Dangan Ronpa: That Hopeless Place

by Craftsdwarf

Invited on a sudden class trip several weeks before the start of the next term, the soon to be 79th Class of Hope's Peak Academy takes a journey to an unknown location, at the behest of terrible, unknown forces. Stand alone work! Feel free to read without checking out the prequels! Contains DR1/2/0 Spoilers.

2. 1-1: Bon Voyage

Silver Lining: (Ab)normal Days

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Encapsulating darkness, the creaks and moans of metal, the echoes of an eternal sea...

It seemed as though that was all Katsuragi Yaichi could feel for a short time.

As he began to get a stronger handle on his senses, he noticed more: the soft, moist feeling permeating his clothes, the humid air on his skin, and the faint light beyond his eyelids. But perhaps the strangest thing was that he hadn't woken up from a dream.

Had he? Maybe, but not one he could remember. The last thing he did recall was his attempt at a reality check. Thinking he was due for another, he cracked a weary eye open, raising his arms, the movement making him feel the moisture that still remained trapped in his clothes. Once again he viewed his watch, being quite glad that the word, written and rewritten on the old watch in marker, was still written plainly. However, as he got a closer look, the watch seemed to have stopped. Water damage? What a shame, but hopefully he could have it fixed.

With a grunt, he put his arms down and pushed himself up off the bed, looking around through half lidded eyes. Past his disheveled bangs, he could see that he seemed to be in a room with metallic walls. The floor was smooth and bare, hosting a plain desk with a hardwood counter with a folding chair and the bed he laid on, the metal frame holding up a mattress with white sheets, still wet from where he had been resting. There was also a pair of metal doors, one next to the desk and another on the otherwise empty wall. It was so plain but...where was he?

Looking around, he spotted a round window on the wall opposite the door. Leaning up to take a look, he saw an orange, cloudy sky over a vast expanse of ocean. It was moving, but was that the waves or the boat? Were they docked or out at sea? He'd have to find out, it looked like.

"Oh, you're awake, Yaichi-kun!" came the cutesy, mechanical voice.

Head turning so fast he nearly lost balance, Katsuragi turned behind him to see an unexplainable sight. It seemed to be like a teddy bear, but larger, standing about a meter high. It was colored entirely white, with a soft snout and two beady black eyes, the white spot of under-hair hosting an extruding navel.

Blinking in confusion, Katsuragi looked over the strange teddy bear again, before raising his hand, patting it on the head. "Wh-what are you doing?" he stammered, blushing as Katsuragi rubbed him down.

Even after touching it, Katsuragi had no idea what to make of it. It wasn't really that cute, unfortunately, but underneath a thin layer of plush fur, it seemed to be solid, like the metal encasing him right now. His initial assumption was a child or dwarf in a costume, but if it was metal, wouldn't it be too heavy to wear?

Oh yeah and the fact that there was a bear costume here yeah that was pretty weird. Since when did Hope's Peak have a mascot? Was he on the wrong boat? Removing his hand, Katsuragi shared his concerns, asking, "Where am I?"

The bear replied quickly, "You're currently aboard the Silver Lining, a vessel rented by Hope's Peak Academy for this voyage. Since all the students of the 79th Class were assembled, we shipped out! Since not all of them were conscious, we haven't truly started our journey yet."

Remembering how he fell, Katsuragi wondered, "Wait, I'm not the only one who fell?"

The bear shrugged, "I can't really explain it, maybe you can ask them yourself? We have plenty of time, after all. Now that everyone's awake though, I think we should get things rolling."

Without warning, the bear slipped away, leaving Katsuragi's sight in mere moments. He didn't have to wait long until something happened, the Dreamer hearing the pings of the PA system. What followed was a voice not unlike the bear's here, but harsher, explaining, "Mic test...and stuff. Hey hey, listen up kids! Now that all of you sleepyheads are awake, we're beginning the countdown: in one hour, meet at the Upper Deck for your Trip Orientation! No ifs, ands, or buts! Be there or be square you ding dongs!" After the rather unfriendly message, the PA system blinked out, leaving the room in silence once again.

The bear sighed, "Oh, brother, such a bother; couldn't he have been a little more professional about this?"

Katsuragi jumped, not having noticed the white bear return. Looking between the bear and the source of the noise earlier, Katsuragi stammered, "H-huh? That wasn't you?"

Turning to Katsuragi, the bear explained, "Oh, of course, I forgot to mention: that was my twin brother, Kumakuma. I'm the younger one by a little bit, Monomono!"

Not really getting the naming scheme, Katsuragi simply scratched his head and nodded, playing along before looking around, wondering, "So, after I fell, one of you guys brought me here, right?" Monomono nodded, and Katsuragi continued, "Where'd you put my stuff?"

Monomono tilted his head, wondering aloud, "Stuff?"

Katsuragi blinked, explaining, "My bag of things I had with me?" No answer. As the fate of his possessions dawned on him, he muttered, "W-wait, my bag...is gone?" As he visualized his things, eroding slowly on the bottom of the ocean floor, of particular pain came the thought of his games: the hours of progress and tens of thousands of yen lost. Legs weakening, he fell onto his hands and knees, head bowed in despair.

Trying to help, Monomono began, "W-well, at least you didn't drown, right?"

Katsuragi didn't respond, instead thinking of what he would do. Start over with another system? Get the games he lost and replay them? But then he'd have to redo the stuff he'd already done. It was such a waste. But maybe...what if Yumi took pity on him and got him one? Perhaps a newer model in her favorite color, or with another personalization to remind him of her as she played, perhaps handing it to him with a remark like 'take better care of your things next time, you idiot'.

Unable to taker the mental image, Katsuragi clutched at his heart, falling over onto his side. As Monomono panicked, Katsuragi leaped to his feet, a warm smile on his face, which quickly burned into a look of determination as he hissed, "Everything's going to be okay!"

Monomono blinked in confusion for a moment, before nodding as he replied, "That's the spirit. You recovered kinda quickly though..."

Katsuragi nodded, "Anything is possible with love."

Monomono titled his head again as he said, "I don't follow."

Crossing his arms over his chest, Katsuragi stated bluntly, "Well, you're a robot so you can't love because you don't have a soul."

Jaw dropping, Monomono threw his hands in the air in shock, crying out, "H-how did you know my secret!?"

Raising his fingers to adjust a pair of non-existent glasses, Katsuragi answered, "It was child's play, I patted your head, after all..." Blinking his eyes, he replied, "Wait, what? I was right? I was just joking."

Monomono pouted, "You still don't seem that surprised!"

Katsuragi scratched his head as he pointed out, "Well...I guess I'm more curious as to why it's you and not, you know, people."

Monomono sighed, beginning, "Oh, is that all? Well that'll be explained in due time. For now, I think you should run along and meet your Classmates before the the Trip Orientation. I'm sure they've familiarized with each other for the most part, so now it's your turn!"

Thinking about it, Katsuragi concurred, "Yeah, I think I will then. Thank you for the help."

Monomono nodded, "It's no issue at all!" With a nod, the bear slipped away, leaving as fast as had come. As it left, Katsuragi glimpsed the backside of the bear, which seemed to be colored black rather than the white front. He quickly shoved it from his mind though, figuring he'd learn more later.

Now alone, Katsuragi sized himself up once more, waving a bit to air his still moist clothes out a bit, before heading to the door next to his desk, finding a small bathroom, complete with toilet, sink, and shower. Keeping that in mind, he headed to the other door, turning the knob, and stepping outside. Directly in front of him was a door, marked with a nameplate and an image resembling a game sprite. Before he got a good look, his eyes followed the path down the hall to his left, where he saw a line of doors, each similarly marked. At the end of the hall to his left, the passage ended at a wall, two paths turning to the side, while at his right, nearby, he could see it turn to form two staircases, each heading downwards, while there was a door on the wall between them.

Turning around, he closed his door to see his own name and image staring back. Right above his name of "Katsuragi' was an image of himself in pixel art, blown up. He couldn't fathom why, but he kinda liked it. A quick count revealed that there were eight doors on each side, meaning that there were sixteen total. Making his move, he began to walk, his eyes on the nameplates of the guys. However, curiously, the last one did not have a nameplate: only a black square where the images were on the other doors. Curiosity unbending, Katsuragi reached for the door knob, turning it, being surprised to find it unlocked.

However, the first thing he saw was not the bed, window, or desk, it was a boy, a bit shorter than him. At the noise from the door, he looked over his shoulder at Katsuragi, his gray eyes meeting Katsuragi's teal ones. The boy had short, ruffled blonde hair, a bit of it sticking up at his scalp, and he wore a black and blue flannel with rolled up sleeves, opened up over a plain white shirt. He also wore blue jeans and black and white sneakers.

As the pair looked at each other, the boy's eyes lit up on recognition, and he smiled, "Oh, you must be...either Katsuragi Yaichi or the owner of this room, right?"

Scratching his head, Katsuragi nodded, "Er, yeah, I'm Katsuragi." Looking around at the bare room, he asked, "So this isn't your room?"

The boy shook his head, explaining, "No, I'm next door. I'm Urabe, Urabe Shigeru. I'd be surprised if you've heard of me: I'm the Super High School Level Luckster."

Katsuragi nodded with a smile, replying, "Oh, nice to meet you then!" A bit sheepishly, he noted, "It's so weird that you already know me though..."

Urabe blinked, before wondering aloud, "Is it? I mean, I did my research on all of the likely candidates for the 79th Class, and I found plenty on most of you easily enough. Like for example, not only is your grandfather also a former Hope's Peak Student, but your little sister also has the same Talent. And she's starting high school when spring break ends, right? Maybe she'll be in the 80th Class?"

At the mention of his sister, Katsuragi nodded, "Yeah, that would be great! She'd been going to a different middle school than me, and she's applying to a high school different than the one I was at before I got accepted into Hope's Peak, but if we were at the same school it would be easier to take care of her..."

Urabe blinked, before nodding slightly, "I see..." Glancing around, Urabe suggested, "It's a little cramped in here, don't you think? And there's no signs of who this room belongs too, so there's really no reason to stay." Getting the picture, Katsuragi stepped out, being followed by the Luckster, who closed the door behind him. Turning back to Katsuragi, Urabe wondered, "You know, I know of you, but I don't really know much about you. Tell me more about your Talent."

Slipping his hands into his pockets, Katsuragi began, "Well, it's kind of interesting, I guess. Lucid dreaming, controlling your mind...it's like making another world inside of your head, and you're the God. My sister mostly uses it to have fun, not that I don't, but I like to try and imagine the impossible, like paradoxes. I mean, the human mind is amazing as is, but what don't we know about it? That's the kind of thing my grandpa has studied his whole life."

Impressed, Urabe nodded, "Oh, that's something. Have you worked towards discovering anything? Oh, and there's that other Neurologist who started in Hope's Peak a couple years ago, did you meet him?"

"Matsuda-san? He's...alright. Kind of mean maybe, but we talked about manga a bit. My grandpa was really impressed with him though, and Matsuda seems to respect him. Maybe we'll meet again? I guess he'll be our upperclassman, huh?" Katsuragi explained.

Urabe nodded, "Ah, must be nice, getting to meet someone like that. I'm a little envious. I mean, I'm just Lucky...supposedly. What does that even mean?"

Offering a suggestion, Katsuragi said, "Maybe some of our other upperclassmen might know? There've been, what, 78 other Lucksters, right?"

Urabe shook his head, "Only 72, actually, but I see what you mean. Maybe the school will have something?"

Looking around at all the Cabin doors, Katsuragi said, "Well, we only have a little less than an hour, maybe I should get to finding everyone?"

Urabe suggested, "Hmm, maybe I can come too? I mean, I've met everyone already, but I already knew a bit about most them. Some of them are a little quiet so a little introduction might help, and then...there's one I want to meet again anyway. Besides, who knows, maybe someone will have an idea on that 16th Student?"

Katsuragi smiled, "Ah, that'd be helpful, thanks!" Glancing around, he wondered, "Now which way..."

Taking the lead, Urabe grabbed Katsuragi on the shoulder, pointing at the door in between the two sets of downward stairs on the far side, suggesting, "This way." Blinking, he stopped, before patting Katsuragi's shoulder, taking note of the moist clothes. Blinking, Urabe noted, "You're..."

Katsuragi explained, "Oh, I was dreaming about swimming, I guess, so my body followed suit with my mind." Eyes widened skeptically, Urabe gave Katsuragi a prying look, and the Dreamer smiled, "I'm joking. I fell into the water before I got on board, actually."

At that, Urabe chortled lightly, but Katsuragi wasn't sure if he was laughing at his joke or his clumsiness. Moving on, the two passed the Cabin doors before reaching the end. Katsuragi followed Urabe as the entered the out of place door marked with a plate that read 'Data Room'.

Peeking his head inside, he gave the room a look. In the center, a short distance from the door, was an assembly of four desks, their corners pushed together, a computer tower, monitor, keyboard, mouse, and set of headphones assembled for each one. The walls of the room were lined with bookshelves that reached the ceiling, and the other half of the room had one set of shelves blocking the view of the back wall.

They were not alone, however: Sitting at one of the computers and facing away from the door was a small girl, whom turned her head over her shoulder at the noise. As she got a better look, she rotated her chair, looking over Katsuragi as he did the same. The short girl's light green hair was wrapped into a bun, while her yellow eyes gazed through brown spectacles. She wore an black, short sleeved blouse under a white vest with an black skirt, a green bow tie at her neck.

Tilting her head slgihtly, the girl mumbled, "Oh, you're..." As Katsuragi approached without warning, she recoiled in her chair a bit, tensing up and closing her eyes as his hand reached the crown of her head. As she was being petted, she cracked one eye open, before blinking, "Wh-what are you doing?"

Smiling, Katsuragi fawned, ignoring her and asking, "Hello there, little girl! How did you get on board? This is a trip for high schoolers!"

With a glare, the girl grabbed his arm, tossing it aside and standing, though she was still more than a full head shorter than him. Pouting at him, she proclaimed, "I am a high schooler! A Hope's Peak Academy Super High Schooler!"

Urabe nodded sheepishly, "It's true."

Blinking, Katsuragi noted, "You're about as tall as my little sister though...no, actually a bit shorter. Probably close to three centimeter's shorter."

Grimacing, the girl asked, "That's a really specific number! Stop being creepy. And don't make fun of me for something I can't help."

Leaning down and grabbing her by the shoulders, Katsuragi looked her in the eyes and demanded, "You're perfect just the way you are. Never change."

Unamused, the girl removed Katsuragi's arms before turning about and crossing her arms over her chest defiantly as Urabe scratched his head in bewilderment. The Luckster finally began, "A-anyway, this is Miyamoto Chiho, she's the Super High School Level Tutor." Turning slightly, Miyamoto smirked proudly as Urabe began, "At her middle school, she was allowed to lead study hall, and the school's average scores shot up to the highest in the country. Two of its students managed to rank in the top five out of every student in the country!"

Miyamoto flinched as she recalled, "And then couldn't take the prestigious schools they went too without commuting to my house every weekend to study... I suppose I should have taught them to fish a little better instead of just feeding them?"

Katsuragi nodded, "That's impressive! I guess we won't have to worry about our grades this year with you in our class."

Miyamoto shot him a look, saying forcefully, "Excuse me!? What, you think it's going to be easy? I can only do so much teaching: you're the student. You're the one who has to remember and not screw up on the test. It's not like everyone I taught did well; I stopped bothering with the ones who didn't care ages ago." Adjusting her spectacles, her eyebrows seemed to spark and flare as she added, "Oh, and I'll bet Hope's Peak is going to throw some of its most challenging courses at us this year; they're going to have to if they want to test me. We're all geniuses in one way or another here: no way the normal course work will cut it!" Her eyebrows seemed to intensify as she stated, "And we're starting right here on this class trip, so don't drop your guard, even more a moment!"

A bit intimidated by her sudden presence, Katsuragi replied, "Er, I'll keep that in mind..." Looking over at the screen, Katsuragi wondered, "What were you doing there? Do we have satellite internet or something?"

Eyes widening, eyebrows flipping off, Miyamoto backed up towards the screen, shaking her head, "Uh, n-no internet here, nope, that's preposterous! I was just checking on some of the files and software..." As Katsuragi leaned closer, the small girl suddenly jumped to the keyboard and mouse, quickly hacking away at it. As Katsuragi tried to see what she was doing, Miyamoto continued to block him, leaning her head to shield the screen from his eyes.

Trying to get in, Katsuragi used his height to his advantage, peeking over, but all that remained when he finally got sight was the computer shutting down. Satisfied, Miyamoto let out a sigh of relief and plopped back down in her chair, smiling proudly. Ignoring her, Katsuragi restarted the computer as soon as it had shut down fully, stating, "You know it shouldn't be too hard to see what files you recently opened..."

Shocked, Miyamoto grabbed his arm, trying to keep it away as she pouted, "Noooooo! I mean, I wasn't goofing off, I was just looking! There's nothing wrong with looking!" Ignoring her, Katsuragi kept his arms at the ready even as she fought, groaning all the while. "Who are you anyways!?" Miyamoto grumbled.

"Is there a problem?" Came a deeper voice from the other side of the room. Katsuragi froze as a figure stepped out from behind the free standing bookshelf, heels stepping down firmly. It was yet another girl, but unlike Miyamoto, she was about Katsuragi's height. The girl scanned the scene with hard, green eyes. Her hair was parted from her bare forehead, the light orange locks spun into fine curls trailing down the sides and back of her head. Her body was wrapped in gray, tightly fitting shirt with black buttons down the middle and similarly fitting pants that accented her figure. At her hip waved a long, thin sheathe, the hilt of a weapon in plain view.

Unconsciously, Katsuragi swallowed, a bit intimidated by the appearance of the girl, her frame seemingly toned and strong. Glancing between Miyamoto and the weapon at the other girl's hip, Katsuragi stepped a fair distance away from the Tutor before stating, "I didn't do it."

"Do what?" The taller girl asked.

"...Nothing?" Katsuragi muttered as Urabe shook with giggles, his mouth hidden behind his hand.

Ignoring the boys, Miyamoto watched the other girl, her hands on the sides of her face as she muttered fawningly, "So cool..."

After a moment of silence, the nameless girl began, "I don't believe we've met."

Miyamoto turned back to him, nodding, "Yeah, like I was saying: who are you?"

Katsuragi opened his mouth, but his words were stolen as Urabe began, "This is Katsuragi Yaichi, the Super High School Level Dreamer." The Luckster then went into a breif explaination of the boy's Talent, Katsuragi taking to nodding at appropriate times.

As the Luckster finished, the taller girl gave him a look, before beginning, "Well, I suppose I should introduce myself: I am Ohtori Keiko, Su-"

Urabe jumped in, "She's the Super High School Level Fencer! I haven't really heard much though. I did read about some big tournament recently though, but I don't remember reading about her. There was some really strong foreign presence though."

Turning her head slightly, Ohtori noted, "The fact tat I am here speaks loudly."

Urabe scratched his head as he replied, "Well, there was never any doubt about that." Katsuragi couldn't help but feel that her overly formal behavior and somber mood seemed to contradict her adorable name of 'Keiko'.

After a moment, Ohtori turned her gaze on Katsuragi once again. As the Dreamer flinched, she stated, "It would be wise of you not to start trouble."

As Miyamoto nodded quietly, Katsuragi replied, "Y-yeah, understood."

Satsified, Ohtori nodded, before making her way out of the room, Miyamoto getting up from her chair and following with a cry of, "Don't leave me with him, Ohtori-san!"

When the room was clear, Urabe noted, "Well, at least they're getting along nicely."

Nodding, Katsuragi sat down in Miyamoto's no empty seat, logging in to the computer. Slipping into folders, he was able to find out rather quickly what Miyamoto had been doing through the folder history. He explained, "Huh, looks like she was playing some game; it's kinda old though, and in English."

Urabe smirked, "Heh, really? She overheard me trying to talk games with one of the others and jumped in to complain how they were the mortal enemy of studying...well, she's not wrong, I guess, but...was she deleting them?"

Eager to get to the bottom of things, Katsuragi botted up the game (some sort of action game by the looks of it). Finding a file in her name, he pointed it out to Urabe, who sighed, "Who'd have thought..." Shutting down the PC, Katsuragi stood, Urabe pointing out, "You're not bad with computers. Or figuring stuff out."

Having not really though about his actions, Katsuragi shrugged, "That so? I guess..."

Moving on, the two left the Data Room, Urabe leading the way down one of the sets of stairs nearby. Going even deeper into the ship, the two came out on another level. Looking around, Katsuragi could see two more sets of stairs. Across from them, one went back up, likely to the same place, while at their side there was a staircase downwards further. In between the two staircases up, their was a door surrounded with a few crates and plastic shippers.

Before Katsuragi could get a better look, however, Urabe headed for the other staircase, pointing out, "Hmm, I haven't gone down this way yet..."

Uncaring of the direction, Katsuragi followed him down the shorter length of stairs, which bent around to a large, red set of double doors underneath the area above. Though the doors were unmarked, the area was not vacant: the space between the bottom step and the door was taken up by another pair of students, who looked up to the Katsuragi and Urabe as they approached.

One of them, a boy, adjusted his frameless glasses as he looked over Katsuragi with his green eyes. His dark purple hair was short and spiked in the front and a light green short sleeved dress shirt under a dark gray vest with off-white slacks and black shoes.

The other one, a girl, was dressed for business as well, but of a different sort. She wore a red hakama over a plain white haori jacket covering a similarly pure kimono: a standard shrine maiden uniform. Her dark blue hair was long, two ponytails stemming from one spot on the back of her head, bound by white ties, and she blinked at the pair with her orange eyes.

Raising his eyebrows, Urabe asked from his spot on the stairs, "That door..."

The dark haired boy next to it sighed, "Don't bother asking, it won't open."

The girl at his side frowned, "All I did was touch it and Kumakuma came over and yelled at me for trying to break it down."

Katsuragi noted, "Kumakuma doesn't sound very nice."

Raising her hands, balled into fists, she said with a grain of intensity, "Ain't that the truth?" Blinking, she turned pink for a moment as she lost her intensity, instead stating, "I mean, isn't it?"

Katsuragi blinked, before adding, "Well, I haven't met him yet, I only just got out of my room."

"And you are?" The boy in glasses asked, almost accusingly.

Katsuragi began, "Er, well-"

Before he could get much else in, Urabe once again launched into explanation on the blue haired boy. As he finished, he turned to Katsuragi, beginning, "Anyway, here we have Hiiragi Mitsue. She's not wearing that outfit for fun, she's a Super High School Level Miko Priestess."

Studying the girl, Katsuragi began, "Well, I like the look, but I can't help but wonder...how did that happen? I mean, Fencing and Tutoring, sure, even Dreaming kind of sort of makes since, but..."

Scratching her head sheepishly, Hiiragi began, "Well, I know what you mean. I don't know how it happened either: our town is really small, and the shrine isn't that big. It was still kind of understaffed since some of the part timers were starting to go do other things. I started helping as a favor, and after everything got cleaned up, I started attracting followers and...I guess I did a little too well?"

Urabe added, "I heard that your performances during ceremonies were really invigorating."

Hiiragi gave an awkward smile as she replied, "I didn't even know what I was doin' the first time... I kept gettin' nervous, and then the crowds got bigger..."

Urabe continued, "I also heard that the sealed fortunes you passed out specifically were scarily accurate."

"Just a coincidence, is all!" Hiiragi insisted.

"Oh, and the time you used a charm to save someone's life!" Urabe finished.

Hiiragi blushed as she explained, "I-I was just holdin' it while doin' the Heimlich thing! He was chokin'" Embarrassed, she pouted, "Stop it, please..."

Scratching his head, Urabe nodded, "Alright, sorry. Anyway..." Gesturing to the quiet, dark haired boy, Urabe continued, "This is Zaizen Koutarou. He's the Super High School Level Puzzler. Kind of surly, sure, but give him a riddle and he'll probably find the answer."

Zaizen snorted, "'Probably'? The 2010 Edition of the 101 Gold Riddles was solved by my group in record time. They were supposed to last the whole decade, yet they were handled in months. I can only hope they step up their difficulty for the next decade."

Katsuragi nodded lightly, replying, "That sounds impressive..." After a moment, he put his hand to his mouth and hissed quietly, "Urabe-san, what are the Gold Riddles?"

Urabe began, "They're a collection of Master Class riddles compiled by enthusiasts over the last decade. I think its compiled from 1999 to 2009, actually, so they have time to put the actual book together. They've been printed for about a century, but some of the collections weren't even fully solved until internet communities were able to collectively pool their knowledge. I think the 2000 Edition was the first one solved in the same decade it came out." Urabe snickered, "And they say the internet makes you dumb..."

Adjusting his glasses, Zaizen noted, "But now, the Gold Riddles are a thing of the past. I'm far more interested in 'real puzzles' nowadays. Mysteries and the like." Turning back to the door, he began, "Katsuragi-san, you seem to be wet: why is that?"

Katsuragi blinked, before explaining, "Er, I fell into the ocean."

Hiiragi gasped, "So did I!"

As if expecting the answer, Zaizen asked almost immediately, "And would you describe yourself as clumsy? Absent minded?"

Crossing his arms over his chest, Katsuragi replied sheepishly, "Yeah, kinda..."

Zaizen seemed to be in deep thought for a moment, before saying, "Well, I do not, yet I found myself in the drink as well. Several others fell as well, and with the other host of strange things going on here..."

Urabe snickered, "Maybe you just don't want to admit you're actually kinda clumsy?"

Zaizen snorted, "Hardly. But if you intellectual black holes think this is just some normal vacation...as much as I desire it to be the same, I am not so optimistic." Dismissively, the vested boy moved past the other two as he climbed the stairs, leaving the three alone by the door.

When the Puzzler had gone, Hiiragi frowned, "Is something bothering him? I mean, this door is pretty strange since it's all the way at the bottom, but..."

Urabe shrugged, "Maybe, or maybe 'bothered' is just his normal personality?" Unsure of what to say, neither Hiiragi or Katsuragi added anything to that.

Turning to the girl, Katsuragi said, "Hiiragi-san, we're going to go. I still haven't introduced myself to everyone yet."

Hiiragi smiled, "I gotcha! I'm gonna stay here though!" Readjusting her tongue, she added quietly, "If you don't mind..."

Parting ways, the two boys headed up, but Zaizen was nowhere in sight. Back on the level below the Cabins, Katsuragi once again saw the assortment of storage containers by the door.

Scratching his chin, Urabe noted, "I haven't really gone this way yet either..." Heading to the door, he entered, and the two saw the large room within. Dozens, perhaps even hundreds of large, iron, multicolored shipping containers were within, stacked in rows and columns of all sorts of heights, forming something of a maze within.

Urabe asked, "I wonder if there's something on the other side?"

Katsuragi nodded, "Or someone else exploring, maybe?" Purpose found, the pair made there way into the maze of containers. While it seemed jumbled and unorganized at first, with lots of apparent dead ends in the form of containers pushed together with only small amounts of room between them, or narrow spaces that were difficult to move through, they did discover that there was something of a path through. En route, the examined the contents of several containers, which had either been opened or unlocked, and some only reachable by a conveniently placed ladder. While the containers themselves were unorganized, they were filled to varying degrees, each one containing one type of item, such as chairs, spare clothes, construction equipment, cleaning supplies, tools, board games, sporting goods, sciency stuff, and in some, what seemed to be copious amounts of canned foods from some company called 'Grow Beyond'.

However, after another bend, the two found themselves twisted around a bit, and were at a loss. "Er, we came from that way, right?" Katsuragi asked.

Urabe scratched his head, answering, "Er, I'm not quite sure..."

"That way, probably."

Katsuragi blinked, "Which way?" Pausing, he looked over to Urabe, the Luckster also realizing that the voice did not come from either of the two. Scanning the area, their eyes finally came upon the speaker, whom sat a few meters up, atop one of the crates.

The girl who addressed them was also scanning the area from her higher viewpoint through her dark blue eyes. She sat cross legged on a double stack of containers, arms crossed over her chest. Her skin was tanned and her auburn hair hung above her shoulders in a disorderly fashion. She also wore a pale red tank top over top a long sleeved, rust colored shirt and blue, ankle length jeans, her feet adorned in white tennis shoes. She continued to look around for a moment, before glancing down and saying, "Actually, I'm not sure."

Scratching his head with a sigh, Katsuragi quickly recovered, beginning, "Well, thanks anyway...wait, are you lost too?"

The girl shook her head, "No, just relaxing."

"But why there..." Katsuragi frowned. As he looked up, he couldn't help but wonder, "How'd she get up there anyway?"

As the girl began to look around a bit more, Urabe began, "Oh, it's not that surprising. She's Rukawa Yayoi, Super High School Level Baller. She plays basketball, so jumping high enough to grab onto that container was probably nothing." Glancing back up at her, he continued, "As I understand it, its really no wonder that she's here: she's already been invited to play on professional teams, and there are rumors that she's trounced some of the best players, male and female, in the countries where the sport is strongest like America and...America."

Katsuragi laughed, "They sorta have a monopoly on things, huh? Still though, it's impressive. I mean, most of us are..."

As he finished his thought, he was interuppted by a thud as something came down, shaking the metal ground slightly as it landed by him. Having arrived, Rukawa stood to her full height: Katsuragi was already a bit taller than average, but the size of this girl made him feel insecure and tiny. She was an anomaly, an aberration. No girl should be that much taller than her. It felt wrong, even if in truth, ten centimeters or so was not that much. Glancing over to the even shorter Urabe, even he seemed a bit put off by the height difference, despite having run into her before.

Glancing between the two boys silently, Rukawa simply blinked wordlessly as the pair gawked. As Rukawa scratched her head, looking aside, Katsuragi asked, "I-is there a problem?"

Ruakwa sighed, "I thought I heard you talking about basketball. There are some balls here, but no room down here. Maybe on the deck though."

Urabe scratched his chin, "Playing on a boat? The uneven surface might make things difficult, but whichever team you're on is going to have a pretty big advantage."

Katsuragi suggested, "She can play alone, right? That might be fair."

Rukawa nodded, "I did that with my teammates in school sometimes."

"I'll bet you still won all the time, huh?" Urabe laughed. Rukawa simply nodded.

As the conversation died out, Katsuragi glanced around again, before suggesting, "Er, but more importantly, how do we get out again?"

Rukawa shrugged, "I forgot."

Urabe waved his hands as he suggested, "M-maybe we should get a better viewpoint."

Rukawa looked up at the crate, stating, "Oh, up again? Got it."

As she moved towards the tall shipping container again, Katsuragi interjected, "H-hey, maybe we could all get up there and go across the top?"

Rukawa looked back, tilting her head as she asked, "How high can you jump?"

Urabe admitted, "Not very..."

Katsuragi felt his eye twitch as he hoped, "You are going to help us get up, right?"

Rukawa blinked, before nodding, "I think I can." Katsuragi couldn't help but feel something was off about this girl, in more ways then her height.

Turning back to the crate, Rukawa didn't even hesitate as she strode forwards, crouching down briefly before bounding into the air, her arms seeming to effortlessly grasp the lip of the container as she scrambled up with her legs. Crouching down at the edge she held her hand down for one to grab it. Urabe tried to hop for it, but his lack of height was making it difficult. Offering an assist, Katsuragi lent a hand, crouching down. Understanding, Urabe stood atop the blue haired boy's shoulders, and with some difficulty, Katsuragi stood, grunting as he extended to his full height, allowing Rukawa to help Urabe to the top.

Free of his burden, Katsuragi took a breather, before looking up to see Rukawa reaching down for him. Raising his hand, he jumped, but the boy, so used to his computer chair, had overexerted himself, and his attempts to leap to Rukawa's hand failed, the boy flopping against the container like a fish, the sounds of echoing metal ringing throughout the area.

"It's not working," Rukawa finally said plainly, causing Urabe to let out an exasperated laugh.

Gasping for breath, Katsuragi begged, "Give me a minute..."

Resting his hands on his knees as he slouched, he tried to recover, when he heard the sounds of pounding metal from somewhere behind him. Confused, he stood and turned, spotting yet another student standing on a shipping container. "Is there a problem?" Came a low voice.

Getting a better look, Katsuragi could see the seemingly thin boy, whom wore a blue, long-sleeved shirt and baggy, shin length shorts with a pair of sandals. His brown hair went to midway down his shoulder blades, and was tied into one braid with large segments.

Katsuragi tried to answer, but only sputtered on his fatigued breath. Rukawa spoke instead, replying, "I was trying to get him up here."

The boy gave a curt nod, before hopping down to the floor approaching Katsuragi. Reaching the Dreamer, he asked, "Are you ready?"

Blinking, Katsuragi nodded, and the boy stooped down, holding out his hands. As Katsuragi lifted his legs, the boy grabbed them and lifted Katsuragi up, and he was able to grab Rukawa's arm and climb to the top of the container at last. As he scrambled to his feet, he could hear the boy climbing up behind him unassisted, despite being roughly Urabe's height.

As the four stood in silence on the container, the boy glanced around with his red eyes, before querying, "...What was the purpose of that?"

Urabe explained, "Er, well, we kinda got lost, so we were going to go across the tops of the containers."

The boy nodded, "Ah, indeed. This place is rather difficult to navigate. Perhaps some signs would be of help?"

Katsuragi nodded, "Hey, that's a good idea."

The boy looked over to Katsuragi as the Dreamer spoke, asking, "Hmm, I don't believe I've met you."

Katsuragi nodded and began, "Ah, thanks for the help, I'm Katsuragi Yaichi!"

With that, he glanced over to Urabe, who blinked, before scratching his head and beginning, "Oh, er, see, he's the Super High School Level Dreamer!"

The Luckster went into a bit more detail, before saying, "Anyway, Katsuragi-san: this is Furinji Yuma. Don't let his size fool you: he's really strong!"

Furinji put a hand to his chin as he interjected, "I suppose I am stronger than many, but I would place much of my success to my technique. Regardless, my Title is that of Super High School Level Jujutsu Master."

Urabe butted in, "Yeah, they say he got a blackbelt within a few years of practicing the art. And just a few months ago, he won a match against the strongest martial artist in the world, our upperclassman!"

Furinji flinched, recalling, "A single match, against a mixed martial artist restricted only to Jujutsu. I'll have you know that I got ahead of myself afterwards, and challenged her to a spar where she could let loose and..." Furinji seemed to become blank, repressing a shudder before raising his arms and slapping his cheeks lightly, before finishing, "It was rigorous, but that's in the past now."

Not quite fully understanding, Katsuragi asked, "Who are we talking about?"

Urabe answered quickly, "Oogami Sakura, a virtually undefeated mixed martial artist. Her fight against Furinji is her only recorded loss since she she began fighting in official tournamen-"

"Untrue. It was a practice match done for the purposes of her education; there is no official record. If she finds herself taking part in Jujutsu tournaments, however, things may change, but for now, she is still considered undefeated," Furinji stated firmly. Raising a fist, he wondered aloud, "And if she desires a rematch...will I be ready?"

Urabe bumped in, "A-anyway. We should get a move on!" Looking around, he said, "So, is there anything in here but shipping containers."

Furinji raised his hand, pointing to the back of the storage room, explaining, "There was something back there, I believe some of the others are investigating it."

Urabe nodded, "Well, looks like we're heading that way."

As Urabe began to make a move, Katsuragi noticed one of there number was missing. Looking around, he saw Rukawa a short distance away, at the edge of the crate, looking down. Taking a moment, Katsuragi headed over, asking, "Notice something, Rukawa-san?"

The tall girl pointed, "None of the crates are against the edge of the wall."

Blinking Katsuragi gave it a look, and indeed, her claims were true: there was indeed a path along the edge of the room. "Oh, that's a relief," Katsuragi noted, glad that he wouldn't have to subject himself to the maze once again.

Overhearing, Furinji took a few steps closer, beginning, "That will do then. I may still do what I can with the signs to prevent anyone else from getting lost, at least. Rukawa-san, would you like to help me?"

"Not really," Rukawa replied with a shrug. Furinji paused, before nodding and heading off, leaping from the container to the ground below, as Rukawa began to wander away. Not sure what to say, Katsuragi simply headed after Urabe wordlessly.

The pair passed over the tops of a number of containers until they reached the far wall. Looking down, they could see a lone metal door. Carefully, they dropped down, climbing the the edge of the container, and hanging before letting go, bouncing lightly from the fall. After a safe landing, they made there way to the door.

Katsuragi led the way, cracking the door open and taking a peek. While the lower decks weren't brightly lit in the first place, this room still seemed dim. Against the far wall was a bare table with a lone chair, with something glinting lightly in the light from the doorway, but there was not much else to be seen.

Stepping in, Katsuragi made for the shiny object, Urabe trying to crane his head, his shortness limiting his view. As Katsuragi stepped into the dim room- "Grah!"

Katsuragi recoiled at the sudden, booming yell, stumbling away to the side, crashing into one of the walls, which seemed to be composed of metal bars. Katsuragi felt his heart pound as Urabe snarled in frustration, "Jeez, why are you trying to scare us, huh?"

As he tried to get back up, Katsuragi heard another voice boom, "It was not you whom I startled, but me whom was startled!"

Feeling his eye twitch as he rubbed his head, Katsuragi asked, "Makes some sense, will you?" Giving the owner of the voice a skeptical look, he wondered aloud, "What kind of a yell is 'grah' anywa-gah!"

What loomed before Katsuragi was not a man, but a beast. In the low light, he could make out a painted face with defined, curled lips marked in red like a lion, and a large, white mane surrounding his face and purple eyes. His clothes were ornate, the red and white fabrics of his jinbei layering to make the already stocky boy look even bigger, though he wasn't tall. It did give him a bit more presence, however. Despite the clothing, however, he wore no shoes, and part of his bare shin was visible, as was his forearm, the limbs painted as white as his face.

As the boy crossed his arms, Urabe noted, "W-well, his appearance does take some getting used to."

Pushing that aside for now, Katsuragi sighed, "Anyway, like I was saying, I didn't mean to scare you."

The lion boy blinked, before booming, "Ahaha! You did not scare me!"

Katsuragi frowned, "Eh, but you just sai-"

"E-eh? D-d-d-did I now? I-I-I'm sorry." the boy said, his voice weaker and choppy.

Katsuragi's mouth hung open as he tried to find the words, but they would not come. Butting in, Urabe quickly began, "Er, don't worry about it. This is Shimao Genya, Super High School Level Kabuki Actor. We talked earlier: he has a speech impediment, but it doesn't affect hi-"

"When I show my inner heart!" Shimao roared. Spreading his stance and shooting a hand out, he continued, "I do apologize! I pray I did not offend. I tend to switch roles, as well-"

Urabe nodded excitedly, "Oh! I saw a recording of one of your performances, and read about how they use a wire device to pull off part of your costume, like, to show that you're true nature is revealed. You had the green outfit underneath, and you wiped the red parts of your face paint off I had to rewatch it to notice."

Shimao laughed, "I am glad you enjoyed it, but there is nothing comparable to viewing a performance in person. Some things cannot be replicated through a camera."

Starting to understand, Katsuragi shrugged, "Anyway, it's fine. Nice to meet you."

With a nod, Urabe introduced Katsuragi properly. After introductions were settled, Katsuragi glanced around, getting a better look now that his eyes were adjusted: the two side walls were barred, each section off into two jail cells, each one with a bed, a sink, and a toilet.

With a nod, Shimao began, "Anyway, now that I have been introduced, you should meet the girl who has been helping me investigate this room!" The boy looked around, but quickly realized there was no one there. "Eh?" he blinked.

Urabe's brow furrowed as he asked, "Wait, you weren't in here alone?"

Shimao shook his head, explaining normally, "N-no. Sh-sh-she didn't s-s-slip out, did she?"

Katsuragi shook his head, "I think we would have noticed, right?"

As he looked to Urabe, the Luckster nodded, "Yeah, I haven't moved far from the d-d-d-d-d-"

Katsuragi blinked at Urabe as he began to stutter in shock. Shimao's purple eyes also seemed to widen, but whether or not he paled was up for debate. Following the path of their eyes, he could only imagine they were looking behind him, into the cell. As he began to turn, however, a humid gasp of air tickled his neck. His eye twitched as he turned his head, looking down to see a face titled sideways looking up at him, a gold eye with a bag under it peeking out of long black hair, a mouth cracking into a devilish smirk. Katsuragi leaned back a bit, before saying, "Hello."

"Hello," the girl said back.

"You're a little close, don't you think?" Katsuragi noted.

Voice becoming raspier, the girl said, "Oh, but I want to be closer..."

With a sigh, Katsuragi raised his hand, grasping the girl on the head and pushing away to a fair distance. Getting a better look, the girl's long black hair was a bit disheveled, and partly covering her pale face. She wore a kimono, but one much less elaborate then Shimao's outfit. The black fabric reached down to her ankles, and was patterned with white spots made to resemble stars in the night sky. Her obi sash was white, with a few circular curves patterned on it.

With a frown, the girl moaned, "For someone with so much imagination, you are rather...imperturbable."

Katsuragi smiled slyly, as Urabe began, "Er, anyway, Katsuragi-san, this is Oomichi Homura. She's the Super High School Level Fear Monger." As Katsuragi raised an eyebrow, Urabe explained, "Her class made a haunted house for her's school's culture festival last year, but the school had to be closed down."

Oomichi suddenly chortled, "Ufufufu. Health concerns. The amount of people who emptied their stomachs and bladders in my labyrinth meant that it was deemed a hazard."

"Ew," Katsuragi grimaced.

Urabe gave strained smile as he continued, "Yeah, no kidding, right? But it got a lot of people interested, you know? People just don't get that scared nowadays. Everyone always expects tricks, and we know most supernatural stuff can't happen, plus you're not really in danger inside of a school, so hearing about a haunted house like the one made by Oomichi's class got a lot of people interested I think: writers, directors, video game designers..."

Oomichi gave a light chuckle as she noted, "Fear is just a natural response to danger, so all I needed to do was stimulate it and..."

Katsuragi nodded, "Ah, that's why you couldn't scare me! I mean, there's no way you could hurt me."

Oomichi pouted, "And Shimao could?" As the Kabuki Actor frowned, Katsuragi raised his hand, patting Oomichi on the head. The Fear Monger gasped, hissing, "Ah! Quit it!" Swatting his hand away, the girl began to slink off, muttering, "Unfathomable: you're disrupting my flow..." Shaking her head, sending her black hair flying about, she tilted her head as she grumbled, her voice shaky, "I feel the need to remind you: horror is a subtle art..." With a dead smile and a slight wave, she shambled out of the room and into the light.

With the girl gone, Urabe let out a sigh of relief, looking to Katsuragi and saying, "Man, how did Shimao-san startle you, but not her?" The Luckster glanced over to Shimao, who was quiet, his mouth moving as if he wanted to say something. Urabe blinked, before smiling slyly and asking, "Cat got your tongue?"

Shimao shook his head, "N-no, it's j-j-just, sh-she appeared from n-nowhere..."

Katsuragi wasn't quite sure if he was stuttering from fear or just naturally, but in an attempt to calm him, he chortled to himself. Urabe wondered, "What's so funny?"

Katsuragi nodded, "Isn't it obvious? She was hiding in the cell here!" Turning around, he reached for the door, but it didn't open, and his attempts to open it merely rattled the bars. "Eh?"

Shimao shuddered, "Th-they've been locked." Raising a hand, he pointed to the wall, where the object Katsuragi spotted before was still glinting. Getting a little closer, the Dreamer realized that it was a pair of keys, one for each cell. He'd been watching them closely back when he had entered, and no one heard them move, which meant Oomichi...

Despite himself, Katsuragi stammered, "I-I want to go."

As he shuffled to the door, Urabe was on his heels, saying, "Don't leave me!" Katsuragi could hear the louder footsteps of Shimao coming from even further behind. The door was only closed when all three were out, as if the room had been cursed.

Urabe muttered worriedly, "Wait, why are we running towards Oomichi?"

Katsuragi frowned, "I don't know I freaked a little!

Shimao glanced around the storage room, before noting, "W-well, sh-she's not here, at least." Taking a breath, he said loudly, "Moving on: I am taking my leave of you! Farewell!" With a firm nod, he turned and left, delving into the fray of assorted shipping containers.

Urabe scratched the side of his face, noting, "I hope he makes it out of there okay." The pair being wizened by previous adventures took the roundabout path with no hesitation, going along the edge of the room and reaching the exit in little time.

Climbing up the stairs, the pair reached the Cabin Deck. Urabe led the way across, turning one of the corners at the end to ascend yet another staircase. At its peak, Katsuragi gripped a railing as he looked around, spotting the mirrored staircase opposite him and Urabe. To the right, against a far wall, was a long bar counter blocking the way to a kitchen beyond. To the left, the Mess Hall opened up, containing one long table with chairs for more than a dozen. However, the room was empty.

Looking into the Kitchen, Katsuragi wondered aloud, "If there's no one here but us, who's going to make food? I mean, I can kinda cook, but not for this many people. Well, maybe, I'm not that used to it though, so I'm not sure if I can manage."

Urabe suggested, "Maybe Monomono or Kumakuma? There might be one of the others who can cook. I guess we'll see when we start to get hungry."

The pair made for one of the two doors on the other side of the room, but partway there, the one they were aiming for moved open. The boys froze as someone stepped through, looking them over with her hard, hazel eyed gaze. The girl was average in height, her long brown hair being held back from her face by a pair of white hair clips. She wore a brown, collared jacket which hung open over her dark green shirt and a pair of brown shorts with matching boots boots. He expression remained placid as she glanced between the two before nodding, "Urabe-san. Katsuragi-san."

Recoiling in shock, Katsuragi gasped, "How did you know it was me!?"

The girl didn't seem to hesitate, answering, "You are the only one I haven't met yet, and you vaguely resemble the image on your door."

Katsuragi scratched the side of his face sheepishly as he mumbled, "It was a joke..."

With a sigh, the girl shrugged, "Sorry, jokes aren't my forté. It's-"

"Hunting!" Urabe butted in excitedly. He continued, "This is Inami Ayaka, by the way, the Super High School Level Hunter. She doesn't even work with guns! She's killed or captured some of the most dangerous animals in the world with equipment constructed in the middle of the wilderness."

Unperturbed at being interrupted, Inami continued, "Carrying less in my travels means I can move faster. I usually only take a few things with me on a hunt. It varies."

Katsuragi wondered, "What kind of things do you hunt?"

Inami quickly answered, "Whatever we release. My grandfather is very environmentally conscious, so he ensures the animals I come in conflict with are fit for it, to ensure the species' endangerment isn't called into question. There have been some exceptions though."

"Ah," Katsuragi replied with a nod.

Inami gave him another look, before asking, "May I have your given name and Talent? I've memorized fourteen names and thirteen Talents so far, and if we're going to be spending the next three years of school together, I'd like to get the rest."

Katsuragi nodded and opened his mouth to speak, before stopping and turning to Urabe, whose mouth was already in motion as he began to fully introduce Katsuragi.

When Urabe finished, Inami nodded, "Nice to meet you, Katsuragi-san. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to eat. If I don't meet my calorie requirements, everything is thrown off."

Looking over to the kitchen again, Urabe pointed out, "I don't think anyone is there."

"I'll manage," Inami said curtly, before moving past them and heading to the other side of the Mess Hall. With no obstructions, Katsuragi and Urabe made their way through the door.

Katsuragi found himself blinking against the dimming sunlight coming from his right as he stepped outside. The echoes of the ocean and the salty smell became much more apparent now that he was outside. Once his eyes adjusted, he gave the area a looking. In between the two doors to the Mess Hall was a ramp leading to the upper part of the deck. Beyond the solid railing of the ship was a shaded sea and an endless sky, dotted with black and white clouds. The deck was wooden and smooth, two stacks centered in a line down the middle of the boat, blowing exhaust out from the engines...of which no room for them had been found. A little worried about the propulsion of the boat, Katsuragi watched the sky, dotted with clouds for a moment, before suggesting, "Wanna check out the front?"

"The bow? Sure," Urabe nodded.

Katsuragi grumped, "Don't you get all nautical on me." Urabe flashed a stunned look at the sudden grumbling, but took it for what it was before moving on, leading Katsuragi past the two stacks to the front of the boat.

As they rounded the frontmost one, they came into sight of a wider field of view, making it much more apparent that they were smack dab in the middle of the ocean. However, as was getting to be usual at this point, they weren't alone. Standing at the bow, overlooking the ocean, was another girl of average height. Her black hair was tied back into a fairly short, raised ponytail with a light blue scrunchie, and two locks of hair were curled over her ears. She seemed to be wearing a school uniform consisting on a short-sleeved white dress shirt and a pleated, dark red skirt, with black socks and off-white loafers. As Katsuragi and Urabe approached, she snapped her face to them, looking over them with her intense brown eyes. As a bit of wind picked up, Katsuragi caught the sight of her black tie, which had been obscured while she had been turned away.

As the girl stared warily, Katsuragi scratched his head, before beginning, "Uh, hello. I'm Katsuragi-"

"-Yaichi," Urabe finished. The two exchanged looks, before simultaneously going into slightly different explanations on his Talent. The girl could only watch on, a look of repulsion crossing her face, until Urabe finished, "Let me do it so I can validate my existence!"

Too taken aback to argue, Katsuragi nodded, "Fine, fine."

Taking a breath to recompose himself, Urabe finished the Dreamer's introduction, before beginning, "Now, I got your name before, but..."

The girl crossed her arms over her chest and turned away, before replying, "Nope."

Urabe grumbled, "Why won't you tell us your Talent?"

"Why do you think!?" the girl snapped back.

Katsuragi shrugged, "I wanna at least get the name."

The girl looked at him again, before answering, "Uchida. Uchida Hiyori." Looking away again, she said, "Inami really wanted to know too...so did Zaizen... Don't you think I would have said something if I knew?"

Urabe frowned, "Are you sure you're even on the right boat?"

Uchida snapped, "I know for fact I'm on the right boat! I know I was accepted to Hope's Peak! I just don't really remember why..."

"Amnesia?" Katsuragi suggested.

Uchida put a finger to her lip in thought, before adding, "Really really selective amnesia? I don't know. Just...stop bugging me about it, okay? It's as weird for you as it is for me!"

Katsuragi shrugged, adding hopefully, "Maybe you'll remember later? Or...have the bears said anything?"

"No," Uchida sighed.

Urabe grumbled, "I know it's weird, but...I mean, how does no one here have any idea? I mean, everyone but you and I are famous for their Talents, but there can't be two Lucksters, can there?"

Uchida blinked before suggesting, "Hmm, why not? Maybe they wanted to see what would change if they accepted two Lucky students? You know, to compare us. For science."

Urabe scratched his chin as he said, "Hey, anyone got a coin? We should test it and see how Lucky you are? I mean, I've never really felt particularly Lucky. Not even Unlucky. But if I am actually Lucky..." Eyes glinting, he said, "Maybe we can make it interesting with some gambles..."

Raising her hands, Uchida said, "Y-you know what? Never mind."

Urabe smirked, "Come on, it'll be fun!"

Uchida shook her head, "No! Just..." Scratching her hair roughly with both hands with a groan, the girl began to stomp off in a huff.

As Katsuragi watched her go, he couldn't help but wonder aloud, "Is she just weird in her own way, or was Zaizen right and something weird is really going on here?"

Urabe shrugged, adding, "Well, I guess everyone in the Class is weird in their own way, but I'm not really sure."

Unable to disagree, Katsuragi could only think of moving on. As they returned to the other side of the boat, Katsuragi caught a glimpse of Uchida heading into the Mess Hall, but their path was elsewhere. Taking the ramp, the two reached a balcony area on the next level. While the path circled around the upper cabin of the ship, what loomed in front of the boys was a bit more pressing.

Facing away from them was a massive boy: while Rukawa was tall, this student was both taller than her and much broader, standing almost two meters high, only slightly diminished by the fact that he seemed to be stooping slightly. He clearly had medium length, straight, pink hair which stuck out at around his collar. Draped over his shoulders seemed to be the coat of a gakuran style school uniform, silver in color, the sleeves hanging limply, while his slacks and shoes were black. As the huge boy seemed to be muttering to himself, Katsuragi looked over to Urabe, hoping for some advice on treading lightly, but Urabe seemed nervous.

Swallowing, Urabe spoke up, asking, "H-hi there, Kitano-san. What are you doing?"

Kitano stood to his full height, before turning to see the two smaller boys, allowing Katsuragi to catch a glimpse of his yellow dress shirt and dark blue eyes. He also caught a glimpse of a door behind him, the plate reading 'Command Deck'.

Kitano answered, his voice deep and rough, "Just checkin' out the place. I mean, no one said we couldn't go where ever we wanted. The door's busted though." With a jeering smirk, he laughed, "You two wanna help me break it down?"

"Sure," Katsuragi said without hesitation.

Kitano blinked, before asking, "Who're you?"

Katsuragi made a gesture to Urabe, who explained his Talent of Dreamer once again. As he finished, Kitano sighed in relief, "Whew, you had me worried for a second there. I mean, that Furinji guy is a runt too, but he's actually some kinda martial artist? Kinda bullshit if you ask me; it's not like I was born with this wall of muscle." With a smirk, he rapped his fist on his seemingly firm abdomen. Looking at Katsuragi again, he asked, "So, what're you gonna do to that door? Make it fall asleep off the hinges?"

As Katsuragi tried to sort out that awkward pun, Urabe began, "Er, real quick, Katsuragi-san: this is Kitano Tsuda, Super High School Level Bancho. He doesn't lead a gang any more, but tons of delinquents around the country still look up to him since he's so strong. Mostly he gets into street brawls, but he's mostly undefeate-"

"A hundered percent undefeated!" Kitano roared. As Urabe flinched, he continued, "I've had whole packs of dudes coming at me with knives and chains; shit, even guns a few times, and I'm still the last one standing. Never even been knocked down once." With a malicious grin, he said, "I heard there's another delinquent already at the school, and the kids of some Yakuza or something like that. Or did one of them die? Man, I dunno, but Hope's Peak sounds fuckin' awesome!"

Urabe smiled, relaxing a bit as he noted, "There's one thing we can agree on. But watch out for Oogami Sakura..."

Picking at his ear, Kitano sighed, "Yeah, yeah, yeah, gotta be the strongest in my Class before I think about going up the chain." Strengthening his stance, he cried to the heavens, "YOU HEAR THAT, FURINJI!? YOUR ASS IS MINE!"

Katsuragi winced as his ears began to ring. Luckily, Kitano quieted down, saying, "So, about the door..." Taking a breath, he raised his voice, aiming a kick with a shout of, "ORAAAA!"

"What're you- bohbeh!" came a cry from the door, swiftly followed by a loud crash. Katsuragi blinked in shock: one moment, there was nothing, and the next, a black shape lay fallen between the door and the boys. Urabe seemed shocked as he went over to the form, getting closer just as Katsuragi realized that it was roughly bear shaped.

Urabe helped the thing into a sitting position, allowing Katsuragi to get a better look. It was much like Monomono, except black instead of white, excluding the stomach area, with two, round red eyes and a mouth stretched into a wide toothy grin. It's white belly was dented by the kick, and the bear seemed to be fatigued.

Kitano scratched his head uncaringly as the bear hopped to its feet, snarling, "Hey, what gives you brat!? The door is locked! You know what it means when a door is locked, right!? No entry! Forbidden! Disallowed!"

Kitano snorted, "No one told me jack, jack."

"The name's Kumakuma, not jack, jackass!" Kumakuma hissed. Kitano gave the bear a surprised glare, but Kumakuma continued, "We haven't told you jack because the Orientation is soon. Sheesh, you have barely been here more than a day and you're already breaking rules. The only reason I was gone was because Inami was snooping around the Kitchen when it's not mealtime yet. What a sad school year this will be. This world isn't yours, you punks!"

Urabe suggested, "Well, a memo would have been nice."

Kumakuma sighed, "Ah, how the standards of society have slipped. In the past, one would assume 17 year olds would have an idea of how the world works, but I'm already bored with you. Go to the orientation! Or at the very least, leave me be, I have hit points to recover."

Kitano chortled, "Critical hit..." Slipping his hands into his pockets, his uniform coat flowed behind him as he turned and left, going for the ramp. Mid step, he stopped, turning to Katsuragi, wondering, "Oi, Katsuragi, what were you gonna do about that door?"

Thinking back past all of the chaos, Katsuragi laughed, "Oh, I was probably going to try to kick it, hurt my leg and cry a little. But only a little!"

Kitano snorted, "Ha! You're not bad." With a wave, the huge lad made his way down the ramp and out of sight.

Urabe let out a sigh of relief, slumping a bit, the chaos having taken a bit out of him. Looking around, seeing the two ways they could go, he shrugged, "Guess it doesn't matter which way we go, huh?"

Katsuragi nodded in agreement, but as Urabe headed off, Katsuragi turned to Kumakuma, asking, "Hey, I was wondering...where's the engine? Behind that red door?"

Kumakuma loudly answered, "Nope! This door is its own thing, but you won't be seeing that Engine Room."

Katsurgai wondered, "Then what's the red door for?"

"Scram kid, I'm busy," Kumakuma grunted, raising his paw to wave the Dreamer off. Dejected, Katsuragi slipped his hands into his pockets and went after Urabe moving on to the last part of the ship.

Turning the corner, having a view of the sea on one side and a wall on the other, the two reached the back of the ship, where a pair of staircases at each corner reached the top. Ascending to the highest point, Katsuragi looked around to see the Upper Deck's pure white flooring and firm, curved railing in full. The area was featuress except for a raised section like a stage on the other side, and two forms. The nearest sat crosslegged nearby, raising an arm as he said, "Oh, hello there. I imagine it's almost time?"

Katsuragi looked over to see another boy, whom stood as they approached. His hair was long, gray, and ratty, and even his face made him seem a bit older than the others. His eyes were shielded by a white cloth, much of which was hidden under his hair. He wore a brown rope, which hung down to his shins, hanging slightly open to reveal his white, slightly dirt stained white shirt and yellow pants, his body propped up by geta sandals. Over his shoulder looped an off white sack, and in his hands was a gnarled, wooden staff.

"Wizard," Katsuragi blurted.

The boy's brow furrowed above his headband as he asked, "I haven't heard your voice before..."

Urabe laughed, "P-pretty sure he's not a wizard."

Katsuragi moaned, "Ehhhhhhh?"

The boy laughed, "I can feel why you might make that assumption though!"

Urabe noted, "I guess there are some who might think of him that way after seeing him in action. You see, he's Shirakawa Jigoro, the Super High School Level Healer."

Katsuragi nodded, "Oh, a cleric."

Shirakawa smiled, "I always preferred playing the warrior or paladin types, you know, back when..."

Katsuragi swallowed as he began to realize what he was bringing up, and Shirakawa finished, "...video games were good." Katsurgai gagged on air as Shirakawa grinned, "Oh, and I guess it was nice to be able to see the screen. I can't do very many games anymore, as I hope you can see."

"Uh, eheheh," came Katsuragi's somewhat forced laugh.

Jumping in, Urabe began, "Anyway, Shirakawa-san here is really famous for some of his remedies. They sound like they wouldn't work, yet so many people have been cured by him. He's traveled through a lot of the world too."

"That's where I learned much of what I know, for the record. So many people and stories. I only returned to Japan several months ago, so I do believe I'm a bit older than the lot of you," Shirakawa noted.

Katsuragi wondered, "By how much?"

Shirakawa answered, "I'm 18, so..."

"That's not much older than us at all!" Katsuragi replied. Shiakawa somehow seemed even older than that though: perhaps that was just his level of experience and worldliness compared to the others...

As Urabe went into the usual introduction of Katsuragi, Shirakawa perked up, turning slightly to the side. Katsuragi watched as the other person present approached. It was a girl, slightly shorter than average, her brown hair pinned up to the back of her head with a wide red hair clip, folded so that the tips stuck in the air. Her eyes were a clear blue, and she wore a bright green blouse and a gold, knee length skirt, under a white apron, with white loafers. A red insignia on the apron read 'Berry Mart', and a nametag on the opposite side read 'Takanashi'.

As Urabe ended the introduction, attention began to shift to Takanashi The girl stopped when she noticed the shift, saying, "Er, I did not mean to interrupt."

Shirakawa shrugged, "There wasn't much to interrupt in the first place! Come and join our circle."

Takanashi smiled slightly as she nodded, "Very well." Turning to Katsuragi, she bowed low, saying, "It is a pleasure to meet you, Katsuragi-sama."

"S-sama?" Katsuragi parroted.

Urabe began, "I'm pretty sure she refers to everyone like that. I mean, you don't freak out when you get an honorific like that in a store, do you?"

Katsuragi, knowing full well how polite workers were when they interacted with their customers on a daily basis in in town, blinked, "Hmm, no, I guess not."

Takanashi said firmly, "And even here, you are all potential customers."

Katsuragi thought for a moment, before noting, "I've never heard of Berry Mart though, Takanashi-san."

Urabe took a breath, before beginning for the last time on the boat, "Takanashi Ritsuko is the Super High School Level Retail Clerk. Berry Mart was just a convenience store run by her family, but it got put on the map for having excellent customer service, though I heard there was some national issue with a lost wallet."

Katsuragi blinked, before asking, "Wait, what?"

Takanashi blushed slightly, before beginning, "A customer, a foreigner, left their wallet in my store. Upon tracking them down, I discovered that their ID was not legitimate. There were some personal things in there as well, so I just had to have it returned, so I had some DNA tests done on what little was found and...I am legally not allowed to say any more than that, which is all that has been reported, but I can assure you that the wallet has been returned, and it's owner was a kind person."

Katsuragi blinked, "Oh. W-wow, that's some customer service."

Takanashi smiled, "I aim to please. I also have a good eye for shoplifters, and I have been sharing my methods of stockkeeping, to ensure as little product is wasted as possible. And Hope's Peak Academy has been so kind to take me in..."

As she trialed off, a series of pings rang throughout the ship, some echoing back from the ocean, before Monomono's voice came over the PA system, announcing, "Attention, Students of the 79th Class, the Trip Orientation is about to begin! Please make your way to the Upper Deck of the ship, and we will meet you there shortly."

Shirakawa nodded, "About time. Now if someone would lead the way to the stage..."

The four made there way a bit closer, but it was not long before the quicker or closer ones began to arrive Most seemed relaxed, or interested, but Inami seemed irritated, though no one really spoke.

After all fifteen were assembled, fourteen sets of eyes were caught by a motion from the stage as a cartoony white figure bounded onto the deck, raising its paws in the air upon landing.

Monomono began cheerily, hopping up and down as he began ,"Hello everyone, it's wonderful to see you again, now that you've all been acquainted with each other, but with the sun almost down and the day almost over, we should get started!"

Flipping around, its black backside was visible, looking similarly familiar. Kumakuma crossed his arms over his chest as he grumbled, "Well, 'wonderful' to see 'most of you', I guess."

The hulking Kitano snorted, raising a first, "Huh? You wanna go?"

The much shorter Furinji sighed, "Please don't interrupt..."

"Yeah!" Kumakuma growled.

"That goes for you too!" Monomono grunted after a rapid spin.

Kumakuma snorted, "Psh, very funny."

"I mean it!" Monomono whined.

Kumakuma shrugged, "Eh, whatever, let's get this show started, I'm getting dizzy." Katsuragi had nothing to say about the weird act.

Monomono sighed, "That's what I've been trying to do..." Clearing his throat, he began, "So, as mentioned, the goal of this trip is to strengthen your bonds as friends before the school year even begins! And if this experiment goes well, then future school years will be doing similar trips before their enrollment. How exciting!"

The brown haired Inami tilted her head, wondering, "Experiment?"

The tiny Miyamoto shuddered, "Not like, men with clipboards watching us all the time and taking notes, right?"

Monomono shook his head, "No, just a regular old social experiment. You see-"

Mid sentence, the bear's arms flipped, the black paws wrapping around the white bear's torso. Monomono blinked, wondering aloud, "Eh? Big bro, what're you doing!?" Suddenly, the paws began to tighten, Monomono's black eyes popping out. From behind, Katsuragi heard Kumakuma's voice cry out, "Watah!" Suddenly, the bear began to spin, black and white folding into gray. There was a cracking sound, and things began to get mixed up even more.

"Wh-what the hell!?" the plain Uchida stammered.

"Did something break?" Shirakawa asked.

"Duhuhuhu!" Oomichi began to laugh, covering her mouth to stifle her amusement. Katsuragi could only stare in befuddlement, not sure what to think.

Finally, there was a grinding noise, and the spinning bear began to come to a stop, a blot of red appearing in the mix. Stopping, a claw erupted from the black and white bear's hand, widening the red flash on his left eye, which became jagged, like a scar.

The long haired Hiiragi blinked in disbelief, while the resolute Ohtori's gaze seemed to harden. Zaizen's eyes narrowed on the bear as he adjusted his frameless glasses.

The bear spoke cheerily, "Upupu! What a weird interlude that was! But now I am whole again! I had to do something after that HP loss, and we all know that you recover fully after transforming!"

The painted lion, Shimao, roared, "I am far more distressed about the apparent self mutilation!"

Miyamoto chimed in, "And the violation of some laws of physics!"

Urabe shook his head, "That was a trick, right? No way you just changed while spinning that fast."

"Nope, no trick! I was just goofing off before my true debut. I was always, in fact, a single, adorable being, not some clichéd split person bear, but now I'm kinda mad! I've already been abused; physically and verbally. What kinda relationship is this!?" the bear snarled.

Takanashi frowned, "I do apologize..."

Katsuragi reminded her, "You didn't do anything!"

"You got on this boat! That's all you needed to do, and now you're stuck! I mean, unless you want to try swimming across the ocean, then you might escape the tenuous Trials ahead of you," the bear giggled.

Stepping forwards, Zaizen demanded, "Oh, so now you're going to tell us the meaning of all of this? Why the trick?"

Shirakawa sighed, "I'm a bit confused...what trick?"

Zaizen glared at the bear before explaining, "This boat trip is unsanctioned by Hope's Peak Academy."

Miyamoto gasped, "Eh? No way!"

A hand on his chin, Furinji asked, "And what's your basis for that?"

Zaizen gave an exasperated sigh as he replied, "I asked the school. What do you think? They confirmed that it was indeed a hoax, and that I needn't endanger myself by coming along. Or at least not alone..."

Ohtori asked, "You have back up?"

"Nothing I didn't know about. Not that there's anything to know anymore," the bear said plainly.

Zaizen shook his head, "A bluff."

The bear smirked, "Yep, your bluff! There's no one aboard who isn't on this Upper Deck. And, on the chance that there had been in the past day or so, they're chum now. Fish food! Sleeping with the fishes! They've walked the plank! Or however you wanna put it. So if you want to keep from looking like a big dummy, I'd back off, Zaizen!"

Zaizen adjusted his glasses again as a bit of sweat formed on his head, but said nothing. The tall Rukawa shrugged, "I don't really understand what's going on."

The bear laughed, "That's cause I haven't explained everything yet! I am Monokuma! Your ambassador! Your Guide! And we have an expansive, international journey ahead of us. Destination: Despair! And the main event is our lovely 'Prelude of Mutual Killing'!"

Oomichi leaned in, her pale skin easy to see in the sun as she asked, "Oh? Killing? Do tell."

Urabe stammered fearfully, "E-eh? What?"

"Watch yourselves!" Monokuma ordered, before waving his hand. At the gesture, the ship: no, the sea itself seemed to rumble. The shaking of the Upper Deck was too much for Katsuragi, and the Dreamer stumbled to his knees. He couldn't even tell what was happening as he bounced about on the ground, the colors of everyone's clothing blending together. Cries and shouts filled his ears, before being deafened by splitting and cracking, as if the boat was splitting apart.

By the time things began to calm down, Katsuragi was feeling battered. He managed to climb to his feet to see Kitano, Furinji, Ohtori, and Inami already at work helping some of the others up. Going to the closest classmate, he began to help Hiiragi up, the shaken Miko Priestess managing to offer a weak, "Th-thank you."

Starting to get a look around, however, things were starting to look grim. Things had darkened a little, and an inspection revealed that smoke from the stacks was blocking some of the sunlight. Around the Upper Deck, the once solid railing and cracked and broken, forming spikes, some pieces; small, large, wide, and narrow, scattered about the once clean deck. The most marked change was the two stacks themselves: the tops of the funnels had shifted shape, now resembling the gaping maw of Monokuma, smoke leaking from both ears and eyes.

Having climbed to a sitting position, Takanashi frowned, "This is madness."

Shimao wept, "Noooo! Killing!? Why!? Why must anyone die!?"

Monokuma, seemingly unfettered by his own havoc, simply laughed, "Oh, not just anyone. Everyone! Need me to go over the rules? Because I'm going to go over the rules. So come on and get up you sleepy heads!"

A bit shaken, Inami hissed, "Nothing about this is right..."

"You want me to dent your stomach again you stupid bear!?" Kitano growled as Furinji helped Oomichi up so that everyone was standing once more.

Monokuma shrugged, "Not unless you want to die a bit faster than everyone else."

From behind Katsuragi, Urabe asked, "Y-you don't mean...only one of us gets to leave?"

Monokuma laughed, "You got it! Heck, the chances all of you are going to see land again are nonexistant. Allow me to explain..."

Uchida shook as she said, "I don't really wanna hear it..."

Zaizen, a bit pale, reasoned, "What choice do we have?"

"That's not fair..." Urabe muttered.

Monokuma shouted, "Just shut up and listen!" Katsuragi swallowed, hoping there would be a silver lining to all of this: a chance for escape, a loophole, anything...

Monokuma began to speak, but it was quickly blocked out by Furinji's cry of, "Watch out!" Before Katsuragi could react, he heard a ringing sound through his mind as the ground came rushing to meet him. His thoughts became a blur of pain as a few shocked cries were sounded. His vision became muddled, but he could see Ohtori head over to him, looking at someone behind him. There were some words, but most of it was drowned out by Monokuma's laughter, the smell of the sea being mixed with the scent of blood.

"Upupupu! Rich! Golden! Let's hope he didn't die, Urabe: that'd be pretty unlucky! Gahahaha!"

And then, the Dreamer's consciousness faded, and the first of many strange days came to an end.

---

Upupu, stories sure are fun. The love, the hate, the struggles, the death, the disgust, the Despair. But whether you live your own story, write your own, or just read it, none of that matters! Because I'm going to tell you a story of someone who mattered so little that they ceased to exist!

Welcome to Monomi Theater I, boys and girls!

Who is Monomi, you ask? Well, no one, duh. Sure, you can see her and her dumb ears, that ugly pink and white color scheme and the tiny, two colored eyes. Why is she 'Mono' when she isn't 'mono'? So dumb.

Aw, look, I made her cry! Of course, it's not like we can choose the names we are given in our early years, and many never change them, living with their family's brand their whole lives. Monomi is not like that though. She'll change in this story, you'll see!

Of course, this isn't the real Monomi, who was just a fakey-not-real-who-doesn't-exist-now anyway. It's just a story, none of it was ever real in the first place, right? But Monomi she is, and Monomi she shall be. For now.

Monomi changes all the time, you see, because she's no good at anything. All she can do is do what others do, but worse! Not a shred of originality! She even went to a normal High School and had a normal life with normal friends with their own normal skills. Like everyone who ever mattered. But that's just the kind of story this is, a normal girl in a normal world doing terribly boring normal things.

...See you next time!

---

And as expected, things are under way! Now, to begin, for my new readers, I hope the use of honorifics and japanese terms doesn't bother you. I'm also a bit all over the place with my canon terms, using some bits from each of the 'main' translations (orenronen's, Zetsubou Project's, and NISA's official one). If anyone has any specific questions or concerns, I'll gladly add some author notes regarding definitions! But for now, just a few for your viewing assistance: pastebin(.com)/kukkDDx2

And speaking of author notes, here are the Report Cards! Expect more author notes as we go along, especially in between Chapters: pastebin(.com)/PiWiRcdt

Now, moving on, my previous readers will know, but I will be doing Free Time events periodically, at a rate of two each Chapter. The poll for the first Chapter is right at the end, so go ahead and vote! I'll be choosing the characters for the Free Time when I upload the next chapter, and the Free Times themselves will appear in the update(s) after that. Poll: strawpoll(.me)/3980867

My typical update speed is once every other day, so stick around! It'll be a crazy couple of months, let me tell you, so I hope you enjoy. I'll be linking to updates and other things on my tumblr page. I'd recommend giving it a look, since there's a post there now regarding this very fic with links to a translations of Dangan Ronpa 0 (which is a recommended read) and some other cool things! It's also where I'll be putting any arts (like some that are already there!) so be sure to follow it! A reblog would also be very much appreciated, since it could mean more new readers! Tumblr: craftsdwarf(.tumblr.)com

Thank you for reading!