A/N: This story's getting really popular; I've already gotten a lot of fanmade OCs. I'm really grateful to you guys, thanks for liking TWIFWU. Also I've decide to up the OC due date to chapter twenty because I've gotten a lot of last minute OCs from people. Alright here's chapter ten. (Hooray! I've hit double-digits!)

Disclaimer: I do not own the World Ends with You, but that doesn't mean that I can't own a sequel, which is why I made this. Enjoy!

WARNING: This chapter of TWIFWU contains a lot of swearing and some thoughts that are kind of dark and depressing. Read at your own risk.

Chapter Ten: Week 1, Day 2-The World is a Heartless Place

Rinnosuke's POV-

JR underpass, Akihabara-August 3, 2009, 10:40 A.M. (August 2, 2009, 8:40 P.M. EST).Two hours and twenty minutes remaining in the Mission.

I felt so much pain in my body that I couldn't move, I couldn't even speak. I felt my blood flowing out of my body little by little; I could feel myself growing colder with each passing second. This was it…I was really going to die from exsanguination. Not that I cared. My life was already over before I got stabbed…I realize that now. I was born into this cold, unforgiving world almost seventeen years ago. Wait, actually it was exactly seventeen years ago today. August 3rd…I had completely forgotten today was my birthday. That has to be a record or something for the title of "Worst Birthday Ever". I was pathetic, making dumb jokes when I was about to die. I guess this world just taught me to have a positive attitude about everything; truth be told, I'm glad my life is going to end at seventeen. There's nothing out there in the world but more pain and suffering for me; I actually heard on a blog that this year alone there were 23, 472 suicides among Japanese men. I'm glad that I didn't live that long; it's better that I learn the truth about the world at a young age. The world is a heartless place.

I did my best to strain my eyes and take one final look at my attacker. I stared up at her face; black lipstick and mascara mixed with blood splatter. The red matched her eyes. Even if she was a murdering psychopath, even if she did dress like it was Halloween or some weird Goth holiday, I couldn't help but think that she was beautiful. 'Why is it that I think that?' I wondered. She didn't make my heart pound or make blush like Saatchi-san did to me. With Kimiko or Shatter, or whatever the hell her real name was, it was different; when I talked to her it felt like I was talking to an old friend. 'Do I know her?' I thought to myself. My vision began to blur and soon the only thing I had to sense that I was still part of this cruel world was my hearing. I could barely make out what they said though.

"What do we do now, love?" someone asked; it must have been that douche-bag of a guitarist, Ian.

"You said that he had the manga we need didn't you, Ian-san?" another person asked in a squeaky voice; it must have been that little Lolita girl, Joy.

"I believe I was talking to the lunatic, not you runt," Ian replied.

"Hey!" I heard Shatter yell at Ian. "Don't you bad mouth Joy or I'll cut you up next! You hear me, you blonde asshole?!" After a moment she continued speaking; "Grab his backpack, that's where he said he stashed it. The next thing we should do is find a place to hide out so we can keep the manga safe, that and it's starting to rain."

I heard Ian chuckle and then ask, "You afraid of a little storm, love?"

"I just don't like the rain okay, you asshole!" Shatter shouted. "Now grab it and get moving with Joy, me and Pyros will dispose of the body. It's gonna be a pain, considering he was alive to begin with; he won't just disappear like the others."

I heard movement and then the disappearance of several footsteps. Then I felt someone try to pick me up, and then I heard a grunt. Then Shatter shouted, "Help me out, you damn flamehead!" probably at that Pyros guy.

I felt more strength added under me and then I was up off the ground, I was moved a couple of steps and then I was set down again. Shatter asked, "You're the silent type so I can trust you to keep a secret, right?" and she must have received a nod in reply from Pyros because then she added, "We're just going to leave his body here, I can't stand the thought of hurting my beloved Rin-chan anymore."

'Rin-chan?' I thought, 'So I did know her, at some point at least.'

I felt weight coming on top of me and then I heard Shatter whisper in my ear, "Fear not my beloved sleeping prince, your princess will soon wake you from your peaceful slumber." Then I felt something hot press against my lips. Then she whispered again, "That's just for right now, I'll give you something better when you wake up," and then she giggled slightly. I felt her weight shift off me again and then she said to Pyros, "If you tell the other two what you just saw I'll kill you next, got it?" she asked. I guess she got another nodding reply because then said, "Good." Then I heard her walk away slowly, and after a minute or two, I heard another voice.

"I know you can still hear." I didn't recognize it, could this voice belong to Pyros? "I just want you to know that I am truly sorry for what happened to you, I know nothing I do will ever make it up to you but I just want you to know at least that much. I've had this same talk to all the other people that we slaughtered, but this one's a little different; I guess it's because your body hasn't evaporated. I apologize for the heinous crime done to you, on behalf of all four of us. And here's the next part of the talk, it's a favor to me actually. You probably don't feel like doing it after what we put you through, but… could you just hear me out?" Pyros sighed and then he said, "I did a horrible thing in my past, and because of it an innocent girl was killed. I've lived with that grief for some time now and I don't think it will ever go away. I want the chance to apologize to her, this isn't about redemption at all, and I'll get down on my knees and beg for her forgiveness if I have to. All I want is the chance to make it up to her, but the problem is that I can't find her. I'm not sure if she was entered into the Game or what, but if she is in the Game then I'll find her and tell her what I want myself; but if by some miracle, she isn't involved in this travesty, then could you tell her to wait for me in the afterlife, and then I'll tell her what I want there."

Pyros continued, "I remember her face so clearly, she is a brunette who always has her hair in braids; she also has white ribbons at the bottom of the braids. She's kind of short for her age, and she has light freckles on her cheeks and lime green eyes. If you see a girl like that where you're headed then please tell her that Hideaki Ryuzora is coming to meet her. I'll be forever in your de…" but that's all I heard.

I grew senseless, I was finally dead. I was finally free. Fuck that psycho Shatter, fuck that douche-bag Ian, fuck that prissy little girl Joy, and fuck that asshole Hideaki who had the nerve to ask a request for me. Fuck this stupid Game that they were in, fuck that stupid Pin, and fuck you world!

?, ?, ?

I was in complete and utter darkness. I had discovered the big truth of the afterlife; there was no fuckin' afterlife. There was just darkness, that was all there was. When you die, boom light's out, that's all. I could see and hear again, and I wasn't bleeding anymore, but there was nothing. I didn't know anything about where I was at all, it was just blank. Imagine if you were buried alive, you're in a cramped box with hardly any oxygen at all, desperately trying to find a way out of the darkness that surrounds you. Except, in my situation there was an unlimited amount of oxygen and tons of free space; the only thing that remained was darkness. I couldn't even see my own hand in front of me.

I remained in the darkness for God knows how long. There was no way of keeping time at all; each second felt like an hour, each minute felt like a day, each hour felt like a week, each day felt like a month, each week felt like a year, each year felt like a decade. Nothing ever changed, it was as if I was stuck in a hole in the fabric of time and space. The only thing that I had to keep me company were my thoughts. I thought of Nanami, waiting for me to get home and then getting the information that I'm never coming home, I thought of my mom and dad who were at their work overseas receiving the information about my death, I thought about the fact that I never told Saatchi-san how I felt, I thought about all the games that I would never get to play, I thought about all the manga I would never get to read, I thought about that Pin, I thought about those two weird guys on the train, I thought about meeting Hiori-chan, I thought about Team Shitsuren, and I thought about Shatter and Hideaki's last words to me. Then one big thought came into my head that shook away all the others. 'Did my life really mean anything at all?' I pondered.

If I died would anybody really care, they would morn sure, but wouldn't the world just keep on turning after I left. 'Now that I think about it, my existence didn't mean anything. Rinnosuke Maeda meant nothing to the world. But since I died, I'm no longer Rinnosuke Maeda. Then who am I?' My thoughts conflicted with each other until finally I came to one simple conclusion. I'm nothing. I'm not anybody. My existence is unimportant, it's insignificant. The world is better off without me and I'm better off without it. 'I am no one,' I thought.

That one thought repeated itself in my head until soon it was the only thing I could think about. If the cost of living was a simple mirror image of yourself and a name that you were given at birth, then what's the difference between being "Rinnosuke" and being someone else; there is no difference. If I looked different and had a different name it would not change the person who I am. What could make me change then? "Being no one," I repeated to myself the answer to my formulated riddle for what seemed like an eternity.

Then something changed in my surrounding darkness, a light entered it. Not a metaphorical "ray of light", an actual ball of light suddenly appeared in front of me.

"If you are no one, then would you like to stay here forever?" a voice whispered in my ear this question.

"Who are you?" I asked.

"That depends on what you want me to be. I can be your friend, I can be your conscience, heck I can even be the voice that drives you to insanity if that's what you wish me to be."

"What do you want from me?"

"I came here to ask if you would like to join the Game for real. One of my brothers accidently dropped the Pin that you found, but since you were the first person to pick it up its fate became bound to yours. However you were never registered as a Player to begin with, therefore you are an Illegal Player."

"Illegal? So did I break some rule by accidently getting involved in this stupid Game?"

"Not at all. As a matter of fact since the error was made on my brother's part it is our fault that a Mortal like you died. Therefore, we would like to offer you a Penalty shot at the grand prize that the other Players are competing for."

"A chance at life again? You've heard my brooding haven't you, I've decided that the world is a piece of shit that I don't want to go back to."

"You don't want to go back for anything? Your family? Your little sister?"

"Sister? Did I even have one?"

"Oh my, you're worse off than I thought. I told Raphael that taking your Soul as an Entry Fee would be dangerous, but he still didn't listen to me."

"My Soul? What are you talking about?"

"Every Player has an Entry Fee taken away from them before they start the Game. If you win then you get it back, but each Entry Fee taken is rather unique. It's something that the Player values above all else. Before you found that Pin, do you remember the kind of person you were?"

"I was a fool, who believed the world could be saved by helping one person at a time."

"No! You were a kind and honest boy who tried to see the good in everyone. The moment you stumbled across the Pin and it became tied to your fate, an Entry Fee was taken from you. Since you were Mortal, my brother Raphael decided to take away the most precious thing a person has as your Entry Fee. Your Soul."

"Wouldn't I technically be a monster without a Soul?"

"I managed to convince him only to take half of it, but it seemed that even taking just half can cause drastic results. You want it back don't you?"

"No thanks, I like it this way. I can see all the errors I've ever made so clearly now."

"Please, what will it take me to convince you to come back?! I don't want to leave you here!"

"If the prize for winning the Game is a return pass to the land of the living, then I'll pass."

"But what about a wish?"

"A wish?"

"The winning Team gets returned to life and one wish to make your dreams come true."

I paused for a moment and then I replied, "Interesting. If I had a wish then maybe I could make even a shitty place like the world I came from pure. I can sanitize humanity. I could make a happy place for everyone to live in."

"But if you win the Game than your Entry Fee will also be returned, so you'll get the other half of your Soul back."

"That doesn't matter to me, but you'll be happy to know that I've made my decision. I'll play the Game."

The voice chuckled, "Excellent."

Then the world around me flashed in a ray of white light, and I was released from the darkness.

JR underpass, Akihabara-August 3, 2009, 11:00 A.M. (August 2, 2009, 9:00 P.M. EST).Two hours remaining in the Mission.

Another flash occurred and then I opened my eyes. I was back at the train Underpass, I looked around me and I saw that it was raining. Then I looked down and I saw that I wasn't wearing the clothes I had on before anymore; I was now wearing a pair of black pants with chain straps on them, a pair of white shoes, a black leather jacket, and a white under shirt. "What the hell?" I said to myself. Then I felt a vibration coming from inside my pants' pocket, and then I reached inside and pulled out an all-black phone. I had gotten a text message.

Here's a little known secret about the Underground, a Player's appearance is based on the way they envision themselves in their Soul. That's why most Players who show up in the Game look exactly the same when they die, but you are a special case when it comes to the Soul Department, remember? Hope you like the new clothes-Your Friend

P.S.-All the information you need on the rules and secrets about the Game have been inserted into your mind, consider it a bonus for your Penalty Play. Good luck!

I smirked at the message and then I looked down at a puddle on the ground. "How I envision myself, eh?" I said to myself as I examined my reflection in the puddle. Everything was the same except for my new clothes. "But you forgot one thing, my friend," I said as grabbed my glasses off my face and threw them onto the ground. Then I stepped on them and ground them up with my shoe. "Those represent the old Rinnosuke Maeda, and from now on that's no longer who I am." I scanned my thoughts and looked into this information about the Game that my supposed "friend" gave me. One bit of information came across my mind, a supposed Team that might cause trouble in the future. "Neku Sakuraba, Kazuma Eturome, and Madoka Amari. It looks like they're already working together as a Team, though they haven't added in Eturome into their Pacts, nor have they even made a name for their Team." I thought to myself, 'Not the brightest Team to be part of, but still a powerful one even if they aren't aware of it yet. I can use them, just until I get my wish and the world is recreated.'

"Let's see," I pulled up more information on the three Players, "Madoka Amari, died August 1st, 2009 after fighting a long term battle with an incurable disease since she was only one. Kazuma Eturome, died July 31st, 2009 after jumping off a building set to be imploded with a faulty parachute which had one of the security straps cut. Neku Sakuraba died August 1st, 2008 after being killed by the former Composer of Shibuya, Joshua; he managed to reclaim his life and is now alive. Entry Fees for the three include, Madoka's memories, and Kazuma's…" I smirked when saw the information. "This is going to be very interesting," I said to myself, and then I looked over Neku's Entry Fee, "Very interesting indeed."

Then I walked away from the underpass. All that remained of my former identity was a pair of fake glasses and a dead body. I had one goal in mind, save the world…by any means necessary.

A/N: Never underestimate the power of the Soul; it's what makes us who we are. If you lose even a single bit of it, you can become extremely twisted. Next chapter is the conclusion of Day 2, see you then.