Full summary: Post-Series When Tyson begins to worry about his friend, reunited teammates travel to the land of Russia and find themselves to be the ones in trouble. Everything is hidden in the secrets of the Hiwatari family and in the even more secret stories of the sacred spirits. For one last time, the Bladebreaker's find they must fight for, not only the world, but the right to live in it as well.
Warning! This fic contains spoilers to the end of season three of Beyblade: G Revolution. If you do not want to be spoiled, push the back button at the top of your screen and have a great day. smiles If you don't mind or have already sought out the ending, carry on and enjoy the fic.
-----Past this point contains spoilers-----
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Now that that's out of the way, I may as well get this done too:
Disclaimer: Never have, never will own any part of Beyblade or any of the bishies that would come with that ownership... ahhhh, if only...
Okay, and finally, an author's note: As previously stated, this fic will contain spoilers. My story takes place a year after GRev. Near the end of the series, episode 48 of GRev to be exact, Kai's Dranzer is broken. My one question I could never find an answer to is whether or not Dranzer came back to life, as phoenixes usually would. Whether or not he actually comes back in the show, in this fic, Dranzer is dead. This will relate to Kai throughout the fic and will have a significant effect on the storyline. So if I am mistaken and Dranzer is actually resurrected in the show, my fic will not change to suit that.
Okay, I think I've rambled on enough, haven't I? So on with the story!
-
Craving Freedom
-
Eons ago when the sport of beyblading was young, powerful beasts roamed the earth. But as the old ways faded, the re-awakened essences of the beasts heralded the dawning of a new age of champions. The beasts shall rise again.
-
Chapter 1: Fragmented Reunion
Monday, December 20, 2004Tyson laid his head back and looked up at the sky. It was a bright sunny day, with only a few clouds striped across the infinite sea of blue above. He let out a sigh. It had been a while since he was able to relax like this. A light breeze drifted across his face, cooling it from the heat of the sun. Although winter was all around him, the day felt much warmer than the past week had been.
Tyson lifted his head again and looked at the river. It was partially frozen but was as beautiful as ever. The thin ice along the banks glistened in the strong light. It was such a beautiful day and, Tyson thought to himself, only one thing could ruin it –
"Tyson!" came a shrill voice, "There you are! I've been looking all over for you. I told you I'd meet you at your house remember? Or did you forget about that, too?"
Tyson frowned. He should have known better than to come to the park, Hilary knew that was his favourite spot. He turned to face the brunette who was in a huff. "Gee, you found me –"
"This isn't a joke, Tyson!" Hilary lectured, her hands on her hips. She had grown quite a bit over the past year, looking much more mature by the day it seemed, but she still wore the same angry expression that she always had when he was goofing off, Tyson mused. "– Are you even listening to me? I don't know why I even bother!" Hilary sighed, putting one hand up to her head as if she had a headache.
"Tyson," Hilary started over, trying to keep her calm, "you can't skip class. You know we have that mid term coming up soon and, no offence, you could use all the review you can get." She took a seat next to Tyson on the ground, folding her coat underneath her; it was obvious the ground was cold.
"Aw, come on, Hil, you know I've been working hard lately. I don't think I've ever worked this hard on anything other than beyblading or eating before," complained Tyson.
"As surprising as it sounds, I do know you've been working hard, Tyson. But if you quit now, all that work would be for nothing. It's only a week 'till Winter Break. You only have to work hard for another week and then you can relax to your heart's content." Hilary smiled. "Now, how about we get to school before the bell rings, hmm?" Hilary placed her hand on Tyson's shoulder. He looked at her for a moment, and then nodded.
"But I'm going to keep you to your word that you won't pester me over the break to do any work." He winked and then got up, brushing off some snow that had drifted onto his shirt from the breeze. The two sixteen-year-olds walked together up the frosted slope and down the empty road.
---
The school day was uneventful and, quite a few times, Tyson found himself staring out the windows at the blue skies, rethinking his choice to accompany Hilary to school. It was not until after lunch that Tyson was happy that he came.
Mr. Saito announced the arrival of a new student, an exchange student, that would be joining the class for the following few months. "So, class, please welcome your new peer, Max Mizuhara."
A blonde boy stepped through the doorway, freckles apparent even at the back of the classroom. Tyson was shocked and had lifted his head up so fast from its resting position on his desk that he knocked his textbook to the floor. Luckily, everyone else was in too much awe to notice. The entire class was staring, wide-eyed, at the former world champion. They were waiting for someone to call 'joke'.
Apparently unaware of the class' reactions to their new peer, Mr. Saito invited Max to sit at the empty seat beside Tyson at the back.
Tyson's eyes followed Max as he came to the back of the room. "Is that really you, Max?" were the first words Tyson could get out of his mouth. Max laughed. "I mean, why're you here?" Tyson corrected. "Why didn't you tell me you were coming?"
As Max took his seat, he answered, "I'm living with my dad for a while and he figured that that shouldn't stop me from attending school, so he enrolled me here." Tyson blinked. "I'll be going back to America in the spring, but for now, we're classmates! And I wanted it to be a surprise, so I left it out of my e-mails." Max smiled.
"Wow, hey, that's great! Hey Max, you can be my partner for our group projects. It'll be so much fun! It has to do with history – the roles of samurai in Japan, I think." Tyson started to think about what exactly they were supposed to do; he hadn't really been paying attention to Mr. Saito when he had explained it.
"Hey!" came a whimpering voice from in front of the two. It was Kenny. "What about me, Tyson? I'm already your partner!" He had obviously been listening in on the conversation.
"Well," Tyson thought, putting a finger to his chin, "I don't think Hilary has a partner yet. You can be hers."
"Hey, wha–?"
"No offence, Tyson," Max butted in, "but I'd much rather be Chief's partner."
"Great!" commented Kenny, "Then it's settled, you and I are partners, Max." Kenny smiled. Although Max was easy-going, he was still much easier to work with than Tyson would ever be.
"Hey, wait! Then what about me?" Tyson whined.
"Well, I hear Hilary doesn't have a partner yet," Max snickered.
"Yeah, thanks a lot, pal!" grumbled Tyson.
---
Tyson, Max, Kenny and Hilary all walked together to Tyson's house that afternoon when the final school bell rang. They entered the gates to the dojo and Tyson was met with an equally pleasant surprise to seeing Max come in his classroom earlier. Leaning against the door to the house, a black-haired blader stood, arms crossed. He had obviously been expecting Tyson home any moment.
"Ray!" Hilary exclaimed from Tyson's side.
And so it was. Ray smiled at the rest of his old friends. "Grandpa said you'd be home soon, Tyson, so I decided to wait here for you."
Ray was dressed differently than his usual white top. Instead, he wore a red long-sleeved shirt, outlined in gold with the Chinese flag patched onto the upper left chest. The rest of his outfit was much more suited to his regular style: black pants, black shoes, black gloves and his hair style the same as always, but now held in a new red adornment.
"Heya, Ray! Wow! Today's been so great! Guess what, Ray? Guess who showed up at class today?" Tyson asked excitedly.
"Hey, Max," Ray said to Max as if it was no big thing that the boy from America was there. "Yeah Tyson, I already know."
"W-what? You TOLD him?" Tyson questioned Max.
"Well, he told me he was going to be here so I decided to let him in on my plans as well," stated Max matter-of-factly.
Tyson was looking back and forth between the two disbelievingly. "And Ray, why are you here?"
"I'm working here."
"Huh? What do you mean, 'working here'?" Hilary asked this time.
"Mr. Dickenson hired me as the Chinese ambassador for the BBA."
"You could have at least e-mailed me, I wouldn't have told a soul," Kenny sulked.
Tyson glanced sideways at Kenny. "Yeah, well, it doesn't seem like anyone's telling us anything anymore," Tyson mumbled.
"Aw, don't feel too badly about it. We just wanted to surprise you guys," Ray sympathized.
Tyson still looked sceptical. "I don't suppose Kai said anything about coming here to you guys, did he?"
Ray and Max exchanged glances. "We wish we could say something but," Ray paused, frowning, "neither one of us has been able to contact Kai. It's like he doesn't want to talk to us at all."
"I'm not surprised," Kenny admitted, "Kai hasn't returned any of my messages either."
Hilary looked between all four faces, each one seeming sadder than the last at the lack of communication from their previous teammate and friend. Why wouldn't Kai want to talk to them? Maybe the answer wasn't too hard to figure out; Kai had always been a loner and maybe he hadn't changed as much as the guys thought he had in the last few years. Kai probably just wanted to go back to the life he had before, whatever that was –
"That's it!" Tyson shouted out suddenly, snapping Hilary from her thoughts. "I'm gonna throw a Christmas get-together for the Bladebreakers and you guys had better be there, and Kai," he added.
"Um, Tyson, how do you propose we get Kai to come?" Kenny asked timidly.
"Kenny, you're going to send him another message. Tell him he's got to come. Tell him –" Tyson paused to think, "– tell him it's urgent."
"But Tyson," Kenny complained, "isn't that a bit drastic. I mean, it's his choice if he wants to come or not."
"Oh, Kenny, please do it? It just wouldn't be a get-together without ALL the Bladebreakers here. I – I just miss him," Tyson admitted.
Everyone bowed their heads thinking of the mysterious blader who they had become close friends with over the past three years. It was hard to admit, but Kai had affected them all in great ways and it was true that it wouldn't be the same without him.
"Very well, Tyson. I'll do it. Only because I miss him just as much as you do." Kenny sighed.
The tone of the reunion between the friends was lowered from that point on until they had all returned to their respective houses for the night. Tyson sat by his window looking up at the moon half lit high above the Earth. He thought of the day's events and one thing wouldn't leave his mind: 'Kai, what's going on with you?'
---
The hallway was cool; the mixture of winter and metal made the building particularly cold, even though the heaters were running. He walked silently down the long corridor, hands in his pockets as men and women in lab coats ran around him holding clipboards or pushing heavy machinery on wheels. The walls around him were white, the floors, white, the ceiling, white. The doctors racing around wore white. The lights brightly shone white from above. The colourless world around him was callous and indifferent. Anyone visiting these hallways for the first time would have felt out of place but, of course, this wasn't his first time here.
His black coat, piercing eyes, green pants, red tie, all misplaced him within his surroundings. A voice came from the com above. It called for Doctor Voronov to come to room B506 immediately. The young man continued to make his way along. His destination was located at the back of the building, hidden deep within its bowels.
He lifted his head, his stare shifting from the floor to the small opening ahead. It was a small reception area. Dull grey chairs lined the waiting area. There was nobody sitting there at the moment. As the hallway continued on past the reception desk, a metal gate separated it in two. On the other side, the corridor seemed to continue on forever still, doors lining the way. The only figure present in the reception area was seated behind the desk, sorting through papers and talking on the phone. The man walked up to her, but remained silent. She looked up at him and recognized him immediately. She covered the phone and said quietly to him, "It's okay. Go right on through Mr. Hiwatari." The man nodded and continued through the gate.
He walked along mutely until he reached a beige door, similar to all the others. It was marked D347. This was Kai's goal. He opened the door and walked in. The heat of the room was welcoming but misleading. One would think the warmth was a sign of happiness, but the sight before Kai was probably the saddest thing in the edifice.
Kai removed his coat, folding it on his arms. He leaned back against the now closed door, frowning. He watched a boy his age eating at his tray by the window. The boy hadn't noticed Kai come in and still remained unaware of the seventeen-year-old watching him. The boy suddenly started laughing, an ominous cackling that pierced through Kai's mind as haunting images attacked his thoughts. The first time he had heard that cackle was shortly before Wyatt was placed in this hospital.
Wyatt had been used as a tool to go after Kai. Not only that, but it had been Kai who had pushed Wyatt to do it. He had told Wyatt that he could never be good enough to train with Kai, so Wyatt was susceptible to the scientist's proposal when he offered Wyatt the power he needed. And now, Wyatt was here to stay. He had already been here for two years and it didn't seem like he was going to get better any time soon. Wyatt continued to laugh and Kai continued to watch, never saying a word.
The silent spectator stayed by the door for over an hour, his eyes never leaving the boy by the window who had long since finished his food and was staring absent-mindedly out of the window.
Finally, without warning, Kai turned and left. It was like a mechanical response, something he had done so often that he knew exactly when it was time to leave. He walked back down the melancholic hallway. As he passed the reception desk, the woman looked up from the filing cabinet and said "Good day, Mr. Hiwatari." Kai continued and didn't even acknowledge her. She must have been used to it for his lack of a response didn't faze her one bit
Kai continued down the passageway, putting his coat back on as he went. He came to an elevator and waited for it to come. When it did, he entered it. It was empty but the mirrors on two sides didn't allow him to be alone; hundreds of reflections looked as dismal as the original. The elevator slowed to a stop and he got out and entered the parking lot. It was nearly empty for its vastness. Nearly all the vehicles belonged to employees. It took no time for Kai to reach his ride, a sleek motorcycle, black and silver. His helmet, red with black outlining, was where he left it: on the handle of his bike. There was no need for him to carry it in to his visits with Wyatt for the parking garage was closed and barely ever had anyone in it.
Kai placed the helmet on his head and started the bike's motor. He drove off toward the exit. With a swipe of his pass, the garage door opened and Kai drove out onto the streets of Moscow.
It was dark out although it was still only late afternoon. Snow was steadily falling from the clouds above. Kai took to alleyways and residential roads to keep away from the traffic on the main roads. He didn't care much for pedestrians watching him drive by. Motorcycles weren't a popular mode of transportation and therefore Kai was often the object of suspicious glances.
Kai drove until he reached a small, cobble-stoned bridge away from the main city. He stopped his bike and brought it as close to the edge as possible to get it out of the way of traffic, even though there was hardly ever any. He stood there, snow clinging to his shoulders. He stared, thinking to himself, out at the river below, its rapid movements keeping the ice from building along its top. Kai stood there so long that the snow stopped and the setting sun was visible below the clouds at the end of the river in front of him. Kai didn't feel the cold biting at the bare skin on his face or his coat whipping around his legs as the wind picked up. He didn't hear the footsteps of the teen approaching him, either.
"Kai?" the stranger spoke. Kai's eyes snapped wide open as he looked up at the new comer. It was a classmate of his, Zasha. Zasha was a black-haired boy who had equally dark eyes. He had been a close friend of Wyatt's before Kai had started attending Whitney Prep, and had warned Wyatt to stay away from Kai. If only Wyatt had listened...
"Kai, what are you doing here?" Since Kai had returned to the school, Zasha and Arkadiy, another student, had become closer friends with Kai, even though Kai didn't want to admit it. "Kai, did you go to visit Wyatt again?" Kai didn't answer. "I know you've been going daily, Mrs. Yudin told me, the receptionist," he added. Kai lowered his eyes to the river.
"Listen, Kai, you can't keep going there. Wyatt isn't even aware that you're there! Wyatt wouldn't want you slaving over him like this! Kai, what happened to Wyatt wasn't your fault!" Kai's eyes shot back up and looked straight into Zasha's. The brunette before Kai seemed undaunted of Kai's imposing posture. "It was a misjudgement on yours and Wyatt's part, but what happened in the end was unforeseeable. You can't blame yourself for that. Wyatt was being stubborn and it cost him his sanity, but he would never want you to give up your life for a helpless cause."
"So that's what you think? That I should just give up on Wyatt? Some friend you are!" Kai let out his anger, something he hadn't been able to do in a very long time, something he usually had control over. However, his emotions had been getting too much to bear lately, and often, at night time, he found himself wishing he would cry, wishing he could. But never did he shed one silver tear – for Wyatt or Dranzer. And now he was taking it out on his friend.
"No, Kai. I'm not saying that at all," Zasha replied unfazed by Kai's outbreak. "I'm saying that you shouldn't spend all your evenings wishing you could change the past because, as amazing as you might be, as amazing as Wyatt thought you were, even you don't have that power. It's alright to visit him now and then, but don't obsess over what happened or soon, you and Wyatt will be inmates." Zasha smiled at Kai who just stared back, but with a softer expression than before.
"Listen Kai," Zasha spoke again as he took out a pen and a piece of paper from his pockets and started to scribble something. "Why don't you come by my house this Saturday. My family's having a get-together and I'm sure they would love to meet one of my best friends." Kai was a little taken aback by the last comment. Zasha passed Kai the piece of paper he had been writing on, "Here, take this. It's my address. We'll be expecting you around seven, K? In the mean time, I'm gonna tell Mrs. Yudin to stop letting you see Wyatt for a while. I'm only trying to help you Kai, you do know that?"
Kai didn't say anything but smiled as his hand closed into a fist on the piece of paper. He then put it in his coat pocket and looked back to the river as the last rays of the sun disappeared beyond the horizon. Zasha continued along the bridge's pathway, as if he had never stopped. Kai turned to leave as well.
The ride home had been quiet, barely any traffic on the roads. Kai parked his bike and entered the apartment building. It was a three-story building, well kept, and was located in a newer neighbourhood. He climbed both flights of stairs to the topmost level. He walked a few doors down and stopped by the apartment number 307. He took out keys from his pockets and selected one, placing it into the keyhole in the doorknob. The knob turned and the door opened. Upon entering, Kai put his keys in a box on the small table by the door. He first removed his gloves, then his coat. He then loosened his tie.
Walking into his home, Kai looked around. He lived in a fairly nice three-room apartment. The entrance opened to the lounge. At the present moment, the blinds were shut on the window at the back, allowing little light into the dark space. Kai did nothing to lighten it up. He walked on past the doorway to his left that led to the bedroom and connected bathroom, past the spotlessly organized lounge, with its navy walls, blue sofa, black television, oak bookshelves full of books, and oak desk that supported a few books and a laptop computer that was running with its screensaver providing most of the light to the room. He turned to another opening to his left. This one led to the kitchen. It was small but it, too, was spotless. Someone who saw this kitchen would think that there was nobody living there, just filling the cupboards up with food every now and then for showcasing. It was a little abnormal for such an apartment, especially one owned by a seventeen-year-old male nonetheless, to be so clean.
Kai reached up into an overhead cupboard and took down a can of instant soup. He opened it and put its contents into a small glass bowl. He put the glass pot on a burner, which he turned on high. In the other room, the computer screen glowed to life, flashing a message that read: You have new mail. Kai noticed the flashing due to the lack of light in the apartment. He abandoned the soup on the burner and came to see what it was. He opened the e-mail and read it over. Once finished, he clicked on the 'delete' button. The last thing he wanted at the moment was to see Kenny, Tyson, Max, Ray, Daichi and Hilary. Zasha was right, he couldn't change the past. That's why he decided to bury it and forget it. If he saw those guys, he would have to face Dranzer's death again, and that was something he couldn't do. Kai logged off the computer and closed the top. The darkness swarmed him for a moment as he was caught up in thought. The loud bubbling of water broke his concentration and he left the room to tend to his soup.
---
-
Well, there you have it: the first chapter of my fic. I know it was a bit slow but it was just to set things up a bit. One thing I would like to mention is that Daichi has returned home (to wherever that may be) and he will not be appearing in this fanfiction. Also, I have not decided yet whether or not I'll include Hiro in this fic either, but if I do, it will be only for a small part.
Anyway, thanks for reading and I hope you leave a review on your way out. smiles The next chapter: The Plan will be posted Monday, September 27, 2004. Hope you stick around.
This one's for Kai:
Between the wish and the thing life lies waiting. - Unknown
- Fey Phantom