Max's POV
As expected, I found Tyson in the park a minute's walk from the hospital furiously launching his dragoon, each launch creating a small fissure in the basic dish. I stand in silence as the tear-eyed dragoon master continued his practice, in hopes of venting out his frustration. After ten minutes or so, Ray joins me in silence. Even if he did notice, he didn't acknowledge our presence and we gave him the space he wanted.
After around forty minutes, he finally sits down, panting heavily as the bey-dish finally breaks into pieces. I reach out and give him a bottle of water. He looks at me curiously before taking it, drinks a bit and pours some of it on his face in an attempt to cool himself on the summer day. "Finally decided to leave the cool canopy of the tree, didn't you?" he asked calmly.
Ray and I share a questioning look at his sudden change of behavior as he comes next to me and the three of us sit in the comfortable silence for some time.
He finally started speaking, exasperated "I'm really fine guys. You know? I'm not some five-year-old kid for you guys to babysit me. Go back to the hospital and maybe I'll catch-up after some time.!!"
Neither I nor Ray bulged from our current position, narrowing our eyes at Tyson, clearly stating our response. He sighed softly.
"It's just that I was a bit edgy and jumpy. The last week had been freaking stressful with the show mishap, arranging the money, a few serious arguments with Hil, looking at Hillary's robbed home, then Hil herself getting hurt. And all this happening just after the stressful finals, after which life should have been peaceful, slightly overwhelmed me- "
On seeing our expressions, he amended, "and
-Fine, not only slightly overwhelmed but frustrated me a lot too. "
He once again glanced at us, looking at our eager expressions, he narrowed his eyes looking irritated "What else do you guys want to hear?!! That I'm sorry for overreacting? That I won't be an emotional wreck again?! That I should apologize to Hilary too?!! Because clearly, it was she who crossed the line this time." he stated firmly, looking away from us as he stood up.
I was the first one to react, hugging Tyson firmly, from the front this time, catching him off guard again. He being half-an-inch taller than me, tried breaking out from my grasp, but after a few struggles, gave up.
"Of course no, Ty. We just want you to talk about how you were feeling. It was our mistake that we didn't notice sooner, how much you were struggling to keep your problems, your insecurities to yourself. How much you were trying to stay strong for us, for Kai and Hilary..."
Standing slightly away from us, arms crossed, Ray took over the conversation for me "We understand you are an emotional person, Tyson. To be honest, that is what makes you so strong in a bey-battle. You let your emotions easily flow and reign your bey-blade, making it's movement flawless, unlike most of us, who try controlling the blade through logic. It's only natural for you to need a way to expel and sort out the excess emotions and the best way to do it is by talking about it. "
I start again "It is never good to bottle up your feelings. Crying will not make you weak. You will always be one of the most strongest, charismatic, determined person I have had the wonderful chance to meet. No-one, no-place and no-situation, Nothing will ever change that. Asking for help is never a sign of weakness Ty, it just shows how strong you are for accepting your limitations."
By this time all the three of us were trying hard to hold back the tears forming in our eyes. While Ray was doing indeed a great job at it, I and Tyson were falling miserably, and after seeing our pathetic attempts, the three of us start laughing. I take a step back, holding Tyson's shoulder in place with my hands.
"I'm scared, Maxy." Tyson's voice was barely a whisper.
" I'm scared at what will happen next. I'm scared of what might have happened if things hadn't gone the way they went. What would have happened if the bullet had found Kai's heart? What if Hillary had no idea about nursing? What if the police hadn't rushed to Kai's room at that time?" He slightly trembled at that thought.
"The police are no-where near to finding the culprits for all this, Maxy. What if they attack Ray next? What if they properly target you the next time? What about Hilary? Why should she suffer,Maxy? Just because she is with us? She isn't even a bey-blader. Why should she be dragged into our mess? " a fresh wave of tears start.
"You all are my best friends, Maxy. This team is my family. I should be able to protect it, but not being able to do so frightens me every time I think about it." he admitted.
I didn't know what to say to this. We are Tyson's family. He trusts us so much to stay with him when he needs us the most. What would I do when I will have to choose between a chance to become the world champion myself or continue being a part of the defending Champions? What would he do if the Blade Breakers part ways? All the three of us have a home team to join. But what about him? Can I ever think of doing it without feeling guilty? I was once again thrown out of my thoughts as Ray took over.
"Everyone of us is going through a hard time, Tyson. And we will emerge from it unsacked, stronger and united than ever. We all will look out for each other and will not let these attackers see the satisfaction of us breaking. And as soon as we lay our hand on them, I will make sure to stuff their mouths with a whole bottle of the strongest and the spiciest of shezuan sauce ever made. " he says, head held high, keeping his hands firmly at his hip.
I and Tyson glance at each other, eyes wide open in bewilderment, and a nod confirmed that we were indeed on the same page.
I ask "Did you just make a joke, Ray?" Realisation dawned on him on the extent of his actions, his cheeks turning slightly pink due to disbelief.
"What?!! That's not possible- I - why would I even think about it?"
Tyson grinned cheekily "The level-headed Ray is getting influenced by his stupid cute friends."
I join him "Serious Ray is getting influenced by his idiot-little friends. la-lala-la" and gave each other a high five.
Ray stuck out his tongue to us and threatened "Shut up both of you and follow me. If one word of this goes out, you will be on the receiving end of the Shezuan sauce along with the other culprits " and turned around to exit the park, the two of us following closely behind.
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Tyson's POV
After a few minutes of constant cursing by Ray, and non-stop giggling from me and Maxy, we finally reached the hospital. Before entering, Ray turns back at me, his gaze questioning. "You said something about arguments with Hillary? Where you referring to the one that took place today or is there something else we should know? "
Max also looked at me with concern. I bit my lip but answered quickly to avoid suspicions "No, Ray. I was just talking about today's... "
He gaze lingered on me for a minute, trying to detect a lie, his eyes boring into mine as though searching for confirmation there. He then nodded and we made our way inside.
Max, not giving our exchange a second glance, exclaimed "Let's find Hilary soon then, I'm starving!!"
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Interrogation room / Police's POV
The sound of clanging of belts along the human skin was unmistakable from a mile but the hisses of pain escaping the prisoner could be heard only when someone came close by.
Days had passed since the attempt at murder, but still the attacker wouldn't answer his questions straight. We were sure that the person caught was also related to the attack at the talk show but he wouldn't open his mouth. He wouldn't say anything, and even if he did, it only raised more questions. Nor were we able to find out any information on our own. The victims being celebrities just added the pressure of facing the press soon.
The only relief was the fact that they did not want the information of the second attack made public. Two hours had passed since beginning the punishment, and I ask once again.
"Who are you? "
"No-one" I sigh. This was getting ridiculously monotonous.
"What was the objective of the attack? "
"Revenge "
"Whom do you serve? "
"My master "
"And who is your master? "
He looked at me in the eye, a mad smirk on his face "None of your business " he spat.
I lost my patience, a loud thwak vibrated through the room as the punishment continued. When it stopped, he let out a loud humourless, downright evil laugh.
Before I could muster up some patience to talk with him again, a knock was heard on the door.
"Come in. "
Another inspector comes in and salutes.
"There's a foreigner here who speaks to you. Claims to have information about the attacks. "
I nod. "Take her in and tell her to wait for me, I'll be there in ten minutes." At last I would get some clarity on my case.
******
I enter the loo in an attempt to calm myself. I wash my face with cold water, change my clothes as they were slightly tinted red. As I walk back to my general quarters, I run my hand in my hair, trying to appear casual. As soon as I entered, I came face-to-face with a woman in her early thirties. A blonde, blue eyed American dressed in a business suit. She looked slightly worried, no wonder she hadn't noticed me yet as her thoughts ran at a thousand miles an hour.
"Hmm... To what pleasure do I owe meeting you Miss...." I say settling down on my chair.
The sudden noise jerked the woman back to reality, as she straightened herself. "Miss Tate, Inspector. "
"Ah, so you are the mother of one of the teens on the show. The one who was.... targeted?"
She flinched at this, but nodded.
"Your son informed me about your arrival a few days ago, and I'm quite greatful that you could make some time in your busy schedule. "
"Of course, it's concerning my only son's safety after all.... "
I nod in understanding. "Before you could begin your side of the story, please let us know what your son has filled you in. "
Apparently the kid hadn't talked to her after the PC hence she knew nothing of it. After massaging my temples in one hand, I deliberately explained her the entire situation. I sat in silence for around a minute to let the lady sink in the information as we slowly drank coffee in the silent police station.
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Mrs Tate's POV
"It was around eight months before the tournament, and my son always stays with me for the school year. Since, his team were the 'Newest Champions' last year, he became a bit of a celebrity. Not used to such attention, he wanted a way out for sometime from all the fan mail and decided to accompany me for a Research Seminar in Moscow.
The hosts were the 'Marcus University of Un-plotable energies' , the symbol my son recognised on the guns found in the Talk Show. The seminar was mainly based on Quantum Physics and Energy Extraction from the Quantum Realm, if by any chance the happen to spend a gateway, which is almost impossible with the resources and skill set this decade presently has.
The Board of directors were highly impressed by my demonstration. During the aftermath, I mentioned my son and his bit-beast to the Assistant Director and as the game is popular enough in the US, he wanted to meet one of the Newest World Champion, that is, my son. After a friendly conversation with Max, he wanted to test the energy levels of the bit beast himself and was astonished when his energy receptor actually blasted. He confessed that the had never experienced such raw power in such magnitude in the few other bit-beasts they had worked on a few years before giving up on the project.
Max proceeded to inform him of the various stories of the bit-beasts he had learnt from Tyson, who surprisingly knew a lot of them as his father used to research on them and it was their way of father-son bonding the few times they spent together. Even I was surprised by the depth to which Max knew of the 'Sacred 7' of which only four were known, of 'The Thirty Two Knights' and from which only seventeen were discovered and of the '7 Insurgents' of which none were known. He soaked in all the information he could get and left abruptly.
Six months after, a few days after the discovery of a rock with un-numberable bit beasts, I was invited for a collaboration in the extraction of bit-beasts and harness their energy... I was completely against it as the Entire Beyblading Community had witnessed what happened to those who try tampering with bit-beasts or their masters not a year ago.
They tried luring me with money and threatened me for facing consequences. I didn't think much of it as it sounded nothing but a blank threat, and they were seriously in no position to harm my reputation b-but... " her throat tightened as silent tears started streaming down her cheeks.
I silently wait for the woman to compose herself. After about a minute or two, she started again. "I hadn't thought of them for a while now, but when I think about it, I did receive a mysterious call on the day after the talk show in US Timings, approximately around an hour before the Talk Show according to Japan Timings. I dismissed it when I was leaving for work, thinking of it as a prank call as they are quite common in US (idk, just guessing for the story) and by the time I came back home, the attack had taken place.
I was so worried about Max as even his father had no idea about his safety and when I saw him with the Press, I was so shocked with his appearance, he looked so messed up!! Only when he called me, I had vented out my frustration on him for not informing us earlier about his safety. Our argument went a bit..... off the topic and then he told me about the changes in the story released to the Press, of him being the target and the mention of the symbol of 'Marcus University' did I join the dots together and left as soon as I could to tell you this information.
I did not want to talk about this project on the Telly as it was among the top secret files of the Marcus and did not want them to do any more harm than they already had. Only if I had been sooner, then maybe Kai and Hilary might not have..."
"Please Miss Tate, Miss Tachibana and Mr Hiwatari are well. There was nothing you could do about it then. When was the last time you heard from 'The Marcus University' ?"
"Around six weeks before the World Championship, I guess. They called me one last time, doubling the budget for the project, increasing my pay by around eighty percent when compared to the one first proposed. They also mentioned they were planning on collaborating with 'Zagart Research Institution', a well renowned institution in Germany. A dream of any researcher is to collaborate with Professor Zagart. I might have accepted the proposal just for the opportunity to work with him if it wasn't sponcered by the 'Hiwatari Enterprises'. It is during this call that they first threatened I would face consequences way too much worth for refusing just because of morals..."
"Thank you for helping us. I think you should leave. Its eight in the evening already. We will talk more next time. Your escorts awaits outside. Do you have any questions to be answered before you leave? "
******
Police's POV
"Why do you think Mr. Hiwatari was attacked the second time and not my son again? Or are they just attacking the Blade Breakers in general? What do you think are the attackers' intentions? Are they here to extract revenge on my unwillingness to work with them or do you think they are here for Mr. Hiwatari for anything um.... related to his grandfather because.. You know.. I know he himself has nothing to do with it and should not be blamed but..."
"I understand what you are pointing to Miss, and we are researching in the matter. Mr Granger pointed out that Mr Hiwatari was very adamant about not attending the show and we believe that we will have much more information after he recovers enough to hold a conversation. "
The woman bit her lip "I see... I'll inform you if there is anything that I had missed. Good night, inspector."
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Words: 3009
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A/N: Hey guys!! Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!
This is my first update of the year!! Since I have decided to upload chapters everyday fortnight, I have also increased the word length of each chapter from 2000+ to near 3000 words.
I can't believe that in exactly two weeks, the number of reads has increased by 250+ and all in all I have 76 votes! Thank you for such a wonderful year and hope this year is better than the previous one for the world and makes all our wishes come true. Do continue voting and commenting.
Hope you all enjoy the chapter.
Happy reading!!