Arc 2: What Do I Do?

[Rashad]

I'm sitting on Captain Elright's ship, just minding my own business. There are other Neathian soldiers lined up around me. It was like I was a prisoner of war being looked down upon by the comrades of the people I've killed. I tried to look down towards the floor of the ship. The looks of these soldiers were making me uncomfortable, so looking at them was a no-go. It only helped a little bit, as I could still feel the presence of unwanted looks pounding on my back. 

Then Captain Elright started some ship talk...

As if I wanted to talk to any of them. I was only interested in getting back home so I could pay a visit to whoever did this to me. They only wanted me to repay my debt to them. I was their property now. Who's going to really care about what we talk about?

The conversation started out with how much they respected my strength for being able to defeat their princess so easily while being far away from my full power. I didn't feel like it, but I paid my respects. Fabia was a nice girl. During wartime, we often forget about the lives we affect by our actions. Some are just out to fight just because they're told to do it, like I was. She didn't deserve what happened to her, and I can understand that now that I'm no longer having to participate in this senseless thousand-year war. I communicated this to them. Captain Elright completely forgot about how things used to be by the way I spoke. He admitted that many of them were hesitant to keep me alive by associating me with my parents. Speaking of which...they broke the news to me about their fate.

They told me that a brawler from a planet called "Earth" was responsible for killing my mother and her Dharak. As for my father, the brawler's son took him down. They could only describe this boy by referring to him as the "the Redeemer." He overheard Fabia talking about it from what she heard from other soldiers. She stated that she would love to meet this person one day to thank him for saving both Neathia and Gundalia and allowing the war to come to a standstill. I couldn't disagree with her. I wanted to meet this person as well.

[Rashad]

We had finally made to a location on Gundalia where it was deemed the safest to put me. Before they could let me go, I asked Captain Elright on what their role in all of this was. He regretted that it was classified information on what Neathia was plotting, but he assured me that I wouldn't be responsible for doing this by myself. Whatever was happening on Gundalia was a threat to Neathia as well, so a response from them was surely promised.

Then he asked me a crucial question: What was my plan? The environment would be different, but not because of Gallagher's presence. My parents were gone, and the throne was taken, meaning that I was just like the civilians. How would I deal with this role change?

I admitted my own inferiority to this usurper from the start, and knew I wouldn't last a step into the capitol. I had to start small and work my way up to that point. The capitol wasn't the only thing Gallagher has damaged. I knew that for sure.

Dharak and I were beamed down to the surface. I looked up to see the Neathian ship leave. Now the two of us were alone.

Dharak looked at our surroundings and concluded that we were in the middle of nowhere. Sound announcement. Now he was going to troll me until we found something better to do. Looking around, I could confirm that he was exaggerating it a bit. Understand that Gundalia had two layers. One was the ACTUAL surface of the planet that was completely uninhabitable to Gundalians due to the Armstrong limit. The other was where our race lives, underground with light coming through the countless holes scattered around the surface. Legends say that the first Bakugan on Gundalia lived up there.

Down here, there are several settlements, cities, towns, etc. There's a canal that connects with every notable location on the planet. We were close to that canal. If we follow it, we'll end up somewhere.

[Rashad]

Walking down the canal brought me to something good. I saw signs of social contact. The only bad thing was...it was hostile contact.

I approached close enough to see a group of people that looked like humans. They were gathering water. Before I could make another step, a Haos-looking bullet was about to put itself into my head. I leaned my head to the side to dodge it and kept walking. That was a big mistake.

Numerous bullets started getting shot at me. I dodged every single one of them. I quickly noticed the killing intent of whoever shot at me, because they were all aimed at vital points of the Gundalian body. I continued to move until I got within half a mile of the water gatherers. In response to my presence, they summoned a bunch of Nastix and Scaboids to confront me.

Dharak warned me that I was pissing them off, but I didn't care. I was more pissed than they were, so they were the least of my concerns. What I was worried about was why they looked like humans, and why they were attacking me on sight. Were they subordinates of Gallagher? I didn't know, so I had to keep my eyes peeled. Attacking them wasn't something I wanted, because if they had a justifiable reason to shoot at me, then I wouldn't want to do anything that might attract someone dangerous.

As cliche as this sounds, I told them that I had come in peace. They didn't buy it. They accused me of working for Gallagher and that I had come there to wipe them out. Some girl had tried to sneak up on me to score a quick kill, but I noticed her behind me. I mentioned the fact that I haven't tried to do anything malicious to them even though I was about to be assassinated. Dharak came out to tell me that it is illogical for them to give one person a pass when other Gundalians may have tried to erase them from the map.

That's when I gave them a choice to consider. If they were going to kill me, I offered to forget what I saw and walk the other way if they told me where to find shelter from Gallagher's rampage. I warned them that I wasn't going to allow them to attack me without consequences, so if they were going to make this a matter of destruction, I'd be more than willing to fill in for the ones who WANT to take them out.

[Rashad]

My words fell on deaf ears. The girl chose to attack me anyway. I turned around to swiftly kick her across her face. She did well to rebound without having her back hit the ground. That's the first time I got a good look at her. Not bad, right?

I heard a large Bakugan descending down upon me, so I threw Dharak into the fray. He carried me off in his mouth. When he landed, he let go of me so I could stand on my own. That's when my earlier attacker showed himself. It was a knight-like Bakugan. He had two shoulder cannons that must have been the culprits for the bullets I dodged.

Dharak gave them all one final warning before he started desolating the place. His forced appearance may have worked in our favor, because the girl started talking to me. She recognized that this Dharak belonged to Emperor Barodius' son. Funny how that works, I said. She didn't believe in what she saw, because she saw me die. I admitted that what she saw was true, but reality has apparently told a different story. She asked why she should believe me, so I countered with the same reason why I haven't destroyed them on sight: optimism. I did reveal that they were in a better situation for that thought than I was, because my absence has made me unaware of who wants to kill me and who doesn't.

The girl thought it over. Considering they were transporting valuables, she asked me to leave so they can sort this out. I had no problem with that. I walked away, but Dharak continued to stare them down. I called him so he could come on. He snarled before joining me. I knew he was pissed, but what was I going to do? They didn't trust me nor did they believe I was truly alive.

[Rashad]

We didn't go very far. I was waiting around the canal to see if they would "sort this out" like the girl said they would. It took fifteen minutes for her to finally come back to find me. I was eagerly awaiting some form of response, because I was growing impatient.

She cut right to the chase. She questioned me on how I survived. I gave her a quick rundown on how the Neathians assisted me in my recovery and brought me here to combat Gallagher. She still had that look of disbelief. I asked her if there was a problem. Her response was very surprising...

She had a hard time believing me, and she was about to tell me why. She promises that everyone in the area - herself included - were Gundalians that preferred the human appearance. She alleges that this conversion was done as a form of protest against my father's attack on the humans of Earth. They were treated as outcasts and were continuously persecuted by his government, and I happened to be one of the ones who have attacked one of these communities.

I don't recall doing anything of that sort. I should have taken my advice from the encounter with Fabia not to say something like that, because this girl took it as me not considering their presence worth remembering. I directed her attention to the fact that I've lost a lot of things upon my supposed death, and asked her to forgive me if I have trouble remembering things correctly. I didn't put it past myself to have done it if my father ordered me to do it, because that's just what I did while he was in power.

Speaking of him not being in power, I made her remember that fact, and wondered what was the point of looking like a human when he's gone. She didn't have to explain herself on that one. They were used to looking like that and did not use the shape-shifting technology that gave them their Gundalian appearance.

I apologized for what I've done, even though I didn't remember everything that transpired. I assured her that I wasn't there to blow them up and that my only interest was forming either a squad or an army capable of combating Gallagher. After hearing this, she tagged me with the aforementioned technology to make me look like a human being. She remarked that I was quite handsome, and even looked like this "Redeemer" that people seem to speak of. I was going to need it to enter their cities due to the Gundalian appearance getting me attacked automatically.

She urged me to come with her back to her home so they can assess the situation. She gave me her name: Kianna.

[Rashad]

This giant human settlement had a large security checkpoint at the entrance. As I looked it over, I could tell that there was a DNA lockout in the mix that was stolen from the Neathians. There was a barrier around the entire place that prohibits anyone with Gundalian DNA from entering. Any Bakugan native to Gundalia couldn't get in either. There must have been a special procedure given to the residents that allows them to bypass it without any issues. Was that what they were going to administer to me? Would they go through with it, knowing that I was supposedly an attacker? I had to hold my breath on this one.

Kianna stops me before we reach the guards that were stationed there. She goes to them and whispers something in their ear. The guard she spoke to started talking with the other guards, and then they started talking with their bosses, and then the bosses of their bosses. They tell me to come hither. I do as they say, and I get tagged by some form of taser-like pistol. Noticing my lack of flinching, they could tell that I was tough, but sternly warned me to keep it cool and...surprisingly welcomed me back. I passed through their barrier without getting rejected. Kianna informed me that what I was shot by was designed to place a figurative id badge on the victim so that any particular piece of equipment the weapon was linked to will not target him/her. Neat, I said. What other advancement in technology did we come up with while I was dead? Hopefully there was one to cure mental illnesses, like a male Gundalian having inappropriate contact with another male.

I kid you not... That was literally the first thing I saw when I walked inside. Is this what they do on Earth? Looks like a horrible place. That's probably just the tip of the iceberg too. Kianna had to ruin the speculative theories I was having by confirming that some people even think they were "born in the wrong body" and ended up switching genders. I just about turned around and was walking towards the exit, only to be pushed by an amused Kianna who assured me everything was going to be fine as long as I don't pay attention to it. She also warned me to keep a stoic facial expression if I saw it, because people will get easily triggered if I look at them the wrong way or say that there's something wrong with them. That's just great. Here I was being censored my whole upbringing, and now I have to go right back to that environment. If it were up to me, I'd cage them all and have them examined by a doctor.

After five minutes of enduring such a disgusting display, we arrive at what appears to be Kianna's residence. She brings me inside. Before I could set a second foot in the door, three children - two boys and one girl - pile up in front of me and begins poking fun at Kianna, saying that she brought home a boyfriend. Much to my surprise, Kianna did not deny this, and told them to go away instead as this was a very serious matter. Indeed, when her father came out of their family room towards me, things got serious. He started saying things like, "You're not dating my daughter unless you can beat me in a fight." Kianna assured her father that fighting won't be necessary for two reasons: 1. He was no match for me. 2. If I fought, I'd be attacked on sight due to who I was. This intrigued him, so he asked me who I was. She answered that I was Emperor Barodius, or was supposed to be until Gallagher showed up. He said that I could speak for myself, and so he asked me one more time. I told him that my name was Rashad Barodius.

When he heard me, that tough guy attitude faded away. He grabbed his kids and frantically ran throughout the house, constantly chanting my name in horror. I had a blank stare on my face. Was this guy secretly a wimp? I must have done something horrifying if he was this afraid of me. The poor guy might end up killing himself before I can even shake his hand. Dharak was insensitive about this whole thing. He was laughing up a storm. This made the dad freak out even more, knowing that Dharak was in their house.

Then the mother came running downstairs after hearing all this commotion. She sees a handsome guy like myself and says that Kianna brought home a nice-looking man. The father has to go and tell her who I was, and then she started freaking out too. She was about to pick up a phone and call the authorities on me, but then I told them that it was no use, because they were the ones who let me in. Kianna butted in and said that I wasn't helping by saying that. After hearing enough of this noise, Kianna zapped her family with rays of light. It looked painless from what I could see. All of a sudden, they were forcefully calmed down.

That looked to be Kianna's special power: the power to manipulate emotions. What a dangerous power. She could be just who I need in this fight...

[Rashad]

With everyone calm, we could get down to business. The father told me that I was treading dangerous waters by coming back to Gundalia after being banished by Gallagher. I told him it was either that or die, because the Neathians have a say as to what I can do since they preserved my body. I told them all about the mass buildup of energy in the atmosphere that they assume is being caused by whatever Gallagher is doing, and they want him stopped immediately. I expressed my intent to figure out what's being done and to kick him off of MY throne before he ruins my name any further.

The mother got a few newspapers for me to look at. I perused through all of them, with her providing commentary over what I was seeing. All of it was...positive? I couldn't believe it. There was not a single negative thing anyone had to say about Gallagher's policies. To say that he fixed all of my father's wrongs was an understatement. He brought stability to the Gundalian government, and there was nothing I could see that disapproves of that. Still...this was a grand usurper, one that was even praised for putting me out of commission. Who was going to believe me if I told them that Gallagher was planning something outrageous?

Fortunately for myself, Kianna's family believed me, because they saw me right in front of them when they really aren't supposed to, due to the obvious. The dad called it a blessing that I was dropped off here first, as if it was by fate. My human appearance could mask my presence very well among the general populace, but Gallagher may still recognize my face. It was also an issue that Dharak was still my partner in crime, so my battles had to be kept to a minimum. With that being said, he still proposed a challenge to me, because he had to know that I stood a chance before deciding on whether or not they should get involved with this. I accepted the challenge. As soon as I did, he jumped up and threw a punch at me. I casually blocked it and asked him if he really wants to do this inside of his house.

He started smirking...

The arm I used to block weakened in overall strength. He explained that his special power was to have the ability to "humanize" whatever he touches. From my understanding, I lose the natural strength a Gundalian possesses compared to an actual human. He then started throwing a variety of punches and kicks. I dodged them all, except for one gut-wrenching punch to the stomach. I tapped his shoulder with my finger, and then reeled backwards. He thought he had me beat, so he tried to finish me off. There was only one issue with that logic: he couldn't move all that well. As for me, I had a dark energy wave course through my body, and everything the man did to me was erased.

That's where my special power came in: energy manipulation. Mine was destructive in nature. I could erase ANY form of energy, including the ones that carry out bodily functions. Another power I had access to from this destructive ability was something called limitation inducement. This means that I can impose limits on others abilities. By making contact with him, I was able to limit the rate at which signals go to and from his brain, making him slower overall. I held my palm out at him and charged an electric bolt. The scary thing about this ability was that my Dharak can do this on a much higher level than I can. I learned how to do it from him. It seems that I am a special case in that Dharak and I have some form of "connection" that allows me to feed off of his power. I wonder what that could mean...

The dad surrendered after I put him in a tough spot. I touched him again to erase the changes I made to his body. The kids were amazed at how easily I beat their dad, and they called me amazing. Kianna remarked that she didn't know I had abilities like that. I responded that the ones in the Gundalian army will normally keep their abilities under wraps for safety reasons. I told them a highly classified detail about my father. His was far worse than mine. He could erase anyone's power on the spot just by making contact with them, which was why most of us did anything and everything that he told us to do so that we could keep our powers. That was because there was a certain ritual performed on a Gundalian emperor that would give them this power, and make them immune to anyone else's power. If he decided to kill us or someone close to us, we would be powerless to escape his wrath.

[Rashad]

Marveling at my skill, the dad wondered if I was stronger than my dad. I laughed this one off and conceded that I wasn't, as his Dharak's power level was colossal and had unbelievable stamina. I did mention that I was stronger than my mom, primarily because her Dharak was an outlier among the species and specialized in support. It was for the best that the two of them were a team from a strategic standpoint, because there was no need to have two offensive Bakugan take on multiple opponents. If the humans stopped one of us, then they stopped both of us. Emperor Barodius might have been evil, but he was far from stupid. That was the ONLY thing I'd ever give him credit for.

With me winning the fight, I wondered what kind of help I was going to go get. He told me, "Not so fast." I still had to prove my worth as an actual brawler first. I had no right to complain, so I accepted the terms. My opponent came as no surprise. It was Kianna herself.

They led me to their basement. There was a wide-open space that was perfect for brawling, and there was a barrier that kept things stable to prevent anything from destroying the entire house. The first thing I asked was if these barriers were outdated, because I was highly certain that I could shatter this barrier if I were to go crazy. The dad replied that this was a setup. If I break the barrier, I lose automatically. I was being handicapped against Kianna on purpose, because with any man that comes into the house expecting a date or help from a military standpoint, I needed to be able to win with a handicap placed on me so that I'm ready for that out in the field. It was sound logic, so I approved of it.

Then he mentioned something that got me a little concerned: Kianna was the only one allowed to use gate cards. I got this thought in the back of my mind that said that this girl was hella weak if I end up winning this brawl and that she was a waste of my time. I accepted it, regardless of how it sounded. We took our places on the battlefield. She threw down the gate card and threw in her partner: a Haos Contestir. I threw in Dharak naturally, and the battle began.

Contestir started off by immediately shooting Dharak with a beam from its head. Dharak countered with a beam from his tail and simultaneously shot a ghostly-beam in the same direction. To my surprise, the attack was intercepted. It looked like Contestir absorbed it through his shoulder cannons. Dharak and I kept quiet about noticing this power. Contestir then shot a blinding orb of energy that continuously radiated light rays in every direction. It was a homing attack, so it was coming right for us, and we couldn't see it. Dharak conjured a ball of energy in his mouth and shot it below his feet. This created his own personal field of energy that blocked out other energy sources, except his own. He could see the attack perfectly now, but now we had another problem.

There was a Dharak on Kianna's side now. That's when I realized that Dharak's energy may have been assimilated so this Contestir could transform into a clone of him. Kianna chose to warn me in advance that while it is a clone, it defies the logic that clones don't compare to the real deal. This clone would automatically edge out the real Bakugan when it comes to power. He shot the same attack that he blocked earlier, erasing Dharak's energy field and blinding him once again. I was effectively placed into a trap. I couldn't see a ball of energy that may or may not inflict massive damage, and a clone of Dharak was on the opposite side who was stronger than us, and they have access to our techniques. This looked bad...

[Rashad]

Her father had to rub it in and say that it was checkmate for me. I was deprived of my vision, and I wouldn't be able to do anything if there was a stronger version of him out there.

Seeing this, I had to resort to one of my stronger abilities, Dead Zone. Dharak's body radiated in darkness and he spread it throughout the field. For a limited time, all of our powers were useless. It was like a reset button, except that it puts me at a disadvantage. If the opponent is already physically capable of overpowering Dharak, we'd be hard-pressed to stop it, because neither of us can use our abilities until this one goes away. This meant that Contestir returned to normal and I was out of the corner...for now anyway.

The kids yelled that what I did was so cool. Their dad was shocked by this, because I looked so calm in a rather hectic situation. Contestir ran after Dharak, dodging many projectiles we sent his way. He swiped at Dharak continuously, but Dharak evaded by jumping out of the way and flying out of his reach. He attempted to stomp on Contestir, but that missed. Contestir surprisingly started backing away from Dharak as if he realized his current situation. I told Kianna that she was pretty good for pressuring me like that, but warned her that her technique has a weakness to it. If she doesn't have full intel on the Bakugan she's replicating, then there was no way to get an opponent like myself scared of that ability.

That comment must have made her shift gears a little, because the look on her face told me that she had other things planned for me. Contestir coated his hands in pure light and was about to assault Dharak with a light-speed attack. Dharak promptly placed a circular shield in front of Contestir that made him collide with that instead, and the explosive results that followed blew him backwards into the barrier. As it did, the barrier itself shaped into a meteoric payload that dropped right on top of him. Contestir's best bet was to absorb it like he did my first attack, but I had a hunch that there was a limit to his ability. I wanted to check to see if the ability was absolute or not. Did it matter if the attack thrown at him was vastly stronger than his own power level? I was about to see.

[Rashad]

I waited a little while to see what would become of Kianna and Contestir. To my surprise, it was well worth the wait. Dharak's energy bomb turned yellow, which suggests to me that Contestir managed to overpower it and gain control of its properties. Contestir told us that we can have the attack back, and then threw it at us. Kianna warned me that Dharak would be defeated if that hits him, which was a possibility. Still, it wasn't going to happen.

Dharak made a loud roar to counterattack. An invisible energy stream was released from this roar that traveled all across the arena. Our own attack trembled and started to destabilize, just like Contestir was doing on the opposite side. Eventually, my reflected attack crumbled into pieces. The bits dropped to the arena floor as if it was nothing.

The father was getting more shocked at this display as the brawl went on. He caught on to the fact that I wasn't really trying, which was correct. I said so because I felt like Kianna wasn't trying either. The way I saw it, her and I were similar in the fact that we counter energy sources, so the both of us were locked in a stalemate in that regard; however, considering I can destroy whatever Kianna creates, I held the undeniable advantage for now.

Then...something changed within Contestir.

His power grew to an astonishing level, and he was now covered in a light purple aura. I looked at this with great curiosity. Was she using my energy to attack again? It looks like it, but it looks different this time. She's not using it to assume a Dharaknoid form. She was using it to directly combat a Dharaknoid, hence the use of Contestir's other attribute: anti-energy.

Contestir had assimilated Dharak's energy to create a new batch of energy that directly counters ours. This means that anything that comes from Dharak, whether physical or ranged, will do absolutely nothing to Contestir, because it was surrounded in a barrier that rejects our energy signature. I began thinking that this was a NECESSITY against Gallagher. If this girl can create anti-energy, then surely he'd be annihilated if we play our cards right and have good checks and balances across all areas. That's only if we were able to defeat this technique though...

Contestir comes towards me. His speed had increased. Dharak moved out of the way, but was still struck by some invisible force. He was knocked back slightly. At this point, I grimaced, because I was in trouble. If I shoot, not only will Contestir not be affected by it, but he could try and absorb the energy to continue with his onslaught. I had to ponder over it for a moment. Contestir continued to stay on Dharak's tail, not letting him breath AT ALL. He was clocked, shocked, and rocked all over the arena, but I didn't do a single thing. Kianna wondered how I was willing to stand here and watch Dharak get the stuffing kicked out of him. I chose not to reply. I just let Contestir keep going. That was all going to end soon, and for one good reason: me doing nothing.

The energy Contestir was using wasn't infinite, so it would run out eventually. Me not giving her anymore to work with was to my advantage for my next trick. I used High-Skewed Waver on purpose to send a couple of murderous balls up above. Dharak then used his tail to shoot a beam that split into several, striking each of the projectiles. This linked them together. Their combined power formed a huge portal that hovered above our heads. I could attack from this portal at any time I wanted to. Now sounded like a good option.

Contestir realized that the portal had identical energy signatures to the anti-Dharak energy he had on his skin. Dharak confirmed his realization. A shocked Kianna asked how. I answered that it came from Contestir hitting Dharak. I warned her that energy lingers far longer than she thinks it does, and I can even extend it via an ability, which I did. Because of this, I was able to transfer that energy into another attack. Out of the portal came a giant Evil Blow, taking on the appearance of a particle beam that engulfed Contestir in his entirety. He was sent back into ball form immediately, giving me the victory.

[Rashad]

Dharak gnarled upon winning the battle. The father was speechless, but the kids were very noisy. Kianna took the L rather well. She was happy that I was stronger than her, because it finally meant there was hope to get Gallagher out of Gundalia. I was happy to see that she agreed with that just as I thought she was my hope in getting rid of him.

The father asked me to come towards him. I did just as he said. He asked me if I was absolutely sure this was the path I wanted to take. He said he could easily arrange for me to live in this community without ever being discovered by the higher-ups from Gallagher's administration. I also had permission to date Kianna if I so wished, which made her blush in embarrassment. I replied that I needed to find out what Gallagher was doing anyway, even if I take my vengeance out of the equation. Energy buildup on the scale of getting the Neathians concerned was absolutely unacceptable and has to be analyzed before it's too late, or before they decide to come back to Gundalia to revive the war.

The father understood this, so he made a proposal. I was welcome to use this community as a personal headquarters for the time-being, but I was warned that I would have to act carefully, as any unwanted attention from Gallagher's government because of my actions may cost me a place here. I understood, and I assured him that I don't plan to do anything drastic now, because I was previously no match for Gallagher and still don't understand how or why I was defeated. If I don't find out how to defeat him or I feel that there's no way we can win, then it'll result in one of the two possible futures: (1) the energy buildup around Gundalia is apocalyptic in nature and will put us through an apocalypse, or (2) Neathia gets sick of what's going on and declares war, putting us back in the same situation we were in years ago. I also mentioned that what Gallagher put me through matched the level of savagery my father would have done, so they shouldn't be surprised if Gallagher would want to use Kianna or any other strong brawler as war instruments, even if it means destroying everything.

They heard my point loud and clear. It was decided. The father would go out to prepare something for me immediately. Meanwhile, I can hang out around the settlement in any way I pleased, but was warned to stay in human form at all times, even when going outside. Kianna suggested that she would show me around to get acquainted with the place. I asked her if it was supposed to be like a date just to joke around, and it got some laughs from everyone in the room except for her.

Before going, I made sure to extend my gratitude to Kianna and her parents. They knew what I was capable of by what I showed them in the past, but they still let me roam as if I was a comrade. I didn't know why they were so kind to me, but I promised that their kindness will not go unrewarded.

[Rashad]

The first place she took me to was the marketplace. I figured this would have been the most interesting place to be. What kind of culinary skills do the humans have? They must have been legendary, because Kianna swore by them and was going to one of her favorite places right now.

Along the way, she asked me what it was like living in the castle. I told her it was stressful. She was thinking it was because of me having to live under my father's expectations or whatever, but that wasn't it at all. It was the people around me that made it intense. See, whenever you have a high place in society or are very successful in what you do, guess what you get. Haters, and lots of them. We had one who tried to stage a coup once. If they were only targeting my father, I'd have let them get away with it. Unfortunately for them, they tried to include me and my mother in it. You can guess what happened to them.

Then there are those who give up an arm and a leg to prove how much better they are than me. There were many who thought it was a good idea to do that in actual war combat and got themselves killed. I'm glad it happened. Other times it would be "friendly". I use that term to put it as nice as I could, because what generally happens is that these people will proclaim me as their rival and will try to outdo me in anything possible. Whether Kianna would believe me or not, someone actually succeeded in doing so.

Without any surprise, this intrigued Kianna. I gave her his real name, Killian, then I gave her the name she may know him as: Prime. Kianna has heard of this name, as it was given to a certain person of our ranks who was unable to tame the power of his body and his Bakugan and would explode at any given moment. They say that he, other than Barodius, was the most dangerous being in Gundalia, maybe even surpassing Barodius himself without the aid of the Fifth Paladin. He was contained in a special prison after he proved to be extremely dangerous to the Twelve Orders and the entire planet as a whole. She asked me what made him so dangerous, considering the public never knew of his power. I told her of it: nuclear manipulation.

Killian's Bakugan was a Rubanoid who had the power to change his bodily characteristics to whatever form he saw fit. Also, thanks to his ability to create and manipulate nuclear forces, the Rubanoid often radiated energy that was radioactive, which only spelled disaster for those who were exposed. While Killian himself was cocky and arrogant, he was not a troublemaker, so he was greatly defiant when we attempted to strip him of his freedom for the safety of everyone else, even though - to him - he did nothing wrong. My father and I defeated Killian, but I admit that at the time, I was inferior to him, so the assistance was greatly necessary. Now I wonder if Gallagher is aware of Killian's existence and plans to use him as a weapon. It was a hypothesis I just figured out. That could be the result of the energy buildup going on, but then again, wouldn't we be dropping from radiation sickness if that were the case?

[Rashad]

Kianna admitted that everything I was saying was interesting, but she told me to lighten up a little and not focus on that stuff too much right now. That was asking a lot of me, because I did not know what else to think about at the time for obvious reasons. She then wrapped her arms around my left arm and insisted that I relax. I believe this was when she had used her powers to bring down my stress levels, because I did feel a lot more relaxed in an instant.

We approached a smoothie stand. She told the lady who was operating at the time that I was her boyfriend. Before I could voice my confusion over the apparent misunderstanding, she ended up getting a discount on the smoothies that were purchased. As she was making them, she mentioned how I looked like this "Redeemer" these people seem to be going on about, and wondered if I was him. I denied this. She began to see it that way only because my hair was not crimson. She then asked if I dyed my hair black just to fool everyone. That caused me to pause for a bit, but luckily, she retracted it, saying she was joking around...thankfully.

Kianna and I sat at a nearby table, drinking these fruit concoctions she was telling me about. As we did so, she continued our conversation. She asked if I ever lived "normally". Upon my confusion, she elaborated on that, using someone like her as an example of what a normal life is: playing with other kids, sleeping in on weekends, playing sports, getting in trouble, etc. I rarely got in trouble since there was a strict disciplinary system. I was disciplined in the same way soldiers were, ever since I was a baby. For that reason, I put more effort into staying out of trouble than I did fighting in a battle. That's really messed up, because some soldiers can be put to death for doing things kids would do, so that would mean I was being held to adult standards even though I was still in the faze of making decisions any child would make.

Need an example? Suppose someone comes up to you and pushes you for no reason. Naturally, some parents would tell their children to tell some adult about it rather than hitting them, right? That's not how it works here. Doing nothing would make you look like a little bitch to the entire race, and is punishable by death.

Then there's the recreational aspect of what Kianna was getting at. I rarely had the time to have fun. If I wasn't doing school work, I was expected to train constantly just to uphold our family honor in battle, or whatever rubbish that is. If I got caught having this "fun" Kianna spoke of, I'll be having all the social time I want at the "Dig", the name that's referring to the enslavement of the peasants because they don't want to say "mines".

What Kianna got from this was that I was all about business. This was correct. Then she asked about any girlfriends. I really didn't want to talk about Floria, and it showed on my face when I said it. I was livid just hearing her name right now. Kianna said she was sorry to hear that. She wanted me to look on the bright side of the situation. I could experience a childhood that I never got to live. In exchange for that, she has herself a powerful and handsome boyfriend. Yeah...about that...

It turns out that I had been blackmailed. If word gets out that I'm here, these people will go to siege against poor me. That means Kianna and her family were providing me a place to crash and to stay safe at. Now she could get discounts at her favorite places all she wants, she has someone to torture at various shopping centers, she'll gladly hear me nag about how many purses she has even though I only believe they should own one, and she's going to be laying on me whenever she wants to and I can't refuse. All of this pretty much screamed, "Your life is over." She said all of this with a cutesy smile on her face, as if this should be pleasing to hear. I wondered if she was going to rat me out if I refused. She then reminded me that I did kick her outside of the city. Hearing that, I shut my mouth, and groaned that I got myself stuck in this mess.

[Rashad]

Fast forwarding to the evening hours, I found out that Kianna's dad had an entirely new room added to the house. Knowing this was impossible to do via conventional building methods, I asked how that was done. He didn't go into great detail. He told me that there was a Bakugan owned by the settlement that had the power to do those kind of things. I asked if it costed him anything. Fortunately, it didn't, as the Bakugan had owed them a favor from something I didn't feel like asking about.

The Bakugan was also kind enough to provide a high-tech console in the room that could display all kinds of things. The most notable feature was a map of Gundalia just in case I've forgotten anything. Before I could thank them for the device, a hologram pops up in the center. It was some news reporter who was introducing a story about Gallagher. Then his sickening face pops up and, if by some coincidence, he starts releasing news to the public about how he wants to release Killian and how my father and I brutally mistreated him. This political nonsense has sickened me beyond what I could take right now. I asked to be alone.

I constantly looked for updates on this news story. Luckily for us, the move was met with a lot of opposition, since the people that actually knew what they were talking about were scared that Killian would end life on the planet. Dharak wondered how long it typically takes for a Gundalian emperor to get permission to make those kind of decisions. I informed him that emperors were not typically allowed to make those kind of decisions without the council's consent, which, in this case, would be the Twelve Orders. I didn't that mattered now anyway, because Gallagher was an usurper, so he may just defy the council and shut them up with the nasty powers that he has. Could I stop that? No, especially not from all the way out here. This was Neathia's problem to deal with in a way, so I would have to trust them to respond to that threat, because there was nothing I could do.

Someone knocked on the door as Dharak and I were talking about this. I let whoever it was in, and it was Kianna. She wonders if I had been looking at this console the entire night. With the threat of Killian being released, I couldn't look away from it, as this directly compromises my safety in general. It is very likely that Killian holds a grudge, so he will be hunting me if he ever gets out. There was also the concern of the radiation he'd be giving off, so even if I wanted to dodge him, we'd all be dead anyway.

I expected her to tell me to relax, but she surprised me with the approach she took. She asked me if what was happening was under my control right now. Clearly not. She guessed that I was getting stressed over it because I was used to being able to stop those things, or at least be able to offer valuable input on the situation. She used her powers on me once again to lower my stress and warned me that I was going to kill myself at this rate. She then told me that I didn't have anyone backseat brawling for me, so I didn't have to worry that much about Killian's release as there was nothing I could do to change the situation. If he ends up getting released, then we will deal with the issue.

"WE?" I asked. She had discovered what I was thinking when she wrapped her arms around my left arm. She also knows about how I think she's cute, which was very embarrassing. In all seriousness, she understands that her and Contestir's power interests me and will not object to fighting Gallagher if it means that, by putting me in power, the Gundalians who choose to live a human lifestyle will no longer be discriminated against or arbitrarily attacked anymore. She said that as if those things were still happening to them, even though one of the first things they did when I entered their house was show me a news story on how high Gallagher's approval rating was. That's when she told me that it was not what Gallagher was doing that was bothering them; it was the failure to do something that was causing problems.

Gundalians continue to attack them on an irregular basis. Gallagher does not deny any affiliation with these Gundalians nor does he accept them. What he did say when this issue was brought up was that he was going to hunt down any remnants of the results my father's actions caused and eradicate them all, but he has not done so. As I have seen when I first approached the settlement, they always travel in large groups, because the current climate outside of the barrier requires them to go as overboard as possible. I asked what they have in terms of battle power. She believes that there's a Ventus Bakugan that belongs to the Plitheon species that is supposedly their strongest being. They like to circle the area waiting to attack and steal supplies. I assumed these were scavengers fighting for the same resources, but why? They've earned my interest, so I will be paying them a visit very soon.

Kianna told me that I didn't have to do that, but I insisted on investigating them. As they were in the surrounding area, they were an immediate threat to me, so it was only logical that I make sure they're taken care of before I start moving. What was going to stop them from raiding me too if I went out there? The settlement sure as hell weren't going to provide me with a group that large, so it was an inevitable confrontation with them.