Chapter One: Letters From a Thief
The sun rose that morning with a dazzling brilliance, giving each and every skyscraper a cloak of bright orange to wear for the first hours of the day. Dismal streets glowed with a golden blanket as a pair of hurried footsteps made their way down Fifth Avenue. He was late, he was certainly late! Oh, why had he fallen asleep so early last night instead of heading to the B-Pit as he had planned? After all, one shouldn't just hand off their Bey and forget to check in on it after a good three hours. That was unthinkable!
The dashing figure stopped at a pair of bright glass doors right at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and Birch Street. A white scarf fell on a blue jacket as the figure panted for his breath. Alright, so perhaps running halfway across town before breakfast wasn't his best idea. The boy then stood up with a smile on his face as he ran a hand through tall red locks. The double doors of the familiar building beckoned him on with a reflection of bright gold and orange, shimmering alongside the metal buildings.
Pale hands reached out and pushed the doors open, a small bell alerting the shop owner of his presence. Just in case the owner hadn't heard—which was possible seeing as she was so focused on her work most of the time—he decided to let out a yell of greeting.
"Morning, Madoka! I'm so sorry I'm late, but I'm here to check on Pegasus—"
His voice caught in his throat as he found the shop in utter shambles.
Blue shoes walked forward and found potted plants overturned, glass displays broken and shattered on the floor, signs and posters ripped with violent gashes and hanging limply from their once proud stands and what appeared to be some sort of stain on the tile near the counter. The boy tried to remain calm as he walked over to the spiral staircase with a single thought in his mind.
Please be here, Madoka.
"Madoka?" A weak call echoed off dark walls in the lower level. Brown eyes searched the room with a nervous energy, searching for the slightest movements inside of this shadowed corner of the building. "You down here, Madoka?"
The sound of his footsteps against carpeted floors was the only thing that answered him.
His eyes scanned her workbench as he clenched an empty fist against his side. Her tools were all in place, drills and cleaning brushes in the exact order that she always placed them. His eyes soon found a lone Beyblade resting on the surface of metal and his left hand quivered as it lifted the small top from the bench.
It was his Pegasus, all fixed up and ready to be polished. Only...no one seemed to have gotten that far yet.
At that moment, his heart sank to his feet. Madoka was the type of person who wanted things done in a certain order, at a certain time and with a certain rhythm. She would work for hours to ensure that things were finished and polished before she even thought of sleeping—or leaving the shop for that matter. Madoka would never leave a Beyblade unfinished, never.
"Madoka!" He now found himself racing back up the steps with a frantic yell. "Madoka?! Where are you?!" His feet nearly slipped on some liquid on the floor, but he paid no heed. "Please Madoka, answer me!"
Brown eyes suddenly registered a gleam in the corner of his vision.
The boy whipped around and found a strange amulet on the main counter of the shop, the necklace holding some sort of black jewel in the center of what seemed to be a teardrop made of silver. The boy's gloved hands picked up the jewelery with a shaking but gentle grip. His mind raced for answers as he turned the necklace over in his hand, the cord twisting in mid-air and proudly shimmering with the rays of morning light that had managed to slip in through those glass doors.
Madoka didn't own anything like this, it was too ornate for her tastes.
He then noticed a small note right where he had picked up the strange amulet. Quietly cursing over not noticing the far more important note first, he tucked the necklace in his pocket and took a look at the written message.
Gingka Hagane,
Greetings and salutations, powerful blader. My name is Kyu, and I have quite the message for you. Your quite talented friend, Miss Madoka Amano, is currently in my possession and waiting for your arrival in my tower. However, this is not just a simple 'find and rescue' mission, dear Hagane. In fact, this is something far more important. I have recently discovered that you happen to know quite a bit of precious information. I, to be honest with you, have the desire to know quite a few things that you are aware of, and request that you and five friends join me in my quaint tower in South Kito City. Your little friend will be properly cared for, I can assure you. However, if you deny this invitation or happen to alert any authorities of this, you will learn how hard it is to lose someone you care deeply about.
Affectionately Yours,
Kyu
Gingka felt as if he was about to be sick.
What did this 'Kyu' person possibly want with him or Madoka? What could possibly drive this character to kidnap one of his best friends and hold her captive like this? Beside the motive, where were they? He's never even heard of 'South Kito City' before, and he's been everywhere on his journey! A wave of nausea overwhelmed him and suddenly Gingka found himself fall to his knees and struggling to breathe. This couldn't be happening, this just wasn't possible!
Oh, if only he had been here to protect her last night! He was certain that if he hadn't fallen asleep so early last night and neglected to come here, Madoka would be safe and sound right here in the shop and this 'Kyu' person would be behind bars for attacking his best friend.
The sound of the front door's bell rang out above silent tears as Gingka's vision blurred around him. Numbly, he glanced up and found a swirl of peach and green, accompanied by orange and gold from the outside. All he could do was lift the note in the air and whisper with his tightening throat,
"They've stolen Madoka. Madoka's been kidnapped."
Author's Note: Sorry if Ginkga seems out-of-character, but I believe his anxiety is justified.
Special thanks to Aki the Neko Bunny, TheMidnightEcho, BlackCatNeko999 and ShinyBlackwolf. I'm very thankful that you four wonderful people took the time to review my work! I was very nervous about this being posted and never read, but I'm glad to see that it's not the case. Thank you so much for your feedback, and I hope that this story continues to be a thrilling read for you.