All over the ranch the deadly red flames became visible as they leapt at the darkened sky.
"Oh my!" Bakura burst out. "What's on fire? Is it the barn?!"
Yugi rushed to look out as well. "I think so!" he gasped. "Come on, guys—we have to try to put it out!"
Quickly the teens all ran outside and over to the barn, where Lorelei was already trying to extinguish the flames.
"There's a well just over there," she announced when they ran up. "Someone get some more water from there while I get the horses out of the barn!"
"I'll help you!" Yugi exclaimed without a second thought.
"And I'll call the fire station!" Tristan put in, hurrying off without remembering that the phones were still out.
Bakura was already dashing into the barn, heading for Firefly's stall. "Firefly!" he called worriedly. "Here girl! Come on!"
Firefly whinnied and backed up, terrified of the flames.
"Oh please come!" Bakura wailed, tugging on her reins.
That was when a heavy beam fell from the ceiling and crashed down between them, striking Bakura hard on the forehead. With a cry of pain the boy fell back onto a sack of grain and lay still.
Firefly looked at him curiously and then moved forward, nudging his arm. When Bakura didn't move, the horse bent down and tried to get him slung onto her back, without much luck.
"Bakura!!"
Yami Bakura's gruff, harsh voice came from the doorway and Firefly immediately trotted over to him, whinnying loudly.
"What is it?" the thief demanded grouchily.
Before Firefly could lead him over, a strong, young-faced man approached, holding Bakura's body in his arms. "I believe this boy is in your care," he said, very gently handing his cargo to Yami Bakura.
Yami Bakura pulled Bakura close and glared daggers at the stranger. "What have you done to him?!" he snarled.
"Me? I haven't done a thing," the stranger retorted. "I found him like this. Most likely he was hit by one of those falling beams." He smiled softly. "Look, I got him away from another one just over there, but now you should get him out of the barn before anything more happens . . . to either of you."
Yami Bakura grunted but made no other reply. Instead he quickly got Bakura out the door and into the fresh air. Firefly, worried about the kind, innocent boy, followed in determination.
"Bakura!" Yugi cried in disbelief when the tomb raider emerged with his young charge held close.
Ignoring him and the others, Yami Bakura carried Bakura up to the ranch house and disappeared inside.
Lorelei shook her head. "Poor thing," she muttered. "We'll have to be extra careful in there now." She glanced at the barn with narrowed eyes.
Firefly twitched her ears and then stamped her foot hard, braying loudly and causing the other horses to suddenly run out of the burning building in panic.
Yugi blinked in surprise. "Firefly must've signaled to the other horses where the door was and to come to it!" he exclaimed, hurrying to get another pail of water.
That was when Ishizu and Marik stumbled up the path, both supporting a limping Rishid.
"Oh!" Yugi exclaimed. "Rishid!! Are you okay?! Everyone's been looking everywhere for you!"
Rishid smiled weakly. "I will live," he replied.
"What has happened here?" Marik wanted to know, looking at the burning barn with narrowed eyes.
"Don't know how it happened," Lorelei said shortly, desperately training a hose on the worse of the flames. "But at least the horses got out safely."
****
Seto's group was just making it down the pathway from the cave when a cold chill suddenly swept over them all.
"Feel that?" Tea whispered, shivering slightly.
"I did," Mako replied, narrowing his eyes. "It's as if a demon is lurking about."
"Demon?!" Mokuba cried, his eyes wide.
"That's nonsense," Seto muttered.
A large horse slowly stepped into view, its rider adorned in a midnight black cloak that matched the color of the beast whose back the phantom was upon.
"Hey!" Mokuba cried, trying to run forward. "What did you do to Rishid?!"
Seto grabbed the younger boy before he could get up to the strange apparition. "Who are you?" he growled.
The rider only hissed at him and snapped the reins. He and his horse then vanished into the oncoming fog.
"What a creep!" Mokuba said indignantly.
Seto started on ahead again. "Right now I think the best thing to do is to get back to the ranch before anything else happens. Maybe Rishid's been found."
****
Shadi, meanwhile, was still conversing with the old lady in the basement. He seemed quite aware of Rex's eavesdropping but made no move to send the boy away.
"Shadi!! Shadi!!"
Everyone turned at the sound of a little girl's voice. Without warning, she seemed to come from nowhere, leaping into Shadi's arms and beaming happily.
"You haven't come for so long!" she said accusingly, grabbing onto a fistful of his hooded cape. "Where've you been?!"
"There were some other things that needed to be tended to," Shadi replied, smiling at her.
"What's going on here?!" Rex exclaimed, obviously baffled.
The elderly woman only blinked. "So this is Shadi?" she said, seeming to recognize the name.
"Yeah, Grandma, you remember!" the little girl chirped. "He used to come by sometimes! And this one time he rescued you from these bad men!"
"He did?" The woman looked up at the man holding her granddaughter and still appeared puzzled. "Well, I'm certain it will come to me sooner or later."
****
Yami Bakura carefully laid Bakura down on the couch and lightly touched the red bump on the boy's forehead. "Fool," the tomb raider muttered.
Bakura winced, as if feeling pain through the mists of unconsciousness.
"Oh wake up," Yami Bakura growled, wanting to get away from the blasted ranch and feeling powerless to do anything.
Abruptly the thief heard an odd noise and he straightened up, his eyes narrowed. "Who's here?" he demanded.
Again the sound came—a dull banging on the wall from the opposite side of the room.
"SHUT UP!" Yami Bakura yelled in irritation.
"Yami?" Bakura opened his eyes slightly. "Maybe someone's hurt!"
Yami Bakura grunted. "Of course someone's hurt, you moron—you! Stay resting." He pushed the boy into the soft couch.
"Meow?" Oreo peeked up and then leaped on Bakura's chest gracefully. Purring, she rubbed her head against the boy's cheek and then licked it. Bakura had to chuckle.
The pounding sound came once more, now frantic, and then the wall began to tear free.
"What in the name of . . ." Yami Bakura stared, his eyes narrowed.
The wall gave way, sending a coughing, sputtering Joey to the floor.
"Joey!" Bakura burst out in shock.
Joey sprawled on the floor amid the plaster, looking dazed. "Man, what goes on around here?!" he cried. "Some creep tried to suffocate me in the wall!"
"What?!" Bakura said in horror.
Yami Bakura grunted and looked angry, obviously concerned about Bakura's future safety with such nonsense going on.
"Meow!" Oreo cried, curling up on Bakura's chest protectively.
"Joey, that's terrible!" Bakura exclaimed.
"Of course it's terrible!" Joey cried, sitting up and dusting himself off. He blinked, taking a good look at his friend. "What happened to you, Bakura?!" he demanded.
Bakura just looked confused. "I'm not sure what you mean, Joey," he replied.
"What do I mean?!" Joey shook his head in disbelief. "I'm talkin' about that nasty red mark on your forehead!"
Turning a bit pink, Bakura quickly brushed his bangs down over it. "Oh, it's nothing," he said with a smile. "But Joey, we've been so worried! Who took you? And how on earth did they get you in the wall?!"
"Don't ask me," Joey said in annoyance. "I couldn't see a thing! They just snuck up behind me, clunked me over the head, and I woke up in the wall, crammed tighter than sardines in a can!"
"Oh my!" Bakura gasped.
The door opened and an exhausted Lorelei came in, brushing her stringy hair away with the back of her hand. "Stupid fire," she muttered.
"Weren't you able to put it out?" Bakura cried.
"Oh yeah, it's out," Lorelei told him, "but we couldn't save the barn."
Bakura's eyes widened. "Where will the animals go?" he wanted to know.
"There's enough room in the other stable, I hope." The woman barely glanced at Joey as she walked out of the room and headed upstairs.
Yugi and Tristan came in next, however, and they definitely did notice.
"Joey!" Yugi burst out.
"You're covered in plaster!" Tristan said in disbelief. "What've you been doing—breaking down walls?!"
"Somethin' like that," Joey replied, slamming his fist into his palm and again relaying the tale of what had happened.
"Oh!" Yugi cried.
"Why would someone be trying to kill us?!" Tristan exclaimed. "We don't know anything!" He paused. "Or maybe that's why they want to kill us—so we won't find anything out!"
"Find anything out about what?" Marik asked as he and Ishizu helped Rishid inside.
"Rishid!" Joey exclaimed. "Oh man, we were lookin' everywhere for you! Where the heck were you?!"
Rishid again explained all of what he remembered—being thrown over the cliff by the dark cloaked figure and his horse.
"But why were you by the cliff in the first place?!" Joey said, scratching his head.
"I do not remember," Rishid replied.
Now that the two missing people had been found, Yugi's attention turned to figuring out where Seto's group had gotten themselves to.
"It's pitch black out there!" the boy exclaimed. "I hope they're okay . . ."
"They are," Seto grunted, pushing the door open.
Yugi smiled in relief. "So everyone's here now?" he said hopefully.
"There's still Mr. Dover and Marie," Tristan said thoughtfully.
"And, oh my goodness!" Bakura sat straight up, startling Oreo. "Where's Mai?"
"Mai?" Yugi repeated. "Why, she should've been with us!"
"Oh great," Tea moaned. "Someone else is missing!"
"Actually, boys and girls, I'm here too." Mai's voice wafted out to them and the blonde girl sashayed in the side door, followed by Marie and Mr. Dover. "So no one's missing at the moment."
"What a relief," Tea smiled.
"Now maybe we can concentrate on figuring out who's after us and why." Yugi grimly pulled out the article his Yami had been carrying earlier.
"Yugi, what's that?" Tea asked, blinking.
Yugi looked around. "I found it in my dresser," he said slowly, "but I don't know if it's safe to discuss it down here . . ."
He trailed off then, staring ahead grimly.
"Whaddya see, man?" Joey wanted to know.
Yugi shook his head for silence and continued to gaze off into the distance. At last he looked back at the others with a grim expression. "I saw a lady in that mirror!" he declared.
****
Rex looked on as Shadi conversed with the little girl and tried to find answers to some of his questions.
"Are you trapped down here as well?" the man asked now.
"Uh huh," the girl said sadly. "Grandma started having those weird dreams again and so they locked us both in here a long time ago! I'm still trying to find a way out! There's gotta be one!!" She looked up at Shadi with her innocent maroon eyes. "But you're gonna get us out, aren't you?" she said hopefully.
"Of course," Shadi assured her.
The elderly woman suddenly let out a horrified gasp. "Oh!!!"
Instantly everyone turned to look at her.
"What is it?!" Rex cried. "What's going on?!"
"I . . . I just had a vision," the woman quavered. "Someone else here will die!! They will die by the same evil, unknown hands that have plagued us here for the last thirty years!!"
"Oh my!" Bakura burst out. "What's on fire? Is it the barn?!"
Yugi rushed to look out as well. "I think so!" he gasped. "Come on, guys—we have to try to put it out!"
Quickly the teens all ran outside and over to the barn, where Lorelei was already trying to extinguish the flames.
"There's a well just over there," she announced when they ran up. "Someone get some more water from there while I get the horses out of the barn!"
"I'll help you!" Yugi exclaimed without a second thought.
"And I'll call the fire station!" Tristan put in, hurrying off without remembering that the phones were still out.
Bakura was already dashing into the barn, heading for Firefly's stall. "Firefly!" he called worriedly. "Here girl! Come on!"
Firefly whinnied and backed up, terrified of the flames.
"Oh please come!" Bakura wailed, tugging on her reins.
That was when a heavy beam fell from the ceiling and crashed down between them, striking Bakura hard on the forehead. With a cry of pain the boy fell back onto a sack of grain and lay still.
Firefly looked at him curiously and then moved forward, nudging his arm. When Bakura didn't move, the horse bent down and tried to get him slung onto her back, without much luck.
"Bakura!!"
Yami Bakura's gruff, harsh voice came from the doorway and Firefly immediately trotted over to him, whinnying loudly.
"What is it?" the thief demanded grouchily.
Before Firefly could lead him over, a strong, young-faced man approached, holding Bakura's body in his arms. "I believe this boy is in your care," he said, very gently handing his cargo to Yami Bakura.
Yami Bakura pulled Bakura close and glared daggers at the stranger. "What have you done to him?!" he snarled.
"Me? I haven't done a thing," the stranger retorted. "I found him like this. Most likely he was hit by one of those falling beams." He smiled softly. "Look, I got him away from another one just over there, but now you should get him out of the barn before anything more happens . . . to either of you."
Yami Bakura grunted but made no other reply. Instead he quickly got Bakura out the door and into the fresh air. Firefly, worried about the kind, innocent boy, followed in determination.
"Bakura!" Yugi cried in disbelief when the tomb raider emerged with his young charge held close.
Ignoring him and the others, Yami Bakura carried Bakura up to the ranch house and disappeared inside.
Lorelei shook her head. "Poor thing," she muttered. "We'll have to be extra careful in there now." She glanced at the barn with narrowed eyes.
Firefly twitched her ears and then stamped her foot hard, braying loudly and causing the other horses to suddenly run out of the burning building in panic.
Yugi blinked in surprise. "Firefly must've signaled to the other horses where the door was and to come to it!" he exclaimed, hurrying to get another pail of water.
That was when Ishizu and Marik stumbled up the path, both supporting a limping Rishid.
"Oh!" Yugi exclaimed. "Rishid!! Are you okay?! Everyone's been looking everywhere for you!"
Rishid smiled weakly. "I will live," he replied.
"What has happened here?" Marik wanted to know, looking at the burning barn with narrowed eyes.
"Don't know how it happened," Lorelei said shortly, desperately training a hose on the worse of the flames. "But at least the horses got out safely."
****
Seto's group was just making it down the pathway from the cave when a cold chill suddenly swept over them all.
"Feel that?" Tea whispered, shivering slightly.
"I did," Mako replied, narrowing his eyes. "It's as if a demon is lurking about."
"Demon?!" Mokuba cried, his eyes wide.
"That's nonsense," Seto muttered.
A large horse slowly stepped into view, its rider adorned in a midnight black cloak that matched the color of the beast whose back the phantom was upon.
"Hey!" Mokuba cried, trying to run forward. "What did you do to Rishid?!"
Seto grabbed the younger boy before he could get up to the strange apparition. "Who are you?" he growled.
The rider only hissed at him and snapped the reins. He and his horse then vanished into the oncoming fog.
"What a creep!" Mokuba said indignantly.
Seto started on ahead again. "Right now I think the best thing to do is to get back to the ranch before anything else happens. Maybe Rishid's been found."
****
Shadi, meanwhile, was still conversing with the old lady in the basement. He seemed quite aware of Rex's eavesdropping but made no move to send the boy away.
"Shadi!! Shadi!!"
Everyone turned at the sound of a little girl's voice. Without warning, she seemed to come from nowhere, leaping into Shadi's arms and beaming happily.
"You haven't come for so long!" she said accusingly, grabbing onto a fistful of his hooded cape. "Where've you been?!"
"There were some other things that needed to be tended to," Shadi replied, smiling at her.
"What's going on here?!" Rex exclaimed, obviously baffled.
The elderly woman only blinked. "So this is Shadi?" she said, seeming to recognize the name.
"Yeah, Grandma, you remember!" the little girl chirped. "He used to come by sometimes! And this one time he rescued you from these bad men!"
"He did?" The woman looked up at the man holding her granddaughter and still appeared puzzled. "Well, I'm certain it will come to me sooner or later."
****
Yami Bakura carefully laid Bakura down on the couch and lightly touched the red bump on the boy's forehead. "Fool," the tomb raider muttered.
Bakura winced, as if feeling pain through the mists of unconsciousness.
"Oh wake up," Yami Bakura growled, wanting to get away from the blasted ranch and feeling powerless to do anything.
Abruptly the thief heard an odd noise and he straightened up, his eyes narrowed. "Who's here?" he demanded.
Again the sound came—a dull banging on the wall from the opposite side of the room.
"SHUT UP!" Yami Bakura yelled in irritation.
"Yami?" Bakura opened his eyes slightly. "Maybe someone's hurt!"
Yami Bakura grunted. "Of course someone's hurt, you moron—you! Stay resting." He pushed the boy into the soft couch.
"Meow?" Oreo peeked up and then leaped on Bakura's chest gracefully. Purring, she rubbed her head against the boy's cheek and then licked it. Bakura had to chuckle.
The pounding sound came once more, now frantic, and then the wall began to tear free.
"What in the name of . . ." Yami Bakura stared, his eyes narrowed.
The wall gave way, sending a coughing, sputtering Joey to the floor.
"Joey!" Bakura burst out in shock.
Joey sprawled on the floor amid the plaster, looking dazed. "Man, what goes on around here?!" he cried. "Some creep tried to suffocate me in the wall!"
"What?!" Bakura said in horror.
Yami Bakura grunted and looked angry, obviously concerned about Bakura's future safety with such nonsense going on.
"Meow!" Oreo cried, curling up on Bakura's chest protectively.
"Joey, that's terrible!" Bakura exclaimed.
"Of course it's terrible!" Joey cried, sitting up and dusting himself off. He blinked, taking a good look at his friend. "What happened to you, Bakura?!" he demanded.
Bakura just looked confused. "I'm not sure what you mean, Joey," he replied.
"What do I mean?!" Joey shook his head in disbelief. "I'm talkin' about that nasty red mark on your forehead!"
Turning a bit pink, Bakura quickly brushed his bangs down over it. "Oh, it's nothing," he said with a smile. "But Joey, we've been so worried! Who took you? And how on earth did they get you in the wall?!"
"Don't ask me," Joey said in annoyance. "I couldn't see a thing! They just snuck up behind me, clunked me over the head, and I woke up in the wall, crammed tighter than sardines in a can!"
"Oh my!" Bakura gasped.
The door opened and an exhausted Lorelei came in, brushing her stringy hair away with the back of her hand. "Stupid fire," she muttered.
"Weren't you able to put it out?" Bakura cried.
"Oh yeah, it's out," Lorelei told him, "but we couldn't save the barn."
Bakura's eyes widened. "Where will the animals go?" he wanted to know.
"There's enough room in the other stable, I hope." The woman barely glanced at Joey as she walked out of the room and headed upstairs.
Yugi and Tristan came in next, however, and they definitely did notice.
"Joey!" Yugi burst out.
"You're covered in plaster!" Tristan said in disbelief. "What've you been doing—breaking down walls?!"
"Somethin' like that," Joey replied, slamming his fist into his palm and again relaying the tale of what had happened.
"Oh!" Yugi cried.
"Why would someone be trying to kill us?!" Tristan exclaimed. "We don't know anything!" He paused. "Or maybe that's why they want to kill us—so we won't find anything out!"
"Find anything out about what?" Marik asked as he and Ishizu helped Rishid inside.
"Rishid!" Joey exclaimed. "Oh man, we were lookin' everywhere for you! Where the heck were you?!"
Rishid again explained all of what he remembered—being thrown over the cliff by the dark cloaked figure and his horse.
"But why were you by the cliff in the first place?!" Joey said, scratching his head.
"I do not remember," Rishid replied.
Now that the two missing people had been found, Yugi's attention turned to figuring out where Seto's group had gotten themselves to.
"It's pitch black out there!" the boy exclaimed. "I hope they're okay . . ."
"They are," Seto grunted, pushing the door open.
Yugi smiled in relief. "So everyone's here now?" he said hopefully.
"There's still Mr. Dover and Marie," Tristan said thoughtfully.
"And, oh my goodness!" Bakura sat straight up, startling Oreo. "Where's Mai?"
"Mai?" Yugi repeated. "Why, she should've been with us!"
"Oh great," Tea moaned. "Someone else is missing!"
"Actually, boys and girls, I'm here too." Mai's voice wafted out to them and the blonde girl sashayed in the side door, followed by Marie and Mr. Dover. "So no one's missing at the moment."
"What a relief," Tea smiled.
"Now maybe we can concentrate on figuring out who's after us and why." Yugi grimly pulled out the article his Yami had been carrying earlier.
"Yugi, what's that?" Tea asked, blinking.
Yugi looked around. "I found it in my dresser," he said slowly, "but I don't know if it's safe to discuss it down here . . ."
He trailed off then, staring ahead grimly.
"Whaddya see, man?" Joey wanted to know.
Yugi shook his head for silence and continued to gaze off into the distance. At last he looked back at the others with a grim expression. "I saw a lady in that mirror!" he declared.
****
Rex looked on as Shadi conversed with the little girl and tried to find answers to some of his questions.
"Are you trapped down here as well?" the man asked now.
"Uh huh," the girl said sadly. "Grandma started having those weird dreams again and so they locked us both in here a long time ago! I'm still trying to find a way out! There's gotta be one!!" She looked up at Shadi with her innocent maroon eyes. "But you're gonna get us out, aren't you?" she said hopefully.
"Of course," Shadi assured her.
The elderly woman suddenly let out a horrified gasp. "Oh!!!"
Instantly everyone turned to look at her.
"What is it?!" Rex cried. "What's going on?!"
"I . . . I just had a vision," the woman quavered. "Someone else here will die!! They will die by the same evil, unknown hands that have plagued us here for the last thirty years!!"