Dried Tears II: A Championship of Challenges
Chapter 10: Two Warriors, One Goal
My apologies to all my readers for taking so long in bringing up a new chapter. I hadn't written fanfiction in over a year because I lacked the inspiration (and time, to be truthful) to sit down and write a good piece of fiction. This chapter has been under construction since a year ago, me adding little bits and pieces every time I got a spec of inspiration. As a result, I'm sad to say this part that is being uploaded is not as good as I wanted it to be, but hopefully the next one will be better. I'd like to thank all of you who are still with me even after all this time. You guys are the best. :)
The next chapter, as well as random updates for my other fics (be it Beyblade, Kingdom Hearts of Yu-Gi-Oh! G/X) might be up this summer, so keep your eyes peeled!
"Mom… why are you doing this to me?" Ray whispered as his hands were clasped with irons against the examination table. Some time ago, the boy had decided against struggling. He was outnumbered… he would only end up losing and getting hurt… which would eventually lead to more pain. And Ray was no masochist.
"You're the only one who I can do it to, my dear. You're going to help your dear mother prove that I don't need to mess up your DNA for the Sacred Unification. You have it there. And all it needs… is a little nudge." She replied with a chuckle before standing back. Moving onto the control panel, she slipped on a pair of protective glasses before reaching for a switch.
Ray shut his eyes tightly in fear, as he muttered a silent prayer.
Every step he took was strong and unwavering… his eyes burned with the flare and passion of the hurt phoenix looking for revenge.Kai clenched his fists tightly as he came to a stop before the daunting doors of the steel fortress of what he now knew was Doctor K's lair. This was the place… and as much as it peeved him to admit it, he wouldn't be here, with the chance of saving Ray at his fingertips, if it weren't for the rough Draconean blader. Lance… why exactly was the redhead going to such extremes to help Ray? Kai was sure that, if he got caught, the other Russian blader's punishment wouldn't be light. It might even cost him his life.
"Just what is going on inside your head, Lance?"
The crimson-eyed blader just shook his head. He would never understand how Lance's mind worked. Besides, he had other things he needed to worry about right now. Ray was in there somewhere… and every moment he spent loitering outside was a moment that Ray was in danger.
"This is it, huh, Kai?" Tyson came to stand next to him. The shorter blader looked up at his team captain with questioning chocolate orbs. The phoenix simply nodded in assent.
"So, stick to the plan, right?" Max now came to stand beside his navy-haired boyfriend as he looked up at Kai. The slate-haired teen remained silent as his crimson eyes bore into the cold steel doors. His response, however, came after a couple of seconds.
At hearing his captain's words, both younger teens nodded in understanding.
"You know what to do."
"Stop…please. You know you don't want to do this." Ray pleaded one more time as his mother adjusted her security glasses. Golden eyes quivered as he received naught but a look and a grin from the woman he was born from. "Please…"The woman was about to pull the switch when suddenly the entire building became flooded with the abrupt, blaring noise of the lab security alarms. A collective gasp came from Ray, Dr. K and the accompanying staff in the room.
"What the bloody hell is going on?" Doctor K snarled as she snapped to glare daggers at her assistant. The man let out a whimper before turning swift fingers to the lab computer. After several seconds of typing, the screen came up with images of the front gate completely destroyed.
"Ma'am, I'm afraid there's been a security breach!"
The raven-haired woman's eyes quivered in anxiety. This couldn't be. This fortress was supposed to be impenetrable. She had personally made sure that the most high-tech systems and locks were installed, and she had requested the doors to be made of the most durable, impenetrable steel. There was absolutely no way anybody could penetrate her defenses, unless…
Her eyes suddenly widened in realization. "Hiwatari…" Who else could it possibly be?
"Ma'am, the intruder is moving in fast through hallway B-5. Pretty soon they'll enter corridor E." the unfortunate man informed his superior, which in turn only earned him a scream from the doctor.
"Don't just sit there! Do something about it, you insolent fool!" her golden eyes slit in dangerous annoyance as she ripped off her security glasses and sent them flying at her assistant. The man yelped as he barely dodged the projectile and quickly turned back to grab the microphone.
All security personnel. Head immediately to corridor B-5 and stop the intruder at all cost. This is an order!
Doctor K clenched her teeth as she held her hand in a trembling fist. This was impossible… there was no way… How exactly had the boy been able to figure out the defense system's weak points? The only ones that new that were herself and…
For a second time that day, her golden orbs widened the size of saucers as it all came to her.
"Lance!"
"Nicely done, Tyson. Nicely done."
Kai smirked as he ran down one of the winding steel corridors of the base. Somewhere on another part of the building, Tyson and Max were probably wreaking havoc and drawing all attention towards themselves.
Attention, all security. Report to corridor B immediately! RED ALERT! RED ALERT!
The slate-haired teen looked extremely pleased. So everybody was to head over there, eh? Good. That would leave his path clear.
His alabaster scarf trailed behind him as he disappeared down the hall. He was almost there.
"Go and find him, Kai. Good luck." Tyson mentally wished his friend luck before turning to the defending power-launched blades. "Dragoon, attack!!!!"
Max was quick to follow suit as he stood readily next to Tyson. "Draciel! Let's do this!"
Bits and pieces of beyblades flew everywhere as Dragoon's gales and Draciel's tides overcame the automatic beyblades before the two young bladers proceeded to continue their trek down the hallway.
"Ma'am, the intruder has entered corridor E." the doctor's assistant gulped as the woman clenched her fists in anger once more.
Before she could scream out in fury, a shaky-looking security guard ran into the room, saluting as he spoke to the doctor.
"Ma'am, we've done everything in our power to try and stop them, but the Bladebreakers are just too strong." He reported. "What should we do?"
The woman looked to the side, thinking turning back to face him. "Assemble all beyblading units in front of corridor C-2 and await orders. Lance will join you shortly."
The guard's face brightened considerably. "Yes, ma'am!" And with that, he ran out of the room.
"Will Lance join them, Doctor?" her assistant asked while looking at her quizzically. In response, the woman simply grabbed a strange-looking contraption from her desk before heading towards the door.
"Keep an eye on Ray. I think it's time Lance got a reminder of who's in charge around here."
Oh, she would show that wretched Russian yet. But right now, she had another Russian to worry about, one that was currently ravaging the entire facility for his son. Which reminded her…
"Oh, and if you see Hiwatari…," she commanded her assistant as she sent a malevolent smirk Ray's way, "…Kill him."
"No… Kai!"
Ray frantically struggled, yanking at his restraints like the desperate, wounded tiger he was. He would not allow it. He would not allow this… this witch to take anything else away from him, especially not Kai.
"I-I won't…" he panted as he pulled harder, bruising his wrists in the process. "I won't let her… do this to me!"
Dr. K's assistant chuckled as he observed the young neko-jin, who had no choice but to stop and take a breather as he struggled to get some oxygen in his system. He had to admit, his mistress's son was really something else, but that poor youngster would end up killing himself before he managed to budge those binds. They had been specifically developed by himself and the Doctor with the purpose of restraining Lance. Adding to that the fact that Ray was still weak from the tests and experiments run on him, the kid's chances of escaping were extremely slim, if any.
The raven-haired blader turned to glare at him a deadly golden glare, his fangs slightly bared at him, before doubling his efforts.
"You can twist and pull all you want, but you are never gonna move."
The man got up and walked towards the table. He examined the boy closely. His wrists were almost in bare flesh already, causing the boy to wince and whimper as the iron dug into his wounds. He was about to make another snide remark when a figure suddenly came crashing down through an overhead vent, causing him to jump back in surprise and causing Ray to flinch away.
The man's eyes widened as he received a deadly glare from the teen that now stood before him.
"You!"
King winced as yet another alarm started blaring throughout the complex. He paused momentarily to curse slightly for the duration of the alert, before resuming his crawl through the air vent.
"Why is this cursed place so damn big? I've been crawling through this vent system for hours and…" he stopped suddenly as he finally came to a vent big enough for him to crawl out of.
"Success!"
The tanned blader proceeded to carefully pry the vent open. When the small gate was finally loose, he lifted it and gently placed it to the side before peering down. All he could see was an empty hallway, made completely out of steel. He was about to jump down when his ears perked up at the sound of approaching, running footsteps. As the figure rounded the corner, King scowled when he noticed who it was…
Slate bangs overshadowed a face gritted in determination. Muscles were ripped and tense, and crimson eyes looked almost desperate as the teenager ran down the hallway as fast as he could. King let out a growl.
"Hiwatari…"
There was no doubt in the Gemini blader's mind that he and Hiwatari were there for the same reason… Ray. How the other blader had managed to make it all the way here was beyond him, but he was not about to sit around as the slate-haired teenager took the lead.
Without hesitation, King jumped down the vent and landed right in Kai's path. The phoenix initially took a step back in surprise but let out a growl when he realized who was standing in his way.
"It's you."
"Lance?" Ray cried out in surprise as he recognized the redhead.
The Russian blader didn't answer, instead focusing on the trembling adult before him.
"Y-you!" the assistant shook in fear. "You're here for the brat, aren't you?"
Lance didn't answer. Instead, he slowly made his way to the shivering man. Seeing that his deadly experiment was getting closer and closer to him, the man scrambled to get away.
"No! Stay back!" he hollered as he pulled out a small handgun from a compartment under his seat, which he pointed at the redhead. Lance did not falter, his emerald eyes glaring viciously at him as his fangs threatened to sprout.
Ray's eyes widened at the sight of the weapon. "Lance! Be careful!"
"No! GET AWAY FROM ME!" the man screamed as he pulled the trigger several times. His attempts were all unsuccessful, however, as he was too terrified to aim properly. Without a second to waste, the Draconean blader pummeled him, knocking him out almost instantly.
"That was for making me your fucking lab rat." He murmured as he carelessly kicked the gun out of his "creator's" limp hand. He then turned to Ray. "You alright, kid?"
The golden-eyed boy grimaced as the clasps further dug into his flesh. "I've been better." He answered through gritted teeth, almost fighting back tears.
Lance examined the shackles before looking apologetically at Ray. "This might sting a little…"
Kai scowled before lashing out in impatience and hatred at the white-haired blader before him. "What the hell are you doing here?"
King flicked his hair contemptuously before turning to answer Kai. "I'm here to find a gorgeous raven-haired boy. So why don't you just run along now and play with your little red canary?" he taunted with a smirk.
Kai's blood was already boiling, not because of the petty insults, but because this bastard was just wasting his time.
"Move." He commanded as he aimed Dranzer straight at his face.
King brought his own blade to face Kai. "I don't think so."
They were both ready to launch when a painful scream pierced the air. Crimson and copper orbs widened as they both recognized that voice…
"Ray!"
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaagh!"
Ray cried out in pain as Lance gripped the clasps around the raven-haired boy's injured wrists, his rough hands inevitably coming in contact with the bare flesh. The poor boy felt his skin was on fire and the feeling would not shake off. Lance cursed lowly in Russian before pulling at the clasps. They just wouldn't move, and he was only hurting Ray more and more.
With a growl, his eyes suddenly obtained an eerie red glow as Draconean lent him strength. His muscles slowly bulked up before he cleanly ripped the clasps from the now-upright table. The poor neko-jin collapsed in a writhing heap as his wrists bled.
Throwing the irons out of the way, he kneeled next to the whimpering neko. Taking some gauze the Doctor had left on a nearby table, he carefully wrapped Ray's wrists. The neko turned pained yet grateful golden eyes to the Russian.
"Thank you…"
The Russian nodded in acknowledgement before quickly getting up on his feet, taking hold of Ray's hand and pulling him up.
"Hurry. We have to get out of here now."
To Be Continued…
There it was, the awaited Chapter 10. Sorry for the many divisions. -'
I'd like to thank all of those who reviewed. Lance, Kai and Ray plushies for all of you. Other than that, I really have nothing more to say except thank you all for sticking around with me, even though I'm a big loser who makes you guys wait too long. I love you all. If any of you go to college in Pennsylvania (especially Penn State), please let me know. I'd love to meet another Kai x Rei fan in the flesh.
Until next chapter…
XOXO
Neko Phoenix Girl