I hope you all enjoy this chapter! It was really fun for me to write!
No…
I… won't… let it happen…
…
I'm not going to be like that…
Please…
I won't…
Do you hear me?!
NO MORE!
(Chapter 1)
(The Fools Who Dream)
(Part 1)
The darkness rippled around me, creating a fluttering motion of waves before shattering into a bright light.
That light pierced into my eyes, burning into my brain until tears prickled out of my eyes. They uncomfortably lingered there as an overflow of memories began to surround me. It was like a tidal wave. A tidal wave of despair for where I now was forced to reside.
That despair, it gripped tightly onto my neck, choking me without remorse. It squeezed, tighter and tighter as I fell into the void. No air, there was no air anywhere. No oxygen. Nothing. I couldn't breathe. That despair…
That face…
I suddenly shot up, my heart pounding, my vision blurry as a boiling sear throttled my throat. I couldn't help but scream though the pain though. The instinctive reaction was too strong for me to quell, and unfortunately that just left me feeling even worse off than before, causing me to crash down onto a soft surface under me.
H-Huh? What's… under me?
I attempt to spread my arms out, only to be met with a fiery tear through my skin, and also a soft fabric between my fingers. From what I can feel through the unbearable pain, it reminds me of a blanket. It was very heavy, but had an undeniable softness to its material. It was as if I was actually on a bed. But… I'm still in that god awful school… why would there…?
…
Oh wait…
"As you stay here, everything will be provided for you. Bedding. Entertainment. And of course, training!"
Right… of course he would provide us with rooms to stay here. I must've been carried here when I blacked out after the announcement. Having to stay in this place... forever.
Clenching my hands into fist, I inhaled deeply and exhaled as best as I could. Each breath calmed my nerves a little bit, but of course it shook with each breath. I stared up at the bright white ceiling, just thankful to see… anything. To see light… not darkness.
Ugh… I shouldn't sit here any longer than I should. I need to move and find everyone else… work out a way to get out of this hell …
My head still foggy, I groaned as I forced my fragile body up. My hands shook as I placed them on the mattress below me, but I managed to get a good enough placement to prop myself up and observe where I had ended up.
I was in a bedroom, no surprise there. I was secretly hoping it was my old room, but no, I could tell I was nowhere I belonged in. The room in particular was pretty hideous, with ugly blue carpeting and starch walls that stretched out into a medium sized square. There were some cracks in the walls, and I think there was some mold or grime stuck in the upper corners, with little webs situated in places the light couldn't reach.
Disgusting… feels like I'm in some kind of nightmare.
I looked down to find I was in a twin sized bed, with a wooden bed frame. On both of its sides were end tables, with a few books on them. In front of the desk was a drawer, currently closed, with a big mirror above it. From the reflection, I could see as right as rain that I looked like an alien creature. My hair was a mess, my clothes were filthy, honestly it looked like I'd been crawling around in one of those old McDonalds ball pits. Looking at the right side of the room, I saw two arm chairs with another small end table in the corner. In front of them was a circular coffee table, with not much on it. Near the bed was a large desk, with a few empty shelves and bookshelves. Right in the center of the desk, with a light shining on it from the desk lamp was a small box, wrapped with pink wrapping paper that was held tightly together by a situated white bow.
I guess Christmas came early for me this year… or maybe it actually is Christmas. Honestly… what month even is it…?
Lucky enough for me, I didn't really need to guess, for there was a calendar pinned near the back of the desk, with a circled date saying January 3rd.
It's January? Not a great start for the new year. Of course, this could just be a lie.
To the left side of the room was a hallway, where two doors rested. One of them was titled 'bathroom', and the other seemed to go to the outside. There was also a camera hanging above in the corner of the room, staring at me. Though it was like Satoshi and Shin said, the cameras looked beyond repair… almost destroyed. But if it wasn't working, I wonder why it's still in this room.
In fact… where was this room? When me and Hemi explored… I don't remember finding a place for bedrooms.
There were so many places to check out here, but I decided to examine anything that stuck out to me. I slowly got out of bed…
…
Well more like flopped out but we won't talk about that…
Anyway, once I was standing and out of my bed, I began to look around. The first place I checked out was the desk that held my monopad and the strange present I saw. The monopad had a note taped to it, which was nicely handwritten in the classic cursive style that was appealing to the eyes. The ink letters revealed the note to be written in pen, which… gave me a small tip of who it was from before I even began to read it.
"'Hello Mei! It's Hemi here! I hope this letter finds you in good condition!'" it started off, "'sorry for entering your room without permission. We didn't want to place you somewhere uncomfortable for you, so Elayah and I decided to put you here. We wanted to make sure you were caught up on everything that happened while you were passed out. So when you have the chance, meet us in the dining hall. I hope to see you soon. Sincerely Hemi. And Elayah!'"
They wanted to meet up in the dining hall to catch me up on things. I suppose it's been a while then. I should probably get there as soon as possible. Once I finished reading it, I took the monopad and activated it. All of the profiles were unlocked, allowing me to now open the 'rules' and 'instructions' app. I decided to not check it out just yet, for I wanted to inspect the weird gift I had gotten. It sat on the desk eerily, wrapped in obnoxiously bright wrapping paper.
Why do I feel like I won't like what's inside?
I quickly opened it to reveal a white box. Opening it up, I found… a pair of clothes,with a note placed on top of them. The clothes consisted of a bright white sweater, a black flared skirt, polished black loafers, white stockings, and square rimmed glasses.
What… is this? They look so clean, but considering where we are, these would probably get dirty fast, and why are their glasses…? I can see perfectly fine…
A little unsettled, I took the note placed atop the clothes and gave it a quick glance, hoping it wasn't who I thought it was…
"'Rise and shine ya bastard!'" it started.
Yep… it's from him…
"'I hope you got a good rest from that freighting business I put you through,'" it continued, '" I'd like to formally apologies for going in so strongly on our first meeting! Whoopsies on my part! I'm willing to take the blame for whatever trauma you may undergo! But even taking the blame has not absolved me of the guilt in my soul, so, I decided to give you a gift to show my sincerity! As part of your first step toward mastering your abilities, I offer you this colorful ensemble more fitting of your Ultimate status! Congrats! When you find the time, consider wearing these as a reminder of your unwavering academic knowledge Ms. Fujie, and I hope to work with you in the future to further better your talent!'"
Even though it's just a letter I can still hear his voice. And he's still pushing this whole "Ultimate" thing… what the hell does it even mean…?
Considering Monokuma's went on a huge shopping spree last time by giving us rooms and 'Ultimate Labs', he's probably dead serious about this whole plan. But even if that's the case… there's no way in hell I'm going to listen to that freak show, or wear anything he says. Even if I am all dirty/ I took the box with the clothes and put them in the drawer. Though they were fresh and new, I didn't want anything Monokuma was offering. It made me feel stronger doing that. Like it was some small resistance against Monokuma, even if it was for something as small as rejecting a pair of clothes he got me.
Still, even though I rejected Monokuma's gift… I still didn't want to go outside looking like a mess. So I quickly rushed to the bathroom and washed up. I didn't do anything too fancy, just a quick rinse of my face to wash the dirt away and some brushes for my wild hair. It wasn't much but I think I looked marginally better then when I first arrived here. Not much… but a little bit.
I better just get to the dining hall to find out what everyone knows…
Holding my monopad close in hand after I was done, I left the bathroom and stepped outside the room I was in to find a whole new world of light. The second I did however, a new scene developed around me. One that was not the school I was used to.
I was in a large building, with a small seating area on the ground floor. There were plants, couches, chairs, and a few paintings placed strategically around, resembling a small lobby of sorts. The area was two stories tall, with a row of doors on both the second and ground floor. From where I was standing, I could immediately assume, the second floor had all the female rooms, and the first floor had all the male rooms.
The building had light blue walls and flooring, with three double doors going North, East, and West. The North doors led out into an area bustling with light. The East doors connected to a hallway that led to the 'Lounge' as it said above it. And the west doors had a big sign titled 'Laundry Room' above it as well. There were a few worn down cameras positioned around the walls, so I decided to not pay them any mind as I descended down the stairs to the first floor.
There were no overgrown plants or cracks growing on any of the walls, nor were there misplaced flowers or dirt covering the floor. It looked like any other standard building… although it was overly blue, paired with a shining oppressive light that poured through the open windows. Still unsure of what that exactly meant, I decided to go out through the North door when it suddenly opened on its own.
Interesting… are these automatic-?
"Mei! Oh you're alive! Alive my friend! I knew some good would come out of this day! Of course there would!"
Nope! Definitely… NOT automatic doors-!
I was bombarded with the loud voice of a certain red head, who's bright smile distracted me from the fact that he was suddenly hugging me as if I were his long lost brother or something.
"Um!? S-Shin?! What are you doing!?" I shouted, pushing him away out of instinct.
"Huh? O-Oh! Right! S-Sorry about that!"he said sheepishly, quickly backing away, "got a little too carried away with celebrations there… yea, that was my bad… eheh…"
"I don't think just being awake warrants such an intense greeting," I mumbled, rubbing my arm.
"Well, it's a great thing you're awake anyway!" he said with a smile, "we were all so worried! Or well, everyone else was worried, *I* was calm and collected of course like a proper leader! But it's nice to see you back in action!"
"Uh… t-thanks I guess…" I replied, overwhelmed by his eccentric nature,
With Shin successfully pried off, I was able to notice that he was still wearing the same clothes as before… all dirty and apocalyptic as usual. I'm not sure if Monokuma gave a gift to everyone here, but I'm guessing if he did, Shin didn't take it either. That makes me respect him a little bit more… although his attitude is highly concerning…
Focusing back on his different colored eyes, I noticed that the boy was immediately opening his mouth for conversation again, "so, everything going swell for ya Mei? You looked pretty worn down after that whole… fiasco… if you catch my drift…"
"Yeah… it wasn't… pleasant," I mumbled, remembering the event with horrid accuracy, "I'm okay now though… but... Shin, why are you here…?"
"I was just about to tell you that!" Shin said, his face glowing, "see here… while you were all bunkered down, the rest of us decided to fully explore this place all 'action commando' style! When I finished investigating, I came to get you since we were all gonna meet up back at the dining hall. Discuss our discoveries together and all that jazz! Sounds pretty cool right!?"
I nodded along, mostly out of relief that at least everyone's been doing something while I was out cold, "good to know… um… sorry I couldn't contribute more."
"Oh nonononono! You're totally fine!" Shin reassured, "in times like these, it's important to get your rest. After all, teens like us usually need abouuuuttt…. eight to ten hours of sleep per night to react appropriately to daily activities… such as running, jumping, rationing supplies, picking through debris, spotting survivors in floods, also making sure you've got an accurate amount of people inside the bunker-"
Those are… quite the "daily" activities Shin's participates in…
"Anyway… you need a lot of sleep to make sure you get through the day!" Shin continued after going on that little tangent, "and… lets seeee… for you it's only been about two hours. So… actually, you haven't gotten the right amount at all… oh no! Are you sleep deprived Mei? Ah this is a disaster! You need to get back to bed right-!"
"What? N-No! I feel perfectly fine," I responded, my voice growing a little louder than I intended, "I don't need any more sleep, I just need answers right now."
"Is that so? My, my…" he said, pondering with a thoughtful gaze, "I thought tutors usually had all the answers… but ah… of course! Fire away!"
"Hmmm," I said, looking around at the strange new building, "well… do you know what this place is? This doesn't look like part of the school…"
"Oh! That's cause it isn't!" Shin explained, "you see here, ever since that weird bear thing left, a bunch of areas in the school unlocked, and now we can explore wherever! This building is separated from the school, and it has all our bedrooms in it. So, consider this place our headquarters for the time being! A safe haven. Valhalla almost!"
"Wait… separated… from the school?" I blurted out, "does that mean the doors to the school opened? Is this… outside?"
"Hmmmm, well… yesssss… and no," Shin commented, his face slightly cringed.
"What? Then which one is it?" I asked.
"This building is outside of the school, but it's not like… *outside* outside," he explained, "we're still trapped in this area by a massive- and I mean MASSIVE cage of some kind."
"A… cage?" I repeated, "how… does one just build a cage over a school?"
"If you're determined enough, one can build almost anything!" Shin exclaimed, "believe me, *I* should know! One time, a category five quake hit this village I was staying in, so of course I called into action and made makeshift stretchers for the wounded with just some old vines! It's one of my fonder memories."
"That's fond to you?' I asked before shaking my head, "you know what, never mind. So… there's a huge cage over the school and this building… if that's the case, aren't there any holes around the walls or something?"
"That's a negative," Shin explained, "me and Dorobo patrolled the entire perimeter! And it was a lot of perimeter. I mean seriously, the amount of ground we had to cover made even *my* feet hurt! But alas, we came up empty…"
"God… not even a crack?" I said, looking down to hide the shock registering on my face, "… Monokuma wasn't kidding when he said he wanted us to stay here forever. Who would do something like this…?"
"Aliens-" Shin started before stopping himself, "oh… uh, I mean maybe… it's probably… definitely… but probably aliens. But Haru did actually come up with a theory himself… although I think mine is pretty full proof!"
"You talked to Haru?" I said, genuinely surprised, "that's a first on his part. What was his theory?"
"Er… well, it's more like he said he had a better theory," Shin corrected, looking to the side with puzzled eyes, "when I asked if he could share it, he just kinda… walked off to investigate. I'll tell you he's a real tricky one to figure out…"
That's definitely more of an appropriate response from him.
"So he didn't tell you anything basically," I confirmed.
Shin nervously chuckled and scratched his head, "nah. He didn't really want to explore with us so much. In fact, a few people went it alone. But the rest of us found some pretty incredible stuff!
"Really?" I asked, turning his head over a little bit to the side, "well then… can I meet everyone and see what they've found?"
"Of course!" Shin exclaimed with a bright smile, "if you would so kindly follow me!"
With persuasive words and extravagant exit, Shin helped lead me out of the building through the double doors. A bright light poured in as soon as he opened them, making me squint as my shoes landed on a hard wooden deck. Everything felt fresh, like the air had been completely transformed into a natural breeze. Though my eyes were closed, a bright light pierced through my lids, warming my sore skin in a soothing massage. It wasn't until my ears picked up the faint sounds of crinkling leaves and shifting grass that I decided to open my eyes.
It was a field. A large, open… grass field… with a clear dark orange sky, and shimmering sun. Clouds wove through the fading canvas, casting shadows onto the grass before me. There were large trees, flowing with leaves in the wind that wafted a pleasant scent. Dirt went off into little paths on the ground, leading to the massive school ahead overflowing with flowers, vines, and trees. And above all of this life. Towering over the school and field was the glass cage Shin informed me of earlier, blocking our escape.
Shin wasn't exaggerating when it came to its size. The thing was even bigger than anything my eyes could naturally process, as it enclosed around the field, beyond the trees, and above the buildings around us. The dome stood there eerily, slightly teasing at the idea of freedom, but not daring to offer it.
"I can't believe this…" I muttered to myself, "it's real… but… w-why?"
I wasn't able to answer my own question. This whole thing, it just made no damm sense anymore.
"It's pretty big huh?" Shin said, noticing I stopped, "although I'll be honest, this doesn't even come close to some of the biggest manmade structures on the planet! Ah… Oroka would probably be able to tell you more about that."
"Even then… it's still horrible," I muttered, "s-someone took the time to build this… just for us. I don't get it… not even a little bit…"
"It's pretty strange, that's for sure," Shin said, scratching his head, "but we shouldn't worry about it for now. Nighttime is approaching, so we should probably hurry!"
Walking ahead, I observed the rest of the area. In front of the building we came out of was a tiny courtyard with some seating and trashcans. Splitting off from it were dirt paths that went in three directions. One went straight into the back entrance of the school. Another went off left toward the gymnasium. And the final path went off to the right, where a sign titled 'Gym' rested beside it. Nearby these paths was a small looking shed, which I could see had a physical lock that required a key of some kind.
Paying it no mind, Shin and I quickly made our way to the back entrance of the school, where a glass door was waiting for us to open it. The moment we did, a brand new room opened up to me.
It was a large greenhouse of sorts, overflowing with juicy fruits, lush plants, and potted materials nearby white shelves. The walls made of glass overlooking the field we came from. Part of the roof was also structured this way as well, but the other half of the room connected to the school was a simple white wall. A few glass windows were propped open, allowing cool air to enter the humid room. The floor was tiled white, with black mats placed near tables holding tropical flowers. Above the flowers were sprinklers, which were turned off at the moment.
There was also someone else inside the room, carefully inspecting one of the signs near the glass door. That person was none other than Amane, who hadn't noticed we entered until Shin announced our presence.
"Big whiz Amane! How's it hanging my friend?" Shin smiled.
Amane turned around, a little surprised at the energetic disaster prepper's appearance, "ah! Hey there Shin! It looks like you're just as sunny as ever, not much of a surprise there!"
"You bet! I just went ahead and picked Mei up for our meeting!" Shin said, stepping aside to bring me to view.
Crap…
"Mei! You're awake!" Amane quickly making her way over to me, "are you hurt? Are there any bruises we need to take care? I believe Runa and Matsuo are down by the infirmary-"
"N-No… I'm okay…" I interrupted, unable to really match the two's energy, "um… I'm a little sore, but I'm okay…"
"Yep, Mei over here is as right as rain!" Shin commented with a bright smile.
"Oh, then that's great news!" Amane replied with a reassured sigh, "wouldn't want anyone else injured on the job, especially considering where we are."
I nodded along with her, but was unable to say anything in response to keep the conversation flowing. Amane seemed a lot more cheerful than I remember, though I wonder if that's just her way of coping with what we saw…
That… face… we all saw.
"Well then, it's good to see you all chipper!" Shin said with a grin, interrupting my thoughts, "how's your search coming along?"
"It's going… okay I guess. I had just finished looking around this room before you guys showed up. It's kinda muggy though… so I was hoping to finish up as soon as possible."
There was no question there. The greenhouse was unbelievably humid, even with the windows propped open to let some air in, "did you manage to find anything?"
"In this room? Nothing in particular," she informed, "there's mostly plants… some gardening equipment… at least I think that's what it is. Oh! And before I forget, I also found this schedule for the sprinklers here."
"Sprinklers?" I repeated, and as if on cue Amane pointed toward the sign we were looking at earlier.
"Yeah, there are sprinklers in this greenhouse to water the plants so we don't have to all the time," Amane continued, "they're programmed to adjust their length and time for each section so the plants get their daily fix. And this routine is also implemented in the sprinklers outside."
"I guess we better not be lounging around out there before that downpour starts then," Shin commented, "being soaked really doesn't do any favors for comfortable living!"
Considering we're in a freaking killing game, I feel like that should be the last of our concerns. But I probably should do as Shin says and be careful when the sprinklers come on.
"Other than that, there wasn't much else in here," Amane sighed, "I hope the others are having better luck than I am. None of the rooms unlocked so far have really contained anything."
"Um… which rooms in particular were unlocked?" I asked.
"Oh, well…" Amane started as she put a finger to her chin, "I believe it was… the greenhouse, the courtyard with all the buildings outside, the library… and apparently two new labs opened up as well, although I don't know who they belong to."
So, two new labs, this greenhouse, the open field with our rooms, and the library. But even the thoughts of books aren't comforting right now.
"I can't believe Monokuma is serious about us staying here…" I muttered.
"Yeah, it's not… ideal," Amane agreed, putting a hand on her hip, "it's weird that these people… or that bear went all out on the different rooms here. But we shouldn't worry too much. After all, no one's gonna follow those insane rules he put up."
"Right, that whole 'killing game' nonsense." Shin rolled his eyes and pretended to wave the notion away. "I'm sure it ruffled some feathers when it was announced, but no one here would ever do such a thing!"
How can you be so sure…? I wanted to ask, but instead, I sighed and looked away, "where is everyone else right now?"
"They all went off to investigate," Amane answered, "but we were all gonna meet up at the dining hall in a little bit, right Shin?"
"Correct!" Shin answered, "we were just going to head over there now! Want to join us Amane?"
"Sure thing!" she said as a positive smile grew on her face, "there isn't much else here to check out anyway, so I'll report what I can when we meet up!"
With that out of the way, Shin lead both me and Amane to the dining hall where only five people were waiting for us. At the center of the room was Satoshi, talking to Oroka and Takumi without a care in the world. Oroka wasn't paying much attention as she drew on her map, allowing Takumi to carry the conversation with a charismatic grin. At another table was Naoko, not really participating in much of anything as she was reading a book, and Eio, who was sleeping with his arms over his head.
Not exactly a big turnout...
"Looks like this is the lineup for now!" Shin exclaimed, catching everyone's attention in the room, "hey everybody! I brought Mei here!"
The second he said my name, I forced myself to wave at everyone while trying to keep eye contact.
The first to talk was the wacky enthusiast, "yo! Good to see you Mei! Looks like you came back safe!"
"Yeah… hello again…" I said before looking around, "why is it just you guys here?"
"W-We finished early…" Oroka answered, "so everyone's not quite here yet…"
"I'm sure they'll be here soon though," Amane commented, "a lot of people finished up a bit ago, so it should only be a matter of time."
"Until then, we all have a little free time to discuss anything we want!" Takumi grinned, "Satoshi was just tellin' this awesome story about a conflict he resolved between two countries!"
"Yes, I believe I ended at the part where the Sir Dlamini Nikosi had offered to surrender his gunships from Mister Seraphin's fleet during our meeting," he spoke, "shall I continue with the tale?"
"Heck yeah!" Takumi smiled, quickly joining in, "what type of gunships were they? You gotta tell us what variant it was at least!"
"Ah! H-Hang on, I wanna know what type it was too!" Shin chimed in, rushing over to join them, "were there any secret government meetings I should know about?"
"Ah, y-you guys …" Oroka said with a nervous smile, "I don't t-think Satoshi is familiar with the variants… or shady government business…"
"I'm afraid I am not, but I shall do my best to answer any questions you have!" Satoshi exclaimed.
The four of them quickly carried on with their conversation, their faces bright with eyes full of wonder. It's as if the past few hours had never happened for them.
"It's nice to see most of us getting along," Amane commented, "having some unity really relieves the stress of all this crazy shenanigans."
"Yeah…" I said, not really paying attention, "this school has been so suffocating for so long... so it's good to see people some unity."
"Mhm, I feel you there," she sighed, looking around, "this place is so isolating… even with all of these people. Not at all flattering enough. Maybe if they put up some posters and repainted some walls it'd look better."
"I wouldn't really want to be here any longer than we are…" I said, "and I don't think… repainting some walls would fix the vibe here."
"Well, you never know what effect something could have until you do it," she said, "there's obviously some things that are like, not a good idea, but sometimes you gotta throw stuff on a wall and see what sticks."
"You think that?" I asked, perplexed by her idea.
"Yeah, I mean, maybe the *right* shade of blue would make these walls really pop, don't you think?" she said with a smile.
I nodded to Amane, even though her way of thinking was completely lost to me. I guess she was just trying to see the positives, like everyone else, but it was hard to do that after witnessing everything that took place before.
N-No Mei, you can't let up now… not so early into this game again. I need to change how they all view me-
"MEIZIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA"
A shout echoed in the dining hall before something slammed into my body. The impact was enough to shoot out all of the air in my lungs, forcing me to recoil into a tiny ball.
"A-Ah Elayah!" Amane said, her eyes wide, "you've knocked all the wind out of her!"
Of course it was her…
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH MEI YOU'RE ALIVE!" Elayah shouted, letting me go so I could actually catch my breath, "I'M SO HAPPY! DON'T SCARE ME LIKE THAT AGAIN THOUGH!"
"S-Sorry…" I mumbled, "it's good to see you Elayah…"
"You bet your muffin tops it's good to see me!" Elayah cheered with a huge smirk, "I was waiting so patiently for you to recover from your coma, it was really upsetting. I thought you died or something!"
"Well, she wasn't in a coma…" someone behind her corrected, "but it's so nice to see you again Mei!"
Suddenly, I looked up to find myself face to face with Hemi once again, with a familiar smile humbly grown on his face.
"You're here…" I said, my body relaxing a tiny bit at the sight of him.
"Yeah, I'm here," he said, quickly growing concerned, "hey um… are you okay? You looked pretty scared when the announcement happened."
"I'm pretty sure everyone was," Elayah chimed in, "but yeah, Mei, is everything good now? Anything I should do? I can get you some food."
"Um… no, I'm fine now," I answered, "I appreciate you two thinking about me though. So… what were you two doing while investigating?"
"Well uh-" Hemi started, looking a little nervous.
"We were doing just that! Investigating!" Elayah finished, "we searched throughout the ENTIRE school for an exit, but… nothing."
"Yeah, what she said…" Hemi continued, "we didn't really come up with anything conclusive about our situation either. It's all very bizarre. Everyone did try their best though."
"Everyone?" I repeated.
That's when I realized even more people had entered the dining hall along with Hemi and Elayah. Now in their own little group was Matsuo and Runa, who were talking intensely about something. Koemi had entered to, but she was further in the back near the wall, staring off to somewhere I couldn't guess. Dorobo had also made an appearance, he was currently talking with Eio, who had just woken up. And finally there was Matsuo, who was sitting at his own table drinking something.
"Wow, it's gotten a lot more crowded with your arrival," Amane commented with a small chuckle, "though I think we're still missing some people."
She's right… looking through the crowd, I can see that Haru, Camilla, and Mariya are missing.
"Ah yes, the suspicious three," Elayah smirked, coming to the same conclusion as I did, "well I mean, only Haru is really suspicious, but Mariya and Camilla are a little weird too, right? Always so quiet, besides Mariya…"
"I wouldn't say they're weird or suspicious," Hemi said, readjusting his glasses, "they're probably doing a detailed investigation throughout the school."
"The three of them are the most thorough here," Amane commented, crossing her arms, "I'm a little jealous, if only I was as focused as them."
Amane quickly shook her head before laughing a bit, "anyway, I'm sure you guys have a lot to catch up on though. I'm probably just ruining the moment standing here, so I'll just go and see how everyone else is doing!"
Bidding us goodbye, Amane quickly made her way to Matsuo, who appeared to roll his eyes the second she took a step closer to him. With her gone, the rest of us were left to our own devices.
"So, I assume you got our letter, right?" Hemi asked, turning his attention back to me, "we wanted to fill you in on everything that happened, but I'm guessing Amane did most of that already."
"Uh… kinda…" I answered, "Shin answered a lot of questions too when he wasn't talking about aliens."
"Seriously," Elayah agreed, looking a little weary, "his enthusiasm is unmatched, but maybe he could tone down the stories he chooses to make up."
"I thought you'd like to listen to stuff like that," Hemi said, looking a little puzzled.
"Well then… you thought absolutely wrong," she sighed as she scratched her head.
"Um… anyway, I think I get what all of you did," I said, "you split off in groups to look around for clues, right?"
"That's mostly what happened," Hemi confirmed, "at the start, we tried to figure out who that… uh… boy was… but we couldn't activate his monopad since their voice-activated. So then Shin suggested we search around, and that's mostly what we've been doing."
"Oh yeah… that boy…" I repeated, the image flashing through my head like a bullet, "…what happened to… him…?"
"Not sure…" Hemi said, "I… I wonder if he was apart of this whole thing somehow… and if he was… I wonder why he ended up in that state…"
"C-Can you guys not talk about that?" Elayah whined, "I'm getting a little queasy remembering it!"
I was getting a little shaken up from it too. Every time I remember that, for a moment it feels like I'm actually there again. Seeing all that blood… the boy's terrified face, it just makes me shake.
"You're right, we shouldn't focus on that," Hemi reassured, "I know that was… definitely bad… but we're all alive… and we're all still here. No one is going to follow this killing game."
"Yeah! I cross my heart and hope to die on that word as well!" Elayah agreed, "don't worry Mei, we're all going to get out of here!"
I want to hope they're right… but hope doesn't really mean anything in this place now that I think about it.
"It's a shame we all have to stay here forever though," Elayah sighed, "I wish we didn't have to meet everyone under these circumstances. This whole killing game thing is disgusting… and the rules Monokuma wrote out make no sense either."
"Rules?" I repeated, faintly remembering someone talking about that, "we have to follow more rules here?"
"Yeah, they were all written out on our monopads," Hemi said, "it's not too long of a list, so we can take a quick read if you want. Just to refresh our memory of course…"
Following Hemi and Elayah's lead, I pulled out my monopad, and clicked on the 'rules' app. A message displayed as soon as I did.
Regulations
1. Participants must spend the rest of their foreseeable future within the walls of this academy.
2. A body discovery announcement will only play when three or more students discover a body for the first time.
3. Once a murder takes place, all surviving students must participate in a class trial.
4. If the culprit is caught, they alone will be executed.
5. If the culprit isn't identified, all other participants will be executed.
6. Rule number 1 will be negated if the culprit wins the class trial, as they will be allowed to leave with no repercussions.
7. Violence against Overseer Monokuma is forbidden.
8. Overseer Monokuma will never directly commit murder.
9. Your Monopads are important items. Any damage that they receive will result in your punishment.
10. It is forbidden to share with anyone what your status is. Failure to comply in this rule will result in immediate execution.
11. Nighttime is from 10:00 PM to 7:00 AM. Certain rooms such as the dining hall, gymnasium, and medical facilities will be unavailable for entry during this time, so please explore with caution.
12. Breaking down locked doors is prohibited and will result in immediate execution if attempted.
13. More rules can be added if Overseer Monokuma deems it necessary.
"Jeez…" I muttered, "I didn't expect them to be so paranoid as to implement rules like this."
"Yeah, it's so creepy!" Elayah groaned, "like, these rules make it seem like we're in prison! I haven't done too many bad things in my life! And no one here deserves to be behind bars either!"
Elayah was quiet for a moment before side glancing at Dorobo, "ok maybe one person might deserve to be in jail, but other than that I think we're all innocent here."
I scanned over the rules again as Elayah spoke and found one that caught my eye in particular, "wait… what does rule number ten mean…? 'It is forbidden to share with anyone what your status is…'"
"It's probably talking about the status we got at the start of all this," Hemi said, "I… I wonder why we can't share it?"
"Maybe we can't outright say what it is," Elayah started, "but can we… imply what it might be?"
"Well, I think that's the same as sharing it accidentally," Hemi said, "so we probably shouldn't do anything that might break that rule. Dorobo almost got mowed down because of it."
Our status? I remember mine was… 'Irreplaceable'. What does that mean?
"Well, at least we know what the rules here are," I said silently, "it sucks we're so restricted though…"
"I can't even get a late night snack!" Elayah said with a sad look on her face, "why would people force us to go through such a thing?"
Before Elayah could finish, two more people suddenly entered the dining hall. This time, the individuals were Camilla, and Mariya. The former keeping her head down as she looked through her monopad, and the latter having a huge grin on her face as she stepped up confidently toward the center of the group, "attention everyone, I have an important announcement to make! You won't believe this discovery!"
Just as usual, she's trying to be the center of attention…
"W-What's going on?" Oroka asked, her voice becoming audible from where I was standing.
"Yeah, what's that thingy in your hand?" Amane said, leaning forward. It was at that moment that I realized Mariya was holding something shiny in her hands.
"You want to find out don't you?" Mariya teased, "well I wanna tell ya, but… I would like to here what everyone else found first, to make our discoveries fair!"
"Fair?" Runa said, "but that thing in your hand looks like something pretty important."
"Oh don't worry, it definitely is," Mariya laughed, "I just wanna see how it compares to what everyone else found. Besides, Mei was out for the count while we all searched, so she needs a little refresher, right?"
Ugh… why does she have to bring the spotlight back on me?
"So, let's all tell each other what we found!" Mariya said with a smile.
"Jeez… she's so loud…" Eio mumbled, "even more… so than… *yawns*…Dorobo…"
"Hey! I'm not that loud!" Dorobo groaned, "don't try and throw shade at me man."
"Hey wait a second, what about Haru?" Takumi said, "the dude's nowhere to be found, did he just book it somewhere?"
"Well, I think Haru is more comfortable working alone," Shin commented, "so, I think it's okay to have our first meeting take place without him. Alright everyone, let's get to sharing what we've found!"
With Shin having finished his speech, everyone got together around the center table and began to discuss the things they had found.
{Discussion Period}
Shin: Alrighty then, we should begin with everyone who patrolled on the first floor, which would be Amane, Matsuo, Eio, Runa, and Koemi!"
Amane: Ok then, I'll start us off! So… the rooms that were already unlocked were the music lab, the infirmary, the dining hall of course, and the gymnasium.
Matsuo: The rooms that were unlocked after the announcement were the library, the greenhouse, the A/V room, and also a small shopping room for things we can buy.
Elayah: Oooh! A shop! Does it sell candy?!
Matsuo: No.
Elayah: …
Matsuo: As I was saying, I searched with Runa and Amane, we didn't find anything important in the shop. The A/V room had a number of equipment, though it mostly didn't function.
Dorobo: Well that blows. I thought we could at least watch some movies here.
Naoko: Um… that's your biggest concern?
Runa: Moving on, I believe you have all been to the infirmary at least once. It contains basic medicine and drugs that could patch someone up in a pitch. The library was also quite impressive, and it held another {ultimate lab}.
Mei (reacting): Um… this ultimate lab, do you know whose it was exactly?
Runa: That is a good question. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to examine it. The lab requires the owners of it to scan their monopads. It didn't belong to me, so I assume it might be either yours or Haru's.
Mei (thinking): Interesting… I'll have to check that out later…
Amane: Anyways, I searched the greenhouse, it was pretty hot in there though. There was a sprinkler system for the greenhouse and the outside, no clues on how to escape though.
Koemi: I inspected the school's walls in an attempt to locate an opening of some kind. However, the windows were all blocked, and there were no openings to speak of.
Shin: So ah… floor one was a bust. Let's focus on the outside now! Which yours truly and Dorobo worked on!
Dorobo: There weren't any openings in the walls. The cage that covers this place is huge to, and it's tough as steel, maybe even stronger.
Shin: Thankfully, we have a bunch of facilities outside! There's a building with all our rooms, and it's connected to a lounge! There's also a gym, and a weird shed! Though both were locked.
Camilla: I assume they need a key we don't have?
Shin: Hehe… uh… yeah…
Mariya: Moving on! For the second floor, Hemi, Elayah, Eio, Oroka, Takumi, and Naoko explored it.
Hemi: That's right, we found three new rooms. There were more bathrooms as well. But uh… the rooms were… {a bit strange}.
Mei (reacting): How were they strange?
Hemi: Well, one room was locked, and the door was made of metal and looked kinda creepy. The ultimate lab there was locked as well, so we don't know what it was. The other room we found was classified as a medical facility. It was filled with high quality drugs… and {poisons}.
Mei (reacting): I'm sorry… poisons?
Eio: Most… likely… for the… *yawns* killing game…
Naoko: They vary in lethalness. Some kill instantly. Others kill slowly. I think a few paralyze the body. The drugs displayed weren't pleasant either. Someone should keep an eye on them.
Elayah: There weren't any important clues on that floor, so... that's a dead end too.
Takumi: Good thing is though that Oroka made a whole map of the second floor and third floor, so now we can traverse this place without worry!
Oroka: A-Ah… um… y-yeah… I tried to… um… make it as accurate as p-possible.
Shin: For the final floor then, we have Satoshi, Camilla, and Mariya searching around there.
Satoshi: There were only two classrooms up there, and they were… very damaged. From my own search, I didn't find anything of importance.
Camilla: The third floor connected to the balcony in the lobby, and that balcony has stairs that you can go up and down on. Nothing was on the balcony though, and I couldn't climb out from there.
Mariya: And then Haru went off and did his own thing, so who knows where that guy is, but who cares about him, right? Now, we can talk about anything important! Did anyone find anything… hmmm?
Dorobo: Ummm… I don't think so… they were all just rooms for us to live here.
Eio: I will say this… *yawns*… when I was… inspecting… the poisons… Monokuma gave me a {key} for them…
Mei (reacting): W-What? Monokuma gave you a key?
Camilla: [Care to elaborate] on that Eio?
Mei (thinking): I should save that statement for later.
Eio: Uh… yeah… he just… told me… that I… *yawns* was in charge of… that room. So… I'm the only one… who can open… the locked… cabinets… for… the poison…
Takumi: Maybe he did that cause you look like a doctor…
Eio: *yawns* maybe…
Hemi: Oh! That reminds me, something similar happened with me when I approached the shed! Monokuma sprung up and gave me this key to it, saying I was the only one who could open it.
Naoko: And you're just bringing this up now?
Hemi: Well… I was kinda nervous to talk about it, knowing Monokuma and all. But, I guess it's fine if Eio also got approached by him. I have it with me right now.
Camilla: So both Eio and Hemi got keys for different rooms… how bizarre. I guess that means it's your duty to keep an eye on them, wouldn't want anyone to break into them to get supplies for murder.
Eio: Aye… aye…
Hemi: O-Of course, I won't let you guys down!
Runa: So… was that everyone?
Shin: I think so, although we don't know where Haru is.
Dorobo: Fuck… did no one find an exit?
Takumi: I think if someone did they woulda said something, y'know?
Mariya: Wow… I mean… wow, you all surprised me. You didn't find anything, and the things you did find were so dull I almost went to sleep!
Elayah: Hey we tried our best, tokay!
Mariya: Whatever, I guess this just proves that I really did find the most {important thing} out of all of you!
Statement Used: [Care To Elaborate?]
Mei: I wonder what Mariya is talking about with this 'thing'?
{End}
"Um… Mariya," I spoke up, dizzy from all the info, "would you share with us this thing you in a little more detail?
Everyone quickly crowded around Mariya to see what she had gotten, much to the delight of the detective as she slowly pulled out an envelope of some kind, "but of course I will. You see, I found this gem in one of the empty classrooms. It's a letter of some kind, addressed to an unknown individual with an official seal on it. This means it has to be involved in this situation!"
"Then stop wasting time and open it already," Matsuo said, looking clearly annoyed.
"Of course," she said with a bow, "now then, feast your eyes on this!"
Mariya opened the envelope and took out a piece of paper. From where I was standing, I couldn't exactly see what it said, but Mariya quickly cleared her throat and began to speak.
"Quick warning, some parts have been crossed out," she started, "so I'll just make it up as I go along! Ahem! Dear someone... we congratulate you on your efforts for the capture of blank!"
"You don't have to say 'blank' you know…" Runa uttered.
"We will see to it that the blank of blank is carried out immediately!" she continued, ignoring Runa's advice, "I suggest you discuss this matter with blank before any of the blank can blank! Remember this is a very important matter for blank! Your contributions have been recorded, though there is still blank. Make sure that everyone's status continues to be…. blank, and we will then blank."
Mariya stopped and took another bow, "and that was all that she wrote!"
"Are you kidding me? That's it?" Dorobo said, anger growing on his face, "that didn't tell us shit!"
"It actually told us quite a bit," Camilla announced, "we were kidnapped at the start of all this, so we know that this 'capture' has something to do with us. This confirms we were taken against our will. And the individual who wrote this letter congratulated someone for it."
"The 'see to it' part must be talking about the killing game," Shin continued, "like, if it weren't crossed out it would say 'we will see to it that the killing game is carried immediately.'"
"And the final part talks about discussing that matter with someone!" Mariya butted in, "which means they're either talking about Monokuma… or a person we do not yet know of yet! And I'm pretty sure that since it's crossed off, it means it's referring to someone we don't know about. Maybe even someone in this cast!"
"D-Don't say such things!" Oroka spoke, "n-no one here would do something like this… right?"
"I dunnnooo," Mariya said, "I mean, we barely know the people we're trapped with here, so it'd be real easy for the higher ups to slip in a mole of some kind, wouldn't you agree?"
"Wait… Mariya, are you suggesting a mastermind of some kind?" Shin asked, "that way of thinking is a bit much… right?"
"Well duh I think that!" the detective laughed, "these types of stories always have to have a big baddie pulling the strings behind the curtain! So if the name is crossed off, it must mean it's someone who's trapped with us!"
Someone… here? Someone in this room right now has been causing all this.
"W-Wait… so someone here did this to us?" Takumi said, looking absolutely terrified, "who is it? Which one of you did it?"
"I assure you no one here would do something like this," Satoshi spoke up, "it just makes no sense to-"
"Hold on for a second," Dorobo spoke, "if we're going by off who's suspicious here, shouldn't we focus on the girls then? There are more girls than guys… it's uneven. So shouldn't the girls be suspicious then?"
"Woah! Hold on a second!" Amane chimed in, "the fact that the amount of people here is uneven is a little bit… weird, but like, that doesn't mean we're all suspicious. It could just mean a bigger number of girls than guys were put here, that's all!"
"Are we sure that's all there is to it?" Takumi spoke up, "I don't wanna suspect anyone here, but like, Monokuma was acting all weird when we brought it up. He might've said he made it up that way on a whim, but is that really it?"
"So we're all just suspicious based on that comment?" Elayah said, "there's no way any of the girls would do something like that!"
"Hey, I wasn't trying to start a fight!" Dorobo said, "I'm just suggesting that-"
"Wow, infighting already?" someone said behind us, "you all really are a sorry lot if you're going to resort to those tactics right at the start."
Everyone quickly turned around to find Haru standing in the doorway to the dining hall, looking just as annoyed as ever, "if this is how you're going to conduct yourselves during our time here, then I'm sure I made the right call of going it alone."
What the hell… now he just suddenly shows up?
"Haru, it's a pleasure to see you again," Camilla said, "we were starting to miss your welcoming personality."
"Quiet," Haru said, walking into the scene with a piercing aura, "I'm only here because you all have valuable info I need. Such as that letter."
"You really want this mister analyst?" Mariya asked, staring at Haru with a serious gaze, "this was a big find, so you better not going tearing through it with your grubby hands. This was my discovery after all."
"Please, you think you found something big?" Haru said, "you just reaffirmed information we already know. Don't go acting like you're some big shot detective from just that."
Mariya looked stunned from his comment, but her gaze never left Haru's eyes, "is that so? Well then, if you're so smart, tell me what's so important in this letter that isn't referring to the mastermind?"
"The status we have obviously," Haru said without batting an eye, silencing Mariya for just a moment.
"I beg your pardon?" Runa questioned, her golden eyes expressing a confused stare.
"God, take a look at your Monopad," Haru ordered, looking away from the rest of us.
Though I didn't like taking orders from Haru of all people, I slowly took out my monopad and activated it. A few others did the same, but before I could see my status, Elayah suddenly froze.
"H-huh? W-What is this?" she said, looking a little nervous.
"AH! WHAT HAPPENED!?" Takumi shouted, clutching his monopad tightly with wide eyes.
What the… what's happening with everyone?
Almost immediately, everyone began growing concerned, showcasing panicked eyes, sweaty faces, and hesitant glances. It wasn't until my own monopad activated and the app opened up that I finally saw the problem.
! - Status Updated - !
? – Status - ?
(Disposable)
…
…
…
What…?
…
What is… this?
…
…
Disposable…?
But before I was…
…
…
"Now do you all get it?" Haru said, "this letter isn't only referring to our capture, it wants whoever it was sent to make sure that our status is updated too."
"W-Wait, you can't say that!" Oroka shouted, her face pale and dark, "y-you'll be shot down Haru!"
"No he won't," Matsuo said bluntly, "rule number ten states we can't share what our status is. But that only applies to what our status is now."
"Huh…?" Shin said, "c-can someone translate?"
"In other words," Hemi said slowly, "we… can't discuss what it is. But we can discuss what happened to it? Like… it's effect?"
"Precisely," Haru commented, "and that's what this letter means. It means that throughout this game, a certain someone in this school, or on the outside, will monitor our progress and update our status accordingly. This killing game is meant to deem us to a certain fate according to our status."
"So it can change at any moment," Runa finished, looking weary from the reveal.
"My, my mister analyst," Mariya said, glaring into his eyes, "it appears you've actually discovered something big after all! Your little discovery has even clued me in on a few things such as the cameras. With them being offline, this explains why someone here has to physically monitor us so these can update."
"That means the cameras really don't work?" Amane said, "so… how can we be punished if no one can see us doing anything?"
"That must be what Monokuma is for… right?" Naoko asked, "he is 'Head Overseer'. And he told us he'd monitor us while we're here. So not only is he monitoring us, maybe our status is linked to our development to becoming ultimates, just like Monokuma wants."
"B-But… maybe the status thing doesn't mean anything!" Takumi blurted out with a panicked expression, "maybe… it's just a word… a label, like our titles!"
"I don't know about that," Matsuo said, "if it was something small, there would be no need for rule ten. However, since that's the case, it means whatever our status may be, it might have an effect on our lives here. Both positive and negative."
"Y-You're kidding…" Takumi said, "w-why is it like that? This game makes no sense!"
"It doesn't even tell us everything either,' Camilla chimed in, "we still don't know their exact purpose, or the reason why this game is happening."
"And as for the mastermind..." Koemi quietly mumbled, "we know nothing of their existence."
"W-What do we do then?" Oroka asked, hiding behind her map.
Dreadful murmurs took over the dining hall, as the news of both the letter and our status shook us all. There was no way out, and all we've been subjected to these weird titles and fates…
And me…
I still don't understand what's going on. And now… not only am I more confused, but my status… why did it say 'disposable?' I… does that mean…?
…
…
…
Will I end up like that boy?
"Hey guys, c'mon! What's with the sour attitude here?" Shin suddenly spoke up, "I get it, it's a litttllle disappointing we didn't find anything big… and the stuff we did find is… pretty bad. But! No worries! This doesn't change anything! We're all still kickin' right? So we should focus on the positives right now!"
"R-Right!" Hemi joined in, "suspecting each other isn't the way to go. We're all in the same position, so as long as we don't succumb to this killing game, we're all going to be alright! We're gonna be a team! And we'll definitely find a way out of here!"
Shin and Hemi's words collected themselves within the room, echoing endlessly as if they were on repeat. No one said anything in response to their words before Oroka suddenly chimed in.
"Yeah… y-yeah we… we should work together!" Oroka said, "I… I know I don't know many p-people here… but I wanna w-work hard so we can all go home and see our families again!"
"Heck yeah!" Elayah said, "I'll work hard too! Just leave it all to me!"
"I don't think you want to hold too much responsibility on your shoulders," Satoshi said, "you'll only wear yourself down that way. Allow me to help as well then!"
"If anything were to happen, please report to me," Runa instructed, "I shall aid us whenever I can."
"Same here!" Amane said, "as long as we're optimistic, I'm sure we'll be alright!"
"Absoutly pathetic, all of you." Haru bluntly said, his eyes cold and sharp, "to trust in something as abstract as hope, do you realize where we are? What situation we've found ourselves in? The reality is that we've been trapped in a killing game, and you're just going to 'hope' that things turn out alright?"
"But there's no reason to suspicious of anyone!" Hemi countered, "we're all friends here-"
"There are hundreds of reasons, thousands even," Haru continued, "if you can't realize that, then I guess there really is no saving any of you. But that doesn't matter. Even at the start, I couldn't care less about what happens to any of you."
"Well then go!" Elayah shouted, "we don't need a debby downer like you trying to ruin the mood anyway! We're all gonna believe in each other!"
Haru scoffed at Elayah's comment and turned around to exit, "fine, continue to think that way. Just don't come crawling to me when that way of thinking gets you all killed."
And with that, the analyst made his exit, with the cold shimmer of his glasses being the last thing I saw before he vanished completely.
"Jeez, why does he have to be so negative," Elayah muttered, shaking her head, "I bet he was the type of kid to rat out on the ice cream dealer on school grounds."
"His way of thinking isn't necessarily wrong however," Koemi uttered, "we should not foolishly be blinded by the thin line of hope that leads us nowhere. A well thought out plan would suffice instead."
"Yeah, without a plan, hope means nothing right now," Dorobo said, "but he still doesn't need to be a complete asshole."
"I'm not sure… he makes things a lot more interesting in this tale," Mariya commented with a strange smile, "I bet he's going be my rival during my time here! Fascinating! If that's the case, then when the first murder happens, I'll fight him with everything I got!"
"W-What the hell does that mean?" I sputtered.
But the detective didn't respond, instead she yawned loudly and sleepily rubbed her eyes, "man, it appears sleep has once again caught up to med! I'm going to now go to bed and get some shut eye, get some rest for tomorrow! I'll see you all then!"
And with that, Mariya skipped out of the dining hall before anyone could stop her.
I swear something is wrong with those two. Both Haru… and Mariya. What the hell could they be up to?
"Welp! That does it then!" Elayah shouted, "it looks like we have our conclusion!"
"Woah… you're way louder than before," Runa chuckled, "what brought on the change?"
"Nothin' in particular," she said, with a bright smile, "I just wanna reenergize the atmosphere, y'know?"
"Okay… does… that mean… we… can leave… then?" Eio muttered, rubbing his eyes.
"The dining hall is going to close soon," Matsuo informed, "so we're going to have to get out of here anyway."
Everyone around him began to nod, showing varying degrees of sleepiness. Even I was getting pretty tired.
"If you would please hold on for a moment," Satoshi said, "I understand that it has been a long day and we should rest, but we shouldn't leave off our meeting here. Instead, I propose we make up some rules so our lives here end up being a little bit easier!"
"Like a chore wheel?" Naoko suggested.
"I mean… chores are boring though…" Elayah muttered, "and I don't like washing the dishes…"
"Have you never done chores before?" Takumi asked, "what kinda family did you have?"
"A very loving one that was constantly on the move!" Elayah pointed out.
"Ok then… how about we set up a meeting system?" Amane added, "that way we can all meet up during one time of the day to discuss anything we found or want to do… like a roll call?"
"I believe the dining hall would work best for that," Runa suggested, "and since nighttime ends at 7:00 AM, and starts at 10:00 PM, we should set it up between that timeframe."
"I propose we do the morning meeting at 10:00 AM then!" Shin said, "just so we're all up and accounted for early into the day! Setting up then also gives some late sleepers a chance to actually make it!"
"Okay… t-then what about the evening m-meeting?" Oroka asked.
"I don't see why it can't be at 9:00 PM," Satoshi suggested, "so that way, once the day is done, we all meet up and discuss what we found!"
"Perfect! So our first morning meeting will take place at 10:00 AM tomorrow!" Shin exclaimed, "we're off to a great start! We already have a routine in place! I think we should use that meeting to suggest any changes we'd like to make to this routine!"
"So is that it then?" Matsuo said, "it's getting late, and I'd like to go to bed at a reasonable time before my sleep schedule gets messed up."
Oh yeah… it is almost nighttime. I guess we're really going to have to spend a night in this hell hole…
"Wait, what about the keys Monokuma gave us?" Hemi asked, "before we go to bed, I-I wanted to ask what should we do with those?"
"Keep them with you obviously," Runa said, "you and Eio are in charge of those respected areas. We can rotate every so often if you desire."
"I'm good with that…" Eio mumbled.
"O-Okay… I guess I'll be in charge of the shed then," Hemi said, "uh… if anyone needs something out of there… just let me know!"
And with that… the first official group meeting had concluded. It was slightly rushed, disoriented, and slightly panicky, but we had come up with a routine at least. The thought of having a plan made the idea of living here a little easier, but still… the whole thing was eerie… and I didn't like the idea of my status changing without my knowledge.
To go from 'irreplaceable' to 'disposable' on a dime… does that mean… to whatever 'mastermind' Mariya mentioned, that it's okay if I die? That I end up like…
…
…
…
I slowly shuffled along with everyone else back outside the courtyard to our dorm building. The looks of everyone ranged from positive to negative. Some were tired like Eio and Matsuo, who ignored the attempts at conversation with others. Some were glancing around with a nervous gaze like Takumi, who stuck closely by Oroka as she attempted to reassure him. Some had determined faces, like Satoshi and Shin as they lead the pack…
And some were just quiet… like me.
Eventually, we all made it to the building and started to enter our rooms. A few people stayed outside to have a little chat, but I didn't really feel like conversing with them. A heavy wave of sleepiness crushed atop my shoulders, so all I wanted to do was just collapse back onto my bed. Before I could though, a sudden light filled the building and an ugly voice filled my edars.
"Ahem! This is an official announcement from your Overseer! It is now 10:00 PM! As such, nighttime has officially begun! Certain areas will be locked for the remainder of the night! With that being said, good night! Sleep tight! And don't let the bed bugs biiiitttteee!"
The crackle of the announcement shut off, leaving the building in silence. It's officially our first night in this god awful academy.
With that, I turned around and made my way to my room. The feeling of uncertainty I had previously quickly vanished as I made my way into my bedroom with tired eyes. I almost wasn't able to make it into my bed before I collapsed on top of it, completely done with what the day had brought.
And thus… began the first of many nights in this horrible new world…
(New Item)
The Letter
Dear blank
We congratulate you on your efforts for the capture of blank. We will see to it that the blank of blank is carried out immediately. I suggest you discuss this matter with blank before any of the blank can blank! Remember this is a very important matter for blank! Your contributions have been recorded, though there is still blank. Make sure that everyone's status continues to be blank, and we will then blank.
AHHHHHHH HERE'S ANOTHER CHAPTER BEFORE NEW YEARS!
I'm so happy with how this chapter came out! And it really was such a delight to write out everyone in full! I love every single character, and the ideas and plans I have for them are endless so far! As of now, I have a lot of free time, so hopefully I can pump out another chapter sooner rather than later. But for the time being, I hope you enjoy this!
With that being said, you may be confused with a lot of the new changes. For starters, the "Discussion Period" is a little thing I put in to make writing a bit easier and also make who's talking a lot clearer. During this time, Mei can react to certain things, and this will happen during trials, where she can turn these comments and reactions into statements she can use later. That'll all play out later, and I hope I achieved a good effect with it here.
In other news, the FTE poll has officially closed! There were a lot of ties, so I have to choose three characters in particular to be the three who actually get them this chapter, but until then, here are the results!
In first place, tied with four votes each are…
Mariya Yakumo and Kenshin 'Shin' Kamiya (only one out of the two will be selected)
In second place, tied with three votes each are…
Elayah Mcclain, Runa Fridasdottir Rashid, Oroka Enjinia, Haru Miyamoto, and Takumi Adachi(again, only one out of these six will have a FTE this chapter, though it'll be even harder since I love all of them)
And finally for third place tied with two votes each are…
Eio Bondai, Amane Watanuki, and Satoshi Hakadoshi (only one out of the two will be chosen)
I'm pleasantly surprised by the results, and it'll be quite hard for me to choose which of these characters will have their FTE first. However, I'm excited to actually write them, and the rest of this chapter will still feature all of the characters at one point of another. I also plan for a fourth FTE to be done with my own choice, so there's still a chance a character could have an FTE.
With that said, I hope you all have a wonderful day. I have a lot planned for this chapter, and the characters are in for a wild ride. I sadly also have the deaths planned for this chapter to, so I can't wait to hear your thoughts on who it might be. You can join my discord to theorize if you wish!