And now the event you've all been waiting for: Freshmen Orientation. We also get to find out the layout of the campus. And honestly, I can't help but imagine a replica of my own college in my head. :P Perhaps I'll try and draw a map of this one sometime. I still need to get around to drawing the guys but I've been extremely busy with a job, an internship, writing other stories, and playing the new Animal Crossing game. :P Don't expect fast updates.
Oops, almost forgot. Go vote for who you think will die in the first murder, mwahaha! I'm giving you two votes cause I'm nice! But don't expect two votes for when it comes time to guess the culprit. :)
When Robin woke up that morning, the first thing he did was hop on the computer to check the stock market. But the Internet still refused to work. Robin resisted the urge to smack his face repeatedly on his desk. This was beyond frustrating.
On the bright side, that overbearing mother of mine has no way to get in contact with me, He thought. This added a skip to his step as he showered and dressed for the day. It was fairly early and the Dining Commons were empty, thankfully. At least until a certain pair of ladies came walking in. He recognized them as the fashion-challenged roommates that had sat separate from everyone else at dinner last night.
Robin averted his eyes, hoping they would leave him to eat his pancakes in peace. Apparently, he was giving off the 'I'm lonely, come talk to me' vibe because Kirby came right over after she served herself. Natalie followed right behind.
"Hello," She said in a pleasant voice.
"Good morning!" Robin returned cheerfully.
"Do you mind if we sit with you?" Her smile was so open and friendly that Robin didn't have the heart to turn her down.
He laughed and waved a hand, saying, "No, no, not at all! I enjoy entertaining company so early in the morning." Sarcasm easily seeped into his tone, destroying his façade.
Kirby didn't seem to notice. "Oh, you do? I'm glad."
Natalie watched Robin carefully, trying to get a read on him. He seemed nice enough, but she could see how he kept shooting furtive glances at her odd appearance. She tried to disregard this and asked, "Sorry for asking again, but what was your Super College Level…?"
"Entrepreneur." Robin answered, sipping steaming coffee from his mug.
"Oh!" Kirby said, "No wonder it sounds like you're trying to sell us something."
Robin blinked. His friendly smile faltered. "You say I'm…what?"
"She didn't mean anything by it," Natalie said quickly.
Kirby just tilted her head, wondering what she said. "It wasn't an insult, it was just an observation. I'm sorry."
Robin's cheeks turned redder than they already were. He forced a laugh, "Ahh, no, it's fine. I'd better get going." He stood up.
"Where are you going?" Kirby asked, looking hurt.
"I was planning to explore the campus." Robin said airily. "So I guess I'll see you—"
"So were we!" Natalie exclaimed.
"Can we come with you?" Kirby asked.
Once again, Robin found himself unable to say no. He slowly sunk back into his seat, saying, "Of course you can!" On the inside, he felt disappointed he would not be going alone. The presence of other people always seemed to sap his energy. While the two girls finished eating, he downed another cup of coffee to prepare for the long trek.
The morning was a bit chilly. The minutes ticked by slowly as the three students plodded on the sidewalks to each building. Natalie had brought a campus map with her that highlighted all of the important features. Most of the buildings were locked, but it was nice to discover the layout of their new home.
On the northern end of campus were the dorms and the Dining Commons. The upperclassmen dorm was locked along with the second floor of the commons and two floors of their own dorm. Otherwise, they only had access to the cafeteria, the first two floors, and the basement. The basement contained a lounge, a laundry room, and vending machines.
To the west was a large Rec Center, but this was locked as well.
"Isn't this where Freshmen Orientation is going to be later?" Kirby wondered, trying the door once more.
"Yeah, at noon." Natalie said, "Let's hope they unlock it."
Other buildings to the south were devoted to studies. Some combined majors—law and business shared a building, as did science and engineering. A new engineering building was being constructed not far from the dorms, right outside of a woodsy area with thickly spread conifers. The building was only half-finished and there wasn't a single worker in the area. It emitted an ominous air. The group of three moved on quickly.
Aside from that, there was the Arts Building, the Medical Center, and a Communications Building. There was even a church. Kirby approached it excitedly, only to find it locked like the others. She couldn't have looked more disappointed.
"Don't worry, miss!" Robin chirped, giving her a cheery grin, "I'm sure everything will unlock tomorrow!"
They visited the Football Stadium afterwards, which was rather grand. It was on the outskirts of campus, along with a secluded power plant—the source of the school's electricity. There was also a tall, white water tower.
Their final destination was Old Fortune itself. Beautiful flower gardens and stately trees decorated the front lawn. There was even a finely landscaped pond with a trickling waterfall. A flock of ducks paddled through the water while Painted turtles basked on rocks.
Natalie could barely contain her excitement. She walked right up to the water's edge and held out her hand. The ducks swam over like she was some sort of animal whisperer, letting out soft, begging quacks. She giggled as one nibbled her finger, wondering where the food was.
Robin and Kirby sat together on a bench, watching Natalie enjoy herself. Robin felt rather awkward with the silence between them. He glanced repeatedly at his watch.
"Oh, would you look at the time? We'd better get going!"
Kirby gave a small gasp. "Is it time for orientation already?"
Robin stood up, wringing his hands. "Yes, yes, and we don't want to be late!"
Reluctantly, Natalie parted ways from the pond. They walked all the way back to the northwest side of campus that contained the Rec Building. Outside, a small group was congregating. Alistair, Grant, Asui, Elaine, and Karah were already there. Carter came walking up at the same time.
"I'm not late, am I?" He asked, "I was exploring the campus."
"So were we!" Kirby said happily, "Did you see the duck pond?"
Carter's expression brightened. "No, I must have passed over it. I'll have to check it out later."
"Where is everyone?" Grant interrupted impatiently, "And why doesn't someone unlock the door already?"
As if in the response, there was a loud click. Everyone looked at the door in surprise. Robin checked his watch—it was 12:00 on the nose.
Grant grinned. "Sweet, I'm psychic. Let's go in!" He charged through the door before anyone could stop him.
The others exchanged a glance and followed him. Signs pointed them down the hall, in the direction of the meeting place. They passed workout rooms seen through big glass windows and racquetball courts. Grant took in the sights hungrily, hoping he could find a sport-loving friend besides Blake.
Finally, they came to a set of double doors. A bold sign read, "In here, bastards!"
Asui saw it and laughed. Kirby couldn't believe her eyes. "What a mean joke! Who would put this here?" She said, looking concerned. She reached forward to tear the sign off, but Grant was already pushing past her to open the door. Inside was a spacious basketball gymnasium, complete with jumbotrons and bleachers. It seemed far too big for a measly amount of 16 students. Even with their arrival, it still felt empty and silent.
"This place really does grant good luck!" Grant declared, his loud voice echoing all around them, "This is the first time I've ever shown up early to an event. Ha!"
"Thanks for sharing," Asui groaned. She found Grant incredibly annoying. Just his fashion sense was enough to grate on her nerves.
While Grant marveled at everything, the others quietly took their seats in the lowest area of bleachers. Other students began to arrive and a few minutes later, everyone had situated themselves.
"Wow!" Gustav gushed, filling the gym with his loud presence, "It's so big in here! Do you think all of the teachers are gonna pop out and surprise us? Oh, this is gonna be so cool. I'm so ready for this!"
Karah listened from nearby, unable to share his enthusiasm. The air was heavy with anticipation. She had a bad feeling deep within her gut. Something wasn't right…
Upon looking at the other faces around her, she could tell others shared this sentiment. She opened her mouth for voice her worries, but then a magnified voice filled every corner of the gym.
"Welcome, new students! Welcome to St. Fortuna's University!"
Party balls on the ceiling opened up, releasing tons of confetti. The jumbotrons sprang to life to show the faces of the students and upbeat music began to play. Reeta and Gustav began jumping up and down, squealing. Blake grinned at his image, used to having it blown up on jumbotrons. Natalie hid her face, embarrassed.
In the excitement, no one noticed a small black and white shape appear in front of them. Only when the confetti stopped falling did it become visible. The students quieted, looking curiously at the new arrival. It was quite possibly the strangest thing they had ever seen. It was a plump bear, half-white, half-black. Half of its face was cute enough, but the other half was curled into a sneer and had one blazing red eye. It stood completely still while the students stared at it blankly, waiting for something to happen.
Reeta's carefree voice broke the silence. "Oh, wow, what an adorable panda! At least I think it's a panda."
"I'm no panda! I'm Monobear!" The strange bear burst out, throwing up its stubby arms. Its voice was grating on the ears and sounded rather childish.
Charlie frowned. "Just what are you, exactly? Definitely can't be a puppet; you look way too chipper to have a fist up your sphincter. Is someone controlling you?"
"Hi Monobear!" Gustav called, waving happily. "Are you the mascot?"
Monobear's permanent grin didn't waver, as he responded, "No, I'm the Dean. I run this school."
There was a soft chuckle among students at the joke, as everyone was convinced this was just a little kid in a costume. What else could he be?
"I'm serious, you bastards." Monobear said, his red eye flashing. Everyone quieted. "Anyways, I'm here to welcome you to the school! You bastards are some of the nation's most talented teenagers. With your skill, you bring hope to our slowly deteriorating world. Not that that's anything to be proud of—we're all going to die someday, one way or another."
As Monobear made his speech, everyone couldn't help but share confused glances. This was not the sort of welcome they were expecting.
"This pep talk is seriously lacking in pep." Blake mumbled, creasing his brow.
"I heard that!" Monobear growled. "You know, you should exercise silence when the Dean is talking. Or else I'll cut your tongue out! Upupu!"
"Hey!" Kirby cried out, unable to contain herself any longer, "That's really rude. You shouldn't use that sort of language or threaten us! We're—"
"What? I'm just trying to connect with you on a personal level. I hear teenagers use this language all the time." Monobear said instantly, bringing his paws up to his mouth and giggling.
"That doesn't mean this is the appropriate setting for it," Kirby lectured, beginning to rise to her feet, "If this is how St. Fortuna's treats its students, then I'm leaving."
"You can't leave." Monobear said flatly.
Kirby froze, staring at the strange little bear. "Excuse me?"
"If you would just sit down and listen, I'll get to that in a moment!" Monobear snapped.
Slowly, Kirby lowered herself back into her seat. Natalie was looking very scared beside her, tears shining in her eyes. She was ready to bolt, but remained where she was as Monobear began lecturing them once more.
"I expect better of college students, but I suppose it can't be helped. The reason you can't leave is…the semester is not yet over!"
Silence followed his words.
"Oh, and there are automatic machine guns positioned outside of the school walls that will shoot you if you try to escape. That too."
At once, everyone began talking.
"I thought those were to protect us!" Teresa declared shrilly.
"This isn't fair!" Noah shouted, "I wanted to go hiking!"
"Why won't you let us leave?" Charlie demanded, "Don't you know who I am?! I'm Charlie gently caressin' Marc!"
"There is a way to leave!" Monobear said quickly, speaking into a microphone so that he drowned out all other voices, "You graduate!"
"Of course," Elaine said softly, "But why can't we go visit our families on weekends?"
"Let me finish," Monobear said, his voice rising in anticipation, "Graduation isn't passing your classes or making it to the end of the school year. Starting today, at St. Fortuna's, it's something completely different."
Monobear paused, waiting for the students to ask what. When they didn't, he decided to tell it bluntly.
"If you ever want to leave here, you must commit a murder and get away with it."
Dead silence. No one moved or even breathed. Most of them still entertained the idea that this was a joke…just a very poorly executed joke that was not funny at all.
Monobear seemed almost disappointed with the lack of response. But he continued, "This is what I like to call a School Life of Mutual Killing. From now on, you will live out your miserable lives in the walls of this university. If you wish to leave, you must kill one of your classmates. There will be an investigation period and a trial following the murder. If the culprit is found guilty, they will be executed in the most delightful fashion. If the innocent fail to condemn the culprit, then he or she will go free…and everyone else will be executed." Monobear's grin stretched wider, revealing sharp teeth.
Grant didn't seem too worried. "That sounds fun. But why are we acting this stuff out if I'm the only SCL Forensic Scientist here?"
"I'm a prosecutor," Teresa reminded him, "But I don't see how this scenario applies to other majors."
Monobear was fuming silently. "You just don't get it, do you? Luckily, I prepared a little video to convince you that this is 100% real. St. Fortuna's isn't the only school to take on this new lifestyle—it's becoming a trend all around the world. Look…"
The images on the jumbotrons faded. Everyone turned his or her attention upwards, wondering what would happen next. A moment later, a new picture appeared on the screen. The quality was terrible and showed a high angle shot of a bedroom. A young-looking girl with dark blue hair was standing near the edge of the screen, a knife in her hands. Her eyes were wide and unseeing; the pointed weapon shook in her fist.
Suddenly, a boy with spiky orange hair and multiple piercings appeared and the bedroom exploded into the scene of a fight. The girl was attempting to stab the boy—but he fought back with some kind of sword. A silent scream parted from the girl's lips as the sword struck her wrist. There was no sound, adding to the spine-chilling effect of the video.
They tussled for another minute, dodging on and off the screen. The injured girl proceeded to flee into the bathroom and slam the door. The boy pounded on the door for a good long while, his face contorted with rage. Then, he whipped around and left the scene.
"Let's fast forward…" Monobear mused.
The students watched helplessly as the scene skipped ahead. The boy had returned and was using tools to open the locked door. Once it was open, he disappeared inside. They could barely see him on the other side of the wall…but they could see his knife-wielding hand draw back and then plunge forward. Specks of blood flew forth, barely visible.
Monobear stopped the video. "And there you have it!" He said in a chipper voice, "I guess that means you guys aren't as special as you thought you were. But I had to make my point somehow, didn't I?"
"Please," Libra said, speaking up for the first time, "That was incredibly low-budget. Even the blood looked fake! You're going to have to try harder if you want us to believe something so ridiculous."
Charlie snapped his fingers. "I've got it. This is some new-fangled form of hazing, isn't it?"
"That's illegal!" Teresa said heatedly, glaring at Monobear, "What you're doing is illegal."
"Hazing's illegal?" Blake said, his jaw dropping. "Well, shoot…everyone on my football team always did it to the freshmen…"
Asui muttered some snide remark under her breath.
Monobear just stood there, his head slowly rotating as he looked at each student in turn. Then he lowered his eyes, looking dejected. "I can see nothing I say will convince you. Perhaps we'll just have to go over the rules later, once you're used to this new lifestyle. In the meantime, I urge you to check out the measures I have taken to keep you from escaping. Take note of the fact that there is no way to get in contact with the outside world. Look for the tiny security cameras hidden all around you. I have no other proof to show you, so that will have to suffice for now."
Everyone seemed relieved that this odd assembly was just about through. Most had accepted Charlie's idea that this was just some kind of freshmen initiation ritual. Everyone was probably hiding behind the scenes, laughing at them, especially the upperclassmen. But a few were still incredibly nervous, believing it to be real.
"Wait, wait, wait!" Monobear gasped, throwing his arms up, "I nearly forgot! I have a little surprise prepared for you."
"No more surprises…" Karah begged, looking desperate.
Monobear cackled, "Oh, come on, I think you'll really like this one. I'm throwing a 'Welcome to College' party for you all! It'll be on the second floor of the Dining Commons, complete with alcohol of course. I want you bastards to have the full college experience before getting murdered or executed!"
Charlie and Grant exchanged an eager grin.
"We're too young to drink." Kirby protested.
"Hon, that's never stopped anyone." Charlie snorted.
Carter ignored the others, mumbling, "There's no way I'm going to that."
"Well too bad!" Monobear growled, "It's mandatory! Dinner isn't being served today so if you want to eat, you'll have to come to the party. Remember to bring your IDs! Your favorite bear will be there as a bouncer at 9 pm sharp."
"Are you through yet?" Alistair asked, glowering at the mischievous bear.
"Yes." Monobear said quite happily, "I wish you all the best of luck! Enjoy your new School Life of Mutual Killing." He threw up his arms and music began playing. Confetti once again fell from the ceiling and Monobear disappeared as easily as he had arrived.
Natalie could no longer contain her tears. "I want to go home!" She sobbed, hiding her face in her hands, "I'm so scared. Why would the school do this to us? I want to leave!"
Despite sharing Natalie's fear, Kirby tried her best to comfort her. Teresa stepped in to help as well, consoling Natalie that all of this was just some kind of sick joke.
Robin sat nearby, listening. Natalie was being ridiculous. There was no way this could be true. Still, he admired how Kirby had stood up for her beliefs against the so-called "Dean."
Karah and Elaine quickly left the scene. Karah was nearly having a panic attack, but Elaine tried to speak sense to her. "They can't get away with this," She told her confidently, "It's impossible. Someone on the outside will surely come for us if we can't get in contact with our families."
"What if it's the terrorists?" Karah said, rounding on her roommate.
Elaine had a bad feeling in her stomach. "The terrorists?"
"Yeah. It was on the news for a while, but then everything went oddly silent. Don't you find that strange?" Karah said, speaking very quickly, "What if we're involved in something really terrible?"
Carter happened to be passing by. He paused to add his two cents. "Don't you think we would have heard about it if the terrorists had reached America?"
"Right," Alistair said, appearing beside them, "I wouldn't worry about it."
"Wrong." Libra said, jumping into the conversation as well, "The media is full of lies. They wouldn't want to spark a panic. I don't believe a word of what Monobear says," Her eyes gleamed with mischief, "Then again, wouldn't it be cool if it were true? It's like being thrust into a movie." She walked away smirking, leaving the others feeling nervous.
"I'm so psyched for this party!" Grant told Charlie as the two left the gymnasium alongside Blake and Reeta, "I can't believe they're giving us booze. This is the best school ever."
Blake grinned, "This is gonna be sweet."
Asui just rolled her eyes as she followed behind them. Noah was with her, his mind already elsewhere. He didn't believe in the mutual killing, but he was pretty angry school officials didn't plan to let them leave.
One by one, everyone filed out. When the last person, Gustav, stepped outside, the door locked behind him with final click, as if it were sealing the fate of each and every student. For just as Monobear had warned, a new School Life of Mutual Killing was about to descend on St. Fortuna's University.