A/N Hello everyone!
This has been an idea that has been floating in my head for a very, very long time now. I have always found the aftermath of Danganronpa IF to be fertile ground for exploration, on top of a lot of discontentment with some bits of Danganronpa canon. COUGH COUGH DR3 COUGH COUGH, and paired with Mukuro being my favorite character in the series, I wanted to write this to express my passion and to help try to correct those wrongs, it is an AU after all, so I have that freedom lol. I plan for this to be a very long-term story, and to touch on DR3 (or I should say a very much edited DR3 that may very well not even be a killing game) and potentially beyond. And I hope you all enjoy this long ride together!
Anyway, I'll just open by briefly giving you a few of those changes.
1. There's absolutely NO brainwashing anime bullshit like what DR3 did, it's lazy, it's bad writing, and it's completely antithetical to Junko's writing and makes her far less terrifying a villain to do something so easy and lazy. In this universe she manipulated the Remnants of Despair and everyone else to fall into despair and do the things they do, it also adds a layer of grey morality to the matter of Class 77 and the things they did. Since brainwashing takes away all responsibility for what they did since they were completely being controlled against their will.
2. Chiaki Nanami never existed as a human being in this universe, Chiaki existing as an actual person is a bad retcon of DR2 where Monokuma makes it clear they added the traitor's student profile into the folder to keep the others from finding out their identity so easily.
3. Less of an actual bad thing and more of a personal choice. But Mukuro has an ahoge as well, she's a protag of a DR work even if it's an alternate universe, she deserves an ahoge too lol.
And lastly a deep and sincere thank you to one of my best friends IRL for acting as the beta reader for this fanfic. Your help in finally being the catalyst to finish this first chapter and your future help in making this fic as polished and as great as it can be has been truly appreciated. You're an amazing friend, and I always love and enjoy the time we spend together. And I hope beta reading this fanfic for as long as we go on will also help improve your writing. Thanks again, dude.
Mukuro Ikusaba was a disappointing girl. A stupid, ugly, smelly, disappointing girl, who has just unexpectedly had herself thrust upon a new battlefield. Her third battlefield fighting alongside her younger twin sister Junko Enoshima, the Ultimate Despair, who ended the world, the one who forced fourteen of Mukuro's classmates into a killing game, and the person who almost killed her. Had come to an end.
None of her classmates knew it, but they stood side by side at the slowly opening precipice to the reality of a line blurring both hope and despair. This new reality hadn't spared Mukuro herself either.
All Mukuro knew for certain in this new reality was that Junko tried and failed to kill her; all for her despair. This was the beginning of a new conflict, in the theater of war known as Mukuro's life. That was the only way she could put it into words. This became a war to give her beloved sister despair through giving hope to Makoto by stopping Junko and her plans. As Mukuro had to grapple with the reality of what she once thought, and the true reality; now she found a slightly new direction.
Mukuro had fought on two previous battlefields: Her younger years of life, defined by being homeless alongside Junko. Her second battlefield, being Mukuro's time in Fenrir: the elite mercenary group that found her in literal war zones predominantly in the Middle East, Africa, and South-East Asia. This is where she solidified herself as the Ultimate Soldier.
Three years of being on top of the world, of being the alpha in her domain, where Mukuro danced with death and laughed in its face while sending countless others towards it with the bullet or blade. The sickeningly sweet call of her sister beckoned forth, and an invitation from Hope's Peak, dragged back to a world where her sister planned nothing but despair. A paradise where she could be happy reveling in the despair the two created that everyone could enjoy.
From that came a new form of bloodshed, killing or dealing with people however Junko told her to. No matter what small bits of doubt Mukuro may have felt at the time, that didn't matter. It never mattered how she felt. Mukuro's purpose was simply to make Junko happy as her older sister. And what made her happy was despair, pure and simple.
In the end, it all came together in Junko's plan to trap their classmates, strip their memories, and then force them into a despair-inducing Killing Game of mistrust and murder. But by what could have been considered a stroke of fate, things fell apart.
Mukuro lived, where she should've died, she realized then… She was disposable to Junko, her life meant nothing to her. No matter what she did. And in the end…
Mukuro didn't want this… She'd do anything but this for Junko… And so, Mukuro decided, to give Junko her despair, she would resist her. She would stop Junko's plans for despair. This would make Junko happy. Mukuro knew her sister better than anyone else after all.
Mukuro would give hope to Makoto and her fellow classmates by doing so, keeping them safe. Bring happiness, and restore their memories.
These were the thoughts that were running through her mind as that front gate to the academy continued to creep open. Blinding light encased the fourteen other students standing beside her. Mukuro, having adorned herself back in Junko's wig, already felt unsure about doing this, but for the time being she stood by her choice believing it could help her understand her sister more. But there was a kindling burning desire to get it off, for a reason unbeknownst to Mukuro who couldn't understand it right now…
Mukuro then found herself being taken out of these thoughts by someone next to her; who seemed to notice she was lost in deep thought.
"Hey, Mukuro… You alright?" The one who spoke to her was none other than Makoto Naegi; the one who saved her life, twice over. Asked with some concern, his hazel eyes looking at her with genuine kindness, definitely looking better since having gotten a spear in her place.
Mukuro's heart fluttered at the concern he showed her.
"O-Oh… Yeah… I'm fine Makoto… Just have a lot running through my mind right now…"
Makoto nodded in understanding. Giving one of those special signature smiles of his causing Mukuro's face to heat up.
"It's ok, I understand… That must've been a lot to take in all at once."
"You have no idea…" Mukuro says plainly in response.
As the others seemed more focused on seeing if what Makoto and Mukuro said about the outside world was true as they said it was. At that moment, the doors finally opened up completely, and everyone except for Makoto and Mukuro showed varying degrees of shock, for only those two truly knew firsthand the nature of the outside world.
The most glaringly obvious detail being instead of the gentle, welcoming, usual blue skies they had been used to and had probably taken for granted… Was now a deep, bleak, dark crimson, as though the heavens themselves had been cut open with a blade, the sky now a river perpetually flowing with the blood of the fallen in the Tragedy.
It was a literal hellscape in every sense of the word, they were all truly witnessing the end of the world, before their very eyes.
The landscape beyond the courtyard of the Old School building of Hope's Peak Academy was filled with the skeletons of buildings wrecked and reduced to rubble, glass smashed and scattered onto the roads, as abandoned. Destroyed cars lie in the streets, smoke from fires still raging on in the distance as all life seemed to tear itself apart. And within the courtyard, trees that once stood mightily, full of vitality, were now left in decay, slowly dying or dead with the world. Hopes crushed and dreams shattered, stamped out; out of the carnage, the gnawing disease of despair grows rampant and
unceasing. Corroding the very fabric of the Earth.
And Mukuro knew this was only the tamest part of what the Tragedy had to offer, it was one thing to see a hellscape before one's eyes, but it would be another thing entirely to witness a corpse in front of them.
"So, it appears that what Makoto and Mukuro were saying about the outside world was true after all…" Kyoko was the first one to speak up after nearly everyone had their gaping silences, including herself as she seemed to regain her composure.
"Holy shit, this is insane!" Mondo said in shock over what he was witnessing.
"I-I can't believe it, this is horrible!" Hina expressed her horror, as she covered her mouth with her hands at the sight before her.
"Order truly has fallen apart! This truly is most concerning!" Taka said at the sight before them all.
"NOOOOOOOOO! THE ILLUMINATI IS TAKING OVER THE WORLD AND STARTING THE NEW WORLD ORDER!" Hiro screamed conspiracy nonsense to the dismay of everyone there.
"More like ending the world order…" Leon said unhelpfully even as he realized the true severity of the situation at hand.
"Will you two morons shut up with your idiotic drivel? It's only as Makoto and Mukuro said the outside world is; nothing more and nothing less." Byakuya silenced the useless banter that was bound to come before it truly got rolling.
This was the epicenter of the Tragedy, and yet there was an eerie, quiet, suffocating atmosphere. Devoid of life, Mukuro seemed to note that the only reason they hadn't seen any corpses from their view was her sister's doing. It was abnormally clean, at least as clean as ruins could be, but that distinct lack of dead bodies or blood was just meant to lead the others to a shock of despair once they left and finally saw the true horrors that lay in the world now. That lay in the hearts of man, the depths of the barbarity and evil that came forth from the Tragedy.
"Guys, there's something important you guys should know." Mukuro then spoke up, cutting through the silence Byakuya created.
"What is it Mukuro?" Makoto asked.
"There's an organization out there that you all need to know about. In response to the Tragedy, an organization rose up as the closest thing to a central authority in the chaos. They're known as the Future Foundation, dedicated to putting an end to Ultimate Despair. And trying to rebuild hope in the world." Mukuro explained, giving a basic rundown on the Future Foundation.
"Are you informing us of this now because they're coming over to rescue us or something to that effect?" Celeste asked Mukuro, believing this to be the point of why the soldier mentioned that detail now.
However, that was not the reason why she did, but because something that had been on the back of Mukuro's mind, was starting to come just as she expected, with her honed hearing, she could distinctly hear the sounds of helicopters in the distance, and masses of people converging on their position.
The killing game was something that was being broadcast worldwide, as Junko had hijacked the airwaves. The end goal having been to show how the final hopes of the world that were the Ultimate students being driven to the despair of killing each other. A final nail in the coffin as they descended into the same madness that had consumed the world.
But with Mukuro having defied that, the world watched as Mukuro ended the killing game through the blade. And thus, the world reacted in real-time, the Ultimate Despair would naturally descend upon the survivors to either slaughter them all or however Junko saw fit to have them dealt with… And in turn, the Future Foundation, the only remaining sizable semblance of order and hope in the world, would try to pick up and rescue the survivors.
And for a veteran such as Mukuro, it was obvious where this was going. This city was going to become even more of a warzone than it was already. And she knew that being caught in the middle of that was going to be extremely dangerous as both sides fought over them all, far more dangerous than it'd be worth just trying to escape with the Future Foundation. Therefore, what they needed to do is get out of the city ASAP.
"Not exactly… Well uh, yes… They are definitely coming to rescue you all, but it's not why I brought them up… I can hear their helicopters coming our way, but on top of that… I can hear that a lot of people are coming our way, some are I think are using some kind of motorized transportation."
"Are t-they friendly?" Chihiro piped up asking Mukuro, hoping that it might just be people willing to help them. But Mukuro just shook her head. It was wishful thinking to assume they were friendly.
"Unfortunately, I don't think that's going to be the case… It's far more likely they're members of Ultimate Despair or people who have fallen into despair but don't exactly follow Junko's orders…"
"A shame… But then just what are you getting at exactly?" Sakura asked wondering what the point had been.
"If I may, you're trying to say that when the Ultimate Despair and Future Foundation inevitably end up arriving, the two are going to clash, correct?" Kyoko asked as she seemed to be scrutinizing what Mukuro had been saying, and while Mukuro held up her own mask, just like Kyoko did, she couldn't help but find the intensity Kyoko was giving her a bit odd, it clearly wasn't distrust, Mukuro was sure the conversation in the nurse's office had proven trust could be placed in her, but even then…
"That's correct. This city is going to end up turning into even more of a warzone than it already is, and we'll be in both of their fucking crosshairs. As they create an absolute shitstorm here tearing each other apart." Mukuro put it frankly. Now Mukuro was in no way, shape, or form any good at reading other people for anything other than sensing tension and anything that was a precursor to violence, and Kyoko almost always carried a stoic mask that made it nearly impossible to read her, but she was sure that Kyoko might've been content or satisfied with that answer.
Soon after, Kyoko spoke up again with something that Mukuro would have never expected in a million years. "So then, Mukuro what do you believe we should do now then?"
Mukuro couldn't hide her surprise at that question, giving a stupefied look in response. Asking her for guidance like that? For her opinion?
Why would anyone ever think to ask me for my thoughts or opinion like that? Especially from someone as stupid as me… Mukuro thought to herself, thinking it as though it were a fact; self-evident truth, that she was so stupid, so banal, that she would be the last one anyone should ever ask for things like that.
Mukuro wanted nothing more than to speak up and say how Kyoko was making a mistake by asking for her thoughts and leaving it to her, Kyoko was by all accounts the smartest person Mukuro knew aside from Junko, and yet here the smart detective was asking the stupid soldier what to do. It defied all of her logic and reason.
And yet now all the others were looking at her expectantly. It was as though she had ended up in the twilight zone.
"Yeah, Mukuro what do you think?" Makoto spoke up, subtly encouraging her. It really was just like him.
With all them expecting Mukuro to say something, well, she couldn't just say no now could she? "Well… I uh, think we need to get the fuck out of this city ASAP…"
Distinctly Kyoko seemed to silently approve, for reasons Mukuro couldn't even think to fathom. Some of the others didn't exactly catch the reasoning, however.
"Huh?! Didn't you say Future Foundation were the legal authority around here now? Why can't we go with them?!" Taka asked forcefully.
"W-What, a-are you just t-trying to deny us h-help, and get us a-a-all k-killed?" Toko asked with a nervous stutter.
Before Mukuro could even find a way to say anything, or even possibly retract her statement thinking what she said was as stupid as she thought it was, Makoto spoke up for her.
"Nono, I'm sure that's not it! Think about it, as she said, people coming for us for good or bad are going to obviously fight over us, and that's going to end up being very risky for us, it's better we get away from the city and decide what to do after that."
"That makes sense for why we wouldn't immediately go with the Future Foundation. I agree with Makoto and Mukuro!" Sayaka said in agreement.
"We definitely shouldn't rely on RNG for important decisions. Gotta agree there." Hifumi spoke up.
"I was thinking I should make sure we all get to the Future Foundation since they're the safest group you can all be around… This just uh… Is a very bad time to try to get with them…" Mukuro finally added, mentioning how she was thinking about where and what to do after and to address that concern.
"That would be the best course of action, yes…" Byakuya simply said.
"It's going to be difficult to get out of here, with the air quality issues being what they are… And…" Mukuro said as she looked at Makoto's midsection where the spears impaled him, he looked fine and would be able to endure movement, but he would have some trouble. "Makoto's injuries… But as long as you all stick with me, I should be able to get us out of the city. Ok?"
"Right. Now that we have the squared away, I believe now would be a good time to get moving. We should not waste any more time standing here." Kyoko said, wanting everyone to start moving before the unclear threats arrive at the academy.
"Yeah… We should do that… They're getting closer, and I wouldn't want to risk my sister getting bored of us just standing here…" Mukuro said finally as everyone took the cue to finally get moving.
However, when Mukuro tried to take a step forward to take the lead and guide them, Mukuro felt as though a weight on her head was stopping her from moving. She was frozen. The soldier's right hand sitting in view, and what she saw was a fashionista's right hand, the soldier's tattoo of Fenrir covered up in foundation. And then her thoughts went back to her head.
It wasn't long before Makoto noticed Mukuro hadn't even moved, and in her position, that left him concerned. "Mukuro are you ok?"
Mukuro then looked up at Makoto. Her cold gunmetal blue eyes met his warm hazel eyes. How he looked at her genuinely, and who actually cared for her. Mukuro finally then went for it, as her hand reached for the top of her head. And with that, pulled the weight off her head, free as she dropped the wig to the floor.
Makoto gave Mukuro a sweet smile at that, as he got the message, happy for her. As Mukuro just kept walking alongside him.
Mukuro didn't need to wear a Junko wig to understand her sister and stand up to her. Mukuro Ikusaba could fight and put an end to Junko's despair as herself.
Mukuro Ikusaba would fight for herself, as herself for Makoto's hope.
And once that wig hit the floor… The puppet string attached to her head was cut off.
A/N Hope you all enjoyed this first chapter, I'll certainly try to get chapters out as quickly as I can, I'm gunning for trying to do one chapter per week, but RL or my friends schedule for editing might not make this possible, so keep that in mind.
If you enjoyed this chapter, please feel free to leave a kudos and a comment on the chapter, I love reading through everyone's comments and replying to them!
And I'll see you all in the next chapter!