The Crystal Empire was one of the most beautiful places in Equestria.

Made entirely out of glistening gemstones and crystal, the city was a massive circular area located in a massive snowscape that stretched on for many miles. South of the Crystal Mountains, it was the most northern city in Equestria. A beautiful grassland with crystal roads paving the streets that all headed towards the crystal castle located in the middle of the city.

The city was protected by a light blue energy shield, which kept the cold weather out and allowed those inside to live without fear.

But the citizens and the Bakugan that lived there, all currently felt on edge due to the news that had just been received. That a breach to Vestroia had opened up outside of the city, which meant the Rugenga might appear and attack the city soon.

At the crystal castle, the guards were all being given details about the defence plans.

Amongst them was a pony that looked different from the crystal ponies that defended the city. He was a yellow pegasus wearing golden armor, having blue hair and a blue tail. This was the equestrian counterpart of Flash Sentry, who was working to protect the city as best he could.

"Sentry?" The pegasus spun around and spotted two others walking towards him. A white unicorn stallion and a pink alicorn mare. "How go the preparations?"

"Good," he stood to attention. "We've got every area of the city under surveillance. If the Rugenga enter the city, we'll know about it." He frowned. "But given how little effect our weapons have had on enemy Bakugan before, we're not sure how we're supposed to protect the city if they show up."

"Stay strong," Cadance told him. "Part of your duties is to project an air of control for the citizens to see. So long as they believe we have what it takes to protect them, they won't panic and things will go a lot smoother. If all goes well, the Rugenga won't get anywhere near the city." As she said that, a flash of light made all the soldiers jump to attention.

"At ease," the white stallion announced. "That's our reinforcements."

Everyone watched as the light faded and revealed Lyra Heartstrings, she and Amazon standing ready as they looked around. The sight of the Crystal Empire amazed them both. "Wow. This place looks amazing." Lyra then noticed the ponies and her attention fell to the alicorn and she quickly bowed. "Your majesty. I am Lyra, of the Equestrian Defenders."

"It's nice to meet you," Cadance nodded. "Twilight has told us much about you." She looked around, worried. "But why are you here? And alone. Where are the other Defenders?"

Lyra frowned. "I'm afraid this breach isn't the only one that opened. There's another one in Manehatten. Braeburn's gone to deal with that one and Soarin was kept back in Canterlot, in case another one appears."

"What about the others?" Shining, the white stallion, asked.

"They're...not here right now." She wasn't sure how to explain, that three of their number had been lost in a dimensional explosion. There was no telling what kind of panic that could cause. "Don't worry. I'm here and I'll deal with whoever shows up through that breach. Now," she looked around, "where's the breach located? They were only able to get a general idea of its place."

"It's outside the empire," Cadance explained. "It's not too far away and that's worrying our citizens. If the Rugenga show up, it'll only take them a minute or two to get here in those ships they have."

"Relax," Lyra told her. "Amazon and I have got that. Right?"

"You know it," he leapt up and down. "I can take those freaks down, no problem. You ready, Lyra?" She nodded and they headed towards the edge of the city, Cadance, Shining and the guards going with her. They were all a little concerned, since Lyra on her own didn't make much of a defence force. But Cadance seemed to have some faith in the girl.

They soon reached the edge of the city and Lyra stared at the barrier in amazement. "Wow." She reached up and touched the shield, her hand going right through it. And when she did, she suddenly felt a painful blast of icy air on her skin and screamed as she pulled it back.

She rubbed her hands together, trying to heat it back up. The others' faith in her went down even more after that.

"Here." Cadance's horn glowed before the light flew off and began to swirl around Lyra's body, forming a veil around her that disappeared after a few moments. Lyra looked confused, but Cadance explained. "It's an anti-cold spell. It'll only last a few hours, but it'll protect you from the cold. Can't have you getting frostbite and losing from the chill."

"Thanks," Lyra smiled before Cadance cast another spell. This time, it was on her shoes.

"And this'll keep you from sinking in the snow. It gets pretty deep out there and the last thing you need is being unable to fight because you're wading through the snow."

"Is it possible for me to learn magic?" Lyra asked. "It sounds really handy." They all smiled at this, as she took a deep breath. "Ponies of the Crystal Empire. I know you're worried about getting attacked. But I promise you. I'm going to defeat the Rugenga and send them packing. Celestia and everyone else in Canterlot, put their trust in me to protect this city and I'm gonna do it."

Cadance smiled, "we know you will. I have faith in you. Just be careful. I might have never met a Rugenga. But from what I've heard, they can be dangerous when pushed to their limits."

"I will," Lyra nodded. "Don't worry. I got this." With that, she turned towards the edge of the dome and stepped outside.

As soon as she was through the magical shield, she was suddenly hit by a slight chill as the wind flowed past her. She gasped and shivered, but realised the cold would have been much worse if Cadance hadn't cast the spell on her.

She looked around and sure enough, she was standing in a snowy landscape that looked like it went on for miles.

She started heading towards the breach's signal, her feet not even dropping an inch into the snow covered ground. And it was a good thing it didn't for as she continued through the open snowscape, she found herself climbing up a large hill she realised was actually made entirely of snow.

If she didn't have the spell, she would have probably already been buried up to her neck.

She kept trekking through the winter wonderland until, finally, she spotted the shimmer of the breach in the distance. "There it is." But as she approached, she saw the breach flicker before something flew out of it. A ship. "Oh no you don't." She activated her Baku-Bracer's systems and threw Amazon. "Go!"

"You got it!" He unfurled in the air and transformed into his real form, the lizard blocking the ship's path and forcing it to serve around to avoid getting knocked out of the sky.

Once the ship was out of his reach, Amazon returned to his ball form and shot back over to Lyra. Moments later, the ship stopped in the air and opened up. Kiyrah stood up and stared down at the Defender. "I was hoping you had gone to Beck's breach."

"We've got someone down there already. He'll take out Beck, just like how I'm gonna take you down." Lyra stood ready for a fight. "I promised the ponies of the empire I'd keep you out and I intend to keep it. So you'd better be ready to fly home crying."

Kiyrah frowned. "Why risk your life like this? If you lose, you realise I'll make sure you can never be a bother to us again. This isn't your world, so why put everything on the line to defend it?"

Lyra frowned. "When I came here, my goal was to protect the Bakugan and free their world. But in the time I've been here, the ponies have been nothing but kind to me. They opened their home to the Bakugan without even a thought. And you attack them, just so you can have the Bakugan under your control. Well I won't let you hurt these ponies. If you want to get to them, you have to go through us!"

"That's right!" Amazon yelled in agreement. "I don't care how strong you are. We're gonna take you down and protect Equestria."

"So be it," Kiyrah stated. "But you were warned."

Hydread growled. "I'm going to enjoy tearing you limb from limb. When I'm done with you, there won't be enough to take home in a paper bag." Amazon glared at him, as Lyra and Kiyrah activated their Baku-Bracers. Once the two connected, the power-ups appeared around them as their Life Gauges filled.

"BRAWL!"

Lyra: 100%
Kiyrah: 100%

Kiyrah took out a Gate Card and as the transport flew up, she threw it towards the ground. "Gate Card...SET!" The card hit the snow and as it exploded, Lyra ran across the snow with Amazon in hand. She spotted a large mound of snow and ran up it, leaping off the end and thanking Cadance for the magic that kept her from sinking on the snow.

"Bakugan," they both threw their partners, "BRAWL!" The Bakugan flew through the air and hit some power-ups before landing on the snow, which they started sinking into. "Bakugan...STAND!" From out of the two holes, tornados of water and purple clouds appeared.

"Rise, Aquos Amazon!"

"Devour, Darkus Hydread!" The two appeared out of the tornados and Amazon landed in the snow, as Hydread stood there swinging his tail around.

Amazon: 400Gs
Hydread: 600Gs

The pair glared at one another, as the power-ups they hit kicked in. But as their strength increased, Amazon started to sink in the snow and his whole body shivered feeling the icy touch on his skin.

Amazon: 650Gs
Hydread: 700Gs

"GYAH!" He cried, jumping up and down whilst shivering. "So cold. SO COLD!"

"Tough it out!" Lyra told him, but she was starting to feel the chill as well. "We have to be strong."

"You be strong. You've got something separating you from the cold." But as he said that, Hydread roared and swung his tail around. It smashed into him, knocking the Aquos Bakugan away. "GYAH!" He slammed into the snow and almost caused a tidal wave of it to hit Lyra.

"You okay?" She asked, as Hydread laughed.

Amazon picked himself up and glared at him. "Low blow!" His anger seemed to make his blood boil, causing the snow to no longer affect him. "Lyra, let's get this guy!"

"With pleasure!" Lyra swiped a card. "Ability, Activate!" Amazon leapt up, bringing his hands together as he did. "Aquos Bomber!"

Amazon: 950Gs
Hydread: 700Gs

"Oh yeah!" He cried, thrusting a sphere of water forward as it exploded into a stream that slammed into Hydread and made him roar. He was knocked back and thanks to the freezing conditions, the water covering his body quickly started to freeze.

Amazon landed and chuckled, as he prepared to fire another Aquos Bomber. But Kiyrah swiped her card first. "Ability, Activate!" Hydread's mouth filled with flames, the heat it gave off causing the ice covering him to melt. "Chaos Flame!"

Amazon: 950Gs
Hydread: 1000Gs

Hydread and Amazon launched their attacks at the same time, the water stream and dark flames clashing to create a burst of steam. That steam filled the air and caused the snow around them to start melting. And eventually, the Chaos Flame overpowered the Aquos Bomber and slammed into Amazon.

"Gyah!" He was pushed backwards and crashed into a large pillar of ice, causing it to crack.

"Amazon!" Lyra cried, as Hydread prepared to launch another flamethrower. As such, Lyra quickly grabbed a card. "Ability, Activate!" Amazon pushed himself off the ice pillar and let out a blast of water vapour from his mouth, "Mist Barrier!" The water vapour created a thick fog all around him and when the Chaos Flame fired, it couldn't get past the cloud and just stopped.

Amazon: 950Gs
Hydread: 700Gs

As soon as Hydread's flamethrower ended, Amazon leapt out of the mist and flew towards him. "Take this!" He spun around and slammed his tail into the dragon's face, making it flinch.

But Hydread fought through the pain and glared at Amazon, as Kiyrah swiped two cards. "Double Ability, Activate!" His front feet were suddenly surrounded by a black energy, as the red spikes on Hydread began to glow. "Phantom Claw, plus Death Stinger!"

Lyra gasped, "get out of there!" Amazon didn't need to be told twice and leapt away, but the lights exploded off Hydread's spikes and shot towards him.

They slammed into him and exploded, Amazon crying out as he felt his power drop. And as it did, Hydread ran forward and swiped at him with his energy coated claws. "Gyah!" The energy flowed into him, then flew off and into Hydread's mouth.

Amazon: 700Gs
Hydread: 800Gs

Amazon staggered backwards, clutching his chest as Hydread tried to attack him. But Lyra took out her own two cards and swiped them.

"Double Ability, Activate!" Amazon was quickly covered in a veil of water, which healed his wounds, allowing him to dodge Hydread's attack. "Re-Hydrate, plus Ice Slicer!"

Amazon's arm fins froze over and as he swung them towards Hydread, they cut into him and made the Darkus Bakugan flinch.

Amazon: 1000Gs
Hydread: 650Gs

As Hydread staggered back, Amazon landed as the thrill of the fight got to him. "Hahaaa!" He cheered. "I know this is an important battle, but I'm having a blast. Even if I'm freezing my tail off."

"You won't be laughing for long," Kiyrah stated. She then pointed towards the ground. "Gate Card, Open!" The ground began to glow purple, as a dark mist rose up. "Darkus Reactor!" Hydread breathed the mist in, powering it up as Amazon charged forward.

Amazon: 1000Gs
Hydread: 850Gs

"Not enough!" He laughed, throwing a bunch of punches right at the giant dragon. Each one made Hydread flinch, but the beast wasn't done yet.

"Ability, Activate!" Hydread's body glowed, as his eyes turned wild. "Darkus Rage!"

Amazon: 1000Gs
Hydread: 1050Gs

"RAAAH!" He swung his tail around and the spiked club on the end of it slammed into Amazon, knocking him flying backwards before he could escape.

"Gyah!" He fell back and crashed into the ground, sliding through the snow. But he refused to give up and used his tail to kick himself up onto his feet, the snow making him shiver. "Time to heat things up." He struck a pose. "Am...A...zon!" The gem on his chest glowed, "Attribute Change!" The light spread across his body and it quickly changed colour. "Pyrus!"

Lyra reacted fast to her partner's change and swiped a card. "Ability, Activate!" Amazon rushed forward, his arms and legs bursting into flames. "Heat Striker!"

"Take this!" Amazon once again slammed his fists and feet into Hydread, burning him multiple times.

Amazon: 1000Gs
Hydread: 900Gs

But as Hydread staggered back, Kiyrah had had enough and held up a card. "Ability, Activate!" Hydread opened his mouth and breathed out a very strange purple fog. "Merge Barrier!" The purple fog moved towards Amazon, surrounding him before Hydread breathed it back in. And in doing so, he gained all the power Amazon had gained from his Abilities.

Amazon: 1000Gs
Hydread: 1300Gs

"Finish him!" Kiyrah cried, as Hydread charged forward and caused the ground around him to shake.

Lyra asked and realised Amazon didn't have time to activate his Steam Bomber. Having no other choice, she swiped another card. "Ability, Activate!" Amazon's fin blades burned into flames, "Razor Blaze!"

Amazon: 1150Gs
Hydread: 1300Gs

"Raaaaah!" Amazon leapt into the air and tried to slash his flaming fins at Hydread, but the Darkus Bakugan spun around and slammed his tail into him. "GYAH!" He cried, feeling the club smash into him before he was thrown backwards and returned to ball form.

"Amazon!" Lyra cried, as Hydread returned to Kiyrah.

Lyra: 70%
Kiyrah: 100%

She ran over to her partner, who fell into the snow and forced her to dig him out. "Are you okay?" She asked, Amazon moaning as he unfurled.

"That sucked. This guy's no joke. Valkyria said he was strong, but she wasn't kidding." Lyra frowned as she stood up and looked over at the city in the distance. Their battle had pushed them closer to the empire and that wasn't good.

"We can't let her get the better of us. We have to defeat her, here and now!"

"I'll try," Amazon nodded. "But she's tough."

"Well so are we," Lyra replied as she took out a card and threw it. "Gate Card...SET!" It hit the ground and as it exploded, Kiyrah's transport flew up whilst Lyra ran towards another snow back.

"Bakugan," they both threw their partners, "BRAWL!" Once again, Amazon and Hydread flew through the air and struck some power-ups before landing in the snow. "Bakugan...STAND!" The tornados of water and dark mist exploded out of the snow, Amazon and Hydread appearing out of them. The two glared at one another, as their G Power rose.

Amazon: 550Gs
Hydread: 700Gs

"Ability," Kiyrah swiped a card, "Activate!" Hydread's mouth filled with fire. "Chaos Flame!"

"RAAAAAAAAAAH!" The flames exploded out of his mouth and shot towards Amazon, the lizard attempting to avoid it as best he could. The heat from it, caused more of the snow around him to melt.

Amazon: 550Gs
Hydread: 1000Gs

As Hydread kept firing, Lyra took out two cards and swiped them.

"Double Ability, Activate!" Amazon stopped running and breathed out a bunch of water vapour. "Mist Barrier, plus Aquos Bomber!"

The mist formed a cloud around him, which stopped the flamethrower dead as Amazon swirled his hands around to form a sphere of water. "Take this!" He thrust it forward and unleashed the aqua blast, which shot through the barrier and rocketed towards Hydread.

Amazon: 850Gs
Hydread: 700Gs

The water slammed into him and Hydread roared in pain, as the speed of the water felt like he was getting hit by a very wet meteor. He staggered back, but then charged forward and forced himself through the water before swinging his tail around.

Amazon stopped his attack and leapt into the air, avoiding the tail as Kiyrah swiped a card. "Ability, Activate!" The spikes on his body glowed. "Death Stinger!"

"RAAAH!" He fired the light off them and with Amazon in the air, he couldn't avoid the glowing red needles as they dug into him.

Amazon: 700Gs
Hydread: 700Gs

"Ahhh!" Amazon fell to the ground and flinched, as Hydread charged again ready to claw at him.

"Double Ability, Activate!" Lyra swiped two cards and Amazon was covered in water. "Ry-Hydrate, plus Ice Slicer!" As the water healed his wounds, Amazon ran forward as his fins froze over. He then swung them at Hydread and sliced at him, forming a bunch of ice on him.

Amazon: 1000Gs
Hydread: 550Gs

Hydread staggered back, as Amazon prepared to slash at him again. But before he could, Kiyrah swiped her own two cards. "Double Ability, Activate!" Hydread's body glowed and his eyes went wild. "Darkus Rage..."

Amazon: 1000Gs
Hydread: 750Gs

He swung his tail around and hit the ice covering Amazon's fins, causing them to crack and knocking Amazon off balance. And as he did, Hydread spun around again as his mouth filled with flames. "Plus, Fusion Ability. Raging Shadow, Chaos Inferno!"

The dragon Bakugan roared, as he unleashed an insane amount of flames from his mouth. Flames that flew all over the place in a wild manner.

Amazon: 1000Gs
Hydread: 1250Gs

Amazon gasped, as he started jumping around trying to avoid the flames. But he got struck by several of them and gasped, whilst Lyra also did her best to avoid them. "Lyra!" Amazon cried, "what do we do?" Lyra only had one idea and smirked, having been waiting for this.

"Get them!" Kiyrah cried, only to see Lyra suddenly take something out.

"Come, Bakugan Trap!" She threw it into the air, revealing it to be a four-sided pyramid-shaped Bakugan that was white with a blue base. "Aquos Diverak!" The Bakugan flipped open, the left and right sides of the pyramid folding down whilst the front and back split apart. The middle part of the front flipped up and over the top, where it was connected to the back and created a tail-like structure. Meanwhile, the other parts of the front folded down to become mandibles.

Once it was unfolded, the Bakugan glowed before shooting over towards Amazon. And once it was above him, the light transformed into a Bakugan that resembled a stingray.

Its body was a mix of blues, white and orange. It was mostly dark blue, with a line of white triangles running down its back with orange markings covering it. The tips of its wings and the mandibles on its white face appeared to be made of a light blue material, almost resembling ice. And its tail was a collection of dark blue triangles stacked together, with a large spearhead made of ice on the tip.

The Bakugan floated above Amazon, moving like a real stingray would in the water.

Amazon+Diverak: 1350Gs
Hydread: 1250Gs

As it hovered there, it beat its fins and made the snow around them fly up and form a wall that blocked the flames. As it did, Lyra swiped a card. "Ability, Activate!" As the flames melted the snow, Diverak's eyes glowed before the water formed a large wave. "Surf Strike!"

"Oh yeah!" Amazon cheered, as Diverak flew down and landed on the wave. He then ran forward and leapt up onto the Trap Bakugan's back, balancing on him as the wave flew towards Hydread. "Surf's up, dude!"

Amazon+Diverak: 1450Gs
Hydread: 1250Gs

Hydread saw the attack coming and tried to get away, but couldn't move in time to avoid getting slammed by the water.

It washed him away and the Aquos Bakugan flew overhead, Amazon continuing to ride Diverak as they soared through the air. Hydread groaned, as he pushed himself to his feet. "Let's get him!" Amazon cried, as Diverak flew around and they charged at him again.

But before they could reach him, Kiyrah swiped a card. "Ability, Activate!" Hydread unleashed a burst of dark clouds, which slammed into the pair. "Merge Barrier!" As the pair flew out of the cloud, Hydread drank it down and gained all their power. "Not gonna be so cocky now, are you?"

Amazon+Diverak: 1450Gs
Hydread: 1800Gs

"Get them!" Kiyrah cried, as Hydread unleashed another bombardment of dark flames. Diverak had to use every manoeuvre he knew, to avoid getting blasted by it. And even then, he just barely managed to do that.

"You'll have an easier time dodging without me!" Amazon stated, leaping off as the gem on his body glowed. "Attribute Change...SUBTERRA!" He landed, as his body turned a mixture of brown and orange. And without him on his back, Diverak was able to dodge the flames as Lyra swiped a pair of cards.

"Double Ability, Activate!" The two Bakugan glowed, as the energy flowed from Amazon into Diverak. "Diagonal Correlation, plus Sand Striker!" Amazon charged forward, as his fins became surrounded by sand.

He swung them at Hydread and slammed into him, the sand grinding against him as he flinched in pain.

Amazon+Diverak: 1650Gs
Hydread: 1650Gs

Amazon then leapt back, as Diverak body checked the dragon and knocked him off balance. And as he did, Lyra swiped one more card. "Ability, Activate!" Amazon brought his hands together and formed a sphere of murky water. "Mud Bomber!"

"TAKE THIS!" He thrust the sphere forward and it exploded into a burst of muddy water, which shot towards Hydread and slammed into him.

Amazon+Diverak: 2050Gs
Hydread: 1650Gs

He let out a roar, as he was finally knocked backwards and almost crashed into Kiyrah's transport. But before he could hit it, he reverted back to ball form and fell to the sand below. "Hydread!" She gasped, flying down to get him.

Lyra: 70%
Kiyrah: 20%

Lyra smirked, as her Bakugan returned to her. "Great work guys." They both unfurled and Amazon turned to Diverak.

"You were awesome, dude. Loved the surfing attack. Totally hope we get to do it again." Diverak let out several sounds, which Lyra couldn't understand. But Amazon nodded at him, appearing to get the gist of what he was saying.

As this was going on, Kiyrah used her ship's tractor beam to pull Hydread out of the snow. And once he was inside, he popped out of a hole in the console for her to catch. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," he growled. "I will not allow that fool to make a mockery of me again." Kiyrah nodded, also done playing around.

"Definitely. No more kid gloves. Time to pull out all the stops." With that, she took out a card and threw it. "Gate Card...SET!" As it landed in the snow and exploded, the ship flew up whilst Lyra ran over to a large rock that had been part of a now broken rock pillar. Once she jumped on top, she leapt off it and aimed for the most power-ups she could see.

"Bakugan," they threw their partners towards the power-ups, "BRAWL!" The Bakugan flew through two different clouds of power-ups before hitting the ground and sinking into it. "Bakugan...STAND!" The tornados of water and dark shadows flew out of the snow, as the Bakugan broke out of them.

Amazon and Hydread glared at each other, ready to end this brawl once and for all as the power-ups kicked in.

Amazon: 600Gs
Hydread: 850Gs

"Ability, Activate!" Kiyrah swiped a card and the spikes on Hydread's body glowed. "Death Stinger!" He roared and the lights shot off, the needles they created shooting towards Amazon as he tried to avoid them all.

But he couldn't dodge forever and the Aquos Bakugan was struck. "Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!"

Amazon: 450Gs
Hydread: 850Gs

Hydread used this chance to charge forward and once he was close enough, he swung his tail around hoping to knock Amazon down in one hit. But Amazon managed to do a matrix style back lean and the club flew over his body, Amazon rolling backwards once it was away from him.

"Double Ability, Activate!" Amazon stood, as the water veil quickly formed around him. "Re-Hydrate, plus Aquos Bomber!"

Amazon: 800Gs
Hydread: 850Gs

"Hahaa!" Amazon cheered, as he swung his arms around and formed a sphere of water. "Am...a...zon!" He thrust it forward, "BLAST!" The water fired at Hydread and slammed into him, knocking the dragon staggering backwards again until it crashed into a large snow pillar.

Amazon laughed and once he stopped the water shots, he ran forward as Hydread began to pick itself up. As he got in close, it swung its tail around and he easily leapt over it before dealing a kick to his head. "Raaah!"

"Ability, Activate!" Kiyrah swiped a card and Hydread spun around, his front claws becoming surrounded by dark clouds. "Phantom Claw!" Before Amazon could get away, he swung his claws at him and slashed at the Aquos Bakugan.

"Gyah!" He was thrown backwards and crashed into the snow.

Amazon: 700Gs
Hydread: 950Gs

Hydread charged and tried to stomp down onto him, but he rolled away at the last moment.

"Ability, Activate!" Amazon raised his fins, as they became frozen over. "Ice Slicer!" Amazon leapt forward and slashed at Hydread, taking back to the power that had been stolen from him.

Amazon: 850Gs
Hydread: 800Gs

As Hydread staggered back, Amazon landed with a smirk. "I got you now." Lyra nodded, only to notice Kiyrah taking something out.

"Come, Bakugan Trap!" She threw it into the air and revealed it to be a six-sided drum that was mostly black with purple markings. "Darkus Arachnia!" The Bakugan flew up and once it was high enough, it opened up to almost resemble a scorpion-shaped Bakugan with six legs. Except the tail part had a head and arms.

The Bakugan glowed purple before flying over and crashing into the snowy ground, transforming into a giant spider. Its body was made of a black armored material, like what a scorpion would have, with three long spindly legs sticking out of the sides. the tips of the legs were covered in a purple crystal, whilst a pair of purple crystal fangs were sticking out the front of its head.

The spider didn't have a rear and coming out the top of its body, was a humanoid torso made of the same material as its shelled body. That armor was black, but there were purple sections that weren't covered in armor. Those sections were around the elbows, wrists, shoulders and necks. The body appeared female based on the chest area and the head was covered in a black helmet, with a purple line of spikes sticking out the top from the forehead all the way to the back.

"Wow," Amazon jumped back in surprise. And Lyra frowned, as she checked her Baku-Bracer.

Amazon: 850Gs
Hydread+Arachnia: 1050Gs

"Ability, Activate!" The human on the spider thrust her hand forward, as something shot out of the finger-tips. "Shadow Webbing!" Black webs flew towards Amazon and before he could escape, they started wrapping around him.

"Gaaah!" His arms were suddenly bound to his side, the Bakugan unable to pull himself free. Then, his legs and tail were tied up as well. "Gross!" He fell into the snow, as his power dropped.

Amazon: 750Gs
Hydread+Arachnia: 1050Gs

Hydread charged forward and tried to stomp on Amazon, who rolled out of the way. But he could only evade for so long, causing Lyra to take something out.

"Come, Bakugan Trap!" She threw the pyramid into the air. "Aquos Diverak!" The Bakugan unfolded and transformed, the stingray appearing and flying over to his fellow Aquos Bakugan.

Amazon+Diverak: 1000Gs
Hydread+Arachnia: 1050Gs

Arachnia launched several webs towards him, but he managed to avoid the attacks as Lyra swiped a card. "Ability, Activate!" Diverak sudden disappeared, "Cloak Defender!"

Unable to see the Trap Bakugan, Arachnia and Hydread looked around but saw nothing. Then, something slammed into Hydread and knocked him away from Amazon. The next thing Amazon knew, water was being sprayed on him and the webs melted away.

"Yes!" He cheered, able to jump up as Diverak reappeared.

Amazon+Diverak: 1100Gs
Hydread+Arachnia: 1050Gs

"Raaah!" Amazon leapt up and kicked Hydread in the chest, knocking him back as Amazon back-flipped and landed on Diverak's back.

"Double Ability, Activate!" Hydread glowed and his eyes went wild, as Arachnia's spider mouth unleashed a web-line that struck Amazon in the back. "Darkus Rage, plus Dark Lightning!" The gem fangs on the spider's mouth sparked and the electricity flowed into the web, flowing through it before shocking Amazon.

"Gyah!" He cried, falling off Diverak. As he did, Hydread charged forward.

Amazon+Diverak: 1000Gs
Hydread+Arachnia: 1250Gs

As Amazon fell towards the ground, Hydread spun around and smashed his tail into him. "AUGH!" He was thrown through the air, as Diverak tried to save him. But Arachnia used its webs to catch his tail and pull him away. But as Amazon hit the snow and bounced around, he fought through the pair and managed to slam his hand into the ground. This caused him to slow to a stop, as the gem on his chest glow. "Attribute Change!" As he landed, his body glowed and shifted colours. "SUBTERRA!"

Diverak managed to cut the web off him and fly over to Amazon, who ran forward as Lyra swiped her cards.

"Double Ability, Activate!" The two Bakugan glowed, the light flowing off Amazon and into Diverak before the lizard suddenly disappeared. "Desert Rocket, plus Diagonal Correlation!"

Amazon+Diverak: 1300Gs
Hydread+Arachnia: 1250Gs

Diverak dived towards Arachnia and swung its tail around, hitting her in the human chest and knocking her back. Meanwhile, Hydread was suddenly struck by something fast and invisible. "Gyah!" He tried to attack back, but the invisible attacker vanished. "Where are you? Show yourself!"

"I don't think so!" Amazon replied, Hydread trying to attack that spot. But he had already moved out of the way and the next thing Hydread knew, he was struck once again.

Kiyrah frowned and quickly swiped a pair of cards. "Double Ability, Activate!" Hydread unleashed a burst of dark coloured fire, whilst Arachnia's spider mouth breathed out a dark fog. "Chaos Flame, plus Shroud Nightmare!"

The fire began to melt the snow around Hydread, creating a puddle that splashing could be heard in. At the same time, the cloud struck Diverak and completely surrounded it. Doing so caused a wave of dread to wash over the Trap Bakugan, as he started to fly upwards out of the cloud.

Amazon+Diverak: 1200Gs
Hydread+Arachnia: 1550Gs

"Diverak, don't!" But Lyra's command came too late and the stingray Bakugan flew out of the smoke, only to get slammed by the Chaos Flame attack sent his way.

He let out a cry, as he began to fall towards the ground. But before he landed, Amazon reappeared and caught him. "I gotcha!" But another blast of fire almost roasted them. "Lyra!"

"Ability, Activate!" Diverak opened its eyes and they glowed, as the water that surrounded them suddenly morphed into a wall to protect them from the flames. "Surf Striker!"

Amazon+Diverak: 1300Gs
Hydread+Arachnia: 1550Gs

Diverak jumped off Amazon and landed atop the wave, as it began to move forward. But before it could hit, Arachnia launched another blast of webbing that struck him in the eye.

Diverak screamed, as it couldn't see and lost control of the water. And as it fell towards the ground, Hydread ran over to it and swung his tail around. "TAKE THIS!" He smashed it into the Trap Bakugan and sent it flying. Lyra gasped and Amazon's eyes widened, as he hit the ground.

Lyra: 20%
Kiyrah: 20%

"You'll pay for that!" Amazon ran forward, only for another blast of webbing to hit him. "Augh!" He tried to pull himself free, but it was no use thanks to his loss of power.

Amazon+Diverak: 950Gs
Hydread+Arachnia: 1550Gs

Arachnia pulled him back towards her, as Hydread prepared to unleash another Chaos Flame. But Lyra swiped her cards first. "Double Ability, Activate!" Amazon's fins became surrounded by sand and as Hydread fired, he launched himself at Arachnia. "Sand Striker!"

He managed to move his arms around and cut through the webs before striking Arachnia, knocking her backwards.

Amazon+Diverak: 950Gs
Hydread+Arachnia: 1400Gs

"Plus Mud Bomber!" He then spun around and thrust his hands forward, as a blast of muddy water exploded out of them and shot towards Hydread.

Amazon+Diverak: 1350Gs
Hydread+Arachnia: 1400Gs

It slammed into the Darkus Bakugan and whilst it made him stagger back a few steps, it wasn't enough to hurt him. "Not enough," Lyra gasped as Kiyrah pointed towards the ground.

"Gate Card...open." The ground began to glow purple. "Darkus Soul Reap. This Special Gate Card summons the spirit of any defeated Bakugan." The light flowed into Diverak before the light flew off him and over to Hydread, taking form and transforming into a purple ghostly image of the Trap Bakugan. "Now, its power will be taken from its ally."

"What?" Lyra asked, as Hydread unleashed a blast of fire that struck the ghost.

Diverak exploded and the light covered flames flew towards Amazon, slamming into him and knocking him backwards. "GYAAAAAAAH!" He cried, digging his heels into the snow as he felt his power being burned away.

Amazon+Diverak: 1000Gs
Hydread+Arachnia: 1400Gs

"It's over!" Kiyrah cried, as Hydread unleashed even more fire. This proved too much for Amazon, who was knocked backwards and let out a scream as he was blown away. And as he smashed into the snow, he created a tidal wave of it that flew towards Lyra.

She gasped and tried to escape the snow tsunami, but it slammed into her and she let out a scream as the avalanche overwhelmed her. And as Amazon was forced back to ball form, she was buried alive and her life gauge dropped.

Lyra: 0%
Kiyrah: 20% (Winner)

Hydread and Arachnia returned to Kiyrah, who moved over to where Lyra had been buried. The avalanche had sent Diverak over to this area and by some miracle, it hadn't been buried by the snow. And as they both lay there, part of the snow broke apart before Lyra pulled herself out of it.

She groaned, as she dragged herself over to her Bakugan and picked them up. But that was all she could do before the strain became too much. And soon, she fell to the ground and her vision became blurry. The last thing she saw before darkness overtook her, was Kiyrah's mask.

Back in the Empire, Cadance was at the castle staring at the area that Lyra had stepped through.

She watched and frowned, as Shining stepped up next to her on the balcony. "Don't worry. Lyra will keep us safe. The Defenders haven't let us down once." Cadance nodded, but suddenly noticed the shield flash as something flew through it. And it wasn't Lyra.

She gasped and realised it was the Rugenga, dread flowing through the alicorn as she feared what had happened to the Brawler they had sent to stop them. "Guards! Battle stations!" The ponies who heard this got into a fighting stance, with Flash leading a bunch of crystal pegasi into the air.

But it wasn't long before the ship unleashed a wave that covered half the city, the pegasi all flying into it before screaming.

"GYAH!" Flash screamed, as he felt like his insides were being torn apart. He remembered this feeling from when he tried to become a battle brawler and fell to the ground, the other pegasi falling with him and crashing into the ground and through houses.

Shining frowned at the sight of this and his horn flashed before unleashing a bright light, which created a shield between the ship and the rest of the city. Flash and the other ponies were behind it and they all felt the pain they had been feeling beginning to fade away.

But before anyone could think of trying to escape, the ship opened up and two things were thrown out of it. In a flash of purple, Hydread and Arachnia appeared before crashing into the ground.

Hydread roared and swung his tail around, smashing into the shield to try and break through it. But the shield held, though Shining felt the impact. Arachnia shot a web and used its Dark Lightning attack, shocking the shield and doing more damage to it.

Meanwhile, the ponies on the other side of the shield were running as fast as they could. Some had been caught in the dimensional field and were crippled by the pain, which Cadance could sense.

"Enough of this." She leapt off the balcony and as Hydread and Arachnia attacked the shield again, she flew down to the area below the castle. There, a strange heart-shaped gem was floating there. "Our magic might not be able to stop Bakugan. But maybe this can." She placed her hands on the crystal and summoned its power, calling upon the light and love flowing through it.

Back on the ship, Kiyrah watched as Hydread suddenly unleashed a Chaos Flame and Death Stinger. The attacks combined with Arachnia's Dark Lightning, caused a serious strain on the shield. But just as it seemed the barrier was about to break, Kiyrah got a warning.

"Energy surge?" She wondered what it was, as a bright flash of light suddenly exploded out from the castle.

It flew through the crystals of the streets and when it reached her Bakugan, they both cried out as they were being zapped. "GYAH!" Hydread roared, "what is this?" He fought against the pain, as Arachnia was overcome and reverted back to ball form.

"Hydread!" Kiyrah cried, seeing the light was still coming from the castle. Whatever was happening, it was coming from there. "Blast them!"

Hydread called upon all his power and after letting out a mighty roar, his mouth filled with the dark coloured fire. "Raging Shadow...CHAOS INFERNO!" A supercharged flamethrower exploded out of his mouth and struck the shield, completely shattering it before continuing towards the castle.

It struck the crystal structure and blew a massive hole in the side of it, the castle shaking as Shining was knocked down and Cadance was blown away by the shockwave. This also caused the Crystal Heart to stop glowing, the energy that was hurting Hydread disappearing.

The Bakugan sighed in relief, as he and Kiyrah both continued towards the castle. That caused the dimensional field to spread, making more ponies scream in pain. Kiyrah and Hydread laughed, especially when they reached the castle and found Cadance withering on the floor.

"This kingdom is mine," she stated firmly. "And everything that's within it belongs to the Rugenga. Including the Bakugan, ponies...and you." Cadance glared at her, as something was suddenly dropped down from within the transport.

Cadance gasped, seeing an unconscious Lyra laying on the ground. Seeing their Defender defeated was too much for her and coupled with the pain of the dimensional field, Cadance felt herself dropping to the ground and losing consciousness.

Back on the Rugenga ship, Azalea was sitting around looking bored.

The breach Kiyrah used had closed, so now she was forced to wait and see if either of her teammates called. And this meant she had nothing to do. "Ahhh!" She cried, sitting in Cursor's chair. "I'm so bored. I want to do something, but I can't." Goliath floated beside her, wanting some action as much as she did.

Just then, a beeping filled the air and they looked over at a computer before heading towards it.

"Finally," she said once the comms were open. "What took you so long?"

"Apologies," Beck stated. "Had a lot of work to do. But good news. Manehatten is now under our control. Now that I don't have to worry about getting trapped here, I can stay as long as I want." Azalea smiled, as another beep caught her attention. She opened the comms and Kiyrah's voice spoke up.

"The Crystal Empire and all its Bakugan are ours."

"Good," Azalea smirked. "Why don't you bring them all back here."

"Actually," Beck stated. "I have a better idea. A little something else I've been working on on the side. Azalea. Open file thirteen-B. And activate the fabricator."

"The fabricator?" Kiyrah asked. "That takes a lot of power. Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"Don't worry about it," Beck assured her. "It'll be worth the power drain. And once I have them, I can return to the ship without worrying about losing any of the ground we've taken over. It won't be long before all of Equestria is ours."

"Good," Azalea smiled. "If you're coming back, I can go and have some fun." She laughed, as she opened the file and activated the fabricator. Equestria was finally succumbing to their might. And eventually, both it and Vestroia would belong to them.

Author's Note

Ouch. Another area of Equestria conquered. The Crystal Empire just can't catch a break, huh. Hopefully, our heroes will be able to save them soon.

What did you think of the two new Trap Bakugan? Yes, they are Stingzer and Arachnia from Geogons Rising. What can I say, they look cool. Hope you like them.