Me: Gingka!
Gingka: -sighs- While Seeker is getting ready to go to work with her ballet friends, I'm stuck i=with introducing the story. So, here is the sixth chapter of Captured. Seeker is so grateful for all of the reviews she got and each person, she believes, will have their own little momentary surprise by the end of the story... whenever that will be. Enjoy!
The five Legends all stared at her in surprise.
"What?" Madoka asked uneasily.
The voice in the speaker began to laugh. "Come up to the Command Room and we'll talk more," the person said before the speaker went silent.
Everyone turned in complete shock towards the sudden sound of Kyoya chuckling. However, when he caught sight of their stares, the Leone blader cleared his throat and resumed his usual indifference appearance. "Come on," he said as he began walking towards the door, the others following him in confusion while the Legendary Bladers grinned excitedly.
After being pulled up to the floor just above the one that the bay was on, the elevator doors opened and revealed a relatively dark room. Zero and his friends, being the ones to first step into the room, saw the ten huge monitors around the room that formed a circle around them. A shadowed figure who was leaning against the wall seemed to be avoiding the light the bright monitors were giving off.
"Who are you?" Zero demanded, taking a few steps closer to the figure.
A chuckle resounded around the room as the man took a step into the light.
Zero thought his heart had stopped and was pounding ten times faster than normal all at the same time. The blader then leapt towards the man with tears in the corners of his eyes. Once he'd collided with the figure, Zero wrapped his arms tightly around the man's waist, nuzzling his now tear streaked face into the man's heaving chest.
"I'm so glad you're okay," Zero whispered.
Gingka chuckled softly as he wrapped his own arms around the Ifraid blader, being careful with his injuries. "Me too."
After several minutes with the others watching the scene, tears in a few eyes, Zero finally pulled out of the hug before turning to face the rest. With his arm still around Zero's shoulders, Gingka smiled sheepishly.
Madoka took in the redhead's appearance in one glance: thickly bandaged arms and torso, the bandages around his chest peeking out at the collar of his shirt, the scrapes and bruises both visible and hidden by the bandages, and the way he leaned on Zero heavily while trying to hide it. In short, Gingka looked like a wreck.
Kyoya grinned as he stepped up to face his rival. Examining him from head to toe, then back up, Kyoya smirked. He'd never seen Gingka dress so casually. With black sweats, a blue top, his usual blue headband, and a pair of blue socks with red toes and heels, Gingka looked extremely different than what the Summer Blader was used to.
"Hurt?" Kyoya asked softly so that only the Pegasus wielder could hear him.
Gingka hesitated but soon nodded slightly. "Very," he replied just as quietly with a wince while he stepped away from Zero, limping just enough for a certain brunette to notice.
Madoka narrowed her eyes at the seemingly impassive look on Gingka's face. Then, his eyes flickered in her direction and Madoka instantly understood the look he was giving her. He was putting a brave face on for everyone so that they wouldn't worry about him. Seeing the way no one else seemed to be reacting to Gingka's masked pain told the mechanic that only she and the Legendary Blader of Spring had recognized the facade.
So, being true to her nature, Madoka smiled and yelled, "Gingka! You really scared us back there! You're so reckless sometimes!"
Both Kyoya and Madoka caught the tiny sigh of relief Gingka gave before he chuckled, a painful wheezing sound that sounded like nails scraping on a chalkboard to his friends. "Yeah, I know. Next time I won't, I promise."
King crossed his arms over his chest and gave a sharp laugh. "Right, and as soon as that happens, I'll go conquer the galaxy with my bey."
Giving his friend a grin, Gingka shook his head. "Sorry, it's already been done, King. What if you conquer the conqueror?" he asked with a challenging gleam in his golden-brown eyes.
"Or the one who's going to beat him?" Kyoya and Ryuga said at the same time, each knowing that Gingka shouldn't battle at all right now. The two tensed when Gingka swayed slightly, his face paling slightly but the redhead remained standing tall in complete defiance of even the thought of pain.
"Ryuga knows too," she breathed so that nobody else heard her. The thought made her smile as she remembered how caring the Dragon Emperor truly was beneath his fierce mask.
"What is all of this?" Maru asked, stepping in front of one of the many monitors.
Gingka grinned along with the other Legends. Before any of them could respond, a light laugh came from a doorway behind Gingka. "This room is to help us watch the world. It's amazing, isn't it?"
The Autumn Blader chuckled as he turned. "Yeah it is," he replied with a grin. "How are you doing, Titi?"
A fuchsia haired blader then stepped farther into the light, a smile spread wide across his face. "Great! How's our fearless leader?"
The heads of the others aside from the Legendary Bladers whipped from the Venus Blader to the Autumn Blader in shock. "Leader?"
Gingka smirked but ignored their questioning looks. "I'm just fine."
Titi eyed the redhead before playfully poking him in the ribs, making the Legend hiss and grip his side tightly as he fell to his knees while Titi recoiled in shock.
"Gingka!"
Waving them off, Gingka shot a glare at Titi, the Venus Blader not even noticing it as he looked sorrowfully at the bandages he had just now noticed. With a moan, Gingka finally dragged himself to his feet once more.
The Legend opened his mouth to voice his threat but was cut off by an alarm and a flashing red light. With wide eyes, Gingka turned slowly to face the closest monitor where a red warning box had appeared. After typing a few commands into the computer, the redhead faced his friends once more. "I'll be right back," he promised before instantly disappearing through the door Titi had entered.
"Get back here Hagane!" Kyoya snarled as he raced after his rival.
Everyone but Ryuga stared at the doorway in confusion. "What just happened?" Ren asked.
"That idiot just left to go to a town a few miles south of here. They've been in trouble lately with bladers terrorizing them. Gingka's been working on that case for a while now, working undercover and stuff. When Kyoya and I got mixed in with it on accident, Hagane told his 'boss' that it was his fault that two of the strongest Legendary Bladers were there. Gingka got severely punished by the guy in charge. But when the guy found out his little minion was actually Hagane, well, things didn't go as planned," Ryuga replied.
Madoka's eyes widened. "Not go as planned?"
Nodding, Ryuga sighed. "Yeah, Gingka was supposed to be able to surprise them somehow and take them down that way, but Lion boy and I messed things up big time when we got spotted. It eventually ended up with getting the three of us in that warehouse."
"Wait a minute!" Chris yelled. "You're saying that Gingka has been working undercover on this for forever and you and Spring suddenly got involved. Then the whole thing blew up and that's how you three got captured?"
When he didn't say anything in response, Ryuga watched out of the corner of his eye as the realization dawned on everyone's face.
"Oh no," Madoka breathed before she too raced out of the door after Gingka and Kyoya.
The room was silent for several minutes before an explosion rocked the floor. With wide eyes, the group followed Ryuga through the door and down a flight of stairs to the bay where four beys clashed head on.
"Kronos!"
"Jupiter! Don't let him pass!"
"Stop him Leone!"
"Pegasus! Push them back! We have to get through!"
The mouths of the younger bladers dropped at the sight of the heated battle between Aguma, Dunamis, Kyoya, and Gingka.
"Keep him busy, L-Drago!" Ryuga yelled as he launched, creating another huge explosion. The Legendary Blader of Summer then dove for Gingka, the two falling to the floor as Ryuga wrestled the redhead's wrists to the ground.
Pinned as Ryuga sat on top of him, Gingka growled. "Get off of me!"
"No!" Ryuga snapped back, his hold on Gingka's wrists tightening.
Gingka replied with a heated glare.
In another explosion, Aguma watched as Kronos was thrown into the wall behind him, lodged deep inside of the concrete. Jupiter quickly followed Kronos' example while Dunamis grit his teeth.
"Leone! Hold him back! Don't let Pegasus get past you!" Kyoya yelled as green flames wrapped around himself and his bey.
Gingka grinned from his position on the floor. "Not today! Stardust Driver!"
A flash of light sent Leone stumbling, but the bey once again resumed its clash with Pegasus as L-Drago made a six foot wide ring around the two, watching them carefully.
"What are you doing Gingka?" Chris asked, his brow raised.
As Ryuga's gold clashed with Gingka's golden-brown, the redhead replied, "I was just going to go get a burger."
King scoffed. "In the middle of the launch pad?"
Ryuga smirked down at the one trapped beneath him as Gingka growled in frustration.
After several minutes of sparks flying between the beys, Madoka as as tears gathered in her eyes, "Who hurt you?"
Finally breaking the glaring contest with Ryuga, the Autumn Blader visibly shrunk at the sight of the brunette's tears. "I-I can't tell you," he whispered.
Kyoya huffed before he caught Leone, surprising everyone. "Who hurt you? And I want a straight answer," the blader demanded.
Gingka looked away, unable to meet his rival's pleading gaze.
Another blaring of an alarm soon had Gingka struggling under Ryuga's grasp once again, the redhead somehow winning in the power struggle. Answering the Dragon Emperor's cry for help, Kyoya was quickly beside the two, gripping onto Gingka's shoulders and pushing them to the ground.
Twisting in an attempt to get away from them, Gingka suddenly screamed as his left arm was wrenched painfully. Immediately, everyone in the room froze, staring wide eyed at the Legendary Blader of Autumn.
Immediately the Spring and Summer Bladers leapt off of Gingka as he gripped his left shoulder tightly, biting his lip to hold back another wail as his body began to quiver in agony.
Realization then dawned on Ryuga and Kyoya as their faces paled. "Your broken arm," Ryuga muttered, watching with sad eyes as his rival rolled over onto his stomach.
King shifted uneasily as he glanced from one Eternal Rival to the next. "Broken arm? What do you mean?"
Both sighed as Ryuga and Kyoya gently positioned Gingka so that he was laying on the ground with Ryuga's cape as a pillow. "Hagane somehow hurt himself between being kidnapped and getting himself in that warehouse we were in," Kyoya replied as the two glanced at their rival who was breathing heavily with his eyes squeezed shut.
"So why isn't he wearing a cast or something?" Shinobu asked.
"Because he refused," Yuki replied as he walked towards his leader. "You have to let me Gingka," the Anubis blader said as he knelt beside the redhead.
Gritting his teeth, Gingka shook his head. "I'm fine. Just give me a second."
"Enough!" Zero yelled, startling everyone but his closest friend, the Legend look sad as he watched his protege. "Tell us who did this to you and why you're so bound and determined to go to that village!"
"A friend of mine lives there," Gingka replied, looking away as he bit his lip.
Madoka raised her brow. "Who? Do we know your friend?"
"I don't know if you guys do but Kenta does."
The Saggitario blader looked shocked. "But who do I know that they… Wait, him?!" he yelped in astonishment.
Gingka made no reply.
"You got yourself hurt for HIM?!" Kenta roared, making the Pegasus wielder flinch but continue to look away. Kenta threw his arms up in the air. "I can't believe it!"
"Well believe it and let me go," Gingka grunted as he painfully pulled himself to his feet.
When Ryuga and Kyoya moved to push the blader back to the ground, Kenta shook his head. "No. Let him go. Say hi to him for me," Kenta called after Gingka as the Legend ran towards the bay doors.
"Bay doors, open. Password Pegasus," the redhead called as he slipped his shoes on and raced out of the parting doors.
"Won't whoever is attacking the village recognize him though?" Ren asked as they all watched the doors close.
Kyoya shook his head. "He has a disguise that will hide his true identity. Gingka will be fine. He's done this plenty of times so he'd better be," the Leone blader growled.
Ryuga grunted. "Hurry up Hagane," he muttered under his breath.
Still watching the doors in hopes of Gingka returning and calling it a bluff, Madoka whispered, "Be safe Gingka. Come back no more hurt than when you left. I'll miss you."
I hate blowing them off like that, but I didn't really have a choice either. It was either that or get my arm stuck in a cast and not able to launch. I can hardly launch even now and a cast would just make it worse.
Madoka doesn't think I heard that last little bit but I did. Security cameras were a great secret investment. With them hooked up to these goggles, I can see and hear everything that goes on at base while I'm in the field.
However, spying while injured isn't easy. I'll have to hold back unless I'm directly told to do something. Even then I might only do it with half of my normal effort. Either way, I'm still really hurting and that puts me in danger. If I can just get to him before the real fighting begins, then I might have a chance to save the village. I just hope they don't go after Madoka and the others.
Despite that fact, a hidden savior is still a savior. I plan to keep people safe. Let's just hope I'm not too late.
Gingka: Rate and review!