Chapter 13 - Against Mylene

I was finally able to go to university and I settled down. I'm living in a dorm room, so I can easily write a chapter now.

I miss writing. Have a good reading!

***

"Haah~! I can't believe that brat actually asked me to do this," Mylene sighed once more. Standing on the field, her eyes were narrowed, deep in thought. She never expected that the Spoiled Prince would care even a little. His only concern was his own toys.

It was annoying, but at the same time, it was a perfect opportunity to evaluate this girl who had caught the attention of one of the few people she could call a friend, Volt. 

Siren, Siren… She was just one of the few names that had come up in the tournaments.

A Darkus Brawler, and just as irritating as she remembered in her battles, but there was something unsettling about the Bakugan she used. 

Why did it feel so familiar? She wasn't sure, but there was a sense of recognition.

Still, she decided to push that aside for now. She would see and judge for herself in just a moment. If Siren proved to be a tool useful to King Zenoheld, Mylene would welcome her. But if she turned out to be an obstacle, Mylene wouldn't hesitate to finish her off right here.

For now, though… she was ready to play this game. The only thing she could hope for was that it would be worth her time.

As Mylene was lost in these thoughts, her cape fluttered in the wind. Her aquamarine eyes coldly scanned the surroundings. In the back of her mind, she was still thinking about the last rebel who hadn't been captured. They could appear at any moment.

Just as this thought crossed her mind, another door opened, and the sound of light footsteps echoed through the space. With a slight smile on her face, Siren stood directly across from Mylene.

"I take it you called me for a fight?" she asked, her tone playful as she glanced around. The surroundings consisted of an artificial lake, with both of them positioned at opposite ends of the battlefield, the lake in the middle.

For Mylene, an Aquos Brawler, this was an obvious advantage, and Siren clicked her tongue. Her red lights flickered slightly. Mylene, on the other hand, wore a cold expression as she looked at Siren. In a sharp, mocking tone, she warned, "You're only here because the spoiled brat—the prince—asked me to test you. Don't get ahead of yourself."

Siren shrugged. Internally, she wondered why Mylene hated the 'prince', one of the people they both served, so much, but she didn't feel like commenting. Instead, she focused on the task at hand.

Siren turned her head towards Mylene. The red lines on her mask narrowed as they faced Mylene, her grin widening.

"Whatever the prince wants," Siren began with a smirk, her voice laced with excitement, "…in the end, you're going to fight me, right?"

Mylene gave a small nod, sneering at Siren's excited expression. "Idiot, do you think this is just a game?"

Siren grinned back at her. "Yes, because it is." She hopped from side to side, holding James between her fingers and flashing a defiant 'V' sign.

"It's fun. Like riding a bike or flying a ship. Why do I play Bakugan? Because I enjoy it. And trust me… fighting against you Vexos is more fun than anything else!" she declared, brimming with confidence.

No tournament or battle had ever challenged her like this. She craved more, desired to be pushed further. The value of a victory—or even a loss—was determined by the difficulty of the fight!

Since she started going up against the Vexos, she had experienced the competition she had longed for. How could she not enjoy this? How could she not feel the excitement? The very thought made her heart race! The uncertainty, the thrill—it was intoxicating!

Mylene's eyes narrowed in response to Siren's attitude. A deep, scornful disdain welled up inside her. Enjoyment? What a foolish outlook. She was just like a certain other Darkus user—a bunch of nonsense.

Mylene raised her arm. The inscriptions on her activation card gleamed in the light, almost as if the core in the center of the card was truly glowing.

"Then show me what you've got!"

Siren smiled, placing her activation card into her glove. "You got it!" she replied, as her glove began to glow with a purple light. As both gloves radiated their respective hues of blue and purple, the words that signaled the beginning of the match were spoken.

In a cold voice, Mylene shouted, "Gauntlet Power Strike!" Siren echoed in a calm yet melodic tone, "Gauntlet Power Strike!"

Mylene grunted as she threw her gate card. "Gate card set!" The turquoise-colored card expanded as Mylene launched her Bakugan. It spun fiercely, skipping across the lake several times before Mylene's voice rang out:

"Bakugan brawl! Bakugan stand! Show them your power, Elico!"

Elico opened up, glowing blue as it spun, revealing its true form.

What appeared before them was one of the most humanoid Bakugan James had ever seen. Its nearly human-like physique was striking, with lilac-colored muscles and dark blue armored arms. Three sharp claws adorned each arm, and a large, orange gem on its chest armor glistened in the light.

Six appendages—three on each side—swayed behind it, resembling both tentacles and hair, making it hard to tell which. Its confident, bold expression only added to its imposing presence, and the fin on its head gave it a crown-like appearance, with gills where ears should have been slightly twitching.

"Come on, little lady. Show me what you've got."

James couldn't help but feel a pang of envy as he saw Elico's humanoid form. Sure, his own form was somewhat humanoid, but the draconic features couldn't be ignored. Who in their right mind would want a dragon face?

Realizing he was getting lost in pointless thoughts again, James jumped, transforming from his mini form into his ball form. With a competitive tone to hype himself up, he said, "Let's show them what the White One can do, yeah?"

Siren giggled at James's competitive voice and grasped him firmly.

"You're right, let's show them something different."

Siren tossed James, and as he spun in the air, he opened up with a roar, slashing with a claw. Elico easily blocked the incoming claw with his arm, deflecting it. He then kicked at James, but James, catching him off guard, grabbed the kick and grinned.

"I can't deny it," James began as he spun Elico like a Beyblade and hurled him toward the lake, roaring, "This really is fun."

Hovering in mid-air, James seemed quite pleased with the exchange.

<Darkus Broken Hydranoid> <Aquos Elico>

<G-Power: 500> <G-Power: 500>

As Elico crashed into the lake, the suddenness of the move caught Mylene off guard as well. She hadn't expected such aggression, but she quickly slotted in her ability card and commanded, "Elico! Ability activate: Screw Blow!"

<G-Power 200 Transfer: G-Power transferred from Darkus Broken Hydranoid to Aquos Elico.>

Two massive water spouts erupted from the ground, forcing James to retreat rapidly, but it seemed like the water spouts weren't going to let him escape so easily!

As James spread his wings wide, Siren quickly inserted her ability card, warning him, "He's attacking from the water, James!"

With the card glowing in a silvery light, she called out, "Ability activate: Silver Burst!"

<G-Power Boost: Darkus Broken Hydranoid's G-Power increased by 200.>

"I know!" James responded, dodging the rising water spouts as silver flames began to envelop him. Even though abilities had the same basic functions, they could manifest in different ways, making things more challenging for Bakugan in battle.

That's why these matches relied not just on the mechanics of a turn-based game but also on the tactics of both the Bakugan and their partner. James's silver flames concentrated on his wings, expanding like the wings of a silver phoenix.

He couldn't bypass the water spouts, so he sent out waves of fire, evaporating the water spouts along with a part of the lake.

<Ability Nullified: Darkus Broken Hydranoid's G-Power increased by 200.>

Just then, he heard a mocking voice: "Ability activate: Scramble Zwei!"

<G-Power Shift: Elico's G-Power reset to its base level.>

<G-Power Boost: Elico's G-Power increased by 500.>

<G-Power Drop: Darkus Broken Hydranoid's G-Power decreased by 400.>

<Darkus Broken Hydranoid> <Aquos Elico>

<G-Power: 100> <G-Power: 1,000>

It didn't take long for James to feel the danger behind him as Elico, glowing with blue energy, swung a powerful right hook. James flew back with all his might, barely dodging the strike by a split second. Mylene smugly explained her ability:

"Elico's ability activates when the opponent's G-Power is higher than his own. It resets his G-Power to base and doubles it, while the opponent loses 400 G-Power. The game's over, idiot! Ha ha ha ha!"

As Mylene laughed coldly, Siren jumped in place and quickly inserted her ability card. "You're underestimating us! Ability activate: World Eater!"

As the ability card slotted in, James's body gleamed with a silver light.

<G-Power Boost: Darkus Broken Hydranoid's G-Power increased by 100.>

Silver streaks of light followed James's every move. Meanwhile, Elico was in close pursuit, each wingbeat bringing him closer as he tried to land a hit. It had turned into a full-on chase, and Mylene sighed lightly, internally cursing Volt. Had he really sent someone so stupid that they thought they could win with just a simple G-Power boost?

As the chase continued, the blue particles around James gradually shifted into silver streaks. Elico's fist came dangerously close to his face, but James narrowly dodged it at the last second with precise timing.

"You're a really annoying lizard," Elico grumbled, as the tentacle-like appendages on his back, resembling hair, lashed out to strike. But before the attack could land, James had already pulled back once again. It felt as if catching him was becoming harder and harder—or maybe it just seemed that way to Elico. No, it couldn't be possible.

Shaking his head, Elico pressed on, but something was off. He should've been able to catch up easily, yet he found it increasingly difficult. Blue particles were rapidly transforming into silver ones, swirling around James as his eyes began to glow with a brilliant blue light.

Suddenly, another slice appeared in the pie chart of his G-Power—this one turquoise, shining far more intensely than the Haos section, as if mocking Mylene.

Mylene didn't understand what was happening, glancing at her gauntlet in disbelief. What she saw left her stunned.

<Darkus Broken Hydranoid> <Aquos Elico>

<G-Power: 702> <G-Power: 498>

Shocked, Mylene yelled, "Wait, what! This is impossible! How?!"

As Mylene struggled to comprehend the situation, Siren, savoring her panic, giggled melodically and explained:

"It's veeeery sim~ple! Check the numbers again and look at the notification your arrogance made you overlook."

<Constant 1 G-Power Transfer: transferred from Aquos Elico to Darkus Broken Hydranoid.>

<... >

The notifications continued to roll in. Mylene's face twisted in frustration. "You're cheating!" she shouted accusingly. Siren, in the same melodic tone, replied, "I don't recall there being any rule that says we have to explain our abilities. If you're not paying attention to the gauntlet notifications, that's your problem~!"

As Mylene raged at Siren, the balance of power shifted enough for James to roar.

"Come on!"

Elico threw another punch, and James met it with a punch of his own! As their fists collided, the slice in James's G-Power pie chart representing Aquos glowed even brighter, and with the shockwave, Elico reverted to ball form, landing at Mylene's feet. As he fell, he called out, "Sorry, ma'am~!"

Mylene stood there, stunned by the reversal of events, while James mockingly glanced at her.

"If you attack blindly, you'll lose blindly."

With a chuckle, James reverted to ball form, glowing turquoise—and much brighter than before.

Mylene Farrow LP: 195 | Siren LP: 500