Canterlot City was in turmoil, as Bakugan were appearing in every corner of the city and causing mass fear and confusion.
Not a single part of the city had been left untouched. All except one. A small section of the older city, with many old buildings that should have been knocked down long ago but left to stand until someone could think of something useful to put in their place.
Because this area of the city was abandoned, there were no Bakugan there when Lucifer unleashed the field. As such, it was one of the only places in the city without Bakugan roaming the street. In this entire part of the city, there was only one person and one Bakugan located there.
Inside one of the older apartment building, in a dark and dreary room with a single bed and a broken fire, Derpy was sitting on the bed curled up with her face in her knees.
The girl had been sitting like this for three days, having run here as soon as she escaped the stadium and her friends. It was the one place she could think of that she wouldn't be found in for a while, allowing her to remain undisturbed and alone as she tried to get her thoughts in order.
Even after three whole days, the idea that she was Phantom was still causing her a great amount of pain. So much pain that it was paralyzing the rest of her thoughts. Currently, she was hungry and thirsty and had barely slept a wink the last few days. But despite all that, her body's biological needs were all being suppressed by her own guilt.
Slowly, her eyes began to drift closed. And as she felt herself drifting off, she found herself waking up someplace else. The Doom Dimension.
Currently, she was standing atop a Serpentine head and looking down at someone. Trixie Lulamoon was glaring up at her, as her Haos Hynoid stood in front of her. It was then she realised what was happening, as she spoke in a voice that wasn't here.
"Now," she held up a card as Darkus Fury floated next to him, "this battle ends here. Ability, Activate!" Fury charged as the blade on his arm glowed, "Darkus Wrath!" He slashed at the Hynoid and sent him flying back, howling in pain as it fell towards Trixie. The girl screamed as light filled the field, and Derpy found herself in another part of the Doom Dimension.
NO!" She looked up to see Fury being ripped apart by the Ultimate Sacrifice card, "there must be another way!" She wanted to say something, but her voice refused to work. "I've been nothing but faithful to you!"
"And that loyalty is much appreciated," she finally said. "But for the great plan, we must ask for one final sacrifice from you."
Fury cried out in agony as his entire body was ripped apart. "You...will...PAY!!!!!" Derpy wanted her eyes to close, but they refused and she saw every second of Fury's pain. Another bright light blinded Derpy and when she opened her eyes, she found she was staring down at Pinkie whilst Ragnaroid was in front of her.
"Gummy!" She heard Pinkie cry, Derpy realising she was battling against her and Gumigator.
"Gate Card, OPEN!" She heard Phantom yell, as the field began to glow. "Silent Land! Now you can't activate any new Abilities." Pinkie gasped at this, as Gumigator pushed itself up. At the same time, her arm held up three cards. "Triple Ability, Activate!" Ragnaroid's claws opened, revealing the hidden eyes as they and the one on his head glowed a dark light. "Dark Light, plus Dark Gaze, plus Fusion Ability, Eye of Darkness!" The light blinded her again and in a flash, she was in another battle against Fluttershy and Lepusinge.
The flame rabbit fell to the ground after being paralysed, Fluttershy gasping. "Lepusinge!"
"Say goodbye to your little friend," Phantom stated as he held up a card. "Fusion Ability...Activate!"
"No," Fluttershy's eyes filled with tears, as the card began to glow. "Please don't do this!" Her cries made Derpy want to cry, but all she could do was watch as Ragnaroid unleashed his attack and blasted both Lepusinge and Fluttershy away.
Derpy was forced to sit in torment, as her alter-ego went on to hunt down Rarity, Rainbow, Applejack and finally, Twilight. Every time the sight of her friends being hurt made her want to scream, but she couldn't and every vision caused her heart to break more and more.
Then she was forced to watch the worst memory of all.
Leonidas charged forward and started slamming his claws, fists and tail into Ragnaroid. The Darkus Bakugan raised his claws in self defence, hissing with every strike. She saw Flash throw a smirk at her, whilst she just stood there. "What's the matter?" He asked, "realising you can't win. Maybe you should have thought about that before attacking my friends!"
"No," Phantom told him, "I'm just marvelling at how absolutely pathetic you are." Flash's eyes went wide at this, whilst Ragnaroid attempted to slash at Leonidas with his tail blade. But Leonidas ducked under it before leaping up into the air. "Time for this game to come to an end!" Phantom held up a card, "Ability, Activate!" The card glowed as Ragnaroid opened his claw, the gun barrels folding out. "Shadow Blast!"
"Prepare yourself!" Ragnaroid pointed one gun at Leonidas and another at the ground, "to fall to my might."
"The only one falling here is you!" Leonidas cried as he began charging up energy, his mouth sparking with the power similar to his Omega Eraser. Both Bakugan charged up and eventually, they fired. The two lasers shot towards one another and slammed into each other, causing an explosion.
"Yes!" Flash cheered as he braced himself, the smoke surrounding him and covering both Bakugan. But as the smoke began to fade, he was in for a surprise. "What?"
The two beams continued to push against one another, The Bakugan constantly firing. "But how?" Leonidas asked despite still launching a laser from his mouth. "How could he survive?" Derpy wanted to tell Flash she was sorry, for everything she had don't. But nothing she did seemed to let her speak.
"And now," she heard Phantom announce. "Your pet lizard will fall. Fusion Ability, Activate!" Ragnaroid raised his claws as the gun barrels extended and began to glow. "Gaze of the Abyss." The guns unleashed a burst of dark light, which struck the light coming off his chest eye.
With Leonidas still so close to Ragnaroid, he wasn't able to avoid the attack that was coming. "Gyah!" He cried as the the light struck him, freezing the dragon in place and draining him of his power.
"LEO!" Flash cried, Derpy's heart shattering at that scream.
Leonidas tried to fight against the light, but it was just too powerful. He felt the last of his strength begin to fade and as he began to glow, he closed his eyes. "Spike...everyone. I'm sorry." That was all he could say before he reverted back to ball form, Flash's eyes going wide as he fell towards the ground and landed in front of him.
"No," he whispered as he fell to his knees, "this can't happen."
"Aaaaaah!" Derpy's head shot up as she fell back on the bed, panting heavily as all the memories she had made during her time as Phantom came back to her. And as they did, she couldn't help but start crying.
"Derpy!" She slowly looked over at a small wood bedside table, where a Darkus Bakugan could be seen. "Are you okay?" Ragnaroid asked, opening up and looking her over. Just the sight of him made Derpy feel like crying some more, the girl rolling so her back was too him. "Derpy. I know what's been happening to you hasn't been easy. But you have to get over this. Lucifer has the Darkus Energy now and he's more powerful than ever. We must find a way to stop him."
"Go away!" Derpy cried, covering her ears. "I don't wanna hear anything you have to say."
"Derpy, you have to listen to me. You're needed."
"NO!" Derpy cried, turning back to him. "Nobody needs me. And why are you even here? You must have recovered from being drained, so go. Go out and do whatever you want."
"I can't," Phantom told her. "I won't leave my partner."
"I'm not your partner!" Derpy told him. "I'm not Phantom. I'll never let myself turn into that monster again." She got up off the bed and moved over to the window, the sounds of many alarms, screams and a few Bakugan roars filling the air as she looked out towards the city.
Ragnaroid watched her from his spot on the table, seeing how unhappy she was. "Derpy," he told her, "you don't have to become Phantom again. But you can't just hide away from this. You might not have been in control of your actions, but Phantom and you are one."
"No," Derpy shook her head, "I don't want to be one with him. I just want to forget everything I did when I was him."
"You can't just forget about all this. Everything Phantom did, that was you. You can't deny that." Derpy looked ready to cry again, "Phantom is a part of you. You're not Phantom, but Phantom is you."
"That doesn't make any sense."
"Of course it does. Lucifer didn't create Phantom from nothing. He didn't install that personality into you. He created it from you, just like he said. Phantom is every dark desire you ever had, without any of the good that constantly keeps those desires at bay."
"So you're saying I'm evil?"
"Everyone has evil within them," Ragnaroid told her. "Your friend Flash would have been even worse than Phantom if all of his best qualities had been removed. The same with any of your friends. Compared to them, the darkness within your heart is a drop in the ocean. That's why Lucifer chose you. He knew that allowing your dark side free reign would create someone willing to do whatever it took to complete Lucifer's mission, but not be so evil that he would fight against Lucifer's control."
"But I did go against him," Derpy whimpered. "I turned against him and I did so many horrible things. I killed Fury. I brainwashed my friends. I stole their Bakugan and tried to take Flash's and the rest of the BakuFighters' Bakugan. And that's just the most horrible stuff. Who knows how many more horrible memories I'm going to start remembering."
"Those memories are yours, even if you weren't conscious when you made them. If you try to fight against it, those memories will always plague you. You can't just pretend nothing you did back when you were Phantom happened."
"Then what am I supposed to do?" Derpy asked as she slowly turned to him, "accept that I was the monster that helped free Lucifer. That I caused so much pain and heartache to those I care about. That all the terrible stuff that's happening right now is my fault?"
"It's not just your fault," Ragnaroid stated. "I was the one that awakened Lucifer. I was the one that freed you from his control and set you on the path that led to all this. I was the one who made us challenge Regulus and take the Darkus Energy. And I'm the one that let Lucifer take it from me. I'm as much to blame as you."
Derpy slid down to the ground and curled herself up again, "then why are you here and not trying to fix it?" Then she realised, "you don't care about fixing this. All you care about is being the strongest."
"I did," Ragnaroid nodded as he leapt down off the table and rolled towards her. "And I still do. Since the day I was first brought into this world, I strove to become the strongest Bakugan. Even after my defeat at the hands of the Guardians, I still longed to be the most powerful of all Bakugan. I've done many things in order to achieve that goal. But now look at me. I am beaten and used up. I lost to Lucifer. I lost to Leonidas and I had the greatest power I could ever hope for stripped from me. And now I understand why."
"Because you only became strong for your own sake," Derpy told him.
"Exactly." Another roar filled the air and Ragnaroid leapt onto the windowsill, seeing a Haos Sylvee flying close by. "Regulus chose you to battle with him because he saw you as a worthy Darkus Soldier."
"That wasn't me," Derpy frowned. "It was just a fake of me. Someone else living my life whilst I was out being evil."
Ragnaroid shook his head. "She might not have been the original, but she was as real as you or me. Regulus said the same thing. She was you. Everything you are in another body. She was the perfect copy of you and even if she's gone, she still lives on in the memories she passed on to you. You are the human Regulus chose as his successor. Now maybe it's time to prove what he saw in you was something special"
"What are you saying?"
"Over the last three days, I've been thinking about everything Regulus and Leonidas told me. The reason I lost to Leonidas was because I didn't have something worth fighting for. But now I do." He turned to her, "I have you."
"Me?"
"Regulus couldn't find a Bakugan worthy of you, to fight by your side as his Darkus Soldier. Maybe I can be that Bakugan."
"Your Phantom's Bakugan," Derpy pushed herself up and moved to the far end of the room. "Not mine. I'm not a Brawler."
"You are a Brawler," Ragnaroid told her. "Phantom's skills didn't come from nowhere. Everything he was able to do, you're able to do. Only now you'll be able to use those skills the right way."
"I'm not Phantom," she repeated. "I know what you're trying to do. You're trying to bring Phantom back out of me. Well it's not going to work." She spotted a shard of wood on the ground and picked it up, spinning around to face Ragnaroid. "Just leave me alone!" She threw the wood towards Ragnaroid and the Bakugan leapt out of the way, the wood hitting the glass in the window and smashing through it.
"Derpy-" Ragnaroid started. But before he could say anything else, a loud roar filled the air and they turned to see the Sylvee flying towards the building. It had probably been attracted by the sound of the glass breaking and now believed there was someone in this building to attack.
Derpy gasped as the robotic creature flew by, its tail smashing through the roof and causing it to start to collapse. She jumped back as the room fell in on itself, the girl beginning to cough from all the dust being thrown down. She knew the Bakugan would be coming back for another attack, so she began to run to the door. But before she could get to far.
"Help!" Ragnaroid's voice made her stop and look back, seeing the Bakugan was nowhere in sight. "I'm stuck!" The voice came from a pile of rubble, Derpy realising Ragnaroid was trapped inside. If she didn't help him, he would probably be crushed.
Derpy's mind was in turmoil. She knew if she tried to save him, she could be killed. But she couldn't just leave him, could she?
Her conscious mind told her he was a monster. He had hurt so many before and if he was allowed to remain, he could hurt even more. She would be doing a lot of people and Bakugan a favour by letting him get crushed. But still...
Suddenly, images appeared in her head. New memories of her time as Phantom.
He was sitting on top of the building after defeating another pathetic opponent, Ragnaroid getting stronger and stronger by the day.
He was currently eating a sandwich as the base form Ragnaroid sat besides him curled up. Ragnaroid then turned to him, as if staring at him, then chuckled and looked away. "What?" Phantom asked, "what's so funny?"
"Nothing," Ragnaroid told him. "Just...it's almost hard to believe."
"What?"
"I spent my entire life alone. Ever since I was created, I've fought alone. Everyone else was nothing more then fodder to fuel my growing power. I had nobody to trust and call my friend, and I didn't want one. But now look at me. I'm just sitting around, enjoying the moment with someone I've been fighting alongside. When I think about it, I never even thought about being partnered with someone."
"Well it's not like you had much of a choice," Phantom stated after taking another bite. "In this world, you need a partner in order to fight and grow stronger."
"Indeed. And though this partnership started out of need, I have to admit it's been rather fun." He opened up and turned to Phantom. "I've always lived for battle, but only now do I realise how little I actually enjoyed it back then. But now things have gotten far more interesting. So yes, this partnership started out as one of necessity. But that doesn't have to be how it continues."
"So you're saying you don't wanna just be partners because you need me?" Phantom asked, Ragnaroid nodding as he leapt up onto his knee.
"I wouldn't call us friends, but I'd like to think we're more than just business partners. I'm not sure what the correct term to use would be."
Phantom smirked, "let's stick with partners and see where that takes us." He reached a finger out and Ragnaroid touched it with one of his claws, the pair doing their best handshake as they smiled at one another.
Derpy violently shook her head as the memory faded, the girl unable to get the happy feelings she felt when she remembered that to go away.
"Augh!" Ragnaroid then cried as another piece of rubble landed on top of the pile, Derpy gasping as she ran forwards before her mind could tell her not to. The room continued to collapse as she reached the pile and pushed the smallest pieces she could off the pile, it taking a great amount of effort to do so. Eventually, she managed to make a big enough hole in the rubble that Ragnaroid could leap out and land on her shoulder. "Thank you."
"Don't thank me yet!" She cried before they ran out of the room. The rest of the building was starting to collapse, as the Sylvee struck again. Luckily, Derpy was able to escape before the entire place collapsed.
As she ran out the building, the metal insect smashed into the side and pushed it over until it slammed into the building next to it. They continued to run away unnoticed as the two structures collapsed into a giant pile, the Sylvee not noticing them as they rushed into the alleyway across the street.
Once they were safely out of harm's way, Derpy sighed in relief as Ragnaroid turned to her. "You saved me." She looked down at this, "I thought you didn't care about me."
"I...I can't explain it." She clutched her head, "I remembered something from my time as Phantom. A moment that was...happy. I can't stop thinking about it as happy." As she said that, more memories began to flow through her mind. Moments between Phantom and Ragnaroid, where the two were simply together and talking.
Each of those moments should have filled her with hatred and dread, but she couldn't help feeling fond of them. And as she looked at Ragnaroid, the same feelings were surrounding him. She couldn't help it. She cared about him.
"Who...who am I?" She looked ready to start crying again. "Am I Derpy...or Phantom?"
"You're both," Ragnaroid told him. "I believe you humans have a word for what is happening for you. Split personality. Until now, the Derpy you were before and Phantom were mentally separate. But now that the curtain's been lifted, your two personalities are beginning to combine. You need to decide what aspects of the two personalities you want to make a part of the you that is going to be born."
"And what if I don't want any of Phantom's personality?" Derpy asked. "Why can't I just be the me I was before."
"You can try," Ragnaroid told him. "But I doubt it'll be that easy. Phantom will always be a part of you. And until you accept that, you're mind will constantly be at war with itself." Derpy hated this situation, wishing she could just have it all be over with.
But before she could, a shadow loomed over them.
Derpy spun around and when she did, she saw the Sylvee staring down at them after finally finding its targets. The mechanical insect roared as it swung its tail around and caused the tops of the buildings she was between to explode and send rubble down towards her.
"AAAHHH!" She threw herself to the ground and covered her head, expecting this to be the end. The rubbled crashed down upon her and she was buried alive, the Sylvee flying away as it did.
But before it could get to far, the rubble began to move and it turned back to the pile. As it did, the pile exploded and something flew out of it. "RAAAAAAAAAAH!" Ragnaroid roared as he spread his wings and floated in the air, with two of his claws together holding Derpy.
The girl opened her eyes and looked around, seeing Ragnaroid in his true form holding her above the city. "Ragnaroid," she whispered before the Sylvee fired a laser from its mouth. Ragnaroid dodged the attack and stayed at a distance, Derpy doing her best to keep from being thrown off. "What are you doing?" She asked when the Sylvee fired again, "aren't you gonna fight back?"
"I can't activate my Abilities without you," Ragnaroid reminded her. Derpy couldn't believe what she was hearing. "I need your help to stop this thing."
"I...I can't," she closed her eyes. As she did, the Sylvee fired again and Ragnaroid had to use his wing to shield her.
"Raaah!" Ragnaroid cried, but fought through the pain and charged. When he reached the Sylvee, he swing his tail around and slammed the drill into its head. This knock the beast flying and allowed him to fly away.
"You...you're fleeing?"
"Not much point in fighting if I can't activate my abilities," he told her. "Let's find someplace safe for you to hide."
Derpy couldn't believe what she was hearing. Ragnaroid really did care about her, even though she wasn't his true partner. "Wait," she realised something, "You can take your true form?"
"Well yeah," Ragnaroid told him. "Any Bakugan can inside this field."
"So inside the building, you could have saved yourself at any moment?" Ragnaroid sweatdropped as he continued flying, "so you were just pretending to need help?"
"I wouldn't say...pretending. If I had taken my true form...the whole place would have collapsed on top of you." Derpy didn't believe that for a second. But even so, she was glad Ragnaroid had saved them.
She looked around for somewhere safe to hide, but there wasn't one. In every direction she looked, Bakugan were marching through the streets looking for someone to attack. She had been so cooped up, she hadn't realised how bad things had gotten.
"But what could I do about it?" She asked, unsure how to answer that question.
But in that moment, an explosion occurred not to far off. The two turned towards it and as they did, they saw something fly out of the smoke. A Darkus Ziperator.
"That Bakugan," she whispered as she saw someone was riding on its shoulder. Someone she knew. "Rumble." The boy she had helped her friend Pip beat was staring down at the ground, clearly focusing his attention on whatever was down there. She realised what when a burst of fire shot up towards him, Rumble's Bakugan barely managing to avoid it before diving down.
As she watched, another explosion occurred just down the road from the first. And a roar she recognised filled the air.
"That...that sounds like a Scaboid." Her eyes went wide as she thought about who it might be, "Pipsqueak!" Ragnaroid charge forward towards the battle and when they flew over the buildings, they saw what Derpy had feared.
Pipsqueak was on the ground, fighting against a Subterra Centipoid with his Scaboid. There were two more Centipoids, a Haos and Pyrus one, which Rumble was battling.
"Ability, Activate!" Pip cried as he held up a card, Scaboid opening his mouth as it filled with water. "Blast Hydro!" The attack exploded from his mouth and struck the Centipoid, knocking it backwards.
"Ability, Activate!" Rumble cried as his Ziperator glowed, "Dark Surge!" Ziperator charged and punched the Pyrus Centipoid, knocking it backwards. But before it could attack the Haos Centipoid, it fired a laser at Ziperator that knocked it backwards. "Augh!" Rumble cried as Ziperator struck the ground and he fell off, Ziperator returning to ball form, rolling along the ground as the Centipoid prepared for another attack.
"Rumble!" Pip cried, as he and Scaboid rushed over to him. As they did, the Subterra Centipoid summoned a bunch of rocks that it fired at them. "Ability, Activate!" Scaboid's back opened up and it fired a blue laser, which formed into a dome that surrounded it and the two teens. "Aqua Deflector!" The rocks slammed into the energy shield and bounced off it, the shield remaining as the Haos and Pyrus Centipoids launched lasers and a flamethrower at it.
Derpy watched as the three types of attacks constantly bombarded against the energy shield, which seemed to grow weaker and weaker with every hit.
"Stay strong!" Pip told his partner, "we have to keep Rumble safe." But it was clear that Scaboid wouldn't be able to hold on much longer.
"What do I do?" Derpy asked, seeing the shield starting to glitch.
"Do you want to help them?" Ragnaroid asked, "I can't do that if you don't help." Derpy was still unsure, fearing that if she brawled she might end up turning into Phantom again. She felt herself fall into a circle, constantly telling herself that she had to but couldn't. That she couldn't but had to.
"Augh!" Pip's cries then filled the air, making her look down and see the shield finally shatter as a rock broke through it and almost hit him.
"PIP!" Derpy cried, her body moving before her brain could stop it. From out of who knows where, she took out a card. "Ability, Activate!" Ragnaroid's chest opened up, "Doom Vision!"
The light flew down and struck the Centipoid, causing them all to freeze in place.
Pip looked up and gasped when he saw Derpy riding on Ragnaroid, the girl's face looking rather serious. "Hurry!" She cried, "take them out."
"Right!" Pip nodded as he held up a card, "Ability, Activate!" The card glowed as Scaboid held up one of its claws and pointed them at the Subterra Centipoid, with blue lightning sparking between them. "Freeze Burner!" The lightning exploded off of his claws and struck the insect, making it cry out as it was knocked backwards and reverted back to ball form.
Derpy smiled before turning to the other Centipoid, which were slowly starting to recover. "Ragnaroid!"
"On it!" Ragnaroid flew down and swung his other claw at the Pyrus Bakugan, knocking it back to ball form as well.
"Ability, Activate!" Derpy took out another card as the Haos Centipoid began to move, "Death Spiral!" Ragnaroid thrust his spinning drill into it and knocked it backwards, the Bakugan reverting back to ball form as it cried out.
Threats gone, Pip turned to Derpy and smiled. "You're okay. I was worried when you disappeared." Derpy smiled at this, then frowned and turned to Ragnaroid.
"I...I don't know what came over me," she told him. "My body keeps reacting before I can stop it."
"You wanted to help them," he stated. "And that caused the instincts you inherited from Phantom to kick in. See. You have what it takes to use Phantom's abilities to do good." Derpy wasn't so sure. But at the moment, she needed to focus on getting these two boys to safety.
"Is Rumble okay?" She asked Pip, who was trying to wake his friend up.
"I think that fall knocked him out," Pip cried. "But it doesn't look like he's hurt."
"Alright," Derpy knew of only one place that was likely very safe. "We have to go to the stadium. I'm sure that's where the other Brawlers are waiting." Pip nodded lifted Rumble up as Ragnaroid landed and brought his claws down, Scaboid returning to ball form.
Once they were on the claw with Derpy, Ragnaroid took to the air and they flew in the direction of the stadium.
"What were you doing out here?" Derpy inquired, "the streets are too dangerous. You should have tried to leave the city."
"You didn't hear?" Pip asked, Derpy shaking her head. "Whatever this field is, it can't be passed through. We're trapped in the city." Derpy's eyes went wide hearing this. "Rumble's older brother left to try and fight against a bunch of Bakugan that were getting too close to their house, but he never came back. Rumble went out after him and I couldn't just let him go out alone. So we went with him to look for Thunderlane."
"And you haven't found him?" Pip shook his head, "well hopefully he'll be waiting at the stadium. And hopefully, we can find someone to make sure Rumble isn't hurt." But as they drew closer and closer to the stadium, another explosion caught their attention and made them all look around.
There they saw another battle that was taking place, this one being a small army of Gargonoid of every attribute. Derpy tried to count them, but she lost track after about seven or eight. But then she saw a trio of Bakugan that were fighting against the Gargonoid.
One was a Ventus Struthion, who was running around the place attacking any Gargonoid that got in its way. Another was a Haos Sirenoid, which were playing her harp and using it to put the Gargonoid into a trance. This allowed Subterra Aeronaut to deal a serious blow to them, knocking the gargoyles down.
"I know those Bakugan," Derpy whisper. "They belong to Scootaloo and her friends."
"Who?" Pip asked, only for a loud squawk to fill the air. They looked back at the battlefield and saw Struthion getting knocked down, whilst several Gargonoid leapt onto it to pin it to the ground. Several other Gargonoid were doing the same to Sirenoid and Aeronaut, quickly overwhelming them. "They're getting outnumbered!"
Derpy frowned and looked around, trying to see if she could spot Scootaloo. And she did.
Down on the ground, Scootaloo and her two friends were being cornered by a trio of Gargonoid. And they weren't alone. Scootaloo's mom and dad were with them, along with Sweetie's parents and Applebloom's brother and grandmother. The families had come out searching for the children and when they found them, they were being attacked Bakugan.
"Get behind me!" Trail told his daughter and wife, pushing them behind him as Big Mac and Hondo Flanks did the same to his family. The Gargonoid all growled at them and were slowly reaching out to grab them, as they flinched in fear.
"Ability, Activate!" Suddenly, a large tail shot down and wrapped around the three Garonoid. "Purgatory Crusher!" The trio were lifted into the air, as mechanical sounds whirled and the tail tightened around them. This allowed the humans to see the Bakugan that had saved them.
"Ragnaroid!?" Scootaloo cried, as Ragnaroid grabbed two of the Gargonoid out of his tail with his claws. "But that means..." She spotted Derpy up on Ragnaroid's head, along with two others. "DERPY!" Ragnaroid tossed the three Bakugan towards Struthion, Sirenoid and Aeronaut, knocking the Gargonoid pinning them off them like bowling pins.
"Hurry!" Derpy told them all, "we need to get out of here." Ragnaroid turned to the Gargonoid, who were getting up as the girl's Bakugan rushed towards them. Sirenoid and Aeronaut began to lift the humans onto Struthion's back, the ostrich Bakugan preparing to run away as fast as it could whilst the others protect it.
Ragnaroid then grabbed Pip and Rumble, bringing them down to place on Struthion's back. "What about you?" Pipsqueak asked Derpy, who smiled at him.
"I'll follow. Once I've made sure these things aren't following you. Everyone, get to the stadium. You'll be safe there!" She turned towards the Gargonoid, who began to pick themselves up as the other Bakugan rushed off and left Ragnaroid to fend for himself.
"So," Ragnaroid smirked, "you ready to be the brawler you were always meant to be?" Derpy wasn't sure about that. All she knew was this situation was partly her fault and she had to at least protect her friend's families.
She didn't get to say anything, as a Darkus Gargonoid charged at her. "Ability, Activate!" Ragnaroid held up his claws as they opened, "Apocalyptic Fire!" The black and purple flames shot out of the holes and knocked the Gargonoid back, whilst another one flew at him. He quickly seized the fire and brought this claws together before slashing at the Gargonoid, throwing it back whilst more charged.
Ragnaroid continued to fight against the Gargonoid, but many against one weren't great odds. "Raaah!" He slammed his tail into two, then blasted another with his flames. He used his Doom Vision to freeze three of them before grabbing and squeezing the life out of them, then quickly took to the air to avoid another two before throwing the three he was holding at them.
"Are you okay?" Derpy asked as she noticed Ragnaroid panting, whilst a few more Gargonoid flew up towards him.
"I'm fine!" He roared before unleashing another burst of fire, "I'm the scourge of Vestroia. I defeated all six of the Rainbooms, remember."
"Unfortunately," Derpy nodded. "But even so, you don't have limitless power." More Gargonoid charged, "if they keep coming them you'll be in serious trouble." Ragnaroid swung his tail around and knocked the Gargonoid back down, but as they fell the others all let out a roar as they glowed.
"What are they doing?" Ragnaroid asked, as the light flew off of them and into the Gargonoid that he had just beaten.
"I know this," Derpy gasped. "It's an Ability Gargonoid have, called Cleansing Cauldron. It allows them to heal damage done to other Bakugan and undo any power loss caused by an opponent's Ability." The Gargonoid on the floor stood up as the once that just used Cleansing Cauldron charged at them. "Look out!"
Ragnaroid dodged the claws of a Haos Gargonoid and blasted it with his flames, whilst another Gargonoid prepared to ram at him with its horns. But before it could, Ragnaroid thrust his tail forward and slammed the drill into its chest. As it fell, a trio of Ventus Gargonoid formed a triangle around him before unleashing tornados from their mouths.
"AUGH!" Ragnaroid was able to block two of them with his claws, but the third struck his back and knocked him downwards.
Derpy screamed as she was thrown off Ragnaroid's head as they fell, barely managing to grab hold of his horn as he pulled himself up seconds before hitting the ground. But as he skimmed along the ground, several Aquos Gargonoid fired water blasts towards them and Ragnaroid was forced to take evasive manoeuvres to avoid them.
However, this finally shook Derpy loose and she fell towards the ground. Her screams caught Ragnaroid's attention and his eye went wide, the Darkus Bakugan spinning the drill of his tail fast enough to create a small tornado below her. Derpy flew into this tornado and it formed a cushion that slowed her fall, allowing her to land without any injury.
But this act allowed several Gargonoid to get in close and leap upon him. "Augh!" He roared, attempting to shake them off but their had a strong grip upon him and started biting and tearing into his body. "GET OFF ME!"
"Ragnaroid!" Derpy gasped, only for a shadow to appear above her. She spun around and saw a Pyrus Gargonoid staring down at her, its mouth beginning to fill with fire.
"DERPY!" Ragnaroid roared, trying to get to her but being unable to move with all the Gargonoid holding him down.
Derpy's entire body filled with fear as she saw the flames build, then closed her eyes and readied herself. She would not die afraid.
"Fire Burst!" Before the Gargonoid could unleashed its own flames, green ones shot towards it and slammed into the Bakugan's face. It roared as it was knocked back, Derpy spinning around to see Darkus Spikenoid racing towards her. And he wasn't alone.
Terraspin, Fenroar and Cleopal were heading towards her as well, all of their brawlers riding atop them as they approached. "Derpy!" Twilight called out when she saw her, "are you okay?"
Derpy sighed, unable to believe she had actually survived. She nodded, then turned to see Ragnaroid was still getting overwhelmed by the Gargonoid. He tried to use his Doom Vision, but a pair of Gargonoid had their feet on his chest preventing it from opening.
"Come on!" She then heard Rainbow called out, making her look up towards the four Rainbooms. "Let's get out of here before those things turn on us."
"Wait!" Derpy cried, "you have to help Ragnaroid."
"Are you nuts?" Spike growled, "why should we help him after everything he's done to us?" A roar of pain made them turn towards the Darkus Bakugan and see he had finally been pinned to the ground, the Gargonoid continuing to cause him a lot of pain with their bites and claws.
"Please!" Derpy turned to them, "he's...he's my partner." The Brawlers were surprised by this, but seeing the distressed look Derpy was giving them made the four unable to say no.
"Ability, Activate!" Twilight held up a card, as Spike's back spines glowed, "Spiking Strike!" The spikes exploded off and shot towards the Gargonoid, slamming into them and causing serious injury as their power dropped.
"Ability, Activate!" Applejack and Rarity cried, "Howling Force/Blazing Light!" The force of the two attacks dislodged the many injured Gargonoid, pushing them away from Ragnaroid.
"Ability, Activate!" Terraspin started spinning his fins, "Shell Tornado!" The vortex created by this exploded from his shell and blew the Gargonoid back, allowing Ragnaroid to finally pick himself up.
"Um...thanks," he told them. The Bakugan all looked at him suspiciously, as Ragnaroid turned his attention back to the Gargonoid that were beginning to pick themselves up.
"They're gonna use Cleansing Cauldron again!" Derpy cried, with Ragnaroid leaping into the air and getting ready to fight. "No choice." She took out a card, the others looking worried. "Everyone get back!"
"Derpy, what are going to do?" Twilight asked, but Depry simply held the card up.
"Fusion Ability...ACTIVATE!" The Rainbooms gasped as Ragnaroid's claws and chest opened up, their Bakugan quickly beginning to run to a safe distance as the attacks powered up.
"END OF DAYS!" The Darkus Bakugan roared, as lasers exploded from every opening of his body. One by one, they struck the Gargonoid and each one was blasted backwards before reverting back to ball form. First were the Bakugan attempting to use Cleansing Cauldron, then the Bakugan that had taken to most damaged followed by the rest.
The Rainbooms had expected Ragnaroid to take a few buildings out with his attack, but to their amazement he focuses only on the Gargonoid. And when the last one was taken out, Ragnaroid stopped his attack.
Derpy stared at Ragnaroid in amazement, shocked to see he had such control when usually he just let his power run wild. "Derpy!" She spun around and saw Twilight, Rarity, Rainbow and Applejack running towards her. Twilight was at the front of the pack and when she reached her, she looked the girl over with worry. "Are you hurt? Did Ragnaroid harm you?"
"No," Derpy shook her head before turning towards the Darkus Bakugan, "he's been protecting me. He saved me from a bunch of Bakugan."
"But he's Phantom's Bakugan?" Applejack asked, "why would he fight for you?"
Derpy frowned as she looked down at that question, knowing there was only one true answer. "Because I am Phantom." The girls looked at her, shocked that she would say this. Derpy gave them all a serious look. "I am Phantom and I can't deny that. Everything he is, came from within me. And everything he did is my fault."
"Derpy," Twilight placed a hand on Derpy's shoulder. "That's not true. You weren't in control of yourself. You shouldn't blame yourself for what happened."
"When you were under Phantom...under my control, you didn't have any control over yourself either. If one of you had ended up taking Leonidas or one of the other BakuFighter Bakugan, would you have blamed yourselves?" The girls frowned, but knew she was right. "And you're right, I can't hate myself for what happened. All I can do now is try and make amends."
"Sweetie and the others told us what you did," Rarity stated. "I think that's a good way to make amends."
"Maybe to you," Derpy stated. "But I'm not done. Not until Lucifer is finally stopped. I don't care how much I have to fight, I'll stop him and make up for everything I've done." She turned to Ragnaroid, who slowly slithered up to her. "If you're still willing, will you lend my your power."
Ragnaroid smirked at this, "I was waiting for you to ask." He slowly reached out and pointed a metal claw at her. "For as long as you want me, I will stand by your side. I promise." Derpy smiled and was about to take his claw, but then Rainbow grabbed her.
"Are you sure about this? How do you know you can trust this guy?"
"Because," Derpy turned to smile at him, "he's my friend." With that, she reached out and wrapped her hand around the tip of his claw. The two suddenly taken back to that time on the rooftop, when they became true partners. Now that relationship had ended, being replaced by something even stronger.
"Right then," Ragnaroid spoke up as he spread his wings. "I say it's time we get to work. Lucifer isn't going to stop himself."
Derpy nodded as Twilight stepped up next to her. "Flash and the BakuFighters have already gone after him." Derpy was surprised to hear this. "They headed for Dark Industries. We haven't heard from them since they arrived."
Derpy took a deep breath. The thought of seeing her friends again after what she did terrified her, but she knew she had to make it up to them more then anyone. "Ragnaroid, we're heading over there." Ragnaroid nodded before lowering his head, allowing Derpy to climb on.
"Derpy!" She turned to her friends, the lot of them looking worried as Twilight spoke up. "Be careful." Derpy nodded before Ragnaroid took off, leaping into the air and flying straight towards the building Derpy had been too many times before. Most of those times were when she was Phantom, but this time she would be heading there herself. And hopefully, he friends would be okay until she arrived.
"You sure you're up for this?" Ragnaroid asked, "the BakuFighters might not be too happy to see us."
"This might be awkward," she explained. "But they'll let us help. After all..." She turned her focus onto the building, "I'm a BakuFighters as well."