The Meaning of LIfe
Life… All that we see, what we smell, what we hear, what we feel, what we perceive… All around us. We choose to believe it is real, because we perceive it to be real. But, there are places where it isn't always as we perceive it. Places like the Daioh Zone.
-----------------------
The day was perfect…Too perfect. The sky was clear, birds were singing, and Yukari was off the road. Unfortunately, such a day always comes with a catch, and today was no exception. The catch today, as it happens, was one that none could have ever seen coming.
Today's story starts with one Ayumu Kasuga, otherwise known to her friends as "Osaka". She woke up, as she did every other day. However, this day, she didn't quite feel herself. She looked in her mirror. To her surprise, she saw something-a semi translucent green upside-down pyramid, floating right above her head. She smiled, and tried to grab it. It disappeared, and then reappeared when her hand left its "area". She tried again, but still no success. Paying no mind to it, she went downstairs, where her mother was waiting with breakfast.
"Ah, good morning Yummie. Did you sleep well?"
"Yea…I guess so."
She looked down at the table-Blueberry pancakes, her favorite. She sat down, and stared at the pancakes for several seconds, as if she was unsure what to with them. Her mother looked at her for a moment-Her daughter had never turned down blueberry pancakes before. Then, she saw her daughter's eyes glaze over, and she started muttering to herself.
"Commands…" Her eyes started rapidly moving, as if she was in a state of REM sleep. "…Eat…"
Osaka looked at the pancakes again, picked up a fork, and started eating. However, her daughter's behavior had unnerved Ms. Kasuga.
"Yummie, honey, do you feel alright?"
"Well, I don't quite feel myself today, but I should be fine. Why?"
"Oh, no reason, I guess."
An hour later, in homeroom-Osaka and Chiyo were conversing.
"I'm telling you, Chiyo-chan, I don't feel myself toady. It might be best if you stayed away from me for awhile."
"But, Miss Osaka, I don't think I…"
Then, she saw it-the same thing Osaka's mother had seen. Her eyes glazed over.
"Miss Osaka, do you feel alright?"
"Commands…" Her eyes started rapidly moving."…Options…Add new command…Stab…Command accepted…Commands…Stab…"
She pulled a knife, seemingly out of nowhere, and stabbed Chiyo several times in the gut, her blood splattering onto Osaka's face.
"But, Miss Osaka, why…"
Chiyo fell over, dead. Her uniform coated in blood. Osaka looked down at her corpse.
"I told you, Chiyo-chan. I don't feel myself today."
The other girls looked over at the scene that had just taken place, totally shocked. Osaka looked back up at them, her eyes still glazed over.
"Commands…" Her eyes began to move again. "…Options…Add new command…Kill…Command accepted…Commands…Kill…"
She lunged, knife still in hand. First to die was Tomo-Osaka slit her throat in a single easy swipe. Next to die was Yomi-She was slashed in the back, her spinal cord severed instantaneously. After her came Kagura-Osaka rolled under her, slitting her Achilles tendon. She fell, and Osaka positioned the knife directly under her heart. It pierced through, killing her. Last was Sakaki-Osaka stabbed her in the lung, pulled it out, and, quickly spinning around, slashed through her neck. She moved incredibly fast, none of them had time to even respond. The corpses of her former best friends lay in a circle around her, blood pooling all over the floor and caking the walls. She looked at the mess she had created, her eyes still glazed over. Then, she raised the knife, and, in one deft movement, slit her own throat. She saw the blackness of death come over her, and then, she saw nothing…
In a darkened room somewhere, a young male, possibly mid-teens, sat at his computer, staring at the carnage that had just occurred. Next to him sat an empty box to a computer game-"Sims X, Anime Version-Azumanga Daioh." He laughed.
"Holy shit… I knew I could make Osaka do some damage, but that…That was just brutal… Good thing I saved the night before. I think next I'll see what Tomo can do."
He thought to himself, his grand plan a rather simple one-Test each character's capacity for carnage, and then make them fight. So far, Osaka had clearly fared best, slaughtering every one of her friends, before committing seppuku. Her success both enthralling and unnerving him.
-----------------------
Life. All that we perceive-or choose to perceive. Is it real? Are we real? The answer, it seems, is more complicated than it first appears. Especially in the Daioh Zone.
