I have no idea how a review came up with Fairy Tail. I have legit, never in my life, ever heard of that - had to google it out of sheer curiosity.
Also, keeping so many characters speaking is so much easier in a VN...
You know how old-world cinemas used to look? That's the vibe I get from this waiting room of ours – all fine wood, comfortable seating, thick curtains… a completely useless room, save for the elevator.
"So, I know I shouldn't be bringing this up, but…"
Every head in the room snapped towards the Ultimate DJ, who recoiled at the quickness of the reaction; to his credit, though, he didn't back down.
"What, pretty much everyone's thinking it, right? It's too familiar."
No one said anything… no one reacted much at all, really. We all knew that this was a possibility, we were told as much when we joined up, but…
Truth is, no one's ever going to be ok with the possibility of a killing game.
"Oh, lighten up, you lot!" Silver shouted, cracking a grin from ear to ear, "we don't know anything just yet, do we?"
"Ignorance isn't a virtue," the illusionist shrugged, saying nothing else.
"Besides, there's only so many of us here…" Liam picked it up, occasionally shooting glances at Rocket, who was perched on the far side of the room, looking over us peasants… or was it pheasants?
It was unreal.
There was this cold pit in my stomach, the dread of what's waiting for us on the other side of the locked door overlapping my every thought, yet…
"Hey, if we're all Foundation, how the heck do we not know one another?" It's Asami that spoke up. Compared to Lucille and Seina, she's dressed fairly tame, a light red jacket with black pants – regular clothes, just like me and Evelyn.
"I can answer that," Liam cuts in, face lighting up:
"Most of you, judging from your talents, work as agents, right?"
"Non, I work as a… courier? Oui, that's the word," Lucille offers, looking intrigued.
"Me too," I add.
I don't think I'd have the stomach for actual field work, anyway…
"Fair enough," the falconer continues, "point is, it's compartmentalized. If something happens to a single cell, the others can continue more or less unaffected."
"We might've even worked together on specific assignments, yet are none the wiser for it…" that girl who arrived with Silver trailed off, finishing Liam's train of thought.
I sigh, realizing that remembering everyone's names is going to be more of a chore than I expected. What was her name again… ah, right, Evelyn… Eeeevelyn.
Before I can go and repeat everyone's names to myself in a vain attempt to commit them to memory, however, the elevator kicked to life once again, signaling another set of people coming up.
"I'm calling it, it's going to be a trio this time," Silver offered, plopping down in Liam's lap.
The blonde falconer, to his credit, adjusted remarkably well, throwing his feet to the side and somehow managing to bend space enough to create room for the seven of us – Kenji and Seina were comfortable enough being edgy and antisocial against their chosen walls.
"…"
Wow, that was snarkier than necessary…
"Non, it will be a duet," Lucille gave her prognosis, still occasionally shooting a longing glance at me, further aggravating my already frazzled nerves. Although I feel like a piece of meat when she does it, there is a certain honesty in her advance – I find it hard to think that she's doing it just for fun and attention.
Soon enough, the elevator light dims once again, the door opening to a surprisingly tame trio of people:
"Called it!" Silver laughed, before anyone had a chance to even register who or what arrived.
"Called what? And while we're on the subject, what the hell happened?" the sole woman of the group immediately replied, with a presence that immediately flat-lined the pirate's otherwise flamboyant approach.
She was clearly Japanese, judging from the faint accent and general appearance, but that was pretty much all I got from the first impression. Her bright, almost honey-gold eyes had both the shine of curiosity and the dullness of world-weariness, and her dark brown hair came down in gentle, wavy locks, just passing her shoulders.
As goofy and energetic as Mr. Silver was, this woman was composed and no-nonsense. And yet, he took it in perfect stride:
"Called it, love!" he grinned, "and you're in Skypoint, where we occasionally gather for whisky and cigars, waiting for the inevitable heat death of the universe."
That last line was delivered with such a straight face that even the implacable 'White Void' raised an eyebrow at it.
"Madam, if I may…" spoke up one of the newly-arrived guys, waiting patiently for her to move aside before stepping forward:
"We've come to the conclusion that the three of us are all Future Foundation members… I'll assume the same holds true for you all?"
"Yep," Matt nodded.
"Screw this, I'll go check the door again," Kenji cut in, moving away from his spot and back towards the lonely door on the far end of the room.
Without another word, Evelyn, Asami and Matt decided to stand up and follow him there – if he had any objections, he didn't voice them.
"So it's as we feared…" the polite guy sighed, taking off his hat and revealing a head of short grey hair that completely clashed against his otherwise youthful appearance.
"Right then, we ought to introduce ourselves…"
As he spoke, I noticed the last person, a short, ratty-eyed boy, slip gingerly out of the elevator, seamlessly fading into the same spot Kenji was in mere seconds ago. Were it not for the significance of there being three people, I'd completely miss the escape – the grey-haired man kept talking regardless.
"My name is Dylan Miles. Naturally, I work for the Future Foundation, third branch, under Kizakura."
"Hey, me too!" Matt added from across the room, only to get swatted at by Asami.
Ignoring him, the woman stepped forward, giving us a look-over before speaking, her voice firm:
"I am Yoshinaga Hoshika. Though it's hardly relevant now, I am, or rather was, the Ultimate Caligrapher."
"Pleased to meetcha!" Silver replied, apparently enjoying the quasi-rapport he's built with the woman. She paid him no mind.
"How many are here, already?"
"Fourteen, m'lady," Dylan replied, though he himself just arrived. I only just noticed the posh British accent, almost like you'd see on the sitcoms – it's kind of charming.
"You sound posh," Lucille just throws it out.
He takes it in stride, though, smiling as he speaks: "As I should. One cannot be the Ultimate Butler and not adhere to tradition."
"Yeah, that explains it," Liam grins, motioning for the man to sit.
"Fourteen…" Hoshika trails off, glancing over to the door the other four are trying to get open.
"Hey, what's your name?" I finally ask, having managed to lock eyes with the boy that snuck in with the butler and calligrapher – sounds like the set-up to a joke…
"Boris," he almost whispers, "Roboticist."
It's clear that he has no intention of speaking – he looks really anxious, like it's taking all he has just to stay calm. I decide it's better not to bother him right now…
"There's going to be more," Hoshika declares, frowning, "whoever organized this Killing Game intends to take out more of us."
The room went silent.
We all thought it, of course, but this woman was the only one to bring it up so vocally. With no hint of remorse, or fear, she crossed her arms, frowning. For the moment, everyone gathered back up next to the now overcrowded lounge couch:
"We've seen it happen. We've seen our peers, now our colleagues, slaughter one another in the hopes of leaving the prison they were placed in by the Ultimate Despair…"
She looked us over, eyes lingering over Matt, Silver, and strangely enough, White Void.
"Don't be naïve or foolish – help will not come to us. However, we are the Future Foundation, and we've all volunteered our talents to the betterment of humanity. If there is any group of people who can stand united in a killing game, it will be us."
The way she spoke… it's almost as if she's entertained the idea of being caught in a game like this before. I haven't the slightest clue as to whether this is overall a good thing or a bad one, but before anyone can really react, the cursed elevator button lights up one more time.
"Not now, you daft thing!" Silver shouted at the elevator with surprising zeal, "I'm not done freaking out yet!"
"Yeah! I mean… c'mon, what are the odds, right?" Matt added, though he sounded like he was barely buying the idea himself.
"I wouldn't much worry," Evelyn smiled, leaning back against the wall, quite possibly the only person in the room that looked somewhat at ease, "we've got two capable vigilantes among us, and we've all survived the tragedy itself – not one of us is easy prey."
"I'm easy prey!" Silver frowned, "it's always the captain they eat first, don't you know? I'm doomed! Doomed, I say! It's Davy Jones' locker for old Silver!"
Broken from the daze by his nonsense, Asami smacked the Ultimate Pirate, who failed to dodge her, squished as he was between other people. The almost slapstick exchange seemed to be enough to pull the rest of us from our respective dazes, and I caught sight of steel expressions and determined smirks on more than a couple of faces.
"Yeah, and besides, whoever organized this didn't expect -"
The door opened.
"Who the fuck are you?"
A batch of four people, each one distinct in their own way:
A short girl with black hair, frighteningly pale skin, and bright green eyes, peering from her somewhat oversized hoodie, an extended collar hiding her mouth and nose like a makeshift scarf. She began walking over to us, then noticed Rocket, and changed direction seamlessly to observe him instead, crouching down as she did so.
She tried to wave at the bird who, true to form, didn't react in any noticeable way. Letting out a childish grunt of dissatisfaction, she instead turned to us, burying her hands in her pockets and speaking in a surprisingly calm voice:
"A Killing Game… I'll introduce myself last, then, if that's ok."
"Yeah…?" Liam shrugged, then looked back over to the elevator.
The next person to step out (or rather get pushed out, but more on that later) was a guy, this one a notably tall bloke, with a rough-looking face and shades. Shades, worn indoors. I didn't like him.
"Your observation isn't helping, Sol… Or maybe you're looking to make a job for yourself, provoking these people, huh?" he kept going, muttering his name and shaking the odd hand in between words.
The way he seamlessly continued his admonishment of the girl was amazing, really – whoever he was, he was one of those rare people who are so used to getting interrupted that they don't seem to lose their thread of conversation regardless of what happens.
"…Yes, Farran. I know I don't look American… no, it's really alright…"
"Oh, that's sweet, man! I'm American too!" Matt grinned, drawing Farran's surprisingly mellow gaze.
"That means literally nothing to me, unfortunately. I can barely remember how it is back there…"
"I don't like you, Farran," Sol concluded, then decided that standing up is too much of a bother, and sat down on the (as I'd later find out) surprisingly comfortable carpet.
"Oh? Why not? We're a Commander and Criminologist. The two of us should be the best of friends."
The sarcasm was laid on fairly thick, which prompted a giggle from both Lucille and Silver, neither of whom showed any trace of the worry we all had a mere minute ago. Both were shot stern looks, however, from Hoshika and me, respectively.
"You know, I don't think they're reacting to that bombshell you dropped just now…" the other boy of the quartet spoke up, stepping past Farran, who still hadn't bothered to take off his shades.
He was about as tall, though way more imposing – the man was huge, built like a wall and with a harshness in his eyes that really contrasted the boyish cut of his short blonde hair. He was clad in a muscle shirt and jeans, a pair of handcuffs jangling loosely from his belt.
"I mean; you'd expect that they'd be shocked or something… This is just flat."
"Ok, I like you," Asami immediately declared, flashing the man a smile, "no-nonsense, a guy, and you actually talk."
"Hey!" Kenji frowned, and his dissatisfaction was echoed by Liam as well.
"Oh? It's an honor, then. The name's Amand Bretz, though I'm more known as the Ultimate Stuntman."
"Dude… that totally beats birdman…" Lucille smirked.
"Falconer…" Liam sighed, shaking his head, "and besides, I'm way cooler than a butler."
"Far be it from me to challenge your position," Dylan replied, his hands neatly tucked behind his back, "I have no need to validate myself via comparison."
"Buuuurn…" Matt grinned.
"Why am I Hagakure…" Liam sighed.
The last person… well, she took that concept of 'strange' we seemed to all enjoy, and ran.
You see, while arriving with a falcon and being a real-life pirate is charming, even funny, and things like vigilantes and butlers aren't your everyday occurrences, this girl went all the way.
This girl… was clad in Full-Plate armor.
"No way…" I sighed.
"Exquisite!" Lucille cheered.
"Dibs!" Silver added.
She clonked over, giving us a small bow, helmet neatly tucked underneath her arm. She spoke in a firm, powerful voice, which contrasted against her youthful face and bright orange-dyed hair.
"My name is Christine Riese, of the kingdom of Britain…"
"She's a knight?"
"Is that still a thing?"
"Silence!" she shouted, pointing accusingly at Evelyn, who was the last person to talk.
"I am…" she growled, "…the Ultimate…"
Then, all of a sudden, a smile.
"…Cosplayer~!" she finished in sing-song voice, one completely different from her 'knightly' voice.
"Oh god…"
Surprise? :P
Also, the leader Dylan mentioned is canon. As in, Danganronpa anime that's coming out soon canon.