Hello! Chapter 6 is going to be quite difficult for me to write, though different in how difficult it was to write Chapter 5's case! Haha, though that's probably because Chapter 6 is the mastermind and end all be all chapter, so... Let's hope for the best, shall we?
Ziggymia123: "Chapter name is chapter name, hehe. Somebody save Kaniza, please. Chapter 6 is going to be crazy, ay. And yay, teaser to Chapter 6! The mastermind definitely has a more cynical perspective, definitely. Haha."
zephryr: "Haha, reviews are reviews though, no matter late or early in a story. Oh my, interesting theory. So many interesting theories, but I can't say much about anything, oops. Haha, okay~"
TheRoseShadow21: "I'll screech with you! Ominous stuff are amazing, hehe."
Pretty Palutena: "Aww, thank you so much! Atmosphere of stories are always a favorite for me to see, haha. Thanks so much! You're a very awesome person yourself~"
Prince PokePersona: "Oh my, a long essay, did Lupus inspire you? Did Lupus take over you?! Haha, whatever you prefer for Kaniza, of course, you do you. Closing arguments are a pain to write, but help explain everything at the same time, so oof. I'd join the rebellion, screw the mastermind! Interesting mastermind ideas and theories, I wonder if you're right about anyone. Sudden shifts in perspectives are fun, aish. The mastermind is a beauty, definitely."
FruitlessKitty_74: "Ouch, why are you even awake so early? Kaniza is an adorable cinnamon roll, please protect her. Oh my, someone likes a manipulative Minori, I see. Aww, but thanks! Yes, pessimistic."
Emma2448: "Oh my. Woo, last dance!"
Eventually, something has to break through the darkness.
Whether it would be the light that had cast from the sinners below, or the saints from above, it didn't matter. Darkness will always be broken by a blinding light, having been cast from anyone who dares to defy its gravity.
And whoever broke that darkness will eventually realize that darkness was all that was needed in this world, yet light is what keeps humanity sane. A sad tragedy, but nonetheless a truth needed to be told to the ears of the ignorant.
Those dark green eyes meant everything. They can symbolize the greed for destruction, love, hatred… A shame they were not the color of blood itself, but nonetheless that beautiful hue of green can be twisted in corruption, and built into perfection.
Minori had yet to learn of this. All he could do was snap those lovely eyes of his opened. He would sweat with those beads of salty, misted water trickling down his snowy complexion. Like a deer in headlights, he was scared, and that fear of his caused him to jerk his head forward.
Forward, until he hit something.
"Ow!" And then he would throw his hands to his forehead, wincing in pain. He was ignorant of the immense stiffness his body felt, and the throbbing pain on his forehead slowly inched to pain once his eyes blinked more times than one. If it weren't for the wires that were tapped to his hands and wrists, then he would've blinked a few more times to register his situation. But, alas, he pondered, and worriedly took a look at his body.
Wires were everywhere, taped to him. He hated how loose his clothing were, only having worn a loose white shirt and some shorts. If someone had stripped him down and changed him without his knowing, then that only made him shudder even more than he already was. Wires were everywhere, and his eyes followed the wires' direction to a monitor- it was a monitor that was connected to a tall, whirring machine. There were so many buttons and mechanics around and inside of the machine that it made the pseudologist dizzy within seconds.
The machine's purpose was unknown, and Minori noticed the thing he had hit himself against upon his awakening. It was a projector of some kind, most likely a helmet? Minori frowned as he observed it, noting its circular shape and hard surface. It didn't seem to do anything at the moment, only serving as a obstacle for Minori's bruised forehead.
A soft groan escaped his lips. Dried and chapped like always, the pseudologist released a soft sigh. He had no time to worry over his physical state, even the bloodied bandages over the palm of his right hand. Wouldn't those cause him an infection? They were old, and Minori slowly took apart the bandages to toss them to the side. He had no need for that, and carefully observed his wound.
It was a long gash wound that dug halfway down his palm, up to down. It was a rather horrid wound, though that mainly came as a result of the amount of dried blood that painted around the wound and inside of the wound itself. Minori knew this would give him a scar, and so he bit into his lower lip accordingly in disdain.
But, nonetheless, his newly discovered scar was not of high importance. What was more important was what happened beforehand.
Beforehand. Minori bit into his dried lips. He felt blood trickling, and the taste of it was nothing more than salty and metallic. We were about to be executed, and then everything went black and… T-the others!
Minori was lucky enough to have moved aside from the projector, for he would've hit his head upon thrusting himself up. He darted his head back and forth, and upon looking-
-the pseudologist found himself staring at his surroundings. The wires taped to his body were loose and falling off, yet he couldn't care. His entire body was aching, but he didn't care. All he cared about was his surroundings, and the fifteen pods (excluding the one he laid on) circling the entire machine-designed room.
"What…?" Minori couldn't even register how terribly hoarse his voice sounded, nor how meek it was. All he registered now were his shaking legs, and overwhelming confusion. "W-what is this…?"
Fifteen pods, most of them with nothing in sight, some of them with… with his friends, the people who were supposed to die with him. Minori's first instinct was to cry, to cry out of pure joy.
But the second instinct took over him, and instead thousands of questions rang inside of his head: why? who? where? why, why, why, why…? He wouldn't know anything, so his legs took him to the closest person in his sight and his body gave up on him and he fell over that person's unconscious (sleeping?) body.
"Wake up," Minori cried in a hushed voice. His dark green eyes were looking down at Saori's unconscious body, her face pale and her expression furrowed. She, like Minori before, was wired to that strange machine close to her own pod. The pseudologist frowned at this, unable to hold back from snapping those wires off. The machine whirred to a shutdown, and he rolled his eyes to focus back on the body broker. Desperate, he nudged her, begging with his shoving and rough hands. "Saori, Saori! Wake up!"
A few nudges or so seemed to do the trick. Saori's eyebrows hitched together, and a soft groan escaped her lips (which, Minori noted, were, while chapped, still smoother and softer looking than his). She began to twitch, slowly moving to the side, left to right, before eyelids slowly opened to reveal her dark brown feline-looking eyes. They blinked before slowly moving in accordance to her own head movement, straight to where Minori was. "M-Minori…?"
Relief instantly washed over the man's snowy complexion. "Oh, thank goodness you're alive." He quickly grabbed ahold of Saori's hand, urging her to sit up and adjust herself. He had to make certain she wouldn't hit her head however, and when he was able to bring the groaning Saori up to her feet, waited silently for her to adjust herself. "Are you okay?"
"I should be," Saori managed to grumble, voice strained. She took a look at her surroundings, expression immediately bittering. "Where are we? I… I thought we were in the courtroom…"
Minori pursed his lips. He tasted metal. "Yeah…" His eyes then switched over to the occupied pods, and he jumped. "R-right! Let's wake up the others."
"The others?" Saori's expression immediately washed with relief and shock. "They're here?"
Minori bobbed his head, almost as if he were a chipper little dog. "Yeah, Kamui and Sagiso and Kaniza! They're in the pods."
Without a second to waste, Saori immediately dashed over to one of the pods, leaving Minori to the last one. He moved to the left, finding Kamui in his own pod, features sickly and breathing shallow. Minori gulped as he began to nudge Kamui, slightly violent and rough.
"Kamui!" Minori cried out. He nudged the mortician a tenth time. "Hey, wake up!"
And, as predictable as ever, Kamui began to move. A low grunt escaped his slightly peeled off lips, eyelids twitching before his own pair of eyes began to open. The bright light that the projector emitted off blinded him, and he groaned before slowly shifting to the left and his nose almost moved into Minori's palm. "Mm… Is that you…?"
"Y-yeah!" Minori hated how squeaky he sounded there. He almost felt guilty, as if he had caused everybody's suffering- and maybe he did, considering the last events that took place. Tears wanted to ruin those eyes of his, but he forced it back to focus on Kamui's health. "It's me, Minori. Saori's waking up Sagiso and Kaniza right now."
"S-Saori…? Sagiso?" Kamui blinked a couple of times, those crusty grits escaping from the corners. He slowly began to move, Minori urging him forward as Kamui slowly got out of his pod to stand up. He cracked his arms and legs for a moment before looking around. "Where are we? Saori… Sagiso… Kaniza…"
The pseudologist moved to the side, allowing Kamui to take a look around, to process what was happening. Minori slowly brought his hands over to take the wires apart from Kamui's body, and although the mortician threw the pseudologist a questionable look, he didn't speak and Kamui promptly ignored it for: "Where's Monokuma? What happened?"
Minori shook his head sadly. "I don't know. I'm assuming that something happened that caused the entire process to shut down, given that we're…" He looked around the room. "... well, in a technology-based setting."
"So, a shutdown, huh?" Kamui eyed the pod he was in, then the rest that were unoccupied aside from Saori and a still unconscious Sagiso who hoarded one poor pod to the right. The mortician bit into his lips. His ponytail came slightly loose as he walked over to the farthest corner from the left, away from where the door would be. There, Kamui saw a television screen built to the wall. He lightly tapped onto it. There was nothing. "Hm…"
"God!" Sagiso suddenly jumped out from her seat, hyperventilating and gasping for air. "Monokuma! W-where-?! Huh…?"
"Nice to see you're alive," Saori joked, although that joke of hers was more genuine than anything, obvious by the worry that escaped her face. She placed a careful hand to Sagiso's sweaty shoulder. "How are you?"
Sagiso was baffled, eyes blinking continuously. "Uh… alive? No, are we even alive right now?"
The body broker's lips fell into a small smile. A small, yet genuine smile that caused a tear to her sleepy eyes. "I guess we are, huh?"
"Saori…" Sagiso went silent, flabbergasted. She then quickly grabbed ahold of Saori's arms, almost too tightly for the other's comfort. "Where's Kaniza? Is she safe?!"
Saori's tears fell, but it was more out of inevitability than anything. "Y-yes," she managed, nodding her head. "She's next to you there."
The psychogeographer whipped her head back, finding Kaniza's pod behind. She immediately dashed to the raven, shoving her and forcing her awake, almost causing her voice to strain and die. "Hey, Kaniza! Kaniza! Get ahold of yourself!"
A groan escaped the raven. Sagiso's eyes immediately began to well up, but she forced it back as she threw Kaniza into a tight embrace. "You're alive! Oh thank god."
"Nn… S-Sagi…?" Kaniza's eyes slowly opened, revealing their golden hue. It was slightly dull, though they knew it came from a result of both tiredness and sleepiness. Those sparkly eyes of hers would lit up when she began to notice her surroundings: Sagiso embracing her, Saori giving her a small smile, Kamui and Minori… Everyone was here, and Kaniza had to blink twice before realizing the situation she was in- the reality. "Y-you guys…"
A few minutes passed before Sagiso threw Kaniza a wide smile. Kaniza would smile at her, although confusingly, and Sagiso would then release her, moving out of the way. She held a hand out, helping her friend move out from her pod and to her two feet.
"So…" Kaniza yawned softly, groaning in the meantime. "A-are we alive? Or is this… is my mind playing tricks on me again? Is Monokuma…?"
"Kaniza, don't kid yourself," Sagiso teased, though it was gentle and soft as she nudged the woman. "We're not ghosts."
Kamui nodded his head slowly. "We're definitely alive," and then he would smile, even when continuing, "and I don't sense Monokuma anywhere."
"I don't even recognize this place," Minori commented, dark green eyes darting back and forth. But, even if his worry wanted to explode, his relief and happiness continued to wash over him, begging him to fall into a state of euphoria. My head doesn't hurt either, unlike the times I was in the killing game…
"S-so we're actually alive?" Kaniza's body straightened. "We're not dead? Monokuma's not here?"
"Geez, stop worrying." Sagiso grabbed ahold of Kaniza's cheeks, cupping them with her slightly cold hands. "You're fine, see? I'm alive, you can feel my hands, right?"
"Y-yesh," Kaniza was able to say, cheeks squeezed and cupped on her face. She then grabbed ahold of Sagiso's hands before suddenly tackling her, throwing her into a gigantic bear hug. "We're alive!"
Sagiso laughed. "Yeah, we are! Screw you, Monokuma!"
Kamui couldn't help but snort, watching the duo. "I thought you were going to cuss there, Sagiso."
"Huh? No, I wasn't-" She stopped. A sudden realization came through her head. "D… does this mean Monokuma and his lackeys' mind warping games are gone now? Negated?"
"O-oh, I haven't even thought about that." Kamui placed a hand to his forehead. He raised a brow and tilted his head, causing the scrunchie holding his ponytail to fall back down his hair even more. "Hm… my head doesn't hurt."
"Yeah, I noticed that too." Minori softly smiled at the group, although he made sure to speak in a more blunt and stern tone. "I hate to break the atmosphere here, truly, and- yes, I love you all, but I'm worried."
Sagiso slowly brought herself up, letting Kaniza stand up as well as the psychogeographer eyed the man with arms crossed. "Are you worried about the killing game?"
"Ah, more than that." The pseudologist awkwardly chuckled. "Uh, I have two things I would want to bring up. First of all, what happened before we were going to be… executed, and secondly, where we are and if the experiments don't have an aftereffect on us."
Saori immediately took on second-in-command. "Well, how does everyone feel so far? Is there anything wrong?"
"No, I feel normal. My head doesn't hurt…" Sagiso's eyes then widened. "Oh, right." She quickly bowed her head down. "Saori, I'm sorry!"
Saori flinched. "Huh?"
The psychogeographer's face was entirely red, darker than her auburn hair. "I know it doesn't excuse how I acted towards you in the killing game, but I'm really sorry! My opinion of you was really negative and I really hated how blunt you were, so I really tried to get out against you, which is completely unjustified. I'm sorry about it!"
The body broker blinked. Her pale face immediately became overwhelmed with pink, embarrassment screaming inside of her body. "Y-you don't have to apologize! I- uh, ahem, I forgive you. I should've been nicer to you as well."
Sagiso blushed, obviously unused to being in such positions. She coughed nervously and averted her gaze. "Yeah… We can still be friends at least, right?"
Saori nodded her head, smile clearly written on her face. "Of course. I don't discriminate."
Kamui awkwardly cleared his throat, eyes to the floor. "Sorry to break the mood, and I am glad you two are getting along now, but I feel like we do not have much time here. We need to discuss now and leave."
Kaniza scratched her head as she walked over to grab the other two women's shoulders, comforting them happily, though there were still tears in her golden eyes. "Yeah, we should listen to Kamui and Minnie."
Sagiso blushed as everyone's focus shifted. "Yeah, right."
"Sorry about that." Minori bowed his head down, then concentrating his gaze to the group. "I believe that we aren't safe here, given that we woke up here moments after Monokuma threw under the bus."
"Oh, shoot." The psychogeographer frowned. "That's right."
Kaniza's expression switched into fear as she looked around the room. She immediately noticed the ominous metal-built door from the front and pointed to it. "S-should we leave then?"
Saori immediately walked over to the door and grabbed ahold of the handle. She heard it creak once she moved the handle an inch away, causing the door to open slightly. She frowned and peeked an eye out. "... It's a hallway down there, but I'm not entirely sure. It's dark."
"Really? Well, I'm not exactly surprised, honestly." Sagiso frowned. "Though, if I think about it, I think we're in Monokuma's headquarters or something. Libertas, to be more precise. It would make sense, right?"
"Hm…" Minori cupped his chin, rubbing it with his rough fingers. "That does make sense, yes. I'm still a bit worried though."
Kaniza raised a brow. "Huh? About what?"
The pseudologist gulped. "Well, concerning about how we ended up here. Given what had just happened… I think it is safe to assume we've been booted out from wherever the killing game was."
Kamui blinked, eyes widened. "S-so, were we in some simulation the entire time?"
"I think that's most plausible." Saori nodded her head, instantly understanding what the white-haired man was saying. "Considering who Monokuma is, the experiments he's done, and then this, especially given our similar clothing now- I think this is the most likely answer."
Kaniza pursed her lips. Worry immediately overcame her first hand expression. "But then… what would this mean for the others? If it's all a simulation, then how did Monokuma come to be? And the others… are they still alive?"
Hope immediately washed into Minori's heart. No, that can't be right. I don't want this hope to ruin me. It ruined me before in the killing game, and I know Libertas wants nothing more than to end us all here now. Minori quickly shook his head and opted for a simple, "Maybe, we're not sure yet." He knew it would make Kaniza's own hopes die out, but he knew it was necessary. "I want to worry more about how we were able to escape the killing game."
"Yeah, we could've died back there." Sagiso took a step forward, pondering with squinting eyes. "Either it was a malfunction, or someone here saved us."
Kaniza shook her head. "I don't think any of us know how to hack or code. Monokuma would've stopped us anyways since we were near him, right?"
"Then someone outside?" Kamui raised a brow, finally having adjusted the ponytail with his scrunchie. "Fumio and Rin's group are rivals to Libertas."
"Ah, right…" The raven gulped, toying with the cloth that made up her white loose shirt. "Theia…"
"Oh, but if Theia saved us, we have hope." Saori threw the group a confident expression, lips curled into a motherly, kind smile. "There's a chance we're in Theia's own building as well."
"Here?" Minori raised a brow. "I doubt that, but it is a possibility."
The pseudologist brought a hand to his chin. He hummed softly to himself, pondering. We don't have much time to think, considering Monokuma's gone and his lackeys are… probably here. Minori turned to look at the door. He made his way over and took a peek outside. Nothing. He frowned and began to open it, opening it straight till the door was wide open.
Kamui was definitely baffled as well as the rest of the Ultimates, though his bafflement was clear with his vocal question of, "Minori?"
Minori pointed to the entrance and turned back to the group. "We don't have much time to sit around here. We should get out and explore."
"Huh? But isn't that dangerous?" The mortician held his breath. Sweat was trickling down from his Adam's apple and into his shirt. "If we're in Libertas, then wouldn't the employees see us?"
Sagiso smirked, instantly walking over to Minori and standing by his side. "Better let us play a game of cat-and-mouse than to sit here like ducks," she mused, a fire in her eyes. "There's no way to get out from this place other than to leave through the entrance, right?"
Saori couldn't help but sigh, scratching the back of her neck. "I admire your confidence, but although it is risky, I suppose we have no choice."
The psychogeographer nodded. "Yeah." She then threw a kind look to Kaniza. "Don't worry. If you're able to survive through this entire thing so far, then you'll definitely be fine."
"Yeah." Kaniza smiled in return and began to walk. "I guess you're right."
Kamui couldn't help but sigh, knowing he had no choice in the matter. He knew everyone else were going to leave, and he would rather not be alone. He quickly made his way over to the group. "Alright, but let's be extra careful, okay?"
"Of course." Minori threw the mortician a knowing nod. "I know Libertas' employees will be looking for us since they're watching over the killing game, from what Monokuma implied. We need to be careful and find a way out."
"That's only the beginning," the taller man retorted, sighing. "They're not going to stop just because we escaped the building though. They know we'll tell the others outside."
"Hey, let's not worry about it!" Kaniza cried out, although in a quiet, hushed manner. She smiled widely at Kamui in an attempt to comfort, soothe his nerves. "If we're lucky, we're actually in Theia. Let's just be hopeful."
Kamui pursed his lips and nodded, having nothing else to add once the group slowly took their first step out.
Upon their first step outside, almost as if they were babies being born into the world called Earth, their eyes awakened to nothing but the environment and their own overwhelming swarms of emotion. It was an empty hallway, a sterile hallway with switched off lights from above. The hallways led down, down and down to arch into two paths, one from the right, and the other from the left. The left and right hallways which would separate a group who was lost both had lights on, noticeable by the bright lights which overcasted into the darker hallway. What was worse for them, however, was that there was also an elevator which was right at the end of the hallway, almost mocking them.
Definitely, definitely this was meant to stir confusion into the Ultimates' brains. It was meant to separate them, to throw them into potential danger.
"Uh…" Kaniza looked up to the group. "What should we do?"
Saori turned to Minori. "Should we split up?"
Sagiso shook her head. "But if we split up between us, in three groups… someone would be left out as the only person in the third group. Shouldn't we be concerned over the mastermind? I don't mean to sound so accusatory, but…"
Minori nodded his head slowly. "Understandable. I am worried about that too, so… hm…"
"I wouldn't want us to miss anything though," Kamui admitted, apologizing to the group by bowing his head. "I would like to make a suggestion then… please, if you all trust me."
Everyone threw each other a look. It was obvious the mastermind was amongst them, and despite everything that Monokuma said, the want to trust each other was still there. Either one of them could've been the mastermind, and yet that would only raise the question: why didn't the mastermind let them die, and why did they let them escape?
Maybe it was a mistake. Maybe whoever did this shocked the mastermind. It was unprecedented, and the group still had no idea what to make of it.
Minori coughed. He decided to speak first, knowing that time was wasting, ticking away. "Please go ahead."
And Kamui would throw a soft smile, his trust in Minori merely having risen. "Thank you." He breathed softly. "I think the person who should separate from us should be whoever we least suspect."
"What?" Sagiso shook her head. "Wait, but Kamui, isn't it fine if we just go through the hallways in groups, then come back and take the elevator?"
Kamui frowned. "You never know how complicated a building can get. I've seen documentaries and heard people telling me about some buildings which are quite… tricky, to downplay it."
"Oh, right." Saori pursed her lips. "Some buildings are quite tricky to move across, all for the simple purpose of making sure robbers and potential criminals cannot escape or hurt or steal anything. And, given where we are…"
"That's true…" Kaniza breathed shakily. "The entire place already looks so high-tech. Given the killing game and what Monokuma did to us…"
"Yeah, noted." Minori thought for a moment, hands cupped to his chin. A moment passed before he snapped his fingers. "Okay, I think Kaniza should be trustworthy."
The astrophotographer's eyes widened. "H-huh? Me?"
The pseudologist smiled awkwardly as he noticed the group throwing him a weird look, eyes blinking. He laughed softly before explaining himself with, "I think out of everyone of us, we suspect Kaniza the least. To explain it briefly… If Kaniza was the mastermind, she wouldn't have done what she did."
Kamui was silent. A few seconds passed before he slowly nodded his head, clearing his throat with a soft cough. "I suppose you have a point. I do suspect Kaniza the least, true."
"I-I mean…" Kaniza awkwardly laughed, scratching her head. Her entire face was now red. "I do admit I'm not the smartest so that would hinder me from planning this type of thing, but… Are you guys sure? Isn't it dangerous for me to go alone too?"
Sagiso nodded her head. "Yeah, I'm worried about that. I don't want Kaniza to get in trouble if she were to get caught."
The pseudologist sighed. He couldn't help but throw the group a wary look. "Well, I'm going to be honest, but out of everyone here, I can tell you suspect Kaniza the least for a numerous amount of reasons."
"Yeah, but…" The psychogeographer went silent. She bit into her lips, and finally heaved a sigh. "Fine, but I don't want Kaniza to get hurt."
Kaniza pumped her fists. "D-don't worry!" She immediately threw on a hopeful expression. "If… if I was able to survive through the killing game, then I'm sure I can do it. I don't want to disappoint you all either."
Sagiso was shocked, eyes blinking a couple of times, eyebrows arched. "If you're so sure…" She sighed deeply, releasing a smile. "Fine. I trust you."
"Yeah, don't worry." Saori grabbed ahold of Kaniza's hands, comforting her with a squeeze. "I believe in you, just know that."
Kaniza bobbed her head. "Y-yeah!"
Kamui rubbed his hands together, a mixture of excitement and anxiety in his face. "I suppose we are ready to move?"
"Mhm, yeah." Minori forced a confident smile. "Kaniza will go through the elevator then. I'll go with you to the left side of the hallway, leaving Saori and Sagiso to go to the right. Does anyone want to disagree?"
"I don't see any problem with it," Sagiso answered, rubbing the white-haired man's back for reassurance. Her eyes shifted to Kaniza's direction though. "Or would you want to go to one of the hallways?"
"Uh…" Kaniza pursed her lips. "Is it more dangerous to go into one of the hallways than to go in the elevator?"
"Oh, right." Minori's face dropped. "Then Kaniza can take the right side, and I'll leave the Saori and Sagiso to go through the elevator to investigate."
"That makes things easier." Kamui pointed a finger. "If Minori and I are done with our investigation, we can meet up with Kaniza if she's done with her investigation in the right side if we see her."
Kaniza's eyes brightened instantly. "Oh! Then that's perfect! I really hate to go out by myself."
"Yeah, I know that. That's why this works out better." Minori threw a kind smile to the woman. "I'm sure we should be able to see each other, Kaniza. If Kamui and I are finished with our investigation and don't see you near the elevator, we'll give you a couple of minutes. Is that fine?"
"Yeah, that should be fine. I'll do the same if I don't see you two." The astrophotographer pumped a fist up. "I'll try to be as quick and efficient as I can. I can assure you that at least!"
"Definitely." Saori heaved a soft breath. "I know we'll be fine."
Minori clapped his hands together, heart beating at a slightly quick pace. "Okay, then we have our plan. We should get moving then."
Kamui nodded his head. "Yeah, right."
And with that finally settled, the group began to move. Their walk down the hallway was nothing short of eerie and bizarre. The darkness of the hallway did not help, yet the light that emitted from the ends caused the Ultimates' own shadows to appear behind them, on the walls, etc.
Minori couldn't help but label this as nothing but creepy. It was one thing that the Ultimates were inside of a dark hallway, but for the section they were trapped into being dark aside from the ends did worry him. It was as if people could not care less about these Ultimates, that they tried halfway before deciding to label the Ultimates as trash, tools. Maybe they had labeled them as trash, given what Monokuma mentioned during the trial, and it threw shivers down the pseudologist's spine.
Were they truly left for naught? Did the mastermind truly wanted them to die, leading to the unprecedented to happen? Why was the mastermind doing this to them, and why are they letting them live right now when they wanted them dead?
Maybe the mastermind wanted to die themselves. Minori probably should've thought of that before, yet now it crossed his mind. The silly pseudologist was still quite unaware of the situation, sadly.
Footsteps echoed. It stopped once the group stood remotely away from the darkness, straight into the light.
The group turned to look at one another. Although the group could've opened their mouths and speak, detail their goodbyes for the moment, that wasn't the case. The situation called for silence, sneakiness. They knew they had a chance of being caught, no matter who it was. Even if they were not in Libertas' vicinity and were in Theia, they shouldn't risk it. They couldn't, they did not want to.
Monokuma and Libertas somehow wanted them dead now. They were nuisances now, and although Minori worried about what Libertas was planning at this moment, he had to think about it while walking. He threw the group a small smile, and then turned.
I need to figure out what is happening. Why we're in the killing game in the first place, the mastermind... so many things to worry about.
It was a turn that motioned Kamui to follow, and soon the mortician and the pseudologist left, moving straight to the left. They heard the elevator door opened, and they heard a pair of footsteps leaving, becoming quieter and quieter from behind.
... And here is a rather short end to this chapter! Like I said, Chapter 6 will be different from how I write other chapters, though that might just be what I believe. Nonetheless, I really hope I will be able to finish Chapter 6 and this story as a whole, and be happy with how I end it. That's my biggest worry so far, but yet I am quite excited to be able to get all the way to this chapter and finally reach close to the finishing line! Woo, I'm nervous.
Of course, I have finally posted up the final poll on my profile which is the following: who is the mastermind? Please feel free to vote on the poll since I would like to see what you guys think! I am sincerely so surprised that I was able to even bring this story so far and keep a lot of you engaged. It's all thanks to you guys for motivating me and supporting me from the beginning to the very end! You guys are definitely the true MVPs!
Finally, here are the promotions:
Danganronpa: Blood Sport (tobi-is-an-artist-too)
Danganronpa: Brightmere Mysteries (WritersMind15)
Danganronpa: Execution Order (Heroi Oscura)
Danganronpa: Remnants Of My Heart (Prince PokePersona)
Danganronpa: The Pitiful Plague Called Ignorance (RioA)
For Whom the Rabbits Mourn (SanityRequiem)
... And that is all I have to say for now. I will see you all next time (which is hopefully soon since it is my summer vacation, haha)!
