Okay, quick note first: Thank you all who reviewed. You all deserve nirvana, heaven, or any other paradise of your choice. To Sour Schuyler: Kohl is an ancient eye - liner. If anyone else can elaborate, please do. I know that cosmetics were very popular among Ancient Egyptians, men included. I think that was the only question, besides those concerning Seto's current state, which are answered in this chapter. A special thanks to those who answered my questions- you all are great! And please keep reviewing. Please?

* * *

"Don't you think he shoulda' woken by now? I think you hit him too hard, Bawls."

"Wasn't my fault Trigg, and you know it. The kid wasn't supposed to struggle. You woulda' hit him too if you were on the wrong side of his right hook."

"That scrawny kid?" The voice was tinged with humor. "Looks to me that a feather could knock him over. Them brass knuckles mighta' been overkill."

"It ain't funny. Boss'll be mad if he's out for good. And it won't just be me facing his wrath, so stop laughing."

For a few minutes, Seto had been struggling towards consciousness. It wasn't easy. His brain felt as if it was wrapped in gauze, and his head seemed to have taken up percussion. But he thought that if only he could open his eyes, he would see Mokuba's sleeping face. For some reason that was important.

"Maybe we should douse him in cold water to wake him up, Trigg."

"Bad idea. Any idiot knows water and electricity don't mix."

Seto was beginning to discern words from the painful sounds existing both inside and outside his head. He didn't recognize either voice, and fear rose in his chest to join the nausea he felt. It was slowly sinking in that he wasn't at home in his room.

"Do you think Boss'll mind if we give him a small jolt to wake him? Just to make sure he ain't overly damaged, of course."

"Worth a shot, Bawls. I'd hate to think the kid ain't opening them pretty blue eyes again. Hand me that switch."

But Seto could still sense his little brother's presence. He tried to reach out. Despite the reality that his hands were secured above his hands (he could feel the metal bindings cutting into his wrists) he managed to reach towards Mokuba. A few more inches and he would be able to touch his soft hair.

A searing pain erupted in his chest, thrusting him violently from his brother's side. His eyes snapped open as he clenched his teeth to keep from crying out. For a moment only redness wavered before him. Then his sight focused and he saw two men grinning triumphantly at him. The smaller of the two stepped back so that he stood next to his companion. There was a tazer clutched in his hand.

"Welcome to the land of the waking, Seto Kaiba."

* * *

Joey hated mornings. This was especially true on weekends. It was a part of Joey's personal philosophy that weekends were created so that he could wake up with the sun directly overhead.

Thus the fact that it was early Saturday morning and the phone was ringing was beginning to grate his nerves.

He opened one brown eye and aimed a pillow at the telephone. Despite the awkwardness of throwing while lying on his side, the pillow hit its mark. The phone came of the hook and hung limply on its cord. Joey could just barely hear his friend Yugi's voice coming from the offending object. Joey groaned; anyone but Yugi he could ignore.

Joey stumbled out of bed, the cold air hitting the bare skin of his arms and legs. As an afterthought he wrapped a still-warm blanket around his shoulders to supplement his t-shirt and boxers.

"Hey Yugg," Joey yawned into the phone. Yugi stopped talking, realizing his audience had only just arrived.

"Morning Joey. Look, I know it's early, but I was wondering if you could come over to my house right away."

"Sure Yugg. What's going on?"

There was a brief hesitation. "I'll tell you when you get here. Could you call Tristen and tell him to come also?"

" . . . All right . . ."

"Good. I'm going to call Tea now. Bye!" The line went dead.

Joey sighed. Who would have thought that befriending the passive student would bring him excitement and danger?

After delivering the cryptic message to Honda, Joey walked to Yugi's house. Yugi ushered him in through the game shop to the living room in the back. Joey was surprised to see Kaiba's little brother sitting on the couch, absently flipping the channels on the television remote. The TV was on mute and it was obvious from the look in Mokuba's eyes that the kid was lost in thought.

Joey was just about to ask Yugi again about what was going on when the answer presented itself to him. "Great, Yugg. What has Kaiba done this time?" He didn't bother hiding the distaste he felt for his rich classmate. Joey had gone to a lot of trouble for Seto just recently and never got so much as a thank you. For some reason Seto seemed to find enjoyment by insulting him and calling him a mutt. Not that it really bothered Joey; he just figured that a guy with such a comfortable life could afford to be pleasant once in a while.

Yugi aimed a death-glare at Joey and had just opened his mouth to reply when Mokuba sat up straight and turned the volume up on the television. The other two quickly crossed the room to see what had caught Mokuba's attention.

A pretty, perky news anchorwoman sat with the Kaiba Corp logo on the screen behind her. "Last night, Seto Kaiba - the CEO of Kaiba Corp -- was kidnapped from his home in Domino City. Forensic teams are analyzing blood found in Kaiba's room, hoping that they might find samples of his attacker's DNA. At this time no ransom has been demanded." The anchorwoman flashed a smile. "And now the weather report . . ."

Joey blinked. For some reason he hadn't expected something as blatant as a kidnapping. Sure, tons of people hated Kaiba, but that hate usually manifested itself in a high-stakes duel or sabotaged Kaiba Corp technology . . . Joey tore his eyes away from the television and looked for Mokuba's reaction. The young boy was paler than usual, but his expression was stoic. Regretting his earlier words, Joey stepped over to Mokuba. Sure, Seto was a first class jerk, but his little brother was a good kid.

The doorbell rang. Yugi soon ushered Triten and Tea into the room. While Yugi briefed the newcomers, Joey sat next to Mokuba. The blank look in Mokuba's eyes was really starting to bother the blond teen. "Hey, it's alright to be scared," Joey ventured. "But you two have been in some pretty bad jams before, and it's always turned out okay."

Steel eyes glanced up. "I know. But this time is different."

Before Joey could ask how it was different, Tea leaned over to give Mokuba a hug. Tristen stood, looking rather uncomfortable, next to the couch. Joey saw that Yami had now taken control of Yugi's body. The pharaoh spoke up. "Alright. We've got a Kaiba to rescue."

* * *

"Who the hell are you?" As soon as the words left Seto's mouth, he regretted them. The sound of his own voice echoed painfully in his head, setting off a cacophony of throbbing headaches. Without thought, he tried to bring a hand to his forehead, only to be reminded by the pull of skin against metal that his hands were currently unavailable. He bit back a groan of frustration and turned his attention to his surroundings.

The room was small, with grey stone walls and a low-hanging ceiling. In fact, uncurling his fists, Seto could touch the rough stone above him. The cuffs that held his wrists were positioned so that Seto's feet just reached the floor; his arms were already aching.

"Hear that Bawls? The great Seto Kaiba asked about our lowly selves. Ain't that something? But we won't answer until he can ask politely." Trigg grinned and looked expectantly at his captive.

'They want me to be polite?! No, they're trying to bend me to their will, whoever 'they' are. It's about control.' Seto found that thought amusing. After years of manipulating and intimidating his employees, associates, and competitors, did this man honestly think he could play mind games? Well, Seto wasn't complying. "In that case, shut the hell up."

"Ohh, he's got a sharp tongue. I'd watch my mouth if I were you, Kaiba. You wouldn't want your brother to get hurt 'cause of your bad attitude."

Anger rose at the threat, but something from the back of his mind pushed through. "You don't have Mokuba!" He shouted with absolute sureness.

Trigg's eyes widened instantly. Realizing his reaction had given away the truth, the captor scowled. Holding the tazer menacingly, Trigg stalked towards Seto. "You don't seem to realize where you are, Kaiba. I don't care if you own half the world, down here, you're nothing." He held his weapon against Seto's face, staring down angry blue eyes. Seto refused to turn away.

With a snarl, Trigg pressed the switch. Seto jerked painfully, his muscles to contracting from the electrical charge. Trigg leaned in, his face inches away. The malice in his expression mingled with the burning in Seto's body, leaving the vague impression that the pain was emanating from his captor's gaze.

Trigg removed the tazer and, nodding harshly at Bawls, the two left Seto alone to recover his breath.