Ice Queen Cometh

by Nox Barian

Rio Kamishiro never expected her life would become so chaotic in such a short period of time. First her brother, Shark is set on fire and put in the hospital by a psychopath. Then, she is dragged into the War of the Number Cards alongside her friends. but when familiar faces from the past arrive on Earth, she will begin to question whether she is even human at all. (REMAKE)

7. Fire and Ice

Welcome Back Everybody!

Hope you're excited to read this new chapter because man, I was excited to get to this chapter and write it!

Now you can find out why!

Once again, major shout outs to Donjusticia and EpsilonTarantula. Good beta readers and proofreaders are so hard to find, but I found two of the best!

Enjoy!

---

Chapter 7: Fire and Ice

Sunset fell on the city, and driven by her pent-up frustration towards recent events, Rio soldiered towards the hideout of the street gang whose leaders she and her brother used to call friends. Riding her brother's motorcycle, she raced through the city streets, feeling the wind race across her skin. Part of her was reluctant to do this alone. After all, she was venturing into a lion's den full of dangerous people who likely resented her departure, but she was dangerous as well.

She used to be one of them, after all.

The dilapidated, run-down arcade was still here after all this time, just a single block away from Downtown Heartland's biggest shopping mall. Rio was surprised the building still had yet to be scheduled for demolition yet, and thought of the irony that a symbol of Heartland City's bright atmosphere and prosperous economy could be right next to a nest of crime and delinquency. She parked her brother's motorcycle in the alley outside the arcade, took her helmet off and marched towards the hidden entrance to the arcade and impatiently pounded the door.

The viewing hatch opened as the sentry peaked out to see who had the nerve to barge into the Pack's territory. "Who the hell….. Wait, Rio?" The sentry exclaimed, recognizing her immediately, and she recognized the nasally high-pitched voice of the guard watching her.

"Weasel, they got you guarding the door?" she inquired. "So not much has changed, then. You're still the omega. After all this time, you still haven't impressed the alphas or gotten any better at dueling?"

"Quiet!" Weasel hushed her. Rio's comments clearly touched a nerve. The metal door opened and Rio greeted the watchman face to face, a short string-bean of a teenage boy with red hair puffed up in a pompadour style.

"What do you want, Rio? Not everybody is going to be happy to see you. Some of us are still pissed about you and Shark walking out on us."

"I don't care about their opinions," Rio snapped impatiently.

"I care about why the alphas are so desperate to have me back. Where are the Fuma brothers, Weasel? Where are Scorch and Chills?"

Weasel instantly went pale. Sweat trickled down his forehead as he struggled to answer.

"Uh, well… they're not here! You just missed them… they…. Uh….. they're out of town! Yeah, out of town, and they'll be gone for at least a month. Oh well, you're just going to have to come back next time!"

Rio's eyes narrowed in annoyance, causing Weasel to panic even more. He was sweating bullets now.

"Why do you feel the need to lie, Weasel?" inquired Rio, her voice taking on a disturbingly calm tone belying her cold fury. "I hate it when you lie to me. There's a reason they gave you the name Weasel, no matter how many times you asked for a better street name. You keep living up to it."

"Okay, fine! They're here! They're upstairs!" Weasel caved, throwing his hands in the air in defeat. "But listen! You picked a bad time to come back. Ever since the brothers got those weird cards, they haven't been themselves. In fact, I'm skipping town myself tomorrow. I've had enough. I don't want to be in the same room as them anymore, and neither should you!"

"Then leave, Ginji!" she commanded, using his real name, which clearly rattled the young man.

"You should have left a long time ago. Do something better with your life, Ginji, and find yourself a group of friends who actually treat you right. Now move aside. I know about those cards, and I'm going to deal with them. Don't worry about me. I can handle those two on my own."

With no resolve or desire to fight her, Ginji allowed her to waltz right past him and Rio entered the dark abyss of the Arcade, the flickering of neon lights and the glow of arcade machines and television screens serving as her only source of illumination.

The place was just like she left it, with dirty furniture and broken lights everywhere, not a single member interested in cleaning up. Some of the arcade machines still worked, which the punk teenagers were more than happy to take advantage of. Others crowded around a new, likely stolen or junkyard-appropriated flatscreen, playing video games there, or simply lounging around on one of the couches getting drunk with whatever forms of liquor they could acquire. Rio's eyes shifted around as she saw several familiar faces from her time as a founding member, along with some new recruits she didn't recognize. She felt the watchful judgmental eyes of the Pack focusing on her, like wild dogs reacting to a new predator barging its way into their territory. The whispering gossip immediately began, the vagrants not sure what to make of her return.

"Holy, crap. Rio's back."

"What's she doing here?"

"Is she joining back up with us?"

"No, I hear she has a bone to pick with the bosses."

"Why did Weasel let her in? She's not welcome here!"

"She's not so tough without her brother. We can take her."

"Are you crazy? I'm not messing with her! Besides, Chills would kill us if we tried anything."

Rio couldn't help but chuckle humorlessly at the mention of Kaio Fuma, Chills, her ex-boyfriend. His wounded pride never recovered when she broke up with him, and it was painfully easy to deduce that part of the reason the brothers wanted her to rejoin them so badly was so Chills could convince her to get back together with him. It was his older brother, Rikuo Fuma, known as Scorch, who she was truly worried about. Scorch was the more aggressive of the two, more resentful of Rio and her brother cutting ties with them, not to mention that fiery temper of his…

She ascended up a set of stairs to a set of rusty metal doors that opened just a crack, allowing the flickering lights of a television set to illuminate the entryway. Standing just outside and peeking in, she saw them, a tall, lanky young man in his late teens with a black buzzcut dressed in a fancy white shirt with an open red collar and matching white pants. He was lounging on a weathered couch and arguing with a muscular dark-skinned mountain of a man with dreadlocks and thick eyebrows. His black muscle shirt and brown jeans did little to hide his intimidating bulk.

"I'm getting tired of waiting, Chills," the dark-skinned thug complained. "You dragged me to that warehouse and wasted my time waiting for the Ice Queen, who didn't even show up. Face it. She's dodging us. Even if we ask her, she's going to say no. Besides, who needs her now that we got these?"

Rio's eyes widened as she saw Scorch pull a card out of his pocket. She didn't even need to see its artwork as a yellow 61 appeared on his left shoulder, while Chills did the same, pulling out a card of his own while a green 19 appeared on his right shoulder.

"These cards might not be enough. We only got one each," insisted Chills. "I've been keeping my nose to the ground to see where we can find more, and there's been lots of gossip over at Heartland Academy about Numbers. Who's willing to bet she doesn't have some herself? She'll at least know somebody who does."

"If we wait any longer, then that house will be occupied again, and pulling this job will be impossible."

"Relax, bro!" Chills soothed, raising his arms in the air to stretch as he adjusted himself on the couch. "When we find her, she'll come around. This is personal for her after all."

The bits and pieces of information from the brothers' conversation sent Rio's mind racing. Deciding now was the time to make her presence known, she pushed the metal sliding door aside and barged in.

"You know it's rude to talk about a girl behind her back."

Absolutely startled by her arrival, Scorch jumped, while Chills fell off the couch. The brothers couldn't believe their eyes. Here they were, talking about the Ice Queen and doubting they could convince her to work with them again, and she just waltzed in like she owns the place. It was all too perfect.

Standing back up and adjusting his collar, while hiding a small blush on his face, Chills sported a confident sly smile as he reintroduced himself to his old flame.

"No way! What are the God Damn Odds? Did I tell you, bro, or did I tell you? I knew she'd come back eventually. How ya been, babe? Did you miss me?"

Rio rolled her eyes, cringing at the older teenager calling her "babe", but she knew she needed to maintain control of the conversation and stick to her plan. Any sign of trouble, any hint of deception, and she would be on the receiving end of Scorch and his explosive temper. She knew the rules of the Pack. As the brothers put it so many times in the past, if somebody messed with them, they messed with all of them. It was a suicide mission to take on the entire Pack by herself. She had to play along if she wanted to get these two alone.

"We'll talk about… us later, Chills," said Rio. "Right now, I'm here to talk about business. Word on the street is you two have been asking around about me, and it's not just because you want me back in the Pack. You want me to help you pull a job, don't you?"

"Hmph, cutting to the chase then," Scorch scoffed. "No friendly reunion. No catching up on old times, and no apology for how you and Shark walked out on us when we needed you," his voice elevated and transformed into a growl at the end.

"Hey, relax, bro! Relax!" Chills put his hands up and soothed his elder sibling. "Everybody live up to my street name and chill, okay? That whole thing was just a misunderstanding. She got cold feet. She thought that job was too risky, and hey, maybe it was since the two of us got caught, but we did our time, we got out, and now we can get things back to normal like nothing happened, okay?"

Scorch merely huffed and looked away, causing the younger brother to sigh.

"This is why I do the talking. Yeah, we're here to talk about business, and we're here to talk about your brother."

The Ice Queen immediately tensed up. "Why? Scorch said it himself. Aren't you two still sore about us leaving? I would have thought you two would be happy about what happened to Ryouga and call it karma for abandoning the Pack."

"No way!" Scorch growled, surprising Rio. "Yeah, I'm still not happy you and your brother left, but like it or not, you're still one of us. We started the Pack together, and nobody puts a member, or ex-member of the Pack in the hospital.

Her feelings regarding the brothers aside, Rio couldn't help but feel genuinely touched. In their own twisted way, they were at least proving they cared.

"So…. you believe me?"

"Oh, we believe you alright," Chills hissed. "That son of a bitch, IV is public enemy number one for the Pack, and we've been planning the perfect way to deliver some classic frontier justice to him."

"I'm listening…." While she was wary, given she suspected what they were about to propose would be incredibly illegal, a small part of her in the darkest corner of her mind did want IV to suffer, and at least wanted to hear the brothers out.

Scorch cleared the table in front of the couch of empty beer bottles and discarded pizza boxes before putting a crude map of the city on the table. Pointing to a particular spot, he explained his plan.

"We've been doing some background checks on IV. His real name is Thomas Arclight, although I'm pretty sure you already know that. While he wasn't born and raised in Heartland, his family owns a mansion in the upscale residential districts of West Heartland, right here. For some reason, that mansion has been unoccupied for a really long time, but we've got reason to believe he's going to be staying there really soon."

"Rumor has it the mayor's throwing a massive Duel Monsters tournament," Chills continued. "He's been hyping it up big time, and there's no question he's inviting the current National Champion to participate. Assuming he says yes, that means he and his family are going to be crashing in that mansion soon."

"And that means we have a small window of opportunity to pull this off. We can't wait any longer," Scorch insisted. "We had some of the lower ranks scope the place out. There's no guards, but the place has got cameras and alarms. One false move and the cops will be there in five minutes."

"That's where I come in!" Chills said with a proud grin. "That kind of system is all linked together. I can shut the whole thing down easily."

"And once that's taken care of…." Scorch continued. "We barge in there, steal everything of value that isn't nailed down, and then set the whole place on fire. When the precious crown prince comes home, his little palace will be nothing more than a pile of ashes."

"Let's see how he likes it when we set something important to him on fire," Chills hissed, and the two brothers chuckled darkly while giving each other greedy looks.

Rio shook her head. Of course, they hadn't learned their lesson and planned to go right back to robbing people after spending all that time in lock-up. Although, if it was the influence of their Numbers encouraging them to do this, then perhaps there was hope for them yet.

Even so, Rio mulled over the brothers' plan and the implications it held.

Ever since she saw her brother's body in the hospital, she spent several sleepless nights imagining vengeful fantasies in her head, where she confronted IV and dealt with him in a way that left him suffering the same way her brother suffered. Had they not approached her and pulled this job without her, she would have taken at least a small amount of pleasure if she turned on the news one day and saw the smoldering ruins of the Arclight Manor. However, while her desire for revenge remained strong, Rio still had standards. She wasn't going to resort to arson and burglary for the sake of petty revenge. No, she would confront IV face to face when the time came, a time that she realized would come sooner rather than later, given what the brothers told her about this new tournament.

"Well…." she finally spoke, making her voice sound as intrigued as she could. "You've really thought this out. I'll admit I'm definitely tempted, but what makes you think this is going to work?"

The brothers glanced at each other, silently deciding among themselves whether to divulge an important secret. "It's going to work alright," Scorch insisted. "Because of these!"

The brothers held up their Number cards, and the markings of those Numbers appeared on their shoulders once again.

"You know what these are?" Scorch asked.

Rio felt her heart race. Now it was time to make an important decision. If the brothers found out she had Numbers, she knew the chances of them challenging her immediately due to their greed was quite high. She glanced back at the metal sliding door, formulating her back-up plan in her mind. She knew that door could be quickly locked and bolted from the inside, trapping the three of them in the room and preventing the rest of the Pack from interfering, leaving her free to duel Scorch and Chills without interference. The problem would be getting out afterwards. Still, she decided to take the risk.

She allowed her eyes to light up with pseudo-hungry excitement, pretending this was her first time seeing the cards. "You have them too?"

"Oh, so you do know about Number cards?" Chills inquired. "Then you probably also know they're more than just rare cards. Do you have one?"

Rio grinned, inching closer to Chills, adding a flirtatious swagger to her walk. "One? Chills, I've been busier than you think. I have four of them."

She took her Numbers, 21, 14 ,52, 87, out of her deck box and showed them off. "See? One, two, three, four."

Scorch, who had casually taken a swig of sake from a stray bottle he picked up as he listened to Rio's explanation, suddenly did a spit take and sprayed his drink all over the TV screen.

Rio's heartbeat quickened its pace. Her eyes darted towards the door. She had to be quick about this.

"That is…. AWESOME!" Scorch exclaimed, sounding genuinely happy for the first time all night. "Bro, do you know what this means? Our plan is going to go quicker than we thought."

"Hmmm? What plan?" Rio asked.

"We're not just going to hog all these Numbers for ourselves," Chills explained. "No, we got a better idea. You felt the power of those cards when you first found one, didn't you? Feels good doesn't it? Makes you feel like you can do anything you want, defeat anyone, right?"

Rio's fake smile expanded. "Oh yeah, I felt it alright!"

"Well, I've been thinking," the younger brother continued. "Teaching these young puppies downstairs how to duel is getting tedious. They're just not getting it. It's amateur hour down there every night. Without you and your brother, Scorch and I are the only duelists pulling our weight around here. Now, if every member of the Pack had a Number card of their own….."

"Then even the weakest member will get quite the power boost," finished Scorch. "Think of what we can do as a gang when the two of us aren't carrying everybody!"

"This whole city could be ours!" Rio suddenly proposed, causing raised eyebrows between the brothers.

"You changed your tune awfully quick," Scorch noted, narrowing his eyes in suspicion and folding his arms. "Last time we proposed something like this, you and your brother made it clear you wouldn't do this kind of work. Why change your mind now?"

"Isn't it obvious?" said Chills, defending Rio. "Desire for payback against IV, that's what's making her change her mind, but I don't think that's all there is to it. It's your Number isn't it? Really puts things into perspective once you get a taste of that power, doesn't it?"

"Damn right it does," purred Rio, and she continued her seductive swagger, inching closer to Chills and putting a hand on his knee, causing the younger brother to blush. "Ever since I found these Numbers, I've been able to think… so much more clearly, and now I realize that maybe I was a bit…. Rash… to cut ties with you. You can't blame me for getting cold feet when you planned to rob that card shop, can you? I was scared we would get caught," she put another hand on his thigh. "Scared that I would lose you…."

Chills's face turned bright red and he looked away. "Aww, babe… well… I mean…."

"Shhhhh…." Rio soothed, and she leaned her head forward to whisper in his ear. "I'm in."

"YES!" Chills leaped in the air, causing Rio to fall backwards. "Whoops, Sorry!"

"It's alright," Rio got back up and brushed herself down. "I knew you'd love to hear that."

"But even with those extra Numbers, we don't have enough to outfit the rest of the pack," Scorch pointed out. "Is there anybody else at that school of yours who has Numbers? If we can find out who else has Numbers, then we can get enough for the whole gang before we make our move."

"No!" Rio immediately shot the idea down. The last thing she wanted was to put Yuma within a hundred feet of the Pack. "We don't need extra Numbers for this job, and we don't need the rest of the Pack. That would take way too long. You said it yourself, Scorch. We have no idea when IV and his family are coming to Heartland, and with the Numbers we have already, we can do this ourselves, just the three of us. Let's do it tonight!"

She cast an additional flirtatious look at Chills. "Think of it as our first date back together."

Chills' mouth gaped open, while Scorch rolled his eyes, and Rio continued her flirting.

"Yeah, you heard me. You get to be my Ice King again, although we'll have to put up with your brother as a third wheel," she joked, causing Chills to laugh.

"Who are you to boss me around?" Scorch growled, causing Rio to recoil nervously. "This whole operation was my idea. You're the one who left, so you can't just waltz in here and tell us what to do."

"No, bro. She's right!" Chills argued. "We have to do this now, and since we don't have enough Numbers to outfit the others, they're just gonna slow us down. Midnight tonight we make our move. Hack the cameras, grab the loot, dump the gasoline, light the match, haul ass out of there, and then come back home where the others will greet us like God damn heroes!"

And so, on the stroke of midnight, three motorcycles raced out of the arcade, roaring through the streets of Heartland City like three hungry apex predators.

The Pack was about to go hunting.

---

Yuma spent the afternoon alone, and as the day turned to night, he silently headed for home, yesterday's events weighing heavy on his mind. He hadn't seen Rio since the heated argument between her and Astral and was growing more worried and hurt with each passing second. It hurt him too much to even think about it, stuck in the middle while two people he cared about hated each other, being put on the spot by both of them to choose a side. All day, he desperately tried to figure out how he could make things right. There was no way they could continue their mission to collect all the Numbers with Rio and Astral at each other's throats. They couldn't even enjoy each other's company as friends with their respective grudges hanging over Yuma like dark clouds, and that's if Rio ever came back and started talking to them again.

Would Rio leave their group of friends because of Astral?

"Ugh, what am I going to do?"

"Yuma…."

Speak of the devil. Now his day just got worse, with the source of his bad mood materializing out of the Emperor's Key and floating next to him.

"Are you ill, Yuma? You have spent the entire day in total isolation, lost in thought, and even worse, you do not seem interested in dueling. Do you wish to discuss what is wrong? After all, your mind needs to be in prime condition and free of distractions the next time we find a Number card."

Just the word Number made Yuma see red. Whipping his head around, he unleashed all of his pent up anger on the spirit.

"Are you serious?!" He shouted, causing Astral to recoil in shock. "Is that all you care about?! Numbers, Numbers, Numbers! It's your obsession with these things that driven a wedge between me and Rio in the first place! She's one of my oldest friends, and you're pushing her away and treating her like she's pure evil just because she has like, four, four out of the one-hundred Numbers out there! What do you think is wrong?"

Astral lowered his head, his hands remaining folded. "Yuma, it was not my intention to upset you, but you have to understand. Without those Numbers, I am denied access to important pieces of my memory. The longer I am denied access to them, the longer my mission goes unfinished, which could spell doom for my home."

"Yes, I know!" answered Yuma, exasperated from the repetitive explanation. "I get it. You're really pressed for time because you found out your home is under attack. I would be stressing out too if I was in your shoes."

"But…. I do not wear shoes…."

"That's not what I meant!" Yuma shouted. "I don't get it, Astral. Rio is the only other person besides me who can see you, and unless we check if Tetsuo or Kotori have the same protection, she's the only person besides me who can't get possessed by a Number. That makes her an asset to your mission, doesn't it? So why do you treat her as a threat?"

"I…. well….." Astral found himself at a loss for words. For once, Yuma was appealing to his sense of logic. Rio was an exceptionally powerful duelist, and her unique abilities allowed for the neutralization of multiple Numbers. He thought back to the night when the possessed teacher attempted to unleash that virus. There was another Number holder in the city causing chaos at the same time. He would have escaped had Rio not gone after him, giving them time to stop Number 34 without needing to worry about Number 14.

From a pragmatic standpoint, she was an asset, but…..

That feeling, that sudden instinct to keep his guard up when he realized she could see him for the first time, a gnawing memory that would have told him why he felt that way, but escaped him just like the rest.

"I told you before, Yuma. Had she given her Numbers to me, I would have been far more accommodating to her help. I would have immediately ceased all hostilities with her had she simply done so. I appreciate how you attempted to persuade her to give them to me the last time we spoke, so perhaps you could try again."

"I'll have to find her first. She's not answering her phone anyways," Yuma muttered as he continued down the sidewalk, dimly lit by the streetlights. The silence was deafening as both human and spirit said no more to each other, until something finally broke it. Yuma's head perked up in confusion as he saw a young teenager slightly older than him walking in the opposite direction, muttering to himself in a panicked state.

"Gotta get out of town. Where do I go? Home? No! I can't! If my parents find out, they'll send me to military school! Can't go to the cops, I'm guilty by association. Oh, God... I'm screwed! I can't tell anybody. They'll find me. What do I do? What do I do?"

"Uh…. you alright, buddy?" Yuma stopped the panicking boy out of concern.

"Mind your own business! Why don't you…. hey!" The punk teen stopped and pointed at Yuma.

"I think I recognize you. Yeah, don't you hang out with Rio, or something? I think I saw your face a couple times at school before I dropped out."

"Uh, maybe…" Yuma answered, more confused than ever. "How do you know Rio?"

"Oh, you are one of Rio's friends!" The punk teen exclaimed. "Thank God! My name's Weasel. No! Don't call me that. I hate that name. It's Ginji! My name is Ginji! You gotta help me! NO! You gotta help her! She's in trouble!"

Ginji was talking so fast, Yuma could barely understand him, but Yuma heard enough. "What? What do you mean she's in trouble? What happened?"

"I eavesdropped on the whole thing," he explained. "She's joining back up with the Alphas, the bosses of the Pack, Rikuo and Kai, Scorch and Chills, they're gonna rob the Arclight mansion and burn it down!"

"WHAT!?" Yuma's voice was so loud, a few lights came on in the neighboring buildings from the sudden noise. "Are you sure? Don't lie to me! She said she'd never join back up with those two!"

Astral, puzzled but curious, listened intently.

"Well she's doing it now," Ginji answered. "I swear on my life. I heard everything. I never thought she'd come back either, but there she was, and it's all because of those weird cards they got."

"Weird… cards?" Yuma's blood went cold and Astral's eyes grew wide.

Ginji nodded his head rapidly. "Yes! Ever since the brothers got those cards, they haven't been themselves. They're coming up with ideas that are way more messed up than what I signed up for. I'm not cut out for this. I'm in over my head, but I had to tell somebody. I don't know what to do!"

Yuma didn't even wait for Ginji to finish his sentence as he raced past him as fast as his legs could carry him.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going?" Ginji called out to him.

"I'm going to stop them. That's where I'm going." Yuma called back.

"Are you crazy?!" Ginji screamed, as Yuma ran off into the darkness, unable to hear the other boy's warnings no matter how loud they were. "You can't take all three of them on by yourself. They'll destroy you! Hey! Hey, kid! Are you listening to me?" But Yuma was out of sight, which sent Ginji back into a panic. "Oh no, what have I done? I sent that kid to his doom! I've got blood on my hands!"

Yuma raced through the streets with Astral floating behind him. Knowing the city like the back of his hand, he knew exactly where the brothers were heading, and if he could make it there before they enacted their plan, he could duel them and take their Numbers.

"Yuma, are you sure this is wise? We would be dueling three opponents at once if we go through with this," Astral warned him.

"No way. We're only dueling two. Ginji must have heard wrong. There's no way Rio would go back to the Pack. They're criminals. Rio's better than that."

"I am aware you think highly of her, as she is your friend, but…."

"Astral, I swear, if you slander Rio again!" Yuma snapped.

"It was not my intention to be provocative, but…. You heard what that boy said. These two individuals have Number cards, and so does she…. Is it possible that it could take…. Longer for a Number to possess someone? Perhaps with four Numbers in her possession, Rio's ability to resist the Numbers has finally been compromised."

Yuma didn't answer. He didn't want to answer that. It was far too horrifying to even think about it, the possibility of one of his closest friends possessed by the Numbers.

"No! She's stronger than that. I just know it."

It was less of an answer to Astral and more of a silent prayer to himself, a prayer that Rio was untouched, and hopefully she would stay that way when the night was over.

---

The streets of the wealthy neighborhood were silent as the grave, the full moon in the night sky serving as the only source of light in the area.

Three roaring motorcycle engines broke the silence as the Pack rolled up to the tall, gilded gates blocking them from their prize.

Parking their bikes, they disembarked and surveyed the area.

"Alright, Chills. You know the drill." grunted Scorch. "Take care of security, and I'll keep a lookout. Make it quick so we can get to the loot. Get in, Get out, Go home!"

"On it, bro!" Chills affirmed, pulling a laptop out of a pack on his bike. Spotting a tree close by, he wandered over to sit down and concentrate.

Rio casually wandered over to Chills' side, placing a supportive hand on his shoulder as he attempted to access the manor's security network.

"Second thoughts, babe? Nervous?" Chills inquired.

"Not at all," Rio replied, although that couldn't be further from the truth. "I was just thinking, perhaps we could…. Split off from your brother once we get inside, pretend it's just the two of us, makes it feel more romantic without a third wheel."

"Ohhhhh, and what pray tell would we get involved with when my brother's not looking? Chills inquired, a sly smirk sprouting on his face.

"I don't know, but we could think of something," Rio winked at Chills, causing his blush to return, while on the inside, Rio steeled herself even further, and cringed at the idea of kissing Chills again. There was no turning back now, but at least the hardest part of her plan was over and done with. She would execute her next step once they got inside the mansion. She had Chills completely wrapped around her finger. All she needed to do was get him alone, far enough away from Scorch. If she succeeded, she could duel them and take their Numbers one at a time. She dreaded the idea of dueling them both at once. The brothers were unstoppable when they dueled together as a team.

All she needed to do was wait for Chills to finish hacking the security system and pray not a single part of her plan would go wrong.

"RIO!"

As if some higher power was mocking her, she heard the one voice she didn't want to hear, the one person guaranteed to make her entire plan go down the drain. As the brothers stood up and approached the newcomer, now on high alert, the source of the voice came into view, and her worst fear came true.

"Oh, noooo." Rio groaned and buried her face with her hands. All that effort she made to assure Yuma would stay out of her affairs and far away from the Pack, and he showed up anyway.

"Who the hell's this kid?" Scorch asked, incredulous that somebody as young and scrawny looking as Yuma would have the nerve to get in his way. "Isn't it past your bedtime, shrimp?"

"I'm the guy who's going to stop you!" Yuma shouted back, mustering as much courage as he could despite the intimidating appearances of the brothers. "And more importantly, I'm here to stop my friend from doing something she's about to regret. Rio is too good for the Pack. You don't deserve to have her on your team!"

"Oh, so you've heard of us, have you kid? How much has Rio told you?" Chills sneered. "Then you should have heard about what we do to people who poke their noses where they don't belong. You've got one chance, kid. Walk away right now if you want to keep all your bones from being broken, and you better pretend you never saw us. Snitches get stitches, after all."

Yuma ignored the threat and focused his attention on the Ice Queen.

"Rio, I can't believe this! I know we had a bit of a blow up yesterday, but I never thought you'd join back up with these thugs. They don't care about you, or your brother. They're just using you to steal the valuables in that mansion."

Rio glared at Yuma, internally fuming at his presence. He was about to ruin everything. Maintaining her act, she smirked at her friend.

"Maybe I'm just tired of having to babysit you, Yuma. I've wasted enough time looking after you and the others, and you seem more concerned with protecting your new friend instead of helping me, so when the Pack made me an offer to finally make IV suffer for what he did to my brother, how could I possibly refuse? Now stay out of my business if you know what's good for you. The Alphas of the Pack don't make idle threats."

"I'm not going anywhere!" yelled Yuma defiantly. "If any of you want to take another step forward, you're going to have to defeat me in a duel!"

Yuma's challenge sent the two brothers into a loud fit of dark laughter.

"Ha! You? Challenge us? Do you realize how hopelessly outnumbered you are?" Chills asked in the form of a mocking taunt. "It's three-on-one kid, and I don't think you've got the stamina for that!"

"Besides, why should we waste our time dueling you when we can just teach you a lesson with our fists?" Scorch added, cracking his knuckles together for emphasis. "What's in it for us?"

"This!" Yuma exclaimed, taking Hope out of his deck box and showing it for the brothers to see. "I know the both of you have Number cards, and I have four more just like this one, and I think you guys know that Numbers are more than just valuable cards. You can't steal them. You've got to earn them by winning them in a duel!"

The mere sight of the Number sent waves of predatory excitement through the brothers, their faces glowing with greed and hunger as the respective Number markings appeared on their shoulders.

"Well look here, Scorch!" said Chills. "What are the odds of this? After we finished the job, we were going to shift our focus to collecting more Numbers, and this kid just happened to show up out of nowhere with five of them! Tonight just keeps getting better and better."

"Combined with Rio's Numbers, that's almost enough to outfit the rest of the Pack with Numbers. We can take over the whole city with that many!" agreed Scorch. "Alright, runt! I don't know whether to call you brave or stupid, but you got yourself a duel. There's just one small catch. When you face one of us, you face all of us! You've just dragged yourself into a three on one duel, and it's too late to back out now."

"Yuma, you're making a huge mistake." Rio insisted. "You shouldn't have come here. You can't win!"

"I don't care if it's two, three, or ten opponents!" Yuma exclaimed, remaining defiant. "I'm not going to let you throw your life away, Rio. You're better than this, and even if Astral and the Numbers are driving a wedge between us, you're always going to be my friend!"

Rio's stone cold face momentarily softened from Yuma's pleading, while Astral shot Yuma a disapproving look.

"How touching." Chills mocked. "But that's enough sentimental feelings for one night. Time to say goodbye to your Numbers, kid. You ready, Rio?"

"Yuma, this is going to be our most challenging duel yet." warned Astral. "The odds against us are overwhelming. Rio is certainly the biggest threat of the three. If we eliminate her first before her accomplices can help her, then the rest of the duel will be relatively simpler, but you must remain calm and follow my instructions to the letter."

However, before Astral could utter another word, everything changed. Rio silently stepped forward, walking away from the brothers before turning around to face them, standing at Yuma's side.

"Actually, I would rather even the odds and make things a little more fair. This duel is going to be two on two. I'll be joining Yuma's team to take the both of you out."

"You what?!" the brothers shouted in shock, their faces twisting with rage, with Chills showing no small amount of heartbreak underneath his anger.

"Rio, you can't be serious!" the younger Pack brother exclaimed. "You're going to abandon us now when we're this close to such a big score and your chance at payback against IV?! We were willing to offer you everything you could have wanted, and you're going to betray us again just like that?"

"I was never on your side to begin with," Rio affirmed, her eyes hardening with icy disdain. "The two of you were so blinded by your greed that it was way too easy to fool you. I never wanted to rejoin your group in the first place. I just wanted to separate the two of you from the rest of the Pack to make it easier to take your Numbers for myself."

"You double crossing bitch!" Scorch roared. "Chills, you idiot! I knew we shouldn't have trusted her!"

"Don't look at me," Chills shouted defensively. "You changed your mind about her real quickly the moment you saw all those Numbers she had."

"Well now we're going to do what we should have done the moment she walked into our territory," Scorch replied. "We're taking all your Numbers by force, and then you're going to see just what happens when you double cross the Pack. Maybe we'll throw the two of you in that mansion after we set the place on fire!"

"That!" Rio exclaimed, pointing at Scorch. "That's the real reason why I need to take those Numbers from you. You would never even think of doing something like that if you weren't possessed by those cards. Even the other Pack members know that you two are not yourselves. They said exactly that last night."

While the two teenagers maintained their focus on the brothers, Astral kept his attention squarely on Rio.

"Yuma, I cannot approve of this decision to cooperate with her. You witnessed her behavior towards those two. She displayed a remarkable talent for deception. Who is to say she isn't deceiving us right this very minute? Who is to say her alliance with us is merely a ploy to take everybody's Numbers for herself."

"Funny," Rio snapped. "I was just about to say something similar about you. Let's get one thing clear, Astral. I'm doing this for Yuma, not for you, so you'd better not try to sabotage me so you can take my Numbers for yourself."

"You said the day before that keeping the Numbers away from me was the best course of action," Astral calmly replied. "Assuming that was an honest declaration of your intentions, what reason do I have to not assume that you will attempt to undermine me?"

"This isn't all about you, Astral," Rio growled. "As much as I don't trust you, I still care about Yuma. Since he's the one dueling, you can bet that I'll have his back."

"And yet, not only did you infiltrate the territory of the enemy without informing your allies, you still refuse to support your friend by giving him your Numbers, which would strengthen his deck and increase his ability to defend himself," Astral observed.

"Oh, will you both cut it out already?" Yuma snapped at Astral, locking eyes with the spirit.

"Astral, I know you don't trust her, but answer me this. Do you trust me?"

Astral stared back at Yuma, hesitant.

"You have… proven yourself…. relatively competent…" Astral began, "I truly appreciate your willingness to assist me in collecting the Numbers, and… and I sense that you are truly sincere…"

The spirit shook his head, looking frustrated.

"But I must question your judgment in this matter. Sincere as you are, no, noble as you are, asking me to put my trust in you, and by extension, Rio is… well…. Yuma my very life is on the line every time we duel, and the fate of my entire home is at stake. I cannot afford to place my faith in somebody who is actively interfering with my mission. You are asking too much of me."

Yuma clenched his fist, but nodded before turning to face Rio.

"What about you, Rio? You trust me?"

Rio's eyes widened at the question, but she nodded her head.

"Of course, Yuma. You're my friend."

"That's good enough for me," Yuma replied. "Astral, Rio, I know you two have issues with each other, but this is getting way out of hand. I'm willing to trust both of you, so why is it so hard for you to set aside those differences for my sake, even if it's just for this one duel? There's no way we can beat these guys if you two are going to keep fighting."

Rio looked hesitant while Astral folded his arms.

"My appreciation for all you have done for me does not negate my wariness of your friend," Astral replied. "I am sorry."

Yuma sighed.

"Then I guess we'll just have to prove ourselves to you. Just you wait, Astral! I'll show you what Rio and I can do together as a team!"

Yuma's inspirational speech was more than enough to invigorate Rio. While she was still wary about Astral, she gave her friend a reassuring nod. "Couldn't have said it better myself, Yuma. We're in this together, so we need to duel together, despite…." She took one final glance at Astral who averted his eyes from her. "Certain unresolved issues. Let's take these guys down!"

"It's you who's going down, traitor!" Scorch growled. "Ready, Chills?"

"I'm always ready for a tag duel, Scorch." Chills replied. "And as for you, Rio. I don't know what you were thinking, playing us for fools like that, but this duel will be the last thing you ever do. Who needs you anyway when we can just take your Numbers and crush you and your little friend into dust?

"LET'S DUEL!"

Duel Gazer Set

Augmented Reality Vision Online

Yuma Tsukumo: 4000 LP

Rio Kamishiro: 4000 LP

Rikuo "Scorch" Fuma: 4000 LP

Kai "Chills" Fuma: 4000 LP

TAG DUEL!

Turn Order: Scorch, Yuma, Chills, Rio

The four duelists drew their cards and studied their opening hands, and while Rio was confident in her own abilities, she was still worried about Yuma.

"Yuma, before you make your move, it's really important you hear me out on this." Rio spoke to her friend, her voice commanding and serious. "I've dueled these two before. I know what they're capable of. They're incredible duelists on their own, but tag duels are their speciality. Their skill is at a different level when they duel as a team, so if you're going to help me, you need to cooperate with me, and that means listening to everything I say, down to the last card you play. I may not be allowed to look at your cards, but you have to play them in a way that compliments my strategy."

"Absolutely not," countered Astral, prompting a furious glare from the Ice Queen. "Yuma, my advice has been more than sufficient to allow you to win duels, and given our recent conflict, I cannot trust that she has our best interests at heart."

"Yuma, tell that floating conspiracy theorist to keep his mouth shut." growled Rio. "It's just like I told you, he's sabotaging us right now by driving a wedge between us."

"Were you not fabricating your own conspiracy theories about me the last time we argued?" Astral replied, a hint of venom underneath his stoic voice. "Making wild claims without evidence, such as the idea that I came to Earth after stealing the Numbers?"

"Astral, Rio, Please!" Yuma groaned, sounding physically exhausted and hurt. Even after his impassioned plea, the two couldn't even make it the start of the first turn before they were back at each other's throats.

Rio's face softened at the sight of Yuma's distress, guilt coating her face, but her grudge remained strong. She sighed and turned away, muttering "Just stay out of my way," under her breath. Meanwhile, the brothers observed the argument going on in front of them and couldn't help but laugh.

"Ha! This is going to be an easier win than I thought, bro!" Chills chuckled. "Look at them. Our little snow angel's got some bad blood with her so called friend, and I don't even think the kid's got his head on straight. He's talking like he's got a split personality or something. I'm gonna have fun watching them drag each other down while we duel circles around them."

"And I'll have just as much fun pummeling them into the ground with my Number! My move!" growled Scorch, who grinned once he saw his opening hand. "First I'm activating the continuous spell card, Jurrac Volcano!"

A large mound of earth erected out of the ground behind Scorch, glowing red at its peak and oozing molten lava.

"Next, I'll summon this monster, Jurrac Guaiba, and summoning him triggers the effect of my volcano, allowing me to special summon a second Jurrac Monster from my deck, so I'll special summon this, the tuner monster, Jurrac Gallim!"

Two balls of flame erupted from the ground in front of Scorch, and the flames took the shape of two brightly colored dinosaurs, the first, a large red theropod dinosaur with a long yellow neck and razor sharp teeth, the other, an orange ornithomimid with an avian body structure, a large pointed beak and an armored purple crest covering its skull like a helmet.

Jurrac Guaiba: Level 4/FIRE/Dinosaur/1700 ATK/400 DEF

Jurrac Gallim: Level 2/FIRE/Dinosaur/Tuner/1200 ATK/300 DEF

"Tuner monster?" questioned Yuma, who didn't recognize the term, which annoyed Rio.

"Do you understand now, Yuma? This is why I was so worried about you dueling these two. Your deck revolves around Xyz Monsters so much that you're unfamiliar with the other types of Extra Deck Monsters."

"There's other types?" Yuma asked, which prompted a frustrated groan from the Ice Queen.

"Of course there's other types, Yuma! They're just not as popular as Xyz Monsters right now. I can't believe somebody as passionate about dueling as you are didn't bother learning about Ritual, Fusion, or Synchro Monsters."

"Synchro what?" asked Yuma, more confused than ever, causing Rio to bury her face in her hands.

"Don't worry, Rio," replied Scorch, his sadistic grin growing wider. "Scorch's School of Hard Knocks is open for business, and I'm more than happy to give this brat a dueling lesson he'll never forget! I activate the second effect of my Volcano. Once per turn, I can increase or lower the level of a dinosaur monster I control by one, so I'll change Jurrac Gallim into a level one monster."

"What's the point of doing that?" asked Yuma. "Their levels still don't match, so you can't Xyz Summon!"

"Who said anything about Xyz Summoning? I tune my Level 1 Jurrac Gallim with my Level 4 Jurrac Guaiba!"

Instead of the overlay network appearing, Jurrac Gallim's body faded away, transforming into two brilliant green rings. Guaiba floated into the air, the rings engulfing its body, and transformed into five glowing balls of light.

"Prehistoric Predator who runs faster than a speeding comet, chase down your prey and burn them to a crisp! SYNCHRO SUMMON! APPEAR, JURRAC VELPHITO!"

A flash of light consumed the rings, temporarily blinding Yuma and Rio, and when the light faded away, there stood a brand new dinosaur, a purple velociraptor with crimson legs and gigantic, silver blade-like claws on its feet. The predator scraped the ground with its claws, producing a burst of flame with each step.

Jurrac Velphito: Level 5/FIRE/Dinosaur/Synchro/2900 ATK/2900 DEF

"So that's a Synchro monster," gasped Yuma, in awe of the new monster's appearance.

"I have heard of this technique but have never seen it before," Astral commented and he attempted to help Yuma follow along. "Unlike Xyz Monsters, a Synchro Monster maintains a level, and instead of requiring two monsters with the same level, it requires its materials to have levels that add up to the Synchro Monster's level. Furthermore, one of those monsters must be classified as a tuner monster to initiate the process. In the case of your opponent's monster, using a level one tuner monster and a level four non-tuner monster produces a level five synchro monster."

"Okay, got it!" Yuma answered, nodding his head and giving a thumbs-up. He just hoped his ignorance of Synchro monsters wouldn't cost him the duel. Astral's life depended on it.

"Jurrac Velphito's attack and defense points are equal to the combined attack points of the monsters I used to summon it, giving it twenty-nine hundred attack and defense points," Scorch explained. "Since it's the first turn of the duel, and I can't attack anyway, I'll put my synchro monster in defense mode to protect my life points. I set this card face-down and end my turn."

"My move!" Yuma announced. "I draw!"

Yuma studied his hand and grew disappointed. This wasn't the opening hand he was hoping for.

"Great." he muttered under his breath. "Even if I could summon Hope this turn, it's not strong enough to attack that synchro monster. I never expected they would summon a monster that strong on the first turn of the duel, and it's not even one of their Numbers."

"Even if Hope was stronger," Astral pointed out. "This is a tag duel. In a duel where two players battle two others, none of the players can attack until all four duelists have made a move. This puts us at a severe disadvantage, as once all four of us have made their moves, it will be Scorch's turn again and by then he will be able to attack. Therefore, we must destroy that synchro monster immediately, and it seems you have just the card to do it.

Yuma took another look at his hand, and upon spotting a particular card mixed among them, his eyes beamed with excitement and newfound confidence. It seemed his opening hand was better than he thought, but before he could make his decision, Rio spoke up again.

"Hold it, Yuma." Rio interjected. "I know what you're thinking, and I would want to do the same thing if I didn't suspect they were planning something. Leave that synchro monster alone and worry about protecting yourself for the time being. Save any cards that can get rid of theirs for later."

"Wait, leave it alone?" Yuma gaped, "But why?"

"Just trust me," Rio insisted. "Destroying that monster is exactly what Scorch wants."

"Or possibly…" Astral cut in, "you hesitating to implement a viable strategy is precisely what Rio wants. Does it not strike you as odd that she would suggest you do something as counterproductive as not destroying a major resource of our opponent?"

"No! I'm not doing this anymore, Astral!" Yuma complained. "If I keep second-guessing everything my teammate says, then we're going to get absolutely nowhere. We'll lose for sure."

"Even if you choose not to agree with my suspicions, consider that destroying Scorch's monster is still the most optimal move," Astral replied calmly. "He has summoned a high-level monster. Should he summon a second monster with the same level, he may very well bring out his Number. Or worse, he could summon his Number monster while further supporting it with his synchro monster. We should do whatever we can to remove the risk of Scorch overwhelming us."

"Yes, very logical, very tactical, and a very bad idea!" Rio huffed. "I know how they play, Yuma, and I'm telling you Scorch wants you to destroy his monster!"

"An assertion you cannot possibly prove unless you, perhaps, are still working with them," Astral countered. "In which case, it would make even less sense to follow your suggestion."

"Hey, are you going to duel, or are you two going to bore us to death with your bickering?" yelled Scorch. "Get on with your move, runt!"

"Alright, fine! I've made up my mind!" Yuma snapped, trying to block out any further arguing from Rio and Astral, "If you think you can scare me with that synchro monster, you're wrong!" Yuma called out to Scorch, challenging him. "Take a look at my fancy monster, Gagaga Magician!"

Yuma's signature brown robed magician manifested itself, its chains dangling from his robes, floating in the wind.

Gagaga Magician: Level 4/DARK/Spellcaster/1500 ATK/1000 DEF

"Next, I activate the spell card, Gagaga Bolt! Since I control Gagaga Magician, I can destroy one monster on the field, and I choose your synchro monster. Its attack points can be as high as you want it to be, but that won't protect it from my spell card!"

A bolt of lightning descended from the sky, striking the velociraptor and reducing its body to ashes, but instead of showing anger or surprise over the loss of his monster, Scorch laughed.

"HA! What an amateur move! I knew if I made my Velphito strong enough, you would feel pressured to take it out right away with a card effect, and now you're going to pay for it! Since a Jurrac Monster was destroyed, I can activate the effect of Jurrac Herra from my hand, special summoning it to the field to replace the dinosaur I lost!"

From the ashes of Velphito's destruction emerged a new dinosaur, a large yellow and green theropod with a long crocodilian mouth, a massive tail, and two metal cannons mounted on its shoulders.

Jurrac Herra: Level 6/FIRE/Dinosaur/2300 ATK/1500 DEF

"Okay, you replaced your dinosaur with another one," Yuma said, attempting to remain tough despite knowing he played into Scorch's hands. "So what?"

"That's not what you have to worry about!" Scorch continued. "This is! I activate my trap, Jurrac Furnace! Since you destroyed one of my dinosaurs, you take damage equal to its level multiplied by two hundred, and then I can summon another dinosaur whose attack points are equal to the damage you took, so you take one thousand points of damage, and I can special summon a dinosaur with one thousand attack points, the tuner monster, Jurrac Brachis!"

Another dinosaur appeared next to the cannon equipped carnivore, a large purple sauropod with a red face. Flames danced on the dinosaur's body, but did not burn it. If anything, the creature seemed empowered by the fire. Then, without warning, the sauropod vomited a small fireball out of its mouth, which sailed across the field and struck Yuma in the chest.

Jurrac Brachis: Level 3/FIRE/Dinosaur/Tuner/1000 ATK/1000 DEF

Yuma: 4000 - 1000 = 3000

"He planned for us to destroy it with a card effect all along!?" Astral gasped, shocked at his plan backfiring, and even more surprised that Rio's theory was correct.

"Now do you understand?" scolded Rio, harsher than she wanted to. "These guys aren't amateurs. Even without their Numbers, they're dangerous. Playing with simple straightforward moves and engaging them head-on is the quickest way to lose to them. That's what they do. They bait you into screwing up and punish you for it in the worst way possible."

"Astral told me to play it!" Yuma argued back. "He hasn't been wrong before, so I went with his call."

"Then maybe you should stop assuming that he's always right!" Rio advised, her voice still hard and stern. "And I'm not just saying that because I don't trust him. At some point you're going to need to think for yourself and make your own decisions rather than have somebody else hold your hand. Astral isn't going to be here forever."

"Is that a threat?" Astral spoke up, throwing another venomous accusation in the Ice Queen's direction, but Yuma was too shaken by Rio's harsh criticism to stop him this time.

He thought back to how his dueling habits had changed over the past several weeks. He understood his flaws. He was reckless, over-excited, always acting without thinking. When Astral started helping him, he was at first annoyed with him, unwilling to listen, but after the spirit's advice saved his sister, he learned to value his floating companion. Perhaps he was growing dependent on it. This time, Astral's advice turned out to be the wrong move. It suddenly hit Yuma that it was bound to happen eventually. Astral was incredibly intelligent, but not even the smartest duelist in the world could be right all the time. Worse still, with Astral and Rio allowing their paranoid grudges against each other to fuel their decisions, teamwork was the last thing on their minds.

Yuma needed to shift his priorities. Instead of relying on the advice of his two mentors, he needed to focus on getting them both to listen to him.

"I set a card face-down and end my turn," muttered Yuma, shaking his head in disappointment. His trap could save them both if he used it correctly, but with Astral viewing Rio as a bigger threat than the Pack, he could no longer rely on the spirit to tell him when to use it. Yuma would have to trust his own judgment from now on if he wanted to prove he was the duelist Rio believed he could be…

The duelist he wanted to be.

"My turn!" sneered Chills. "I draw, and I activate the continuous spell card, Cryotaceous Glacier!"

Now both brothers had monuments behind them, as a massive pyramid of ice appeared behind Chills.

"This card functions pretty much the same as my brother's volcano. If I normal summon a dinosaur, my glacier lets me special summon a tuner monster from my deck, so I'll normal summon my Cryotaceous Iguanas, and then I'll use the effect of my Glacier to Special Summon the tuner monster, Cryotaceous Quetzal!"

Another dinosaur appeared on the field, a black bipedal hadrosaur with a helmet-like crest on its skull made of pale blue ice. The spiked claws on its thumbs were frozen solid like icy daggers. A second reptilian creature appeared next to it, a large blue pterosaur with a similar icy crest and a spear-like beak coated in ice crystals.

Cryotaceous Iguanas: Level 4/WATER/Dinosaur/1400 ATK/1400 DEF

Cryotaceous Quetzal: Level 2/WATER/Dinosaur/Tuner/500 ATK/1500 DEF

"Oh no! Another tuner monster?!" Yuma exclaimed. "So that means he uses Synchro Monsters too!"

"That's right!" Chills sneered. "And now I'll tune my Level 2 Quetzal with my Level 4 Iguanas for a synchro summon of my own!"

"Prehistoric Behemoth who towers over all, unleash your power over the cold and crush my enemies underneath your feet! SYNCHRO SUMMON! APPEAR, CRYOTACEOUS DIPLODOCUS!"

The pterosaur took flight and transformed into the same green rings as it soared above the Iguanodon. The rings wrapped around the dinosaur, consuming it with its power and transforming its body into six white orbs of light. In one final explosive flash, Chills new monster appeared, taking the form of a colossal turquoise sauropod dinosaur with a towering pyramid of ice mounted on its back.

Cryotaceous Diplodocus: Level 6/WATER/Dinosaur/Synchro/1500 ATK/2500 DEF

"And if you even think of summoning a monster strong enough to defeat my synchro monster, my Cryotaceous Iguanas left my new monster with a parting gift. Now my Diplodocus gains five hundred defense points and it can't be destroyed by battle."

Diplodocus: 1500 ATK/3000 DEF

"He's playing defense?" Yuma exclaimed.

"Does that surprise you?" Scorch asked. "Or did you think the two of us were brain-dead novices like you who only care about attacking? Chills tanks all the hits and I dish them out. That's how we roll! With my brother backing me up, I can play as aggressively as I want without paying any consequences."

"But don't let my bro's boasting fool you," Chills continued, his cruel smirk expanding. "You might think my deck is all about defense, but you'd be wrong. My Diplodocus can attack while it's in defense mode using its three thousand defense points to calculate damage. Lucky for you, this is a tag duel, so I can't attack until everybody has made a move. I set two face-downs and end my turn!"

"Then it's finally my turn," Rio announced. "Draw! Since I control no monsters, I can Special Summon Sirenarwhal from my hand!"

Rio's summoning conjured a blizzard on the ground, causing snow to pile up in front of her. Rio's monster burst from the snowbank like a whale breaching from the ocean. It was a hybrid of bird and fish, a beautiful silver-tailed mermaid with red avian plumage on its head and two pairs of enormous red wings on its back. A massive icy lance rested firmly in the mermaid's right hand, the weapon resembling the skull and tusk of a narwhal.

Sirenarwhal: Level 5/WATER/Winged-Beast/1800 ATK/2400 DEF

Next, for my normal summon, I'll bring out my Blizzard Raven, and when I do, I can activate its effect to add another one of my ice birds from my deck to my hand."

Rio's raven descended from the sky and planted its feet in the snowbank next to the mermaid.

Blizzard Raven: Level 4/WATER/Winged-Beast/1300 ATK/1300 DEF

"I activate Blizzard Raven's effect to change its level from four to five, and that means I can overlay my Blizzard Raven and my Sirenarwhal! With these 2 Level 5 Monsters, I build the overlay network! XYZ SUMMON! COME ON OUT, ICE PRINCESS ZEREORT!"

The two avian creatures took flight and dove into the conjured overlay network, and out from the portal arose one of Rio's signature Xyz monsters, its fins on its legs flapping like angel wings. The frozen fairy spun through the air like a twirling ice skater before landing gracefully on the field, brandishing its golden ice pick in its hands.

Ice Princess Zereort: Rank 5/WATER/Winged-Beast/Xyz/2500 ATK/2100 DEF

"Ha! I knew you were going to summon that card!" Chills sneered. "I activate the effect of Cryotaceous Diplodocus. It can change your Princess to defense mode and negate its effects for the rest of the turn."

The sauropod let out a spine-chilling roar, which seemed to force the princess to cower from it and assume a defensive stance, its fins shielding the rest of its body from harm.

"You took the bait, Chills!" Rio replied with a triumphant smirk. "My princess isn't the one you should have worried about. Since Sirenarwhal was used as an overlay unit to Xyz Summon a monster, I can special summon another one of my ice birds from my deck and increase its attack points by five hundred. Do you want to take a wild guess on who I'm summoning?"

"Grrr…. Blizzard Falcon," Growled Chills.

"That's right! Come on out, Blizzard Falcon!"

Sure enough, Rio's next monster was indeed her falcon, which appeared high above the four duelists and descended from the sky, screeching aggressively.

Blizzard Falcon: Level 4/WATER/Winged-Beast/2000 ATK/1500 DEF

"Since you wasted your Synchro Monster's effect, Chills, your brother is going to pay for it with his life points. Now that my falcon's attack points have gone up, I can use its effect to inflict fifteen hundred points of damage to Scorch!"

On command, the falcon flapped its wings and sent a gale of ice and snow towards Scorch, which thundered past the fiery raptor and struck the thug in the chest, knocking him to the ground.

Scorch: 4000 - 1500 = 2500

"I'll set a card and end my turn."

"You alright, bro?" Chills checked his brother out of concern, but the moment the elder pack leader got up, it was clear he was more enraged than hurt.

"Enjoy that victory, Rio because that's the last time you're ever getting the drop on us!" snarled Scorch. "Since all four of us have made a move, I can finally attack this turn and that means it's payback time, traitor! I summon Jurrac Stauriko!"

A smaller quadrupedal dinosaur with a green face and blue body appeared on the field. Three streaks of flame crawled down the dinosaur's back like the spines of a porcupine.

Jurrac Stauriko: Level 2/FIRE/Dinosaur/500 ATK/400 DEF

"Now I'll tune my Level 3 Jurrac Brachis with my Level 2 Jurrac Stauriko and Synchro Summon this, a SECOND JURRAC VELPHITO!"

Transforming into synchro rings, the sauropod engulfed the smaller dinosaur, and with a brilliant flash of light and an explosion of fire, Scorch's giant velociraptor returned to the field, but with noticeably fewer attack points than its predecessor.

Jurrac Velphito: Level 5/FIRE/Dinosaur/Synchro/1500 ATK/1500 DEF

"He summoned another one? Yuma questioned. "But he used really weak monsters to summon it this time, so Velphito's attack points are way too low. What was the point of doing that?"

"Pay attention and I'll show you, runt! I activate the effect of my Jurrac Volcano. Now I can change my level six Jurrac Herra into a level five monster."

As the dinosaur's level changed, Astral immediately grew nervous. "Now there is no question he's summoning his Number this turn. Be ready, I am sensing this one is extremely powerful."

"I overlay Jurrac Velphito and Jurrac Herra! With these 2 Level 5 Monsters, I build the overlay network! XYZ SUMMON! ARISE, NUMBER SIXTY-ONE, VOLCASAURUS!"

The golden overlay network swallowed the two dinosaurs and produced the sealed form of the Number, a massive sphere of molten rock with two pointed spikes on each side. Cracking open as if the Number was hatching from an egg, the volcanic mass transformed into an enormous bipedal theropod dinosaur. Its red, stone textured body possessed four massive arms, its upper pair close to its shoulders containing massive golden triple digit claws with its second pair below them containing a smaller set of single digit spikes. Breathing fire out of its gaping beak-like maw, the dinosaur let out a loud roar, its body glowing with power like the surface of the sun and the yellow 61 on its left shoulder glowing even brighter.

Number 61 - Volcasaurus: Rank 5/FIRE/Dinosaur/Xyz/2500 ATK/1000 DEF

Both Yuma and Astral were instantly taken aback by the Number's intimidating presence, but Rio stood her ground, having waited for the Number to show itself.

"Sorry, but you're not getting a chance to use that Number! I activate my trap card, Icarus Attack! By tributing my Blizzard Falcon, I can destroy two monsters on the field! I'll destroy Volcasaurus and Diplodocus!"

The body of Rio's falcon dissolved into energy and rose up into the sky. Seconds later, thunder clouds began to gather and two bolts of lightning descended from the sky towards the two dinosaurs.

"I counter with my own trap card, Cryotaceous Scales!" Chills rebuffed. "I give up a thousand life points to protect Volcasaurus from your trap! Sure, my Diplodocus is still going to bite the dust, but with my brother's Number safe and sound, this duel is as good as ours!"

The first lightning bolt pierced through the icy shell of the Diplodocus' back, shattering it like glass. The second struck Volcasaurus, and while the dinosaur wailed in pain from the electrocution, the energy from Chills trap card changed its stone scales from red to a metallic blue. Feeling newfound strength coursing through it, Volcasaurus flexed its arms and forcefully broke out of the lightning, letting out a mighty triumphant roar from the effort.

Chills: 4000 - 1000 = 3000

"Now I activate the effect of Cryotaceous Quetzal in my Graveyard! Since my Synchro Monster was destroyed, I can banish Quetzal from my Graveyard to Special Summon another Cryotaceous Monster from my Deck, my Cryotaceous Elasmos!"

The icy shards where Diplodocus once stood began to float in the air and piece themselves back together until the crystals took the shape of a new dinosaur, a black plesiosaur with a small iceberg mounted on its back and pale blue armor covering its four flippers.

Cryotaceous Elasmos: Level 3/WATER/Dinosaur/1200 ATK/1200 DEF

"Not only did his Number survive," Astral commented. "But destroying his synchro monster did not even matter, and we still haven't seen the second Number Monster in their possession."

"Yeah," Yuma agreed. "As vicious as they are towards us, they really seem to care about each other. It looks like their teamwork is going to be a bigger problem than their Numbers."

"It would seem so," Astral replied. "Yet I find this situation confusing. Scorch and Chills' brotherly relationship notwithstanding, the two Numbers should be driving them to oppose one another. I would have assumed they'd have betrayed each other out of greed so that one of them could possess both Numbers."

"Maybe there's something we can learn from this," Yuma not so subtly suggested, with more than a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

Astral remained silent.

"I activate the effect of Volcasaurus!" Scorch announced. "By detaching one overlay unit, I can destroy one monster on the field and its controller takes damage equal to its attack points. I'll start by wiping out Ice Princess Zereort!"

"But... that can wipe out more than half her lifepoints with just one hit!" cried Yuma, horrified at the destructive power of Scorch's Number.

"And I'm going to make sure it hurts!" Scorch bellowed, relishing his opponent's impending destruction. "DO IT, VOLCASAURUS! MAGMA MAX!"

The dinosaur's scaled chest opened up, revealing two small volcanic craters bubbling with geothermal energy. With a menacing growl, Volcasaurus devoured its overlay unit and fired a burst of molten energy out of its chest which struck Rio's monster like an atomic bomb. Zereort was instantly vaporized and the devastating shockwave knocked Rio off her feet, who screamed from the sudden force and fell onto her back.

Rio: 4000 - 2500 = 1500

"Don't worry, Kid! I didn't forget about you! My Number Monster's not done unleashing its fiery vengeance, so I think I'll use its effect again and take out Gagaga Magician! GO! MAGMA MAX!"

A second meteor missile fired out of the dinosaur's chest, destroying Yuma's magician and forcing the poor boy to endure the same violent shockwave.

Yuma: 3000 - 1500 = 1500

"No!" cried Yuma. "Now both our fields are empty."

"It is alright, Yuma," soothed Astral. "Volcasaurus no longer possesses any overlay units. Now that we have survived both assaults, it cannot use its effects again."

"Yeah, but that's not what we should be worried about." Yuma reminded the spirit. "That thing can still attack, remember?"

"Hey, thanks for reminding me, brat!" Scorch spoke with a mocking false compliment. "Now that the both of you are burnt to a crisp, I can have my Number Monster finish one of you off and eliminate somebody from the duel. The only question is, who is it going to be?"

Scorch's eyes darted between his two opponents, but it didn't take long for him to come to a decision.

"Yeah, I know exactly who to pick. Volcasaurus, attack Rio directly! Say goodbye, Traitor!"

"GUARD PELICAN, PROTECT ME!"

The dinosaur unleashed a torrent of flame from its mouth, only for Rio's pelican to materialize just in time and step in between its master and the Number Monster. Opening its massive beak, the pelican swallowed the flames, coughing and gasping as it forced its unpleasant meal down.

Guard Pelican: Level 6/WATER/Winged-Beast/0 ATK/2100 DEF

"If you were to attack me, I can Special Summon Guard Pelican from my hand to protect my lifepoints, and since Guard Pelican can't be destroyed by battle, you're going to have to wait a little longer if you want to finish me off!"

"Heh…. so your little birdy saved you for now. Fine. That means I can play around with you a little bit more. I end my turn."

"Then it's my turn!" Yuma announced. "I draw, and I activate the spell card, Gagaga Revenge! This card revives my magician from the Graveyard. After that, I'm going to summon a friend of his, my Gogogo Golem!"

A dark circular portal decorated with arcane runes appeared in front of Yuma, and his magician floated out of the portal like a vengeful ghost. The portal vanished, and the ground in front of it cracked and burst open as Yuma's golem rose from the earth to join the magician in battle.

Gogogo Golem: Level 4/EARTH/Rock/1800 ATK/1500 DEF

"Now I'll overlay Gagaga Magician and Gogogo Golem! With these 2 Level 4 Monsters, I build the overlay network! XYZ SUMMON! RISE UP, NUMBER THIRTY-NINE, KING OF WISHES, HOPE!"

Yuma's monsters vanished into the conjured portal, summoning forth a set of folded mechanical wings, which opened up to reveal the golden armored warrior, Hope.

Number 39 - King of Wishes, Hope: Rank 4/LIGHT/Warrior/Xyz/2500 ATK/2000 DEF

"Since my magician was equipped with Gagaga Revenge when I used it to Xyz Summon, my spell card gives Hope an extra three hundred attack points, making it stronger than Volcasaurus!"

Hope: 2800 ATK/2000 DEF

"Yuma, I have given our current situation a great deal of thought," Astral began.

"And?" Yuma asked, unable to keep the excitement from his voice.

"And I have realized… that I was incorrect to advise an aggressive approach in this duel, as that played into Scorch's strategy the previous turn. Scorch's decision to use all of his Number's overlay units at once has severely diminished its ability to threaten us. Now it can only attack, meaning it cannot threaten us if we keep Hope on the field. If we charge into battle again, Chills is more than likely going to protect his partner and render our attack pointless. I propose we hold back for now and rely on Hope's ability to negate our opponent's attacks."

"Oh…" Yuma replied, disappointed. "And you didn't realize… anything else?"

"That is the full summary of my reflections," Astral replied, folding his arms.

"Yuma, just because an Xyz Monster is out of overlay units doesn't mean it's impossible for a player to provide it with more of them." Rio warned him ominously. "Remember when I taught you how to use certain cards to replenish an Xyz Monster's overlay units? With an effect powerful enough to win the game by itself, I'm willing to bet anything that Scorch will want to use it again. Volcasaurus needs to go before he gets the chance to replenish its overlay units. I say attack!"

"Are you attempting to have us fall into a trap?" Astral inquired, his arms folded. "That would serve their purposes quite well, or perhaps, your purposes."

It was happening again. Astral immediately began arguing against Rio's advice, with Rio practically shouting back in response.

It was too much! Frustrated, Yuma made a snap decision, if only to stop the fighting.

"Hope! Attack Volcasaurus with RISING SUN SLASH!"

"Yes! You made the right choice, Yuma!" Rio cheered. "Fossilize that dinosaur!"

"No!" Astral protested.

"Not so fast!" Chills snarled, extending his hand in defense of his brother. "Sorry, kid, but I'm going to have to put your Number on ice! I activate my continuous trap, Avalanche! Now as long as this card is on the field, Hope can't attack anymore!"

Hope extended his mechanical wings and charged forward, sword in hand, but before he could reach Volcasaurus, four claws of ice sprouted out of the ground, forming a circular cage around Hope's body. A chilling spiral of snow surrounded the cage, causing ice crystals to cover Hope's armor.

"And I wouldn't bother trying to use any of its effects either," Chills continued. "As long as Avalanche is on the field, you take five hundred points of damage each time Hope activates its effects."

Yuma stomped his foot, frustrated at his move backfiring once again.

"Oh, come on! You're protecting your partner again!"

"What can I say?" Chills replied, shrugging his shoulders. "I may be a bad boy, but I'm a good brother, and anybody in the pack who needs me has got my back, unlike some people in this duel," Chills shot Rio a nasty glare.

Rio ignored Chills, focusing instead on her partner. "Sorry, Yuma. Looks like I'm the one who screwed up this time."

"It's alright, Rio. Hope is still on the field." Yuma reassured her before giving Astral a silent warning look. He would not let this lead to even more bickering between the two. "I'll just have to end my battle phase, but I'm not done with my turn. I activate the spell card, Xyz Treasure! Since there are two Xyz Monsters on the field, I can draw two cards from my deck!"

Astral took note of Yuma's new cards, a very fortuitous draw.

"Damage Diet and Memory Loss. We will certainly need those very soon."

"I set two face-downs and end my turn."

"My turn again!" Chills announced. "Draw! I summon another tuner monster, a second copy of Cryotaceous Quetzal!"

Another icy pterosaur descended from the sky and onto the field.

Cryotaceous Quetzal: Level 2/WATER/Dinosaur/Tuner/500 ATK/1500 DEF

"Now I'll tune my Level 2 Quetzal with my Level 3 Elasmos! Prehistoric Behemoth empowered by the cold, sharpen your horns and destroy everything in your path!"

"SYNCHRO SUMMON! APPEAR, CRYOTACEOUS TRICERATOPS!"

Circling the plesiosaur, the synchro rings appeared again and engulfed both frozen reptiles, and in a brilliant flash of light, a new dinosaur appeared, a gigantic ceratopsian with a black body and a pale blue face. Ice crystals coated the crest on its head like diamonds and its horns were two sharpened icicles.

Cryotaceous Triceratops: Level 5/WATER/Dinosaur/Synchro/1800 ATK/2000 DEF

"Now that this guy is on the field, the fun can really get started! Triceratops can resurrect one of my dinosaurs when it's synchro summoned, so I'll bring back Cryotaceous Diplodocus. Not only that, but since Elasmos was sent to the Graveyard for a Synchro Summon, I can take away a thousand of Hope's attack points."

Hope: 2800 - 1000 = 1800 ATK

The elongated neck of the icy sauropod burst out of the ground like a serpent, and then its titanic body followed suit, positioning itself side by side with the Triceratops.

Cryotaceous Diplodocus Level 6/WATER/Dinosaur/Synchro/1600 ATK/2600 DEF

"And now that Diplodocus is back, it can activate its own effect. I can now switch your Guard Pelican from defense to attack mode and negate its effects for the rest of the turn."

"OH NO!" Rio screamed as her bird unfolded its wings and assumed an aggressive stance. With zero attack points and no other cards to protect it, just one attack from Chills would take her out of the duel.

"Battle! Triceratops, attack her Guard Pelican now! ICICLE HORN!"

The dinosaur bellowed aggressively and charged forward, its horns pointed at Rio, and the Ice Queen could only watch as defeat came closer and closer. There was nothing she could do to stop the attack. She had failed.

"I activate Hope's effect!" Yuma announced, causing both Astral and Rio to send looks of surprise in his direction. "By detaching one overlay unit, I can negate your attack! GO! MOON BARRIER!"

"Yuma, no! Our Life Points!" Astral pleaded, but it was already done. The blue ice spires surrounding Hope glowed white and sent a small blizzard Yuma's way, but he didn't care. It was a small price to pay to protect his friend. Hope's wings detached from its body and formed a glowing shield. The Triceratops smashed into the barrier, stopping dead in its tracks and forcing it back to its master's side of the field.

Yuma: 1500 - 500 = 1000

"Diplodocus, it's your turn! Attack her Guard Pelican! ICICLE TAIL!"

The sauropod turned its body and swung its tail in Rio's direction like a gigantic blue whip.

"Do your thing, Hope! Protect Rio again with MOON BARRIER!"

Just like before, Yuma's body was battered by the blizzard as the Sauropod's tail slammed against the shield.

Yuma: 1000 - 500 = 500

"Awww, now isn't that precious!" Scorch taunted the battered duelist. "The runt is playing knight in shining armor for the Ice Queen. What a touching display of companionship. Why don't you show him why he should have stayed home instead of poking his nose where it doesn't belong?"

"You read my mind!" Chills replied. "Watch out, kid! Now you're about to deal with my Number. I activate the effect of Cryotaceous Glacier to change Diplodocus from level six to level five! Now I can overlay my two synchro monsters together! With these 2 Level 5 Monsters, I build the overlay network! XYZ SUMMON! NUMBER NINETEEN, FREEZERDON!"

The dinosaurs descended into the overlay network, and a large cube of solid ice with pointed spires on two of its faces floated out of the portal and into the air. Cracking open, the cube took the shape of an equally ferocious dinosaur. Resembling something more akin to a frozen gargoyle, its gargantuan glacier-like body was adorned with different shades of blue armor. Four boomerang shaped wings rested on its back, and its head, quite tiny compared to the rest of its body, possessed four yellow eyes and three pointed horns. A green 19 flashed on the right side of the creature's chest as it let out a low, threatening growl.

Number 19 - Freezerdon: Rank 5/WATER/Dinosaur/Xyz/2000 ATK/2500 DEF

"Freezerdon's a rather unique Number Monster." Chills explained. "It can't really use its overlay units to help itself, but what it can do is give its overlay units to Volcasaurus!"

"What?" Astral was utterly dumbfounded, "But the Numbers… when they first form, they can shape their own abilities to a certain degree. Why would this Number purposefully handicap itself by choosing an ability that could only empower other Numbers?"

The two blue overlay units orbiting Freezerdon sank into the ground and rose again as red overlay units, which drifted towards Volcasaurus and began orbiting its body. Number 61 seemed to thank its fellow Number with a proud roar, sadistically eager to have its destructive power restored.

"Oh, that's not good!" cried Yuma. "If Volcasaurus has its overlay units again, that means it can smack us around all over again!"

"That's right! Once my brother starts his turn, the both of you are done, so you better make your next turn count, traitor! I'll end my turn!"

"Would you stop calling her that!" Yuma shouted. "Rio would never betray anybody. The way I heard it, she left your group after you guys started robbing people. I'm thinking you two betrayed her!"

"You have no idea what you're talking about, runt," Chills hissed. "Members of the pack always have each other's back! Or at least real members do."

"Exactly!" Scorch growled, "In the old days, it was just the two of us plus Rio and her brother. We started the Pack together before others realized that rolling with us was the key to greatness. Chills and I would have rather gone to prison for life than turn on them. We were strong, unstoppable, but that kind of strength makes you some enemies. We needed to send a message that nobody in this city should mess with us, but when we needed Ryouga and Rio's help to put our plan into action, they walked out on us! They forced us to pull that job by ourselves, and we got caught by the cops. We would have made a clean getaway if they had been there to help us out!"

"And to think we were willing to give her a second chance," Chills sneered, the green 19 on his shoulder pulsing violently. "But she's still the same backstabber she was back then. Take it from us. She might be cozying up to you now, but give it a week and she'll abandon you too."

"A week?" Scorch scoffed. "No, I'd be surprised if her loyalty lasted beyond this duel. Just you wait, kid. When somebody else shows up with something she wants, she'll reward your little oath of friendship with a knife in the back."

"Rio would never do that!" Yuma shouted back as the two brothers began laughing. "Rio wasn't the one who betrayed you! You were the ones that betrayed Rio and her brother when you put them all at risk! Even now, she's trying to help you, which is why I know she won't abandon me or you!"

"Yuma…" Rio breathed, eyes widening after hearing Yuma's passionate speech.

"Real friends don't just go along with whatever their friends want no matter what," Yuma continued, clenching his fist, "real friends look out for one another even if…"

He paused, looking between Astral and Rio.

"...even if looking out for their friends runs the risk of losing that friendship. Just because a friend wants to stop you from doing something, that doesn't mean they're turning against you. If they really are your friend, it usually means they think you're going to get hurt if you do it, and they're disagreeing with what you're doing because they care about you."

Astral stared at his companion, silently processing his words.

"Yuma… do you consider me a friend?"

Rio sighed and drew her card. "My turn, draw!" Her eyes darted towards a particular card in her hand, and as the gears in her mind began to turn.

"I summon Aurora Wing, and then I'll activate Guard Pelican's effect to increase Aurora Wing's Level by two and its attack points by five hundred."

The blue phoenix appeared next to the pelican, rainbow lights dancing on its wings, which seemed to shine even brighter as the bird felt its power increase.

Aurora Wing: Level 6/WATER/Winged-Beast/1700 ATK/1600 DEF

"Now I overlay Guard Pelican and Aurora Wing! With these 2 Level 6 Monsters, I build the overlay network! XYZ SUMMON! RISE UP, NUMBER TWENTY-ONE, FROZEN LADY JUSTICE!"

The overlay network appeared again, absorbing the pair of icy avians and conjuring a brilliant set of frozen balancing scales, which transformed into Rio's favorite Number Monster. Justice unsheathed her sword, and unleashed an aggressive battlecry.

Number 21 - Frozen Lady Justice: Rank 6/WATER/Aqua/Xyz/500 ATK/500 DEF

Justice ATK: 500 + (1000 X 2) = 2500 ATK

"Frozen Lady Justice activates her effect! By detaching one overlay unit, she can destroy all monsters on the field that are in defense mode, and look at that, Chills. You just happened to summon Freezerdon in defense mode."

"NO!" Chills cried out in horror. "I can't lose my Number now! He just got here!"

Rio couldn't resist smirking at him, taking no small amount of pleasure in watching her opponent panic. "GO, JUSTICE! Destroy Freezerdon with SUB-ZERO SENTENCE!"

Justice waved her sword in the air and sent a typhoon of snow and ice careening towards Freezerdon. Caught in a raging storm of its own element, at first the dinosaur seemed unbothered by the blizzard, but soon cracks began to form in its armored body, which only grew as the seconds passed. Then, unable to withstand the attack any longer, Freezerdon's body completely crumbled apart, each individual block of ice shattering as it hit the ground.

Frozen Lady Justice: 2500 - 1000 = 1500 ATK

"NO! FREEZERDON!" wailed Chills.

"Justice! Attack Chills directly! POLAR NIGHT SLASH!"

Not even giving Chills a second to recover from the loss of his only monster, Justice charged forward and slashed her blade across the younger Fuma brother's chest, who fell to one knee and wrapped his arms around his body, writhing from the force of the attack.

Chills: 3000 - 1500 = 1500

"YES! One Number down and one to go!" Yuma cheered. Even Astral, although hiding it behind his impassive expression, couldn't help but feel impressed.

"Rio actually turned the duel back in our favor…." His eyes darted to the girl, the logical side of his brain wrestling with the emotions he felt towards her.

"Wait, why did you not destroy Volcasaurus?" he asked.

Rio locked eyes with Astral again, raising an eyebrow in confusion, noting that Astral's question was without any signs of hostility. "Why do you ask?"

"Our misgivings with each other aside, please answer the question," Astral pressed. "Would it not have been more prudent to attack Volcasaurus? While you would destroy Justice as well, you would have robbed Scorch of his chance to use his monster's effects on his next turn. With Volcasaurus still on the field, he can defeat us both when his turn begins."

Rio was surprised Astral was actually willing to talk strategy with her after everything he said, but she also recognized the opportunity to take control of the duel.

"Destroying the Numbers is only half the problem. I have a plan, but I need Freezerdon off the field first. Otherwise, Chills would have been too well defended and we would miss the opportunity to take them both out at once."

"And what is your plan?" Astral inquired.

Rio's eyes knowingly drifted towards Yuma again, causing the teenage boy to gasp in surprise.

"What? Me?"

"Yep!" Rio nodded, giving her friend a trusting smile. "Yuma, I was right when I said you couldn't defeat these two by yourself, but neither can I. What I can do is give you the opening you need to turn this duel around. With Freezerdon off the field, you can win the duel on your next turn. You don't even need either of us to walk you through it. I trust you, Yuma. If you have the right cards in your hand, and you pay really close attention on how to use them, you'll take them both out. I know you can do it."

"Wha…. Rio…." Yuma was stunned that after everything, his friend still held this much faith in him, while Astral remained equally perplexed, his expression unchanging but his mind racing.

She trusted Yuma to win by doing what? How could he and Yuma deduce the winning formula if he did not understand the purpose of Rio's risky decision to keep Volcasaurus on the field? Of course, she couldn't disclose every detail out loud, as that would also inform the brothers of what she was planning, but even so, it made no logical sense. How could humans trust each other if they could not guarantee that choosing to trust somebody is the right decision?

Overhearing Rio's conversation, Scorch burst out laughing.

"HA HA HA HA! Did you hear that, bro?" Scorch was clutching his stomach, unable to hold in his loud bellowing guffaws. "Your ex-girl and her new boy toy actually think they can still win the duel. I don't know who's more delusional, Rio or the kid!"

After several more seconds of mocking laughter, the elder brother finally caught his breath and stood back up before continuing to taunt them both.

"Don't you realize your partner is nothing but an anchor to you? You really would have been better off dueling the two of us by yourself. This guy's an amateur! All he's done is drag you down. I almost feel sad you left the Pack to roll with him and whatever pathetic friends he has, assuming he has any friends at all. If only you realized the mistake you made, you could have been living large with us, where the real glory is!"

"Scorch, it was the two of you who tried to drag Ryouga and I down!" Rio snapped. "I don't care about glory. I care about my friends. That's why we had such a problem with your schemes in the first place. You two were my friends at one point, and friends don't let friends make bad decisions, but you two wouldn't listen to us, so we had no choice but to leave, and look at that. I was right. The two of you spent nine months in jail after trying to rob that card shop."

Scorch's face burned with rage, and his Number marking pulsed with dark energy.

"We wouldn't have gotten caught if you and Shark had been there to back us up!" He growled. "You both left the Pack when we needed your strength. I gave you a second chance because my stupid brother still had the hots for you, and look what happened. You betrayed us a second time. Well, I'm done letting you make a fool out of me. Anybody who stabs me in the back gets BURNED!"

"Well are you going to talk about it, or are you going to do it?" Rio goaded him on. "I set a card face-down and end my turn."

Throughout his brother's entire tirade, Chills remained quiet, his expression rattled and his eyes focused intently on Rio. As Rio ended her turn, she locked eyes with Chills and froze, studying the shakened gang leader, curious as to why he seemed so on edge. Did he know what she was planning, or was he rattled by his brother's explosive temper?

Or perhaps….

Perhaps he was actually considering what she told him.

"FINALLY! It's about time! My move! Draw!" Scorch roared, his grin growing maniacal and his Number roaring to match the explosive emotions of its host. "Since Chills was so kind as to give his monster's overlay units to Volcasaurus, I can now use its effects again. I detach one overlay unit to destroy Frozen Lady Justice."

"Wait! Hold on, bro!" Chills suddenly spoke up. "You've got to destroy Hope first. Trust me on this one. Something's not right."

"No way!" growled Scorch, ignoring his brother's warning. "I'm not waiting a second longer to put this traitor in her place! Volcasaurus, do your thing! Destroy Frozen Lady Justice NOW! MAGMA MAX!"

"NO, RIKUO, DON'T DO IT!" Kaio cried, using his brother's real name in a last desperate attempt to snap him out of his power-drunken frenzy, but it was too late.

Volcasaurus devoured an overlay unit and unleashed a supernova from its chest, which struck Justice and destroyed her instantly. The Ice Queen merely closed her eyes and braced for impact, while Astral looked on in astonishment.

"Volcasaurus inflicts damage equal to the current attack power the monster possesses. Justice has fifteen hundred attack points, and that would eliminate all of Rio's life points. She is sacrificing herself for us…."

For a brief second, Astral considered what would happen if they allowed Rio to be defeated. With Rio out of the way, he and Yuma could seize the opportunity to not only finish off the two brothers, but also take Rio's Numbers for their own in addition to Volcasaurus and Freezerdon.

The missing memories inside Rio's Numbers would finally be his….

And yet…

"Yuma! Our trap card! Activate it to save Rio!"

"Already on it! Go, Damage Diet!" Yuma cried as his trap card sprung upward to shield his friend. "Now all damage Rio takes is cut in half."

"Wait, Yuma! That was the wrong trap card!" Astral protested, "Our other trap would have done better!"

"You… actually care about her!" Yuma exclaimed. "I knew it!"

"I have… considered your arguments," Astral replied. "Which is why I don't understand why you didn't activate our other trap! Now Rio has lost her most powerful monster. She may have survived, but now she is quite vulnerable."

"Trust me, Astral," Yuma replied with a smile, "I know just about every card in Rio's deck and I've watched her come up with hundreds of clever strategies. I think I know exactly what she's going for."

Rio took a deep breath of relief upon hearing Yuma's cry of intervention. Smiling triumphantly, she shielded herself with her arms as the jet of fire slammed into her body.

Rio: 1500 - 750 = 750

"Thanks for the save, Yuma, and since I'm still in the game, I can activate this, the quick-play spell card, Xyz Memories! Since Justice is in the Graveyard, I can return Hope back to Yuma's extra deck, destroying your Avalanche Trap in the process. Not only that, but now I can return Justice to the field with two overlay units attached to her, but the catch is, she's going to appear on Yuma's side of the field."

The ashes where Justice once stood suddenly shined with life, floating into the air and transforming into ice crystals, which spiraled like a tornado and melded together, reforming into the body of Frozen Lady Justice, who floated sideways from Rio's side of the field to Yuma's.

Astral couldn't believe what he just witnessed. Not only did the Ice Queen take a tremendous risk, allowing Justice to be destroyed, but she gave Justice to her partner. Rio, who Astral previously judged as someone who selfishly hoarded the Number cards for her vengeful desires, impeding his mission by denying him their memories, was now risking her own fate in this duel to save his life.

Number 21 - Frozen Lady Justice: Rank 6/WATER/Aqua/Xyz/500 ATK/500 DEF

Frozen Lady Justice: 500 + (1000 x 2) = 2500 ATK

"I KNEW IT!" Chills shouted at the top of his lungs. "She wanted Justice to be destroyed. Now the kid can use it when he begins his next turn!"

"Relax, Chills! He's not getting another turn." replied Scorch. "Volcasaurus, activate your effect again! Target Frozen Lady Justice and wipe her out for good this time! I hope you're ready to feel the burn, kid, because your life points are so low that not even your Damage Diet can save you this time. GO! MAGMA MAX!"

"Then it's a good thing I have another trap!" Yuma exclaimed. "Memory Loss! This negates the effects of Volcasaurus and switches it to defense mode!"

As Volcasaurus' armored chest closed up and it covered its body with its arms, the sadistic smile of Scorch disappeared, his face now sporting the same panic as his partner.

"Wait… you had that card the whole time?!" Scorch sputtered. "Why didn't you use that one first?!"

"Volcasaurus…. It's in defense mode….." Chills realized, "But that means….."

"Looks like you figured it out," Rio replied with a smirk.

"Frozen Lady Justice can destroy it! Volcasaurus is going extinct the moment Scorch's turn is over….." Chills finished.

"I can't stop it. There's nothing I can do to protect him. I…. end my turn." Scorch reluctantly finished, resigning his Number to its fate.

"We'll just have to tough it out and come back swinging next turn," Chills reassured his partner. "She had to have been bluffing. The kid can't take both of us out by himself."

"Who says I'm by myself?" Yuma replied. "I have Rio and her Number helping me out. Speaking of which, it's my turn, and I'm activating the effect of Frozen Lady Justice right away! Destroy Volcasaurus with SUB-ZERO SENTENCE!"

Justice slashed the air with her sword, sending another blizzard across the field. Coming into contact with the freezing cold wind, the glowing hot body of Volcasaurus grew weak and drained of color as its core temperature dropped drastically. Soon, just like with Freezerdon, cracks formed in its armored scales, and with one final roar of defeat, the dinosaur's body broke apart and crumbled into dust.

"This isn't good!" said Chills. "Now we lost both our Numbers!"

"We're not done yet, bro. Calm down!" replied Scorch, although it was clear his confidence was severely wavering as well. "If one of us goes down, the other one is going to turn this duel around and make these two pay. Nobody beats the Pack in a tag duel. Nobody makes a fool out of us!"

"Well it looks like Yuma's about to be the first." Rio spoke up, sporting the same victorious smile as her partner. "Finish them off, Yuma! The game is yours!"

"I summon Gogogo Giant! When my Giant is summoned to the field, it can resurrect Gogogo Golem from my Graveyard in defense mode. After that, my giant switches to defense mode as well."

A brand new golem rose out of the ground and onto Yuma's field. Compared to the rotund golem, the giant was much taller with a skinnier frame. Its head and limbs were painted a dark maroon, while its fingers and toes were painted a light shade of blue. A single cyclopean red eye opened on its face, which began blinking, signaling Yuma's original golem to rise from the earth to join it.

Gogogo Giant: Level 4/EARTH/Rock/2000 ATK/0 DEF

Gogogo Golem: Level 4/EARTH/Rock/1800 ATK/1500 DEF

"Now I overlay Gogogo Giant and Gogogo Golem. With these 2 Level 4 Monsters, I build the overlay network and Xyz Summon again! RETURN TO THE FIELD, HOPE!"

Number 39 - King of Wishes, Hope: Rank 4/LIGHT/Warrior/Xyz/2500 ATK/2000 DEF

"NO! IT CAN'T BE!" shrieked Scorch. "The kid got his own Number back on the field! But…. that means…"

"WE'RE DONE FOR!" cried Chills.

"BATTLE! Hope and Justice, attack them both directly! DOUBLE DAY AND NIGHT SLASH!"

The two Numbers drew their swords and touched them together in unity before charging at their respective targets, Hope flying towards Scorch and Justice racing towards Chills. With two simultaneous slashes, the brothers were sent flying, and with one final scream of disbelief, they fell on their backs, unconscious and defeated.

Scorch: 2500 - 2500 = 0 (LOSE)

Chills: 1500 - 1500 = 0 (LOSE)

WINNERS - YUMA AND RIO

Relieved at the duel finally being over, Astral extended his arm to grab Volcasaurus and claim another memory. However, as he did so, he saw Rio extend her own arm to grab Freezerdon. The two paused, looking at each other, both conflicted over who the spoils of war should go to. Despite acknowledging they could not have won without Rio's help, Astral was still hesitant to allow Rio to deny him the chance to look at another memory.

"Hey, come on, Astral." Yuma spoke up. "Let's let Rio take Freezerdon. She helped us win the duel. She did half the work, so she gets half the loot. It's fair, isn't it?"

Astral's eyes flickered again, conflicted, worried over losing what could be an important memory, but in the end, the spirit finally nodded, letting Freezedon go and allowing Rio to extend her tendril of red energy from her hand and take it for herself.

With their Numbers removed, the brothers regained their senses. Scorch was the first to rise.

"Oh, my head. What happened? What was I…." The haze in his mind instantly vanished as he spotted Rio. The events of tonight was still a clouded blur, but seeing the Ice Queen, the thorn in his side, the traitor who abandoned them in their hour of need made it clear what the Pack leader needed to do.

Scorch saw red.

"You…." he growled. "YOU!" Scorch rose to his feet, his biceps bulging and his dark skinned hands turning pale hot. Rio instantly stepped in front of Yuma, horrified but determined to protect him from the hulking muscular mass that was about to charge at them like a rampaging bull.

"That's it! I'm dealing with you once and for all. You're joining your brother in the emergency room!" he roared. Panic immediately ensued when they saw the thug pull out a switchblade from his pocket.

"Yuma get behind me!" Rio commanded, reaching for a concealed can of pepper spray. Yuma was completely thrown for a loop. Everything was happening so fast and his brain could barely comprehend the situation growing so dangerous so quickly. Even Astral couldn't hold back his own horror. This opponent had now turned violent, and with his transparent intangible body, there was nothing he could do to help.

"WOAH, WOAH, WOAH!" The shouting of Chills snapped everyone out of their state of panic as they saw the younger Pack sibling grabbing Scorch's wrist, preventing him from moving. "What the hell do you think you're doing?!"

"Get out of my way, you idiot," growled Scorch. "You've let your feelings for this backstabber cloud your judgment for too long. She's done nothing but sabotage us, drag us down and embarrass us, and I've had enough. I'm dealing with her my way."

"But it's not our way!" Chills argued as he yanked his brother's arm with enough force to make him fall. Shocked at his brother's deed, Scorch lay on the ground as his brother stepped in between him and the Ice Queen.

Rio lowered her spray, eyes glued to Chills and shocked by her ex-boyfriend's sudden change of heart.

"I've been following your lead ever since we started the Pack, playing the part of loyal younger brother. I've backed you up through every choice you've made, but this is too much. You want felony charges on us? I'm not letting my brother go back to jail again. You do this, we're both getting life!"

"I'm not leaving any witnesses," Scorch seethed. "We won't get caught again."

"That's not the point!" Chill shouted. "She and her brother are one of us! Them leaving because they didn't agree with our plans doesn't change that. What are the others going to say if word gets around? They're going to get scared they'll be next. The respect we command will be gone. The Pack will be finished. All that effort to give people on the streets who had nowhere else to go a proper family to rely on, that's going to go up in smoke. I'm not standing for this."

"I'm not asking you again," growled Scorch as he slowly got back to his feet, only for Chills to kick him and put his foot on his chest to force him to stay down. "CHILLS WHAT THE HELL?!"

"RIKUO!" Chills roared, the thunderous shout of his brother's real name seemed to quell his temper.

"Rikuo, enough!" he pleaded, his voice softer this time. "We have to walk away! It's over. We lost. Attacking Rio to soothe your bruised ego won't solve anything."

"You're taking her side?" He seethed. "You're going to stand against your brother for somebody who abandoned us twice?"

"Oh, so I'm a traitor too?" Chills continued. "Are you going to shank your own brother now that I've put my foot down? Rio and Shark didn't betray us. It was your idea to pull that job anyway, even though we couldn't have done it without them. I should have spoken up then, but I'm speaking up now! You're going to betray everything you used to stand for if you do this, and I'll fight you if that's what it takes to stop you. What's more important? Family, or payback?"

Scorch glanced down at the blade in his fist. His hand began to relax, a horrific realization suddenly creeping into his mind.

"Kaio…."

"The Pack needs you, Rikuo. I need you, and look. I'm just going to say it. I've been having second thoughts ever since we got out of jail, but now I'm sure. We were taking things way too far. We screwed up big time, and I'm not letting you screw up again. I can't let you get locked up for life, bro. You're all I got."

Rikuo glanced back at the blade, then at Rio, then at his brother once more.

As if the blade was hot to the touch, he threw it into the bushes as hard as he could, and the other three humans breathed a massive sigh of relief. It was over.

His face still bent low, ashamed and unable to look at anybody. "I'm sorry… I…. didn't…. I wasn't…. I'm sorry…. "

His apology was barely audible, but his brother heard it and patted him on the back.

"I know you are, bro. Let's get out of here."

Nodding, Scorch got up and began to walk away, still shaken by the realization of how far the Pack had fallen since its founding days. Chills hesitated to follow his brother. Instead he looked back at Rio, who smiled.

"Thanks, Kai."

"No problem." He replied, smiling back. "It's gonna take awhile. Old habits die hard, but my brother and the rest of the Pack will just have to come around to going legit."

He sighed. "Suppose you're still not changing your mind about… well…. Us?"

"You're right. I'm not. It's not going to work anymore, being together." she admitted. "But if you really meant everything you said, then maybe when you guys turn yourselves around, and truly become better people, we can be friends again."

"Heh…. guess I better get started then." he replied, turning around and giving the two one final wave. "Later, Rio. Stay safe."

Rio breathed one final sigh of relief as she watched the brothers disappear into the foggy night. It was finally over. The brothers were free, not just from the Numbers, but from their own greed.

"Oh Boy…. Crisis averted." Yuma gasped, still shaken from witnessing Scorch's violent temper. He never imagined in his life he would almost suffer a gruesome fate for winning a duel.

Now there was only one thing left to do. They needed to make absolutely sure the feud was going to end. Rio turned to face Astral.

"So what happens now? Where do we stand?"

"What do you mean, where do we stand?" Yuma finally spoke up, shaking off the shock of what transpired. "We just won the hardest duel of our lives, and we did it as a team. Don't tell me you two are going to go back to fighting after all we did tonight."

"No way!" Rio insisted, shaking her head. "Astral, I don't want to fight anymore. Yuma's right. We have to come to some form of compromise if we want to move forward with collecting the Numbers. It's up to you. Do you want to go backwards or forwards?"

Several seconds of silence passed, the spirit's arms remaining folded and his eyes staying closed, deep in thought.

"Rio, I…." he spoke slowly and carefully, meticulous with his choice of words. "I still have…. Issues… with being unable to study the memories within the Numbers you collected…"

"Oh no…" Yuma muttered, fearing Astral was about to push most of the blame onto her.

"However…." the spirit continued. "It is possible… no, I am certain I allowed my desperation to collect the Numbers as quickly as possible to cloud my perception of you. I initially perceived you as selfish, hoarding the Numbers and impeding my mission, but your behavior contradicts it completely. I was unfathomably incorrect about you. You dueled with integrity, and you did not hesitate to risk your own safety to protect Yuma, and by extension myself, and so…. I do indeed owe you an apology. You are not selfish at all. You are a true duelist, and a true friend to Yuma."

Yuma grinned from ear to ear, overjoyed at hearing Astral finally come around to his friend, while Rio was rendered speechless. Thinking about it briefly, she answered his apology with a smile.

"That…." she paused, still gathering her thoughts as she was still thrown for a loop. "That is the most genuine thing you've said to me since I first met you. I really appreciate that, and yeah, I admit I wasn't exactly making things better. I was accusing you of having malicious intentions towards Yuma, when you've done nothing but help him every time he duels, and I'm sorry about that. Yuma has grown so much stronger and smarter in the past several weeks since he met you, and I appreciate you looking out for him when I can't."

Astral's stoic face changed into a tiny smile, and the spirit nodded in approval.

"What about my Numbers?" Rio inquired. "I still think I should keep the ones I earned, at least for now. How much of a problem is this going to be?"

Astral appeared conflicted for a brief second, and Yuma grew worried again. Astral, so far, had been adamant Rio surrender her Numbers to him. If he still refused to compromise, then their whole relationship was back to square one.

"I have…. Pondered what you said to me about earning Numbers…. And….

Once again he appeared to struggle with his answer, choosing his words carefully.

"You… did indeed earn every Number you acquired through your remarkable skill as a duelist." he began, and the tension in the air immediately lifted with his answer.

"While I would be denied their memories, I am beginning to realize just how small each individual memory fragment is. Even if I were to collect the five you possess at the moment, I believe I will still remain mostly oblivious to my true identity and my mission. I am still going to require them from you once you and Yuma are the only humans who possess Numbers, and hopefully you will agree to give them to me when the time comes, but until then….. I suppose…. I can give you permission to use the ones you have collected…."

"So does that mean, no more fighting?" Yuma asked, elated for what appeared to finally be happening. "Can we finally become a proper Number Collecting Team? We're all friends now, right?"

"Absolutely!" Rio affirmed, raising her hand up in the air for a high-five, which Yuma eagerly accepted.

"Astral?" The two looked up at the spirit, awaiting his answer. He continued to float in the air, his body rising and falling and his hand placed on his chin, deep in thought.

"Hmmmm, Observation Number Thirteen, one cannot expect perfection when humans become friends. Disagreements between friends are natural, but true friends do not allow a difference in opinions to interfere with the friendship they possess, as one cannot face the difficulties of this world on their own. It is far better to have friends at one's side."

He paused, and while he enjoyed seeing the happiness of the two humans he had grown to respect over the short time he had grown accustomed to living on Earth, he felt his observation was incomplete.

"Observation Number Fourteen, Yuma and Rio are my friends."

---

Author Made Cards

Sirenarwhal: Level 5/WATER/Winged-Beast/1800 ATK/2400 DEF

Effect: If you control no monsters, you can Special Summon this card from your hand in face-up defense position. If a WATER Xyz Monster is Xyz Summoned using this card as material, you can Special Summon 1 Level 5 or lower Fish or Winged-Beast Monster from your deck, and if you do, that monster gains 500 ATK, but it cannot attack the turn it is summoned this way. You can only use each effect of "Sirenarwhal" once per turn.

Cryotaceous Diplodocus: Level 6/WATER/Dinosaur/Synchro/1500 ATK/2500 DEF

1 WATER Tuner + 1+ Non-Tuner Dinosaur Monsters

Effect: This card can attack while in face-up defense position, and if it does, apply its DEF for damage calculation. Once per turn (Quick Effect) you can target 1 monster your opponent controls; change its battle position, and if you do monster's effects are negated until the End Phase and it cannot change its battle position. You can only use this effect of "Cryotaceous Diplodocus" once per turn.

Cryotaceous Triceratops: Level 5/WATER/Dinosaur/Synchro/1800 ATK/2000 DEF

1 WATER Tuner +1+ Non-Tuner Dinosaur Monsters

Effect: This card can attack while in face-up defense position, and if it does, apply its DEF for damage calculation. If this card attacks a defense position monster, inflict piercing damage to the opponent. If this card is Synchro Summoned, you can target 1 Non-Tuner "Cryotaceous" Monster in your GY; Special Summon it to your field in face-up defense position. If this card is destroyed and sent to the GY, you can Special Summon 1 "Cryotaceous" Monster from your Deck.

Cryotaceous Iguanas: Level 4/WATER/Dinosaur/1400 ATK/1400 DEF

Effect: If this card is Normal or Special Summoned, you can add 1 WATER Dinosaur Monster from your deck to your hand. A Dinosaur Synchro Monster that used this card as Synchro Material gains 500 DEF and it cannot be destroyed by battle.

Cryotaceous Elasmos: Level 3/WATER/Dinosaur/1200 ATK/1200 DEF

Effect: If this card is sent from the field to the GY, you can target 1 face-up monster your opponent controls; it loses 1000 ATK and DEF. A Dinosaur Synchro Monster that used this card as Synchro Material cannot be destroyed by card effects.

Cryotaceous Quetzal: Level 2/WATER/Dinosaur/Tuner/500 ATK/1500 DEF

Effect: You can destroy 1 Dinosaur Monster in your hand or on the field; Special Summon 1 "Cryotaceous" Monster from your Deck. If a Synchro Monster(s) you control is destroyed, except by this card's effect, you can banish this card from your GY; Special Summon 1 Non-Tuner "Cryotaceous" Monster from your Deck. You can only use each effect of "Cryotaceous Quetzal" once per turn.

Cryotaceous Glacier: Continuous Spell Card

Effect: If you Normal Summon a Dinosaur Monster, you can Special Summon 1 "Cryotaceous" Tuner monster from your hand or Deck. Once per turn, you can target 1 "Cryotaceous" Monster you control; increase or decrease that monster's level by 1. You cannot Special Summon Monsters from the Extra Deck while you control this card, except WATER Monsters.

Cryotaceous Scales: Normal Trap Card

Effect: Pay 1000 LP, then target 1 Dinosaur Monster on the field; This turn, that monster cannot be destroyed or banished by your opponent's card effects.

Xyz Memories: Quick Play Spell Card

Effect: Target 1 Xyz Monster on the field, return it to the Extra Deck, and if you do, Special Summon 1 Xyz Monster from your GY to the controller of the targeted monster's side of the field, and if you do that, you can attach 2 monsters from your GY to that monster as Xyz Materials.

Jurrac Volcano: Continuous Spell Card

Effect: If you Normal Summon a Dinosaur Monster, you can Special Summon 1 "Jurrac" Tuner Monster from your hand or Deck. Once per turn, you can target 1 "Jurrac" Monster you control; increase or decrease that monster's level by 1. You cannot Special Summon Monsters from the Extra Deck while you control this card, except FIRE Monsters.

Jurrac Furnace: Normal Trap Card

Effect: If a Dinosaur Monster is destroyed, inflict damage to your opponent equal to its Level x 200, and if you do, you can Special Summon 1 "Jurrac" Monster from your Deck whose ATK is less than or equal to the damage inflicted.

---

AAAAAAAAAND, DONE!

Was really eager to get to this one, since technically the duel from this chapter was the very first duel from the Old Version of Ice Queen Cometh, so as you can imagine, writing this particular chapter and hopefully improving upon it meant a lot to me.

Although in the old version, Scorch and Chills were just as one-dimensional as they were in canon, and I'll admit I had quite a bit of fun turning two basic villains of the week and fleshing out their characters a bit more. Hope you all enjoyed that part.

Speaking of what you enjoyed, what did you all think of the chapter as a whole? Did you like it? Did you not like it? Whatever your opinion may be, feel free to leave a review and let me know!

Until Next Time, THIS IS NOX, SIGNING OUT!