The city was at a complete standstill as the blizzard slowly crept in from the sea and settled directly over it. As the residents huddled inside their homes to get warm, Aster sprinted up and down the streets calling out for his friend until the cold air dried his throat and he could call no more. He heard nothing but the wind in his ears and the rustle of snowflakes as they powdered the ground, no barely visible. Aster searched through every park, every alley, even the local homeless shelters, which were full for the night. She was nowhere to be seen. He had a mind to buy himself something warm to eat but didn't. He vowed not to eat or drink a thing until he found her. On top of that, it was Christmas eve and he had a big feast and many gifts underneath the tree for her. It was supposed to be a time of celebration. But from zero to sixty, it turned really bad.

"Alexis!" he tried to call out, but it came out hoarse and he coughed. "Where are you?"

Aster then ran to the apartment complex on the other side of the city where Alexis used to live. He burst through the doors and warmed himself up before climbing the stairs all the way up to the floor where she lived. He found the apartment and tried to open the door but it was locked. He then pounded the door with his fist. "Alexis!" he said. "Alexis, it's me."

"There ain't nobody living in there anymore," said the landlord. "Oh, it's you. You're the guy who finally got that piece of junk out of my place, eh?"

Aster wanted to hurt the man for calling Alexis that. He felt his body going rigid and his chest felt heavy with anger. "She's a good person. Do you have any idea where she is?"

"What the hell would I know? She ran off on ya, did she? Can't say I'm surprised. All she ever does is run away when things get hairy. Heh, if I was a complete failure like her, I'd run and hide, too. You know, not even her family wanted her anymore. She can't aspire to be anything."

"You're wrong!"

"Yeah? If I'm wrong then how come she been struggling to make ends meet despite going to that-there fancy pants dueling school? Most of the kids I know who graduated from that place have grown to find good careers and a decent living. Not her. Heh, she's lucky she's so beautiful, yeah I'll give her that. Maybe she can at least use her looks to sell herself downtown that way she won't be completely useless."

Aster found himself tackling the man and slamming him hard against the wall. "Say another word about Alexis and I'll fucking kill you!"

"Easy! Easy, son!" the landlord said, suddenly not so cocky and obnoxious anymore. He held up his hands and waved them around frantically. Aster grabbed him by the scruff of his shirt and slammed the back of his head against the wall. "Oof!"

"WHERE IS SHE!" he shouted.

"I don't know, I promise! I haven't seen her since she left with ya. That's the truth! I'm sorry, okay? I'm sorry."

Aster shoved the man one last time and walked out of the building back into the blizzard. It was getting worse; he could barely see five feet in front of him anymore. It was not a time to be outdoors but so long as Alexis was out there, he was not going back home. Hours went by. If it wasn't for the heated vest underneath his coat, Aster would have been in big trouble. But the battery was on its last two bars. If he didn't find Alexis soon, he too would be doomed to the blizzard. He walked to the park where the river was flowing through. The lights of the iron lamps lining the cobbled path were almost completely curtained by the amount of snow piled on them.

Crunch! His foot went through the snow and stepped on something hard. Aster looked down and saw a blue glow underneath the snow. He picked it up and realized it was Alexis's Duel Disk. "Alexis!" he said. He saw a bridge up ahead arching over the path. The bridge provided enough of a shelter to keep most of the snow out. Through the dim light of the iron lampposts, he saw someone lying there. Aster broke into a run and sighed with relief when he saw that the person was Alexis. She was sleeping under a layer of cardboard and a smelly blanket she most likely pulled out of the garbage. It wasn't enough to keep her warm. Even in the dark, he could see her face was turning blue and her lips were translucent.

"Oh, God!" Aster said. He took off his coat and his heated vest and put them on her. "Alexis! Alexis!" he said. He rubbed his hand up and down her chest. "Alexis. Come on, don't do this to me, please."

"Aster..." Alexis moaned.

"Oh, Alexis! Come on, I'm going to get you out of here." He picked her up and held her close to his chest to keep her cheek warm.

"Aster..." Alexis moaned again.

Aster rubbed his hands up and down her shoulders, transferring his heat to her. "You're so stupid you know that!" Aster said. "I could have lost you!" Alexis said nothing. She was still weary and dazed. Thankfully — mercifully, Alexis chose a spot that wasn't too far from the nearby hospital. It was going to be a long trek, even worse considering he didn't have his coat or his heated vest, but he figured he could make it. When he finally made through the doors, a group of nurses rushed towards him and took Alexis from his arms. In the emergency room they treated her and put her inside a stasis tank where she would have to spend the night inside as she recovered. The nurses assured Aster that she would be good as new in the morning.

Aster was given some cold medicine as he sat in the chamber watching her float inside the tank. Bubbles floated all around her, her hair waved around behind her like a ragged cape, and she had a breathing mask over her mouth to give her air. Her heartbeat and other stats were displayed on a holographic screen that projected right over the tank.

"Come on, kid, what were you thinking?" Aster said, leaning back on the red leather couch in front of the stasis tank. "Why did you do this?" He kept the lights off in the room. Only the blue LEDs above Alexis's head illuminated the room.

Someone knocked on the doors. "Who could that be?" Aster wondered. He got up and walked to the door. "Who is it?"

"It's the pizza man," a familiar voice said. "Hurry up and open the door asshole."

"Chazz," Aster responded with a smile. "Hang on." He walked to the stasis tank and used the touch screen to activate a cocoon of white metal curtains that rose up from beneath the base of the stasis tank to cover Alexis's nakedness. When only her head and her shoulders could be seen, he unlocked the door to the room. It slid open and Chazz walked inside.

"Well, I just had to see it to believe it," he said. He walked past Aster and proceeded toward the tank to look at his old classmate from school. "Alexis..." Chazz whispered, then placed his hand on the glass. "It's really you. I've finally found you." He sighed. "You poor kid. What has this terrible world done to you?" He bared his teeth and growled. "What the hell did you do?" he yelled looking angrily at Aster.

"Wait a miniute! You think I had something to do with this?"

"Why did you make her duel? If you had any idea what she's been through since she lost against..."

Aster held up his palm. "Hold up! Hold up! Everybody keeps talking about some 'devastating loss' she suffered long ago. Well, I honestly don't know a whole lot about it. I wasn't as close to her as you and the others were back in school so I never really bothered to catch up with you guys after graduation."

Chazz stood up straight and kept his arms on both his sides. He formed fists to keep his anger quelled. "So let me get this straight. You have absolutely no clue as to what happened to Alexis, do you?"

"No. I've asked her a dozen times to tell me but she refused to talk about it with me. She said everything was fine but the more she dueled the worse she got. She's been having all these crazy nightmares. She wakes up screaming in the night. I don't know what to do, Chazz. Maybe you can shed a little light on this matter, huh?"

Chazz gave one last look at Alexis then leaned against the glass of the tank and folded his arms. He looked at the floor for a moment then closed his eyes. For a while he said nothing. Then, when he gathered his thoughts, he spoke: You ever hear about some hotshot named Matthias Helge?"

Aster paused and meditated on the name. "Hmm, the name rings the bell. I've heard it a couple of times when I was in the Industrial Illusions tournament years ago. Who is he again?"

"A prodigy," Chazz said. "He could duel professionally at a very young age. Apparently he caught the eye of Seto Kaiba himself. I heard the kid spent hours and hours training against Kaiba's Duel Robots who are almost unbeatable. He became a mentor of sorts."

"Oh, don't tell me he gave him the Blue-Eyes White Dragon?"

"What the hell do you think this is? A fanfiction? Of course not. Seto Kaiba's never going to do that. No, the kid was able to get himself some big sponsors to help him build his dueling career at a young age. On top of that, he came from a very wealthy family, one who had a keen interest in the business ventures of the Rhodes family. He spent a lot of time around Alexis over the years. Eventually he fell in love with her. Heh, but you know Alexis. A girl with a heart of steel that no man can penetrate. However, Matthias is a guy who will not take no for an answer. I was there when it happened Aster. We attended some big duel monsters event in Domino City. You should have seen her that night, Aster. She was such an angel, all dolled up in that fancy ball gown. Matthias took notice too.."

Chazz recalled where he was when the bastard showed up. He had a championship ring glittering brightly on his finger likewise a championship belt from the promotion he was playing in. He remembered how Matthias pushed Chazz aside and took her hand. He tried to kiss it but she swiped it away before it could reach his lips.

"Can I help you?"

"Alexis, my dear? Have you forgotten me already? It's me, Matthias. Ugh, I know, I know. All the gold on me. It was probably hard to recognize me, eh?"

"Oh, Matthias, yes, now I remember you. Forgive me, it's been way too long."

"Indeed. You've been stuck on that island for years and only coming out when during the holidays. Unfortunately, I've been rather busy during those days. But now that you've graduated from school, I do hope you'll keep your promise to marry me."

"Say what?" Chazz said. His shock almost caused him to crush the flute of champagne in his hands. "Alexis, seriously? You promised to marry this guy?"

"That she did," Matthias bragged. "You said if I ever became the champion of Domino City's dueling league you would let me take your hand in marriage. Don't tell me you're going back on your word."

Alexis burst out laughing. "Wow! Did you actually think I was serious? I can't, dude. I just got out of school and I'm looking to find my career. I have no time nor interest for marriage."

"I remember how aggressive he suddenly turned. But no matter how nasty he got Alexis would not budge. Eventually, Matthias demanded that they duel right out there in the stadium."

"Why in the stadium of all places? Wasn't that place booked for an event? I don't see any point for allowing them to set a spot for a squash match?"

"He wanted to duel Alexis in front of the entire city just to show off his dominance over her. To prove to the whole world that Alexis was his and only his. Hmph, I guess some of that ego from Seto Kaiba rubbed off on the bastard. Alexis vowed to kick his ass out there and prove that she belonged to no man. A few checks were signed and the duel proceeded as the night's dark match. For a moment it looked like Alexis was going to win...but then all hell broke loose. He summoned...he summoned that THING!"

"What?"

Chazz drummed his fingers on his biceps and looked at Aster coldly. "Ten Thousand Dragon."

"He's just a myth."

"Then you're even more sheltered than I thought you were, Phoenix. Ten Thousand Dragon is a rare and powerful card that was created to celebrate Duel Monsters achieving 10,000 cards in the library. He was so valuable that less than a hundred were ever made. And wouldn't you know it, rich boy had one of them."

ATK/10,000 DEF/10,000

"What is that?" Alexis cried out in shock. "I've never seen that card before?"

"Nor will you. Not for a long time," Matthias said over the roar of the crowd, all 100,000 of them dumbstruck by the sight of the monster, which loomed hundreds of feet high. Matthias stood proudly as the monster stood behind him like a cheesy villain from the Duel Monsters TV show. "Ten Thousand Dragon is a monster so precious, so rare, that there are only a few in existence. You should be honored to be getting thrashed by it. Your Cyber Angel Dakini is no match for my beast. And since I Tribute Summoned him using Primal Dragon the Primordial Dragon, I'm able to activate it's effect. I'm able to attack you twice. True, the first attack is going to be completely overkill but hey, it's no fun if I attack you only once. I want you to submit! Feel my power, Alexis! Ten Thousand Dragon! Finish her off!"

The giant golden beast reared up its head, fired a prismatic beam, and blasted Dakini, completely atomizing her. That attack alone brought Alexis down to 0, but the dragon still attack her. Alexis tumbled through the air and flew out of the arena, landing in a pile of garbage. She heard the people in the audience laughing at her. Laughter. Laughter. Laughter all around her. It didn't stop. It was unrelenting. Unmerciful.

She then heard Matthias's expensive shoes clopping on the steel floor of the arena. "No, I've changed my mind. I have no reason to marry the likes of you. You're garbage. You always were."

"What the hell?" Aster said.

"The loss destroyed her," Chazz said. "It was a demoralizing loss. Not only that, she was humiliated beyond belief. Matthias got every mongrel that dwelled in the internet to make fun of her and make her life a living hell. They made memes out of her. Funny videos mocking her defeat went viral all over the web. Damn it to hell, in no time at all she became the laughing stock of the world of Duel Monsters. Soon her family did too. The school where she wanted to teach denied her. They didn't want to deal with the humiliation of having someone so infamous in their staff. Other schools followed suit. They absolutely refused to let her anywhere near their students."

"No way! That...that can't be true."

"Reputation always comes first in these institutions," said Chazz. "So when teaching failed, Alexis tried her hand at being a professional duelist but she just couldn't duel right after that loss."

He banged his fist against the tank.

"Every match she played she lost. She didn't play the right cards anymore. Remember how cunning she was in school? She always knew exactly what to do to get herself out of a tight situation. But after that loss...I can't explain it. It's as if all her knowledge of the game was blasted out of her mind by that dragon. I watched on social media as Alexis lost match after match after match. The pro leagues eventually said they didn't want her. Every door into that venture was closed off for her. I tried my best to get her into the indie leagues, but not even they wanted to deal with that. Having Alexis Rhodes on your roster was a dishonor to your brand. Matthias was true to his word. He did everything he could to keep Alexis in the garbage like he did that night. Soon her family grew ashamed of having her. Well, all except for Atticus. Zane tried his best to help her out but she started coming out less and less. In a matter of months, Alexis just vanished. I looked for her for years. I never found her."

He looked over his shoulder at her. "I thought I would never see her again. So tell me, Phoenix. Why is she with you?"

"I found her dueling in a really trashy league. I couldn't stand seeing her there so I took her in to help her. But after hearing that story I...I know now that I have a lot of work to do." He walked to the tank and looked at his friend floating lifelessly in the tank. "Oh, Alexis."

"If I were you," said Chazz. "I'd keep her from getting in the ring again."

"Who are you to tell me that? Alexis wanted to duel again."

"She can't! She's not the same girl we used to know. She's an empty shell of what she once was, Aster, you need to understand that. A frail shell is what she is. One bad touch and she'll collapse. Look at her!" He viciously pointed at the tank. "This is what dueling does to her now. It's not her world anymore. If you truly care about Alexis, you'll keep her away from Duel Monsters."

"That's up to her to decide," said Aster. "She'll grow stronger. I know she will. And the people will love her."

"And if they don't?"

Aster grimaced.

"There's a lot at stake here, Aster. Do what's best for her. Anyway, I've got to get back to my place."

"But the storm's really bad. You sure you want to go out there?"

"My tower's a short walk from here. How do you think I made it here so quickly. Remember what I said, Aster. Take care of her. Oh, and, uh, Merry Christmas."

He walked out the door leaving Aster and Alexis alone. As he stepped outside, he was assaulted by a curtain of ice and snow.

"J-J-Jeez! Paradise City my ass!"