Previously, on Yu-Gi-Oh!: The Arcane Chronicles: Ramesus became corrupted by the Scepter of the Balance when he took it, gaining tremendous and deadly powers. He then hid it. CyberV revealed a particular fondness for the manga series "Case Closed", especially when he used a Jimmy Kudo costume to get Big Andy out of trouble. Ramesus revealed the story of his origin to Allis, including a tale about a golden wdjat that connected him to Slifer and a sect of the Arcane known as the Scarab. CyberV received the Millennium Wdjat, the secret to his transformations and the second half of the Scepter. War broke out, and, to save the Academy, CyberV realized that he had to track down the Scepter once for all... and built a new deck to help him do it. Meanwhile, Jay found himself in the Shadow Realm, and with the Creator, decided to explore it and find the other missing students.
Nat and Ami leaned against the wall of CyberV's dormroom as he searched for something in his closet, the door shut.
"Okay," said Nat. "I get that you're back in the fight and I get that we need the Scepter to bring down Ramesus and get Jay and the other students back... But what, exactly, is in your room that's gonna help us do it?"
Hidden by his closet door, CV smirked. "It's simple," he said. "To recover the Scepter, we first need to FIND the scepter."
"And you know how to do it?" asked Ami.
"That I do," said CV. "It's time to turn to an old friend of mine for help."
His closet door swung open suddenly. Instead of his usual academy uniform, CV was dressed in a familiar blue suit, complete with a red bowtie.
"It's time Jimmy Kudo got back on the case!"
Ami's eyes went wide with glee. "I love it!"
Nat sweatdropped. "It's gonna be one of THOSE days, isn't it?"
Yu-Gi-Oh!: The Arcane Chronicles: Battle for the Balance
Episode 38: The Dueling Detective, Once More on the Trail
Written by: Aaron (CyberV) Thall
"You have GOT ta be kidding me!" Joey looked at CV's outfit and felt the newfound sense of hope fading quickly. "Your big plan is a Halloween costume?"
"Actually, that was the Shadow..." started Ashes. "...Which doesn't really matter now so I'll just go stand over here and be quiet..."
"Good thing they never saw Danny Phantom of the Opera..." muttered Rocket Warrior.
"...Did he just say what I think he said?" whispered Hikari.
"Afraid so," whispered back Nat.
"No offense," said LazyMan, "but I fail to see how wearing that costume is going to help with anything."
"Plus, the bowtie makes you look like a dork," added Tristan.
"He doesn't need the bowtie to do that..." sighed Mouse, resisting the urge to clock CV in the skull only because they needed him conscious.
"It's all about perspective," said CV. "Lazy, for months, you and I have been driving around the city blindly, hoping for some trace of the Scepter... And that tactic's failed miserably. So I think it's time to change tactics. Instead of relying on shadow power to uncover it, we rely on brain power."
"I won't say it," said Ikke. "It's too easy."
"I see where you're going with this," said Yugi. "You've been thinking like a duelist with a destiny... When you needed to be thinking like a detective on a case."
"Exactly," said CV. "And it wouldn't be the first time."
"That's right..." said Ashes. "He figured out his initiation duel was rigged... AND that Hikari had his decklist!"
"And I REALLY wish people would let that go already..." said a chagrined Hikari.
"Yes," said CV. "In both instances, I put my duelist ways aside and thought the way Jimmy Kudo would think. Instead of instinct and luck, I used logic and reasoning."
"And you're going to apply these principles to the search for the Scepter," said Drift. "Okay, I get that... So, why the costume?"
"...Okay, maybe a LITTLE of this is just for kicks." The group flopped.
"WOULD YOU GET SERIOUS ALREADY?!?!" Joey grabbed CV by the collar and started shaking him.
CV met his gaze. "I'm completely serious. If we continue operating the way we have, Ramesus will win. Period. We need to find the Scepter right NOW if we're gonna save the world. Slipping into this character may be the only way to stop this insanity, so let go of me and let me get to work."
"I hate to say it," said Tristan, "but it's all we've got."
Muttering under his breath, Joey let go.
"Okay, here's what we know: Ramesus left the Academy on foot and was missing for approximately five hours, give or take. LazyMan and I paid a visit to the taxi and bus services in town, and no one saw a big golden wand. Short of hitchhiking, we can therefor assume that wherever Ramesus went, it was on foot. Allowing time to return to the Academy, that means that wherever Ramesus went, it had to be within 2.5 hours running distance from the school."
"But," said Magyk, "Couldn't he have taken a cab or bus back here?"
"We checked into that, too," said CV. "No cab stopped within 10 blocks of the Academy that day, and no bus driver recognized a picture of Ramesus. No, wherever he went, it was on foot, and he returned the same way."
"So, how big an area are we talking about?" asked Drift.
"It's difficult to say," said CV. "We don't know how fast Ramesus can run, or how quickly the Scepter could have affected him. Since we don't have time to calculate an average, we'll have to assume he was operating within a six mile radius. Ramesus isn't a trained athlete, so that's probably a bit generous, but we have to compensate for any extra energy and stamina he would have gained from the Scepter."
"That's still most of the city," said Hikari. "We need to narrow it down."
"And that's where another detective skill comes in," said CV. "Namely, profiling. You see, Ramesus may like to spread the shadow power around, but he's also smart enough to know that none of the other Evil Duelists can really be trusted. You know that Jimbo or Greekman would pounce on the Scepter if they could, especially after seeing what it could do in Ramesus' control. So if there's any hint as to where it is, it has to be in a place that no one can get to without Ramesus' permission. A place where he has absolute and unquestioned control over his surroundings."
CV smirked.
"In other words, I need to break into his office and have a look around."
"That's crazy!" exclaimed Tea. "That entire wing of the school is swarming with his followers. They'd catch you in no time!"
"Plus," said LazyMan, "there's no guarantee that, even if you get into his office, that there'd be anything to find."
"I realize it's a gamble," said CV. "But right now, a gamble's better than doing nothing at all. I have the Millennium Wdjat and all of you, yes, but let's face it... That isn't enough. We need to level the balance of power if we're going to stop the apocalypse Slifer showed me and Ashes."
Ashes nodded, remembering the horrors she'd seen. "He's right. We don't have a choice."
"...Fine," said LazyMan. "But how exactly do we get you into his office?"
"That's the easiest part," said Yugi. "We turn his own tactics against him..."
Ramesus looked at the night sky through his office window.
"Beautiful. The sun sets on the first day of my conquest, an unqualified success, if I do say so myself."
"You celebrate too quickly," warned Ryu Kokki. "You have vanquished the Warrior, but now Yugi Mutou is involved. He must not be underestimated."
"True, but he no longer has his shadow power. Without it, he is but a man, and all men can fall. When I begin phase 2, he will meet his end just like all the rest."
"You had better be right," said Ryu Kokki.
"Oh, I am," said Ramesus. "And in the meantime, it's past time I checked on the spoils of war, is it not?" He closed his eyes, and the blood-red wdjat appeared on his forehead.
When he opened his eyes again, his mind was somewhere else, deep within the Shadow Realm. But he scowled instead of smiling.
"It seems my greatest prize to date is missing. Unacceptable." He turned towards the darkness on the horizon.
"Do you really expect to escape me, Jay? Silly boy. You shall have to be chastised for your impudence."
Jay and the Creator continued to fly through the Shadow Realm upon the Creator's majestic throne.
"I doth sense great and terrible dark energies ahead," said the Creator. "I fear we may be on the verge of accosting a dread and dark evil of unimaginable power."
"Oh, great. Just what we needed..." Jay sighed. "Any chance it's the other students?"
"If they are there, and alive, I sense them not. The power of our approaching enemy blocks out all else."
"I'm gonna guess that we can't avoid facing whatever it is, right?"
"Aye. Verily."
Jay groaned. "We are SO dead..."
The attack came without warning, and began with a bang.
'Create chaos and confusion,' Yugi had said, 'As they did with their random attacks.'
The bang, of course, was courtesy of Nat's Barrel Dragon. The sound the monster made was almost deafening in close quarters. It was quickly followed by several other holographic explosions all directed towards the entrances and exits of the Evil Duelists' section of the school.
The reaction was immediate.
"WE'RE UNDER ATTACK!"
"IT'S THE ARMY!"
"WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!"
"...Dude, you gonna eat that?"
As the explosions went off, the Evil Duelists went in all directions, scattering to either confront the new attackers or to hide from them.
"They're making their move..." said McMike, smirking. "FINALLY."
"Yeah..." Poison mentally cursed. "Looks like it's go time."
"Yes. So it is."
"Here they come..." Ami braced herself as she saw the first of the Evil Duelists come her way. She extended her duel disk to play mode.
'Just remember,' Yugi had said. 'The goal isn't to necessarily defeat them. The goal is to create as much confusion as possible.'
She turned her disk to practice mode. "GIGA GIGAGIGO! LEVIA DRAGON - DAEDALUS! MOTHER GRIZZLY! GO GET THEM!" The three monsters materialized instantly, filling the hallway.
"...THERE'S A BEAR IN THE SCHOOL!" screamed one Evil Duelist.
"STEPHEN COLBERT SPOKE THE TRUTH!"
Ami breathed a sigh of relief. So far. So good.
In his room, Jimbo carefully donned the mythical duel disk his father had taught him all about... The duel disk of the Oricalcos Duelists. It automatically extended to play mode, becoming a razor-sharp and very intimidating blade.
His eyes glowed red. "And now to bring death to all who oppose me..."
"GEARFRIED THE SWORDMASTER! ATTACK WITH IRON SWORD SLASH!" Rex watched as his best monster lashed out, slicing at an Evil Duelist with no mercy. Granted, it was a hologram, but the moron still fell backwards and struck his head on the wall, knocking himself out.
"I hope this works..."
"Looks like it's time for fun again," said Bubble.
"Yes, Sister," said Toil. "At least for us."
"Then by all means," said Trouble. "Let the carnage begin!"
"Remember, everyone," said Mouse as she and many of the Good Duelists stood outside the main entrance to the Evil dorm, 'Stick to the plan, and watch out for one another."
She heard a virtual stampede of humanity headed their way.
"They will fall," said Ikke, confident.
"Maybe," said LazyMan. "But they're just the cannon fodder. The real fight hasn't even begun yet."
In all the chaos, no one noticed a single Evil Duelist headed into the dorm from a rarely used side entrance. Wearing a green blazer, he smirked.
It was all going perfectly.
At least, so far.
'While the rest of you create distractions and chaos,' said CyberV only a short time ago, 'I'll disguise myself as an Evil Duelist and sneak inside. The longer you guys can keep them from organizing, the longer I'll have to poke around and find out where the Scepter is hidden.'
CyberV had grimaced at the look of the green blazer, but the white blazers weren't conducive to stealth and the Evil Duelists already had seen him in purple. But there was nothing that could be done about it. And now, he had a job to do.
With duelists running every which way, he had no problem moving about. It didn't take long for him to reach Ramesus' office. Unsurprisingly, it was locked.
"No problem..." he muttered.
"How is that not a problem?" asked Rocket Warrior.
"Simple. I can pick the lock. But first, go inside and tell me if it's occupied."
"You've got it." Rocket Warrior phased through the wall, and after a few seconds he phased back through.
"Well?"
"Ramesus is in there, but he seems to be asleep. No sign of Ryu Kokki."
"That's good," said CV as he got to work on the lock. "I just hope he doesn't wake up for a while..."
"Stand ready!" shouted the Creator.
"With what?" asked Jay. Without his disk and deck, he was almost completely helpless.
"Fear not, for I shall strive to protect you with my life!"
"A pitiful shield indeed," said a booming but familiar voice. Jay and the Creator watched as, slowly, a gigantic form rose up to tower over them.
"RAMESUS!" Jay almost turned the name into a curse.
"In the psychic flesh, so to speak," said the giant mental incarnation of the leader of Evil. Floating by his ear, Ryu Kokki smirked. Surely, this wouldn't last very long, but it would at least be... diverting.
"Did you really think I'd let you roam about free, even in the Shadow Realm?"
"...Yeah, pretty much..." Jay shrugged.
Ramesus scowled. "Think again." He snapped his fingers, and the ground under Jay and the Creator began to crack and crumble as a massive earthquake began. "By the time I'm done, you'll be nothing but a soulless smear."
"I shant allow thy prophecy to come to pass!" shouted the Creator.
"Yeah, challenge the giant psychotic embodiment of evil. Real smart." Jay sweatdropped. "Man, I can't believe I'm saying this, but I REALLY wish I had CV's Vehicles right now..."
"My," said Ramesus. "You MUST be desperate. Excellent. Your desperation will make this... mildly interesting." Without warning, Ramesus lashed out, sending blasts of energy towards Jay.
"NOT GOOD..." Jay braced himself, but before the blasts could hit, the Creator's chair flew in and scooped him up, quickly delivering him from harm's way. "Hey! I'm not dead! I can live with not dead!"
"How droll..." lamented Ramesus before lashing out with a massive hand, swatting the chair and knocking Jay out of it.
"SO MUCH FOR NOT-" Jay fell, but the chair righted itself and zipped back underneath him, catching him like a baseball in a catcher's mitt. "-Dying... Never mind."
"BASE VILLAIN!" shouted the Creator. "HAVE AT THEE!" The Creator raised his hands and released a massive stream of golden energy. The beam hit Ramesus square between the eyes, staggering him.
"YES!" exclaimed Jay. "BLAST HIM AGAIN!"
"NAY!" responded the duel spirit. "He hath grown in power beyond my means to battle! We must retreat while we art still able!" The chair flew to him and he joined Jay in the seat. It raced off as Ramesus worked to clear his vision.
"Very well then," said Ramesus, blinking the spots out of his eyes. "A hunting I shall go."
"GOT IT!" exclaimed CV in a hushed voice as the door to Ramesus' office opened. He hurriedly tucked away his pickpocket tools and, warily, stepped inside.
His first thought was how impressive it was. Ramesus may have been a psychotic madman bent on global domination, but one thing was certain: the man had taste. The entire room wouldn't have been out of place in a royal palace. The furniture was solid oak, polished to a shine. The seats were adorned with bright red leather. Even the drapes looked like they were some kind of exotic silk.
"Okay," said Rocket Warrior. "Less sightseeing, more snooping."
"Right," said CV. A quick glance around the room told him there were three locations where he might find information on the Scepter... The desk drawers, a file cabinet, and a computer atop the desk. Noting a DSL line attached to the computer, he discounted it. It didn't matter how many firewalls were installed, the chances were too great that someone would hack into the system. Ramesus wouldn't trust it to hide his secrets.
CyberV considered the remaining two options. The file cabinets were big, yes, but they had no visible locks. Any member of Evil could access them if they got past the doors.
The desk, meanwhile, had a lock on every drawer.
"The desk it is," said CV as he pulled out the lockpick again. He knelt down, glanced at the sleeping Ramesus, and got back to work.
Sitting in LazyMan's office, Ishizu contemplated the package in her hands.
"Time draws short. Even without the Millennium Necklace, I can feel it. Ramesus' dark energies continue to grow with each soul banished to the Shadow Realm. If he is not stopped soon, I fear even the Scepter of the Balance will not be enough to put an end to this madness."
She set the box down on LazyMan's desk and looked towards the rising moon.
"Hurry, Warrior. Time is running out!"
"KEEP MOVING!" yelled Jay as he and the Creator barely dodged a blast of dark energy, hurled at them by the gigantic Ramesus. "Maybe if we tire him out, we'll have a chance!"
"Aye," said the Creator. "But I fear that yon strategy shall tire us out as well, and thou doest not have thine deck to call upon!"
"...We are SO gonna die..." Another blast erupted directly to Jay's left.
Watching them run, Ramesus chuckled. "Scurry like rats all you like. It won't change anything. You're all mine now..."
CyberV smirked as the last drawer opened. So far, all he'd found were a few counterfeit cards (Ramesus apparently frowned upon them), paperwork (the ultimate downside to being a leader... administrative duties), and a bag of chips.
"Why are you smirking?" asked Rocket Warrior. "If it isn't here, than we've gotta slog through all those files over there."
"Because the answer's inside. I can FEEL it."
CyberV opened the drawer. At first, nothing seemed out of order. More papers, pens, paperclips... But a specially folded piece of paper caught his eye.
Taking it, he unfolded it partially.
"It's a hit list." His eyes narrowed with fury. "He's written down the names of everyone he intends to make suffer for all eternity."
"I notice you're tops of the list."
"Joy and rapture." CyberV moved to tuck the paper into a pocket when the paper opened completely, and a small envelope fell out.
"Huh? What's this?" He picked it up. "There's something inside." He looked inside. "No way..." He felt his heartbeat increase. "This... This is the answer we've been looking for! This mystery is solved!"
"Glad to hear it," said a voice from the doorway. CyberV turned to see McMike and Kuno standing there. McMike was the speaker.
"We thought this sudden attack was strange, so we thought to ourselves that it would be a good idea to check out the boss' office. And looky what we find..."
"Very smart," said CV, tucking the small envelope away. "Obviously, you've got more brains than some duelists."
"Well, yeah," said Kuno. "Who do we look like? Jimbo?"
"No," said CV as he stood up. "But you DO look... SURPRISED!" Without warning, CyberV ripped off the green blazer to reveal his Kudo costume. The blazer was flung at the two ninja, who instinctively took a step backwards, expecting something dangerous to be flung at them. Instead, the blazer hit the floor, and there was a small eruption of noxious fumes. Taking advantage of this, CyberV sprang forward and past the both of them.
'If I get caught,' said CV a short while back, 'I'll use the leftover stink bombs Big Andy left behind.'
'Did you HAVE to remind us of his King Muscle impression?' asked Hikari.
"That lousy little..." Kuno bolted after him, while McMike turned to the sleeping Ramesus.
"Sorry Boss, but there's no more time for beauty sleep..."
Another blast of dark energy erupted right in front of the Creator. The resulting shockwave staggered the duel spirit, forcing him to land his chair.
"Oh man oh man... Don't stop now!" yelled Jay. "He's right on top of us!"
Ramesus grinned. "Game over, little man." He knelt down to grab Jay and the Creator.
"BOSS! WAKE UP!" Ramesus scowled at the voice.
"Not now..." he growled.
Obviously hearing Ramesus, the voice grew more insistent. "It's an emergency! We're under attack!"
"We have no choice..." muttered Ryu Kokki.
"Very well then," said Ramesus, standing up just as he'd been about to grab Jay. "You've earned a reprieve," he said. "I'll be back to finish this later." Slowly, he faded away.
"...I think I need new pants," said Jay, relieved.
"We should make the most of this unexpected happenstance," said Creator, grabbing Jay tightly. "COME!"
The chair flew faster than ever, towards the direction Ramesus had come from. In only a few minutes, they reached their destination, and stared with astonishment.
Far below, at the bottom of a massive cliff, was a gigantic glowing dome.
"What IS that?" asked Jay.
"I know not," said Creator. "But we should find out."
"This had better be good," said Ramesus as his eyes shot open. He looked at his desk to see that it had been ransacked. "WHAT?!"
McMike stepped back. "It's the Warrior. He's back."
CyberV ducked as kunai flew past his head. He glanced back to see Kuno gaining on him.
"Okay, THIS part of detective work, I could live without!" He turned the corner, heading for the main dueling arena.
"Looks like everything's going according to plan," said a relieved Drift. "Thank goodness."
"Goodness has NOTHING to do with it."
Drift turned towards the voice, ready for a fight. Jimbo stepped out of the shadows, chuckling.
"Oh, look. A victim." His eyes glowed red as his duel disk extended.
A minute later, Drift screamed.
CyberV stopped running as he reached the arena. In fact, there really wasn't anywhere to run TO. In his haste, he'd momentarily forgotten that he'd gone to the upper levels of the Evil Duelists' HQ... and now he stood in the nosebleed section... the exit a good two stories below.
"Okay, that's not good."
"End of the line," said Kuno as she stepped into the entranceway. "Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide."
"Maybe," said CV as he turned to face her. "Maybe not."
"Let's go with NOT!" She pulled out more kunai and threw them. Standing at the edge of the stairs, CyberV stepped backwards... and fell.
"YES! I've got you now!" Kuno ran to the stairs to see how many bones CyberV had broken... and gasped in astonishment as he rose up in mid air, standing atop the head of a massive crystalline dragon.
"Who's got who?" he asked. "I'd like you to meet an old friend of mine. Hyozanryu, this is Kuno. Kuno... meet my newest duel spirit."
"New... New spirit?!"
"That's right. And I have YOU to thank for it." Hyozanryu roared for effect.
"No... No, it can't be!"
"Oh, but it can. You see, every time I had a surge of shadow power in the past, it resulted in a new duel spirit. Flame Sprite, Ryu Kokki, the Creator and the rest... EVERY TIME, a new one emerged... EXCEPT when I fought you a few hours ago. At the time, I thought it was a bit odd that no new one made itself known... I'd chalked it up to one of your cronies getting it... UNTIL I heard about the situation at Duel Academy... the same incident that blanked every card and sent the duel spirits away. As far as I can tell, the events set into motion that led to that hour of silence was enough to delay the emergence of the new spirit. By the time it ended, I was already hard at work with my cards... He emerged within minutes of that other crisis ending. But to be on the safe side, I held him in reserve."
"But... But he's solid..."
"Thank THIS." CV held up his right wrist so Kuno could see the Millennium Wdjat, which was glowing with shadow energy. "The source of those flareups. Now that I'm in direct contact with it, and aware of it's existence, I have better control over my transformations. And with my new friend here, I'm stronger than ever."
He smirked. "So thanks. It's nice to have my old friend back."
"NO!" She threw all her kunai at CyberV, but Hyozanryu shifted his body slightly, and the blades bounced off his diamond hide.
"And now that I have what I needed here, it's time to put the dueling detective aside-" He ripped away his Jimmy Kudo costume, revealing his school uniform. "-And time for the Warrior of the Balance to come on out!"
"...You must be sweaty, wearing three layers and all..." Rocket Warrior chuckled.
"Do I go ruining YOUR dramatic moments?" CV sweatdropped. "Well, no matter... It's time we got out of here..." He braced himself. "MILLENNIUM POWER!" The Wdjat flashed, and he changed. His hair stood up instantly, and he took on a more serious demeanor. His forehead began to glow with a wdjat symbol.
"HYOZANRYU! DIAMOND DRAGON FIRE!" Hyozanryu roared and spat shards of diamond towards Kuno. She ducked, but needn't have bothered. As the shards reached her, they were repelled by a blood red shield of pure dark magic.
"Enough," said Ramesus as he and McMike arrived. "You've stolen something from me. Return it now... and I'll consider releasing your friend Jay from the Shadow Realm."
"And abandon everyone else you've doomed? No thanks." CyberV glared at Ramesus. "Besides, this is just starting to get interesting." CyberV mock saluted Ramesus as Hyozanryu flew to the ground and faded away.
"STOP HIM! STOP HIM AT ALL COST! HE KNOWS WHERE THE SCEPTER IS!" Ramesus practically turned purple with rage.
Ignoring Ramesus' blistering Rage, CyberV bolted through the exit of the arena.
"Very well, Warrior," he said in a quiet but livid voice. "Let's see you save your friends as I take them away from you one by one..."
Ramesus let his power flow freely into a card in his hand. Slowly, a small Winged Minion appeared. And then another, and another, until the arena was filled with them.
'Go," he said. "Destroy ALL my enemies."
The Winged Minions screeched.
"He's late," said Joey as he checked his watch.
"He'll be here," said Hikari. "Count on it."
"We don't have much choice," said Yugi. They were standing by the entrance to the school's parking garage. So far, they hadn't been able to budge the door an inch.
'While all that's going on,' CyberV had said, 'no one will notice a handful of us missing. Since the Scepter is off campus, we'll need to get out of here.'
'One problem,' Rex had said. 'The magic seal trapping everyone in the school.'
'There's a way around that,' responded Yugi. 'Once, years ago, I used the power of my Millennium Puzzle to penetrate a powerful seal much like the one holding us all here. My Puzzle may be gone, but now we have the Millennium Wdjat. I have full confidence that it can break the seal, at least enough to allow the chosen group to escape and go after the Scepter.'
"Well unless he pulls through, we're wasting our time," Joey punched the wall. "I hate waiting like this!"
"Someone's coming, and in a hurry," said Yugi suddenly. They turned to see CyberV running towards them.
"Did you get it?" asked Hikari.
"Yes, but we don't have time to talk." CyberV placed his hand on the door.
"Do it just as I told you," said Yugi. "Focus."
CV nodded. "By the power of the Millennium Wdjat... I BREAK THE SEAL!" The door glowed for a second, and the Wdjat's energies died down. CV's hair fell back into place as the door swung open.
"That... took a lot outta me..." CV dropped to his knees, exhausted. Between making Hyozanryu solid and penetrating the barrier, combined with his lack of experience, he was momentarily drained of shadow power.
"I gotcha, kid," said Joey as he helped CV up. "Let's get outta here while we still can!"
"Good thing Mouse lent us the keys to her car."
"...She DOES know we're taking it, right?" asked Joey.
"...Yes?"
Joey sweatdropped. "We'd better not come back empty-handed, 'cause otherwise, that girl's gonna kill us."
As they headed for Mouse's car, another set of eyes watched them from the darkness.
"Yes, by all means, lead me right to the Scepter." Greekman grinned. "And when you do, I'll claim it for my own, and get everything that's coming to me."
In moments, the convertible raced onto the streets of Solitaire Valley.
"So, where to?" asked Joey as he turned the steering wheel sharply to the right.
"Here's your answer," said CV, reaching into his pocket and pulling out the small envelope. He opened it and pulled out a key. "It was in Ramesus' desk. It belongs to a local storage facility a few miles from here called Load and Lock It."
"And you think the Scepter's in one of their private boxes?" asked Hikari.
"That's right," said CV.
"So let's get moving," said Yugi. He looked to the skies and saw the Winged Minions beginning to fly out of the Academy. "Because I fear we're almost out of time."
CV nodded. "Scepter... HERE WE COME!"
TO BE CONTINUED...
Next Time: Against All Odds! The Scepter Found!