Breezyfeather: Last chapter?

Dan: Possibly. Try to post this before next week.

Breezyfeather: I have 4 fanfics to finish! Dan and Runo's LegendProphecy, Drago's Dilemma, Searching for Spectra, The Most Unlikely Alliance, And Ultimatum. Okay that's five. I AM IN OVER MY HEAD HERE!

Ace: It's your fault.

Breezyfeather: I know, and next time I don't think I'll do as many at once! But I also have a to do my confirmation packet before the end of this month along with the report on my saint!

Joe (grinning): Sound's like you've got your hands full.

Breezyfeather: ….Are you and Mason related?

Mason: Where did that come from?

Joe: Random much?

Breezy: You've got the same last name.

Joe and Mason: (looks at each other) We are not related.

Breezyfeather: Oh. Okay then. READ ON!

"Runo!"

The Gundalians and Vestals accompanying Dan and Julie were frozen in shock at the sight before them. Only Julie and Dan seemed to be able to move, but neither of them dared to. The risk of glimpsing worse made them stay in place, until Dan broke the spell.

He burst forward, rushing through the door of the warehouse, while Julie followed close behind. Mira and the others remained by the door until Fabia started forward, at which point Mira and Baron closed the gap between themselves and the unconscious bluenett.

"Runo!"

The girl was sprawled on the floor, completely limp in the center of the room. It looked as if she had been dumped there like a sack of dirty laundry, lost and forgotten. Her face was tilted to the side and her eyes were closed, her lips slightly parted. Her face was deathly pale and there were dark circles under her eyes. Bandages were wrapped around her wrists and looked bloodstained. The white vest's straps were disheveled, one of them hanging off her arm.

Dan had lifted her into his arms, but her head lolled. She didn't respond to the multiple shouts to rouse her on his part, and didn't even stir when Julie pushed Mira aside to get to her friend.

Dan didn't understand. He thought that Spectra was supposed to be helping him. He knew that Spectra had taken Runo as extra leverage against himself and Drago, making it seem like Dan had no idea of Spectra's motives, but why would he go to such an extent? Why would he hurt Runo like this? She wouldn't even wake up to Dan and Julie's frantic cries! Spectra had gone too far this time. Even if he was helping Dan to get Drago to battle again, taking Runo and hurting her like this was crossing the line. He would see to it that the feathered freak payed for his crimes.

"Spectra!" Dan shouted, getting to his feet after gently placing Runo in Julie's arms. "Where are you?" He clenched his fists and whirled around, trying to see where the masked freak was hiding. "Come out here and face me, coward!"

"You've got some nerve, calling me a coward," a cold, sly voice remarked. Dan whirled around, catching sight of a flash of red turning a corner.

"What did you do to Runo?" he demanded. "Where's Drago?"

"Dan!" Drago shouted, popping out of his ball in Gus's outstretched hand.

"Drago!" The dragon Bakugan didn't waste any time in jumping away from the brown-clad Sub-Terra brawler. He shot over to Dan, who caught him easily. "Spectra..." he hissed. "I thought we had a deal!"

"That deal said nothing about your Brawler friends," Spectra stated simply.

"But I thought it was obvious that I didn't want them involved when I didn't go to them first!" Dan bellowed. "You've hurt Runo! And you're gonna pay..."

He and Spectra lifted their Gauntlets.

"Dan, wait!" Mira cried, starting toward them. Dan and Spectra paid her no heed, shouting in unison, "Gauntlet, power strike!" Julie shot to her feet and her hand slammed down on Dan's shoulder just a second before she would have been caught in the time warp, and thanks to this action, she was spared. Mira wasn't so lucky, though, and Julie could see the girl on her way toward the group. She hurried back to Runo's side, lifting Runo and pulling her away from the battle that was going to take place.

"Don't. Move," Gus threatened, appearing in front of Julie. She gasped, turning to the side to find an alternate route, but found her path blocked by none other than Lync, who was smirking.

"Where do you think you're going?" he asked. Julie hissed.

"Dan, good luck!" she called.

"Hmph," Dan grunted. "Gate card, set!" He sent his Gate Card shooting toward the field, where it grew in size. "Bakugan, brawl! Bakugan, stand! Let's make 'em pay, Drago!" Drago rose up out of his ball with a mighty roar, but that wasn't enough to deter Spectra.

"Hmph. Helios," he said, and the Pyrus Bakugan jumped into his hand. "Bakugan, brawl! Bakugan stand! Rise, Pyrus Viper Helios!"

"Time for a rematch," Helios hissed.

"Yeah, whatever," Dan growled. "Ability, activate! Burning Dragon!"

"You're going down, Helios," Drago said, looking mad.

"Ability, activate! Void Stream!"

"Choke on this, Drago," Helios taunted, but Drago didn't take the bait, even as his ability was proven useless. Dan hissed as Drago swerved away from Helios's punch, then glanced back at Julie, Gus, Lync, and Runo. Julie was still standing in between the two boys, Runo on her back, still unconscious. Julie kept glancing from boy to boy, as she was trapped between them, then her eyes darted to Dan's.

"Don't worry about this," she called. "We'll be fine!" Dan nodded and turned away, glaring at Spectra.

"Gate card, open! Silent land! And fusion ability activate! Pyrus Slayer!" Dan cried out, pointing his left hand toward Spectra, who stared at his gauntlet. Drago's power level had shot up to 700 while Helios' dropped to 400. Dan could feel a tiny bit of satisfaction at this accomplishment, but it didn't really matter to him. He would only be truly satisfied when he made Spectra pay for hurting Runo like he had.

Drago shot toward Helios, surrounded by a column of flame, and crashed into the darker dragon before Spectra could counter. Helios let out a guttural growl as he was forced back into his Bakugan ball and was sent flying across the room to land at Spectra's feet. Spectra's Life Gauge dropped to sixty percent and Dan easily caught Drago, his face not showing any satisfaction at the victory.

"What, no snide remarks, Dan?" Spectra asked, bending to pick up Helios.

"Not today, Spectra," Dan hissed. "How dare you trick me and then hurt Runo? How dare you take Drago? I thought we had a deal that we'd put me in the position in order for Drago to see that he needed to battle. I thought we decided that I'd be the guinea pig! We never mentioned Runo, or even you taking Drago!"

"Yeah, well, it just worked out that way. If you had stayed put, then things might have gone differently," Spectra snarled.

"And instead of taunting me while I was locked up, you could have told me what you were planning!" Dan yelled.

"Dan," Drago said. Dan glanced at the little red marble floating by his face and when it didn't continue, snatched it out of the air.

"Gate card, set!" Spectra shouted, tossing his gate card onto the field. "Bakugan, brawl! Bakugan stand! Go! Pyrus Helios!"

"Let's do this, Drago," Helios growled.

"Bakugan, brawl! Bakugan, stand!" Drago arose from a twister of flame, tearing through the open ceiling of the destroyed warehouse.

"Ability activate! General quasar!" Spectra shouted.

"Helios power level increase to eight hundred," the gauntlet announced.

"Ability activate! Burst shield!" Dan countered. Drago braced himself for the fireball hurtling toward him. It slammed into the shield with a loud bang, yet the flames harmlessly dispersed."Come, Pyrus Scorpion!" He tossed the Bakugan Trap above his head and watched tensely as the large red Bakugan materialized in the air above him. It landed on the ground below Drago and lifted its claws menacingly, but that didn't deter Spectra or the onlookers, Julie, Lync, and Gus.

"I'm afraid that won't help you," Gus smirked, knowing what Spectra would pull next.

"Forbidden Ability card, activate! Nova Blazer X!" Spectra shouted. Dan tensed, watching in horror as Helios' muscles grew in size disturbingly quickly and Helios roared in pain, but neither Spectra nor the Drago showed that they were willing to back down. Dan's eyes widened, then narrowed as he forced himself to look away. Drago watched in anger as the rulebook was thrown out the window and Helios discarded any honor he might have had left.

"Spectra, how are you able to put your partner through that?" Dan whispered.

"Helios do you have no shame?" Drago demanded.

"My honor is a small price to pay when it comes to ultimate power, Drago," Helios scowled. "Spectra!"

"I hear you! Ability activate!" Spectra cried. "Maximum Quasar!" Dan hissed.

"Helios power level: one thousand three hundred," the Gauntlet droned. Dan hissed, staring at the screen on his Gauntlet.

"Ability, activate!" Spectra shouted. "Maximum quasar!"

Drago: 400

Helios: 1,600

"Good luck beating me now, Drago," Helios roared.

"Tough luck," Dan responded. "Double ability, activate! Dragon contender plus Dragon clash!"

"Are you sure about that, Helios?" Drago questioned. Bright light filled the room. Julie, Gus, and Lync all cried out as they covered their eyes. Dan pulled down his glasses and squinted while even Spectra seemed to be having problems seeing. Helios braced himself, but despite that, his feet seemed to be slipping.

Drago: 1400

Helios: 200

"Helios!" Spectra cried out, shielding his eyes and bracing himself. A shout from behind him made Dan gasp and whirl around.

"Julie!" he cried, realizing that she and the others were having a tough time remaining in the same spot. Julie was clinging to Runo while Gus and Lync were kneeling behind them, trying to keep the girls from behind forced back and acting as a human—er, Vestal-shield to get that accomplished.

"Dan," Julie screeched. "Don't worry about us!"

"Spectra! Just finish the brawl!" Lync yelled, squinting.

"Gate card open!" Spectra commanded. "Flat power!"

"Dang it!" Dan hissed. "Ability-"

"Dan, enough!" Dan and Spectra both froze, turning in the direction that the voice had come from. Julie and the others had frozen, staring at the now standing form of a girl in surprise. Her pigtails were flying behind her from Drago's ability, and she looked very, very, ticked off.

"Runo?" Dan whispered. "Runo! But-how-?"

"Dan, you had to be taught a lesson," Runo said. "You've left me and Julie and Alice, and then you go and make a deal with the guy who fossilized Tigrerra without telling us. What else did you expect me to do?" The color had returned to her face and her cheeks were flushed with anger, but the bandages on her wrists and arms were still bloodstained.

"What-?" Dan stammered, unable to process this, as he stumbled backward.

"It's what you call makeup, Human," Gus rolled his eyes as he stood up. Julie grinned, getting to her feet next to him. Dan stared at her.

"Julie, you knew?"

"Well not at first," she admitted. "Gus and Lync filled me in while they woke up Runo." Dan's eyes flicked to the mercenary Ventus brawler and the tricky Sub-Terra brawler, both of which looked pleased with themselves. Dan turned to face Spectra, who was smirking. He stared at him for a second, then realized that Drago must have known, too. He turned his gaze to Drago, feeling guilty.

"Dan, you could have just talked to me, you know," Drago said, turning to the stunned boy. "I would have respected your wishes to keep fighting for what you believe in. You didn't have to risk everything by going to Spectra."

"Drago," Dan murmured, looking away. He stared into the corner of the warehouse for a moment, then he turned his gaze back to the large dragon. He was grinning. "Sorry pal," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I guess I got carried away."

"You guess?" Runo demanded. Dan laughed nervously, then lowered his arm, a serious look taking over his features once more.

"But I can make up for that right now," he said, "by beating this masked trickster." He smirked at Spectra, who stared at him for a moment, then returned the expression.

"Alright then, Dan," he said dangerously, but looked like he was having fun. "Let's go!"

"Ability activate!" Dan shouted, "Burning Dragon!"

"Ability activate! Nova defenser!"

When the time warp dissolved, the Gundalians and Vestals were all rather surprised to see Spectra and Dan grinning at each other. Runo was standing there, looking impatient yet happy at the same time, and Julie was smiling. Gus looked like he had enjoyed himself and didn't bother hiding his satisfied smirk, while Lync was also smirking with amusement.

Mira and Baron exchanged glances, then hurried forward, to Dan's sides.

"Master Dan? What happened?" Baron questioned, looking desperate for information.

"Dan?" Mira asked.

Fabia and Ren started forward while the rest of the Gundalians hung back, Zenet staying by Lena and looking confused.

"What happened?" she asked quietly. "I thought they were enemies."

"They must have had a battle," Mason concluded, one hand on his hip as he watched Fabia look at Dan.

"I agree," Lena nodded, adjusting her glasses.

"Nice job, Spectra," Dan nodded, reaching out a hand. Spectra grasped it with a smirk, and the two shook hands. Mira and the others stared at him in shock.

"What happened?" Mira demanded. "Why are you acting so buddy-buddy with Spectra?"

"Oh come now, Mira, is that any way to talk about your bro-" he caught himself, "enemy?" Mira stiffened, but fired back a subtle "Yes." Spectra let out a small grunt, but his smirk remained.

"I'd like to congratulate you on a fine battle, Dan," Spectra acknowledged. "It seems you've improved since the last time we fought on normal terms."

"Thank you, Spectra," Dan said softly. "Thanks... also... for helping me get Drago back. I guess that you did all of that for that reason, huh?"

Spectra was silent, his smirk melting away. He looked stiff, like he wasn't used to being thanked by someone who he was supposed to despise. Well, that wasn't what was supposed to happen anyway, but he looked really uncomfortable. Dan laughed, breaking the tension, and Spectra stared at him.

"Come on, how about we get a pizza? Just a thank you thing. Then tomorrow things can be back to normal. What do you say?" Dan offered. Mira, Baron, Runo and Julie all stared at him in shock.

"What is Pizza?" Baron asked. "Is it a statue or something?"

"No I think it's a thank you gift," Fabia contradicted him. Dan blinked and laughed nervously.

"No, it's a type of food," Dan explained. "It's really good! Come on, Spectra, what do you say?Pretty please?"

"Master Spectra?" Gus asked, walking up to the masked leader of the Vexos. After a moment, Spectra smirked and nodded.

"Alright. Just this once. But tomorrow, all bets are off." Dan's smile broadened.

"Deal!"

Dan smiled, closing the glass door on the balcony connected to his room behind him. Dan walked over to rest his arms on the railing atop the ledge, closing his eyes as a gentle breeze lifted his hair from his flushed face. The Brawlers, Gundalians, Fabia and the Vexos were all inside enjoying themselves, and even Alice had come to visit. At Julie's request, of course.

Inside they had put on music and Julie had started dancing, which resulted in a lot of chaos and trying to get Spectra and the Vexos to have a little fun. Eventually Mira had succeeded in pulling Spectra out onto the dance floor, and he finally threw off his coat and started dancing with her. Dan thought it was a little dangerous to have the leaders of two opposing organizations dancing together, but Mira and Spectra had assured everyone that right now, they were having a temporary truce. Dan couldn't begin to fathom how they suddenly got along so well together, and guess it would be best not to tell Ace about what happened here. (Lol, jealous Ace)

Lync had spilled juice all over his clothes and Dan lent him a green tee shirt and black pants, making the pink-haired teen rather irritated, but he took the clothes and told Dan that there were no promises with getting them back. Dan shrugged, not really wanting the clothes anyway. But he didn't tell Lync that.

Gus had somehow turned on the stove and caught an empty box of pizza on fire. Ren had grabbed a fire extinguisher and, without the slightest idea how to work it, succeeded in pulling the tab and putting out the fire. Thankfully, Dan's mother hadn't been around to witness that, and they opened a few windows to air out the smoke before she returned.

Sid and Gus almost came to blows more than a few times and it took Ren and Mason to hold back Sid and Lync and Baron to keep Gus from killing Sid. Now Baron and Zenet were charged with keeping an eye on the two.

"Dan?" Drago asked. Dan turned his head to look at the small Pyrus Bakugan as it bounced over to him, landing next to his hand. Dan turned it so that Drago could jump into his palm, which Drago then did, and looked up at the red eyed teen.

"What is it, Drago?" Dan asked. "How come you're not inside?"

"I could ask the same for you," Drago pointed out. Dan grinned, turning his gaze up to the stars.

"Well yeah, I guess you're right," Dan said. The two remained there in silence for a little while, allowing the breeze to cool them down.

"Dan, you do realize that you didn't have to go to all that trouble to get me to brawl again, right?" Drago said gently. Dan sighed.

"I get that now, Drago, but you just seemed... I don't know... you care about me. I know that you want to be there for me, especially when the going gets tough. You don't want me to loose you like Runo and Julie have now lost Tigrerra and Gorem, right?" Dan asked, trying to relate to the Pyrus Bakugan.

"Right," Drago nodded. "I just wanted you and I to be friends that didn't have to worry about loosing each other."

"But Drago, brawling is in your nature. It's in your blood," Dan protested. "You would have gotten tired of sitting around at some point."

"Not if I knew you were safe," Drago objected. Dan stared at Drago and sighed.

"I wouldn't be happy, even if I was safe. You wouldn't be happy either, Drago," Dan told him. "We've been brawling together since we fist met. Heck, we even first met in a brawl! If we stopped brawling... we just wouldn't be the same. We'd be abandoning our team. We'd be abandoning New Vestroia, and you're obligated to protect New Vestroia. And because you're obligated, I'm obligated, Drago." Drago was silent, thinking over Dan's words. "Drago, we need to brawl. Not just for our sake. For the sake of all those Bakugan who need our help. For the sake of our team. For the sake of our world, sometimes."

"Okay. I get it," Drago sounded amused. "How come you didn't just give that speech in the first place?" Dan stared at Drago with his mouth parted.

"Drago!" he yelled, and Drago started laughing. "Not funny! If I had known that was all it would take to convince you-"

"Having fun?" Dan jumped with a startled yelp, whirling around. It took him a minute to figure out that Fabia and Ren had joined him on the balcony, and both of them looked amused.

"H-hey! How did you know we were out here? And how did you get up here, the door's shut!" Dan protested, staring at Fabia like she was some sort of master of illusions. Actually, ninja made more sense now that Dan thought about it. She and Ren laughed.

"You've accomplished what you wanted done, correct?" Ren asked, getting down to business. Dan nodded, Drago floating over his shoulder.

"Then I suppose it's time we leave," Fabia said, glancing at Ren. He nodded.

"Huh? What do you mean, 'leave'?" Dan asked, looking between the two of them.

"We have to save Nethia," Fabia pointed out. "My homeland will be devastated unless we fight for it. Barodius and the Gundalians—no offense, Ren—"

"None taken," Ren murmured.

"—will completely ravage my home," Fabia finished. "I'm their princess. I have to be there. Aranaut and I will fight for it, now that I've got him back."

"We'll fight, too, with Nurzak and my teammates," Ren confirmed. "I don't believe Barodius can give me the answers I need anymore. His father locked Linehalt and me up for years, and Barodius never let me go without bargaining. I think the best way to get what I seek is to fight against him and see what he has to say. Besides, war against another land that did nothing to you is not right."

"Thank you, Ren," Fabia acknowledged. "I will see to it that you and your team are made members of the Castle Knights."

"S-seriously?" Ren gasped, turning to face her. "But, that's the highest honor on Nethia!"

"You switched sides. You're going to be fighting for Nethia, right?" she asked. He stared at her and nodded. She grinned. "Then you and your team deserve it!"

"Th-thank you," he knelt down before her, a courtesy that she must have been used to. Linehalt expressed his gratitude by flying over to her and landing in her outstretched hand.

"Thank you very much, Princess," he nodded. "It is a great honor."

"The honor is ours," Aranaut protested, appearing over Fabia's shoulder. Fabia smiled at the little Darkus Bakugan, then looked at Dan.

"If you ever find yourself in a predicament, you can call us and we'll do our best to help out," she announced. "And when you're done with your mission, send us a transmission. Here, I'll send the data to your Gauntlet." She held a device up and Dan nodded.

"Hold on, it's in my room," he said. She and Ren moved to the side while he opened the sliding glass door, leading them into the room. He picked up the red gauntlet from his desk and put it on his arm while Fabia held the device up next to it. The Gauntlet beeped a few times and various pieces of code flashed across the screen of it.

"Download complete. Coordinates of Nethia download confirmed. Save data?" it asked. Dan hit "yes", a word written in Vestal that Ace had taught him how to read. He looked up at Fabia and she continued.

"When you're done, or if you receive a transmission from me, please contact me. We might not have finished our war, yet," she told him. "We might still need help, and maybe you and the Brawlers can come and give us that help."

"I'll keep that in mind," Dan smiled. "Good luck, Fabia. And thanks you guys, for getting me outta there."

"Anytime," Ren told him. Dan reached out his hand and Ren took it, a gesture that Fabia mirrored.

"So are you leaving now?" Dan asked, looking from Gundalian to Nethian.

"... I think it can wait until the end of the party, what about you?" Fabia asked Ren.

"I think you're right. I would hate to ruin Zenet's fun," Ren grinned. Dan laughed.

"Then what are we sitting around up here for? Let's enjoy the party!" he cried, grabbing their wrists and pulling them towards the door of the room. Fabia and Ren laughed and followed him down the stairs, stopping to stare when they caught sight of Baron and Zenet trying to keep Mason and Sid from killing each other again.

"What did you say, buddy?" Sid demanded.

"I said that you wouldn't stand a chance against Master Spectra," Gus said calmly.

"Wanna bet?"

"Sid, that's enough!" Ren shouted.

"Gus, you know better than that," Spectra announced.

"It looks more and more like Gus is a lap dog every day," Lync snickered.

Dan sweat dropped when Gus started yelling at Lync and laughed nervously.

"Should we take everyone outside?" Drago asked Dan, landing on his shoulder.

"That might be a good idea," Dan tittered, grimacing when he heard the sound of breaking glass. "What the heck was that?" he shouted.

"Sorry Dan," his mother shouted from the kitchen. "I dropped a candle holder. Can you get everyone outside while I clean up?"

"Sure Mom!" Dan called, thankful for the excuse to get everyone out of the house, that way no more damage could be caused. "Alright guys, let's go outside!"

"Fine by me! Now we can brawl!" Gus growled at Lync, who winked at him. Dan sweat dropped.

"Not in the neighborhood! If you're gonna brawl, go to the park!"

"Alright then! Who want's to watch?" Mason asked. Everyone started shouting and Dan sighed.

This would be interesting.

Breezyfeather: Okay! And it's done!

Dan: You had quite a few issues with ending that, didn't you?

Breezyfeather: Yes I did. Thank you guys for reading and thanks to the few reviewers I got on this story! I hoped you liked it! Now to finish Searching for Spectra and then work on Ultimatum, which I have been dying to write for months! Thanks again! Ja ne!

Review please!