The Fourth Tournament

Or

Hijacked by Astro V.

Chapter 3

Boris Balkov sat back in his chair, savouring the peaceful moment. He poured himself another glass of vodka and closed his eyes.

This time, he'd gone for older bladers; Kane, Salima and Jim. Three of the team his very good friend Dr. Gideon had put together to challenge the Blade Breakers. Boris clenched his fists at the mere thought of the ungrateful brats he had raised that had left him, that had betrayed him and then dared to challenge him.

Ian had never really been worth the trouble from the start. The youngest 'Blitzkrieg Boy' had only a sprinkling of raw talent, and he didn't work hard enough.

Spencer had some talent, but he also had a dream. Being the oldest, Spencer had spent most of his life around young children and wanted to be some sort of helper to them. A waste of talent, but he had a strong will that would not be broken. He joined the Demolition Boys because they were his friends, but didn't enjoy the fact he battled Kai in the final. Boris was glad he was out the way.

Tala, on the other hand, was different. The red headed Russian from St. Petersburg was bursting with talent and charm. Giving him Wolborg had been a good decision; the red head was the only one that could tame the stubborn wolf. Takes one to know one, Boris thought.

Bryan. Boris would never admit it, but Bryan scared him sometimes. Falborg had come from deep within the silent blader. Boris didn't know if it was a throw over from his childhood high up in the Ural Mountains, but Bryan didn't seem to need to breathe, didn't need to live. He just was. The raw strength in that blader was not training from Boris, but strenuous working that Bryan had submitted himself to. Bryan and Falborg worked as one to destroy both the blader and the blade. Boris wished he could have him back.

The ones that came to Boris' head next were not former Demolition Boys, well, apart from Kai, but they had been trained by Boris and, to some extent, Voltaire. And, they too, had left.

Hester Mandarin. At fourteen, the girl reminded Boris so much of what he had been like as a child. But then, it was to be expected. She was Boris' daughter, after all. She was gutsy, fiery, cheeky, spunky… The list went on and on. She and her bitbeast Zendare could terrorise a match. She'd never really been that close to him, and, at the split of the Abbey, had followed her boyfriend, Tala, to freedom. How Boris wished he could have the redhead's neck between his hands!

Kasi Rosetti. Boris admitted that it had been partly his fault they lost her. At the age of six, she had lost her mother. For a long time, she had blamed Kai for that. The process had been sweet, kidnapping a five year old Kai, making the police think that the parents had done something to him, her mother dying of stress and her father eventually signing her over to Boris' tender care. She had undergone the same rigorous training as the boys, but her emotions weren't stamped out completely. They were still there, slowly being awakened by both Robert Jagen and Kai. He'd never quite been able to wipe the small smirk off her face. And then, she'd overheard Boris and Voltaire talking and realised that they had lied to her. Boy, did they pay. Now she was one of the best bladers in the world, but no one could trace her back to Boris unless they asked her.

And, finally, Kai. The boy had been a constant source of torment to both men. Kai's parents had conveniently 'died' in a car crash, conveniently leaving their son to Voltaire's care. Kai had been a tearaway from the start. No matter how much they tried to beat it out of him, he was as stubborn as his father. He had been the one that sparked off the outrage over the abbey, but luckily, Boris and Voltaire had managed to cover it as Kai's over active imagination, and boyish scrapes, sending him many threats undercover for Kai not to say anymore. Things like 'your grandfather is relieved to see you and your girlfriend well, but do be careful.' And so on. Voltaire eventually had to bring the boy out to Japan with him. Luckily, he lost those memories for quite a while.

And there were others. He couldn't even think of their names, for the rage still bubbled up within him. Those Anglo-Greek brats had almost caused the closure of the entire abbey, something not even Kai had managed to achieve.

They would all pay, in time, Boris decided as he poured himself another glass.