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.

60. From Here to There

The ocean waves rocked back and forth as aquatic Bakugan surfaced. Scaboid, Megarus, and Gren fired away with Twin Destructor Battlegear laced to their backs at the Trailer. It drifted along the water hastily while Atchibee closed in between them.

"Ability, activate!" Esther called out. "Dusk Tornado!"

Atchibee hissed as her wings fluttered up a dark tornado. It dragged about haphazardly around the atmosphere and across the water. It drew in the attacks and neutralized their range. At the same time, it swallowed up the Bakugan that were unfortunate enough to be too close.

"Fusion Ability, activate! Vermilion Raid!" Esther followed up with a secondary offensive. Atchibee opened her maw and unleashed a broad, negative blaze that turned the dark tornado into a glistening purple cyclone. It ignited into a storming pillar that churned the water enough to where the Bakugan inside had no hope of getting through.

They all faded away into their attributed colors into oblivion. As the cyclones faded, more wild Bakugan from the air came down to attack. Farakspin and Longfly were amongst the few, the latter charging up Zukanator cannons before unleashing them in broad blast waves.

Shuji launched a Gate card out into the open, where it faded into the sea's top in an orange-brown shockwave. "Gate Card, open! Chain Link Force!" The Card shined brightly, causing all the beams to churn and distort until their trajectory went flipflopped on everyone. They all returned to the Longfly and Farakspin, engulfing them in magenta explosions that rattled the skies.

Fly Beetle used his Carapace Riot and remained firmly in midair against a Buz Hornix. He balled his fist and violently cried out as he plunged his horn straight into its face, sending it sailing into three more of its kind.

"Now, Shuji!"

"Maggie, let's go!" Jelldon encouraged.

Maggie nodded. "Right! Ability, activate! Alien Flare!" Jelldon expelled an uproarious explosion of harsh red lights from all over his body. They reached out far and wide, blinding some of the Buz Hornix long enough for Fly Beetle to swoop in with Shuji on his head.

With an ability set, he glared ahead. "Go, ability activate, Sunder Sonic!" Still covered in his durable armor, he rammed into the hornets and rocked them through the blinding flare. In the center of it all, his eyes flared bright orange before unleashing pulsing wing beats. Shockwaves of massive magnitudes fanned them and the other Bakugan out in disarray.

"Ability, activate!" Jase held up his Bakumeter. "Quad Vortex!"

"Ability, activate!" Esther declared. "Silver Twister!"

Atmos and Atchibee cawed and hissed as they flapped their wings and gained altitude above the Trailer. They beat the air at the same time, unleashing a silver tornado with equally silver scales mixing with the four cyclones generated by Atmos' fans. They surged and combined into a gigantic mass that fluxed outwards, swallowing nearly every Bakugan within the atmosphere. Fireworks flared in the sky, though they were really attributed glows as they faded to nothing.

As Atmos and Atchibee sailed around, Jase reached for his Bakumeter. "Shawn, any close rangers nearby?"

On the other line, a bright yellow slash wave cleaved into an Aquos Jetro that surfaced. It faded away, revealing Verias atop the Trailer with Shawn on his shoulder. Shawn in turn glanced around as he responded back. "So far we're clear. The stragglers in the sea are being handled by Luke. The auto pilot's still engaged. We should be close by now."

A splash erupted behind, grabbing Verias' attention. A Hakapoid lunged out of the abyss in an attempt to surprise attack him, but it was short-sighted when Verias grabbed its face with his brass knuckles.

"We're not like before, you know!" Verias turned on his heel and swung the Hakapoid with one arm into the air. It gawked in its freefall flailing as the simian and Shawn made a spritz off the Trailer. They pounced into the air, with the former's fists embedded in the light he absorbed from his brass knuckles charged at full power.

"Vibrant…KINGDOM FIST!" With bolstering might, he smashed his fist into Hakapoid's eye, smashing him into the seawater like it was concrete. It depressed a portion of the sea in a ripple, which rocked the Trailer some, but not enough to throw it off balance.

Verias landed back on the Trailer and looked around. His attack made the water calm to where the aquatic Bakugan could be seen down under. "There's more coming."

Shawn braced himself, but his attention was caught onto the waves suddenly changing course. Just as a Gren surfaced to launched some kind of beam, a tidal waves slammed into its side, immediately pulling it far down under along with other Bakugan.

All around the sea, tides changed around the Trailer to pull away the Bakugan from the surface. Even those in the air were caught in tornado streams of cold, pressurized water that they couldn't escape. The ally Bakugan backed off and regrouped.

Far beneaththe distill water of the Trailer, the ocean was gradually spiraling and changing around a single point. Seawater raged and compressed into a number of streams that smashed Bakugan into each other. They were helpless as their Battlegear was getting water damage and battering into each other. All that time, they swirled and drowned around Daedalus Abis Omega, who was within a compressed water sphere with Luke keeping the underside threat at bay.

'Have to get rid as many as we can!' Luke swung his sword without cutting the air bubble around his face. "Ability, activate! Emperor Abyss!"

Abis' eyes shined bright blue. He let out a bloodcurdling roar as he expelled all the pressure from the sea from that single point. Every Bakugan that was too close ended up being blasted to oblivion by sea pressure so intense their bodies couldn't handle it. Dozens of Bakugan were educed to nothing as the undersea currents rippled outwards.

Along the surface, everyone could see down below, the waves of Abis' attack shot far into the surface. Massive wave patterns smashed upwards with cyclones running wild. The aerial Bakugan that were supposedly too far out of range maneuvered out of the way to ensure their own safety, but that only left easy targets.

"Atchibee!" Esther mounted her cocoon moth one more time. She used her pincer tail's end and shot it at a Haos Longfly's neck and snatched it. She whipped it into a cyclone, making it fade into a bright yellow blur.

Jelldon raised his tentacles. "Their numbers are starting to go down, guys!"

"Then let's give them a little more of a push!" Shuji insisted.

Several Ziperator with Twin Destructor rained down far from above. The multicolored projectiles went down like barreling rain as the ocean was still in riling turmoil. "Ability, activate! Soft Conductor!" Jelldon's body drew in all the gunfire that rippled deep into his soft body. The energy diminished into faded energy that circulated into power for each projectile aimed at him.

"Go now!" Jelldon declared.

Atmos cawed high above the Ziperator Bakugan. From the seas, Abis shot his head out for a surprise attack. Their partners had respective attacks ready.

"Tailwind, plus Omni Storm!"

"Depth Fire!"

Atmos flapped his wings, sending shockwaves from behind with green tailwinds giving them a greater range and boost. They pushed all the Ziperator down towards the ocean, where Abis channeled energy into the diamonds and unleashed a violent array of deep blue missile-like projections that streamed with green whirlwinds boosting them. They beelined and erupted upon impact, reducing the Ziperator to oblivion.

The huge blue and green explosion settled within the waves of the seas. Eventually, it all settled to show clear air all around.

Shawn looked down at his Bakumeter, showing no signal within the perimeter. "All clear. Nothing on the radar right now."

Maggie sighed heavily atop Jelldon. "That's a relief. Still, it could've gotten worse."

Esther nodded. "Yes, most certainly. Our course should still be for Troposphere, right? We should be there soon."

"You think the others are there by now?" Shuji questioned.

Shawn put a hand to his chin. "Yea, that's tough to say. We haven't had any contact from anyone for a while." He glanced away to think. "Is there a communications blockade going on…?"

Suddenly, everyone's Bakumeters started going off. They all looked down and saw a widespread message.

"Who's that?" Maggie questioned.

Jase looked at who was the dialer and decided to tap it. He stood upright and looked out as the Trailer kept going. "This is Jase Mercury. What is your report?"

"Jase, guys, are you there?" A relieved sigh came from the other end. "Thank goodness. I was beginning to worry there for a moment."

Shuji's eyes widened. "Wait, isn't that…?"

"Mira? Well I'll be damned…" Shawn mused. "Looks like she finally found a way to connect to us."

Luke picked up next. "Mira? Hey, what's the situation? Is everyone alright?"

"Yeah, we're all fine. Spectra and the guys from Vestal managed to get here in Troposphere before anyone else. Seems Hades Pillars was expecting us."

Jase looked up towards the atmosphere. "I see, so that's what that battle surge was. I thought I had sensed negative energy."

"You guys and your Bakugan would know best at this point. Don't worry, we're all okay. Gus was a little shot but the others got off lucky this time. We're in a lab right now using a private server, so that way no one can overhear our conversations."

Another beep popped up from everyone's Bakumeters.

"Another caller?" Maggie looked at the dialer. "It's from…! Dan Kuso."

"Let's see." Jase tapped a button to activate the connection. "Dan, can you hear me? I presume that you can communicate now through Mira's server she rewired, right?"

"Yeah guys, we're all okay. Drago and the others back here are finally getting close to Troposphere. It's in our line of sight right now." Dan explained. "You guys alright?"

"Yes, everything's fine." Esther replied. "We've chosen the sea out over by the western coast. We haven't seen any soldiers posted."

"You guys took the ocean?" Marucho sounded genuinely surprised.

"Correct. That's how we got to Troposphere in our past ventures. Though with how security has been rather on tumultuous matters, I fair it won't be as simple as last time." Jase insinuated.

"You all need to be careful. Their borders are blocked off by soldiers with weapons and Bakugan on Mobile Assault Vehicles. It looks like from here, the port is the least guarded."

"Got it, then leave that to us." Luke declared. "We'll work our way around and meet you guys from inside."

"Sounds like a plan. Be seeing you there, pal." Dan's connection went off with the line made by Mira.

Luke turned to his friends to discuss the matter. "Well, guess that settles that. Looks like Troposphere's close."

"Yes. But, like Mira said, they've beefed up security. We'll have to be wary of how we approach them from here on." Esther pointed out.

Shawn crossed his arms. "That's true. They'll know its us right off the bat if we show up in the Trailer…" He paused to gather time to think. It didn't take too long for an idea to spout. "Okay, I think I got it."

"What's the idea this time?" Shuji mused. "Better be something good."

Shawn snickered. "Trust me, I'm just playing off a certain someone's books." He glanced over. "Isn't that right, Luke?"

Everyone looked at Luke, who seemed reluctant with where this is going. "Why do I get the feeling that this always involves me?"

"Suppose that's karma for ya." Maggie mused. "So Shawn, exactly what in the world did you learn off from this guy of all people?"

Shawn sighed. "Listen, it won't be our first time doing this. But I should warn you, you won't like it too much, Maggie. Sorry."

---

Along the shores of Troposphere, the patrol along the docks were keeping a watchful eye out as the yachts and the ferries stationed were all rocking back and forth with the tumultuous tides coming in.

"The waters sure are rough today." A random patrol officer pointed out to his cohort.

"Yeah, you can say that again. First that giant tsunami from out of nowhere, then heat waves. I'm sure glad that isn't us out there."

An awkward tension came between them. It didn't take long for it to sink in.

"We haven't heard from the shoreline patrol in a while. You think something happened?"

"We would've been alerted for backup. I'm sure it's fine…" However, even he showed some relative concern. "Well, since you've brought it up, we better check in." He clicked onto his yellow Bakumeter for authentication. "This is patrol area 29-B, reporting in for status checks." He waited for a response from the other line.

"Negative over here. This is 12-C reporting in. No signs of activity on radar. All clear over here."

The communication went off, but the soldier raised a brow. "Hm…must be our imagination then. Guess they wouldn't come out from the sea after all."

…

Half a mile away beyond and alcove, there was a secluded sewer opening that constantly flowed filtered, clean water through its systems. The clear, clean liquid came down like a waterfall into the rippling water. It was a very brief yet strong silence.

With nobody around, the silence was interrupted when the surface of the water started bubbling. Something splashed out and elongated, but it wasn't visible. What was visible, however, was the red-haired human that seemed to be floating in midair, if one could more than likely call it that. He looked around left and right, seeing any signs of the enemy or anybody in general. When the coast was clear, he looked down at the water.

"All clear."

At that, something moved again and arched into the water. Luke hopped onto the sewer line first to help the others that were coming on through. One at a time, Esther, Shawn, Maggie, Shuji, and Jase steppe foot along the platform without a hassle.

Maggie shivered all over. "Brr…man, the water's pretty chilly. I'm wet all over."

Shawn jerked at the sentence. Maggie turned towards him. "Uh, Maggie…"

"What?" she furrowed her brow. "Well, I really am."

Shawn nervously rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, I guess so." In his mind, he knew what else he was thinking. He noticed the scoffing look Shuji gave him. "What?"

"Heh, you're pretty messed up pal."

"Hey, you were thinking the same thing."

Shuji beamed. "Maybe…but I'm not the one who shot weary looks at little girls. Heh."

Jase prodded his glasses with a serious frown. "My. My. Such energy for ripened young men. You should really try to control your hormones, both of you. You'll offend the ladies."

Shawn and Shuji turned around slowly, seeing what was the coldest, most serious glare by Esther could've been yet. Her blue eyes were narrowed with an icy visage with arms beneath her ample buxom. The two men instantly regretted what they said.

"All of you, shut it…now." Even her tone was crude and cold.

Luke nervously looked on as Jase seemed so facetious in the face of Shuji and Shawn's expense. If he was honest he didn't catch on to what Shawn meant by Maggie being wet, but he wasn't stupid. He exchanged looks with Maggie, where she winked playfully as a hint or warning to be careful of what to say. As if he knew, he kept his mouth shut and looked back at Esther, who gave him a warning glare. Though it looked like he got off easier.

Jase looked out towards the sea alcove. "It looks like we weren't followed. Our signals are all offline, so tracking should be at a low. It's best we keep moving while we still have the element."

"Got it." Luke turned towards the sea. "Alright Abis, thanks."

Slowly fading, the camouflage Abis had on the entire time faded. From the head diamond downwards, the diamonds shined to reveal him before he reverted to ball form. Luke seized him and placed the Bakugan on his shoulder.

"That's really cool Abis can go camouflage again." Maggie marveled. "That Stealth Dweller ability really lives up to its name."

"It definitely comes in handy where it counts, I can give it that." Verias added. "And on that note…"

"Right, we better get moving. Time is wasting." Atchibee reminded.

Everyone turned towards the sewers. Maggie felt an uneven chill run down her spine. "Eeeh…the sewers again. Really." She shot a leer at Shawn. "Nice suggestion."

"It was our most convenient choice at the moment." Esther noted. "Now then, let's be quiet and pace ourselves. We don't know what's changed since our last time here."

Everyone took her words to heart and started for the dark tunnel.

---

The deeper they went, the more surprising it turned. Compared to their last venture in the sewers back then, the water didn't smell nearly as bad. In fact, it seemed very healthy. The lighting seemed more aluminum as well, with it being far less dull in yellow and more white. What was most surprising about this section as well was that the walls weren't concrete, but stainless metal that arched overhead.

"Wow, talk about an overhaul." Shawn lulled. "I don't think it was like this before."

"We must be going through the filtered sector of the sewers." Esther explained. "I remember Spectra mentioning something about that back on Vestal. It seems the Interacians managed to get one step ahead of his time."

"Well, at least it's better than walking through rotten sewage." Maggie eyerolled. "Then they'd smell us coming from a mile away. Literally."

Fly Beetle popped open on Shuji's shoulder. "We know where we're going, right?"

"We're going in blind." Shuji explained. "We've gotta keep our signals off in case these guys have something…" He trailed off as he felt something off at the corner ahead. "Fly Beetle, you feel that?"

"Yeah, I'm picking up on it…it's close."

Everyone stayed back at what Shuji and Fly Beetle meant by that. They saw A shadow slowly approach from afar and backed away.

"Crap, somebody's here." Shawn muttered.

They all hastily git for cover where Shuji warned them in time. They hid away within the shallows of the corner railing as A guard continued past them along the main line of the sewers. He was armed, and in his hands were signaled tracking devices. The green screen showed red dots, meaning something was going on nearby.

He looked left and right, but didn't see anything out of the ordinary. For now he pressed on his way. Luke and everyone waited until he was gone to slowly emerge once again.

"That was a close one." Luke sighed.

"But what were those things they were holding? They looked like those remotes you guys use for machines or something." Jelldon inquired.

"Signal radars." Everyone turned towards Jase as he explained further. "The enemy must know we've hijacked the lab, which has been used to process and regulate signals and communications throughout Troposphere. If one wished, they could also track one's own signal using this same system. Seems fortunate when we turned off our signals when we did."

Maggie watched the guard go, her serious look showing. "But then that's still a bad thing. After all, if they can track the signal, they can trace it back to the lab instead."

"There must be more around here then." Shawn noted. "We can use that and track the others before they're found out."

They heard the sound of metallic footsteps drawing in close from the same direction as last time. Immediately they took their positions and gathered up a plan.

"Someone else is coming." Shuji balled his fists in case he needed to get physical. "We've gotta land a good hit on this next guy before-!"

In brazen reflexes, Jase suddenly flicked his metallic hand-sized rod on his belt and pulled it out. He pressed a switch on it to reveal the two-prong taser lance, but with a much more durable metal and a longer reach. Green electricity charged and he stabbed forward, propelling it nearly a full meter outwards right into the unexpected guard's exposed neck. The guard twitched spontaneously and convulsed through the entire treatment like some ragdoll.

Everyone looked on in slight shock and horror at the surprise attack. On one hand they were saved, but on the other…well anyways, the soldier slumped down, releasing his grip on the tracking device he had with him. Jase retracted his weapon and held it up towards everyone's stunned faces.

"I believe this shall suffice?" He sounded so nonchalant and innocent about his actions. Yet everyone stood there completely puzzled. "What's with the looks?"

"Uh…" Luke cleared his throat. "Nothing, nothing."

Jase raised a brow.

"Hey, what was that?" The sound of the patrol officer from below got their attention.

"Crap, we better get moving!" Shawn grunted.

Everyone scuttled away from the scene as fast as they could. In their haste, they left behind the guard, who groaned in his unconsciousness as the fellow patrol officer looked surprised at his condition.

---

Running down the corridor, Shuji was running as fast as he could. "Well, looks like we've done it now! Now where do we go?"

"I believe that we have to follow the device. If it leads us to the others, we can reconvene." Atmos insisted.

"Precisely." Jase looked at the monitor as they pressed on. "…" He fell silent as he inspected the device a little more closely. "We have a signal closer than expected."

Luke's eyes widened. "Already? Where?"

"Up ahead. Right around the corner it seems."

Everyone ran ahead and immediately turned the corner just like he said. Although, they were just a split second off when almost instantly, four figures stopped dead in their tracks. The leader yelped and jerked back, bumping into Gunz, who bumped into Marucho, who fell over due to Shun sidestepping out of the way in time.

"Oww…" Marucho grimaced. "Ugh…what happened?" He gasped. "Ugh…wait-!"

Dan regained his composure with shock. "Ah! You guys again!"

Esther blinked. "Dan Kuso?"

"Yeah, it's us." He dusted himself off. "You guys really scared us there for a moment. We almost thought you were one of those soldiers that we had to give the slip."

"Looks like that thing worked like a charm after all." Shuji chimed. "Or rarher…not. Fancy seeing you guys down here with us. What brought you here?"

"We had to get away from the soldiers on the surface, so we've found cover in the filter sector of the Troposphere sewer lines." Marucho explained. "But, as you can see…"

Radizen popped open beside him. "Either way, we were still followed. They came at us with these guns and ammo and no matter where we turned they just kept finding us."

Jase looked down at the tracking device in his grasp. "That makes sense, why we saw soldiers down here where there were none supposed to be. Tell me, how many more are there did you find?"

"About a dozen. Why?" Marucho's answer didn't spark any positivity in anyone.

Metallic footsteps were heard from everywhere. The others whipped around and saw men from all sides racing after them.

"There they are!"

"Intruders found! I repeat, the intruders have been located within the filter line!"

Shun stepped back. "Snap! They've got us surrounded."

Esther looked towards her side. There was a metal ladder on the side that led up towards another manhole. "Perhaps not. Quick, everyone, climb the ladder at once! We need to escape!"

"You don't have to tell me twice!" Gunz went up the ladder first, since he had broader muscle compared to the other Brawlers. He removed the manhole, while Luke, Shawn, Jase, and Esther readied their weapons to engage with the soldiers closing in. Those without weapons centered themselves around the ladder.

"Look alive, guys!" Shawn warned.

"ATTACK!" The soldiers shouted.

They all closed in with weapons modified with energy sabers and spears. Luke's sword was clutched tighter to make the blue energy flicker on. They all rushed in and engaged into combat without a second thought. A soldier slashed at Shawn, but he deflected it and dodged another slash by another. He ducked before pivoting to cut through their torso armor, then rushed past them with double slashed to the heads. Esther twirled her staff about overhead and skillfully jabbed the hardened spear end into a soldier's neck, killing him on the spot. Another one hurried to seek revenge and slash, but Jase used his taser lance to intercept. He parried with the soldier with surprising agility and accuracy, batting and deflecting with his enhanced weapon. The durable metal wasn't even dented into. Eventually it came down to him finally getting an opening and skewering the stomach with the sharp ends.

Two soldiers went charging for Luke with bisento and lances. They threw them with gusto, but Luke easily bunted, deflecting them away. He rushed in and past them, cutting clean through their armor and skin with his sword. The soldiers fell dead behind his feet. He didn't bother looking back without getting a bitter taste in his mouth.

Marucho had to look away. The sight was just too grueling to bare for the eyes.

"Marucho." Shin placed a hand on his shoulder. He didn't look it, but even he wasn't looking good at the sight of blood. "It's okay. This is what we knew would have to happen eventually."

"I know Shun, but this is all so-!"

"GAH!" They looked up to find a soldier falling on his back by Luke's blade. This metal clanged with his deep thud. He laid in front of a frowning Luke, who had little time to mourn as he parried the next wave of soldiers coming at them.

Marucho looked away in hopes this nightmare would end. "HEY! What are you doing down there?!" The Brawlers looked up, seeing Shuji reaching down for them. Maggie was already crawling out towards the light. "C'mon already!"

Dan frowned and nodded. "Yeah, we hear you Shuji." He reached up, allowing Shuji to pull him ahead. Next was Shun, who was pulled up in a hurry. Lastly was Marucho, who was still looking grievously upset, but still complied.

"HNGH!" Shawn slashed down one more soldier, making him gag before falling onto his side.

All around, soldiers laid on their side or backs. They were all slain and covered in pools of blood. Luke and everyone withdrew their weapons and frowned. They still knew it's what had to be done. They were out to kill them after all.

"Okay, that should do it. We better hurry before reinforcements regroup." Esther prompted.

Luke nodded. "Yeah!" He turned with the other three and hurried up the ladder. Shuji gave them all a hand one at a time until each and every one was up before he was. He climbed up the latter to find themselves in the middle of one of Troposphere's back alley four lane intersections.

They all took a moment to collect themselves. It was a rough ride getting through what just happened, especially for the Brawlers. But they were still cornered, that's the important thing they couldn't overlook.

"Looks like the coast is clear." Shun informed. "I don't see anyone around."

"We can't stay open like this for long. We have to keep moving." Jaakor insisted.

"Jaakor is right. We have to find cover while we still can." Drago reasoned. "We drag on too long, we won't find time to regroup."

"Esther looked around, noticing many of the buildings had their doors sealed shut. Some of them also were mowed over farther up ahead. "Looks like everything is in lockdown right now. I doubt anyone will open up for us."

"Well we didn't come off as a friendly welcome the last time." Shuji grimaced.

"That's because nobody had any idea who we were before." Maggie pointed out. "But now that everyone does, getting around mindlessly with the crowd is going to be a lot harder to manage, huh."

"Maybe we can find the others at the lab." Shawn advised. "Did they give specific coordinates?"

Jase frowned. "I would imagine, but we're still under radar. We'll expose ourselves too soon if they still have Bakumeter signal trackers on them. It's best to hold our range."

"Okay, so then what? You guys haven't been here before or something?" Dan questioned dryly.

Maggie shot him a deadpan look. "Hey, for the record, we've been around the block as much as you have. It's just been a while."

"And besides, staying low is primarily our niche." Esther noted. "We can't draw as much attention to ourselves just yet. Not until Spectra and the others get what they came to do with the data."

Dan crossed his arms. "Man, you guys don't make this easy, do you?"

As they were all congregated and trying to make points, Jase was looking over at Luke. For some reason, he seemed to be spaced out on something. "Hm? Is something troubling you, Luke?"

Luke stared at his surroundings, seemingly oblivious to what the Brawlers' argument about getting to the lab and finding places to hide were about. He was looking at the buildings specifically and their designs. 'This place…have we been here before? No. I don't think so. I think I would've followed everyone back our last time we were here…but I was still…'

Drawn to a realization, he whispered over his shoulder. "Abis…"

Abis popped on his shoulder, looking at their vague surroundings. "Luke, it feels strange…don't you think? Somehow, I think we know these surroundings, don't you?"

"Yeah, but…just where are we?" Luke's eyes widened. 'Wait a minute, isn't this from when…'

Like a replay in their heads, the two had a brief flash of something. They could see their friends following them, yet at the same time, it wasn't them. They were in the minds of someone else who was guiding them down said road. It was brief, but at the same time, something about it felt very much nostalgic. The trigger was right there, they just needed to switch it.

It clicked. Luke and Abis gasped at the same time. 'Wait…we do know this place! It's-!'

The others were so busy strategizing and thinking on the spot that they didn't realize Luke trudging off in a single direction. It was Shawn who picked up on his behavior. "Huh? Hey Luke, what's the matter? Found something?"

Luke didn't answer. Instead he and Abis faced forward blankly as they retraced some old steps towards somewhere.

"Luke? Where's that guy going?" Maggie wondered. "This is a really bad time to be spacing out here."

"No…look at him." Esther stared at his back tentatively. She was extremely focused on the way he was going. She walked closer towards him. "Luke…Luke!"

Barely hearing their voices, Luke snapped back at them with surprise. "Guys…!"

"What's with the look? You're as pale as a ghost." Shuji pointed out.

Jase walked up towards him, his hands behind his back. "Looks like you were undergoing a relapse. Care to explain it as we go along?"

Luke looked down with closed eyes. "I…I'm not sure. But, I could've sworn that we were all here before. I think…no, I know a place where we can stake out. I'm positive this time."

"You do? Where is it?" Dan asked, mild surprise on his face.

Luke turned around to face forward. "It's this way!" he took off.

"Follow us!" Abis pleaded.

Esther reached out, but was too late. "Luke! Abis…!"

Jase faced his comrades. "We should follow them. Perhaps they're onto something."

"Yeah, good idea." Shawn agreed. Without even a word or complaint, the others took off for Luke and Abis. The ones left behind were the battle Brawlers left in surprise.

"Dan, we should follow them. It's like Jase said, there may be a way to this."

Dan reluctantly agreed. "Yeah, guess you're right." He took to his heels and followed after the others.

Luke hurried his way down the alley until he came to where two buildings were interjected by a wall. He slowed down just as his friends caught up to him. He labored in breathing as he stood before the blank space.

"Huh? A wall?" Marucho questioned.

"What gives? Did he hit his head somewhere, or did he stop thinking?" Radizen pondered rudely. Roxtor in turn fired some gibberish his way. "How should I know Roxtor? Ask him."

"Somehow I've got a funny feeling about this." Gunz murmured.

"That makes both of us." Reptak muttered.

Luke stared between the buildings and walked a little closer. He inspected everything from left to right, seeing how everything looked as it should've been before. "Yeah, know doubt about it. Looks like this is the place, I'm sure of it." He turned towards the others. "Guys, follow me."

Without another word, Luke took a short breath and cleared his mind. With resolution, he walked into the middle of the two buildings. To everyone's surprise, he passed through as rippling waves reflected on the wall's surface.

Dan shirked back in shock. "GAH! What the-?! Did they just…?"

"Disappear." Drago gasped.

Esther and the others showed genuine shock of their own. They couldn't believe it themselves, and yet it came so suddenly.

"Wait, Abis…!" Verias gasped. "Shawn, this has to be it."

"Yeah, I just now realized that myself." He informed.

"But how did they know about this place?" Shuji questioned. "Weren't they…?"

Esther shook her head. "We need to focus. We should follow in. Quickly."

"I agree. Let's hurry." Atchibee insisted.

Everyone uneasily followed along. Dan and the Brawlers followed in afterwards, where they crossed through to the other side.

Upon making way through the other side, they've found themselves in a very familiar – and spacious – hidden chrome area. It was finely edged, with stain glass windows everywhere that refracted light from all about. A few plates that were for chairs were evenly placed around a white circular table at the very center of it all. Otherwise, the commodities were extremely minimal.

Luke was the first to inspect it. He looked left and right, seeing signs of nothing having changed. 'Good. It looks just like how he left it.'

Close behind, the others followed in pursuit. They looked around and realized where they were.

"Woah, what is this place?" Gunz blinked.

"A secret room." Shun realized. "So then, this must be some form of camouflage from the outside world."

Jase prodded his glasses. "Yes. Why I almost forgotten about such a place. How foolish of me to have it slip my mind. I must be slacking a little too much." He faced at Luke. "Luke, how do you recall such a place?"

Luke stood in the center of the room, a grim silence befalling him. The atmosphere around them almost completely changed to a serious one.

"Abis and I…we saw something similar to this, back when we came here before." He started thinking back to when he was stuck inside a certain mindscape. "We were unconscious, but our minds were in another place. We saw something like this when you guys went for cover, right?"

Shawn looked ahead with a nod. "Yeah…so you know whose place this is, don't you?"

"…yeah, I do."

Drago floated close by. "What do you mean?"

Abis turned around, looking humbly down. "This…was Luka's old hideout."

The Brawlers looked shocked. They allowed them to continue. Luke took the reins.

"Since he was on Interacia, he found a secluded place that people didn't use. The stain glass provides an illusion of some kind that not many know about. He hid here for a while…I'm sure he would've scolded us before knocking or something."

A hand touched his shoulder, revealing Esther. She smiled comfortably at him. "I'm sure, that he wouldn't mind. If it was us. He knew little about us and showed us security. It's only fair, to lead in example." She faced the Battle Brawlers. "So, in Luka's stead, I'm certain this will hold for a suitable place to rest."

"Indeed." Atchibee agreed. "Come, let us settle for now."

"Yeah, I'm starving." Maggie mumbled. "We've gotta find stuff to eat or I'll wither away too soon."

Shuji leaned against a solid wall. "Yeah, and we can't fight on empty stomachs."

Jase turned towards everyone. "I'll turn on communications, but only briefly. We'll have to find suitable diets while we're still hidden."

Luke nodded. "Got it." As they all prepared to go out to relay their messages and get groceries, he took one more look around to take in everything. '…Luka. Brontes.'

---

It didn't take long for an hour to pass by, to those who weren't on pins and needles that is. Luke decided to man down the fort along with the Brawlers until the others got back with groceries they were able to pro+-cure. Amongst them, however, were newcomers as well.

The last to faze through the wall was Shuji. With a hand holding a large sum of food, he looked back at the entrance. "Hey, you guys back there, you can come in. It's clear."

He moved off to the side, enabling clearance for Ace, Baron, Julie and her cameraman. Immediately, Ace showed surprise just like the Brawlers have. "Woah…get real. You serious?"

"I know, right?" Dan grinned off to the side. "What's happening guys?"

Baron smiled wide. "Master Dan! Drago! Everyone! I can't believe it!"

"Hey you guys~! Look who made it back in one piece!" Julie chimed. She looked at Luke's group with just as much surprise. "Luke! You guys all made it, too? That's super!"

"I'm glad that you're here with us." Marucho smiled, before looking around to pick up on something. "But, wasn't Alice and Spectra here with you?"

Ace crossed his arms. "Don't worry about it. They're both back with Mira at the lab. Keegan's there too. Gus was shot pretty bad in the arm, so they're hanging around to man down the lab."

"Guess that's good." Dan noted. "Anything from Ren and Fabia yet?"

Ace raised a brow. "You mean those Gundalians and Neathians? Sorry, not a thing. My guess is that they're still out of range for us to get to. Either that or they're probably near Solaria like you said."

"That is an accurate assumption at the most." Jase theorized. He walked over to the single white table. As he went to sat down, much to everyone's surprise, the platform on the floor floated off the ground to support him as a stool to sit on. Since there only so many, it was only Luke's group that was able to get the tables.

"What, no beanbags or something?" Julie shined.

"I know, right? That's exactly what I said." Maggie recollected.

"We'll have to make do for now. It's not much, but it's what we had to work with." Shawn persuaded.

"I know everyone just got here, but I think we should understand where we stand as we are." Jase insisted. "Now then, gather around children. It's story time."

"Do I look like a kid to you?!" Ace snarled.

"Just go with it." Esther protested.

Everyone got situated in various spots and grouped around each other. Luke's team situated at the table, and the Brawlers and allies were sitting around close to one another. They all centered around the table with their Bakugan partners on its surface.

"Alright…" Shawn started. "So as far as we know, Ren and Fabia's sides are closer to Solaris. We've managed to get into Troposphere thankfully, so at least we have a base to work it. On top of that, we don't know for certain if Hades Pillars is lurking around. So it'll be dangerous to move around for the time being."

"Yeah, those guys are pretty messed up." Ace grimaced. He was visible concerned after recalling what happened a short while ago. "We barely got away by the skin of our teeth. I didn't think they'd be that powerful."

"Not just powerful. Skilled." Esther prompted. "Believe us, we would know better. So if Cyrus and Zion engaged in battle here, it's likely to assume Hades Pillars is in fact spread thin and are keeping an eye on us."

"We were lucky to have gotten this far." Maggie prompted. "I say that's a plus."

"That's true, but now they know we've been using the sewers to navigate as well." Jase explained. He shot a mediocre look towards the Brawlers. "Of course, that is to say that was within our control to begin with."

"Well…" Dan coughed. "What did you expect? Drago and us barely got here and reinforcements were swarming the place."

"But this also means that they'll have increased patrol watch." Atmos said. "So until there is a solid opening, we must refrain from moving around so callously."

"So nighttime won't work then?" Jelldon prompted.

Jase prodded his glasses. "It's usually the best time to be on the move. Now that we have equipment for the Vestals to work with, we can leave Troposphere in their care."

"Okay, so where do we go from here?" Shun questioned.

Jase looked towards him. "We'll wait before daybreak. It'll still be dark out by the time we try to work our way out if the perimeter. Let's do our best to rest while we still have the cover to do so."

"Got it." Luke nodded.

Shawn smiled. "Alright…now, guess we can't think on empty stomachs. Let's chow down."

"You've read my mind." Shuji smirked impishly at the wrap with sizeable meat slabs in it. "I've been hungry all day. Time to fill up!"

"Ep! Ladies first~!" Maggie chimed, cutting in front to get her share. "A growing girl's gotta have her protein too if she wants to get big and strong you know?"

Luke raised his head despondently. "You get bigger? C'mon, when's that gonna happen?"

Maggie gave Luke puffed cheeks. "Eh? You saying I won't grow? Well I'm not gonna be a short stack till I'm 30, you know!" She beamed blissfully. "Just wait and see, I've been drinking much more milk as of late."

"You've got a long way to go before you get to Esther's melons." Luke groaned.

Esther's face turned beet red, her shock evident. "M-Melons? Don't be so ridiculous! Both of you! Shut up, we're at the dinner table!"

Luke and Maggie looked away as they moved away from her nervously. Everyone in fact gave her a wide berth.

"Um, Esther. Perhaps you should keep it down. We're trying to keep quiet." Atchibee pleaded.

Esther blinked and flinched. "S-Sorry…"

"Man, these guys sure know how to have a blast it looks like." Dan teased.

"Yeah, guess that's one way of putting it…" Drago muttered.

---

Meanwhile, Spectra and the others were still in the lab. The Interacians have stopped attacking for the time being, seeing as how their forces were cut off from the avenue. For the time being, Spectra was hard at work with Mira analyzing the data they've had. It looked like a jumbled mess of webs to say the very least.

"I can't believe these power levels…" Mira was genuinely shocked at the data her brother had from Hades Pillars' battle. "Are they seriously this strong?"

"Unfortunately, yes Mira. It would seem so." Spectra noted. "They pack a bigger punch than we've anticipated."

Mira glanced away in shame. "I can't believe the destruction these guys have caused…"

Her brother frowned. "Yes, I most certainly agree…looking back at it, you can't say their methods haven't bear much fruit. Zenoheld was one thing with mindless conquer, and then there was Mag Mel. Our foes have certainly been keeping us on our toes."

"Indeed." Mira paused. "But, this execution…it's unlike anything we've been put up with. These guys – Riaan – what they've done in just a short span of time is unreal. Let's just hope that this cure we're doing, it can turn the tides."

…

In another part of the lab, Alice was wrapping bandages around Gus' arm. For now the bleeding had come to a stop. Once they were set, she backed away and overlooked the work done. "There. That should do it." Alice smiled.

Gus looked up to her humbly. "Thanks."

"Does it still hurt?"

He looked down at his arm, frowning. "Yeah, at least when I move my arm around." He smirked. "Thankfully it wasn't my good arm."

Alice nodded in understanding. "Okay, then I'll go see what Spectra and Mira need. You guys stay tight, okay?" She walked off, making way towards the others while Gus watched her take off.

A short silence fell around Gus and Keegan. There was an uneasy tension between them to say the least. Gus looked down at his bandaged arm, while Keegan was against the wall trying to sleep.

"Hey, Keegan."

"Hm?" He mumbled low. "Yeah?"

"Heh, sorry. Didn't think you were asleep yet."

He weakly scoffed. "Believe me, after what the hell we've been through, I'm just trying to sleep with one eye open. Especially around you guys. Someone crazy always happens you drag me along."

Gus turned his head away, snickering. "My apologies. It's not that it was our intention to use you from the start. If it means anything, like Master Spectra said, you've been a great help to us."

"Don't be…at this point, I'm just used to it. I guess even Interacians have to do things they don't like."

"Well, these are hectic times. We're the invaders. How ironic, isn't it?" Another brief silence fell before Gus picked up from his point again. "So how's it feel? Being back in your world?"

"Well, what do you want me to say? I mean just look outside." He and Gus turned their attention outwards. They saw dusk approach with a beautiful shade of dark blue drawing along the skies. "When you live in a world that's been nothing but a dark hole, it's kind of ironic you get to see the light. When I was in Thermosphere, we had to worry about falling rocks and Devil Miasma plaguing everyone. It was hell to make, but the resources were spontaneous…now that I think about it, even we struggled so much that it made us so low. No wonder we were underground so long."

"Well, that isn't all your fault, you know."

Keegan frowned. "Still…we were in the dark for so long. I was in the dark. You know…I'm just sick of it. All my life, I've seen nothing but black. Black, and suffering. I was too arrogant to admit then." He snorted dryly. "But now look. Bet you're happy to see me preaching like some petty wiseman on his deathbed."

Gus gave him a serious look. "Not so. Keegan, listen to me. We both had nothing after everything we've worked for turned out to be false. We were both too powerless. Master Spectra gave me my purpose, to serve and be by his side. To help him in any way that I can." He glanced deeply at him. "But you, you have a future too. This won't be your end. Perhaps…a new beginning."

Keegan looked down at his feet. He contemplated what Gus was driving home and thought deeply about the matters at hand. It was all so much, but for what it seemed to be worth, at least now, in this moment, he could have his peace.

"…hey, remember what I said before? About what I wanted to do?"

"Yes. I remember that. What is it?"

He looked ahead, his face showing upmost seriousness. "Listen, don't tell anyone this…but I've made up my mind. I…want to change the ways of Interacia. These people. These guys left in the dark and oblivious, I want to change that. All the struggling they've endured for years, with barely civilization and fertile resources, I want to change that. With the resources that everyone has. Somehow. In some way." He looked down with contemplation. "I'm not saying it like I want your planets to die. But even if everything was reversed, and Interacia went back to being the way it was…I want to try. Just try, and maybe…just maybe…there can still be a future for those in the dark."

There was an uneasy silence. Gus stared at him blankly, which Keegan shied away from. "Go ahead. Laugh. Make fun of me or whatever. But I've made up my mind. That's what I want to live for."

He felt a hand on his shoulder, surprising him. He perked his head up and looked over at Gus. "…then work towards it. You wish to somehow preserve your broken home in the face of possibly destroying it. It takes a lot of guts and skill for someone to do that. This is selfish of me to say, but you've grown so well. You have my respects."

Keegan sheepishly turned away. "Yeah, well, we still have to fix this crappy Forbidden bug Riaan has."

"Don't worry. After Master Spectra and the others finish up, that dream you're looking for will be one step further."

"Well…sure. But if Riaan is somehow killed, won't that kill the planet too?"

"One step at a time. For now we'll focus on rest. We'll need it to make sure the others get their backup." Gus closed his eyes and sat against the wall.

Keegan looked at him and chose to do the same. His eyes lulled to slumber quickly after a long, stressful day.

---

Night had fallen upon Interacia. The people of Solaris were all fast asleep. They were staying within the sound safety of their homes, as per the lockdown Riaan issued. Tall buildings of various statures mixed with smaller, humbling homes. Yet, even from the distance, one could hear the sounds of explosions.

Looking out from the black palace's balcony, Riaan took in the looks of Solaris. The Bakugan transports were finishing up their runs for the final call for people to get to lockdown. He frowned at the sight. He didn't like it, but he knew this was the best course of action.

He lifted his Bakumeter and spoke into it. "Have the pager Bakugan all been recalled?"

"Yes, sir. The last ones are finishing up their runs right now. The citizens on foot are being guided back home promptly by our officials and their Bakugan." A soldier announced on the other end.

"Very good then. I'm leaving the rest to you. Make sure everyone understands they are to stay in their bunkers. We don't want any casualties from those who weren't ill-informed. Everyone got the warnings and I have explained everything. Please do what you can."

"Yes, sir. Will do."

The Bakumeter clicked, ending the communication. Riaan looked out ahead of him with a morbid sigh. And yet, at the same time, he felt content.

In a flash, Cyrus and Zion appeared behind him. The latter bowed in glory of his majesty. "Milord, we have returned."

"Thank you both. I've heard about your reports as well." He turned around to stare deeply at them. "So as anticipated, they've taken control of Troposphere then."

"Yes, milord. It would seem so." Cyrus informed. "Our apologies. Seems that they're as elusive as our friends we've gotten so acquainted with." He paused. "And rest assured, we've made sure that before our engagement with Spectra Phantom, the citizens were all in their bunkers. No substantial casualties…just as you've wanted."

Riaan closed his eyes humbly. "Thank you, Cyrus."

Four more teleportation lights shined their attributed colors. Appearing next was the rest of Hades Pillars, all facing forward.

"Well done, you all. It would seem that we've managed to buy enough time." He turned towards Galilea. "Miss Vergo, what's the status?"

She closed her eyes and bowed her head. "Lord. The equipment from the main lab is copied. We can resume our works from there."

"I see." He turned towards Lucia. "Lucia, what's the estimated time the Neathian and Gundalian forces will reach Solaris?"

"Your graciousness, approximately 20 minutes and 11 seconds. We've prepared everything so that energy grids would shield the homes."

"I understand…" He frowned. "So then, it seems this would have to be it for now. Armagedoid…I'm afraid this will be our last time here…in this palace."

Armagedoid lowered his ball form's head. "Has the time…truly come, Master?"

"Yes, I'm afraid so. It's time we take our leave for the next stage…the final stage. Still, it breaks my heart knowing this city shall be left behind." An earnest frown cascaded on Riaan. His statement may have sounded on the sarcastic note, but deep down, he really did feel remorse. A lot of work was put into this city that he governed over for a long time. "There were a lot of memories we've made here that I wish we could've savored just a little while longer."

"Hello, and I welcome you…Darkus Armagedoid."

"As the loyalist of this land that we live on, I – your lord – shall offer nothing more than the salvation of a revolution!" His bold declaration was what made them all cheer even louder, almost to where it was deafening for everyone. "With the places that I have been to, the suffering of this world we endure…will be a distant memory!"

"The warmth and the miracles that happen after your struggles are a works of wonder. Are these perhaps nature's doing, or is it something more? Who's to say?"

He looked towards the skies. "The unification of all these worlds in coming together. The resonance we've had with the crumbling world that you've seen before is no more. The plague we've once had, is now being fumigated…we're nearly there, my friend."

A lot of familiar memories surfaced from Riaan's head that recollected his passion. Now that he's thought about it, he's spent much of his time pondering amongst his thoughts and ideals with the folks of Solaris and Armagedoid.

With the silence now broken, his peace was finally made. A serious look spread over. "…Lucia. How much longer afterwards, until the others also reconvene?"

"Approximately 12 hours and 30 minutes, Milord." She announced.

Everyone's Bakumeter beeped. They all picked up as a signal was from afar with static. "Reporting in sector 117-X! The Gundalian an Neathians have reached the borders! They're closing in! O-GAH~!"

The communication feed cut off.

"Hmph. It seems they have learned how to act in battle after last time." Zion scoffed. "Milord, what shall we do now?"

Riaan carefully thought about his motives and glared ahead. "Listen well. We're heading to the Empyrean Alpha. You all are to stay here and bide as much time as you must. Stop them at all costs, is that understood?"

"Ugh, really?" Amina grimaced. "Fine. But at least tell me there'll be a spa installed?"

"Amina, just do as you're told." Lucia insisted. "This is dire. We must prepare at once."

"Ugh, fine." Amina whipped around and swayed her hips as she sauntered away. "I swear, it's always something nagging with you after every other sentence. You're like a banshee."

As she walked away, Magnus shook his head. "Good grief."

"Then let us be on our way…to the new beginning." Riaan declared. He turned towards the balcony one last time, giving the scenery one more look at the outer lands' majestic scenery, even at night. 'Goodbye, Solaris. May you stay strong.'

"Then…" Armagedoid's magenta eyes glimmered. "To the new future we go."

Riaan and Armagedoid teleported away, leaving Hades Pillars behind to defend to fortress.

Cyrus mildly scoffed. "You have our word, sire. We'll keep them occupied…for as long as necessary."

---

Everyone had already fallen asleep so easily. It didn't take long for anyone's eyes to close and lay along the floor. It was a little hard, but it was fairly convenient a few tarps were around and a couple of pillows. It was lackluster for the Brawlers but it was enough for the others.

Opening her eyes weakly, Esther found herself lying amongst her friends. She sat up, noticing someone wasn't amongst them. 'Hm? Luke isn't here…'

Instantly she started to feel worry. She took a meek look around and felt her heart ease when he was found leaning against stain glass windows. She sighed softly and noticed the raptured look in his eyes. She stood up and walked towards him.

"Can't sleep?"

Her voice nearly surprised him. He turned around and looked at her. "Esther…" He paused, knowing she asked a question. "Not much. It's kinda hard for me."

"That isn't healthy. It's close to the time. We need you at your best."

"Yeah, I know, I know…" Luke eyerolled. "What are you, my mom?"

"Idiot. I'm trying to look out for you. You worry me."

Luke impishly smiled. "I know. Sorry. I guess that always happens no matter at what time, huh?"

A short silence fell between them. It became awkward until Esther got an idea why it was.

"Is being back here…this comforting for you?"

Luke didn't even try to deny it. "I wouldn't say that. It's just…this place brings back a lot of memories. This place…a lot's happened here the last time, and the time before. It's a lot to take in."

Abis popped open on his shoulder. "You can say that again. It's not that we're sad to be back, but…this is also where we cast off our old-selves."

"Your old selves, you say?" Atchibee questioned.

Abis lowered his head. "Yes. Luke, should we tell them?"

Luke nodded. "Yeah." He turned towards Esther and Atchibee. "It was while we were asleep. Luka and Brontes, they used some kind of mind powers to force our minds into their own. We saw everything through them. And because if that…we learned a lot, and had to just…accept it." He looked down in shame. "After what we did in Thermosphere, I thought it'd be best if we could help, but…"

"You can take smack all you want, but if Luke was always there me, then it's my job to be beside him, even when I'm not supposed to. There's good in him, and I have faith he can learn."

"Even after everyone hated me, you and Shawn were the only ones who kept believing in me, even after knowing what I did was wrong…no, that's not it. I was pitied, really. Shawn was right from the start, I really am an idiot."

Esther frowned morbidly. She walked up and sat down by his side. "That's not true. Both of those statements are wrong. You were…very trusting. You helped where you could."

"But it wasn't enough. And because of that, I dragged everyone down. That's why Abis and I vowed to change. So much has happened since then that it feels like yesterday that we've been here." He looked out the stain glass. "We've learned so much more about ourselves I think. And each other. About what we can do, with the time we have."

He turned directly at her. "…Esther, I still want to save as many people as I possibly can. I don't care even if it's Interacians. I want to help them see a new day. If Riaan completely overhauls the planet, I'm worried about what will happen to them. That's what the me now wants to do. Is that wrong?"

Esther gave him a meaningful smile. "No. That isn't wrong in the slightest. After everything, this is what you decided, isn't that right? You've said it yourself. This is where it started for you and Abis. You going off by yourselves just for our sake, that's one of the first self-choices you've made. Don't forget that."

"Heh, there's no need for that." He paused to look down at hos knees. He looked back up at Esther. "Esther, thank you. You and everyone. We weren't there when you needed us, but we're here now. We won't let you down."

"That's something I can back up." Abis said.

Esther genuinely smiled at Luke. She wanted to call him an idiot, but she chose to keep her tongue shut. He wasn't an idiot. "Luke…"

"Yeah?"

She was about to speak up, but she chose to pull away. She shook her head. "…it's nothing."

Atchibee looked at the stain glass window, noticing just a little light coming through. "Everyone…it's time."

"Guess we should get this show on the road then." Abis insisted. "Let's get ready."

Luke nodded. "You're right." He went over to Shawn to stir him awake first; Esther went to Maggie to start the morning call.

---

In a matter of minutes, everyone was up on their feet. They scavenged what they could from the groceries that were left over for breakfast and made sure to hide the trash in their pockets. They didn't want to leave any trace of them behind.

"Alright then, the operation begins now." Jase declared. "Now then, are there any questions before we begin?" Nobody said anything. "Good. Then let's run down everything we know so far." Using his Bakumeter, he pulled up a holographic panel that showed a layout of Troposphere. "We're currently right here. Our point is 2 kilometers from the designated lab where Spectra's team is currently under operation. They will remain here under coverage as we make our way to where Solaris will be."

"Solaris is inland, isn't it?" Shawn surmised. "So that means we'll have to stop traveling by water. Is there a coverage of how far exactly?"

Jase zoomed out the screen to show the distance between the two huge dots with radar signals coming from them. "Seems pretty far inward. And there's no guarantee that the land mass will be like it was before."

Luke stepped forward. "So then we'll have to fly there."

"It would appear so." Esther noted. "With how fast the Trailer moves, that should minimize the time needed."

Dan rammed his fist into his palm. "So then we'll just have to take those guys by storm. Sounds simple enough."

"I like that too, Dan, but how exactly are we supposed to get out of here first? Remember, these guys are armed. We'll get killed if we're in the open. Have you thought about that?"

"Well I…" Dan went for a rebuff, but he caught himself tripping. To be honest, that completely slipped his mind. He backed off from his previous statement and frowned down at the ground. This was really a dilemma they were going through.

"We need a way to get through without being detected." Shun hypothesized. "They can track us if we open communications with our Bakumeters, and there's just too many to take head-on."

"Well if it ain't broke, don't fix it." Shuji noted. "We can get past them using the same way we got in."

"How's that?" Gunz sarcastically chimed.

Maggie beamed as she turned towards Luke. "Oh, just some underwater stakeout, nothing too hard. And believe me, it's actually pretty fun once you get past the cold waters. It's like a roller coaster on Abis Omega."

Baron raised a brow. "Uh, sorry, but could you repeat that?"

"Underwater?" Nemus questioned.

"Here's what I propose." Jase noted. "We'll travel through the sewers as before, but you must keep your signals off. Those soldiers have tracking technology. Once we're back at the outing, we'll make way back to the Trailer. That should be simple enough."

"Is it really okay to just leave Spectra and Alice behind like that?" Maggie noted. "I mean it's like leaving them around spices ready to smoke."

Esther turned towards her. "That's true, but we have our part to do. Solaris is where Riaan is located. He might have more than just here to work with. If he's hiding something, we need to uncover it."

"Precisely. So staying in one spot wouldn't fit our style to begin with." Shawn spoke coolly, before turning towards the other Brawlers. "Now, you guys sure you can keep up?"

Dan smirked. "Don't sweat it guys. We've been through worse situation than these. We know now, trust us."

Luke nodded in understanding. "Okay then, just stay close." He turned towards Julie. "Julie, maybe you and the camera guy should also keep the broadcast off just for a while."

Julie arguably huffed. "Hmph! No why would I do that? The people need to know what's happening." She pointed a thumb to herself. "And, as a reporter, it's my job to ensure that happens."

"Julie, c'mon…" Luke groaned.

"C'mon Julie. Just follow along." Ace groaned. "I have to say it, but these guys actually know what they're doing. And I'd rather not end up handicapped so early."

Julie crossed her arms and sighed heavily. "Fine…man this is such a buzzkill."

"We should hurry." Esther declared.

Everyone made headway and walked out of the wall. The last one to file out was Luke and Abis Omega as the two looked back one more time to take in the scenery. Once again, the room would be empty for what may be the last time. They turned and walked out in silent gratitude before embarking.

"Alright. Let's be quiet guys, and stay low." Luke said. "Next stop…Solaris."

---

Meanwhile, in Solaris, the morning sun had risen. The people were staying low as per advised and made sure to be as subtly quiet while they enjoyed whatever activities necessary to keep them distracted from the chaos outside. There were some thumps along the wall, but otherwise people were advised and stayed completely calm.

A little boy was huddle up to his mother on a couch under a small light. They were reading books to pass the time when a sudden rupture made the light above flicker. The boy looked up in a mixture of shock and fear.

His mother huddled up to him. "It's okay, sweetie. It's okay. Mommy's here."

"Mommy…I'm scared." He muffled into her chest.

The mother rested her hand atop his head, hovering over her child as tentatively as she could. "I know, sweetie. It'll be over soon. Just stay down here until then, okay?"

"…those people. The one's that our leader spoke of…it's them, isn't it? They're the ones who took Daddy away from us. Mommy…" He clutched the fabric of her sweater as hard as he could, as if she too would float away. "Make them go away…"

The rupture was a little louder, making the light sway a little. The boy flinched.

"Don't worry, sweetie. Our lord and his men are doing everything they can to stop those people. He said that our world would prosper once their homes were gone…let's just hope. That's all we can do."

…

Topside, several magenta beams zoomed across the street into Aranaut. He skillfully leaped to the side and ricocheted into the air, evading the explosive wake of the attack.

"My queen! We're low on elbow room around here!" He shouted. He felt a presence behind. He turned around in midair, finding an Interacian Farakspin eyeing him down. Its wings turned like a generator and unleashed a green lightning cyclone down on him directly. Aranaut screamed violently as Fabia hung on for dear life.

"Ability, activate! Mirage Field!" A red crystalline barrier gathered around Aranaut as he fell. The tornado bombarding him dispersed through the red jewels and faded into the minerals. A cage-like area surrounded the Farakspin while Aranaut found his momentum to double over and land on a knee.

They both looked over, finding their saviors to be Rubanoid and Linus. "My queen! We're here to serve!" Linus declared.

Fabia smiled. "Thanks for the save."

Elright came flying through on his Haos Raptorix with an ability. "Ability, activate! Hyat Spinner!" Raptorix hissed as he spun in a clockwise fashion. A yellow tornado surrounded him as he barreled into the Farakspin, making it screech before forced back into ball form. The soldier lost his momentum and was forced to land on the nearest ceiling.

Watching his opponents sail overhead, he locked onto his green Bakumeter. "I am down! Repeat, I am down!" He looked up, finding more Ziperatorflying in from above.

Haos and Darkus Interacian Ramdol came zooming in from the streets with Twin Destructor and Zukanator mounted on their backs. They ran all over the place while firing at the Neathian soldiers.

"Get out of there, Boulderon!" Paige shouted.

"You don't have to tell me twice!" He hurried to cover behind a building. When he swiveled around, he was met with shock upon seeing four Luxtor of Pyrus, Haos, Subterra, and Darkus, all lined up with Zukanator and fired at him without thinking. He didn't have time to react and dodge.

In a last-second endeavor, Wolfurio jumped in between them and the blast waves with his Baku Nano's shield. It deflected the blows around them, but the momentum it carried was too much to hold off. His ground was being lifted too quickly.

"Rafe!" Paige screamed. "Where'd you come from?!"

"Don't worry about that, just hurry and get these guys!" Rafe exclaimed. "Wolfurio and I…can't hold up this much longer…!"

Paige understood. "Okay then. Ability, activate! Burst Quench!" Boulderon gathered a generously large mass in front of his body that crackled with energy. Once he was ready, he fired it with all his might in a streamline beam into the midst of the Luxtor pack. The result was a large explosion of Subterra energy that blew the Luxtor around haphazardly.

"Bull's eye!" Boulderon clutched his fist in glee.

"Hurry! Let's find cover!" Rafe kept himself perched on Wolfurio and leaped away. Boulderon hastily followed him as Glotronoid on Mobile Assault Vehicles turned the corners. With how much space they took up, the streets could fit two at a time.

All across Solaris. There were Interacian Bakugan with soldiers mounted on them. There were so many in the air, and even more on the ground. Large Mobile Assault Vehicles took over everywhere. Large cannon-like projectiles lined up around the borders; Koptorix and Hurrix shared the skies with aerial Bakugan to keep an eye on the ground and afar.

Racing along the streets, the Neathians were making haste as they were trying to get away from the armed forces constantly firing at them. Every time they turned around, they were being fired at. When they turn anywhere it was volley after brigade.

In the air, a Darkus Ziperator was riding a Hurrix as it sailed overhead. The soldier mounting it readied himself. "Targets within range. Prepare to engage."

"How did they catch on so fast?!" Rafe exclaimed. "There's just so many all over the place!"

"Obviously this the Capital, so of course they're protecting their big boss. It's no wonder we can't get near that dumb castle right now!" Paige commented.

"I know. We can't get anywhere close to it!"

Hurrix and Koptorix glowed bright magenta colors all across the sky and took careful aim on everyone. Each individual fired streaking or straight magenta beams that grazed across the streets into them. Explosions went off that produced shockwaves so strong that they were all blown away. They sailed about haphazardly, hitting sides of small businesses and houses that bounced them off with energy grids to protect them. All of Solaris was blasted with beams and bolts, and even worse by ground patrol. Rafe and Paige screamed for their lives, and Elright and Linus were no different.

"Guys! Stay strong!" Fabia pleaded. "Quick! Find some cover, until the others get here! Aranaut!"

"You got it!" He leaped into the thin alleyways between buildings, where the Mobile Assault Vehicles couldn't follow him in. He darted hastily into the darkness as Interacian soldiers followed on foot in place of their Bakugan.

"You okay, Aranaut?" Fabia worried.

"Don't worry, I'm fine. More importantly, right now we are at a disadvantage. The Gundalians are still behind handling the brigade far out. Hopefully the others can get there in time."

Fabia frowned. "I hope so too, Aranaut…let's just hurry. We'll find weakpoints if we can…then strike. Strike…until they're all destroyed."

---

The Trailer zoomed through the air at plane-like speeds across the Interacian skies. The sun was at the perfect temperature so that nothing would overheat, but at the same time was fairly cool. It sailed on its path towards its destination.

Esther typed into her keyboard to show their icon moving towards a large yellow dot that gave off a radar wave. She kept her eyes fixed on it, even after the doors switched open.

The Battle Brawlers came in…barely waterlogged and still dripping throughout their walk. They had towels wrapped around their heads, especially Julie, who amongst them, was the most the most aggravated and annoyed.

"And you guys didn't tell us before we plunged, why?" Her tone was deeply disappointed in them.

"We warned you that we were going underwater." Esther countered, still unfazed by her complaints. "You were fortunate that because of Abis Omega that we could stay down there long enough until we were back to the Trailer's hiding spot."

"Yeah, but I didn't expect to get all wet, c'mon!" Julie's shoulders slumped in grievance. "Well, at least the camera is still working. Thank goodness for waterproof material."

Ace walked up to Jase's side, overlooking everything he was doing. "So how far away are we?"

Jase didn't bother taking his eyes off the screen. He measured the distance through the monitor's radar to show a precise number. "Roughly about another 75 kilometers to cover. It'll still be a while until we are within a close range."

Ace's brows furrowed. "Well, let's just hope these coordinates are right. I don't want anymore surprises pulling us away like before."

Though it wasn't visibly shown, Jase could tell there was a small crack in Ace's voice. He gave a very small glance over his shoulder to get a good view of Ace. He was very much composed to a naked eye, but if one looked closely, his hands were still trembling. He swiveled back around with an acknowledging notion.

"Don't be so anxious now. You'll wear yourself out before the battle really begins. Just try not to overextend yourself so soon."

Ace blinked rapidly, a flustered scoff escaping his lips. "Wha-I'm not anxious! Get real!"

Jase prodded his glasses stoically. "It's fine. I won't tell anyone."

"You…" Ace couldn't believe what he was hearing. He crossed his arms and turned away. "Know-it-all much?"

Fly Beetle sat on the board for Shuji's seat as he was typing in to show the fuel gauge. "It looks like there's still enough fuel to get us there." He pressed a button, showing a reserved panel to show the excess amount still within a full gauge. "Reserves are good. No damages either."

Atmos popped open and looked outwards. "It seems awfully clear up ahead, wouldn't you agree?"

Jase's expression didn't change. "It is."

Getting the towel off her head, Julie managed a full 180 on her face. A jovial smile took over as she whipped around. "Alright, now that that's out of the way, we better get back to filming! We gotta make sure the public know what's going on! I'll be right ba~ck!"

"Yeah, sure thing." Dan watched her skip back through the doorway, which slid closed just as fast as it did open. "Well, at least some things don't change, huh Drago?"

Drago's ball form opened and rested on his shoulder. "At least there's a silver lining to all of this."

"Hey, you guys still hungry?" The call came from Maggie. She looked away from her screen, which showed a thermal reading chart for forecast. "We've stocked up before we left Earth. You can have some if you're still starving."

Dan smiled. "Cool, thanks."

"Yup." She winked. "Oh, FYI…lay off the jelly. Jelldon and the others really like it."

Dan couldn't hide a blink. He just looked at Drago in confusion and back to Maggie, but she was already facing forward fixed on the screen.

The Brawlers past by Luke and Shawn as they were still set on their duties and looking out. Everyone looked so focused and yet they weren't freaking out. Even through the air filters of the Trailers, all their skins crawled with envy, at least if one could call it that. They decided to make way to the lower deck and found seats along the round tables to chill and wait until Julie came back.

"I've gotta say though…" Ace leaned back in his seat and crossed his legs across the table. "They really went and remodeled the whole thing. Gotta give those guys props there at least."

"I know, right?" Baron smiled wide. "Look at all this stuff! They've even got a filtered water system, and this thing can fly. This is just awesome!"

Nemus rolled out with his fellow Bakugan to open ball form. He looked around to inspect the features of the convertible homestead. "I'm in agreement. They've really taken care of this place."

Dan snickered. "This sure brings back old memories. Hard to believe it's been so long with Zenoheld and New vestroia…almost feels like a dream." He looked down at his knees with a genuine smile. His mind was retrogressing to some of the old days, and the hardships they've had to endure.

It wasn't just the good times they remembered, it was also the painful ones; the ones that really pushed them. Dan losing Drago to Spectra. Their Ultimate System engagement that drove them to the point of physicality. The protection of the Attribute Energies. The Alternative. All these thoughts running through his head was like flowing water that he couldn't fully block off.

"We've been through a lot, haven't we?" His words came out of his mouth so fluently that everyone looked back at him. "Hard to believe that it's gotten us to this point. Honestly, I never thought this would happen to us."

Marucho blinked. "What are you saying, Dan?"

Shun closed his eyes calmly as he sat back in a chair nearby. "…I think I get it. We've been through hundreds of battles before. Enough to push us to our breaking points as Brawlers. We thought we'd see the end after Mechtavius Destroyer."

"Yeah, you know it." Dan trailed off as he turned his head away. "It's so ironic. We thought we were the best…but I guess after thinking about it, that guy we've fought, he really got me thinking."

"C'mon, Dan. You know you can't listen to anything that guy says." Marucho insisted. "What he's doing is completely wrong."

"Yeah, I know that Marucho." He frowned. "But he knows it, too. I just wish we knew what went inside his head…hey, does anyone hear sloshing or something?"

Drago turned on the table towards the kitchen. "Uh, Dan…?"

The Brawlers turned to where they heard some cheers and complaints from the kitchen area of the lower deck. They saw a large jar of jelly – the biggest they've seen actually – with its lid open and four Bakugan around it. They watched Prime Verias' ball form made a big jump and curl up into a ball. He then popped open and went for a steep dive right into the sea of purple junk.

Some of the reside spread thinly, but Atchibee moved out of the way enough so that Abis and Jelldon would get small blotches on their faces. They looked ahead with despondence, but it easily wiped off as did the jelly.

"Not bad, huh?" Verias chimed. "Alright Jelldon, your turn!"

"Oh yay! I've been waiting for this!" He closed and rolled over to the edge. He used one of his thin arms and helped pull Verias out, but instead he found him too heavy. The two ended up falling into the jelly together, sloshing more of it around.

"Ow! I think I landed on my tentacle!" Jelldon whined.

"No…" A groan was muffled in the jelly beneath. "That's just me."

"…oh. Whoops." Jelldon struggled to get up in the jelly, but Verias was so far in with purple junk. "Sorry about that."

Abis observed from the side with his head raised slightly. "Talk about an epic fail."

"Indeed." Atchibee chimed. He felt someone coming over towards them and turned around. To her mild surprise she saw the Battle Brawlers and their Bakugan gathering. "Oh, good afternoon, everyone…"

Abis tensed up and realized the situation. His flappable tail end tapped against the jar glass to give a signal towards Verias and Jelldon. They both ceased their struggling and froze in shock. They realized what they were doing.

Jelldon swallowed. "Um…we can explain."

Dan raised a brow. It just hit him what Maggie referred to when she said something about the jelly. He wanted to question that, but as much as that interested him, he opted to cool off and take a second to gather his thoughts.

Drago floated overhead Jelldon and Verias. "You guys need any help?" He allowed the use of his large two feet and lowered himself down to Jelldon and Verias. They latched on and Drago began his ascent slowly. They were surprisingly heavy despite how they looked. He floated towards Abis and Atchibee, who gave enough space to allow them to jump off and land between them, smothered in jelly gunk. They awkwardly looked at each other before sheepishly shrugging off the gunk.

"You guys look like you were having fun." Drago chuckled. "Sorry if we disturbed you."

Atchibee shook her tiny head. "It's no trouble, really." She looked at the jelly jar with interest. "Did you by chance, want a peanut butter and jelly sandwich?"

"Uh, we're good. Thanks." Marucho turned down as politely as he could. He was sure to not tell them his appetite was off because of them.

Dan stepped forward. "So guys, listen. I was just curious about something."

"About what?" Abis inquired.

"You know. How should I put this?" Dan rubbed the back of his head. "Like…what was it like? Being faced against an enemy like Riaan? What did you feel?"

The Bakugan didn't know what to say to that question. If anything it just brought on even more questions than it did answers. Dan wasn't the best at these sorts of things, but he thought it'd be a good idea to ask while the subject was still fresh on their minds.

"Is there any particular reason to this?" Verias asked.

Nemus floated onto the counter, actively engaging himself. "Yes. You see, when we've fought those members before, it was like…nothing we've felt. There was so much negative energy that it was taking everything I had to stay awake."

"Yeah, same here." Percival rolled out and popped open beside Nemus. "When we've fought you guys, you guys weren't anything like we've been through."

Abis tried to process what he was saying. "Is that supposed to be a backhanded insult or something?"

Drago floated down. "What we're trying to say is, out of all the Bakugan we've fought before, out of the many that you've faced, how do you keep up in this huge dark wave? When we've fought Armagedoid…we didn't understand a thing. He had us…he played us. And we got caught right into that web."

The Brawlers visibly had dread on their faces at Drago's testimony. They didn't want to go through that same experience again. The mere mention of Armagedoid was something that was enough to send a shiver down their spines. Even Shun tensed up.

"Hmm…" Atchibee hummed as she looked down at the jelly-stained counter. "Well, how should we put this? It's not as simple as you think, but rather…it's something you get used to."

"'Used to'? What does that mean?" Shun questioned.

Verias got in front to speak. "She means, that we weren't gifted Bakugan like you guys. We were just as overwhelmed with these Forbidden abilities like you were. It's just something we had to overcome eventually."

"Yeah, I mean, look at me." Jelldon perked up. "I mean, I used to be afraid of the dark. I was really scared when we first started out."

"I never would have guessed by the way you battle so ferociously like you did." Drago chimed. He turned towards Abis. "Abis…weren't you and everyone the same? Doesn't this bother you that you're all up against such odds?"

Abis' orange eyes beamed at Drago with a seriousness. "It's not just about how special you are. Look, I get it. You have all these powers that we don't. So does Armagedoid. But still…we've been through a lot. In order to keep up, we had to break ourselves too. And along the way…we had to deal with really hard times." He paused, thinking back to his training with Luke on New Vestroia. "We had to learn just as much about from our failures than we did our winnings. We got here because we've made mistakes, and we've dealt with them…all of us."

The Brawlers looked at each other and started getting the picture. At least, some of them were.

"You serious?" Gunz quipped. "You get back up after knowing you were bested like that?"

"Weren't you the same?" Abis' tone was straightforward and deathly serious. "You guys are the Battle Brawlers…but we're not like you. We've had our own hell of an experience that we've dealt with. I've been trying to find out how to say this, but…maybe the reason, is because we actually try to understand the other side."

"Understand, you say?" Jaakor questioned. "As in…the enemy's motives?"

"Kind of. And we had to learn the hard way ourselves." Abis paused to think of what to say. "Riaan…he's taken the time to understand his opponents, and how they think. We don't know what opponents you've fought, but these kinds that know you more than you know yourself…those are the kind that we have to deal with."

"I am not proud to admit it, but when Esther and I were under his influence, we knew precisely how he felt." Atchibee added. "Despite how he acts, he made us understand how we feel. And while we don't condone him…to an extent, he's suffered as much as we have."

"I think we're getting points made…" Verias added. "But we're all different…but now we have to come together and have to understand and accept what we must do. No matter how impossible it seems." He turned towards Abis, who gave him a sympathetic look. "And we'll help you, if you're just willing to open up for us."

"Sure we're lower power level than you…" Jelldon chimed. "But like my friends are saying, we know how to fight our way."

They were silent at the notion. A gracious sum of it left them morally impressed. Amongst them was definitely Shun. He closed his eyes and humbly grinned. "Right, then it seems that we owe you an apology from before. We were wrong about you. All of you. And watching you battle like you did, it just proved it."

Jelldon swayed a bit here and here. "Oh, you're gonna make me blush…"

"We'll keep that in mind. Thank you." Atchibee thanked with a small nod.

"Everyone! Listen!" Esther was paying full attention to her screen when suddenly the monitor went over a large amount of red dots. Her serious expression picked up with her back straightening. They all stopped what they were doing and turned towards her.

"What is it?" Luke asked.

"…negative energy signatures. A lot of them." She typed into her keyboard hastily. "Hold on, I'm putting it up on visual now."

The lower deck's projector on one of the round tables gradually lit up, initiating the projection Esther copied over. A large screen popped up to reveal the sky a few miles ahead within a zoomed-in lens from atop the Trailer. It was tough to make out, but magenta explosions could be seen firing in a cloud of aerodynamic flares. The forest was also seen engulfed in flames below, rising smoke.

Shawn furrowed his brow. "That's not a good sign."

"Can it get any closer?" Maggie questioned. "It's hard to see what they're firing at…"

The doors slid open again, this time revealing Julie with the cameraman once more. Her face was full of pep as she walked up towards the rim of the deck. "Alright~! We're back up to speed and ready to shoot again!" Her eyes widened at the projection. "Wait…is this a live footage?"

"Yeah. No doubt about it." Shuji grunted. "Looks like it's right in our way, too."

This was a golden opportunity for Julie. She could barely contain her excitement. "This is great! Now everyone back home can see how hard we'll work to achieve our goals!" She turned towards the cameraman with a hardened glare. "So keep up!"

Jelldon sighed heavily. "Well, so much for another dip." He closed his ball form and rolled with his fellow Bakugan away from the kitchen area back towards their respective partners.

Ace gazed forward with hardened fists. "This time, we are not cowering away, right Percival?"

"Right, Ace. Let's set them straight."

Jase added a little more force to the thrusters. The gauge of the power measure went up a little higher to nearly full capacity. The entire convertible was moving so fast that it was roaring through the sound barrier.

"Everyone, prepare to engage! Sixteen kilometers in until within range!"

Luke looked ahead with no show of backing down. "Then let's go. The others need us now more than ever."

---

"Ability, activate!" Zenet was on Contestir's shoulder as a Haos ability showed. "Advance Rapier!" Contestir aimed his arms at Interacian Bakugan and fired broad yellow orbs that shot through the air with crackling lightning.

Jesse reached into his book with a smirk. "Ability, activate! Life Eater!" Plitheon glided overhead with his midsection bringing down raining energy shards that bombarded the ground repeatedly towards a Haos Interacian Damakor.

The double barrage was gradually wearing down the Bakugan, resulting in an explosion that ultimately put it into ball form and fading away. However, his space was quickly occupied by more Bakugan that had Battlegear. They gave no time to recover as they fired endlessly at the enemy Bakugan.

They closed in, but a dark whirlwind with snow and ice blocked all the attacks from getting closer. It faded just as a black blur came in with a shoulder cannon locked on.

"Chew on this you swines!"

On his shoulder, Ren glared daggers. "Battlegear ability, activate! Boomix Dimension!" Linehalt fired a dark beam from his Battlegear that sailed through the atmosphere at the opponent Bakugan. Just before it could hit them, it vanished through a wormhole into distorted space.

Ren narrowed his eyes. 'This is it!'

A black and magenta Haos Jetro caught onto the attack. Its antennae shuddered as it picked up on distortions through the airwaves. It looked up, spotting the attack. It unleashed a broad light that erupted into a flare. It pierced through the distortions, stunning Ren and Linehalt. They both covered up to shield from the light, giving the Interacian wildlife a chance to attack.

A Subterra Fangoid teamed up with a Darkus counterpart to unleash a double Zukanator beam that bolted up towards Linehalt and Ren. Their eyes were wide before an explosion engulfed the skies. They erupted heavily higher into the air, where Linehalt was seen reaching a high enough point before going into freefall.

"Linehalt…!" Ren gasped.

His Battlegear dissipated due to it taking a majority of the damage. However, he was still able to fly and keep battling. He flapped a good distance away from gunfire and maneuvered about.

"Gngh! It's no good, Ren! There's just too many of them!" Linehalt skid to a halt before a Zukanator fire blocked his way. This left him open to a bright blaze by a Pyrus Scaboid, buffering Linehalt back higher into the air. "And…they're smart, too!"

Ren hung on for dear life. His teeth were gritting from frustration. 'This is bad. No matter how many there are, they just keep coming. And what Linehalt's saying…they're thinking. No, that's not it…it's instinct.'

"Ren! Above you!" Nurzak warned.

The Darkus Gundalian looked up in time to see a Haos Ziperator directly above. Its chest was glowing to charge up a destructive beam at nearly point-blank range. Too fast for Linehalt to dodge.

"Ability activate, Dragon Blade!"

A red blur darted past the Ziperator, immediately defeating it. It reverted to ball form and fell out of the sky to give Ren and Linehalt the time to process what just happened. They both turned towards the blur, revealing himself to be none other than Dan and Fusion Dragonoid.

"Dan!" Ren shouted.

Dan looked back, smirking. "Hey pal, how's it hanging?"

"Are you okay, Linehalt?" Drago asked.

Linehalt nodded. "I am. Thanks for that save, Drago…look out!" Linehalt moved in front of a Zukanaotor beam heading right for them. He reached his hand out and prepared to absorb it. "Dispel Closer!" He sucked in the attack with one arm, taking redirecting the flow into his other arm. He shot it out back at the enemy Ziperator, swallowing it in an explosion that engulfed the skies.

Mason smirked. "Looks like the cavalry has arrived."

"Not a moment too soon." Lena noted.

Phosphos and Avior were using their Battlegear against a half dozen Interacian Bakugan. Thankfully they didn't have battlers with them, but they were still outnumbered. Out of the blue, Stag Fly Beetle appeared with Shuji on his shoulder.

"Ability, activate! Carapace Riot!"

The many Bakugan fired cannonfire directly at Fly Beetle, just as the insectoid hardened his entire body to where the edging had completely sharpened and turned monstrous. The beetle stood his ground and went charging dead ahead clean through the attacks, unable to so much as flinch as he beelined into the assault without slowing down.

When he got to the other side, he broke through the waves of the attack and rammed his Horn Blitzer deep into a Merlix's gut. The impact was so forceful that the Haos Interacian turned to ball form and faded away.

"Go now!" He cried out.

"Battlegear ability, activate! Terrorcrest Stigma!" Phosphos reeled back his arm and fired thin but piercing blue beams.

"Battlegear ability, activate! Lashor Heavy Striker!" Avior aimed the pointed turbines at the enemy Bakugan down below. He charged up and unleashed broad energy beams that grazed across the ground.

The two attacks exploded upon impact with the multiple bakugan that were already bulldozed by Fly Beetle. The shockwaves rattled everything about, but the insectoid, thanks to his iron backside, was unaffected. He stood there while dust swept past him. Even under the sunlight, his edging looked firm and dense, like an impenetrable shield.

Atmos glided through the air, backed up by Atchibee and Abis. All three Bakugan flew and readied their attacks.

"Double ability, activate!" Jase shouted. "Tailwind, plus Storm Valkyrie!"

The enemy Bakugan unleashed broad energy blast at the airborne attackers. Atmos flapped his wings and generated a wild green tornado that enveloped him and his fellow Bakugan. The gale-like forcefield took the attacks and nullified them all. It expanded out further with gradual speed to knock them all away.

Esther made her attack next. "Ability, activate! Glare Astral!" Through the green cover, several dark purple glints gleamed before they beamed through the tornado. They beamed with impressive speeds and pierced through Battlegear and Bakugan without giving them the chance to realize what was happening. Explosions lit up the sky in front of them wildly.

"We're on, Luke!" Abis roared.

Luke nodded. "Right! Ability, activate! Terror Torpedo!"

Abis swerved higher above Atmos' cover, until he was finally at the top overlooking enemy Bakugan. He took aim at a fellow Interacian Ramdol and narrowed his eyes. Luke jut his blade out with a dead serious look. "Go!" Abis let out an earsplitting shriek as his body signed a deep blue. A liquid-like streamline spiraled and jettisoned out back as he shot down like a meteor into Ramdol. The attack was so fast and powerful that a dense, blue rupture escalated out of control across the ground. The Ramdol didn't stand a chance, and neither were the Bakugan swallowed in the shockwaves nearby. Abis arched back into the air with wild shrieks, with Luke riding along the top to direct the charge.

Bakugan along the ground found themselves blocked off by a cage of fire set by Jelldon's Wall Flame. This limited their advancement long enough for Verias to blindside them with a cleaving light blade from above. He past them all, engulfing them in a broad light before exploding.

"We got you!" Jelldon reached out a tentacle in time to coil around Verias' arm. He chose to not resist and withdrew back to Jelldon to evade a slash made by a Darkus Interacian Glotronoid.

"Now!" Verias shouted.

Shawn readied an ability. "Double ability, activate! Primera Pressure, plus Fusion Ability, Sheer Valkyrie!"

"Ability, activate! Bolting Sun!"

Jelldon engulfed Verias in a plasmatic fireball as the simian was drawn forward. A massive, plasmatic flare enveloped his fur as Haos energy made it glimmer like a sun. It seared through the air and a light blade went streaming through. The Bakugan that were all caught within the wake of it were engulfed in a flaming light slash that erupted yellow fire high into the sky. The ground was reduced to smoldering flares that easily reduced further to ash.

Shun sailed in on Jaakor, where Skytruss and Orbeum followed in pursuit. "We can't let them show us up like this, you guys! Let's go!"

"Right!" Orbeum shouted.

"We're right behind you!" Skytruss declared.

"Ability, activate!" Shun held up an ability. "Illusion Stealth Confusion!" Jaakor and his fellow student Bakugan stayed close by as their bodily colors started changing. Their coloration had turned inverse, where Jaakor turned to Darkus with camouflage coating, where Skytruss and Orbeum had Ventus camouflage. Slowly, they faded out of the area, unable to be seen.

"Alright Marucho, let's go!" Radizen declared.

"Yeah! Ability, activate! Slam League!" Marucho followed with an ability, letting Radizen fire along blue beams that bombarded Bakugan left and right.

Reptak fired dense bright beams from his shoulder cannon that grazed across the battlefield. Bakugan were attempting to counter, but they were blindsided by a bright purple sword by Knight Percival. It wasn't too far away that Nemus was seen doing battle and throwing yellow orbs that struck other Bakugan.

"It looks like their numbers are dwindling!" Drago shouted. "Keep it up!"

"Let's kick it up a notch! Get ready!" Dan pulled up his Bakumeter, creating a green holographic screen that shined. "Battle Suit Defendtrix, deploy!" He raised his Bakumeter high, summoning a red beam that heightened into the air. It created a large mechanical armor with wings that had large pistols on the membrane joints. Its coloration was silver and red, which complimented Drago as he took to locking himself in and ascended into the skies.

An invisible punch knocked down a Jetro. As it fell over, Jaakor looked up and saw Drago's Battle Suit flying high. "Looks like they've deployed the Battle Suits."

"Then we'll do the same!" Shun readied his Bakumeter. A green holographic screen showed another Battle Suit, one with Jaakor atop a four-legged green rider with twin tails on the backside. "Battle Suit Fortatron, deploy!" The Battle Suit was launched with Jaakor, equipping itself onto him.

Shun landed on Jaakor's shoulder. "Let's go!"

"Right!"

The enemy Bakugan continued attacking, but it was still very much neck and neck. Drago sailed around the air, dodging Battlegear attacks and projectiles with great maneuverability. He counterattacked with the same projectiles, raining down and making an intense surge. Everyone was taking down Bakugan left and right, and while some were struggling, others like Jelldon were lashing out and nullifying abilities. With Atmos' Tailwind spread across the battlefield, the Bakugan were all getting powered up and thankfully preventing abilities from nullification. This gave them all an edge that they needed.

"Everyone, stand back!" Nurzak showed a Battlegear ability at the ready. "Battlegear ability, activate! Chompixx Hot Fury!"

Sabator balled his fists and dug his hooves into the earth. Chompixx charged up the twin blades with a grand heat signature that continued rising until they glowed bright orange. A large, magma-like mass gathered between the tips. "CHEW ON THIS!" Sabator didn't hold back when he fired the Battlegear ability with all his might. The earth tore wide open in a dense trail as the plasma fireball went blazing across the battlefield and through the woods. The hemisphere faded into the distance with the Bakugan also being subdued by nothing. Moments later, a bright orange flicker erupted at the end of the searing hot trail. A large rupture exploded, sending a magma shockwave across the ground into the Interacian Bakugan. They all shrieked and screamed with pained cries.

"Let's finish this!" Luke ensured. "Everyone!"

They all held up the same abilities. "Ability, activate!"

"Pyrus, Haos, Aquos Triple Node!"

"Ventus, Subterra, Darkus Triple Node!"

Abis, Verias, and Jelldon shrieked as they could feel all their power skybolt with bright auras around their bodies. Around Atchibee, Atmos, and Fly Beetle, similar yet negative auras encased them. Their powers cranked up big time with little effort.

"No mercy, Prime Verias!" Shawn showed an ability. "Ability, activate! Light Primus!" With a Haos aura already around him, Verias' aura fumed even higher. A denser light manifested as he covered for Contestir and unleashed a monstrously broad light blade. His shrieks were as menacing as his swing. He cleaved deeply into the Bakugan that surrounded him, sending a bright shockwave rippling across the atmosphere until faded outwards. A horizontal line glinted across and bisected every Bakugan around him; that included the mechanical aid they had with them.

"Pincer Phalanx!" Fly Beetle gradually spread his pincers as a broad energy mass engulfed the space it would normally take up. He lurched forward and unleashed a massive wake of the energy in a monstrous beam. It eradicated everything in its path, sending a series of explosions into Bakugan far off from range unable to counter.

"Element Kraken! Plus Fusion Ability, Maximum Bolt!" Jelldon's tendrils all shined various attributed colors and crackled with bright plasma. With a low growl, he didn't hold back as he extended and lashed out violently and painfully. Each tendril seared into Bakugan and electrocuted them.

"Draft Cannon!" Atmos cawed as he aimed his beak down towards the Ziperator that was caught up in the windstorm. It was useless as it and its fellow Bakugan were unable to escape the wake of the attack. A condensed, green beam with whirlwinds searing through blasted into them, sending air pressure everywhere.

"Atchibee! Go!" Esther shouted. "Ability, activate! Phonic Liseran!" Atchibee cawed as she fluttered her wings madly about the atmosphere. The air darkened to a crude hue, blinding several Bakugan that were far below. They were at the mercy of Atchibee as she unleashed beams of darkness with winds dragging them downwards at Mach speeds. The results were large dark shockwaves that tore up the ground.

Abis flew in with Luke on his head. An ability was set in place. "Now!"

The Bakugan that were trying to power through either had barriers up or were firing back with their own abilities. Most of their attacks were getting through, but Fangoid were using large amounts of snow to nullify said abilities, while Buz Hornix were using buzzing soundwaves. Abis opened his maw as all his diamonds shined brightly.

"Ability, activate! Hydrias Impact!"

Abis opened his maw as wide as possible, expelling a bloodcurdling screech as a dense, deep blue, liquid-like beam with oceanic abysmal pressure spread thinly around. The cold, dense energy liquid blast sailed far and wide, enveloping all the enemy Bakugan and crushing all their defensive and offensive abilities at once. They all cried out before vaporizing under the pressure of the deep blue beam before a dense pillar erupted skywards.

Everyone watched as the attacks were all slowly fading away. It took several minutes before anything could be shown, but much to their relief, everyone's endeavors paid off. The mass of the Interacian Bakugan within the area were all but reduced to thin air.

Ren sighed heavily. "Talk about perfect timing…"

"You can say that again…" Linehalt groaned.

---

The Trailer had soon touched base, having deactivated auto-pilot for the time being. Everyone gathered around plentifully as Julie came out of the hatch with a bright smile. "Great job, you guys! Everyone got great footage of that! This'll be sure to liven up those wayward spirits back home!"

"We're grateful for your assistance, all of you." Nurzak bowed. "We had just about taken out the brigade in the area, when the battle energy we've brought up attracted the wild Bakugan around."

"By that point we were all wiped out." Ren added. "So thanks for coming in when you did."

Shawn put a hand to his hip. "Yeah, don't mention it. Is everyone else alright?"

Lena prodded her glasses with two fingers. "Well, mostly yes. Nothing but a few scrapes. Consider this fortune this time."

"Talk about luck, we were wondering where you guys were at." Marucho chimed. "We've made it to Troposphere, but we didn't get any signals relayed to you guys."

Ren frowned. "Unfortunately we were ambushed the moment we set foot on Interacia. We had to find cover and fast."

Linehalt popped up on Ren's shoulder. "We've ran into Aranaut and Fabia a little while back. We bought them time to get into the city, but haven't heard anything since then."

"So they're in Solaris now." Maggie surmised. "And I can guess they won't welcome us so friendly if they got the same treatment you guys got."

"That's a good assumption." Nurzak said. "Solaris should be further down southwest. Only a few short kilometers from here. However, it's likely that because of the battle and the extensive destruction, they'll most likely be sending a second brigade this way."

"And we just battled. What do we have to do now?" Zenet argued. "C'mon guys, I ain't gonna play hit and run forever like this!"

Shawn glared ahead of the forest, his attention drawing into the general direction of Solaris. 'Knowing how Riaan works…we won't have to.'

…

Through a set of binoculars, wavelengths were seen showing immense battle energy stockpiled. The soldier took it off his eyes and turned towards his Pyrus Ziperator atop a Mobile Assault resembling much of Cannonfury, aligned with other strong-armed cannon-like vehicles that took aim ahead.

Once the enemy was shown being still, the called was made. "…FIRE!"

The Ziperator started the sequence with the tip of the huge cannon charging up magenta energy. Once ready, it unleashed a broad, dark magenta energy blast that seared through the air, tearing over the woodland areas heading towards the others.

…

"Hm? What's that?" Jaakor turned towards a series of whistling sounds eroding from up ahead.

Shun's eyes narrowed. "Wait, are those…?"

The magenta rays closed in at increasing speeds. It took everyone everything they had to realize it before they could all react.

"WATCH OUT!" Drago ducked for Reptak and shoved him down in time. A magenta beam went straight overhead, exploding right behind them.

"Get down!" Jase warned his comrades promptly as more magenta beams came closer their way. They, along with all their Bakugan, got down in time as more explosive beams darted across the skies. They connected with the ground and land formations around them.

Eruptions bloomed everywhere as rock and earth overturned on each other. Shrapnel of minerals were sent flying and falling at the same time. It'd look pretty if it wasn't for the dirt coming down with destroyed woodland.

"They're using long-range Mobile Assault Vehicles!" Marucho shouted through the destruction. Another beam past over and obliterated the ground several yards behind them.

"We can't get anywhere like this! Snap!" Dan screamed.

"Forget about anywhere! We won't get out of this alive, Kuso!" Mason chimed rudely.

The barrage was starting to get to them. Explosions refused to settle down long enough for anyone to get a solid grasp of the ground. If they didn't act in time, they'll be next. Luke was using his sword atop Abis' head to shield himself from forward debris, but he was still getting some along the back. One clump of chrome nicked his back enough to make him grunt.

"Luke!" Abis gasped.

Luke opened an eye. "Don't worry, I'm just fine!" He ignored the stinging sensation along his back and glared forward at the magenta rays that refused to stop. 'We don't stop that firepower, we'll be in serious trouble…then maybe, we won't have to stop it.'

An idea came into his head at that moment. His eyes flashed wide at recollecting all his past reflections with Frill Abis Omega's reflective abilities bouncing back the toughest of attacks. He had another brief flash to the earlier time when he and Shawn trained along the isle.

'Wait…we can use this!' He turned towards Jase. "Jase! Can you give me a hand here?!"

Barely hearing Luke through the eruptions, he glanced over at him. "Very well then. Atmos!"

"Yes!" Dutifully, Atmos ascended alongside Abis. "Here they come!"

"I can see!" Abis glared forward, seeing a half-dozen zoom into their direction. He braced himself along with his falcon friend.

"Are you guys crazy! You can't block all those at once!" Dan warned.

"Whoever said we were blocking?" Luke held up an ability. "Now! Ability, activate! Crash Coil!" Abis waited until the multitude of beams were close and started swerving around in a spiral. His serpentine body gathered momentum until he seemed to have turned himself upside-down. The destructive beams all congregated around Abis and were drawn into the wake of the spin. They made a vast tornado out of their combined energy that he manipulated through the rotation of his coils.

Jase' glasses shined brightly from light refracting and readied his own ability. "Ability, activate! Vacuum Turmoil!" Atmos flexed all four of his wings and created a vast cyclone similar to Abis' ability. He drew in a massive blast wave that picked up speed as it was swirling within the vortex.

Jase gave the prompt call. "NOW!"

Abis let out a violent roar as he directed his tornado using his tail. He swung it across and sent it streaming across the Mobile Assault Vehicle lineup. It took a few seconds before a spontaneous eruption of metal and magenta energy exploded along the walls of Solaris. Cannonfury Mobile Assault Vehicles were struck so hard they dented and imploded even. The soldiers were caught in the wake and screamed as they were left unfortunate to the attack.

"They're…they're redirecting the fire! I repeat, our brigade has been compromised…GAH!"

Atmos' whirlwind redirected the last cannon shot at impressive speeds that no one saw it coming. It was aimed specifically into the middle, where the entrance was supposedly to the city.

Everyone watching were just as shocked as they were relieved. They couldn't believe what they just saw. Marucho was trying to adjust his glasses while Radizen blinked in surprise. "Woah…I didn't see that coming."

"Y-yeah, sure thing…"

"I get it." Shun stated. "they used their opponent's attacks…and turned them into their strength."

"Unbelievable." Drago awed.

Abis and Atmos overlooked what they did and looked back at everyone else. The falcon spoke up first. "Quickly, everyone. We must be hasty!"

"He's right! We need to hurry before reinforcements from the other sides come in."

Maggie nodded. "Right! Let's hurry, Jelldon!" She pointed ahead to direct Jelldon, who squirmed as fast as he could.

Shuji followed. "Hold up, half-pint! We're taking the charge! Fly Beetle!" The wing shields went wide open for the insect to fly across the woodlands. As he ascended, Jelldon used a tendril and latched onto his fellow Bakugan, who soared across the skies to follow his friends. Atchibee carried Verias using her small claws for his staff. He dangled there as she fluttered off.

Dan watched them go off, his fists balling. "C'mon guys, we can't stop now! Let's go get'em!"

"Yeah!" The others followed them into the opening they were given into Solaris.

---

"They're…they're redirecting the fire! I repeat, our brigade has been compromised…GAH!"

From atop the main palace governing central Solaris, the borders could be seen erupting with large smoke clouds pluming spontaneously. Hades Pillars watched as the feed coming from the soldiers upfront were turning to static.

"Well, that happened." Magnus grunted disappointedly. "Those roaches be infesting our crib too haughty. Now I'm pissed."

Zion suppressed a growl and his dagger. He could already see the new targets filing in.

"Need not to worry. For no matter what happens, the palace nor the faction of citizens won't be under immediate threat." Lucia pointed out. "Remember, we've installed within the city barriers around the perimeters of each area. That includes this one. The palace will not be overrun. They'll be fools thinking they can overtake it head-on."

Cyrus turned away from the balcony back into the shadows. "Enough of this. Let us begin our initiative."

Hades Pillars didn't bother to reply. Instead they chose to follow his lead into the shadows of the now vacant palace. It felt more hollow than ever now….

---

The main lab of Solaris was busy at work. Monitors were running off the scales with wavelengths of Bakugan energy. They identified the many Bakugan that were all across Solaris and those who were filing in. One computer showed the clip of Aranaut diving into the alley, where his signature was being traced through a monitor. Same with the others, a multitude of signatures as well as icons showed.

In another area of the lab, telecoils and containers were holding magenta energy within. Scientists were all around studying the Forbidden levels of the substances and took down holographic notes in large paragraphs.

As they were all at work monitoring everything, the lights suddenly went off. Everyone stopped working and shot up.

"Huh? What's going on?" one scientist questioned.

"A blackout?" Another raced over to one of the screens. He started pressing on panels until a large red "ERROR" sentence showed itself. "What's this? Error?! The system's being hijacked!"

There was an odd, very crude sound coming from the sealed doorway. They all turned slowly at said direction and saw some figment at the foot of the open doorway. The light gave him a very demonic silhouette that hid away his ominous appeal.

A scientist hurried to the front. "Halt! You have no clearance for this area! State your business at once!"

"…" The figment didn't say anything. He stared blankly with a tattered hood keeping his face from being shown. However, that all changed when he slowly lifted his forehead.

At that instant, everyone in the room felt a chill run down their spines. All they could see…were bloodshot, demonic eyes that stared death into their souls.

The scientist that provoked him earlier stepped back in shock. "No…impossible! But the reports said that you were…wait, don't come closer! STOP!"

The doors to the lab room went shut. The entire room, even the monitors, were completely black…all but the glowing bloodshot look of the demon who faded with the surroundings.

---

The chapter was getting super long, longer than I expected for something I wanted to consider short so I'll break here and make sure to get the second half out by this Saturday. Shouldn't be too hard! But at any rate, I do hope that this chapter will suffice. It sure feels long enough for my liking, and I managed to fit enough in to show enough group confrontation!

So next chapter, not only will the battles in Solaris get under way, but I have other ideas too! I'll try not to disappoint! Anyways, reviews are extremely appreciated! Thanks for reading! XD