A World at War

Daylen Amell groaned as he woke up from traveling through the portal. He looked around to see that he was in some kind of countryside. But this sight was a site that could be seen in the world so he was a bit worried that he hadn't traveled to this other Dimension. But he did know that he wasn't at Duel Academy Island since most of the island was a forest. But he grew concerned when he couldn't see any of the others from the group. But soon he saw his friend Aedan lying nearby though he was a bit confused by what Aedan was wearing. Instead of his Obelisk Blue uniform, he wore some kind of suit of armor like a medieval warrior did. Daylen then saw Neria lying nearby as well who was just starting to wake up and her Ra Yellow uniform had changed into some kind of brown tunic, but what caught Daylen's eyes were her ears, they had become longer and pointier just like an elf from stories.

Daylen walked over to Aedan and began shaking him. "Hey, Aedan, wake up."

Aedan groaned as he woke up and then he looked and saw Daylen kneeling next to him.

"Daylen?" He questioned as he sat up. "Did the portal work, did we make it to this new Dimension?"

Daylen looked at him.

"I think we did." He stated. "This place definitely isn't Duel Academy island and take a look up." Aedan looked at Daylen and Neria and was shocked to see the two of them wearing robes while Neria also had elf ears.

Aedan was even more confused at seeing that he wore a suit of armor. "Why have our clothes changed and why does Neria look like an elf."

"I don't know myself." Neria stated as she felt her ears. "These ears feel so weird." Then she grew concerned "Wait, where is everyone else? I though more of us were coming than just us three."

Daylen's eyes narrowed.

"Did Alexius go back on his word?" He growled. "If he has, he'll wish he was never born when I get my hands on him."

"Well you'll have to wait until we get back." Aedan stated. "And we should try and find the others as well as Solona and fast. Remember what Alexius said, if we wait too long then we may not be able to get back."

Neria looked at Aedan.

"Look, I agree that we have to find the others." She claimed. "But we have no idea where we are. Maybe we should try and learn more about this place and then we might get a better idea of where the others are."

Daylen thought for a moment, he really wanted to find his sister but he knew that Neria was right, they had to find out more about this place otherwise they would end up getting lost and so he looked at the others.

"Neria's right." He stated "We need to find out more but where do we go first?"

Aedan then saw smoke in the distance.

"Look there." He called "Smoke, that could me that there is someone there"

"Maybe they can help us." Neria stated. "But we should be careful, we don't know who those people are so let's be ready for anything." Aedan and Daylen agreed with her and they began heading in the direction of the smoke to see if there was someone there who could help them.

...

In an area far away from Daylen, Aedan and Neria; Solona was led into some kind of town by Evangeline and the man known as Teagan. Teagan was very friendly towards Solona but was also cautious and Solona suspected that this may have been because of the war that was going on. The town was full of life; stalls were set up with people buying things from them. This town was also next to a large lake where there must have been a lot of fish as fishermen were along the lake fishing or were fishing in boats. But what caught Solona's eye was the massive stone castle that overlooked the town. The Castle overlooked the town from a cliff which made it a very defend-able castle.

"So, welcome to Redcliffe." Teagan stated. "I'll get a room set up for you at the castle, you are my guest"

Solona looked at Teagan in shock

"There is no need for that." She stated. "I'll be fine with just staying at the Inn here."

Teagan sighed.

"That won't be possible." he stated and then he walked towards a large buildings which seemed to be the local inn for the village and Solona could see why Teagan said that staying here was impossible, the Inn was filled with many people who did not have homes. Healers were helping save injured men in a storage room, which had been turned into an infirmary while woman sat with crying children who they tried to calm down "This village has many refugees coming from the war, as a result we've little room left."

Solona looked at him.

"So can you tell me more about this war?" She asked

It was Evangeline who spoke. "For many years this World has existed with many different factions." She claimed. "Legend says that many years ago, the Dragon faction ruled this world, some say peacefully, some say with an Iron Fist but they kept order as they kept the smaller factions from fighting each other. But one day, several new factions arrived who used new types of monsters filed with demons and undead."

Solona realized that these factions must be based around a monster type and that these new factions must mean Fiend and Zombie type monsters.

Evangeline carried on "The Dragon Faction put up a fight and were winning for a time until their ancient Dragon God cards got stolen from their sacred temples and corrupted, so now their best monsters were used to destroy the Dragon Faction and left the world ready for conquer. But the most powerful of the lower factions, the Warriors and the Spellcasters took up the fight and were eventually able to defeat these new Factions."

Teagan then carried on. "Peace had arrived but it was to be short lived, the Warriors and the Spellcasters began to fight each other and eventually, they settled a truce, the Warriors rule the Eastern lands from their capital of Kirkwall while the Spellcasters rule the West from Cumberland. The many small factions live in the lands between them as a buffer. There have been tensions but never war until now when Knight Commander Meredith, the leader of the Warrior Faction declared war on the Spellcaster Faction, she believed that they were going to take over the world and now the war is being fought in the buffer lands."

"Both sides are just as bad as each other." Evangeline claimed "They attack innocent groups, take the duellists so they can force them into the army and others they used special tools to seal them inside crystal balls and use them for power."

Solona gasped, that was just like the Shadow Games she had endured back at home, now she understood, Duelling in this world was not a game, it was used for war.

"This had resulted in many people fleeing towards the more defend-able areas of these lands" Teagan stated "Redcliffe has taken many refugees but even we have been attacked several times but have repelled them"

"Why has this place been attacked several times?" Solona asked

Teagan answered that.

"Redcliffe is a very defend-able castle." He stated. "It also has a strategic location; if either the Spellcaster or Warrior Faction gained control of the region then they would have access to the other region. Redcliffe is at the area of the Buffer lands where the gap between the two major faction lands is smallest so they could then attack which is why we've had to fight both sides. But the Warrior faction has sent the most attacks for another reason"

"And what is this reason?" Solona asked

Evangeline answered this one. "Even though the Dragon Faction collapsed, there are still some Dragon cards around the world but they are rare which is why you got our interest since your deck has dragons in it. But we have a few Dragon cards here in Redcliffe which the Warrior Faction wants to get hold of but we have refused to allow them to have them. We just don't trust them not to use them in the wrong way."

Solona looked at them after they finished telling her the tale; it was clear that she was now in another world and had to find a way home. But after what she heard, she knew that she had to do something to help these people, she couldn't just watch as they were being hunted so she looked at Teagan "I will do whatever I can to help" she claimed "If those Warriors or Spellcasters show up then I will help fight them off."

Teagan smiled.

"Thank you." He stated. "Now I think I should introduce you to the other duelists here, they'll be eager to meet you."

...

Daylen along with Neria and Aedan carried on walking towards the smoke but when they got to what was causing the smoke, they were in for a shock, it was a village with wooden houses that were all burning and the flames were engulfing every building.

"The village!" Aedan gasped. "It's been destroyed."

Neria looked around in horror.

"What happened here?" She wondered. "It looks like this place has been used as a battlefield."

Aedan looked around.

"It may be best we get out of here." He stated "Whatever happened, it looks like this fight happened recently and whoever was fighting might still be nearby"

Aedan was right as soon they soon heard an angry shout. "You shall pay for this!" This got everyone curious and so they ran towards where the shouting was heard and they soon came across two people, a man and a woman, standing another woman and there was a duel going on between the two women

One woman had short black hair and wore some kind of magical robes and also had a tattoo on her cheek, she also had Breaker the Magical Warrior on the field and 1200 life points left according to the duel. The other woman has short red hair but had two monsters on her field, Harpie Queen and Cyber Harpie Lady and had 500 life points left.

"Go on Anais, beat her." The boy cheered

The woman with the Harpie ladies who was called Anais smirked. "Cyber Harpie, destroy Grace's Breaker." The Cyber Harpy Lady swooped towards Breaker and swipe him with her claws and destroyed the monster.

Anais: 500

Grace: 1000

"And now Harpie Queen, end this." Anais ordered and then Harpy Queen swooped throw Grace who then fell to her knees

Anais: 500 (Winner)

Grace: 0000

"No!" Grace yelled "How can I lose like this."

"Because all you're good at is attacking innocent people like this village." Anais hissed

Grace narrowed her eyes. "Even though I lost to you, Master Decimus still has the people here for his power. And soon he will have more victims." She then used the power from her duel disk to vanish.

"She got away." The man with Anais hissed "Now we'll never rescue those people."

Anais sighed.

"We can't save everyone." she stated. "We have to save who we can; this war is getting worse and worse." It was then that she turned around and gasped when she saw Daylen, Neria and Aedan, she quickly activated her Duel Disk.

"Who are you?" she demanded "Are you here to try and kidnap more people."

"Whoa hey hold on!" Aedan protested "We're not here to cause trouble."

"Oh really?" Anais questioned and looked at Aedan's outfit. "Are you one of those Warriors, who has been sent to harass us, you're just as bad as these Spellcasters."

"We don't want any trouble." Daylen stated. "We saw the smoke in the distance and wonder what was going on, we hoped we could find some directions."

"And where were you planning on going?" Anais questioned. "Not many safe places around here since the war began."

The man placed a hand on Anais' should which calmed her down. "Anais wait, these people might be those friends that that girl spoke of."

"Girl, what girl?" Daylen questioned as hope rose inside him, it could be his sister was fine.

The man carried on. "A girl we rescued a while back, she was tired and scared as she had no idea where she was. She had auburn hair and was quite kind to people when she woke up" the hope diminished in Daylen as Solona did not have auburn hair and then the man carried on "She called herself Kal, Kal..." it seemed he could not remember the name

"Her name was Kallian Clemence." Anais sighed

That caught Aedan's interest. "Kallian, Kallian Tabris?"

The man known as Clemence nodded. "That was her name."

Aedan widened her eyes and turned to Daylen and Neria.

"What is she doing here?" He wondered. "She wasn't meant to be here."

Clemence looked at them. "If Kallian is your friend then we will take you to her."

"But be warned." Anais hissed. "If you try anything then you'll face the wrath of my birds."

"We understand." Neria stated and then the three of them followed Anais and Clemence

...

Theorn Maheriel carried on walking through the forest. No matter what he did he still couldn't find a way out and this forest seemed to go on forever. He had to find a way soon as he had no food and would not be able to survive without water for long. Eventually, he came to a river and he gasped as this meant he could finally have a drink so he knelt at the edge of the river but then realised that this water may not be fresh but he had to try. He cupped his hands and pulled a bit of water and quickly drank it, the taste was not the best but it wasn't salt water so it was safe to drink. He quickly drank some more and then decided that he would follow the river in order to find a way out of the forest.

...

The woman known as Anais led Daylen, Neria and Aedan through a small mountain pass which came towards the place where Anais' group called home. Their home was a place called Winterwatch tower, a small square keep in the Mountains that was home to a group of people led by Anais and where refugees had come.

"Welcome to Winterwatch Tower." Anais welcomed the group "It's not much but it's the safest place around here for miles. With the war raging throughout the lands, most people flee for the safety of the larger areas."

Daylen looked around and saw that there were many people who looked liked they had lost their homes in this war and had only been able to bring a few things with them. Children were crying while their mothers held them letting them know that they were safe. Neria was heartbroken at seeing this but she had no idea on what to do.

Anais then went to a small building which Aedan could see was being used as an Infirmary as there were many injured people in there "Hey Kallian" Anais called "There's a few people out here which you might what to meet"

Anais then came back as a red haired teenage girl followed her, as soon as Aedan, Daylen and Neria saw her, they all gasped as saw that it was indeed their friend Kallian Tabris

Kallian gasped when she saw her friends and ran towards them.

"Aedan!" She shouted. "Daylen, Neria! I'm so glad that you found me."

Aedan smiled at Kallian.

"We're glad to see that you're okay Kallian." He stated

Daylen looked at her.

"Kallian, what happened back at Duel Academy?" He asked. "You weren't supposed to come here with us."

Kallian sighed.

"The Venatori knew that we were creating a portal and so they caused it to overpower, it sucked everyone in except for Cassandra, Dorian, Daniel, Sheppard and Alexius. Everyone else got pulled in including me."

"So what happened to you?" Neria asked. "And do you have any idea where everyone else is?"

Kallian shook her head. "No, when I woke up I was alone. I was in the mountains and I tried to find someone who could help. Eventually I got tired out but Anais found me and brought me back here. She told me about what's going on with this world, part of me wants to help them but we need to find the others"

"She's right." Aedan stated. "Alexius said that if we didn't get back home in time then we might be trapped here for a long time."

Anais walked over to them.

"So there are more of you?" she asked

"There are." Daylen stated. "My sister got kidnapped and we've come looking for her. But we all got separated."

Anais looked at them. "I'm sorry but you friends may already be gone, this world is no longer safe due to the war. If your friends are duelists then they may have been forced into the armies or captured by the Warrior Faction. Anyone else just gets sealed into orbs by the Warriors." She then sighed "The main Spellcaster Faction is fair to the people but a large number have broken off into groups of raiders."

Neria looked at the others.

"Maybe one of these Raider Groups knows where our friends are." She suggested

Aedan sighed. "Well it's better than just wandering around with no ideas"

Anais was shocked.

"Wait, you mean you want to find one of these Raiding groups?" She asked

"We do." Daylen stated. "They may have information that can help us find the others in my group"

Anais sighed.

"Well I'm coming with you." She stated. "I know these people and I know where they can be found."

Aedan, Daylen, Neria and Kallian looked at her and knew that there was no way they could talk her out of this and besides, they would need someone who could help guide them through these lands.

...

Later, the five of them were walking along the Mountain sides where they could see some caves. This did seem like the perfect place for a group of duellists who attacked people and then fled into hiding would use as a base as it was well hidden.

"So they're somewhere in these caves?" Aedan questioned

"They should be here somewhere." Anais confirmed. "But I don't know which cave as there are many of them around here."

But then Neria saw smoke in the distance and so she pointed it out.

"Hey, look!" She called. "Smoke, they may have already made another attack."

The five of them ran towards the smoke and sure enough, they were right, there had been another attack. Four figures surrounded a burning House and a few people had been dragged out. They could recognize Grace who they had seen before but only Anais knew the others.

"That's them." Anais claimed. "I remember Grace but the other two people with the leader are known as Huon and Evelina." Huon was a bald man with tattoos on his face while Evelina was a woman with long red hair. "And the man in front of them is the leader of this group, Decimus, he's one of the worst people you could meet, he claims he fights for the Spellcaster and against tyranny but all he does is raid settlements and use them for rituals. He's a skilled talker and was able to convince others to join him." Decimus was a tall man with very pale brown hair, almost orange along with a thick beard and lying in front of him were a few prisoners that had been captured.

"Well done my followers." Decimus sneered. "Now we have more victims in order to create more power."

The prisoners who sat on the floor had tears in their eyes as Decimus stood before them with his arm raised and the Duel Disk activated.

"No please!" One begged. "We did nothing to you." But the man's pleading fell on deaf ears when Decimus pressed a button and a bright light glowed from the disk and over the prisoners, they all screamed before they vanished into particles and reappeared as small crystals in Decimus' hands and then he handed one to each of his followers.

Aedan and the others were horrified at this, what those people just did was horrible and it was like the Shadow Games, they had just turned those innocent people into small crystals. Kallian screamed in fright but Daylen covered her mouth with his hand as it might alert them.

But they had heard the sound and turned around, Decimus smirked in delight "Well, it looks like we have a few more with me."

Grace then spotted Anais.

"And it's better sir." She sneered "That's the leader of that group up in the mountains."

Huon smirked. "If we take her out that will allow us to attack that tower."

"And we'll gain more crystals." Evelina added

But before any of them could take a step forward, Aedan stepped forward and blocked their path.

"You will not harm another individual here!" He spat. "How could you have done that to those people, what have they ever done to you"

"If we're going to destroy the Warrior Faction then we need power." Decimus stated

"And these people hold plenty of it." Grace sneered

"It was the Warrior Faction who started this war." Huon growled

"And so the blood of these people is on their hands." Evelina stated

Aedan just narrowed his eyes. "That doesn't give you the right to attack innocent people and turn them into crystals! That makes you no better than the ones you're fighting"

Decimus laughed. "It won't matter because you'll be joining them soon."

Aedan stayed silent until he raised his arm and activated his Duel Disk. "Not if I beat you in a duel."

Decimus smirked.

"So you want a duel?" He questioned. "Very well, maybe you'll at least put up a fight; it's been a while since I had a challenge." He stepped forward and then activated his own Duel Disk and drew five cards from his deck.

"DUEL!"

Aedan: 8000

Decimus: 8000

"I'll take the first move." Decimus sneered as he drew his sixth card. "And I'll start by summoning Defender the Magical Knight in attack mode." A magical warrior wearing blue and yellow armor and carrying a shield appeared on the field (Level 4 Attack 1600 Defense 2000) "And since he was summoned, I can add a Spell Counter to him" (DTMK: SC: 1) "And then I will play the field spell Magical Citadel of Endymion" the field changed into a large magical school with magical towers "Now whenever a spell card is added, I can add a Spell Counter to this card. Now I will place one card face down and end my turn"

"My move" Aedan hissed as he drew his card "And I summon my Knight Templar in attack mode" a warrior with the symbol of a flaming sword appeared on the field (Level 4 Attack 1600 Defence 1400)

"A Warrior deck?" Grace spat. "You must be a member of the Warrior faction!"

Aedan narrowed his eyes "I'm not a member of that group but I still fight those who hurt innocent people. Now attack that Defender"

Decimus laughed.

"You fool." He stated. "You'll only destroy your own monster as our monster attack points are the same. And when you attack a spellcaster monster, I can remove my Defender's Spell Counter in order to prevent my Spellcaster from being destroyed." (DTMK: SC: 0)

Aedan smirked.

"No, you will be taking damage." He stated. "Because when my Knight Templar attacks a spell caster, he gains 500 attack points." The Templar glowed as he gained power (KT Attack: 1600-2100) then the warrior's sword slice through the Spellcaster and destroyed the monster.

Aedan: 8000

Decimus: 7500

"And now I will end my turn by throwing down a face down" Aedan finished

"All right." Kallian cheered. "Some damage and a good monster."

"But we'll just have to see what else this man does." Daylen stated. "But even so, Aedan's deck is perfect for dueling against Spellcasters."

Decimus narrowed his eyes.

"So you dealt me a bit of damage." He snorted. "Big deal, I still have more cards to play, like this for example, I summon Crusader of Endymion in attack mode." an orange colored skinned warrior with thick blue armor appeared on the field (Level 4 Attack 1900 Defense 1200) "And once per turn, I can activate his special ability, so now I get to add a spell counter to one of my cards that requires a spell card so I'll give my defender one which will allow me to protect my monsters again." (DTMK SC: 1) "And now Crusader gains 600 attack points until the end of this turn" (COE Attack: 1900-2500) "And now Crusader, destroy that Templar with Magical Fist" Crusader's arm glowed bright blue and then he slammed his fist into the Templar and shattered him.

Aedan: 7100

Decimus: 7500

"And now your field is empty." Decimus sneered. "So now my Defender will attack you directly." Defender's shield glowed as he charged forward towards Aedan

But Aedan was ready "I play my face down, A Hero Emerges, now you select one card in my hand and if it's a monster then I get to summon it."

Decimus looked at his hand and decided. "I select the far left."

Aedan looked at the far left card and groaned as it was his spell card Lyrium sword so he couldn't summon a monster.

Decimus smirked. "So I selected the right card so you can't summon a monster to stop my Defender's direct attack. Now attack him directly." Defender's shield glowed and then he charged into Aedan and threw him backwards and he fell onto his back.

Aedan: 5500

Decimus: 7500

"And now I will end my turn." Decimus finished. "Which means my Crusader's attack points return to normal" (COE Attack 2500-1900)

"Oh man!" Kallian groaned. "Decimus is winning and Aedan has no monsters."

"And Decimus can protect his spellcasters thanks to that Defender" Anais stated

Daylen shook his head.

"Don't count Aedan out yet." He stated "His deck is just perfect to fight against a Spellcaster deck."

Aedan pushed himself up.

"Just because you have me at a disadvantage doesn't mean that I've lost yet." He hissed. "My draw." he drew his next card and smirked "I'll start by summoning Knight Captain in attack mode. He may be a level 6 monster but because you control monsters and I don't, I can special summon him." A warrior wearing armor with a flaming sword engraved and helmet appeared on the field (Level 6 Attack 2500 Defense 1900) "And I still have my normal summon so I summon Knight Corporal in attack mode." Another warrior appeared on the field (Level 4 Attack 1900 Defence 1500) "And now I'll equip him with Lyrium sword with gives him an extra 500 attack points" The Corporal's sword changed into a glowing blue sword (KC Attack 1900-2400)

Decimus smirked "Since a spell card has been activated, I get to add a Spell Counter to my Citadel." A light of one of the Citadel towers started glowing (MCOE SC: 1)

"And now my Corporal will attack your Defender." Aedan ordered and then the Corporal swung his blade but it bounced off the armor.

Decimus laughed.

"Did you forget that by sacrificing my counter, I can prevent the destruction of my Defender." He sneered

Aedan smirked.

"That effect only works once." He stated as the counter vanished from defender. "And you still take damage."

Aedan: 5500

Decimus: 6600

"And my Captain can still attack" Aedan added "Now attack that Crusader." The Captain swung his own sword and slashed the Crusader which then shattered

Aedan: 5500

Decimus: 6000

Kallian, Daylen, Neria and Anais looked on.

"Why did Aedan go for that Crusader and not the Defender?" Kallian asked

"Because that Crusader can add a Spell Counter to any card that requires one." Daylen stated. "And then it boasts Crusader's power so Aedan needed to take it out"

Aedan looked at Decimus. "I end my turn there so make your next move"

Decimus narrowed his eyes.

*'I don't have many monsters so I guess I will have to wait for my best monster.'* He thought as he drew his card. "I play the spell card Pot of Greed which allows me to draw two cards, and this also gives my Citadel another spell counter." Decimus drew two more cards and another tower started glowing (MCOE SC: 2). "And now I summon Guardian of Endymion in defense mode" a red armored magical warrior with a large shield appeared on the field kneeling down (Level 4 Attack 500 Defense 1500). "And when he is summoned, I can add a Spell Counter to him and when he has a spell counter, his defense points increase by 500" Guardian glowed as he gained more defense (GOE Defence 1500-2000) "Then I will end my turn by switching my Defender to Defense mode." Defender the Magical Knight knelt down behind his shield.

Aedan drew his card.

"I'll start this turn by playing the spell card Monster Reincarnation, now by discarding one card, I can add my Knight Templar back to my hand." Aedan discarded a card and got his Knight Templar back to his hand but this also caused another tower on the Citadel to start glowing (MCOE SC: 3). "And now I will summon back my Templar in attack mode" the Templar returned to the field.

"And now I will start attacking, first my Corporal will attack that Defender and when Corporal attacks a monster in defense mode, the different between my Corporal's attack points and your monster's defense points is dealt to you as damage." The Corporal's sword slice through Defender's shield and threw the knight back who then shattered.

Aedan: 5500

Decimus: 5600

"And now my Knight Templar will attack your Guardian and since Guardian is a spellcaster, my Templar gains 500 attack points thanks to his special ability" Aedan ordered and the Knight Templar slice through the Defender and destroyed him.

Decimus smirked.

"My Guardian still had a Spell Counter with him." He stated. "So now that Counter is added to my Citadel instead." Another tower lit up on the Citadel (MCOE SC: 4)

Aedan smiled.

"But now you are wide open, so now my Knight Captain will attack you directly." The Captain swung his sword around and then slashed Decimus and threw him backwards causing him to groan

Aedan: 5500

Decimus: 3100

"Decimus!" Grace yelled

"How dare he strike our master like that!" Huon hissed

"They'll pay for this!" Evelina shouted

Aedan shook his head.

"That's how this works." He stated. "Now I will end my turn by placing one card face down."

Kallian smirked "Aedan's got three powerful monsters on his field and more life points"

Anais smiled. "I see what you mean about your friend being a skilled duelist."

"Aedan just has determination." Daylen claimed. "And he can't stand innocent people getting hurt."

Neria was worried however. "But this duel isn't over yet and we shouldn't get cocky yet, anything can happen."

Decimus smirked as he had heard that.

"You sure are right little girl." he stated and ignored Neria's glare at being called a little girl "Anything can happen and now the playing field has been set up, it means that I've ready to being out the master Magician. First off, I play the Spell Card Lightning Vortex so now by discarding one card from my hand; I get to destroy all monsters on your field." A huge thunderstorm shook the field as lightning strikes destroyed Aedan's Templar, Corporal and Captain. But Corporal's sword shot into the air and stabbed Decimus before shattering.

Aedan: 5500

Decimus: 2600

Decimus narrowed his eyes at Aedan.

"Just what was that?" He demanded

Aedan smirked.

"That was the effect of Lyrium Sword." He stated. "Since it was just destroyed, it deals you 500 points of damage"

Decimus narrowed his eyes.

"No matter, your field is now empty and another Spell Counter is added to my Citadel" another tower started glowing (MCOE SC: 5) "And now I summon Endymion's Apprentice in attack mode." A male wizard wearing a long black robe appeared on the field with a staff ready to cast magic (Level 4 Attack 1500 Defense 1500). "And now his special ability activates so he gets a spell counter." (EA SC: 1) "And now I will activate his ability which allows me to sacrifice the token and get back my Crusader from the grave." The Crusader returned to the field "Next I will play another spell card, Endymion's staff which gives my Apprentice an extra 500 attack points" The staff that the apprentice held turned into a much more warrior like staff (EA Attack: 1500-2000)

"Oh no!" Daylen gasped "Aedan is in trouble now!"

Decimus smirked.

"And it gets worse for you." He sneered. "Since another spell card was played, my Citadel gets yet another spell counter" the final tower on the Citadel glowed (MCOE SC: 6) "And now it's time to bring out the true master of this Citadel, servants are one thing but the great master himself is another and now that he has the power, he can come out, the card I discarded earlier with Lightning vortex was the master himself so now I remove 6 spell counters from my Citadel in order to summon Endymion the Master Magician in attack mode." The towers stopped glowing and then there was a flash of light as the master himself stepped out. The Master Magician wore black armor and wielded a large staff (Level 7 Attack 2700 Defence 1700) "And since he was special summoned, I get to add my Lightning Vortex in my grave back to my hand." The spell card which had turned the Duel around in Decimus' favour returned to his hand.

Kallian was worried. "Three monsters, Aedan can't withstand that"

Decimus smirked. "It's over, with these attacks, your life points will be finished and you will be added to my collection of crystals. Crusader attack!" The Crusader sent a blue ball of magic which blew Aedan backwards.

Aedan: 3600

Decimus: 2600

"And next my Apprentice will attack directly." Decimus added and then the Apprentice took his staff and swung it around which then sent a large ball of magic which blew Aedan backwards and he landed on his back.

Aedan: 1600

Decimus: 2600

"Aedan!" Kallian yelled

Anais looked worried. "If that last attack goes through then he's finished"

"There's nothing you can do!" Decimus yelled "I think the Master deserves to finish you off, you've shown that your Warriors are no match for the might of magic, now finish him off." Endymion swung his own staff around and a blast of black lightning was sent towards Aedan and then the field was covered in smoke.

Decimus and his group all sneered.

"The master did it!" Huon cheered "He won"

"That's it, well done!" Grace added

Daylen, Neria, Kallian and Anais looked on in horror "Aedan!" Kallian cried

"I can't believe it" Neria gasped. "He lost"

But then the smoke cleared and they saw that Aedan was still standing though he was holding his breath and his life points hadn't changed

"What!" Decimus growled. "What happened, why didn't you fall down, you should have no more life points left."

Aedan gave a weak laugh.

"It's a good thing I had something ready to protect me." He stated as he pointed to a trap card that he had just activated. "Spirit of the Knight activated when you declared that last attack, now I was able to save myself by activating it which removes my Knight Captain from the graveyard and he takes the attack instead and is removed from play" he showed his Knight Captain card which he then placed in his pocket"

Decimus growled in annoyance "Never mind, next turn you are through, you know what I have in my hand."

"That's right" Grace mocked. "No matter what you summon, Lightning Vortex will leave your field empty and ready for another direct attack."

"Maybe you should just give up." Huon suggested

Daylen narrowed his eyes.

"That will never happen!" he snapped. "Aedan will never surrender even when the odds are against him"

"He's right." Aedan stated. *'But I have to draw something good otherwise this duel is over.'* He thought and then he drew his card which made him smirk "I activate the spell card Foolish Burial, this allows me to send one monster in my deck to my graveyard and so I choose to send my Command Knight to the Graveyard" Aedan discarded his Command Knight.

"Just what is your friend doing?" Anais questioned

Daylen realized it as he remembered a monster that Aedan had played when he and Solona had duelled him and Sereda during their promotion duel "Wait, I think he's about to summon one of his most powerful monsters"

Aedan smirked. "I now remove my Command Knight along with my Knight Templar from play" the two cards came from the graveyard and Aedan placed them in his pocket. "This allows me to summon one of my most powerful monsters." The field was engulfed in bright light. "Leader of the Templers and blessed with Divine Will, come on out and spread the word. I summon Knight Divine in attack mode." An armored warrior wearing a white and red robe and holding a ceremonial sword appeared on the field (Level 9 Attack 3000 Defense 2800) "And now I will activate his special ability, you're not the only one who can clear the field because now by paying 1000 life points, I can destroy every card on your field." Decimus gasped as bright light was emitted through the Knight Divine which caused his monsters to groan before shattering.

Aedan: 600

Decimus: 2600

"Oh no!" Huon yelled. "Master!"

"And now with your monsters gone, you're wide open for an attack." Aedan smirked. "Now Knight Divine, end this." Knight Divine swung his sword around and slashed Decimus and threw him backwards.

Aedan: 600 (Winner)

Decimus: 0000

"It's over." Aedan smiled. "I win."

Decimus stood up and glared at Aedan and then sneered.

"Did you think that I play fair." He stated as he activated his duel disk again. "You will become one of my crystals even if I lost"

"Hey!" Daylen shouted. "You lost so stop that!"

"Aedan!" Kallian yelled. "Leave him alone"

But as Decimus activated his duel disk and a bright light engulfed the field, they all heard Decimus scream and when the light faded, Aedan was still standing while Decimus had disappeared; a small crystal lay on the floor where he stood before.

"Decimus!" Grace yelled as he went and picked up the crystal and narrowed her eyes at Aedan and the group "You'll pay for this!"

Evelina grabbed Grace's shoulder. "We'll get them another time but we have to get out of here now."

Grace narrowed her eyes but then ran off with Huon and Evelina around a small hill.

Aedan watched as they left and he looked at Anais

"So what should we do?" He asked. "Should we go after them?"

Anais shook her head.

"Without their leader, they won't be much of a threat." She claimed. "Decimus was the brains of the team and without him they won't risk attacking."

Aedan watched as they ran off but just as he turned around to head back to the others, there was the sound of a massive explosion and he heard the screams, Aedan turned back to see that the explosion had come from where Decimus' followers had run.

"What was that?" he questioned

Anais widened her eyes.

"It looks like we've got more trouble." She gasped

Aedan knew that this needed to be checked out and ran to where Decimus' followers had come from along with Daylen, Neria, Kallian and Anais. When they came around the hill, they all gasped in shock at what they saw, three crystals lay on the floor and they all saw what looked like Grace, Huon and Evelina inside them. Standing in front of them on a small hill was another man.

This man looked very fit with a body thick with muscle and he wore a suit of armor which made him look like a true warrior. He also had short blond hair and a Duel Disk on his arm. Behind him was some kind of warrior monster that sparkled liked stars.

The man narrowed his eyes at them.

"So I see that another group of Spellcasters has arrived." He hissed as he got a look at Daylen's clothing. "I hope that you're ready to answer for your crimes against this world."

Daylen and the others could only stare at this man and knew that their mission to find Solona had just gotten much more dangerous.