ELEMENTARY, MY DEAR CONAN

Disclaimer: Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century and Detective Conan all belong to their own respective creators. If you can’t deduce that I’m only using their characters to write a story clearly for entertainment purposes, then you should leave the detective work to the detectives. I’ll be using the English version of Detective Conan (Case Closed) for ease of writing.

Note: This story takes place sometime after the episode of The Missing Melody and the end of the short-lived second season of SH22.

Chapter 1

Idol

Conan’s world, present day Japan...

In his room at the Moore Detective Agency, which was also the Moore family residence, Conan sighed as he looked over his personal journal. Ever since he had been turned into a child, he had been keeping a record of his cases as the unknown detective genius, and reason behind Richard Moore’s recent rise to fame in the crime-solving world. At times, it made him frustrated that Rachael’s father always took the credit for all of Conan’s hard work.

It wasn’t that Conan had anything personal against Richard. Rachael's father wasn’t a half-bad sleuth. He had been trained by the police academy and his eye for detail was a bit above average, but he had several flaws. One, he was a letch and was easily distracted by pretty faces and figures. Two, he had a problem with connecting certain details of a crime scene, and their significance. From his past experiences, Conan felt that Richard usually EXPECTED the clues to fall right into his lap. His newfound fame had given him quite the bloated ego.

His final flaw was that he NEVER questioned the fact that he was always fuzzy on remembering HOW he had been able to solve the difficult cases. He would always black out, then awake to find the case solved and he was credited with catching the perpetrator. Surrounded by adoring fans and awestruck colleagues, Moore simply went with the flow, believing in the lie of his great genius.

Conan sighed. It was very hard to endure, but he had no choice. As the teenage detective prodigy Jimmy Kudo, he would have had no problem in presenting the solved cases himself, but as Conan Etigawa, he had to use Richard as a front to catch the criminals. No one ever took a small boy seriously. With the help of a drug-firing wristwatch and a bowtie voice emulator (courtesy of Dr. Agasa), he’d knock out Moore and impersonate him in order to unravel the bad guys’ plans.

As he continued to review his journal, he looked out of his bedroom door and saw the love of his life as she went about dusting the apartment. How desperately he had wanted to tell her the truth, but he couldn’t risk it. That crime organization that had slipped him that experimental drug and turned him into a kid was still out there. He had foiled their plans before, and if they knew that their poison had failed to silence him, then they would come after him, and the Moore family would be in serious danger.

After Jimmy Kudo had seemingly vanished, Rachael had been getting more depressed as of late, and Conan couldn’t blame her. He could remember how happy she had been after winning that martial arts tournament and that date they had shared, before he had run afoul of those bastards who had trapped him in his present body. Now he had to live the lie that he was a distant relative of himself, while trying to find a way to get his real body back.

He wasn’t certain how much longer he could continue to deceive her. Rachael had a keen mind of her own, and one time, she nearly found out his secret. And she was very determined to find Jimmy. Those rare appearances over the phone and such were not going to satisfy her forever. Conan shuddered when he remembered when she had him trapped in that bathroom and after that case with the computer expert. (1)

How he hated to see her so sad, but until he found a way to get back to the way he was, things would have to remain as they were. However, Conan knew that someday he would achieve his goal and be reunited with his love. As he always believed, with a keen eye for detail, one truth will prevail.

Thinking about his motto, he decided to enjoy rereading one of his favorite books, and went over to his dresser drawer. Pulling out a volume from his collection of Sir Arthur Doyle’s works, he smiled as he read out loud, the lead character’s words...

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Sherlock Holmes’ world, New London in the 22nd Century....

“When you’ve eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable it might seem, MUST be the truth.” The detective simply stated as the criminal was being taken away by the police. Beside him was his trusted aide, the compu-droid known as Watson, as well as Inspector Beth Lastrade and the Irregulars, Deidre, Tennyson and Wiggins.

Chief Inspector Grayson was still unconvinced at how Holmes had deduced the identity of the thief, and demanded that he explain. “What rubbish is this?! How can be the victim be the thief?”

Holmes smiled in his usual manner as he educated the good head of New Scotland Yard. “Simple observation and deduction, my dear Grayson. Eyes and brains. The thief knew the exact code and location of Mr. Grandel’s safe, as well as the layout of the property. If the thief had been a complete stranger, then the sentinel robots would have attacked him. However, they didn’t. My associate Watson had confirmed this when he scanned their memory banks.”

The compu-droid with the elasto-mask nodded. “Indeed. I had looked into the robots’ CPUs and found no record of anyone ever entering the house during last night’s robbery, other than Mr. Grandel himself.”

“But he claimed that the thief had used an ion disrupter rifle to disrupt their circuitry and erased their memories! We found the weapon at the scene of the crime! The DNA found on it belonged to Grandel’s assistant Myler. He has to be the criminal!”

“Quite impossible, Inspector Grayson.” Holmes said simply. “As you may recall, the sentinel robots were equipped with shielded circuit panels to insulate their CPUs from the disrupting fields of the security grids. It would take a very high-powered disrupter rifle to penetrate such protection, and the outdated model we found at the crime scene, would have NOT been sufficient. The only way the thief could have gotten past the sentinel robots, was if he had their deactivation codes, as well as the codes for the security grids and safe. And who else could get through all that so quickly, other than the one person who possessed such knowledge?”

“So what you’re saying is that the rifle was left there to throw the suspicion off of Grandel and place the blame on to his assistant Myler, who happened to be a gun hobbyist?” Lastrade asked.

“Very good, Lastrade.” Holmes said as he continued. “Grandel had decided to have Myler take the blame, by stealing a rifle from his collection and planting it at the scene of the crime. He made certain that none of his DNA could be found on the weapon, but he neglected to do the same when he inserted the power cell. Since Myler keeps all of his rifles un-powered, it would have made no sense to leave a useless weapon at the crime scene. Grandel did not think that anyone would even consider checking the rifle’s components for DNA. Normally, forensics would only scan the surface of a weapon and perhaps the ammunition, while inner mechanisms are ignored. However, when our young friend Tennyson had decided to scan the entire weapon, he found two sets of DNA. The majority had belonged to Myler and the most recent DNA traces were Grandel’s, specifically the power cell. That is solid proof that Grandel was the last person to have held the rifle.”

“Then why did he go through all that trouble to steal those artifacts and place the blame on Myler?” Grayson demanded. “Those artifacts are nearly impossible to sell on the black market. Who would buy them?”

“Who, indeed.” Sherlock said as he put in the final nail in Grandel’s coffin. “Your answer can found in the records that Wiggins and Deidre had discovered in Grandel’s office. At first, I was puzzled as to why he would keep a list of the most prominent research facilities in the world. Then Tennyson came across an article of the rare element tryserium, and how some researchers would pay any price for it, no matter how small the amount. After having Watson scan the safe again, he found trace signs of tryserium, which was hidden from preliminary scans by the disruption fields.”

“So the artifacts contained some tryserium and he was intending to sell it to some unscrupulous buyer, right?”

“Correct Lastrade. During the initial scans, Grandel had discovered that the artifacts had been constructed from meteor fragments that had contained tryserium. He kept this information from his assistant, hoping to later profit from it.” The nineteenth century detective stated. “In addition to the profit he would have made from the sale, he would have also collected a hefty amount from the insurance, once he filed for the ‘loss’ of the artifacts. His own greed caused his downfall, when he tried to place the blame on Myler.”

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221B Baker Street...

“I must say, that you solved that case in almost no time at all, Holmes.” Watson said as he served Sherlock a cup of tea. The famous detective was sitting in his favorite easy chair and contemplating in front of the fire.

“Yes, but I cannot take full credit for this. The Irregulars were most instrumental in gathering the information that I needed. I must say, that those youths show great potential as detectives, and it does my heart good to see such potential develop. Ah, if only more youths would follow their example and use their eyes and their brains.”

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Conan’s world...

“So what did you want to see me about?” Conan asked as he entered Dr. Agasa’s laboratory.

“Ah, Jimmy! Good to see you!” Dr. Agasa smiled as he welcomed the youth. “I’ve just about finished with the modifications to your skateboard. I’ve now implanted the new power cell you wanted to give you that extra boost.”

“Thanks Dr. Agasa.” Conan said as he took the device into his arms and looked at it. “So this skateboard will work even at night?”

“That’s right, and it will even function during cloudy days and rain. Normally, it will still run on solar power, but when the sun isn’t out, it will switch to the backup battery, and keep going for another 4 hours or so. Just remember to plug it in, to recharge the power cell every 24 hours after usage.”

“What kind of battery does it run on?”

“Ah, it’s a brand new kind of magnetic field energy cell, which I have just developed. Unlike normal alkaline batteries and such, it does not degrade as fast and will operate for more than ten years with regular recharging. I am quite certain that it will help you in your detective work.”

“Thanks Dr. Agasa. I can’t wait to try it out.”

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Sherlock’s world...

“Sorry to call you so early to New Scotland Yard, but I’m afraid that we must get your official statement for the records.” Lastrade said as she met Holmes and Watson.

“No trouble at all, Inspector.” Holmes assured. “I am well used to these proceedings by now, and besides, I would like to see this rare element that Grandel wanted to steal. I hear that the tryserium has already been extracted from the artifacts and will be sent to a top-security research facility.”

“How did you know about... oh never mind. I should be used to your knowing before I did. This way Holmes.”

Sherlock and Watson followed Lestrade to the research lab where the element was being stored until it would be delivered to the proper people. Hovering over a magnetic field projector, a small lump of blue crystal floated in midair. It was no larger than a golf ball, but it contained enough potential energy to light up New London for a year. Scientists and security guards milled about as the detective and his associates came close to the tryserium and gazed upon it.

“So this is what caused all the trouble. Doesn’t look like much does it?” Lastrade commented.

Sherlock nodded as he suddenly began tensing up. “In my experience, looks can be quite deceiving. This rare and valuable element has already caused much trouble to many people, and I fear that the trouble is not yet over.”

The Inspector became a bit worried. Whenever spoke in that tone, then things were about to get serious. “What are you talking about? We caught the thief and retrieved the tryserium. Case closed.”

“Yes, we caught the thief, but the mastermind still remains... and is here!” Sherlock whirled around and pointed to a janitor who was mopping the floor close by. “Wouldn’t you agree, Moriarty?”

Those present in the laboratory gasped as Holmes’ greatest adversary ripped off his elasto-mask and took out an ionizer. He snarled as he directed his weapon at his foe and fired. This caused people to scatter and duck for cover. From a hidden panel in the ceiling, Moriarty’s henchman Fenwick appeared and began tossing gas grenades, knocking out the security guards as his master headed toward the tryserium.

However, he was intercepted by Holmes as the detective used his retractable cane to knock the ionizer out of the villain’s hand. The two grappled with each other as Watson and Lastrade dealt with Fenwick.

“How did you know?” Moriarty demanded as he continued to battle his equal.

Holmes smiled as he forced Moriarty back. “This whole case reeked of your work. I had Watson do a little background check on Grandel and learned that a mysterious benefactor had supplied him with a very expensive scanner; one that could detect the tryserium in the artifacts among the other metals. You suspected that the tryserium was there and knew that Grandel would try to steal it and sell it to the highest bidder. You then planned to double-cross Grandel and take the tryserium for your own dark deeds. As for how I knew you were here, it was quite simple. Since when is a low-level janitor able to mop the floor in a high-security lab during regular hours?”

“You will not stop me this time, Holmes!” The angry criminal genius cried out as the two came dangerously close to the magnetic field projector.

“HOLMES!” Watson cried out as he witnessed the two about to fall against the projector. In desperation, he ran toward them, took aim with his stunner and fired at Moriarty. However, his intended target turned about and the beam struck the projector. As a result, the protective magnetic field was deactivated and the energy contained within the tryserium was unleashed. Moriarty broke loose and backpedaled, just as Watson reached Holmes. The two were bathed in an eerie light and vanished from sight. A moment later, the tiny crystal broke apart and disintegrated.

Seeing that his prize was gone and his greatest foe was seemingly gone for good, Moriarty decided that he should take his leave. Using this opportunity and employed a smoke bomb to make his escape.

Lastrade coughed a bit after getting caught in the cloud of smoke. She had just cuffed Fenwick, and was about to aid Watson and Holmes against Moriarty, when the sudden flash from the tryserium had blinded her. When her vision cleared, she saw that Sherlock Holmes and Watson were gone.

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Conan’s world...

Conan was impressed that the skateboard was riding well, even though the sun had gone down an hour ago. As he headed home, he began to think about his current situation and wondered what to do about it. Then he chuckled a bit as he wondered what his idol Sherlock Holmes would do.

At that moment, a flash appeared before him, temporarily blinding him and causing him to lose control of the skateboard. He fell forward and braced for impact against the ground. He instead bumped into something large and metallic. He looked up and saw a portly face with a beard and a monocle. On his head was a derby. He was dressed in a kind of trench coat.

“Oh my. Are you all right, young man?”

“Uh... I’m okay. I’m sorry about bumping into... ” Conan replied as he stepped back and looked up at Watson, then noticed another figure standing behind the person he had run into. His eyes widened as he saw a tall Englishman who was wearing a dress suit, tie, deerskin coat, hunter’s cap, and carrying a cane. His features were sharp and chiseled, with a sophisticated air about him.

Conan rubbed his eyes in disbelief, then reached into his backpack. He pulled out a book and looked at the picture on the inside cover. Then he looked up at the stranger, then back down at the book, then did two more double takes. Amazingly, this person looked exactly like...

“You... you’re....”

The detective smiled down at the child, then noted the book in his hands. He gave the youth a slight bow and said, “Sherlock Holmes, at your service.”

To be continued....

Author’s Notes

I recently started watching the original series of Detective Conan on DVD as well as the Case Closed series on Cartoon Network and I often wondered what would happen if Jimmy/Conan were to meet with Sherlock Holmes. Now of course, Sherlock is purely a fictional character in Conan’s world, but then I remembered an old show that’s still on TV called Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century, which is now on DVD.

As for where this could go, well it wouldn’t be unrealistic for Sherlock to figure out Conan’s secret and maybe even help him with his problem. With access to 22nd Century technology, Jimmy just might be able to make a return. I can see these two minds working together and solving cases and whatnot.

In any case, this will be my newest Non-Ranma project and I think I could go with this. What do you readers think?

(1) Seen in the Deadly Game and the Computer Murder Case episodes.