Sherbet Mayhem: Oh, so you came back for more, did you? Well that's just great, just great, just frickin' great . . . it is actually. It means you like my story! Woo hoo! Okay, so on with chapter two. Thanks go out to all who reviewed – I owe you a pound each (or, if you don't live in England, then I owe you a dollar – or one of whatever currency your country uses . . . you know, I'm putting this up just as I've put chapter one up . . . my review policy is rendering useless right now . . . and the only person who's reviewed this story is ME!!! Ha, ha! Sad, really, no?). Anyhow, this is chapter two of War. Hope you enjoy it!

And I've already told you, I only own a dovetail saw and a piece of cheese – but the other day I came into possession of a purple plastic protractor! Yay!

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Chapter Two: Desensitisation

"MOVE!!!"

Kai sprang out of the way of at least a dozen oncoming bullets at the command of his quick thinking mind, and he and Dango avoided being hit narrowly. The Captain spun on his feet with as much agility as he could manage and darted in the other direction, knowing that sometimes it is better to run. He sped around the corner, one hand at his waist, attempting to pull one of his Uzis from its holster.

As he turned the corner, Kai almost slipped on a piece of loose rock on the floor, causing him to hesitate for a second. The BIOVOLT troops didn't miss a beat, and Kai felt an explosion of pain sweeping the back of his right kneecap. He heard himself cry out, his senses completely reeling, as the hot white flash of pain spread agonisingly up the back of his leg.

"Damn-it!" he cursed through stiffly gritted teeth as he stumbled, almost collapsing under the sudden pressure of the bullet. He could feel his warm blood leaching nastily, cruelly, down the back of his leg; his life force seeping away in a trail of scarlet. His vision swam before him, as though his whole world had been plunged into the ocean. Sounds dissolved as they reached his ears, and things that had seemed to real just a second ago looked suddenly dreamlike.

Still, Kai managed to stay on his feet. He didn't know how. Some unknown force, some drive for life, kept him on his feet and he continued to run, despite the fact that his knee felt like it were being branded by merciless, raging tongs. Dango was still slung over his shoulder, and he was talking to Kai, but Kai couldn't make out what he was saying. He wasn't sure that was because Dango was making no sense or because his own senses had completely shut down.

Aware enough to see another few bullets whiz past his face, Kai tried to pick up the pace. He began to remember that the street led to a place called Kitayo Park – the square they had just been in was called Kitayo Square. If he were quick enough, he would be able to hide out in the bushes and foliage of the park, which was naturally lush and green. After all, the BIOVOLT troops were eight or nine metres behind him. They probably hadn't even rounded the corner yet. Kai simply continued to struggle through the street – which was more of an alleyway, lined with high backyard walls which were grey, with tiny sprouts of moss and grass extricating through the seams in the brick.

"KAI!!!"

He heard a voice to his right – it seemed to be coming from above him, but he couldn't be sure. Everything was so hazy. His vision danced with macabre spots and sways that made him feel as though he were running upside-down.

Ignoring the voice, Kai kept on running, wondering how he was going to pull this one off – when a strong hand grasped him about the wrist and dragged him to the right. He had no strength to resist and allowed himself to be yanked to the side.

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"Anything, Dave?"

Tyson's voice came from behind him, and Dave, positioned at the front of the squad while his Captain checked for survivors, turned a little way around as he ran.

"There's no one ahead of us, Tyson! We're all clear!"

As he ran, Dave spotted Kitayo Park approaching up ahead. The street they ran down was thin and rather dark. Still, Dave reached for his radio and pressed the communication button on the side.

"Chief, where do we go when we get to the park?"

"You'll have to turn left, Dave. Run down the road left for about three minutes, and then you'll be at a roundabout. Take the opening to the North West, and carry on up that road till you reach headquarters."

"Thanks, Chief," commended Dave, impressed with Kenny's quick direction and order. Still running, Dave reached the park, and the nine soldiers behind him gathered together.

"Okay, we go left here," explained Dave, half talking to the troop and half speaking out loud while collecting his thoughts "And then we're at a junction. Take the North West road, and we should end up at HQ. Well, you know, almost HQ."

Dave's last comment simply meant that they would reach the opening in the woodland that ran along the side of the road that they would all recognise. All of the squad knew how to reach HQ from there.

Dave turned to the troop, who were panting but seemed to be holding up well. Glancing back down the street they had just traversed, Dave frowned when he did not see the familiar sight of his Captain.

"Tyson, where's Kai?"

After a quick look back, Tyson shrugged. "I dunno. Maybe we should go back?"

Thinking, Dave tried to make a clear decision. It was difficult when a friend may have been at risk. However, he knew that Max would be able to guide the rest of the squad back to HQ safely.

"You and I, Tyson. Max, lead on. Eyes open for BIOVOLT. Contact me when you get there."

Max nodded, standing up boldly to the new responsibility being thrust upon him. He was very brave, was Max Tate, and he had blossomed into a mature young man in the few months the war had been on. He gave Dave and Tyson a quick salute before leading the other seven members off to the left.

"Do you think anything's happened?" asked Tyson, looking up at the taller Dave. Dave shrugged, clearing his throat.

"We'll soon find out."

The two set off, back the way they came down the small side street leading to Kitayo Square. Chills ran down their spines when they heard the frightening sound of boots, slamming into the dusty ground in disturbing unison not too far away. Dave hushed Tyson as he began to talk.

"What?" asked Tyson in a whisper as he was silenced. Dave held a tentative finger to his lips.

"Hold on a second. Listen."

Tyson leaned forwards a little, hoping to catch what had eluded him. There was nothing. No gunfire, no angry voices. It was silent.

"What's wrong with that?" asked Tyson again, puzzled. Dave sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Tyson, do you hear silence?"

Tyson strained to listen again, and then nodded his affirmation. "Yep. You could hear a pin drop!"

"Doesn't it strike you as odd that the marching has stopped?"

Tyson thought about it, and then gasped. "Oh yeah! So . . . what's that mean?"

"It means – "

Dave was cut off as the explosion of bullets leaving their homes cracked the silent air in half. Instinct told Tyson to look for cover – in his brief, incomplete army training, Tyson had learned that effective cover was essential for survival. To his left he spotted an open back door – leading into somebody's back yard. It was small and brown, and seemed to be coming off the hinges. It looked like it could be pushed open.

"Dave, in here!" hissed Tyson in a hushed yet hurried manner, and he grabbed the taller boy, lugging him into the empty back yard. It was square and grey, with tiny grass stalks splitting the ground in numerous places. Perfect to hide in.

"Think they're coming down this street?" whispered Dave as he pulled the door into an angle that didn't look like it had been ripped almost completely off its hinges. Tyson breathed a sigh of relief as he realised that the BIOVOLT soldiers would have immense difficulty catching a single sight of them if they kept quiet.

"Maybe," breathed Tyson in response. Dave merely stared at him.

"Who d'you think they were shooting at?"

Tyson frowned, incredibly worried but not wishing to show it.

"Enough of the questions, Dave. I'm gonna check it out."

Ignoring Dave's quiet protests, Tyson moved to the yard wall, which was some six feet high, and reached up with his gloved hands. He then hauled himself up so he could just peer over the wall without being conspicuous. What he saw disturbed him greatly.

"KAI!!!"

There, down in the narrow street, with another soldier slumped over his shoulder and a gingerbread trail of blood puddles following behind him was his Captain, staggering dizzily along as best as he could. He was obviously wounded, and to what extent Tyson could not see, but he could instantly tell that it was serious. Below him, Kai paused momentarily, and Tyson could practically see his own voice registering in Kai's thoughts; so he was surprised when Kai simply carried on stumbling through the street, plainly trying to hurry.

Tyson turned back around and saw that Dave was watching him with worried eyes and a panic-stricken face.

"Tyson?"

Tyson had to search for his own voice. He had never seen one of his former team mates injured before. Well, Max had taken a blow to the head once but it had been bandaged quickly and Tyson had not seen anything of the wound. Seeing Kai, usually strong and impressive, limping along like a dying animal had shaken something deep within Tyson. He had to save Kai, as a Captain and as a friend.

"Dave, open the door!" he choked wildly, peering back over the wall at the opening of the street, where he expected BIOVOLT troops to pour forth. Below him, in the yard, Dave yanked open the door, echoing Tyson's gasp of surprise.

Thinking quickly, Dave reached out and grabbed Kai's wrist, which was still at his waist, fumbling weakly for the Uzi. He dragged Kai in with an urgency he had not recognised and hitched the door into its 'closed' position again. It merely looked closed while just standing against the grey wall that surrounded the yard.

"What happened?" whispered Tyson as he watched for the troops. Suddenly he saw a glimpse of BIOVOLT – appearing at the entrance to the street like the eerie shadow of an eclipse – a giant, black mass of evil that blocked out all the light and cloaked the world in darkness. He fell back off the wall swiftly, hoping that he had not been spotted, and joined Dave on ground level. Kai didn't try to speak. It required too much effort – and he could hardly recognise the boys around him.

"We have to move," whispered Dave hurriedly, "If they catch us here there's no way we could escape."

"But where do we go from here? We're trapped!" hissed Tyson in exasperation, panicking. Dave had a good point, but Tyson could see no way out of their situation. He had planned on holding tight and keeping quiet.

"I'm thinking we go through there," Dave said quietly, the sounds of BIOVOLT footfalls frighteningly near. He nodded toward the house, the owner of the back yard they huddled in. They must have been in rather a poor area because the houses were of a somewhat low quality. For example, the back door of this particular house had had its glass window shattered by vandals. It was partially boarded up but that too had been vandalised and the boys could fit their arms through the gaps in the wood. Of course, the house would be deserted by now. All of the regular citizens had been evacuated once the Japanese government had learned that a massive attack was being directed at Tokyo.

Dave lowered Dango from Kai's shoulders and swooped him onto his own broad ones. The moment he did so, Kai swayed on his feet. Luckily Tyson grabbed him and looped one of Kai's arms about his own shoulders. There was no way Tyson would be able to carry Kai as Kai had carried Dango, because Tyson was very short and not too strong physically. However, he could provide an effective support.

Now that Dango was gone from Kai's shoulders, Tyson got a quick view of the injury at the back of Kai's leg. The bullet had penetrated the kneecap, shattering through the front in its exit. The entrance wound was far less severe than the exit wound, and blood trickled down through the tattered shards of material that hung about Kai's knee, turning a sickening shade of brown as it began to clot amongst the khaki fabric. Kai held the leg slightly above the floor, not putting any pressure upon it, his face ashen and sick looking.

Tyson watched and waited as Dave slid his lean, muscular arm through one of the holes in the window boarding. Dave fumbled about for a moment before finding the door handle and clicking downwards, smiling as the door slid open. He swung it ajar and then slipped through it, with Dango hanging limply from his shoulders, the injured soldier's floppy black bangs hanging loosely in his barely open eyes. After Dave went through, Tyson followed, becoming more and more restless as the sound of the BIOVOLT evil grew nearer.

When all four were inside, Dave closed the door extremely quietly, knowing that the enemy would have had sufficient time to reach the back door. They could only move on quietly and hope that they were not discovered.

Tyson moved forwards, his keen eyes running over everything in the house. They were in the kitchen, so it seemed. There was abandoned food on the table and it seemed that everything had simply been dropped in the resident's hurry to take flight. Tyson sighed; weary that he could not have taken part in that mass exodus. Why was he still here?

"Where now, Dave?" he asked in a tiny whisper, feeling the weight and entirety of the gruesome war and the sights he had witnessed slowly caving in on him. He could not hold up strong forever, and desensitisation had not seemed to work for him. Every drop of blood he saw made him want to retch; every pair of glazed over eyes he caught sight of made his soul cry out in desperation. He could not take much more of this war. One of his best friends clung to his shoulders, life leaking away in a stream of broken down bravery, and yet another companion lay dying right in front of him! Tyson was collapsing under the pressure. 

"Forward," came the hushed answer, "Through the house. It should lead us onto a street that's parallel to this one. It'll lead us directly to the roundabout, and we should be able to make it to HQ safely if we hurry."

Tyson nodded mutely, his senses numb. All he knew how to do was carry on. Even back in the days of mere Beyblading, Tyson had contained some sort of voracious strength that had never given in; had never given up. Now it kicked back into gear, making Tyson feel almost cathartic. It gave him the strength to support another, and he moved forwards once more, inexplicably invigorated.

Followed by Dave, Tyson exited the kitchen and looked about the small hallway. It was neatly decorated, with small ornaments and trinkets and such hanging from the terracotta walls. Directly in front of him was the front door. 

"Ready, Dave?"

Dave nodded in agreement, and Tyson grabbed the door handle enthusiastically, feeling ready to face the troops. He grinned in mental preparation, but was halted by a weak voice at his ear.

" . . . don't . . . "

Tyson glanced right, halted, surprised that Kai had spoken. He had seemed almost completely out of it.

"Why not, Kai?"

Kai's dark coffee eyes were watching the floor, dull with lacklustre as he spoke. His voice was barely audible.

"They could . . . be out there . . . check."

Tyson looked back at Dave, resisting the urge to shrug, and stuck out his bottom lip.

"Okay, Kai, we'll check. Dave, try the living room window."

In obedience, Dave nodded, and moved swiftly through to the front room of the house, staying close to the walls and masked in the shadows of the dark room, just in case, on the off chance, any BIOVOLT trooper glanced him through the netted windows. He reached the panes and carefully peeled aside the edge of one of the white net curtains to look out onto the street.

"Crap!"

His expletive was a quiet one, but Tyson heard it from his stance in the hallway. The atmosphere tensed as he called out softly to Dave.

"What?"

"They're marching through the street! They're right outside!"

Tyson felt his face pale, almost as if it grew colder. "We almost walked right into them!"

Dave returned to the hall, still carrying a flaccid Dango. "Okay, that was scarily close."

Tyson felt himself nodding, but all in all he was floating in a dream world. Things just didn't seem to be happening. In a situation where life and death rest on either side of a flimsy wooden door, a human can be overwhelmed by the atrociousness of it all. Still, Tyson was up for escape.

"There's still one thing we can do."

Dave glanced at Tyson in incredulity, but believed when he saw the glint in Tyson's grey-blue eyes. They shone with determination. Automatically, Dave knew what Tyson was planning.

"Are you serious?"

Tyson looked surprised. "Come on, can you think of a situation more desperate than this?"

After thinking for a moment, Dave shook his head. "Nah, but are you sure? You can only do this once."

Tyson nodded vigorously, his floppy grey bangs of hair falling into his eyes. "I'm sure."

What Dave and Tyson had been discussing was one of the most rare and extraordinary things to ever happen. And it all linked back to Beyblading.

Each of the Blade-Breakers had possessed a power called a Bit-Beast – which was the essence of a creature trapped inside a small plastic chip, which could be called upon to boost the blade's energy levels during a match, not to mention being able to initiate powerful and often incredible attacks on the enemy's blade. Shortly after the World Championships in Moscow, a few days before the war broke out, Max's mother, Mrs Judy Tate, a doctor of Beyblade Science and Technology, had finally discovered a technique in which the essence of the creature in the Bit could be called out in its true, material form, as a living, breathing creature, possessing all the powers of the Bit-Beast but as a true entity. It had only been done in practise, and the Blade-Breaker's Bit-Beasts were the only ones that could perform this incredible feat, as the Blade-Breakers had been the only ones involved in the research. Mr Dickinson, the founder of the Blade-Breakers and the Beyblade Battle Association – the BBA – had funded the project. It had succeeded when all of the four Blade-Breakers had called out their Beasts. Kenny, unfortunately, still could not find a way to free Dizzi from his laptop.

The problem with this technique was that it could only be used twice. If attempted a third time, it was dubious whether the Bit-Beast would survive. None of the Blade-Breakers wanted to risk losing their Bit-Beasts. As Tyson thought, he noticed how strange it was that a tool from a simple sport could be used in one of the most horrendous wars Japan had ever faced.

Tyson reached into his cargo pocket and pulled out the tiny chip. He had seen no sense in carrying the entire Beyblade around with him. The Bit sparked in the dull overhead luminosity and Tyson smiled.

"Here we go, Dragoon. I hope I can remember how this works."

As Tyson spoke to the Beast, he also pulled out a small, red plastic chip, the size and shape of a music tape but not as thick and heavy. There was a small, indented circle in the centre and a few yellow buttons down the side. Taking a deep breath, aware that this was the last time he could ever call upon the real Beast, Tyson placed the circular Bit into the indentation. The machine bleeped quietly, and Tyson punched in a code on the yellow buttons.

Setting the bleeping trinket on the carpeted floor, Tyson backed away, Dave following suit. Then, the two watched in awe as the Bit lit up in a blue phosphorescence. The azure glow grew brighter and brighter, steadily filling the hallway. The BIOVOLT troops outside would have noticed this, but Tyson didn't care. He knew what was coming.

An incredible roar resounded from nowhere as the blue form of Dragoon began to snake out of the Bit, its beautiful scales twisting in a serpentine fashion as it spiralled upwards, curving a path towards the sky. As it exited the Bit it grew steadily larger, until finally its coils burst through the walls of the hallway into the living room. Still it continued to grow, a phenomenal creature in all its awe and majesty. Its cobalt eyes sparked, iridescent and passionate, the white fangs glinting and the entire body burning with a cold blue flame. Ultimately, the boys found themselves looking at a fifteen metre long Dragoon, who snarled and roared in fury and shook the very foundations of the earth.

Dave stared up at the magnificent creature. "Cool."

Tyson nodded. "I know. Hey there, Dragoon!"

The dragon's eye caught sight of the miniscule Tyson and the three other boys, and its head bent towards them. Dave couldn't help but wince in a little fear, even though he knew that Tyson controlled his Beast.

"Dragoon, we need a lift," explained Tyson, "but there are a ton of BIOVOLT soldiers outside. We just need you to take us to the edge of the HQ forest. We can find our own way from there. Is that okay with you, buddy?"

The mighty Dragoon had listened intently to its master's orders, snarling at the mention of the BIOVOLT troops. When Tyson finished, it looked at the other boys, focusing mainly on Kai and Dango. Dango had lost consciousness, and lay still, his eyes closed and his body lifeless upon Dave's shoulders. Kai was still awake and aware, even though he himself was becoming more and more convinced that this must be a dream. He looked up into Dragoon's face without fear but with respect and awe, feeling dizzier and hazier by the second and his eyes gradually beginning to close against his will. The fire in his leg had disappeared and left a cold chill that seemed to be spreading up the length of his body and robbing him of his strength. In a few minutes he knew he wouldn't be able to stand anymore, and was grateful to Tyson for his support.

Dragoon seemed to assess the situation and lowered its head a little farther until the boys would simply be able to step onto its shimmering body, the scales themselves lit with a soft blue haze. Tyson let Dave go first, with the unconscious Dango, and then he and Kai stepped on together. Once they had made their way further down onto its back, Dragoon lurched towards the front door, and, with a resonant, deep roar, it crashed through the front of the house.

The soldiers marching past immediately screamed and dove out of the way of the mighty dragon, and Dragoon raised its head up high, its clawed legs spread and sparkling as the sun began to set in the distance. With another roar, Dragoon began to walk forwards, each footstep shaking the grounds of Tokyo. The BIOVOLT troops, in their massive numbers, could only watch on in horror as the cerulean Dragoon pounded its way across the street.

Tyson and Dave watched, smiling at the fear-stricken faces of their enemies. Each one stared at Dragoon as though it were their doom. Dave lay Dango down securely on Dragoon's back, and Kai had also taken a seat. He was still aware enough to know what was going on, and inside he laughed at the fear written on the faces of the BIOVOLT soldiers.

Still, there were a few enemy troopers who couldn't resist, and they lifted their weapons and aimed. A pelting of bullets showered Dragoon; and promptly reflected off his scaly blue hide. The air was filled with the ringing of bullet release – and followed by the clinging of bullets hitting the floor, useless.

Angered that his Bit-Beast was a target, Tyson whipped out his pistol, ready to defend the mighty dragon as it defended him. Dave took out his shotgun from the pack he carried on his back, and Kai, though his vision was blurry, finally drew one of his favoured Uzis. As the boys travelled, they picked off the most dangerous looking of the enemy with quite a high accuracy rate. They had learned more in this battle than they had thought.

As Dragoon neared the end of the street and approached Kitayo Park, the boys did not notice a small group of BIOVOLT men huddling together and loading up a stationed Spear Gun – a slim, simple piece of machinery that could fire a multiple batch of sharpened spears at once and at high range. Just before Dragoon turned the corner, the spears let fly and showered over the boys.

Dragoon, being the biggest target, took the majority of the spears, and even though slightly more annoying than the bullets, the spears simply fell off its leathery skin. The boys were not so well protected. Glinting as they flew down among them, one spear grazed viciously past Dave's right arm, tearing the skin along the elbow and causing Dave to cry out. Kai and Tyson escaped unharmed – but three spears stabbed into the unconscious Dango. His body jerked with the momentum created by the movement of the spears and he slipped off the back of Dragoon and fell to the floor below.

"No, Dango!" yelled Kai as he stumbled to his feet and jumped after the fallen body of his friend. Luckily Tyson caught him about the waist and stopped him from jumping the three metres to the ground. He would have wrecked his other leg too. Still he struggled against Tyson as the BIOVOLT soldiers began to flood toward Dango.

Kai watched on, still attempting to break free of Tyson's grasp. It was likely that he would die if he went back to help Dango – but Dango was a good companion of his. They had gotten on well, both coming from similar, entirely messed up backgrounds, and Kai didn't want to lose him, not like this. It wasn't fair. His eyes, suddenly bright again with rage, darkened as he watched the enemy soldiers milling around his friend like vultures drawn to a corpse.     

"Get away from him, you cruel bastards!!!"

Dave stared, having never heard Kai swear so profusely before. As they moved further and further away from poor Dango, Dave realised that Dragoon did not know they were missing a passenger.

"Dragoon!" he shouted, his arm still throbbing, "Dragoon, we've lost Dango! Stop!"

The dragon slid to an immediate halt when it heard what had happened, and turned its head to view the scene. Its eyes glinted with fury as it saw the soldiers kicking the blood soaked Dango, taunting his passengers and its master.

"You sickos! Leave him alone!"

Kai continued to yell, continued to struggle in desperation against Tyson's grip. Tyson himself watched on through crystal eyes. This was too much for him to bear. Just when they had been about to escape, Dango had been struck down by the evil of BIOVOLT. A diamond glistening tear fell onto his dirty cheek, followed by another, and then another.

Dragoon roared, incensed that the torturers from BIOVOLT had done this. It turned, so its entire upper half was facing the twisted soldiers who were getting so much fun out of booting an innocent young man to death. With another, even more powerful roar, Dragoon caught their attention, and they looked up just in time to see an eruption of blue flame as it blistered through the air towards them. It was the last thing they saw.

The spiral of raging hot inferno spilling from Dragoon's mouth caught up whoever was in a ten-metre radius, burning them to a crisp. It lit the street in intense cobalt and reflected in all of the windows, making the houses look as though they too were aglow.

"NO!!!" yelled Kai as the flames engulfed the evil BIOVOLT soldiers who had been kicking Dango to death. Dragoon's retribution had been swift and awe-inspiring – but it had probably caught Dango in its wake. Tyson felt his arms drop in debility.

As Dragoon killed the flames, the three boys watched on in sheer, silent horror. About fifty scorched corpses lay along the floor, each black and rotten, their molten flesh emitting tiny rings of smoke as it congealed. Nearest to them, Tyson could see that the agonised scream of one soldier had been plastered to his face as the fire had overwhelmed him. The skin about his eyes was burnt back, and the liquid of his eyes, the white jelly, had leaked out onto the man's face. His lips were black and pulled back, almost in a snarl, and his teeth looked startlingly white against the black and scarlet background.

Dango lay still, his back seared and arid, smoking as his clothes had fused with the skin under the intense temperature. The boys couldn't see his face, as it was turned away from them. They didn't want to see it. The only skin they could see was that of one outstretched arm, the fingers stiff and sporadic looking. The once light skin was a disturbing shade of dark brown, mingled with the odd hint of bright red where Dango had bled fresh. The carcass smoked nauseatingly, especially at the hair, and as the three boys watched, the scent of cooked meat began to rise from the burnt out hellhole.

Tyson blinked, the tears that had lain on his cheeks dry now. An incredible heat washed over them all as they looked out over the scene. The surviving members of the BIOVOLT troop turned and ran as he watched. They were safe.

In front of him, Tyson saw Kai fall to his knees. He darted to his Captain's side to prevent him from slipping off the side of Dragoon, and as he locked his arms about Kai he watched the brown eyes flutter shut. The earlier battle, the injury, and now this had been too much for Kai, and he had passed out. Plus he had lost a worrying amount of blood. It had even managed to collect in a small, scarlet pool upon Dragoon's blue scales. Tyson grasped Kai as he fell forward limply, catching him before he slammed into the dragon's back.

Behind him, Tyson heard a retching noise, and turned to see Dave vomit off the side of the majestic blue dragon. Tyson felt much like vomiting himself. The scene he had just witnessed was so miserably disturbing that his insides churned at the very thought of it. It played again and again in his mind, like a sickening movie showing over on a cinema reel before his eyes. When his own stomach lurched again, Tyson took a deep breath to control himself.

"Dragoon, take us to HQ. I don't think we can manage the walk from the edge of the forest. I doubt that BIOVOLT will follow us for some time now."

The dragon roared once more and began its journey again, with more speed now than before. It exited the street and turned the corner past Kitayo Park, making its way towards the junction. Tyson and Dave sat down, side by side, Tyson still cradling the unconscious Kai as firmly as he could. Dave's head was in his hands, and from time to time he rocked back and forth a little, whispering gingerly to himself as though he could erase what he had just witnessed.

"Don't break, Dave," Tyson said softly, almost as though he had rehearsed these lines or heard them somewhere before, "Don't crack. Don't close your eyes. Just look ahead. Look ahead to the end of this nightmare."

What is this?

Mass confusion, this crazy way we're living.

This emptiness we're passing out,

Like candy coated water drops,

Spilling out my thoughts, spilling out your guts.

And I can't help wondering.

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Well, how did you like it? Took me till . . . 03:34 in the morning! Oh, so healthy. Anyhow, I know it was quite graphic, and I'm sorry if I disturbed any readers. Even I thought the imagery was sick and I wrote it! And about Kai swearing . . . usually I don't tolerate swearing. It's a nasty habit and most people who swear say the filthy words because they know no better words. However, in this case it seemed appropriate, because it showed how much pent up rage Kai was releasing. A powerful word like that can give us a just picture of what the person is feeling at the time, and seeing as Kai was going through some pretty sick stuff, I think it's safe to say that the swear was acceptable. Sorry if anyone got offended. I know I did! I hate swearing!

Anyhow . . . I'm off to go to bed. I'll update soon if you would kindly just click the button down there and review this baby. Arigato. Bonsoir.

X X X SMOOCHES!!!

Oh, and the lyrics were 'Candy coated water drops' by Plumb. She really is amazing you know! Check out her site . . . I'd tell you what it is but I haven't got a clue . . .