Disclaimer: I don't own Yu Gi Oh

Chapter 4. The Plane

"Now that the phone is working again, are you going to call Isona?" inquired Mokuba. He glanced up hopefully at his brother. As far as he was concerned, the sooner they got this part of their mission – whatever it was - over the better. He really just wanted to be back home. Seto thought for a moment.

"No," he replied with conviction. "No, not yet." Mokuba couldn't believe what he was hearing. Why the change of heart? This morning, his brother was very intent on using the telephone, and just now, the scene in the kitchen…. Seto noticed his little brother's confused expression. "I'll explain later," he added offhandedly. Mokuba put his foot down.

"Niisama! Why aren't you telling me what is going on?" He wasn't really angry just frustrated and a little scared. All the secrecy surrounding their activities was beginning to drive him nuts, and he wasn't sure how much more of it he could take. He set his face into a firm expression.

"Mokuba, do you trust me?"

"Yes, of course I do." Mokuba's defiance began to falter. He adored his big brother. The last thing he wanted was for Seto to think he didn't trust him.

"Look, I've kept things a secret to protect you." He studied his little brother. "You are old enough to handle it. I should have told you everything, but I can't now. I can't have anyone overhearing anything – just incase."

"You mean Sloan." Seto nodded. "But then why don't you call and get us out of here?"

"If I call Isona now to come pick us up, our cover will be blown. That isn't a risk I am willing to take."

"But…"

"Sloan is a backwater weirdo. He's nothing more than that, Mokuba. If he is, we can handle him." Mokuba still wasn't convinced. "We'll be safe here for a little while longer," Seto continued. "The parts we need should be here soon, the plane will be fixed before anyone thinks to looks for us, and we will still be close to on schedule."

By nature, Seto was not a very trusting person. He did want to use the phone to call for parts himself except that in doing so he would reveal his position. As much as he disliked Sloan, he did do them a favor in that respect. He had to admit his reasoning not to call sounded a little paranoid, but why chance it when he was so close to getting Mokuba to safety. Seto figured they were relatively safe at the airport even if the parts didn't arrive on time. It was, after all, in the middle of nowhere. No one knew where they were. Therefore, Madeline would have a hard time tracking them down.

"Okay, Niisama."

"Mokuba, take this." Seto reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a sealed envelope. Mokuba took the envelope and looked at it curiously. He started to run his thumb under one of the corners to lift the sealed flap. Seto stopped him.

"Keep it safe, and don't open it unless something happens."

Mokuba sighed. Another secret. "Something like what?" He asked the question though this time he wasn't sure if he really wanted to know what that answer might be.

"Just keep it safe. You'll know if you need to open it. Until then, don't worry about it." Seto put his hand on Mokuba's shoulder and led him out of the kitchen. "Let's see if we can fix that stupid VOR."

The brothers took their glasses into the main room and continued to work on fixing the broken flight instrument. The room was empty. "Looks like Sloan's disappeared again," noted Mokuba with a hint of relief.

"Good riddance," muttered Seto.

Their temperamental host didn't reappear until around six-thirty when he came into the main room carrying a plate of spaghetti. Earlier that day, Sloan had wheeled out an old television from his bedroom so Mokuba might have something to do. The channels came out poorly. Mokuba would have left the television alone even if he hadn't been napping. Sloan turned to a practically snow filled channel and proceeded to watch the 'news' as he ate dinner. "There's more in the kitchen," he grunted. "I made a lot since you didn't eat lunch."

It was then that Seto and Mokuba realized how hungry they were. Seto wasn't really looking forward to the dinner considering how well Sloan's coffee and lemonade turned out, but he knew his body would retaliate if he didn't eat something. They went to the kitchen and decided to have their evening meal in there. Sloan wasn't exactly the best of company. The food was edible. They certainly ate their share though Seto thought the sauce tasted a little off. Mokuba agreed and suggested the jar might have been kind of old. No surprise there. thought Seto dryly.

After dinner, they returned to their makeshift workstation where Seto reassembled the last few remaining pieces. He never did find out what was wrong with instrument and hoped all it needed was a good cleaning. As he worked he noticed that Mokuba was starting to slowly drift off. His eyes would close and head nod forward then he would sit up abruptly and try to shake away the drowsy feeling. "Are you okay?" Seto finally asked. Mokuba nodded.

"Huh? Yeah. Just tired. I think I'm going to go to bed, Niisama." Seto looked at his watch.

"It's barely eight o'clock." Mokuba gave a half-hearted shrug. "Alright then. See you in the morning. Don't forget to brush your teeth."

"I won't. Good night," yawned Mokuba.

Seto completed the VOR and replaced the repaired instrument in the airplane. It didn't take long for him to finish, perhaps an hour. Sloan was still watching TV when Seto returned. Neither acknowledged the other's presence. Seto decided he would rather lie awake in bed then spend time with Sloan. He was sure the feeling was mutual so he didn't think he was being rude. Not like I'd really care anyway, he thought.

Back in their room, Seto looked over at his sleeping brother. Mokuba hadn't even bothered to change into his pajamas before crawling into bed. He must have really been exhausted. Seto pulled the blankets up closer around his little brother's shoulders.

He was beginning to feel a little concerned. Sure Mokuba liked to sleep in, but he rarely took naps and never wanted to go to bed early. Perhaps it's due to the stress of our situation, he reasoned. Seto was certainly feeling the stress himself, and had to admit that he too was feeling worn out. He must have been more tired than he realized for no sooner than he put his head on his pillow did he fall asleep.

The next morning, Seto was awakened by a throbbing headache. Stiffly rolling over, he reached over the side of his cot and picked up his watch that was lying on the ground. He looked atit then quickly did a double take. "Ten o'clock!" he said in amazement. He would have shouted that statement if he didn't think Mokuba would probably still be asleep. Seto sat up and massaged his pounding head. Seven was the latest he would ever sleep. What was going on? He looked over to Mokuba's cot only to find it….

"Empty," he whispered. The cot was rumpled and unmade. His pillow had been knocked carelessly to the floor. Looks like he got up in a hurry. Seto got dressed and tried to swallow the feeling of panic rising in his throat. It was probably nothing. Mokuba may have just let him sleep thinking that he needed it and didn't make his bed because he didn't want to wake him up. The story sounded good, but he was having a hard time convincing himself it was true.

Seto moved to the door only to find it was much harder to do than he had anticipated. It wasn't just his head; his whole body ached. Was he coming down with the flu? He laboriously made his way into the main room. There was still no sign of Mokuba. There was no sign of Sloan either. This is strange. It's not like Mokuba to hide, and it is not like me to sleep in like this on my own. I only did that once before when I took some….sleeping pills.

"He drugged us!" Seto nearly fell over at the realization. He grabbed at a chair for support.

But how? The food. The bitter lemonade. Why did I not see it! Mokuba ate more that I did, he drank the lemonade, that is why he was napping, going to be early, my headache, my body aches must be withdrawal symptoms from the drugged spaghetti… Seto's mind was spinning. He silently cursed himself for being oblivious to what was going on. Where is Mokuba? he thought frantically. This is all my fault!

The sound of an engine starting distracted him momentarily. Wait a minute… An engine! It's an airplane. Someone else must have landed here. They might be our one ticket out! Now he had to find Mokuba. Seto hoped he wasn't too late. Where could he be? "Mokuba!" His shout greatly aggravated his headache to the point where Seto thought his head would split open, but he didn't care. He needed to find his little brother and find him quickly.

Seto stumbled to the exit door and stepped out. He saw two figures: a man and a woman. It looked like they had just finished fueling the plane and were getting ready to leave. Seto waved his arms as best he could and tried to shout over the roar of the engine. He couldn't let them leave, not until he found Mokuba. It wasn't safe here. They had to get away from that madman Sloan if he was going to save his brother.

Seto knew he needed to get closer. He used all his might to command his limbs to move faster. The woman climbed into the plan and the man was preparing to hand her a large, blanket wrapped bundle. Seto squinted to see better. It looked like a sleeping figure; a little boy with dark hair.

Suddenly, Seto felt sick. His eyes widened with comprehension that that figure wasn't just any little boy it had to be Mokuba. "NO!" he yelled in desperation. The couple heard him this time and turned. But that one shout was all he was able to get out. A heavy object connected with the back of Seto's head, and he collapsed to the ground unconscious. His last thoughts were that he failed; he lost his little brother.

Thank you evil meg and Garowyn for your review! I'm glad you like it.