Beyond the Mask - A Bakugan fanfic

Chapter 13

The morning couldn't come fast enough for Amari. Since receiving the next message from Masquerade, she'd stayed up all night, rehearsing every battle strategy she had in her head, going over which ones could possibly beat one of the Battle Brawlers. She would face one of them and she'd win, she was sure of it.

She dressed quickly in a black tank top, frayed denim shorts, and her trusty sneakers. She traded in yesterday's battle backpack for her simple pack and Bakugan holder that strapped onto a black belt she fastened around her hips. Her phone went into her back pocket and stuffed a granola bar into her other back pocket for later. She was far too giddy to try eating anything now. With a few quick hair ties rolled onto her wrist, she was good to go.

Again, she left the house without checking for Souma or Mai, their promise hanging at the back of her mind. A forever home and a battle on the horizon, Amari couldn't be happier than how she felt right now.

She ran down the block from her home, then across the street towards the neighborhood park. With all the battling she'd been doing the past few days, she didn't need a map or navigation to help her get there.

When she arrived, she took in the barren park benches and empty sidewalks. Like any day before, she was the first one there, the park had not yet fully awakened in the rise of early morning. She bypassed the sputtering fountain, just barely waking up, to head further into the park. She wasn't there to look around for a fight – she already had one waiting for her.

In the message Masquerade had sent, he instructed her to meet him in discreet, at the furthest edge of the park, tucked away by trees. He promised her that he'd bring her to meet the Brawlers.

"It's urgent that we take them down."

She didn't know what other urgency Masquerade could have for taking them down other than her own excitement at the chance to beat them head on. The last time she'd seen them - well, just a glance at them, and really only one of them - was Alice in the next town over. Were the Bakugan Battle Brawlers here? Do they plan on facing Masquerade and her as his secret weapon? Did they even know that she was on his side?

Amari shook her head and slowed down her pace to a walk. Of course they didn't know of her, or that she worked for Masquerade; they probably didn't even know she existed. Although she might've tried making a name for herself, the Bakugan Battle Brawlers couldn't know of everyone who played Bakugan. She was just another name in the endless sea of rankings to them. And Masquerade didn't need her for any backup, he was probably just using her to save his own Bakugan on the off chance they were on the verge of losing. She wistfully wondered what she had gotten so excited about in the first place.

As her pace continued to slow down, Leonidas popped out of her pocket and flew up to land on her shoulder.

"Why are you slowing down? Are you tired already?"

"Do you think Masquerade really needs our help taking on the Bakugan Battle Brawlers?" she asked, not looking over at him. "He's the strongest player in the world, according to the online rankings. And I've seen some of his battling – he's really good. Why would he need someone who just barely reached a double-digit ranking?"

"Amari," Leonidas's deep echoing voice stopped her dead in her tracks. He flew out in front of her. "We are about to face the Bakugan Battle Brawlers. This is what we've been battling for this whole time. It doesn't matter if it's through Masquerade or not, we're going to be battling them regardless."

"You're right," she said, taking a deep breath, standing tall once again. "I've been training for this. Even if I lose, it'll still have been worth it."