"Okay, so ignoring it didn't work,"
"Yeah, no shit, Sherlock," Angus snarked at Negenama, "we made it about a half hour."
The remaining Ultimates had moved back into the cafeteria. Megumi wanted to take Chaos and Manato back to their rooms, and Joaquin and Tatsuo agreed to help her do so. Negenama was pacing near the doors, waiting for the three to return. Ramsey had removed his hat and was now strangling it in a vice grip for some form of relief of tension. Feliks sat at the same table, his head laying in his arms. Beatrix was next to him, her foot impatiently bouncing up and down. Ludivine walked out of the kitchen with a granola bar and a bottle of water, which she gave Shimei. The small girl was trying her hardest to smile, but it was clear to everyone that the Ultimate Hiker's positive outlook was waning.
The entire group whipped their heads towards the doors when they opened. Megumi, Tatsuo, and Joaquin walked in, looking deeply shaken.
"So," Ludivine was the first to speak through a mouth full of granola, "what's their condition?"
"Bad," Tatsuo said, earning her an elbow from Joaquin, "Ow, what? It's true. You heard what Megumi said."
"What did Megumi say?" Feliks asked, finally raising his head from the table. All eyes were on the surgeon as she steadied her breathing.
"Manato and Chaos' sickness is much more advanced than what Junji and Ritsu are inflicted with," she said, "whereas Junji and Ritsu took hours to get to the state they're currently in, Chaos and Manato reached the same level of sickness in only a half hour."
"That doesn't make any sense," Ramsey said, shocked, "how can they be that sick that quickly?"
Megumi shut her eyes, "There's a good chance that the sickness was sitting dormant inside them since the motive was announced, incubating until it was advanced enough to start showing symptoms.
"If we assume you're right and say that the four who are currently sick all got sick at the same time, "Negenama thought aloud, "then that would mean that the last three of us who still need to catch it…"
"Are already sick," Joaquin finished the private tutor's thought with a somber nod.
"They've been sick ever since Saibakuma decided to infect us," Megumi said, "they've just been asymptomatic."
"That changed," Feliks muttered, "Manato and Chaos became sick as dogs almost instantly."
Megumi nodded, "I hypothesize that the longer the Fear Flu sits dormant in your body, the sicker you'll be once you start showing symptoms."
"So, the last three of us will be pretty fucked when we get sick," Angus said curtly, "that's what you're saying?"
"I would have put it a little more gently, but that's essentially what I'm saying, yes."
The group fell silent, digesting Megumi's words. Joaquin and Tatsuo, who had already known everything she said, took seats around the cafeteria.
"Is this going to kill us?" Beatrix asked with a stoic look on her usually chipper face.
"It's…difficult to say, and I hesitate to tell you yes without knowing for sure," Megumi said, choosing her words carefully, "if the sickness continues to develop at the speed that it has been? There's a fair chance that it might."
A wave of discomfort and stress washed over the now much smaller group. Joaquin fiddled with his collar, and Ramsey tightly gripped his cane. Nobody needed to say anything, but they were all anxious. Their eyes shifted around, all suddenly uneasy to be near each other.
"So, do we have a game plan going forward?" Shimei asked, trying to sound a little optimistic.
"I am beginning to think that we're completely fucked, small fry," Angus said, his tone cold and despondent.
"We cannot be out of options," Beatrix said, nearly shouting, "there must be something else that we can do."
"There's always the more…unsavory option," Negenama said softly, trying to approach the topic as softly as he could.
"Don't even," Joaquin was quick to cut the tutor off, "don't even consider the bear's way out. That's what he wants."
"Well, I'm struggling to come up with another solution. You all may not like me, but believe when I say that I do not want anybody else to die." Negenama explained himself.
"We can't just wait it out?" Tatsuo asked.
"I'm not sure that's a risk we can afford to take," Ludivine said somberly, "if Megumi is right and the sickness only gets worse, and Saibakuma decides to just let us die, it'll cut our entire group in half. Seven of us will die."
"So, what? You wanna take a vote on who to sacrifice? Draw straws?" Angus said coldly, sneering at the psychologist.
Ludivine sighed, "I didn't say that Angus, don't put words in my mouth. I'm just telling the truth. That's the situation we're in." she said sternly.
The group fell silent again. Nobody said anything for a full two minutes, instead choosing to look either at their feet or up at the ceiling.
The first to get to their feet was Ramsey, who harshly clacked the end of his cane against the tiles, causing all eyes to be drawn to him.
"Well, if we have nothing else we can discuss, I'll be retiring to my room," he said quickly before taking heavy strides towards the exit. He didn't make it, however, being stopped by Tatsuo who got to her feet to block him.
"Where do you think you're going?" she asked incredulously. The lounge singer tried to duck around the smaller girl, but she was quicker, blocking with every step he took.
"I'm going back to my room, and I'm staying there until all of this passes," he grunted, trying to push against the dogfighter. She may have been smaller than him, but she was unmovable and easily beat out Ramsey's "musician strength".
"This will not just blow over," Feliks said, "it will not go away if you hide."
Ramsey whipped around to face the Russian, "I know that! I know it won't go away, but there's nothing I can do to help. If I get sick I'm an easy target, and nobody is going to kill anyone else, so I would die anyway!" he yelled hopelessly. Everyone cringed as the singer raised his voice, not used to such a hostile tone coming from the boy.
Ramsey huffed, wiping some sweat from his forehead. Without another word, he pushed passed Tatsuo and stormed out of the cafeteria. Tatsuo looked back at the group before running after her friend. That left eight Ultimates who were all feeling very conflicted.
Negenama moved next, walking towards the exit, "Perhaps Ramsey has the right idea, maybe we should just lock ourselves up and wait for nature to take its course."
"You can't be serious," Joaquin said, shock written all over his face, "YOU, of all people, are just going to give up?"
"Unless you intend on biting the bullet and sacrificing yourself, I don't see any other options," Negenama said callously, scanning the group, "any volunteers? Anyone brave enough to fall on their own sword and save the group?"
Nobody said anything.
"That's what I thought."
With that, Negenama left the cafeteria.
The final seven, without even realizing it, had slowly started to converge on each other, getting up from their seats and sitting closer. Almost like a subconscious attempt to find some form of comfort just in each other's presence. What they found wasn't much.
Shimei rested her head against Beatrix's shoulder, who in turn wrapped her arm around the smaller girl. Ludivine, to her credit, placed a hand on Megumi's shoulder, which caused the surgeon to relax her shoulders if only a little. Joaquin did the same for Feliks, who did his best to offer up a reassuring smile, though it was clearly forced. Angus simply put his head in his hands, massaging his temples in an attempt to rid himself of the building pressure in his skull.
Ludivine broke the silence with a snicker, causing the group to look at her, "I'm…I'm sorry," she sputtered out in between giggles, "it's just…I've started to feel a little lightheaded," she looked down at Megumi, "that hasn't…been a symptom yet, has it?"
Megumi paused, then shook her head with the tiniest of smiles, "It could be, although you might just be hungry," he voiced was small; tired, like she had just gotten off of a sixteen-hour shift.
Ludivine continued to giggle, "Okay…okay, that's good. Guess I'm still in the clear, you guys," she said, giving Feliks a hardy pat on the back. The group chuckled, but it was uneasy. They sat in silence, just trying to enjoy each other's company as much as they could.
"I think…we should go back to our rooms," Feliks said, taking his ballcap off.
"Et Tu, Feliks?" Joaquin dramatically asked, a sad smile on his face. Feliks' face was stern like stone.
"I do not plan on killing, and I do not believe any of you do as well," he said, getting a bunch of nods as a response, "so, if we will not kill, I believe we can only wait."
"I know you're probably right," Shimei said sadly, "it just feels wrong to give in like this, you know?"
"I don't see it as giving in," Joaquin defended, "Saibakuma wants us to kill each other, and we aren't going to. Even if we run the risk of dying from this…Fear Flu, we still won't let anyone else kill. I would say that's about as defiant as it gets."
"I mean, from that perspective, it makes sense," Angus admitted, still not liking the sound of dying from illness.
Joaquin was quick to his feet, "Ramsey and Negenama don't want to kill either, and I highly doubt Tatsuo does. They'll go to their rooms, and we do the same. And we just…wait." the socialite finished unconfidently. He knew how terrible that sounded, but he blanked on a better way to word it.
Angus let his friend's words sink in. What did that mean for everyone who was already sick? Junji? Ritsu? Manato? Even Chaos? Were they just expected to die? And what of the three of them that still needed to show symptoms?
Angus' mind was suddenly filled with horrid images of death. Looking at the people around him that he trusted only made it worse. He saw Ludivine, the cocky and outspoken Ludivine, heaving heavy breaths in her bed, her face slowly bluing due to the closing of her throat. He saw Shimei, always optimistic and loving Shimei, lying in a pool of her own bile, her bright brown eyes glassy and unfocused.
He saw them all: Joaquin, Megumi, Feliks, Beatrix. All dead or dying, so far removed from what he saw them as. The beacons of light, not only snubbed out, but destroyed beyond recognition.
Angus launched to his feet, causing the entire table he was sitting at the skid backward, causing a loud screeching noise.
"Angus?" Beatrix said, shocked by the sudden loud noise. Angus' eyes darted from person to person, trying to unsee the horror that his mind had conjured.
"I…uh…I'm uh…" he blinked rapidly as the others all slowly got to their feet.
"Don't tell me," Megumi whispered, her voice filled with worry. Joaquin, who was closest to Angus, gently placed the back of his forehead.
"You're…you're burning up," Joaquin muttered with defeat, moving his hand away. Beatrix gasped, covering her face with her hands. Ludivine and Feliks both lowered their gazes, keeping their eyes hidden with their hats.
"I'm not…feeling great," Angus finally managed to get out, leaning back against the lunch table.
"Yeah, we can see that," Ludivine said, grabbing the boy by his arm and helping steady him, "anyone else starting to feel sick?" she addressed the group.
Everyone shook their heads, still not taking their eyes off Angus.
Angus tried to take a step back, only pushing himself into the lunch table even more. His head felt like it weighed a ton, and his vision was already blurring. He leaned onto Joaquin, who was quick to offer up his shoulder.
"Okay, we need to get him back to his room," Megumi said quickly, moving to Angus' side.
"What about the rest of us?" Shimei asked, her voice laced with concern for her friend.
"Just go to your rooms and I'll stop in at some point to check on you after I tend to Angus," Megumi said, helping Angus stand up straight and put his arm around Joaquin's neck.
"What about you, Megumi?" Beatrix said, "You should not be going around like this, wearing yourself down."
"I promise I won't," she said, "I'll go to my room right after, but I can't in good conscious check on everybody one more time."
Beatrix didn't like that answer but thought better than to try and argue with her.
Feliks got up, "Okay," he said, "we have no choice but to wait this out."
He turned to Joaquin with a forlorn expression, "Make him comfortable?"
Joaquin only nodded as he and Megumi began walking Angus out of the cafeteria, with the others following not far behind her.
"Watch his head," Megumi ordered, "as gently as you can."
Joaquin did as he was told, cradling Angus' head as he carefully laid the boy down on his bed. He was barely awake, occasionally moving one of his limbs in an attempt to fight against the person moving him.
"Easy now, Hermoso," Joaquin said in a soothing voice, placing a hand on Angus' head, "just rest. Please save your strength."
"I…that happened so quickly," Angus weakly rasped before succumbing to a coughing fit. His entire body involuntarily curled in on itself as Joaquin moved away from the bed.
Megumi put a water bottle on his nightstand and moved the garbage bin that was in the corner next to his bed. "You'll be needing these. In another hour so I can come back and give you some ibuprofen, but that's all I can…all I can…"
The words died on her tongue, replaced with a pained sob. She felt fit to collapse, moving to the side of Angus' bed on her knees.
"A-Angus, I'm…I'm s-so sorry," she bewailed, clutching at Angus' arm, "I promised that we would…we would s-stick…"
"Please, Megumi," Joaquin said, his normally even voice wavering, "you have to know this isn't your fault."
Megumi didn't respond. She layed her head down on the bed, bawling into the sheets. Joaquin tried his hardest to be strong, but seeing someone in so much pain was causing his chest to constrict; he felt like his spirit was in a vice. It was difficult to think that two more people were to get sick; that this fate would befall two more of them before the nightmare ended.
Angus tried his best to focus on the world around him. His mind was still fairly clear, it was his body that was failing him. A passenger in a broken car. He could barely move, he felt like he was sinking into the bed; like it would swallow him whole.
He managed to put his hand on Megumi's. It wasn't much, but he hoped it offered some kind of reassurance.
Joaquin, trying to be brave for the both of them, helped Megumi to her feet. After a few deep breaths, she composed herself, though her hair and her makeup had seen better days.
The duo spared one more glance at their friend before shutting the door and leaving him alone in the dark as an uneasy sleep claimed him.
"Did you see what was in your mailbox?"
"I never bother checking the mail."
"Oh. Well, you should make a habit of that."
"Why were you even going through my mailbox, Travis?"
"Well, I figured you probably hadn't emptied it."
"Then why bother asking if I had checked?"
"You got a letter from Hope's Peak Academy."
"I'm sorry?"
"You heard me, Angus. Hope's Peak."
"That's…that's that Japanese school, yeah?"
"YES. YES, and that's putting it in the mildest way possible."
"Okay, well what does it say? Did you already read it?"
"I did. I got too excited and couldn't wait."
"Clearly. You're more excited than me."
"Apparently one of their Scouters came to the states in order to, well, scout. They're trained to look for high success rates of young students in any field, and I mean any."
"Yeah, I know their whole deal, I get it. What's that have to do with me?"
"They took notice of your sales. Ever since you entered your father's business as an official partner, the company has seen exponential growth. We're nearly five times as large as were at the start of last year when you started."
"Oh yeah? Well, I can't say my dad has always been the best at keeping the business functioning."
"Agreed, but that's beside the point. They're considering you as a possible candidate for one of next year's new-year students. The Ultimate Arms Dealer."
"Wait, seriously? You…you can't be serious."
"Deadly serious."
"I'm…I don't think I'm cut out for that sort of thing."
"What sort of thing?"
"That's a prestigious school, man. That feels way above my station, you know?"
"No, I don't know. Angus, this could be an incredible opportunity for you. I, for one, would be excited."
"Look, I know you're right, alright? This is just a lot all at once. I was never expecting anything like this when I started helping my dad with the business?"
"Why? Because you actually attempted to turn your father's empire into something legal and properly profitable?"
"..."
"Because you're a harder worker than your father to the point where even his most repugnant clientele would rather do business with you than him?"
"..."
"Do you think you don't deserve this, Angus? Is that it?"
"And so what if it was?"
"Well, then I'd say that's stupid. You work harder than most grown adults I know, let alone most seventeen-year-olds."
"It isn't that."
"Then why? Why wouldn't you deserve an opportunity like this? Tell me."
"..."
"Is it because you murdered me? You feel shameful for that?"
"...What?"
"You should, you know. Feel bad? I wasn't even facing you."
"Stop."
"I trusted you. I would have never doubted you, not once. I wanted to help you."
"Stop it."
"And you killed me for it."
"I said stop."
"Maybe you're right, you didn't deserve an opportunity like this. You still don't."
"STOP!"
"You deserve whatever comes next."
"Attention, scoundrels! It is now 10 pm!"
Angus jolted upright in his bed at the sudden loud voice of Saibakuma.
"-meaning it is officially Night Time!" the announcement continued, "Certain rooms in the building will be locked, and will not be unlocked until 9 am tomorrow. With that said! Goodnight, sleep tight, and don't let the bed bugs bite!"
The intercom screeched before clicking off, leaving Angus alone in the darkness with just the sounds of his ragged breathing.
It's…night…I fell asleep, he thought to himself. His thoughts were traveling a mile a minute but they were all unfinished and half-baked. The last thing he remembered was being in the cafeteria.
He pushed his hair back and out of his face. His forehead was caked with sweat. His eyes darted around his room, trying to find and lock on something familiar. It was of no use, however, as he was surrounded by darkness on all sides. His head was spinning, he was fighting to keep himself propped up against the back wall.
"I…don't feel very good…," he tried to vocalize, but what came out resembled more of a drowning gurgle than it did the English lexicon.
"You always find a way to complain, Gus. It's impressive," a voice spoke to him from the void. Angus pressed himself against the wall, whimpering. The familiar voice wasn't in his head like it normally was; it was independent of him.
"'Oh, daddy, don't turn the light off! Daddy, my stomach hurts, I'm scared, daddy!'" the voice mocked before scoffing, "Had to listen to that shit every day, and here you are, a grown-ass man, blubbering like a baby. Where the fuck did I go wrong?"
Angus pulled himself into a ball, trying his best to make himself invisible. His ears were ringing, and he felt like his body was on fire. Footsteps quietly approached the bed, but Angus didn't dare open his eyes to look.
"Look at me, Gus," the voice whispered, now inches from his ear. He could smell cheap rum on the voice's breath which made his stomach churn. The force reeked of cigarettes. It was the same smell that all the kids at school could smell on Angus because they were always around his house.
Angus slowly opened his bloodshot eyes to look at the baleful smirk of Carl Hutchinson. He looked different from how Angus remembered him. His face swirled and changed as if all of the appendages existed independently of each other. His eyes and nose undulated; shifting in size. His teeth, normally stained yellow, were now as black as night as if he'd been chewing on charcoal.
It was unmistakably Carl, though. Angus could never truly forget him.
"That's it, Gus. S'not that hard to look at me," his father chuckled, each word causing a billow of wispy black smoke to come forth from his mouth and tickle Angus' nose.
"You're not…you're not real," Angus muttered, trying to not lose his nerve and look away from his father. He didn't want to know what would happen if he looked away.
Carl raised an eyebrow, "Oh. Oh, I'm not? I'm not real?" the man grimaced, his black teeth making him look like a demon. He reeled back and slapped Angus so hard across the cheek that it made his head snap back and hit the wall behind him. The arms dealer whimpered like a beaten dog, putting a hand on the now stinging cheek.
"How's that for real?" Carl cackled, putting his hand on the back of Angus' neck and squeezing, "I am so…glad…that we can have quality time like this, Gus. I miss these little father-son moments we took for granted when you were younger."
Angus didn't respond with words. Instead, he lurched forward in an attempt to pull away from his father's grip and get off the bed. It failed, however, Carl's grip remained firm. He only succeeded in kicking the covers off of himself and onto the floor.
"What, you're gonna leave? I just got here," Carl said with faux sadness. He tightened his grip on the back of Angus' neck and lifted him out of the bed and to his feet.
"Such a fucking whiner," he muttered, tossing Angus to the ground in front of the door. The boy flipped himself over to look at his father towering over him. Like his face, the man's proportions were all off. His torso looked longer, and his arms now reached down to the ground, his knuckles scraping the floor like an ape.
"Please," Angus shut his eyes, crawling backward until his back pressed against the exit to his room.
"Please?" Carl parroted back. He crouched down but didn't move his body. His neck made a sickening snapping noise as it pushed itself down into an impossible angle. The horrid noises continued as Carl's neck elongated itself, pushing itself outward and approaching Angus like it was a snake. "Please what?"
"Please don't hurt me," Angus answered immediately. He dared open his eyes and instantly regretted it. His father's head stared blankly at him, the rest of his neck constantly readjusting itself so as not to collapse.
The head moved closer until their foreheads were touching, and it smiled again, "Beg." it said, its voice almost purring, "beg me like you used to, Gus. Go ahead. Beg me not to and I won't."
Angus again didn't respond with words. Instead, he lifted his knee and connected it with the head's chin, causing it to snap back with a pained groan. Angus scrambled to his feet and swung his door open.
"Mmh! Made me bite my fucking tongue, you little shit!" the head said through clenched teeth while spitting up a viscous black liquid. It looked like congealed blood. It whipped around to look at Angus, who could only stare at the state of the creature in front of him.
It still resembled his father, but its features had only further deteriorated. It's cheeks were sucked in, causing its face to look even more gaunt. Its features paled, and its eyes slowly sunk deeper into its skull.
Without warning, Carl's body stood up, and the neck and head lurched forward with an animalistic snarl. Angus finally unfroze, slamming the door on the creature wearing his father's face.
"ANGUS!" the thing shouted through the metal door, "DON'T YOU WALK AWAY FROM ME!"
Angus didn't walk, he ran down the hall as fast as his tired legs would carry him. The hall was just as dark as his room, and the heaviness in his head made him feel like he was running through a dense fog.
He threw himself through the door and fell down onto the floor in the main hall. He could hear footsteps all around him like he was being circled. They echoed on top of each other, only making his headache worse.
He dragged himself to his feet and stumbled into the giant statue of Lady Liberty in the middle of the hall. The darkness around him shifted, allowing him to look up and see clearly the statue's face.
Gone was her blindfold and neutral expression, replaced with real, manic looking eyes and a mouth full of sharp teeth fixed into an angry scowl.
Angus caught his breath, letting go of the statue and falling backward onto the floor. He kicked his feet, squeaking his boots against the tiles.
The sudden light on the face of Lady Liberty shifted like a moving spotlight, moving from her to the spiral staircase that led to the second floor.
In front of the stairs, facing away from Angus, was a normal middle-aged man. He was wearing a heavy blue snow jacket and black snow pants. Angus could only make out the back of his head, but he recognized him instantly.
"Travis," Angus called out. He couldn't even hear his own voice over the incessant ringing in his head, but he knew he had.
"I can't in good conscious not say anything, Angus. You know that," the older man said, his voice cutting through all the noises swirling in Angus' head so he could hear it clearly. He could always hear them, he would never forget those words.
The older man sighed before continuing, "I remember when I first started working for Carl Hutchinson, I saw the potential, but it was unpolished, and would never grow to the heights I knew that it could with him at the helm."
The man turned his head, just enough to see a small smile form on his lips, "I met his son, and I saw something, but I didn't know what it was at the time. Wise beyond his years, that one."
His smile fell away as he frowned and readjusted his glasses, "He was forced to grow up quicker then the other kids. That became clear when you got to know his father."
The smile returned, and Angus felt like his head was going to explode, "When he entered the business I felt a change, and I finally realized what that something I saw all those years ago was. It was a young man who wanted to do better than what he had been given."
The older man sighed again, turning away and facing the stairs again, "I just thought that was nice."
The gunshot that followed was loud, Angus could feel it in his bones. A small red hole formed on the back of the man's head, and a thin red spray came out the front. His glasses flew off as his entire body went limp. Angus covered his ears and pulled his knees close to his chest. The man's body hit the floor with a dull thud, blood instantly began pooling on the pristine white tiles. Another gunshot rang out, this time the small red hole forming in the middle of the man's back.
Another one, this time at the man's midback.
Another one, this one striking the man's left shoulder.
Angus screamed, but his voice was drowned out by the sounds of the gunshots.
Another one, the last one, didn't hit the man at all. Instead, it struck the ground close to his neck.
Angus could still feel the weight of the Ruger he used that day in his hand. His index finger curled around the imaginary trigger.
"Jesus, kid," the familiar slimy voice of his father spoke up from behind him, "usually one does the trick."
His father's large hand grabbed up a fistful of Angus' hair and pulled him to his feet. Carl Hutchinson no longer looked demented; like a monster pretending to be human. He was normal. He was wearing the same fleece jacket and jeans he'd been wearing on that day.
Angus struggled against Carl's grip, but only got free when he was let go, being pushed towards the spiral staircase. He landed on his knees, only a few feet away from the prone body of Travis Reed.
"Look, it's already done, son," Carl said in an attempt to be reassuring, "can't go back now. Can't go back ever. What's done is done."
Angus ignored his father's words, racing to his feet and flying up the spiral stairs. Halfway up he looked down and saw a sea of nothing. He couldn't see the floor, and the top of Lady Liberty was just barely visible in the ocean of darkness.
Angus reached the top of the steps and leaned against the railing, catching his breath. The darkness was closing in on him, the only things he could see were the things directly in front of him. Everything on the first floor was completely gone.
A loud slam followed by the clatter of metal crashing into metal forced Angus to whip around and stare in the general direction the noise came from. He put his arms around the guardrail and grabbed it from the bottom, essentially anchoring himself to the rail. It was the only thing he could guarantee was real.
Quiet footfalls clanked against the metal stairs as Angus looked over to see his father, as calm as could be, reaching the top floor. Angus' breathing became more ragged as he tightened his grip on the railing.
His father chuckled, "You look like a jackass," he joked before taking a long step forward and putting his hands on the boy's shoulders. He dug his fingers deep into the skin, making Angus wince at the stinging pain.
"You're gonna die here," his father whispered, pressing his chest against Angus', using his size advantage to leverage his son slightly over the rail. The Ultimate Arms Dealer tried to stretch his back in order to adjust, but Carl just kept pushing.
"It could be tonight," Carl's mouth was right next to Angus' ear, "I would love to be the one to do it."
"Please," Angus whimpered, his eyes screwed shut. Carl pushed again, heaving Angus upward. One of his legs raised into the hair to try and correct his balance, but he was quickly losing the struggle.
"Please, dad, I'm sorry," Angus cried, barely getting the words out through his tears, "stop this. I'm sorry f-for everything."
The weight pressing on Angus' chest lessened slightly as he was able to plant his feet. He slowly leaned forward, pulling himself back from the edge of the balcony. His eyes were still shut, and he didn't dare let go of the railing.
"Aw, I just can't say no to you, Gus," Carl said, his voice now distant and barely above a whisper, "Never could. I don't think you're done repenting."
With that, the voice was gone and the fog in Angus' head slowly lifted. He finally calmed his breathing and gently opened his eyes. It was still dark, but unlike before, his eyes adjusted and he could see the things around him.
He was on the second floor, standing directly outside the doors of the library. He stood up straight and looked at the main hall below. Lady Liberty was back to normal, and there was no sign of anybody else.
The migraine that Angus had been battling dissipated, and he could feel his core temperature cooling and leveling out. He stood up straight and finally found the courage to release his death grip on the railing.
He looked around, the silence he'd known before he'd gotten sick now feeling completely alien to him.
"Angus?" a voice called out to him from the stairway that led up to the third floor. Angus turned at the sound of his name and was shocked by who he saw.
"Junji?" He mumbled to himself as he staggered toward the figure that had yelled to him. Indeed, it was Junji Otsuka: the Ultimate Hirudotherapist, standing at the bottom of the stairs and massaging his temples.
"The fuck're you doing up here?" Angus questioned, not bothering to police his bluntness.
Junji frowned, "I could ask you the same thing, could I not?" he shot back before turning around and looking at the stairs he had just walked down. "I…don't remember how I got upstairs. I don't even remember leaving my room."
"You definitely shouldn't be out and about." Angus said firmly, "Last time I saw you you couldn't even stand by yourself."
Junji squeezed his eyes shut like he was trying to rack his mind for anything he could remember, "I know I was sick. I felt it, but things become hazy not long after that. I saw…terrible things."
Angus nodded, wholeheartedly agreeing. Saibakuma was right to call it the Fear Flu.
"But now it's just all gone," Junji continued, shaking his head, "now I feel…perfectly fine. As if I hadn't been sick in the first place."
"That…" Angus started before stopping himself. As his faculties returned to him, his mind began operating at the speed it was used to. The Fear Flu only existed because Saibakuma made it (he still had no clue how that worked), it was made as a motive for murder and the bear seemed willing to let them die before he took it away. So, under what circumstances would Saibakuma remove the flu?
Angus' blood ran cold.
"We need to wake everybody up."
"This is everyone?" Angus asked, shocked.
Joaquin nodded, his face full of worry, "This is everyone."
"Oh, Christ, we are so completely fucked," Angus fretted, putting his head in his hands. Angus and Junji had immediately gone around banging on room doors to wake everybody up. Angus went to Joaquin first and told him to recheck the rooms that didn't open their doors the first time.
After a few minutes of running around in the dark, all the stragglers were standing in the main hall. Angus and Joaquin, sitting on the pedestal of the Lady Liberty statue, looking over everyone who had shown up.
Shimei wiped gunk from her eyes and Ramsey stood not far away, yawning. Tatsuo sat on the ground with Ryucchi, quietly petting the tired dog. Junji paced back and forth, hoping for the others to arrive. Negenama, the last of their small group, approached Angus and Joaquin.
"You better have a good reason at waking up at this ungodly hour," Negenama warned, poking Angus in the chest.
Angus, ignoring Negenama, continued to drill Joaquin, "This can't be everyone, man. Fucking seven of us are missing."
Indeed, their group of 14 had shrunk to half that size. Ludivine, Ritsu, Beatrix, Chaos, Feliks, Manato, and Megumi were still all unaccounted for.
"All their doors were unlocked," Joaquin explained, arms folded, "I felt terrible intruding on their rooms, of course, but they were all empty."
"So, all of our sick are completely missing?" Ramsey asked, approaching the three Ultimates.
"Yep," Angus confirmed, "them, plus Megumi, Beatrix, Ludivine, and Feliks."
"Have we looked anywhere?" Shimei asked.
"Not yet," Angus said, "that's why Junji and I woke everybody up. Neither of us are sick anymore, and we think that can only mean one thing."
Angus didn't need to say it, they got the message.
"We need to tear this place up and find them," Angus ordered, "we'll split up, search every nook and cranny until everyone is accounted for," he said before lowering his voice, "whether they're alive or not."
"Ramsey, you stay down here and check the warehouse and cafeteria," Joaquin said, pointing to the lounge performer.
"Aren't some rooms locked after the nighttime announcement?" Ramsey responded, "What happens if the room we need to check is locked?"
"Just search what you can," Joaquin said before turning to Shimei and Tatsuo, "I want the two of you exploring the second floor. Library, Infirmary, Game Room, everything."
Shimei saluted, and Tatsuo nodded firmly.
"Us four will check the top floor," Joaquin said, gesturing to himself, Angus, Junji, and Negenama. "Sound good for everybody?"
The group nodded.
"Okay," Joaquin stood tall, "let's find our friends."
The group separated. Ramsey went to check the warehouse while everybody else went to the next floor. They first went to the library doors but found they wouldn't open. Their next stop was the infirmary as the last four boys went up to the next floor.
"This is where I woke up," Junji said, leading Negenama, Angus, and Joaquin into the Gambling Hall.
"Were you asleep?" Negenama asked.
"I wouldn't be able to tell you," Junji admitted, leaning against the blackjack table, "that flu…it…does something to your senses that's nearly indescribable. Oftentimes, I couldn't tell whether I was dreaming or if I was awake."
"That's not as helpful as I hoped it would be," Negenama said honestly, before looking at the roulette table, "This doesn't look right. Did someone break this?" he pointed to the roulette wheel itself.
Angus got closer to get a better look. The top of the roulette wheel, which had come to a point, was now missing. In its place was a piece of contorted metal, as if the spike had been knocked off.
"Yeah, that definitely isn't right," Angus said, mindlessly spinning the wheel, "Chaos probably broke it while he was sitting on the thing."
"Why was Chaos sitting on the roulette wheel?" Junji asked, his tone suggesting he didn't want an answer.
Angus just shrugged, "He was being Chaos, man. I've no clue what goes through his head."
"Junji, did you interact with the elevator at all?" Joaquin asked, approaching the button panel.
"I woke up and immediately made my way downstairs, Junji stated plainly, "That's when I ran into you on the second floor, Angus."
Joaquin nodded and pressed the button, calling the elevator up to them.
"What're you doing, Joaquin?" Negenama asked.
"We're gonna wanna check the basement archive, aren't we?" the socialite said, "Not to mention that this will take us into the library to see if anyone's in there."
"Good point," Angus said, and so the four of them quietly waited for the elevator to make its way to them.
It didn't take long, only a few moments. However, all four of them jumped at the sudden slamming noise coming from the shaft.
"What the fuck was that?" Angus questioned, only getting confused looks from his peers. The doors rolled open to reveal the inside of the elevator, just as boring and unpolished as it always did. However, something was noticeably different.
"Where the hell's the gate?" Angus asked, tentatively stepping towards the elevator.
Negenama raised an eyebrow, "Gate? What gate?"
"There was a gate that you'd have to push aside to get into the elevator," Angus explained. "It was separate from the regular doors that open. There were the rolling doors that slide open, then a gate you manually push open, then you step onto the elevator." for emphasis, Angus took a large step forward and got into the elevator, "Now, that gate's just not here."
"Well, great," Junji sighed, folding his arms, "just another thing to worry about."
"Who's coming with me down to the library?" Angus asked, standing at the back of the elevator, "only two other people are gonna fit in here so someone has to stay behind."
"I'll stay behind," Negenama volunteered, "I'll investigate everything else on this floor while you three check the library and the basement."
"Sounds like a plan," Joaquin smiled, stepping onto the elevator. Junji did the same, although much more hesitantly.
Joaquin hit the button to take the trio to the library, causing the doors to shut. The elevator shook to life and began its slow descent downward.
"This doesn't feel right," Junji said, voicing his concern, "None of this feels right."
"It shouldn't," Angus snapped, "the sickness being gone can only mean one thing, guys. Being naive won't help."
"Don't antagonize him, Angus," Joaquin mumbled, "we just need to find the other before anything else goes wrong."
As Joaquin finished his sentence, the elevator came to an abrupt stop at the library. The library stop didn't have doors to open, so the elevator just led out into the library so long as the bookshelf was moved.
It had been moved, and what they saw made the boys gasp.
The Ultimate Cock Fighter, Manato Ondori, laying face down in front of the elevator, a pool of blood around his head.
"Manato!" Joaquin screamed. He was the first to move, quick to fall to his knees at the cock fighter's side and turn him over. Junji followed after.
"Fuck, is he?" Angus hesitated to ask, not moving from the elevator.
Junji placed two fingers on the young man's neck before letting his body relax, "He's alive, he has a pulse."
"Somebody hit him though," Joaquin said, carefully turning Manato's head to the side. His purple hair was damp with blood, "and pretty hard, I'll add."
"Well, we gotta find-" Angus' words were interrupted by some drop of liquid landing in his eye.
"Ah, shit! What the," he tried to blink away the liquid, but that only made the stinging worse. He wiped his face with his hand and looked down at the red smear on his fingers.
Angus gulped, slowly looking up. The single overhead bulb beamed down on him, but behind it, he could make out a small red handle, and a line of red above it that was slowly dripping onto him. Another drop hit his forehead.
"Hey guys," Angus said to the boys tending to Manato, "did you know this thing had a ceiling hatch?"
Joaquin and Junji either didn't hear Angus or were too preoccupied with Manato to answer, because they didn't respond.
Angus didn't think about what he was doing as time seemed to slow down around him, his hand reaching up to grab onto the handle of the hatch. With one swift motion, Angus pulled on the handle, causing the hatch to swing downward and for the horror lurking above to reveal itself. Angus let out a strangled gasp, nearly falling back out of the elevator. Joaquin and Junji were broken from their focus to see what Angus had reacted to.
The bloody, mangled body dangled halfway out of the hatch, stuck at the wait. Its back was contorted at an odd angle, and its left arm was bent in a v-shape while the right one hung limply at its side. Its face was contorted into a pained grimace, denoting that its final moments had been ones of agony. The look was so alien it took Angus a moment to even put together the pieces of who he was looking at. But when he did, his eyes welled with tears, and whatever noise he wanted to belt out into the air died in his throat.
"There is work to be done for you, but you are not a bad person. If you were truly a bad person, you would not wish to improve and be better."
"I'm surprised that you're able to be so trusting given the situation."
"Why would I not be trusting? You have done nothing to deceive me."
"Do not isolate yourself, Angus. We must stay as one."
There, on the cold, unforgiving floor of the second-floor library, Angus stared into the lifeless eyes of Beatrix Wagner.
And Beatrix Wagner stared back.
Yeah, so that was something. It's finally happened. The dark deed is complete. I honestly have no clue when the investigation and trial are going to come out. I'm just happy I got this finished, to be honest. I'll probably be working on some of my other stories in the meantime so keep an eye out for those if you're interested. I hope this is all you guys could have asked for in a dead body discovery.
Until next time, everyone!
