Whoo boy, I think I got a bit carried away this chapter. This duel may not seem necessary, but believe me, it's more important than you think. Time for the first true battle between light and darkness to begin. Just sit back and enjoy the ride.

Chapter 24: A Giant Problem part 1

Title Song: Anakin's Dark Deeds - Revenge of the Sith OST

Marcus gave Yusei and Crow a calm wave as they regrouped. "Any trouble?" Sarah asked.

"Nah, we gave those Security grunts a thrashing and left them in our dust. You?" Crow asked.

"Do you see handcuffs on me? It'll take more than a couple of nobody officers to beat this runner," Sarah laughed.

"Nice, now form up and follow my lead, my nest is at the base of the Daedalus Bridge," Crow pointed ahead.

The three runners rolled calmly into a convoy, and Crow led them through alleys and streets before turning a corner, allowing Marcus to sigh with relief at seeing Rally and the others already there.

"Yusei! Cro- ah!" Rally started, but was cut off as at least ten kids of various ages popped out of various hiding spots.

"Crow's back! Yay more cards!" A kid shouted as they charged out towards the orange haired rider. Marcus' brow lifted with confusion as they continued to ask Crow for cards.

"What are you kids talkin' about? You want more of my cards? You see a beard and red hat? I'm not Santa Claus," Crow frowned.

"Aw come on!" A kid pouted. This sparked a wave of protests from the other kids.

"Hold on, hold on!" Crow quickly defused the problem. "I don't have any cards, but I do have a better alternative! Presenting Yusei Fudo, the new king of turbo duels, Sarah Radcliffe and Marcus Cersy, both being quarter-finalists!"

Marcus' eyes widened as the kids turned to swarm around Yusei and Sarah's runners. "I saw your duel! I watched it ten times!" A kid grinned at Yusei.

"You both were amazing as well!" A little girl beamed at Marcus and Sarah.

"Ok, calm down, watch the paint!" Sarah chuckled as the three dismounted.

"About time you got back Crow, I was about to start searching the nearest security checkpoints," Marcus turned at the voice, seeing the other young man from earlier approaching Crow.

"Yeah well, stuff happened," Crow shrugged. "How've things been with the kids?"

"Kokoro lasted five turns against me," Kyrian, Marcus remembered Crow calling him, shrugged.

Crow grinned. "Well, a slightly bigger portion for her tonight then!"

That night, Yusei, Sarah and Marcus told Yusei's friends, Blister, Crow and Kyrian about their mission. The kids were quietly playing some duels or gently messing with Yusei and Sarah's runners, under strict instructions to not press any buttons.

"So what you're telling us is that these 'dark signers' want to destroy the entire Satellite Sector?" Nervin asked.

"Not just this side, but once they're done here, Neo Domino would be next on their agenda," Marcus frowned.

"We saw a vision of it when Yusei was duelling Jack in the Fortune Cup," Sarah added.

"So what do we do?" Asked Blitz.

"I know! We go home, pack up our stuff and use that pipeline to get outta here," Tank suggested.

"Sounds good to me, we should all go over there! I mean, I'm good with a deck but once the shuffling is done, it's all downhill after that," Nervin agreed.

"Are you kidding me?" Kyrian asked. "Forgive my bluntness, but you three are spineless cowards. This island is your home but you'd abandon it the second something scary or supernatural starts happening?"

"I know you guys are scared. I am too. But this mark has made me a part of this war, and if I don't fight these dark signers then there's no hope for anyone," Yusei said, brandishing his mark.

"Don't count us out Yusei, we're in the same boat, you heard what Goodwin said, the Star Guardians are deigned as backup for the signers, so if you're fighting, then we'll fight too."

"Don't forget me, I may not have any fancy tattoos or magical powers protecting me, but a crow never backs down from a fight, I've got my nest to protect, but they hurt your bike… and they're gone! Seriously, I mean it!" Crow joked.

"Count me in too, I may not have been here for long compared to any of you. Well… maybe longer than Rally…" Kyrian said, getting an indignant 'Hey!' from said boy, "But Satellite has been good to me, I owe Crow and Martha and the old Doc for keeping me alive, and I realise I need to start giving some of that debt back, so I'll fight these dark bozos."

"Crow, can you or Kyrian tell us a story before bed?" Asked one of the older kids.

"Hmm… let me think…" Crow started, but Marcus held up a hand. "Got anything?"

"I do… it's a story my grandma told me a long time ago." Marcus nodded. "Gather around kids, let me tell you of one of the best underdogs my grandma ever met."

"She met him while they were in school. Duel monsters were still rather new in her days, but this guy… he was on his way to becoming a pro and he didn't even know it. Grandma duelled him once, and her deck of spellcasters were wiped out by this guy and his warriors and pot luck.

"Anyway, my grandma was a pretty decent player back then, but this guy wiped the floor with her. He then went on to getting pretty far in a tournament, before getting beaten himself. Even though his odds were stacked against him, he fought with all his power, his ace monster, his spells, his traps, he did his absolute best, but this guy, who was better than him, got past him.

"The moral of this story is; that no matter how hard things may seem, just believe in yourself and your cards, sometimes things may seem tough, but it's the fact that you never give up, never stop going for your dream until the last card is played. You kids still have a full deck, plenty of cards to help guide you on your way into the better lives."

"Nice story," Kyrian nodded. "A tale of being the underdog but never giving up? I can see the appeal of such a story."

Crow and Kyrian ushered the kids off to bed. "About that bridge though, isn't it a shame that it was forced to stop being built?" Tank muttered.

"Yeah, the tale of the stranger who started building it by himself, inspiring others to help before being shut down by Security? The stranger who rode into the air and disappeared into the history books?" Blitz nodded.

"That bridge is a joke," Blister snorted. "It'll take more than hope and dreams to connect Neo Domino with the Satellite."

"Maybe…" Yusei sighed, "But that doesn't mean I can't try."

"Huh?" Crow and Sarah glanced at each other.

"It's late, we should get to bed too," Yusei suggested.

None of them noticed a spider disappear into the shadows.

In the deep of the Satellite, the spider landed on the hand of one of the Dark Signers. "It's Yusei Fudo, and with him is Sarah Radcliffe and Marcus Cersy," He mused, the spider seemingly reporting what it saw. "They're near the bridge. If we can beat them, our power will be all but unstoppable in the war. I shall find them and challenge them all!" He said.

"No!" The young blue haired man snarled. "Yusei is mine, I have a debt to collect."

"And Marcus is mine, find your own prey Roman," Hikari sneered. "Come on Kalin, we've got payback to give."

"Very well. Happy hunting you two,"

Marcus' eyes drifted open to the faint sound of wheels on rough concrete. "Going somewhere?" He asked, spotting Yusei leaving camp.

"Little late for a joyride, isn't it Yusei?" Crow had also caught the raven-haired rider.

"So what if I am?" Yusei asked.

"Yusei, I need to remind you of this again, don't I?" Marcus lifted his hand, the yellow faded mark obvious to see. "I'm in the same boat as you. Besides… one of theirs and I have some unfinished business."

"If you're planning on duelling, then I'm coming too," Crow declared.

"It's too dangerous out there, just go back to bed, both of you," Yusei said, much to Marcus' anger. "This is my battle."

"Yusei Fudo…!" Marcus growled. "No way. I will not allow you to say something as ridiculous as 'your battle'. Look, the night you had your duel with that drone, I duelled someone too, someone who has it out for me. If you show up, she'll rip you to shreds, deck or not. I am coming. I have to make things right with her."

"And just try and stop me," Crow smirked.

"I've already put enough people in danger guys," Yusei said, pushing his runner away.

Marcus and Crow got in front of him, neither of them impressed with the Signer's actions.

"Hold on!" Crow snapped. "Who is going to watch your back against these dark signers, huh?"

"Crow, this isn't just another duel, they play for keeps, and I'm not talking about your deck. They put up some kind of force field and it doesn't go down until the duel is over," Yusei said.

"Yeah. I know. She did it to me, trapped me in this ring of purple fire and it didn't go away until she decided to leave the duel unfinished," Marcus nodded. "And don't even start about the real damage, one of her cards put a hole in the Duel Academy roof! I'm still feeling the splash damage she gave me."

"Hoo boy." Crow rubbed his forehead, "You sure haven't lightened up, but you're not the only one with something to lose here Yusei. All those kids. If you lose then we all do, so count me in."

"There's no going back," Yusei gave his final warning. But Crow wasn't taking no for an answer, and neither was Marcus. "Well, in that case… let's go," He gave a small smile.

"About time you three figured out your plan, now shall we get rolling or what?" All three noted Sarah leaning against the Black Spirit. She gave a scary glare to Yusei. "Don't even think about making me back down, if I can help it, Kione will never have to fight a real dark signer. That the drone she faced will be the worst of it. And I'm sure Marcus would prefer it if Emma never had to duel one at all."

"Glad to have you with us, Spook," Crow grinned, holding out a fist. "Now you guys had better promise to save some dark signer butt for me to kick." Sarah, Marcus and Yusei all threw in their fists too. "Now where are we going?" He asked.

"I'm not going there!" He said five minutes later, when the three runners were racing down the roads. "The BLH?" He asked. "What do you expect to find there except Tetanus?"

"Funny, but I think Goodwin was pointing it to us," Yusei shrugged off Crow's humour.

"Never trust a guy with a ponytail Yusei, but if you say so," Crow muttered. "Follow me, I know the quickest route."

"Wake up! Yusei's gone!" Kyrian groaned as Rally's high-pitched alert ripped through the nest.

"Looks like Crow, Sarah and Marcus took off too," Blitz observed, tying his bandana up tightly. Kyrian leapt to his feet.

"What if the dark signers got them?" Tank asked nervously.

"You think?" Rally asked.

"Dunno," Kyrian muttered. "But standing around here won't solve much, come on." He said.

"Yusei's gone! You stay here in case they come back while we're looking ok?" Nervin asked Blister, who gave a chill salute as confirmation.

"Let's split up, we'll cover more ground, I'll go with Rally," Kyrian said.

"Ok," Kyrian gave a nod of approval as Yusei's friends agreed with his idea, branching off in different directions.

"Look at this fog! It's like I'm driving with a blindfold!" Crow muttered.

"Eyes peeled, anything could happen," Sarah muttered.

Suddenly, a purple light started glowing in the fog, and Marcus winced as his mark lit bright with gold. "Does that count as something?" He grit his teeth.

"Please tell me I'm seeing things," Crow mumbled.

"No… I see it too," Sarah nodded.

The four rode on towards a purple giant of light.

Back in the city, Jack Atlas gazed at his arm with slight worry for his old friend. Leo and Luna gazed at Luna's claw mark, praying for Yusei and Marcus' safety. In Daiki's apartment, Kione and Emma shared a look of terror as they felt the danger their elder siblings were heading towards. Daiki and Akiza gazed out at Neo Domino and the Satellite, marks glowing brightly as they worried for their friends.

As they drove on towards the light, suddenly it disappeared. "The light's gone, is that good or bad?" Asked Crow.

"In my experience, anything that looks bad is bad," Yusei pointed out.

"He has a point!" Marcus agreed.

Suddenly a card sliced right past Crow, as another arced across Sarah's visor. Both runners took evasive action, screeching to a halt.

"Are you both ok?" Yusei asked.

"Yeah, sure," Crow nodded.

"Whoever threw it is a lousy shot," Sarah added.

Marcus glanced at the cards. Vorse Raider and Cup of Ace? I don't recognise the former, but that's…!

"Yusei! And his bird-brained friends!" An unknown voice laughed.

"Let's not forget Marcus," Marcus stiffened at the second voice. All four heads turned to see two figures, one on a runner, the other on foot, both wearing dark robes with blue trim over an outfit. The male was wearing a red torn shirt and black pants with the same pattern as his cloak.

The one on foot, Marcus instantly recognised.

"You don't know how long I've waited for this moment! It's a shame it'll be over so quickly!" The male voice laughed.

"Who are you? How do you know our names?" Yusei asked.

"I never forgot old friend," The rider spat out the last word, before dramatically removing his cloak, as did the girl.

Marcus didn't recognise the male, but he had pale blue hair and like Hikari, his eyes were black with yellow pupils. A mark that resembled a facility mark went from forehead to cheek on the right side of his face, but Marcus' eyes hardened as he stared at Hikari Kessler.

Meanwhile, Yusei, Sarah and Crow all gasped at the sight of the other. "Kalin Kessler?!" Yusei asked in shock. "Is that really you?!"

"We thought when you left the Satellite, it was forever!" Crow added, equally shocked.

"No way… Kalin… you're with them?" Sarah realised.

"Gold star for Sarah! When I left the Satellite, it was forever! But thanks to those marks of yours, Kalin is back! And while I was away, I made some new friends! I believe you've already duelled some of my associates?"

"Kalin, please! You have to stop what you're planning to do to the Satellite! You were once our friend!" Yusei demanded.

"Once your friend, yes. But now? Your ENEMY!" Kalin snapped on his helmet, charging down towards the trio of runners while Hikari calmly dropped to join him, walking towards them.

Purple flames suddenly ripped up the ground, forming an intricate labyrinth of twists and turns and straights. Marcus looked up as what looked like the giant Nazca geoglyph formed in the sky.

"Divide! Now!" Yusei warned the others, Marcus and Sarah quickly manoeuvred to avoid the flames, but now they were separated from Yusei and Kalin.

"Marcus, hold your hand, I have no intention of duelling tonight. Besides, Kalin's duelling his enemy, we'll settle our score at a later time," Hikari said, the flames suddenly parting to let her through without trouble.

"Know her?" Sarah asked.

"Yeah. Sarah Radcliffe, Crow Hogan, I'd like you to meet… my former partner from Duel Academy island. Hikari Kessler." Marcus winced.

"You know, there's worse ways to describe me as your ex, but it'll do," Hikari snorted.

"Go keep an eye on Yusei's duel, I'll watch Marcus' back." Sarah said.

"Hold. Like I said, I'm not duelling tonight. Reading my fortune, I didn't see any conflict in my future, so I realise that while we will settle our score, tonight I'm here to keep an eye on my little brother," Hikari shook off Sarah's worries.

"Believe it or not Sarah, I trust her. Hikari's fortune readings were never wrong," Marcus sighed, lowering his duel disk.

"Let's move to higher ground. You, Radcliffe, monitor the duel through your runner," Hikari said.

The bizarre trio climbed a toppled building, just as the duel was about to begin. "So what's the story between Yusei and your brother?" Marcus asked.

"Yusei and his friends betrayed Kalin, ratted him out to Sector Security, they were a duel gang, a damn good one too, but then things changed," Hikari shrugged.

"Betrayed? That doesn't sound like Yusei or Crow. Maybe Jack, but not back then. He wasn't near enough the snob he is now," Sarah muttered.

"Believe what you will. Kalin died in prison, and this is him reborn stronger than ever. Yusei Fudo doesn't stand a chance," Hikari sneered.

As they talked, a security helicopter suddenly flew overhead, and Marcus' eye just caught Jack's white coat.

"Jack?" Sarah asked.

"Oh? It seems the entire team is back together! Oh, this will take the duel down memory lane!" Hikari smirked.

Marcus noticed the chopper was struggling to stay airborne and pulled back up before it crashed.

"Sarah, what do you know of Kalin?" Asked Marcus.

"Kalin was the leader of a small gang called Team Satisfaction. His members were Yusei, Jack, Crow, and me from time to time when I wasn't taking care of Kione," Sarah sighed. "He was great with a deck and was the glue which bound us together. He taught us to believe in ourselves and showed us that we could guide Satellite to a better future.

"At first, things were going well, we took down duel gang after duel gang, clearing the Satellite, district by district, until there was one gang left, us. Things got quiet, and Kalin clearly wanted it to stay that way. He started targeting anyone with a duel disk or a deck of cards, making sure they would never be a potential threat.

"He went after kids, and that was the last straw for me, Crow and Jack, and we broke up. Yusei stayed, but not for long, because Kalin decided to take on Sector Security, the idiot," Sarah sighed. "That night wasn't good. When I got word of the issue, it was too late. Kalin had already snapped, both his own mental state, and an officer's neck. Yusei tried to surrender, make it seem like he was the boss. But Security snagged Kalin, who saw Yusei being pat on the back, thinking Yusei had ratted him out."

"The duel is starting, let's get a play-by-play," Hikari said.

"Yeah yeah, keep your wig on," Sarah mumbled, patching into the duel feed.

K: 4000 SC: 0
Y: 4000 SC: 0

Kalin made the first move, "I'll start by summoning Infernity Beast!"

Infernity Beast – DARK/Beast – Lvl 3 – (1600/1200).

"With him in play, I'll set one face-down and end my turn," Kalin smirked.

Yusei drew his card.

Both: SC: 1

"I summon Speed Warrior!" He started.

Speed Warrior – WIND/Warrior – Lvl 2 – (900/400).

"Is that really the best he's got?" Hikari scoffed.

"Give it a second," Marcus advised.

"During the battle phase of the turn Speed Warrior is summoned, his attack points double!" Yusei said.

Speed Warrior – (1800/400).

"Speed Warrior, get in there and send that Beast of his to the pound!" Yusei commanded.

"That's not like Yusei, he never leaps before he looks," Sarah mumbled.

Kalin countered. "Not so fast Yusei! I play the trap, Depth Amulet! With this, I discard one card to negate an incoming attack!"

"Goodwin's pet will never win with a deck like that, Kalin's been prepping for this duel for ages. He knows Yusei's deck inside and out," Hikari said.

"Eh, I think you'll be surprised by some of Yusei's cards," Marcus smirked.

"I'll place two face-downs and end my turn," Yusei said.

Kalin started his turn.

Both: SC: 2

"From my hand, I'm summoning Infernity Archfiend!" He said.

Infernity Archfiend – DARK/Fiend – Lvl 4 – (1800/1200).

"An Infernity archtype deck? Interesting… never faced one," Marcus muttered.

"They weren't that common back on the island, everyone was too busy trying to copy Jaden Yuki, the Truesdale brothers, Alexis Rhodes or Princeton," Hikari agreed. "But Kalin clicked with it, get ready, you haven't seen anything yet."

"Infernity Beast, attack Speed Warrior!" Kalin commanded. From our view, we could see fire wash over Yusei and his monster.

K: 4000
Y: 3300

"Careful Yusei, don't spin out too soon! There's tons more pain to dish out before you kick the bucket," Kalin laughed. "The power of the darkness really suits me! Duels are much more exciting when you can dish out real pain!"

Yusei recovered from the turbulence Kalin's monster gave him. "In fact, I like it so much, I think I'll dish out even more! Infernity Archfiend! Attack Yusei directly!"

A large purple circle appeared above Yusei, and a massive red claw began to fall through, descending on the Signer.

"Incoming!" Marcus gasped.

"Don't let it hit you!" Sarah agreed.

"Nah, just let it squash you!" Hikari jeered.

"The power of the shadows may be impressive, but they're still no match for my Scrap-Iron Scarecrow! With it, I can negate one attack, and then my trap is reset!" Yusei called out.

Marcus and Sarah both sighed with relief while Hikari sneered.

"Jeez Yusei, have you even changed your deck even once since grade school? You've been using the same cards as always. Not me though. This face-down isn't anything like your scarecrow, oh no. It's something brand new!" Kalin cried out, before slapping down the card and ending his turn.

"It's my move then!" Yusei said, tearing the card from his deck.

Both: SC: 3

"Like I always say Kalin, if it isn't broken, it doesn't need improving. Take Junk Synchron for example!" He said, slapping down the new card.

Junk Synchron – DARK/Warrior – Lvl 3 – (1300/500).

"That's it Yusei, rip him up!" Marcus pumped his fist.

"And with Junk Synchron's effect comes back another old but gold friend. Welcome back Speed Warrior!" Yusei called out.

Speed Warrior – WIND/Warrior – Lvl 2 – (900/400).

"And since we're playing the album known as Yusei's greatest hits, let's keep the record running with another timeless classic! Level 2 Speed Warrior gets a tuning from level 3 Junk Synchron!

"Gathering stars will call upon a new force! Become the path it's light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Show yourself, Junk Warrior!"

Junk Warrior – DARK/Warrior – Lvl 5 – (2300/1300).

"Hard to argue with that guy," Marcus shrugged.

"Not bad, but still too predictable Yusei!" Kalin smirked.

"Well how's this for 'predictable'? I play the trap; Shard of Hope! Now if you take damage, I can draw a card, and if it's a trap, I get to activate it!" Yusei fired back.

"Is he forgetting Kalin's trap already?" Hikari laughed.

"And with your monsters in attack position, that damage is coming sooner than you think!" Yusei continued.

"Don't be so sure Yusei. I still have my trap in play!" Kalin reminded him.

"Hmm… from past experiences with Kalin, he hated having an empty hand. There's no way he'd keep ditching cards just to get out without a scratch," Sarah frowned.

"Unless… oh… what is it… something we learnt in class recently…" Marcus thought.

"Junk Warrior, let's see what he's up to, attack Infernity Beast!" Yusei ordered.

"Infernity… discarding cards…!" Marcus' eyes widened. "That's what he wants!" He gasped.

Kalin threw a card into the graveyard. "When I said I upped my game, I wasn't just talking about the cards in my deck Yusei! I've got a completely new playstyle!" Kalin smirked. "Depth Amulet cancels your attack!"

"Looks like Kalin's got some new tricks up his sleeve," Yusei thought aloud.

"Well this next trick might just make you disappear!" Kalin smirked.

He started his turn, drawing.

Both: SC: 4

"I sacrifice both my monsters to bring forth a whole new kind of creature! After all, one good tune deserves another!" Kalin said. "I advance summon Dark Tuner Nightmare Hand!"

Dark Tuner Nightmare Hand – DARK/Warrior – Lvl 10 – (0/0).

"Dark tuner? What's that?" Marcus frowned.

"Whatever it is… it's got your ex in a good mood, so I'm guessing it's bad for Yusei," Sarah muttered.

"But with a dark tuner on your field…" Yusei mused.

"You guessed it! I'm able to summon another monster from my hand!" Kalin smirked. "And this isn't one of those cheap cards we got off the streets. Meet Infernity Dwarf!"

Infernity Dwarf – DARK/Warrior – Lvl 2 – (800/500).

"Sure he might be tiny, but the old saying is that big things come in small packages, and that has never been more true than now because I'm dark tuning him with Nightmare Hand!

"When the curtain of darkness comes down, the eyes of the underworld will open. Swoop down, darkness! Dark Synchro! Show yourself, One-Hundred Eye Dragon!"

Marcus could see the summoning take place, ten stars broke free from Nightmare Hand, and they burrowed their way into Infernity Dwarf. Two stars disappeared, and the stars turned black, blasting apart the monster, spinning around before summoning the new beast. As the name suggested, he had one hundred eyes, which all opened and looked around, as a mighty black and purple dragon emerged.

One-Hundred Eye Dragon – DARK/Dragon – Lvl -8 – (3000/2500).

"Hold on, negative level 8? That doesn't seem… right…" Sarah frowned.

"Not a majestic dragon in the slightest…" Marcus agreed.

"Now Yusei's really had it! That thing is such a good card!" Hikari giggled with maniacal glee.

"Just wait until you see him in battle! One-Hundred Eye Dragon, attack!" Kalin yelled.

"I play my trap, Scrap-Iron Scarecrow!" Yusei countered.

"That's the move I was expecting you to defend with! I guess old habits are hard to kill! Perhaps my dragon's abilities will help you turn over a new leaf!" Kalin laughed, as Hikari burst into laughter beside Marcus and Sarah.

"Abilities?" Yusei asked.

"That's right! One-Hundred Eye Dragon can absorb the effect of any dark monster in my graveyard!" Kalin grinned. "And I think we'll start with Infernity Beast! Now, thanks to my beast, or rather, thanks to my dragon, if I have zero cards in my hand, which I do, you can't activate any spells or traps!"

"Uh oh…" Marcus mumbled.

"Not good!" Sarah agreed.

"Now, let's try that attack again!" Kalin laughed, as One-Hundred Eye Dragon fired a purple beam of evil power, immolating Junk Warrior and sending Yusei into a nasty spin.

"YUSEI!" Marcus and Sarah both gasped.

K: 4000
Y: 2600

"Yes! Dance the dance of death Yusei!" Kalin smirked.

Yusei recovered, rejoining the duel. "It's my turn," He said.

Both: SC: 5

"I summon Rockstone Warrior in defence mode!" He said.

Rockstone Warrior – EARTH/Rock – Lvl 4 – (1800/1600).

"Please. You're just delaying the inevitable," Kalin sneered.

"Tell that to my face-down," Yusei said.

"Well… not that it matters, but now you can attack me next round due to my Depth Amulet running out of time," Kalin shrugged. "Or you can continue sitting there while I kick your tailpipe all over the Satellite!"

Yusei and Kalin started talking again. Sarah frowned as she recalled the raid they were on about. "That was the last one, and I was able to come along at that time," She told Marcus.

Flashback

Five figures walked down the street, heading into the Downtown Sector of Satellite. Their mission; clear the district of the last opposing duel gang. Kalin, Yusei, Crow, Jack and their part-time member, Sarah.

The young spirit duellist wore the same torn brown jacket that the boys wore, a black and purple tank-top beneath and wearing black cargo pants and black boots.

Stopping in the streets, the five members of Team Satisfaction looked around. "Peekaboo, I see you!" Kalin smirked.

Gang members crawled out of every nook in the walls. "Don't look now guys and girl, but I think they got us surrounded," Crow groaned.

"Looks like we've got our work cut out for us," Sarah sighed.

Kalin laughed. "These are the odds I like! After all, there's no fun if there's no challenge," He smirked. "Let's DUEL!"

The five sprung into action. "Eeny meenie, miny moe, catch a duellist by the toe," Crow chuckled, Sarah glanced over to see him wrangling with four opponents at once.

"If he hollers, let him go… because Twin Sword Marauder's joining the show!" Jack finished, already winning a duel.

Sarah took her grapple hook, carefully snaring it to a man's duel disk in one of the buildings. "Careful now, you might find things get a bit… windy around me," She grinned, making the first move, summoning Shinobird Crane.

She didn't even break a sweat, a two turn kill. She was about to sling her next foe, when she noted that Kalin was missing and Yusei was on the rooftop.

Sarah headed to the roof, where she snagged two opponents at once. "Oh no… I'm outnumbered… whatever will I do?" She asked.

Again, too easy, and she left their sparking duel disks behind. About to swing for her fourth target, she saw that Yusei was falling from the rooftops.

"Yusei!" Crow and Jack yelled, in the middle of duels. Sarah started winding up her grapple hook, but Kalin got there first, catching the raven-haired young man before he fell.

Flashback end

"That was the last time Kalin ever really showed any compassion to anyone, he snapped just after that raid," Sarah sighed.

"How ironic! To think I saved you that day, and now all I want to do is end your meaningless life!" Kalin snickered. He drew his card. "I was such a fool, but I'm wiser now!"

Both: SC: 6

"I activate the speed spell known as Power Baton! You know all about speed, don't you Yusei? After all, you were pretty quick to betray me! This lets me choose a monster in my deck and send it to the graveyard. Then my dragon gets a tasty little treat, all the attack points of the sent monster are added to his!"

He flipped over the card he chose. "I think the 2300 attack points of my Infernity Destroyer should do the trick!"

"Wait… what?!" Sarah asked.

"What?" Yusei gasped.

"Now it's been a while since I cracked open a math book, but I'm pretty sure my dragon has now got enough power to send you and your deck to your doom!" Kalin cackled.

One-Hundred Eye Dragon – (5300/2500).

"5300 attack points? Overkill much?" Marcus asked.

"Don't forget Yusei's Rockstone Warrior, he should be fine," Sarah assured him.

"Now for the main event! I activate One-Hundred Eye Dragon's special ability! Now he gains the power of Infernity Dwarf, meaning now if my dragon attacks your defence position monster, then the difference comes out as damage to you!" Kalin grinned.

"Ok, I spoke too soon!" Sarah frowned.

"Attack!" Kalin laughed.

Yusei and his monster were swallowed by another purple blast. Marcus noted that lifepoints hadn't changed.

"Rockstone's got special abilities too, such as when he's destroyed, all battle damage I would take is reduced to zero!" Yusei called out, a barrier carving through the breath attack.

"Still hanging on? That's fine, I now have more chances to toy with you before I wipe you out for good! I told you that rainy night that I'd make you pay. Now look, you're down to your last two cards in your hand! You couldn't take out a Kuriboh, let alone my One-Hundred Eye Dragon!"

He laughed. "Just like before, remember? I had your fate in my hands!"

"I remember!" Yusei snapped. "You saved me. What happened? What happened to my best friend?!"

Flashback

Sarah gasped as she watched Kalin hold Yusei. She was still winding up a throw, just in case. Suddenly the railing began to buckle, warping as it bent over, causing Kalin to start to fall too.

"Kalin! That railing! It won't hold the both of you!" Sarah gasped.

"She's right! Just let go, you have to-!" Yusei was cut off.

"No way! You see, we're bros! If you fall then I fall too! Now shut up and start climbing!"

End flashback

"You're right, I should have let you fall! And now I'm going to make up for it! Now, back to the duel. Time for my dragon to make use of another ability! This time it's Infernity Destroyer! He's going to let you experience the pain I've been shouldering for all these years! If I have no cards in my hand, you take 800 damage when my dragon destroys a monster like your warrior!" Kalin snapped.

A quick but massive blast shot from One-Hundred Eye Dragon's largest eye on it's chest.

Flashback

Kalin and Crow began pulling Yusei back up. Sarah noted a streetlamp, and hooked it, swinging over to catch the thug that tried to kill Yusei. "Oi. No escape for you ugly!" She snapped.

"Nobody's kicking me out of my turf," The thug said, running for the stairwell.

Suddenly it opened, a boot colliding with the gang member's stomach. "You were saying?" Sarah asked dryly.

"That's the last one. Both in this gang, and gangs overall," Jack reported.

The boys jumped over, and they pulled out the map with each district. "That's it. We did it… now Kione and the kids are safe…" Sarah sighed.

"Yup, no more gangs," Yusei grinned.

"We're the top duellists in Satellite!" Kalin nodded.

"Guess we're out of opponents," Crow laughed.

"I guess we fight ourselves now!" Jack joked.

This brought a round of laughs from everyone. "In that case, come on birdbrain, let's settle who's the better winged-beast user!" Sarah chuckled, holding up a fist.

"And I've got Yusei!" Jack laughed.

"In your dreams Jack!" Yusei shot back.

"Guess we've got to find a new enemy!" Kalin threw the map into the wind.

Flashback end

"And when I did, you turned your back on me!" Kalin snapped as his attack hit Yusei, knocking him into the air and into the flames.

"Yusei!" Marcus gasped.

"Come on! You've had worse!" Sarah encouraged him.

The two watched Kalin's perspective, Yusei was riding on the flame wall, before leaping back to ground level.

"So… it was that night. The night you got blinded by your dream. The night that we had to stop you from going too far," Yusei frowned.

"Shut up Yusei! You convinced Sarah, Jack and Crow to betray me when I went and took on the ultimate duel gang, Sector Security! You let me fall hard and fast, and I'm here to make good on my promise," Kalin snarled.

'Mark my words, you'll pay for this!' Sarah winced as she remembered Kalin's threat.

"Like I said, your dream blinded you. And now that I know you're duelling to destroy, I'm going to take you out!" Yusei frowned.

"You're wrong… because your days of duelling are about to end!" Kalin yelled back.

It was always about ending, destroying, defeating… you never once considered beginning, building or creating… it's the reason I left… because you made the biggest mistake in your life… Sarah frowned. The day you almost broke my sister's future.

Sarah: A 2 parter?

Marcus: Looks like there's still plenty more hurt where that came from, Kalin means business!

Daiki: I hope Yusei pulls it off, otherwise we're finished.

Kione and Emma: No pressure!

All: Next time: A Giant Problem Part 2