Ryu: So that's what's going on.

Ryu and Azure were explaining what the had heard from Kira, and the events of the day.

Karma: The Dark Nebula and HD Academy... They worked together?

Erica: I never thought I'd hear that name again.

Azure: You're definitely not the only one.

Everyone looked at Azure, who seemed more somber than usual.

Karma: We've all made plenty of mistakes Azure. Right now, we need to work past them to deal with the real threat.

Fenrir: Indeed. Beys being used in such a way is a dangerous game.

Lucifer: And that power to utilize it being drawn forcibly from a Blader with science is wrong.

Ryu: Right now, we just have to wait for the matchups to be announced.

Erica: Alright, can I make a suggestion then?

Ryu: What is it?

Erica: Depending on the matchups, let Karma and I clean them up.

They were all surprised to hear this.

Ryu: Are you sure?

Erica: HD Academy is looking for the best Data they can get. The least amount of matches they see of you two, the better. Plus, neither of you have revealed everything yet, so it's a mystery to everyone.

Ryu: Good idea. I guess making him wait until it's almost too late would be fine.

Azure: Sucks though. I am NOT looking forward to waiting to battle.

Ryu: We can wait. Alright girls, you two are gonna lead the charge for a bit.

Karma: Yeah, but I'll be honest if Wild Fang is gonna be someone we face, I'd rather not just so we aren't at risk of losing a battle.

Ryu: Fine, anyway it's getting late.

The saw it was dark outside, surprising Karma.

Karma: Wait a minute how long were you two really out?!

Ryu: About 3 hours.

Karma: THEN HOW LONG HAVE WE BEEN SPEAKING?!!!

Azure: Don't question it.

Erica: Let's hope Eagle and Libra can be fixed before the tournament starts.

Karma: Yeah.

Azure: I'm heading to the showers and crashing.

Fenrir: Uhhh, you might wanna wait on that, Ryu already went up.

They heard the water turn on, each being surprised.

Karma: -_- I keep forgetting he's like a ninja sometimes.

Stallion: Again, very easy to forget.

TIME SKIP!!

Azure was doing Shadow Launches in his room, trying to get to sleep.

Azure: -_- Great, now I'm so haunted I can't sleep.

He stopped launching, walking into the halls and down the stairs.

Azure: 'I never thought my past would come back to haunt me like this.'

As he neared the steps, he the image of the younger him appeared in his mind. He shut his eyes, slightly in sadness, and partially in fear. However what he didn't realize was that he bumped into someone.

???: Ow!

Azure's eyes shot back open.

Azure: Ah crap, was that you Erica?!

He scrambled to find the slight switch, and turned it on revealing that it was indeed Erica, who was in shorts and a crop top.

Erica: I'm ok.

He immediately helped her.

Azure: Sorry, I-I just closed my eyes and didn't see you before- Y-You know!

Erica: Azure, I get it. I know you wouldn't go that on purpose. Just take a breath.

The teen stopped, before doing so.

Azure: Alright, I'm good.

Erica: What's wrong? I don't think I've ever seen you like that.

Azure: *Sigh* It's just everything we found out today. I... I feel a little responsible.

Erica: Huh?

Azure: You know how much I was involved with the Dark Nebula. Not to mention I'm just... angrier. Ziggurat is the reason why all of this has happened.

Erica: Wow I... I didn't realize this has been getting to you so much.

Azure: Even now, I still don't know if I can really make up for everything.

Erica: ... You know, I think I know a way for you to get your mind off of this.

Azure was confused, before Erica pulled the sides of his face.

Erica: -_- Try to open up about things like this more dummy.

She pinched harder on the cheeks, earning a wince from Azure.

Azure: Ow! What are you doing?!

Erica: To be frank, relieving a little stress now.

She let go, crossing her arms.

Erica: Azure, I'm starting to get fed up with this team and secrecy. Weather it be Karma with the Dark Power, Ryu always working on something away from all of us, and now you're bottling up how you feel just so Karma won't feel bad either.

Azure: O_O I'm becoming that readable huh?

Erica: Yeah, it's good to be considerate, but not at the expense of guilt eating you alive.

Azure: ... Argh, forget me being more readable, you're just getting better at it in general.

Erica: Hey, I care about all of you, so I wanna know when something's up with any of you.

She slapped his back, admittedly hurting herself more than him.

Erica: A-Anyway, just talk to me if you ever feel like you're starting to tense up too much, just talk. To Stallion, Karma, Ryu, or me.

Azure sighed once more, before slightly smiling.

Azure: Right.

WITH RYU

The leader of Team Rage was as well still awake, but he however was on a stroll outside.

Ryu: ...

Dracian: Ryu, what are doing?

Ryu: 'It's just, ever since we got back, I feel like someone's been watching me.'

He continued to walk, as a set of purple eyes were on him.

???: 'Damn, when will this guy finally stop moving?'

Ryu continued to walk, he while he did, he heard sounds of movement.

Ryu: 'Ha, knew it.'

He picked up the pace, going into a jog. After a moment, he arrived back at the sports arena. As he entered, he stopped moving.

Ryu: Come out, it's no use hiding now.

???: Tch, so you knew I was here the entire time.

The stalker had made himself known, jumping from his hiding spot, and into the stands. He was revealed to have spiky blonde hair, as he wore kakis, a blue shirt, and a red vest.

Ryu: Wow, I was kinda expecting some adult. You're no older than me. So what's your name?

???: That doesn't matter.

He brought out a bey that Ryu didn't fully recognize.

???: Me and My Burn Orion T125 are here for a battle!!

Ryu: That's different. Okay then, let me ask a different question. You a Blader for Hire?

The individual was shocked hearing this.

???: How could you have guessed that?

Ryu: Not a whole lot of people have that kinda patience. Someone who does it for a job is a different story.

???: Well it doesn't make any difference. Aim your launcher, and let's battle!

Ryu: Hmph, fine, I don't back down from battles. But I wanna know the name of the guy I'm about to beat.

The boys eyes narrowed looking at Ryu.

???: Fine, it's Chris. Now hurry up.

Ryu attached Dracian to his launcher.

Ryu: Alright Chris, let's do this.

Ryu&Chris: 3!! 2!! 1!! LET IT RIP!!!

They launched their beys, as once they clashed, a shockwave went through the air.

Ryu: WOAH!!!

Chris: He wasn't lying, his power's incredible!!

Dracian and Orion landed on the ground, with Ryu shocked seeing the immensely table and fast spin of Orion.

Ryu: That bey has such a stable spin. Doesn't matter. Go now Dracian!!

Dracian raced forward to attack again.

Chris: Meet the attack Orion!!

Orion dashed forward, clashing with Dracian. Ryu decided to use Reverse Rotation, as the resulting clash was fierce. Dracian pulled back, before attacking Orion left and right.

Ryu: 'Wait a sec, something's not right here.'

Even with Dracian's attacks, Orion seemed to be spinning without much trouble.

Chris: Ha? Is that it? I was expecting way more from someone who's in the conversation of the Number 1 Blader.

Dracian circled back, as Burn Orion starting to slowly speed up. Ryu looked at the Bey, seeing all of the parts.

Ryu: 'I think I'm starting to get it. Burn Orion is a Stamina type. The reason it's gaining speed right now is because it's Fusion Wheel causes a flywheel affect, allowing it's rotation velocity to increase with it's own momentum. And that performance tip. Around Sharp is free spinning, and that bowl allows it to stand up and recover from attacks.'

Ryu looked at Orion, and then Chris.

Ryu: I think you might be the strongest stamina type Blader in the entire world.

Chris: Not inaccurate. Go now!!

Wind blasted from around Orion, before it dashed towards Dracian, finally attacking back hard.

Ryu: Great, with the recoil and smash attacks, I'm basically battling against an attack type as well!

Chris: Come on, at least make this a little challenging!!

Orion hit all around Dracian, as Ryu smirked.

Ryu: You want a challenge? Fine then!!

When the Beys made contact again, the Dragon heads of Dracian moved again.

Ryu: Buster Wing!!

They snapped back out, knocking Orion into the air.

Chris: ORION!!

Orion landed back down, with Dracian spinning fast. She tilted to the side, with the contact points on the performance tip creating sparks.

Ryu: You're a good opponent to test this out on!! TRUE BUSTER SPIN!!!

Dracian seemingly vanished appearing behind Orion, smashing into it.

Chris: How can a Bey be that fast?!

Dracian started to disappear and reappear rapidly, as Orion was being hit by an endless barrage of attacks.

Ryu: You wanted to battle me when I'm serious! You should never overestimate your skills!

Chris: Grrrr!! DON'T UNDERESTIMATE ME!!

Orion took another attack, however this time it pushed back, stopping Dracian from disappearing again.

Ryu: 'Even now, Orion still is able to stand up to Dracian. This Chris guy just might be...'

Ryu saw a purple aura appear around Chris.

Ryu: Chris!

Chris: Huh?

Ryu: You're such an amazing Blader. Why didn't you participate in the World Championships? There's no doubt you could've made any team you tried out for!

Chris: Tch, why should I even try to explain?!

Orion flashed purple, pushing away Dracian.

Chris: There's no possible way a guy like you...!!

Orion began to spin even faster, shocking Ryu.

Chris: Who's been surrounded by such awesome Bladers could ever understand where I'm coming from!!

A shockwave came from Orion, as bright purple energy surrounded the Bey.

Ryu: 'I can't believe it. Burn Orion and Chris...'

A drone viewed the battle from above, as viewing the battle through it was Dr Ziggurat, and other HD Academy scientists.

Ziggurat: Could it be? This boy has somehow found a way to tap into the true power of his Bey without an Arrangement as well?

The doctor smiled at the sight of this.

Ziggurat: The money spent on him was more than worth it!! To think I could come across such a valuable Blader!

Chris: Now, attack Orion!!

Orion moved and began to smash into Dracian, with explosions occurring with each strike.

Chris: I don't have the luxury to lose unlike you!! Winning is the only option!! If I lose, battles will never be an option again!!!

Ryu hearing this was shocked, before shaking it off.

Ryu: Sorry, but I'm not exactly that straightforward!

Ryu began to glow in a red and gold light, as his eyes went slitted. Dracian rushed in, attacking Orion back, as explosions shook the area.

Chris: You don't understand how lucky you are to have such strong Bladers around you!! You've never been so unhindered to the point where your strength grows so large nobody can keep up!!

Ryu: What?

Chris: The World Championships... It's not like I didn't wanna compete on a stage like that!!

Dracian and Orion split apart, as the stamina type began to grow stronger.

Ryu: Your Bey is responding to your emotions in this battle. It's easy to tell that you're a true Blader. Tell me: Why are you just selling your skills?

Chris: This is... This is the only way I can still...! AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

The purple aura around Chris grew again, as this caught the attention of the sleeping Bladers within Hades City.

Chris: SPECIAL MOVE!!!! FLASH OF BERNARD!!!!

Purple flashes came off of Orion, as the Bey dashed towards Dracian, with a monster of purple energy with a mask appeared in the air.

Ryu: Alright fine!! SPECIAL MOVE!!! DRACIAN: TRUE BUSTER COUNTER!!!

Dracian sped up going to Orion, as the armored dragon spirit and celestial being clashed, causing the biggest explosion yet.

Ryu: DRACIAN!!!!

Chris: ORION!!!!

When the smoke cleared, it was revealed that both of the Beys still spun.

Chris: That still wasn't enough?!

Ryu: ...

Ryu looked at Chris, and then the Beys, before holding his hand out, with Dracian flying back into it.

Chris: Huh? W-What are you doing?

Ryu: I can only guess Dr Ziggurat put you up to this.

Ryu looked at Chris with a sympathetic look.

Ryu: I don't know your whole story, but I can understand some of what you said. Having no one to challenge you must be a nightmare. Even though you were using your emotions to power your Bey in that battle, you still viewed it as a job.

Chris: B-But that doesn't explain what you just did!

Ryu: Sure it does. I'm only helping Ziggurat use your valuable skills to his advantage. Like it or not, he's not gonna see the full extent of Dracian's power.

Ryu turned walking away.

Ryu: I hope we can battle again Chris. Outside of a job.

Chris watched as Ryu walked away, conflicted.

Chris: 'My orders were only to battle him to give Ziggurat data, and that was it. I didn't even need to beat him. So why?'

Chris recalled Orion, before clenching his fist.

Chris: 'Why do I feel like this?!'

Dracian: It's sad.

Ryu: I know. That guy's has it pretty rough.

CHAPTER END!!