Introductions Part I

He was afraid to sleep. Sleep was when you were the most vulnerable. Where it can get you. It will rip you limb from limb, crush your bones, and leave you on the brink of death. But it won't let you die. They want you to see the horror that the world has become.

Even if he was safe from the monstrosities he still dreamt. Dreamt of their red eyes and giant claws tearing through flesh and skin. He woke up many times with a silent scream and cold sweat, believing they've entered his dreams just to break him down. Countless nights he went without sleep, just to survive.

But right now, even as the metal claws scratched the walls and echoed in his head, he felt at peace. He was somewhere warm, somewhere comforting-safe. And it was nice. He was on a cloud, taking in the rays of the sun, and he felt himself smiling. He was happy.

… happy ending!

And that voice. The voice that's louder than the menacing scratching.

… where everyone's smiling!

He hasn't seen anyone smile in so long. This person wanted to see everyone smile again.

... lives on!

Yes, live on… they had to keep living. If they survive they live. If the live… they triumph. They triumph as its teeth sink into yet another innocent person. It paints the town in a sickly red and stomp on the remains of that person. They'll triumph when it approaches him, grabbing him by the throat and squeeze out every last breath-

He woke up gasping for air.

Aito grasped at his throat, trying to pull away whatever it was that held him down. Under the morning rays and white cotton sheets, he slowly laid his hands down. It was just another nightmare. He thought he'd be used to it by now, but if he did, maybe he would have gone completely insane.

He reached over for his crowbar but found his hand meeting extra soft sheets. His eyes widened and he scanned the room. It wasn't broken rubble and a cold cemented floor. It wasn't damp with the air filled with fecal stench. No, this wasn't where he fell asleep. The room was filled with a far too powerful lavender scent and was very warm even without the comforters. The walls were covered in white and gold paper, giving a very expensive look. The night stand and bathroom looked spotless, as if cleaned not too long ago.

Aito looked at himself using the closet mirror off to his side. He wasn't wearing his padded armor or ripped up jeans he had to take from a body. A dark blue hoodie covered his torso, while he wore black pants. His hair was white as snow with no traces of dirt and debris. On the side of the bed were his black boots he wore when he snowboarded.

Snowboarding… when was the last time he did that?

A high pitched noise screamed into his ears. He covered them and closed his eyes, begging for the noise to stop. Just as he thought his ears were going to bleed, it was back to silence. He slowly opened his eyes, thinking it would return to its original state. It was still a gold-white room with porcelain counter tops and the smell of lavender.

Wait. What original state was he thinking of?

He was always in this hotel room. But that thought seemed off too. Why was he in this room? Shouldn't he be in Hope's Peak Academy?

His golden eyes turned to the nightstand where a small booklet was place. It had the seal of Hope's Peak. He opened it up, revealing a small tablet titled 'ebook'. With a light beep, the tablet turned on, revealing his identity.

Aito Shirayuki
17, Male
Ultimate: Snowboarder

That's right. Not too long ago he found his acceptance letter in the mail. He and his parents attended orientation with him… and that was it. That was all he could remember. Was the headmaster talking? Who was he sitting next to? How many students attended orientation?

His ebook pinged, saying he received a new message. Meet in town square by 9AM. On the top corner of the ebook, it said it was only 7:45 AM. Despite the early rise he felt completely refreshed. No aches and pains, although he was a little hungry. Maybe there was a dining hall somewhere.

Slipping into his boots and taking his ebook, Aito left his room. The door read "316, Shirayuki". Along the hall were other rooms with different names he didn't recognize. As he traveled down the hall, he noticed only 16 of the doors had names. He was on the third floor, but that floor alone had at least 26 rooms, and with a second and possibly a fourth floor there would be more rooms. Who was occupying the others?

Thinking he would ask around later, he went into the elevator and made his way to the lobby. In the middle of the room was a fountain with two teddy bears spitting out water. Leather furniture and wood tables were situated around the room, and the floor was covered in an evergreen carpet. The reception desk was covered in a gold top, but no one was attending the desk. The ceiling was painted with Hope's Peak seal, and various bears—some white bears with rosy cheeks and black bears with sharp teeth. He felt something familiar with the bears, but when he couldn't pinpoint it he continued to search for the dining room.

Behind two double doors was a large ballroom with clothed tables and chairs. Against the wall, a buffet was lined up and ready to be eaten. He felt his stomach grumble, so he immediately went for the plates. Gathering a plate full of waffles and eggs, he sat down and ate. The fluffy waffles and salted eggs filled him up fast. He smiled at his meal; like it was the first time in a while he ate something this good.

No, wait. His mother always cooked a large and healthy meal. This meal was actually less satisfactory in comparison to home.

Just as he looked around the room, to find where to place his dirty dish, the doors opened again. Three more students entered the dining hall with confused eyes. One of them locked eyes with Aito, and she ran up to him.

"Yes! Another person! Do you have any idea where we are?" She asked frantically.

Aito took a step back, feeling nervous as the girl waited for an answer. He wasn't sure what to say… because he couldn't say anything. He knew this would be a problem, and it was a surprise Hope's Peak accepted him despite his inability to speak.

He quickly made a scribbling motion with his hands. The girl, luckily, picked up quickly and reached into her purse. She pulled out a pen and notebook. He wrote: "I'm sorry. I'm mute and cannot speak. My name is Aito Shirayuki. And I don't know where we are."

"Uh… so is he okay? Why hasn't he said anything?" A guy with thick framed glasses and rolled up black stripped shirt asked.

The girl smiled at Aito. "He's mute Cyrus… but he doesn't know where we are either."

The third person, a girl with a long ponytail and red and white sports jacket, had her eyes locked on the buffet. "Okay hold that thought! I see breakfast and I'm starving!" She ran to the plates and began high piling her breakfast.

Cyrus sighed. "Now's not the time to… well I am hungry. Thank god it's American food…"

As the two plated their meals, the girl turned back to Aito. She had dark straight bangs that almost covered her eyes, while her hair barely touched her shoulders. She wore a red blouse, complimented with a white skirt. "Aha, sorry for bombarding you like that. I just met them in the hallway not too long ago. Oh! I totally forgot to introduce myself. I'm Nanako Seta. I was accepted as the Ultimate Writer. And you're Aito, correct?"

Yes. I'm the Ultimate Snowboarder. Nice to meet you. Her smile was very gentle, and besides the sudden bombardment of questions she seemed like a really nice person. He was glad she was. Before his acceptance he was usually greeted with a lot of nasty students, picking on him for his disability.

Cyrus approached their table with his food. "Right… introductions. I'm Cyrus Lawson, and I play the violin. That's my talent if you were curious."

With her mouth full before sitting down, the other girl gave her introduction. "Hey 're! N's har Egichi!"

Cyrus rolled his eyes. "She said her name is Oharu Eguichi, and she's the Ultimate volleyball player. Don't talk with your mouth full…"

"Oh sorry! This food is just really good. And she said your name is Aito? Nice to meet you Aito!" He smiled back.

Another ping from his ebook caught his attention. A message in bright blue appeared.

3 New Students have been added!

Nanako Seta
Ultimate Writer

Cyrus Lawson
Ultimate Violinist

Oharu Eguichi
Ultimate Volleyball Player

12 More Students Left to Find!

"Looks like Aito was added to our list of students in our ebooks too." Nanako said. "I wonder where everyone else is."

Cyrus nodded. "We knocked on the other doors. Either they're still sleeping or they're somewhere else."

Aito scribbled in the notebook. Where is "somewhere else?' Do you mean the rest of the hotel?

He pushed up his glasses. "Presumably so. However… we tried to reach the fourth floor and it's completely inaccessible. The second floor, however, was empty. No one answered their doors. There's still a basement we haven't tried to look into yet."

Oharu swallowed her food. "We haven't gone outside either. Maybe that's where some people are."

Outside? Was that a safe opt—

Of course the outside was safe. Why wouldn't it? Right… there was a parade not too long ago and the streets were crowded. But that should be over now.

"Aito, why don't you join us? I think it's safer to explore in a group." Nanako suggested. He nodded, and the girl smiled. "Excellent! While we eat maybe we can try to gather what we know?"

Breakfast was filled with speculation and broken memories. As Cyrus, Oharu, and Nanako explained their sides of the story, they realized everyone shared a vital piece of information: they were all attending student orientation, but they can't remember the headmaster's face. After that… nothing. They woke up in their nice hotel rooms with an ebook by their side.

Cyrus frowned. "This can't be a coincidence. Our last memory is too specific, yet…"

"Yet we have no idea how or why we're here." Nanako continued. "And my head is starting to hurt just thinking about it." Aito felt a small pinch of pain as well, but he ignored it seeing he was used to bodily aches.

Once they finished their meals, there was a quick discussion whether to explore the basement or go outside. Nanako timidly expressed her concern for going to dark, cold, and underground places, while Cyrus said he felt there would be more answers outside. Oharu seemed excited to try the basement, but after Aito said he would rather go outside the decision was final.

But the second they stepped outside, Aito was sure he was still dreaming. A crooked banner with sloppy font hung on top of a crudely built building that was named 'town hall'. It was covered in splatters of pink and green paint and was supported with broken pillars. The pavement leading to it was an array of disorienting colors and patterns, while the trees were draped with toilet paper and egg shells. On the other side of the hotel was a blocked metal bridge with a sign reading 'Do Not Enter'. Scattered on the streets were broken cars and litter.

Despite the outdoor setting, there were no animals or sounds of people to be found. Aito stared at the absurdly blue sky and perfect puffed clouds. There was definitely something off about it.

"What the hell is this…?" Oharu asked as she stood in front of Town Hall. She touched the walls and immediately pulled her hand away. "I-it's blood!"

What?! Aito stepped back as he covered his mouth. The amount of blood splattered on the building was so inhumane. How many people were hurt for this mess to appear?

She wiped her hands on her clothes. "Gross, gross, gross!"

Nanako stayed behind Aito. "T-that's disgusting…"

"Hey! Is everything okay?"

Two more teenagers approached them, very concerned from Oharu's screams. One of them, a female with a scar on her eye and a red armband, approached her and looked at her hands, as if inspecting if Oharu was hurt. Cyrus stood by Oharu's side, waiting to see if this was help or confrontation.

The other student wore a blue suit with brown oxford shoes. He had both his ears pierced and hair slicked back. He walked over to the building and inspected what Oharu touched. "What the… it's blood."

"That's why I was screaming! W-why is there blood on that building?"

The girl inspected the building as well. "It's still a little fresh. This was done recently…"

Cyrus shook his head. "How recently? While we were sleeping in our rooms?"

The suited teen turned to them. "You were in that hotel too?"

Nanako nodded. "We all were. But we have no idea why."

The two looked at each other, before the girl sighed. "We found some other students and received the same information."Aito looked at the ground, feeling frustrated with the lack of news. "But since we haven't met, name's Tetsuko Shirogane."

"And I'm Ryunosuke, Ryunosuke Fukuzawa. I know my name is long so you can just call me Ryu."

"Are you two also students of Hope's Peak Academy?" Nanako asked.

Ryu answered. "Yes, at least I believe so. I have an ebook even though I'm sure I haven't attended any classes. I was accepted as the Ultimate Secret Service Spy. But, I'm not your average spy." He concluded with a wink. Oharu and Nanako blushed slightly and then giggled, while Tetsuko rolled her eyes.

"I'm the Ultimate Sukeban. Stay on my good side and we won't have problems. Mr. Spy here is teetering on the edge though."

With his hand to his chest, Ryu dramatically swayed. "I have done nothing wrong!" This got more giggles from Oharu and Nanako, which only made Tetsuko and Cyrus sigh. Aito had his eyes turned away, trying not to blush as well. It couldn't be helped though that Ryu was a very handsome guy, but there was no way in hell he was going to admit that out loud to anyone.

2 New Students have been added!

Tetsuko Shirogane
Ultimate Sukeban

Ryunosuke Fukuzawa
Ultimate Secret Service Spy

10 More Students to Find!

Their laughter was silenced when a loud shriek pierced through the streets. What the hell was that? Aito thought.

"It came from the hotel!" Tetsuko announced as she took a running start. Everyone else followed in pursuit, afraid and unsure what they would find in this cryptic town.

Author's Note: I apologize for this abrupt ending. Seeing as finals are approaching for me I know I wouldn't be able to upload a full chapter for another 2 weeks, and I want readers to know that this story is alive and will be updated regularly once I'm on winter break.

Confused? Good! All questions will be answered as the story progresses. I hope this first chapter of introductions was satisfactory enough.

Thank you to those who submitted their OCs in this chapter:

Ebony Sword: Aito (Ultimate Snowboarder)

Shadowclanwarrior: Cyrus and Oharu (Ultimate Violinist and Volleyball player)

dashunterman: Tetsuko (Ultimate Sukeban)

Hell Devil 13: Ryunosuke (Ultimate Secretive Service Spy)

Mikuridaigo: Nanako (Ultimate Writer)