at this point, i'm waiting for writer's block to hit me like a truck.

moving on!

"What number is that?"

"…"

"Kyoya,"

"How bad is it that this is my fourth cup?"

Gingka stared at his rival, bewildered, "Kyoya."

"I know! It's not even ten o clock yet! But I haven't slept well in the last forty eight hours, so cut me some slack!"

Gingka sighed and shook his head, "Just don't let Madoka hear about it. And please, take the afternoon off and try to sleep! Hang out with Kakeru or something, just forget about work!"

"I make no promises," Kyoya deadpanned, and took a sip of his coffee.

Gingka looked exasperated, but he let it slide as the crowd went from a pleasant buzz to erupting into pandemonium. Both the Pegasus and Leone Blader's heads snapped up to see that the Australian and Japanese teams had made their way out on to their team platforms, ready for battle.

"I hear you, ladies and gentlemen!" Blader DJ cheered right along with them, "I'm ready to see these Bladers in action! So, first up, from the Australian team, let's hear it for Hunter Hart!"

"Chris said Hunter tried to get a spot on the American team, but Christina beat him out of it," Gingka muttered. "Said he has a lot of power."

"Yuki can handle him," Kyoya replied.

Gingka didn't answer.

"And from the home team, let's give it up for Yuki Mizusawa!"

Kyoya's gaze flickered between the two Bladers, eyes narrowing to slits. Yuki, as normal, seemed a bit nervous at battling in such a large crowd, but Hunter… Hunter's smirk was dangerous, skirting just edge insane.

For once, Kyoya really hoped his brother's intuition was off. He couldn't deal with another Hart maniac. He'd barely managed to deal with the first one!

"Let it rip!"

"I promised the audience a quick battle, and I'm going to deliver," Hunter immediately called out, as a dark red aura flared to life around him, before fading just as quickly. "So you've got five minutes to try and beat me, you jackal!"

Yuki bristled, "W- What's with that nickname?!"

"Anubius is modeled after the Egyptian god, Anubis, is he not? Jackals were one of his symbols. Makes sense to me," Hunter shrugged. He cracked his neck, "Hm, this might end up being a dog fight. No matter. Hellhound will come out on top anyways."

"I doubt it! Anubius! Brave Impact!"

Hunter shook his head and sighed, "Oh, dear. Is that all you got? That's practically you're only move, Yuki." His voice was condescending when he spoke, "Come on. Why don't you give me a real fight?"

"Wha- that's not true! There's plenty more where-"

"Yowza!" Blader DJ exclaimed, "Hellhound withstood Anubius' high powered attack!"

"What? But how!"

"That's Hellhound's ability, you jackal," Hunter chuckled, darkly. "The thick fusion wheel that 'Hound sports? It makes for a helluva hard defense to get by." Almost bored, Hunter drew back the sleeve on his jacket, to check his watch, "Alright. Time's up. It's time I finish this." Smirking wide enough for his teeth to show, Hunter spread his stance, "Hellhound!"

The air became thick and heavy with heat, causing Yuki to step back from the dish in an attempt to breathe. Wide eyed, he watched as dark red wolf-like creature appeared, with fire and chains surrounding it. The beast's eyes seemed to pierce through Yuki's very soul as it stared him down.

"A- Anubius!" Yuki cried, and the Egyptian god appeared, awaiting his partner's command, "Brave Impact-"

"Too late!" Hunter cackled.

The chains around the beast's ankles suddenly lit up in fire, before extending and shooting out to wrap tightly around Anubius. Anubius roared in surprise and pain, Yuki's own cry mixing in.

"Now! Finish him!" Hunter boomed, "Special Move, Fury of the Damned!"

Hellhound snarled, and the chains tightened around Anubius, pulling him off balance. With a roar, Hellhound launched through the air and tackled the blue god, sinking his fangs into Yuki's partner. There was an explosion of light and sound, as competitors and viewers alike shielded themselves from the scene.

When the dust cleared, the winner could be seen.

Hellhound spun, glowing red hot, right near a fractured Anubius.

"Hmph. Like I said…" Hunter called Hound back into his palm, "Five minutes."

"Did that son of a bitch just beat a Legendary Blader?!"

"Holy fuck…"

"Is this how Madoka felt? I feel like this is how Madoka felt with GanGan Galaxy,"

Yuki, dejectedly, made his way up to rejoin his teammates on their platform, "I…"

"Don't worry, Yuki," Platina beamed at him. "We all lose every now and then! No one's perfect!"

"Let me see Anubius," Akira sighed and held his hand out. Yuki gingerly passed his partner over, and Akira bit his lip, "Yeah, you won't be battling anytime soon. Don't worry. I'll get you back up and running before the next round."

"He told us he would, and we didn't listen," Hikaru muttered. She turned to Kakeru, "You can't be blindsided, Kakeru. No matter what."

"Keep an even head, and expect anything. Got it," Kakeru nodded. "Don't worry, I got this!"

"Don't get cocky," Akira deadpanned.

"Oh, please," Kakeru waved a hand as he walked down the stairs. "If there's one thing Kyoya taught me, it's to always be on the defensive!"

"Let it rip!"

"Hmm… You have a Bey I've not seen before," Kakeru mused, more to himself.

Abruptly, Kakeru was reminded that Taylor was barely a teen with how the redhead beamed at him, "Thanks! Yeah, Native Wendigo is a custom Bey! My big brother helped me design it and then we had the parts ordered and… uh, sorry. I tend to ramble."

Kakeru gave his opponent a bemused smile, "Custom work, huh? You and your brother must be pretty smart then. Who is he?"

"Oh, that'd be Jack!" Taylor smiled, and jabbed his thumb over his shoulder.

Kakeru blinked, and looked past the younger teen to see Jack smirk- just in acknowledgment, no malice what so ever- and waved at him.

"Jack has a brother," Kakeru deadpanned. Then, he facepalmed, "You both have the same fucking last names, how'd I miss that!"

(In the audience, Kyoya was wondering the same damn thing).

"It happens," Taylor's smile turned slightly bitter. "I'm the lesser known brother, after all."

Kakeru nodded, empathetically, "Mood." He straightened, "Alright, enough talk. Terra Chimera!"

"Wendigo!" Taylor snapped right back, becoming serious.

The black Bey spun faster in response and rushed to meet Chimera in a head on collision, which surprised Kakeru. He'd expected the younger teen to run away.

"I do seem like that type of person, don't I?" Taylor smiled at him. No, he hadn't stopped smiling. Still no malice, but it set Kakeru on edge. No one smiled that long just for the heck of it, "Kakeru Tategami… Kyoya Tategami's younger brother. The younger brother to the king of beasts, Legendary Blader of Spring… You of all people must know how I feel."

"What are you talking about?" Kakeru asked, eyes narrowing to slits.

"The Dark Nebula, of course. Everyone knows the story, how Doji blackmailed Kyoya to be a part of his little gang," Taylor shrugged, and finally lost his smile. He sighed, "I've watched you for a while now, Kakeru, if I'm honest. I respect you and admire you."

Kakeru was ninety percent sure that he could see the question marks around his own head. Taylor was keeping him on his toes for sure with the changes in personality alone, "What are you on?"

"Your desire to get revenge on anyone and everyone associated with Dark Nebula and Doji, of course," Taylor shrugged. "Wendigo!"

Kakeru's attention was snapped back to the battle, having momentarily forgotten what was going on around him, "Chimera!"

Chimera halted in his tracks and just managed to set his defenses up before Wendigo could plow into him. Taylor perked up at the sight, "Oh, hey! Someone who can withstand Wendy's attack power! Cool!"

Literally- what the fuck was with this kid?!

"Wendigo! Special Move, Infected Fangs!"

Kakeru set his shoulders back as a black aura filled the dish, growing in size as a beast materialized into existence. Kakeru gulped and forced himself not to scream as he met the red eyes of the half-decomposed beast that looked more animal than man. Shedding deer antlers, lipless mouth, and a skull full of a wicked looking teeth.

"Chimera!" Kakeru shouted, and the beast of Greek legend flashed into existence in a burst of golden-brown light. Before Kakeru could call move, though, Wendigo growled and lunged forward, ducking down and then sinking his fangs into Chimera's lion neck.

"Hah!" Taylor cheered, "Gotcha now!"

Kakeru smirked, "More like you landed right into the snake's den! Chimera, Snake Bite Attack!"

Chimera's eyes flashed bright, and the Kakeru grinned as the snake head-tail came streaking through the air and over the goat and lion heads, to strike right in Wendigo's eye. Wendigo roared in pain and let Chimera go, stumbling back and leaving himself open for attack.

"Battering Ram!" Kakeru called. Chimera vanished, glowing, and charged towards Wendigo. With a clang, the two Beys clashed, and Wendigo was sent flying high into the air.

"Impressive!" Taylor's eyes lit up at the sight, "You use Chimera's defensive capabilities to your advantage- you've created a strong attack out of Chimera's weight and defenses!"

Kakeru hated that Taylor picked up on his skills so quickly. It had taken him months to figure out how to do that, and this little twerp picked it apart in less than a minute.

Ugh. Kakeru was beginning to understand his brother's annoyance for hyperactive kids.

"Now, how would I get past that…?" Taylor mused.

"I'm not going to let you get past it," Kakeru stated.

"What's that mean?"

"Special Move, Earthquake!"

Low and steady at first, but all at once building in intensity, the ground beneath Kakeru and Taylor's feet vibrated, the origin of the rumble coming from Chimera itself. As it grew in strength, Wendigo began to wobble, and Taylor's eyes went wide.

"Oh, I see- you're trying to throw Wendigo off balance!"

"No balance, no attack!"

"So you think!" Taylor shouted back as he swept his arm out in front of him, "Wendigo! Antler Throw!"

Wendigo abruptly, to Kakeru's shocked horror, regained his balance and charged Chimera, delivering a solid uppercut attack.

"Chimera has no chance if it's not on the ground!" Taylor grinned, "This is it, Kakeru, the end of the line for you! One more win after this, and Japan's first running of the tournament is done and over with!"

"Chimera, no!"

But what can I do?! Taylor's right! I can't do anything if Chimera's in the air- that's not my element!

"Use what you know to your advantage, Kakeru," Kyoya had told him, once. "Stay aware of your surroundings, and don't panic. There's always another way."

Chimera's in the air… Chimera. Is in. The. Air. There has to be something I can do, something that'll shake things up- Wait! That's it! Kakeru thought with a gasp, Chimera's heavy and is about to have gravity behind him! I can use that!

"Chimera!" Kakeru yelled over the murmur of the crowd, his Blader's spirit flaring to life around him. He swept his hand out towards his partner, grinning broadly, "Ultimate Move: Earth Buster!"

Something shifted within Kakeru's connection to Chimera, as a rush of energy flooded through his system. No, not energy… power. Power that Kakeru had never felt before, not within himself…

He'd felt it plenty of times, in his battles with Kyoya since the Leone Blader had become a Legendary Blader.

Chimera hit the ground- hard. The earth beneath Kakeru's feet shook, nearly sending him off balance, as dust erupted in the air. Kakeru coughed, fanning the air in front of him in an attempt to clear it away. By the time he could, Blader DJ was already announcing the results.

"In an explosive show of power, Kakeru Tategami sends Taylor flying out of bounds!"

Kakeru stared at the dish at his feet- or, what was left of it.

He'd absolutely destroyed.

Quite literally. Where there used to be a Bey dish, there was nothing more than a crater of jagged edges and cracked ground. And Chimera sat, glowing, spinning happily in the middle of all the destruction.

Shakily, Kakeru called Chimera back into his hand, both surprised and not surprised to see that Chimera had changed.

Evolved.

Fuck his life.

"We're gonna take a thirty-minute break, ladies and gentlemen, to get a new dish in for the last two matches!" Blader DJ chirped, oblivious to Kakeru's emotional crisis, "So stay tuned!"

Kakeru, outwardly calm, turned on his heel and walked out of the stadium. It only once he was back in the team room, all while ignoring his teammates, that he broke down and screamed.

Akira took one look Chimera, and called Kyoya.

rip Kakeru. hope you guys enjoyed and will leave a review. until next time, ciao!