[center]The Silver Dragons' Aerie
in the Rat's Nest[/center]

The base of operations for the Silver Dragons was inside of an old auto garage, long since closed to business. The gang was small, only having six members at the moment, so they didn't need much space. Uncomfortable couches lined one wall, opposite a row of large doors that had once opened for broken cars. Against a third wall was a dozen or so monitors, most showing nothing, a few showing feed from the few working cameras the gang had watching their turf. The last wall was covered in posters from dueling events past and present. Two posters stood out: one was Maximillion Pegasus daring the viewer to take up his game, and the other was of Valin Rotor summoning Volspire Dragon. It was opposite the later where Ian was to be found.

Ian sat upside-down in a large recliner, his feet over the back and his head on the footrest. He had his eyes closed, looking to be sound asleep, but those in the room knew that he was wide awake. The blue-lit headphones on the gang leader's head were playing the broadcast of another one of Valin's duels. A momentary frown told the other members of the Silver Dragons that Valin had crushed his opponent, again. He always did. For the first time in almost an hour, Ian moved. One hand reached up to tap the headphones twice, the command to rewind and replay, and then he was asleep again. Or at least he would have been.

Someone kicked the footrest of Ian's recliner down, forcing his attention. The silver-haired boy sighed softly and asked, "What is it Bell?" before opening one eye. The other was open almost as fast though. Ian's lazy gaze shifted to the face of his antagonistic friend. "And you probably shouldn't raise your leg to kick my pillow when you're wearing a miniskirt."

Cybell Astrid, the previous leader of the Silver Dragons, stood on the ceiling looking up menacingly at Ian. Oh, no, that's wrong; he's the one that's upside-down. Ian didn't bother to right himself. Cybell was absolutely gorgeous with her long silver hair and striking red attire that matched her eyes. "Yeah whatever, they're black if you didn't see," she shot back. "Are you're still listening to Valin?"

Ian yawned and flipped backwards out of the worn recliner, legs passing to either side of the girl who stood without moving. His feet met the ground and Ian finished his roll standing with his face inches from hers. "Yes," was all she got from him. Just another part of the game they were constantly playing.

In one swift motion, she plucked the large headphones off of his head and tossed them across the room. They landed in the lap of a sleeping orange-haired boy, who until then had been sound asleep and snoring for all to hear. Bell's ruby eyes burned deep into Ian's blue. "And? Ready to give up yet?" She asked him to, told him too, so he didn't.

Ian let the breath that had caught in his throat when she'd thrown his precious headphones slip out between his teeth audibly. "I can't beat him. His monster, his deck... he... is too strong. I wouldn't stand a chance, not in a million years." 

"Exactly. Now you see reason. There is no way you could beat him in a duel." Cybell sounded pleased with herself. Then again, she usually did.

A subtle glow lit Ian's sapphire eyes. "But that shouldn't stop me from trying. A duel is a duel, after all; anything can happen." The last bit found its mark and Bell's eyes narrowed. Ian had told her the same thing before he'd dueled her and won control of the gang.

In the background, Kellian finished being woken up and watching the two predators circle each other. Before Ian had beaten her, and just about everyone else in the gang, Killian's loyalty had been to Cybell. Now the entire chain of command was messed up. All of the old members followed Cybell's word, but she recognized Ian as the leader. It was all very confusing to Killian. He wished they'd just get a room already. And he'd probably get yelled at for touching Ian's headphones.

Ian noticed Bell's eyes narrow slightly. So she was still mad at him for stealing her gang? It was so hard to tell with her. Half the time it was like she had a thing for him, and the other half he had to look over his shoulder to make sure she wasn't about to kill him. Ian wasn't sure which version of the story he preferred. She continued, "Whatever. Losing to the best couldn't really be counted against you."

Ian saw the pitch and swung. "That's true. You shouldn't feel bad for losing to me then." He made sure to say it with a smile, just to push the point in even deeper.

She growled and walked away. "Ian, I'm sorry to tell you that your results just came in, and it's official: You're an ass."

"That stings, stings deep Bell," Ian was in a good mood today. Usually he would have shut her out by now. Had he had an idea about something as he'd listened to Valin's duel?

Bell walked to the door of the room and pulled it open. "Anyone up for a circuit on the Strider?" Bell had more money than most out here, and she'd even built her very own runner from a combination of made and bought parts. Ian suspected that was one of the main reason she'd been in charge of the Silver Dragon gang in the first place. It was an open invitation, but none of the others spoke up, which meant a few hours of captivity aboard the runner with Bell for Ian. He always got stuck with that job. Little did he know that the others turned her down just so that he would be stuck with the job. Cybell wouldn't use her runner without someone else. There had been an accident with the first runner she'd tried to build where it had skidded and she'd been trapped underneath it for hours. How she could be terrified of the things yet love using one was something Ian just didn't understand.

Ian held out his hand and stood in the doorway as if awaiting something. Killian figured it out fast and threw the headphones to Gin. The larger man in the corner of the room passed them to Cherish, or more accurately, to the back of her pink-haired head. Her chair spun around, and she deflected them with only a moment of attention, letting her rotation bring her back to her monitors. She let the boy next to her deal with the others' game. Frey, a small boy with messy black hair, managed to keep Ian's precious headphones from hitting the ground and shot them across the room to be caught by their leader's outstretched hand. Ian turned with a smile and walked out of the base. It wasn't wise to keep Bell waiting.

[center]The Streets
in the Rat's Nest[/center]

Cybell drove like a maniac, which is to say she was driving the same as usual. Ian put a mental check in the box for suicidal tendencies underneath her name. Yeah, she definitely had those. Ian rode behind her on her white duel runner, arms wrapped around her for fear of falling off. He wondered if a person would survive falling off a runner at such a speed. Probably not. Bell's eyes picked out an opening between two buildings up ahead and made for it. The runner spun ninety degrees, barely slowing as it rocketed through the narrow alley and onto the street on the other side. Another insane turn righted the runner as it continued down the nearly-empty street. Ian wished she wouldn't do that, but saying so would only make her do it even more. If any of the others in the gang saw him like this, holding onto Bell, scared for his life and yelling every time she accelerated, they'd laugh up a storm and never let him live it down. Ian closed his eyes and tightened his grip, just wanting this run to be over already.