I'm alive, Seto thought as he blinked his eyes open. He was lying in a hospital wing. The stench of medicine and blood reached his nose, causing him to gag. He looked around the large room and realized he was not alone. There were at least three other patients, all lying on their separate beds. Seto sighed and recalled what had happened. What had happened?
"He's awake," he heard someone whisper. Seto glanced around and saw a young nurse and a doctor, both looking at him. The doctor quickly strode over to Seto's bed and sat down in a nearby chair.
"How do you feel, Mr. Kaiba?" he asked in a very professional manner.
"I'm fine. I think. What happened?"
"We're not sure yet. It appears that a young man by the name of Yugi Mouto carried you here on his bike. He explained that you had been attacked by a mob, but by the looks of it, your injuries are all internal and being "attacked," as in forcefully, could not have created them."
"Is he here? Yugi?"
The doctor turned back to look at the nurse. He beckoned her over.
"Did Yugi leave?"
"Yes, a few hours ago," she confirmed.
The doctor began examining Seto while he talked.
"You have been in a coma for seven days, Mr. Kaiba." He took a light and shined it into Seto's eyes. "Your injuries, as I said, are all internal. We took an X-ray of your internal organs a few days back and found that there were a several microscopic holes punctured into your heart and lungs. Your hand, as you can see," he pointed to Seto's right hand, which Seto realized was heavily bandaged, "received the most damage. Two of the tendons have been torn and dislocated. Three bones have been broken, one in two places." The doctor then began to fill several needles with clear liquids.
"Is it bad?" Seto asked, though he knew the answer.
The doctor sighed. "Not extremely bad. You seem Ok. It's just that we don't know the source of your injuries or exactly what they will do to your body. However, you may be of help if you told us exactly what happened. Are you up for it?"
Seto stared up at the ceiling. He could not tell the truth. He's too powerful. His Rod…it brainwashes people. He can control anyone's mind. He can make you kill yourself if he wants, Isis had said about Marik. Seto did not doubt for one second that Isis had been telling the truth.
"No, not today. I'm a bit tired." But when? Seto could be kept in this hospital forever if he did not tell. Marik's Millennium Rod was powerful beyond anything people had dreamt of, Seto realized. What if somehow, it had paralyzed Seto? What if he was permanently injured? What if…
"Am I Ok? How long will I have to stay here?" he asked suddenly.
"As long as it takes for us to find out what happened and how fit you are."
Great, he thought. That'll happen soon…
"Mr. Kaiba, you have a visitor," called out another lady who had just opened the door.
"Let him in," he answered automatically, as he always did when his assistant said those exact words at Kaiba Corp. He desperately hoped that it was not Marik.
"Her," the lady corrected. She nodded towards someone standing outside the door. A moment later, Isis walked in. Seto felt his heart skip a beat. He sat up in his bed.
"Hi." he said awkwardly.
"Hi," she replied, even more awkwardly. "Er…listen, I'm sorry about – "
"No, no, it's not your fault," he interrupted. The last thing he wanted to hear was an apology. He always felt uncomfortable when people spilled their hearts out to him.
"Yes, it is, I just got carried away. And look where it landed you…"
"No, he's your brother. I would've done the same thing..."
Isis looked away. "But…I was wrong. I know he's evil. I just didn't want to get hurt again, so I made you leave. Sometimes I'm just scared of him…" she laughed.
"He used to beat me and insult me. I didn't know how to fight him, so I began to ignore him. I guess that made him even crazier…"
Seto gazed into her smooth, brown eyes. They were now watering. "No, it's ok. I understand."
"Yugi told me what happened," she continued. "That jerk. I can't believe he would try to kill you…"
"So…do you know what happened? Why did his Rod start…attacking me when I touched it?"
"Well, it's Marik's way of making sure no one steals it. He did it a while ago; didn't tell me how, but that's what I know."
"Wonder when I'm going to get out of this place… I hate the smell. Do you smell that? It's like blood and guts." Seto scrunched up his nose.
"Too bad for you, Kaiba. Yeah, you're right, it smells horrible!" she laughed along with him.
There was a brief silence. Seto skimmed Isis's face with his eyes. Her eyes were a creamy brown. They were so mysterious. Her skin color was a tanned yet beautiful shade of brown that clearly brought out her delicate features. When she talked, his heart felt a strange warmth. Sometimes, he swore his heartbeat became irregular.
All of a sudden, Seto felt a snag of pain in his side. He bent double and gasped for breath.
"Kaiba, are you ok?" Isis asked, standing up. She called the doctor over, who asked Seto a blur of questions about what he was feeling. Seto could barely squeeze the words out of his mouth; he could barely breathe without hurting.
"It – just – really – hurts – right – here," he managed. He felt Isis's long fingers grasping his hand. The pain was incredible. It felt like he was having cramps, but much worse. Whenever he breathed, whenever he moved, it hurt like crazy.
"We may have some complications here…" said the doctor.
"Just get him better!" screamed Isis. She was still grasping his hand.
Seto looked around in the room. Several doctors were rushing in. The heat of the many voices that were talking loudly were making him feel worse by the minute.
"What happened?" someone asked.
"I dunno. He just started hurting."
"Do we need an X-ray?"
"How would I know?"
"What do we do?"
The pain was getting worse now. Seto's forehead was streaming with sweat. His hands were shaking.
"Kaiba, it's ok. Just tell them what's wrong." Isis's face was inches away from Seto's.
"It – hurts," he mustered. He was panting. He felt a sting in his side. It felt oddly like when he had clasped his hand around the Millennium Rod…
"ARGH!" Seto screamed in agony; one piercing, ear-splitting scream. And then the pain subsided as suddenly as it had started. Seto lay flat on his back, panting, sweating.
"It's gone," he whispered. There was commotion as the doctors decided what to do next.
"What happened?" asked Isis, shocked and worried.
"I dunno. It just felt like something sharp hit my side. It hurt like crazy."
Seto! Seto! A voice screamed inside Seto's head. He realized with happiness and anguish that it was Mokuba. Then, he heard Marik's usual high-pitched, evil cackle. How's that for some pain? it asked.
"I just heard…Mokuba…and Marik. They were inside my head!" Seto glanced around, as if to check if anyone else had heard them.
"What did he say?" asked Isis.
"\Mokuba called out my name and Marik asked, "how's that for some pain?"
"Inside…your…head?" Isis asked. "I think… Marik connected you with Mokuba's mind. With his body!"
"But his body! It's with me! I thought Marik only had his soul!"
Isis hesitated and explained the little ball he had seen with Mokuba in it the day she had gone to visit Marik. She told him her suspicions, that Marik was torturing him.
"Torture! NO! MOKUBA!" Seto leapt from his bed, causing the wires that had been inserted into part of his body to come out. He felt small pains, but ran wildly out of the room, followed by Isis. The doctors yelled after him. One called security. Seto battled his way through groups of people and ran out of the hospital. He panted and nearly collapsed in the parking lot. He could not stand to hear that his brother was being tortured.
"It's ok, it's ok…" Isis soothed. She helped him up and the two walked away. "I'm here, Kaiba. I'm with you all the way, even if he is my brother…"
Seto looked up once again into those rich, creamy eyes. He planted his lips onto Isis's and felt energy soothing through his limbs. Liquid moistened his lips. He felt better already.
*~*~*~*~
dxdevlin: if that was really weird, sorry.
seto: geez! I don't scream when I hurt.
dxdevlin: well, mr. too-embarrassed-to-scream, maybe you've never been hurt that bad
seto: whatever!
dxdevlin: remember to review! if u've forgotten how, click the "review" button down there
seto: er… r people really that stupid these days?
dxdevlin: this is my show, ok? at least I let u kiss isis. we all know you're mad about her!! hahaha!!!
seto: hey, she is frickin' hot, ok?