Chapter 2-7
Playing the Claret
It was as if the trial room flash froze, with everyone staring in horror at the armed and furious Samson. Even the Kubs were locked up, though Monokuma was curiously tilting his head as he watched.
"Now careful there, champ," the despair bear called out, "if you kill anyone else, you will be subject to immediate execution, and it will be BEARY brutal!"
"I know where to shoot someone," Samson snarled, "in places where they won't die."
"But we don't have a medical team," Monotaro cried, "to save anyone who has been shot!"
"Oh, how terrible for everyone who isn't me."
The graduates watched him, locked in place from fear of being shot if they so much as twitched. The only ones who dared to move were Yejoon, who casually stroked his chin with a curled finger, and Kimiko and Yitro, both of them shaking in outrage.
"You killed my friend," Yitro said, a low growl, then he found his voice as he shouted, "You murdered Angel!"
"I have no idea," Samson snapped, "how you guys fucking found out the trick to the kill. Did one of the Kubs tell you? Were you fucking told?!"
"Of course not," Monokuma chirped. "I never tell anyone about the killer's plan-"
BLAM!
Samson, with only a half-second glance, pointed his gun at Monokuma and scored a perfect headshot. Blood splattered behind Monokuma's head on his throne, and he slumped down dead as one would imagine.
"AUUUGH! FATHER!" Monotaro hollered.
"This is so horrible!" Monophanie whimpered. "We aren't ready for violent situations like this!"
"Yeah, kind of makes youse wonder why we're running a Killing Game," Monosuke muttered.
"Shut the fuck up, you little bastards," Samson said, already having prepared the next shot as he pointed it at the graduates. "Now, there's no way they could have known that I set that trap up the way I did! Did you tell them?"
"NO," Monodam said.
BLAM!
Another split second glance to aim, and Samson fired. The bullet ricochetted off of his metal head, and Monodam fell backwards. The bullet imbedded in the stand behind the green Kub.
"YES!" Monokid shouted victoriously. "Someone finally shot that fucking putz!"
Monophanie started openly bawling, Monosuke hid behind Monotaro, and Monotaro was sweating like crazy. Monokid was merely strumming on his guitar, loving the chaos.
"I know you cheated somehow," Samson roared, and he saw the one who had led the charge. Isaac had his hands up, and when they made eye contact, the reporter flinched.
"HOW DID YOU DO IT?"
With the gun pointed at his head, Isaac felt sweat running down in cascades. Breathing was hard, talking was harder, but he found the strength. "I just figured it out, that's all."
"Bullshit! There's no fucking way that you could have known the trick to that set-up! Everyone would have figured whoever tripped that laser wire was the guilty party! Now do I have to put a bullet in your arm before you say how you know?
"Oh wait, how about your fiancé?" Samson grinned wickedly as he pointed the gun at Hara.
Isaac heard himself scream in desperation, reaching out towards her despite the great distance. Hara flinched, shivering as the gun was aimed at her.
Crystal moved faster than even Samson could register, and was standing in front of Hara, shielding the explorer with her body. The military adviser held her arms out, showcasing she would take anything meant for Hara.
"What are you doing, ma'am?" Samson said with a sneer. "You willing to die for some stranger?"
"Who are you?" Crystal asked, staring down Samson. She balled her hands into fists, and shouted, "Who are you?! Samson Miller is a soldier, a businessman, a Hope's Peak graduate! You've fought for your country, you've served for the public!
"How… no, why?! WHY would you do this?"
Samson laughed, then almost bent over cackling at her. "You really are blinded by that stupid honor code, aren't you? You trusted me that much?"
"You bet I did," she responded, as she blinked away the tears in her eyes. "You and I were working together to keep the other safe. I trusted you with my life, with… with their lives…"
"Then you're the fucking fool, not me," he responded. "Thanks for backing me up though, I appreciated it; however, you really dropped the fucking ball when convincing these dumb fuckers not to vote for me."
"You murdered Angel," Yitro repeated, his hatred becoming a burning fury around him. "For what? An answer to a question?! For the power?!"
"Of COURSE for the power, you dumbass! Why do you think I tried to win the trial altogether? Do you know how much profit there is in discovering the secrets to Despair?"
Hearing these words was like a hammer hitting the graduates on the head. Their ears rang, their minds buzzed, it was painful to hear this statement become a reality.
"You… you cannot be serious," Fiora blurted out. "You want to use Despair as a weapon?"
"It's the greatest weapon of destruction ever," Samson said, the frenzy growing into the most sadistic of grins. "You can use it on an enemy force, or even an entire country, and watch as they rip each other to shreds!
"Do you have any idea how much money a country would pay me to find out how to weaponize it? No, not just countries, I can sell it for millions, even billions, to interested buyers!"
"Despair killed more than a billion people globally," Fiora whimpered. "Maybe even two billion. You cannot possibly hope to contain something that destructive."
"I was going to, until you all fucked it up by voting for me."
Samson groaned as he rolled his eyes. "I set everything up so perfectly, I was even lucky enough to find those two dykes having a lovely, romantic stroll. Shame the one with the big tits saw my face, so I had to made she was the one to go."
Kimiko and Yitro both sprinted towards Samson, but were held back by Ishiku and Pyrrha respectively. The trader merely laughed at their anger. "Aww, mad I incinerated her before either of you had a chance to bang her, is that it? Sorry, but there's so much money involved in Despair, it's enough to buy a small country of big-tittied whores."
Crystal was wilting the more she heard him speak. She still stood between him and Hara, but the military adviser couldn't look more betrayed. "I… I cannot believe this," she whispered to herself. She then shouted at him, "You bastard! You served in the American army! Did that mean nothing to you? Are you that hollow?"
"Serving my country? Oh, it did mean something, my dear officer."
Samson shrugged as he kept his gun at the ready, so many people he clearly wanted to shoot, and so many he would have to shoot if they came at him.
"And what it meant was connections! You see, I have been making connections since before Hope's Peak Academy, during, and after. I learned that the army would be the perfect place to really find more, even more illicit than the ones I already had.
"They were so happy to have a Hope's Peak graduate serve with them, the army didn't know how much money I was making off of selling intel to our enemies. I'm pretty sure that for every time they applauded me for saving some squadron, I was getting another one ambushed or killed.
"The money was grand. And it only blossomed during the Tragedy."
"What? How could you possibly profit from the Tragedy?" Fiora asked, gripping her fedora. "Despair doesn't care about money!"
"Oh, but it does when you can offer them people to torture, places to attack, mobs to lead. You see, when you're in the army, you know where they are going to take defensive positions, so for a big pay day, you can inform the mob leaders of Despair on where to go."
"No…" Pyrrha whimpered. She had stopped Yitro's charge, and now was so horrified, he had to hold onto her. "No, you cannot be serious."
"You helped Despair?" Drake cried out. "You helped it ruin our country?"
Samson let out the coldest snicker. "Best money I ever made. Those infected with Despair don't think they'll be living tomorrow, so they literally empty their bank accounts for me. Such a good trade, don't you think?"
The three Americans among the graduates facing down this madman felt the coldest of shivers go down their spines. Memories of the Tragedy in their country came flooding back, and the trial room was suffocatingly small all of a sudden.
"You," Crystal spat out, "you aren't the Ultimate Trader, you're the Ultimate Traitor!"
"Aww, harsh words, ma'am; however, I guess I am deserving of your ire. After all," Samson paused his short speech, then his grin warped across his face, so bleak and dark, indescribably sadistic.
"I'm pretty sure I was the reason your sister didn't make it out of there."
Crystal flinched hard, almost as if he had shot her there and then. She was silent for a moment, and then let out the most emotional, hateful shriek as she blitzed towards the man. Shuuya managed to grab her as Samson leveled the gun, and the bounty hunter shielded her while also holding her tightly.
"He'll kill you," Shuuya tried to get through to her.
"He got my sister killed," Crystal screamed, struggling against Shuuya. "He killed her! He killed her!"
Samson barked out a laugh, and added, "Oh, I'd be a little careful around that guy holding you back, ma'am. I'm having so much fun divulging it all, and seeing your reactions, let's see how you react to this!
"I worked with a lot of shady people, people who do some pretty awful things. And yet, there was one person that struck fear into those people's hearts. There was a Japanese man who was known to be the bane of all those involved in my line of business. He couldn't be bought, either."
"You say that as if we shouldn't be glad a bounty hunter did his job," Fiora remarked.
"Is it a bounty hunter's job to murder his targets? Because Shuuya Yukimura is actually the Ultimate Assassin, and has killed more people I worked with than there are in this room. And I counted the stupid cubs."
"Hey!" Monokid hollered. "Just call Monodam stupid!"
"You're all fucking stupid, because I'm telling you now, Yejoon's not the only one you have to worry about," Samson remarked. "Shuuya's no bounty hunter, he's an assassin. You'll be lucky if he doesn't murder you all in your sleep."
Everyone felt overwhelmed by the amount of information being delivered. Shuuya didn't do anything to deny what Samson had said, but he was busy holding back Crystal's fervent attempts to get to the gunman. Only Fiora dared to speak.
"You just described him as someone who kills bad people," the movie maker pointed out. "If anything, I would think only you were afraid of him, since you just-"
She silenced when Samson pointed his gun at her. Fiora froze up, then shrieked and ducked.
BLAM!
The bullet embedded in the wall behind Fiora, who was hiding behind her podium as best she could. Samson snarled, and snapped, "Shut your fucking mouth for once, you-"
He then heard movement, and moved his hand with not a second to spare. The throwing knife that Yejoon had sent his way had almost disarmed him or taken his trigger finger. The trader pointed his gun next at the artist, and shouted, "Try that again and I will make sure you never lift your arms again!"
Yejoon relaxed his pose, and said calmly, "I hadn't expected a false soldier to have good enough reflexes."
Emanuel groaned amid the madness, and said, "Didja hafta mish her, man? Would have shaved us all a headache."
"Jerk," Fiora whimpered.
Samson rolled his eyes, then smirked in Fiora's direction. "Oh, by the way, little miss B-Movie Maker, you want to know who would be interested in Despair as a weapon? Your prime minister."
Fiora's jaw dropped, and she scrambled to stand up, despite the danger. "You… you lie! She'd never do that!"
"How do you think I got the tip about Penjar? Canada's real interested in making America their permanent bitch."
"NO! You're a liar! That's not true!"
"You monster," Kimiko muttered.
"Blame the demand, not the supplier," Samson remarked. "That's what I always say. Now I've had quite enough of you all, and I'm going to be going now."
"Go?" Monotaro called out. "Where do you think you're going? You have a punishment to face!"
"Fuck that."
"You shot Monodam," Monophanie said. "You realize The Guardian of Penjar will mow you down the moment you set foot on the surface if you just exit the building."
Samson let out a loud huff, and exclaimed, "You always gotta make it difficult. Well, what if I have an innocent person as a body shield?"
"Sure," Monosuke said, "that's fine."
"Don't tell him that!" Monophanie and Fiora shrieked at the same time.
"I'm getting out of this fucking town that doesn't play by the rules, you aren't going to try an execution on me when someone ruined my perfect plan. So…"
Samson grinned as he pointed the gun at Kimiko. "Come here, you. I think you and I have unfinished business."
Ishiku tried to put himself between Kimiko and Samson, but the traitor shouted, "If any of you get in the way, you'll never walk the same again!"
Kimiko gently pushed away from Ishiku, and walked towards Samson. Her hateful glare was not unnoticed by the trader, and he said, "If you behave, you might survive your second encounter with me, biker bitch."
"I'm not going to die," Kimiko defiantly said as she stepped up to him, "to some Despair-craving bastard."
"Hardly! I am not affected by Despair, I am not a fan of it, I merely profit from it," he said, reaching forward to grab her neck. He held his gun up as he added, his voice echoing around the trial room, covering the sound of footsteps, "Who knows? Maybe you'll be worth something, though I think since everyone you know seems to die around you, maybe it'll just be as a target dummy…"
Ken had managed to sneak up behind Samson during his talking. Despite the cavalryman's size, he was exceptionally swift and quiet when he wanted to be, his strength had a nimbleness to it. So when he grabbed the handle of his sword, and unsheathed it when swinging upwards, Samson had no idea he was there until he felt the bite of the sword's blade.
There was the sound of steel unsheathing, then the spurting of blood. Samson's arm, from the elbow to the hand with the gun still clenched in it, hit the floor. The trader moved, his reflexes kicking in when they heard that steel sound, but he didn't realize what had happened until his own crimson life fluid shot from his arm.
Samson's eyes dilated, and he opened his mouth to scream. Kimiko's fist impacted his jaw, knocking a few teeth loose. He fell to the floor, and she swooped down towards him. She was striking him over and over, until someone stomping down on Samson's chest startled her.
Yitro was kicking Samson's ribs, stamping on his chest. The other graduates hurried over, pulling Yitro and Kimiko away, while Shuuya was the only one brave enough to get between Ken and the fallen traitor.
"Let me end him," Ken shouted, staring hatefully down at Samson. "Get out of my way!"
"If you guys kill him," Shuuya warned them, "Monokuma gets to execute you too! Don't let him win like that."
Ken gnashed his teeth, then made eye contact with the bounty hunter. "If you are an expert on death, like he said, then maybe we can get information out of him before he is taken?"
"I can agree to that."
Shuuya spun on his foot, and placed his other sole on Samson's chest. Where he had placed it must have been extremely sore, because the trader shrieked in pain. Shuuya leaned in, applying more pressure.
"Fucking bastards," Samson screamed. "You fucking… took… my HAND!"
"We have some questions for you, before you make your departure," Shuuya said, his voice ice cold while his eyes burned. "You'd best answer, or you might be in more pieces when Monokuma takes you."
"We're not ready," Monotaro called out. "We gotta get Father back to properly do the punishment!"
"Don't dismember him any more than youse already have," Monosuke suggested. "We don't have a medical team! Oh gosh, that's a lot of blood…"
"Brrrlrlblggghh!" barfed Monophanie.
"OW," Monodam remarked, still lying on his back.
Samson heaved and gasped in agony. He stared up at Ken and Shuuya, and managed to spit out a laugh. "You broke the rules, you attacked me! You two, no, all four of you, are gonna fucking die!"
"Have you forgotten my rule change?" Ken asked. Samson's eyes widened in terror, and the cavalryman returned a cold laugh of his own. "Ah, from that look, I guess you just remembered it."
"Samson, answers, now," Shuuya ordered. "What did you ask Monokuma?"
"Like fuck I'm telling you fuckers!"
The bounty hunter/assassin pushed harder down with his foot on Samson's chest, which resulted in an intense shriek of agony. A lot of the graduates covered their ears, it was the most terrible sound.
Crystal walked over to them, still shaking in wrath. "That's not going to work," she said, her tone deathly calm but still trembling slightly. "He has no reason to tell us the truth, he knows we cannot kill him."
Shuuya crossed his arms, drumming his fingers in thought. "Experience has taught me that pain and blood loss make one's lips loosen a little, though not directly."
Those in the area stared at him, shocked at how casually he said such an intense and drastic detail. Ken managed to shake off this shock first, and then glared down at Samson.
"You seemed to like shocking us so much, you fiend. What other connections are you hiding from us?"
Samson coughed hard, and let out a heaving gasp. He still managed to grin like a madman at them. "The Entity of Chaos is amongst you all. I don't know who they are, but I've worked with them so much in the past."
"The one that Takeo took orders from?" Crystal asked. "What do you mean they are amongst us?"
"One of you is the biggest traitor of all time, because when there is Despair, there is Chaos."
Samson's eyes started to warp, his pupils turning black. Then other black circles formed in his eyes, white circles too, randomly changing in size, warping between black and white, a frothing mishmash of madness.
"Chaos," he repeated, savoring the word with as much sycophant dedication one could ever convey.
"Wh-what is this?!" Ken shouted. "What is going on with his eyes?"
"This is not Despair. The spirals of despair are the signature look for someone truly immersed in that sadism," Shuuya remarked. "This is Chaos, something similar, and just as awful."
"You've seen this?" Crystal asked.
Samson was laughing now, clutching his bleeding stump. As he rolled around, Shuuya continued, "It's something that came out around the same time as the Tragedy. It's an affliction that is like Despair, as drastic and awful as it, with one difference: Despair cares only for the pain and suffering of people, Chaos wants to destroy order and law."
"Certainly sounds like an apt description of him," Ken remarked. "Our Ultimate Trader seems to be only interested in destroying the foundations of everything around him."
Samson ceased laughing, and his eyes returned to normal. "Oh, you wanna know the best part? I was like this before the Tragedy, I was screwing over your damn authority and hierarchy before Hope's Peak became Ground Zero for despair! Before the western world fell to despair as well…
"And I'm damn proud of it. You have no idea how much the Entity of Chaos has helped me gain the power and potential to do what I want. And all it took was one TV show to turn everything… chaotic!"
Barking out more laughter, he said, "I look forward to watching you all kill each other, whether in this life or the next. Here's hoping you rot, like this city, like the whole fucking world. Have fun with the serial killer, the assassin, and whoever that Seed of Despair is.
"Oh, and Crystal? Thanks for trusting me again, by the way, it made everything so much easier. You couldn't have helped me more unless you were working for Monokuma, hehehe-"
She stomped on his face, the fury of wanting to silence overpowering her. Crystal was seized by Shuuya, pulling her away as she fervently tried to hurt the trader/traitor more. Samson spat out blood, and then glanced up at everyone.
Most of the graduates had stayed near their podiums, shocked and horrified by what was going on. Hara and Isaac were together, holding each other after their close brush with death. Kimiko was squatting down, catching her breath as she processed everything.
Ken was looming over Samson, his sword still dripping with blood after what he had done. Yitro was the only person to approach, and he glared down at the trader traitor. Samson opened his mouth to mock him, but Yitro spoke first.
"This," the former swordsman said coldly, "is for Angel."
He raised his foot, and stomped down on Samson's private parts as hard as he possibly could. As the agonizing scream echoed around the trial, Yitro shouted, "How's THAT for chaotic, you son of a BITCH!"
"Hey over there," Monotaro called out, "we're ready to begin."
"Yeah, Dad's loads better now," Monokid said.
This was all said as Monosuke held up Monokuma's "corpse" and moved him around as he imitated his father. "Err, yes, it is I, Monokuma! I have a wonderful punishment for youse, Angelique Angelmois, the Ultimate Opera Singer!"
"No, that's the victim," Monophanie cried out. "The punishment is for the culprit!"
"Oh, sorry! Ahem! Yes, Monokuma, me that is, youse know that already! So I am ready to punish Ignatia Nazario, the Ultimate Mime, for being the culprit in this-"
"That's not who the culprit is!"
"Well how do you expect me to keep up with all the details! It's hard to follow when there's so much going on…"
"HOW-CAN-YOU-MISS-THE-FINAL-PART-OF-THE-TRIAL?" Monodam pointed out, adjusting the bandage on his head. "HOW-DO-YOU-MISS-THAT?"
"Ehh, I kind of skim over it until the execution-"
A secret compartment under the throne opened up, and the throne with Monokuma's "dead" body and a startled Monosuke sank down underneath the stand. A few seconds later, a clean throne rose up, with Monosuke in Monokuma's paws.
"Now then!" The despair bear threw his hands up in the air, thus throwing his orange son off into the distance. The crash area in the distance was a puff of dust, money, and a pair of glasses.
"Let's see if this potential ally can survive what I have in store! I've prepared a VERY special punishment for Samson Miller, the Ultimate Trader! Or was it Traitor?"
A metal cable shot forth from the ceiling, dropping down as the mechanical clamp at the end opened up. It reached Samson's neck, and yanked him up. The Trader let out a strangled cry as he was pulled up and towards the ceiling.
"I refuse to let someone die before I get a chance at them! Watch and learn, my adorable little cubs! Let's give it everything we've got…
"IT'S PUNISHMENT TIME!"
As he shouted this, Samson was pulled all the way up to the tall ceiling, and the trap door that the mechanical cable had pulled him up into slammed shut. The reverberation shook the whole room, leaving only the last drop of blood as evidence of what had happened to come plummeting down. It landed in the small pool of blood left behind by the traitor.
Monokuma pulled a rather primitive looking gavel from out of nowhere, as a screen with a rusty bell atop of it popped up in front of him. He leapt up and swung horizontally, clanging the bell with that old-school sound. The moment he struck the bell, the screen lit up.
An 8-bit ghost town showed up on the screen, with black bars at the top or bottom. Samson's pixel art version was standing in the center, as a pixel version of Monokuma came walking up.
SAMSON HAS BEEN FOUND GUILTY
Samson was hoisted above Monokuma, and started walking off with the fretting pixel-art artist. The five Monokubs all followed behind him, celebratory animations from them.
TIME FOR PUNISHMENT!
Inside of the trial room, five large screens came down from the ceiling, so that everyone from any point in the circle could see what was being broadcasted on the screens.
The large room that was commonly used as the Scrum Debate hall was barren, save for a large wooden table and a chair. Samson was seated in the chair, still clutching his bloody stump.
A rush of movement startled him, the gust of wind that came with it blowing his hat off. He blinked in surprise when he saw Monokuma standing on a cardboard box, holding a pointer, and gesturing towards a blackboard that had a message written on it in chalk:
Ultimate Trader
Samson Miller's
Execution: Commenced
Give or Take, Arm and Leg
Monokuma chuckled, then flipped the chalkboard around, displaying an electronic display nailed to the chalkboard's other side. Why he thought to do this baffled Samson, but the trader eventually accepted the nonsense of it.
The despair bear cleared his throat, and said, "Okay, Samson, this one is going to be really easy for you! You just have to reject all of the things my Kubs are going to bring you, and in return, you get this!"
He gestured up towards the ceiling, where a compartment opened and a glass case lowered. Inside of it was the most advanced, state-of-the-art mechanical arm that Samson had ever seen. Monokuma laughed more, and said, "And there may more where that came from! Now, let's see what you have to sacrifice to get it!"
Monophanie walked up to the other side of the table, and placed upon it a suitcase. It opened up, revealing stacks and stacks of American $100 bills inside. Samson's jaw dropped, he quivered in excitement.
He glanced upwards at Monokuma, and saw that the electronic display had on it in bold letters: $100,000.
Samson stared down at the suitcase of money, up at Monokuma, then took a deep breath. He closed the suitcase, and shoved it back to Monophanie. That had hurt, but he could endure it.
Monokid ran over, knocking his sister over as he placed another suitcase on the table. When Samson opened it, he felt the kind of elation that made him lose reason for a moment: gold bars.
The display said $250,000. Samson's hand reached out, quivering, but he managed to stop himself. He closed the suitcase, and pushed it away.
Monodam walked up next, holding a suitcase in one paw and clutching his bandaged head in the other. When he placed the suitcase on the table, Samson moved to open it with his one good hand.
The sharp, explosive sound of a gunshot rang out in the hall, and Samson screamed in pain. The bullet had struck his ear, tearing off a portion of it. He could only hear a disorienting ringing, and could see Monodam talking to Monotaro, but couldn't make out what they were saying.
Eventually, Monodam dragged off the booby-trapped suitcase, and Monotaro placed his own there. Samson slowly moved to open it, now fearful of what could happen next.
When he opened it, the shining diamonds made his heart leap in excitement. The display said $1,000,000 and he could feel the money and power that could bring. He wanted it, he wanted it so bad, he could practically feel the desire oozing from him.
As blood ran down his face from his mangled ear, he slammed his fist down on the table, and then shut the suitcase. Monotaro shrugged and walked off, and then Monosuke appeared. The orange Kub chuckled as he placed his suitcase on the table with a heavy thud.
The weight intrigued Samson, and he reached for the latch. It was searing hot, and he felt the heat burn his fingertips. He screamed in pain as he reeled back, but then saw the electronic display…
$5,000,000.
Samson had sweat dripping down his forehead. Whatever was in there was worth that much, but he would have to burn his hands to get it. He couldn't make up his mind, that amount of money…
Monophanie dropped another suitcase on the table, which popped open on its own. Inside was a book titled, How to Create the Perfect Ahoge (and Everyone Will Love You). The trader blinked in surprise, and saw the electronic display said: $24.99.
Monosuke placed his first suitcase on the table again, the diamonds glimmering in the light. The million dollar amount was on the display, until Monotaro placed an artistic sculpture of Monokuma on the table. This odd but flashy design was made of gold and diamonds, the rarest kinds.
$7,500,000.
Samson heaved in exasperation, sweat and blood running from his face. He reached with a quivering hand towards the statue, until Monokid placed a vanilla envelope on the table. It was titled "Top Secrets of America, Canada, and Japan"
$15,000,000.
Monosuke threw an envelope with the words written on it, "The Secret to Despair's Success."
$50,000,000.
The cubs started bringing more and more suitcases, some of the old ones, some new ones. Monodam was struggling to get a ticking one onto the table, but it was full at this point. As the green bear tried, Samson let out a furious roar. He used his good arm and swept all of the items on the table aside, having them crash down to the floor. The trader stood there, heaving as if he had accomplished the most herculean feat of strength the world had ever seen.
Monokuma tapped his pointer in his free hand, and nodded, his grin becoming larger. He beckoned for Samson to step forward, and the trader began to do so.
That was when Monodam walked up to his father, and pointed at Samson, in particular at his sides. The despair bear stared at the trader, and then noticed the bulges in his pockets.
Samson had taken some of the money, diamonds, and information, and stuffed it in his pockets when the bears couldn't see him behind all of the suitcases they had piled up. The trader realized he had been found out, and he shrugged sheepishly.
Monokuma gave him a scolding claw-finger shake, and then snapped his claws. The mechanical arm's case started to go up into the ceiling, which made Samson scream in desperation as he sprinted towards it.
A trap door next to Monokuma opened up, and a gatling gun rose up, pointing at Samson. The trader didn't seem to realize it or care, he sprinted towards that retracting glass case. As he made his way for it, bullets fired one at a time at him.
Samson's leg was struck, he managed to keep running. His other ear was blasted off, he leapt for the glass case. As he was peppered in the shoulders and hips with bullets, he smashed his fist through the glass case and grabbed the mechanical arm. Landing on the floor, he clutched it as blood squirted from his one remaining hand, his bullet wounds, his missing extremities.
The trader sneered at Monokuma, and said, "Fuck your rules."
The bear shrugged sheepishly, and then snapped his claws again. Samson heard and felt mechanical devices operating right under him. He scrambled to get up, but there was too much damage to his body, too much blood missing at this point.
The floor opened up underneath him, and he fell, screaming in terror. He was still clutching his mechanical arm, holding it close to him as he was plummeted back into the trial room, all the way from the high-rise ceiling. Samson hollered as he fell, unable to stop it…
Samson impacted one of the ifrit statutes, more specifically the giant horns that came from them. He was penetrated through his back by both horns, one ripping through his insides and splashing blood and guts from the wound.
The other horn stabbed through his heart, ribbing it out through his ribcage, and displaying it on the tip in front of him. The last thing Samson would see was his own heart in front of him on display, on a stone spike protruding from his chest.
From in the Scrum Debate room, Monodam peered over the side to see what had happened to the trader. As he looked, Monokid snickered, and then pushed him. Immediately losing his balance, Monodam tumbled downwards too.
"NO," the green Kub cried out as he flailed desperately, seeing the statue and ground swiftly approaching…
There was a flash of black and white, as someone parkour-kicked and jumped up the large state. Monodam was a second away from obliterating against the state and Samson's corpse before that blur caught him in their arms. His savior landed on their feet, putting him down on the floor.
Monodam took a tedious step forward, then glanced up at his savior. "THANK-YOU," he said to Ignatia, then glanced behind her. She also looked, and saw how much blood was running down the ifrit statue, almost coating it like paint.
Samson's corpse had stained the ifrit statue crimson. It was there, in front of them all, as bloody money fell from his pockets and splattered on the floor.
Everyone else in the trial room was silent, aghast at how violent and horrific the execution had become. It had come all the way to the trial room, and they could smell the blood, the innards of the fallen traitor.
"Unholy fuck," Blake remarked, staring at the corpse atop of the statue. "Dumb bastard, all he had to do was say no."
"Seems he wasn't made that way," Yitro said, finishing his hateful stare at Samson's body before turning away. "It is done then."
"WOOHOO!" Monokuma shouted, as he was suddenly on his throne again. "Or more like: Yaaaaa-haha-hooie! What an extreme bargain I drive! What an intense display of chaos and despair! But in the end, it was all well in good fun, and we all had a jolly good laugh!"
"Monodam," Monophanie called out to her sibling as the green Kub climbed back onto the stage, to his place. "Are you okay? How did you survive?"
"Wow, I know we have to participate in the executions," Monotaro said, "but I didn't think you would go that far, bro!"
"Hehehe, we never got to your other surprises," Monosuke said, fanning himself with some bloody bills. "Sorry about that."
"Yeah," Monokid snarled, "real sorry."
The green and blue cubs stared each other down, as the latter strummed on his guitar. With a disgusted sigh, Monokid eventually said, "Welp, guess that's that, Dad! I mean, we tried for another ally, and we failed. Or at least, someone else failed. Or fell, yeah, you fucking felled."
"That actually means something else," Monosuke said, "when you say it like that-"
"I said what I meant," Monokid shouted at the top of his robo-lungs, "and I meant what I said! Now! We got a party to go to!"
"Oh yes, the Penjar party at the tavern," Monophanie said, clapping her paws together. "I forgot all about that! Do we still have time for that?"
She glanced over at the graduates, who were either ignoring her or shaking their heads. Eisei spoke, "I highly doubt anyone is in the mood for a party. We learned of some horrifying details just now, and we're not feeling in the mood for jubilation."
"But… but… we want you to be friends!" she said. "We want-"
"Friends? FRIENDS?!" Yitro shouted, pointing accusingly at the cubs and their father bear. "If everything announced at these trials is true, then we have this Entity of Chaos, a Seed of Despair, and who knows what else here! It already cost lives… Angel's life…"
Monophanie hung her head, as she glanced over at the others. "What should we do?"
"Bunch of ungrateful whiners!" Monokid's suggestion wasn't helpful.
Isaac, holding Hara's hand, walked towards the elevator, and turned towards the others. "Let's just get out of here, people. There's nothing else for us, and it's been a very harrowing trial. Come on."
The graduates all shuffled into the elevator, the hodgepodge of emotions they were all conveying making it one of the most tense rides of their lives. So many of them were scared, upset, forlorn, and confused.
Only a few people spoke, and that was close to when they were near the surface. Shinobu got Ignatia's attention, and said to her, "That was an amazing bit of athletics you showed, saving Monodam. But if I may ask, why'd you do that?"
Ignatia regarded her, and shrugged, before pointing at Drake. The cartoonist blushed a little, and said, "I think she did it because I get along with him?"
"Getting along with the bears isn't really something you should do," Shinobu said, shaking her head. "I am afraid if we grow to like them, that is Stockholm Syndrome and unsafe, to say the least.
"But I guess I shouldn't tell you what to do, since you two were in the right all along. I'm… so sorry about that, by the way."
Again, Ignatia shrugged, and leaned against the elevator wall until the end of the ride. They all silently left the elevator, and the Town Hall.
When they stepped out onto the plaza, they regarded everyone, trying to figure out what to do.
"What time is it?" Eisei asked aloud.
Souma glanced at his watch, and said, "It's some time after seven PM, my friend."
"It felt like we were down there so much longer," the dentist said, scanning the crowd of graduates. "I feel so tired and hungry and helpless, none of which I enjoy feeling."
"I might just go to sleep," Yitro remarked, "or leave this evil town altogether."
"It's still so hard to believe," Anzu said, rubbing the back of her head. "We have two possible traitors? Or was Samson lying?"
"He probably was," Saiko remarked. "I mean, Entity of Chaos? The prime minister of Canada wanting Despair as a weapon? It sounds like he just wanted to spite us."
"We never did find out the answer to his question," Ken grumbled, glancing off to the side. "It feels like that insane gunman robbed us of so much, including poor Angelique's life."
"Yeah, stupid gunman," Ishiku remarked. His eyes suddenly widened, and he said, "Wait, about that gun, did we just leave down there in his hand?"
Everyone glanced around, trying to see who knew the fate of the gun. It was then that Isaac noticed Kimiko walking away from the group.
"Kimiko," he called out, taking a few steps towards her, "where are you going?"
The biker gang leader stopped suddenly, and she lowered her head as she sighed heavily. "Don't worry," she answered, "it's not for any of you…"
She reached behind her jacket, where she had tucked the pistol into her waistline. Cocking the pistol, she put the barrel up to her head.
"It's only for me."
"NO!" several people screamed.
"Darling, please," Hikari shrieked, stepping closer to her, "I beg of you, don't do this."
"This wasn't your fault," Isaac declared. "None of it was!"
Kimiko turned towards them, her eyes red from all the crying she had done, but still immersed in sorrow. The gun didn't leave her temple. "None of you could understand… it really was all my fault. Everyone I care about, everyone around me just… dies."
She trembled, and continued, "My sister, my second-in-command, my girlfriend, and now Angelique. She was such a kind, caring person, I should have been able to protect her. I should have… I've been a fighter all my life, and yet…
"I should have been the one who died, not her. But everyone I care about dies."
The biker gal smiled weakly at the group of graduates, as she said, "Don't blame yourselves for this, I just reached my limit. I got Angel killed. What was it even for? Despair, Chaos, what do they even MEAN anymore? It's all the same thing, just cruelty."
Hikari took a few more steps towards Kimiko, holding her hands up. "Darling, please, please listen to me. You cannot blame yourself for this."
"Angel is DEAD because of me!"
"Angelique is dead because of that bastard who murdered her for a profit! That wasn't your fault!"
"It… it sure feels that way, Hikari. What would you know, anyway?" Kimiko asked, as she trembled and took a step back from the steampunk model. "She… she was right."
"What? What are you talking about? Please, darling, talk to me."
"She! She… J-Junko," the biker stammered. "The girl in my vision, when I was unconscious. She killed Mahiru, then told me Angel was dead. She told me it was my fault… and it was."
"I don't know who this Junko is, but Kimiko," Hikari moved closer still, "it wasn't your fault!"
"You don't understand. You didn't look into that woman's eyes, you didn't see that feeling of despair mixed with sadistic glee. You can't understand!
"And… and neither can I. Please don't look. Good-bye."
BLAM!
…
…
…
…
…
…
The horrible ringing sound of the gunshot was hard on everyone's ears. It was deafening to those who were far too close to the gun, who felt woozy and disoriented.
Yitro had the kind of mental and physical strength to remain focused even through a gunshot close to his head. Thus he kept a firm grip on Kimiko's wrist, having yanked her hand away from her head in time for the bullet to blast over her head and off into the distance.
Once the disorienting effect had worn off on Kimiko, the biker gal realized she was still alive. Yitro had ripped the gun from her hand and thrown it as far as he could to the side. Crystal ran over to retrieve it.
"Wh… what?" Kimiko stammered, as she stared at Yitro. "Why? Why would you stop me?!"
"Do you really think," he said, "I would let Angel's girlfriend kill herself?"
"I… I don't want to live! I'm so tired of it all, I hate this fucking life! I want to die! I want… I want…"
She burst into uncontrollable sobbing as she pounded on Yitro's chest. Sinking to their knees, he wrapped his arms around her and held her tight as she let all of her frustrations and sorrow out.
No one left the plaza at that moment, no one wanted to be callous enough to leave after what had just happened. Emanuel, drunk and woozy, sat on the busted fountain as he tried to keep himself awake. Grumbling to himself how much he hated things, he almost missed Drake approaching him.
"Um, I wanted to thank you," the cartoonist said to him, as the Bête Noir stared up at him, "for trying to help Ignatia and myself out during the trial."
"Kid, I succeeded at shit, do not thank me. Just… just go and be with your mime crush."
Drake nodded, and started to move away, before he turned back to Emanuel. "You know, you could actually be an amazing detective if you didn't admit defeat so readily. Maybe you should remember that in the future, because I think you still have the potential. Just gotta drop the negativity."
The cartoonist walked off to find Ignatia, as Emanuel stewed on those words. He glanced over at Kimiko and Yitro, the former still sobbing. The Bête Noir sighed and muttered under his liquor-thick breath, "But then what's left of me, kid?"
After Kimiko managed to calm herself down, the graduates stood in the plaza, confused and emotional as well. They didn't know what to do next, until Monodam came walking up to the group.
"GOOD-EVENING," he said. "I-HAVE-MADE-MY-SIBLINGS-PREPARE-FOOD-AND-DRINK-AT-THE-TAVERN. IT-SHOULD-BE-READY-IN-AN-HOUR-BUT-YOU-ARE-WELCOME-TO-WAIT-IN-THE-TAVERN."
"I don't think any of us," Hikari snapped at the green Kub, "are interested in that tonight. After what you all put us through…"
Monodam stared down at the floor, and said, "I-JUST-THOUGHT-SINCE-YOU-HUMANS-REQUIRE-FOOD-AND-DRINK-TO-SURVIVE-AND-THRIVE, IT-WOULD-BE-SOMETHING-GOOD-FOR-YOU-ALL."
"You know what really would be good for all of us?" the model said with a snarl, rounding on the bear cub. "If you would stop the Killing Game, and let us know what is going on here. About all of the crazy shit that is happening here, because oh my gears, this is awful!
"Can you not comprehend that? Or are you just being nice to us because you want the next blow to be all that more painful and from out of nowhere?!"
Monodam stared up at her, then down at the floor. He surveyed the others, and cast his gaze down at the floor. After several seconds of tense silence, he finally spoke again.
"I-DO-NOT-FULLY-UNDERSTAND. YOU-LOST-SOMEONE-YOU-GOT-ALONG-WITH… WOULD-YOU-LIKE-TO-SEE-HER-AGAIN?"
This got everyone's attention, especially Yitro and Kimiko. The two stood up and approached, with the former swordsman wearing a grim scowl on his face.
"What do you mean?" he asked sharply. "You aren't going to claim you can bring her back, are you?"
"NO. I-MEANT-THAT-THERE-IS-A-MOVIE-OF-HER-PERFORMANCES-INSIDE-OF-THE-THEATER. IF-THE-PERSON-WHO-STOLE-THE-DVD-PLAYER-COULD-RETURN-IT, YOU-COULD-WATCH-IT-TOGETHER."
Yitro flinched, then glanced to the side. "That… that would be nice."
"THE-VIDEO-IS-AN-HOUR-LONG. IF-WE-COULD-WATCH-IT-TOGETHER, WE-COULD-HAVE-DINNER-AFTERWARDS."
"It appears I should fetch the player," Yejoon said with a chuckle, "post-haste. I would hate to be the center of negative attention if I refused."
He walked off, adding, "Anyone who wishes to watch the video should wait in the movie theater. I'll be there shortly."
As he left, the group of graduates split off into three groups. Some of them went to the movie theater, some went to the tavern, and others just went back to their houses.
Day 07, 7:46 PM
Housing District
Aka was far later arriving to the housing district than the others, having thought she would go to the tavern but then spotted Hikari walking towards this area. She followed after, and saw all the others who were calling it an evening too.
Blake had a bitter expression on his face, and was shaking his head as he muttered something quietly under his breath. The door to his house slammed, unnerving Aka. Emanuel had also stumbled to this area too, and made his way into his house; Aka might have helped him, if she wasn't so sick of how much of a drunk jerk he was being.
Eisei was calling it a night too, and he offered a lollipop before he took off. She tucked it into one of her pockets, and thanked him before he made his way into his house. Aka made a beeline towards Hikari's house…
Only to see her talking with Ken at her front doorstep. The two were quiet, so she couldn't hear them, but she saw Hikari hug him. They were close for a few seconds, then he moved away. Wishing her good-night, the cavalryman headed over to his place, and shut the door.
Hikari went into her house, and Aka followed afterwards. She wanted to knock, to be polite, but her concern was too high, and she wasn't a cautious gal. Barging right in, she caught Hikari taking off her hat and setting it to the side.
"What!" Hikari exclaimed when Aka came in abruptly, dropping her hat. "Wha… Aka! What are you doing?"
Aka opened her mouth to speak, but then realized she didn't know where to start. She nervously ran a hand through her hair, and muttered, "Um, I wanted to talk to you."
Hikari sighed, and picked up her hat. Setting it on a desk nearby, she said, "Now is not really the best time to get into my pants, darling."
"Oh come on, I'm not just about that!" Aka said, crossing her arms.
"Could you shut the door, please? And yes, Aka-dear, you are. I know your kind of woman, and… that's not what I need right now."
Aka shut the door, but stayed inside the place with her. "Hikari, what's going on with you? We were having a delightful time, I like you, you like me. Then you go all quiet and shuffle off with Ken, and you make that shady deal with him, or whatever that was!"
Hikari sat on the side of her bed, staring blankly forward. She didn't regard Aka as the skier carried on, "You could have gotten yourself killed at the trial when you went quiet! Now you may think of me as an adrenaline junkie lesbo, but I'm more than sex and thrills, damn it!
"Why did you do it? Why'd you work with Ken, and then go all quiet when people asked about it? Do you not care about your own life? Because that sure doesn't sound like you!"
Hikari glanced up at Aka, and said, "How do you know about me?"
Aka stared her down, then grabbed at her goggles on top of her head and dropped them on Hikari's floor. "I'm not leaving," she said defiantly, "until you explain yourself. Not with all the shit that's been going on, not after Kimiko tried to blow her brains out. Talk."
Hikari crossed her arms, her pretty face showcasing a level of upset that said more than one thing. Aka was firm to her word, as she stood there with her hands on her hips.
"I killed someone, Aka."
She spoke so suddenly, the skier didn't comprehend it at first. When Hikari saw the confusion on Aka's face, she repeated, "I've killed a girl. It was self-defense, but I still did it. I… I've killed someone."
"I… I don't understand," Aka admitted. "Many people had to do it during the Tragedy, Hikari, it really sucks, but-"
"This was long before the Tragedy, honey. It was when I was at Hope's Peak Academy. I…"
She took a deep breath, and spoke. "I was really good friends with my classmates, and one of them was Novoselician. His name was… is Sebastian Cornelez. He is the Ultimate Butler, and he managed to help me set up a performance in his country.
"A performance in Novoselic was like a dream come true for me. Novoselic is gorgeous, and the women are too. Oh my gosh, it was the most thrilling experience ever, I met with the royal family even, and… I met Ken there. Hehe, he was my bodyguard, despite the fact that Sebastian was too.
"I got to do my modeling and performance to so many fans there, and it was so great at first. Then I got my stalker. Her name was Mikoto, and I first met her when she was in my dressing room, in nothing but lingerie.
"She said she knew from the moment she saw me, she felt we were destined for each other. I found out later she had a stalking obsession with other people, but I somehow became her biggest target. Mikoto wanted to… have sex with me, right there and then, and she kept coming after me.
"In the two weeks I was in Novoselic, she was following me, trying to get in the same room as me. Ken and Sebastian kept her out for the most part, but it was unnerving. And then one day, she was in a room waiting for me…
"She hit Sebastian over the head, and came at me with a knife. Aka, she was shrieking how I was hers, and she would have me one way or another. We fought, I… I was trying to get the knife away from her. Ken came into the room right as I used a self-defense move that I had learned…
"I… I stabbed her. I stabbed her right in the heart, and she died with this horrible look on her face. She was so sad and confused and… and… I did that, Aka. I did that."
Hikari took several shuddering breaths, then she looked up at the skier. "Ken was my witness to the self-defense claim, so there wasn't a national uproar about the Japanese woman who killed a Novoselic native. Ken was my savior, but it was such a horrible experience, I haven't spoken to him much.
"When we both arrived in Penjar, we pretended to not know each other. If the others learned what I had done, they would want me gone, I'm sure of that. I mean, I'm not Yejoon, but would you feel safe with a woman who shanked someone right in the heart?"
Aka moved over and sat down next to Hikari. She wrapped an arm around her, and said, "I do."
The model smiled slightly, and then sighed heavily. "When the motive came around, Ken asked me for my help. He didn't blackmail me or threaten me, he just wanted to make sure he had a witness, someone he could trust, for what he was about to do. So I did it, and…"
Hikari shook her head, and then strained out the next words, "I wanted to ask a question too."
Aka bit her bottom lip, and then asked, "I really don't want to upset you, but I am curious why you didn't. If you were sure Ken would kill Yejoon, you would be covered."
"Asking a question would be like sentencing Ken to death, like making him do it. I couldn't do that, I couldn't be brave enough to ask. But I wanted to, because… I… I…
"I told you about Sebastian, right? He's the only person in my class from Hope's Peak Academy who survived the Tragedy. He's such a good person, and he's… he's gone missing. No one knows where he is, and we're all starting to fear the worst.
"I need to know where my friend is! I should have asked Monokuma, but it's too late now! I was hiding from everyone, I was defiant because I was ashamed! I'm so damned ashamed of myself!"
Aka held Hikari in her arms, holding the shuddering steampunk model tightly. They were quiet for a few minutes, just allowing Hikari to release her pent-up misery.
After this emotional moment, Hikari finally pried her face away from Aka's chest. "I… I probably look like a mess right now, don't I? Tell me that, I deserve it."
Aka chuckled as she moved the stray bangs of ebony from her face, and rubbed at the streaks of eyeshadow. "Sorry, but I still see this super sexy woman before me."
Hikari let out a small laugh too, and said, "You… you really do want in my pants, don't you?"
"Listen, I'm not good at emotional stuff, I am that kind of thrill seeking bitch that goes down slopes at speeds that kill upon impact. I came to this town not for some honorable reason like you or most of the others.
"But I'm not the kind of bitch who dismisses someone's feelings like that. If you tell me to leave, I'll leave; I just wanted to make sure you were okay, because I really was worried about you.
"Can you at least promise not to scare me like that again? That's not the kind of heart-pumping adrenaline that I want-"
She was silenced went Hikari cupped her face and kissed her good. The model didn't let up either, the emotional, deep kissing was an incredible force and it overwhelmed Aka. The skier moaned heavily into her mouth up until it stopped, and then she was panting.
"Oh wow," was all Aka could say to that.
"I'm… I'm sorry. I say I don't want you, then I do… I'm… I'm an emotional wreck right now, you must think I'm crazy."
"I'm a lesbian too, remember? I'm all too familiar with having to deal with mood swings and emotional outbursts. Mostly because I can be a part of that… it's difficult, but it's worth it if you find someone like… well, like you."
Hikari giggled amid her heavy breaths, then she looked into Aka's eyes. "Make love to me."
Aka's heart skipped a couple beats, making her flinch in surprise. For a woman who did life-threatening sports as a pastime, this was the most sudden shock she had experienced in her life.
"You… you sure?"
"With all that happened today, with that horrid man, with losing poor Angelique, how awful I feel… I want something good to come out of all this. And I want to have sex, with you, with someone who put in the effort to get to know me, to listen to me…
"And… well… you've wanted me since we met. I find that so damn sexy, to have a woman who wants me like that."
Aka let out a laugh that was that perfect combination of nervous and giddy. "You're fucking gorgeous, how the hell is that possible?"
Hikari reached behind herself, and undid her corset. In the process, she said, "Aka, I take certain pride in my clothing, but I want them, and yours, on the floor in the next five minutes, or I'm going to shriek in frustration. Got it?"
Aka blinked, then reached for her top's hemline. "You're going to be shrieking soon enough for a whole new reason."
"Oh, darling, I very much plan to~"
Day 07, 8:51 PM
Movie Theater
Screen Room
Angelique spun around slowly as she held a note perfectly. She then let out the strong, triumphant words in French, her voice powerful enough to cause some of those watching to hitch their breath. The camera changed to in front of her, and she continued the song as she gestured towards the heavens.
"Tu vas m'entendre rugir~" she belted out, her incredibly strong and pitch-perfect voice ringing across the theater. She carried on with the song, sometimes the camera focusing on her, sometimes on the captivated audience or her equally impressed cast mates.
The graduates watching were all enthralled, even those not normally interested in opera. Kimiko sat next to Yitro, as the biker, who before Penjar had never even considered listening or watching something like this, was amazed.
"She has the most beautiful voice," she couldn't help but say.
"She most certainly does. It was," Yitro said, then he stumbled on his words, "Angel was far more impressive to hear in person, I only wish I had gotten to see her perform more."
Kimiko glanced over at him, and she could see the tears spilling from his eyes as he watched Angelique perform. "When I was jail, she worked so hard to be an inspiration with her music. I heard about the performances she did, where she even put her life at risk, but never stopped. I… I wish I had been able to get in contact with her sooner."
The former swordsman covered his eyes, and forced out a chuckle. "She wasn't a saint, she'd hate to hear me gushing about her as if she really were an angel. She… she just loved to flirt with other girls, and could be worse than any boy you've probably seen.
"And you should have seen her when it came to studying subjects she didn't like. Trying to get her to focus on math resulted in the most stubborn battles I've ever had in my life."
Yitro chuckled a great deal, as he rubbed his eyes. "I am so going to miss her, and I know, wherever she is, she'd want us to carry on."
He glanced at Kimiko, who gave a small nod. "I… I know."
The video concluded shortly after the song, with a standing ovation for Angelique. With that, the DVD finished and the lights in the screening room turned on. Kimiko and Yitro glanced around, hearing sniffling around the room.
Pyrrha was a sobbing mess, and she was crying on Shinobu's shoulder. The historian was patting her gently, feeling a touch awkward, but could handle this.
Isaac was holding Hara's hand, as the explorer was also crying. Saiko was sitting next to them, not crying but still visibly moved.
Anzu and Fiora were both also rubbing tears from their eyes, and whispering how wonderful the singing was. Shuuya sat in the back, a sad smile on his face.
"That was amazing," Anzu said, her eyeliner smeared but she was using a handkerchief to clean herself up. "Goodness me, she really was an angel in voice and spirit, wasn't she?"
Everyone was standing up now, and Saiko couldn't help but chuckle. "So many of the women here are crying. Why are you all being a bunch of girls now? Come on…"
The forensic investigator rubbed at her eyes, as if to make sure she wasn't crying, as Fiora stomped her foot. "Sh-shut up! I don't care a'boot enforcing stereotypes or anything like that! We lost a really nice person, and she sang so beautifully…
"I… I doo'nt mind admitting I'm crying over it! Let us be girls a'boot it and cry! It's okay if none of the guys cry over it too, just be yourself."
"Excellent advice, but I wouldn't say only the girls cried."
Fiora let out a piercing shriek at the voice behind her. She leapt up two aisles in one bound, crashing through the plastic chairs up in the back row. The movie maker stared in panic at Yejoon, who stared at her through his mask.
"Is that the reaction to expect every time I approach you?" he asked.
"What are you doing here?" Yitro snapped, stepping up to the artist. "You shouldn't be here!"
Yejoon shook his head, and lifted his mask up. The wet trails from his eyes were still evident, and he lifted a hand to clean that up. "I know you all think that I am but a harbinger of death and carnage, but I do find beauty in other forms of art besides my own.
"Angelique Angelmois had the most amazing voice, and the passion in which she sung… even with the subpar capture of the DVD, I found her singing to be most incredible and moving. It was a kind of beauty…"
He placed a hand over his heart, and concluded, "A beauty that shouldn't have left the Earth so soon. It is a tragic loss to you, to those who knew her, and to all of us. That kind of passion is not good to lose."
Yitro took a deep breath, staring down the artist. "I cannot tell if you are being sincere or not, that is the problem."
"If you do not believe that, you should believe when I say that the Chaos that inspired Samson is something we should be concerned about as well."
"Wait a minute, what?" Fiora called out from the back row. "You know a'boot that too? Is it really that bad, eh?"
"He speaks the truth about that, Fiora," Shuuya said, turning to her.
There was another high-pitched shriek as Fiora leapt away from the back row, diving away from Shuuya. It was such an impressive leap, but she hadn't looked in the direction she had leapt, and thus almost crashed into someone.
That someone caught her, holding her bridal-style. Yejoon raised an eyebrow as he regarded the lady in his arms, who blushed rather deeply.
"Really now?" Shuuya called out. "Me too?"
"Y-you're an assassin!" Fiora declared. "You kill people too!"
The bounty hunter shrugged, and said, "Only those who deserve it. I don't believe in divulging my life story and career to you tonight, it's not appropriate."
"Really now?" Yejoon said. "I was made to explain myself, why not you?"
Shuuya shot a dark look at the artist, and commented, "I shan't justify myself to you, but I will tell all of you this. Chaos is as dangerous as Despair, as prevalent and destructive. Though they run in the same circles, Despair causes those afflicted to cause the maximum amount of sadism and agony.
"Chaos is about the destruction of law and order, for everything to be as unpredictable as can be."
"Then I have a question," Hara said, braving forward. "How are they so different?"
"The only two ways they are truly different are that Chaos is more aimed towards any kind of governing structure, and it doesn't aim for the same amount of bloodshed as Despair. Make no mistake, many die over both, but Chaos is solely about the anarchy."
Isaac let out a heavy sigh. "I don't suppose they would cancel each other out here?"
"No, they work hand-in-hand, or at least as well as murderous fanatics can work together. I'm still more concerned about Despair, especially if they claim to run this town."
Pyrrha nervously gazed at Shuuya, and said, "Um, is… is it okay to trust you? I mean, I know it's silly to ask, but…"
"Assassin," Fiora repeated. "Trained killer! Why are none of you concerned about this?!"
Shuuya regarded both women, then shrugged. "I'm sorry, but like I said, I don't wish to go into that tonight. Perhaps tomorrow, but I will say, you have nothing to fear from me unless you are a murderer, pedophile, or anything as bad.
"So I believe it goes without saying, but Yejoon," the bounty hunter/assassin said as he glared at the artist, his red eyes burning with animosity, "when the time comes, do not expect mercy from me. I'll be coming for you, and sooner if think for a minute you might harm someone."
Yejoon merely smirked. "I await with great anticipation."
Shuuya walked out of the theater with those words, and the others were left to ponder the words. Shinobu spoke up first, saying how she wanted to actually have a dialogue with people, so those interested in debating the day's events should meet up at the tavern. Dinner felt nice right about now.
Most of the group began to leave, though one of them was unable to walk. "Could," Fiora stammered, trying to avoid eye contact with Yejoon, "could you put me down now?"
"Oh? I think I rather like carrying you like this."
"Put me down, or I'm gonna bite you!"
Yejoon merely chuckled. "Promises, promises, my little flower."
"I'MMA GONNA BITE YOU ON THE NOSE! I'LL BITE YOUR LEGS OFF! I WILL BE KNOWN AS FIORA, THE BITE-MOVIE MAKER! I KNOW THAT MAKES NO SENSE, BUT-"
Yejoon placed her down on her feet, and calmly started to stride out of the building. "If you could do me a favor, Miss Bite-Movie Maker, but could you bring some food to my room? I am still not welcome amid the group…"
Fiora sighed, as she too started to leave the building. She stopped when she saw Yejoon in the projection room, taking the DVD player again.
"Sigh," she said (yes, she actually said sigh), "just how more people are going to turn out to be strange psychos? This feels like a bizarre video game come to life."
Day 07, 8:56 PM
Western Tavern, Bar 'n Grill
Inside of the tavern were the ones who hadn't felt comfortable watching the video, or just needed some time alone. It was definitely a miserable setting, mostly due to
Crystal was seated alone in the back, clearly distraught, staring at her cell phone. No one was near her, and she hadn't moved from her spot since she had seated herself.
Drake and Ignatia were seated at a table, and the two were rather subdued after all that happened. Thus they were quiet (one of them much more than the other), but they took part in a silent conversation of drawings and writings. The mime used her phone's notes app to communicate.
Futaba and Souma were at the bar, speaking quietly with each other. The former was having a bit of the harder stuff to drink, while the latter took to glasses of water. The anthropologist was becoming more dreary the more tipsy she became, while the public speaker had to do most of the talking.
Odelios and Ishiku were in the kitchen, doing the best thing they could do in this time of stress: yelling at the Monokubs to cook better. This might have been slowed down the process, but it was damn fun for the two guys.
Monokid was so bitter that everything he tried to caught on fire, even the water he was supposed to boil. Monosuke and Monotaro were busy chopping things, even things they didn't need to chop, like the water they were supposed to boil instead. Monophanie happily hummed as she worked, even as she boiled the water that had been burnt and chopped.
Monodam helped out a great deal too, as much as he possibly could. He even let the clown and magician use his head as a tenderizer and walnut cracker. It was like he was working overtime to make sure the food was prepared.
Everyone from the movie theater, sans Shuuya and Yejoon, arrived together. As the clown, magician, and the five cubs finalized the food and served it, everyone dug into it. It was hard to avoid their hunger pangs, so none of them did.
Actually, one did avoid them at first. Crystal was still alone, still putting off the attitude that she wanted to be left alone. She continued to stare at her phone, only interrupted when someone put a plate full of food on her table. The military adviser glanced upwards, only to see Souma smiling down at her.
"You really should eat something," he offered.
"I don't need babysitting," she replied, "but, thank you."
Souma sat down at her table opposite from her. He waited for her to eat for a bit, before he spoke. "You mustn't blame yourself for this."
"I'm going to, and that's that. That abhorrent man made me question everything, and I don't wish to discuss what he said tonight."
"If it rattled you that much, I won't press. There is, however something I wish to discuss with you."
Crystal sighed, putting her cutlery down as she stared at the public speaker across the table. "I know you are a straight-forward fellow, Mr. Koukai; however, I just bore witness to one of the greatest betrayals, and I was involved. Trusting anyone here is going to be very difficult."
"I understand, especially since you are primarily here for the sake of the Lions, not us."
The military adviser had felt there was no way she could be astonished any more today, but that managed to do it. She gaped at Souma, who chuckled at her look.
"As a member of the Future Foundation, and the one who is in charge of human resources and information, I would know about our Western equivalent. The Lions have done a remarkable job at restoring order to the States, Canada, and more; I had heard one of their members, a military adviser who graduated from Hope's Peak, was responsible for so much of that triumph."
Crystal leaned back in her chair, raising an eyebrow at Souma. "I am merely a part of the team we have. It was more damage control than military advice for the most part. The Lions were never meant to be secretive, though my mission here was meant to be. Guess it's just another secret revealed to all now."
"Are you here to try and find the way to utterly destroy Despair, much like the Future Foundation?"
"I came about a rumor on the origins of Despair, I hadn't thought that it would be this intense; however, I'm not one to back down from a challenge. What I aim for, what the Lions want, is for something like the Tragedy to ever happen again."
Souma nodded. "That was the thing I wanted to inquire about, as I am highly curious about the Lions. Is it true that the founding members were the survivors of the Western's first Killing Game?"
"I did say I wasn't interested in divulging information, Souma."
"I apologize. Just that as a member of the Future Foundation, I know what happened at Hope's Peak Academy. What happened on Wawanakwa Island, the broadcast that started the Tragedy on your side of the world…
"I wish to understand what happened. I, too, which for something like the Tragedy to never happen again."
Crystal sighed, then gave a cursory glance at the tavern. Everyone else was sitting, eating, talking amongst each other. For people who had been through so much, their lives endangered, and even accusing each other, there was a civility that couldn't be removed.
"I suppose," she said, "it wouldn't hurt to explain what happened with us. It began with the revival of a popular TV show… with a theme much like Hope's Peak Academy's talents and titles…"
Day 07, 10:25 PM
Penjar (In General)
Everyone in the tavern took some time to calm down after one of the worst, most stressful days of their lives. The food and drink were good, it gave them a sense of reality to have dinner and to call it a night.
The Monokubs were all exhausted after the dinner party. Monokuma came over to scold the graduates for using his kids when that was his job; the flurry of stomps that numerous people delivered to the bear as a stress relief left him quite the obliterated mess.
While there was still so much to discuss, the graduates eventually had to get some sleep. They all shuffled off to bed, with the hopes that tomorrow, they could finally discover some answers to this wretched town.
After the last door closed, a unique figure stood at the edge of the housing area. This being was Monodam, who was as stoic as ever. Without a word, he turned and started a long trek…
He went behind Town Hall, an area still worn-down and decrepit like everything else in Penjar. The mists moved around the buildings, despite the lack of wind, and curled around the corners; it had become noticeably thinner ever since the trial, and was now down to its normal level.
As Monodam walked through the area, he didn't seem to notice or bother to look at the buildings. This should have been worthy of attention to anyone, since everything about the buildings seemed to be warping, changing. The paint, the material that made up the buildings, right down to the foundations were seemingly shifting ever-so-slightly. Whatever was happening was slow-going, but effectively working.
Monodam was more interested in a concrete statue platform with no statue atop, and a plaque that was too faded and worn with time. He walked up to the plaque, and rubbed his paw on it.
"I-WANT-TO-UNDERSTAND," he said, rubbing the plaque harder. "WHAT-IS-THE-REASON-FOR-MYSELF-AND-MY-SIBLINGS? WHAT-IS-OUR-POINT?"
His efforts had barely any impact on the plaque, except for exposing one word, or rather, a name. Monodam stared at it, recognizing it as a human's name.
"Beardsley"
"WHAT-DOES-IT-MEAN-TO-BE-HUMAN?" the green Kub asked aloud. "IT-WOULD-MAKE-OUR-PURPOSE-HERE-SO-MUCH-MORE-EASIER-TO-UNDERSTAND. WE-COULD… GET… ALONG…"
"You really wish to know?"
The eerie voice behind Monodam made the Kub lock up. He turned around slowly, and he glanced upwards at the figure behind him.
"Maybe it's time to try this at a new angle. Maybe… we should work on the human aspect of it all. Yes, let's do that! Starting with you all…"
The figure reached out towards Monodam. He had a chance to blurt out, "OH-CRAP."
Day 07, 10:29 PM
Housing Area
?
One of Penjar's visitors stood inside their house, reading the note they had found. Samson had left it, as requested, which actually came as a surprise to the one reading it. With the Ultimate Trader turned Traitor's last words and actions, it was actually a surprise that he would have done something for anyone else afterwards.
The note read as followed:
"The answer was "If you combine true despair, the Seed of Despair, those who have come here, and the spirit of the one trapped here, you will accomplish your ultimate goal."
Hehe, good luck with that, Entity of Chaos. Though with how I planned this murder, you won't be around for long, I'm sure. No hard feelings, right? Chaos, after all."
The Entity of Chaos grinned triumphantly. Being on the right track was so very, very satisfying to hear. The Entity burned the note, letting the ashes fall into the toilet.
"Everything is paying off so damn well. Thank you, Samson, for your efforts. You will be missed. I wonder where I can find a member as reliable and sinister as you…"
There was a chime from the television that brought a pause to the Entity of Chaos's words. It turned on, and the unfriendly face of Monokuma appeared on the screen.
(Day 07 is over~)
(Monokuma Theater!)
*Monokuma is in a courtroom, appealing to Judge Monokuma, with an upset Monokuma dressed up as an old-fashioned father figure, with a sobbing Monokuma dressed up as an old-fashioned mother figure.*
Monokuma - "Did you know that Penjar used to be located in a rather heavily wooded area? So they slashed and burned that away! Stupid trees, God I hate 'em! What's a tree ever done for me anyway, why should I feel bad that they're gone?"
*Monokuma then points to his parental figures in an accusing manner, which makes the bowler hat on the father-like Monokuma and the summer hat on the mother-like Monokuma fly upwards with how startled they are.*
Monokuma - "Trees look pretty in pictures and such, but really, you can grow more! And who cares about what kind they are, except for tree huggers? I'm not about to give a damn about the European or African-based larch, or the redwoods, or why people seem to think palm trees are pretty to look at!"
*A tree smashes into the side of the courthouse, breaking through the roof, window, and wall. It startles everyone, including Monokuma, the Monokuma Parents, and Judge Monokuma, whose powdered wig pops upwards with how startled he is.*
Monokuma - "I think you all can learn something very important from this lesson. Just remember, Penjar is more valuable than trees. You wouldn't want something like the Tragedy happening again, would you? Care more about your town than trees! Now go out there and kick a sapling for me!"
The Entity of Chaos stared blankly at the TV as it turned off, folding their arms as they tried to comprehend what they just watched.
"I can never quite tell if he's giving subtle messages," they said, "or if he's just being ridiculous for the sake of being ridiculous."
A grin spread across their face as they added, "And I love it. I believe it is time I find out more about Penjar, and maybe who this trapped soul is, though I think I know who it may be. If I'm lucky, I'll find out officially before the next murder."
"As some of you may know, I'll be joining with the army when I return back home to the States. I've been asked about why I would do that after graduating from this fine academy. The truth is, I believe it is because of you all.
"I've learned that talent, personality, and so many different walks of life result in many paths. It's almost chaotic, how you can be good at something but end up somewhere other than your standard career in that talent. Besides, I've never been one to sit at a desk or an auction.
"I'd like to thank this grand academy, for all the connections I have made here. And also, to thank those who inspired me to reach out, and do my best with all my passion! I'm quite eager to see the changes I can help bring to the world."
-Samson Miller's graduation speech
Chapter 2, Does Penjar Bleed?, is now over.
…
The Entity of Chaos is in Penjar.
The Seed of Despair is in Penjar.
There is a trapped soul within Penjar…
…
24 Graduates remain in Penjar.
…
TO BE CONTINUED.