Author's Note: Sorry this chapter is a bit shorter than those thus far, but I needed to establish this piece of the puzzle, and there is only so much description I can give. I promise the next chapter will be longer!

Chapter 14 : Spectators

Three hours had come and gone, but the phone had yet to ring. "He promised to call every hour," Mokuba thought as he shifted in his chair for perhaps the tenth time that hour. "Every hour, and it's been three. Where is he? Are they busy? Did they find the cure? Or did something happen to them like I feared?"

Ever since his brother came up with the idea of going to the island, Mokuba had a mixture of fear and confusion boiling inside him. He trusted his brother's judgment and knew that a cure was necessary to fix his brother's mental state, but sending Anzu and he to a forgotten island that belonged to Gozaburo years ago never seemed to strike Mokuba as being a good idea. Yes, it was helpful and reassuring to send Anzu, for Mokuba knew all too well that his older brother was too proud to admit he needed support. "If he had another panic attack, he wouldn't be able to control himself. Anzu will be there to help him. But then again, she isn't that physically strong. What if someone is at this facility, like a bodyguard or something? Seto is strong; I remember all the defense courses he was forced to take under Gozaburo. He knows how to handle himself. But if he has another vision, and they are attacked…"

He groaned and leaned back in his seat, pouting at the lack of communication. Since the first hour without hearing from his brother passed, every imaginable possibility of what was happening to the two raced through his mind, each one worse than the last. "I just want to know he is okay. Just to know he is alive and safe…" And Mokuba knew deep down that, if his brother was truly safe, he would have called by now.

Hearing a bird fly overhead, he glanced up and sighed in frustration. He had grown tired of playing video games, so, taking his cell phone outside with him, he left the living room to sit out on the porch. It was a sunny, clear day, with a bright blue sky overhead. In front of him was the swimming pool with a small field surrounding the area, outlining the Kaiba estate. The pool was clean, yet Mokuba hadn't gone swimming in it in over a year. Seto, well… He claimed he never had time to use it.

"Still no word from Kaiba, huh?" Jounouchi asked as he opened the porch door which led into the living room. Mokuba turned to see the blonde smiling at him and attempted to smile back while shaking his head no. "Ah, I wouldn't worry too much about them," he stated. "Anzu is with him. She may not look that tough, but she's got some thick skin. She can take care of Kaiba."

"I know, but still…"

"Yeah, Kaiba should've called us by now. I know, I know. But hey, maybe they found the cure and are just waiting to call when they get back?"

"It only took them an hour to get to the island," Mokuba argued. "They would have been back by now."

"Hey, I'm just throwin' ideas out there. You gotta keep your spirits up. I'm sure he's doin' just fine."

He knew Jou meant well, but it was still unsettling not knowing how his brother was doing. "Seto isn't one to break a simple promise like this. Something is wrong… I just know it."

"Besides, aren't you getting hungry anyways?" Jou asked, placing his hand on the back of the white, cushioned chair. "Me and Yugi were thinkin' of getting something to eat. We're both hungry, and it might be a good idea to just get out of the house, you know? Get your mind off your brother for a bit."

Mokuba shook his head no. "I'm not that hungry…"

"You sure? Kaiba would hate it if Yugi and I let you starve."

"I think he'll understand why I'm not hungry."

"Still, kid, you gotta eat something. Want me to make something? I happen to be a pretty good cook, and Yugi can't seem to find the chef."

Mokuba scoffed and smirked up at Jou. "We don't have a chef, Jounouchi."

Jou's eyes widened in surprise. "What do you mean, you don't have one? You guys are richer than rich, right? What do you eat, then?"

"It might amaze you to know that Seto actually cooks the food in this house," he answered, chuckling when Jou's eyebrows rose considerably. "He gets home late, but I usually eat a big snack after school so I can wait until he gets home. Then he cooks us dinner. We're more normal than you might think."

"I'll say. Can't imagine Kaiba wearing an apron and making cake."

Mokuba laughed at the mental image. "Yeah, well, maybe not that normal."

"Hey guys!"

The sound of Yugi's voice caught the duo's attention, and they both turned to see Yugi standing in the doorway. His eyes were wide as he pointed back into the living room. "There's someone on the phone asking for you, Mokuba. He didn't say who he was; he just asked for you and said that it was very important."

His first thought was, "Could it be about Seto?" All of the previous thoughts and possibilities rushed back into his mind as he jumped out of his seat and bolted past Yugi into the living room. Running to the telephone located on the wall, he grabbed the phone and held it up to his ear. "Y-Yes, this is Mokuba Kaiba," he answered, secretly hating how his brother's mannerisms were wearing off on him. "Who is this?"

"Mr. Kaiba, my my my…. I never thought I would speak to the younger Kaiba brother," a foreign man stated. His voice was deep, smooth, but definitely not Japanese. American, or maybe English. Mokuba frowned, and his eyebrows knit together in confusion upon hearing the man speak.

"W-Who is this?" he repeated, his brother's possible predicaments still floating in his head.

"I must say, it took me some time to patch through to you. I had to shut this place down for a few seconds just to get enough power to pass your security systems." The man was taunting him, obviously ignoring the younger Kaiba's question. "Your brother certainly has kept security in mind, even after all these years. Quite a large number of security walls he has posted. But don't worry; only my system can get through. You're still safe from viruses and what-not, and I'm not here to infect your systems."

"What is this man talking about?" he thought, not knowing how to respond.

"Ah, you will have to pardon me. It's been awhile since I talked with someone like this. Now, I understand that your brother is trying to fix his mental problem, correct? I would at least imagine so given the grueling tests he was forced through in the virtual reality."

Mokuba gasped. "Wh-What do you know about that?" he questioned, noticing how Jou and Yugi, who had taken their seats on the couch, now leaned forward to hear the conversation better. "Who are you?"

"Relax, relax child," the man stated. "My, my, you really do care about him. I figured as much, remembering how Gozaburo always complained that you two created the perfect tag-team. In fact, I was surprised when I discovered that your brother didn't bring you along. Must have wanted to keep you safe; he's grown to be quite an intelligent, responsible man. I'm impressed."

"You know where my brother is?" he asked, knowing this man could easily be lying to him just to get his attention.

"But of course. Want to see for yourself?"

Hearing a click behind him, he turned and blinked as the television turned on, the screen taking a few seconds to adjust. Instead of showing one of the many channels the Kaibas had available, it showed twenty separate boxes, each depicting a different place. He didn't recognize the place, although it appeared to be something like a testing facility, as the first thing he noticed was test tubes in one of the camera angles. It looked like they were watching a security monitor, with twenty different cameras revealing different areas. The screens were in color rather than black and white, yet there was obviously no sound, for he could see what appeared to be people slowly wandering about without hearing them. As his eyes scanned all of the screens available, there were two that caught his attention. One in the upper left-hand corner of the screen showed what appeared to be a machine very similar to a virtual reality chair, though Mokuba couldn't make out who it was that was sitting in it. Upon taking a closer look, he realized nobody was in it; instead, there was a man standing next to the seat waving to him through the camera. A small microphone in his ear hinted that he was the man on the phone. The second monitor which caught his attention revealed a long office, and he could make out two figures standing next to a set of double doors. From the camera's perspective, the two were at the bottom of the monitor, as though they were standing directly beneath it. Such a view made it easy to see who the two were.

"Seto!"

"Anzu!" Yugi and Jou both shouted.

"See, I know exactly where your brother is," the man stated. "I've been keeping my eye on him this whole time, after all. That woman he has with him is quite resourceful; he probably would have been killed had it not been for her."

"Who are you?" Mokuba shouted into the phone. "What do you want with us?"

"Want? What do I 'want,' you ask?" The man chuckled, and on the television he watched the man shake with laughter. "What I want is to make a bargain with the young Kaiba, but I had to shut down the power in order to do so. You see, my boss is a rather clever man, and he made sure to turn the power down to a relatively low status when we first came across these two intruders. I couldn't use the intercom system very well in such conditions, so I had to reboot the system. Whether he appreciates it or not, well… We shall certainly see."

"And what does that have to do with us?" Mokuba questioned. He was becoming irritated by this man; he was obviously full of himself and talking just to hear himself talk.

"Oh, I would think a lot. For one thing, it may surprise you to know that my boss is a Mr. Gozaburo Kaiba."

Mokuba shuddered as his eyes widened in horror. "G-Gozaburo!" he exclaimed, catching Yugi and Jou's attention once more. "He's still alive?"

"Oh, quite so. Don't worry; from what I witnessed earlier, Gozaburo made himself known in the building to the two you are so interested in. They know who they are up against. Mr. Kaiba had a similar reaction to the one you just had. You two really didn't appreciate his fine work, did you?"

"That still doesn't explain your relation to all of this."

"Ah, now that sounded like Seto just now! Are his mannerisms wearing off on you?" Mokuba growled; the man was wasting his time. "Besides, you asked me what your relation was to all of this, not mine."

"Tell me what it is that is going on!"

"Fine, fine." The man sighed before stating, "My name is Dr. Sterner. I don't believe you will recognize my name, for I worked in Gozaburo's laboratories long before he ever adopted the two of you. I never saw you, the younger Kaiba brother, but young Seto Kaiba… I remember his visits rather well. Not to this laboratory, of course, but to several others. He is currently locked within this facility, which is still being used by Gozaburo and many other scientists. I suppose when he researched into this place, he forgot to check and see if there were still inhabitants. He paid for his mistake, I can assure you of that, although the woman with him saved him from a much harsher reality. But I digress. There have been a few…security breaches here and there, which have caused our system to collapse and some of our experiments to escape."

"Was that all your doing?" Mokuba questioned as he turned to watch the television screen. He was happy he convinced Seto to buy such a widescreen television, for the images were coming through rather well. He noticed how Seto and Anzu were looking around in confusion, seemingly surprised by the lighting in the room.

"Perhaps, perhaps not. I am not able to say at this time. Just know that I need power to be on at full capacity if I am going to use Seto."

"And what do you plan on using him for?"

"I need something that only Seto can get. He is resourceful and not tied down by having Gozaburo as his boss. He can manage the small favor. I will get in contact with him soon now that the intercom is fully functioning again. I need him to find an item for me. Once he finds it, I will be done with my work."

"And what makes you think he would agree to helping scum like you?"

"Oh, what a rude child! And here I am, granting you the opportunity of being a spectator to this incident… Well, to answer your question, I have the cure to his current mental illness."

Mokuba's eyes, which were already wide to begin with, widened considerably more at this bit of news. He stared at the phone for a few seconds before placing it back to his ear. "Y-You have… There is a cure?"

"Why of course! A simple procedure, really, nothing too difficult, but I need him to obtain an item before I can go about helping the poor kid. I've seen what the mental scarring in the virtual reality did to him; he is very lucky to have that woman tagging along."

"Did he have another attack?" Mokuba wondered as his eyes traveled from the phone back to the television set.

"You know, I am surprised that I have yet to hear a thank you," the man remarked. "And here I thought you would be worried sick over your older brother. Now you can watch as he walks around the building and make sure he is safe. Oh, but don't bother calling him; we made short work of his cell phone. Good thing they are making new ones faster than they can sell them, right?" He laughed at his own joke before saying, "Well, I must inform the young CEO of his new mission. Be sure to keep watching. If you turn the television off, I will have to reboot power just to patch you back through, and I may not want to waste the time and resources to do such a thing a second time. The first time already gave me far too much attention. Until next time, toot-a-loo!"

Blinking in surprise when the line went dead, Mokuba slowly placed the phone back on the holder and approached the side of the couch. His brother and Anzu appeared to now be talking, though he couldn't make out what they were saying. "Just who the hell was that?" Jounouchi shouted as he pointed at the television. "And what is this?"

"It… I don't know," Mokuba answered. "They are stuck…in the facility. The man who was talking to me… He said his name was Dr. Sterner. I don't know who he is, but he wants Seto and Anzu to obtain something for him. In exchange, he says he has the cure to Seto's problem."

"He has a cure?" Yugi asked.

"Supposedly."

"I don't trust this guy one bit, and I didn't even talk to him!" Jou exclaimed. "How the hell did this get on the television, anyways?"

"I don't know. He said we just have to keep watching, or else we won't be able to get it back on." A shiver went down his spine as he watched Seto and Anzu exit the room they were in. A door on another camera monitor opened, and the two's image came into view. His hands began fidgeting as he bit his lower lip. "Seto… Please be careful…"