Episode 28: What I've Lived For

[Alana Cortese]

Alana could tell just by the look on Vince's face that he was struggling to form the words to speak to her, even if he knew what he was supposed to say. How could she not realize what was going on? "You don't have to say anything," Alana told him. "You shouldn't have to."

Knowing that she has been a nuisance to a degree ever since she was brought back was one thing. Outright saying it was another. She wasn't even sure that acknowledging that she wronged Vince, Noland, and Allen was enough to curb the disdain in the air. Putting the fact that it happened out there and showing remorse for it has to count for something...right? Especially when she actually means it and wants to do better?

"I acted like I knew what was best better than you did, and I lashed out at you even though you've been a great mentor to all of us, especially me. I valued your opinion greatly, and I foolishly chose to repay you by how I behaved back there. I'm really sorry...even though I think that's hardly enough for what could have happened to you because of what I did...'

Then she looked at Noland and Allen, the two closest friends she ever had, the ones she really hurt. "Noland...Allen...I've said some horrible things to the both of you, many of which called our faith in each other into question. I didn't respect the fact that we're a team and that we were keeping our best interests close. How I acted showed that I didn't believe in either of you as my friends who just wanted to see me and others safe above all else. I'm sorry I can't take what I said back, and I'm even more sorry that I ever said those things in the first place..."

[Noland Hardy]

Noland knew that he and his father had the advantage in looking what Alana said over. They saw Alana's test against Excedra while Allen was nowhere on the scene. What happened in the Darkus Dimension was clear that she meant everything she just said to them.

Noland wasn't particularly interested in what happened between her and Allen. He was more worried about her fear of him and basically comparing him to terrorists, something that affected him more than he would ever reveal. On the inside, his heart was shattered. Drago touched on that briefly when he was talking while Noland was asleep. That was why he was unable to push through the ailments initially anyway.

With that briefly reminding Noland of that pain, he really wasn't sure what to make of it. He even had to question what he saw during her test just because he had great difficulty in believing that she really wanted to fix things. To say that the resolution was as simple as an apology would be a deceitful thought to reveal so soon. It was just like Alana had said about calling her faith in them in question; maybe he didn't have faith in her right now.

"The feeling I'm getting from this is troubling," Drago felt, keeping this within his thoughts. "This doesn't look good...not at all."

Realizing that Vince and himself hasn't reacted yet, Noland turned to Allen briefly, wondering what was going through his mind. "Allen...help a brother out here...please..." Noland said, still not wanting to say anything out loud just yet.

[Allen Silva]

Noland was in a real pickle. Alana brought back his feelings of distrust and betrayal. Allen knew that Noland didnt know what to say, as he looked to Allen for a response. Problem was he didnt know what to say either. Alana's comments really caught him by surprise." Ill need a second to confer with my partner Gorem here. Be back in a second."

With that he walked a little bit away to ask Gorem for advice." What the hell am i gonna say about that? She sounds sincere, but she didnt listen last time."

" thats easy, say it again. Even if she hasnt gotten it through her thick skull, you guys are friends. Just be as real as possible"

He turned his head, then shouted out what was on his mind." You moron. We already knew all of that. You are our friend, and although you've done some things i dont quite approve of, but that doesnt change all of that. It takes time to atone for sin. Till then just let us help."

[Noland Hardy]

Allen's comment helped put things into perspective for Noland. Now he knew what his response was going to be like. He didn't want to just reiterate what Allen told her, even though it was true. He knew why the terrorism comment came out of her mouth. He saw it when he looked into her eyes right when he woke up.

"You must have been scared, huh?" Noland slowly approached her as he said this and planted a hug on her. "I understand. You've seen a lot more than I have, and you were affected by what you saw in a different way. I know what I reminded you of when you saw me out there. I could tell by what you said, and it was written all over your face. Be that as it may, never forget one thing."

He looked past Alana's shoulder at the rest of the Resistors as he made this next point: "We're just fighters. I don't mean to generalize all of us as if we're all the same as we fight for different reasons, but it doesn't change the fact that we don't use our power to terrorize. Sure, many people could fear our strength - especially in my case now, but what others may think is irrelevant as it has always been to you, Allen, and I. We just do what we do because we believe it to be the right thing to do. That's all we do."

Drago nodded in agreement with Noland's ideology, that their self empowerment comes from more than just how powerful they are.

"I want you to promise me one thing, Alana," he proposed. "Promise me that you will never stop believing in us - all of us, including the Legendary Soldiers. We're tied in this together. We have to be there for each other. I believed in you even throughout the times I fought with you. Now I'm asking you to trust me so that we can get through this...together again."

[Alana Cortese]

Noland's hug surprised her more than Allen actually calling her a moron - a well-deserved description though. It was a heartwarming moment, so she couldn't help not hugging Noland back.

Why would she reject one of those anyway?

"Awwwww," Hydranoid chimed. He stopped fighting Excedra briefly just to say that. The Legendary Soldier seemed to agree since he didn't seem to want to fight anymore, but that wasn't important.

"Why is it that someone like you acts so out of character because of a girl?" Excedra noticed. "Whatever makes you happy, I guess..."

"I understand...and I promise," Alana accepted. "Thank you...both of you..." She then made eye contact with Vince to see what he was going to say about it.

[Vince Hardy]

"So that's how it's going to go down then? This is the decision that you are comfortable with?"

Vince remembered warning Noland about Alana's potential to harm him on a level that he doesn't even know of, leaving him scarred for a very long time - if not forever. All he could do was shrug it off and hope that Noland knew what he was doing and that Alana was being sincere with her apology. It's not like he wanted to think she wasn't going to fall back on some old ways. The only reason why he was concerned is because it happened when he was growing up. It's a disturbing part of life.

"If they can see the good in you, then so can I. Will I do that? Absolutely," Vince reluctantly surrendered. He knew he was lying through his teeth to a certain extent. She was being kept on watch and there was nothing either of them could do about it. "We're all still breathing, and we've picked up a lot of valuable experiences. Right now, we just need to take those gifts and use them to their maximum benefit. Forgiveness is one of them, and I see that we're all on one accord with each other now. Just pray that we don't have cause to meet like this again."

Vince diverted his attention away from the original trio and took a look at the newest "recruits" as he liked to imagine it. The first one he chose to pick on was Seiki. Her test was quite the entertainment for him.

"I'm sorry. Seiki, was it? I can't hold this question in any longer," Vince started off as he looked at her. He pointed his right thumb back at Noland as he asked a certain question. He had a sneaky smile on his face too. "Do you have something important to tell my son?"

[Seiki Maki]

seiki maki

The Ventus brawler was silently standing there, watching Noland and Alana have their little moment together. She knew they were close friends, having a long history together like Noland did with Allen, Seiki still couldn't shake off that small emotion needle pricking at her called jealousity.

Then Vince spoke.
Seiki was completely taken by suprise on this question. Like, seriously. This literally comes out of no where for her. She ends up choking on her on saliva and went into a coughing fit with Ahio flying off to get her a cup of water to make sure nothing bad happened.

All of that because of that one question.

That one wonderful question.

Well, she knew she was going to face it one day. Just not like... This.

Seiki was hoping this would come in a little more peaceful and almost "romantic" sort of way, not here with a whole bunch of peering eyes and acute ears.

After drinking down the cup of water that Ahio brought, Seiki quickly retorts back, "N-No! What makes you think t-that?!" Maybe if you squint really hard, you can see that faint tinge of pink called blush nesting on her cheeks.

A sigh was heared from her feathered bakugan. "Denial again. First step to lo-" Ahio's statement was cut short by Seiki taking off a feather (or a scale now that she has some) like usual.

ulla

[Vince Hardy]

Vince chuckled at how flustered Seiki was when he asked the question. He expected that to happen; although, she should know Noland is aware of it already considering they all heard and saw what happened during her test.

"You two are funny," Vince commended. "Don't worry about it. It's normal to not make a step like that out in the open. My mother used to do that to me all the time. I guess it was only a matter of time before I picked up on the habit as well."

He then looked at Tracy who was in a similar situation. "You and Seiki surprised me when I saw you two battling, by the way. You're late bloomers, especially in your case, Tracy. It seems that there was something or someone that helped you awaken your powers." He gave Tracy the same smirk that he gave Seiki. "Do I really need to say it, Tracy?"

[Tracy White]

Before Tracy would even think about what was wrong with what happened - in a sense that she didn't quite want to stay that way, there was something said that nearly edged out everything else. It was probably the best thing that has ever been said to her.

"...Did he just...acknowledge our power...?" To be complimented by a legendary brawler like Vince was almost like a dream. She felt like she had gotten somewhere ever since she met Noland.

Then there was the part about the implication of her liking Noland. It's not like that was wrong, but...

"U-um..." Tracy's face lit up in pink. She was really embarrassed about it because Niko's earlier statement of her and Seiki's similarities when it comes to their feelings about Noland was confirmed by what Vince said. That now meant that there was a four way deadlock; it was really hard for her to swallow that fact, to be in a competition like this. "I can already tell you're going to have too much fun with this..."

"You got them good that time," Skystar said to Vince.

[Vince Hardy]

"I'm so going to enjoy this, but it's not all that bad. Look at it this way. He's a lot more dense than you think he is," Vince exposed. It was something only he would know about anyway. He wasn't even sure if Noland even knows about their crushes from what is already known about him from growing up. "I'm the one who told him Alana liked him in the first place..."

The last ones he had to address personally were the two pros, Tank and Markus. Vince was a former pro himself, so he knew what to look for when determining whether someone was going to be a threat or not. They both had what it took to him.

"I think you would have both realized this by now. In case you haven't, I'll let you know now. That honor you received at the end of the Maryland state championships is a rarity. There are only four brawlers that have ever registered the stats required to move on up at your age. I never expected that I would see two of them apart of the Resistors." After acknowledging both Tank and Markus to be two of the strongest brawlers in high school history based on that award alone, Vince couldn't help but congratulate them for how strong they are.

"So tell me...which one of you is stronger?"

[Tank Stryker]

There it was. That one question Vince asked easily made him and Markus fight each other in the past. He must have known it was a trigger. He saw how easily it was to incite a reaction out of Seiki and Tracy. This man had to have been the calmest troll Tank had ever seen in person.

Tank knew what his usual response would be to a question like that though. The answer was usually him, of course; however, he had a different answer this time. Gladion expected the usual, so he didn't see this one coming.

"To be honest, Mr. Hardy, we're around the same level right now," Tank said with a straight face.

Gladion had never turned his head so fast in his life when he heard Tank say that. Then he saw a visible grin on his face, showing that he wasn't quite done with what he had to say about him and Markus yet.

"However," Tank paused, his face showing a smile this time. "When it comes to who is more consistent and who has the better record..."

[Markus Hederick]

"Wait...really...?"

Markus was just waiting for Tank to say he was stronger once again. It was the perfect time to say it in front of a legend like Vince. He didn't this time, shocking him greatly. Then Tank had to shatter the respect he gained from Markus out of that comment by making a very clear suggestion with bringing up their overall records and their attitudes in battle.

"Took the bait very easily..." Gargulion sensed.

"So you are going to go there, aren't you!? Even the Redskins can beat teams who have a higher win percentage!" Markus argued. "You know, I am a pro despite those differences though. That counts for something in my book."

[Vince Hardy]

Vince laughed at the bickering that occurred between Tank and Markus after what was said. It was sort of nostalgic for him to see that in a way.

"You both remind me of Andrew and I when we were younger. We were rivals just like this, only with me being the one that was constantly catching up," Vince revealed. He didn't want to say that it was all about how you finish since they were smart enough to already know that.

Lars Lion prophesied on the side about what was going to happen between the two of them. "I disagree...One of you is stronger than the other, and you will see that very soon...Tank and Markus," she silently predicted.

"It's nice to meet all of these new faces. Two professionals, one late bloomer, and someone who is beginning to see how strong she can be...it's great to have you. It's obvious that none of us here envisioned our lives turning out like this, but I thank you all for sticking with each other through these terrible times we're in right now. The Legendary Soldiers and I have brought you here to not only awaken the power you already had inside of you, but to get you in the mindset of doing something that you will never be prepared to do. The Hurranians are the most threatening enemy ever encountered by humans or Bakugan. Unfortunately for them, through the power that has now been restored to the Legendary Soldiers from centuries of dormancy..."

"...so have they."

[Dasia Turano]

The grand finale for the mechanical Bakugan project had finally come to pass. The head scientist had come into the throne room with Boriates and Dryoid walking alongside him.

"Back so soon?" Dasia zipped down her steps to meet the head scientist at the bottom. She was excited for the Bakugan to finally be given to her. "Where is it? Show me, show me, show me!"

He was definitely about to do what she was asking. Rather than be formal about it the way she wanted him to, he got down on one knee like he was proposing to her. He was slapped in the face quicker than he could say what he planned to say.

"Ow..." He rubbed his left cheek as the pain was really starting to set in. "Worth it..."

"You make me sick sometimes! Just give me the Bakugan already!"

[Xavier Turano]

"What the fuck is going on in here!?"

Xavier burst through the doors and walked in on a rather awkward scene between Dasia and his head scientist. The word to remember there is the word "his" since he had been put to work without his knowledge, leading to creations being crafted that he didn't approve of. His face was really turning red from how mad he was. Based on what he was about to reveal, he would be hard-pressed to not have a stroke.

"Dryoid? Boriates? You can't just let them roam wherever they please. You're scaring the citizens in Alpha City! And why the hell is there a mechanical spider underground mass producing Hurranians? Did you let a mechanical Bakugan get infected? And why are you on one knee? Can we have some transparency here!?"

The head scientist approached Xavier and touched his shoulder before he gave him some news. Well, that's what he would have done if he were considered to be a normal Vestal.

"You saw and heard nothing, sir. Do you understand that?"

"Sure...I guess. Now why did I come in here again?"

"You were just leaving to go back to the lab to erase all records of Mac Spider and Diablo."

"Ah. There it is. Thanks a lot. By the way, did Dasia give you her daily rejection of your feelings?"

"Please go away so I can prevent any more shame on my person. Please."

"One day, Chris. One day." With that said, Xavier walked out of the throne room like nothing had even happened.