Alright, I have to get something off my chest.

No, this is not me saying that I'm abandoning this story, so don't worry. What I want to say is that, when I planned on writing this story, I didn't plan on there being so many professional wrestling themes. That sort of just happened, and I do like the idea of Duel Monsters sort of mingling with pro wrestling.

So there's going to be a lot more nods to pro wrestling in the story, and a few people may make cameo's ... and some characters may somehow become related to other wrestlers. After all... wrestling has more than one royal family.

On a sadder note in all of this. The whole reason I came to this decision, was the passing of Mr. Brody Lee/Jon Huber. this chapter is dedicated to him.

It's Saturday, and you know what that means.

"I can't believe you lost…" Syrus sounded dismayed as Jaden took a seat next to the smaller Slifer, who had saved the seat for him.

Jaden gave his friend a reassuring pat on the shoulder, smiling that perpetual smile of his. "Relax Sy, I'm still gonna compete in the School Duel. I'm just competing in the opening tag match, instead of the singles duels."

"Wait, you're still competing!?" Syrus sounded like he had just gotten a promotion to Obelisk Blue. Jaden just laughed, and ruffled Syrus' hair.


Down on the main dueling platform, Sheppard was making ready to announce the next upcoming duel. He smiled at the evident excitement that came from the students gathered. "Ladies and gentlemen, it's now time for our second contendership duel! Introducing first, from the Ra Yellow dorms, Bastion Misawa!"

The lights in the arena dimmed, much to the excitement of those gathered. The sound of a piano building up to creciendo played through the speakers, and upon reaching its peak…

'GLORIOUS!

NO I WON'T GIVE IN, I WON'T GIVE IN, UNTIL I'M VICTORIOUS!

AND I WILL DEFEND, I WILL DEFEND!'

A bright white spotlight hit the entrance tunnel, and there was Bastion. The Ra was basking in the cheers of the crowd, before he made his way towards the dueling platform. He smiled brightly, when he heard a good portion of the crowd singing along to his music. He turned back towards the entrance tunnel, spreading his arms as he gestured up towards the jumbo-tron above the tunnel. The word GLORIOUS scrolled across it, before the second verse of his entrance music played.

'GLORIOUS!

NO I WON'T GIVE IN, I WON'T GIVE IN, UNTIL I'M VICTORIOUS!

AND I WILL DEFEND, I WILL DEFEND!

AND I'LL DO ONE OF US!

NO I WON'T GIVE IN, I WON'T GIVE IN!

OH SO GLORIOUS!

AND I WILL DEFEND, I WILL DEFEND!'

Chancellor Sheppard chuckled. He certainly loved how into big matches his students seemed to get. After gently clapping Bastion's shoulder, and wishing him good luck, he took to his microphone once again. "And now, ladies and gentlemen…!"

The three students began to cheer loudly, some even beginning to chant "Burn It Down!"

"Introducing, from the Obelisk Blue Dorms … Yuki Hyoudou!"

'BURN IT DOWN!'

All the gathered students cried out in unison. Their combined voices were so loud, the windows just outside of the arena shook, and all the birds nested on the island took off all at once. Yuki really did have to thank his twin sister for this music, as he made his way out of the entrance tunnel, and towards the dueling platform to tumultuous applause.

Bastion couldn't help but chuckle. "Yuki, you certainly have gotten over your fear of crowds."

"Alright you two, shake hands." Sheppard smiled, when the two students listened and shook hands. A rectangular platform then rose up between the two duelists. Both Yuki and Bastion placed their respective decks down on it, before shuffling the others deck.

"I hope you're ready for this Yuki." Even though there was a kind smile on his face, there was a determined look in the British boy's eyes as he set Yuki's deck back onto the platform.

"I'm more than ready, and don't hold back." Yuki had the same determined look in his eyes, as he too set Bastion's deck back onto the platform. "And don't expect me to do the same."

"I would be disappointed if you didn't go all out." Bastion had placed his deck into the main slot of his duel disk once the rectangular platform had descended.

Yuki then turned his attention to Chancellor Sheppard. "Sir, one more thing. If Bastion ends up winning, I want him immediately promoted to Obelisk."

Clearly shocked, both Bastion and the head of Duel Academy fixed the young Obelisk with a questioning look. "That's normally not how we do things Yuki."

"Sir." The dragon using young man said, with a serious look in his eyes. "If I've gotta give Bastion the jacket off of my shoulders after this duel, or swap dorms to get him into Blue, I'll do it. You did say that you would only accept the jacket if you defeated me right? Well this is your chance Bastion. I say you'll have earned this." Yuki pointed to his blue and white jacket. "You end up beating me, and end my undefeated streak, I say there's no doubt you would belong in Obelisk."

A bright smile spread across Bastion's face, and the Ra nodded. "Then I accept your offer Yuki."

"Well then…" Yuki began. Holding up his own duel disk, and placing his deck into the main slot.

"LET'S DUEL!"

Yuki-LP 4000

Bastion-LP 4000

"All the same to you, I would prefer to go first." Bastion declared, as he drew his five cards, and then his sixth. "Ah, a perfect hand. And I'd like you to know something Yuki, I've taken a page out of your book. Just like when you made a deck to counter your sister, this deck was made with the sole purpose of defeating you. Behold the field spell, Pacifis, The Phantasmal City!"

The playing field was suddenly submerged in water. Plunging the two into what looked like a deep sea ruin.


Up in the stands, Kai looked rather worried. "Uh-oh… If Bastion's playing the Phantasm Spiral monsters, Yuki could be in for a rough time. Especially if he's going for the OTK the ace of the archetype can pull off…"

Fujin shook her head. Her arms were crossed over her chest, while she observed Bastion's opening move. "I doubt it. That OTK takes way too long to set up, and there's too many ways that can go wrong. I don't think that's his strategy."

"Heh, leave it to the OTK queen to know." Kai's remark earned him a wink from the purple haired Obelisk.


"I will end my turn by placing two cards face down." Bastion declared, slotting his chosen cards into his duel disk.

'Okay, what's Bastion thinking…? no monsters on his field? He must be banking on his two face down cards.' Yuki thought, as his turn began. Taking his sixth card, a smile crossed his face. He'd drawn his Thunder Dragon, and he had two of the cards that he had won from Char. "Alright, I'll mirror you. I'll set two of my own cards face down, then by sending the Thunder Dragon in my hand to the graveyard, I can add two more into my hand."

'Going for his Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon already? Well I can't say I wasn't expecting him to fusion summon so early, but I won't complain.' Bastion had a smile on his face, as a closed clamshell appeared on his field, occupying a space in his monster zone.

"...okay what is that?" Yuki had stopped in mid-move when he saw the clamshell.

"A token." Bastion answered, and there was a smile on his face. As if he knew something that Yuki didn't. "You see Yuki, thanks to my field spell, whenever you activate anything while I have Pacifis, The Phantasmal City on my field, a spiral token appears on my field."

Spiral Token Def-100

'Right, I'll need to play carefully then.' Yuki's turn then continued. "So now with my two Thunder Dragon's on my field, I'll activate Polymerization!"

"Oh no you won't!" Bastion declared, flipping up one of his set cards. "I activate my trap card; Cursed Seal of the Forbidden Spell!"

"Oh not good…" Yuki's face had gone pale, when he saw Bastion's trap card.

"You're correct, it isn't good for you. By discarding one card, I'm allowed to negate and destroy one spell card you've played, and you are unable to use any other cards of the same name for the rest of the duel!"


"That's not good…" Alexis frowned, worried for Yuki's chances. "Yuki might not rely fully on fusions like Jaden, but they're an integral part of his dragons."


"Alright then, then I'll just do this!" Yuki took another card from his duel disk, and placed it into the field spell slot in his duel disk. "I'll cancel out your underwater city, by playing Fusion Gate!" The underwater city vanished, and all the water soon followed as if someone pulled an unseen plug from an invisible drain.

"Now I'm able to use fusions without the need for my fusion card! So guess who's coming out?" As Yuki discarded his two dragon monsters, a rumble of thunder echoed about the arena. A large bolt of lightning struck the ground in front of Yuki, his fusion monster appearing moments later.

Twin-Headed thunder Dragon Atk-2800

"Well played indeed Yuki. I had not counted on such a counter, however I've already prepared for this. You cannot defeat this deck!"

"That remains to be seen, Bastion! Besides, my life points are still at max, and you only have one monster on your field! Battle! Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon, attack that token!" With a massive roar, two bursts of thunder streamed towards the small token, which made Bastion smirk.

Pressing a button on his duel disk, the Ra student revealed his quick play card. "In response to that, I activate my face down card; Heavenly Dragon's Circle! Allow me to explain what it does. At any point in the duel, I may sacrifice a normal wyrm monster, which my token is. And in its place, I may summon another wyrm monster to my field with its effects negated."

Yuki had put things together about a split second before those in the crowd did.

"Now by sacrificing my token, allow me to introduce you to my new monster! Phantasm Spiral Dragon!" At Bastion's declaration, the small spiral token vanished, and a large serpentine blue and purple scaled serpent rose up.

Phantasm Spiral Dragon Atk-2900


"But Yuki's monster only has 2800 attack points!" Syrus sounded worried. "That'll mean he'll lose the battle!"

"It's only one battle, and 100 points Syrus. I wouldn't worry." Alexis tried to calm the Slifer boy, while trying to hide just how worried she sounded herself. Bastion was incredibly intelligent, and she had seen that first hand when she saw his duel against Chazz. Yes, Yuki was lucky and could think on his feet, but if Bastion meant what he said about being unable to defeat the deck he was using, she was inclined to believe it.


Bastion's monster let out a roar, and a stream of water cut through the thunder. It blasted a hole clean through Yuki's monster, which shattered into a cloud of pixels seconds later.

Yuki-LP 3900

"Not bad at all Bastion." Yuki rubbed the back of his head, with a bashful smile on his face. Mirroring Jaden whenever he made a mistake in a duel. But he was back to his serious dueling mode a second later. "But I'm far from finished. If you want this jacket, you'll have to fight me at every turn. But unfortunately, I've got no other monsters that I can summon, so I'll have to end my turn."


"It's only been two turns, and Bastion's already found a counter for every move Yuki's made." Jasmine sounded worried for the dragon using Obelisk. "I mean, I know Yuki is good, and his luck is unparalleled, but Bastion's really smart. I think he might have Yuki's number."

"But it's only been two turns. You can't decide a duel based only on their first turns." Alexis was trying to sound assured that Yuki would win, but seeing the way Bastion duled during his duel with Chazz, she doubted anyone would fault her for being worried about Yuki's chances. Extreme luck or not.


"Very well, it's my draw." Bastion smiled, when he saw his next card, and immediately slotted it into his duel disk. "I will start by playing Terraforming. This allows me to search my deck for a field spell card, and I believe you know which one I'm selecting." Taking the selected card from his deck, the Ra then placed it into the field spell slot of his duel disk. "Pacifis, the Phantasmal City!"

Almost immediately, the field changed back into the submerged deep sea ruins. Cancelling out Yuki's field spell, and giving Bastion the upper hand once again. "A shame that you left yourself wide open Yuki. However, that's going to prove to be your undoing, as I will now attack directly with my Phantasmal Spiral Dragon!"

Bastion's monster roared, and unleashed a torrent of water at the Obelisk, which nearly went unseen due to the terrain of the field. However, the attack was intercepted. A scarecrow that looked to be made out of scraps had appeared in front of Yuki, blocking the attack, and shocking Bastion. "What was…? Ah, one of the cards you received from Char this morning."

"That's right, this is Scrap Iron Scarecrow. It allows me to block one of your attacks, and then it flips itself face down. Unfortunately, I can't use it multiple times during the battle phase." Yuki explained mostly for the crowd, as he was sure Bastion knew exactly what his trap card did.

"Well, thanks to my field spell, I still get a spiral token." Bastion's words were followed by the familiar looking token appearing next to his deck's ace monster.

Spiral token Def-100

"Hey, can we press the pause button real quick?" Yuki asked, much to the Ra's surprise. "I'm curious about just what allows you to summon those tokens. How often does that field spell let you do that?"

"Ah of course." It was only natural for Yuki to be curious, and Bastion quickly understood why he would ask that question. "Pacifis allows me to summon one of these tokens whenever a spell, trap, monster effect, or a special summon takes place. Although, for it to be fair, the effect does have a hard once per turn."

A low appreciative whistle escaped past Yuki's lips. He was clearly impressed with the deck that Bastion had put together. 'And I bet he's got more than one way to get that dragon out. All of them revolving around those tokens.' "Alright, I'll have to be really careful."

"You will indeed. And with one card facedown, I will call an end to my turn." Bastion declared with a small but confident smile, slotting in his card into his duel disk. "It's your draw Yuki."

"Alright…!" Yuki took his next card, and his stomach flipped. "I'll start by revealing my facedown card! Dragon's Rage! This allows me to inflict piercing damage to any monster in defense mode!"

"Great Scott!" Bastion felt a dark jolt of sickly surprise shoot through his stomach. Having made a critical error in his strategy, even as another token appeared on his field.

Spiral token Def-100

"But it doesn't end there, I activate the spell card; Ancient Rules, which allows me to summon a level five or higher monster! Now rise, Blue Eyes White Dragon!" A loud roar echoed about the arena, as the iconic dragon appeared on Yuki's field, landing behind him.

Blue Eyes White Dragon Atk-3000


"And with that trap card on his field, Yuki'll be able to deal a sizable chunk of damage to Bastion's life points." Kai sounded rather smug, though that was once his Blue Eyes. So the Obelisk felt he had a justified reason to have the smugness in his voice.

"Someone's definitely on their high horse…" Fujin had rolled her eyes. "And after you got on my case for being in Yumei's corner."

"What? That used to be my Blue Eyes. How would you feel if you saw Yumei using an Eatos you gave her?" Kai countered, still sounding rather smug.

Fujin had opened her mouth to retort. However, she closed it soon after realizing Kai was correct. "...touche."


"And I'm not finished there." Yuki took another card from his hand, a monster card, and placed it next to his Blue Eyes. "I summon Mirage Dragon in attack mode!" A bright gold serpentine-like dragon materialized onto Yuki's field the moment it's card was placed on his duel disk.

Mirage Dragon Atk-1600

"Alright, battle phase! Blue Eyes, destroy that token! Burst Stream of Destruction!" With a mighty roar, Blue Eyes unleashed a stream of energy from its mouth, heading straight for Bastion's token.

"A good attempt Yuki, however you forgot about my face down card." Bastion smirked, something that Yuki mirrored.

"I wouldn't get your hopes up. Because thanks to my Mirage Dragon being on the field, trap cards can't be activated during the battle phase!" Yuki countered, to which Bastion shook his head.

"Then I count myself fortunate that I didn't set a trap card." Bastian pressed the button on his duel disk, which flipped up his quick play spell card. "Another Heavenly Dragon's Circle! Now by sacrificing my token, I summon another Phantasm Spiral Dragon!"

The token right in Blue Eyes' line of sight vanished, only to be replaced with an identical copy of his powerful wyrm monster.

Phantasm Spiral Dragon Atk-2900

"That still won't save it from my Blue Eyes!" the attack continued, and the second wyrm was blasted away by the powerful dragon's energy stream.

Bastion-LP 3900

"Valiant effort Yuki, but like I said, you won't defeat this deck." Bastion still had that smirk on his face as he spoke.

"Aren't you forgetting something Bastion? I've still got a monster on my field. And thanks to my Dragon's Rage trap card, I can still inflict piercing damage, because there's still a token on your field! Mirage Dragon, attack! Illusory Flare!" Bright gold flames erupted from the serpentine dragon's mouth, incinerating the token, and burning away some of Bastion's life points.

Bastion-LP 2400


In the stands, Zane had an approving smile on his face. "I think Yuki just discovered that deck's fatal flaw."

"Fatal flaw?" Syrus parroted, as he turned back to look at his older brother. "What do you mean Zane?"

"It's simple. The more Yuki uses traps, spells, or his own monster's effects, the more of those token's Bastion can summon. Token's are automatically set in defense mode. And Yuki's trap card allows him to inflict piercing damage whenever he attacks a monster in defense mode." Zane explained, his smile widening a bit when he saw his younger brother catching on. "Then there's Mirage Dragon's effect, which prevents Bastion from activating any trap cards during his battle phase."

"So Bastion will run out of life points before he finds a way to stop Yuki!"


"Well played Yuki." Bastion had a wide grin on his face, as his turn began. "Well played indeed. However, I am far from finished. I activate Pot of Greed, and I will use both cards right now!" Bastion declared, after taking the top two cards from his deck. "I will set one card face down, and then activate the spell card; Phantasm Spiral Attack! I can equip this to a wyrm monster, and it gains an extra five hundred point boost to its attack!"

Phantasm Spiral Dragon roared as it was surrounded by a blue colored aura.

Phantasm Spiral Dragon Atk-3400


"That's not good…" Jasmine sounded nervous now.

"No kidding…" Mindy began, her nervous tone matching her friend's. "Now Bastion's monster is stronger than Blue Eyes.

"You two are forgetting about something." Alexis interjected. "Yuki still has his trap card. And Bastion only has one monster on his field, which means if he attacks, Scrap Iron Scarecrow can intercept it, and save Yuki's monsters."


"Don't think I've forgotten about your trap card Yuki." The Ra said with a shrug of his shoulders. "Yet there's nothing I can do about it for now, so I will end my turn here."

"Right then my-" Yuki began, before Bastion cut him off.

"I think not. I activate my trap card, Tornado Wall!" Several whirlpools appeared in front of Bastion's monster when the trap card activated. "I can only activate this if I have Umi as my field spell. Fortunately for me, Pacifis doubles as Umi. And now you are unable to attack my m0nsters!"


"Looks like I spoke too soon." Zane really was impressed now. "Bastion seems to have that weakness covered."

"He's better than I gave him credit for." Fujin sounded as impressed as Zane looked … internally. "He's blocked Yuki from fusing, and attacking. I wonder what else he's got up his sleeve."


Yuki gave an impressed whistle, despite the corner that he was slowly being pushed into. Bastion had created an incredible deck to oppose him. Though part of him did wish, that he was facing down the deck Bastion had used to beat and demote Chazz. But Bastion could have at least ten or twelve different ways to defeat him with that deck too. "Brought out all the stops. I gotta say I'm impressed. But I'm kinda nervous to see what else you can bring out."

"Oh it's only a matter of time." Bastion managed an amused chuckle. "It's like you said when you dueled Yumei. You can't beat this deck!"

"We'll see. It's still my turn, and I'll play the card I just drew; Pot of Greed! Which gives me-"

"Oh no it doesn't!" Bastion cut across, and he held up the last card in his hand. It was a monster card who's artwork was that of a barefoot pink haired young woman, who wore a brown cloak over her body. "I trust you know what this is?"

"Ash Blossom, and Joyous Spring…" Yuki felt his stomach drop, when he saw the card. Another push into the proverbial corner. "It's a hand trap…"

"Exactly." Answered Bastion, as he slotted teh card into his graveyard. "And by discarding it, I can prevent you from drawing any extra cards!"


"Yuki can't fuse, can't attack, and now can't draw any extra cards…" Syrus sounded just as worried as Alexis. "Bastion really has got Yuki backed into a corner. What's next? Is he going to play Skill Drain?"


"Guess I have to do this the old fashioned way…" Yuki sighed, and he too selected the final card in his hand. He slotted it into his duel disk. "In that case, I'll play Shard of Greed. I can only activate this card's effect after my second turn after activation. Each time I draw, this card gets a counter on it. And after my second turn, I can send it to the graveyard and draw cards equal to the number of counters on it. But that's all I can do, since I can't attack. So I'll end my turn there."

Bastion drew, then set the card into his duel disk. "And that is all I can do as well. I won't be able to get past your Scrap Iron Scarecrow just yet."

"Guess it's my turn…" Yuki then paused. His fingers on his deck, prepared to draw his next card. "Unless you want to activate that trap." He nodded at the face down card Bastion had just played.

Smiling, the Ra pressed the activation button on his duel disk. Flipping up the trap card. "Indeed I would. This is Sea Stealth Attack. It has two effects, the first being my being able to protect the cards in my back row from destruction. I just need to remove a normal monster from play to do so, and it returns once either player's turn ends. The second, is that whenever my monsters attack, all my opponent's monsters are instantly destroyed!"

'This isn't good partner.' Neo had manifested behind Yuki's left shoulder. 'You're going to need to do something. And do it fast.'

"I know… but I don't know what I'm going to do…" Yuki had drawn his next card, and felt his stomach jolt. 'Critias! This is good, I just need to draw the right card.'

A plan was forming in his head, and there was a counter on his continuous spell card. "Alright, I'll have to end my turn."

"And that means, mine begins!" Bastion began, as he drew. A smirk spread across his face. Something that Yuki didn't like. "And then I will attack with my dragon, and thanks to Sea Stealth Attack, your monsters are instantly destroyed!" With a mighty roar, both Yuki's dragons were destroyed. The force of the explosion made Yuki shield his face with his duel disk.


"That leaves Yuki wide open!" Now Alexis was scared, and was leaning forward in her seat, like one who while playing a video game would when taking things seriously.


"Phantasm Spiral Dragon, direct attack!" Again the torrent of water, invisible due to the field spell around them surged towards Yuki. And again, was blocked by Scrap Iron Scarecrow. Bastion had made a mistake in his calculations, and had forgotten about Yuki's trap card.

"Forgot about my trap card?" Yuki tried hard to hide the sigh of relief in his voice.

"A slight miscalculation." Bastion shook his head. "It will not happen again. And I'll end my turn with this card face down." He slotted the card he drew, and it appeared next to Sea Stealth Attack."

"Alright then, Draw!" Yuki took his next card, but Bastion once again stopped him by activating his face down card.

"This is Skill Drain! Now by simply paying one thousand life points, no monsters may activate their effects once they're on the field!"

"Damnit…" Yuki cursed, having finally been backed into that corner.

'It's not as bad as you think partner.' Neo placed a hand on his shoulder. The spirit's tone was comforting, supportive. 'You just need to draw the right card. And his hand is empty, he cannot prevent you from using your spell card.'

"Son of a…" Yuki internally berrated himself. He didn't even noticed that Bastion's hand was empty. His hand back on his deck, Yuki drew. Mirror Force. His plan was coming together faster now.

"Alright, that's two counters on my spell card. So I'll discard it, and draw two more cards!" Yuki's continuous spell card shattered, and the Obelisk drew two more cards. His eyes went wide when he saw another card given to him by Char.


"Here, take this too." Char handed over the continuous trap card. "It'll block two spaces in your opponent's back row. And if there are any cards in those chosen spots, their effects are negated."


"Alright, I play two cards face down." Yuki slotted the two cards into his duel disk, before selecting another card. "And then I play this! The Fang of Critias!"

His announcement made the crowd gasp.

"No way!"

"He's got that one too!"

"Wonder if he's also got Timaeus?"

"Now, I can fusion summon a monster, by sacrificing a trap card!" Yuki smirked at Bastion, who paled when he realized that Yuki had more ways to fusion summon other than Polimarization, and Fusion Gate. Mirror Force flipped up, and Critas merged with it. Soon after, the black dragon emerged. Its wings now coated with the material that made up the destruction trap card. "Meet Mirror Force Dragon!"

Mirror Force Dragon Atk-2800

"Ah, don't forget Yuki. With Skill Drain on the field, your dragon's efect is negated." Bastion felt a little better knowing that the dragon couldn't use its effect.

"I'm not worried about that." Yuki now had the confident smirk on his face. "Turn end."

"Very well, my turn." Bastion began, as he drew. Though this time he didn't place a card in his back row. "Pity you won't be able to save your dragon Yuki. Phantasm Spiral Dragon, attack!"

Yuki's smirk widened. "Gotcha! Trap card open!" Yuki flipped up his face down card, and the reveal made Baston go pale. "Zhing Zen Hu! Here's how it works. I chose two card slots in your back row, and you can't use them. And if those slots are occupied, those card effects are negated! So say goodbye to Sea Stealth Attack, and Skill Drain!"

Both trap cards then faded into a dull grey, which made Mirror Force Dragon roar in delight.

"And since you're attacking, my dragon's effect activates! When he's targeted for destruction, by anything, all of your cards, and I mean all of them, are automatically destroyed!"

"Great Scott!" Bastion exclaimed, before his entire field, front and back row, was wiped out.

"Leaving you wide open, and now it's my turn!" Yuki drew smirking. Knowing that this duel was over. "Sorry Bastion, but you'll have to go back to the drawing board. Mirror Force Dragon! Burn it down!"

The powerful dragon let out a roar. It let out a stream of energy, before blasting away the last of Bastion's life points.

Bastion-LP 0000

"But how…?" Bastion was completely and utterly shocked. "I had the perfect formula to defeat you."

"You did. You had me backed against a corner for a bit." Yuki had let out a sigh of relief, thanking whatever deity that were out there. "But there were a few things you forgot to take into account."

Bastion had a pen and a pad of paper in his hand so fast, it completely caught him off guard. "What did I forget? I need to know!"

Letting out a sigh. Yuki explained jst what Bastion had forgotten. "You forgot that when I dueled Yumei, it ended in a draw. The deck I made for that duel, was to just counter her OTKs. And … one more thing." Yuki rubbed the back of his head.

"What is it?" Bastion was meticulously taking notes. "What are you leaving out?"

"I've got the luck of an issekei anime protagonist." Yuki laughed, and Bastion joined in seconds later.


"No! No way! Absolutely not!" Yuki exclaimed. He was shaking his head, vehemently refusing to accept something. "There is no way in hell, I'm gonna duel Chazz!"

The four students, as well as Fujin and Kai were back in Chancellor Sheppard's office. While Jaden and Bastion would represent Duel Academy, the Hyoudou twins would be in the singles duels. Which was the point of contention that had upset Yuki. He didn't want to end up dueling Chazz.

"Come on Yu." Yumei pleaded with her twin.

Yuki continued to shake his head. "Absolutely not! I already kicked his ass, and I did it with an FTK! I'm not dueling him again, as there's no challenge dueling him! Besides, you've seen his new deck. He's copying me, and doing a poor impression. I'm not-"

"I've got some of mom's mochi left." Yumei cut across, which stopped her twin dead in his tracks. "If you duel Chazz, I'll give you what I've got left."

"Yeah right. Like you'd share-" Yumei cut him off again. She produced a small case and opened it up. A burst of chilled air hit Yuki's face, and his jaw hung open.

"It's yours if you duel Chazz. But after the School Duel." Yumei closed the case.

Yuki scowled at his twin. "And how do I know, you won't just eat them like the last time?"

It was at that point, Fujin stepped in, and took the case from Yumie. "If that's the case, I'll take care of these. Nobody will touch them until after the School Duel."

The twins looked to one another, then back to Fujin, and back to each other. Yuki then nodded, and shook his sister's hand. "We have an accord!"


The sun had set by the time the group had made it back to the Blue dorm. The twins had decided to treat their friends to dinner at their dorm, much to the delight of the Slifer trio. There were some disgusted looks from some of the snobbier Blues, but they quickly occupied themselves with other things when the Hyoudou twins fixed them with 'play around, and see what happens' looks.

"Ahh, that sure hit the spot!" Jaden let out a happy sigh. After eating what had to be his own weight in food, he was relaxing on a sofa in one of the common rooms in the Blue dorm.

"Where are you putting it all?" Kai asked with a laugh, turning on the large flat screen above the roaring fireplace, and tuning in to the North Academy broadcast.

The North Academy arena was packed yet again, though the event in question was not a duel as usual. Before the scheduled events were to take place, including a rematch between Chazz Princeton and Rose Wilson, Chancellor Foster had decided that a certain matter needed to be settled. It was no secret that Foster wasn't very pleased with Jackson's actions as of late, especially with his so-called Pipebomb promo. Normally business decisions like what was about to take place should be done in private, but Jackson's recent actions had forced private issues into the public eye. And this was no exception.

The crowd gathered in the stands was softly murmuring, the sight of a table and chairs set up in the arena had many on edge and wondering what was about to happen.

The sound of a trumpet announcing the entrance of a certain person had most of the audience up in cheers as Chancellor Foster made his way to the tables, a black folder in his hand as he waved to the crowd. His usual yellow uniform traded out for a more formal dark brown suit and orange scarf.

Finally arriving at the table, he took his seat on one side and picked up the provided microphone. And cleared his throat.

"Before things get anymore out of hand than they already are, I would just like to say that I still don't believe negotiations like this should be conducted, with all due respect, in public. However, the actions of one man have forced this matter out. And as much as I hate to admit it, that man has decided to leave this Academy in less than two weeks time."

Foster paused, sighing at the chants of "Dragon Lord!" Rolling through the arena. He cleared his throat again and continued.

"The fact of the matter is, I have elected to offer Jackson Corvus a contract to stay here at North Academy and complete his schooling with us, in exchange for certain concessions on my part. So… Why don't we just get this over with. Corvus, come on out here!"

A moment of silence passed, then another.

"Come on, Corvus, we don't have all da-" Foster began before he was cut off by the arena's speakers.

"I hear voices in my head…"

The crowd burst into cheers as Jackson made his way through the Red Tunnel, dressed in his usual black jacket and dark jeans. He smiled and started making his way towards the table, a black folder identical to Foster's was clutched in his hand.

Foster motioned for Jackson to take a seat as he sat himself, but where Foster sat normally with an air of power, Jackson pulled his chair out slightly and sat at am angle to the table with his feet propped up on the surface.

Foster clicked his tongue at what he took for Jackson's arrogance, but was actually just Jackson giving no shits at all.

"Jackson, so we don't draw this out any further than it has to, I'm certain that you'll find everything in order with your prior concerns, including adding you to the signature at the beginning of our televised program. If you would just sign…"

Foster eventually realized he was talking to a wall, Jackson's attention was on the crowd and nowhere near his academy's headmaster.

"You know, Foster," Jackson said, mic in hand, "For someone who's always been so Pro-Chazz-Princeton I almost expected you to come out here wearing one of those ridiculous 'Chazz It Up' t-shirt you've been peddling the last week or so." Jackson smirked and laughed.

"My allegiance or fondness for a particular duelist is not the issue here." Foster growled out. "I just want to make sure you get the best education and exposure you can for a future pro duelist. This contract will ensure that, Jack."

Jackson paused for a second. This time it was Foster's turn to smirk.

"You wanted to open this sucker up, Jack? Let's open her up!" Foster smiled and chuckled as Jackson stood and smiled back.

"Alright, Foster. You wanna have some fun? Let's have some fun. Starting with this." Jackson dropped his folder on top of Foster's. "I had a look at your contract, and honestly something about it stunk about as bad as your office does. So, I called a friend back home and had him take a look, and he drew up a new one! And that's it right there. My signature is already on it, is just waiting for yours." Jackson grinned as Foster shrugged and picked up a pen. Jackson immediately held up a hand. "I do think you should be aware of a couple new perks I've had him add in. I mean, I know you're getting a little senile in your old age, but I think you should-"

"Don't push me." Foster interrupted, glaring at Jackson.

To Jackson's surprise, someone in the audience fired off an audible "What?". Jackson turned towards the voice.

"He said 'don't push me'." Jackson paused and turned back to Foster. "Did you already get a look at this? Did someone stooge this off to you? Because that's actually… Provision number one." Jackson gave Foster's shoulder a soft shove. "I get to push you."

Jackson smiled and gave another soft push.

"Foster, I'll push you all I want. Hell, I'll kick you in the nuts and you'll smile at me and like it, and show me some respect!" Jackson tapped his folder. "Because if you don't, I'll find the nearest paper shredder, turn this into confetti, and your biggest draw is out of here in ten days."

Jackson stood and picked up his folder, reading aloud, mocking Foster's excessively regal speaking pattern. "Provision the first, you will immediately begin production on a new line of merch with 100% of the proceeds going entirely to the students you've been leeching on." Jackson smiled at the confused look on Foster's face. "Oh, I'm sorry, did you think this was all about me? I'm not as egotistical as your golden boy, Foster. Unlike him and unlike you, I actually care about other people!" Jackson paused again, glancing at the contract in his hands.

"Provision number two, you will promote every student as if they are main event level, and give them all their moment to shine. I'm not just talking about a squash match with a single-digit going against someone in the 40's. Match them properly against duelists of their skill level or better."

Jackson smirked, seeing Foster get visibly more frustrated at his dirty laundry being aired.

"Provision number three, the Main Event of the School Duel being your golden boy Chazzie? You can still have that little charade and the inevitable can of whoopass that's gonna be opened up in his face, but the match Jesse and I compete in? You WILL promote that as the Main Event."

Jackson smiled and set the folder down, drumming his fingers on the table.

"The last thing this contract states is that… You will apologize to me." Jackson smirked at the incredulous glare Foster shot his way. "I know, people in power don't have to apologise, but you will. You will apologize…" Jackson paused and sighed.

"You know what, let's be honest here. You're not just apologizing to me, you're apologizing to all these people here, watching at home, and every Duelists you've danced around on your little clown show. You will apologize for being one of the biggest hypocrites I've ever met in my life. You don't even know why I spoke up last week, do you?! It wasn't just about me, it was about them!" Jackson motioned to the crowd and back into the academy.

"I spoke up because they can't speak up! They can't talk to you and their voices can't be heard!" Jackson stood and raised his left arm and glared at Foster as the crowd cheered him on. "I am Jackson Corvus, and I am the Voice of the Voiceless. You will apologize, to me, for them. You will apologize, and you! WILL! LIKE IT!" Jackson smiled at Foster as the crowd cheered him on. Foster only stood and glared back.

"No." Foster muttered. "No I will not. Nothing I have done is worth apologizing for! You say I took advantage of my students? As if they had anything to take in the first place until I gave it to them! They owed me for even giving them time in the spotlight to begin with and be grateful I gave them what they got! You want me to apologize for not giving the majority of my students a moment in the spotlight? HALF OF THEM DON'T EVEN DESERVE TO HOLD A DECK! So no, I won't be apologizing to you, or anyone else!" Foster barked out, only realizing too late what he'd said, all but confessing to major professional ethics violations.

The boos from the crowd was his first clue he'd screwed up. Jackson's smirk was the other. That, and the soft mutter from Jackson's lips that made Foster crane his neck to hear, only to cover his ears as Jackson roared into his mic.

"THANK YOU YOU EGOTISTICAL WINDBAG! I don't need you to apologize, now that you've pretty much admitted to me, these people, and your entire student body that you're a con man and a thief."

Jackson grabbed both contracts and ripped them to shreds, tossing them back in Foster's face.

"I'm leaving because of you, Foster. Because of your stubborn refusal to help the students here improve, by blocking their advancement at every turn for your own profit. Just being in the same room as you because just looking at your face makes me sick, so don't apologize to me. Instead, apologize to them for being the biggest hypocrite and bully I've ever met. I may still be attending North Academy until the School Duel, but at no time from now until then am I your student."

Jackson stepped back and flipped the microphone onto the table, walking out of the arena as the crowd started booing Foster incessantly, interrupting him every time he opened his mouth to speak.

Jackson's second Pipebomb went off flawlessly. He meant what he said about blowing up as much crap as he could, and imploding Foster's regime was certainly very high on that list.

"Damn…!" Yuki and Kai were open mouthed, at what had just occurred. Everyone else was staring wide-eyed at the television screen. However, things were just getting started.

It was almost directly after Jackson had delivered his second pipe bomb, that someone else marched out into North Academy's main dueling students gathered, began cheering loudly upon recognizing who it was. Pauline Heyman was marching towards the ring, and from the look on the woman's face, she had a lot to say.

Pauline snatched up the microphone that Jackson had dropped on the table, nearly losing the Stone Cold hat she wore atop her head. It took the slightly rotund woman a few moments to compose herself to speak, as she looked absolutely livid as she stared daggers at Chancellor Foster.

"I wanted you to know, that four days ago, I was watching what was going on. I was watching four days ago, and I agreed with everything that young man." There was venom in every syllable of Pauline's voice, while she pointed to Jackson who was standing in the entrance tunnel. "With everything that Jackson had to say."

There were cheers for Jackson, and Pauline stopped in what she had to say as the "Dragon Lord" chants began once again. "That this academy truly does suck! Foster, you have lost your mind! You don't have it anymore! Your ideas are antiquated! Your concepts are draconian! And Jackson was right, this academy is imploding from within! Like all great empires, North Academy is imploding fro within! Your students are leaving you, your own children want nothing to do with you, and I don't blame them! Duel Academy is going to once again destroy North Academy in ten days at the School duel, and you have no hope of winning! Foster you have the same chances of winning the school duel, that you did of realizing your dream of starting a football league!"

"Oh did that strike a nerve? Good! I'm glad it struck a nerve!" Pauline continued, never breaking eye contact with Foster. "Because in ten days, nobody here will have to kiss your ass to get anywhere in this school! And you like people kissing your ass don't you Foster!? Because that's what you're all about! The billionaire! The creator of sports entertainment! Foster, you are without a doubt the most disgusting, vile, son of a bitch I have ever seen in my life!"

Pauline was now less than an inch away from Foster. "You took Terry Hogan's blood, and you built titan towers. You stole Brandon Hart's dream, and bought yourself a submarine with North Academy all over it! You did that, and you know it you son of a bitch!" She prodded Foster's chest with a finger, as she spoke. "You took Jackson Corvus' smile, took your company public, and made yourself a billionaire! But not a self-made billionaire like to tell yourself, oh no, no, no. You're a billionaire on other people's hard work!"

"You're gonna love this..." Pauline broke eye contact with Foster for only a moment to address the crowd, who were eating up everything that was coming from the school's biggest sponsor. "Your father, your FATHER went up and down this country, and he shook the hands of every promoter. And he swore that he would never compete with them, that his son would never compete with them. And when your father DIED!" She was so close to Foster, that their noses were touching. "You competed. And with your ruthless, take no prisoners attitude, you drove everyone out of business! You drove everyone out of business, you stole all their ideas, and you made yourself a billionaire out of it. And you know I'm telling the truth. You know in your heart of hearts I'm telling you the truth. And you know who's ideas you stole the most Foster? You stole mine! See, I don't give a damn about all the other promoters you ran out, I care about what you did to me and my family. How you stole my dream, how you stole my legacy, how you stole what everything that the Hammerstein Ballroom ever stood for!"

"Because while Boink the Clown had green hair, and a rubber nose, The Rattlesnake was drinking his first beer in the Hammerstein Ballroom damn you! While Patterson and Okerlund were dancing around singing tootie-fruity, the Hammerstein was producing the edgy content that you like to call 'attitude'." Pauline then put on a mocking tone, as she continued to get everything she had against Foster off her chest. "Oh, oh we've got attitude! You've got nothing! What you do have are my ideas, and you stole MY life! MY money! MY legacy!" She ripped off her Stone Cold hat and threw it in Foster's face. "SCREW YOU, AND YOUR FAMILY! YOU FLAUNT YOUR AFFAIRS IN FRONT OF YOUR WIFE! YOU FLAUNT YOUR AFFAIRS IN DUELIST MAGAZINE, FOR YOUR CHILDREN TO READ! SCREW YOU, YOU MASSIVE PRICK!"

"Look at Czar!" She pointed to the large Russian in the front row. "Look at him! This man was a killer! He was a machine, he was a great duelist! But dueling is a dirty word for you isn't it Foster? Your father built a dueling academy, a dueling company, but nooo. We had to have sports entertainment!" She pointed at Czar again. "This was a man! This was a great duelist, and now he's a fat, little, obnoxious sports entertainer. And not even a good one! He's a sports entertainer, because you made dueling a dirty word! What kind of a man are you!? What kind of a man are you Foster!? What kind of a man, takes dueling, and turns it into sports entertainment!?"

"In ten days!" Pauline was so disgusted, that she turned away from the head of the academy to address the crowd of students. "In ten days, North Academy will once again be destroyed by Duel Academy, because this school doesn't build duelists, they build sports entertainers! If you're sick and tired of it, of being treated like garbage, then I suggest you drop out. Drop out, and take your ball, and ask Chancellor Sheppard for a chance at his dueling academy!"

With that, Pauline dropped the microphone in her hand, and walked back into the entrance tunnel. She left Foster to stew, and she knew he was in pretty deep now. Which was perfect. The son of a bitch got exactly what he deserved, and she got everything off her chest after all these years of having to put up with him.