Long wait, I know. Sorry about that, but hey, at least I managed to get something out before two months.

Chapter Seventeen: Colors. Colors Everywhere.

"Proto, no one's gonna get the joke if you just walk around with that helmet on." I told Proto as we walked across the city towards the entrance of Rainbow Canyon.

"Well, it's sunny and I have shades on this." He replied, trying to justify his choice of attire. A sudden gust of wind blew his scarf into his face and I laughed.

"Or you could have just worn a pair of sunglasses."

"Where's the fun in that?"

"Not having a scarf in your face."

"I still think that someone will notice."

"Wanna bet on that?"

Just as I asked, however, I heard a squeal.

"OH MY GOSH IS YOUR VIVOSAUR WEARING A ROBOT COSTUME!?" I was knocked aside as someone in pink knelt down next to Proto. She squealed again, and a Tsintao waddled over behind her. "It's so cute!" She continued to fawn over Proto while the Tsintao stared at me. I chuckled and scratched the back of my head.

"Oh, sorry." Azalea blushed and backed up a bit. "I guess I got a bit carried away. It's kinda embarrassing."

"Nah, that's okay." I laughed, and patted Proto's head. "He's just happy someone got it."

"Well, I guess I'll see you later then." She walked back towards the town, while Tsintao stayed a couple of moments before following in her trail.

"Huh." Proto muttered.

I looked at him questioningly. "What's up?"

"Ah, nothing, just wondering why Tsintao called me Bruce."

"Bruce?"

"Yeah, said I should have gotten the joke."

"Huh. Well, I dunno."

"So, what do I get for winning?"

"What?"

"You bet on it."

"It wasn't official." I protested.

"Nah." Proto smirked. "You said it before she recognized it. It's valid."

"No it's not."

We continued on as I walked towards where I knew the gondola was. I looked at the line of people and groaned. There was a lot of commotion at the edge of the cliff face, with people trying to get in and out of the gondola. Suddenly, a high pitched scream shattered the air. It was only a few seconds later before a Ptera, not unlike the one I had seen Joe use in the past, hovered about the crowd, a boy on its back and a girl in its talons. He landed down, and seemed to be quite enjoying himself. I ran over to check if there was anything I could do, but the guy stopped me.

"Hey, look bucko, I got this." He looked at me disapproving me, which struck a nerve in my head.

I gave him a harsh look back. "What, so I can't decide to help someone who might be in need of help?"

"I'll say it again; I got this."

"If you're so sure you've got this, then why can't I just check?"

"Because I'm fine! I don't need your help!"

"Don't be an arrogant fool."

"Skyla, let's show him why he's not needed here." The Ptera swooped over, and he hopped up onto its back.

"Alright then, let's see if you live up to your claims." Thalasso appeared at the ready, and grabbed me by the back. We hovered in the air, staring at each other, with the boy resting upon his Ptera's back, while Thalasso seemed to act like my wings, holding onto my shoulders. The two held a brief staring contest before charging. Thalasso's first Angry Peck missed, to which the Ptera responded by stabbing at Thalasso's back. He began to fall, but quickly recovered with a mid-air loop.

"Dude, you don't need to show off." I laughed as he began to form a tornado by flapping his wings.

"I'm not. Why don't you try recovering from that in any other way?" he retorted, sending the swirling air at the boy.

The other pterosaur reacted quickly, sending its own whirlwind towards Thalasso's. The other Vivosaur, however, only added to the tornado's power, which was sent crashing into it. The Ptera wobbled a bit in the sky, and screeched angrily at Thalasso. The boy looked at his Vivosaur, surprised by the effect.

"You shouldn't be able to inflict Enrage!" He yelled at me from across the canyon.

"Well, Ptera can, now can't it? Perhaps you should've thought before making a move. This isn't just a regular battle where I have to stay in place. You challenged me out here, so we're battling a battle not only of knowledge, which I have no doubt you have in abundance, but wit too."

With that, Ptera lunged for Thalasso, who folded his wings and dropped about ten feet towards the ground. He then leaned forward and caught an updraft from the canyons below. I saw a myriad of differently colored rocks scattered throughout the gorge before Thalasso pulled up and started to ascend. He met the Ptera head on with an Angry Peck, which was met by a Wing Cutter. The two zoomed past each other, and hovered for a second, before Ptera started to drop from the sky. A green gargoyle grabbed the boy and his Vivosaur as they fell, landing safely on the ground. Thalasso slowly descended and we landed near the boy. The girl who had fallen earlier recalled the gargoyle-like Vivosaur, and grabbed onto the boy as he stood up from the ground.

"Trickster, are you alright?" She looked at him in concern, but he took a few seconds to respond.

"Yeah, I'm fine Savannah." Trickster glared at me and clutched onto something around his neck. "Pah, that was a cheap win."

"Really, is that so?" I stood my ground as the crowd stared at us, obviously curious about what had just transpired. "And what about it was so cheap?"

"You won despite my obvious advantage in skill and type."

"Like I said before, that battle wasn't all about types and statistics. You battled as if you were still in the Fossil Stadium. Here, not only did you have consider both the downward and upward areas, but also the natures of attacks. Your Ptera could have countered Thalasso's Tornado Wing, but you didn't consider the tornado's direction, and rather than canceling the attack, you added to it. That's how your Ptera got Enraged."

"And what of the type?"

"Quite simple. My Thalasso outranks your Ptera by a lot."

"Pah, that's still a load of-"

"Trickster, let's just go. He's not worth your time." The girl, Savannah, started to tug him away, and he said a few parting words.

"This isn't over. Meet me on my turf, and we'll see who wins." He then walked off with her, and the crowd started to disperse.

I sighed. "Well, he could have just mentioned they knew each other politely. I mean jeez, if he had said that it was a personal matter, I would have left it alone."

"Well boss, that was fun, but if you don't mind, I'm just gonna head on over to the hotel and-" Thalasso started to fly away before I stopped him

"Don't even think about it." I stared at him, and he sighed.

"Yeah, you got it. But I want some serious internet time after this." His medal fell into my hand, and I slipped it back onto my belt. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a movement in the canyon wall, and stared at a door placed in its surface for a good three minutes. However, nothing emerged, so I turned around and started walking towards the gondola that had been the cause of all the mayhem earlier. I was about to step into the contraption when Jiango suddenly appeared and let out a bellow. A beach chair lying on the ground, and the walls once again in motion, Jiango transformed back into a Medal, which I picked up before suspiciously placing my hand against the door. A sudden movement from the surface caused me to fall inwards, and I felt a blow to the back of my head that left me unconscious.

A voice awoke me from my forced nap, and I sat up, rubbing my head. "You might have wit, but you sure do get captured easily."

My vision had to adjust itself for a few seconds before I was able to fully take in my surroundings. Sitting on a crate next to me was someone I hadn't expected to see so soon.

"Alistair." I murmured under my breath.

"In the flesh. Before you ask, no, I did not knock you out, yes, I am in charge of keeping you here, no, I will not, and yes, we are in a secret BB Brigade base. Any other questions?"

"Why are you here in the first place?"

"Team building. Morale at Breakaway HQ has been low because of reasons you're fully aware of, and Cole needed some help with his latest scheme. So Ray sent us all over to help him out."

"Cole?"

"Another Brigade member. Or rather, more of faction leader. Right now he's trying to get all the girls locked up in here so that the guys won't want to fight without any girls to impress."

"That plan sounds pretty lame. At least it's helping unite the Breakaway members on how stupid it is. Nevertheless, his plan's going to happen. A couple of girls have already been dragged in here."

"Where? I don't see anyone else."

"The other side of this screen right here." He patted it for emphasis. "They're trying to pamper them to death, apparently. I hope it doesn't last long." Sure enough, the sounds of Vivosaurs battling could be heard from the other side of the screen.

"Not gonna go help them, eh?"

"Nah, I'm doing my job, watching the prisoner."

"I thought you weren't going to keep me here."

"I'm not. You're only staying until this commotion wraps up. After that, you're free to go, though technically I'm supposed to bring you back to HQ and leave you there."

"Alright." I let out a sigh, then turned to him. "Look, I appreciate this and all, but I still need to know. Have you found the answer to my question?"

"Well, to one. While I may not be loyal to the Brigade any longer, I'm defecting for justice."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Justice, eh?"

"Yeah, justice. Ray is wrong. We all know this. And to fight against him is to fight for what's right. My loyalties were misplaced before. So please, know that I will back you up if you fight with me against him."

"That may show me your reasons for leaving the Brigade and overthrowing Ray, but that still does not answer the most important question. Why do you need me? Plenty of other Fighters far surpass my skill, Thea, Rubicon, and perhaps even Nathan, to name a few. So why me?"

"Carno. Carno is the reason I want you to help."

"Are you saying it's simply for my Carno's power? Because like I said, plenty of other, stronger, more obedient Vivosaurs are out there."

"No, it's just because of that disobedience. You came into our base and trashed the place just looking for it, despite how it rarely listens to you." He hung his head down in exasperation after I didn't immediately reply.

I took another minute to contemplate his words before making my decision. "Alright. It's a deal then."

Alistair looked up with a surprised look on his face. "Wait, seriously?"

"Yeah, your reasoning makes sense to me. I'll help you out in whatever way I can. Just let me know through the chat on the Wiki I set up, I'm usually in the chat there."

"Thanks!" He stood up, and offered his hand out to me. I shook it, and he motioned towards the space leading out into the cavern. "I think you'd better get going. Your friend Dina should be about done in here."

"Dina?"

"Yeah, she's become quite the hero as of late. A couple problems going on around the islands, some our fault, some not, and she was there to solve them."

"Wow. I had no idea."

"Yeah, people surprise you sometimes."

I nodded, and then turned towards the exit. Sliding in front of the screen, I slipped back out into the sunlight, with a lingering feeling that I had just committed to something that was bigger than I could imagine.

All right, the usual things, hope you enjoyed, review if you want, don't be afraid to point out any stupid mistakes, and thanks for reading!