Chapter 10: Save the Dark Horse

Chiaki let the warm, soothing water overtake her body. According to Miaya, this water had therapeutic properties that helped calm the mind. She silently relaxed in a long pod, and her head rested above the water. Since she was alone in the dim room—it was filled with similar pods—there was a peaceful silence resonating throughout the area. Despite how great the water felt, she couldn't help but let her mind wander to a conversation she had previously.

VVV

"You've been making a remarkable effort," said Chisa, sitting next to Chiaki's bed.

The cautious gamer didn't know what her former teacher wanted to discuss, but she couldn't imagine it being favorable.

"That optimistic glow I saw when you were attending Hope's Peak Academy hasn't returned, but I guess that's only natural."

"…" Chiaki would answer if Chisa wanted, but she preferred not to respond when she could.

"Oh, so when Gekkogahara comes rolling in you're all smiles—but when I arrive you become mute?" Chisa started rubbing her eyes like she was crying, which she clearly wasn't. "Can it be that…I've been replaced in your heart?"

Chiaki sighed while trying to decide whether the fake Junko or Chisa was more exhausting. She exasperatingly asked, "What do you need, Ms. Yukizome?"

"I thought going over how to present you would be nice," she replied, smiling once more. "You've never had a job interview before, have you?" The gamer shook her head. "All you have to do is keep your head up, make eye contact, and sound confident."

"Will they really accept me?"

"I've gone over how I think it'll go based on what I know about the division leaders. Before that, let me explain how the actual vote works. I'm assuming you haven't been told?" Chiaki shook her head again. "After all the preliminary talk is done, the vote will start with the newest division leader and end with the chairman. If you get the majority vote—you're golden. However, there are some special points worth knowing."

"Special?"

"Chairman Tengan's vote counts as two. Also, Kyosuke has the ability to terminate the entire vote, even after authorization from the chairman if he has a probable cause. Luckily, he has no evidence you're lying about a single thing, so that shouldn't be a problem. The real challenge is going to be the vote itself. I've basically been your campaign manager because I've been putting in a good word for you everywhere. I think I deserve a thank you."

Even though Chiaki wondered claiming her to be the savior like some deranged heretic was good, Chisa's narrow eyes intimidated her into speaking. "Thank you, Ms. Yukizome."

"Only the best for my little shortcake," she replied, pinching the gamer's cheek, making her wince. "If I had to guess what the results would be…I'd say eight to five in your favor. That might variate somewhat, but unless we get a major curveball thrown our way—it should be fine."

"…Why did you tell them I'm the savior…and why would you want me to be a division leader anyway?"

"Well, I really do believe you're the savior," she replied before giggling. "I needed to make you seem like an amazing individual. Whenever someone promotes an object or event, it's important to capture the attention of your target audience. Just saying you're a responsible, kind-hearted girl might work in some kiddie anime—but it would've been laughable in the face of the Future Foundation. My challenge was making a quiet gamer seem like a crucial asset."

"…And you think I'm the savior because I'm the opposite of Junko."

"Now you're getting it. There's a stark contrast between you two, unlike anything I've examined up close. Therefore, you're the only one who can become what I desire."

"You mean—you're going to paint me into something different," added Chiaki, remembering what Chisa said the first day.

"It's convenient you bring that up because it's why I want you to be a division leader. You'll be given automatic clearance to multiple things a simple agent couldn't do, including working with me on some projects."

"What projects?" The gamer shuddered because it sounded like a more tame way to say experiments.

"First of all, I'm going to teach you to be more efficient. Despite you possessing the potential to be the savior, you wouldn't last a day out in the field against the Despairs. Also…I'll give you an immunity to despair itself."

Immunity to despair? Whatever that could mean was a total mystery. It sounded as if Chisa had a method to make despair itself ineffective. How and why someone who craves despair could do that only made it more confusing. "How's that possible?"

"You'll see. I'm sure making you the savior has made me work harder than being a housekeeper ever did."

"But, what happens if I fail the vote?"

"If something bothersome like that happened," began the division leader, developed a malevolent smirk, "I suppose I'll have to improvise."

The frightened girl gulped, knowing improvising could mean a myriad of things—none of which was good.

"Just focus on working hard this final week. If you even have a little of that same girl who was unanimously voted the class rep, it'll be simple."

The gamer was silent as the stakes were set. If she became the Thirteenth Division leader, Chisa would begin transforming her. Failure meant the methods would be altered, but the outcome would be the same. As always, everything went as the housekeeper wanted.

"I even prepared a nice Future Foundation attire for you. As well as…another accessory I thought was neat." The maid smiled while her former student still refused to look at her. "It'd be in your best interest if you get used to me again, Chiaki. You might've thought your rehabilitation with Gekkogahara was tough, but that was only the prolog. We're just getting started…"

With those chilling words, Chisa rose and began to depart. There was a certain question the gamer still wanted to be answered that wasn't last time.

"Why are you doing all this—what's the point?" Chisa's, being the despair loving woman she now is, actions were perplexing. Chiaki was no investigator, but she knew there had to be some kind of motive for all this. It felt too superficial to decide Chisa was doing this for pure entertainment.

"The answer wouldn't matter; you can't stop it regardless." She left the room, leaving Chiaki without an answer again.

VVV

That uncomfortable conversation took place earlier in the week, and now it was the morning of the vote. She started to understand what Miaya meant by the water being therapeutic. The effects couldn't be felt at first, but now a feeling of aimlessly floating in a peaceful ocean was consuming her. In those moments, her body didn't seem to have a single care in the world.

"Chiaki," greeted Usami from a small monitor connected with the pod. "That should be enough now. I'll meet you in the locker room after I take care of some things. Also, Yukizome left something for you."

The gamer, somewhat reluctantly, exiting the pod. She covered herself with a towel and walked towards the locker room. After being in the dim room, the lights stung her eyes when she entered. Just as she happened to pass a mirror, she recalled looking at herself after the bandages were taken off. Her body was covered in scars from head to toe. Her body reminded her of a doll that had been torn apart, only to be sewed together again. It felt like it didn't sink in until then how insane it was she survived.

A minute later, she found some perfectly folded clothes along with some shoes and a note. The note basically said this was a gift from Chisa, and there were more identical sets. She also briefly bragged about how great her folding was. The gamer promptly tossed the note in the trash and dried herself off before trying them on. Knowing Chisa, Chiaki almost expected the clothes to explode the moment she tried them on.

After putting on her undergarments, she tried on the attire consisting of a black, hooded blazer on top of a white dress shirt with a dark ribbon. There was also a black skirt which was fastened to her with a belt combined with her favorite black thigh high socks and a pair of black boots.

It fits perfectly…thought Chiaki, moving around in the gear.

"My, look at you," chimed in Chisa, appearing like a silent assassin. Chiaki almost jumped at how suddenly she came out. "I wanted to make you look more professional while still keeping your normal style in mind, and I think it was a success."

It lasted for a second, but Chisa smiled the way she did when they first met. The gamer looked away before she fooled herself into believing the smile was genuine. She knew full well whom the person in front of her was.

"I need you to turn around."

Chiaki wondered why, but she decided it's less trouble just to comply with her demand. After that, she felt something fasten around her neck before hearing a clicking sound. She gasped while putting her hands around her neck to see what Chisa placed there.

"What is this?" Chiaki went to the mirror and saw a black choker placed around her neck.

"I said I had a special accessory for you—it won't come off, by the way." Chisa said that so casually, it took a moment for it to register with the gamer.

"Huh?" She tried to take it off, but it wasn't budging. The choker was causing her no discomfort, but the thought of Chisa placing something around her neck that never came off greatly bothered her. "Why did you put this on me?"

"…Consider it a good luck charm. It's a part of me that will always be with you."

It was frustrating how teasing and indirect the housekeeper would be when answering her questions. She quietly said, "You're crazy…"

"Did you just insult me?" Chisa looked genuinely offended before pulling out some sharp scissors.

Chiaki felt like screaming while the housekeeper slowly walked to her.

"Don't…" pleaded the gamer, backing into a locker without taking her eyes off the object. She started having trouble breathing because unpleasant memories began returning. As her former teacher drew closer, she covered her face with her arms and wished anybody would help. "Ms. Yukizome!"

She didn't know why those words came out of her mouth. It was like she hoped that would make the original Chisa return somehow.

A few seconds passed before she put her arms down and saw the friendly, smiling face of her former teacher inches away. "I'm just messing around, my cinnamon roll—I know I'm crazy."

The frightened girl breathed a sigh of relief before sliding to the ground.

"Allow me to cut that hair of yours."

It was both a frightful and fascinating experience having Chisa cut her hair. It was scary since having an insane woman hold a sharp object near the head and neck area wasn't ideal. On the other hand, sitting there while she was humming an old song made recollections of her old teacher appear. The way they looked was like a mother and daughter, minus the despair.

"Do you remember that time everyone in the class had a stomach virus?" asked Chisa.

Chiaki thought about it for a moment before she said, "You mean when Komaeda's luck made a delivery truck drop a box of pastries that turned out to be expired? The only reason we didn't get sick was because—"

"We were too full from that large lunch we ate earlier. We had to go to each of their dorms and take care of them."

"It was really hot that day."

"We did, indeed, do a lot of walking."

"My feet were sore for a week."

"Hey, at least you weren't wearing heels."

The two shared a laugh while they remembered a more peaceful time. That event happened before Chisa was reassigned to the Reserve Course, and it was one of many wacky things the seventy-seventh class experienced. Chiaki felt nice in that short moment until she inevitably remembered how it ends.

What am I doing…? she thought, bringing herself back to reality.

She blamed herself. Chisa was turned into Ultimate Despair because she saved her. The gamer realized she wasn't uncomfortable around her former teacher just because of the threats—she was a constant reminder of her failure.

"All done!" stated Chisa, putting the scissors away.

Chiaki observed her hair in the mirror and saw it was similar to when she was attending Hope's Peak.

"I took the liberty of leaving it just a bit longer since I thought it looked better. If it wasn't for that sullen aura you have, you'd be your old self. I can make it shorter if you don't like it."

On the subject of her hair, she remembered the absence of her treasured hair clip. Since Chisa did rescue her body that day, Chiaki thought the auburn-haired maid might know where it is. "Do you know what happened to my Gala Omega hair clip?"

"That thing?" Chisa remembered the item was in the possession of Izuru the last time she saw it. "It couldn't be in a safer place right now." She could practically see the question mark over Chiaki's head. "If you want, I could try and retrieve it."

"Never mind, Ms. Yukizome" Chiaki decided it was best to let it go because Chisa was playing with her.

"Still referring to me so formally? It seems I'll have to steal back the admiration Gekkogahara took. I used to be your hero, after all."

"Where do I go now?" the gamer asked while ignoring the last comment.

"If you're ready, we'll depart immediately. You can ride in the helicopter with me."

"Can she come with me instead, Yukizome?" stated Usami while Miaya entered the room. "I promised I'd take her with me because we won't be seeing much of each other anymore…"

"I understand," answered Chisa, seeing her former student's face light up the moment the therapist entered the room. It wasn't unlike how Chiaki would look at her old self. "There's no problem here, so I'll go on ahead. See you in a few, Chiaki."

The Fifth Division leader departed, leaving the two quiet individuals alone.

"You look great!" complimented Usami.

"Thanks, Miaya," replied Chiaki, smiling. "Are we leaving now?"

"Yep. I know you're technically not my patient anymore, but you'll have to deal with me for a little while longer."

"I don't mind at all." With that, Miaya led Chiaki to their destination. Her expression darkened when she thought about the vote. Sorry, Chiaki and Yukizome. I need the truth…

VVV

The demented housekeeper was traveling through the hallways while thinking about Miaya's appearance. Those two are close. I wonder how much Gekkogahara figured out?

She was aware that leaving Chiaki with the former Ultimate Therapist was a gamble since the truth could come out at any time. Of course, she didn't care because she had multiple plans to choose from if such a thing ever occurred. However, as she foresaw, it looked like Chiaki never revealed what really happened. Chisa still didn't delude herself into thinking Miaya wasn't able to pry some notable information from the vulnerable girl.

I don't think she'll be a problem, she thought, pulling out the specially issued phone that Future Foundation employees were issued. These phones could only connect to other Future Foundations phones because they were all powered by a special server. It was one of the first things Kyosuke ordered since using normal networks would be too risky.

It really would be a shame to kill her. Gekkogahara's talents are still useful. There's that project to think about…

Her thoughts were halted when the man she called picked up on the other end. "Yukizome?"

"Chiaki Nanami will be arriving shortly with Gekkogahara. I'm about to leave also, Kyosuke." There was a silence on the other end. Chisa knew how infuriating this all was for her dear friend, but that only made it more enjoyable.

"I know you want the best for your students; however, if you think that girl can be this savior you claim—it won't end well."

"We both have our interpretations of what a savior is. In fact, let's make this a competition to see who is right in the end. I'm no Ultimate Gambler, but I have a feeling you'll lose this one."

"I'll agree this time if you want. Still, don't take today's events too personally in the future. All I want is the best for you, the girl, and everyone else threatened by despair. I'm responsible for the well-being of everyone in the Future Foundation, so understand I can't entertain fairy tales."

She giggled a little because a funny thought crossed her mind. "You two are more alike than you think; she also refuses to say my first name."

"What are you—"

"Make sure everyone is ready, alright Kyosuke? Remember… This is all for the sake of a successful future." She hung up before gleefully smiling. "I can't decide if Chiaki or Kyosuke is more fun to mess with. You still haven't fixed that habit of never giving things a second thought. We'll see who's right when it's over, Kyosuke."

VVV

The former Ultimate Gamer had her eyes glued outside the helicopter window. A luminescent sky could be seen with clouds scattered everywhere. She was so used to the dark clouds, the beauty of the regular blue sky was forgotten by her. The way the sun's rays sparkled on the water hypnotized her.

"It's a nice change of scenery, right?" added Usami, noticing Chiaki's fascination. "The pollution hasn't spread this far, yet." As Miaya explained before, the Despairs were intentionally sending harmful fumes into the atmosphere all over the world.

"Why would anyone want to do that…?"

"That's just how the Despairs are hardwired. They want to ravage everything, including the air we breathe."

She narrowed her eyes while wishing for the beautiful scenery to be preserved, just like Eden. Over an hour had passed before the Future Foundation's main headquarters came into view. The helicopter landed, and the gamer took her first steps on the base. Her mouth opened, while she observed the tall building. It looked like a spear protruding from the Earth and on its way to pierce the sky.

"Impressive, isn't it?" added Usami after Miaya departed the helicopter, thanks to the ramp. "This building was undergoing construction for years. It was supposed to be a unique project regarding Hope's Peak Academy, but circumstances changed its purpose to serve as the main headquarters of the Future Foundation."

"It looks amazing…"

"Wait until you see the inside. The technology here is unreal; it might be the most advanced place on Earth."

Chiaki looked around the area like a tourist on vacation while entering the building. It took a while because they had to get clearance past multiple layers of security, but they eventually walked through the massive doors. If the lobby at the other base made her feel overwhelmed, this one figuratively suffocated her. Warm air hit her body while she witnessed many Future Foundation agents scattered around. The gamer didn't know what to focus on first since there was a cluster of sights to see.

"We shouldn't waste time," added Usami. "Our floor is pretty high." She was reminded of Miaya's shyness when the therapist looked a little sheepish.

After navigating through the bustling area, they entered an elevator—an act the gamer wasn't fond of because of the memories—and patiently waited while they ascended to the desired floor. Thankfully, there weren't many people in the elevator with them, so it didn't take long to arrive. Miaya led them to the outside of the conference room where the vote would be held. The sounds of conversation could already be heard.

"It seems we're a little late," said Usami. "Until someone calls you, wait patiently for the time being."

"Alright…"

Miaya noticed her anxiety and gave her a warm smile to which the gamer smiled back in reassurance. After she entered the room, Chiaki was left alone in the hallway.

She could hear talking being done. Chiaki had met some of the division leaders, but a good number of them were still strangers. Thoughts of the vote going disastrously kept passing her mind. The girl decided to calm herself down the best way she knew how—playing a game.

"Playing that thing won't solve your problem," stated someone in front of her. Chiaki was surprised to see the imaginary form of Junko during the day. "Need some advice?"

"Not from you," she replied, putting her device down.

"Well, I'll give you some anyway." The blond woman made a serious expression. "You need to raise hell and challenge them. Tell those Future Foundation bastards how pointless it all is."

"I won't do this your way. I just have to do it and not hesitate, like Miaya said."

"Keep telling yourself that, nobody." She cockily grinned. "You know I'm right. Why else would you call me?"

"You can enter now!" yelled a female voice Chiaki guessed was Yukizome. The gamer took a deep breath before glaring at Junko.

"You're wrong."

"Huh?" The fake fashionista looked surprised.

"This isn't pointless!"

"Heh…" Junko averted her gaze. "Just know once you do this, there's no turning back. This route you've decided to take is just gonna end with nothing but more despair."

Chiaki walked passed Junko's form and put her hands on the doors.

"…Don't come again." After that, she opened the doors and prepared herself for whatever destiny had in store.