Yes I'm kinda being lazy but seriously I don't care at this point =_=

Chapter

Starto!

Ivan sighed, peering around the corner of the wall to glance at Tom, who sat cross-legged on the bench staring at his scanner. The older boy had come to Chaotic for nearly three days in a row, walking to the benches outside the Port-Court, and simply staring at the piece of tech as though it held all the answers he needed.

'Poor Tom...Without his Maxxor, he just sits there, ignoring everyone. I wish I could help...' Ivan thought moodily. Then, an idea popped into his head. A dangerous, stupid, what-the-fuck-are-you-crazy idea, but an idea nonetheless.

Why not just go get Tom a scan of Maxxor yourself?

'BECAUSE I DON'T WANT TO DIE!' Ivan knew how Creatures would react if he was caught in Kiru City, and even worse would be if Maxxor refused. Ivan took another look around the corner.

SIGH.

'Oh, why do I have such a bleeding heart streak?' Ivan thought, wishing that the voice telling him it was a good idea sounded more like Peyton, and less like him.

"KAZ!" The red-head was happily chatting away with Peyton and Sarah, who all looked over as the smaller brunette ran towards them, tripped, and went face-first into the floor.

"Uh bro. Pretty sure the floor ain't looking for a date." Peyton joked. Ivan peeled his face off the tile, and launched himself at Kaz.

"Kaz-I-need-a-scan-of-Kiru-City-right-this-moment!" He said so quickly they barely understood him. Then, shaking his head, Kaz deciphered the message and held out his Scanner in confusion.

"Uh, here then. One Scan of Kiru City for, uh, your Ozlai Scan." The transaction was quick, and the next second Ivan was scurrying off towards the porters. The three stood in shock, until Sarah blinked.

"Uh, did you just give Peyton's little brother a Scan of Kiru City? As in, the one place in the OverWorld where players are attacked on sight?" Kaz felt a chill shoot up his spine as he turned to Peyton, who just shrugged.

"Well, if he wants to go there, he knows what to do, obviously. Little dude needs his own mantra." Peyton proceeded to walk over as Tom entered, sitting at a lone table by himself.

[[[At the teleporters]]]

Ivan scrolled through the cards, searching for the Kiru City Kaz had just given him, when a slithery voice crept into his ear.

"Hey baby." Everyone within thirty feet turned around at the scream, then THUD!, that emanated from the porters. Ron was knocked out at Ivan's feet, the brunette rose-red in the face. A few moments later, it was no longer interesting.

"Ron! What the sprock were you doing so close to me?" Ivan said with a scowl as the other boy got to his feet.

"What, I can't greet my boyfriend?" Ivan was about to start ranting and screaming about the non-existant relationship, when Ron cut him off. "By the way, why are you going to Kiru City in the middle of the day? You realize there are tons of guards there, worse than Mudeenu's troops?" Ivan paled, and lowered his face.

"I...I have to. I have to Scan Maxxor for Tom. He's always so sad now, and I want him to be happy again." Ron had a blank expression, until he looped his arm around the brunette's neck.

"Well! As it so happens, I have nothing to do, and extensive knowledge of the hiding places in Kiru City. So, we'll work together to get that Scan!" Ivan gave him a suspiscious look.

"Why would you help me?" Ron wagged his finger.

"Because, boyfriends do nice things for their boyfriends, and because Tom is my friend as much as yours, it makes sense to do something nice for him, don'tcha think?" Confused, and agitated, by the other boy's logic, Ivan sinply closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose.

[[[Back in the Port-Court]]]

"Tom is having a really bad streak lately." Kaz noted as he watched Dractyl attempt to outfly Takinom. They weaved through the clouds, darting and dodging like a game of hide-and-seek.

"You can'y outrun me, turkey!" Takinom called after they emerged from the puffy cloud cover. Dractyl spared a moment to call back to her.

"Turkeys don't fly!" Which made Kaz snicker lightly.

They danced again, Takinom chasing Dractyl as they looped and spun. Takinom managed to fly under Dractyl, who was caught off guard by her. She began a volley of fireballs at him, two of which hit, making Dractyl fly upwards and turn around.

"WIND SLASH!" He crowed as a mini-tornado burst from his wings and slammed into the UnderWorlder. She fought against the force, but her wings gave out all too fast, and Takinom plummeted from view. Dractyl soared down, skimming the clouds for a moment.

'That's how you do it. Take control! Take command.' Tom thought nervously. Truth be told, he still wasn't sure if he could fight, let alone win, without Maxxor in his deck. Takinom popped up from the clouds, startling the OverWorlder out of his thoughts.

"You may not be a turkey, but you're gonna be a roast chicken! FIRE TORCH!" Several whirls of fire swirled around her hand, creating a fireball which was shot at Dractyl. It turned into a vortex of fire, which spun over Dractyl threatening to cook him alive.

'Not again! I can't lose again!' Dractyl focused, and aimed straight down. "HAIL STORM!" A brilliant white light shot out, cooling the fire in a ring shape that allowed Dractyl to dive through, out of the fire vortex. Takinom glowered at him.

"Smart move!" Dractyl smirked.

"Here's another one." He reared back. "CONFUSION!" The blast hit Takinom, who began to descend through the clouds in a panick. Dractyl smirked again, watching the clouds. 'Today's the day I break my losing streak!' Dractyl reared back again, and emitted a sonic screech that tore at Takinom through the clouds. The UnderWorlder seemed close to fainting, and Tom decided it was time to finish this battle.

"LIGHTNING BURST!" Bolts of electricity shot from his wing tips, striking Takinom with such ferocity that on-lookers wondered how she's held on. Dractyl began to dive towards her. "Yes! My luck's finally changing! Now I'll finsh off with INSANITY!" A pink ray of light burst from his forehead, but at the last second possible, Takinom rolled out of the way and shook off the electrocution. She glared at Dractyl.

"SMOKE SURGE!" A black cloud, thick as a nightmare, poured from her throat, engulfing Dractyl. He floated for a few seconds, trying to beat away the smoke with his wings, when a horrible pain erupted from his back - and suddenly he was frozen in place. Takinom laughed as she fly up behind him.

"That's a Pearl Eyes Attack, bird-brain!" She watched as the now-frozen Dractyl began to fall towards the ground. "But don't worry! I won't let you crash. LAVA-LANCH!" A column of fire brust from her claws, hitting Dractyl hard enough to code him.

After stumbling out of the Drome, with some help of his opponent, Tom made his way into the PortCourt, and after scanning the crowd for his friends, made his way over and collapsed into a chair. He sighed, feeling like the lowest rock in a pile of mud, when Peyton put his hand on the Asian boy's shoulder.

"It's a temporary slump, dude. Keyword: Temporary. Just need to get your confidence back, get ya mojo flowin'!" Tom felt his lips twitch up in amusement, but the loss still weighed heavy in his mind, and the frown went back in place.

"What mojo? I haven't one a single match since I lost my Maxxor card." Sarah rolled her eyes in frustration.

"It's not the cards, Tom, it's the player. You won a match with Bodal, remember?" Tom felt his mood slightly pick up again. Bodal was a small green OverWorlder with very bad stats, and even worse attitude. But, he had turned out invaluable to Tom, especially in the match he had fought, and the real Bodal and him had settled into a rocky friendship which consisted of him doing errands on occasion for the bossy OverWorlder in exchange for powerful Battle Gear in the Armory. Not as pleasant as the way Najaryn regarded him, at least; the Mugician seemed to be relaxed with him around. Tom could still feel the web he had been caught in on his hands, the feeling of helplessness as the UnderWorlder bore down on him, only to be scared away by Bodal misfiring.

"Sarah's right. And what about all those other wins you racked up in the CrellanDrome? You must be pretty close to a CodeMaster Match." Tom took about three seconds to let the words sink in.

"A what?" There were grins all around, until they realized he wasn't joking. The humored expressions were quickly replaced by disbelief.

"He's joking right? You're joking right?" Sarah quickly interrogated, her expression warping into anger. Peyton chimed after her.

"Kaz, you never told him about CodeMaster Matches?" Kaz put his hands in defense.

"I thought he KNEW about CodeMaster Matches." The red-head seemed irritated by the fact that his friend had no knowledge of such a thing. Though Tom was quickly becoming MORE agitated by the subject.

"I can't believe he doesn't know about CodeMaster Matches!" Sarah said, gritting her teeth in annoyance.

"Everybody knows about CodeMaster Matches." Kaz said with a logical tone, as though they no longer registered that Tom was there, and growing more impatient by the second.

"How could he not know about-" Peyton began in a laighing voice, before Tom cut him off by jumping to his feet and shouting.

"TELL ME ABOUT CODEMASTER MATCHES!" And plopped back down into his seat. They stood awkwardly, before turning and rushing to explain.

"When you get seven wins in a Drome, you can automatically challenge the CodeMaster of that Drome to a match." Kaz explained with a grin. Sarah chimed in then.

"And sometimes a CodeMaster challenges a player to a match!"

Tom felt his mood begin to lift. "That's pretty cool! Did you guys ever have a CodeMaster Match?" Peyton was the first to chime in.

"I got called out by Imthor." His face scrunched, like he'd swallowed something bitter. "Dude waxed me with this totally knarly looking I-don't-know-what." Peyton seemed to shiver, as though remembering exactly what it was.

Kaz was next, grinning ecstatically. "When I battled CodeMaster Ansem, she had this totally sweet piece of BatttleGear I'd never seen before! Turned me into a shock absorber!" Tom tried to imagine what kind of weapon could do such a thing.

Sarah was last, and she seemed none too happy about reliving her loss. "That's nothing compared to the attacks they can do. I'm still dizzy from my match against CodeMaster Chirrul." She had this faraway look in hr eyes, and it wasn't pleasant.

Tom felt sympathetic towards his friends. "So the CodeMasters are pretty good." That might be a problem, he mentally told himself. Peyton gave a snort.

"Dude, they're MASTERS." The matter-of-fact way Peyton said that made Tom's spirit start to fall again. "But they're not invincible or anything." Huh? "And, if you win, they give you a scan of one of they're freaky locations. Places that are, like, impossible to get to."

Sarah chimed in. "PLaces only the CodeMasters know about." Kaz began to flail his arms around, the way he usually did when he was excited.

"So you transport there, scan all the new Creatures and Gear and Mujic you can, and have a better chance when you battle the next CodeMaster! Isn't that cool?" Tom felt that happy bubble inside him pop.

"Yeah. Only now I'm really depressed." He stood, his hands going into his pockets. "Without Maxxor, I'll never win against a CodeMaster." Kaz followed the other as he walked off. He knew how Tom was when he was upset.

"C'mon Tom, don't be bummed! Let's go trade somebody for a couple of new Location Codes and scan something cool." Tom looked back at the red-head, and Kaz knew that look anywhere.

"Sorry. I just want to be by myself for a while." With that, he walked off, leaving three sad friends behind.

Tom's P.O.V.

I wound up in Rock River Canyon. I didn't know how, nor have I ever recalled what took me there, but I found myself walking along the bottom, skipping rocks as I found them. I picked up one and held it as I contemplated what my friends had said. I threw the rock far.

'I gotta get back into the game. Maxxor, or no Maxxor. I gotta get out of this slump!' I kicked at a stone by my foot. It tumbled a bit, and when it stopped I picked it up and held it a moment. 'But, what if Sarah's wrong? What if it's really the cards, and not the player?' I hurled the rock as far as I could, watching it hit the water with a splash. Somehow, it almost felt like I was throwing a part of myself away, like all my negativity was being transferred to the stone. I felt compelled to throw another rock, but as I wound my arm back to throw, a shadow caught the corner of my eye. I ignored it at first, hinking my mind was playing tricks on me, but then debris fell on my hand. Debris only comes loose when there's something to dislodge it. I turned and watched as a lone figure made its way up over the rocks, climbing slowly and carefully.

"Maxxor?" My voice was loud, and echoed in the canyon, startling the figure into running. I gave chase, climbing with difficulty, and climbed up after it.

My hopes were high, but even so, a small part of me was doubtful it was Maxxor I was chasing.

Ivan's P.O.V.

I held my breath as a guard, who looked like a crocodile, passed by the tent Ron and I were hiding in. He stopped, scratched his head, then moved on. I let the air slowly release from my lungs.

"Dang, if we get caught by the guards, we're screwed." Ron muttered as he watched through a hole in the tent. I agreed silently. Never mind the fact we were sneaking into Kiru City during the day, we were sneaking into Kiru City during the day to scan Maxxor, lord of the OverWorlders. I imagined us being coded by beheadment. Wait, did OverWorlders even use beheadings? Ron turned to me mid-ponderment.

"Alright, here's how it goes. The minute the guard turns his back, we run over to the Armory window and slip through." I looked through a hole in the tent at the hole in the wall that served as a window. Iron bars decorated it. "When I give the signal, run." I nodded. We waited until the next guard came by, stopped, then continued. Once he turned the corner, we darted out from the tent and up to the window. Ron boosted me up first, and once I was through I held his wrists as he climbed up and in. We took a look around, breathing hard but quiet.

"We're in." He nodded, then froze as a humming alerted us to another person. I dove behind a shelf blasters, while Ron went behind a bookcase. The humming grew louder, and when a green Creature emerged from the doorway I sighed in relief. It was Bodal, an OverWorlder that Tom was friends with. He had very weak stats, but he was an extremely good strategist. He counted the blasters on the shelf I was hiding behind, murmured to himself, and walked over to another shelf. Ron wasn't as lucky; he sneezed and knocked the bookcase over, startling Bodal who grabbed and aimed an empty Plasma Bow at him.

"Who in the world are you?" Bodal demanded, threatening Ron with a weapon that didn't even work. I stepped up and out to help Ron.

"We mean you no harm." The bow was now aimed at me; crap. "We're friends of Tom, Mr. Bodal." He lowered the weapon, his gaze steely and suspicious.

"Tom? That human?" My blood burned at the tone he said the word 'human' in, but I calmed down.

"Mr. Bodal, we need your help. I need a Scan of Maxxor, but I don't know where he is. Could you help us find him?" Bodal 'ha-rumph!'-ed at us, and began to waddle away. I went to call for him to stop, when Ron held his arm in front of me.

"Don't bother Ivan. This guy's a joke. He says he knows about stuff, when he really has no clue where Maxxor is." My jaw dropped in shock, as did Bodal's; was Ron mental? Bodal stamped his feet huffily.

"I do too know where Maxxor is! He's in his study with-" Bodal cut himself off as he realized Ron's trick. Before he called for the guards, or decided to handle us himself, I placated him by rushing forward with my Scanner out.

"Mr. Bodal, would you mind if I scanned you? Afterall, Tom's always bragging about what a great strategist you are, and I'm always having trouble with strategy in my battles. I'd sure love it if I had a good, reliable Creature on my team." Try not to over-do it, Ivan, I mentally berated. But it turned out I had done the right amount, as Bodal stopped and rubbed his chin in thought. A closer look, though, and I saw he was preening.

"Well, I suppose it would be acceptable. After all, not many have the chance to Scan yours truly." I tried not to roll my eyes and remind him how it was between him and Tom, and Scanned him. His image appeared along with his stats.

"By the way. I don't suppose you know a totally awesome way into the castle?"

Tom's P.O.V.

I finally reached the top of the mesa, looking around at the flat land. There was nothing up here but dust clouds and tumbleweeds, one of which rolled past my leg. Wait. Since when did Perim have Old Western-type tumbleweeds? Before I could ponder this, a voice crying out 'Help me!' caught my attention. It came in the direction of the cliff, so I hurried towards it.

"Down here!" I looked down, and saw a person hanging off the tip of the cliff. He had dark brown hair and even darker eyes, which were dilated in fear. He wore a dark blue sweater and light gray slacks.

"I can't reach my Scanner! And I can't hold on much longer!" As though to prove it, his fingers slid a little, gouges in the rock clear from where he had previously held on. I saw that his Scanner was clipped onto his belt. If he tried reaching for it, he'd fall before he could port out. I got on my stomach and dug the tips of my feet into the ground, reaching my hand out.

"Okay, grab on and don't let go!" He reached for me - only to slip. My hand shot out fast, and latched onto his wrist, and for a moment his body swung violently as he dangled. I used the momentum of his swinging to pulling him back up over the edge. We collapsed on the ground, him on his stomach and me on my back. After catching our breath, we turned each other and grinned, the kind of grin you make when you've just out-foxed death.

A little while later, we were sitting around a fire he had built Kit, as he was called, broke more sticks and tossed them in.

"You lost your Maxxor in a Challenge match?" Kit was nice, his tone soft and not too over-dramatic. I looked up at the sky, seeing the stars above my head, and once again marveled at how similar Perim and Earth could be.

"It was to help a friend, but yeah. Even so, I think CodeMasters tend to look down on Challenge matches, so don't say anything about it, okay?" Kit smiled, relaxing into the dirt like it was the comfiest bedding.

"Your secret's safe with me." He responded. I fiddled a bit with my hair, which was now long enough that I was going to have to cut it or let it be caught in something. Preferably the none-too-painful way.

"I don't know what to do though. I haven't won a single match since I lost Maxxor." Kit gave me a look, though it was lessened by his smile.

"It's not the cards, Tom. It's the player." My eye twitched.

"You sound just like my friends." His mouth formed a smirk.

"Maybe because they're right." I turned away from him, staring out at the canyon. After a second's pause, I turned back to face him.

"What about in a CodeMaster Match?" He pulled out a stick with a tiny flame on the end, and just stared at it with a gentle expression in his eyes.

"Especially in a CodeMaster Match." He twisted the stick, seeming to make the spark dance. I smiled back.

"Have you had a lot of CodeMaster battles?" He gave me a stare, as though he was studying me.

"I've had my fair share." He blew out the spark with a puff of breath. I felt my smile drop.

"I just found out I might be battling CodeMaster Crellan soon. And to tell you the truth, I'm kinda scared." I buried my face in my knees. "I haven't won once since that day, and I'm scared that if I go up against the CodeMaster, I'll lose it completely."

Kit sank back on his elbows, watching me with a sad expression. Then, it perked up. "I might not be able to tell you how exactly to battle a CodeMaster. But I can give you a few pointers."

I sat up with a blank face.

Ivan's P.O.V.

"Well, here we are. That door leads into Maxxor's study." Bodal said as Ron and I knelt beside him. We were currently inside a vent, Ron and I on our knees,while Bodal was able to stand, peering into a hallway in the castle. When first shown the vent, Ron turned to me and said 'I call being James Bond!' At which I punched him in the arm. Several times.

"Thank you so much, Mr. Bodal. I'll tell Tom you said hi." I said, smiling at the OverWorlder. He blinked slowly, the familiar condescending look on his face.

"I didn't." With that he began to hobble back down the vent, and Ron scowled at him.

"What is that guy's problem?" I sighed.

"Ron, just imagine it. Bodal's locked up in the Armory for days on end, and his only visitors are battle-thirsty warriors. What kind of social skills would you have if that was your whole life?" Ron looked at me in bewilderment.

"Do you make excuses for everyone, or are you just that blind to any bad side a person might have?" I turned with a sneering smirk.

"I wish I couldn't see your bad side." He had no time to retort as a pair of feet suddenly stood in front of the vent. Guards... Had to be effing guards.

"Shit! We're in trouble. How are we going to get in now?" I was panicking, we had come so close! Ron was staring out into the hallway, then back into the vent where we had come from, then back out with a grin. He put a hand on my shoulder.

"I think it's time to run decoy bait again." It took a moment for the words to sink in, but when they did it took all my willpower not to strangle him right then and there.

"No. No, no, no! Ron, you are not pulling the same stunt you did back in Iflaar's castle!" Ron gave me a serious look, for once.

"Think about it Ivan. You're the one who needs that Scan. And I only tagged along to protect you, and if that means being a distraction again so you can slip in and get that Scan, then dammit I will!" I was so stunned by his words that I didn't even fight him when he pressed his lips to mine. He drew away with a smile.

"Besides, I consider that my payment in advance." He crawled backwards and into a side vent. I sat there, hunched over in a vent, my lips still tingling and my face red, breathing hard. A few moments later, he appeared in the hallway, winking at the vent cover.

"I CHALLENGE YOU TO A CHILDREN'S CARD GAME!" He bellowed at the guards, who proceeded to chase from sight. I kicked the vent cover open, not caring about being subtle anymore, and darted over to the door, I wrenched it open, threw myself inside, and flung the door shut, not facing the room. In retrospect, that was probably a bad idea.

"Who are you, child?"

Tom's P.O.V.

I followed Kit to the Beta-Dromes, a collection of Dromes all built like a motel, but best of all, these Dromes were not broadcast to the Port-Court. The battles were completely in secret, perfect for newbies or for Challenge matches. We walked up to the podiums and docked our Scanners.

"Alright, pick your six Creatures." Kit said, as he began to scroll through his own deck. I scanned my cards, trying to decide on my team.

'I don't know anything about this guy, or how he plays.' I looked through the screen at Kit, who was smiling as he clicked away at his own screen. It was just a tad bit creepy. 'He was in the Rock River Canyon, so I bet he has OverWorld stuff.' I began going through my Creatures. 'I'll start off with Atalla, Steluk, and Xearv. I'm pretty solid with Dractyl, and Gespaden. And Tangath Tolborn to battle clean up.' I scrolled through my BattleGear next. 'A Vlaric Shard will pump up Gespaden's Earth attacks.' I scrolled again, pausing. 'A Torwick will get Xearv off the ground, and boost his Air attacks.' I scrolled again. 'A Cycle-Lance for Steluk.' Several more scrolls. 'And Tangath Tolborn can mix it up with the Sword of Kayat.' I put my hand on the Mujic scroll, when a spark shot up my arm, and one of my Mujics appeared. 'Song of Healing? I guess that'll come in handy.' I put my hand down again, but no spark this time. I scrolled. 'Song of Geonova would be good offense.' When the next one showed up, I immediately grabbed it. 'Song of Future Sight? Sure, whatever floats your boat.' Somehow, I noticed, when I played in the Dromes it was like my cards were giving me advice as to which I should use. Considering the other freaky stuff that'd happened so far, I shrugged it off and accepted it.

I didn't bother scrolling through the Locations, as I knew the ten already by heart. But as I was loading the Locations, I noticed Kit was staring at me again, in that creepy way of his. I didn't let it affect me.

"I'm ready." I said, locking my deck. His smile went back to polite and quiet.

"Me too." When his half of the field appeared, my jaw dropped.

"Only one Creature?" Kit smirked. "Look, maybe I'm missing something, but I can handle a six-on-six. If you're trying to be funny here-" I started, when Kit held up his hand for me to be silent.

"I know what you're capable of. But, can you handle..." He motioned to the Creature, who resembled some kind of prehistoric bear, "-Ursis?"

My head began to pound mercilessly as the voice shrieked DANGER! DANGER! DANGER! at me over and over again. I resisted clutching my head and glared at Kit.

"I can handle whatever you throw at me." It came out as a growl, an angry, tempered, anxious growl, and for a second that startled Kit, whose smile dropped from sight for the first time since I met him. Then, it came back full-force, and I had the realization that he'd been expecting my response.

"Very well then, Tom." He spun the Location Randomizer, and when it landed my eyes went wide. 'Ursis attacks Steluk in Prexxor Chasm."

Ivan's P.O.V.

Shit, shit, shit! I mentally screamed as I slowly turned to face not just Maxxor, but Intress and Najaryn as well. My face went red when I realized they were staring at me with odd expressions.

"Sorry, I'll just-" I made to leave, when the door clicked, signaling that it had been locked. The only sound in my mind was that of a fire truck siren.

"Please, stay child. You made quite the effort in coming here." Najaryn was now hovering above me, and I slid to the ground in fear. "You are one of Thomas's acquaintances, are you not?"

My heart leapt. "Y-Yes sir, Mr. Najaryn sir." My blood pounded in my veins as I took in the round table Maxxor and Intress were sitting at, the white linen cloth, the-

"Is that tea?" My mouth blurted out. Najaryn gave me a surprised look, then swept his gaze towards the table, before letting it fall back to me.

"Yes. We were about to celebrate Maxxor's fifty-third attempt at storming my castle to try and bring me here. He failed, of course, but why waste good tea?" My jaw dropped, and I was pretty sure my brain had stopped working. Not only had I managed to sneak into the castle, not only did I manage to find Maxxor, but they were having tea time? I felt dizzy, and it showed when Najaryn helped me up. "Would you care for some?" Not trusting my mouth at the moment, I nodded.

[A few moments later...]

"I see. Tom has been quite a wreck since then, hasn't he?" Maxxor said quietly, slurping his tea. I nodded, holding my cup gingerly, absorbing the warmth from the liquid. I found my voice.

"That's why...That's why I need to Scan you, Lord Maxxor." I stared into my cup, seeing my reflection. "I want to help him... I owe him so much, after all. Ever since I came to Chaotic and met him, it's like everything got better in my life." I looked up, and wasn't surprised to see confusion in their expressions. "It used to be that, when I was younger, whenever I tried to make friends, I'd end up being too shy and nervous to do anything. I always hid behind my brother Peyton, because he's great at making friends. But when he moved away with Dad, my whole world turned upside down. I wouldn't eat, I'd sleep for hours on end, and be such a miserable wreck I couldn't go to school. But then I met Tom, and after I made friends with him I met Riley and Ruka and all the others, and it made me realize that everything got better because I wasn't shy or afraid anymore." I had started quiet, but by the end of my rant my voice was bold and strong. "But now everything's not good for Tom, and it's getting worse, and I want to do something, because..." My voice choked off, and I felt my eyes watering. "-because if I do it for someone else, that'll make it work somehow..." I rubbed at my eyes, sniffling.

The tock-tock-tock of something in the room was the only other sound in the room. When I finally pulled my arm away from my face, Maxxor was smiling at me. Not the oh-what-a-sweet-boy-you-are smile, like adults give me, but an I-know-what-you're-going-through smile, as if he truly understood.

"Ivan, you are definitely a friend of Tom's, I can see that." The thought made me smile. "But even if you Scan me, he won't accept it." My heart stopped.

"W-Wha?" He set his cup down quietly, staring straight at me.

"Ivan, Tom is the kind of person who prefers to become stronger on his own. And he will, as soon as he gets a metaphorical kick in the pants." I wish I could've stopped the giggle that escaped me at that moment. "When he finally gets his act together, he will seek me on his own. Make no doubt of that." He stood, and patted my head, as though I were a puppy. "But you proved that you are nearly as strong as he is. You were brave enough to come in here alone." I turned red.

"Er, actually sir, not exactly." At that moment, the doors flew open to reveal two guards who were carrying Ron. The idiot grinned and waved at me from the upside-down position they were holding him in. I smacked my forehead even as Maxxor shot me a bemused look.

"Care to explain?"

"Not really, no."

Tom's P.O.V.

I fell to my knees as soon as the Drome room appeared around us again. Without hesitating in the least bit, Kit had taken out my Steluk, Xearv, Gespaden, Dractyl, and Atalla, without missing a beat.

'It's...impossible...He can't be beaten...' I thought miserably, wishing that Kit would spontaneously combust.

"Are you ready, Tom?" Kit's voice floated over me, making my stomach churn in anger. I looked up at him.

"Why bother? You'll just beat me again. I'm tired of it." Kit's expression dropped from his smiling to a frown. At least it was a different take on him. I wonder...

"You'll never win with that attitude." I tried to bite back my retort, but all my control went flying out the window.

"I'll never win without Maxxor! Period!" How much would it take to push him over the edge? Not much, because he lost it and glared at me.

"That attitude won't win this match, Tom. Not against a CodeMaster." I was about to throw a snide remark in his face, when my brain finally caught up and spelled out what he said. My heart jumped.

"Kit...Who are you?" I asked slowly. He gave no answer, but instead he held up a card. The Drome began to glow, and I nearly toppled over from the rush of energy in my head.

'A-Ah...' The glow spread and weaved upward to the top, where it plummeted down on Kit. I looked away, fearing my head would literally explode, and when I managed to open my eyes and look at him, Kit no longer stood there; it was CodeMaster Crellan. A white robe, tall and imposing, and wing-shaped crests on both sides of his helmet.

"You're him...That's why..." I mumbled, staring at him with wide eyes. He nodded. "But, I don't understand."

He moved slightly, and the fins of his collar swayed gently. "Everyone must face a battle they are not prepared for. The challenges themselves are not important, Thomas Majors, but how we face them is." I was startled by his use of my full name, but was more shocked that all this time, Kit was the CodeMaster. That's why he'd been studying me so closely. He hadn't been trying to freak me out, he was analyzing my battling style! My mouth dropped open a bit, then pressed into a tiny smirk.

"I get it." I couldn't see his face, but I could tell he was smiling again, and that was enough for me. I got up, breathed deeply, and stared him right in the eye-er, mask. "Then let's get Chaotic, one more time."

We pressed our hands on our Scanners.

Regular P.O.V.

Kaz, Peyton, Sarah, Riley, Ruka, and Conny were all sitting at a table, worried about their friends, when both came strolling in at the same time. Both Tom and Ivan froze, staring at each other.

Tom opened his mouth first. "Well, I went to Rock River Canyon, saved a guy who turned out to be a CodeMaster, and got some sense beaten into me. You?" Ivan shrugged, a smile on his face.

"I snuck into Maxxor's castle, Scanned Bodal, and had tea with Maxxor, Najaryn, and Intress. You know, not much. Oh, hi guys!" He ended brightly, aware that they had heard everything. The occupants of the table simply stared with open maws as Ron suddenly ported in, looked around, and latched onto Ivan.

"Hi honey. Did you miss me?" Ivan raised his arm to swat at the other boy, paused, and sighed as his hand fell down.

"Whatever. I'm used to it now." Ron happily buried his face in Ivan's hair, not noticing the agitated look on Tom's face.

Riley blinked, turned to the others seated, and opened his mouth. "Man, we miss ALL the exciting stuff around here!"

The answer was Tom, Ron, and Ivan laughing as everyone else face-palmed.

Next one I swear is where I get back on track.