Fictions Mentioned:
Episode 4
OP Song:
Corpse Party - Shangri-La - Romaji and English Lyrics
Insert Song: Start
Max Payne 2 - Main Theme
It was quiet.
No one was making a sound as Touma Kamijou needed at least a minute or two to get his bearings together. Kamijou knew that they can't stay here out in the open for too long, not with Sachiko Shinozaki here. The only sound that was present was the thunderclouds from the sky, the flash of lightning that would send shivers running down one's spine, and the raindrops that seem to fall unfettered.
What happened to her?
What happened to Sachiko Shinozaki?
Touma Kamijou wanted to find out more than anything.
What had happened to the innocent child that Kamijou had met long ago?
Once, she was an innocent and pure soul that would never amount to hurting a fly. Kamijou could at least recall that much as he was able to.
Now, she was something else entirely. Kamijou could clearly see it from the very moment he laid eyes on her. What she was not your mere ghost. She was the vengeful spirit that carried and seem to be the center point of this entire accursed place. He could feel it within the Force – the metaphysical, spiritual, binding, and ubiquitous power that he had now been capable of wielding due to his extensive training. In fact, through the Force, he could actually sense the unnaturalness of this very place from the very beginning even more some of his memories of Sachiko would return little by little.
Kamijou breathes in and out, stands up from the ground, and wiped a little of the blood from earlier. He looks towards his four companions who were concerned for him, the two girls who were watching, and the Doctor who was both understanding and silent, coming towards him as he pats his left shoulder, telling him silently with a look that they will talk about this later when the girls are safe and sound, to which Kamijou agreed with silently.
"We can't stay here," Kamijou said grimly.
"No shit, Matsumoto," Kyon couldn't help but remark sarcastically but was also worried for Kamijou, taking his revolvers off of his holsters in order to prepare himself for the dangers that lay ahead based on the declaration of the red ghost girl.
"What we just saw was a ghost, but..." Sota Mizushino spoke grimly, worried and concerned about what he had just seen and felt.
"That was no ordinay ghost. Not by a long shot," Conan Edogawa spoke grimly as he turned towards Yuka Mochida, one of the girls alongside Kokuhaku Akaboji. "Yuka-chan, right?" He questioned with a smile that would want to reassure the poor girl who was scared beyond her wits. The girl would nod as she begins to breathe in and out in order to calm herself down but could not help but cried softly as Kokuhaku continues to pat her on the back. "I know that you are probably scared right now, but I want you to know that I and my friends won't ever leave you behind. In fact, how about you and Akaboji-neechan come with us since we have a safe zone just right outside this very school?"
"W-Wait, a-a safe zone?! There really is a safe zone?!" Kokuhaku exclaimed in shock, with little hope of regaining in spite of everything.
"Yeah," Kyon nodded. "Said safe zone is actually one of the reasons as to how we even got here. You two might as well need to be dropped there for your own safety. "
"B-But...onii-chan..." Yuka Mochida asked timidly, little tears were seen from the corner of her eyes.
"Onii-chan? Do you have a brother around here somewhere?" Lelouch asked, concerned.
"I...I don't know?" Yuka spoke sadly. "We...We got separated the moment we and the rest of our friends had tumbled down this dark hole that was caused by some kind of earthquake. I was all alone when I ended up here."
"Tell me, Yuka-chan? What school did you go to?" Conan asked, curious and concerned, said question bugging his mind a bit as he would look towards her uniform.
"Umm...Kisaragi Academy...Why?" Yuka answered.
All of the five companions and the Doctor paid close attention as the word 'Kisaragi Academy' was mentioned. The same school that has a connection to Heavenly Host in terms of history and the past.
"And did you and your friends get here also because of that charm that Akaboji-neechan had once said?" Conan asked once again.
"Y-Yes," Yuka nodded. "Um...One of my friends said that we would perform the charm in order to stay as friends forever."
"..."
All of the five companions would look at each other, their eyes narrowed as they would begin to realize the dreaded implication of this case that they had recently just stumbled upon themselves.
What if these two weren't the only ones trapped in this place?
What if the zombie-like monster that Kamijou had killed wasn't the only monster running loose around here?
What if...?
They didn't want to ask this question to themselves, but based on what they had figured out so far, it wasn't anything pleasant.
"You guys thinking what I'm thinking right now?" Kyon asked bluntly.
"Yeah," Conan nodded.
"We should leave and head back to the TARDIS in full haste. Once we're there, we'll need to discuss our next move from here on out and plan accordingly," Lelouch proposed.
"While I'm all for that idea, I feel like that it won't be so easy to go outside this time though, if what that ghost girl from earlier was anything to go by," Sota said as he grabs hold of his NeoDecadriver magenta-colored belt and place it towards the center of his waist, automatically attaching itself as it's sides sprung in a clockwise, much to the surprise and curiosity of the two girls who were watching.
"Yeah, we should probably keep an eye out for any possible dangers. That little girl did say that we were all being invited to her 'Corpse Party' while laughing like a lunatic while we're at it. And I don't know about you all, but when one mentions the word 'corpse' and adding to that cliche maniacal laughter, it really doesn't sound so good in hindsight. Permission of course to use my revolvers when absolutely necessary, Doctor?" Kyon asked in a deadpanned tone, looking at the Doctor.
"(Sigh). Permission granted. Just don't go too overboard," the Doctor sighed, albeit a little reluctantly while also being annoyed of even asking for permission in the first place.
"Yuka-chan, we would need to get you and Akadoji-neechan to safety first. I promise you that we will find your brother, but we should first make sure that you and neechan are safe. After all, I'd bet that he doesn't want you to be in any harm's way, wouldn't you agree?" Conan pointed out gently.
"Y-Yes, he wouldn't," Yuka would agree hesitantly, still worried about her brother.
"Well then, it's settled," the Doctor draws out his screwdriver as he would scan the area for any of the safest routes that they would need to head in order to get to the exit. "We should probably get moving. The sooner we move, the better. I'll lead the way from here on out and use my screwdriver to light the way. If you all see any sign of trouble, do not hesitate to shout immediately."
"Right," all of the companions agreed.
And then suddenly...
"...!"
A sudden earthquake would erupt from the building. The wooden floor would shake as the feeling of unnaturalness and fear began to settle in.
"What the hell?" Kyon muttered as he felt the ground shaking.
"Everyone, keep still!" Kamijou ordered.
The earthquake itself was already unnatural as some would feel something off about it; like there was some kind of artificially made hole through the very fabric of reality that was drawing out from one dimension to the next. A beeping sound from the sonic screwdriver that the Doctor was carrying would send him newly available data regarding the analysis of the phenomenon. After a minute or so, the earthquake would subside, the school becoming still once more.
The five companions would look at each other, concerned about what had just taken place. They look to the Doctor, finding his expression turning sour and grim as he would look at the results that the screwdriver would send to him, beeping in succession.
"Doctor, what is it?" Kamijou asked, concerned.
The Doctor looks at Kamijou. "It may appear that our worst fears have been realized. The screwdriver managed to pick traces of an unnatural gap that widened towards various dimensions in a stack of each other, including this one. Life signatures are being detected, probably people getting dragged here unwittingly against their will, and it's probably based on that charm that the girls had explained right before all of this. I never really did like the shady things on the internet. There's also the fact however that based on the readings and from what I can deduce, it may appear that this corrupted charm may be connected to the inconsistent number of years that this place seems to be carrying which is forming an unnatural pattern."
"Inconsistent? Inconsistent how?" Conan asked, concerned.
"Inconsistent being that the dates that lead to various ripples in the dimensions as if being punched through a hole in space-time being seemingly all over the place. There are dates like 1989, 1995, 2003, and a bunch of others being randomly synchronized as if they were one single moment in time. Conan-kun's from 2018, and the gap between that and 1975 is staggering, especially when taking into account certain dates beyond even this measurement."
"Wait a minute, Doctor. Are you trying to say that whatever is being dragged here is not just people from the present but also from the past and the future?" Kamijou asked, concerned.
"Probably, Touma," the Doctor sadly confirmed. "And it would also have to apply to other universes as well. Ergo, anyone could randomly be sent here against their will and no one else wouldn't know of it until it's too late. Based on these readings and through what little information that we have been given so far, I could probably deduce that the charm must have had some kind of corruptible element that is poisoning and widening the gap which would allow for a rupture of dimensions to either be submerged or breached over."
"There's still something off about this though besides this, Doctor," Conan spoke grimly, his right hand placed on his lower chin, deep in thought. "You would think that people from the outside would notice that something feels off with all of the disappearances lately. A report from the authorities or even the Foundation for one when it came to missing people throughout the years. And I highly doubt that the Foundation wouldn't notice this place which has appeared for the past 42 years from my perspective seemingly dragging a bunch of individuals from my world and other parallel dimensions."
"Except maybe and this would be a probably big possibility...what if their existence is also in jeopardy which would make said report practically impossible?" the Doctor proposed grimly.
"What do you...Ah!" Conan would widen his eyes, realizing what the Doctor is trying to say. The same can be said for the four other companions who couldn't help but grimace as the situation is even more sinister. "You don't mean..."
"That there may be a slight possibility that whoever ends up here may in fact have said record of them seemingly disappear. Until we find out more, we should need to follow a few traces of the signal that I just picked up which is actually just nearby around the corner. Detecting at least two persons from around the vicinity of this space. I think that we should meet up with them before we head back to the TARDIS and planned our next move from there," the Doctor explained.
"Right," Kamijou said.
And then, they would begin their straight but fast-paced walk into the dark place. They would pass through the duplicated floorboards, with one or two of the companions helping the girls to jump alongside them. They were all quiet the whole way as they turn from around the corner to find...
"Wait!" the Doctor exclaimed.
...They found something.
It was...a kind of reddish paint that seems to have covered practically the entire corridor. Guts and entrails spill throughout the floor and it would appear that based on the apparent circular crack in the wall, someone seems to have died in a very violent and gruesome fashion. And all this was analyzed by Conan as he would use his glasses to turn on his Detective Mode function in order to assess it. He would also wear a set of white gloves that allows him to scan the area and is connected to his glasses, providing sonar-like surveillance.
The girls in the meantime, once they realized that they were in the presence of a dead body, would be terrified as their audible voices would pitch a little too high which lead to Sota and Kyon who were nearby to comfort them as best as they could, telling them that everything's gonna be just fine, or at least they secretly hope that it was, but they didn't say it out loud.
"Body is unverifiable due to lack of facial recognition which would take more time than needed for a reconstruction, not even an ID or a picture that I could identify with, but from what can be found from the scans, it would appear that it seems to be a high school student at the very least, specifically..." Conan's vision turned dark; this case now being quite personal to him as he realizes that he is presently looking at a body belonging to none other than a student from Teitan High School, his very own school, based on the scattered clothing and ripped off pieces of the familiar tie and clothing on the ground. But there seem to be other factors in play. "...Teitan High School. My school. DNA analysis indicates that the unknown subject is male based on the traces of black hair. He was hurled towards this wall by an unknown force which allowed for the crack to occur at this wall. As to what could cause it: origin unknown. However, it would appear that there seem to be signature traces of neutrino-like energy that specifically could be found on a parallel Earth a few clicks to my own," Conan spoke grimly.
"So someone has already died here," Lelouch narrowed his eyes. "And I'd bet that this isn't the only victim around here."
"Not just that, but it appears that there are victims on this twisted place that came from different Earths which definitely proves that this isn't an isolated incident," Kamijou said as he was wearing his own pair of glasses and gloves that he had subtly materialized through his inner thoughts connecting him to his wristwatch via mental command.
He couldn't help but grimace at the sight of this, not because of the body but because of his growing suspicions on the matter that points to one particular culprit. There was no point in asking why. All he needed to do now at this point is find out what had happened to the 'lost time' that seems to indicate a set of events that he may have forgotten in his long life span.
"Why?" Kokuhaku couldn't help but mutter softly; both afraid and terrorized beyond belief while embracing and comforting Yuka. "Why is this happening? What kind of monster can do something like this?"
"Good question, difficult to answer," Kyon softly muttered in a grim tone.
"We should probably keep moving," the Doctor said as he raised his screwdriver which emits a type of light that would be brightened the dark atmosphere.
"Right," Conan muttered, his fists clenching as this had now turned into a personal endeavor in spite of the fact that this student may have been from a different Earth, he was still a student of Teitan High, and this made it personal for him.
And then, they decided to keep moving. They would walk and walk as they would see abandoned classrooms with broken chairs and scattered pieces of paper and trash. The hallway seems endless, not surprising considering the unnaturalness of this dimension. They were in one particular space among the various close spaces that seem to be on top of each other like some twisted version of a transfinite tower.
After walking on the corner, the beeping sound would abruptly identify that they were close to the source of the two signatures. The Doctor raised his left hand, beckoning them to stop for a moment. Then he put his left index finger to his mouth, indicating a shush, before eventually gesturing to make their steps lighter as they need to be cautious, for they do not know what to expect from this place except possible dangers, no matter how innocent it may be.
Insert Song: End
Insert Song: Start
Kitto Ieru きっと言える Yukari Tamura 田村ゆかり FULL
The Doctor and company would begin to make lightened steps as little by little, they would hear the sound of two ruffled up voices. Their voices appeared to be female, and judging by their tone, they seem to be curious and cautious.
"-re the hell are we?"
"I honestly have no clue, Satoko."
"Wait what?!" Kamijou exclaimed in shock as he realizes the two familiar echoing voices immediately. The same could be said for the other companions and the Doctor as they would be familiar with the voices.
Kamijou would turn from the corner, only to find two young women who were bewildered and disheveled based on their appearances. They may have just stood up from the wooden floor and decided to check around for any clue as to where they are. The two women in fact were seen to be looking at a flyer that reads something about Heavenly Host.
The two young women were wearing middle school uniforms consisting of a long-sleeved dark blue on white sailor uniform, along with a navy blue scarf. One was a young woman with spiky blonde hair worn in a short bob; held back with her signature black headband, with dark magenta eyes. The other was a young woman with straight long azure-indigo hair, with violet eyes.
"Ri-Rika! Satoko-chan!" Kamijou exclaimed, surprised and concerned.
The two young women, having been called by name, would turn around to find Touma Kamijou, his four companions, the Doctor, and two young women that they have never seen before, much to their shock.
"Eh?"
Both women were seemingly confused. Something didn't feel right as they would see what appeared to be five teenage boys that seem quite familiar to them for some reason along with an old man that they never even met, and yet couldn't help but feel this strange familiarity.
There was silence for a few moments as neither party would go near the other. Conan Edogawa was using his glasses to scan the two in order to verify what he was seeing. The same could be said for Touma who was doing his own scan with the help of his glasses.
"No way..." Conan muttered softly, seeing that the readings appeared to match and that there was truly no mistaking it.
"But...why...?" Kamijou muttered softly, seeing the same readings that Conan was seeing, plus the fact that their signature was something that he had felt to be very familiar and there was truly no mistaking it. He was seeing his wife and his childhood friend, only that they were their younger versions before they became fully-fledged Witches. He supposed that based on their appearance that they are middle school students at this time, not having attended St. Lucia Academy yet, the school that these two would eventually go to.
"...Dear?" Rika softly muttered in disbelief. She was closely looking at the spiky-haired young man and his black eyes, seeing it clearly as the young man took off his glasses by pressing a button on his wristwatch. She takes one step closer as she, little by little, comes towards the young man she gets a good look at him. Her face draws near as her hair sways downward, her eyes looking up to her beloved's eyes. There really was no mistaking it as she could just tell as if by natural instinct.
This was her husband.
But he seems older than the last time that she saw him. Physically but also mentally. Then there was that strange expression, traces of which she could see and feel the bonds between them were unmistakable to simply deny.
She slowly raises her right hand to touch his cheek but hesitates at the last second, letting her hand raised for a bit before pressing forward and touching his left cheek, to which Kamijou could only respond by touching her right hand with his left hand and gently squeeze it.
"...I...How...?" Rika muttered softly, looking directly at Kamijou's eyes.
"...I...I don't know..." Kamijou muttered softly, looking directly at Rika's eyes.
Yuka Mochida and Kokuhaku Akaboji, with mouths in the shape of an 'O', their cheeks slightly blushing in a tint of rosy red, would look on at the scene with amazement as they were realizing that a romantic scene was now playing right in front of their very own eyes, and it seems to be more obvious as the two lovers were practically looking at each other with no hesitation like it's just them in the room.
"Yep, that's Rika-chan alright. No way would that kind of expression be made by just anyone except for when Touma-san comes along. They just act like an old married couple whenever they are together," Kyon muttered, simply smiling.
"And that just makes this scene all the more sweeter when one considers the context," Lelouch said, smiling.
"But...how though? I mean, last I checked, I don't think these two have even heard of that charm that Akaboji-san was talking about," Sota was concerned as he was looking at the Doctor who was more or less showing the same level of concern.
"There's also the fact that these two are from a completely different universe several inter-multiversal distances away from my own local multiverse. Unless of course, that ghost in red knows how to even travel that far ahead by other means available to her," Conan pointed out.
"Which precisely is what makes this all the more concerning since their signatures appeared around the same time the unnatural temporal earthquake occurred not too long ago," the Doctor's face turned grim.
Satoko Hojo would look at Kamijou closely as if trying to make sure that the person that she was seeing was the actual Kamijou. "No way...Touma...You...You got..."
"Bigger? Taller? More handsome?" Kamijou joked.
"Last one is debatable," Satoko deadpanned while Rika was giggling at her husband's humor that never seems to have changed with the passing of time. "You're all grown up, Touma. Just? How? Why?"
"Time travel I suppose," Kamijou smiled sadly.
"That and you two are not even supposed to be here which is a whole lot worst than I realized," the Doctor explained.
"...Um, who are you?" Satoko asked, curious.
"Satoko," Rika closed her eyes, answering with a smile. "If my future husband and his friends being here are any indications, then it could only mean one thing. Who's the other one who's always with them and takes them on adventures?"
"...Ah! The Doctor?!" Satoko, placing her clenched right hand on her left open hand, realized what Rika was trying to say, looking back and forth between the former and the Doctor. "No way."
"Yes way," the Doctor smiled, waving his left hand. "Hello, Satoko-chan. Long time no see, well for you specifically anyway when it comes to the faces that you're acquainted with."
"I...You...You changed your face again," Satoko said, bewildered.
Satoko Hojo, having known the Doctor over the years, had already known about his status as a Time Lord. By default, she already knew about the concept of regeneration wherein Time Lords renew themselves in a physical and psychological manner based on a number of factors, and when it came to the Doctor, it always involved near-death experiences.
"I suppose so. Long story and I can't really say too much. You know, preserving history and all of that importance with time," the Doctor smiled.
"Never mind that though, we have a serious problem on our hands. We need to figure a couple of things out, true, but we should probably not stay here for too long. We should get out of this damn place and head back to the TARDIS where it's safe," Kyon explained.
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Insert Song: Start
Corpse Party: Blood Covered OST - Chapter 3's Main Theme (Extended)
"You're all not going anywhere I'm afraid..."
"...!"
There was an echoing sound eerily coming from behind them. Sota and Lelouch, being the nearest to the two girls, would automatically place them to their back with their hands raised as if forming a wall of defense, eyes narrowed. Kamijou would look back, eyes narrowed, as he and everyone else would look in the other direction.
They saw something standing nearby a few meters short of their position.
What appeared was...
"Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh!" Yuka and Kokuhaku screamed as they saw what appeared to be a translucent ghost.
"?!" Rika and Satoko were shocked as they were seeing the translucent ghost, but they weren't really surprised as they have met ghosts before, but this ghost was someone that they had yet to meet.
It had a bluish type of aura and his chest seems to have an unnatural hole in the center, probably a bullet wound that had long dried its dripping blood. He wears regular clothing consisting of a white shirt and a brown jacket. His feet were floating, barely touching the ground. His face however appeared to be sad and resigned. His features were sunken, mummified skin, narrow limbs, and a thin neck. From what the Doctor and the five companions could tell, he was a male Indian young man of about sixteen or so.
"Wait a minute..." the Doctor muttered softly, raising an eyebrow of surprise and concern. "Dhruv? Is that you?"
"Dhruv? As in Dhruv Varma?" Rika asked, recognizing the name as while she had never met the ghost before, her beloved and a few others that she knew would often speak about him.
"Hello, Doctor, everyone, it's been a while. The same goes for you as well, Lady Furude, Lady Hojo, although you have yet to meet me yet, I can definitely say from the bottom of my heart that it is good to see you again if not for the diresome circumstances that we all find ourselves in," the ghost smiled, glad to see him and the others once again.
Dhruv Varma. An old friendly ghost from India on DCMK Earth-Prime that the Doctor and the five companions had met a long time ago and had since then cross paths with each other when the opportunities of fate present themselves, particularly when Earth and the universe itself seem threatened.
"Oh dear, if you're here, then things must be pretty bad indeed," the Doctor grimly.
"You don't the half of it, Doctor, and that's severely understating it," Dhruv spoke sadly.
"Girls, calm down," Lelouch smiled, reassured of the old friend that was standing right in front of them. "You don't have to be afraid. This particular ghost is a very old friend of ours."
"Eh?" both Kokuhaku and Yuka uttered in surprise.
"Dhruv, as much as I'm glad to see a friendly face in this godforsaken place, do you have any idea what's going on here?" Kyon asked, concerned.
"...Where to begin..." Dhruv would glance meaningfully at Kamijou. "Well, I would guess that all of you would know about Kamijou's connection with the girl dyed in red."
"Hm?" Rika was concerned, looking at Kamijou. "What does he mean by that, dear?"
"..." Kamijou could not answer right away. In fact, there was that face that he was making that would make Rika and Satoko quite worried. He answered; a grimace of sorrow and regret filled his features. "...The master of this place...the girl in red. This is what I feel, but I think that you two being here was not a coincidence. Tell me, Rika, Satoko-chan, what was the last thing that you two would recall before coming here?"
Both Rika and Satoko would look at each other, concerned, before looking back towards Kamijou as the former would explain the circumstances before their arrival.
Apparently, it was late afternoon when it happened. Rika Kamijou and Satoko Hojo would be walking down the simple paths just like always as they both head home together, carrying their student handbags. They've just gotten through many lessons and classes from Rumiko Chie and had just through yet another Club activity, just without Kamijou this time, or specifically his younger self as last they had heard, the younger middle school Touma Kamijou was having yet another random adventure alone with the Doctor, specifically the Eleventh Doctor, and it was one that involved talking fish of all things.
When she got to that part, both Yuka and Kokuhaku who were listening in were a bit bewildered and couldn't keep up with this talk about parallel dimensions and other scientific casual talks that one would think you'd find in some kind of sci-fi anime or tv show.
Despite the fact that they were literally in a nightmarish hellscape, even the mere concept of 'talking fish' seems like a ridiculous notion. Then again, in their world, the supernatural and other weird non-sensical stuff happens surprisingly a lot and is already a public spectacle to the point where the Japanese government has acknowledged the presence of yokai communities. And then, of course, there were the Night Baron escapades that would bring that to mind, their own Dark Knight of the World battling against all manner of evil, whether of the natural or unnatural kind.
As the tale continues on, when both Rika and Satoko were walking, they felt a sudden earthquake that was shaking the ground. The next moment, they suddenly stumbled upon this dark corridor. The afternoon sun that brings optimism for a better tomorrow in Hinamizawa was subsequently replaced by the darkness that both of the girls had felt from the inside which was sending signals of possible instinctual danger as they inadvertently got transported here against their will.
And then Rika would point toward something that grabbed the attention of Kamijou and the others.
It was another flyer. And there appeared to be something written there.
And it was written in fresh blood.
"Bitch! Bitch Bitch! Bitch! Bitch! How dare you stole my oniichan from me you blue-haired bitch?! Do you think that I'll let you off so easy?!"
"..."
Kamijou's expression turned dark and so did most of everyone else who read the accursed words, but none turned dark as much as Kamijou did due to the fact that this particular issue was personal to him now. He had a feeling that he knew who wrote it. And the way that was written was sending a chill down his spine. There were many meaningful words behind the cursing. The implications of which were something that could not help but made Kamijou clench his fists, his black eyes would suddenly turn pale yellow like a dragon, flickering back and forth, but was unnoticeable.
Rika on the other hand noticed the demeanor of her beloved as she immediately grab hold of his right clenched fist which was noticed by Kamijou. He turned from one side to find her concerned glance, no utterance of words seem needed or required except for that meaningful touch of support that allowed Kamijou to breathe in and out, showing a thankful smile as he turned back towards the note.
Aside from the obvious cursing, there was another note from here.
"How many years has it been? How much blood had been spilled? Too many to count from the Origin World and the worlds that lay beyond the borders. It was of a number that one could dare not hope to count. Once you're in this place, there's no turning back. If you die here, you will suffer your own painful death for all eternity...There is no escape. There is nowhere to run. There is nowhere to hide. Once the girl in red comes for you, it's over. Say your prayers to whatever god you believe in while you can, for Heaven itself or whatever form of an afterlife will not be a comfort to you as it will be barred from you. Neither will you end up in Hell. Why would you be in Hell when you are already there?"
"Huh, how informative of this note," Kyon deadpanned.
"Dhruv," Kamijou turned back towards his old ghost friend of long ago. "What can you tell us exactly about what we're dealing with here?"
"Not much I'm afraid," Dhruv sadly said. "I was actually wandering around this twisted realm for weeks now and have been cloaking myself from the presence of the master of this realm for as much as I am able to. Powerful as I am, even I cannot underestimate the girl dyed in red. And every single time I've been observing, all I could see was an unnatural form of death that managed to take hold of this unnatural realm born out of pure dark magic. The dimensions themselves are all wrong and out of order. Time's not synchronized properly and is set to random. People and places and things from different universes and times seemingly come here inadvertently for one purpose. To die. And many have in fact did die; more often in terrifying and gruesome ways that I cannot mention now if only for the sensitively of the two girls who came with you, with me being powerless to stop the machinations of this darkness that shudders my soul, and yes, I can see the irony on that as well."
"Yeah, we kinda get that part, Dhruv, but the question that we're asking right now is the how and the why which could mean a lot of things and would need to be updated with the necessary context and proper evidence. More importantly," Conan looks at Kamijou, concerned. "That ghost from earlier, the girl with red clothing, she seems to know you, Touma-san. No, more than that. She definitely knows who you are. She even speaks very familiarly with you as if you were almost someone quite special. Adding to the fact that I saw that expression that you made when you made eye contact with her. Who exactly is she to you, Touma-san?"
Who indeed?
In fact, both Rika and Satoko were concerned and curious as well, wondering as to who or what was Conan talking about.
"Dear...what has happened here before we first met...? Who is this girl dyed in red that um..." Rika glances towards Conan, not knowing of this boy and yet having the feeling that she is quite familiar with him based on the similarity with the other boy that she knew who was the closest to her beloved. Yes, she heard of the name 'Conan' when the Doctor had mentioned it a few moments ago, but she could not help but feel that there wasn't all there is to it.
Conan, seeing the meaningful inquiring glance, would smile as he said. "Edogawa Conan, tantei-san. Although, you and Satoko-san might know me by another name, and it's one that I cannot really say since we're not the only ones around here." He, of course, would refer to both Yuka and Kokuhaku who unlike the rest who were in this corridor did not have a clue of his true identity.
Both Satoko and Rika seemingly understood the subtle reference, adding on to the familiar features and they can understand that their suspicions weren't really that off the mark.
"Heeh, now this is quite interesting," Satoko spoke in amusement, both hands placed to her waist. "Just how is it that you ended up like a tiny pipsqueak, Chiisana Tantei-san?"
"A very long story. Plus spoilers," Conan said with a smile.
"I see," Rika leave it at that with a smile and turn her gaze back towards Kamijou, holding his right hand and squeezing it gently, as if waiting for the question to be answered.
Kamijou's face turned downcasted. All that was present was that guilt, that pain of recollection that he could still feel from the depths of his consciousness. It was something that made the present atmosphere quite cold. It was freezing to the metaphorical bone.
"...Rika, Satoko-chan, do you recall that Test that I talked about to you long ago?"
Of course, how could they forget?
The Test was the main reason why the young man known as Touma Kamijou had been given the opportunity to meet up with them and the rest of their friends in the Hinamizawa Afterschool Gaming Club. There were a lot of good memories that were made as Kamijou made his stay throughout the simple village all while trying to find some way to get home.
Sadly, however, what lay ahead for Kamijou and one that even Rika herself had experienced was that fate was not quite kind for the former.
The young man known as Touma Kamijou had suffered.
But the kind of suffering that he had suffered and endured was nothing to scoff at. In the face of every single adversity, he walked through multiple numbers of worlds. Some were designed to break him thoroughly and deeply. Some were designed to challenge his ideals of a happy ending. Some were designed to inflict upon him the worst kind of sufferings that anyone could ever possibly endure in a multitude of ways that were reminiscent of his other life.
...Yes. That kind of suffering could not just be swept aside and forgotten.
And it wasn't just the fact that he was suffering. It was the fact that he had seen so very many people died in gruesome untold deaths that numbered in the trillions. All of the screams. All of that pain. All of the many countless indescribable deaths. Take your pick. It wouldn't matter.
"We do," Rika nodded, her expression turning empathetic and serious. Satoko was carrying a similar expression, knowing what Kamijou is talking about.
"(Sigh). Alright, I'll tell you in a summary kind of way. Basically, the girl in red that Conan-kun had been talking about is someone that I've met a long time ago, back during the time of the Test, and you and Satoko-chan would know what I'm referring to without elaborating too much. To put it simply, this person is someone that I've inadvertently met a long time ago. I recall the date being sometime on the early to mid-1950s, although at that time, I didn't realize that I was on Conan-kun's Earth in the past as something about my memory seems to be editing it. I actually spent a lot of time there with the girl back when she was...alive. Her and her mother who was a nurse in Heavenly Host Elementary School. The Shinozakis they were called. And the girl dyed in red was Shinozaki Sachiko, the young girl that I've managed to befriend during my stay. Nothing really important happens at that time and all that I could say was that it was a time that I should never have forgotten if only because of the promise that I made to the girl, that I'd shown her the stars after all is said and done as I've yet to free Hinamizawa from the curse of the Endless June and there were still a lot of worlds that I needed to travel too, rather inadvertently on my part."
"That's what's mostly strange about this account though, Kamijou-san," Conan pointed out, concerned. "What exactly was the alias that you go by when you were stuck at that time?"
"Well, I've gone by the alias 'Otohime Touya' during that specific moment in time, why?" Kamijou asked.
"Because last I recall from browsing the old records of Heavenly Host, there is no official record of you anywhere. Whatever seems to have happened at that time may as well have occurred in a sort of isolated pocket timeline separated from the main reality if one were to consider these circumstances," Conan explained.
"And therein lies the problem," the Doctor pointed out. "The timelines don't feel right. Since this is the Test that we're talking about, I have no doubt that a certain Theatergoing Witch had taken certain amounts of liberty in making sure nothing seems to have appeared to change from the outside. Call it editing, call it meta-hax, call it whatever term you could think of, but the effect remains the same and is understandable to me since even I had not a clue on what she had put you through in that Endless Hell as there are far too much to count. But there's more to it than just her, isn't it, Touma?"
"...Yeah," Kamijou nodded. "Something...strange happened at that time. I don't know what happened, but something seems to have edited my memories of the events, made me forget about Sachiko."
"Do you think that she did it? Made you forget?" Kyon asked, clearly listening to this topic.
"No," Kamijou shakes his head. "She's many things, but she would never deliberately make me forget something. Actually, I could think of a number of enemies back then who had the capability of making me forget that lost time."
"By that, you mean him, correct?" Conan said, his expression turning grim.
"He's the only suspect I could think of that would do it in a heartbeat if only to make sure I suffer. And what better way than making sure that something becomes a stumbling block that would prevent me from doing what I have to," Kamijou said, his anger being subtle. And it was directed toward someone who is one of his most dangerous archenemies to date and the cause of his many sufferings. "A Kihara by any other name whose one of his main goals is to torture me to the point of breaking."
"(Sigh). I guess even after all these years, he still manages to find a way to attempt to one-up you somehow, only in this case, it was this kind of scale that threatens reality as a whole," Conan sighed heavily.
"Not really surprising at this point considering who he is," Sota spoke grimly.
Insert Song: End
Insert Song: Start
HRtP Stages 1-4/Jigoku Route 16-19: Eternal Shrine Maiden
And then suddenly...
...An explosion has occurred.
"What the-"
Actually, it was more or less a ripple of explosions, each in counting succession that managed to create a static-like effect throughout the entire corridor which seems to change drastically into another corridor, perverting the space in between.
A sudden transport, shifting from one dimension to the next as the ripple would cause a couple of headaches for most of the people throughout the corridor as they find themselves in another corridor that was dilapidated. What amounted to more than a couple of artificially made holes throughout the wooden floor. And there appeared to be a bunch of dead bodies that were reminiscent of zombies based on their well apparent decayed flesh and bone, all of them were apparently thrown from multiple angles and killed for good measure as each bullet strike to the head that has holes in it seems to be the case.
"Haaaaaah! It's finally over!"
Everyone begins to turn around to find someone who was standing on a pile of rubble, looking exhausted.
"...!"
A tall young beautiful woman, probably around Kamijou's age, wearing a red-and-white adapted and non-traditional shrine maiden outfit, white sarashi, white bowed socks, and black Mary Jane shoes; her armpits being quite apparent and has a large red ribbon that would tie from the back of her hair. Brown hair that was not too long but not too short either. She was holding what appeared to be a gohei that was used as a purification type of tool from the left hand while also holding a couple of spell cards from the right hand.
Some may know her as the resident mascot of her reality. Others associate her as being a poor shrine maiden who almost always never seems to be rewarded for her hard-working efforts. And many would agree with calling her armpit miko based on the obvious term. But for the Doctor, the five main companions, and everyone else, they would know her as...
"R-Reimu?!" Kamijou exclaimed.
The aforementioned miko—Reimu Hakurei—would turn around to find Kamijou and the others standing there in complete shock. The girl would smile brightly as she would see them, especially a certain spiky-haired young man that she had an affection for.
"Touma!" she exclaimed.
And then, it resulted in a warm hug between the spiky-haired young man and the armpit miko.
Insert Song: End
ED Song:
【ARTERY VEIN】Confutatis no Inori (Full Version)【CP Blood Covered】【Eng Lyrics】
Incarnation(s)/Regeneration(s) of the Doctor:
The Twelfth Doctor - A: Peter Capaldi
Main Companion Protagonists:
Touma Kamijou - VA: Atsushi Abe
Shinichi Kudo/Conan Edogawa/Night Baron - VA: Minami Takayama
Kyon - VA: Tomokazu Sugita
Sota Mizushino/Kamen Rider Decade - VA: Daiki Yamashita
Lelouch vi Britannia/Zero - VA: Jun Fukuyama
Main Love Interests:
Rika Kamijou (née Furude) (Past) - VA: Yukari Tamura
The Club Characters:
Satoko Hojo (Past) - VA: Mika Kanai
The Nine Characters:
Yuka Mochida - VA: Eri Kitamura
Main Enemy Characters:
Sachiko Shinozaki - VA: Ikue Ōtani
New Characters:
Dhruv Varma
Reimu Hakurei
Real Life References:
* Seichō Matsumoto (松本 清張, Matsumoto Seichō, December 21, 1909 – August 4, 1992) (born Kiyoharu Matsumoto) was a Japanese writer, credited with popularizing detective fiction in Japan. Matsumoto's works broke new ground by incorporating elements of human psychology and ordinary life. His works often reflect a wider social context and postwar nihilism that expanded the scope and further darkened the atmosphere of the genre. His exposé of corruption among police officials and criminals was a new addition to the field. The subject of investigation was not just the crime but also the society affected. Although Matsumoto was a self-educated prolific author, his first book was not printed until he was in his forties. In the following 40 years, he published more than 450 works. Matsumoto's work included historical novels and non-fiction, but it was his mystery and detective fiction that solidified his reputation as a writer internationally. Credited with popularizing the genre among readers in his country, Matsumoto became Japan's best-selling and highest earning author in the 1960s. His most acclaimed detective novels, including Ten to sen (1958; Points and Lines, 1970); Suna no utsuwa (1961; Inspector Imanishi Investigates, 1989) and Kiri no hata (1961; Pro Bono, 2012), have been translated into a number of languages, including English. He received the Akutagawa Prize in 1952, the Kikuchi Kan Prize in 1970, and the Mystery Writers of Japan Award in 1957. He served as president of the Mystery Writers of Japan from 1963 to 1971. Matsumoto also collaborated with film director Yoshitarō Nomura on adaptations of eight of his novels to film, including Castle of Sand.