present the revised first chapter of Virtue Of Life!

Category: Beyblade.

Rating: T.

Pairings: Kai x Ray. Kai x Tala. Brooklyn x Tala.

Genre: Suspense/Angst.

Summary: It was revenge. Revenge was the motive and it was the only thing Boris could think about. He was overcome by it, swept away by it. He wanted Tyson and Kai to suffer.

WARNINGS: Violence. Foul language. Character death. Yaoi.

Disclaimer: I do not own Beyblade, nor any of its characters.

Well, now that's the formalities out the way. I'm not sure how long this story is going to be, it could quite possibly turn out to be my longest story, but we'll see how we go. It'll be my first attempt at Brooklyn and Tala as a pairing. I think I'm going to make Tala Uke as I don't have many stories where he is Uke. Still, that does not mean he's going to be submissive, haha!

Now, on with the show!

Enjoy!

Virtue Of Life

Chapter One: Kidnapped

The wind was warm at this time of year and being in the park so early in the morning meant it was completely free of people. That was how Kai preferred it; to have a little peace and quiet every now and then was almost a relief after the noise of the Granger household. It seemed there was always someone shouting or making noise.

"There you are"

The phoenix opened his eyes to find the neko-jin staring down at him; to give Ray credit Kai hadn't even heard him approach. His footsteps were as soft as a cat's. Silently he watched as the tiger released a quiet sigh and settled down beside him; he looked about the park of a moment and watched as an early bird fluttered from one branch to another. The gentle breezes ruffled the tiny feathers and the bird tottered to the shelter of the main trunk.

"So…" Ray was the first to speak; there hadn't been a time in history when Kai had started a conversation "we're planning to go down to the beach. You know, do a little training, maybe go wild and swim. That kinda thing"

Kai didn't respond; in all honesty Ray hadn't expected him to. But as the silence continued to descend down on to him he wondered if all this was really worth it. Kai was his Captain, his friend and someone he valued almost above everyone else; that only meant he would never give up on Kai, it didn't mean he found the effort any less pointless.

"You should come with us" he added as a type of encouragement to make the phoenix speak, he looked down at Kai who was lying next to him "it'll be fun"

Silence.

And then.

"You clearly came here for some other reason than inviting me to a beach party"

Ray blinked in surprise at Kai's voice and then blew out his cheeks " fine" he admitted "I'm worried about you" he glanced back at Kai, and away again "you barely say a word to any of us. You're always on your own, and the only person you really have any interaction with is Tala of all people"

Kai opened his eyes again. The neko-jin wasn't looking at him but up in to the trees instead; he was frowning lightly but paid no heed to Kai and didn't see the look of distrust on the phoenix's face. Carefully Kai inspected the tiger for a little longer. Was there a chance that Ray knew? Kai didn't see how; he and Tala had been careful. Not even Bryan had noticed anything.

But one was never quite sure with Ray; he saw things clearly that others missed. A slight change in someone's personality would always attract his attention. It was one of the aspects about the neko-jin Kai gave praise to; there were, however, some downfalls to someone that never missed a flinch.

"I know what this is all about" Ray's voice cut through the silence; he turned his head and looked down at Kai "this is about BEGA, isn't it? That's why you've been avoiding us"

Kai said nothing.

"It's alright" the tiger murmured "we don't blame you for joining BEGA. It's not the first time you've left us, we forgave you then and we forgive you now"

"I didn't ask for any forgiveness"

"True" Ray admitted "but we give it to you anyway" he smiled "it's not like we can actually blame you in the first place, after all. Joining BEGA meant you would be fighting Tyson, and who hasn't wanted to see Tyson lose in battle"

"You assumed I joined BEGA to beat Tyson?"

"Didn't you?"

Again silence descended; the phoenix closed his eyes and shut the world out. Ray watched him for a moment and then shook his head. He wasn't sure what he was looking for; he knew Kai's feelings about BEGA without even having to ask. The phoenix still held his persona of indifference but he was as easy to read as Tyson or Max. Once Ray had caught on to Kai's little habits he'd been able to spot the little quirks in Kai's temperament; they all had, it was a part of being a team.

The little bird had flown away, frightened by a large black van that had paused outside the boundary of the park. It was quiet now; the breeze had slowed and the surface of the pond was still. From somewhere above the trees the little white clouds floated along and the sun, still in its journey upward, shone upon them. It was going to be a beautiful day.

As he had thought before there was no point in staying here; Kai would say nothing for or against Ray's thoughts. And waiting for him to do so would be another meaningless venture. Still, Ray had done what he'd come here to do. And he knew where the phoenix was at least.

Grunting slightly he clambered to his feet; even though he knew it was completely futile, a little part of Ray wished Kai would react to his movement. But there was nothing; the phoenix didn't even bother to open his eyes. Sighing silently to himself Ray brushed the loose grass from his clothes.

"You know where we'll be if you change your mind"

He hit the path and listened absently to the birdsong about him; the birds were so accustomed to Kai's presence that none of them had flown off. To them Kai had simply melted in to the environment. Ray rolled his eyes lightly as he walked; he knew Kai was holding his emotions on lockdown, which was nothing new, but there was something different about him. It wasn't the constant solitude or the sudden desire to spend his only social time with Tala; it was the darkness that grew in his eyes when BEGA came in to subject, or the slight twitch of a muscle in his jaw.

Whenever Boris was mentioned Kai would simply get up and leave the room. The problem was, Ray didn't know why; it worried him. And he wasn't the only one; Hilary had noticed Kai's behaviour too. She'd always been more attentive to his attitudes than she would have anyone believe, and though there were no feelings of attraction for him (all that was aimed at Tyson – for a reason Ray had yet to discover), she had always cared for Kai as she had for the rest of the team.

Therefore it annoyed her that he didn't reveal his feelings.

Hence she had sent Ray on this escapade.

Despite his claims of uselessness.

Why she had chosen Ray he wasn't quite sure.

Maybe it was because Kai couldn't handle anyone else at this time in the morning.

Turning left on to the main path Ray rubbed the back of his neck with a moan; Tyson had kept them up all night watching movies and eating snacks. At the time Ray hadn't complained; in the light of day, however, it didn't seem such a good idea.

There was the snap of a twig and Ray stopped mid-step. The birdsong silenced in to nothing and even the trees seemed to halt in mid rustle. Golden eyes scanned the world around him carefully; his cat eyes picking up on the beetle crawling up a leaf or a butterfly that fluttered near the flowers on the ground.

Then there was that feeling running down Ray's spine; someone was watching him, hiding in the tree to his left and concealing themselves behind the thick thickets of branches and leaves. There was another person crouched on another branch of a tree on his right, and a third was creeping slowly behind him. He could feel, hear them; they were all around.

And they came out of nowhere.

"Kai!"

The phoenix's eyes snapped open; he sat up and got from the ground, almost in one movement. Without taking a breath he stepped out on to the smaller track that led to the main path. That sound in Ray's voice; it had been alarm, something verging on distress.

Ray could be a lot of things, but distressed wasn't one of them; Ray was cool, calm and collected all at the same time. He could walk in to a room of demons and killers and not bat an eyelid.

That meant that something was wrong.

Very wrong.

For Ray to call out like that meant one thing: he had no control. Having no control was a very rare thing for Ray, when one didn't consider Tyson or Daichi living in his life. Kai reached the main path and looked down it; the way back to Tyson's dojo was empty. The phoenix looked round; it was empty that way as well.

Turning back to the left Kai walked a way searching the ground or the trees for any clue; from the road outside the park a door slammed shut and tires screeched against tarmac as the vehicle roared away. Kai stopped moving. His crimson eyes narrowed.

It was already too late.

As if in confirmation of this something glinted in the early morning sunlight. Kai's snapped to it and leant down to sweep it up. A beyblade – something a champion would never drop or leave behind. This was a clue; Ray must have left it there for Kai to find. And it told Kai everything he needed to know.

Ray had been kidnapped.

"C'mon, Max! Show me what you're made of!"

The blades clashed together and scoured along the beach sending a wall of sand cascading down like grainy waterfalls. The beach was empty this early in the morning; the sea took a few hours to warm up in the sun and until then the two bladers could pretty much call the sand their own.

The plan was to train until it got too busy and then spend the rest of the day splashing in the water, eating ice-cream and throwing Kenny in to the sea – or burying him in the sand, whatever took their fancy. With no tournaments to practice for, and the vague notion of retirement floating amongst them, life was pretty easy for the Bladebreakers; being a World Champion brought fame, yes, but it brought money too.

As far as they were concerned they had all the time and the money in the world.

They could do whatever they wanted – worry free.

It was bliss.

"Hey, do you know what happened to Hilary?" Tyson asked suddenly realising the girl wasn't with them "I thought she was coming with us"

"She went to wake Daichi up first" Max replied "she should be with us by lunchtime"

"That girl really is a sucker for punishment" the dragon snorted "I wouldn't try and wake Daichi for the world"

"I wouldn't even go in to his bedroom"

They both laughed and their blades soared up in to the air and down in to the sand; the boys ran with them as they neared the sea, but instead of swerving back like Tyson had Max sent his blade straight in to the salty water.

"Now see if you can beat me!" the turtle teased, "you know I'm better than you in water"

"No way! I'm a world champ!"

Tyson roared forward and his blade flew through the air with him.

They reached the water together and dived straight in.

Unfortunately for Tyson he didn't see the stone Max had placed conveniently in his path. With a cry and a splash he hit the water and went under. Max smacked his lips and held out in his hand in victory; Draciel burst out from the water and hit his palm. Closing his fingers tightly round his blade, Max held out his other hand.

"Now who's the world champ, huh?"

Tyson sat up in the shallow water and spewed the water out of his mouth in an impressive arch; he scowled up at his friend "low blow"

"I prefer to see it as strategising and using the environment around me to enhance my blading performance"

"Quoting Kenny, are we? He will be pleased" Tyson took Max's hand and hefted himself to his feet, taking his hat from his head he squeezed it tightly "where is the little guy anyway?"

"Don't you listen to anything? Ming-Ming is doing a signing thing today, Kenny left like five hours early so he could be first in line"

Tyson shook his head "that guy and his crushes. The girl can barely sing"

"Don't say that to Kenny, he'll start crying"

"Damn idiot"

They waded their way out the water and headed back up the beach; high above in the sky a seagull gave a cry and swooped down to grab something tasty from the ground. A few cars passed by on the road beyond the beach and a black van pulled up and parked.

The two friends sauntered back to the towels and blankets they'd brought with them; Hilary would scold them for not bringing food too, but there were plenty of places to grab a quick sandwich. Besides, both Daichi and Tyson would spend their day eating ice cream until their brains froze over.

They flumped down on the towels and Tyson sprawled out with a sigh; Max meanwhile felt something shift in his blade and looked at it "ahh, man, that's all I need"

"What's up?"

"My defence ring has gone" Max sighed, "it's completely bust"

"Haha, that's what you get for moving a stone so I fall over" Tyson smirked "karma's a bitch, huh"

"Geez, I'm gonna need Kenny's kit for this"

"I think he left on the table in the dojo" Tyson replied reaching up a hand and taking Max's blade to look at it "I'm pretty sure he's got a spare that'll fit, he mentioned something about creating a new blade"

"Think he'll mind if I take one?"

"Nah, just buy him a Ming-Ming poster. He'll be putty in your hands"

"Mind if I go back to the dojo quickly?"

"Don't sweat it" Tyson handed the blade back "I'll be fine here"

"There anything you want while I'm there?" Max stood up and brushed the sand from his clothes; he pushed on his shoes and slipped his blade in to his pocket "some food or something?"

"Hey, now you mention it some snacks would be good"

"I'll bring you some back" the turtle called over his shoulder as he left the beach and walked up on to the road "if Daichi shows up don't start blading without me"

"Will do!" Tyson closed his eyes "hey, if you see Ray tell him to get his butt here! Kai's not worth bothering with no matter what Hilary says!"

Whether Max heard him or not Tyson didn't know; he paid it no heed however, and placed his hands behind his hand. Settling down again he sighed happily and relaxed; burying his toes in to the sand he let his dreams-

There was a shout.

Tyson opened his eyes again.

The door of a car slammed shut and a moment later a vehicle screamed off down the road, leaving the nasty smell of burning rubber in its wake. Tyson waited for a moment but silence only followed and nothing else happened. Sighing a second time he shook his head and closed his eyes once more.

"Ahh, Maxxie, what have I told you about checking before you cross the road"

It was the constant hum-hum as the engine droned continuously on that woke Daichi up from his deep, dreamless sleep; the monkey boy opened his eyes and immediately shut them tight once more as his vision swam in front of him. There seemed to be some sort of drumming sound, but whether the noise was real or just the pounding headache, Daichi couldn't tell.

"Ooww!" he tried opening his eyes again and this time managed to keep his eyelids apart for a few meagre seconds, but his head thumped with pain again and he re-shut his eyes, anxious to keep the pain at bay. This did not work, however, and Daichi found his hands clutching his head as his headache banged harder still.

"Daichi? … Daichi!"

The little redhead lifted his head groggily, and this time managed to open his eyes and keep them focussed; a hand grasped his shoulder tightly and that sharpened his attention.

"Daichi! Can you hear me?"

It took Daichi a few heart-beating moments to answer as he tried to recognise the voice calling to him, his eyes may be open but his vision was blurry and he couldn't make sense of the face that was inches away from his-
SLAP!

"OWW!"

Pain, and the sharp singing sound as hand struck cheek brought Daichi's sense rushing back to him so fast he found his reactions too slow to the goings on around him, at least he knew who the face was in front of him.

"Daichi, you need to wake up!"

"I am awake, woman!" growled the monkey, a hand pressed to his cheek to ease the harsh sting "that damn well hurt!"

"I had to slap you!" replied Hilary hotly "you need to stay focussed, Daichi. This is a serious situation!"

"What serious situation? What are you babbling on about, crazy lady!" the monkey rubbed his cheek as his newly focused vision told him, for the first time, that something was wrong.

He seemed to be contained in an oblong box, it was gloomy as the only source of light was from a small window in the roof of this box that seemed to let the sky through. He had no idea where he was and was sure as hell that he was no longer in his bed, all he could make out was that he was trapped in a box. And yet, though he appeared to be in a box, he got the feeling of motion throughout his midriff.

Indigestion?

Daichi's eyes narrowed as he grabbed a handful of his stomach and tried to remember what he'd last eaten; it didn't feel like indigestion, and where was he? What was he trapped in?

It was, he realised, the inside of a van. And it was moving.

"Hey, where am I? Why aren't I in bed?" he demanded glaring at Hilary with accusation "what have you done with me?!"

"It's not me, you fool!" Hilary sighed exasperatedly "we've been kidnapped!"

Daichi laughed, he hadn't meant to; it had sort of escaped from him "don't be silly!"

Hilary glared "it's true! We've all been kidnapped! You, me, Kenny, Ray and Max! All of us!"

"Kenny?" repeated Daichi blankly "Ray, Max?"

Rolling her eyes Hilary pointed over Daichi's shoulder; the younger boy turned and his eyes widened with a gasp as he saw three limp figures sprawled out behind him. Max was leaning up against the wall of the van his head lolling to one side, Ray was next to him slumped down to the bottom his raven head resting in his arms while, on the other side of Max, lay Kenny leaning heavily against the turtle as he slept on.

It was now that Daichi felt the hard thudding of his heart.

"It's alright" Hilary assured him "they're not dead, I checked"

"But why are they here?" asked Daichi ardently "why am I here? Where is here?"

"I don't know" Hilary shook her head as she leant back against the wall next to her friend; now Daichi was looking round, desperately in search of an escape "it's no good looking at the doors" she told him as he shuffled his way over to them "they're locked from the outside"

"What about that window?" Daichi tried to squeeze his fingers in to the crack between the doors and force them.

Hilary looked up with a sigh "even if we could open it there wouldn't be much point" she replied heavily "you and Kenny might fit through it, but Ray and Max never will. Their shoulders are too wide"

Daichi gave up on the doors with a growl "but why is this happening?!" he fumed as his temper rose to hide his growing fear "where are we going?"

Hilary shrugged and tried to maintain a calm façade "I don't know" she replied in a voice stronger than she felt "all I know is that we're stuck in a van. Stuck in a van with no escape"

I was just going to end the chapter with Tyson and Kai totally confused by the whole situation, but I felt like the chapter needed something else and I added that last scene. I hope the characterisation was alright. I wanted to get the relationship between the Bladebreakers across also, showing the different feelings and emotions that are swimming round in the aftermath of BEGA - good or bad.

So, what do you think?

Please leave a review.

Thanks for reading!

Kiki