The disturbed, quiet waves of water danced along the surface. Then, red grass quickly trailed over it in a crossing motion. As it blazed along the cool waves, the young blond, Mizuhara Max, was found standing perfectly over the water with a great smile as his Draciel Endless spun beside him. On the opposite side, Red Salamander Atlas spun comfortably in the raging flames as Alexander Masters stood confidently in the middle of the fiery circle. Underneath shades of blue, Max's determination echoed from his focused stare. Meanwhile, intimidating emerald stars beamed underneath Alex's hat and through his crimson blanket. The two awaited the other's attack, the perfect strike, and the perfect opportunity…
The two blades suddenly struck one another, unleashing an awesome shockwave through the dark space. Both Max and Alex were shoved back slightly before turning back to the battle. Their blades clashed once more, both the opposing elemental waves drawing even ground. In blinding speed, Red Salamander roared wildly as it began pounding over the green Beyblade in clean and multiple strikes. The waves of power it released washed over Max as he cried out to gain more strength. The waves of water rose and halted the attack in an instant. Drowning in his defensive play, Alex struggled to regain his bearings with just one extended arm. As the free drops of cool liquid rain upon him, the red-haired youth discovered more of his potential with a mighty cry. Suddenly, the blazing hellstorm intensified and rivaled the relentless tidal wave. The shockwaves erupted more frequently with each power tackle the two blades inflicted upon each other. As Max and Alex roared with limitless spirit in their miniscule pupils, fire and water in the form of their respective sacred spirit danced around each other until they ultimately dived unto one another. The two boys quickly disappeared underneath the surging array of power while the power itself expanded beyond its natural pinnacle, the two elements freely swirling along one another in a massive hurricane-like storm…
Beyblade Lunar Eclipse
Episode 7: "What Falls to Hell…"
Deep inside the Steel Keep, in a room full of wooden crates, Rei sat over one of the musty boxes, his head bowing down in shame. He tightened his fists and clenched his teeth while he tried to steady his composure. "Byakko, everyone," he quietly said. "I'm sorry." Suddenly, a faint sound of a roar echoed around the room…
Far above the basement, there was a laboratory within an enormous room roughly in the similar size as any sports stadium. Supercomputers and the like surrounded the entire room while several scientists each took their post at one. Near the middle of the massive room, the white dragon, Shiroryuu, roared ferociously as he struggled to break out of a large capsule he was trapped in. But, in response, the capsule walls burned with a field of electricity and shocked the captive beast, steadily taming him. Beneath him, his respective Beyblade, Dragoon Eclipse, was trapped in its own small capsule while it relentlessly spun on top of a special rod with a caged top to keep it balanced and another, wider pole hovering over it as faint white energy left the blade and into the capsule Shiroryuu was in. Three Siberian BeySoldiers, Mizuno, Inada, and Orochi, were watching with intrigue. Inada grinned tenaciously, "Interesting. So, this machine is basically forcing the white dragon to leave his puny home."
"Precisely," Mizuno replied. "The white dragon may be enough to fulfill our leader's plan, but having the other Sacred Spirits could be useful. That's why I took this."
Mizuno reached into his pocket and revealed to his fellow soldiers that he had took Driger Edge from Rei! "So now, we have the white tiger," Orochi said. "Only two more to go."
"Come on, come on!" Inada impatiently chuckled. "Let's see 'em!"
"Patience, Inada," Mizuno sighed.
With that, Mizuno approached one other, blank capsule like the one Shiroryuu was in. He placed Driger Edge in position and pressed a button below it to activate the machine. The small rod began to spun, as while as the white Beyblade. Then, the large pole above it acted as a suction and pulled emerald-colored energy from the blade. Sure enough, in the large capsule, the white tiger, Byakko, began to take physical form and sat in the capsule, oddly tranquil in contrast to Shiroryuu. "Ahh," Inada grinned derisively. "There he is. Beautiful. Have I told you guys I love cats?"
"Inada, present arms!" Mizuno ordered.
Quickly, all three soldiers lined up in uniform and simultaneously took their hands above their right eye in the form of a salute. Just before them, a mysterious man in a brown-shaded black uniform and cape outlined with yellow edges approached them. "At ease," he spoke with a gruff, commanding tone of voice. "We've come a long way, have we, men?"
"Yes sir, Commander," Mizuno replied. "We now have two of the four Sacred Spirits, but I'm well aware that only the white dragon was needed."
"The more beasts we have, the better. It might be best to retrieve the remaining two before we proceed."
"Lieutenant Angriff is outside, currently taking care of that, sir."
"You've done well for yourself, Mizuno. You prove to be just as valuable as Captain Blackleo."
Mizuno briefly twitched at the mention of Shishin's alias but quickly regained composure. The Commander grinned villainously, "Before this day is over, the world shall be mine at last." Then, he quietly chuckled and let it grow into a loud, maniacal laugh that echoed throughout the Steel Keep. As Shiroryuu panted wearily, Byakko still remained in his lucid stature, almost resembling a meditative stance of his own. "Rei…"
Beyond the entrance into the Steel Keep, Takao and the others had just found themselves inside an enormous, commodious room in a similar size as a stadium. Daichi looked around curiously and wondered, "Is… this it?"
"Yeah, it looks just like the same size as how we saw the keep outside," Reena observed.
Kyouju noticed a nearby control switch by the left wall and ran to it. "What is it, Kyouju?" Takao asked.
"Maybe if I press this button…"
With that, Kyouju pressed the big red button on the panel. Almost immediately, the floor suddenly shook underneath everyone! Then, by everyone's surprise, the floor they stood on began to sink slowly underneath the keep. "An elevator," Nanami deduced. "Everything's underground." The floor sunk deeper into the primary room, deeper underground. As soon as it sunk down deep enough, Lieutenant Angriff quickly reappeared and found that he was too late. "Damn! They're on their way down to the bottom of the keep! I better inform the Colonel!"
As the elevator traveled deeper and deeper underground, the joint Infinitia Revolutions E - Saint Generations A team took the moment to relax for the moment. Daichi sat down with a comfortable smile. "Now, I'm sinking underneath the earth itself. What else is there that can top this?"
"I wonder what it's really like in the Steel Keep," Kyouju wondered.
"Well, I guess we'll know once we reach the bottom," Hiromi replied.
Takao stared up at the brimming light from the room above with a solemn look over his face. "Kai… Max…"
"You're all right?"
Takao turned from his thoughts to find Boss there beside him. "Yeah, I guess," he answered. "I just hope everyone's okay up there."
"All we can do is focus on what's in front of us right now. The others can take care of themselves."
"Boss, what else do you know about this?"
"I don't quite know everything the BeySoldiers are doing or even who the mastermind who's behind all of this is. I just know that they're looking for the four Sacred Beasts and the Holy Beasts that were seen running free amongst humankind."
"'Free amongst humankind?'" Kyouju wondered. "Do you mean those Holy Beasts that have been reported recently? Like that bat Holy Beast from before?"
"Exactly," Boss confirmed. "You know the recent lunar eclipse, right? I heard that it might have released these special Holy Beasts to the world. They were supposed to be sealed by the ancient Saint Shields."
"Ozma's clan?" Takao gasped.
"Correct," Nanami nodded. "They are very different from other known Holy Beasts, almost the equivalent to yours. For one thing, they have the ability to assume human form."
"Just like Luna…" Hiromi murmured.
"In the same time these new Holy Beasts appeared," Reena added, "this organization was created. They hunt them down and capture them, looking for the perfect Holy Beast capable of carrying out their plan. It wasn't until Shiroryuu appeared that he became their main target. But, like Banken said, we don't know the exact reason why."
"And that's not all," Boss sighed. "The moment this organization was founded, Professor Hiwatari disappeared as well."
"Hiwatari? You mean, Kai's…!" Takao gasped.
"Hiwatari Daigo… your friend's father. I'm almost certain that he's here somewhere."
"Daigo, here?" the Great Chairman gasped, placing his hand over his heart.
"Kai would not be around," Daichi scowled.
Boss shook his head. "Don't worry; Kitsune is with him. And I'm pretty sure she told him everything by now."
A wave of flames ignited along the white crystal walls of ice. As the blades of red grass raged, the black Beyblade, Black Dranzer Apocalypse, flew from it unscathed. Kai cried out as his Dranzer Eternal counterattacked in a head-on collision. Fox shrugged it off, cueing her blade to strike Dranzer E back with little effort. "What?" Kai gasped. Suddenly, the dark blade flared up in deep black flames, preparing for an attack. It leapt from the surface and darted down at the sapphire blade. Kai quickly reacted and leapt to his right to dodge the intense wave of dark flames Black Dranzer made upon impact to the ground! The massive fields of darkness streaked across the vast wasteland, breaking apart all that was in the way, including a tall icy mountain in the distance. Upon impact, the mountain completely shattered into giant boulders! Kai witnessed this incredible spectacle and said, "What power! Black Dranzer is definitely a lot more powerful than when I used it!" Suddenly, Kai was pulled away from his thoughts when the dark sparrow, Kurozaku, came soaring down at him! He quickly got back on his feet and leapt upward to dodge another insane wave of fiery power. While in midair, Suzaku the Red Phoenix appeared in physical form and caught his partner in the skies. Fox watched her opponent fly freely above her and turned back down to the surface. She observed that their battleground was being to feel the effects of their flame-dominant assaults. The snow began to dissolve all around her and the cool grounds began to break into a giant pool of ice water. "It appears it's dangerous to continue on the ground." With that, Black Dranzer's rotation wildly sped up, and it leapt high into the skies in the form of the giant Kurozaku. Fox leapt up after him and landed over his back as he shrieked violently past the deep clouds. With that, the two phoenixes danced along with each other in perfect flight before continuing their battle high in the skies.
As Suzaku circled around with a brilliant cry, Dranzer E shone like a shimmering star as it struck Black Dranzer A hard in mid-flight, significantly dealing a clean blow over it. Fox cried as she held out her magical left hand towards the clashing blades. Suddenly, a white field surrounded her respective Beyblade, easily reflecting itself from Dranzer E and canceling out its attack. The two Beyblades spun rapidly to create a visible aura of wind below themselves to keep them afloat. Next, they each ignited into pure crimson spheres of fire. Then, they both went on the attack, clashing against each other while sparks of fire flew from them. On the ground below, the sparks each exploded into several red towers of energy once they rained over it. As the Beyblades continued in well placed strikes from all sides, Kai clenched his teeth, visibly mesmerized by Fox's mastery of this dark Beyblade. "I have to say, I'm impressed," he thought. "She can tap into Black Dranzer's monstrous power without any effort, especially since its power is heightened so drastically."
"You haven't been able to discover what Black Dranzer was truly capable of when you had it," Fox said. "That's because you used it for your ridiculous lust for perfection. I treat Kurozaku as well as I treat Vyx: a partner… and valuable friend."
"Don't give me that crap!" Kai hissed. "I don't believe… I won't believe what you say is true!"
"And why can't you?"
"For as long as I remember, I was alone. I had no one but my grandfather. But, now that he's serving his time, no one else was around for me. I had to fend for myself. So… if you were really my sister, where were you!"
Fox, or rather Kitsune, shut her eyes passively, her arms noticeably shaking anxiously. "Father got himself involved with damnable company, so much that I couldn't leave him alone. After I had learned what had happened to you after your first victorious tournament, I wanted so much to track you down. There was so much that Grandfather neglected to tell you what you deserved to know. And our family would be close in being whole for a long time."
"And Mother?" Kai asked. "Was Grandfather telling me that she died from an illness a lie?"
"A cold, pitiful lie. She died trying to put a stop to Grandfather and Father's ambition… in creating the ultimate Holy Beast."
"The ultimate Holy Beast?"
"Grandfather covered up Mother's death by claiming that Father was responsible while he tried to stop him. So, Father was branded a runaway murderer, so you weren't able to stay with him. Also, Grandfather also manipulated Father into running away with me during his mad rage over Mother's death. He promised him that you, a one-year-old boy, would be in good hands, so he left you behind underneath the false hope that you could live an innocent life outside his bloodstained hands. So, in other words, Grandfather wanted his own son out of the picture and to raise you into an easily converted weapon of destruction in BIOVOLT."
"Is… that right?"
Kai bowed down his head, clenching his fists in self-contained rage. His ruby pupils began to flare up in reply to the truth Kitsune presented him. "Damn Grandfather… no, Souichirou," he thought. "Even when he's out of my life, he still torments me. He ruined everything… everything!"
"Unforgivable," Kai whispered out-loud.
Kitsune lifted her head in response to something catching her attention. She noticed that Suzaku was beginning to glow a shimmering golden aura. His eyes hidden underneath his bangs, Kai's entire person began to shine as well in an intense sun-colored radiance. Suddenly, Kai beamed his piercing eyes wildly at Kitsune and roared, "UNFORGIVABLE!" In reaction to his great yell, golden waves came rushing out from his own body, as well as from the crying Suzaku! Kitsune guarded herself from the shining beams of light as Kurozaku fluttered backward frantically. "This power… He's reached 'hyper mode.'"
Dranzer Eternal exploded into a bush of wild fire, reacting to Kai's crimson aura that roared around his very person. "Hissatsu-Ougi! Eternal Incandescence!" The magnificent battle aura suddenly expanded into an enormous cylinder of blazing fire as the Red Phoenix of Fire, Suzaku, shrieked behind him.
Kai's great wave of fiery power flew at Kitsune and Kurozaku, engulfing them in its undying, burning rage…
"That's not good," Daichi gulped.
Deep in a cold, steel hallway, Takao, Boss, and company stood by, confronted by a platoon of several armed BeySoldiers, their rifles aimed right at them silently. "Give me a break!" Takao hissed. "Get out of my way!"
"You think they'll listen to you?" Hiromi murmured.
"Then, I'll make them listen!"
With that, Takao aimed his launcher at the soldiers with Master Dragoon already locked on. Without hesitation, the soldiers all pulled their triggers, and hundreds of generic, gray Beyblades were fired at the kids! "GO! SHOOT!" Takao cried, releasing his blade.
"GAIA DRAGOON!" Daichi shouted.
"DREAMER!" Hiromi joined in.
All three of their respective blades flew into the storm of Beyblades and ripped right on through, shattering a good many on impact. "Hey, wait for us!" Boss exclaimed. "GO! SHOOT! ABSOLUTE KERBEROUS!"
"SYLPH!" Reena cried.
"DAWNKENTAURUS!" Nanami replied.
Three of the Saint Generations' blades treaded the metallic surface and spun around together to create a tornado-like force around them, easily ripping through the giant wave of Beyblades. The sheer power all six kids exuded bypassed the blades and struck all the BeySoldiers hard! Crying out in pain, every single one of them were thrown off their feet and laid on the floor, unconscious.
The threat over, everyone, including the Great Chairman and Kyouju, continued on deeper in the keep. "Are you sure this is the right way?" Reena wondered.
"How should I know?" Boss scowled. "We haven't been here before! We just have to find the white dragon before it's too late!"
"For once, we agree on something!" Takao replied. "We just have to keep going, that's all!"
Hiromi frowned, "They're sounding too much alike."
"Yes, they do," Nanami giggled to herself.
"Oh no!" the Great Chairman gasped.
Soon, everyone had stopped running and found themselves standing each yet another platoon of BeySoldiers! Daichi moaned, "Aw man! How many of you are there!"
"Argh! It doesn't matter!" Takao growled. "Let's just waste them and keep moving!"
As Takao held his launcher once more, Hiromi observed him with a suspicious stare. "But, that's… completely different…"
Meanwhile, back in the basement, Rei was sitting meditatively next to the steel door. His concentration solely focused onto his body, a faint aura of energy shone around him. A voice called to him, "Rei, will you continue?"
"How could I?" Rei thought. "After what I did?"
"Give up, and everything would be for nothing. Remember the reason you decided to take this mission."
"I did it to help. I did it for Master and my friends. I did it… for you."
Rei faintly opened his sun-colored eyes, burning with renewed resolve. "I did all this for you, Byakko." The youth stood up and tightened his fists, his aura glowing brighter and more intensely.
From the other side of the basement door, light beamed from the barred window. A soldier standing guard ran to the door, just in time for the door to be thrown from its hinges and into the unexpected man! Rei casually marched out the room and cracked his knuckles with a determined gleam in his cat eyes. "I'm coming for you, Byakko. I won't let them use you or any other Holy Beast for their ambitions." With that state of mind set, Rei quickly ran off and ascended the stairs to the Steel Keep's main floor.
Back on the main walkway, Takao and the others continued running on, leaving the hundreds of soldiers they defeated amongst the rubble of shattered Beyblades. "Are we there yet!" Daichi groaned.
"According to my statistics," Kyouju replied while observing his laptop, "we're approaching a large, unstable power source. It's similar to my stats on Shiroryuu."
"Then, we're almost there! I see a door just ahead!" Reena exclaimed.
Sure enough, a large steel door resembling the hallway's walls was just ahead with a switch right next to it. "Not too long now!" Takao grinned. Suddenly, a loud beeping noise blared from Kyouju's laptop. "Huh? There's something coming fast behind us!"
"What?" Boss gasped, looking over his shoulder.
Just then, a large, dark, and fiery ball of energy quickly soared down the hallway and right at them! Everyone saw it coming, but none could move around this enormous black fireball. All was consumed in this wave of power before it crashed into the door, completely destroying it upon impact!
After a giant cloud of debris washed over the next large room, the broken remains of the steel door lain in waste over the floor while Takao and company were barely scattered along the ruins, stunned from this sudden attack. Takao rose to his feet and shook his head. "What was that?" Boss and the others soon followed and rejoined Takao while they all regained their bearings. The Great Chairman turned toward the dilapidated walkway, his eyes widening in shock at what he saw next. "Oh my…! It's you!" Everyone noticed the same ball of dark energy standing in one spot before them, now resembling an ecstatic aura of lightning around a silhouetted figure within it. As soon as it dissipated, they were face-to-face with a familiar man with a long grayish white mane wearing an equally long dark yellow cloak over his dark clothing that sported the old BIOVOLT insignia on his chest. Boss gasped, "Professor Hiwatari?"
"That's Hiwatari Daigo?" Takao exclaimed.
"Kai's father?" Kyouju added.
"Daigo… it's been so long," the Great Chairman murmured, keeping from hyperventilating.
The mysterious man, Daigo, gave no reply to their words. He only stared coldly with Kai's steely, ruby eyes, eyes that appeared to be tainted. The Great Chairman tried to approach him. "Daigo? Don't you remember me?" Suddenly, the man pulled his arms from underneath his cloak and leapt up in the air with a Grip Shooter of his own and a deep orange Beyblade with two towering edges along the attack ring and the blade base. He was going to attack them!
With a warped backdrop in his deep, self-reserved tone of voice, Daigo shouted. "Go, Ancient Dranzer!" His Beyblade was fired and quickly soared right at the bewildered Great Chairman! Boss quickly leapt in front of him and released his Absolute Kerberous to counter the assault. After they clashed in mid-flight, they landed on the ground and circled around each other, making brief clashes one after another whenever the opportunity showed itself. Ancient Dranzer came at the black Beyblade in a flash and inflicted strong smash attacks over it, easily breaking off a few pieces of his attack ring upon impact! A force of wind cut past Boss' left cheek while he roared to transmit his power to his blade, enabling his Absolute Kerberous to grind the fiery blade backwards before sending it up in the air. "Professor!" Boss cried. "Did you let yourself become a slave?" Daigo chuckled maniacally as he landed over a nearby steel platform. Ancient Dranzer soared in the air, releasing a wave of crimson feather-like arrows like rain. Absolute Kerberous danced around the storm of feathers until it found a hole within the attack it could jump through. "Roar, Absolute Kerberous!" Boss shouted. A black aura burst from the black Beyblade as it flew up at the flying Ancient Dranzer, striking it hard enough to break it into pieces! "He got him!" Daichi cheered.
"I don't know," Reena murmured skeptically.
After his blade landed back on the ground, Boss looked up and was shocked to find the blade he just shattered was just a feather ripped apart! "Cerberus!" In physical form, the large three-headed dog turned around and found a giant, blood red phoenix with four wings and a long white mane flying at him from behind! The powerful sparrow tackled Cerberus hard and sent him crashing into a large piece of the broken door, knocking him out. His respective Beyblade was thrown to his side, defeated and partially broken.
Boss knelt down in pain from the sneak attack inflicted on his Holy Beast and his Beyblade. "Damn. I forgot how strong he is."
Cerberus growled wearily, "We were careless this time."
Daigo chuckled maliciously while his massive and intimidating Holy Beast flew to his side. "Boss lost so easily to him," Hiromi murmured in disbelief.
"There's no way I'm ready for someone like that," Daichi gulped.
Takao scoffed, "Keh! Give me a break!"
Recklessly, Takao launched Master Dragoon at Ancient Dranzer in an attempt to strike. Daigo saw it coming and only scoffed in reply. Master Dragoon was closing in, but Ancient Dranzer wasn't going to dodge it. Inconceivably, Takao's substitute blade shattered upon impact over the powerful Beyblade! "No way!" Takao gasped.
"Professor's power has definitely been heightened since the last time we saw him," Reena observed.
"Almost to the point that it's ridiculous," Nanami added.
"They're not kidding!" Kyouju shrieked as he observed the stats he acquired on Daigo and his blade in his laptop. "His power readings are off the scale, way more than Kai and Fox put together!"
"You're being manipulated, Daigo!" the Great Chairman cried. "Please, come to your senses!"
Daigo still resisted in replying and only laughed madly while his red phoenix shrieked behind him, their dominance thoroughly expressed.
Back outside the Steel Keep, an enormous cylinder of intertwined elements ascended the air until it reached the same height as the keep. In the eye of this incredible storm of water and fire, Draciel Endless and Red Salamander Atlas grinded hard against one another as they both hovered in the middle of the storm. Alex flew amongst the flames scorching throughout the limited space, wielding the burning element in the palm of his hands with a wide smirk over his face. Facing him, an aquamarine field of power encased the confident Max to guard against the incoming arrows of flame. Red Salamander ran at all sides against Draciel, but the green blade resisted from budging an inch. Alex roared and waved his arms to direct the flames to consume him and his blazing Beyblade. The streaks of fire danced and encircled Draciel E like a snake and drilled right over the blade, miraculously pushing it down to the surface below! The weight of the power thrust against Max's face, briefly stunning him. But, he quickly recovered, stubbornly letting the force wash over him as his eyes glowed in a deep emerald color!
Max threw himself backward over a raging blue ocean. After he retracted his arms and legs to his upper body, geysers of water shot from the ocean and twirled around his person. With Genbu roaring behind him, Max threw his arms and legs outward and cried, "Endless Reflect!" The water from the geysers came together at one point and surrounded Max to form a large blue bubble shield. Finally, it expanded outwards to grow even bigger!
Max's aquatic shield suddenly expanded outward, catching Alex and his blade to cancel out their attack. As much as he tried to break through, the waves of water swallowed him. The cylinder of raging power finally dispersed as the water began to overwhelm the flames. Amongst falling beads of liquid, Max dramatically flew to the ground, a triumphant smile slowly forming across his lips.
Max and Draciel landed on the ground while it briefly rained around him. In front of him, Red Salamander still continued to spin. It had also split into two blades just like before, and Alex stood behind them, panting wearily and missing his hat. "INCREDIBLE," he sighed in his English tongue. "If I hadn't decided to split my blade in two in the last second, that would've been it."
"It's not like last time!" Max declared. "This time, I'm ready for your tricks!"
Alex chuckled in reply as he lifted up his head. Once he did, his bright, piercing green eyes beamed from underneath his red bangs as he laughed, "Really?" Suddenly, his body combusted into a massive bush of flames, as well as his twin blades! Before Max could react, the twin Red Salamander Beyblades dashed forward in erratic movements. "Whoa!" Max gasped. The crimson Beyblades danced around Draciel E in random directions, waves of flames surrounding it. Perspiring, Max frantically looked around, "Where…?"
In an instant, a great force struck Max across his face as one of the Red Salamanders struck Draciel E at the side! As the blades continued dancing in the fire, the other blade clashed Draciel right on, striking Max himself in the gut. Soon enough, Draciel E suffered underneath the hailstorm of crimson Beyblades, pelting it from all sides with magnificent grace, blinding speed, and ferocious power. Max cried as his body was thrown about from each blow his blade took, whether it struck him from behind his head, over his arms, at his sides, in his gut, or across his cheek. With his blazing aura roaring around him, Alex himself flew at his adversary right before Max could recover from the last blow he took. Both Red Salamanders emerged the fiery illusion and smashed Draciel E hard together. In reply, Red the Warrior Salamander tackled the stunned and bewildered Genbu, throwing him off his feet and knocking the air out of him. Max gasped out as well as he was pushed back by an awesome comet of power, throwing him and his blade in the air while Alex stood his ground, his assault complete. "Hissatsu-Ougi! Atlas Salamander!"
As he calmed down after his attack, Alex's aura died down, and he took a moment to catch his breath. Then, he looked up and gasped once he saw Max somersaulting in midair to recover! Genbu landed hard over his feet, roaring to the skies. Draciel Endless soon fell upon the ground, barely spinning, and Max followed, his eyes still glowing in that same color full of active life. Without hesitation, Max cried out, "Hi-Ougi! (Secret Attack!) Endless Attack!" Once his blade flew to the palm of his hand, Max pulled his right arm back as a wave of aquatic energy was drawn to it. After one spin around, the blue stream danced around Max before he threw it out with Draciel E in the lead. Draciel clashed against both the Red Salamanders, its adrenalized wave of power pushing them back! Waves of water washed against and below Alex's waist once again, threatening to shove him backward as well. "He had this much power left?"
"I told you before!" Max declared. "My Beyblade… has endless defense!"
Two blue spheres generated within a dark space, and two hands each grasped one as hot steam was evaporating from them. As the dark space brightened into a clear sky, Max spun around once with both spheres of water in each hand and gently pressed them together to form one large drop of water. Once it fell to the ground, it burst into ascending rings of water, surrounding Max and glittering with sapphire stars. The boy's eye gleamed with focus and confidence as he raised his arms over his head and threw them to his side, disrupting the rings around him to create a massive tsunami behind him! "Hissatsu-Ougi! Endless Wave!" Max disappeared behind the blue wall, and Draciel Endless flew into it as well. In turn, the wave splashed outward while Genbu the Black Turtle swam within it with a great battle cry!
The rushing water washed over Red Salamander Atlas; and finally, Draciel E struck it hard with all its might! Sapphire light beamed over Alex as he settled down, shut his eyes, and sighed in defeat…
Back inside the lab room, Takao clenched his fists as he stared past Daigo and to the captive Shiroryuu. "If I only had you…!"
Daigo laughed derisively, "Now, to finish…"
But, before Daigo proceeded to do anything else, beams of light shone from the wall nearby. Suddenly, the wall exploded and a gigantic force of water came rushing into the laboratory! Daichi and the others gasped at the display of power and watched as the debris cleared. Soon enough, Alex was found on the ground, both his Beyblades dead and charred beside him. He chuckled weakly, "I guess… we messed up this time. Good thing… Kitsune didn't see."
"Alex!" Reena cried.
"That means…!" Daichi added.
Emerging from outside, Max staggered into the room, kneeling down in exhaustion. Then, right beside him, Draciel Endless continued to spin before it finally stopped, completely burnt out and shattered from its battle. Max panted hard with a half-hearted grin, "We… won… Genbu."
"Max!" his teammates cried.
While Hiromi, Kyouju, Reena, and Nanami quickly reacted and ran to their respective teammates, Daigo turned to them with a cold stare. "The Black Turtle," he sneered. Immediately, Ancient Dranzer dashed past the kids and came after the stunned Max! "Max, look out!" Daichi cried out. Max saw it coming, but he couldn't stand up much less move away from his incoming attacker. Suddenly, a familiar black Beyblade flew past him and clashed against Ancient Dranzer, shoving it back! It was Black Dranzer!
Following the black Beyblade, Kitsune appeared and ran past Max to challenge Daigo. "Father!" she cried. "I'll be your opponent!" While she kept Daigo busy, everyone came to the battle-weary Max and Alex and helped them stand back up. "What were you two doing?" Kyouju asked.
"Don't tell me you were fighting Alex!" Hiromi scolded. "We could've used your help, you know!"
"SORRY," Max chuckled.
"So, this is what's been going on," another voice said.
Everyone looked to find Kai rejoining his teammates. "Kai! I swear, you're all unbelievable!" Hiromi groaned. "Weren't we supposed to be a team?"
"Now, now, Hiromi," Kyouju replied. "Oh! Kai, your blade…!"
Kai responded and held up his Dranzer Eternal to his team, the blade completely charred and black as coal. "Even with all my power, even with all my rage, I… couldn't beat her." The youth turned his attention to the clashing sounds of both Ancient Dranzer and Black Dranzer fighting on an equal playing field. His sight was locked onto the man Kitsune was fighting. He had laid eyes on his father for the first time.
Boss rose to his feet with Cerberus behind him, his recovery steadily building. "This is getting too complicated," he sighed.
"Banken, that other kid…" Cerberus quietly growled.
The colored youth then turned his attention to Takao sprinting towards the caged Shiroryuu. "Like I said," he hissed, clenching his teeth. "Kinomiya! Come back!"
Already a few inches away from the capsule, Takao ran to Shiroryuu with a relieved glare in his eyes. "Finally." But, someone suddenly leapt in his way. It was Rei! "Rei!" Takao gasped. "So, it's you, traitor!"
"Wait, Takao," Rei protested, holding his arms out to guard the white dragon. "What are you going to do once you get Dragoon Eclipse back?"
"Isn't it obvious? I'm gonna waste that our opponents around this dump and Boss as well!"
"That's the problem. I know what I did is wrong, but this is exactly what I wanted to prevent! Takao, you're obsessed with Shiroryuu's power!"
"What are you talking about?"
The Infinitia Revolutions E and the Saint Generations A were both attentive to Rei's outburst that would explain everything. "Shiroryuu's power is so great that he can't hold it all by himself, so he transmits a bit of his power into his user. And it's that power that has the potential to corrupt the user, seducing him into entering more battles. This power also makes it so that the user shall never tire or weaken. That's why you were at top condition seconds after our last battle."
Hiromi gasped, "And that other time, too!"
"That's right!" Kyouju added. "After his battle with Boss and when he first received Shiroryuu!"
"Hmph. Is that so bad?" Takao scoffed.
"The more battles Shiroryuu gets into, the stronger he'll become," Rei continued. "In turn, more power is transmitted into you, and the power will steadily warp your mind without you knowing it! Finally, at a critical moment, you'll go insane with power and lust for battle! That's why I tried to steal Dragoon Eclipse! The white dragon will destroy the world through you! You will bring Hell to our entire planet!"
This revelation quickly shocked the entire Infinitia Revolutions team and the Great Chairman. But, Boss and the Saint Generations A team kept silent; they knew the whole time. Hiromi stammered, "It, it, it can't be."
"It's true," Nanami replied quietly. "It will be just like before. Just like Cross Dragoon."
"You knew this all along, didn't you? Why didn't you tell us?"
"We didn't know how to say it, never mind the fact that you probably wouldn't believe us. And on top of that, Boss doesn't want anyone to know… that the white dragon nearly destroyed the world… through his own brother."
Boss took one step forward and clenched his fists, visibly shaking. "Please, Kinomiya!" he cried. "Give up your Holy Beast! It's for the world!" Takao didn't reply. He didn't seem to respond to anything Rei had just said, which had him worried. "Takao?" A faint sound suddenly came from him. It was similar to… a laugh. Gradually, laughter grew louder while a sly grin crept over Takao's mouth. Then, he threw his head up to the ceiling, releasing a loud, wholehearted burst of laughter. Rei was bewildered and confused as he stared at him. Then, his heart jumped once Takao declared, "What do I care?"
"What?"
Suddenly, the steel walls around the capsule behind Rei began to form cracks before it completely shattered, freeing Shiroryuu! Takao grinned upward at his dragon with those familiar, cold sapphire eyes. "Shiroryuu," he sighed.
The dragon growled tenaciously, his eyes glowing in a demonic red color, "Let's fight together… always."
"Yes!"
With that, Takao held his hand down below Shiroryuu and inconceivably summoned Dragoon Eclipse out from its cage and back into his palm! He proceeded to lock it into his launcher and aimed it at the dueling Black Dranzer and Ancient Dranzer. "GO… SHOOT!" Takao roared. With immense, static power, the crazed youth released Dragoon Eclipse and directed it to crash into the two Beyblades. Upon impact, a great flash emitted and consumed the distracted Kitsune and Daigo, knocking them both out along with their respective blades! Kai gasped, "This power!"
"It's unlike anything I've ever seen before!" Kyouju observed frantically. "And this is coming from Takao!"
"Takao! Stop! Snap out of it now!" Hiromi cried.
Takao turned around with an evil stare, a stare directed towards the still-captive Byakko! Without any direction, Shiroryuu flew to the capsule and pulled his claws through the capsule, breaking it without any effort. The dragon hissed with a sly intention enough to shake the nerves of the white tiger. Before he could react, Byakko was ensnared in Shiroryuu's long tail by his neck. Then, after the dragon's eyes glowed upon him, Byakko suddenly disappeared and broke down into thousands of starry particles, particles that gradually flew inside his chest. Shiroryuu had absorbed Byakko!
"Byakko!"
Rei lost nearly all his bodily functions as he watched his Holy Beast disappear before his eyes. Everyone was left speechless after Takao's cruel actions. Hiromi shook her head in protest, her eyes starting to water up. "No… no…" The insane youth lost his hat in his excitement as he turned back around to the other kids, specifically both the weakened Kai and Max. "Just you two," Takao chuckled.
Kai gulped, "Our Sacred Spirits! He's after Suzaku and Genbu!"
"Our blades are totaled!" Max added. "We can't defend ourselves!"
Takao took one step forward with a derisive smile and pointed towards his two targets. Then, Dragoon Eclipse flew past him and went after the frightened Genbu and Suzaku. "Gaia Dragoon!" Daichi cried, shooting his Beyblade.
"Sylph!" Reena joined him.
"DawnKentaurus!" Nanami added.
The three Beyblades flew at Dragoon as the last defense. But, once they all touched the blade, they were all thrown away without any effort! "No way!" Daichi cried. "It's too much power! I… can't compete with this!" Suddenly, the three-headed demon dog leapt after Shiroryuu, clasping his three sets of fangs in his neck. But, being that the dragon didn't cry out, he didn't feel anything at all. He only stopped in his charge and stared down at the desperate Cerberus. Then, he threw one quick swipe of his claw and slashed Cerberus, sending him flying away and crashing hard into the ground. "Cerberus!" Boss cried. "Dammit. I knew I couldn't believe… that Kinomiya would overcome this."
"Kinomiya!" Kai cried. "Are you going to let yourself go out of control like this? I never thought you were this weak!"
"Takao, listen to us!" Max joined in. "You don't wanna do this! You gotta wake up!"
"It's too late!" Takao shot back, his voice warping like Daigo's was before. "The Takao you knew is dead!"
The force behind Takao's powerful voice threw Kai and Max away amongst the rubble near them. Suzaku and Genbu responded and quickly guarded their partners from the intimidating Shiroryuu. The dragon laughed bitterly, "You would guard them… when you know you'll become a part of me?" The two beasts didn't respond, but the stare they both had told the dragon that their minds were made up. "So be it." With that, he lifted his arms and quickly grabbed each Holy Beast by their heads! And after the dragon's eyes glowed once again, they both broke down into particles and were absorbed into his body. Kai continued to stand like a statue while Max fell to his knees, both in utter shock. "Genbu," Max shuddered.
"Suzaku," Kai quivered. "I failed you… again."
Shiroryuu roared loudly as his body began to burst with intense power from the Holy Beasts he absorbed. The power blazed from Takao's body as well, visibly hurting him. The boy wailed as his shirt ripped away from his body. Suddenly, several black stripes and markings appeared all over his bare body and his face. His teeth began to grow out to become fangs. And giant white wings bulged out from his back. His once normal voice was drowned out by vibrating savage cries. The dragon continued to roar out in burning pain. "It's… too much," he quietly growled. "I have to throw out… some power." Suddenly, a brilliant shine of light glowed from his belly and a white figure was emerging from it. As it slowly floated to the floor, the light slowly dissipated to reveal a familiar, unconscious figure. It was Luna!
At the final stages of the transformation, Shiroryuu roared one last time, his power reaching a critical pinnacle. Takao grew more comfortable with his newfound power and his new, mutated form. "The power… Let the whole world… see my power." Suddenly, both Takao and Shiroryuu threw out the power they had built up in their bodies in the form of an explosion! The field of white energy consumed everything; everything had turned to white…
…A monitor screen went completely white until the entire computer was shorted out by the intense and destructive power. Captain Blackleo and his fellow subordinates watched everything that took place in the lab. "What awesome power," Mizuno awed.
"Yes. But now, that kid will run wild with that power," Orochi replied.
"A minor setback."
The five soldiers turned around to discover their leader approaching them. Stepping out from the shadows, the face of a familiar gray-maned man presented an unnerving stare. "Voltaire?" Blackleo said.
"Angriff couldn't keep the kids out, and my pathetic son couldn't keep them out the lab," Voltaire sighed. "No matter, the plan will be carried out. Go, retrieve the white dragon from that boy."
"Yes sir!" Angriff replied with a salute. "I will not fail again!"
With that, Blackleo led the other BeySoldiers past Voltaire with a new mission. As they were leaving Voltaire looked up to the broken monitor with a thoughtful stare. "I might have known something like this may happen," he thought, "which is why I had this shelter deeper than the entire Steel Keep. However, at the rate this is going… everything's going according to plan." Then, a sly smirk crept over his lips. Behind him and still by the door, Blackleo, or Shishin, turned back towards his leader with a suspicious glare. And he proceeded to leave the room.
Underneath the cool, blue skies, there was an enormous crater where the Steel Keep once stood. In the midst of that crater, the demonic Takao stood there, alone and tranquil. Dragoon Eclipse leapt into his hand, and he proceeded to march on in silence. Nearby, there was one person left. Hiromi. She quickly regained consciousness and found him walking away. She stood back on her feet and held her wounded arm as she tried to follow. "Please… stop…" she said weakly. Takao suddenly stopped in his tracks, but he didn't turn around. Hiromi waited for a reply. Then, she heard him say, "For some reason… this body won't let me hurt you. Your life is spared… this time." Hiromi gasped in shock, and Takao expanded his wings and flew off into the sky! "Takao!" she cried. "You're still in there, aren't you! TAKAO!"
Hiromi refused to give up. She ran. She ran after 'Takao' even though he flew higher and higher in the air, almost to the point that she was losing sight of him. "I knew it," she thought…
…Underneath the quiet moonlight, Hiromi was sitting silently on the boardwalk, watching her Dreamer Excalibur spinning around the red Beystadium. "So close…" she murmured. As the red blade continued spinning, a familiar silver blade was thrown in and playfully hit its side. Hiromi was briefly startled and looked up to find Takao walking to her. She smiled accusingly and said, "Wise guy." In reply, Dreamer E spun into Dragoon E as payback. As the two blades tailed each other around and around the stadium, the white dragon and the white unicorn both soared into the magnificent stars of the night sky. As the two shooting stars crossed over the dojo deep in romantic space, Takao and Hiromi both stared up to the sky in quiet solitude…
…Hiromi ran faster and faster as her faith grew stronger. "Takao… and Shiroryuu… you both could never destroy the world." As she ran, the white unicorn galloped to her side, neighing sorrowfully. "Dreamer!" Hiromi quickly received her partner's message and leapt on top of her before she ascended the staircase to the skies. "Takao, wait for me!" she cried as the tears rained from her eyes. She and Dreamer flew higher and higher towards the clouds, in hopes of rescuing Takao… alone…
Takao!
NEXT TIME
Blackleo: Rei, you continue to fight. But, you are without your Holy Beast.
Reena: Daichi, why won't you fight? So what if you discovered powerful warriors? Has that ever stopped you before?
Nanami: Hiromi… you love him, don't you? Is that why you throw yourself to your death?
Rei: Even without Byakko, I will defeat you, Master!
Daichi: For my father… I'll be the best Beyblader around!
Hiromi: I have to save Takao…
My Personal Battle
Luna: All of this… because of me…
