Hey guys! I actually got this up on one of the days I said I would get it up! And sorry it's a bit late in the day but at least I got it out today.

And I got fourteen reviews last chapter? AWESOME!

Thank you to DarkZorua100, decode9, a1993, StrawHatLuffy94, UltimateTouken, Sorcerer of the Stories, Kamen Rider Sting, bobmanv2.0, Lightningblade49, EndlessNight025, Lightclaw's Shadow, SuperNeos2, reven228, and iloveyugiohGX93 for reviewing the first chapter. You guys are awesome!

And, as always, thank you to EndlessNight025 for being an awesome beta-reader. You are awesome! That is all I shall say.

Now, I hope you enjoy this chapter and the first duel of the semifinals, which I think is badass and I cannot take credit for it (I give full credit for this duel where it's due, to EndlessNight025).

Reviews, as always, are much appreciated.

2

The Semifinals: Dragons and Gladiator Beasts

The rest of the week passed by rather quickly with the Yukis and the Rhodes, and Chazz and Arina, exploring Honolulu, visiting various landmarks, though there were still a lot they had to see. Since they were going to be in Honolulu for almost two weeks anyway, Kaede, Matt and Emily had decided to spread where they would go over the course of the two weeks.

Friday came around and with it came the first day of the Duel Monsters Convention that would only be held during the weekends of both the semifinals and the finals. It was held in an exhibition hall near the stadium where the semifinals and finals were taking place. Keith and the other semifinalists were required to be there to sign autographs and the like. The reason for this was that many of the semifinalists had quickly gained renown before the tournament began while there were a few who were new to the dueling scene that were quickly gathering their own set of fans.

It was decided that the gang would attend the convention, after much asking from many members who wanted to see what—and, according to the rumors, who—would be there; the friends were hoping that the finalists of the first Battle City Tournament would be there, which was why many were excited. They were also going because Keith, being the US Champion, got all of them free tickets to the convention along with the tickets for the Tournament Semifinals and Finals.

When they reached the convention center, the gang followed Keith, Matt, Emily and Kaede as they led the way through the crowd toward the hall. The hall was large enough to accommodate a large group of people, even with various booths showcasing various items dealing with Duel Monsters, some of which were for sell, like booster packs and starter decks and posters as well as activities for the attendees to participate in. Still, it was crowded and the gang did their best to stay together as they made their way deeper into the hall.

"That's a lot of people," Jaden said.

"Yeah, ten bucks says we lose Raiden within ten minutes," Kasumi said.

Jaden smirked. "No deal," he said.

"Hey!" Raiden protested.

Jaden and Kasumi snickered.

"If anyone will get lost within the first ten minutes, my money's on Atticus," Kyle said.

Atticus pouted. "You guys are so mean," he said.

"You know I'm just kidding, Atticus."

"If we stay together, we'll never be able to see everything they have to show," Kaede said, talking with Emily and Matt nearby. "Should we split up again?"

"It'd make it easier to get around then if we're in a large group," Matt said. "Let's meet outside at three and stay out of trouble."

He and Kaede glanced, as one, at Atticus and Raiden.

"Why do they always look at us? We haven't done anything," Atticus protested, looking in bewilderment at Raiden, who shrugged.

"I dunno," he said. "I'm not a troublemaker."

"Bullshit," Jaden coughed, thinking about the times when Raiden's pranks got out of hand at their old school before they went to Duel Academy. That tendency was one thing that made them so different, and something their mother was convinced Raiden inherited from his father, though Kaede denied it to that day.

Raiden smacked his shoulder and glared at him.

Kasumi chuckled.

. . .

The group separated after that, walking in different directions and browsing the items that were being showcased as well as activities that were also put up; these activities included short duel contests, costume contests and face-painting for little kids to name a few. However, all the slots for the duel contest were already filled, so Jaden and the gang could not sign up, much to Jaden's disappointment.

"It's for new duelists, anyway, Jay," Kasumi pointed out. "And I think it'd be kinda unfair for you to be in the contests. Y'know, since you're the top duelist of our year at the Academy and have only lost twice."

"Once, the draw between Zane and me didn't count," Jaden said.

"I always thought a draw meant both participants lose," Alexis admitted.

"Well, I think it's the other way around. Besides, if we both won, it means Zane's undefeated streak—I don't count the duel against Camula—is intact. Speaking of Zane, anyone heard from him?" Jaden asked curiously.

Alexis shook her head. "Last I heard, he was getting ready to enter the pro circuit," she said.

"Shame Sy couldn't come," Jaden said.

"If Keith had enough tickets, I've no doubt he would've agreed to let him come, and probably the others, too."

"True."

While Jaden, his sister, and his girlfriend were talking, they were also wandering around the hall, having left the sight of the duel contests to explore a bit more. There were a lot of things to do and the convention was going to last for two weekends, so Jaden had time.

"So what do you want to do?" he asked, glancing at his girlfriend and his sister.

"Someone's having a costume duel over here," Kasumi said, gesturing toward an area where a crowd of people were gathered. There was a small gap that allowed Jaden and Alexis to see the competitors. One was dressed up as a Harpie Lady while the other was dressed as Phoenix Gearfried.

As Jaden, Alexis, and Kasumi walked into the gap to get a good look at the duel, the boy dressed as Phoenix Gearfried was drawing a card. He currently had 1500 Life Points and two face-down cards while the girl dressed as the Harpie Lady had, no surprise, a Harpie Lady with long pink hair on the field (A: 1300-1600/D: 1400) and two facedowns; she also was in the lead with 2100 Life Points.

"It's my move," the boy dressed as Phoenix Gearfried said before he held out a card. "And I activate my Monster Reborn to bring back my Phoenix Gearfried in Attack Mode." He inserted the card into his duel disk and a warrior identical to how the boy was dressed appeared on the field (A: 2800/D: 2200).

"Phoenix Gearfried, attack her Harpie Lady," the boy ordered and his warrior started forward, lifting his broad-sword.

The girl shook her head. "You should've paid attention, y'know," she said. "Because then you'd realize I have a Trap. Mirror Wall." She pressed a button on her remote and a wall of crystal shot up in front of her Harpie Lady. "Now your monster's Attack is cut in half."

Phoenix Gearfried was weakened (A: 2800-1400).

"Harpie Lady, counterattack," the girl ordered and her Harpie Lady let out a screech as she leapt into the air and sliced through Phoenix Gearfried, causing him to shout in pain and shatter into pixels.

Phoenix Gearfried Cosplayer: 1300

Harpie Lady Cosplayer: 2100

The Phoenix Gearfried cosplayer growled. "Fine, I end my turn," he said.

The girl drew a card. "Since it's my Standby Phase, I have to pay Life Points in order to keep Mirror Wall on the field, but I think I'll destroy this card instead," she said and her Trap shattered. "Next, I play Heavy Storm to destroy all Spell and Trap Cards on the field."

A great wind picked up and surged across the field, causing her second face-down and the man's face-downs to be blown away.

"Finally, Harpie Lady, attack him directly," the girl ordered and her Harpie Lady shot forward before clawing through the Phoenix Gearfried cosplayer, causing him to shout in surprise as his Life Points dropped.

Phoenix Gearfried Cosplayer: 0

Harpie Lady Cosplayer: 2100 WINNER

"And our winner is Ms. Adrianna Brown," the organizer of the duel said, stepping over to join the Harpie Lady cosplayer.

"Shame we couldn't see the entire duel," Jaden said.

"Yeah, that would've been nice," Kasumi said.

"Our next costume duel will be in an hour," the organizer said and the crowd began to disperse.

"So, what now?" Alexis asked.

Kasumi shrugged. "No idea," she said.

"Wanna just wander around and hope we find something interesting to do?" Jaden asked.

"Sure," the two girls said and the three of them began wandering again.

. . .

'This place sure is awesome, boss. Thanks for bringing us along,' Ojama Yellow said happily as he floated around Chazz's head, trying to see everywhere at once and, since he was a spirit, it wasn't that hard for him.

Chazz scowled at him. "You wouldn't stop bugging me until I agreed," he snapped.

'That's 'cause we don't spend nearly enough time together, boss,' Ojama Yellow said brightly.

"Gee, I wonder why that is," Chazz drawled sarcastically as he walked over to one of the booths that filled the hall.

'Aw, I know you like us, boss,' Ojama Yellow said.

Chazz rolled his eyes but otherwise didn't reply, mostly because he was receiving a few weird looks from the people he was walking by. Thankfully, Arina had gone on ahead and was already at the booth, looking at the various items that were there for sell; cards, posters, and figurines, to name a few.

"So how do you like this trip so far, Chazz?" Arina asked, casting a sidelong glance at the black-haired duelist.

"Eh, it's relaxing," Chazz said with a shrug.

"It is, and Hawaii is so beautiful," Arina said with a smile before she took Chazz's hand and guided him over to one of the tables where food was placed. "Let's get something to eat."

Chazz walked after Arina, toward the table. As he walked, he found himself thinking. Things had changed with him since he first started at Duel Academy. Back then, he realized, he was a bit of a jerk and thought himself superior to others just because he was in Obelisk Blue. Not only that, but he was also motivated to be the best by his brothers, who had been determined to have him take over the world of Duel Monsters. At least, until the School Duel…

The School Duel had changed Chazz's outlook, mostly because of what happened. Despite the fact that Chazz had been a jerk to him ever since he first set foot on Academy Island, Jaden had actually stood up for him, something no one had ever done for him before. And then there was Arina, whom Chazz has had a crush on ever since he came back to Duel Academy, maybe even before, and whom he never thought would feel the same way, especially because of how he acted. Much to his surprise, she did feel the same way and they were actually dating, which was something Chazz never saw coming.

"Are you okay?" Arina asked.

Chazz blinked and pulled himself from his thoughts. "Yeah, why?" he asked.

"You almost walked into the table."

"Oh." Chazz flushed in embarrassment.

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine," Chazz grunted.

'You're not that great of a liar, boss,' Ojama Yellow said.

"Shut it, no one asked you," Chazz snapped at the duel spirit and smacked at it, which caused the person standing on the other side of the table to look at him with a frown.

"Don't worry. It's one of his quirks," Arina said dismissively to the person.

Chazz was reminded that he was in public again and, inwardly, he scowled. Great, these Ojamas are gonna make everyone look at me like I'm crazy, he thought. Granted, it was his own fault for acting that way whenever said duel spirits spoke to him but he wasn't about to admit anything was his fault. After all, the Ojamas didn't have to bother him while he was in public.

Chazz shook his head, pulling himself from his thoughts as he and Arina walked away from the food table.

A crowd had gathered nearby, Chazz noticed and stopped walking. "Wonder what's happening," he said.

"Well, let's go see," Arina said, taking his hand and the two of them walked over to the crowd.

They weaved their way to the front to see a skinny white-haired girl standing there, accepting planners and notebooks and posters from the various people that were standing around her. In her hand was a Sharpie that she used to sign each thing; she was dressed in black jeans and a white tank top.

"I hope you win this tournament, Celina. You're an amazing duelist," one girl, who looked no more than seven years old, said as she took the poster that the girl—Celina—had just signed.

Celina smiled gently at the girl. "I'll do my best," she said, accepting another planner.

"She'll win. I just know it," a taller boy said from nearby as he happily took the poster.

"Yeah, Nathan and Keith better watch out," another boy said.

"She's cute, too," another boy whispered. Apparently, it was loud enough for Celina to hear, for the whitenette blushed.

Chazz was observing the girl. Celina White, he recalled, one of the semifinalists of the tournament who had, apparently, only gotten noticed a little over a year earlier but was obviously good if she managed to make it to the semifinals of this tournament. He didn't know much else about her other than that and he only learned that much because of the Internet when he had been curious about the other semifinalists aside from Keith.

Celina glanced at him. "Do you want an autograph, too?" she asked.

"No thanks," Chazz said. He paused and then added, "Good luck in the semifinals, though."

Celina smiled and was about to reply when a voice Chazz never thought he'd hear there in Honolulu spoke.

"She doesn't need luck to win," Slade Princeton said as he walked through the crowd to stand beside Celina and smirked. "Hello, little brother."

Chazz ground his teeth together, hand clenching into a fist. "What the hell are you doing here, Slade?" he spat while Celina just looked confused.

Slade sneered. "Is it suddenly a crime to travel, little brother?" he retorted.

Chazz scoffed. "No, just didn't expect a lousy scrub like yourself traveling all the way to America for a tournament," he retorted.

"And why are you calling him 'little brother'? Last I heard, you told him he wasn't your brother anymore," Arina said.

Celina looked shocked at that while Slade snorted.

"Heat of the moment response," he said dismissively.

Chazz didn't believe that for a second. Well, if he was being completely honest with himself, a part of him did, but Chazz didn't think about that part. He was still a bit hurt by what his brothers had said to him after the School Duel, after all. Once again, he knew that family wasn't supposed to treat family like that. Still, a part of him couldn't help but hope that his brothers would be willing to take him back.

He pushed those thoughts aside as he thought about it more. Slade may have said that his words were only said because of the heat of the moment, but Chazz wasn't entirely sure if that really did excuse his words, or his actions for that matter.

"Come, Celina, we've got some things to talk about," Slade said, placing a hand on Celina's shoulder. "Let's go. See you, little brother." Without another word, Slade and Celina walked off.

Chazz watched him go before sighing and turning around, stuffing his hands into his pockets and releasing Arina's hand as he did so.

She placed her hand on his arm. "Will you be okay?" she asked.

Chazz was silent for a moment. "Do you think he's right? Do you think he really did just say those things to me after the School Duel because of the heat of the moment?" he asked.

"Whether he did or not, it doesn't excuse his words," Arina said. "Maybe he didn't mean them, maybe he did but he still shouldn't have said that. You're his brother, you're his family. Family isn't supposed to treat family like that."

"That's what Jaden said," Chazz murmured.

"Don't think about it, Chazz. Let's just enjoy ourselves. C'mon, I think the second costume duel is about to start," Arina said.

Chazz decided that Arina was right. He was on vacation, after all, and he should be enjoying himself and not letting whether his brother meant what he said before or not bother him. "All right," he said and the two of them made their way toward the area where the costume duels were taking place.

. . .

"You never told me you had another brother," Celina commented as she walked alongside Slade toward one of the areas where they could sit down and talk.

Slade shrugged. "Does it matter?" he asked.

"I just think it's odd that you never mentioned him. He seems nice, if a bit, erm, grumpy," Celina said.

Slade shrugged. "We're estranged brothers. I haven't talked to him in months," he said.

"Why?"

"That's none of your business. Now, have you developed a strategy for your duel against Nathan on Sunday?"

Celina wondered at the sudden change in subject but decided against asking. It was obvious Slade didn't want to talk about his estranged brother, so she decided not to press. "I have a few strategies. The archetype he's working with is rather new but it's still based primarily on fusions so I'm working on ways to counteract any combos he might pull," she said.

Slade nodded. "Good. Remember, when you beat Nathan, you'll be one step closer to taking the title."

"Yeah, I know," Celina said. "Nathan's a strong duelist, but I'm sure I can beat him." She was determined to beat him, anyway, and that had to count for something.

"And what about Keith Rhodes?" Slade asked.

"What about him? He hasn't won his duel yet."

"Yes, but he has been the champion for the past two years for a reason. I have no doubt he will win in his duel tomorrow."

"Well, if he does, then fine. I'll come up with a way to beat him later. I've gotta focus on beating Nathan first."

"Fine," Slade said. "Just remember that we're counting on you to win and become champion."

"I know, I know. I'll do my best."

"You need to do better than your best, Celina," Slade said firmly. "We've got a lot riding on you winning this tournament. We can accomplish so much, but you must win, and that means you must go beyond just your best."

"Okay, okay, geez, calm down," Celina said.

Slade ground his teeth together. "Don't make us regret taking you under our wing, Celina."

"I won't, but you really should calm down. I mean, so what if I lose? It's just one tournament."

Slade shook his head. "You don't understand how much is riding on you winning," he said.

"Well, duh, you won't tell me," Celina said irritably.

"Just go enjoy the convention. I will see you back at the hotel later," Slade said and walked off, leaving Celina watching him go with a frown.

What isn't he telling me? She thought as she headed back to the center of the hall.

. . .

Jaden, Kasumi, and Alexis met up with Chazz and Arina near one of the face-painting booths about half an hour after the second costume duel they had seen. "Hey, Chazz, Arina," he greeted them.

"Hi! So what's up with you?" Arina asked brightly.

"Nothing. What about you two?"

Arina shrugged. "Same. We should probably be thinking about finding everyone else. It's almost three," she said.

"Time sure does fly by," Kasumi commented. She pressed her lips together before adding, "By the way, has anyone seen Raiden or Atticus anywhere?"

"I haven't," Chazz grunted.

"We haven't seen anyone besides you three," Arina admitted.

"I hope they're staying out of trouble," Alexis said.

"Me, too," Jaden agreed.

. . .

"For the billionth time, Atticus, I'm not letting you set me up with anyone," Raiden said irritably as Atticus, for the third time that day, pointed out one of the many girls that were walking around and talking about setting them up on a date.

"Ah c'mon, Rai, your little brother has a girlfriend, so why shouldn't you have one?" Atticus said.

"Maybe because I haven't met anyone that I like enough to date," Raiden retorted.

"Well, you won't know if you like anyone if you don't talk to them. Why don't you just go up to someone and talk to them?"

"Why don't you?"

Atticus shrugged but didn't answer. Instead, he said, "It wouldn't hurt."

Raiden snorted. "The last time you tried to get me to talk to a girl, I got punched in the face by her boyfriend," he said.

"How was I to know she was already taken?"

"How do you know any of these girls are taken or not?"

"Point. All right, fine, but you really should see about dating someone. Maybe I could set you up on a blind date when we get back to Japan," Atticus said thoughtfully.

"Don't even think about it," Raiden protested.

The two of them were wandering around the convention, though they weren't paying much attention to the booths and activities that were going on around them as they were too busy talking. As a result, they weren't paying attention to where they were going either and that led to Raiden walking into someone.

"Oh, sorry," he said quickly, stepping back from the person he walked into before he started in surprise.

Atticus laughed. "You ran into the King of Games?" he said between his laughs.

"Shut up," Raiden growled, glaring at the laughing Atticus.

Yugi chuckled. "Don't worry about it," he said with a gentle smile. "You wouldn't be the first one to run into me."

"I wasn't expecting to see you here, Mr. Mutou," Raiden said.

"Please, call me Yugi," Yugi insisted. "I'm only here because Kaiba asked me to be here and I had nothing better to do."

Raiden reached over before smacking a still laughing Atticus on the back of the head. "Will ya stop laughing already?" he snapped.

Atticus slowly stopped laughing, though he was still grinning. "Wait 'till I tell Lex and Jaden that you ran into the King of Games," he said.

Raiden rolled his eyes. "Judai will probably wanna meet him," he said. He paused before adding, "Speaking of that, can I have your autograph?"

Yugi smiled again. "Sure," he said and Raiden grinned and pulled out one of the posters he had bought earlier before holding it out to Yugi, who took it and signed it for him.

"Sweet! Thanks," Raiden said happily, taking the poster back and rolling it up.

"You're welcome," Yugi said.

"So, can I ask you something?"

Yugi nodded.

"Are the rumors true? Are all the first Battle City finalists here?"

Yugi was about to respond when a shout of "Yugi!" sounded and two people jogged up to join him; one was tall and blonde with brown eyes while the other was a shorter Egyptian with blonde hair and lavender-purple eyes. Raiden was shocked. He recognized both of them; Joey Wheeler and Marik Ishtar, two Battle City finalists.

Huh, guess the rumors were true. Wonder if Mai and Bakura are here, too, Raiden thought.

"There ya are. You disappeared on us," Joey said.

Yugi raised an eyebrow. "I just walked away before I got mobbed by fans," he said.

"I'm surprised you didn't get mobbed when we walked into the hall," Marik said.

"Ah, that's 'cause everyone was distracted by that costume duel that was going on," Joey said dismissively.

"Lex is gonna be so jealous!" Atticus said happily. "I can't wait to tell her that I actually met three Battle City finalists."

"Looks like we've got ourselves some fans here," Joey said.

Marik rolled his eyes. "No, really?" he said dryly.

"Ya don't need to be sarcastic," Joey grumbled.

"Can I have your autographs, too?" Raiden asked.

Joey grinned. "Sure thing, kiddo," he said and took the poster that Raiden handed him before signing it and then handing it to Marik, who shrugged and signed it as well.

At that instant, a phone rang. Raiden and Atticus looked at each other. "That's your phone," Raiden said.

"I thought I put it on silent," Atticus said wonderingly as he pulled out his cell and flipped it open. "Hello?" There was a moment of silence and then Atticus sighed and said, "I'm not getting into any trouble, Uncle."

Another moment of silence passed.

"Okay. We'll be there in a bit. Bye." Atticus hung up before placing the phone back into his pocket. "We gotta go, Rai. The others are waiting for us."

"It's already three?" Raiden said, surprised. "Wow, time sure does fly by. It was nice meeting you three."

"You, too," Joey said and Marik and Yugi nodded politely in response as Raiden and Atticus dashed toward the entrance to the hall.

. . .

The following day was the first day of the semifinals. Keith had left the hotel early, as he had to be at the stadium before the doors opened to the public in order to get ready and avoid getting mobbed by fans. No doubt Yugi, Marik and Joey—if they were staying for the semifinals—had to do the same.

"Aw man, I could've met Marik and Joey," Jaden protested when his brother told him about the impromptu meeting at the convention. He paused and then chuckled before adding, "Though it's funny that you met Yugi the same way I did…by running into him."

Raiden smiled sheepishly. "Technically speaking, I walked into him," he said.

"Still."

The gang was hanging out in the lobby, waiting for their chaperones to return. The semifinals weren't due to start for another two hours, but Kaede, Matt, and Emily had decided that it would be best to leave early to avoid the crowds. Since he didn't have a ticket, Kaede was staying behind, but he insisted that it was all right and that he could use the time to relax and visit places in Honolulu that he hadn't had a chance to visit the last time he was there.

He came into the lobby to see them off as Matt and Emily walked into the hotel. "Listen to Matt and Emily, you three," he said to Jaden, Raiden and Kasumi.

"We will, Dad," Jaden said before he and the rest of the gang left the hotel after Matt and Emily.

It didn't take them long to reach the stadium, because of how close the hotel was to it, and, because they had left as early as they had, the lines were rather short by the time they got there. Therefore, they were able to get past the ticket agents and into the actual stadium within an hour of leaving the hotel.

"I feel sorry for those who will be getting here right as the duel is due to begin," Raiden said as he sat down next to Atticus.

Jaden nodded in agreement.

The stadium gradually filled up with people chattering excitedly about the first duel of the semifinals. Jaden could hear that Keith appeared to be the favorite to win and he was looking forward to seeing how good a duelist he was. He had to be good if he was able to retain the title for the past two years.

"Do you think Yugi, Marik and Joey are here?" Kasumi asked curiously.

"I wouldn't be surprised. They're likely gonna participate in the World Championship Tournament next year and both the champion and the runner-up of this tournament are likely to be invited to attend the World Championship, so they might come to see who they may have to face off against," said Alexis.

"True."

"What kind of deck does Keith use anyway? I've been meaning to ask," Raiden said, glancing at Kyle, who sat behind him between his parents.

"He uses a Dragon deck," Kyle replied. "The Horus cards are his main ones."

"You both have Horus cards?"

Kyle nodded. "Yeah, mine were gifts for my birthday a few years ago."

About an hour later, everyone had gathered in the stadium and the air was alive with excitement for the upcoming duel. Jaden and his friends and family had been lucky enough to get seats near the bottom so they had a pretty clear view of the dueling platform. There was also a jumbotron screen hanging above the platform that would allow those who could not see the platform very well to watch the duel. Currently, the screen was showing the highlights of Keith's last duel side by side with the highlights of his opponent Marina Salazar's last duel.

Finally, a black-haired young man walked onto the dueling stage with a microphone in his hand. "Welcome, everyone, to the Duel Monsters U.S. Championship Tournament Semifinals," he stated and everyone cheered wildly.

The man chuckled. "Everyone sure is excited. Am I right?"

Again, everyone cheered.

"Okay, then. Let's get to the dueling, but first, everyone, please welcome the creator of Duel Monsters himself, Mr. Maximillian Pegasus!"

Cheers erupted from the crowd as the tall, silver-haired creator of Duel Monsters stepped onto the dueling platform, smiling; there were two black-suited bodyguards standing on the edge of the platform, Jaden noticed. "Thank you for that wonderful introduction, Jackson-boy," he said. "It is great to be here in the lovely state of Hawaii. I have never been here before and so it was definitely interesting to visit such a beautiful state. However, back to business, I came before you to inform you about the Duel Monsters World Championship Tournament that is to take place next summer. Next year, the Duel Monsters World Championship Tournament will be taking place in the beautiful city of Venice, Italy, so I hope to see plenty of fans out there for the tournament."

Jackson nodded as he stepped forward and Pegasus, waving at the cheering crowd, walked off the platform. "Just as Mr. Pegasus said, the DM World Championship Tournament will be held in Venice next year. Tickets for the tournament will go on sale at the end of August. but you can pre-order your tickets at midnight the last day of this tournament," he said. "Now then, why don't we get the first duel of the semifinals underway?"

Cheers erupted, as everyone was impatient to see the start of the semifinals.

"First off, our commentators for this event are Elizabeth Harley and Bryan Stone," Jackson said and gestured to the commentators who were situated beneath the jumbotron screen in a viewing box that allowed them a perfect view of the entire duel.

"And now, allow me to introduce the first competitor. She is the user of Gladiator Beasts who breezed through the preliminary rounds as well as the Quarter Finals. Please give a warm welcome to Marina Salazar!" Jackson declared.

Cheers erupted as a hologram of Gladiator Beast Nerokius, a monster in dark-blue and purple armor with six large bat wings on his back, flew over the crowd as a slim dark-haired girl who looked to be about eighteen years old, dressed in dark-blue skinny jeans tucked into black boots and a short-sleeved white shirt with a duel disk on her arm stepped onto the platform, waving at the cheering crowd.

"Nice way of introducing the competitor," Kasumi commented.

Jaden and Alexis nodded in agreement.

"And now, her opponent. He is the Dragon Duelist and the current United States Duel Champion who has proven time and again throughout this tournament why he has held the title for two years in a row. Please give a warm welcome to Keith Rhodes," Jackson shouted.

"Let's go, Keith!" Kyle cheered along with the rest of the gang as a hologram of Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV8 flew around the stadium with a roar as Keith, with a smile, made his way onto the platform, waving at his fans and his family.

"Now, duelists, cut each other's decks and we can get this duel on the road," Jackson said.

Marina and Keith walked forward before wishing each other luck as they cut the others' deck and then walked back to their spots opposite each other.

"This is gonna be an interesting match, I'll say that. Gladiator Beasts versus Dragons," Elizabeth Harley said into her microphone so that she could be heard by everyone in the stadium as the two duelists drew their opening hand and Jackson vacated the platform.

"I'll say. I think Keith Rhodes is the favorite, however," said Bryan Stone.

"Are you ready, Keith? 'Cause I'm not going easy on you," Marina said firmly.

Keith smiled. "I'd be disappointed if you did, Marina," he replied.

"Let's duel," they shouted.

Keith: 8000

Marina: 8000

"I'll go first," Keith said, drawing his sixth card and glancing at it and then at his hand before he smiled. "And I'll start by summoning Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV4 in Attack Mode."

He placed the card on his disk and, with a roar, a small metallic dragon with the head of a falcon appeared on the field (A: 1600/D: 1000).

"And then I'll end with a card facedown. Your move, Marina," Keith added as a vertical facedown card appeared at his feet.

Marina smirked as she drew a card. "Let's see how you handle this," she said before she held out a card. "I summon Gladiator Beast Laquari in Attack Mode." She placed the card on her disk.

An armored beast-warrior surrounded by a ring of flames appeared on the field (A: 1800/D: 400).

"Laquari, attack Horus," Marina ordered and her monster moved forward before punching Horus with one of its fiery fists. The metallic dragon yowled in pain as it shattered upon impact with the ground and Keith winced a little.

Keith: 7800

Marina: 8000

"Oh, first blood goes to Marina," Elizabeth said.

"Yeah, and now we get to see the special effect of the Gladiator Beasts in action," Bryan agreed.

Marina smiled as Laquari returned to her side of the field. "Now, I Tag Out my Laquari in order to Special Summon Gladiator Beast Tygerius in Attack Mode," she said and Laquari vanished from her field to be shuffled back into her deck. In its place was a pale-green furred large tiger standing on its hindlegs and covered in armor, wielding a sword in one hand (A: 1800/D: 800).

"So she can call out any monster from her deck, no matter the Level?" Kasumi asked. "Wow, Keith's gonna have trouble beating her."

"The only good thing is the fact that the Battle Phase is over, so Keith has time to come up with a way of counteracting this strategy," Kyle said.

"And thanks to Tygerius's effect. When it's Special Summoned through the effect of another Gladiator Beast, I can discard one Gladiator Beast card in my hand and add a Gladiator Beast monster from my deck straight to my hand," Marina added as she discarded a card and then fanned out her deck before picking a specific card. She then shuffled her deck and returned it to its slot. "And I'll place this facedown and end my turn."

A facedown appeared at her feet.

"My turn, then," Keith said, drawing a card. "I activate my face-down, Call of the Haunted, to bring back Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV4."

His metallic dragon returned to the field with a roar (A: 1600/D: 1000).

"And next, since that facedown of yours has me worried, I activate Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy it," Keith added and the mini-cyclone spun across the field before slamming into the facedown, revealing it to be Negate Attack before it was sent spiraling away.

"Then I Normal Summon my Spear Dragon to the field in Attack Mode."

A dragon with a white underbelly, blue wings and a spear-shaped muzzle appeared (A: 1900/D: 0).

"Now, I activate Rush Recklessly to increase Horus's attack by 700," Keith added and his dragon was surrounded by a red aura (A: 1600-2300).

"Horus, attack Tygerius!"

Horus roared, unleashing a burst of black flames that shot forward and slammed into the tiger warrior, causing it to roar as it was burned to a crisp.

Keith: 7800

Marina: 7500

"Now, Spear Dragon, attack Marina directly," Keith ordered and his blue-dragon flew into the air before shooting across the platform to strike Marina's gut with its muzzle.

Keith: 7800

Marina: 5600

"And now my Spear Dragon changes to Defense Mode," Keith said as his dragon curled up on the ground in front of him. "I end my turn and, since my Horus destroyed a monster this turn, I can now Tribute him in order to Special Summon Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV6 in Attack Mode."

His metallic dragon vanished to be replaced by a much larger one with metallic wings in place of its arms and a long tail, who let out a roar (A: 2300/D: 1600).

"Oh, looks like Keith has taken the lead in this duel and has two monsters on his field, whereas Marina has none," Elizabeth said.

"Let's see what Marina does to come back from this, Elizabeth," Bryan agreed.

"He's taken the lead," Raiden said. "Let's see if he can hold onto it."

"My turn, then," Marina said, drawing a card. "That monster's pretty neat, Keith, but it won't be around for long. I activate my Gladiator Beast's Respite to shuffle two Gladiator Beasts in my hand back into my deck and then draw three more cards." She did so before adding, "And now I summon Gladiator Beast Samnite in Attack Mode."

A large monster with two long teeth like that of a sabertooth tiger appeared on the field, wielding a glowing blue sword in one hand and a rectangular-shaped shield in the other (A: 1600/D: 1200).

"Now, Samnite, attack Spear Dragon," Marina ordered and her monster charged across the field before his blade cut through Spear Dragon and the monster shattered.

"And, with that, I Tag Out Samnite and Special Summon Gladiator Beast Augustus in Attack Mode!" Marina declared, shuffling her deck as a large bird-like warrior in dark-blue and purple armor with two sets of arms; ones that looked to be on the ends of his wings while the others were in their normal positions, one was carrying a sword (A: 2600/D: 1000).

Jaden whistled. "That's a powerful beast," he said.

"And now, since I Special Summoned Augustus through the effect of a Gladiator Beast, I can now summon Gladiator Beast Hoplomus in Defense Mode. Granted, he goes back to my deck at the end of my turn, but oh well." Marina shrugged as a rhino-like warrior appeared on the field (A: 700/D: 2100-2400).

"And I'll end my turn with that," she added and shuffled Hoplomus back into her deck.

"Not a bad monster, Marina," Keith said, drawing a card before he looked at it. "And I'll just place this facedown and end my turn."

"Looks like Keith might have a bad hand," Elizabeth said.

"Well, let's see how he does in this next fight," Bryan said.

Marina drew a card at the start of her turn. "Now, Augustus, attack Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV6," she ordered and her monster flew into the air before diving downward, the short broadsword slicing through the dragon.

Keith: 7500

Marina: 5600

"And now I Tag Out Augustus and Special Summon Gladiator Beast Hoplomus back to my field." Marina said as her bird warrior vanished and her rhino-warrior returned to the field (A: 700/D: 2100-2400).

"Sorry, Marina, but I'm gonna have to stop you there," Keith said, pressing a button on his duel disk. "Go Torrential Tribute. Now, since you summoned a monster, all monsters on the field are destroyed."

An explosion of blue energy erupted on the field, enveloping Hoplomus and shrouding the duel platform in thick smoke.

Marina coughed as the smoke cleared away. "Okay, that was a good move. Fine, I place this facedown and end my turn," she said and a card appeared at her feet.

"My turn," Keith said, drawing a card. "And I summon Twin-Headed Behemoth in Attack Mode."

A purple dragon with two heads appeared on the field (A: 1500/D: 1200).

"Now, Twin-Headed Behemoth, attack Marina directly."

The purple dragon flew rapidly toward Marina.

"Go, facedown, Mirror Force," Marina said, revealing her face-down and Twin-Headed Behemoth was sent flying back to Keith's side of the field before he shattered.

Keith lowered his duel disk. "I end my turn, and that means I can activate Twin-Headed Behemoth's effect and return him to my field in Defense Mode, but with only 1000 Attack and Defense."

His two-headed purple dragon returned to the field (A: 1500-1000/D: 1200-1000).

"My move, then," Marina said, drawing a card. "First, I activate Card of Sanctity so that we each draw until we have six cards in our hands." They each drew until they had a full hand and Marina grinned before saying, "How about a little change in scenery?" She held up her duel disk as the field card slot slid open. "I activate the Field Spell, Colosseum-Cage of the Gladiator Beasts."

The arena changed and now they were all sitting in the ruins of a colosseum with blue veins traveling along the floor.

"While this is on the field, it gains a counter every time either of us Special Summons a monster from our decks and, for each counter, each Gladiator Beast on my field gains 100 Attack and Defense Points," Marina explained. She held up another card before adding, "I summon Gladiator Beast Equeste in Attack Mode."

A centaur-like warrior with large wings appeared (A: 1600/D: 1200).

"And since I have a Gladiator Beast on my field, I can Special Summon Test Tiger to my field from my hand."

A moment later, a tiger with blue, gold, and red armor appeared on the field (A: 600/D: 300).

"He's not staying for long though," Marina said. "Now, I Tribute him and target Equeste to return him to my deck in order to Special Summon a Gladiator Beast from my deck to the field. I choose Gladiator Beast Augustus again."

Soon after Equeste disappeared, the bird-like warrior reemerged on the field (A: 2600/ D: 1000).

"And since Augustus was Special Summon from my deck, my Colosseum gains a Counter and Augustus gains 100 Attack and Defense," Marina added (Colosseum Counters: 1) (Augustus A: 2600-2700/D: 1000-1100)

"Not only that, but because Augustus was Special Summoned to the field because of Test Tiger, I can treat it as though it was Special Summoned by a Gladiator Beast. This means that I can use his ability to Special Summon Gladiator Beast Darius from my hand in Defense Mode."

A purple-skinned horse-like creature appeared on the field; his mane was long and black and he had a black tail with various portions of his body covered in orange-red armor. He also carried a whip in his hands (A: 1700-1800/D: 300-400).

"Because Darius was Special Summoned by the effect of a Gladiator Beast, I can now select one Gladiator Beast monster in my Graveyard and Special Summon it, though all its effects will be negated. I'll go with Hoplomus," Marina went on as her rhino-warrior returned to the field once again (A: 700-800/D: 2100-2200).

"Next, I return Hoplomus and Darius to my deck in order to Special Summon Gladiator Beast Essedarii from my Extra Deck!"

After Marina shuffled the two aforementioned monsters back into her deck, a large, armor-wearing black gorilla in a golden chariot soon took their place, a spiked club and shield in its paws (A: 2500-2600/ D: 1400-1500).

"Now, Essedarii, attack Twin-Headed Behemoth," Marina ordered and her monster charged forward in its chariot before bludgeoning the two-headed purple dragon until it was nothing but pixels.

"Augustus, attack Keith directly," Marina ordered, and Keith winced as Augustus leapt forward and slashed him with his talons.

Keith: 4800

Marina: 5600

"This is getting good," Jaden said excitedly.

"I know, right?" Kasumi agreed.

"I'll end my turn with that," Marina finished.

"Keith's staring down two powerful monsters. Wonder what he's gonna do now," Bryan said.

"My draw," Keith said before drawing a card. "I activate the Premature Burial Spell and pay 800 Life Points to revive Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV6," Keith said, inserting the card into his duel disk as his metallic dragon returned to the field with a roar (A: 2300/D: 1600).

Keith: 4000

Marina: 5600

"But I'm not done yet." He held up another card and grinned. "I now activate this little Spell: Level Up! Now, I can send Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV6 on my field to the Graveyard to Special Summon Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV8 straight from my Deck."

His dragon vanished to be replaced by a much larger, much more magnificent metallic dragon that had to stand in the area behind Keith; it had long arms and a large blue gem on its head (A: 3000/D: 1800).

"Nice, Keith's best card," Kyle said.

"Sweet monster," Jaden said.

"And one with a pretty good effect," Arina said.

"But since you just Special Summoned a monster from your deck, my Field Spell gains another Counter," Marina reminded (Colosseum Counters: 2) (Augustus A: 2700-2800/D: 1100-1200) (Essedarii A: 2600-2700/D: 1500-1600).

"Too bad it won't be around for long," Keith shrugged. "I activate Heavy Storm to destroy all Spells and Traps on the field."

The wind picked up as it surged around the platform and the stadium itself.

Marina smiled before shaking her head. "Sorry, but you're not getting rid of my Colosseum that easily," she said, picking a card in her hand and inserting it into her Graveyard slot. "By discarding another copy of Colosseum in my hand, I can stop my Field Spell from being destroyed by a card effect."

Keith smiled a little. "A good move, but I've got another trick up my sleeve. I play the Spell, Stamping Destruction. Since I control a face-up Dragon-Type monster, I can destroy a Spell or Trap Card on the field and then inflict 500 points of damage to its controller."

Marina swore as Horus was suddenly surrounded in a blazing aura that enveloped the stadium, forcing everyone to shield their eyes from the intense light. By the time their eyes readjusted after the light faded, the Colosseum was gone and Augustus and Essedarii were weakened (Augustus A: 2800-2600/D: 1200-1000) (Essedarii A: 2700-2500/D: 1600-1400).

Keith: 4000

Marina: 5100

"Oh, that was a nice move," said Bryan. "By using Heavy Storm first, Keith made it so that Marina would have to discard a copy of Colosseum if she wanted to keep her Field Spell in play. And since it was unlikely she had her third copy of that card in her hand, he had a backup to rid the field of that Field Spell if the first plan failed. Clever."

"Dang," Marina muttered, looking at her hand with a frown.

"And next I activate my Brain Control Spell Card to take control of your Augustus, so long as I pay 800 Life Points," Keith added, inserting another card into his duel disk. Augustus seemed to struggle as he was surrounded by a green light as hands stretched out of the card and grabbed him before dragging him to Keith's side of the field.

Keith: 3200

Marina: 5100

"Now, Augustus, attack Essedarii," Keith ordered and the large bird-warrior screeched before shooting forward and clawed through Essedarri, causing the war gorilla to roar in pain and shatter.

Keith: 3200

Marina: 5000

"Now, Horus, attack Marina directly," Keith ordered and his Dragon sprang into action, unleashing a blast of black flames that shot forward struck Marina so hard she was nearly tossed off her feet.

Keith: 3200

Marina: 2000

"And I place one card facedown and end my turn, which means you get Augustus back," Keith said as a facedown appeared and Augustus returned to Marina's side of the field.

"In just one turn, Keith's gotten Marina to less than half her Life Points," said Elizabeth.

"He's doing really well," Kasumi said.

"Uh huh, but then he is the champion," said Raiden.

Marina, wincing, straightened and drew a card. "Oh, you're gonna get it now," she said. "I summon Gladiator Beast Bestiari in Attack Mode."

A bird-warrior with long green wings with a silver Roman-style helmet appeared on the field (A: 1500/D: 800).

"Now I'll return Bestiari and Augustus to my deck to Special Summon Gladiator Beast Gyzarus from my Extra Deck in Attack Mode!"

In a gust of wind emerged an even larger avian-like gladiator, dark green wings sticking out of its black and red armor (A: 2400/ D: 1500).

"Gyzarus effect activates," Marina announced. "When he's Special Summoned, I can destroy up to two cards on the field, which means you can kiss Horus and your face-down goodbye!"

Gyzarus flapped his large wings, creating a windstorm that quickly blasted Horus and Keith's face-down, Negate Attack, off the field, leaving him defenseless.

Marina then pointed to Keith. "Gyzarus, attack him directly."

Gyzarus, with a screech, flew over to Keith before slashing at him with his sharp talons.

Keith: 800

Marina: 2000

""Now I'll use Gyzarus other effect to tag him out and Special Summon two Gladiator Beasts from my deck, so welcome back Augustus and Laquari!"

The black-armored Winged Beast (A: 2600/ D: 1000) and the flaming tiger warrior (A: 1800-2100/ D: 400) soon took Gyzarus's place on the field, both in Attack Mode.

"I'll place this facedown and end my turn," Marina said, a reverse card appearing at her feet.

"Very nice move by Marina," Elizabeth said. "In just one move, she has cleared Keith's field and taken the lead."

"Let's see if Keith can come back from this," Bryan said.

"My draw," Keith said, drawing a card. "I activate the Spell Card, Level Modulation. With this, my opponent draws two while I get to Special Summon a LV monster from my Graveyard, ignoring Summoning conditions. Be revived, Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV8!"

After Marina drew her two new cards, the metallic bird-like dragon reappeared on the field in a sea of black flames (A: 3000/ D: 1800).

"But since the monster Special Summoned with Level Modulation can't attack or activate any of its effects the same turn it was brought back, I'll just end my turn for now," Keith said as his turn came to an end.

"My turn," Marina said, drawing a card. "I activate Indomitable Gladiator Beast to have my Augustus gain 500 Attack until the End Phase."

"And I'm gonna have to stop you there, Marina," Keith said. "I activate my dragon's effect, and now I can negate the activation of your Spell and destroy it."

Marina pressed her lips together as her Spell shattered. "Okay then. In that case, I guess I'll just switch both Augustus and Laquari into Defense Mode."

Both Gladiator Beasts crouched down, taking defensive positions.

"And I end my turn with one more face-down," she said.

"With that dragon of his on the field, the duel's definitely in Keith's favor now, even if he has less Life Points," Elizabeth commented.

Keith drew a card. "I activate Pot of Greed to draw two more cards." He did so before adding, "Next, I summon Blackland Fire Dragon in Attack Mode."

A ferocious green European dragon with horns atop its head appeared and roared (A: 1500/ D: 800).

"Horus, attack Augustus," he ordered and his large metallic dragon roared, unleashing a powerful stream of black fire that sailed across the field.

"I activate my Trap, Defensive Tactics," Marina declared, revealing her facedown card. "Thanks to this, since I control a Gladiator Beast, not only can my monsters not be destroyed this turn, but all Battle Damage I take is reduced to zero. Also, after this card resolves, I get to put it on the bottom of my deck instead of sending it to the Grave."

Horus's flames were blocked a force field, leaving Augustus totally unharmed.

"Nice save there," Keith admitted as he ended his Battle Phase since it was pointless to try to attack with Blackland now.

"Thanks, but it's a whole lot better," Marina smirked. "Since it's the end of the Battle Phase and because Augustus was attacked, I can now return him to my deck and Special Summon another Gladiator Beast to my field. I choose Gladiator Beast Murmillo."

Augustus vanished and was replaced by a purple-and-blue fish creature with red webbing between his fingers appeared on the field (A: 800/D: 400).

"When Murmillo is Special Summoned by the effect of a Gladiator Beast, I can target and destroy one face-up monster on the field. I'll choose Horus!"

Murmillo suddenly conjured up a huge tidal wave that was set to wash the LV monster away until Keith interjected with, "I activate the effect of Dragonic Knight in my hand. When the effect of an opponent's monster is activated that targets and destroys a card I control, I can send the targeted card to the Graveyard to Special Summon this card from my hand."

After sending Horus to his Grave, Keith slapped another card onto his duel disk, prompting a large green bipedal dragon with long bat-like wings to appear. The creature was covered in sliver armor and wielded a shining sword as it stood tall in Attack Position (A: 2800/ D: 2300).

With its target now gone, the wave the aquatic Gladiator Beast had created quickly receded.

"I set one card and I end my turn," he said.

Marina took a deep breath before closing her eyes and drawing a card. Opening her eyes to look at it, she held it out. "I activate Spellbook Inside the Pot so that we can each draw three cards," she said and they each drew three cards.

"And I activate my Trojan Gladiator Beast Trap in order to summon Special Summon Gladiator Beast Hoplomus from my hand to your field in Attack Mode," Marina added as her facedown flipped up and her rhino-warrior appeared on Keith's side of the field (A: 700/D: 2100). "And then I get to draw a card." She did so.

"Next, I activate the Quick-Play Spell, Gladiator Taming. By using this card's second effect, I can select one face-up Gladiator Beast monster my opponent controls, and take control of it until the End Phase, which means Hoplomus is back with me."

The rhino obediently crossed over to Marina's field.

"Now I'll return Laquari, Murmillo, and Hoplomus to the deck to Special Summon Gladiator Beast Heraklinos!"

The three Gladiator Beasts on the field vacated the field and, in a bright light, came a colossal, god-like chimera decked out in gladiator garbs, holding a golden shield and axe in its claws as he let out an intimidating growl (A: 3000/ D: 2800).

Gasps sounded from the audience who stared at the new monster in shock.

"Oh, wow, that is such a sweet monster!" Jaden exclaimed.

Kasumi nodded in agreement.

"That's a powerful monster but I'm not counting Keith out just yet," Kyle said.

"This is only the second time that Marina has used that monster! The first time was when she won her quarter final's match. Keith is in trouble here," said Bryan.

Marina wasn't done quite yet, though. "And since I still have my Normal Summon, I'll now bring out Gladiator Beast Lanista in Attack Mode."

A moment later, a winged-beast dressed in green and blue armor with green wings appeared (A: 1800/ D: 1200).

"Here goes! Heraklinos, attack Dragonic Knight!"

The herculean Beast Warrior charged forward, ready to cut down Keith's monster.

"I activate my Trap Card, Mirror Force, to destroy all your attacking monsters!" Keith suddenly declared, revealing his set card.

"Sorry, but that won't work," Marina objected. "Thanks to Heraklinos's effect, I can discard a card in my hand to negate the activation of a Spell or Trap and destroy it!"

As Marina sent one of the two remaining cards she was holding to the Grave, a golden light then emanated from Heraklinos's shield, effectively shattering Keith's Trap. With nothing now holding him back, the Beast Warrior's attack continued, slicing Dragonic Knight in half with his axe, causing the Dragon to let out a roar of agony as it was destroyed.

Keith: 600

Marina: 2000

"Your turn, Lanista! Take out Blackland Fire Dragon!"

The eagle-warrior screeched before shooting forward and clawed through the dragon, destroying it with little effort.

Keith: 300

Marina: 2000

"And I Tag Lanista out and replace him with Gladiator Beast Laquari," Marina said and his eagle-warrior vanished to be replaced by a tiger surrounded by flames and in orange-red armor (A: 1800-2100/D: 400). She smirked smugly before adding, "You're looking low on Life Points."

Keith smirked. "I'm still in this, though," he said.

"A very good move by Marina. Once again, she's managed to turn the tables on her opponent," Bryan said.

"She is proving that she is as strong as she was when she was going through the preliminaries and the Quarter Finals. I wonder how Keith will come back from this," Elizabeth said.

"That was a good move," Kasumi said.

"I'm sure Keith can come back from it," said Jaden.

"I draw," Keith said, drawing a card and he smiled. "I activate my Snatch Steal Spell to take control of your Heraklinos."

"Not if Heraklinos has anything to say about that," Marina interjected. "By discarding a card in my hand, I can negate the activation of your Spell and destroy it."

Even as his Spell Card shattered in front of him, the smirk on Keith's lips never faded. "That's exactly the move I figured you'd make."

"What?"

"Now that your hand is empty, you can't use Heraklinos's effect to stop this: Dragon's Mirror!"

All of a sudden, a giant looking glass with a frame resembling a dragon appeared before transparent versions of Twin-Headed Behemoth, Blackland Fire Dragon, and Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV4, LV6, and LV8 flew out of the ground and disappeared into the mirror.

"What's happening?" Marina questioned.

"You see," Keith started to explain, "Dragon's Mirror allows me to banish the fusion materials for any Dragon-Type Fusion Monster, whether they're on my field or Graveyard. I then get to Fusion Summon that Fusion Monster. So I fuse five of the Dragons in my Graveyard in order to summon Five-Headed Dragon!"

A blinding light emanated from inside the mirror and out came a gargantuan dark yellow dragon with five heads, each of which represented the Fire, Water, Wind, Dark, and Earth Attributes (A: 5000/ D: 5000).

Marina's eyes widened. Oh shit, she thought awed. She was staring down one of the most powerful monsters in the game. She turned her gaze to Keith and smiled. It's a no wonder why you're the champion.

Everyone stared in awe at the magnificent dragon that roared.

"That is so awesome! I definitely have to duel Keith now," Jaden said excitedly.

Everyone else stared at Jaden for a moment and shook their heads.

"Only you, Judai, only you," Raiden said.

"Five-Headed Dragon, attack Gladiator Beast Heraklinos and end this duel!" Keith ordered and each of the dragon's heads simultaneously fired a blast of elemental energy from their mouths. The blast blended together when they hit Heraklinos, creating a massive smoke-filled explosion as he was wiped out along with the last of Marina's Life Points.

Keith: 300 WINNER

Marina: 0

"And the winner of this duel, U.S. Duel Champion Keith Rhodes who will go on to the Finals next Saturday to face off against the winner of the next semifinals match," Jackson declared.

Marina got to her feet as Keith, turning off his duel disk, walked across the platform to join her. "Good duel," she said. "I can see why you're the champion. You are good."

Keith smiled. "Thank you," he said, holding out a hand to Marina who smiled and took it before shaking it.

. . .

Kaede Yuki ran a hand through his hair as he gazed at his phone, his mind going over what his wife had just told him. His wife had told him when she called while he was at the Bishop Museum earlier in the week that she thought someone was stalking her. He had told her to go to the authorities immediately and tell them that but she said she didn't have any proof.

The call he had just received from a hospital in Florence was all the proof he needed.

His wife had been attacked and she didn't know for sure who had attacked her. She thought it was him but she didn't know for sure.

"He left a warning. He is coming for you. You need to be careful, dear. You and our children need to be careful."

Kaede closed his eyes as he thought about those words. He had never met him face to face before; he only heard that the bastard's brother had nearly killed his wife and then he had, somehow, ended up in a coma with a rather deep knife wound. Investigators said that the wound to the bastard and to the bastard's brother, as well as the others who had been killed along with the bastard's brother, were similar, as if they had been done with the same weapon. However, they could not prove that because, for some reason, there was no weapon at the scene of the crime. That didn't make sense at all, but then neither did the bastard actually waking up from the coma he had, somehow, been thrust into, as Izumi had discovered when she had visited the hospital for her yearly check-up.

The fact that the bastard had been tossed into a coma from some unknown cause—Kaede very much doubted the wound, itself, had caused the coma as help had arrived before he could bleed out—during this time wasn't as far-fetched to Kaede as it would be for others. That was primarily because Kaede and his wife had experienced such things before…with Jaden.

Back when Jaden was younger, every time he lost a duel or was prevented from playing his favorite card—Yubel—his opponent always ended up in a coma or injured, though it was usually the former. So Kaede had experience with this sort of thing, but he still had many questions and no answers to any of them. Though the situation with the bastard was similar to what had only stopped a few months before that event, Kaede refused to believe his son had anything to do with it.

And yet, accidents like what happened to the bastard did happen around Jaden before.

But that still didn't explain why the bastard was as injured as he was and it also didn't explain the deaths of the others who were with him. Kaede knew his son; his son was not a murderer and so could not have been responsible for that.

So who was?

Kaede didn't know. But then he didn't know a lot of things; his wife was convinced that the person who attacked her was him and that warning that she said he gave her was the main reason why she was convinced. Kaede, on the other hand, didn't know if she was right or not; there was no proof, especially since there was no way of knowing whether the warning was real or not. While he was sure his wife would never lie to him, the idea that he would warn them was pretty far-fetched, all things considered.

Kaede pulled himself from his thoughts as the door to his room opened and his sons and daughter made their way into the hotel room.

"Hey, Dad," Jaden said brightly as he plopped onto the bed across from the one Kaede was sitting on.

"Hello, Jaden. How was the duel?" Kaede asked. He would think about this matter more at another time. Right now, he decided to tell his sons and daughter about what happened to their mother. They had the right to know.

"It sure was sweet," Jaden said brightly. "Keith is such a strong duelist. I wanna duel him myself."

"Think you can take on a pro, Judai?" Raiden asked.

"Hell yeah," Jaden said with a grin.

Kaede smiled sadly at his children before he sighed and decided to just tell them now. "Jaden, Raiden, Kasumi, take a seat. There's something I have to tell you," he said.

Jaden frowned as he sat up. "What's the matter, Dad?" he asked.

"You look worried," Kasumi said, sitting down on the bed beside Jaden while Raiden sat on her other side.

Kaede sighed. "I just received a call from your mother. She's in the hospital," he said.

"What? Why?" Kasumi gasped, eyes widening.

"She was injured badly, but she is going to make a full recovery. She's staying in the hospital for a few more days, though," Kaede said.

"Who attacked her?" Jaden asked; his eyes were cold and hard and Kaede inwardly shivered. To see such a look on his youngest son's face was shocking and Kaede honestly didn't know to feel about it, other than unnerved. So he decided against pointing it out.

"No one knows," he said. It wasn't a lie. While his wife was sure of whom it was, there was no proof to prove that it was him.

"But she'll be all right?" Raiden asked.

"Yes, she will."

"Well, that's good. I hope they catch the bastard who did this, though."

"Language, Rai," Kasumi said.

Raiden rolled his eyes.

Jaden was silent, gazing off to the side as if communing with someone only he could see.

There was a knock on the door and Alexis poked her head into the room. "Am I interrupting something?" she asked.

Jaden pulled himself from his thoughts and smiled at his girlfriend, the coolness in his eyes fading. "Hey, Lex," he said.

"I just wanted to tell you that Aunt Em wants you to come down soon so that we can decide where to go to dinner today."

"We'll be right down," Kaede said.

Alexis nodded and left.

Kaede returned his attention to his sons and daughter. "I'll let you know if there's any change in your mother's condition," he said as he stood up. "Now, I don't know about you, but I'm getting hungry."

Jaden's stomach chose that moment to growl.

"Apparently, so is Judai," Raiden said.

Kasumi raised an eyebrow. "When isn't Jaden hungry?"

"True."

"Hey," Jaden protested with a pout, much to his siblings' and his father's amusement.

Well, at least they're not letting their mother's condition dampen their spirits, Kaede thought.

. . .

A/n what do you think?

Blaze: and that was the first semifinals match! I hope that you enjoyed it, though credit must go to my beta-reader Misha, otherwise known as EndlessNight025

Misha: Ha! I am the Dragon and Gladiator Beast queen! Bow before me, commoners! Bow! Heh…Just kidding. That was a fun duel, though, wasn't it? Wasn't it?!

Chazz: someone's desperate for approval

Misha: Sh-shut up! (Goes to sulk in a dark corner since she knows Chazz is right)

Blaze: (smacks Chazz upside the head) don't be mean to my beta-reader. That was a badass duel and Misha, you definitely deserve credit for it!

Jaden: hell yeah it was. That Five-Headed Dragon was awesome!

Blaze: uh huh. An awesome monster, which, rather neatly, brings me to my question for today

Chazz: you actually have a question for this chapter?

Blaze: yup! I thought it up a while ago and just remembered it now when I was reading the edited version of this chapter. Bakura, if you would?

Bakura: fine (pulls out piece of paper) Blaze's question for today is 'What is your favorite Duel Monsters' card? If you have too many, name three that you really, really like.'

Misha: (returns from dark corner) my favorite Duel Monster cards would have to be Red-Eyes Black Dragon and all of his incarnations since they're all so darn cute and powerful!

Blaze: I have a lot of favorite cards but I'd have to say that three that I like are Cyber Dragon Nova, an XYZ monster that I actually own and is so cool looking, The Winged Dragon of Ra and Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon

Marik: nice

Jesse: yup. So time to end the chapter?

Blaze: yeah, I hope that you enjoyed this chapter and this duel and the next chapter will be posted either next Sunday or Monday. Reviews, as always, are much appreciated.