Redbird
Cherry Rain: How are you guys out there? I am back! =] On with the show! This is the second last chapter to Redbird, and then I'll post Redbird Part Two, which is currently under construction. Buh bye! =]
Chapter Sixteen: Explanations & Implications
Back in the safety of the hotel room, Lei Feng flipped down on the bed. "I suppose I should've told you guys about my past before all this stupid crap began to happen. Well, then I'll tell you now. Better late than never."
"I was born to a asshole bastard and a woman who died to save me from an epidemic of some disease when I was seven. All she left me was this pair of knives. She said they were in our family for a long time, so I supposed that they were some kind of a family heirloom. Anyway, they served me well enough in the alleyways."
She pulled out the blades, their sheaths chased with intricate designs of a pair of phoenixes. One looked strangely like Redbird.
"And then I went to an orphanage. Well, my days there were not exactly pretty. We'll not go into details, okay?" she said, pulling up her shirt slightly to show a healed but ugly dark scar on her lower back.
"And then some rich lady who sponsored the orphanage came and gave us beyblades the Christmas I was thirteen. I loved it. I practiced and practiced, and then, one night, Redbird came to me. But Redbird didn't want to come. She fought to get out. But something held her bound to my blade. But to cut to the chase, I got out of that filthy place and spent the next few years as an alley kid. In some ways, it was better."
"I joined gangs, got into fights, stole and kept on my feet. And they knew me as Lightning. By they, I mean Kenshin, Raika, Kitty and Takashi. My old batch of friends. Raika got killed in a gang fight. Kitty and Takashi ran off together. And Kenshin."
"He was a nice guy. But he wasn't the one I loved, except maybe as an annoying kid brother. However he was totally obsessed with me. He followed me around; he told me he loved me at least ten times a day, and all the rest of that crap. But I just didn't love him, and he just didn't get it."
"But then, one day he just disappeared. I just assumed he'd been killed by one person or another-it happens sometimes, and so I just went on with life. From then on, nothing much happened. I honed my skills as a beyblader, worked odd jobs and stayed alive. Until I met you guys."
"Now I know Kenshin is absolutely twisted. He's crazy and totally sick. I don't know what he'll do to get at me. So you guys had better be careful too. I know him, and he's capable of doing anything to stay alive. I think he's capable of doing anything for revenge as well."
Everyone was serious. Not even Tyson was goofing off. Sensing the discomfort, Lei Feng added, "It's not too late to kick me off the team, guys. With me gone, so will the danger. I won't mind, I swear. In fact, maybe I should go."
Kai glared at her. "Use a little more sense. We're not kicking you off."
Max grinned at her. "Well, listen to the team leader. You stay, Lei Feng."
Just then, a knock was heard at the door. Lei Feng opened it to see one of the hotel's maids standing there. "Excuse me, but I was instructed to give this to you," she said, holding out a letter. "The receptionist said it had been left at her desk while she was at lunch."
Lei Feng nodded and took it, her face set grimly.
There were only two lines.
"I know where you are. And I'm watching you. Kenshin."
Flashing the note at her teammates, Lei Feng flopped back onto the bed with a sigh. "Where'll this end, I wonder."
Ever-cheerful Max replied, "Well, there should be an end. And we'll face it as a team!"
"Can we eat?" Tyson spoke up.
Rolling her eyes, but feeling considerably more light-hearted, Lei Feng walked off with the rest of her team.
***
I shook my head at Kenshin. "You shouldn't have shown yourself to her! You'll ruin everything we've worked for!"
"Do you really think I give a damn, Satashi? I'm not in this. Remember that. And you're only worried I'll destroy what you worked for. I only work to my goal- Lei Feng."
Satashi groaned inwardly. God, this was going badly wrong. Lei Feng might not know that Satashi was up to anything, but this would put her on her guard, damn it! And she would have enough sense to put the rest of her team on guard too, making it even harder to get close and take the bitbeasts they needed. Master Varian wouldn't be pleased.
Satashi again thanked the gods that Varian was a reasonable man. He wasn't like the masters that his friends had told him of. Varian was reasonable and did not tax you too much, did not treat you like a slave, did not use his subordinates as punching bags for his fury. Sometimes, he could even be kind. In his better moments, Varian was like a father to Satashi. Unlike the parents who had sold him.
That's why Satashi would not let him down. Failure was not an option in Satashi's book.
The Redbird and Dranzer would be theirs.
***
Crickets chirped in the night, their call not the only thing keeping Lei Feng awake as she tossed and turned around in the bed she now shared with Kai Hiwatari. She knew had to deal with Kenshin as fast as she could, before he caused any harm to her teammates. And Kai.
She knew Kai was perfectly capable of taking care of himself, but she didn't like the idea of an attack on him. And she knew Kenshin would target him.
Leaping out of the bed, she pulled a jacket and jeans on. The chances were that he was still in the vicinity. And knowing Kenshin's preference of the alleys, she probably knew where to go. He would have been around long enough, so he must have a permanent hiding place somewhere.
It was time for Lightning to make her reappearance.
Slipping out of the door, she quickly tucked the knives into her sleeves, patting her pocket to make sure that Redbird was there. A warm glow reassured her.
"I am always with you, mistress."
***
It was a full moon night, and Lei Feng walked along the shadows, but still keeping in the light. The streets were deserted- it was nearly midnight. Her footsteps made an unnaturally loud sound in the unnerving silence, even though she was wearing sneakers.
Lei Feng strode unerringly towards the alleys behind the park, where it was alley brat heaven. And she knew that in China, the lanes behind Bei Street had been her heaven. Her domain.
Beyblading was common in Greece- as it was everywhere else nowadays. She made her way past an erupting quarrel between gangs- her destination tonight was Kenshin's hideout.
Then suddenly she heard the familiar light footstep of Kenshin. Unless you listened for it, you wouldn't hear him. That, added to his light fingers and agility had made him one of the best thieves in the streets.
Whirling around to face him, she nodded coldly. "Kenshin." Her voice was like brittle ice.
"Lightning." He used the old name like a term of endearment, like a caress, and a frown creased Lei Feng's face. "What brings you here?"
"I want you to stay away from the Bladebreakers. They're my team, and strange as it might seem, I am pretty attached to them. Even the idiot Tyson."
His expression did not change. "And especially to Hiwatari. Am I right?"
Lei Feng stood her ground, calmly replying, "Yes. Especially to Kai. I thought you were dead when you disappeared five years ago, Kenshin. Why are you back now, of all times?"
"Why? That's none of your concern, Lei Feng. That's for me to know."
"Kenshin!" Lei Feng was beginning to lose patience. "I'm warning you! Just stay out of my life!"
"Or what?"
"You know what, Kenshin. Or shall I remind you?" She drew the knives, moving forward, menacing him. "Take a look at the scars on your arm. Maybe it'll help you remember a thing or several."
"Oh, I remember. But I also know that I have my strengths, over yours."
"Oh?" Lei Feng mocked. "Such as?"
"Strength in numbers." Snapping his fingers, more people materialized from the shadows. "I learnt a nice trick or two from you, Lightning. As you said, always gather support in a new place. I followed you here from China. Do you think that I would be here so long and not get myself a few followers? You underestimate me. And do you think I would be foolish enough not to get myself a little help when facing you, the infamous Lightning of Bei Street? I know you, and I know you'd try to find me."
Gritting her teeth, Lei Feng knew she had made a mistake. One last card to play. Pulling the blade and launcher from her pocket in one move, she called, "Redbird!"
The blade thudded into the ground, spinning rapidly, Redbird screeching angrily as she spread her wings protectively in front of her mistress. "Not so cocky now, huh, Kenshin? Redbird could take all of you out, no problem!"
"Not if she's busy! Akashi! Come out!"
The snake bitbeast reared from its blade, hissing at the Lightning Phoenix. Redbird glared right back at it in anger.
As if responding to some unspoken cue, the gang members all leapt at Lei Feng. Instinctively slashing out with the knives, she was rewarded by an assortment of moans and groans. But she knew she wouldn't have seriously injured more than three. And there were at least fifteen of them.
She felt someone grab her arm, wrenched it free and kicked him in the stomach. He fell, coughing blood. She fought blindly on; knowing that Kenshin was laughing nearby. There were too many- she wasn't going to make it. But she would go down fighting.
Redbird was sharing her pain as Akashi spat poison at the bitbeast, though she retaliated. Then suddenly, a hiss of pain was heard from the snake bitbeast, and a voice carried to her ears. "No fair! Fifteen against one!"
She caught a flash of vivid pink. "Mariah?"
"The one and only!" A loud miaow/roar sound identified the bitbeast helping Redbird as Galux.
With Mariah helping, things were made a lot easier for. Mariah had a pretty good knowledge of Chinese martial arts, and it wasn't long before the rest of their attackers scrambled away like beaten dogs with their tails between their legs.
Lei Feng gripped her arm, where she had been slashed. "Not so cocky now, huh, Kenshin!"
Akashi hissed again in pain as Galux struck out viciously at its face. Kenshin frowned, then recalled it. "Akashi!" The snake hurriedly recoiled back into the blade and the blade flew to Kenshin's hand.
"You may have won, Lei Feng, but this isn't the end. It's only the beginning." The grey miasma of Akashi covered him once more and he disappeared. Lei Feng glared after him in annoyance.
Mariah helped Lei Feng back to the hotel, bringing her to the room she shared with Yu, who was thankfully sound asleep.
"The good thing is that she's a heavy sleeper- doesn't wake up without a shake or some kind of really loud noise, or we'd be a little hard put to explain all this," Mariah whispered softly, pulling out a small first aid kit and cleaning the gash with antiseptic. "And this is pretty shallow- you'll be fine. And there's no broken bones either." She wrapped it in white bandage. "You're left handed, so it won't affect your blade launch. Lucky."
"So how'd your match go?" Lei Feng asked.
"We beat them flat. Next we're going up against Silver Blades today."
"We're taking Element Whirlwind. Good luck and see you in the finals!"
"The White Tigers are gonna win!" Mariah claimed.
"Not if I have anything to say about it!"
The two girls looked at each other, then broke into laughter before quieting down. After they finished dressing each other's wounds, Lei Feng left with a wave of her hand. Mariah was a great friend.
***
Kai woke at five in the morning, as usual. Lei Feng wasn't there, and the sheets were ice cold. She must have gone out last night. Well, if she didn't want to tell him where she had been, that was her business.
At that moment, Lei Feng slipped in and headed for the bathroom to wash the blood-encrusted blades. Kai silently got up and followed her in. As she dried them off and placed them back in her sleeve, he touched the wound, frowning at her wince.
"Bad wound."
"Mariah bandaged it."
"She's obviously not very good," Kai smirked. Pulling her back to the bed, he took the bloodstained bandage off and rewrapped it with a clean piece.
"Thanks." Lei Feng lay back on his chest. "I'm exhausted. Damn Kenshin and every one of his idiotic followers."
"You went to find him?" Kai asked, playing absentmindedly with the white streak in her hair, the other arm around her waist.
"Yeah. I was stupid enough to believe that I could get him to listen to me and even stupider to think I could have handled the situation alone. God, sometimes my pride just gets in the way. I would probably have been dead if Mariah hadn't turned up to give me a hand."
"Try not to do that again, okay?" The words were light-hearted and almost casual, but there was an extra degree of seriousness in Kai's voice that made Lei Feng turn around and look at him. "I have no wish to lose you."
Lei Feng nodded. He was right. She had been far too foolish this time. "I won't, Kai." Then a yawn creased her face in spite of herself- staying out all night had taken its toll on her.
Noticing this, Kai said, "Go to sleep. We've still got about three and a half hours before Tyson and the rest wake up."
Lei Feng nodded and pulled him down to the bed with her. "You should rest too. You don't sleep much. Force of habit?"
"Yeah."
Closing her eyes, she fell asleep almost instantly, arms around Kai.
***
Ray shook Tyson awake. No reaction whatsoever- Tyson was utterly dead to his surroundings. Since Kai moved off to Lei Feng's room, Tyson had taken over his old spot. This made things a lot more convenient for him and Mariah- Tyson never woke up. Max and the Chief watched blearily nearby as Ray took a hot pepper out of the stock the Bladebreakers always carried with them and put it in Tyson's mouth.
Standing back with a satisfied grin, Ray said, "Three, two, one-"
"AAAAAARRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Tyson got up, yelling. "My mouth's on fire!"
"And good morning to you, Tyson."
A loud sizzle could be heard as Tyson doused his mouth, glaring at Ray. Fully awakened by the combination of the fiery taste and the cold water, he looked around, then asked, "Where's Kai? Old sourpuss would usually be there-" he said, pointing to an exact spot just beside the doorframe "-leaning against the wall and smirking at me."
"I think he's still asleep," Max answered.
"RAY! You woke me while Kai was still asleep? How could you! You're so heartless!" Tyson yelled, turning to Ray. "I don't care! I'm going to wake sourpuss. It's not fair that he gets to lie in."
As they set off down the hallway, Tyson added, "Though it's not usual that Kai stays in bed. Maybe he got lucky yesterday night?"
"Do you even know what that means, Tyson?" Dizzi teased.
"Sure I do! It means-" Tyson got no further as Ray clapped a hand over his mouth.
"Tyson, there are little kids around!" Ray pointed at a little kid near them who was looking rather confused and bewildered at the odd behaviour of the elder boys. "Now move it and keep your trap shut!"
"Sheesh. Loosen up, Ray. Doesn't it make you even the tiniest bit curious about what went on now that Kai's moved into her room?" Tyson said.
"Adolescent boys," Dizzi teased acidly. "All the same."
"Well, we're about to find out. Here's their room," Kenny said.
Opening the door, Max looked around. "No clothes all over the place, Tyson. I think you were wrong."
Tyson sighed in disappointment. "There went my hopes of teasing Kai."
"You may still have a chance, Tyson. Look!" Kenny said.
Their team leader and the only female member of their team were curled up together in bed, Kai's chin resting lightly on her head. Tyson grinned. "Wake up, people!"
Lei Feng sat up, disentangling herself from Kai. "What is it, Tyson?"
"He's probably pissed that he had to get up before I did." Kai was leaning back against the headboard, grinning at a now very irate Tyson, whose face was growing a strange shade of mottled red.
"Care to share with us the reason you're so late in waking?" Tyson grinned.
"Not your business," Lei Feng interjected sharply.
"Touché, Lei Feng. Did something really happen between the two of you?" Tyson didn't give in.
"Why, jealous?" Kai smirked.
Tyson blushed. Changing the subject abruptly, he said, "We have a tournament on today, remember? The semifinal match, against Element Whirlwind."
"Yeah. We better go," Max said.
"Wait! Breakfast first," Tyson moaned piteously as his stomach growled loudly.
***
"Welcome to the tournament semifinals! This is the match in which we decide who goes to the finals and who doesn't! So hold on to your seats- we're in for a ground-breaking match!" DJ Jazzman yelled.
"Today's match will be the Bladebreakers versus Element Whirlwind. Rumour has it that these gals use more then just brains in the battle- they use their looks too! So good luck to the boys on the other side!"
"What's more, today's match, we'll be blading doubles! So this is going to be hard! The bitbeasts have to attack the other team's and avoid chewing out your own teammate! So good luck!"
"Tyson's still immature- let him go!" Dizzi said. "He and Max make a lovely pair."
"Damn. This means we'll have to change the game plan," Lei Feng cursed. "Dizzi's right. Max and Tyson take one, then how about the other two?"
"You and Ray?" Kai suggested. "I'm not too sure Redbird and Dranzer will stop fighting each other long enough to fight the other team. I'll go with Max again. A defense/offence combination is good in doubles."
"Fine," Lei Feng nodded. "Good luck, people!"
"And first up is Tyson and Max of the Bladebreakers!" DJ Jazzman yelled to the sounds of the crowd cheering. "Will they be able to beat their competitors? Here comes Anna and Yvonne of Element Whirlwind!"
Lei Feng watched acridly as the two girls walked to the dish, their skirts far above their knees, both wearing very revealing spaghetti-strapped shirts.
"You're never gonna win!" Tyson yelled.
"We'll see about that, dear," Anna winked at him. Tyson blushed. Lei Feng frowned, dashing up to the dish.
"Tyson! Max! Don't listen to her and her partner! Concentrate on the battle!" she yelled. Anna glared.
Tyson and Max nodded.
"And for this round, we've gone back to basics with the classic bowl! No frills, but there are definitely thrills! This bowl is probably the bowl that brings out the skill of the players the most, as there are no advantages!"
"Players, take your positions! Three! Two! One! LET IT RIP!"
Tyson and Max loosed their blades into the dish, just as the two girls let theirs loose. The twin gleaming violet blades moved in perfect unison as they zigzagged toward Draciel and Dragoon.
Anna shouted, "Intra! Time to come on out!"
Yvonne yelled, "Sana! Back her up! Double Elements!"
The two bitbeasts rose in the form of cloaked figures. Intra gave off a silvery, eerie glow, while Sana glowed like the sun. The temperatures in the stadium began to fluctuate wildly, first in rising summer heat, then in the freezing bite of winter.
Dragoon and Draciel's blades began to show cracks. "What the-" Tyson shouted. "What's going on?"
Kenny ran up to the dish. "Tyson, Max! The different temperatures are causing the cracks! Sudden contraction, then heat expansion and then back again is putting too much pressure on the blades!"
"Fine! But how do I stop them?" Tyson yelled.
"I have no idea, but Dizzi's scanning the files as fast as she can!"
"Well, hurry! We don't have time!" Max shouted back.
"Let's show those two what we can do!" Anna shouted. "Come on! Intra! Icy Cage!"
A beam of ice shot towards the blades from out of nowhere, freezing the bit chips. "Now your bitbeasts won't be able to exit the blades!"
Lei Feng realised with a jolt of surprise that the two of them were drawing this battle out. They could have ended it by freezing the entire blade, not just the bit chip. But they didn't. What were they going to gain from this?
Anyway, unless Tyson and Max could pull off some weird save, this match was already done. And from the looks of it, the other three members knew it too.
Kenny clutched his hair in desperation. "If there was some way to break the ice!"
Max looked back. "Break the ice? But how- hey! Draciel! Jump!"
The blade soared into mid air, coming down to rest with a loud cracking sound on Dragoon's bit chip. The ice shattered.
"Damn!" Yvonne cursed. "It's time to end this! Sana! Infernal Blaze!"
"Oh oh!" Dizzi said. "The energy levels are spiking up- I think those two are in real trouble!"
"Too late, Dizzi!" The Chief moaned, as Sana began to glow a dark red, heat radiating from her in violent waves. "Nothing can save them now!"
A fiery glow rose from the center of the dish, forcing Lei Feng to look away. She knew in her heart that this match was over.
When the glow died down, she looked towards the dish. And got the shock of her life. Dragoon was still spinning! While Draciel was down, its parts looking rather melted. Even Sana was lying at a side of the dish. Yvonne cursed fluently in several languages, totally forgetting her role as Little Miss Demure.
"How did he pull that off?" Ray said, as Tyson grinned at his opponent like there was no tomorrow. "Chief?"
"As far as I can tell, Dragoon created a tight wind shield that blew the flames away from him, keeping the blade intact. Draciel couldn't pull that move off, so it got busted. Intra created a shield of ice that protected her, though it melted." Kenny said, banging frantically at the keyboard.
"Tyson!" Lei Feng hollered at him, only paying partial attention to Kenny. "Go offensive NOW! Before they pull something on you again!"
Tyson nodded, then called, "Dragoon! Phantom Hurricane!"
The oh-so-familiar wind began to rise, enveloping the dish. Lei Feng grinned in satisfaction at Tyson's trademark attack. The guy wasn't as blur as he seemed.
"And this match is over! In a surprising turn of events, this round goes to Tyson and Max of the Bladebreakers!" DJ Jazzman yelled.
Anna and Yvonne picked up their blades and walked back to the rest of the team, glaring back sullenly.
DJ continued with the commentary. "Not a very gracious win from those two! Anyway, let's take a look at the next contestants! Ray and Lei Feng from the Bladebreaker team are going for the second round! Knowing these two, they'll make a formidable pair! Will their opponents, Fiona and Sera, be able to beat them?"
The two girls walked up to the dish and faced the two. Sera glared from behind the silver bangs across her face. "The two of you will pay."
Lei Feng smirked at her in perfect imitation of Kai's smirk. One didn't hang around that guy and pick up utterly nothing. Readying Redbird, she placed her on the launcher and felt the phoenix's eagerness to fight.
Listening, she waited for the countdown, but the minute she released the blade into the dish, she forgot everything and began to concentrate utterly on the match. Not standing to wait any longer, Redbird soared right out of her bit chip in an impressive show of light.
Fiona glared at her and her bitbeast. "You wanna play games? Raina! Rise!" A dragon very like Tyson's dragoon rose, except this one was cloudier, mottled white and blue. At the same time, Sera called her bitbeast. "Imitia! Go for it!" Imitia was a wolf, with strange colours that never seemed to be the same, ever shifting, and it made one's eyes hurt if you stared at it too often.
Driger leapt out, roaring its challenge to her. Imitia bared her fangs at the white tiger and waited.
Just waited.
Ray wasted no time! "Go Driger! Tiger Claw attack!"
Driger leapt at the wolf, but at the last minute, the wolf just faded away and the blade skidded to a bewildered stop.
Sera's voice held a note of gloating to it. "Well, Imitia! Go! Show him a real Tiger Claw!"
The bitbeast suddenly threw itself at Driger in perfect imitation of the attack the white tiger had just used. Unable to avoid it, Driger suffered a scratch right across the face.
Redbird and Raina were currently feinting, striking out but not doing any substantial damage to each other.
Lei Feng chanced a glimpse back at Ray and found he wasn't exactly in the best of shape. How could you fight an invisible enemy?
Tyson leapt to his feet. "Two of you! Work as a team! Back each other up!"
Lei Feng considered the point. Then without warning, she sent an unspoken command, and Redbird began firing lightning bolts around, destroying the dish, sending pieces of it flying everywhere.
Something stumbled on one of the potholes and the next minute, Sera's blade reemerged, Imitia looking very angry. "Ray, now!" Lei Feng yelled.
He nodded. "Go, Driger!"
The white tiger dashed for the wolf, but it dodged. However, Sera wasn't exactly noting the other Bladebreaker blade and lost everything to that fact as Redbird slammed her hard from the back, throwing her off balance and leaving her to finally stop spinning and end with a clatter.
Fiona ground her teeth. "Raina! Call upon the thunderclouds! Call upon the rain!"
"Oh no you don't!" Lei Feng shouted. "Redbird! Fight her! You are the mistress of the storm! Don't let her have control! Storm Devastation!"
The tension in the air grew as thick as split-pea soup, so thick you could slice it cleanly with a blunted butter knife as the two bitbeasts struggled for possession of the elements of nature. It was a pure match of power against power as the two bitbeasts fought for dominance, the concentration written in every line of their faces, in the tense strain of their owners' faces.
And then Driger pounced on Raina, striking its blade with a large amount of force, batting it around. The bitbeast wheeled in surprise and fought back with claw and teeth at the newcomer, who leapt tauntingly out of the way.
Lei Feng knew what Ray was doing- distracting Fiona so as to let Redbird take control. Lei Feng seized her chance. "Redbird! Now!"
Raina turned her attention back to the phoenix, but it was too late to save the situation. The clouds had already begun to gather and lightning was beginning to flash menacingly, thunder playing an ominous accompaniment.
And as Redbird screeched her victory to the skies above, the ball of spiked lightning crashed down with enough force to throw Lei Feng back several feet, landing with a painful thud on her butt.
But as she got up, nursing a broken (or so she thought) tailbone, she saw the effort had been worth it. Raina wouldn't be blading for a while. The same devastation that had been wreaked on Foxflame had occurred to her as well, though this time Redbird had better control over the storm and the effects were subsequently worse. The BBA would be getting this dish remade and Fiona was going to have to recreate her entire blade except the bit chip.
For some reason- Lei Feng supposed it was because the bit chip was home to the bitbeast and some power must have rubbed off onto it after some time- the bit chip usually managed to stay intact through some of the worst beatings a blade could take.
She picked up Redbird and Driger and instantly regretted the action. The blades were slightly melted, and to say the least, were hot. Very hot. She tossed it around from hand to hand, waiting for them to cool down, then settling for wrapping them in her blazer and keeping it that way.
The whole thing was in the bag, and the finals were theirs to win.
Cherry Rain: Somebody donate me a muse. My author's notes at the start and bottom are getting more and more boring… I need a muse to spice things up… donate me a muse… long chappie, dontcha think?