Ides of March Part 2

One hour earlier... 

At her apartment, Serika groaned as she tossed and turned. "They're not gonna come for me... They're not gonna come for me," she mumbled over and over again.

The ringing of her alarm roused her from her sleep, yet not from her depression. 

"I ran off yesterday... Why'd I get so scared? Bianka... Ugh, I hope she's not pissed... Maybe I'll take a sick day." 

Getting dressed, Serika trudged out en route to Ryokoma. “Achoo! Ugh, my feet are cold. Maybe I should have thrown on a new pair of sneakers, but then again, they would have just got soaked too," she grumbled to herself.

Suddenly Emeri came speeding down the way on her motorcycle. 

“HEY! YOU’RE SPEEDING IN DANGEROUS WEATHER! PULL OVER OR YOU’RE UNDER ARREST!” Serika roared as she flashed her badge.

Emeri stopped and parked her motorcycle on the curb as Serika ran up to her. “Y- You’re police right! My friend Yuni has been kidnapped by a criminal named Fujiko," Emeri stuttered.

“Fujiko!?”

“Ah, you’re the cop from back then!”

Serika looked confused as she stared down Emeri. “Crimson sneakers, black leather jacket, skintight pants, crimson helmet... AH! You’re that Ginkawa bitch’s Rolly Polly mummy girl!”

“Please! You need to help Yuni!”

“Screw her! After her screw-up, she can go bald forever for all I care.”

“Well then release Mado-chan! I have the evidence that she’s innocent right here!” Emeri pleaded as she pulled out Mochi’s phone.

"Yeah, I'm not in the mood for this. Let me just write you up a ticket." 

“This is serious! It has evidence of the crime!" Emeri cried as she began playing the video. 

As Serika watched the video, a nasty scowl began to form on her face. "My mood was already shit... Now you're gonna get it," 

Emeri began to retreat in terror. 

"OI! DON'T YOU FUCKING RUN FROM ME!" 

“No, you’re with them, it was YOU! YOU’RE WITH ILLUMOUS!” Emeri stammered as she ran for an alleyway while Serika stood in shock.

“I- Illumous!? Me!? ...!"

"Mao, when I become Prime Minister, I will become president of ILU's governing council of 12," a woman's voice echoed in Serika's head.

Serika trembled for a bit before clenching her fist and giving chase.

...

As Emeri emerged from the other side of the alleyway, she noticed men in suits getting into a black sedan parked on the curb in front of her. Sensing danger, Emeri tried to retreat, but was noticed by the men.

“Hey! She’s the redhead Miss Melinda told us about! Get her!” one of the men yelled as he immediately grabbed Emeri and took off her helmet before chloroforming her.

The last thing Emeri remembered before losing consciousness was seeing Serika running towards her yelling, “GET AWAY FROM HER YOU KIDNAPPING FREAKS! YOU’RE UNDER ARREST!”

Serika immediately kicked the man in the face, sending him flying through the air.

"Achoo! Ugh, guess I'm only at half strength," Serika grumbled as she picked up Emeri. “OI! WAKE UP! I don't wanna have to carry you- UGH!?”

Serika looked down at her shoulder and noticed a tranquilizer dart was lodged in it. She quickly turned around to notice one of the men holding a tranquilizer gun.

“Damn it! Not again! Am I truly that weak..."

Lightning flashed as Serika slumped to the ground with Emeri, unconscious.

“Why didn’t you kill her, Kev?” the man that had been kicked growled as he massaged his sore head and face.

“She’s a cop, Marty. Besides, I really want to use that water chamber we bought to trap Ginkawa in."

“Fine, guess it's easier to drown her there than here!”

The two goons then loaded the girls into the backseat before driving off.

...

Madoka perked up as she felt a vibration in her hair. “Oh no, Emeri!” she thought as she immediately freed herself from her restraints and ran over to the door.

Unbeknownst to the police, Madoka had successfully hidden two gadgets in her hair. One was a small hairpin that looked like an ordinary strand of hair, designed by Emeri and capable of emitting an electromagnetic wave that could easily shut down all electronic devices in a small area for a brief amount of time. In other words, it was Madoka’s way of dealing with the door and cameras. However, the device could not be used in succession and was a one-time deal. The other device, also disguised as a strand of hair, was a tracking device tied to Emeri’s smartwatch that would only activate if her SOS signal went off.

Though Madoka was fine with playing the waiting game, now that Emeri was in trouble, she had no choice but to escape. She quickly broke free of her restraints and triggered the electromagnetic shockwave device, allowing her to kick open the door with ease. As she exited, she noticed a group of officers led by a woman in a business suit heading towards her. Before they could react, Madoka sped towards them and jumped, using their heads as a launchpad as she flew towards the elevator. She rolled in just as the doors closed and slammed on the up button.

“Good thing I don’t need a card for this,” Madoka thought as she fled.

The lead officer stood up and brushed herself off as her men called for backup. “If she escapes, we go on a manhunt for Madoka Ginkawa!” she growled.

...

Kurobane grumbled as she stormed towards the elevator. “First I don't get any sleep, now Ginkawa escaped!? Ugh, I haven't even gotten any sleep."

Kurobane readied her gun as the elevator door opened, however, it was empty. She bolted inside and descended to the bottom floor only to be greeted by the woman in the suit and her men pointing their guns at her.

“Makoto!? Where's Ginkawa! We saw her get into the elevator," the woman glared.

“Impossible! It was empty when it reached the top, she must still be down here somewhere," Kurobane growled.

As the officers frantically searched, Madoka meanwhile, opened a hatch on the roof. "Hope the elevator hatch closed when I fled," she thought as she charged for the fire escape. ]

After descending to the ground, she bolted and pulled the device out of her hair. “Good, looks like it’s working, I hope this tiny tracker can do the job,” Madoka thought as she pulled the tracking device out of her hair. 

A small holographic screen then popped up, showing Madoka where Emeri was. However, as she ran, sirens blared and everyone out and about gave her frightened stares as she passed by. 

"Wah! I forgot I was decked out in a prison suit!"

...

Elsewhere, the goons arrived at their destination and put face masks and sunglasses on Emeri and Serika. They then pulled out two wheelchairs from the trunk and plopped the two girls in them.

5 minutes later, the goons entered their hotel room and rolled the girls inside. They then removed the girl’s disguises and slapped duct tape over their mouths. Next, they bound Emeri to her wheelchair with duct tape before dragging Serika to the bathroom. A large plexiglass tank sat near one of the showers. 

Kev unlocked the tank while Marty placed Serika inside. He restrained her wrists and ankles to the four shackles in the tank before locking the chamber. Kev then dragged one of the shower heads to the top of the tank and rested it on the edge before turning it on.

Serika awoke to the feeling of water spraying on her head. Her eyes bulged open as she saw the two goons. “MMMPH MMMPH!” she roared as she attempted to charge at them.

“Well, someone’s angry,” Marty taunted as he whipped out his phone and began taking pictures and videos of Serika.

Serika quickly examined herself. Luckily, she was still fully clothed, unfortunately her wrists and ankles were restrained and she was gagged.

"Ugh! Why can't I unleash my strength!? Is that tranquilizer still affecting me!? And I was feeling crappy from the start too. Shit," she thought.

“Looks like it will take a while to fill up,” Kev jibed as he grabbed a bucket of water and left the bathroom.

“Take a while my ass! The tips of my sneakers are already underwater.” Serika thought as she looked down. She then looked up again and noticed Emeri tied up in the middle of the next room over. “Oh no! This is all my fault! I can’t let her die because of me. Damn it! That Fujiko must have ratted me out! BREAK FREE DAMMIT! I’M NOT GOING TO LET THIS DAMN BLOOD MURDER HER!” Serika thought as she violently struggled.

"Wake up sunshine!" Kev sneered as he splashed a bucket of cold water over Emeri's face.

Emeri immediately woke up and realized she was gagged and tied to a wheelchair with tape.

Kev then grabbed her face. “Hey girl, a little birdie told me you and your cop friend over there found out about ILU, so now we need to get rid of you. I thought you’d at least like to see each other in your last moments so we positioned you so you can watch her drown.”

Emeri’s eyes widened as she saw Serika restrained in the tank. “Wait! They’re trying to kill her too!? I thought she was with them! Could this be a falling out or did I make a big misunderstanding!?” she frantically thought.

"Shouldn't we un-gag her for this so we can hear her screams?" Marty asked as he loaded his gun with bullets.

"Nah! She’d probably scream so loudly people would hear it. Now put your gun down and start filming. I gotta give missy here a manicure she'll never forget,” Kev sneered as he grabbed a pair of pliers.

...

Madoka hid as she reached the destination Emeri and Serika were being held at; a luxurious 5-star hotel. 

“It’s a fancy hotel!? I can’t run in like THIS!” Madoka thought as she darted her head around frantically.

She then noticed the ground was muddy and furiously began lathering her hair, eyebrows, and clothes with mud. She then smeared a mud mustache on her face and did her best to hide her breasts with her arm before strutting into the lobby. The female receptionist shot her a disturbed look as she approached her.

“Um sir- “

“HEY, pretty girl, I’m here to visit the guys that just got back]” Madoka grinned.

“Room 606,” the receptionist sighed.

Madoka stormed up the stairwell until she reached the sixth floor. After locating room 606, she bolted towards the roof. The rain quickly washed away her disguise as she looked for room 606’s balcony.

“This is the first time I’ve done a rescue mission, though I guess this is more of an extension to my own escape. I wish it wasn’t raining so heavily. Even I might have trouble reaching the balcony in this weather. But I don’t have time. Emeri’s in danger, I have to risk it.”

...

Emeri sobbed in pain as Kev ripped out the last finger nail on her left hand. “Time for the other hand!” he laughed as he grabbed Emeri's right hand.

Serika tilted her head back as far as she could. The water had reached her mouth and since her mouth was taped shut, she couldn’t hold her breath meaning she could only breathe through her nose. Leaning back was not the best option, however, as her face was now directly in the firing line of the shower head causing her great discomfort. 

Her anger was slowly turning to despair. She couldn’t free herself and she was running out of time. The goons stopped torturing Emeri and turned to watch Serika. Within minutes, her entire head was submerged in water. Tears began to well in her eyes as she struggled to breathe.

“No! I don’t want to die! Someone, anyone, please save me,” Serika thought as she began to lose consciousness. While it was blurry to see, she managed to make out the figure of a woman falling near the balcony window as lightning flashed.