A/N So this is a little shorter than most chapters but hope you enjoy!
Even with the blanket of night covering the sky, the city continued to bustle as life continued on as normal: the lights that punctuated through the darkness, the distant honks of cars as they sped down the highway, the laughter of those who decided to explore the city at night.
For a moment, as Shun watched the lights illuminating the vibrant city, nostalgia washed over him; he had almost forgotten what a regular life looked like. He was so focused on the Brawlers' missions that he disregarded anything that had been considered "normal life"; who among the Brawlers had time for a so-called normal life?
Now? Shun could see why some of the Brawlers were drawn to that kind of life. Sometimes, he mused, life would be better if they didn't have to stay constantly on-call, waiting for the next mission to drop on by.
Just thinking of a normal life brought flashes to the Ventus brawler: of the times when he and Dan would just play-fight with each other over toys; of his ninja training, the moment the Bakugan left Earth; of being thrown into mission after mission after Dan left. Shun searched himself as a strange, unfamiliar feeling welled in him, a feeling that he couldn't place.
He shook himself out of his reverie in time to peer down at the sidewalk, some ways away from his tree yet still visible.
A kid was walking with his mother. Shun observed how the child looked up at her with shining eyes, how the mom chuckled as the son squealed in delight as he spotted a vibrantly-lit billboard, which was currently showing an ad. Shun felt a stab of envy; that kid had no idea how lucky he was.
Then the kid reached his hand towards his mother's, and she clasped it, almost tenderly, as they continued down the street. Shun couldn't help the wistfulness and sadness that swelled in his chest at the sight. Only seeing that just reminded him of another way of how he couldn't have a normal life. Not really.
For a moment - just a moment - all Shun wanted to do was sit up here, watching people with normal lives go about their business. For a moment, he dearly wished he could have one of those lives. For a moment, all he wanted was that.
But he had a mission to complete.
Shun sighed. He shot one last look at the lit up buildings, the air that was filled with the joyful shrieks of children, his heartstrings tugging oh so painfully in that direction.
And then he was off.
He streaked through the branches of the trees towards the AAAnimus digging site as quickly and silently as possible. Thanks to his insanely-intensive training, not a leaf was displaced from any tree as he hopped from branch to branch, as swift as the wind itself.
Wind. Heh.
The ninja paused periodically to take note of his surroundings before he continued on; he searched for specific landmarks he had memorized from the map to direct himself towards the AAAnimus excavation site.
Before he knew it, he was staring up at a metal fence that encircled the site. Drilling equipment was scattered everywhere on the grounds, all surrounding an area that even through the cover of darkness Shun could see had been draped over with a huge tarp. Shun estimated the diameter of the area was about 50 meters; not too big of an area.
For a couple of minutes he circled the area, eyeing the fence and gauging how much noise he would make if he were to attempt to climb the metal-laced barrier. Part of being a ninja is not letting anyone else know he was there, and though it was relatively late at night, Shun wasn't about to take any chances.
That was Dan's job.
At that line of thinking, Shun paused. Well, it had been Dan's job.
Ever since Dan had agreed to return with Shun back to the city, Shun had seen a noticeable change in his old friend's personality. Dan had become a lot more withdrawn, spending more time alone than even Shun did, which Shun didn't know was even possible.
Not only that, Dan had become much more. . . passive. Calm. Less eager to jump into a fight and more like an analyst assessing the situation from different sides. Shun had never seen such a drastic change in a person, from hot-headed and aggressive to cool and calm. He wouldn't have thought that Dan was even capable of becoming like this.
Dan's personality didn't even resemble a Pyrus brawler's anymore. Pyrus brawlers were hot-headed, temperamental, cocky, and reckless, and Shun spoke from personal experience. They carried a flame of passion within them that they fueled through constant battling. That was the very essence of Dan's battling skills, and the flame had burned on, as far as Shun could remember. Even at their worst battles, even in the dark pits of hopelessness, Dan's fire had never been quenched.
Now? To the ninja, Dan's flame seemed nothing but a distant memory. What had once seemed to Shun an unconquerable fire had now been replaced by a spark surrounded by an ocean, a far cry from whom Dan had used to be.
And the way he jumped sometimes, the way he went into a daze. . .
He acted almost as if -
No. Shun shook his head, trying to banish the dark thought that had wiggled its way into his brain. He forcefully shoved the nagging thought into the back of his mind. He would not consider it; not now, when it may potentially break himself.
Not when he had a mission to complete.
Shun wrestled with his thoughts for a moment before he slammed them into a cage. He imagined locking the cage before tossing said cage into a heavy-duty safe and sealing the vault.
Shun sighed once he deemed his mental security adequate, and he started studying the fence again, analyzing a way for him to get inside the fenced enclosure. As if something inside him were drawn to them, Shun idly regarded the trees.
Then it hit him. Of course!
He could use them to drop from the branches into the area!
Shun shook his head. What's gotten into me? His once-unshakable focus had begun to drift away nowadays. He was finding it harder to pay attention to his surroundings and easier to sink into his elusive thoughts.
Oh well. Shun shook off his mental chastisement and ascended the nearest tree. Within seconds, he was within the enclosed site.
Now, let's see what you're up to, AAAnimus. . . Shun began hunting around the equipment, especially the larger, drivable machines; Shun has found in his days of infiltrating bases that plans were often concealed, either in a drawer or cabinet. As this place was a construction site, Shun deduced that any plans the AAAnimus construction crew had were in these machines.
Machine by machine, he hopped into each one: drills, cranes (why were there cranes?), and diggers. He would slide into the cockpit, pop open a compartment, and start leafing through the bits of paper that was almost guaranteed to be there. "No," he sighed, hopping off from a drill.
"Not that." Exit a crane.
"Where could they possibly be?"
Hours later (at least to Shun's deduction) and still nothing. Where could they possibly put those plans? Overcome with frustration, the Ventus brawler let out an almighty yell and turned, slamming his fist into a backhoe.
Shocked even by his own actions, Shun backed away, staring at his hands. What's wrong with me? Even when he got frustrated and angry, he tried to push it down and analyze the situation without interference with his emotions.
Now. . .
His thoughts were interrupted when the Ventus brawler saw something glinting in the moonlight. It was coming from something in the backhoe's loader bucket. Curious, he bent down and picked up the spherical object. It had a plastic feel to it, with rough edges in some parts and smoothness in others. Shun mused that the texture was similar to a Bakugan's ball form.
Shun won't deny it: he was curious. He wanted to know what this thing was, how it ended up in the construction site, and why it was here. He brushed off the dirt and turned the newly-exposed colors to the rays of moonlight that were shining through despite the clouds obscuring the moon.
And stared.
Nestled in his palm, glowing under the light of the moon, was a plastic ball. Most of it was colored a light blue, with highlights of ice-blue running all around it. Shun continued to examine the object, a feeling of dread rising up within him. This looks just like a Bakugan. . .
A horrible feeling began to surface inside Shun, and he turned the object over and over until he found what confirmed his suspicions: an Attribute symbol.
This symbol was unlike any of the actual Bakugan symbols. There were two parallel lines running horizontally, with a jagged pattern on the top connecting the two lines. To Shun, the symbol was quite similar to an iceberg.
Shun stroked the symbol imprinted on the object - the pseudo-Bakugan, as he began calling it - while his mind whirled. This appearance was odd, to say the least. Why, thought the ninja, as he continued to roll the pseudo-Bakugan in his hand, would anyone create an almost-exact replica of Bakugan, but with different symbols? It didn't make sense.
Unless. . .
Shun's mind immediately tried to reject the theory. But it makes sense. What were the odds of a plastic ball that had something akin to an Attribute symbol turning up in dirt, no less? This occurrence was eerily similar to when some of the newer generation reported when they found their own Bakugan.
In contrast to when Shun and his friends found Bakugan via cards from the sky, kids all over the world were finding Bakugan emerging from the ground; even Shun found his Pyravian emerging from a well.
Shun sighed before pocketing the somewhat-fake Bakugan. For now, he would have to withhold that theory until he had further proof that this was truly a Bakugan.
Just as he was about to leap back into the safety of the trees, another glint caught his eye, this time near the tarp. He froze. Is there something else there? It's strange enough that he found something that somewhat resembled a Bakugan. Even with his previous curiosity satisfied, his interest was piqued again.
Shun stared at the glinting object, curiosity warring with cautiousness. He wanted to investigate it, but at the same time his internal clock was warning him that the sun would rise soon. If he was caught in this area. . .
He glanced around, straining his senses in a bid to find out whether or not anyone was approaching the area. Minutes ticked by as he concentrated, trying to detect any movement. When all stayed silent, the ninja deduced that he was probably safe to take a look.
Shun knelt down, brushed the dirt off the object, and held it up to the moonlight. Shock pulsed through him as he registered what was right in front of him. Another one? Indeed, there was another plastic ball that had a symbol imprinted on it, this time noticeably resembling lightning.
Shun narrowed his eyes, his memory flashing back to what felt a long time ago, when Jaxon had reported the mysterious brawler.
"What attribute were they using?" Shun asked.
Jaxon spread his arms open. "How should I know? They were using lightning to blind me all the time!"
Shun's breath caught in his throat. The Ventus brawler now knew which attribute that masked brawler had been using, and it wasn't one of the regular attributes they were using.
That settled it, then. This object that he held in his hand. . . it is a Bakugan.
Shun stared down at the second Bakugan he found, his mind whirling with a never-ending stream of thoughts. It could explain why AAAnimus were digging here; they were bent on getting Bakugan, and what better way to do that than come to a site where they were plentiful, a site of which the Brawlers weren't even aware?
And yet. . . Shun couldn't help but feel as if there was something more going on here. Yes, they were digging in an area where Bakugan were, but he still couldn't understand why they were digging here. What was their purpose, when there were Bakugan all around them?
The ninja looked up, frowning as the clouds in front of the moon drifted away, revealing the full moon. I better get moving into the shadows. Otherwise, someone'll spot me. Just as he turned to go, he cast one last glance at the construction site.
What he saw made him balk in shock.
There were Bakugan everywhere, glinting in the moonlight. Some were scattered amongst the equipment; others around the obvious hole that had been tarped.
Shun's breath left him as he took in the scene. It seemed almost. . . impossible, yet here they were, all concentrated in the same area as AAAnimus chose to drill into.
As he studied the scene, only one thought flitted through his mind:
This. . . is far greater than we could've ever thought.
A/N So. . . I apologize if the transitions were abrupt. My attention is divided right now, as I am looking into a Minecraft animation series I want to develop in the. . . far, far future.
My focus is a little shot right now, so I hope you forgive this chapter.
Stay safe and stay alive!
