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.

69. Strike of the Dynasty

Renegades: A New Dawn

Chapter LXIX: Strike of the Dynasty

WDC Rebellion card:

WDC Young-Gun Championship: Belle Draper vs. Justin Pipe vs. [c] Maddy Smith

Akiza Izinski vs. Sakura Haruno

Sgt. Tyranno Hassleberry vs. Brooke Angharad

Top Contender's Duel for the WDC Young-Gun Championship: Freja McKinna vs. Caprice Morris

A flight to Santander in Spain was the last thing that most of the club wanted during an exhausting stretch of the season. However, there was a far bigger threat for Astrid - Maddy, as Blair was learning. 'So it took how long to get her out of there?' 'Four days. It took four days for Frances to negotiate with the authorities, and even then we had to promise that it was because Finn was sexually harassing her Mum.' 'I mean sexually is being generous, I've seen more exciting library workers.' 'I mean the other option was Astrid facing three years in prison for attacking him. So now Astrid is staying home until we get guarantees that Finn isn't going to be at events.'

'Probably best if you ask me. Has she been suspended?' 'From the club? No. I did talk to her, and if she gets herself arrested again then I probably will have to, but in the meantime, I'm tryna be understanding of her, especially with the stuff with LFD still going on. Still put her on blast for it mind you.' 'Frances just as confident as before?' 'Oh yeah, she's actually meeting with Henrietta in person today to discuss the situation, and then she and Astrid are talkin' to Declan next week.'

Rio was interested in something very different though. 'So, who you trying to impress with the double denim?' She just giggled nervously in response, and sensing an opportunity, Blair decided to play wind-up. 'I heard from a little birdie Rio, that somebody… has signed up for online dating.' 'Go on then, who's the lucky guy?' Embarrassed, Maddy turned away, unsuccessfully trying to hide her blushing. 'I… I…' 'Don't get all funny Maddy, nobody's laughing at you.' 'Yeah, Blair's right, we just wanna be supportive. And have a little bit of fun about it, it's proper exciting that you're getting yourself out there.'

'I mean I only made the account yesterday, I'm trying to do some pictures for it this week, going to be going shopping for a new high-end camera to get some good photos, if I can that is.' 'Maddy, you know you're a good looking girl, right? You don't need to have some fancy pants camera to get guys swarming all over you. All you need is your personality… your real personality that is, the whole Don stuff is starting to get kinda old.' 'And what if that is the real me?'

Worried about how she was going to react, Rio hastily moved the subject on. 'Well if you ever need any dating advice, I'm sure Freja would be happy to help you, she's been internet dating since she was 14.' 'Yeah, she's also had her mind manipulated so much that I don't know how she thinks, and what she looks for in a guy is someone who's into weird cat-dressing foreplay. I mean would you get involved in that?'

Rio paused awkwardly at this, but Blair immediately responded with 'Sure I would', before realising what she'd said as she got some extremely curious looks from her friends. 'I'm just saying, it spices things up a bit, stops it getting boring.' Shaking her head, Rio responded with 'And you wonder why I don't want to have breakfast with you guys? It's bad enough listening to you go at it at half past midnight.' 'That happened once!' Blair protested, leading to a lengthy argument where Maddy heard the words "roleplay" and "baby oil" in many new contexts that encouraged her to put on her noise-cancelling headphones, before blasting her eardrums out with some Paramore.

Two hours later

As the club landed in Santander, Maddy caught up with Phil and pulled him over. 'What's up?' 'Freja, Belle, Lydia, what are we doing?' 'Pardon?' 'You've seen the issues, you saw what Lydia did, what are we doing?' 'Well I don't know what you're doing about it, but I'm leaving them to sort their own issues out.' 'Come on, you're supposed to be making sure Freja's behaving' 'Freja hasn't done anything wrong here, it's her psycho sister. Freja has done everything right in all of this.'

'So what's going on then - you been annoying her?' 'What - Lydia?' he stated in confusion. 'I've not spoken to her since Paris and I'm not going to until Hannah gets an apology for being pushed into a fountain. But you know what, I already had the perfect solution for all of this, except you made me promise to stop doing it.' Frustrated, Maddy made a deal. 'One month. Lydia has one month to make peace with the fact that Freja can be close to Belle, and if it's still an issue after that, you have it your way. But the compromise is you don't interfere with the situation' 'Which I haven't done since Le Mans if you'll remember, I haven't done anything since then, this is all Freja managing the situation as best she can. And if nobody else will give her credit for it, then I will do.' Before Maddy could respond again, he walked off in a huff.

In the arena

The show was opened by Nico Smiley appearing with Chazz, and a microphone. 'Ladies and Gentlemen, or being the World Duelling Corporation, should I call you the unwashed masses, my name is Nico Smiley, and if anyone was able to procure a viewing of the Leo Federation of Duelling's masterclass Euro-Fest in Munich, then you would have seen an absolute travesty of a miscarriage of justice, where the man you are about to see, was brutally screwed out of HIS rightful title by a mere pauper pretender. Introducing my client,'

At this moment, some unfamiliar music played, and Phil walked out, in a blue and red-backed waistcoat, with the whole of the Dynasty backing him up. 'Sorry, am I interrupting something Nico? Go on, you were saying about a "pauper pretender"? Nice words by the way, I didn't know you had that many brain cells.' 'How dare you!' was the immediate response, but not from Nico, but Chazz. 'You think you're so clever insulting Nico just because he's a better manager than you could ever be. You've got no balls.' Phil was more than happy to strike back though.

'Like you'd know anything about balls. But I am nothing if not a smart businessman, so if Sledgehammer would like a rematch, I would be more than happy to negotiate.' As Nico signalled, Sledgehammer walked down. 'Girls.' As he said this, Belle and Rio came up behind Chazz and Nico, and quickly restrained them without hesitation. 'Make no mistake, this is MY Dynasty, and this negotiation is between me and Sledgehammer' he stated while tossing his rival a microphone. 'Now you want a rematch?'

He nodded in response. 'I've heard you, I know you can speak English perfectly fine, you just let Nico talk for you. Come on then, what do you want here?' 'I want rematch. You and me. Nothing else.' 'Sounds good to me.' 'In fact, I want more than that. I want Torture Chamber.' As the fans cheered, Phil nodded. 'Right, that's what you want, now for payment.' This seemed to shock his foe. 'With the Dynasty, nothing comes free. Let's see, firstly, you don't get anything unless a contract gets signed for Chazz to duel Blair at Lockdown.' Chazz protested at this, but as he tried to attack Phil, Belle wrenched his arm and pulled back, causing him to stop immediately.

'Secondly, you will have to… earn your shot. Because you didn't beat me, you have to beat a member of the Dynasty in a Proving Grounds match.' 'I don't care who I go through, I accept.' Phil then smiled. 'Right, now do I have any volunteers, or should I pick someone?' Immediately, Freja stepped up, almost snatching the microphone with a never before seen intensity. 'Master, I volunteer.' He seemed very surprised at just who the opponent was. 'I will say, not who I had in mind, but a volunteer is a volunteer.' 'I don't give a shit about the duel with Caprice later, I had my shot at Maddy, and I lost. This is the opportunity to redeem myself.'

She then walked up to Sledgehammer, and squared up, showing off the comical height difference, and the giant chuckled confidently, seeing his opponent as little more than an annoying fly on a car windscreen. 'Now we're all about sacrifice, so before you accept Mr. Sledgehammer, let me set out the stipulations. If you win, you get a title shot against me at Lockdown, in the Torture Chamber. If you lose, then you will never receive another shot at the WDC Championship while I am champion. Do you accept?' 'I accept.'

He then turned to Freja. 'Now Freja, as you know, the risk and reward are appropriate for you as they are for your opponent. If you win here, then you will become Top Contender for the WDC Championship. If you lose however, The Sledgehammer will earn a future shot at the Bad Breed's LFD Doubles Championships, and you will forfeit your pay for this event.' She looked at him with a gaze of pure steel and stated 'I accept the risk.'

This set up the new main event. Before Sledgehammer could leave however, Blair stopped him and handed over a contract. 'Get this signed and returned to us before the main event, otherwise no dice.' Sledgehammer nodded without speaking, understanding what the contract was likely regarding, and left, with Chazz and Nico arguing as they followed him back up. Meanwhile the Dynasty held up the Symbol of Excellence before they departed, with the crowd mostly on their side.

A promo video then aired for the opening duel, with all three competitors talking, starting with Justin. 'I'm going to be honest with everyone, this isn't going to be a contest. Those two little damsels couldn't stand up to me if they tried, and they're not even going to try properly. Why? Because they're stupid little girlies, so I'm going to liberate the title from a weak little child, and then I'll lead this division, while you two can go back and play with your little ponies and play dress-up.'

Belle was next, looking more glamorous than normal with her hair down, having recently discovered mascara. 'Justin, I would have beaten you but for the interference, and I think we both know that. But you can't escape again, there are no distractions this time. I didn't come here to play games, I didn't come here to have my intelligence insulted, I came here to win. And this is my opportunity to do just that. I'm giving this everything I've got, and that title will make a real nice tribute for the Dynasty.'

Finally was Maddy, who the fans erupted for when she appeared on the screen, wearing dungarees and jeans, her hair parted into two side tails sweeping down either side of her face in flashes of pink and red and brown. 'You guys can stop asking, I'm fighting fit, I'm fine. This ain't ballet that's for sure. I know how good Justin is, I sure as fuck know how good Belle is, I'm taking nothing for granted here. But you come into the Wolf's den, you'd better not miss. Because if you do, I'll eat you alive.' She then took another swig of her paracetamol water, except for one thing - it wasn't paracetamol in it, but morphine, as Rio attempted to keep the champion going.

In the arena

First out was Belle, who was starting to develop a consistent fanbase. 'The following duel will be under three-way-dance rules for the WDC Young-Gun Championship. Introducing first, the challengers, first, from Headingley, Leeds, England, she is one half of the LFD Doubles Champions, the Myth - Belle Draper.' While she made her way down, the commentators welcomed everyone. "Welcome to WDC Rebellion, we start off with a fascinating clash. Belle Draper has proven herself to be an excellent addition to the WDC, being very tactically astute and showing great skill and guts in an impressive start to live as a pro having come through the intensive Renegade Arena course. Her Tree of Qlife deck is capable of putting out fierce damage, but doesn't play well with other engines, leaving only the pilot's skill to guide it. She may be nicknamed the Myth, but it's going to take a truly legendary performance for this youngster to win it all.' In the zone, Belle raised the symbol of excellence, looking confident.

Justin was next, carrying his book and, convinced he was a king amongst men, wearing a luxurious purple robe. 'Introducing the second challenger, from Reno, Nevada, he is the Player - Justin Pipe.' "Justin Pipe has been steadily rising through the ranks of the WDC over the past two years, and sitting at 28 in the world now, he's become quite the dangerous opponent. His "Safe Place" deck keeps the graveyard a site of purity that only he can manipulate, cutting off opponents' powerful tactics and setups. His views and attitudes may be questionable, but his talent isn't, and this Player might just play his way to a taste of gold." In the zone, Justin started preaching to Belle again, but she just stuck her white wired earphones in her ears and walked off on him.

Finally, Maddy's music hit, except it wasn't her regular music, but instead the music she used regularly on the local scene in Newcastle. She appeared in Don garb, but took it off at the entrance, and walked down to the zone, slapping hands with fans as she did. 'Introducing their opponent, from Stoneybridge, Northumbria, England, she is your reigning and defending WDC Young-Gun Champion, Don Alpha - Maddy Smith.' As she continued to stop for pictures, the commentators discussed her increasingly massive reign.

"Maddy Smith might look like an average teen, but she is an extraordinary talent, and that title you see her carrying has been around her waist for 230 days, nobody has ever held that title for longer, and her hit list as champion is constantly swelling further and further. Her Fiendish Playtime deck is incredibly sinister, resembling cute, fluffy toys until they get turned into vicious monsters and carve up the opponent. Outside of duelling she's into her photography and drawing, but will we be getting a snapshot of a new champion here?"

In the zone, Maddy threatened to spear Justin, causing him to jump out of the zone, and she then picked up his book, and withdrew a lighter from her pocket, setting the book on fire to his apparent devastation. 'You can't do that! That's the ultimate manual on how to be a winner, a Player.' 'Well if you're such a "Player", then you shouldn't need that. Now how about you get on with the duel before I set Belle on you again.' Concerned, he activated his duel disk, followed by the other two.

WDC Young-Gun Championship: Belle Draper LP:8000 vs. Justin Pipe LP:8000 vs. [c] Maddy Smith LP:8000

(Belle hand: Qliphort Scout, Qliphort Shell, Card Advance, Dimension Guardian, Saqlifice)

Belle: 'I'll start by scaling up Scale 9 Qliphort Scout, and using its effect (Belle LP:8000-7200), to add Qliphort Helix to my hand. I'll set a monster and set two cards, ending my turn.'

(Justin hand: Gravekeeper's Commandant, Necrovalley, Rite of Spirit, Top Share, Gravekeeper's Oracle, Gravekeeper's Spiritualist)

Justin: 'I'll draw and activate Top Share, targeting Belle, forcing us both to stack the top card of our decks with whichever card we want. I'll top Royal Tribute.' Completely unfazed by the unusual play, Belle responded with 'I'll place Domain of the True Monarchs on the top.' 'After that I'll activate Necrovalley, and set a monster myself.' With the crypt-laden valley active, Maddy took her turn.

(Maddy hand: Frightfur Fusion, Fusion Conscription, Toy Vendor, Fluffal Dog, Edge Imp Sabres, Polymerisation)

Maddy: 'I'll draw, then I'll activate Fusion Conscription. This allows me to reveal any Fusion monster in my Extra deck, adding one of the Fusion materials on it to my hand. So I'll show you Frightfur Sheep, and add Edge Imp Chain. I'll set a monster and end my turn.'

(Belle hand: Qliphort Shell, Card Advance, Domain of the True Monarchs)

Belle: 'I'll start my turn by activating Domain of the True Monarchs.' As the eerie dark throne room appeared around them, Belle was ready to cause severe destruction. 'I'll flip up Qliphort Helix (Atk:1800), and then equip Helix with my face-down Saqlifice. That means I can treat it as two tributes to summon Qliphort Shell (Atk:2800). And Saqlifice also gives me a search of Qliphort Disc. Afterwards, I'll pay 800 Life points (Belle LP:7200-6400), and add Qliphort Monolith to my hand.'

Moving carefully through her move, Belle continued her play `Now I'll add Scale 1 Qliphort Monolith to my scales, and Pendulum summon the Qliphort Helix from my Extra deck (Atk:2400-1800). Next I'll Card Advance, seeing the top 5 cards of my deck and stacking them, then I get another Tribute summon this turn. Now Domain effect, reducing the Level of the Disc in my hand by two (Level:8-6). That means I can tribute Helix to summon Qliphort Disc (Atk:2800). Then Disc's effect will summon Qliphort Stealth and Qliphort Shell (Atk:2800x2).' After taking a moment, she chose her target.

'I'll use the first Shell to attack your monster Justin.' Justin had set the strongest monster from his hand (Gravekeeper's Commandant Def.:1500), but it didn't help much as Shell impaled it. 'When Shell attacks after being tribute summoned, it does piercing damage and I can attack twice with it (Justin LP:8000-6700-3900). Then I'll attack with Disc and the other Shell.' Disc and Shell's double projectile assault saw Justin crash out of the duel after barely three minutes, with a confused Maddy stopping bracing just in time to see him go down (Justin LP:3900-0).

Justin was stunned and furious at this defeat, and responded by threatening Belle with 'You're going to hear from my lawyer!', before storming out. Belle then made a statement to Maddy, the champion looking rattled. 'That was the starter. You're the main meal, I want to defeat you fair and square 1-1. I'm not interested in taking it easy, I wanted you all to myself, so I can beat you for that title.' The result of the battle should have been a relief for Maddy, but instead, she felt a different emotion - unbridled rage.

'You don't need to give me that bullshit, you're taking it easy because I'm just "sick lil' Maddy", unable to look after herself, hangin' on by a thread, but guess what, I'm fighting harder than ever, and I'm fighting better than ever, I don't need your fuckin' sympathy, I need you to give me both barrels so when I beat you there's no doubt that I'm Maddy fuckin' Smith, and I'm that damn bitch!' As the fans went wild, Belle's turn automatically ended, and Stealth and the second Shell were destroyed through Disc's effect.

(Maddy hand: Frightfur Fusion, Toy Vendor, Fluffal Dog, Polymerisation, Edge Imp Sabres, Fluffal Wings)

Maddy: 'I'll draw, and activate Polymerisation, fusing Edge Imp Sabres and Fluffal Wings to Fusion summon Frightfur Cruel Whale (Atk:2600). Now the effect of Cruel Whale will destroy my set monster and your Qliphort Shell. I know your Qlis have this whole immunity to lower levels thing, but Cruel Whale is Level 9.' 'It doesn't matter what Level it is against Dimension Guardian. This stops my Shell being destroyed by battle or card effects as long as this card is on the field.'

As Edge Imp Sabres was destroyed, but Shell was protected by the amulet it was sporting, Maddy lined up for an attack. 'Cruel Whale, go in on Qliphort Disc.' 'I'll trigger the effect of my Domain, to give Disc 800 Attack during damage calculation (Disc Atk:2800-3600).' Panicking (having forgotten about Domain), Maddy made a last-ditch move. 'Cruel Whale, send Frightfur Reborn from my deck to the grave to gain 50% more Attack (Atk:2600-3900).' This allowed her to power through Disc, dealing Belle some damage (Belle LP:6400-6100). 'I end my turn.'

(Belle hand: Dimensional Fissure)

Belle: 'I draw. I'll use Qliphort Scout's effect to pay 800 Life points (Belle LP:6100-5300), and add Qlimate Change from my deck to my hand. Then I'll activate Dimensional Fissure, before Pendulum summoning Qliphort Helix from my Extra deck (Def.:1000). I'll end my turn with that.'

(Maddy hand: Frightfur Fusion, Toy Vendor, Fluffal Dog, Designer Frightfur, Edge Imp Tomahawk)

Maddy: 'I draw.' 'And I'll activate Qlimate Change immediately, adding the other three Qliphorts from my Extra deck to my hand. And because I now have nothing in my Extra deck, Domain of the True Monarchs disallows you from summoning from the Extra deck.' 'That's fine, I'll just destroy your Helix first. I don't even need to boost my monster here.' Cruel Whale used its protruding scissors to carve great slices into Belle's monster, but she had a surprise. 'Didn't notice Dimensional Fissure did you? This makes all monsters that would go to the graveyard be banished instead, and that works for Pendulums as well.' Mystified by the ruling, Maddy looked up to the official, who waved the duel on. This put her in a tight spot, so she tried to find a way out. 'I'll… no, that won't work, I… I'll end my turn with a face-down.'

(Belle hand: Qliphort Stealth, Qliphort Cephalopod, Qliphort Shell, The Monarchs Erupt)

Belle: 'I draw. I'll just hold firm, setting a backrow.' As she did this, thoughts turned to how Maddy was outing it. [She's obviously going to try and ram into Disc over and over, and I've got a pretty good solution for that, as long as she doesn't lower its Attack. And if I can stall long enough to get to Towers, then she's as good as done.]

(Maddy hand: Frightfur Fusion, Toy Vendor, Fluffal Dog, Edge Imp Tomahawk, Clashing Souls)

Maddy: 'I'll draw, then set a backrow and attack into your Disc. And as I do, I'll activate the effect of Frightfur Cruel Whale.' 'I activate my face-down The Monarchs Erupt.' As Belle did so, the rumble of a volcano echoed through the arena, and embers started floating through the field. 'While I control a Tribute summoned monster, all monsters on the field have their effects negated unless they were tribute summoned. Phil was right, this is way better than Skill Drain.'

Understanding the consequences if she let her monster be destroyed, Maddy made a desperate play. 'I activate Clashing Souls. Now during damage calculation, it's a game of chicken. I start by paying 500 Life points (Maddy LP:8000-7500), and that gives my Whale 500 Attack (Atk:2600-3100). Now you get the chance to do the same, and we keep going until someone… well, chickens out. What do you say?' Belle's quiet but considered response was 'I'm not getting involved in a game I can't win. You can keep the Attack.' This irritated Maddy, who was hoping that Belle would get drawn in. 'Fine, nobody takes any damage from the battle. I end my turn.'

(Belle hand: Qliphort Stealth, Qliphort Cephalopod, Qliphort Shell, Apoqliphort Towers)

Belle: 'I draw.' As she saw the draw, she almost raised a smile. 'I'll activate Scout's effect, paying 800 (Belle LP:5300-4500), and adding Qlife's End to my hand.' 'I know where this is going and I don't like it.' 'I end my turn with a face-down.'

(Maddy hand: Frightfur Fusion, Toy Vendor, Fluffal Dog, Edge Imp Tomahawk, Dark World Dealings)

Maddy: 'I draw. I'll activate Dark World Dealings, so we both draw 1 then discard 1.' As Maddy drew, the cogs in her devious brain started turning slowly. 'I'll set a monster and end my turn with a face-down.'

(Belle hand: Qliphort Stealth, Qliphort Cephalopod, Qliphort Shell, Apoqliphort Towers, Qlipper Launch)

Belle: 'I'll draw and activate Qlife's End, summoning it as a monster (Atk:1800). And it can be three tributes for a Qli, so you know what's coming - I'll sacrifice Qlife's End for this duel's end, the ultimate killer - Apoqliphort Towers (Atk:3000, Cruel Whale Atk:2600-2100). And Towers' effect allows me to force you to send a monster from your field to the graveyard. Except it isn't to the graveyard, because of Dimensional Fissure.' 'Yeah sure, just take my face-down Tomahawk.'

'Never seen you play that one before…' Belle mused, before regaining her correct focus. 'Towers, attack!' Belle's mightiest monster shot out a single laser beam, which immediately razed Cruel Whale from existence, leaving not even the slightest trace (Maddy LP:7500-6600). 'I end my turn.'

(Maddy hand: Frightfur Fusion, Fluffal Dog, Card Destruction)

Maddy: 'I'll draw. I'll summon Fluffal Dog (Atk:1700), and use its effect to add Edge Imp Tomahawk to my hand. Then I'll activate Card Destruction.' 'So you added Tomahawk just to get rid of it?' 'Call it offloading dead weight.' As Belle banished her stacked hand, Maddy ditched her two cards, and her new cards proved to be extremely useful. 'I'll set both of these and pass.'

(Belle hand: Qliphort Cephalopod, Wavering Eyes, Pendulum Paradox, Qliphort Monolith)

Belle: 'I draw.' 'I activate Threatening Roar straight away to keep your mitts off my Life points this turn.' 'We'll see about that. I activate Scout's effect, paying 800 Life points (Belle LP:4500-3700), and adding Saqlifice to my hand. Then I'll Pendulum summon for one - Qliphort Monolith (Atk:2400). Then I'll equip with Saqlifice so I can tribute it for Qliphort Cephalopod (Atk:2800). And when it's summoned this way, Cephalopod will deal you 300 damage for every extra monster you have in the grave.' Belle was expecting this effect to do major damage, but she was underwhelmed when she realised the scale (Belle LP:3700-4600; Maddy LP:6600-5700). 'I end my turn.'

(Maddy hand: Pot of Greed)

Maddy: 'I'll draw and activate my Pot of Greed, drawing two cards.' Seeing the cards, she took a gamble. 'I'm going to figure that you're only playing one Towers. I activate D.D.R - Different Dimension Reincarnation. This will allow me to discard one card, and bring back a monster that is in my banished zone. And thanks to you, there's plenty to choose from.' Getting more confident, Belle made a bold statement. 'Summon your Whale, I'll just rip it apart again.' 'I'm not summoning Cruel Whale. All the way from the colonies, give it up for Big Koala (Atk:2600-2100).'

Belle almost burst out laughing seeing it, before quickly returning to her sensible and logical way of thinking. 'There has to be a reason you've done that.' 'And you're absolutely… right actually, well done, top banana. I activate my face-down Amulet of Ambition. Now attack Towers with Takedown from Down Under! And when a Normal monster equipped with this Amulet battles, if it has a lower Level than your monster it gains 500 Attack for each Level of difference. And Big Koala's only Level 7 (Atk:2100-3600).' The giant Koala picked up speed as it charged onwards, nailing Towers with a full body tackle, and smashing it all over the ground (Belle LP:4600-4000). 'I end my turn.'

(Belle hand: Wavering Eyes, Pendulum Paradox, Wavering Eyes)

Belle: 'I draw. I'll activate Wavering Eyes, destroying both Pendulum Scales to search for Qliphort Monolith and dealing you with 500 damage (Maddy LP:5700-5300). 'Then I'll tribute Cephalopod to summon Qliphort Monolith (Atk:2400). That stops you from using your Amulet, so I'll attack and use Domain's effect (Atk:2400-3200).' Monolith shot out a singular light from the face at the top of it, razing Big Koala (Maddy LP:5300-4700). 'I end my turn.'

(Maddy hand: Heavy Storm)

Maddy: 'I'll draw and activate Heavy Storm, destroying all Spells and Traps on the field.' Belle watched on in concern as her carefully assembled field was severely damaged by the loss of her three control tools. 'I also destroyed my face-down Toy Vendor, letting me add Fluffal Dog to my hand. I'll then end my turn.'

(Belle hand: Wavering Eyes, Pendulum Paradox, Pendulum Area)

Belle: 'I'll draw, and I'll just attack.' Monolith shot its light at Fluffal Dog, as Maddy managed to dodge, but was still in an uncertain position (Maddy LP:4700-4000). 'I end my turn.'

(Maddy hand: Fluffal Dog, Frightfur Fusion)

Maddy: 'My turn, and it's time to get moving. I activate Frightfur Fusion, fusing the Wings and Sabres in my graveyard to Fusion summon Frightfur Daredevil (Atk:3000). Then I'll summon Dog (Atk:1700), using it to add Fluffal Angel to my hand. I'll then scale up Scale 8 Angel, and use his effect to rebirth another Dog (Atk:1700). Daredevil, attack!' The powerful Daredevil slammed its trident into Cephalopod, destroying it (Belle LP:4000-3800). 'When Daredevil destroys a monster in battle, you take a further 1000 damage (Belle LP:3800-2800). And now my two Dogs can finish you off.' The dogs launched off for playtime, pouncing on Belle and taking her out (Belle LP:2800-0).

After her latest win, Maddy smiled as she lifted her title high. Belle then walked past her, patting her on the back as she did, surprising Maddy, who returned backstage herself to talk to her defeated opponent. 'You ok?' 'Yeah, I just don't want to stick around when I lost, go back out if you like.' 'So no hard feelings?' Belle responded by shaking her head. 'No hard feelings, you totally deserved to win. I'm just disappointed I didn't push you harder.' 'You were great, Phil will tell you that if you don't believe me.'

As she said this, Phil walked up to them. 'Maddy, great duel out there. Belle, you alright?' 'Guess so, I'm a little gutted at how I did.' 'Why? I thought you were pretty good. I mean there's a few little things to work on, but nothing too substantial. In the nicest way possible, Maddy is an absolutely horrible opponent to face.' The champion grinned as she heard this. 'She just hits so hard' Belle bemoaned. 'She does. If you're not absolutely in form and absolutely open well and absolutely play your cards right, she'll tear you down and apart. She's my little monster. Tell you what Belle, you come with me and we can go through some of the things you can improve on.'

As Belle and Phil left, Maddy turned around only to get nose-to-nose with Caprice, causing a huge reaction from a crowd who were clearly desperate to see them go wit-to-wit. But Caprice was more concerned about what her opponent was wearing. 'Double denim? Seriously? Has anyone ever told you that Double Denim looks totally gross?' 'Has anyone ever told you that I don't really care?' 'Look, I get it, you don't think you're a good looking girl, and for the record, you're nice, nothing like me or like Sara, but you're nice, pleasant. But you REALLY can't pull that look off, even I'd struggle.'

'That's because while you spend all your time thinking about fashion, I've been busy carryin' this title, destroying anyone placed in front of me, and generally being top dog around here. Now I know you want to prove a point by taking this title off me, and I respect the fact that you're using your guaranteed title shot for that. But make no mistake about it, I will destroy you like I have every single opponent who has stood in my way.' Aiming to get under Maddy's skin, the immediate response from the crafty South African was 'Including Rhydian? I hear he still misses his sweet little Maddy.'

She wasn't expecting Maddy to flash her eyes, and respond with 'Yeah, you saw what happened to Rhydian after he crossed me, he's now rotting in some prison cell somewhere being eaten alive by the big boys. He misses me because I would have been his meal ticket, and he can miss me, because when or should I say, if he gets out of there, he'll get a very nasty surprise through the post because if he comes within a country mile of me, he's goin' straight back in the clink. So you can use that specter all you like, because what it tells me is that you can't handle the pressure of facing me. Your problem is you don't believe your own hype. And if you don't, I don't either.'

As Maddy went to leave, she was pulled back in, nose-to-nose with Caprice to the point where they could feel each other's breath on their faces. 'Who are you to speak to me like that? I've come up the hard way, I've not had Daddy and Mummy making sure I had a pro title in my hand at 17, I didn't have a full legal team fighting when I was injured' 'No, you just had a $400,000 loan to the WDC to ensure that when you did come here, you were given a title shot in your contract for doing absolutely nothing for six months. I had them hammering on my pregnant Mam's door threatening to take the title while I was undergoing surgery, because yeah, big news, I was in full kidney failure, just because they couldn't stand the fact that I'm not the perfect girl next door they want. So I had to be something different. Point is, some of us don't get all the opportunities, we have to scrap and claw our way to the top.'

'When you're the head of the Style Council, you make yourself the top, that's the difference. You're so obsessed with clawing up from nothing that you won't do whatever you have to in order to get there, because you'll only do it "the hard way". Why, because it's a feelgood story? Because someone, somewhere will be impressed? Because you're expecting some fairytale ending? Well I'm no white knight, but I'm certainly gonna knock you off your feet, right before I rip that title from your hands and hold it over you, because I SLAYED THE BEAST. So watch your back, because I might just decide you're not making it.'

Elsewhere

Akiza was in her usual dark room, but this time she was stood up, and smiling. 'Tick tock goes the clock, apocalypse draws ever closer. We are rapidly approaching the darkest day again, but you have to understand that destruction isn't always a bad thing, in fact it creates new life. The old must die for the new to begin. But enough of that, because it's time to see which target I have to remove today.'

She picked up a picture, and looked slightly wistful. 'The good doctor, Sakura Haruno. I must admit, this is a difficult one, because I really like miss Haruno, she's a very talented medic, and a very sweet girl. And she learned a lot when we worked together, I count myself very lucky to have had such a vibrant student. But it is the nature of fate that people get drawn together like this, and now is the time when we must be facing off. I will do what is demanded of me by the fates.'

Meanwhile, Sakura was doing some high kicks to warm up when Rio walked into shot. 'You want any backup against Akiza? She's been pretty nasty recently, not to mention her little masked minion.' She smiled in response and chirpily stated 'It's ok, I'm fine.' 'If you get attacked' 'I've got a plan, don't worry. I wouldn't mind you looking after my medical bag though.' 'Oh yeah, sure. Well, good luck out there.' 'Thanks.'

In the zone, Sakura was first out, in a jade kimono decorated with cherry blossoms and a watercolour green pheasant. She glided down to the zone, as the fans watched on. 'The following duel is scheduled under standard rules. Introducing first, representing the Renegade nation, from Nishi-Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan, she is Sakura Haruno.' As she continued down, she was introduced by the commentators.

"This is Sakura Haruno, 23 from Shibuya, Japan. A graduate of Tokyo Medical and Dental University, you will frequently see her travelling with the Renegades as their resident medic, having joined them after serving in the Japanese Armed Forces for a time. She may not look like much, but she's battle hardened and is, we are reliably informed, a highly talented duellist. Her Dance of the Ninja's Shadow deck leaves the opponent chasing shadows, as she slowly picks them off. She won't be concerned by Akiza's slower style, but can she cope with the experience and damage?"

As this was being questioned, Sakura leapt into the zone with an enormous jump, doing a front flip and landing perfectly on both feet, withdrawing two throwing stars as she did, causing the fans to applaud her. While waiting for Akiza, she bowed to the crowd in respect, and unwrapped her Kimono to reveal a loose buttoned dress that reached to the waist, with the picture of a red crane on it.

Akiza's music then started, and she made her appearance in a neon green one-piece. 'Introducing her opponent, accompanied by Powerplay, from Tacoma, Washington, USA, she is the Black Rose - Akiza Izinski.' Akiza walked down, once again ignoring her comrades who were taunting the crowd, and she too was discussed. "Akiza Izinski is an experienced and callous competitor who will stop at nothing to dismantle her opponents. We saw that when she took a hammer to Blair Flannigan's wrist in Munich, we can confirm that Blair has a fractured wrist, and is not medically cleared to duel here. Akiza's Hurting and Healing deck focuses on torturing the opponent with gradual damage while making herself unkillable, but as shown off in her last duel against fellow Renegades youngster KAI, she can also get aggressive, with devastating results. One thing's for certain: this is one rose you don't want to bloom."

In the zone, Akiza and Sakura faced off, and Akiza immediately spoke. 'I apologise for what I have to do. If you would just come with me, this would be different, but I know your loyalty to him is too strong.' 'Akiza, I know you think we're friends, and I did learn a few things from you, but you betrayed all of us, and that hurt so much, because I looked up to you as a big sister. But not now, now I only see you as a threat to us. I hope you're up for a fight, because I'm putting everything into this.'

Akiza Izinski LP:8000 vs. Sakura Haruno LP:8000

(Sakura hand: Book of Lunar Eclipse, Ninjitsu Art of Dancing Leaves, Ninja Grandmaster Hanzo, Kagero the Cannon Ninja, Ninjitsu Art of Decoy)

Sakura: 'I'll start with Ninja Grandmaster Hanzo (Atk:1800). And his effect will add Ninjitsu Art of Transformation to my hand. I'll set three and pass.'

(Akiza hand: Aroma Garden, Lonefire Blossom, Aromalilith Rosalina, Child's Play, Blessed Winds, Aromaseraphy Angelica)

Akiza: 'I'll draw, and immediately activate my Aroma Garden.' The garden blooming was a pleasant sight, and Sakura, despite knowing what it meant, seemed perfectly confident. 'I'll summon Aromalilith Rosalina (Atk:0). Then I'll use her effect to summon Aromage Laurel from my deck (Atk:800).' 'I activate Book of Lunar Eclipse. As sure as day turns to night, now for the cost of one card in my hand, two of your monsters turn face-down, hidden from the light.' Before Akiza could even react, an icy blue book appeared on the field, and the moon on it shone brightly, both her monsters were set, giving her nothing she could do with them. 'I activate Child's Play, then set one and pass.'

(Sakura hand: Ninjitsu Art of Decoy, Ninjitsu Art Notebook of Mystery)

Sakura: 'I draw. I'll activate my face-down Ninjitsu Art of Dancing Leaves. This allows me to tribute a set monster on the field to summon a Ninja from my deck. Note the words "the field", because it means I can tribute your Rosalina, to summon White Dragon Ninja (Atk:2700, Akiza LP:8000-8300). Now I'll activate Ninjitsu Art Notebook of Mystery. Listen up, because this one's a little complicated. This lets me set one Ninja monster and one Ninjitsu Art from my deck and/or graveyard, but I can only set one from each destination. From my graveyard I'll get back Dancing Leaves, and from my deck I'll set another Hanzo.'

'Now Hanzo can attack your Rosalina.' The swift Ninja dashed into battle, slashing with a shuriken, destroying Laurel (Def.:0, Akiza LP:8300-8800). 'Now White Dragon Ninja can attack directly.' 'I'll activate Blessed Winds, using its 3rd effect to pay 1000 Life points (Akiza LP:8800-7800), and revive Laurel (Def.:0).' 'Ok, I'll destroy her again.' The Ninja circled his arms as if he was directing the air itself, and a white Dragon appeared, howling as it ripped through Laurel. 'I end my turn.'

(Akiza hand: Miracle Fertilizer, Aromaseraphy Angelica)

Akiza: 'I draw. I'll activate Miracle Fertilizer, and use its effect by trading in my Normal summon, to bring out Rosalina from my graveyard (Atk:0). And she will get Aromage Bergamot from my deck (Atk:2400).' Again though, Sakura had a solution. 'I'll activate my Ninjitsu Art of Dancing Leaves.' 'Don't you need a set monster on the field for that' Akiza taunted in concern. 'Not when I can just tribute a Ninja instead. I'll sacrifice Hanzo, and summon the goliath that's going to turn you… upside down - Jioh the Gravity Ninja (Atk:2700, Akiza LP:7800-8100).'

'When he comes out, Jioh makes the ground shake, and two of your monsters are flipped down.' As both her monsters went out of commission for her available plays, Akiza rolled her eyes in frustration. 'I'll use Blessed Winds to return Laurel to my deck from the graveyard and gain 500 Life points (Akiza LP:8100-8600). Then I'll just end my turn.'

(Sakura hand: Ninjitsu Art of Decoy, Armor Ninjitsu Art of Rust Mist)

Sakura: 'I draw. I'll contact fuse the White Dragon Ninja and Jioh the Gravity Ninja on my field, to Fusion summon Meizen the Battle Ninja (Atk:2500).' 'You're not breaking down my defences any time soon then?' 'Who says I need to? Meizen allows all Ninja monsters to attack directly. Take her down a peg or two.' Meizen launched into battle with twin long swords, cutting through Akiza's points (Akiza LP:8600-6100). 'I end my turn.'

(Akiza hand: Aromaseraphy Angelica, Gravity Bind)

Akiza: 'I'll draw, set this one card and pass my turn.'

(Sakura hand: Ninjitsu Art of Decoy, Baku the Beast Ninja)

Sakura: 'I draw.' 'I'll stop your stupid Ninja antics - Gravity Bind. Now only Level 3 or below monsters can' 'I activate the effect of Meizen, when you activate a card or effect, I can summon any Ninja from my deck in face-up or face-down Defence. From my deck, I'll set Jioh.' 'I was talking' a steaming Akiza responded, far from happy at the direction this duel was going. It was about to get worse though. 'Anyway, I summon Baku the Beast Ninja (Atk:1500, Akiza LP:6100-6400). There are so many things I love about Baku - his adorable little face, his sword, the fact he's Level 3 so gets under Gravity Bind, and the fact he can attack.' Baku rushed in, taking a short swipe at Akiza, taking her down further (Akiza LP:6400-4900). 'I end my turn.'

(Akiza hand: Aromaseraphy Angelica, Aroma Blend)

Akiza: 'I draw. I'll activate Aroma Blend, discarding Angelica to place Humid Winds face-up in my Spell and Trap zone. Then I'll use Miracle Fertlizer to revive Angelica (Atk:0).' There was then a tense stand-off, as Akiza waited for Sakura to trigger her next card effect. It never came though. Eventually Akiza queried 'So you're not doing anything…' 'No, you're good.' 'Now I'll banish my Aroma Blend from the graveyard, and fuse my three monsters together, summoning Aromalilith Marjoram (Atk:2600).' Again, Sakura had the solution though. 'I activate my face-down, Armor Ninjitsu Art of Rust Mist.' A wicked and wild wind blew through the field, which started to rust and erode Marjoram, making her colours dull. 'This negates her effects and halves her Attack (Atk:2600-1300).' 'Well at the very least I can use Humid Winds to gain 500 Life points because you're ahead, or so you think (Akiza LP:4900-5400). Then I'll use my Garden (Akiza LP:5400-5900, Marjoram Atk:1300-1800). 'I end my turn.'

(Sakura hand: Ninjitsu Art of Decoy, Ninjitsu Art of Super-Transformation)

Sakura: 'I'll draw, set a card, and attack directly with Baku.' 'When you do, I'll gain 500 with Humid Winds (Akiza LP:5900-6400-4900). 'I end my turn with a face-down. You need to learn something Akiza - when you're playing against Ninjas, you're not chasing me, you're chasing shadows.'

(Akiza hand: Graceful Charity)

Akiza: 'I'll draw and activate my Graceful Charity, to draw three cards and discard two. Then I'll Monster Reborn to revive Fire Princess (Def.:1500). And then I'll use Humid Winds to get 500 more Life points (Akiza LP:4900-5400). But there's the old adage, what goes up, must come down. Except in this case, it's your points going down, thanks to my Fire Princess.' The princess produced a small fireball, which burned away at Sakura's total (Sakura LP:8000-7500). 'Then I'll use the effect of Blessed Winds to return Aromage Bergamot from my graveyard to the deck and gain 500 Life points (Akiza LP:5400-5900, Sakura LP:7500-7000). Finally I'll use my Aroma Garden (Akiza LP:5900-6400, Sakura LP:7000-6500, Fire Princess Def.:1500-2000, Magnolia Atk:1800-2300). Your go.'

(Sakura hand: Ninjitsu Art of Super Transformation, Call of the Haunted)

Sakura: 'I draw. I'll set two cards and attack directly with Baku.' 'As you do, I'll use Humid Winds.' Akiza's actions saw her take the lead for the first time in a long time, albeit only for a few seconds (Akiza LP:6400-6900-5400, Sakura LP:6500-6000). 'I'll end my turn.'

(Akiza hand: Cemetary Bomb)

Akiza: 'I'll draw, immediately using the effect of Humid Winds (Akiza LP:5400-5900, Sakura LP:6000-5500).' Sensing the danger that Aroma Garden was providing, Sakura then made a risky play. 'It's time for me to activate Ninjitsu Art of Super Transformation. This allows me to tribute a Ninja from my field, and a monster from your field, to summon a Dragon, Dinosaur or Winged-Beast from my deck whose Level is equal or lower than their combined Levels. I'll say a fond farewell to Baku and a not-so-fond one to your Aromalilith Magnolia, to summon Prime Material Dragon (Atk:2400).'

Seeing the new monster, Akiza's eyes suddenly went wide, and her face started to go pale. 'Like I didn't expect Fire Princess as the strategy, I knew you'd try and stall me out with it. So I brought in some backup. Now whenever you try and deal effect damage to me, my Life points only go up.' This left Akiza to end her turn immediately, as she mentally scrambled to find a solution. 'I end my turn.'

(Sakura hand: Green Ninja)

Sakura: 'I draw. I'll summon Green Ninja (Atk::600), and attack directly with it thanks to Meizen.' Sakura's pragmatic play saw her chip away at Akiza's points once more, as the crowd got firmly behind her (Akiza LP:5900-5300). 'I end my turn.'

(Akiza hand: Cemetery Bomb, Roxrose Dragon)

Akiza: 'I'll draw and summon Roxrose Dragon (Atk:1600). When she's summoned, she can add a card which mentions Black Rose Dragon to my hand, and I'll pick Blue Rose Dragon. Now Attack Green Ninja!' Roxrose released a storm of pink rose petals, which cut down Sakura's Ninja (Sakura LP:5500-4500). 'I end my turn.'

(Sakura hand: Ninjitsu Art of Shadow Sealing)

Sakura: 'I draw, and I'll set this before passing back.'

(Akiza hand: Cemetery Bomb, Blue Rose Dragon, Call of the Haunted)

Akiza: 'I draw. I'll summon Blue Rose Dragon (Atk:1600).' 'I'm sure you're looking forward to inviting out Black Rose, but that idea's going to be overshadowed, I activate Ninjitsu Art of Shadow Sealing. This will tribute Meizen to banish your Blue Rose.' As Sakura held her hands out in a v-formation, Meizen vanished, releasing an anchor from inside as he did, which hooked onto Blue Rose and dragged it into an abyssal void. 'Clever girl, except you've left yourself open for attack.'

'Oh yeah, about that, I activate Call of the Haunted, targeting Jioh the Gravity Ninja. Remember him? (Atk:2300). He's the one who will trap both your remaining monsters face-down. So no Splendid Rose or whatever else you were planning.' As Jioh exerted his power over gravity, Akiza stopped to consider future moves. Eventually, she relented and ended her turn.

(Sakura hand: Tobari the Sky Ninja)

Sakura: 'I draw and summon Tobari the Sky Ninja (Atk:0). Then I'll contact fuse them both, to summon Meizen the Battle Ninja (Atk:2000). I end my turn.'

(Akiza hand: Cemetery Bomb, Call of the Haunted, Basal Rose Shoot)

Akiza: 'I draw. I'll end my turn with a face-down.'

(Sakura hand: Baku the Beast Ninja)

Sakura: 'My draw, and I'll summon another Baku (Atk:1500). Now attack.' This attack saw the momentum swing back into Sakura's favour (Akiza LP:5300-3800). 'I end my turn.'

(Akiza hand: Cemetery Bomb, Basal Rose Shoot, White Rose Dragon)

Akiza: 'If you think I'm scared then you're sadly mistaken. I'll set another card and end my turn.'

(Sakura hand: Armor Ninjitsu Art of Alchemy)

Sakura: 'I'll activate my Armor Ninjitsu Art of Alchemy, sending Rust Mist to the graveyard and drawing two. Then I'll attack with Baku.' Another direct blow had Akiza hanging on, as the crowd braced themselves for a huge shock result (Akiza LP:3800-2300). I'll end my turn setting both.'

(Akiza hand: Cemetery Bomb, White Rose Dragon, Red Rose Dragon)

Akiza: 'I'll draw.' Sensing she was running out of time, Akiza took a gamble. 'I summon Red Rose Dragon (Atk:1000). Then because I control a Rose Dragon, I can summon White Rose (Atk:1200). Now Level 3 Red Rose tunes to Level 4 White Rose, and summon out the dark flower of doom - Black Rose Moonlight Dragon (Atk:2400). When she appears, your Prime Material Dragon will go back to your hand. Also, Red Rose Dragon will summon Roxrose from my deck (Def.:1200). When summoned, she adds Blooming of the Darkest Rose to my hand.' Sakura still wasn't intimidated though. 'When you're quite done, I'll use the effect of Meizen, to set Senior Silver Ninja from my deck.' 'That's just fine, I'll end my turn.'

(Sakura hand: Twilight Ninja Nichirin, the Chunin, White Dragon Ninja, Prime Material Dragon, Green Ninja)

Sakura: 'I'll draw and flip up Senior Silver Ninja (Atk:2200). When he's flipped up, I can summon any number of Ninjas from my deck in face-down Defence mode. I'll summon Tobari the Sky Ninja, Twilight Ninja Getsuga, the Shogun, and Jioh the Gravity Ninja. Then I'll contact fuse Getsuga and Tobari to Fusion summon Yaguramaru the Armor Ninja (Atk:2000). When it's summoned, it banishes your Gravity Bind.' 'And I'll chain Moonlight Dragon to bounce your Meizen back.' As both cards disappeared from the field, Sakura knew she needed to keep up the damage.

'I'll now contact fuse the Warrior-type Getsuga and the Machine-type Yaguramaru, because I still need different types, to Fusion summon Meizen the Battle Ninja (Atk:2500). Meizen, attack Moonlight Dragon.' Meizen came in with swords crossed, slicing the head off the Dragon and angering Akiza (Akiza LP:2300-2200). 'And now I'll attack directly with Baku the Beast Ninja.' Baku attacked with lightning speed, and left Akiza perilously above defeat (Akiza LP:2200-700). 'I end my turn.' 'And I'll activate Cemetary Bomb, which deals you 100 damage for every card in your graveyard.' A small bomb immediately exploded at Sakura's feet, but as the smoke cleared, Sakura was unharmed, having leapt over the explosion (Sakura LP:4500-3200). 'Nice try, but I'm way too quick for that.' 'I see…'

(Akiza hand: Reincarnate Synchro)

Akiza: 'I'll draw and activate Reincarnate Synchro. This banishes Red Rose and White Rose from my graveyard, to summon a Synchro monster whose name doesn't match any monster in my graveyard. I summon Circle of the Fairies (Atk:2200).' A certain darkness then appeared in Akiza's eyes, and noticing it, Sakura braced. 'Now, I tune Level 3 Roxrose Dragon to Level 7 Circle of the Fairies. The final threat is about to be created, pitch dark flower, burst into deadly life! I Synchro summon! Be born, Blood Rose Dragon!' It was merely a silhouette of the dragon that appeared, resembling the famous Black Rose, except much larger. It stood behind Akiza and shot out purple fire from seemingly nowhere. When Sakura looked up at the scoreboard, she saw (Sakura LP:0).

But there was no time to mope, as the masked attacker struck again, brandishing the hammer immediately this time. But this occasion would prove to be different, as the medic slid under the charge without even looking, and then as the attacker made their return journey, she casually held her hand out, and closed her eyes, before closing her hand at the perfect moment, resulting in the mask being eased straight off.

When she looked around, stood there was a random teenager with long, lightly-curled ginger hair, looking utterly confused as to where she was. As the crowd applauded Sakura, Akiza looked furious as she walked off. Curiously, Maddy then rushed out, and briefly spoke to the girl, before guiding her away from the arena, as Sakura followed, suggesting to fans on the way out that she didn't know what was going on either.

Backstage, Maddy revealed why she was so eager to help the girl. 'Her name is Jessica-Jane D'Ambrosio, we kinda had a short fling in high school.' This appeared to shock Blair. 'So you were Bi?' 'I guess, we had a thing for a few weeks, it was never anything too serious but it was a load of fun. Kept in touch with her after we left school, but she stopped replying to my messages eventually.' Maddy then moved over to Jess, who was sitting quietly, still wearing all black.

'You alright?' 'I'm really sorry, I don't know what's going on.' 'Why don't you just tell me what you know?' 'That's just it, I don't know anything. The last thing I remember was going to see some girl I met online. What day is it even?' '28th March.' 'The last I knew was the 5th February. Literally I was going to this little cafe to meet her, she said she knew you and you'd talked about how cool I was. So I got there, and the next thing I remember is when that mask was pulled off me just now. Is there any water or anything by the way, it's well boiling here.' 'I'll go and find you some' Maddy responded. But as she was leaving earshot, she pulled her phone out of her pocket.

'Hey Dad, did you get the email?' 'Regards your friend Jess? I solved that situation.' 'Yeah, well new mystery - turns out she has no memories for over six weeks either. Apparently she was talking online to someone who knows me, she went out to meet them on the 5th Feb, and next thing she remembers is the mask being pulled off.' 'That's very curious' 'Sorry to interrupt, but I need to be quick, because I've got a theory.' 'How about we meet up outside in about 10 minutes? We can discuss it more then.' 'Sure.'

15 minutes later

Maddy got outside to meet Phil, who was reading an unmarked book. 'Hey, sorry it took so long, I've been trying to calm her down, she's in a state.' 'I can imagine. So what's your theory then?' 'This might sound mad, but is it possible to tie a brainwashing spell to some item, like say, a mask? Because when she took the mask off, she suddenly remembered nothing, like the mask held all the memories.' This gave Phil something to think about.

'Probably, I mean… maybe… if there was a Faustian contract, then they could have tied it to a mask, whereby the spell is broken if the mask is ever removed. But that wouldn't make sense because of Rio removing the mask, unless… there's two possibilities here. It's clear that Jessica was hypnotised at some point by Akiza, and that she's done some of Faustian deal, using the mask as the collateral. So there's two possibilities. One, Jess isn't the only person under the mask, or two, she was wearing a second mask that didn't cover her hair.'

There was something else confusing Maddy though. 'So a Faustian? Isn't that, like, a blood oath?' 'It is, but there are two forms of it. You have the one you probably know about, a Conscious Faustian.' 'So that's the blood oath?' 'They're both blood oaths. The Conscious Faustian is what you might call "selling your soul to the devil", I'm presuming you know how it works?' 'Yeah, signing a contract in blood, binding your soul to the words on the contract, staking your life on it.'

'Yep, you get the gist. But there's another type, the Forced Faustian, or as I call it, the NonCon Faustian. That's where someone is manipulated or otherwise forced into signing a Faustian contract, be it through mind control, severe physical or emotional pain, threats, or being otherwise tricked into it when you don't know what you're signing.' 'So this was' 'Probably NonCon. She was probably put under some kind of trance, and forced to sign the contract.' 'And the mask?'

'Faustians are funny buggers, they need collateral. Normally in this situation you would tie the spell to yourself as the practicer, stating that if you were to die, then the Faustian would be void. But the spell being tied to the mask, suggests to me that' 'Akiza ain't acting alone.' 'You're good at this. Perhaps Akiza is working collaboratively with somebody else, or serving some kind of higher power, but it's clear there is someone else who wants this. If we can find out who she was supposed to be meeting, we can probably trace them.' 'Yeah, I know people who can do that stuff. Thanks for the help Dad.' 'You're welcome, don't be afraid to ask.'

Near the entranceway

Brooke was talking ahead of her upcoming duel. 'The most difficult thing about being new is that you aren't owed anything. You don't get the opportunities you feel like you deserve. I know most people don't watch down on the secondary tier, but I think I've proved down there that I'm pretty damn good. But on this stage, I'm just not getting the chances, because people who just lose and lose are still favoured. This is an opportunity now though, I'm fighting for my spot, and Hassleberry, I'm going to fight with everything that I've got. I hope you're up for it.'

Elsewhere, Hassleberry was sharing very similar thoughts. 'Man, I'm excited for all this, ever since that last loss to Maddy everyone just wrote me off. I'm only getting better though, and I'm hungrier than ever. I got Brooke, she's supposed to be pretty good, I saw her a couple of times, she seems like a cool enemy. It's time to roll out, I'm going to lead the charge, and hail to the chief.'

Brooke was first out, sporting the Welsh flag on her red shirt, the union jack plastered over the back of her jacket. 'The following duel is under Standard Rules. Inroducing first, representing the Renegade Nation, from Denbighshire, Wales, she is Brooke Angharad.' "Brooke Angharad hasn't been seen a huge amount on the main WDC Tour, but anyone who keeps an eye on our secondary circuit can tell you that she is a real talent of the future. She's calm, composed, and with her Citadel of Spells deck, she's a tricky customer, comfortable competing at any speed. You won't see Brooke rushing plays, or lacking work ethic: at home in Wales, she's run a market stall that makes over £1000 a month." Brooke saluted the fans on the way down, the very image of Cool Britannia, and speedily made her way to the duelling zone where she spun around, showing off her outfit, raising the red right hand afterwards.

Hassleberry then entered, with Claude walking in front of him shouting constantly. As he did, he turned around to see his fellow Regimentee talking to the fans, causing a stern conversation between them as he was introduced. 'Introducing her opponent, representing the Regiment, from Mountain Home, Alabama, he is Sgt. Tyranno Hassleberry.' "Tyranno Hassleberry is a feisty competitor who always gives everything in the pursuit of victory. His Jurassic Might deck comes from a distant land and time, but has new-age tricks to keep it threatening in his talented hands. He loves a challenge, and he won't be put off by Brooke's unique style."

In the zone, Claude stood right over Brooke, towering and intimidating, but she stayed steadfast. 'What - you think I'm scared of you? What if I'm not, you going to tie me to the bed? Let's face it, you like doing that. And yet, it didn't work.' Claude then pushed her, and Brooke responded by headbutting him, stunning him and making him stumble backwards out of the zone. While he tried to recover, the duel began.

Sgt. Tyranno Hassleberry LP:8000 vs. Brooke Angharad LP:8000

(Hassleberry hand: Dinomorphia Sonic, Dinomorphia Alert, Dinomorphia Frenzy, Dinomorphia Shell, Dinomorphia Brute)

Turn 1: Hassleberry: 'I'll open up soldier. I'll set five cards in my barracks and pass over to you.'

(Brooke hand: Servant of Endymion, Magical Citadel of Endymion, Terraforming, Endymion, the Mighty Master of Magic, Endymion, the Master Magician, Sacred Sword of Seven Stars)

Brooke: 'I'll draw and begin with Servant of Endymion in my Pendulum zone.' 'And I'll chain Dinomorphia Frenzy, paying half my Life total (Hassleberry LP:8000-4000), and fusing Dinomorphia Therezia from my deck with the Dinomorphia Stealthbergia from my Extra deck and summon Dinomorphia Kentregina, whose Attack is reduced by my Life total (Atk:4000-0). But immediately, she can use her effect to pay half my Life total (Hassleberry LP:4000-2000, Kentregina Atk:0-2000), and activate Frenzy from my graveyard, fusing Diplos from my deck and Kentregina from my Extra deck to summon Dinomorphia Rexterm (Atk:3000).'

'When you're done I'll activate Magical Citadel of Endymion.' 'I'll chain Dinomorphia Sonic, negating your Citadel's activation and getting rid of it.' 'Don't forget to pay (Hassleberry LP:2000-1000; Kentregina Atk:2000-3000). Now that's out of the way' 'Out of the way?' Hassleberry stuttered, as Brooke winked. 'I knew you'd have it. So I had to get rid of it. Now I've baited you, I'll activate Sacred Sword of Seven Stars, to banish Endymion, the Master Magician from my hand and draw two cards (Servant SC:0-1). Then I'll set my other Pendulum scale with Scale 8 Endymion, THEN activate Terraforming, to get another copy of Citadel (Servant (Servant SC:2-3, Endymion SC:0-1).'

'Now I'll use the effect of Servant to remove three Spell counters (SC:3-0), to summon herself and a monster that can handle Spell Counters from my deck, giving each one a counter. I'll bring out Reflection of Endymion (Reflection Def.:2700; Servant Def.:1500). And Reflection can return Servant to my hand, alongside a card on your field, and I'm targeting Rexterm.' As Reflection returned both cards to hand, Hassleberry acted quickly to prevent Brooke gaining any momentum.

'You might think you have the advantage, but I'm putting out a Dinomorphia Alert. This pays half my Life points (Hassleberry LP:1000-500), and summon Dinomorphias with a combined Level of 8 from my graveyard. I summon Dinomorphia Rexterm (Atk:3000; Kentregina Atk:3000-3500).' Brooke then paused, but she wasn't considering defeat, but trying to find more room to manoeuvre. 'I'll activate Citadel (Endymion SC:1-2), and then scale Servant of Endymion (Endymion SC:2-3, Citadel SC:0-1). Now I can use the effect of Endymion to remove six Spell Counters from my field (Endymion SC:3-0, Citadel SC:1-0, Reflection SC:2-0).' 'Just made it!' Hassleberry laughed, impressed at his opponent. 'I can summon it, then for every card I control which can handle Spell Counters, I can destroy a card on your field.'

'My field might be going but not on its own, I activate Dinomorphia Brute, paying half my Life points (Hassleberry LP:500-250), and destroy Dinomorphia Rexterm and your Mighty Master.' As Master crafted his spell, Rexterm charged it, destroying them both before the rest of Hassleberry's field was removed. 'Good thing my guys don't mind getting a few scapes isn't it? When Rexterm is destroyed it floats into a Level 6 or lower Dinomorphia. And Kentregina goes into a Level 4 or below. So with her I'll summon Dinomorphia Diplos, and with Rexterm I'll summon Dinomorphia Kentregina back (Therezia Def.:0; Kentregina Atk:3750). Then Diplos sends Shell to the graveyard. How's that?'

'Pretty sweet, except now I can activate monster effects. And if you can believe it, during all this, I ain't Normal summoned yet.' In disbelief, Hassleberry just laughed. 'I'll summon Spell Striker (Atk:600). And he can attack directly. Go on in little lad.' The dinosaur duellist appeared stunned for a moment, but then got his head together. 'I can banish Dinomorphia Shell from my graveyard to negate the damage.' Spell Striker's wand encountered a sturdy flashing barrier, which faded after the attack as Hassleberry wiped a bead of sweat from his head. 'That one was close.' 'Yeah, but not close enough as far as I'm concerned. I'll activate the effect of Destrudo, the Lost Dragon's Frisson in my hand to summon itself by reducing its Level by that of Spell Striker (Atk:1000; Level:7-4). And that means Level 4 Destrudo tunes to Level 3 Spell Striker, and I can summon Ancient Fairy Dragon (Def.:3000).'

'Sure man, why not.' 'Her effect will allow me to destroy my own Citadel, gain 1000 Life points (Brooke LP:8000-9000), and then add another Citadel from my deck to my hand. Then I'll Link off all three of my monsters to summon Link 3, Selene, Queen of the Master Magicians (Atk:1850, Arrows: Bottom Left, Bottom Centre, Bottom Right). And when she appears, each Spell in my graveyard is a Spell Counter for her (SC:0-3). By detaching three counters (SC:3-0), she can summon out a Spellcaster from my hand or graveyard. Return, Reflection of Endymion (Atk:1850). That means I can Link off Link 3 Selene and Reflection to summon Link 4, Accesscode Talker (Atk:2300).'

'Accesscode's effect activates, I can target Selene and he gains 1000 Attack for each of her Link arrows (Atk:2300-5300). And if I banish Selene, I can then destroy your Kentragina.' 'I'll say, you're good, but I have one more face-down - Dinomorphia Intact. This negates your monster effect at the cost of half my Life points (Hassleberry LP:250-125), destroying Accesscode.' Stunned at this turn of events and seeing her big boss being split open by Kentragina, Brooke resigned herself and ended her turn.

(Hassleberry hand: Dinomorphia Therezia)

Hassleberry: 'I draw, and I'll activate Kentregina's effect (Hassleberry LP:125-62.5), and copy Dinomorphia Alert, summoning Rexterm (Atk:3000). Then I'll summon Dinomorphia Therezia (Atk:1500), and use her effect to set Dinomorphia Domain from my graveyard, she then gains 500 Attack because I have less than 2000 Life points (Atk:1500-2000). And I'll activate that Domain (Hassleberry LP:62.5-31.25), and fusing together Therezia and Diplos from my deck for another Kentregina (Atk:3969.75x2). 'Now forward march!' All of Hassleberry's monsters launched an attack, ending a breathless duel (Brooke LP:9000-0).

As the duel concluded, Hassleberry laughed to himself, and then approached Brooke, picking her off the floor. 'Man, you don't deserve to be down there.' 'You're the real deal, I was just outclassed.' 'Nah you were great.' As he went to offer her a handshake though, Claude charged in, kneeing her in the face, and then steering him away. As they were leaving though, Hassleberry turned around, and helped her back up, to the elation of the crowd, before they shook hands. Unhappy, Claude admonished Hassleberry as they departed properly.

Backstage, the New Church were preaching again. 'A couple more opponents for us to face? More like a couple of sinners for us to destroy. Mr. Duane, I know your dirtiest secrets, you can't hide anything from our lord, and you certainly can't hide anything from me. I know what you did to her, and we will rain down holy lightning and fierce fury on the disgusting rapist that you are!' Shay then spoke as well. 'At Lockdown, we'll chew you up and spit you out, and then, we're going to go after who you hurt, and free her from her burdens so she can focus on punishing you again. You will learn to repent at the altar of the New Church.'

Meanwhile, Freja was being interviewed ahead of the main event. 'This is a big moment for you Freja - we've seen you main event a show with Lydia before, but now you're doing it on your own, against the tower of power, The Sledgehammer. How nervous must you be before this duel?' The reply was surprising. 'I'm not. I'm not nervous, because I'm not afraid of losing. You have to understand, when you're fighting for someone like I am, wins and losses don't mean anything. All that matters is earning the admiration of him, and hearing that he is pleased with my work.'

'But surely, the threat to your Doubles titles must mean something?' 'Why would I be afraid of that when we'd retain anyway? And the money doesn't mean anything to me, because I'm fighting for him. When I win, he is the mastermind behind it, because he gave me the skills to succeed. When I lose, my defeats are my failings because I can't use the skills he's given me. The thing is, win or lose, he loves me just the same, he accepts me for who I am, so I'll go out there and do my job. He chose me, and when you're fighting against that, you're always going to come out losing.'

Meanwhile, Justin grabbed an interview looking for Sledgehammer, and started ranting himself. 'You see that out there? You think that was fair? That was two on one, that was gang warfare, because those two BITCHES can't beat me on their own. Maddy can't beat me, so she had to hide behind a cheat and a murderer, and I shouldn't have to deal with all of that! I want a duel where it's just me and her, no other involvement, so I can take that belt off her and prove once and for all that she is WEAK!'

He then turned around, and stumbled back as Maddy was right in front of him. 'It sounds to me like you're challenging me to a duel.' 'I am, no stupid stuff, just me and you, because you're a weak little girl and that title deserves a MAN.' 'Just me and you, no involvement for anyone else, it sounds like you're challenging me to a Torture Chamber duel.' Justin recoiled in horror, but before he could object, she cheerily stated 'See you at Lockdown', before walking away.

In the duelling zone

The Sledgehammer made his way down first, with Nico, Chazz and Justin by his side. 'The following is your Main Event, and is a Dynastic Gamble match. Introducing first, representing the Leo Federation, from Kabukicho, Tokyo, Japan, he is the reigning LFD Atlas Champion - The Sledgehammer.' "The Sledgehammer is a 7ft tower of pain and destruction, pounding opponents into dust with every step, and after the controversial end to his previous duel with our champion, is looking for a rematch. He has confirmed that we will see his Cubic deck here, a strategy which takes great risks for great rewards, aiming to shut opponents down quickly. Before turning professional he was a security guard at a bank in Tokyo, and he'll be aiming to cash in another title shot here.' In the field, Sledgehammer roared, beating his chest as he flexed for the fans.

As he did this though, Freja made her way out, her hair in a tight low bun, wearing the same gear she had for the Doubles title duels. 'Introducing his opponent, representing the Dynasty and the Renegade Nation, from St. Helens, England, she is Ms. Hellfire - Freja McKinna.' "Freja McKinna isn't a regular main eventer, but she impressed in defeat to Young-Gun Champion and fellow Renegade Maddy Smith at Against All Odds in Las Vegas recently. Her Drytron Delta deck is based on the Big Dipper, the constellation that represent funerals, and she aims to drag her opponent into a grave with a negate-heavy playstyle before striking them down with a star's worth of strength. Outside of the competitive realm, this natural performer is a professional model, and her portfolio is quite the thing, available on request from the Renegades Arena website. Will this be a performance to show off though?'

In the duelling zone, the two stood in front of each other, and Sledgehammer flexed in front of Freja, then stood right over her, breathing heavily, but she just stared at him with focused eyes. Jarred at her lack of fear, he turned to Nico, who intimated that he didn't have any other ideas. So he walked off to his side, while Freja continued staring at him, almost entranced, before eventually returning to her zone when officials came to force her.

Dynastic Gamble: The Sledgehammer LP:8000 vs. Freja McKinna LP:8000

(Sledgehammer hand: Vijam the Cubic Seed, Crimson Nova the Dark Cubic Lord, Unification of the Cubic Lords, Fusion Reserve, Fusion Reserve)

Turn 1: Sledgehammer: 'The unbreakable Sledgehammer will never be defeated by a mere leprechaun such as yourself!' 'Careful who you call a leprechaun, I'll more than happily forfeit this duel to smack your face so hard you'll be drinking your lunch tomorrow.' With Nico stunned into silence, Sledgehammer decided to narrate his own plays. 'Set monster, face-down three, pass.'

(Freja hand: Drytron Gamma Eltanin, Drytron Beta Rastaban, Raging Storm Dragon - Beaufort IX, Amorphactor Pain, the True Imagination Dracoverlord, Xyz Unit, Wolf in Sheep's Clothing, Clear World)

Freja: 'I'll draw.' 'Activate all face-downs. Two Fusion Reserve, reveal Crimson Nova Trinity in my Extra deck, add Crimson Nova to hand twice. Then Unification of the Cubic Lords, I fuse those Trinities with Trinity in my hand, summon the despair, Crimson Nova Trinity the Dark Cubic Lord (Atk:4500).' Immediately on the back foot, Freja was determined to play aggressively. 'I'll use the effect of Drytron Beta Rastaban, tributing Raging Storm Dragon - Beaufort IX to summon it (Def.:0). Then I'll Gamma Eltanin, tributing Beta (Def.:0). Don't miss your fellow Beta too much though, because Gamma's effect will bring it straight back (Atk:2000).'

'Now I'll overlay both of my monsters to Xyz summon Lyrilusc - Assembled Nightingale (Atk:400).' 'You couldn't hurt fly with that, never mind Crimson Nova Trinity' Sledgehammer boasted confidently, but it was clear that Freja had a plan. 'Who said anything about hitting it? I'm hitting you pal. Assembled Nightingale can also attack once for each material it has. Now attack!' The razor-sharp wings rained down from the sky, as Sledgehammer looked for cover (Sledgehammer LP:8000-7600-7200). Freja's plan was about to come to fruition though.

'After the battle, I'm going to overlay Assembled Nightingale into something a bit more… meaty. Going all the way up the ranks, I'll summon Divine Arsenal AA-Zeus - Sky Thunder (Def.:3000). And it can detach two materials (Materials:3-1), to send every other card on the field to the graveyard. Bye bye stupid Fusion you sacrificed your entire hand for.' As unsympathetic as she was, Freja did appear to be correct about the usefulness of his monster as Zeus eradicated it with ease. 'Now I'll equip Xyz Unit to my Zeus, giving it 200 Attack and Defence per Rank (Def.:3000-5400). Finally I'll activate the Field spell Clear World. I end my turn.'

As the turn passed over, a plain white snow-like floor spread under Freja and Sledgehammer's feet, with four crystals ominously hanging in the corners of the field. 'What is this?' 'Welcome to the new world, the start of the beginning. In this world, the attributes on the field determine the effects of this card.' One of the crystals on Freja's side then shone yellow. 'I have a Light monster on the field, so my stipulation is I must illuminate you, playing with my hand revealed at all times.' She then revealed the last card in hand to little response from her indignant foe.

(Sledgehammer hand: Vijam the Cubic Seed)

Sledgehammer: 'I draw. I set this monster, pass.'

(Freja hand: Amorphactor Pain, the True Imaginary Dracoverlord, Drytron Eclipse)

Freja: 'I'll draw Let's see what you're hiding - I'll switch Zeus to Attack (Atk:5400), and attack.' Zeus came in with burning rockets, but they couldn't leave a scratch (Vijam the Cubic Seed Def.:0). 'Vijam effect, it goes to Spell and Trap zone, your monster has a Cubic Counter.' 'Not if I use Zeus' effect first.' 'It has only one material. You can't count?' 'No, I'm just using Xyz Unit's effect to substitute as a material (Materials:1-0, Zeus Atk:3000). Now all that's out of the way, I'll end my turn.'

(Sledgehammer hand: Cubic Ascension)

Sledgehammer: 'I draw. I set and end.'

(Freja hand: Amorphactor Pain, the True Imaginary Dracoverlord, Drytron Eclipse, Drytron Asterism)

Freja: 'I'll draw, and activate Drytron Eclipse, to add Drytron Gamma Eltanin from the grave to my hand. Then I'll activate Delta's effect, tributing Amorphactor Pain to summon it (Def.:0). Then it will bring Beta Rastaban back (Atk:2000). Now I'll overlay them both, and summon Drytron Mu Beta Fafnir (Atk:2000). Mu Beta Fafnir, attack him directly.' Sledgehammer briefly looked down at his set card, but instead let the electric shot through (Sledgehammer LP:8000-6000). 'Beta, attack.' 'Activate Cubic Ascension, summon Vijam (Def.:0).' 'That's fine, Beta doesn't need its effect anyway.' Freja's monster shot straight through Vijam, which re-materialised on the field as a Spell card (Beta Cubic Counters:0-1). 'I end my turn.'

(Sledgehammer hand: Imperial Custom)

Sledgehammer: 'I draw. I banish Ascension from the grave, summon the other Seeds (Def.:0x2). The turn ends with a set.'

(Freja hand: Drytron Asterism, Ursarctic Drytron)

Freja: 'Draw. I'll set two cards and activate Drytron Asterism. This will cost Beta 1000 Attack points until your turn ends (Atk:2000-1000), but it destroys one of your Seeds.' As she continued to control the pace, all Sledgehammer could do was scowl. 'I end my turn.'

(Sledgehammer hand: Pot of Greed)

Sledgehammer: 'I draw, the Pot of Greed, draw two. Activate Cubic Karma, attack Mu Beta with Cubic Seed Vijam.' Vijam released a ghostly wave, which passed over Beta with absolutely no effect (Sledgehammer LP:6000-4000). 'Now send three Spells to graveyard and summon Hamon, Lord of Striking Thunder (Atk:4000). Turn ended. You are doomed, go crying back to your master.'

(Freja hand: Xyz Reborn)

Freja: 'What - you think I'm scared? I said already, every moment you spend here I'm doing my job. I draw, set one and pass.'

(Sledgehammer hand: Pot of Avarice)

Sledgehammer: 'I draw, activate Pot of Avarice. Return three Crimson Nova, two Vijam to deck, draw two cards.' As he did, Phil walked out to the duel arena, and Freja looked back at him, nodding her head. 'Hamon, attack.' The lord of thunder struck down Mu Beta Fafnir with a devastating strike, but Freja didn't seem concerned (Freja LP:8000-6000). 'I destroyed a monster, Hamon deals 1000 damage (Freja LP:6000-5000). 'I end turn.'

(Freja hand: Pre-Preparation of Rites)

Freja: 'I draw.' She had drawn the perfect card to mount a comeback, but as she looked back, she smiled at Phil, and set the card before ending her turn immediately to the confusion of the fans behind her.

(Sledgehammer hand: Cubic Karma, Duza the Meteor Cubic Vessel)

Sledgehammer: 'I draw. I summon Duza the Meteor Cubic Vessel (Atk:1600). With its effect I send Cubic Ascension to the grave. Then activate Cubic Karma, send two Vijam from deck to graveyard and give Duza 1600 Attack (Atk:1600-3200). Hamon attacks Drytron Beta.' Hamon's attack came in ferociously, dropping Freja's points (Freja LP:6000-4000). 'And it then deals 1000 more after destroying your monster (Freja LP:4000-3000). 'And now I attack directly.' Duza's arm crashed down like the meteor in its name, and Freja made no effort to block the attack, giving Sledgehammer the momentum-boosting win (Freja LP:3000-0).

After the duel finished, Sledgehammer raised his arm as Phil walked down from the stands. He got straight into his opponent's face, as they both raised their titles, and Phil stated 'When you're in the Dynasty, you never walk alone', and the trap was sprung as Belle chop-blocked the back of Sledgehammer's knee, causing it to buckle, and the mammoth 7 footer crumpled to the ground, as Belle and Freja attacked him, hammering away with shots to the back and head, all while Phil watched on, before getting in his foe's face, and shouting 'If you want to play with the Dynasty, this is how we play. I'll see you at Lockdown.'

He then took his belt off from around his waist, and passed it to Freja, whose eyes narrowed as she jumped up in the air and brought the belt smashing down on the Japan native's knee. Belle then wrapped the belt around his knee, before pulling back sharply, causing him to hyperextend the knee, and shout in agony. The show ended with Phil holding his title up and laughing with the rest of the Dynasty around him.

Next time: Astrid embraces her new role while fighting for her old one, Rio questions her path, and Maddy looks to an unusual source for answers in Renegades: A New Dawn Chapter LXX: Not in the Job Description