Hey. I'm so sorry this is so late! Really! Well, before I waste anymore of your time, I better shut up.
Disclaimer: I'm not writing it anymore . . .
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Kai looked at his brother, thoughts racing through his mind. There was something not right about this. Derrick seemed too quiet. He was hiding something, but what?
"Derrick?" Kai asked.
"Hmn?"
"Is there something you're not telling me?" Kai asked in Russian so no one would know what they were saying.
Derrick looked at his feet and nodded. "Yes," he replied in the same language.
"What is it?"
The teen hesitated before he answered. "I can't exactly tell you - "
"Why?" Kai asked confused. Why would Derrick keep something important from him? It didn't make any sense. "What is so important or so bad that you can't tell me?"
Derrick sighed in defeat and looked up at his brother's fired eyes. They stood there gazing at him with that same intensity they always had, and they were ready for the truth.
"It's the Cobra Blades, they - they came to my place the other night . . ."
"What! What did they do to you!"
"Kai, calm down . . . They didn't hurt me, they - they just surprised me. They came in when I was putting the groceries away, when I had the door open and said something about Black Dranzer and Dranzer. They said that if I didn't cooperate then they would hurt you and the others . . ."
"What did they want you to do?"
"They wanted me to give them Black Dranzer. I don't know why they wanted him. It doesn't make any sense."
"And you gave it to them?"
Derrick slammed his fists down on the box he was sitting on. "I had no other choice, Kai! They were going to kill you and the others if I didn't!"
Kai sighed and looked at the tears forming at the edges of those icy eyes. "It's OK, Derrick. Did they tell you anything else?"
He nodded. "I overheard them saying something about wanting the four sacred bit beasts, and from what you told me in your letters, Tyson, Ray, Max, and you have them. So, I got worried and rushed over, that's why I was in the area when Kenney called me."
Kai looked at the ground. "I wonder why Cobra wants our bit beasts. And why he wanted Black Dranzer," he said out loud, mostly to himself.
"Kai - ?"
"Hmn?" Kai looked up at his brother and gasped. Derrick was leaning over and breathing heavily, holding his left side. "Derrick!" Kai cried as the teen fell to his knees. He rushed over to the hurting boy and gently grabbed his shoulders in worry. He forced Derrick to look him in the eyes. "Derrick? What hurts?" he asked softly, rubbing the teen's back.
The boy shook his head. "It - it's nothing. I'm fine."
"Liar."
Back with Mr. Dickenson and Kenney -
Kenney looked at the manager that sat before him. How could Kai live with the pain-staking thought of one of his best friend's death after all these years? No wonder Kai was so cold toward them. He was keeping himself separate from them because he didn't want to get hurt again.
The Cheif gulped and asked a question he knew was going to take a while to explain. "How did Keith die, Mr. Dickenson?"
The manager sighed and looked out the window before answering. "Boris made it look like an accident in the training room they were in. He made it look as if Kai had killed him."
"What!"
"Yes," Mr. Dickenson nodded. "It took Derrick a long time to get Kai to overcome the thought and believe that it wasn't his fault. I tried to help as well, but it did no use. Only someone close could have brought Kai back and he did, though not fully. He's still not the same Kai I first knew. And, I'm afraid, it'll take years for him to come back."
"Is that why Kai is so cold toward us?"
He nodded.
Tyson's POV -
"Faster, Tyson! Faster!"
"I'm going as fast as I can!"
"No you're not! Move!"
All I could hear was Robert's pushy voice as I dodged faster each minute. Man! This guy was worse than Kai when it came to training! Then again . . .
"Tyson! You're slowing down! Faster! Dodge! C'mon, faster!" Robert yelled.
We were training in a field somewhere at the edge of town. He had one sword and I had another. I was trying to block and dodge and attack at the same time! At least that's what Robert wanted me to do. Who does he think I am? Rocky Balboa? Though, I wish . . . If I were him, Robert would be the one blocking blows . . . Oh, great! I'm talking to myself again, just like Cheif. Hey, I wonder where he is . . .
"Tyson!"
I looked up. "Whoa!" I cried as I side-stepped to the right. Robert's sword came an inch close to hitting my chest. Uh-Oh. Looks like I won't be getting that dinner he promised me . . . Great . . .
"Sorry, Robert," I apologized.
"Sorry? Sorry doesn't cut it, Tyson. Start paying attention to what we're doing! We've only got about two weeks to train you. So, there's gonna be no slacking off. Got it?"
"Yeah, yeah."
Here we go again . . .
Derrick's POV -
I stared at Kai's solemn face that gazed at me with those flaming eyes. How those flames seemed to look right through me every time I had something to hide. That's why I always envied him. Why I always was, I guess, somewhat jealous. He had those perfect eyes. Lucky him.
I couldn't lie to him anymore. He'd find out some time later.
I sighed, staring at the ground.
"Kai . . ."
"They hurt you didn't they?" he said. For some reason he could always read my mind, or my eyes I should say.
"Yes," I nodded.
"How? Where?"
I looked up at him and lifted the side of my shirt.
Kai's POV -
I gasped. On Derrick's side sat a slithering cobra ink mark, though I knew it wasn't ink. It hissed menacingly as I stroked the skin below its tail and moved up the side toward his heart, causing my brother to grimace in pain. It hissed again.
"You - You've been . . ." I stammered.
He nodded. "Yeah."
Oh man! Derrick's been marked with the Cobra's symbol. I thought they seemed a little cockier than usual. Those - those -
"Bastards!" I cried slamming my fist into the ground.
"Kai . . ."
"Are you sure you can do this?" I asked.
He nodded. "Yes. Don't worry about me. I'll be fine. Besides, I'm not the one who'll be training. I'm just hired to stand and watch and tell you what to do. Right?"
I chuckled and stood up offering my hand to help. He took it and we both stood looking at each other until we finally just burst out laughing.
"You know, you never told me what you had planned for my training," I said.
He laughed, making the ice in his eyes sparkle like diamonds. "You'll see. Let's get going. We don't have enough time to whip you all into shape. So, we better start now."
I nodded.
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Kind of sappy and a bit shorter than I wanted it to be . . .
Sneak peek for chapter 6, I think . . .
Training will begin for Kai. More information on the "markings" of the Cobra Blades. They will also be appearing, and I'm changing their name to something in Russian. I have to ask my friend . . . And some more if you all review!
Taijiya Mizu out!