Drago's on Fire17,070 words
Say it ain't so Joe8,322 words
Secret of Success7,477 words
Trust Me8,340 words
Doom Dimension or Bust6,723 words
Show Down6,603 words
The Brawler's Last Stand8,371 words
Nightmare in Doomsville7,143 words
We are Marucho and Pinkie, Hear Us Roar7,548 words
A Place Far From Home7,689 words
Play Nice Runo8,383 words
Rarity's Nightmare Come to Life4,700 words

A Little Help from my Friends

At what appears to be Komba's house, we see shelves filled with trophies, and pictures of him and his friends before Bakugan came into his world. He was also looking at the battle scores of previous battlers and found Shun amongst them. Harpus hopped up to the screen looking at it. "Even losing one battle is too many, and boy did you ever lose!" she made fun of her human partner.

"Zip it! I hope you realize its all your fault we lost Harpus!" Komba reminded her.

Curling up into ball form, Harpus started rolling away. "I'm a bad Bakugan..." she said to herself.

Komba ignored it and looked to the screen looking at Shun's info, just looking at it made him furious and caused him to yell out loud. "NUTS!!! I hate you Shun! You and that little rainbow haired pony! How did you pass me?!!" he asked furiously, but then out of no where, a portal opened behind them. Catching both Komba and Harpus by surprise. "What in the world...?!"

Suddenly, a familiar dark chuckle came from the portal, Masquerade poked his head out looking to the young brawler. "Its time... I have a little job for you, Komba..." he said to him as Komba started to sweat from seeing what happened.

Meanwhile on Marucho's plane, they were flying over the ocean heading to their next destination as Billy explained everything to them. "All the top ranked players were invited...?" Dan asked him.

"Yeah, it was like this humongous bash... and only the best of the best Bakugan Battlers got to go check it out." Billy explained to them earning surprised looks from all of them.

"Wow... I didn't know they even existed..." Spike muttered looking to the others. "I guess that's a perk for being top gun..." he said to them only to earn a look from Julie.

"Please Spike, Billy's just pulling your chain." she said to him.

"Okay, now I'm confused." said Spike.

"Well if you ask me... I believe its just one big trap..." Marucho said to them.

"What...?" Dan looked to him in surprise.

Drago rolled up with Bahamut to speak. "I believe Marucho is right..." Drago said to them.

"So do I..." Billy lowered his head remembering what he went through. "Because I was one of those stupid enough to fall for it..." he said to them as he thought back to when they first met Masquerade. "He took us to a different dimension, a dimension he called... Vestroia."

"He must have shown you Naga and the Silent Core..." Bahamut said to him seeing him flinch from the pain he felt when Naga snared him. "Please... you must tell us the state Naga was in at the time you saw him, and you mustn't leave out any details." he said to him as Fluttershy approached him.

"Please Billy... tell us what you remember..." Fluttershy pleaded to him softly.

Thinking about what he saw, Billy looked to them remembering every detail he could remember. "Well... gee, I only saw him for a second... but from what I remember, it seemed like he couldn't move." he explained.

"Hmmm.... that seem's rather strange..." Twilight muttered.

"Perhaps he's frozen like a popcicle?" Pinkie joked about it.

"PINKIE!!!" The Brawlers and the rest of the ponies yelled at her.

"What...?" she looked at them.

"There's no chance he would be frozen like that... it may be something else..." Drago said to her.

Tigrerra approached him knowing he may be right. "Perhaps he is trapped within the Silent Core..." she theorized with him about the matter.

"Yes, and if your theory is corret, that means Naga has not yet evolved into the Ultimate Bakugan." Drago agreed with her theory of Naga's misfortune.

Rainbow Dash approached Billy to get more answers. "What else do you remember...?" she asked him.

"Well... I'm telling you, it was really weird... when I saw him, I felt this bizarre power kind of wash over me. And the next thing I knew, all I wanted..." Billy started lowering his head remembering what he did. "Was destroy every Bakugan that I could find... its like I couldn't even control myself!"

The ponies looked at him starting to feel sympathy for the poor boy. Fluttershy even took the chance to pull him into a comforting hug knowing it will help him feel better of what happened. She eventually let go and looked him straight in the eye. "Billy, maybe it was the Negative Energy the Silent Core that was manipulating you." she said to him.

"Fluttershy's right about that... we felt it every time other players threw down the Doom Card." said Applejack.

"Yeah, that's gotta be it." Dan agreed with them.

Billy looked at them and began to smile. "Thanks you guys... but I wish there was some way I could tell you how sorry I feel for what I did." he said to them.

"And you did... even if it meant getting kicked in the leg instead of the-" before Applejack could finish her sentence.

Julie quickly covered her mouth before she could say it. "Hey, don't worry about it. After all it wasn't your fault." she said to him with a smile.

"One more thing Billy... when you saw Naga... what did he do to make you feel, scared...?" Twilight asked him from noticing how he flinched from remembering the day he met Naga.

Billy held his arm remembing how he was snared by him. "He... had a strong grip around my body... like he was squeezing the life out of me..." he explained as he earned a gasp from the ponies. "I know it sounds crazy... but that's how it felt. Like death had me in the palm of his hands."

"It must have been really hard for you to go through that dear Billy... but know that you're no longer within his clutches." Rarity said to him with a smile.

With a smile across his face, Billy couldn't help but feel thankful to his friends for giving him a second chance. Of course he could still feel the pain in his leg from when Applejack kicked him. Suddenly, the TV screen turned on showing Kato inside the plane's cockpit. "It looks like we'll be arriving shortly in Bakugan Valley, all departing passengers prepare to leave the plane. That is all, we're going in." he informed them as the plane began is descent. As the plane landed, the platform opened up letting out the passengers. "All that's ashore is going ashore." Kato opened the door for them.

Julie looked to the others. "Okay, me and Applejack are gonna walk Billy home and catch up with you later." she said to them as she walked out.

"Try to behave kids." Applejack said to them as she walked out with Billy.

"Alright, but be careful!" Dan advised them.

"Later guys!" Billy walked out with them.

Watching them go, Rainbow Dash couldn't hold in her frustration any longer. "UGH!!! Man! That freak Masquerade is really getting under my skin!" she exclaimed.

"No kidding, he really goes too far!" Dan agreed with her.

Runo looked to them surprised. "What's the matter?" she asked.

Dan turned to her with a hardened face. "I'll tell you Runo, you remember the battle we just had with Klaus and Chan...?" he asked her. "Lets face it, they're puppets being manipulated by Masquerade. And that means we need to stop that creep from brainwashing everyone." he suggested.

"Yes but, easier said than done Dan." Marucho said to him.

"Marucho's right, there's no way of knowing where they are, and when they'll strike." Twilight said to him.

"I know Twilight, I know its hard, but it has to be done, and we have to do it." Dan replied to her.

Pinkie soon got between them. "We know, we know but... we're just saying-" before she could finish however.

Runo pushed her aside with an angry look on her face. "Hey! Take it down a notch! Like Twilight said, we don't even know where these battlers are! And until we find them, we can't do a darn thing!" she soon got in his face. "And don't forget we still haven't found the Infinity Core!" she exclaimed to him.

That did it. "I KNOW WE HAVEN"T FOUND IT YET! I'M JUST SICK AND TIRED OF MASQUERADES LITTLE GAME!!! I wanna nail that jerk so bad I can taste it!" Dan yelled at her.

"SO DOES EVERYBODY ELSE, BUT WE'RE NOT ALL FLIPPING OUT!!!" Runo yelled back at him.

"WHAT?!!" Dan yell back at her.

Fluttershy soon came between them to stop the fight between them. "Stop it! Please, I hate to see such good friends arguing!" she cried out at them.

"Seriously, you two are better than this." Alice added to it.

Dan and Runo soon looked to each other but scowled turning away. "Who says we're friends?!" Dan asked only to look back at Runo and look away.

Alice and the other ponies looked at him in shock but felt that they didn't mean it. "But I thought... you guys were..." Alice began to worry about them.

"Guys look, you're all a little heated up right now, you just need to take this chance to chill." Rainbow Dash said to them. "Besides, there's no use to be fighting amongst each other."

"Little late for that Rainbow... knowing those two, it will be a while." Shun said to her and walked out.

"Hey, where do you think you're going Shun?" Dan asked him. As he walked out the door, Dan followed him. "Wait up! You can't just walk away without telling anyone what the heck you're doing!" he grabbed him by the wrist forcing him to turn to him. "Is there something wrong Shun?"

Before he could respond, Shun pulled his arm away from him breaking free. "I don't care what happened to the others, I looked after myself!" he replied to him.

"Oh give me a break! You cannot be serious!" Dan exclaimed. "We have to work together to beat Masquerade, so get off your high horse and listen to me!"

Shun didn't reply at that time and kept quiet, but he eventually turned to Dan with a hardened expression. "And who just elected you captain?" he caught Dan off guard and turned away. "Man, with your temper, you couldn't beat a child." he said to him.

Rainbow was watching the scene, sensing a lot of tension between them. "Oh boy... things are starting to heat up out there..." she muttered to herself.

"In fact, I could take you down with my eyes closed!" Shun declared getting on Dan's last nerve.

"Excuse me?! What did you just say?!" Dan demanded to hear it again.

Suddenly, Shun sharply turned to Dan throwing his Bakushooter up to him catching him by surprise. The Mane Six approached seeing it and gasped in shock of what was going to happen. "I'm sick and tired of pretending we're friends!" he exclaimed and started walking away.

"Shun, wait!" Rainbow Dash called out to him but see's Dan stop her.

"Let him go... go ahead and leave with him if you want. Who cares, who needs him?" Dan muttered to himself.

"Daniel!" Drago shouted at him.

"What do you want?" Dan asked but lowered his head. "What is wrong with everyone around here?!" he let out a scream in frustration.

Alice also watched as Shun left them and began to worry. "Don't leave Shun..."

Twilight looked to Rainbow Dash. "Rainbow, go after him, take Alice and Rarity with you." she said to her.

"On it, come on you guys, we need to get him to change his mind." Rainbow flew off to follow after him as Rarity and Alice followed on foot/hoof.

Night fell, and Shun was still in much anger as he walked through the night. Skyress at that moment looked to him with worry in her eyes. "Where will you go?" she asked him.

"I don't know!" Shun exclaimed.

"But are you sure you're doing the right thing...?" Skyress asked him unaware that they were being watched.

Just in time to catch up to him, Rainbow Dash and others arrived. "Wait Shun! Wait up!" she flew in front of him. "You can't go Shun!" she said to him.

"She's right Shun, you just can't go! You know we're all depending on you Shun..." Alice said to him. She watched as he started turning around to leave. "We're a team!"

"Please Shun, reconsider... your quest is the same as Dan and the others to unmask Masquerade." Rarity said to him.

"She's right Shun, I mean come on, aren't you the one who taught me that a calm mind is what gets us through any situation...?" Rainbow Dash asked him earning nothing but silence.

Meanwhile back at the plane, Twilight was trying her hardest to try and convince Dan to go after Shun. But big shocker... "Who cares? Let that poser leave, bottom line is I didn't need him before, don't need him now." he said to her as he was lying on the bed.

"We both know that isn't true Dan, he was your best friend since you were young. You can't just let him go after everything that has happened." Twilight said to him.

"She's right Daniel..." Drago agreed with her.

"The only reason this team is falling apart is because of your arrogance." Bahamut said to him.

Dan rolled onto his side on the bed hearing it. "Oh who am I kidding...?" he asked himself.

"You brought this upon yourself Daniel... maybe its you who isn't a team player." Drago said to him to try and make a point towards him.

Just from hearing it, Dan jolted up glaring at him. "Oh great! I guess now you're taking his side?!" he asked to know.

"I'm not taking anyones side! I'm just concerned about the way you've been acting towards your companions." Drago pointed out to him as Dan looked to Shun's Bakushooter. "You must admit Daniel... you haven't been a very good friend lately."

Dan lowered his head realizing that his anger really has gotten to him, even Twilight knew how it felt. She immediately placed her hoof on his shoulder earning his attention. "I know its tough being friends with someone close for so long, but even though we have our fights, it doesn't mean we can just make up for our mistakes. Believe me, I had plenty in the past... one revolving around Pinkie, but that's something for another time." she looked out. "Right now... you have friends that you definitely need to apologize to."

Lowering his head from hearing it, Dan knew one thing... "You're right you guys..." he shut his eyes tighly feeling regret. "What was I thinking? Oh man I'm such an idiot!" he groaned as he pulled the blanket over him.

Sighing from seeing it, Drago lowered his head sulking. "Humans..." he muttered.

At that time, Twilight let out a giggle knowing he was right about the idiot part. "Look Dan... maybe you should start with Runo, after all, you did say some really awful things to her." she said to him.

But Dan let out a groan and poked his head out of the blanket. "Do I have to...? She's probably really upset right now..." he said to her know how angry she is.

"Don't worry, Fluttershy is with her, I'm sure she's got it all under control." Twilight said to him.

Meanwhile in Runo's room, she was clearly not under control as she screamed to the top of her lungs. "Oh that Dan! WHO DOES HE THINK HE IS ANYWAY?!!" she started beating her pillow to a pulp. "YOU'RE NOTHING BUT A BIG BABY!" she screamed.

"Acting out your frustrations Runo will not further your emotional journey, and as an observer, I-" before Tigrerra could finish her speech, a pillow hit her knowing that it was Runo who threw it at her.

"Hey! Stay out of my business Tigrerra!" she roared at her.

"Runo please, she was only trying to help... I understand you're upset, but she's right. Letting out your anger like that won't make things better for the team." Fluttershy said to her.

But Runo huffed as she crossed her arms turning away. "Some team we are Fluttershy! Dan is the one trying to act all Alpha Wolf here... I can't believe I even li-" before she could finish she covered her mouth blushing. "I-I mean... I can't..." she felt completely tongue tied at the moment.

Fluttershy noticed it and sat on the bed next to her. "Runo... is there something you're not admitting...? Even to yourself...?" she asked her. Trying to deny it, Runo's eyes glanced to the left trying to avoid eye contact. But Fluttershy knew she was hiding it from her and someone else. "Runo... tell me what it is... now..." she said to her and immediately gave her The Stare!

Feeling a tingling feeling in her spine, she immediately looked straight into the eyes of the shy yet very scary pony. She tried to resist it, but it was all in vein. "Okay! I'll talk! I'll talk!" she watched as Fluttershy stopped starring and let out a sigh. "But you can't tell anyone... not even your friends, or Dan." she said to her as Fluttershy made a gesture that her lips were zipped. "Well... ever since you girls came to this world, I just couldn't believe how much you changed Dan." she looked to her. "I saw how happy he could be, how he could help his friends when they're in need of it... since then I..." she placed a hand over her chest feeling it beating. "I've been having this funny feeling inside, I can't really explain it..."

Putting it together, Fluttershy immediately knew what was going on with her. "Its love..." she said bluntly.

"WHAT?!!" Runo panicked. "N-N-No! I don't know what you're talking about, its nothing like that! I swear!" she tried to avoid the fact.

"Runo, we can go round, and round about this, but we both know you're going to lose the argument." Fluttershy said to her knowing she as right.

"Oh please, like it would ever work between me and him!" Runo tried to deny it.

"Lady Runo, Fluttershy is not always wrong." Elvia interjected into the conversation. "Tis true that your feelings toward Dan are in bit of a tangle at the moment... but what you are feeling may very well be as Lady Fluttershy described it. Further more, Dan may be a boy with much anger in him right now, but he is still a good friend." she said to her.

"And besides, if you care about him, you need to be the one to tell him." Fluttershy said to her. "But only when you are ready to tell him, if that's okay with you...?"

Thinking about it, Fluttershy knew that her feelings for Dan were real, but with him acting the way he is, she couldn't tell him for the moment. "You're right Fluttershy... I have to tell him, but I can't with JULIE AROUND!!!" she screamed knowing she will try to take Dan from her.

"Of course, forgot about her..." Tigrerra muttered. Soon she heard a knock at the door. "Come in!" she called to who ever was knocking on the door. As it opened, Dan and Twilight are seen as they walked into the room. "Oh, speak of the devil..."

Runo saw him and her cheeks puffed trying to hide what she and Fluttershy talked about. "Came to continue acting like a jerk...?" she asked him as she crossed her arms looking away.

"N-No Runo... that's... not the reason I'm here." Dan said as he rubbed his head.

"Well what is it, spill it!" Runo demanded only to get her mouth forcibly closed by Twilight's magic.

"Thank you Twilight..." Dan sat down in front of Runo and let out a sigh. "I'm sorry..." he said to her catching her by surprise. "I'm really sorry... I've been acting like a total jerk lately, and I took my frustration out on you guys." he lowered his head in shame. "Can you ever forgive me for that Runo...?"

Runo looked at him feeling that his words were very sincere, and that she couldn't stay mad at him forever. She soon gestured to Twilight to ask her to undo her magic, she nodded and released her so she could speak. "For one thing Dan..." she paused for a bit then hit him across the head causing him to yelp in pain. "THAT'S WHAT YOU GET FOR BEING A JERK TO ME AND SAYING WE'RE NOT FRIENDS!"

"Come on, are you gonna stay mad at me fo-" before Dan could finish his question, Runo hugged him to shut him up. "Runo..." he watched as she held him.

She sniffed trying not to let her tears to brim. "But I forgive you for being a big jerk... Alice was right, we shouldn't be fighting with each other. As friends, we need to be working together... even if we do fight a lot." she said to him and released him from the hug forming a smile on her face. "You just need to pull the whole leadership thing way back... cause you've been letting it go to your head."

Dan rubbed his head knowing she was right about it. "Yeah, I guess you're right... there's still so much I need to fix..." he looked to Shun's Baku Shooter knowing he had to make things right. "And I know just where to start..."

"That's the spirit Dan..." Twilight said to him. "Meanwhile I'll go check on Marucho and Pinkie Pie to see how the young master's holding up." she headed towards the door.

"Knowing Marucho... he's probably sitting alone in the dark with Pinkie... looking at old photo's of him and Preyas." Runo lowered her head knowing how much he misses his Aquos partner. His life just hasn't been the same without him ever since he battled against Klaus back in Germany.

Dan thought about that day too, knowing it hurt Marucho big time. He soon turned to Twilight as she was near the door. "Actually Twilight... maybe its best we left him alone for a bit." he said to her catching them by surprise. "It'll take some time, but Marucho will be back on his feet, I know he will... he just... needs to find the right moment."

"And if he doesn't find the right moment...?" Runo asked him.

"I'll just simply scream my head off and run out the door in a heartbeat." Dan replied letting out a chuckle.

Fluttershy let out a giggle at his humor knowing it helped lighten the mood. "You're funny sometimes Dan, and you might be right... but you still need to find Shun before its too late." she reminded him.

At that moment of time, Runo's expression went from sweet to a serious scowl. "And I'm gonna be watching you..." she gestured it to him giving him a firm glare that could cut through steel. He knew that she was dead serious about it, and quickly nodded his head about it.

As Dan foretold, Marucho was sitting in his room, it was dark, and he was looking at his Bakupod. Seeing Preyas on the screen. "Preyas sent to the Doom Dimension..." the Bakupod said to him. He cried out knowing he will never see him again. "Preyas, I miss you so much...!" he continued to cry his eyes out.

Pinkie and Scylla watched him from a bed, knowing how he is feeling. "Oh Pinkie, what are we gonna do...?" Scylla asked her as she turned directly to her.

Lowering her head in sadness... Pinkie had one answer for her, and it wasn't easy for her to admit. "For the first time Scylla... I'm not sure what we're going to do..." she admitted to her as she looked out the window thinking about Preyas and any other Bakugan that was sent to the Doom Dimension.

At the park, Skyress looked to her partner seeing how angry he is. "I'm afraid Shun feels the way everyone has been acting lately... none of you could ever defeat Masquerade." she said to them causing Alice to gasp. "That is why he has left... he feels that it is now up to him to rescue all the Bakugan."

"But Shun..." Alice wanted to say something, but couldn't find the right words to say.

"It's the only way to win Alice... and if I cannot defeat him, everything is lost." Shun said to her. Causing her to think back to when Marucho lost Preyas. "For some reason I feel that this is my destiny... from now on, its up to me to take Masquerade on!"

"Shun, no! You can't do this man! You can't beat him all by yourself, think of the others for Celestia's sake! You need your friends, you need us... we need to work as a team!" Rainbow Dash reminded him of what they were trying to fight for.

"In case you forgot Rainbow Dash..." Shun turned to her with a harsh glare. "I work alone..."

Watching the scene... Rarity had just about enough of his attitude and used her magic to pull him down to her height. "Now you listen here Shun... I have had just about enough of your attitude...! I know you feel that this is your destiny, but you're wrong! In Equestria, me and my friends were destined to meet each other when Rainbow Dash unleashed her sonic rainboom... we didn't know what it was when we were fillies... but since Twilight came to Ponyville, we became the best of friends..." she explained to him and looked directly into his eyes. "But in this world, I see that there isn't an ounce of friendship in your heart... you care only for yourself, and leave your friends to fight the battle alone. Answer me one thing... if your mother were here... she would ask you what is your heart telling you...?" she asked him.

Shun was caught completely off guard when she brought up his mother, he wanted to yell at her for it... but her words sank deep into his heart knowing that it was true. He was going to respond to her... but suddenly... "Well, well... if it isn't mister tough guy himself...?" said a familiar voice as they turn to the source. It was Komba standing on a statue in a really weird pose. "I heard everything... you really think you got what it takes to beat Masquerade...?" he chuckled at the thought of it. "You're a regular comedian Shun, I love it! Just one thing, you gotta beat me first!" he chuckled darkly.

"Well if it isn't the pipsqueak Ventus Brawler himself..." Rainbow Dash remarked him as such causing him to get angry from it. "Came back for more after our last battle...?"

"Careful Rainbow... lets not get over confident." Avion said to her.

Shun glared at Komba know he was only getting on his nerves. "Awww, the wittle baby scared to battle? Don't worry, I won't hurt you. I'm just gonna eliminate your Bakugan!" he leaped down to solid ground and smirked at them pulling out his Bakupod showing his ranking. "Here, check out my Bakupod! I'm almost at your level, even though you beat me once. Remember that Shun?" he asked him. "Shun, ranked in top 10, no other data." said the Bakupod. "And you only won that battle because you got lucky that's all."

"Hate to break it to ya short stuff... but you lost a battle against me, Shun, Julie and Applejack." Rainbow Dash reminded him. "Luck had nothing to do with it."

"You guys double teamed! That doesn't even count! I want revenge for that day! And the only way I can get it is if we battle." Komba gripped his wrist.

"Young man, as far as I know... you are far out of your league for this." Lancelot said to him.

Immediately turning around glaring at them. "You zip it tin man! And forget about Masquerade, so what do you say, are you ready to rumble in the jungle with me? Please...? PLEASE?!!" Komba begged him to battle, which felt totally out of his character, even though he was trying to get revenge.

Shun held Alice as she nearly passed out and glared at him. "Why don't you get lost kid..."

"Excuse me?!! Are you brushing me off because you think I'm a weakling?! Well let me tell you, the only reason I lost to you was because I was teamed up with Billy, who's completely useless! That guy couldn't fight his way out of a wet paper bag!" Komba remarked to him.

Lowering her gaze... Rainbow Dash knew at that point he went too far. "So... does Billy talk trash behind your back like you do about him...?" she asked him feeling her anger starting to rise up.

"Stop it! This is ridiculous! I don't care what Billy says about me, I just want to battle Shun and be done with it! Can't you get it through that thick head of yours little pony?!" Komba said to her.

"You don't need friends...? You think you can do this all by yourself...?" Shun asked him earning the attention of Rarity and Rainbow Dash. "Hmmm... sounds interesting..." Alice also looekd to him surprised of what he said. He let go of her and put on his gloves. "Alright kid... I accept your challenge."

"No Shun, don't-" Alice went to stop him but Komba chuckled as Shun moved her out of the way.

"This is going to be fun!" Komba grinned as he pulled out his card.

Rainbow also pulled out her card in the process. "You're not taking this guy alone Shun..." she said to him as she noticed Rarity pulling out her card.

"Here, here... I would definitely like to teach this boy some manners." Rarity glared at Komba for what he said about Billy earlier.

Nodding to her, they looked to Komba and turned their cards as they glowed brightly. "Bakugan Field Open!" they called out as they entered a Pocket Dimension Battlefield.

Komba at that moment pulled out the Doom Card readying it for battle. "Doom Card Set!" he tossed it to the field as it absorbed the card letting out its negative energy. "You two ponies don't know what you're getting yourselves into." he said to them with a dark grin across his face.

"Yeah well... neither do you..." Rainbow Dash said to him with a smirk.

"Gate Card Set!" the Brawlers and Ponies tossed their cards to the field.

"This time you're going down Shun..." Komba said to him.

"I don't think so..." Shun said to him.

Komba was caught completely by surprise. "Excuse me?!"

"I know all your little tricks. So there's no way you can beat me, or these ponies... Rarity... feel free to take the first fight." Shun said to her.

"Very well, I've been wanting to see my Lancelot in action for a while now. Ready my dear...?" Rarity asked him as he opened up from his ball form.

"Ready when you are milady." Lancelot replied and curled up.

Nodding to her partner, Rarity loaded him into her Bakushooter. "Gate Card Set!" she tossed it to the field next to Shun's. "Bakugan Brawl!" she shot him to the field seeing him land on it. "Darkus Lancelot Stand!" she called out as darkness swirled into the air.

"Whoa! What's happening?!" Komba asked as he watched what happened.

Deep from the heart of the swirling vortex of darkness, a pair of red eyes snapped open before him. With a single swipe of his hand, Lancelot made the vortex vanish revealing his true form. His head armor was in the shape of a dragons skull, his armor was similar to that of Siege's, and he had dark purple hair.

He even glared at the young Ventus Brawler who called him a tin man. "I am Darkus Lancelot, loyal knight of Lady Rarity, and for such disrespect towards me and her... you will learn respect!" he said to him as he readied for battle.

"My goodness Lancelot, you're just as handsome in that form than you are in ball form." Rarity complimented him.

Bowing to her, Lancelot appreciated the compliment she gave him. But it only made Kombat gag from seeing it. "If you think your poor excuse for a lizard man will beat me, you got another thing coming! Gate Card Set!" he tossed in a new Gate Card. "Bakugan Brawl!" he shot in his El Condor to the field to face Lancelot. "El Condor Stand!" he called out as it emerged in its true form. "Let the game begin." said the Bakupod. "No turning back now little pony!"

"Gate Card Open! Protection of Guinevere!" Rarity called out as an aura of magic swirled around El Condor throwing him out of bounds, forcing him into Ball Form, causing him to gasp in shock. "Like it...? I'm sure you heard the tale of Lancelot and Guinevere... their love for each other was pure, not even King Arthur could keep them apart from each other. And it is through her love that Lancelot will always be protected." she explained to him.

Sneering at her, Komba flailed his arms around throwing a fit. (If you were this kid, I think you would know how it feels.) "You won't get away with that trick, you hear me?!!" Komba yelled at them.

"This boy has no self control what so ever milady..." Lancelot glanced to Rarity who nodded at him.

"Not in the slightest Lancelot..." Rarity replied to him and looked to Komba. "Just face it Komba, you do not have what it takes to play in teh big leagues." she said to him.

"This isn't over yet!" Komba replied with a glare.

Alice and Rainbow only smiled knowing he was dead wrong. "Sorry, Rarity's right... her Protection of Guinevere card forces the opponent Bakugan to return to the player it came from." Rainbow explained.

"She just got lucky!" Komba shot in his Bee Striker to face Lancelot. "Bee Striker Stand!" he called out as Bee Striker emerged in its true form glaring at the Dark Knight Bakugan. "The Battle resumes." said the Bakupod. "Sting him now!" Kombat yelled to Bee Striker seeing him charge straight towards Lancelot.

"Ability Card Activate! Dark Vortex!" Rarity called out as her card glowed brightly.

Lancelot summoned a sword and twirled it. "Sorry, but you don't have a chance against me!" he said as he stuck the sword in the ground sending a dark portal appeared in front of Bee striker seeing it go through the portal.

Bee Striker soon found itself "HEY!!! I DIDN'T EVEN GET A CHANCE TO BATTLE!!!" Kombat complained. "Mind at least letting me make a move?!" he asked her.

"Like Rarity told you before... against us, you're out of your league pal." Shun said to him with a smirk as he thought back to the last battle he had with Dan before his mother passed away.

Rainbow looked to him knowing what he was thinking. "Your call Shun, what's the plan...?" she asked him.

"Rainbow, you and Avion are up, show him what I taught you." Shun said to her with a smile.

Rainbow smiled back adn loaded Avion into her Bakupod. "Bakugan Brawl!" she shot him to the field in front of Bee Striker. "Avion Stand!" she called out as Avion appeared on the field to face Bee Striker.

"I hope you're ready for a pummeling you arrogant runt." Avion said to him.

"Oh, your big over grown bird! I was expecting a butterfly to get me shaking in my boots!" Komba teased them. "Battlefield, ready for action." said the Bakupod.

Shun looked at it and looked to the field. "Okay, his moves are limited, and even if he doesn't attack, we can always counter with a Tripple Chain Wind, just need two more Ventus Bakugan on our side." he said to Rainbow and Rarity.

"But you haven't lifted a finger since the battle started, how will it work?" Rarity asked her as Alice watched him.

"Just leave it to me, Bakugan Brawl!" Shun tossed in his Monarus seeing her land on the field. "Monarus Stand!" he called out as Monarus appeared on the field.

A smirk began to form on Komba's face. "I say its about time we show mister big shot how this game is really played. Bakugan Brawl!" he shot in El Condor back onto the field to face Monarus. "El Condor Stand!" he watched as El Condor went to face Monarus. "Gate Card Open!" he called out as it began to activate forming clouds beneath them. "Tabulating Powers." said the Bakupod. "Now its your turn to lose, Ability Card Activate! Solar Plexus!" he called out as lights shined down El Condor upon Monarus. "Monarus Power Level reduction to 280 G's." said the Bakupod. "Show us what you got El Condor! Destroy!!!"

"Ability Card Activate! Blow Away!" Shun called out blowing El Condor onto the card he planted on the field keeping Monarus safe. As El Condor fell, it crashed onto Bee Striker.

"You gotta be kidding!" Kombat complained from seeing it and looked to them. "Why can't any of you play this game like its supposed to be played?!" he demanded to know.

"You're about to find out, Gate Card open! Mine Ghost!" Shun called out as the card glowed brightly and detonated. "When two Bakugan land on this card, doesn't matter what side they're on, they both lose!" he said as the explosion took both El Condor and Bee Striker out of the game perminantly.

Komba was shocked from what happened. "Not again...!"

Alice, though she was worried, she was amazed how they planned that out. "That was amazing Shun... you didn't even give Komba one opening to attack you or the ponies. Now I know why you used to be ranked number one in the world." she thought to herself and started to wonder about something else. "But what's up with your obsession to totally dominate your opponent...?"

Meanwhile, Komba was throwing a major fit from his situation. "HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN?!! THAT'S IT! I'VE HAD IT WITH YOUR AMBUSH STRATEGIES!!! From now on... no mercy!" he said to them with a glare.

"Clearly his temper won't be improved any time soon." Rarity said as she fixed her hair from the explosion that occured.

"No kidding, he needs theropy..." Rainbow agreed with her as her hair was swooped back.

Shun soon held up Skyress knowing he needed to end this battle. "I need you Skyress... lets end this, don't hold back on him." he said to her as he closed his eyes.

"I will do what must be done." Skyress replied to him.

Rainbow watched them knowing that this plan may work, but its the aftermath that she is worried most about. Shun soon looked to the battlefield and readied Skyress for battle. "Bakugan Brawl!" he tossed her to the field. "Skyress Stand!" he called out as Skyress shot into the air in flames, and descended from the clouds spreading her wings. "Shun reached battle with two games, Komba zero victories." said the Bakupod.

"Go ahead and activate your stupid Tripple Chain Wind! I'm ready for you! Here goes nothing! Bakugan Brawl!" Komba shot in his partner Harpus. "Harpus stand!" he called out as Harpus appeared on the field.

"TADA!!! Well it looks like its my turn to play! Hey Avion! Nice to see you!" Harpus said to him.

Lettign out a groan of annoyance, Avion knew where this was going. "You're gonna keep gabbing aren't you through this entire battle aren't you?" he asked her.

"Awww, so nice you think that way of me Avion, you're such a sweetie!" Harpus flirted with him as a blush formed across both her face and his.

Skyress snorted at her knowing where she's going with it. "Focus on the battle Harpus!" she advised her.

Turning to her, Harpus smiled gleefully. "Its Skyress! You're looking good girlfriend, but not for long!" she said to her with a big fangy grin.

"Ability Card Activate! Feather Storm!" Komba called out as Harpus's power swirled around her. "Harpus tp 570 G's." said the Bakupod as Harpus cackled charging at Monarus.

"Ability Activate! Blow Away!" Shun called out as a twister caught Harpus and sent her away towards Skyress's card. Landing face first.

Rarity smirked at the situation. "Well played Shun, you blind sided him."

"All the more reason you're still awesome." Rainbow said to him as Alice smiled at him in agreement.

Meanwhile Komba was getting even more frustrated. "I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU BLIND SIDED ME AGAIN!!! Get back in there Harpus and make it quick!" he said to her in a frustrated panic.

"So how have you been Harpus...?" Skyress asked her with a smirk.

"Don't play cute with me sister! This is what happened to me last time, and believe me! It won't happen again!" Harpus charged at her and kicked her in her head, only to get pushed back by her.

Skyress sent a menacing glare at her. "I've had enough of you Harpus!" she tried to strike at her.

"Wow old birdy, you sure got a lot of fight left in you! But you're no spring chicken!" Haprus dodged her attacks.

"This is bad, Lancelot, we need to find a way to help Skyress." Avion said to him.

"I know Avion, but in order to do that, we would have to draw them to our cards. Or the other way around..." Lancelot replied to him knowing that it was likely impossible.

Suddenly it hit Avion as he looked down to the card he stood upon. "That's it, I know what card Rainbow sent out..." he looked to her determined. "Rainbow, when the time is right, use your card!" he said to her. She didn't know why, but she trusted his instincts and prepared for it.

"Too bad Shun, seems like to me you played all your ability cards." Komba said to him and smiked. "And without anymore power, I guess there's only one thing left to say... I JUST WHOOPED YOUR BUTT SHUN!!!" he cheered out.

"Think again Komba, you're wondering why I don't waste time in battle... its because I'm not willing to lose my Bakugan. It's nothing personal." Shun said to him.

Komba was surprised from what he said. "Man you are one crazy dude..." he said to him.

"Shun and Rainbow still have one gate card left!" Alice called out as they noticed it.

"Gate Card Open!" Rainbow called out as both Avion and Lancelot vanished and appeared on the field with Skyress and Harpus. Causing Harpus to panic from seeing it. "Like it Harpus...? Its a little gate card called Calvery, it can pull Bakugan of different attributes, and higher power levels." she explained to her seeing her shocked expression. "In other words Harpus... you're toast."

Chuckling nervously seeing how angry Avion is toward her. "Hey, come on Avion, you wouldn't hit a girl would you?" Harpus asked him as she slowly backed up.

"Normally I would refrain from hitting a woman..." Avion said to her as she let out a sigh of relief. "But..." she started to tense up from hearing him say that. "When it comes to you and Komba working for Masquerade... I'll have to make an exception." he said to her sending a glare that could easily cut her in half. (Won't literally happen, don't get nervous.)

Komba panicked knowing he had to do something. "Not a chance birdy! Ability Card Activate! Feather Storm!" he called out as it activated once again.

"Stay away!" Harpus sent a whirlwind of feathers towards them.

"Sorry darling, but not this time! Ability Card Activate! Arondight!" Rarity called out.

From hearing it, Lancelot's hand glowed purple, summoning a sword from his hand. "Like I will allow you to harm my friends Harpus!" he swung his blade, slicing through the wind as it disappeared.

Harpus immediately blocked the attack trying to hold her ground. "NO WAY! THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!!!" she panicked from the attack Lancelot unleashed.

"Now its my turn! Gate Card Open! Reloaded!" Shun called out as wings began to pick up and swirl around Skyress. Energy from Avion and Monarus began flowing to to her. "Watch as all the wind power is drawn towards Skyress! Reloaded is the gate card that increases your power by a hunded times the number of Bakugan on the battlefield." he explained as Skyress's power boosted up. "Skyress power increase detected, power to 560 G's." said the bakupod.

"Don't leave me out on this! Ability Card Activate! Hurricane Fury!" Rainbow called out as a tornado formed around Avion. Lightning began striking from it as Avion charged straight towards Harpus causing her to scream in terror.

"Do something Harpus!!!" Komba exclaimed to her.

"ARE YOU NUTS?!!!" Harpus replied to him in her panicked state. Avion rammed against her causing her to fly. "I DON'T LIKE THIS!!!" meanwhile Skyress let out a screech and charged at Harpus and tackled her down to the ground, causing her to revert to ball form, and Komba was thrown off his feet from the impact. Harpus soon rolled up next to him, eyes spinning. "Uh-oh... I think I broke a nail..."

Getting up knowing he lost the fight. "No... there's no way I could have lost again...!" he said to himself.

"Hate to break it to ya buddy... but you did..." Rainbow said to him with a smirk.

Eyes as wide as saucers as they returned to the real world, Komba was devastated. "NOOO!!!! I can't believe this... it must be a dream, how did this happen?!! I want a rematch Shun! You hear me?!" he demanded.

"Not to be too forward or anything... but how about you let me sit out the next battle...?" Harpus said to him only to get a firm glare from Komba.

"Why you little... this is all your fault!" Kombat yelled at his partner as he was about to hit her.

But Shun quickly grabed him by his wrist holding it tightly. "Let me give you some advice... practice... and maybe stop running your mouth off before you start another battle." he advised him as he let go of his wrist.

Surprised of what he said, Komba looked down knowing he failed. "I messed up bad..." he admitted to them as he felt shame overwell him.

"You can always rely on your friends kid... that's real important." Rainbow Dash said to him with her hooves crossed. "That's real important..."

Kombat at that time didn't know what to think, but he knew that this rainbow maned pegasus was right. "Yeah you're right..." he said to her.

"Sometimes I am..." Rainbow looked to Shun. "Its a little something that Shun forgot about himself."

"You mean his friends...?" Komba asked her as he looked to Shun.

Silent for a moment, Shun looked out knowing Rainbow was right. "I never realized it before... but there was one friend in particular, we were both so passionate about Bakugan, but... I lost my friend." he explained as he thought back to when he battled Dan when his mother was still alive.

"But what me and Alice do not understand darling, is why is winning such a big deal to you...?" Rarity asked him as Skyress turned directly to her.

"His passion becomes apparent when he battles... it makes him feel alive." Skyress explained to her as she looked directly at Shun.

"Watching you trying to be so tough made me realize something... you can't do it by yourself." Shun looked to him. "You have to rely on your friends to help." he said to him as Komba felt the burden on his shoulders lift.

Reaching to his shoulder, Rainbow gently touched it earning his attention. "Take it from an expert kiddo... if it weren't for me being loyal to my friends, we wouldn't have come as far as we have now." Rainbow said to him with a smile.

Komba knew they had a strong connection, something that he knew very little about. But... it started to sync in. "That was awesome!" a familiar voice called out, they all looked to who it was, and it was Dan and Twilight rushing towards them. "There you are!" he chuckled running to them.

Alice began to smile from seeing them. "Dan, Twilight!"

"Hey guys, where in the world have you been...? Hiding...?" Dan asked them.

"Hello darling, what brings you out here...?" Rarity asked him.

Twilight smiled and looked to Dan knowing the reason. "I believe Daniel has something to tell you Shun..." she said as Drago nodded his head in agreement.

"Yes, and its really important." Drago added.

"Hey hold on you two..." Dan sighed knowing they were right. "They're right Shun... I do... gee... I'm sorry for saying we didn't need you. In fact... you're probably the one we need the most." he lowered his gaze remembering how badly he messed up. But he looked to him knowing what needed to be done. "Anyway, I don't know if I told you this before, just listen to me for a second... you're the best friend I've ever had Shun..." he reached into his coat and pulled out Shun's Baku Shooter holding it out to him. "I really mean it bud..."

Alice smiled seeing how much he meant those words. "How touching!" she cheered watching it and noticed Rarity starting to cry.

"Yes it is darling..." she cried out as her mascara began running down her cheeks.

"Oh Rarity don't cry, your makeup will get ruined!" Alice exclaimed trying to clean it up for her.

"Come back Shun..." Dan pleaded to him to return to the plane as Alice looked to him. "Please Shun...?"

"What do you say Shun...?" Rainbow Dash asked him.

Meanwhile, tears began to form in Komba's eyes. "Man this is too much... I can't handle the suspense!" he turned to Shun knowing he had to do the right thing. "Come on Shun! Do the right thing!" he pleaded to him.

Shun took a moment to think it over... he then looked to Dan and reached over grabbing the Baku Shooter taking it from him and placing it on his wrist. He then smiled at Dan knowing that his words did manage to reach him. "It would be my honor Dan." he said to him.

Everyone cheered out from his decision, suddenly Komba ran to him. "You the man Shun!" he said to him and pulled him into a tight hug.

"Hey!" Shun saw it surprised. "What do you think you're doing?!"

"I know I've been a real pain, and you probably think I'm just some creepy little kid. But I want to be your student! I want to learn from you Shun! And I'll never leave your side, ever!" Komba said to him as tears run down his face.

"IS THIS KID JOKING?!! HE WANTS TO LEARN FROM YOU?!! THAT'S COMPLETELY CRAZY!!!" Dan exclaimed in shock from seeing it. "Mind explaining what happened here? I must have missed something!" he demanded to know.

"Well..." Alice hid behind Shun giggling. "I suppose it is kinda weird..." she admitted.

Skyress glanced to her from what she said. "Well that's putting it mildly..." she muttered.

"I'm dead serious Shun! You gotta teach me man, say you will!" Komba pleaded for him to teach him everything he knew as he repeated the word "Please."

Snickering at it, Dan let out his laughter along with Drago. "He wants you to teach him...!" he laughed with the others, but Shun was not amused of the situation.

"Hey cut it out you guys! This isn't a laughing matter!" Komba exclaimed.

"Well it kinda is right now!" Rainbow laughed feeling her gut about to explode.

Meanwhile Shun was growling feeling rather annoyed. "Could somebody please explain to me how I ever got into this mess?!" he demanded to know, but all everyone did was laugh at his predicament. Because never in all his life had he felt so embarrassed.

Author's Note:

Dan: Coming up on the next Bakugan Legends of Equestria, that creep Klaus and his buddies Chan Lee, and Julio challenged us to battle.

Twilight: Dan, Me, Runo, Fluttershy, Marucho and Pinkie Pie accept, but there is a problem. Even though Dan and Runo made up, she still hates his guts.

Dan: And Marucho is still bummed out his Bakugan Preyas being sent to the Doom Dimension. But here's the rub, Klaus shows up with Preyas as his Bakugan!

Twilight: We're all trying to figure out how he brought Preyas back from the Doom Dimension, I guess there's really only one way to find out what happens. BAKUGAN BRAWL!!! See you there!

4,472 views

137

Previous Chapters Next