Episode 15: Rising Tensions

[Damian Knight]

At long last, Damian had finally been able to confront the one person that that can be considered a dangerous equal to him: Noland, the Master Blaze, the hero of the United States, the hero of the world. They both have an idea of what the other is capable of. Both of them are immensely strong. Both of them favored offense. Now was where they could settle whose better.

"Heh." Damian caught on to how mad Noland looked across from him. "That's becoming your signature look, Noland. You look like that everywhere you go now. Did I rustle your Dragonoid's wings too much?" He heard many people around the stadium cheer Noland on, but they booed him. It was a general consensus that they wanted Noland to win. He didn't have a problem with that though; they weren't battling, but he was. "You know how I roll. The first one unable to battle by any outcome will lose."

"Don't let that scare you out of fighting back," Helios cautioned them. "If you fight me like you fought your girlfriends, you'll do just fine."

The ref called the match. There were no gate cards and no help. It was just a straight one-on-one clash.

"Time to kill each other." Damian grabbed Helios and launched him out front. "Bakugan brawl! Stand, Gamblignant Helios!" Once Helios hit the ground and bounced a few times, he stood close to the center. With his wings wrapped around him and his feet burning the ground he stood on, he stood in a combat-ready stance, ready to beat Drago as soon as he stood.

[Noland Hardy]

Noland took the stand without saying a word. His face was void of any feelings, except anger, which Damian conveniently brings out of people. He was going to let his foe talk all he wanted to. He knew there would be a lot of talking as it was before, even during their first confrontation. That's why the comments directed towards him didn't phase him one bit because he knew that if he played his cards right, nothing else mattered. The crowd was with him. Allen, Alana, Tracy, Kendrick, and Grandma were with him to support him. Most of all, Drago was with him, and they weren't about to let a Spartan walk over them regardless of their equality. It was going to end today; he promised himself that he'd see to it that it did.

"I'm not playing your game anymore, Damian. If you want to continue to talk during this fight, then go ahead. I'll be doing the brawling," Noland assured. "And you might think you can multi-task like you've done to others, but, since the previous battle's result is already on your mind, you know I'm not like the others. We both know how this is going to end, and it's not going to be by word of mouth. It's going to be you and Helios on the ground crying like little bitches."

Noland held Drago close to his face. The Dragonoid opened himself up to hear what Noland needed to say. "Watch yourself out there. He fights dirty."

"So did Dharak."

"I like the way you think. Give him hell." Drago closed up and was ready to be launched. "Bakugan brawl! Sentinel Dragonoid, stand!" Noland purposely threw him with impressive launch power so that he could clash right into Helios upon standing. It was a tie, but Helios was pushed farther back due to the momentum Drago carried.

[Damian Knight]

"Heh. Is that what you really think?"

Helios kept his footing on the way back. The flame trail that followed him gradually went away as time passed. Almost immediately after Helios and Drago butted heads, Damian had already took that time to process the ability he was going to use.

"I've got a surprise for you, Noland. Remember how I talked and fought my way into making sure you didn't win? Yes. Of course. Do you know what that means? I definitely can multi-task against you." He played the ability while Helios was getting it ready in advance. "Ability activate! Meteor Quasar!" Helios charged a fireball in his mouth that took around two seconds for it to expand to a medium-sized ball. He launched it in Drago's direction. The ability's properties makes it quite deceptive as it doesn't just rely on a direct impact to cause substantial damage; the attack can actually implode on itself, and cause a much bigger explosion that initially expected.

[Noland Hardy]

Noland knew that he couldn't simply dodge the attack as a means of avoiding damage since the time between the clash and the casting was too low. He improvised. "Ability activate! Novia Blade!" Drago's horn extended into a blade where he stretched it all the way in front of him until he made contact with Helios's attack. After striking it, the fireball imploded, causing a rocking explosion on the battlefield that sent a striking feeling inside of Noland and Drago, the feeling of knowing that their opponents were packing some serious power just like before.

"I'm still standing after one ability, Helios. That should tell you something," Drago boldly announced.

Feeling like he needed to return the favor and seriously pressure Helios, Noland chose his next attack wisely. "It's not what I think that matters, Damian. It's what I know," he countered. "Go, Grand Destructor!" Drago looked up to shoot a giant fireball from his mouth. Once it reached a certain height to where it was above the highest point of the stadium, it dispersed into a series of meteor-like projectiles that rained down on Helios.

[Damian Knight]

Damian had to hide it. He was unhappy with his ability being countered. It wasn't just the idea of it being countered that upset him. It was how Drago countered it. He didn't even put any effort into doing so. That's the most anyone could say with going against him so far. He couldn't let Noland have that moment. And now Drago was celebrating it. Only Damian could do that. He felt insulted.

"What it tells me, Drago," Helios commenced, "is that you're counting down the time you have left on the field."

"That's fine by us. But let's make one thing clear. You've been wrong before, haven't you?" Damian formed the counter response needed to evade the damage that was coming his way through the makeshift meteor shower Drago concocted. "Ability activate! Burst Mode!" Helios's body temperature was pushed to normal temperature of a volcano from the inside; his scales lit up to reflect this increase as well. It was so high that a barrier formed around Helios to destroy any meteorite that came within close proximity. After having that protection on his side, he charged straight for Drago to pummel him with his increased physical power, a huge advantage of having that much fiery power burning within him.

[Noland Hardy]

"You're mistaken," Drago responded. "That counter's for you."

Noland swiped a card as soon as he saw Helios dash. He had the perfect counter to it. "Ability activate! Molten Ire!" Drago was donned with a dark red cloak that boosted his physical parameters using raw power rather than body heat. The aura will also offer him a much-needed protective measure in the form of increased resilience, which is more than what Helios can say his ability gives him despite having a shield. Thanks to his charge, that'll go down quick, because Drago charged to meet him fist to fist. They traded blows over and over. Drago's resilience held, but Helios's shield didn't, so Drago was able to win that exchange handily. Drago delivered a strong elbow to Helios's gut before sending him away with a right hook to the jaw. He flew after him to continue battering him until it was over.

"Not doing so much talking now that you're getting your ass beat, huh?" Noland inquired.

[Damian Knight]

Damian cracked an evil-looking smile when Noland's confidence was boosted by Helios getting knocked back the way he did. The scenario offered Helios an opportunity to catch Drago by surprise, so the situation wasn't all that worrisome.

"Careful, Noland. It's not wise to talk and battle at the same time," Damian joked before playing his card. "Ability activate! Eruption Claw!" Helios had not begun to recover from the hits, so he was still in the flying animation as a result of the knock-back. This was perfect, because the ability being played would allow him to amplify his nails with a ferocious flame, dig them into the arena grounds, and produce an explosive result. And that it did.

"Choke on this!!!" Helios yelled. The power sent along the ground caused numerous light pillars to rise from the ground. It resulted in an explosion akin to that of an eruption. It covered the entire arena, destroying pretty much everything there was to it. Lava puddles were scattered all over from the aftermath. A cooked Dragonoid was also spotted lying on the field, smoke coming from his body to match that description perfectly. Helios was kneeling down after regaining his footing. His scales gradually lost their bright coloring from the amount of fire it was exposed to.

"Awww, your Dragonoid's hurt, Noland. You might want to do something about that, if you can." Helios approached Drago when he got up. He stomped on his head and continuously tortured him with a fiery stream on his back.

[Noland Hardy]

"You've got to be kidding me..."

The audience gasped when Damian and Helios completely blindsided Noland and Drago with the move they just performed. Everything was totally leveled, and not even Drago's Molten Ire could protect him from being damaged; it was completely broken down like it didn't even matter. Now Helios was stomping all over Drago just like he's known to do to his opponents. No one would have expected it'd be Noland of all people.

"That's enough." Noland knew he had to stop Helios from attacking Drago while he was down or he was going to lose very quickly. "Ability activate! Paragon Blazer!" Drago's energy poured out of his body until a giant phoenix avatar was erected. This flipped Helios off of Drago to give him time to recover. While doing so, Drago dove straight into Helios to continuously burn him. He dragged him into the sky while he progressively healed himself of any damage done to his being.

"You didn't think this was going to be easy, did you?" Drago slipped out of his avatar's protection. As he did so, his eyes lit up until it completely became a bright shade of red. "Havoc Ignition!" He shot laser beams out of his eyes directly at the avatar. What this did was detonate it to completely smother Helios with maximum damage.

[Kendrick Hardy]

"You see that, Vince? That's your son down there doing what you both do best," Grandma thought to herself.

"Ha! Classic!" Kendrick laughed after seeing the explosive combo Drago landed on Helios. "Bring it home, Noland!"

Just as the battle was getting good, Grandma asked, "Hey, Ken. Didn't that lady friend of yours say that she went to the restroom thirty minutes before the battle started?"

"Don't get the wrong idea..." Kendrick sighed. "But yes, she did. Mrs. Hederick went with her as well and they still haven't come back." Kendrick then looked to his right to see three empty seats where the whole family was supposed to sit. "Mr. Hederick has been gone as well. Strange how we didn't notice that at all..."

"I'm going to check."

"So will I."

"No, you stay here. One of us has to see the ending."

"I already know Noland's going to win, so I'm not anticipating anything."

They both got up from their seats and roamed the hallways. They reach the bathroom. The first thing that they do is split up: Kendrick into the men's restroom and Grandma into the women's. When Kendrick walked in and saw what he saw, he couldn't comprehend what he was looking at. "But...that doesn't make any sense. Why in here of all places?" He saw Mr. Hederick on the floor in front of the sinks. He was unconscious. Kendrick quickly approached him and checked for vitals, but the presence he felt while in contact with him made him freak out. "Oh hell no! Grandma!"

He ran out of the restroom and was about to barge into the women's restroom, but he was too late. Grandma had already pulled an unconscious Maya out of their. Kendrick checked her vitals too, and while she was still living, she was in the same state her father was in: unconscious and infected by Hurranian. "What. Is. This!?"

"Did you find Mr. Hederick in there too?"

"Yes, I freaking did. And you know what else? Both him and Maya are in the same condition right now. The Hurranians got them, and now they have you too!"

Kendrick's higher than average anger level got the attention of some security guards that were patrolling the area. "What's going on here!? We heard Hurranian!" one of the guards said.

"Yes, uh...well..."

"Go on, maam. Spit it out."

"You better not..." is what Kendrick would have said if he wasn't going to be heard. He was thinking he'd get Lydia and Noland to cure them again rather than getting destroyed by the guards for it.

"That girl's unconscious." they finally noticed, which should have been the first thing they should have said. "I know I heard Hurranian come out of your mouth. Is that girl infected?"

"...Yes..."

"Grandma!"

"And you two are close to her, which means there's a likely chance that you're both infected as well." This obviously wouldn't be true in Kendrick's case since it has been established that he's immune.

"...Yes..."

"So that means you must be destroyed to prevent the outbreak from continuing at this location."

"...No..."

"Stop..." Kendrick knew this wasn't going to stop the guard from attempting to carry out the job. He summoned his Robotallion to blow all of them up at once. "Please...stop this."

"I wish I could, but it's necessary to both you and I, son. I don't want anyone else dying to this garbage, and I don't want you all to suffer through what they have to put you through." The Robottalion started to charge up.

At this point, Kendrick's emotions was starting to destroy him from the inside. Grandma's infected. Maya's infected. Someone else knows this, and they're about to destroy them. Two people close to him are about to be erased from existence. Again, two people close to him are about to be erased from existence. Once more, two people close to him are... He snapped.

"I said STOP!!!" Kendrick's voice changed to a much darker tone. His skin also changed. It became pale. He had gray skin, grayish-blue marks under his eyes and neck, and grew a horn-like appendage around his head. He generated electricity in his hands and sent it into Robotallion's body, short-circuiting it to deprive it of weaponry.

"Oh...oh no...please don't...I'm sorry!" The security guard stepped back to get ready to run. "Help me!!!!" Kendrick immediately used the same technique to send a lethal electrical surge through the guard, killing him instantly.

"..." Grandma was utterly shocked at what she saw and backed away slowly, making sure to hide Maya off to the side. She heard multiple footsteps coming from both directions.

When they saw Kendrick, they notified their superiors through walkie-talkie. "Sir, notify all police departments in the area. We've got a Gundalian in the area. I repeat, we've got a Gundalian in the area."

[Damian Knight]

Drago's attack was sure to have done considerable damage to Helios. The way it was done definitely should be concerning, especially when dealt with at close range. Damian didn't seem to mind it though. He wasn't happy about it, but he wasn't worried. Helios was quite furious with it, and he made sure everyone knew it.

"You want to bump up the difficulty then, Drago? Here's your death wish." The smoke cleared, leaving Helios in the sky with his wings unwrapped to maintain flight. His wings reflected the orangeness usually depicted from the planet's sun. His scales became more streamlined, taking on the appearance of a set of armor. They also covered more areas of his body than previously seen, most notably his chest area.

"I'd say you backed me into a corner by doing what you just did, but I'd only be leaving out the unfortunate situation you just placed yourself in," Damian nonchalantly mentioned. "That's Helios's Second Layer you see there. I guess if you want to pat yourselves on the back for being the first ones to bring that form out of us in a long while, feel free to do so. My treat."

Damian revealed an ability card that he was about to use. "Just remember that a good thing always has its consequence, mainly in the form of a more dangerous beast than you've already struggled to take on. Ability activate! Void Quasar!" Helios conjured a fireball in his mouth. He acted like he was going to launch the projectile at Drago, but he didn't. What he chose to do instead was disperse it. This sent a vicious wave of fire that covered a wide space out in front of him, including where Drago was currently located. The broken pieces of the ground began to melt away, and random eruptions would occur throughout the affected areas.

[Noland Hardy]

Drago was on the same level as Helios in the sky from the last exchange. When Damian gave the okay, Drago patted himself on the back like he said just to joke around a little.

"So you're worried about my safety because of Helios's new form? I'm flattered you care about me enough to warn me," Noland sarcastically said. "You're not the only one that can up the ante. It comes with the same strings attached if you were wondering."

Noland's left hand blazed with the rainbow-colored aura that comes with this signature power-up. The same intensity sparked in Drago's body to make his color scheme the same coloration. Noland then swiped a rainbow-colored ability card.

"Ability activate! Advanced Supremacy!" Drago's body blazed like he was the source of a treacherous wildfire. This brought his skills up a notch to be more in line with Helios's enhancements, maybe even a little bit stronger. The fiery mess that his rival created did absolutely nothing to him. The constant eruptions taking place underneath that would have incinerated him failed to do any damage. One more card came out of Noland's sleeve, and it were rainbow colored as well.

"Let's roll!"

"Ability activate! Novia Charge!" Drago's horn gleamed an overflowing rainbow-coloring that became the base for the tornado-like aura revolving around him. He jetted through the air like a bullet to one-shot Helios.

[Damian Knight]

"So that's what you're going to do, huh? Think that can take...the core of your own planet?"

Damian got his next ability ready. Even someone that talks as much trash as him knows that he doesn't want to be hit by Drago's attack. That's why he was conjuring something just as fierce, if not more lethal, than just the Bakugan's raw power.

"Unleash me, Damian!" Helios commanded, now more fired up than ever.

"You heard him, guys. I gotta do it. He demands it." He shamelessly used it. "Ability activate! Malevolent Core!" A signature ability utilized while in Second Layer, Helios drew power from the core of the planet itself. This could be seen through the lights scattered around the ground inside and outside the stadium. The energy turned into particles that began filling Helios's reserves, and now, he was ready to use it as a weapon.

"Lights out, Drago!" Helios transferred the energy to his own horn as well. While not the most preferred option, it was the safest one. Drago was fast as lightning, and anything else Helios could have tried wasn't; therefore, he'd likely get struck down before he gets the chance to complete the attack. He thought it was interesting that Noland made the circumstances that way, but it was something they had to go with to prevent themselves from looking like idiots without anything better to do.

Helios charged towards Drago with his entire being masked by the ferocious power the core granted him. As soon as their horns made the lightest touch, it was over. The clash literally rocked the entire stadium, and both Helios and Drago crashed to the ground, smoke engulfing both of them as they slowly recovered to face each other once more.

"You're a hard one to take down," Damian commended, a rarity for him. "You have enough juice to do something akin to Helios's Third Layer?"

[Noland Hardy]

"Third...Layer...?" Drago faintly wondered as he got back up, still burning in his Supremacy aura.

"This guy..." Noland was exacerbated at the idea of Damian and Helios having something else up their sleeve past the power levels they're already on. It wasn't that he had nothing in his arsenal to respond to such power, but this was something else. Helios in Second Layer could go hand-in-hand with Drago in this state. He didn't know what to expect from the Third Layer, if Damian wasn't actually bluffing and Helios had one. He would hope that the high-powered attacks Drago was keeping in reserve would be enough, because if it wasn't...

"Stop! End the battle!" the ref suddenly blurted out.

Saved by the bell.

"Attention, all viewers!" a voice over the intercom stated. "Please remain calm and stay in your seats!"

"Why?" Numerous explosions started circling the stadium until a gray-skinned individual appeared in the stands. Mass hysteria followed suit with numerous people shouting the word "Gundalian" before running off to who knows where, making it very difficult for the Gundalian to be tracked. Noland caught a glimpse of the Gundalian and made eye contact with him, but he gave a glare to the alien in the small time they saw each other.

"Disgusting freak..."

[Kendrick Hardy]

Kendrick wasn't concerned with the people running away in fear of how he looked. What he was concerned about was getting away from the battle suit-clad Robotallion that wanted to kill him. He thought going into the stands was a bad idea since they'd probably kill everyone else just to get to him; it was a terrible thought to ever consider, but after what they've done to certain people in the community, it was very understandable to think that way. Since they somehow had enough decency to not shoot into the ground, Kendrick's strategy worked. He was able to use them as a diversion. This allowed him to get some distance from the battle suits.

He jumped down to the ruined field to get across faster as opposed to shoving his way through the line or getting hit by the audience members. When he did, he made eye contact with Noland. He stuck to the walls to prevent himself from being exposed out in the open, but by that time, the cameras were fixated on his position, so it didn't matter anyway. He made eye contact with Noland, but didn't hear what he said due to being so far away. He thought about running to him for protection, but what good would that do? He knows how they all feel about Gundalians. Drago would probably kill him before he gets within arms length. Noland would also be put in harms way if they decide to blow him up next to him. The suits were getting too close, and Noland was too far away. He had to run as far away as he could, and hope that he could last long enough to get somewhere safe.

"Noland, this is Kendrick!!! Grandma and the Hedericks are infected with the Hurranians! Go help them!!!!" Kendrick shouted what he could at Noland before he got to the end of the stadium. He effortlessly scaled the walls until he got back in the stands again, ran up the bleachers, and jumped off at the very top of the path.

[Noland Hardy]

"Wha-what!? Kendrick!?"

Noland's eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets when he heard the Gundalian address by him by name and identify himself as Kendrick. That revelation was worse than Karen turning out to be Alana. This was a very big deal for him because Kendrick was now running with targets lined up all over his body. One other person may end up the same way too... "Then...there's a possibility that...I'm a..."

His mind became messed up on what to think after that. If Grandma, Maya, and her parents were infected, there would be nothing he could do about it anyway. It's already been proven that his power alone was not enough to purge them from their bodies, so that'd be a waste anyway. The security and the incoming police seemed to be more focus on the alleged Kendrick, so Grandma should be alright staying where she is. Kendrick was in immediate danger though as he was about to be destroyed one piece at a time just for running around as a Gundalian without any other factors involved. He hated Gundalians, which would probably mean he would hate Kendrick and, possibly, himself, but none of that mattered. That was his brother. He couldn't let him die regardless of what color he was, not now, not ever.

"Noland...are you alright?" Drago asked to see where Noland's mind was headed.

"No, I'm not. I don't think I'll ever be alright again," he answered. "That's irrelevant right now though. What really matters is that we're standing around here for too long. We need to go, now!"

"Agreed." Drago turned around to fly towards Noland to pick him up off of the ground with his right hand. He placed him on his back, and then took off after Kendrick.