Class Trial Resume

My mind was blank. It wasn't able to comprehend anything it had witnessed. If my brain was hooked up to a heart monitor, it would read zero activity with how dead it felt.

"Kai… I-I'm sorry… I didn't want this to happen! I'm so sorry!" Luca cried out to me but I wasn't able to respond to him. The despair was multiplying by the second! This trial is getting to be too much! I don't know how much more of this I can handle before I really snap!

"Hang on! What the hell is this Monokuma?! This is not like you to outright reveal the killer!" Paul shouted.

"What do you mean?" Monokuma asked back.

"I mean you just showed us the footage of the murder and Luca shooting Ollie! How does that make things fair for us yet ruin the fun for you?!" Paul screamed at him.

"Because it didn't! You guys still have no clue who is the killer!" Monokuma told us.

"What are you talking about!? Luca had the gun and he shot it!" Melinda hollered.

"Are you sure?" Monokuma cooed.

"Huh?" Melinda seemed confused.

"Let's take a look at an enhanced screenshot of the moment before the gun went into trigger happy havoc mode!" Monokuma squealed before the screen showed the fight and just before the gun was fired again, it paused and zoomed in on the gun before it fixed the blur from the zoom in. What we saw next was impossible to believe had we not seen it! We saw Luca's finger on the trigger but Melinda's finger was also on the trigger on top of his finger!

"What the hell!? How did Melinda get her finger on the trigger?!" Paul shouted in rage.

"Was it… during their fight? Did she slip her finger in when they fought for the gun?!" Shana asked, looking absolutely mortified.

Willie soon looked to Monokuma and screamed, "Hey! You need to play that again!"

"Sorry! That was the only chance you had to pay attention becauseI'm only playing it once! Now you just have to rely on your own logic to try and deduce who is the blackened and who is the culprit!" Monokuma announced.

"That's not fair! Goddammit!" Willie screamed out.

"You don't have to worry about that," Luca spoke up, "I killed Ollie! Melinda's finger may have been over mine but I know I shot that gun! Just vote for me and be done with this!"

"No, wait!" I suddenly shouted out as my mind came back to me.

Luca looked upset at my outburst. "Kai, please don't say anything! I've been confessing since you found out I was the Shadow Vigilante! There's no need to put yourself through this anymore! I don't care about winning this game! Please just let me die!"

"But it's possible that Melinda is the real killer after all! Her finger was over yours! If she shot the gun, you would have felt your finger push the trigger too! She probably made you think you had fired the gun!" I told him.

"No! I know I fired it! I thought I was being careful when we were fighting but I guess I was so absorbed in the fight I didn't realize my finger had shot the bullet!" Luca argued.

"There must have been something we missed! Maybe if I go over the case from the beginning we can figure this out!" I said, desperately.

"Oh my God, Kai," Luca groaned out. "Fine! Go ahead! It won't change anything!"

"I will find something! I have to!" I huffed out in determination.

Closing Argument!

Act 1

"I think it's about time we go over how this case played out. I believe it must have started sometime after nighttime that our two likely culprits had met up and began talking. One had convinced the other in some way to help them commit a murder through some means of threatening them or blackmail. Whatever the case, the other was forced to agree to help with the diabolical scheme."

Act 2

"The one culprit had to lure out the chosen victim out of her room but that wouldn't have been difficult for them considering the victim, Ollie, trusted this person a great deal. They went up to the fifth floor and the culprit was about to execute the first part of the plan. But Ollie was able to convince them to stop what they were doing and not go through with this plot they had agreed to. But they weren't prepared for what happened next."

Act 3

"The first culprit had walked in and demanded the other finish the job but when the other one refused, the first one made a move instead. The two began fighting each other and wrestled for the gun. Ollie was backing away from the fight but before anyone could react in time… BANG! The gun had been fired and the one shot that was triggered happened to hit its original target. This was the result of the incident behind Ollie's true death and with both culprits having their fingers on the trigger, it's impossible to know which one was the true killer. That could have been how things ended but the plan of action wasn't over yet."

Act 4

"With Ollie now dead, the culprits played things out to ensure the success of the original culprit's plan. While one took on a disguise in all black clothing to mask themselves, the other one most likely set everything else up. They took a blood pack from the Nurse's office and shot it through the art room window, locked the door to the VR room, wrote a note for Paul to meet me in the library, and get permission from Monokuma to set off the alarm all to help create an illusion that would fool us into thinking things were happening immediately."

Act 5

"The alarm sounded at 5:30 and woke Willie, Shana, and myself as we all came out from our rooms to find a masked shooter we've dubbed the Shadow Vigilante outside waiting for us but little did we know it was one of the culprits as they shot at us but purposefully missed to ensure we wouldn't actually be harmed. They ran off as the three of us tried to collect ourselves. Meanwhile, the first culprit met up with Paul in the library to give themselves an alibi as the Shadow Vigilante ran by them and shot at them as well. With all of us being shot at, the culprit got out of their disguise and hid it out of sight on top of the fitness room cabinets. Then they took their gun, aimed it back, and shot themselves in the shoulder to trick us into thinking the Shadow Vigilante just shot them. With everyone but Ollie accounted for, we split up into pairs and each searched one of the remaining floors where eventually me and the culprit I was paired with found Ollie's body. With us having been shot at recently we instantly assumed Ollie's murder was fresh. Even during the investigation, one pulled a huge stunt. They shot their own rifle in an attempt to fool Willie and me that the Shadow Vigilante shot at them. They threw themselves at Willie for comfort. Why? Simple. To steal the Beretta M9 aka the murder weapon back. Everything was set up as part of the elaborate stratagem that the two culprits of this case pulled in order to deceive us into believing a third party was behind this and now we have the unfortunate circumstance of not knowing who was ultimately the killer and who was the accomplice."

"I believe that wraps things all up, am I right Luca Archer, the Ultimate Traceur, and Melinda Jones, the Ultimate Huntress?"

Break!

Luca soon spoke with his eyes closed. "Yeah, you got it right. I knew you would. But even though you don't know the truth about who the killer is and who the accomplice is, I do. In the end, I was the blackened, and Melinda was the accomplice."

"Luca… Melinda made the plan! Not you! You're not the blackened! You need to stop this now!" I fought back against him.

Before I could say more, Luca began screaming again, "Stop saying that! You weren't even there! I can say this because I was there! I know I pulled the trigger so stop pretending like you're not listening to me!"

"I'm not!" I argued but he interrupted me. "You are! For once, Melinda and Paul are right! You're letting your emotions for me cloud your vision!"

"No! The reason I'm fighting against this is because you don't have a reason to kill Ollie and Melinda did! There has to be something in the video I'm not seeing!" I told him.

"Kai, that's enough," Luca now spoke in a hushed voice.

"But…" I tried to speak but Luca once again interrupted me. "It's okay, Kai. Really. I really thought I was being careful not to shoot when I was fighting against her but it did. It was just a coincidence that Ollie got killed by that bullet I must have shot."

"It also must have been a coincidence that she was hit in the t-zone," Melinda added.

"T-zone?" Shana asked.

Willie stepped in and answered with, "Imagine drawin' a big T where the top line covers your eyes and the downward line covers your nose. That there spot is a guarantee spot shooters can aim for to instantly kill someone. Ollie just happened to get hit in that exact spot when the gun was fired while them two was fightin'."

"It looks like this is the end," Paul guessed.

I felt my body grow heavy as my head drooped. 'Is this really the end? Do I have to sacrifice my best friend in order to survive? To avenge Ollie's death? All because the gun just happened to fire at the exact spot the t-zone was to kill her?'

Monokuma began talking, "Then if that's the case, time for the voting to begin! Everyone, please select the person you think is the blackened! And here we…"

"No stop!" I suddenly hollered out.

"Grr!" Monokuma growled as I stopped him.

Luca looked in bewilderment at me. "What now? Why are you stopping the inevitable, Kai?"

"I just can't believe that the one accidental shot that was fired just happened to hit the exact spot to kill someone while you and Melinda were staring at each other while fighting! If the gun fired multiple times, maybe but just when the gun happens to go off, Ollie just happened to get hit? That's too big of a coincidence!" I argued.

"I understand where you're comin' from, partner, I really do. But we saw it play out on that video. Them two was fightin' for the gun and Ollie backed away before the floor creaked and the gun got shot," Willie said, trying to reason with me.

Then the gears in my head shifted into high gear as what Willie said suddenly clicked. "Of course! That's the clue I was missing! Willie! You're a genius!"

Willie blinked, "Um… what? How am I a genius? Was it somethin' I said?"

"It's exactly what you said! The evidence that can only point to who the true shooter and killer is! As I've been beyond positive of who that person is! Melinda!" I shouted, pointing at her ace attorney style.

"What the fuck?!" Melinda shouted out.

Luca growled before slamming his fists against the podium. "Kai! That is enough! Stop this bullshit! You weren't even there! You didn't have a gun in your hand! You didn't feel what I felt! Nothing you can say will change what happened! I killed Ollie! End of story!"

"You're right! This is the end! For Melinda and Melinda alone!" I shouted back.

"You really are gonna fight against me on this? Fine! Bring it on, Kai! But no matter what you say I will not give in! I WILL BE DECLARED GUILTY!" Luca screamed out in the biggest rage I've ever seen with him.

I began thinking, 'We'll see about that. Don't worry, Luca. This is where I will prove you're without a doubt innocent!'

Argument Armament!

Luca: You weren't the one who was there when it happened! You don't know how much pressure there was on me!

Kai: I might as well have been there when I saw that Final Moments video! I saw what you went through!

Luca: I thought I was being careful when trying to rip the gun free from Melinda's hand! But I must have shot the gun while doing so and I didn't realize it because of how much I was in the heat of it!

Kai: But maybe because you were in the heat of it, your body's instincts to not let the gun go off helped you to not fire it anytime before! If not you probably should have been firing the gun all over the place!

Luca: Then what? The gun just magically grew a brain and fired as we waved the gun around and the bullet did loop-de-loops before killing Ollie? Don't be stupid!

Kai: I wasn't going to say that! But how can you think it was just a coincidence that Ollie got killed when that bullet was fired?! It couldn't have been by chance! It had to have been a conscious effort and you were too focused on Melinda!

Luca: So was she! Her eyes were locked onto mine the entire time when we fought! That alone proves the gun was fired at random and it was just a coincidence that Ollie got killed!

Kai: But Melinda has one thing that she must have done and gotten away with shooting Ollie without you realizing it!

Luca: You've never been more wrong than you are now! Kai, you need to stop this madness! I murdered her and you have no way to prove the shot was intentionally meant to kill Ollie!

Final Blow: Ultimate Huntress Senses

"THIS IS YOUR CURTAIN CALL!"

Break!

"Luca, that shot was intentionally meant to kill Ollie. Someone who's never shot a gun before today wouldn't be able to do this. However, the Ultimate Huntress could especially with her heightened senses and reflexes!" I accusingly called Melinda out.

"I! ...Wait what?" Luca suddenly stopped shouting and seemed surprised by my statement. Melinda however seemed to be livid as she seethed in a silent rage.

"Don't tell me you forgot who pulled you into this scheme. The same Ultimate who has shown us her astounding ability to pull a knife on someone like she did Damian on the first day of school! She was cleaning her gun, sitting down with Damian behind the seats to her right, and without taking her eyes off her gun, she yanked her knife out and deftly placed the blade's tip against Damian's nose without breaking skin! She did that with such blinding speed and agility yet did so without hurting him or looking at his positioning? That's a feat only the Ultimate Huntress is capable of pulling off!" I reminded them

"Then how did I do it for Ollie? Huh? I had no idea where she ran off too! My eyes were trained on Luca! He saw me never look away from him once!" Melinda screamed out.

"No, you didn't but you used your heightened sense of hearing to pinpoint exactly where Ollie was. When she was slowly stepping back from the fight, a loud creak sounded and that gave you the exact spot Ollie was standing. Then all you had to do was take in Ollie's height, yank the gun down to take aim, and then fire the trigger!" I argued back.

"But that creak may have sounded from our fighting!" Melinda defended but I shook my head. "That can't be it! You two were stepping around fast as you fought so any creaking sounds that may happen from your feet would have been very quick. The creak we heard was long and slow and that matches with how slowly Ollie had stepped back on the floorboards. With this fact now in place, there can be no doubt that Melinda is the blackened we've been looking for! And Luca is innocent."

Luca was stunned silent as everyone soaked in this new information. "Luca, it's over. I did it. I finally proved your innocence. Please, smile now. I'd love to see it again," I requested him.

Soon Luca's mouth did shift but it didn't take on the smile I hoped for, it instead became a deepened frown. "Okay, so maybe Melinda did use her talent to aim the gun… BUT SO WHAT?!"

I actually was scared by his outburst as I stumbled back and fell out of my podium before quickly getting myself back up as he continued screaming, "That doesn't change anything! I felt my finger pull the goddamn trigger! It doesn't matter if she aimed it! What matters is who was the one to fire the gun and I know I did it! Melinda just made sure I landed it, that's all!"

"Luca… why? I've done everything I can to help you and defend you because I believe in you! But no matter what I do, you shoot me down again and again! Why are you so willing to die!? Answer me! Why do you not seem to care about surviving this!?" I cried out in absolute anger, sadness, and bewilderment.

That's when Luca smiled at me as he replied, "That's easy. It's for you."

I blinked at him as I tried processing this. "...Me? I don't… what?"

He nodded. "It's always been about you for me, Kai. Ever since the first day, my biggest interest was helping you. Even before coming to the school, my only thoughts were to meet you and thank you."

"Thank me? For what?" I asked, mystified by all this.

"For saving my life," He answered. I was dazed beyond comprehension as he continued talking, "I'm alive to this day because of you. You saved me and now my only wish is reciprocating that act by sacrificing myself, the true blackened, to save you. Please understand, Kai. I can accept my death knowing it will save you in the end and I must accept my fate so I can be punished for what I did to Ollie. She deserves vengeance for her death. I know you agree."

My heart couldn't possibly sink any lower than it already has yet Luca did that to me as I felt no heartbeat at all. When he muttered those words it was as if my life just left my body. I was now an empty shell, waiting for the day it would be filled again but one well-aimed hit and my shell would be destroyed forever and I would be lost to the darkness I am now trapped in.

Somehow I recomposed myself as shadows cast over my eyes and I soon spoke up, "So… you're really willing to sacrifice yourself for me, no matter what I say or do?"

Luca nodded with a smile. "That's it exactly."

Soon the shadows left my eyes as I looked up at him with eyes full of fury and temper. "Then what's to stop me from doing the same for you?"

Luca's smile was quick to vanish as I muttered those words as his face went pale. "W-What?"

"You hear me. If you're going to throw your life away because you believe you're the killer then I'm willing to risk my life for what I believe is the truth. That Melinda is the killer," I mumbled out.

Melinda let out a nervous chuckle before saying, "Kai, let's be reasonable here. You're not really telling us you are going to die like this when you find out you're wrong."

"If I'm wrong but either way I don't care about my life right now. I will put my life on a stake and burn in hell if it means I can save Luca," I told her.

Melinda tried to argue back by saying, "B-But Kai…" But I immediately shut her up by screaming, "SHUT YOUR FUCKING SHITHOLE, YOU PSYCHOPATHIC BITCH! YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO SPEAK TO ME ANYMORE!"

"Kai, you can't save me! I don't deserve forgiveness!" Luca shouted out.

"But you can and I want to give you that chance!" I shouted back.

"What do you mean? How are you even going to do that?" Luca asked me.

I looked to everyone as I began explaining, "Look, we have to vote between these two and whoever we choose to vote will be executed no matter what because if we guess right, only they will die. But then we might guess wrong and we die along with the person we vote for. And I'm willing to go all-in on Melinda if you guys are!"

"But it's like you said, we have a fifty-fifty gamble to make but if we choose Melinda as you say, then you're asking us to put not just your life but all of our lives on the line for this gamble! Do you honestly think that's a smart thing to do?" Paul interrogated me.

"No, it is not. I know I'm asking a lot out of you guys to vote with me this way and risking your lives in the process but think about it this way. If we vote wrong and only one person gets out of this alive, who would you rather it be? Luca is full of regret and despair at the thought that he may have murdered Ollie but he wants to take responsibility for his mistake and I know if he survives, he will keep on living to redeem himself for his crime. But what if Melinda is the one who survives? Will she do everything she can to find redemption for her crime like Luca? Of course not! She planned this murder from the beginning! She had every intention to make Luca the blackened but failed when he resisted her and became the blackened instead. A murderous psychopath or a grieving friend? Which one would you rather survive this no matter if the outcome is good or bad for the rest of us?" I finished my explanation with a question for them to think about.

There was an eerie silence in the air as Melinda soon began giggling quietly before it rose into a burst of full-on over-the-top laughter. "That was an adorable speech there, Mr. Washed Up Actor but you're forgetting one crucial detail! We all want to survive and so everyone will vote logically and the only logical answer is to vote Luca. He's confessed to the crime over and over again because he knows he did it!"

Her attention went to Willie as he sighed out. "Dear Willie, don't you still feel such regret for how you treated us, girls? I know you still want to feel like you've been forgiven for your sexism and stereotypical statements about how we are so inferior to men."

"Hey! Stop trying to manipulate them! Let them choose of their own free will!" I shouted at Melinda.

"Whatever do you mean? I'm doing no such thing," cooed Melinda with pursed kissy lips.

Willie soon spoke up, "That is true. I still feel like I need to do a lot more before I can be forgiven for how I treated the girls in my life, especially you Shana. I've done you the dirtiest out of anyone, no pun intended. Ma also deserves better and I have always loved my Ma. I think my blindness to the real world still needs to be punished and… maybe the result of this vote will be my answer."

Melinda's grin slowly faded a bit as she asked, "What do you mean?"

"I don't like doing a girl dirty again but my vote will go to Melinda. I may have done you wrong but you didn't exactly act like a saint either but Luca… he's always been there for the others. Kai, Shana, Mikayla, Sienna, Damian, and even me! So I'm gonna help Luca survive this and then let fate decide if I live that Luca and I can walk down the road of redemption together and if I die, well, then I guess my death will be my punishment for my sins," Willie chuckled a bit as he finished speaking. A look of confidence was now on his face.

Melinda growled out a bit before her gaze darted over to a worrying Shana. Her grin was revitalized. "Shana," Melinda called her attention, "I know you and I haven't exactly seen eye to eye but I know you're not going to put yourself in danger. After all, Tommy died doing everything he could to protect you and help you survive this. You're not going to tarnish his memory and his sacrifice for you by getting yourself killed, are you? How would Tommy feel if all his hard work was for nothing if you didn't escape this alive?"

I growled at Melinda for using Tommy against Shana like that. Shana soon began talking, "Tommy did end up dying because of his fear of me becoming a victim in this game and I still hate seeing him get executed for accidentally killing Damian. I especially hated how I couldn't do anything for him. Never again. I will not let another friend that regrets what they did die again! And this time I can save him!"

Melinda gasped at this. "What?! What about Tommy!?"

"Tommy risked his life for me, that's true. But in the end, it is my own damn life to do with as I please and I will not let Luca die full of regrets like Tommy did! Luca is too kind and peaceful to let him just die. Besides I now finally have an excuse to get back at you for all the shit you've done to me, you saggy cunt!" Shana laughed out at Melinda. Just as with Willie, Shana's face radiated an unbreakable confidence. Also, the fact she called Melinda a cunt was music to my ears.

Melinda seethed but shrugged at us. "Whatever, in the end, you can't win this."

"Why's that?" I asked her.

Melinda's face went dark and wild-eyed again as she spoke, "Because the vote will end in a draw. You, three morons, are voting for me but in order to have the majority vote, you need one more person to vote with you. Obviously, I won't vote for myself. I wanna live after all. Then there's Luca. He's so ridden with guilt for killing poor Ollie, there's no way he's not gonna vote for himself to avenge her untimely death. And finally, there's my master and Great Protector, Paul. He swore to defend me and help me survive this game. Also, there's not a fucking chance he would vote in favor of Luca because of some sentimentality."

Paul tilted his head before responding, "She is correct. I would never vote Melinda for such a pathetic reason like friendship or forgiveness…"

"There! See? So this will only end as a draw and at least one person needs to change their vote otherwise this class trial can never end! You can't win this!" Melinda giggled maniacally.

Paul then glared at Melinda. "Excuse you! I was speaking! Don't interrupt me like that again!"

Melinda blinked at him. "I did?"

Paul sighed before he continued, "As I was saying before, I would never vote Melinda for anything like friendship or forgiveness but I am voting for her for my own reasons."

Melinda's eyes went beyond wide as the look of pure horror was now plastered on her face. "W-W-W-W-WHA-WHAAAAAAAAAT?!

"Did you not hear me? I'm casting my vote for you," Paul casually repeated himself.

"But… BUT WHY?! I DON'T UNDERSTAND! YOU SWORE TO HELP ME GET OUT OF THIS KILLING GAME!" Melinda screamed out in utter despair.

"And you swore to always do as I asked and yet you broke that promise to me," Paul told her.

"NO! I WOULD NEVER BETRAY YOU as OLLIE DID!" Melinda kept wailing out.

"But the fact is you did. By planning a murder, you participated in this killing game which I directly ordered you not to do! Even if you were only going to watch and make someone else become the blackened because of your involvement it breaks our deal and therefore your life is no longer under my protection. Besides, I do believe Kai's theory about your huntress skills being the reason Ollie was shot makes too perfect sense. More sense than Luca just randomly getting a lucky shot off and killing her," Paul scoffed at her.

Melinda looked absolutely devastated as she broke down into tears. "This can't be happening… I risked everything for you. I did everything you asked without question because I wanted you to be there for me always. I wanted you to acknowledge me as someone worthy to be at your side! I DID THIS ALL BECAUSE I LOVE YOU!" Melinda was at this point screaming out her cries as she looked at Paul, desperately trying to appease him.

Paul shook his head. "You're weak. You fell for the weak emotions you despised. How pathetic." Melinda trembled at his words as she gripped her head before a shrill shriek came racing out of her throat as her head reared back something fierce. "RRRRRAAAAAAAAAEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

Paul rolled his eyes at her before looking to Monokuma. "Begin the vote. We're done here."

"It seems that way, doesn't it? There is nothing else to discuss so the vote will now commence!" cheered Monokuma.

"Wait, Monokuma! Help me! You have to stop them!" Melinda begged.

"Wha-wha?" Monokuma looked confused.

"They're intentionally throwing the vote just to get me killed! They must be breaking the rules by ganging up on me like this! Do your job as headmaster and stop this!" Melinda demanded him.

"But this vote is to weed out the blackened. It doesn't matter what purpose people vote for or who they vote for. The only thing that matters is that there is at least a majority vote so I don't have to deal with the bullshit of a draw. They aren't breaking any rules!" Monokuma explained.

"No… this isn't fair. I'm gonna die…" Melinda whimpered.

Monokuma shrugged at her. "That's too bad! That's what ya get for trying to play the role of a God and I'm the only God of worship around here! The God of Despair! Now then, let the true battle between the blackened and the spotless go as they face off in the thrilling Voting Time!"

Luca looked at me with depressed eyes. "Kai, please don't do this. You're going to be wrong."

I just frowned at him. "Maybe I will and maybe I won't. As long as you survive, I don't care what happens to me."

Our handbooks lit up as the six buttons for the remaining students were the only ones not grayed out. I quickly found Melinda's face on her button and clicked it before her full body picture appeared on the right as she was selected for my vote. Soon the timer stopped at the last second as I noticed Melinda was the last one to vote. She hesitated, knowing that her vote was now pointless but she still tried anyway.

"Now, let's see the results!" Monokuma announced as the giant monitor descended down and turned on showing the tallies next to our names with four tallies against Melinda and two against Luca. Again her full body picture appeared on the screen now with confetti raining down on her image. Melinda was now selected as the blackened. There's no going back now.

"The blackened has been selected by majority vote. Like nobody saw that coming. Sheesh! However, did you make the right choice or the dreadfully wrong one? I can't wait! I can't wait!" Monokuma squealed in delight as Luca and Melinda's podiums finally left the hot seats, returning to their original positions in the circle as the courtroom became dark.

Suddenly, like before, the Monokuma Vote machine lit up the room in the center of the circle. The Statue of MonoLiberty began flashing as the lottery ball cage began to spin around and around before a green ball popped out of the cage and slowly rolled down the metal railway to the end where it stopped on a pixelated face belonging to Melinda Jones. The next thing that happened was… a blaring alarm and the machine now flashing red like it was indicating danger! But in this case, because it didn't play out like before… I knew what it meant. After all this, after all we tried to accomplish… we were wrong. I was wrong. The killing game would not be over… with only one person standing victorious. The others… would all face punishment. This is the end for us.

Monokuma looked beyond surprised before he quietly muttered, "Oh… my… God. No way… is this really happening? Am I dreaming?! YES! THIS IS REALLY HAPPENING! NO, THIS ISN'T A DREAM! I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS IS ACTUALLY HAPPENING! You probably already figured it out by now but you were all one hundred percent wrong! The true blackened that killed Ollie Peralta, the Ultimate Tattoo Artist was NOT Melinda Jones but the Ultimate Traceur, Luca Archerrrrr!"

Melinda suddenly began breathing heavily as she looked at all of us with absolute hate. "Look at what you've done! Because of you faggots, no one is going to survive! You all fucking deserve to die a thousand deaths for condemning me when we told you he did it! You fuckers! I'll kill you! YOU WILL ALL PAY!" Melinda suddenly grabbed her rifle and aimed it at Luca before multiple chains with metal clamps lashed out and captured her hands and neck.

"Whoa! You can't kill anyone! That's my job now! Also, you especially can't kill the winner of the trial! That's very unsportsmanlike of you and for those reasons, your punishment awaits!" Monokuma shouted out as Melinda screamed out as she was dragged away into the darkness, her scream echoing into silence. Well, almost silence as I heard whimpering and looked back over to see Luca crying and shivering.

"Why? Why wouldn't you listen to me? If you guys just voted for me none of you would be executed for nothing!" He cried out as he held himself.

"That ain't true. We choose to do this knowing the possibility that we may face death and we are okay with it. Even now when we know that we were wrong, I don't regret my decision," Willie told him.

Shana nodded with a sad smile. "Me too. I'm just happy to know you out of everyone left alive will be the one to survive."

Paul huffed. "Well, I'm not happy about this at all! Kai, you owe me big time for this!"

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, yeah whatever. I have an eternal afterlife to make it up to you."

"No! Please! Don't say that! I don't want this! I don't want you guys to die! Monokuma, please! I beg you! Spare them! Even Paul! They don't deserve to be punished!" Luca pleaded and begged with his life as he dropped in front of the bear, groveling with his head against the floor as he continued to beg and plead.

Monokuma hummed thoughtfully. "Well, because you asked nicely…" Luca looked up with a hope-filled smile before Monokuma instantly shattered it by saying, "Of course I won't comply! You may have won but that doesn't mean I need to listen to any demands you make!"

"Then punish me too! Kill me with them!" Luca continued begging.

"Luca, don't!" I screamed at him. He looked back at me in shock that I would stop him. "We told you we did this so that you can survive this and you will do that for us! I swear if I have to crawl back as a zombie to keep you alive, then by God I will!"

"K-Kai…" Luca whimpered.

"Well then, I don't think there's much left to this show so let's get to the real fun as I slaughter your remaining classmates! Melinda's already dead thanks to her outburst but the winner gets to marvel as he watches four simultaneous punishments in a row!" Monokuma squealed with absolute life radiating from his core.

"I've prepared very special punishments for Willie Sadler, the Ultimate Cowboy…"

"Luca, you need to promise me that you're gonna go down that road of redemption for the both of us. That's my final wish before I die," Willie told him before he took off his hat and smiled sadly at him. "See ya later, partner. I'm sorry… Shana."

That's when a clamp rocketed out and grabbed onto Willie's neck before yanking him back as he dropped his hat and screamed as he vanished from our sight. Shana cried out for Willie as Monokuma continued.

"For Shana O'Conner, the Ultimate Miner…"

Shana looked at Luca with frantic eyes. "Luca, I'm just glad I was able to save you! I'm beyond scared but I'll be okay soon. After all, I'll get to see Tommy again." The clamp now raced out for her neck before latching on and heaving her off as her mining helmet dropped off her head and she cried out before she disappeared.

"For Paul Sharpe, the Ultimate Hacker…"

Paul clung his laptop tightly to his chest before he glared at me. "I'll be seeing you at the gates of hell for getting me killed."

I squinted my eyes at him and nodded. "I understand." That's when he was grabbed by a metal clamp around his neck as he grunted when he got hauled away and pulled from our sights.

"And last but definitely not least, a very exciting punishment for Kai Brugger, the Ultimate Actor!"

I took off my backpack and held it out to Luca. "Luca, here. Take the mementos of all our friends. I won't be needing them where I'm going."

Luca slowly did so as he stared into my eyes. "Kai… please… don't leave me."

"I won't. I'll stay with you in spirit. Which means I'll be watching you and if you do anything to end your life. If you don't live your life for me, I will not be a happy angel. Take care of yourself, Luca. One day, we will be together again. Oh and also if you happen to find Manako and Terry, please tell them… I'm sorry." The final chain came out from behind me before my neck felt crushed under the pressure that was now choking me as I was wrenched away from Luca as he tried to grab my outstretched hand.

"Kai! No!" Luca screamed out as he ran after me. But he didn't get far before Monokuma's voice popped up. "Hey! Where are you going, champion?! The main event is about to begin!"

Luca was then grabbed by two Monokumas as they somehow picked him up and brought him over to a front-row seat of a theater seating before he was tied down to the seat in ropes as he struggled and fought to get free as Monokuma jumped up and took a seat next to him with a bag of fresh popcorn. "This is gonna be the biggest cinema of the year! I'll give you a spoiler on the ending! It's the cliche where there are no survivors by the end and I'm the main star in all four of the big scenes! Let's skip all the boring scenes full of plot development and character growth and get right to the good parts! In no particular order, which is to say there is already an order based on our winner, who is the first on the chopping block?!"

A pixelated Paul appeared and the usual animation played with the subtext, "Paul has been found guilty. Time for the punishment!"

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The theater screen turned on as Luca witnessed Paul sitting in an immovable chair, bolted to the ground. He was chained down to the chair in a pitch-black room with the light from his laptop screen which sat in his lap, only illuminating the front of his upper body and face. Suddenly the sound of sharp weapons was heard all around the darkness but Paul didn't flinch as he cracked his knuckles as a prompt appeared on the screen saying, "Get ready…"

Hack and Slashed

"GO!" appeared on the screen as his fingers began furiously typing away at the keyboard as he began hacking into the execution. The sound of firing was heard but Paul typed away before he got a green light from a successful hack as a harpoon halted at that moment, glinting in the light and inches from skewering the back of his neck. More weapons sounded their launch at him, yet Paul effortlessly hacked into them all, stopping a shower of knives from falling onto him, a hatchet from flinging into his forehead, a katana from stabbing his stomach, and at least ten or more bladed weapons all just inches away from his body. Just when it had ended, Monokuma suddenly popped up from behind the laptop and skewered the keyboard with a dagger and the screen suddenly flashed red. Paul's face immediately contorted as his confidence shifted to despair when all the weapons he hacked into resumed their assault before slashing and impaling him, blood exploding in every direction. His body was now hung up lifelessly by the many weapons as his laptop's screen flickered and faded casting Paul's corpse into darkness.

Luca went pale seeing this as he lightly trembled from the sight. Monokuma then jumped up, hollering, "And next!"

"Willie has been found guilty. Time for the punishment!"

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The screen now showed Willie standing in the middle of a brightly lit rodeo stadium with Willie wearing fake bull horns on his head as mechanical bulls, walking like humans, approached him with lassos spinning above their heads. Monokuma was dressed in a cowboy getup as he began whipping at Willie. Willie tried to run for the fencing but as he got close, a bull managed to catch his left wrist in their lasso and stopped him in his tracks. He quickly went to untie it with his right hand but that was caught in a second lasso. As Willie pulled back against them, his feet were quickly tied together as he lost his balance and fell forward. Willie was dragged to the center of the stadium where a metal pole was erected from the ground. He was held down by the bulls and then hogtied to the metal pole with his stomach placed on top and his arms and legs strapped down as far as they could reach towards the bottom of the pole. He was now hunched over as Monokuma jumped onto his back and jammed the middle of the whip into his jaws and held each end to now act as reigns before raising his cowboy hat in the air!

Rodeo Reversal

Suddenly the pole began slowly swaying and turning as Willie was moving along with the pole's movements as he became a human bull ride with the mechanical bulls that filled the stadium seats cheering for Monokuma and booing Willie. It soon picked up in speed as Willie was being whipped around with such intensity and force before it became so violent that his head and body was literally being slammed against the ground as the sound of bones snapping and cracking was heard the faster the ride went as Monokuma flailed around, trying to hang on. Then suddenly it stopped as Monokuma stood up on Willie's back triumphantly. Willie's beaten and battered up body hung loosely underneath him with dislocated limbs seen and his neck twisted and hanging in the wrong direction as blood leaked from eyes and mouth.

Luca now shook even worse as he had watched Willie be brutally murdered in such a horrific manner! "Oh, God! Willie! No, Willie no!" He cried out as he tried to fight against his restraints.

Monokuma laughed, now dressed up like he was in Willie's execution. "That was fun! Humans never get the opportunity to experience what the animal has to go through in a rodeo. Until now! Bwahahahahahahaha! So how about we go to the next one? It's a real diamond in the rough."

Luca looked terrified knowing immediately who was next. "No, please! Please for God's sake! Not her!"

"Shana has been found guilty. Time for the punishment!"

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Shana had her eyes tightly closed before they slowly opened as she found herself in a runaway minecart inside a bottomless cavern that had hardly any lighting before Monokuma popped up from inside the minecart with a miner helmet on. The light was turned on as he smiled at Shana and gave her a thumbs up. Shana seemed scared by his relaxed expression but could only nod as he had the only light source she needed to help her navigate the dark caves. As she looked ahead to see what Monokuma's light would reveal to her, she would see the first obstacle that left her petrified.

Dynamine Escape Route

She would suddenly see a fork in the tracks that were fast approaching. The right one she was already connected to lead to a rock wall that would splatter her upon impact and the left one led to a tunnel that looked safer. Shana reached down for the brakes only to discover there were no brakes but she did look back up to notice a railroad switch coming up fast as she hastily grabbed her pickaxe and swung it as they passed by, hitting the switch, and activating the tracks to switch her to the left tracks at the last second as they rushed into the tunnel. The next thing Shana had to deal with was the cave walls closing in the further they went in. All Shana could do was hide in the minecart as the walls and ceiling scraped against the speeding minecart. Rocks broke off and slammed against Shana who was now unprotected without her father's helmet on. But before she could get pelted more, they broke out of the tunnel into another open area like before. The bruised Shana kneeled back up to see an exit but also some dynamite strapped to the tracks ahead. It detonated, destroying the track but Shana noticed her track had a rollercoaster-like drop just before the jump the dynamite had made. When the drop started, she put all the weight into it to make it go faster as the track flicked her up through the air. The cart managed to land on the other side as they continued towards the exit. Monokuma confused the now hopeful Shana by saluting her as he jumped out of the cart, deploying a parachute, and floated away. Shana heard sizzling below her as the minecart's entire bottom was strapped up in dynamite. The already lit fuse reached the end and immediately exploded, just before reaching the exit. A clang sounded as a steaming, bloody pickaxe head was now stuck in the rocky terrain below as a bloodied, blown off head landed perfectly on the upturned point.

Luca was now wildly panicking as he was quaking so badly it shook the seats next to him. "Shana! For fuck's sake! You fucking piece of shit, Monokuma! Stop this!"

Dirt and soot-covered miner Monokuma looked at Luca bewildered. "But why? The big finale is upon us now! What better way to end a show than by having the best act be the climax of our four-part special punishment?!"

Luca's eyes went beyond wild as he began fighting even harder than ever before! "Like hell, I'm gonna let you execute Kai! I will never let that happen!"

"Too late," Monokuma whispered as the screen lit up again.

"Kai has been found guilty. Time for the punishment!"

But suddenly the screen lifted up and was gone and what was left standing center stage in the darkness in front of Luca in person before being illuminated by a single spotlight was… me. My mind was racing a thousand miles an hour as my own execution began.

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All of a sudden, every seat in the theatre was filled to the brim with cheering Monokumas except the front and center seat belonging to Luca who desperately tried to get free from his bindings. One Monokuma suddenly appeared in a director's chair dressed like a director with a blue beret, round glasses, a red career jacket, and a green scarf. He smiled as he held a bunch of giant cards, most likely with prompts I would have to act out.

ImproDies

"Nurse terrified of needles"

I acted like a calm nurse giving a shot to a patient before screaming at the sight of the needle.

"Shoplifting hobo"

I became a sickly homeless man who used his coughing to steal some beans.

"Just Got Married couple"

I pretended to be the confident groom carrying the bride before becoming the starry-eyed bride throwing the bouquet into the seas of single women.

"Obnoxious baseball dad"

"Dream Crab"

"Gunner who misses every shot"

"Kid that diddles"

"Cable Guy Larry"

Every prompt Monokuma threw at me I acted out without haste and with no difficulty. I noticed Luca had loosened his ropes by now but he didn't seem to be in a rush to save me since I was handling my execution without a problem. Monokuma had one final prompt and I was ready for whatever he threw at me. But the words I read had me tense up and unable to comprehend anything.

"Be yourself"

Luca immediately noticed me freezing up as my mind fumbled to try and figure out how to do this. He soon broke free of all his bonds as he rushed to the stage. He deftly leaped onto the stage and ran for me, his hand outstretched, but the spotlight on me went red and a buzzer sounded, indicating I took too long and just as I reached out for Luca with tears of despair in my eyes, the floor beneath me opened up as I fell into a trap door and fell. I was swallowed by pure shadows as Luca lost sight of me and after almost thirty seconds of silence, the sound of my body crashing against the bottom soon reached Luca's ears. I was executed.

Director Monokuma stood up and cheered, "Bravo, bravo! That was perfect! The true despair on your faces as he failed and fell to his death and you helplessly watching it was just too beautiful! Congratulations, that's a wrap! Luca Archer, you are the sole winner of the American School Killing Game! How do you feel?"

Luca just stared down the trap hole before his breathing became ragged as he grabbed the sides of his head. "Ha… h-h-ha… h-h-haaaa... h-hhhhAAAAA! HAAAAA! AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH! AH! AAAHHH! HAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!"

As Luca's shrill screams continued to grow in intensity, Monokuma could only stare at Luca with a glint in his eye. "Not how I expected this to go but it doesn't matter. I got what I wanted out of this killing game! Don't worry, Luca. You won't go back on your word. After all, you're mine now. Puhuhuhu. Muwahahahaha. Bwahahahahahahaha! GAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! FFFFFHAHA! AAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!"

The lunatic laughter mixed with the ear-piercing cries as they melded together and echoed loudly throughout the entire school to form the sound that could only be described by a single phrase. Despair inducing! This is how my school life came to an end. I wasn't able to save anyone in the end. Not my friends, not my loved ones, not myself, not even Luca. We were doomed from the start. But I guess that's what happens when you live in the world that is Danganronpa.

It's finally done! Thank you guys so much for reading my fangan! I know the ending is a bit dark but it's effective hopefully. Also what else were you expecting? A happy ending? This is Danganronpa were talking about here! Surprises should always be around the corner! Anyways I will be posting and author's note to this fangan with some big news! Please keep an eye out for it and please leave me reviews of what you thought! I'm excited to see what you guys think of the chapters and my story but until that note, be in despair for this is the end! See ya later! Puhuhuhu~