MARCUS
Marcus hung up the phone and turned back towards Jack and Rob.
"He's started snooping around. Victor gave us the orders to start," he said gravely.
"It's about time. We've been waiting for so long to start. It pissed me off so much that we had to keep that bitch alive," Rob complained.
"I know Rob, but we didn't have a choice. We had to make sure Victor's cover was secure before we tried anything. We've been planing for this moment for four months and now our lights are green."
"Hey, Marcus. What did you tell her, apart from our names? Did you tell her about Victor?" Jack asked.
"I did. I told her Victor infiltrated Central Headquarters. I also told her about our other comrades in the military who are helping us," Marcus answered.
Rob and Jack frowned and exchanged confused looks. "Who else is in there? Were there any more people in this group that we didn't hear about?" Jack asked.
Marcus chuckled and smirked. "Not that I know of. But it doesn't mean we can't imagine them. I just thought it'd be fun to watch her suffer even more, knowing that her precious Fuhrer has an even bigger threat. And don't worry, she won't have the chance to warn him about anything she learned in here. We'll make sure of that."
"So what's the plan now? Do we kill her?" Rob asked impatiently.
"Calm down Rob. That will come later," he said, trying to calm down his anger. He was always hard to control. I better make sure he doesn't do anything unnecessary.
"When? I'm sick of waiting! I've been waiting for over ten years!" Rob said roughly. Jack and Marcus stayed quiet and looked at him intently, letting him vent off his anger. "You both know what he did to my family. I had to watch my wife and my little girl burn down in front of me and I have my left arm as a reminder of that brutal night. Killing Roy Mustang is the one thing I have to do before I die." Rob was breathing loudly after his outburst.
"We know Rob," Marcus said calmly, "we are all victims of his doings. However, killing him will only end his life and give him an easy way out of his punishment. That man does not fear death like other people do. What we want to do is to make him feel what he made us feel, by taking the closest person beside him. That's why we kidnapped Riza Hawkeye in the first place remember? We're giving him the worst revenge he ever feared." By the time Marcus finished speaking, he was standing directly in front of Rob, who had calmed down. "Now, keep your head cool and under control before you ruin the whole plan," Marcus added with malice in his voice.
"Yes Marcus, I will. I'm sorry."
"Good," he turned back and headed to an old closet. He brought out something that resembled a big duffle bag. "Tomorrow, we'll need to make a nice video for the Fuhrer that will feature his damsel in distress calling for help. This is the empty skin of a punching bag. It should be big enough to fit a person. I even cut a little breathing holes so she won't die from asphyxiation. You two boys get her camera-ready for tomorrow." He raised an eyebrow at them and they answered him with satisfied smirks.
"I'll make sure to take my anger out on her," Rob laughed. Yes, we'll break her just for you Mustang. You just wait.
They had set up their base in an abandoned prison in Eastern Amestris, a couple of hours away from Ishbal. It had been abandoned during the war, like every other building in the area, which made it perfect for them to stay completely hidden. No one had ever come anywhere near their peripheries since all the towns in proximity were also deserted.
Marcus was a middle aged man who could've looked like a regular family man, but that wasn't the case. Marcus had never been directly affected by Roy's flames. He never had a family that perished in the war, nor was he anywhere near it when it happened. He was, however, a man who strongly believed in justice. Justice for the war victims. It wasn't until he met Victor did he suggest they formed a group to get back at Roy, to serve him justice. None of them believed Roy was saying the truth when he said he wanted to build a better country for its citizens. How can a mass murderer even say such a blatant lie like that. This plan was the biggest thing Marcus had been waiting for. It was the excitement that was missing from the essence of his life, the excitement that would give him a sense of being.
Marcus smiled triumphantly and bent down behind a desk to pick up a medium sized case. Carefully placing it on the desk, he opened it and examined its contents. Before he had joined the group, he had been a freelance independent journalist, travelling around the world looking for stories and doing odd jobs here and there. He only sought after stories that peaked his interest, which mostly focused on injustice and corruption.
He took out the big tripod and installed it on the floor close to the center of the room. He then started assembling the pieces of the camera and putting the films in. After testing it a few times to make sure it was rolling properly, he grabbed a chair from the side and placed it in the center of the room, right in front of the camera and under a hanging yellow light. Perfect scene. Just like in a movie. It has to be dramatic.
When he was satisfied with the setup, he ventured out of the room and went to find the others. The search didn't take long since he could already hear the beatings, accompanied by Rob's insults and Jack snickers, resonating off the long hallways.
When he found them, Rob was already busy hitting the bag, grunting with every hit.
"Why so quiet? You should scream when you're in pain!" He gave a hard punch to the side. The bag, which hung from a large metal hook drilled into the ceiling, swung violently. Marcus didn't hear any scream, but he heard a gasp and some labored breathing and coughing.
When they were aware of his presence, they paused and waited for him to speak.
"Did you tie her hands? Don't underestimate her even if she's in that bag."
"We did. She won't be able to move," Jack reassured him.
"Good." Marcus walked toward the bag, hanging like it had a corpse inside, and listened for any sound. He heard some wheezing and sharply drawn breaths.
"I hope you can still breathe properly Hawkeye. We can't have you die on us now can we?" Marcus taunted her. He waited for a response but never got any. He took a step back and kicked as hard as he could. "Answer me when I speak to you!"
This time he heard a low angry growl. "Just kill me already," she said with a constricted voice.
"Oh no no no, Hawkeye. That would be too easy. You have to suffer like all the people who suffered because of you too. Don't you think that's fair? Don't you think that's justice? How can we possibly let you die without your punishment? People would be disappointed in us." He waited to see if she would say anything, but continued when she didn't. "We're going to send out a message for the Fuhrer. That's why we have to get you ready, so you can fit the context of our purpose. Hang in there, you'll die soon enough."
Marcus turned and started walking away. "You may resume boys. Just make sure she doesn't kick the bucket. And don't ruin her face too much, we need to be able to recognize her." He gave them a final glance as a warning before leaving.
The next day, Rob and Jack dragged the bag into the room Marcus had prepare and dropped it beside the chair.
"Tie her up to the chair, hands behind her back and legs to the chair too." Marcus watched as they unzipped the bag and heaved her out. "Are you sure she's still alive?" he asked, slightly worried about it.
"Yeah, she's breathing all right," Jack said as he tied her legs to the chair.
Riza was all bloodied and sweaty, with a black eye and severe swelling on the left side of her face. Her lips had split and bled, but no teeth had been broken, nor was her nose. I told them to watch her face! Oh well, I guess this is not too bad, he thought with frustration. She was still unconscious as they finished setting her on the chair.
"Wake her up." Marcus tilted his head to the side toward two buckets of water. Rob picked them up and dumped the first one on her. Riza stirred and managed to move her head to the other side before she passed out again. Rob splashed the second one directly on her face with force. This time, she coughed and opened her good eye.
"Good morning Lieutenant Colonel Hawkeye. Actually, you wouldn't know that, but it is morning. Good to see you're still with us." Marcus chuckled as he saw her looking around wildly, probably trying to figure out what was happening. Marcus grabbed a black cloth bag from the desk and walked to her.
By then, her eye focused directly on him and he smiled down at her. "Don't worry Hawkeye. This is just to keep the surprise from being exposed too soon. It's going to help make things more dramatic for our video." He covered her head with the bag without any resistance from her. Poor thing. She can barely hold her own head up.
"Now, let's start this thing." Jack and Rob nodded at him and went to stand on the side. Marcus went over to the camera, turned it on and adjusted its angle. He waved Jack over and said, "press on this when I tell you to."
He then walked to stand in front of the chair, blocking Riza from the view and nodded to Jack. When the button was pressed, the films started rolling.
"Hello Fuhrer Mustang. My name is Marcus. You are probably wondering why I'm sending you this video. I'm sure by the time you watch this, you've already figured out that Riza Hawkeye has been kidnapped." Marcus smirked and his eyes were glowing with amusement. "Well, I just wanted to let you know that we have her and we wanted to give her back to you." He stepped to the side and went to stand beside her.
"Let's all confirm that it's her, shall we?" He yanked the bag off her head. Riza seemed just as confused as the last she had been woken up, but was able to fix her gaze on the lens.
"See? Though I can't say she's in top shape, but she's alive. Why don't you say something to your precious Fuhrer, Lieutenant Colonel?" he sneered at her. Riza continued to stare, but said nothing. Marcus place his hand on her shoulder and gave her a hard squeeze, making her wince.
"Don't come, it's a trap!" she said suddenly. Marcus's smile faltered and he gave her a hard backhand hit to the face. The hit was so hard that her whole body slumped to one side, making the chair fall with her weight. Marcus took out a knife and cut though the strings that bound her hands behind and released her left arm. He stood on top of her, one leg on each side of the chair, still holding up her arm.
He bent down close to her face and said in a low voice, "you shouldn't have said that." He quickly twisted her arm and dislocated her shoulder using his whole weight. Riza screamed in agonizing pain and gasped for air.
Marcus threw her arm down and looked up to the other two, "that's how you make them scream." He marched back in front of the camera and said, "You have five days to find us and to come get her, alone. If you don't come alone, then she will die on the spot. You better come fast, because I can't guarantee that all her joints will be intact. Good luck." Jack pushed another button and the recording stopped.
"I'll get that video ready to be sent. Rob, you're going to make sure it gets directly to the Fuhrer's personal mailbox," Marcus said, dismantling the camera.
"What do we do about her?" Jack asked.
Marcus stared at her. She had passed out once again and was laying there motionless. "Leave her. She won't be going anywhere."
A.N.: Surprise! Yes, Marcus is a psychopath, lol. Poor Riza. She's getting beat up. Anyway, the story is getting somewhere, don't worry. Review if you liked it!
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