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“...Aaaand that should be all!” Said Ace, as he threw the last two bags outside which landed with a loud thump, and climbed out the window. Now, in the corner of his eye, he could see bright blue flames gradually turning orange, as the captive struggled against the restraints. He fixed his tilted hat with a swift motion and walked towards his partner in crime.
“Your hat doesn't serve any purpose, I don't get why you even bother with it,” Jamil deadpanned, and the ginger blew a raspberry at him in return.
Dragging the stolen items into the van was harder than the kidnapping and robbery, as they had to utilize the blind spots of the cameras in order not to get caught. The fact that Shroud showed an unexpected amount of struggle (if it could even be called that) and wasted most of their time did not help, since they now had to rush to return to their base before the sun came up. Because instead of fighting back like a normal person, the coder had decided to instead activate the first security protocol he could think of. Why on wonderland such a protocol would exist was something that still puzzled them (“haha, get it? puzzled, like- wah!!” ace got cut off as jamil bonked him on the head and told him to keep working. he'd have to ice that later, and now his hat was out of place! ace was definitely going to pile on payback, jamil better stock up on insect repellents before it's too late for regrets. oh, this was going to be awesome.).
Seriously, solving a single-colour 1000 piece puzzle with all parts individually wrapped was pure torture! The most annoying part about all this wasn't the difficulty, but instead how time-consuming it was. The heroes better pay the bail, or else this guy was going to be a real problem in the future.
Turns out the puzzle had been a distraction in order to buy time to execute a better plan, but that didn't really work in the end as Shroud fell asleep in front of the computer. In the middle of coding. After three hours or so, the duo managed to break in and capture him pretty easily (“this is mad embarrassing!!!”).
…So, what was going to be a quick operation took over four hours. The gang was definitely not going to be happy about this. Sometime while driving, a bet was made.
(hey, jamil, betcha 5 madol we're going to get beheaded.” snickered ace.
jamil momentarily glanced up to the rearview mirror and spoke up, “...wouldn't be sensible, as that was not our fault in the slightest. riddle would be able to see that, 5 madol that we won't.”
“oh, he absolutely wouldn't! you're gonna regret this so bad”
it undeniably was their fault, idia doesn't recall asking to be robbed and kidnapped, thank you very much!)
‧₊˚♪ 𝄞₊˚⊹
When he regained consciousness, it was because he had been dropped. With the impact, his bones dug into his skin, and it hurt. He could feel the sting around his mouth, now that the tape silencing him was, presumably, torn off, and the only proof it had ever existed in the first place was persistent pain. His head ached, his ears rung, and he felt like he was about to throw up. He knew his hair had dimmed, even though he had no way of seeing it -with his vision still being black and fuzzy- but he could sense it. He felt the metallic taste of blood on his tongue, and concluded that he must've bit down on it hard sometime while all this was going on. His whole body ached, and he found that he didn't have the strength to move even a finger.
Actually, no, that didn't happen, and was overexaggerated. Or at the very least, even if it did, it wasn't seen. What truly went down was-
“Ouch!! Dude, would it kill you to be more careful??”
-that.
“Geez, I sure wonder why we had to rush. Only if someone had been a bit more compliant, then this would've gone waaaaaay smoothly.”
“Um, what? Why would I be compliant in a kidnapping?? Where I'm the one being kidnapped??? Who the hell does that???? That's a bad start for a story if I've ever seen one, BTW…” After saying that, Idia got into a sitting position.
“Well, I don't exactly seem to remember having another choice! The puzzle sucked ass, by the way. What the actual fuck was that?”
“Hey! FYI, I thought that was pretty OP!! And anyway, none of this would've happened if you hadn't-” he was cut off as he saw the ginger's face suddenly go pale.
When he craned his head toward where the other was staring, he was met with the cold look of a short boy donned with hearts and roses. A crown sat on one side of his head, further emphasizing that he's an authority figure and amplifying their fear. Oh my Seven, what the hell!?
“Ace, care to explain why you two were this late?”
“...” He stayed dead silent.
“So be it. Off with your head!” As soon as those words were uttered, Idia felt a strong rush of magic cut through the air and latch itself onto the other's neck, taking the form of a collar. It all happened in a split second, and left the ginger ghostly pale. It was only then that Idia realized the presence of his own collar, he's not sure how he hasn't before, considering how heavy and uncomfortable the thing was.
Idia got the courage to speak up. “So… any particular reason I'm here..? Can someone give me the 411, I'm confused as hell!”
“Hm. For ransom, and some other necessities,” The crimson one said, moving to take a seat nearby. As soon as he sat down, the door was thrown open, as if on cue.
Two new people walked inside, one who had kidnapped him with the ginger one, and another boy with white hair, who looked too cheerful for the occasion.
“I got the number!” the white haired said, passing a phone to the crimson boy, and flopping down onto a nearby chair. In contrast, the other moved to stand by a wall, without saying a single word.
“Very well,” He said simply, and dialed a number on the phone. After a click, he put it on speaker.
“Hello there! How might I be of assistance?” a voice said through the phone, which Idia recognized as Lilia's.
“Hero,” a single word was enough to make the atmosphere impossibly heavy. The boy continued, “I'd imagine that you have noticed the disappearance of a team member, yes?”
“...Very much have. Is this a ransom situation, or something more?” Lilia didn't sound as upbeat as usual.
“Worry not, it simply is a ransom situation. Pay the price, and he will be let go,” he set the phone down onto a table infront, and crossed his arms. He really did look intense… He is a villain, so that's highkey to be expected, but still! He didn't seem too threatening by looks, but on Seven he had an air around him that screamed ‘danger!!!!!!!’
“Hm. Is he intact?” Lilia spoke up, to which Idia spoke up at last and replied, “The hell you mean ‘intact’? I'm not a tool, unc!”
The line went silent for a few seconds, until the voice returned. “Ah, I see! So he is alright.”
“For now.” The red haired said with terrifying confidence, as if it were a fact. He continued, “So, are you willing to pay-” he was suddenly cut off, as the phone sounded once again.
“Ah, Idia! I had a question!” The villains were puzzled by the sudden interference.
“Shoot,” Idia replied, as nervous and confused as he was. He had no idea what a query could have to do with the current situation, but he'd just have to hold onto hope that the heroes had a plan.
“Hey, if-”
“So!” The redhead was cut off, again, as Lilia continued, “Idia, remember that game you told me about a few days ago?”
“Vividly.”
“Well, I decided to check it out! It was pretty fun, and the plot was engaging, too. As sad as the story was, the two completely different endings were awesome at showing what a split second decision could cause, methinks!”
Idia got the signal. “For realz! The parallels between the endings were pretty goated. But I think it could've ended better if Wi-”
“Hey! Idle chatter will not be tolerated. We are in the middle of a negotiation. Speaking of, where might the other heroes be?” He cut Idia off, visibly growing impatient. He continued, “It's not usual for a hero to be all by themself at this hour. Usually, everyone is patrolling by now, am I right?”
“Of course, we're doing everything we can to protect the city from you lot!” Lilia replied, once again confusing everyone as it seemed like he had just contradicted himself.”
The ginger spoke up from the back, “But, like, aren't you kind of… doing the opposite right now?”
“Nope!” As if on cue, right as Lilia said that, a horribly loud sound was heard, along with rumbles. As he looked at the wall beside, Idia had foud that the wall… Not the wall, actually. Nothing was there anymore, and in its place was Ortho, standing on top of the debris.
The line went dead, and the villains stood frozen for a split second before taking action. The leader began giving orders, but everyone was apprehended before anything could be done.
The collar on his neck disappeared, and as soon as it did, Idia freed himself from his restraints by burning them to a crisp. The police were called, and the heroes quickly left the scene right after. Well, more like vigilantes than heroes.
So, amazing day, right? At least he was alive? And Ortho was happy to finally be able to use his beam, so it was a win!
…He never wanted to relive something like this.
(wait, where were his projects..? oh, the villains took them. he's so dead. nothingburger experience, do not recommend!!)