Chapter 22
"Animal. He's a damn animal." Ray summed up his opinion with a grunt as they stepped into the elevator from the empty hall.
Kai's head was already stitched, and now, he was cursed to answer Ray's inexhaustible questions, that annoyed him to a great extent. The tiger wanted to know every detail about the fight, but Kai had never been famous for his co-operative attitude, and he ignored most of the questions with a cutting glance or an alerting 'hm', not soothing Ray's curiosity.
It was an uncommon sight of Ray being so upset, but once Kai had made a mistake and told Ray Boris had pinned his head against a broken mirror somehow didn't help to subdue his teammate's concern and hate for the falcon.
"I truly hope you'll report him to Mr. Dickenson. He'd ban the guy instantly from the championship." Ray kept grousing, standing firm, arms folded before his chest.
"And what would solve that?" Kai grumbled in a low voice.
"I don't know. Maybe preventing him to kill someone?" Ray asked back sarcastically.
Kai sighed, rubbing his eyebrows to ease the tension in his head.
At this moment, he really didn't care about anyone else. He was on the edge of his sanity due to the lack of sleep, but he was also worried that he was going to have more nightmares like in the past two days, that deprived him of another restful night. The Blitzkriegs and banning Boris were the last things in his mind right now.
And if he heard another complain from Ray, his own teammates would report Kai for violence.
"Anyway." Ray spoke up again, breaking the awkward silence that usually lingered in the elevator, and Kai was internally praying he didn't have to punch his friend this day. "What kind of combat were they doing? It seemed professional and they used the same moves. I know numerous martial arts, but I don't think I've met this one before."
"It's called Systema. It's a special combat style of SPETSNAZ, the Russian Special Operation Forces." Kai answered robotically, his mouth forming the words on its own.
Ray made a slight turn in his direction and raised his brows, amazed.
"How do you know?"
Kai blinked and frowned at the shiny surface of the floor.
"I don't know." He replied in all honesty, almost upset at himself for not knowing it.
"Hmm." Ray too stared at the floor as if the floor could give him a proper explanation.
"Maybe Boris learnt it in the Abbey. Alexa also grew up there, right? Did you receive such training? Can you fight like them? " Ray bombed him with questions again, and if Kai had left more energy, he would have laughed at such a ridiculous idea, but now, he was simply irritated.
Oh, wait, that was not true. He would have been irritated with such nonsense in any case.
Realizing his murderous glares were not sufficiently effective anymore, Kai put a hand on Ray's arm as a silent warning without turning his gaze to the black-haired boy.
"Stop with the questions, Ray."
After that, Kai quickly removed his hand. He hated touching people though not as much when people touched him without asking his permission. Thankfully, everyone around him quickly learnt this rule. Even Tyson who was a colossal slow learner.
Thus, Ray immediately understood the message of the gesture and stopped quizzing him. Now the uncomfortable silence conquered the air around them again, producing the anxious feeling of being trapped in a tight place.
When they reached their floor and the elevator doors finally slid open, Kai basically rushed out. It was not wise, considering his worn-out muscles ached in agony. He touched his midriff with a hand, carefully pressing it to check if there was a pain in it already. With a small grunt, he confirmed there was pain in it, indeed. The after-effect of the silent, vibrating punches made their slow re-appearance in his organs.
"Will you be okay?" He heard Ray's gentle voice, filled with genuine concern as they walked on the carpeted, posh corridor of the hotel.
"Of course."
Kai almost grimaced at the stupid question. What else option did he have, seriously? He had never had the luxury to feel differently, and he already got used to this state. There was a championship that he and his team needed to win. Kai couldn't be not okay. He couldn't afford such thing. As always, he was fine and strong and unstoppable, but most importantly, in control.
Making a beeline to the team's room as if Kai was running away from Ray's further possible questions, he found the others in the common room, all gathered around Kenny and his laptop.
He didn't know what he was hoping for in there, because once Tyson and Hilary noticed his war-worn appearance, they instantly bombed him with stupid questions like 'are you hurt?' And 'are you alright?'
At first, Kai stared at them almost dumbfounded. The wound on his head and his bloodstained coat obviously stated that he had been hurt physically. And again, of course, he was alright. He was standing right in front of their very eyes. Breathing. Alive.
Kai sometimes questioned his teammates' intellectual capacity.
"Where the hell were you two until now? What happened?" Hilary demanded a report, her tone rather worried than angry.
"Kai, please, don't tell me you beat someone again." Tyson's pleading held a warning.
The captain tutted at the accusation though he had to admit the assumption was rightful in some way.
"More like the opposite this time." Ray remarked venomously, intentionally arousing the interest of his teammates.
Kai shot a disgusted glare at Ray.
"Don't make me look like I'm some victim of the circumstances."
The boy had the decency not to argue with him more, but Kai could see he pressed his lips together to bite back the words that were willing to come out.
Seeing him acting wise and responsible so often, Kai kept forgetting that Ray had become a champion with the Bladebreakers because he could be sometimes as stubborn as Tyson or Kai himself. Not many people knew that about him, but Ray was very pigheaded if his principals or ideology was unfairly offended, and Boris had crossed an important line when he had fought with dirty strategy against him.
Kai turned away to occupy the invitingly comfortable armchair and relax his throbbing body. He didn't bother with Kenny, who kept his eyes on his laptop screen until now, not willing to participate in another dispute between the team and Kai before he looked up, frowning at the odd turn the conversation had just taken. Being forever annoyingly observant, the mechanic probably also noticed how cautiously he was moving.
The captain let out a heavy sigh, giving his evident sign he was too exhausted to give a description of his little adventure with Ray while the rest of the team had been eating in the dining room. He elbowed on the armrest, supporting the weight of his head with a fist, and closed his eyes so he could pretend sleeping – his usual way to ignore his team when he was not in the mood to talk to them.
"Stop leaving us in the dark. Tell us what happened!" Tyson urged, turning to Ray, knowing Kai wouldn't deign to answer any of their questions now.
Ray dropped himself on the couch, and invited the others to do the same. When they followed and all of them seated themselves again, Ray told the details he had learnt from Kai in the past hour, and what he had seen with his own eyes.
As he had neither energy, nor the will to argue with the whole team, Kai let Ray speak, telling and grumbling about what happened with him in the training room just recently.
"The guy was about to kill that girl when we arrived at the scene with Tala and Sergei! I don't know what would have happened if I hadn't convinced Tala in time to follow me and stop Boris." Ray finished, his arms tightly folded in front of his slowly heaving chest, his eyes scolding, unforgiving.
"She would've escaped from his grip."
Heads in shock with the new details whipped toward the captain at his bored statement. Kai opened his eyes, locking them on Ray.
"What? What are you talking about, Kai? You were there! He was this close to thrust that shard to her heart." Ray neared his two fingers to each other to demonstrate the exact distance between the shard and Alexandra's chest before he stared back at Kai with disbelief.
"Yes, I was there." Kai repeated tiredly in a hoarse, deep voice. He was losing his patience but still couldn't find enough energy in himself to raise his volume to silence him. "And I saw that she was already positioning her legs in a way to throw Boris out of his balance."
It was an aspect of the fight he hadn't noticed in the heated moment back in the training room, Kai blamed the overdose of adrenalin for that, but while he had had to sit still under the nurse's working hands, more and more details had become clear in his mind.
His words were followed by a contemplating silence as the others reconsidered what they had just heard from him and mostly Ray.
"It does not change anything. He was still trying to kill Alexandra, his own teammate!" Ray pressed, determined to collect every reason he could use to hate more the despicable Russian boy.
Knowing that Ray was making a fair point with that, Kai didn't reply.
"Man, this is an eventful season." Max commented, waking up from his shock with a headshake.
"I always thought the Blitzkrieg Boys were wild, but… not essentially harmful." Hilary said in a low voice, not entirely sure what to do with the information as she was fidgeting nervously with the edge of her pants.
"This doesn't make sense. Why would Boris try to kill Alexandra? Do they hate each other?" Kenny pondered aloud.
"Did you understand what they were talking about before Boris attacked her?" Tyson asked Kai.
Having enough with the day, Kai decided it was time to end the conversation here before the guys winded themselves up with the questions, otherwise he should listen to them until next morning.
"I didn't, and it doesn't matter, because this conflict is not our business and not our problem to solve it. I don't want to hear you talk about it again."
"But Kai! You got hurt!" Tyson objected like it would be a valid reason to keep arguing about the topic.
His chocolate brown eyes gleamed with melting worry that made Kai stop abruptly after pulling himself up from the armchair.
Kai felt his own eyebrows knitted in pure confusion though it was not the first time that Tyson showed such straightforward feelings towards him, and still, he couldn't believe it was real. That there was someone who honestly cared for him or his well-being. Kai was convinced he didn't deserve such a caring friend, so why did Tyson bother to put on a show?
"We can't let the guy just walk away with it!" Tyson forced, worry fusing into anger as he punched a fist into a palm, playing the tough man.
At the amusing silly act, Kai huffed a laugh through his smirk.
"You wouldn't stand a chance against him, Tyson." Kai mocked then his harsh, contemptuous mask slipped back into its place, changing to a deeper, more commanding tone, repeating his previous words. "Drop the case, not our problem."
He was heading to his bedroom when Chief cleared his throat, calling his attention.
"Uhm… Kai? May I check Dranzer? She might have been damaged during the process when you smashed Sergei's beyblade into pieces…" His trailing off voice told Kai Kenny didn't agree with his methods to settle a score.
"Ah, right! I almost forgot!" Max exclaimed unexpectedly, jumping up from the couch to hop next to the captain with a hand in the air, waiting for a high-five. "Thanks for taking revenge for my Draciel! I know you did that for me!"
Although it was true and Kai had done that to avenge the rough loss of Max, he would've been a fool to admit that.
The open palm lingered there unanswered for a while before Max's wide, grateful smile slowly faded under the patronizingly raised slate eyebrow, when he eventually sighed defeatedly and dropped his arm to his side before returned to his place on the couch with a sour taste in his mouth.
After the awkward moment, Kai pulled out his phoenix from the inner pocket of his coat to give it to the mechanic. Kenny quickly stood up and hurried to him, so Kai didn't have to move, but when he put his hand on the purple beyblade and was ready to remove it from its wielder's hand, he couldn't. Kai clenched his fingers around it, not letting Kenny take it as he locked his eyes with the small boy's.
"I never make the same mistake twice." Kenny swore, nervously swallowing under the cutting glance.
Kai held his gaze for another second then he finally eased his grip on Dranzer and let Kenny to take her.
"Before you came back, we were analyzing the battles with the Blitzkriegs. Are you interested in my discovery?" Kenny explained and expectantly looked at Kai and Ray if they wanted to join the conversation the team had had before they returned.
"Sure!" Ray perked up, unfolding his arms and dropping his uncharacteristically harsh expression, he leant closer to the laptop to which Kenny just returned.
"Ah, Chief! Do we really have to?" Tyson whined, still ashamed he had thrown his unquestionable victory for a little fun with Boris.
Everyone ignored the dragon's objection, and even Kai stepped closer to the small circle that surrounded Kenny when they were discussing strategic plans.
"I won't spoil anything if I say, Tala's improvement was the most surprising among the boys, but it was Alexandra I could collect the most new data about today." Kenny promptly summarized what he had been talking about with the others so far.
"We already know Tala's style, talk about the girl." Kai demanded, his eyelids were heavy, but he couldn't go to bed without knowing what Kenny had figured out of Alexa's bitbeast.
Maybe he would have an explanation for the craziness he had seen last night.
"I disagree. Tala actually uses quite different moves in his current play and much stronger than ever, but let's do it in your way." Kenny gave in, opening a video on the laptop before he begun to explain. "After today's match, I cracked the odd data I got from her beyblade when I analyzed it for the first time. Now, it's obvious that she has a family type bitbeast."
Hitting the spacebar to freeze the clip, Kenny pointed out to the flying whale-dragons around Max in the frozen video.
"If you watch it more closely, you'll see these creatures look the same, but they all are actually different spirits."
He zoomed in on the creatures, highlighting the slight differences on their bodies. The guys listened and scrutinized the details Kenny called their attention out in anticipated silence.
"Are you sure it's not a collective type bitbeast?" Kai piped in.
These were not the creatures he had seen in the stadium. His last remaining uncertainty left him once he saw again Alexandra's attack from today on the screen.
"Yes! Just look at the spirits! They all are the same species, can't you see? If it were a collective type, the bitbeasts would look totally different. I was right! I told you she has either a family or a collective bitbeast and she truly does!" Kenny celebrated himself, addressing his last sentences to Tyson as if he would have ever doubted his words.
"Hm". Kai hummed disapprovingly, regardless the concrete proof he was staring at just right now.
"What is a collective type bitbeast again?" Tyson scratched his head with a frown.
"A bitbeast that basically is able to possess other bitbeasts." Kenny described as if they would have pushed a button on him that generated the right answer.
"Right." Tyson nodded, now he remembered. "Her attack looked really dope. Why didn't she use it before? Why did she use it now, against Max?"
"Great questions, Tyson, and I have the possible answer. I'm certain she wanted to hide her real power until the finals."
"Okay, but what made her to change her tactic so suddenly? The match barely started, and Alexa instantly attacked Max with everything she had." Hilary objected.
"Oh, now you mention! She told me right before the match that she had to show her 'asshole' teammates – she used a stronger expression here though, hehe – that she was worthy and hoped I had enough spare parts. I thought she was just mocking me." Max shared the brief conversation with them.
"So. Shortly, her team's been underestimating her, and Alexa got riled up, so she revealed her ultimate attack." Ray summarized as he held his chin in his hand. "I don't know, it sounds a bit dumb. She didn't seem that kind of short tempered beyblader who loses their head so easily. Maybe it's a part of her strategy."
"I don't think it was planned, nor it was dumb. If someone keeps underrating your abilities, that's overwhelmingly frustrating and undermines the faith in yourself after a while. You start questioning your capabilities and doubting your skills. It can eat your heart, and that feeling eventually drives you to move into action, doing something reckless just so you can prove yourself to the people around you, be them opponents or even friends. I'd have done the same thing in her place." Tyson defended the Russian girl, saying every word with sincere and passion.
Kai, just like the others, stared at the usually animated, high-spirited boy in front of him talking about the nature of a true beyblader's soul as if no one could have understood it better than Tyson himself. It was not rare that the champion shared wise and deep thoughts with them, yet it was always surprising how mature he could be if he really tried.
It was also well-known for Kai that Tyson spoke from his heart when he could relate to a situation, to a feeling. The Japanese boy's optimism and idealist mentality were like the shining moon on the pitch-dark night sky. A lot of disappointments awaited for Tyson in his life, and though Kai wanted to protect him from that, he knew he couldn't.
"Anyway, I no wonder anymore how she could demolish my beyblade so quickly. I'd have never stood a chance against that powerful attack." Max's pouted with discouragement.
"Have faith, Max! I'm sure Kenny will figure out the best strategy and build the best beyblade for you, then neither Alexa, nor the Blitzkriegs or any other team can defeat you. No one can beat the legendary Bladebreakers!" Tyson encouraged the blonde with a wink as he patted his shoulder, drawing a small smile on his friend's face.
"How's that we've never seen family or collective bitbeasts before?" Ray asked with a frown.
"You did." Kenny corrected him.
"Tryhorn is family type." Tyson nodded with self-proud. The others looked at him with jerked up eyebrows.
"I'm glad you remember our conversation with Emily, Tyson." Kenny commented, resuming the video.
At the part when Draciel eventually shattered with a loud crack, the team hissed in sympathy, but Kai watched something else that caught his eyes when Alexa dropped to her knee on the record.
"Pause it!" Kai ordered abruptly and Kenny instantly obeyed, freezing the screen.
The others looked at the captain with a questioning look, curious what he might have noticed in the video.
"Can you zoom on her?" Kai asked, keeping his eyes on the screen.
He saw in his periphery his teammates changed a weird look with each other, but Kenny did as he asked and zoomed in.
"Closer. On her face." Kai urged, eyes still glued on the screen with a furrow.
Kenny zoomed in to the point that Alexa's face covered the whole screen with her struggling expression, the surprising mix of anger and fear. Kai absentmindedly tilted his head as he stared at her face, trying to understand what he was seeing.
"What do you see?" Hilary queried after getting bored with his silence.
Not answering immediately to her question, a Tyson gradually slipped into the middle of Kai's sight.
"Do you find her pretty?" The champion grinned cheekily at the captain.
Kai spared him with a glare as he shoved Tyson back to the couch. The boy laughed at him.
"Look at her eye." Kai told them in a raspy voice; even his vocal cords were tired.
Five pairs of eyes stared at the emerald, but Kai was more than sure they didn't see what he did.
"What do we have to look at?" Ray frowned, tilting his own head, hoping that a different angle would help him to understand.
"Oh!"
Of course, Kenny was the first who noticed the odd phenomenon on the Blitzkrieg's face.
He enlarged the eyepatch on the screen, giving full sight to the black mark on her skin that seemed to have grown during her attack. It reached her eyebrow. Adjusting the speed and tapping on the spacebar again, the video continued to be replayed with a slow pace, and thanks to the deep zoom, they could see how the shape of the black mark was altering around the eyepatch frame by frame. Sometimes it expanded, sometimes it shrank back like it would have had its own will.
"Oh my god! This is creepy!" Hilary squealed, jumping back on the couch as if it could attack her through the screen.
"You said 'look at her eye, look at her eye', but it's actually the other one, that is covered! Why don't say 'look at the eyepatch' instead? You're intentionally mislead us!" Tyson grumbled as if it would have been his biggest problem.
"This is not normal." Max stated with wide eyes. "Do you know what it can be, Chief?"
"I don't know." Kenny shook his head slowly, aghast.
"Can it be her bitbeast?" Ray pondered, stupefied at the demonic mark.
"I'm sure it's her bitbeast." Kai answered, taking the word from Kenny.
Standing up from the wide armrest where he had leant on until now, Kai paced to the middle of the room, ready to hit the hay, but he wanted to grab the attention of his team before that. He decided to share his experience with them. The one he had witnessed in the stadium when Alexandra had been practicing with the immense number of twirling spirits.
However, before he could say anything someone knocked on their door.
Kai exhaled the air he already collected in his lungs to speak, irritated. He finally mustered his courage to talk about his odd observation in the stadium with his team and ask their opinion about it, when someone thought this was the perfect time to disrupt him.
The others stared at the door with the same frown, curious who would visit them in this late hour. Sitting the closest to the door, Ray jumped up and answered it. Catching the redness in the bright light of the corridor lamps behind Ray's shoulder, Kai immediately knew who came and with what reason.
The tiger though froze in the door, not inviting in the guests.
"What do you want?" Ray asked in a cold tone, lacking the usual friendliness.
Tala's eyebrow twitched in annoyance at the unpleasant welcome, but didn't make a comment on it.
"Can we speak with Kai?" He asked politely.
Hearing his name and sensing the tension, Kai stepped forward, pushing gently Ray away from the way to give space to the two Blitzkriegs to enter. In the Russian culture, talking in the doorway meant bad luck and though he didn't think Tala believed in such things, Russian people were raised with this mentality.
The redhead expressed his small gratitude with a short nod as he walked in. Taking in the presence of all Bladebreakers members, Tala mutely greeted them, too. His associate followed him in grave silence, and Kai noticed how quickly his teammates' expressions hardened at the sight of Boris.
He also became aware of the bandages that covered the falcon's nose and hand, and not caring how wrong it was, Kai felt satisfaction. The pale boy looked untypically humble and quiet this time; his menacing appearance could be seen nowhere.
"I assume your team already know about the incident in our training room." Tala said after noticing the tension in the room.
He flicked a glance at Ray with his piercing eyes, knowing well that Kai wouldn't have talked about something that was not his business.
"We won't cause a surprise if I say, we're here to make peace. The championship is stressful enough by itself, I don't want to keep up any conflict with our opponents."
"You're a bit late with that, Tala." Tyson spoke up, his eyes challenging. "As I see, Boris made quite a mess and almost killed two people tonight!"
"Stop exaggerating, Tyson!" Kai cut in.
If there was something he really hated, it was when his teammates – most of the time Tyson – defended him like he would be a helpless person who couldn't stand up for himself.
"Exaggerating? Exaggerating?! ME?!" Tyson parroted like a well-trained bird, throwing his hands in the air in his incredulousness. "You should be happy you're still alive–"
"You should be happy that I haven't thrown you out of the room! They came to talk to me, so you all might even leave, let us do our business!" Kai scolded, silencing the dragon for good, but addressing his words to his entire team.
Tyson was visibly hurt by his harsh words, but Kai had enough with the fights, and the last thing he needed now was his team nosing into something that essentially didn't concern them. And, of course, he already saw the familiar fire of stubbornness lighting up in the chocolate brown eyes, denying again his request with a shake of his head.
Sensing his own soul catching on fire with anger, he made a step into Tyson's direction as a warning. It always annoyed him when the dark blue-haired boy defied him as a captain, but when he did it in front of other teams, especially his former Russian teammates, for who the discipline and prestige were everything, it was utterly embarrassing.
"We're not going anywhere!" Tyson announced it almost ceremoniously, folding his arms loosely on his chest and Kai knew he could do nothing with him.
Once Tyson took something into his head, it was impossible to change his mind.
Turning back to the resigned Blitzkriegs with a heavy sigh, Kai instantly switched to Russian language.
["Keep it short. I'm really on the edge of my patience."]
Tala nodded almost in sympathy. Kai expected him to reply in Russian as well, but the redhead decided to involve everyone in the room into the conversation.
"First and foremost, I wanted to thank you for helping Alexa in this…mess. We don't quite understand what happened, but your quick actions definitely helped to settle the situation." He said, occasionally glancing at Ray to thank his help, too.
The Taoist remained distant, but noticeably appreciated the Russian captain's gratitude. He held his grudge against Boris after all.
Kai, on the other hand, just rolled his eyes.
["If that's all you came for then you just wasted my precious time."]
["This is not all."] Tala objected, talking in Russian this time, too; his tone getting cold in an instant. He was obviously irritated by Kai's arrogance. ["Boris also has something to say."]
The redhead stepped back a bit to give space for his teammate to properly apologize. Because why else did Boris want to talk about to him?
Though the pale falcon didn't look enthusiastic at all, he paced closer anyway. He kept his gaze on the floor, shifting in his standing, not really know how to start his speech before the audience – even if Kai's teammates didn't understand a word.
Kai cocked an eyebrow at the sight; though it looked the same, the man was totally different from the one he had fought just hours ago.
Boris cleared his throat and eventually lifted his gaze, looking directly into the phoenix's eyes.
This was why Kai liked the guy and had had a relatively good connection with him last year. Boris had been always straightforward, genuine, and independent. He had never cared for others' opinion, be it good or bad, he had been living his own life, following his own principles, not intervening in anything that was not his business. Kai had often made raw observations regarding Boris' play, and the falcon either had shrugged it off or accepted the advices, but he had never got offended by them unlike Tala or Sergei.
They had a similar mindset, speaking in a similar way, thus they easily got on the same wavelength.
["I'm not gonna overexplain my actions and the whys. I still don't understand what got into me or how you got involved in the fight at all, but uhm…"] Boris trailed off, collecting his thoughts before he continued because he knew this was a wrong direction. ["Y' know that I always looked up at you for being a great warrior, and you never gave me a reason to hurt you in any way. It's a shame that it was me who damaged the mutual respect between us. Sorry about that."]
It was a nice speech, sounded honest. Yet, Kai couldn't get over it so easily. He contemplatively stared at the guy with tightly folded arms, figuring out what kind of feelings swirled in him, and no matter how long or how deep he looked into his own soul, he couldn't find forgiveness there.
He had been almost killed today thanks to a monster that had got somehow unchained and gone on a rampage because god knew what exact reasons. And there was also the undeniable fact that Kai basically had risked his own life to save Alexandra, Boris' own teammate from serious injuries.
If he hadn't gone to the training room for more practice tonight, the Blitzkriegs probably wouldn't have been able to continue the competition.
["Don't think a well-spoken apology speech can settle everything you've done."] Kai said at last. ["If I were you, I'd quit the championship and leave the team before tomorrow. Alexa can thank her life to me, her brain would've been picked up by crime scene investigators from the floor right now if I hadn't stepped in. I hope you feel the weight of that."]
["W-wait. What do you mean? He was trying to stab her!"] Tala interrupted, correcting the phoenix's words.
Kai's eyebrow twitched again at the question.
["Yes. But before that, he was trashing Alexa's head to the floor. That is why I had to intervene in the first place. Maybe Boris forgot this small detail out."] He rolled his gaze back at Boris whose eyes were filled with shame and horror at the same time.
["He doesn't remember it."] Tala explained with a haggard sigh.
Sensing the radiating frustration from him, Tala probably heard this information for the first time, that undermined his attempt now to smooth Boris' mess.
Kai also frowned at Boris, checking if the falcon had been seeking for some get-away with that excuse, but the shadow of guilty sat on the wild and bruised face that implicated the sudden amnesia to be true.
["It'll come back eventually."] Boris promised, clearly not looking for that moment. He gestured at his head roughly with a hand. ["I have only… pictures in my mind right now. With Alexa, with you, even with Tala yelling something to me…But that's all for now."]
["Marvelous."] Kai stated sarcastically. ["Thanks for the amazing apology. Now, you can show yourselves out."]
Pointing at the door with his head, Kai expected the two of them to leave, but Tala didn't want to go, and Boris didn't dare to move without his captain's permission.
["Tell me what happened. Neither Alexa, nor Boris were able to tell me every detail. You're the only person who saw everything and knew what the fuck happened there."]
Tala didn't say 'please', but the blue orbs were uncharacteristically appealing. When the redhead noticed the dismissive look in Kai's eyes, he pressed. ["Kai, I need to know what happened to make the proper decision tonight."]
Running both hands in his hair and down his face, Kai already knew that he had to sit down with Tala and tell everything about the incident. This goddamn day just didn't seem to end.
["Alright."] He sighed, already hating himself for not putting up a stronger fight with his former captain.
Truthfully, he didn't envy Tala; no longer than a day ago, he himself had thought that his own team had fallen apart, and it had been stressful enough, but the Blitzkriegs' situation was much more serious.
Kai turned to the sitting area of the common room with the intention to have a seat finally, because he was too tired to stand, but stopped abruptly when he noticed Tyson on the couch, listening the Russian conversation in stubborn silence.
At first, Kai was surprised that he saw Tyson there, then he was baffled by the absence of the others. Apparently, they might have got bored with the Russian conversation, and they had retired to their bedrooms who knew how long time ago.
Not minding the more private atmosphere, Kai didn't ask about the whereabouts of his team, and secretly hoped that Tyson too would leave him with the Blitzkriegs alone eventually, but knowing well his character, this was a vain hope.
"Go to bed. Let us speak." Kai roughly threw to Tyson.
The dragon-wielder just raised his eyebrows at the plain rudeness.
"I'm okay here, thanks." Tyson scoffed, making himself even more comfortable on the couch.
Fed up with his disobedient attitude, Kai stormed to the smirking Tyson, who was watching his captain with a slight amusement on his face, then grabbed him by his jacket, and shoved him to his bedroom. Kai opened the door and practically catapulted Tyson in like an oppressive burden he was trying to get rid of, then shut the door.
Knowing well it was not over yet, before he could make a step, the door swung wide open again, and a fuming Tyson re-appeared behind the wood, staring into Kai's perfectly unfazed face.
"Hey! The hell are you–!"
"Stop making a scene, Tyson. Let them talk in private." It was Max's voice from inside of the bedroom that interrupted the champion's sudden tantrum, and Kai silently praised him for toning down the champion's annoying behavior.
The Japanese kept switching his gaze between Max and Kai, contemplating if it was worth to argue with them more, but thankfully, he gave in in the end, probably because he noticed the exhaustion in Kai's eyes.
"Alright, but tomorrow I'll show no mercy and bother you until you answer my every question!" Tyson threatened before he closed the door, settling himself for the night.
Kai groaned in annoyance. Now, he had to wake up early in the morning if he wanted to avoid Tyson. Returning to the common area, he noticed that Tala already seated himself on one of the couches, but Boris was nowhere. The redhead must have sent him away.
Again, Kai didn't mind. The fewer they were, the better. And just like Tyson, Tala showed a different face when he got no audience around him. He spoke in a calmer voice and didn't feel the urge to be so provocative or competitive with him.
Kai appreciated his company in these rare moments. Though he knew Tala preferred when he was surrounded with friends. Right now, however, Tala looked just as exhausted as him, face troubled with conflicting thoughts.
Dropping himself down again in the armchair, Kai took the opportunity and enjoyed the little silence in the room. It felt cozy under the dim light of the table lamp in the corner.
The muted sounds and stillness, the lack of impulsive lights of the night offered peace for his drained soul, and Kai inhaled it as if it was air.
["How did it start?"] Tala asked in a low voice, but it was still loud enough to shatter the calmness around Kai.
To get over it as quickly as possible, he told every detail he remembered whilst Tala was listening to him intently, barely blinking which was quite a creepy sight for Kai with the vibrant blue eyes in the dark room. Occasionally, the Blitzkriegs captain interrupted the train of his thoughts with a question, asking for more details or clarification.
At the part, when Alexa had removed Boris from him, Kai became conflicted.
["She was strangling him with her arms, then she said…"] He paused, considering if he should share this detail with Tala. "Hm."
After the many commotions, Kai completely ignored what Alexandra had said to Boris in that moment because of the worry of being killed and witnessing a murder he didn't have the time the process of the girl's words in his mind.
'Along with underestimating me, hurting him was the last mistake in your life!'
Did she refer to him, Kai? There had been no one else in the training room, and Boris had been hurting only him beside Alexa.
But why did she care for him? The words didn't sound as a general concern for another person in danger, they were rather heated with fury and vengeance. Did she share some kind of connection with him, or she was just another girl falling in love with him?
Kai wanted to believe it was the latter, but he couldn't deny his attraction to the girl and the gloomy energy that always surrounded Alexa. His instincts kept telling him he needed the blonde's presence around him.
There must be something he couldn't see. Something obvious that would explain his weird feelings, his greediness that gravitated him to her. Like a faceless voice that constantly called him in the darkness.
["She said 'hm'?"] Tala repeated with skepticism, a single eyebrow curling up on his forehead.
The redhead's voice yanked Kai out of his thoughts. Covering his startle, Kai shot a scornful glare at his company for the sarcastic comment before he continued.
["Alexa said that the last mistake Boris made in his life was underestimating her."] It was wiser not to tell Tala everything. ["Then I yelled at her, and she finally listened. She let go of Boris and we both thought it was over when Boris jolted her down to the floor and grabbed one of the shards."]
After the storytelling, Tala remained in silence, his eyes running wild in the room as he was reviewing details in his head, meanwhile Kai admired the silence again as he tried to stay awake.
Eventually, Tala inhaled a long, sharp breath, covering his eyes with his hands as if he was trying to quieten the thoughts in his disturbed mind.
["I don't know what the fuck I should do."] He voiced in his frustration, waiting for some miracle that gave him an answer.
["Fortunately, it's not my problem to solve."] Kai said nonchalantly.
["You're not helping."] Tala tutted.
["Was not my intention. By the way, I'm sure you know what you should actually do."] Kai said pointedly.
["It's not so easy. He's my friend. My ally."]
["Hn, you picked the right person then."] Kai sneered, getting bored with the back and forth.
He couldn't trust a man again after showing their so violent side to him. However, he didn't understand why his team kept forgiving to him either.
["You talk so wisely about things you have no fucking idea."] Tala scorned under his breath, but Kai's ear still caught the words.
["I have no idea?! The guy is dangerous to your own team, Yuriy! He almost broke my arm, cut open my head and tried to stab Alexandra, and we don't even know the reason behind it! I was there, I was fighting with that bastard, risking my own life to save another teammate of yours! So, enlighten me, what is it I do not know?!"] Kai did his best to keep his volume low as his own team was probably sleeping already, and he didn't want to wake them up.
Tala exhaled with a careworn expression, supporting his head with a fist, leant on his knee. Kai didn't think he had seen so much desperation on the wolf's face before.
["You don't know."] Tala repeated, unable to sit straight in his seat as he rubbed his hands together.
There was something else that made Tala nervous and worried, and now was in conflict with himself whether he could trust the phoenix to tell a secret.
Kai sensed it was a critical moment, so he remained still, giving the opportunity to Tala to decide it himself. He had learnt last year that Tala needed silence to make the crucial decisions; the mistimed urging words only upset him.
Thus, Kai patiently waited, using his chance to rest his eyes and appreciate the tensed quietness in the room.
["Can I rely on your discretion?"] Tala asked at last, and Kai's eyes snapped open in curiosity.
He slowly nodded, masking his interest with his usual bored face.
Tala jumped on his feet, too anxious to sit anymore, he started pacing in the room.
["Boris and Alexa were trained in the Abbey to be KGB officers."]
Kai blinked hard and raised his eyebrows at the shocking information, questioning the reliability of it and Tala's mental health at the same time.
After the first seconds though, he started taking into consideration the idea. He already knew that Volkov didn't fear getting his hands dirty, and the Abbey would provide the perfect place and resources for this purpose, but still, it seemed a far too ambitious plan.
It would explain the combat skills though. As Ray had observed, Boris and Alexa used the same fighting technique, so they probably had had the same training. Following the track of thoughts, Kai remembered how quickly he could answer Ray's question about what martial art the Russian had been using.
A horrible idea formed up in his mind, overwhelming him, suffocating him, breaking in cold sweat in the warm room.
Prisoning his own childhood memories behind strong walls, Kai now tried to get through them to make certain that his assumption was not true, but naturally, the walls that he had been constantly strengthened with great care in his entire life didn't give him a way in so easily.
["Did you know anything about this?"] Tala asked cautiously, as if he could see what Kai was trying to do.
However, the question sounded general, Kai was not tricked by it, he knew what Tala was truly asking. For the first time, Kai wished he could give the answer to the redhead. He too wanted to know if he had been trained in the Abbey to be a KGB-agent, but he honestly had no clue.
["I didn't."] Kai replied after a while, still shaken by the possibility of the idea.
["You don't know, or you don't remember?"] Tala pushed; his remark forced Kai to shoot an irritated glare at him, a warning not to pry into his private life.
Tala let out a sigh through his nose in disappointment. He obviously hoped he could expect answers for his questions from Kai, but the phoenix was no help for him.
Another silence sneaked into the conversation, both boys sunk in their own stressful thoughts.
["Do you think that we can forget Volkov someday?"]
The wolf's low, breathy voice gave a queer sadness to his usually raw tone that pulled Kai out of his memories.
["Or we shall always keep our guard up 'till he gets buried to rot under the ground forever?"]
Kai frowned some at the sudden question about Volkov, and if he examined closer the tall guy standing not far from him, Tala seemed almost worried.
["I'm dead sure it's the latter."] Kai gave his pessimistic answer. He didn't have illusions about Volkov disappearing from their lives so easily.
Becoming an investor of the BBA, Kai already knew that Vladimir Volkov still held a comparatively high role in the organization regardless his failure with the BEGA. Though Kai tried his best to squeeze the former Abbey director out of his position, thanks to his connections, Volkov kept his place.
["Volkov's not the forgiving type of person, and it's quite unlikely we could escape his long arm in the end."]
Kai expected daggers from any direction.
["Yeah. Just what I thought."] Tala huffed; Kai's words somehow didn't lift his mood.
He didn't understand the reason, but the frozen atmosphere that lingered around them suddenly bothered Kai. To ease the tension, he decided to redirect the topic a bit. Even Kai didn't know why he did this favor Tala who was currently his opponent, a quite strong one, and he was indescribably exhausted, but their discussion somehow kept his interest up, and chased away the sleepiness from his eyes.
["So, how did you learn of this KGB-thing? And when?"]
["Boris told me about it just tonight. Then Alexandra confirmed."] Tala sat down on the couch again, visibly more relaxed now that they didn't talk about Volkov anymore though this burden seemed as heavy on his shoulder.
["And Alexandra was also trained in the Abbey?"] Kai asked, stunned at that information. Until now, he considered this conception as a stupid rumor.
Girls couldn't live in abbeys after all. Volkov had risked a lot raising them among the boys.
["Yes. Crazy, huh?"] Tala said and before Kai could ask again, he raised his own question. ["Have you met her in the Abbey? Or any other girl?"]
["No. But again, I don't remember much from that place."] Kai reminded him, making it clear for Tala not to go forward with the questions.
Tala hummed in acceptance, not inquiring more in his past.
["What a…'coincidence' though you have two KGB-apprentices in your team."] Kai noted.
Tala arched a brow at the comment, but noticing the bobbing apple on his neck, Kai recognized that this thought had already made an appearance is Tala's mind.
["Are you suspicious of them?"] Kai tilted his head, extraordinarily interested what the redhead might think about the situation.
Tala shook his head with determination as he let out a sigh. That made Kai furrow his eyebrows in confusion.
["No?!"] His voice was as annoyed and dissatisfied as he felt himself. Trusting in possible KGB-agents was the stupidest thing someone could do, and the guy that Kai considered outstandingly devious denied the thought that they might have been just using him for a shady purpose.
["You trust Boris – that I can understand. You two have a long history. But relying on Alexandra is the most brainless idea of the millennium. You know nothing about her."]
["They are my teammates, I can't not trust them, Kai! Being as hard to believe it, not every person is bad."] Tala defended, and Kai's hand flew to the sides of his head at his words, slightly touching the temples with his fingers, gesturing that he was talking to an idiot.
["What the…! Whatever. Your team, your burden."] Kai waved off eventually. If Tala wanted to walk into a trap, then he was not going to stop him.
["Why are you so wary of her, by the way? Is there something you know that I don't?"] It was now Tala's turn to tilt his head, looking at the phoenix with suspicion.
["No."] Kai admitted reluctantly, though he was not sure Tala knew about the many bitbeasts under her command. ["I just have a feeling. Her aura is similar to Brooklyn's. Something dark and… it's calling me."]
The words left his mouth before he could stop them, knowing the moment he shared this sensitive detail with Tala, he would either make fun of him, or call him crazy.
Kai carefully looked up at the redhead to check what he was thinking and the sly smirk that dangerously wounded up on his face was not promising while he was eyeing Kai up and down.
["Geez, how tired are you? Now, at a second glance, you look like shit. What's up with you?"]
Taking a deep breath and rolling his eyes, Kai dropped his head back against the armchair in his irritation.
["I just fought for my life with a lunatic, 'course I look like shit. Why do I talk to you again?"]
Tala chuckled at the remark, not sure what to do with Kai's unprecedently talkative manner tonight either.
["I'm a good company."] Tala shrugged, giving his simple explanation that provoked another murderous glance from the phoenix as he made comfortable himself on the couch, and Kai started to worry the redhead planned to spend his night here.
["I thought I've warned you I'm at the end of my patience."]
["Yet you still didn't throw me out but continue chatting with me."] Tala observed with as much arrogance he received from Kai's side.
Fuck. He was right.
Kai himself didn't understand why he hadn't sent the redhead to hell minutes ago, going to bed and sleep instead of enduring his taunts and listening to his problems with no end. The only thing he knew that, despite of his exhaustion, he procrastinated his bedtime as long as he got an opportunity for that, and Tala incidentally provided a perfect one with his issues.
["I don't know what to do!"] Tala suddenly groaned again, dropping his head back on the couch, then he slowly rolled it aside to look at Kai. ["What would you do in my situation?"]
Kai's eyebrows automatically flashed up at the question. Bearing in mind that the two were not his teammates, it was an easy decision for him.
["I would kick out both Alexa and Boris."]
Tala's eyes glinted with a blizzard's coldness all of a sudden.
["Then I won't have a team, Kai."] Tala threw his hands up in annoyance.
["If you keep them as teammates, you won't need enemies around you either."] Kai remarked.
["I'm here to win the championship, and I can't achieve that without their help."]
["You asked, I replied."] Kai shrugged. ["Though If you don't do it, I will."]
Tala's head jerked up from the couch with a sudden alarm, eyes questioning.
["I'll definitely report them if you don't throw them out."] Kai clarified bluntly, the friendly tone quickly evaporating from their conversation. ["I believe I don't have to explain my reasons."]
The Blitzkriegs captain stared at him with disbelief, various cusses sat on his snarled lips already, but in the end, his harsh face alignments were surprisingly pulled into his typical wolfish smirk.
["Oh, you won't do that."]
["Won't I?"] Kai scoffed back with slight amusement.
Who did this guy think talking to?
["'Cause we're the most dangerous opponents for you right now on the competition."] The lopsided cocky smile exposed Tala's teeth.
Kai couldn't describe how much he hated that expression on his former captain. He often saw it when both of them knew Tala had the upper hand in a situation. Simple-minded people were boring, and Kai usually avoided them, but in their company, at least, he had the advantage to manipulate them to do as he wanted.
Now, slickers like Tala were unpredictable, and Kai could never foresee when they pulled out an ace card to use it against him.
However, he was as smart as good at playing games, and the challenges always fired him up.
["Someone's overrating their potential, I see."] Kai said patronizingly.
Tala chuckled at the comeback, and leant on his knees again, looking vivid by the animated conversation.
["Which team won in the third round today, can you tell me? I can't remember. Oh, wait, I do! Mine, the Blitzkriegs. Against yours!."]
Kai growled at the theatric performance. Tala was clearly enjoying this.
["One more reason to hinder your team with the report."] Kai clapped back.
["Oh, the Kai Hiwatari I know would never turn down a great challenge so cowardly."]
["Your team's not the only challenge on the championship. There are other promising teams. And don't call me coward again."]
["Woah, tell me more!"] Tala played the dumb.
["The Majestics and Justice-5 are pushing forward hard. I doubt your team could win against them, especially with two agents that could stab you in the back anytime – both figuratively and literally."]
His words finally wiped off the sly smirk from Tala's face, being replaced with a concerned furrow. Being in a winning position once again, Kai made himself comfortable in the armchair in self-contentment.
["So, again. Why would I not report Boris and Alexandra for violence and get rid of a strong opponent team for good?"]
Kai's question remained unanswered. It seemed, Tala ran out of arguments and strategic ideas. His face distorted with frustration, now.
["You've changed."] Tala said, but the remark sounded rather vicious. ["I expected more from you, the warrior of high morals, who beat the crap out of his own teammates before the finals last year just so you could play a fair game with Tyson. Or you save your morals only for that boy?"]
Tala rose from the couch, ready to retire. Kai didn't stop him, he was pondering on Tala's words whether he should feel insulted or better to just ignore them.
The redhead was already at the door when he stopped for a moment and looked back at Kai. The cold, piercing eyes glinted with disdain in the shadows.
["By the way, you've already proved yourself against all teams that are participating on this tournament. All, but ours. Blitzkriegs beat the Bladebreakers today for the first time since the team is under my command. Doesn't it mean that we've grown bigger than the title defenders? That we have a high chance to win the championship this year?"]
Not hoping he would get a reply to his rhetorical question, Tala turned the doorknob.
["You were lucky, that's all."] Kai hissed, but the wolf ignored his words.
["Don't talk with anyone about what I've told you. I don't wanna unnecessary panic."] Tala asked in his familiar commanding voice, and before he stepped out of the room, he added in a softer tone. ["I'm glad you didn't get hurt more seriously."]
Then he walked out, leaving Kai alone with his conflicted mind.
Almost disappointed that their little dispute ended sooner than he liked, Kai sighed and tilted his head back, resting it against the armchair.
He hated him for that, but Tala was right.
He knew Kai's mindset too well. He was driven by challenges, and eventually he would feel regret for banning out a potential rival. It was the last championship he could take part in, and he would never be satisfied with his victory if he didn't earn it against the worthiest opponent.
But he couldn't just ignore Boris' unstable mental state and do nothing. He had made a wise decision when Kai hadn't let Ray stay in the training room and sent him away to get help.
Mulling on the fight and the sudden burst of rage from Boris, the resemblance sent a shiver down his spine. Although, he had stayed conscious during his fury, being more or less responsive to his own surroundings, he had definitely lost the control just like Boris had tonight.
His stomach churned with anxiety if he considered the idea that his grandfather had sent him to the Volkov's Abbey with the purpose to raise him as a filthy spy for Russia. He showed too many similarities with Boris' character that might have come from the same training…
No, Voltaire had never had such sentimental feelings for a country like Volkov, especially for Russia. He must have sent his grandson to that place for some twisted business reasons, but Kai never dared to ask it. He had been disappointed in the old man too many times, he didn't want to give another reason to the tycoon to show his cold-shoulder to him again.
Despite of the discomposing thoughts, Kai's eyes became heavy after a while in the pleasant silence and the warm lights in the room, dozing off in the chair.
He woke up at Hilary trying to cover him with a blanket, making Kai startle some.
"I'm sorry! Didn't mean to wake you up." Hilary apologized quickly in a hushed tone.
Kai noticed she was already in her pajamas that reminded him he probably wasted most of the nighttime to catch a proper sleep.
He slightly grimaced in pain that referred from his neck and various injured areas of his body as he shifted in his seat. Sleeping in a chair was not the most comfortable sleeping method, so he was actually grateful to Hilary for waking him up.
He already opened his mouth to tell her this, and that she didn't need to be so cautious around him, also to ask her why she was still up at this hour, but Kai was not a man of words, so he said something else instead.
"Hn."
Yeah. That would do it. Hilary must know his every thought now.
With a tired moan, Kai pulled himself up from the chair with the final intention to crash in his bed while Hilary went to the bathroom to grab a glass of water after putting back the blanket to its place.
Unlike he and Ray, the rest of the team didn't have their own personal bathroom next to their bedroom, they had to use the big one that opened from the common room.
Being a captain, it had its own benefits when he demanded a specific room for himself and the others accepted his choice without a fight. Along with Kai, it was usually Ray who could enjoy these benefits being the closest to the captain, but also having an incredibly long hair with a similarly long routine, the others didn't mind if Ray didn't use the same bathroom with them.
Kai's hand was already in the air to enter his bedroom when realized he didn't prepare with exercises for the next training in the morning.
"Hilary." He called, stopping the brunette to slip back to her own room with the glass in her hand.
"Hm?"
"Can you prepare another training schedule for tomorrow that you made the other day?"
Hilary blinked in surprise.
"Uhm… Sure!" She said eventually, still baffled at the request.
"Great." Kai said as a thanks though he rather sounded grumbling, then without turning back, he quietly entered the bedroom.
Again, Ray was already sleeping, and this time, he didn't leave the lamp on, so Kai's eyes first had to adapt to the darkness.
After groping his way to the opposite side of the room and changing into his own simple pyjamas, he relaxed under the quilt, ready to pay his sleep dept, but irritating as it was, laying comfortably in the bed now somehow didn't help him to rest. The storming thoughts about the stressful events and the conversation with Tala from today kept his mind too occupied, preventing him to focus on his sleep.
Continuously rolling from one side to another and sighing at the ceiling helplessly, Kai considered the idea to go downstairs and train some again, but he already knew that would be foolish regarding his completely worn-out muscles.
When he was about to give up and mustering his non-existent energy to get out of the bed and go down, he finally fell asleep with the demons that lurked in the shadows of his soul.
A/N: Hi Folks! I hope you're doing great! Sorry for keeping you waiting for so long. Apparently, the scheduled update I did last time was too overwhelming for me and I needed a little break to re-charge myself. So, I don't think I'll be able to update weekly, but I'll always try to update as fast as my time allows it, because I really want to complete this story before anything comes into my life that'd prevent me from writing.
I hope you've enjoyed Kai and Tala's dialogue, and they didn't seem to out of character (mostly Kai), I really like operate with these two. The next chapter will present the Blitzkriegs' perspective once again, but after that, we'll leave this major thread behind for a while.
Take care until next time! - Maci bácsi