FINAL CHAPTER IS HERE!
SPECIAL NOTE: The poem used in this chapter belongs solely to me and IS NOT TO BE TOUCHED WITHOUT MY PERMISSION OR YOU'LL REGRET IT!
Thanks a box of chocolate fudges for staying with me throughout the story. Thanks to my beta 'skyressshun' who also helped to develop the plot and...well...JUST THANKS EVERYONE! :D
Fall in the Fires, Rise from the Ashes.
Chapter 20: Hear my Screech.
Kai could feel the tension building up in his chest as he stared at Black Dranzer's bit-chip blankly. Something heated in his pocket but he ignored it...for once. He was still fighting himself on the inside.
He was standing all alone in front of the bathroom mirror, not daring to look at his reflection. That was when he sensed a presence behind him and he knew all too well who it was.
Before he could do anything, the presence spoke up, "Come on Kai...you know you want it." There was a sneer in the cold voice.
"No...leave me alone." Kai scrunched up his eyes, closing them tightly.
"Rubbish! Stop getting yourself all worked up over this petty issue. We both know what you want." A cruel smirk spread across the extremely good-looking face.
"I just want you to get the hell out of my life!" Kai turned around abruptly.
"Let's not curse like that, dear Kai..." The sinister voice continued, "After all, you know you can't win this situation."
Kai gritted his teeth at the dark form, "I know what I have to do."
"Do you?" The mysterious shadow was obviously amused...his expression showed his amusement clearly, "I don't see the problem here then. Why would you choose my twin...over me? I've got more power...and deep down, you know you desire it."
"JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!" Kai had yelled before he realized his volume.
"Kai?" There was a knock on the door, "You okay?"
"Yeah Tala..." Kai forced himself to calm down, "I'm fine."
'If this goes on forever...I'll be damned. But do I really desire power...like Black Dranzer just said?! No! I have to stay strong. I can't lose focus...not now.'
Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Kai splashed his face with cold water, looking at his reflection somberly. Crimson eyes were void of every emotion now.
As he exited the bathroom, Kai could feel ice blue eyes of a certain red head trained on his back. He tentatively ignored the pointed look his best friend was sending him and continued his way to the corner. With a sigh, he glanced at the clock. According to Boris, about five minutes were left for them before they would 'wreck havoc' as Bryan put it.
Kai could feel the heat of his guardian bit-beast as it heated from deep inside his pocket. His time was drawing closer. He couldn't back down now.
The door opened and Boris entered, glaring at the boys coldly, "Come outside within next two minutes. Any slip-ups and you'll regret it."
Tala nodded curtly and the door closed with a slam.
Once again, the boys was left to themselves. Tala took a deep breathe. It was time to show his leadership skills, "Okay guys..."
The others looked at the red head.
"I know what we went through was hard to bear...but we've got to do this. If we can pull through this one...I'm sure we can change our lives. Today...we have to end this. Just...give your very best out there. Keep an eye out for Boris and Voltaire and everything will turn out fine." Tala swallowed, this encouraging speech was proving to be harder than he thought, "Bryan...don't be too violent...Ian...don't underestimate your opponent...Spencer...don't push them to their limits...and Kai..." Tala looked in crimson eyes directly, "Don't do anything reckless. Don't even dare to be an idiot!"
Kai glared but said nothing. And the team left the room after exchanging brotherly hugs and words of encouragement.
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"AND NOW! HERE WE ARE FOLKS! OUR FIRST MATCH..." Jazzman stopped for a moment, listening in the ear piece for the instructions before continuing, "AS A SLIGHT BEND IN TREND...THIS TIME, A BLADEBREAKER GET TO CHALLENGE A DEMOLITION BOY!"
Loud cheering erupted.
"Dickinson...you fool..." Boris seethed as he heard the 'bend in trend'. He was going to need a change in his plan. On the chair beside him, Voltaire was seated who was glaring hatefully at the old BBA chairman.
Mr. Dickinson smiled under his mustache. He was tense but at the same time, he was glad to make this sudden decision. This could give them enough time for their operation.
"SO...STEPPING FORWARD TO REPRESENT THE BLADEBREAKERS...WE HAVE...TYSON!"
Spot light pointed at the navy haired blader.
"OKAY...LET'S SEE WHO TYSON CHALLENGES NOW!"
Tyson looked at the familiar Russian team. He couldn't detect any emotion in their expressions...not even a certain blue haired teen was letting his mask slip. Taking a deep breathe, Tyson pointed his index finger at one of the boys before speaking in a clear voice without hesitation, "I challenge Kai."
The said teen looked up at the three words and blinked.
"Tyson...what is he doing?!" Max wondered out loud.
"Yeah...I thought he said he would challenge Tala or Bryan." Ray glanced at the navy haired blader, "I hope he knows what he's doing."
Tala turned to look at his best friend, "Well Kai...I know you're not going to back down from a challenge even if it'd from the most annoying brat on this planet so...good luck!"
Kai gave a ghost of a smile before the two locked hands and he stepped up to the stadium where Tyson was waiting.
'Kai looks different but I'm gonna confront him today...right here, right now.' Tyson studied the teen before him.
'I guess this is it then. If I lose control today...then this would be my last battle. But I have to win...at any cost. I have to pay for the freedom of my friends.' Kai resolved his determination.
"OKAY...SO WE HAVE TYSON...VERSUS KAI! BLADERS, GEAR UP! 3...2...1...LET IT RIP!" DJ Jazzman announced.
Dragoon and its opponent hit each other hard, shooting sparks in the red beydish.
'What am I missing...' Tyson looked at the spinning blades in confusion when he caught glimpse of something black, 'HEY WAIT! Is that...is that Black Dranzer?! He's using Black Dranzer instead of his real bit-beast?! No way!' He gasped at the piece of information.
Kai forced himself to keep attacking and not call out the bit beast from within the bit-chip. He couldn't. But the power tugging at his mind was strong...stronger than him. He refrained from yelling the dark phoenix's name as a broken shard of Dragoon's blade grazed his cheek slightly.
"Kai!" Tyson's patience was running thin now, "Kai...what the heck are you doing?! Where's Dranzer?! Why are you doing all this?!"
Kai glared at the other teen coldly. He really was dense! Didn't he realize it by now that this was all wrong?! And he expected him to answer?! Shaking his head with a sigh, Kai tried to force Black Dranzer to switch to defense. He didn't want the dark bit-beast to use up his energy. His energy was a fuel for Dranzer and Dranzer only.
He could feel Black Dranzer protesting at that. He wasn't letting it attack properly and was constantly forcing it to just defend itself from Dragoon's attacks. He could almost sense the anger of the dark bit-beast at that. He knew he had to do something soon. He couldn't go on like that.
Tala studied Kai sharply. Something wasn't right. Kai wasn't attacking! What in the world was he thinking?! He couldn't fight like that forever! One way or another, he had to do something!
Kai suddenly felt a tug at his mind and he realized a bit too late that the dark phoenix had entered his mind.
"Kai! You bloody idiot!" Black Dranzer sneered, "Let me crush him or you'll be the one to pay!"
"Do I give a damn about what you want to do out there?" Kai regarded the beast coldly, "No one harms my friends when I'm around!"
Despite the clear message of 'don't mess with me', Black Dranzer became furious. His unwilling master was not bending as he willed him to, "Fine then! Face the consequences!"
Crimson eyes widened for a moment before shutting tight as Kai felt a splitting pain in his head. A fog covered his mind, preventing him to catch hold of complete consciousness. His posture changed.
"What the...?!" Tyson took a step back as he saw dark waves radiating from his rival. Even his beyblade was surrounded by a dark aura as it hit Dragoon...hard.
When Kai opened his eyes, they were glazed over and...a deep black. An expression of pain crossed his scratched up face before it became impassive. His body tensed and when he attacked again without a word, the beydish began to crack.
"No...Kai..." Tala stood up abruptly, followed by the rest of his team.
"What the hell is wrong with him?!" Bryan's eyes widened.
"He's not himself!" Spencer observed in disbelief.
"What's going on?!" Ian tugged at Bryan's arm.
"Damn it..." Tala silently cursed under his breathe. This was not good. And he had to stop it...now...or else, he'd lose his best friend forever.
Without thinking, Tala sprinted over to the stadium where Kai was standing. He was almost pushed back by the dark aura surrounding the teen but he made it and trapped the boy in an arm-lock from behind, "No Kai! Snap out of it, you idiot!" Tala shook his friend roughly.
By now, the crowd had gone completely silent. Tyson was looking at the beydish in confusion. Bryan and the others were shocked at the turn of events.
"Yes Kai...very good...let the beast take over you..." Voltaire mused to himself, observing his grandson closely. Beside him, Boris was rubbing his hands together in anticipation.
"What's happening?" Tyson tilted his head to get a better view. He could hear Max and Ray coming over to stand behind him, down the stadium.
Boris caught sight of Tala, "What?! What the hell does that fool think he's doing?! He'll ruin everything!" He decided to stop him and went down towards the hall from where, he could access the team.
"Kai!" Tala tightened his grip as Kai struggled to break free, "Listen to me dammit! This isn't who you are! Don't let Black Dranzer control you! You promised Kai...remember?! You promised back there!"
The red head was trying anything he could think of to stop the teen from losing himself to the evil. He had promised Kai that he wouldn't let him fall. It was time to prove that.
"I wont let you lose yourself to that thing Kai! I wont! I promised you!" Tala shook the teen violently when Kai didn't respond, "Don't do this! Fight it! You can do this!"
Kai's eyes turned back to crimson for a brief moment before he closed them and when they opened, they were black...again. However, this time, his face clearly showed pain. Tala could feel the wetness from where his hands were present on the teen's chest and he could only assume that he had re-opened his wounds while battling.
I am the Phoenix,
And I'll rise from the ashes,
Died by my own fire's licks,
Flames of darkness,the wretches,
"Fight back Kai...don't give up..." Tala whispered, "You...are...not...evil." He made sure to say each syllable separately, "You're stronger than this."
Black changed to crimson once more as Kai's barely audible voice reached Tala's ears, "Tala?" Fear of what was happening was concealed in his hoarse voice as he fought the mental pain.
"Yeah, it's me." Tala smiled slightly, "Come on...don't let Black Dranzer control you. You can do it."
"...can't..." Kai's breath hitched as his world began to spin.
"Yes, you can!" Tala held the teen by the shoulders, rotating him around to face him. Pale face with painted cheeks was right in front of him now, "I believe in you Kai..."
Kai shut his eyes tightly again as another wave of pain racked his body. Red stains had begun to appear on his shirt's front. Gripping his head harder at the pain, Kai willed himself to calm down as he confronted Black Dranzer in his mind.
"Stop fighting me, Kai! You can't defeat me!" The dark bit-beast mocked.
"No! I will destroy you!" Kai did something he didn't expect himself to do. In his mind, he lunged forward and threw himself at the dark phoenix, tackling it. The connection between the two broke at the sudden attack and Kai felt the dark presence leave his mind.
This cycle of death and rebirth,
Increases my dignity,
From the depths of earth,
I shall emerge for eternity,
However, it was not over as crowd gaped at the new sight. Surrounded by black and red flames, Black Dranzer had rose from it's chip. As it lashed out for its master, something heated in Kai's pocket and in the next moment, a blinding light filled the whole arena and when it settled down, everyone watched in awe as Dranzer appeared to defend her partner.
This had turned into a new battle now...a battle between two opposite twins. As the two phoenixes lashed out at each other, loose feathers began to fall here and there, smoldering slightly, either black or golden.
Tala noticed the gradual slacking of Kai's grip on himself and tightened his hold on the teen. He was breathing heavily and Tala wasn't quite sure if it was because of exhaustion or pain, or both. He just hoped it wouldn't get worse.
Bryan craned his neck to look behind him when he heard stomping of heavy footsteps. Boris advanced on them and Bryan hid his smirk at the look of pure rage on the man's face.
"What is that bloody fool doing?!" Boris glared venomously at the remaining team mates of the Russian team.
"How should I know?" Bryan couldn't keep his mouth shut when he thought...this might be their chance to be free from the abbey's hands. All because of a certain someone who was fighting for his life up there alongside the clashing fire-birds.
"You..." Boris stepped forward but was stopped in his tracks as the lilac haired blader punched him...square in face. Staggering backwards, the man grabbed his broken nose and soon, his palm was covered with blood.
"Bryan..." Ian squeaked.
"What?" Bryan turned around, "Don't you see?! This might be our chance to get out of that hell hole once and for all!"
Not wasting anytime, Spencer and Ian joined the fair blader in beating up Boris who couldn't defend himself now when his weapons were wrenched out from his grip. Three angered Russian boys against him only...wasn't an appealing thought. And that was all he could think of before another punch crashed against his head.
Back on the stage, Kai could feel his energy leaving him as the rush of adrenaline wore off. Every ounce of his strength was being drained out of his body as he struggled to maintain his balance and help Dranzer at the same time. Despite Tala standing behind him, he could feel the red head's astonishment as he watched the twin birds fight.
All of a sudden, something happened. Dranzer's bit chip flew out of Kai's pocket and hit Black Dranzer's chip. The two phoenixes collided together and an explosion roared, racking the whole stadium by its hinges. When the clouds of smoke and dust cleared, those who had eyes watched in disbelief at what had happened. Only one phoenix was visible now. The other one...was no where to be seen.
The winds are howling,
Woods are calling,
Spirits are scowling,
Sky is falling,
When the debris settled down, the bladers and the rest stared in awe at the glorious bit-beast. Black Dranzer...had merged with Dranzer! Streaks of red, orange, purple and black flecked the golden feathers now. Indigo blue eyes pierced everyone's soul before the powerful phoenix screeched with all its might and shattered, going back into its bit-chip. The beyblade came to a halt after wobbling a bit.
At the same time, brightly contrasting spots danced in front of Kai's vision and his world began to transform in a black hole. Tala gasped as Kai suddenly collapsed in his arms and he was brought down to the floor with him by the sudden dead weight.
"Kai? Kai...?!" Tala frantically shook the boy by his shoulders before gripping his scratched up hand in his own, "Come on...you've got to hang in there..."
Kai just dry heaved in response and rage engulfed Tala as he saw the blood leaving Kai's system freely through the wild, re-opened wounds. The blue-haired teen was semi-conscious as he tried to register his blurry surroundings.
Tala let go of Kai's hand before standing up. Facing the crowd, he braced himself before shouting, allowing his voice to be heard by all who were present there at the time, "SEE THIS?! THIS IS JUST THE PROOF OF WHAT HAPPENS IN THAT ABBEY! BEHIND THOSE WALLS LIES ONLY PAIN! AND THEY EXPECT US TO BEAR THIS ALL OUR LIVES! OUR WHOLE LIVES ARE SPENT FEARING THAT ABBEY AND ITS MENTORS! AND YOU THINK WE DON'T FEEL ANYTHING?!"
Voltaire stood from his seat furiously, "Shut up, you damned boy..." As he seethed, he could almost feel everyone's hateful glares on him. Most people knew Boris ran the abbey by his financial support, "I didn't raise you just so you could ruin my fame!"
Tala was now yelling at the top of his lungs and crowd was beginning to see the sense behind his unplanned words, "NIGHTMARES! NIGHTMARES HAUNT US FOR THE REST OF OUR LIFE WHENEVER WE SLEEP! THERE IS NO MERCY AT THAT PLACE! WE ARE FORCED TO GROW UP BY BEING BEATEN AND STARVED EVERY SINGLE DAY! ABUSE CAN'T EVEN START TO DESCRIBE WHAT GOES ON IN THAT DARK PLACE!"
Time change the fate,
The destiny is carved,
Eerie silence await,
Raging storms charged,
"Tala..." Bryan felt pride at his friend's words. This wasn't a plan but once the people saw what happened at the abbey, their freedom would be no problem. Beside him, Spencer smirked at the thought of freedom and Ian gaped at Tala.
Max's mouth was hanging open and Tyson had mimicked it unintentionally. Ray felt anger boiling inside of him at Tala's words. They had always misjudged the Demolition boys! No wonder Kai was upset when Tyson had insulted the Russian team.
Voltaire glared at his grandson and the red head as he slid his hand in his pocket. This could turn the tables on him! No! Tala's words were going to scar his life! He will not allow that! It was time to silence a certain red head.
A silver revolver glistened in his hand as he took aim at the boy's head. A hole through his head should be satisfying enough.
Promises are shattered,
Hearts are broken,
My soul is battered,
The sacred one has awoken,
Kai opened his bleary eyes, moving shakily to at least sit up. He look at Tala in confusion as he registered what he was saying, addressing the listeners present there. Amongst the crowd, most of the women were crying, holding their own children close. Even some men had tears in their eyes and anger showed on their faces as Tala revealed the abbey's dark and painful secrets. The truth was uncovered now. How would Voltaire react to it?! The sudden thought of the man made the teen look above where he was sitting...now standing with an evil smirk on his face, contorted with rage. And that strange silver gleam in his hand?
Kai's eyes widened and adrenaline kicked in his veins once more as he realized what was in his grandfather's hand...and where was its target. His reflexes screamed at him to move as a resounding 'BANG' echoed and...ignoring each and everything around him, he made his move.
Tala gasped as he was suddenly shoved to a side, forcing him to fall on the floor...hard, "What the he-..." He was cut off by the shock of what had happened. Sucking in a breath, he dropped to his knees beside Kai who was now on all fours, coughing violently.
"KAI!" Tala felt as if his heart would explode when the boy choked. Forcing himself to remain in his senses, he grabbed the hacking teen by his shoulders.
"Ta-la..." Agony ripped through Kai's system as he coughed hoarsely. What had happened? He wasn't so sure. But he was well aware of the crimson pool beneath him and he admitted to himself that unfortunately...it belonged to him. Blackness swarmed his vision.
"I'm right here Kai...hold on..." Tala felt the teen's grip tighten on his hand as he stared at the pale face worriedly, "You didn't have to do that! I wasn't worth it!"
Kai gave a ghost of a smile to him before he was pulled into the abyss of darkness.
"Tala? Oh sh..." Bryan refrained from cursing at he came over to the red head and finally saw the huge amount of...blood.
"Bry..." Tala gritted his teeth as he lied the unconscious teen down gently, "I didn't deserve it! I..." He was getting frantic now as he rubbed Kai's cold hand, trying desperately to warm it up.
Bryan placed a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it lightly, "He isn't dead yet! And we wont let him die so easily like this."
Spencer stared at Boris whose face was now marred with bruises. He didn't notice Ian sneaking away as the smaller blader effectively reached the beydish and picked up Kai's beyblade. Rushing up, he slowly sat beside Kai's motionless form and took his other hand in his own before placing the beyblade in it.
As soon as a random drop of Kai's blood touched the bit-chip, the blade glowed, heating up intensely and the next moment, Dranzer, now merged with her dark twin, appeared before them all. As she saw the critic condition her soul-mate was in, the phoenix screeched in fury. Looking around, it caught sight of the gun in Voltaire's hand and his menacing smirk. Without wasting any time, the bit-beast launched itself at the man, engulfing its body in flames. Voltaire just had the chance to see the pure anger in indigo eyes before the phoenix attacked him and flames licked at his body in hunger. With an ear-piercing shriek, Voltaire Hiwatari became a victim of Dranzer's rage as she took revenge upon the blood, his innocent grandson had shed and all the pain, that boy had suffered because of this one man.
All the spectators of the event forgot to breathe as they saw the end of a successful businessman...yet a dark heart made of stone.
The Demolition boys forgot Kai for a moment as they too, stared at the furious bit-beast. Slowly calming down now, Dranzer screeched in victory and turned into a beam of light as she returned to the beyblade, still in her master's hand.
Taking off his jacket, Bryan placed it on Kai's shoulder where he could see the blood flowing freely from. As he applied pressure on the bullet wound, he glanced at Tala. The red head gulped nervously when he caught sight of his best friend's blood. He was desperate to keep him alive...at any cost.
"He'll be fine, Tala..." Tala raised his head to meet Bryan's gaze as the fair teen spoke up, "Don't give up on him."
Tala just nodded before whispering, "Hang on Kai...it's not your time to die..."
"N-ot...ye-t..."
Tala jerked his head up at the broken voice. He wasn't expecting a reply. The red head found himself staring into unfocused crimson eyes.
"Kai..." Bryan breathed, "You...idiot! You scared us to death!"
Kai frowned before wincing as Bryan attempted to stop the massive bleeding somewhere on his left shoulder by pressing his jacket against it.
"What were you thinking?!" This time, it was Tala's turn to scold him, "Sacrificing yourself for..."
"For a sack of potatoes called Tala Ivanov!" Bryan added.
"For a sack of potat-Hey!" Tala glared at the snickering blader, "I am NOT a sack of potatoes!"
Kai watched the red head in amusement. How was he to tell that crazy teen that he was the main reason behind his fighting?! The only thing preventing him from welcoming death was the face of a certain red head he couldn't leave behind. It was definitely not his time to go.
Tackled from behind, Kai was startled to find himself in a tight hug by Ian, "I missed you, Aye!"
Kai allowed himself to relax as he took a deep breath, surrounded by his friends...his brothers.
"That was awesome Kai!"
The said teen looked up to find Tyson flashing a grin at him. Ray and Max approached them all as well. Kai stared at the hand Tyson was holding out for him to shake. Reluctantly, he resigned and gave it a firm shake. Slowly, the teen's eyes began to close as pain and exhaustion took its toll and he finally allowed his body, some rest.
Melodious incantations recited by hopeful witches,
I am a phoenix which will rise from the ashes.
As Tala lied the the teen down gently, sirens of an ambulance could be heard heard not too far away.
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Ray knocked on the door softly before opening it a crack. Peeking in, he could see a red head sitting beside the bed. Entering quietly, the Chinese teen padded over to the two occupants of the room.
"How is he?" Ray made sure to keep his voice low.
"Asleep...but recovering." Tala sighed.
Ray looked over at the red head, "So...what will you do now?"
"Care to elaborate?"
"Well..." Ray shifted, "With Voltaire dead Boris in life-time prison and the abbey sealed, where would you go?"
"I have no reason to tell you but anyways, they say 'curiosity killed the cat'!" Tala smirked, "So to keep you alive kitten, we are staying in Russia. Kai's parents have enough property here."
Ray raised his head before smiling slightly, "I see. I'm...glad you guys are...together."
The door opened rather loudly as Tyson and Max ran in, with Bryan, Spencer and Ian after them.
"Tala! Get your minions under control!" Tyson gulped at Bryan's devious smirk before hiding behind the red head's chair.
Tala feigned boredom, "Not my head-ache."
As Bryan and Ian attempted to get Tyson's wallet...to see the picture of a mysterious girl they had caught glimpse of in his pocket, Ray and Max laughed heartily while Spencer just sighed and shook his head with a grin. Tala looked around him at the chaos before looking closely at the teen on the bed with a true smile.
Lying on a white bed, in a white room, with multiple wires going inside his system, an oxygen mask, providing him oxygen and a constant beep, beep proving that his heart was still beating, Kai Alexander Hiwatari was now surrounded by his friends, his family.
DONE! READ AND REVIEW AND ENJOY!
Rose out!
Until...next story!