Renegades: A New Dawn

by Primal WolfBlood

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

38. Survival

Renegades: A New Dawn

Chapter XXXVIII: Survival

Post-duel, Astrid was elated at her victory. As she walked, a smile beaming from her face, she met Rio in the corridor, and they both stopped for a moment. Then, Rio smiled. 'Good win out there.' 'Bet you're disappointed that you're not facing him.' 'Not really, I'll take on anybody. That title is mine.' 'You think? Why don't you make me give it to you?' 'Oh trust me I'd love to. But we'll have to wait until tomorrow.' The two then split, with Astrid walking away.

Meanwhile, Hannah was providing commiserations to her husband, who didn't seem too badly affected by the loss. 'Tough break eh?' 'She totally deserved it - she was better by some way. I just never got into that one.' 'I thought you had her at the end.' 'Yeah, so did I. Just doesn't work out that way. I suppose she just wanted it more.' Hannah then brought up an important subject. 'You need to stop this whole punishing of her for Finn. She isn't responsible for what he did.'

He silently nodded. 'Got anything to say? Or is this vicious cycle going to continue?' He looked in her eyes, and point blankly stated 'As long as I live, I will never like a Hofferson. But she's earned my respect. That's plenty.' As he went to leave, Dylar came running in. 'Sorry to disturb you both, but the footage has been found.' They both got up, and led the servant out of the room.

Outside of there, Sakura was waiting. 'So I got in contact with Jodi, and she managed to hack into the security cameras and downloaded about 40 minutes' worth of footage. She said that she saw something around the 15 minute mark though.' 'Coming from someone who's legally blind, that's not exactly reassuring.' Hannah then dug her other half in the ribs. 'Have some respect for her will you?'

After plugging the USB stick into a laptop, they watched the footage. Nothing of note happened until the 11 minute mark, where Lydia walked in, checking the bottom of Phil's Extra deck, pulling out Cyber Dragon Infinity, and then putting it back at the top. The room remained empty after this aside from Blair briefly walking into the room, and picking up a can.

That was until 17 minutes in, when a mystery figure poked their head around the door, and then walked in calmly, taking their hood down, prompting a memory from Hannah. 'She's the girl who was being abused by Claude and his band of bozos earlier.' The mystery girl looked around for a moment, before noticing the cards in Phil's jacket. She fanned them all out, picked out the expensive Infinity, and placed it in her pocket, before putting everything back in order. She then put her hood up again, and walked out, brazen as anything.

The footage left Phil and Hannah perplexed. 'I mean I get wanting to have a look what you can steal, but she was so brazen about it. Didn't mess with the camera, she barely tried to disguise herself, and it's not like she'd even tried to get in with us before it.' Phil however, was a bit less concerned. 'It's probably a random chancer. The principle is the most annoying thing, with it being a present. I'll get another one and then tell the girls that it just turned up.' Hannah smiled, and lay her head on his shoulder. 'You know, you're really nice when you wanna be.' He then whispered back. 'Well I know where I want to be nice tonight.' 'Well be good and I might take you there myself.'

The next morning

Rio and Astrid barely looked at each other at breakfast, both focused on their semi-final against each other. Which hadn't gone unnoticed by Blair and Jade. 'You could cut the tension with a knife.' 'They both know what it means. Rio feels like she needs the title because she's always been the weak one. She was weaker than her brother, weaker than the rest of the Barian emperors, weaker than me, weaker than Phil. This is her chance to prove she's stronger than everyone.'

'And Astrid?' 'She believes she is fated to win the title. She took the win yesterday against Phil to mean that she's destined to become the champion. It's sort of like her version of Manifest Destiny, except without all the colonialism and shit. But I suppose I've got my own duel to focus on. Been a while since I could say that. It's good to be back.'

Jade then looked around, and saw the back of Blair's jacket, which had a massive black love heart on it, and the words "one bad BItch" in purple lettering contained within. She then looked further down, and saw that Blair's trousers had Jade's name written on them in Arabic. 'How long have you had that design on the back of your jacket and pants?' She then smiled. 'Since 5:40 this morning. I couldn't sleep, so I had that idea.'

'That is so sweet. I didn't even know you spoke Arabic.' She then grinned. 'I don't. Luckily, Maddy can speak basic Arabic… along with about 40 other languages. She sent over the letters I needed and I stitched them on. Which is why I've got a plaster on my thumb - never was any good at needlework.' 'To be fair you're more of an enginework person.' 'Not wrong there.'

Meanwhile, Rio was having a coffee when Astrid walked over to her, clutching a couple of pills. 'What is it?' 'I heard you had a migraine.' She then dropped the pills in front of her. 'What the fuck are those?' 'Aspirin. If I'm going to beat you, I want it to be because I was better, not because you were unwell. I'll see you out there.' She walked off to receive a pre-duel massage for her neck, leaving her opponent somewhat conflicted.

In the dueling zone

As the lights went down for the first semi-final, Rio's music played and she entered, her gaze barely lifting as she walked straight down, having apparently recovered from her earlier issues. In the dueling zone, she looked straight into one of the cameras, and muttered "Stronger than death", before preparing her deck in the zone.

While she was doing this, Astrid made her appearance, with her armour freshly polished, making it nearly blinding. As she entered the zone, she made eye contact with Rio, and they both made the single fist Renegades salute, before an extremely tense handshake. The announcer then introduced the competitors.

'The following is your first Egotistical Eight Semi-Final, and will be held under Traditional rules, with a 90 minute time limit. Introducing first, standing to my left, representing the Renegade nation, from Twin Falls, Idaho, Cold Blooded Rio Kastle.' Hearing her name, Rio raised her fist, but didn't take her eyes off of her opponent.

'And introducing her opponent, also representing the Renegade nation, from Alta, Finnmark, Norway, she is the Arctic Fox - Astrid Hofferson.' Astrid's gaze barely flinched, as she continued to breathe slowly, prepared for the battle which lay ahead. After the coin toss (which Rio won), they both activated their duel disks, and began.

Egotistical Eight Tournament Semi-Final 1: Astrid Hofferson LP:8000 vs. Rio Kastle LP:8000

Turn 1: Rio: 'I'll start. I'll set a monster, set two backrow, and pass.'

Astrid: 'I'm not taking anything for granted here. I draw. I'll copy your move - monster, two backrow.'

Rio: 'Back to me I guess. I suppose I'll have to be the aggressor - I'll flip up an Aurora Wing (Atk:1200). Then I'll summon Oyster Meister (Atk:1600). Meister, attack her monster.' The Level 3 monster launched oyster shells at high velocity into Astrid's monster, bouncing off harmlessly (Garmr Def.:1900, Rio LP:8000-7700). 'Due to the effect of Garmr, your monster returns to your hand as it is Level 4 or below.'

Normally this would have resulted in Rio passing over to Astrid. But this time, she had other ideas. 'Aurora Wing, attack Garmr.' 'Are… you ok? You can count, right?' 'Absolutely.' The attack went through, and Aurora Wing's icy assault failed to leave an impact (Rio LP:7700-7000). 'Aurora Wing bounces back to your hand now.' 'In that case I'll set two and pass.'

Astrid: 'I draw. I hope you realise games of chicken don't end well for the chicken. I activate Graceful Charity to draw three and discard two. Then I summon Gullinbursti of the Nordic Beasts (Atk:300). While we're at it, we go the whole hog and use Gullinbursti to summon Dverg of the Nordic Alfar (Atk:100).' 'Nice board you got there.' 'Even better when I summon Ivaldi the Nordic Smith. I can Special summon him if I control a Nordic or Aesir monster (Atk:1500).'

'Then I get to search my deck again! When Ivaldi's summoned, I can select a Nordic Relic and add it to my hand. I'll fashion myself with a Nordic Relic Brisingamen. But for now, I'll equip my Dverg with Nordic Relic Andvarinaut.' A massive ring fell from the sky, and appeared to be binding the steamy-looking Level 1. 'This ring increases Dverg's Level by 1, and continues to do that during each Standby phase (Level:1-2).

'Now it's Synchro time! I'll tune Level 3 Brisingamen to Level 0 Dverg, Level 4 Garmr, and Level 4 Ivaldi. Computerized warrior of a distant future, I call upon your knowledge of times not yet lived, to plan the path to victory. Synchro summon! Blaze a way, Geomathmech Final Sigma (Atk:3000).' 'I see, you're going all in immediately.' 'Might as well take advantage of your generosity, clearing your own field. When Final Sigma is summoned from the Extra deck, all damage it does is doubled. Now attack with Flaming Conundrum!'

'Yeah, I was never letting that happen. I activate Frozen Steel Sheet. This not only negates your attack, but drops your monster's Attack points by 1000.' 'Fanciful thoughts only get you so far. Final Sigma is unaffected by any card effects if it was summoned from the Extra deck. So while I'm not dealing damage, you're not weakening my monster. I'll set one and pass.'

Rio: 'I draw. I'll activate a Field Spell - Land of Frozen Flames.' As the card activated, a barren plateau of dark blue volcanic rock spread, with frozen fire and a huge crack in the centre. 'I know what I'm looking for. I'll set a monster and pass.'

Astrid: 'So this Field Spell has an effect, right?' Rio just nodded. 'Any chance of filling a girl in?' 'When I'm Xyz summoning, any Water monster can be treated as two monsters for the summon.' 'Neat.' 'I'll set a monster myself, and attack your monster with Final Sigma.' The attack came burning in, melting through Rio's Aurora Wing (Def.:1400). 'Gone but not forgotten. When Aurora Wing is destroyed in battle, I can revive her in Attack mode (Atk:1200).' 'I'll end my turn.'

Rio: 'I draw. That's just what I needed to really get going - I'll summon Guitar Gurnards Duonigis (Atk:1500). Then because I already control a Sea Serpent, I summon Mecha Sea Dragon Plesion (Atk:2300). Now I'll activate Gurnards Duonigis' effect, to increase its Level by its original Level, which is three (Level:3-6). Now with the effect of Land of Frozen Flames, I can overlay my Gurnards Duonigis. With this one monster I build the overlay network and Xyz summon! Appear, Constellar Ptolemy M7 (Atk:2700).'

'But I'm not done, because I still have a Level 5 monster on my field. With my Land, I'll overlay my Level 5 Plesion, to rebuild the overlay network, and Xyz summon Number 73: Abyss Splash (Atk:2400). Finally, I'll use my Land to overlay my Level 4 Aurora Wing. I rebuild the overlay network and Xyz summon for a third time! Appear, Abyss Dweller (Atk:1800).' As Rio's summoning spree ended, Astrid had a sting in the tail prepared.

'I hope you're not too attached to them, because I activate the effect of Nibiru the Primal Being in my hand. I can summon it by tributing all of your monsters, and then you get a Primal Being Token with the combined Attack of all your monsters.' 'Did you forget my face-downs? I activate Debunk. Because you activated an effect in the hand or graveyard, this will negate your Nibiru and banish it.'

This is where a lesser duelist would have recoiled. But the Norwegian took it in her stride, and watched her card get banished. 'Now for Abyss Dweller's effect. Because it has a Water monster as material, all Water monsters on my field gain 500 Attack (Atk:1800-2300, Abyss Atk:2400-2900). Then by detaching a material from Abyss Splash, it doubles its Attack (Atk:2900-5800).'

'It's battle time! Abyss, attack Final Sigma with Final Fall!' Number 73 crashed straight into the Final Sigma with tremendous force upon a jet of water, smashing Astrid's apparent secret weapon. 'Don't forget, I take half damage due to Abyss' effect (Astrid LP:8000-6600). 'I may not take you out here, but you're as good as through. Abyss Dweller, attack.' Reluctantly, Astrid took the hit, being lunged at by the shadowy beast down below (Astrid LP:6600-4300). 'Constellar Ptolemy M7, attack!' The Constellar monster smacked Astrid around hard with metal wings, dropping her points and leaving her bleeding from the mouth (Astrid LP:4300-1700).

'So that's the way it is then? I activate The Golden Apples. Because I took Battle damage while I control no monsters, I gain back the Life points from that last battle, and then summon a Malus Token of the same Attack (Astrid LP:1700-4300, Malus Token Atk:2600, Level:1).' 'Fine, I'll end my turn right there. Go ahead.'

Astrid: 'My draw. I activate One for One. I send this from my hand to the grave and summon Valkyrie Sechste (Def.:2000). When she's Special summoned, Sechste calls out a reinforcement from deck. Ride with her, Valkyrie Erste (Atk:1600). Erste's effect banishes a monster from your grave to steal its Attack value. I choose Plesion.' Rio looked somewhat confused, but shrugged. 'Erm… ok? (Atk:1600-2300).'

'Then I'll flip my face-down United We Stand. For each monster on my field, Erste gains 800 Attack points (Atk:2300-4700).' Realising the likelihood of losing her monsters, Rio made a snap decision. 'I'll use the Abyss Dweller effect now, it stops your graveyard effects this turn (Abyss Dweller Atk:2200-1700).' 'Erste, attack Constellar Ptolomy M7 with Cloud Splitter!' The Valkyrie graceful rode into battle upon her steed, piercing the air with a blade sharper then a pin, splitting Ptolomy clean in half, as Rio got pushed to the edge of the zone (Rio LP:8000-6000). 'Don't forget, I still have a monster which can attack - my Malus Token. Into Abyss Dweller.' The Malus token shot a strange purple stream twisting out towards the Dweller, exploding on contact and throwing Rio off of the stage (Rio LP:6000-5000).

A moment of concern followed, as Rio didn't immediately get up, instead lying there, nearly motionless. As Phil ran down, the medical official on standby came over, and her manager got down to check on her, before he held out his hand. Determined though, and proving a point, she swiped it away, before standing up, turning around to reveal a swollen eye and cheek. 'You ok?' 'Never better.' 'I end my turn.'

Phil then checked on his client again. 'You sure you're ok?' 'I'm fine, stop fussing.' 'Only if you're certain' She then flashed a side-eyed look at him, before muttering through gritted teeth. 'I'm fine! Leave me alone, we discussed this!' Phil raised his hands, and stepped back, watching from the entrance.

Rio: 'I draw. I'll activate Card Destruction. This throws my entire hand and starts again.' Rio looked at her cards, and grinned at Astrid. 'I'm prepared for whatever your deck has.' 'No, you aren't. I summon Blizzard Falcon (Atk:1500).' 'I thought you said I wasn't prepared?' 'It's not that I was talking about. I activate Tailor of the Fickle!' At this moment, Astrid's jaw dropped, as did Phil's, as he muttered 'Not seen that one in donkey's years…'

'Tailor of the Fickle allows me to take one of your Equip cards, and equip it to another viable target. I choose United We Stand, and equip it to Blizzard Falcon (Atk:1500-3100). And you know what happens when Blizzard Falcon gains Attack don't you? Blizzard Mirage!' The icy blue Falcon powered up, and slammed into Astrid at high speed, reducing her points (Astrid LP:4300-2800). 'Falcon, destroy Valkyrie Erste.' The Falcon charged into its foe, nearly decapitating the Valkyrie, and throwing Astrid to the ground herself (Astrid LP:2800-1300).

Medics went to check on Astrid after her hard landing, but she got straight back up. However, she was clearly having issues with her left hand. 'I activate another copy of The Golden Apples.' 'That card again? How many do you have?' 'More than one (Astrid LP:1300-2800, Malus Token Atk:1500). 'I end my turn with another face-down.'

Astrid: 'I'll draw. Let's change things up a bit - I'll tribute my two Malus Tokens to Tribute Set a monster, then end my turn with a face-down.' Rio then broke out into what could be considered a smile. 'Don't go all chicken on me. That's not the Astrid I wanted to face.' 'If you're that bothered, why not attack?'

Rio: 'I draw. You think I won't attack? Blizzard Falcon, attack.' As the Falcon swooped towards the ground, Astrid was prepared. 'I activate Valkyrie's Ballad. Because the only monster I control is a Valkyrie monster, I can negate your attack. And the sweet thing about Ballad is the monster doesn't need to be face-up, as long as I flip it up (Valkyrie Brunhilde Def.:2000). And as long as Ballad is on the field,players without a Valkyrie on their field can't attack.' 'I end my turn.'

Astrid: 'My turn. I'll activate a little card called Sacred Sword of Seven Stars. By banishing Brunhilde from my hand, I draw two. Then I'll activate Ride of the Valkyries.' 'Here it comes.' 'I'll use Ride to Special summon Valkyrie Erda from my hand (Atk:2000). And when Erda is on the field, your monsters lose 1000 Attack (Falcon Atk:3100-2100, Abyss Atk:2400-1400). Erda, attack Abyss Splash.'

'Not happening! I activate Rank-up Magic Quick Chaos.' 'Ok, that's pretty smart of you.' 'That might just be the smartest thing you've said all day. This ranks up my Xyz monster into one that is a Rank higher. I rebuild the overlay network with Rank 5 Abyss. Chaos Xyz Evolution! I Xyz summon Number C73 - Abyss Supra Splash (Atk:3000-2000), and it goes to my Extra Monster Zone.' Astrid grinned as it came out.

'Game on. In Main Phase 2, I'll summon G.B. Hunter (Atk:1200).' 'What's a G.B. Hunter?' 'It stops monsters from returning to the deck. It used to be used to counter Gladiator Beasts, but this time it's being used to stop Ride's downside.' Rio just stared right on through, unfazed. 'I mean I don't know what I was expecting, but it wasn't that. I end my turn.'

Astrid: 'My draw. I'll activate Pot of Avarice. I shuffle five back, then draw two. I'll set one of them and end my turn.'

Rio: 'Draw.' Rio then spent the best part of a minute and a half just observing the field, the cogs turning in her head. All the while, her manager stood silently, observing the entire situation. 'I think I know. I'm going to set a monster and pass.'

Astrid: 'I draw. I'll attack your set monster with Erda.' The attack seemed to prove dividends, as Erda skewered Rio's monster (Prediction Princess Arrowsylph Def.:1400), taking another card out of the equation. 'I'll activate Arrowsylph's flip effect. It allows me to add a Ritual Spell from my deck to my hand. And I'll choose Advanced Ritual Art.' 'Go ahead. I'll end my turn with a face-down.'

Rio: The Barian duelist closed her eyes, hoping for the correct draw. 'Deck, if you can hear me, give me just what I need.' She then opened her eyes again. 'I draw!' She looked at the card, and smiled. 'Apparently it works. I'll activate my face-down Preparation of Rites. This allows me to add Nekroz of Unicore from my deck to my hand.' 'Nekroz? But that's Hannah's deck.' It was at this moment that the Viking warrior realised something. 'That… present. The one Hannah was asking about you for last week. I thought it was going to be pancake batter or a new baking tray.'

Flashback: 7 Days Before

'So Rio, I wanted to give you a little present.' 'I know I should be grateful and all, but my birthday isn't until August 20th. And Christmas was the other month.' 'I know. It's not that kind of present. More of… a little gift.' Rio then undid the small red and black cardboard box, and was shocked at what was inside. 'Hang on… this is your deck. Like, all of it. I'm guessing you got the gifts mixed up?'

'Nope. I want you to have this.' 'Why?' 'You know, the whole retired duelist stuff?' 'So it wasn't just because you're pregnant?' The mother-to-be laughed. 'You are adorable. No, this is very permanent. Well, I say VERY, I'm not doing pro stuff. I'll borrow one of Phil's decks for any local events. But yeah, I just don't have any desire to return. And the deck's pretty new, so you might as well have it. I know you just invested in a new deck recently, but it's good to have more than one.'

Rio appeared to be stunned by this. 'I… don't know what to say.' 'Then just don't say anything. You don't have to take it if you don't want it.' 'You kidding? I… thank you. I'm going to see what I can do with it. Are you sure about this?' 'If I wasn't sure, I wouldn't be giving it to you. Truth be told, I'm not coming out of retirement, because I'm planning on going back to college to retrain.' 'That's awesome.'

In the zone

'I activate Advanced Ritual Art. This allows me to send Level 1 Water Spirit, Level 2 Droll Bird, and Level 1 Charcoal Inpachi from my deck to my grave and summon Nekroz of Unicore (Atk:2300-1300' 'So… if your face-down wasn't Prep or Ritual Art…' 'I activate my face-down Tri-Wight.' 'Hva pokker?' 'No idea what you said. Tri-Wight allows me to revive three Level 2 or lower Normal monsters from my graveyard. Returning are Water Spirit, Droll Bird, and Charcoal Inpachi (Def.:1200, 500, 2100).'

As Astrid continued to curse in her native language, Rio started to turn up the intensity. But none of them are staying, as I'm going to Synchro all of them off. Level 1 Water Spirit tunes to Level 1 Charcoal Inpachi, Level 2 Droll Bird, and Level 4 Nekroz of Unicore. From these four monsters rises a great beast from lore. Appear, Graydle Dragon (Atk:3000-2000).' 'I like the move, but it can't attack.'

'Correction - it can't attack YET. When it's summoned, Graydle Dragon destroys a card on your field for every Water monster I summoned it with. I choose Valkyrie Erda and Ballad.' 'I'll respond with my face-down Solemn Protection. This stays face-up for the next three turns, during which you can't target any Valkyrie cards with card effects.' 'Fine, I end my turn with a face-down.'

Astrid: 'I draw.' Dissatisfied with her draw, she puffed her cheeks out. 'I'll pass.'

Rio: 'I don't believe you bricked for a second, your deck is full of op… op... ' 'Options?' 'I don't need correcting!' she snapped, as the duel time ticked past 25 minutes. 'I'll set a monster and pass.'

Astrid:'My draw. Erda, attack her hiding monster.' Erda sliced straight through Rio's monster, but there was a surprise for Astrid (Morphing Jar Def.:600). 'Because you flipped up Morphing Jar, we now both discard our hands and redraw five cards.' 'Easy for you - you don't have a hand to discard.' As both of them drew their cards, Rio seemed the happier. 'I'll set three and end my turn.'

Rio: 'I draw. I'll activate Nekroz Mirror. This allows me to send the Level 5 Sirenorca from my hand to the grave and banish the Level 4 Nekroz of Unicore from the graveyard to Ritual summon Nekroz of Trishula (Atk:2700-1700).' 'You really do have all the tricks.' 'You can say that again when Trishula banishes your cards.' Astrid however, had a novel way to prevent the effect.

'I activate Imperial Iron Wall. This prevents you from banishing any cards now.' 'Well why didn't you do that before?' The truth then hit her. 'Unless of course, you wanted me to banish Unicore.' 'As soon as I saw what you were using to Ritual summon, I figured what you were going for.' 'Well in that case I'll set a card and pass.'

Astrid: 'I draw. I'll activate One for One. By discarding one card, I can summon Valkyrie Sechste from my deck (Def.:2000). And when I do, Sechste's ability triggers, summoning Valkyrie Sigrun from my deck (Atk:2200). Then Sigrun's ability, I can summon Valkyrie Zweite (Atk:1600). And Zweite's ability destroys a monster you control. I choose Graydle Dragon.' Zweite's sword shone brightly, and surged from her hand, decapitating the dragon.

'Erda, destroy Trishula.' 'I'll activate Kunai with Chain, using both effects. So your monster switches to Defence mode and Trisula gains 500 Attack (Atk:1700-2200, Erda Def.:2200). 'I end my turn.'

Rio: 'My turn. I'll start with Trap Stun, to freeze your Valkyrie's Ballad. Now Trishula, attack Zweite with Frozen Frenzy.' Finally, an attack connected as Zweite fell to the warrior's sword (Astrid LP:2800-2200). 'Because a Valkyrie fell in battle, Ballad is also destroyed. That's an effect which is non-negateable.' 'I'll end my turn with a face-down.'

Astrid: 'My draw. I'll set this one, then I'll let you go again.'

Rio: 'You'll regret not taking your chances. I draw.' This time, Rio's draw really opened her eyes. 'Well I don't think I've shown you enough yet. I activate Metamorphosis.' 'Yeah… this could hurt a bit.' 'This tributes a monster on my field, and summons a Fusion monster of the same Level from my Extra deck. I'll tribute the Level 9 Nekroz of Trishula, and replace it with my Joker option - Arcana Knight Joker.' 'Don't forget that it has to pay the same price as Erda inflicts on all of your monsters (Atk:3800-2800).'

'That's a price I'll pay in order to destroy Valkyrie Erda. And this time, you can't stop me.' Astrid had a wicked smile though. 'Can't I? I activate the graveyard effect of Ballad. Normally I'd have to banish it for this effect, but if I destroy another face-up Spell or Trap on my field, I can return Ballad to the bottom of the deck instead. So I'll destroy the Imperial Iron Wall, and in return, your Battle phase ends. In addition, I draw a card.' 'Well you're still going down. I end my turn. As soon as I draw that card, you're cooked. Or should I say, frozen.'

Astrid: 'Don't you know that a girl needs her sub-zero temperatures to live? It's good for the mind. I draw. I activate Premature Burial. I pay 800 points (Astrid LP:2200-1400), to revive Valkyrie Zweite (Atk:1600). Then I'll Normal summon the Tuner monster Vanadis of the Nordic Ascendant (Atk:1200).' 'But Ascendant needs to summon a Nordic monster?' 'I know. I'm going to tune Level 4 Vanadis with my Level 5 Zweite and Level 1 Malus Token! Let the trickster god reveal his form, for he fooled you into thinking you could possibly overcome the odds! I Synchro summon! Descend and mayhem you will cause, so descend you must, Loki, Lord of the Aesir (Atk:3500).'

'Loki, attack Blizzard Falcon with Paralysing Punisher.' Loki lifted his index finger, and shot out a small beam of electricity from it, frying the Falcon (Rio LP:5000-4600). 'Well there goes the plan.' 'I'll end my turn there.'

Rio: 'I draw. I'll set one and attack with Abyss Supra into Loki. And when it does, I can detach Supra's Xyz material to increase its Attack stat by that of its opponent.' As Abyss Supra supercharged itself with incredible fury (Atk:3000-6500), Astrid was a step ahead. 'I didn't want to fire this off so soon, but I activate Nordic Relic Megingjord. This will double Loki's Attack until the turn ends (Atk:3500-7000).' With this, Loki was strong enough to absorb the pike of Abyss Supra, and strike back by brutally launching Supra into the air with one finger (Rio LP:4600-4100).

'I'm guessing neither of the cards in your hand is a Trap then.' 'Funny.' Rio continued to scan the field, and eventually found what seemed like a reasonable plan. 'Well it has to be somewhere I guess. I'm going to set one monster and pass (Loki Atk:3500).'

Astrid: 'I draw. You've still not seen the real threat, so I think I'll equip Loki with Synchro Boost. Give my god 500 more Attack and make his Level even higher (Atk:3500-4000, Level:10-11). Now eliminate the Joker.' It was no laughing matter for Rio, as her field started to get slowly decimated by Astrid's continued assault in what was fast becoming a battle of grit and patience (Rio LP:4100-2900). 'I end my turn.'

Rio: 'I draw!' She looked at the card and rolled her eyes. 'Not exactly helpful right now. I'll set one backrow and pass.'

Astrid: 'It's the new card, so I can't say if it's a Spell or Trap. But it's not something she seemed to like. I draw. I'll attack into your Trishula with Loki.' 'I'll activate Miracle. Now Trishula avoids destruction, the damage I take is halved, and I get a fresh draw.' This came just as a shockwave radiated from the ground, and tripped Rio (Rio LP:2900-2150). 'I… get my card.' Rio then slumped, clearly exhausted from a duel which by this point had lasted over 45 minutes. Meanwhile the crowd had become heavily invested, watching with baited breath.

Just as Phil was about to talk to his client though, she stood back up, her face battered and bruised from the efforts as well as the previous day's encounter with Claude. 'Err… you don't look too good right now.' Astrid remarked, showing a surprising degree of concern for her opponent. 'I'll be fine! Is it my go yet?' 'Yeah, I'll set one.'

Rio: 'Draw!' This draw really made her open her eyes. 'I forgot I put that back in.' Her eyes then narrowed. 'Let the god meet the emperor! I activate Rank-up Magic the Seventh One! This allows me to summon from my Extra deck Number 103 - Ragnazero (Atk:2400). Then I'll rebuild the overlay network with her! Chaos Xyz Evolution!' Rio was then engulfed by a pink light, as the crowd started cheering her on. 'Ragna nation, hear my cry! Barian's power, born of chaos, lay waste to these gods of filth!'

A figure then appeared in the light, swinging a deadly double-ended scythe like a cheer baton, a sinister smile across the face of the monster. 'I Xyz summon Number C104. Swing your scythe and cut through the competition, Ragnafinity (Atk:2800-1800).' 'I wondered if you would. But this is an exercise in your own downfall.' 'I'll use Ragna's effect. By detaching one material, she can deal you damage equal to the change in Loki's Attack points, and then banishes your god.' As the scythe spun, a dark mist floated out and enveloped the Viking, as Loki was dissolved by the mist (Astrid LP:1400-900).

Rio's secret plan then came to the fore. 'Now I'll rebuild the overlay network with Rank 5 Ragnafinity. Rank-up Xyz Evolution! I summon Number 21: Frozen Lady Justice (Def.:500). And once per turn, I can use her effect to detach a material and destroy all your monsters in Defence mode.' Rio's plan appeared to have worked to perfection, as the Rank 6 monster slayed both Valkyries, leaving only a vulnerable G.B. Hunter on the field. 'And for your last hurrah, I will rebuild the network with Rank 6 Frozen Lady Justice. Rank-up Xyz Evolution! I summon Rank 7, Gaia Dragon the Thunder Charger (Atk:2600). It's been a blast, but this is the end.' The attack from Gaia Dragon came roaring in, watched like a hawk by the blonde. At the last possible moment, she revealed her card. 'Scrubbed Raid! I send G.B. Hunter to the graveyard to block your attack.' This desperate rearguard action secured Astrid at least one more turn, leaving her foe dejected. 'Thought I… had you there. I end my turn.'

Astrid then suddenly fell, her knees buckling under the strain. 'I've never felt like this before. Almost like I'm too weak to stand.' In a desperate effort to keep going, she took her hair tie out, and quickly ripped it into pieces, before retying it into a makeshift brace, which she placed just below her knee. Slightly unsteady and with her beautiful hair now flowing free, she smiled. 'This is when you know I'm serious.'

Astrid: 'Gods, SERVE ME!' She drew her card and smiled. 'You never let me down. I activate Giant Trunade, to return to the hand all Spells and Traps on the field. Then I'll immediately activate Premature Burial again, paying 800 points (Astrid LP:900-100), to revive Brunhilde (Atk:1800). Then I activate Valkyrie's Embrace. I switch Brunhilde to Defence (Def.:2000), and in return banish your Gaia Dragon.' With Rio's field now bare, Astrid grinned. 'I end my turn.'

Rio: 'Back to this are we then? I'll draw. I'll play nice with you - I activate Upstart Goblin. I draw a card now, but you get back 1000 Life points.' 'Didn't need 'em' Astrid snarked. But the atmosphere had slowly become one of intense competition rather than rivalry. 'I set a monster and end my turn.'

Astrid: 'I draw. I've not shyed away so far, why start now? I'll slam straight in to your monster, after switching Brunhilde to Attack mode (Atk:1800).' On this occassion, it slammed into another Morphing Jar (Def.:700), allowing them both to refill their hands. 'Hey, at least I didn't have a hand this time.' 'Yeah, Morphing Jar sort of was my hand.' 'I'll set two.'

Rio: 'Draw. I'll set a monster, set two backrow and pass.'

Astrid: 'I draw. I activate my face-down Treasured Relic Shrine. By banishing a Nordic Relic from my deck and one from my grave, I draw two more cards, then reveal them. If neither are a Nordic monster, I shuffle my entire hand into the deck. So I offer up Nordic Relic Megingjord from my grave, and Nordic Relic Draupnir from my hand.' Astrid drew her cards, and then duly revealed them - Jormungardr the Nordic Serpent, and Mischief of the Time Goddess. 'Jormungardr is a Nordic monster, so my hand is safe. I'll set two and then summon Guldfaxe of the Nordic Beasts (Atk:1600).'

Rio thought she knew what was coming next, but then, the Scandanavian duelist shocked her. 'Now my trusty steed begone, as I use you to perform my first ever Link Summon!' 'Hang on… did you just say you're Link summoning?' 'I did. Appear, the sprite that will lead me to victory, Gullveig of the Nordic Ascendent (Atk:800, Link Arrow: Bottom Left).' Rio puffed her cheeks out, but seemed to take it in her stride. 'Well I didn't see that one coming.'

'I'll bet you didn't. I never told anyone I had this. So you won't know what it does either.' 'I'm going to guess I don't want to know.' Hair over her eye, Astrid was absolutely rocking and rolling. 'When Gullveig is summoned, I'll immediately activate Hippo Carnival, to get three Hippo Tokens. But while they are on the field, I can't summon from the Extra deck (Atk:0)x3.' 'You know, if I wasn't so tired I'd be saying how cute they are.'

'You won't be able to look at them for long. On summon, Gullveig banishes all three of them, but in their place, I can summon three Nordic monsters from my deck, but I can only summon the Aesir gods for the rest of the turn. Valkyrie of the Nordic Ascendant, Aiviss of the Nordic Alfar, and Tyr of the Nordic Champions (Atk:400, 1400, 2000).' 'Yeah, I don't like where this is going.'

'Don't worry, things can only get better. Sorry, did I say better?' She then flipped her flowing locks back, and her eyes widened as she felt the buzz of competition. 'I meant worse! Level 2 Valkyrie tunes Level 4 Aiviss and Level 4 Tyr. Overlord of the gods, hear my cry, descend from a plateau so high, for when you grace the battlefield the end is nigh! I Synchro summon Odin, Father of the Aesir (Atk:4000).'

'And due to Gullveig gracing Odin with her Link arrow, Odin can't be targeted by card effects, and Gullveig can't be attacked. Odin, attack her monster.' Odin's scepter whipped up a shockwave, which smashed through Rio's monster (Aurora Wing Def.:1400), destroying it. As the wind continued, Rio shielded herself, and eventually something gave. As the storm died down, she looked up, apparently unaware that blood was trickling down from under her right eye.

'Rio' 'Whatever it is, I'm not interested. Aurora Wing revives itself (Atk:1200).' 'Rio, can you not feel it?' 'Feel what?' 'Your eye…' 'Of course I can feel there's blood coming from my eye, I noticed it before you did. Unfortunately I don't have any wipes right now, so will you just end your turn?' Astrid shrugged. 'Fine, I'll set this one and pass.' Medics then went over to Astrid, as they saw her struggling with her shoulder, but she shooed them away.

Rio: 'I draw. You're going to need another monster - I'll just switch Aurora Wing to Defence (Def.:1400), and pass.'

Astrid: 'Draw. I'll set another Spell/Trap and pass.' As this stalemate occurred, Phil's phone buzzed with a text from Blair, reading "63 minutes, 9 off of the record", while Rio and Astrid stared at each other, both exhausted. By now Rio's face was covered with blood, and the medics had to wipe it away again. She then dropped to a knee, and one of the medics asked 'Are you able to continue?', to which she responded by looking back at him, and then kicking him in the face. 'Is that an answer for you?' The crowd erupted seeing this.

Rio: 'I draw. I'll summon Blizzard Thunderbird (Atk:1600). And her effect, I discard one card to summon Guard Penguin from my hand and Blizzard Falcon from my graveyard (Atk:0, 1500). Thunderbird then returns to my hand. Now I overlay them both to summon Ice Beast Zerofyne (Atk:2000).' 'Don't like this - I activate Solemn Judgement. I pay half my Life points to destroy your monster (Astrid LP:1100-550).' I n another tight spot, Rio had to get creative. 'I'll activate Graceful Charity to draw three and then discard two. One of which is Card Advance. It gives me one more Normal summon this turn, and organises the top five cards of my deck. Then I'll set two and pass.'

Astrid: 'You won't give up. I respect that. I draw. I will go straight to battle.' 'When you do, I'll activate the effect of Absolute King Back Jack in the graveyard.' 'You discarded it with Graceful?' 'Needed some way to ditch it. I can flip the top card of my deck. If it's a Normal Trap, I can set it and activate it this turn.' She then flipped the card. 'Just what I wanted - Call of the Haunted.'

Astrid just shrugged at this. 'Not like anything in your graveyard's going to help you.' Rio however, seemed to disagree. 'It's amazing what you figure out on the fly. I'll activate it immediately, to revive Graydle Cobra (Atk:1000).' 'Would you like to choose again? You may have your maths wrong.' 'I'm fine thanks. What I will do is activate Mystical Space Typhoon, to pop my own Call. Which in turn, will destroy my Cobra.'

As the Cobra was destroyed, it shot out a small trail of grey slime which splashed onto Gullveig. 'Bad news princess - when Graydle Cobra dies to a Trap effect, it equips to Gullveig and takes control of it.' 'Damn' Astrid muttered under her breath, as her monster was taken. 'I'll still attack with Odin. Destroy Gullveig.' 'I activate Dimensional Prison. This will banish your Odin, making it harder to bring him back.' 'I'll end with a face-down.'

Rio: 'My draw. I activate Nekroz Kale… Ka… someone help here?' Eventually Astrid relented. 'Kaleidoscope?' 'Yep that's the one. This allows me to Ritual summon multiple monsters by banishing one card from my Extra deck as long as it's Level equals the combined Levels of the monsters I'm summoning. I'll get rid of Level 12 Five Headed Dragon, to Ritual summon Level 4 Nekroz of Unicore and Level 8 Nekroz of Valkyrus (Atk:2300, 2900).'

'I'll activate the effect of Brunhilde now. I pay 1000 Defence points from her (Def.:2000-1000), and my Valkyries cannot fall in battle this turn.' 'That's fine. I'll just use the effect of Valkyrus to tribute Gullveig and draw a card. Which I'll set, and pass turn.'

Astrid: 'I draw.' Astrid then saw a play to assist in safety. 'I activate Valkyrie Battle Wind. This will halve the Attack of every monster on the field, and in return, my Valkyries can all attack directly this turn (Erda Atk:2000-1000, Brunhilde Atk:1800-900, Unicore Atk:2300-1250, Valkyrus Atk:2900-1450). Now my beautiful Valkyries, cut her down to size!' The two noble fairies rode in on their steeds, and slashed away, leaving Rio in peril (Rio LP:2100-200). 'I'll set two and pass.'

Rio: 'I draw.' 'I activate Loge's Flame. Now any monster with 2000 or fewer Attack points cannot attack.' 'So it's a matter of getting a monster with 2000 or more Attack? Got it. I'll use Valkyrus' effect to tribute this Graydle Eagle from my hand to draw a card. I'll set one and pass.'

Astrid: 'I draw. I'll set one monster and pass.'

Rio: 'Back to me. I liked your move so I'll copy it.'

Astrid: 'I'll activate Pot of Avarice. I shuffle five cards back from my grave to my deck and draw two. Then I'll set one and pass.' At this point, the duel had lasted for 75 minutes, and Astrid continued to struggle with her left hand side, while Rio's eyesight had gone blurry in her right eye, possibly as a result of the blood dripping down.

Rio: 'Draw. I'll switch both my monsters into Defence (Unicore Def.:1000, Valkyrus Def.:1700). Then I'll pass back.' By now, both duelists were just desperate to find the winning move, the crowd living vicariously through them both, living and dying on their every move.

Astrid: 'I'll never give in. I set one Spell/Trap, then flip up Magician of Faith (Atk:300). She recovers a Spell card for me when flipped, I choose Avarice. Recycle five more cards, draw two. I'll set both.'

Rio: 'Well I'm not going anywhere either. I draw.' The draw appeared to open up more possibilities for Rio. 'I'll set two and pass.'

Astrid: 'Why aren't you showing your monster?' 'Is there a law saying I have to? Didn't think so.' 'Fine, I'll pass.'

Rio: 'Back to me so soon? I'll set one card.'

Astrid: 'I'll tribute Magician of Faith for Svartalf of the Nordic Alfar (Atk:1400).' 'Bit piddly for a Level 5 isn't it?' 'Why do you think I barely use it? Svartalf on summon will add Vanadis back to my hand. I end my turn.'

Rio: 'I draw. I'll activate Card Destruction, to force us both to draw fresh hands.' 'You don't have any.' 'I know, it's just to get rid of Vanadis.' 'Yeah, understand that.' Rio then looked at her deck, and realised that she was running out of time. 'Five cards left in deck. Hey Astrid.' 'Yeah?' 'How many cards you have left in deck?' 'Thirteen now.' 'Ok, I need to win soon then. I'll end my turn.'

Astrid: 'I draw. I'll summon Ivaldi the Nordic Smith (Atk:1500). When it hits the field, I can search Nordic Relic Draupnir. Then I'll equip it with Draupnir to give it 800 more Attack (Atk:1500-2300).' 'That gets it above Loge's Flame.' 'It does. Now attack Unicore!' Ivaldi came surging in at Nekroz of Unicore, and smashed it over the head with a hammer, turning it into a fine paste. Rio then went down again due to sheer exhaustion, but refused to give in.

Rio: 'I draw. I'll set one and pass.'

Astrid: 'I draw. I'll destroy Valkyrus with Ivaldi.' Ivaldi took a second name, this time smashing Valkyrus around. 'I end my turn.'

Rio: 'Never giving in. I'll activate Graverobber.' 'You're kidding?' 'Nope. This will snatch Avarice from your graveyard. Then I'll activate it immediately so I don't just lose at the end of this turn.' As Rio drew her extra cards, she saw a plan. 'This is brilliant. I'll set two and end my turn.'

Astrid: 'I draw.' 'I activate Threatening Roar, so you can't attack this turn.' 'Don't blame you. I'll activate Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy your other set card.' 'I'll chain it - it's a card called Xyz Reborn. And it revives Number C103 - Ragnafinity (Atk:2800). Then I'll fire her effect immediately, targeting Ivaldi.' 'I'll counter by discarding Hanewata.' 'Damn.' 'I switch Ivaldi to Defence (Def.:700), and end my turn.'

Rio: 'I draw!' At this exact moment, Rio's eyes rolled to the back of her head, and she crumpled to the ground. Phil came over again, and after a quick check, summoned the medics over, with a stray microphone picking up the conversation. 'I think she's out.' Rio then came to, and sat down in her zone as she was checked over. After a brief conversation with Phil and the medic, the medical professional went to talk to the referee, and he signalled for the duel to end. The announcer then cleared the situation up with the referee.

'The WDC Medical Team have deemed that Rio Kastle is unable to continue. Therefore your winner by TKO, Astrid Hofferson.' Astrid seemed furious at the decision, as did the crowd, who booed heavily, and chants of "Let them duel" broke out. But several minutes later, Rio was carried out, only semi-conscious, arms draped over Phil and the medic, leaving Astrid to follow them.

Backstage, Rio was furious. 'I could have kept going! You just cost me a shot at the title.' Sakura then came in to provide reasoning. 'Rio, I checked your blood pressure when you were brought in, and it was frighteningly low, your heart rate was 37.' 'That's no issue, Maddy's is always in the 40s.' 'Yeah, Maddy's was in the 40s when she was running twice a day every day. So unless you've suddenly turned into a long distance runner, it wasn't normal. You could have died if the duel had gone on much longer.'

Astrid then walked in, bandaged up and clearly battered and bruised. 'You gave me an absolute war out there. That was one hell of a duel.' 'You too, that was… quite something.' Rio then seemed to remember something. 'Your shoulder Astrid.' 'Yeah it's fine, just this thing with my neck.' Sakura then looked at her, and noticed something off immediately. 'Astrid, could you show me your left shoulder please?'

As Astrid rolled up her sleeve, Sakura took one look at the shoulder and came to a consensus. 'Yep, that is 100% dislocated.' 'Feels fine.' The doctor seemed suspicious though. 'Honestly? Or are you just saying that to make me shut up?' 'No honestly. I didn't feel it. I had no feeling in my entire left side for about an hour.' Sakura then nodded. 'That's fine. What I'll do then is because it looks clean, I can just tape it up for now. I might need you to squat down though - you're quite tall.' The 5ft 10 Astrid then knelt down, so that the 5ft 2 Sakura could cover her shoulder in athletic tape, before standing up again.

Blair then joined the party, sans Jade. 'Honestly, you see Astrid with her hair down once in about 5 years, and then you see it twice in a week.' 'Well you will do if you randomly walk in on me in the shower.' 'Maybe if you learned to lock the door, mistakes wouldn't happen.' 'Maybe if you could see steam then you wouldn't make the mistake.' 'It was half 4 in the morning, everything looked like steam, it's called tiredness. Also, I hope you realise that 8000 horny teenagers will be photoshopping your clothes off as we speak for screensavers and bedroom posters.' The thought of naked modelling nearly made her sick. 'You're disgusting!' With this, Astrid walked out of the room, leaving Blair giggling.

'Knew that would happen. If there's one thing Astrid hates, it's the idea of attention.' 'Attention? She's just been dueling for nearly an hour and a half in front of over 9000 people.' 'Yeah, and she was just as happy dueling 6 years ago in front of 8 people. She doesn't notice the crowd. No idea how. Probably that she's so deep in her own fantasy land when she's in the zone. Trust me, I've tried talking to her straight after a duel a few times, and she says some weird-ass shit.'

Blair then looked at Sakura. 'So what was with Rio's bleeding?' 'Well she's got a couple of grazes at the top of her head.' 'And her eye?' 'Nothing to worry about, she just popped a blood vessel due to the pressure. First time I've seen it from the eye though - usually you see it in weightlifters from the nose. But yeah, she's going to be just fine.' Rio then smiled. 'Hear that Phil? We're on for the title duel later.'

But Sakura still had other ideas. 'No way jose missus - you aren't dueling today. Not a hope in hell. Nor are you dueling in the arena for at least a week.' 'Why?' 'Your body is a complete mess, and you practically collapsed out there. I tried talking to you and you were completely incoherent as well.' Overhearing this, Geoff then walked in.

'If you can't duel, then you will have to forfeit the duel.' Blair then turned around. 'I'll replace her - I'll do double duty.' 'No can do I'm afraid. However much I would love to, the Board of Directors have passed a rule that tag title duels have to be between two registered teams, which you and Phil aren't at the moment.' 'Why? We sent it off over a week ago.' 'Don't blame me kiddo. I'm useless with technology, I can barely operate my own phone. As long as you and him are registered by then though, I'll put you in a duel with Lukas and Tee for the next event.'

As he left, Rio was upset. But Phil was far more philosophical about it. 'It's fine Rio. We have strong grounds for another rematch sometime. Just trust me and trust the process.' 'Easy for you to say - you've won everything.' 'You know how long it took me and Hannah to win tag gold?' 'No.' 'Three years. Or to be exact, three years and 9 days. Trust me, you're doing well.' Blair then took over with the admonishing.

'Listen here missy - if you don't look after yourself now then you're not going to be a pro for much longer. What's worse - taking a week off or doing some serious damage to yourself?' 'Well I'm not going to' 'You listen to me!' Blair shouted, surprising everyone with her forcefulness. 'If you keep on pushing like this, you're going to cripple yourself. You're lucky you haven't done it already. Take a week, just focus on your hospital appointment, focus on letting your body repair any damage done, maybe arrange that optician meeting you've been putting off for the past two months, and stop trying to drive yourself into the ground. No if's, no buts, just do it.' She then stormed out leaving Rio scrambled.

While this palava was occurring, the cameras were all focused on the second semi-final, where Kalin secured an impressive 3400 Life point victory over Akiza, to progress to the final round. After the duel, Lukas and Tee started limbering up to attack Kalin, but Akiza stopped them. 'We're better than THEM. We don't need to do that. Now back off.' They did that, and the three of them left without even, as Kalin was interviewed regarding the final duel.

'Kalin, an excellent win, and with the state Astrid is reportedly in backstage, you might not even have to duel in the final round of this tournament.' Kalin just looked at the female interviewer sternly. 'If Astrid doesn't appear then I won't accept the title. I'm going to win the title by being the best, not because my opponent didn't turn up.' This cut the interview very short, as Kalin turned and left.

Backstage, Blair was just walking through the hallways for her duel, when Taylor came running up, the top of her hair up in a bun. 'Hey, I thought you couldn't make it.' 'I didn't think I'd be able to, but they renewed my brainwashing before they left.' This surprised Blair. 'You know?' 'Oh yeah, I remember it all. Just drip-fed me dark water for three hours. I asked them to do it.' 'Why?'

'Because I don't want to remember all the shitty stuff I went through before I joined. Also I'm kind of addicted to the feeling of powerlessness. Sometimes, I just want to be totally powerless and not thinking of anything.' 'You actually make it sound nice. No idea how.' 'Maybe because it is to me?' 'Guess you could be right.' Taylor was noticing though that Blair appeared to be somewhat edgy.

'You sure you're alright?' She just smiled politely. 'I'm fine, I'm just a little nervous. I've not duelled competitively with this deck yet, and practicing with it hasn't exactly gone well.' The popstar responded by giving her friend a shoulder massage. 'You just need to loosen up a bit. You're holding yourself way too tense, you just need to take a deep breath and trust yourself.' Claude's music then hit. 'Go and get 'em champ!'

In the dueling zone, Claude was running his mouth again. 'All anybody's been talking to me about the past day is some little mouse scurrying out of her hole. Well I don't care, because after this stupid contest, I'm going to send her running back to the rock she climbed out from under. No back-up, no friends, no hope.'

Blair's music then played, and she walked out, with a newfound confidence about her, as her jacket flowed behind her. 'Introducing his opponent, representing the Renegade nation, from Shelby, Michigan, the Rough Diamond - Blair Flannigan.' As she walked down, Taylor watched on, smiling while the fans welcomed the returning World Number 1 back with open arms. She then lifted her arm, showing off the rainbow-coloured armbands she was wearing on each arm.

Reaching the zone, she jumped up, and immediately got straight in Claude's face, leading to a fierce head-to-head confrontation which had to be broken up by security. 'You want to be careful about who you're messing with, kid.' 'Try saying that to someone who gives a damn. Because you might like to boast about being in the military, but only one of us is still enlisted and it isn't you.' She then activated her duel disk. 'Time to dust this off.'

Grudge Match: Lt. Claude W. Duane LP:8000 vs. Blair Flannigan LP:8000

Just as the duel began, Blair had a revelation for Claude. 'Oh by the way, one tiny thing I forgot to tell you.' 'What - that you've turned straight?' She just shook her head. 'Two more goes.' 'I give up - tell me.' 'I've got a new deck. One you've never seen before. So enjoy all the plans you made for Gem Knights.'

Blair: 'I'm first. I'll start with a Field spell - Magical Meltdown.' As the card resolved, a bright red square appeared around Blair, with a piercing red light emanating from its borders. 'When I activate that, I can add Aleister the Invoker to my hand. Then I'll Normal summon Aleister the Invoker (Atk:1000). When I do, I can add Invocation to my hand. And I'll activate it. This Fusion summons a monster using monsters in my hand, but if I'm summoning an Invoked monster, I can also banish monsters from my field or graveyard. I'll fuse Aleister with the Naelshaddoll Ariel in my hand to Fusion summon Invoked Mechaba (Atk:2500).'

'Then from my graveyard I activate Invocation. Because I have Aleister banished, I can return Aleister to my hand, and Invocation to my deck. Almost like I never used it. Almost anyway. Then I activate the Kuji-Kiri Curse. I'll send the Level 9 Hellshaddoll Hollow from my hand to the grave and draw two more cards. Now because Hollow was sent to the graveyard, I can mill a card for every attribute on the field. That's one at the moment.'

'Oh, and I hope you didn't think you'd seen the last of Aleister, because I activated Double Summon, to summon him again (Atk:1000). And his search of Invocation isn't a once per turn effect, so I think I'll grab that, then activate Invocation to fuse together Aleister with the Shaddoll Beast in my hand to summon Invoked Caliga (Def.:1800). And Beast's effect in the graveyard allows me to draw a new card. I end my turn with one set.'

Claude: 'So what, you can dress a mule up in a dress but it's still a mule. Just like that, you can use a deck with a fancy new skin, but you're still going to remain 3rd rate at best. I draw. I'll summon Souleating Oviraptor (Atk:1800). Then I'll use its effect' 'Enjoy using the effect. You're not going to get very far.' 'Say that when I send Miscellaneosaurus to the graveyard with Oviraptor. Then I'll use the effect of Miscellaneousaurus.' Blair then started laughing as the referee declared an illegal move. Several minutes passed with Claude arguing the toss with the referee before Blair revealed why.

'Watching you trying to work this out is like watching a puppy trying to lick food off of its face - adorable, hilarious, but ultimately going nowhere fast. Invoked Caliga allows both of us to use only one monster effect a turn while it's on the field. And you just used your allocation up with Oviraptor. So unless you've got another way of carrying on, I'm not paid by the hour.' This really riled Claude up. 'You little shit. I activate Double Evolution PIll. I can banish the Miscellaneousaurus from my graveyard and Nemeses Keystone from my hand, in order to summon Ultimate Conductor Tyranno (Atk:3500).'

'You realize you can't use Keystone's effect don't you? It's just I know you don't get the message when you're told you can't do something.' 'You want to say that to my face?' Blair then gave an evil grin. 'Only if you want to tell the good people what you did.' 'I have no idea what you're talking about' Claude confidently stated, not taking Blair's new attitude into account. 'Ultimate Conductor will destroy your Caliga.'

'Sorry, but Caliga is staying around. Thanks to this - Rise to Full Height. This Trap doubles the Defence of Caliga (Def.:1800-3600).' As Blair had waited a second to activate her card, the battle had progressed too far for Claude to cancel the attack and avoid 100 damage (Claude LP:8000-7900). 'I end my turn with a face-down.' 'During the End phase, the effect of Rise reduces Caliga's Defence to 0 (Def.:3600-0).'

Blair: 'I draw. I activate Invocation's effect. By returning it to my deck, Aleister returns to my hand. Then I'll summon Aleister again (Atk:1000). And he'll grab Invocation for me. You seeing a theme here? If not, then this should be a better indicator - I activate Invocation again, fusing Aleister and the Invoked Caliga on my field, to summon the luminary himself - Invoked Augoeides (Def.:2800).'

'Not bad for a 3rd rate duelist.' 'That's a compliment from a 4th rate human being. But you won't be complimenting me in a moment. When summoned, Augoeides can destroy Ultimate Conductor Tyranno. And that's music to my ears.' 'No bother, I'll just discard another Miscellaneousaurus to make Ultimate Conductor unaffected by your effects.' 'I'll counter with Solemn Strike. By paying 1500 Life points (Blair LP:8000-6500), and destroy your Miscellaneousaurus. And just to really make you suffer, I'll flip Chain Strike as well.' As the chain resolved, a burning chain slammed Claude hard (Claude LP:8000-6400). 'I'll end my turn.'

Claude: 'I preferred you when you were a nervous wreck.' 'I'm sure you did.' 'I'll draw. I'll just set a monster and pass back.'

Blair: 'It's not nice when there's nothing you can do is it? You know the feeling; you're completely powerless, almost like you're being bound or tied up, basically a sitting duck for someone to just swoop in and dissect you, break you both physically and mentally. Sound familiar? I hope it does, because you're about to learn how it felt that day. I draw. I'll set two and pass.'

Claude: 'You really think that highly of yourself. Trust me, you weren't even worth it. You're going to regret ever letting go of that Caliga, because now I can crush you! I'll discard one Dinosaur to summon Dinowrestler Iguanodraka (Atk:2000).' 'I have a response.' 'Go on.' She then flipped her middle finger up. 'My response is to go f*ck yourself.' By now Claude's anger was reaching a boiling point.

'You need a serious attitude adjustment. Because you still control more monsters than me, I summon Dinowrestler Pankratops (Atk:2600). And as I control a Dinowrestler, I can summon Dinowrestler Eskrimamenchi (Atk:2200). Then the effect of Pankratops - I'll tribute Iguanodraka to destroy Augoeides.' As she had previously though, Blair had a back-up plan. 'I activate El Shaddoll Fusion. This fuses together the Invoked Augoeides on my field with the Reshaddoll Wendi in my hand to Fusion summon El Shaddoll Shekhinaga (Def.:3000).'

With the effect of Pankratops being once per turn only, Claude had little other option. 'I'll have to end my turn.' At this point, the mental strain was telling on the Dane, as he looked on frustrated. Blair meanwhile had barely lifted her gaze the entire duel, still with a complete poker face.

Blair: 'I draw. I'll set one back row and pass.'

Claude: 'I draw. I banish two Dinosaurs from my graveyard to summon Ultimate Conductor Tyranno (Atk:3500). Now use that damn effect of yours.' Spitefully, Blair blew a raspberry at him. 'No.' 'Foolish girl. Ultimate Conductor, attack her monster.' The Renegade stood and watched her newly summoned monster depart, without so much as a wrinkled nose or grimaced face. 'Iguanodraka, attack.' 'I activate my face-down Burst Rebirth. By paying 2000 Life points, I can revive Hellshaddoll Hollow face-down (Blair LP:8000-6000).'

'Like I care.' 'Hey, don't hate the player, hate the game. Because you clearly can't play it.' This finally made Claude lose it entirely. 'You're going to pay! Iguanodraka, attack!' The Dinowrestler charged in, but was met with a blast of fire (Helshaddoll Hollow Def.:2900, Claude LP:8000-7100). Blair then grinned. 'You're really gonna wish you hadn't done that. When Hollow is flipped up, I can send a Shaddoll Fusion monster from my Extra deck to the graveyard and banish a monster of the same attribute from the field. I'll get rid of Shekhinaga, which is Earth. Say goodbye to Ultimate Conductor.'

With his monster being dragged into a black hole which had suddenly appeared, Claude started hurling abuse at his opponent. 'You little brat! Whoever your real momma is, and let's face it, you probably don't know, is going to wish she'd never given birth to you once I'm through with you! You won't even be recognizable as a human being! I'll summon Necroface (Atk:1100). When he's on the field, all banished cards are shuffled into our decks, and for each one, it gains 100 Attack. I'm seeing 7 (Atk:1100-1800). I end my turn with a face-down.'

Blair: 'You know, you're about to regret a lot of things that you said. I draw.' She saw her card, and her eyes narrowed, and suddenly, her entire demeanour changed completely, as she was now looking far more aggressive, on her haunches, as her muscles all contracted. 'I summon Shaddoll Hedgehog (Atk:800). And then I activate Super Polymerisation! This will fuse my Hedgehog and your Necroface.'

At this point, Claude saw the look in her eyes, and tried to leave, only to realise that Blair had caught his foot in a loop of rope. 'When did you do that?' 'When you were insulting me a minute ago. If you try to leave, I'll stop you. With these two monsters, I summon Starving Venom Fusion Dragon! (Atk:2800). And Starving Venom gains the Attack points of a Special summoned monster on your field. I choose Iguanodraka (Atk:2800-4800). Then I'll activate Action Magic - Double Banking. Now when Starving Venom destroys your monster, it can attack again. Attack with Slaughter Stream! And Helshaddoll then follows up!'

Starving Venom released a lethal dose of poison straight into Iguanodraka, before rearing up, and firing a green fluid straight at Claude, while Hollow released a stream of black and orange fire, a combination which took Claude down with ease (Claude LP:7100-0).

Following the duel, Blair saluted, before looking down at Claude, and kicking him a couple of times in the ribs. She knelt down to his face, and whispered down his ear 'Who's the big deal now?', before stamping on him. As she went to leave however, she had a thought, and stopped, before turning back around, and getting a microphone, from which she stated 'Oh, and Claude? I'm Blair Flannigan and I'm a Bisexual, get the f*ck over it.', receiving a ravenous response from the crowd as a result.

Backstage, she was chased down by a local newspaper reporter. 'Ms. Flanningan, we just want to get a few words from you regarding your statement out there. Could it possibly be true?' 'I don't see what the big deal is. All you need to know is I'm Blair f'n Flannigan, I'm a Bisexual, and I'm back. Any more questions, ask my manager.' She walked off, hi-fiving Taylor on the way past.

Shortly after, she met her manager. 'So, what did you think?' 'I liked the controlled aggression, I liked the concentration, and I liked how reactive you were to all of his moves.' 'Any criticisms?' 'Only that you were a little bit negative at times, but that's just your style. You're always going to be far more considered in that respect. We just need to get rid of that little bit of hesitation from you and you'll be grand.' 'Believe me, it's something I'm working on.'

He then broke out into a smile. 'I know. For a first competitive duel back, that was extremely impressive. I'm proud of you, you know that?' She smiled. 'Thanks. It means a lot to hear that, especially from someone who knows as much as you about this.' 'You know, I can't wait to team up with you for the first time.' 'Well when you say first time…' 'You know what I mean.' She then walked off, all smiles for once.

Cameras then cut to backstage, where Kalin was in the middle of a conversation with Geoff. 'I don't care about your shareholders, or what your board wants, or what some suits in an office somewhere think I should do - if she isn't out there, I'm not turning up. And if you try and award me the title as some sort of hallmark gift, I'm vacating it immediately. I want to win the title by beating a worthy opponent, not because she was injured against Rio.'

At this moment, Jodi walked into view, cloaked as usual. 'And who are you exactly?' 'My name is Jodi, I'm an envoy for the Renegades. When a message needs to be delivered, I deliver it on their behalf. They want you to know that Astrid will be out there no matter what any doctors say.' Geoff looked at her, and then looked at Kalin. 'I think you've got a duel to get ready for. Good luck.'

25 Minutes Later, Dueling Zone

As the lights went down low, Kalin walked out first, he himself scratched and bruised from his encounter with an increasingly dangerous Akiza. He seemed confident though, walking down, eyes firmly on the prize with his harmonica hanging around his neck alongside a bullrope. Reaching the dueling zone, he laid his rope down, and slung his duel disk around, opening it up.

He then had to wait nearly three minutes, before a battered Astrid limped out, very clearly in no shape to be competing. As she reached the zone, the official started trying to talk her out of dueling, but she shoved him away. Kalin then spoke to her. 'I want to beat you when you're ready.' 'Ready? I'm always ready. Let's just do this.' He nodded hearing this. 'You're weak physically and weak mentally. You shouldn't have turned up.'

Egotistical Eight Tournament Final: Kalin Kessler LP:8000 vs. Astrid Hofferson LP:8000

Turn 1: Kalin: 'I'll kick this off. I'll set a monster, set two Spell/Traps and pass to you. If you can even stand that is.'

Astrid: 'You… just worry about yourself, k? I draw. I activate Reasoning. You choose a Level, 1-12, I'll excavate until I find a monster to Normal summon.' 'And you summon it unless it's the Level I selected. I've used the card before thanks.' 'You won't mind me doing this then.' 'By all means. I'll choose Level 2. Stop you summoning Valkyrie.' 'You've got more to worry about than that.'

She then started digging (Nordic Relic Draupnir, Storming Mirror Force, Shining Silver Force, Fenrir the Nordic Wolf, Jormungardr the Nordic Serpent). It was the next card that she dug out though which really sent shivers down Kalin's spine (Last Turn). 'You're running Last Turn!? What in the name of all that's holy' 'I'll do anything to win.' The excavation then resumed (Ride of the Valkyries, Nordic Relic Megingjord, Mischief of the Time Goddess, Robbin' Goblin, Guldfaxe of the Nordic Beasts). 'Guldfaxe is Level 4, so I can summon him (Atk:1600). The other cards go to the grave.'

'I hope it was worth a quarter of your deck.' 'Always. I'll summon Dverg of the Nordic Alfar (Atk:100). And he gives me an extra Normal summon. Meet Tyr of the Nordic Champions (Atk:2000). Now Level 4 Guldfaxe, tune Level 4 Tyr and Level 1 Dverg!' She then dropped to a knee as the summoning happened, and made a prayer, not to the gods, but… to Maddy.

'Maddy, min evige venn, gi meg makten til å kontrollere Lupinen som viker ved månen og beveger seg raskere enn vinden, gi meg deres hjelp i kampen min. (Maddy, my eternal friend, grant me the power to control the Lupine who bay at the moon and move faster than the wind, lend me their assistance in my fight.)

In Norden

Maddy was lay staring up at the February moon, when she felt a disturbance from deep within. 'Astrid… she's asking for me.' She then crouched to the ground, and her breathing slowed, and her eyes glowed in the darkness. 'Astrid, min evige venn, til deg gir jeg all styrke jeg har, all kontroll jeg har, og troskapen til en årtusen gammel rase.'

In the zone

Feeling this, Astrid stood up again. 'This is my time! Synchro 9! I Synchro summon Stellar Wind Wolfrayet (Atk:2500).' 'That's a new one on me.' 'Wolfrayet, attack his monster. Show me what he's hiding!' As the Wolf charged in faster than the wind itself, Kalin's monster proved to be a tough nut to crack (Dark Resonator Def.:300). 'Once per turn, Dark Resonator is immune to destruction in battle.' 'I'll end my turn with a face-down.'

Kalin: 'I draw. I summon Infernity Archfiend (Atk:1800). Now Level 3 Dark Resonator will tune Level 4 Infernity Archfiend. I'm going to make you suffer, right until your final Life point, because I'm leaving nothing to chance here. You may rely on divine intervention to win, but I rely on being the best duelist on the day, and today is my day. I Synchro summon! Tremble in fear at the presence of the Dark Highlander (Atk:2800).'

Astrid immediately looked concerned. 'Right…' 'With this on the field, neither of us can Synchro summon. Dark Highlander, destroy Stellar Wind Wolfrayet.' 'I activate Mirror Mail. This gives Wolfrayet the same Attack as Highlander.' 'I'll activate Wiretap, to negate your Trap and shuffle it into the deck.' 'I can't respond then.' With Astrid's Trap returning to the deck, Highlander was able to destroy her monster with its grand scythe (Astrid LP:8000-7700).'

'During my Main Phase 2, I'll activate the effect of the D.D. Crow in my hand, to discard it and banish Wolfrayet.' 'Before you get the chance, I'll activate Back to the Front. It will revive Wolfrayet in Defence position (Def.:0).' Kalin nodded in appreciation of the move, while his opponent continued to struggle. 'I'll end my turn.'

Astrid: 'I draw. I activate R:Reconnaissance. In exchange for my Battle phase this turn, I return two monsters of different Levels from my graveyard to my hand. I choose Dverg of the Nordic Alfar and Tyr of the Nordic Champions. Then I'll switch Wolfrayet to Attack (Atk:2500), and summon Cardcar D (Atk:800). By tributing it, I can draw two cards, but the turn immediately goes to my End phase. And when a Monster effect is activated, Wolfrayet gains 300 Attack (Atk:2500-2800).'

Kalin: 'You're persistent, I'll give you that. I draw. I'll set a card and end my turn.'

Astrid: 'My turn. I'll equip Wolfrayet with Mage Power. For each Spell or Trap I control, it gains 500 Attack (Atk:2800-3800). Attack!' 'I'll flip my face-downs Astral Barrier and Spirit Barrier.' Astrid rolled her eyes and groaned seeing this. 'This is so unfun.' 'With Astral Barrier, I can force your Wolf to attack directly. But Spirit Barrier won't let me take any damage so long as I control a monster.'

Astrid then took a moment to assess the field. 'Erm… I'll activate Misfortune. This deals you with damage equal to half of Dark Highlander's Attack.' A strange miasma overcame the Highlander, causing Kalin the first major damage (Kalin LP:8000-6600). 'I end my turn.' Astrid then dropped to one knee, breathing increasingly heavily, as her total duel time in the tournament passed two hours. There was a brief medical time-out as the zoneside doctor checked on her, but she quickly rebuffed him. 'I'm fine. Go away.'

Kalin: 'I draw. I'll activate the effect of Dark Highlander. Once per turn it can destroy every Equip card you control, and for each one, you lose 400 damage (Astrid LP:7700-7300, Wolfrayet Atk:3800-2800).' 'Because you activated a monster effect, my Stellar Wolf gains 300 Attack (Atk:3100).' 'Well we'll have to do something about that won't we? I'll discard Infernity General to Special summon Dark Grepher from my hand (Atk:1700).'

'Then I'll equip my Highlander with Axe of Fools. It negates its effects but grants 1000 Attack points (Atk:2800-3800). Now I summon Infernity Wildcat (Atk:1400). And Level 3 Infernity Wildcat will tune to Level 4 Dark Grepher. I Synchro summon Level 7 Chaos King Archfiend (Atk:2600). And Chaos KIng… well he likes to cause chaos and disruption. Such as switching the Attack and Defence of every monster on the field (Highlander Atk:3800-2300, Chaos King Atk:2600-2600, Wolfrayet Atk:3100-0). Dark Highlander, crush that Wolf.'

The mean-looking Synchro 8 swung his scythe, crushing the Wolf once and for all under its weight (Astrid LP:7300-5000). 'Chaos King, attack.' As Chaos King released a purple and blue flare, Astrid dropped to the ground, having fallen further behind (Astrid LP:5000-2400). 'I end my turn. You're pathetic, lay on the ground like that like a baby.' 'Don't… count me out.' She then stood back up again, as the tape started to fall off her dislocated shoulder.

Astrid: 'Like I'm giving in. I draw. For now, I'll summon Dverg of the Nordic Alfar (Atk:100). His effect gives me an extra Normal summon, which I'm using on Tyr of the Nordic Champions (Atk:2000). Then I'll equip Dverg with Ring of Magnetism. Now you can only attack it.' 'So? You'll just lose quicker.' 'Tyr won't let you attack Nordic monsters other than it. See what I mean?' 'I can't attack. That's actually… quite clever. I'll give you that one.' 'I end my turn.'

Kalin: 'I draw. It isn't ideal, but it's something. I'll activate Giant Trunade to return the Axe of Fools to my hand, and I'll pass.'

Astrid: 'My turn. I activate Cards from the Sky. By banishing Valkyrie Erda from my hand, I can draw two cards. Then I activate another one, to banish Valkyrie Brunhilde and draw two. I'll set one and pass.'

Kalin: 'I draw. This should be the end - I'll activate Raigeki, to destroy your field.' 'I'll activate Solemn Judgement. I have to pay half my remaining points (Astrid LP:5000-2500), but in return, I can negate your card and destroy it.' Now Kalin was starting to show a touch of frustration. 'I should have put you away by now. I end my turn.'

Astrid: 'I draw.' She then took a deep breath. 'Well it's now or never I guess. I activate Dimension Fusion.' Now Kalin looked pensive, knowing the power of Astrid's card. 'This allows us both to summon as many banished monsters as we can. I have to pay 2000 Life points though (Astrid LP:2500-500).' 'Well as you're aware, I have none.' 'That's fine, I'll summon Valkyrie Erda and Brunhilde (Erda Atk:2000-2200, Brunhilde Atk:1800-2000). And Brunhilde gains another 500 Attack for every monster on your field (Atk:2000-3000). Brunhilde, attack Dark Highlander!' Finally Astrid made a significant breakthrough, as Brunhilde executed the Highlander (Kalin LP:6600-6400).

'And because Erda is on the field, your monster is banished. I'll set two and then pass.' At this point, Kalin smirked. 'You're a fighter, I'll give you that much. You look like crap but you're still going.' Astrid wasn't interested in the compliment though. 'I don't need praise from you! Stop pitying me!'

Kalin: 'Fine. I draw. I'll discard Infernity Beast to Special summon another Infernity Wildcat from my hand (Atk:1400). Then I activate Phantom Hand. Because I control an Infernity, this banishes my entire hand until my next Standby phase. Although I hope I don't need to. Because I have no cards in hand, Wildcat can banish Infernity Archfiend from my graveyard to reduce its own Level by one (Level:3-2). Now Level 2 Wildcat tunes Level 6 Chaos King Archfiend! I Synchro summon Hundred-Eyes Dragon (Atk:3000).'

Chaos King no longer being present on the field then meant that its stat switching was also no longer present (Brunhilde Atk:2500-1800, Erda Atk:2200-1800). 'Hundred-Eyes Dragon's effect allows it to copy the effect of any Level 6 or lower Dark monster in the graveyard. So I'll use Hundred-Eyes Dragon's ability, to copy Infernity Beast's ability. So if I control no cards in my hand, which I do, you can't activate any Spells or Traps when I attack. Hundred-Eyes Dragon, attack Valkyrie Erda. Infernity Psyche Stream.' As the attack hurtled in, Astrid resigned herself to a crushing defeat (Astrid LP:500-0).

As the duel ended, she slumped to the ground, completely spent. Meanwhile Kalin took the title, and stood over her, raising it high, as fans cheered him on. 'Your winner, and the new WDC Champion - Kalin Kessler.' Eventually Astrid mustered the strength to get up to a knee, and he looked down at her. 'Come back when you're strong enough. Because right now you're weak mentally and not worth my time.' He then put the belt over his shoulder, and walked out, victorious, while Astrid watched on.

Next time: Blair has a hard truth to face, Astrid tries to find some solace, Maddy pushes beyond the limit with disastrous consequences, and Rio's world is turned upside-down in Renegades: A New Dawn Chapter XXXXIX: Life in Perspective