Hello fanfictioners! Hope you enjoy the ficcie.

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade; it belongs to Aoki Takao.

Warning: death, minor language, blood

The Bonds Of Friendship

A teenage boy with icy blue eyes and fiery red hair wandered through the gloomy and cold hallways of Balkov Abbey, hope flickering in his heart, being his guiding light through the darkness of the corridors. Recently,the teen'sbest friend had returned to the placethe teenknew as home, only because his friend was to be punished for being a traitor of BIOVOLT. And the teen, Tala, was worried for his safety, for when his mentor, Boris, and the leader of BIOVOLT, Voltaire, took on feelings of anger toward one of the boys, they showed less than mercy.

Tala reached his destination: the wooden door at the end of the hallway he had been roaming. He stopped in front of the heavy door, making an effort to gather the courage to go through it. Behind the door was a dungeon-like room; it was dark, chilly, dirty, blood-splattered, and spider-infested.

The wolf master sighed deeply, sliding open the iron bolt on the door. He pushed it open; it made a slight creaking sound.

Tala's eyes met with a horrendous sight: Kai, his best friend, was sitting against the far wall. His hands were cuffed together and bound to the wall by means of chains. Tala could not see his face; his head was facing downward and his slate bangs were drooping over his face, though a drop of blood would fall from his chin every once in a while. He had no shirt covering his upper body, and his exposed skin was covered in abrasions and bruises. Some areas of his baggy pants were torn, revealing small bleeding cuts. His breathing was fairly labored.

Tala gawked at his friend, eyes slightly widened, mouth open a bit, disbelieving the damage that had been done to Kai. Eventually he was able to pull himself out of his dazed state, realizing something must be done to aid the injured teen.

Tala walked somewhat cautiously over to Kai, squatting in front of him a couple of feet.

"Kai?" he called to him gently. "Kai? It's Tala."

Kai groaned, then weakly mumbled, "Tala?"

"Yes, it's me, Kai," Tala answered, happy his friend was responsive though worried for how feeble he sounded.

Slowly, Kai's head lifted. He had blood trickling from a corner of his mouth and a gash spilling blood on one side of his head. His eyes that nearly matched the color of the metallic liquid were half-open and a bit glazed over. "Tala…"

"It's okay Kai," Tala whispered. 'I must do something. I need to get those chains off of him and get him out of here.'

"Tala…," Kai muttered again, eyelids slipping further down.

"Stay with me, Kai."

"Having fun?" A familiar sinister voice echoed throughout the dismal room. Tala turned, icy blue staring up at eyes masked by goggles with red lenses. Boris gave Tala a corrupted smirk.

Tala glared at his mentor. "Boris," he nearly spat the name, "you heartless bastard. I can't believe even you would inflict such pain upon someone, especially your most valued beyblader."

Boris chuckled. "Oh young Tala, you have much to learn. He was valuable indeed, being the only one able to control our beautiful weapon of power and grace, the mighty Black Dranzer. But our enemies in the BBA have confiscated it, and there is no way of getting it back. A shame it is, but that means more fun for me; I can beat the traitor as hard as I wish. He was doomed to receive punishment for his actions, but since he is no longer of use, I had the pleasure of beating him to near death."

Tala narrowed his eyes further. "You sick, corrupted fuck-up."

Boris let out another chuckle, not saying a word.

"Where are the keys that will unbind his hands?" Tala demanded of his mentor.

"Wouldn't you like to know?"

"Give them to me."

"You have no right to throw orders at me, Ivanov. You remember your position."

Tala glanced at Kai, who looked very near to closing his eyes. "Hand me the fuckin' keys!"

"For this, young Tala, I am afraid you are going to be receiving a beating as well."

"I don't care! Give me the fucking keys!"

"Watch your mouth, Ivanov."

Tala stood up, icy eyes narrowed in a hateful, intense glare. "Keys…."

Boris's smirk fell; his face became solemn. He walked menacingly up to Tala and stopped a couple of feet in front of him. He reached into his robes and pulled out a blood-stained knife.

"Where those keys are is none of your business." He took a few steps toward Tala and grabbed the front of his shirt, lifting him so that his feet barely touched the stone floor. Boris took the knife and brought it up to Tala's face, piercing Tala's pale skin. Slowly, Boris dragged it along his cheek, just a small bit, with Tala wincing. He brought it down to his side slowly, the fresh, thick liquid dripping steadily off of the shiny metal. He dropped Tala suddenly, who stumbled back a step but recovered quickly, placing a glare back on his face.

"I hate you…."

Boris's lips regained their smirk. Without saying another word, he turned and strode out of the room, leaving the door open behind him.

Tala watched him leave for a moment, then spun around to face Kai, whose eyes were barely open. Tala looked on sadly, watching his friend, disregarding the blood dripping from his stinging wound.

He squatted down in front of him again. He reached up a pale hand, stroking Kai's cheek gently.

"I'm so sorry, Kai…," Tala whispered, his voice straining with the effort of holding back tears.

A weak smile decorated Kai's lips. "I…forgive…you…," he managed.

Slowly, Kai's crimson eyes shut. His head drooped down. His breathing ceased.

Tala took his hand away slowly, keeping his eyes on the body of his best friend. He stared for a few silent moments.

Finally, he stood. He turned, closing his eyes for a brief moment, then opened them as he walked out of the dungeon-like room.

Tala made his way down the hallway, not quite sure where he was going, just letting his feet take him. He wandered all over the Abbey corridors, not much caring. He was lost in his emotions: his pain, his guilt, his sorrow, though everything seemed numb at the same time.

Eventually, he found himself in a foyer area that had a sort of back door for the Abbey. There was a guard next to the door, but he didn't notice the guard, he just let his feet take him through the doors, outside.

He heard the doors shut behind him, not caring. He went a little ways into the snow. He stopped, looking around, then turned his gaze upwards, trying to stay in the numb part of his mind.

The moon, a waxing crescent, sat in the sea of black space, gracefully overlooking Russia, with her glimmering friends, the stars, scattered throughout the sea. The tops of the black outlines of trees covered up some of the moon and stars. A soft yet chilly wind blew across the snowy landscape, ruffling Tala's hair and clothes.

'I wonder if Kai went to heaven…'

A crystal teardrop slipped down Tala's cheek, fusing with the knife cut in his face. It made the slash mark sting even more than it had been. After this first shimmering teardrop fell, Tala couldn't seem to hold back the others, but he didn't care. He let them fall, sliding down his cheeks, reflecting the heavenly lights from the sky.

"I will avenge you, Kai," Tala whispered, "and I will make sure that Boris pays." A subtle breeze blew by, sending a dead leaf floating through the air from a tree.

"Good-bye, Kai. I will always remember you. The bonds of friendship are not broken by the shadowy forces of death." A gentle wind caressed the deadened landscape, carrying Tala's words to Kai's soul, smiling at him from heaven.

End

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