AN: Back again with another story. I especially like this one since it
deals with some issues that are really worth discussing, in my mind at
least. This is will be a slight AU version of the Asian Tournament in the
first season. I reworked the main conflict into something that seem to me
more plausible and realistic. Beware, this is possibly controversial
because the historical bits in there. Also I was rather vague with all
those things. Anyone who would like to know more, feel free to email me.
That's it for now. Read, enjoy and review! (Has that become my punch line
yet? LOL!)
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A pink beyblade cut through the air, light like bird on wings, yet swift like a preying cheetah of the savannah, and all about it, air hissed gleefully. It ducked and turned, weaving a mazelike path through the many obstacles littered on the ground. When the pink blade circled around the last obstacle and was ready to take flight back to its owner, a black blade emerged from the obstacles also. It spun slower, and was less flighty, yet it was also heavier, with a power less restrained. The two spinning objects rammed, creating brilliant sparks.
"Lee!" A tall, shapely girl with brilliant red hair cried, a mocking indignant air in her voice.
The dark haired teen hailed as Lee smirked. "Keep you on your toes, doesn't it?" He said, "You still need to learn how to watch your surroundings carefully."
"I would say the same to you, cousin mine." Rebuked Mariah playfully, "I will teach you a lesson today."
"You and what army?" Lee said sceptically, though the teasing was apparent in his voice.
Suddenly another blade emerged, out of nowhere. It was moving so fast in a nonsensical pattern that all one can see is blurs of a purple shadow. The new blade joined the pink one, and together they flanked the black blade, ramming into it full force. "Ha!" A green haired youth leaped down from somewhere and shouted in a triumphant voice, "Gotcha! Mariah and this army, Lee!"
The black blade was having difficulty handling two opponents at once. But soon a red blade joined the fight as well, accompanied by a booming voice, "Let's make this a fair fight!" That was from Gary, a tall and burly young man.
The four blades fought relentlessly, smashing, twisting, circling each other and weaving fantastic patterns. Finally they all came together in a thunderous crash. At the impact all four blades went flying, back to their respective owners' hands. The grandiose finale was echoed by the vigorous applause, strangely, of only one person. That person stood up even as he brought his hands together. He was medium height and well built, no longer young yet still in his primes.
"Bravo, bravo!" He shouted enthusiastically, "Every time I see you, something new and impressive surface."
"You think that will do, Coach Zhang?" Lee asked.
"That's much more than will do." Said the coach, "It is excellent."
"All thanks to you, coach!" Mariah said with a brilliant smile.
The man shook his head gently, "Don't flatter me, Mari. You are all very talented beybladers. Anyway, I am not here to talk about more training today. I have to fill you all in on certain details of the Asian tournament." A pause, then he continued, "The exact schedule for the tournament has come to me. The opening match is exactly one month from today. This year the tournament is in the country, in the city of Nanjing."
"I heard they have excellent sceneries there, and many famous sights." Said Mariah.
The coach laughed, "Too true. If there is extra time, you are welcome to do some sight seeing. You will be taking a plane to Hong Kong first. There is a BBA conference there that all competitors have to attend. After that you will take another flight to Nanjing for the tournament. Everything is provided for you on the way."
"Aren't you coming with us, coach?" Lee asked.
"No, not with you all the way, at least." Coach Zhang said, "But we will see."
Kevin whistled and said gleefully, "Does that mean no chaperon for the entire trip? Yes! Freedom!"
"Don't get carried away, squirt." Lee said with a smirk, which made Kevin cower and pout. Lee ignored him and went on asking, "What about our competitions this year?"
The coach waved his hand at that and said, "Nothing to worry of. It is not much different from last year. The only one to watch out is the new Japanese team. According to some they are better than rest. Which reminds me," Now Coach Zhang had a queer light in his eyes, "Do you know a blader by the name of Ray Kon? I think he was from your area."
"Ray Kon?" Mariah asked with sudden interest, "Our age, with black hair and gold eyes?"
"Yes, that fits." Confirmed the coach.
"Of course we know him." Lee answered with a smile, "He is from our village, and he was very close to us. He was a very good blader too, perhaps better than all of us. And he has the White Tiger bit-beast with him. He left the village a few years back. He had such a talent in math and physics that he was accepted by a prestigious school in the city." Here he turned to his cousin, "Do you remember which city was it, Mari?"
"He is actually in Nanjing, I think." Mariah answered, before added jokingly, "What? Did some city or provincial team recruited him and want to take our place in representing China? I thought it was rather late for that?"
Coach Zhang looked at them oddly and said, "He is definitely not in Nanjing anymore, and he won't be representing China. He is now part of the Blade Breakers, the team that will be representing Japan in the Asian tournament."
Dead silence. Everyone stared blankly for a few moments, before Lee said flatly, "You are kidding. How would you know that?"
"When Japan announced that they have a new team, we did a routine check up on all of their players." Explained the coach, "And we found his profile."
Kevin blurted out now, "But how can he represent Japan? He is a Chinese!"
"Not anymore." Coach Zhang answered coolly, "He is now a Japanese citizen. Our file reads his Chinese citizenship was deleted no more than a few months ago."
Another long, drawn silence. No one seemed to know what to say. Finally Coach Zhang said thoughtfully, "Rather ironic, I thought. By the looks of it, you would be facing off another Chinese, for the victory over Japan." He paused as if in deep thoughts, before adding, "Young people nowadays, I don't think patriotism means much to them, huh?" The words were gentle, yet the meaning was cutting. Lee went red in the face, now a bitter anger was in him, like a coiling snake.
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"Mariah?"
Someone had said her name. Mariah shook strands of her hair out of her eyes and looked down the shadows of the alley in the grandiose city of Hong Kong. She saw standing there, the one person she both loved and loathed. It was Ray, of course. He was taller and slimmer than she remembered, his voice was deeper too, yet held the same not of tenderness and affection, and a new touch of uncertainty. She also noticed, that around Ray stood many others: a rash young boy with baseball cap, a blond youth with sparkling blue eyes, a short boy with huge glasses and a laptop computer, and another tall teen who was looking on with disdain in his wine-coloured eyes. Ray's new team, representing Japan, doubtlessly, Mariah thought sadly. She didn't know what to say, so for a long time she stood there, speechless and lost. Finally she ventured to call his name.
"Ray." She said, trying her best to make her voice flat.
Ray looked at her, before tilted his head, and his face now hidden in the shadows of his raven-dark hair. "I thought you don't want to see me anymore." He sounded so calm and collected, like the smooth, frozen surface of a winter pond. If Mariah didn't know him so well, she would not have caught the restrained pain in his voice.
Where did you get that idea? Mariah thought indignantly, almost voicing it out loud as well. But then she checked herself and remembered. She had sent Ray an angry email many nights ago, sitting in a shabby Internet café in the city, to that electronic address that she always held near her heart yet seldom wrote to. Her rage was great then, and she had thrown ravishing insults. What did I say? Mariah thought. Oh yes, I called him back-stabber, forsaker of both country and kin, and traitor.
Ray replied to her email. He tried to explain, asking her to listen to him. Mariah had barely finished reading that email. All of Ray's words were packed together and hurled back at him with that sentence, "I never want to see your face ever again!"
How did it come to this? Mariah thought bitterly. It was not suppose to be like this. This should have been a happy reunion. She didn't say anything. She couldn't think of anything to say. There was nothing in that alley, nothing but shadows and silence, and an air of melancholy mixed with tension.
She opened her mouth, trying to break the silence, but someone beat her to it. A voice sounded from beside her and said in a mocking pleasant tone, "So, Ray, huh?" Mariah turned and saw Lee had just come to stand beside her, his arms crossed in front of his chest, a look of mild surprise and nonchalance upon his face.
Ray said nothing in reply, and about him his friends looked confused and distracted.
"Why don't you introduce your friends, Ray?" Lee said, still pleasantly, "They look nice enough." Here a snarl stole his features, as he enunciated each word with care, "That is, for a bunch of amateurs."
With an almost unperceivable sigh Mariah closed her eyes briefly. This would not be pretty. Just as she thought, Ray flared up at that comment. His eyes instantly changed from a mellow shade of amber to the hard glint of gold. He bared his fangs and said with a growl, "What was that?"
Lee now had a cold and uncaring smirk on his face. "Defending them, are you, Ray Kon?" He said, "Traitor." And that was his last word. He was about to turn around when the tall teen with a white scarf leaped. Before anyone else could react he was in front of both Lee and Mariah, his very posture laying down the challenge. "Care to back that up?" He taunted in a cold voice.
Lee looked at him with a sceptical and cynical look. Ray's anger now died, seeing his team leader's action. He put a hand on the teen's shoulder and said quietly, "Kai, there is no point..."
Kai shrugged him off, still glaring daggers at Lee. "All you have done until now was talk." He said, still tauntingly, "Care to back that up in the stadium?"
Mariah felt a new anger rose in him. Who does he think he was? Those obnoxious, insolent Japanese! Like a flash she loaded her own launcher and aimed at Kai. "You want a battle, then?" She asked.
Kai smirked, "Sorry, girl, but you are not the one I have got a problem with."
"You are afraid, aren't you?" Mariah mocked with a sweet, alluring smile, "Why is it so hard for you to admit your fear? Too much male egoism in you, right?" With that she pulled the ripcord and let her blade fly.
"I told you I am not interested." Kai said, still coldly. Before he could finish the pink blade zipped past him and put the least sign of surprise on his face. Then the blade flew right by Ray, who seemed unfazed. Then it rounded off the other two younger boys, making them shift aside hastily.
"What are you thinking, shooting the blade at us like that!" The dark haired boy shouted. The blade went on still, regardless of his protest. The small spinning object turned and zoomed about the bowl that was used as a beyblade dish just a few minutes ago. Moments later, the pink blade flew back into its owner's hand, a second before the bowl shattered to a million pieces. There were astounded looks on everyone's face, even Kai seemed slightly unnerved. Mariah stole a glance at Ray, and saw the amazement in his eyes, and also a ghost of a smile on his lips. She frowned, yet secretly she was glad. Ray had not seen her blade in too long.
"That's enough, Mariah." Lee said, sternly and impatiently, "Let's go." With that he turned and began to walk. Slightly reluctant, Mariah followed with slow steps. Just when she was about to melt into the shadows of another building, she turned around and stole a last glance at Ray, and she saw him standing there, still and thoughtful, his dark head bowed.
And at that all other feelings fled her, and the only left was infinite sorrow.
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The Blade Breakers walked slowly in silence. The setting sun cast a warm glow over the shimmering harbour in the distance, and the sky was a canvas of flame. Ray gazed into the distance as he walked; his mind seemed to wander.
"You know those people, don't you, Ray?" Tyson suddenly asked.
"Yes, Tyson." Ray replied, taking this rather stupid question seriously, "They were from my village. I spent the first part of my life with them."
"Then why did they call you a traitor?" Tyson asked persistently.
Ray was silent for a long time, before he finally answered with a sigh, "Because I am. In their eyes and possibly the eyes of many others."
"For what? Leaving your home and joining us?" Even Tyson was capable of a sceptical face, except maybe that wasn't the best response.
Ray looked at Tyson strangely, before finally saying, "There are more reasons, too many. And I wish you would never learn of them."
And through all that turmoil that came after, through all the troubles and woes, Tyson still did not learn of those reasons, even if they unfurled about him for all eyes to see. He never knew it fully, and he never had a true understanding of them. But do not blame him for his childish ignorance of the world about him. It is not necessarily a flaw. Because of his ignorance, he was spared the misery of knowing. He might now know the face of yesterday, but at least, he had the heart for the light of tomorrow.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A pink beyblade cut through the air, light like bird on wings, yet swift like a preying cheetah of the savannah, and all about it, air hissed gleefully. It ducked and turned, weaving a mazelike path through the many obstacles littered on the ground. When the pink blade circled around the last obstacle and was ready to take flight back to its owner, a black blade emerged from the obstacles also. It spun slower, and was less flighty, yet it was also heavier, with a power less restrained. The two spinning objects rammed, creating brilliant sparks.
"Lee!" A tall, shapely girl with brilliant red hair cried, a mocking indignant air in her voice.
The dark haired teen hailed as Lee smirked. "Keep you on your toes, doesn't it?" He said, "You still need to learn how to watch your surroundings carefully."
"I would say the same to you, cousin mine." Rebuked Mariah playfully, "I will teach you a lesson today."
"You and what army?" Lee said sceptically, though the teasing was apparent in his voice.
Suddenly another blade emerged, out of nowhere. It was moving so fast in a nonsensical pattern that all one can see is blurs of a purple shadow. The new blade joined the pink one, and together they flanked the black blade, ramming into it full force. "Ha!" A green haired youth leaped down from somewhere and shouted in a triumphant voice, "Gotcha! Mariah and this army, Lee!"
The black blade was having difficulty handling two opponents at once. But soon a red blade joined the fight as well, accompanied by a booming voice, "Let's make this a fair fight!" That was from Gary, a tall and burly young man.
The four blades fought relentlessly, smashing, twisting, circling each other and weaving fantastic patterns. Finally they all came together in a thunderous crash. At the impact all four blades went flying, back to their respective owners' hands. The grandiose finale was echoed by the vigorous applause, strangely, of only one person. That person stood up even as he brought his hands together. He was medium height and well built, no longer young yet still in his primes.
"Bravo, bravo!" He shouted enthusiastically, "Every time I see you, something new and impressive surface."
"You think that will do, Coach Zhang?" Lee asked.
"That's much more than will do." Said the coach, "It is excellent."
"All thanks to you, coach!" Mariah said with a brilliant smile.
The man shook his head gently, "Don't flatter me, Mari. You are all very talented beybladers. Anyway, I am not here to talk about more training today. I have to fill you all in on certain details of the Asian tournament." A pause, then he continued, "The exact schedule for the tournament has come to me. The opening match is exactly one month from today. This year the tournament is in the country, in the city of Nanjing."
"I heard they have excellent sceneries there, and many famous sights." Said Mariah.
The coach laughed, "Too true. If there is extra time, you are welcome to do some sight seeing. You will be taking a plane to Hong Kong first. There is a BBA conference there that all competitors have to attend. After that you will take another flight to Nanjing for the tournament. Everything is provided for you on the way."
"Aren't you coming with us, coach?" Lee asked.
"No, not with you all the way, at least." Coach Zhang said, "But we will see."
Kevin whistled and said gleefully, "Does that mean no chaperon for the entire trip? Yes! Freedom!"
"Don't get carried away, squirt." Lee said with a smirk, which made Kevin cower and pout. Lee ignored him and went on asking, "What about our competitions this year?"
The coach waved his hand at that and said, "Nothing to worry of. It is not much different from last year. The only one to watch out is the new Japanese team. According to some they are better than rest. Which reminds me," Now Coach Zhang had a queer light in his eyes, "Do you know a blader by the name of Ray Kon? I think he was from your area."
"Ray Kon?" Mariah asked with sudden interest, "Our age, with black hair and gold eyes?"
"Yes, that fits." Confirmed the coach.
"Of course we know him." Lee answered with a smile, "He is from our village, and he was very close to us. He was a very good blader too, perhaps better than all of us. And he has the White Tiger bit-beast with him. He left the village a few years back. He had such a talent in math and physics that he was accepted by a prestigious school in the city." Here he turned to his cousin, "Do you remember which city was it, Mari?"
"He is actually in Nanjing, I think." Mariah answered, before added jokingly, "What? Did some city or provincial team recruited him and want to take our place in representing China? I thought it was rather late for that?"
Coach Zhang looked at them oddly and said, "He is definitely not in Nanjing anymore, and he won't be representing China. He is now part of the Blade Breakers, the team that will be representing Japan in the Asian tournament."
Dead silence. Everyone stared blankly for a few moments, before Lee said flatly, "You are kidding. How would you know that?"
"When Japan announced that they have a new team, we did a routine check up on all of their players." Explained the coach, "And we found his profile."
Kevin blurted out now, "But how can he represent Japan? He is a Chinese!"
"Not anymore." Coach Zhang answered coolly, "He is now a Japanese citizen. Our file reads his Chinese citizenship was deleted no more than a few months ago."
Another long, drawn silence. No one seemed to know what to say. Finally Coach Zhang said thoughtfully, "Rather ironic, I thought. By the looks of it, you would be facing off another Chinese, for the victory over Japan." He paused as if in deep thoughts, before adding, "Young people nowadays, I don't think patriotism means much to them, huh?" The words were gentle, yet the meaning was cutting. Lee went red in the face, now a bitter anger was in him, like a coiling snake.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Mariah?"
Someone had said her name. Mariah shook strands of her hair out of her eyes and looked down the shadows of the alley in the grandiose city of Hong Kong. She saw standing there, the one person she both loved and loathed. It was Ray, of course. He was taller and slimmer than she remembered, his voice was deeper too, yet held the same not of tenderness and affection, and a new touch of uncertainty. She also noticed, that around Ray stood many others: a rash young boy with baseball cap, a blond youth with sparkling blue eyes, a short boy with huge glasses and a laptop computer, and another tall teen who was looking on with disdain in his wine-coloured eyes. Ray's new team, representing Japan, doubtlessly, Mariah thought sadly. She didn't know what to say, so for a long time she stood there, speechless and lost. Finally she ventured to call his name.
"Ray." She said, trying her best to make her voice flat.
Ray looked at her, before tilted his head, and his face now hidden in the shadows of his raven-dark hair. "I thought you don't want to see me anymore." He sounded so calm and collected, like the smooth, frozen surface of a winter pond. If Mariah didn't know him so well, she would not have caught the restrained pain in his voice.
Where did you get that idea? Mariah thought indignantly, almost voicing it out loud as well. But then she checked herself and remembered. She had sent Ray an angry email many nights ago, sitting in a shabby Internet café in the city, to that electronic address that she always held near her heart yet seldom wrote to. Her rage was great then, and she had thrown ravishing insults. What did I say? Mariah thought. Oh yes, I called him back-stabber, forsaker of both country and kin, and traitor.
Ray replied to her email. He tried to explain, asking her to listen to him. Mariah had barely finished reading that email. All of Ray's words were packed together and hurled back at him with that sentence, "I never want to see your face ever again!"
How did it come to this? Mariah thought bitterly. It was not suppose to be like this. This should have been a happy reunion. She didn't say anything. She couldn't think of anything to say. There was nothing in that alley, nothing but shadows and silence, and an air of melancholy mixed with tension.
She opened her mouth, trying to break the silence, but someone beat her to it. A voice sounded from beside her and said in a mocking pleasant tone, "So, Ray, huh?" Mariah turned and saw Lee had just come to stand beside her, his arms crossed in front of his chest, a look of mild surprise and nonchalance upon his face.
Ray said nothing in reply, and about him his friends looked confused and distracted.
"Why don't you introduce your friends, Ray?" Lee said, still pleasantly, "They look nice enough." Here a snarl stole his features, as he enunciated each word with care, "That is, for a bunch of amateurs."
With an almost unperceivable sigh Mariah closed her eyes briefly. This would not be pretty. Just as she thought, Ray flared up at that comment. His eyes instantly changed from a mellow shade of amber to the hard glint of gold. He bared his fangs and said with a growl, "What was that?"
Lee now had a cold and uncaring smirk on his face. "Defending them, are you, Ray Kon?" He said, "Traitor." And that was his last word. He was about to turn around when the tall teen with a white scarf leaped. Before anyone else could react he was in front of both Lee and Mariah, his very posture laying down the challenge. "Care to back that up?" He taunted in a cold voice.
Lee looked at him with a sceptical and cynical look. Ray's anger now died, seeing his team leader's action. He put a hand on the teen's shoulder and said quietly, "Kai, there is no point..."
Kai shrugged him off, still glaring daggers at Lee. "All you have done until now was talk." He said, still tauntingly, "Care to back that up in the stadium?"
Mariah felt a new anger rose in him. Who does he think he was? Those obnoxious, insolent Japanese! Like a flash she loaded her own launcher and aimed at Kai. "You want a battle, then?" She asked.
Kai smirked, "Sorry, girl, but you are not the one I have got a problem with."
"You are afraid, aren't you?" Mariah mocked with a sweet, alluring smile, "Why is it so hard for you to admit your fear? Too much male egoism in you, right?" With that she pulled the ripcord and let her blade fly.
"I told you I am not interested." Kai said, still coldly. Before he could finish the pink blade zipped past him and put the least sign of surprise on his face. Then the blade flew right by Ray, who seemed unfazed. Then it rounded off the other two younger boys, making them shift aside hastily.
"What are you thinking, shooting the blade at us like that!" The dark haired boy shouted. The blade went on still, regardless of his protest. The small spinning object turned and zoomed about the bowl that was used as a beyblade dish just a few minutes ago. Moments later, the pink blade flew back into its owner's hand, a second before the bowl shattered to a million pieces. There were astounded looks on everyone's face, even Kai seemed slightly unnerved. Mariah stole a glance at Ray, and saw the amazement in his eyes, and also a ghost of a smile on his lips. She frowned, yet secretly she was glad. Ray had not seen her blade in too long.
"That's enough, Mariah." Lee said, sternly and impatiently, "Let's go." With that he turned and began to walk. Slightly reluctant, Mariah followed with slow steps. Just when she was about to melt into the shadows of another building, she turned around and stole a last glance at Ray, and she saw him standing there, still and thoughtful, his dark head bowed.
And at that all other feelings fled her, and the only left was infinite sorrow.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Blade Breakers walked slowly in silence. The setting sun cast a warm glow over the shimmering harbour in the distance, and the sky was a canvas of flame. Ray gazed into the distance as he walked; his mind seemed to wander.
"You know those people, don't you, Ray?" Tyson suddenly asked.
"Yes, Tyson." Ray replied, taking this rather stupid question seriously, "They were from my village. I spent the first part of my life with them."
"Then why did they call you a traitor?" Tyson asked persistently.
Ray was silent for a long time, before he finally answered with a sigh, "Because I am. In their eyes and possibly the eyes of many others."
"For what? Leaving your home and joining us?" Even Tyson was capable of a sceptical face, except maybe that wasn't the best response.
Ray looked at Tyson strangely, before finally saying, "There are more reasons, too many. And I wish you would never learn of them."
And through all that turmoil that came after, through all the troubles and woes, Tyson still did not learn of those reasons, even if they unfurled about him for all eyes to see. He never knew it fully, and he never had a true understanding of them. But do not blame him for his childish ignorance of the world about him. It is not necessarily a flaw. Because of his ignorance, he was spared the misery of knowing. He might now know the face of yesterday, but at least, he had the heart for the light of tomorrow.