"I already told you, the Mai you knew is gone!"

Those words Mai spoke really shook Joey to his core. He looks down and clenches his fists as his hair blows through the wind as they take a ride in Duke's green convertible on their way to see Professor Hawkins. Tristan and Yami sit on either side of him while Teá and Cairo squeeze on the long seat in front. Yami looks at Joey, seeing that he is still in a great mount of distress from his duel with Mai.

"Joey…"

"I never knew Mai was so unhappy," he says. "I knew she wanted to be the best, but I never thought she would do this."

"Indeed. She's taken things way too far."

"Not to defend her or anything, but being in the Shadow Realm, even if for a short period of time can be pretty traumatic," Cairo says shyly, twiddling her fingers and looking down at them.

"Yeah, but you turned out just fine," Tristan says.

"I've had nearly 5,000 years to adjust," she replies.

Tristan blushes and rubs the back of his head. "Yeah…good point. Sorry."

"But joining an evil plot to destroy civilization? I just don't understand," Joey says, narrowing his eyes.

Cairo slouches over in her seat and rubs her temples, feeling a little overwhelmed. She only came here for one thing and one thing only. To retrieve the escaped souls and to return to the Shadow Realm. But she feels herself slowly getting wrapped up within the current crisis going on with the Seal of Orichalcos. She groans and closes her eyes to try and drain out all of the current distractions. Where could those other souls possibly be?

Tristan leans over Teá's shoulder as she looks down at the map. She rolls her eyes as she feels him lingering over her shoulder.

"Can I help you?" she asks, growing agitated with each passing moment that he is hovering over her.

"Are you sure you're reading that map right?" he asks before pointing to it. "Why can't we just take that blue line there?"

Teá sighs heavily in annoyance. "Yeah, if we had a boat!" she snaps and Duke laughs as Tristan sits back with embarrassment. "Blue lines are for water!"

"I knew that…"

Cairo's eyes fly open after moments of concentrating. She has found what she believes to be one of the souls she is looking for. And they are heading in that direction. Only thing is, she needs to get there quick.

"Can this thing go faster?" she asks.

"What's up Cairo?" Joey asks as she takes off her seatbelt and stands up on her seat to everyone's surprise.

"H-Hey! You can't do that while we're moving!" Duke says frantically, trying to keep his eyes on the road while simultaneously making sure she doesn't fall out.

"Cairo, what's wrong?" Yami asks, sensing her sudden urgency.

"Gotta get there quick." She ascends into the air and quickly flies off.

"Uh…what in the world just happened?" Duke asks, blinking a few times.

"She's headed off in the same direction we're going," Teá points out. "You don't think the Professor is in trouble do you?"

"Let's hope not," Yami replies.

"Step on it Duke!"

YGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGO

Professor Hawkins sits at his desk in his laboratory, examining the pictures he took from his excursion. He uses a magnifying glass to look at them in more detail. After hours of research, he sighs heavily with frustration. Although he's made some discoveries, there is one image of a monster with a giant eye that still stumps him. But even after researching in countless books, he's still at a dead end.

Outside, Rebecca rides on her white horse after getting groceries. Her grandfather's lab is located in the middle of a field and they also have a trailer in which they reside in from time to time. Her horse kicks up its hooves and nays and she holds onto the reigns.

"Whoa there Capernicus! Did I load too many groceries on you?" she asks with a chuckle. The wind begins to pick up and she looks up to see a helicopter flying overhead. "Strange…I don't think grandpa is expecting any company today."

A ladder lowers from the helicopter and a few men wearing helmets descend onto the lab, crashing through its glass ceiling. It isn't long until they come back outside holding her grandfather captive to her shock.

"Grandpa!" she cries and she kicks her heels to signal her horse to go.

"Let go of me!" Professor Hawkins demands as he tries to break free from their grasp.

"Leave my grandpa alone!" When she gets a closer distance, she hops off her horse and runs toward the masked men in an attempt to stop them. One of them lifts up a metal pipe to Professor's Hawkins' horror and they prepare to strike Rebecca with it.

"No! Rebecca!"

She stops and closes her eyes as she hears the pipe shatter against something that sounds like a rock. Fragments of metal fly everywhere and land on the ground. Slowly opening her eyes and uncovering her face, she is surprised to see a girl about her age standing in front of her. Her spiky, black hair flows through the wind and her eyes are narrowed yet calm.

"W-Who are you?" Rebecca asks.

"Out of the way kid! The professor is coming with us!"

Two more figures drop down from the helicopter and stand in front of her. They both take off their helmets, revealing a woman with her haired tied back and a man with red hair. "Take the professor," the woman commands one of the henchmen. "Hasani and I will take care of the brat." Cairo arches an eyebrow. Those two individuals definitely contain the souls that she sensed earlier.

"Found some bodies to inhabit I see," Cairo says.

"Grandpa!" Rebecca yells as she sees two men carrying him up the ladder and the helicopter begins to depart from their location. Cairo glances up and leaps into the air to try and catch them, only for her ankle to be grabbed and her body slammed to the ground.

"You're not going anywhere," Hasani says, grinning down at her as she stands to her feet.

"Bring me my grandpa back!" Rebecca yells.

"No can do, kid." He takes out a switch out of his pocket and presses the button. On cue, the entire laboratory goes up in flames, blowing Cairo and Rebecca back a few feet. She grunts and slowly lifts up her head, gasping at the sight of her grandfather's lab being blown to bits.

"No!"

"This ends here." Cairo stands to her feet and her black wand materializes in her hand. "Time to go back to the shadows."

"You first," Nubia shoots back and she rushes at Cairo, aiming multiple kicks and punches to which Cairo dodges with ease. She quickly whips around her swipes Nubia with her wand and then she quickly does the same to Hasani who tries to go for a sneak attack.

Duke finally pulls up to the scene with the others and they all look in shock when they see that the lab is up in flames.

"What happened here?" Tristan asks as they all get out of the car.

"Some goons took my grandpa!" Rebecca yells as she runs over to them.

"Say what?!" Joey exclaims.

"Don't worry. We'll get him back," Yami assures her.

"Hey guys! Who's that over there with Cairo?" Teá points out as Cairo stands over the two people with her wand pointed down at them.

"What did you do with the old man?" Cairo asks as her wand begins to glow.

Hasani grins. "Look at you trying to be a good guy."

"Someone must be feeling guilty for all of the wrong she's done," Nubia taunts.

"Enough," Cairo says, narrowing her eyes. "This has gone on for far too long."

"I agree," Nubia says, outstretching her hand and an electrical force emits from it, shocking Cairo and sending her flying back and landing on the ground with a thud.

"Oh no!" Teá yells.

"Hey Cairo! You alright?" Tristan calls out and she slowly stands up to her feet and wipes her mouth. Since when did they have any special abilities, she asks herself. It's definitely something they didn't have in their past life or in the Shadow Realm. So where did it come from?

As she regains her composure, Hasani catches her off guard once again by quickly running up to her and grabbing her by the neck and lifting her up into the air. Their strength and abilities are something Cairo really didn't expect.

"Let her go!" Yami yells.

"Oh but pharaoh…" Nubia smirks and faces his direction. "Consider this a huge favor. You see, this girl is not who you think she is. She's no hero. In fact, she is pure evil."

"I don't believe a word you crooks are sayin'!" Joey retorts.

Cairo uses this moment of distraction to knee Hasani in the stomach, causing him to double over. Nubia tries to land another electrical attack, but Cairo dodges and sends a magical blast toward both them, blowing them at a farther distance. She is about to move forward, but she grimaces after feeling a sharp pain in her side. She places a hand there and looks down, gritting her teeth. Nubia's earlier attack really caught her off guard.

"We'll be back!" Nubia yells, raising an Orichalcos stone into the air.

"And next time, we'll finish you for good!" Hasani adds before they're blinded by a bright green light.

"They're getting away!" Joey growls as he covers his eyes. And sure enough, when the light has finally faded, they are nowhere to be found.

YGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGO

A tea kettle whistles loudly on a hot stove and Teá walks over to turn it off. They all sit inside the trailer at the table, going over what happened today. From being chased down by biker thugs, an old friend turning to the dark side and now the professor's kidnapping, it has been a very long day to say the least.

"I still don't get it," Teá says. "Who would kidnap the professor?"

"It had to be Dartz! Or his gang of thugs anyway," Joey concludes.

"Why? I mean the guy's just an archaeologist," Tristan says with a shrug.

Duke frowns. "But didn't you guys say that he made some big discovery?

"Yeah, he found Atlants," Yugi says and Rebecca lowers her eyes, feeling very upset about her grandfather's kidnapping.

"So now what?" Teá asks.

"Easy. We find where this guy is, bust in and get the professor back!" Duke replies, making it sound so simple.

Rebecca stands up in her seat. "But how do we even begin to find out where he is? It's not like they'd be listed in a phone book!"

Yugi nods in agreement. "She's right."

Joey groans loudly and holds his head. The thought of having to figure out where Dartz is seems like an impossible task. "Great. So we just sit around and wait for a sign?"

"Well if we stay here, I gotta eat," Tristan says. "I can't wait on an empty stomach."

"Good idea! I'll whip something up."

"I'm not eating anything you cook," Teá says folding her arms. "Just leave it to me."

Yugi looks over at Rebecca while everyone chatters about. He can tell that she is very upset. "Don't worry Rebecca. We'll get him back. I promise." She nods.

He then looks out the window. Cairo stands outside at a further distance holding her wand in her hand, her head lifted toward the night sky.

'Yugi,' Yami says in his head.

'What's up pharaoh?'

'I'd like to talk to Cairo if you don't mind.'

Yugi shakes his head. 'No, not at all.'

Before he walks out, he is stopped by Rebecca who looks down at her feet as Téa and the others go back and forth with each other about the food. "What is it, Rebecca?" Yugi asks.

She takes out a note in her pocket and hands it over to Yugi discreetly. "Those thugs who took my grandpa gave me this," she says. Yugi gasps. It is a note from Rafael instructing him to meet at Death Valley in order to save Rebecca's grandfather.

"How far is Death Valley?"

"If we take Duke's car it won't take long."

Yugi shakes his head. "I have to do this alone."

"But why?"

"I don't wanna put anyone else's lives at stake. Besides, it's me he wants," he replies. "So please, don't tell anyone where I'm going okay?"

"But Yugi…" He has really put her in a tough spot. She looks back to Joey and the rest of the gang who are unaware of their interaction and she sighs, her heart beating quickly with worry for Yugi's well being.

YGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGO

Cairo clenches her wand, feeling a great amount of anger boiling inside of her. How could she let them get away? How could she let them catch her off guard like that? What a rookie mistake. But the question lingers as to how they even got those powers to begin with. She begins to think that there is a possibility that Dartz has something to do with it. With everything that is going on, it seems like the only logical explanation.

Hearing footsteps behind her she quickly whips around, holding out her wand, but quickly lowers it when she sees the pharaoh standing there.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you," he says approaching her. She shakes her head. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah. Those two really just caught me off guard back there. But it won't happen again."

"It seems you were shocked that the souls you were after have powers. Did they not have them before?"

Cairo shakes her head. "I suspect Dartz may have something to do with that."

There is silence between them as they both look up into the moon. It is now late into the evening and everyone has gone off to sleep. Cairo suddenly feels a great amount of dread. It's clear that Nubia and Hasani have some sort of intention of telling the pharaoh about her history. "She's no hero. In fact, she's pure evil," are the words that go through her mind. There is no way that she is going to let someone else to tell her truth. But fear plagued her. What would he think of her if he knew the truth?

She sighs. "I know there's some questions that you're wanting to ask me," she begins, facing him and he does the same. She lowers her eyes and bites her lower lip, going back and forth with herself. Yami can sense that she has something important to reveal, but he can also sense her hesitation at the same time. Her body is tense and her head is low.

"It's alright," he says to her surprise and her head shoots up. "You can tell me when you're ready."

In that instant, she feels a wave of relief overcome her. The pressure that was building up inside her has ceased. For now.

They both turn back to look at the moon as a cool breeze blows. "I'm sorry…"

"Hm? What for?"

"I let those guys get away and couldn't save her grandfather. I shouldn't have let my guard down like that."

"Don't be so hard on yourself," he says, placing a hand on her shoulder and she looks up at him. "I'm going to get him back."

"But do you even know where they're keeping him?" she asks.

"I do." he replies as he walks over to Capernicus, hopping on top and grabbing it by the reigns. Seeing him on that horse is so reminiscent of her past. For a brief moment, his current wardrobe morphs into the long blue cape, tank and other royal clothing that he dawned everyday 5,000 years ago. She shakes her head to snap back to reality.

"Will you tell your friends about your whereabouts?"

He shakes his head. "I don't want to put anyone else in harm's way."

Cairo slowly levitates up to meet his eye level. "Well I can handle myself. So I'm coming too. Besides, I'm sure those souls I'm after will be there too."

"Very well."

YGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGO

Joey snores loudly as he sits on the floor, leaning up against one of the appliances in the kitchen covered by a light blanket. As he nods further off, his head suddenly drops, bringing the rest of his body along with it and he plops on the floor. His head shoots up, startled by the sudden motion and he looks around. Tristan and Duke are sound asleep, but one girl in particular isn't.

"Couldn't sleep either, huh?" Joey asks. He looks around once more, noticing that Yugi is nowhere to be seen. "Where's Yugi?"

Rebecca looks away. "I…I promised not to tell." But she can't hold it in for much longer, feeling an immense amount of guilt for letting Yugi travel alone, so she finally informs Joey of his whereabouts. His reaction is just as she feared, as he scolds her, waking everyone else up in the trailer as they gather around the table to figure out the next move.

"Why didn't you say anything?!" Joey exclaims as Teá places an arm around Rebecca who has her head lowered in shame.

"Don't be so hard on her Joey," Téa says. "You would've done the same thing."

"No, we would've talked some sense into him!" Tristan replies.

Teá frowns. "It looks like Cairo is gone too. I wonder if she is with him."

Joey growls in frustration. "I'm coming Yugi!" he yells as he runs out the door.

"Wait up man!" Duke calls after him as he and Tristan follow close behind, taking his car.

"Step on it Duke!" Joey commands as they drive quickly down the road. He has made Yugi a promise to help him fight this evil force and he doesn't intend on breaking it.

YGOYGOYGOYGO

All done with this chapter. Please review!