Chapter 15:

The dawn of the next day brought a slightly less intensive wake-up for Blake, but instead of pondering as to why that was, he instead got ready for his daily jog. When he was almost at the front of the Ra dorm, he could already make out Yuma sitting on a nearby bench, doing her best to stay awake. Seeing her head dip down and jolt up every few seconds made him feel a bit bad, so he went back into the building got some coffee. Since he had no idea what to get her, he got her a can of milk coffee and himself a black coffee. He didn't usually get one himself, but he felt like he should today.

Back at the entrance he nudged his jogging partner awake and handed her the can, which she happily accepted and immediately took a sip of. "Morning …", Yuma grumbled and rubbed her eyes. "How … how far will we go?" As she slowly got more awake, she started stretching, looking at Blake expectingly.

"I usually go from here to Slifer dorm, along the cliffside and into the forest until I hit the river towards the Obelisk dorms and then go back. That okay with you?", Blake answered as he followed suit.

That earned him an amused smile from her. "I can manage, but can you?"

As it turned out, Yuma was more than capable and even spurred him to go faster in order to keep up with her. When they reached the river they took a little break, emptying what was left of their coffees. They didn't get to talk much while jogging, due to Yuma outpacing Blake every now and then, forcing him to speed up.

"You really did keep up, not bad", Yuma teased as fresh as a cucumber, while Blake had built up some sweat and had to regulate his breathing once they stopped.

"And here I thought I had to go slower for you, how wrong I was", Blake chuckled. "You're quite the runner."

She puffed out her chest in pride as she stated, "You're talking to the number one runner at the Domino City Junior Marathon after all. You should see me at sports class; no way you're finding someone faster than me here."

"Hard to deny that after I lost track of you three times. Shame that'll be a one-time thing", he chuckled and massaged his left leg with a slight wince.

"Well … maybe if you ask nicely, I'll keep going with you? Only if we'd do it an hour later, though", Yuma replied with a cheeky grin.

Blake hummed in thought as he looked at her, maybe for a bit too long if her sudden blush was anything to go by. "I think I could do that, but I gotta ask: What made you want to bet on our duel? Or choose that 'prize' of yours to begin with."

Now clearly flustered, she tried to explain herself in a rush. "Ah, well, you see … eh … duels! And, uh …" she rambled off, getting faster and quieter the longer she went on, making it impossible to take up on anything she said.

Blinking at her, Blake mumbled just loud enough for her to overhear. "Shouldn't the other guys be more interesting? Zane, Bastion, Jaden … urgh, even Chazz gets a lot of looks."

"No way, Chazz's a jerk", Yuma stated matter-of-factly. "No girl besides Alexis and the Queen dare approach Zane, so that one's out too. Bastion is nice and all but once he gets into his 'academic mode' there's no way of keeping up with him. Jaden wouldn't get a hint if you shoved it in his face, and no, I'm not related to him", she added that last bit with a huff.

"Alright, now I'm curious about that last bit."

"Apparently, Alexis got her eyes on him and asked me some stuff about him, thinking we were related. But just because we're looking a bit similar doesn't mean we're family", she explained in annoyance.

"Well, you two have similar energy as well, you know", Blake mused. Imagining them as family wasn't that hard but she'd fit beside Jaden way better than Alexis in his eyes. Must be the energetic attitude they shared. "And what was that about hints?"

"He's dense-" 'He's a shonen protagonist, of course he's dense' "- and I don't think he even gets the concept of dating", Yuma cleared her throat. "At least that's what I heard. Aside from them, the only other interesting guy besides you is Dimitri from our dorm. And he stopped being interesting when his personality changed every two weeks to 'get in character' for his new decks."

Nodding in understanding, Blake got ready to finish their jog. "So, I'm what's left of all the 'interesting guys'?", he asked in amusement.

"No! It's not … like that …", she replied, seemingly at a loss for words. With their conversation coming to a halt, they opted to finish their jog in silence.

ZZZZ

After a week of intense duels, Blake was looking forward to have a relaxing weekend during which he could search for the cause of his restless sleep, but a message on his PDA suggested that it might not be that easy. He waved the other guys off to get going once their last lesson was done and checked what it said.

"We need to talk. Meet me in the evening at these coordinates, alone", his blue-haired employer wrote.

Not knowing what she'd want, he sent back a thumbs-up and grumbled to himself. What could she want that she didn't want to tell over the phone? More targets to take down but without leaving a trace in case things went wrong? The coordinates were between the beach and the abandoned dorm, so she'd most likely get there after being at the beach, how oddly fitting for someone with blue hair. Perhaps she'd bring someone along to duel? Maybe make a statement about his first loss in person, maybe even as a powerplay with someone to replace him? Doubtful but possible, he'd all but expect her to rub the loss in his face but there wasn't someone capable enough to replace him as far as he knew. Or she could try to present herself off as a "benevolent" boss, playing it off as not important to her plans and thus negligible, instead smooth talking him into finishing up his title contenders and lulling him in further.

Whatever it was, he'd have to postpone and maybe even cancel his plans with his fellow Ra's to watch the "Duelist Kingdom" movie that Bastion got in the mail today, what a shame. Luckily for him, the others were fine with pushing the movie to the next evening, although Bastion and Bright teased him for meeting up with "someone" so late in the forest. Their fourth didn't comment on it, staying rather quiet as she had all day.

When the time for their meetup came, Blake was lazily sitting on a stump in the forest clearing from which he could look down onto the area near the abandoned dorm. The vibe the building gave off was unnerving, which didn't surprise him considering that Banners laboratory was set up in its basement and with a lot of dark energies floating around. He had no idea why it was even left standing after what had happened there with Atticus and the other students that vanished in there, but he wouldn't put it past Chancellor Sheppard to keep it as a memento. Looking at the dorm gave him a headache, so he turned away as some indecipherable sounds wormed their way into his head, just in time to see Kami approach.

If she had indeed been at the beach, it wasn't noticeable, as her appearance was as flawless as when he met her in the academy for the first time. The upcoming moonlight did wonders to the shine of her hair, which reminded him not to stare again.

"I see you're punctual, good", she said in an uppity tone he had expected her to take the first time they talked. "While I'm pleased you managed to get me some new supporters – and expect you to do so in the future as well – I can't say that about your loss to some random Ra." With her arms crossed she looked down at his sitting form, expecting some explanation with the look she gave him.

"Nice to see you too, how was your day? Mine was good until I had to cancel my plans for the evening after I got called out here in the middle of the night without explanation", Blake joked, but it fell on deaf ears. "So much for playing the nice employer then, alright. I lost against a strategy nobody plays and actively looks down on, which is why I wasn't prepared for it. That won't happen again."

He didn't know if it was what he said or how he delivered it, but Kami seemed to relax a bit. "It'd be in your best interest if it didn't. You're supposed to have a strong image so that no one can dispute your right for the title. Otherwise, people might make light of me as a challenger to the Queen", she declared, her tone losing a bit of edge, before she huffed in annoyance. "It's already bad enough with a number of Obelisk's claiming that I'm just throwing my weight and money around to get what I want, rather than earning it. As if they had any idea of earning something themselves."

"Don't you do exactly that?", Blake snorted in amusement. "Maybe you should try and present yourself as a capable duelist yourself sometime? Can't have your underlings do all the work."

She put a finger on her lips in thought, humming to herself. "Perhaps that is necessary for a few brutes, yes. And I believe I have the perfect target for it as well", with her finger now pointed at him, she continued. "Since you're going to have to deal with Princeton and Rhodes next, I want you to gather as much information on the girl and her deck as you can. If the people see her as a contender for the title of Queen, then I will show them that there's no competition."

"That sounds like a good idea", Blake nodded. 'Not that'll be much of a problem. I doubt Alexis has moved away from her weird Cyber dancer cards, so some removal should do the trick to run her over.' "If you don't mind me asking, though: What do you want that blasted title for anyway? Pride? Prestige? I think you've enough of both of that. Or do you actually have some plans to use the power that comes with it?"

"It's only right for an Umino to have the highest position wherever they go, naturally that extents to school as well", she stated with a strong sense of conviction. "Perhaps I will indulge myself in what little privilege the title brings me, but holding it until I leave the academy is the only important thing." She raised her eyebrow at him, a slight smirk following suit. "Do you honestly think you can make changes to how things run here when you get yours? Please; as long as there are enough 'donations' to the academy, neither the Chancellor nor the Superintendent will accept any changes to how the dorms work. Trying to change the system is futile and a waste of time."

'Urgh, money really reigns the world, doesn't it? But if she has nothing planned, then maybe …' "While that may be true, there could be changes made with a big enough backer", he countered, rolling out his hand at her. "Wouldn't it set a great precedent that you're not just another Umino, but one that is able to change things?" He noticed her perk up at that, good. "Just imagine if you brought some great change like bringing back skill-based promotions: The strong masses that benefit from that would applaud you, not only for doing something for them but by being different than others in your situation. Couple that with a strong showing of your own and you gather tons of capable supporters." He waved off towards the Obelisk dorm in the distance. "Sure, the spoiled brats won't like it, but that makes it even more important for them to have good relations to you; because you're the one in power."

Blake was confident that he at least presented his thoughts right, even if the machinations of how things could work might not be accurate. But seeing her pondering about what he said felt good, even if it wouldn't amount to anything in the end. With their vantage position on the hill, he spotted the girl they're talking about earlier nearing the Abandoned Dorm with a bouquet in her hands. "Speaking of making a strong show; you might as well confront and challenge Alexis to a big public duel now. Shouldn't be a problem to get a duel with her beforehand if you set a later date."

Following his gaze, Kami smirked. "Oh? Little miss perfect breaking the rules to go to the Abandoned Dorm? Now wouldn't that be a nice rumour to spread." Before she made her move, she turned back at Blake, ordering him once again, though with a newfound tone of acknowledgement. "You know what you have to do next. Keep it up and we'll both be where we want soon." Then, she made her way down the hill towards Alexis.

'What's up with her antagonizing Alexis so much anyway? Sure she's a possible rival in her eyes, but I don't think she ever expressed herself wanting to get that title or attention. Is it some kind of women-thing I don't get? Honestly, she shouldn't feel threatened by her at all …', Blake thought as he stood up. 'But something about this seems familiar …' The sudden appearance of a trio in red made it click in his head. 'Oh, it's time for that now? A shame I don't get to see the first Shadow Duel in action-'

The scene played out as he knew, just with the addition of Kami being there, resulting in the three boys backing off and going back into the woods. He expected Kami to get going herself and already took out his PDA to record what he knew would happen to back-up Jaden later, but things didn't turn out that way. Instead of just Titan appearing and kidnapping Alexis, another equally hulking form appeared next to him and napped Kami as well. While Titans appearance was originally meant to scare of Jaden, that hadn't worked in the show either, but who was that second guy? Instead of thinking about that, he made his way down there himself and send a backup of the recording he just made to Katherine in case his PDA might get wrecked, attached with the note "In case things go wrong, use for blackmail". While he was confident that Jaden could handle himself, neither of the other boys would be able to support him in case of a tag-duel that was a Shadow Duel, so he had to be the one to do so.

When he arrived at the scene, Jaden and his roommates were already arguing whether or not to go in and the possibility of getting expelled for it. With him coming around a nearby tree, rustling leaves in the process, Syrus jumped on Chumley out of surprise.

"Hey Blake, what'ya doing here?", Jaden asked good-natured.

"I could ask you the same, but I'm afraid I'm here for business", Blake explained with an amused look, fixing his sweatbands and cap after the short run down the hill. "Can't have my cash cow get kidnapped before I'm paid and all."

"Your what now?", Jaden raised his eyebrows at him.

Blake jerked a thumb at the ruined building. "The blue-haired prissy brat that got napped together with Alexis. She pays, I work; cash cow." 'Now that I think about it, getting Kami out of there should be a nice boon. Could make things a lot easier …'

"Oh man, that's what happened?", Jadens eyes widened in shock. "And here I thought she screamed because went in and crashed down or something. Now we gotta go in even more!"

A brief look at the other boys made their view on being here and even going into the building clear, so Blake decided to try and keep them away from the duel. There was enough that could go wrong with an unknown addition, especially in a Shadow Duel. "But if you guys are so scared just from me coming out of the forest, I don't think you should go in there."

Chumley, who managed to get Syrus off of him, lectured them. "None of us should be here in the first place! If anyone catches us here, they're gonna throw us out! The rules on this place are pretty clear that any student that approaches gets expelled!"

"And shouldn't we let the authorities take care of this, now that we know someone kidnapped the girls? We're just students, Slifer students at that …", Syrus mumbled, but Jaden had none of that.

"And leave Alexis and the other girl hanging like that? No way, we're gonna get in there!"

Blake nodded in agreement. "But if you really don't wanna go in there you can hide somewhere around to let us know if security or teachers are coming. Might save us some trouble."

Chumley looked like he might just do that but Syrus fought the idea with a sudden surge of bravery. "No way! If Jaden is going then so am I, come on Chum!" The senior boy reluctantly nodded, so the group of four entered the building.

With only the light given off by their PDA's, they carefully wandered around, looking for hints or ways to the kidnapped girls. The whole thing was run-down, covered in dust and cobwebs, and had a distinct smell of mould. With Syrus hiding behind Chumley at every noise caused by wooden planks or scuttling insects they'd no chance of making a surprise appearance, but luckily for them the two big men that came here before them made enough signs to follow, their footprints leading down into the basement.

As they descended down the stairs, Blake caught everyone's attention. "Since those guys made it past island security and kidnapped two high-value targets I imagine them being a capable breed of scum. I believe that guy with the hat is a duel-mercenary, and with him coming all the way here I imagine him being worth the money." Jaden beamed in excitement at the thought of potentially dueling someone that high-profile, while the information left a bitter taste with the other two.

"What's a duel-mercenary?", Chumley asked, both confused and scared.

Fixing them with a serious look, Blake explained what he knew. If he hadn't been allowed to attend the academy, this was what he'd be doing otherwise after all. "A duel-mercenary is a paid duelist that is hired to demoralize, scare, or even make another duelist back off from a duel or tournament. They usually use tactics to frighten their targets, with a lot of effort going into their presentation as well as construction decks that amplify this or flat-out counter their targets strategy."

"So not 'licious … but how comes you know about something like that?", Chumley mumbled.

With a quick check of his duel-disk, Blake waved him off dismissively. "A story for another time, big guy."

"S-so what do we do? If both of them are like that then we really need some teacher!", Syrus wailed.

Scoffing at the smaller boy, Blake laid down the plan. "No, we don't. Jaden and I can take them no problem, isn't that right?"

"Oh yeah! Never thought I'd get a chance to duel someone like that! So how are we gonna do this?", Jaden agreed with radiating motivation.

"I think our best bet is dueling them separately. Since they appeared as a duo there's a good chance that their decks and styles work well together, while ours don't do as much", Blake grimaced, his fingers drumming on his forearm. "But since they've got hostages, we might as well be forced into exactly that kind of position. Either way, better make your plays carefully and don't fall for their intimidation tricks. Who knows what they'll do if we lose." 'Unlikely, but I really don't want to find out. Titan might just increase his payout by blackmailing Crowler for getting him here and keeping his mouth shut, but the other guy?'

"A-and what about us?", Syrus asked timidly.

'You should've stayed out in the first place, worst case you spout some info about our strategies out … wait, maybe …', Blake pondered before looking at the two boys. "You two will have a very important job: Syrus, you'll use your PDA's camera function and film everything that's going on here. If what Chumley said is true then we can use this as evidence so that they hopefully lessen the punishment. Chumley, help him with keeping that fact hidden, wouldn't want the intruders to go at ya." They gulped but nodded in agreement.

When they arrived at the bottom of the stairs the corridor led to an underground cave. Following the way, they arrived in a large, circular room which was lit with candles and dimly shining lanterns. Opposite of the entrance hang the two girls knocked out in some kind of coffins. The giant forms of Titan – in all of his grey-jacketed, half-mask wearing glory – and some other equally tall guy dressed in a dark-blue coat with large metal cuffs around his arms and his hood drawn up as well as a face-filling mask that resembled some kind of demon stood in front of them. He had some kind of device attached to his neck, making his breathing louder. Blake knew that there was something it reminded him off, but he couldn't place just what it was, instead he got a sharp headache.

"So, you have arrived, and we even got both of our targets, isn't that nice?", Titan stated in a loud and menacing voice, looking from the group of students to his partner, who only nodded in response.

"Hey if we're who you want, what's the deal with kidnapping the girls like that?!", Jaden shouted, taking the forefront with Blake beside him.

The giant chuckled darkly. "They seemed like a good way to get you where we wanted you. That and they'll give us another nice payout for letting them go." He made a show of waving over to the girls. "But if you want us to let them go, then I'm afraid the only way we'll do us is if you can beat us in a duel. But not any ordinary duel: A Shadow Duel." With that, Titan pulled out a golden pendant reminiscent of the Millenium Puzzle, though obviously a fake.

"S-say what now?! I thought those were only a myth!", Syrus cried out from behind.

"That's what they want you to think. But you'll soon see that this is anything but a normal duel", Titan said with a grin, looking at Jaden and Blake. "This will be a tag-duel, of course. Do you have the will to fight against us or do you run back to your mommies?"

The two boys nodded to one another and readied their duel-disks. "Heh, no way we're run", Jaden replied. "We're gonna beat you, get our friends back and be back at our dorm before anyone is any the wiser. Right, Blake?"

"Yeah, you're gonna regret ever setting a foot on this island, much less target us", Blake all but growled at them. The unidentified man stared at him, and he could hear the strain of his clothes over the clenched muscles. The man hadn't taken his eyes off of him ever since they arrived down here. 'Someone I know or that knows off me? I wouldn't put it past Titan to know of me either, which might be bad if they start blabbing.'

But now as everyone got ready to duel – with Syrus and Chumley taking a position to the side towards the girls with a good view to record everything – the masked man's voice rumbled through the room. It was slightly mechanical, seemingly supported by the device on his neck. "No, Hound, you'll regret to have been born after this."

Aaaaand cut. The groundwork has been laid in more places than one this time. Next chapter we'll get to the first tag-duel and I hope I'll get that one right. Will Blake's contingencies work? How will the kidnapped girls react to what's happening? And who's that second guy? Question, questions ...

The reactions to last chapters duel were a mixed back, but I guess you can't please everyone. I liked how they went for what its worth and we'll see how the MC adapts to potential counters to his strategies. On the case of proper Burn-decks and how they aren't brought up or straight up suck in the anime: I guess everyone that has watches Vrains can agree on that note, me included. Blue Angel's Trickstar cards should've done way more, but no, can't have such a strategy win against some major antagonists, let alone a female duelist do well I suppose.

Someone actually commented that they would've liked to see more of Blake's background in the beginning to which I say: Thank you! As far as I know most stories keep it brief or just skip straight to the exam / into the academy, and while I wanted the arc before that to be impactful, I didn't want to bore or scare of readers with making it too long. But I'm sure we'll get to see more into that during downtime, aka vacation!

As always thanks to everyone for reading and reviewing. We're close to 20k viewsand the amount of follows and favourites has been increasing heavily. Love y'all and see you next time!