Keiko had to resist the urge to talk back to Arkady as she followed him down to the MGM Grand Buffet. She didn't want to risk getting slapped across the face again or worse. There had to be a way she could get out of this, but how? She couldn't just wait around for her family to come save her, right? Much as she wanted to believe she could get herself out of this, she knew that it would likely end in disaster if she tried. Still, she could at least keep her options open if and when the opportunity presented itself.
As Keiko sat down at the breakfast table with Arkady and his parents, she scanned the room for any possible escape routes or help nearby. The bustling buffet area was filled with people enjoying their morning meals, but she couldn't spot anyone who seemed approachable or willing to assist her. She knew she had to stay alert and bide her time for an opportunity to break free from Arkady's control, but at the same time, she didn't know when that opportunity would come. In the meantime, she decided to keep to herself, not acting on her plans until she felt it was time to do so.
"How do you like everything?" Mistress Killda asked her.
"Fine," Keiko simply replied.
Keiko looked up at the ceiling and tried to distract herself for as long as possible while she fantasized about a death machine she'd witnessed in action at Superjail when she was a little girl. Just thinking about it mowing down the inmates in its path, all while screams of terror filled the air and blood and viscera and other body parts flew everywhere, was enough to bring her nostalgia. Suddenly, she heard someone call out to her, and it brought her back to reality.
"Huh?" Keiko sounded. "What did you say?"
"I asked you what you wanted to eat for breakfast," Lord Stingray replied.
"Well, that depends." Keiko looked up at the ceiling again. "What do they serve here?"
Lord Stingray proceeded to list off all the options available at the MGM Grand Buffet. Keiko sat there in her seat the whole time, eyes locked on the ceiling, not saying or doing much as he rattled everything off.
"In that case, I'll have the French toast and some chocolate chip pancakes," Keiko replied.
"Well, go get it then," Arkady demanded, albeit more stern than aggressive.
The demand was enough to make Keiko flinch as if in anticipation, but she tried to shake it off as she got up out of her seat and got the breakfast items she desired. Keiko quickly made her way back to the table and sat down, avoiding Arkady's gaze. He watched her with a blank expression on his face, and Keiko felt a chill run down her spine. She quickly scarfed down her food, wanting to get away from his and his family's intimidating presence as quickly as possible. Once she had finished her food, she pushed herself out of her seat and started heading out for the hotel room she'd woken up in.
"Keiko, wait!" Arkady called out to her.
By then, however, she was too far away to actually hear him. She didn't want anything to do with him right now anyway. He'd done... something to her. She wasn't sure what exactly he did, and she wasn't sure she wanted to find out. Eventually, she reached the door leading into the hotel room. She fidgeted with the knob slightly, hoping that the door would open without a key card. It didn't. Damn. She wasn't about to ask for one lest she get caught, so she decided to go for the only other option available to her: phasing through the door and entering the room that way. Thank God for being a Warden, and thank God for inheriting her grandfather's powers. Once inside, she decided to stay quiet, not wanting to give away her location in the meantime.
"Keiko, where are you?" she could hear Arkady calling out again.
She still didn't say anything. She just heard his footsteps (or at least what she presumed to be them) gradually fade out as he walked away. She decided to hole herself up in the bathroom for the time being and contemplate her next move.
For reasons not immediately clear, Mayumi was forced to land the private jet containing the Mistress, Eddie, Genie, Delilah, Iggy, and Aurelia and Flavia at an unexpected stop in Colorado Springs. Neither one of the passengers was exactly thrilled about this sudden development, but for now, it would have to do. After all, it wasn't like they had much of a choice in the matter anyway.
"'Kay, everybody!" Mayumi cheerfully spoke up. "We've just arrived. Normally, I'd advise everyone to stay inside since I hadn't exactly planned to stop here, but I'm sure we could use this time to try to get answers for Keiko's whereabouts. Besides, I know for a fact that someone will need to take care of his motion sickness." She was clearly referring to Eddie, who appeared to be green in the face. "Alright, everyone. Off the plane. I'll see you all when you get back on board."
The thirty-two-year-old future dictator of the world unbuckled himself and got out of the plane in order to puke his contents out. Everyone else filed out and proceeded to take a good look at their surroundings. They couldn't help but notice how astounding the skyline looked from where they were. The sun shone brightly in the sky, and the city was bustling with activity. Just about everyone was in awe of the sight. They couldn't wait to explore this new place.
Mistress momentarily broke out of the apparent trance. "We can't linger here for too long. We're here to find anyone who can tell us where Keiko could have gone."
"She's right, guys," Delilah chimed in. "Time is of the essence."
Iggy nodded. "Alright, we gotcha."
With that, everyone made their way into the city, hoping to find answers and find them soon.
Things have been going extremely well over at the original Superjail. The reality show Ethan had launched all those years ago was still going and didn't seem to be slowing down anytime soon. Who knew that copious amounts of gore, violence, and utter depravity would be a huge hit with audiences everywhere? Still, it was hard to not feel the pressure to keep upping the ante to appease the investors. How was one supposed to top that kind of violence day after day, week after week, month after month, or even year after year? However, it was hard to argue that it wasn't beneficial in some way. In fact, everyone seemed financially well off because of it.
However, Ethan would have to put all of that on the back burner because there were bigger priorities at hand. As it so happened, Ethan was daydreaming about the reality show's future when he suddenly got an emergency notification on his phone, which forced him back into reality. His eyes widened as he read through the text as quickly as possible.
"Oh God..." Ethan could only mutter. "It can't be..."
He couldn't believe what he was reading. Keiko was missing? And worse, Arkady might have kidnapped her? What was he supposed to do? How was he supposed to help find her? There had to be a way. He was sure of it.
"Europa?" Ethan called out to his oldest child. "Can you come in here please?"
"Why?" Europa asked in response. "What's going on?"
"I'll tell you as soon as you come in here."
"Uh... okay."
Without further hesitation, Europa opened the door to her father's office and took a seat across from his desk.
"Europa, I'm afraid I've got some bad news," Ethan said.
Europa could practically feel her heart dropping from her chest. "What is it, Dad?"
"It seems Keiko has gone missing."
"Really? What happened?"
"According to the emergency notification, Arkady must have kidnapped her."
"Well, where could they have gone?"
Ethan shook his head. "I have no idea."
Europa didn't like that answer, but she ventured on. "So what can we do?"
"Unless we know for sure where she was taken to, nothing. We'll have to stand by just in case."
Europa sharply exhaled through her nose. "Well, thanks for letting me know, I guess."
"No problem. You can go now. I just wanted to make sure you knew what was happening."
"Okay." Europa promptly rose from her seat. "I was kinda in the middle of something anyway. See ya."
With that, Europa walked out of Ethan's office, leaving him all alone to mull over what to do next. He wasn't sure how much time was left, but he wanted to find Keiko as soon as possible and bring her home.