Beyblade: Worlds Unite

by Seeker1

Chapter 3: Reality Check

Morning came over the city of Canterlot. Birds sang their song as the city noise could be heard for miles. However, this particular morning, there was someone who was ecstatic as the thought of getting their very first burst had kept them up all night.

"What's up bladers. I'm Spike, and gonna be the best blader ever!"

The boy's voice was heard as his house was shown. In the kitchen down below, Twilight Velvet was shown kneading some dough as she was currently making some fresh bread. The woman swiped her forehead as the timer for the oven went off. She approached the oven and opened it as the latest tray of bread she had put in had finished baking.

Velvet went to grab the tray and pull it from the oven when a thud echoed throughout the house. She almost dropped the tray as a few pieces of bread moved from their initial spot on the tray. Some more sounds were heard as Velvet moved her head from the oven and looked up at the ceiling with an unhappy look.

"Dragonclaw Strike! Dragonclaw Strike!" shouted Spike as he jumped up and down on his bed while also repeating his bey's move that he used the previous day to burst Applebloom's bey and get the win.

As the boy kept celebrating, the door to his room opened, and there was Velvet, who was not pleased.

"Spike! What are you doing?!" stated the woman to her youngest child. "You're gonna be late for school?!"

Despite Velvet's warning, Spike didn't seem to hear his mother as he kept jumping and shouting. The woman looked irritated as if she was about to blow a gasket.

"Stop that right now!!!" yelled Velvet as her voice echoed around the house.

"Whoa, mom. What's the deal?" asked Spike as he stopped jumping and saw his mother.

Velvet quickly put her arm out as she grabbed Spike's ear and began to pull on it.

"Ow, ow, ow!!!" said Spike, as he was in pain at his mother, pulling his ear.

"Don't you, 'Whoa, mom' me, mister?!!!" shouted Velvet as she continued to pull on her son's ear to get her point across to her child. "Twilight already left for school ages ago!"

"Wait, she's gone already?!" said Spike as he quickly grabbed his bags and put on his shoes before rushing out the door. "I gotta go. Bye, mom!"

"Don't be late now!" yelled Velvet as she kept her angry look while watching her son leave the house. Her expression soon softly as she smiled. "Honestly, he's like this every day. Though, Shining was even worst."

The woman then walked into the hallway and looked at some pictures on the wall. One of them was of her eldest son, as it had him on a podium holding a trophy. Velvet put her hand on it as she recalled that day and how proud she was to see her son happy.

"They grow up so fast. Soon, it'll be Twilight's and Spike's turn to leave. But they'll always be my little babies. Oh, Shining. I'm so proud of you." said Velvet as she wished to see her son.

---

The school bell of CHS rang as it could be heard. Spike was shown running along the sidewalk as the small boy tried to book it as fast as possible to avoid being late.

"Come on! Come on! Almost there!" shouted Spike as he was sprinting. "Out of the way!"

Some kids heard that as they turned around. They saw Spike as he dove into the schoolyard like he was trying to steal a base.

"And he's in the safe zone!" said Spike with an exaggerated expression as he dived. "Whew, that was cutting it close." The boy stood up as he, wiped his forehead, and breathed.

"A little early to embarrass yourself, don't you think?" mocked Rumble as he, Buttonmash, and the CMC approached their friend.

"What can I say? Traffic was bad today. I almost thought I wouldn't make it." said Spike.

"Or you forgot what time it was," scoffed Scootaloo.

"Lucky for us, you did make it," said Applebloom.

"I do what I can," answered Spike nonchalantly.

"Don't forget. We got a group report to present for Ms. Cheerliee today," said Sweetie Belle.

"Hey, Spike. That battle you had yesterday was awesome!" said another kid named Pipsqueak.

"Do you think you can teach me to blade like you?" said a girl.

"Ha, ha! Easy!" declared the boy as he was now becoming the talk of the town for his class.

"Excuse me!" boomed a voice.

The group of kids all froze in fear as they looked ahead. Standing there was a woman with light phthalo bluish gray skin, moderate opal eyes, and hair that was medium sapphire blue and pale, light grayish persian blue, which looked like the night sky. She wore a blue shirt, a black mini-dress, and a matching set of heels.

"Aren't you all supposed to be in class?!!!" yelled the woman as her voice boomed.

"Yes, Vice-Principal Luna!" stated all the kids as they began to book it to avoid the woman's wrath.

"Kids, these days. No respect for rules" muttered Luna.

As the kids were jogging, watching all of this from the window of her homeroom class was Twilight. The girl had awoken, and to her surprise, her annoying brother was yelling and still riding the high from his victory the previous day.

"The last thing he needs is a win to feed his ego," sighed Twilight before turning to the front of the desk as the teacher came in.

Throughout the day, things seemed to go as usual. The principal's office was shown as it read: Celestia. Inside was the woman with light magentaish gray skin, moderate heliotrope eyes, and her hair was a mix of several colors. Gradients of pale, light grayish cyan to light arctic blue pale, light grayish harlequin to light aquamarine pale, light grayish cornflower blue to light sapphire blue, and pale, light grayish mulberry to darker mulberry.

Celestia was currently doing some paperwork when a knock was heard. In peeked a woman's head.

"Sorry to bother you, Miss. But the student that was supposed to meet with is here."

"Thank you, Ms. Raven. Send him in," stated Celestia.

The woman stepped to the side as in walked someone. Celestia put her papers to the side as she leaned back in her chair, as in front of her was a boy. She then reached to pull something from a drawer, took it out, and looked at it.

"Your name is..." spoke Celestia as the teen responded.

Moments later...

"Well, everything is in order. I'll have my sister give you a tour, and you'll start your enrollment here tomorrow. And here's your schedule." Celestia printed a piece of paper before laminating it and handing it to the boy.

The teen looked at it when the door opened, and Luna was standing there.

---

Ms. Cheerilee was currently going through her class lesson as all the students were looking at the blackboard with some triangles and a book in hand.

"So once we join up the corners of the triangle, we can see that the sum makes sense. You simply need to make sure that all the sides are at this length. Once you've done this, you'll have your answer. As you can see from the diagram, the angle formed at the top stays the same."

While Ms. Cheerliee was telling her students how to solve a math problem, one of those students was distracted. Spike had a concentrated look on his face. The boy was scribbling something down in his notebook as the sound of the pencil was hard at work. When he lifted it up, it was revealed that instead of paying attention, he was too busy drawing sketches and drawings of his bey.

Spike lifted his notebook as he was proud of what he drew; his attention was then turned to the window next to him. Clouds were rolling by as the boy looked at them. For a second, in Spike's mind, he saw the image of his bey in the cloud as he smiled. However, at that point, Ms. Cheerliee was standing next to his desk.

It wasn't until she took Spike's notebook that Spike sensed danger. He turned to look at his teacher as she was anything but happy, as shown by the irritated and grumbling expression on her face when she saw what Spike's notebook was full of. The boy's friends saw their comrade being given a lecture by Ms. Cheerilee about paying attention in class; they all shook their heads and sighed.

Twilight sat at a table as her tray made a decent sound.

"Trouble?" asked Rainbow as she was seated across from her friend.

"Spike! He wasn't paying attention in class!" stated Twilight as she was informed by Ms. Cheerilee about her brother's behavior. To make a long story short, she wasn't happy. "Another gripe I have with this stupid game. It's too distracting. Spike needs to focus on his education. You understand where I'm coming from, right Dash?"

"Sorry, what were you saying?" asked the chromatic-haired girl as she was fiddling with her bey. "Tell me what you think. I made the final adjustments to it last night. Rainbow Falki is set to soar above the competition."

"I forgot who I'm talking to," sighed Twilight as she put her head down. Rainbow shrugged as she began admiring her partner.

Soon they were joined by someone else.

"Not enough homework?" asked Flash as he sat down with one of his friends, Soarin.

"Oh, I wish," said Twilight as she lifted her head. "Spike was too busy lulling over his win yesterday to focus in class."

"I mean, he got his very first burst. That's a pretty big deal. I remember the first time I burst my opponent's bey." said Soarin.

"It's just... he should be focusing on more important things. The fact that he's spending most of his time fiddling with the game is a concern. My brother, Shining Armor, he's a tremendous blader. But he was able to keep up with his grades simultaneously." said Twilight. "If Spike wants to blade, that's fine. But I don't want him to fall behind in his studies."

"I get it. As his big sister, you have the right to be concerned. But you also have to have faith in him." said Flash. "He knows that keeping up with his studies is important, or else your parents are gonna be pissed."

"My parents would freak out," said the bookworm.

"Speaking of which, Rainbow? Did you register for the tournament?" asked Soarin.

"Huh? The tournament doesn't start for another month or two," responded the girl.

"Yeah, but they announced this morning that registration is open. And it's first come, first serve to secure your spot," answered Soarin.

"Shit!! Why didn't you tell me!!" shouted Rainbow as she grabbed the boy's jacket and shook him. "Gotta go!"

"Classic Rainbow Dash. Always on the move and never slowing down," chuckled Flash. "By the way, as for our hangout, I was wondering if you'd like to see a movie?"

"Yeah, sure," Twilight answered as she looked in a certain direction.

The lavender girl was seeing her brother and his friends at their table. As usual, Spike was standing up and making excessive noises while moving his arms back and forth. Twilight as she hoped her brother would get his stuff together, especially cause he and his friends were thinking about entering the district tournament.

---

The day soon came to a close as Twilight was again waiting for her brother. Her foot tapping could be heard as she had a soured look. Soon the doors opened, and Spike was shown running toward his big sister.

"Sorry, lost track of time," chuckled Spike sheepishly as he rubbed his neck.

"Let me guess? You were battling again?" stated Twilight with sarcasm in her voice.

"Yup. Scored 27 wins today. And I got half of them to be Burst finishes. No doubt, being at the top of the class regarding Beyblading rules!" exclaimed Spike as he felt he was on top of the world. His confidence was at an all-time high.

"Yeah, not to mention Ms. Cheerilee being very unhappy," stated Twilight as she crossed her arms.

"Please, don't tell Mom or Dad," said Spike as he feared his parents might take away his bey as punishment.

"I'm your big sister, Spike. I won't tattle on you," sighed Twilight as Spike smiled. "But Ms. Cheerilee might," snickered the girl as she turned to walk.

"Aw, man," groaned the boy as he put his head down and followed his older sibling.

Just as the pair were about to leave the school ground, a sound was heard. It sounded like a bey being launched. The two siblings turned, and a few meters away, there was someone. That someone was a boy about Twilight's age as he was bent down. His skin was brown, but one could say cameral even. His hair was darker; chocolate is the closest similarity. The boy's attire was a black V-neck t-shirt with white hemming and black shorts with gray pockets held on by red straps. His shorts were tight around his calves. He wore a long black hooded jacket with red hemming, gray pockets with white hemming, and red flannel flaps held down by a series of yellow buttons.

While Twilight was more focused on the boy, Spike was interested in what was in the boy's hand. The teen had a launcher in his hand with his other hand on the ripcord. The concentration was on the boy's face as he eyed the stadium in front of him. He was about to pull the string when something got his attention.

"Hey there!" spoke Spike.

The teen lifted his hand as the shorter boy approached him.

"Oh, man. You also blade?" said Spike with some excitement.

"Yeah," answered the boy in a genuine tone. "Though, I only just started. I was hoping to practice a bit."

"That's so cool! Hey, my name is Spike. And I'm the best blader in my class!" declared the boy as he pointed to himself with Twilight facepalming herself.

"The best blader in your class? Nice. Uh, you think maybe you can help me?" asked the teen.

"Sure thing!" stated Spike.

"Spike..." called out Twilight.

"This won't take long!" shouted the boy as he didn't face his sister.

Soon Spike and the teen took their position as they stood opposite sides of the stadium.

"By the way, I never got your name," said Spike.

"Oh, right. My bad, bud. My name is Emerald. I just transferred here."

"In that case, let me give you a warm welcome with an awesome Beyblade battle!" smiled Spike. "Whoever can burst the other first wins."

"Alright then," smiled Emerald as he and Spike bent to a knee.

"Mom is gonna kill us for not being home on time," muttered Twilight as she had no choice but to wait till her brother was done.

"Ready," asked Spike.

"Y-yeah," nodded Emerald as he took a deep breath to calm his nerves.

"Three... two... one... Let it Rip!" shouted both Emerald and Spike.

They pulled the ripcord on their launchers as their beys flew into the stadium. They landed as they circled each other. Soon Emerald's bey took center as it spun.

"Dragonheart, let's start with a series of rush attacks!" commanded Spike.

His bey heard the boy's command as it was heading toward its foe. Spike's bey collided with Emerald's bey, and it shattered into pieces in the blink of an eye.

"Huh?" said Spike as he was stunned by what he saw. Even Twilight was surprised at seeing how fast the battle was over.

"So... do I win?" asked Emerald with a curious look.

"Uh... Y-yeah. Good job, Emerald," said Spike as he picked up his pieces.

The boy was still trying to figure out what had happened. Just making contact had caused his bey to burst. Spike put that thought out of his mind as he reassembled his bey back.

"I was going easy on you. I'm not holding back this time," said Spike as he was raring to go again.

"Sure. Let's go again," smiled Emerald as he picked up his bey.

"Ready... set! Three... two... one... Let it Rip!" shouted both boys.

The beys were launched and landed in the stadium, taking off at high speeds.

"Dragonheart, let's attack this time, head-on!" said Spike.

Dragonheart heard the boy's orders as it collided with Emerald's bey while bouncing back and hitting with even more power. The teen's bey was starting to wobble as it was being pushed around by Dragonheart. It bounced off the stadium's wall as it took the attacks head-on.

"Nicely done, now let's hit them with special. Draco Dragonclaw!"

Emerald's mouth was shown as the teen smirked.

Spike's bey started to glow as the tips on it grew a bit bigger. His bey quickly did a U-turn as it was heading toward Emerald's bey.

"Let's do it!" shouted Spike as time slowed.

"Now," muttered Emerald.

As if on cue, Emerald's bey moved out of the way as Spike's bey missed.

"Huh?" said the boy.

Time resumed as Dragonheart missed its opponent by a mile and hit the wall before landing on its center. With Emerald's bey, it stopped and quickly turned as it was heading toward Dragonheart. The two made contact, and seconds later, Dragonheart was launched into the air and burst into pieces.

"No... way!" said Spike as he saw his bey in the air in pieces.

"Spike lost again," stated Twilight as she was now full-on interested and fascinated by what was happening.

"Hey, that's another win. Alright!" said Emerald as he acted like he was surprised. "Thanks for practice."

"We're not done!" said Spike as he returned his bey. "One more time."

"Spike, I think you should..." spoke Twilight.

"Battle me again!" declared Spike.

"Sure. I'd love to continue to battle," smiled Emerald.

What followed was something that nobody was prepared for. Emerald and Spike kept battling; however, Dragonheart burst into pieces each time they fought. Over and over, it was disassembled like it was nothing. However, each time the two fought, Spike's bey got in a bit more offense than last time, but it still suffered the same fate.

However, the real tale was on Twilight's face. The girl was eyeing the battle; for the first time in her life, beyblading caught her interest.

"One... more... time... This time, I'll win! I know I will!" said Spike as he panted hard.

"I'm down," smiled Emerald.

Both beys bent and held their launchers straight.

This time, I'm gonna burst it.

"Three... two... one..."

At that moment, Emerald tipped his launcher down.

"Let it rip!" shouted both boys.

Spike's bey flew; however, Emerald's bey landed on the stadium first with the angle. It landed and immediately took off.

"Dragonheart, attack!" declared Spike.

Spike knew that if he wanted to win, he had to launch the first offense. After battling so many times with Emerald, he knew the path that the boy's bey took. Emerald's bey was circling the outer of the stadium as Dragonheart was gaining on it. It caught up and bashed into the bey as it was launched into the air.

"Don't let it touch the ground!" said Spike.

One of the times Emerald burst Dragonheart came after it was launched into the air, then landed and crashed into Spike's bey. The boy prevented that from happening again as he ordered his bey to attack the spot where Emerald's bey would land and keep juggling it. It worked, but soon Emerald's bey landed a bit quicker than Spike anticipated as it held in place.

"Bounce off the wall and then attack!" said Spike.

Another instance of this happening was Spike ordering Dragonheart to charge head first. This time, the boy had his bey bounced off the wall to coil the spring and push it off with more power. It crashed into Emerald's bey as it moved and was starting to lose speed.

"Now, time for rush attacks!" said Spike.

That was the cue for Dragonheart to launch a series of attacks. It did that as Emerald's bey was stuck in the middle with Dragonheart, not letting it escape.

This is it. If I'm gonna burst it, it has to be now. Emerald will order his bey to escape by slipping through Dragonheart's small opening before it launches another attack. Then he's gonna say for it to go in a clockwise position. But I'll be waiting cause he won't bounce off the wall 'cause I'll have Dragonheart charge in with its tip leaned down. That will burst it for sure.

Then it happened.

As Spike explained, Emerald's bey escaped from the trapped center and moved in a clockwise position. It was heading for the wall to bounce off of it, but Dragonheart was looking to cut it off and collide with its side.

"Do it! Dragonclaw Strike!" yelled the boy as his bey and himself glowed in a green light. The creature inside emerged as it roared and spanned its wings.

The bey crashed into Emerald's bey; however, the teen's bey quickly turned direction and collided with Spike's bey head-on. Sparks flew as both beys were pushed back.

"But how!!! How did it change direction so fast?!" said Spike.

"You done?" spoke Emerald.

Spike looked up as his eyes widened. The look on Emerald's was no longer one of smiling but of seriousness.

"Lunor!" shouted the boy to his bey.

Lunor heard his command as it took off like a rocket. Spike was shocked to see it immediately gain back some speed, even more so when it crashed into Dragonheart and delivered a massive attack. It wobbled before Lunor was up against it and grinding the bey into the stadium wall.

"Dragonheart!" shouted Spike as he was concerned.

"This is what you call blading?" said Emerald as he got Spike to look at him. "You ought to be ashamed of yourself."

Spike gasped.

"You claim to be the best blader in your class. Boy, you ain't shit!" shouted Emerald as his eyes glowed and his body began to slowly do the same. "I've seen better people who are ten times better than you, and even you disgrace them with how you act. All high and mighty because you got one win. New flash, kid. One win doesn't mean anything."

Lunor then released Dragonheart and flung it upward into the air. Now it was Lunor's turn to juggle his foe; he did much faster and with ease, as Dragonheart wasn't allowed to touch the stadium. All Spike could do was watch as his bey was being tossed around like a rag doll.

"Since we began, I've been able to predict and study every single one of your moves, Spike."

"What?" gasped the kid.

"You're not a big fish. You're just a fish waiting to be swallowed whole by man-eating sharks. And you just ran into the biggest shark there is in the sea! Time to be eaten alive." stated Emerald.

Lunor then stopped and willingly allowed Dragonheart to touch the stadium. However, it didn't allow any moment of rest as it was now spinning in a circle while bouncing the bey against the wall and itself when it came around.

"Beyblading is about respect and being one with your bey. You are a disgrace to this game and everything it stands for. It's why I despise people like you." declared Emerald as he pointed at Spike. "Lesson to learn, kid. There will always be someone better than you."

Lunor then stopped its juggling of Dragonheart off the wall as it bashed into the bey to send it toward the center. Lunor was now rushing from all angles, not letting Dragonheart escape. Spike fell to his knees as he pleaded with his bey to cover up, but the attacks from Lunor weren't allowing him to.

"You claim to know your stuff. Boy, you don't know a goddamn thing. Every single win you've had has been but a fluke. And it's time I put you in your place. Lunor!" shouted Emerald.

The bey responded to the boy's command as it began to glow.

"I call on the moon's pale light!" yelled Emerald.

At that moment, the bey's glow shot out as the creature inside was shown. A wolf was shown as it howled at the moon. Emerald shined with a bright golden aura as he was now bonding with his bey and becoming one.

"Do it! Lunar... Whip!" yelled Emerald as he brought his arm out, and a slash attack shot forward.

Lunor felt the power as it flew toward Dragonheart. Upon contact, it was sent flying and burst into pieces. However, the force of the contact made some wind blow as a small pillar of light was shown. As for the pieces themselves, they were scattered in different directions. They broke apart into three separate ones, with one crashing into the school's wall. The other got stuck in the school gate, and the last came directly at Spike's face as it collided with the boy.

He fell back as if he had been hit by a ball. Spike landed on his back as a piece of his bey fell on his shirt. The pillar of light ceased as spinning in the center was Lunor as it kept turning. Spike sat up as he looked at a piece of his bey in his lap and picked it up; once he looked, he was overcome with fear and shock.

Emerald stood there surrounded by an aura, the same one that his bey shined. The teen stared down at the boy he had been toying with for half an hour.

"I've paid my dues, Spike. You... you ain't done shit! Reality check, boy. There will always be someone who is that much better than you ever will be. And until you learn the fundamentals and respect, you ain't gonna be champion, let alone a winner." said Emerald.

Lunor was in the stadium as he then hopped into the air. Emerald caught it as he looked at it.

"Nice work, Lunor. You showed them just how strong you are," stated Emerald with a smile. "Thanks for the battle, Spike." responded the teen to the boy with a genuine smile.

He then began to leave. Twilight was still in awe at what she had witnessed. She wasn't concerned about Spike as she felt he would bounce back, but moreso by Emerald. The boy was walking as he was about to pass the girl.

Just then, time moved slowly. Emerald was about to walk past Twilight when both teens turned their heads. In that very, very small window, the pair locked eyes and exchanged looks. Twilight saw the boy as she had a look of fascination. Emerald glanced at the girl he was passing before cracking a small, genuine smile. Time resumed, and Emerald looked back in front of him as he exited the school ground.

"Dragonheart," muttered Spike as he held the small piece of his bey in his hand.

The boy sniffed as he looked at his bey. The words that Emerald had said were getting to the boy. So much so that when Spike looked at his hand, it was shaking. Legit shaking. Safe to say, his once proud confidence was now shattered. In just a matter of seconds, everything he thought he was, all gone in the blink of an eye. Soon, some tears began to form as they rolled down the boy's cheek.

While Spike was letting some of his sadness out, Twilight was still looking forward. By now, Emerald had been long gone, but the girl kept looking ahead as if she knew where he was. Twilight didn't know it yet, but inside, something was happening. A small spark was lit, and it would only continue to grow. The girl's mouth was shown as she finally spoke.

"I want in," said Twilight.

Comments

[MechaTomX]

Damn, that was brutal, after training so much, Spike suffered a horrible humiliation, I just hope he uses those losses as motivation to be stronger and beat Emerald.

And it seems that Twilight has at least begun to appreciate the beyblade.

[Seeker1]

11419998
That's gonna be a hard goal to accomplish for sure, especially cause Emerald is the "main lead" of this story. But it's also a reminder that reality has a way of slapping us in the face when we think we're invincible.

[MechaTomX]

11419999
Yes, metaphorically speaking, sometimes when we think we are big fish, it turns out that we were just big fish in a small pond and when we go out to sea, we see bigger fish, at least Spike learned it now, as for me unfortunately I learned it when playing in my first beyblade tournament (and the only one because no other has been done in my city)

And it was a complete defeat, it felt like I had been hit by a train (again, metaphorically speaking, I have never been hit by a train)

[nightshroud96]

Really bummed seeing Spike lose that badly.
But seeing him really getting humiliated like that and what Emerald said to him really just hurts.
And Twilight thinking Spike will "brush it off/get over it" makes it even worse