Quickly her footsteps thundered down the stairs and echoed through the house. Her eyes flickered around, searching for the person she was after. At the bottom of the steps she stopped, bafflement crossing her face. More footsteps rattled on the stairs above and a small boy appeared.
"I can't find him." Yugi told the girl before him. "Kaiba's gone, and so is his stuff."
"So is Bree." Nina said as she exchanged worried glances with him.
Ishizu appeared from the hall her room was located down, a sorrowful expression on her face. "Marik's gone as well."
"Bakura, too." Yami explained as he slowly descended the stairway. He looked at the others, uncertainty in his eyes.
"What are we going to do? Where could they have gone, and when?" Yugi asked.
"They left last night." A voice sounded. They all turned to the dining room where Joey and Ryou sat eating their breakfast in a calm manner. It was Ryou who had spoken.
The others slowly filed into the room where the other two sat eating, questions on the tips of their lips. Before any could ask, Joey piped in, "Don't worry, they all left together. Kaiba and Bree were planning something, Marik and Bakura went with them."
"Do you know where they were headed?" Ishizu asked as she sat down across from Joey.
"Not a clue."
"But why would they leave?" The woman asked, her eyes falling to her hands. "Why wouldn't they tell us?"
"They knew what they were doing was dangerous." Ryou told her. He reached out and patted her hand. "They knew if they said they were leaving, you'd try to stop them."
"Do they even know what they're doing?" Yami asked impatiently. "It's more than just dangerous, it's extremely dangerous. One false move and they might get killed."
"They have to know what they're doing, why else would they go?" Joey asked. The room was silent, so he carried on. "They'll be fine. Be if we want to help them, we need to get as much information about this Chaos Gate and the other Gems as soon as possible."
"Joey's right." Nina said, realization shining in her eyes. "We can't let them do this alone. We'll help out, even if it is from afar. I'll try to translate more of the book." She quickly turned and headed back to Medea's room, where she had spent the night.
"I'll go to the study." Ryou told them as he stood from the table. "Perhaps I can find what Kaiba was doing last night, and then we'll have an idea where to look for them."
Yugi went with the taller boy. "I'll help you." The two of them disappeared up the stairs.
"What about you Ishizu?" Joey asked as he leaned back in his chair. "What do you plan to do?"
For awhile she was silent. Then, without looking up, she mumbled, "Pray."
Yami placed a sympathetic hand on her shoulder, squeezing it lightly. "Don't worry, I'm sure they'll be alright. Marik will return to you."
The woman didn't reply, only nodded her head as she stood, then slowly made her way back towards her room. Yami and Joey watched her go.
Even though the breeze was light, it nipped at her nose and cheeks. Annoyed, she pulled her scarf up over her nose for what seemed like the fiftieth time. The snow crunched as the pair made their way through the harbor, eyes open for their prey.
It had been early that morning when Bree and Kaiba had arrived in Thule. With the frigid landscape, she was happy for the warm winter wear Kaiba had graciously bought for them.
Once they were properly dressed, they had ventured to local gatherings and asked around to see if anyone had noticed any strange shipments made in the last day or so. From the answers given to them it seemed no one had, or no one wanted to say. Either way, they hadn't gotten far.
Until they talked to an old man in one of the bars. Though he stunk of rum, he had directed the two to head to the harbor. Apparently the elder had seen a large group of people being hauled off one of the boats and into a truck. It didn't seem like they wanted to be there.
And that's why we're freezing our asses off, trying to find some ship a drunk described. Bree thought darkly. She wasn't a fan of the cold. Still, it's the only lead we have...
She cast her gaze towards Kaiba. She had managed to persuade him to sleep on the plane. Though they fought over it for more than half the flight, the short rest had done him some good. Bree beamed, knowing she had won the argument. And yet, something else made her happy. Maybe because she was going to be seeing Neil again soon. Or…
Or I'm happy that Kaiba's alright. The thought startled her, and she was glad that her cheeks were already red from the cold so no one would realize she was blushing. Of course I'm happy. He's a friend. She told herself defiantly. Still, something else was saying otherwise…
"There." Kaiba's sudden words stopped Bree's thoughts from going on. He was pointing to a large cargo ship. It was smaller than the others, though still massive, and was a rusted red color than the usual black or blue.
Quickly the girl followed Kaiba as he made his way over to the boarding plank that had been left from unloading the ship's cargo. Silently the two boarded the huge boat and gazed around the snow covered deck. It was deserted.
"Look over there." Kaiba ordered, pointing to a pile of crates. "Check if there's any sign that someone had been in there." Bree nodded and headed over to them as Kaiba began to look through another pile.
One by one Bree lifted up the crate lids and peered inside. Each one had been completely emptied, awaiting for new cargo to hold. With each empty box Bree cursed lightly, to the box's emptiness and to the cold air.
"Hey!" A voice boomed, forcing both Kaiba and Bree to freeze. "Wha' do you think you're doin'?"
Slowly the two turned to the place they had boarded the ship. It seemed the crew had returned from where they had disappeared to, and they didn't seem too happy about two strangers rummaging through their ship.
"You didn' answer me." The one who spoke was large and burly, reminding the girl of a bear. "I asked what you thought you were doin'." His accent was heavy and slurred, chilling Bree to the bone.
Slowly Bree moved towards Kaiba and he to her. "We don't want any trouble." She uttered.
"Don' want any?" A second sailor bellowed. "Well, you've been caugh' on our boat. Tha's trespassin' you know. I think tha' spells trouble, don' you fellas?" He turned to the rest of the crew who chuckled darkly.
"We weren't stealing anything." Kaiba told them, moving protectively between Bree and the group of sailors. "We were just looking for something."
"Somethin' to take, I reckon." A third sailor spat out. "I do believe tha's stealin'." Slowly the mass moved towards them.
"We're looking for a group of people." Kaiba continued, unfazed by their menacing glares. "We were told you brought them here. We just want to know were you took them."
"An' why should we tell you?" It was the first burly man who asked. "You don' look like no cops. So, you're just crim'nals. We don' take kindly to crim'nals." He dug one fist into the palm of his other hand to drive in his point.
Slowly the crew fanned out, completely blocking the two "criminals" escape. They made a semicircle around the two, glaring and uttering to each other in a language Kaiba and Bree didn't understand.
"Enough talk!" One to the far right finally declared. He grabbed a broom that was sitting in a barrel of cleaning objects and moved towards the two of them quickly. He swung it at Kaiba who moved out of the way.
It was like the solitary attack was a signal to the others. The crew of twenty descended upon Bree and Kaiba quickly, and soon the two of them were lost in a sea of leering strangers, flying fists and quick moving objects.
Bree lost track of Kaiba shortly. Her green eyes kept on the men trying to hit her in various ways. Having grown up with an Irish gang, she was use to being outnumbered in short periods of time. She remembered the key rule that Neil had taught her when she first joined the gang.
"When you're in a fight," Neil had been explaining to her as they walked across bridge to meet with the others. "and there's more people against you than with you, always keep your back to a wall."
"Why?" The younger version of herself asked.
"Because if you keep your back to a wall, there's no chance for someone to attack you while your back is turned." He said smiling brightly at his small pupil.
With that in mind, Bree positioned herself between the crates and the sailors. Two came at her. She dodged the first punch, but the other one managed to get her in the stomach. She crumpled to the ground just as a third appeared before her. With the agility of a gymnast she spun around, tripping the larger man with an outstretched leg. She stood, ready for her next challenge.
The sailor with the broom continued to swipe at Kaiba. With each time the broom end came close he cursed quietly and his anger rose. Finally, with an extremely close swing, Kaiba grabbed the end of the broom and pulled on it, forcing the sailor to loose his balance and stumble towards Kaiba's fist.
Once the broom wielding one was down for the count, Kaiba turned his attention to the others that were looming around him. A quick glance told him that Bree was slowly moving to the other end of the ship, though still managing to keep the situation under a mild control.
A sailor swung at him. Kaiba dodged the fist and punch the older man with his own. The flying arms were endless and he ducked and returned hits. Though he knew he had hit some more than once, it seemed they refused to fall back.
This is getting ridiculous. He thought. We have to get out of here and to Mokuba… Slowly he reached into his jacket.
Bree was still struggling. She had been forced away from the shelter of the crates and was now slowly backing towards the ship's railing. She tried to keep the panic from her face. As she dodged a hit from one of her attackers she stole a glance towards Kaiba. She couldn't see him, but the circle of sailors around him had stopped dead, staring at what she assumed was Kaiba at the center of the circle.
What is he doing? She wondered. A few of the sailors surrounding Kaiba took a step or two back. She thought she saw an arm raise into the air, and a loud bang rang into the sky.
Then a slitting pain came from the back of her head. Her knees buckled as the pain grew. Unsure what had happened, she tried to cry out but couldn't. She felt herself falling onto the snow as blackness covered her senses.
He brought the jeep to a stop before the grand structure. Slowly the two of them got out and stared up at the large building carved into the cliff of limestone. Depictions of ancient gods and goddesses stood guard from where they were carved into the structure's surface. Everything else was deserted.
"Are you coming?" Bakura asked, bring Marik out of his daze. The blonde quickly ran to catch up as Bakura ascended into the inner area of the ancient temple. Marik had been here before, many times actually, but not once did he think there was an underground chamber like the one Bakura had describe while on the plain ride.
Apparently this temple had been a cover for the treasure hold of a Pharaoh thousands of years ago. Over time, the secret of the hold was passed from one Pharaoh to the next. It became a custom for each Pharaoh to build onto the underground passage below the sands. Corridor upon corridor was built, snaking through the ground and one another to go to secret rooms which hid priceless treasures of all the kings of the ancient times.
According to Bakura, the labyrinth was already massive by the time the new section was being built to hide the Lapis Lazuli. It would take time to make their ways through the twisting corridors and countless traps before they could find the room where the Lapis Lazuli had sat for the last few centuries.
"Look." Bakura uttered. Marik looked to where he was pointing. Inside the dim room they were about to enter was a few tables and boxes of tools. Maps and lamps covered the tabletops. Slowly the two looked over the contents of the room, frowning in their own way.
"It looks like Sanders has been busy." Marik mumbled with disgust.
Bakura glanced towards the uncovered entrance to the maze, the large stones that had covered its stairwell had been uprooted and moved aside, revealing the gaping mouth which practically led into the belly of the beast.
"It also looks like he's either down there," The thief said, pointing into the shadowy stairs. "Or he's already given up."
"Maybe they're on a lunch break?" Marik guessed.
Bakura snorted. "Being this close to the Gem of the Egyptians? I can't believe that."
"Sanders is probably smug, thinking he's got us beat." The other teen pressed on, joining Bakura at the chamber opening. "He'd probably take a lunch break if he wanted to."
"Then, what are we waiting for?" Bakura went and grabbed two of the lanterns, handing one to Marik as he began to head into the darkness. Once his body was half submerged in shadows he turned back to Marik. "Are you coming? Or do you not trust me?" Without waiting for an answer, he continued on.
Marik turned on his lantern and sighed. "Not in the least." He muttered. But I have to do this. For Medea, and for Ishizu. He took a deep breathe and followed Bakura into the unknown.
The room had fallen quiet, the only sounds coming from the cell beside his and the crackling of the fire that warmed the room. He wasn't sure if he could take the silence. From his pallet he could see the slumped figures of those around him.
The blonde in the cage beside him was the first to go silent. She sat with her back against the wall, her legs crossed. Her eyes moved beneath her eyelids as if she were in a trance. The other new girl had curled up onto her pallet, her back to the rest of them. For awhile he could hear her soft sobs, but then those were silence for she had cried herself to sleep. The Irish fellow had gone back to sleep, saying he'd have more fun sleeping than waiting for everyone to get into a more talkative mood. The only two that were still awake were the siblings on his other side. They were huddled together in the corner, clinging to each other and whispering comforting things.
Mokuba felt a pang of sadness, missing the comfort of his older brother. Seto, where are you? He ask, pulling his blankets around him tighter.
The door at the other end opened, causing those who were awake to look. Antonio entered, followed by Chiquita. Her dark eyes met his grey ones. For a moment they stared at each other, then Chiquita looked away.
Mokuba turned his attention back to the older Mexican as he went over to Chayton and Takoda's cell, pulling a ring of keys from his pocket. Chiquita blinked, confused, and asked something in Spanish that Mokuba felt was "What are you doing?", though he wasn't sure.
Antonio didn't answer his younger sister, just opened the cell door and went inside to the small girl and boy curled up in the corner. He stood over Takoda and her brother for awhile, then reached down and grabbed the Canadian by her arm, pulling her to her feet.
"Let go!" Takoda cried, trying to pull away from the teenager. Chayton sat still, frozen in place, unsure what to do about the situation his sister was in.
With a determined look that hid all other emotion, Antonio pulled Takoda from the cell, locking it behind him. By then Chayton had shaken free from the fearful grip that had held him and was now on his feet. The small boy ran to the cell bars and reached out for his sister just as Antonio pulled her away. Takoda kicked and screamed, awaking Neil and Sundari from their slumber. Even Medea came out of her strong trance-like state.
Chiquita was also crying out, and though Mokuba didn't know the words she was actually saying, he knew she was demanding why her brother was taking Takoda away from hers. For a moment a sad and painful look crossed Antonio's face, but he straightened it quickly and left the room without another word to Chiquita, Takoda still crying out to be released. The door slammed shut behind them, making everyone else in the room jump.
The small Mexican girl continued to stand there, suddenly looking helpless and confused by her brother's actions. Then she turned and went over to Chayton who had fallen to his knees beside the bars of his enclosure. Chiquita knelt down on the ground before him, reached through the bars and stroked his hair.
"I'm sorry." The girl whispered in English. "I'm so sorry about your sister."
Chayton shoved her hand away. He was crying too hard to say anything defiant to her. But he slowly rose and trudged back to the corner, where he curled up and continued to cry.
Mokuba examined Chiquita's face. It was full of remorse and sadness. Feeling a need to comfort her in this confusing event he pushed back his blankets and crawled over to the corner of his cell, the closet he could get to her.
"Chiquita?" He asked softly to the girl. She turned to him, and he saw the tears brimming in her eyes. "What happened?"
"I-I don't know." Was her reply. "Antonio just said the Keepers had to be on their own. The girl had to be taken away…"
"Where was Takoda taken?"
"I-I'm not sure. Probably to where the others who aren't Gem Keepers are."
"Will she be safe?"
Chiquita nodded her head slowly, her mind turning inwards. She was silent for moments on end. And then she spoke as tears fell from her eyes. "Why would Antonio do that? He didn't tell me why. He wouldn't answer. I know he would never want to separate a family, so why would he know? Why?"
She buried her face in her hands and cried. Mokuba reached through the bars and stroked her shoulder comfortingly. Chayton, Sundari and Medea had already returned to their own little worlds, but Neil watched from his cell with sympathy in his eyes.
"I have to go." Chiquita finally stated. She stood, whipping the remnants of her tears on her sleeve. "There's still a lot I have to do." Quickly she left the room, leaving it in silence once more.