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He was so close, they were there... in his grasp...
All he'd need is to get them both, and people would soon dread the power of the mighty Naga...
But which one should he take first?
"Dan! There's someone at the door waiting for you!"
Intrigued, the young brawler went away from his computer and ran down the stairs, pushing the door open. He was met with a funny-looking guy: an opaque glass mask with crazy blonde hair, purple pants and a white jacket that looked like it came from one of Dan's adventure RPGs.
"Uh, can I help you?"
"Are you Dan Kuso, a Pyrus brawler with a talking Dragonoid?"
Dan blinked. Did news spread so fast about Drago? Not that he minded the attention much.
"The one and only, at your service!" he bragged.
"I see. I was sent there on behalf of my master, so pardon the intrusion but, could I speak to your Dragonoid?"
"Oh, erm... He hasn't spoken since the other day, we're kinda mad at each other right now so... I doubt he'll talk to anyone else, sorry man."
Truth to be told, the masked guy freaked him out a bit, but he didn't seem hostile yet.
"Then could I have an autograph?"
Dan was taken aback. Was this guy a fan? Was this how he'd be famous in the Bakugan community? He stepped back and tripped, having trouble processing what he was just told.
"WAIT UNTIL I GET A PEN AND PAPER!" he said, running upstairs.
"Hey Dan, did you and Drago finally make up?" asked Julie through her computer screen.
"You betcha!" said Dan.
It had been a few days and Drago had mellowed out to him. Sure, he threw him into a river and there was that mess with him getting detention for the remainder of the semester, but they were awesome buddies now!
"Dan! You won't believe what's happening!" said Marucho, his window opening up into the group chat.
"What's up, Marucho?" asked Runo.
"There's this guy who's been brawling all over the world for speaking Bakugans like yours, his name is Masquerade and while he isn't that well-known, he recently started speaking about you."
"Me?"
"Hold on, I got a compilation of recordings from his recent battles. It was taken by a bunch of amateurs but there's a transcript."
Dan then ran down a list of comments this Masquerade guy would've made on him, praising that he's a rising star in the Bakugan community, that he inspired him to become a strong brawler, and that he'd surely be famous one day with his Dragonoid Pyrus in hand.
"Well, I don't see anything out of the ordinary here." he said with a happy smirk.
"You're joking, right?" asked Runo, rolling her eyes. "Doesn't this sound a little strange to you? Someone who appears one day and praises you of all people for your brawling skills? Sorry but you're not exactly the best player I've seen around."
"Say that to my face!" he dared, annoyed with the bluenette. "Why else would he do that? I'm just that awesome."
"Hold on, guys! I got a clear picture of him!" said Julie.
Immediately, a familiar face appeared on the screen.
"Hey, I know that guy!"
"You do?" said all four of his friends.
"Yeah! He came by the other day asking for an autograph."
"SERIOUSLY?! He's your... fan? Wow, just wow." said Runo.
"I know, right? If he's one of my admirers, pretty sure it means I'm doing something right."
"He came to your house just for an autograph?" asked Alice.
"Well, no, but he did want to meet Drago. He heard the news about him being capable of talking and came to see me."
"...that's creepy." said Marucho. "He knows where you live?"
"The downside of being famous, I suppose." said Dan, taking a pretentious movie star pose.
"Be serious for one second, would you?" said Runo. "That's really worrying, you don't know who this guy is but he knows where you live? Might be a stalker or something."
"I've never seen him before and I haven't seen him since last time, so who knows? I don't think he seems all that bad, but he definitely looks like he just went out of an anime convention."
"Agreed!" commented Julie.
"WHAAAAAAAAAAT? Jenny and Jewls from the JJ Dolls asked for a Bakugan battle with you two?!" exclaimed Julie.
"Crazy, right?" said Marucho, his new Preyas on his shoulder.
"They said they heard we were good players and asked us for a battle. They even had their own Baku-Launchers, can you believe it?" said Dan, a blush on his cheeks.
"How'd it go then?" asked Alice.
"We won, and they said we should do it again sometime. Aaaah, I've never thought playing Bakugan would lead to this." said Marucho swooning all over his computer. If I had known, I would've dressed better for the occasion."
"A lot of luck is coming down your way lately, Dan." said Runo.
"What do you mean?"
"You were the first one to get a talking Bakugan, you've started having a fanbase of your own, and now even celebrities are coming your way. Meanwhile, we're here still working to get a name for ourselves here."
"Don't take it that way, Runo. I'm sure you guys will be able to catch up. Someday."
A sweatdrop by all three girls was what followed.
"Dan, Runo, Marucho, listen up!" said Julie.
"What?" said both brawlers.
"Some of the top ranked Bakugan players in the entire world are gonna reunite for a party, my friend Billy was also invited to join!"
"Wow, and where is it going to take place then?" asked Marucho.
"You guys will be able to witness it, it's gonna take place in the park of Wardington!"
"Our town!" said Dan. "Man, that'll be awesome! We could meet up there, all of us!"
"I wish I could come with..." said Alice.
"No way, Wardington?!" said Marucho. "What are the odds? Our team is on a lucky streak lately! We'll be able to meet with them, ask for autographs, maybe even a few tips for brawling! But this also means Masquerade will be there then."
"Oh yeah, he's at the top of the ranking." said Dan. "Can't wait!"
"...Drago?"
"Yes, Dan?"
"Where are we?"
One second ago, they were being greeted by the strongest and most powerful Bakugan brawlers in the world, and then Masquerade lifted a card and they were both gone in this weird void place.
"Dan... I think... we're at the center of Vestroia, my home world. But if so, this means..."
Drago jumped out of Dan's pocket and materialized into his full Dragonoid form.
"Naga! Naga, show yourself! I know you're behind all this!"
"Drago..."
Both human and Bakugan turned to the source of the voice. A big white dragon Bakugan was inside a purple orb, just a few meters away from them, with dark could and electricity coming from it.
"There you are! Wait, hold on a second..." hesitated Drago. "...Wavern, is that you?"
"Drago, we finally meet again." said the white Bakugan, a female voice escaping from it. "I missed you so much, Dragoroonie."
"...Dragoroonie?" snickered Dan.
"Wavern, please! Now is not the time for-" said Drago, embarrassed. "Wait, are you... trapped in the Silent Core? Did Naga do this to you?"
"No. Well, yes and no. Here's where Naga went." said the white Bakugan.
Lifting her wing, she showed a holographic screen. On its image, another white Bakugan, resembling Wavern, was... dancing? Hopping? Flying all over the place? And whenever it went, flowers and plants were growing on its path.
"My brother acquired the Infinity Core. He's decaying but using its power to heal himself and with the power high he's receiving, he's on constant euphoria and has become unstoppable. He's not dangerous yet, but both Vestroia and the humans' world will be suffering ecological consequences if he's not brought back here to Vestroia."
"You bet, he looks like a Disney princess." said Dan.
"I've met a scientist who helped my brother get to the cores. The negative energy rendered him mad, but he obeys whatever I tell him to regardless of what I ask from him. I need your help finding the other core to fix this mess."
"You can count on me, Wavern!" said Drago.
"And me!" affirmed Dan.
"I forgot to mention: that human who's been scouting information on you and your battles, Masquerade, he brought some of those other humans here so that they'd help you on your quest. They're more volatile and out of control because of the negative energy but he made them work for the right cause. I hope you'll be alright from here on."
"No problem, we'll get you Naga back in no time!" assured Dan.
"Just wait for me, Wavern. You will have your freedom back in no time." said Drago as he and Dan both started fading away.
"I know you'll be back, Drago, I know you will..."
"...this is ridiculous." commented Shun.
"Glad we agree on that." said Runo.
Shun had been scouted out for his talents and next thing he knew, the original team had apparently extended to including some of the best top ranked Bakugan brawlers on Earth.
He didn't have the full details, but someone named Wavern had apparently gotten many of them to look for her lost brother with Dan and his new Bakugan as mission leaders... which he didn't really get. Especially when for some reason, they were dead set on Dan and Drago for attention.
"I want to practice with Dan first!" said Komba.
"Move over, kid! I call dibs this morning!" said Billy.
Drago hadn't even undergone evolution yet, but everyone sounded really eager to fight alongside him lately.
"Runo, are humans always this dead-focused on someone?" asked Tigrerra.
"No. But at this point I feel like I don't know how things work anymore either." said Runo.
"Would it kill him to leave some of that fame for us?!" complained Preyas.
"Guess Dan really just hit the jackpot when this whole thing started." shrugged Marucho.