From Depths We Rise

by Insane Dominator

1 year has passed since Dan and the Battle Brawlers saved the universe, and when things were serene, a new group of Bakugan players are sent to New Vestroia when a dimensional interference forces them to meet each other. Caught in the crossfire with aliens seeking resources, Luke, Abis Omega, and new friends must fight using unlikely odds if they're to save all from extinction.

39. Out with the Old, In with the New

The shower water spritzed behind the curtains, but from the sounds of the sizzling bullets hammering Luke away it felt like ironically tranquil. The shower water went on for some time, but long enough for Luke to allow himself to relax…this time.

He needed this, something to help make his harsh time a little better. It could've been a tropical island or a vacation for some folks, maybe going home would've been enough. But for Luke all he needed was a shower, and that was enough for him. The existence of Bakugan was at stake, no need to run ragged, but no need to not look over the shoulder often either.

Sighing, he lowered his head, allowing the shower water to pelt his red hair. 'Forgot how good a shower feels. Guess it's because I'm Aquos or something?' But rather than dwell on such a pointless question, Luke finished up to shower, much to his slight chagrin, and turned the faucet off. He stepped out onto the foam mat beneath to help absorb the moisture in his feet so the ground wouldn't get wet.

A few minutes later, he exited and entered his quarters, where Shawn was laying on his bed. Luke sauntered over and plopped on his comfortable bed, loud enough to get his attention. "Yo, Luke." Shawn said loudly.

Luke muffled a greet in the pillow. "Mmphf…"

"You made sure to leave enough water for Alice, right?" Shawn reminded. "She's gotta shower, too."

Luke muffled again and gave a weak thumbs up.

Verias popped open besides Shawn. "He looks tired. Is he feeling alright?"

Shawn turned towards his partner. "You're telling me. Can't imagine it being easy running ragged like this and not feel the need to lie down." He raised a brow. "Maybe Gundalian time is also something. Is it the middle of the night here?"

"I'm not sure. There isn't a lot of light here. It's all…" Verias trailed off. He wasn't sure what to make of words alone. But by some happenstance, Shawn knew what he was talking about.

"Yeah, I get what you're saying." Shawn looked out their window, seeing the Gundalian ceiling of their world. The holes in the crust were familiar to somewhere, but even he wasn't too sure. 'I'm getting serious déjà vu. This looks a lot like…'

A yawn made Shawn look over, seeing Luke lazily stare at him. "I can still hear you know." Luke grumbled sleepily.

Shawn faced Luke again. "Luke? You almost scared me there." He chuckled. "Still up?"

"Yeah, barely." He yawned. "Man, I'm beat…"

"Yeah, me too. We got a big day ahead of us…guess we better rest while we can."

"Yeah. Let's just hope tomorrow…night guys." Luke turned on his bunk, his head resting on his pillow and started dawdling to sleep. Beside him, Abis was already asleep.

Shawn and Verias looked to Luke and then each other. "Guess we'll figure this through tomorrow…when we're all ready." Shawn commented. He laid back in his bunk along with Verias and lolled to sleep.

---

"Mmmm…" Rubbing a towel against her lavish, smooth skin, Alice could feel herself get drier and more relaxed. A lot had happened within the past two days for her to take in, and like a certain Aquos battler, she also felt eased by this shower. 'I still can't believe that I'm really doing this.' The Darkus Brawler thought as she continued drying. 'Still hard to believe that our worlds are coming to an end. A lot of people are out here risking their lives trying to make a difference…and I'm actually one of them.' As she wiped down her slender legs, she realized just how dirty they were beneath the dress she had on before. After a serious battle, she was already tired. Her mind went to the group she tagged along with. They were in this whole thing from the very start, and up to now, they were surviving off of rations, water, and they barely got away with their lives more times than what she could count. She was even more impressed with their survival skills with how fast they had to adapt and work over a very small course of time. 'These guys caught up faster than when Dan the other Battle Brawlers were back then. I wonder if this is a coincidence?'

Once fully dried, she started dressing into a bright purple night gown. When it slunk over her, she looked into her face in the bathroom mirror. She stared deeply into her large brown eyes. Eyes that were so sincere to everyone, but also were scary behind their sockets. These eyes were hidden behind a mask long ago, now that mask was gone, and here she was, facing a battle she willingly volunteered for. 'Maybe I should've listened to Shun…but Luke's right. I can make a difference.'

With herself reaffirmed, she walked out of the bathroom and into Esther and Maggie's room. The two girls were sitting on their bunks, having some girl talk of sorts.

"Oh, hey Alice." Maggie greeted.

Alice walked in and nodded. "Hi guys, sorry for the wait." She apologized. "I hope I wasn't interrupting anything?"

Esther shook her head. "No, you're not interrupting." She turned towards Maggie. "Maggie here was actually telling us of her training with Diablo, weren't you?"

"Yup, sure was!" Maggie continued her tale. "So then Diablo made everything all dark and scary, but Jelldon wasn't scared anymore. We were able to get over our fears of the dark and bam!" she punched the air. "We hit Diablo where it hurts! You guys should've seen it, Jelldon and Diablo were punching like those guys you see in cartoons!"

Esther chuckled. "I don't doubt that. That fight back on Earth was proof. I'm impressed."

Maggie beamed. "Aw Esther, you do care. And here I thought you'd save the compliments just for Luke. Someone's gonna be jealous~."

"What does that mean?" She asked quizzically, though underneath that tone there was hidden defense against what Maggie jabbed at her with.

Alice watched the two girls talk while she was in the corner. Seeing this was lighthearted; it wasn't the Battle Brawlers, but seeing how all of them interacted made it feel a lot like sisters and brothers conversing. She's only known them for a short time yet they accepted her.

"I know what you are thinking, Alice." A voice got her attention, making her see Hydranoid beside her.

"Hydranoid." She gasped.

"I've trained Esther and Atchibee well. Believe me, they are capable battlers indeed." He looked over, seeing the two mentioned talking to each other while Maggie was illustrating some kind of ability Jelldon used. "When we saw them leave, I wasn't sure if what I did was truly worth it…now I'm sure that we can rely on them, just as we have on Drago."

Alice softly smiled. Bringing up Drago reminded her of Dan and the others and how upset they might be that she didn't stop them. But that was pointless. "…yeah."

Esther looked over as she was in her pajamas, which were nothing but black pants with a black shirt tight enough to show off her ample bust. "Alice, are you well?"

Snapping out of it, she turned towards Esther. "Huh? N-no, sorry. I was just thinking is all."

"Is it about your decision to come with us?"

Alice looked down shamefully. "Well…"

"It's fine, really. You don't have to feel ashamed about it." Maggie uplifted. "It's not your fault."

Alice grinned. "I appreciate that, but still…"

Esther sighed. "We get it, it's not something to be proud of. I can understand. Making tough decisions against close ones is never easy." She walked closer to Alice, rivaling her modest height. "Look, Alice. A lot of us here are actually refugees who had to have abandoned our homes for this cause. We've sacrificed so much to get this far. If your friends won't understand, then allow us to help you explain. But at some point, our paths may cross…but you still have your mind, and Hydranoid. You'll know what to do when you get to a crossroad. We're not the Battle Brawlers…but you're still an ally. And we're thankful for your stand."

Esther's little speech made Alice smile. She did have some leverage to her points made. It wasn't wrong, but she was taking experience and her feelings into consideration, something Shun and the others didn't. "Thanks. That means a lot."

Esther walked back to her bed, getting under the covers. "Now then, we should probably get some rest. We were told to have a debriefing when morning comes."

"That's right. So we need our strength." Alice moved to the in-wall bed that flipped out. It was premade in courtesy of Esther earlier, and she did remarkably well. She got under the covers. "Okay guys, night."

"Goodnight." Esther and Maggie said in unison before turning in.

In one room, Luke and Shawn were asleep over their covers, whereas Shuji and Jase were sound under their covers in their room they shared.

At long last, everyone on the Trailer was quiet.

---

While one group was enjoying sleep and well-deserved rest, things were different underneath the surface. Within Riaan's throne room, everyone gathered was still processing what was being told. And unlike the fortune Luke was blessed with, Maximus and his team were the exact opposite.

"What…did you just say?" Maximus shakily asked.

Riaan's calm leer sheared through all their gazes. "I hate to repeat myself, but if I must. Rogue Zero…you're obsolete to us."

Rogue Zero was at a loss for words. They all kneeled and looked up with stone-cold shock written on their faces. What they heard wasn't what they expected, nor needed in this case. After a long day of doing everything they could for Riaan and Hades Pillars and getting own by their enemies, they were expecting a slap on the wrist, not the axe in Zion's strap. The team even glanced at their superiors to see what they thought, but they were given no levity to their situation. Even Galilea looked saddened at Killian beneath her angered glare. Riaan continued.

"Your recent performances have meant well, but greatly hampering our dynamics. In other words, your little 'experiment' with your Bakugan and enhancing their forbidden potential has been maxed out. In other words, Luke and his little friends have been viewing you as nothing but checkmarks in this little game you've been playing, Maximus."

"C-checkmarks…?"

"Yes, checkmarks." He snapped his fingers, displaying a holographic projection of various Rogue Zero battles in the past. Quite shockingly, they've been in chronological order. "The Bakugan that you've selected have reached their critical points from the beginning, so they didn't have room to grow. As to where your foe's stood, the more they battled, the stronger their Bakugan became, and the quicker their pace had gotten. By the time they've came to Interacia, I can safely say that's where it was even before they surpassed you." He snapped his fingers, dispelling the projections.

"But your grace, we don't understand." Ariella exasperated, her tone a little shaken. "We've done everything up to this point to succeed your expectations. We've commenced the operation with your blessing."

"That I did." Riaan nodded. "And your work has bared the groundworks for our future of Interacia."

"Y-your grace, please." Cesar quivered. He was weak in the knees, and not from being scared; being in a floating chair a lot made him very useless with his feet. "W-with all do respect, I have done extensively with the operation to better our world. Are you saying that my works are also obsolete?"

"Cesar." Lucia scowled. "Are you questioning the judgment of our great one?"

Cesar shrunk back from fear. He wasn't in any position to speak.

"No, Lucia. It's quite alright." Riaan said, holding up his hand to silence her. She backed off, allowing him to refer to Cesar. "Cesar, I can sympathize with your point made. You are perhaps one of the most valued members in this circle. Interacia and its populace would be in great peril if not for your creative thinking and actions."

"Thank you, Milord." Cesar bowed, though he'd beam if he could, but knew this wasn't the time.

"Your forbidden card project has been a great success. Because of the many copies and experiments performed, your research has allowed us to create Armagedoid." He held up Armagedoid in his right palm. "But, now that we have the technology of Vestal and the crust now crumbled, Interacia's manual reconstruction is also evolving. Its programming is allowing citizens to be alarmed and communications are running smoother than they were before."

"And that's all because of Empyrean." Cyrus continued. "But now that Empyrean has also been enhanced, the energy and the geography transferred shall be relayed in certain locations rather than just spontaneously."

"But, how could it…?" Cesar trailed off when Lucia stepped forward. Almost instantly he realized what he meant. 'Wait…her foresight!' He mentally cursed himself for not accounting this, balling his fists beneath his sleeves.

"But why now?! Why after everything we've done to help the world that you desire?!" Ariella snapped.

"Watch your tongue, young lady." Zion glared. Ariella glared at him, but even her arrogant glare didn't faze him.

"You ask why now?" Riaan answered Ariella's question. "The answer is because of the lack of your competence. Because of your potential having been reached in New Vestroia, your abilities have not adapt to the harsher battle environments that Gundalia has. These foes you have trained, however, are more than prepared, and are continuing to grow as we speak."

"Wait, you mean you're saying we're helping those morons?" Xander exasperated. "That's ridiculous!"

"Like I said. Check markers."

Hendrix lifted his head, looking guilty for his failure. "Sir, with all do respect. If you're taking us off the field, where will that leave us?"

A very grim silence fell around the room as Riaan contemplated.

"Hendrix Stone…I'm sorry to say. Perhaps I once again didn't make myself clear." Riaan glared at him angrily. "When I mean obsolete, I mean in other words…no use."

Killian's eyes widened. 'No use? Wait, he can't possibly mean-!'

Maximus stood up. "No use? No use?!" he outraged. "You dragged us all the way down here just to tell us that we of Rogue Zero are being dismissed?!"

"If that's how you simplify it." Riaan answered calmly.

"Utter nonsense! I am anything but a hapless tin can that you can just kick around when you're bored!"

"Uh, Maximus…what are you doing?" Killian nervously whispered.

"I've slaved for you and your ways, because it's what helped me gain power! I didn't crawl out of the depths of hell just to find myself being put back there after being spat on! Do you have any idea who you bastards are talking to?!"

Hades Pillars was about to take action, but Riaan held up his hand, stopping them. He seemed thoroughly invested in what Maximus had to say.

"My dream, my whole existence, it's to be nothing more than a demon. A demon that no one can look down on! I never needed anything but power, and lots of it, and now you're just taking that all away from me?! I deserved this, I want to win, and that way everyone will fear me and my existence!"

"I see…so that's what this is about. Your existence."

Maximus snarled.

"Yes, I do seem to recall Cyrus and I meeting you on such bitter circumstances. I vaguely remember seeing that look you had when you laid eyes on us…" he chuckled to himself. "The thought still gives me shivers. But it seems that you're mistaken, Maximus, for it's clear that you didn't want to win that badly than just tantalize Luke…which is precisely why he's outgrown his fear of you…and now why you fear him."

Maximus' shady glare darkened. Riaan had hit the nail on the head, the leader of Rogue Zero, who was once fearless and intimidating, was nothing but broken, battered, and anything that he was before. And it was all because of Luke and Abis Omega. Two weak creatures that became so strong, and he unknowingly helped them.

"I do very much admire your determination, all of you. But right now, my forces don't need worn down soldiers who can't hold themselves up."

Hendrix balled his fists tight as he kneeled. Killian and Cesar's teeth gritted as they were being bent. However, what Riaan said next completely broke others.

"…and what do you do with old soldiers who can't fight anymore? They retire."

A cleat stamped on the red carpet, making a muffled snap beneath the spikes. Everyone in the room turned as Maximus unleashed a bloodthirsty cry as he threw Goblinball without warning. In a dark purple light, the Darkus Bakugan arose beneath Maximus. His shrieks made the air shudder with rage.

"Maximus! What are you doing?!" Ariella fearfully shouted. "Have you lost it?!"

Cesar's jaw slacked. He was too horrified for words, as was Killian.

Hades Pillars looked a little shocked at this sudden uprising, but they recovered just as quickly as it came. Riaan wasn't fazed in the slightest throughout the shrieking.

"I'm not going anywhere, you hear me old timers?!" Maximus shouted above. "If you think that Maximus Rogue is afraid of anything, think again! I'll show you myself just why I deserve to be here! I AM THE DEVIL!" he sourly laughed in the high altitude, one that could make any living creature cringe from just how badly he was making himself stand tall for.

Riaan sighed as he reached for Armagedoid, but was voluntarily stopped by Cyrus. "Do not waste your energy on this misguided fool, Milord." He stated. "Please, let us take responsibility. Allow us to clean up our little mess."

Riaan lowered his reach, seemingly allowing it.

Calmly, Cyrus stepped up before the rogue Maximus. His arrogant smirk showed how confident he was compared to his inferior's insanity. That only aggravated him further.

"What's this? Hiding behind your pillars like a shield?" Maximus taunted. "I knew you were also a coward!"

Cyrus raised a brow. "Even by your standards, this has gotten a little low, don't you think?"

Maximus shot a glare at him. "Who asked you?! Like I would waste another breath against you!"

"Is that so? Well then, in that case…" Cyrus held up a black sphere in his fingers. "If you'd like, by al means, hit me with your best shot. Then we'll see who's not in their place."

Everyone in Rogue Zero went wide-eyed and stood paralyzed by this fearful act. They couldn't tell if it was a gamble or just a hardy demand. Either way, the threat went right over Maximus' head.

"Fine by me." He darkly smirked.

"Max, wait!" Xander shouted. "You can't just-!"

"Silence." Maximus venomously scolded. "Don't get in my way, Xander…" he slowly turned, giving him a dark, spiteful glare of wide eyes that glowed like devil's. "Unless you wanna be next."

Xander swallowed a lump, completely silencing his intents. To hear such venomous, crude words aimed at him wasn't something that happened often. Sure from Zion, and especially from Ariella, but the tone from Maximus made it perfectly clear this was no going back, and he wasn't going to risk it from him. For once, he was afraid of him.

Maximus returned the attention towards his superior Darkus associate. "Now, where were we?" He reached forward, commanding his Goblinball to attack. The Bakugan charged up a dark energy orb in the center right in front of the eye.

As the energy charged, a smirking Cyrus humbly tossed his Bakugan to the floor, where it ignited the floor in a dark purple glow.

"If you think I should afraid, you're wrong! It's you who will-!"

SHRING!

A field of darkness was ignited by bright purple claws that ended in a trail behind Maximus and Goblinball. It happened so fast the no one saw it coming. A swift force was all it took for Maximus to floor while the energy Goblinball gathered dissipated like vapor. The Bakugan slowly leaned back, unable to process what happened before he reverted to ball form, plopping by his master's side.

Everyone watching was rendered speechless. Rogue Zero could only watch in horror as their leader fell from such a high stature. "Maximus…"

Maximus landed on his back with a boastful thud. All the air in his body was knocked out of him as everything was black. The Bakugan Cyrus had returned as quickly as it did struck, as if nothing happened. "I believe that we are done here, are we not?"

Maximus' vision came back, but his body was so winded that he could barely move. "Cy...rus…" he painfully hissed.

"Maximus!" Xander cried out for his friend. He sharply turned and reached for Hyper Dragonoid. "Why you…!" Before he could reach his Bakugan, a battle axe passed him, embedding into the ground behind his stunned frame.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Zion threatened.

Unable to react, Rogue Zero could only watch as Cyrus picked Maximus' body up and throw him back towards them. Killian immediately went to his side and tried tending, but that was all he could do. An energy cage began materializing around them, slowly building up electrical energy bars that built up towards the top until all of Rogue Zero was trapped inside.

"I'm very disappointed in you." Cyrus continued. "In all of you. Your great one merely gave you condolences to your lack of inability, doesn't mean it has to be taken to these lengths." He shot one more devastating look at Maximus as he sat up. There was a silence before he turned away. "Suppose this is what happens when a man-child is in charge."

"You…!" Maximus stammered up towards the cage bars in an attempt to get free. When he reached for them an intense shock shot through his body, causing intense pain that put him on the ground again. "Shit!"

"This is bad." Ariella went to reach for her Bakugan and Bakugan Trap, but Hendrix's hand grabbed her wrist before she could get to them. "What the-?! Hendrix!"

"No." he murmured.

"Unhand me you big oaf!" She tried to pry herself from his grip, but his muscular superiority made it impossible to break away. "If you don't, then I swear I'll-"

"I SAID NO!" His harsh shout echoed through the chamber, leaving his choice to reverberate back into the cage. The air fell in distinguished silence as Ariella was paralyzed in shock of Hendrix's sudden outburst. Hades Pillars, Riaan, even the rest of Rogue Zero went wide-eyed at Hendrix's outburst towards the pompous woman.

Ariella stared at Hendrix with astonish, but also fear. This was the first time ever that he broke his calm vibe towards her. Honestly she didn't think he'd be this scary. Clearly she was wrong. Inside her head, a rather vulgar image of a young girl surrounded by flames flashed inside her mind. The way the fire surrounded her as she held a knife drenched in blood was enough to give adults nightmares.

"Noooo~…" Ariella jerked from that voice. The voice of the creature that slaughtered not just her entire mansion, but also her childhood. She shakily adverted her gaze towards Amina, who was busy filing her nails. When she glanced over, Ariella was immediately stricken with so much fear she crumbled to her knees.

"Deploring." Lucia huffed.

Hendrix and Cesar stood back in the cages, both glaring at Magnus and Lucia respectively. Killian was looking at Galilea with a hopeful glint behind his pleading eyes, but all she did was sadly frown in disappointment. Any means of hope he had was gone, leaving him dejected at his loss. The only two who seemed to have any kinds of fight were Xander and Maximus, though Xander was supporting his friend's resentment.

"I understand you are all angry with this judgment I casted." Riaan started. "As am I. This is not a betrayal to all your hard work."

"You really think that?" Xander sarcastically sniped, but Riaan continued.

"I've come to respect you all in your own individuals. Some of you I've come to know first-hand. Some of you in fact recommended by others…and others who I've taken in for your sakes." He looked specifically at Ariella, Cesar, and Maximus when he said that last line. "If you are willing to betray and cut that thread of faith, then so be it. But I hold all of you in regards still. So until we find ourselves in another situation for your needs, consider yourselves under suspense."

"Riaan!" Maximus charged for the cage bars again, but was rebuffed. He jumped forward and attacked the bars, gripping them tight as the pain caused them to coarse electricity. He snarled as he endured to pain, a hate-filled glare in his pupils. "You'll pay for this dearly, you hear me?!"

"I know…but first, all of you must do so first." He lifted his hands towards them. "Rogue Zero…I bid you farewell, for now."

A light beneath the energy cage started swallowing up the ground. They were being transported, and they couldn't fight it.

"Riaan…" Maximus' eyes dilated as the white light enveloped him. "RIAAAAAN~!"

The next instance, all of Rogue Zero was gone, leaving nothing such a small sizzling spot from the teleportation. The room was filled with brief silence, especially for Riaan, Magnus, and Galilea. The voluptuous female hid her sadness well behind her face, but it didn't top her from having a small glaze in her eyes. But that glint faded away just as quick. Magnus in disappointment for what had to be done, but like Galilea, he masked it well too.

"And~…there!" Amina marveled over her freshly filed midnight blue nails, which sparkled like a might sky. "Stunning." She looked over, seeing the empty spot. "Hm? Oh, was the trash taken out or something?"

"More or less." Lucia said flatly.

Cyrus turned and bowed at Riaan's feet. "Forgive us for this mess, your highness. We'll make certain that we will do better from now on."

Rian nodded. "Very well then. Hades Pillars, as of now, all of Rogue Zero's operations are now under your supervision. You will be in charge of the advances and on the field at all times, does that sound fair?"

Cyrus darkly smirked. "Consider it a pleasure, sir."

"Very well then, dismissed." Hades Pillars instantly teleported away to ready their objectives. Riaan sat back in his throne, remembering the spite on Maximus' face. 'To be hated is better than to hate. These are a part of consequences…consequences that I must push towards the world that I seek.'

---

Morning had soon dawned upon Gundalia, though with how dark it is one could never really tell. Luke and friends found themselves up and ready to start the next day, and they did so by meeting in Ren's base.

The base itself wasn't anything too lavish. The doors opened somewhat like mouths severing, which spooked everyone a bit. The majority of their color scheme was gray, with mild to smooth walls and interiors like a human conference hall. The room they were all gathered in wasn't very big, but it was sizeable enough for everyone to fit around a medium-sized table with a 3D layout of Gundalian ground.

"Glad you all could make it." Ren commented.

"No need. The pleasure is ours for your hospitality." Jase replied.

Nodding in acceptance, Ren continued. "I was able to get a talk in with Prime Minister Nurzak last night. He says he wants to see you for himself." He gestured over towards the wall behind him. On it were a cluster of hexagons that projected an image of an old man with a Gundalian robe, though far bulkier and had very large gems on it. The man had a goatee with a short beard, which went with his bald, rugged head that again left Luke's gang without much room to say. Ren turned in full and bowed before Nurzak. "Prime Minister Nurzak, good morning." He greeted.

'That's the Prime Minister?' Luke took a good look at Nurzak and his gruffy expression. He looked well…kind of? He didn't know how Gundalians looked to one another, but kept it to himself either way.

"Good morning to you, too, Ren Crawler." Nurzak nodded. "So this is to whom you were referring to." He shot a glance at everyone else through the monitor he was on. Even digitized, his looks were enough to give everyone a cold chill.

Jase stepped up. "Greetings to you. I apologize for any inconvenience."

"It's quite alright." Nurzak sat back in his seat. "My associate Ren has told me quite a bit about you all. I do hope that he hasn't been giving you all any trouble."

"Well, actually…" Maggie nervously chuckled, scratching her cheek with her index finger.

Jase snickered. "Actually, we were going to ask him that. Right?" He shot a smirk at Ren, one to which he was bemused by.

"You can say that." He faced Nurzak. "Nurzak. These people have come from Earth. They know the Brawlers and came with some valued information. Go ahead guys."

"Very well then." Jase turned around. "Shawn, if you would be so kind?"

"Wait, what?! Why do I have to explain it again?!" he groaned. "Fine."

So for the umpteenth time in several days, Shawn explained everything that's happened so far, about Riaan and his abilities, to his origins and what's been going on. But the end, Ren and Nurzak looked baffled.

"Is this all true?" Ren snapped.

Esther calmly nodded. "Yes. We've seen it ourselves. Our worlds are slowly reducing to instability."

"You don't believe us then just take a look back at that army we had to run from. Sure that's proof enough." Shuji remarked.

"What do you think of this, Nurzak?" Ren turned towards the Prime Minister for answers.

Nurzak looked down, placing a hand to his beard. To say he was puzzled would be putting it lightly. "The Gundalian and Neathian archives never said anything beyond Code Eve. There have been conspiracy theories that would deter her existence as a farce, but those were all dismissed. Never have I considered there being a father of all Bakugan into this matter."

"There have been theories and evidence that Bakugan evolve by multiplying." Jase imposed. "Surely you considered there to be an origin beyond the original dragons."

"Besides that, don't offspring usually come from…uh, well…" An awkward note shut off Shawn as he cleared his throat. He wasn't sure how to propely finish, or rather if he should, that sentence, especially with Maggie in the room.

"Hey, I'm not a kid you know." Maggie glared. "I know what you're gonna say Shawn…you pervert."

"Hey!"

"Still, after everything that we've experienced, I guess that it's the only explanation we got." Ren examined, looking down at the conference table. The layout changed colors to a crisp pink, with dark magenta in a rapid pace. "Our sensors are picking up strong negative currents flowing beneath us, coming from beyond the ridge that we went over. This energy is strong…very strong."

Luke turned towards Alice. "Do you think this will affect the Bakugan here, too?"

Alice nodded. "Yes, I'm fairly certain. Bakugan can still be tainted here. They may go savage, just like on New Vestroia."

"That so?" Nurzak hummed.

"How are you feeling Linehalt?" Ren asked his partner. Apparently he's taking the advice seriously.

"I'm okay for now Ren." Linehalt answered. "But…my body…it's feeling a lot of pressure around. Is this what they meant by the negative energy's influence?"

"Yes, more or less." Hydranoid answered. "And that energy will build up until your instincts succumb to it."

"An armada with Battlegear copies, forbidden energy that powers up Bakugan, a father who has a grudge against Code Eve, and a dying world…this hardly makes sense at all." Ren was having trouble believing, but it wasn't his fault. No one in Luke's group could blame him, they weren't too different from him when they first found out.

"We know, but it's all we got." Alice continued. "Please, isn't there anything we can do?"

Ren wasn't sure what to say; he looked towards Nurzak for wisdom.

"If what you are saying is true and that this supposed father is here, then he must be here for a specific purpose other than just collect our Bakugan life forces. Tell me, has there been any specific patterns you've been picking up on them?"

Shawn nodded. "Yeah, at least a little."

They explained further about the various aspects of what Riaan has been stealing, which started off with Earth, copying its human DNA and geographical and cultural diversities. Then New Vestroia's wildlife and the Perfect Core and Bakugan energy that the planet held. Then towards Vestal, where Riaan wanted the schematics to Spectra's forbidden cards, mechanical weaponry, and Battlegear data, leading up to now.

"I see…" Nurzak's glare narrowed. "All of that does begin to make up the essence of some planetary aspects…but still, that doesn't quite measure up to why they come here."

"Maybe this has to do with this Code Eve." Maggie pondered. "She created all Bakugan, it only makes sense that any planet with Bakugan on it has traces of her in it somewhere."

"Maybe he's after some more hardware." Abis suggested.

"That's also a very god point, Abis." Atchibee said. "They could be here for the machinery on this planet as well."

"You mean the Mobile Assault Vehicles?" Ren went wide-eyed. He started picking up on the pieces of that information gathered.

"I would wager that possibility." Jase surmised, using two fingers to jut up his glasses.

"Then if that's the case, they're more than likely getting the schematics for them as we speak." Atmos said. "He would have Battlegear and vehicle enhancements."

"With that kind of fire power, they could break through our forces in no time." Ren realized, turning towards Nurzak. "Prime Minister, has the communications been fixed yet?"

"The systems can't make heads or tails I'm afraid. Our communications with or Neathian allies has been cut off completely. We're getting signals from this energy that's been interfering with our interspatial dimension control as well."

"Then we're on our own until the Neathian reinforcements get word of the situation." Esther deduced.

"Perhaps we can still make do with what we have on hand." Nurzak proposed. "You explained to us that it takes about a few days for this organism to completely infect our world, yes? For the time being, we should do or best and fend them off. They have armed Bakugan swarming from all sides around Gundalia. We have the other 12 elsewhere creating a perimeter to wear off the outsiders."

"So once they're done, do you think you can direct them here? If we're the closest to this source's base, we can launch an all-out attack to wipe their forces and try to wipe them off of Gundalia." Ren suggested.

"And all-out attack plan." Jase commented, hints of suspicion in his voice. "We'll need more layout of the terrain if that's your intentions."

"It's not like what we did, but we can still break in, right?" Maggie inquired.

"It's possible. But if Riaan altered the tower to fit this new environment, the inner security measures may have also been altered. Regardless, we'll need the best opportunity to strike, and that time isn't on our side."

"Looks like Rogue Zero will be surprised when we come knocking on their doorstep." Shuji smirked.

"I'm down for that." Fly Beetle shrugged.

"I suppose…" Alice wasn't so confident in the plan as she was with the dynamics. But she didn't have much room to make sense of how to play it. She suddenly got an idea. "Um, excuse me. Ren."

Ren turned towards her. "Yes, what is it?"

"If you're going to attack, maybe I can help. I can fit the Bakugan best suited in the attack forces and we can probably get a better lead from there."

"Really?" Luke gasped.

Esther's eyes widened. "That's right. I forgot that Alice was a master tactician when Bakugan started on Earth. She may be onto something."

Normally Ren wouldn't find anything to gain out of a situation where it's his forces. However, with her being associated with Marucho, a close friend and faithful comrade, he was willing to make an exception. "Alright, if that's what you want. We'll begin the preparations right away."

Nurzak nodded. "Make haste, everyone. Thank you for this information. I'll be sure to send word to everyone else. Be well." With that, Nurzak turned off the monitor, blanking out to a solid black hexagon on the dashboard, leaving everyone to themselves.

In his office, Nurzak backed away from the orb that he used to communicate with everyone. He folded his fingers atop one another and fell silent into deep thought.

"What is it, Nurzak?" Sabator, his Bakugan, asked.

"…this 'Riaan' fellow. There's something about this that I can't grasp." He tightened his grip on himself, impatience starting to rile him. "Either there's more to this so-called 'Father of Bakugan', or there's pieces of this puzzle we're not fitting."

"And what do you believe?"

Nurzak fell silent as he went into deep thought.

"Well I guess our playtime's over for now, huh?" Maggie frowned. "Guess we better wait until we're all set. Coming, Jelldon?"

"Sure thing!" Following behind, the Pyrus Bakugan floated in pursuit.

Shuji stretched his arms up in the air. "Guess there's no point waiting around. Better make sure that we're in shape." He turned towards Ren. "Hey, you guys have some kind of training field or something?"

Ren nodded. "We have a small cove half a mile east from here. Wild Bakugan spawn there often, so be careful."

"Gotcha." Shuji was next to file out. Beside him, Fly Beetle glided and plopped onto his shoulder. "Hey, Luke! Shawn! You guys wanna stretch those legs?"

Shawn shrugged. "I don't see why not. Luke?"

"Yeah, count me in." he answered. "We'll need all the experience we can get with our new abilities." To some degree, the merit in his vocabulary was more expressed towards him and his situation. Upon evolving, Luke realized that unlike his previous form, Frill Abis Omega worked a lot differently than before. Unlike when he was weaker and more versatile, this evolution made him stronger, but at the cost of offense. A lot of his abilities played by defense, much to his chagrin.

"Well, better now than never." Abis agreed. "Luke, ready?"

Luke nodded. "Right, let's go?" He started walking with Shawn and Shuji, but turned around. "Hey Esther, are you coming?"

Esther shook her head. "No, I'll be fine. I promised Maggie that I'd help her with Jelldon's newfound attribute changing abilities." She answered flat.

"Oh…okay." Luke slowly turned forward. "Well, guess I'll see ya." He left, not knowing that Esther was having a small frown of her own. She promised she'd watch over Luke, and that's something that piqued Atchibee.

"Esther, are you sure about this?" the evolved moth asked.

"I'm sure, Atchibee. Besides, Luke has Shawn watching over him, and I promised Maggie." She watched Luke faded out of distance, her confident smile returning. "Besides, he's doing well on his own right now. We should be, too."

"I'll neither agree nor disagree with you there. We can do more if we depend on each other."

Esther acknowledged the remark and filed out next, leaving Jase, Alice, and Ren in the same room. The Ventus battler turned towards his fellow associates. "Before I make my departure, you wouldn't mind if I get some maps? The geography my better work to our advantage."

Ren nodded. "Of course." He looked towards Alice. "Now then, what's the setup you have in mind?"

Alice looked down at the digital grid the table used. He looked in all directions and the number of Bakugan that were part of each unit. After several seconds of scouting the setup, a smile came across her.

"Okay, here's what we can do…"

---

Lucia sat quietly on her knees, eyes shut as she chose to find solace in her mind. She needed her mental rest to be proper if her foreseeing was to be accurate. Even more so, her heightened responsibility.

'If I'm going to take up that loon Cesar's responsibilities, I must remain calm.' She took a deep breath, exhaling out as she caught up on another cleanse in her mind. Once her exhale ended, not even the sounds of running water could be heard in her mind. She was in total psyche stasis. In this state, she felt another presence. "What do you want, Magnus?"

Magnus, who had teleported recently, walked up behind her. "Sorry to interrupt doll, but we just got word from the boss himself. He wants us to do a reconnaissance mission on the forces."

"I was well aware of this fact." Lucia said flatly, slowly standing up in her circle. "But I appreciate the notice."

Magnus smirked. "You time before he officially sends us out. You'd like, we could-."

"No, that's alright." Lucia cut him off. "I'm in no means interested. I'd appreciate it if I held my own space, thank you."

Magnus mentally snapped his fingers. He should've figured she'd be hard to reel in. He knew a pretty girl when he saw one, and while Amina held her own idealistic charms, Lucia and Galilea were ahead by leaps and bounds; Galilea especially. And with Killian out of the picture, he'd had ample opportunity.

"Now then, let us proceed to-!" Lucia was cut off when her vision went blank for a second, causing her body to stiffen.

"Lucia?" Magnus called.

Lucia's head was fading in and out. She was catching glimpses of images that were zooming quickly. One showed them in strong whirlwinds, which were repelled by darkness. She saw Alice again, only this time she had a much stronger energy around her. The way she glared was reminiscent to that of another battler from long ago, specifically herself but in another form. Her vision quickly came back, her composition returned. "…I'm fine. I just spaced out for a moment." She lied.

Magnus looked curious. He knew she was faking it. She was only like this when she had visions, and then her composition would be normal. But the look on her face with this one made him skeptical.

"Let's go. Our divine one has summoned us." She turned and teleported away, with Magnus following behind.

---

"Ability, activate!" Shuji lifted his Bakumeter, showing a glowing brown ability card hologram. "Giga Horn Buster!"

Fly Beetle got to all six legs and aimed his horn. Once ready, he locked onto a nearby Subterra Jetro in the distance. "Eat this!" He roared out, unleashing an intense dark orange bolt from his horn that tore open the earth as it traveled towards Jetro. The impact collided with its base, causing it to revert to a sphere that nestled in the hard earth.

Shuji smirked at the results of that one attack. 'Now that's some serious power.'

Elsewhere, Shawn raised an ability card of his own, which glowed yellow. "Ability activate, Bolt Cutter!" The blade ends of Verias' staff shined and lengthened, making sharper sabers as he closed in on two Subterra Luxtor heading his way. When they fired intense energy beams, Verias sliced clean through with one swing, bisecting down the middle. When he reached them, he took a sharp pivot and posed behind them.

Shawn and Verias remained valiant as the two Luxtor started morphing back to their ball forms, signaling another set of Bakugan defeated, much to their chagrin.

A wild Farakspin hissed as its wings spun like a fan propeller, creating a green cyclone that shot down onto Frill Abis Omega. But he and Luke were more than prepared.

"Ability activate, Frill Rippler!"

Abis flexed his fins on his body, making them wide enough to take the Ventus attack and buffer it back. As the green cyclone was being redirected, blue ripple-like shockwaves flowed out, causing the attack to lengthen its range. Farakspin was nowhere near fast enough to get out in time before the attack swallowed it, sending it spiraling out of the distance and into a green light.

"Okay, where's the next one?" Shuji readied, looking around his surroundings.

"I think that's all of them for now." Shawn commented, looking around to find their space had been cleared. There were a lot of balls lying around, some of which refused to budge, while others were scuttling away to recover their lost strength.

"That it?" Luke asked, showing surprise.

"Looks like it." Shawn smirked. "Sorry guys, guess that's it for now."

"Man, talk about a bummer." Shuji grimaced.

Luke sighed in his own share of dismay. He lowered his sword. "Guess beggars can't be choosers, huh."

All the Bakugan reverted to ball form, landing on a small rock they used as a stool. "Well I guess that was a quick workout." Fly Beetle commented.

"That was more than quick by my account." Verias remarked. "We didn't break much sweat from the work we put in." It was an ironic statement, but nobody chose to regard it. "But you know, that surprised me?"

"What?" Abis clarified.

"Just that…there weren't a lot of them out here. Remember on New Vestroia and Earth that there were Bakugan crawling everywhere?"

Luke's eyes widened upon realization. "Wait a minute…! Yeah, I actually do!"

Shawn put a hand to his chin. "Yeah, know that you mention it. Erath seems to have a few more Bakugan rolling around than here."

"You think this has something to do with the immigration to Earth two years ago?"

Shuji shrugged. "That's my bet. That's how Nene got that big bug we squashed. Guess that also explains a couple of other things too."

"So then…we might be the only guys from Earth who have Bakugan from New Vestroia." The realization was as shocking as it was sad. Granted, Luke is always taken back by surprise, but this was one that left him a little despondent. Only so many were refugees now from that dying world, and their Bakugan were some of them. Talk about tough love.

"Guess so." Shawn agreed. "But we gotta persevere. We need as much experience as we can if we're going to adapt here."

Luke's worried were brushed aside and nodded. "Right!"

Shuji adverted his attention towards them. "Alright, well since those guys were duds, you guys wanna stretch those legs some?"

Luke turned towards Shawn. "I think you should go first Shawn." He insisted. "He's got Subterra and you're Haos. It'd be a nice challenge, don't you think?"

Shawn shot Luke an intrigued glare. "Are you saying that because you're chickening out?"

Luke blinked. "W-wait, what? No! C'mon! Why would I do that?

Shawn chuckled, showing some heart to Luke's defense. "Easy Luke, I'm just teasing you a little. No need to get worked up. Besides, Esther would never let you hear the end of it if she was here."

Luke grumbled. For some reason everyone has been bringing up him and her as of late. And it served to really rile him up. 'This better be some kind of inside joke.'

Shuji raised a brow. "Say, speaking of which, what are you gonna do about the chick?"

For the second time, Luke was caught by surprise. "W-what? Shuji, you too?!" he exasperated. "Okay, you guys better tell me what's going on!"

"C'mon, don't say you're dumb...heh, even if it's true." Shuji smirked. The comment left Luke with a twitching eye, his patience deterring. "Her worries in Empyrean, the pep talks, the way she's smiling. Do I even have to spell it out for ya. Even I'm not that clueless."

Shawn shot Shuji an invested look. "I don't know. You both seem pretty close to that end of the branch if you ask me." He remarked, earning glares from Shuji and Luke.

Luke grumbled hastily at his feet. It stirred in his mind what the others about him and Esther wasn't something that he hasn't been thinking about. Actually, it's something that's been on his mind whenever he has some levity of free time. In a recent dream he had, he had a small vision of Esther in an open field, teeming with butterflies and a nice, crisp forest in the distance. When he recalled how slowly she turned and smiled at him, the sun aligned at just right angle to illuminate her back, giving her an angelic appeal. He shook his head to keep himself on track.

"Look, Luke, its okay if you have priorities. We get it." Shawn said, showing empathy for Luke. "Let's just take this step by step, okay? We'll work on our strategy, then we'll see afterwards, okay?"

"I-I guess…" Luke guiltily looked down, sighing in defeat. "Seriously, why are you guys bugging me about this so much?"

Shawn shrugged. "Well, we have our own reasons."

"Yeah, plus it's fun to watch." Shuji laughed.

"Okay, that's not helping!" Luke yelled.

Abis, Verias, and Fly Beetle turned towards the other after looking at their humans squabble. Seeing Shuji and Shawn jokingly tease Luke in the background was as hilarious as it was confusing. Seeing Luke on an irate served to amuse Shawn and Shuji even more. 'Humans.' They groaned.

---

"Okay, ready?" Esther asked her opponent.

Maggie nodded. "Sure am! Jelldon!" At her command, Glow Jelldon raised his tentacles again against Dusk Atchibee. When she was ready, she swiped her arm. "Jelldon, Attribute Change!"

Jelldon let out a cry as he began to change the gel substance in front of him. The light began to encompass the rest of his body as he shined brightly. When the glow receded, it revealed Jelldon in another coating, this one being Haos. The eyes and the gel sacs were all glue, and while yellow was still present, there was silver where orange would be.

"So it's Haos this time?" Esther observed.

Maggie nodded. "Yup, now let's see how you fair against this, Esther!" Maggie revealed an ability for Haos Glow Jelldon. "Ability activate, Correlation of Darkus to Haos!" Jelldon's body was engulfed in a large veil of Haos energy, which came from facing Atchibee's Darkus energy that fed him strength.

Esther watched with a meek smile of impressed. "Interesting." She braced herself. "Then come!"

"With pleasure! Ability, activate! Spiral Lantern!" All the tentacles on Jelldon's body started glowing brightly like beacons. He ascended into the air and he started spiraling his entire body in Atchibee's direction, directing all his elastic, glowing tendrils at Atchibee.

"It's true that Haos Bakugan can give and store powers of their own." Esther stated calmly. "But Darkus…takes all that power into one's own." As it shrewd and coldly, Esther showed an ability at the ready. "Ability activate, Wormhole!"

Atchibe's eyes briefly glinted as the attacking light tendrils spiraled. Two dark vortexes appeared in front of the red patterns of her wings, stopping the attack. The tendrils were redirected into the wormholes, immediately draining all the light inside and reverting the tentacles to normal. They receded back to Jelldon, who braced s the sapped light faded with the wormholes, giving her power instead.

The Pyrus battler's eyes widened in shock. "You can absorb abilities now?"

"Sorry for the surprises." Esther remarked. "But you should know better than to keep yourself unexpected. Now, ability activate, Glare Astral!" Atchibee hissed as all the eye patterns on her wings shined brightly. From them, intense, raw Darkus energy shot in four beams that bolted at Jelldon.

"Don't count us out of surprises just yet!" Maggie chimed. "Jelldon has more than just attribute-related abilities! Like this!" She showed another ability. "Ability activate, Petroleum Shield!"

Jelldon remained still while the glow on his gem shined brightly. Before him, a soft, dense veil of yellow, liquid-like energy materialized, absorbing the impact that would've dealt serious damage. Atchibee, however, refused to give in so easily, as to where Jelldon wasn't either.

"Looks even to me." Maggie chimed.

Esther showed a glowing ability card. "Fusion Ability, activate! Vermilion Raid!"

Atchibee's eyes glistened with glossy purple and indigo. A hot, flaming breath of violet, purple, and indigo rushed out and beamed between all four beams. The attack pulsed not the shield, creating a massive shockwave that made Maggie back away. Meanwhile, Jelldon was barely holding onto himself. He grunted as he tried to hold up his shield, but Atchibee's fire power was really pushing him. He couldn't hold on much longer until the shield's density was penetrated by the dark flames, drawing closer.

"Jelldon, Attribute Change!"

Just as the flames erupted, the shield burst like a bubble. Darkness enveloped something like an inferno, leaving hot winds to pass Esther and Atchibee as they remained calm. They merely looked on as the lames were brushed by sand. The sand spiraled around a base that wasn't visible until it receded, revealing Jelldon in his Subterra form.

"So you're going with another attribute change." Esther deduced. "Is this going to be your style from now on?"

Maggie sighed. "I don't know. Ever since we evolved, Jelldon's whole set had made him completely versatile. He was all defense before, but now he's that and more offense." She pinched the bridge of her nose. "Honestly, this whole evolving thing is still confusing me."

"I don't know, I kinda like it." Jelldon chimed. "What about you, Atchibee?"

The moth raised her scythes, looking at their shimmering purple edges. "If I'm being honest, I've never felt so…elated. It's strange." She suddenly charged at Jelldon with a scythed slunk back. With one swing, she caught Jelldon by surprise and he was sliced into. The alien-jellyfish cried out as he was repulsed, but as he pivoted, his tentacle backslapped Atchibee. She used her scythed to block the Atchibee, but the smack sent her a few meters into the air.

Esther sighed in relief. "That's good. I thought something may have gone wrong. That's assuring."

Maggie hummed as hands were to her hips. "Oh? What's this? Worried about something other than Luke for once?" she cooed.

Esther's eyes widened. "W-what?!" she shrieked, causing Maggie to giggle.

"Oh nothing, just yanking your chains. Just seems that you and Luke are rather…close, right?"

Esther had a small tint of pink in her cheeks. She huffed as she raised her head. "I think you're more absurd than usual. He's my friend, I'm supposed to worry about him."

"Alright, if you say so." Maggie shrugged. She saw the calmed composition on Esther's face return, in fact colder than ever. She was really trying to focus. 'Wow she's stubborn about this. Guess breaking the ice with her and Luke is gonna be tough…and that means all the more fun for us!'

"Enough small talk, it's time to take action."

"Right!" They both readied more abilities as Jelldon and Atchibee both charged for one another.

---

Ren was typing in coordinates at a rapid pace. He had to make sure this attack plan would go as smoothly as possible. To do that, he had to make sure that he followed whatever advice Alice and Jase had to offer. "Almost done…" He inserted the last component to the lineup, completing the set. "And…there!" He overlooked the entire board, seeing the massive army that was organized according to specific lineups. "Done. Not bad."

"That's great." Alice commented.

"Thank you." He looked towards Jase and Alice. "But it was all thanks to you two. You both have my greatest regards."

Jase adjusted his glasses with a straight face. "No thanks are necessary. As former military personnel, it's important for even the slightest details in knowing your enemies just as important as knowing your allies." He wouldn't lie either if he actually did miss ordering around the soldiers beneath him though, but out of humble respects, he kept to himself and smirked. "Now then, let's go over this one more time. We'll start off by using Bakugan from the air to bombard and surprise attack the grounded Bakugan. From there, Bakugan who are adept at underground such as your Luxtor shall have the element of surprise. They're more than likely still have more firepower, so after the first wave, use a defensive squad to nullify and repel any abilities, and thus behind there, have your cancellers and ability preventers ready to neutralize them. Then go for the assault for the Battlegear and Mobile Assaults. This shall be the very basic of our strategy. If push comes to shove, we'll use high-speed Mobile Assault vehicles to divert attention to allow the slow, heavy fighters to attack and backup the speed runners."

It was a lot of information to process. Even Alice found herself at a loss for words at Jase's military insight. She helped in setting up the Bakugan based on attributes and abilities, but seeing Jase put the plan to action almost shut her down.

After all the processing, Ren took the flash drive out of the insert, making the holographic projection vanish. "Thanks for the help. Now we might actually have a way to stop them and drive these guys out."

"We'll see. We don't know much beyond Riaan's spontaneous advances, but it's better to retain caution for the worst." Jase commented.

After the meeting, Ren dismissed himself to configure the plans to his troops. Meanwhile, Alice and Jase walked down the hallway to where it would lead them outside. A small silence fell between them before Alice had chosen to break it.

"So…Jase was it?" Alice started. "Thanks for the help. Ren looked like he really appreciated it."

"It was no trouble." Jase answered nonchalantly. "I just uphold a degree of military experience, that's all. And we're painfully aware that even the littlest experience does in fact make a difference."

"I can't argue with you there." A brief moment of silence fell before she continued. "So Jase."

"Yes?"

"You were part of the B.I.F, right? What made you decide to leave?

The Ventus battler grinned. He could see some sort of parallel forming from her question, but he continued. "Well, to be honest, it involved something everyone else showed me."

"Everyone?" Alice was genuinely confused.

"It's a trick answer to such a simple question. As part of the B.I.F, I was compelled to save Earth by any means. We aligned ourselves with the Bakugan and influenced them into our ranks…and at some point, well, you can say I was the sole reason we went too far in one operation."

Alice remained silent, allowing Jase to continue.

"I left on accounts of my actions, actions that would've made me no less sinister than those Interacians who turned their Bakugan into slaves. If it weren't Luke and his insistence, perhaps things would've ended differently for my career."

"That must have been a hard decision, throwing everything your whole life around." She realized how harsh her choice of words were and lowered her head. "I'm sorry."

Jase shook his head. "No, don't be. I made my choice. And besides…" he chuckled. "This style of living is…well, rather amusing."

"Everyone looks so close to one another." Alice grinned.

"I have no reason to believe why we shouldn't. Trust is part of a foundation of a functioning team…it's quite ironic, considering it was the least trustworthy amongst all of us who brought us all together again."

"You mean Luke?" Alice's eyes widened in realization.

Jase prodded his glasses. "Yes. The details of what he did are another story entirely. But what matters is that if that problem child could see some semblance of light in this weary soldier, then maybe there's hope for us yet."

Alice could hear the witty sarcasm spewed in parts of what he said, but to some degree, she could understand the situation. Shun didn't seem too trusting to have relied on her to come with them, so she turned towards Luke and the others. A soft smile crept onto her face. "You must really value Luke, don't you?"

"Yes, quite a lot in fact." He smirked. "He makes for quite the entertaining pet."

Alice blinked confusedly. She was caught surprised by Jase but chose to ignore it. "I'm gonna go see if we can find some water around here."

"If not water, a liable purified liquid will do." Jase said. "I'll scout the area to see if any enemy Bakugan are around."

With a nod, Alice tended to her own matters. She walked off elsewhere while Jase went in another direction far out. He eventually found himself along a small plateau that was overlooking the base. From the high point, he could see almost everything the base had to offer. From the massive dome that was Ren's compound, to the humungous yet very reliable Trailer; Jase took it all in, and in the vast distance near the canyons outback, he could barely make out small explosions, which were the other guys' training no doubt. A part of him felt obligated to join, but seeing them all work hard brought a small tint of pride in his heart, though he thought little of it.

His mind then drifted back to the conversation they had, her words ringing in his head. "You must really value Luke, don't you?"

The former colonel found himself deep into thought with what Alice said about Luke. Granted, he did find him a nuisance at times, but a much less reckless one; one that came to be respect. He still believed that Luke could still use room for maturing, sure, but unlike before, the colonel didn't have to hold his hand and drag him along in order to make a point. Instead, Luke has proven himself to be capable of understanding and growing up on his own now. He was impressed…even more so than with himself. If this were to have happened a few months ago, he'd meekly chuckle at being some child's fantasy, but he found himself caught up in the mess, and is stuck with them. Though, deep down, he wouldn't have mind…though he'd sooner be dead than admit that fact to everyone else.

"Atmos."

The Ventus Bakugan – who was perched on his shoulder the entire time – finally chose to speak. "Yes, Jase?"

"We've come far, have we not?"

"In lightyear standards, sure. But I think I understand what you mean." The falcon mused a grin. "Though it's because we have them holding us up, right?"

Jase looked back to see the others in the vast distance. His face remained unchanged, although there was a small tug at the corner of his lips.

"Shall we give pursuit?"

"I don't see why not." Jase went on his way to join his comrades, but when he thought the perimeter check was secure, he suddenly stopped when an intense pressure caused his head to perk up. He slowly walked to a halt when he felt something behind his back. This heavy toll was easy to tell, but this energy was much stronger than usual. He prodded his glasses with a huff.

When he slowly turned around, the air felt stale, but he persevered. Meters away from him, two figures overlooked him, as if they've been watching him this whole time. One figure had dark skin with dreads, and the other was a light-skinned wavy-haired blonde in a ballroom gown. Despite their appeal, he remained stern.

"May I help you both with something?" he asked rhetorically. He had a grim feeling crawling up his back just from looking at them. 'That apparel…they're…'

Magnus stepped forward, but Lucia reached in front. "Allow me." Taking a step back, Magnus allowed Lucia to step forward to talk to Jase.

"Jase." Atmos warned.

"Yes, I know Atmos…I can tell something about these two." He eyed Lucia quietly, watching her advance towards him. The ominous vibe she gave off intensified further with each step.

When she was within arm's reach, the eloquent beauty glared boastfully at Jase. "Greetings, my good sir." She started. "I apologize for coming on such notice."

Jase decided to play along. "It's quite alright. Though I have to wonder, how exactly have you come to this place? May I ask from where you are from perhaps?"

Magnus scoffed. "Please."

Lucia shot a look over her shoulder before looking back at Jase. "Forgive him. My associate means no harm."

"It's quite alright." Jase answered. "I've known fellows like him before. Similar-case scenario."

"My apologies once again, good sir, but I'm afraid that we're on a schedule at the moment." Lucia looked down behind Jase, seeing the massive base and all the weaponry that was available. She took it all in, and looked at Jase. "You are familiar with this base, are you not?

"More or less. Just been transferred here."

"I see, and this is the number of arsenals that they have…and out in the open." She added. "How vexing."

As she was talking, Magnus was using his Bakumeter to get readings. He was looking into the area via video camcorder on the device, and soon he closed it. He got a good look and nodded, that's all what Lucia needed.

"May I ask why you're invested in this domain?" Jase added, the rhetorical wits he and Lucia sharing starting to wear off.

The Haos battler closed her eyes. "I believe you may already know the answer to that, Jase Mercury."

Jase and Atmos fell silent. Their instincts were telling them this was going to get bad.

"I believe you are well-aware of who we are, so allow us to cut to the chase. My name is Lucia Artemia. My associate her is Magnus Hunt." She gestured over towards Magnus, who crossed his arms. "We have come from the land of Interacia, a world that of which you and your friends violated. I do apologize if that sounds harsh, but my lord Riaan's patience will wear thin enough as it is."

"So then you're well aware of us I take it?"

"…yes. We've been very much aware of all these actions, solemnly by your hands. Your actions have reflected badly on our associates, much more so than the Brawlers have in fact."

Jase fell silent as he tried to figure out what she meant, then it hit him. 'Does she mean Rogue Zero?'

"You may also be wondering just who we might be specifically, am I right?" Lucia continued. "We've come in place of the ones that you call Rogue Zero. We are the true name of Riaan's forces."

Jase remained silent as he processed all this. He's only heard about them perhaps once, and he most certainly recognized her from Interacia. To hear her announce herself and her associate's titles was humbling, especially since the Brawlers didn't know. But that made it all the more reason to be on guard.

"Now then, speaking as a representative and our mission of reconnaissance accomplished, I'd rather not have anymore trouble stirring for our operations. I told you of this because our associates acknowledged you as a threat to our plan. So consider this…" she cleared her throat, allowing Magnus to take over.

"Look buddy, your friends are off elsewhere, so you're all alone. So if you're smart, you'll know to listen to us. If you and your friends return to Earth now, we assure you, no harm will come to your way."

Jase could feel the crude tone's judgement. It sounded more like a demand than a warning. Taking a gander he decided to play a fool. "I see…and by some happenstance that we can't?"

Magnus scoffed. "You mean you will?"

"Now, now, let's not get ahead of ourselves. I'm sure we both have our reasons for being here, but I see no reason for us to turn back to a dying world empty-handed now, wouldn't you say?"

Lucia scoffed back, showing some kind of amused grin. "For once, I would have to agree, Jase Mercury." She frowned. "But still, if you do not relay the message to return home, you and your friends will not survive."

"From whom exactly?"

Lucia's glare hardened. A light-like energy started to swell around her. "…you know whom I refer to. I'm having quite enough of this backhanding play we are having."

The atmosphere in the air began to shift once again. Jase and the two people he was against could feel it, the tension building between all of them escalating dramatically. Seeing the scenario turning for the worst, Jase stepped back. While doing that, he reached behind with his hands behind the back. He pressed a button on his Bakumeter, relaying some kind of signal.

"Looks like he's taking a stand, Lucia." Magnus interjected.

"Yes, I can see that." Her glared hardened. "By the way, I'd advise you don't send a distress signal…we've already taken care of that." She and Magnus held up their Bakumeters, which were beeping to signify a radar of sorts.

Jase leaned forward with a slightly determined glare. "I see…so you knew I would do that as well?"

"Like I said, we've been keeping quite few tabs on our associates. Their responsibilities are now ours, and thus so are you to deal with."

Magnus reached for his specialized Glotronoid. "Lucia, enough. Is he gonna battle us?"

Lucia scoffed once again. "Yes, it's painfully obvious by now." She held up Glotronoid. "If he does not find ample reason, then we shall give him one."

Finding no means out, Jase took one look back at the base, hoping someone would be within range. Unfortunately, it looked like no one was around at this time. Either guards were on break or were patrolling elsewhere. He faced his foes once again, giving them a stern glare.

"Jase, we should be careful." Atmos whispered.

Jase propped his glasses again. "I'm well aware of our situation, Atmos…the one in particular especially." His attention drew towards Lucia as he recalled the video and framed that the Brawlers took when battling. "These are very powerful opponents, with one having the ability to perceive the future."

"Then what shall we do?"

A moment of silence fell as Jase began to strategize. Odds are she knows what he's going to do; he's just going to have to wing it if he can.

Lucia: 100% Jase: 100%

Magnus: 100%

"I find this matchup hardly fair, but orders are indeed orders." Lucia said. "This is your last chance. We know how this shall end, and we'll make the future for our beloved lord Riaan's eyes."

"Is that so?" Jase countered. "Everyone wishes to see themselves in the future by some measure of standards. They want to see things fulfilled, and use that as an incentive to act…which is precisely what we are doing as well. To free the future from eminent control."

"So, a future you cannot control? That doesn't make any sense." Magnus turned towards Lucia as she was stiff. "Alright, what's the first move gonna be?"

Lucia had her eyes shut as she was focusing on her foresight. Her mind went white as she was getting pictures of battle images. She was seeing Atmos launching attacks with strong winds, countered by claws and orange waves that he was evading. Her eyes flashed open. "Magnus, you may act first." She stated calmly. "You will start off, and then he will counter."

"So like the Brawlers huh? Simple and easy, I like it." He picked up a Gate Card. "Gate Card, set!" He threw the Gate Card into battle, making it fade into a light brown shockwave across the gray ground. He picked up his Glotronoid and threw him in. "Bakugan, brawl! Glotronoid, stand!"

In a harsh orange-brown light, the ground suddenly crumbled as gravity intensified around Glotronoid as the Bakugan stood. The lizard-like Bakugan's eyes opened, unleashing a shrilled roar as his sharp nails glistened.

With his adversary's Bakugan out, Jase calmly reached for Atmos. "If this is how you intend, please, allow me to entertain you if you so see it. Bakugan, brawl!" He shot Atmos into play. "Bakugan, stand! Rise, Ventus Gale Atmos!"

In a green whirlwind, Gale Atmos arose for battle with a menacing caw.

Glotronoid: 700 Gale Atmos: 600

Magnus pulled up an ability card from his Bakumeter. "Ability, activate! Glow Jacket!" Glotronoid's body began glowing a bright orange, the accents illuminating everything around the Bakugan. His power level was seen shooting up by 300 Gs.

Glotronoid: 700 (+300) = 1000 Gale Atmos: 600

Glotronoid charged ahead, assaulting with a bright, empowering glow.

"Jase." Atmos ensued.

The Ventus battler nodded. "Very well, ability activate, Omni Storm!" Gale Atmos spread all his wings and exerted one massive flap of all of them at the same time, unleashing a massive green shockwave that stopped Glotronoid's advances. The Bakugan covered up as Atmos' strong winds were whipping up violent gusts that flowed into the winds, propelling more force that blasted the lizard.

Glotronoid: 1000 Gale Atmos: 600 (+400) = 1000

"Now what?" Magnus asked Lucia.

Lucia closed her eyes once again. She held her composition as concentration slowly sunk in. In her vision, she saw an incoming talon, then what looked like a small orange laser that was looking to be maneuvered with increased speed. Slowly she opened her eyes again. "He's making a direct assault. Be ready."

Glotronoid was buffered by the winds and kept sturdy, but the blockade left him open for him to be struck by a talon. The claws buffered him enough that he lost balance on one leg. Atmos kicked once again, scoring a sweep across his face that floored him.

"Oh!" Magnus winced. "Damn, that falcon can fight. Ability, activate! Mal Impact!"

Glotronoid looked up as Atmos was at a high point for defense. The small dot on the forehead shined a bright orange, releasing a narrow laser that barreled after Atmos. The falcon evaded and swerved through the air, dodging the beam with grace.

Glotronoid: 1000 (+200) = 1200 Gale Atmos: 1000 (-200) = 800

Atmos continued evading around the laser, narrowly minding the close calls. He twirled around and broke into a sharp turn around it.

Jase pulled up an ability to hep compensate. "Ability activate, Tailwind!" Atmos suddenly was whipped up in a strong whiplash of tempest just as the laser was about to graze his feathers. The whirlwinds made him momentarily disappear, but neither of Hades Pillars showed any signs of shock. As predicted, Atmos soared around at alarming rates, breaking into a nosedive straight below. He ziplined into a sharp turn across the ground towards Glotronoid. Thankfully he was much faster to escape the barrage of lasers shot at him and barreled into Glotronoid's chest. Despite the armor, the intensified speed gave too much momentum, forcing the Bakugan onto its back a second time.

Glotronoid: 1200 Gale Atmos: 800 (+300) = 1100

Magnus winced again. "Man!"

"Suppose this is my turn now." Lucia humbly held up Lumitroid. "Very well then…Bakugan, brawl!" She gracefully tossed Lumitroid into battle. "Haos Lumitroid, stand!"

In a luminescent light, the magenta and bright yellow glow gave way to another Bakugan, being the cyclopean scorpion that had black and magenta scales over it. Its menacing hiss shrieked through the atmosphere.

Glotronoid: 1200 Gale Atmos: 1100

Lumitroid: 700

"So it appears she is participating now." Jase observed.

"You say the future cannot be controlled, that it is meant to be held in the grasps of no one, correct?" Lucia slowly held up an ability card. "Then if that's true, then do try to change the course of this battle. Ability activate, Cluster Brace!" Lumitroid's claws aimed for the falcon and fired yellow lasers in a steep climb.

Glotronoid: 1200 Gale Atmos: 1100 (-200) = 900

Lumitroid: 700 (+200) = 900

As the attack shot at Atmos, Lucia began seeing images in her mind. They were fast, but she could tell the figment of nails slashing, to a shimmering light draining power, leading up to vicious typhoons slicing into them. She opened her eyes to relay the message. "He will evade with great speed, then you will parry with Nail Predator. Once his guard is dropped, you will open the Gate Card, to which he will counter."

"Alright." Magnus nodded.

Atmos did just as Lucia predicted and evaded her attack. The Bakugan maneuvered through the air to aim for a better angle in order to counterattack. He shifted and spiraled until he was above. That's when Magnus made the move.

"Ability, activate! Nail Predator!" Glotronoid shot up in a harsh lunge at Atmos. With the angle timed right – as predicted – the nails glowed bright orange and he raked the claws into the falcon. He managed to evade the slash, barely losing a few feathers, but the momentum let him little room to barely dodge another swipe. Narrowly missing, Atmos descended in a slight daze.

Glotronoid: 1200 (+300) = 1500 Gale Atmos: 900 (-300) = 600

Lumitroid: 900

Atmos shook his head to wear off the dizziness. 'Those slashes almost had me. They're sharp and strong…they're not messing around it seems.'

"Now." Lucia voiced.

Magnus nodded and reached out. "Gate Card, open! Enemy Down!" The Gate Card shined brightly beneath them, but Atmos was the one who was feeling grounded. His talons gripped the card as his energy was being sapped further.

Glotronoid: 1500 Gale Atmos: 600 (-300) = 300

Lumitroid: 900

Atmos struggled to find solid room, but the Ventus Bakugan was having trouble. Glotronoid closed in with glowing claws and slashed Atmos across the face, causing him to recoil in a harsh cry.

Lucia didn't look too interested as her eyes were shut. "He'll be using the ability…I advise Glotronoid takes a few steps back."

Magnus snapped his fingers at his associate's insistence. Glotronoid backpedaled just as Atmos' recoil subsided. The falcon glared, his wings spread despite how drained he felt.

"Ability, activate!" Jase announced. "Typhoon Splice!"

Atmos' eyes dilated as an energy shifted around him. The tempests and gusts around him before returned, however, they were gathering in a strong funnel beneath him. The whirlwinds turned into a conical cyclone that Atmos was in the middle of that began to expand. And with the Tailwind ability active, the winds evolved into a hurricane that swallowed the Gate Card, shredding it to pieces that flung into Glotronoid and Lumitroid.

Glotronoid: 1500 (-1200 -100) = 200 Gale Atmos: 300 (+300) = 600

Lumitroid: 900 (-600 -100) = 200

The winds were surprisingly strong, even for Lucia. The Haos and Subterra battlers were buffered as the hurricane was howling like thunder, making it almost impossible for them to see.

"Typhoon Splice, it is an ability that not only nullifies the opponent's Gate Card." Jase spoked calmly, but through the winds no one could make out. "But it also reduces all the opponents' power levels to half of Gale Atmos' current G-Power." He reached out. "Atmos!"

With the whirlwinds as cover, Atmos went to seize Glotronoid by the shoulder. Using his iron-crushing talons, the falcon lifted and glided skywards through the hurricane, following its course. When he came in full circle, the falcon unleashed a shout as he hurled Glotronoid into Lumitroid. The impact was so strong that both were sundered. Within the dust cloud created, a flash of brown and yellow made two balls clutter on the ground in front of Lucia and Magnus.

Lucia: 20%

Magnus: 20%

Atmos reverted to ball form, to which Jase caught with relative ease.

Lucia moved to pick up her Bakugan, not looking fazed by this sudden backdrop. Even if she did predict it, she seemed relatively calm about this backdrop and her opponent's power. "That was a most brilliant show indeed to you." She remarked. "To any human, that would be most impressive."

"None taken." Jase replied.

"Still, despite this, you will not be aloud to alter the future. It is but a necessity to our plans."

"I figured as much coming from someone so devoted to his Majesty." Jase remarked. He was feeling another energy shift, and thus he obligated to hold his ground. "But regardless of how you see it, I'd rather not settle this with mere words alone. Just because one has the power of foresight, doesn't mean that they can control it."

Lucia sighed in annoyance. "You're just like Cesar." She looked at Jase again to see visions of the scientist that was recently disposed of. The consistence of his inventing saying it would 'revolutionize' the world rung in her head. It only served to silently aggravate her. "Cesar always raved on about creating a future…but in the end I can still see it. No matter what happens, what I see will always prevail…even if it ends in fatal disaster."

There was a hint of dread in her voice that Jase picked up on, but he showed no visible compliance.

"Lucia, focus." Magnus scoffed.

Taking a deep breath, Lucia adjusted. "I'm fine." She closed her eyes, seeking into her psychic abilities. "…Magnus, he will start off by subtracting power. Nullify that ability, then I shall go on the attack."

"Okay."

Taking a Gate Card, Jase threw it into battle. "Gate Card, set!" He threw the card into battle. 'She must already be aware of what my intentions are. Therefore, a Command Card would hamper us in the end.' With his intentions in mind, he threw Atmos into battle. "Bakugan, brawl! Atmos, stand!"

Once more in a green whirlwind, Atmos ascended into battle.

"Bakugan, brawl! Bakugan, stand!" Both Lucia and Magnus threw their Bakugan in as well, all three Bakugan ready for battle.

Glotronoid: 700 Gale Atmos: 600

Lumitroid: 700

Jase raised his arm. "Gate Card, open! Ventus Reactor!" The Gate Card opened, and the Ventus insignia revealed itself. A green whirlwind shot up from beneath Atmos, giving him greater altitude and a much higher advantage point.

Glotronoid: 700 Gale Atmos: 600 (+300) = 900

Lumitroid: 700

Jase pulled out another ability. "Ability activate, Quad Vortex!" Gale Atmos undid the blades on the wing joints, which started spinning like propellers. The fan-like hums were so strong that actual whirlwinds were being shot at Glotronoid and Lumitroid. Four intense funnels swallowed up both Bakugan, making them incapable of movement.

Glotronoid: 700 (-400) = 300 Gale Atmos: 900

Lumitroid: 700 (-400) = 300

Magnus grunted as the winds were buffering him. They were so strong that his dreadlocks were flaring wildly.

"Magnus!" Lucia barked.

"Yeah, I know!" he pulled up an ability. "Ability, activate! Sterilize Shield!" Glotronoid dug in his heels and generated an orange-brown barrier around him and Lumitroid. The strong winds were repulsed, allowing leverage for both Bakugan to wait out the storm.

Glotronoid: 300 (+400) = 700 Gale Atmos: 900

Lumitroid: 300 (+400) = 700

Once the winds from Atmos' ability had subsided, Jase realized what happened. "I see, so you've nullified my ability."

"I'm afraid so." Lucia answered with as much emotion as Jase did – which was none. "Now then, as memorable as your strength is, let's see how it fares against the wrath of Haos. Ability activate, Scorpion Needle!" Lumitroid hissed as it looked up, firing a yellow arrow at Atmos from the stinger on the tail.

"On your guard, Atmos." Jase warned.

"Yes, I'm well aware." The falcon remained steadfast as he glared the incoming yellow arrow. Surprisingly it was a lot faster than what he expected, but it wasn't anything he couldn't handle.

"Now! Ability activate, Vacuum Turmoil!" Atmos created another turbulence from his propellers and started whirling them around. The green cyclone caught the yellow attack, making it follow the draft back at Lumitroid. The vortex and light combined and crashed into Lumitroid, creating an intense rumble throughout the cliffs.

---

Alice was making way through the Gundalian grounds, minding her own business. "Gnnngh…wow, this stuff is heavy…" she mumbled aloud. To her own surprise, hauling solutions took a lot more effort than what she thought. She was carrying tubs of clear liquids that she was able to procure from sinks in the inside area. Ren assured her it was drinking material, but the dark solution it had made her less than appealed by it. "Come one…" She grumbled as she hauled it up. Using what frail strength her arms had, she lifted with all her might, slowly tipping the solution into the mail-like slot of the Trailer's filter tank system. Once it was all emptied, she fell onto her knees, sighing heavily. "There…finally done." She couldn't believe how long that took, but she was very glad to have it all accomplished. She was used to washing dishes and sweeping rugs, but this heavy lifting stuff wasn't her style. Granted she said she would help them in any way they could, she would've preferred something a little less…back-paining. 'Maybe next time I should've been warned about what I need to do.'

From the upper cliffs, the looks of a shockwave rattled the ground. Alice and Hydranoid looked up, seeing a dust cloud in the distance.

"What was that just now?" Alice questioned. "Another earthquake…?" Suddenly her skin started crawling with an uneasy tension hurting her senses. 'Wait, this feeling…'

"Alice, do you feel that?" Hydranoid asked.

"Yeah, I do." She looked up towards the cliffs, her big brown eyes fixed with an unsure glare. She could feel negative energy flare in a battle happening. Everything in her body was telling her to do something…and unlike before, that's exactly what she intends. "Let's go, Hydranoid!" She took off towards the nearest point to climb.

---

The winds and shockwaves from Atmos' redirected blast left the landscape in ruins. The light of Lumitroid's recent blast added to the effect; it would've been an explosive sting if it had made actual contact if the added eruptions meant anything. Jase and Atmos remained stern and silent as they looked through the dust, being weary of how much stronger these foes may be.

When the dust cleared, Lumitroid was seen standing still, though the shimmer around the body was a clear indication of some lamented coating of sorts. "A defensive ability." Jase realized.

"Ability, Scale Defense." The rest of the dust cleared, revealing Lucia holding up an ability of her own that she used at the last second. "Most impressive, Jase Mercury. To use an attack knowing to not take chances against foes who you have very limited knowledge against. Considered myself honored…perhaps more so than the Brawlers themselves."

Jase and Atmos looked admirably honored, but they still showed no interest in praise.

"It would seem that convincing you otherwise will require more…sufficient measures to be handle." She looked over at Magnus. "Magnus, be ready on my account."

Magnus held his Bakumeter up, readying for what may happen next.

"Now then, to proceed with our intentions. Ability, activate! Luminous Arrow!" Lumitroid raised its head and the eye started glowing bright. From the eye, an intense yellow arrow – fare bigger than the previous attack – shot in a direct line over the leveled earth towards Atmos.

Glotronoid: 700 Gale Atmos: 900 (-400) = 500

Glotronoid: 700

The bright yellow, extensive arrow shot and stretched across the sky towards Atmos. The Ventus Bakugan glared as he knew better than to take it head-on like some lump. But he also knew Jase had ways of countering a foe like this. And sure enough, what came next was as he and Jase figured.

"Double ability, activate!" Jase countered. "Diagonal Relation of Ventus and Haos, and Tornado Slash!"

With Lumitroid being a Haos Bakugan, Atmos' Ventus powers began to take in all that light power. His power flared in a sharp green aura, giving him amplified power as he flapped his wings, shooting green sawblades through the air. They shredded through the light with relative ease, blazing into Lumitroid and Glotronoid.

Glotronoid: 700 (-200) = 500 Gale Atmos: 500 (+300) = 800

Lumitroid: 700 (-200) = 500

The enhanced saws closed in on the two enemies, but that's as what Lucia expected.

"Magnus…now."

Another ability revealed itself on his Bakumeter. "Ability, activate! Hyper Nail Predator!" Glotronoid crossed his claws and lunged at the attacks. However, the claws not only glowed this time, but they also lengthened into far longer, sharper versions that slashed clean through Atmos' attack.

Glotronoid: 500 (+300) = 800 Gale Atmos: 800 (-300) = 500

Lumitroid: 500

Glotronoid slashed through saw after saw, continuing his path towards Atmos. The falcon prompted to ascend, but the lizard's raking snatched a leg. Atmos cringed at the jerk downwards, putting him at eye level with Glotronoid. Suddenly Glotronoid vanished, only to reappear seconds behind Atmos with crossed claws that reverted to normal.

Atmos looked at him quizzically until he realized what happened. He tensed up, but orange gashes exploded around hi body. He cawed lightly as the harsh jolts of pain made him lose feeling in his body long enough for Glotronoid to turn around and slash his claws again, causing him to revert to ball form and roll to Jase's side.

Jase: 40%

Hades Pillars' Bakugan reverted to ball form, both caught without flaw.

Jase moved to pick up Atmos. He lifted him, prodding his glasses in the process. "That was my mistake, Atmos. I apologize if you're feeling shock still."

"That is not your fault." The chiding came from Lucia. "That was fate's doing. It merely decided to let you lose the round this time. And I am fate's messenger."

Jase hummed to himself. "You sure preach when you talk so amply about control…are you afraid of losing grasp of it?"

Lucia showed no visible signs of wear, again. "On the contrary. In fact, I'd be interested to see anyone try to hold up a hand to fate."

"How vexing, and you don't?"

Lucia fell silent for a moment. She thought back to a vision of something long ago. She could still hear the cries of many who refused to listen to her. Her mind was a mess with all the ignorant lives around her who refused to listen to her psychic abilities back then. That all changed when a figment in the form of Riaan reached out to her one day. Bittersweet memories were shoved back down as her face remained unchanged. "…it doesn't matter in the end. Whatever I see, that is the destiny that fate has decided. Don't take it personally."

"I'll try to keep that in mind." Jase's intuition that they were getting started. This paramount energy riling through the atmosphere was nothing short of a foreboding.

"Jase."

"Yes, Atmos…I fear this may as well be our last chance. We mustn't allow any mistakes this time…now, let us proceed."

Magnus turned towards Lucia. "Alright, so what's next."

Lucia closed her eyes once again and calmed her mind. Her vision at keen levels, she was beginning to see flashed of explosions and beguiling darkness swirling into one. Followed by a barrage of other attack which were blocked out by searing light and earth. Without warning she held up a Gate Card and flung it out, making it fade into a ripple across the ground. "Follow my lead." She ordered. "Hold back until I use it, then we'll make our claims."

"Alright."

All three contenders brought up and threw their Bakugan at the same time. "Bakugan, brawl!"

All three Bakugan arose for battle again, all of them emitting shrieks and roars of battle.

Glotronoid: 700 Gale Atmos: 600

Lumitroid: 700

Magnus went for the first strike. "Ability, activate! Bright Cell!" Glotronoid's chest area began to shine brightly before an intense brown-orange laser raced after Atmos in the sky. As it ascended, his power shot up to 1100.

Jase countered promptly with an ability. "Ability activate, Aurai Shield!" Gale Atmos spread all four of his wings, allowing the propeller blades to extend once again, spinning like plane propellers to create a wall of green winds that blocked the beam from making contact with the falcon.

"Lucia, I believe it's your turn." Magnus ensued.

"Yes, I believe that it is." Lucia daintily reached out. "Ability activate, Flash Fade!" Lumitroid's eye widened as the cyclopean scorpion glared at Atmos. The light shined brightly from his eye, radiating light that was blinding Atmos.

"Gnngh…what is this?" he grunted, his body losing strength. "My strength, it's…" As he was trying to fend off the light, his shield broke down, leaving nothing between him and the laser, At the last second, he realized this and moved his neck, narrowly escaping the ray that beamed skywards.

Glotronoid: 700 (+400) = 1100 Gale Atmos: 600 (-300) = 300

Lumitroid: 700

Atmos began taking evasive maneuvers as he tried evading the bright beam that followed him. With eloquent grace and maneuverability, he beamed around the atmosphere to try and get away, all while looking for a clean opening. But whenever he looked down, Lumitroid's bright light was making it hard to keep watch without having to look away for a second.

"You cannot escape the light, no one can." Lucia said. "I've learned this fact long ago, when my great savior Lord Riaan vowed to help my light see to creating a future for us Interacians."

Magnus said nothing as he continued exacting attacks.

Atmos, with no alternatives, finally chose to ascend. He got high up, allowing Jase to give an idea. "Ability activate, Float World!" The falcon's wings allowed him to glide and remain airborne as the propellers made him shoot straight up. Meanwhile, the ground was surrounded by a green fog-like substance, allowing Lumitroid's light to be snuffed out for a moment.

Glotronoid: 1100 Gale Atmos: 300 (+300) = 600

Lumitroid: 700

'That may not have been much.' Jase thought. 'But, at least it got us out of range from their attacks.' He had to be swift with his next strike, and it had to be now. It could be here that the match can possibly be decided.

"It looks like he's running away." Magnus acknowledged. "Now I take it?"

"No, not quite." Lucia chided. "Allow me to go first…" She slowly lifted her Bakumeter, showing an ability. However, this ability was giving off a very peculiar pressure; one that got Jase on his guard almost instantly.

'It looks like she's ready to make a point.'

"Jase Mercury, for your actions against the will of our great and divine Lord Riaan, you shall feel the wrath of the true might that we possess. And now…you shall feel its light shine onto you. Ability, activate!" The card started shining brightly, signaling its activation.

The air around Jase began to get warmer all of a sudden. The drastic climb in the atmosphere caught him and Atmos on higher defense than what they imagined.

"Lens-X!"

A bright core appeared in front of Lumitroid, extracting chords and contracting them tightly around the body. The constriction slowly embedded into the scales, leaving him momentarily stunned for a moment before a massive heartbeat rang through his system, causing veins to corrode throughout the scales.

Jase and Atmos could feel a bright power flowing from all around, and around them, actual photons and light was hurrying into the center of Lumitroid. They were stunned as they saw a massive lens of raw light condensed in front, like some kind of optical shield. And it wasn't just them who were stunned. The entire cliff side was resonating a strong pressure from the light.

Inside Ren's base, Ren was having a meeting with his men. He was going over the tactics of what he and Alice had planned and explained them to his men. "Okay guys, then we'll have this unit stationed back here for the defensive lineup. Once there…" He trailed off as the entire room was beginning to crawl with an uneasy feeling. "What the…?" A light tremor began vibrating beneath their feet, causing an uneasy shake. "What the heck is this? Is this actual power…?!"

Even farther away, Esther went wide-eyed as she and Maggie stopped their battle to look towards the massive light source from afar. Luke, and the other boys were also looking surprised.

"Guys, what the heck is that?" Shuji asked.

"I don't know, but it's bright." Shawn answered, covering his face with his forearms. 'Wait, does this planet even get a sun? But I thought this was all under-!'

Abis could feel his scales crawl with an uneasy tension. "I have a bad feeling about this."

"You too?" Verias inquired.

"Make that three." Fly Beetle added.

Luke gnawed at his own teeth. As he saw the light in the distance, every bone in his body was telling him that something was wrong. He couldn't ignore this pain in his gut telling him to go. 'What's this pressure? I don't like this feeling…' Swallowing a lump, he took to his heels and bolted ahead. "Guys, let's head that way!"

"Right!" Reading him like a book, they got onto their Bakugan and took off darting towards the light.

The lens of raw light had finally formed, creating a massive shield of light in front of Lumitroid. The Bakugan exerted a large hiss as the magenta accents on the body were glowing weakly.

Jase furrowed his brow as he looked down at his Bakumeter.

Glotronoid: 1100 Gale Atmos: 600

Lumitroid: 700 (+500) = 1200

'His power level only increased by 500 from that ability.' He tried looking directly at the strong light of the shield, but it was no use. Even from the distance the light was hot, hot enough to make him sweat. 'That ability must have forced Lumitroid to undergo some kind of telepathic light manipulation. He gathered all the light in the surrounding area into a shield.' He didn't know what kind of drawbacks there were to this ability, but he refused to take such chances. He aimed for Glotronoid. 'Perhaps we can settle for dealing with the backup if they're launching a blindsiding attack.' "Atmos, prepare yourself!"

Atmos remained high in the air as he glared down at Glotronoid. "Ready!"

"Ability, activate! Boreas Arrow!" Atmos' red jewels on his front started shining brightly with a bright green glow. The glow continued escalating as the energy was streaming into the beak. Once he was ready, Atmos opened wide and unleashed a voluminous green beam that bolted down towards Glotronoid.

Glotronoid: 1100 (-400) = 700 Gale Atmos: 600 (+400) = 1000

Lumitroid: 1200

The attack quickly closed a gap, making Glotronoid shoot another brown beam skywards. However, with momentum in Atmos' favor, the attack was too strong and ripped through the brown blast.

Magnus remained calm. "Please tell me you've got this."

"Yes, I do." Lucia showed another ability. "We shall show him the light's true worth…starting with this."

Jase felt another chill run up his spine. He felt the need to pull back run to the top priority in his mind. "Atmos, on your guard!"

Atmos pulled back on Jase's accounts, but Lucia was well on their tail.

"You cannot escape! Ability, activate! Irate Blazer!"

Lumitroid aimed for the massive light lens before him and fired a deep yellow, optical beam that bolted into the lens. The lens suddenly got brighter, bright enough to be considered a sun. From that lens, a monstrous ray as big as the lens itself with far deeper intensity and heat blazed skywards. The attack skyrocketed and ripped through Atmos' green beam with ease. The falcon was far from safe as he saw the attack heading his way.

Glotronoid: 700 Gale Atmos: 1000 (-900) = 100

Lumitroid: 1200 (+900) = 2100

The attack closed in on them, but they found no room to evade. The attack was going to hit them, but Jase – being the brains – knew when to use such power to his advantage.

"Ability activate, Vacuum Turmoil!" Gale Atmos realized he wasn't able to dodge in time, leaving him with little room to go about his aerial dynamics. He adjusted and started spinning his propellers, summoning a turbine stream around him. The stream was beginning to lengthen and take in all the beam, much to Magnus' surprise. Lucia, however, remained calm as he saw a cyclone of raw light and wind mix.

The air rumbled with disastrous roars, but the scientist persevered. "To use one's greatest power against them is a keen essence to battle." He reached down. "Atmos!"

With a menacing caw, Atmos screeched as he repulsed the raw light in the center of the beam. The monstrous light roared back down as winds circulated around it.

Glotronoid: 700 Gale Atmos: 100 (+900 +900 +100) = 2000

Lumitroid: 2100 (-900 -900 -100) = 200

The Jetstream of raw light was returning back towards them, but Lucia had no intentions on retreating or calling off. In fact, the way she grinned as the attack came towards her felt elating, more so than what she felt on New Vestroia. 'These humans. So this is what Rogue Zero had to worry about…' She huffed. 'I think I can see why now. Still…' Her brow furrowed. "Magnus, now you may."

Magnus scoffed. "About time." He showed an ability on his Bakumeter. Like before, the air around him intensified. "Ability, activate! Hazard Earth-X!"

A bright core shined on Glotronoid, just like on New Vestroia. However, as the constrictions on him were fading into his body, all the accents on his body were starting to glow magenta. A heartbeat rung around him, a dark brown aura manifesting.

The light and wind continued its course towards Glotronoid, but out of nowhere. Glotronoid appeared in front and his dark aura, taking the full blunt of the attack. In a flash, the wind and the light strayed off course into the surroundings far outside of their reach. Lucia and Magnus didn't bother looking back as the light and wind faded around them, corrupting into dozens of explosions miles away. As the rest of the attack dissipated, Glotronoid wasn't seen with a single scratch, like it never hit him.

Jase nor Atmos showed shock, but whether they didn't show it or not, that didn't stop to amaze them.

Glotronoid: 700 (+800) = 1500 Gale Atmos: 2000 (-1000) = 1000

Lumitroid: 200

Without showing a single drop of remorse, Glotronoid's aura-enhanced body caused him to vanish right before everyone's eyes. Atmos tried to register, but before he knew it, Glotronoid appeared in front. His fist collided with his abdomen, sending a sundering shock through Atmos' body as he fell limply towards the ground. Like a bullet, he smashed into the earth, gagging from recoil.

Glotronoid appeared besides Lumitroid as the light lens was still active, though it appeared a little smaller than before. "You've impressed me, Jase Mercury." Lucia scoffed. "To think that you could handle that much power by turning it against us. The Brawlers would've used power, but you…you and your friends are a sight to behold."

Jase had no words to say, not from shock but because there wasn't anything to be said. Atmos barely stood up as Glotronoid stood over him, like a predator ready to steal the life away from its prey.

"But even so, fate has other visions for me to bear witness to. We will see to it that Riaan's vision comes true…even if it means showing you all our strengths." She closed her eyes, looking content. "Now then, Magnus…"

"Yes?" He had hoped it was the signal to finish it, but he'd soon jinx himself.

"I'd advise Glotronoid to veer away as soon as possible."

As quick as her warning came, a bloodcurdling roar shouted throughout the air. The earth trembled as Glotronoid looked up just as three spiked tails crashed into him, causing him to jerk away. He gained ground as he came face to face with a pair of red claws that embedded into the ground. Three tails swung back behind three frilled heads, with red eyes with equally red but no less vicious teeth that could send chills down any child's spines.

A dark smile crept on Lucia's face. "Just as I predicted." She whispered.

"Jase!" a voice called from the distance. The called turned to see Alice running up to him.

"Alice." He said flatly, watching her run up to his side. "You came."

Catching her breath, she looked ahead. "I thought I felt a familiar energy spike around here." Her glare was especially fixed on Lucia and Magnus. "And it looks like I was right after all."

"Thanks for the assistance." Jase looked ahead.

"Don't mention it. The others aren't too far away either, we'll hold them off until you guys get back on your feet." Alice's glare hardened as her posture straightened. "Hydranoid, let's go."

The three-headed hydra unleashed a monstrous roar throughout the atmosphere. He was ready for a second round, and this time, he wasn't going to allow them a freebee like last time.

"Dude, you serious?" Magnus irritably asked. "Are you kidding me right now, Lucia?"

"As if I'd joke about the future." She scoffed back.

"Technicality. So what do we do now?"

"It's simple." She looked at Alice, seeing her determined, dark glare. It was actually exciting to see. "We battle until the forces arrive. Master Riaan made it clear to have a reconnaissance mission."

Magnus raised a brow at her logic. To some extent he could agree, though it'd be a massive pain to handle. "Fine, guess seeing them turn to scrap metal will work out for us."

"If that's the way you see it. Now then…" She faced forward, showing another ability. "Lumitroid, resume the lesson! Ability activate, Cluster Brace!" Lumitroid aimed his claws into the light shield ahead of him, again firing lasers that beamed into the optical center. The beams combined into one giant yellow blast, which shot directly for Hydranoid.

Glotronoid: 1500 Gale Atmos: 1000

Lumitroid: 200 (+600) = 800 Alpha Hydranoid: 900 (-600) = 300

Alice watched as the enhanced bright beamed barreled in a straight line towards her and Hydranoid. 'A booster shield-enhanced ability. That's her aim.' Figuring out how to play, Alice pulled out and ability. "Ability, activate! Extreme Chaos Leap Sting!"

Alpha Hydranoid stood his ground as his tendrils shot from his wings. The opened their maws, expelling a deep, dark beam from each of the six heads. They beamed into one spot, the center. The light ray and dark beams met in the center, creating a massive rumble as they battled out for superiority.

Glotronoid: 1500 Gale Atmos: 1000

Lumitroid: 800 (-400) = 400 Alpha Hydranoid: 300 (+300) = 600

"You…will not escape this time!" the hydra roared.

Magnus looked amused at the hydra. "We'll see about that, won't we?" At his call, Glotronoid closed in on Hydranoid from the side, getting the hydra's attention. "Ability activate, Jag Spartan!" Glotronoid's bulky arms started glowing and the spikes on the forearms extended into blades. He closed in on Hydranoid, ready to slash.

As the battle went on, Lucia closed her eyes. She honed on her psychic abilities yet again, her clear vision of the future leaving her half-grinning.

Furrowing her brow, Alice readied an ability. "Not so fast! Ability activate, Saw Demolition!" Alpha Hydranoid started spinning the saw on his body, making dark purple sparks flare around the three-headed beast as Glotronoid fazed through the beam fire. He raced to the front to slash, but he found himself grinding his blade against Hydranoid's saw. The two battling forces gritted their teeth, but with Hydranoid's superior height, his heads loomed over the lizard.

"Puny lizard."

"Ability, activate! Terminal Barrage!" Hydranoid's three heads opened their maws and charged up energy orbs. Once they were all charged up, the hydra unleashed a nonstop barrage of raining dark orbs that bombarded Glotronoid. The Bakugan shrieked out in agony as the force overwhelmed his own, causing him to be blown away.

Glotronoid: 1500 (-200 -500) = 800 Gale Atmos: 1000

Lumitroid: 400 Alpha Hydranoid: 600 (+200 +500) = 1300

The orbs kept coming as the ground around Lumitroid and Glotronoid was reducing to dust. Explosive dark fire boomed like fireworks that went off spontaneously, having a nonstop assessment towards it.

"How annoying!" Magnus scoffed. "Glotronoid, get up! You wanna death wish?!" The Subterra Bakugan was barely getting up. Every time he tried to stand, Hydranoid kept blasting him with repeated fire. "Damnit!"

Alice remained stern as she kept an observing eye on the battlefield, as did Jase. Both of them remained calm and quiet as they eyed their adversaries carefully. As if in sync, their attention drew towards Lumitroid as the shield – now only a third of what it was originally – was aimed at them.

'Lens-X's effects will last long enough for one more ability.' Lucia thought, readying one more ability. 'But…it won't matter in the end.' "Ability, activate…Leech Glare!"

Lumitroid's eye shined once again, and said light transferred into the light shield. The beaming gaze was amplified to where it was menacing rays of stinging light penetrating Hydranoid's attack on Glotronoid and causing him to veer away with gasps. Not far, a recovering Atmos used his wings to shield the light, only grunting as the stinging singed feathers.

Glotronoid: 800 Gale Atmos: 1000 (-600) = 400

Lumitroid: 400 (+600 +600) = 1600 Alpha Hydranoid: 1300 (-600) = 700

"This light…!" Hydranoid winced, but he didn't falter. "You will not…beat us!"

"Then try." Magnus snapped his fingers, prompting for Glotronoid to rush in after both Bakugan as they were paralyzed from this light sapping their strength.

"Jase…" Atmos weakly called out.

"Alice…"

Both battlers looked at their Bakugan then towards each other. When they registered what needed to be done, they silently acknowledged the other and faced forward. "Jase." Alice answered. "Shall you lead the brigade?"

Jase smirked. "As former Colonel of the United Kingdom B.I.F, consider it a pleasure."

Glotronoid's massive arm spikes closed in on them, but even with light, it wasn't aware of the ability in Jase's hand.

"Ability, activate! Draft Cannon!" Atmos began stirring up another tornado protecting his body. When he was ready, the hurricane molded into a massive vortex that surged around his beak. Once he was fully charged, the beak opened, unleashing a massive, condensed green hurricane that bolted as fast as lightning.

Glotronoid: 800 Gale Atmos: 400 (+600) = 1000

Lumitroid: 1600 Alpha Hydranoid: 700

The blast of condensed air reached Glotronoid, and the Bakugan was only closing in to strike head-on. The assault backfired as the winds blasted like a ray and shot Glotronoid in a harsh slide across the ground into Lumitroid. The Bakugan's light and shield were both broken when the lizard collided with him.

With the light now dissipated, Hydranoid could see again. "Gnnngh…!" He growled as he stared down Lumitroid and Glotronoid, his maws seeping with raw darkness.

Magnus and Lucia remained silent, both retaining calm despite the sudden change in dynamics. And to Lucia it was going to plan.

"Now Hydranoid!" Alice shouted.

"Ready!"

Alice showed two abilities. "Double ability, activate! Hellion Pulse, plus Fusion Ability, Final Destruction!" Darkus aura ignited around Hydranoid as the ground beneath him was beginning to shake from his growing pressure. Another energy shift caused gravity to momentarily freeze. At the speed of light, ironically, raw darkness with glossy pink sparkles in them fired from all three mouths, the very same attack that Esther and Atchibee witnessed long ago.

Glotronoid: 800 (-500) = 300 Gale Atmos: 1000

Lumitroid: 1600 (-500) = 1100 Alpha Hydranoid: 700 (+500 +600) = 1800

Hydranoid's attack tore across the landscape, not minding the scenery turning to black. It was as if a raw void was coming right at Glotronoid and Lumitroid at the same time. Empowered darkness was inescapable, and Magnus and Lucia saw this.

"How vexing." Lucia half-heartedly swiped her arm. "Enough! Gate Card, open! Battle Release!"

The darkness continued its course until the field started glowing. The Gate Card's shine brightened, erasing the darkness and swallowing all Bakugan on the battlefield. When the glow faded, everyone's Bakugan reverted to ball form, returning to their owners.

"A field trap." Jase prodded.

"Yes." Alice answered. "It looks like they saw help coming and set a trap again."

"Hmph, seems that these fools will never settle for a score." Hydranoid scoffed.

"On the contrary." Lucia said. "Had not been for your timing, perhaps there could've been some settlement of a score. But…unfortunately, work comes before personal matters. That's a mistake that Rogue Zero made."

"What's that mean?" Alice asked.

"Jase! Alice!" A voiced called in the distance. They turned around, seeing everyone on their Bakugan, including Ren and Linehalt.

"It's you guys!" Alice gasped.

"Guys, are you okay?!" Luke worriedly asked.

Jase nodded. "Yes, we're alright. No troubles for now it seems."

Maggie looked ahead, her eyes widening. "Wait, who are those guys over there?" She pointed at Lucia and Magnus.

Esther narrowed her eyes as she shot leers at them. Strange vibes could be sensed that caught her on edge. 'There's a massive amount of negative energy coming from those two.' Her eyes widened. 'Wait, are they…?'

Lucia raised a brow. "And right on schedule."

Shawn shot glares at them. "Guys, hold on."

"Yeah, something's really messed up about this." Shuji warned, even he wasn't that dumb.

Shawn and Luke reached for their weapons, eying both members with heavy scrutiny. However, the ones to advance first with the demeanor at hand was Ren. "Alright, identify yourselves! This is a restricted area!" he ordered. "Just who might you be?"

Everyone fell subtly quiet as Hades Pillars was giving of a negative vibe from their bodies. Even from the short distance, they could feel a chill run from their glares. Maggie latched onto Jelldon tighter, while Jase prodded his glasses in seriousness. But aside from Ren's empty demands, their dwelling went solemnly onto Alice. A crisp grin fell on Magnus' face.

"Well, isn't this amusing." He chuckled.

"What was that?" Ren asked defensively.

"I can see why you wanted to wait, Lucia. So these are the forces we're up against…?" he took a sharp look at Luke's sword, heading towards his serpentine Bakugan. His attention diverted otherwise towards the others, but hardly impressed. "And they're supposed to be our problem?"

"As of now they are." Lucia answered. "But not for long…so listen well, to all of you. Here me not!" She raised her intellectual tone as a show of superiority. "We are the great and divine Riaan's swords, his shields! We are his vanguard that shall carve a name for him into one world, a world where all can be one, so that his gracious one shall never again be forgotten to the depths of time again. You have thus been warned by Hades Pillars."

Everyone tensed up at the comments. "Hades Pillars…" Luke growled low. He would've attacked for answers, but he knew better than to get reckless at this point. He just watched.

"So be it known, do interfere with our plans…you and your friends will suffer far worse than you did, Jase Mercury. Alice Gehabich. Good day to you all." Together, Magnus and Lucia teleported away.

"Wait-!" Luke reached out, but it was too late. They teleported too quickly. "…damnit." He sneered.

"Those guys…just who were they?" Maggie worriedly asked.

Alice and Jase looked towards one another with neutral gazes. What they went through – while it was a plethora of experience – was a small taste of what Hades Pillars could do. And from the sounds of it, there was more to come.

"Jase." Esther got his attention with a hint of dread in her tone.

Turning with calm, Jase held a straight face. "Everyone, let's return to the base. It appears we have new information on our hands." He went his way, with everyone else soon following his wake.

---

Within a farther reach of the Gundalian realm, the landscape was absent-mindedly quiet. No Bakugan were present in the area, allowing for Magnus and Lucia to teleport there with ease.

"Well that didn't go as we wanted." Magnus huffed, but Lucia was faring better with the circumstances.

"Consider it a stalemate on your behalf, Magnus. We've accomplished our objective and know what to expect, that's what matters."

"Whatever." A slow, uneasy silence fell between them. "Lucia."

"Yes?"

"You knew that Alice would've been there, didn't you? And you also knew those others would be coming as well. If that's the case, why didn't you use Solar-X and deep fry them and the Mobile Assault vehicles?"

Lucia scoffed lightly. "Seems Zion's brashness has been getting out of hand on you." She shot a knowing glare at him. "You're mistaken. Our primary objective was a reconnaissance, not an extermination. Besides, if I were to use that ability on Alice and everyone else, we wouldn't be seeing any potential in them. If we wanted to establish a less…flexible warning, we would've done it your way."

Magnus did an eyeroll. But no means was he familiar with these ways as of yet, but he'd rather not pry in these matters. He crawled his way into Riaan's ranks, and he'd rather not make an example like he did earlier.

"Now then, if we are finished, we can relay this information back to base. Are you ready?"

Magnus nodded. "Alright."

Both Hades Pillars members teleported once again out of the wasteland and back to their home. While they were leaving, far away looking over a cliff's edge, Luka was there, watching with a discerning eye as he watched Hades Pillars, just as he had from the start. The tension in the air around him grew staler by the minute, and not from the vibe coming off his usual, cold shell.

He and Brontes watched silently, both slowly turning back towards the base. The hideous feeling they felt only served to increase the more they worried of what Luke and the others will be up against. And that was just the beginning of it.

---

"I see, so this is the information you were able to achieve."

"Yes, Milord, as you humbly requested. I do hope it's well worth it."

Riaan hummed as he out a hand to his chin. He and the rest of Hades Pillars were gathered around his throne room's center, where the orb-like jewel in the base was giving off a holographic projection of the compound Luke and friends were staying in for the time being. The number of Battlegear and Mobile Assault vehicles lying around was staggering.

"I see." Cyrus smirked. "This is the frontlines that houses this planet's greatest battlers?"

"One of them anyways." Magnus reminded.

Amina was too busy putting makeup on her cheeks when took a look at the holographic projection. The stale look and the alienlike vibe it had made it grosser than what she imagined. She almost gagged just from looking at it. "Bleh, too tacky." She commented, resuming her facial care.

"Yes, perhaps a little." Galilea agreed. "But still, if it holds Ren Crawlers as well as those others battlers Lucia and Magnus fought, then we must act."

Cyrus nodded. "A sound agreement, Galilea."

Cyrus stepped forward, clearing his throat. "Alright everyone, let's take a step back for a moment. Surely we can make for a compromise." He looked down at the holographic 3D projection beneath. "Now then, from the reports that Lucia and Magnus had brought back, they will more than likely try to attack us using full force, as is the Gundalian way. They will be sending reinforcements from other quadrants of the planets to reconvene at this base here. Once they are all gathered, they will selectively decide on an attack route and follow there."

Everyone fell silent in acknowledgement; Amina continued with her set with mascara.

"And Lucia…" The Haos battler perked at her name. "You've also battled Alice and her new friends as well?"

She humbly bowed. "Yes, your graciousness. I apologize if this intuitive behavior had wasted more of your valuable time."

"Don't be." He grinned. "Because now we now know what one Brawlers alone can handle. Excellent work."

Lucia lightly blushed. "Thank you kindly."

"Kissup." Amina groaned, earning a glare from Lucia.

"Your highness, if I may?" Zion stepped forward.

"Yes, Zion. What is it?"

"With the progression of our perimeter limited, we'll require some more firepower to compensate for our area. If these Gundalians reach us before our extraction of all their energy, we'll have less of an advantage when we reach Neathia."

"So then what do you propose then?" Magnus inquired. "We already got rid of some of our frontliners. You think replacements are just gonna grow on trees?"

"…maybe not." Riaan said.

All eyes went towards his majesty. "Sir?" Galilea raised a brow.

Riaan was currently overlooking the recent battle Magnus and Lucia had projected beneath them. He was watching everything, minding the ending with Alice and Hydranoid's attack. "Yes, we've outlived Rogue Zero because of limited potential, but that isn't to say we can still acquire new help…" a malicious grin spread across his face. "What if to say…we get this certain someone to aid us in our cause?"

All eyes went towards the screen below, the picture of Alice and Hydranoid framing in the center.

---

Hope you guys liked these twists! Reviews are very much appreciated, and thanks!