Renegades: A New Dawn

by Primal WolfBlood

In Part 3 of The Renegade Chronicles, follow the Renegades as they try and recover from the shocking end to The Renegade Revolution, and continue their lives with more action and suspense than ever before, as they learn who the true enemies are, and finally confront Segolia once and for all, to end their clash with each other.

26. Pick Your Poison

Renegades: A New Dawn

Chapter XXVI- Pick Your Poison

Point of View- Rio

After the duel, Akiza just looked around as if she didn't know what happened. 'Did I just..' Jodi then walked over to her. 'That's the Akiza I wanted to face.' Jodi then turned to leave, before tapping Jaden on the shoulder. They then left together. 'Well that was fun.' Blair just sat there, staring into space.

'Everything alright? Hello, earth to Blair, is anyone home today?' 'Oh sorry, just lost in thought.' 'It's about Ally isn't it.' 'How did you know Hannah?' 'I have two younger sisters. But truth is I didn't know- I just had a hunch. What's up?' 'Just don't know how she'll react when she finds out that she's not able to join the club.'

'I'm sure she'll be ok about it.' 'You've never met Ally. When she came along, the rules changed. Whatever Ally wanted, Ally got.' 'Despite your attempted' 'I never told them, ok Astrid! I know that you'd tell the whole world everything, but I'm a different person to you. You've never had responsibility.'

Blair then stormed off. 'What's up with her?' 'She's just really stressed at the moment I think.' 'She's worried that when Ally comes over here, suddenly she'll stop being important to us.' 'Thanks for that Rio.' 'Blair still tells me everything. We don't hang out as much as we used to, but she still opens up to me.'

'I'm sorry.' 'It's not you Astrid. Blair just needs something to express her frustration through, and you just happened to be the one in the firing line when she blew. Anyway- you've got your duel with Kalin up soon.' 'I'm ready.' 'You want me to come out with you Astrid?' 'Please- thank you.' Phil and Astrid then left, with Phil whispering down my ear as they left 'Rio, could you make sure Blair's ok?' 'Course I will.' I then went to check on her.

It wasn't hard to find her- she was outside. 'You ok Blair?' 'Stressed.' 'I know- it's about Ally isn't it.' 'It's about everything.' 'Sorry.' 'Don't apologise- it's nobody's fault. I love Ally, but she's a real brat at times. And I've also got to defend my World Number 1 spot, and I've got to be the strong one whenever I'm needed, and I'm just worried that I'll end up being plain old Blair again like I always have been.'

'Blair, you'll never be plain or boring to any of us.' 'Thanks Rio. It just always happens to me. Phil and Hannah, they make me feel special like I never have done before. Nobody's ever been interested in what I want before.' 'We are Blair. Come on- I want to know more about you anyway.' 'That's a point- there's stuff I still don't understand about your past.'

Point of View- Phil

Kalin was out first, with Jake. 'The following duel is a 1-1 duel. Introducing first, accompanied by Jake Bullitt, from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, he is 2K- Kalin Kessler.' Kalin just straightened his jacket when he came out, and then slapped hands with Jake, before coming down to the duelling zone.

Astrid's music then started up, as we came out. 'Introducing his opponent, accompanied by Phil Robinson-Cummings, from the Village of Berk, Norway, this is Fearless Astrid Hofferson.' Astrid did her pose on the entrance zone, and then we walked down together, while I was talking her through tactics. When we got to the duelling zone, Kalin pointed his baseball bat at me, so I just put my hands up, proving I had nothing on me (not really, I had a cue ball in my jacket pocket).

Astrid then got right in Kalin's face, but he didn't react. When she backed down, he got in her face, and she responded by shoving him. They then activated their duel disks, and started the duel. Astrid's duel disk had recently been repainted to make the Norweigen flag even more prominent, and it had her family's crest (a thin orange curve within a much larger blue curve on each side), while Kalin had a new one with an eye to reflect one of the eyes of Hundered Eyes Dragon.

[31] Astrid Hofferson LP:4000 vs. [33] Kalin Kessler LP:4000

Turn 1- Astrid- 'You have permission to start.' 'Fine. I play a monster face-down in Defence mode and end my turn with a pair of face-downs.' 'No hesitance.' 'Why would I hesitate? I've got everything to gain seeing as I'm just the future.'

Kalin- 'I draw. I activate Cost Down. By discarding a card, I can lower the levels of all monsters in my hand by 2. I now summon Infernity Destroyer (Atk:2300). Next, I play 3 cards face-down. Destroyer, do your thing.' Destroyer slammed it's big fists straight into Astrid's face-down monster (Tanngrisnir of the Nordic Beasts Def.:800), destroying it.

'Now you see it?' 'See what?' 'My plan. When Tanngrisnir is destroyed, he leaves behind two Nordic Beast Tokens (Atk:0000)x2.' 'Nice goats. My Destroyer has an ability though. When he destroys a monster in battle and I have no cards in my hand, I can deal the owner with 1600 points of damage.'

'I'll counter with Nordic Relic Laevateinn. This destroys a monster which destroyed a monster in battle this turn. So goodbye to Infernity Destroyer.' Laevateinn activated, and a short sword with a pair of gold wings appeared and shone, before light reflected off of it and burned Destroyer to a crisp.

'You're good. I end my turn.'

Astrid- 'I draw. I summon Guldfaxe of the Nordic Beasts (Atk:1600).' 'That's a Tuner monster… which means' 'I now tune Level 4 Guldfaxe with 2 Level 3 Nordic Beast Tokens to Synchro summon the mighty god- Thor, Lord of the Aesir (Atk:3500).' 'Fine. I activate Synchro Ejection. This will let you draw a card… after removing Thor from play. Tough break Astrid, I saw that coming.'

Synchro Ejection then activated, and green rings surrounded Thor, before they vanished, along with it. 'You really think I didn't expect something like that? I activate Graceful Charity to draw 3 cards and discard 2. I now activate the Reverse Dimension Synchro Trap. This allows me to Synchro summon a monster that's banished by banishing the materials from my graveyard. I banish Level 4 Guldfaxe and 2 Level 3 Tanngrisnirs to Synchro summon Thor, Lord of the Aesir (Atk:3500).'

'Thor, attack with Lightning Bludgeon.' 'Fine- I didn't want to use it this early, but I don't have a choice. I activate Sakuretsu Armour. This will destroy Thor again.' Thor's hammer came crashing down, but Sakuretsu Armour destroyed Thor before Kalin could take the hit. 'I end my turn with another face-down. During the End phase, I can banish Sleipnir of the Nordic Ascendant to revive Thor and deal you with 800 points of damage.'

Thor then came down from the sky again (Atk:3500), and Kalin got hit with the electric blasts, giving Astrid a surprise lead (Kalin LP:4000-3200).

Kalin- 'Well done, I under-estimated you. From now on though, this is for real. I draw. When I draw Infernity Archfiend, if he's the only card in my hand, I can Special summon him automatically (Atk:1800). In addition, I can add an Infernity monster from my deck to my hand. One like Infernity Necromancer (Def.:2000).'

'Necromancer also has an ability. Once per turn, if I have 0 cards in my hand, which I currently do, I can summon a monster from my graveyard. One like Infernity Destroyer (Atk:2300). I now activate my face-down Pot of Greed. This allows me to draw 2 cards.' 'Nice move Kalin.' 'Thanks. This next one's even nicer though. I activate United We Stand. I'll equip this onto Destroyer so he can gain 800 Attack points for every monster on my field (Atk:2300-4700).'

'Destroyer, live up to your name and show Thor the exit.' 'I activate Enchanted Javelin. This gives me extra Life points equal to Destroyer's Attack points. It's current Attack points that is.' Enchanted Javelin shot at Destroyer just before it destroyed Thor (Astrid LP:4000-8700-7500). 'Your points are going to get a trim from destroyer's ability now. You take 1600 points of damage.'

Destroyer then created dark-looking rocks, and pitched them towards Astrid, who just rolled backwards in a stunning motion to avoid being hit by them (Astrid LP:7500-5900). 'Archfiend, attack directly.' Infernity Archfiend created a sphere of evil energy, and released it, but Astrid managed to frontflip right over the top of it (Astrid LP:5900-4100).

'I end my turn.'

Astrid- 'I draw. I activate Card Destruction. I was about to say that this lets both of us discard and then draw, but of course, you don't have any cards to discard. I now activate 5 Card Salute, letting me draw 5 cards. I summon Mara of The Nordic Alfar (Atk:1000).'

'Mara can Synchro summon using monsers in my hand. Which means she'll have no problems tuning Level 4 Ljosalf of the Nordic Alfar and Level 4 Tyr of the Nordic Champions to Synchro summon a second god. You've met Thor, now meet the trickster- Loki, Lord of the Aesir (Atk:3300).'

'When Loki's summoned, he can destroy a Spell or Trap on the field. I choose the face-down on the left.' Loki produced a bolt of electricity from his finger, which destroyed Kalin's face-down (Infernity Reflector). 'Loki, destroy Infernity Archfiend.' Loki produced another bolt, which ripped through Archfiend (Kalin LP:3200-1700).'

'When a monster of mine is destroyed in battle, I can revive Infernity Avenger from my graveyard. When it is revived this way, his Level is equal to the Level of the destroyed monster (Atk:0000, Level:1-4).' 'I end my turn. During my End phase, I can banish a Nordic Tuner from my graveyard, like Valkyrie of the Nordic Ascendant, to revive Thor and deal you with 800 points of damage.'

Thor then came down from the sky again (Atk:3500), and lightning shot out of his hammer, bringing Kalin to a knee (Kalin LP:1700-900). 'Hey Astrid.' 'What is it master?' 'You're doing well. Just keep it up and keep focused.' 'Got it.'

Kalin- 'Every point of damage I take lights a new fire in me Astrid. I draw. I tune Level 4 Infernity Avenger and Level 4 Infernity Necromancer to Synchro summon Infernity Doom Dragon (Atk:3000, Destroyer Atk:4700-3900).' 'Careful Astrid.' 'I don't need warning about that thing- I've lost to it before.'

'You've face him before?' 'Yeah- when I was last World Amateur Champion. Kalin came to one of the tournaments, and challenged me.' 'Yeah- I did. You duelled with passion and nearly beat me. But since you joined them, you've changed- not for the better either. All you desire is to hurt your opponents, and that's not right.'

'If you don't shut up Kalin, I'll hurt you.' 'Phil, don't you thing threatening Kalin is over the top?' 'I don't know what it is to do with you Jake.' 'If you don't mind me saying, Kalin may have a point.' 'Well guess what Jake- I do mind you saying. I know, why don't we ask Astrid since we're all stood here pretending she can't hear us when she quite clearly can.'

'Thanks for actually caring about my opinion. Yeah- maybe I haven't been enjoying duelling as much. But that's not down to Phil- it's because I've been trying to find a style that I can win with while still enjoying myself. And I'd found neither recently. But I've found my mojo now.' Astrid then smiled.

'Now where was I? Oh yes- I throw down a face-down. Now Doom Dragon, I'm activating your special ability, to destroy Thor because I have no cards in my hand. Then you take damage equal to half of Thor's Attack points, which is 1750.' Doom Dragon's toxic breath incinerated Thor despite Thor's desperate resistance, destroying him, and Astrid crouched to avoid the noxious fumes (Astrid LP:4100-2350).

'We'll follow that up with Loki falling victim to my Infernity Destroyer.' Destroyer hammered Loki, who resisted valiently like Thor, but eventually the force was too great and Loki was destroyed (Astrid LP:2350-1750). 'As you well know, Doom Dragon isn't allowed to attack on the turn he activates his effect. I end my turn.' 'During the End phase, I can banish Mara of the Nordic Alfar and Vanadis of the Nordic Ascendant to revive Thor and Loki.'

Thor then came down from the sky, and Loki ripped a hole in the sky, before climing through (Thor Atk:3500, Loki Atk:3300). 'When Loki's summoned back, he adds a Trap back to my hand.' Astrid then added Nordic Relic Laevateinn back to her hand, before Thor electrified Kalin again, but he just took it all in (Kalin LP:900-100).

Astrid- 'I draw. I activate Miracle Dig. Because I have at least 5 monsters banished, I can return 3 of them to the graveyard. I now activate the effect of 5 Card Salute, to draw 3 more cards. I activate Heavy Storm, destroying all Spell and Traps on the field.' Heavy Storm whipped up a massive storm, destroying Kalin's 3 face-downs (Mirror Force, Synchro Striker Unit, Domino Effect).

'With that done, there is nothing protecting you now from Thor. Attack Doom Dragon with Lightning Bludgeon!' Thor lifted his hammer, and slammed it on top of Doom Dragon, destroying it and ending the duel with a shock win for Astrid (Kalin LP:100-0000).

After the duel, Kalin was ambushed and viciously assaulted by Birchall, Vector, and Powerplay. Jake tried to help, but couldn't get beyond Powerplay. Astrid then snuck up behind Vector, and when he turned around, clocked him in the temple with an enzuguri kick. Birchall and Powerplay then fled, leaving Kalin and Jake to push Vector into the wall. Vector then fled on his own, and Kalin looked at Astrid.

'Thanks.' 'I didn't do it for you, but you're welcome.' Astrid then teased shaking Kalin's hand, but instead, she just lifted her arms into the air. 'Your winner- Fearless Astrid Hofferson.' Astrid looked over at Kalin and Jake, and hi-fived me, before coming back up with me.

'So, how did I do?' 'I was impressed. You were good out there.' 'Thanks. The best thing though is that he didn't think I could beat him.' 'You did well- Kalin is a very tricky opponent to face. His handless combos are very difficult to predict, and it's impossible to read his facial movements.

Meanwhile…

Point of View- Rio

Me and Blair just sat on a grassy verge. 'How long have you been bisexual?' 'Going straight for the jugular. Seriously though, I dunno- it's something that's always been a part of me. I've liked women as long as I can remember, and being bisexual, it's a much more recent discovery. Why don't you let people use your full name?'

'I like the name Rio- I don't like my full name. How did you stay so strong while I was dying?' 'Because I didn't think you'd die. I know you. What made you want to stay alive?' 'Huh?' 'You could have died twice, but you didn't. Why?' 'Because I wanted to stay and make a difference. Besides- I couldn't leave you alone with Phil.'

'Yeah.' 'Is that your natural hair colour?' 'Yeah- and I wouldn't change it for the world. Is that your natural hair colour?' 'No- it's been like this as long as I remember though. I wouldn't change it, like ever. Do you think Astrid should be in the Control Core?' 'What do you mean?' 'I mean what I said- I know your history.'

'I don't know- I like the idea of her being with us, but I wish that Phil would stop using her as a pet project. She needs to be able succeed on her own.' 'Are you jealous?' 'Yeah- me and Phil were supposed to be going for a coffee next week, but I've been replaced with Astrid.' 'He told me that was going to take me to these Thai Boxing sessions, and help train me personally.'

'He's been promising me a couple of frames of snooker for the past month.' We looked up to see Maddy there. 'Just thought I'd come and see how Blair was. Come on- it's cold out here.' 'How did you' 'Same old line again huh? I didn't know where you are- according to my excuse, I've now been on the toilet for over 20 minutes.'

'How's Astrid doing in her duel- I'm guessing you've been watching.' 'She's winning- she's got 4100 Life points, Kalin's just dropped down to 900.' 'Nice.' 'Listen- if you've got a problem with Dad, tell him.' 'Is that what you've done?' Maddy then doubled over in pain. 'What's wrong?' 'Don't know- feels like my insides are gonna explode.'

She then threw up. 'Sorry- this wasn't intended.' 'It's ok. Come on- let's get you back to Phil and Hananh.' We then helped her back to the rest of them. When we got there, Hannah came rushing over. 'What happened?' 'She doubled over in pain and threw up.' 'Right. Just sit yourself down then.' 'I'm fine- just ate something dodgy I think. That's the last time I have a burger from near college.'

In the next duel, Kieran continued his great form by becoming #1 contender to the WDC Championship after beating Maximus Dreadus by 3000 Life points with Superheavy Samurai Big Benkei. Next up was Myka vs. Birchall, and a video package played highlighting the history of the feud. 'Myka, you're up.' 'Damn right I am. Birchall's gonna lose.. to me.' 'If you do get in trouble, we'll make sure you win by dq.' 'Thanks. This is a matter of respect.' 'Something he lacks.' 'Yeah- exactly.'

Myka then left. 'You going with her?' 'No- I don't want to be tempted to attack Birchall. The last thing I want is for him to win by DQ- I want to make sure that his career ends against Hannah.' Rhydian then came up to us. 'What do you want?' 'Wanted to give Hannah a present.' 'That's not very much like you.'

'Yeah- when we were going out, you didn't buy me anything- I even had to buy your coffee.' 'Yeah, well this is in my interests. It's my old phone- has a video of Birchall planning Hannah's murder on. It's also got a video of him trying to kill her and Rio.' 'And why are you giving this to us?' 'I want to make a deal with you.'

'I'm listening.' 'I've got a court case for possession of Cannabis and also for Assault and kidnapping Maddy. So the deal is that agree to give you this and testify in court against Birchall. In return, you help me get off the Assault and Kidnap charges.' 'What's in it for you?' 'Possession of Cannabis, I'll probably get probation for it. Assault and Kidnap, I'm facing up to 10 years in the nick. Also, it helps get Birchall put away. And, it means I can get on with my life without having to keep an eye out to make sure he's not returned.'

Hannah then got up. 'Think about it guys- if we do this, Birchall's almost certain to go down for 30 years+. I'd say we agree.' Blair nodded. 'Sounds fair to me- Rhydian doesn't get away with the drug stuff, and Birchall's properly out of our lives.' 'I think I speak for everyone when I say that we have a deal.' 'Good. Here's the present.'

'Oh, one thing.' 'Go on.' 'I'm gonna testify against you on the drug stuff.' 'Feel free- I'm pleading guilty anyway. I've been told that by pleading guilty and agreeing a plea bargain with the police, I could avoid prison.' 'Sounds about right. Oh yeah, there's one last thing.' 'Interfere in the next duel?' 'Yeah. Only if Myka looks like she'll lose though.'

Rhydian then left, just as Myka came out to her music she uses on the Amateur circuit (Wish it Away by Psycho Dalek). She just looked up, and posed with her arms outstretched, before coming down to the duelling zone. When she got to the duelling zone, she just started pacing back and forth, waiting for Birchall.

Birchall then came out with his "security" Powerplay. He just laughed, and came down to the duelling zone. When he did, the announcer quickly came in between them to do the announcements. 'The following is a Challenge Duel. If Birchall loses, his duel at In The Shadows becomes a Career-Threatening Duel. Introducing first, from Haines Junction, Yukon, Canada, she is the current World Amateur Champion and the reigning WADC Champion- Myka Grainger.'

Myka just started shouting at the crowd. 'Remember who the enemy is!' 'And now, introducing her opponent. He is accompanied by Powerplay, and comes to us from the Ghettos. He is the Renegade Slayer- Birchall.' Birchall just spat at Myka, enraging her. They then both activated their duel disks, and started the duel.

[12] Birchall LP:4000 vs. Myka Grainger LP:4000

Turn 1- Myka- 'I start. I summon Doitsu (Atk:100). Next, I activate Celestial Transformation. This lets me summon Soitsu with half of it's Attack points (Atk:0000). Next, I equip Soitsu to Doitsu to give it 2500 more Attack points (Atk:50-2550). I end my turn with a face-down.' Astrid then seemed surprised at something.

'Phil, why was that guy on the paper not destroyed?' 'Simple- the effect of Celestial Transformation only applies when the monster remains on the field as a monster. A Union monster is classed as an equip card when equipped onto another monster.' 'But the ability should have been negated.' 'I'll let Hannah explain this one.' 'I believe what's happening is that the effect of Soitsu is activated when it becomes an Equip card. Therefore it's no longer classed as an ability, but the effect of a Spell or Trap. Basically the same reason it wasn't destroyed.'

Birchall- "I draw. I activate Foolish Burial, letting me send Stygian Street Patrol to my graveyard from my deck. Next, I activate it's ability, to banish it and summon out a Fiend with 2000 or less Attack points from my hand. I choose Archfiend Cavalry (Atk:1900). I now summon Stygian Security (Atk:100).'

'I now tune Level 1 Stygian Security with Level 4 Archfiend Cavalry." 'I've never seen you Synchro summon before.' "With this deck, I haven't. I was saving it for Hannah, but I suppose you can die first. I summon out Stygian Sergeants (Atk:2200)." 'Not as strong as Doitsu.' 'It will be once I activate Axe of Despair. This will plunge you into despair, by giving my Sergeants 700 extra Attack points (Atk:2200-2900)."

"Destroy her Doitsu." Stygian Sergeants revved up its bike's engines, before riding all over Soitsu, destroying it (Myka LP:4000-3600). "I'll finish you off right now. I activate the effect of Stygian Sergeants. They can attack twice by increasing it's Attack points by 800 (Atk:2900-3700). Finish this.'

'I ain't done yet- not by a long shot. I activate Swords of Burning Light. With this, I'm protected as long as I don't control a monster. It's destroyed the moment a monster appears on my field.' "I end my turn with a face-down (Atk:3700-2900).'

Myka- 'Guess what- you get to be the first ever person to see my new deck. I draw. I summon my Kozmo Wickedwitch (Atk:1900).' "I've never heard of that." 'That's because it's new- as in only just been released a few weeks ago new. Next I activate her ability. My Wickedwitch is actually not that wicked at all. She banishes herself to summon out an all new Kozmo which is Level 5 or above. I summon out the mightiest of all the Kozmos. Meet Kozmo Dark Destroyer (Atk:3000).'

"Ouch- 3000?" 'Yeah- 3000. I now activate it's ability. When it's Normal or Special summoned, I can destroy another monster on the field. I choose to destroy those Sergeants.' Stygian Sergeants were knocked of of their bike by lasers shot from Dark Destroyer, destroying them. 'Now attack directly.'

"I activate Negate Attack, to stop you attacking me." Dark Destroyer fired more lasers off in random directions, but all of them were blocked by an unseen force. 'I end my turn.'

Birchall- "I draw. Trust me- you don't have a clue what you're getting yourself into." 'Maybe not. But I'm exposing you. If I beat you, I might get a place in the Renegades with my long lost sister. There's too much on the line for me to fail.' "Your sister?" 'Yeah. I ain't putting her in danger though by exposing her identity.'

"That's a pity- I'm sure my security force would love to have a chat with her right now. I'll strike you a deal- if you tell me who she is, I promise not to hurt you as much." 'Fine- she's called Amber. But she's… well I don't know where she is at the moment, so I think that you'd be wise to just ignore that. And don't forget- we have a deal.'

"Well since she's not one of the interesting ones, I'll go back on our deal. I activate the Pandemonium Field spell.' The field then changed to reflect the dingy Pandemonium again, and old, bony fingers grabbed hold of Myka. "Now you can't escape. I summon out Terrorking Archfiend (Atk:2000)."

As soon as he arrived on the field, Terrorking Archfiend looked around, and roared, before being destroyed. "Terrorking is destroyed if he's Normal or Flip summoned while there's no other Archfiend on my field. Next, I activate the ability of Desrook Archfiend. By discarding him to the graveyard, Terrorking returns (Atk:2000)."

'Shouldn't he have been destroyed again?' "DO you never listen? His destruction ability does not apply if he's Special summoned. I now activate Pot of Greed, letting me draw 2 cards. I activate Graceful Charity. This allows me to draw another 3 cards, but then I have to discard 2 cards. I now activate the abilities of my two Imprisoned Queen Archfiends that I discarded. While they are in my graveyard and Pandemonium is on the field, I can give my Terrorking a total of 2000 extra Attack points (Atk:2000-4000)."

"Now take down that plane with Doom Locust Swarm!' Terrorking released a massive swarm of locusts from it's chest, destroying Dark Destroyer (Myka LP:3600-2600). 'When Kozmo Dark Destroyer bites the dust, it's ability activates. By banishing him, I can summon a Level 7 or lower Kozmo monster from my hand. I summon Kozmo Farmgirl (Atk:1500).' "I end my turn (Atk:4000-2000)."

Myka- 'I draw. I summon Kozmo Goodwitch (Atk:1800). I activate the ability of Goodwitch. For the small sum of 500 of my Life points (Myka LP:2600-2100), I can change your Terrorking to face-down Defence position, where it's far less terrifying. Go- Stalling Curse.' Goodwitch flew into the air, and released a thin green light from it's lightsaber-like sword, making Terrorking flip face-down.

'I activate the Preperation of Rites Spell card. This would normally allow me to add a Level 7 or less Ritual monster to my hand and then a Ritual spell from my graveyard to my hand. I have none in the graveyard though, so effect 1 will have to do. I now activate the Ritual spell known as End of the World.' "Where did you get that from?" 'I can't remember now- I've had it for a while. I think I might have received it for my first Amateur World Championship win. Anyway- I can use this to get rid of my 2 Kozmos to summon out Ruin- Queen of Oblivion (Atk:2300).'

'Ruin, destroy that face-down Terrorking.' "You're not destroying anything once I activate the Card Blocker spell. By discarding one card from my hand, you can't destroy anything of mine this turn." Ruin went to unleash hell (quite literally) upon Terrorking (Def.:1500), but Card Blocker protected it. 'I end my turn with a face-down.'

Birchall- "I draw. This is the last turn I need, because I activate One for One. This ain't much like me, but it lets me discard Archfiend Heiress to add this to my hand- I summon Stygian Security (Atk:100). My Level 1 Security is just itching to give my Level 4 Terrorking a tune-up. This is your end, because I call out some more Stygian Sergeants (Atk:2200)."

"I now equip my Sergeants with the Ancient Cursed Sword of the Dark Warrior. This gives my Sergeants 800 more Attack points. Furthermore, if it's destroyed, we both take 800 points of damage (Atk:2200-3000). Stygian Sergeants, time to slice up Ruin, Queen of Oblivion with Fiendish Jousting Slicer!"

Sergeants can whizzing up on their motorbike with their new sword, and drove past Ruin, stabbing her in the process, destroying her (Myka LP:2100-1400). "I wish I could say it's been fun, but for you, it's really not, has it? I activate the ability of my Sergeants (Atk:3000-3800), to finish you off."

Just as Stygian Sergeants prepared it's attack, Rhydian ran out with Kiera Byrne. Kiera pushed Myka down, before they started beating on Birchall, who managed to fight back. Maddy then got up. 'You know the saying- if you want something doing properly, do it yourself. Those two are useless.'

Maddy (evidently still not feeling right) then ran down, and stunned Birchall with a massive flying spear. She then looked over at Kiera and Rhydian, before shouting at them. 'This is how you do this properly.' Damien then appeared behind her, and kicked her leg from underneath her, before punching her in the stomach repeatedly.

Me and Blair tried running down to help, but Rhydian and Kiera were in our way. 'Let us through.' 'Not a chance- I'm enjoying this. What about you Rhydian?" Rhydian just ran over, and pushed Damien off of Maddy, who by now was wriving in pain. Damien then grabbed a mic. "I am Damien Cummings, the father of Hannah Cummings. Not Robinson-Cummings, just Cummings. Thanks to Birchall's win… and a last minute clause in the contract, if Hannah loses at In The Shadows, she will have to marry Birchall and I will have my daughter back- this time though, she'll do exactly what I say."

Rhydian then got face-to-face with Damien, and slapped him in the face, further enraging him, to the point where he threw Rhydian about 2 foot into the air. He then turned his attention back to Maddy, and stamped on her ribs again, injuring her even more. "Claude, how about some more brutality?"

Claude then came back out, and spat on Maddy, before leaving. "Where are you going Claude?" "I don't need your help to attack Maddy. Have fun though, and when it all goes pear-shaped, don't blame me." This angered Damien further. "Just announce Birchall as the winner and that will be the first stage of getting my daughter back."

An announcement then came through. 'Your winner by Disqualification- Myka Grainger.' Myka then raised her fist while still struggling to get back up, as Damien threw a fit. Bolton then came out. 'Order- I want order now. Damien Cummings, you have no right to even be down there. You shouldn't even be here unless you can prove you have a ticket. I am now creating a no physical contact rule. Birchall, if you throw your weight around with Hannah before In The Shadows, I will have you arrested for Assault and permanently removed from the WDC. Damien, if you touch Hannah again, you will not be allowed to accompany Birchall to his duel at In The Shadows. Myka is your winner via Disqualification, so Birchall, if Hannah beats you at In The Shadows, you will never be allowed to set foot in the WDC again. Now everyone leave, and we need medics for Maddy urgently.'

Medics then came out to check on Maddy, who was still battered and bruised, with blood coming out of her mouth (it was a horrible scene). Eventually, they carried her out, while her music played, and fans applauded her. Before they could carry her out of the arena though, Damien rushed out again, and hit the medics with a dumbbell, before hitting Maddy in the stomach with it.

He was about to do it again when Bolton came down to cheers, and grabbed it off of him. 'You are testing my patience now.' "Like you've never done anything wrong." 'The worst I ever did was touch the bum of a married woman, which I have shown remorse for. This assault could have killed Maddy. You could have been standing in court for Murder.'

Damien then punched Bolton square in the face, knocking him out. He then went to assauly Maddy again, but by this time, a wall had been created by members of the WDC (Finn Hofferson, Kalin Kessler, Akiza Izinski, Rhydian, Myka, Kieran Byrne, and Jesse Allen). Chelsea Dagger by The Fratellis then played, as some slightly obese guy came out in a darts shirt, which Phil looked stunned about.

'He's back?' 'Who is that exactly?' 'One of my greatest rivals in my career. That's The Oracle- Geoff Maltby.' 'Geoff Maltby? How old is he now?' 'Probably about 34. I remember our rivalry over the WDC Championship in 2009.' 'What happened to him?' 'In early 2011, he took a sabbatical from duelling after an emergency angioplasty following a Heart Attack. He's looking fitter than I've ever seen him to be honest.'

As the fans chanted his surname, he walked down to the duelling zone. When he got there, he pushed Damien to the ground. 'My name is Geoff Maltby. Some people call me a great duellist, some people call me the Oracle, hell- some people call me a son of a bitch. But I have 2 daughters who call me Dad. That's why I'm here. You see, I know Maddy's Dad very well, and I hate to think what he's going through watching this. I know how I'd feel if I saw my daughter like this. Take my advice, and if there's any humanity left in you, leave.'

Damien got up and grabbed the mic. "This is the least she deserves. She shouldn't even be living." Leroy Kincade of Segolia then came out. "Leave her be Damien- she'll still be useful to our experiments like this. I want to find the secret- the secret to cure every disease there is." "Got it." 'I'm with this crowd. This crowd protecting Maddy. So everyone, CHARGE!'

Everyone protecting Maddy then piled in on Damien and Kincade, while Maltby watched on. Eventually, Damien crawled out of the pile, only to be confronted by Maltby. Maltby just looked down at him, before stamping on his head. Eventually, Kincade and Damien were both down, so Maltby picked up a mic. 'Medics, get Maddy to the back quick.' They then took her to the medical room while Damien and Kincade tried to recover.

We saw her a few minutes later in the medical room, sat up. 'I'm just glad you're ok.' 'Not really- got 3 broken ribs and a bruised kidney. I'll be out of action until In the Shadows, and probably for a couple of weeks after that.' 'Did you even see what happened afterwards?' 'Sort of- I saw what was going on, but I couldn't take it in.'

'Akiza helped protect you.' 'That's good of her- maybe she has turned a corner. Is Myka ok?' Myka then came in. 'I'm fine- just a sore elbow from the way I landed after being pushed by Kiera.' Geoff then came in, with Kalin. 'I hope you don't mind me being in here with Geoff, but I wanted to make sure you weren't too badly injured.'

'I'll survive.' 'Good.' Phil and Hannah then walked over to Geoff. 'Always have to show off don't you?' 'Yeah- that's me.' 'Good to have you back.' 'Cheers mate. I heard about you two- the pregnancy and all. I'm chuffed for you both.' 'Thanks Geoff. You know, while you and Phil and even you and me have had some battles in the past, we've always respected you.'

'I never doubted that. I was actually just here as Kalin's roommate- I'm due to be in the Wild-Card Warriors in a few weeks- when the World Tour arrives in Birmingham.' 'I look forward to it. I've got the perfect opponent for you.' 'If you're gonna say Blair, then I'm down with that. Slow and Stategic- my kind of opponent.'

'Sounds good. Hey Blair- you up for that?' 'Sure.' 'Where are you living now anyway Geoff?' 'Me and Kalin are currently renting a 2 bed flat in the centre of Manchester. We're waiting for a decent house to become available so Jake and Finn can move in.' 'Legends House?' 'I like the idea mate. Where do you live now?'

'Farm in Norden.' 'Oh yeah- just up the road from Rochdale. Know the area well.' 'Yeah- you lived there at one time didn't you?' 'I actually lived in Oldham, but it's not far. Anyway- I'll go now.' 'Ok, thanks mate.' They (Kalin and Geoff) then left. 'Is there anything I can get you Maddy?' 'No thanks- just want to go back to the hotel and sleep it off- I'll probably be better in the morning.'

About half an hour later, after Maddy had been given another check-over, we left for the hotel. Me and Blair were in Maddy's room with her. 'I can't believe how tough you were earlier Maddy.' 'Really? I heard Damien went a bit nuts.' 'Bit nuts? He attacked you, attacked the medics, and then punched Bolton.'

'There's just been an announcement on the WDC website.' The announcement was as follows: "During the WDC World Tour's stop in Canada today, Damien Cummings, an associate of James Birchall, assaulted the World Number 9 Maddy Robinson-Cummings where it was not his place to be in the duelling arena. He then assaulted EMT'S (Emergency Medical Technician), and assaulted Commisioner Bolton Andrews."

"We will not tolerate his actions, and he caused serious harm to several people. Maddy Robinson-Cummings is confirmed to have 3 broken ribs from the sickening attack, and one member of the medical team has remained in hospital, and is currently undergoing surgery on a broken clavicle. There will be an update on Bolton coming at approximately 9:30am tomorrow morning."

"As a direct consqeunce of Mr. Cummings' actions, there will be an EGM (Extraordinary General Meeting) tomorrow at 1pm, where there will be a discussion over how best to keep staff and fans safe. Until further notice, Damien Cummings is banned from all WDC events. Furthermore, the Medical Technician who suffered a broken clavicle has made it clear that he wishes to press charges against Mr. Cummings, who is currently a fugitive."

"We wish Ms. Robinson Cummings, the injured EMTs and Mr. Andrews a full recovery, and we hope to see them back soon. More news will follow at approximetly 10am tomorrow morning, and if Bolton is unable to return tomorrow, a Special Guest Commissioner will precide over proceedings. The tournament will continue as planned, with the Renegades choosing someone to replace Maddy in the tournament.'

'Who's going to replace you Mads?' 'I have an idea. Blair, give me your phone.' 'Why can't you use yours?' 'Yours is nearer.' Blair then threw her phone over, and Maddy rung someone. 'Hello. Hi Dylar, it's Maddy. Listen- I need you to send Brogan over here on a plane overnight to get here for the tournament tomorrow. Take it out of the emergency vault- the code is 6535. Thanks. Yeah- thanks. Send her sister over too will you? And also send over Havok and Nightshade. Yeah- with their decks. Thanks- bye.'

'Brogan?' 'Yeah- her and Jessica: the kids I captured the souls of at the last tournament. It's about time they worked for us.' 'True. They been brainwashed?' 'Yeah- I left Jodi to take care of that last week.' 'Great. I can't believe we didn't get on when we first met.' 'Rio, you're not the only one. But I'm glad we are mates- all 3 of us.' 'Yeah. Fancy coming shopping with us next week Maddy?' 'Sure. Could do with a new pair of jeans.' 'What jeans do you use?' 'Bootcut, 34" leg.' 'Thought you were taller than that.'

'Yeah- unlike Blair though, my legs are quite short' 'What do you mean unlike me?' 'Your legs are massive- I've seen films that are shorter.' 'I get you now. Got to admit- I envy your figure Mads. There isn't an ounce of body fat on you.' 'There is- I've put on about 20 pounds since I joined.' 'Really?'

'Yeah. I remember you when you first joined Blair.' 'That was a while ago.' 'Yeah. We've all been here a while actually.' 'True. Maddy, do you fancy teaming up with me and Blair?' 'What do you mean?' Blair then sat up. 'What Rio means is that we think Phil's ready to announce his retirement from duelling.'

'I've not seen anything of that.' 'It's just that I hear him on the phone yesterday talking about it being the end of the story.' 'And also, he was talking to Hannah about wanting to spend time on other projects.' 'I'll speak to him about it tomorrow. But joining you is an interesting prospect. Besides- Astrid probably won't want to stay in a tag-team for long- she'll be coming after my Young Gun title within long.'

'I'll tell you something.' 'What is it Blair?' 'I'm knackered- I don't think I've ever been so tired.' 'You and Jade had a date yet?' 'No- we've both been busy.' 'Fair enough. Why did you take her back?' 'I realised I actually wanted to give it a go.' 'That's nice. I'm getting my head down now.' 'Night Maddy, hope you get some sleep.' 'Hopefully.' We then went to sleep.

The next morning, our delivery came about 10- 2 sarchopagi, painted gold. We opened them up, and Jessica and Brogan were in one, and Havok and Nightshade were in the other,with their eyes closed, hair down, and their arms crossed. 'Maddy, can we take care of the deliveries for you?' 'Sure- thanks.' We then took them out, and Hannah came in.

'What are they doing here?' 'Brogan is going to replace me in the tournament.' 'Good. You want me to do their hair?' 'Yeah please. They've got Serotonin uniforms as well now.' 'Good.' While Hannah was doing that, we saw the draw.

Round 1:

Leo vs. ? (Maddy's replacement)

[1] Blair Flannigan vs. Jesse Allen

[5] Kieran Byrne vs. [27] Radley

[8] Phil Robinson-Cummings vs. Nash

[5] Lukas Chipperfield vs. [46] Kari Tsukumo

[31] Astrid Hofferson vs. [56] Justin Pipe

Kalin Kessler vs. [82] Robert Duman

Zak Zapata vs. Myka Grainger

Vector vs. [81] Jean-Louis Bonaparte

We then got going to the duelling zone. As soon as we got there, Michael Gray Adams came out, in a new, snazzy suit. 'Ladies and Gentlemen, I am here to inform you of an update from yesterday. Now as we know, this happened yesterday.' A video of Damien's rampage then played. 'This was unacceptable. As a result of a concussion and broken nose, Bolton Andrews will be unable to fulfil his duties as a commissioner for up to 6 weeks. In the meantime, we need to find a new commissioner.'

As soon as he said that, the fans started chanting "H.R.C". 'I spoke to the board of directors last night, and we had a long discussion. Eventually, and it took half the night, we came to a decision on who the temporary commissioner will be on a split decision. So we would like Hannah Robinson-Cummings to be the commissioner.'

Hannah then went out to her music and a great reception, with a mic. 'I have been paying attention, and I know what the commissioner role involves. I will accept on the condition that I am given complete control of match-making.' 'I accept- it is the same power Bolton has.' 'Good. Now first of all, as Commissioner, I am not a duellist. Therefore, the Pick Your Poison no longer applies to me, although I can still pick for Birchall.'

'First of all though, Leo does not have an opponent due to Maddy's injury. But, as commissioner, I am forcing him to duel in the first round anyway. Leo, get out here to face your opponent.' Leo then came out, with Justin Pipe. "This ain't cool man- he has no opponent." 'Try saying that to the newest members of Serotonin. Accompanied by Jessica Myers, this is our Brogan Myers.'

Brogan and Jessica then came out, black masks covering their faces. When they got to the duelling zone, they took their masks off. Brogan's duel disk then materialised on her arm, and a tattoo that looked like a dead tree branch appeared on her face and went into her eye, turning her blue eyes an empty black. Leo then activated his duel disk to begin the duel.

Point of View- Maddy

Leo LP:4000 vs. Brogan Myers LP:4000

Turn 1- Brogan- 'For the glory of Serotonin, I start. I summon Cloudian Ghost Fog (Atk:0000). I end my turn.'

Turn 2- Leo- "I draw. I activate Card Destruction. This lets me throw out my entire hand and draw a new one. I now activate Junk Box, bringing back Morphtronic Scopen (Atk:800). Next I summon Morphtronic Boomboxen (Atk:1200). I now tune Level 3 Scopen and Level 4 Boomboxen, to Synchro summon my Power Tool Dragon (Atk:2300)."

"Power Tool, I'm activating your ability. I can select 3 Equip spells from my deck, and you pick a random one to add to my hand." 'Before you even draw them, I pick the middle one.' "Eh?" 'What Equip spell you get makes no difference.' "Fine. I now equip Power Tool with Break! Draw!. This lets me draw a card every time I destroy a monster of yours. So destroy Ghost Fog."

Power Tool drilled at Ghost Fog, making it vanish (Brogan LP:4000). 'When Ghost Fog is in battle with another monster, no Battle damage is applied. Also, if it's destroyed in battle, face-up monsters on the field receive a Fog Counter for every Level of the monster which destroyed Ghost Fog. Power Tool's Level 7, so I'll give Power Tool 7 Fog Counters (FC:0-7).'

"I end my turn."

Brogan- 'Draw. I activate One for One. This lets me send Cloudian – Sheep Cloud from my hand to my graveyard and summon Cloudian – Smoke Ball (Atk:200).' "That has Attack points?" 'Yeah. But it's not staying. I now tribute it to summon out Cloudian – Nimbusman (Atk:0000). Nimbusman gains a Fog Counter when Tribute summoned (FC:0-1).'

'By the way, Nimbusman's actually very dangerous. It gains 500 Attack points for each and every fog counter on the field. With 8, that's' "Wait- 8 and 500 and" 'We'll be here all day unless I tell you. It's 4000 (Atk:0000-4000).' "What's got into you?" 'I've embraced the darkness. I personify the darkness now.'

"They wiped your mind." 'And they gave me a new future. So now I'm repaying them for making me something that I could never have been otherwise. Nimbusman, how about a little wash for Power Tool.' Nimbusman breathed in hard, before releasing gallons of water from it's mouth, but Power Tool got rid of Break! Draw! to protect itself (Leo LP:4000-2300).

'If you were smart, you would have let Power Tool short-circuit.' "Why?" 'Because that would have gotten rid of 7 Fog Counters. I now activate Deck Lockdown and Cloudian Squall. Deck Lockdown prevents either of us from drawing a card outside of our Draw phase or Special summoning, and Cloudian Squall puts a Fog Counter on every monster on the field during every End phase. I end my turn (PTD FC:7-8, Nimbusman FC:1-2, Nimbusman Atk:4000-5000).'

Leo- "I draw. I tribute Power Tool Dragon to summon Gadget Hauler (Atk:1200, Nimbusman Atk:5000-1000). I now activate the ability of Gadget Hauler. I can send Morphtronics Datatron, Magnen, and Smarfon from my hand to my graveyard, and Gadget Hauler gains 600 Attack points for each (Atk:1200-3000)."

"Gadget Hauler, attack!" Gadget Hauler produced a cannon from the back of it, which loaded with electricity, zapping Nimbusman (Brogan LP:4000-2000). "I did it! I end my turn."

Brogan- 'I draw. I activate Mystical Space Typhoon. This destroys Deck Lockdown.' "What- you're destroying your own card?" 'Yeah- it's not needed anymore.' Deck Lockdown was then blown away. 'With that done, I can activate Pot of Greed, giving me 2 cards. I activate Silent Doom, letting me revive Cloudian – Smoke Ball (Def.:600).'

'I now activate Soul Exchange to tribute my Smoke Ball and your Gadget Hauler to summon Cloudian – Eye of the Typhoon (Atk:3000). Eye of the Typhoon, end it.' Eye of the Typhoon whipped up a massive typhoon, ending the duel (Leo LP:2300-0000).

After the duel, Brogan and Jessica just left. Hannah then came back out. 'After that win for Brogan, it's time to introduce Vector, who is picking my lovely hubby Phil's opponent.' Vector then came out, on his own surprisingly. 'Where's Spica?' "She ain't here- she decided that since Maddy's not making an appearance, there's no reason for her to stay."

'Good. Now I take it that you've picked an opponent for Phil, am I right?' "Oh, right you are. This one's a real tough one.' Phil then came out, uninvited. 'Right- which loser am I up against?' "This is a big bad opponent- not as… uh, big as you, but certainly fits the bad criteria." 'Go on.' "You're up against the leader of the No Remorse Corps, Lt. Claude. W. Duane."

Claude then came out, and roared, before coming down to the duelling zone. 'Before you say it Claude, I know you have no sympathy for Maddy because she embarrassed you a few weeks ago. Then again, you're used to being embarrassed probably. You would have been against me and Rio if it wasn't for Nash.' Both of them activated their duel disks, and started the duel.

Pick Your Poison: [8] Phil Robinson-Cummings LP:4000 vs. [7] Lt. Claude W. Duane LP:4000

Turn 1- Phil- 'Since I've been put in the horrible position of having to actually duel while actually listening to you, I'll begin. I set a monster and another card to end my turn.'

Claude- "I draw. I activate Cost Down. By discarding a card, I can lower the Levels of all the monsters in my hand by 2. I now summon Jurrac Herra (Atk:2300). Next I activate Monster Reborn, reviving Jurrac Tyrannus (Atk:2500). Herra, destroy that face-down monster.' Jurrac Herra shot a fireball at Phil's face-down monster (Volcanic Scattershot Def.:0000), destroying it.

'When Scattershot's destroyed, you lose 500 Life points.' Scattershot came back, to fly straight at Claude (Claude LP:4000-3500). "Tyrannus, attack directly." Tyrannus shot flames at Phil, reducing his Life points (Phil LP:4000-1500). 'I activate my face-down. It's called Meteor Flare. Because you have 3000 or more Life points, I can discard two cards to deal you with 2000 points of direct damage.'

Phil then discarded his cards, and Meteor Flare produced 3 columns of fire, surrounding Claude (Claude LP:4000-1500). "I end my turn."

Phil- 'I draw. I'm just about ready to blow your mind Claude. I activate Blaze Accelerator. But you don't need to worry about what that does, because I'm upgrading. One cannon's good, but three's the charm. I activate my Tri-Blaze Accelerator. By sending Volcanic Scattershot to the graveyard, I can destroy Tyrannus and deal you with 500 points of damage.'

Tri-Blaze Accelerator was loaded with Volcanic Scattershot, and Scattershot was shot into Claude, reducing his Life points (Claude LP:1500-1000). 'I'll continue by loading Volcanic Slicer into Tri-Blaze Accelerator.' Slicer was then loaded into the Tri-Blaze Accelerator, and fired at Claude (Claude LP:1000-500).'

"Ha- no hand left." 'Very true. I end my turn.'

Claude- "I have no idea what you're planning, but I draw." 'You're in quite the tricky situation.' "Yeah- don't remind me. Either I attack and risk you having some sort of insurance policy, or hold off and risk you drawing another Volcanic monster to load into your Tri-Blaze Accelerator. I summon Jurrac Guaiba (Atk:1700)."

"Attack him directly." 'I activate the ability of the Phoenix Defender in my graveyard. When I'm attacked with less than 1000 Life points left and no monsters on the field, I can banish him to negate your attack and draw a card. But if it's another Level 4 Fire-attribute monster, I have to discard it. I'll keep this one- Ogre of the Scarlet Sorrow.'

"Looks Level 4 to me." 'Level 4, yes. But it's not Fire-attribute.' "Fine. I have a tactic you'll recognise- Double or Nothing! This doubles the Attack points of my Guaiba for the rest of the turn (Atk:1700-3400). Now attack directly." 'I activate my Ogre's ability. When you attack me for a second time during the same Battle phase, I can summon it out. It's Attack points are equal to the Attack points of the first monster which attacked me this turn (Atk:3400). Of course, you don't have to attack.'

"I'm not stupid- I know that you'll just finish me off next turn if I do. Guaiba, forward march!" Guaiba and Ogre of the Scarlett Sorrow met in the middle, and destroyed each other. "I end my turn with a face-down."

Phil- 'I draw. Now this is what they call the end. I activate Ookazi. This will deal you with 800 points of damage.' Ookazi shot some fire at Claude to end the duel (Claude LP:500-0000).

After the duel, Blair and Rio came out to celebrate with Dad. Claude then walked over and offered his hand to him. "I don't like you but you were damn good there." Dad looked at Blair and Rio, and Rio mouthed something to Dad. He then shook Claude's hand, and Claude cheap-shotted him, before pushing Rio and Blair to the ground. He then grabbed the tag titles, and ran off, with Blair in hot pursuit. Meanwhile, Vector walked off, with Rio checking on Phil.

Shortly afterwards, Blair returned, with both the title belts on her shoulders. She quickly adjusted her bandanna, before waiting for Jesse.

Jesse then came out. 'Introducing her opponent, from the Wicked Garden, he is the Deviant- Jesse Allen.' Jesse came out with Akiza, and walked straight down to the duelling zone. When he got there, Akiza left, leaving just Jesse and Blair. "I do not understand your problem with Akiza. She doesn't control me, I swore to be of assistance to her. What about you- why do you swear alliegence to Phil?" Blair just activated her duelling disk, and Jesse did as well. "Play it that way then."

'Is Blair still smarting from earlier?' 'No- she's just focused.' 'Is she planning on officially coming out as Bi?' 'I did that for her a couple of weeks ago in that interview.' 'I mean say it herself.' 'She doesn't feel she needs to.' 'Is she disclosing her relationship with Jade?' 'No- with Jade being on the Arena course, she doesn't want Jade to get stick for a conflict of interest.'

[1] Blair Flannigan LP:4000 vs. Jesse Allen LP:4000

Turn 1- Jesse- "I'll take the first turn if you don't mind." Blair still said nothing, just staring right on through. "I activate Hidden Armory. This will remove a card from my hand to the graveyard and replace it with an Equip spell from my deck. I now summon Dragunity Dux (Atk:1500). When summoned, it equips itself with a Dragunity monster from my graveyard that's Level 3 or below. I equip it with Dragunity Phalanx."

"I now summon Dragunity Phalanx through its ability as it's equipped to Dux (Atk:500). I now tune Level 2 Phalanx with Level 4 Dux to summon out Dragunity Knight – Vajrayana (Atk:1900). Next I equip it with Dragunity Divine Lance, to give it 100 more Attack points multiplied by its Level, which is 6 (Atk:1900-2500)."

"I end my turn with a face-down. Over to you, where I hope you'll be more talkative."

Blair- 'I'm sorry, I'm just more focused than usual. I draw. I summon Gem-Knight Sapphire (Atk:0000). Next I activate Inferno Reckless Summon, letting me summon out another Sapphire (Atk:0000). I now overlay my two Level 4 Sapphires to Xyz summon Gem-Knight Pearl (Atk:2600).'

'Pearl, attack Varjayana.' "I'll stop you with Depth Amulet. I discard the only card form my hand to protect my Varjayana." 'I end my turn.'

'Dad, what makes Blair such a good duellist?' 'It's difficult to read her. Also, she's learning to trust herself more. She has good ideas, and also she's very difficult to beat.' 'How though?' 'It's down to the way she duels- she's not predictable. And she's good some very strong defensive options in her deck.'

'How much of it were you responsible for?' 'I was responsible for encouraging her to trust her instincts. I didn't actually build her deck- I built her one, and she was uncomfortable with it.' 'I didn't know that.' 'Yeah- I ended up just advising her. How you feeling now Maddy?' 'Dad, stop fussing- I'm just a bit sore, that's all.' 'Ok, that's fine.' 'Phil, you don't need to fuss over her- she's got me- her Mum.' 'Thanks Hannah.'

Jesse- "I draw. I activate Pot of Greed, letting me draw 2 cards. Next I activate Blustering Winds. This will grant an extra 1000 Attack points to Varjayana until my next Standby phase (Atk:2500-3500). I also activate the Field spell Rising Air Current. Get ready, because you're about to have your head in the clouds."

The field then changed, and they were in the middle of the sky, duelling on clouds. "This will give my Varjayana another 500 Attack points, due to its Wind-attribute (Atk:3500-4000). Varjayana, destroy Gem-Knight Pearl.' Varjayana blew apart Pearl, destroying it (Blair LP:4000-2600). "Maybe that will snap you out of whatever's going on. I end my turn."

Blair- 'Nothing's going on. I draw. I activate Monster Reborn to revive Pearl (Atk:2600). Next I activate the signature card of the Renegades- 5 Card Salute. This lets me draw until I have 5 cards. Next I activate Pot of Greed, letting me draw another 2 cards. Get ready now for Gem-Knight Garnet (Atk:1900). I now activate Gem-Knight Fusion. This lets me fuse together Gem-Knights Red Beryl and Tourmaline to Fusion summon Gem-Knight Prismaura (Atk:2450).'

"That power pales in comparison to… what's that Spell on your field?" 'It's called Particle Fusion. It lets me fuse together Pearl, Prismaura, and Garnet to summon Gem-Knight Master Diamond (Atk:2900).' "You do realise that it's nothing compared to Varjayana's 4000 Attack points." 'That's where Particle Fusion comes in. When I use it, I can banish it to select a Fusion monster that was used in the Fusion summon. Master Diamond gains its Attack points (Atk:2900-5350).'

'Master Diamond, destroy Varjayana.' Master Diamond fired shards of diamond from its shoulder pads, and they ripped through Dragunity Knight – Varjayana, destroying it (Jesse LP:4000-2650). 'I end my turn. During the End phase, the Attack points of my Master Diamond return to normal (Atk:5350-2900).'

"Good move there." Blair just stared him down. "Come on- I'm being honest here. The silence is deafening." Blair just closed her eyes. 'I can't go back to that place.' "What place?" Blair once again abstained from speaking.

Jesse- "Fine. I draw. Time to do some synchro climbing. I throw down a face-down, and summon Dragunity Legionaire (Atk:1200). Next I activate its ability to equip Dragunity Phalanx from my graveyard to it. When it's equipped like that, I can summon Phalanx (Atk:500). Next I activate Premature Burial to revive my Varjayana at the cost of 800 Life points (Atk:1900, Jesse LP:2650-1850)."

"I now tune Level 2 Phalanx with Level 5 Varjayana to Synchro summon Dragunity Knight – Trident (Atk:2400-2900). When Trident's summoned, I can send up to 3 cards from my field to my graveyard and then look through your Extra deck to send that many cards to the graveyard from it. I send my face-down Dragon Bind to the graveyard and get rid of a card from your Extra deck.'

Blair showed him her Extra deck, and he seemed to be taken aback by something. "I'll get rid of Gem-Knight Topaz." She then discarded it. "Trident, I'm equipping you with a Dragunity Divine Lance. You know what it does because I used it earlier (Atk:2900-3600). Now destroy Master Diamond."

'I activate De-Fusion, to return Master Diamond to my Extra deck and replace it with the 3 monsters used to summon it (Pearl Atk:2600, Prismaura Atk:2450, Garnet Atk:1900).' "Fine- I end my turn."

Blair- 'I draw. I summon out Gem-Knight Sapphire (Atk:0000). I now overlay Level 4 Garnet and Sapphire to build the overlay network and summon out Number 103- Ragnazero (Atk:2400).' "That cursed card. Why are you using it?" 'Because I'm not afraid- I'm done being afraid. I activate the ability of Ragnazero. She can target a monster on your field whose Attack points are different to their original Attack points, and destroy it. Then, I draw a card. Take out that Trident with Moonblade Blitz!'

Ragnazero slashed Trident with her scythe, destroying it. Blair then drew her card. 'Finish this off Pearl.' Gem-Knight Pearl rose up into the air, and came down with a kick while spinning, ending the duel (Jesse LP:1850-0000).

After the duel, Blair stood above Jesse and raised her fist. Rio and Dad then came down, and they hugged Blair. Kari and Radley then came out. "Our story isn't over. We want another shot at the WDC Tag-Team Titles." Dad then took their mic. 'No. We've beaten you 2,3, however many times. You're not getting another shot.'

"Because you're scared." 'Who said anything about being scared? We're just fed-up of you.' Rio then whispered something in his ear. 'You may have a point there.' The 3 of them then huddled together. After a good few minutes, they came up with a response. 'Right- we're willing to give you one final shot at our titles.'

"At last" 'But, there is stipulations. Number 1, it happens here and now, and Number 2, when we beat you, you never get another title shot until we lose the titles.' "Deal. Let's do this." Blair then re-activated her duel disk, but Dad pulled her back. 'Blair, let us deal with this- I promise the next one's for you.' 'Fine.' Dad and Rio activated their duel disks, as did Kari and Radley.

Last Chance Duel for the WDC Tag-Team Titles: No Remorse Corps ([46] Kari Tsukumo + [27] Radley LP:4000 vs. Control Core ([78] Rio Kastle + [8] Phil Robinson-Cummings) LP:4000

Turn 1- Phil- 'Champs go first. I draw. I summon Proto-Cyber Dragon (Atk:0000). Next, I activate Polymerisation, fusing together my Proto-Cyber Dragon, and Cyber Dragon to summon Cyber Twin Dragon (Atk:2800). I end my turn with a face-down.'

Turn 2- Kari- "I draw. I activate Pot of Greed to draw 2 cards. Next I summon out Dododo Witch (Atk:1200). Next, I activate her ability, letting me summon a Dododo monster face-down in Defence mode. Next I activate Trifecta. Because I control 2 monsters, I can summon one from my deck as long as it has less Attack points than all the monsters on your field. I summon Gagaga Mancer (Atk:100)."

"I now overlay Level 4 Gagaga Mancer and Dododo Witch to build the overlay network. I summon out Number 101- Silent Honor ARK (Atk:2100). Next, I activate Rank-up Magic Numeron Force. This ranks-up Number 101 into a Chaos Xyz monster. Go- Chaos Xyz Evolution! I summon out Chaos Number 101- Silent Honor DARK (Atk:2800)."

Nash then came out from behind them. 'You.' "Yeah- it's me. I'd love nothing better than to cost you your titles. For the way you've corrupted Marin." 'Yeah right. I was corrupted by your lies.' "You took away the 2 things that matter to me- my sister and my people." 'You turned me into a monster. I will never go back to being that wretched piece of half-human scum that I was. I can never go back- ever.'

"It is your birthright." 'My birthright was to feel safe- I wasn't ever safe with you.' "Can this wait until later? Because I activate the ability of Silent Honor DARK. By detaching a Chaos Overlay Unit, I can turn your monster into a Chaos Overlay Unit." DARK threw its staff at Cyber Twin Dragon, turning it into an overlay unit.

"Now attack them directly." Silent Honor Dark threw it's staff towards Phil, knocking him down (CC LP:4000-1200). "I end my turn with 2 face-downS."

Rio- 'You should know not to make me angry. I draw. I summon out Blizzard Falcon (Atk:1500). Next, I activate Double Summon. This lets me summon 7 Coloured Fish (Atk:1800). Now, because I control a Water-attribute monster, I summon out Silent Angler (Atk:800). Next, because I control a Fish and a Winged-Beast, I can summon Sirenorca (Atk:2200). When Sirenorca is summoned, I can make the Levels of all other monsters I control 5 (Level:4-5)x3.'

"4 Level 5 monsters?" 'Yeah. I now overlay Level 5 Sirenorca and Silent Angler to build the overlay network and summon out Ice Princess Zereort (Atk:2500). Next I activate Gishki Aquamirror. This lets me sacrifice my other 2 monsters to Ritual summon Gishki Zielgigas (Atk:3200).'

'I activate the ability of Gishki Zielgigas. By paying 1000 Life points (CC LP:1200-200), I can draw a card. If it's a Gishki monster, I can shuffle a card from your field into your hand. I draw. I drew Gishki Shadow, so say farewell to Chaos Number 101.' Zielgigas shot a pink light out of the circle on it's chest, which evaporated Chaos Number 101.

'Zielgigas, attack their Life points directly and make them pay for what they've said.' "I activate A Hero Emerges. Now you have to select a random card in Radley's hand. If it's a monster, I get to summon it." Rio then started concentrating. 'I choose second from the right.' "I summon out Gilford the Lightning (Atk:2800)." 'Zielgigas, full steam ahead!' "I activate Martyr Flag! This doubles the Attack power of Gilford for the rest of the turn (Atk:2800-5600)."

Gilford's electrified blade carved through Zielgigas, and then shot lightning towards Rio but Phil shielded her, taking the full force of the blow (CC LP:200-0000).

After the duel, Kari and Radley grabbed the tag titles, and started celebrating as Claude, Hassleberry, and Maximus came out. 'Your winners and new WDC Tag-Team Champions- the No Remorse Corps!' Meanwhile, Dad wasn't moving much, so Rio and Blair checked on him. Eventually, he got up, and him and Rio exchanged words before leaving the duelling zone together.

When they got back up, Dad just sat down. 'Don't be angry with me please Phil- I know I let you down there.' 'Rio, you made a big error. Of course I'm not angry with you- I'm disappointed. Not in you, just general we lost disappointment. It was fun teaming with you though Rio, and Blair, I'm sorry we didn't get the chance to team up.'

'Phil, it's not over. We're regaining those titles, me and Rio. You can join in if you want, we want you to, but if you don't, we'll do it ourselves. So what do you say- how about we dust ourselves off and concentrate on our rematch.' 'You're right.' 'Oh yeah, something about the rematch.' 'Go on.' 'Our rematch clause states that we can have our rematch any time, and any place.' 'If it's ok with you, me and Rio will handle the rematch.' 'As long as I get an even chance to defend.' 'We'll work something out.'

Hannah then spoke up again. 'After that very lucky win, we will continue with the Pick your Poison, because it's time for Birchall to face my hand-picked opponent.' Just then, Dad walked out again. 'Hannah, why are you even giving that loser the time of day? What you and everyone else want to see is me.'

'Phil, I'll see enough of you in bed tonight.' 'Make sure to wear some classy lingerie.' 'Oh, I will do.' Nash then interrupted. "Why do we have to listen to this?" 'We've had to listen to you harking on about how we've corrupted Rio for goodness knows how long.' "When she was in the hospital, I was there for her all the time."

'You hypnotised and kidnapped your sister within 2 weeks of her being out of the hospital.' "Not something you haven't done." 'Which bit? I'm pretty sure I've not kidnapped anyone.' "I know your dirty secrets." 'So what Onion Boy.' "What did you just call me?" 'Rio mentioned that calling you Onion Boy winds you up no end. Anyway- do you want me to duel you or do you want to continue trading insults? Because either's cool with me.'

Nash then activated his duel disk. Phil then activated his, but just as the duel began, Claude came out and randomly attacked Dad. Claude then picked Dad up and threw him down to the ground again. He was distracted though when Astrid's music hit. 'You going out there Astrid?' 'Yeah- that's not why I'm playing my music though.'

The distraction allowed Hannah to kick Claude in the back, and Astrid then came running out to brawl with Claude. Astrid was eventually overpowered though, and pushed to the ground, before Claude backed away. Astrid then grabbed a mic. 'Claude, enough is enough. You and me, one on one, that's all I want.' "Not a chance Astrid- I don't have anything to prove. Besides- I don't owe you anything."

Hannah then spoke. 'Claude, you're an idiot- I'm guessing you were trying to cost Phil the duel easily.' 'So what." 'Under the official WDC rules, a duel is commenced the moment all duellists have activated their duel disks. Therefore, your winner by disqualification- Phil.' Phil then left the duelling zone again, along with Astrid.

Soon afterwards, Kieran, Kari, and Kalin got through to the next round. 'Astrid, I don't need to ask you if you're ready.' 'I'm always ready.' 'Now we know what Pipe did to you last time.' 'Last time I wasn't focused. This time's a different story. He'll be having nightmares for weeks.' 'Show no mercy.' 'Mercy? When have you known Vikings show mercy?' 'Considering I only know the one, I've not.'

Astrid then left by herself. 'You not going with with her?' 'I want to see her win on her own. Besides- I've got a duel with Blair to prepare for.' 'How many times have you faced Blair?' 'Once.' Just then, Dad received a phone-call. 'If it's you Jodi, I thought I told you to phone Hannah.' 'It's Sakura.' 'Oh, hi- how are things.' 'I'm not wanting to chat- I saw what happened to Maddy. I want to start coming to tournaments with you- you need a doctor with you.'

'We're fine Sakura- honestly.' 'I'm not debating this- you do need me.' 'We haven't got any other trained first aiders other than Rio, Maddy, and Hannah.' 'So what- we can train people.' 'You think you can train them in 10 days?' 'Yeah.' 'If you can, we're more than happy for you to come with us.' 'Thanks. How is Maddy?' 'Speak to her if you want.'

'I thought she'd be too hurt.' 'She's not duelling today, but she's recovering.' I then passed the phone over. 'Hi Sakura.' 'Hi Maddy- I saw what happened.' 'Yeah- I don't remember any of it. The last thing I remember is having my leg kicked from under me. I think I hit my head on the ground or something.'

'You're ok now though? How bad's the injury?' 'I'm pretty banged up- a few broken ribs, bruised my kidney, and feel really unwell.' 'I'll check you over when you get home.' 'Thanks. Do I have permission to put on a first-aid course this week in the base?' 'Yeah- I think it's a great idea.' 'Thank you.' 'I'll be holding a meeting next week.'

Hannah then made the next announcement. 'Next is Birchall taking' Birchall then came out, flanked by Powerplay. "This is another injustice. If it wasn't for Rhydian, I would be on the verge of having you with me once again." 'I know you're unhappy, but there is a way we can sort that.' 'Go on.' 'This duel will have no interference. Now I thought long and hard over this, and I chose a most suitable opponent for you.'

"Get on with it." 'Introducing your opponent, from Twin Falls, Idaho, Cold Blooded Rio Kastle!' Rio then got up. 'You're his opponent?' 'Yeah- I put a deposit down.' 'You paid Hannah?' 'Yeah- she refused to accept it though. I thought she wasn't going to say yes.' 'Why wouldn't she say yes?' 'She said that she'd put me in danger once and wouldn't do it again. Also, she wanted Akiza to duel him.' 'Can I come with you Rio?' 'As long as you don't ruin the duel.' 'All I want is to keep you safe. I won't touch him. Not yet anyway.'

Dad, Blair, and Rio then went down to the duelling zone. When they got there, Powerplay went to attack them, but Phil caught them both- one in each hand- and pushed them to the ground. He then handed Rio a handful of cards. 'These might help.' 'Thanks.' 'Hey Hannah, do I have permission to be here?' 'Yes, but Powerplay are not. Security, please remove Powerplay from the building.'

Security then came out, and handcuffed David and Brooks. 'What's going on?" 'You're being arrested for Drug Possession. Just kidding- you're just being removed from the building.' They were then pulled out. 'Birchall, it's just you and me now.' "How about we give people an early taste of the shadows by creating some shadows to stop you leaving?'

Birchall produced a golden winged staff, and a purple sphere then enveloped the whole duelling zone including Phil and Blair. "Now there's no escape." 'Fine by me. Let's duel.' "This will be your end."

TO BE CONTINUED in Renegades: A New Dawn Chapter XXVII- Gut Check!