"Okay, time to get down to business." Stated Togami. "This is no time to stand around making friends like a bunch of dull=eyed baboons."
"Oh, that's true." I said. "I think someone said something about a bigger problem or something What was that about?"
"Well, you see…" Began Maizono. "Naegi, you said a bunch of stuff happened and then you were "just asleep", right? Well, the same is true for al of us."
"What?" I gasped in shock. "Seriously!?"
"Just after each of us got to the main hall, we lost consciousness." Explained Leon. "And when we come to, we were somewhere here in the school! That's what happened to you, right?"
"B-But that's just… Weird!" I said. "That every one of us would get knocked out like that…"
"Exactly!" Mondo Explained. "That's why we're all freakin' out!"
"And that's not the only thing." Began Ishimaru. "You saw where all the windows in the classes and hallways were, right? But instead of normal glass windows, it was a bunch of big metal plates! What's that about?!"
"Plus, all my stuff's missing!" Added Junko. "Even my cellphone…"
"Yeah, you're right." Said Chihiro. "I haven't seen my PDA anywhere, either…"
"And then there's the main hall here." Ishimaru said as he pointed to what looked like a vault door where the front door should be. "The front exit is completely blocked by some giant metal hatch. But there wasn't anything like that when I first got here…! What the heck?! What's it doing there!?"
"Maybe we got caught up in some kinda, like, you know… Crime or something?" Pondered Junko.
"What, like… A kidnapping?" Asked Leon. "You think maybe someone grabbed us and hauled us off and we're not actually at school?"
"Come on, don't think like that." Hagakure reassured. "I bet this is all just part of the school's orientation procedure. Yeah, I'm sure that's it! So I'm gonna take it easy for a little bit."
"Oh…" Chihiro said as she breathed a sigh of relief. "So you think they wanted to do something to surprise us?"
"Huh. Well if that's all it is, it's nap time for me." Said Leon before yawning. "I was up way too late last night, so I could use a little shuteye."
I could feel everyone's tension evaporating. Maybe it WAS just a joke, and classes were about to begin very soon.
But then… It began.
Ding, dong, bing, bong!
After that strange sound played, a nearby monitor turned on to reveal a static figure of what appeared to be… A bear?
"Ahem! Ahem!" The figure cleared its throat. "Testing, testing! Make check, one two! This is a test of the school broadcast system! Am I on? Can everyone hear me? Okay, well then…"
The figure's voice seemed totally out of place. It was so playful, so completely unconcerned. I couldn't help but feel a deep, unnerving dread at the sound of it. It was like hearing someone laugh at the scene of an accident.
"Ahh, to all incoming students!" The figure continued. "I would like to begin the entrance ceremony at… Right now! Please make your way to the gymnasium at your earliest convenience. That's all. I'll be waiting!"
And with that, the monitor shut off. Leaving us all in shock.
"What. The. Hell was that just now?" Exclaimed Junko.
"Well, them, if you'll excuse me…" Togami said before walking out of the room.
"H-Hey!" Junko stuttered. "What, you're gonna take off like that!?"
"Ohh yeah, now I get it!" Said Hagakure. "This whole thing was just to get us all pumped for the entrance ceremony! Man, thank god it was all a joke. I'd be totally freaked if this was real! Alright, guess I'll head out, too. Wonder what they got planned for us next…"
And with that, Hagakure left the room as well.
"Damn, I was totally looking forward to that nap, too." Leon complained before leaving. As he left I could hear hum say, "Why'd they have to go and kill the mood?"
"W-Wait for me!" Called Chihiro as they ran after the trio. "I wanna go with you!"
"That is that, then." Said Celeste. "I will see you all there." She left as well.
"N-Not that anyone cares, but I-I'm gonna go, too…" Muttered Fukawa as she headed off as well.
Everyone took off for the gym, but I was frozen where I stood. That uneasy feeling I'd had before… I couldn't get it out of my mind. And it looked like I wasn't the only one…
"This… This doesn't seem right." Maizono said nervously.
"Yeah, that announcement was totally weird." Added Junko.
"Maybe, but staying put doesn't mean we'll be safe." Said Kirigiri. "Besides, aren't you guys just a little bit curious to find out what's going on here?"
"If we do not move forward, we learn nothing." Stated Sakura. "The only choice is to push ahead."
I… I guess she's right. But still… I'm kinda, no, REALLY nervous. We don't have a choice. We have to go.
"They said to go to the gym, right?" I finally said. Everyone agreed with me. But they decided to look around a bit, first.
I took a closer look at the large door. It looks like the kind of thing you'd see in a secret military base or something. Surveillance cameras with what appeared to be guns below them were above the vault-like front door. But there's no way that's a real gun… Right? This IS the same main hall I was in before, right? This door and those cameras definitely wasn't here then though…
"What was with that announcement?" Junko asked no one in particular. "It was like, totally creepy…"
Mondo let out a grunt of frustration. "Shit! What the hell kind of game are they playing?!"
Even Ishimaru was still startled. "Wh-What the hell? Is this some kind of bad joke!?"
"Something weird IS going on here, right?" Asked Maizono. "It's not just me?"
Kirigiri on the other hand was perfectly calm. "I know how you all feel, but… All we can do is check it out, right?"
"True." Agreed Sakura. "If we do not move forward, we learn nothing. The only choice is to push ahead."
"Are you okay?" Yamada asked in paranoia. "Is everyone oaky?"
Eventually, everyone agreed to go to the gym. So that's what we did.
The room before the gym was what appeared to be a trophy room of some sorts.
"God, I had no idea this Hope's Peak Academy place was gonna be such a pain in my balls." Mondo complained. "It really ain't that much different from the time I spent in juvie. Hell, this place is even worse!"
"And why isn't there anyone here?" Asked Maizono. "Walking though the halls, I didn't see a single person…"
"Isn't that like, seriously not good?" Worried Junko.
"Th-They're just trying to spook us! They'll take those metal plates down later, I'm sure of it…" Ishimaru assured us.
"All we can do now is hope for the best and prepare for the worst." Sakura stated. "Nothing ventured, nothing gained."
"Well hell, it ain't like I'm scared or nothin'. Let's get this over with!" Yelled Mondo before running though the doors that lead to the gymnasium. "Hey! Where's whoever called us here!?"
"Mondo, stop! No running!" Ishimaru called out before running after him.
"I too shall go." Said Sakura before going through the door.
"H-Hey, wait!" Called Yamada as he ran through the doors as well. "Don't leave me here all alone!"
The only ones left in the trophy room were Maizono, Kirigiri, Junko, and myself.
Kirigiri was scoping around the area in total silence. For whatever reason, she's the only one managing to stay calm. Or maybe I'm just imagining that…
Behind her was a display case. There are all kinds of trophies and plaques inside. Of course, all the students who go here are ultimate, right? So this is probably just a tiny fraction of all their awards.
"Where are all the other students?" Maizono pondered. "Why are we the only ones here?"
"I'm totally getting a bad vibe right now." Junko said nervously.
Then, without warning, Kirigiri walked through the doors to the gymnasium. And without a second thought, the rest of us followed.
When all of us were there, we all saw what was waiting for us there…
"Oh." I said out loud. "It really does look like an entrance ceremony…"
"See? Told ya!" Said Hagakure. "It's totally normal entrance ceremony stuff."
He was right. But in a way, that just emphasized how completely NOT normal all of us were.
Just then, the voice from the announcement was heard from somewhere. "Hey there, howdy, hello! Is everyone here? Good! Then let's get things rolling!"
We all turned to the podium on the stage. And from behind it popped… A teddy bear? One half of it was white which looked completely normal, but the other half was black, had a glowing red eye, and was grinning.