FINALS ARE DONE AND I'M BACK WITH MORE FREE TIME! Whoop!
Warnings: attempted suicide and language
Two Weeks Later
"Ian, may I see you for a moment?"
Khione's voice was frigid, her eyes even icier. She radiated an aura of darkness, her lips curled down in a scowl.
"I'm busy," Ian replied, typing away at the computer. "You'd think that with powers like the Seven's, it'd be far more easier to find them, but no... They've literally gone off the grid-"
"Thorn can handle it," Khione said. "I've called a meeting with your brother. I need you to come with me."
"What did Argo do now?" Ian mumbled, pinching the bridge of his nose. Reluctantly, he stepped away from the big screens, following Khione through the darkened hallways.
"You know, Ian, we have an agent on the inside of the Seven's group," Khione said, calmly. "While we have no exact clue of where they are, we have an idea."
"Why didn't you say anything?" Ian muttered, "That would have saved a lot of trouble!"
"She's been collecting information for us," Khione continued, ignoring the second oldest Garcia's grumblings. "She's been telling us where the Seven are in their progress. Hello, Pyra."
Ian looked up as they came to a doorway, seeing Pyra standing next to a door. Her face held no emotion, eyes dark. It sent a chill down his spine.
"Recently, the Earth element tried to kill himself," Khione said. She watched the surprise flit over Ian's expression, "Apparently Nightmare caused more damage than we originally thought. He is quite far behind, as compared to the others."
Khione and Pyra stepped into the room, and Ian followed. The room was nearly dark, save for a few dim lights. It was unnaturally cool in the enclosed space.
"Okay, so?" Ian frowned.
"We plan to give the Seven a sort of... test, soon," Pyra commented. "To see just how far they are in their training. Set one of Nyx's beasts on a nearby town and see what they do, how they do."
"Cool... What's that got to do with me?" Ian asked.
"Well, our inside informant has told us that while we have a mole in the Seven's rankings... we also have a traitor among us," Khione smirked, turning her icy gaze on Ian.
Ian's blood ran cold, and he snapped to his full height, "Really now?"
"Yes, really," Khione mused, detachedly. She leaned forward, "You wouldn't happen to have any ideas as to who it might be, would you?"
"Give me some time, and I'm sure I could figure it out," Ian said, stepping back as Khione stalked forwards.
Metal slamming on metal had Ian jumping and whirling around. He watched as several locks were latched on the lone door, before his eyes flickered up to the newcomer's own dark gaze.
"And to think," Argo Garcia growled. "I once considered you my brother."
Kakeru was seriously considering another attempt on his life, what with the looks he was recieving from Nefertiti, Kuro, and Ryuto.
"What were you thinking?!" Ryuto exclaimed, fingers crackling with electricity. He looked seconds away from taking Kakeru by the shoulders and attempting to shake sense into him, "Did you even stop to consider how a stupid stunt like that would affect everyone else?!"
Kakeru looked away, rubbing at his recently bandaged arms.
"Not just the goddamned world since we wouldn't have all of the Seven to defeat Nyx, but what about us, as your friends?!"
Kakeru swallowed.
"What about Kyoya?!"
"Don't-" Kakeru croaked, wincing at how raw his voice was, "Don't bring my brother into this."
If looks could kill, Kuro thought, when Ryuto's glare strengthened tenfold.
"Kakeru..." Nefertiti murmured, going for a gentler approach, "Why didn't you say anything?"
"I didn't want to worry any of you," Kakeru started.
"As opposed to nearly giving us all heart attacks when you decided to down a bottle of sleeping pills?!" Ryuto exclaimed.
"Ryuto," Nefertiti said, sharply. "Lower your voice."
Ryuto growled in response, but backed off none the less.
Nefertiti turned back to Kakeru, "The therapy was working, wasn't it, before we left Metal City?"
Kakeru stopped for a minute, then nodded, slowly, "And... And Kyoya was, too. He... He was watching... He would listen..."
"And then you've been backsliding since we came here," Nefertiti realized, something akin to hurt flashing through her eyes. "Oh, Kakeru, I'm so sorry I didn't-"
"It's not your fault," Kakeru murmured, rubbing at his eyes. "It's... It's mine, for being so damn... weak."
"You're not weak," Kuro mumbled. "You're stronger than you think."
"But how can you say that?!" Kakeru exploded, "I haven't been able to even touch a beyblade since my battle with Khione! The very mention of a battle has me flashbacking to what happened! I... I'm related to one of the strongest Bladers in the goddamn world and yet I can't even... I can't even..." Kakeru choked on a sob.
Nefertiti reached out and hugged the younger man as Kakeru sobbed into her shoulder, arms tight around her waist. She ran a soothing hand through his hair.
Quietly, both Kuro and Ryuto took their cue to leave the infirmary, the doors sliding shut behind them as they stepped into the hallway. They looked up to see the rest of the Seven and the Guardians in various states of distress.
"Is he okay?" Ariana asked, first.
Kuro nodded, eyes blank, "Ryuto got Nefertiti in time."
"Are you okay?" Christina questioned.
Kuro blinked, then shook her head, "I... I've probably been the cause of a few deaths with my past, but... but to literally see the life slipping out of someone's body..."
"The trials of the Death element," Dynamis said, softly. "You can sense it, see it as it happens, cause it even, but only the element of Life can combat the forces that would pull a soul away."
"What about you?" Lucas addressed Ryuto, "You were the one who found him siezing, right?"
"I'm fine," Ryuto muttered, crossing his arms. His expression was carefully guarded, "It's not like I haven't lost someone close to me to suicide before."
That caught nearly everyone's attention.
"... Do we want to know?" Taylor blinked.
Ryuto smiled, a bitter, dark thing, "Why do you think Ryo adopted Ryuga and me in the first place?"
Two Weeks Later
"It's weird," Hunter murmured, staring at the holographic globe hovering over the table. "We're just three weeks away from Nyx's rising, and we have yet to see any movement of any kind from the enemy."
"Maybe that's a good thing?" Kelsea tried, her face washed in a blue glow, "Maybe they're waiting?"
"Waiting... waiting for what, though," Hunter mused, reaching and flicking his hand. The globe spun at a dizzying speed before Hunter stopped it with a flare of his fingers, "They should have begun to call chaos by now..."
"Why do you think that?" Taylor asked, arms crossed.
"Our informant on the inside says their power is growing by the hour... that they have a beast of some sort ready to set on some town soon, to test the Seven's powers," Hunter sighed.
"Ian's alive?" Ariana muttered, just loud enough to be heard in the otherwise silent room.
Hunter, Taylor, Kelsea, and Dynamis all turned to the redhead, whose face had gone pale.
"... Ian Garcia may have been a traitor to his family, but he's not our informant," Dynamis said, staring the girl down. "Why do you think he was?"
"For the same reason I didn't tell Ariana who our informant really was," Hunter stood up slowly, eyes blazing. He vanished the globe with a wave of his hand, and the ceiling lights came on, "For the same reason I had my suspicions about her since I met her."
"What are you talking about, Hunter?" Ariana stood up, backing away, "Suspicions about what?"
"If you were truly loyal as a Guardian," Hunter snarled. "I know a rat when I see one, Ariana. You've been reporting back to Khione and Caspian, haven't you?"
Ariana's eyes flickered with surprise, before denial, fear, and anger flashed across her face. She eventually settled on cold acceptance a slow smile curled across her lips.
"You're too late, you know," Ariana purred. "Khione has already released her beasts, as well as sent a few of her lackeys out to take of those simpering seven." Her expression twisted into a sneer, "They'll be dead within the next half hour-"
She didn't get to finish. Hunter clocked her with a right hook, and she dropped to the floor.
"Dynamis, Kelsea, watch her," Hunter barked. "Taylor, you and I need to get to Sydney, now!"
"For Bey's sake, what are those things?!" Christina could only gawk at the creatures roaring down the streets. Around her, Kuro, and Nefertiti, people screamed and ran in panic.
"They... they look like... keres?" Nefertiti called, "Greek myths, children of Nyx, they feed off of death!"
"What do you mean, they feed off of death?!" Kuro exclaimed.
"I mean just that! The more death in an area, the stronger they get! According to legend, they were spirits released from Pandora's box, and I'm pretty sure the only way to kill them is cut off their heads," Nefertiti frowned, rubbing her temples. "Come on, Nef, think... what else..."
"Children of Nyx, cut off heads, got it!" Christina shouted, whipping around at a child's scream behind her. Her eyes widened as she saw a little girl cornered by one of the bat looking creatures, "Oh, hell no. Hey, ugly!"
The information clicked in Nefertiti's mind right as the keres whipped around on the blonde, snarling.
"Christina wait!" Nefertiti yelled, "Their fangs and claws- they're poison!"
"Stay away from claws, stay away from the fangs, but get close enough to cut the heads off- oh, sure, that's easy," Kakeru muttered, back to back with Ryuto. Around the duo, several dozen keres circled, "You're the genius here, Katashi. Any ideas?"
"I'm thinking, I'm thinking," Ryuto growled, shoulders tense.
"Well, you'd better come up with something fast. These girls are looking at us like we're a five star, three course meal," Kakeru retorted.
"I could shock them," Ryuto mused. "But there's also too much risk of collateral damage."
"What about that move you did back last month in practice? The shift in the density of the air to make it a weapon?" Kakeru asked.
"Too much concentration- I could get distracted and attacked easily enough," Ryuto hissed.
One of the keres decided to try and attack. With a hiss, it took to the air and swooped down.
Kakeru cursed, pushing Ryuto backwards and sending a spike of earth straight up. The keres screeched, the sound cut off as the spike dug into her chin and into her head. With a quick jab, Kakeru summoned up a sharp piece of earth, slicing the beast's head off.
Ryuto's eyes widened, "Kakeru."
"What?" Kakeru turned, "Why are you looking at me like that?"
"How much power does it take out of you to do that?" Ryuto asked, gesturing to what Kakeru had just done.
"Hardly none, so long as my feet are on the ground. Why?"
"How about an earth wall- your defense?"
"Same answer, hardly none. What's your scheme here?"
"Can you do both at the same time?" Ryuto asked, a slight shimmer around his arms from the elbow down.
Kakeru just make out the edge of an ultra sharp blade of air, and his eyes flickered up to meet Ryuto's, "You want me to attack and defend at the same time?"
"Like I said, my concentration can't be broken when it comes to this move," Ryuto swung his arm out as another keres lunged. Her head came clear off, and she exploded into black mist, "But you, your power is literally a second nature. You can sense people's movements through the ground."
"Yeah, so long as they stay on the ground!" Kakeru said, a pointed look at the air warrior.
Kakeru found it difficult to breathe as the pressure in the air shifted. Several of the keres dropped straight out of the sky and on to the ground.
"I'll handle that. You cover me, and watch yourself!" Ryuto shouted, and rushed to meet several of the batwomen that launched themselves at him.
Kakeru cursed, but was quickly distracted as he was attacked as well.
"I could try drowning them?" Lucas suggested, glancing over his shoulder and at the bay behind he and Nero.
"You know greek mythology as well as I do, Luke," Nero cursed under his breath, quickly setting a too close for comfort beast on fire. "Their heads need to come off."
The keres screeched and all lunged.
"Merde!" Nero yelled, hands lighting up with flames. He yelped as Lucas grabbed him around the waist and tackled him over the pier railing, "What?!"
"Hold your breath and trust me!" Lucas shouted back, right before they broke the surface of the water.
Nero flailed in the crystal water, panic rushing through him as water filled his mouth and lungs. A solid grip on his wrist had his eyes landing on the other teen in the water, bringing him back to reality.
Seconds later, Nero's heart leapt into his throat as his stomach dropped. The water rushed around he and Nero as they rocketed back up towards the surface.
Nero gasped for breath once they broke the surface. His eyes widened as he realized he was now standing on a literal iceberg in the middle of the Tasman Sea.
"What..." Nero fell to his hands and knees, coughing, "What the hell?!" He looked up at Lucas, his sunglasses askew as Lucas smirked down at him.
"Oh, this?" Lucas had the gall to sound innocent, the brat, "Oh, just a little something Taylor taught me."
"Little?" Nero repeated, wheezing. He stumbled to his feet, staring as several of the keres erupted into black mist as ice sheets shot from the hunk of ice and took their heads off like a knife through butter, "Remind me not to get on your bad side."
Lucas laughed, something he hadn't done in weeks.
"Hey, don't leave me to do all the hard work!" Lucas grinned, eyes bright with energy, "Aren't we the world famous fire and ice duo?"
Nero fixed his sunglasses back on his nose, smirking, "Hell yeah we are. Let's do this!"
Taylor and Hunter found the Seven outside the Sydney Opera House, looking exhausted and with a few bruises, but on their feet and alive.
"... What the hell?" Taylor gaped, "What happened?!"
"Keres," Kuro wheezed. "We handled them, though."
"And with minimal damage, seeing as how the city isn't destroyed," Hunter said. "Civillians?"
"Healed, or on their way to the hospital," Nefertiti reported, from where she sat on the ground.
"Injuries to you kids?"
"Bruises, a scrape here and there, nothing major," Ryuto called. He and Kakeru sat back to back, and both Taylor and Hunter were surprised to see a light in the younger Tategami's eyes that hadn't been there in the two months they'd seen him, "How'd you guys know?"
Hunter and Taylor glanced at each other, "Ariana was reporting back to Caspian and Khione. She outed herself. Hunter handled her, and we left her with Dynamis and Kelsea."
"You know, when I first met her, I thought something seemed off," Kakeru said. "So... she's obviously gonna try to get out of our custody and go back to her bosses... what do we do now?"
"You guys handled yourselves," Hunter muttered. "Exceptionally well, given the circumstances..."
"Some of them still need more training, though," Taylor sighed.
"What we can do for them here, we can do anywhere," Hunter argued.
"Ugh..." Taylor rubbed his temples, "Are you sure about this?"
"We already agreed they could go back just before Nyx rises," Hunter grinned. "What's a few weeks early?"
"Uh, what are you guys talking about?" Nero called.
Hunter and Taylor stared each other down for a long moment, before Taylor threw his hands up.
Hunter grinned, and turned to the Seven, "How do you guys feel about returning to Metal City?"