I have a confession to make...I didn't watch V-Force in its entirety...sob... So if something happened to a certain person and they're alive and kicking in here, sorry...I only caught a comment later made about him and didn't see what had actually happened to him...(You'll find out who once you read the chap [If I made the mistake, that is])
5. The Deploy Dilemma
"As you probably know, I have called you all here today to discuss a rather disturbing matter..." Mr. Dickinson announced to those seated at the large table of the conference room. He motioned for Kenny to turn on the slide projector and watched the screen that had been behind him as an aerial image of Russia appeared. He turned back to the group. "Exhibit A—the country of Russia. Recently it has come under the attack of three fourteen year olds by the names of Spica Hyakutake, Kuiper Varuna, and Telesto Cibaru, also known as Vitality Extortion. Vitality Extortion was the mascot team for a company known as Goadbwa Enterprises, or Genesis of Apocalyptic Defeat Beyblading Weapon Artillery. However, this was a year ago. Now, it just so happened that a year ago the two companies of Goadbwa and Biovolt had a war break out between them and they sent the Hilanovs and Vitality Extortion to do their fighting. The Hilanovs were also a group of three Beybladers, but unlike Vitality Extortion, they were foretold to fight from a Prophecy found in a tomb under the headquarters of Biovolt. The Hilanovs were selected because of their personalities, appearances, and blood. The three chosen to lead the war against Goadbwa were Kai Hiwatari, Sarah Langley, and Tala Romanov, who is not with us today."
"May I ask a question, sir?" King asked, raising his hand almost politely.
"Why, yes, what is it?" Mr. Dickinson questioned curtly.
King stood up and slapped his hands against the table. "Why do we need to know all of this? Could you please just cut to the chase? Queen and I have better things to do if this doesn't interest us."
"This is a matter that concerns the fate of the world. We came to you two because we recognized your skills as Beybladers and were hoping that you could help, but if you feel that it would be a waste of your time, you are more than welcome to leave."
King looked to Queen, who gave a short, "hmph" and slumped back in her chair, arms folded.
Mr. Dickinson smiled as King sat back down quietly. "Thank, you King and Queen." But then he turned as he heard the squeak of chairs from the other side of the table.
"Though King and Queen want to help, the Saint Shields would rather not. At least not with rules and regulations like this. If you need help, we'll give it to you, but later. We're on a mission and we can't help right now," Ozuma declared before turning and leaving the room without another word. The other three seemed hesitant to leave, but eventually followed their leader, nodding their apologies as they left.
Mr. Dickinson sighed. "If there is anyone else in this room that feels they don't want to participate, please speak now or forever hold your peace." He glanced around, to see no hands appear or anyone stand up, and so he went back to his explanation.
Tala strode through the doors to the airport proudly, holding his meagre baggage and looking peculiar compared to the crowd. Tatiana followed closely behind, not holding anything as she hadn't the time to pack before she left.
Tala kept his eyes open for a departure board as he explored the airport until he finally found what he was looking for. A plane left Moscow for Tokyo in two hours. He had that long to buy food for the two of them to last out the trip and try to squeeze on the plane without being noticed. He looked down as he suddenly felt Tatiana tugging at his sleeve.
"Hey, Tala! Look! The plane's taking off!"
He followed her captivated gaze to the window and saw the nose rise, then the rest of the plane along with it. He made a small gulp. He had no idea how long the ride would be, or even if they'd make it to the end. He'd never been on a plane before—never been outside of Russia. He didn't know what to expect.
"Come on, Tatiana—we've got to go get food." He said calmly, pulling his sleeve from her grip.
"Oh! I want a huge—"
"For the plane ride. Tatiana—you're going to have to learn to control what you eat. I don't know how long the ride's going to be and how long it'll take to find the Biovolt Japan Headquarters, so we're going to have to ration our food."
"That's not fair!"
"I told you not to come," he replied passively, turning away and starting to walk.
Tatiana ran after him and stuck to him like glue. She didn't say a word as they entered a small convenience store and he purchased the essentials using some roubles he had stolen from the Abbey. He felt guilty about it all, but Boris would have never allowed him to do such a thing.
Everyone filed out of the conference room. The Celestial Myriad stared at the unfamiliar people as they passed by, until two of them breached the pattern. Elvin nudged Sarah's elbow and grinned as Kane and Jim passed them.
"Finally! Someone we know!" Eva exclaimed, not catching on to what Elvin was hinting at. "How are you two doing?" she asked, stepping in front of them.
The two boys looked back, confused, but then recognition dawned on them. "Eva! Hi!" cried Kane. "How's the Beyblading coming?"
"Great! But...where are...uh..." she started to stutter. "What are their names again?"
"Salima and Goki?" Jim offered.
"Yeah—those two..."
Philemon came up behind her and slapped her on the back. "You'll have to forgive Eva, she's not so good with names. Not much else, either."
"Hey!"
"Salima and Goki are travelling," clarified Jim. "After our battle with the Bladebreakers, Team Psykick split up. Kane and I stayed here in Japan to improve our skills while Goki and Salima hopped on a plane to teach kids around the world how to Beyblade."
"That's so cool," Eva said in acknowledgement.
"What's Team Psykick?" Philemon asked.
Sarah watched the four talking warily, Elvin tugging at her arm. "Come on, Sarah! You can't hide forever! Just go...You know you want to!"
Sarah stayed rooted to the spot. "No, that's okay...I don't want to be a burden." Just then, the Bladebreakers passed by. She freed herself of Elvin's grip and left to talk to them. Defeated, Elvin joined the rest of his team with Kane and Jim.
Hearing footsteps behind him, Kai stopped and turned around. "Sarah."
"Yes?" she replied, stopping beside him.
"Nothing," he answered, looking away again.
"So...Ready to do this all over again?"
"I guess."
"I wonder where Tala is...Is he alright...will he be alright..." she pondered aloud.
Kai continued walking again. "If I know Tala, he'll be fine. He's been in stickier situations."
She watched him depart silently, feeling completely ignored before shuffling back to her team. Eva noticed her and slung an arm around her shoulder. "Hey! We were just talking about you! Time for your reunion with Kane and Jim!"
"Don't you mean anniversary?" Philemon jested.
Kane laughed. "How many times do I have to tell you it was for good luck?"
"Kane's letter said to meet him at the BBA Headquarters in Tokyo, Japan."
Goki looked up to the departure board of the waiting room as Salima finished speaking. "We're right on time. The next plane leaves Moscow for Tokyo in an hour. We'd better get our luggage on the plane, then."
Salima nodded, folding up the map and piece of paper and stuffing it in her backpack. She followed Goki through the airport.
Tala watched as the luggage carousels spun around slowly. As Tatiana caught up to him, she began to stare as well.
"What are those, Tala?"
"They're luggage carousels. They deliver the luggage to the plane." They would have no need of it, though. They hardly had any luggage, only a backpack that Tala had. Thinking that it would be difficult to somehow get to the luggage department of the plane through here, he decided to abandon the idea. The luggage would have to be handled before it went on the plane, and there wasn't exactly a way to get past that as two humans.
Then, he saw it. A huge trunk marked fragile that a person in the crowd was holding, and it was marked with a large label, "TOKYO". What a stroke of luck! It had to be going on the carousel that was loading their plane. If only he and Tatiana could somehow get a hold of that case...
"Excuse me?"
Tala turned around to see a girl and a boy around his age standing, eyes full of amazement. The boy was tall with black hair and brown eyes while the girl had long red hair and blue eyes—like a Hilanov. She instantly reminded him of Anya.
"Are you Tala Romanov?" the girl asked.
Tala's eyes widened. 'Oh no!' he panicked. 'How does she know me? What if she's form the Abbey?' "Uh...no," he stammered. "My name is...uh, Vasily...yeah, that's it."
"Vasily? You must be Russian, then?" the boy replied.
Tala nodded, trying not to say anything he didn't have to.
Both the girl and the boy looked sullen. "Oh...Too bad. You looked so much like Tala...the great Hilanov Beyblader!" the girl said.
"Great Hilanov Beyblader? How do you know?" Tala repeated, relaxing slightly.
"It was broadcast all over the TV and newspapers last year—Biovolt's war against Goadbwa, remember?" the boy asked.
Tala made a face as if trying to remember. "Oh yeah—I remember that! The war because Goadbwa wanted to use human souls as Bit Beasts because they were more powerful!"
"Really?" the boy and the girl asked in unison.
"They never said what the war was about," added the boy.
Tala slapped a hand to his mouth. "At least, I think I read that somewhere..."
The girl smiled and extended her hand. "You seem like a nice guy, anyway, Vasily. My name's Salima and this is Goki."
Goki waved. "Pleased to meet you." He gestured towards Tatiana. "Who's this? Your little sister?"
"No, he's my da—"
Tala slapped a hand to her mouth. "This is Lyuba, my...sister, yes."
Salima examined Tatiana more closely. "Funny, she seems to more be your daughter than your sister."
"What?"
"She just has that...look. You don't seem to share the same mother..."
"I'm not—"Tatiana began.
"Rest assured, she's my annoying little sister!" Tala interrupted, squeezing her cheeks roughly.
"So, where are you headed?" Goki asked, changing the subject.
"Tokyo," Tatiana replied. Tala slapped a hand to his forehead.
Sailma's eyes lit up. "Really? So are we! We've been called to see our friends about a matter concerning the Hilanovs as a matter of fact."
This piqued Tala's interest. "Do you know for what?"
"Nope, not a clue," Goki shook his head. "They only told us that it was important. If you were Tala, however, you'd know, wouldn't you? And you'd be in Japan along with Sarah and Kai instead of here in Russia." Goki looked to his watch. "Well, Sal, our plane leaves in half an hour. We'd better get boarding."
They shook hands with Tala once more before they waved and left. Tala continued to stare into space for a moment, transfixed by what information he had just learnt and his two opportunities that had just walked away from him. He snapped out of his daydream when he felt Tatiana pulling his sleeve again.
"Tala! Tala! That luggage you were staring at! The man's loading it now!"
Tala whipped back around. Sure enough, the man was lifting it to the carousel. "We need a diversion..." he said quietly.
"A Beyblade," Tatiana suggested. "But I can't use mine, and you don't want to use yours, either, do you?"
"I have an extra Beyblade in here," he said, flinging his bag off his back and pulling out a red blade. He pulled out his shooter as well and fired. "Get that trunk off the carousel!" he ordered Tatiana.
Sure enough, the destructive Beyblade was catching people's attention. The man had just left the loading room and so Tatiana and Tala rushed over to the heavy baggage, unstrapped it and unloaded it, shoving the contents under the carousel and climbing inside, Tala leaving the extra Beyblade to wrack havoc on the room. There had been a blanket covering the single object that had been in the case, and Tala and Tatiana pulled it over them as they squished together inside it.
"Tala?"
"Yes!" he whispered feverishly.
"How are we gonna close this thing?"
Just then, then felt the trunk tip upwards and heard someone talking as the lid shut tightly. "Now how'd you get off the carousel? You've gotta get to Tokyo, now. No more jumping attempts!" the man said playfully to his suitcase as he set it back on the belt.
Curled up with Tatiana, he could feel her heavy breathing against his neck. "Don't breathe so much!" he scolded. "We've got a limited air supply! Unless..." He fumbled around for his bag, then reached into a side pocket and pulled out a small pocket knife—just another one of the many 'borrowed' possessions.
He reached over Tatiana and drove the tip of the knife into what he hoped was the side of the trunk. He kept grinding at the tough material until the blade slid right through—he had made a small hole. But there was no light coming through—they had to still be on the conveyor belt—he could still feel the movement. As that had worked, he moved the knife to make another hole in the same way he had before. Then, just as he had finished the second hole and drew the knife in, light poured through the holes. The trunk was lifted from the belt and set down gently, as the label had asked. But no sooner had they been set down then they were picked up again, more roughly this time, and they felt the movement of some sort of a car.
Tala strained to see out through the small holes, each about a centimetre in diameter. "Question now is, how do we get out of here?" he breathed.
"Tala?"
"What now?"
"I have to go to the bathroom..."
"We don't have time to wait. We must commence our attack now," Mr. Dickinson told Sarah and Kai.
The two were still busy gawking at the new uniforms they wore. There was a base jumpsuit. Kai's was blue and had three black horizontal stripes; one at the neck, one across his upper chest which also followed under his arms, and one across his lower chest. There were also vertical black stripes on the inside of the legs. Sarah's uniform was purple with a single silver stripe on her upper chest that followed under her arms and the same vertical stripes on the inside of the legs. Also on their chest was a single vertical breast plate that started at their turtleneck and went down the middle of their chest, held up by a new style of armour. Kai's breastplate was black, Sarah's silver. The new abdominal armour had a front and back plate, a slightly different shade of their primary and the two plates were connected by tubal lining of Kai's and Sarah's shade. They had elbow pads of their respective shade, black gloves with white lining and silver wristguards and black boots with white linings and silver ankle rings. They had knee pads, shin guards, and soles of the same shade as the front and back of their abdominal armour. (A/N: By now, you should know that their primary colours are Kai—blue, Sarah—purple, and Tala—red. Their shades are Kai—black, Sarah—grey, and Tala—white.)
"And even if only two of the Hilanovs are here, you should be okay. They're not going to be that difficult on the first battle—I can almost guarantee that," Mr. Dickinson continued. "But, nonetheless, I have two others to help you in the fight. We're trying to find a replacement in case Tala doesn't turn up."
"Please don't say that, Mr. Dickinson," Kai said simply, giving the same cold scowl as always.
"I'm sorry, Kai."
"Who are these two replacements, then?" asked Sarah.
Mr. Dickinson motioned to the doorway as two boys clad in uniforms stepped in. "We have selected Wyatt and Kane as Tala's replacements according to the closest matches with the Prophecy. As they were some of the first ones to be tested and questioned, they were the first to be turned up. Not everyone that agreed to participate has been checked to see if they're a suitable replacement yet."
Kane's uniform had red and white as the colour and shade with two horizontal stripes across the chest. Wyatt had the same two horizontal stripes, but his uniform was green and white instead. Wyatt looked to Kai and beamed, eager to contribute. Kane had the same serious face and seemed wary.
"Kane has blue eyes, and is always honest and confident. His last name, Rotanev, is also very similar to that of Romanov," Mr. Dickinson illuminated. "Wyatt, on the other hand, has the same personality traits and has a trace of DNA from the Hilanov bloodline. Hopes are high for him." He surveyed the three standing before him before turning on his heel and leading them up to the roof. "You shall now board a helicopter that will take you to a small village in Russia where Vitality Extortion was last believed to have struck. Good luck and goodbye," he finished as he opened the door to the roof.
A helicopter hovered, gearing to go.
Suddenly Sarah froze, staring at Mr. Dickinson in fear and surprise.
"You're so pale! You look like you've just seen a ghost!" exclaimed Wyatt over the roar of the blades.
Sarah shook her head and looked to Mr. Dickinson again. 'I swear I saw two of Mr. Dickinson standing there a moment ago...' She heard a familiar laugh echo through her head and shook it again. "I think I did, Wyatt..."
"Come on! We don't have time to waste!" yelled Kai, grabbing Sarah's arm and yanking her across the landing platform.
The rotor blades spun in a blur and whatever Mr. Dickinson said next was drowned out as they ran towards the helicopter and climbed up the rope ladder. Mr. Dickinson waved from the launch pad as they rose into the air and began to ascend the ladder.
For most of the trip, everyone had remained silent. Kane then looked to Sarah on his left. "Back before we left, Wyatt mentioned something about a ghost and you answered yes. What was that about?"
Sarah became transfixed by the floor. "I was watching Mr. Dickinson as he spoke, then suddenly another Mr. Dickinson stepped out from behind him and scowled at me. When I blinked, however, he was gone."
Kai continued to stare out the window, arms folded, unfazed. "You've been undergoing a lot of stress lately, or so I've heard. It's probably just your mind playing tricks on you."
She raised her head to him as he sat across from her. "I'm...not so sure..."
"We're here," the pilot announced as the helicopter began to descend.
They each leapt out of the plane in turn, eyes peeled and Beyblades safely in their belts for quick arming.
"I'll be here for when you get back," the pilot informed before shutting the cockpit door.
"Let's go," Kai ordered, taking charge and starting to walk. The others followed suite. "And keep your eyes peeled for anything suspicious."
As it had been in the plane, they walked in silence down a long, wide path. There were tall deciduous trees on either side and the foliage was thick, making for the perfect ambush. There was no one around and it was unusually quiet—no birds chirping, no other sounds of the forest.
"I thought Russia was supposed to be cold," Wyatt wondered aloud at last.
"Not all of it is. We must be in the more southern region where it is warmer," Kai answered.
"Hey! Look! Up ahead!" exclaimed Kane as they all came to a stop to squint straight ahead.
"Civilization!" cried Sarah, rushing past them and towards the tiny village. When she reached it, however, her heart sank.
The small village of rickety wooden houses now lay in smoulders. A rotting stench filled her nose—the same smell that had been on the final battlefield when it was all over. Bodies were strewn out over the dirt everywhere as were prized possessions—a hat, cookware, and...a doll. Sarah knelt down and picked up the doll at her feet, examining the craftsmanship that had gone to waste.
Kai appeared at her side. "What is it?"
She stood back up again and held it out to him. On seeing it, he sighed and looked to Kane and Wyatt, who were also sifting through the wreckage.
Wyatt picked up a ten-gallon hat and turned it around. "Did Vitality Extortion do this?"
"This is horrible," agreed Kane.
Kai watched smoke wisps rise from a piece of wood that still had a spark alight. "Don't let your guard down just yet. This disaster is fresh, so whoever did this, Vitality Extortion or not, is probably still around here. They could be—"
"Sh!"
Kai whipped around to Sarah. "I'm just warning them!"
"No! I heard something!" she whispered angrily before closing her eyes to concentrate. A moment later, she turned back to the path they had come from. "There!"
The other three turned as well to see four figures approaching them. Kai growled and raised his Beyblade to fire, but the middle figure raised his hands to show he was unarmed—for the moment.
"Ah, Hilanovs. So good to see you again," Telesto said with a smirk.
"But where's the third stooge?" asked Kuiper.
"So you're Vitality Extortion, huh?" Kane said as he stepped forward.
Telesto nodded. "The one and only. But who are you?"
"My name is Kane and this over here is Wyatt. I thought there were only three of you?"
The three looked to their newest member, a young boy. He looked to be about seven. He had a style more like Wyatt's, but with the two different shades like Kai. He had grey eyes and a vertical red triangle on either cheek just below his eye. He wore a uniform like the other three—high- necked shirt with a triangle from either shoulder down to the middle, belt with the Goadbwa logo, pants and knee-high boots with the same triangle. The logo was also on the left breast of their shirt, along with shoulder pads, elbow pads, wrist guards and gloves. The shoulder pads and boots were black and white on all three and most of everything else was of their primary colour (A/N: Spica—purple, black, Kuiper—white, blue, Telesto—red, grey). This boy's uniform was black and red—Goadbwa's colours.
"There were," Telesto began with a dismissive hand. "But meet our newest accomplice, Kazu."
"Kazu?" Kai heard Sarah repeat softly.
Spica drew her Beyblade and shooter. "Can we waste time on pleasantries later, please? We've got a score to settle with the Hilanovs, remember?"
"Right," the other three agreed as they drew their blades.
"Kai!" Kai whirled around on hearing a gasp and his name from Sarah.
"What? What is it!"
"There's more of them, now!"
Kai looked back to Vitality Extortion. "Yeah, they've got Kazu. So? We have four on our side as well."
"No, I mean that another Spica, Telesto, and Kuiper just stepped out form the bushes! They're standing, ready to fire as well! Can't you see them?!"
Kai glanced at them again and saw the same as before. "No. You're seeing things again. Stop making excuses and just fight."
"But—"
It was too late. Kai raised his blade and fired. Wyatt followed his example and did the same. Kane watched her for a moment, trying to decide what to do. She noticed this and turned to him. "Can you see them?"
"Sorry, I've no idea what you're talking about. I only see two left—Kazu and Spica, I think their names are?"
"Which one'll you take?"
Kane glared them over again. "I think I can handle Spica."
"You think I'm not strong enough to handle someone my own age?" Sarah asked jokingly as she raised her shooter.
"Maybe," Kane replied, firing. "Wouldn't want you to strain yourself too much."
Sarah clicked her tongue and fired at the young boy. Glancing back up at where Vitality Extortion had been standing, she noticed that the doubles had disappeared. She quickly surveyed the area before being drawn into the fight with Kazu.
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That's it for now. Please review!