The next day, Yuugi, Atemu, Marik, and Rishid sat down and called Pegasus. What was supposed to be a moment of high tension quickly became something anticlimactic when the call rang through to voicemail. After exchanging uncertain looks, Yuugi stuttered out a message and then hung up the phone. An aura of anxiety permeated the house for the rest of the day as they waited for some sort of response, but none ever came. Nor did one come the next day. Or the day after that.

Soon enough, an entire week had passed and life had returned to its new semblance of normal. School, fighting practice, meals, lessons about ancient Egypt, and the occasional shift in the shop all blurred together into a soothing rhythm that helped to distract the small group from their ever-mounting worries.

That didn't make the worries disappear, though.

In spite of two follow-up emails, Marik still hadn't heard from Ryou. Atemu still couldn't think of a plan to close the gate or free the souls of Kul Elna without destroying the items. Calls with Ishizu revealed that she had yet to find any spell that would allow them to separate Atemu from the puzzle. No one could think of a way to find the millennium ring.

This never-ending well of bad news and fear left everyone drained. Thus it was that Sunday dawned on a downtrodden group. They all sat around the breakfast table, lost in their own thoughts. Worrying about the different tasks before them.

Finally, Yuugi set down his chopsticks and said, "We can't keep going like this. We need a break."

His dining companions exchanged looks, then Marik asked, "What do you mean by 'break'?"

"Something to get our minds off of the items and saving the world," Yuugi explained. "I know it's important, but we're not making any headway. All we're doing is stressing ourselves out."

Marik perked up a bit, looking intrigued. "What did you have in mind?"

"I don't know," Yuugi admitted, ducking his head to stare at the table. "I know you and Tem usually go fight, but I was hoping that we could come up with something for all of us? Tem and I usually play games in my soul room when one of us is upset, but-"

"-but nothing, that sounds like a great idea!" Marik interrupted. "Assuming I'm still allowed entry?"

Yuugi blinked, startled, then smiled. "Oh, right! Your key! You can actually play with us!"

"That sounds like a 'yes'," Marik sing-songed, grinning. Then he turned to his brother and asked, "Did you want to come along or...?"

"I will do the dishes and then relax with a good book," Rishid replied, inclining his head slightly.

"Hey, no, none of that! It's the weekend. That means we're on dish duty," Yuugi pointed out. "You just go relax! We'll clean up here and then we can play our game."

Rishid looked like he wanted to protest, then he thought better of it. "Will you at least allow me to help clear the table?"

"Nope!" Yuugi decreed, crossing his arms and giving the man a determined look.

The tall Egyptian let out a quiet chuckle and held his hands up in surrender. "Very well. The kitchen is yours."

With that, he rose to his feet and wandered off to his room.

Once he was gone, Marik and Yuugi set about taking care of the cleanup. It wasn't long before they finished and headed into the living room. They each took a seat, readying themselves to venture into the confines of Yuugi's soul room. Before Marik could raise his key, though, there came a ringing of the doorbell.

The two boys exchanged looks.

"Were we expecting someone?" Marik asked.

Yuugi shook his head. "Not that I know of. Maybe the Nakamuras got our mail by accident again?"

Marik shrugged and Yuugi hurried off to answer the door. When he pulled it open, he froze. There, standing in the morning sun, was a man with long, white hair and an eyepatch. A man that Yuugi knew well.

"Good morning, Yuugi-boy," Pegasus greeted, smiling broadly.

In a flash, Yuugi and Atemu switched places. Then the former pharaoh reached into his pocket, laying a hand on the paper hidden there, ready to summon The Sky Dragon of Osiris at the first sign of attack. The only things stopping him from doing it preemptively were the knowledge that Pegasus had no item and concern for the damage that the dragon might cause.

It was clear that Pegasus knew what was going on, because he held up his hands and took a careful step backwards. "I come in peace. No items. No monsters. No bodyguards. Just me."

"Why?" Atemu demanded.

Pegasus rolled his eyes and playfully pointed out, "You did make the first move this time."

"We did not invade your home! We merely called you on the telephone. Could you not have responded in kind?" Atemu asked.

"I could have," Pegasus admitted. "But I wanted to be sure that our little chat wasn't overheard. I fear that my hubris has put you in quite a bit of danger and, well, my ability to magically protect my conversations has been, shall we say, hampered these last few months."

Atemu considered this as he studied Pegasus carefully. Then Marik came wandering down the hall. "Hey, what's keeping- woah!"

As soon as his eyes fell on Pegasus, the Egyptian teen moved into a fighting stance. "What's he doing here?"

"Apparently bringing us information as an apology present," Atemu replied, eyes never leaving the white-haired man.

Marik raised an eyebrow and let out a scoff. "And why should we believe that?"

"I'll admit, you have every reason to doubt me," Pegasus said, hands still raised in peace. "But that doesn't mean that I am lying. Would a search of my person help to lay those fears of yours to rest?"

Atemu let out a low hum of agreement, then commanded, "Marik, search him."

"You know, I feel like letting you boss me around sets a bad precedent-" Marik began, only to be cut off when his cousin growled, "Marik."

"You're right, extenuating circumstances. Enemy at the gates," Marik all but sighed as he cautiously approached Pegasus. A short while later, he stepped back from the man, a baffled look on his face. "He's not lying. He's got some junk in his pockets, but he's unarmed and we already know that he's got nothing going magically or else our alarms would be giving us all headaches."

Atemu nodded, lowering his hands and straightening into his usual regal stance. "Very well then. You say that you have information relating to our safety?"

"Unfortunately," Pegasus lamented. "Might I come in and tell you all about it or would you rather we have this discussion out here where anyone might be listening in?"

Atemu and Marik exchanged looks, then the former pharaoh sighed. "Would you care to come in?"

"Why, I would be delighted!" Pegasus proclaimed, happily following the two teens into the house.

A short while later, Sugoroku, Rishid, Atemu, Marik, and a transparent Yuugi found themselves gathered in the Mutou's sitting room, watching warily as Pegasus took a sip from his tea cup and surveyed the assembled group. "You're all so tense! One would think I was some sort of wild animal."

"A bit of tension is a measured response given the nature of our last meeting," Atemu replied coldly.

The white-haired man winced. "Ah, yes, that. I really must apologize for my behavior. I was not quite myself."

"Explain," Atemu demanded.

If the tone annoyed Pegasus, he didn't let on. Instead, he set down his tea and said, "The millennium eye comes with a cost far greater than an eyeball. It warps your mind. Steals your rationality. When last we met, I was deeply enthralled by its influence and it took several months for that to fade. Which brings me to my first order of business."

With that, Pegasus rose from his seat and then lowered himself to the floor, bowing at Atemu's feet. "Thank you for taking that wretched thing from me. I shudder to think what would have become of me if I'd remained under its influence."

The assembled group looked on in shock as Atemu swallowed hard, recalling his uncle's face twisted in crazed laughter. In spite of the troubling memories, he kept his gaze calm and his voice steady as he decreed, "There is truth in your tale. We are well aware of the eye's troubling influence. As long as you give us no reason to doubt you, your gratitude is accepted and clemency is granted. Now rise and resume your seat. We would know the full details of the danger that you alluded to upon your arrival."

As Pegasus stood up, Atemu sensed the warmth of his partner's gaze. "Is something wrong?"

Yuugi shook his head, smiling softly. "No, just appreciating what you must have been like as Pharaoh."

"Yes, well, I am not sure how well I pull off the part when dressed in sweatpants and a tank top. It is far more easy to appear commanding when weighted down in a mine's worth of gold."

To Atemu's surprise, his words brought a confusing rush of emotions swirling across their link and, with them, came the realization of something that Yuugi had so-far kept hidden. "Do you find my formal attire attractive?"

"Pegasus is in his seat now, Mea. Best pay attention. Word's in danger!" Yuugi babbled, noticeably avoiding the question.

Atemu let out a soft hum of agreement, filing that line of inquiry away for a later time as their guest began to speak once more.

"The story of how I first came in contact with the items is a long one and I will not bore you with the finer details. What you need to know is this: I recovered a series of tablets from Egypt six years ago. Among these tablets were three creatures of terrifying strength. I almost died the first time I summoned one, so I never turned them into cards for general distribution. Instead, I locked the tablets and their prototype cards away.

"In all honesty, I should have just destroyed them, but the thought didn't cross my mind until, well, suffice to say, I hope that you have kept the eye ownerless.

"These tablets are the reason I'm here. A little over two months ago, a thief entered my home and stole the cards. Nothing else was taken, so this was no unfortunate accident. It was a deliberate attack."

"Do you know who the thief was?" Atemu asked as a feeling of dread curled in his stomach.

Pegasus sighed and made a vague gesture with his hands. "I have an idea, but I don't know how much help it will be. My initial dealings with the items were all through a woman who called herself 'Wosret'. I don't think that was her real name, though, and she was merely an intermediary for someone else. After she..."

Pegasus trailed off, clearly trying to figure out how to phrase this next bit. He was saved from his musings by Marik, who offered, "Journeyed into the west? Became one with Osiris? Kicked the bucket?"

When these suggestions earned a startled look from their guest, Marik shrugged and said, "You're talking about the lady that they found in the Valley of the Kings a few years back, right?"

"Yes," Pegasus admitted, looking uncomfortable. "When we uncovered the tablets, she tried to test their authenticity on us. Unfortunately for her, my bodyguards had excellent reaction time and the monster she summoned was rather weak. Unfortunately for me, it revealed the true power of the items. I had been promised a certain... reward for my assistance. After her display, I thought that the eye was my ticket to unlocking that prize.

"Anyway, as I was saying, she was not my true partner in the quest for the tablets. That honor lay with another. I have never met them face-to-face. We only ever spoke over the phone and they hid their voice. After Wosret's betrayal, my relationship with her boss grew rather tense. They still wanted the tablets, but I no longer trusted them. I set out to do my own research and, because I now knew to look for items and tablets, I was able to learn of the existence of the Ishtars."

At this, both Marik and Rishid let out low curses, clearly upset that even more sacred knowledge had been sold.

Pegasus grinned sheepishly, tone remorseful as he said, "I do apologize for that, but know that the knowledge stayed in my hands. The only thing that I sent out into the world were the duel monsters and, even then, I hid them quite well. No one at Industrial Illusions or Kaiba Corp was ever told what they could do. I never even let anyone else know about the spells. Well, no one but Kaiba himself, which you already know."

"Then how were they hidden within the cards?" Atemu asked. "What story did you tell the designer?"

"I didn't have to tell him anything. All of those cards were personally designed by me," Pegasus explained with a wink.

"I didn't know that he was an artist," Yuugi murmured. "I wonder why they don't make a bigger deal of that?"

Atemu shrugged, but said nothing as Pegasus resumed his tale. "There have been many attempts to steal the three unpublished cards over the years, but they always failed. They were stored in my castle on my private island and that's not an easy fortress to breach. Plus, as soon as I mastered the eye, I used its abilities to further hide the cards' location.

"If I'm being honest, it was all rather fun! I kept coming up with more traps and secrets. My opponent kept beating them, but finding fakes at the end. All the while we were working together, too. I promised to give them the cards in return for what I wanted, but of course, they couldn't deliver. They kept telling me that we needed all the items for that, so I helped them, in my own way.

"That all ended when I lost the eye. I no longer had magic to hide the cards. I had to go back to relying on humans and, as previously established, good help is so hard to find," Pegasus lamented with a pointed look at the Ishtars.

"Is there anything that you can tell us about this thief? Their appearance? Country of origin? Possible locations?" Atemu inquired, though he had a feeling that he already knew the answer.

To his surprise, Pegasus nodded. "It's not anything exciting, but I do have a few pieces to the puzzle. Around a year ago, the voice on the phone altered. Not enough for human ears to notice, but I've been running analysis on our calls since day one. I still couldn't get the real voice, but the base pattern was different. Younger, possibly, though that may just mean that they changed their software since nothing else changed. Same speech pattern and all that."

Then Pegasus reached into his pocket and pulled out a floppy disk. "The other thing I've got is this. It's a list of every call whose location I was able to trace. They always seemed to come from hotels and never the kind with good video surveillance, but who knows. Maybe it will mean something to one of you."

The Kame Game Shop's back room was small, so the three adults waited outside as Marik, Atemu, and Yuugi opened up the file on the floppy disk. The log dated back years, but Marik immediately scrolled to the last few entries.

"You are not going to start at the beginning?" Atemu asked, earning a shrug.

"I barely remember what I was doing six years ago, let alone what everyone else was up to. If there's something here, our best bet is to look at the latest stuff."

With that, Marik fell silent, eyes scanning the page. Then his face noticeably paled.

"Are you alright?" Atemu cried, quickly moving to support his cousin.

Marik let out a shaky breath and then called out, "Rishid, when was the Seti III exhibit in Chicago?"

The tall Egyptian frowned, thinking hard. "October to January of last year, I believe. You convinced Ishizu to let you go assist so that you could experience an American Christmas."

"Yeah, I know, I was just hoping that I'd somehow dreamed it all up," Marik muttered, taking a shuddering breath and letting his eyes slip shut as he brought a hand up to cover them. "And it was less about the holidays and more about the fact that Ry was joining his dad for winter break. Then he came to Hong Kong for spring break. Last summer he was in Luxor for the Seti III dig. In between all that, he was in Tonbridge for school."

As Marik spoke, Atemu and Yuugi looked at the file still displayed on the computer screen. There was a call from Luxor, Egypt in July of the previous year. Then another call in October from Tonbridge, Kent, England. December saw one from Chicago, Illinois, USA. Then nothing until March of the current year, which saw a call from Hong Kong. After that, there was another call from Tonbridge in May. Then the calls stopped.

It was a logicless pattern unless you were intimately familiar with the life of a young, British-Japanese Egyptology intern.

Atemu and Yuugi exchanged worried looks, then turned their gazes upon Marik. The Egyptian teen was just sitting there, gazing blankly up at the ceiling. After a long silence, he let out a mirthless laugh and said, "Well, at least I'm not the only person he stopped talking to!"