Chapter 32 - (Dis)Comforting Words

One moment, Gingka had been staring into darkness, a darkness made of laughter and insanity that was white as snow and redder than blood, a darkness that had a face and a body that was his own and yet wasn't in both senses.
But then something had rang in his ears, reverberated around him, a sound full of fear and torment, but consisting of the purest kind of life. The next thing he knew, he was gasping in a breath, and he opened his eyes - not to the abyssal darkness that he had been sentenced too, but to a large room, dark but still illuminated in its own light that shone without a source. A room... A real room, or so he presumed. Not just an endless void of darkness, where he was left kneeling, chained to a floor (no.. ceiling... wall... it could've been anything...) that he couldn't see, that didn't exist.
But this... This he could see. It existed... And he had seen it before, while in the darkest recesses of his mind, when he had closed his eyes and saw the briefest glimpses of the outside world.
The outside world... This was the outside.

He was outside.

Not outside, really, since he was in a room, and you weren't outside if you were inside of something, but for him this was outside.
He had gotten out... He had been let go of... But he seriously doubted that it had done so willingly, or maybe it had not even done so at all.
Something had pulled him back... Something that he recognized so dearly so... It took a moment before Gingka realized that he was forgetting to breathe, and he exhaled gratefully.
He took a moment, just sitting there, his head now leaning back against the back of the stone chair he was sitting in, gazing around wearily at his surroundings that were all made of stone. He didn't care that it was a boring room, that there was nothing but stone decorating the walls, inscriptions and elaborate but weathered pictures carved in, he just cared that there was something other than darkness.
This was something, compared to the nothing he had been forcefully condemned too. He took a moment taking that thought in before he finally made willed himself to look away from the ceiling, suddenly feeling quite awkward and out of place in his own body. Then again, his body hadn't moved out here in the physical world for weeks now, so it could only be natural that he would feel that way now that he had woken up - and so suddenly as well.
Slowly, the redhead looked down more towards the floor of the room, which really wasn't that interesting either of since when did he care about that? It was outside, wasn't it? That was good enough. This was the view that he had always had while he was stuck within his head, the view that he had seen whenever he managed to close his eyes and focus enough without that thing (Thing?... No, him.. Right?) coming to disturb him, only this time it was much clearer. He could feel it now, rather than just see it. But it wasn't anything knew to Gingka to see it, for he had seen it many times before.
So maybe that was why he wasn't all the most surprised to see that the entirety of his left arm was now white. Although he wasn't that surprised, it still caused a small hitch in his breath (white skin, white hair, his face), and he looked away, though he knew that there was no way to escape it.
He guessed that was also why his left arm and the left side of his face felt so weird, so exposed, so... Gingka couldn't think of words of the moment. What he figured he should be thinking about was how to get out of this place.
He knew where he was, why he was here, but he didn't know how to get out. He should probably work on that. Only thing was, he wasn't exactly able to feel his legs all to well. Gingka didn't know much too much about comas, except for the fact that you were left as nothing but a vegetable until you woke up - if you woke up that was - but he did know that waking up from such a state was able to cause some major trauma to the body and to the mind.
Again, his body hadn't even moved for the last 3 weeks - it had only been three weeks, right?

That's what it said, 3 weeks, 3 weeks... Gingka decided to take his chances either way.
The redhead grunted softly as he moved his arms, his limbs feeling stiff and weak, almost screaming at him to stop moving and just sit there as he had been, but he managed to push himself away from the back of the chair and towards the edge of the seat anyways. He breathed heavily for a moment, his vision blurring slightly at the sudden exertion that his body wasn't used to after so long, but that soon passed enough for him to put both hands on the left arm of the stone chair, and carefully push himself up on shaking legs.
He had expected that, after being so weak from before he had fallen into his comatose sleep, and after being completely immobile for 3 weeks in a vegetative state, his legs wouldn't be able to support him, not to mention the fact that he could barely feel them. He was right. The moment he tried to stand on his own, he almost immediately fell over onto the ground, though was able to catch himself quickly enough so that he didn't hit his head or anything.
Either way, everything still hurt.

"Ow..." He muttered softly, and slowly pulled himself up into a bit of an awkward sitting position.
Obviously, he wasn't going to really get anywhere to fast.
The redhead tried again, only for it to, predictably, fail miserably, and then even did his best to try crawling, but that was futile as well. He was too weak for this... He couldn't move his legs, and he hated that thought after being nothing but immobile inside of his own head for so long.
Either way, he had nothing to do but sit there, barely even a few meters away from the stone chair he had originally be sitting upon for at least a week or so, on legs that he barely had feeling in and somewhat propped up both of his hands, one his normal fair skin, the other whiter than the snow that he would always see during the long winters of Koma.
Even so, he knew that someone was watching him.
It was a feeling that he had come to recognize, the feeling of eyes (red, his own but not his own) staring into the back of his head, staring into him, coming back like a hated old friend. He couldn't see this one, couldn't hear him, but he knew who was there.
He supposed it was a twin thing.

"Alcorin?..." Gingka called out in a hoarse voice, coughing slightly afterwards and hearing that accursed name echo through the room. He waited several moments, but he received no answer but the echo that bounced off the walls before soon fading into silence again.
He knew what the other was waiting for, what he wanted.
He was loathe to admit it to even himself the fact that lay in a simple word, but what choice was he given?
Gingka sat in the silence for a moment longer, a troubled expression on his face as he looked towards the ground, his eyebrows furrowed softly, before he willed himself to speak the word he never thought he'd ever say to anyone, let alone someone like him.
"Brother?..." He called out once more, his voice hesitant as he uttered that word in place of the other's name.
He didn't have to wait long before he got an answer.

"You have no idea how long I've wanted you to call me that." Said a calm, solemn voice that never failed to be kissed by that manipulative trace of power that could bend others to its will from in front of him, and Gingka immediately looked upward to meet that accursed face.
And Alcorin stood there. Several meters away, shrouded in his white robes that both dragged behind him and fluttered around his ankles.
Gingka had expected that, since he had seen his younger brother before while he was catatonic, kneeling in front of him and undoubtedly whispering uncanny words in his ear that the other probably didn't see the problem in.
What he didn't expect though, was the calm, somber expression on his face. There was no smile, no twisted light in those eyes that reflected none. He looked almost human, for a person that wasn't entirely so.
Then again, Gingka knew that he shouldn't be saying such things about the other - after all, they were the same.

"That really does mean the world to me." The younger continued, the ghost of what was almost a small smile on his face, "Even though I know you don't mean it when you say it."
Gingka said nothing, simply looking at the albino with nearly expressionless eyes. Gingka looked at that face for several moments, eyes roaming across every feature and detail, even though there wasn't much to see but stark white and crimson red.

But still, that face... He knew that face...

The silence was there again for a moment before Alcorin went on.
"I really didn't expect to wake up so soon." The younger commented, "I expected you to be sleeping for quite awhile yet... But then again-" A somewhat bitter look flashed in his eyes, and he briefly looked away from his older brother, "-your friends really are more trouble than they're worth."

"Sorry to disappoint you." Gingka responded almost mockingly, and finally realized where he recognized that sound that he had heard before. A scream, coming from a voice that he had never heard filled with such fear. "But you can't always have your way like that.." The redhead continued, getting a brief chuckle from the other.
"I suppose that's true." Alcorin said, "But I can sure as hell try, can't I?"
More silence. It was strange, since Gingka had thought Alcorin would be more chatty than this, as he often seemed to be.
It was almost... Awkward.
It took a few moments before Gingka decided to speak.
"I really don't understand you.." Gingka said with a soft sigh.
"I don't expect you too." Alcorin responded.
"No." Gingka replied, shaking his head, "When I say that, I don't mean like any of the other bad guys I've fought over the years... I don't understand you, because why would you do all of this for me?... Why am I so important?"
Alcorin said nothing for a few moments before he answered.
"Well you're my brother, aren't you?" He questioned rhetorically.
"We've never even met before now..." Gingka pointed out.
"Maybe not, but siblings are siblings." Alcorin said somberly, "At least I recognized you, unlike our father."
Gingka looked up towards the younger. "Why would Nemesis have recognized me at all?" He asked, "He made us, but I seriously doubt he knew what we looked like."

"That's where he failed." Alcorin said bitterly once more, "He was much happier trying to destroy this world than find the only children he would ever really have. I never did care about father dearest's ambitions, but he could have at least tired to come through on his children's behalf... Speaking of which..." Alcorin's bitter expression faded once more, replaced by a calm type of curiosity that was strange to see on a face who had laughed and rejoiced in the pain of others, "How exactly did you come to know of that? You were pretty out of it for about a month, and you never knew anything prior to my arrival in Metal Bey City. So how is it that you suddenly know, dear brother?.."
Gingka almost cringed at those two words, but prevented himself from doing so. Instead, he looked up towards the albino, a somewhat defiant look on his face.
"Let's just say I had an old friend's help on that one.." He said.
Of course, Ryuga had been the one to tell him.
He had told him everything about Alcorin and about what his father had done all those years ago, everything that needed to be said in those few moments between life and death where Gingka had known peace once more. Despite that accursed knowledge he'd be given, Gingka had decided that it was nice to see Ryuga again.
At least he now knew where he had been all these years.

"Of course..." Alcorin replied, his tone somewhat bitter again, "You always seem to have friends somewhere that will come looking for you... People that always want to see you safe, people you rely on..." The younger looked away, glowering at something off to the side, "How pathetic..."

"It's not pathetic." Gingka said in response, "They're my friends. I know I can count on them just like they can count on me, that's what forms our bonds... Something tells me that you never had anyone to count on..."
Crimson eyes looked at him again, an expressionless gaze that didn't say much.
"What? Are you taking pity on me, dear brother?..." Alcorin asked, and he was silent again before speaking, "I never could rely on anyone. Especially not that disgusting child who let everything control him when it should have been the other way around... I got tired of him. So I threw him aside." That accursed smile, sweetness corrupted by a sadistic malice, finally showed itself on his face, "It really wasn't that hard to do so.. After all, I was the one who actually understand what we were.."
That smiled faded, and a frown took its place. Alcorin was silent for a moment before speaking again.
"You were right, actually, about what you said earlier..." He continued, "You don't understand me, just like how I barely understand you. You had a loving 'father'... Always surrounded by people who love you, because who couldn't love a person like you? You had friends, family... How perfect it must have been, right?"
Gingka just looked at him, and didn't answer. A silent look of near contempt on his face.
Alcorin saw this, but seemed to pay it no mind.

"Not me, though." He said with a small smile, though it was a bitter one, "No, I was treated like a parasite. Because why should the spawn of a God of Death and War be treated any other way?"
Gingka saw the somewhat accusing look in those eyes that he knew at two points in life had mirrored his own, and he looked down at the ground. "However, he was the one who got the worst of it.. I was just stuck in his pathetic little mind, just watching. It really was quite amusing."

"How can you say that about yourself?" Gingka asked, confused.
"He is not me." Alcorin said firmly, his expression now more angry than anything. It was a calm type of anger, a frightening mask that hid a storm.
"I'm everything that came before him, and I'm everything he couldn't be!" Alcorin stated, crimson eyes glowing dangerously, "I knew what we were, and I knew what we were capable of. He wouldn't have been able to do anything about that old man if it hadn't been for me. Oh yes... Dear sweet uncle.." His voice became scornful, that dark undertone of unspeakable power able to be heard, "Threw him in a closet, locked him in his room, restrained him day and night, and yet that kid still loved him because of the moments when he was good and he was treated like a son. He was practically a pet, letting himself be controlled by everything around him like some puppet!"
Alcorin fell silent for a moment, breathing heavily from his rant. His expression quickly calmed, as did he, and that faint, bitter expression was the only thing that remained.
Gingka looked upon him with near pity.
He hated that.

"I was born with other powers than just being able to control things, you know." The younger stated calmly, "I was also born with the power to give life... I never understood it myself, I'll admit. I didn't have any need to, really. Perhaps that's why that pathetic child was so weak..." Alcorin looked away for a moment, as if he were listening to something, before looking back again, "But I don't have that power anymore. That was gotten rid of when we were six."
Gingka looked somewhat dazed and confused as he tried to make sense of everything that Alcorin was talking about. He had a feeling of dread nestled in the pit of his stomach, the leering feeling that there was something more to this talk, because how couldn't there be?
He was willing to bet that some part of him (white skin, white hair, red eyes, identical...) already knew.
Alcorin went on. "I may be speaking for that pathetic child, but being locked in a closet against your will when your just barely out of toddler years is pretty damn traumatizing. I think we both knew each other at that point... We both wanted out. Out of that closet, out of that house, out of that life.. We wanted so much to be out of there that we didn't care what happened... And, by chance, something else was born from that."
Gingka's breath hitched softly, but Alcorin didn't seem to hear it.
"It's not a very good idea to trust a six year old with creating a life form, since how could they control it?... I didn't even know what it was until just last month.. And I realized that we made something that we sent those powers with, someone that is the literal embodiment of life itself..." Alcorin narrowed his red eyes, and he stared into Gingka's own, "And I think you know who I'm talking about."

Gingka was reluctant to answer.

But he knew, and he knew that there was no way in denying it. The redhead looked at the other, a forlorn yet understanding look in his eyes.

Maybe it really was a twin thing.

"Zyro." He stated more than said.

"Yes." Alcorin said somberly, "Surprisingly, yes, but I do suppose that explains why he seems to be such a force of nature, and... A few other things.."

Gingka didn't know what to do. He knew it was true though, because, on some level, they, as twins, understood each other. As much as hated admitting it...
Zyro... Zyro was here, along with the others, he knew that now, but... Dear god, how would they... How would he handle...
Gingka didn't notice the sound of footsteps until they were just a few feet away, and looked up from the ground (that he hadn't even realized he had come to be looking at) just in time to see his younger brother kneel down in front of him on his knees so that they were almost eye level with each other.
Gingka started to back away, but he stopped himself when he realized that that would do nothing.
"I know what you're probably thinking..." Alcorin stated, "You're thinking about how you could ever tell dear little Zyro something like that... How you would explain anything, even yourself to any of them..." Gingka averted his brother's eyes, though he knew that the other was right, "Well don't fret, dear brother..." Gingka really did flinch this time when he felt a hand, skin as smooth as glass, brush his left cheek, where he knew the skin was more than likely identical, "You won't have to explain anything once I'm done with them."
At these words, Gingka's eyes immediately shot up to the other.
"Don't you dare hurt them!" He demanded, and almost immediately felt a strange tingling sensation in both of his eyes. He raised his right hand to one of them and willed the feeling to go away.
"I think it's a little late for that, dear brother." Alcorin said smugly, slowly retracting his hand, "I've already broken them down as much as I can manage before this point. And now, since they clearly aren't going to back off, I'm just going to kill them."

"Don't you dare!" Gingka shouted firmly, now trying to ignore the uncomfortable sensation in his eyes, "It's me you want, isn't it?! Take me, and we'll go somewhere else where they aren't! You said it yourself that you don't care about them, didn't you?"
Alcorin looked at him calmly, almost apologetically, but Gingka could swear he imagined that.
"That would be more logical..." The albino admitted, "But you know as well as I do that they'd just follow me until they got you back."
To this, Gingka said nothing.
He knew that was true. He knew his friends, and he knew that they were stubborn as all hell (not to mention Madoka by herself). Even if Alcorin ran, they would chase the psychopath as long as he had him.

"You're sick, you know that?..." Was all the redhead as able to say, his body tense, anger coursing through him at the the thought of...
"Oh, I know, a lot of people have said about me." Said Alcorin nonchalantly, "But you really aren't the person for making such accusations after what you've done."
Gingka's eyebrows furrowed for a moment, confused.

What was he talking about?

The redhead looked up at the albino again, confused anger ever present
. Alcorin saw his confusion and chuckled softly, "I'm not surprised you don't know... But I guess you would be one who would want to forget. You know..." Gingka froze entirely as Alcorin leaned forward to whisper in his ear, white skin, white hair, red eyes flashing before his eyes all over again.
However, he was more struck by Alcorin's following words that it practically threw his trauma aside.

"The ones where you killed your own father?"

For maybe the first time, that voice lined with power unspeakable got through to him, and all of those memories that he had never known he had came rushing back to him in flashes of red eyes, broken glass, accursed laughter, and a terrified expression that he had never wanted to see directed towards him...

Not from him...

Not from Ryo...

Gingka was then left immobile, staring at the ground as everything flashed before his eyes, and loathing how everything suddenly made sense.
No wonder he wasn't able to remember anything since he had seen his father died... Why everything had seemed like a dream... Because it had been.
And he had shut the rest of it out.
He didn't hear whatever it was that Alcorin said next, for his ears went deaf to the world, and he went more numb than he already was...
And then he remembered that thing's words...

"... And you did let me out... Twice..."

When he felt Alcorin's hands on him again, Gingka gave no resistance...

It seemed that no matter which way they went, Takanosuke and Sakyo kept seeming to wind up at some dead end eventually. They had come across one room, a large chamber that had appeared to previously had been living quarters, but were now broken down and full of dirt and insects after centuries of neglect, but that had been it.
Apparently this place was a kind of maze, although most of the dead ends they had come to were formed because parts of the temple had already caved in. Most of it still seemed to be standing, though, so that was a good thing. Now all they needed to do was actually find their way through it.

"How big is this place, exactly?" Takanosuke questioned, looking at the walls around the two of them as they walked down yet another corridor, "I know we're in a mountain, but this place is really big even for that..."

"I'm not sure." Sakyo said simply, staring forward into the darkness illuminated by the orange glow of the torches, "There has to be a way through, though. It's highly unlikely that the front entrance would lead to nothing but dead ends."

"Yeah, I guess..." Takanosuke said in a way that said he wasn't quite convinced, "But this place has been abandoned for a long time, so..." Sakyo got what Takanosuke meant even though he didn't finish his sentence, and he knew that that was very true.
Chances were, all paths leading from the front entrance were entirely blocked off from the rest of the temple, even if most of it was still quite sturdy and supported by the mountain itself. Considering that Alcorin was a demi-god, he would have no problem getting around, but others would, which would make it all the more fortunate for him. The two of them continued on, however, resolute in finding a way deeper into the mountain and further towards their goal.
The dead ends had to stop eventually, right?
The two of them kept walking for quite a while (even though they had no idea how long 'a while' was) before they both heard a sound echoing off the stone walls of the corridor they were currently in. Both of them stopped in their tracks upon hearing it, Sakyo moving his arm instinctively in front of Takanosuke in a precautionary (...protective...) manner.
They both stood a moment, silent, and listened. As bladers, they both recognized the sound immediately the sound as that of a spinning top, or at least something similar to that.

"Where's that coming from?..." Takanosuke asked quietly, glancing up at Sakyo worried before looking back down the hall. Sakyo didn't answer, but that was expected.
Silently, the two of them crept down the corridor, both of them listening closely as the faint sound grew closer the farther they went. It wasn't long before the two of them saw it - a single Bey, spinning silently in the center of the floor, alone and with no blader nearby to command it.
But they knew better than that, because they were able to recognize the Bey that spun there.

Holy Bellerophon, as Alcorin had so politely introduced them.

Both bladers almost immediately fell on the defensive, both suddenly getting ready to pull out their launchers should they have to, and they had no doubts that they would.
However, they were proven wrong once Bellerophon zipped off to the side and down another corridor connected to the one they were already in, leaving both bladers somewhat confused.
The two of them silently walked over to the hallway, both of them looking down into the torch lit darkness, and saw the Bey again.
Once more, it just stood there, spinning - waiting.
At the same time that they realized the Bey wanted them to follow it, Takanosuke felt like he was going to throw up from the sudden feeling of dread that dropped into his stomach.
The blonde actually doubled over, making a muffled gagging sound. Sakyo was immediately there, and held the Griffin Blader up with one arm around his torso, and the other hand on the boy's shoulder. The curly-haired boy instinctively reached out and gripped Sakyo's trench-coat, breathing shallowly as he stared at the floor, that sickening feeling of nausea creeping up from his stomach and willing it's way to his esophagus.
His vision blurred again and without warning, black spots clouding his sight just as they had so many times before and forcing him to close his eyes.

"Takanosuke?" He heard Sakyo say questionably, that hint of concern that only he was able to hear lingering in that naturally chill voice.

Why, why was this happening now?

Why now, why here?...

Some part of him felt like he might know why, an instinctive part, one that he couldn't see.
The rest of him didn't care, and just wanted all of this - the nausea, the headaches, the pain, the blurry vision - to stop.
Eventually, it did.
The blonde's vision cleared again, and the nausea went away, even though he still felt uneasy. Sakyo helped him stand up properly again, and made sure that he was able to stand by himself before pulling away.
"Thanks..." The blonde muttered softly, rubbing the side of his head for a moment as his cerulean eyes looked down the corridor again.

Bellerophon was still there, waiting.

Takanosuke did not feel good about this - not at all.
Of course, he doubted that Sakyo did either, but... The Griffin Blader felt a hand on his shoulder, gentle but firm, and looked up towards the Dragoon Blader that stood beside him. Sakyo looked at him with that cold gaze that was graced dimly with concern, and Takanosuke knew what it was he was asking.
He wanted to say yes, or no, or whichever answer meant turn back or go some other way, but he knew that there was no point in that.
If they were to turn back, then, chances were, all of this would end up meaning next to nothing. But if they went a different way, then... Would they still be able to find other ways through?
Perhaps, but perhaps not.
Eventually, Takanosuke decided against all other ideas despite the dread that he felt, and Sakyo got the message.

Cautiously, both of them walked down the corridor where Bellerophon lay waiting, and continued to follow the Bey that wanted to be followed down the corridor, and then down another. The whole time, both of them made sure to be ready for sudden attacks that could come their way.
None came, however.
Of course, Bellerophon wasn't an Attack type Bey, and couldn't even actually attack at all, but they had seen for themselves that it was still as dangerous as the man who had possession of it.
It just lead them on and on through the halls, until they finally came to the second open chamber that they had managed to come across.
Strangely enough, this room actually seemed to be lit, since it was brighter than anywhere else they had been.
It looked almost like the indoor version of a courtyard, with pillars lining the sides and supporting the upper balcony that wound all the way around. There were stairs that lead up to the upper floor on the sides of the center of the room, and some at the very back of it - those ones were half crumbled, however, and could probably only be used if one used some fair caution when going up through the middle. From what they could see, there were even a few more doorways that lead off from the chamber, 3 on the upper floor and one to the right side of the bottom floor. Looking up, both Takanosuke and Sakyo saw that the roof was just as elaborately designed, with beams carved out of the rock all leading into the center, where a bright mass of glow stone protruded and did an excellent job of lighting the whole room. Sakyo looked down at the floor, directly below the glow stone that was in the center of the ceiling, and saw what looked to be a circle with several patterns and engravings on it that he was unable to make sense of.
In the center, Bellerophon spun silently.
"Someone really outdid themselves with this place, it's kind of nice..." Takanosuke said as an offhand comment, gazing around in awe at the chamber that he had never expected to be so... Nice looking.
It was actually sort of pretty for a place that was dedicated to Nemesis.

"I'm so glad you think so." Said a voice that rang with an undertone of possessive power, and immediately both Sakyo and Takanosuke warped out of their somewhat amazed trances to look at the far side of the room.
And there, as expected, stood Alcorin.

Or at least they thought so, since he looked... Different, if the sudden albinism was anything to go by.

"You know, you are all really starting to get on my nerves." Alcorin said with smile and a tilt of his head at the two of them, "You twoespecially.. I've tried to get all of you to quit more than once, you know... With you two, I didn't actually think I'd have to try, so I just left you alone... And looks like it actually paid off better than I expected."
Neither of the two found that settling, since, as they expected, Alcorin had wanted them to find this place.
Now that he had them, though, what was it that he planned to do with them?
Alcorin continued to look them both over for several moments, as though studying them, a look of curiosity on his face that did not fit his malicious nature. After a moment, the psychopath spoke again.
"You know, I kept wondering how exactly I was going to deal with all of you for such a long time." Alcorin stated, almost thoughtfully, "I kept changing my mind here and there, and I thought at first that it would be good enough take all you had and crush you into tiny pieces,but... I just decided take the easier route, since none of you really seem when to quit."
Still, Sakyo and Takanosuke said nothing, and the red-and-white-haired blader could see that the blonde was visibly shaking beside him.
"Surely both of you are smart enough to know what that entails," Alcorin went on, "So..." There was a moment where Alcorin opened his eyes, and then opened them again, already red irises glowing brightly in all of their demonic heritage, "Shall we?"

Bellerophon's face bolt pulsated and glowed a royal blue, emanating its power throughout the room from simply where it stood in the center.
Both Takanosuke and Sakyo immediately sprang into action, both of them pulling out their Beys and launchers and connecting the two pieces in single fluid motions, both ready to launch and strike within an instant.
Alcorin clearly wanted a fight - as much as it probably wasn't a good idea to comply, they didn't seem to have much choice if the hollow howls of the wolves that entered through several of the doorways, including the one behind them, had anything to say about it.
Sakyo saw Takanosuke shaking, not terribly, but definitely noticeably, and for a moment he really did think the boy might collapse again. Now wasn't the time, of course, and he knew that Takanosuke knew that as well, but whether or not he would be able to help it clearly wasn't up to the blonde.
Sakyo never had been one to express any form of compassion or affection through words - he had never really known how too - but, maybe, this was the one time that he would make an exception, if he was really able too.
"It's okay..." The Dragoon blader said quietly, and, though his eyes were trained on Alcorin and Bellerophon, Takanosuke knew where Sakyo's attention was focused, ".. I'm not letting anything happen to you... It'll be fine..."
Gradually, Sakyo saw that Takanosuke's shivering died down a bit, even though it wasn't gone completely.
That was reasonable though, and Sakyo was simply glad that he was able to get the other to calm down. Whether or not it would matter, he might never know.
The two of them both managed to fixate their attention back to Alcorin, who stood there, smiling eerily, waiting with patience that no one short of a god could have.

In one split second the battle began, the two bladers - Synchro partners, friends - launched their own Beys towards the one that spun in the middle of the floor, both of them truly initiating what could be a last battle with the immortal cry that both of them had always known since they were infants, since their childhoods, the cry they had grown up with at different times but in the same way.
If this was to be the last battle they saw together, against a psychopath who wanted nothing more than to make sure it was, then so be it.