Episode 9:
Once more, morning had come to the small town of Beigoma, Japan. The small beams of sunlight poked through the blinds of Batal Hiro's bedroom. It was meant to be one of the greatest days of his life; getting to battle the legendary Free de La Hoya in an official WBBA match. His A-Ranking he achieved from beating Lukas really helped his case for battling Free. Unfortunately, Batal pulled a Batal that day, and set in motion a drastic chain of events that his friends would recount for years. Batal's snoring was interrupted by a sudden shout. Rin stood in his doorway, an extremely ticked off expression on his face. The Bellerophon blader yelled in surprise, leaping up from his bed to his left. With nothing to stop his descent, he landed on his backside with a loud grunt, groaning in pain as Rin berated him, though due to not being fully awake, his words reached deaf ears. When Batal's senses fully returned, he could see Gigi and Iki in the doorway as well, both of them having unamused expressions on their faces.
"W-wha...?" Stifling a yawn, the Bellerophon blader looked up at Rin, his face changing into a look of confusion as Rin continued his yelling.
"YOU IDIOT! WHAT DID I TELL YOU?! WAKE UP ON TIME! YOUR MATCH IS IN THIRTY MINUTES! WHY AREN'T YOU ALREADY OVER-"
"My...match...?" Immediately after the question, Rin facepalmed, Iki groaning and Gigi entering the yell-off with Rin at Batal.
"DON'T TELL ME YOU FORGOT?! YOUR MATCH WITH FREE IS ABOUT TO TAKE PLACE, YOU NUMBSKULL!" Batal recoiled slightly, suddenly remembering the battle that was supposed to take place today.
"OH NO! I COMPLETELY BLANKED ON IT! AHHHHH!!!!!!" With a loud yell of frustration, Batal ran down the stairs, straight past his father sitting down at the dinner table with a newspaper in his hand. Giving a confused look, the older man shrugged before going back to reading his paper, taking a sip of coffee from his coffee mug to his left. Not far behind, Rin and the other two members of the group ran after Batal, groaning in annoyance. When that kid started running, he didn't stop. At all. Giving a large grunt of frustration, the Roc blader broke into a sprint, attempting to catch up to Batal. Thank goodness the Bellerophon blader had fallen asleep in his standard clothing. Sure, his hair was incredibly messy and he hadn't had breakfast, but in Rin's eyes it was much less embarrassing than running around Beigoma in your pajamas. He heard Gigi and Iki begin to pant with exhaustion, their runs becoming sluggish jogs. Iki's inhaler could be heard puffing once as he stopped to catch his breath. Unfortunately for them all, things weren't going in their favor at all. Close by were several members of the Grant Gang in a nearby alleyway, including the head honcho himself, Lukas Grant. His defeat at the hands of Batal Hiro was the ultimate humiliation. He stared down at his hand, where Jinx Ladon lay clutched in his tight grip. A frustrated growl escaped Lukas's lips, a sea of nervous whimpers escaping his gang members. They had seen Lukas angry before, and it took A DAY for the WBBA staff to fix up everything Lukas had destroyed during his tantrum. The last thing they wanted to to was irk him. That's when Batal came running past, yelling at the top of his lungs. His yelling reached the ears of Lukas, causing him to turn with a surprised expression on his face, his gang members mimicking his expression. Surprise contorted into pure anger, the Ladon blader slamming his fist into the wall, leaving a large crack in the building, further startling the other members of the gang. Soon after, more yelling was heard as Rin ran past them, narrowly missing Lukas by not looking to his right. Iki and Gigi, however, were not as fortunate, having stopped, panting loudly, Iki much more so than his sister. Gigi had recently been growing more accustomed to the running, unlike her brother, who's asthma held him back. It still didn't save them from their unfortunate "pit stop" in front of the alleyway. The sound of knuckles cracking rang out as the members of the Gang glared at them, Lukas's eye twitching from seeing the friends of the one he hated most. Iki chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his sweaty head sheepishly.
"H-hey everyone... h-h-how is everything?..." According to the gang's responses, not very well from what Iki could infer. Gigi knew trouble was afoot, instantly grabbing Iki by the hand with surprising force and energy, yelling out to her brother as she dragged him along.
"RUN YOU NUMBSKULL!" This command to Iki was a mistake, as it prompted Lukas and the others to give chase. Letting out a war cry, Lukas called out to the gang members in his enraged state, clenching his fists as he charged after the siblings.
"GET THEM!" The Grant Gang let out their own shouts, charging after the group, several of them carrying common household objects in a flawed intimidation technique. A broom could be seen among the stampeding Grant Gang members, raised high above the rest as clouds of dust formed behind Gigi and her brother, as well as the murderous horde the Ladon blader commanded. Gigi and Iki let out terrified yells, somehow managing to pass up Rin. Rin gave a confused look before turning back, gasping in fear as the stampede drew closer. He let out a horrified shriek as his run turned into an all out sprint, joining Gigi and Iki's cloud of dust in a frantic attempt to outrun the raging bladers. Batal soon came back into view, his yelling growing louder and louder as the group drew closer. Lukas's eye caught a glimpse of his hated rival, and with a roar of rage charged with even greater speeds towards the group. The civilians of Beigoma all looked at the ensuing chaos with confusion, fear, and even some anger at the disruption that was ensuing, constantly having to move out of the way to allow for the groups to pass by. The Neo Bey arena's plaza came into view, the Grant Gang stampede coming to a halt at the same time as the other group members. Lukas sneered, cracking his knuckles with anger. The group turned, save for Batal, who everyone noticed kept running until he entered the building, his bright green eyes shining with excitement while his mouth was left agape in its yelling state. Rin, panting tiredly, stepped in front of Gigi and Iki in a protective manner, growling as Lukas prepared for his goons to take their beys and smash them. They were lucky a certain master of storms was nearby.
"Hey! What's going on here?!" The voice of Rantaro Kiyama rang out from behind the Grant Gang. They all turned, gasping in fear, save for Lukas, as they looked up at the legendary blader. It was almost as if Rantaro was some kind of monster to the grant gang, a vision making his eyes glow a bright orange as devilish horns shone brightly, jutting out from his forehead as if he was taking the form of an oni. One of the Grant Gang members shrieked in terror. The previous incident in the arena brought back some bad memories for the Gang Members...
"HONCHO!" Exclaimed the three with relief, Rin's defensive stance lowering as Gigi and Iki grinned.
"ITS KIYAMA! SCRAM!" The figure, a tall boy with heavy punk makeup exclaimed, bolting off much to the ire of Lukas. The rest of the gang ran after the deserter, running away from Rantaro, leaving only Lukas there. Rantaro crossed his arms, scowling frustratedly.
"You're not causing any trouble, are ya, Grant? Would be a shame if I had to drag you out of here!" Rantaro said, pointing his closed fan towards Lukas, who growled in frustration. Turning to Rin and the other two, he gave one last menacing glare, turning back to Rantaro soon after. He knew that he was in over his head. When he had his gang with him, Lukas was incredibly confident. If he wasn't backed up, however, he was a huge coward, and was known to some to run off like a dog with its tail between its legs.
"No, Kiyama. I was just leaving..." The growl in Lukas's voice was heard by Rantaro, who watched the Ladon blader warily as he walked off. When Lukas rounded the corner of the building, a frustrated yell was heard, followed by the sound of concrete cracking, along with worried shouts and attempts to ease the Gang Leader's anger. From behind Rantaro, Albert walked behind him, a small frown on his face as he watched Lukas walk off.
"Hm. Seems that Lukas is still causing some trouble," Albert said, stroking his beard gently. Buck was nowhere to be seen, as the Hiro family had been asked to take care of the small terrier while Albert was away at the title match. "Any-who, I believe the battle is about to start. Is Batal all ready?"
"Well... how would you define ready?" Iki sheepishly asked, Rin giving a scoff of annoyance and Gigi rolling her eyes.
(Halls of the Neo Bey Arena)
"RAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!" Batal's yelling echoed throughout the halls of the building, multiple future spectators and WBBA workers having to step out of the way as Batal continued to run, only to find that he had hit a dead end. "OH NO! THE PATH TO THE ARENA MUST BE THE OTHER WAY!" With his face becoming increasingly frantic, the time for the battle's initiation drew closer and closer. It started off at ten minutes, then seven, then four, and then two. Yelling all the way, every attempt Batal made to try to find the entrance to the arena ended in failure. He constantly ran into the wrong rooms or dead ends. His frustration only grew as he groaned in pure anger and frustration. "AGH! WHERE IS IT?!!!!" Out of the corner of his bright green eye, a dumbfounded look came across his face. A map of the building, strewn out across the wall of the lobby, lay on the pristine white walls. A sweat drop appeared over head as Batal chuckled sheepishly in embarrassment before breaking off into another run. Multiple bystanders made note of the surprisingly unkempt look of Batal, his hair a wild mess from not being combed into his signature hairstyle. As he ran, he noticed a ramen stand, the noodle cups practically glowing golden in his eyes as his mouth dropped. He skidded to a halt, grinning widely. Like a robot, Batal twisted his entire body ninety degrees to face the ramen cart, sprinting at full speeds with a yell. Sparkles lit up in his eyes as he leaned over the cart's edge. "RAMEN!!!!!!!!!"
(Meanwhile, Waiting Room One)
"Ragh!" The sound of a bey being launched filled the room as the amber colored apparition of the Fafnir avatar erupted from Free's launcher. With two bounces, blue rings of light spreading across the arena like shockwaves, Fafnir began to quickly encircle the stadium's central point, gravity propelling it closer and closer to the low sitting point of the metallic bowl-like structure. Free stared down at Fafnir, narrowing his eyes with determination. Flashes of his previous battle with Batal rang through his head, memories of Batal's blaze igniting only drove Free's concerned mentality even further. The words "BURST THEM INTO OVERDRIVE!" Were practically burned into his head. Golden rings of light overtook the inky dark grey of his irises as he reached down to pick up Fafnir. Only a few more minutes remained until the title match... His eyes perked up as the doors to the waiting room swung open with a loud swish, Valt being unveiled from behind Free with a wide smile on his face.
"Free!" Valt said with his signature cheerful tone, jogging over to his friend. "The title match is just about to start, so give it your all out there!" Free looked down at Fafnir, his concerned expression only growing even further, prompting the Fafnir blader to question the Legend of Legends.
"Valt... what if Batal ends up going all out as well?" A confused expression came across Valt's face as Free continued his statement
"Beyblade is meant to be where both bladers give it their all-"
"No Valt... that's not what I meant..." Free said, still looking down at Soul Fafnir. "You saw what happened last time... it was just like with Chen." Valt's eyes shot open before narrowing, a tinge of regret coming across the Valkyrie blader's face. "Batal's resonance runs rampant... if it isn't tempered, he'll burn himself out completely." Despite his determined expression, Free's voice still remained monotonous, though Valt could tell Free's worry was still imbued in the back of his head. Valt nodded before grinning once again, encouraging his friend. Free knew Valt like the back of his hand, though, and knew that the Valkyrie blader's own regrets and fears still remained despite his jubilant tone.
"Don't worry! We'll make sure Batal is gonna end up ok!" From the hallway, one of the WBBA officials peeked around the corner, telling the Fafnir blader that it was time for the battle to begin. Free and Valt nodded to each other, Valt attempting to give his friend a reassuring grin before leaving. As Valt walked out in the back door, Free made his way to the front to head to the arena. Valt walked down the hallway towards the elevator in the central part of the lobby, suddenly noticing Batal munching on a ramen bowl, a large pile of eaten servings next to him. Valt gasped in alarm, attempting to call out to Batal. "BAT-" THWOOMPH! The elevator doors slammed shut in front of him, Valt standing there with his pointer finger up, a blank expression on his face.
(In the stands)
"OKAY BOYS AND GIRLS! WHO'S READY FOR A SUPER EPIC MATCH HERE IN THE NEO BEY ARENA?!" The announcer yelled. Hanami himself was beaming with excitement, his feelings being reflected by the tone in his voice. "WELL OH BOY DO WE HAVE A TREAT FOR YOU!" As Hanami droned on about the upcoming battle, Valt made his way over to the group, who were sitting in a lower seating area. Rantaro turned to Valt, flashing a friendly grin before noticing Valt's distressed expression.
"Yo, Valt! You ok? You look like something happened to you?" The Ragnaruk blader asked him, confused as to why Valt appeared so distressed. If it was about the Blaze thing he and Free were going on about, he'd have to tell them again that there's probably nothing to worry about. Little did he know, that was far from the case.
"Batal is-"
"IN THE BLUE CORNER! ITS THE HIGH SCHOOL PRODIGY, THE LONE WOLF BLADER, AND AS YOU ALL LOVE TO CALL HIM: BC SOL'S GOLDEN BOY! INTRODUCING THE LEGENDARY BLADER, AND WIELDER OF SOUL FAFNIR: FREE DE LA HOYA!!!!!!" The crowd went wild at the mention of Free's name, drowning out Valt's voice as the Fafnir blader stepped out of the shadows of the hall to the waiting room. As the spotlight shone where he stood, a small playful smirk was etched onto his face, yet in his eyes every spectator could sense determination. The fans screamed and cheered, a fan girl yelling "MARRY ME, FREE!" as he walked towards the stadium in the center of the arena. Once Free reached his spot, Hanami began to introduce Batal. "AND IN THE RED CORNER! A BLADER WHO'S RISE THROUGH THE RANKS WAS AS SUDDEN AS A CHANGE IN WEATHER, THE NEW HERO AND WIELDER OF HEROIC BELLEROPHON, BATAL HIRO!!!!" The crowd let out another cheer, though this time it was much less vibrant than the one given to Free. The spotlight shone where Batal was intended to enter, the fans waiting in anticipation... "HUH?! WHERE IS HE?!" Hanami yelled, Free giving a surprised gasp as everyone stared blankly at the empty hallway. Valt sighed as the others, save for Albert, groaned in embarrassment. Of course Batal had found another way to embarrass the rest of the group-
"I'M HEREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!" A sudden voice rang out from the darkness of the hallway as an extremely frantic and untidy Batal Hiro made his way into view. He was lucky he had managed to catch Free's introduction on one of the lobby's tv screens, or else he probably would have missed the match. Everyone in the stands laughed as Free's left eye raised slightly. Batal's face was bright red, sweat dripping down his forehead as he panted, hunching over to catch his breath. From his upper lip, a ramen noodle dangled like a long mustache, causing the laughter to escalate. Gigi and Iki practically threw themselves back, groaning in greater embarrassment as Rin clenched his fists in anger.
"YO NOODLE-STACHE! STOP EMBARRASSING YOURSELF AND GET YOUR HEAD IN THE GAME!" Rin yelled, multiple people looking towards him, some giggling from the name Rin just gave the Bellerophon blader. Batal's eyes slowly panned down, showing that he had found the noodle. With an embarrassed chuckle, he took the noodle off of his upper lip and slurped it down, rubbing the back of his head and looking to Free, his determined grin he wore when focused now etched onto his face, and was there to stay. The referee looked at Batal with a confused expression before shrugging and turning to face the stadium. The battle was almost upon them.
"AND AFTER A SUDDEN ENTRANCE, BATAL HIRO IS RARING TO GO! HIS OPPONENT, THE LEGENDARY FREE DE LA HOYA, IS LOCKED AND LOADED AND READY TO TAKE HIM DOWN! WE'RE IN FOR AN EXCITING MATCH, FOLKS!" Hanami exclaimed with an excited grin. The fans, having recovered from their fits of laughter, let out a triumphant cheer, chants of "GO FREE GO" and "LETS GO BATAL!" Ringing out. Free gave a small smirk at the Bellerophon blader, giving a small bit of encouragement to him.
"So you did decide to show up... I'll give you some props, takes willpower to be able to enter the grand stage," Free said, his tone still monotonous yet remaining friendly.
"Heh! World stage or not, Bellerophon and I are going to Burst you and Fafnir into Overdrive! I know we're going to win this!" He exclaimed, his excited grin still on his face. Free's eyes narrowed slightly as Batal's resonance began to rise. He needed to watch closely. He turned to Valt, nodding to the Legendary Blader, who gave a quick grin in response. Free's eyes returned to the stadium and referee, with the latter announcing the rules of the battle.
"This battle will be held to two points! Bladers, inspect each other's beys!" The Referee exclaimed. Batal hopped over, placing Bellerophon in Free's hand as well as snatching up Soul Fafnir. His green eyes sparkled in amazement as he got an even better up close look of the counter clockwise stamina type. Despite his amazement, his thoughts were still racing.
'Soul Fafnir... counter clockwise stamina type. I thought the rubber would be its greatest weakness, but its casing almost completely negates that...' Batal thought, narrowing his eyes slightly. Memories of his previous battle with Free ran through his head, remembering how Fafnir used the freespinning function to simply brush off the strike. Batal's lips turned upwards in a grin soon after. His eyes sparked as Free looked on, puzzled as to what Batal had planned, but returned Bellerophon regardless. Both bladers shifted into their launching stances at the referee's call. In the stands, the group watched eagerly, Rin clenching his fists out of anticipation and jealousy. He looked down to Roc, a small growl escaping his lips that Rantaro immediately noticed. Something was off with Rin. As Rin's frustration with himself grew, Valt's facade was beginning to crack. His worry was overtaking him. He had seen Batal's blaze grow rapidly, and was still worried something bad could happen. As the referee began the countdown, Albert noticed Valt's worried demeanor, a concerned expression coming across his face.
'What seems to be troubling him?' Albert thought to himself as the referee initiate the countdown. Both Batal and Free shifted into their launch stances as Hanami roared into the microphone.
"HERE WE GO!" Cried the announcer. The fans joined in the countdown as Batal and Free glared at each other with determination. Both wanted to win this battle pretty badly.
"THREE! TWO! ONE! GOOOO SHOOT!" The Yellow and Amber avatar depictions shot up from their launchers. Fafnir landed closer to the center of the stadium, with Bellerophon taking to the outer edge. After two quick bounces, blue rings of light slowly moving away from the central point, Fafnir took the center after one quick loop around. Free's stormy grey-black eyes narrowed as a small smirk came across his face. Everything was going according to plan. Bellerophon instantly took towards the center as well, its surge driver having been locked into its lowest height.
"Attack! Heroic Shoot!" Cried Batal, swinging his right arm forwards in a punching motion, a golden streak of light following. Bellerophon crashed into Fafnir, Hanami yelling as the barrage began.
"AND WE HAVE CONTACT! WITH STUNNING PRECISION AND SPEED, HEROIC BELLEROPHON IS PUMMELING SOUL FAFNIR WITH EVERYTHING IT HAS!" As Hanami yelled, Bellerophon continued its relentless assault, smacking into Fafnir's underside multiple times. Free's smirk remained on his face as Batal called out once more.
"YEAH! THAT'S IT! GO BELLEROPHON!" Each strike from the yellow attack type. Fafnir appeared to be a sitting duck. Free's eyebrow suddenly raised as Fafnir began to wobble slightly, though this wasn't from stamina loss.
"Huh?! What's this?! Fafnir has suddenly spiraled out of control!" Hanami exclaimed, the spectators in the stands gasped in alarm, some cheering for Batal. Rantaro chuckled slightly, stroking his chin.
"So he's going for destabilization? This'll be good!" Rantaro said, catching the others' attentions. Valt grinned the moment Iki went into depth about Batal's plan.
"He's right. With Fafnir being destabilized by these constant sloped attacks, its off balanced nature will mean Bellerophon will be able to cut under it easily for an uppercut attack!" Gigi and Rin both gasped in alarm, soon grinning after. Albert, on the other hand, simply stroking his beard in thought.
"Not a bad strategy, Batal. Lets see how it pays off." While Albert's eyes remained fixed on the battle, his thoughts came back to Valt. The Valkyrie blader seemed a bit off, and he wanted to make sure he was all right after the match. Was something going on?
"BELLEROPHON IS RELENTLESS! BLOW AFTER BLOW, IT PUMMELS FAFNIR WITH LIGHTNING FAST STRIKES! FAFNIR SEEMS HELPLESS AGAINST THIS BARRAGE!" Hanami exclaimed with both awe and excitement. Batal's grin grew wider and wider, his bright green eyes sparking with golden light as his aura grew around him. Bringing his right fist down to his knee, bending slightly, he called out to his bey for a special move.
"Send them flying, Bellerophon! Heroic Upper!" He yelled, bringing his fist upwards towards the sky, a golden streak following it. Bellerophon landed one more glancing blow, sending the already off balance Fafnir up the stadium slope before going in for the final strike, its blades glowing as it prepared to hit Fafnir into the air. Unfortunately for Batal, Free was ready for him. Just before Bellerophon hit, the ring around the Spring driver hit the stadium slope, generating enough friction to send Fafnir coasting along the slope, completely evading the strike. Batal gasped in alarm as the attack type Bellerophon smacked into the wall, popping up slightly before wobbling as it landed on the upper slope, wobbling as it made its way towards the center slope. Free looked up at Batal, a bored expression on his face.
"Well, this is over." He said, extending his arm out slightly, a golden light filling his hand as he called out to Fafnir. "Springer Counter!" And just like that, Batal's plan was foiled, the stamina type Fafnir charging from behind and crashing into it head on. Bellerophon took two clicks of burst damage as it was sent into the air, its blader gasping in alarm as it clattered to the floor behind him. Fafnir returned to its original spot in the center as Free smirked, the referee making the call.
"Soul Fafnir, with an over finish! Point standing: One to Nothing!"
"UN-BEL-EIV-ABLE! With an incredible counterattack, Soul Fafnir has completely thwarted Bellerophon! Batal is now backed into a corner! What will he do now?!"
"Your strategy wasn't half bad..." Free said, picking up Fafnir as it came to a halt in the stadium center. His fingertips clenched around it like a crane, raising it before dropping the bey into his palm. "Too bad mine worked perfectly."
"Grrr... Batal fell right into his hands..." Muttered Rin, crossing his arms in frustration. Valt smiled slightly from hearing this.
"That's Free for you! Always thinking one step ahead!" Valt's focus returned to the battle soon after, cautiously watching Batal for any signs of his Blaze. A bead of sweat ran down the side of his face, his hands clenched into fists. Albert's hunch was indeed proven correct, something was bothering Valt. From below, Batal was growing more frustrated, clenching down hard on the recently picked up Bellerophon out of irritation. He wanted to win this battle, but he knew that he was backed into a corner... what could he do... A bright light soon overwhelmed his vision, forcing him to close his eyes. He was back in the dreamscape. Looking up, he saw both Bellerophon and Pegasus looming above him, calling out to them in a distressed voice.
"I don't know what to do! Free knows how to counter every one of my attacks! I tried smashing Fafnir to the ground, I tried uppering it, and I tried to destabilize it-"
"Batal..." The voice of Bellerophon rang out, quieting its blader. "As long as we are together, we will always be able to take on whatever challenge in our way. We can defeat Free. I know we can."
"Yeah, liven up dude!" Pegasus exclaimed after a quick neigh, "If you can't go over or under, there's only one thing you can do!" Batal's eyes sparked with golden light. He knew what he had to do if he could have a chance at winning...
"I got it! Now, lets burst them into Overdrive!" While it could not be seen due to its mask, Bellerophon smiled. Batal was growing so much. He was proud to call him his blader. The mindscape cleared, Batal's irritated expression turned calm expressionless face now shifting into a wide grin. With a hearty laugh, his right arm held out, Bellerophon at front and center, he proclaimed his challenge to Free. "Free! Bellerophon and I are gonna win this! WE'RE TAKING YOU DOWN NOW!" His aura flared upwards, causing Free's eyes to shoot open in alarm. From the stands, Valt gasped in alarm, his eyes taking on a massive sense of worry. To Valt, it wasn't Batal standing there. His vision shifted, revealing a mirage of Chen standing in Batal's face, his brown eyes blazing with orange light as his markings flared red. Chen's long orange hair was kept behind him, ready to spring forth at any moment. Valt clenched his arm rest's edges as the rest of the group, save for Albert, cheered for Batal. Chants of "Batal" and "Free" rang throughout the stadium as Free's eyes narrowed, a growl coming from his lips as his teeth were slightly bared.
"Bring it on, then." Free's eyes took on a golden hue around the iris, giving off a draconic vibe as he attached Fafnir back onto his launcher. Batal did the same to Bellerophon, but not before suddenly shifting the attack type into its standard height. The referee looked in between the two bladers before initiating the countdown. From the booth above, Hanami's voice rang out through the stadium with a loud roar of excitement.
"AND THE BATTLE IS ABOUT TO RAMP UP! WHO WILL WIN THIS EXCITING CLASH?!" He said just before the countdown began.
"Second battle! Ready...SET!" The ref exclaimed, bringing his arm up in a vertical swinging motion.
"THREE! TWO! ONE! GOOOO SHOOT!" The crowd roared, overwhelming Batal and Free's voices as the two bladers tugged on their launcher's strings. Free's launcher glowed a bright amber, the dragon of greed's avatar flashing briefly above the launcher when it was unleashed. Batal's own launcher glowed bright yellow, Bellerophon's avatar shining above as he let out a yell, launching Bellerophon with surprising force compared to what he had done before. After an initially shaky landing, Bellerophon recovered, managing to use the freespinning ring on the driver to recover before barreling down the stadium slope. Fafnir, bouncing a few times, eventually made its way closer to the center of the stadium with high speeds, getting directly into Bellerophon's trajectory.
"UAHHH?! BELLEROPHON GOES STRAIGHT FOR THE COLLISION!" Hanami exclaimed the moment contact was made. Bellerophon's strike was directly to the layer, smacking both Fafnir and itself back with immense strength. Both beys bounced as the recoil was dispersed, recovering before going back to the center for another collision. It was almost as if the two beys were matching each other step by step. "CONTACT ONCE MORE! BELLEROPHON AND FAFNIR SMASH INTO EACH OTHER ONCE MORE WITH AWESOME POWER! FASTEN YOUR SEATBELTS, FOLKS! WE'RE IN FOR A WILD RIDE!" The two beys almost paralleled each other. For every attack Bellerophon made, Fafnir countered with one equally as fierce. The stamina type's rubber blades tore at Bellerophon's chainsaw like plastic blades, trying to slam into one of the small ridges of the blades to end Bellerophon's assault through friction, though it was to no avail. A grinding collision close to the inner ring forced Fafnir to tilt, allowing for its driver's tip to compress slightly, bouncing it upwards to smack the underside of Bellerophon to send it into the air towards the outer ring. This set up the attack type perfectly.
"HEROIC SHOOT!" Batal exclaimed. Bellerophon's rubber flat portion of the tip kicked up friction with the stadium, sparks flying as it changed direction, unleashing a powerful strike that knocked the stamina type back. Free gritted his teeth in surprise from the sudden counterattack, Fafnir bouncing once before its driver's ring kicked off the stadium, unleashing a powerful counterattack.
"Springer Counter!" Free exclaimed, swiping his hand upwards diagonally, dark blue-black streaks following his hand. Fafnir's tilted angle let it land a friction based upper attack against Bellerophon, sending it up and to its right as it smacked into the wall, wobbling. Batal let out a yell of alarm, Free's eyes flashed. This was the opportunity to strike! "Now Fafnir!" Free yelled. The stamina type drifted once more, going in for the finishing blow. Free's eyes glowed gold as he stared at Batal, a small smirk on his face. "Game over." Fafnir drew closer and closer as time seemed to slow down for Batal. His eyes sparkled with worry. He didn't want to lose the battle, he couldn't lose the battle!
"HANG IN THERE! BELLEROPHON!!!!!" Valt's eyes widened as his mouth opened in surprise. Right before Fafnir hit the attack type, it managed to drift out of the way thanks to its off balanced nature. Orange sparks kicked up as it looped around Fafnir's strike. Bellerophon and Batal were in sync, their resonance overclocking as their blaze sprung forth.
"BURST THEM INTO OVERDRIVE!" Bellerophon and Pegasus yelled at the same time. Batal let out a yell as he punched forward, his aura bursting to life. His hair shot up even further than before, his green eyes transforming into golden orbs. He was ready to take them down!
"RAAHHHHHHH!!! BELLEROPHON!" Batal exclaimed, the avatar heeding its blader. Pegasus neighed as Bellerophon let out a war cry, brandishing its spear. Bellerophon glowed a brilliant bright yellow, its green and silver highlights glowing vibrantly, signifying their resonance. "BURST THEM INTO OVERDRIVE!!!! HEROIC SLASH!" Valt clenched his hands as another flash of Chen appeared in his line of sight. Sparks flew from Batal's aura like golden fireworks, the blades on the attack type glowing gold, completely engulfed in the light it emitted as it slammed into Fafnir, which had entered the central area. Sparks flew as the two collided, Batal punching forward as Free stared, a blank expression on his face. Bellerophon was driving Fafnir back! Could this be the end?! "GO NOW!!!!"
"FAFNIR IS BEING PUSHED BACK BY BELLEROPHON'S GRINDING STRIKE! IS THIS THE END OF THE BATTLE?!" Hanami exclaimed. Free's hands clenched as the Spring driver compressed. Free suddenly let out a battle cry of his own, his yellow and silver aura rising up as he called out to his bey.
"FAFNIR!" Free exclaimed, his teeth gritted as the avatar rose from the bey, shrieking before the spring driver almost fully compressed. Fafnir shot off, smacking Bellerophon back and off balance, much to Batal's shock as it looped around, drifting once more towards Bellerophon. "NOW! SOUL CLAW!" He yelled, a trail of yellow light following his right hand's horizontal swipe. Fafnir's rubber tore at the weakened Bellerophon, instantly bursting the attack type. Batal gasped as Free's expression returned to a blank stare, cocking his head to the left. Everyone, save for Valt and Rantaro, the former's startled expression changed to a knowing grin, gasped as well. Even Albert was surprised by the sudden counterattack by Free. Hanami immediately yelled with excitement before the referee made his call.
"AND ITS A BURST! WITH A STUNNING STRIKE, FREE DE LA HOYA COMES OUT ON TOP! WHAT AN AMAZING CONCLUSION TO AN EPIC BATTLE!" The crowd roared in approval from Hanami's announcement as Batal gave a loud "AW MAN!" Of frustration. As the final results were called, the screen above them flashed with light as Free's image spun, Batal's fading as the word, winner, flashed on the screen in bright orange letters. Rantaro let out a hearty laugh the moment after the results were called.
"That's Free for ya! Always pulling off the craziest techniques right when you think you have him figured out!" From below, Rin's eyes sparkled in awe. Free was so powerful... he wanted to battle him so badly...
'Why didn't he let me battle him...?' He thought to himself. His blue eyes stared down at Batal, who was giddy with joy for the opportunity to battle Free as he shook his hands. His focus shifted down to Roc, the defense type bey laying clenched in his palm. Self doubt began to creep into him as he remained in his hunched over position, looking down at Roc. As Rin's self reflection occurred, Albert looked at Valt with a concerned expression.
(The Park, Sunset, a Few Hours Later)
Buck's loud barking was heard as Albert dropped off his dog at the newly installed dog park. Buck needed some social interaction after being left behind so often, so he decided to bring him to the dog park. He had brought the rest of the crew along with them, a battle royale occurring between Batal, Rin, and Rantaro. Startled yells, followed by another argument, rang out as Ragnaruk sent both Bellerophon and Roc out of the stadium with a Gale Tornado. Free watched with Iki and Gigi, a small smile on his face as both issued another challenge to Rantaro. Sitting down on a bench next to Valt, Albert looked towards him.
"Its awesome how much everyone is growing as a blader. Batal, Rin, they're getting stronger every day! I can't wait to face them head on when they reach their full potential!" Valt said, not noticing Albert's concerned expression as he stared off into the sunset overlooking the park.
"Valt... you seemed as if something was off during the battle, almost as if you were worried... does it have something to do with Batal?" He asked, his voice a gentle murmur. He wanted Valt to open up about whatever was troubling him. The moment Albert said this, Valt's cheery expression fell, causing him to look down. A pang of regret and even anger at himself crossed his face. "You do not need to tell me-"
"It is about Batal... his resonance is growing every day at such a high rate... and so is his blaze. It reminds me of someone else..." He said, still looking down as he spoke, putting his hands together in a balled position. His eyes closed as he let out a sigh. "His name is Chen... he was my student back at BC Sol..." Albert's eyes shot open in shock. Chen... Chen Pyrrhus? The name rang through his head. He chose to keep silent, however, until the topic was brought up. As Albert pondered, Valt continued to explain what happened. "It was a few months ago when everything changed."
(Flashback, BC Sol Gymnasium, A Few Months ago)
"WOAH!" "SO COOL!" "THAT'S AWESOME, CHEN!" The loud voices of multiple different BC Sol members rang out with excitement. They crowded around the orange haired blader, who's brown eyes were closed with a wide friendly grin on his face. In his hand laid a counter clockwise balance type bey: Bright orange with crimson and silver accents, magenta flecks being found on top, along with dense rubber of the same shade being found in three places on the side, each one of them sandwiched in between two claws jagged claws above and below. The commotion drew the attention of some of the legendary bladers on the team, including Valt himself. As they drew closer, they saw Chen standing in the middle of the crowd. His brown eyes shimmered with pride as he ran over to Valt, holding out the bey to him.
"Valt! I want you to meet Raze Chimera!" Chen exclaimed, extremely giddy. Valt grinned widely as he took the bey in his hand. It was expertly crafted. Chen had always wanted to kickstart the next blading revolution with his own system of beys. He wanted to make Valt proud. And at this moment in time, he did.
"Chen was so excited... I was too. He was growing stronger every single day, and with his new bey... I thought I was ready to help take him to the next level... I was wrong."
The scene shifted to a month later, Chen clutching his arm in pain as he walked out of the training facility. He had over stressed himself on one of the launching machines, and had ended up hurting his arm. Valt watched in concern as Kris escorted Chen out, much to the latter's contempt.
"He started to push himself too hard..."
"No! I can still keep going!" He exclaimed in frustration. His eyes flashed orange as he tried to head back in, only to be stopped by a worried Kris, who dragged him away. Morning had come soon after, only for the rest of BC Sol to discover an exhausted Chen back in there. The pain was nothing to his absolute willpower. The scene suddenly shifted to two months forward, revealing Chen looming over one of the many stadiums, beads of sweat running down his face like there was no tomorrow. The bladers in front of him were exhausted, some kneeling or laying down on the floor, though their exhaustion was not of concern to the Chimera blader. "Is this all you lot can do?! Come on! One more battle!" He yelled, holding out Chimera.
"His battle style started to become more ruthless... its almost as if he was only blading to win."
The scene shifted suddenly to a battle between Chen and Sisco. Chimera and Satan were in a brutal clash, both beys having been knocked back prior before coming into the center for one last collision.
"UNIVERSE DRIFT!" Sisco cried out, Satan being sent down the slope, only for Chimera to dodge out of the way thanks to the usage of the Ember driver's freespinning ring. Sisco looked in shock as the counter clockwise balance type looped around from behind, slamming directly into the 1D Chassis to send Satan flying towards the wall.
"TAKE THEM DOWN!" Chen yelled. His flame like markings, along with the cross on his face, glowed a bright crimson as his eyes shone with orange light. One hit that sandwiched Satan between Chimera and the wall was all it took for it to be taken down. Sisco grunted in surprise as Satan's burst pieces clattered to the floor. Chen gave a yell of triumph, ecstatic over his victory against the legendary blader... but to Valt, who watched concerned to the side, it was a sign that Chen was losing his way. When Chen turned to Valt, his smile was almost arrogant, holding out his bey to the Valkyrie blader, narrowing his eyes in a menacing manner. "One day, I'm going to make sure I take you down, Valt! Chimera and I will make you proud!" If only those words could have remained the truth.
"I... I thought that I could bring Chen back on the right path. His resonance, which he called Blaze, was growing every day... it was changing him. I didn't want him to turn out like Arthur or Phi..."
The scene shifted once more to the fateful day... Valt had called Chen into El Astro for a "special training session" with him and Free. Little did Chen know, this would be the opportunity of a life time. The moment he entered the door, Chen's eyes widened with shock and excitement as he saw Delta Akane standing next to Valt.
"Woah! Does this mean I get to battle Delta?!" He exclaimed, Valt nodding with a grin as Delta held out his bey to Chen: Death Diabolos Generate 1S.
"Diabolos and I will take you down. Give us everything you've got!" Delta had exclaimed, trying to encourage the Chimera blader...
"I brought Delta in to try to get through to him... I believed that if I was able to help Delta, I could help Chen too... but..."
(Present Day)
Valt clenched his fists, closing his eyes as he growled in frustration with himself, Albert placing a hand on his shoulder to try to calm him. Valt looked up at the sunset once more before the flashback took over his mind again.
(Flashback, Continued)
"Death Upper!" Delta exclaimed, bringing his fist upwards as a fiery streak of light followed his fist. The jagged blades of the Death ring were sloped enough to allow for Chimera to be scooped under, sending it flying into the air. Chen gasped in alarm as his bey flew closer to the wall by every second. He had been backed into a corner... Valt watched from a close position, with some BC Sol members who had come to watch waiting in a large clump off to the side. While the counter clockwise balance type was able to rebound off the wall, it was intercepted by another strike from Diabolos. The sparking bey began to tear at Chimera, smacking it back over and over again. Delta grinned confidently as the battle continued, not noticing Chen's anger rising.
'I'm not going to lose... I'M TAKING HIM DOWN NOW!' Chen's thoughts rang loudly throughout his head as Chimera began to take on an orange glow. Chen's eyes transformed from their normal brown to a fiery orange, his markings once again glowing a bright red. When Diabolos went for another strike, Chen found it as the perfect opportunity to counter, instead utilizing the ember driver to drift around Diabolos right before contact, the same move that he did against Sisco prior, though with one main noticeable difference. It did not make its turn, instead heading straight for the wall at the opposite end of the stadium. Chen let out a roar as he called out to his bey, his long orange hair rising up behind him as he entered his blaze state. Chimera and Chen both began to overclock their resonance, culminating in their built up momentum having Chimera slam into the wall. One of the bound blades compressed, forcing recoil that sent it back at Diabolos, much to Delta and Valt's shock. "FINISH THEM! RAZING RAMPAGE!!!" Chimera and Diabolos made contact, the latter helpless against the overwhelming power of the more advanced system, as well as having been completely unprepared for the sudden counter... and then it happened; the moment everything went wrong.
CRACK!
A small line appeared at the end of the Death Sparking ring where Chimera had hit it. The recoil was too much for the bey to handle, especially with its jagged shape, meaning the damage was drastically increased overall. The crack suddenly grew larger and larger, running along the center of the balance type... and then it reached the opposite end, and as if in slow motion, Diabolos was split in two, its shattered layer flying upwards into the air. Delta's eyes widened in horror, his mouth agape with shock as he stumbled back. Gasps were heard from the spectators, along with a few outraged yells from those who had gotten over their shock. Valt was left speechless, his eyes wide as his jaw quivered a bit, shocked and horrified at what had just happened. His brown eyes fell on Chen, who's hair soon fell back to his shoulders as his blaze subsided. The look of complete horror on Chen's face said it all.
"N-no..." Chen muttered, stumbling back in an attempt to distance himself from the situation. He looked down at his own trembling hands. What had he done?! Delta kneeled down, clutching the shattered pieces of Diabolos in his hand, holding back his tears of anger. Chimera sent itself back at Chen, who managed to catch it in his hand unintentionally, still staring, mortified and enraged with himself over destroying Diabolos. He looked to Valt, his brown eyes staring into Valt's own, a pleading look in his face, almost as if he was saying "Help me... please, Valt". His eyes widened in fear the moment Valt looked away, the pained expression overtaking his shocked appearance. Chen's heart completely broke. He knew exactly what had happened... he had failed his mentor... he wasn't worthy of his time... He turned on his heel, doing the only thing he had thought of... he ran. He ran as far away as he could from BC Sol, from all the friends that he had made, from all the legends he looked up to... and away from the mentor that he had failed... Everything had changed for him at this moment... and this experience had left him with a now warped viewpoint of Blading... a warped viewpoint of Valt's own style. His self doubt now boiled over into rage, and his belief he was a failure soon would translate into a burning hatred towards his former mentor, though to Valt, this was completely unknown. As Chen ran, Valt turned, calling out to the Chimera blader in a desperate plea to stop him.
"CHEN! WAIT!" His cry reached deaf ears as Chen turned the corner of the hallway, going completely out of view. Valt's hand hung limply outwards, a worried and heartbroken expression on his face as his hand remained outwards, slowly clenching as the flashback faded.
(Present Day)
Albert looked towards Valt, a look of sympathy on his face as he finished his retelling of what happened...
"That's why you..."
"I don't want anyone else to have to go through what Chen did... that's why I'm so worried about Batal." Valt stumbled over his next words, not sure as to what he should say... "Because of my actions, Chen is going down the wrong path. I failed him... And I'm not going to let the same thing happen to Batal." Both Albert and Valt turned towards the Bellerophon blader, who grinned excitedly as he punched his fists forward in a repeated manner, his green eyes sparking with golden energy as he battled.