Author's Note: The dialogue below until the sentence "You and I, together!" Are hand transcribed by me from the episodes Brothers In Arms parts 2 and 3. Enjoy the story!
"This is where it all ends!" Called Kaiba to his foe. "Now, Twin Headed Thunder Dragon, attack his giant soldier!"
"Don't do it!" Called a familiar voice that halted him in his tracks. Kaiba watched awestruck as his little brother appeared on Noah's side of the field.
"What's going on?!" He cried. "Mokuba! What have you done to him, Noah?!" He stopped for the tiniest moment. "Mokuba..." It was a broken whisper.
"Whoever you are, if you want to get to my brother Noah, you'll have to go through me!"
"Mokuba! Snap out of it!" Kaiba tried again, desperation written across his face.
"He's been brainwashed by Noah!" Yelled Joey. Noah began to chuckle.
"That's right Mokuba, protect me from him! He's the stranger who's trying to break us apart!"
"Stranger." He murmured robotically.
"No! It's me!" Called Kaiba.
"Mokuba has chosen sides based upon his own free will, Seto. Looking back, maybe you should have treated him with more respect! I give him the support you never could!" Noah said, snaking an arm around him. "It didn't have to be this way, Seto. But you left me no choice. Now you have a decision to make: forfeit this duel and step down as President of Kaiba Corp, or continue with your attack and risk losing Mokuba for good! Your brother's fate is in your hands!"
"If Kaiba attacks Noah now he'll be attacking Mokuba also." Yugi mumbled.
"So, what's it gonna be? Mokuba or control of Kaiba Corp? Decide. Your choice will affect the rest of your life!" Noah cackled.
"Noah, I'm only going to say this once: release Mokuba now! This is our fight- is that clear? He has nothing to do with this!" Seto spat each word with venom while Yugi, Joey, Tristan, Tèa, Duke, and Serenity watched, eyes glued to the confrontation.
"There you go disrespecting Mokuba again!" Noah chided. "Acting like his opinion means nothing! Tell him, Mokie!"
"Give Kaiba Corp to Noah now!" He demanded.
"I don't believe it!" Yugi mumbled, clearly astonished.
"It looks like Mokuba has made his position quite clear. Now, are you going to attack me or not?" Noah questioned. "If you do just remember you'll be striking Mokuba!"
"You punk!" Kaiba hissed.
"Hey! That's not fair!" Called Joey.
"Well Seto? Attack and you'll win the duel. But at what cost?"
"This is a no brainier, Kaiba has to attack him and win this duel!" Said Duke. "If he lets Noah win then we all lose!"
"What's it going to be? Your victory or Mokuba?" Noah asked tauntingly.
"Alright kid, I'll end my turn." Said Kaiba. His voice was calm but he was shaking with anger.
"I thought so." Whispered Yugi. Noah began to laugh.
"Seto! I knew you were too weak to go through with your attack. You can't possibly run a company like Kaiba Corp effectively if you're so quick to give in to your competition." He shifted his focus to his stepbrother. "Excellent work, Mokuba. I couldn't ask for a better brother."
"Thanks! Anytime!" Mokuba replied, running to his side.
"Now, let's finish this stranger off, shall we?"
"Yeah! Let's go! This creep doesn't stand a chance!"
"You heard the boy, Seto. For it's time for you to experience yet another of my deck master's special skills."
"And what's that, kid?"
"Observe! As I release Shinato's Ark's greatest power- Restoration of life! Remember: every passenger in the card graveyard is now aboard my ship, giving it a grand total of twelve passengers!"
"Oh no!" Cried Tèa.
"And now I choose to remove every one of them. As you can see, every monster I obliterate transfers it's power into my life points, making me unstoppable! And since I get a five hundred point boost from each monster I receive six thousand more life points! Now I'm even stronger than I was when we began!"
"He'll never beat us now, Noah!" Mokuba exclaimed.
"Not with a mere seven hundred life points." Noah added smugly.
"One more attack and Kaiba's a goner!" Joey pointed out. But there was no sadness in his voice. Just determination and hope.
"You're right, Joey! And if Noah wins this duel he'll take over Kaiba's body and escape to the real world to run Kaiba Corp leaving the rest of us trapped here." Said Yugi grimly.
"That virtual jerk!" Joey spat.
"Get a load of this card." Noah mocked. "I play dark hole! This magic card destroys all monsters in play- and you know what happens to them after that! They become passengers on Shinato's Ark!"
"Noah just filled his ship up with monsters again!" Tèa said, sadly.
"That means he has even more monsters he can call on now!" Duke yelled.
"Plus he can boost his life points even higher!" Yugi added, horrified.
"I think that's enough for one turn. Your move, Seto." Said Noah, looking superior.
How could Mokuba be forced to turn against me? Kaiba wondered. Maybe I have been too hard on him... He confronted one of the worst moments of his little brother's life- when he pretended to turn against him. The thought filled him with anguish, but he knew he had to stay strong.
"Mokuba, we're a team, remember?! You were always there for me! We defeated our stepfather together! I couldn't have done it without you!"
"Very touching, Seto- but Mokuba's on my team now!" Noah called. "And together, we're going to take everything you have! Mokuba's my brother- he doesn't even remember you!"
"Kaiba! Listen to me!" Yelled Yugi, and Seto turned to face him.
"No thanks." He said, dismissing him coldly.
"But I can help you, Kaiba! Because I've been through this before! Remember when Joey was brainwashed by Marik and he turned against me? Maybe you can get through to Mokuba the same way I got through to Joey! The answer may be in your deck!"
"Let's go! You have a duel to lose!" Said Noah, impatiently.
"Guess again, kid!" Said Kaiba. "Not only am I planning on winning this duel, I'll also win back my brother, so watch this!" He pulled a card from his deck, but was clearly disappointed with his draw.
"Disappointed?" Noah mocked him.
"I still have this card: Different Demension Dragon! So I'll switch it into defense mode and end my turn. Let's see if you can get past this Noah!" He challenged.
"Of course I can! But first, it's time for a change! I think I'll warm things up a bit and put an end to the ice age. After all, this is my virtual world and I control everything here! As you know, the fall of the ice age gave way for the rise of mankind. Eventually cities grew and large corporations controlled the world."
"Hey, what's that?" Asked Serenity as the scenery changed from ice to a grassy plain with buildings in the distance.
"It's Kaiba Corp!" Said Joey.
"Explain yourself now!" Demanded Seto.
"Well, since that's your company I thought maybe you'd like to see it one final time. You see, once you lose and I take over Kaiba Corp I'm going to change it back to the way it was. And if you don't remember, this should refresh your memory! Just like so many of the high tech battle vehicles that were produced by the original Kaiba Corp, my Gradius Flyer can cause an enormous amount of damage. Then I'll add this to boost it's power: the magic card cyclon laser! And to make my jet even stronger I'll ad one more card- the matter leveler magic card! It increases the overall attack strength of my Gradius Flyer by one hundred points every time it blasts you, Seto! And thanks to my laser's power you lose life points even though your monster's in defense mode. Gradius, attack his dragon with Siclon blast attack!"
"And since your dragon returns to the field every time it's destroyed I can keep attacking it! What was once your monsters advantage is now your downfall!"
"He does have a point there, Yug." Joey remarked casually.
"I know. But if Kaiba draws a powerful card he can still turn this duel around!" Yugi commented.
"I'll leave my Different Dimension Dragon in defense mode and end my turn now."
"That's the move of a man who's given up. I knew you were no match for my superior mind! And once I defeat you everyone else will know as well! Then I'll finally be able to run Kaiba Corp as I was always meant to!"
"You may control this little virtual fantasy land, but there's no way you'll make it in the real world, Noah."
"We'll see! I'm aware of what it's like in the real world! And after ruling this digital universe I have no doubt that running Kaiba Corp will be a simple task, and one that I was raised to do for my entire life! That is until you came into my home and took everything away from me! Well now it's my turn to take everything away from you! First I took your brother and next I'll take your identity! Now, let's get back to this duel. I play the magic card Gradius' Option! Since I already have one Gradius Flyer Jet on the field, this card allows me to create a second one. Behold, the power of two unstoppable aircrafts! Now Siclon Laser- fire!"
I can't keep this up much longer, thought Seto bitterly. Noah turned to Mokuba.
"Our enemy will soon be gone. I hope you're enjoying the show."
Mokuba nodded.
"Mokuba..." Kaiba whispered.
"Seto, it's no use! He's with me! How's it feel to lose your only friend?" He laughed. "Now, let's get back to your destruction, shall we? Go Siclon Laser, attack his dragon now!" The force of the attack knocked Kaiba to the ground, but he sat back up.
"This isn't over yet!"
"Look at the mighty Seto Kaiba now!"
"Snap out of it, Mokuba! I need you in order to beat him!" He cried.
"What's the Matter Seto? Feeling down?" Noah taunted as the elder Kaiba got to his feet. "You're only one attack away from total annihilation!"
"I'm not done!"
"Come on, Kaiba! Squash this kid!" Joey cheered.
"It will take more than a few attacks to keep me down, and it's my move now!"
"What a shame. You should know that sometimes it's best to stay down. The sooner you give into my power the less suffering you'll have to do, Seto. Mokuba realized that fact."
"Mokuba!" Yugi yelled across the field, "I know you're in there! Noah is hypnotizing you with lies! Seto is your brother, not Noah, and he's never let you down! Look inside your heart and you'll remember him!"
Mokuba began to clutch his head in confusion. "Seto?" He asked to no one in particular.
"They're just trying to break us apart, Mokuba." Noah explained.
"Mokuba! Don't let Noah poison your mind! We're family and no one can ever change that! You and I have always been there to support one another and we always will be! There's something I never told you, Mokuba: you once saved me! When we were kids! When Gozaburo Kaiba adopted us he was merciless, forcing me to work for hours with no rest! I was exhausted and ready to give up until you inspired me, Mokuba! By making that card for me you encouraged me not to give up! You gave me something to strive for! I swore that day to become a person worthy of possessing a real Blue Eyes!"
Confusion and stress bogged Mokuba further. He remembered making the card. But what did that mean? What was true? Who's brother was he?
"I remember..."
"That's right, Mokuba! I know you can't forget about me! You're strong, and I know you can break through his mind games! Never give up, and never let anyone control you!"
"Can't... Give... Up..." The confusion worsened, and he began to stare blankly at nothing.
"Fight him off! We can do this! You and I, together!"
As he was saying the words, he saw it. The subtle sign that only he knew about. Mokuba's hand began to shake ever so slightly.
"No!" He gasped. Instantly, he stopped short and forgot everything that was going on. He dropped the cards in his hand to the ground and ran for his brother, who let out a grunt, leaving those watching his duel stunned. He reached him just before he fell to the ground. Mokuba had suffered from epilepsy for his entire life, but he took medication to help prevent the seizures. Seto realized too late that they had been in this virtual wasteland long enough for the medication's effect to wear off. Mokuba stiffened for the briefest moment. Seto rolled him onto his side as the seizure began. He counted the seconds passing as he rubbed his brother's back rhythmically. He watched as Mokuba began foaming at the mouth and felt distaste and horror grip him simultaneously as the foam turned red with blood from biting his tongue so hard. He could feel everyone staring at him (wether out of pity or surprise, he did not know), but he didn't care. His brother's safety and comfort was far more important to him than their opinions of him. He took off his jacket, folded it up, and put it under his brother's head.
"It's okay, Mokuba." He said quietly. "It's okay." He kept repeating it as his brother kept jerking. He noticed a discoloration on his brother's pants- meaning he had lost control of his bodily functions because of the seizure. This only mattered to him in terms of worrying over Mokuba's comfort. When he thought his brother might hurt himself he restrained him gently. When he seemed to start coming out of it, Seto started asking him to talk to him.
"Mokuba? Can you talk to me?" His stare was still blank. Kaiba started stroking his hair.
"Mokie?" He whispered, "Can you hear me?" He got no response. When he started trying to get up with the seizure not yet past, Seto was careful to gently push him back down, hushing him quietly. He could hear Mokuba taking breaths now, and that was comforting. Feeling exhausted and strung out, he started humming a song they both knew by heart in a desperate attempt to get his brother to come around. To his surprise, it seemed to calm him down some. He saw his brother's fingers twitch and took his hand, squeezing gently.
"It's okay." He promised. His brother's eyes had been open the whole time, but for the first time, they seemed to focus on him.
"Mokuba?" He asked, hopefully. He didn't reply.
"Can you please talk to me?" He said, starting to rub his back again and humming. He opened up his mouth but only gibberish came out. It wasn't what he had hoped for, but it was definitely a step in the right direction. His eyes scanned over him for injuries but thankfully there were none to speak of. He checked his brother's mouth for any saliva or vomit that could possibly hinder his breathing, but it was clear. Now all there was to do was wait.
Noah was watching the whole thing. While he could have intervened at any time, this was obviously tormenting his stepbrother better than even he could have imagined, so he allowed it to happen without interruption.
The minutes seemed like hours but Mokuba finally came around. Although the seizure was unfortunate, the side effect of it was that it cleared his brain of Noah's influence. When he saw his brother, he smiled.
"Seto?"
"Mokuba." The word was filled with relief.
"What happened?"
"You had a seizure, but you're alright now." He explained. Mokuba cradled his head, confused.
"I don't remember..." He trailed off. Seto put a hand on his shoulder.
"That's okay. You're okay, which is all I care about."
For the first time, Mokuba smiled, and so did Seto. They hugged briefly.
"I want to go to sleep." He murmured tiredly. He nodded as he watched his brother curl up in a ball and quickly fall asleep before Seto stood up in front of his little brother in a protective stance.
"It's over, Noah! My brother is free from your control and I'm ready to shut you down for good!"
"You may have freed Mokuba from my influence, but this will never be over!"
With that, he turned the Kaiba brothers into stone, only to be awakened by Yugi Moto winning the duel between him and Noah some time later.