"A day without laughter is a day wasted," - Charlie Chaplin

Dan paused between words, an unsettling chill traveling down his spine. He shuddered, and the pink haired boy to his left blinked.

"Hey, what's up?" he asked, tilting his head to the side. Dan shook his head, rubbing the back of it.

"No, don't worry, it's nothing," he forced a grin, which was surprisingly easy given his situation. Lync blinked at him, but shrugged. "Anyway, I fell out of the Gate into a river, and then someone in the Twelve Orders pulled me out. Barodius basically just said that he was alive, and told Airzel and Stoica to bring me here. I ran and fell in the river, Strikeflyer, Airzel's Bakugan, fished me and Stoica out since Stoica jumped in after me, and then they just carried me to the city. In the car I passed out, I guess, since that's all I remember until I woke up with you guys... So I guess that's it."

"Well Dan, sounds like you had a blast!" Shadow began to cackle like old times, earning an eye roll from Mylene and a weird look from Dan. "I didn't think that you'd be caught so easily! If we knew that was all it would have taken to bring you and the Resistance down-"

"Oh come on, Shadow, this is serious," Mylene interrupted, but with slight annoyance rather than outright irritation. He raised an eyebrow at the two. Mylene was glaring at Shadow, but not the nasty, disgusted glare she used to give him. It was much more stern than angered. Shadow was smirking like he used to, but he seemed to just be messing with Dan. His smirk melted after a few seconds to be replaced with a disappointed expression.

"One would think that even you would be more serious right now, Shadow Prove," Hydron muttered. "Besides, those times are behind us."

"I was just trying to lighten the mood," he shrugged. "Everyone was just so tense..." Dan grinned at him, rubbing the back of his head again. He had done that several times in the past hour, and each time he did it, he felt the large bump that still hadn't gone down from yesterday. Dan had replayed the events in his head more than twenty times since he woke up the day before, and disbelief still ate away at him. It seemed so unlikely that Barodius was still alive. The same went for Kazarina, Gill, Airzel and Stoica. Dan had seen Dharak shoot down Gill's ship. He had seen Airzel and Strikeflyer jump in front of the ship to try to shield Gill from the attack. Their continued existence seemed impossible.

"Yeah well, I don't see why we shouldn't be," Sid growled. "They went and kidnapped him. They're gonna hold him hostage and try to get the power of the Sacred Orb. I think we have more than enough reason to be tense, smart guy." He was pointing at Dan with his thumb.

"Hmph," Shadow grunted, running a hand through his spiky hair. "Stick in the mud."

"Well, that's how I got here," Dan finished, leaning back against the chair. "How about you guys?"

Dan was sitting in a chair in a meeting room in the hallway where he and Lync, Volt, Mylene, Shadow Prove, Hydron, and Sid Arcale were being held by the Gundalians. They had all seemed quite surprised and relieved when Dan woke up, and Dan had been beyond astonished. After Mylene and Shadow had gotten sucked into the Death Bomb's portal, he, along with the Resistance, had all assumed they died. Dan remembered how they found the Alternative's plans, and that was thanks to Lync. But his single glove had given them the clue, and Alice had thought Lync died trying to give it to her. Dan never found out what happened to Volt, but since he hadn't seen him at the final battle, he had thought it safe to believe that the brawny Haos brawler had deserted the Vexos. As for Sid, Dan had seen him fall off the cliff himself. He had witnessed the sacrifice he made for Ren, and heard his dying words. The sight of him alive and annoyed had nearly given Dan a heart attack. Hydron gave Dan about as much of a fright as Sid had, especially since Hydron hadn't been around to witness Dan's awakening. He had been in the shower, so he had joined them an hour later. He had been surprised to see Dan to say the least.

Dan rested his head on a hand as he searched their faces for answers. Hydron sat directly across from him, his eyes narrowed at the wall as he twirled a lock of hair around his finger. Sid sat to Dan's left, seemingly annoyed. But that wasn't anything new to the brunette. Just about every time he had seen Sid, the blond seemed irritated. Volt sat to the left of Sid, his arms folded across his chest as he glared across the table at an empty seat in between Lync and Mylene. Shadow sat to the left of Volt, holding his head up in between his two hands. His lower lip stuck out as he looked up at the ceiling, thinking. Mylene sat on the other side of Hydron, who sat to Shadow's left. Mylene had her hands folded on the table in front of her, and her serious blue eyes glared down at her middle-finger gloves. Lync sat in between her and Dan, glaring into the corner.

Dan blinked at their reactions to his question. He hadn't expected this subject to be touchy for them. He was about to open his mouth to tell them that they didn't have to answer, but Mylene finally broke the awkward silence.

"When I threw down the Death Bomb inside Bakugan Interspace," she said bitterly, "I opened a portal into this dimension with only one intention. To bring down that traitor, Spectra." There was such bitterness and anger in her voice that Dan blinked at her. Inwardly, he was thankful it wasn't channeled at him, as he was reminded of his battle in Beta City with the woman and Shadow. Shadow was observing her secretly, as he hadn't seen her act this way since she retold this story to Lync, Volt, and later Hydron and Sid. "But I didn't know then that opening a Dimensional Gate inside a virtual environment like Bakugan Interspace would end so drastically." She smiled vainly, and her eyes were chips of ice. Dan shivered, but no one noticed.

"Well it wasn't entirely the Death Bomb's fault; we've been over this," Volt said. Dan stared at him, as he hadn't remembered the burly young man to be so talkative, even in battle. "Bakugan Interspace was a prototype then, Mylene. Nothing was very stable then, not even the battle environment."

"How did you know that?" Dan asked after a moment of silence. "I thought that the Resistance and the Brawlers were the only ones that knew that."

"You're really thick, aren't you?" Sid smirked at Dan. Dan turned to raise an eyebrow at him.

"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked suspiciously. Sid just smirked, then pointed at himself.

"We infiltrated Bakugan Interspace when it was first created, smart guy," he announced. Dan's eyes widened. "We didn't go there physically at first. Kazarina told us enough about the software and how unstable it was at that moment. Opening a Gate or even having our Bakugan transport us in would be too risky. And when Mylene threw down the Death Bomb, we were notified of the anomaly. Ren found it, since we were planning on infiltrating anyway and he needed to know what he was doing, and we found out what would happen if we tried to transport in.

"The system was pretty much destroyed, and we sort of abandoned hope of it getting rebuilt. Or at least, I did. Ren, though, seemed to think that that little guy, what was his name, Marucho, would be able to find a way to reboot Interspace. He had seen how smart that little kid was." Dan grinned proudly. Even people Marucho had not met had faith in him. "And then, three weeks later, the system was back online again. And Ren decided he'd try to fold in. The Emperor granted him clearance and our mission began, and Ren was successful... and well, I guess you know the rest." Sid smirked at the end of his explanation, and Dan frowned.

"You guys had your sights set on us from the very beginning, didn't you?" he asked.

"Yup," Sid said bluntly, a satisfied expression on his face. Dan glared at him, then turned to Mylene.

"Okay, so the Death Portal or whatever wasn't your fault. What happened after that?" he asked. Mylene sighed, her index fingers tapping against each other.

"I thought that by opening the portal, I'd only be sending Spectra and Mira to Displatis."

"Displatis?" Dan repeated, confused.

"Displatis is the name of this planet," she told him. Dan's mouth formed an "O" shape and he nodded, and she took that as an invitation to continue. "The Death Bomb caused Bakugan Interspace to shut down on itself, and Mira and Spectra tried to get Shadow and I out. We refused. That was probably one of the most foolish decisions of my life," she added softly. Shadow glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, as did Hydron and Lync, but Volt just glared at the table while Sid and Dan didn't hear her.

"We were transported to this golden dimension gap, and then we found ourselves in a black dimensional gate," Shadow continued. Mylene shot him a look, which he either ignored or didn't notice, but he kept speaking. "When we were spit out, we were just in the middle of a field. The first thing we noticed were the stars, and at first, I could have sworn we were on New Vestroia."

"Same here," Lync chimed in.

"Yeah," Volt agreed.

"Exactly," Hydron nodded. Mylene closed her eyes and grinned smugly, and then she began to continue the tale.

"We looked around for a while and saw lights about a mile away, so we walked to the city. There we found what looked like Vestal Technology." Dan perked up, noticing the similarity between his experience and hers.

"Was there a river near your field?" he asked, but she shook her head.

"There was no river. We weren't thrown in the water like you," she told him. He shrugged. "And there, a few people recognized us. They were Vestals, and seemed very surprised that we had been sent to this planet. They asked if King Zenoheld had found out about their colony, and since we had no idea what they were talking about, they didn't know what to think. Eventually they just avoided us. And then we found Lync and Volt." Dan turned his gaze to them. Lync was looking at the table while Volt seemed to be studying the far wall. Dan glanced between them, then decided to try talking to Lync.

"So... how did you get there?" he asked tentatively. Lync looked at him, tilting his head but not lifting it. Dan wasn't sure if he was imagining it or not, but Lync's cheeks looked a little pink. A muffled snicker reached Dan's ears and he glanced toward it, catching sight of Hydron with his hand pressed over his lips. Dan raised an eyebrow at him, throwing him a "you're weird" look before returning his gaze to Lync. Lync had grown an embarrassed smile since Dan looked away, but he had returned his gaze to the table. His fingers played with each other as he nervously searched for the right word to begin his explanation. He took too long, though, and Hydron clearly wanted to explain himself.

"He stole a copy of the Alternative's blueprints and ran away to Earth," he began. Dan grinned at Lync, who looked more than a little flustered.

"I- I knew that the Alternative would be wiping out entire worlds, and Zenoheld talked about destroying Earth first," Lync was on the defensive now. "But, I couldn't shake the feeling of regret at that. I mean, I remembered your kindness, Dan, and especially..." He trailed off, his cheeks red.

"Alice's?" Dan asked. Lync's cheeks grew redder, but he nodded.

"Yeah... I mean, she put up with me being so nasty toward herself and her grandfather. She didn't throw me out in the cold every night. She gave me food, and not just food, it was delicious. She's such a good cook..." He smiled goofily, and Sid looked really annoyed. Lync didn't speak for a moment, and Sid took the opportunity to clear his throat. Lync jumped, and started speaking again, his face red. "A-anyway, I couldn't bear the thought of her being killed with the rest of them. I knew that you guys could stop the Alternative Weapon System if you got its data, so I made an unauthorized copy of it. I transported myself to Moscow-"

"Where?" Sid asked rudely.

"Russia," Dan told him. He still looked clueless.

"It's a country on Earth," Volt said.

"Hmph." Sid grunted.

"I transported myself to Russia, but Mylene caught me. She told Zenoheld, and he sent Hydron after me before I could give Alice the data."

"Well it's not my fault you were staring at her through the window," Hydron muttered, crossing his arms and resting his feet on the table. Mylene shot him a look and he made a "What?" face. She shot a pointed look at his feet, then glanced back at his face. He rolled his eyes, but put his feet back under the table.

Lync's face was as red as a tomato at Hydron's last comment, and he stuttered as he tried to find a comeback. "Yeah, w-well, you were always waiting for your father to give you some pat on the head for everything you did! You only did what he asked because you were desperate for his approval!" Hydron shot to his feet, bracing his hands against the table.

"Shut up! Don't you see where I am now? I turned my back on him!"

Lync snickered. "Hey, calm down, dude," he baited. "I was just joking with ya!" Dan chuckled while Shadow started cackling like the insane hyena Mylene always accused him of being. Mylene rolled her eyes, but smiled anyway. Volt raised an eyebrow and smirked, and Sid sneered. When Hydron sat back down, pink-cheeked and irritated, Lync continued.

"Anyway, Hydron ambushed me, and we battled. I won the first match, but he beat me in the next two. He destroyed Aluze, and then he ordered me to give back the Alternative Data. He threw down a Death Bomb, and I got stuck. He figured it would be the best and easiest way to get rid of the traitor and the data. But I hid the chip with the data on it in my glove before going to Earth, and I threw the glove over Hydron's shoulder." Hydron looked at him as if now a puzzle had been solved. "After that, I guess Alice found it, because Hydron told me you guys attacked the Alternative, and won."

"So you ended up here, too, huh?" Dan summed up. Lync nodded.

"I found Volt in this city."

"Huh? Volt was already here?" Dan asked, turning to Volt. Volt shrugged.

"Volt left one day," Mylene explained. "And Zenoheld and Hydron weren't very happy about it."

"My father sent me after Volt almost immediately," Hydron picked up. "And since Volt had headed to Vestal, we assumed the block Spectra placed between our ship and Vestal had lifted."

"What block?" Dan was confused.

"Spectra used the Vestal Destroyer to transmit a signal that blocked our transport paths to Vestal when he sent out that message about how he was no longer the leader of the Vexos," Volt finally spoke. "So when Shadow tried to head to Vestal to challenge you guys for the Attribute Energies, he couldn't make it. Which was when he-"

"-transported to Earth and attacked Alice," Dan finished. He shot the Darkus brawler a look. "Was that really necessary?"

"It was to keep fighting you," Shadow smirked. "If we didn't go after someone to lure you back to Earth, we wouldn't have been able to get anything done."

"Excuse me, but that was the battle where your Bakugan, Hades, was destroyed, correct?" A Darkus Bakugan popped out on Shadow's shoulder, on a black leather pad. Dan's eyes widened, and he searched for Drago again, expecting to find him on his own shoulder. But, once again, he was disappointed to recall that Drago was not with him.

"Yeah, Myriad Hades," Shadow muttered as the Darkus Bakugan hopped down onto the table. Dan's eyebrows creased in puzzlement.

"Greetings Human," the Bakugan bowed. "I am Darkus Myriad Hades, a Bakugan native to Displatis. I am pleased to make your acquaintance."

"Nice to meet you, too," Dan muttered, realizing that this Bakugan must act a little bit like Tigrerra. He sweat dropped at the thought, and then found himself wondering something.

"Hey," he said, directing his question toward Mylene. "I thought Hades was a mechanical bakugan. Did you all find live Bakugan here?"

"The Hades Professor Clay built was a copy of Hydranoid, but with major improvements," Hydron explained. "But, it was based off of an evolved form of Hydranoid, which happens to be Hades. Myriad Hades is the evolved form of Hades, and has a power level of one thousand two hundred." Dan nodded, impressed.

"Yeah, we all found living Bakugan here on Displatis," Volt told Dan. He grinned, the first warm smile Dan had seen from him in ages, and he opened his hand. "I requested that we go to New Vestroia to find some after Mylene and Shadow found their Bakugan. I was curious to see if there were any Bakugan I was used to using there." The purple, gray and white Bakugan in his hand popped out, revealing four spokes that must be arms, two bat-like wings branching out from behind it's head, and a small, clown-like face. Dan grinned when he saw him, and looked at Volt. "I thought I'd never see him again after Gus won our brawl," he said. "And it was so lucky when I found him again. He had evolved since I had last seen him, and now he also has a power level of one thousand two hundred."

"How did Gus even get him anyway?" Dan asked. Volt shot a look at Mylene, who avoided his gaze. Dan glanced between the two of them, knowing he was missing something.

"Mylene threw out Elico and I just after she convinced Hydron to-"

"Shut it!" Hydron said sharply. Everyone turned toward him. He was tense, avoiding Dan's gaze. Dan sighed.

"Was this when Ves Palace blew up?"

"Exactly!" Brontes replied in a sing-songy voice.

"How did you know that?" Volt asked. Dan shrugged.

"You guys all got the Mechanical Bakugan after that."

"It was just after she convinced Hydron to blow it up!" Brontes cried. Dan rested his elbow on the table and pressed his head against his open palm, hiding his face. His shoulders shook, and everyone stared at him. After a moment, though, they could head small sounds from the teen, and their heads cocked to the side in curiosity. And then, he was laughing. He was laughing hard, and before long, he was gasping for breath in between laughing fits. Hydron stared at him with wide, confused eyes, and when Dan finally calmed down enough to speak, he took one look at Hydron's face and burst out laughing again.

"What's so funny?" Lync whispered to Mylene. She shrugged. After a few moments, Dan finally calmed down, wiping tears from his eyes.

"What was that about?" Shadow asked, blinking at his former enemy. Dan grinned at Hydron, still wiping the amused tears away.

"Seriously? Did you actually think you'd have a shot at killing me with a play like that?" he asked. Hydron stared at him while Dan chuckled. "Spectra had a bigger chance when he nearly cut my head off with his Guantlet sword!"

"It wasn't you we were going after. It would have been fortunate collateral damage on our part if we did manage to snare you in that net, though," Mylene told Dan. He fell silent when he glanced at her, puzzlement evident in his eyes.

"Then who-"

"Spectra." The eyes darted to Hydron now. His gaze was locked on his hands, clasped in front of him on the table. "We were going to finish Spectra off. He was a traitor, and we wanted to eradicate him." Dan was silent, but he spoke after a minute.

"Yeah... Well I guess that's all water under the bridge now, huh?" he said, hoping to avoid hostilities with the only allies he had in this situation. Hydron seemed surprised at Dan's somewhat pleasant reaction to his bloodlust and his eyebrows creased in confusion. Dan sighed. "Listen. We're all stuck here together, right? If we're at the mercy of the Gundalians-no offense Sid-"

"None taken," Sid grumbled.

"-then we need to be united. We can't be bothered by the past. We've just gotta let it go." Dan's gaze swept the room, pausing on each person's face. Most of the former Vexos were impressed at this suggestion, but Sid just smirked.

"You're smart, Kuso," Barodius growled inaudibly as he stared at the screen on the other side of the room. It took up the whole wall, and the image was zoomed in on Dan's grinning, hopeful face. The glow from it was the only light in the room, and thanks to it, eerie shadows were cast. It impressed the former Gundalian emperor that Dan was this strong; to smile in his current situation. In a way, though, it irritated him at the same time, and his eyes were narrowed in annoyance as he watched his adversary laugh in the face of danger.

Kazarina and Gill glared at the image of the young, powerful Pyrus brawler, while Stoica sported an insane grin. Airzel watched the boy seriously, his arms crossed as he stood by Gill's side.

"Shall we teach him the severity of his predicament, Master?" a young woman nearby asked. Barodius glanced at her, and at the Gundalian male to her left, taking in her sadistic smirk. The Gundalian had been staring at the screen, sizing up the famous Dan Kuso, but he turned to face the emperor on the throne when his comrade spoke. Barodius shook his head, then rested it on his bent wrist, which was supported by the elbow braced against the arm of his chair.

"No, let him build up hope and courage," he instructed absentmindedly. The Nethian blinked, but she wasn't discouraged. "Kuso isn't one to be easily thrown off. He'll smile in situations like this because of childish illusions like love and kindness. He thinks his friends will come and rescue him." Barodius smirked. "Those weaknesses are what will bring about his downfall."

"What an ignorant child," Kazarina agreed, flashing an evil grin at the screen. Gill glanced at her out of the corner of his eyes, an action that was imperceptible in the nocturnal atmosphere of the room. Hatred welled up inside him for the attention-seeking, conniving scientist. She had gained the benevolence of the emperor, more so than himself, and caused the emperor to turn on him. Gill still craved the favor of the emperor, but as usual, it seemed that his affections laid with the blue-skinned Gundalian scientist. And that stirred up a hatred like none other in the Pyrus brawler, and he once again wished that her existence had been terminated.

"Will he never learn?" Gill found himself saying. Now it was Kazarina's turn to flash him a suspicious glare. Gill pretended not to notice. Her eyes flashed, and she turned back to the screen without another sign of her anger.

"Looks like the little brat has recovered from yesterday, wouldn't you say Sire?" Stoica quipped. Barodius's smirk transformed into a frown now, and his lip curled when Dan leaned back in his chair and glanced toward the camera hidden in the room. Dan's eyes narrowed at the small black device, and it was obvious that he suspected that his captors were spying on him. Barodius glared at the ignorant boy on the screen, then turned to the young Gundalian with spiky white hair.

"Anubias, you and Sellon have your orders," he said, ignoring Stoica's remark. "You might as well get a move on, otherwise that know-it-all Aquos brawler of the Battle Brawlers might notice something strange."

"Yes." Anubias turned away from the screen, facing the Gundalian emperor. He sank to one knee, as did Sellon beside him.

"We won't fail you, Master," she promised dramatically. Anubias's jaw clenched, but the shadows masked his vexation. Barodius nodded, and the two stood, turning to face the screen again. Their bodies glowed, and when the darkness took hold again, a human boy and girl stood in their places. Clasped in their hands were several Bakugan, and Sellon flipped her hair experimentally. They then turned toward each other, reaching out their hands. They grasped each others forearms firmly, and then, their forms vanished. The only trace of their previous existence was the trail of sparkles that soon died in the air.

Once they had departed, Kazarina turned toward the emperor.

"Sire, are you sure it is wise to send two of your servants straight into enemy territory?" she questioned, bowing her head respectfully. The emperor jumped on her instantly.

"Don't lower your eyes!" She started, but lifted her gaze. He was staring at her intensely, and she resisted the urge to stare at the Gundalian's feet. "I have no tolerance for weakness in my inner circle. I granted you all a second chance with her powers for a reason. Don't disappoint me."

"Forgive me, Sire," Kazarina genuflected before him. Barodius sighed, and Gill found it difficult to suppress his vile satisfaction at the emperor's outburst.

"I am sure of my actions, Kazarina. It was none of your concern to begin with, so don't bother with it. Now, I wish to speak to your about that matter..."

...

Dan glared at the black circle in the wall as the others got up to leave around him. He stood once the others had filed out of the room, and he then ducked around the chairs. He was sure to move carefully, trying to be cautious with his actions. The last thing he wanted was for one of the Vexos or Sid to walk in on him while he spoke to the camera. It wouldn't produce the effect he desired.

He stood straight in front of the camera, glaring at it seriously. His eyes glinted in the bright light of the room, but most of his face was shadowed. The lights were behind him.

"I know you're watching," he said quietly. He received no response, and he didn't expect to. After all, it was just a camera. "I don't care that you've taken me as leverage against Drago and my friends. He won't do as you ask, not even if you put my life on the line." Dan crossed his arms. "But I know that's not the real reason why you took me. If it was leverage you wanted from the beginning, you would have held a blade to my throat and gone to Drago right then."

Dan adjusted his position and lowered his arms again, feeling slightly restless. "Listen to me. If you think that you can get me to break and beg Drago to give you the powers he had, think again. It's not going to work, if that's your plan." Dan took a step back then, and started to turn, but stopped in mid step. "I know you won't tell me what you're planning, and I won't pretend to know what you are up to, but I can tell you this. If you think for even one second that I'm going to just sit back and take what you throw at me, you're wrong. I'm going to fight you. There's no way in heaven or hell that I'll let you just kick me around." Dan smirked, turned and walked toward the door.

"Just a thought."

Thanks to those of you that have reviewed, I really appreciate it. I hope that cleared a few things up... and left a few questions.

Review!