Prologue: The Collision

[Noland Hardy]

Two years after the Hurranians have been defeated, somewhere in a deeply hidden part of the Doom Dimension...

(Naga's Domain)

The land was devoid of life to the very roots of the dead trees that were scattered all over. The waters were roaring in anguish of everlasting pain and suffering. The skies never permitted anything below to see the light of day. In fact, day never came in this place. It was everlasting darkness caused by a large orb high in the sky. It was a purple sphere that had black lightning radiating in its interior. 

A White One resided here. It strolled along the desolate sands as it awaited a visitor. It looked just like Wavern, except for the masculine appearance. This must be the brother that Genesis Dragonoid and Wavern spoke of: Naga.

He stopped when he sensed his guest's arrival. He nodded to give acknowledgement and permission to enter. A pillar of light appeared in front of Naga to drop Wavern off. 

"Sister..." Naga muttered.

"Brother..." Wavern muttered also.

The two White Ones took a while before they surprisingly embraced each other; however, they were both affected by a shocking repulse that separated them after three seconds. Still, neither of them seemed to be bothered that much about the forced separation, for they knew why it had to be so.

"The Dharaknoid has gone back to the core to recharge," Naga revealed.

"As with Genesis," Wavern replied. "Which means we have a 24-hour rest period before our next shift of 500 more years."

"And it's also the time where we can act like siblings, not enemies."

"Exactly. And with that, you should know what I'm about to ask you."

"I know, the reason why I called you here this time instead of coming to you - two reasons, actually. One, are your Legendary Soldiers dead?"

"The previous ones have perished, yes. New ones have been appointed."

"Did you inform them about the time intervals for maintaining the seal on our two residents below us?"

"No. They're not ready for that yet. Yours?"

"You're funny."

"Well then, there's nothing we can do. We're not allowed to tamper with the seal ourselves, so those two will be free in the near future."

"All of these rules make me sick."

"Same, but it only makes sense that we aren't allowed to. We're the gods."

"Who are under the authority of the two original Bakugan, one of which WANTS both of them to get out."

"You've had plenty of years to tell Dharak that this isn't the way."

"You want to tell him that?"

"Everything will be destroyed if you don't..."

"I know...but I'll be fired AND destroyed if I mention it at all. It's taboo to say it. That battle was the worst thing that has ever happened in all of history. He's not going to let that go... I'm sorry, but I can't stop it."

"Fine...I know I shouldn't blame you, but..."

"You can't help it. It's whatever to me. Strike 1 was the extinction of the dinosaurs. Strike 2 was the flood. Nothing I said mattered; he did all that shit anyway. These are two Bakugan that have fought with him against Genesis Dragonoid. You know I'm getting the boot if I tell him that they shouldn't be let out. You have it easy. Me? Destruction is my life. I can't know anything else or I'm no good."

"I know...I'm sorry...I just... I just wish that you both used your power for good and actually destroyed those two... They're the most dangerous enemies known to Bakugan..."

"If it wasn't for you and Genesis Dragonoid making fools out of yourselves by alienating Dharak and I to the point of exclusion, you'd have had your wish."

"...Fair enough. New topic, since this is getting heated between us... Our impending problem..."

"Yes...the Collision...is finally upon us..."

[Fury]

In the sealed-off portion of the Doom Dimension...

(Doom Dimension Depths)

There was a run-down cathedral in a rocky wasteland. A dark twister was above the structure, and it made traveling through the area very risky. Despite this, loud footsteps were heard nearing the cathedral. It was coming from a winged skeletal creature that was nonchalant about the treacherous environment.

When it entered the cathedral, an orange-haired monstrosity was seen on the pulpit meditating.

"Do you feel that?" it said while still in meditation. "Our seal is getting weaker...and the Legendary Soldiers haven't come to 'fix' it yet. It's not like them to be tardy, so they may have finally gotten what they deserved. Good for us..."

"..."

"...Why so down? I figured you'd be happy about that, Fury."

"...Do not go out there..."

"...I'm sorry?"

"...Genesis Dragonoid is still around... You will get us banished again..."

"Now why would I go and do something like that?"

"YOU did this to me, Betadron! That's why!" Fury's shout shook the entire Doom Dimension. It was clear he was getting very pissed off.

"Heeeeeeeyyyyyy. Come on now. We're pals, right? I did what a buddy should have done. You told me you wanted power, so I led you in that direction, and then-"

"YOU will do things by MY rules this time! Any deviation, and I'll have your head!"

"As you should, your almightiness."

Fury then stomped out of the cathedral after he was done talking. Betadron then went back to his mediation, but not without getting the last word in. "Almighty bitch."

Without a second passing, the entire cathedral was blown away, and the dark twister above it was destabilized. Betadron was wide-eyed when he realized it was Fury who did it with just a glare...

"Thanks a lot. I needed that, despite me piecing it all back together...twelve hours ago..." Betadron sighed.

"...I change my mind...you will go..." Fury decided.

"Gee, thanks."

"...Go fetch me the boy..."

[Darius Hardy]

The "boy" happened to be playing airplane with four giant beings that have also been banished to the Doom Dimension by extension. They were playing catch with each other by using the little boy as the "ball". He was laughing every time he was soaring through the air.

"This is fun!" the boy celebrated after being caught by one of them. "Do you think you could throw me farther, Coredegon?" Coredegon was the name of the being holding him right now.

"That's not safe, little one," Coredegon advised him.

"Neither is what you're doing," Betadron interjected, having come to the scene after getting told off by Fury.

"Oh great. It's the party pooper," Coredegon dreaded.

"No! He's very bad!" the kid exclaimed.

"See? We're all having a good time over here. Go away."

"Coredegon, Slycerak, Exostriker, and Mandibor, YOU can get the fuck out of here. Fury requests the boy."

"Now why the hell are you cursing in front of the kid, asshole?" Slycerak responded.

"You just...nevermind. I'll just mind my business," Exostriker sighed.

"Come on. Hand him over."

"No! I don't wanna!"

"You stupid kid! Get over here right now!"

"No!"

"See? He doesn't like you."

"You damn Mechtogan! Put him down so I can take him!"

"Awwwww. Little Betadron is scaaaaarrrrrrrrreeeeeed."

"Can't take a little kid away from us? How sad. No wonder why Fury hates you. You're weak," Mandibor demeaned.

"Alright. That's it. You fucking asked for it." Betadron swiped left with his left hand. In doing so, purple claw marks were left across Coredegon's hand a second later, releasing the kid from his grip. Betadron then went to capture the boy himself.

"Ahhhh!!! No!!!!! Vladitor, help!" A purple orb dropped from the boy's pocket. It opened to reveal a stalwart warrior named Vladitor. He dropped right on top of Betadron's back. The boy then started running away from him and the Mechtogan.

"You're going to make me do something evil! Leave me alone!"

"Great...you did it again, Betadron... Good job," Coredegon sarcastically congratulated. "I don't want to accidentally step on the kid, so... Fury's about to be pissed at you. How do you like that?"

Betadron threw Vladitor off of his back as he got up. His anger was boiling over. He involuntarily had an indigo-colored aura emanating from him. "I'll deal with you afterwards..." Betadron then jetted off after the kid; however, he wouldn't be alone. Vladitor was in hot pursuit.

[Kendrick Hardy]

On Earth...a half-hour to go before the Collision...

"...Wow...just wow..." Kendrick was on a desktop watching footage of something he was baffled by. "Noland...what is there that you CAN'T do right now? That's what I want to know..."

Noland and Drago were sitting on Kendrick's bed, which showed that they were in his room. They were both in a trance, zen-like even. Kendrick's energetic behavior at the computer did nothing to deter them from whatever they were doing. From the sounds of it, Kendrick was probably watching whatever involved Noland's current state.

When thirty seconds had passed, Noland and Drago got up to their feet and opened their eyes. They turned towards each other and high-fived for a job well done.

"You really just did that..." Kendrick acknowledged in disbelief. "ALL of our previous enemies...beaten...in just your base form...?"

[Noland Hardy]

"Yep. God run complete," Noland casually acknowledged. They were using a training system that Genesis Dragonoid gave to them. It allows them to relive past moments and fight past foes just as they are now. From what it sounds like, Noland and Drago went through all of them without having to transform. "That'll teach you to bet against me. Now you gotta do whatever I say for a month without any objections!"

"Minus the hazing part," Drago added to make sure he didn't do that to his brother.

"We are definitely hazing," Noland responded, and he sounded serious. "Thanks to you snitching about what I did to Cyber AND laughing about me getting in trouble, I got a whole list of activities for you. We'll see whose laughing when a nearby Bee Striker wants to make you run two miles before you can train with me."

"That's messed up."

"I mean...he had it coming," Siege admitted.

"Ah well. Brotherly 'love' I suppose," Krakix shrugged. The three Bakugan left the brothers' argument and went outside to get some sun. "Say, Drago, tell me. Do you ever feel like you're too strong?"

"No," Drago replied.

"Really?"

"I still have a lot to learn about my power. I didn't tell you this, but when Noland and I took the Trial of the Twelve, we faced Apollonir somehow."

"And...?"

"He kicked my ass."

"What!? You're not stronger than Apollonir yet?"

"In some ways, yes, but not where it counts. Their knowledge and skill is still too much for us to handle. That goes for all of the Resistors, because they also said they fought their respective Soldiers. All of them got creamed."

"That's crazy dude..."

"That's fine by me though. There's new goals and opportunities to go for. The grind can't stop here despite what we've done. After all, we know that Fury is still alive... We're going to have to be ready to face that someday."

"How about an Admiral?" Noland asked as he walked out to meet Drago.

"A what?"

[Kendrick Hardy]

All of them went back inside to check Noland's email. Apparently, a formal email was left by Admirak Asuka Izumo of the Silver Knights.

"Okay. So, I want this to happen to see how tough you really are, but I really have to ask. Why now all of a sudden?" Kendrick wondered.

"Maybe they're trying to see if they need to update the info they already have on you guys?"

"Nah. They sent their threat level listings to them directly. Their descriptions were general enough to get an idea of what the individual is packing. They could've just included every other Resistor in the message and have them get tested at one of their facilities for a fee. Asuka CHOSE Noland, according to this message, so this has to be a special occasion. She couldn't have been more obvious with what she really wants: an exhibition match."

"Okay, and...who is this person again?"

"After all we've been through, you have no idea who that is?"

"Uh...no?"

"That's the strongest woman in the Silver Knights dude... Not even Maria could beat her, and back then, it took Noland, Allen, and Alana together to take her down..."

"Oh God... Yeah, you go and fight whatever she has then, Drago. We'll root for you away from wherever that's taking place."

[Noland Hardy]

"I should make you fight Ares for me just for that," Drago thought.

"That's not funny," Siege replied.

"Because it's not a joke. You've been around me and the others for all this time, and you're scared of the Admiral? Come on man."

"He does make a good point," Krakix agreed.

"It's not that I'm scared. I just...what if I'm not ready?"

"You aren't," Noland chimed in.

"Gee, thanks for the help."

"She says she's on her airship, so let's go."

"Wait. You mean now!?"

"Yeah. I'm going to her. I'm curious about this challenge, so we'll see if it's worth my time or not. I don't have to meet up with Alana and Lydia for another three hours, so I'm good. I'll just need to get a lock on Asuka first."

[Kendrick Hardy]

"You seem...very calm about this..." Kendrick noticed. Noland was possibly about to fight a Silver Knight Admiral, and he sounds like he couldn't care less. That's...a bit scary...

"Too calm. Not a hint of fear or anything. How does he do it?" Siege wondered.

"Probably because it's a casual match and not a battle to see who controls Earth," Kendrick thought. "Still, I'd imagine a lot of the Silver Knights are going to be alarmed if a civilian is capable of defeating someone of Asuka's stature. I'd wager they're probably as eager to see if Noland is that guy once and for all, if they know that this is going on."

"If he wasn't capable, he wouldn't have been called out," Krakix knew. "The other Resistors probably are as well, but Noland was the last Resistor who fought near her and has some notoriety to his name from their threat scanner. If anything is going to validate the threat levels the Resistors have, it's by seeing what Noland can do against their golden standard."

"Makes sense," Kendrick could see. "We'll know for sure when we see her in however long it takes for Noland to locate her."

[Noland Hardy]

"All the fan commentary is nice and all, but Asuka's not an ordinary brawler, and Ares isn't an ordinary being. Take everything you see and hear with a grain of salt," Noland made sure to mention. "And with that, I found her. The airship is about to pass over the house in a couple of seconds. Coincidence? If it is, Donald Trump will be president."

"Let's do this," Drago declared. "Three, two, one..."

All five of them were taken straight to the main deck of Asuka's airship via Drago's advance movement technique, which allows him to instantly move to targets he can sense. Noland looked around to see all of the advanced tech that was on-board.

"This must have been very expensive... Damn...Asuka's living life up here..." Noland commended. "It makes you wonder how much they get paid to be at that rank when you see stuff like this. She's probably rich and we don't even know about it..."

[Asuka Izumo]

The group has arrived on Asuka's own airship. To be precise, it is a state-of-the-art helicarrier built for purpose of protecting the planet from any form of large-scale violence. That term would include wars between nations, large-scale activities by Chrono Elite or other terrorist organizations in general, attempts of invasion and so on. This behemoth is able to store over one hundred models of most-advanced aircraft developed by Silver Knights and Thomas Wolfang, a big-shot who is responsible for majority of advanced military innovations Silver Knights own. Luckily for Silver Knights, Thomas was very eager to work by their side while avoiding the USA Army or any other branch that might want near-to-flawless weaponry. While they brag great power and they can do with every right it is Thomas whose creations make the government constantly shove their noses into Silver Knights' business. This airship and the aircraft it stores are not meant for a fair warfare- the equipment here was specifically designed to endure and destroy anything that comes in their way- yes, that includes Bakugans. Even though taking down an airplane would be a child's play for even a below-average Bakugan these machines assume unrivaled speed, aerial superiority, excellent maneuvers, respectable defenses and, of course, devastating arsenal. The airship itself is equipped with a wide array of technologies and weapons that allow it to survive in long and harsh battles without taking damage while effortlessly controlling the airspace. 

It is not only the Resistors who have been fighting against Hurranians and their additional Alternative copies. Asuka was dealing with Kyuki's allies while her airship was dominating the combat with its combination of advanced shield implementation known as Trinity Shield, anti-air weaponry and aircraft. It definitely did not cost a fortune for nothing. It paid off for Silver Knights to have it and so far it is the only weapon with maximum reliability. It is yet to use some of its most-powerful weapons.

Swift and gentle but silent steps could be heard approaching the group. Various tests with aircraft were being performed so the group may not have heard Asuka approach, but they did not fail to notice her arrive in their direction accompanied by two other Knights. On her left was a stunningly beautiful blonde, general Ivanna Zima, and on her right was a buff, handsome man (probably close to his 30s), general Kyle Brown. Two of them are often seen with Admiral Asuka and help her with different tasks and tests while generals like Yami Yin often stay along Admiral Maria. Both Generals were finely dressed, very tidy and in a serious formal pose. Only Admiral Asuka appeared to be slightly off from that description which may have come as unexpected.

She was not wearing a uniform but a shirt. Shirt was unbuttoned at the bottom, left part of it was tucked into her pants while the right part was out. Her left sleeve was rolled all the way to her elbow and the other one was not. On top of that the right sleeve was somewhat darker than the left one- with a slight inspection group could see that the right sleeve was actually soaking wet and water was dripping from Asuka's arm. As a matter of fact her, normally tidy, hair was barely taken care of- it was also soaking wet and one could see drops going from her hair on her ears and face. She seemed to have left in a rush- even if something had happened she has this 'mental need' to do everything as scheduled even though it may appear little less professional. Though most see her in her top-professional posture this difference in appearance did have a certain charm to it.

"Good to see you." She greeted. "I apologize for my display. Mister Brown will take you to the Arena." She informed. Unlike Maria, Asuka did appear to be much more formal. Someone of her name does have to hold a reputation and a code in behavior.

[Noland Hardy]

Noland wasn't concerned about the lack of an Admiral uniform. Yes, it was weird to see her not wearing one, but...it's not like he hasn't seen her wearing less...

If anything, it made him a little more suspicious about why she challenged him. It must be very important if she's willing to look like she was in a rush to be presentable. Before Kendrick starts asking a lot of questions that may get them booted off the ship, Noland decided to speak up.

"General Zima and Brown, good to see you," Noland acknowledged. He knows them from when he took the trial. "Admiral, I don't want to keep you waiting, but I have to say. This is a little weird. I know why I'm here, but...WHY am I here? Know what I mean?"

"A civilian rarely fights an Admiral...if it ever happened," Drago commented. "It's not that we're going to refuse - since we're already here - but it's unusual. Did Noland do something he wasn't supposed to do...again?"

"...You don't have to make it sound like I did that stuff on purpose..."

[Asuka Izumo]

"Referring to the recent... incident if I may call it so there is no grudge to be held against you. Having been a part of military units in the past seeing each other in such state was present on daily basis." Asuka replied to Noland's recent 'adventure' into the area where he certainly was not supposed to be and which resulted in him seeing Asuka after shower with nothing but a towel on her. Back then their meeting was more-or-less a minute to awkward stares and silence before Noland decided it was a reasonable act to apologize and for Asuka to kindly escort him out of the said area. As mentioned, Asuka was part of special military forces along with Maria and Victoria. Being in that position meant many people living together in the same rooms without any gender-based separation and with almost complete abandonment of shame in terms of various inappropriate commentary or seeing each other naked in the shower. That is certainly not something to get used to, but when the crisis calls people are willing to abandon some elements in trade for others. For Asuka and Victoria it was not as difficult- Maria was slightly struggling with that.

"I must assess certain individuals- combination of their powers, skills in combat, mental state, endurance and various other elements. A select few who pass receive a small reward that may aid them with any... upcoming complications." Asuka briefly explained why she was assessing Noland and that he, certainly, was not the only one in the line. Just two days before Generals Ivanna and Kyle were assessed as well and each received the reward. "Your therapist, miss Andersen, was supposed to participate as well, but we deemed it unnecessary due to her nature and just handed the compensation." Kyle added implying that Lydia was among people who were in this as well. However, she did not receive same reward as those who actually had to take the test.

"You may decline if you wish so. If not I would politely ask you to follow General Zima to the Arena. I will be joining you shortly- this appearance will not suffice." Admiral said and then took a step back awaiting for Noland's response- whether he was going to accept or decline. Her appearance was not in best shape due to some... unexpected events, but she was planning on changing to a more proper uniform provided Noland does not run into another incident. 

[Noland Hardy]

"Hm...a small reward...?" Noland pondered over that for a few seconds. Was it worth fighting Asuka for a 'small' reward he knows nothing about?

"Of course Maste would pass without having to battle... If it had gone any other way, I'd be shocked," Drago mentioned. "Alright, Noland. What's the deal?"

"Well, the Silver Knights have helped me out a lot, especially with the trial letting us go further beyond, so... If they want to test me, so be it," Noland accepted. "Also...they've been keeping an eye on us for the longest time anyway. It's about time we've learned more about the Admiral other than knowing that she's the strongest woman." Of course, Noland kept that list bit to himself.

"Alright, Admiral. I accept," Noland agreed. "Lead the way, Generals."

[Asuka Izumo]

"Right." Asuka acknowledged. 

Asuka turned around and headed towards her quarters leaving the Resistor and Generals behind. Inside of the quarters was surprisingly warm and comfortable with multiple windows providing a view on a beautiful scenery. Inside the quarters one could see two young children watching TV- they were children of one of the other Generals; Admiral Asuka promised to watch over them, but for the time being General Zima would take over until the examinations are finished. Asuka walked to her wardrobe which, to a modern person, might appear depressing- there were lots of clothes and all were exact the same. By them there were various uniforms for different occasions- Asuka took black 'Dynamo Knight' uniform- these are meant to be used for training combat simulators. Whether it looked fashionable or not it was definite the male population of the airship would enjoy the black skin-tight outfit.

Meanwhile...

Generals were escorting their guests to the Arena. Guests were not informed that the Arena was virtual area akin to those previously found in Silver Knights' HQ in Washington where brawlers could fight normally without fear of causing any collateral damage. Technology inside the airship is far more advanced than the one inside the HQ and the virtual arena has multiple useful perks for aiding brawlers in their training. As they walk through the corridors Generals and their guests suddenly hear roaring and screaming in the distance- must be something on the other side of the wall. It is muffled due to the thickness of the wall, but it definitely can be heard. One of the slide-doors open and a man dressed in white lab-coat walked out. The moment doors opened screaming and roaring became louder and it was muffled again the moment doors closed. Whatever that thing screaming was it was somewhere in that room. The man in white did not seem to pay these people any attention as his eyes locked on the documents he was holding.

[Noland Hardy]

Noland smirked when he heard the screaming. No matter how muffled the roaring was, Noland could hear it about the same as if it happened right next to him. Of course, this was only possible due to his senses, which everyone should be privy to at this point.

A short flashback flashed back into memory where Noland interfered with the fight against Cyber to give the Knights the time they needed to capture him. It was not a difficult venture for him in the slightest considering he fought the mega terrorist in base form and nothing more.

"...When will I actually be challenged...?" Noland remarked back then. His expression during the battle made it look like he was bored out of his mind. He almost wished Cyber was more threatening to him, because then it would've been something to remember. Unfortunately, the only thing Noland remembers is how agonizing his scream was when his defeat was confirmed by Admiral Asuka.

That seems to be the story of Noland's life so far. He can only compete with the Resistors for so long. Without anything new to compete against, the motivation to keep going was dwindling. He knew he needed to keep going too, because there were still enemies out there that he had to be ready for.