(A Few Days Later)
(DJ's Viewpoint)
I had woken up at 6 AM trying to get this new ring done. I was in my small office while everyone was asleep working on trying to build this ring. I had gotten the outside of the ring done but now I needed to get a magical stone inserted into it. I reached into my long coat that I was wearing and pulled out my black magical stone. "I don't have much time." I said as I put the stone down on the table. Where I placed the stone was right in front of a photo of my mother, and the love of my life: Dustin. I picked up the photo of Dustin who had very short brown hair slit back, was wearing a plain white T-shirt with blue jeans and a black belt wrapped around his waist. He stood at my height as you can also see me in the picture standing in front of a waterfall when we went on our sixth date 6 years ago. A tear ran down my face as I had a small flash back to five years ago.
The flashback was me on the ground after an explosion was made in my lab that I was working in. I remembered looking up to see Dustin dragging my body as blood smears were being made on the floor. "DJ! HANG IN THERE! DON'T DIE ON ME!" He said. I remember looking at my fingers that were having these purple cracks form. I remember I broke out of his control and tried to crawl my way back to somewhere.
"NO! I'M NOT LEAVING MY MOTHER!" I screamed as I tried to call out my mom's name. But Dustin was forcing me to leave as our entire lab was making explosions everywhere.
"DJ ARE YOU INSANE?! You saw her transform into that angelic like monster! We need to get out of here!" Dustin said. I then broke free from him as I began running away from him and deeper into the lab.
"I have to seal the belt away. If Makoto gets her hand on Dragon she'll destroy everything! I need to seal Dragon along with that belt!" I kept saying to myself as I was dodging debris flying at me.
I finally came back to the present as tears ran down my face. "Mom…Dustin…I miss you so much…" I said as I cried. I couldn't work on making the ring so I grabbed my stone and put it back in my pocket. I walked over to the door and took my keys off the wall and went to my car. When I went to my car I drove over to Grounds for Thoughts where I met Rachel.
"Well if it isn't DJ. You never come here unless something is up. What's going on?" She said as she began making me some coffee. She walked with me over to a table and we sat down. Grounds was always empty until about seven in the morning and I just stared at the coffee.
"Rachel, do you think Dustin's death was quick?" I asked her. Rachel reached out and grabbed my hand.
"Dustin loved you very much. You know he would do anything for you. As for his death I'm not sure. You're guess is as good as mine." She said back to me.
"I just want all of this to end. Do you think it's high time I told Travis and Mark about Vanity? With how things are now, Makoto might try and revive her." I said as tears wouldn't stop running down my face. "You guys told me to stop messing with magic. That it would bring nothing but bad news, but I just couldn't stop. I wasn't expecting things like this to happen." I just had a hard time holding onto my composure and Rachel got up and wrapped her arms around me.
"DJ you have to stop beating yourself up. You can't change the past. Plus you know that Vanity can't be resurrected. She is too powerful for the Phantoms to control. Makoto knows that and so do you. Plus I doubt that Makoto knows where Vanity's tomb is located. You're the only one who does." Rachel said.
"Should I still tell Travis and Mark? They already know my secret when I brought back Robin. I'm trying to work on a ring that will explain everything to them but I don't have much time." I said to her feeling defeated.
"Look if you want I'll be there. How about three days from now. That's Sunday and I have that day off. We'll all sit down and talk to them. If you need help with the ring I can try and help. But right now why don't you spend time with the gang. Everything is going to be okay." She said. I held onto those words as I thanked her for the coffee and got up and walked out the door.
"I don't know why but I feel like I won't be around to help with your quest much longer Travis. But someway somehow I'll finally do something right for once no matter the cost." I said looking up at the starry sky.
(Travis's Viewpoint)
(Two Hours Later)
I was soundly asleep and I was enjoying my sleep until I felt someone violently shaking next to me and when I awoke I saw Manuela moaning in her sleep and violently shaking about. I quickly placed my hands on her shoulders and kept a low voice, "Manuela. Manuela wake up! You're having a nightmare. Hey." I said to her as she stopped moving and her eyes snapped open. When she did and saw me she freaked out for a second. When she finally realized it was me she quickly threw herself on me as she began hyperventilating.
"Thank…Tha…Thank goodness…" She said trying to form her words into sentences.
"Manuela what the hell happened? You were having a terrible nightmare." I said trying to calm her down.
"I-I-I Saw you d-d-die. You an-and M-Mark were lying on the gr-gr-ground and—" I quickly had her lay up against me as I rubbed my hand from the top of her head down.
"Okay Manuela breathe okay? Just breathe. Inhale and exhale." I said as I started doing breathing exercises with her. She started calming down. When she was ready she began speaking.
"You and Mark were fighting this Phantom that looked like an angel made out of stone. You both were knocked out of your transformations and she threw a spear at Mark and you ran to protect him but when you did, the spear hit you in the back and you died instantly. It wasn't a dream or a nightmare, it felt so real. I've had these kinds of dreams before and most of the time what happens in the dream becomes real. I had one about Maria dying and that dream was I found her body in a corn field, the exact one where you fought Kamaitachi. I don't want you to die Travis. I can't lose you." She said as she buried her face in my shirt as she was holding onto it tightly. I wrapped my arms around her.
"Manuela nothing is going to happen to me. I'm going to be okay. Come on let's get a shower and get something to eat. I'll make those strawberry pancakes that you like so much." I said to her. She slowly got up and we went to take a shower together. When we were done she started doing her hair and makeup. I walked and put on a black shirt and put on my red jeans as I walked downstairs and into the kitchen. I started cooking Manuela her favorite breakfast as I started thinking about what she had told me.
"She was able to vision her sister's death? Does that mean I'm going to die fighting a Phantom?" I wondered as I flipped the pancake over to cook. While the pancake was cooking I walked over to the fridge and pulled out the carton of strawberries and strawberry syrup and put them next to the stove as I kept my eyes on the food so it won't burn. When I was done I turned the stove off and slid the pancake onto a paper plate and grabbed a knife to cut the strawberries. I then placed them on top of the pancake, sprinkled a bit of cinnamon and sugar, then took the syrup bottle and poured it. I made the letter M on the pancake which is something Manuela loved seeing me do then grabbed a fork and knife as I walked out of the kitchen and back to our room. I heard a soft voice coming down the hall which was Manuela singing.
"…I'm looking at life through my own eyes, searching for a hero to idolize.
Feeling the pain as innocence dies, I'm looking at life through my own eyes.
I'm hoping and praying for a brighter day. I listen to my heart and I obey. How can I see it any other way? I'm looking at life through my own eyes…"
When I was at the door she converted the song into a hum and when I walked into the room I startled her a bit, "You really have an amazing singing voice. It's not too pitched and not too low. Here's your pancakes." I said as I handed her the plate. She had a bright smile on her face as she kissed me on the cheek.
"You should really come see me perform. I'm always topping at the stand-offs that happen every Thursday at the city park." She said as she started eating her food.
"So I hear. I should come see you perform sometime. How about next week? How much is it to get in?" I asked her.
"It's $30 bucks. Half of the fee people pay to come in goes to the top 2. I've been getting first place the past month. I come home with about 200-250 a week." She said with a bit of pride.
"What are you planning to do with all that money? You barely spend any of it." I asked.
"Oh I spend some of it, but I mostly am saving up for me to become an artist. I want to sing and create my own songs but I need money for that. I feel like doing these competitions every week helps me become a better singer and if I can get money from it I'll save it so I can make a name for myself in my life. My sister Maria inspired me to become a singer because my voice was better than hers. Our dream was she would be my dancer for when I hit big if I did the singing part. It was our dream and since she is dead now I want to keep that dream alive by making it a reality." She said twirling the fork in her hand.
"How much money have you saved up?" I asked her.
"I have about $1800 in my savings account at Huntington. I have about $112 in my checking. I've been doing this for the past seven months. I started doing this after Maria's death because it's a great way for me to cope. I've also helped make the competition popular as we get people from all over Ohio to come see me and the other contestants to perform." She said with a happy tone in her voice. She was kicking her legs back and forth as she finished eating. There was just one piece left of her breakfast and she stabbed it with her fork and then turned to me. "Hey babe open your mouth." She commanded. I opened up as put the food inside.
I began to chew and then swallowed, "It's not that bad. I'm not a huge fan of strawberries but that was pretty good." I said to her. I was enjoying the moment we were having until I heard heavy footsteps storming down the hall. "Here's Mark in 3…2…1…" The moment I got to 1 Mark busted through the door holding a bunch of stuff in his hands.
"HEY TRAVIS! You have to check this out! Look what I won just a bit ago! Free movie tickets to the Woodland Mall! We should all go see a movie today! Quick let's get changed and wake everyone up to decide what movie we should all go see toni-…Oh you guys are already changed. Sweet let's go wake up the other lazy bums in their beds and gather in the living room!" Mark said as he dashed out the room and you could hear him calling to wake everyone up. I looked at Manuela.
"Hey did you ever hide that stash of candy that was Mark's favorite last night when we got home?" I asked her.
"I actually forgot." She said back.
"I think he found that stash." I said as I rolled my eyes.
Mark on sugar is never a good sign first thing in the morning. Suddenly I heard him running back towards our room as he ran past the door I heard him say, "Thanks for the candy guys!" Mark said energetically. "Hey DJ wake up old man! We be going to the movies! Whoooo! The day is young and so am I!" Mark said waking up everyone in the house.
Everyone gathered and wanted to go watch some action suspense movie. But when Mark realized that he was missing one ticket we had to decide who was going to stay behind. "I need to get this next ring done as quickly as possible. Why don't you guys go and I'll stay behind." DJ said. Mark and I looked at each other since we hadn't told anyone else about DJ's secret.
"But we want you to come with us." Karina said whining. "You don't come out of the house that much. Plus this is a big thing for all of us. Can't the ring wait till later?" She asked.
"Yea come hang with us! We all have enough money one of us can buy you a ticket." Shawn said excited. Robin had spent the night and even gave her input.
"It's okay to work hard but you have to know when to have some fun. Like a break so you don't overwhelm yourself." She said to him.
DJ kept the smile on his face as he respectfully declined again. Manuela was tugging on my shirt, "Is everything okay with DJ? He's been working really hard on this ring but won't say anything about it. Plus whenever he has time to be alone he takes it so he can make the ring. This has me a bit worried." She whispered in my ear. I whispered back.
"Everything is okay." I said.
"Okay so who wants to get ready for the showing? The mall opens up in an hour we should all get ready and go peruse the stores and stuff!" Shawn said excited.
We all got up and got ourselves ready and in just ten minutes we all headed out the door. Manuela wrapped her hand around my waist as we got on my bike. Mark got into a minivan with Robin, Shawn, and Karina and we all headed to the Woodland Mall on the other side of town.
(DJ's Viewpoint)
-One Hour Later-
"Alright let's try and get this ring finished. I just need to get a piece of the magical stone cut and sanded down so it can fit into the holder." I said as I took out my tools and tried to cut it. I had gotten a good size chunk off and started trying to get it to be a circular shape. This was always a process and is the reason why the rings take so long. I looked at the clock and thought maybe it was okay to take a break. "When it's all done Shawn will be able to create rings without my tutelage." I said. I ended up remembering what Robin had said before they left, "Take a break huh? Sounds like a good idea. I am running on just a few hours of sleep. Maybe a nap is needed." I said to myself. I walked out of my office and into the living room as I laid on the couch and when I was about to drift to sleep but I saw Dustin's guitar hanging on the wall above the TV. It was your classic guitar nothing special. I got off the couch and took it down and began strumming it. My voice went from that elevated pitch to deep like a country singer as I began singing me and Dustin's song.
"See you and me riding like Bonnie and Clyde rolling 95 burning down 129…
Yea…
Looking for the law while I push my luck.
She is riding shotgun like it ain't no thing, turn the radio on so the girl can sing, right.
Pull into the party like yea what's up? tonight it's bottoms up! Up! Up!
Throw it all down rock this quiet little country town and get up!
Drop a tailgate on your truck! Find a keg and fill your cup up!
Kick it on back! Pretty little mama looking at you like that!
Make you wanna slide on in like Girl what's up? And tonight it's bottoms up! Up! Up!
Get'em up…"
I finally stopped strumming the guitar as I remembered how I met Dustin when he walked into Country Night at the bars and heard me singing this song to the customers. "I miss you…" I said as I looked down at the guitar. I placed the guitar back on the shelf and went back to the couch as I pulled one of my Native American blankets over me as I turned on the TV to listen to the news. I began closing my eyes a bit and ended up falling asleep.
I was having a nice nap when I heard a knock at the door. The knock was soft but just loud enough to wake me up. I got up and began yawning as I walked towards the door. "I'm coming!" I called out trying to wake up. Once I grabbed the door handle something told me not to open the door. I stretched out my hand towards my office as my black mana stone floated towards me and I shoved it into my pocket. I then reached into my back pocket as I pulled out a silver pocket knife and opened the blade. I slowly opened the door and when I looked outside I noticed that no one was there. I put the blade back into my pocket.
"Someone is here." I said as I started looking around the yard from my door step. The moment I took a foot outside my house I saw a black cloaked figure swoop from above and kicked me back into my house. The figure had this cloak that covered the entire body and started to attack me in my home. The figure went to do an open palm to my jaw but I was quick and grabbed the wrist before the attack made contact. I raised the arm up into the air and open palmed the figure in the diaphragm. The figure stumbled back and then rushed at me throwing a kick to the crotch which I turned to the side and kicked the figure in the face with my leg. But the figure bent backwards and when my foot went through, the figure stood back up and lifted it's foot as it kicked me across the room until I hit a wall and fell onto the ground. The kick was to my diaphragm and I was trying to breathe while my body was in a bit of shock.
"This person fights like Makoto. This person has amazing speed in combat and flexibility. That moment when they bent backwards to dodge my kick proves that when they were able to keep their position as if it's been something they've been doing for decades. I need to find out who this attacker is." I said as I started to stand up with my hand over my chest.
The figure then rushed at me and based on their stance and the left hand cocked back I knew what attack they were going to use. I took my right hand and positioned to their face and my left hand a few inches directly under my right. The attacker ran straight into my hands and the moment they stumbled back I reached for their throat and then used my other hand to lift them up off the ground and I threw the figure hard on its back. I took this moment to pick up the attacker by their clothes and ran to the other end of the room where I slammed its back against a wall. "Time to unmask my attacker." I said as I grabbed the hood and pulled it back. I ended up dropping the attacker onto the ground as my hands covered my mouth.
"This has to be a joke. You're supposed to be dead…" I said as I looked at Maria Urbieta's collapsed body. I then felt an arm wrap around my throat and could feel my oxygen quickly leaving. I grabbed the arms that were wrapped around me and hunched my back over and then jumped backwards as I slammed the person onto the ground. I finally broke free from my attacker and I saw my old friend Makoto. She had short black hair that was combed to the left side of her face, light brown skin, brown eyes, and was wearing a white long sleeved shirt with ruffles on the wrists and these white and black cargos. "Still wearing men pants are you?" I said to her.
"They feel a lot more comfortable to fight in than women's pants." She said back. "I see you still wear simple clothes as always."
"Yea I do. They may be plain but they work." I said keeping my guard up.
"We don't have to fight like this DJ. I loved you at one point you know." Makoto said to me.
Makoto began flexing her muscles getting ready to fight. "You want to wipe out human civilization, and you were going to do it by using the Phantoms that are scattered about in the world. I'm sorry but after I went through my despair I don't want anyone to go through that." I responded back.
"You know that humans are going to be the reason why this world won't exist. I'm just speeding up the process. The Phantom race is far more superior to measly humans. They don't need no desires, their bodies can easily overcome at least 95% cause of deaths in the world today, and we don't need to eat, drink, or sleep. This is a type of evolution that world needs. All people have to do is give up their weak self for something stronger. I want you to be next to me guiding that evolution. In return I'll bring back Dustin." She said trying to make a deal.
"Dustin is dead, our experiment on the Wizardrivers and mana made sure of that. You wanted to protect human life, but once you got touched by that mana you've changed. You're not the same Makoto I know." I said sternly.
"Then explain how Maria over there is still standing." Makoto said. I quickly turned around to see Maria hit me across the head with a board knocking me out cold. The last thing I saw was Travis and his friends running into the house.
(Travis's Viewpoint)
We had just walked into the house as I saw DJ collapsed on the ground. "DJ!" I screamed as Mark and I quickly approached the attackers.
"Hello Travis and Mark. We're taking DJ with us." The woman in the white get up said to us. I heard Manuela run past us as she ran up to Maria.
"Sis is that you? Sis speak to me! I thought you were dead!" Manuela said as she was violently shaking. I quickly ran to Manuela's side but was arm barred by the woman in the room causing me to fall on my back. Mark came in to distract her but when he went to punch her; she grabbed his wrist and twisted it causing Mark to fall on his knees. I got up to save my friend until I heard a smack and Manuela fell on top of me. I heard Robin run into the room with her gun drawn.
"Make one more move either of you and I'll put a bullet in your legs! Travis get Manuela over here! Mark get DJ and bring him here and stay behind me." I quickly got Manuela up but she was fighting from my control to go to her sister. I finally got control of her. Before I knew what happened I heard a gunfire and when I looked up I saw the bullet stopped in midair. The Japanese looking lady had her extended and I could see some white mana emanating from her hand as a barrier was placed around her, Maria, and DJ. Mark was having a hard time trying to break through the barrier.
"DJ is coming with us. I'm also taking my Teleport Ring back as well Travis. That was a gift for Dark Wizard and not you. With DJ and Maria at my side I will be awakening the Fallen Angel Phantom. I didn't want it to come to this but you and the Primordial One here have been wiping out my forces quicker than I hoped. Flare pick up DJ we are leaving." She demanded.
" Travis, my name is Makoto Fueki. I am the White Wizard that has gotten you this far in your journey but now it will come to an end." Makoto said with a huge smile on her face. She then slid the ring on her finger and scanned it over a red and black driver that was modeled after mine.
"Teleport, now."
The voice in the driver was deeper than what mine was and in a flash of light the three were gone. "NO!" I said pounding the ground. I couldn't see everyone's reactions but you could feel that everyone was shaken to their core at DJ's kidnapping. Manuela broke free from my hold and ran back to our room Mark and Shawn shortly walked out of the house. Karina ran to her mystical ball in the living room as she tried to see if she could scry DJ which she spent the next two hours doing. Robin stayed in the house as I ran out of the house and got on my bike and drove around in the countryside trying to calm myself down.
(Makoto's Viewpoint)
We finally teleported to a laboratory that was once mine, the lab is where DJ, Dustin, Rachel, and I were experimenting on mana and the site where Phantoms became more known amongst the world. There were three capsules on the wall in this giant grey stoned space. It was pretty empty since I had gotten rid of most of the equipment. The walls all had things up against them but in the room itself only laid a few things.
I pointed to one of the capsules that had a bright ember glow, "Flare. Go rest." I said to her as she dropped DJ onto the ground and when she walked into the capsule, it closed with the impenetrable glass door that slid shut. I picked up DJ and placed him on
the operating table I then walked over to a fridge that was active on the other side of the room and grabbed a Monster Energy Drink with a green M on it. I then walked with it back to the table and placed it next to DJ. I pulled up a chair and sat next to him as I stared at him.
"When you awake I will find where your mother rests so I can awake her. I couldn't find Dragon and the Wizardriver because when you sealed it you moved its location, and I know you did the same thing with your mother's tomb. You knew exactly how dangerous your mother was and sealed her away from me somewhere in Bowling Green. What I want to know is where." I said to the sleeping DJ. I knew that soon I will have my answer and then I looked at one of the capsules, "Soon the Obelisk of the Phantoms will rise and my Eclipse will begin. I need to find two more potential people to become Gale and Aqua. Then I'll be able to turn this entire world into a Phantom Paradise." I said.
DJ began to grumble as his eyes slowly started to wake up. "Where am I?" He said trying to realize everything that happened.
"Hey there DJ, sorry for the harsh knock out." I said to him. "Remember this place?"
DJ began to look all around as I could tell that his memories began to swarm back to his mind. I held up the drink I got for him. "I don't want it." He said back to me. I shrugged my shoulders as I opened up the can and began drinking it myself.
"I never could understand why you liked this crap. Even though a fraction of me is human, I can't taste this." I said to him.
"Why'd you bring me here? Why is Maria alive?" DJ asked me with a serious look on his face.
"I've already told you. I want to revive Vanity, and I need your black magical stone to do so." I said as I began walking around DJ and then up to Flare's capsule. I put my hand on the glass as I watched the girl sleeping in an incandescent orange liquid. "As for Maria, well that's one magic trick that this magician is going to keep for herself." I said as I turned around to see DJ chuck a pocket knife at me. I widened my eyes as a white barrier formed in front of me and it caught the knife in midair.
"I see you've also gotten stronger with your powers…Wiseman." DJ said to me. I then had a purple mist form around me as I transformed into my white Phantom form. I began to slowly walk towards DJ.
"That experiment to combine the Philospher's Stone with the Wizardrivers did more than give me mana as well as keep me from dying, it turned me into one of the most powerful Phantoms known to date. Even in my human form I can use my powers to do things to protect myself, similar to how Travis can create spell circles upon his transformations to protect him from an attack. That's another thing too. I need to find that Stone. When I got grazed by its powers it vanished into thin air with no trace to where it went. Even with all of my spells I can cast I can't track it. I need that stone to create the most powerful ring: The Despair Ring." I said chuckling at the thought of what that ring could do for me.
"I'm not going to tell you where my mother lies. She's been dead in the ground for 5 years; I would like to keep it that way." DJ said to me. I quickly spun around and started stomping over to him. I grabbed him by the head and lifted him up off the table with one hand.
"You're going to tell me where Vanity sleeps! The Hope Mage and the Primordial Mage have greatly over the year lessened my pawns that I need to create more Phantoms and I need a way to stop them by any means necessary! Travis is an essential tool for the Obelisk of Phantoms and the Eclipse Ritual. I've worked too hard for the past five years to bring forth the Ritual and I won't allow one person that I have feelings for get in my way of my dreams!" I said as I threw DJ onto the floor.
DJ was on the floor in pain, "You won't get anything from me. I'm not going to make another grave mistake again, us making the belts and dabbing in magic already caused a lot of issues. For instance you were once someone who cared about human civilization, you wanted to protect it not destroy it. Around the globe monsters have begun appearing and they each have their own protectors to fight against or so we heard. I will not be the reason why more innocent people have to die and you shouldn't either!" He said angrily.
I grabbed him by the back of his neck and lifted his face to mine, "I see you are going to have me do this the hard way. You forget DJ I'm the most powerful mage there is. Extracting memories from your brain is mere child's play for me. The only reason why I don't want to do it is because of the pain it causes to the victim. Everything you know I will know. I'm not like Travis and Mark who are extremely weak. They can't cast spells unless they are transformed and have rings for their casting, I don't need such things. The rings I started out with are all that I need. Over the past five years I've learned to use my powers in my human form and soon I'll be able to add them to my Phantom form which will make me even stronger." I said to him.
I had a white mist form around my hand and watched it as it seeped into DJ's skin. DJ began screaming in extreme pain as his veins began to show on his head. He was trying to clutch his head but couldn't. "NOOOO MAKE IT STOP! DON'T DO THIS! STOP!" He said as his body began violently shaking all over the place. His memories began flooding into mine. Seeing things he has done with Travis and the gang, seeing his first Christmas with everyone, the rings that he had made, tears that he had shed whenever looking at his mother's photo, going to Rachel on multiple occasions to find closure for the death of Dustin and his mother, his emotions he was having when Travis fought Dark Wizard, and then I finally got to a photo he had on his desk that he flipped around back when Travis fought Gargoyle that said "Mother's Location." I immediately got out of his memories as DJ had blood pouring out his nose and mouth and was shaking like I electrocuted him. His violent shaking began to greatly decrease and I reached into his pocket as I pulled out his black magical stone.
"There is a lot missing from this stone. Where did you hide the rest of the stone?" I said at DJ as he slowly began to lose consciousness. "ANSWER ME DJ! WHERE DID YOU HIDE THE REST OF THIS STONE! THIS WILL NOT GIVE VANITY ALL OF HER POWER! WHERE IS IT?!" I said screaming at him as he passed out from the pain. I knew it was going to be a while before he would awake so I woke Flare up from her slumber.
"Masked Rider Flare, wake up I have a mission for you." I said as I walked over to her capsule and pressed a button to open it. She snapped her eyes open and we walked out of the lair leaving DJ collapsed on the wet floor. "This stone has enough power to at least resurrect Vanity, I'll just have to feed her power through another magical stone. The only magical stone I have left that has my stored mana is with Howler, or how Travis and Mark know him as Terrion White. He is also the last Phantom that was murdered by a Phantom instead of despairing like the others." I said as we walked out of the lair. Once outside I breathed in and out.
"I can't believe that you created a catacomb for your mother so close to your home DJ. I wonder if your Mages and friends know about this at all." I chuckled. "Flare hold onto me. We are going a good distance." I said to her. Flare grabbed my shoulder.
"Teleport, now."
(Travis's Viewpoint)
I had driven about a half a mile down the road until I came up to the cornfield where Maria was held by Kamaitachi. "What the hell is going on in my life?" I thought as my brain was all over the place. I couldn't think straight but I knew I had to find DJ at whatever the cost. "I'm not going to lose anyone else from my life." I said as I scanned my Plamonster rings.
"Garuda, please."
"Unicorn, please."
"Kraken, please."
All of my Plamonsters pieced themselves together as they awaited my orders. Kraken and Garuda started floating in front of my face and I could hear Unicorn whining as he tried to jump off the ground. Garuda shook its head in disgust as it flew down to pick up Unicorn and had it hovering off the ground with the rest of the gang. "Okay guys can we just focus here. DJ's been kidnapped and is in danger." When I said that Garuda dropped its mouth in surprise and accidentally released Unicorn from his grip. Kraken quickly transformed itself with Unicorn to become a new Plamonster where they could both levitate in the air. Unicorn was not pleased with Garuda.
"I need you three to search all over Bowling Green for him. When you find something out let Karina know and have her call me. Go." I said to them as they all went off in different directions. I looked up from the cornfield and saw a tree with a wide enough branch to sit in. I walked towards it through the long maze and climbed it. On the branch I could see all the way to DJ's house. The sun was shining really bright at my direction so I scanned one of my rings.
"Connect, please."
I pulled out some rope from the red circle and grabbed the branch and tied the rope to the branch I was on that blocked out the sunlight. I then looked around the little forest area, "I don't know why but whenever I'm surrounded by nature things just feel calmer around me." I thought to myself. I listened to the winds gently blow around me and listened to the birds chirping in the other trees. I put my back up against the tree and took my cell phone out and began texting Manuela.
"Babe, how are you feeling right now?" I sent the text back and she quickly responded.
"I'm not feeling well. What are we going to do about DJ? Mark is running around town looking for him with Shawn. Robin left to do a search party and got Rachel and Sarah looking for him. Karina has been looking through her ball but there is nothing." She replied.
"Also what makes me feel more broken is Maria. That was my sister in the flesh, but when she hit me it didn't feel like her. Maria wasn't that physically strong. She left a bruise with that slap on my jawline."
I could tell that this was the source of Manuela's pain. I texted her back, "I don't know what's going on either. Maria was confirmed dead at the hospital. The beating she received was caused by a Phantom and they hit very hard. I don't know what's going on but I promise you I will find out."
She then responded back, "I feel like I'm living a nightmare. I know DJ means a lot to all of us but can you come get me. I don't want to stay here and do nothing while everyone else is doing something."
I replied back to her, "Yea sure. I'm right down the street. I'll be over in about five minutes meet me outside and we will go searching together. I'm sorry I left you guys behind I just needed time to think."
I hopped down from the tree and jogged over to my bike as I got on and heard my phone ring. I opened it to see Manuela having texted me back, "I love you Travis."
"I love you too Manuela." I texted back. I put my helmet on and flipped the eye shield down as I zoomed down the country road.
I walked into the living room to see Karina running straight up to me with an urgent look on her face, "Unicorn found Makoto and Maria!" She said. Manuela had just entered the room.
"Where are they?" I said back.
"What's going on?" Manuela said.
"Makoto is about a mile out from here. There is an abandoned house down the road from where Maria was held by Kamaitachi. It's an old run down shack." Karina said looking at me and Manuela.
"Okay I'm heading out, you two stay here things are probably going to get serious." I said as I ran up to the door and grabbed my black coat. But before I ran out the door Manuela stopped me.
'I'm going with you. I want to see my sister." She said with some fear on her face.
"I wonder if it's also about her nightmare where I died." I thought to myself. I quickly pulled out my phone and texted Mark telling him to come pick up Karina and the place where Makoto was spotted. Everyone was going to gather there. Manuela got on my bike and we drove as fast as I could to the abandoned house down the country road.
I was blazing through the speed limit down the road going about 90 miles per hour and getting to the house in just less than two minutes. Once there we got off the bike and looked at this giant creepy house that was all boarded up. It was a very dark brown with plants growing all over it. The only thing not boarded up was the front door, which looked like it was blasted through. "Could this be where that Fallen Angel Phantom is?" I said as we walked through the door. "Manuela stay close to me." I said to her. You could feel this immense eerie feeling emanating throughout the house. The house was more disgusting looking on the inside than the inside. It looked like this was abandoned for over a decade, even the smell in the house was overwhelming.
"I feel like I'm going to throw up." Manuela said keeping her hands over her mouth.
We walked through the different areas of the house until we found a door that led to the basement. "This is starting to have a bit of a horror vibe to it." I said as the old battered door slowly opened more making a creaky sound. We walked up to the door and stared at the pure darkness.
"Light, please."
I scanned the ring and as my hand lit up and I shot a ball of light that once hit the floor, lit up the entire room. With the darkness gone there wasn't much reason to be scared of what awaited us. We slowly made our way down the stairs into a giant empty and damp basement where we saw another hole in the wall. We quickly ran up to the side of the hole and when I peeked inside I saw a small hallway that went about twenty feet and at the end I saw a room lit up. "Stay close to me and be very quiet." I said to Manuela. We began creeping further into the cavern and I saw a giant tomb with what looked like an angel as the cover standing up with Makoto and Maria standing in front of it. We got up quick enough to hide up against the entrance into the giant cavern looking room. I looked into the room to see Maria next to Makoto who stood in the front of the tomb holding DJ's black magical stone.
"With the power of this magical stone, I, Makoto Fueki release you from the seal done by your son Daniel J Belzung! I give you the power from his stone to give you life and have you walk amongst the living once more! Arise! Vanity the Fallen Angel Phantom! Serve me to create a world where Phantoms rule!" Makoto said as she slammed the magical stone into the tomb and a giant black mist of mana began erupting from the stone and seeping into the tomb. A black pillar of light shot up from the tomb and into the ceiling making a pathway to the outside world. Makoto grabbed Maria's hand as they walked into the black pillar and got transported up.
"I don't know where that goes but we need to head above ground ourselves! Manuela let's go." I said as I grabbed her hand and ran into the pillar. We were immediately taken up to the surface and were thrown out of the pillar as we rolled onto our sides until we came to a stop. The black pillar began to vanish as Makoto and Maria were standing right in front of the tomb once more that had black cracks forming all around it. We heard a car screech as I looked over to see my friends finally arriving on the scene. Shawn was running towards me as he tripped and fell holding his head as he began screaming in pain. Karina who was running towards me stopped as she looked like she was paralyzed with fear. Mark was having a hard time moving forward with fear keeping him where he stood still. Manuela quickly hid behind me as she began to cry and when I looked at the tomb I could feel what everyone else was feeling. "This is no ordinary Phantom. It hasn't even been released and it's caused all of us to become overwhelmed with fear." I said.
Black miasma began circling around the tomb in different directions and once the miasma got absorbed again into the tomb, the whole thing began to crack and then shattered into giant pieces onto the ground. Once that happened all of us could feel the sensation that kept us bound to where we stood as the pieces slowly began to stack on top of each other. They formed a greyish white Phantom that had black and white wings, a face with small blue eyes, a halo wrapped around its forehead, it's body covered in feathers with some of the black and white, black fingers, a grey fabric cloth that was wrapped around each leg and ran up the back as it was wrapped around the neck like a choker. The Phantom then breathed in a massive amount of air and when it exhaled it caused us to feel a giant breeze pass us by.
"I've almost forgot what this sensation felt like." The Phantom said with a crackly voice. You could hear its body cracking loudly all over the place as it moved each body part while stretching.
"Travis! That's the Phantom my mother warned me about! We were supposed to kill that thing while it was asleep! I had forgotten all about it till now! Don't let that thing live any longer!" Shawn screamed at me. This caused the Phantom to look at Shawn as it raised a hand up and a black ball made of mana began to form.
"I hate loud creatures." The Phantom said. I turned to see Mark running towards Shawn.
"Driver On!"
"Oh no you don't! Transform!" Mark said running to Shawn's defense.
"Set! Open! L-I-O-N! LION!"
Mark quickly transformed as the black ball zoomed towards them and I watched as it got swatted away by his Dice Saber. "Mark behind you!" I yelled at him as he turned around to see the ball coming back around and colliding with his back sending him flying all the way towards me knocked out of his transformation. He had cuts all over his body and blood slowly pouring out of them. He was moaning in immense pain as it was hard for him to move his body. I quickly lifted his head up scared for what could happen.
"Agh…I'm okay Travis it's just a flesh wound ha ha ha." He said joking about the situation. He then tried to get up off the ground but fell onto the ground. "AH! Okay not getting up got it." He said trying to make light of the situation. I placed him slowly back on the ground as I stood back up.
"Driver on, please."
"No one hurts my friends." I said in a low tone.
"Oh so you are challenging me huh? You've got some balls if you think you can beat me. With how much mana you have not a single attack you make will hit me." The Phantom said with a light cocky tone.
I flipped the levers on my belt, "I wouldn't underestimate me before you even get a chance to see what I can do." I said to her.
"Sha Ba Doobie Touch to Transform! Flame…Dragon! Burn! Burn! Burn! Burn!
A red fiery dragon zoomed out of my belt and circled around me. When my transformation was complete I was holding two of my swords that were resonating a red fire on the blade. "Ooh very impressive that your magic has allowed you to do that much. Fine I will play with you until you can't even stand anymore." The Phantom said. She summoned out two blades that were both made of feathers. One was white while the other was black. She swiped at my neck and I did a hanging block. She then took the other blade to slice at my chest but I put a lot of force behind my other sword that I did not only knock away her weapon, but was able to come down for a slash. But right before it would cut her, she grabbed my wrist. I was doing everything I could to force the blade down but she had control of my arm's movements.
She then raised her foot up to kick me which I dodged to the side but fell for a trap where she had her wings erupt out of her body and wrap themselves around my arms as I got lifted up into the air, then slammed into the ground multiple times. After the last collision into the ground she lifted me up once more until I was about a few feet above her. She bent down and picked up my weapons that I had dropped, "I don't like it when people don't listen. Wizard, you can't scratch me. In order to do any damage to me you have to have the same amount of mana as me or greater. I'm not even at my full power and all I've done in this little squabble of ours is toy with you. Take this lesson to your grave." She said as she pressed on the triggers to my blades that were still lit up in fire and slashed them across my chest. I was let go from her wings and was sent flying across the battlefield until I was up against the house. I was knocked out of my transformation state covered in burns and blood streaming out of my body.
"I shouldn't be feeling these burns on my body. Flame Dragon makes it to where I don't get harmed by fire attacks, so why is this different?" I said trying to stand up but the pain was keeping me down. The Phantom then began talking.
"I have swiftly taken out the two mages who you have been trouble with Makoto. Amongst the two mages there seems to be one that can consume the life of Phantoms. This one could prove a problem with us; I will be the one to end his miserable life once and for all. Mark Allen Boger, aka Masked Rider Beast, let it be known that on this day, I Vanity of the Fallen Angel ended your pathetic and meaningless life." Vanity said as she raised a hand in the air. A spear shaped like her feather blades appeared.
"I need to…Move!" I said as I fought against the pain and began running to Mark's defense. "I won't lose Mark again. I won't lose anyone ever again!" I said as I used my pain as motivation to run as fast I could.
"TRAVIS NO!" I heard Manuela scream at me. I then remembered what she had told me this morning. "You got hit with the spear in your back…" I remembered her saying to me.
"I'm not going to die here!" I said as I took out a ring from my pocket and scanned it. When I did Vanity threw the spear and I wasn't going to make it in time but I knew my spell would.
"Voice, please."
I stretched my hand out as ripples began making a loud noise that quickly spread across the battlefield and it collided with the spear knocking it a couple inches past Mark. Vanity began running towards Mark to finish him off but I directed my hand towards Vanity which caused her to fall to her knees closing her ears. When I finally got to Mark my spell canceled out and I fell to the ground as all that pain I was ignoring now came back to me. I was screaming very loudly as the pain kept getting worse and worse. I had my eyes closed hoping that the pain would become a bit more bearable. I felt something grab my neck and lift me up off the ground. I opened my eyes to see Vanity, "I don't know how you were able to do a miracle like that but I can guarantee you it will be your last. Can't cast spells if your arm's broken right?" Vanity said as she dropped me onto the ground. She then kicked me until I was on my stomach and grabbed my arm and twisted it behind me. I don't know what she did next but I heard a giant snap and I couldn't move my arm. My body was now unable to do a thing except roar in pain from everything going on. Vanity then grabbed me by my jacket and threw me farther away from Mark. I had landed on my back next to my other friends.
"Travis! Travis baby stay with us! Oh my god…" I could hear Manuela say. I tried to keep my eyes open as I saw Vanity walk towards Mark with the same spear in her hands. Mark was slowly backing up.
"Goodbye Primordial Mage." Vanity said as she raised her spear. I couldn't move my body and I saw Mark making eye contact with me. He began to mouth words to me and I watched as the spear came down. In an instant someone ran past us really fast and stood over him with the spear through his chest. When I saw this happen everything around me became inaudible. I don't know what happened but I looked at Mark and slowly moved my gaze up to the person who saved Mark. A flash of light was made next to Vanity as she fell onto the ground from Makoto pushing her. I finally opened my mouth as the person fell onto their knees with blood flowing down his body.
"…DJ…" I said.
I felt something inside me thrashing about in my heart and mind as the emotions starting rapidly building up inside of me. I looked at everyone who was struck hard at what had occurred and Makoto was holding his almost dead body. DJ looked at me as I began fighting against the pain to run to his side. His eyes almost closed and I finally made my way next to him and Makoto. Makoto was trying to talk to him but I couldn't even hear her I was focused on DJ.
"Tra…Vis…I'm so…Sorry for everything…I'm sorry for…" DJ said as his eyes closed and Makoto gave out a harsh cry. I quickly shook him with my other arm.
"DJ! Finish your sentence! Don't die on me! Wake up! DJ WAKE UP! Open your eyes! Please!" I said as tears flowed down my face. Mark began crawling his way towards DJ as he bursted into tears over him. "This isn't supposed to happen…Why is this happening?" I said as I felt a piece of me rip apart. Vanity kicked me to the side as well as Makoto. My hearing came back as I heard everyone's feelings screaming out. But most of all I heard what Vanity had to say.
"What a pathetic person. Dying for a hopeless cause makes humans to be weak. When I help create Phantoms I will make it so that the weak remain buried. Maybe I should keep a piece of his body to use as a symbol of what weakness really looks like. I think I'll keep the head." Vanity said. Rage boiled up inside of me and I felt a dark presence lingering inside. Dragon pulled me into my mind as he started flying all around me and landed right in front.
"There is a way for us to stop Vanity, but you will need me to have complete control of your body." Dragon said.
"I won't. You will go on a rampage and cause me to despair. I knew this when I first got the Drago-Timer." I said angrily.
"Yes but if you don't let me out, DJ won't be the only person who dies today. You have to choose. Will you have one friend die, or all of them?" Dragon responded.
"I want to ravage the hell out of Vanity for DJ. I want to rip her to absolute shreds. I'll let you out, but when we are done you are going back here." I said as I agreed.
"Very good. Your emotions will give me even more power than before."
I reached out and touched Dragon and when I did everywhere around me became black.
(Mark's Viewpoint)
Vanity took another step towards me and grabbed me by the throat as she lifted me up off the ground and reeled her arm back. "Nothing will stop me from killing you." She said. She then looked down at the ground as Travis grabbed her leg and then her wings with his one good hand. When he was able to stand, he did a right solid punch into her side hard enough that she dropped me and fell onto the ground.
Travis's eyes looked like an eclipse, "Nobody will harm my friends." He said with a heavy tone in his voice. I then heard his arm make loud snapping noises and twisting all over the place. Watching this painful procedure was hard but in seconds his arm was completely healed. With that same arm he raised it until you could see the whole Drago-Timer gauntlet rested on his wrist.
"Is that really you Travis?" I asked. I was really confused at how he was able to summon out the Drago-Timer. Travis began snarling and growling and it was really creepy to hear. He then started turning the dials to the appropriate colors while hitting the black thumb.
"Flame Dragon!"
"Water Dragon!"
"Hurricane Dragon!
"Land Dragon!"
The dragons appeared but didn't stay around. Travis then restarted the dial again and flipped the levers on his belt. A mixture of red, blue, green, and yellow mana started forming around Travis as he gave an evil expression to Vanity.
"Transform." He said growling.
Travis then scanned the ring on the gauntlet over his still transformed belt.
"ALL DRAGON FORMATION, Please!"
Each elemental dragon form then violently collided with his body as he began to get lifted up into the air and his entire body transformed. Everyone in the area looked at Travis's new form as he was in Flame Dragon form with black wings out his back, a black tail, yellow dragon claws, and his gem faced looking more like a dragon's. He flapped his wings once and it almost caused all of us to get flown off the ground. I saw movement in front of me as Makoto and Maria were huddled around DJ's body.
"I'm getting you out of here DJ! Hold on to me Flare!" Makoto said as she scanned her ring.
"Teleport, now!"
In a flash the three vanished and Manuela came and helped carry me back up to the road where everyone else was at as we began to watch these two go at it.