We Can't Learn to Leave

Participating in the opening ceremonies' parade felt like an incredible dream. The teams were all going out in alphabetical order, so Yusei's team was about the first one. Kalin watched Team 5Ds in awe while waiting their turn.

They were really here, really celebrating the reuniting of the City and the Satellite after all the long years of oppression and strife. Yes, this was definitely where he belonged. Even though he had eventually lost his way, he had fought so hard for this outcome. Now he was sharing in it with all of his friends, both old and new. They were realizing that long-held dream together.

He scowled as Team Catastrophe went out. Whether he wanted to acknowledge it or not, he certainly understood their frustration with how things had been in the Satellite and how hard it had been to get ahead. When he thought about it more, he could even imagine behaving with Radley as Nicolas had done, if he hadn't gone through everything he had since his downfall. That was a devastating thought.

"What are you thinking about?" Radley asked.

Kalin suddenly realized he had clenched his fist too tightly and was almost drawing blood. "I understand them," he said quietly. "And I realized it could have been me treating you as their leader did."

Radley gently took Kalin's fist in his hand and laid his other hand on top of it. "You've come so far," he said. "Maybe someday they'll get over their bitter feelings too."

Kalin nodded. He hoped so.

Belle's team was indeed participating too. They went out soon after, with her guy friend waving enthusiastically and perhaps overdramatically to the crowd.

Radley smiled. "Belle looks really happy to be here, but nervous too," he remarked. "I'll try to go over and say something encouraging to her."

"You always say the right things!" Scotch gushed.

Kalin had to smile. Yes, Radley really did. It was a definite talent of his.

"Thank you, Scotch," Radley said. "I try."

Soon it was time for them to go out. They went with Scotch waving up a storm with both hands and Radley smiling and waving too. Kalin just looked around at all the people, still in awe.

"And that is Team Satisfaction Town, ladies and gentlemen!" the MC announced. "Radley Ramon, Kalin Kessler, and Scotch Ramon! They look like they're raring to go! I'm sure they'll give all of us a good show when it's their turn to duel!"

Kalin certainly intended on that. He hoped it would be their turn to duel soon.

"Scotch took on your last name for his own?" he remarked in slight surprise when they found their new place to sit.

"Yeah," Radley smiled. "He figured he needed a last name for things like this and he decided to use mine so we'd be even more like brothers."

"That's . . . really an honor," Kalin stammered, sincerely meaning it.

"It sure is," Radley agreed.

"I would have used both of you guys' names," Scotch chimed in, "but I thought that might sound like you're a couple or something. Some couples these days use both last names with a hyphen connecting them!"

Radley chuckled. "Some people think we're a couple anyway. And I don't think we'd actually mind if they thought that about us. But that was thoughtful, Scotch."

Kalin was just bowled over that Scotch had wanted to use his name too. "You really would have done that otherwise?" he said.

"Sure!" Scotch said. "Why wouldn't I? You're family too!"

Radley smiled at that, even as Kalin continued to look astonished. "Yes, we're all a family," he said firmly. He squeezed Kalin's hand.

"When do they start matching teams up?!" Scotch eagerly asked.

"Probably right after the parade," Radley said.

And he was right. After the parade ended, the computer went to work matching everyone up. Scotch practically bounded over to the screen, trying to see it while everyone else was crowding around too. "I haven't even heard of most of these guys!" he said. "I don't recognize the team we're up against. But seriously, Team Sunrise?! That's an epically awesome name!"

Radley and Kalin didn't know them either. But Radley firmly laid a hand on Kalin's shoulder. "We'll do our best against them," he said.

Kalin nodded. They would.

"Team 5Ds is going up against Team Unicorn," Scotch added.

"Will we be able to watch?" Kalin wondered.

"Yeah, we should be able to!" Scotch said. "Our matches aren't at the same time."

"Good," Kalin said, pleased.

Radley was too. Things were working out well so far.

"And Team Catastrophe is paired up with Belle's team, Team Clear Skies," Scotch said, frowning now. "I hope Belle's team wipes the floor with them!"

A bit of worry flickered in Radley's eyes. "I don't like the thought of Belle's team going up against those guys first off," he said.

"Will we be able to watch that match too?" Kalin looked back and forth between the boards, reading the times.

"Maybe," Scotch said. "Theirs is right after ours, so we might miss the first few minutes of it if we're cleaning up and stuff."

Radley nodded. "We'd better go get ready for our match."

How incredibly surreal it felt, to hear those words and know they were true. They were about to go into a match in a Dueling tournament. They were really in one, and in the City, no less! It still didn't fully seem real.

"We'd better," Kalin agreed.

Team Sunrise were also newcomers to the scene, three young kids with hopeful dreams of becoming the best and using the prize money to open their own card shop. Scotch really started chatting it up with Ralph, his opponent, when they set out.

Radley folded his arms as he and Kalin watched from the sidelines. "I feel kinda bad to take them down," he admitted. "The prize money would be good to have for the town, but we don't actually need it. They probably do."

"They do," Kalin agreed. "But I doubt they're good enough to get past Yusei even if they make it past us."

Radley nodded. "And even losses will hopefully give them experience . . . good experience for the future." But he frowned as he said it.

". . . Will you be okay with losing if that happens?" Kalin asked in concern.

Radley managed a smile. "I think we tempered my pesky phobia a good deal, anyway. But I'd rather not lose, and I'll be fighting tooth and nail not to."

"If we hold out as long as possible, we'll no doubt go up against Team 5Ds, like Jack said," Kalin said. "I'm sure they'll make it to the top."

"They probably will," Radley agreed. He hesitated. "I've gotta say, I'd rather face Yusei or Crow than Jack." He smirked a bit.

"Jack is intimidating," Kalin had to admit.

"I know all of them would be trying hard to win, but Jack kinda seems obsessed with it," Radley said. "I feel like he'd be the most vicious of the three."

"Of course, they're all honorable Duelists," Kalin said, "but I know what you mean. You're just lucky you didn't have to face me as a Dark Signer." He shuddered. "No, we're both lucky that didn't happen."

Radley laid a hand on his shoulder. "Yeah."

They watched as the Duel continued. Scotch seemed to have really hit it off with Ralph, but they were both dueling hard. In the end, Scotch came out on top and whooped in delight. The rest of the Bunch cheered too.

Radley had to smile. "I'm glad Scotch won," he said. "This will be a happy memory for him to take home."

Kalin smiled too. "The next duel might be harder," he remarked. "I'm guessing most teams are going out in ascending order of difficulty."

"Probably," Radley said.

And indeed, although Scotch fought his hardest, he finally was beaten back by Jeremy, the second Duelist. But he rode back to the others with a smile.

"I've weakened him for you, Kalin!" he proclaimed. "I know you and Radley will handle the rest just fine!"

Kalin nodded, hurrying to affix his helmet. "You did well," he congratulated.

"You most certainly did," Radley said. "We're very proud of you." He hugged Scotch and looked to Kalin. "Good luck out there, Bro."

Kalin gave him a thumbs-up and took a deep breath as he climbed on his Duel Runner. This was really it; he was going to duel in this prestigious tournament. He had to make it good.

His new opponent glanced over his shoulder as Kalin rode up to continue the duel in progress. "Your friend was good, but not good enough," Jeremy greeted. "How about you?"

Kalin gave a smirk that was much more confident than he actually felt. "They called me Kiryu Kyousuke in the Satellite," he replied, "the Demon-Dragon that took out all the Duel Gangs."

Jeremy's eyes widened. "That was you?! Wow, that's so amazing! I never in a million years thought I'd ever meet you! I heard you were dead!"

"Demon-Dragons don't stay dead," Kalin proclaimed.

The duel resumed as it had been left off. Scotch had left behind some powerful cards on the field that assisted Kalin in building and enacting his strategy, and although he was tense, he was slowly starting to relax. This wasn't a high stakes duel; this could just be fun. He had always come alive when he dueled, even when he had felt dead inside, and he couldn't hide how much he was enjoying himself. He had feared he would lock up with the memories of having hurt Yusei in their Turbo Duels, as he had many times during his practices, but right now he instead felt so free. If Yusei was able to watch, he knew Yusei would be smiling in happiness. When the duel at last drew to a close with Kalin's victory, he felt almost euphoric.

Jeremy was happy too. "This will be a story for the ages, how I dueled the Kalin Kessler!" the kid exclaimed. "But don't get too over-confident; the next duel might just end it for you!"

"We'll see," Kalin said. On the one hand, losing meant Radley would get a chance to duel, and he wanted Radley to have that chance. On the other hand, Kalin really didn't want to lose. Winning a good, honest duel in a real tournament felt so good. He didn't want to have to lose that feeling so soon, as Scotch had.

The third Duelist, Hank, seemed much less personable than his friends. He came out with a dark scowl. "I know of you, Kiryu Kyousuke," he declared. "My brother was in one of the Duel Gangs you beat."

"The Duel Gangs were terrorizing the people," Kalin said, coming back to Earth with the cold greeting. "They had to be stopped."

"And yet you immediately started terrorizing the people too, once there was no one else to beat. I hate your kind." Hank took off riding hard. "I won't let your hypocrisy win here."

Kalin's eyes narrowed. He sped off as well, his knuckles beginning to turn white as he gripped the handlebars. He had to win this duel, to prove that he was no longer that hypocritical person. He would win it.

It certainly wasn't easy. Hank was good at what he did in addition to being filled with a vengeful drive to beat Kalin specifically. And it wasn't just Kalin who saw that. Every time they rode past where Radley and the others were watching, the worry in Radley's eyes was obvious. He could see this wasn't just an ordinary duel, as the first two had been.

Kalin was determined that Radley wouldn't have to keep worrying. He would win this.

The duel was fierce as it continued. Hank's Beat-Down strategy was definitely trouncing Kalin's Infernities, but since they activated their effects mostly from the Graveyard anyway, Kalin continued to have the last laughs. That, of course, only enraged Hank all the more.

"What's really your problem?" Kalin asked at last. "Are you really just angry at me because you think I'm a hypocrite? This feels much more personal."

"Oh, it's personal, alright," Hank snarled. "My brother never recovered from having his Duel Gang beat. The others blamed him for the loss and ganged up on him that night. He lost his right arm because of the beating he took!"

Kalin went sheet-white and badly swerved, only barely stopping from crashing into the wall while the spectators gasped and some called out. Another sin to pay for. If he hadn't beaten that Duel Gang, he wouldn't have incited the members' wrath against one of their own. Someone wouldn't be missing his arm if not for Kalin's reckless actions.

"Kalin!"

He looked up with a start. Yusei was above him, gripping the railing as he called out. Crow was standing next to him in concern, while Jack was also walking over, weaving his way around hot dog vendors.

"That gang was beating up kids," Crow said. "We had to take them out!"

Jack gave a firm nod. "What they did about it isn't on us," he said.

Hank swore at them all. "I'll make you all take responsibility for your actions," he vowed. "After I take Kalin down, I'm coming for all of you!"

Kalin drew a shaking breath. He had to get himself under control. "You have to take me down first," he said.

"Do you even still have what it takes to go on?" Hank retorted. "I can see I rattled your spirit."

"Yeah, and you couldn't have done that if Kalin was really the creep you think he is!" Crow declared.

Yusei firmly nodded and looked to Kalin. "We all know you can do this, Kalin," he said.

"Make your teammates proud," Jack said.

Kalin finally smiled. "I will," he said.

And although the duel remained tense, Kalin finally was indeed able to bring about a win with a combination of Infernity Randomizer's effect and the card Double Summon, which allowed him to bring Vorse Raider to the field. Once he powered it up with two equip cards, it was able to take out Hank's over-powered monster and the rest of his life points.

Hank, unfortunately, didn't look any less hateful as he ground to a halt. "This isn't over," he vowed. "One way or another, I will see that you and Team 5Ds all pay for what happened."

"I'm truly sorry about your brother," Kalin said. "I never wanted or thought that would happen. I believed I was doing the right thing to bring that Duel Gang down. But you're right, once they were all beaten, I became just as bad as the ones I defeated. I will never forgive myself for that."

"I don't want to hear your hollow apologies," Hank snapped. "I don't believe you're really sorry."

Kalin sighed. "Then nothing I or the others say will make a difference. I'm sorry for that as well. No one knows more than I do how hate poisons someone. I hope you will find the light again before you fall as far as I did."

Hank just swore at him in response.

Kalin's feelings were mixed as he went back to where the others were waiting. Radley rushed over to him immediately, with Scotch and the rest of the Bunch not far behind.

"Are you okay, Kalin?!" Radley exclaimed. "I swear you almost gave me a heart attack when you nearly hit the wall!"

Kalin didn't answer at first. But he pulled Radley into a tight embrace and just held him for a long moment. Accepting that for now, Radley slowly hugged back.

Finally Kalin pulled himself together enough to verbally answer. He rocked back enough to see into Radley's eyes while still embracing him. "That guy's brother was in one of the Duel Gangs the Enforcers took out," he rasped. "Then the gang blamed the brother for their loss and beat him so badly he lost his arm. . . ."

Radley stared, aghast. "Oh Kalin. . . ." It didn't need to be said how devastating that news would be for Kalin when he struggled as it was with all that he blamed himself for.

"That's messed up!" Scotch cried. "But it's not like it's your fault it happened!"

"Hank thinks it is," Kalin said. "And even though I didn't directly cause it, I definitely set events in motion that caused it to happen."

Radley sighed. He supposed he couldn't deny that, but he still hated to see Kalin beat himself up for it. "What do you wanna do?" he asked. "Do you regret coming here now?"

Kalin pondered the question for a moment before shaking his head. "No." He looked up thoughtfully. "Before, in the first duel . . . it felt amazing. I felt so free. I want to keep feeling that."

"Do you think you will?" Radley carefully asked.

"I hope I will." Kalin looked to the computer with its list of match-ups. "Surely there aren't others here who have a grudge against me."

Radley looked relieved that Kalin wasn't wondering that exact thing. "Then we'll keep going," he said.

Scotch cheered. "Right to the top!" he agreed.

The others whooped too. "Right where you belong!" Clint said happily.

Suddenly realizing something, Kalin paused and looked around. "Where's Yusei and the others? I thought they'd come to check on me after what happened. . . ."

"I'm sure glad they were sitting near where you almost crashed," Radley said. "I couldn't have reached you in time. But . . . I don't know where they are now." He frowned. "They're not dueling next, so they couldn't have needed to rush to get ready for that. . . ."

"Team Catastrophe's late too," Scotch remarked. "Team Clear Skies is coming over here now, all ready to start dueling, but where're those creeps?!"

Belle smiled shyly as she and her teammates walked over to Radley and the others. "I'm really happy you won your first duels," she said. "Congratulations."

"Thank you, Belle," Radley smiled kindly. "Good luck to you guys out there."

Her childhood friend, a tall boy named Toru, grinned. "Hey, it's great to see how Crash Town . . . er, Satisfaction Town, has got so much better since I left! You guys really worked hard to put it back together!"

"Yes, we certainly have," Radley said, pleased for the praise.

The third member of the team, a quiet blue-haired girl, just kept her hands in her pockets and nodded. "Belle talks about you a lot," she told Radley in a flat tone.

"Really?" Radley smiled, though he wasn't surprised. "I'm very flattered."

The girl just grunted. "Hm." She pulled on her helmet. "I'm dueling first."

"Good luck," Radley said again.

"That's Misaki," Toru said as she headed off. "She's a great mechanic, but she's not always so personable." He looked embarrassed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry about that."

"It's fine," Radley said. "I've gotten used to such behavior. Although the last person to act like that with me is crazy about me now." He winked at Kalin, who smiled.

Yusei suddenly burst into the area, looking around in concern. "Kalin!" He hurried over. "Are you okay?!"

Kalin started and looked over, still smiling. "Yes, I am. Thank you, Yusei, for how you, Jack, and Crow helped me out there."

Yusei started to relax. "I'm sorry about what happened. We were trying to find you after the duel ended and we ran into Team Catastrophe. They'd heard some of what Hank was upset about and were asking us about it. They didn't let us get away at first."

"Seriously?! Are they on his side?!" Scotch groused.

"They don't seem to be on either side," Yusei said. "Their main frustration seems to be that even with the City and the Satellite united, it hasn't solved all the problems in the Satellite."

Radley sighed in resignation. "It wouldn't, of course."

"And there they come now," Billy noted, seeing the disagreeable team entering the arena. "The first guy is going to duel Misaki."

"You're all welcome to stay here with us to watch, instead of looking for other places to sit," Toru said.

Radley smiled at that. "Thanks."

Everyone watched as the duel played out. Misaki was an ice queen, calm under pressure and barely speaking. Her behavior was starting to rattle Team Catastrophe's Hans, but he resolutely kept going.

It was when Misaki was just about to enact what was likely a winning strategy that it happened. Suddenly, without any warning at all, her Duel Runner swerved violently and headed for the same wall that Kalin had almost hit. With a horrific, sickening sound, the motorcycle crashed.