"Just look at them. Pathetic Slifers littering the campus like vermin. The halls of Duel Academy are for the elite, not the lame. And definitely not that dropout boy Jaden Yuki. That dropout boy has made a mockery of me for long enough!" Crowler cried out, scaring the Slifer Reds that were nearby. "But soon he will pay most dearly for it. Soon with what I have planned."

"Dr. Crowler," Chazz interrupted Crowler.

"Yes, Chazz. How may I be of service?" Crowler asked the Obelisk Blue.

"You can put me in that tag team duel against Jaden and Syrus. That's how. After my last two losses, it would give me great pleasure to crush them like insects," Chazza answered.

"You?" Crowler was confused.

"That's right. This time I know I can beat them and send them packing."

"Sorry, but you'll be sitting this duel out, Chazz. Don't get me wrong, your skills are admirable, but I'm afraid I'm not taking any chances on this one. If Jaden loses here, he will be expelled from Duel Academy once and for all. Which is why he will be facing the greatest tag duelists in the world."

"Wow. You guys seem pretty calm about this tag duel, giving the risk of being expelled. That said, I know you'll do great," Rainbow said.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence. Anyway, why shouldn't we be calm? It's just another duel, another day. No problem. Right Sy?" Jaden asked his friend, only to see that his friend looked uncertain.

Syrus was looking at his Power Bond card, thinking to himself, "I can't just relax, you guys. After all, the last time I dueled I was awful. Just like my brother said I was. If I'm going to win this duel for us, I need to do better for the both of us. I can't let anyone get in my head, especially Zane. After all, the last time I let him get in my head, Jaden really let me have it."

"Sy, that's your brother talking. You just need to believe in yourself," Syrus remembered Jaden talking to him a few days ago.

"Jaden is right. I need to believe in myself. Believe in myself. Believe in myself," Syrus thought. "I believe in myself, Jaden!" Syrus said aloud.

"Hey, that's pretty great," Jaden responded as he pocketed his deck.

"With confidence like that, it'll be hard to lose," Rainbow said. "Good luck you two. You're going to win for sure."

"Thanks, Rainbow," Jaden accepted the vote of confidence.

"We'll be sure to do good," Syrus agreed as the duo left for their duel.

"Attention students! The tag duel will begin in just a few moments. And remember, these are test conditions. This is a sudden expulsion match," The announcer said to the students.

"A tad harsh I'd say," Bastion muttered to himself.

"No joke," Bastion turned to see that Alexis was sitting down next to him. "You're Bastion Misawa, a friend of Jaden's, right?"

"I supposed you can say that. And you're Alexis Rhodes?" Bastion asked Alexis.

"Yeah, and I'm also the reason that they're in this mess. They were helping me at that abandoned dorm."

"I see."

"But if anyone is in need of help, it's them. Word is that Crowler has hired professionals to duel them. Tag Dueling legends. Duelists that worked with the creator of Duel Monsters himself," Alexis was wary.

"In that case, they may be in huge trouble," Twilight Sparkle said as she and her friends sat down next to the duo, with Spike on Twilight's lap.

"Hey, it's you guys again," Alexis acknowledged.

"Yeah. We came here to give the two of them some moral support. They might be in need of it, given the circumstances," Fluttershy said.

"We're hoping that the two of them will do fine," Applejack added on.

"Yeah. If they lose I'm pretty sure that even the funnest party won't be able to make it up to them," Pinkie Pie said sadly.

"Hey! That's talking like they're going to lose, which they won't," Rainbow Dash said.

"I understand your fervor Rainbow Dash, but if they really are facing legends they could be in trouble," Rarity reminded her friend.

"Hey, if you don't mind me asking, what is with the dog Twilight?" Alexis asked Twilight upon noticing Spike.

"Oh. I keep him in my Dorm room and he is feeling left out, so I asked the Chancellor and as long as he doesn't make a fuss, he can see Duels along with me," Twilight explained.

"Yeah. If only I could actually Duel," Spike muttered under his breath.

"Time to send in the accused," The announcer said. "Syrus Truesdale and Jaden Yuki." Meanwhile, Chazz slammed his foot against the seat in front of him, much to his friend's shock.

"Check out the acoustics in here! They're great!" Jaden said.

"You think they can have your echo as your tag partner?" Syrus asked.

"For the hundredth time, you're my tag partner," Jaden said as he messed up Syrus's hair.

"Doesn't hurt to ask, though," Syrus responded.

"Slifer Slackers! It should be me taking you out! But I guess as long as someone does it!" Chazz seethed to himself.

As the duo of Syrus and Jaden got up onto the stage, they stopped and saw the Mane 6 in the crowd. "Hey look, Sy! The girls made it to see our Duel!" Jaden said.

As Jaden walked away, Syrus saw his older brother watching the Duel. "Well, little brother. Let's see if you belong here or on the next plane out of here," Zane thought.

"Zane's here?! Gotta believe in myself. Gotta believe in myself. Gotta believe in myself. Gotta believe in myself!" Syrus thought, trying to regain his confidence.

"Now without further ado, allow me to introduce our guest tag team duelists!" Crowler announced as two bald guys dressed in orange and green robes backflipped on the stage.

"Wow. Who is that?" The pair asked.

"The Paradox Brothers!" Crowler answered.

"Salutations! You fools!" Para said.

"Hope you're ready to lose," Dox finished in rhyme.

"I've never heard of these guys," Jaden said.

"Yeah. Maybe this tag duel won't be so bad," Syrus was feeling more comfortable.

"Yes, maybe so. After all, it's been ages since they've dueled, and the last opponent they had was a child. I believe he went by the name of Yugi?" Crowler gave false comfort.

"The King of Games?" Syrus asked.

"I've studied these guys. They're some kind of dueling mercenaries, not to mention the best tag duelists in the world. This is hardly fair," Alexis said.

"Yeah. Having these two as opponents almost guarantees a tough duel," Twilight said.

"I think that's Crowler's point. Statistically, I'd put Jaden's chances of winning at 1 in 50," Bastion shook his head.

"Hey, Rainbow Dash! You may have won against me, but soon you'll be all alone in your dorm as Jaden and Syrus are about to be given a ticket out of here!" Chazz mocked.

Rainbow Dash growled at this, but Applejack held her friend back so that she wouldn't do anything rash.

"Enough with the pleasantries," Para said.

"And now on with the duel," Dox continued.

"We didn't come here to talk," Para added on.

"We came…" Dox said.

"To destroy you!" Both said simultaneously as Crowler snickered.

"Crowler, don't you think this is a bit much?" Chancellor Shephard asked uncertainly.

"No, it isn't. Jaden and Syrus broke a big time rule so they deserve big time opponents. Besides, we can't send the brothers back now. They've come so far," Crowler defended.

"Jaden, I'll leave the decision up to you, my boy," Shephard gave Jaden the choice.

"Aw, these guys couldn't even beat male pattern baldness, so there's no way they can beat us!" Jaden agreed to the duel, much to Crowler's offense.

"Very well. Students, prepare to battle!" Crowler called out.

"Breathe Sy," Jaden said as he noticed Syrus looking nervous. "We can do this."

"The rules for this tag team duel are really quite simple. There is no sharing of advice, strategy, or any card that isn't already in play. However, you can use what is on your partner's field. Is that understood?" Crowler asked the two pairs.

"Yes," all four duelists said.

"Then, duel!"

"I'll go first. I summon Gyroid in attack mode (1000 Attack)!" Syrus summoned.

"You must be joking! I'm surprised that thing even has an attack mode! This, on the other hand, Jirai Gumo (2200 Attack)!" Para played.

"What? An overgrown bug? Well, it's nothing that my deck can't squash," Jaden said. "Elemental Hero Burstinatrix. Defense mode (800 Defense)!"

"The best defense is a good offense, you fool! Kaiser Sea Horse! Attack mode (1700 Attack)!" Dox summoned.

"Okay. If I know dueling the way I think I know dueling, these two are likely to attack next," Syrus thought.

"I choose to play a spell card from my hand, Tribute Doll! To activate it, I must sacrifice one monster from our side of the field. Good thing that my brother is so generous with his. I sacrifice Jirai Gumo. Now I can summon a level 7 monster this turn! And I choose to summon Kazejin (2400 Attack)!" Dox played.

"He sacrificed his brother's monster in order to summon a stronger monster for the team. Now that's tag dueling," Bastion muttered in awe.

"Can you please try to not sound so impressed with them?" Alexis asked.

"Yeah. I'd rather not be reminded how Jaden and Syrus can easily lose," Fluttershy said.

"Come on, you guys! You can beat that wind golem with ease!" Rainbow cried out to her roomates.

"Um, technically I think Kazejin is a spirit," both Bastion and Twilight muttered.

"Do you actually believe you know anything of this game?" Para asked his opponents.

"You're amateurs, you're losers! In other words, you're lame," Dox continued.

"And if you think that what you are going through is grueling," Para said.

"Then I'll play this card and give you a true schooling," Dox finished. "I play Dark Designator! This spell card allows for me to call out any monster name that I can think of. And if it is anywhere in my brother's deck then I can add it directly to his hand! Now, let me see here. Sanga of the Thunder!"

"What do you know? It's right here ready to tear them asunder," Para grabbed Sanga from his deck.

"You gotta be kidding me! Another level 7 monster?" Jaden was shocked.

"The duel just started," Para said.

"And yet it is almost done!" Dox continued.

"For your demise has already begun!" Both brothers said simultaneously.

"Don't worry, Sy! They're only saying that because it makes for an easy rhyme," Jaden tried to comfort his friend. "Now I hope that we don't make for an easy match. Okay, monster roll call. I got my Burstinatrix chillin' in defense mode. And Sy has got his Gyroid. Not bad, but not enough, especially since we're staring down some serious competition. Especially some level 7 green thing I've never seen before! Kazejin, was it?"

"What do you think, Jaden? If we give up now we'll have some extra time to pack up all our stuff. What do you think, Jaden?" Syrus offered.

"The only thing we're packing is some serious dueling punch. I'm telling ya, we'll beat these guys, Sy!" Jaden said.

"Jaden, you're right," Syrus said. "We are packing some serious dueling punch! Not only am I gonna show the Paradox brothers, but I'm gonna show my brother as well. And I'm gonna do it right here, right now on this turn!" Syrus thought. "All aboard! I summon Steamroid in attack mode (1800 Attack)! And now I play Polymerization. Check it out! I'm fusing my Gyroid and Steamroid together in order to form the ultimate engine that could Steam Gyroid (2200 Attack)! Now that's locomotion! You may have been able to pull off some amazing teamwork, but by sacrificing your brother's Jirai Gumo, you've left him completely defenseless to a direct attack!"

"Um, Sy?" Jaden tried to warn Syrus.
"And now, I'm closing in! Steam Gyroid, attack Para!"

"A direct attack?" Para asked, looking scared.

"You got that right!" Syrus countered.

Everyone in the arena looked shocked, except for the laughing Chazz and Crowler, as well as Rainbow Dash and Syrus who thought the attack would work.

"That was a bad move," Twilight commented.

"But why? Syrus is about to deal major damage to Para!" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Simple. Kazejin has an ability that can negate the damage dealt from one of their battles, meaning the attack was for nothing," Spike whispered, much to Rainbow's shock.

All of a sudden, Para's false fear disappeared. "If you please, brother," Para motioned towards his brother.

"It would be my pleasure. I activate Kazejin's special ability! It's my monster's special ability, do you like?" Dox asked.

"It reduces the damage to zero without even a fight!" Para continued.

"So I goofed?" Syrus sadly asked as Crowler laughed.

"Do these two think they have a chance against Para and Dox? They shrink worse than dirty socks! Oh, now they even have me doing it!" Crowler rhymed.

"Don't worry about it, Sy. No biggie," Jaden tried to comfort his friend.

"Yeah. Right," Syrus sadly muttered.

"Hey, I'm serious, pal. Just keep going," Jaden said.

"You're right, Jaden. I play one card facedown and end my turn," Syrus set a card.

"At last a smart move! My draw!" Para said. "I play Monster Reborn and bring back the frightful Jirai Gumo (2200 Attack)! And now I also play another spell card, Tribute Doll!"

"Not again!" Syrus was worried.

"Yes, and yet again I sacrifice Jirai Gumo in order to play another level 7 monster, Suijin (2500 Attack)! And I am not done yet! May I borrow another monster, brother?" Para asked.

"Please, brother. That's why he's there!" Dox answered.

"I sacrifice Kaiser Sea Horse!"

"In case you didn't know, When you are summoning a Light attribute monster, Kaiser Sea Horse's sacrifice counts as two instead of one. Which means I am now able to summon Sanga of the Thunder (2600 Attack)!"

"Now I place those odds at 500 to 1," Bastion grimly said.

"What are the odds of you being quiet?" Alexis asked, which Bastion got the hint and quieted down.

"Three monsters on our side. What could be better?" Para asked his brother.

"I know brother. When they come together," Dox continued.

"Prepare yourselves! I sacrifice Suijin, Kazejin, and Sanga of the Thunder! So that I can summon the ultimate monster! Rise, Gate Guardian (3750 Attack)!"

"Gate Guardian?!" Syrus was shocked.

"He's ginormous!" Jaden was also shocked.

"Just wait until you see his attack! Go! Destroy Steam Gyroid! Tidal Surge Attack!" Para cried out.

Jaden and Syrus

6450
Para and Dox

8000

"This isn't a duel. It's target practice for the Paradox Brothers," Bastion commented. "And Sy's the bullseye."

"He's just made a few bad moves that's all. I'm sure he'll turn things around. At least I hope so. Jaden's good, but he's not good enough to win this thing by himself," Alexis cautiously commented.

"I know, it hurts!" Para started.

"The bad news is it only gets worse," Dox continued.

"If it gets as bad is this rhyming then we'll be in serious trouble," Syrus commented.

"These two are doing better than I expected! They know just what to do and when to do it! After all, in a tag duel once one attacks the weakest link, the whole chain comes crumbling apart. And that chain is Syrus. Poor little Syrus. He'd be the weakest link on a plate of sausages," Crowler thought in glee, while Chazz was laughing to himself.

"Aw man. I hope Jaden has something in that deck of his or else it'll be the end of our lives at the academy," Syrus nervously thought.

"Well, the bigger they are the harder they fall. Let's take this thing down!" Jaden cried out as Syrus looked nervous.

"I'd like to see you try. But for now I'll play this facedown card and end my turn," Para said.

"Then it's time to throw down! Here goes! Sweet! First, I'm gonna summon the Elemental Hero Clayman (800 Attack)! And next I play Polymerization! I'll fuse the Burstinatrix and Clayman on my field in order to create the Elemental Hero Rampart Blaster (2000/2500)!" Jaden played.

"Well, Blaster's bad, but not as bad as that Gate Guardian. His defense points are only 2500 while Gate Guardian's attack is 3750! Blaster is going to be blasted for sure!" Syrus was worried.

"Aw, don't sweat is, Sy. You see, Rampart Blaster's effect allows for him to attack an opponent's life points directly!" Jaden explained.

"Our life points!" The Paradox brothers both yelled.

"Now attack with Blaster Barrage! Sure you only lose half the life points you'd normally lose, but it's a special ability. What are you gonna do?

Jaden and Syrus

6450

Para and Dox

7000

"A lucky move," Dox grumbled.

"Finally! The Paradox Brothers lost some life points! Jaden and Syrus can still win!" Pinkie Pie cheered.

"All right! We're back in this thing!" Syrus cheered.

"Aw, Sy. We were never out of it," Jaden reminded his friend.

"Jaden's right. We can still win this thing," Syrus thought.

"It's my draw now! And I activate the equip spell card Fairy Meteor Crush and equip it onto Gate Guardian!" Dox played. "Now, when Gate Guardian attacks a monster in defense mode the difference between his attack points and your monster's defense points are dealt to your life points!"

"Not so fast! Don't forget that I have a facedown! Go Mystical Space Typhoon! Now I can destroy a spell or trap card on the field, and I think I'll destroy the spell card you just played," Syrus cried out.

"Perfect! Now they won't take any piercing battle damage this turn,," Rarity sighed in relief.

"I play my trap card Judgement of Anubis! Now I can negate your spell card by discarding one card from my hand. Your Space Typhoon has just been downgraded into a pleasant summer breeze," Para explained. "Observe. But that's not all it does. Now it destroys one of your creatures and inflicts damage to your life points equal to that creature's attack points!"

"Pretty cool special feature!" Dox said as Rampart Blaster was destroyed.

Jaden and Syrus

4450

Para and Dox

7000

"I play Defense Wall and end my turn. As long as he is on my field, you cannot attack any monster other than him!" Dox explained.

"The Gate Guardian in attack position with Defense Wall on defense. It's almost flawless," Bastion muttered in awe.

"I get it! Now, can you be quiet or should I move?" Alexis asked in annoyance.

"It's not fair! Para and Dox are too powerful for Jaden and Syrus to defeat! They're given a guaranteed expulsion and we can't do anything to stop them," Fluttershy grumbled.

"Yeah, it does seem fishy, girls. Is Crowler trying to get them expelled or something?" Applejack asked.

"I don't know, but someone is trying to get them out of here, and I'd say Crowler is at the top of the list of suspects," Twilight suspiciously noted.

"What are you waiting for? It's your turn," Dox informed Syrus.
"To be honest, a miracle," Syrus answered as he drew his card. "I summon Cycroid in defense mode (1000 Defense)!" Jaden looked over at Syrus. "Aw man. Jaden's looking at me. I know it was a weak monster, but it was the best I could do."

"You play a bike? Well, it's about to get a major flat! Gate Guardian, attack Cycroid! And don't forget that the difference between your monster's defense points and my monster's attack is dealt to you as damage!" Para said.

Jaden and Syrus

1700

Para and Dox

7000

"Your life points are falling!" Para said.

"Your game play is appalling!" Dox continued.

"There is nothing to do except to give up and start bawling!" both brothers said at once.

"Attention, Jaden Yuki. It is your turn! If you don't make a move, you will be disqualified!" The announcer said.