Disclaimer: All Yu-Gi-Oh! characters and references belong to their respective owners. The song World of Yu-Gi-Oh! belongs to the artist and the company that recorded it and was used in this story with the best of intentions. Story elements © Hideki LaShae. No money was gained in the writing of this story.

WARNING: This story contains sensitive cultural practices and references that might offend some readers. The views and opinions of the cultures which condone these practices are not shared by this author, but they are included in this story for awareness purposes only.

Time to Duel, Mariko!

By

Hideki LaShae

Chapter Nine

Gotta Get Through This

Trouble occurs before the blimp even lands on the island when the child, Noah, takes over control. After the blimp lands, several but not all of the occupants disembark.

Seto, Mokuba, Marie, Yugi, Joey, Serenity, Duke, Tristan, and Téa are all separated as they drop through holes on the floor into a virtual world.

Seto wakes up not to far away from his little brother, Mokuba. "Are you okay, Mokuba?"

"Yeah, Seto… I think so," says Mokuba, "Where are we?"

"I don't know, but I don't like it here!" exclaims Seto angrily, "Let's find Noah and get out of here!"

Mokuba nods. "Great idea!"

Seto and Mokuba start to walk together as their memories start to play before their eyes thanks to the virtual world around them.

Seto glares at their surroundings.

Marie walks around the virtual world alone. She doesn't see anyone, and the only things she encounters are a few weak duel monsters, which she defeats easily with a few punches and kicks, kicks that send shooting pains up her body. She suddenly feels something in the pit of her stomach, a tight grasping feeling like something's wrong. "Mariko?"

'Yes, Marie… I feel it too,' says the deep, masculine voice within Marie's mind, 'but I do not know what it could be!'

"I know that feeling all too well, Mariko! We'd better hurry! Seto's in trouble! That's what I'm feeling!" exclaims Marie.

'Then if he is in trouble, we must hurry to help him! I need your body and you won't help me if he happens to die!' exclaims Mariko.

"You know me too well, Mariko!" exclaims Marie. She sighs, "If Noah is listening to this, he probably thinks I'm crazy!"

'I'm sorry to say that he is listening, and he is having quite the laugh at our expense. I can hear him,' whispers Mariko.

'You don't need to whisper, Mariko! He can't hear you… Oh, wait! Can he? Can you tell if he has any way to read my thoughts?' thinks Marie. She starts running as fast as her legs will carry her.

'No… he doesn't seem to be able to hear what I am saying,' says Mariko, 'but he does have the technology to read your memories. It's programmed into the virtual reality system here.'

'How do you know this, Mariko?' thinks Marie.

'You don't know all the powers of the Millennium Scale! I used to be a mage! I have the power to read the programming language of this world we're in. Technology and magic are closely related, Marie,' says Mariko, 'There is a very fine line in between what is science and what is magic.'

'You can read the programming language? Do you understand what it says?' thinks Marie desperately, 'Could you show me the programming language?'

'I see it as Ancient Egyptian writing, in the same language that is written on the Winged Dragon of Ra God card,' says Mariko, 'so I can read it easily, but if I were to try to show it to you, I believe I could only show it to you as the actual programming language. So if you couldn't understand that, then you wouldn't be able to understand what it says.'

'I'm lucky then! I do understand computer-programming language! I may have been studying Ancient Egypt with the other archaeologists but I was cataloging everything into the computer! I spent half my time on the laptop, so I did some studying and I learned the program language so I could fix the laptop when it would crash!'

'Would you need a computer if you wanted to try to rewrite the program then?'

'Well… yes… but not necessarily a real computer! I might be able to use the Millennium Scale to rewrite the program if I only had a virtual computer!' thinks Marie. Marie skips a step and throws her hands into the air happily. Then she continues to run as fast as she can.

'I can get you a virtual computer! I should be able to use the Millennium Scales powers to create that, if you would show me a computer.'

'Oh, so now you want my help,' thinks Marie with a mental smile, 'Let's do it, Mariko!'

"By the power of the Millennium Scale!" exclaims Marie skidding to a stop in the middle of a quiet street. She reaches down and grabs the Millennium Scale from her hip. She pulls it up into the air above her head. "Ma-Ri-Ko!"

A virtual wind whips at Marie's body as her hair stands up in more pronounced spikes. Her bangs arch high into the air and give her face an attractive frame. Her white T-shirt crawls up to her mid-riff and shows off her well-toned stomach. The white collar of her jacket stands up around her neck, and the white cuffs loosen themselves. The purple jacket actually grows longer so that it extends to the middle of her thighs instead of her waist.

The waistband of Marie's pants creeps down to her hips to reveal her navel and the temporary crystal tattoo that she has spiraling around her belly button. Her pants become a deep purple set of skin-tight, hip-hugger Capris while her white pumps transform into stiletto heels. Not only do the shoes add four inches to her height, but also the change itself makes her grow three inches into a tall and voluptuous woman.

Mariko continues to hold the Millennium Scale above her head. She pictures the laptop computer in their joint mind, Marie showing Mariko every detail as their merged mental form tries to summon forth the computer. She closes her eyes. "Millennium Scale! Program rewrite!"

It's not the man in the fight
It's the fight in the man…

Mariko opens her eyes again and looks around her. She sees a computer store where seconds before a small deli had stood. She runs through the door and grabs a laptop. She grabs a case for it as well as a few extra batteries, and she stuffs the computer and gear into the case. Then she swings the strap over her shoulder and runs out of the computer shop. "Which way? Which way?"

Mariko chooses a direction and runs as fast as she can once again. She ignores the pain coming from her groin. She's quite certain that after this ordeal, however, she'll be coated in blood from her injury. Right now, she couldn't care less. She continues to run and she finally sees what she's been searching for, only not quite the way she had wanted to find them.

Tristan grabs Mokuba, jumps on a motorcycle, and rides away.

Seto jumps onto a motorcycle and races after Tristan and Mokuba.

Yugi, Joey, Duke, Serenity, and Téa stare down at a robotic monkey as if it held the plague.

"Yugi! Joey!" exclaims Mariko running up towards them.

Yugi looks towards Mariko. He smiles. "Marie! There you are! We've been looking for you! Did you have to duel one of the Big Five?"

"No!" exclaims Mariko coming to a stop beside them, "We, Mariko and I, haven't seen anyone but duel monsters! But I did manage to pick up this really cool laptop! So… you guys fought the Big Five and won, huh? What was up with Tristan? Why was he kidnapping Mokuba?"

"That's not Tristan, Marie," says Joey.

"But…"

"It's his body, but not his mind," says Serenity kneeling on the pavement, "He sacrificed himself in our duel against one of the Big Five so that I would be safe. His mind is trapped somewhere here in cyberspace!"

Mariko flops down on the pavement beside Serenity and pulls out the laptop. She turns it on quickly and waits the few seconds for the computer to boot up.

"What are you doing?" asks Duke.

"I'm going to try to do a search for Tristan's mind," says Mariko, "If I can pinpoint where it is, all we need to do is go find it!"

"Uh… you can't do that… uh, can you?" asks Duke.

Mariko smiles. She taps the Millennium Scale. "Millennium Scale, program over-write!"

A series of complex computer programming rules and guidelines appear on the computer screen.

"Thanks, Mariko! I'm good now! You can take a nap!" exclaims Marie as her hair and clothing shift back to their normal state. She starts typing on the computer keyboard.

Joey glares at the robotic monkey while Marie types. "I don't trust that little freak!"

"But, Joey! He's so cute!" exclaims Serenity opening her arms for the monkey to crawl into her lap.

The monkey sits down in Serenity's lap and leans up against her.

"Well, it's searching," says Marie, "but it might take it awhile to complete the search. This is a large program. So we'd better start chasing down Seto and Mokuba! We'll need to regain Tristan's body and mind so we can mold them back together somehow!"

"Right!" exclaims Yugi, "But how are we going to follow them? We couldn't walk fast enough!"

Marie clicks on her attached mouse pad, and another window pops up on her computer screen. She starts to type quickly in this new window. "Hey, anyone know how to drive? I totally suck at anything that isn't camel-related!"

"I know how to drive!" exclaims Joey puffing his chest up proudly, "I got my license this summer!"

"Great! There's a truck in that warehouse, and the engine is running!" exclaims Marie smiling. She points at the warehouse that Tristan had torn through on his motorcycle when he snatched Mokuba away.

"A truck in there?" asks Joey raising his eyebrows, "Okay, if you say so! I'll go get it!" He runs into the warehouse.

"How did you know there was a truck in there, Camaro?" asks Téa.

Marie closes the laptop and stands up with it in her hands. "I can use the Millennium Scale to do a few minor rewrites to the virtual world that we're in, T-bird. I rewrote the program to create a truck in the warehouse!"

"Wow! I didn't know you could do that!" exclaims Téa smiling happily.

"Neither does Noah, so we're even!" exclaims Marie. She winks at her friend happily.

Joey pulls the old battered truck out of the warehouse. "Hop in everyone!"

Marie runs to jump in the passenger side while everyone else climbs into the back of the truck with the robotic monkey.

'Marie… there is something bothering me about the robotic monkey,' says Mariko.

"What is it, Mariko?" asks Marie.

'I don't know.'

"Is something wrong, Marie?" asks Yugi through the open window in the back of the truck.

"I don't think Mariko trusts the monkey," says Marie.

"I don't blame him!" exclaims Joey, "I'm still not sure it isn't one of Noah's spies!"

"We're on monitors. He doesn't need spies!" exclaims Marie opening her laptop and looking at the screen.

The monkey rubs its head.

"I'm much cuter than that Romeo-want-to-be Duke Devlin!" comes Tristan's voice.

Joey hits the brakes, and Marie clutches the laptop tightly to protect it.

The monkey continues to rub its head.

"That was Tristan's voice!" exclaims Yugi.

"If I stay in this monkey's body too long, I'm going to start munching on bananas and bugs!" comes Tristan's voice again.

Joey lunges through the window in the back of the truck and grabs the monkey. "It is some sort of spy!"

Marie looks at her computer screen. "Uh… guys… that isn't a spy. I've tracked down where Noah put Tristan's mind! That monkey has Tristan inside it!"

"Tristan!" exclaims Serenity pulling the monkey away from Joey and pulling it into an embrace, "Oh, I'm glad you're okay!"

"Yeah, if you call okay being in a robotic body," says the monkey, "then I'm just fine."

"Okay, and the bad news is… I won't be able to use my programming skills to revert his mind to his body," says Marie, "I'm not that skilled. It's a very complex program, and I might hurt him… or worse yet, kill him."

"Don't kill me! Anything but kill me!" exclaims the monkey.

"We'll work on that, Tristan!" exclaims Yugi.

"Now… Joey! We have to find the others!" exclaims Marie, "Get back in here and drive!"

"All right already!" exclaims Joey. He climbs back into the driver's seat, and the truck drives off again.

"So is there any way that I can be put back into my body, Marie?" asks the monkey.

"I'm checking, Tristan!" exclaims Marie glancing back at the monkey still in Serenity's arms. She focuses on her computer screen as she types in the arcane computer language. "Gotcha! I found a way to put you back! We're going to need Noah's mainframe computer! And… we're going to need Seto at the controls! He's a better programmer than I am! I'm fair at hacking into programs, but I only know a little about reprogramming them. Seto can fix this!"

"I can't believe my life is being placed in Kaiba's hands!" exclaims the monkey.

"I'm sure everything will be fine," says Serenity.

"Yeah… if Kaiba decides to be nice for a change and help me out!" exclaims the monkey.

"Seto just entered into a duel with one of the big five!" exclaims Marie, "Joey, left here!"

"Hang on!" exclaims Joey as he takes the sharp left turn.

Téa tumbles into Yugi's lap, and she blushes. She looks into the purple eyes as he holds onto her arms to steady her. "Sorry, Yugi."

Yugi smiles. "It's not your fault, Téa. Be careful, Joey!"

Téa slides back out of Yugi's arms and sits down beside him. She takes a deep breath to calm her racing heart.

It's been my pleasure to meet you…

"Now, right turn, Joey, at that stop sign!" exclaims Marie.

Joey turns the truck onto the street.

'Marie… I sense something nearby,' says Mariko.

"Stop here, Joey!" exclaims Marie.

"Why? There's nothing here?" asks Joey.

"Just stop!"

Joey pulls the truck over to the side of the road and shifts it into park.

"What is it, Marie? Why have we stopped?" asks Yugi.

Marie climbs out of the truck with the laptop in her hands. She takes a deep breath as she passes the laptop to Duke. "Just watch the monitor and tell me if anything changes."

"Will do," says Duke looking at the screen, "but what am I seeing?"

"It doesn't matter," says Marie, "Yugi… you need to come with me. Everyone else stay here!"

"Is something wrong?" asks Yugi climbing out of the back of the truck.

"Does Yami sense anything?" asks Marie.

"No," says Yugi.

"Mariko does… maybe he's more sensitive than Yami," says Marie.

'I do not understand this,' says Mariko, 'I sensed something a moment ago. It was very strong, and it seemed very… agitated, but now I do not sense it at all.'

"Does he know what he's sensing?" asks Yugi walking away from the truck with Marie.

'What do you mean? Did it just disappear?' thinks Marie.

'I believe it might have done just that. We might have stumbled upon…'

"He doesn't know," says Marie.

"Where did it come from?" asks Yugi.

'It's a backdoor to the program,' says Mariko, 'but it's gone now!'

Marie points to a building. "Here."

Yugi opens the door and looks inside.

"Let's get out of here, Yugi! The program's changed! We have to get back to the others!" exclaims Marie. She grabs Yugi's hand and pulls him back away from the building.

Yugi and Marie run back to the truck.

"Did anything happen on the laptop?" asks Marie quickly as she takes it from Duke.

"Yes! There was a blip on your map," says Duke pointing to the screen, "Right there."

"That's where Yugi and I were," says Marie, "Noah's trying to bait us! Mariko, you need to tell me about these back doors faster so that I can hop through one!"

'I'll certainly do my best, Marie!' exclaims Mariko.

"Now what?" asks Serenity.

"Now… we find Kaiba," says Yugi climbing into the back of the truck as Marie climbs in beside Joey, "Then we find Mokuba and Noah and Tristan's body!"

Marie sits and continues to type on her laptop. She lets out a frustrated sigh. "Joey, we're coming up to a bridge… Seto's dueling in the center."

"Got it!" exclaims Joey. He drives the truck onto the bridge and proceeds slowly until he spots Seto up ahead. He stops the truck.

Everyone jumps down and hurries towards the spot where Seto duels with Jinzo. They arrive just in time to witness the Blue-Eyes White Dragon fly up to destroy the opponent's satellite monster.

"That's my Seto!" exclaims Marie smiling.

Seto turns and sees Marie. He smiles at her for a second before turning back to Jinzo. "Where is Mokuba?"

"Find him if you can," sneers Jinzo before disappearing.

Marie runs up to Seto's side with the laptop clenched to her chest. "Seto… I've got this laptop and we can rewrite the program some. Do you know where Mokie is?"

"No," says Seto, "You said this computer could help us rewrite the program?"

Marie nods.

Seto takes the computer and sits down in the street.

Marie kneels in front of Seto so that he can set the laptop on her legs and open it. She bites her lower lip to try and cancel out the pain from her lower body. She's aware of the hemorrhaging occurring from the spot where her stitches had been, but she doesn't care about the blood or the pain. There are things that are more important.

Seto starts typing frantically.

"What are you looking for?" asks Joey.

"For your information, mutt, I am searching for Mokuba," says Seto as Marie holds the laptop steady in her lap.

"Are you finding him?" asks Serenity holding the robotic monkey to her chest.

"This can't be!" exclaims Seto as his eyes widen.

"What is it?" asks Marie tilting her head to look at the screen upside down.

"Mokuba's right here!" exclaims Seto standing up and looking all around.

Marie turns the laptop around and looks at the readings.

'I sense a back door, Marie!' exclaims Mariko.

'We're in the middle of it, aren't we?' thinks Marie.

'It would appear that we are…'

'Then this isn't Mokuba's signal, it's really a trap!'

'I believe so, Marie,' says Mariko.

"No… He's not here! Mokie's not here, Seto! We're going into a program change!" exclaims Marie setting the laptop on the ground and standing, "Activate Millennium Scale now! Program rewrite!"

The Millennium Scale flies into Marie's upraised hand.

"Yugi, I will need Yami's help to rewrite this program!" exclaims Marie, "So you'll need to transform!"

"You need the power of the Millennium Puzzle… I understand," says Yugi nodding. "Yu-Gi-Oh!"

Now let's commence the transformation…

"Ma-Ri-Ko!"

Seto's eyes widen and he clutches his hands over his heart. He falls to his knees gasping for air.

Yugi's gently spiked hair rises into more defined spikes and his eyes look more determined. His body grows taller and just a little leaner so that he stands over six inches taller than Marie.

Marie's triple colored hair flares out within the confines of her ponytail holder into sharp looking spikes. Her bangs stand up into high, arched spikes. Her white T-shirt shortens to reveal the tanned skin of her stomach. The purple jacket with the white cuffs and collar grows longer to extend to the middle of her thighs rather than her waist. The pants she wears transform into a set of deep purple, hip-hugger Capris, and the white pumps she wears change into a set of white stiletto heels, making her taller, but still not as tall as her twin brother.

Yami reaches out his hand towards Mariko.

Mariko places the Millennium Scale back at her waist and takes Yami's hand. She kneels down in front of the computer and places Yami's hand on her shoulder.

Yami places his other hand on Mariko's other shoulder and watches her as she starts to type on the computer.

Seto looks at Mariko and Yami as he finally manages to take a breath.

The eye on the Puzzle and the Scale both flare with a brilliant white light as Mariko works.

"Seto, I will need your assistance as well," says Mariko with her deep, almost masculine voice.

Seto tries to stand and fails. He slides his body closer to Mariko. "What do you need?"

Mariko takes Seto's hand and turns the computer so he can see the screen.

Seto nods his head as he starts to type one handed on the keyboard.

"Uh… what's going on?" asks Duke.

"We're in," says Seto, "All we have to do to get through the back door is jump."

"Jump?" asks Duke, "Jump where?"

"Over the bridge," says Seto as if the answer to the question should have been obvious.

"What?" asks Téa, "You expect us to jump over a bridge?"

Mariko falls into Seto's arms as her clothing changes again, and she returns to being simply Marie.

Yami blinks, and Yugi removes his hands from Marie's shoulders.

Marie shuts the computer down and places it into the carrying case she has slung over her shoulder. She stands up. "Let's go! We only have fifteen minutes before the door will automatically close itself! We have to beat Noah's firewall!"

"So we have to jump?" asks Joey.

"Yes," says Yugi nodding, "We'll go into the water, but we'll come out in the real world… I hope."

Seto stands up. "Let's go, Marie."

Marie and Seto lead the way to the edge of the bridge.

"I feel like I'm committing suicide!" exclaims Marie, "Oh, well! Here goes!" She pulls herself up onto the railing and falls forward. She plummets down into the cool water, and she curls up in a ball as her pain worsens.

Seto pushes himself up onto the railing and leaps into the water.

"Come on!" exclaims Yugi. He jumps over the railing and falls into the water.

Serenity hugs the monkey before diving over the edge with it still in her arms.

"Serenity!" exclaims Joey plunging after his little sister.

Téa and Duke push themselves over the railing and fall into the water.

Everyone falls through the ceiling and crashes onto the cold floor.

"Where are we now?" asks Joey.

"Well, let's see if we're still in virtual world," says Marie pulling her laptop out of the bag and slapping in a fresh battery. She turns it on as she sits on the floor with her legs spread apart to relieve the pressure on her groin.

"If that's a virtual computer, shouldn't it have disappeared?" asks Duke.

"Maybe when I rewrote the program to get this computer, I actually partially came back to the real world to find the laptop," says Marie. She begins to type on the keyboard. "I don't know what happened. I only use the power of the Millennium Scale! I don't know how it works!"

"Where are we, Marie?" asks Seto.

"Good news or bad news?" asks Marie.

"Good news!" exclaims Joey quickly.

"The good news is this is the real world," says Marie.

"And the bad news?" asks Yugi.

"The bad news is I have no idea where we are. We're not in Kaiba's tower!" exclaims Marie, "This room seems to be standing independently of the rest of the world."

"Then let's go explore," says Duke.

'Do not separate yourself from this room!' yells Mariko.

"No!" exclaim Marie and Yugi together.

"What's wrong?" asks Téa.

If you can, tell me what you find…

"Mariko…"

"Yami…"

Marie and Yugi look at each other. They both nod to the other.

"We've got to search the room we're in," says Yugi.

"But we can't leave it just yet!" exclaims Marie.

"Why not?" asks the monkey.

Seto raises his eyebrows at the monkey speaking with Tristan's voice, but he doesn't say a word.

"Tristan's right. Why can't we leave?" asks Serenity.

"Because… I've just figured out these obscure readings," says Marie typing on the computer again. "I think we are in Kaiba Corp's tower in the real world, but outside that door is the virtual world again. That's why this room is isolated. Noah changed one line of my rewrite to drop us here. He wanted us to think that we were winning right before he led us into a giant mousetrap!"

Seto kneels behind Marie and places his hand on her shoulder. "So… Marie… how do we get out of here and find Mokuba?"

Marie sighs as she types. "Let me run a hacking scenario while you guys search the room for hidden levers or buttons or secret passages."

"You heard her, people!" orders Seto standing again.

"And Seto…" Marie stops her work and looks up at her fiancé.

"Yes?"

Marie unclasps the Millennium Scale from her waist and holds it up to Seto along with the leather loop that had kept it slung at her waist. She smiles. "Hold onto that for me… for just a little while."

Seto takes the scale with a nod and heads off to search the walls with the others.

'Marie… Do you want to separate yourself from me?' asks Mariko.

'No… why do you think that, Mariko?' thinks Marie, 'Okay, so sometimes I do, but not all the time. What's up with you?'

'I am within the Millennium Scale. You just gave it to Kaiba!' says Mariko.

'I didn't give it to him. I only lent it to him, Mariko,' thinks Marie, 'I think it could help him.'

'Help him?'

'I… feel strange now… when I look at him. There's something changing,' thinks Marie.

Mariko sets his hand on Marie's shoulder.

'My feelings for him are unchanged, and I know that the person he is inside hasn't changed, but… there's something going on.'

'Did you see how he reacted?'

'When?'

'When you and Yugi both transformed beside him,' says Mariko, 'I joined with you, and Yami merged with little Yugi.'

'I didn't see.'

'I did. He looked like he was having a heart attack. Everyone's attention was on you and Yugi, so they didn't notice, but I saw it. I felt like someone was attacking him.'

'Then why didn't you tell me earlier?' shouts Marie.

'I didn't want to worry you,' says Mariko simply, 'That's my body you're in and I want it in one piece!'

'It's my body, Mariko. You're a boy!' exclaims Marie.

'He was reacting the way you did the first time you transformed into me,' says Mariko.

'You can't possibly mean that you think Seto has an ancient spirit with him! Where would he be hiding it?' thinks Marie sarcastically, 'His pants… oh, better yet…'

'I know the thought seems ridiculous, Marie! You do not have to mock me! But it is possible! Yugi is the reincarnation of Yami! You are the reincarnation of Nefertiri! It is quite possible that the Priest-Mage Nefertiri was in love with has been reincarnated into that spoiled rotten brat!' yells Mariko. He turns away from Marie and seethes in anger.

'You loved Nefertiri, didn't you, Mariko?'

'Yes… She was married to Yami, and she was in love with someone far more powerful than I. You remind me of her sometimes, Marie. Not just that you look like her, which you do. You just do so many things the way she used to,' whispers Mariko, 'You aren't working. Go back to your computer, and leave me alone.'

'I'm sorry, Mariko, that Nefertiri didn't return your feelings,' thinks Marie.

Marie looks at Seto.

Seto pulls the leather strap through a belt loop on his pants and lets the Millennium Scale hang down by his hip. He starts to feel up the walls and look behind wall coverings for switches.

Marie returns to her work typing onto the computer using a little information that she picked up from an expert hacker that she met in Cairo.

"Hey! Look at that!" exclaims Duke as a wall slides away from his fingertips.

Everyone turns their attention to the wall.

"This is a bit too horror movie for me," says Téa, "Can we go home now?"

"Perhaps we can, T-bird," says Marie looking at her computer screen, "I know where that tunnel goes! Main computer, here I come!" She packs up her computer and joins everyone beside the open wall.

"This leads to the main computer?" asks Joey, "What are we waiting for then? Noah's probably there!"

"With Mokuba!" exclaims Seto.

Marie nods her head. "Let's go kick Noah's butt for kidnapping my little brother!"

"Maybe Tristan's there too!" exclaims Serenity.

"I'm right here," says the monkey.

"I meant your body!" exclaims Serenity smiling at the robotic monkey.

Marie and Seto quickly step into the hallway and start moving towards the computer room.

The others follow just a few steps behind.

After walking for what seems like forever, they burst into a run and race each other down the long hallway. They finally see a door at the end, and Marie rams it with her shoulder.

The door splinters and falls away as Marie crashes to the floor inside the room.

"Hey! What are you doing here?" asks a man with wide, frightened eyes.

"Where's Mokuba?" asks Seto in a demanding tone as he runs through the doorway into the room. He helps Marie to her feet before he stands glaring at the man beside the large computer.

"He's with Master Noah!" exclaims the man fearfully.

"Where?" asks Seto again as everyone else runs into the room panting.

"I don't know!" exclaims the man before fainting.

To taste sweet victory…

"Hey! This will be handy!" exclaims Joey picking up a couple of walkie-talkies from the counter beside the computer.

"Right!" exclaims Duke taking one of the walkie-talkies from Joey, "In case we get separated!" He lifts it to his mouth. "Testing, Wheeler."

"They work," says Joey after listening to the rather loud voice coming through the walkie-talkie in his hand.

"I'm staying here," says Marie removing the laptop's case from her shoulder and setting it down on the counter. She sits down in the chair in front of the main computer. She starts to type and stare at the fifty-two inch monitor. "I think Serenity and Téa should stay here with me."

"Then I'm staying too," says Duke, "Someone has to protect the girls."

"I can think of better choices," says Téa, "The monkey for example!"

"Hey!" exclaims the monkey with an offended voice, but then it adds, "Thanks, Téa!"

"Great! Joey, Kaiba, and I will continue on to find Mokuba and Tristan's body!" exclaims Yugi.

"Take the laptop with you," says Marie, "I'll find where you should go in just a minute."

"We should tie this guy up," says Joey, "So that when he wakes up, he can't attack you…"

"Good thinking, Joey… What do we tie him up with?" asks Duke, "There's no rope here."

Joey lifts an unused computer cord and grins.

"The mutt's actually using his head!" scoffs Seto, "I can't believe it!"

Joey growls at Seto.

Duke takes the cord from Joey's hand and moves to bind the unconscious man.

"Marie… are you sure you want to stay here?" asks Seto.

Marie stops typing and turns to look at Seto. She smiles. "Yes… it's better this way. I don't want to slow you down, Seto. And maybe I can help you from here. The only way out of here besides the way in… is actually right back out into virtual world. But with the main computer, I can rewrite some of the programs to help you find Mokuba! I want Mokie back just as much as you, Seto!"

Seto leans down and kisses Marie's lips quickly. "Find Mokuba for me, Marie!"

Marie turns back to the computer and starts typing. "Got him!"

"Devlin… you'd better protect my fiancée well! If she comes out of here with a single scratch, I'm holding you personally responsible!" exclaims Seto glaring at Duke.

Duke swallows hard. "Got it!"

Joey clips the walkie-talkie to his waist and grabs the computer's carrying case. He swings it over his shoulder.

The art of dueling now we'll redefine…

"Let's go!" exclaims Seto looking at the computer screen before heading out through the door.

Yugi and Joey hurry after Seto.

Marie stands up and heads over to a water cooler. She quickly slips the pill bottle from her pocket and withdraws a pill as she stands in front of the large bottle of water in its base. She deposits the pill bottle back into her pocket quickly. She pours a small amount of water into a paper cup and discreetly slides the pill into her mouth. She takes a drink and swallows the medicine as she returns to her seat by the computer. She sets the cup down on the counter and starts to type again.