Natsuka Hakanai had died.
She was certain of it, more certain than she had been a lot of things in her recent life. Or at least, she had been dying. She could recall the weight of paralysis on her limbs, how it slowed her heart and stilled her lungs. She distinctly remembered her vision going blurry, struggling to keep her eyes open; trying to command her body to breathe, to live.
She thought of her classmates, both those gone and those remaining, and although her tear ducts would not allow her to sob, she cried for them. She cried for herself, how horrid it was to die in the stuffiness of a tiny room - more prison than anything else, to die without seeing the stars again, without breathing fresh air.
At that moment, she died. There had been nothing left.
So why was she alive?
Was that even the proper question? Should she ask how she was alive or maybe where she was instead?
She could feel the grass beneath her. Above her, as her eyes opened to adjust to the light, the sky was just beginning to bleed into evening.
Outside.
She was outside. Not in the artificial greenhouse pretending that the light beaming through the glass panels was the sun, but actually outside.
That shouldn't be possible.
Did the others escape? Did they carry her here and run to find help? Was it all a dream?
She had far too many questions and it was almost dizzying. It didn't make sense. Granted, being in a killing game had never made sense either but at least it had continuity, at least she could trace the steps of her life and follow every single decision that led her there.
Dying and suddenly waking up didn't really have that same flow.
Natsuka took a deep breath, inhaling the smell of pollen and dirt, and let her fingers dig into the ground, taking solace in the way she could unfurl her fingers without issue, how her lungs no longer protested under an invisible weight. It certainly felt like she was alive.
Maybe the afterlife then? She had never been one to think about what could come after death, but she couldn't think of another solution.
As she began to fully come to her senses, she could register the faint sound of footsteps and voices. The last time something like that had happened her whole class had found themselves trapped in a building with no way out.
Panicked, Natsuka stood up and prepped herself to run, wobbling on legs that felt like they hadn't been used in years. Yet when she turned around to face the noise she just found…people. Not mysterious assailants out to get her, or familiar faces, but random people slowly milling about.
Behind those people, further in the background a building loomed. It almost looked like a smaller Hope's Peak, even adorned with the signature emblem, the very sight of which made her blood chill because when she looked at that jagged mark, she only saw Monokuma's eye. Some of the windows were open, revealing more people wandering around inside, but a select few were boarded up in a terrifyingly familiar way - with sheets of metals and large bolts, just like they had been in that prison of a building.
Her eyes traveled downward to the large door of the building, swung open wide to allow a steady stream of people to come and go. Above it, grand brassy letters spelt out "HOPE'S PEAK MUSEUM '' which Natsuka was certain had never been something that existed. Just above the letters was a banner made out of plasticky canvas strung up on the corners of the building. She could make out the text "Special Exhibit: 10 Years After the Mutual Killing Game."
Her body almost gave in on itself.
10 years? Last time she checked it had been a day, maybe even less. And although Ultimates were talented kids they certainly weren't inventing time machines, or revival machines, or some weird combination of the two.
The same questions from earlier swirled around in her mind: where, why, how?
Natsuka brought a hand up to her chest to quell the pounding of her heart only to realize she could feel nothing.
She didn't have a heartbeat at all.
A/N: Hi! Nice to meet you! Maybe you know me, maybe you don't. I've been in the SYOC community for a very, very long time now, like the better half of a decade (which is kind of insane to think about). And I've spent all of that time submitting to syocs without ever making one of my own. They're a pretty large undertaking and I think I may finally have enough time on my hands to try and tackle one!
Now, if you read the little prologue, which I hope you'll did, you'll probably notice that this isn't a standard SYOC, and you probably have a lot of questions, so I want to provide some story setting and context so you don't get confused when developing your ocs:
Setting: This story takes place in a world 10 years after the Mutual Killing Game. Splintered by circumstances, the survivors of the events have spent the decade avoiding each other, only to be brought back by a bizarre situation: one of their classmates who died in the games has come back as a ghost, bringing with her the painful past they've all been trying to leave behind.
That being said, there will be lots of flashbacks and allusions to the past so that dead ultimates also get plenty of screen time
Additional Info: This story is going to take place in a world where the Mutual Killing Game has been heavily sensationalized and commodified. It's going to be a mirror depiction of how our society often treats tragedies and similar events, which I want to explore. Think of how the true crime community is a multi-million dollar industry, how there are hundreds of videos, books, movies etc… about specific cases and killers. Or how a lot of tragic events are quick to become trends and memes on social media.
It's going to be a major focus, so please keep that in consideration when making your OCs. They're…gonna be going through it lol.
Another thing to keep in mind: In this world the Mutual Killing Game was 1) Broadcast worldwide and 2) Not resolved voluntarily i.e the survivors were rescued/broken out before they got to see the full thing through like you do in the video games.
Shoutouts: Before I go any further I want to give a huge shoutout to my inspirations for this SYOC: Anohana, and all of TheRoseShadow21's brilliant SYOCs which I have been so privileged to be a part of, and love deeply.
Rules: Let's lay down some rules :)
1) Canon talents are welcome! This is a world where the og killing games never happened, and I don't plan to bring in canon characters. That being said please make them unique and put your own spin on them. I'm not going to accept a detective that's a carbon copy of Kirigiri.
2) No mary sues, or perfect characters, whatever you want to call them. Please give your characters flaws and 3-d personalities. They should be very human.
3) As a follow up please don't make them absolutely degenerate or depraved. I've seen some of the talents and backstories people come up with and know that if I find your character crosses boundaries in trying to be controversial or edgy or whatever, I'm not gonna accept them.
4) Items in parenthesis in the form can be deleted. You don't even have to follow them to a t, they're just there for guidance.
5) Please PM me your form! No review submissions, in this house we like to withhold information from the audience to reveal it at the right time for dramatic effect.
6) If your form is longer than one PM, please send the rest of it in the same PM, not a new one.
7) The only PM subject line requirement I have is that you tell me what kind of oc you are submitting (survivor, victim, killer)
8) Do not recycle ocs. I will accept ocs that were rejected from stories, but please do not send me ocs that have already been in someone else's story, unless it's a discontinued story and a) your character was never introduced or b) you got permission. If this is the case please disclose it to me :)
9) Please send a maximum of three ocs! If sending multiple, you are welcome to connect two of them to each other (if you really think you 100% need all three ocs to be connected, please PM me and we can talk about it)
10) Although I am not quite sure how many ocs I'm going to accept, please note there will be more dead student slots available than survivors.
11) There are two different forms, one is for survivors which involves two parts (past and present), the other is for the dead, make sure you get the right form. Both will be on my profile so you can copy-paste
12) Make sure to read the above setting and additional info it is very important as this is an unconventional SYOC
Deadline: I am currently setting the deadline for this as end of day, August 11th, with a one day grace period since time zones are wonky. I will provide extensions upon request!
However, I am hoping to treat this as a rolling sort of admission. Not necessarily first come first serve, but I may accept some OCs early if I feel they are a good fit.
All in all, go crazy! I'm really excited to do this. See ya soon!
Forms and a running list of submitted talents will be below:
Survivor Sheet
1) Ultimate Days: please fill out this section as you would when your character was an ultimate, 10 years ago
~General Info:
First Name:
Last Name:
Nicknames: (or alias' or code names etc…)
Tied To: (if you are submitting more than one character, such as a survivor and a victim and they are tied to each other in some way)
Age:
Birthday: month, date
Nationality:
Ethnicity: (if different from above)
Gender and Pronouns:
Sexual Orientation:
Talent: (if talent is obscure, please provide me a little blurb on what it entails!)
Physical Appearance: (please provide detail here on your character's physical appearance, basically anything but clothes. Things like build, skin color, eye color, hair color and style, facial features etc… any other noticeable features such as scars, tattoos and so on)
Clothing:
-Casual Clothing: (what your character wears on a day to day basis, like a default outfit.)
-General Style: (what style of clothing your character likes, colors etc… so I have an idea of what to put your character in when they change)
-Nightwear:
-Formal wear:
-Swim wear:
-Other: (any other outfits you want to tell me about that don't fit elsewhere)
Accessories:
Personality: (please provide as much detail here as possible, and please make sure you character isn't perfect, everyone has personality flaws)
Quirks and Habits: (do they do anything weird? Do they fiddle with the hem of their clothes or have odd superstitions etc…)
Mental/Physical ailments: (optional)
Likes: (these are optional but helpful for details!)
Dislikes: (these are optional but helpful for details!)
Hobbies: (these are optional but helpful for details!)
Speech: (please include things such as tone of voice, how their voice flows (do they stutter or pause a lot? Or do they speak very smoothly), and what kind of words they use (do they have a big vocabulary? Do they curse?)
Quotes: (provide me some examples of how you imagine your character speaking! Whatever situation you want.)
History: (from birth up until they got accepted to Hope's Peak, please be sure to explain plenty in relation to how they found their talent and got scouted.)
Family/Friends: (at time of killing game, who were their family and friends, even lovers if they had any)
Life at Hope's Peak: (what was their time at Hope's Peak like? Maybe talk a little about their social circumstances, how they fit into the class, if they liked the school)
Thoughts on life after death: (did they believe in anything specifically?)
~Killing Game:
Reaction to being in a Killing Game: (i.e how did they take it when they found out what was going on, how did they process it?)
Strengths: (What would have made them stand out in a killing game?)
Weaknesses: (What would have made them a target?)
Reaction to body discovery/bodies: (how would your character react if they found and/or saw the dead bodies of their classmates?)
Role in investigation: (even as a survivor, please provide me both a guilty and innocent example)
Role in trial: (even as a survivor, please provide me both a guilty and innocent example)
Reaction to being accused: (even as a survivor, please provide me both a guilty and innocent example)
Reaction to witnessing execution: (even as a survivor, please provide me both a guilty and innocent example)
Secrets and other motives: (what would have driven them to kill? What could they be exploited with?)
Even though they survived please rank these roles from what they would have been most likely to least likely to be (with explanation please!): Victim, Killer, Traitor, Mastermind
2) Present Days
Current Age: (should be about 10 years older)
Name Changes: (Not required any changes to name such as transitioning, marriage, or trying to escape their past etc)
Appearance: (what has changed about their appearance? They are 10 years older so please take that into account. No need to repeat things that have stayed the same, just let me know what is different.)
Clothing: (again, if they changed their style or type of clothes they wear, please fill out the below)
-Casual Clothing: (what your character wears on a day to day basis, like a default outfit)
-General Style: what style of clothing your character likes, colors etc… so I have an idea of what to put your character in when they change)
-Nightwear:
-Formal wear:
-Swim wear:
-Other: (any other outfits you want to tell me about that don't fit elsewhere)
Accessories:
Personality: (again, any changes from their personality 10 years ago. They have gone through a major traumatic event and grown up as well).
Quirks and Habits: (did they pick up any new habits? Did they outgrow any old ones?)
Mental/Physical ailments: (anything they've developed because of what happened?)
Likes: (these are optional but helpful for details!)
Dislikes: (these are optional but helpful for details!)
Hobbies: (these are optional but helpful for details!)
Speech: (any change in the way they talk?)
Quotes: (provide me some examples of how you imagine your character speaking! Whatever situation you want.)
History: (from right after leaving the killing game to now, what have they been up to? Think of things like education, relationship status, job, living arrangements. Please make sure to include what they did with the talent that made them an ultimate, i.e whether they kept pursuing it or abandoned it.)
Family/Friends: (at present time, who were their family and friends, even lovers if they had any. Any changes from previous relationships?)
Would they keep in contact with the other survivors? (Please provide an explanation for whatever option they would've chosen. Please also provide info on if you think they'd get along with the other survivors.)
How do they grieve/live?: (How did/do they handle surviving that trauma, losing their friends, the lasting effects of that kind of thing. How have they been moving on?)
How do you think they'd be treated in the present?: (would they be loved? Vilified? Would there be some weird corner of the internet that idolizes them?)
Thoughts on life after death: (has this changed since the killing game?)
Attitude on the sensationalization of killing game: (this story takes place in a universe where the killing game became a major source of fascination to the world (think sort of like the true crime community). Think of a world where their story has been made into movies, documentaries, books and so so many other things. How do they feel about that? Do they hate it? Do they play into it for money and fame?)
Killing Game Secrets: (do they have anything they kept hidden, maybe a motive, maybe they were planning on killing before they were freed etc…)
Reaction to return of classmate: (how would they react if their dead classmate just appeared 10 years later, as if no time had passed)
Representative Flower: (Hanakotoba is the Japanese language of flowers, please look it up and let me know what flower you think represents your character best (ex Hydrangeas represent pride). If you don't want to do this, let me know and I'll assign one to your character.)
Other: (literally anything else you want to add that I haven't provided a space for. If you want to include things like voice actors or like aesthetics, songs you think match their vibe, literally anything go crazy lol.)
The Dead:
First Name:
Last Name:
Nicknames: (or alias' or code names etc…)
Tied To: (if you are submitting more than one character, such as a survivor and a victim and they are tied to each other in some way)
Age:
Birthday: month, date
Nationality:
Ethnicity: (if different from above)
Gender and Pronouns:
Sexual Orientation:
Talent: (if talent is obscure, please provide me a little blurb on what it entails!)
Physical Appearance: (please provide detail here on your character's physical appearance, basically anything but clothes. Things like build, skin color, eye color, hair color and style, facial features etc… any other noticeable features such as scars, tattoos and so on)
Clothing:
-Casual Clothing: (what your character wears on a day to day basis, like a default outfit.)
-General Style: (what style of clothing your character likes, colors etc… so I have an idea of what to put your character in when they change)
-Nightwear:
-Formal wear:
-Swim wear:
-Other: (any other outfits you want to tell me about that don't fit elsewhere)
Accessories:
Personality: (please provide as much detail here as possible, and please make sure your character isn't perfect, everyone has personality flaws.)
Quirks and Habits: (do they do anything weird? Do they fiddle with the hem of their clothes or have odd superstitions etc…)
Mental/Physical ailments:
Likes: (these are optional but helpful for details!)
Dislikes: (these are optional but helpful for details!)
Hobbies: (these are optional but helpful for details!)
Speech: (please include things such as tone of voice, how their voice flows (do they stutter or pause a lot? Or do they speak very smoothly), and what kind of words they use (do they have a big vocabulary? Do they curse?))
Quotes: (provide me some examples of how you imagine your character speaking! Whatever situation you want.)
History: (from birth up until they got accepted to Hope's Peak, please be sure to explain plenty in relation to how they found their talent and got scouted.)
Family/Friends: (at time of killing game, who were their family and friends, even lovers if they had any)
Life at Hope's Peak: (what was their time at Hope's Peak like? Maybe talk a little about their social circumstances, how they fit into the class, if they liked the school.)
Thoughts on life after death: (did they believe in anything specifically?)
~Killing Game:
Reaction to being in a Killing Game: (i.e how did they take it when they found out what was going on, how did they process it?)
Strengths: (What would have made them stand out in a killing game?)
Weaknesses: (What would have made them a target?)
Reaction to body discovery/bodies: (how would your character react if they found and/or saw the dead bodies of their classmates?)
Role in investigation: (guilty and innocent example)
Role in trial: (guilty and innocent example)
Reaction to being accused: (guilty and innocent example)
Reaction to witnessing execution: ( guilty and innocent example)
Secrets and other motives: (what would have driven them to kill? What could they be exploited with?)
Rank these roles from what they would have been most likely to least likely to be (with explanation please!): Victim, Killer, Traitor, Mastermind
Killer or Victim:
~For victims:
How did they die?:
How late into the game did they die?:
Why did the killer target them?:
What would their body and crime scene look like?:
~For killers:
How did they kill?:
How late into the game did they kill?:
How did they choose their target?:
Why did they kill?:
How did they try to get away with it?:
What was their reaction to getting caught?"
What was their execution like?:
~For both:
How would their families react to their death?: (ex: a victims family may have a far different reaction than a killers, or not, whatever you want)
How was their body dealt with?: (were they buried? Cremated? Did no one ever come to claim them?)
How do you think they'd be remembered in the present?: (would they be loved? Vilified? Would there be some weird corner of the internet that idolizes them?)
Family: (what is their family up to? How are they doing?)
Representative Flower: (Hanakotoba is the Japanese language of flowers, please look it up and let me know what flower you think represents your character best (ex Hydrangeas represent pride). If you don't want to do this, let me know and I'll assign one to your character.)
Other: (literally anything else you want to add that I haven't provided a space for. If you want to include things like voice actors or like aesthetics, songs you think match their vibe, literally anything go crazy lol.)
Current Submissions:
(submission numbers will seem a lil fucky due to some people submitting for more than one role)
Males: 15
Females: 17
Bigender: 1
Survivors: 17
Victims: 8
Killers: 11
Talents:
Ultimate Mercenary x1
Ultimate ? x1
Ultimate Origamist x1
Ultimate Videogame Speedrunner x1
Ultimate Violinist x1
Ultimate Character Actor x1
Ultimate Hacker x2
Ultimate Ballerino x1
Ultimate Robotics Engineer x1
Ultimate Muse x1
Ultimate Stunt Double x1
Ultimate Tactician x1
Ultimate Sous Chef x1
Ultimate Pet Detective x1
Ultimate Investigative Journalist x1
Ultimate Paleopathologist x1
Ultimate Flight Attendant x1
Ultimate Demolition Derby Driver x1
Ultimate Financial Advisor x1
Ultimate Tragedy Novelist x1
Ultimate Mariner x1
Ultimate Idol x1
Ultimate Travel Writer x1
Ultimate Emergency Dispatcher x1
Ultimate Vampire Hunter x1
Ultimate Prosecutor x1
Ultimate Thanatologist x1
Ultimate Guitarist x1
Ultimate Beekeeper x1
Ultimate Real Estate Agent x1
Ultimate Bodyguard x1
Ultimate Storm Chaser x1
Ultimate Cult Leader x1
Roster:
Survivors:
1. Chae-Won Kil, Ultimate Idol – submitted by Lupus Overkill
2. Akihisa Nagai, Ultimate Paleopathologist – submitted by TheRoseShadow21
3. Hikari Naruhodo, Ultimate Prosecutor – submitted by NSPunny
4. Katsuyuki Orisato, Ultimate Origamist – submitted by Prince PokePersona
5. Juri Otsuka, Ultimate Stunt Double – submitted by TheRoseShadow21
6. Tori Shimizu, Ultimate Ballerino – submitted by Abitat Eco
7. Komari Urashima, Ultimate Financial Advisor – submitted by I'm The Nep
Deceased:
Males:
1. Fujio Hashitaka, Ultimate Real Estate Agent – submitted by Prince PokePersona
2. Min-Su Hwang, Ultimate Defense Attorney – submitted by oddlyirregular
3. Yasu Ishikawa, Ultimate Robotics Engineer – submitted by Abitat Eco
4. Kouki Kitahoshi, Ultimate Cult Leader – submitted by Spyrorocks389
5. Hiro Suzuki, Ultimate Guitarist – submitted by NSPunny
6. Joachim Von Behrend, Ultimate Vampire Hunter – submitted by emberblitz321
7. Henry Wilson, Ultimate Mariner – submitted by SizeableRelic
Females:
1. Madoka Amai, Ultimate Flight Attendant – submitted by Orlando Butler
2. Arisa Arashi, Ultimate Storm Chaser – submitted by boots on the moon
3. Kiiroi Hachimitsu, Ultimate Beekeeper – submitted by viRal1nfection
4. Katherine Hakai, Ultimate Demolition Derby Driver – submitted by Orlando Butler
5. Natsuka Hakanai, Ultimate Kadoka – submitted by me
6. Michiru Hanashiro, Ultimate Muse – submitted by Prince PokePersona
7. Maki Hollis Ward, Ultimate Character Actor – submitted by TheRoseShadow21
Agender:
1. Miyabi Shimabukuro, Ultimate Travel Writer – submitted by Lupus Overkill