REVIEW RESPONSES: (It has been so long you may need to go re-read your review. . . sorry about that.)
TeresaShiho: I'm so glad you liked it. I had been waiting so long to get to that scene. Want to know a secret? I liked what I did to Tea too. Haha. But I do think that I need to lay off Seto's face for a while. The poor boy has gone through enough facial damage (and I do love his face. . . ). And I had this plan for how the chapter was going to line up with the last one, but then once I started writing it, I realized that I had to cover two days. Phew. That's a long time for one chapter. So I cut it short.
Stormygio: I feel bad you had to wait so long for an update. Unfortunately, I have yet to nail down a consistent updating schedule. But Haha- I love how all of my readers have the questions and ideas about the story. It makes me very happy. I can't answer many of them though. . . Here is what I can answer! The Flame Swordsman is in the Slave Industry! You were right on that. 500 exp? Phew. I needed that for my level-up.
ZQuill: I thought the Slaver seemed like he was getting a bit soft. A good murder or two can make anyone evil. And of course the morse code was coming back! (Okay. . . I hadn't planned on it coming back when I put it in there. But I'm glad I did!) And I decided to make the Slaver's house messy because, let's be honest, I don't see him spending time on house work, and he can't keep slaves longer than a few days. So there would be no one to clean it. And I love Seto's face. It kills me to injury him, but in this case, it just had to happen. I just needed the boy to be unconscious. A hit to the kidney just won't accomplish that.
Theepitomeofrandom: Haha- of course the Magician had reason! Wouldn't you get annoyed if every time you were trying to talk to someone, they turned into a different person? And how would the monsters know all about the Items?
Lace Kyoko: I loved the image of Seto beating on that lock. It is sexy indeed. And I do abuse his face quite a bit. . . let's hope our dear Seto has some fast reflexes so he can turn his head in time.
Aqua-Princess of Imagination: He is Seto freaking Kaiba. And I'm sorry I didn't update sooner! I got into this horrible habit of writing one or two lines a day. I got major writer's block. Even now, I'm writing these review responses instead of the chapter.
Everwild: You know what I need to stop doing? Waiting a month between updates. That is worse than the cliff hanger! (To me, at least)
Author's Note: You guys, if you haven't voted in my poll, do it. The results are so close. Seriously. Also, after this chapter – get this – I have just three chapters until the end of Part One. Whoa. Also, I hate my summary of this story. If you would like to try to write a better one, please do.
–And remember how I use to recommend stories in every chapter? I'm going to do that occasionally when I find some good ones. This time, it's "Dear Mokuba," by Bounced. Basically showing Mokuba more grown up and dealing with Gozaburo alone. And then there is the part of the story with Seto having written Mokuba some letters . . . Just read it. I'm obsessed!
Krin
"Have you finished?"
Approaching Seto, it was apparent that he was deep in thought, as he stared forward blankly. His eyes seemed to be glazed, as if he wasn't fully present. What had the Slaver said to him?
"I will soon have everything I need," the Slaver said, smiling. The grin was far too bright to not have cause. There was a certain edge behind his words that could not be placed. He adjusted his hat cockily as he stepped closer to the roof, preparing to leave.
"Now I shall be going. I have to meet up with the Magician and his troops to discuss housing his slave while they are all marching. I am now late to my job as a glorified babysitter," he said.
"While they march?"
The Slaver waved his hand dismissively. "Yes. They have been mobilizing all morning."
The sound of Griggle hitting the roof echoed through the air. Kisara, who had been hugging the healer, must have picked up on the traces of dishonesty within his words, but also the evident truth. His words were interlaced with the two, making it impossible to distinguish which parts were real.
"Where?"
He answered after a moment's hesitation, "At the square across town. It is the only location large enough to hold them all."
The Slaver turned to give a straight stare. Had he meant to reveal that information, or had it simply slipped out without his realizing? If what he had just said was true, then telling the Magician's enemies would be a mistake worthy of death. His race was a neutral one. By picking a side, he would lose his neutral status, making him a part of the upcoming war.
The Dark troops couldn't be moving at this time. The Sun still shone bright above, meaning that the Magician and his kind should be hidden. Coming out during the day hours would break the unspoken truce. How could that portion of his words be truth?
"They are moving out during the day?"
"Yes, and I really should be going. I do not have much longer to delay," the Slaver said as he walked towards the roof once more.
"Wait for a moment."
Signaling Kisara that a discussion needed to occur, Seto was left behind, still staring blankly ahead. Kisara stepped closer to me so that the Slaver would be unable to overhear.
"He is lying," she whispered.
"About what part?"
Kisara rolled her shoulders back uncomfortably. "I don't know. Just part of it. Do you really believe that the Magician would march during the day?"
"No, I don't. Not unless this is an attack."
"Why would they attack during the day?"
"To catch us off-guard?" She suggested.
"We have to go see what they are doing."
"We can't leave Seto," Kisara insisted.
"Could you stay with Seto?" was redirected to the Slaver, who shook his head. "As I said, I must go to the Magician to deal with his slave. I am afraid I do not have the time for yours as well." The Slaver continued to walk away.
"So you would rather help the Dark than us?"
The Slaver paused, weighing his options. He pressed his lips into a tight line and then answered, "Of course not. I simply already had arrangements set in place."
"Then stay here. We won't be out that long."
"Very well," he said, sounding defeated.
"Then I can go get Mokuba while we are out!" Kisara exclaimed. She had evidently forgotten her concerns over leaving Seto. She jumped back and prepared to change.
Light burned the air. The whiteness eliminated all traces of the rest of the world. As the column ascended into the air, it seemed as though it was trying to return home to the Sun.
The light not only changed the outside, but the inside form. Bones developed and grew, muscles became larger and stronger, skin expanded and turned to scales, returning to the figure of a dragon. Power arose in the greatest form. It buried itself shallowly, always ready to be drawn upon when needed.
My claws scraped the roof, searching for a footing to prepare for a spring into flight. Kisara's wings were already spread to their full extent. Kisara stalled before taking off, lowering her head to rub against Seto's face. His hands lifted in attempted to push her back, but the result was futile. Kisara was far larger than the small human. She was also wasting time.
Static hummed in the air around Kisara. She was conveying her readiness to leave. With a jump to start, the ground drifted further below.
Both pairs of wings beat against the wind. It blew in a opposing direction. It would affect how much time it would require to get to the square. Was that the reason the Dark chose to assemble in that location?
After traveling half the distance, Kisara sent out a second wave of static. It pointed to the left, where upon close examination, Kara could be seen approaching. She was early. When she had left that morning, she had predicted returning around sun down. Something must have occurred at the mountain.
Kara joined into the flight without questioning the destination. But her small electric bursts along with her eyes glancing around asked Seto's location. That would have to be answered once on the ground. Even there she would have to wait for an answer. If the Dark troops had been gathering all morning, a fight would most certainly lie ahead.
The square was empty. Shifting into her human form, Kisara asked, "Krin, is this the right place?"
The smell of weaker creatures lingered in the air. There were none to be seen, but their scent was evident. Aside from those traces, there had been no other beings in the area.
"They aren't here."
"So what is going on?" Kisara asked. Here eyes were wide in confusion as she observed the scene around her.
"Why are the two of you here and not with the boy we just got back?" Kara questioned.
"The Slaver said that the Dark troops had been gathering here."
"Well clearly that isn't true," Kara muttered.
"Seto!" Kisara exclaimed. She jumped back to create space enough for her to change back into her true form. Within moments, all three of us were in the air.
Had the Slaver lied? His words had held a manner of truth when he spoke. Perhaps if he had been convinced of the lie, it would be read as truth. Why would the Slaver need to lie? The only thing he could gain by it was to get Seto alone. Even if that was the case, what would he want with the slave?
Static came from Kara. Her head gestured to the ground. There marched what appeared to be a vast majority of the Dark troops, traveling towards the square. That could explain the reason that the Slaver's words had not come across as being fully honest. The timing of his story was wrong.
To signal Kara and Kisara down, bursts of electricity shot out from my claws. Instantly understanding, they began to descend to a portion of the street in front of the troops. The Magician held up a hand to stop the march when we landed.
In a flash of light, all stood in human form.
"Krin! Did you finally decide that you are ready for war?" The Magician called out.
"You seem ready enough. Is this the army you bragged about?"
The army behind the Magician shifted angrily. Their posture showed that they were eager for battle. With the war lingering in the minds of all species, the pressure had built up. There would be no delaying it longer.
"You're being a bit arrogant, aren't you? There are only three of you."
Kara snorted. "Are you saying that we aren't strong enough to kill your little-" she waved her hand in the Dark troops direction as she searched for a word, "-subordinates?"
"Come on, sweetheart, even you aren't that strong."
Kisara was tapping her foot nervously. She glared when two sets of static shot at her to tell her to stop. The Magician would read her anxiety as fear of him. He would not realize that she had one human on her mind.
"You must be confident to come out during the day."
The Magician shrugged and planted his staff on the ground to lean against it. "I thought we had an agreement. Your kid in exchange for you leaving the city."
"I told you that you would be unable to enforce that."
"I'm about to force it now. Get out."
Quiet filled the streets. No one spoke as the stand off between the two opposing sides took place. The Magician was waiting to see if we would actually follow his direction to leave. We could not let the Dark believed that they had control of the city. If they controlled the city, they controlled the portal back to the other world. The very thought was unacceptable.
"Why are you out here?" Kara asked.
"Why are you in the city?" The Magician countered.
"You said be out by sunset," Kara said.
"Just stop it!" Kisara exclaimed, bringing the gazes of everyone to her. She had taken all off guard. Her fingers clenched in frustration as she continued, "Just tell us where you are going and we can be on our way!"
"Kisara," Kara growled quietly.
"Now baby, you know our relationship doesn't work like that."
Black strands of his magic began to grow from the staff the Magician held. In a similar manner, Red's hands were beginning to glow with his fire. Kisara was not the only one losing patience with the stand off.
"Last chance," the Magician said.
Kara's static hit with a silent communication of a plan. The street lamps running along the length of the street pulsed once, then a soft crackle came from a red, metal object in front of one of the buildings. Underneath the object, water could be detected flowing. Kara had worked out how to take down the largest portion of the Dark troops.
Kisara's fingers were moving quickly as she counted out the number of enemies. She quickly sent a series of static lines to tell us the number. With just under a hundred soldiers, the Magician had no chance.
"Now," Kara whispered.
The two of us pulled our hands back and sent waves of lightning down the street. We each took one of the sides, directing the lighting towards the base of the lamps. When it hit, the lamps exploded, sending sparks over the heads of the Dark troops.
While the Dark troops were trying to get away from the electricity, Kisara threw a bolt to the red object. When she hit it, water erupted out the top. The water flowed onto the street, which Kara promptly hit with another round of lightning.
The troops that had been in human form jumped back into their true figures. Those who were unable to change, were trapped on the ground unless they had wings. Red and the Magician had been standing out in front of the wave, so they were unharmed.
The Magician planted his feet and threw his black magic ahead. Red had switched to being a dragon and he flew above the heads of his allies that were being cooked on the ground below. His mouth opened wide as a stream of fire shot out in our direction. Kisara and my hands flew into the air to counter with our white lightning. The collision of forces sent both fire and lightning flying across the battlefield. The light that was created was even too much for my eyes to handle.
"Everyone stop!" Kisara shouted. She sent out lightning to separate the two sides of the fight.
"What?" Red hissed when he switched back to a human.
"We are here because we were told that you were here," Kisara stated.
The Magician and Red glanced at each other. The Magician's staff was extended towards Kisara, as if waiting for some trick. Their mouths moved quickly, speaking words that could not be heard. But from the expressions on their faces, the topic of discussion was evident.
"Who told you that?" Red asked.
Understanding of what Kisara was thinking came to me then. With her focus on Seto, she had looked past the scene in front of her and figured out what had happened.
"The same person who told you we were here?"
The Magician lowered the staff. He turned to Red to say, "We left the base empty," in a voice that was just audible from the distance.
Red shook his head. "We left him there."
"Left who there?" Kisara shouted.
"The Slaver," the Magician said.
How had the Slaver ended up at the Dark's headquarters? He was supposed to be on the roof with Seto. If he wasn't there, then what had he done with Seto?
Kisara looked horrified. She turned and glared in my direction. She understood the same thought. Leaving Seto with the Slaver had been a mistake.
The Magician turned to the remaining troops behind him and shouted out the order to go back to the headquarters. He too must have understood what had happened. The Slaver had tricked us all. What exactly his plan was, that was unclear, but he had played us.
Kisara wasted no more time before shifting and jumping back into the air. She didn't wait to see if we followed.
We quickly traveled to the rooftop. Kisara changed back into a human before even touching down on the roof. She jerked her head around quickly, searching for the slave.
"Seto!" She screamed, running to the doorway that hung open. There was nowhere to hide on the roof, so that only left the inside of the building to look. But the Slaver and Seto were nowhere to be seen. Traces of their scent still lingered in the air, but none came from the inside.
"Sister," Kara said, walking to Kisara. "They aren't here."
"They have to be here! We can't lose Seto again!"
"He is gone, Kisara."
Kisara spun around and pointed a finger in my direction. "You said that we could trust him. You convinced me to leave my Seto here. What were you thinking?" She spat, repeating the words that had been spoken to her the first time Seto had disappeared.
"I was thinking that we are in a war."
"How can you focus on a war when Seto keeps vanishing?" Kisara screamed. She tangled her fingers in her hair in her desperation. Her pain was understandable. The drawing pressure weighed down on us all being separated from the boy.
"We will find him," Kara stated. Her words came across more harshly than she might have meant for them to. Like Kisara, she was blaming me for letting the Slaver take Seto. The blame was mine. Because of that, finding the boy would become the first priority.
"Where would the Slaver be?"
Kisara glanced over. "Does anyone know that?"
"Not to my knowledge, but we have to find out."
"Thank you for that brilliant plan, Krin. Any ideas as to where we should start searching for someone who has lived in secret for the past year?" Kara said.
"Where is Griggle?"
Both Kisara and Kara seemed to just realize that healer was missing as well. They whipped their heads around, searching over the surface of the roof, as if they had overlooked him. Kara took a deep breath, trying to find his scent. It, like Seto's and the Slaver's, was faintly lingering in the air.
"Will he know where Seto is?" Kisara asked hopefully.
"Most likely he won't, but he may have seen something helpful."
Kisara groaned. "I want Seto now."
"Then we should go find him."
Jumping into the air once more, we transformed back into dragons. The wind carried us in the direction of the known Earth center. It was there that Kara found the healer earlier on in the day, which made it likely that he would have traveled back home after leaving the roof.
The Sun was steadily falling towards the horizon. There were few hours left in the day, and it might not be enough time to find the boy before night took over. During the day, allies stood around every corner. Staying out at night would leave no back up in the case of an attack.
The thought of a bomb stayed ever present. According to Seto's brother, only eight days remained until the human government would being their fight against us. Locating Seto had to happen before the humans had chance to act. Kisara would never leave without her new toy. Of course, getting myself to leave might prove difficult. Already the pulling had begun. It sent pangs through my thoughts, soft, but still present. Seto was still close.
Flying covered great distances very quickly. After only a few minutes, the Earth centers came into view. The descent came rapidly with Kisara flying out ahead. She was moving far faster than her usual pace. She to must have recognized the serious threat of not finding Seto in time.
On the ground, we returned to a human state. The unfortunate problem with human designs was the small sizes of all their creations. The majority of our kind would never deal with changing shapes if the city was built larger. Getting inside the buildings and homes was impossible without changing. That was the one area in which smaller beings had the advantage. Although they could not shift forms, they had no need to.
"Is this where he is?" Kisara asked.
"He hasn't arrived," Kara stated.
Kara was right. No traces of him could be detected within the air. He couldn't have had the time already to traverse the distance from the rooftop to his home. Our flight reduced the time, even though we had stopped three times since leaving.
"But he has to be here right now or we won't find Seto!"
"Kisara!"
Kisara dropped her head. Her fingers drew outlines of unknown objects. She seemed to be recalling some memory, but of what went unclear. Leaving her to that might keep her more calm.
Kara chose to enter the building anyway. The Griggle would arrive eventually and when that happened, we would be ready for him.
Griggle's home was filled with his relatives who bore a striking resemblance to the healer. None of them were powerful enough to be anything aside from their true form. Because of that, a translator would be be needed in order to speak with Griggle. To find a translator, we would have to go to another location.
The Earth beings slid to the back of the room upon our entrance. It was a common reaction that nearly went unnoticed. Kara's throat produced a low rumble in irritation as she leaned against the wall beside the door to wait. Kisara joined her in ignoring the little relatives of the healer.
The waiting began. After several minutes of remaining still, the Earth beings began to go about their business. They picked up on the knowledge that we were not there to harm them, so they grew more comfortable. Under any other circumstance, they would not have gotten away with such boldness. But being here was not about showing power, it was the search for a kidnapped slave.
When Griggle finally entered, Kisara jumped out at him.
"Did you see what happened to Seto?" She exclaimed.
Griggle was unable to answer specifically, but he nodded his head. Kisara seemed to not understand that he could not speak, as she said, "Where is he?"
"Sister, we need a translator."
"Take us to someone who can speak," Kisara said harshly. She then marched over to the healer and started to push him back out the door which he just entered. Following behind, we had to walk to keep pace with Griggle. Kara and Kisara's frustration with the slow speed was evident, as it closely reflected my own.
Conveniently, the distanced that had to be traveled was fairly short. Most of the members of the Earth family lived in a close proximity to one another. Griggle entered a building and we walked passed him.
Once in the building, irritation traveled through the air. The Magician, Red, and Kuriboh stood across the room, speaking the the Earth men we had come for. They paused their conversation to glace over, and the Magician groaned.
"What are you doing here?" He asked. As he spoke, all who stood on that half of the room turned to face the three of us. When Kisara saw Kuriboh, she growled darkly.
"I don't see how that is your business," Kara stated. She crossed her arms and faced Red. He mimicked her position and angry expression.
"Go away, we are busy," the Magician said.
"We are not here to speak with you, so this will not effect you."
Red leaned his head over to look at Griggle's small form standing near to the door. "Why is he here?"
"You brought your furball; we brought ours," Kara said with a broad gesture to Kuriboh. The action drew a low growl from his throat, which might have been threatening to a rodent. It came across as more amusing than frightening.
Giggle made a small noise that attracted the attention of his relatives. Half of them were human and the others were clearly too weak to be able to shift forms. They carried on a conversation in a language unknown.
"You," Kisara said, pointing to one in human form. "Translate, now."
When he did not immediately begin to speak, Kara let a small amount of lightning slip out of her hand. The bolt hit the floor beside his feet, causing him to jump away. Her threat was successful, as words began to spill out quickly.
"He said that your boy was taken by the Slaver, who seemed to be in a rush."
"Anything else?"
"Just that the boy went with him willingly."
Kara and Kisara turned to me, eyes wide in shock. To the best of our knowledge, Seto had no connection to the Slaver. There was no reason for him to willingly go along with Trap Master. Seto's actions all seemed to revolve around his brother, and they were not without consideration. He must have had a reason.
"Where is Seto's brother?"
Kuriboh growled at his spot beside the Magician. The Magician himself rolled his eyes upwards and spun his staff around, throwing it over his shoulder. His lips into a tight line, and with that came understanding.
"The Slaver took him as well."
"Why would the Slaver want both of them?" Kisara asked.
Kara sent Kisara a expression as if to say, "You want both of them."
"Where is the Slaver?" Red asked.
No one answered. While the silence lingered, Kara sent waves of static in my direction. After glancing over at her, the same realization was reached. If the Slaver took both boys, then the Dark would be searching for him as well. They could not be allowed to find him first. Kuriboh held some grudge against Seto and letting him get near the slave was not an option.
We both sent static towards Kisara simultaneously, signaling her that it was time to leave. She didn't question us, but followed out the door.
Once we were a safe distance down the road, she stopped and asked, "What now?"
"We find Seto and Mokuba before they do," Kara answered.
"Where do we even start with that? No one knows where the Slaver lives!" Kisara exclaimed. She tapped her foot anxiously, as was a common habit of hers.
"Sister, stay calm. Someone must know where he lives. We will start by finding more of his relatives and seeing what information they can give us."
Kisara took a deep breath and nodded. "And where are the nearest relatives?"
"This entire block is his relatives."
We proceeded to the first building. We entered although we were unaware of who lived inside. No one in the city was able to defeat one of us, but with all three of us together, we had nothing to fear.
The room we entered was crowded with Venom Snakes. When they noticed our entrance, several hissed while others slid into the corners to create distance. There was no time to become caught in a power rush, as every second that we wasted in search was another that the Magician had to get closer to the Slaver.
The Venom Snakes were not powerful enough to shift forms, but they could understand what we said. As long as our questions were able to be answered with a yes or a no, there would be no issues with communicating.
"Do any of you know where the Slaver is?"
One of the snakes came forward and shook his head slightly. The other snakes in the room began to go about as they had been, realizing that we were not there to threaten.
"Do you know where he lives?"
Another negative answer.
"Have you seen him today?"
This time, the answer was yes. Kisara stepped forward and asked, "Did he have a boy with him? Tall, thin, brown hair, blue eyes-"
She stopped speaking when several of the snakes began to hiss as though they were laughing. Kara silenced them with a rapid series of lightning.
"You did see the boy?" Kisara repeated.
The snake we had been carrying on with nodded, but immediately after, his eyes traveled to the door behind us. The three of us turned just in time to hear, "Krinny, you thought to come here too?"
"We are just leaving," Kara stated. Kisara opened to mouth to protest, but a quick clearing of my throat kept her quiet. We had gotten all the information that we could from the snakes, so there was no reason to stay any longer. We had to get ahead of the Magician.
There was no need to signal my sisters to leave. One glance and both of them were walking to the door.
"So now where do we go?" Kisara questioned once we were outside. We kept walking until we stood across the street from the Venom Snakes' home.
"The Slaver came through here, so maybe someone else saw him," Kara said.
"You want to just wander aimlessly asking after the Trap Master?"
"Do you have a better idea?" Kara asked.
"Maybe you should give up?"
Kisara groaned and turned around. "Are you following us or something?" She shouted at the Magician. He, Red, and Kuriboh had appeared just outside the doorway of the building we had previously been inside. They moved no closer, however. The distance would help prevent any attacks.
"Look sweetheart, we are both after the same thing. It makes sense that our paths are going to cross."
"Well go away," Kara muttered.
The Magician laughed. "Wasn't it our agreement for you to leave?"
"We aren't leaving without Seto."
"So let's find him," the Magician said, beginning to walk forward.
"Let's? You are not coming with us," Kara stated.
The Magician kept moving closer. He walked with his staff thrown over his shoulders and his arms hanging over the top. It was almost as if he was trying to prove that he was not acting in a threatening manner. With the staff in that position, he would have a difficult time trying to attack first.
"We are both looking for the Slaver. Even if you don't want to work with us, we are going to end up in the same places anyway," he said, finally coming to a stop just over an arm's reach away from Kisara.
"Are you offering to help?"
"Not help necessarily. But I have no interest in stopping to fight every time we end up near each other. Today is not the time to be caught up in a war."
If the thought of a bombing was not lingering in my mind, the offer would be answered with a white lightning attack. However, the Magician had a point about not wasting time. The Slaver had to know that he was being pursued. He was intelligent enough to understand his need to get out of the city. If he was allowed time to escape, Seto and his brother might be lost forever.
"Tag along if you wish, but if you interfere, I will kill you."
"I wouldn't consider it, Krinny," the Magician said, sending a fake smile my direction.
As the conversation faded, we all stood on the street and waited for someone to act. It quickly became apparent that no one had any ideas for the next course of action.
While waiting for a plan to form, the position of the Sun came to my attention. It seemed as though time was moving faster than all other days. Soon, the Sun would have completely set. When that happened, the Magician's power would increase greatly, as he would have the backing of the entire Dark force.
"We should just start walking," Kisara suggested.
With no better ideas, the small group set out walking down the street.
"So, Krin. You never did tell me how the boy escaped you in the first place," the Magician said. He moved until he walked along side my sisters and me. Red and Kuriboh followed closely behind.
"How is that your concern?"
"Curiosity. It fascinates me that one human could elude all three of you," the Magician said, sounding happier than he should have.
"Then you answer this for us, how did you get Seto? You wouldn't have known he was ours by just seeing him on the street," Kara said.
"He was given to me."
"By who?" Kisara questioned.
"The Slaver isn't as neutral as he claims to be," Red said.
"No, he fights evenly against both sides."
Kara looked over with my words. Her anger was still apparent through her eyes, but she seemed to be calming down. It was almost as though having the distraction of fighting with the Magician gone was helping her handle the situation.
Pulling away from the discussion, my thoughts began to process the new information. After Seto had escaped, the Slaver had been brought to bring him back. While on the roof, the Slaver talked to Mokuba, showing that he knew the boy. Then he found Seto and took him to the Dark headquarters instead of bringing him back. So at what point had he decided to take both of the boys for himself? If he wanted Seto then, he could have just taken him, not handed him off to someone else. Something had to have triggered his decision.
"Did you punish Seto's brother for running away?"
The Magician nodded at the out of place question. "I broke his ankle. Kid won't be walking any time soon."
That added to the time line. After Seto was returned, his brother was injured. Then the following morning, both boys were taken. Certainly the Slaver had no concerns over their health. There had to be something more behind it. Whatever the Slaver had in mind when he took the boys might be the key to finding them.
And finding Seto would be difficult. The Slaver would make sure of that. The Sun having just passed the horizon, making the chances of his discovery grow slimmer. The only small comfort that could be found in the situation was the slight nature of the pangs. Seto was still close. The Slaver had not taken him far away. As long as the pains were light, we could know that the slave was alive. We would find him. And when we did, the Slaver would die.
Go to my blog for thoughts on this chapter. I've got several of them. Mainly, I'm so sorry you had to wait for half of a chapter. The next one will be better, honest.
I've got the whole excuse thing on my blog. (Link on my profile in case you didn't know). Also on there is a rant about something I noticed while wating the actual show, "Yu-Gi-Oh!"