Renegades: A New Dawn

by Primal WolfBlood

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

72. Old Wounds

Renegades: A New Dawn

Chapter LXXII: Old Wounds

The club were on their way to Johannasburg for WDC Battlegrounds, but they were a duellist short. Not that she wasn't keen on pointing out that she was still there… and not happy. 'Seriously, just let me out there.' 'Rio, you nearly collapsed duelling for 5 minutes yesterday. And you didn't even bother finding out why you were getting those nosebleeds.' 'It was a burst blood vessel due to tension. Apparently I'm prone to it. Seriously, it was just an off day yesterday. I've just got a touch of the flu.'

'It's more than a touch of it Ri, you're absolutely streaming, you're so bad that you didn't insult my cooking last night?' 'That was YOU? I thought you'd let Ally loose in the kitchen again.' 'No, I wasn't spending all night cleaning up again.' Blair's phone then started going off. 'Let me guess, one of the girls from football again?' 'No, it's my darling manager. Apparently I have a duel with Sledgehammer since you're not well.' 'Lucky you, I don't even have a deck I can rely on.'

'Still not got it sorted eh?' Blair responded, with she and Rio having a policy of not discussing duelling outside of events or training. 'No, it's not the deck, it's… me I think? I'm trying to push it and it just isn't doing it?' 'What I don't get is you have a perfectly good deck there, in fact if you count your Doubles deck that you've been working on you've got two.' 'Yeah, but the Lyriluscs are so easy to counter, I don't want to use them all the time, they're my panic button. And the Harpies are great when I've got you backing me up. I just… I don't know.' 'Well we'll just have to work it out won't we?' Rio smiled, but she was clearly unsure of how to improve the situation.

Meanwhile, Jade had noticed something strange about the make up of the card. 'How long have Maddy and Caprice been the main event for?' 'Since I wanted to start the show to get back to Hannah, except of course Aster couldn't make it that easy and threatened to take the company to court if he wasn't in the main event. It's only because Caprice is the home favourite that I'm not going on even later. But you know, the situation is what it is.' 'What's the deal with you two anyway?'

Phil just shrugged in response. 'Not much, I don't like him, he doesn't like me, that's just how it always was. He's just another pretentious prep school kid who fancies himself as James Bond or something, fancies himself as a skilled businessman but business is easy when you have all the connections and a loan in 8 figures to build up your property development core. It's not so easy when you're working 18 hour days, never seeing your wife or baby son.' Eager to get away from the subject, he then made a hard cut.

'That's enough about me though, how are you and Blair doing?' 'Well she's gone from arguing with me over the situation to totally ignoring me now, so I'm not sure if that's better or worse.' 'Trust me, it's better. She'll come round, she just needs time to deal with things now. You don't need to club her over the head with it, just need to bring it up every so often.' 'She's just being so childish about it.' 'She's not being childish, she's scared.' 'Of what?' 'The unknown, and of people thinking bad of her. She might put walls up, but our Blair's actually quite sensitive.'

'Why's she doing this interview then?' The response was a shock. 'What interview?' 'She's apparently having this big sit-down interview?' 'No she isn't, all interviews are booked directly through me, and there's been nothing in that for weeks.' 'Well she seemed pretty sure she's got an interview, she's even been out shopping for a white blouse that doesn't make her look too attractive.' Intrigued by this, Phil got out of his seat, and marched up the plane to where Blair was sat, looking at new decks for Rio to try, and then coughed to get her attention.

'Look, I know you want to work with Rio on a new deck' 'We need to talk about interviews.' 'Ah' she responded, as her cheeriness diminished. 'Why did you not talk to me about it? More to the point, why did I never get an email' 'They phoned me directly, and told me I'd be fired if I didn't do it.' 'Do you actually want to do the interview?' 'No, but I can't just pull out of it. You know I can't do that whole public speaking.'

Thinking quickly, Phil dipped his hand into Blair's hand luggage, and pulled out one of her masks. 'In which case it doesn't have to be me doing the talking.' 'When this mask is on, you're a different person, you're more confident, bullish, headstrong, because you don't have to face the world. So if you're too nervous, put this on, and then boom, it's not you any more. Obviously it's up to you, but I know what you're like.' She just smiled. 'Thanks…'

As they got off the plane a few hours later, Maddy was on the phone to Astrid. 'So any more advice for taking her on?' 'Don't let her get under your skin, people don't remember how good she is because opponents just fall apart against her. So just set yourself out there early, show that you're not going to be affected by her, be aggressive.' 'Fully intending on doing, I ain't underestimating Caprice. The Don ain't coming out to play though, I need something a bit more… primal. And vicious.' 'Just don't injure yourself while you're out there. Anyway, I've got to go, got a meeting with Declan, he's getting things sorted for me.'

'Like what things?' 'I'd love to tell you, but you know, sworn to secrecy and all that.' 'Well as long as it means you're doing something more productive than changing nappies all day.' 'You're really obsessed with that aren't you? I told you, I don't mind it at all.' 'Trid, you're being used as free childcare. You're practically a nanny.' 'So be it then, I don't mind. I'm enjoying it honestly.' 'Have they… done something' 'No they haven't, Phil's not even been home long enough to do that. Please just stop being so… you about this, I like looking after the kiddies, and because of that, I'm doing it. K? I'm not being forced to, I just want to.' 'Ok… well just make sure you think of yourself as well.' 'Am doing, thank you.'

While this was going on, Phil had been approached by an interviewer. 'Phil, we've heard a lot about Aster taking the company to court to prevent you opening the show.' 'Yes, you do tend to hear a lot from Aster, he's very keen on the sound of his own voice, it's actually his best friend… well I say best, more like only. He can throw his weight around, it doesn't make him the guy, I'm the guy because I have this' he confidently stated while holding his title belt proudly. 'He'll have to take this off me, and by hook or by crook, I'm going to defeat him.' 'Now we've seen you adapting your deck more recently, so I have to ask - what ARE you playing?' He calmly responded with 'You're going to find out when everyone finds out later on.'

After a video package hyping up the two duels in the main events, Jade and Brooke opened the show, with a clearly angry Jade walking straight down as Brooke insinuated that she didn't know the reason for her mood. 'The following duel is for the LFD Doubles Championship. Introducing first, from Qa'em Shahr, Iran, the Vespertine, Jade Goocheneyad, and her partner, from Conwy, Denbighshire, Wales, Brooke Angharad. Together, they are Los Unpronounceables!'

"Brooke and Jade are a fairly new team, but they have a good track record already and clearly earned the eye of the champions who challenged them to this duel. Brooke brings the advantage gained by her powerful Spell Counter engine, while Jade is using a new Doubles-orientated deck to really bring the fire and entertainment. They may be inexperienced, but they are eager to cross swords with Belle in particular; the three were all in the Renegades Arena duelling course a couple of months ago, and finished in the Top 3." In the zone, Jade swept through and started shouting for Freja to show her face, while Brooke raised the red right hand.

The champions' music then started, and they walked out, sporting a new ultraviolet version of their gear. 'Introducing their opponents, representing the Dynasty, from Headingley, Leeds, England, the Myth - Belle Draper, and her partner, from St. Helens, England, Ms. Hellfire - Freja McKinna. Together, they are the LFD Doubles Champions, the Bad Breed.' As they were introduced by the commentators, Freja and Jade started sharing tense words with their partners holding them back.

"Belle and Freja may seem like chalk and cheese, but being under the learning tree of our World Champion has united them in a purpose, and has brought them success. This will be their 3rd title defence, and last time out they made light work of Nash and Kieran from Junction 7. Belle is apparently using a brand-new deck designed to work better with her partner, but Freja's Big Dipper deck is reliable and powerful, countering the opponent's moves with endless negation hell. But can they overcome a known threat?" By this time, security had separated Freja and Jade, allowing them to start the duel.

LFD Doubles Championship: Los Unpronounceables (Jade Goocheneyad/Brooke Angharad) LP:8000 vs. [c] Bad Breed (Freja McKinna/Belle Draper) LP:8000

(Jade hand: Amazement Administrator Arlekino, Amazement Family Faces, Amaze Attraction Cyclo-Coaster, Amazement Attendant Comica, Amazement Precious Park)

Jade: 'Don't get me wrong, Freja, I'm not your friend. Just because Blair's got to believe in you doesn't mean I do. I'll start by summoning Amazement Attendant Comica (Atk:1400). And she'll set an Attraction Trap directly from my deck. I choose Amaze Attraction Wonder Wheel. I'll activate a Field Spell then - Amazement Precious Park!' A large theme park constructed around the four of them, as Jade looked on grittily. 'I'll set another card face-down, and end my turn.'

(Freja hand: Drytron Delta Altais, Drytron Nova, Meteonis Drytron, Punch-in-the-Box, Cyber Angel Benten)

Freja: 'How many times do I need to apologise, you know that's not who I am now!' 'As long as you're with him and worshipping him like a god, you're not going to change.' 'Why are you being like this?' 'Because nobody else will. Oh it's Freja, she's just "quirky", she's funny, there was nothing funny about being violated like that!' 'And I don't think there is, but you clearly don't want to listen to the fact that I ain't defending what I did.'

'But since you won't listen, I'll just have to beat you first. I'll start with Drytron Nova, summoning Drytron Alpha Thuban (Atk:2000). And it's going to search Drytron Meteonis Draconids. Now I'll activate Delta Altais, tributing Cyber Angel Benten (Def.:0). And the effect of Delta reveals Draconids to draw another card, while I can search Diviner of the Heralds with Benten. Then I can activate my Meteonis Drytron, tributing both of my monsters to Ritual summon Drytron Meteonis Draconids (Atk:4000).'

'That's fine, I'll activate Amaze Attraction Cyclo Coaster, and it's equipping onto your Draconids.' 'Erm… ok?' 'That allows me to activate my other face-down, Amazement Family Faces.' As this was activated, a three-panel slot machine appeared on the field and started spinning up. 'Big smile now!' A picture was taken of Draconids, and its face appeared on all three panels as they slowed to a stop. 'I just won the top prize - your monster!' As this was declared, sparkles fell from the slot machine, landing on Draconids, which moved to Jade's field.

'Now I've taken your monster, it gains 500 Attack but loses its effects (Atk:4000-4500).' Now without her best monster, Freja took time to consider her next play. 'I'll summon Diviner of the Herald (Atk:500). Then I can use her effect, sending Herald of the Arc Light from my Extra deck to the graveyard and increasing her Level by its Level (Level:2-6). But more importantly, Herald's effect in the grave will add Meteonis Drytron from my deck to my hand. I'll activate it, tributing my Herald to summon Litmus Doom Swordsman (Atk:0).'

'The hell is that thing?' 'Here's a few pointers - he can't be destroyed in battle, he is immune to your stupid Traps, and if there's a face-up Trap on the field, he gains 3000 Attack points.' 'Did Phil give you that like he gave you the rest of your deck? And told you how to use it. Or did you actually have some thought for once in your life?' This seemed to offend Belle, who stepped in. 'Just because Freja hurt you before doesn't mean you need to be a total cow Jade.' 'You're one to talk, you were more than happy to' 'Don't go there. You're just being mean for the sake of it because you know you can't beat us otherwise.'

'Yeah, totally scared of that, we're going to smash you up and take your titles!' Brooke responded as the tension boiled over between the two sides. 'Try us, if we can defeat the teams we beat so far' 'The teams Phil chose for you because he's obsessed with protecting you. Jade won that course, she should be the apple of his eye, but instead he wanted second place because she's more obedient.' 'Well how about you try this attack for obedience!' Litmus Doom Swordsman sliced straight through Comica, dealing the first damage (Jade and Brooke LP:8000-6400). 'I end my turn.'

(Brooke hand: Magister of Endymion, Spell Power Grasp, Spell Power Mastery, Servant of Endymion, Dark Magician, Magicalized Fusion)

Brooke: 'I draw and start by scaling up Scale 2 Servant of Endymion. Then I'll activate Spell Power Grasp, using it to put a Spell Counter on Servant, who gains another one from a Spell being activated (SC:0-2). Then I'll scale up Scale 8 Magister of Endymion (SC:2-3), and detach three Spell Counters from Servant to summon itself and Endymion, the Mighty Master of Magic (Atk:1000; 2800. SC:0-1x2).'

'Now I'll Link both of them off to Link summon Link 2, Day-Breaker the Shining Magical Warrior (Atk:1600). When it's summoned, it gains a Spell Counter and 300 Attack (Atk:1600-1900), I'm then activating Spell Power Mastery to add Endymion's Lab to my hand, then I can place two Spell Counters on Magister (SC:0-2). And after I activate Lab (SC:2-3), I can use Magister's effect to summon itself and the Master of Magic from my Extra deck (Atk:1500; 2800). Then I'll use Magister's on-field effect, removing the Spell Counters from itself, Day-Breaker and Endymion to summon Dark Red Enchanter (Atk:1700).'

At this point, Brooke paused to consider her move, realising her normal play wasn't quite on. 'I'll set the Link arrows with Link 2 Day-Breaker, Dark Red Enchanter and Magister of Endymion, to Link summon Link 4, Borrelsword Dragon (Atk:3000). It's going to use its effect to switch Endymion to Defence mode (Def.:1700), and attack twice this turn. Attack Litmus Doom Swordsman! And when it does, it steals half of your monster's Attack for itself (Atk:3000-4500; Litmus Doom Atk:3000-1500).' Borrelsword flew in, piercing straight through the Swordsman (Bad Breed LP:8000-5000). 'And while we're at it, I think we'll attack again!' The second attack seemed to knock Freja's confidence, as her team slipped further down (Bad Breed LP:5000-2000). 'I end my turn.'

As Brooke finished her turn and Belle geared up to take hers, the screens showed Hassleberry stood backstage, grinning at her handiwork. 'Man, she's a good girl.' A local interviewer then walked over. 'Do you like what you see?' He looked at her and nodded. 'Enjoying the show. My girl's about to take care of business, and I'll do it later.' Suddenly Claude walked up, and pulled Hassleberry away. 'I told you not to waste your time' he huffed while dragging him off.

(Belle hand: Chronomaly Pyramid Eye Tablet, Extra-Foolish Burial, Chronomaly Magella Globe, Rank-up Magic Dynasty Force, Dimension Guardian, Chronomaly Aztec Mask Golem)

Belle: 'I draw, and it's time to go old style on you both. I'll start with Chronomaly Pyramid Eye Tablet.' As a stone tablet with an ancient Egyptian-style eye shining on it rose out of the ground, Jade continued taking shots. 'Phil build that for you like everything else?' 'No, Blair did, because unlike you, she doesn't go around blaming me for things other people did. This was my original deck, before I started on the course.'

'And now you're about to see what they do. Since I've activated a Chronomaly Spell card this turn, I can summon this directly from my hand - Chronomaly Aztec Mask Golem (Atk:1500). Afterwards, it's joined by the Chronomaly Magella Globe (Atk:1500). But by cracking my Globe open, it summons any other Chronomaly from my deck. Dial up the sun, Chronomaly Sol Monolith (Atk:600). And Sol Monolith can turn any other Chronomaly into a Level 6, like Mask Golem (Level:4-6).'

Just as Belle was about to perform an Xyz summon, Freja glanced over, and without saying anything, her body language told Belle to pause, and that allowed her to compose herself and realise she had missed part of the combo. 'Activate Extra-Foolish Burial, paying half of our Life points (Bad Breed LP:2000-1000) to send Number 88: Gimmick Puppet of Leo to the graveyard. Now I'll overlay both of my Level 6 monsters to Xyz summon Number 6: Chronomaly Atlandis (Atk:2600). And when it's summoned, Atlandis can attach Leo from the graveyard to itself, taking half of its Attack points at the same time (Atk:2600-4200).'

Panicking at the size of the monster, Jade took action. 'Borrelsword effect, switching Atlandis to Defence mode (Def.:3000). No chance of you getting away with that!' 'Really? Say that to Rank-up Magic Dynasty Force! Body of rock and heart of magma, burn through your skin and erupt into life! I Xyz summon Number C6, the giant rising from the depths, Chronomaly Chaos Atlandis! (Atk:3300).'

'So what, you're going to equip Leo again?' 'Not quite, Atlandis is now more powerful. Instead of equipping something from my graveyard, it equips something from your field.' Atlandis' burning magma hand approached the fierce Dragon slowly, with Borrelsword unable to find a way of escaping, and it melted straight into Chaos Atlandis (Atk:3300-4300). 'You're lucky, Chaos Atlandis' effects all disable you taking damage this turn. But I'm still destroying Comica.' Atlandis crushed the mechanical park attendant, causing her to melt into a slither of metal trailing across the ground. 'I end my turn.'

(Jade hand: Amazement Administrator Arlekino, Amaze Attraction Viking Vortex)

Jade: 'I'll draw, and attack your Atlandis with Draconids!' Freja though, had a surprise ready to lurch out. 'Beware of unwanted presents Jade!' Suddenly a large boxing glove smashed Endymion in the face, punching it straight into Draconids. 'The hell?' '1st rule of duelling us, beware of random boxing gloves springing out of present boxes. With Punch-in-the-Box, a monster you didn't attack with is destroyed, and Draconids loses Attack equal to that of Endymion (Atk:4500-1700). Any questions?' Jade sighed, and set a card before ending her turn.

(Freja hand: Ice Dragon's Prison)

Freja: 'I draw. Chronomaly Chaos Atlandis, MELTDOWN!' As Freja giggled about always wanting to scream "Meltdown", Jade had an answer. 'I activate Amaze Attraction Viking Vortex! I'll equip it to Draconids, so now your monster's attack is blocked, and I gain control of it for the rest of the Battle phase.' 'Sure, I'll set one and end my turn' Freja responded, totally calm, which was starting to unnerve Jade, as Brooke took her turn.

(Brooke hand: Spell Power Grasp, Dark Magician, Magicalized Fusion, Sacred Sword of Seven Stars)

Brooke: 'I draw, and I'll activate the Sacred Sword of Seven Stars, banishing Dark Magician to draw two cards. Now I'll activate Magicalized Fusion, and this one's going to bring you back down to earth by banishing five Spellcasters from my graveyard to Fusion summon Quintet Magician (Atk:4500). And because it was summoned with five different Spellcasters as materials, it can blow your entire field to smithereens.' 'Not on its own it's not' Freja responded defiantly. 'Activate Ice Dragon's Prison, summoning Amazement Attendent Comica (Atk:1500), and then banishing itself and Draconids.' This move resolved just in time, as did Belle activating her face-down before Quintet blew up the field with fierce spellcasted fire. As the smoke cleared though, Atlandis was still standing.

'While you were distracted by Freja, I activated my own Trap, Dimension Guardian. It stops my Atlandis being destroyed by battle or card effect while that Trap's on the field.' 'And now it's not on your field, I'll destroy it in battle.' Chaos Atlandis couldn't stand up to the mighty Quintet Magician, being destroyed in an explosive finale (Bad Breed LP:1000-800). 'Icaron's Force effect allows me to draw a card because the monster summoned by it was destroyed and I have no cards on the field.' 'That's fine, I'll end my turn.'

(Belle hand: Chronmaly Nebra Disk, Chronomaly Gordian Knot)

Belle: 'We're not giving in. I'll summon the Chronomaly Gordian Knot (Atk:300). When it's summoned, it brings out Chronomaly Nebra Disk (Atk:1500), copying its Level (Level:3-4). And it's going to fetch another Chronomaly card, adding it to my hand. I choose Pyramid Eye Tablet, and I'll activate it (Gordian Knot Atk:300-1100; Nebra Disk Atk:1500-2300). Now I'll overlay them both, and Xyz summon Number 36: Chronomaly Chateau Huyuk (Atk:2000-2800).'

'I hope your monster's got some good abilities, otherwise it's totally useless to you.' Brooke taunted, not aware of how accurate that was. 'The effect of Chateau detaches a material from itself to reduce the Attack of your monster down to 0. Freezing Bolt.' Huyuk's dome retracted for a moment, and the stone core blasted out a thick ice-like substance, which sapped all the power from Quintet (Atk:4500-0). 'Now I'll activate the graveyard effect of Dynasty Force. Because I only control an Xyz monster, I can banish an Xyz monster of a different rank from my graveyard to add Icaron's Force to my hand, but it's banished when it leaves the field.'

With the rank-up back in hand, Belle's gaze tightened. 'For the Dynasty! I activate Dynasty Force, to rank up Chateau Huyuk to a monster of the same type but a rank higher. And I know just the one - Number 33: the floating temple, Chronomaly Machu Mech (Atk:2400). And the effect of Machu Mech will target your monster, gaining all the Attack points Quintet Magician lost (Atk:2400-6900). You also lose that amount of Life points. Cannons away!' Machu Mech's cannons lowered, and it fired out a razing light, cutting Brooke and Jade down (Brooke and Jade LP:6400-1900). 'Machu Mech, it's about time we polish this off.' A mouth opened on the side of the Mech, and as the challengers watched in devastation, emitted a beam of light in deafening fashion (Brooke and Jade LP:1900-0)

As the contest concluded, the champions took their belts and raised them alongside the symbol of excellence. 'Your winners and still LFD Doubles Champions, the Bad Breed.' Immediately Brooke walked up to the champions offering a fist-bump. 'You're good guys. That was fun.' 'You were really strong as well' Freja responded. Jade though, was holding back significantly, so Freja approached her, despite Belle trying to stop her. As she did, Jade turned away.

'Look, I'm not asking for forgiveness, I'm not asking to be friends even. I'm only coming over to tell you that you were really good there and had us on the ropes. If you need longer than Blair to get over what I did, I'm totally cool with that, I get it.' 'You don't get it though, otherwise you never would have done it. You have no idea what I've been through, and what that did to me. You can't fix everything just by saying sorry.' Jade walked away, barging through Freja as she did, with Brooke following her after a long chat with Belle.

Backstage, Sledgehammer was having a laugh with Chazz. 'Tonight, I go (gestures with hands) squash! I crush little bug, stamp her out of existence. Then I get my treasure.' 'She might have fluked a win against me, but only because I opened bad, but she isn't going to do the same again, if she even thinks about turning up it's going to be the last duel of her sad pathetic life.'

Their fun was interrupted by a very concerned-looking Nico though. 'You look like you've seen a ghost. You see that bitch's dignity while you were out there?' He didn't speak, but instead showed them an email marked high priority sent by Declan, which simply read "Win tonight or face the consequences of your failure", which seemed to concern Chazz, but Sledgehammer laughed. 'I make an example of that bug. Sledgehammer go squash!'

The picture then cut to what looked to be someone's living room, with two leather chairs, Marc Jacobs in one of them. 'Ladies and Gentlemen, Marc Jacobs here. I am about to have a very interesting interview with a young duellist who has been making strides in the past few years. From success as a teenager on the amateur circuit to finding a family in the Renegades to being Young-Gun Champion, and now being ⅓ of the WDC Tag-Team Champions. She's a very private person so I appreciate incredibly her taking time out to talk to me. Ladies and Gentlemen, the WDC World #1, Blair Flannigan.'

The crowd erupted in cheering as Blair walked in, wearing a light blue mask with the Arabic for "courage" and "resolve" written on it. 'Blair, I just want you to know that I'm honoured to have you here, as you know I have made requests to talk to you like this for several months. For anyone not aware, would you care to explain how the requests work with you?' After taking a moment, she responded.

'Yeah, so I don't normally respond to publicity requests, Phil, as you know, is my manager, and any interview or public appearance requests go through him, he does the negotiating for me in terms of what happens when, obviously anything that he thinks is a serious request he'll discuss with me, but the whole business side is down to him. I know you've put in a few requests, but I just don't do interviews normally.' 'So what made you do it this time?' She then reached into her pocket, and pulled out a letter. 'You can feel free to read it out.'

He then did so, and was astonished at the content. 'Dear Ms. Flannigan. As I understand it, you have once again refused a request for an interview from our company to promote the upcoming WDC vs. LFD: Battlegrounds show in Johannesburg, South Africa. Please be aware that we take a very dim view of this in our company, and while you have proven multiple times in the past that you believe you and your Renegades organisation are far more important than the World Duelling Corporation, we at the WDC believe you to merely be a competitor in a vast field, many more capable than yourself.'

'Therefore, the decision has been taken by the board to put you on notice that should you fail to perform your obligations at this interview, then we would have no choice but to terminate your involvement in the World Duelling Corporation immediately. Be aware that this would also severely negatively impact your duelling partner, Rio Kastle, as a result of her inability to compete in a regular singles capacity due to medical issues. Please consider this before rejecting requests in the future. Sincerely, Michael Grey Adams."

As he read, he just shook his head in disbelief. 'I… can only express my apologies for this. I don't believe it's appropriate to be talking further about this now, but I will happily speak to you or to Phil later on about this situation. Suffice to say I had no idea you had been sent any letter, and I would have refused to conduct this interview if I had been aware. In the meantime, I would understand if you don't want to continue with the interview' 'I'm here now, might as well.' After taking a few moments to calm himself down, Marc continued.

'So we were discussing Phil's management, I feel like there's a lot of conjecture and theories about what exactly he does and his roles are with you, so if I could just ask about a few things that appear to be leading theories?' 'Ok.' 'So firstly, does Phil decide who you duel at events?' 'Sort of, title duels are decided by the Board, albeit Phil does regularly get in contact with them about that. Duels like the one I've got against Sledgehammer, he would usually talk to the board, tell them that he's looking for a 1-1 opponent for me, they'll discuss possible opponents, and usually he'll discuss them with me afterwards to see what I think. It was slightly different this time though, just because he didn't get the opportunity to discuss it because Rio was only ruled out yesterday.'

'On a different topic for a moment, how is she?' 'Rio? She's fine, she's just been laid a bit low by the flu for a few days. She really wanted to be duelling here, in fact she was still protesting on the plane, but we kind of insisted on her taking this one off.' 'Now we know about her issues, and what she went through with the shooting, but I don't think anyone's ever really questioned what it was like for you, going through all of that, knowing that your best friend, someone you're that close to, you've even said someone who's more like a sister to you than either of your sisters, how that was for you?'

At this point, Blair took her mask off, and spoke directly from the heart. 'It was just horrible, there's no other words for it, it was just absolutely horrible. Y'know, just… seeing her lay there, fighting for every breath, I got told twice that they were switching off life support, at one point I was stood in front of the machine with them calling security to remove me.' 'But she came through.' 'It's impossible to explain to anybody who wasn't there, but it's almost like she was responding to me while she was unconscious, she had this will to survive.'

'But on your end, that must have taken a lot out of you.' 'Oh it did, I mean my Grandmother was dying in Michigan at the same time, so I had to leave Rio for a few days to say goodbye to her. But the day Rio woke up, the weight was off my shoulders, and I felt like I could be me again. And despite what Phil was going through, he was there for me the entire time still.' 'I know we talked a bit about him earlier, but what is it like working with him?'

'Actually loads of fun, he expects you to show dedication and he can get a bit frustrated if he's not being listened to, but he's a real help, he has this way of extracting performance out of you when you don't see it there, and he treats us… just like real people I guess, Like he'll take us for a coffee just to ask how we are, or we'll spend an entire training session just chatting about whatever we want to chat about, he does come from this school of thinking where by he's our friend as much as our mentor.'

'Does he help with deck building choices?' 'Sometimes, I mean I think he does more with Belle and Freja in that respect because they're not as experienced, but we'll discuss things, we usually talk through decks on the plane or wherever, we build the decks and then fine-tune them with him.' 'Did he know when you changed your deck?' 'Yeah, I sort of gave him the heads up on what I was playing, just so he was familiar. But usually, I tend to build the deck myself, and then just fine tune it with him.' 'How long does it take to build your deck?' 'Anywhere from about 20 minutes to an hour, I usually know what I want the deck to look like, I've got a pretty good eye for balance, I mean I do frustrate him sometimes because I could be a lot more aggressive than I am, but I think he just understands that this is the way my mind works.'

'Now a lot of people have asked me this question since you duelled in Egypt, but I don't actually know the answer: what is the history between you and Chazz?' 'We were in the same Duel Academy camp a few years ago, I was a first year, he was on his way to the pro leagues duelling all across the world, had a couple of huge offers of sponsorship. They had this massive showcase session where he was duelling in front of these sponsors, I was doing pretty well in the first year tests, so when I put myself forward to duel him, they thought it would be a way for him to show off.'

'So what actually happened?' 'Well, I totally dominated him, and beat him in 20 minutes. For reference, he was 21 and weeks away from making it big, I was some 14 year old kid from Shelby. The entire crowd cheered when it happened. He spent the rest of that year being mocked by everyone for losing to a kid, and he lost his sponsors, had to spend two years building himself back up. He never forgave me for it.'

'So there's been this needle with you ever since?' 'Yep, I suppose I kind of should thank him, because I wouldn't have turned pro without him.' 'So he gave you some help?' She laughed, and stated 'No, he bought the Amatuer federation. Then he changed the rules to include a subscription fee to compete, but "forgot" to send the letter to me, and suspended me for ten years. It was only because David Andrews, who was then the head of the Board of Directors here, happened to be at a local show in Kalamazoo, saw me and Nash going at it, and was so impressed he contacted us both the next day to invite us to turn pro. So in short, Chazz is a dick, and nothing he ever does to harm me actually works.'

'Now another subject I did want to approach with you is family, because I know you're sort of building your own little family now, and I understand if there's some things you don't want to answer, but I'll get to the subject of Ally in a minute, but first, I think we want to know a little bit more about your girlfriend, Jade Goocheneyad. So how exactly did you first meet?' Blair couldn't help but giggle at the question, wiping a tear from her eyes as she did.

'Sorry, uh yeah, we met the night before WDC World Tour: Idaho, me and Rio were on the lash in Twin Falls, and we went into this one club, and this smoking hot Asian girl was dancing on one of the tables there, and erm… Rio might have slightly freaked out and got her slightly fired.' 'Because Rio and Jade were childhood friends, right?' 'Yeah, they were friends for the first few years of their lives before Jade's family moved to Iran. But yeah, Jade gave me her number, I was kind of reluctant to, because I was a bit scared, you probably can't tell but I'm probably the world's least social person (giggles again), so I wasn't exactly forwards with her.'

'But then she just wouldn't give up, and eventually we started to see each other, I think what happened with Hannah and Rio made me feel like life's only here once, so I had to make the most of it, and we started falling further into love with each other, and eventually she invited me on a date.' 'She does seem to have a certain solidifying effect on you, she seems to make you somehow more confident?' 'She IS my confidence, I think she just makes me feel really special, and I provide her with that stability she's never really had, Jade can tell her story wayyy better than I ever could, but she's never really stayed anywhere for long enough as an adult to call it home, and now she has somewhere.'

'I mean I have met Jade and spoken to her a couple of times,s he strikes me as a very impressive young lady, carries herself very confidently.' 'She's not all confidence, but I think we feed off each other. We've both become better people since we started seeing each other, and I wouldn't be who I am now without her.' Jovially, he then asked 'More importantly, what was Rio's reaction?' 'It's tough to say because we told her while she was still in hospital, and I think she was on some kind of pain relief, because she really wasn't with it, just really confused is how I remember her, but she did spend about a month afterwards telling me it was cool. So yeah, I think she was ok with it.'

'I will say, considering the subject matters we've been discussing, I've been extremely surprised at the way you've kept yourself so composed and cool throughout, and I have to question, is this related to your time in the Marines?' 'I suppose it could be, I've never really thought of it that way.' 'I can understand that, it's not the kind of connection you would naturally make. Just quickly, we know you're proud of being, am I right in saying you're still an active Marine?' 'In the reserve, yeah, signed back up a couple of months ago.'

'What made you leave the Marines in the first place?' 'I had some mental health issues, and got diagnosed with a mental disorder [something like Schizo], which meant they had to discharge me on medical grounds, they said at the time that they would welcome me back if and when I got healthy mentally. So a couple of months ago, I wrote to them about it, and signed back up to the active reserve. I'll probably go back to the U.S. in a year or two just to get some closure with that.'

'But the UK is currently your home?' She smiled and her eyes lit up like nothing else hearing this stated. 'Yep, in a small town up near Sunderland called Washington, it's a two bed flat although we're looking at moving, there are some new builds we're interested in a few minutes' walk away.' 'How have you found the UK so far?' 'Love it' she joyfully giggled before he could even finish the sentence. 'I really feel like I've got more of an identity as a Brit than as an American now, I mean I was actually born in the UK'

'I did want to mention this, you're Phil's cousin?' 'Sort of, I mean I'm his Aunt's daughter, but she gave me up for adoption almost straight away. He had no idea we were related until a little while after he started managing me. But I love the UK, it's nice and small compared to Michigan, the people are really cool, and I love the whole football and pub culture that's over there.' 'How was getting a visa?' 'For me it was super easy because I was born in the UK, so I didn't have to fill in much. I know Jade had a few issues because she's a dual national, but I think it helped that by the time she came to apply for residency, we were already dating.'

'Now we've been talking about your family, and of course, we've got the youngest member, Ally… sorry, I'm not sure about her surname?' 'Alice Flannigan, but we always call her Ally.' 'And she is fostered, am I right in thinking?' 'It's… a little funny, because she's my sister's kid. Me and Jade are currently fostering her, we have agreed in principle to adopt her, but we're waiting on the paperwork to come through, we're actually going to be meeting with a lawyer in the near future to discuss the situation. It's really complicated, because she was living with my half-sister, because before they adopted me, my adoptive parents had been in this weird on-off relationship, I don't think Alex even knows which one of them is actually her biological parent. But yeah, she was living with Alex, but that wasn't viable long-term, and when she saw me and Jade had a good thing going, she asked if we could consider adopting her.'

'And she's now' 'A handful' Blair joked. 'No, she's great, it's nice to have her energy around, it feels like it keeps me going on the bad days. So hopefully we'll have some clarity on the situation soon, there shouldn't be any issues, it's just down to whether we have to go back to America to complete it, because technically neither of us are British citizens at the moment. But that's basically all there is to it.'

After a pause, Marc thought of another question. 'Why do you duel? Because we know you're a big fan, we know you're incredibly passionate about your craft, why do you duel?' 'Because I enjoy it. I duel to have fun, and I think at times I've lost sight of that, but not now, now it's all about duelling because I want to be the best at something I enjoy. There's a certain thrill you get from competition that you can't quite quantify, but it just makes you feel so good.'

To close out the interview, Marc had a little game. 'Finally, I've got a little something I want to do with you. It's a little bit of word association, I say the name of someone in the Renegades or around the WDC tour, and you've got to say the first thing that comes into your mind.' 'Ok, I guess I could do that.' After clearing his throat, he stated the first name. 'Astrid Hofferson.' Blair laughed immediately. 'Starting off easy I see. No, Astrid's absolutely great, I wouldn't be the competitor I am now without her.'

'Is there a rivalry between you still?' 'Oh yes' Blair responded in the affirmative. 'There's a lot of competition there still, we're still yet to have that massive duel with each other both at our best.' 'Hannah Cummings or Robinson-Cummings as she is now known.' 'Hannah's like the mother I never really had, me and her are just so close. Plus when I disagree with Phil she always sides with me, so there's that.' 'Have you seen Skylar yet?' 'Yeah, he's totally adorable as you'd expect, just like his Dad.

'How about a Dynasty member - Freja.' 'Erm yep, she's absolutely as wild as she seems. We've not always had the best relationship, but we've grown a lot closer in the past couple of months, she's had some family troubles of her own, so we've sort of talked a lot about that, she takes a lot of getting used to, but when you do you'll be good.' 'Ok, well she has a tag partner, in the Bad Breed,' 'You mean Mini Blair?' 'Pardon?' 'Belle, we call we call her Mini Blair in the Dynasty, because in terms of personality, she is so much like I was when I first came to the Renegades, she's an absolute animal out there, but when she's not in the zone, she's really quiet, incredibly polite but very sort of backwards.'

'So you took her under your wing?' 'Not consciously, but I suppose that we just bonded over the fact that we're quite similar, we've had some similar issues. So yeah, I love Belle, she's really sweet and I want to duel her out there some time when she's got her confidence up.' 'Someone who isn't in the Renegades, but you have history with, Kalin Kessler.' 'Not much to say, Kalin and I travelled together a lot when I was starting out because I had financial issues, but we've just drifted apart. I'm still always grateful to him though.'

'Someone we mentioned earlier, Nash.' 'Great duellist, pretty lousy brother.' 'Based on things Rio has told you?' 'Based on what I've seen. Me and Rio don't really talk about him, she cut him off a while back.' 'Radley.' 'All biceps no brains' Blair responded cheekily. 'Finally, a couple of nice ones. Rio.' 'Rio is… I don't even know how to describe her, she's just this ray of light, and the scariest thing in the world to me is the idea that she's not going to be here one day. She's always going to be my best friend in the world, and… yeah, that's all there is to it.'

'Finally, Maddy.' 'Maddy's crazy, she's absolutely psycho, but… people don't see what happens behind the scenes, Maddy's got a really big heart. Trust me, you only know one small piece of her, she likes to put on a show, but there's a real person there.' With that, the interview concluded. 'Well, this has been an absolutely enlightening interview. My sincere thanks to you, I'm sorry about the way this came about.' 'Thanks.' Blair then put her mask back on, and walked out.

The camera then followed her, as she walked through the corridors and out into the arena to cheers. 'The following duel is under standard rules. Introducing, representing the Dynasty, from Shelby, Michigan, she is the Jewel of the St. Clair, Blair Flannigan.' Blair walked through, not flinching throughout, and in the zone, she raised the red right hand, as the commentators introduced her.

"There are a number of fine duellists in the WDC, but there are likely few who can match the sheer determination and grit of our World Number 1. Blair has honed her craft over years through hard work and commitment to her craft, and is an extremely skilled opponent. She hasn't quite built up the reputation she deserves, but people in the know understand that she is an incredible reader of the board, and always makes the right move. Her deck takes many forms depending on her opponent, but the core of it is her Shadow Puppetry deck, revolving around the eerie Shaddoll monsters, aiming to put the squeeze on opponents with restriction effects, and forcing them into a fatal mistake. She may be mother to Ally now, but there's nothing soft or caring about her when she's competing.'

In the zone, she faced off with Sledgehammer, and he laughed at her. 'Little girl hiding behind a mask, little girl about to get smashed.' 'I'm not hiding, I just can't bear to see your little face when I beat you. I can barely stand seeing it as is. But I came to duel, not to trade insults, so let's go.' 'What's the rush - nervous?' 'No, I'd like to beat you today, that's all. And I'm not big on patience.' As he activated his duel disk, the duel began.

Blair Flannigan LP:8000 vs. The Sledgehammer LP:8000

(Blair hand: El Shaddoll Fusion, Shaddoll Schism, Mathematician, Magical Meltdown, Shaddoll Beast)

Blair: 'I'll start by summoning Mathematician (Atk:1500). Now you don't exactly look like the sharpest tool, so I'll keep this simple for you - Mathematician + field = any Level 4 or lower monster being dumped into my graveyard. I'll send Shaddoll Falco, and use its effect to bring itself straight back face-down. Now I'll activate the Field spell Magical Meltdown.' As Blair was surrounded by a red square lighting up around her, Sledgehammer already looked to be under pressure.

'With this I'll add Aleister the Invoker, but I'm not using him now. Instead I'm taking advantage of Meltdown's hidden effect, the one that stops you responding to any of my Fusion summons. I'll activate El Shaddoll Fusion, combining Mathematician and Shaddoll Beast. Beast of darkness and brain of earth, combine to release the restrained goddess. I Fusion summon El Shaddoll Shekhinaga (Def.:3000). Then I'll draw a card off Beast. I end my turn setting one.'

(Sledgehammer hand: Ancient Warriors - Ambitious Cao De, Ancient Warriors Saga - Deception and Betrayal, Ancient Warriors - Savage Don Ying, Mystical Space Typhoon, Ancient Warriors Saga - Defence of Changban, Ancient Warriors Saga - Three Visits)

Sledgehammer: 'The victorious Sledgehammer draws!' 'Tell him to get on with it then' Blair sassily responded. 'He will start by activating Ancient Warriors - Deception and Betrayal, to summon Ancient Warriors - Savage Don Ying, but taking 600 points of damage for its six Levels.' 'I'll respond with my face-down Shaddoll Schism, using it immediately, to banish Shaddoll Falco and Shaddoll Beast to Fusion summon El Shaddoll Winda.' 'I will activate my Mystical Space Typhoon'

'You really didn't listen earlier did you? Magical Meltdown stops you responding to my Fusion effects and summons. Do you understand, or you need me to ask Ally to draw you a picture? (Winda Atk:2200, Don Ying Atk:2200, Sledgehammer LP:8000-7400). And because you Special summoned while Winda was on the field, that's your one Special summon for the turn done.' Frustrated, Sledgehammer responded quickly, before Nico could even react. 'Don Ying, add Borrowing of Arrows' 'You just triggered Shekhinaga's effect. Because you activated the effect of a Special summoned monster on the field, it's now negated and the monster destroyed. I just have to give up this Shaddoll Fusion from my hand.'

As Blair sent the Spell to the graveyard, Shekhinaga shot out a light which shrunk Don Ying, trapping it in a cage until squashing it with a large fist. 'End turn, set two.'

(Blair hand: Aleister the Invoker, Resh Shaddoll Incarnation)

Blair: 'I'll draw for turn, and summon a monster you might have heard of, it's called Aleister the Invoker (Atk:1000). And it searches Invocation. Now I'll Invocation, banishing Aleister and your Don Ying to Fusion summon the demon genius, Invoked Caliga (Def.:1800). Then I'll use the effect of Invocation, to shuffle it into the deck and return Aleister to my hand. Afterwards, I'll just switch Shek to Attack (Atk:2600), and attack.' Shekhinaga rumbled into life, and a fierce light was shot from the goddess hidden inside, taking some of Sledgehammer's points down (Sledgehammer LP:7400-4800). 'I end my turn setting one card.' 'Not attacking with Winda?' a clearly clueless Nico asked. 'Caliga only allows one attack per turn. And one monster effect.'

Sledgehammer had something else on his mind though. 'Your mask, take off!' 'No, I'm quite happy with it on thank you. Besides, I don't respect you enough.' This angered her opponent even more, and as he roared, he accidentally pushed Nico away in his rage. As Nico picked himself back up, his charge began his next turn.

(Sledgehammer hand: Ancient Warriors - Ambitious Cao De, Ancient Warriors - Masterful Sun Mou)

Sledgehammer: 'DRAW! Deception and Betrayal, summon Cao De (Atk:3000; Sledgehammer LP:4800-4000). Summon Masterful Sun Mou (Atk:1800). Cao De attack Shekhinaga!' 'I activate the effect of Aleister the Invoker in my hand. By sending it from my hand to the graveyard, I can give Shek 1000 more Attack points. Which is more than enough to beat Cao De.' Cao De rushed headlong into Blair's Shekhinaga, which batted it away with a large metallic arm rising, sending the Ancient Warrior back into extinction (Sledgehammer LP:4000-3400). 'I end turn.'

(Blair hand: Naelshaddoll Ariel)

Blair: 'I'll draw, and summon Naelshaddoll Ariel (Atk:1000), and then flip up Sinister Shadow Games to send Helshaddoll Hollow to the grave. Hollow's effect will trigger, and because I can see three attributes on the field, I get to send three cards from my deck (Shaddoll Dragon, Super Polymerisation, Shaddoll Beast). 'Dragon's effect will get rid of one of your face-downs, while Beast draws me another card.' Dragon reappeared from the grave and shot straight through one of Sledgehammer's face-downs (Defence of Changban), destroying it.

'Now I'll Schism, banishing Ariel and Dragon to summon the webbed spirit about to catch you in a trap - El Shaddoll Anoyatyllis (Atk:2700). Now with Anoyatyllis on the field, you can't Special summon from the hand or grave with Spells and Traps. Anoyatyllis, attack.' Blair's monster wrapped its wicked webs around Sun Mou, destroying it (Sledgehammer LP:3400-2500). 'I end my turn.' As she did, Sledgehammer stared at his deck, clearly having his spirit broken by the constant restriction. Eventually, Nico muttered 'This isn't duelling, this is torture', which elicited a response.

'No, this IS duelling. Are you not enjoying yourselves? Because I'm having fun. I enjoy seeing idiots like you unable to fight their way out of a paper bag, I enjoy controlling the pace and working my way to victory, and most of all, I like WINNING. It's a test of skill, concentration and resolve, and quite honestly, I just want it more than you do. Because duelling is just a means to an end for all of you. And that's why you can't touch me.'

(Sledgehammer hand: Ancient Warriors - Deceptive Jia Wen)

Sledgehammer: 'I draw. Set, end turn.'

(Blair hand: Nobleman of Crossout)

Blair: 'I'll draw and activate the Nobleman of Crossout. This destroys your set monster.' A blonde-haired crusader appeared from the Spell, and drew his sword, before piercing Jia Wen, destroying it. 'And with that, Shekhinaga can attack. Just know that you were never going to win this one.' Shekhinaga raised its fist, slamming it into the ground and ending the duel (Sledgehammer LP:2500-0).

After the conclusive win, Blair raised the red right hand again, and then withdrew, having never removed her mask during the duel. As she watched on from behind the plaster, Declan walked out, staring at Sledgehammer and shaking his head at his performance. As the defeated duellist went to walk out, he saw Declan's reaction, and slugged him in the jaw, only for him to stand back up almost immediately without so much as a mark on him.

As this happened, the first bars of Red Right Hand played, and after the lights flashed for a moment, Sledgehammer was surrounded and being beaten down by the club, with Freja and Belle taking great pride in taking out his already damaged knee with various attempts to hyper-extend it. Eventually the troops were called off with him unable to stand, and attention turned to Declan, but surprisingly, Rio held everyone back. 'He's cool' she stated as Blair walked up to him, and took off her mask in a face-off.

This confrontation got huge cheers from the South African crowd, as they stared, neither giving an inch. Eventually Declan smiled, and quietly said to Blair 'When you're at your best, tell me the date and time, and I'll be there.' This seemed to suit Blair, and as she nodded, he stepped aside for her in a show of respect and humility. As they walked past though, Blair and Rio both nodded to him, clearly aware of his plans.

As Declan returned backstage afterwards, he ran into Caleb who was warming up for his duel later. 'Mr. Declan, it's been a while.' 'Caleb.' 'While you're here, I just want to assure you that unlike that lummox Sledgehammer, I won't let the side down tonight, I will be the one to take the WDC title for us.' Declan smiled, and stated 'You seem awfully forgetful, Aster has the first shot.' 'Aster won't get the job done, trust me by my word. He's a jackass, and everyone knows his game. Nobody knows how nasty I can get. Apart from you obviously.' 'Yes. We will see if you're right.'

Elsewhere, Hassleberry was being interviewed, but before he could even talk, Claude took the microphone and dominated the conversation. 'Caleb can run around pretending he can beat the Regiment, and Phil can pretend he's some kind of super competitor when he's just a deadbeat Dad, but let's be honest here, I'M the only one who should really be WDC Champion. I have the skills, I have the personality, and most of all, I'm the face this company needs.' As he was talking, Hassleberry rolled his eyes, and then wandered off. 'Where are you going?' Claude demanded to know, but he was disgusted when his mentee's response was 'To find that chick.'

As he looked around, he quickly found her, eating some pasta out of a cardboard box. As he stared at her grinning, she couldn't help but laugh. 'You ever tried talking to a girl?' 'Not really.' 'Good, because I haven't talked to a guy before. Well apart from my Dad, but that's pretty difficult because he doesn't speak English.' 'Where's he from then?' 'Puerto Rico, born in Carolina and then moved to Miami as a teenager. Yours all from Alabama?' 'Mom's from Tijuana, Dad's from the Bayou. If you want I'll take you down there sometime.'

They then moved in for another kiss, before Claude pushed Brooke over the table, and dragged Hassleberry towards the entrance gate for his duel. Just after he entered the gate, Brooke kicked Claude in the back, and as he went to respond, started kicks to the legs. Her apparent lover watched this happen and laughed, until he was ushered out to the duelling zone, where Caleb was already waiting. '5 minutes I've been out here. But I suppose I could still squeeze in a quick embarrassment of you.' 'Dream on dork' Hassleberry responded uncharacteristically, but his mind was still on Brooke as the duel began.

WDC Championship Top Contender's Duel: Caleb Hyles LP:8000 vs. Sgt. Tyranno Hassleberry LP:8000

(Caleb hand: Dogmatika Nexus, Trap Stun, Dogmatika Ecclesia the Virtuous, Dogmatika Ashiyan, Dogmatika Nation)

Turn 1: Caleb: 'It's time for you to see my light. I'll activate the Dogmatika Nation field!' A towering, pure white nation state rose around the combatants, concerning Hassleberry. 'I'm more of an outdoorsey type of guy, big metropolis don't do Dino man much good.' 'I'll summon Dogmatika Ecclesia the Virtuous (Atk:1500), and use her effect to search a copy of Dogmatikaturgy. I set three and end my turn.'

(Hassleberry hand: Dinomorphia Therezia, Dinomorphia Frenzy, Dinomorphia Intact, Dinomorphia Domain, Fossil Dig, Dinomorphia Reversion)

Hassleberry: 'I draw and I'll summon Dinomorphia Therezia (Atk:1500), using her to set Dinomorphia Brute. Then I'm setting four more and passing over to you.'

(Caleb hand: Dogmatika Ashiyan, Dogmatika Fleurdelis, the Knighted)

Caleb: 'I'll draw and immediately flip my face-down Trap Stun! This stops you using any of your cards this turn, and I'm afraid Mr. Dinosaur…' He then started screaming manically. 'You're never going to get another turn! I'll activate my own Trap, Dogmatikaturgy. This will tributing the Fleurdelis and Ashiyan from my hand to Ritual summon Dogmatika Alba Zoa (Atk:4000). And with Alba Zoa's effect, for every two cards in your Extra deck, you have to send one to the graveyard.' 'Man, if only I could activate my Traps' Hassleberry bemoaned, seemingly knowing what came next. And as the 7th card hit the graveyard, his suspicions were confirmed.

'I'll banish four of your monsters now to summon my Dogmatika Nexus (Atk:3200). And my monsters will make you pay for your unholy sins!' Caleb laughed again as his three monsters moved in with holy light and vigour, and a dark mist from Alba Zoa's enchanting hands ended the contest in barely 90 seconds (Hassleberry LP:8000-0).

As the contest concluded, Caleb didn't have chance to celebrate, as the masked attacker who had previously been revealed ran out and attacked both Caleb and Hassleberry with an iron bar, knocking them both out cold. As security approached to stop them, they threatened everyone with the bar, before hitting both of the competitors once more in the ribs, and then jumped out and left the zone, leaving everyone absolutely stumped.

Backstage, the cameras picked up Maddy's voice, and diverted to see her sat on a windowsill, busy on the phone. 'Sean, is Jess still at the safe house?' 'Yeah man, she's here. You want to talk to her?' 'Not right now, I'm just confirming she's there.' 'Yeah, she's even been doing some painting for me, with her help we should have the renovations finished within the week.' 'That's fantastic, hopefully she'll be able to move back into the base shortly after. Thanks Sean.' 'Look, stop thanking me, anything for a mate.'

As she came off the phone, she was approached for an interview. 'Ladies and Gentlemen, tonight's main event has Caprice Morris challenging my guest at this time, the WDC Young-Gun Champion, Maddy Smith. Now we know that you and Caprice have been clashing for weeks not just at events, but on social media, in back and forth interviews, I mean after your altercations in Egypt, the question remains: are you actually physically ready for this duel?'

She looked around, and stated 'I'm not ready, 'cause I ain't been ready for months. But that doesn't stop us fighting, because no matter how bad I am, I'm never gonna give in, I'm never gonna quit. Because I believe in what we stand for, I've already seen changes, changes we made, that make this place better. When those fans cheer me, they're cheering what I'm standing for, what we're standing for, they appreciate what we do. And when we attack, we're removing the obstacles in our way, people who are against our mission.'

She then lifted her shirt up, showing that her rib brace wasn't on. 'When I collapsed a few months ago, I suffered six broken ribs, and they don't heal quick. So instead of taking 4-6 months out like I was told, I had a brace created to hold shit in place, let them heal. Takes longer, hurts, but you do what you have to. But that's just gonna be an obstacle to what Caprice is experiencing tonight, this is gonna be the quintessential experience of being beaten to a pulp!' 'Finally, the masked attacker earlier tonight' 'It's got nothing to do with Jess' Maddy sharply responded before walking away.

Elsewhere, Caprice was warming up with some leg stretches, her hair teased up in a ponytail, wearing a green leather jacket with army stripes on each arm, when she was approached. 'Caprice, big night tonight, main eventing and challenging for the Young-Gun Championship. But the question remains, you could have challenged for any title, so why this one specifically?' 'I'm pretty sure I did explain this, but since you apparently weren't listening, I'll explain again.'

'I came here to face the best in the world and to beat them. Sure, I could have challenged for the WDC Championship, but I know I could beat him in my sleep. Maddy has been champion for 250 days, she is unbeatable, and when I heard that, that's a challenge I just couldn't turn down. The chance to end the longest title reign in company history, win gold and beat such a fantastic opponent. Because believe it or not, I respect Maddy as an opponent. I respect her so much that I'm putting everything into beating her. But I have no doubt that I'm going to beat her, and bring that title back to this beautiful city on my home country, because the sun, always shines on Caprice. Now outta my way.'

In the duelling zone

Aster walked out first, and delighted in taking his sweet time to play mind games with his opponent. 'The following duel is for the WDC Championship. Introducing first, the challenger, from the City of Angels, the Phoenix has landed - Aster Phoenix.' "Aster Phoenix might look very corporate in his duelling attire, but don't be mistaken, he's always been able to hang with the best and beat them. Looking for a 4th WDC Championship reign here, he's hoping to pilot his powerful combo-orientated Time of Destiny deck to a big win against a man who has been a rival for years.' In the zone, he postured in front of a trio of fans wearing Dynasty shirts in the front row.

This was until Phil's music hit, and he walked out with purpose, accompanied by Kelly and Taylor. 'Introducing his opponent, representing the Dynasty, from Taylor Park, Manchester, England, the Northern Nightmare - Phil Robinson.' "Phil Robinson is starting to pick up momentum in this, his 6th WDC Championship reign, and easily put away the dangerous Sledgehammer inside the Torture Chamber in his second title defence. He has a number of powerful decks, but we have intel that he is using a Cyber Variation deck, a recipe he came up with himself that uses his Cyber Dragons as modular pieces for various Machine-flavoured decks. Phil and Aster don't like each other, so this could be a bitter battle, and our call? It's going all the way."

The champion strode towards the zone, and as the briefcase was opened, it revealed a picture of Hannah and Skylar underneath the lid, hovering above the title in a show of imagery. He then walked into the zone with his title, and held it right in front of Aster. 'You think you're the man Aster, but the truth is, I was ALWAYS the man. But you can start this one, because it's the only time I'll ever let you be ahead of me.' Aster then flipped the bird, and Phil responded by spitting at him, causing security to surround the zone.

WDC Championship: Aster Phoenix LP:8000 vs. [c] Phil Robinson LP:8000

(Aster hand: Destiny Draw, Destiny Hero - Dasher, Destiny Hero - Dark Angel, Destiny Hero - Diamond Dude, Clock Tower Prison)

Aster: 'I'll open with Destiny Draw, to discard my Destiny Hero - Dark Angel and draw two more cards. Then I'll activate my Clock Tower Prison.' A large prison-like building rose up from the ground, with dark clock towers behind each duellist. 'I'm sure you remember how this works.' 'I'm acutely aware.' 'Well I'm about to speed up the clock, by summoning Destiny Hero - Dread Servant (Atk:400). And when he's summoned, Clock Tower Prison moves forward by gaining its first counter. I end my turn with two face-downs.' As he did, the clock faces spun round to show 3 o'clock.

(Phil hand: Cyber Dragon, Cyber Dragon Vier, Union Hangar, C - Crush Wyvern, Cyber Repair Plant, Fusion Weapon)

Phil: 'I'm sure that you're convinced that I haven't evolved, but believe me, I'm very different.' 'That's right, you've got a little brat now haven't you? I might just go and pay him a visit.' This basic inflaming didn't have any effect though. 'I mean if you want Hannah to beat you to death with a baby bottle, then by all means go round there, but I think you're safer here. Not by much though after I summon Cyber Dragon (Atk:2100).'

'And I'll activate Eternal Dread. Time flies when you're having fun doesn't it?' 'If that's what you call it.' The clock hands flew all the way past 6 to 9 o'clock, and Aster posed an issue. 'So what's it going to be? I know that you know about Clock Tower Prison, if it gets another counter, say from Dread Servant being destroyed, I'm then immune to damage. And I'm sure you know all about Dreadmaster.' Phil nodded, and then declared 'I think I'll attack anyway.', surprising Aster as Cyber Dragon blew up Dread Servant (Aster LP:8000-6300).

'Fine, you asked for it, I'll get the final Clock Counter on my Prison.' As he stated this, the clock returned to 12, and as the bell gonged, the entire field started wobbling and shaking as if it was merely an illusion. 'I end my turn.'

(Aster hand: Destiny Hero - Dasher, Destiny Hero - Diamond Dude, Destiny Hero - Denier, Destiny Draw)

Aster: 'I draw, and in my Standby phase I'll use the effect of Destiny Hero - Dark Angel in my graveyard. I have to banish it and Dread Servant, but in return we both place a Normal Spell on the top of our decks.' 'Tell me you have Diamond Dude without telling me. Fine, I'll place Cyber Emergency on top.' 'And I'll place The Beginning of the End. Then I'll summon Destiny Hero - Diamond Dude (Atk:1400), and use its effect. I flip the top card of my deck, and if it's a Normal spell, I activate it next turn without any costs. Well would you look at that, I'll be drawing three next turn then. I'll use Destiny Draw, discarding Denier to draw two, and end my turn with another face-down.'

(Phil hand: Cyber Dragon Vier, Union Hangar, C - Crush Wyvern, Cyber Repair Plant, Fusion Weapon, Cyber Emergency)

Phil: 'I'll draw and activate Cyber Emergency.' 'You're so predictable' Aster laughed confidently in response, but Phil then wiped the smile away. 'I'm sure you think you know everything, but never let it be said that I'm more predictable than I used to be. I'm adding Cyber Pharos, and then summoning it (Atk:0).' Shocked, Aster asked the question. 'What's that?' 'Something you didn't see coming. Pharos is the light of my deck, because it can Fusion summon without me having to lift a finger.' As the lighthouse lit up brightly, a fusion portal appeared in front of it. 'I'll fuse Cyber Dragon with the Cyber Dragon Vier in my hand, and Fusion summon Chimeratech Rampage Dragon (Atk:2100).'

'When Rampage is summoned, I can destroy a Spell or Trap on the field for every material used to summon it. So I'll get rid of your Clock Tower, and the face-down on your left.' Two heads emerged from either side of Rampage, and shot out a fireball each, blowing up the Prison as well as Destiny Signal, as Aster recoiled next to his face-down. 'When Clock Tower Prison is destroyed, I can summon out Destiny Hero - Dreadmaster (Atk:?). When he's summoned, Dreadmaster can summon up to two Destiny Heroes from my graveyard. I've got just the one though - Destiny Hero - Denier (Atk:1600). And Dreadmaster gains the strength of all of his colleagues as well (Atk:3000). How do you like that? Seems your reign might be destined for failure.'

'Try saying that to Fusion Weapon. Because Rampage is Level 6 or lower, it gains 1500 Attack and Defence (Atk:2100-3600). Of course, Dreadmaster protects you this turn, so there's no point attacking.' 'You really do remember everything.' 'We've faced off enough times. If I recall correctly, I beat you last time. And the time before that. And we don't even mention the time before that. I end my turn.'

(Aster hand: Destiny Hero - Dasher, Polymerisation)

Aster: 'I draw. During the Main phase, the effect of Diamond Dude will draw me three new cards.' He seemed somewhat dissatisfied with the cards, but continued regardless. 'I'll activate Polymerisation, fusing Diamond Dude with the Dasher in my hand to Fusion summon Destiny Hero - Dangerous (Atk:2000). Now by discarding one card, I can send Destiny Hero - Malicious to my graveyard from my deck, and increase the power of all my monsters by 200 for every Destiny Hero in my graveyard. And of course, their increases also go to Dreadmaster (Denier Atk:1600-2000, Dangerous Atk:2000-2400, Dreadmaster Atk:3600-4000).'

'Now I don't know what your accountancy skills are like, although judging by the fact that you're not exactly in the Fortune 500 despite the hours you're working, I'm going to suggest they're not amazing, but even you can probably tell that Dreadmaster is now stronger than your Rampage Dragon. Show him who's boss!' The mammoth and ripped Dreadmaster leapt over to Phil's field in a single bound, picked up Rampage Dragon, and smashed it into the ground, creating a crater (Phil LP:8000-7600). 'Now my other monster can attack.' Denier attacked with a chained whip while Dangerous created a ball of dark energy, both being shot towards Phil at speed, rattling him (Phil LP:7600-3200). 'Now that you're cut down to size, I'll end my turn. Good luck.'

(Phil hand: Union Hangar, C - Crush Wyvern, Cyber Repair Plant, Cyber Dragon Nachster)

Phil: 'I'll draw, and activate Cyber Repair Plant. Because I have at least three Cyber Dragon monsters in my graveyard, I can activate both effects, so first I'll add Cyber Dragon from my deck to my hand, and then I'll return Pharos to my deck. And I think I'll summon Cyber Dragon (Atk:2100).' 'Change the tune, you know you've lost.' 'But where's the fun in that when I can reveal… the spice?' As Aster's face started to drop, Phil gestured toward him. 'What, you didn't think I was coming at you with just my Cyber Dragons did you? When you're in the Dynasty, you always need to level up. I activate a Field spell- Union Hangar.'

When the hangar went up with individual pods holding monsters, Aster started to twig as to what his opponent was doing. 'This will add A - Assault Core to my hand. Now I'll summon C - Crush Wyvern (Atk:1200). And the effect of Union Hangar will call out B - Buster Drake, but as an Equip spell for my Wyvern.' 'What then?' 'Glad you asked, how about Cyber Dragon Nachster? I can summon it directly from my hand and revive Rampage Dragon (Atk:100; 2100). And now I'll contact fuse all four of them!'

As he declared this, the looming mechanical figure of an enormous barrel-bodied dragon rose up behind him. 'Say hello to my massive friend - Chimeratech Fortress Dragon (Atk:4000). And then because Crush Wyvern was sent to the graveyard, I can summon A - Assault Core from my hand (Atk:1900). And the effect of Buster Drake will add Union Driver to my hand. Now I'll banish the Assault Core from my hand, and the Buster Drake and Crush Wyvern from my graveyard, to summon the triple threat of tearing you apart, ABC Dragon Buster (Atk:3000).'

'I mean he might be new, but he's still not standing up to my Dreadmaster.' 'He's not meant to, he's meant to discard a card and destroy your Dreadmaster. If you don't want to get mown down, get out of the firing range! Rocket Shot!' ABC's two rectangular cannons raised towards Dreadmaster's head, and fired a pair of explosive rockets, which homed into the head and blew it up on contact.

'Now I can destroy Dangerous with Fortress Dragon. Evolution Artillery - 4th Shot!' The fourth head along on Chimeratech's lengthy body poked out of its portal, and shot a blue light out of its mouth, vapourising Dangerous (Aster LP:6300-4300). 'And now Dragon Buster will deal with Denier.' Dragon Buster rolled across the field on its caterpillar tracks, and arriving at Denier, set it alight with an electrical pulse (Aster LP:4300-2900). 'I end my turn.'

(Aster hand: Destiny Hero - Plasma)

Aster: 'You're never going to beat me, because I'm just a different breed of duellist. First, because I drew a monster for turn, I can summon Destiny Hero - Dasher (Atk:2100).' He revealed Plasma, and Phil tightened his focus. During my Main phase I'll activate the effect of the Beginning of the End that Diamond Dude revealed last turn, to draw 3 cards. One of which is Over Destiny. This allows me to target a Destiny Hero from my graveyard, and summon one from my deck whose Level is less than half. I'll target Dreadmaster and summon Destiny Hero - Dunker (Atk:1200). And with its effect, I send Destiny Hero - Malicious from my hand and send 500 of your Life points back to your little brat (Phil LP:3200-2700).' 'Now I'll banish Malicious from my grave to summon one from my deck (Atk:800), and'

Before he could make his move, Phil countered. 'ABC, disassemble!' As he declared this, the Fusion monster split up into the monsters it was summoned with (Assault Core Def.:200; Buster Drake Def.:1800; Crush Wyvern Def.:2000). 'Hey, what the hell?' 'ABC Dragon Buster can tribute itself to summon back its materials from the banished zone. You might have takenadvantage of Rio, and that's on me, but I'm fully aware of what Plasma does. So what's it going to be?'

'Simple, I'm going to tribute all three of my monsters to summon something truly unbeatable. You know him, you love him, he's the ultimate Destiny Hero, Destiny Hero - Plasma (Atk:1900). And Plasma not only negates all your monster effects on the field, but he can also steal your Assault Core, along with half of its Attack points!' Plasma emitted a deadly ominous wind, which dragged the Machine straight into its evil clutches, only the protruding front of Core being visible through the skin-like wings (Atk:1900-2850). 'Now I'll destroy Crush Wyvern. Vengeful Rain!' Blood fell from the sky like an apocalyptic rain, pelting onto Crush Wyvern and turning it to rust before it crumbled into dust.

'Finally I'll activate D Force.' As he did, a portal opened up above Plasma. 'This card gives Plasma some new power, such as stopping you targeting anything of mine for an effect, and gaining 100 more Attack for each monster in either graveyard, and getting a second attack during the Battle phase (Atk:2850-3550). I end my turn.'

(Phil hand: Union Driver, A - Assault Core)

Phil: 'I'll draw, set a monster and pass it to you again.' 'Rough draw? Happens to everyone, except me obviously, I suppose I'm just superior to you.' Unpurturbed, Phil responded with 'Keep talking, because I save my talking to make it winning.'

(Aster hand: N/A)

Aster: 'D-Force has one little downside - while it's on the field, I can't draw any cards.' 'That's quite big for a "little" downside.' 'What's it to you, you're the one about to lose. Especially after I attack with my Plasma. Destroy his Buster Drake.' Plasma's blood rain came cascading down, blowing up the Drake, as Phil sprung into action again. 'Buster Drake's effect in the graveyard adds Y-Dragon Head to my hand.' 'Sure, not like you're getting to use it. I'll destroy your other monster now.' Aster's vicious attacks ripped into another Assault Core (Def.:200), destroying it (Atk:3650-3750). 'I end my turn.'

(Phil hand: Union Driver, Y Dragon Head, Dark World Dealings)

Phil: 'I draw. I'll activate the Dark World Dealings, forcing us both to draw a card and then discard one. I'll throw out Union Driver.' 'And I'll discard Destiny Hero - Decider. So you just made Plasma even stronger (Atk:3750-3950). I'm starting to think you might be a bit overrated.' Phil didn't respond to this taunt though, as he was calculating a path. 'I'll be activating Unexpected Dai.' 'That old thing?' Aster questioned, confused at the play. 'I'll use it to get a Level 4 or lower Normal monster from my deck. Meet X Head Cannon (Atk:1800). Then I'll summon Y-Dragon Head (Atk:1500), and use it to trigger Union Hangar, rolling out Z-Metal Tank as an equip.'

As the pod opened to reveal the trundling tank, Aster continued being perplexed. 'Still no idea where you're going with this.' 'Well if you'd shut up for long enough, I could show you. I'll banish all three monsters from my field, and summon the modular menace, XYZ-Dragon Cannon (Atk:2800). Then I can banish Assault Core, Buster Drake and Crush Wyvern from my graveyard, and summon ABC-Dragon Buster (Atk:3000).'

Backstage

Blair and Rio were watching the duel on a small monitor, and as XYZ made its appearance, Blair freaked out. 'Oh my god he's summoning it!' 'What, fill me in B, you're scaring me.' 'There's this card that's supposed to be super hard to summon, it's one of the hardest things in the game, and he's just about to nail Aster with it. This is going to be so freaking awesome!' 'You know, for a moment you sounded American again there.' 'No thanks.'

In the zone

Aster still hadn't realised what was about to happen, but Phil had found the solution. 'Every problem has a solution. See, these two might be pretty good, but this is not their final form.' 'It… isn't?' Aster asked nervously. 'No, there's one final form. Prepare to meet the ultimate machine. My monsters, assemble!' As the two fierce Machines disconnected and started to assemble into one, complete monster, Aster watched in sheer horror. 'Witness a new evolution in engineering. I Fusion summon A-to-Z Dragon Buster Cannon! (Atk:4000).'

'But… how am I supposed to beat that?' 'That's the best part - you're NOT! I'll destroy your Plasma with A-to-Z. Dragon Buster Demolition!' Phil's new monster charged up a laser shot from its two cannons, and blasted through Plasma, which disintegrated on contact (Aster LP:2900-2850). 'I end my turn.' In desperation, Aster then revealed his set card. 'I should have done this earlier, I activate Fairy Wind. This destroys all Spells and Traps on the field, and then we both lose 400 Life points for each one destroyed (Aster LP:2850-2050; Phil LP:2700-1900).'

(Aster hand: Santa Claws)

Aster: 'I draw, and I'll tribute your A-to-Z, to summon Santa Claws to your field (Def.:2500).' 'Worked it out already did you?' 'Well, it's not like I was flush with options. I end my turn, and Santa Claws allows me to draw a card.'

(Phil hand: Pot of Avarice)

Phil: 'I'll draw.' After considering his play for a moment, he worked out a play. 'Let's hope this works out, because I've wasted enough time here.' 'What's wrong, desperate to get back to your "family"? Well I'll just have to take even longer then, and that way you'll get more angry, and' 'I activate Pot of Avarice. This shuffles back five monsters into my deck and/or Extra deck, then I draw two new cards. One of which is going to get me another new card - Terraforming. It lets me add another Union Hangar to my hand. But why stop when I can activate it? It lets me add Heavy Mech Support Armor to my hand.'

'Now I'll summon it (Atk:500), and use Hangar to equip it with Union Driver. But it's not sticking around, because I can use Union Driver, sending it to my grave and equipping another Heavy Mech Support Armor to it. And by detaching the Armor, I can summon it (Atk:500). Now I'll Link off one of my Armors and Santa Claws to Link summon Union Carrier (Atk:1000). Union Carrier's effect will equip a monster of the same Type or Attribute to my Mech Support Armor. And I'll choose the Light-attribute Dragon Buster Destruction Sword (Atk:500-1500). Union Carrier, attack.' 'I'll discard my Swift Scarecrow to end the Battle phase.' 'I end my turn. By the way Aster, something you might want to know, Dragon Buster stops you Special summoning from the Extra deck.'

(Aster hand: Fusion Destiny)

Aster: 'I draw.' He was hoping for a way out, but turning the card over, he felt the sharp jolt of his deck letting him down, and refusing to give Phil the pleasure of beating him, he put his hand over the deck to concede.

When this happened, Phil immediately took his title, raised it in the air, and then turned to leave, but Aster grabbed a microphone. 'You got this one, but this isn't over. Not until I've got what you want! Trust me, you don't deserve that title, and if I wasn't the one to take it, Caleb will be.' Phil responded by raising the title again, and shouting 'I hope you're happy now!', before storming off.

Meanwhile, in a darkened room

Once again, Akiza was sat, and she was staring at a photo of herself and Maddy together. 'So young, so innocent, yet to be corrupted. That was before they twisted her mind, made her lust power instead of safety, gave her fake friends and a fake life with a fake future thought of by fake people. But you see, I hold the key to reality, and once she knows the truth, nothing will ever be the same. We have been bound by blood, forever to be as one. And I will be keeping a VERY close eye on you tonight.'

In the Duelling zone

After a hype video showing Caprice and Maddy's violence against each other to a fierce soundtrack, Caprice walked out first, without much of the bravado she usually showed, instead just looking focused and confident. 'Caprice Morris has been here but a short time, yet already she's made everyone fully aware of her skill and danger as a competitor. Her deck is custom-made to deal damage at frightening speeds, putting on a lightshow by blasting her opponent's Life points into the stratosphere.' In the zone, she posed with one finger pointed to the sky, and started shouting 'And new!' over and over, the crowd going wild for her.

Some boos then started as Maddy's music hit, and she walked out, not in her usual Don garb, but in a shirt and jeans, the belt flung around her left shoulder. 'For 250 days, Maddy has proudly worn this belt and defended it across the world. She has defeated foe after foe with resounding valour, dignity and sheer brutality at times, but despite everything still carries the belt proudly and defends it. This will be her 26th title defence here, but will it prove to be her last against her most dangerous challenger yet?'

In the zone, Maddy howled, and raised the red right hand, before going directly face-to-face with Caprice as the introductions were made, and the lights dimmed. 'The following duel is your WDC: Battlegrounds main event, and is for the WDC Young-Gun Championship. As requested by both challenger and champion, there will be no time limits and in the event of a draw, overtime will be permitted. Introducing first the challenger, from Port Elizabeth, South Africa, she is the leader of the Style Council, and the Sun Goddess - Caprice Morris.' She pointed a finger to the sky again, and was showered with streamers from the crowd. 'And her opponent, representing the Renegade Nation, from Stoneybridge, Northumbria, England, she is your reigning and defending WDC Young-Gun Champion, Don Predator - Maddy Smith.' Streamers rained down on Maddy, but she brushed them off and activated her duel disk.

WDC Young-Gun Championship: Caprice Morris LP:8000 vs. [c] Maddy Smith LP:8000

(Caprice hand: Trickstar Candina, Trickstar Lycoris, Celestial Transformation, Additional Mirror Level 7, Athena)

Turn 1: Caprice: 'I'll start with Celestial Transformation, to summon Athena from my hand, halving her Attack (Atk:2600-1300). Then I'll activate this - Additional Mirror Level 7. You know when you go out and realise you just need a good mirror? Well this one's incredibly special, because it reflects Athena and summons her twice more from my deck (Atk:2600)x2. And whenever a Fairy's summoned, Athena deals you with 600 damage.' Shining brightly, Athena shot a sharp bolt of lightning from her staff, forcing Maddy into action.

'I know what you're up to and it ain't working. From my hand I activate Engagement Destiny. This halves the damage that I take for the rest of the turn, but increases your Life points by the same amount. Because I know more than a thing or two about toxic relationships' The first damage was still done, with Caprice gaining power as a result (Maddy LP:8000-7700; Caprice LP:8000-8300). 'That's just fine, I'll summon Trickstar Candina, and each Athena will deal 300 damage (Atk:1800, Maddy LP:7700-7400-7100-6800; Caprice LP:8300-8600-8900-9200), and use her to search Lilybell.'

'Now when she's added like that, I can summon Lilybell directly from my hand (Atk:800, Maddy LP:6800-5900; Caprice LP:8600-9500). And I'll bounce back Candina to summon Trickstar Lycoris (Atk:1600, Maddy LP:5900-5000; Caprice LP:8900-9800). Now I can Link off Lilybell to summon Trickstar Bloom (Atk:100, Maddy LP:5000-4100; Caprice LP:9200-10,100). And when Bloom is summoned, I can make you draw a card and Lycoris makes you take 200 damage (Maddy LP:4100-4000; Caprice ). Then I'll Link off Lycoris and Bloom for Trickstar Holly Angel (Atk:2000, Maddy LP:4100-3200, Caprice LP:10,100-11,000).'

Sensing she was in danger of defeat, Maddy took action. 'Look out for high-flying rocks! I activate Nibiru the Primal Being, because you've summoned at least five monsters this turn. It tributes your entire field to summon itself to my field, and you get a Token whose Attack equals the combined Attack of your field.' A huge rock emerged from the ceiling, and crashed straight into the field, obliterating Caprice's field (Nibiru Def.:600, Primal Being Token Atk/Def.:8100/3600). 'Ugh, I'll end my turn. I hope you know how lucky you are, that should have destroyed you. I'll just have to do it next turn!' As she did, Maddy wobbled, the onslaught having sapped her of her already waning strength. 'What's wrong, a little tired? Well you'll be even worse when I'm done with you.'

(Maddy hand: Chicken Game, Frightfur Meister, Polymerisation, Edge Imp Chain, Fluffal Angel)

Maddy: 'I draw. I'll activate a Field spell - Chicken Game.' As the large totem head appeared behind the champion, Caprice groaned again. 'You're so cheap, you know that?' 'You say cheap, I say keeping my title safe. This title is my life, and I'll give anything to keep it. What makes you think I'm suddenly gonna roll over for you? I'm guessing you know, but I can pay a grand (Maddy LP:3200-2200) to draw a card. Then I'll activate Polymerisation to fuse together Edge Imp Chain and Fluffal Angel, summoning Frightfur Cruel Whale (Atk:2600). And it being summoned allows me to destroy a card on either field. Say goodbye to Nibiru and the Token.'

As Cruel Whale sliced through both hunks of rock with ease, Caprice grinned. 'Give me your best shot you freak!' This caused Maddy's eyes to glow again. 'Careful who you call a freak. Cruel Whale, attack.' The Whale's scythes spun up to speed before one was spat out at Caprice, legitimately cutting her face as the crowd gasped (Caprice LP:11,000-8400). Still confident though, she dug her converse shoes into the ground, and beckoned Maddy on. 'That the best you've got? Because that was frankly PATHETIC!' This got the crowd to roar in delight, as Maddy laughed. 'Looks like pretty girl's got some guts. I end my turn.'

(Caprice hand: Trickstar Candina, Card of Demise)

Caprice: 'I'll draw and activate Card of Demise! This gives me a couple of cards so I have three in my hand, but I can't special summon or deal damage this turn. I'll then activate The Sanctuary in the Sky.' As the totem on Maddy's field started on, snorting fire, a purer temple appeared behind Caprice, giving the image of heaven and hell. 'Then I'll summon Trickstar Candina (Atk:1800), and use her effect to add Trickstar Corobane to my hand. I end my turn.'

(Maddy hand: Frightfur Meister, Awakening of a New Power, Double Cyclone, Flash Fusion)

Maddy: 'I draw. I'll just sit cool, I know you're waiting to Corobane me, you've probably got somit to negate Cruel Whale, so I'll use Chicken Game (Maddy LP:2200-1200), and draw a new card. Which I'll activate - the Trap card Revival Tag. I can activate it from my hand if I'm at least 2k down on Life to you (Caprice LP:8400; Maddy LP:1200). This tag now wraps around my Chicken Game, so whenever it would be removed from the field, I can bring it straight back at the cost of a card in my hand. I end my turn.'

(Caprice hand: Honest, Trickstar Light Arena, Heavy Storm, Just Desserts)

Caprice: 'I'll draw, and activate Heavy Storm, to destroy all Spells and Traps on the field.' 'I'll trigger Revival Tag, sending Frightfur Meister to my graveyard and keeping Chicken Game around.' This is where Caprice saw an opportunity though. 'You said it re-activates, right?' 'Yeah.' 'Well when Revival Tag triggers, I'm going to thread the needle with Just Desserts, dealing you a cool 500 for every monster on your field.' An explosion erupted under Maddy, blowing her off her feet, and seemingly knocking her down for the count, as she lay stirring (Maddy LP:1200-700).

As she lay, Caprice posed for the crowd, and bowed. She then went to walk towards the title, but out of the corner of her eye, she saw Maddy standing up, unsteady and bleeding from the head, but still going. As she wore a mask of crimson, she breathed heavily, and as Caprice ended her turn in surprise, Maddy drew.

(Maddy hand: Awakening of a New Power, Double Cyclone, Flash Fusion, Ritual Cage)

Maddy: 'Awakening… I summon Miracle Wolf (Atk:2800). You… created this. You… fall to this. Overlay Miracle Wolf.' She howled, and dropped to her knees, which spurred Caprice to show genuine concern. 'Look, I don't want you to die on me or anything here.' 'I'm… good. But thanks. I summon R97: Maddy the Legendary Wolfblood (Atk:4000). Attack.' The miasma left Maddy's body with the last of her energy, charging straight into Caprice's monster, and paralysed by fear, she didn't react, until the attack hit her as Candina got punctured with pin-sharp fangs, and Caprice took the full brunt of Maddy's latent power, turning her inside out and tossing her aside like a leaf (Caprice LP:8400-6200).

As the dust settled, it became clear that the duel was over. Caprice lay on her front, absolutely motionless, as medics rushed out to check on her, and Rio held Maddy, who was conscious, but exhausted, unable to move. As Rio attempted to ease the bleeding, the announcement of the academic result came through. 'The referee has deemed both competitors unable to continue. The result of this duel is a Double KO. Still your WDC Young-Gun Champion, Maddy Smith.' No music played though, as treatment continued on both.

As Caprice was slowly rolled onto a stretcher, Akiza hastened out, and went straight towards Maddy. Rio stood up to her, only to be pushed away with force, but as Akiza went to pick Maddy up, Belle rushed in with a stiff forearm to her jaw, stunning her and allowing she and Rio to create a blockade, as the aspiring medic pulled out a syringe. 'One step closer, and you're getting a triple dose of liquid paracetamol. Don't know how fond you are of your liver working, but it's up to you.' This was enough to back Akiza off, as Belle received a microphone. 'Akiza, you can throw your weight around, but I'm done with your shit, you're so embarrassed about losing to me? Birmingham, Alabama, you get your chance to make right, but if you lose, you leave the WDC, because you're not laying a finger on our ALPHA!' Akiza made a slit-throat gesture in response, accepting the challenge as the show ended.

Next time: As the pressures of travel and being champion catch up with him, Phil sees a glimpse of what he's missing. Meanwhile, Maddy makes a realisation that draws her closer to discovering the truth in Renegades: A New Dawn Chapter LXXIII: Pieces of Valentine