I've got to be honest, this chapter is maybe a little boring. I was hoping to add a little excitement element, but found I couldn't without changing things a bit too much, which would change the whole story.

Hopefully the next few chapters will excite you more!

Enjoy.

Chapter 10 - Countenance

Seto turned away from the window as Yami was led up the stairs towards the front door, or rather, Roland's goons had to keep up with Yami's pace. He was taking two steps at a time, eager to get into Kaiba's office, and to get to Yugi.

'Hmm, it seems our friend is in a hurry to give us what we need,' he addressed Rhiannon and Andrew, who were sitting in comfortable chairs. They wanted to be party to the information first hand.

'Consider yourself lucky, Seto,' Rhiannon said, filing his well manicured nails. 'If you'd taken much longer, I think the Master may have just taken the job away from you and expelled you from the Brotherhood.' He looked up at Kaiba through his long blond bangs. 'And you know what happens to ex-Brothers, Kaiba.'

Seto narrowed his eyes. 'I do.' Ex-Brotherhood memebers, except a few powerful few, didn't last very long in the real world. Their companies were taken over and stripped down to the very core. The member was ousted and when they thought things couldn't get lower, their families were targeted. And after that, well, they pretty much had nothing left to live for.

'You are cutting it rather close there, Seto,' Andrew said with mild concern. 'Another few days of no results and you might not have had a choice.'

'Then it's a good thing Plan B is working so well,' Rhiannon retorted.

'What was plan A?' Andrew asked innocently.

'Beat the crap out of a hated rival for the fun of it, and get the information as a side effect,' Rhiannon said with a small laugh.

Andrew smirked. 'And what's plan C if this doesn't work?'

Seto clenched his fists. 'It will work!'

Rhiannon snickered. 'We'll just see about that.'

Just then, the doors to the office flung open and Yami strode into the room. Roland stalked in after him, sweating profusely.

'I am very sorry, Master Kaiba!' he panted. 'He just walked so quickly and barged in!'

'Don't make excuses Roland. You couldn't keep up with him? Look at him…' He pointed a finger at Yami who was standing in the middle of the room with the look of a cat about to pounce on an unsuspecting mouse. '…he's got short little legs.' Off to the side, Rhiannon, who was taller than Kaiba, snorted at the remark. Andrew, who was tall, but not quite as tall as Kaiba, just smiled.

Roland just stood at the door, not wanting to make a further remark. Seto waved his hand impatiently and Roland closed the door behind him. He stood guard.

'Where is Yugi?' Yami enquired deeply. He quickly looked around the room. 'And where's Bakura?'

Seto walked over to his desk chair and sat down leisurely. 'Yugi? Yugi…Yugi…now let me see. And Bakura, you asked? Ah, yes, both questions can be answered with this.' He picked up a remote control and pointed it towards a large cabinet, which was closed. He pressed a button and the door of the cabinet slid aside to reveal a large flat screen. The image flickered on and showed the torture chamber.

Yami's eyes widened. Yugi was lying on the table, bound and gagged. His eyes were tear filled and his shirt had been opened to expose his chest. Bakura was straddling him with a scalpel in his hand and a wicked gleam in his eyes. He licked his lips and lowered the blade slowly down to Yugi's chest, while the boy struggled and cried.

Seto sighed and pressed another button. 'I hope you haven't started without my permission, Bakura!'

Bakura's head snapped up and he looked around the room. The knife stopped just short of Yugi's flesh. 'Well, you were taking your sweet time,' his voice filtered through the airways.

Seto shook his head, although Bakura couldn't see him. 'Yami is here now, so get off and await further instructions.'

Yami watched Bakura look back down at the hapless boy, snarl, and get off the table. A trickle of sweat ran down the back of his neck. That was too close!

Seto grinned and turned to Yami. 'So, about that information. Are you going to give it to me, or do I tell Bakura to proceed with his…entertainment?'

Yami grit his teeth, still watching the screen. 'You know that if I tell you where the Items are, the whole world will be in danger!' He saw Yugi look around the room at the sound of his voice.

'Of course, boy, that is the plan!' Rhiannon said. He'd put his nail file away and was watching the screen with some amusement.

Yami glanced at the man. I could snap you like a twig, he thought observing the man's tall thin frame. 'Your plan it may be, but countless lives are at stake if you perform that Ritual. This is why they were divided. In the wrong hands, specifically yours, there could be devastating consequences!'

Seto turned to the screen. 'Bakura!'

On the screen, Bakura's face visibly changed from annoyed to wicked happiness. He quickly attached the electric pads to Yugi's chest and picked up the remote control. He pressed the button.

Yami watched Yugi's body twitch from the electricity. The poor boy couldn't even scream, but his eyes were shut and his back arched in pain. 'Stop!' he cried.

'Bakura, stop,' Seto said. Bakura didn't respond. He put his hand to his ear as if he were asking Kaiba to speak up, his grin never fading. 'I said stop!' Reluctantly, the flow of electricity ceased. Yugi's body flopped back to normal and more tears streamed down his face. 'You have something to tell me then?' he asked Yami.

'I can't tell you where they are.' He saw Seto turn back to the screen. 'BECAUSE some of them are under secure lock and key!' Seto didn't tell Bakura to continue. 'You would never be able to break into our headquarters. Someone with access would need to attend the site.'

'You?'

Yami nodded his head sadly. 'I will have to collect each of the items. It will take some time though. They have been distributed throughout the world.'

'How long will it take you to collect the items and return here?'

'A week and a half, assuming I can get flights booked and…'

'Don't worry about that,' Seto said interrupting. 'You will take my private jet and collect the items. When you have all of them, you will return here. You will not delay. You have seven days. That will give you one day per item. You will not tell anyone that you are collecting them all. How you go about getting them is up to you.' He leaned forward in his seat. 'If you do not return in seven days from tomorrow, I will give Bakura the order to kill Yugi, by whatever means he sees fit.'

Glancing at the screen, Yami saw Bakura smile. He also had his hand on Yugi's leg. Yugi had stopped crying, but his face had a disappointed look on it. 'Fine. Seven days if you can guarantee swift flights. I will arrange the rest, on two conditions.'

'I don't think you grasp the severity of this situation,' Seto said. 'You are in no position to be bargaining with me.'

'Two simple conditions, Kaiba. I'm sure that for something as important as all the items, you can hear me out.'

Seto looked at Rhiannon and Andrew. They both shrugged or nodded their head respectively. 'Carry on,' he said to Yugi.

'One: Yugi is kept safe from any harm in my absence. He is removed from the 'care' of Bakura and placed in comfortable quarters, fed and allowed to bathe until my return.'

'And the other 'simple' condition?'

'When we get to the respective country that the Item is, your men stay clear, and they are not to follow me. I will not put any innocent people at risk.'

Rhiannon stiffened in his chair. 'That is a ridiculous request! How do we know you won't alert the authorities to the plan or try to escape?'

'I could have escaped if I wanted to, however, you hold a large advantage over me at the moment. And I am a man of my word.' Yami shot a devastating glance at Rhiannon and the man flinched slightly. He grinned inwardly. 'Kaiba knows this.'

Seto nodded. 'He won't betray us, not unless he wants Yugi to remain alive and unscarred.'

Rhiannon leaned back again and returned his expression to mild disapproval.

Seto turned back to Yami. 'You have a deal. Yugi will be treated like a prisoner, however, he will be comfortable. Also, my men will stay with the plane while you run your…errands.' He looked at Roland. 'Get down to that room and take Yugi to his old room. Post a guard at his door at all times.' Roland saluted and left the room. Seto turned to the screen. 'Bakura, release Yugi.'

Bakura's anger was apparent. 'Release him? Why?'

'Didn't you hear anything that was just said?'

'Yes, but…'

'No buts! Release him!'

The image in the room grew darker and flickered momentarily. Bakura unclenched his fists and pressed the button to unclamp Yugi's bonds. The boy clambered off the table and huddled in a corner. He removed his gag, but didn't say anything.

Yami's heart fell at the sight. 'One more thing, Kaiba.'

'More requests, Yami?'

'Yes.' His voice was quiet. 'I want to see him before I go.'

Seto smiled. 'Of course, in fact, why don't you spend the night with him? You can leave first thing in the morning. It will take some time to prepare the plane and staff.'

Yami nodded, his eyes never leaving the screen. He watched as Roland entered the room, grabbed Yugi and left. Bakura still stood fuming slightly.

Seto pressed a button on the remote control and the screen disappeared behind the wooden door again. 'You see, Yami? I'm not all bad.'

In the chamber, Bakura watched Roland leave with Yugi and noticed the light on the camera switched off terminating the feed to Kaiba's office. When he was sure he was alone, he picked up a probing device and threw it across the room. While it was still in mid air, a blast of shadows incinerated it. Ashes fell to the floor.

Bakura lowered his hand, which was still crackling from the untamed usage of the Rings powers. He lips curled into a cruel smile. Well now, that was very interesting…

Yami was led to Yugi's room. The door opened and he was shoved inside. The door was slammed shut behind him and locked.

Eyes adjusting to the light, he saw a small figure huddled in the corner of the room. 'Yugi?'

Yugi looked up. He was glad to see Yami, but couldn't bring himself to move. 'Why did you come here?' he asked. 'Now the world is in danger.'

Yami stepped closer to him. 'I couldn't leave you here! Bakura would have killed you, but not before making sure you felt every inch of your body in pain.'

Yugi uncurled himself and stood up. Yami took the last few steps to reach the boy and wrapped his arms around him. Yugi allowed a loud sob to emanate from his lips. 'It's going to be all my fault!' he cried. 'I trusted Bakura even after what he did to you. I'm so stupid!'

Yami held Yugi tightly and stroked the boy's hair reassuringly. 'No, it's not your fault at all. You can't help your nature. And it's a very sweet nature. An excellent quality.' He sighed. 'I just fell in love with that, and for that, I'm sorry. It's put you in danger.' His embrace tightened and his eyes shut tightly. 'But I promise you this; no one will touch you and I will make sure that I do everything in my power to free you when I get back.'

'So you're really going to get the Items?'

'Yes, tomorrow.'

'So, you're staying here tonight?'

'Yes.'

Yugi looked up at Yami. 'Well, at least I'll get to be with you again.'

Yami smiled weakly and kissed the younger man firmly on the lips. They then both lay on the bed in each other's embrace, neither one wanting to ever let go.

Meh, not one of the better chapters, but please, let me know if you think I'm being too hard on myself. Next update coming soon.