Chapter 11

Pulling a Lion's Tail

I stood at the opening of the main stadium, this time not to watch, but blade. My Majestics jacket on and the others at my side, we walked out into the stadium to receive tons of cheers: I had never been cheered for before. We walked to our team bench and sat down. We watched the White Tiger team walk to their bench and sit down, my eyes trained upon Lee. I couldn't believe how much my personality towards Lee had changed. I was being so friendly towards him at the party, but now I felt like I could rip him to pieces with my blade. I guess it was just my battle blood. I had been told once by Boris that I had been born with the blood of a warrior, unlike others, he said, that couldn't handle battles. He said it flowed through me every day, hour, minute, and second, but it only showed when the 'wolf' in me arose. I guess that was why I could control Motoki, my warrior's 'perfect' blood. He had said that he had tried to make others like me, like Matt, but they all didn't have the determination I had. No matter where I was, it seemed to still arise in me when the time came; that abbey had changed me, and I let them get away with it. But now it had changed Tala, and they weren't getting away with it anytime soon.

I saw Oliver get up; he was the opening battler.

"Good luck Oliver," I said, "We'll be rooting for you."

"Thanks." He said as he walked out towards the stadium.

'There he goes.' I thought nervously with a smile on my face, 'I wish you the best of luck Oliver.'

"Oh Yeah!" I heard A.J. Topper say from the speakers, "We're here to bring you the next match between the Majestics and the White Tigers!"

"That's right A.J.!" Brad Best said, "Let's get it started!"

"First, from the Majestics, we have Oliver!" A.J. said as Oliver took his spot on the edge of the dish, "This little guy brings a lot of power with his Bitbeast Unicolyon, whose earthshaking moves can end a battle in an instant!

"And now, from the white Tigers, give it up for Kevin!" Brad Best said.

"Yeah!" A.J. returned, "This is one hyper guy and he and his confusing Bitbeast, Galman, are always ready for a challenge!"

"Let's see what kind of dish these guys will be battling in!" Brad Best said as the floor opened up, "Get ready to rock and roll because we're in the Olympus Stadium!"

"That's right Brad!" A.J. said, "This is a model of Mount Olympus! It's steep slopes make it hard to climb and its small outcrops are the only place to take refuge, until the dish is overcome with massive earthquakes, making the rocks fall and tumble down the mountain!"

'This'll be perfect for Oliver.' I thought, 'but Kevin can avoid things easily.'

"Let's do this!" Kevin said, taking out his Launcher.

"Bring it on!" Oliver said.

"3,2,1," The Jazzman counted down, "let it rip!"

Both of them launched their blades. Oliver's landed on an outcropping, while Kevin's landed on another above it.

"Unicolyon, attack!" Oliver yelled as his blade jumped onto the next outcropping to try to attack Kevin's.

"Just what I've been waiting for, Galman!" He said as His Bitbeast, Galman, came out of its blade. It was a large monkey with various armors on its body, a yellow glow surrounding it, "Crazy monkey attack!"

Suddenly, his blade started to wobble!

"That's odd," Oliver said, knowing that wobbling usually was a sign that a blade was running out off power, "oh well, I'll just take you down faster!"

Oliver went to attack, but missed as Kevin's blade wobbled out of the way!

"What!" Oliver said.

"Like my special ability?" Kevin asked as hee went on the attack and Unicolyon was knocked around a bit. Galman jumped off the outcropping.

"He didn't hurt me too badly!" Oliver said.

"Oh, didn't I?" Kevin said, "Or are you forgetting about what this dish does?"

"What?" Oliver asked. Suddenly, a rumbling filled the stadium, "The earthquake!"

"That's right!" Kevin said as the rocks knocked Unicolyon to a lower outcropping.

"I can't let him score another hit like that!" Oliver said, "But, how can I avoid his attack when he doubles like that? I just need to think of a strategy to keep him in one spot, but how?"

"You better think of one quick!" Robert said, "Before your blade's out of the dish!"

"Oh, I know!" Oliver said, "Unicolyon!"

Unicolyon arose from its blade, glowing a brilliant white.

"Galman, Crazy monkey attack!" Kevin shouted again.

"Now!" Oliver said, "Earth shake!"

Unicolyon pounded its mighty hooves on the outcropping as Kevin's blade jumped onto it. Unicolyon then jumped up to the top of the mountain as Kevin's blade fell to the bottom. The rocks fell around his blade. Suddenly, the rumbling picked up again.

"Oh no!" Kevin said, "The Earthquake!"

"Oh yes!" Oliver said, "And I won't be hit because I'm at the top, unlike you."

The rocks fell around Kevin's blade.

"They missed!" Kevin said smartly.

"Oh, did they?" Oliver said, imitating Kevin, "Take a look around you!"

Kevin looked to find that the wall of rocks caused by the earthquake now trapped his blade from every side, leaving him with nowhere to go.

"No!" Kevin said, "I'm trapped!"

"You've got it!" Oliver said, "Unicolyon!"

Unicolyon jumped from the top of the mountain, picking up speed as it went. It collided with Kevin's blade and sent it hurtling out of the dish by Kevin's feet.

"And the match is over!" the Jazzman shouted, "The winner is Oliver from the Majestics!"

The crowd cheered as Oliver came back to the bench, a smile on his face.

"Good job Oliver!" I said with a smile.

"I won because I didn't just rely on my Bitbeast. I used the elements and my Bitbeast. Together, they helped me win!" He said, repeating my advice I had given him when he had a battle with Enrique awhile ago.

"Glad you remembered." I said as he took a seat next to me and I put my arm around his shoulder, "That was great! Keep fighting like that, and no one will know what hit them when they face us!"

"Thanks." He said with a red face.

"Our next battlers are Enrique and Gary!" I heard the Jazzman announce.

"Better get going." Enrique said.

"Wait." I said. I took the piece of cloth that was around my ponytail and untied it. I then tied the shimmering white cloth around Enrique's wrist. "May the spirit of Light be with you."

"I would be honored to have that power with me." He said, "And it shall see a victorious battle!"

"Good luck!" Johnny said.

"See Johnny," I said, "you can be a teammate."

"Humph!" He said, as I laughed a bit.

"Good luck Enrique," I said, "From all of us, even Johnny."

"Thanks." He said as he began his walk out to the stadium.

"Let's get this next match started!" The Jazzman said as the two took their positions.

"Now let's check out what dish these two will be Blading in!" A.J. Topper said as the floor opened. It revealed a stadium fully made of glassy-like ice, some parts on the dish being thinner than other parts, "This is the glass stadium. It may seem solid, but there are other patches where the glass-ice is thin and may crack!"

"Now let's check out these Bladers!" Brad Best said, "First, you all know and love him, Enrique, the Roman Gladiator of Italy!"

I heard many female fans cheer.

"Sounds like he's got a few fans." Oliver said.

"A few!" I said, my face turning a tinge of red with anger.

"Sounds like someone's jealous!" I heard Johnny say.

"Johnny!" I said, trying to make my way to him. But not before Oliver held me back.

"Down girl!" He said, "Save it for the match!"

"Fine!" I said sitting down.

"Enrique is one fierce Blader!" A.J. Topper continued, "And his Bitbeast, Amphilyon, has been known to tear a dish apart in mere seconds!"

"And now for Gary!" The Jazzman said.

"Woah! This guy has a lot of power with his huge Bitbeast, Galazzy!" A.J. Topper said.

"3,2,1, Let it rip!" The Jazzman said as both of them launched their blades.

"Get him Amphilyon!" Enrique said as his blade bashed against Gary's.

"Grr…. Gary angry!" Gary said as his blade began to glow with power.

"Uh-oh." Oliver said, "This is not going to be fun for Enrique."

'Unless, that is,' I thought, 'he remembers my advice.'

"ATTACK!" Gary said angrily as a large glowing red bear came out of his blade. It was covered in armor and was carrying a large axe. His blade rushed towards Enrique's.

"Oh-no!" I said.

"You're finished!" Gary said.

"Not on my watch!" Enrique said, "Evasive maneuver!"

Amphilyon disappeared and hit Gary in the side, throwing him off balance.

"Attack!" Gary shouted before Enrique could counter. His attack hit home, sending Enrique sailing, but his blade still recovered.

"How can I use my evasive maneuver if he can still land a hit? But I can't go head-to-head with him, because he's more powerful! Wait, his blade's slower than mine so I just need to confuse him, but how? Oh, I know!" Enrique said, "Amphilyon, over to the foot of that glacier!"

"After him!" Gary said as his blade inched closer to attack, suddenly, Enrique's blade moved out of the way and Gary's blade exploded into the barrier of ice, not only slowing his blade, but scattering ice everywhere. Gary looked around the dish, "Where you go?"

"Try and find me." Enrique said as his blade's reflection appeared on a block of ice.

"Attack!" Gary said as his blade rammed into the ice block, only to find that Enrique's blade was just an image, but it cost his blade some spin, "huh?"

"You think that was hard?" Enrique said, "try this!"

Suddenly, every block of ice had an image of Enrique's blade.

"Which one which?" Gary asked.

"That's for me to know," He said, "and you to never find out!"

Suddenly, every black of ice started to glow, could he possibly attack at once?

"Attack!" Enrique yelled.

Every block of ice emitted a light. They all hit Gary's blade and sent it hurtling out of the arena.

"And the winner is Enrique!" the Jazzman said as Enrique walked back to the bench. I ran into him full force and knocked him over.

"That was—amazing!" I said, "How'd you pull off that kind of attack?"

"Easy." He said, "I reflected my own attack off the ice and gave the impression I could attack from all angles, it really threw Gary off!"

"That was really smart of you," I said, letting him up. My tone suddenly turned serious as I looked toward the stadium. "It's my turn to battle."

All the Majestics stared at me like I had just said that I had committed a murder.

"Hn." I merely grunted as I left the bench.

I walked up to the edge of the stadium and saw Lee go to the other. I held up my orb Launcher as my stats were shown and my bio was given.

"Woah!" I head A.J. Topper say. "The Majestics have seemed to have welcomed a new member to their team, and I would say the boys must be pleased with their catch."

"Let's see if she can blade as well as the others." Brad Best said, "All facts about her blade and her believed-to-be ancient Bitbeast are unknown."

I was going to boil. But, they thought I was an inexperienced Blader, they underestimated me. But, then I'd show them my skills, and then they'd have something to say.

'Nothing matters but this battle.' I thought, 'I must focus all my thoughts into my strategy.'

"Let's meet her challenger, Lee!" The Jazzman said as Lee walked up to the other side of the dish.

"This guy has a lot of power in his arsenal with his Bitbeast Galeon!" A.J. Topper said.

"And now let's check out the dish these two will battle in!" Brad Best said as the floor opened to reveal a large dish that looked like the inside of a cave. The sides of it were lit with small torches and I spied a sharp set of spikes hung on the ceiling.

"Welcome to the Lion Den Stadium!" A.J. Topper said, "Be careful in this dish, because the cat will show its claws!"

"3,2,1," the Jazzman said, "Let it rip!"

We both launched our blades into the dish. They buzzed around the walls of the cave a few times, but them headed to the middle and collided. We separated and went to opposite ends of the dish.

"Get him Orelin!" I yelled as Orelin tried to race forward, but the spikes dropped, blocking Orelin's path, causing Orelin to bounce off them. I growled underneath my breath, but then noticed something; the spikes were on a platform. The spikes rose as I caught a glimpse of Lee's blade that was circling the edge of the dish.

"Galeon!" Lee yelled as his blade started to glow a purple color. A large black and purple lion arose out of his blade.

"Orelin!" I yelled as Orelin came out of its blade. Lee seemed to be in shock. He stared at me.

"You're the one the legend prophesied." He said, "Orelin is real! But, let's see if you can control it!"

"We'll see about that!" I said, "Orelin!"

Orelin rammed into Lee's blade. I looked over Galeon again.

'I needed a way to keep him angry and unable to attack so I can unleash my strategy.' I thought, ' I know---his tail!'

"Galeon, Black Lightning!" I heard Lee say as Galeon started to glow a black color.

"Orelin, jump and clamp onto his tail!" I said as Orelin jumped over Galeon, opened its jaw, and clamped down on Galeon's tail like a steel trap. Galeon's attack stopped as it let out a roar.

"What?" Lee said as Galeon tried to shake Orelin off, only to have Orelin clamp harder.

"Good job!" I said as Orelin held its bite, "Now, swing him towards the spikes!"

"No!" Lee yelled as Galeon was thrown into the spot where the spikes dropped. Suddenly, the spikes dropped and hit home.

"You know what to do Orelin!" I said softly as Orelin jumped onto the platform.

The spikes rose again. I looked up to see Galeon's Attack Ring chipped and Lee with a confused look on his face.

"Where'd you go?" He asked.

"Up here!" I yelled as Orelin jumped off the platform, "Now, Orelin, hit him with a Cleansing Light attack!"

Orelin's mouth opened and a large beam emitted from its mouth and engulfed the stadium in light. When it cleared, Lee's blade was lying out of the dish in small bits and pieces, aside from the Bit Chip. I saw Lee fall to his knees.

"And our surprise winner is Ayia!" The Jazzman said.

"Would you look at that power?" Brad Best said, "No wonder she's on the Majestic's side!"

I walked over to Lee.

"Lee, I'm sorry Orelin did that much damage." I said. "I should of-"

"No." He said, clutching Galeon in his hand, "You won fair and square. This battle will only make me improve, and Galeon's still safe."

I reached my hand out and helped Lee up.

"You fought well." I said.

"You know," He said, "You can control Orelin. The legend is true. The world will change because of you."

"But," I said, "Nothing's different."

"Maybe it takes time." He said, "Or-"

"Or what?" I asked.

"You yourself will change." He said, "There's something inside of you, waiting to be released, but you still need to find it."

Lee walked back to his bench, leaving me a little confused. Suddenly, the Jazzman's voice blared through the speakers.

"And without a fourth match, the Majestics have taken a solid victory!" He said. I walked back to the bench and sat down.

"Now that was amazing!" Enrique said.

"Awesome battle!" Oliver said.

"Thanks guys." I said, my face red, "Who battles next?"

"The Bladebreakers and The Windwakers." Robert said.

"Now that will be a great match." I said. We started to get up and leave, but not before Enrique tapped me on the shoulder. I turned to face him.

"What did Lee say to you?" He asked.

"He said that there's something in me, waiting to change." I said.

"What is it?" I said.

"I don't even know." I said.

"Well I'm sure you'll find out." He said, "And the team and I are always here to help you."

"I'm glad to hear that." I said.

"Maybe it has something to do with your past." He started, "But let's not bring it up now! We've got a match to go see!"

"You know," I said, "I'm willing to tell you anything."

"I know," he said, "but I don't want to force you into to telling me anything you don't want to."

"That's awful sweet of you," I said playfully nudging him on the shoulder, "You're going soft."

"Well maybe I am." He said, "but around you, who couldn't?"

"Enrique." I said with a tint of warding in my voice.

"What?" he asked naively.

"Nothing." I said with a laugh, "now let's go see that match!"

'I wonder how the Bladebreakers will do?' I asked myself as we walked out of the main part of the stadium.