Greetings!
Welcome to another installment of this torturous little story. Well, torturous for Yugi, at least. My computer is fixed now, so that's a good thing. I have half of the next chapter already written, so that's also a good thing. Let's just hope I can finish it some time soon.
Reviews:
TZ: Freaky, huh? :o)
Lavender Wonder: "Crap in a hat"? Hee, hee. . . that had me snickering for a while. I like!
Shiney mew: Oh, yeah. . . if Joey kicks the bucket, Yugi isn't going to be happy. Then again, I don't think Yugi's been happy at all for the entire fic. *bad authoress*
Starheart: Now be careful and don't pull out all of your hair. I wouldn't want you to go bald on my account! ^__^
Mutou Yasu: It's been fun to mess with Kaiba. I figured if anyone could do it, Marik could.
Sci fi fan: Thanks for the good wishes!
Amiasha: Yup, Yami did get a lot of action, which surprised even me. I'm usually more Yugi centric.
HikariMew: I'm glad you're enjoying the story!
Darkened Soul: Oops!! Sorry about that. I swear that the cliffhangers aren't done on purpose. Most of my chapters just seem to end that way.
Jadesaber: Thank you so much for the constant replies! I really appreciate them, and I'm glad you're still enjoying the story.
Benign sadist: I'm glad you're enjoying how I write Ryou. I don't really know much about the character (since not much has been said on the show) but I like him and I think that he needs to stand up to Bakura.
QueenOfHearts: Dare I ask if you've lost your mind yet? :o) Just kidding. Hope this update is soon enough!
Luna339: Lazy authoress, huh? Shame on you! I'm just kidding. Laziness is sometimes a problem for me too. Though not recently. It's nice to have my computer back, though.
Thank you all, as always!! I do have the best reviewers. Again, forgive me if I leave anyone out. I don't do it on purpose! Now, on to the story.
Part 14: Appearances Can be Deceiving
Yugi stirred, and immediately groaned at the waves of pain that rushed through him. His body ached everywhere, but especially his head. His arms and legs felt like putty, and the rest of him felt no better. He rode out the pain and when he finally managed to get it under control, he opened his eyes. For a moment, he panicked because all he could see was darkness, and then he remembered that he was blind. While the thought did not bring him any comfort, it at least explained his situation.
It took him an even longer while to remember what had happened. The events were fuzzy, as if he'd been a second hand participant. With a gasp, everything hit him at once and he realized that he had been a second hand participant.
** Yami, are you okay? **
When there was no reply from his partner, Yugi knew that something was wrong. He remembered Yami telling him about having to use his dark magic even though he was already weak. What if Yami had been hurt as a result of the magic attack?
** Yami? **
Again, there was no response. What could have happened to him? Yugi reached out to him through their link, but hit a wall. Whatever was going on with Yami, he'd chosen to shut Yugi out. Yugi didn't know whether to be hurt or worried at that, but decided that Yami had his reasons.
Yugi sat up slowly, biting back another groan as the pain made another appearance. He didn't know what to do. He couldn't stay where he was, because if one man had already found him, it meant that the other could not be far behind. Yugi didn't want to be around when the man finally showed up.
When he thought he was ready, Yugi made it all the way up to his feet. He had taken a few, tentative steps when his foot suddenly hit something, sending him sprawling, once again, to the ground. Yugi winced in anticipation of hitting the floor, but ended up landing on something soft instead.
Curious, Yugi ran his hands over what he'd landed on and gasped when his hands hit something that felt like a mouth. Despite his better judgment, Yugi continued to run his hands over the face, tracing someone's cheeks, nose and eyes. The face felt very cold beneath his hands.
"ACK!"
Yugi quickly stumbled back, painfully landing on his butt, when he realized that he'd landed on top of the man Yami had killed with his magic attack. He scooted backwards away from the man until his back hit the nearest wall. His heart was pounding and his breath was coming in short gasps. He could still feel the cold, clammy skin of the man beneath his hands and it only made Yugi shake harder. He brought his legs up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them. He buried his face in his arms and desperately tried to calm down.
Yugi forced himself to take deep breaths until his heart slowed to semi regular speed. He couldn't afford to lose control right now. He had to hold himself together long enough to get out of the horrible situation he found himself in. Only when he was safe could he afford to dissolve into tears.
Yugi got to his feet again and was very careful where he stepped. When he got to the dead man, he gingerly stepped over him, because he was afraid to touch him again.
'Just stay calm, stay calm,' he told himself.
He repeated that over and over as he took small, careful steps forward. He was hoping to reach what he thought was the front of the room. He wasn't really sure about where it was, but he had a feeling that he was going the right way. Suddenly, he stopped dead in his tracks when he heard a noise coming from somewhere in front of him. He was about to try and find a hiding place, when he heard a door open. He felt the presence before the person spoke.
"Hello, Yugi."
Yugi's head snapped to the left at the sound of the very unexpected voice.
"Kaiba! What are you doing here?"
Relief flooded through him at the familiar voice, and he smiled.
"I have something to take care of."
Kaiba's answer and the tone of his voice made the hairs on the back of Yugi's neck rise. Kaiba sounded like he had the day they'd dueled at Duelist Kingdom: cold, cruel, and ruthless. It was a great contrast to the way he'd sounded just a few hours ago when they'd been up in his hospital room.
"What do you have to take care of, Kaiba?" Yugi asked as he carefully felt his way around the room. Now that he knew where the door was, he intended to make it out of the room before Kaiba did.
Kaiba chuckled, but Yugi heard no humor in it.
"Oh, it's just a little matter of retrieving you and taking you to a much safer place."
Yugi heard Kaiba's footsteps and felt him get closer. He tried to keep his distance as best he could.
"I thought you said I'd be safe here."
Kaiba remained quiet, and Yugi used the time to feel his way across the length of the wall until he felt the door leaning against the wall.
"I was wrong. Where I'm taking you is safer."
Yugi's hand reached the opening of the door. His instincts told him to run, and he was going to do just that.
"I don't think so, Kaiba."
With that, Yugi stepped out of the room and began to run. He held his arms out in front of him to hopefully keep himself from slamming face first into a wall or a closed door. He heard Kaiba curse behind him, and then heard his footsteps as he, too, began to run.
"You're not going to get anywhere, kid, so you might as well give it up."
Yugi ignored him. He ran as fast as he could, hoping not to trip over something. He could hear Kaiba's footsteps as if they were the only things in the world and could tell that the older teen was getting closer.
Suddenly, Yugi hit something hard, but yielding. With a sigh of relief, he realized that he'd hit another door. He pushed it open and then ran to the right. He didn't know where he was going, but he had to go somewhere.
A pair of hands grabbed him and pulled him backwards, before two strong arms pinned him against a broad chest.
"No! Kaiba, let go of me!"
He squirmed and tried to loosen the grip around his chest and waist, but wasn't able to. He kicked with his legs and was satisfied to hear Kaiba grunt in pain.
"Why are you doing this? Let go of me!"
Kaiba responded by tightening his grip. Yugi felt himself moving and figured that Kaiba had started to walk.
"Help! Someone help me!
Yugi was about to yell again, when a strong hand clamped over his mouth and nose. Only one arm was wrapped around him now, but it was more than enough to keep him in place.
"Shut up or I will break your neck."
The command was emphasized when Kaiba turned Yugi's head to one side, pushing down on it painfully. His already injured head protested the rough treatment, but there was nothing Yugi could do about it.
"Or, I can just let you suffocate."
Yugi's lungs were beginning to burn from the lack of oxygen. His head was still being painfully pushed to one side so he couldn't even struggle.
"Are you going to cooperate?"
Kaiba's voice sounded cold, empty and sent chills down Yugi's spine. Whatever was going on, Yugi didn't really think he wanted to know why Kaiba was acting the way he was. All he knew at that moment was that if Kaiba didn't remove his hand, he was going to suffocate.
**~~**
"Are you going to cooperate?"
Kaiba heard himself say the words, but he wasn't the one actually speaking. Yes, it was his voice, but he wasn't consciously forming the words.
He could feel Yugi trembling, his heart beating fast against Kaiba's arm. He could also suddenly feel the wetness of Yugi's tears as they hit his hand. He wanted nothing more than to put Yugi down and apologize for his actions, but he couldn't do that. His body was no longer his to control, which scared Kaiba more than anything else had ever done before.
He heard Yugi whimper and try to move his head away from Kaiba's hand. Kaiba knew that in a few seconds, Yugi would suffocate. He needed to get his hand away from Yugi's nose, but nothing Kaiba did accomplished that. He was nothing more than a passenger in his own body.
'You're going to kill him, damn it, let him breathe,' Kaiba mentally yelled to Marik.
'Ah, so you do care for the little one. How sweet,' Marik replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm. 'It's too bad he's not going to trust you when you're through with him.'
'You need him, you said so yourself. You don't want to kill him.'
Kaiba returned his attention to the still struggling Yugi. His struggles had gotten weaker and less frantic, which meant that he was reaching his limit.
Without warning, Kaiba's hand shifted so that it only covered Yugi's mouth. Kaiba mentally sighed in relief, and then cringed at the sound of Yugi's labored breathing.
"Next time, do what I say. Are we clear on that?"
Yugi nodded weakly, and then went limp in Kaiba's arms. Kaiba thought that Yugi had passed out from a lack of oxygen, but one look at Yugi's wide open eyes told him differently. Yugi had an almost resigned look on his face, one that worried Kaiba.
Kaiba started walking back towards the morgue. He headed to one of the cabinets that lined the wide, cold room. As he passed, he noticed the steel tables that took up most of the space in the room. He mentally shuddered when he realized that a few of the tables were occupied.
"I'm going to take my hand off your mouth now. You're not going to scream, correct?" To make a point, Kaiba tightened his hold on the teen, causing Yugi to groan.
Yugi shook his head.
"Good."
Kaiba released the hand and opened the cabinet he was standing in front of. He rummaged inside until he could see a small, white container. As he pulled it out, he read the label: Chloroform.
'Damn,' Kaiba thought, knowing that he wasn't going to be able to stop what was about to happen.
Kaiba took Yugi to one of the empty tables and roughly laid him down on it. For the first time, Kaiba was able to see the numerous cuts, bruises and dried blood on Yugi's face. There was also some blood staining the shirt Yugi was wearing.
For a moment, Kaiba was confused about where Yugi could have gotten all the bruises, since he hadn't had them all the last time he'd seen the younger man. Kaiba then remembered seeing a body on the floor of the room he'd left Yugi in. It must have been the body of one of the men that had brought them down here. Yami had probably killed him while trying to defend himself, but not before the man had done some damage.
"Why are you doing this, Kaiba? You said you would help."
Yugi's voice was eerily detached, and when Kaiba looked down at the table, he saw that Yugi's hands were gripping it so hard that his knuckles had turned white.
"Didn't I tell you not to talk?"
Without warning, Kaiba ripped off a piece of Yugi's blood stained T-shirt. He uncapped the bottle of chloroform and poured a generous amount of it on the scrap of cloth. He put the bottle down, and then put the cloth over Yugi's mouth and nose.
Yugi struggled then. He gripped Kaiba's hand, attempting to get it away from his face, but it didn't do any good. Yugi's eyes registered fear and helplessness, but Kaiba was powerless to do anything about his actions. All he could do was watch as his body was manipulated into harming a good person, someone he'd unexpectedly come to care about, and wanted nothing more than to fight, overcome the situation. Kaiba had already tried that, with no success.
Yugi finally went limp. His arms dropped back onto the table, making a loud clang as they hit. Kaiba removed the cloth and threw it to the ground. He knew that he'd be hearing Yugi's cries in his nightmares for a very long time.
He stood there, but nothing happened. For a split second, he thought that he'd gotten control of his body back, but when he tried to move away from the table, he couldn't.
'Pick him up.'
Kaiba's body did as instructed. He picked Yugi up and cradled him as if he were a small child. He quickly walked out of the morgue and made his way back to the door and out of the hospital.
"Where am I going?"
Marik laughed, which grated on Kaiba's nerves. 'Don't worry about the little details, Seto Kaiba. Leave them to me.'
Kaiba began walking, heading away from the hospital. He'd been walking for a few minutes when he heard someone running up behind him.
"Kaiba, what the hell do you think you're doing?"
'That's Tristan. Good, maybe he can do something to help.'
Kaiba stopped walking. He didn't like that, because it meant that Marik was planning to do something.
Tristan came around to stop in front of him, and Kaiba saw his eyes widen as he saw Yugi.
"You bastard, what did you do to him? Where are you taking him?"
"That is none of your concern, now get out of my way."
"I don't think so, Kaiba. Yugi's grandfather was right, we shouldn't have trusted you. Now give him to me. I'm taking him back to his room."
Kaiba laughed a loud, long, and sinister laugh that made Tristan wince. Inwardly, Kaiba winced too.
"What exactly are you going to do about it, Tristan? You're all alone."
"Yeah, well, so are you."
Kaiba mentally gritted his teeth. Marik wanted Tristan to get back to the hospital and tell all of Yugi's friends that he'd done this to Yugi so that they'd all think he had wanted to kidnap Yugi all along. It wasn't enough for Marik to destroy Yugi's trust in him; he wanted to destroy everyone else's trust in him as well.
"You're all talk, Tristan. I don't think you can actually back up your words."
Kaiba saw Tristan clench his hands and knew that the other teen would attack. As Tristan lunged forward, Kaiba reached out with a long leg and swept Tristan's legs out from under him. Tristan went sprawling to the ground, and Kaiba heard a loud crack as Tristan's head hit the pavement. The teenager remained on the ground, unconscious.
"So much for the macho act," Kaiba said, and continued on his way.
After fifteen minutes of walking, Kaiba arrived at what appeared to be an abandoned warehouse by the docks. His arms ached from carrying Yugi but he'd had no choice in the matter. He walked around the building and came upon a door. He stepped up to it and it soundlessly opened. Kaiba walked inside, expecting to see Marik waiting for him. Instead, he saw nothing but a large room full of crates. The only illumination came from several large windows in the ceiling, which bathed the room in semi darkness.
Kaiba headed towards the back of the room. Once he reached the far corner, he leaned down and set Yugi on the floor. The younger teen was still unconscious, and a part of Kaiba hoped he remained that way. He didn't know what Marik wanted with Yugi, but he had a feeling that it wouldn't be anything good.
"Welcome, Seto Kaiba."
Kaiba turned, suddenly realizing that he had control of his body again. Marik stood a few feet away, close enough so that Kaiba could see him clearly, but not close enough to attack.
"Why did you bring us here?"
Marik made as if to walk to Yugi, but Kaiba stood in the way.
"Don't be fooled, Kaiba. Just as I can relinquish my control over you, I can easily regain it."
With that, Marik raised the golden rod and Kaiba saw it glow. With a sinking feeling, he tried to take a step towards Yugi, but was frozen in place.
Marik made it a point to walk close to Kaiba, smirking as he passed. Kaiba could do nothing but follow Marik with his eyes.
The blond teen kneeled next to Yugi and traced his fingers over his face, lingering slightly over the bandage at his temple and the various other bruises.
"The host is so very young. It's ironic that he shares his body with one so old."
Kaiba didn't quite know what to make of that. Instead of trying to figure it out, he just observed.
Marik dropped his hands and slowly traced his fingers over the symbols on the puzzle Yugi wore around his neck. He held it carefully, almost reverently, as if it were something he'd always wanted.
A bright light suddenly emanated from the puzzle, temporarily blinding Kaiba. When he could see again, he saw Marik sprawled on the floor. Marik was shaking, and Kaiba hoped that whatever had happened to him had hurt him. After a few moments of observation, Kaiba realized that Marik was laughing.
"The pharaoh is strong and willful, but he won't be that way for long. I'll break him, even if I have to kill the host to do it."
Kaiba watched Marik get up from the floor and dust himself off. He walked to Kaiba and stopped directly in front of him.
"I wouldn't try anything idiotic if I were you. The two men that were chasing you at the hospital were amateurs compared to my men."
Marik walked away. He was almost to the front door when he stopped and turned to face Kaiba again.
"Wake him up. I'll be back to talk to him."
With that, Marik walked out of the warehouse, leaving Kaiba to wonder what he'd gotten himself into.
**~~**
I know, I know, I pick on Yugi way too much. I should stop that. My muse always has other ideas, though.
Next up: Well, we were supposed to meet Mr. Wheeler in this chapter, but I never did finish that scene. So now it'll be in the next chapter. For once, I actually have no clue what the next chapter is going to have (other than Mr. Wheeler). Any suggestions?
Welcome to another installment of this torturous little story. Well, torturous for Yugi, at least. My computer is fixed now, so that's a good thing. I have half of the next chapter already written, so that's also a good thing. Let's just hope I can finish it some time soon.
Reviews:
TZ: Freaky, huh? :o)
Lavender Wonder: "Crap in a hat"? Hee, hee. . . that had me snickering for a while. I like!
Shiney mew: Oh, yeah. . . if Joey kicks the bucket, Yugi isn't going to be happy. Then again, I don't think Yugi's been happy at all for the entire fic. *bad authoress*
Starheart: Now be careful and don't pull out all of your hair. I wouldn't want you to go bald on my account! ^__^
Mutou Yasu: It's been fun to mess with Kaiba. I figured if anyone could do it, Marik could.
Sci fi fan: Thanks for the good wishes!
Amiasha: Yup, Yami did get a lot of action, which surprised even me. I'm usually more Yugi centric.
HikariMew: I'm glad you're enjoying the story!
Darkened Soul: Oops!! Sorry about that. I swear that the cliffhangers aren't done on purpose. Most of my chapters just seem to end that way.
Jadesaber: Thank you so much for the constant replies! I really appreciate them, and I'm glad you're still enjoying the story.
Benign sadist: I'm glad you're enjoying how I write Ryou. I don't really know much about the character (since not much has been said on the show) but I like him and I think that he needs to stand up to Bakura.
QueenOfHearts: Dare I ask if you've lost your mind yet? :o) Just kidding. Hope this update is soon enough!
Luna339: Lazy authoress, huh? Shame on you! I'm just kidding. Laziness is sometimes a problem for me too. Though not recently. It's nice to have my computer back, though.
Thank you all, as always!! I do have the best reviewers. Again, forgive me if I leave anyone out. I don't do it on purpose! Now, on to the story.
Part 14: Appearances Can be Deceiving
Yugi stirred, and immediately groaned at the waves of pain that rushed through him. His body ached everywhere, but especially his head. His arms and legs felt like putty, and the rest of him felt no better. He rode out the pain and when he finally managed to get it under control, he opened his eyes. For a moment, he panicked because all he could see was darkness, and then he remembered that he was blind. While the thought did not bring him any comfort, it at least explained his situation.
It took him an even longer while to remember what had happened. The events were fuzzy, as if he'd been a second hand participant. With a gasp, everything hit him at once and he realized that he had been a second hand participant.
** Yami, are you okay? **
When there was no reply from his partner, Yugi knew that something was wrong. He remembered Yami telling him about having to use his dark magic even though he was already weak. What if Yami had been hurt as a result of the magic attack?
** Yami? **
Again, there was no response. What could have happened to him? Yugi reached out to him through their link, but hit a wall. Whatever was going on with Yami, he'd chosen to shut Yugi out. Yugi didn't know whether to be hurt or worried at that, but decided that Yami had his reasons.
Yugi sat up slowly, biting back another groan as the pain made another appearance. He didn't know what to do. He couldn't stay where he was, because if one man had already found him, it meant that the other could not be far behind. Yugi didn't want to be around when the man finally showed up.
When he thought he was ready, Yugi made it all the way up to his feet. He had taken a few, tentative steps when his foot suddenly hit something, sending him sprawling, once again, to the ground. Yugi winced in anticipation of hitting the floor, but ended up landing on something soft instead.
Curious, Yugi ran his hands over what he'd landed on and gasped when his hands hit something that felt like a mouth. Despite his better judgment, Yugi continued to run his hands over the face, tracing someone's cheeks, nose and eyes. The face felt very cold beneath his hands.
"ACK!"
Yugi quickly stumbled back, painfully landing on his butt, when he realized that he'd landed on top of the man Yami had killed with his magic attack. He scooted backwards away from the man until his back hit the nearest wall. His heart was pounding and his breath was coming in short gasps. He could still feel the cold, clammy skin of the man beneath his hands and it only made Yugi shake harder. He brought his legs up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them. He buried his face in his arms and desperately tried to calm down.
Yugi forced himself to take deep breaths until his heart slowed to semi regular speed. He couldn't afford to lose control right now. He had to hold himself together long enough to get out of the horrible situation he found himself in. Only when he was safe could he afford to dissolve into tears.
Yugi got to his feet again and was very careful where he stepped. When he got to the dead man, he gingerly stepped over him, because he was afraid to touch him again.
'Just stay calm, stay calm,' he told himself.
He repeated that over and over as he took small, careful steps forward. He was hoping to reach what he thought was the front of the room. He wasn't really sure about where it was, but he had a feeling that he was going the right way. Suddenly, he stopped dead in his tracks when he heard a noise coming from somewhere in front of him. He was about to try and find a hiding place, when he heard a door open. He felt the presence before the person spoke.
"Hello, Yugi."
Yugi's head snapped to the left at the sound of the very unexpected voice.
"Kaiba! What are you doing here?"
Relief flooded through him at the familiar voice, and he smiled.
"I have something to take care of."
Kaiba's answer and the tone of his voice made the hairs on the back of Yugi's neck rise. Kaiba sounded like he had the day they'd dueled at Duelist Kingdom: cold, cruel, and ruthless. It was a great contrast to the way he'd sounded just a few hours ago when they'd been up in his hospital room.
"What do you have to take care of, Kaiba?" Yugi asked as he carefully felt his way around the room. Now that he knew where the door was, he intended to make it out of the room before Kaiba did.
Kaiba chuckled, but Yugi heard no humor in it.
"Oh, it's just a little matter of retrieving you and taking you to a much safer place."
Yugi heard Kaiba's footsteps and felt him get closer. He tried to keep his distance as best he could.
"I thought you said I'd be safe here."
Kaiba remained quiet, and Yugi used the time to feel his way across the length of the wall until he felt the door leaning against the wall.
"I was wrong. Where I'm taking you is safer."
Yugi's hand reached the opening of the door. His instincts told him to run, and he was going to do just that.
"I don't think so, Kaiba."
With that, Yugi stepped out of the room and began to run. He held his arms out in front of him to hopefully keep himself from slamming face first into a wall or a closed door. He heard Kaiba curse behind him, and then heard his footsteps as he, too, began to run.
"You're not going to get anywhere, kid, so you might as well give it up."
Yugi ignored him. He ran as fast as he could, hoping not to trip over something. He could hear Kaiba's footsteps as if they were the only things in the world and could tell that the older teen was getting closer.
Suddenly, Yugi hit something hard, but yielding. With a sigh of relief, he realized that he'd hit another door. He pushed it open and then ran to the right. He didn't know where he was going, but he had to go somewhere.
A pair of hands grabbed him and pulled him backwards, before two strong arms pinned him against a broad chest.
"No! Kaiba, let go of me!"
He squirmed and tried to loosen the grip around his chest and waist, but wasn't able to. He kicked with his legs and was satisfied to hear Kaiba grunt in pain.
"Why are you doing this? Let go of me!"
Kaiba responded by tightening his grip. Yugi felt himself moving and figured that Kaiba had started to walk.
"Help! Someone help me!
Yugi was about to yell again, when a strong hand clamped over his mouth and nose. Only one arm was wrapped around him now, but it was more than enough to keep him in place.
"Shut up or I will break your neck."
The command was emphasized when Kaiba turned Yugi's head to one side, pushing down on it painfully. His already injured head protested the rough treatment, but there was nothing Yugi could do about it.
"Or, I can just let you suffocate."
Yugi's lungs were beginning to burn from the lack of oxygen. His head was still being painfully pushed to one side so he couldn't even struggle.
"Are you going to cooperate?"
Kaiba's voice sounded cold, empty and sent chills down Yugi's spine. Whatever was going on, Yugi didn't really think he wanted to know why Kaiba was acting the way he was. All he knew at that moment was that if Kaiba didn't remove his hand, he was going to suffocate.
**~~**
"Are you going to cooperate?"
Kaiba heard himself say the words, but he wasn't the one actually speaking. Yes, it was his voice, but he wasn't consciously forming the words.
He could feel Yugi trembling, his heart beating fast against Kaiba's arm. He could also suddenly feel the wetness of Yugi's tears as they hit his hand. He wanted nothing more than to put Yugi down and apologize for his actions, but he couldn't do that. His body was no longer his to control, which scared Kaiba more than anything else had ever done before.
He heard Yugi whimper and try to move his head away from Kaiba's hand. Kaiba knew that in a few seconds, Yugi would suffocate. He needed to get his hand away from Yugi's nose, but nothing Kaiba did accomplished that. He was nothing more than a passenger in his own body.
'You're going to kill him, damn it, let him breathe,' Kaiba mentally yelled to Marik.
'Ah, so you do care for the little one. How sweet,' Marik replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm. 'It's too bad he's not going to trust you when you're through with him.'
'You need him, you said so yourself. You don't want to kill him.'
Kaiba returned his attention to the still struggling Yugi. His struggles had gotten weaker and less frantic, which meant that he was reaching his limit.
Without warning, Kaiba's hand shifted so that it only covered Yugi's mouth. Kaiba mentally sighed in relief, and then cringed at the sound of Yugi's labored breathing.
"Next time, do what I say. Are we clear on that?"
Yugi nodded weakly, and then went limp in Kaiba's arms. Kaiba thought that Yugi had passed out from a lack of oxygen, but one look at Yugi's wide open eyes told him differently. Yugi had an almost resigned look on his face, one that worried Kaiba.
Kaiba started walking back towards the morgue. He headed to one of the cabinets that lined the wide, cold room. As he passed, he noticed the steel tables that took up most of the space in the room. He mentally shuddered when he realized that a few of the tables were occupied.
"I'm going to take my hand off your mouth now. You're not going to scream, correct?" To make a point, Kaiba tightened his hold on the teen, causing Yugi to groan.
Yugi shook his head.
"Good."
Kaiba released the hand and opened the cabinet he was standing in front of. He rummaged inside until he could see a small, white container. As he pulled it out, he read the label: Chloroform.
'Damn,' Kaiba thought, knowing that he wasn't going to be able to stop what was about to happen.
Kaiba took Yugi to one of the empty tables and roughly laid him down on it. For the first time, Kaiba was able to see the numerous cuts, bruises and dried blood on Yugi's face. There was also some blood staining the shirt Yugi was wearing.
For a moment, Kaiba was confused about where Yugi could have gotten all the bruises, since he hadn't had them all the last time he'd seen the younger man. Kaiba then remembered seeing a body on the floor of the room he'd left Yugi in. It must have been the body of one of the men that had brought them down here. Yami had probably killed him while trying to defend himself, but not before the man had done some damage.
"Why are you doing this, Kaiba? You said you would help."
Yugi's voice was eerily detached, and when Kaiba looked down at the table, he saw that Yugi's hands were gripping it so hard that his knuckles had turned white.
"Didn't I tell you not to talk?"
Without warning, Kaiba ripped off a piece of Yugi's blood stained T-shirt. He uncapped the bottle of chloroform and poured a generous amount of it on the scrap of cloth. He put the bottle down, and then put the cloth over Yugi's mouth and nose.
Yugi struggled then. He gripped Kaiba's hand, attempting to get it away from his face, but it didn't do any good. Yugi's eyes registered fear and helplessness, but Kaiba was powerless to do anything about his actions. All he could do was watch as his body was manipulated into harming a good person, someone he'd unexpectedly come to care about, and wanted nothing more than to fight, overcome the situation. Kaiba had already tried that, with no success.
Yugi finally went limp. His arms dropped back onto the table, making a loud clang as they hit. Kaiba removed the cloth and threw it to the ground. He knew that he'd be hearing Yugi's cries in his nightmares for a very long time.
He stood there, but nothing happened. For a split second, he thought that he'd gotten control of his body back, but when he tried to move away from the table, he couldn't.
'Pick him up.'
Kaiba's body did as instructed. He picked Yugi up and cradled him as if he were a small child. He quickly walked out of the morgue and made his way back to the door and out of the hospital.
"Where am I going?"
Marik laughed, which grated on Kaiba's nerves. 'Don't worry about the little details, Seto Kaiba. Leave them to me.'
Kaiba began walking, heading away from the hospital. He'd been walking for a few minutes when he heard someone running up behind him.
"Kaiba, what the hell do you think you're doing?"
'That's Tristan. Good, maybe he can do something to help.'
Kaiba stopped walking. He didn't like that, because it meant that Marik was planning to do something.
Tristan came around to stop in front of him, and Kaiba saw his eyes widen as he saw Yugi.
"You bastard, what did you do to him? Where are you taking him?"
"That is none of your concern, now get out of my way."
"I don't think so, Kaiba. Yugi's grandfather was right, we shouldn't have trusted you. Now give him to me. I'm taking him back to his room."
Kaiba laughed a loud, long, and sinister laugh that made Tristan wince. Inwardly, Kaiba winced too.
"What exactly are you going to do about it, Tristan? You're all alone."
"Yeah, well, so are you."
Kaiba mentally gritted his teeth. Marik wanted Tristan to get back to the hospital and tell all of Yugi's friends that he'd done this to Yugi so that they'd all think he had wanted to kidnap Yugi all along. It wasn't enough for Marik to destroy Yugi's trust in him; he wanted to destroy everyone else's trust in him as well.
"You're all talk, Tristan. I don't think you can actually back up your words."
Kaiba saw Tristan clench his hands and knew that the other teen would attack. As Tristan lunged forward, Kaiba reached out with a long leg and swept Tristan's legs out from under him. Tristan went sprawling to the ground, and Kaiba heard a loud crack as Tristan's head hit the pavement. The teenager remained on the ground, unconscious.
"So much for the macho act," Kaiba said, and continued on his way.
After fifteen minutes of walking, Kaiba arrived at what appeared to be an abandoned warehouse by the docks. His arms ached from carrying Yugi but he'd had no choice in the matter. He walked around the building and came upon a door. He stepped up to it and it soundlessly opened. Kaiba walked inside, expecting to see Marik waiting for him. Instead, he saw nothing but a large room full of crates. The only illumination came from several large windows in the ceiling, which bathed the room in semi darkness.
Kaiba headed towards the back of the room. Once he reached the far corner, he leaned down and set Yugi on the floor. The younger teen was still unconscious, and a part of Kaiba hoped he remained that way. He didn't know what Marik wanted with Yugi, but he had a feeling that it wouldn't be anything good.
"Welcome, Seto Kaiba."
Kaiba turned, suddenly realizing that he had control of his body again. Marik stood a few feet away, close enough so that Kaiba could see him clearly, but not close enough to attack.
"Why did you bring us here?"
Marik made as if to walk to Yugi, but Kaiba stood in the way.
"Don't be fooled, Kaiba. Just as I can relinquish my control over you, I can easily regain it."
With that, Marik raised the golden rod and Kaiba saw it glow. With a sinking feeling, he tried to take a step towards Yugi, but was frozen in place.
Marik made it a point to walk close to Kaiba, smirking as he passed. Kaiba could do nothing but follow Marik with his eyes.
The blond teen kneeled next to Yugi and traced his fingers over his face, lingering slightly over the bandage at his temple and the various other bruises.
"The host is so very young. It's ironic that he shares his body with one so old."
Kaiba didn't quite know what to make of that. Instead of trying to figure it out, he just observed.
Marik dropped his hands and slowly traced his fingers over the symbols on the puzzle Yugi wore around his neck. He held it carefully, almost reverently, as if it were something he'd always wanted.
A bright light suddenly emanated from the puzzle, temporarily blinding Kaiba. When he could see again, he saw Marik sprawled on the floor. Marik was shaking, and Kaiba hoped that whatever had happened to him had hurt him. After a few moments of observation, Kaiba realized that Marik was laughing.
"The pharaoh is strong and willful, but he won't be that way for long. I'll break him, even if I have to kill the host to do it."
Kaiba watched Marik get up from the floor and dust himself off. He walked to Kaiba and stopped directly in front of him.
"I wouldn't try anything idiotic if I were you. The two men that were chasing you at the hospital were amateurs compared to my men."
Marik walked away. He was almost to the front door when he stopped and turned to face Kaiba again.
"Wake him up. I'll be back to talk to him."
With that, Marik walked out of the warehouse, leaving Kaiba to wonder what he'd gotten himself into.
**~~**
I know, I know, I pick on Yugi way too much. I should stop that. My muse always has other ideas, though.
Next up: Well, we were supposed to meet Mr. Wheeler in this chapter, but I never did finish that scene. So now it'll be in the next chapter. For once, I actually have no clue what the next chapter is going to have (other than Mr. Wheeler). Any suggestions?