Ides of March Part 2: Despair

Serika sulked as she walked to work. Since it was raining again today, Serika elected to wear the same clothes she wore yesterday despite her sneakers still being soaked.

“*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 as well," Serika grumbled.

Serika was still shaken up from her encounter with Fujiko. Since she had run straight home, her umbrella was still at the station. While she was wearing a chartreuse raincoat, it didn't to much to keep her dry due to her clothes already being soaked. Suddenly Emeri came speeding down the way.

“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!?” Serika gasped as she removed her hood as she stared at Emeri.

“Ah, you’re the cop from back then!”

Serika looked confused as she stared down Emeri.

“Red sneakers, black leather jacket, skintight pants, crimson helmet… AH! You’re that Ginkawa bitch’s Rolly Polly mummy girl!” she exclaimed.

“Please! You need to help Yuni!”

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

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

“Hey! That’s a stolen item! So you’re in cahoots with that twin tailed thief! I was told to bring her in if the phone wasn’t back by 9 A.M. Guess I’ll take you in instead."

“What the hell! I’m giving it to you!”

“I’m in a bad mood!”

Emeri immediately played the video as Serika walked toward her. Serika snatched the phone and stared at the video. After a period of silence, she turned to Emeri.

“You’re DEFINITELY coming with me to the station now!”

Emeri began to step back.

“No, you’re with them, it was YOU! YOU’RE WITH ILLUMOUS!” she 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 Illumous' 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 two foreigners 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 red head He told us about! The one with the helmet!]” 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 them 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 WANT TO HAVE TO CARRY YOU AGAIN-UGH!”

Serika looked down at her shoulder and noticed a tranquilizer dart was lodged in it. She looked up to see another man holding a tranquilizer gun.

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

Lightning flashed as Serika slumped to the ground unconscious.

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

“[She’s a cop. Besides, I really want to use that water chamber we bought to trap Ginkawa in,]” the other replied.

“[Fine, guess its easier to drown her there then here!]”

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

                                                                               ...

Madoka 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.

She triggered the electromagnetic shockwave device she had and kicked open the door. As she exited, she noticed Purin walking towards her with a group of officers. Before they could react, Madoka sped towards them and jumped, using the woman’s head 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, though when did that loli have a growth spurt? Oh, maybe this is her sister or mother from the other day,” Madoka thought as she fled.

Purin 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 Nakajima heads out to that Senator’s press conference, then Commissioner Myouchi shows up and demands we transfer Ginkawa to HQ, and now they’re saying Ginkawa escaped!? Ugh, I' haven't even gotten any sleep,” she grumbled.

Kurobane readied her gun as the elevator door opened. It was empty. Kurobane hopped inside and descended to the bottom floor. She was greeted by Purin and her men pointing their guns at her.

“Makoto!? Where is Ginkawa! We saw her get into the elevator," Purin glared.

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

As the officers frantically searched, Madoka opened the hatch on the roof. She immediately 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 said as she  looked at the small rectangular device in her hands. 

Like the electromagnetic device, it too was camouflaged to look like strands of Madoka’s hair but was larger and had a small screen on it. Sirens blared as Madoka ran and attracted frightened gazes.

                                                                      ...

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 room and rolled the girls inside. They then removed the girl’s disguises and slapped duct tape over their mouths. They then bound Emeri to her wheelchair with duct tape. The two goons then picked up Serika and carried her to the bathroom. A large plexiglass tank sat near one of the showers. One of then unlocked the tank while the other place Serika inside. He restrained her wrists and ankles to the four shackles in the tank. He then locked the chamber while his buddy filled a bucket with water. They then dragged one of the shower heads to 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 as she saw the two goons.

“MMMPH MMMPH!” she roared as she attempted to charge at them.

“[Well, someone’s angry,]” one of the goons 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.

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

“[Looks like it will take a while to fill up.]” one goon jibed as he grabbed the 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 room next to the bathroom.

“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!" one of the goons sneered as he splashed a bucket of cold water over Emerii's face. 

Emeri immediately woke up and realized she was gagged and tied to a wheelchair with tape. One of the men grabbed her face.

“Hey Japanese girl, a little birdie told me you and your cop friend over there found out about Illumous, 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?]" one goon asked as he loaded his gun with bullets.

"[Nah! She’d probably scream so loudly people would hear it. Put your gun down and start filming.] Time for your manicure Miss,” the other goon sneered as he grabbed a pair of plyers.

                                                                            ...

Madoka hid as she reached her destination. It was a luxurious five star hotel.

“It’s a fancy hotel!? I can’t run in like THIS!” she thought.

Madoka then furiously began lathering her hair, eyebrows, and clothes with mud. She smeared a mud mustache on her face before strutting into the lobby. The female receptionist shot her a disturbed look as she approached her.

“Um sir- “

“[Hello pretty girl, I’m here to visit the Americanos that just got back]” Madoka said while attempting the best New York accent she could.

“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 the goon ripped out the last finger nail on her left hand.

“Time for the other hand!” He sneered.

Serika tilted her head back as far as she could. The water had reached her mouth. Since her mouth was taped, she couldn’t hold her breath meaning she could only breath 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.